Title: BattleGames 2/?
By Hana-chan
Category: Partially AU, AT, yaoi, angst, occasional lemon, Sci Fi
Pairings: None right now.
Ratings: Varies. This one is PG
Warnings: None.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything Gundam Wing. This is for fun, not profit, so don't sue me. The story, and any characters that do not belong to GW belong to me.
Archive: Fanfiction.net http://www.fanfiction.net/index.fic?action=directory-authorprofile&UserId=81835
Tales From the Death Scribe http://www.angelfire.com/sc2/deathfics/menu.html

Feedback: Please! My muses get mad when I don't get feedback so it's hard to keep writing.

thoughts +++ scene change ~emphasis~ //sign language//

BattleGames
Chapter 2 : Discoveries


Quatre opened his eyes slowly, blinking rapidly to help focus his vision. He vaguely remembered seeing strange mobile suits appearing in the middle of the space battle against the mobile dolls, then nothing until the cell and . . .

He gasped, jerking upright, only to curl back in on himself as pain radiated through his body. He looked around frantically, calming marginally when he saw Duo asleep on the bed to his left. The blond forced himself to relax, noticing as he did that the pain also receded to a dull ache. Frowning slightly, Quatre examined his surroundings. He appeared to be in some sort of infirmary judging by the sterile whiteness of the room and the hospital style bed he was lying on. There was an IV drip leading to his arm, but other than that he seemed to have sustained only minor damage. And no rape, he thought gratefully.

The blond pilot frowned again. The last thing he remembered was Treize pulling the would-be rapist off him. Trieze? Why would he save me? he wondered in confusion.

There was a soft groan from Duo's direction and Quatre turned his head to see his friend. "Duo?" His voice was pitched just high enough to carry. "Duo, are you awake?"

Another inarticulate mumble answered. "What happened?"

"I think we've been captured by OZ," he replied.

"OZ? I . . . no. . . White Fang," he said firmly. "Not OZ, White Fang."

Quatre shook his head. "It can't be White Fang - Treize stopped the . . . the rapist."

Duo looked over, frown creasing his brow. "No he didn't. Zechs -- Milliardo, whoever he is, did. No one else has hair like that."

"Exactly," protested Quatre. "It . . ."

"Was both of them," came a new voice.

Blinking in surprise, both boys turned to the newcomer. "Miss Po?" asked Quatre in amazement. "We were rescued? How long have we been out?"

The woman raised an eyebrow at the questions, then shook her head. "You were 'rescued' I suppose, by Treize and Milliardo. The two remaining offenders will be dealt with by the way. You've been out for 12 hours."

"That's impossible," exclaimed Duo. Treize and Ze. . .Milliardo are enemies, and you're on Peacemillion."

This time the woman looked confused. "First of all, you're in my infirmary in Treize's Gateway complex, Treize and Milliardo have been friends since childhood, and I have no idea what this Peacemillion is that you're referring to. How do you know our names anyway?"

"What? Who in the Earthsphere doesn't know who Zechs - Milliardo and Treize are? We met you at New Edwards almost a year ago when you warned us that it was going to explode."

The doctor pinched the bridge of her nose then pulled a small computerized pad out of the pocket of her white coat. "Well, you're obviously from one of the closer parallel dimensions, which might explain the nanites, though I've never encountered anything like this before." She tapped the pad's pen against her lips, continuing to muse out loud. "Actually, I don't believe there's ever been a documented case of a Harvest Sector having duplicate people, though it is theoretically possible. Unless, of course, you've been here before, but that seems even more unlikely. What were those two thinking? They should know better than to pick a new sector this close."

Duo and Quatre shared a glance and a shrug. They had no real idea what she was talking about.

"I don't think we're in Kansas any more," muttered Duo, and Quatre smiled slightly.

"Think they have ruby slippers here to get us home?" replied Quatre, remembering the time he'd watched the ancient movie with his friend. Duo grinned briefly then they both turned back to Sally who was now watching them closely, eyebrow raised questioningly.

