OooO A Very long chapter! I blame it all on Orla-chan who
gave me the idea of what to write..
Title: Two Become One 7/?
Author: Rhina
Pairings: 2xS and 5x11
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WARNING: Angst and Language
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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 ~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Are you as good as I remember baby, get it on, get it on,
'Cause tonight is the night when two become one
I need some love like I've never needed love before
(wanna make love to ya baby)
~~~ Martin Fraser's Office, L2 ~~~
Mr. Fraser rolled his chair around to face the giant aquarium behind
his desk, watching the quiet motions of the shark in the tank as his
snarled whisper slipped through the room. "You've reached the end
of the road. Ms. Sally Po."
His smiled was a horrid thing to behold as he contemplated the fate
of Ms. Po. Her life now lay in his hands and he was determined to
make good use of it. He would find out not only why she had come
to invade his little establishment, but also gain the knowledge that
would allow him to take over the Preventers and use them for his
own purposes. There was nothing quite like having your own private
army in your back pocket.
There was a sharp rap at the door and it swung inward. Mr. Fraser
turned his chair in that direction before standing and moving around
the desk to watch the prisoner and her escort come into the room. He
would have his revenge and crush her life. Things were definitely
looking up for him today.
Sally stalked into the room. Her arms were bound in front of her
in a pair of linked handcuffs. Her blue eyes flashed and burned with
anger and resentment and her blonde hair, still streaked with shades
of black, tumbled loose from her braids and clung to the side of her
face. The dark clothing she wore from the night she attempted to
secretly enter this place was stained and disshelved, giving her a very
weary and tired appearance. The blaze of a true fighter radiated off of
her though and Mr. Fraser knew it would not be an easy task to break
her. Three men surrounded her. Two, both in simple black uniforms
of a low ranking person in the Fraser Organization, were holding onto
her arms while the third, this one in a deep red uniform with slicked
back black hair and a sneer upon his lips, led the way into the office.
All of them had the tough looks of fighters who meant business and
breaking her was their business for today.
"Good Evening Ms. Schwartz," drawled Martin Fraser as he leaned
back against the front edge of his desk. "Or should I say Ms. Po,
Commander of the Preventer Medical division."
A brief hint of panic flashed through Sally's burning blue gaze before
anger returned ten-fold. Instead of spewing forth the fiery rage that
she felt for this slimeball in front of her, Sally managed to merely raise
an eyebrow to convey her disdain for him. Her lips clenched themselves
together to prevent anything more from issuing forth.
"Nothing to say Ms. Po?" asked Mr. Fraser as he moved toward her,
removing his glasses and tucking them into an inner pocket of his suit
coat. "Funny. The records on you from the Alliance and the Preventers
always seem to mention that you have lots to say."
Stubbornly Sally sealed her mouth tighter together while her eyes
continued to blaze with hate and anger.
"Well, don't worry about not having anything to say at the moment,"
continued Mr. Fraser, as a sadistic smile curved his lips upward. "By
the time the boys are done, you will have more than just a little to say.
"You see Ms. Po," he continued, "there is quite a bit of valuable
information that you can provide for us. And I quite intend to have
that information. Not only that, but there is also the matter of you
attempting to infiltrate my place of business. There is no reason why
those snooty Preventers should be concerning themselves with the
generous life saving work that I do here."
Sally's eyes blazed in response. With a tiring struggle, she managed
to control her words and refrain from any type of sharp comeback and
continued to regard him with the contempt the sleezy man deserved.
"Still nothing to say?" he queried, meeting her gaze directly. "That
is too bad. Perhaps some type of physical persuasion, as loath as I
am to ruin such a perfect specimen of womanhood, is the only course
remaining to me. I do not normally like to be so crass, but one must
work with the methods available to them."
With a single gesture from Mr. Fraser, the guard who had led Sally
into the room turned around and smiled evilly at her. His slicked hair
reflected the oily shine of his personality and the deep red color of his
uniform designed to hide the blood, all of which painted a picture of
his deeply sadistic nature. A flash of his hand and a quick movement
of his arm, brought his open hand into stinging contact with her cheek,
leaving a raw mark behind. Quickly the opposite hand came up and
slammed into the solid muscle of her solar plexus, removing the breathe
from her lungs and forcing her knees to go lax and her weight to hang
from the strength of the other men's grips.
Mr. Fraser's cruel smirk grew slightly as he watched Ms. Sally Po
struggle to regain the breathe forced from her lungs. He watched
dispassionately as she gained enough breathe for her to stand on her
own before the red clad guard in front of her kicked out with his foot
in an attempt to dislocate her knee.
Sally saw the move coming and watched the arc of his foot swing
carefully. At just the right moment, she used the hold of the black
uniformed men standing beside her and holding her arms to leverage
her legs off the floor and out of the way of the kick. A small smile
graced her lips at the red uniformed soldier's dumbfounded look, he
had been too sure that she would simply stand still and take all he had
planned for her.
Growling under his breath, Martin Fraser glared at the guard and
snarled out a command. "Don't be an idiot! She's been trained! Hold
her tightly you morons! Persuasion will not be effective without the
victim accepting it!"
The guards, both wearing dull back uniforms that seemed to match their
harsh crew cuts, beside her tightened their grip and used their legs to keep
her feet on the floor in response to the command. As the guard, his
reddened knuckles nearly matching his uniform, in front of her prepared
to do even more substantial bodily harm to her, Sally felt a bit more hope
slipping away from her grasp. There didn't look to be a lot of options left
and yet she knew she had to get herself out of this situation. This time
there was no counting on the men in the white hats riding in on time to
save her this go around.
At that moment, perhaps the fates sensed that Sally was in trouble, for
destiny opened the door of opportunity for her with the entrance of Ty
into the room. The redhead dismissed the tableau before him without
even more than a flickering glance.
"Yo, Mr. Fraser," he called out, "there's something I need you to look at."
"Can't that wait?! I'm in the middle of something," he growled to the
computer geek, his gaze still locked with the fury of Sally's blue eyes.
With a flagrant toss of his long red hair, the man seemed unconcerned
by Fraser's lack of interest. "Fine with me boss man, but I figured you'd
want to know about the two characters that just arrived on L2 and have
spent a considerable amount of time gathering information on you."
Carelessly flinging those words away, Ty turned and sauntered from
the room, heading back to where he had come from. Mr. Fraser growled
in a low tone under his breath. It seemed as though there were others
determined to interfere with his plans for Ms. Po.
"Well Ms. Po," he said in a low tone, "I guess you must have some
friends out there. Which means not only do I need to dispose of you,
but them as well. I'll leave you then in the capable hands of my
compatriots and be back in a moment when you are ready to talk."
He gave her a mock bow and headed out of the room with those parting
words. His strides through the room were stiff and angry and Sally knew
that there would be no remorse for her when he returned.
The mere mention of the fact that there might be people out there
looking for her made her blood sing with excitement. It gave her a new
shot of hope to race along her veins and now she was more determined
than ever to get herself out of this situation and meet up with those who
might be looking for her. And even if the people Ty mentioned weren't
here for her, it was enough to be thankful to them for the distraction.
Giving her a smile so evil it made her nearly physically sick, the red
uniformed guard in front of her leaned in and let his foul breathe wash
over her face. "It's my turn now little girl and I don't forget those who
try and avoid me."
Garnering her strength, Sally accepted the first few blows that the sleazy
black haired man delivered to her defenseless form while her agile mind
began looking for a way out. In a split second she saw what she needed,
the opening that should allow her to break the hold of the uniformed men
beside her, which had gone lax with each consecutive hit, and take down
the foul oaf in front of her.
As his foot moved to connect with her leg in one hell of a solid kick, Sally
used the leverage of the black clad men beside her once more to swing her
legs up and out of the way. She walked her legs up his chest and slammed
her booted feet into his jutting out jaw with a hearty smack, splitting the
red guard's lip against his teeth.
As he staggered back under the suddenness of the blow, hands covering
his mouth in an attempt to wipe away the dripping blood, the other two
black uniformed guards lost their grip on Sally's arms as she continued
to use the swing momentum to move, up and around in a body flip.
