Gundam Wing: The Highlander
CHAPTER 8 - Solo's Last Goodbye
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Author: Ravena Kaiou
Email: KakyuuStarLt@aol.com
Genre: Sci-fi/Action
Crossovers: The Highlander/Gundam Wing
Warnings: OOC, language, violence, 4xU.
Disclaimer: This series is meant to be a novelization of the Highlander Movie using Gundam Wing characters. Some things have been changed a bit, others have not. Highlander belongs to Rysher Entertainment, Gundam Wing belongs to Sunrise Animation. Don't sue me! *sobs*
(Note: Ahmad is a character from the Shinkoidousenki Gundam Wing: Episode Zero manga, featured in Act 4.)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
A few hours after their celebration, the newly-sober Ahmad and Quatre both rocked back and forth absently on cheaply-constructed black swings.
From the playground they were resting in, both men could see the skyscrapers of the city rising up above the trees, their glass sides blazing with the fiery colours of the rising sun. A bitter wind tossed a newspaper across one of the slides, swirling leaves around the silent figures.
"There are three of us left," Quatre said suddenly. "You, me, and the Khushrenada."
Ahmad nodded thoughtfully, then in a wave of realization, turned to face his friend. "You're not suggesting that we join forces against him?" he gasped.
Quatre remained silent and watched as a jogger floundered by.
"Solo filled your head with nonsense," Ahmad scorned. "Sooner or later, you and I will have to fight."
He paused and rested his hand on Quatre's shoulder. "Nothing personal. I've always liked you, actually."
He pointed a finger at the blonde man and pulled an imaginary trigger.
"Boom-Boom."
Quatre silently got up and walked away, leaving Ahmad to swing in the crisp wind.
He remembered a day when Solo and Une were having a hearty lunch in the modest MacLeod home. Weak sunlight filtered in through the windows, illuminating the tiny dust angels that floated in the air. A wooden staircase ran from the ground to the third floor.
Solo took a bite of his bread, then suddenly, his body jolted violently. The blood drained from his face as his expression contorted. "Run, Une!" he demanded in a strangled voice.
As if on cue, the front door exploded, sending fragments of wood flying through the room.
In the splintered doorframe appeared a frighteningly large figure with burning eyes, and a gigantic sword in hand. He let out a terrible laugh and surged inside.
Une gasped and stumbled back as Solo dove for his sword resting on top of the table. The figure swung viciously at him, barely missing the Spaniard and easily slicing the table into two halves, the heavy pieces hitting the wooden floor with a mighty thud.
Solo easily countered, swinging his own blade and cleanly slicing through his oponent's neck. A thin red line appeared on his throat where the metal had pierced his flesh and severed his vocal cords.
The man gargled in fury, clutching at his bleeding neck while at the same time trying to ward off the Spaniard's deadly attack, reeling backwards up the stairs.
Solo was not to be deterred as he advanced on his opponent, blade flashing as he swung it through the air. Savage forces were unleashed in both of the men as sparks flew like so many dancing fireflies from their clanging metal blades.
Thunder cracked outside, a brilliant flash of lightning illuminating the dark sky in a majestic fork.
Solo's opponent grinned horribly as he suddenly leapt down upon the Spaniard, sword gleaming with an unearthly light. Solo lost ground as he stumbled backwards, trying to defend himself against the terrible giant, who was fighting like a mad dog despite his wound.
The stone house was soon reduced to rubble with the wild blows of the swords, and all that remained in the end was one wall with a staircase rising to nowhere.
Solo knew he was outmatched, and retreated further up the stairs. But his opponent was merciless, following him with a wicked smile on his face.
Une was paralyzed with fear, crouching by a falling wall and watching the desperate battle -- Solo versus the wounded giant, their battling forms sillhouetted against an electric sky.
The two battling men merely hung in the space at the top of the stairs. Solo could retreat no further, he realized, as he looked around at the long drop beneath him.
Seizing his chance, the giant ran him through.
A brilliant forked tongue of lightning seared across the stormy sky, illuminating the dramatic scene at the top of the staircase, making everything seem to go by in slow motion.
Solo gasped, sagging to his knees, the Samurai sword he had once clenched in his hands falling three stories down to the ground.
Une let out a scream as she watched Solo try to rise. The victorious man roughly grabbed his hair, pulling him close and up to eye level.
"The Highlander..." he rasped. "Where is he?" Solo's blade had now turned his voice to a metallic gargle.
"You're too late," Solo spat defiantly, ignoring his wounds. "I have prepared him just for you, Khushrenada."
