BLADE OF KINGS
"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost." -Lord of the Rings
Against the fading sunset gleamed a fading red fire. And as it receded, he looked out at the sunset. Thinking. Not moving. Silent. After about half an hour he went to find some firewood. Upon returning he found a squirrel by the now pathetic flames. It was dead before it noticed he was there. He ate, and then sat. Silent. Not moving. Just thinking.
None could tell by his hard-chiseled features where he had come from. None could ask. He was there. That was all anyone could tell. If they were lucky, they saw the tangled, shoulder-length brown hair and the hunter green cloak before they died. Few had seen him. None had lived past that moment. After his fire died, he went to sleep. And so slept the one known as Tristan Shinagami*. Little did he know that the next few hours would change his life.
Tristan awoke to a small fire crackling merrily in the fire pit he had made his home next to. Sitting beside it was a young boy dressed in a black jumpsuit with a red undershirt. Before the stranger could move, Tristan had his sword aimed at his neck. "Who-,"He never finished his sentence. The other boy had drawn a sword and blocked Tristan with ease. "Hey, Tristan, whats up?" he said with a grin. "Long time no see." "Who are you??" "The name's Duo Maxwell." "I don't care who you are. You are intru-" "If you don't care, then why ask?" "First of all,"said Tristan angrily, "you are in the presence of Tristan Shinagami, so wipe that cocky grin off your face." "Yeah, right, and I'm the Tenchinoshi*." "WHAT'S THAT!" "You aren't the Shinagami. You are the Youkai Shinagami*. I'm the Shinagami, so don't get all high and mighty." "You are so dead! You invade my camp, you stand before me like you know me, and you insult me,"Tristan was furious, but there was something oddly familiar about this person. "Well, now that we've all had our little chance to blow off steam, are you comin' or what?" "Coming where?" "Home." They both just looked at each other. Duo's face had a look of "Now is when it gets interesting." "Home?" Tristan was unable to say any more. He was totally shocked. "Well, where else would brothers have a reunion?" Duo gave a little smile. "Brothers..?" thought Tristan, "How.?" A rustling broke the silence. Tristan grabbed his bow and fitted a deadly shaft to it, letting it fly just moments after. And to his amazement, the man kept on walking. "Did you drop this?" asked the man in a low tenor voice. He held up the arrow Tristan had fired moments before. He had caught it without even looking. Tristan was about to answer when he actually saw the person. He had brown hair in need of a trim and deep blue Prussian eyes. "Yo, Heero, long time no see." Said Duo, a smile still on his face. "So, you finally found him. Ya, that's him. You two look too much alike for it to be a coincidence. " "What are you TALKING ABOUT!?" "Duo, you haven't told him?" "Nope, I was waiting for you." "Look, I don't care who you are! How do you know me and why are you here?" "When I was two,"said Duo, a light shining in his eyes, " Our parents were killed in an air raid. You were only one at the time. A bunch of war orphans were around, and they took us in. They taught us how to talk, and basically raised us. When I was seven, we tried to rob the Alliance food stores. That's when we were separated. I went to the Maxwell church until it was destroyed." Duo laughed," You somehow made it to earth." Tristan just sat there gazing into the fire. After a time he said, "I don't remember it at all." He stood up. "You are wasting my time. You have seen Tristan Youkai Shinagami. Now DIE!"His sword flashed as he drew it from the scabbard. It got no further. "Don't tell me you forgot I was here. You have skill, but you lack training."Said Heero's deep tenor as he knocked him to the ground. Tristan was furious. He had never been beaten before. His veins were popping out, his muscles bulged. That was all he remembered. His mind collapsed into a sea of rage. "DIE!!!" A shock wave knocked Heero and Duo off their feet. Trees were being uprooted and flattened, rocks were being hurled away, and anything that wouldn't move was being crushed into something that would. Tristan looked up suddenly. His eyes were red in the middle and black on the outside. His gaze pierced through the gloom that had gathered, looking at the boys with pure hatred. "You are a disgrace to the earth!" he cried, the ground under his feet crumpling. Heero grabbed his sword and attacked. It broke upon Tristan's neck. Then he was blasted harder than before. Getting his footing, he yelled, "Well, I'm satisfied, Duo. If that isn't him, then we're screwed. Now seems as good a time as any." "Then let's both be GODS!"With that, Duo's eyes turned a golden yellow and black fire consumed his body. A red circle glowed in the blaze. From it came a shock wave that ripped apart the landscape. Heero groaned. "Here we go again."There was a