The Great Hero

            Chapter one; In Which Duo Arrives, and Other Characters Appear.

            By: the Angel of Death

            Disclaimer: not mine, everyone got that? Perfect! Have a good Monday!

            AN!: This isn't suppose to be a hardcore deeply emotional story, it's just good fun! So please kindly step around the plot holes and enjoy! =^_~=

~*~

            Duo woke up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He couldn't completely remember what happened… something about Quatre's house and a bottle… smoke maybe? He sighed in frustration, and looked around. He saw in all directions nothing but large groupings of old trees. A forest. This didn't look like any forest he had ever seen though, the trees, despite their age showed no sign of decay. He expected to hear the songs of birds, but instead heard strange growls and singing, neither belonged to any bird he had ever heard! The forest seemed timeless… almost magical.

He snorted, 'yeah right. I really doubt there's fairies and unicorns in there fighting off the evil dragon and wizards…I'm sure the forest is full of nasty animals just waitin' to eat me! Not enchant me!'

            "Ah damn!" he mumbled as he stood up and brushed the dust off his black cloak and pants. "Wait a second! I wasn't wearing this earlier!!" the first thing that entered Duo's mind was that to change clothing, he would have had to have been naked. He checked himself quickly… yep, completely naked. 'Uh-oh… I hope it was Hilde! Please God let it have been Hilde!' he thought as he examined his clothing more closely.

He wore a long black, sleeveless cloak that ended at his ankles. His shirt was also black, it had short sleeves, and little tabs on either side of it to tie it closed. Who ever had dressed Duo had seen fit to leave it open, exposing his broad chest. He wore loose black pants that were tucked into mid-calf black leather boots. Around his waist was a loose brown belt, that had small pockets stitched into it. 'Wonder what would fit in something so small?' he wondered as he looked at the inside of his cloak, finding it lined with more pockets of all shapes and sizes.

Duo, satisfied with what he was wearing, it was his colour after all! Decided to look about and walked around the forest clearing.

            He heard a ruffling noise from above him and looked up, hoping maybe it was someone with some answers.

            "Who be'est thou?" came a deep voice from the top most branches of the old tree.

            Duo looked up and saw only a pair of golden eyes gazing at him, the rest of the creature's body hidden by the darkness of the treetop. He felt uneasy, he had never seen such inhuman eyes. These seemed able to pierce his very soul, the idea alarmed him to say the least. "Umm, Duo Maxwell…" he said unsure of what his answer might mean.

            "Did thou say 'Maxwell? Be thou the Maxwell of yonder villa?" the voice asked.

            Duo wished the voice would speak normal English, he hadn't done very well on the Shakespeare part of his English classes the odd occasions he had gone to school. Not that he had gone all that often. He couldn't. He was always too busy flying around in space with the other Gundam pilots trying to save the world. Sadly, Duo's education took a back seat to that.

He had been lucky though, he had the most amazing girl friend on the planet. He didn't think he could live without Hilde, he was glad that he had ended up on the path he walked. Sure a proper education would have been nice, but he had real friends. People he would know for the rest of his life. He thought of the other guys for a second before realizing that the voice might be getting a little impatient.

He straightened and said; "I don't know. I just woke up." Thinking the voice might know more about what was going on then he did, Duo asked, "Where     am I?"

            "Thou knowest not? Ah, 'tis a grave misfortune that. One who lackest the knowledge of his whereabouts, 'oft knows not where he goes." The voice said.

            Duo swore the voice was doing that on purpose! He hadn't understood more then a few words that time, "Right… so anyways, where am I?"

            "Thou be'est in the Vanishing Forrest of the northern lands! How does it come to pass that a Maxwell possesses not this information?"

            "I don't know! Why is it so impressive that I'm a Maxwell!?" Duo was getting really annoyed by this point, "What are you anyways?!"

            The eyes in the tree blinked, then shut. Duo watched a blur flash by him as something landed at his feet.

            "Oh God…" Duo felt ready to faint when he saw the owner of the voice.

            Green, very green with golden horns, large wings, a tail with a single tipped plate on the end that was also gold, sharp pointy teeth, golden claws and very bad breath.

