This pairing was a challenge issued by a friend who thought it
would be an interesting combination. Action this time around.
First time I have ever written an action (read PLOT) orientated
fic so we shall see how this goes!
Title: Two Become One 4/?
Author: Rhina
Pairings: 2xS and one more – see if you can find it!
*******
WARNING: Angst and Language
*******
Disclaimer: I don't own the GW boys or their female counterparts
otherwise I'd be retiring instead of dealing with the likes of the
school board. I don't own the song "Two Become One" by the
Spice Girls either – thank goodness, who'd want to lay claim to
them?!
lyrics
~~~ scene change ~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
I need some
love like I've never needed love before
(wanna make love to ya baby)
I had a little love, now I'm back for more
(wanna make love to ya baby)
~~~ Somewhere, L2 ~~~
Reflexively Sally reached up to tug on the end of her braid in a
typical nervous gesture. Finding the braid missing reminded her
of the role she was playing and how Margo Schwartz would
never think if doing something as juvenile as fiddling with her
hair. Unless of course it was an action deliberately meant to
entice the man of her choice to her side. And that was the tactic
that 'Margo' endeavored to employ on the young nervous
looking man across from her.
"Come on sweetness," she purred softly, her fingers stroking
down the silky length off a curl that had come loose from the
clip holding it back. "Just let me in to see the boss. I swear all
my qualifications are in order."
Clearing his throat and attempting to avoid the distraction of
Sally's enticing cleavage well displayed as she leaned forward,
he examined the papers once more. The documents did make it
appear as if she had completed a rigorous medical training and
though there seemed to be a couple of shading things about her
past before that time. He knew that would never bother the boss –
he merely wanted someone who could figure out how to make the
incision and remove the correct organ intact, regardless of what
happened to the donor later.
He did a quick scan of the data disk's information that had been
gathered off several extensive illegal searches of some criminal
record databases and found some notes of prior arrests and
felonies throughout the colonies, but nothing that would prevent
them from considering Ms. Schwartz as a potential employee.
The sweet enticing smell of her perfume wafted towards him and
overwhelmed his more reasonable senses at that moment.
"All right Ms. Schwartz," he said, staring with an almost dreamy
fascination at the cleavage displayed by the v in her shirt. He
was sure it hadn't been that deep before. "I need to go and confer
with my superior about your application and then I will be right
back."
A long finger traced a path down his baby smooth cheek,
startling him and making his muddy brown eyes open wide.
"Don't be too long now," whispered Sally. "It can get mighty
lonesome for a women around these colonies."
He gulped and turned, fleeing for the sanctuary of the inner
office. He didn't dare act on the hormonal impulses that skidded
along his skin at her presence, because he knew the boss would
rather explore her perfection by himself before deciding if she
was available goods.
Sally sighed with relief as the greasy little minion scuttled off.
Coming on to the man gave her the willies up and down her
spine and made her long to remove her own internal organs with
a dull spoon rather than conceive of actually being intimate with
such a … thing. Her thoughts strayed for a moment to the fine
form of a man she had seen in Duo before she left and she quickly
jerked her train of thoughts off that course. She couldn't afford
to be distracted by intense sexual longing at the moment. She
had a job to do and she needed to get it done so she could return
to being Sally Po and not this awful persona she had adopted in
order to complete her mission.
Remembering the importance of her mission, she relegated
Duo to the back of her mind and only a slightly longing ache
in her heart and moved on with what she needed to get done.
She slinked around the edge of the desk and keyed on the
computer terminal that was rather prominent. A moments cursory
search assured her that there was nothing of value on the machine.
"It would make more sense for them to have such information
squirreled away somewhere 'discreet'," muttered Sally as she
came back to her side of the desk. Her silent footsteps paced the
carpet as she contemplated her next move. She only hoped that
Margo was enticing enough to be taken on by these guys
otherwise she'd be back to breaking and entering and some things
were so much easier on the inside.
As she paced across the small office for what seemed like the
12 millionth time, the door to the inner office swung open and
the greasy male 'secretary' appeared once more. Sally
immediately turned the full wattage of her smile on him. "So
what's the verdict?" came her purring voice.