Duo shrugged. "Twentieth Century movie reference," he said by way of explanation.

She nodded. "We had the same dating system at one point as well. Interesting."

"Um, Miss Po?" asked Quatre politely. "Are you telling us that we're in a parallel dimension? Can you tell us how to get home?"

The woman nodded. "What do you know about parallel dimensions?"

"Very little, other than theories," he answered glancing at his friend. "I know that they are theoretically possible, and the Instructor said that every decision that is made creates new dimensions where a different decision was made. Technically there would be an infinite number of alternate dimensions, some of which would be very similar to ours, and others that would be very different."

"Sorta like saying 'what if this happened' and knowing that somewhere it did happen," added Duo.

Sally smiled at them. "You're both right. Here, however, we have the technology to actually go to those dimensions."

Quatre frowned. "So what you're saying is that your people went to our dimension kidnapped us and brought us here."

"Essentially yes," the doctor said with a wince.

"Why?" asked the blond.

"What are Contenders?" asked Duo at the same time.

Looking back and forth between them she sighed. "Yes to your question . . .?"

She paused expectantly and Quatre suddenly blushed. "We don't usually give out our names," he replied. "It's war you know, and well. . ."

"02," Duo said pointing to himself. "And 04. Those are the numbers that OZ gave us so they'll work - we're both used to them."

The doctor shrugged and nodded. "All right, 02. Your questions are tied together. Here, we have what are called the BattleGames. They are used to keep the population happy, as well as being a political vehicle as well. Contenders are Shifted warriors who fight to the death in the BattleGames. They have nanites injected into their bloodstream which then integrate with their mind and body allowing them to create an interface to specially designed or modified mecha. It allows them to mentally control the machines and in the battle the biological warriors fight each other, while the mecha mirror the actions. If the mech is destroyed, the Shifted warrior dies. In some cases the reverse is essentially true, though the mecha doesn't actually die, as become incompatible with others."

"And you actually expect us to fight for you in these BattleGames?" asked Duo flatly.

Sally winced again, but nodded. "Treize and Milliardo recently lost their two best Contenders and arranged an Acquisition Run to gain more. You are what they got."

"But, we can't fight for you," protested Quatre. "We're in the middle of a war, and we have to get back to protect the colonies and the earth from each other. We can't stay here."

"He's right. We can't stay here. Besides, I've been messed with enough - I don't think I want to go through this Shifting or whatever it is. Sounds painful."

Sally looked at them in surprise. "You didn't know?" she asked.

The two pilots exchanged a glance. "Know what?"

"You've already Shifted," she explained. "Both of you had nanites in your systems when you arrived. They were accidentally activated when I gave you the healing serum. We didn't know that anyone else had the technology, but obviously your reality does."

Both boys stared at her wide-eyed. "What are you talking about? We don't have anything like that in our. . . dimension," exclaimed Duo. "We have to actually pilot our suits. Except for the Mobile Dolls, but they're done by remote control not by mental control - even when Dorothy's using the Zero System . . ."

"Hmm, that's odd," muttered Sally. "You did have nanites in your system however. I can tell you that for certain. I'm not sure how old they are, but they have been a part of you for several years."

"Well, shit," muttered Duo, tugging on his braid. "We're not staying here anyway," he said.

"You don't really have much choice, 02," she commented quietly. "No one is allowed to return to their own dimension once they've been here, and it's unlikely that you could anyway."

"Why not?" asked Quatre.

"Because of the time differential," she said. "Very few dimensions have parallel time for some reason. An hour in this dimension might equal a year or a century in another dimension. Or vice versa. Everyone you know could already be dead of old age by now."

"What?" gasped Quatre in shock. He couldn't believe that everyone he knew could be dead. That Trowa could be. . . .

"No!" exclaimed Duo. "It can't be. They can't be dead. Everything we've worked for can't be gone."

Sally looked at them sadly. "I don't know what the time difference is from here to your dimension, but you aren't able to go back. Your only options are to become a Contender, be executed, or become pleasure slaves. Your mecha will be used regardless." She sighed quietly. "Basically this is your new home. I'm sorry."

