Beyond Omega
by Maria Rocket
***
Author's Notes: For all warnings and pairings, see chapter 1.
To those who commented last chapter, thank you, thank you!!! I've been so curious as to what others opinions about what's going on in the story are, and I really appreciate them. Oh, and yes, Treize and Une are in the story. I really just mentioned the main pairings in the first chapter notes, but there are a few other ones in here. Since it was asked, yes again, Zechs and Noin are definitely showing up here later on. Well, anyone still reading, thanks muchly! ^__^
All previous chapters of this fic can be found here:
http://gundamthing.50g.com/gwomega.html
***
We had a life, we had a love,
But you don't know what you've got 'til you lose it
Well that was then and this is now
And I want you back
How many times do I have to say I'm sorry
I only wanted someone to love
But something happened on the way to heaven
It got a hold of me and wouldn't let go
And I want you back
How many times do I have to say I'm sorry
You can run, and you can hide
But I'm not leaving less you come with me
We've had our problems but I'm on your side
You're all I need, please believe in me
How can something so good go so bad
How can something so right go so wrong
I don't know, I don't have all the answers
But I want you back
How many times can I say I'm sorry
They say you can't take it with you
When you go
And I believe it
But taking what I've got or being
here with you, you know
I'd rather leave it
You can run...
- "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven"
by Phil Collins
***
Chapter 6
"Leave?" Quatre's voice sounded so small to his own ears. "For how long?"
"For as long as it takes." Heero told him. "I know some people in the Southernlands that might be able to help us. If nothing else, it'll be a perfect place to hide. The rainforests down there are so thick, you could easily lose yourself in them forever if you aren't careful."
"What about Duo?" As the ache in his head faded away, Quatre remembered the last time he had seen his best friend. His voice rose in a panic. "Duo! The dragon, he got Duo! Where is he!?"
"Duo will be fine." Heero put his hands on Quatre's shoulders to prevent him from running off. "He was seriously injured, but the doctors will be able to help him."
"But I..." Quatre shook his head. "I can't go without Duo! I have to stay until he's better. I can hide again, Heero, just for a while..."
"No, Quatre, you have to get out of here while you still can. Duo couldn't come even if he wasn't hurt. He's better off staying here where he's safe."
"No!" Quatre shouted roughly, trying hopelessly to break Heero's grip. "I won't go anywhere without Duo! I can't, I..." He'd never been anywhere without Duo before. Not like this. He squeezed his eyes shut, and his voice became small again. "Can't I at least see him before we go? Who knows when I'll ever be able to see him again."
When he opened his eyes, he was surprised at the sympathy in Heero's blue eyes. Of course, Quatre wasn't the only one leaving Cinq behind. Had he been able to see Relena before coming here?
"I'm sorry, but it's too risky." Heero said softly. "You know Duo wouldn't want you to endanger yourself like that." He let his hands slip from Quatre's shoulders. "You had better go pack, and be quick about it. This is one of the first places the Draca are bound to look for you."
"Come on, Quatre, I'll help you." Rashid said, gently leading him towards the house.
"I know..." Quatre whispered. "But Duo would have wanted to come..."
***
Very few shirts went into the black backpack. It was very warm down in the Southernlands, even at that time of year. But even so, Rashid found room for several pairs of jeans he had bought for Quatre during the past few days. Finishing the packing, he turned to find Quatre staring into his closet.
The boy had changed into dry clothes, but he still held the dripping blue duster. "Is there anything else especially important about myself that I should know before I leave?" His voice was bitter.
"I told you before Quatre," Rashid said with a heavy weariness. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you the whole truth about your birthmark. That's because I couldn't be sure of the truth. You were too young to have to worry about it. You still are."
"You still lied. You... You lied to me, Rashid."
The hurt and betrayal in Quatre's voice tore at him. He had been so preoccupied during the entire ordeal, and now, there simply wasn't enough time for him to make Quatre understand why he had acted the way he had.
"I only wanted to protect you, Quatre. Because I care about you. And your mother wouldn't have wanted you to grow up with these wild ideas about who you are."
Now Quatre turned his face and frowned at him. "Can I trust what you say my mother would have wanted? And what about my father?" His voice broke on the word. "You know, I've had a lot of time to think lately. And I've realized that you never really talk about father at all. Why is that, Rashid?"
Those dark blue eyes, shadowed beneath dirty, uncombed blonde hair, seemed to burn right into him, demanding an answer. As he paused, they began to shimmer with unshed tears. Rashid knew that whatever answer he gave, could be damning. To tell another lie, was something Quatre might never forgive, should the truth ever come out. But the truth, what little to none Rashid knew, could needlessly haunt the boy.
"Your mother never told me who your father was." Rashid said sincerely. "But she was very much in love with our captain. I assumed he must have been your father. And he was a very normal, good man. He died in Doomsday with everyone else." It was the truth. He had no proof the cloaked man he had seen with Quaterine that one time had been a Wizard. And the Captain was the one he had long suspected of being Quatre's father. She had been so determined that he not know of her pregnancy. Yes, it was the truth.
It had to be.
The accusation in Quatre's eyes faded, leaving him with a weary look. "I'm sorry, Rashid. I know this isn't your fault. You've done everything for me, and I..."
"Try not to worry too much about it." He knelt down to gather Quatre into a tight hug. "It's who you are that's important, not what others say you are. Just be true to yourself. And listen to Prince Heero. You need to trust him now."
The small boy seemed to shrink against him. "Why can't you come with us?"
"I'll only slow you down."
"I don't want to go..." Thin fingers grasped the front of Rashid's robe. "It feels too much like goodbye. I'm afraid... I'm afraid I won't come back, ever."
Maybe that would be best. If Quatre never returned, then there really was no need to be concerned. Right? "I don't know if you can come back. But I will see you again. I'll meet up with you elsewhere if I have to. And I'll tell Duo when he's recovered."
Quatre's grip loosened a little. "Thank you..."
Seeing that the boy still held the wet duster, Rashid tried to pull it away. Quatre shook his head and refused to give it up. "Quatre, let go. It's soaked."
"I want to take it with me. Please, Rashid?"
"If you insist... You won't be needing it where you're going."
"I know," Quatre stepped back, holding the coat to his chest again. "I just want to keep a memory of you with me."
Rashid smiled in understanding. "I WILL meet up with you again. Don't let yourself worry so much." He took the wet coat and folded it. He would find a place for it in Quatre's pack. "Heero will take care of you." He was trying to assure himself as much as Quatre. "You'll be fine, we'll make it through this."
Quatre gave a sad nod. Then with a whimper, he jumped forward to hug Rashid a last time.
***
Slouching back in the stiff seat, Quatre was uncomfortable. Heero had found them a hovercraft to take them over the treacherous Mayak Mountains. Unfortunately, it was a cargocarrier, and the fold-out seats in the hold were not ideal for a trip that would last at least three days. Trying to ignore the growing crick in his neck, Quatre turned to look outside the little oval-shaped window beside him. There was no moon. Glittering stars were scattered across the sky.
It was the first clear night since... Since the night he had left home with Heero. Shortly after leaving, the air had become thick with fog. For several days they had been constantly on the move, Heero carrying Quatre on his back the entire time. They had not stopped for more than a few minutes at a time, moving steadily, not as quickly as Heero could go, but fast enough to stay ahead of anyone who might be following. Quatre had been surprised at how smooth the journey across the kingdom had been. Heero's feet didn't even seem to touch the ground, it had felt more like they were flying than running. Silently, they had traveled within the cover of dark mist to the southernmost point of Cinq.
And now they were crossing over the Mayak Mountains, the borderlands between Cinq and Rainsoul. Quatre pulled up the collar of his blue duster and pulled it tightly closed across his chest. He couldn't sleep.
Unlike Heero, who had fallen into a deep sleep after take-off. He was sitting nearby, breathing softly. Now that they were surely alone, Quatre wanted to talk to him again, but he wasn't going to disturb him. After days without sleep, Heero deserved to rest.
Quatre closed his eyes. Everything was lightly vibrating with the thin hum of the engine. With nothing else to distract him, the sound and noise was making him anxious. The longer he dwelled on it, the more it disturbed him. An image of threads of searing green electricity flashed behind his eyes, and he opened them with a frightened moan.