            Yes indeed this was a dragon.

            "You've got to be kidding me!" Duo yelled, he turned to the dragon, "There is no such thing as Dragons! And shouldn't you be bigger?!"

            True the dragon was only six feet long, not counting it's four foot long tail, "I am not fully matured as of yet!" now it sounded angry, "Thou ist rude! Rudeness to one of Magical Birth! 'tis not something to be takenest lightly!" the dragon barred it's golden teeth and growled at Duo.

            "Whoa!" Duo put his hands in front of him protectively, "Look, I'm sorry! I'm a little out of it! I don't even know where I am!" he said, backing away.

            The dragon snorted, steam escaping from it's nostrils. "Very well, thou shal'nt be my meal." The dragon stood taller, "I am called Wakai Ryu!" 

            Duo grinned, "Nice ta meet ya Wakai!"

            Wakai grinned, "And thou as well Sir Maxwell!"

            "Um, Wakai, any chance you could tone down the langue a bit? Sorry man, but you're makin my head hurt!"

            Wakai laughed, "As you wish, I only talk like that because the elders make us!" He sounded relived Duo didn't blame him. If he was forced to talk like that, a request not to would seem like the best thing in the world. Duo looked at the dragon as he continued, "So you really have no idea where you are?"

            "Not a clue!'

            "Hmmm, odd…" Wakai seemed deep in thought for a moment then looked up at Duo then into the forest, "Sir Maxwell, you are on a quest. If you head off in that direction," Wakai pointed to the left, " you will come to a pond. Wait there until you receive further instructions." Wakai spread his wings, and shook the pouch he wore around his neck off. He picked the leather pouch up delicately between two golden claws and handed it to Duo, "Take this. It contains several items you will need on your quest."

            Duo looked skeptical, the bag was no bigger then the palm of his hand. The pouch felt like it was made of leather, but softer. Duo really didn't want to know what snow-white creature had lost skin to make this beautiful pouch. On the front of it a small ivory(well Duo thought it was ivory) was carved in the shape of a crescent moon and sewn on. Smaller round beads of indigo surrounded it. He didn't think that there could be a heck of a lot of useful things in it, but he said nothing.

            Wakai turned and walked a little ways away from Duo before spreading his massive wings, "Good luck Sir Maxwell! And remember, above all else; when you receive advice, follow it!" with that Wakai flew off into the mid day sky leaving Duo very confused.

            "HEY!! Wait!! Come back!" Duo yelled at Wakai's retreating form, "Damnit! Now what?"

            'Follow advice…. That's what Wakai said…' Duo thought about it for a second, "Ah why not? Beats standing around here." With that Duo headed in the direction the dragon had indicated with a sigh. He hopped he wouldn't be stuck wandering around a deep dark forest for very long. He was hungry.

~*~

            After several hours of walking, Duo had yet to reach the pond Wakai had told him about. "So much for following advice…" he mumbled out loud as he sat down on a large rock and placed his head in his hands.

            Suddenly he felt the rock shake slightly, and a young man's voice seemed to come from beneath him.

            "I realize you're upset sir, but could you GET OFF ME!!!"

            Duo screamed and fell in a heap to the ground. Looking at the rock he saw a young boy's facial features appear in the rock. "Who… Who are you..!?" Duo said as he finally got up enough nerve to crawl back to the rock.

            "I'm a prince!" the rock-boy said cheerfully, "Well, I was until my fairy god mother decided that she wanted to rule and cast me into another dimension." He finished with a sigh, "She is a kind person deep down though."

            "Right…. I'm sure she is, but umm… why are you in a rock?" Duo asked, thinking the boy was completely insane.

            "Oh! I can appear in this dimension through certain objects. This rock that has caught the blood of a Unicorn and a Griffon, umm the Green Flame that can only be called upon if a person skilled in magic has the Jade Scale. Stuff like that. I'm really not a rock." The rock-boy smiled.

            "That actually makes a little sense, but why are you here now?" Duo asked, he was starting to wonder about this place.

            "I'm waiting for Mr. Maxwell. Mr. Wakai Ruy told me to give him directions when he reached the Golden Pond." The rock-boy paused for a second and studied Duo carefully, "You wouldn't happen to be Mr. Maxwell, would you?"

