Gundam Wing: Lady Gundam
Written By: Jumper Prime
For Disclaimers see prologue.
Chapter 5: Party Night
The shuttle carrying Relena and Renee entered the atmosphere and landed without incident. After it landed at the spaceport, Relena called home to have Pagan pick them up. Relena and Renee rode home in their pink limo and found the gate leading to their driveway swamped by reporters asking questions.
"Are the Colonies starting a war against us?" one reporter yelled as the car drove past
"How could they ask those things? They've got no idea why Dad was really killed." Renee grumbled
"They're thinking exactly what OZ wants them to think." Relena responded "OZ wants to control Earth and space. Their task is made easier when the two are at each other's throats."
"There's got to be a way to stop them!"
"Don't worry, there is, and soon I'll tell you how I'll do it."
When the girls walked through the door into the house, they found their mother standing in the main room.
"We're finally home, mom." Renee said quietly
"Relena, Renee." Mrs. Darlian spoke just as quietly
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't able to save father." Relena said in an apologetic tone
"Relena, Renee. I'm just glad neither of you was injured. I knew something like this would happen one day. Did he say anything before he passed away?"
"No," Renee answered as she stared at a pen her father had once used "He didn't say anything."
"I have something to tell you, Renee... Relena, perhaps you should go upstairs."
"Mom!" Renee turned sharply and ran to embrace Mrs. Darlian
"Renee?"
"You're my real mom! You'll always be my mom!"
"Renee."
Relena joined in on the hug, mother and daughters holding each other, finding solace in each other, each reinforcing the others after their shared loss. Later, both girls were sitting in Relena's room, Renee waiting patiently for Relena to explain what she had said on the shuttle.
"Alright," Relena said after a long silence "I've known about OZ for years. I first found out about them the day after I met Amy."
"How?" Renee asked
"The previous day, I had literally bumped into Amy on the street, and she led me to her home. We played a 'video game' for a while and then I met Dr. Z. She wasn't too happy to see me there and was a bit cross with Amy for bringing me there. She immediately drove me back to the hotel where father and I were staying. The next day, I retraced the path Amy and I had taken. I had remembered the code she had used to open the door and sneaked inside the facility. I found myself in a screening room and, in my curiosity, activated the projector. It played a tape of atrocities committed in the Colonies by the Alliance military.
"When Dr. Z arrived, she explained what I had seen, including the existence of OZ. She also took a chance and revealed the truth about what she and Amy were doing there. Amy was being trained to be a covert operative to fight OZ using an advanced mobile suit that Dr. Z was building."
"So Amy's gonna help you fight OZ?"
"No. Amy is dead. Her space capsule malfunctioned during landing and crashed. She was mortally injured and died in my arms."
"Now I'm getting confused. How can you fight OZ if the person trained to fight them is dead?"
"When I found out about OZ, and that Amy was training to fight them, I wanted to fight them too. Amy and I managed to convince Dr. Z to allow me to train with her. It wasn't easy. Most of my lessons were like a correspondence course, encrypted inside picture files sent via E-mail. When Amy died, her mission fell to me."
"What about the mobile suit?"
"C'mon," Relena stood up "I'll show her to you."
"Her?"
Relena dragged Renee down to the garage, where they got on Relena's motorcycle. Relena and Renee rode down to the beach and into the cave containing Lady Gundam. Renee gazed in awe at the magnificent mobile suit while Relena parked the motorcycle.
"She's beautiful." Renee breathed
"Yes, she is, isn't she?" Relena smiled "Come, I'll introduce you to her."
"Introduce me?" Renee blinked but followed Relena over to where Lady Gundam kneeled next to the wall
Relena climbed up Lady Gundam's body and opened the cockpit hatch before helping Renee inside. As Relena sat down in the pilot's chair, Renee was starting to think that she had gone a little batty. Renee was in for a shock as her sister powered up Lady Gundam's electronics and a voice issued from the speakers.
[Hello Relena.] came the Gundam's feminine voice
"Th-that's someone at some secret base, right?" Renee asked
"No," Relena replied "That's Lady Gundam herself talking."
"Your mobile suit talks?"
[And why shouldn't I talk, Renee?] Lady Gundam's voice sounded slightly indignant [Do you think mobile suits should not speak their minds?]
"No... I Ah I just never knew mobile suits could talk."
"Lady Gundam is unique." Relena explained "She has a special AI device called the Beta System. Her intelligence is programmed directly from my brainwaves."
"Incredible. So this is what you meant when you said you wouldn't be on your own."
[Fear not, Renee.] Lady Gundam said [Relena and I shall exact tenfold vengeance upon OZ for your father's death.]
"Th-thank you."
"C'mon Renee," Relena said as she powered down Lady Gundam's systems "We'd better get home before mother misses us."
"Yeah, you're right." Renee replied as they descended to the ground and Relena closed the hatch "Mom's been through a lot. We don't want her to have to worry about where we are."
Both girls got back on Relena's motorcycle and they rode back towards the house.
"Relena, what were those crates in the cave with Lady Gundam?" Renee asked as they rode down the road
"Ammunition for her machine cannons, vulcans, and missile launchers." Relena answered "The fuel tank, as you might guess, contains high-grade mobile suit fuel."
"Where'd you get it all?"
"From a black market dealer who takes orders over the Globalnet and makes blind drops."
"All that must've cost a fortune. How did you pay for it all?"