Wiping at his sweaty face with shaking hands, he looked over at Heero, who was still asleep. Had he imagined it? Turning towards the window, he was surprised to see that the sky was becoming the faded blue of first light.
Strange. He was sure he had only closed his eyes for a few minutes. Morning should not have arrived so soon. Staring back into the valley they were leaving behind, he saw the first golden rays of light spilling over the horizon. As the glow spread, Quatre also felt a warmth spread inside him. He smiled dreamily. It was... beautiful. So beautiful. As the golden orb of the sun slowly rose, he realized that he was looking at the same view of the valley that he had been staring at for weeks. It was exactly the same as the painting of the sunset in his room back at the palace. At least, he had thought it was a sunset. Now he wasn't sure.
Resting his cheek against the window, he stared out at it, soaking up the warmth until the valley was long out of sight.
***
Heero glanced out at the dark mist billowing around them. Flying like this made him uncomfortable. It wasn't that he didn't trust the pilots or the equipment to steer them through the jagged mountaintops safely. But he knew from experience that just about anything could be flying around out there...
He tore his sharp eyes away from the mist. It was no use dwelling on it. If something was out there, he could do nothing about it. His attention shifted towards Quatre. The boy was asleep again. He had hardly stirred since they'd entered the thick mist of the mountains, only waking for a short while each time it was time for a meal. Heero wasn't afraid of Quatre, but any unusual behavior was something he meant to keep a close watch of. He could do that, at least.
Back home, Relena was surely in a bigger mess than before. They had both known it was inevitable. Still, that made it no easier to sit where he was, while Relena was left to face the wrath of the Draca by herself.
And Duo. Despite the reassurances he gave Quatre, he was himself worried about what had become of their friend. Duo had been in extremely poor condition when he was left in the care of the hospital staff.
Maybe the world itself wasn't ending, but he felt like his personal life was coming close to it. He was teetering so close to possibly losing two of his best friends, and he had no idea when he would ever see Relena again, the person he had been born to protect. And the Draca, the wise guardians of the eastern border, had gone mad.
He couldn't imagine how anyone, especially little Quatre, could make things any worse.
***
"They know... They know you!"
The high pitched laughter faded into a pained whine. The emerald light hurt, it seared him. But there was no escaping it. Quatre was the light.
"No," he howled. "No!" The light flared. "Hurts..."
"We must all die. We are diseased... sick... dying... Your fault."
The light twisted and screamed.
Away. He had to get away. To make it stop. Desperately, he tried to focus on another place, before the pain... But that hurt too much. No, there had always been pain, he had always been sick. But once...
"No! I don't want to remember that! I HATE him! Never speak that name! NEVER!" A roar rippled through the sickly green light.
But there was another lifetime... After the first mistake... But before the unforgivable crime... There was something there that he dearly wanted to remember... Something he wanted back. Desperate to escape the indescrible agony, he let his mind wander away, to a happier place, long since gone.
But even the memory could be cruel.
God, his head hurt. The cold plate beneath his forehead only helped a very little. Opening his eyes a bit, he could see the crawling, infested city outside his highrise apartment, groping out its grimy metal and glass fingers as far as the eye could see and beyond. In the far distance, he could barely make out the hellish red glow of the setting sun through the omnipresent shroud of black smoke that choked the city. He scratched his fingernails against the glass window. He hurt so bad. He wanted out. He didn't want to be out there, but he wanted to get out. The doctors told him it was too much stress from his work, and that he needed to relax. But they just didn't understand. He had felt this way since he was a child, maybe always. It felt like he wanted to burst out of his own head and rip off his skin.
With a moan, he staggered back from the window. Big dark eyes, almost black, stared back at him. They were set in a lean, tanned face, framed with silky black hair that didn't quite reach his shoulders. His scraggly, limp dog-like hair, he thought. No, he had seen dogs with better hair than his! He scowled at his reflection, pulling at his uneven bangs in frustration. God, he hated his hair.
And it didn't help that his usually boyish face looked years older than his thirty-two years when he was in pain like this. He had to do something. As he turned around, his eyes went to a fork on the table. He picked it up. Feeling the cold metal under his thumb, he glanced uncertainly to the wallclock, then to the front door. As his eyes moved along the wall, he began to tremble.
He didn't have much time. But surely... Just very quickly... To make the pain go away...
He licked his lips. And the doorbell rang.
The fork clattered to the floor as he gave a start. Fumbling nervously, he replaced the fork on the carefully set table, and dashed to the door. He paused to quickly smooth his shirt, and raised two crossed fingers above his head in a silent, very fervent prayer, before composing a sweet smile on his face and calmly opening the door. "Terra! Hello!"
The woman at the door smiled ruefully. "C'mon Max, all I get is a 'hello?'"
Before he could reply, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him in a way that made his knees weak. And as she pressed against him, he forgot all about the pain. It was so tempting to just forget about dinner too and skip straight to the bedroom. When she ended the kiss, he tried to chase her lips, but was met by her teasing jade eyes and the tip of her finger against his mouth instead. She really was a tease. And he loved her that way.
Terra was a willowy woman with long white-gold hair that seemed to float around her like a cloud. Since the first time he saw her at the library, he was completely bewitched by her. For the first time in his life, he loved someone as much as he loved... his work. No, he loved her even more, he was sure of it. There was just something very special about her. What she saw in him, he still had no idea.
Smiling with delight, he pulled her to the dinner table.
As usual, Max spent most of the dinner conversation asking Terra how things were going at the library. She was in a constant struggle to keep the old library from closing down for good. Almost no one read books anymore, and the Supreme Council believed the large buildings were a waste of valuable space. The historic societies were fighting to keep them in service, but public opinion weighed against them more and more each year.
With a sigh, Terra set aside her plate with Max's. "I think we'll be resorting to candles soon." She crossed her arms and frowned. "Now the Council is saying we're wasting power resources. Can you believe it? They have all those gaudy lights all over their building, and they say our little table lamps are waste!?" She met his eyes again with a look of exasperation. "Next, we'll be probably be a fire hazard."
If only... His hands twitched slightly. He shook his head apologetically. "I'm sorry, Terra."
She blinked, then smiled. "What for? It isn't your fault the Supreme Council is full of idiots."
Max stared down at his fork, then looked back up at her with a small chuckle. "I guess you're right about that." But if only it was finished... Then the Council wouldn't be able to make any more excuses. If only he put in some more hours, worked faster... He could help Terra, do something worthwhile for her...
"What's this?" Terra raised an eyebrow at the crystal ball between them on the table. "Don't tell me you're becoming a fortune teller."
With a chuckle, Max placed his fingertips on the crystal and his dark eyes looked up at her from beneath his hair. "Okay, I won't tell you. However, I must warn you of a tall dark stranger in your future." He smirked. "And since I'm not tall, he better not touch you!"
They laughed, and Max sat back in his chair.
"Really now." Terra smiled. She gave the crystal a more skeptical look. "This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with... you know... the incidents that have been happening lately, would it? I know you work at that big-shot research facility that's got everybody in an uproar. So what kind of mad scientist stuff are you doing up there?"
"Oh, you know, the usual." He shrugged with a wry grin, leaning in. "Putting together monsters and testing death rays." His smiled faded and he shook his head with a frown. "I don't know how people can swallow that crap the papers are saying. If they only knew how important our work is... That we're trying to fix-" he waved a hand at the cityscape behind him. "That."
Terra rested her face in her hand and studied his face for a moment. "So there really isn't any connection between your lab and the spontaneous explosions throughout the city."
"Please Terra, those are just randomly occuring storms. Probably ball lightning." He threw his hands out, becoming agitated. "I can't imagine how people can be so surprised. Our atmosphere is so fucked up, they should be used to freak weather by now." Closing his eyes, he rubbed at his forehead. It was starting to hurt again.
His free hand was grasped by Terra. "Max."
He opened his eyes. Terra was giving him a look of concern and worry. He forced a weak smile to his face. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to take it out on you. It just gets so frustrating sometimes."
"I know." Terra nodded, her green eyes understanding. She squeezed his hand gently. "Max, are you well? You look terrible."
"Don't worry about me." Max squeezed back with a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. Look." He leaned in and moved a tiny dial at the base of the crystal ball. Terra gave a small gasp as a tiny light flared to life in the center of it. The air shimmered and colors fractured around the spark.