            Duo nodded, "That's me! So where's this pond?"

            The rock-boy laughed in delight, "Oh! I'm so glad I found you Mr. Maxwell! I have only been here for two hours! I was beginning to think I'd missed you! And wouldn't that be horrible! Could you imagine, having to wander alone on your quest with no idea where to head next? The very idea!"

            "Right.. well I'm glad you found me, now about this pond..?"

            "Oh! Of course! Forgive me, I have a habit of talking very quickly when excited." The rock-boy seemed to pick up on Duo's growing desire to hurt him because he continued, "The pond, of course! It's just up ahead beyond that large tree!"

            Duo nodded, "Thanks." He was about to leave when the rock-boy spoke again.

            "Oh! You can't go yet! I have to give you instructions or Mr. Wakai Ryu will get angry!" he said, he really sounded afraid of the young dragon Duo had befriended. Duo was beginning to think that maybe that hadn't been such a good idea.

            "Anyway, it was entrusted to me to tell you how to use the Unicorn's Pouch around your next and direct you to Miss Sally. She is expecting you, you know." Duo was getting impatient again, "The pouch, of course! It's simple! You tell it what you want, close your eyes, rube the piece of horn and poof! It's there! This pouch can create anything, but you have to be polite to it or it won't work!" The rock-boy looked sad for a moment, "There's only a hundred of those that were made, all from the same poor Unicorn! Don't you find it cruel to kill such a beautiful creature? Just thinking about it makes me want to cry!" the rock-boy sniffed a couple of times, then composed himself.

            "Oh! And Miss Sally! You have to go to the other side of the pond, walk twenty minutes to the north, then you'll see mountains starting. Walk towards the mountains until you reach a house. Miss Sally is waiting for you!" he finished with a smile, under his breath Duo swore he heard the rock mutter, "…in Heero's words, 'mission accomplished'…" But he couldn't be sure.

            "Thank you… uuh…I still don't know you're name…." Duo apologized.

            The rock-boy smiled, "It's Prince Quatre! Good luck Mr. Maxwell! I know you'll do well!" with that the boy's face became a rock face once again and Duo was left alone.

            "Well, now that I know how this thing works…!" he said as he pulled the Unicorn's Pouch off his neck and rubbed the horn fragment, he closed his eyes and said, "I really want a full course meal!"

            "Mmmm no." came a feminine voice from the pouch.

            "HEY! Why not?" Duo wined, "I'm really hungry!"

            "You sir are just not polite!" the pouch complained.

            "If I say please will you forgive me?" he pleased.

            The pouch said nothing, the pink glow that was coming from the horn fragment had stopped glowing. Duo sighed, he was really really hungry! He rubbed the horn again and said, "I'm really sorry! Please PLEASE make me a full course meal? PLEASE?!" he sounded so desperate that the pouch couldn't help but laugh.

            "Pathetic! HAHAHA!" she made a sound as though she was clearing her throat, "Alright Duo Maxwell! Just this once I'll forgive you! But next time… next time you'd better be polite to unicorns! Even if they are dead!" there was a puff of pink smoke and a large full course meal appeared before him.

            "Oh, and by the way! My name is Lady Une! You sir will call me that from now on, or I will refuse to grant your requests!" with a bright flash of pink the horn's glow faded and then disappeared all together.

            "Geez… How did I get stuck with such a touchy magic pouch…?" he grumbled as he began to eat the semi burnt food Lady Une had left for him. 'This is what I get for being rude isn't it? Flat, warm coke…. Dumb pouch…' he had half a mind to dump it in the pond when he finally got to it, whenever that may be.

            He started on his soggy salad and began to think about this sudden, strange, turn of events. He tried to remember exactly how he had come to be in this place. He concentrated, and was finally able to come up with half a story.

~*~

            "Quatre man! This is the best party yet!" Duo laughed as he drowned his first, but most definitely not last beer of the evening.

            Hilde stood beside him and raised her beer in a toast, "Yeah! Here's to having insanely rich friends!"  Everyone whooped and drowned their beers, or in Quatre's case coke.

