"Iie, Heero, I think you should try this disguise..." Duo purred, holding up a rather hentai-looking clown's suit. Heero glared at him.
"Well I don't," Wufei stated flatly, "It looks rather.. stupid." Trowa reached over and backhanded him. Heero simply glared at the two, grabbed a black, short haired wig and set it on his head, along with a cap. Surprisingly, the look worked.
"Heeyyy... " Duo catcalled, and slung an arm around Heero's waist. Instead of reprimanding him, the 01 pilot simply snuggled closer, the scene looking suddenly very un-Heero.
Quatre blinked at the kodak moment from his review mirror. "It looks like Duo just put his arm around another Wufei..." He said, smiling mischievously at the two. Wufei blanched and held his nose.
Trowa looked at the scenery ahead and put his arm on Quatre's shoulder. "We are here. Heero, Duo, stop that. Wufei, act normal, please. We are approaching the gate." To their surprise, the man in the booth just waved them through.
"Ohh, yeah... duh. I keep forgetting we're in a cop car." Duo immediately flung his arm once again around Heero's waist as soon as they were past the booth. "We are detectives, now!"
A tortured sigh escaped Wufei's lips as they parked. "Would that make you a female of the law, Duo? Seeing as YOU are the one with the woman's costume."
The self-proclaimed God of Death (although the opinion of whether or not the boy delivers death brought by dying of frustration or simply being annoyed is unknown) flipped his hair in a very girlish fashion then squeaked peepingly in a high, feminine voice, "You're just jealous that I'm prettier than you!" he paused to bat his eyes at the Perfect Soldier, now the Perfect Target Practice (for Duo, among other things) . "Besides, I don't mind. I had to dress up as a female in order to escape these OZ officers, once..."
* * *
Naoko sat calmly in her seat, looking calmly out the window and calmly doodling on a sketchpad. Contrary to outer appearances (and as the saying goes, "don't judge a book by it's cover"), her insides were seemingly trying out for aerobics class. Ah, her Taisa(1) assured her that there was naught to worry about -- only the fact that one of the most dangerous assassins (Naoko regretted the day she trained that homicidal woman) was out on the loose, and perhaps trying to frame her and her legion of faithful soldiers.. and the ex Gundam pilots. A grudge, maybe?
The blonde shifted restlessly in her high-backed chair, finally showing some sense of distress, and looked about the insides of the shuttle. The craft looked just as it should, with grumpy-looking business men hunched behind newspapers, rebellious teens rocking out to the latest from SugarCult or TwoMixx. The teenagers made Naoko feel old, simply because she WAS a teenager.... eighteen, this march. What had happened to her life, her childhood..? Some, Naoko observed, still trying to put the renegade assassin out of her mind, had wild-styled hair, as was seen just by glancing at a elfish female with a long braid. The brunette was rhythmically nodding her head to the chorus of a heavy metal rock-em-sock-em song. Naoko blinked.
A braid?!
Naoko frantically clapped a hand over her mouth to subdue the comment of "shit" and ducked down in her seat. The "girl" was Duo Maxwell, former Gundam pilot. No doubt that was Heero Yuy sitting next to him, his cobalt eyes darting restlessly around the screen of his laptop. The black wig would not help him hide from those who had studied the Gundams and their pilots long and hard. How the hell had they gotten on the same shuttle??
They must be going to earth, in the same town as she. How could she have gotten careless?? How could she have been so lax about this?? Dissolving the band could have been a bad idea, in a sense. I'm losing my touch. As long as they didn't realize this had something to do with Rune...
* * *
Heero tapped mercilessly on his keyboard, the corners of his mouth twitching in satisfaction as he read and read countless reports of terrorism -- only this terrorism wasn't him; nor was it to blame for killing thousands.
"Renegade Assassins Pilfer Majority of Mobil Doll Parts" was particularly interesting. Several women, who proclaimed themselves a part of the Guerilla band dubbed 'The MSA' had snuck into a Mobil Base and jacked nearly all of the parts. Apparently the 'terrorists' didn't like the dolls. Mobil Stealing Associates?? Though most of the articles that were seemingly linked had the word 'Assassin' contained in the title. M.. S.. Assassins, Heero guessed.
"Senator Kuerba Assassinated Night of Public Speech" was even more interesting. Unbeknownst of the spectators, a gun had been trained at the Senator all through the speech, and the bullet had only hit when the Senator started preaching about how earth was using the colonies. The author of the article insisted this had some sort of importance, and Heero agreed. Whoever pulled the trigger was interested in the safety of earth, and would probably stop at nothing to defend it's honor.