blinding flash of light, and when it receded, Heero was different. He had on a white kimono with a sword on each side. A bow and a quiver were strapped to his back. "The Tenchinoshi has arrived," exclaimed Duo with a smile. "So has the Hanyou o Korosu*, as always." Another boy flipped above the now- flattened trees. He had claws sharper than knives and blades on his back and elbows. "Man, you follow us everywhere, don't you Trowa." "So that's him, huh?" No answer came. Everything was silent. Tristan had collapsed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ He awoke in a small room. Sitting next to him was Duo, asleep. "Where..where am I. I don't remember anything after I got knocked down." "Of course you don't," said a familiar voice. Tristan started. Duo had been just faking being asleep. "You summoned godly power, of course you don't remember." "For the last time, dammit, where are we and what are you talking about. I didn't get dragged from my camp to some nuthouse for no reason." "We're in the training facility and rooming quarters of the Earth Sphere Unified Nations Preventers Corps, to give it the full title. We're just known as Preventers. As for your other question, you are the Descended Youkai Shinagami. I am the Shinagami. Heero, who you met, is the Tenchinoshi. Trowa, you wouldn't remember him, but he's a half-demon who helps us. The Hanyou o Korosu." "And I'm supposed to believe this. Yeah, right." "Let's talk over a drink," Duo said, smiling, " This place is boring." A few minutes later, they were in the middle of a town Tristan didn't recognize. Duo led him to a small bar that seemed to be frequented by Preventers. Duo had to help Tristan decide which drink to get; he had never been to a bar before. He decided on a Shirley Temple.? "So what are we training for, I mean, if we are Gods, which will really piss off most people of any religion, why do we need training?" "Nothing much. We pilot mobile suits, save the world, and sleep. The last part is the best part of my day." "But you guys were doing fine from what I heard. Why did you need me?" "I wanted to see my brother?" Duo said with an 'are you going to buy this one, or do I have to really tell you?' look. Tristan cocked an eyebrow. "O.K., cards on the table. All the mobile suits have been destroyed, and Quatre has been killed. We need you to take his place." Tristan smiled, " You need me in order to save the world? From what??" "The vice president." Tristan burst out laughing. "What, is he a demon or something?" "Close enough. He's being controlled by a fallen Angel named Hildegarn. He wants to show people how horrible crime and war are by causing them." "So that's why only gods and demons can fight him." "Duh." A mock expression of terror came over Tristan's face. "Oh, no, an Angel, what's he gonna do, beat me with his feathers?" "He'll destroy your mind. He can fire energy. He has godly power." "So he's basically a guy out of Akira Toriyama's* dreams." "Right." "So let me get this straight. You want me to fight a fallen Angel who just happens to be one of the highest-ranking officials in America, who wants to bring peace through war, even though we have peace right now? Man, where's Zechs when you need him?" Duo coughed in his drink. "How do you know who Zechs is?" But Tristan wouldn't answer. Instead he looked across the bar at a familiar face in the crowd. "So we have our story, but what's his," he asked, looking at a teenager, no more than 17, with brown hair and deep blue Prussian eyes. "I can't tell you that, he'd kill me, and believe me, he could do that very easily." Tristan sighed. "Oh well." To Duo's surprise, he got up and walked up to Heero. What Duo didn't notice was the dagger hidden in Tristan's shirt. "Hey, you got a life, or did you just drop from the sky like Hildegarn?" Heero didn't even notice. "Shove it and talk, Tenchinoshi, or I'll stab you with a Q-tip." Heero looked over at him. "You got a lot of nerve, or a lot of ego. Either way, the Q-tip thing deserves something." "So how's Relena doing?" Heero looked at him in surprise. "So it was you all along. Damnit, Zechs." "Yes, it was me. So how's she doing?" Heero looked away with a blank face. After a couple of seconds he said, "She was a spy for Hildegarn all along, and when we found out." "I'm sorry. Teaches you never to trust a pacifist. If looks could kill-" "They can't so shut up!" The look he gave Tristan would have made ice melt and oceans freeze. "Oookkayyy." Tristan got up and left. Heero just sat there gazing out into space. "Man, what's up with that? All I said was if looks could kill and he gets all pissed off." "If you knew him, you'd understand. Until you kill and feel guilty, you won't." "I guess I never will understand then." "You will soon enough." Tristan gave him a strange look. Duo just smiled back. The next morning, Duo walked into Tristan's room and screamed, "TRISTAN, I'M STEALING YOUR WEAPONS!!!" Tristan got up immediately. "I thought that would get you