"With a special bank account Dr. Z set up in advance. The access card for the account was in the compartment under Lady Gundam's pilot's seat."
"This Dr. Z must have a lot of money on her hands."
"As far as I can tell, the financing for Lady Gundam's construction and the Supply account came from Dr. Z's sponsor."
"Who's that?"
"I don't know. Dr. Z didn't tell me and the information isn't in Lady Gundam's databanks, either."
"I wish I knew who he was. I'd like to meet the man who gave my sister the means to avenge our father."
"And avenge him I shall. I will make OZ regret killing our father. When my next mission comes, I will show no mercy to any OZ soldier I encounter."
Relena's voice had a cold edge to it that made Renee shiver on the bike behind her. Renee pitied any OZ soldier who ran afoul of her sister. In killing their father, OZ had awakened a bloodthirsty tigress within Relena. Soon, they returned home, and as they walked through the foyer, a thought occurred to Renee.
"You think we should call to let our friends know we won't be going to the party tonight?" she asked
"Why should we do that?" Relena asked in return "I think we should go to the party."
"Are you kidding? How can we enjoy ourselves so soon after losing Dad? It wouldn't be right. Have you become so cold that you can ignore our loss with ease!?"
"I haven't become cold, Renee. My blood boils for a chance to strike back at OZ and destroy them. But father wouldn't want us to shut ourselves away from everything positive. He wouldn't want us to dwell on our loss. He'd want us to honor his memory and move on. If we let our spirits be destroyed by father's death, then OZ will have effectively killed us with the same bomb that killed him."
"I never thought about it that way."
"But we needn't act like nothing has happened at all. Instead of the cheerfully colored dresses we were planning to wear to the party, we can wear our ordinary school uniforms instead."
"Yes That sounds reasonable. Our uniforms will be our mourning clothes in the brightly colored environment of the party."
"Then it's agreed. We'll show everyone that we survived, but with a great sadness upon us. All our friends will be there to help us with the healing process."
"Including your boyfriend, Heero?" Renee allowed herself a little smile as she teased her sister
"He's not my boyfriend! You heard what Doctor J said about him. It'd be safest to stay clear of him."
"Since when have you ever taken the safe route? It's like you're a moth and Heero's a flame. Please don't let him burn you, I couldn't bear to lose you too."
Renee walked up the stairs as Relena stood motionless on the ground floor. Relena could lie to her sister, but she couldn't lie to herself. Renee was right, she did have feelings for Heero and the recent revelation about his identity and nature only made her more determined to break through the boy's shell. Relena walked up to her room and performed a complex kata for a while, imagining that she was fighting Lady Une. Had the OZ officer actually been present, the ferocity of Relena's attacks would have rendered her nearly unrecognizable. Exhausted by her vigorous exercise, Relena lied down on her bed for a while, now giving her mind a workout as she visualized battle strategies and mobile suit maneuvers in her head.
When the clock chimed four, Relena rose from her bed and changed into her school uniform, eschewing the brightly colored party dress that she had originally planned to wear. Relena exited her room and walked down the hall, meeting Renee on the way to the stairs. Renee was also wearing her school uniform as they walked down to the ground floor, both remaining silent. Pagan was waiting right outside the main door of the house with the pink limo that the girls regularly rode to and from school in. The trip to the school passed in silence, Pagan respecting Relena and Renee's wish to spend the trip in silence. When they arrived, the sun was setting and the party had already begun, with a few boys and girls chasing each other playfully.
"Look, it's Relena and Renee." One student whispered
"Is it true that their father was assassinated by terrorists in the Colonies?" asked another
"Yeah, the press is all over it." answered a third
Two of Relena and Renee's friends walked up to them about then with somber expressions on their faces
"Relena, Renee. I'm so sorry about your father." the girls' blonde-haired friend greeted them
"I wish I were anywhere but at a party. Seeing all this festivity just makes me sadder." their brown-haired friend agreed
"That's very kind of you both," Relena answered "But we just can't be sad forever. Let's try to be stronger."
"Dad wouldn't want us feeling sorry for ourselves." Renee agreed
"We'll be strong, Relena, Renee." their blonde friend responded
"What? Heero's moving to another school?" Relena heard a boy say in surprise
"But he hasn't even been here for a month yet." another boy noted
"Good riddance." Renee muttered
"Please excuse me, I'll be back soon." Relena apologized as she turned to walk towards the boy's dorms
"I hope that jerk doesn't hurt her." Renee whispered softly to herself as her sister walked away
Minutes later, Relena opened the door to Heero's room as he closed a suitcase, two more were sitting on the floor.
"Are you off to fight again?" she asked and Heero half-turned towards her in surprise "Where's your next mission, Heero?" the boy turned all the way towards Relena as he drew a gun and pointed it at her. Relena showed no sign of fear. "I met Doctor J." Heero gasped at this statement. Relena walked towards Heero, stopping just out of arm's reach as Heero raised his gun higher, pointing it right at her throat "So, even you can be surprised. Ever since I met you it's been me who keeps getting surprised by you. If you killed me now, it would cause quite a commotion. I don't think that's what you really want. The school is holding a party right now, might as well stay and enjoy it. At least until the dance is over."
Relena took a step back and curtseyed, her eyes closed as she held the position. There was a long silence and neither person moved for a full minute. Then Heero clicked his gun's safety back on and put it in his pocket once again.
"Alright." Heero said in a monotone. Relena opened her eyes and stood up straight again.
