A/N: Sorry for the long wait. This will be the last chapter of GE2, sorry to spring this on you. If you haven't already, go back and re-read chapter 8, it's been updated. I'd just like to say that it's been fun people; take it easy.
Legal Disclaimer: Couldn't catch me if you tried!
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
GUNDAM EVIL 2 [chapter 9]
By the benevolent SSJ_Bardock
Wesker turned to look at what Trowa was pointing at and frowned. He didn't understand what the young kid was pointing at. It was just his duffle bag he'd dropped earlier. Unless something important was in there, it was pointless to shoot it.
"What are you doing?" Wesker asked in annoyance.
Trowa rolled away from Wesker, keeping his gun trained on his duffle bag. The ex-Umbrella agent just scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion, not really bothering to stop the kid from rolling away.
"What are you trying to do?" Wesker asked once again.
Instead of answering Wesker, Trowa pushed himself up off of the metal floor and staggered over to his bag. When he finally got to it, he sat down and put his gun off to the side. Taking a moment to steady himself, he opened the bag and reached in. Feeling around for a moment, he sighed. Wesker watched as he took his hand out of the bag, his expression one of confusion. Then his face went from confusion to shock.
"This is what I was going to shoot," Trowa said, holding the round tube-like container in his hand.
Wesker knew exactly what they were, or could be for that matter. Whether the kid was bluffing or not, he didn't know. The kid had a perfect poker face on, his expression unreadable. That container was either nothing at all, or some kind of explosive.
"By the look on your face, I'll assume you know what it is," Trowa stated.
It was a bad situation for Albert Wesker. Then as he looked around, he grinned to himself. "You wouldn't."
"Why not? I'm not afraid of death. My mission was to destroy this facility and destroy it I shall. One way or another, this building is coming down."
Wesker grinned, this kid certainly was good, "You wouldn't. At least, not with your little girlfriend sitting over there."
A muscle under Trowa's eyes flinched and Wesker saw it, "What happens to the girl is irrelevant," Trowa replied.
"I think not," Wesker said as he walked over to the fallen Midii.
Trowa watched cautiously as Wesker bent over the female spy. His eyes were deadlocked in a stare that he would not break. That guy was a lot faster than he was and Trowa couldn't afford a mistake at this point. Wesker grabbed the back of Midii's shirt and hefted her off the ground at knee level. Turning to face Trowa, Wesker smirked.
"It's over boy, you lose. If you try anything, the girl dies. If you set off the explosive, you have to wonder whether I can avoid it or not. You've seen how fast I am. Are you willing to take the chance that I'm fast enough to avoid the explosion and get out quickly?" Wesker taunted.
Trowa was in a bad situation. This man was right on both accounts, or he was bluffing about his speed. Could Trowa risk the chance? No, he couldn't. Not with Midii here for him to protect. He had to keep that in mind, that he was responsible for everything that happened here. That's when he remembered his wild cards.
Slowly, Trowa reached down to the bag and plunged his hand inside it. Scuffling around for a little bit, he pulled his arm out to reveal his radio. Still remaining crouched, Trowa brought the radio to his mouth, clicking the button on the side.
"Attention 01 and 02. I'm currently in a predicament here and need your assistance. Please come to the main control room. Over."
There was static for a minute before Heero's voice came over the radio, "This is 01. We copy. Estimated time of arrival, about 10 minutes. Over."
Trowa dropped the radio into his bag and glanced back at Wesker, a smile now on his face. Wesker on the other hand was frowning slightly. Standing back up, Trowa kept hold of the explosive and began to chuckle slightly. The two were silent, neither saying a word, but Trowa chuckling all the while.
"Ah, what's the matter? Why don't you feel like smiling now?" Trowa taunted, very uncharacteristic of him.
"Shut your mouth punk, wouldn't want me to get mad and snap blondie's neck."
Trowa didn't say anything but continued to chuckle slightly, waiting for Heero and Duo to show up.
--
Heero limped down the hallway, his body still not at its best condition. The injuries now were non-existent as far as the pilot 01 was concerned. At the moment he was determined to keep pace with 02. If there was one thing Heero Yuy hated, it was showing weakness. Showing weakness in his business meant the enemy had something to exploit and that meant death.
As he walked through the corridors, stepping over the various zombie carcasses left behind, he silently considered that thought. He knew that the war was over, so why was he still determined not to show weakness? Well, he was in a war-like mindset right now, in the current situation, but that didn't seem to fit. Scrunching his eyebrows together, he pondered over why he was so determined to not show weakness. Perhaps it was pride? Pride that Wufei Chang had seemed to practically emit when he was in a room with you. Perhaps it was his ego?
"I like pride better," Heero said to himself, a small smile on his lips.