up. Come on, time for breakfast and then you have training right after that." "Training??" "Well, if you can't control your power, someone has to teach you, right?" "Shut up. It's 6:00 in the morning, I'm tired, and I'm not a morning person." Duo just grabbed his sword and walked out the door. Tristan came running after him. After a five-minute game of cat-and-mouse, Tristan finally got his sword back. Panting, Duo said, "I'm, I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat." He led them down a long corridor, and they ended up in what looked like a school cafeteria. Then, after a quick breakfast consisting of about 10 pounds of food, Duo took him to the locker room. "Out that door," he said," is the training room. Have fun." With that, Duo left. Tristan got into his fighting "uniform." Basically a muscle-T and some baggy pants, which was what he had been wearing for the last 16 years of his life (not the same ones, mind you.) What really surprised him was it was his stuff. Probably taken from his camp as Duo and Heero left. After he got on all his weapons(which didn't take long) Tristan went into the training room. To his disappointment, it was just a large room with padded walls, floor, and ceiling. Suddenly, he was pulled down hard by an unseen force. In walked the person he least expected to see. The boy who was one year older and so much better. The boy with the brown hair and deep blue Prussian eyes. "I hope 100x normal gravity won't be too hard for the Demon God of Death." "You bastard." "Take off the weapons and it'll be easier. Or," he said, "If you're too proud I'll just beat you into a bloody pulp." He took one of the swords from Tristan and raised it above his head, ready to strike. The second the tip hit the ground he was propelled forward by an elbow dug deep into his back. "Missed me," said a cold voice. The second he said it a fist sent him sprawling on the ground. "Not that time. Look, I'm willing to teach you how to control your power, but if you don't want to learn then we might as well do this all day." Three hours later, at 350x normal gravity, Heero broke a sweat. After training, Tristan went to Duo's room. There he found Duo with a drum set he was banging on and loud music playing. He killed the music and looked sheepishly at Tristan. "I could have been a rock star." "There's still time," Tristan said with all seriousness. Over the intercom they heard 3 beeps. Duo got up, sighing. "Time for practice." A few hours later, Duo returned to find Tristan gone. On the desk was a note that said "gone to eat, be back later." "Whatever."
Elsewhere.
"Noin, where are you?" asked a gruff voice. "Over here." "How's he doing?" "Pretty good. He has your ability and my brain," she said, as she watched her 7-year-old son practice in his Tallgeese*. Exhausting day followed exhausting day. Training was followed by more training. But there was a fortunate side effect. Not only could Tristan now fully control his power, but he could now give Duo and Heero a challenge. One day he was just finishing up practice with Heero, who had at least gotten less hostile towards him, when Duo walked in the door with full fighting outfit on. "Now I get to train you in stealth. After this, Trowa will give you a crash course in Arial Assault." "Oh, great, more training." Heero just smiled. Now Tristan had training from seven a.m. to 12:00, then from 1:00 to 5:00, then from 7:00 to 10:00. Needless to say, he was getting tired. This routine lasted for about another month, until the day he showed up for practice, and Duo told him to go back to sleep. "It's seven in the morning, I've been getting up at six for two months, and I'm tired. Go to sleep." Tristan did so gladly. He went to sleep and didn't get up until noon. Then he learned why there was no practice. Trowa, who he had gotten to know very well, came and told him they were needed in the briefing room. "We have our first mission of open defiance against Hildegarn tomorrow at noon," Heero said," I suggest after this briefing everyone get some sleep. It's gonna be a long week. Now," He said, pointing to a location on a lit map," Trowa, you and Duo will attack from the north side of the structure once you receive three beeps over the radio. Tristan, you and I will go in through the underground entrance, disguised as mercenaries. Trowa, after we let you in, your job is to find Wufei and get all the info you can in fifteen minutes. After that, we blast the place apart. Tell Wufei that the room he used to have is cold, so if he wants to run with us, he can. Any questions?" "Ya," said Duo, " say that we get past the guards with the guns, and down the elevator we can't move, and into the bowels of enemy territory, we're just supposed to give Trowa a distraction by blasting the hell out of the place?" There was a long pause. "Ya." "Oh, ok, just checking, because I thought I could use some stealth and infiltrate the place. No, oh come on, at least let me have a little fun." "Go to sleep, Duo."
