From: "Aaron Lye" elsydeon@pacific.net.sg
Subject: [fic] Consequences - Chapter 10 of Kindred Spirits
Date: Saturday, June 09, 2001 10:01 AM
CONSEQUENCES - Chapter 10 of the KINDRED SPIRITS saga
Written by Sandrock
sandrock@gundamwing.mailbox.as
sandrock@sandrockproductions.com
LEGAL DISCLAIMER
GW belongs to somebody else. That's why KINDRED SPIRITS is a fanfic and not
an OVA series.
BLATANT ADVERTISING
Check out my first Gundam Wing music video - "Soaring For You" - at
www.sandrockproductions.com !
Content Guideline - graphic violence
April 25th After Century(AC) Year 195, a location off the North American
eastern coast
*Blake, I swear, sometimes I think you've got to be the dumbest guy on
earth! Let me do it; you'll just make it worse...*
*You big silly! Of course I love you.*
*What? Of course I didn't forget... I'll be there tonight. I promise.*
Not a moment of silence. The thoughts invade... every corner, every nook...
Who am I?
*****
April 25th AC 195, Singapore
Heero Yuy leaned against the smooth edge of the large open window, resting
on the warm concrete that baked in the hot equatorial sun. Staring out from
his room, he once again took refuge in the sprawling beauty of the rest of
Quatre's surburban mansion that stood in the western part of the island of
Singapore. He'd been doing that a lot lately, he noted mentally - standing
at the window and staring out.
Quatre had assured him that it was safe for him to go out and explore the
island-city - Singapore guarded its neutrality fiercely and mostly
everything was above-board - there was nearly no chance of operatives from
either the Euro-American Alliance or the Asian Federation sneaking in past
the stringent safeguards in place.
Quatre had been right about other things- there was no lack of things to do
here - the island had a reputation for being a shopping, entertainment and
food haven for centuries now, and the number of tourist attractions had all
but increased in the years of prosperity in the last two centuries,
following the tragic century-long war that the current calendar system had
been named for.
But Heero Yuy had things on his mind other than shopping, entertainment and
food. After nearly a week of waiting around for forged travel documents to
be processed to facilitate his return to the Asian Federation, there was
still no news from Quatre's contacts as to when the stuff would be ready.
Similarly, Heero's investigations into his past - including the time the
professors had said he'd spent in Indonesia - had turned up fruitless.
Granted, he wasn't in exactly the best position to be conducting
investigations yet, but...
He sighed, turning away from the window. Crossing the room Quatre had
provided for him, he opened the door tentatively. Maybe he would go for a
swim, he thought. That always helped get his mind off things, at least these
days. Back before everything he knew had changed, he'd found that going to
the gym was one of the best ways to blow off steam, or just to clear his
mind. There was something about just getting lost in repetitive, mindless,
painful motion that did wonders for stress. But gyms were no longer of any
use, and simply served as a stark reminder of what he was now... what he had
become after that fateful meeting with Duo Maxwell.
Silently making his way down the hallway, Heero turned the corner leading to
the staircase... and bumped into Tryten, Quatre's temporary personal aide,
knocking him to the ground.
The Japanese youth frowned, before reaching out to help the other boy up to
his feet. He offered a quick apology.
Tryten smiled, brushing himself off, "It's okay, Mr. Yuy. It was my fault
too." He tapped a finger against his head, still with a small smile creasing
his face, "I should've known you were coming round the corner... I was just
a little preoccupied and not paying attention."
Heero nodded, remembering what Quatre had told him about the other youth
being a low-level newtype able to sense emotions and the presence of others.
Tryten shook his head, "Anyway, that's beside the point. Mr. Winner actually
sent me here to pick you up. There've been some developments and he wants to
see you right away."
For a moment, Heero allowed himself a small glimmer of hope. Had Quatre
finally pulled through and gotten everything in order?
Well, he thought as he followed Tryten to the waiting car, I'll know soon
enough.
*****
The drive from the suburban west to the business-oriented central part of
the island took less than fifteen minutes, noted Heero as he glanced out of
the car windows at the city beyond. Singapore was something of an enigma
among cities - for one thing it seemed immaculately clean and didn't possess
the overhanging feeling of organised chaos most cities had. In a way, it
didn't seem completely natural. Nature wasn't supposed to be organised.
