The War of the Assassins
Part 8
Relena was tired. So tired. She heard the soft thud of shoes on the floor, and opened her eyes with great effort to look dazedly around her. When she saw the woman with the golden hair and green eyes smirking at her, she immediately remembered that she had been taken hostage and was in an extremely dangerous situation.
Her arms were tied tightly behind her chair, and she could only see the woman's face by bending her neck back uncomfortably. Relena was vaguely aware of other people in the room - probably Noin and Sally since her brother was away - and saw a flash of flaming red hair from the corner of her eye. It was the man who had accompanied the woman inside her office a few minutes ago. Or was it hours ago? Her exhausted mind began to sluggishly churn.
"Who are you…?" she asked the woman, voice slurred as if she were drunk. Relena shook her head to try to clear it. It ached dully, and felt heavy. And she couldn't remember how she had ended up tied to her chair and who the strangers were, though she could've sworn that they had said their names…
"You didn't hear me the first time?" replied the woman, annoyance flickering in her forest green eyes. "My name is Aerowyn Silverlye, Vice Foreign Minister, and you'd be better off if you remembered it."
Aerowyn proceeded to glare balefully at Relena, as if she were extremely insulted that the younger woman couldn't remember her name, when she was obviously so important. Relena could see the disapproving glances that Sally and Noin exchanged at the sight of the petty glare. But their postures was also extremely tense, and their faces anxious. What in the world were her colleagues so worried about? And why weren't they doing anything?
It was only then that Relena noticed the blazing green sword that Aerowyn was armed with and casually holding near her neck. She involuntarily gulped. It was just so huge. And it almost looked as if it were on fire - but no, that was impossible. It could certainly slice her open with very little effort though. Sally and Noin couldn't do a thing with her so helpless.
But the foreboding sight of the sword did wake her up a little bit. "What do you want?" she demanded, trying to summon that authority that everyone said she possessed into her voice. Even her tongue felt sluggish. What is wrong with me? Am I drugged?
"Nothing from you," Aerowyn snapped. "You're just bait." The woman seemed antsy, and impatient, as if she were waiting for someone.
Bait? "Heero…" Relena murmured to herself, appalled. "You're going to use me as bait for Heero?" she added loudly, so that everyone could hear. She felt fully awake now - and angry. "Leave him alone! Why are you bothering us? What do you want from him?!"
The man leaning against the corner of the wall with the red hair drawled lazily, "Well now, she's getting a little feisty there Aero. I think the Slumber spell is wearing off. Perhaps you should cast a new one…"
Slumber spell? Relena thought to herself, confused. She could see that Sally and Noin were also puzzled. What in the world was he talking about? Could these strangers really cast spells? Relena carefully scrutinized the redhead and noticed that he too was armed with a large sword, sheathed and harnessed to his back. It was not a good situation...
"Oh shut up Virgil! I know what I'm doing!" Aerowyn retorted, obviously annoyed. "Besides - I want our precious princess awake so that she can see her beloved prince destroyed in exchange for her life." The mocking, acidic tone in her voice reminded the others vaguely of Dorothy, who was presently not in the Sanq Kingdom.
Relena jerked at the threat, scraping her wrists painfully against the rough ropes. "No! Leave Heero out of this! What do you want to kill him for?!" she shouted, anguished. He would die for her, she knew it, but she could not possibly just sit and watch him. She would not allow it. She looked at Sally and Noin desperately, begging them with her eyes to help. Relena thought she saw something flicker deep within Sally's eyes.
"Don't listen to them Relena," Sally suddenly spoke up before Aerowyn or Virgil could reply. "You were asleep when they said it but they don't want Heero at all. They want a man named Strife Mercury."
Noin nodded fervently. "She's right, Miss Relena. Don't let them intimidate you."
Both intruders turned to glare at Sally and Noin, obviously annoyed. They looked steadily back, not a trace of fear in their eyes. Relena smiled at her courageous friends in immense relief. Heero was safe. Nothing else mattered.
