Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything for that matter. I make no $$$ off of my stories, I write them for pure enjoyment.

Chapter 1

A chill ran up her spine as she began to stir from her sleep. Something didn't seem quite right; she felt somewhat out of place. A constant stinging sensation below her right eye brought her fully awake. She tried to reach up and inspect her face, but she couldn't. As she opened her eyes slowly, she came to the realization that she was no longer at home.

Worn leather restraints held her wrists and legs tightly against the bed. Her pale pink two-piece pajama set was tattered and dirty. And she was covered with dried blood.

Relena's eyes widened as she saw the blood. Straining, she turned her head, looking for any clue to where she was presently located. A bright light overhead of the bed cast shadows throughout the rest of the room. But through the shadows, she could make out the shape of a door and what seemed to be a two-way mirror. The room was unusually cold, causing her fingertips to turn blue. She lay on the bed, shivering, watching her breath rise above her. The only other sound in the room besides her breathing was the constant 'beep' of medical equipment.

"But that still does not answer the question, where in the world I am?" Relena softly sighed.
"You are no longer on the world, Ms. Peacecraft." A feminine voice broke the silence.
"Then just exactly where am I?"
"You will find out soon enough," the woman answered.
"What do you want with me?"

A masculine voice answered with amusement, "Aren't you an inquisitive person, Ms. Peacecraft? As my colleague already said, you will find all the answers to your questions soon enough."

Relena turned a defiant look toward the location of the voices, "I don't plan on staying here very long since my friends will be here to pick me up soon."

The smile in the man's voice was evident as he said, "You may be waiting longer than you think, Ms. Peacecraft. We have insured that your friends will not be looking for you. That should give us enough time before we are ready to let you go."

A puzzled look crossed Relena's face, "I don't understand . . ."

A hand shot out from the shadows, grabbing a hold of her arm holding it taunt as another pair of hands came at her arm with a needle full of blue liquid.

"Now, Ms. Peacecraft, it is not your place to understand. Please try to relax and let us take care of everything." The needle was then rammed into her arm, the plunger pushed, filling her blood stream with the unknown liquid.

"Heero, help me." She softly cried.
As the darkness began to quickly close in on her, she could hear the retreating sound of laughter.

***************

"DUO, go answer the door! The money for the pizza is sitting on the table." Hilde called from the bedroom.

Sighing loudly, Duo pushed himself away from the couch, away from the last play of the football game he had been watching. The doorbell rang out again as he flung the door open.

"Okay already. Here's your money, thanks for making an appearance during the biggest play of the game." Duo grumbled as he grabbed the pizzas, slammed the door and headed back to the couch.

Hilde's voice came from the bedroom again. "Duo Maxwell, don't you dare start eating without me or you will live to regret it!"

With pizza poised at his mouth, he turned his gaze toward the direction of the bedroom and dropped the slice back into the box. 'The woman must have eyes in the back of her head.' He thought to himself. Focusing back to the game, Duo settled in to watch his favorite team kick the winning field goal.

The announcer called the play, "Williams has hit 38 out of 40 field goal attempts this season. This one would win the game. Here's the snap, the ball is in place, and Williams connects. The kick is . . ."

"We interrupt your regularly scheduled program to bring you this important news bulletin."

"Aw, man! This better be some VERY important, or the TV station will be hearing from me tomorrow." Duo muttered.

A nicely dressed young news anchor sat behind the desk. His complexion a pale green, he looked like he was going to be sick.

"Vice Foreign Minister Relena Darlian, formerly Queen Relena Peacecraft, was found murdered in her family home in the Sanc Kingdom earlier this morning. Shortly after 8:00 a.m., authorities were called to the Peacecraft mansion . . ."

The news anchor's voice was drowned out by the roaring sound in Duo's head. Cobalt eyes stared transfixed on the TV as past pictures of Relena played across the screen. "I can't be true. It just can't be true!" he said as he placed is head in his hands.