            The party continued long into the night, Duo had found another liquor stash in the library and proceeded to sample as many bottles as possible. Hilde always at his side.

            "I'm gonna beat ya this time babe!" Duo said, surprisingly coherent for someone who had drunk as much as he had.

            "No way Shini-baby! Your ass is so mine!" she said as she finished off another bottle. And promptly passed out.

            "Ah nuts! Babe! Wake up! It's no fun playin' alone!" he wined as he moved closer to her. "Hey! I know this! You're that sleepin' chick right? 'nd I'm the super hot prince thingy that has to wake you up!" he proceeded to kiss Hilde, only to frown when she didn't wake up. "Heyyy! That's not how the story ends! Babe you're not playin' right!" he complained, "If ya don't get up I'm gonna tell Quatre! He'll make ya play fair!" Duo stood on shaky legs and walked up the stairs to Quatre's new 'game room'.

Black spot

            "Hey!! Look! It's that lamp thingy from that movie! Y'know? The one with the big blue thingy?" Duo asked as he took the lid off the oil lamp, "Hellllloooo? Big blue guy? You in there?" Duo pouted as nothing came out.

            "Hey Quatre! You're big blue guy holder's broke! He's not commin' out!" Duo wined as he began shaking the lamp.

            "Duo, where did you get that?" Quatre asked with worry as Duo began to rub the lamp.

            "The locked thing. It was locked so I smashed it." He said matter of fact as he continued to rub the lamp.

            Then something amazing happened, something that would alter history as we know it.

            Quatre swore.

            "Shit! Duo! NO!!!"  he dove at Duo, trying to knock the lamp out of his hands, but he was too slow and there was a puff of green smoke.

Black spot

            The only other thing Duo remembered saying was, "I wanna be the really hot guy thingy that wakes Hilde up!" There was another puff of green smoke and Duo's world turned black.

~*~

            "Wait a minute! That makes no sense!" Duo grumbled as he rubbed his temples. "There's no such thing as Genies right? They only exist in Disney movies right? RIGHT?! Ah man, I'm losin' it! Shinnigami has finally gone insane." He said as he flopped backwards on the grass.

            He gazed up at the sky for nearly an hour when the pouch around his neck started to glow again.   

            "Ah damnit! Now what?" he demanded.   

            "Hmph! Aren't we in a rare mood." Lady Une said, Duo just grumbled and she continued, "Lazy Duo when are you going to get around to seeing Sally? I'm certain she won't be happy at having been kept waiting by a young boy." She finished, as though it was of no consequence to her, and as far as Duo knew it wasn't.

            But he on the other hand…

            "AH!!!! NO! I'm late!" he stopped for a second, "I think I'm late!! I don't even know what I might be late for!" he was about to start running in the direction Quatre had indicated, when Lady Une spoke up again, "Hold it! You sir will clean up this mess! If I HAVE to be stuck with you I'd rather you cleaned up after yourself." She mumbled something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like 'pig'.

            Duo cleaned up faster then he had ever cleaned in his life and ran like a mad man towards the pond.

            ~*~

            Panting and out of breath, Duo arrived at the pond an hour latter. He fell onto the ground in a heap and waited to catch his breath before finally standing up again.  'Hmph, well this puddle certainty deserves it's name…' he thought as he admired the sheer golden coloured water of the pond. 'Wonder how it got like that…?' he thought as he looked around. Another clearing, a crystal clear stream feed into the pond and then disappeared into the distance on either side of him.

            "So, what was I suppose to do again? Get to the pond… ummm…. Some other stuff…. Miss Sally! Ha! It makes perfect sense!" he grinned as he began to plan out a step by step plan, "Step one: Get to pond. Step two:… Step three: Miss Sally! Who ever that is!" he laughed out loud, proud of himself for remembering all that information.

            "Ok! Now how do I get to Miss Sally's place?" he looked to the left, then to the right. He looked in front of him, then behind.

            Eventually Duo just closed his eyes and spun around until he pointed in one of the directions he was certain he had not come from.

            South.

~*~

            Duo walked happily, knowing that he was finally on his way to getting some answers. He was already pretty sure that some of the people he had met there should have been familiar to him. But he couldn't place them.