Aerowyn abruptly turned back to face Relena and shrugged. "Heero is with Strife, I know that for sure," she said nonchalantly. "And he will come for you - along with the other Gundam pilots. Ah…here they are now."
Before Relena could even ask how Aerowyn could possibly know, there was a sudden flash of brilliant red light and a roll of low thunder. She watched speechless and entranced as a thin crimson cut appeared in the air.
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"Damnit!" Strife muttered, annoyed. What the hell did Aerowyn want from him now? Why in the world was she on Earth? He had dated her for almost a year after Odessa had disappeared, having still been under the Forget spell, and then she had ditched him for Virgil Trysten. And of course, she was the one who had chased off Odessa in the first place. If anyone should be holding a grudge, it should be him. And to use Relena as bait was a little excessive and roundabout, even for Aerowyn. She must want something from me…
He was so busy thinking that he didn't notice Heero coming towards him until it was too late. Strife felt the cold metal of the barrel of Heero's gun on his temple. If it had been anyone else threatening him, Strife would have immediately sliced him in two before he could even pull the trigger. But with the assailant being Heero, he froze, careful not to make any sudden movements.
The Gundam pilot's expression was one of deadly anger, and Strife saw the deep crimson color of his previously dark blue aura (he had noticed that it was the exact same color as his earlier with shock) and flinched. Heero was angry, and afraid for Relena, and he believed it to be all Strife's fault, which was partly true.
"Tell me everything you know about the people holding Relena hostage. Is this of your doing?" Heero demanded, his voice dark and deadly. "Why do they want you? And why Relena?" His whole body was trembling with the force of his anger and anxiety.
Strife was careful not to move a muscle and to sound as calm as possible. It would not be good to upset Heero even more than he already was. The other pilots were just as suspicious and angry - even Duo - and tempestuous red auras surrounded him. He felt Rag gradually wake up at the sight; she was hungry and itching to Fuse. "Not now," he commanded, willing her to go to sleep again.
"Heero," he began quietly, hoping to soothe him. "Aerowyn and Virgil are two Assassins that I trained with. I am not their ally, nor did I suspect that they would hold Relena hostage. Aerowyn probably wants me to do something for her, and has taken Relena hostage knowing that I would have to come to her, for your sake if nothing else." Heero's eyes widened slightly at that - Strife could tell that the pilot still didn't really believe that he was his idol. He sighed a little to himself as he continued wearily, "She will not kill Relena, because if she did, I would not have any reason to obey her." Heero relaxed minutely at that, and Strife concluded, "I don't know what Aerowyn is doing here on Earth, or why Virgil is here at all; I suppose we shall find out soon enough. But one thing is sure: I am not your enemy."
Heero stared at him for a few moments, weighing him, and Strife realized that since they had the same auras they shared a peculiar sort of bond, and so Heero could read him and understand him in a way that the other Gundam pilots couldn't. Strife gazed steadily back at him, and hoped that his sincerity showed and that Heero could see it. It was almost ironic that he would have to earn the pilot's trust all over again; he had already been thoroughly scrutinized by him just a few minutes ago.
Strife felt horrid - the last thing he had wanted to do was hurt his childhood hero. And Relena didn't deserve to be taken hostage; she was really not part of the situation at all. It was all his fault -
He suddenly felt the barrel of Heero's gun lift from his head. Strife turned slowly to look at the pilot. Heero's face was still stony, but his crimson aura was gradually fading back to that all too familiar dark blue. He breathed a sigh of relief. He believes me…
"I believe you," Heero said eventually, but a slight bemusement in his eyes indicated that he didn't really know why. "But if you betray us or harm Relena in any way - I'll destroy you," he finished coldly.
Strife nodded, knowing that Heero was perfectly capable of doing so, even though he was armed with Ragnarok and magic. Relena meant more to the pilot than his own life, and he would exact brutal vengeance on anyone who dared harmed her in any way. Acknowledging this, the Assassin then turned to see how the other pilots reacted to Heero's statements.