"What?" Duo asked, stopping in his tracks and glancing back at Heero.
"Nothing Duo," replied Heero as he pushed through the door to the stairwell.
--
Wesker frowned deeply. This whole situation was boring him and angering him. The original plan was to walk up into the plant, get a copy of the info from the Umbrella computer and get out, a "no fuss, no muss" type of deal. Then out of the woodwork come these two children who ruined everything. Now there were witnesses to everything and the possibility of death of himself and this time, there'd be no special virus to revive him when he died.
It wasn't that Wesker was opposed to killing, far from it. While his hands weren't actually dirty because he usually had some other person or thing to kill off his antagonists, he didn't have a problem with it. It couldn't be that simple this time though, because this kid looked to be some kind of commando with a bag full of explosives that would send them all to Hell in a hand basket.
He recognized the young child in front of him, Midii Une. Her name was everywhere. Midii Une was probably the biggest known spy in the business, she'd even been at the top of an OZ hit list at one point, but apparently they'd failed to get the job done. Maybe he could kill her and bring the body in for a reward…
The boy in the turtleneck sweater he could only mildly guess to be one of the Gundam pilots. After all, it would make sense that one of the spies on OZ's hit list would be associated with the Gundam pilots. It didn't really make a difference, but Wesker was curious about him. He could try to find out, which he would.
"So what's a Gundam pilot doing in an Umbrella facility?" asked Wesker.
"Stopping Umbrella from making more of those things," replied Trowa.
"So the kid is a Gundam pilot, that figures," Wesker thought to himself, a small grin on his face. Just then, an idea occurred to him, but in order for it to work, he'd have to find out how much this girl meant to the boy. His current grin, spread a little bit wider as it turned evil. Slowly, his hand tightened around Midii's neck. The young girl's mouth opened in pain, but no sound escaping her throat. Trowa noticed and his eyebrows scrunched together and his mouth turned to a thin line.
"Stop it," he commanded.
Wesker grinned and tightened his grip. Midii's expression reflected her condition as she grimaced in pain, still unconscious. Trowa on the other hand bared his teeth in a very uncharacteristic manner. That's when he reflected on it. He'd been doing a lot of things that weren't very like him. Trowa had been doing things he wouldn't normally do, but when he thought about it, considering the circumstances, it wouldn't be too hard to believe that it could change him.
"Oh well, guess I'll have to live with myself," he muttered under his breath.
"What was that boy?"
"Let her go, or we all die," Trowa threatened. Whether he actually would do it, not even Trowa knew, but right now it was his only hope of keeping his advantage.
"I don't think so," Wesker said as he walked over toward the computer terminal.
"What?" Trowa asked warily.
Wesker stopped as he got right in front of the terminal, keeping the girl between himself and Trowa, just in case the kid tried something. Turning his attention back to the terminal in front of him, he glanced at the console, apparently searching for something. Abruptly a small smile appeared on his face as he moved his hand toward a set of buttons. His single hand moved up to the console and his fingers moved nimbly over them; Trowa watched it all with a frown.
"What are you doing?" he questioned.
"It's a surprise."
Trowa tried to move to the side to get a glance at the computer's screen to try and get a hint of what Wesker was doing. His efforts were for not though, as Wesker continued to move Midii with his other arm, using her to block Trowa's vision. Finally giving up on that tactic, he moved toward Wesker and Midii, but stopped when he noticed Wesker's grip tighten.
"I'd keep my distance if I were you, boy. After all, you wouldn't want your little friend here to accidentally break her neck."
Trowa frowned deeply and stopped in his tracks.
"That's what I thought," Wesker said over his shoulder.
"What are you doing? Tell me," Trowa demanded.
The sound of clicking buttons stopped abruptly as Wesker turned around to face Trowa Barton. His dark sunglasses reflected the room's lights and his smile made the pilot 03 uneasy. The man clad in black took a step forward before half-turning to face the console once more. His hand hovered over a key that Barton couldn't see and his head turned to face him once again.
"It would be wise of you to put down the gun, unless you really wish to find out what my surprise is," Wesker warned.
"No chance, you're bluffing."
"Am I? Can you be sure? Are you willing to risk your friend's life because of something you think might be? Come now, put down the weapons and I'll forget all about my little surprise."
Trowa stared back at him, his face twitching slightly with his mixed emotions and his mind racing with thought. Grudgingly he set down both the pistol and the explosive and backed up.
"There, now let her go."
"Not so fast, back up against the wall over there," Wesker motioned with his hand.
Trowa did as he was told and Wesker walked over to where Trowa's things were. Bending down, but still keeping hold of Midii, Wesker picked up the gun and explosive and set them in the bag of the former Gundam pilot. Then, he zipped up the bag and slung it over his right shoulder. Trowa watched on, his eyes slanted with hatred, as Wesker stalked back to the computer.