"Yes, sir," he said with more gratitude than sarcasm. Tristan slept until about dinnertime, and then went out. He was amazed at how well he had gotten to know the town in three months. The preventers had free reign of the bars, and all he had to do was show i.d. and he got into anything. It was weird, finally being in a city. All his life he had lived in the forests or wherever he could get food. But now he had a tab that was paid for by the preventers, and he used it well. He didn't particularly love the flashing neon signs, and he absolutely hated walking down the streets that were crowded with people. The buildings towered above him, and there was no place to go but up. Otherwise, this was bliss. You could hide just as easily in the city as you could anywhere else, and there was one thing he had never known that made everything so much better. There was a jazz club that was Tristan's favorite place to go. It was nice and quiet, and the music! It was amazing. Otherwise, Tristan was categorized as a punk. But he didn't mind. He was left alone for the most part. The other punks respected him, and no one got in his way. Usually. At the club, Tristan got his usual table near the back, on a raised section of the restaurant. He loved to just sit there and listen to the music and poetry. People just went up and read their poetry or preformed, and it was a very calming place. Normally Tristan just sat and applauded politley, snapping his fingers like everyone else. But tonight someone asked him if he wanted a turn. He was about to say no, when he found himself being pushed to the stage. "Well, okay, I .guess." He sat down and took out a little piece of paper. "I just wrote this yesterday, but here goes. The danger in my eyes may look nice, but don't pick my fight. Because I just might take a bite in the fight. Blindly seduced by the light of the fight, my gaze will turn your heart into fright. So don't roll the dice, because I might not be that nice. The shadow of your fright will reflect off the light, which will bring the fight. Despite the light of the fight, there might be a time we can reunite.right; the tougher you think you are, the weaker you become. All that might be right will be escorted by the fight." The audience was silent for a moment, until one person's applause was heard. It took just another moment for the entire crowd to burst out applauding. Tristan got up, smiling, and slowly returned to his seat. It wasn't until the next person was on stage that the applause died. Afterwards, he stayed a little while, and then left just as silently as he had come. Walking through the much hated streets, he turned a corner into an alley that was a shortcut to one of the entrances to the Preventers quarters. But there were some other people coming, and they didn't look too happy. Tristan turned around, but the way was already blocked. "Damn," he whispered, and prepared to put his skills to a small test. "Man, where you think you goin'. You think you can just walk up through our land an' get away with it. Well, you wrong. We gonna beat you're ass down, foo." Tristan almost choked with laughter. These were the type of gangsters who were really preps on the inside. Too easy. "You best watch yourself, and you BEST not be trippin, foo," Tristan mocked in perfect ebonics. The ringleader tensed up. "You goin' down, now." The man lunged at Tristan, and didn't wake up until two weeks later. The rest of the gang stared for a moment, and that was all Tristan needed. He swiftly dealt out blow after blow, and didn't stop until there were none left standing. He chuckled to himself and moved on, stepping over his unconcious victims. "They were too cocky." Six a.m. They had been up for four hours, hiking through impenetrable jungle with no sign of stopping. Machetes had proved of no use, so they all unsheathed their swords and started hacking away. "When caught in battle, always have a sword," had been Trowa's first piece of advice. This was the cause of the Preventer motto tread softly but carry a big ass sword. And it served them well. Tristan had his favorite sword with him. Luciendar, he called it, sword of shadows.
