A/N: Hello all. I haven't gotten to write a lot lately. Due to recent events, my thoughts have been elsewhere, but I've pushed that aside to write. For writing is my escape. I hope I don't disappoint anyone with this chapter, which might not be up to par.
Legal Disclaimer: I don't own it.
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Gundam Evil chapter 7
By the 'Magnus' SSJ_Bardock
Trowa leaned up against the wall of the elevator. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath. It was no sooner than the elevator was working, then it completely shut down. Now he and Midii were stuck in this metal deathtrap… alone. There was no telling what could happen now.
"Trowa?" Midii asked, somewhat hesitantly.
"Hmm?"
"After this is all over, what are you going to do?"
"Go back to my life at the circus. Why do you ask?"
Midii was quiet for a moment, "… Just curious is all."
Trowa didn't reply and instead kept his head down and arms crossed. The fabric of his sweater was not helping his mood at all. It felt rough against his hands and he was a bit too warm. It's funny that you only start to notice the inconsequential at the most inappropriate moments. Finally the radio crackled back to life.
"Trowa?" It was Duo's voice.
"Yeah Duo?"
"How you holding up in there?"
"Fine. What's our status?" Trowa asked.
"At this point, not sure, but Heero's trying to figure that out right now." Trowa listened carefully, "He managed to hack into the central computer and is trying to find out the reason right now."
"Alright. Contact me when you get more information. Over and out."
Setting the radio back in the bag again, Trowa now sat down. Looking up, he saw Midii huddled in the corner, staring at the elevator's control panel. It was obvious she was trying not to look at him; anyone could see that. Or maybe not. She was after all, a spy. Most likely she had the ability to make people think what she wanted them to. And that this was simply a ploy to lure him into a false safety.
Trowa's thoughts had certainly taken a turn for the worst. Images of her laughing at him, while zombies clawed him clouded his mind. Was she a traitor? Was she working for Umbrella? There were just too many questions for his mind to answer at this time. No doubt she'd show her true colors when it came down to it.
Shifting his weight, he arched on leg up and laid his shotgun in his lap. Leaning his head back, he stared up at the ceiling. Midii meanwhile was watching him out of the corner of her eyes. Trowa was refusing to look at her and she could only guess what was going through his head. Midii didn't neglect the idea that he could think this all a trap. After all, she had done it to him before.
Midii jumped when the radio crackled again.
"Trowa?" This time it was Heero.
"Yeah."
"Listen, I've managed to find out the problem. See the red light on the control panel?"
"I see it. It's flashing."
"That's the weight limit. The weight for that elevator is over its max, so the elevator shut down to avoid falling," Heero said, his voice neutral.
"How's that possible? Only myself and Midii are in the elevator."
"I know. Something is off. You're going to have to find out what's causing it. Over."
"Alright. Over."
Trowa looked at Midii finally and set the radio back in his bag. Grabbing his shotgun in one hand, he used the other to help get to his feet. Once he was standing, he looked back up at the ceiling. His eyes squinted together and traced the frame of the elevator's roof.
"It's up there."
"What?" Midii asked, confused by Trowa's actions.
"Whatever is putting the elevator over its limit is up there."
"How can you tell?"
"Where else would it be?" Trowa asked.
Midii was quiet and watched as Trowa popped open the hatch to the roof. Trowa waited for a sound, or sign of anything up there. Nothing told him that anything was up there though. So, he jumped up and grabbed onto the sides of the hatch.
Pulling himself up, he looked around… to see nothing. Everything looked the way it should be. As he pulled himself completely up, he looked around. The elevator shaft they were in was huge. Looking up, down, left, and right, he quirked an eyebrow in confusion.
"Where is it?" Trowa asked the darkness.
"Maybe it's hanging on the bottom or something," Midii suggested.
Trowa looked down at her and decided that the idea wasn't that bad. Yanking on the elevator cables, he looked back down into the elevator.
"Go in my bag and throw up my Beretta."