Duo's aura was a bright, happy yellow again. Strife supposed that the pilot trusted him because he had saved him, and that it was his nature to be friendly. Though now that he looked closer, he could see some dark undertones in Duo's aura. The braided pilot was obviously struggling with some inner conflict and was not quite as happy-go-lucky as he might seem…
The blonde pilot's reddish aura had completely reverted back to the pure white that it had been when Strife had first seen him. The boy was too kind to hold grudges or be suspicious for too long, and his aura reflected that. He also seemed to sense that Strife was not an enemy, though through his own emotions or through the ones that Strife radiated, he did not know. The look in his turquoise eyes as Strife caught his gaze was soft, and trusting. The boy had to be Gundam pilot 04, Quatre Raberba Winner.
The man to the right of him had a distinctive hairstyle, half of his brown hair covering his face. Strife recognized him as Trowa Barton. Trowa's dark green, contemplative, analytical aura that reminded him of Aerowyn's had the smallest hint of red at its edges. Whatever suspicions or anger Trowa had possessed had faded quickly away or was masked extremely well. Strife took a hard look at the pilot's face and found that he could not read it. It was indifferent, unfeeling, cold - essentially dead. So were his green eyes. The only way he could tell that Trowa trusted him was through one or two warm orange-red swirls in his aura. Strife could see that somehow, Trowa could also sense that he meant no harm, or perhaps it was just because the quiet pilot was perceptive and analytical.
The man to the left of Quatre was what Earthlings called Asian - apparently of Chinese descent - so he had to be Wufei Chang. Strife noted with little surprise that Wufei's aura was still a dark, stormy red, since he obviously did not trust him. Wait - was red the natural color of Wufei's aura? Yes, Strife could see the deep scarlet color comprised of the different hues of impatience, anger, stubbornness and pride in the Chinese pilot's aura. He made a mental note to himself to try not to get on the warrior's bad side, though it looked as if it were a little too late for that.
Wufei's next statements confirmed Strife's suspicions. "So you want us to trust him? Armed with that evil sword?" he asked Heero unbelievingly. "I thought you were more honorable than to associate with an Assassin," he spat scathingly, crossing his arms and eyeing the said Assassin with scorn. Assassins were obviously not considered as 'honorable' people in his eyes.
Strife did not reply, instead, he shot Heero a meaningful glance. Heero nodded almost imperceptibly and replied icily, "I don't care if you trust him or not, but the fact is, we need him to get Relena back. And neither my honor nor his has any weight in this mission. I trust him, and have faith in his skills. That should be enough."
It was obvious that Wufei didn't and wouldn't like or trust Strife no matter what Heero said, but he respected Heero and saw the truth in his statement. The fact that he just 'got told' by the most intimidating man alive helped too. "All right," he said grudgingly.
"Good. Does anyone else have any objections?" Heero added, with a threatening undertone in his voice and a glare directed at each pilot in turn.
The other pilots shook their heads mutely in unison. Strife felt like laughing in wonder - after all, The Perfect Soldier was defending him - but decided against it.
He suddenly found unnerving, intense Prussian blue eyes gazing fixedly into his own. "Yes, Heero?" Strife asked, knowing that the pilot wanted something from him.
"You know magic," Heero said. It was not a question.
Strife nodded slowly. "I am a Blade Mage Assassin - it is in my profession to wield magic. And that is how I cleansed the wound on your back."
The other pilots turned to stare at the said wound, and Strife heard a few gasps of surprise at its sheer size. But he knew that they would not see any black pus seeping out of it. It was just a regular cut now that was already scabbing over thanks to his healing spell.
Duo noticed the difference. "There's no more of that black stuff…" he trailed off, puzzled, his brows furrowed. "So I wasn't just seeing things," he muttered to himself.
"That's not what I was talking about," Heero spoke up before the other pilots could start asking about his wound. He was obviously agitated, and itching to go to Relena. "I want to know if you can get us to the Preventors' Headquarters in the Sanq Kingdom immediately so we can rescue Relena."
