by zapenstap
From behind the door in Relena's private office came a loud thump.
"What was that?" Sally Po said, poised on the balls of her feet, hand on the gun at her belt.
Wufei shook his head. "Let's go in." He lifted his own gun over his shoulder and put a hand on the door. Locked. Relena never locked her door.
Abruptly there came a second sound, a strange metallic noise like a blade being swept across a sheet of metal. Blue light flashed once from beneath the door.
"What in the world..." Sally murmured, her eyes narrowing.
"Stand back," Wufei said curtly. Sally slid smoothly to the side. He leaped and spun, his heavy booted foot crashing into the door, kicking it open. A great rent appeared in the middle; the hinges twisted and snapped and the door fell inward.
"Freeze!" Sally yelled, running in, gun in both hands and arms outstretched before her.
But the room was empty. The windows were whole, shut and still locked. There were no other doors. Sally walked cautiously around the room, checking beneath the desk and behind the curtains. Wufei looked out the window, his gaze sweeping across the landscape, the sides of the building. It was a sheer drop in any case. Looking at the hinges on the windows, he could see they appeared to be rusted. They had not been opened in some time.
"What the hell," Wufei muttered, his brow furrowed. "This is impossible."
"Yeah," Sally said, staring around her with wide, worried eyes. "We'd better contact headquarters about this now."
"And Heero," Wufei said grimly.
Relena and her guest had vanished.
*****
"Okay, I've added a stick of melted butter and a 1/2 cup of milk to 2 and 1/3 cup of pancake mix," Heero said impatiently. "Now what?"
"3 Tablespoons of sugar," Kyra said, sitting on the countertop with one boot propped up beside her and the box of pancake mix in her lap.
Heero measured and added the sugar. "This would go a lot faster if you'd let me read the recipe."
"Don't you trust me? I thought you liked taking orders. Start mixing."
"Do you like giving them?" he said wryly, fishing a long handled wooden spoon from the drawer and mixing the dough for strawberry shortcake.
"I've had some experience."
"Hn. All right, mixed."
"Knead dough 10 times."
Heero did that.
"Now divide into six parts and bake on 425 degrees for 10 minutes," Kyra said.. "We'll add our sliced and sugared strawberries and drench with milk when they're done."
"Why are we making strawberry shortcake?" Heero asked as he put the cookie sheet in the oven and set the timer.
"Why not?" Kyra asked. Typical of her, always throwing back words to make trouble. "Aren't you hungry?"
"I don't ask questions about missions."
Kyra laughed low. "Ha ha, hot shot. It's an easy recipe; one of the only things I can make actually. What else are we going to while I wait for Mandred?"
"Right," Heero said dryly. "Because you couldn't just come back later."
"That would be a waste of time. Where would I go?"
A rhetorical question, also typical of her. Heero didn't bother answering, but asked a real question instead. "Assuming you don't live on this colony, which I'm pretty sure you don't, how can you afford to travel here so frequently?"
"I have an inside force," Kyra said smugly. She jumped off the counter and began putting the dishes in the sink.
"You mean source," Heero corrected.
"No, I meant force," Kyra chuckled as she washed the dishes. "Or maybe I just don't want to admit I said something stupid. Your pick."
The phone rang.
Heero answered it, tucking the receiver in the crook between his neck and shoulder to free his hands up for writing messages.
"Heero Yuy?"
Heero blinked in surprise, grabbing the phone again with his hand. "Wufei?"
He heard Kyra turn off the water and look in his direction, her face blank of all its previous humor. Heero paid her no mind, but concentrated on the phone. Why would the Preventors contact him? But in his gut, he knew.
"Relena's disappeared," Wufei informed him. "A man named Teleb came to see her about Mandred. She called us down and when we went in, they were both gone."
Anxiety. Relena... "Teleb," Heero repeated the name darkly.
Abruptly, Kyra snatched the phone out of his hand. He stood still in surprise, hand curled around empty air.
"Wufei Chang?" Kyra said into the phone, and there was a suddenly a sense of control and confidence about her. "This is Kyra Anderman. I need to know everything you saw and heard before, during and after the incident." She paused for a moment, listening. "I don't care about that. I know more about Teleb than Heero does. Time is very important."