The force of her flip freed her from their grasp. Sally then swung her
joined hands into one of the guard's faces, smacking him soundly with the
heavy metal. The man went down in a slump, out cold, his face hidden in
the curve of his black clad arm.
Satisfied that she had one of them down, Sally quickly turned, spinning
on her back leg and whirling the front one in a high arcing kick, catching
the other black uniformed man on his jaw. The force of it threw him to
the floor where he laid in a momentary groggy state, stunned that a mere
woman had taken him down. Another merciless stomp of her booted foot
along his chin made sure that he too was down for the count.
The one guard left wiped his bloody lip on his red sleeve, the split in it
making his smile even more menacing. He advanced toward her warily
as she crouched down and prepared herself for his move. As soon as he
got close enough, once again secure in the fact that he could easily take
her down, he swung out with his balled fist. Sally ducked to avoid the
swing and swept out her foot in a low arc at the same time. She
connected solidly and kicked his feet out from under him. Down on the
floor it only took one more swift move for her to render him unconscious
as well.
Moving even more quickly now, Sally secured the keys for the handcuffs
she wore from his pockets and unlocked herself. She then pocketed the
gun the last guard down had been carrying and quickly fled from the
room, looking for the fastest way out.
Not long after the door to the office swung shut behind her, Mr. Martin
Fraser re-entered his chambers. At the sight of the three men out cold on
the floor and the empty handcuffs, he swore passionately. Cursing
continuously under his breathe, he summoned more guards and set out on
the hunt for his prey.
~~~ An alley near Fraser Headquarters, L2 ~~~
Heero and Duo crouched together outside of the place they knew as the
headquarters for the ring Sally had tried to infiltrate. Together they had
worked until the early hours of the morning laying out a plan for Sally's
rescue and the chance to get the information that they needed to shut the
place down for good. Then after only a few hours of sleep, they were up
and ready to move. They knew that their presence would not have
escaped this guy's notice and they wanted to move before he started hunting
them instead.
"All set?" Duo asked, peering at Heero through the darkness of the shadows
surrounding them. "You have the detonators, right?"
"Hn," nodded Heero, checking through his gear once more to make sure
it was laid out in the order that he needed things. "And the disk and stuff
for gathering the data before you ask."
Duo nodded and then reached out and laid a hand on Heero's shoulder.
"Thanks man for helping me with this."
Heero's deep blue eyes met Duo's sincere amethyst ones and the silent
communication between them flowed.
"It's all right," Heero said quietly. "I know you'd do the same,
actually you have done the same for me, when we went for Relena.
This was the least I could do to help you save the woman that you
love."
Shocked eyes widen as Duo digested Heero's words. He watched the
Japanese man's nimble hands continue to check his gear as the words
he said spun through his mind. He had never thought of Sally as the
woman that he loved, but perhaps..
"Ready?" asked Heero, hiding his amusement at the stunned expression
still gracing Duo's features behind his mask of the perfect soldier.
Dumbly, Duo nodded. He then reached deep inside himself and shut
off the flow of emotions coursing through him. The emotional
overload and realizations were not something that he needed right now.
Most of all he needed a clear head and rational mind, anything else
could be dealt with later.
Silently exchanging a look of readiness, the pair began to put their
plan into motion. Duo was to go and save Sally and Heero to find the
needed information before blowing the place to bits. Creeping into the
building, they headed off to fulfill their plans.
~~~ Preventer Headquarters, Une's Office ~~~
"Anything we need to go over again?" asked Trowa, looking carefully
at Une and Wufei's faces. His own green eyes sparkled slightly with the
excitement of this challenge, anxious to test his own skills once more.
Une shook her head and leaned back in her chair, her own warm brown
eyes focused on the lines of Wufei's graceful features. "It all makes
sense to me and with the best of luck, all will turn out as we wish."
Wufei scowled. "I still don't like the idea of you being involved in this
Une. It's not right."
Une merely glared at Wufei as Trowa hid his laughter, letting it only
shine in his eyes. Une missed his amusement totally and allowed her
scathing opinion of Wufei's words to color her voice as she spoke. "It's
_my_ Preventers that he is after! I'm not going to sit on the sides and let
the two of you play hero when I can damn well do something about it!"
Inhaling slowly, attempting to control his temper, Wufei stood and
moved to lean over Une while she remained seated in her chair. "I do
not want you getting in his way Onna! I will not have you hurt! If things
get to that point, let Trowa take over!"
"I'm not some silly damsel in distress _Preventer_ Chang," snarled Une
in return, her brown eyes flashing with spite and anger, standing to come
face to face with the Chinese man. "I am quite capable of taking care of
myself!"
Dark brown eyes snapped at her as his mouth twisted itself into a grim
line. Balled fist showed his tenseness even further. He leaned further
into her and spoken in a quiet but harsh tone. "Do not get yourself hurt
Onna.. Une.. Or I will never forgive you."
Trowa watched in silence with careful emerald orbs following
the gracefully angry moves of the Chinese man as he left the office,
heading to the spot that he would wait for Carver at. Turning his
contemplative gaze to the brown haired woman standing next to him,
Trowa drawled out his next words. "Quite a passionate lover I assume
Une."
Blushing slightly, Une turned her back on the tall Gundam pilot, one
she had always thought highly of, despite his continued smart remarks
about her love life. "I don't need to answer that," she said heading for
the phone on her desk to put the plan in motion.
Laughing silently, Trowa stood and laid his hand over hers before she
could lift the phone's receiver. "You don't need to, you already did,"
he whispered softly, winking at her so she could see the humor he saw.
"So don't worry, I won't let you _or_ him come to any harm."
On soft feet then, Trowa made his way to the small alcove and settled
himself down in a hiding position as Une picked up the phone to make
the phone call to start the ball rolling. Her eyes flashed her thanks to the
emerald-eyed brunette as she dialed the appropriate extension.
"Carver Fultz please," she said, taking several deep breathes to calm the
quelling within her stomach.
His voice came to her across the phone lines and she smiled slightly,
a cruel smile just like those Colonel Une used to where. "Ahh Carver,
I was wondering if you could come to my office, there are some things
we need to discuss."
~~~ Fraser Headquarters, L2 ~~~
On silent feet honed by years of practice, Heero crept through the
corridors. He used the set of blueprints that they had managed to find
to navigate his way. There was really one room that could possibly be
used to house the mainframe due to the specifications it would need.
Stealthily he made it through the hallways until he found himself in
front of the door leading to the room that he was looking for. The
keypad was a definite give away, besides the fact that everything on
his blue print pointed to this location.
Without a moment's hesitation, he slid a 'skeleton' keycard from his
bag's pocket, while taking out a small processor from another pocket.
He hooked the two together with the ease of long practice and slid the
keycard into the slot. The processor quickly ran through a series of code
breaking programs before finding one that matched and unlocking the
security door.
Putting away the items that he had used, Heero pushed open the door
and slipped inside. With a small smug smile, he congratulated himself
on finding the correct room in one try. He then shook his head to wipe
away the smile and moved across to the main frame terminal on the desk
opposite the door.
Experience with thousands of programs and the hackers that created
them, Heero expertly broke through the levels of security and immersed
himself in the data streaming around him. Establishing a convoluted
connection with his laptop, still on and running a program happily in the
safe room he and Duo had left behind, he began to send to it the
information that the Preventers needed to put Mr. Martin Fraser and his
organization away for a very long time.
Random password checks and twists and turns placed in and among
the information barely made Heero pause in his work. He simply
slipped through them with ease and continued to gather all that he
needed. As his fingers worked their computer magic, his mind idly
contemplated the idea that the person who created this system did not
know what they were doing.
And rooms away, Ty watched the hacker fly through his system with
ease, no matter what roadblocks or stumbles he set in the way. Ty
cursed whoever it was and worked on finding the weak link in the
hacker's connection so he could terminate the work that he was doing.
~~~ Une's Office, Preventer HQ ~~~
Une folded her nervous hands on top of her desk, determined not to
give into her fidgets. Her mind sped through the different ways to
offer Carver the information that they had laid out as bait,
contemplating and rejecting several ideas before settling on one way
that should work quite well.