"Bomb Exploded Forest Demolition Team Factories" was most intriguing. Heero was willing to bet it was the same exact assassin who finished off Kuerba; the same motives were apparent: trying to save the earth. So. This protector was interested in the wildlife, the environment, NOT the politicians, or the army, or any specific countries. Considering the long-destroyed and forgotten Forest Demolition Team, or FDT, was widespread. All of the Factories had exploded at the same time, and it must have cost months, years to develop a time bomb-chain that large(2). Then again, if a factory was very near any wildlife, it wasn't so huge an explosion. This further proved that the terrorist was a tree-hugger. Several other reports showed the same kind of violence--but most of them were things like stealing Mobil parts, blowing up a base here and there, killing several bad politicians.. the like. Heero could only consume a fraction of the articles; the MSA was very active.
But what made this seem like all the events were linked was the fact that each act of terrorism was marked by the MSA insingia.
The jobs done by the 'Protector of Nature', as Heero had nicknamed the female assassin, were marked by a red insignia; only no bolt of lightning. In it's place, a dragon's claw resided. This further proved the argument that one girl had planned these. And yes, witnesses had seen only one assassin lurking on those jobs. Most group efforts were either marked by a flaming drop of water, or just a simple black 'MSA' scrawled on the wall or ceiling. So, Heero hypothesized that each different sign meant a different assassin. It was, in some ways, a 'signature'.
This Dragon-Clawed Protector of Nature mostly concentrated on forests; particularly, the preservation of Ireland's.. wildlife. Granted, the girl did seem to enjoy guarding the mountains of Japan, the forests of Siberia, also, and not to mention The Mediterranean Islands(1). But, nonetheless, Ireland seemed to be a top priority, especially near the runes... And wouldn't someone want to be near something that they love?
Heero shut his laptop with a slight snap, lifted one headphone, and breathed two words into Duo's ear.
"To Ireland."
* * *
"Trowa?" Quatre muttered the question. A muffled reply sounded near the blonde's ear as the pilot in question turned towards zero-four.
"Hm?" Trowa replied, lifting a blonde hair away from Quatre's eyes and tucking it behind a small ear. Quatre blushed and smiled.
"You're tired. Why don't you sleep?"
"I am not."
"I heard that yawn, O stubborn one."
"I know. I just.. want to make sure you get rest, too.."
"Then let's both fall asleep," Quatre ended the argument, sliding a hand around Trowa's waist. Trowa returned the gesture simply by gathering most of the blonde into his arms as they both closed their eyes. Perhaps this wouldn't be as bad as it seemed. After all, they had each other, right?
Yes, they had each other.
* * *
About a day, several coffee drinks, and a thorough explanation from Heero later, all five pilots had exited the airport in Dublin(4) and were walking up O'Connell Street.
"So you're saying that one of the more important MSA members will be living somewhere in Ireland, right?" Quatre asked.
"Yes." Heero replied, power-walking past the many pubs on the street. Wufei strode calmly to catch up with him.
"In other words, we are tracking down a woman who could be anywhere in the country when we have no idea who she is or what she looks like??" Wufei grilled, a rather shocked look on his face. "Pardon me, but that will be like trying to find a needle in a haystack."
"In which case, Wu-chan, we either poke ourselves with each piece of hay and see which one hurts, or we simply burn the haystack." Duo replied, a bit of the old Shinigami showing through.
"The former would be a better choice, Duo. Blowing up Ireland is a bad idea, and seeing which pricks is a rather good idea, in a metaphorical way." Quatre paused. "Besides, have you any idea what Irish temper is like?" The blonde shuddered, then continued rationalizing the situation. "We should stop in a pub so Heero can get more of a lead. AND we need a car. Right, Heero?"
Said perfect soldier nodded gruffly. "It won't be too hard, after I hack around and acquire a summary of her background. Judging by the articles, she was rather interested in the wildlife. That means we are wasting our time if we choose to look in the city."
Trowa spoke up. "Quatre, you and Duo go get a car. It would be best to.. borrow.. one, seeing as that makes us harder to find." The ex-clown frowned thoughtfully. "Come and pick us up in thirty minutes. We will be right here on the sidewalk by then. Enough time, Heero?"
"Hai." Heero grunted, and the group separated.
Trowa, Wufei, and Heero walked somewhat casually into the nearest pub (called Quinn's) and sat down in a window seat.