"What is that?" Terra blinked and narrowed her eyes at it.
"My life's work." He said, almost fondly. "This is going to change the world, Terra." In a way he might caress her own face, he touched the crystal surface with his fingertips. "Limitless, pure, power." Electric blue strands of light shot out from the spark to meet his touch. They shimmered and danced to follow his fingertips like they were alive...
"Wait, isn't that a plasma ball?" Terra frowned.
"No, it isn't a plasma ball." Max lifted his face to meet her eyes. "This is a tiny working model of what I'm experimenting with in the lab." He took her hand that was in his, and placed it on the crystal surface. He knew from the widening of her emerald eyes, that she could feel the deep resonance within. "More powerful than a billion stars, and infinitely safer than manipulating atoms. There is no waste. Only pure power, secure within the crystal. You simply need to know the right song to coax it out." He smiled.
"So, the crystal is creating the light?"
"I don't think so." Max took her other hand and placed it on the crystal. Twining their fingers together, he traced lazy circles of light against the surface. He did the same with their other joined hands. "I think of it more as a doorway. A point of entry."
Terra looked up at him with those eyes, so deep, he nearly forgot what he was talking about. "A doorway from where?"
Max swallowed hard. "Ah, um, I don't know. Yet." He hesitated for a moment, then continued. "Daniel thinks we may have tapped into a source of dark matter." He gave a shrug. "We only have theories. We really haven't any idea where it's coming from. What's important at this stage is that it's real."
"Hmm." Terra looked down at the blue threads dancing beneath their fingers. "Daniel... He's your partner, isn't he? I'm sure I've heard you mention him before."
"Yeah... He's been working on this with me since... since..." It was becoming difficult to talk with Terra's fingers rubbing up and down the backs of his hands. "...Since..." She was getting up. "Ah, since we..." She was moving around the table. "...we were in college together. Terra?"
"Yes?" She was sitting across his lap now, playing with the buttons on his shirt.
Max shifted restlessly in his seat as one came undone. "I don't think I can explain any further while you're sitting there." He said, slightly breathless. "You're very distracting."
Terra leaned in close with a dark, lascivious smile. "Good."
Good... So good... But it was just an echo.
And the torment plunged through Quatre anew.
"Terra! TERRA!" He wailed helplessly, hopelessly.
"TERRAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Emerald energy flared and CRACKED.
***
A sudden movement caught his eye, and Heero looked over.
Fingers gripping the armrests so hard his nails were snapping, Quatre was tensing up. His eyes were tightly closed while his face twisted up into a grimace that was threatening to become a snarl. Sweat beaded his face.
Now the poor kid was having nightmares. Intending to wake him up, Heero stood.
Suddenly, an intense flash of light threw him down. He thought he heard Quatre cry out, but that was quickly drowned out by a fierce roar of thunder. Before he could do anything at all, Heero found himself falling away into dark mist. The air crackled with static.
***
For a few terrifying minutes, Quatre couldn't remember who he was. Streamers of gray water fell from the dark mist swirling above. He was soaked. Taking slow, shuddering breaths into his lungs, he began to remember.
He had been in a hovercraft with Heero. He had been asleep, he was sure. But then, where was he now? Almost daring to wish everything had just been a dream, Quatre moved to lift himself up. And instantly fell back with a choked cry of pain.
Trying to support himself, he had stabbed his arms with hundreds of jagged glass pieces. And as he fell back, he realized that his back was also imbedded with glass shards. A small whimper escaped him. His back and shoulders felt like ground meat. The back of his head was surely a bloody mess.
Biting down on his lip, he gingerly pulled himself to his feet. Swaying on his feet, he stared dully at the glass crunching beneath his boots. It glowed with a faint greenish tint. Not glass. Crystal. Wizard Crystal.
He was standing where the hovercraft's engine had once been.
Splintered trees and crushed metal intertwined seemed to be growing out of the soft earth. Here, it was still deep shadow. But turning his eyes up, Quatre saw the first signs of sunlight reaching through the forest canopy.
The forest itself was unlike anything Quatre had seen before. There were no trees like these back home. They were spidery, branches twisting everywhere. It was nearly impossible to tell where each tree stopped and another started. The foilage was so much greener and thicker than anything back home. And darker. And scarier.
Wincing, he worked at pulling the crystal shards out of his arms. They were bleeding a lot, but there was nothing he could do for it. He cut his hands even more trying to remove the shards from his back. He managed some of it, but some crystal pieces seemed firmly imbedded in his shoulders. The blood was soaking through his shirt, sticking the sleeves and the back to his skin. Feeling weak, he slowly made his way through the wreckage. He had to find Heero.
Instead, he found the pilots. At least what was left of them.
Lightheaded, he stared blankly for a moment, not quite understanding what he was seeing. As comprehension came on him, his stomach knotted. Stumbling to get away, he fell against a mossy tree trunk. Clutching it to keep himself upright, he gave a few dry heaves before he was able to recover. Forcing himself to keep his eyes away from what was on the ground behind him, he looked up to see a strip of metal that had been stabbed into the tree. Dark cloth hung from it like a banner. It was his duster, hanging from a rip through one of the sleeves. Pulling it down, the damp fabric tore easily. Although he was already soaked to the bone, he pulled it on, wanting more between him and the strange new place he had arrived in.
His boots squealched through thick mud as he carefully made his way around the tree. It was difficult to keep himself from tripping over intricate roots that looped as through they were made to catch his feet. Slowly, he made his way through the dark skeletal remains of the cargoship, praying that Heero was still alive.
***
God damn lightning. With his luck, he was going to be killed before he even hit ground. Heero glared away at the quickly dwindling green smear falling into the distance. Damn it! The engine must have been hit.
Branches and wet foilage suddenly crashed around him. He threw his arms out and frantically seized at anything to slow his descent to the forest floor. Tree limbs snapped and dragged down in his grip, and birds and various animals fled screaming as Heero fell tier by tier deeper into their treetop world.
His face and every exposed surface of his skin was being lashed mercilessly by the claw-like branches as he passed, the air and leaves softly hissing like an immense wild animal. Finally, slowing down, he caught a firm branch under one knee and held tight. Just then, it all finally gave way without warning, and he jerked as he fell head first into open air. Dangling by one knee, he stared down at the forest floor, still very far below.
Blood and rain streaked across his vision, distorting his usually enhanced eyesight. If there was something unpleasant waiting for him down there, he was going to have to find out the hard way. Despite the racket he had made on the way down, maybe nothing had heard him. Without a sound, he let go of the branch, flipped over in midair with a feline grace, and landed as silent as a feather.
His jacket wiggled. Oh no, he'd forgotten! Hastily, he unzippered his jacket and reached in. A very ruffled mass of jungle green feathers and jewel-like blue scales with a big yellow beak was pulled out. The Bimary gave a squawk of dismay.
Heero examined the bird-like creature and was relieved to find it unharmed. His pet had been too unusual to stay out in the open when they had first set out, but there in Rainsoul, the natural habitat of the Bimary, there was no chance of Klarn standing out. Hugging Klarn to his chest, he smoothed its feathers and rubbed the back of its glossy head. A cuddle always calmed the creature. And it calmed Heero too. At least a little.
He had to get moving. The odds weren't good, but maybe, somehow, Quatre had survived the crash. Releasing Klarn into the air, he moved forward. One step, a faster second step, an even faster third step, moving smoothly into a run. The world zipped by him at a blur, but his razor sharp eyes somehow caught every detail, every movement around him as he passed. To Heero, running was one of the most exhilarating things in the world. He was as if one with the wind and light, flying without ever leaving the ground. One wrong step could kill him. That dangerous thrill, for some reason, only drove him faster.
As his foot caught in a tangled root, he landed on one hand, flipped over, freeing his foot, then continued on running, never losing speed. To survive in a place like Rainsoul, one had to have quick reflexes. And an even quicker mind. So far, there seemed to be nothing seriously dangerous around. He wanted it to remain that way at least until he could find Quatre.