"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost." -Lord of the Rings
Against the fading sunset gleamed a fading red fire. And as it receded, he looked out at the sunset. Thinking. Not moving. Silent. After about half an hour he went to find some firewood. Upon returning he found a squirrel by the now pathetic flames. It was dead before it noticed he was there. He ate, and then sat. Silent. Not moving. Just thinking.
None could tell by his hard-chiseled features where he had come from. None could ask. He was there. That was all anyone could tell. If they were lucky, they saw the tangled, shoulder-length brown hair and the hunter green cloak before they died. Few had seen him. None had lived past that moment. After his fire died, he went to sleep. And so slept the one known as Tristan Shinagami*. Little did he know that the next few hours would change his life.
Tristan awoke to a small fire crackling merrily in the fire pit he had made his home next to. Sitting beside it was a young boy dressed in a black jumpsuit with a red undershirt. Before the stranger could move, Tristan had his sword aimed at his neck. "Who-,"He never finished his sentence. The other boy had drawn a sword and blocked Tristan with ease. "Hey, Tristan, whats up?" he said with a grin. "Long time no see." "Who are you??" "The name's Duo Maxwell." "I don't care who you are. You are intru-" "If you don't care, then why ask?" "First of all,"said Tristan angrily, "you are in the presence of Tristan Shinagami, so wipe that cocky grin off your face." "Yeah, right, and I'm the Tenchinoshi*." "WHAT'S THAT!" "You aren't the Shinagami. You are the Youkai Shinagami*. I'm the Shinagami, so don't get all high and mighty." "You are so dead! You invade my camp, you stand before me like you know me, and you insult me,"Tristan was furious, but there was something oddly familiar about this person. "Well, now that we've all had our little chance to blow off steam, are you comin' or what?" "Coming where?" "Home." They both just looked at each other. Duo's face had a look of "Now is when it gets interesting." "Home?" Tristan was unable to say any more. He was totally shocked. "Well, where else would brothers have a reunion?" Duo gave a little smile. "Brothers..?" thought Tristan, "How.?" A rustling broke the silence. Tristan grabbed his bow and fitted a deadly shaft to it, letting it fly just moments after. And to his amazement, the man kept on walking. "Did you drop this?" asked the man in a low tenor voice. He held up the arrow Tristan had fired moments before. He had caught it without even looking. Tristan was about to answer when he actually saw the person. He had brown hair in need of a trim and deep blue Prussian eyes. "Yo, Heero, long time no see." Said Duo, a smile still on his face. "So, you finally found him. Ya, that's him. You two look too much alike for it to be a coincidence. " "What are you TALKING ABOUT!?" "Duo, you haven't told him?" "Nope, I was waiting for you." "Look, I don't care who you are! How do you know me and why are you here?" "When I was two,"said Duo, a light shining in his eyes, " Our parents were killed in an air raid. You were only one at the time. A bunch of war orphans were around, and they took us in. They taught us how to talk, and basically raised us. When I was seven, we tried to rob the Alliance food stores. That's when we were separated. I went to the Maxwell church until it was destroyed." Duo laughed," You somehow made it to earth." Tristan just sat there gazing into the fire. After a time he said, "I don't remember it at all." He stood up. "You are wasting my time. You have seen Tristan Youkai Shinagami. Now DIE!"His sword flashed as he drew it from the scabbard. It got no further. "Don't tell me you forgot I was here. You have skill, but you lack training."Said Heero's deep tenor as he knocked him to the ground. Tristan was furious. He had never been beaten before. His veins were popping out, his muscles bulged. That was all he remembered. His mind collapsed into a sea of rage. "DIE!!!" A shock wave knocked Heero and Duo off their feet. Trees were being uprooted and flattened, rocks were being hurled away, and anything that wouldn't move was being crushed into something that would. Tristan looked up suddenly. His eyes were red in the middle and black on the outside. His gaze pierced through the gloom that had gathered, looking at the boys with pure hatred. "You are a disgrace to the earth!" he cried, the ground under his feet crumpling. Heero grabbed his sword and attacked. It broke upon Tristan's neck. Then he was blasted harder than before. Getting his footing, he yelled, "Well, I'm satisfied, Duo. If that isn't him, then we're screwed. Now seems as good a time as any." "Then let's both be GODS!"With that, Duo's eyes turned a golden yellow and black fire consumed his body. A red circle glowed in the blaze. From it came a shock wave that ripped apart the landscape. Heero groaned. "Here we go again."There was a blinding