Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Gundam Wing, I only own
the plot.
Chapter 1 To Rebuild Trust
The sound of explosions echoed around him, shaking the compound as sector upon sector fell.
Heero sat in the furthest corner from the door, leaning against the cold wall as he drew his knees closer to his chest. His once indifferent, Prussian eyes now darted nervously to every moment in the room. He prayed that the soldiers would leave him be, he couldn't take any more of the... shuddering, he buried his face in his arms and felt the fears and pain all over again, making him groan and whimper softly. He hated OZ and what they did to him. He was now afraid of everyone and everything.
Duo raced through the OZ compound, having all the information he needed and now only to find his friend. The others were keeping the soldiers busy, giving OZ a "run for their money," so to say. Heero had been taken captive and now they were there to get him out. Duo only prayed that his friend was all right.
Rounding a corner, he was met with a barrage of soldiers keeping guard outside a cell. "Looks like Heero's been makin' a lil' trouble of his own..." Firing, he took down the soldiers, but not before he was hit in the right shoulder. "Damn..." Clutching his shoulder as the blood began to seep from the open wound, he trotted down the hall, taking the keys from a dead soldier's pocket. Fumbling with the keys, he quickly unlocked the door. Opening it slowly, he was prepared for anything, or so he thought.
Heero's head shot up as he cringed further in the corner, the dark silhouette standing menacingly in the doorway of his cell. His eyes were filled with utter fear as he searched for mercy. "... please.... no, please don't...."
Duo looked into his pale face, his terrified eyes searching him. His small plea was almost unreal. "H-Heero? Hey buddy, it's me, Duo. It's okay buddy, no one's gonna hurt you anymore. God, what happened to you Heero?" Walking over, he stopped a few feet from his friend, for Heero was now panicking.
Heero recognized Duo in an instant, but that didn't mean anything to him. At this point, he was in emotional shock and he didn't trust anyone, he didn't want to. Standing on his feet, he winced slightly in pain and gave a soft cry when the room around him began to shake and parts of the ceiling began to fall. ".... don't hurt me.... please... no more..."
Duo was in utter disbelief. What could have happened to Heero to put him in the state that he was in now?! His anger welled up inside of him, he would see that retribution was taken for whatever OZ had done to his comrade. "Come on Heero, I'm not going to hurt you, I don't want to. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again, but you've got to trust me now. Do you remember me? It's Duo. You remember, don't you? And the others, Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei? They're fighting so I can get you out of here and safe, but they can't for too much longer buddy." He spoke with a soft smile and a calm but reassuring voice. "We need to get you out of here so they can rest. They're tired, but they're fighting so we can get you out safely. Come on, it's okay, I'm not going to hurt you..." Holding out his hand, he held it palm up to show Heero that he meant no harm. He felt like he were talking to an animal or a small child. Putting his gun in the waist of his pants, he held out his other hand slowly, not really having time for this but he couldn't just take Heero, he'd hurt himself, his friend, and it would make things so much harder.
Heero looked at him, recognizing his cheery and confident voice, then searched his eyes for anything. Something in the other boy's almost-indigo eyes told him that he could be trusted, so Heero slowly took a step toward him, or tried to. Something behind him caught his eyes as he sank back to the ground, eyes wide in terror as he cringed further and further in the corner.
Duo watched Heero in confusion, then wheeled about to find another gun pointed at his chest. "Wow, you guys really need to learn when to just_stay_down." Slowly he held up his hands, but he grimaced in pain at his shoulder while the burly soldier took his gun. The young American could feel the cold metal through his shirt, the barrel of the gun pressed against his rib cage. Closing his eyes for a moment and shaking his head slightly, he tried to get rid of the light-headedness that filled him and the blurring from his vision. Looking back at the soldier, he only smirked and stepped to his right a small distance, standing right between Heero and the OZ scum. "You just don't know when to quit when you're ahead, do ya?"
The officer only sneered, looking past the cocky youth and down to the prisoner. "Sad little bastard, just didn't know when to quit when he was ahead. Never thought we'd break your spirit, did ya? Well, looks like we did, and after we take your other friends captive too, you'll pay for your silence and for their rebelling. It's going to be a long night, but I can handle that, gladly..." Smirking, he laughed as Heero's eyes began to water and he shook his head in disbelief.
Heero didn't want to hear it, he didn't want to feel it all over again. An hour of hell seemed like an eternity, he was hurting so much right now that he didn't know if he'd live through another night. "... please... no, I'll tell you... please don't hurt me..."
Duo's jaw fell open slightly, Heero give them information that easily? He was the strongest of the five of them, but then what did OZ do that had him so scared? "You aren't going to lay a hand on him and you'll pay for everything you've done to hurt him." It was risky, but he had to get out of there and he had to get Heero to safety. In one motion, he punched the guard with his left hand, it was a sloppy move, but took the officer down. A loud sound echoed in the room, a pain searing through his abdomen, but he bent quickly and took up his gun, kicking the officer's from his reach. Aiming it with a deadly accuracy, he looked at the soldier one last time with a cold stare. "God will be your judge, for your judgment day has come asshole." Firing, he ended the soldiers life in one blow. Putting his gun away, he collapsed to his knees and held his right hand over his new wound, letting his shoulder bleed freely without any second thought. With a grimace, he looked back at his terrified friend. "He won't hurt you ever again buddy. We need to get you out of here before more come, I'm not sure how much more I can take of this..." Giving a tired laugh, he tired to lighten the mood. Heero was beginning to trust him once again, slowly inching toward where he sat.