This city seemed strangely different - like a wolf in sheep's clothing.
An artificial city masquerading with the thin veneer of the natural.
Very much like Duo Maxwell.
*And Solo...*
The car ground to a halt at the main entrance of one of the taller
skyscrapers - the international headquarters of the Maganac Corporation and
where Quatre was, no doubt. Without missing a beat, a doorman had the car
door open and waiting, and Heero stepped out into the choking midday heat.
Within seconds, perspiration began forming on his brow.
The air felt thick here, thick and heavy, very unlike the hot dry heat he'd
experienced back in LA. In the calm after the storm back on the plane trip
here, he'd called up some information on their destination... only to find
out (to his horror) that the weather in this part of the world was a
consistent thirty degrees Celsius, hot by most standards, and had humidity
levels of over 95% most of the time. He hadn't believed it at first.
Now he did.
Crossing the short distance between the car and the entrance, he allowed
himself to close his eyes for a brief moment as the cool air-conditioned
breeze wafted across his skin. He smiled, and opened his eyes.
To see Tryten with a small smirk on his face. The other youth shook his
head, "You get used to it after a while."
Heero shrugged, "I hope so."
Leading the way to the elevator, Tryten turned slightly towards the other
boy, "Trust me. I've been to this region a few times, and it gets better. Be
thankful this country was your first introduction to the area... some of the
places around it haven't recovered as quickly from that war."
Reaching the elevator lobby, Tryten pressed the button calling for the lift,
"So... I guess the weather never gets this bad in Japan, huh?"
Heero paused. Good question. Once... he thought he knew, but...
"I don't know."
Tryten raised an eyebrow at the unexpected answer.
A sharp beep interrupted the conversation, and the doors to the lift opened.
Both entered.
*****
"Margaret, could you please inform me when Ms Winner arrives in the office?
And get on the line with those people from Audit and Accounting and
tell them to hurry up with those papers I need. Oh, and the legal
department, as well. They-"
Quatre found himself interrupted by the voice on the other side of the
intercom, "-will be in to see you later this evening, sir. As you
requested."
The blond youth nodded, "Okay. Thanks, Marge."
"A pleasure, Mr. Winner."
Switching off the communication panel, Quatre sighed. Things were
progressing fine. Iria had done a good job managing the company in his
absence and everything was running smoothly. The issues he had come to
settle were almost complete and things were mostly looking up.
There were only a few things left to resolve.
Unfortunately, they were the hardest to do.
A light tap on his door broke his train of thought and Quatre turned
instinctively to face the door as Heero and Tryten entered the room, despite
the fact that he already knew who they were before they entered.
It was an unfortunate side-effect. Considering how he'd gained 'control' of
his newtype powers and the fact that he hadn't received the proper mental
training that all newtypes received, it wasn't entirely unexpected that he'd
unintentionally read all these things from other people's minds, without
wanting to.
He shook his head. Considering the power of his newtype abilities(or at
least what he'd been told by the professors), it was good enough that he
didn't accidentally burn out the mind of the people he unintentionally was
looking into.
He sighed. Focusing, he smiled at the two young men now walking into his
office, "Heero, it's finally done. Your documents are ready."
The Japanese youth didn't seem to show much emotion at the news. No relief,
no joy, nothing. All he said was a simple, flat "When can I go?"
Quatre paused for a second, "Anytime you want, Heero. All you have to do is
collect the documents and I can have you flown to Tokyo whenever you're
ready."
Heero nodded, "Then I'm leaving now."
The blond teen blinked, "Now? Heero, I can understand your urgency, but it's
almost evening and you'll probably not get much done by the time you arrive,
so why don't-"
He was interrupted, "Quatre... I would like to leave... now."
The determination Quatre saw in the other boy's face stopped him in his
tracks. To a certain extent, he could understand Heero's predicament.
Discovering that he was a secret weapon, that everything he thought about
his past, his family and his world was fake... it was enough to drive anyone
insane.
He could understand.
Quatre Raberba Winner nodded. "Okay. Now."
Turning to his assistant, he spoke again, "Tryten, bring Heero to collect
the necessary documents and make sure he's sufficiently equipped for
travel - expenses, accomodation, everything. See him off to the airport,
please."