flash of light, and when it receded, Heero was different. He had on a white kimono with a sword on each side. A bow and a quiver were strapped to his back. "The Tenchinoshi has arrived," exclaimed Duo with a smile. "So has the Hanyou o Korosu*, as always." Another boy flipped above the now- flattened trees. He had claws sharper than knives and blades on his back and elbows. "Man, you follow us everywhere, don't you Trowa." "So that's him, huh?" No answer came. Everything was silent. Tristan had collapsed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ He awoke in a small room. Sitting next to him was Duo, asleep. "Where..where am I. I don't remember anything after I got knocked down." "Of course you don't," said a familiar voice. Tristan started. Duo had been just faking being asleep. "You summoned godly power, of course you don't remember." "For the last time, dammit, where are we and what are you talking about. I didn't get dragged from my camp to some nuthouse for no reason." "We're in the training facility and rooming quarters of the Earth Sphere Unified Nations Preventers Corps, to give it the full title. We're just known as Preventers. As for your other question, you are the Descended Youkai Shinagami. I am the Shinagami. Heero, who you met, is the Tenchinoshi. Trowa, you wouldn't remember him, but he's a half-demon who helps us. The Hanyou o Korosu." "And I'm supposed to believe this. Yeah, right." "Let's talk over a drink," Duo said, smiling, " This place is boring." A few minutes later, they were in the middle of a town Tristan didn't recognize. Duo led him to a small bar that seemed to be frequented by Preventers. Duo had to help Tristan decide which drink to get; he had never been to a bar before. He decided on a Shirley Temple.? "So what are we training for, I mean, if we are Gods, which will really piss off most people of any religion, why do we need training?" "Nothing much. We pilot mobile suits, save the world, and sleep. The last part is the best part of my day." "But you guys were doing fine from what I heard. Why did you need me?" "I wanted to see my brother?" Duo said with an 'are you going to buy this one, or do I have to really tell you?' look. Tristan cocked an eyebrow. "O.K., cards on the table. All the mobile suits have been destroyed, and Quatre has been killed. We need you to take his place." Tristan smiled, " You need me in order to save the world? From what??" "The vice president." Tristan burst out laughing. "What, is he a demon or something?" "Close enough. He's being controlled by a fallen Angel named Hildegarn. He wants to show people how horrible crime and war are by causing them." "So that's why only gods and demons can fight him." "Duh." A mock expression of terror came over Tristan's face. "Oh, no, an Angel, what's he gonna do, beat me with his feathers?" "He'll destroy your mind. He can fire energy. He has godly power." "So he's basically a guy out of Akira Toriyama's* dreams." "Right." "So let me get this straight. You want me to fight a fallen Angel who just happens to be one of the highest-ranking officials in America, who wants to bring peace through war, even though we have peace right now? Man, where's Zechs when you need him?" Duo coughed in his drink. "How do you know who Zechs is?" But Tristan wouldn't answer. Instead he looked across the bar at a familiar face in the crowd. "So we have our story, but what's his," he asked, looking at a teenager, no more than 17, with brown hair and deep blue Prussian eyes. "I can't tell you that, he'd kill me, and believe me, he could do that very easily." Tristan sighed. "Oh well." To Duo's surprise, he got up and walked up to Heero. What Duo didn't notice was the dagger hidden in Tristan's shirt. "Hey, you got a life, or did you just drop from the sky like Hildegarn?" Heero didn't even notice. "Shove it and talk, Tenchinoshi, or I'll stab you with a Q-tip." Heero looked over at him. "You got a lot of nerve, or a lot of ego. Either way, the Q-tip thing deserves something." "So how's Relena doing?" Heero looked at him in surprise. "So it was you all along. Damnit, Zechs." "Yes, it was me. So how's she doing?" Heero looked away with a blank face. After a couple of seconds he said, "She was a spy for Hildegarn all along, and when we found out." "I'm sorry. Teaches you never to trust a pacifist. If looks could kill-" "They can't so shut up!" The look he gave Tristan would have made ice melt and oceans freeze. "Oookkayyy." Tristan got up and left. Heero just sat there gazing out into space. "Man, what's up with that? All I said was if looks could kill and he gets all pissed off." "If you knew him, you'd understand. Until you kill and feel guilty, you won't." "I guess I never will understand then." "You will soon enough." Tristan gave him a strange look. Duo just smiled back. The next morning, Duo walked into Tristan's room and screamed, "TRISTAN, I'M STEALING YOUR WEAPONS!!!" Tristan got up immediately. "I thought that would get you up. Come