With that, she got up and walked out of the room, leaving the two pilots to stare at the door in stunned disbelief.

+++

"Are you sure we should be telling them all of this?" asked Sally, looking through the one-way glass at the two boys.

Trieze looked at her and sighed. "I don't know, but there's something different about them."

"You mean other than having their strength, speed, agility, muscle density, stamina, and endurance genetically improved?" asked Milliardo with a faint twist to his lips.

"You forgot hand-eye coordination and improvements to their immune system and their adrenaline release system," added Sally.

Milliardo rolled his eyes. "What could be special about them? That and the fact that they look like cute little boys barely past puberty, yet they are obviously accomplished killers judging by the two dead men we found in their cell."

Treize looked thoughtfully at the pilots who had just unhooked themselves from their IV and were exploring the room without speaking. The brunette, 02, kept moving his hands as if he wanted to speak, but was holding back. "I'm more worried about the fact that they appear to think of us as enemies rather than allies. That may cause a problem if they aren't willing to trust us."

"Well, it's a bit late now," said Milliardo. "We don't have any Contenders, and we have to keep their mecha, so why don't we just take them back to the estate. If they can be trained, they will be."

"Think your husband can handle them?" asked Treize.

Sally smirked and nodded. "As he's one of the only people to have ever actually won his freedom from the Games, I'd say yes. It might help them if they know that they have a chance at freedom, however slight."

The ginger-haired aristocrat narrowed his eyes in thought. "Depending on how well they fight with weapons, they may actually have a chance at freedom - more so than anyone else."

"If they can survive," cautioned the blond. "I still want to see what they've got. We have a lot riding on this."

"I'm aware of that my friend," said Treize. "You don't have to tell me what will happen if Dermail or Barton gain too much sway. These two boys may be the thing to win the public's favor. They have the looks, and the appeal to be crowd pleasers."

Milliardo looked at the boys who were currently sitting beside each other on one of the beds. "You are right there. If they survive they may be the key to giving us the power to defeat Dermail and Barton. If however they're just pretty faces. . ."

"I think they can do it," said Sally quietly. "There's something about them." She shrugged. "Let's just take them to the estate. Once they've had a week or so of training you should be able to tell for sure."

"I hope we don't live to regret this," muttered Milliardo as the three left the room to meet with their new Contenders.

+++

At the sound of the door being opened, Duo lunged off the bed, hoping to catch whoever it was off guard. However, instead of moving with his accustomed speed and agility, he found his muscles screaming in protest, causing him to double over in pain as his body cramped. A barely audible moan to his right indicated that Quatre was experiencing the same sensations that he was.

Collapsing to his side, he felt the pain ease as he focused on his breathing, and keeping his body as still as possible. Soft cursing came to him from above as he was rolled carefully to his back.

Opening his eyes, Duo was startled to see Treize Kushrinada looking at him in concern. Jerking himself away, he gasped as his body cramped again, causing him to roll into a ball to ease it.

"What did you do to us?" he growled at the man hovering nearby.

"Nothing," was the response. "Sally, what's wrong with them?"

Sally studied Duo carefully before turning to Quatre. "Did you try to move suddenly?" she asked finally looking back and forth between the two boys.

Duo frowned then nodded. "Um, yeah," he said. "I guess so. What's that got to do with anything?"

Sally nodded to herself, and Treize and Zechs seemed to relax. "It's just a side-effect of the Mecho," she replied. "All Interfacers experience it at first until their bodies adapt to the connection with their mecha."

"Already?" asked Zechs incredulously. "They haven't been properly integrated yet, how can they be experiencing any of this?"

Treize helped Duo to sit up, a puzzled frown creasing his oddly forked eyebrows. "How are they able to do anything?" he asked softly. "The nanites, the Shifting, their first interface. . . Nothing about these two is 'normal', not even their mecha are 'normal'."