His gaze fell back on Heero, "I would see you off myself, but... there are
some
things I can't put off any longer... that I must do this evening. I'm
sorry."
Looking the Japanese youth straight in the eye, Quatre smiled again, "Good
luck, Heero. Contact me when you're ready to return. And remember to check
in with the professors everyday. The last thing I need is for them to come
bug me about whether you're okay."
Heero Yuy nodded.
*****
An hour and a half later, Tryten watched from the safety of the airport's
departure hall as Quatre's private jet took off, heading for Japan. On board
was one Japanese youth, off on a quest to know his past.
He watched as the jet grew smaller and smaller, finally disappearing into
the clouds.
Making a quick calculation, he noted that Heero would probably arrive in
about half an hour. Not much time, but sufficient, perhaps.
Walking quickly, his eyes scoured the airport terminal, locating a public
communications booth in a quiet corner. Reaching the booth, he pretended to
busy himself with finding a payment card to use the phone with. A quick
glance around satisfied him that no one was paying attention to him, and he
quickly took out the device he'd kept concealed in his coat pocket.
Unhooking the communications panel's data
communication port, he plugged in the device, before quickly keying in a
brief message. A few more button pushes, and the signal was off, with it
carrying a message.
A simple message.
"Commence."
*****
Another light tap on his door. Quatre tensed. She was here.
"Come in."
The large oak-panelled doors opened with a slight creak, admitting a young
brunette woman who looked, at most, several years older than Quatre. She
barely glanced at him as she walked in front of his desk, her face a stolid
mask.
He put on his best smile, "Iria..."
Her gaze was frosty, "Yes, sir?"
There it was - the "sir" again. Obviously, she was still sore about the way
things had turned out the day before he left to meet the professors.
He didn't blame her, though - it was his fault, after all.
Getting up from his chair, Quatre crossed the distance between them, "Look,
Iria... I'm sorry. I don't like the way things ended the last time either.
It's just that there were a lot of... difficulties which I couldn't
explain."
Iria Winner glanced at her younger brother, her face still expressionless,
"Difficulties? Must've been some reallly big problems."
She started walking, heading towards the large full-length windows that
offered a stunning view of the cityscape, "Big enough problems to threaten
me. Big enough to waltz across half the world and not tell me what's going
on. Big enough for the Los Angeles office to report back here with strange
stories of 'incidents'. Big enough for Rashid not to return with you."
She paused, staring out the window.
"Big enough for you to have been back for a week... and only see me now."
She turned to face the blond youth, "What happened to you, little brother?
You used to be so... nice."
An uncomfortable silence. Quatre shifted in his feet.
She shook her head, "No matter. What did you want? You obviously called me
here for something and I don't think it was for nostalgia or smalltalk."
Nothing.
The elder Winner eyed her brother, "Well? I don't have all night. Get on
with it."
When he finally spoke, Quatre's voice was softer than usual, "I... I asked
you to come here today so I could apologise for the way I behaved. I know
you're still mad... but I wanted you to know I was sorry. I... I shouldn't
have said those things to you."
Walking over to his sister at the window, he continued, "Iria... things have
changed. Something's happened over there... and I promised that I would see
it through. Don't ask me what it is... I can't tell you even if I wanted
to... but I must help resolve it."
Heading back to his desk, he reached into a drawer and took out a small
folder, "I'll be taking an extended leave of absence. I've handed over
control of the company to you... you've done a really good job while I was
away and I don't think I could ask for better. The only clause is that I
will still need access to the black fund for finances... apart from that..."
"The Maganac Corporation is yours."
Quatre glanced at his sister, looking for some reaction. There was none.
He continued, "I'll be here for a while more... until some other issues are
resolved. Then I'll be gone for a while. Maybe... maybe we could spend a bit
of time together... if you feel like it."
Silence.
The young blond sighed. Slowly, he turned towards the door, slowly walking
towards it.
"I'm sorry, Iria."
The door shut behind him. She was alone.
She looked down at the city below.
*Quatre...*
*****
The room was quiet.
"Well, we've certainly put this off long enough. Now that everything's
settled... Duo, do you understand your objectives?"