The moment that she had made a decision, the buzzer sounded and
a voice announced that Preventer Fultz was here to see her. Schooling
her features to rid them of any unintentional notice of dislike or the
hatred that she felt, Une said that he could be let in.
Smoothing back his hair in an almost simpering gesture, Carver let
himself into the bitch's office. He could only see her as the bitch who
had destroyed everything that his idol Treize had attempted to build
during the years of the Alliance. Like a dog in heat, the bitch had
followed their leader everywhere, using the power of her pheromones
to lure him into her clutch. To Carver the mere thought of being in
the same room with her was repulsive, but he had no reason to show
all his cards today until his hand was completely played out. Only
then who he tell her who had ruined her precious 'Preventers' and
claim back the glory of Treize's dreams.
Carver put aside his grandiose plans the moment that he closed the
door to his 'Commander's office'. As much as he wanted all of those
thoughts to come to fruition, he knew that his conversation would go
much better without those thoughts in mind.
"Ahh, Preventer Fultz," said Une in a cool formal tone. "Thank you
for coming so promptly. I have a couple of things I would like to
discuss with you."
Trowa watched as Une skillfully led the conversation along the channels
that they had all agreed upon. His mind tuned out the words about boring
office procedures and routine meetings and clients as he focused his gaze
on the man he considered the enemy. There was nothing overly
intimidating about the man. In truth, he could have blended into the
background of just about any good size company. But as Trowa looked
closely, he could see the touch of madness around the corners of his eyes.
And Trowa had seen enough of the effects of the ZERO system to know
that Carver Fultz was no longer someone he would consider stable. With
a jolt, Trowa again focused his attention on what Une and the creep were
discussing.
"That should be all Preventer Fultz," continued Une, in a smooth tone
of voice signaling the end of their meeting.
The thin haired blonde man across from her rose and made a barely civil
salute to her before turning to leave the office. Behind those thick lenses
eyes flashed and cold-blooded calculation of how he could be rid of her
resumed.
"Oh, there is one more thing," called out Une, waiting till the man turned
around before dropping the oral bombshell that she had waiting for him.
"Have you seen Preventer Maxwell recently?"
Immediately interested inspite of himself, Carver shook his head. "No
Commander Une. I haven't seen him for some time. Is something
wrong?"
Barely able to contain her smirk at his interest, Une shook her head in
response. "I don't believe so, but then one can never be sure when an
ex-Gundam pilot is concerned."
"Ex-Gundam pilot?" Carver's interest was definitely peeked now.
"I hadn't realized that any of the pilots were alive any longer, much
less working for the Preventers."
Une smiled. "Of course they are alive, as far as my intelligence reports
state. Duo was one of the finest, piloting 02 with unbelievable skill
and a cunning and sometimes deadly sense of humor. The fact that
he could fix anything and create any machine you needed out of spare
parts along with his abilities and knowledge from being a pilot made
him an ideal candidate for a position in our organization."
As she watched him carefully digest that information, she dropped the
final words that would spur the man to action far better than anything
else she could have thought of. "Preventer Chang was a Gundam pilot
as well - 05 as a matter of fact."
"Preventer Chang?"
Sagely, Une nodded, turning her chair to gaze out her office window
at the bright sunshine and blue sky. "Yes, a more talented and driven
pilot you couldn't have found during those times. I think it was his deep
sense of justice that drew Treize's interest in the pilots and made him
eager to learn more about them. Perhaps it was that interest, that
fascination with them, that led to his death."
Une shook her head to remove the thought from her mind, turning once
more to watch the man across from her. She noticed the unholy gleam
of interest in his eyes. "But that is pure fancy, my own regret that he did not live to see the peace that they created and helped enforce."
"Was Preventer Chang the one referred to as the Dragon?" asked
Carver's soft voice.
Again Une responded with a nod, allowing Carver to follow his own
twisted and demented path of reasoning.
She watched with apprehension as a look of intense contemplation
crossed his features to be quickly replaced by a small smug smile. Une
closed her eyes then and prayed for the strength to let this go into
Wufei's hands and, more importantly, she hoped Wufei would return to
her in one piece.
"That is certainly some interesting information," murmured Carver.
He then quickly turned on his heel and fled the office at a swift pace.
The moment he left, Trowa slipped from his hiding spot in the shadows.
He quietly laid a hand on Une's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze.
On silent feet he too departed, moving to the arranged meeting place
with Wufei.
"I can't believe," muttered Une under her breathe as she watched the
agile man leave her office, "that I am letting this little shit get away
with this! And if those two _men_ believe that I'm just going to sit
here and wait for them to mop it all up, they have another goddamn
thing coming."
Opening the bottom right hand drawer of her desk, Une pulled out an old
Glock 28. The gun had been a gift when she was just learning to shot and
holding it, much less firing the antique, brought her comfort. And damn
it all, if she didn't think it deserved to take down someone determined
to rip apart all she had built and believed in.
Tucking away the weapon discretely, Une left the office, headed for
where Wufei and Trowa awaited Carver.
~~~ Fraser HQ, L2 ~~~
Stealthily a black figure moved out from behind the open stairway
door, peering into the quiet hall. Duo's long chestnut colored braid
swung down off his back as he tilted his head further around to see
the hallway more clearly. Neither hearing nor seeing anything, he
slipped from his hiding place and began to move soundlessly down
the hall.
Absently, his fingers rubbed back and forth along the butt of the solid
weapon he carried in his right hand. The weight of it was comforting
as he continued his search for Sally, which had so far proved fruitless.
He had picked the logical beginning point of the basement and worked
his way up to the more common business areas. A cursory sweep
through the floors below and an exhaustive search of the cells had yet
to reveal Sally's presence. He was nearing the few remaining options,
desperate to find her soon. The mere thought that his inability to find
her meant she was dead and unable to return with him was something
his brain refused to comprehend.
Static filled his hearing briefly before it smoothed out into the calm
tones of Heero's voice.
"Any sign of her yet?" he asked in a hushed tone, though the earpieces
made it impossible for anyone to overhear what was being said.
"Negative," responded Duo in a whisper. "No sign at all - her cell was
wiped clean. I'm just going to.."
Duo trailed off as the sound of pounding feet caught his attention.
"Hang on Heero, there's someone coming," was Duo's harsh whisper
as he opened a door, luckily unlocked, and ducked inside, leaving room
for him to peer out the slightly open crack.
"Well, we need to find her soon," Heero continued, barely acknowledging
Duo's words. "They'll be on to me quick here and we need to blow this
place before that happens."
Duo chuckled softly at Heero's words, his mind distracted for a moment
at the sound of pure lustful pleasure held by Heero's voice when he
talked about destroying things.
The footsteps neared and Duo watched as the form, wearing a dirty black
outfit with tangled disshelved blonde hair streaked with black, flew by
the room he was hiding in. His brain took a moment to register who the
form was though his heart lurched with happiness instinctively.
"Sally!" cried Duo, pushing open the door, heedless of the volume of his
voice. "Thank God!"
Sally was so startled at hearing the rich melodic voice that she nearly
dropped her only weapon. Slowly she stopped and turned back to
where she had heard the voice come from. "Duo?"
Without hesitation, Duo stepped from his hiding place and joined Sally
in the middle of the hall. His body continued to flow with the desire
burning within his heart as he wrapped his arms tightly around her,
nearly squeezing the breathe from her slender body. "Oh Sally," he
whispered, lips rubbing against her hair, inhaling her scent as his hands
tightened their hold. "I thought I'd lost you.."
Bemused at Duo's presence and his words, Sally remained mute,
though her body instinctively sought the warmth and comfort it needed.
Of their own violation, her arms wound across his strong back and she
cuddled her form against his strong masculine one, glad for once to
be female.
"Duo," said Sally as she drew back from the embrace enough to see
his features, "how did you find me?"
"Une told me and I had a couple of favours called in," he said with
a bright smile. "I'm just glad you're alright."
"Of course I'm alright," laughed Sally softly. "Other than needing a
bath and a decent meal and the chance to kill the asshole that locked
me up."
"All shall be provided fair lady," said Duo, stepping back slightly and
giving Sally his best impression of a courtly bow.
"Enough you two," growled Heero in a mock angry voice in Duo's ear.