"I saved the first dance for you." she smiled and turned to lead Heero to the party
Elsewhere, an aircraft carrier carrying mobile suits had just pulled into dock at a military base, when part of the deck exploded and Shenlong Gundam came out of the flames, it's dragon fang armed and ready, its twin flamethrowers belching destruction as they set some nearby buildings ablaze.
"You let the enemy penetrate a little too easily." Wufei taunted "You can only blame yourselves for security. Or lack thereof."
[Another worthless mission.] Shenlong commented as its flamethrowers ignited again, setting more buildings ablaze and causing fuel tanks to explode. [Once again the enemy is hardly worthy of the designation. When will we receive a mission that tests our strength? Does OZ even HAVE anyone capable of giving us a challenge?]
"Be patient, Nataku. OZ has one or two aces that might be on our level, none of which we've encountered yet. And these missions, while tedious, have not been worthless. We are crushing their weapons supplies under our heel with every mission we have accomplished. Soon, they'll have no choice but to take us seriously, and they'll send their very best to face us."
[And when their best is destroyed, they shall see just how strong we truly are.]
"They will indeed, Nataku, and they will despair, and in that moment of total weakness, we shall destroy them utterly."
Meanwhile, back at the party, Relena and Heero were dancing in time with the music.
"Heero," Relena whispered as they continued to dance "I know too much about you. Are you still gonna kill me?"
"Yeah." Heero answered softly in his usual monotone
"I didn't want to die with no answers, but now it's different. Now I know why you fight. And that's because, I'm on your side. I think I've always been on your side."
"Huh? On my side?" Heero and Relena looked up as the faint sound of a jet engine entered their perceptions "What's that?" They saw a small silhouette in the sky.
*That's an OZ mobile suit carrier!* Relena thought as Heero said the same thing aloud
"They've caught on to this place!"
"Heero." Relena called to the boy as he turned and dashed into the woods, but resisted the urge to follow him. "I'd better find Renee."
As Aries and Leo mobile suits descended from the carrier, one of them was destroyed by a powerful particle beam that came from the direction Heero had run. A moment later, Wing Gundam stood up, towering over the trees. Wing Gundam started firing its head vulcans upward at the descending mobile suits which returned fire as Relena looked on grimly.
"Those are OZ mobile suits." She said to herself "The colors on the Aries make that clear. Why would they come here to fight? If they knew Heero or I were Gundam pilots, they would have sent officers to arrest us, not make a full assault with mobile suits."
Renee and two of their friends ran towards Relena, yelling her name. A missile hit the ground somewhere behind them, the shockwave throwing them into her and bowling her over. While the battle between Wing Gundam and the OZ mobile suits raged, Relena and Renee's two friends cried as the other two girls held them.
"Everything will be OK. Stop crying and run."
"OK." the twins' friends chorused as Relena and Renee helped them stand back up
"It'll be alright, just hurry."
"We will." their friends obeyed Relena's orders, but Renee made no sign of moving from the spot
"You too Renee. Get out of here."
"Not without you, sis." Renee responded defiantly "I'll leave when you do, and not before."
"Renee, it's too dangerous to be here."
"Then why aren't we both running for our lives?"
Relena didn't answer, instead staring upward, seemingly making eye contact with Wing Gundam, which had dispensed with the mobile suits that had engaged it so far and was now facing towards Relena and Renee. Relena was certain that Heero was the Gundam's pilot and that he wanted to kill her. She knew it would take only a single vulcan round fired from one of the head-mounted weapons and she would be blown to pieces, yet she showed no fear.
"Heero?" Relena whispered
"That jerk has a Gundam too?" Renee grumbled as she heard her sister say the boy's name
An Aries fired a pair of shots from its rifle at the stationary Gundam as Heero stared at Relena through his viewscreen. One round exploded against Wing Gundam's back, doing minimal damage, while the other missed and hit the roof of the school. A mass of heavy masonry fell down towards Relena and Renee. Renee screamed as she realized they were about to be crushed, but Relena simply stood silently, accepting her fate. As the stonework fell, Wing Gundam lunged forward, shield extended in front. Relena grabbed her sister and dragged her to the ground as the lower edge of the shield just missed giving them both haircuts. Both girls looked up and saw the curve of the shield above them.
"He... saved us." Relena said in surprise as she realized that Heero's quick action was all that had saved her and Renee from being crushed.
"Maybe he's not such a jerk after all." Renee said quietly
At that same time, the Aries landed and fired more shots at Wing Gundam's back as the pilot reported its actions back to the mobile suit carrier he had launched from.
"What!?" Lady Une squawked when she heard the report "Do you mean the Gundam's protecting Darlian's daughters?"
"Yes." the Aries pilot responded "There's no mistake, it's the girls we're after: Relena and Renee Darlian."
"Could it be, that the girls somehow know the Gundam's pilot?"
Meanwhile, Wing Gundam remained unmoving, shielding Relena and Renee with its body.
"Heero, is that you?" Relena called out
After a moment, Wing Gundam suddenly exploded into action, getting to its feet, spinning, and spearing the last remaining Aries' head with the end of its shield. Multiple small explosions riddled the OZ mobile suit as ammunition and fuel cooked off inside and the wrecked shell fell to the ground at Wing Gundam's feet while Relena and Renee looked on.
"All of our suits have been destroyed!" an OZ officer inside the carrier reported
"Then I'll go!" Lady Une snarled as she stood up
"Colonel Treize is on the line."