The braided youth looked at the five elderly men seated in a row in front of
him. To his side, Zechs was silent, a shadow lurking in a corner.
"Yes, professors. I'll do my best, as always."
J nodded, "Good."
The professor paused, "You have to find him, Duo. You know why - it's not
enough that we have Heero. Wufei has to be found and neutralised as well. We
can't afford for him to build up enough resources to complete his mission,
and we can't afford any more delays. The situation with Quatre and... Unit
01... were unfortunate... but we have to put these things in the past.
Concentrate on the present, Duo. We have to succeed."
Duo Maxwell remained expressionless.
"Yes sir."
Watching as the cybernetic teen exited the room briefly, followed by Zechs,
the professors turned to one another.
J asked, "How is Ms Schbecker?"
"Recovering. She caught a mild viral infection, but she's doing well.", came
the reply from O.
Professor J nodded, "And Heero? How is the young lad?"
Checking a nearby terminal, H answered, "He seems to be okay, though he says
less and less each time he checks in with us these days. At his last report,
he was on a flight headed for Japan with documents provided by Quatre. All
seems to be in order."
Getting up, J stretched a little, his joints uncomfortable with age, "Good.
Let's wish him a speedy journey, then. The faster we have all of them back
here... the better."
*****
Charles Maxwell peered into augmentation chamber, the thick fog roiling
inside obscuring much of the thing inside he was looking at. Everything was
going smoothly, he thought.
In fact, progress was faster this time round. Apparently, his experience
with the first two subjects made for better efficiency. Most of the
groundwork had already been done - it was just a matter of applying what was
necessary.
He turned to face a nearby control console, tweaking some of the settings to
be more precise. Of course, with what had happened with Unit 01 and from
what the professors had told, he had had to make a few... modifications to
the original matrix, but apart from that, all was pretty simple.
The console emitted a long beep, signalling that the process was entering
it's final stage.
Charles Maxwell smiled. Heading for the communications console, he found
himself glanced at the object in the chamber.
A small glint in his eye, he allowed himself a small laugh.
"I think it's time for you to meet someone."
*****
Sandrock
http://www.sandrockproductions.com
- for anime music vids, fanfiction
and lame attempts at humour
Subject: [fic] Consequences - Chapter 10 of Kindred Spirits
Date: Saturday, June 09, 2001 10:01 AM
CONSEQUENCES - Chapter 10 of the KINDRED SPIRITS saga
Written by Sandrock
sandrock@gundamwing.mailbox.as
sandrock@sandrockproductions.com
LEGAL DISCLAIMER
GW belongs to somebody else. That's why KINDRED SPIRITS is a fanfic and not
an OVA series.
BLATANT ADVERTISING
Check out my first Gundam Wing music video - "Soaring For You" - at
www.sandrockproductions.com !
Content Guideline - graphic violence
April 25th After Century(AC) Year 195, a location off the North American
eastern coast
*Blake, I swear, sometimes I think you've got to be the dumbest guy on
earth! Let me do it; you'll just make it worse...*
*You big silly! Of course I love you.*
*What? Of course I didn't forget... I'll be there tonight. I promise.*
Not a moment of silence. The thoughts invade... every corner, every nook...
Who am I?
*****
April 25th AC 195, Singapore
Heero Yuy leaned against the smooth edge of the large open window, resting
on the warm concrete that baked in the hot equatorial sun. Staring out from
his room, he once again took refuge in the sprawling beauty of the rest of
Quatre's surburban mansion that stood in the western part of the island of
Singapore. He'd been doing that a lot lately, he noted mentally - standing
at the window and staring out.
Quatre had assured him that it was safe for him to go out and explore the
island-city - Singapore guarded its neutrality fiercely and mostly
everything was above-board - there was nearly no chance of operatives from
either the Euro-American Alliance or the Asian Federation sneaking in past
the stringent safeguards in place.
Quatre had been right about other things- there was no lack of things to do
here - the island had a reputation for being a shopping, entertainment and
food haven for centuries now, and the number of tourist attractions had all
but increased in the years of prosperity in the last two centuries,
following the tragic century-long war that the current calendar system had
been named for.