"Let's get a move on, I've some plastic to explode."
Suddenly completely serious once more, Duo took a hold of Sally's arm
and began to usher her toward the stairs. "We'll have to finish this
discussion later," he murmured in her ear as he held open the door for
her.
"I'll hold you to that," Sally agreed with a smile, unsure of whether
her heart was pounding more because of the adrenalin of the moment or
the promise of the future conversation. She set the thoughts aside
though, concentrating on keeping up with her handsome rescuer.
Together the pair left the hallway, heading toward the point where they
would rendezvous with Heero.
~~~ Practice Hall, Preventer HQ ~~~
Wufei stood quietly in the middle of the practice room, golden skin
gleaming with a sheen of hard earned sweat. He held the sharp katana
in front of him, the grip firm and steady so the sword never wavered for
a moment. Dark sparkling eyes focused on the edge of the blade, his
mind's eye focused on calming his center.
In deliberate fashion, he entered into the next kata he had selected,
grace and agility apparent in his every move. His mind never wavered
from his focus, reaching deep within himself for the strength to continue
despite the ache of his muscles.
Carver crept stealthily into the room, watching the Chinese man as he
continued to move. He wanted to be set in the best position possible
before confronting of the despicable Gundam pilot who had cost Treize
his life. Here was a chance to reek the revenge that General
Krushrenada so deserved.
The fact that this haughty Chinese pilot scum survived while Treize had
perished burned hot within Carver's mind. It ate his heart and soul for
breakfast and wormed its way into his brain, pushing him perilously
close to the edge of sanity. Recklessly, he moved into position, garnering
strength from the cold metal in his pocket, a small feral grin crossing his
features making him resemble the rodent his actions mimicked.
Despite the intensity of his focus, Wufei quietly observed the man
entering the room. His eyes never left him as he continued to move
through the majestic rhythms of the kata, never hesitating. He could
now sense Trowa's soothing presence at his back as the movements
ended and he centered himself once again. Trowa's arrival meant that
Une was now safe and the business of dealing with Mr. Fultz could now
be concluded.
Before Wufei could moved from his final contemplative stance, Carver
abruptly moved to show himself, dragging his concealed weapon from
his pocket. "Preventer Chang, or should I say Gundam pilot 05," he
snarled, the voice echoing with animosity through the open area.
Wufei slowly lowered his sword and raised contemplative eyes to the
mad man confronting him. Making sure to control his movements, Wufei
straightened himself and faced his confronter with a steady gaze and a
cool focused mind. He merely nodded at Carver, barely acknowledging
the man's words.
"I cannot believe that worthless scum such as yourself still wander this
world when a talented man like General Krushendra lies dead,
murdered by your hands," said Carver, his voice dripping with contempt
and ill-concealed anger, but the gun in his grasp never wavered for a
moment. Unerringly it found Wufei's heart and remained focused there.
Wufei merely quirked an eyebrow in inquiry at the mention of Treize's
name. In his mind, the matter had been settled long ago. Recently he
and Une had shared that coming to terms with Treize's death with each
other, each finding the other a great support in dealing with the loss of
such a great man. Drawn together by the pain, they had reached out
for and grasped the happiness they had discovered in each other's
company with some surprise.
"You are scum and I will rid world of you and Une, neither of you are
worth being kept alive," continued the angry man, advancing on Wufei.
"I'll destroy everything she holds dear and bring her weeping before
me so that I can destroy her just as she destroyed the only man worth
admiring."
Inhaling deeply in an effort to keep his temper, Wufei refused to
acknowledge the man's words. Continuing to attempt to maintain
his cool over the man's slanderous words about the woman he loved,
Wufei slowly raised his sword to the en garde position.
"You're pitiful sword doesn't scare me," sneered Carver, pushing it
out of his way, leading with his weapon as he continued his stalking
of the Chinese man.
Wufei held his ground as the man advanced until the butt of the
weapon laid against his forehead. The effort of holding still and
waiting for the man to be in a position he could take him was making
Wufei shake slightly, but he was determined to take out this man
before he carried through on any more of his insane threats.
Just as Carver removed the safety from the weapon, Wufei reached
up and grabbed a hold of the man's arm. Quicker than thought, Wufei
flipped him over his body and laid Carver flat out on the floor. A
further quick twist pinned the arm with the gun behind his back as
Wufei knelt on his lower back.
Carver screamed like an overly frail female, shouting curses and
obscenities and demanding to be let go. His feet pounded against the
floor and he twisted with eagerness in order to be free of Wufei's
tightening grip.
"Nice move," was Trowa's comment as he moved out of the darkening
shadows that had concealed him.
Wufei nodded in acknowledgement, silently refusing the brunette's help
with restraining the man.
"Wufei!" cried Une as she came into the room, running full out, fearing
the worse.
"Une!" shouted Wufei in response. "What are you doing here? I thought
you were instructed to wait until we had confined him?!"
"I.I." stumbled Une, unsure of how to answer in the face of Wufei's
panic that she could still be compromised.
"Didn't think," supplied Wufei in disgust, momentarily loosening his
grasp on Carver in the heat of his anger.
"Carver!" shouted Trowa in warning as he watched the red faced
madman twisted his arm enough to point his weapon at Wufei and
prepared to pull the trigger.
Before Wufei or Trowa could even react, Une lifted her ancient weapon
fired with the unerring aim of a champion marksman.
The bullet from Une's gun slammed into Carver's skull, exploding on
impact, just as his weapon went off. Carver's final shot went slightly
wide of its original mark, spiraling into the flesh of Wufei's shoulder,
The force of the shot pushed Wufei back and he gave a startled gasp of
pain, his other hand coming up instinctively to clutch the bleeding
wound. At his feet Carver collapsed, Une's only shot striking him dead
center in the back of the skull, effectively ending the life of the madman.
With a cry of shock, Une moved quickly to Wufei's side, cradling
him to her body, heedless of the blood that flowed from his wound.
Her hands worked quickly to pull away the fabric from the wound and
stop the flow of blood.
"I told you someone would get hurt woman," muttered Wufei, wrapping
his good arm around her to steady himself.
"But it wasn't supposed to be you!" wailed Une in some distress, her
hands shaking she was so upset.
Trowa quickly dismissed Carver's dead body in favor of helping Wufei
to stand up. He removed Une from her fussing and guided the pair out
of the room and up to the infirmary.
The silence of the room descended then, covering the corpse on the
floor. One could almost sense a breeze of disapproval of the man
laying in a pool of his own blood flow through the room. The word
justice flew in on the breeze, stirring the red liquid spilling across the
floor's surface before disappearing altogether.
~~~ L2 ~~~
"Damn it Heero," whispered Duo under his breathe as he and Sally
burst out of Fraser's headquarters, heading for their meeting place at
a dead run. Behind them, the building began to quickly crumble as the
explosions from Heero's plastique continued to rip through the structure.
"How much fucking plastique did you use?"
Sally laughed breathlessly as she continued to run, urged along by Duo.
"It's Heero, there's never enough."
Duo snorted in agreement, continuing to pull Sally along, unwilling
to even contemplate what could have happened to her if he had been
one minute later in finding her.
Together the pair made it through the streets back to the hotel Heero
and Duo had stayed at earlier. They gave Sally time for a quick
shower and change of clothing before bundling her off to the shuttle.
Once they had lifted off from L2, they sent word to Une and Wufei
that Sally was safe.
Duo sat down at the side of the elegant woman he had just risked
everything to rescue. She had fallen asleep the moment the email had
been sent to Une, laying in a graceful heap on the shuttle's tiny couch.
Her hair had regained some of its beautiful golden color once more
with her quick shower. A single curl draped across her cheek and Duo
stroked his fingers down its silky softness, making sure not to wake her.
Amethyst roved over her features, memorizing every detail and etching
it into his heart, ripe with love.
Heero's blue gaze watched Duo's with fond amusement, understanding
his best friend's desperate need to be with the woman he was falling in
love with.
Now there was only the matter of bringing them closer together..
Heero continued to speculate on plans for the couple as he guided them
home.
Safe at last.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
C&C always appreciated! Thanks to all the awesome readers who have
stuck it out this far! You make my day!