Heero settled back, crossing his arms, but a restlessness rolled through his gut. Relena had vanished? And Teleb... He knew little about him. Duo had related his venture with Felicia to him more than a few times, and always the mystery of the mysterious weapon and the part of the crystals intrigued them both. Duo had caught Felicia sneaking into a guarded building to retrieve a stolen diamond and some crystals, but when Duo proceeded to assist her, she betrayed him and went after the original thief alone, a man named Teleb. When Duo caught up with her, her hand had been scorched as if by fire, the diamond was shattered, and the suspect gone. Somehow, Felicia oiled her way out of the situation, taking the crystals with her. The only information Duo was able to retrieve was that Felicia was not her real name and that she worked on behalf of Mandred. He also inferred that the crystals, though they would seem to be of little worth, were her object just as much as the diamond ever was. The situation intrigued Heero too, especially how Mandred was involved, but Mandred would never elaborate on any of his "secret business" to Heero. Heero had gathered from overheard tidbits of conversation that Teleb was some sort of fugitive or terrorist or both, but he had no idea of what organization, what he was after, or why Mandred was interested in his activities. If there were any files on the situation, Mandred did not keep them at the house. Nor did he ever speak of it to Heero. It was obvious that Kyra, Coran, Felicia and maybe others he didn't know about were involved in tracking him. For whatever reason, it was also apparent that they were having extreme difficulty in doing so. And now Relena was involved, in danger, and that meant he was involved too. He should never have stopped protecting her! But no, he had had little choice.
Kyra hung up the phone. "I have to find Mandred," she said. "This is serious."
"Why Relena?" Heero demanded. "I must find her."
"I will find her," Kyra interjected. She picked up the phone and began dialing a number. "You will stay out of it. Teleb has no interest in Relena. He doesn't give a shit about her. He's after Mandred and I think he must mean to go through you." Her eyes shone like dark, polished stones as she regarded him levelly with the phone pressed to her ear. "You're the one that needs to be protected. Relena's just bait." She paused as someone apparently picked up on the other end. "Hey, Cor, I need you to have Falora do that scrying thing she does. I think we can get Teleb's location." She paused as Coran replied. "He's taken Relena. Just now. Yeah, he knows. He's glaring at me right now." She looked sidewise at Heero. "I don't know, Cor. She damn well better be. If we can't find Mandred, we're going to have to substitute, as you know damn well. Yeah. Yeah. You know that's not really that important. No, not her either. Okay. Hell. I gotta go." She hung up. "Pick up the phone," she said to Heero. "Call waiting kicked in. It's probably Teleb. Don't let him know I'm here or that you know me. Agree to anything he says like you're terrified out of your mind. He doesn't know anything about you and nothing that's true will probably impress him. Try to get as much out of him as you can and hang up before three minutes have passed so he can't get a trace on our location."
Heero snorted and picked up the phone. Obviously. "Hello?" he said pleasantly, bringing all his phone etiquette to use.
"Heero," a voice replied. It was a smooth, pleasant voice.
"Yeah," he said, keeping the anger in check.
"My name is Teleb. I have with me a young girl by the name Relena Darilan. She seems to think highly of you, so I assume you've been at least somewhat informed of the situation."
"Where are you?" Heero demanded softly, but with thorns in his voice. "Is she okay?"
"I am waiting for you at an empty building on the corner of 10th and 3rd of North side. The girl is yet unharmed, but I can not promise she will remain that way."
"What do you want?"
"You live with Master Mandred, correct? The bargain is very simple. I want the crystals. Find them and bring them to me. Come alone or with a friend if it makes you feel better. It matters little. Come armed or not, but come quickly. If I receive the crystals within the next hour, I will release the girl unharmed. If not, I will proceed to kill her until the crystals are in my hand."
Heero's heart almost stopped beating. He would proceed to kill her... over an extended period of time. Torture. "Relena is a peace keeper," Heero reminded the man, "once Queen of the Earth's sphere..." Kyra was shaking her head so Heero stopped.