But Heero Yuy had things on his mind other than shopping, entertainment and
food. After nearly a week of waiting around for forged travel documents to
be processed to facilitate his return to the Asian Federation, there was
still no news from Quatre's contacts as to when the stuff would be ready.
Similarly, Heero's investigations into his past - including the time the
professors had said he'd spent in Indonesia - had turned up fruitless.
Granted, he wasn't in exactly the best position to be conducting
investigations yet, but...
He sighed, turning away from the window. Crossing the room Quatre had
provided for him, he opened the door tentatively. Maybe he would go for a
swim, he thought. That always helped get his mind off things, at least these
days. Back before everything he knew had changed, he'd found that going to
the gym was one of the best ways to blow off steam, or just to clear his
mind. There was something about just getting lost in repetitive, mindless,
painful motion that did wonders for stress. But gyms were no longer of any
use, and simply served as a stark reminder of what he was now... what he had
become after that fateful meeting with Duo Maxwell.
Silently making his way down the hallway, Heero turned the corner leading to
the staircase... and bumped into Tryten, Quatre's temporary personal aide,
knocking him to the ground.
The Japanese youth frowned, before reaching out to help the other boy up to
his feet. He offered a quick apology.
Tryten smiled, brushing himself off, "It's okay, Mr. Yuy. It was my fault
too." He tapped a finger against his head, still with a small smile creasing
his face, "I should've known you were coming round the corner... I was just
a little preoccupied and not paying attention."
Heero nodded, remembering what Quatre had told him about the other youth
being a low-level newtype able to sense emotions and the presence of others.
Tryten shook his head, "Anyway, that's beside the point. Mr. Winner actually
sent me here to pick you up. There've been some developments and he wants to
see you right away."
For a moment, Heero allowed himself a small glimmer of hope. Had Quatre
finally pulled through and gotten everything in order?
Well, he thought as he followed Tryten to the waiting car, I'll know soon
enough.
*****
The drive from the suburban west to the business-oriented central part of
the island took less than fifteen minutes, noted Heero as he glanced out of
the car windows at the city beyond. Singapore was something of an enigma
among cities - for one thing it seemed immaculately clean and didn't possess
the overhanging feeling of organised chaos most cities had. In a way, it
didn't seem completely natural. Nature wasn't supposed to be organised.
This city seemed strangely different - like a wolf in sheep's clothing.
An artificial city masquerading with the thin veneer of the natural.
Very much like Duo Maxwell.
*And Solo...*
The car ground to a halt at the main entrance of one of the taller
skyscrapers - the international headquarters of the Maganac Corporation and
where Quatre was, no doubt. Without missing a beat, a doorman had the car
door open and waiting, and Heero stepped out into the choking midday heat.
Within seconds, perspiration began forming on his brow.
The air felt thick here, thick and heavy, very unlike the hot dry heat he'd
experienced back in LA. In the calm after the storm back on the plane trip
here, he'd called up some information on their destination... only to find
out (to his horror) that the weather in this part of the world was a
consistent thirty degrees Celsius, hot by most standards, and had humidity
levels of over 95% most of the time. He hadn't believed it at first.
Now he did.
Crossing the short distance between the car and the entrance, he allowed
himself to close his eyes for a brief moment as the cool air-conditioned
breeze wafted across his skin. He smiled, and opened his eyes.
To see Tryten with a small smirk on his face. The other youth shook his
head, "You get used to it after a while."
Heero shrugged, "I hope so."
Leading the way to the elevator, Tryten turned slightly towards the other
boy, "Trust me. I've been to this region a few times, and it gets better. Be
thankful this country was your first introduction to the area... some of the
places around it haven't recovered as quickly from that war."
Reaching the elevator lobby, Tryten pressed the button calling for the lift,
"So... I guess the weather never gets this bad in Japan, huh?"
Heero paused. Good question. Once... he thought he knew, but...
"I don't know."
Tryten raised an eyebrow at the unexpected answer.
A sharp beep interrupted the conversation, and the doors to the lift opened.
Both entered.
*****
"Margaret, could you please inform me when Ms Winner arrives in the office?
And get on the line with those people from Audit and Accounting and
tell them to hurry up with those papers I need. Oh, and the legal
department, as well. They-"
Quatre found himself interrupted by the voice on the other side of the
intercom, "-will be in to see you later this evening, sir. As you
requested."