Heero watched the blood flow from between Duo's fingers, staining the metal floor. He also watched the blood spill from the soldier's dead body, pooling around his head and shoulders.
*Flashback*
Heero felt a scorching pain shoot throughout his entire body, setting him on fire. God, he prayed that it would all end, that he could just die and be put to rest. But no, the torment continued, the officer's eyes greedy and hungry with lust, for he was tired of Heero's constant silence or smart- alecky comments. He'd told Heero that he'd been without pleasure for many months now, no woman to satisfy his need, but the youth would provide it for him. Heero couldn't do anything to stop him either, the metal cuffs around his wrists and ankles preventing him from any movement, the cloth shoved halfway down his throat preventing him from any threats or a chance to end his pain with the information that OZ wanted from him.
But then all stopped, the great weight rising from his lean form and leaving him tiredly. Heero didn't pay any attention, the pain still continued, his entire body sore. He hadn't really even known emotions before, but now he was fighting off tears that threatened to fall, to hint at his overwhelming agony. He felt so completely dirty, his body violated and bruised. Why had they done such a thing to him?! He didn't even know that OZ could be so sick and psychotic. His loins hurt with an indescribable pain as he remained where he was, no one to help him, no one to free him. Where were his comrades? Why weren't they there to help him?! Exhausted he lay still, breathing in shallow breaths as he closed his eyelids, feeling a few tears trickle from his pained and bloodshot eyes, tracing their paths delicately down his cheeks.
*End flashback*
Heero shuddered and jumped when he felt Duo's hand on his shoulder. Searching his comrade's eyes once more, he knew he finally had his chance to be free, his friends had finally come. Now all he had to do was trust them enough to leave.
Duo watched him, forcing his eyes to stay focused. "Please Heero, I need help and I need to get you out of here. The guys are going to destroy this place as soon as we're out, they have to end the battle or we'll all be captured and they'll hurt you again. You've got to trust me buddy..." Standing uncertainly, he swayed on his feet and looked back at Heero who rose slowly, staying close to his side and as far from the corpse of the soldier as possible. With unsteady movements, he gripped his gun and began to walk from the room, trotting slowly down the hall and toward the entrance with Heero right at his side.
*
Wufei locked onto another target, using his dragon claw to grip the mobile suit, destroy the pilot then throw it into another as an explosion rocked the earth. "Maxwell, you better not be messing up this mission..." In truth, he was just fairly worried about Heero and Duo, the American said he knew where Heero was and that he could get himself in and out of there with there other comrade, but it was taking an awful long time.
Quatre sliced through another mobile suit, sending the pieces of scrap metal to the ground, useless now to OZ. "I'm sure they're fine.... they'd better hurry though..." Taking a hit, he was thrown backwards and on his back, vulnerable to any attack for a few moments. As he prepared himself to take devastating hit, Heavyarms stood between himself and the other suit, destroying it and helping him up. "Thanks Trowa..." Standing, he continued to fight the never-ending group of soldiers.
Trowa only smiled slightly and nodded, heading back to the battle as he forced his every movement. He was tiring greatly and his right hand was cramping up on him again, badly. Soon, he'd be of no use in battle. "Yes, they'd better..."
Wufei took down another mobile suit, but something caught his eyes. Two forms coming out of the entrance of the base, escaping by one of the jeeps. Zooming in, he found it to be his two friends. "They're out, finally!" With a sneer, he blocked another blow and disabled a mobile doll.
Quatre nodded with a smile and a tired laugh. "Let's give them a minute or two to get away from here, then we'll blow up the base. You still have enough energy Trowa?"
"Always enough to end a battle and just enough ammunition too." With a small grin, he winced as he tried to flex his fingers, but the ones in his right hand had locked painfully. "I really have to find out why this continues to happen..." Mumbling to himself, he waited for an okay from Quatre before he demolished the large compound. It would be a large blow to OZ, it was one of their largest compounds with the greatest amount of their mobile suits and soldiers stationed there. Receiving the "go ahead" from Quatre, he released an all-out barrage of missiles and gunfire on the base, the ammunition hailing down upon it and sending a great explosion into the air. Fires consumed the base, the rest of the mobile dolls falling at the destruction of the main computer. The others finished off the few remaining, manned suits. With a sigh, he stopped his movements and sat about a mile or two away from the once powerful base and watched the flames. The others landed beside him, having finished the aerial battle.
Quatre watched his screen, somewhat worried to see Trowa grimace in pain as he let go of his controls. Wufei seemed to be tired, but that was all. "Are you all right Trowa?"
Trowa only nodded. Using his left hand, he uncurled his right fingers from the controls, gritting his teeth at the movements. "I'll be fine in a little while..." Opening the entrance of his gundam, he jumped from the cockpit to the ground, leaning against his mobile suit for support.
Wufei exited his gundam as well, Quatre following in suit. Watching Trowa, he frowned and gave a look of disapproval but remained silent.
Quatre caught sight of Trowa cradling his right arm and crossed over to him, a sympathetic smile in place. Holding out his hand, he met his comrade's eyes. "Here, let me see..."