"Now then," Wesker said as he hit a few buttons. All of a sudden the entire room was doused in a dull red light.
"ATTENTION: SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE HAS BEEN ACTIVATED! REPEAT: THE SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE HAS BEEN EVACUATED. ALL EMPLOYEES PROCEED TO THE EMERGENCY EVACUATION PLATFORM," the speakers blared.
Trowa's head shot around looking at the room. Suddenly gunshots rang out and Trowa's attention was drawn back to Wesker who stood away from the console, gun pointed, barrel smoking. The terminal was shot in several places, circuits and sparks shooting out everywhere. Trowa's eyes widened as Wesker threw Midii at him. Catching her in his arms, he could only watch as Wesker punched the keypad to the door, shattering it and forcing the door to close, locking both of them in there.
"Damn it," Trowa retorted, "This is not good."
--
Wesker ran through the hall, the duffle bag slung over his shoulder. Lights flashed warning, the speakers still blared, and Wesker was moving like a bat out of hell. Now because of his enhanced speed, he didn't have enough time to react when two people suddenly turned a corner. Unable to stop, Wesker rammed into both of them, sending the two boys flying apart. Stumbling slightly, Wesker regained his balance and continued on his way, leaving two confused and shocked Gundam pilots lying on the floor.
--
"What the hell was that?" Duo asked, rubbing his head.
"I don't know, but it's gone now and we have to get going," Heero answered, getting back to his feet.
"I hope Midii and Trowa are okay," Duo said as he started to jog forward.
Heero said nothing as they rounded the corner to meet a large metal door. It was the door to the main computer room, but it was closed. Walking up to the keypad, Heero typed in the password, but it didn't respond. With his customary scowl, Heero typed the code again, only to have it not respond.
"What's wrong with it?" Duo asked.
"It's broken and locked," Heero answered.
Suddenly their radios crackled to life, Trowa's voice coming through. "Guys listen, the door's keypad the inside of the door is smashed. The door's stuck and I don't have any explosives left to blast it open."
"What are you saying Trowa?" Duo asked.
"I'm saying that there's not much time and you two need to get out of here and get to the shuttle. If this place blows, it's going to take a chunk out of the colony's outer wall and the whole colony will implode. There's not much time, so get out now."
"That's insane! We're not going to just leave you here!" Duo shouted back.
"There's no other option. I'll try and figure something out. If I'm still alive after this place explodes, I'll contact you via radio."
"Can you override it?" Heero asked.
"No, the terminal's been destroyed. Now get out of here," Trowa ordered.
"Isn't there any other way?" Duo shouted, but there was no response, only static.
Heero put a hand on Duo's shoulder and turned around, "Let's go."
As Heero started to jog away, Duo stood there, not believing what he was hearing, "You're just going to leave him there?"
"Do we really have a choice? Besides, we all knew the dangers before we started," Heero called over his shoulder.
Duo frowned and chased after Heero, not happy in the least.
--
Trowa clipped his radio back onto the hem of his pants. Looking around the red light-soaked room, his glance fell back down to Midii, who he had placed on the floor earlier. For once, he didn't try to hide any emotion at all as he smiled sadly. The expression was just one big contradiction, which seemed ironic for his first free expression. His face then took on a rather grim look as he once again gave the room the once-over.
Gradually he walked forward toward the computer terminal which still had sparks shooting out of the various bullet holes and error messages flashing across the screens, with one monitor displaying clearly how much time they had left. Finding a chair that looked like it had been discarded in a hurry, Trowa picked it up off the ground and sat down, staring at the single monitor, watching the time tick by.
"He certainly set the time long enough," Trowa mused.
"Probably wants us to suffer," called a voice from behind him.
Trowa spun around in the chair, his eyes softening, "I was hoping you wouldn't wake up."
Midii groaned and brought her hand up to her hand. Bringing it back to take a look at it, she found it coated in blood. "Ouch," she said to herself and then looked back up at Trowa, "What did you mean by that?"
Trowa nodded in direction of the countdown, "So you could've gone somewhat peacefully."
Midii's eyes squinted and her head cocked to the side in disbelief, "So you're just going to give up? Just like that?"
"Just like that."
She shook her head, "I can't believe I'm hearing this. Being a Gundam pilot, I would've figured you wouldn't be the type to just give up."
"I didn't. I'm just thinking reasonably. He shot the terminal, as you can see," he said, waving a hand toward the terminal, "he smashed the keypad to the door," he said with a point of a finger toward it, "and he took my bag that had my explosives in it, so we can't blast our way out of it." Midii's eyes fell to the ground a frown on her face, "So now you see my side."