The blond youth nodded, "Okay. Thanks, Marge."
"A pleasure, Mr. Winner."
Switching off the communication panel, Quatre sighed. Things were
progressing fine. Iria had done a good job managing the company in his
absence and everything was running smoothly. The issues he had come to
settle were almost complete and things were mostly looking up.
There were only a few things left to resolve.
Unfortunately, they were the hardest to do.
A light tap on his door broke his train of thought and Quatre turned
instinctively to face the door as Heero and Tryten entered the room, despite
the fact that he already knew who they were before they entered.
It was an unfortunate side-effect. Considering how he'd gained 'control' of
his newtype powers and the fact that he hadn't received the proper mental
training that all newtypes received, it wasn't entirely unexpected that he'd
unintentionally read all these things from other people's minds, without
wanting to.
He shook his head. Considering the power of his newtype abilities(or at
least what he'd been told by the professors), it was good enough that he
didn't accidentally burn out the mind of the people he unintentionally was
looking into.
He sighed. Focusing, he smiled at the two young men now walking into his
office, "Heero, it's finally done. Your documents are ready."
The Japanese youth didn't seem to show much emotion at the news. No relief,
no joy, nothing. All he said was a simple, flat "When can I go?"
Quatre paused for a second, "Anytime you want, Heero. All you have to do is
collect the documents and I can have you flown to Tokyo whenever you're
ready."
Heero nodded, "Then I'm leaving now."
The blond teen blinked, "Now? Heero, I can understand your urgency, but it's
almost evening and you'll probably not get much done by the time you arrive,
so why don't-"
He was interrupted, "Quatre... I would like to leave... now."
The determination Quatre saw in the other boy's face stopped him in his
tracks. To a certain extent, he could understand Heero's predicament.
Discovering that he was a secret weapon, that everything he thought about
his past, his family and his world was fake... it was enough to drive anyone
insane.
He could understand.
Quatre Raberba Winner nodded. "Okay. Now."
Turning to his assistant, he spoke again, "Tryten, bring Heero to collect
the necessary documents and make sure he's sufficiently equipped for
travel - expenses, accomodation, everything. See him off to the airport,
please."
His gaze fell back on Heero, "I would see you off myself, but... there are
some
things I can't put off any longer... that I must do this evening. I'm
sorry."
Looking the Japanese youth straight in the eye, Quatre smiled again, "Good
luck, Heero. Contact me when you're ready to return. And remember to check
in with the professors everyday. The last thing I need is for them to come
bug me about whether you're okay."
Heero Yuy nodded.
*****
An hour and a half later, Tryten watched from the safety of the airport's
departure hall as Quatre's private jet took off, heading for Japan. On board
was one Japanese youth, off on a quest to know his past.
He watched as the jet grew smaller and smaller, finally disappearing into
the clouds.
Making a quick calculation, he noted that Heero would probably arrive in
about half an hour. Not much time, but sufficient, perhaps.
Walking quickly, his eyes scoured the airport terminal, locating a public
communications booth in a quiet corner. Reaching the booth, he pretended to
busy himself with finding a payment card to use the phone with. A quick
glance around satisfied him that no one was paying attention to him, and he
quickly took out the device he'd kept concealed in his coat pocket.
Unhooking the communications panel's data
communication port, he plugged in the device, before quickly keying in a
brief message. A few more button pushes, and the signal was off, with it
carrying a message.
A simple message.
"Commence."
*****
Another light tap on his door. Quatre tensed. She was here.
"Come in."
The large oak-panelled doors opened with a slight creak, admitting a young
brunette woman who looked, at most, several years older than Quatre. She
barely glanced at him as she walked in front of his desk, her face a stolid
mask.
He put on his best smile, "Iria..."
Her gaze was frosty, "Yes, sir?"
There it was - the "sir" again. Obviously, she was still sore about the way
things had turned out the day before he left to meet the professors.
He didn't blame her, though - it was his fault, after all.
Getting up from his chair, Quatre crossed the distance between them, "Look,
Iria... I'm sorry. I don't like the way things ended the last time either.
It's just that there were a lot of... difficulties which I couldn't
explain."