^_^
Rhina
gave me the idea of what to write..
Title: Two Become One 7/?
Author: Rhina
Pairings: 2xS and 5x11
*******
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 ~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Are you as good as I remember baby, get it on, get it on,
'Cause tonight is the night when two become one
I need some love like I've never needed love before
(wanna make love to ya baby)
~~~ Martin Fraser's Office, L2 ~~~
Mr. Fraser rolled his chair around to face the giant aquarium behind
his desk, watching the quiet motions of the shark in the tank as his
snarled whisper slipped through the room. "You've reached the end
of the road. Ms. Sally Po."
His smiled was a horrid thing to behold as he contemplated the fate
of Ms. Po. Her life now lay in his hands and he was determined to
make good use of it. He would find out not only why she had come
to invade his little establishment, but also gain the knowledge that
would allow him to take over the Preventers and use them for his
own purposes. There was nothing quite like having your own private
army in your back pocket.
There was a sharp rap at the door and it swung inward. Mr. Fraser
turned his chair in that direction before standing and moving around
the desk to watch the prisoner and her escort come into the room. He
would have his revenge and crush her life. Things were definitely
looking up for him today.
Sally stalked into the room. Her arms were bound in front of her
in a pair of linked handcuffs. Her blue eyes flashed and burned with
anger and resentment and her blonde hair, still streaked with shades
of black, tumbled loose from her braids and clung to the side of her
face. The dark clothing she wore from the night she attempted to
secretly enter this place was stained and disshelved, giving her a very
weary and tired appearance. The blaze of a true fighter radiated off of
her though and Mr. Fraser knew it would not be an easy task to break
her. Three men surrounded her. Two, both in simple black uniforms
of a low ranking person in the Fraser Organization, were holding onto
her arms while the third, this one in a deep red uniform with slicked
back black hair and a sneer upon his lips, led the way into the office.
All of them had the tough looks of fighters who meant business and
breaking her was their business for today.
"Good Evening Ms. Schwartz," drawled Martin Fraser as he leaned
back against the front edge of his desk. "Or should I say Ms. Po,
Commander of the Preventer Medical division."
A brief hint of panic flashed through Sally's burning blue gaze before
anger returned ten-fold. Instead of spewing forth the fiery rage that
she felt for this slimeball in front of her, Sally managed to merely raise
an eyebrow to convey her disdain for him. Her lips clenched themselves
together to prevent anything more from issuing forth.
"Nothing to say Ms. Po?" asked Mr. Fraser as he moved toward her,
removing his glasses and tucking them into an inner pocket of his suit
coat. "Funny. The records on you from the Alliance and the Preventers
always seem to mention that you have lots to say."
Stubbornly Sally sealed her mouth tighter together while her eyes
continued to blaze with hate and anger.
"Well, don't worry about not having anything to say at the moment,"
continued Mr. Fraser, as a sadistic smile curved his lips upward. "By
the time the boys are done, you will have more than just a little to say.
"You see Ms. Po," he continued, "there is quite a bit of valuable
information that you can provide for us. And I quite intend to have
that information. Not only that, but there is also the matter of you
attempting to infiltrate my place of business. There is no reason why
those snooty Preventers should be concerning themselves with the
generous life saving work that I do here."
Sally's eyes blazed in response. With a tiring struggle, she managed
to control her words and refrain from any type of sharp comeback and
continued to regard him with the contempt the sleezy man deserved.
"Still nothing to say?" he queried, meeting her gaze directly. "That
is too bad. Perhaps some type of physical persuasion, as loath as I
am to ruin such a perfect specimen of womanhood, is the only course
remaining to me. I do not normally like to be so crass, but one must
work with the methods available to them."
With a single gesture from Mr. Fraser, the guard who had led Sally
into the room turned around and smiled evilly at her. His slicked hair
reflected the oily shine of his personality and the deep red color of his
uniform designed to hide the blood, all of which painted a picture of
his deeply sadistic nature. A flash of his hand and a quick movement
of his arm, brought his open hand into stinging contact with her cheek,
leaving a raw mark behind. Quickly the opposite hand came up and
slammed into the solid muscle of her solar plexus, removing the breathe
from her lungs and forcing her knees to go lax and her weight to hang
from the strength of the other men's grips.
Mr. Fraser's cruel smirk grew slightly as he watched Ms. Sally Po
struggle to regain the breathe forced from her lungs. He watched
dispassionately as she gained enough breathe for her to stand on her
own before the red clad guard in front of her kicked out with his foot
in an attempt to dislocate her knee.
Sally saw the move coming and watched the arc of his foot swing
carefully. At just the right moment, she used the hold of the black
uniformed men standing beside her and holding her arms to leverage
her legs off the floor and out of the way of the kick. A small smile
graced her lips at the red uniformed soldier's dumbfounded look, he
had been too sure that she would simply stand still and take all he had
planned for her.
Growling under his breath, Martin Fraser glared at the guard and
snarled out a command. "Don't be an idiot! She's been trained! Hold
her tightly you morons! Persuasion will not be effective without the
victim accepting it!"
The guards, both wearing dull back uniforms that seemed to match their
harsh crew cuts, beside her tightened their grip and used their legs to keep
her feet on the floor in response to the command. As the guard, his
reddened knuckles nearly matching his uniform, in front of her prepared
to do even more substantial bodily harm to her, Sally felt a bit more hope
slipping away from her grasp. There didn't look to be a lot of options left
and yet she knew she had to get herself out of this situation. This time
there was no counting on the men in the white hats riding in on time to
save her this go around.
At that moment, perhaps the fates sensed that Sally was in trouble, for
destiny opened the door of opportunity for her with the entrance of Ty
into the room. The redhead dismissed the tableau before him without
even more than a flickering glance.
"Yo, Mr. Fraser," he called out, "there's something I need you to look at."
"Can't that wait?! I'm in the middle of something," he growled to the
computer geek, his gaze still locked with the fury of Sally's blue eyes.
With a flagrant toss of his long red hair, the man seemed unconcerned
by Fraser's lack of interest. "Fine with me boss man, but I figured you'd
want to know about the two characters that just arrived on L2 and have
spent a considerable amount of time gathering information on you."
Carelessly flinging those words away, Ty turned and sauntered from
the room, heading back to where he had come from. Mr. Fraser growled
in a low tone under his breath. It seemed as though there were others
determined to interfere with his plans for Ms. Po.
"Well Ms. Po," he said in a low tone, "I guess you must have some
friends out there. Which means not only do I need to dispose of you,
but them as well. I'll leave you then in the capable hands of my
compatriots and be back in a moment when you are ready to talk."
He gave her a mock bow and headed out of the room with those parting
words. His strides through the room were stiff and angry and Sally knew
that there would be no remorse for her when he returned.
The mere mention of the fact that there might be people out there
looking for her made her blood sing with excitement. It gave her a new
shot of hope to race along her veins and now she was more determined
than ever to get herself out of this situation and meet up with those who
might be looking for her. And even if the people Ty mentioned weren't
here for her, it was enough to be thankful to them for the distraction.
Giving her a smile so evil it made her nearly physically sick, the red
uniformed guard in front of her leaned in and let his foul breathe wash
over her face. "It's my turn now little girl and I don't forget those who
try and avoid me."
Garnering her strength, Sally accepted the first few blows that the sleazy
black haired man delivered to her defenseless form while her agile mind
began looking for a way out. In a split second she saw what she needed,
the opening that should allow her to break the hold of the uniformed men
beside her, which had gone lax with each consecutive hit, and take down
the foul oaf in front of her.
As his foot moved to connect with her leg in one hell of a solid kick, Sally
used the leverage of the black clad men beside her once more to swing her
legs up and out of the way. She walked her legs up his chest and slammed
her booted feet into his jutting out jaw with a hearty smack, splitting the
red guard's lip against his teeth.
As he staggered back under the suddenness of the blow, hands covering
his mouth in an attempt to wipe away the dripping blood, the other two
black uniformed guards lost their grip on Sally's arms as she continued
to use the swing momentum to move, up and around in a body flip.