"I care nothing for her," Teleb said simply. "Bring the crystals or watch her die. There is no bargaining between us. Do not bother trying to rescue her. She seems to think somebody will, but not the hardiest captain of renown could wrest her from my grasp. I will trade her for the power crystals only; no other substitute."
"Why crystals?" Heero asked. "Why not diamonds or some other form of currency." Kyra shook her head again.
Teleb laughed. "Only the crystals. Do not inform Mandred or I will kill the girl instantly and escape. Do not inform Immilie or any other Alfarian or I shall do the same. Bring no police forces. I will elude them. Inform no media or I will leave the girl dead. Bring only yourself and the crystals and all shall be well with you. If you break any of these simple rules, I will teach you new fear and new pain. Do not delay. I can not promise how long my patience will last before I get bored.."
Heero hung up well under three minutes and repeated Teleb's location and his request to Kyra in monotones, distracted by the images of Relena being held captive and at the mercy of such a terrorist. "But I know of no crystals," he said with a sharp edge in his voice. "And I don't understand what he means by Alfarians. Mandred has none of these things."
"There's a lot you don't understand," Kyra said angrily. It was not anger at him; she was staring into space and her jaws appeared to be clenched tightly together. "Mandred doesn't even have the crystals anymore. I do. I guess it's fortunate Mandred finished them and delivered them to me last week."
"He finished them?" Heero said. How did one finish a crystal? He could see Relena, tied to a chair, bruised and bleeding, but strong and proud, waiting for him... His blood was boiling. "To hell with these secrets!" he shouted, and gestured forcefully. "You need to explain this to me!"
"I'm taking the crystals to Teleb while Coran rescues your girl and drops her off at the spaceport," Kyra said. "You can meet her there."
No. "That's unacceptable. I won't forsake Relena or abandon her. I can't do that. Besides, Teleb expects me, not you. And he knows you, correct? What's to say he won't murder Relena and escape if you show up instead of me?"
"I'll disguise myself."
"I will follow and waylay you if you put Relena in any danger trying to keep me out of it. I've been risking my life in battles longer than anybody. I won't step aside now. I am the perfect soldier," he said with conviction, "and I promised to protect Relena. I will follow you."
"I'll tie you up."
"Kyra," he said, and just looked at her. Fear ate at his heart and he knew his determination must show in his eyes. Relena...
Kyra hesitated for a moment and ran a hand over her eyes. "Okay, okay. Damn it! Mandred's going to kill me!"
"I've never heard you swear before today. Mandred doesn't allow it in his house."
"I'm a little stressed out," she said, and he could hear the tension in her voice. Abruptly, the oven timer rang.
"Time's up," Heero said.
Kyra swore again and skidded into the kitchen to turn off the oven. She scribbled a quick note and left it on the counter. The shortcakes were forgotten. "Come on," she said, grabbed her bag off the couch, and took out her keys. "Our hour is wasting."
Heero followed, stopping only to pick up his coat and take his gun from the top shelf of the hallway closet. Bullets he still kept in his coat pocket. He loaded the gun and hid it inside his coat. He felt odd but strangely satisfied as he followed Kyra out to her car. He had to stop Teleb and save Relena. Everything was very clear... except for how this all began.
"Who is Teleb?" Heero demanded as he climbed in the passenger seat and shut the door. "Who is Mandred really and what's his secret business?"
Kyra muttered something inaudible as she started the car and out it into gear. "What have you guessed so far?" she said at last.
Heero crossed his arms and she tore out of the driveway. "That Mandred is more than he claims to be. He says he's an architect, but he doesn't say where he works. He comes home at odd hours all the time. He seems to be able to travel very quickly and with little inconvenience. He kept track of me all throughout the war, which means he must have had some intelligence system of first rate quality. He looks young but he's wise and seems to have experiences in everything first hand. He's not surprised or intimidated by anything and he never gets angry or rarely even out-of-sorts. He doesn't even seem to mind that the girl he loves wants to wait twenty years to agree to marry him."
"Longer than that," Kyra muttered. "But it's typical for them. God only knows how they do it."
"What do you mean they? And how much do you know?"