Iria Winner glanced at her younger brother, her face still expressionless,
"Difficulties? Must've been some reallly big problems."
She started walking, heading towards the large full-length windows that
offered a stunning view of the cityscape, "Big enough problems to threaten
me. Big enough to waltz across half the world and not tell me what's going
on. Big enough for the Los Angeles office to report back here with strange
stories of 'incidents'. Big enough for Rashid not to return with you."
She paused, staring out the window.
"Big enough for you to have been back for a week... and only see me now."
She turned to face the blond youth, "What happened to you, little brother?
You used to be so... nice."
An uncomfortable silence. Quatre shifted in his feet.
She shook her head, "No matter. What did you want? You obviously called me
here for something and I don't think it was for nostalgia or smalltalk."
Nothing.
The elder Winner eyed her brother, "Well? I don't have all night. Get on
with it."
When he finally spoke, Quatre's voice was softer than usual, "I... I asked
you to come here today so I could apologise for the way I behaved. I know
you're still mad... but I wanted you to know I was sorry. I... I shouldn't
have said those things to you."
Walking over to his sister at the window, he continued, "Iria... things have
changed. Something's happened over there... and I promised that I would see
it through. Don't ask me what it is... I can't tell you even if I wanted
to... but I must help resolve it."
Heading back to his desk, he reached into a drawer and took out a small
folder, "I'll be taking an extended leave of absence. I've handed over
control of the company to you... you've done a really good job while I was
away and I don't think I could ask for better. The only clause is that I
will still need access to the black fund for finances... apart from that..."
"The Maganac Corporation is yours."
Quatre glanced at his sister, looking for some reaction. There was none.
He continued, "I'll be here for a while more... until some other issues are
resolved. Then I'll be gone for a while. Maybe... maybe we could spend a bit
of time together... if you feel like it."
Silence.
The young blond sighed. Slowly, he turned towards the door, slowly walking
towards it.
"I'm sorry, Iria."
The door shut behind him. She was alone.
She looked down at the city below.
*Quatre...*
*****
The room was quiet.
"Well, we've certainly put this off long enough. Now that everything's
settled... Duo, do you understand your objectives?"
The braided youth looked at the five elderly men seated in a row in front of
him. To his side, Zechs was silent, a shadow lurking in a corner.
"Yes, professors. I'll do my best, as always."
J nodded, "Good."
The professor paused, "You have to find him, Duo. You know why - it's not
enough that we have Heero. Wufei has to be found and neutralised as well. We
can't afford for him to build up enough resources to complete his mission,
and we can't afford any more delays. The situation with Quatre and... Unit
01... were unfortunate... but we have to put these things in the past.
Concentrate on the present, Duo. We have to succeed."
Duo Maxwell remained expressionless.
"Yes sir."
Watching as the cybernetic teen exited the room briefly, followed by Zechs,
the professors turned to one another.
J asked, "How is Ms Schbecker?"
"Recovering. She caught a mild viral infection, but she's doing well.", came
the reply from O.
Professor J nodded, "And Heero? How is the young lad?"
Checking a nearby terminal, H answered, "He seems to be okay, though he says
less and less each time he checks in with us these days. At his last report,
he was on a flight headed for Japan with documents provided by Quatre. All
seems to be in order."
Getting up, J stretched a little, his joints uncomfortable with age, "Good.
Let's wish him a speedy journey, then. The faster we have all of them back
here... the better."
*****
Charles Maxwell peered into augmentation chamber, the thick fog roiling
inside obscuring much of the thing inside he was looking at. Everything was
going smoothly, he thought.
In fact, progress was faster this time round. Apparently, his experience
with the first two subjects made for better efficiency. Most of the
groundwork had already been done - it was just a matter of applying what was
necessary.
He turned to face a nearby control console, tweaking some of the settings to
be more precise. Of course, with what had happened with Unit 01 and from
what the professors had told, he had had to make a few... modifications to
the original matrix, but apart from that, all was pretty simple.
The console emitted a long beep, signalling that the process was entering
it's final stage.
Charles Maxwell smiled. Heading for the communications console, he found
himself glanced at the object in the chamber.
A small glint in his eye, he allowed himself a small laugh.
"I think it's time for you to meet someone."
*****
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