"We will be able to see them if they are early." Wufei stated in a rather un-Wufei monotone. "Heero, get to it."
The wild-haired ex-pilot was already turning on his laptop and tapping mercilessly, his eyes flicking here and there, several bits of beeping noises emitted from the humming hard drive. After 25 tense minutes of this, he stopped.
"Got her." He saved the file to disk. A funny noise from Wufei caused the other two to look up.
Wufei was staring, scandalized, at a dirty blonde sitting at the bar and sipping her drink. He immediately turned his head and ducked, afraid to attract attention. What was SHE doing here?!
"That's the waitress from the coffee shop." Trowa murmured in a low voice. "Could she be a cop?"
"Or maybe," Heero suggested quietly, "An MSA terrorist."
The words MSA must have meant something to her, because she jumped about five feet in the air and twisted wildly around, looking for the people who said the name of the infamous terrorist band. Her eyes locked on the three, and her mouth moved in a silent curse. The girl stepped hurriedly off her chair and headed towards the door in a jog.
"Follow her." 03 didn't need to say that twice. They were all up in a flash and bounding out the door behind her. The three skidded frantically out the door as she called, shrieking, for a Taxi, the yellow car was followed by a red Mercedes, the driver pumping up the punk music, a maniac grin on his face as his long braid flipped around the car.
As the girl got in the taxi, Heero and company dove for the Mercedes, shouting, "Follow that Taxi!!" Duo obliged and sped off after the fleeing cab as Quatre pulled the three's limbs into the car.
The yellow car swerved around a turn, racing doggedly for the city limits. If it weren't for Duo's "excellent" driving, the pilots would have lost it.
"Heero." Quatre muttered, and placed a hand on the laptop (which was on standby). Heero obligingly hand over the computer as he opened it and brought up the stolen data. As Quatre took a look at the screen, his eyes narrowed thoughtfully...
Age:
16
Sex: female
Hair: Brown
Eye: Green
Height: 5'7
Weight: 132
By the basic information was a picture of a young brunette with dark, murky green eyes set starkly against cream white skin. She wasn't smiling, and her eyes seemed to tilt downwards as though she were weeping. Under the basics was a large paragraph consisting of phrases such as 'suspected MSA terrorist', 'suspected hacker', 'rebelling artist', and 'organ donor'.
The large red stamp under the picture read, "Deceased".
"But Heero, what if she IS dead?" Quatre queried, the car roaring as it sped through the town.
"Look at this." Heero clicked at the mouse for a few seconds, then sat back and let Quatre see.
Age:
17
Sex: female
Hair: Brown
Eye: Green
Height: 5'11
Weight: 115
"Ah." Quatre paused. "So we should go where the fisherman go, right?"
"And where history lies uncovered." Heero finished, a glint in his eye.
Suddenly, the car screeched to a halt as the girl got out quickly and ran at breakneck speed down the road to the park. Duo parked the car in record time and jumped onto the sidewalk.
"C'mon!!" He said, and Heero stuck the laptop under the seat. Duo continued prattling. "Get your asses into gear!! MOVE!"
That got the rest of them running frantically off towards the park, following the ever-persistent Shinigami. The chestnut haired boy flew over the low fence and kept his eye on the blond, dodging baby carriages, grandmas, and dogs as he practically flew over the grass. Then, suddenly--
THUNK.
Duo reeled, and blacked out as he fell.
"Hmph." Stacey commented, her black braid swishing as she picked up the ex-pilot and propped him up. "That should work, he almost looks awake!!" She smiled cheerfully, then continued, "Let's get him in the car."
Naoko sighed, wiping the sweat off her brow. "Thank you so much...."
"It was no problem." Stacey waved it off as best she could as she grappled with the passed-out Duo. "Here, grab under his arm. I've got his waist."
* * *
Trowa stopped running and looked around.
No Duo.
"I lost him." He stated blankly as the others stopped and turned to him.
Wufei and Quatre nodded simultaneously. "We lost him too.." They replied.
Heero remained silent.
"Uh.." Quatre started, seeing the look of desperation flitting around on Heero's face. It took a lot of throat clearing to get out what everyone had been worried about. "You think they abducted him?"
"Maybe," Wufei replied, "But he's a big boy, and it's not like we can call Scotland Yard to go find him. Perhaps he went back to the car when he couldn't find us. Anyhow, standing around isn't going to help." 05 put a hand on Heero's shoulder and muttered to the ex-pilot, "He'll be okay."