Gulping again, the man shuffled his papers in a fidgeting
gesture and made a slight bow in her direction. "The director
seems to feel that your qualifications are the exact ones needed
of a candidate for the position, but he wishes to conduct the
interview…personally," coughed the suddenly nervous man.
Sally puzzled about his behavior behind shuttered eyes as
Margo came forth and tossed her hair back in a seemingly
careless seductive gesture. "If that's what it takes to get the job,"
she murmured, leaning close and trying not to breathe in the
scent of his slightly panicked aroma, "then I'm definitely your
lady. Lead on McDuff."
Still puzzled by the sudden need for an interview, Sally swayed
her hips as her body moved with unconscious grace into the inner
office. She was concerned about the director's departure from his
standard routine. According to the source she had had inside the
operation before, the director's common hiring procedures were
very simple. Show up with a resume or documents that some how
reflected medical knowledge and you were hired. There had never
been a mention of an interview.
She knew that there wasn't a shred of information in those forged
documents that could possibly connect her to the Preventers or
the Alliance by any stretch of the imagination so there would be
no reason for something to be such a concern. She didn't like it
when people deviated from their normal practices, especially when
she was operating undercover without any backup. Crossing her
fingers deep inside the pocket of her tailored black blazer, she
entered the office and lit the dark room with her blinding smile.
The cavernous room was barely lit by the bluish glow of the
huge fish tanks that lined the walls. A small lamp shown on the
sleek black desk, but no other source of illumination was visible
in the room. The lack of light made it difficult for her to identify
all the items in the space at first glance. But within a moment or
two, her vision cleared enough for her to identify several chairs, a
long sofa that looked like it was covered in something akin to
leather and a huge conference table surrounded by more stiff chairs.
Everything seemed to absorb the blue light rather than reflecting and
Sally assumed that it had all be chosen for the eerie atmosphere that
it created. She hoped the shivers racing down her spine weren't
noticeable to anyone but her.
Having regained some of her ability to see, she spotted something
behind the long desk. It took her a moment of looking to decide
that it was the silhouetted form of a man. Being unable to tell
whether he was worth Margo's time or not, Sally decided that the
practical approach was more sure of winning her a position in this
man's notorious organization. "Good Day sir, I was told you were
interested in talking to me."
The hazy silhouette turned around in the chair and regarded her
carefully. Sally watched the blue light glint off of his odd-shaped
half-glasses and slicked back dark hair. His suit was dark in
color and obviously of a high quality cut, but it was his hands that
drew her attention. The seemed to be trying to display the affect
of years of wealth, but the careful manicure, even in the dimness
of the light, couldn't hide the rough scars of deep cuts and slashes
that could only have come from a very sharp blade. Something
like a scalpel perchance.
"Yes," came the deep voice from the darkness. "My assistant
informed me that you had some very high qualifications that
merited further investigation. Come and have a seat."
Sally accepted the proffered chair with some uneasiness. There
was no going back now though – she had unfailingly committed
Margo to this arrangement and by God she'd get her out of here
in one piece. "Thank you. I hadn't been expecting an interview
though. I had thought I would get a job."
He waved away her concern while offering her a refreshing
drink. Sally politely declined the offer, she liked to know all
of the contents of her drinks before she ingested them.
"The interview process is new I'm afraid," concluded the man
as he returned to his seat behind the expanse of the desk. "I've
had some rather unfortunately ungrateful employees the last
couple of months and I have no wish to repeat the performance."
"Ahh," nodded Sally sagely. "I can understand your need for
new employees then. I would certainly be _grateful_ for any
employment that you can offer me and I am certain that you'll
find all my qualifications are in order."
"Yes," agreed the man, shifting through the papers that resided
neatly in a dark folder on a single corner of the desk. "Your
qualifications are most impressive along with the notices of a
couple of 'incidents' on L2 and L5."
With a careless shrug and a semi-seductive flip of her hair,
Margo shooed the concerns away. "Those are long forgotten
I'm sure."
"A master forger and a skilled 'plastic surgeon' merely forgotten?"
asked the man with a single raise of his eyebrow. "Somehow I
don't think that's forgotten."