The force of her flip freed her from their grasp. Sally then swung her
joined hands into one of the guard's faces, smacking him soundly with the
heavy metal. The man went down in a slump, out cold, his face hidden in
the curve of his black clad arm.
Satisfied that she had one of them down, Sally quickly turned, spinning
on her back leg and whirling the front one in a high arcing kick, catching
the other black uniformed man on his jaw. The force of it threw him to
the floor where he laid in a momentary groggy state, stunned that a mere
woman had taken him down. Another merciless stomp of her booted foot
along his chin made sure that he too was down for the count.
The one guard left wiped his bloody lip on his red sleeve, the split in it
making his smile even more menacing. He advanced toward her warily
as she crouched down and prepared herself for his move. As soon as he
got close enough, once again secure in the fact that he could easily take
her down, he swung out with his balled fist. Sally ducked to avoid the
swing and swept out her foot in a low arc at the same time. She
connected solidly and kicked his feet out from under him. Down on the
floor it only took one more swift move for her to render him unconscious
as well.
Moving even more quickly now, Sally secured the keys for the handcuffs
she wore from his pockets and unlocked herself. She then pocketed the
gun the last guard down had been carrying and quickly fled from the
room, looking for the fastest way out.
Not long after the door to the office swung shut behind her, Mr. Martin
Fraser re-entered his chambers. At the sight of the three men out cold on
the floor and the empty handcuffs, he swore passionately. Cursing
continuously under his breathe, he summoned more guards and set out on
the hunt for his prey.
~~~ An alley near Fraser Headquarters, L2 ~~~
Heero and Duo crouched together outside of the place they knew as the
headquarters for the ring Sally had tried to infiltrate. Together they had
worked until the early hours of the morning laying out a plan for Sally's
rescue and the chance to get the information that they needed to shut the
place down for good. Then after only a few hours of sleep, they were up
and ready to move. They knew that their presence would not have
escaped this guy's notice and they wanted to move before he started hunting
them instead.
"All set?" Duo asked, peering at Heero through the darkness of the shadows
surrounding them. "You have the detonators, right?"
"Hn," nodded Heero, checking through his gear once more to make sure
it was laid out in the order that he needed things. "And the disk and stuff
for gathering the data before you ask."
Duo nodded and then reached out and laid a hand on Heero's shoulder.
"Thanks man for helping me with this."
Heero's deep blue eyes met Duo's sincere amethyst ones and the silent
communication between them flowed.
"It's all right," Heero said quietly. "I know you'd do the same,
actually you have done the same for me, when we went for Relena.
This was the least I could do to help you save the woman that you
love."
Shocked eyes widen as Duo digested Heero's words. He watched the
Japanese man's nimble hands continue to check his gear as the words
he said spun through his mind. He had never thought of Sally as the
woman that he loved, but perhaps..
"Ready?" asked Heero, hiding his amusement at the stunned expression
still gracing Duo's features behind his mask of the perfect soldier.
Dumbly, Duo nodded. He then reached deep inside himself and shut
off the flow of emotions coursing through him. The emotional
overload and realizations were not something that he needed right now.
Most of all he needed a clear head and rational mind, anything else
could be dealt with later.
Silently exchanging a look of readiness, the pair began to put their
plan into motion. Duo was to go and save Sally and Heero to find the
needed information before blowing the place to bits. Creeping into the
building, they headed off to fulfill their plans.
~~~ Preventer Headquarters, Une's Office ~~~
"Anything we need to go over again?" asked Trowa, looking carefully
at Une and Wufei's faces. His own green eyes sparkled slightly with the
excitement of this challenge, anxious to test his own skills once more.
Une shook her head and leaned back in her chair, her own warm brown
eyes focused on the lines of Wufei's graceful features. "It all makes
sense to me and with the best of luck, all will turn out as we wish."
Wufei scowled. "I still don't like the idea of you being involved in this
Une. It's not right."
Une merely glared at Wufei as Trowa hid his laughter, letting it only
shine in his eyes. Une missed his amusement totally and allowed her
scathing opinion of Wufei's words to color her voice as she spoke. "It's
_my_ Preventers that he is after! I'm not going to sit on the sides and let
the two of you play hero when I can damn well do something about it!"
Inhaling slowly, attempting to control his temper, Wufei stood and
moved to lean over Une while she remained seated in her chair. "I do
not want you getting in his way Onna! I will not have you hurt! If things
get to that point, let Trowa take over!"
"I'm not some silly damsel in distress _Preventer_ Chang," snarled Une
in return, her brown eyes flashing with spite and anger, standing to come
face to face with the Chinese man. "I am quite capable of taking care of
myself!"
Dark brown eyes snapped at her as his mouth twisted itself into a grim
line. Balled fist showed his tenseness even further. He leaned further
into her and spoken in a quiet but harsh tone. "Do not get yourself hurt
Onna.. Une.. Or I will never forgive you."
Trowa watched in silence with careful emerald orbs following
the gracefully angry moves of the Chinese man as he left the office,
heading to the spot that he would wait for Carver at. Turning his
contemplative gaze to the brown haired woman standing next to him,
Trowa drawled out his next words. "Quite a passionate lover I assume
Une."
Blushing slightly, Une turned her back on the tall Gundam pilot, one
she had always thought highly of, despite his continued smart remarks
about her love life. "I don't need to answer that," she said heading for
the phone on her desk to put the plan in motion.
Laughing silently, Trowa stood and laid his hand over hers before she
could lift the phone's receiver. "You don't need to, you already did,"
he whispered softly, winking at her so she could see the humor he saw.
"So don't worry, I won't let you _or_ him come to any harm."
On soft feet then, Trowa made his way to the small alcove and settled
himself down in a hiding position as Une picked up the phone to make
the phone call to start the ball rolling. Her eyes flashed her thanks to the
emerald-eyed brunette as she dialed the appropriate extension.
"Carver Fultz please," she said, taking several deep breathes to calm the
quelling within her stomach.
His voice came to her across the phone lines and she smiled slightly,
a cruel smile just like those Colonel Une used to where. "Ahh Carver,
I was wondering if you could come to my office, there are some things
we need to discuss."
~~~ Fraser Headquarters, L2 ~~~
On silent feet honed by years of practice, Heero crept through the
corridors. He used the set of blueprints that they had managed to find
to navigate his way. There was really one room that could possibly be
used to house the mainframe due to the specifications it would need.
Stealthily he made it through the hallways until he found himself in
front of the door leading to the room that he was looking for. The
keypad was a definite give away, besides the fact that everything on
his blue print pointed to this location.
Without a moment's hesitation, he slid a 'skeleton' keycard from his
bag's pocket, while taking out a small processor from another pocket.
He hooked the two together with the ease of long practice and slid the
keycard into the slot. The processor quickly ran through a series of code
breaking programs before finding one that matched and unlocking the
security door.
Putting away the items that he had used, Heero pushed open the door
and slipped inside. With a small smug smile, he congratulated himself
on finding the correct room in one try. He then shook his head to wipe
away the smile and moved across to the main frame terminal on the desk
opposite the door.
Experience with thousands of programs and the hackers that created
them, Heero expertly broke through the levels of security and immersed
himself in the data streaming around him. Establishing a convoluted
connection with his laptop, still on and running a program happily in the
safe room he and Duo had left behind, he began to send to it the
information that the Preventers needed to put Mr. Martin Fraser and his
organization away for a very long time.
Random password checks and twists and turns placed in and among
the information barely made Heero pause in his work. He simply
slipped through them with ease and continued to gather all that he
needed. As his fingers worked their computer magic, his mind idly
contemplated the idea that the person who created this system did not
know what they were doing.
And rooms away, Ty watched the hacker fly through his system with
ease, no matter what roadblocks or stumbles he set in the way. Ty
cursed whoever it was and worked on finding the weak link in the
hacker's connection so he could terminate the work that he was doing.
~~~ Une's Office, Preventer HQ ~~~
Une folded her nervous hands on top of her desk, determined not to
give into her fidgets. Her mind sped through the different ways to
offer Carver the information that they had laid out as bait,
contemplating and rejecting several ideas before settling on one way
that should work quite well.