on, time for breakfast and then you have training right after that." "Training??" "Well, if you can't control your power, someone has to teach you, right?" "Shut up. It's 6:00 in the morning, I'm tired, and I'm not a morning person." Duo just grabbed his sword and walked out the door. Tristan came running after him. After a five-minute game of cat-and-mouse, Tristan finally got his sword back. Panting, Duo said, "I'm, I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat." He led them down a long corridor, and they ended up in what looked like a school cafeteria. Then, after a quick breakfast consisting of about 10 pounds of food, Duo took him to the locker room. "Out that door," he said," is the training room. Have fun." With that, Duo left. Tristan got into his fighting "uniform." Basically a muscle-T and some baggy pants, which was what he had been wearing for the last 16 years of his life (not the same ones, mind you.) What really surprised him was it was his stuff. Probably taken from his camp as Duo and Heero left. After he got on all his weapons(which didn't take long) Tristan went into the training room. To his disappointment, it was just a large room with padded walls, floor, and ceiling. Suddenly, he was pulled down hard by an unseen force. In walked the person he least expected to see. The boy who was one year older and so much better. The boy with the brown hair and deep blue Prussian eyes. "I hope 100x normal gravity won't be too hard for the Demon God of Death." "You bastard." "Take off the weapons and it'll be easier. Or," he said, "If you're too proud I'll just beat you into a bloody pulp." He took one of the swords from Tristan and raised it above his head, ready to strike. The second the tip hit the ground he was propelled forward by an elbow dug deep into his back. "Missed me," said a cold voice. The second he said it a fist sent him sprawling on the ground. "Not that time. Look, I'm willing to teach you how to control your power, but if you don't want to learn then we might as well do this all day." Three hours later, at 350x normal gravity, Heero broke a sweat. After training, Tristan went to Duo's room. There he found Duo with a drum set he was banging on and loud music playing. He killed the music and looked sheepishly at Tristan. "I could have been a rock star." "There's still time," Tristan said with all seriousness. Over the intercom they heard 3 beeps. Duo got up, sighing. "Time for practice." A few hours later, Duo returned to find Tristan gone. On the desk was a note that said "gone to eat, be back later." "Whatever."
Elsewhere.
"Noin, where are you?" asked a gruff voice. "Over here." "How's he doing?" "Pretty good. He has your ability and my brain," she said, as she watched her 7-year-old son practice in his Tallgeese*. Exhausting day followed exhausting day. Training was followed by more training. But there was a fortunate side effect. Not only could Tristan now fully control his power, but he could now give Duo and Heero a challenge. One day he was just finishing up practice with Heero, who had at least gotten less hostile towards him, when Duo walked in the door with full fighting outfit on. "Now I get to train you in stealth. After this, Trowa will give you a crash course in Arial Assault." "Oh, great, more training." Heero just smiled. Now Tristan had training from seven a.m. to 12:00, then from 1:00 to 5:00, then from 7:00 to 10:00. Needless to say, he was getting tired. This routine lasted for about another month, until the day he showed up for practice, and Duo told him to go back to sleep. "It's seven in the morning, I've been getting up at six for two months, and I'm tired. Go to sleep." Tristan did so gladly. He went to sleep and didn't get up until noon. Then he learned why there was no practice. Trowa, who he had gotten to know very well, came and told him they were needed in the briefing room. "We have our first mission of open defiance against Hildegarn tomorrow at noon," Heero said," I suggest after this briefing everyone get some sleep. It's gonna be a long week. Now," He said, pointing to a location on a lit map," Trowa, you and Duo will attack from the north side of the structure once you receive three beeps over the radio. Tristan, you and I will go in through the underground entrance, disguised as mercenaries. Trowa, after we let you in, your job is to find Wufei and get all the info you can in fifteen minutes. After that, we blast the place apart. Tell Wufei that the room he used to have is cold, so if he wants to run with us, he can. Any questions?" "Ya," said Duo, " say that we get past the guards with the guns, and down the elevator we can't move, and into the bowels of enemy territory, we're just supposed to give Trowa a distraction by blasting the hell out of the place?" There was a long pause. "Ya." "Oh, ok, just checking, because I thought I could use some stealth and infiltrate the place. No, oh come on, at least let me have a little fun." "Go to sleep, Duo."