Margo smiled seductively and leaned over the desk, blue eyes
glittering as a small scalpel appeared in her hand without effort.
"It is when you talk to all the right people."
The man leaned back in his chair, tilting toward the blue light
of the fish tank. Behind him the careless motions of a shark
slipped through the water. "You are quite right. And you seem
to be the perfect candidate for the position I have open."
"Oh?" said Margo with interest as the scalpel disappeared as
slightly as it had been conjured to her hand. "And what position
might that be?"
"I have some, well, clients for lack of a better word," admitted
the sleek man in a soft dangerous voice. "They have certain
requests that I try to fulfill."
"Requests for what?" asked Sally, anxious to have her suspicious
confirmed by the head of the organization she wanted to nail to
the wall.
"For some needed organs."
"Organs?" This time it was Margo's turn to raise an eyebrow.
"If you're requiring some form of surgery, which I believe you
are do to the 'rigorous' job requirements, then I needed to know
what I'm removing. I'm not a fly by the seat of your pants
type girl."
The man nodded, his dark gaze assessing her through those
weird half-lenses once more. The blonde beauty across from
him was definitely not their typical applicant for such an
unappealing position. Her qualifications definitely meant that
she had merit as a candidate, but yet there was something
'overdone' about them. He shook his head about the suspicions,
knowing that he had been in the business far too long if he began
to suspect every mercenary blonde than came across his path.
"Human organs," he finally admitted in a graveled voice. "There
is a great demand from a certain clientele to have human organs
instead of the synthetic ones manufactured now. They wish to
remain purely human – not plastic bi-products. I meet those
demands when no one else will."
Sally managed to keep the slight thrill at his admittance to the
illegal organ trafficking she had suspected the underground ring
of for more than four years. She was definitely closer than ever
to nailing them with something, she only needed that elusive
piece of conclusive proof that damned all the guilty parties. "I
can understand their concern and the need for privacy then.
Where do you find such willing donors?" she inquired, attempting
a bored yet interested look, the shine of her blue eyes dulled by
the dimness of the light even as it gave her hair an eerie aura.
"Here and there," said the man off-handedly. The gaze through
the glasses became narrow-eyed and fierce as he continued.
"There are some things that your position does not need to be
concerned with. You are to removed the required organ, make
it ready to be delivered to the waiting customer and not ask a lot
of questions."
"I know when and where to keep my nose out of things," said
Margo as she raised her hands before her in a placating gesture.
"Are they supposed to be returned semi whole or do I not worry
about any more damaged goods than the organ?"
"The organ and getting it to the client intact and on time are
your only concern," was the cold response, eyes still examining
her in microscopic detail.
Whatever he finally saw must have pleased him for he broke
of his regard to reach down and bring out a file and slide it
across the desk to her. "I think though that as long as you agree
to keep your nose to yourself," he said quietly, "we shall have
an excellent working relationship with someone such as your
qualifications."
Margo smiled brightly at him. "I can certainly do that," she
said taking the file. "I assume that everything I need to know
is in here."
The man nodded and tapped the file again. "There is housing
information in here and a schedule and who you can contact
with questions. Other than that I shouldn't hear from you,
should I?"
"Certainly not," smiled Margo once more, taking the file and
standing gracefully. "It was nice to meet you and I look forward
to the work. Later."
Margo's graceful form shifted from the leather chair that had
molded itself to her shape. She saluted him lazily and sauntered
across the office. A slender hand grasped the doorknob and
pulled it open, letting herself out of the office after tossing a final
smile and a wink in the director's direction.
He watched her go without comment, making sure that the
door was latched before he moved from his chair. Striding
across the room purposefully, he moved to a far corner from the
desk, behind the large conference table. There he touched a
nearly invisible panel and watched patiently as one of the large
tanks slid back and to the side to reveal a long dimly lit hallway.
Without hesitation, he moved down the hallway, only a slight
limp marring his movements. He came to the third door on his
left, one that looked just like all the others in the hallway with the
exception of the emanation of loud ruckus rock music from
behind the thick grey steel door. His palm print on the id plate
next to the door made it slide open noiselessly, though any noise
whatsoever would have definitely been masked by the sheer
volume of the music and bass pumping from the room's stereo
equipment.