Trowa let him take his right arm in his hand, wincing slightly. "It's nothing, it just cramps up on me from time to time in battle, only intense ones though... I'm fine, really."
Shaking his head, the young Arabian continued to examine his friend's hand. "Stop lying Trowa..." Laughing softly, he listened to Wufei walk up beside them but paid him no mind. Indeed, the muscles in his friend's arm were taut and cramped painfully. Holding his arm in one hand, he tried to soothe the muscles in Trowa's arm as he felt his arm slowly begin to relax. "Your muscles are strained so much in battles like this one that they stay that way, rather painfully it seems. If you keep doing this without giving it time to heal, you'll tear the muscle and ligaments and then you won't be able to fight for a few months. Does it happen that often, or rather, has it?"
Sighing, Trowa nodded. "Just great, this is exactly what I need" he thought sarcastically to himself. Ignoring his hand, he pulled it from Quatre's grip and began to walk toward the road, the sound of a motor caught his attention. "They're coming..."
Duo forced himself to keep focused as he drove on, just until he found his other friends. Then he could rest. Pulling over, he couldn't do it anymore and he didn't want to wreck. Placing his forehead on the wheel, he took in struggling breaths as he felt beads of sweat roll down his face. He was so tired, so very tired. He'd lost a lot of blood, but there wasn't anything he could do about it now.
Heero watched him from the floor of the jeep, sitting behind the passenger side seat. He was scared of what might happen to him if Duo got any worse, everything could happen all over again and he would be punished by the soldiers. Cringing closer to the seat, his gaze began to flit nervously to every little thing that moved. "... don't let them take me again.... don't let them hurt me..." Whimpering softly, he watched Duo rise as the pain from every night in the cold and compact room fell over him again.
Duo pushed himself off of the steering wheel, catching a glance of his ghostly pale features in the rear view mirror, he gave a soft groan. "They're not going to hurt you again Heero, everything's going to be all right, I'm not going to let them hurt you again. Don't worry, it's okay..." Looking further down the road, he caught sight of a familiar face, Trowa was only yards from their vehicle. Smiling, he took in a deep breath and tired to stifle a groan. "Don't be afraid, the others are coming, we're safe. They aren't going to hurt you either, they want to help you, but you've got to trust them. I'm sorry buddy, but I don't have enough strength to keep going like this..." Trailing off, he watched the blurred image of his three friends trot up to the jeep, listening to their faint voices call to him.
Trowa reached the driver side door, catching sight of the pooling blood that spilt from Duo's shoulder and through his fingers in his stomach. "Duo..." Shaking his head, he opened the door and pulled Duo's barely conscious form from the vehicle, lying him down on the deserted street while the others jogged up beside him. Holding his head in his lap, the second youth ripped the sleeves from his black turtle-neck and opened his injured friend's shirt. Tying one of the sleeves around the bullet hole in his shoulder, he pressed the other firmly over Duo's wound in his abdomen, disregarding any pained cries.
Quatre rushed to Trowa's side, biting his tongue at seeing Duo's chalk- white face as Trowa tried to stop his bleeding. "We'll have to get him back to Sally's base as quickly as we can and stop the bleeding as much as possible. He's bleeding to death and fast, he needs help now. We can abandon the jeep here and get there faster in the Gundams. We should go now and..." He was cut midsentence by Wufei's calm call.
Wufei had looked into the jeep, not seeing Heero but remembering that he had come out and left with Duo. "Quatre, come here a minute."
Inquisitive, Quatre rose and looked into the back seat, his heart torn to shreds at the sight. Heero cringed away from them, struggling to find the door handle as he sank further and further away from them, his eyes wide in sheer terror. "Oh God Heero, what'd they do to you?" With a sympathetic smile, he opened the door behind the driver side slowly and motioned for Wufei to stand back. "It's okay Heero, there's nothing to be afraid of. It's okay, everything's going to be all right, we don't want to hurt you. It's okay, see? I'm not going to hurt you..." Holding out his hands, he tried to reassure Heero.
"... don't hurt me.... I'm sorry.... please don't hurt me again...."
Quatre stood in shock, but hid it well. What had OZ done to him?! Why was Heero sorry? Quatre wasn't going to hurt him, but he had to make his friend see that and fast. Duo was slipping further. If Duo had gotten him there, then he must have learned to trust Duo and maybe it was to their advantage. "Heero, it's okay, there's no need to be sorry, no one is ever going to hurt you again. Right now we need your help, okay? Duo's hurt really bad and we need to get him some help, but I need you to trust me, okay?" Holding his hand out again, he watched Heero look at it, then into his eyes. Not breaking his gaze, Quatre called over his shoulder. "Trowa, Wufei, you need to get Duo to Sally's base now. If you both go in Trowa's mobile suit, you can pilot it and have enough room for Wufei to take care of Duo. You can also take Nataku with you, go now. I'll bring Heero with me when he's ready to trust me, just get Duo taken care of and helped. He needs it..." Searching his friend's eyes with ones of consolation, he pulled back his hand and gave Heero his space, crouching down, he sat on his heels and looked back at Heero. This might take a little while.