The Khushrenada threw Solo to the ground. "You waste your time, fool. He is nothing." For the first time, he noticed Une, a wicked grin spreading across his terrible face. "Who is the woman?"
"She's mine!" Solo demanded.
The Khushrenada laughed, the sound blending in with the peals of thunders that came from the black clouds above them. "Not for much longer."
Solo smirked and spat in the Khushrenada's face. "I can't hear you, you lowly bastard," he said in a tone of mock-sweetness. "What's the matter with your voice?"
The Khushrenada roared in anger, raising his weapon high above his head.
"There can be only one," he said, bringing the sword down upon Solo's neck in one quick, surprisingly graceful motion.
Solo's head fell to the floor beneath his corpse, then rolled off the edge and landed three stories below, just a few feet from his sword.
The Khushrenada laughed wickedly as a shimmering cloud of energy engulfed him. He roared in something between triumph and pain as all of Solo's knowledge, skill, and insight transferred into his own body.
When the last of the Quickening had disappeared, he kicked the corpse disdainfully off of the stairs. Turning, he stared down at Une, shivering in a huddled mass by the crumbled wall. His pitiless eyes burned into her as he began to advance on the poor woman.
But the next second, the remaining wall gave way, taking the staircase with it. The Khushrenada let out a cry of surprise and disappeared beneath the mass of timber and stone.
There was a deathlike stillness as clouds of debris merged with the dark clouds above, casting a pall over the ruins.
Une coughed, choking on the dust that floated through the air now, and cautiously inched forward, staring down at the debris, desperately trying to comprehend what had just happened.
Without warning, the Khushrenada's hand rocketed out of the rubble, grabbing her tightly by the throat. She let out a strangled scream as the monster rose, lifting her up with him....
Quatre stood in his silver room, studying Solo's hat that had been carefully placed into the glass display case.
Dorothy quietly entered, standing behind him, gazing at him expectantly.
But Quatre didn't move. He merely stood there for another long moment of silence, staring at the hat.
"What are you looking at?" he suddenly asked in a strange, quiet tone.
Dorothy smirked. "The eyes in the back of your head."
Quatre rolled the eyes located in the front of his head and headed for the door. Dorothy didn't take the hint and followed him into the shop's front room.
"People are asking about you, Quatre. Now what am I supposed to tell them?" Dorothy demanded.
Quatre paused in his tracks for a brief moment before answering.
"Tell them I'm immortal."
CHAPTER 8 - Solo's Last Goodbye
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Author: Ravena Kaiou
Email: KakyuuStarLt@aol.com
Genre: Sci-fi/Action
Crossovers: The Highlander/Gundam Wing
Warnings: OOC, language, violence, 4xU.
Disclaimer: This series is meant to be a novelization of the Highlander Movie using Gundam Wing characters. Some things have been changed a bit, others have not. Highlander belongs to Rysher Entertainment, Gundam Wing belongs to Sunrise Animation. Don't sue me! *sobs*
(Note: Ahmad is a character from the Shinkoidousenki Gundam Wing: Episode Zero manga, featured in Act 4.)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
A few hours after their celebration, the newly-sober Ahmad and Quatre both rocked back and forth absently on cheaply-constructed black swings.
From the playground they were resting in, both men could see the skyscrapers of the city rising up above the trees, their glass sides blazing with the fiery colours of the rising sun. A bitter wind tossed a newspaper across one of the slides, swirling leaves around the silent figures.
"There are three of us left," Quatre said suddenly. "You, me, and the Khushrenada."
Ahmad nodded thoughtfully, then in a wave of realization, turned to face his friend. "You're not suggesting that we join forces against him?" he gasped.
Quatre remained silent and watched as a jogger floundered by.
"Solo filled your head with nonsense," Ahmad scorned. "Sooner or later, you and I will have to fight."
He paused and rested his hand on Quatre's shoulder. "Nothing personal. I've always liked you, actually."
He pointed a finger at the blonde man and pulled an imaginary trigger.
"Boom-Boom."
Quatre silently got up and walked away, leaving Ahmad to swing in the crisp wind.
He remembered a day when Solo and Une were having a hearty lunch in the modest MacLeod home. Weak sunlight filtered in through the windows, illuminating the tiny dust angels that floated in the air. A wooden staircase ran from the ground to the third floor.
Solo took a bite of his bread, then suddenly, his body jolted violently. The blood drained from his face as his expression contorted. "Run, Une!" he demanded in a strangled voice.
As if on cue, the front door exploded, sending fragments of wood flying through the room.
In the splintered doorframe appeared a frighteningly large figure with burning eyes, and a gigantic sword in hand. He let out a terrible laugh and surged inside.