Deep down, Heero wasn't sure if he really wanted to find Quatre. The glow given off by the hovercraft as it went down meant that the Crystal that powered the engine had been struck, possibly broken. The energy released would have been more than enough to reduce the entire cargocarrier to charred scrap. Since Quatre had been sitting approximately above where the hovercraft engine was situated... It was almost fantasy to suppose he could have survived. Heero had survived by being thrown out by the shockwave. And being what he was, he could withstand far greater stresses than a normal person. However, a normal person sitting on top of a blast like that... No, he couldn't give up hope so easily. He refused to give up.
It was difficult to tell exactly where the cargocarrier had gone down, but he continued in the general direction of the crash, hoping to come across a sign of it. After a while, he caught scent of something that he had been dreading. The sharp tang of blood. And lots of it. Heero stopped, digging a gouge into the damp, muddy earth beneath his sneakers.
Proceeding slowly, he saw some scattered debris, mostly the remains of cargo containers, some sunken deep into the mud. Sitting on one of the containers, was Quatre. Heero could barely bring himself to believe it. But there he was, at first glance, seemingly unscathed, his shoulders hunched over, eyes cast down at ground. But as the boy became aware of his presence, he lifted his head, revealing big frightened eyes.
His hair, plastered to his face, was soaked and matted with blood and mud, making him look like a boy with auburn hair, not blonde. His hands and clothes were equally stained. His hands in particular looked as though he had washed them in blood. Whatever injuries he had were surely serious, but Quatre leapt to his feet and ran to up to him.
"Heero!" The boy threw his arms around Heero's neck and clung, shaking. "I thought... The pilots, they're dead, Heero."
A bit awkwardly, Heero returned the embrace. He still couldn't believe it. "H-How... How did you survive the crash?" He asked in amazement.
"I don't know. I just woke up, and everything was wrecked." Quatre pulled back, glancing back without turning his head, looking as though something terrible lay beyond them. He quickly looked back to Heero. "What happened? Did they come after us?"
"It wasn't the Draca." Heero said, regaining some of his composure. "I think it was lightning. We're both lucky to be alive." He frowned at the dark blood stains on Quatre's arms and shoulders. He moved around him and saw darker stains his back. "Quatre, where are you hurt?" Without waiting for an answer, he began removing the coat.
"There's still a little pain in my back, I wasn't able to get all the broken Crystal out." Quatre said, unbuttoning his shirt to allow Heero to peel it off. "I must've fallen into what was left of the engine. I really got myself cut up."
Heero cringed inwardly. His friend's back was a huge mess of thickly clotted blood. Yet, as he searched for injury, he was unable to find any. The only fresh blood came from the pieces of Crystal still stuck in Quatre's back, which he easily removed. But other than that, there was not a mark. Not a single wound on his back, nor on his head or arms that could explain all that blood. It was fortunate that he was not as badly hurt as Heero had first thought, but the strangeness of it made him uneasy. That Quatre had survived at all was incredible. That Quatre had walked away with hardly a scratch was unbelievable.
"Heero? Is it really bad?" Quatre asked uncertainly when Heero remained silent.
"No." Heero walked back around and met Quatre's questioning look. "It's just a lot of blood. One of those small cuts on your back must have been a real bleeder. As long as it doesn't get infected you should be fine."
Quatre rubbed his arms, feeling them with a troubled expression. "Are you sure? I was cut. Deep cuts, all over my arms, I know I was."
Overhead, Klarn circled in shadow, giving a brief high-pitched call. Heero glanced up with a frown. The Bimary wouldn't land if it sensed a possibility of danger. He dropped his eyes back down to Quatre, who looked back up at him.
"And what happened to your face? You've got a lot of thin scars all over."
Heero's mouth curled a bit. "I had a rough landing."
"Through a cheese grater?" Quatre blinked, still taking in all Heero's scars.
"A grater would have been less painful, I think." Heero turned to take in their surroundings. "It's nothing. I heal very quickly. But we had better get away from here and find someplace to clean up. There are things in this forest that would never leave us be if they so much as caught a scent of our blood."
Quatre cast a look around like a spooked animal. Heero didn't mean to scare him, but he needed to learn of the dangers quickly if he was to survive. "Then let's get out of here." Quatre said in almost a whisper.
With a nod, Heero led him away.
***
They traveled slowly. Now that they were beyond the borders of Cinq, there was no need to rush. Even if the Draca were to search the Southernlands for them, they would have an extremely difficult time finding them in the immense jungles of Rainsoul. And in this beautiful wild land, dangerous creatures, even monsters, still roamed freely. Some were very fast, and would take notice of a GESS speeding through their territory. For Quatre's sake, it was safer to move as discretely as possible.
Heero could hear flowing water somewhere in the distance, and hoped they would find a village soon. He needed to get them properly cleaned up and get his bearings. A grungy couple of guys covered in blood were too suspicious to escape notice.
After a long walk, Heero had them stop before sunset to find a place to sleep for the night. He chose a mossy patch beneath some bushes, where Quatre almost immediately collapsed and curled up. Heero was determined not to sleep until they reached a village. While they still carried a blood scent, it was too dangerous to be caught unawares.
The young prince sat beside Quatre, his arms folded across his knees.
Quatre was not yet asleep, and he spoke quietly. "Heero..."
"Hm?"
"Thank you for being here with me. I know it's asking a lot of you to leave Relena behind with the Draca to help me like this." Quatre wrapped his arms around himself. "Thank you for not abandoning me. I just hope... I hope this all turns out alright. I never meant to cause you and Relena so much trouble. I didn't mean to get those pilots killed."
Heero turned to look at him with a slight frown. "Quatre. You didn't kill those pilots. That lightning would have hit them whether we were on board or not."
"Oh." Quatre paused. "I guess you're right. But I still feel responsible. Everything that goes wrong lately seems to be my fault."
"Quatre," said Heero firmly, "it's not your fault. It's the Draca's fault. They're the ones causing problems for Relena, not you. You haven't done anything wrong."
"Are you sure?" Quatre said in a tiny voice. "The mark is real, Heero."
"You are more than your birthmark, and you know that." Heero growled. He didn't like Quatre doubting himself like this. "I know that, and Relena and Duo know that. You're our friend. That's why I'm here with you. Nothing else matters. The Draca can go to hell."
Quatre gave a small sob.
"Get some sleep, Quatre." Heero said softly.
And in a few minutes, Quatre did fall asleep. And Heero continued to sit quietly and perfectly still by his side. After some time, the air became dark as the last light of day faded into night. From somewhere up above, Klarn came and perched on his shoulder. Heero reached up to stroke the Bimary idly. Somewhere out in the distance, strange bird calls twittered the arrival of night, but all was peaceful.
Then the hooded figure was suddenly just there. Like a shadow stretching into quick existence, he appeared from nowhere right in front of them.
"Who are you?" Heero demanded, springing to his feet, his heart beating fiercely. Klarn squawked warily, clenching tightly to his shoulder. Damn it, he hadn't heard a thing! Not so much as an insect crawled near without his knowing it. The stranger had approached without making a sound! It wasn't right.
"I am who I am."
"What kind of answer is that? Show your face." Heero clenched his fists reflexively. There was something very familiar about the voice, but what it was eluded him.
"An answer whose question never should have been pursued." The stranger replied evenly. With only a slight hesitation, he lifted his gloved hands and pushed his hood back from his face. It was a youthful face, with an surprisingly open smile that seemed completely out of place on that face. It was Heero's face.
Heero stepped back with a choked sound. "What the hell is this!? A-Are you...?!"
"Maybe. That isn't important. I'm here because there's something I needed for you to know."
It made sense now. Only a Wizard could appear out of nowhere like that. They could create elaborate illusions, and some even were said to really be able to shapeshift. Just like... No, Heero wasn't about to let his imagination run that far away from him. This was not Prophet. Just some Wizard who had survived the Doomsday War. That was more than bad enough. "What do you want?" Heero grated, forcing himself to stand his ground.
His eyes in the Wizard's face seemed sorrowful now. Almost apologetic.
"I want you to know it wasn't your fault. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it."
Heero blinked. He hadn't expected to hear that. "What wasn't my fault?"
It was strange to watch his own face contort for a moment. The other opened his mouth and inclined slightly, as if he desperately wanted to say something more, but he reigned it in with visible effort. "Just remember that." His eyes flickered over toward where Quatre still slept with an unreadable expression. Then he roughly pulled his hood back over his head, and sharply turned his now shadowed face back to Heero.