"I told you that," sighed Sally. "Why don't we just get them back to the estate, and discuss this there. I'm sure that. . . 02 and 04 . . . would like something to eat." She looked at Duo then Quatre. "You two will have to choose new names if you don't want to use your given ones - those numbers are too odd to use."

Duo's mouth quirked up despite the situation. The numbers were a bit awkward and he personally didn't like them much. He caught his friend's eye, fingers flickering in the silent language that the scientists had taught each of them. //Do we cooperate?//

//We'd better,// replied the blond. //We'd never get anywhere in this condition.//

//I doubt I could even pilot 'Scythe.//

Looking back at the other three people, Duo nodded. "I guess we'll go with you to this estate of yours," he said. Thinking for a moment he said, "you can call me Max."

"I'll be. . . Rab," replied Quatre. Duo raised an eyebrow in question. //Raberba,// was the brief singed response.

"Rab, Max," Treize said with a nod. "You already seem to know our names, though we aren't the people you know. I'm Treize Kushrinada, this is Milliardo Peacecraft, and you've already met Dr. Sally Po. Her husband will actually be the one who will be in charge of your training."

Duo grimaced at the word training, but sighed in resignation. They were going to find a way home, but until they had some of their mobility back, it was probably better that they didn't protest anything too much.

The long-haired pilot allowed Treize to help him slowly to his feet. Now that he knew a bit of what to look for, he could feel the drag on his limbs. "Why do I feel so heavy?" he asked, addressing Sally who he was more comfortable with.

"It's the mecho," she replied. "It's difficult to explain, but basically, your brain isn't able to distinguish between your body and the machine yet, so when you move suddenly it is as if your body is trying to physically move your mech. Your muscles aren't trained to deal with that sort of strain, and cramp painfully as a result."

Duo's eyes widened. "Will it go away?"

Sally shrugged. "Not entirely, but with training it becomes less noticeable. My husband, for example, is lightening quick even using his mech. It's one of the reasons he was able to win his freedom from the BattleGames."

Win freedom? Duo thought with excitement. Before he could ask about it however, they entered a room with a silver arch that was about eight feet high. "What're we doing here?" he asked.

Milliardo smirked at them. "Going to the estate of course," he said, touching a control panel on the wall. "This is a Pass Through," he explained. "It allows us to travel instantly to any other Pass Through within this dimension. And before you ask, on of these ~can't~ be used to travel between dimensions - it's too weak."

Duo repressed a sigh, and watched in fascination as white-green energy flared around the arch forming a disk in the center. There was a flash and the wall behind the arch seemed to vanish as an opaque, marble-like surface of energy filled the space inside the arch.

Peering at it in nervous curiosity, the braided boy waited for instructions on what to do next. Smiling slightly, Milliardo stepped up to the arch then walked into it. The marbled surface stretched like thin rubber before snapping taut behind him. Milliardo, however was gone.

"Well, shit," commented Duo in amazement, right hand raised to the back of his head.

Treize and Sally were smiling at the childlike amazement on his face, and turning to Quatre, he saw that his friend's face looked much like his own.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Duo walked up to the arch and touched the surface. It made his hand tingle as he pressed against it, and it flexed slightly.

"Just press against it until you feel it give," encouraged Sally.

Looking back at Quatre, he took a deep breath and did just that. His whole body was now tingling as it did with an electric massage, the energy in the arch wrapping around him. Without warning the surface split and he found himself stumbling through into Milliardo's arms.

The tall blond smiled down at him. "How was that?" he asked.

"That was so cool," he exclaimed, turning slowly to see Treize step calmly through, followed by Quatre who also stumbled, only to be supported by the ginger-haired man. Quatre's eyes were shining with amazement.

//That was fantastic!// he signed. Duo just grinned in response as Sally emerged. With a silent flicker, the light from the Pass Through vanished leaving an empty arch.

"How does that work?" asked Quatre who was waving his hand in the center of Pass Through.

Treize smiled at him. "We don't have the time for a technical discussion right now," he said. "But, if you're really interested, perhaps you can learn more about them later. Right now we should get you settled in your quarters then you can meet your trainer."