            'Weird….' He thought as he finally approached a small stone house. He looked around for the mountains Quatre had spoken of, but found none. 'Maybe I went in the wrong direction…?' he thought before dismissing the idea. He hadn't been in any danger yet. What were the odds of something really bad happening to him this far into his journey. He had already met a dragon, a talking rock and a moody pouch.

            "And 'sides, what could possibly be worse then traveling with Lady Une?" he said with a laugh. 

            What Duo didn't know is that he had just brought the worst evil of them all on himself….

            Irony….

            Duo approached the house and knocked on the old wooden door, "Hello? Miss Sally? Ya in there?" he asked as he continued to bang on the door.

            After a few minutes the door open to revile a young man with dark hair pulled into a ponytail and slanted black eyes. He was dressed in a cloak of midnight blue that was fastened in the front, as to conceal any other clothing the man might be wearing.

            "Who are you, " the man looked Duo over, "peasant?"

            Duo frowned, "Hey, no need to be mean buddy, I just wanna know if that Miss Sally girl is here."

            The other man's eyes widened slightly, "Injustice! Why must you bring up that woman's name in my presence!" he growled.

            "Duo was taken aback, "Whoa… sorry man, I'm just lookin' for her like the rock guy and the dragon told me to! Ya don't have ta be so nasty!" Duo said as he took a few steps back. "I'm guessin she's not here, so I'll take off." He turned to leave when the other man's voice stopped him.

            "A dragon sent you?" he inquired.

            "Yeah, Wakai."

            "Wakai Ruy…." The other man trailed off, a far away look in his eyes. After a moment he seemed to come back to reality and turned to walk back inside his house, "Come inside, I need to speak to you, but touch anything. ANYTHING. And I will have to kill you."   

            Duo shrugged and followed his not so nice companion inside.

            "So, why does talking about that Miss Sally make ya so… uhh… angry?" Duo asked as he sat down at a table in the center of the main room.

            In the corner was a larger hearth with a blazing fire. Suspended above that was a large cauldron. Duo noted the walls were lined with book and various weapons, some Duo had never seen before. They all seemed to be blades of once kind or another though. Nothing more advanced then the sword. Against one wall was a shelf of nothing but strange bottles and boxes. Some looked so odd that even Duo didn't want to know what was in them.

            Duo's host looked up at the mention of the name again, it seemed he was in pain when ever Duo said it, "It is none of your business weakling. Only the great hero who has come to save us from the greatest evil this world has ever faced may gain that knowledge."

            Duo smirked, "Would that great hero's name happen to be Maxwell?" he asked.

            The other man's eyes became wide, "You must be joking, you cannot be the one to save us." The man walked over to a bookshelf, after selecting a very old, well read book and leafing though it. He slammed the book shut with a frown and looked up to the sky.

            "INJUSTICE!!!!!" He screamed so loud that Duo winced and covered his ears. "Why did they have to send this weakling?!" the man demanded as he shoved the book back into it's place.

            As soon as the man stopped Duo rubbed his poor ears and gave him a strange look, "So yeah, make with some answers."

            The man looked Duo over once again, he looked at the pouch around Duo's neck and then moved closer to Duo. Much to Duo's surprise he flipped open the 'great hero's' cloak and looked at one of the inside pockets. "That's odd…. The golden thread isn't there… how could he have gotten here….no……..

That's not there either" he said as he looked at Duo's boots."….well what about…?" the man looked at Duo's belt, then back at his face, "You idiot, where are your other items? You are missing six of them!" the man demanded.

            "What other items? I just got here!!" he protested.

            "You mean, you haven't been to see Sally or the others yet?"

            Duo shook his head, "Nope! Other then Wakai and that rock guy Quatre, you're the only person I've met!"

            The man groaned and placed his head in his hands, "You moron! Don't you listen to instructions when they are given?!"