Heero watched the others leave, but the young blonde still remained before him. He was too scared to realize that it was the kind-hearted Quatre, and his fears were only raised greater when he realized that Duo was leaving his side. "I'm sorry.... please don't hurt me.... not again..." Groaning softly, he drew his knees closer to his chest as he felt the onslaught of pain all over again.
Quatre watched with saddened eyes as he listened to the Gundams leave, his three friends with them. "I don't want to hurt you, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again. Please Heero, trust me." With hope in his voice, he held out his hand again, offering it to the other youth as the evening sun began to set on the horizon. OZ would have other soldiers coming in to find out what happened and to look for them, they weren't safe there. "Heero, I know you're afraid and hurting, but no one's going to hurt you again and you don't have to be afraid of me. I'm here because you're my friend and because I want to help you, it's okay. Please trust me, I need to get you out of here or they'll come again, it's not safe here and we need to make sure you and Duo are all right. There's no need to be afraid of me Heero, I swear I won't hurt you." Nodding slightly, he held his breath and didn't flinch as Heero reached his hands toward Quatre, wanting to take his. A bold red began to stain the outside of the metal handcuffs, oozing over previously dried and crusted blood. Feeling Heero's hand uncertainly in his, Quatre slowly closed his fingers around his friend's, gripping his hand softly but reassuringly. "See, it's okay. How about we go get you fed, a nice warm bed, and your injuries taken care of. That sound good?" He smiled and felt as if he were talking to a child, but he had patience with Heero and knew that his friend really needed it right now. "Come on, let's get you out of this thing and in a little while, you can sleep in peace. You look tired..." He said anything to show that he was there to help him, to keep him calm and reassured.
Heero stepped from the jeep, trusting the young blonde for now. He feared the darkness in being so close to where the OZ compound once stood. When the other soldiers came, they would take him captive again and then they.... they'd get their pleasure, not only at the expense of his pride and health, but at the cost of his sanity, his belittled security in his emotional state, and the usage of his body.
Quatre sensed his fear, not knowing absolutely for sure why, but he knew that Heero now feared OZ greatly and being so close to a base as night approached only seemed to send his imagination running wild. "It's okay, we're going to get away from here, far away from here, you'll be fine and OZ will never hurt you again." Coming upon Sandrock, he gripped the lowering rope and let Sandrock take him up to the cockpit. He could see that Heero was beginning to panic once again and he called down quickly. "Just a minute Heero, I'm not going to leave you, it's okay, just stay where you are."
Heero watched the young man disappear into the mobile suit, forcing himself to stay where he was when he noticed that the large hand of the suit moved slowly toward him. His mind didn't recognize the machine as a Gundam, nor did it recognize any of his friends except for Duo, he had helped to bring back some of Heero's memory on such a subject. Yet, so much more of him was in a child-like state, scared, unknowing, and vulnerable. His long hid emotions broke through the stubborn barrier, pouring from every corner of his mind and now each shined through his once stoic eyes.
Quatre rose from his seat and looked out the door of his cockpit, Sandrock's hand in position to go ahead and bring Heero up to the cockpit as well. With a small smile, for his friend had remained where he was, he called down again. "Go ahead and get on Heero, I'll bring you up. Then we can leave and never come back to this place, okay? It's all right, Sandrock won't hurt you. Go ahead." He watched the Japanese youth climb slowly onto the gundanium hand, that was after a few seconds of looking at it and pondering. "Okay now, just sit still and you'll be fine, it's going to move, but that's okay, you'll be fine. Just sit right where you are, okay?" At receiving a frightened nod, the young Arabian disappeared once more inside the cockpit and slowly rose Sandrock's hand to his level. After a few moments, he stood and crossed the few steps to the entrance and held out his hand for Heero to take, all he had to do was enter the cockpit and then they would leave for Sally's base.
Heero took his hand and entered the darkened area, sitting in the back on the floor, cringing in the small corner near the different hardware. He remained quiet when Quatre crossed over to him, telling him exactly what was going to happen and only gave a soft cry when the door of the cockpit closed, leaving them in total darkness until the screens lit up, letting him see the outside world without really seeing it. The soft vibration of the gundam beneath him slowly eased him into sleep along with his exhaustion. He never dared to fall asleep at the OZ base if he could help it, for anything could happen to him then. Throughout the entire ride, he slept in the corner, slowly stretching out along the small area of floor near Quatre's chair. The sleep was one without a dream, he was too tired to dream but he didn't really have to worry about anything for now, so he let himself rest.
Quatre glanced down momentarily at Heero, flexing his fingers as he held the controls to Sandrock. Heero was finally resting, he'd been through hell that none of them knew about, and it would be a long road to his recovery, though most if it was mental and emotional injuries. They'd have to rebuild their trust with him, to show him to fight and use his gundam again. If he feared Sandrock so much, then he was bound to have forgotten about Wing Zero and fear his gundam as well. "We'll have to disable the Zero system as well, he won't know how to overcome and use it, he won't be strong enough to..." Thinking quietly to himself, he flew into the navy sky, watching the star-studded night as he kept his focus on the direction of Sally's base. "I hope you're okay Duo..." That was their other problem besides Trowa's need for rest from battle, with his arm at least. They all needed rest, and they would finally get it. Or at least the young aristocrat hoped so.
Author's Note: Oh, poor guy. Well, what's gonna happen to poor Duo? And what about Heero? What did he suffer so and how will his life be changed? Read and find out.... and please review!
