Chapter 4 - Quatre's Retaliation
Trowa sensed
something was amiss, but dismissed it as another soldier came at him. Quickly dispatching the thug, he looked
around. Each of his friends was engaged
in battle with one or more soldiers.
The soldier's numbers quickly became larger as hidden reinforcements ran
from the abandoned buildings to help their comrades. What began as twelve trained soldiers quickly became thirty.
Duo and Hilde
were holding their own. Many of their
fallen assailants littered the ground around them.
Trowa could not
even see Heero and Wufei in the press of bodies that surrounded them. He could hear, though, the sounds of pain
that their enemies uttered when a blow would strike them.
Most of the
original soldiers were either out of commission or had fled. Trowa looked around him a second time. What was he forgetting?
It came to him at
once. Quatre! Where was he?
"Heero! Where's Quatre?!" Trowa asked the Japanese pilot as Heero
dispatched another assailant.
Heero looked at
Trowa. "I thought he was with
Hilde."
Trowa shook his
head and gestured towards Duo. Hilde
was fighting the last of the soldiers off with Duo.
Heero turned to
Wufei, who had just sent the last of the soldiers screaming from the
companions. "We have to find
Quatre. He could be in trouble."
Wufei simply
nodded. Turning in the direction they
had come from, they were stunned to see a large group of soldiers. At least 15 strong. All were in an offensive circle.
In the center was
Quatre.
* * * * *
Quatre viewed his
adversary with apprehension. It was one
thing to declare his intentions. It was
quite another to act them out.
Shut up, you idiot!
This is what you've been training for! His mind
berated as the fear and uneasiness took hold.
Starting a calming technique Rashid told him of, he became calm after a
moment.
Determination
replaces his fear. He will not become a
liability! He will pull his weight,
just like one of the others. Heero and
Wufei grew up as warriors. I may have
grown-up as a pacifist, but I think my actions during the war have shown that I
no longer adhere to that policy. There
are times when fighting is necessary.
And I will not let these goons kill me!
These thoughts
race through Quatre's mind in a matter of seconds. In front of him, his enemy leers, anticipating a quick
victory. Without warning, the soldier
lunges at Quatre, intent on strangling him.
Quatre sidesteps
the lunge and blocks the man's hands away with an upraised arm. The man glares with undisguised hatred at
his adversary.
A shout alerts
the man to a comrade behind him. He
turns quickly, just in time to catch a weapon one of his men throws to
him. The weapon, a long slim metal
pipe, was strong enough to bash a man's skull.
Quatre eyed the
piece of metal in his adversary's hands.
It wasn't any longer than the practice swords that Rashid used in their
practices. Quatre stepped back and
reached into a hidden sheath in his vest.
The vest was bulky and concealed his movements until his hands came
away. In each hand, he held a knife.
Not just any
knife, however. These were ancient
daggers. The blade on each was almost
as long as his forearm. They were
deadly weapons. Even more so in
practiced hands.
The leader looked
in shock at Quatre. Uneasy, he asked,
"Where did you get those, boy?"
When Quatre didn't answer, the man's shock shifted to irritation then
anger. Who was this upstart boy to
challenge him?
Roaring in anger,
he attacked Quatre.
* * * * *
Trowa and Heero
stopped dead in their tracks when they saw Quatre brandish a couple of knives.
"Where did
he get those from?" Heero asked
aloud as he watched the man and Quatre circle each other.
"Forget
that! Where did he learn to use
them?!" said Duo as he, Hilde and Wufei joined the others.
Trowa just stared
in amazement. He didn't know when
Quatre had learned such techniques, but he was obviously holding his own.
"Shouldn't
we help him?" Hilde asked with
concern as the man took a swipe at Quatre, narrowly missing his head.
Wufei shook his head. "No.
Their locked in combat now.
Nothing could help either one."
The others
silently agreed. Quatre was on his
own. They watched the battle intently,
waiting for any sign that Quatre was in need of aid.
* * * * *
When the soldier
took a swing at Quatre's skull, Quatre's fear dissipated and his reflexive
combat skills took over. The hours and
hours of drills with Rashid had done their work.
Quatre's right
foot shifted behind him and his body shifted with his foot. The pipe narrowly missed him by inches. Bringing his daggers in a defensive
position, he feinted to the right. The
soldier, thinking to end it quickly, brought the pipe up to smack the dagger
out of Quatre's hand.
Anticipating
this, Quatre shifted his jab quickly to the left. Not expecting such a quick response, the soldier failed to defend
his left side adequately. The dagger
bit deeply into his left side, slicing his uniform and drawing blood.
The man gasped,
more from the surprise of the thrust than from any pain. This boy was dangerous! He knew how to handle those blades well!
Quatre left
himself no time to gloat over his small victory. He instantly attacked again.