The moment that she had made a decision, the buzzer sounded and
a voice announced that Preventer Fultz was here to see her. Schooling
her features to rid them of any unintentional notice of dislike or the
hatred that she felt, Une said that he could be let in.
Smoothing back his hair in an almost simpering gesture, Carver let
himself into the bitch's office. He could only see her as the bitch who
had destroyed everything that his idol Treize had attempted to build
during the years of the Alliance. Like a dog in heat, the bitch had
followed their leader everywhere, using the power of her pheromones
to lure him into her clutch. To Carver the mere thought of being in
the same room with her was repulsive, but he had no reason to show
all his cards today until his hand was completely played out. Only
then who he tell her who had ruined her precious 'Preventers' and
claim back the glory of Treize's dreams.
Carver put aside his grandiose plans the moment that he closed the
door to his 'Commander's office'. As much as he wanted all of those
thoughts to come to fruition, he knew that his conversation would go
much better without those thoughts in mind.
"Ahh, Preventer Fultz," said Une in a cool formal tone. "Thank you
for coming so promptly. I have a couple of things I would like to
discuss with you."
Trowa watched as Une skillfully led the conversation along the channels
that they had all agreed upon. His mind tuned out the words about boring
office procedures and routine meetings and clients as he focused his gaze
on the man he considered the enemy. There was nothing overly
intimidating about the man. In truth, he could have blended into the
background of just about any good size company. But as Trowa looked
closely, he could see the touch of madness around the corners of his eyes.
And Trowa had seen enough of the effects of the ZERO system to know
that Carver Fultz was no longer someone he would consider stable. With
a jolt, Trowa again focused his attention on what Une and the creep were
discussing.
"That should be all Preventer Fultz," continued Une, in a smooth tone
of voice signaling the end of their meeting.
The thin haired blonde man across from her rose and made a barely civil
salute to her before turning to leave the office. Behind those thick lenses
eyes flashed and cold-blooded calculation of how he could be rid of her
resumed.
"Oh, there is one more thing," called out Une, waiting till the man turned
around before dropping the oral bombshell that she had waiting for him.
"Have you seen Preventer Maxwell recently?"
Immediately interested inspite of himself, Carver shook his head. "No
Commander Une. I haven't seen him for some time. Is something
wrong?"
Barely able to contain her smirk at his interest, Une shook her head in
response. "I don't believe so, but then one can never be sure when an
ex-Gundam pilot is concerned."
"Ex-Gundam pilot?" Carver's interest was definitely peeked now.
"I hadn't realized that any of the pilots were alive any longer, much
less working for the Preventers."
Une smiled. "Of course they are alive, as far as my intelligence reports
state. Duo was one of the finest, piloting 02 with unbelievable skill
and a cunning and sometimes deadly sense of humor. The fact that
he could fix anything and create any machine you needed out of spare
parts along with his abilities and knowledge from being a pilot made
him an ideal candidate for a position in our organization."
As she watched him carefully digest that information, she dropped the
final words that would spur the man to action far better than anything
else she could have thought of. "Preventer Chang was a Gundam pilot
as well - 05 as a matter of fact."
"Preventer Chang?"
Sagely, Une nodded, turning her chair to gaze out her office window
at the bright sunshine and blue sky. "Yes, a more talented and driven
pilot you couldn't have found during those times. I think it was his deep
sense of justice that drew Treize's interest in the pilots and made him
eager to learn more about them. Perhaps it was that interest, that
fascination with them, that led to his death."
Une shook her head to remove the thought from her mind, turning once
more to watch the man across from her. She noticed the unholy gleam
of interest in his eyes. "But that is pure fancy, my own regret that he did not live to see the peace that they created and helped enforce."
"Was Preventer Chang the one referred to as the Dragon?" asked
Carver's soft voice.
Again Une responded with a nod, allowing Carver to follow his own
twisted and demented path of reasoning.
She watched with apprehension as a look of intense contemplation
crossed his features to be quickly replaced by a small smug smile. Une
closed her eyes then and prayed for the strength to let this go into
Wufei's hands and, more importantly, she hoped Wufei would return to
her in one piece.
"That is certainly some interesting information," murmured Carver.
He then quickly turned on his heel and fled the office at a swift pace.
The moment he left, Trowa slipped from his hiding spot in the shadows.
He quietly laid a hand on Une's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze.
On silent feet he too departed, moving to the arranged meeting place
with Wufei.
"I can't believe," muttered Une under her breathe as she watched the
agile man leave her office, "that I am letting this little shit get away
with this! And if those two _men_ believe that I'm just going to sit
here and wait for them to mop it all up, they have another goddamn
thing coming."
Opening the bottom right hand drawer of her desk, Une pulled out an old
Glock 28. The gun had been a gift when she was just learning to shot and
holding it, much less firing the antique, brought her comfort. And damn
it all, if she didn't think it deserved to take down someone determined
to rip apart all she had built and believed in.
Tucking away the weapon discretely, Une left the office, headed for
where Wufei and Trowa awaited Carver.
~~~ Fraser HQ, L2 ~~~
Stealthily a black figure moved out from behind the open stairway
door, peering into the quiet hall. Duo's long chestnut colored braid
swung down off his back as he tilted his head further around to see
the hallway more clearly. Neither hearing nor seeing anything, he
slipped from his hiding place and began to move soundlessly down
the hall.
Absently, his fingers rubbed back and forth along the butt of the solid
weapon he carried in his right hand. The weight of it was comforting
as he continued his search for Sally, which had so far proved fruitless.
He had picked the logical beginning point of the basement and worked
his way up to the more common business areas. A cursory sweep
through the floors below and an exhaustive search of the cells had yet
to reveal Sally's presence. He was nearing the few remaining options,
desperate to find her soon. The mere thought that his inability to find
her meant she was dead and unable to return with him was something
his brain refused to comprehend.
Static filled his hearing briefly before it smoothed out into the calm
tones of Heero's voice.
"Any sign of her yet?" he asked in a hushed tone, though the earpieces
made it impossible for anyone to overhear what was being said.
"Negative," responded Duo in a whisper. "No sign at all - her cell was
wiped clean. I'm just going to.."
Duo trailed off as the sound of pounding feet caught his attention.
"Hang on Heero, there's someone coming," was Duo's harsh whisper
as he opened a door, luckily unlocked, and ducked inside, leaving room
for him to peer out the slightly open crack.
"Well, we need to find her soon," Heero continued, barely acknowledging
Duo's words. "They'll be on to me quick here and we need to blow this
place before that happens."
Duo chuckled softly at Heero's words, his mind distracted for a moment
at the sound of pure lustful pleasure held by Heero's voice when he
talked about destroying things.
The footsteps neared and Duo watched as the form, wearing a dirty black
outfit with tangled disshelved blonde hair streaked with black, flew by
the room he was hiding in. His brain took a moment to register who the
form was though his heart lurched with happiness instinctively.
"Sally!" cried Duo, pushing open the door, heedless of the volume of his
voice. "Thank God!"
Sally was so startled at hearing the rich melodic voice that she nearly
dropped her only weapon. Slowly she stopped and turned back to
where she had heard the voice come from. "Duo?"
Without hesitation, Duo stepped from his hiding place and joined Sally
in the middle of the hall. His body continued to flow with the desire
burning within his heart as he wrapped his arms tightly around her,
nearly squeezing the breathe from her slender body. "Oh Sally," he
whispered, lips rubbing against her hair, inhaling her scent as his hands
tightened their hold. "I thought I'd lost you.."
Bemused at Duo's presence and his words, Sally remained mute,
though her body instinctively sought the warmth and comfort it needed.
Of their own violation, her arms wound across his strong back and she
cuddled her form against his strong masculine one, glad for once to
be female.
"Duo," said Sally as she drew back from the embrace enough to see
his features, "how did you find me?"
"Une told me and I had a couple of favours called in," he said with
a bright smile. "I'm just glad you're alright."
"Of course I'm alright," laughed Sally softly. "Other than needing a
bath and a decent meal and the chance to kill the asshole that locked
me up."
"All shall be provided fair lady," said Duo, stepping back slightly and
giving Sally his best impression of a courtly bow.
"Enough you two," growled Heero in a mock angry voice in Duo's ear.
"Let's get a move on, I've some plastic to explode."