Chapter 1 To Rebuild Trust
The sound of explosions echoed around him, shaking the compound as sector upon sector fell.
Heero sat in the furthest corner from the door, leaning against the cold wall as he drew his knees closer to his chest. His once indifferent, Prussian eyes now darted nervously to every moment in the room. He prayed that the soldiers would leave him be, he couldn't take any more of the... shuddering, he buried his face in his arms and felt the fears and pain all over again, making him groan and whimper softly. He hated OZ and what they did to him. He was now afraid of everyone and everything.
Duo raced through the OZ compound, having all the information he needed and now only to find his friend. The others were keeping the soldiers busy, giving OZ a "run for their money," so to say. Heero had been taken captive and now they were there to get him out. Duo only prayed that his friend was all right.
Rounding a corner, he was met with a barrage of soldiers keeping guard outside a cell. "Looks like Heero's been makin' a lil' trouble of his own..." Firing, he took down the soldiers, but not before he was hit in the right shoulder. "Damn..." Clutching his shoulder as the blood began to seep from the open wound, he trotted down the hall, taking the keys from a dead soldier's pocket. Fumbling with the keys, he quickly unlocked the door. Opening it slowly, he was prepared for anything, or so he thought.
Heero's head shot up as he cringed further in the corner, the dark silhouette standing menacingly in the doorway of his cell. His eyes were filled with utter fear as he searched for mercy. "... please.... no, please don't...."
Duo looked into his pale face, his terrified eyes searching him. His small plea was almost unreal. "H-Heero? Hey buddy, it's me, Duo. It's okay buddy, no one's gonna hurt you anymore. God, what happened to you Heero?" Walking over, he stopped a few feet from his friend, for Heero was now panicking.
Heero recognized Duo in an instant, but that didn't mean anything to him. At this point, he was in emotional shock and he didn't trust anyone, he didn't want to. Standing on his feet, he winced slightly in pain and gave a soft cry when the room around him began to shake and parts of the ceiling began to fall. ".... don't hurt me.... please... no more..."
Duo was in utter disbelief. What could have happened to Heero to put him in the state that he was in now?! His anger welled up inside of him, he would see that retribution was taken for whatever OZ had done to his comrade. "Come on Heero, I'm not going to hurt you, I don't want to. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again, but you've got to trust me now. Do you remember me? It's Duo. You remember, don't you? And the others, Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei? They're fighting so I can get you out of here and safe, but they can't for too much longer buddy." He spoke with a soft smile and a calm but reassuring voice. "We need to get you out of here so they can rest. They're tired, but they're fighting so we can get you out safely. Come on, it's okay, I'm not going to hurt you..." Holding out his hand, he held it palm up to show Heero that he meant no harm. He felt like he were talking to an animal or a small child. Putting his gun in the waist of his pants, he held out his other hand slowly, not really having time for this but he couldn't just take Heero, he'd hurt himself, his friend, and it would make things so much harder.
Heero looked at him, recognizing his cheery and confident voice, then searched his eyes for anything. Something in the other boy's almost-indigo eyes told him that he could be trusted, so Heero slowly took a step toward him, or tried to. Something behind him caught his eyes as he sank back to the ground, eyes wide in terror as he cringed further and further in the corner.
Duo watched Heero in confusion, then wheeled about to find another gun pointed at his chest. "Wow, you guys really need to learn when to just_stay_down." Slowly he held up his hands, but he grimaced in pain at his shoulder while the burly soldier took his gun. The young American could feel the cold metal through his shirt, the barrel of the gun pressed against his rib cage. Closing his eyes for a moment and shaking his head slightly, he tried to get rid of the light-headedness that filled him and the blurring from his vision. Looking back at the soldier, he only smirked and stepped to his right a small distance, standing right between Heero and the OZ scum. "You just don't know when to quit when you're ahead, do ya?"
The officer only sneered, looking past the cocky youth and down to the prisoner. "Sad little bastard, just didn't know when to quit when he was ahead. Never thought we'd break your spirit, did ya? Well, looks like we did, and after we take your other friends captive too, you'll pay for your silence and for their rebelling. It's going to be a long night, but I can handle that, gladly..." Smirking, he laughed as Heero's eyes began to water and he shook his head in disbelief.
Heero didn't want to hear it, he didn't want to feel it all over again. An hour of hell seemed like an eternity, he was hurting so much right now that he didn't know if he'd live through another night. "... please... no, I'll tell you... please don't hurt me..."
Duo's jaw fell open slightly, Heero give them information that easily? He was the strongest of the five of them, but then what did OZ do that had him so scared? "You aren't going to lay a hand on him and you'll pay for everything you've done to hurt him." It was risky, but he had to get out of there and he had to get Heero to safety. In one motion, he punched the guard with his left hand, it was a sloppy move, but took the officer down. A loud sound echoed in the room, a pain searing through his abdomen, but he bent quickly and took up his gun, kicking the officer's from his reach. Aiming it with a deadly accuracy, he looked at the soldier one last time with a cold stare. "God will be your judge, for your judgment day has come asshole." Firing, he ended the soldiers life in one blow. Putting his gun away, he collapsed to his knees and held his right hand over his new wound, letting his shoulder bleed freely without any second thought. With a grimace, he looked back at his terrified friend. "He won't hurt you ever again buddy. We need to get you out of here before more come, I'm not sure how much more I can take of this..." Giving a tired laugh, he tired to lighten the mood. Heero was beginning to trust him once again, slowly inching toward where he sat.