"What?"
"Lady Une," Colonel Treize's image appeared on the screen in front of Lady Une "Cancel your mission. Return to base, immediately."
"But Colonel Treize-"
"I've decided to let Darlian's daughters live."
"But Colonel, the mission was to-"
"Lady, we were met by an unexpected enemy. Don't think of it as a failure. Return immediately."
"Right." Lady Une hung her head, despite her superior's suggestion, she did view this as a failure. "I understand."
As the OZ mobile suit carrier turned to fly away from the school, Colonel Treize closed the comm channel to Lady Une and stood up from the terminal on his desk
"Thank you very much, Colonel Treize." Noin's voice issued from the terminal "I'm sure Lieutenant Zechs will be pleased."
"Zechs has always gone out of his way to help me out." Treize responded as he gazed out the window "Saving Renee is the very least I can do to thank him for all his efforts. However, I am still uncertain why it was as important to save Relena as well. She isn't related to Zechs at all."
"For all her life, Renee has thought of Relena as her sister. Zechs wouldn't want her to experience the pain of losing a sibling, on top of the recent loss of the man she had thought was her father."
"Ah, I understand now. Please, give my regards to Lieutenant Zechs."
"Yes sir."
While Treize mused about the revelation of Zechs having a surviving blood relative, Wing Gundam stood victorious in what was left of the courtyard in front of Relena and Renee's school.
"Heero!" Relena yelled "That's you, isn't it? Answer me! Heero! Tell me why you rescued me! You didn't kill me, you said you were gonna!"
"What!?" Renee blinked "He said he was gonna kill you!?"
"Answer me, Heero!" Wing Gundam suddenly turned around to face Relena and Renee again, causing the girls to gasp.
"Umm, I'm no expert in spy stuff," Renee said unsteadily as Wing Gundam started walking towards them "But I don't think it's a good idea to draw the attention of a guy who wants to kill you."
"Stand back, sis. I don't want you getting hurt."
Relena shoved Renee to her left, the blonde-haired girl taking a few more steps away from her sister, fighting conflicting urges to get farther away or to run back to her sister's side. Wing Gundam towered over Relena and raised its massive shield. In a single movement, Wing Gundam's shield arm shot forward and down. Renee shouted Relena's name as she saw the massive object about to crush her sister. The end of the shield hit the pile just behind and to Relena's right.
"Heero." Relena said calmly
Wing Gundam's leg jets ignited and it soared into the air right before transforming into bird mode and soaring into the night sky.
"Heero!" Relena yelled, then stepped forward and her face took on a sad expression. "Please Heero, don't run away from me."
*He didn't harm a hair on her head, but he did hurt her.* Renee thought as she walked over to hold her sister "Sis, are you OK?"
"Yeah."
"Why would Heero have a reason to kill you? Is there some rivalry between Gundam pilots?"
"Not that I know of. He has a reason to kill me because I witnessed his arrival on Earth."
"You saw him land?"
"Not quite, but I did see him washed up on the beach in a spacesuit the day the Gundams landed. Remember the news report that was on the radio right after we made our entrance at our birthday party?"
"The one that said the six shooting stars weren't spacecraft after all?"
"Right. It was a lie. Amy and Lady Gundam were in one of them, I'm certain Heero and his Gundam were in another, the other boy and Gundam pair yet another, and three more pairs I haven't met yet."
"Other boy and Gundam?"
"When I left our birthday party, I encountered Heero at a military base, about to launch some torpedoes out to sea. He pulled a gun on me. He might have shot me if another boy, dressed all in black, hadn't appeared and shot him. Then he shot Heero again when he tried to grab his gun. He might have killed Heero if I hadn't put myself in the way of his next shot. About then two Gundams appeared in the water heading towards us. I didn't get much of a look before the boy lit a flare to keep me from seeing, but I saw the heads, and they were very similar to Lady Gundam's head."
"So, you're not really alone."
"Sure. Heero wants to kill me, and I have no idea how to contact the others."
"Are you sure he wants to kill you?"
"I know who he really is. I'm a threat to his mission. His only option is to kill me."
"But he didn't. He could've squashed you flat just now, but he didn't. He could've let us get crushed by the falling stonework, but he saved us instead. If he was as focused on his mission as you seem to think, my presence wouldn't have factored into his equation. He couldn't kill you. All that firepower at his command, and he couldn't make himself kill you. I think he loves you like you love him."
"I've told you time and again, I'm not in love with him!"
"Relena, you're in denial. I've heard the tone in your voice when you talk about him. How you reacted when he tore up the invitation you gave him, how you ran out of our birthday party when you heard where he was. What you just told me about getting between Heero and a gun aimed at him. Deny it all you want, but eventually, you're gonna have to face the truth."
"I... I..."
"C'mon. We should try to get home before this hits the news."
"Yes... Mother will worry so much about us, so soon after losing father."
Relena and Renee walked together away from the battlefield, Relena lost in thought about the boy she couldn't help loving.
End of chapter 5
Sorry it's been so long since I posted anything. Sometimes, you just get busy and forget about things like satisfying your horde of adoring fans. But, I've finally finished this chapter and here it is for you all to read and review. Next chapter, Relena, Heero, and Duo join forces to crash an OZ meeting and meet the other 3 Gundam pilots in the process. But is it really an OZ meeting, or an OZ trap? Find out in chapter 6, coming whenever I have time to write it.