Midii did as he said and tossed up the nine-millimeter pistol. Trowa caught it and stuck it in his waistband. Looking around again, he spotted a nearby cord to another elevator. Trowa glanced between his spot and the cord, estimating the distance.
"What are you doing?" Midii called.
Trowa didn't answer though as one foot was poised behind him. In a sudden motion, Trowa jumped off the elevator, only to grab onto the cord he had been looking at. Using one hand to hang onto it with, he slid down the rope until he could clearly see the bottom of the elevator. His eyes widened at what he saw. The creature hanging onto the bottom of the elevator was one of the human-like things with the long tongues.
Trowa had the advantage though; its head was looking in the other direction. Apparently it was hanging onto the poles with its claws. Trowa didn't care at the moment though, as he took out the Beretta. Aiming carefully, he fired off one shot. The creature's head exploded in a bright pink and red goo, as its brain matter splattered everywhere. The claws released the elevator and its body fell down into the darkness.
Trowa put the Beretta back and gripped onto the cord with both hands. Swinging backward, Trowa used his momentum to slingshot himself up. As he let go of the rope, he did a single back flip in the air and landed on the elevator's roof with his usual cat-like grace, one foot in front of the other and his posture in a bow, as if he was accepting the applause of a grateful crowd. Perhaps he liked working at the circus more than he'd care to admit or maybe he was just going soft.
Stepping toward the hatch, he fell through it, landing on his feet and barely making a noise. Not bothering to notice that Midii was staring at him with a questioning look, he pressed the button to the seventh basement level.
"What was it?" Midii finally asked.
"Nothing I couldn't handle."
Midii 'hmph'ed in contempt and leaned against the far wall. The elevator's red light went off and the elevator started its decent again. The dull hum of the motor was the only thing that was present in the elevator, as far as noise went. The two occupants inside might as well been perfect strangers (which they were in a sense) for the lack of conversation. Inside it was almost as dead as the creatures they were up against.
It seemed like only moments before the elevator came to a sudden halt. The lights turned off and the red light wasn't blinking this time. Both Trowa and Midii noticed it, but neither of them said anything. Trowa slowly reached into his bag and took out his radio.
"Heero, we've got a small problem."
"I know. I'm working on it," Heero responded.
"Trowa?" Midii asked.
Trowa turned and looked at her. Looking closely he could see the hidden fear in her eyes. The fear that she refused to show, most likely from all the training she had received for being a spy. Hiding and manipulation emotions most come with the job, or at least, that's how Trowa's thought process assumed it.
"Yeah?" he asked.
Good, he's talking to me now, she thought to herself. "What's wrong with the elevator?"
Trowa shrugged, "Heero's trying to figure that out right now."
Midii nodded and faced forward again.
Trowa did the same until his radio crackled back to life, "Trowa?" asked Heero.
"Yeah?"
"Well, I've searched around and mingled with all the data bases. I've tried everything. It seems that someone has shut the power off."
"Well can't you restore it?" Trowa asked, but he already knew the answer. If Heero could restore it, he would've already.
"No. It seems it's been accessed from the main computer in the lab. I can't override it. You'll have to get out of the elevator and take the stairs."
"Alright. Thanks."
Trowa turned off his radio and instead of putting it back in his bag, he clipped it onto his jeans. Reaching down, he picked up his bag and slung it over one shoulder. Tilting his head to the side, he put pressure on his neck until two audible pops could be heard; he did the same with the other side. Shaking his head, he pressed the door open button and just like he thought, it didn't respond. Furrowing his eyebrows, he put his arms out and tried to pry the door open with his fingers.
Yet another failed attempt on his part. Giving a small grunt of frustration, he ceased from his activity and zipped open his bag. Digging through it, he found what he was looking for and took it out. With a bit of effort, he managed to get the crowbar between the two doors. Jerking it off to the side, he finally managed to get the doors open, if only slightly a fraction. Putting the crowbar back in the bag, he now once again resumed his effort, this time he was able to separate the two doors so that he and Midii could fit through.