Heero watched the blood flow from between Duo's fingers, staining the metal floor. He also watched the blood spill from the soldier's dead body, pooling around his head and shoulders.
*Flashback*
Heero felt a scorching pain shoot throughout his entire body, setting him on fire. God, he prayed that it would all end, that he could just die and be put to rest. But no, the torment continued, the officer's eyes greedy and hungry with lust, for he was tired of Heero's constant silence or smart- alecky comments. He'd told Heero that he'd been without pleasure for many months now, no woman to satisfy his need, but the youth would provide it for him. Heero couldn't do anything to stop him either, the metal cuffs around his wrists and ankles preventing him from any movement, the cloth shoved halfway down his throat preventing him from any threats or a chance to end his pain with the information that OZ wanted from him.
But then all stopped, the great weight rising from his lean form and leaving him tiredly. Heero didn't pay any attention, the pain still continued, his entire body sore. He hadn't really even known emotions before, but now he was fighting off tears that threatened to fall, to hint at his overwhelming agony. He felt so completely dirty, his body violated and bruised. Why had they done such a thing to him?! He didn't even know that OZ could be so sick and psychotic. His loins hurt with an indescribable pain as he remained where he was, no one to help him, no one to free him. Where were his comrades? Why weren't they there to help him?! Exhausted he lay still, breathing in shallow breaths as he closed his eyelids, feeling a few tears trickle from his pained and bloodshot eyes, tracing their paths delicately down his cheeks.
*End flashback*
Heero shuddered and jumped when he felt Duo's hand on his shoulder. Searching his comrade's eyes once more, he knew he finally had his chance to be free, his friends had finally come. Now all he had to do was trust them enough to leave.
Duo watched him, forcing his eyes to stay focused. "Please Heero, I need help and I need to get you out of here. The guys are going to destroy this place as soon as we're out, they have to end the battle or we'll all be captured and they'll hurt you again. You've got to trust me buddy..." Standing uncertainly, he swayed on his feet and looked back at Heero who rose slowly, staying close to his side and as far from the corpse of the soldier as possible. With unsteady movements, he gripped his gun and began to walk from the room, trotting slowly down the hall and toward the entrance with Heero right at his side.
*
Wufei locked onto another target, using his dragon claw to grip the mobile suit, destroy the pilot then throw it into another as an explosion rocked the earth. "Maxwell, you better not be messing up this mission..." In truth, he was just fairly worried about Heero and Duo, the American said he knew where Heero was and that he could get himself in and out of there with there other comrade, but it was taking an awful long time.
Quatre sliced through another mobile suit, sending the pieces of scrap metal to the ground, useless now to OZ. "I'm sure they're fine.... they'd better hurry though..." Taking a hit, he was thrown backwards and on his back, vulnerable to any attack for a few moments. As he prepared himself to take devastating hit, Heavyarms stood between himself and the other suit, destroying it and helping him up. "Thanks Trowa..." Standing, he continued to fight the never-ending group of soldiers.
Trowa only smiled slightly and nodded, heading back to the battle as he forced his every movement. He was tiring greatly and his right hand was cramping up on him again, badly. Soon, he'd be of no use in battle. "Yes, they'd better..."
Wufei took down another mobile suit, but something caught his eyes. Two forms coming out of the entrance of the base, escaping by one of the jeeps. Zooming in, he found it to be his two friends. "They're out, finally!" With a sneer, he blocked another blow and disabled a mobile doll.
Quatre nodded with a smile and a tired laugh. "Let's give them a minute or two to get away from here, then we'll blow up the base. You still have enough energy Trowa?"
"Always enough to end a battle and just enough ammunition too." With a small grin, he winced as he tried to flex his fingers, but the ones in his right hand had locked painfully. "I really have to find out why this continues to happen..." Mumbling to himself, he waited for an okay from Quatre before he demolished the large compound. It would be a large blow to OZ, it was one of their largest compounds with the greatest amount of their mobile suits and soldiers stationed there. Receiving the "go ahead" from Quatre, he released an all-out barrage of missiles and gunfire on the base, the ammunition hailing down upon it and sending a great explosion into the air. Fires consumed the base, the rest of the mobile dolls falling at the destruction of the main computer. The others finished off the few remaining, manned suits. With a sigh, he stopped his movements and sat about a mile or two away from the once powerful base and watched the flames. The others landed beside him, having finished the aerial battle.
Quatre watched his screen, somewhat worried to see Trowa grimace in pain as he let go of his controls. Wufei seemed to be tired, but that was all. "Are you all right Trowa?"
Trowa only nodded. Using his left hand, he uncurled his right fingers from the controls, gritting his teeth at the movements. "I'll be fine in a little while..." Opening the entrance of his gundam, he jumped from the cockpit to the ground, leaning against his mobile suit for support.
Wufei exited his gundam as well, Quatre following in suit. Watching Trowa, he frowned and gave a look of disapproval but remained silent.
Quatre caught sight of Trowa cradling his right arm and crossed over to him, a sympathetic smile in place. Holding out his hand, he met his comrade's eyes. "Here, let me see..."