Written By: Jumper Prime
For Disclaimers see prologue.
Chapter 5: Party Night
The shuttle carrying Relena and Renee entered the atmosphere and landed without incident. After it landed at the spaceport, Relena called home to have Pagan pick them up. Relena and Renee rode home in their pink limo and found the gate leading to their driveway swamped by reporters asking questions.
"Are the Colonies starting a war against us?" one reporter yelled as the car drove past
"How could they ask those things? They've got no idea why Dad was really killed." Renee grumbled
"They're thinking exactly what OZ wants them to think." Relena responded "OZ wants to control Earth and space. Their task is made easier when the two are at each other's throats."
"There's got to be a way to stop them!"
"Don't worry, there is, and soon I'll tell you how I'll do it."
When the girls walked through the door into the house, they found their mother standing in the main room.
"We're finally home, mom." Renee said quietly
"Relena, Renee." Mrs. Darlian spoke just as quietly
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't able to save father." Relena said in an apologetic tone
"Relena, Renee. I'm just glad neither of you was injured. I knew something like this would happen one day. Did he say anything before he passed away?"
"No," Renee answered as she stared at a pen her father had once used "He didn't say anything."
"I have something to tell you, Renee... Relena, perhaps you should go upstairs."
"Mom!" Renee turned sharply and ran to embrace Mrs. Darlian
"Renee?"
"You're my real mom! You'll always be my mom!"
"Renee."
Relena joined in on the hug, mother and daughters holding each other, finding solace in each other, each reinforcing the others after their shared loss. Later, both girls were sitting in Relena's room, Renee waiting patiently for Relena to explain what she had said on the shuttle.
"Alright," Relena said after a long silence "I've known about OZ for years. I first found out about them the day after I met Amy."
"How?" Renee asked
"The previous day, I had literally bumped into Amy on the street, and she led me to her home. We played a 'video game' for a while and then I met Dr. Z. She wasn't too happy to see me there and was a bit cross with Amy for bringing me there. She immediately drove me back to the hotel where father and I were staying. The next day, I retraced the path Amy and I had taken. I had remembered the code she had used to open the door and sneaked inside the facility. I found myself in a screening room and, in my curiosity, activated the projector. It played a tape of atrocities committed in the Colonies by the Alliance military.
"When Dr. Z arrived, she explained what I had seen, including the existence of OZ. She also took a chance and revealed the truth about what she and Amy were doing there. Amy was being trained to be a covert operative to fight OZ using an advanced mobile suit that Dr. Z was building."
"So Amy's gonna help you fight OZ?"
"No. Amy is dead. Her space capsule malfunctioned during landing and crashed. She was mortally injured and died in my arms."
"Now I'm getting confused. How can you fight OZ if the person trained to fight them is dead?"
"When I found out about OZ, and that Amy was training to fight them, I wanted to fight them too. Amy and I managed to convince Dr. Z to allow me to train with her. It wasn't easy. Most of my lessons were like a correspondence course, encrypted inside picture files sent via E-mail. When Amy died, her mission fell to me."
"What about the mobile suit?"
"C'mon," Relena stood up "I'll show her to you."
"Her?"
Relena dragged Renee down to the garage, where they got on Relena's motorcycle. Relena and Renee rode down to the beach and into the cave containing Lady Gundam. Renee gazed in awe at the magnificent mobile suit while Relena parked the motorcycle.
"She's beautiful." Renee breathed
"Yes, she is, isn't she?" Relena smiled "Come, I'll introduce you to her."
"Introduce me?" Renee blinked but followed Relena over to where Lady Gundam kneeled next to the wall
Relena climbed up Lady Gundam's body and opened the cockpit hatch before helping Renee inside. As Relena sat down in the pilot's chair, Renee was starting to think that she had gone a little batty. Renee was in for a shock as her sister powered up Lady Gundam's electronics and a voice issued from the speakers.
[Hello Relena.] came the Gundam's feminine voice
"Th-that's someone at some secret base, right?" Renee asked
"No," Relena replied "That's Lady Gundam herself talking."
"Your mobile suit talks?"
[And why shouldn't I talk, Renee?] Lady Gundam's voice sounded slightly indignant [Do you think mobile suits should not speak their minds?]
"No... I Ah I just never knew mobile suits could talk."
"Lady Gundam is unique." Relena explained "She has a special AI device called the Beta System. Her intelligence is programmed directly from my brainwaves."
"Incredible. So this is what you meant when you said you wouldn't be on your own."
[Fear not, Renee.] Lady Gundam said [Relena and I shall exact tenfold vengeance upon OZ for your father's death.]
"Th-thank you."
"C'mon Renee," Relena said as she powered down Lady Gundam's systems "We'd better get home before mother misses us."
"Yeah, you're right." Renee replied as they descended to the ground and Relena closed the hatch "Mom's been through a lot. We don't want her to have to worry about where we are."
Both girls got back on Relena's motorcycle and they rode back towards the house.
"Relena, what were those crates in the cave with Lady Gundam?" Renee asked as they rode down the road
"Ammunition for her machine cannons, vulcans, and missile launchers." Relena answered "The fuel tank, as you might guess, contains high-grade mobile suit fuel."
"Where'd you get it all?"
"From a black market dealer who takes orders over the Globalnet and makes blind drops."
"All that must've cost a fortune. How did you pay for it all?"