Strife frowned. "I can, but there is no need to 'rescue' her. They will not kill her as long as I do whatever Aerowyn wants of me."
"And what if it is something that you cannot do?" Heero asked darkly.
He shook his head and said firmly, "Whatever it is, I will do it. But if Aerowyn and Virgil go back on their word - which I highly doubt, since Assassins do not break promises - I'll Slice her and you Gundam pilots out of there and we will fight it out then and there."
"Not very good odds," Trowa said contemplatively, speaking for the first time.
"You might lose against two Assassins if you fight them by yourself," Quatre added worriedly. The pilot was already starting to feel compassion for him…
Strife ignored them. It didn't matter that he would die if he fought both Aerowyn and Virgil at once. He would not let anymore innocent people get hurt because of him. Especially Relena Darilan or any of the Gundam pilots.
"Did you er…'slice' here or sumthin'?" Duo asked, more confused than ever. But it was clear that the braided pilot remembered the red cut in the air that Strife had apparently stepped through.
Heero shot Duo a piercing glance, "What are you talking about?" He had been unconscious when Strife arrived.
Strife smiled faintly and then said matter-of-factly, "Your friend is right, Heero. I traveled to Earth by Slicing, or what you would probably call teleporting, and I can Slice right into the room Relena is being held hostage in." He waited for the skeptical reply he was sure to receive.
Wufei snorted, and everyone else just stared.
"If this is true, is it possible for us to come with you?" Heero asked, getting over his shock the quickest, which did not surprise Strife in the least. They really were much alike.
"Yes," he replied. "In fact, I can show you right now…" and with that, he drew Ragnarok. The familiar feeling of fiery power rushing through his veins greeted him. The pilots instinctively drew back from the huge, blazing sword that looked even more impressive up close. He even heard a few gasps of awe - or from fear, he couldn't tell.
"What the hell was so important to FORCE me to go to sleep huh?! You haven't done that in years and I DON'T plan on letting you do it again!" crowed a furiously indignant Rag. The flame (i.e. aura) surrounding her blade pulsed with a darker light then usual. She was obviously very annoyed and very angry, if for a petty reason.
Strife cringed a little, remembering the various nasty things that had happened to him the last time Rag had gotten this angry. He replied quietly, trying to soothe her, "You know that I couldn't possibly let you Fuse with any of the Gundam pilots so just calm down. We have a princess to rescue, see for yourself."
He felt the equivalent of a question mark in his mind and then that strange, uncomfortable feeling of Rag rifting through his brain to obtain his memories. When she was done, she was not much happier. In fact, seemed even angrier, if that was indeed possible. Strife cursed to himself for making such a stupid mistake as she began her tirade. "Who the hell does that Asian punk think he is anyway, calling me evil?! NO ONE insults me and gets away with it - I'll show him just what 'that evil sword' can do, damn it!" Rag fumed, furious. Her aura suddenly flared up ferociously, singeing the said 'Asian punk.' Wufei glared at her and started to curse ferociously in Chinese, obviously angry. The other pilots began to back slowly away - even Heero looked a little nonplussed.
Strife stopped kicking himself and quickly thought up a plan of action. When Rag became this angry, there was only one thing to do. Fight fire with fire. "Will you shut the hell up already? You know that Wufei is just like that, with his overgeneralizations and all. Killing him is not going to do us any good. So just shut your trap and behave!" he commanded, keeping his 'voice' low and summoning into it all the authoritative and threatening tone he could muster. If that wasn't enough, he added some choice insults in Lothosan, some of them so crude that they would have made even his Head Trainer blush.
"Who are you talkin' to?" asked a bemused Duo, eyes wide and scratching his head. Rag started laughing hysterically as Strife realized too late that he had insulted her out loud without quite realizing it. The other pilots just blinked, obviously confused.
Her aura had changed back to it's normal red and she sounded almost jolly as Rag remarked sarcastically, "Well that was IMPRESSIVE, Strife. I didn't even know that you knew so many curse words in Lothosan - and from the looks of it, neither do they." With that, she started laughing again.