As Hilde walked into the living room, she noticed Duo was sitting on the couch. His head shaking back and forth in his hands, he kept saying something over and over again. "Duo, what's wrong? What couldn't be true?"

Duo turned his face up toward her, silent tears falling down his cheeks. In a voice barely above a whisper he said, "She's dead, Hilde. Relena is dead."

****************

The mood at the Winner mansion went from sweet to sour in a matter of minutes. Quatre's family had been throwing one of the biggest affairs in Winner history when Rashid had literally run up to Quatre and drag him to the library. The news report had ended minutes ago but Quatre hadn't noticed. He was in shock, his eyes glazed over with tears. His heart had just been shattered into a million pieces.

Relena Peacecraft was dead. His symbol of hope, goodness and love was gone. Relena had done so much for the Earth Sphere Unified Nation, for peace, for the Gundam Pilots. Though they had been soldiers, she had been the one protecting the Gundam Pilots from the rest of the world.

Turning to Rashid, Quatre said, "Inform my mother of the recent death of Relena Peacecraft. Then make arrangements. We are going to Earth to say good-bye to a good friend."

Rashid nodded and headed out of the library. Once Quatre heard the sound of the door catch, he laid his head down on the desk and wept.

****************

Being a Preventer meant being privy to some important information, But Chang Wufei would never forget the morning that he heard about the death of Relena Peacecraft come across the police radio.

Night was already beginning to close the chapter of her murder. He had not moved from behind his desk since he had heard the news. Too many memories had been stirred up today and more would be brought to the surface in the days to come.

He would always remember her for her strength. Not her physical strength, but her emotional and mental strength. Wufei believed she was a lot stronger than most soldiers and Preventers he knew. Sighing, he pushed away from his desk and headed for the door. The moon cast an eerie light throughout his office once he had switched off the light. 'Seems to fit with the type of day it has been.' He thought to himself.

As he closed the door, Wufei realized that not only did the fight for peace loose a key player, but he had also lost a friend.

****************

Trowa opened the suitcase as Catherine began pulling clothes from the dresser in their trailer. Concern was etched across Catherine's face as she watched Trowa. He was normally a quiet, reserved person, but now he was just too quiet. The kind of quiet you experience right before a storm.

They had been practicing their act for the circus when the news came across a radio. After the reporter had finished reading his press release, Trowa calmly put down the props and strode out of the big top and toward the trailer. She had followed him, noticing the way he kept clenching and unclenching his fists.

He had remained calm, but she wondered how much longer the calm would last. Not saying a word, Catherine continued to pack as Trowa turned away from her and walked out the trailer. Seconds later, she heard the sound of a fist hitting the side of the metal trailer, over and over again.

****************

The TV was completely destroyed. Everything had been overturned, thrown, torn or beaten. His normally Spartan-like apartment was in shambles. Splintered wood showered all the things on the floor. Broken glass sparkled as the overhead light swayed back and forth from its wiring.

Exhausted physically and distressed emotionally, Heero Yuy stood out on the balcony of his apartment. The moon overhead cast its light down on an unusually silent city. The night breeze blew his hair into his face, trying to hide his tears from the world. Clasped in his hands, Heero held the bear that he had given Relena for her birthday five years earlier. She had given it back to him almost a year ago, saying that she wanted him to have something that he would remember her by. Like he could ever really forget her, she was his life.

He hadn't believed the news reports, so he had called Zechs Marquise (Milliardo Peacecraft). Zechs had barely been able to tell him that Relena had been late to breakfast, so he went up to check on her. When there was no answer to his knocks, he opened the door and found his sister surrounded in blood, political papers and broken furniture and her face had been smashed beyond recognition. Heero had hung up the phone before Zechs could finish the story and tore his place apart.

He felt so alone. He had never felt that way when Relena was alive. And now she was gone: forever. His grip tightened on the bear as he began to cry once again.

"Relena . . ." He sobbed as he buried his face into the bear's soft fur that still carried her scent.