Duo sighed at the term trainer, but shrugged and followed the two men out of the room. Looking around, he noticed that Sally was gone. "Where'd Sally go?" he asked.

"She probably went to get her husband," responded Milliardo. "He's the one who will help you adjust to being one of the Shifted."

"Oh," said Duo, then he remembered his previous question. "She said that her husband won his freedom. What did she mean by that?"

"Thought you might be interested in that fact," said the taller blond. "After a certain number of battles, those who want a chance at freedom enter the Freedom Mele. The last one standing in gains their freedom."

"That sounds too easy," said Quatre. "How many battles do you have to win?"

Milliardo winced slightly. "That's the problem. You have to win at least 100 battles to have a chance to enter. Only the best survive that long, and Sally's husband is the only one in two generations who's managed to survive beyond the Freedom Mele. He now has the same rights and privileges that a full citizen has."

"So, basically what you're saying, is that not only are Qu. . Rab and I stuck here, we probably won't live to gain our freedom."

Milliardo shook his head as they walked down an elegant hallway. "I will admit that most people have very little chance at getting that far, but it isn't impossible. In fact, the two Contenders that we just lost would have been entering their Freedom Mele, had it not been for the manipulation of Dermail. . ."

"That, however, is politics," interrupted Treize. "If your fighting ability comes as naturally as your interface, you should be able to do very well. The fact that your mecha are more advanced than ours will also give you an edge."

Walking down a stairway, the four found themselves outside a very well equipped gym. "Now, I'll warn you right now - this won't be easy," cautioned Treize. "Sally's husband is a very strict task master who takes his job as trainer very seriously. He is, however, the best trainer that there is because he's been through it. Please show him respect and try your best."

"Of course," answered Quatre.

Duo nodded, braid gripped in one hand. "So, why don't we get this over with then? Where is he anyway? I want to meet the best trainer there is."

"Meet him you shall," came a vaguely familiar voice.

Turning, Duo found his mouth gaping in absolute shock at the man beside Sally.

It was Wufei.


TBC



Glossary

Acquisition Run: When armed mecha are sent to another dimension to capture the mecha and pilots for use in the BattleGames.

Acquisitions: People and mecha acquired during an Acquisition Run.

AG: The standard of time meaning After Gateway. Similar to the AC of Duo and Quatre's home reality.

BattleGames: An arena format where the Shifted fight to the death with their mecha. Used for entertainment as well as political purposes.

Contenders: Warriors who fight in the BattleGames usually for the benefit of wealthy patrons.

Energy nets: Nets used to capture mecha during Acquisition Runs. They are made of a special flexible wire that conducts energy similar to what the Gateways use. It temporarily shuts down all but the life-support systems of the ensnared mech making them easier to capture and control.

Gateway: Technology that allows people to travel between alternate dimensions.

Harvest Sector: A dimension were mecha and pilots are acquired.

Interfacer: One of the Shifted who interfaces with a mech.

Mecha/Mech: Large robot-like suits of armor that are controlled mentally by the Shifted for use in the BattleGames.

Mecho: Short for Mecha Echo, it is the drag the Shifted feels when he or she tries to move a mech. It feels like the interfacer is trying to move and fight in a higher g level. Much adjustment and training is necessary for the interfacer to achieve significant speed and agility while fighting.

Nanites: Microscopic probes that are injected into the blood stream. Once activated, they create a Shift, which alters the brain of the contenders so that they are able to control their mecha mentally - they set up an interface with the computer of the mecha to accomplish this. Once injected and activated, the nanites cannot be removed or deactivated without killing the host.

Passage: The term used to describe the use of a Gateway.

Pass Through: A small scale Gateway that transports people to different places within the same reality.

The Shifted: People whose brains have been altered or Shifted to accommodate the nanites which allow them to mentally control their mecha. Shifting is a very painful process, and tends to leave the newly Shifted incapacitated for at least twenty-four hours. The process is irreversible.