The soul occupant of the room was a long haired redhead who
was currently seated in front of a large computer screen head-
banging to the beat of the music. Long-fingered hands flew
across the keyboard at an amazing rate while his eyes, despite
the head-banging, kept track of the huge amounts of information
scrolling across the large screen in front of him. The light
colored clothes he wore contrasted starkly with the dimly lighted
atmosphere and the dark equipment around him.
With an efficient snap, the director turned off the music,
plunging the room into a sudden deafingly silence. "Ty," stated
the director in a harsh commanding tone.
"Ah come on man," said the redhead, swiveling his chair
around in an effortless gesture. His lanky body sprawled across
the surface of the chair portraying an air of careless grace,
almost like a cat looking for the perfect thing to pounce on. His
long hair clung to his cheeks and hid the coldness of his amber
gaze from the director's view. His lips seemed to be formed into
a permanant sneer. "It was just getting to the good part."
The director flung a sheaf of papers at the redhead and glare
across the top of his glasses at his hacker. He'd fire the
impudent upstart if he could, but he was far to valuable to dismiss
on a whim. "Find out all you can about Ms. Margo Schwartz."
The young man laughed. "Margo Schwartz?"
Scowling the director nodded.
"What am I looking for this time? Blackmail material?
History? What?" Ty asked, caressing the file in a way that sent
shivers through the director.
It was definitely better to keep the young man confined where
he could see him rather then letting him run free where he
could easily ruin the organization, despite the creepy signals
he sent off. "Anything and everything."
The redhead raised a single eyebrow at the remark. "Oh really?"
"I want to know everything from where she buys her underwear
to why the hell she showed up on our doorstep looking for a job,"
scowled the director. His need to protect himself and his lifestyle
was busy sending out warning signals about Margo Schwartz for
some reason. "She's too good to be true, too pat, too eager to work
for us and asks far too many questions. There's something more
to her than the quick records search can show."
"All right boss man," said Ty as he swung back around to face
the green-lit terminal screen. "I'll let you know when I find
something."
Satisfied that the matter was being taken care of, the director
turned to exit the office.
"Oh," added the redhead, watching the opening of the door in
the reflection of his screen, "make sure and turn the music back
on will you?"
Without a motion the door whooshed shut leaving only silence
behind.
"Well well well," mused the redhead as he opened the file and
snapped his fingers, which made the music resume at its
customary volume. "What secrets have you got to tell Ms.
Margo?"
Propping up the large picture contained in the file, he entered
her name and devilled into the digital world.
~~~ Office of the Director of Development, Preventer HQ ~~~
Duo sat in his office deep in thought. He was pondering a
short list of names and working through a mental list of
information on each culprit. Some of the names were certainly
the ones any brief scan would turn up, but there was a couple
that seemed out of place. There just never seemed to be one
that stood out in his mind though, despite the in-depth information
he was now privileged to hold.
The lights were on low and the only sound in the office was the
low key hum of his computer. Most everyone had left for the
day and he was gratified to have the time to be at work and do
some research with their more capable computers. There were
only a few more pieces of information that the computer work
had turned up and he was back to his own mental assests to
discover the culprit of the crimes.
The faint sounds of heavy metal drifted into the office. Duo
found himself humming along and tapping his foot to the heavy
beat. It seemed that one of his younger techs was working late
and had fine musical taste. Duo found that the music stirred
his blood and made the thinking process a little more rapid.
"Somewhere I am missing the darn key," he muttered to
himself, fingers reflexively drumming out the harsh beat.
"But then, this is just a search based on a possible motive.
Maybe I need to figure out who held the information on all
of the downed agents…"
He began to rummage through the files on his suspects once
more, linking together a few more pieces before he was startled
by the clearing of someone's throat.
"I'm sorry Director, I didn't realize you were still here," came
the nervous voice of his assistant Director, Carver. In a
heartbeat, he was blushing, something that Duo swore he did
even in his sleep. "The light wasn't on you see and I thought I
would come in a get the file that I needed…."