Then he was gone as if he never was.
by Maria Rocket
***
Author's Notes: For all warnings and pairings, see chapter 1.
To those who commented last chapter, thank you, thank you!!! I've been so curious as to what others opinions about what's going on in the story are, and I really appreciate them. Oh, and yes, Treize and Une are in the story. I really just mentioned the main pairings in the first chapter notes, but there are a few other ones in here. Since it was asked, yes again, Zechs and Noin are definitely showing up here later on. Well, anyone still reading, thanks muchly! ^__^
All previous chapters of this fic can be found here:
http://gundamthing.50g.com/gwomega.html
***
We had a life, we had a love,
But you don't know what you've got 'til you lose it
Well that was then and this is now
And I want you back
How many times do I have to say I'm sorry
I only wanted someone to love
But something happened on the way to heaven
It got a hold of me and wouldn't let go
And I want you back
How many times do I have to say I'm sorry
You can run, and you can hide
But I'm not leaving less you come with me
We've had our problems but I'm on your side
You're all I need, please believe in me
How can something so good go so bad
How can something so right go so wrong
I don't know, I don't have all the answers
But I want you back
How many times can I say I'm sorry
They say you can't take it with you
When you go
And I believe it
But taking what I've got or being
here with you, you know
I'd rather leave it
You can run...
- "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven"
by Phil Collins
***
Chapter 6
"Leave?" Quatre's voice sounded so small to his own ears. "For how long?"
"For as long as it takes." Heero told him. "I know some people in the Southernlands that might be able to help us. If nothing else, it'll be a perfect place to hide. The rainforests down there are so thick, you could easily lose yourself in them forever if you aren't careful."
"What about Duo?" As the ache in his head faded away, Quatre remembered the last time he had seen his best friend. His voice rose in a panic. "Duo! The dragon, he got Duo! Where is he!?"
"Duo will be fine." Heero put his hands on Quatre's shoulders to prevent him from running off. "He was seriously injured, but the doctors will be able to help him."
"But I..." Quatre shook his head. "I can't go without Duo! I have to stay until he's better. I can hide again, Heero, just for a while..."
"No, Quatre, you have to get out of here while you still can. Duo couldn't come even if he wasn't hurt. He's better off staying here where he's safe."
"No!" Quatre shouted roughly, trying hopelessly to break Heero's grip. "I won't go anywhere without Duo! I can't, I..." He'd never been anywhere without Duo before. Not like this. He squeezed his eyes shut, and his voice became small again. "Can't I at least see him before we go? Who knows when I'll ever be able to see him again."
When he opened his eyes, he was surprised at the sympathy in Heero's blue eyes. Of course, Quatre wasn't the only one leaving Cinq behind. Had he been able to see Relena before coming here?
"I'm sorry, but it's too risky." Heero said softly. "You know Duo wouldn't want you to endanger yourself like that." He let his hands slip from Quatre's shoulders. "You had better go pack, and be quick about it. This is one of the first places the Draca are bound to look for you."
"Come on, Quatre, I'll help you." Rashid said, gently leading him towards the house.
"I know..." Quatre whispered. "But Duo would have wanted to come..."
***
Very few shirts went into the black backpack. It was very warm down in the Southernlands, even at that time of year. But even so, Rashid found room for several pairs of jeans he had bought for Quatre during the past few days. Finishing the packing, he turned to find Quatre staring into his closet.
The boy had changed into dry clothes, but he still held the dripping blue duster. "Is there anything else especially important about myself that I should know before I leave?" His voice was bitter.
"I told you before Quatre," Rashid said with a heavy weariness. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you the whole truth about your birthmark. That's because I couldn't be sure of the truth. You were too young to have to worry about it. You still are."
"You still lied. You... You lied to me, Rashid."
The hurt and betrayal in Quatre's voice tore at him. He had been so preoccupied during the entire ordeal, and now, there simply wasn't enough time for him to make Quatre understand why he had acted the way he had.
"I only wanted to protect you, Quatre. Because I care about you. And your mother wouldn't have wanted you to grow up with these wild ideas about who you are."
Now Quatre turned his face and frowned at him. "Can I trust what you say my mother would have wanted? And what about my father?" His voice broke on the word. "You know, I've had a lot of time to think lately. And I've realized that you never really talk about father at all. Why is that, Rashid?"
Those dark blue eyes, shadowed beneath dirty, uncombed blonde hair, seemed to burn right into him, demanding an answer. As he paused, they began to shimmer with unshed tears. Rashid knew that whatever answer he gave, could be damning. To tell another lie, was something Quatre might never forgive, should the truth ever come out. But the truth, what little to none Rashid knew, could needlessly haunt the boy.
"Your mother never told me who your father was." Rashid said sincerely. "But she was very much in love with our captain. I assumed he must have been your father. And he was a very normal, good man. He died in Doomsday with everyone else." It was the truth. He had no proof the cloaked man he had seen with Quaterine that one time had been a Wizard. And the Captain was the one he had long suspected of being Quatre's father. She had been so determined that he not know of her pregnancy. Yes, it was the truth.
It had to be.
The accusation in Quatre's eyes faded, leaving him with a weary look. "I'm sorry, Rashid. I know this isn't your fault. You've done everything for me, and I..."
"Try not to worry too much about it." He knelt down to gather Quatre into a tight hug. "It's who you are that's important, not what others say you are. Just be true to yourself. And listen to Prince Heero. You need to trust him now."
The small boy seemed to shrink against him. "Why can't you come with us?"
"I'll only slow you down."
"I don't want to go..." Thin fingers grasped the front of Rashid's robe. "It feels too much like goodbye. I'm afraid... I'm afraid I won't come back, ever."
Maybe that would be best. If Quatre never returned, then there really was no need to be concerned. Right? "I don't know if you can come back. But I will see you again. I'll meet up with you elsewhere if I have to. And I'll tell Duo when he's recovered."
Quatre's grip loosened a little. "Thank you..."
Seeing that the boy still held the wet duster, Rashid tried to pull it away. Quatre shook his head and refused to give it up. "Quatre, let go. It's soaked."
"I want to take it with me. Please, Rashid?"
"If you insist... You won't be needing it where you're going."
"I know," Quatre stepped back, holding the coat to his chest again. "I just want to keep a memory of you with me."
Rashid smiled in understanding. "I WILL meet up with you again. Don't let yourself worry so much." He took the wet coat and folded it. He would find a place for it in Quatre's pack. "Heero will take care of you." He was trying to assure himself as much as Quatre. "You'll be fine, we'll make it through this."
Quatre gave a sad nod. Then with a whimper, he jumped forward to hug Rashid a last time.
***
Slouching back in the stiff seat, Quatre was uncomfortable. Heero had found them a hovercraft to take them over the treacherous Mayak Mountains. Unfortunately, it was a cargocarrier, and the fold-out seats in the hold were not ideal for a trip that would last at least three days. Trying to ignore the growing crick in his neck, Quatre turned to look outside the little oval-shaped window beside him. There was no moon. Glittering stars were scattered across the sky.
It was the first clear night since... Since the night he had left home with Heero. Shortly after leaving, the air had become thick with fog. For several days they had been constantly on the move, Heero carrying Quatre on his back the entire time. They had not stopped for more than a few minutes at a time, moving steadily, not as quickly as Heero could go, but fast enough to stay ahead of anyone who might be following. Quatre had been surprised at how smooth the journey across the kingdom had been. Heero's feet didn't even seem to touch the ground, it had felt more like they were flying than running. Silently, they had traveled within the cover of dark mist to the southernmost point of Cinq.
And now they were crossing over the Mayak Mountains, the borderlands between Cinq and Rainsoul. Quatre pulled up the collar of his blue duster and pulled it tightly closed across his chest. He couldn't sleep.
Unlike Heero, who had fallen into a deep sleep after take-off. He was sitting nearby, breathing softly. Now that they were surely alone, Quatre wanted to talk to him again, but he wasn't going to disturb him. After days without sleep, Heero deserved to rest.
Quatre closed his eyes. Everything was lightly vibrating with the thin hum of the engine. With nothing else to distract him, the sound and noise was making him anxious. The longer he dwelled on it, the more it disturbed him. An image of threads of searing green electricity flashed behind his eyes, and he opened them with a frightened moan.