Trowa let him take his right arm in his hand, wincing slightly. "It's nothing, it just cramps up on me from time to time in battle, only intense ones though... I'm fine, really."
Shaking his head, the young Arabian continued to examine his friend's hand. "Stop lying Trowa..." Laughing softly, he listened to Wufei walk up beside them but paid him no mind. Indeed, the muscles in his friend's arm were taut and cramped painfully. Holding his arm in one hand, he tried to soothe the muscles in Trowa's arm as he felt his arm slowly begin to relax. "Your muscles are strained so much in battles like this one that they stay that way, rather painfully it seems. If you keep doing this without giving it time to heal, you'll tear the muscle and ligaments and then you won't be able to fight for a few months. Does it happen that often, or rather, has it?"
Sighing, Trowa nodded. "Just great, this is exactly what I need" he thought sarcastically to himself. Ignoring his hand, he pulled it from Quatre's grip and began to walk toward the road, the sound of a motor caught his attention. "They're coming..."
Duo forced himself to keep focused as he drove on, just until he found his other friends. Then he could rest. Pulling over, he couldn't do it anymore and he didn't want to wreck. Placing his forehead on the wheel, he took in struggling breaths as he felt beads of sweat roll down his face. He was so tired, so very tired. He'd lost a lot of blood, but there wasn't anything he could do about it now.
Heero watched him from the floor of the jeep, sitting behind the passenger side seat. He was scared of what might happen to him if Duo got any worse, everything could happen all over again and he would be punished by the soldiers. Cringing closer to the seat, his gaze began to flit nervously to every little thing that moved. "... don't let them take me again.... don't let them hurt me..." Whimpering softly, he watched Duo rise as the pain from every night in the cold and compact room fell over him again.
Duo pushed himself off of the steering wheel, catching a glance of his ghostly pale features in the rear view mirror, he gave a soft groan. "They're not going to hurt you again Heero, everything's going to be all right, I'm not going to let them hurt you again. Don't worry, it's okay..." Looking further down the road, he caught sight of a familiar face, Trowa was only yards from their vehicle. Smiling, he took in a deep breath and tired to stifle a groan. "Don't be afraid, the others are coming, we're safe. They aren't going to hurt you either, they want to help you, but you've got to trust them. I'm sorry buddy, but I don't have enough strength to keep going like this..." Trailing off, he watched the blurred image of his three friends trot up to the jeep, listening to their faint voices call to him.
Trowa reached the driver side door, catching sight of the pooling blood that spilt from Duo's shoulder and through his fingers in his stomach. "Duo..." Shaking his head, he opened the door and pulled Duo's barely conscious form from the vehicle, lying him down on the deserted street while the others jogged up beside him. Holding his head in his lap, the second youth ripped the sleeves from his black turtle-neck and opened his injured friend's shirt. Tying one of the sleeves around the bullet hole in his shoulder, he pressed the other firmly over Duo's wound in his abdomen, disregarding any pained cries.
Quatre rushed to Trowa's side, biting his tongue at seeing Duo's chalk- white face as Trowa tried to stop his bleeding. "We'll have to get him back to Sally's base as quickly as we can and stop the bleeding as much as possible. He's bleeding to death and fast, he needs help now. We can abandon the jeep here and get there faster in the Gundams. We should go now and..." He was cut midsentence by Wufei's calm call.
Wufei had looked into the jeep, not seeing Heero but remembering that he had come out and left with Duo. "Quatre, come here a minute."
Inquisitive, Quatre rose and looked into the back seat, his heart torn to shreds at the sight. Heero cringed away from them, struggling to find the door handle as he sank further and further away from them, his eyes wide in sheer terror. "Oh God Heero, what'd they do to you?" With a sympathetic smile, he opened the door behind the driver side slowly and motioned for Wufei to stand back. "It's okay Heero, there's nothing to be afraid of. It's okay, everything's going to be all right, we don't want to hurt you. It's okay, see? I'm not going to hurt you..." Holding out his hands, he tried to reassure Heero.
"... don't hurt me.... I'm sorry.... please don't hurt me again...."
Quatre stood in shock, but hid it well. What had OZ done to him?! Why was Heero sorry? Quatre wasn't going to hurt him, but he had to make his friend see that and fast. Duo was slipping further. If Duo had gotten him there, then he must have learned to trust Duo and maybe it was to their advantage. "Heero, it's okay, there's no need to be sorry, no one is ever going to hurt you again. Right now we need your help, okay? Duo's hurt really bad and we need to get him some help, but I need you to trust me, okay?" Holding his hand out again, he watched Heero look at it, then into his eyes. Not breaking his gaze, Quatre called over his shoulder. "Trowa, Wufei, you need to get Duo to Sally's base now. If you both go in Trowa's mobile suit, you can pilot it and have enough room for Wufei to take care of Duo. You can also take Nataku with you, go now. I'll bring Heero with me when he's ready to trust me, just get Duo taken care of and helped. He needs it..." Searching his friend's eyes with ones of consolation, he pulled back his hand and gave Heero his space, crouching down, he sat on his heels and looked back at Heero. This might take a little while.
Heero watched the others leave, but the young blonde still remained before him. He was too scared to realize that it was the kind-hearted Quatre, and his fears were only raised greater when he realized that Duo was leaving his side. "I'm sorry.... please don't hurt me.... not again..." Groaning softly, he drew his knees closer to his chest as he felt the onslaught of pain all over again.