He folded and crossed his hands nervously, the thickness of
his lenses hiding most of his expression from Duo's inquisitive
look. His shirt was neatly pressed and his trousers creased as
if he had just put them, which would be weird considering the
hour of the night. His limpid blonde hair was carefully smoothed
back and gave the appearance of being well-molded into place.
Duo wondered though why the neat and immaculate young man
always seemed so nervous around him. There never seemed to
be any need since we was always organized and efficient in his
work. Something about that nervousness struck Duo as odd and
out of place, but he dismissed it without further thought, his mind
returning to its busy workings on the puzzle at hand.
"Not a prob," answered Duo, scooting away several papers and
wiping his computer screen clear. "What were you looking for?"
"Ummm," said Carver, clearing his throat again. "Just trying
to remember who all is out on assignment in Director Po's
section."
Immediately Duo's mind conjured up a mental image of the
striking blonde. He could had sworn that he felt drool forming
at the mere thought of those long legs and golden hair wrapped
around him. He imaged those baby blues looking at him with
lust and desire as that small pink tongue swiped across her lips.
And then he jerked himself back, his body painfully hard, as he
realized Carver had said something.
"What was that again?" he asked, shifting to find a more
comfortable spot on his chair, the ache settling deep inside him
once more.
"I said that I had gone to ask Director Po, but I have been
unable to contact her or find her in her office for the past several
days," stated Carver, anything other than mere curiosity and a
desire to complete his job, hidden by those maddening glasses
and the darkness of the room. "I normally make sure that the
agents are receiving the devices that they need and that all is
going smoothly, but without knowing who is out there, I'm not
able to complete that part of this chore."
"Ahhh," said Duo, his mind still slightly blurred by the
lustfilled thoughts and ponderings about how to fulfill those
fantasies as he off-handedly gave away severely classified
information. "Sally's off on a mission."
"A mission?" asked Carver, leaning forward with his curiosity
overwhelming him. "It must have been important if Director
Po went. Do you know where she went so I can be in contact
with her?"
Duo continued to absently answer the questions as his mind
prowled along the idea that he could go and meet her on the
mission. Give her a safe haven. Especially since the site was
his old hunting grounds. No one there knew of his promotion
and he could slid in easily with the old gangs. "Somewhere
on L2."
Shaking himself from the depths of his imagination, Duo
brought himself to his present. He forestalled any more questions
about Sally with his next words. "Don't worry about Sally
though, she's more than able to take care of herself and I'm
pretty sure she's only in contact with Une anyway."
"That doesn't sound very…safe, sir," commented Carver,
continuing to press the issue. "I'd like to be able to check in a
make sure that she is alright."
Duo leaned over the desk and met the man's gaze with his own
vivid violet stare. The words that came from his throat were
harsh and menacing and had the edge of Shinigami. "Don't
worry about Sally. She'll be taken care of."
The man inhaled sharply and the abruptly stood. "I understand
sir. If you'll excuse me then, I think I'll head home."
Duo sighed as he leaned back and relaxed into his seat once
more. He cursed his own inappropriate behavior and wondered
what the hell he had been thinking giving away such sensitive
information. There was certainly no way he could take it back
now, so figuring out a solution for it was certainly beyond him.
Instead he needed to find the culprit as fast as he could now.
His brain quickly returned to the complex issue and began
connecting who had the information about the agent and who
could have twisted the key to do them in. Minutes turned into
an hour and he slowly began to realize someone that they had
all overlooked. As a loyal officer to Une and Treize, he had
been considered someone loyal to them personally and
supporting whichever cause they upheld. Because of those
assumptions, this person had never truly been a suspect and
cleared in a rather rote manner. But yet, this person knew all
the information and was the vital key in all the missions that
went bad.
Shit. They were in Deep Shit.
Worse. Sally was in deep shit and he had done her in….
"Fuck," swore Duo. "Fuck. Fuck. FUCK!!! Sally!!"
Without another word he cleared his findings from his desk
and headed for Une's office at a dead run.