Suddenly completely serious once more, Duo took a hold of Sally's arm
and began to usher her toward the stairs. "We'll have to finish this
discussion later," he murmured in her ear as he held open the door for
her.
"I'll hold you to that," Sally agreed with a smile, unsure of whether
her heart was pounding more because of the adrenalin of the moment or
the promise of the future conversation. She set the thoughts aside
though, concentrating on keeping up with her handsome rescuer.
Together the pair left the hallway, heading toward the point where they
would rendezvous with Heero.
~~~ Practice Hall, Preventer HQ ~~~
Wufei stood quietly in the middle of the practice room, golden skin
gleaming with a sheen of hard earned sweat. He held the sharp katana
in front of him, the grip firm and steady so the sword never wavered for
a moment. Dark sparkling eyes focused on the edge of the blade, his
mind's eye focused on calming his center.
In deliberate fashion, he entered into the next kata he had selected,
grace and agility apparent in his every move. His mind never wavered
from his focus, reaching deep within himself for the strength to continue
despite the ache of his muscles.
Carver crept stealthily into the room, watching the Chinese man as he
continued to move. He wanted to be set in the best position possible
before confronting of the despicable Gundam pilot who had cost Treize
his life. Here was a chance to reek the revenge that General
Krushrenada so deserved.
The fact that this haughty Chinese pilot scum survived while Treize had
perished burned hot within Carver's mind. It ate his heart and soul for
breakfast and wormed its way into his brain, pushing him perilously
close to the edge of sanity. Recklessly, he moved into position, garnering
strength from the cold metal in his pocket, a small feral grin crossing his
features making him resemble the rodent his actions mimicked.
Despite the intensity of his focus, Wufei quietly observed the man
entering the room. His eyes never left him as he continued to move
through the majestic rhythms of the kata, never hesitating. He could
now sense Trowa's soothing presence at his back as the movements
ended and he centered himself once again. Trowa's arrival meant that
Une was now safe and the business of dealing with Mr. Fultz could now
be concluded.
Before Wufei could moved from his final contemplative stance, Carver
abruptly moved to show himself, dragging his concealed weapon from
his pocket. "Preventer Chang, or should I say Gundam pilot 05," he
snarled, the voice echoing with animosity through the open area.
Wufei slowly lowered his sword and raised contemplative eyes to the
mad man confronting him. Making sure to control his movements, Wufei
straightened himself and faced his confronter with a steady gaze and a
cool focused mind. He merely nodded at Carver, barely acknowledging
the man's words.
"I cannot believe that worthless scum such as yourself still wander this
world when a talented man like General Krushendra lies dead,
murdered by your hands," said Carver, his voice dripping with contempt
and ill-concealed anger, but the gun in his grasp never wavered for a
moment. Unerringly it found Wufei's heart and remained focused there.
Wufei merely quirked an eyebrow in inquiry at the mention of Treize's
name. In his mind, the matter had been settled long ago. Recently he
and Une had shared that coming to terms with Treize's death with each
other, each finding the other a great support in dealing with the loss of
such a great man. Drawn together by the pain, they had reached out
for and grasped the happiness they had discovered in each other's
company with some surprise.
"You are scum and I will rid world of you and Une, neither of you are
worth being kept alive," continued the angry man, advancing on Wufei.
"I'll destroy everything she holds dear and bring her weeping before
me so that I can destroy her just as she destroyed the only man worth
admiring."
Inhaling deeply in an effort to keep his temper, Wufei refused to
acknowledge the man's words. Continuing to attempt to maintain
his cool over the man's slanderous words about the woman he loved,
Wufei slowly raised his sword to the en garde position.
"You're pitiful sword doesn't scare me," sneered Carver, pushing it
out of his way, leading with his weapon as he continued his stalking
of the Chinese man.
Wufei held his ground as the man advanced until the butt of the
weapon laid against his forehead. The effort of holding still and
waiting for the man to be in a position he could take him was making
Wufei shake slightly, but he was determined to take out this man
before he carried through on any more of his insane threats.
Just as Carver removed the safety from the weapon, Wufei reached
up and grabbed a hold of the man's arm. Quicker than thought, Wufei
flipped him over his body and laid Carver flat out on the floor. A
further quick twist pinned the arm with the gun behind his back as
Wufei knelt on his lower back.
Carver screamed like an overly frail female, shouting curses and
obscenities and demanding to be let go. His feet pounded against the
floor and he twisted with eagerness in order to be free of Wufei's
tightening grip.
"Nice move," was Trowa's comment as he moved out of the darkening
shadows that had concealed him.
Wufei nodded in acknowledgement, silently refusing the brunette's help
with restraining the man.
"Wufei!" cried Une as she came into the room, running full out, fearing
the worse.
"Une!" shouted Wufei in response. "What are you doing here? I thought
you were instructed to wait until we had confined him?!"
"I.I." stumbled Une, unsure of how to answer in the face of Wufei's
panic that she could still be compromised.
"Didn't think," supplied Wufei in disgust, momentarily loosening his
grasp on Carver in the heat of his anger.
"Carver!" shouted Trowa in warning as he watched the red faced
madman twisted his arm enough to point his weapon at Wufei and
prepared to pull the trigger.
Before Wufei or Trowa could even react, Une lifted her ancient weapon
fired with the unerring aim of a champion marksman.
The bullet from Une's gun slammed into Carver's skull, exploding on
impact, just as his weapon went off. Carver's final shot went slightly
wide of its original mark, spiraling into the flesh of Wufei's shoulder,
The force of the shot pushed Wufei back and he gave a startled gasp of
pain, his other hand coming up instinctively to clutch the bleeding
wound. At his feet Carver collapsed, Une's only shot striking him dead
center in the back of the skull, effectively ending the life of the madman.
With a cry of shock, Une moved quickly to Wufei's side, cradling
him to her body, heedless of the blood that flowed from his wound.
Her hands worked quickly to pull away the fabric from the wound and
stop the flow of blood.
"I told you someone would get hurt woman," muttered Wufei, wrapping
his good arm around her to steady himself.
"But it wasn't supposed to be you!" wailed Une in some distress, her
hands shaking she was so upset.
Trowa quickly dismissed Carver's dead body in favor of helping Wufei
to stand up. He removed Une from her fussing and guided the pair out
of the room and up to the infirmary.
The silence of the room descended then, covering the corpse on the
floor. One could almost sense a breeze of disapproval of the man
laying in a pool of his own blood flow through the room. The word
justice flew in on the breeze, stirring the red liquid spilling across the
floor's surface before disappearing altogether.
~~~ L2 ~~~
"Damn it Heero," whispered Duo under his breathe as he and Sally
burst out of Fraser's headquarters, heading for their meeting place at
a dead run. Behind them, the building began to quickly crumble as the
explosions from Heero's plastique continued to rip through the structure.
"How much fucking plastique did you use?"
Sally laughed breathlessly as she continued to run, urged along by Duo.
"It's Heero, there's never enough."
Duo snorted in agreement, continuing to pull Sally along, unwilling
to even contemplate what could have happened to her if he had been
one minute later in finding her.
Together the pair made it through the streets back to the hotel Heero
and Duo had stayed at earlier. They gave Sally time for a quick
shower and change of clothing before bundling her off to the shuttle.
Once they had lifted off from L2, they sent word to Une and Wufei
that Sally was safe.
Duo sat down at the side of the elegant woman he had just risked
everything to rescue. She had fallen asleep the moment the email had
been sent to Une, laying in a graceful heap on the shuttle's tiny couch.
Her hair had regained some of its beautiful golden color once more
with her quick shower. A single curl draped across her cheek and Duo
stroked his fingers down its silky softness, making sure not to wake her.
Amethyst roved over her features, memorizing every detail and etching
it into his heart, ripe with love.
Heero's blue gaze watched Duo's with fond amusement, understanding
his best friend's desperate need to be with the woman he was falling in
love with.
Now there was only the matter of bringing them closer together..
Heero continued to speculate on plans for the couple as he guided them
home.
Safe at last.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
C&C always appreciated! Thanks to all the awesome readers who have
stuck it out this far! You make my day!
^_^
Rhina