Wiping at his sweaty face with shaking hands, he looked over at Heero, who was still asleep. Had he imagined it? Turning towards the window, he was surprised to see that the sky was becoming the faded blue of first light.
Strange. He was sure he had only closed his eyes for a few minutes. Morning should not have arrived so soon. Staring back into the valley they were leaving behind, he saw the first golden rays of light spilling over the horizon. As the glow spread, Quatre also felt a warmth spread inside him. He smiled dreamily. It was... beautiful. So beautiful. As the golden orb of the sun slowly rose, he realized that he was looking at the same view of the valley that he had been staring at for weeks. It was exactly the same as the painting of the sunset in his room back at the palace. At least, he had thought it was a sunset. Now he wasn't sure.
Resting his cheek against the window, he stared out at it, soaking up the warmth until the valley was long out of sight.
***
Heero glanced out at the dark mist billowing around them. Flying like this made him uncomfortable. It wasn't that he didn't trust the pilots or the equipment to steer them through the jagged mountaintops safely. But he knew from experience that just about anything could be flying around out there...
He tore his sharp eyes away from the mist. It was no use dwelling on it. If something was out there, he could do nothing about it. His attention shifted towards Quatre. The boy was asleep again. He had hardly stirred since they'd entered the thick mist of the mountains, only waking for a short while each time it was time for a meal. Heero wasn't afraid of Quatre, but any unusual behavior was something he meant to keep a close watch of. He could do that, at least.
Back home, Relena was surely in a bigger mess than before. They had both known it was inevitable. Still, that made it no easier to sit where he was, while Relena was left to face the wrath of the Draca by herself.
And Duo. Despite the reassurances he gave Quatre, he was himself worried about what had become of their friend. Duo had been in extremely poor condition when he was left in the care of the hospital staff.
Maybe the world itself wasn't ending, but he felt like his personal life was coming close to it. He was teetering so close to possibly losing two of his best friends, and he had no idea when he would ever see Relena again, the person he had been born to protect. And the Draca, the wise guardians of the eastern border, had gone mad.
He couldn't imagine how anyone, especially little Quatre, could make things any worse.
***
"They know... They know you!"
The high pitched laughter faded into a pained whine. The emerald light hurt, it seared him. But there was no escaping it. Quatre was the light.
"No," he howled. "No!" The light flared. "Hurts..."
"We must all die. We are diseased... sick... dying... Your fault."
The light twisted and screamed.
Away. He had to get away. To make it stop. Desperately, he tried to focus on another place, before the pain... But that hurt too much. No, there had always been pain, he had always been sick. But once...
"No! I don't want to remember that! I HATE him! Never speak that name! NEVER!" A roar rippled through the sickly green light.
But there was another lifetime... After the first mistake... But before the unforgivable crime... There was something there that he dearly wanted to remember... Something he wanted back. Desperate to escape the indescrible agony, he let his mind wander away, to a happier place, long since gone.
But even the memory could be cruel.
God, his head hurt. The cold plate beneath his forehead only helped a very little. Opening his eyes a bit, he could see the crawling, infested city outside his highrise apartment, groping out its grimy metal and glass fingers as far as the eye could see and beyond. In the far distance, he could barely make out the hellish red glow of the setting sun through the omnipresent shroud of black smoke that choked the city. He scratched his fingernails against the glass window. He hurt so bad. He wanted out. He didn't want to be out there, but he wanted to get out. The doctors told him it was too much stress from his work, and that he needed to relax. But they just didn't understand. He had felt this way since he was a child, maybe always. It felt like he wanted to burst out of his own head and rip off his skin.
With a moan, he staggered back from the window. Big dark eyes, almost black, stared back at him. They were set in a lean, tanned face, framed with silky black hair that didn't quite reach his shoulders. His scraggly, limp dog-like hair, he thought. No, he had seen dogs with better hair than his! He scowled at his reflection, pulling at his uneven bangs in frustration. God, he hated his hair.
And it didn't help that his usually boyish face looked years older than his thirty-two years when he was in pain like this. He had to do something. As he turned around, his eyes went to a fork on the table. He picked it up. Feeling the cold metal under his thumb, he glanced uncertainly to the wallclock, then to the front door. As his eyes moved along the wall, he began to tremble.
He didn't have much time. But surely... Just very quickly... To make the pain go away...
He licked his lips. And the doorbell rang.
The fork clattered to the floor as he gave a start. Fumbling nervously, he replaced the fork on the carefully set table, and dashed to the door. He paused to quickly smooth his shirt, and raised two crossed fingers above his head in a silent, very fervent prayer, before composing a sweet smile on his face and calmly opening the door. "Terra! Hello!"
The woman at the door smiled ruefully. "C'mon Max, all I get is a 'hello?'"
Before he could reply, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him in a way that made his knees weak. And as she pressed against him, he forgot all about the pain. It was so tempting to just forget about dinner too and skip straight to the bedroom. When she ended the kiss, he tried to chase her lips, but was met by her teasing jade eyes and the tip of her finger against his mouth instead. She really was a tease. And he loved her that way.
Terra was a willowy woman with long white-gold hair that seemed to float around her like a cloud. Since the first time he saw her at the library, he was completely bewitched by her. For the first time in his life, he loved someone as much as he loved... his work. No, he loved her even more, he was sure of it. There was just something very special about her. What she saw in him, he still had no idea.
Smiling with delight, he pulled her to the dinner table.
As usual, Max spent most of the dinner conversation asking Terra how things were going at the library. She was in a constant struggle to keep the old library from closing down for good. Almost no one read books anymore, and the Supreme Council believed the large buildings were a waste of valuable space. The historic societies were fighting to keep them in service, but public opinion weighed against them more and more each year.
With a sigh, Terra set aside her plate with Max's. "I think we'll be resorting to candles soon." She crossed her arms and frowned. "Now the Council is saying we're wasting power resources. Can you believe it? They have all those gaudy lights all over their building, and they say our little table lamps are waste!?" She met his eyes again with a look of exasperation. "Next, we'll be probably be a fire hazard."
If only... His hands twitched slightly. He shook his head apologetically. "I'm sorry, Terra."
She blinked, then smiled. "What for? It isn't your fault the Supreme Council is full of idiots."
Max stared down at his fork, then looked back up at her with a small chuckle. "I guess you're right about that." But if only it was finished... Then the Council wouldn't be able to make any more excuses. If only he put in some more hours, worked faster... He could help Terra, do something worthwhile for her...
"What's this?" Terra raised an eyebrow at the crystal ball between them on the table. "Don't tell me you're becoming a fortune teller."
With a chuckle, Max placed his fingertips on the crystal and his dark eyes looked up at her from beneath his hair. "Okay, I won't tell you. However, I must warn you of a tall dark stranger in your future." He smirked. "And since I'm not tall, he better not touch you!"
They laughed, and Max sat back in his chair.
"Really now." Terra smiled. She gave the crystal a more skeptical look. "This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with... you know... the incidents that have been happening lately, would it? I know you work at that big-shot research facility that's got everybody in an uproar. So what kind of mad scientist stuff are you doing up there?"
"Oh, you know, the usual." He shrugged with a wry grin, leaning in. "Putting together monsters and testing death rays." His smiled faded and he shook his head with a frown. "I don't know how people can swallow that crap the papers are saying. If they only knew how important our work is... That we're trying to fix-" he waved a hand at the cityscape behind him. "That."
Terra rested her face in her hand and studied his face for a moment. "So there really isn't any connection between your lab and the spontaneous explosions throughout the city."
"Please Terra, those are just randomly occuring storms. Probably ball lightning." He threw his hands out, becoming agitated. "I can't imagine how people can be so surprised. Our atmosphere is so fucked up, they should be used to freak weather by now." Closing his eyes, he rubbed at his forehead. It was starting to hurt again.
His free hand was grasped by Terra. "Max."
He opened his eyes. Terra was giving him a look of concern and worry. He forced a weak smile to his face. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to take it out on you. It just gets so frustrating sometimes."
"I know." Terra nodded, her green eyes understanding. She squeezed his hand gently. "Max, are you well? You look terrible."
"Don't worry about me." Max squeezed back with a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. Look." He leaned in and moved a tiny dial at the base of the crystal ball. Terra gave a small gasp as a tiny light flared to life in the center of it. The air shimmered and colors fractured around the spark.