~~~ A Hidden Apartment, L2 ~~~
Sally came in the small apartment and shut the door behind
her, leaning against it with an exhausted sigh. It had been a
long day of demanding operations and she still had some
undercover work to do this evening.
None of her work during the day had brought her anywhere
near the information that was vital to breaking the case wide
open. So she was resorting to sneaking into the offices at night.
This kind of work was not her forte but to bring these mass
murders down, she'd do just about anything now.
Having seen the inside of the operation left her sickened and
weak. The gross waste of human life was truly tragic and there
was nothing she longed for more than strangling the man in
charge with her bare hands while the building went down in
flames.
Snarling with desire at the thought, she retreated to the
bedroom to change her clothes. A nice basic black seemed to
be the latest choice in fashion these days. Too bad she looked
so bad in it.
"The sacrifices a girl makes," she said with a smile as she
pulled out a change of clothes. As she stripped and took a
brief shower, she allowed her thoughts to stray to Duo Maxwell
and linger with the pleasing images. As she slowly dried her
hair, her mind reveled in the mere idea of him sharing the
intimacy of these tasks with her.
Shaking the images away as she dressed, Sally prepared herself
inside and out for the task ahead of her this evening. Hoping
it all went smoothly so that she might hurry home to what she
was longing for.
~~~ Commander Une's Office, Preventer HQ ~~~
"Une!" cried Duo, swinging open the door to her office wildly
and with a loud bang it slammed into the wall. "Une!"
Une lifted her face, smiling a slightly silly grin, from the piece
of folded notepaper in front of her. At the sight of Duo's deadly
Shinigami look, she laid it aside and assumed a business like
look. "What?"
"I've found your killer," snarled Shinigami as he leaned over
her desk. "Sally's going to find herself in deep shit in less than
24 hours if I miss my guess."
"Sally?!" cried Une with concern. "But no one knows where
she is but you and…"
Une broke off with a silent exclamation of distress when Duo
shook his head.
"He knows," whispered a pained Shinigami. "With my own
mouth I admitted it. I've totally fucked her over. I doubt she'll
forgive me."
"Duo," murmured Une, concerned for the mental state of the
young man in front of her. "I'm sure it was an accident…"
"Yeah," he admitted ruefully. "I let my dick do the talking
instead of my head. I'm such a fuck-up."
Une contemplated Duo's guilt in silence, unsure of what to
say to drive away his pain and help the Shinigami retreat a little.
But she knew deep inside, that it was the Shinigami that would
get them out of this mess.
"I'm going after her Une," growled the fierce protectiveness of
Shinigami. She was his and he needed to protect her from this
asshole. "I'll bring her back and deal with him, don't worry
about it."
He flipped the stack of papers he was carrying onto her desk
and turned briskly on his heel to stride from the room. "There's
your killer."
As the aura of Shinigami faded from the room, Une stared in
transfixed horror at the picture laying on her desk. Shaking
hands reached out and took a hold of it.
The sound of Duo's revving motorcycle broke the deadening
silence and Une crumpled the picture in her own hand.
"I too shall avenge you Treize," she muttered harshly, dropping
the picture to the floor and grinding it under her foot. "The
bastard will pay for what he's done to destroy your memory and
all you worked for. And I know just the person to help."
Une strode from the office and headed out to find help.
And on the floor of her office, the photo uncurled displaying
its image. The image of Carver Fultz.
~~~ Assistant Director of Development's Office, Preventer HQ ~~~
Carver quickly fled the darkened office and headed for his own
bright space. He folded his frame into his leather chair and spun
to face the computer screen. With a few rapid clicks, he had
connected to his home computer was busy using that to mask his
trails. His quick moving eyes burned with focus behind the imitation
lenses and those innocent baby blues harden to the sharp blue
diamonds.
"Well well, well Ms. Po," he snarled softly under his breath.
"What are you up to? And how can I make sure they find you…."
His fingers flew with determination as he skillfully wove the trap
to snare the favored mouse. A feral grin shifted across his menacing
features. "Here Kitty Une…."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Again C & C madly desired!!!
Tune in next time to see what happens to our fateful pair….
Thanks for reading!
^_^
Rhina