Kyra took a deep breath. "I'm in the thick of everything, as thick as a human ever could be," she said slowly, brown hair flying about her face. "I'm the leader of Alfarian lackeys. I know everything and pretty much everybody. All the important people take me into service and all the Renegades hate me. Teleb will probably try to kill me on site, or Coran or Felicia for that matter. Felicia most of all."
"Falora," Heero corrected. That had to be her real name. "You already revealed that over the phone."
"Right. That was her idea. Teleb knows her best of all of us. Falora Eredes is a name infamous among the Renegades, almost as well known as mine."
What Renegades? "Why didn't you change your name?"
"Because I just don't care," Kyra said negligently. "And I wasn't here long. Besides, Falora's always been a little quirky. She loves to over dramatize everything and tends to hurtle headfirst into danger. I do that too, but at least I usually have a plan first."
"My explanation is only half-baked," Heero reminded her, trying to steer the conversation back to what was important.
"It'll never be fully cooked," Kyra said. "There are some strange ingredients. This is a problem that's been going on for thousands of years and is just starting to boil down. I could never explain it all to you in a car ride with little time to spare, and I doubt Mandred will allow it anyway. You'll have to settle for the short version."
Thousands of years? "Tell me what I need to know," Heero replied, crossing his arms.
"So you've noticed that Mandred looks young and seems old. Want to venture a guess on his age?"
"Thrity-something," Heero said.
Kyra chuckled. "Not even close."
"Fifty?" Kyra shook her head. "Sixty. Seventy. Eighty? Give me a real answer." Heero said.
"I don't know," she said with a note of truth. "Not exactly. Mandred doesn't age, Heero. At all. He's probably looked thirty for lifetimes beyond lifetimes. Who knows how long he's lived here even? Ever wonder why war doesn't seem particularly earthshaking to Mandred? Do you have any idea how many's he's seen, fought in, won, lost, wrote about?"
Heero was speechless. "I don't understand. He's immortal?"
Kyra laughed. "Mandred isn't human, Heero. He's an Alfarian and they don't age. They're not immortal depending on your definition because they certainly do die, just not in a timely matter. Some Alfarians die at a hundred, some at four thousand, some even older. The first Alfarian who ever breathed still lives today."
Heero smiled. "Right," he said, sensing her joke. "Who is Mandred really?"
"I'm not lying to you," Kyra said with an absolutely straight face. "I wouldn't make jokes at a time like this. Shift your view of the world and bare with me. Do you or have you ever believed in angels or aliens?"
"Are telling me Mandred's an angel or an alien?"
"No. He's an Alfarian. But if you believe in a Heavenly Host or societies on other planets, this might be easier for you to understand. You don't, though, do you? Okay, then just pretend you believe. Alfarians don't live here. They live on their own world in another place, but they can travel from world to world so they're scattered everywhere. They're not exactly aliens. They're magical beings, or at least they refer to what they do as magic. It's not sorcery or witchcraft or other demon worship or anything frightening like that. They have a power they're born with and they use it to do stuff that doesn't hold true with natural laws. So technically it falls under magic. They call it Alfaria, thus the name Alfarian."
"I think you lost me with the angels."
"You don't have to understand, just listen. Back when I was really in the thick of things there was a great war. What happened isn't relevant right now except that part of the probelm was that there were some Alfarians who decided they were better creations than people like us and became what we call Renegades. There was some fighting and some betrayal and before it was all over a few--well more than a few--of these Renegades escaped to different worlds. Most of them try to rule those worlds, but some are just trying to grow more powerful to take revenge. Teleb is one of these."
Heero swallowed. If even a quarter of this was true, Relena was in graver danger than he had ever imagined. "And the crystals?"
"I'm getting to that. At a critical point in the war some really important Alfarians showed up that everybody thought long dead. They were so old they were legendary. They were the Masters, six Alfarian geniuses from a time and place thought to have died long ago. One of these Master brought with him crystals he had made, a skill that had never been seen before."
"Mandred?" Heero guessed, not really believing it.
"No," Kyra said, much to his relief, "but one of those old friends I mentioned when I first met you, Ranlath. The crystals he made act sort of like magic boxes. They store power, or amplify it, or filter it, giving all kinds of assets to the weilders, making them stronger. Only the Masters understood these devises, could make and use them properly, though they are in the process of training others now."
