* * * *
Chapter 4-A rescue plan that kills
* * * *
Wufei sat at the roughly cut wooden desk and talked quietly to Quatre's face on the vid-phone's screen.
"Yes it's all arranged." Quatre said. "I told them everything and they will be moving into place soon. It won't be long until this whole affair is over."
"Well, hurry it up as much as possible. They can't stay hidden forever, you know." Wufei said in an irritated tone.
"We just need to get the next phone call recorded and then we'll have no trouble at all." Quatre reassured him.
* * * *
The office was perfectly silent. All the lights were out, and the laptop's soft glow cast an eerie aura around Heero. He stared at the screen, but could not see anything on it. Codes filtered into the email system, but he wasn't able to decipher them. His Prussian blue irises did not move back and forth, not trying to comprehend the meaning of the thousands of little letters and digits. One hand was on the mouse, the other covering his mouth.
Duo sat in the chair across from him. He glared in denial at his friend. His hands gripped the arms of the chair so tightly that his knuckles squeezed all fluids out of the skin around them. His jaw was locked and he gritted his teeth into a menacing frown. Spontaneously, Dou pounded his fist on to the desk.
"You can't do that!!!" he yelled. Heero closed his eyes with anguish.
"We're trying to save her! All this will do is kill her anyway! Is that what you want???"
Heero opened his orb-like eyes once more and gave his worst death glare to the infuriated man in front of him. Duo was breathing heavily and pacing the small space between the desk and the door, hands clenched at his side. He turned to Heero, his chestnut braid flinging behind him like a whip.
"You don't care about her at all, do you?" he said, dangerously quiet.
Heero's gaze intensified as the rage building in him like a storm. But he would not give in. He was the Perfect Soldier. No emotions would penetrate the thick wall built up around his heart. Duo shouted at him with all the volume he could muster.
"NO!!!! You don't care about her!!" Now he was gesturing with random hand movements. "All you care about is the stupid," (he made quotation signs in the air), "mission!! Nothing else matters!! 'Achieve the objectives, take no prisoners.'" Duo made a mock salute.
He slammed his palms on the table and stuck his face right into Heero's, seeing the burning hatred in the narrowed eyes and not flinching. Then he whispered, audible enough so that Heero could just barely make it out.
"Well guess what, pal? Your mission may be to protect her, but you've failed already. You're going to destroy her."
In an instant, Heero's fist connected with Duo's nose. Duo fell back into the wall, hands flying to his already bleeding nostrils. His fingertips touched liquid and he pulled them back quickly. They were red. He looked at Heero who was once again staring at the screen, still uncomprehending.
"You yaro." Duo whispered. Heero didn't even look up. But he did hear the door slam, practically thrown off the hinges. And the footsteps storming down the hall. And the cursing.
He lowered his eyelids again, searching for answers. Opening them quickly, he pulled out a drawer and grabbed the gun inside. Heero stared at it for a long time. No, he thought. That would definitely fail the..mission.
* * * *
Relena clutched at the cliff's edge, pebbles and dirt tumbling all around her. A clawed hand emerged out of the dark abyss below. She couldn't see it, but she knew it was there. It grabbed for her ankle again and again. She kicked and wriggled with all her might. She knew if she was dragged into the endless pit, she would never come back.
Suddenly, Heero appeared above her, on the edge, the tips of his shoes just centimeters away from her fingers. At the same instant the hand grasped her ankle and tugged. She let out an ear-piercing scream and called to Heero. He looked down at her, down into her tear filled eyes, pleading, begging. One hand slipped and she was just hanging by the fingertips. But she kept looking into his eyes. Until he turned his head away, severing the connection. And she fell. She fell and kept falling. Falling into darkness, the light disappearing above her. Falling..
And then she woke up. The blanket was tangled around her in a sweaty mass. Her clothes were damp against her body and her limbs were soaked. She was breathing quick, short breaths. Her heart was pounding in a fast paced rhythm and her stomach had totally failed her. Her wide eyes moved restlessly about the room until they came back to a stop on her brother. His back was turned to her and his shoulder rose and fell steadily.