This time, the blade pierced his enemies forearm.
Roaring with
fury, the soldier attacked Quatre with renewed vigor. Not stopping to take a breath, he continued his assault until
Quatre could only defend himself.
Every thrust of
the pipe, every deflect of a blade, tired the assailants. Deciding to end this match quickly, the
soldier began an overhand thrust to Quatre's neck. Bringing his blades up to deflect, Quatre realized, too late,
that it was a ruse. With a swiftness he
hadn't shown previously, Quatre's assailant swung the pipe in a left-handed
thrust.
The sound of bone
crunching could be heard. Quatre
staggered back, dropping his knife as his right arm fell useless at his
side. Grinning wildly, the soldier came
in for the kill.
Quatre
sidestepped his lunge and tried to get as far from the man as possible. By Allah, his arm hurt! The pain was rapidly becoming worse. Gritting his teeth, he raised his left arm
and with all his might, rushed his attacker.
The soldier was
caught off guard at Quatre's sudden attack.
Unprepared for such a sudden and vicious assault, the soldier brought
his pipe up feebly. Quatre rushed the
man and fell against his chest. The
impact stunned Quatre for a moment. The
soldier stagger back, clutching his chest, where Quatre's blade protruded
through.
Quatre stared in
shock as the man opened his mouth to silently scream, then collapsed, dead, on
the ground.
Overcome with
grief, Quatre sank to his knees in anguish.
Tears course down his cheeks in misery.
What had he done?
The men
surrounding Quatre slowly began to back away.
Who was this boy? He attacks
their leader with ruthlessness, then weeps when he is forced to kill.
Heero and the
others begin their approach towards Quatre.
The soldiers, unnerved with this weeping boy, flee at the sight of Heero
and the others. Rushing to his side,
Trowa takes Quatre in his arms. Quatre
buries his face in Trowa's shoulder and cries.
* * * * *
Composed after
his crying spell, Quatre sat on the ground as Heero proceeded to set his broken
arm. Quatre cried out in pain at as the
bone was set. Heero then placed his arm
in a sling across his chest. Quatre
nodded in thanks to his friend.
"Well, let's
go. Were not that far from my home
now."
Wufei was
disturbed. Quatre seemed back to
normal. There was something wrong here.
Upon mutual
agreement, Heero took point. Wufei and
Trowa took rear, while Duo and Hilde walked beside Quatre in the center. Wufei moves up and motions for Duo and Hilde
to take his place. They nod.
Wufei and Quatre
walk in silence. Wufei can feel the
despair in his friend. Never has he
sensed such despair in Quatre. Only
once, when Quatre was caught under the spell of the ZERO system, did he show
such despair and agony. Quatre
continues to walk in silence. Just when
Wufei is about to breech the subject, Quatre speaks.
"Wufei? Am I a monster?"
Taken aback at
this question, Wufei can only stare in disbelief at Quatre. A monster?
Quatre? Where did he get such an idea from?
"I mean,
what kind of person am I? How could I
possibly have killed that man. I must
be a monster, to be able to do something like that." Quatre stated morosely.
Wufei placed his
hand on Quatre's good arm to get his attention. Quatre looked up into Wufei's eyes. All he saw there was compassion.
"You are no
monster, Quatre. What you did was
necessary. Unpleasant, but necessary. Did you want to die?"
Quatre shook his
head.
"Then there
was no dishonor in what you did. You
were protecting yourself. I can assure
you, those soldiers were out for blood.
Our blood. He would have killed
you given the chance."
Quatre walked in
silence for a time, thinking about Wufei's words. He then smiled. Turning
to Wufei, he took his hand in his.
"Thank you, my friend. Your
words have helped. I shall endeavor to
follow them."
With a much
lighter heart, Quatre increased his pace to join Heero at the front of the
line. He still had t show his friends
the way.
* * * * *
Emerging out of
the alley, Quatre led his friends to an open area. Booths and stalls were everywhere. Merchants and customers bantered back and forth loudly.
It was a
bazaar. People from all over the colony
came here to barter for goods. Passing
by, most people recognized Quatre and greeted him warmly. Quatre would stop every so often and speak
with the people. Quatre would
frequently inquire about particular family members, and the people would beam
with pride that he would remember them.
Once past the
bazaar, they walked a short distance.
Down a corridor, they came to a large wall. Easily 10 feet in height, it spanned a good distance in either
direction. Directly in front of them,
was a wrought iron gate. At attention
were two guards. The first guard bared
their way, but the second greeted Quatre warmly.
"Master
Quatre! It is good to see you
again! We heard you were coming."
Quatre smiled at
the man. "Hello, Ahmed. It is good to be home."
The guard smiled
at the young man. Opening the gates,
they ushered them inside.
Quatre turned to
his friends. "Well, were
here. Welcome, everyone. This is my home."