Une gasped and stumbled back as Solo dove for his sword resting on top of the table. The figure swung viciously at him, barely missing the Spaniard and easily slicing the table into two halves, the heavy pieces hitting the wooden floor with a mighty thud.
Solo easily countered, swinging his own blade and cleanly slicing through his oponent's neck. A thin red line appeared on his throat where the metal had pierced his flesh and severed his vocal cords.
The man gargled in fury, clutching at his bleeding neck while at the same time trying to ward off the Spaniard's deadly attack, reeling backwards up the stairs.
Solo was not to be deterred as he advanced on his opponent, blade flashing as he swung it through the air. Savage forces were unleashed in both of the men as sparks flew like so many dancing fireflies from their clanging metal blades.
Thunder cracked outside, a brilliant flash of lightning illuminating the dark sky in a majestic fork.
Solo's opponent grinned horribly as he suddenly leapt down upon the Spaniard, sword gleaming with an unearthly light. Solo lost ground as he stumbled backwards, trying to defend himself against the terrible giant, who was fighting like a mad dog despite his wound.
The stone house was soon reduced to rubble with the wild blows of the swords, and all that remained in the end was one wall with a staircase rising to nowhere.
Solo knew he was outmatched, and retreated further up the stairs. But his opponent was merciless, following him with a wicked smile on his face.
Une was paralyzed with fear, crouching by a falling wall and watching the desperate battle -- Solo versus the wounded giant, their battling forms sillhouetted against an electric sky.
The two battling men merely hung in the space at the top of the stairs. Solo could retreat no further, he realized, as he looked around at the long drop beneath him.
Seizing his chance, the giant ran him through.
A brilliant forked tongue of lightning seared across the stormy sky, illuminating the dramatic scene at the top of the staircase, making everything seem to go by in slow motion.
Solo gasped, sagging to his knees, the Samurai sword he had once clenched in his hands falling three stories down to the ground.
Une let out a scream as she watched Solo try to rise. The victorious man roughly grabbed his hair, pulling him close and up to eye level.
"The Highlander..." he rasped. "Where is he?" Solo's blade had now turned his voice to a metallic gargle.
"You're too late," Solo spat defiantly, ignoring his wounds. "I have prepared him just for you, Khushrenada."
The Khushrenada threw Solo to the ground. "You waste your time, fool. He is nothing." For the first time, he noticed Une, a wicked grin spreading across his terrible face. "Who is the woman?"
"She's mine!" Solo demanded.
The Khushrenada laughed, the sound blending in with the peals of thunders that came from the black clouds above them. "Not for much longer."
Solo smirked and spat in the Khushrenada's face. "I can't hear you, you lowly bastard," he said in a tone of mock-sweetness. "What's the matter with your voice?"
The Khushrenada roared in anger, raising his weapon high above his head.
"There can be only one," he said, bringing the sword down upon Solo's neck in one quick, surprisingly graceful motion.
Solo's head fell to the floor beneath his corpse, then rolled off the edge and landed three stories below, just a few feet from his sword.
The Khushrenada laughed wickedly as a shimmering cloud of energy engulfed him. He roared in something between triumph and pain as all of Solo's knowledge, skill, and insight transferred into his own body.
When the last of the Quickening had disappeared, he kicked the corpse disdainfully off of the stairs. Turning, he stared down at Une, shivering in a huddled mass by the crumbled wall. His pitiless eyes burned into her as he began to advance on the poor woman.
But the next second, the remaining wall gave way, taking the staircase with it. The Khushrenada let out a cry of surprise and disappeared beneath the mass of timber and stone.
There was a deathlike stillness as clouds of debris merged with the dark clouds above, casting a pall over the ruins.
Une coughed, choking on the dust that floated through the air now, and cautiously inched forward, staring down at the debris, desperately trying to comprehend what had just happened.
Without warning, the Khushrenada's hand rocketed out of the rubble, grabbing her tightly by the throat. She let out a strangled scream as the monster rose, lifting her up with him....
Quatre stood in his silver room, studying Solo's hat that had been carefully placed into the glass display case.
Dorothy quietly entered, standing behind him, gazing at him expectantly.
But Quatre didn't move. He merely stood there for another long moment of silence, staring at the hat.
"What are you looking at?" he suddenly asked in a strange, quiet tone.
Dorothy smirked. "The eyes in the back of your head."
Quatre rolled the eyes located in the front of his head and headed for the door. Dorothy didn't take the hint and followed him into the shop's front room.
"People are asking about you, Quatre. Now what am I supposed to tell them?" Dorothy demanded.
Quatre paused in his tracks for a brief moment before answering.
"Tell them I'm immortal."