She glanced at the window and saw the moonbeams pouring through the bars. Pushing the wet hair out of her eyes, Relena stood and went a to the window, welcoming the cool breeze to her hot body. She leaned on the high sill and looked between the thick steel bars to the forest surrounding the "prison".
Suddenly, a patch of yellow light appeared on the grass. A vague shadow also vaporized inside the patch. Relena perked her ears and picked out faint words drifting down to her, probably from a few stories above. She could only hear bits and pieces of a conversation. The voice was very deep, probably the gunman from the limo. "We have no choice..... sacrifices must be made.....no, but.....I know...she doesn't deserve..."
Relena realized they were talking about her. A gasp escaped and she covered her mouth instinctively, even though she wouldn't be heard. The voice continued.
"I hate...she...will catch....we will triumph...she'll understand...after all, a pacifist!" It laughed at that remark. Relena tried to piece together the sentence fragments. She wasn't even listening to the rest of the conversation. A look of horror dawned on her face as she realized what was going to happen to her. It all fit together. She finished the sentences in her mind.
"We have no choice, she has to go. Some sacrifices must be made. She doesn't deserve to live. I hate her. We will triumph over the world. Of course she'll understand and go quietly. She is, after all, a pacifist!"
They were going to kill her! She was the only thing in their way of world domination. And they thought she wouldn't put up a fight because she was a pacifist. Relena narrowed her eyes in anger. Well she certainly wouldn't go "peacefully". She would show them what would happen when you crossed a "pacifist".
* * * *
Around the same time that evening a heated discussion was occurring in a small trailer right behind the big tent. All the carnical rides were closed and silent, strangely still in the artificial moonlight. The circus animals were all sleeping soundly. The giant cats, which killed their food, seemed as demure as kittens, quiet in the warm hay of their cages. Everything was calm and peaceful, except for a certain clown and the ringmaster who were arguing forcefully in the ringmaster's trailer.
"My business has nothing to do with politics and peace!" the ringmaster's face was an unhealthy shade of purple. "I am entertainer, not a Preventor!"
Trowa, too, was giving signs of great annoyance. Uncharacteristic as this was, it was very frightening to see Trowa use sarcasm and emotion.
"Oh, and I suppose when these rebels take over the earth and all its colonies the circus, the CIRCUS, will be immune to them."
The ringmaster fired back at him.
"What will they care for a simple hand full of clowns and elephants?"
"Of course, I would know!" yelled Trowa. "Noo one knows what they are capable of. No one knows what they will do. Can't you understand that?", he said, his last word dripping with sarcasm. Then more quietly, "I made a promise to do what I can. I have to go."
The ringmaster sighed and sat down at his desk. He looked up at Trowa's one visible eye.
"And what about the rest of us? I can't just very well put our whole crew in danger." He pointed at Trowa. "They did not make your promise."
Trowa nodded impatiently.
"I already thought of that. It will only be Catherine and me. She has already given her consent. If anyone asks, just tell them a family member has died and we had to leave at once. After we are finished, we'll hide out for a few days. Just in case."
The ringmaster rubbed his eyes and shook his head.
"No. It's too risky."
Trowa rolled his eyes and put his hands on the desk.
"I'll give up my pension to pay for the trip." he said temptingly.
At that, the ringmaster looked up. Slowly, his mouth formed a grin and he held out his hand. Trowa took it.
"It's a deal." said the older man. "But you had better not get killed. I would hate to have to lose my best clown."
Trowa smirked slightly, nodded ,and left to tell Catherine.
* * * *
Quatre "worked" in his den, the lights shut of, all the curtains drawn, and the doors locked. Wufei's face was on the videophone on his desk. Quatre had an anxious look written across his tired face.
"Everything is in place. Trowa has sent word that he will handle the firepower. I have all the information right here. We just need to wait for the signal from Heero and Duo."
Wufei sighed with relief.