"With a special bank account Dr. Z set up in advance. The access card for the account was in the compartment under Lady Gundam's pilot's seat."
"This Dr. Z must have a lot of money on her hands."
"As far as I can tell, the financing for Lady Gundam's construction and the Supply account came from Dr. Z's sponsor."
"Who's that?"
"I don't know. Dr. Z didn't tell me and the information isn't in Lady Gundam's databanks, either."
"I wish I knew who he was. I'd like to meet the man who gave my sister the means to avenge our father."
"And avenge him I shall. I will make OZ regret killing our father. When my next mission comes, I will show no mercy to any OZ soldier I encounter."
Relena's voice had a cold edge to it that made Renee shiver on the bike behind her. Renee pitied any OZ soldier who ran afoul of her sister. In killing their father, OZ had awakened a bloodthirsty tigress within Relena. Soon, they returned home, and as they walked through the foyer, a thought occurred to Renee.
"You think we should call to let our friends know we won't be going to the party tonight?" she asked
"Why should we do that?" Relena asked in return "I think we should go to the party."
"Are you kidding? How can we enjoy ourselves so soon after losing Dad? It wouldn't be right. Have you become so cold that you can ignore our loss with ease!?"
"I haven't become cold, Renee. My blood boils for a chance to strike back at OZ and destroy them. But father wouldn't want us to shut ourselves away from everything positive. He wouldn't want us to dwell on our loss. He'd want us to honor his memory and move on. If we let our spirits be destroyed by father's death, then OZ will have effectively killed us with the same bomb that killed him."
"I never thought about it that way."
"But we needn't act like nothing has happened at all. Instead of the cheerfully colored dresses we were planning to wear to the party, we can wear our ordinary school uniforms instead."
"Yes That sounds reasonable. Our uniforms will be our mourning clothes in the brightly colored environment of the party."
"Then it's agreed. We'll show everyone that we survived, but with a great sadness upon us. All our friends will be there to help us with the healing process."
"Including your boyfriend, Heero?" Renee allowed herself a little smile as she teased her sister
"He's not my boyfriend! You heard what Doctor J said about him. It'd be safest to stay clear of him."
"Since when have you ever taken the safe route? It's like you're a moth and Heero's a flame. Please don't let him burn you, I couldn't bear to lose you too."
Renee walked up the stairs as Relena stood motionless on the ground floor. Relena could lie to her sister, but she couldn't lie to herself. Renee was right, she did have feelings for Heero and the recent revelation about his identity and nature only made her more determined to break through the boy's shell. Relena walked up to her room and performed a complex kata for a while, imagining that she was fighting Lady Une. Had the OZ officer actually been present, the ferocity of Relena's attacks would have rendered her nearly unrecognizable. Exhausted by her vigorous exercise, Relena lied down on her bed for a while, now giving her mind a workout as she visualized battle strategies and mobile suit maneuvers in her head.
When the clock chimed four, Relena rose from her bed and changed into her school uniform, eschewing the brightly colored party dress that she had originally planned to wear. Relena exited her room and walked down the hall, meeting Renee on the way to the stairs. Renee was also wearing her school uniform as they walked down to the ground floor, both remaining silent. Pagan was waiting right outside the main door of the house with the pink limo that the girls regularly rode to and from school in. The trip to the school passed in silence, Pagan respecting Relena and Renee's wish to spend the trip in silence. When they arrived, the sun was setting and the party had already begun, with a few boys and girls chasing each other playfully.
"Look, it's Relena and Renee." One student whispered
"Is it true that their father was assassinated by terrorists in the Colonies?" asked another
"Yeah, the press is all over it." answered a third
Two of Relena and Renee's friends walked up to them about then with somber expressions on their faces
"Relena, Renee. I'm so sorry about your father." the girls' blonde-haired friend greeted them
"I wish I were anywhere but at a party. Seeing all this festivity just makes me sadder." their brown-haired friend agreed
"That's very kind of you both," Relena answered "But we just can't be sad forever. Let's try to be stronger."
"Dad wouldn't want us feeling sorry for ourselves." Renee agreed
"We'll be strong, Relena, Renee." their blonde friend responded
"What? Heero's moving to another school?" Relena heard a boy say in surprise
"But he hasn't even been here for a month yet." another boy noted
"Good riddance." Renee muttered
"Please excuse me, I'll be back soon." Relena apologized as she turned to walk towards the boy's dorms
"I hope that jerk doesn't hurt her." Renee whispered softly to herself as her sister walked away
Minutes later, Relena opened the door to Heero's room as he closed a suitcase, two more were sitting on the floor.
"Are you off to fight again?" she asked and Heero half-turned towards her in surprise "Where's your next mission, Heero?" the boy turned all the way towards Relena as he drew a gun and pointed it at her. Relena showed no sign of fear. "I met Doctor J." Heero gasped at this statement. Relena walked towards Heero, stopping just out of arm's reach as Heero raised his gun higher, pointing it right at her throat "So, even you can be surprised. Ever since I met you it's been me who keeps getting surprised by you. If you killed me now, it would cause quite a commotion. I don't think that's what you really want. The school is holding a party right now, might as well stay and enjoy it. At least until the dance is over."
Relena took a step back and curtseyed, her eyes closed as she held the position. There was a long silence and neither person moved for a full minute. Then Heero clicked his gun's safety back on and put it in his pocket once again.
"Alright." Heero said in a monotone. Relena opened her eyes and stood up straight again.