"Yes, sir," he said with more gratitude than sarcasm. Tristan slept until about dinnertime, and then went out. He was amazed at how well he had gotten to know the town in three months. The preventers had free reign of the bars, and all he had to do was show i.d. and he got into anything. It was weird, finally being in a city. All his life he had lived in the forests or wherever he could get food. But now he had a tab that was paid for by the preventers, and he used it well. He didn't particularly love the flashing neon signs, and he absolutely hated walking down the streets that were crowded with people. The buildings towered above him, and there was no place to go but up. Otherwise, this was bliss. You could hide just as easily in the city as you could anywhere else, and there was one thing he had never known that made everything so much better. There was a jazz club that was Tristan's favorite place to go. It was nice and quiet, and the music! It was amazing. Otherwise, Tristan was categorized as a punk. But he didn't mind. He was left alone for the most part. The other punks respected him, and no one got in his way. Usually. At the club, Tristan got his usual table near the back, on a raised section of the restaurant. He loved to just sit there and listen to the music and poetry. People just went up and read their poetry or preformed, and it was a very calming place. Normally Tristan just sat and applauded politley, snapping his fingers like everyone else. But tonight someone asked him if he wanted a turn. He was about to say no, when he found himself being pushed to the stage. "Well, okay, I .guess." He sat down and took out a little piece of paper. "I just wrote this yesterday, but here goes. The danger in my eyes may look nice, but don't pick my fight. Because I just might take a bite in the fight. Blindly seduced by the light of the fight, my gaze will turn your heart into fright. So don't roll the dice, because I might not be that nice. The shadow of your fright will reflect off the light, which will bring the fight. Despite the light of the fight, there might be a time we can reunite.right; the tougher you think you are, the weaker you become. All that might be right will be escorted by the fight." The audience was silent for a moment, until one person's applause was heard. It took just another moment for the entire crowd to burst out applauding. Tristan got up, smiling, and slowly returned to his seat. It wasn't until the next person was on stage that the applause died. Afterwards, he stayed a little while, and then left just as silently as he had come. Walking through the much hated streets, he turned a corner into an alley that was a shortcut to one of the entrances to the Preventers quarters. But there were some other people coming, and they didn't look too happy. Tristan turned around, but the way was already blocked. "Damn," he whispered, and prepared to put his skills to a small test. "Man, where you think you goin'. You think you can just walk up through our land an' get away with it. Well, you wrong. We gonna beat you're ass down, foo." Tristan almost choked with laughter. These were the type of gangsters who were really preps on the inside. Too easy. "You best watch yourself, and you BEST not be trippin, foo," Tristan mocked in perfect ebonics. The ringleader tensed up. "You goin' down, now." The man lunged at Tristan, and didn't wake up until two weeks later. The rest of the gang stared for a moment, and that was all Tristan needed. He swiftly dealt out blow after blow, and didn't stop until there were none left standing. He chuckled to himself and moved on, stepping over his unconcious victims. "They were too cocky." Six a.m. They had been up for four hours, hiking through impenetrable jungle with no sign of stopping. Machetes had proved of no use, so they all unsheathed their swords and started hacking away. "When caught in battle, always have a sword," had been Trowa's first piece of advice. This was the cause of the Preventer motto tread softly but carry a big ass sword. And it served them well. Tristan had his favorite sword with him. Luciendar, he called it, sword of shadows.