"What is that?" Terra blinked and narrowed her eyes at it.
"My life's work." He said, almost fondly. "This is going to change the world, Terra." In a way he might caress her own face, he touched the crystal surface with his fingertips. "Limitless, pure, power." Electric blue strands of light shot out from the spark to meet his touch. They shimmered and danced to follow his fingertips like they were alive...
"Wait, isn't that a plasma ball?" Terra frowned.
"No, it isn't a plasma ball." Max lifted his face to meet her eyes. "This is a tiny working model of what I'm experimenting with in the lab." He took her hand that was in his, and placed it on the crystal surface. He knew from the widening of her emerald eyes, that she could feel the deep resonance within. "More powerful than a billion stars, and infinitely safer than manipulating atoms. There is no waste. Only pure power, secure within the crystal. You simply need to know the right song to coax it out." He smiled.
"So, the crystal is creating the light?"
"I don't think so." Max took her other hand and placed it on the crystal. Twining their fingers together, he traced lazy circles of light against the surface. He did the same with their other joined hands. "I think of it more as a doorway. A point of entry."
Terra looked up at him with those eyes, so deep, he nearly forgot what he was talking about. "A doorway from where?"
Max swallowed hard. "Ah, um, I don't know. Yet." He hesitated for a moment, then continued. "Daniel thinks we may have tapped into a source of dark matter." He gave a shrug. "We only have theories. We really haven't any idea where it's coming from. What's important at this stage is that it's real."
"Hmm." Terra looked down at the blue threads dancing beneath their fingers. "Daniel... He's your partner, isn't he? I'm sure I've heard you mention him before."
"Yeah... He's been working on this with me since... since..." It was becoming difficult to talk with Terra's fingers rubbing up and down the backs of his hands. "...Since..." She was getting up. "Ah, since we..." She was moving around the table. "...we were in college together. Terra?"
"Yes?" She was sitting across his lap now, playing with the buttons on his shirt.
Max shifted restlessly in his seat as one came undone. "I don't think I can explain any further while you're sitting there." He said, slightly breathless. "You're very distracting."
Terra leaned in close with a dark, lascivious smile. "Good."
Good... So good... But it was just an echo.
And the torment plunged through Quatre anew.
"Terra! TERRA!" He wailed helplessly, hopelessly.
"TERRAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Emerald energy flared and CRACKED.
***
A sudden movement caught his eye, and Heero looked over.
Fingers gripping the armrests so hard his nails were snapping, Quatre was tensing up. His eyes were tightly closed while his face twisted up into a grimace that was threatening to become a snarl. Sweat beaded his face.
Now the poor kid was having nightmares. Intending to wake him up, Heero stood.
Suddenly, an intense flash of light threw him down. He thought he heard Quatre cry out, but that was quickly drowned out by a fierce roar of thunder. Before he could do anything at all, Heero found himself falling away into dark mist. The air crackled with static.
***
For a few terrifying minutes, Quatre couldn't remember who he was. Streamers of gray water fell from the dark mist swirling above. He was soaked. Taking slow, shuddering breaths into his lungs, he began to remember.
He had been in a hovercraft with Heero. He had been asleep, he was sure. But then, where was he now? Almost daring to wish everything had just been a dream, Quatre moved to lift himself up. And instantly fell back with a choked cry of pain.
Trying to support himself, he had stabbed his arms with hundreds of jagged glass pieces. And as he fell back, he realized that his back was also imbedded with glass shards. A small whimper escaped him. His back and shoulders felt like ground meat. The back of his head was surely a bloody mess.
Biting down on his lip, he gingerly pulled himself to his feet. Swaying on his feet, he stared dully at the glass crunching beneath his boots. It glowed with a faint greenish tint. Not glass. Crystal. Wizard Crystal.
He was standing where the hovercraft's engine had once been.
Splintered trees and crushed metal intertwined seemed to be growing out of the soft earth. Here, it was still deep shadow. But turning his eyes up, Quatre saw the first signs of sunlight reaching through the forest canopy.
The forest itself was unlike anything Quatre had seen before. There were no trees like these back home. They were spidery, branches twisting everywhere. It was nearly impossible to tell where each tree stopped and another started. The foilage was so much greener and thicker than anything back home. And darker. And scarier.
Wincing, he worked at pulling the crystal shards out of his arms. They were bleeding a lot, but there was nothing he could do for it. He cut his hands even more trying to remove the shards from his back. He managed some of it, but some crystal pieces seemed firmly imbedded in his shoulders. The blood was soaking through his shirt, sticking the sleeves and the back to his skin. Feeling weak, he slowly made his way through the wreckage. He had to find Heero.
Instead, he found the pilots. At least what was left of them.
Lightheaded, he stared blankly for a moment, not quite understanding what he was seeing. As comprehension came on him, his stomach knotted. Stumbling to get away, he fell against a mossy tree trunk. Clutching it to keep himself upright, he gave a few dry heaves before he was able to recover. Forcing himself to keep his eyes away from what was on the ground behind him, he looked up to see a strip of metal that had been stabbed into the tree. Dark cloth hung from it like a banner. It was his duster, hanging from a rip through one of the sleeves. Pulling it down, the damp fabric tore easily. Although he was already soaked to the bone, he pulled it on, wanting more between him and the strange new place he had arrived in.
His boots squealched through thick mud as he carefully made his way around the tree. It was difficult to keep himself from tripping over intricate roots that looped as through they were made to catch his feet. Slowly, he made his way through the dark skeletal remains of the cargoship, praying that Heero was still alive.
***
God damn lightning. With his luck, he was going to be killed before he even hit ground. Heero glared away at the quickly dwindling green smear falling into the distance. Damn it! The engine must have been hit.
Branches and wet foilage suddenly crashed around him. He threw his arms out and frantically seized at anything to slow his descent to the forest floor. Tree limbs snapped and dragged down in his grip, and birds and various animals fled screaming as Heero fell tier by tier deeper into their treetop world.
His face and every exposed surface of his skin was being lashed mercilessly by the claw-like branches as he passed, the air and leaves softly hissing like an immense wild animal. Finally, slowing down, he caught a firm branch under one knee and held tight. Just then, it all finally gave way without warning, and he jerked as he fell head first into open air. Dangling by one knee, he stared down at the forest floor, still very far below.
Blood and rain streaked across his vision, distorting his usually enhanced eyesight. If there was something unpleasant waiting for him down there, he was going to have to find out the hard way. Despite the racket he had made on the way down, maybe nothing had heard him. Without a sound, he let go of the branch, flipped over in midair with a feline grace, and landed as silent as a feather.
His jacket wiggled. Oh no, he'd forgotten! Hastily, he unzippered his jacket and reached in. A very ruffled mass of jungle green feathers and jewel-like blue scales with a big yellow beak was pulled out. The Bimary gave a squawk of dismay.
Heero examined the bird-like creature and was relieved to find it unharmed. His pet had been too unusual to stay out in the open when they had first set out, but there in Rainsoul, the natural habitat of the Bimary, there was no chance of Klarn standing out. Hugging Klarn to his chest, he smoothed its feathers and rubbed the back of its glossy head. A cuddle always calmed the creature. And it calmed Heero too. At least a little.
He had to get moving. The odds weren't good, but maybe, somehow, Quatre had survived the crash. Releasing Klarn into the air, he moved forward. One step, a faster second step, an even faster third step, moving smoothly into a run. The world zipped by him at a blur, but his razor sharp eyes somehow caught every detail, every movement around him as he passed. To Heero, running was one of the most exhilarating things in the world. He was as if one with the wind and light, flying without ever leaving the ground. One wrong step could kill him. That dangerous thrill, for some reason, only drove him faster.
As his foot caught in a tangled root, he landed on one hand, flipped over, freeing his foot, then continued on running, never losing speed. To survive in a place like Rainsoul, one had to have quick reflexes. And an even quicker mind. So far, there seemed to be nothing seriously dangerous around. He wanted it to remain that way at least until he could find Quatre.