"I saved the first dance for you." she smiled and turned to lead Heero to the party
Elsewhere, an aircraft carrier carrying mobile suits had just pulled into dock at a military base, when part of the deck exploded and Shenlong Gundam came out of the flames, it's dragon fang armed and ready, its twin flamethrowers belching destruction as they set some nearby buildings ablaze.
"You let the enemy penetrate a little too easily." Wufei taunted "You can only blame yourselves for security. Or lack thereof."
[Another worthless mission.] Shenlong commented as its flamethrowers ignited again, setting more buildings ablaze and causing fuel tanks to explode. [Once again the enemy is hardly worthy of the designation. When will we receive a mission that tests our strength? Does OZ even HAVE anyone capable of giving us a challenge?]
"Be patient, Nataku. OZ has one or two aces that might be on our level, none of which we've encountered yet. And these missions, while tedious, have not been worthless. We are crushing their weapons supplies under our heel with every mission we have accomplished. Soon, they'll have no choice but to take us seriously, and they'll send their very best to face us."
[And when their best is destroyed, they shall see just how strong we truly are.]
"They will indeed, Nataku, and they will despair, and in that moment of total weakness, we shall destroy them utterly."
Meanwhile, back at the party, Relena and Heero were dancing in time with the music.
"Heero," Relena whispered as they continued to dance "I know too much about you. Are you still gonna kill me?"
"Yeah." Heero answered softly in his usual monotone
"I didn't want to die with no answers, but now it's different. Now I know why you fight. And that's because, I'm on your side. I think I've always been on your side."
"Huh? On my side?" Heero and Relena looked up as the faint sound of a jet engine entered their perceptions "What's that?" They saw a small silhouette in the sky.
*That's an OZ mobile suit carrier!* Relena thought as Heero said the same thing aloud
"They've caught on to this place!"
"Heero." Relena called to the boy as he turned and dashed into the woods, but resisted the urge to follow him. "I'd better find Renee."
As Aries and Leo mobile suits descended from the carrier, one of them was destroyed by a powerful particle beam that came from the direction Heero had run. A moment later, Wing Gundam stood up, towering over the trees. Wing Gundam started firing its head vulcans upward at the descending mobile suits which returned fire as Relena looked on grimly.
"Those are OZ mobile suits." She said to herself "The colors on the Aries make that clear. Why would they come here to fight? If they knew Heero or I were Gundam pilots, they would have sent officers to arrest us, not make a full assault with mobile suits."
Renee and two of their friends ran towards Relena, yelling her name. A missile hit the ground somewhere behind them, the shockwave throwing them into her and bowling her over. While the battle between Wing Gundam and the OZ mobile suits raged, Relena and Renee's two friends cried as the other two girls held them.
"Everything will be OK. Stop crying and run."
"OK." the twins' friends chorused as Relena and Renee helped them stand back up
"It'll be alright, just hurry."
"We will." their friends obeyed Relena's orders, but Renee made no sign of moving from the spot
"You too Renee. Get out of here."
"Not without you, sis." Renee responded defiantly "I'll leave when you do, and not before."
"Renee, it's too dangerous to be here."
"Then why aren't we both running for our lives?"
Relena didn't answer, instead staring upward, seemingly making eye contact with Wing Gundam, which had dispensed with the mobile suits that had engaged it so far and was now facing towards Relena and Renee. Relena was certain that Heero was the Gundam's pilot and that he wanted to kill her. She knew it would take only a single vulcan round fired from one of the head-mounted weapons and she would be blown to pieces, yet she showed no fear.
"Heero?" Relena whispered
"That jerk has a Gundam too?" Renee grumbled as she heard her sister say the boy's name
An Aries fired a pair of shots from its rifle at the stationary Gundam as Heero stared at Relena through his viewscreen. One round exploded against Wing Gundam's back, doing minimal damage, while the other missed and hit the roof of the school. A mass of heavy masonry fell down towards Relena and Renee. Renee screamed as she realized they were about to be crushed, but Relena simply stood silently, accepting her fate. As the stonework fell, Wing Gundam lunged forward, shield extended in front. Relena grabbed her sister and dragged her to the ground as the lower edge of the shield just missed giving them both haircuts. Both girls looked up and saw the curve of the shield above them.
"He... saved us." Relena said in surprise as she realized that Heero's quick action was all that had saved her and Renee from being crushed.
"Maybe he's not such a jerk after all." Renee said quietly
At that same time, the Aries landed and fired more shots at Wing Gundam's back as the pilot reported its actions back to the mobile suit carrier he had launched from.
"What!?" Lady Une squawked when she heard the report "Do you mean the Gundam's protecting Darlian's daughters?"
"Yes." the Aries pilot responded "There's no mistake, it's the girls we're after: Relena and Renee Darlian."
"Could it be, that the girls somehow know the Gundam's pilot?"
Meanwhile, Wing Gundam remained unmoving, shielding Relena and Renee with its body.
"Heero, is that you?" Relena called out
After a moment, Wing Gundam suddenly exploded into action, getting to its feet, spinning, and spearing the last remaining Aries' head with the end of its shield. Multiple small explosions riddled the OZ mobile suit as ammunition and fuel cooked off inside and the wrecked shell fell to the ground at Wing Gundam's feet while Relena and Renee looked on.
"All of our suits have been destroyed!" an OZ officer inside the carrier reported
"Then I'll go!" Lady Une snarled as she stood up
"Colonel Treize is on the line."