Trowa had finally caught a break. The elevator had stopped just in front of a door, which would make it easier to pry it open. But something was off. If someone had stopped the elevator, then they must have known what floor they were on. Perhaps the intention was to make them travel into this floor. Midii seemed to share that same thought.
"It's probably a trap," she voiced.
"I know."
They were both thinking on the same level now. It was either a trap or they were actually that lucky to stop in front of a door. The second one had a very low probability, so that left option one: trap. Well, considering everything Trowa had been through, this was hardly a concern. He had been in plenty of traps and so far none of them had worked. Maybe Lady Luck was on Trowa's side, even when he didn't want her to be.
Working in the mercenary troop, Trowa could recall a few times when he was tired of battle and wanted to be rid of this world. Also countless times during the war he just wanted OZ or Romafellar at some point to just find and eliminate him. Battle was tedious, but yet Trowa continued to win and live on. It seemed that Trowa Barton was married to Lady Luck.
"Hopefully this time it will be no different."
"What did you say?" Midii asked.
Trowa blinked twice. He hadn't even realized that he had said that aloud, oh well, it was too late to take it back now. "Nothing."
Midii didn't make a comment but instead, watched him intently. She for the most part, hadn't said much, but had been watching Trowa a lot. Trowa was no fool and had noticed this, but just brushed it off as idle curiosity, after all, they hadn't seen each other in years and they didn't exactly part on the best of terms. But what exactly was she thinking? Not that Trowa was insensitive, but at this point he didn't care. He only cared about making it through this mess.
In any case, Trowa resumed his efforts, mimicking the actions he had done earlier with the door. It was about ready to come open when Trowa suddenly stopped. Turning around he leaned on the door to face Midii, who was giving him a quizzical look.
"Have you even seen a real zombie before?" Trowa asked.
Midii blinked a few times before speaking, "No. But I've seen my fair share of movies to know what I'm looking for."
Trowa arched an eyebrow, "You were working undercover for Heero at Umbrella and you're telling me that you have yet to see a zombie?" He didn't believe her at all to say the least.
"Well it's not like they just walk around everywhere. I had an office job in a cubicle. I never got to go down to the labs."
"Great," Trowa said sarcastically. "Let me tell you something. Forget everything you've seen in the movies. Nothing can prepare you for this type of thing."
"Please, spare me. I can handle myself, thank you."
Trowa shrugged it off and resumed his efforts. The door gave out a loud screeching noise when he finally pried it open. Once again he put it back into his bag and withdrew his shotgun. With an audible click, he cocked the gun. Taking in a single deep breath, he put one foot in front of the other as he stepped out of the elevator and into the hallway that was in front of them.
The hallway was a dull white color, devoid of any objects. The ceiling was a steel grating that looked like it could collapse with the drop of a hat. Yellow fluorescent lights lit up the hallway, hanging from the grating. Apparently the grating was a bit stronger than it appeared. The hallway made a sharp left about ten meters from the elevator shaft, not revealing anything that could be lurking in there.
"Let's go," Trowa said as he began to walk forward.
Midii soon followed, albeit slightly hesitant, but she followed nonetheless. She gripped the rough handles of her twin Glock 19's, her finger lying atop the smooth shape of the trigger, giving her an illusion of safety. The guns were pointed upward, toward the ceiling, prepared for any action that might come their way.
They reached the corner and Trowa leaned up against the wall. Midii followed his actions in the same, leaning up against the wall, right next to him. He stared at the floor for a moment, focusing on listening to any sounds in the adjacent hallway. When none came, he looked down at Midii, who stood up to his nose, and motioned for her to go out first. She gave a silent protest, but Trowa stopped that with a cold glare.
Just as Midii passed him she whispered to him, her voice just barely audible, "And they say chivalry is dead."
Trowa ignored the comment and simply rolled his eyes ever so slightly. As she neared the edge, she took in a deep breath, something that seemed to be a natural habit now, and jumped out into the hallway. No sooner than she had jumped into the hallway, then she pressed her back to the far wall, both guns pointed forward in preparation. Her expression seemed to flicker for an instant in fear, but it soon calmed over as she fired off two shots with her Glocks.