Heero nodded, but still stayed silent as the four walked back to the car.
Upon arriving at said car, they realized the majority of Scotland yard was sitting in the pub and watching the street with vigil-- but not until each of them had guns train at their backs.
"You are under arrest."
* * *
A small light bulb swung dangerously on it's wire, softly illuminating the lonely little room and revealing a dilapidated couch currently dominated by a hunched female figure, a small methane stove, several metal crates, and a large window (thickly paned). Several precarious swings revealed two low doorways, one leading to God-knew-where, one currently opening and letting the twilight shine down to the forest floor, and also occupied by two female figures and one slumping male.
"Naoko!!! Stacey!!" cried the figure from the couch as she jumped up and hugged the two girls standing in the doorway. The male fell to the floor with a thump.
"Ooops," Stacey said, referring to the mass of Shinigami on the floor; however, she did not do anything to retrieve the fallen God of Death. "He's heavily drugged. I didn't want him waking up on the way here, you know. And yes, I did check his hair." she explained, after seeing the questioning look from their host. "Anyways; Rune!! I haven't seen you in a while! It's been forever!"
"I know," Rune said with a small smug smile, "I've kept busy." She grinned at Naoko, and then pointed to the bags the blonde was carrying. "Food?" she queried.
Naoko nodded. "California sushi roll, and some tofu. --along with other stuff, though you wouldn't care much about those things, I suspect." Even before she had said 'other stuff', Rune was snatching the bag of Sushi and Tofu out of her hands and opening it happily.
"Sushi!!!!" At this, Naoko had to wonder why her friend was acting so.. cheerful. They were here because of a bad situation, and Rune always took things like this seriously. Huh. She was either on drugs or extremely upset. Naoko was betting on the 'being extremely upset'; Rune had always cried the tears of a clown.
"You brang Triscuts?" Rune asked, her dark eyes peering into Naoko's light ones pressingly. For a brief moment, Naoko could see pain. So I was right, she thought.
Naoko nodded. "And Mozzarella cheese." she said as Rune grinned, then dumped the food on the small table. The Brunette sushi-lover walked over to the fallen Shinigami.
"We should take care of this," Rune said, frowning ponderously, and she and Stacey dragged him over to a crate, where several rolls of duck tape lay, obviously there to keep Duo out of hair. They wrapped him up in it, then opened several other crates.
These contained--you guessed it--a huge supply of dynamite, grenades, cherry bombs and stink bombs (yes, the sense of smell is a good weapon). The largest of them all was empty. Stacey dropped the God of Death into this crate, then shut the door. Thankfully for Duo, air holes were supplied.
Stacey promptly sat on Duo's crate. "Well. Why did you ask us to come here? I was just visiting Linh... I know this is urgent, but how could I help with this?" She shrugged, and her black braid swung like a pendulum.
"Ah, yes, well..." Rune coughed, then looked to her Shuhan, who apparently had no idea either, and was raising her eyebrows in authority.
Rune stood up, then reached out and fingered the cord to operate the lightbulb. She pulled, and a rather large booming noise sounded. "This..." she said, then motioned for the rest to follow, as she opened the largest crate in the whole stack. She then turned around in front of the entrance and faced Naoko and Stacey.
"If we are going to survive the attack Hiya-yaka is going to stage within the next five days..." She sighed. "The Scotland Yard tip-off was a good idea, Stacey. They'll be out of the way for several days while we instigate our defense. Besides, I've been yearning for some ass-kickin' for a while. That damned Kyoufu Terrorist Organization that damned Hiya traitor girl founded was ticking me off." She paused, then walked straight into the crate, and obviously beyond. "I need someone to pilot the three gundams in the basement, that's all."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1. Once again: Taisa is Colonel. For those who have a short memory span.
2. We couldn't do that now, (because I mean widespread as in worldwide) but in the future, with all those new alloys (ex: gundanium) and inventions and discoveries... who knows??
3. Mountains of Japan... err, yeah. There ARE mountains in Japan. The forests of Siberia are being cut down, and the endangered Siberian Tigers are dying. With the Mediterranean; history must be preserved... perhaps the government is trying to destroy history. ::nods:: And I'll have you know that 'The Protector' despises the war in Belfast. Even if the things right now aren't still happening, more things could be. Just think: they found a new mineral on the Lough Erne Islands (Islands in Ireland), or something.
4. Dublin is a city in eastern Ireland.