Deep down, Heero wasn't sure if he really wanted to find Quatre. The glow given off by the hovercraft as it went down meant that the Crystal that powered the engine had been struck, possibly broken. The energy released would have been more than enough to reduce the entire cargocarrier to charred scrap. Since Quatre had been sitting approximately above where the hovercraft engine was situated... It was almost fantasy to suppose he could have survived. Heero had survived by being thrown out by the shockwave. And being what he was, he could withstand far greater stresses than a normal person. However, a normal person sitting on top of a blast like that... No, he couldn't give up hope so easily. He refused to give up.
It was difficult to tell exactly where the cargocarrier had gone down, but he continued in the general direction of the crash, hoping to come across a sign of it. After a while, he caught scent of something that he had been dreading. The sharp tang of blood. And lots of it. Heero stopped, digging a gouge into the damp, muddy earth beneath his sneakers.
Proceeding slowly, he saw some scattered debris, mostly the remains of cargo containers, some sunken deep into the mud. Sitting on one of the containers, was Quatre. Heero could barely bring himself to believe it. But there he was, at first glance, seemingly unscathed, his shoulders hunched over, eyes cast down at ground. But as the boy became aware of his presence, he lifted his head, revealing big frightened eyes.
His hair, plastered to his face, was soaked and matted with blood and mud, making him look like a boy with auburn hair, not blonde. His hands and clothes were equally stained. His hands in particular looked as though he had washed them in blood. Whatever injuries he had were surely serious, but Quatre leapt to his feet and ran to up to him.
"Heero!" The boy threw his arms around Heero's neck and clung, shaking. "I thought... The pilots, they're dead, Heero."
A bit awkwardly, Heero returned the embrace. He still couldn't believe it. "H-How... How did you survive the crash?" He asked in amazement.
"I don't know. I just woke up, and everything was wrecked." Quatre pulled back, glancing back without turning his head, looking as though something terrible lay beyond them. He quickly looked back to Heero. "What happened? Did they come after us?"
"It wasn't the Draca." Heero said, regaining some of his composure. "I think it was lightning. We're both lucky to be alive." He frowned at the dark blood stains on Quatre's arms and shoulders. He moved around him and saw darker stains his back. "Quatre, where are you hurt?" Without waiting for an answer, he began removing the coat.
"There's still a little pain in my back, I wasn't able to get all the broken Crystal out." Quatre said, unbuttoning his shirt to allow Heero to peel it off. "I must've fallen into what was left of the engine. I really got myself cut up."
Heero cringed inwardly. His friend's back was a huge mess of thickly clotted blood. Yet, as he searched for injury, he was unable to find any. The only fresh blood came from the pieces of Crystal still stuck in Quatre's back, which he easily removed. But other than that, there was not a mark. Not a single wound on his back, nor on his head or arms that could explain all that blood. It was fortunate that he was not as badly hurt as Heero had first thought, but the strangeness of it made him uneasy. That Quatre had survived at all was incredible. That Quatre had walked away with hardly a scratch was unbelievable.
"Heero? Is it really bad?" Quatre asked uncertainly when Heero remained silent.
"No." Heero walked back around and met Quatre's questioning look. "It's just a lot of blood. One of those small cuts on your back must have been a real bleeder. As long as it doesn't get infected you should be fine."
Quatre rubbed his arms, feeling them with a troubled expression. "Are you sure? I was cut. Deep cuts, all over my arms, I know I was."
Overhead, Klarn circled in shadow, giving a brief high-pitched call. Heero glanced up with a frown. The Bimary wouldn't land if it sensed a possibility of danger. He dropped his eyes back down to Quatre, who looked back up at him.
"And what happened to your face? You've got a lot of thin scars all over."
Heero's mouth curled a bit. "I had a rough landing."
"Through a cheese grater?" Quatre blinked, still taking in all Heero's scars.
"A grater would have been less painful, I think." Heero turned to take in their surroundings. "It's nothing. I heal very quickly. But we had better get away from here and find someplace to clean up. There are things in this forest that would never leave us be if they so much as caught a scent of our blood."
Quatre cast a look around like a spooked animal. Heero didn't mean to scare him, but he needed to learn of the dangers quickly if he was to survive. "Then let's get out of here." Quatre said in almost a whisper.
With a nod, Heero led him away.
***
They traveled slowly. Now that they were beyond the borders of Cinq, there was no need to rush. Even if the Draca were to search the Southernlands for them, they would have an extremely difficult time finding them in the immense jungles of Rainsoul. And in this beautiful wild land, dangerous creatures, even monsters, still roamed freely. Some were very fast, and would take notice of a GESS speeding through their territory. For Quatre's sake, it was safer to move as discretely as possible.
Heero could hear flowing water somewhere in the distance, and hoped they would find a village soon. He needed to get them properly cleaned up and get his bearings. A grungy couple of guys covered in blood were too suspicious to escape notice.
After a long walk, Heero had them stop before sunset to find a place to sleep for the night. He chose a mossy patch beneath some bushes, where Quatre almost immediately collapsed and curled up. Heero was determined not to sleep until they reached a village. While they still carried a blood scent, it was too dangerous to be caught unawares.
The young prince sat beside Quatre, his arms folded across his knees.
Quatre was not yet asleep, and he spoke quietly. "Heero..."
"Hm?"
"Thank you for being here with me. I know it's asking a lot of you to leave Relena behind with the Draca to help me like this." Quatre wrapped his arms around himself. "Thank you for not abandoning me. I just hope... I hope this all turns out alright. I never meant to cause you and Relena so much trouble. I didn't mean to get those pilots killed."
Heero turned to look at him with a slight frown. "Quatre. You didn't kill those pilots. That lightning would have hit them whether we were on board or not."
"Oh." Quatre paused. "I guess you're right. But I still feel responsible. Everything that goes wrong lately seems to be my fault."
"Quatre," said Heero firmly, "it's not your fault. It's the Draca's fault. They're the ones causing problems for Relena, not you. You haven't done anything wrong."
"Are you sure?" Quatre said in a tiny voice. "The mark is real, Heero."
"You are more than your birthmark, and you know that." Heero growled. He didn't like Quatre doubting himself like this. "I know that, and Relena and Duo know that. You're our friend. That's why I'm here with you. Nothing else matters. The Draca can go to hell."
Quatre gave a small sob.
"Get some sleep, Quatre." Heero said softly.
And in a few minutes, Quatre did fall asleep. And Heero continued to sit quietly and perfectly still by his side. After some time, the air became dark as the last light of day faded into night. From somewhere up above, Klarn came and perched on his shoulder. Heero reached up to stroke the Bimary idly. Somewhere out in the distance, strange bird calls twittered the arrival of night, but all was peaceful.
Then the hooded figure was suddenly just there. Like a shadow stretching into quick existence, he appeared from nowhere right in front of them.
"Who are you?" Heero demanded, springing to his feet, his heart beating fiercely. Klarn squawked warily, clenching tightly to his shoulder. Damn it, he hadn't heard a thing! Not so much as an insect crawled near without his knowing it. The stranger had approached without making a sound! It wasn't right.
"I am who I am."
"What kind of answer is that? Show your face." Heero clenched his fists reflexively. There was something very familiar about the voice, but what it was eluded him.
"An answer whose question never should have been pursued." The stranger replied evenly. With only a slight hesitation, he lifted his gloved hands and pushed his hood back from his face. It was a youthful face, with an surprisingly open smile that seemed completely out of place on that face. It was Heero's face.
Heero stepped back with a choked sound. "What the hell is this!? A-Are you...?!"
"Maybe. That isn't important. I'm here because there's something I needed for you to know."
It made sense now. Only a Wizard could appear out of nowhere like that. They could create elaborate illusions, and some even were said to really be able to shapeshift. Just like... No, Heero wasn't about to let his imagination run that far away from him. This was not Prophet. Just some Wizard who had survived the Doomsday War. That was more than bad enough. "What do you want?" Heero grated, forcing himself to stand his ground.
His eyes in the Wizard's face seemed sorrowful now. Almost apologetic.
"I want you to know it wasn't your fault. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it."
Heero blinked. He hadn't expected to hear that. "What wasn't my fault?"
It was strange to watch his own face contort for a moment. The other opened his mouth and inclined slightly, as if he desperately wanted to say something more, but he reigned it in with visible effort. "Just remember that." His eyes flickered over toward where Quatre still slept with an unreadable expression. Then he roughly pulled his hood back over his head, and sharply turned his now shadowed face back to Heero.
Then he was gone as if he never was.