"What?"
"Lady Une," Colonel Treize's image appeared on the screen in front of Lady Une "Cancel your mission. Return to base, immediately."
"But Colonel Treize-"
"I've decided to let Darlian's daughters live."
"But Colonel, the mission was to-"
"Lady, we were met by an unexpected enemy. Don't think of it as a failure. Return immediately."
"Right." Lady Une hung her head, despite her superior's suggestion, she did view this as a failure. "I understand."
As the OZ mobile suit carrier turned to fly away from the school, Colonel Treize closed the comm channel to Lady Une and stood up from the terminal on his desk
"Thank you very much, Colonel Treize." Noin's voice issued from the terminal "I'm sure Lieutenant Zechs will be pleased."
"Zechs has always gone out of his way to help me out." Treize responded as he gazed out the window "Saving Renee is the very least I can do to thank him for all his efforts. However, I am still uncertain why it was as important to save Relena as well. She isn't related to Zechs at all."
"For all her life, Renee has thought of Relena as her sister. Zechs wouldn't want her to experience the pain of losing a sibling, on top of the recent loss of the man she had thought was her father."
"Ah, I understand now. Please, give my regards to Lieutenant Zechs."
"Yes sir."
While Treize mused about the revelation of Zechs having a surviving blood relative, Wing Gundam stood victorious in what was left of the courtyard in front of Relena and Renee's school.
"Heero!" Relena yelled "That's you, isn't it? Answer me! Heero! Tell me why you rescued me! You didn't kill me, you said you were gonna!"
"What!?" Renee blinked "He said he was gonna kill you!?"
"Answer me, Heero!" Wing Gundam suddenly turned around to face Relena and Renee again, causing the girls to gasp.
"Umm, I'm no expert in spy stuff," Renee said unsteadily as Wing Gundam started walking towards them "But I don't think it's a good idea to draw the attention of a guy who wants to kill you."
"Stand back, sis. I don't want you getting hurt."
Relena shoved Renee to her left, the blonde-haired girl taking a few more steps away from her sister, fighting conflicting urges to get farther away or to run back to her sister's side. Wing Gundam towered over Relena and raised its massive shield. In a single movement, Wing Gundam's shield arm shot forward and down. Renee shouted Relena's name as she saw the massive object about to crush her sister. The end of the shield hit the pile just behind and to Relena's right.
"Heero." Relena said calmly
Wing Gundam's leg jets ignited and it soared into the air right before transforming into bird mode and soaring into the night sky.
"Heero!" Relena yelled, then stepped forward and her face took on a sad expression. "Please Heero, don't run away from me."
*He didn't harm a hair on her head, but he did hurt her.* Renee thought as she walked over to hold her sister "Sis, are you OK?"
"Yeah."
"Why would Heero have a reason to kill you? Is there some rivalry between Gundam pilots?"
"Not that I know of. He has a reason to kill me because I witnessed his arrival on Earth."
"You saw him land?"
"Not quite, but I did see him washed up on the beach in a spacesuit the day the Gundams landed. Remember the news report that was on the radio right after we made our entrance at our birthday party?"
"The one that said the six shooting stars weren't spacecraft after all?"
"Right. It was a lie. Amy and Lady Gundam were in one of them, I'm certain Heero and his Gundam were in another, the other boy and Gundam pair yet another, and three more pairs I haven't met yet."
"Other boy and Gundam?"
"When I left our birthday party, I encountered Heero at a military base, about to launch some torpedoes out to sea. He pulled a gun on me. He might have shot me if another boy, dressed all in black, hadn't appeared and shot him. Then he shot Heero again when he tried to grab his gun. He might have killed Heero if I hadn't put myself in the way of his next shot. About then two Gundams appeared in the water heading towards us. I didn't get much of a look before the boy lit a flare to keep me from seeing, but I saw the heads, and they were very similar to Lady Gundam's head."
"So, you're not really alone."
"Sure. Heero wants to kill me, and I have no idea how to contact the others."
"Are you sure he wants to kill you?"
"I know who he really is. I'm a threat to his mission. His only option is to kill me."
"But he didn't. He could've squashed you flat just now, but he didn't. He could've let us get crushed by the falling stonework, but he saved us instead. If he was as focused on his mission as you seem to think, my presence wouldn't have factored into his equation. He couldn't kill you. All that firepower at his command, and he couldn't make himself kill you. I think he loves you like you love him."
"I've told you time and again, I'm not in love with him!"
"Relena, you're in denial. I've heard the tone in your voice when you talk about him. How you reacted when he tore up the invitation you gave him, how you ran out of our birthday party when you heard where he was. What you just told me about getting between Heero and a gun aimed at him. Deny it all you want, but eventually, you're gonna have to face the truth."
"I... I..."
"C'mon. We should try to get home before this hits the news."
"Yes... Mother will worry so much about us, so soon after losing father."
Relena and Renee walked together away from the battlefield, Relena lost in thought about the boy she couldn't help loving.
End of chapter 5
Sorry it's been so long since I posted anything. Sometimes, you just get busy and forget about things like satisfying your horde of adoring fans. But, I've finally finished this chapter and here it is for you all to read and review. Next chapter, Relena, Heero, and Duo join forces to crash an OZ meeting and meet the other 3 Gundam pilots in the process. But is it really an OZ meeting, or an OZ trap? Find out in chapter 6, coming whenever I have time to write it.