Heero's view of this whole ordeal was totally blown. He almost wished he'd never insisted on coming. Except that it was Relena's life that was at stake. "And Mandred has some of these crystals and Teleb wants them?"
"Almost," Kyra replied approvingly, but in a grave tone. "Heero, if one average Alfarian is said to be a close to invincible force, Mandred is ten times greater. He is one of the Masters of old, one of the six that returned unexpected and turned the war in our favor. The crystals I have have never been used. They were made by Ranlath, but sent via Falora to be fortified by Mandred. Only, Teleb ambushed Falora and stole them from her. She got them back, but it was a lucky thing she wasn't killed. Now Teleb knows they're out here somewhere and he suspects Mandred's got them. Only, Mandred doesn't anymore. He finished them and gave them to me."
"You're not an Alfarian, though, are you?"
"No."
"What about Coran and Falora?"
"Coran's not. Falora's a strange case. She's completely human, but a twist in her genetic makeup allows her to use the same magic Alfarians do, to a lesser degree. That's why it was safer for her to go retrieve the crystals without Duo's help. He compromised her mission because she couldn't reveal what she could do around him. It's a lucky thing that boy can take care of himself."
"He is a gundam pilot."
"Yes, you pilots are extraordinary. No one's denying that. Alfarians would never conceive the idea of flying mobile suits into losing battles. Most Alfarians don't like machinery, except Mandred. He has a fettish for metals and large constructs, which is why he probably got involved with Operation Meteror in the first place. For fun, I imagine. No other Alfarian I know would ever choose to live on a space colony."
"You said he fortified the crystals? He told me he fortified the gundam too."
"Yeah, that's what he's renowned for. Master Mandred has developed fortification into a delicate art. He's excellent at making wards and shields too. And objects isn't the only thing he fortifies," she said, looking at him pointedly. "I've heard a lot about your missions. I suspect that sometime in your illustrious career, Mandred saw an opportunity and fortified you. I doubt you remember it, though. He would erase that from your thoughts."
Heero froze, unable to say anything in response. He had always been...durable, he supposed, but...
"I'm fortified too, if it makes you feel better," Kyra continued. "So are Falora and Coran. Someone always fortifies us when we're up against Renegades. I'm also magic resistent, but you're probably not."
"Is it a...permanent procedure?"
"I don't know. Mine's not, I know, because they always redo it. It wears off. I don't know about your case. You'll have to ask Mandred."
Heero struggled, trying to absorb. In a way, everything Kyra said made Mandred more real, not less. He finally understood why the man was so odd, odd in a wonderful way, but still odd. And Mandred, Alfarian Master, was his legal guardian? Heero felt twice as humbled as he ever had in his life, and scrounged uselessly trying and find some way of repaying his benefactor. But there was nothing he could ever give. Why would Mandred waste his time on him?
Enough. A mission was on hand. Relena was in dire peril.
"If Mandred is a Master Magician," Heero said. "Why doesn't he just deal with Teleb? Is he not a fighter?"
"Oh, he's a fighter. They all fight. Have you ever seen Mandred angry?" Heero shook his head. "Good. You don't want to. I have, during the war I mentioned. Mandred doesn't like killing, but he will and has. Alfarians in war are positively terrifying, even if they're wise as the Earth and gentle as doves in peaceful times. Teleb would be broken like a rag doll against Mandred, and probably the entire colony too, which is why we have to be careful. Believe me, if I knew where Mandred was, I'd find him, but I don't, and we can't wait if we want to be in time to save Relena. It is not beyond Teleb to maim or disfigure her while he's waiting. He was being honest when he said he was not patient."
And for the first time, Heero began to feel deathly afraid, and more determined and focused than ever.
Okay. There you have it, a preview of my original stuff. All these ideas are copyrighted by me, so don't even THINK about stealing them. I've purposely left huge holes in the explanation, but that's nothing you need to know for a fanfic. You can read my books if I ever finish them (which I will...someday).
As for the shortcake, it's a real recipe. Try it sometime and let me know what you think. It's pretty tasty.