            "I did! Quatre said to go to the pond and find Sally. I did, are you Sally?" he asked, not seeing how the man in front of him could possibly be a woman.. unless Miss Sally was a man? That didn't make sense, 'Besides, he reasoned, this guy freaks out when I say her name…'

            "No you idiot! My name is Chang Wuffie! I am- well never mind what I am. That will be reviled at the proper time. For now, the only thing you need to know is that you went in the completely wrong direction! Idiot! You went SOUTH instead of NORTH! How dense could one person be?" he growled, he did not sound happy about Duo's mix up.

            "Heyy! It's not my fault I got lost ok?!" he shouted as he jumped out of his chair, "I've never been here before so just BACK OFF!!"

            Wuffie seemed surprised at the out burst, then an emotion that resembled admiration crossed his face, "Hmm…, perhaps you are not the weakling I once thought you were." Wuffie crossed the room and took a jar off a shelf and brought it to the table where Duo was seated.

            "Since you have actually proven that you have a back bone, I'll send you to Sally's house. On one condition."

            Duo perked up at the idea of not having to walk anymore, "Sure! What is it?"

            Wuffie snapped his fingers and the jar was wrapped and a sealed envelope adorned it, "You take this to her. I cannot give you your item yet, since they have to be given at certain times. But I will help you get back on track."

            Duo was confused, "Items? What do I need with 'items'?"

            Wuffie sighed, and mumbled, "I will destroy that pansy Quatre. He was suppose to explain all this…" to Duo he said, "You are on a quest. Why will be revealed to you at the end, when all trials are completed. Along the way, you will hopefully meat up with several people, or creatures, that will assist you by giving you items passed down through their family lines since the time of the last Great Hero 500 years ago. These items, such as the Unicorn Pouch, will be of great use to you in the future." He paused for a moment and his gaze darkened, "Of course, as in all things there will be obstacles for you to face, enemies to defeat and so on. These items will not only help you accomplish your quest faster, but will aid in the defeat of those who would harm you."

            Duo didn't seem to like the sound of that, "Foes? Who? How do I tell the good guys from the bad?"

            Wuffie shrugged, "I don't know! I'm not the fortuneteller idiot! Just use your judge of character!" he said with a snort, "Now! If you don't mind! I have things to do before I can be ready for our next meeting." He said as he stood and walked to the door behind Duo, the jar in his hands.  "Do not forget to give this to Sally when you arrive." He said as he placed the jar in Duo's pocket.

            Duo nodded, "Sure thing man, I'll tell her it's from you with love!" he grinned.

            Wuffie blanched, "You…. You…!" he turned red and stuck a finger out towards the north, "Get out of my sight!" In a puff of smoke Duo was gone, and Wuffie's house was out of sight.

            Duo slammed into a rather large tree and tried in vain to catch the tweetie birds flying around his head.

            When he finally came to his senses Duo found himself in the garden of a nice looking house. There was a white picket fence and rose gardens all around it. Even if the roses were black, the idea was nice. 

            The house itself couldn't have been any cleaner. Duo couldn't find a single speck of dust anywhere he looked. "Man, there's something seriously wrong with this Sally chick…" he mumbled to himself as he approached the door.

            "Why is that?" asked a whinny voice from Duo's feet.

            "AHHH!!!!" Duo jumped three feet in the air before composing himself and looking down. "Oh you're kidding me!!!"

            "I think I may just resent that, well I would, if I didn't know for a fact that you are a kind person." The flower looked at him with a smile.

            "Quatre, why are you a flower?" Duo asked, he was really starting to wonder about that boy.         

            "Oh! I can appear anywhere on Miss Sally's property!" he said cheerfully.

            Duo knelt down and tried not to laugh at the fact that he was talking to the only pink rose in the entire garden, "Why is that?"

            "Oh! I can't tell you! Only Miss Sally and her closest friends like Mr. Chang, you've met him right? Why didn't you go the way I told you to? Did you forget? Ah that's ok, not everyone is perfect! But everyone is a kind person." Quatre became a little side tracked and after Duo reminded him what was going on he continued, "Oh! But now you have to go met her! You have already wasted enough time! Please hurry before you waste more time then we can afford." With that Quatre's face disappeared and the rose returned to it's normal black colour.

            "That makes me wonder…." Duo laughed and stood up, he approached the door, and with out future ado, knocked.

~*~

End chapter one!!!