Quatre watched with saddened eyes as he listened to the Gundams leave, his three friends with them. "I don't want to hurt you, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again. Please Heero, trust me." With hope in his voice, he held out his hand again, offering it to the other youth as the evening sun began to set on the horizon. OZ would have other soldiers coming in to find out what happened and to look for them, they weren't safe there. "Heero, I know you're afraid and hurting, but no one's going to hurt you again and you don't have to be afraid of me. I'm here because you're my friend and because I want to help you, it's okay. Please trust me, I need to get you out of here or they'll come again, it's not safe here and we need to make sure you and Duo are all right. There's no need to be afraid of me Heero, I swear I won't hurt you." Nodding slightly, he held his breath and didn't flinch as Heero reached his hands toward Quatre, wanting to take his. A bold red began to stain the outside of the metal handcuffs, oozing over previously dried and crusted blood. Feeling Heero's hand uncertainly in his, Quatre slowly closed his fingers around his friend's, gripping his hand softly but reassuringly. "See, it's okay. How about we go get you fed, a nice warm bed, and your injuries taken care of. That sound good?" He smiled and felt as if he were talking to a child, but he had patience with Heero and knew that his friend really needed it right now. "Come on, let's get you out of this thing and in a little while, you can sleep in peace. You look tired..." He said anything to show that he was there to help him, to keep him calm and reassured.
Heero stepped from the jeep, trusting the young blonde for now. He feared the darkness in being so close to where the OZ compound once stood. When the other soldiers came, they would take him captive again and then they.... they'd get their pleasure, not only at the expense of his pride and health, but at the cost of his sanity, his belittled security in his emotional state, and the usage of his body.
Quatre sensed his fear, not knowing absolutely for sure why, but he knew that Heero now feared OZ greatly and being so close to a base as night approached only seemed to send his imagination running wild. "It's okay, we're going to get away from here, far away from here, you'll be fine and OZ will never hurt you again." Coming upon Sandrock, he gripped the lowering rope and let Sandrock take him up to the cockpit. He could see that Heero was beginning to panic once again and he called down quickly. "Just a minute Heero, I'm not going to leave you, it's okay, just stay where you are."
Heero watched the young man disappear into the mobile suit, forcing himself to stay where he was when he noticed that the large hand of the suit moved slowly toward him. His mind didn't recognize the machine as a Gundam, nor did it recognize any of his friends except for Duo, he had helped to bring back some of Heero's memory on such a subject. Yet, so much more of him was in a child-like state, scared, unknowing, and vulnerable. His long hid emotions broke through the stubborn barrier, pouring from every corner of his mind and now each shined through his once stoic eyes.
Quatre rose from his seat and looked out the door of his cockpit, Sandrock's hand in position to go ahead and bring Heero up to the cockpit as well. With a small smile, for his friend had remained where he was, he called down again. "Go ahead and get on Heero, I'll bring you up. Then we can leave and never come back to this place, okay? It's all right, Sandrock won't hurt you. Go ahead." He watched the Japanese youth climb slowly onto the gundanium hand, that was after a few seconds of looking at it and pondering. "Okay now, just sit still and you'll be fine, it's going to move, but that's okay, you'll be fine. Just sit right where you are, okay?" At receiving a frightened nod, the young Arabian disappeared once more inside the cockpit and slowly rose Sandrock's hand to his level. After a few moments, he stood and crossed the few steps to the entrance and held out his hand for Heero to take, all he had to do was enter the cockpit and then they would leave for Sally's base.
Heero took his hand and entered the darkened area, sitting in the back on the floor, cringing in the small corner near the different hardware. He remained quiet when Quatre crossed over to him, telling him exactly what was going to happen and only gave a soft cry when the door of the cockpit closed, leaving them in total darkness until the screens lit up, letting him see the outside world without really seeing it. The soft vibration of the gundam beneath him slowly eased him into sleep along with his exhaustion. He never dared to fall asleep at the OZ base if he could help it, for anything could happen to him then. Throughout the entire ride, he slept in the corner, slowly stretching out along the small area of floor near Quatre's chair. The sleep was one without a dream, he was too tired to dream but he didn't really have to worry about anything for now, so he let himself rest.
Quatre glanced down momentarily at Heero, flexing his fingers as he held the controls to Sandrock. Heero was finally resting, he'd been through hell that none of them knew about, and it would be a long road to his recovery, though most if it was mental and emotional injuries. They'd have to rebuild their trust with him, to show him to fight and use his gundam again. If he feared Sandrock so much, then he was bound to have forgotten about Wing Zero and fear his gundam as well. "We'll have to disable the Zero system as well, he won't know how to overcome and use it, he won't be strong enough to..." Thinking quietly to himself, he flew into the navy sky, watching the star-studded night as he kept his focus on the direction of Sally's base. "I hope you're okay Duo..." That was their other problem besides Trowa's need for rest from battle, with his arm at least. They all needed rest, and they would finally get it. Or at least the young aristocrat hoped so.
Author's Note: Oh, poor guy. Well, what's gonna happen to poor Duo? And what about Heero? What did he suffer so and how will his life be changed? Read and find out.... and please review!