"Yeah," she said weakly.
Finding another toppled chair, she picked it up and sat across from Trowa. Taking a deep breath, she slouched down in the chair, closing her eyes. They snapped wide open when the sound of cloth tearing made its way into her ears. With a look of pure confusion, she watched as Trowa tore off a sleeve of his shirt. Without so much as a glance at her, he once again ripped it, down the seems, making it one long and wide piece. Then he got to his feet and walked over to a confused Midii. She flinched slightly as he wrapped the cloth around her head, tying it tightly.
"That should stop the bleeding for the most part," Trowa said as he sat down again, looking rather awkward with only one sleeve.
Midii's hand went up to the cloth, feeling it slightly, "Thank you."
Trowa swiveled his chair to face the terminal as he watched the timer tick down, "Anytime Midii, anytime."
Midii smiled back at him sweetly, and swiveled around in her chair, when something caught her eye, "What's that?"
"Hmm?" Trowa asked, ever the master of intelligent conversation.
--
The two other Gundam pilots sat in the truck, not a word exchanged between the two. Duo's face was solemn, while Heero was trying to hide what he was feeling. He had said they knew the risks, but he didn't actually expect it to actually come to this. After all, they were the Gundam pilots, this didn't happen to them. They were supposed to win every battle, not lose. The odds had been against them before, but they had survived; now only to have one of them go out like this?
"It wasn't supposed to end this way," Duo spoke, vocalizing both their thoughts.
Heero didn't respond, but just kept looking out the window, ignoring all the scientific abominations they passed by. Zombies now scoured the streets, lumbering out of the alleyways. Occasionally they passed by one of the things that had attacked Heero, now being labeled a "Hunter", but Heero showed as much interest in them as he would in one of Duo's favorite television shows; to be more specific: none at all.
About a half-hour from when they left Trowa back in the lab, they had arrived at the shuttle. Heero absently noticed that there was one less shuttle that had been there when they arrived and drew the connection, a deep death glare showing his disgust. As they boarded the shuttle, the silence between them continued on past the launch. When they cleared the colony's launch zone, Duo stopped the shuttle and turned it around to face the colony.
"What are you doing Duo?" Heero asked, slightly annoyed, more at having to actually witness his friend's death.
"We at least owe it to Trowa to wait and see if they get out."
"Listen Duo, I know it sucks that we have to leave them, but even I've come to terms with it… But," Heero started, "I suppose you're right."
So there the two sat, watching the colony. About twenty minutes later, a quick flash of fire signified the explosion, but the lack of oxygen in space quickly put out the fire. That wasn't the problem though, as they watched the colony tear itself inside out. It's been said that sound doesn't exist in space, but at that very moment Duo and Heero could've sworn they heard the tearing of metal as the colony came apart.
It didn't last long and soon all that was left was colony debris. Huge chunks of metal and various other materials floated around, signifying the gravesite of the colony. The two just watched, not being able to express anything.
"Well… let's go," Duo said as he started the shuttle back up.
Heero merely stared down at the radio in his hand and his eyes shot open as static came through.
"Du… eero… ca… ear… e?" came the voice, which could've only been Trowa's.
"Trowa?!" Both pilots exclaimed.
"…es," came through the static.
"Christ Trowa! You had us scared!" Duo yelled.
"Pick…p… oxy..n run… ut."
"We'll be right there, just hold on," Duo exclaimed as he began to navigate through the debris.
"Ha!" Duo cheered as he slapped Heero on the shoulder, "I told you he'd think of something!"
"Yeah well, just hurry up, he said they're running out of oxygen."
"Right," Duo said as he continued his search.
What they found was a single locker-looking metal box. On it was written in bold red letters "E-Hatch 1". Bringing it on board, they managed to pry it open to find a sleeping Trowa Barton with a sleeping Midii Une wrapped in his arms. Duo chuckled lightly at the sight and shook them lightly.
"Alive. Sleep," Trowa mumbled.
Duo glanced over at Heero who just shrugged, a small grin plastered on his face. As they returned to the cockpit, Duo started up the shuttle again.
"Head for L3, we'll drop them off there," Heero said.
"Drop them off? Aren't we going to tell them about…"
"No," Heero said firmly, "They've been through a lot, let them have some time to sort things out."
"So generous Heero," Duo said, a smirk on his face.
Heero said nothing but continued to grin slightly. Bringing his arms up behind his head, he closed his eyes, dreaming of a place far away and far sweeter. Duo just sighed slightly and turned the autopilot on, then, along with Heero, he fell swiftly asleep. So the three Gundam pilots, plus one spy, were all dreaming of a better situation, a different reality, and one without zombies, Umbrella, OZ, the Alliance, or anything else.
=END=