Strife scowled at her, and then at the blank faces of the Gundam pilots. "My sword," he replied succinctly to Duo. Faintly blushing under their collective stare, he abruptly turned around and started to untangle the necessary Threads, pointedly ignoring Rag's hyena-like laughter.
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Heero watched in thinly masked impatience as Strife made a few quick movements in the air with his blazing crimson sword. Just what was this guy doing anyway? He had thought that he had somehow felt that he could trust this man, that Strife was kind, sincere, compassionate, and brave under his apparently unfeeling manner. He had almost felt that he and the Assassin shared some kind of connection, like he could empathize with him or something.
But what had trusting him and defending him led to? Cutting the air and talking to his sword! How absolutely absurd and pointless! Heero was annoyed, and he was only rarely annoyed, but Relena was in danger and it was Strife's fault - no, it was his fault. He should have been there to protect her. Who knows what kind of situation she was in now, or what condition she was in. What if she was being tortured? Or already dead? It would be his fault. His fault if she was dead or died. The very thought froze his heart. Heero scowled and started to pace, to rid himself of such morbid thoughts. He had a mission to accomplish and had no room for such things in his mind. But God how he worried - he would never forgive himself if something happened to her. He loved her too much.
A roll of thunder and a flash of blinding red light interrupted his disturbing train of thought. Heero watched in utter amazement as a thin crimson cut appeared in the air. What the hell? Before anyone could say or do anything, Strife plunged his blazing sword into the cut and pulled it to the side and down, making it large enough for a man to step through.
And there she was, floating in the air, as beautiful as ever, with her golden hair disheveled and strewn wildly about her face, her ocean blue eyes wide with astonishment and fear, and her arms tied roughly behind her chair. A blazing green sword was held perilously close to her smooth, pale neck and the very sight of it sent Heero into something very akin to rage. No one was allowed to threaten Relena like that. Not while he was still alive.
So without thinking twice he ran full speed towards the Slice and dived through it, flinching as one of its fiery edges singed his arm. But he ignored the already blistering wound and rolled to his feet as soon as he hit the ground. In no time at all he had torn off the rope binding Relena and she was in his arms, his body shielding her from a tall woman holding the sword. From the corner of his eye he saw Sally and Noin snap to attention and draw their weapons. Strife and the other pilots were still on the other side of the Slice, shocked speechless at his sheer speed. He heard the metallic hiss of a sword being unsheathed in the room. But at that moment nothing mattered to him except the trembling girl in his arms. The look in Relena's eyes she gazed up at him was filled with such deep, profound love that Heero wanted nothing more than to stare at those liquid blue eyes for all eternity.
"Heero..." Relena breathed, sounding both relieved and worried at the same time. "How did you - you shouldn't be here - it's a trap they know magic they'll destroy you - you should leave," she said in a hurried rush. The anguished expression on her face pained him.
He gently stroked her smooth cheek to try to soothe her. "I know. I don't care," he said calmly. "I won't leave you, Relena." He smiled at her reassuringly, hoping that it was enough.
It apparently was, for she stopped trembling and smiled warmly back. "I know," she replied quietly. They looked at each other silently, basking in the other's presence, lost in their own safe world.
"How sweet," remarked the tall woman sarcastically, leaning on her huge broadsword. "I think they deserve a round of applause, don't you, Virgil?"
Heero looked sharply about him as the feeling of safety and comfort abruptly dissipated. He observed that the two strangers were both armed with magical swords, roughly the same size and shape as Strife's, but with different colors. Virgil had to be the man with the bright red hair and ice blue eyes, armed with a sword burning with the same glacial blue color. He replied to his comrade's question by clapping loudly and slowly, with an air of heavy irony. "Is that adequate, Aero?" he asked with a vaguely insolent tone of voice and a mischeivous gleam in his icy eyes.
Relena straightened and stared the redhead right in the eye. "What do you want from us?" she demanded fiercely.