Quickly Trowa spun out into the hallway, shotgun ready to blast. As he spun out, he saw the thing of her fear. It was a regular zombie. Trowa let his guard down for a moment, for it was a decent amount of space away. But that just confirmed one thing; Midii had never encountered a zombie. He could tell right now that she was struggling to keep her calm. That's when Trowa noticed two things. One, the shooting had stopped and two, the zombie was still walking around. Quirking an eyebrow up, he glanced over at Midii who was looking at him.
"Aren't you going to blast the thing?" she asked.
"And waste my shotgun ammo? I don't think so. You kill it."
She snarled and fired off three more shots. The zombie took the bullets in the chest and stumbled backward. It lost its balance and fell to the floor.
"There. It's dead. Happy?" she asked, a veil of sarcasm marking her words.
"No it isn't," Trowa replied calmly.
"What?"
"Look," he said as he pointed toward the zombie.
The body stirred and slowly rose to its feet. It stood there for a moment, regaining its balance before giving out a baleful moan and heading toward the duo. Blood trickled out of the bullet holes from Midii's efforts, but did not seem to be phased otherwise. Midii's eyes went wide and her mouth went agape. She stepped backward slowly, her mind not accepting the fact that it was still alive. Trowa watched her and shook his head slowly. Reaching into his bag, he once again took out the familiar Beretta and aimed; an audible click letting everyone know it was cocked.. A bright flash emitted from his gun as a single bullet was fired. The bullet found its mark, in the zombie's skull. With a low moan of pain, the zombie fell onto the floor again, this time, it would stay down. Trowa turned to Midii.
"A zombie is killed by a single bullet to the head. Most creatures take one to the head, while others take more. So don't count on it always dieing when you shoot it in the head. Always be ready for it to get back up. But then again, you can take care of yourself," he said, a slight bit of smugness in his voice.
Midii said nothing.
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Duo watched the screen intently. The various security cameras throughout the complex allowed them to follow Trowa and Midii's path. It was quite an efficient way of watching what was going on, but the one downside was that there was no sound. But Duo also knew that Heero could read lips and was probably having no trouble deciphering what the two were conversing about.
"Man this is lame!" Duo said as he walked up to the wall and leaned against it.
"What's your problem now?" Heero asked, taking a moment to look at Duo.
"This is so boring. We should be down there blasting zombies too!"
"We have a job to do. We stick to the plan and the mission will go ahead successfully," Heero said.
Duo sighed and slid to the floor. The office they had occupied that had the main computer had a large window that overlooked the small colony city. As he looked on, he once again came to the conclusion that this colony was dead. There was no movement or signs of any kind of activity down there. It was as if everyone had just disappeared. Not a single car moved in the street, not a single machine moved in the factories, and not a single child played in the park.
"Where'd everybody go?" he asked silently.
Apparently Heero didn't hear him, or he was ignoring him, but in any case, he gave no comment. His eyes watched the screen in front of him carefully. The lights of the computer monitor flickered across his pale face (due to blood loss, though he'd never admit it), which was slowing starting to regain its color. Turning his head, he brought the water bottle he was holding, to his lips. The taste of the warm water on his tongue made him relax a little bit. Then he brought his attention back to the screen, watching the duo very carefully.
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A/N: There it is. Sorry this took so long, almost a whole month. _
If anyone would like to know when I update my story, leave/send me an email address. You can also contact me over AIM. My s/n is SilentPredator03.
Preview of Next Chapter: Trowa and Midii are deep in Umbrella territory, but when they get to the central computer, whom do they find? And how does Midii know him? It's definitely not going to be good for either one of them.
Thoughts: Heero
"We've gotten into quite a situation here. A new Umbrella facility needs to be destroyed. Umbrella must be taken down at all costs. Who knows how many lives are at stake here. Duo noticed it; that this colony is completely devoid of life, not even a zombie. Maybe they got out before all this happened. I can only hope so. Now as long as Trowa and Midii don't get into an argument, or jeopardize the mission, we will succeed."