Virgil leered at her. "Nothing from him, but you have a lot to offer," he drawled, obviously appraising her, with desire shining brightly in his clear eyes. Heero felt Relena stiffen in his arms, embarrassed and disgusted. He immediately decided that he didn't like Virgil and so shot him a warning glare. He would rather die than see Relena being touched by him. The woman called Aerowyn smiled wryly, as if reading his thoughts, not looking jealous or insulted in the least. Heero noted this with some curiosity, for he had thought that she and Virgil were a couple...
A sudden glint of metallic light reflected off the barrel of a gun caught Heero's eye. He noticed with a start that Sally and Noin were a few paces away from the redhead, still holding their guns, stiff posture and unblinking eyes indicating that they were paralyzed. Damnit. From the looks of it, he needed some help, and badly.
At that thought, there was a sudden flash of crimson light. Heero whirled to look behind him, shielding Relena. And there they were, the rest of the pilots, Duo still carrying the Zero System helmet. Strife was with them too, his sword blazing fiercely and held ready for combat.
"And so we meet again, Aerowyn," the Assassin said darkly. Heero noticed with some surprise that Strife was now much more intimidating and foreboding than before, almost radiating power. His emerald green eyes held a deadly, fierce look and his sword was burning more brightly, now with a blood red color. The man was dangerous - Heero could see that clearly now.
Relena was shocked by the sudden appearance of the Gundam pilots and yet another stranger with a sword. "Heero, what is going on here?" she asked him, eyeing Strife warily.
The woman called Aerowyn spoke up before he could reply. "It's about time that you showed up, Strife," she said, sounding annoyed. She then scrutinized the Assassin before she spoke again, "From the look of your aura, it seems as if you have finally remembered what I have done to you." She shrugged and added, "No big loss."
Strife bristled perceptibly but before he could even make a move, Aerowyn shouted, "Now, Virgil!" and the other man raised his sword and slashed it downwards. Before Heero even knew what was really happening, a ball of pale blue light smashed into him. A feeling of sharp, immeasurable cold washed over him - it felt like he had jumped naked into a bucket of ice - and he watched with horror as ice coated his body. He couldn't move...
"Heero!" Relena cried in alarm, trying in vain to tear the ice off his body. The other pilots ran to him and tried to help, but it didn't work. Whenever they managed to rip off a patch, another clump of even thicker ice immediately replaced it. Strife did not move to help, instead he stayed rooted to his spot, motionless. What was he doing? He most likely had the power to save him, but he had not yet done a thing when each second counted. He betrayed us, Heero thought bitterly through the pain of being frozen alive. We will all be destroyed because I trusted that man.
"Stop it!" Relena cried to Virgil in anguish. "You're going to kill him!" He didn't stop. Ice filled Heero's mouth and his nose so that he couldn't breathe. So cold - all he wanted to do was sleep. He was vaguely aware of Relena pounding the thick layer of ice surrounding his body in frustration and sheer desperation. "Heero - you can't die! Heero!" she shouted in between tears. He hated to see her like this - he had to do something to alleviate her pain. Heero tried desperately to move his hand towards hers, to move anything, but try as he might, he just couldn't manage it. Relena abruptly stopped punching the ice, as if realizing only then that it was futile. Her knuckles and fingertips bleeding, she outstretched a slender hand to place over his frozen lips. "I love you, Heero," she whispered, her ocean blue eyes shining with tears and infinite sorrow.
The agonizing poignancy of her actions and words just about killed him. With his last few moments of consciousness, he tried to communicate with his eyes how much he loved her and how sorry he was that he caused her such pain. Once again, it was his fault.
The last thing Heero heard before he became unconscious was the sound of Relena calling his name in between her tormented sobs.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yeah yeah, I know, that was sappy. Ah well, I'm a HXR fan and I thought it was about time that they had some poignant moments together. Anyhow, is Heero going to die? What's Strife doing just sitting there? Has he really betrayed the Gundam pilots? What do Aerowyn and Virgil want from him anyway? Has Diablo found out where the Preventors are headquartered yet? To find out, read the next part! Email me!! Cutlass317@aol.com