"Good. But keep a low profile. If they find out what's happening too soon, all our work will have been for nothing. When will we expose what we have found?"
"There's a meeting over the dispute over armistice in a couple of days. All the diplomats will be together. It'll be perfect."
"All right, I'm going to back up Heero and Duo. Good luck." Wufei ended the connection. Quatre massaged his temples.
"This war is never really going to end," he said to himself.
* * * *
Hope you've enjoyed. Review, s'il vous plait? Merci, if you do. Up yours if you don't. Have a pleasant day.
Chapter 4-A rescue plan that kills
* * * *
Wufei sat at the roughly cut wooden desk and talked quietly to Quatre's face on the vid-phone's screen.
"Yes it's all arranged." Quatre said. "I told them everything and they will be moving into place soon. It won't be long until this whole affair is over."
"Well, hurry it up as much as possible. They can't stay hidden forever, you know." Wufei said in an irritated tone.
"We just need to get the next phone call recorded and then we'll have no trouble at all." Quatre reassured him.
* * * *
The office was perfectly silent. All the lights were out, and the laptop's soft glow cast an eerie aura around Heero. He stared at the screen, but could not see anything on it. Codes filtered into the email system, but he wasn't able to decipher them. His Prussian blue irises did not move back and forth, not trying to comprehend the meaning of the thousands of little letters and digits. One hand was on the mouse, the other covering his mouth.
Duo sat in the chair across from him. He glared in denial at his friend. His hands gripped the arms of the chair so tightly that his knuckles squeezed all fluids out of the skin around them. His jaw was locked and he gritted his teeth into a menacing frown. Spontaneously, Dou pounded his fist on to the desk.
"You can't do that!!!" he yelled. Heero closed his eyes with anguish.
"We're trying to save her! All this will do is kill her anyway! Is that what you want???"
Heero opened his orb-like eyes once more and gave his worst death glare to the infuriated man in front of him. Duo was breathing heavily and pacing the small space between the desk and the door, hands clenched at his side. He turned to Heero, his chestnut braid flinging behind him like a whip.
"You don't care about her at all, do you?" he said, dangerously quiet.
Heero's gaze intensified as the rage building in him like a storm. But he would not give in. He was the Perfect Soldier. No emotions would penetrate the thick wall built up around his heart. Duo shouted at him with all the volume he could muster.
"NO!!!! You don't care about her!!" Now he was gesturing with random hand movements. "All you care about is the stupid," (he made quotation signs in the air), "mission!! Nothing else matters!! 'Achieve the objectives, take no prisoners.'" Duo made a mock salute.
He slammed his palms on the table and stuck his face right into Heero's, seeing the burning hatred in the narrowed eyes and not flinching. Then he whispered, audible enough so that Heero could just barely make it out.
"Well guess what, pal? Your mission may be to protect her, but you've failed already. You're going to destroy her."
In an instant, Heero's fist connected with Duo's nose. Duo fell back into the wall, hands flying to his already bleeding nostrils. His fingertips touched liquid and he pulled them back quickly. They were red. He looked at Heero who was once again staring at the screen, still uncomprehending.
"You yaro." Duo whispered. Heero didn't even look up. But he did hear the door slam, practically thrown off the hinges. And the footsteps storming down the hall. And the cursing.
He lowered his eyelids again, searching for answers. Opening them quickly, he pulled out a drawer and grabbed the gun inside. Heero stared at it for a long time. No, he thought. That would definitely fail the..mission.
* * * *
Relena clutched at the cliff's edge, pebbles and dirt tumbling all around her. A clawed hand emerged out of the dark abyss below. She couldn't see it, but she knew it was there. It grabbed for her ankle again and again. She kicked and wriggled with all her might. She knew if she was dragged into the endless pit, she would never come back.
Suddenly, Heero appeared above her, on the edge, the tips of his shoes just centimeters away from her fingers. At the same instant the hand grasped her ankle and tugged. She let out an ear-piercing scream and called to Heero. He looked down at her, down into her tear filled eyes, pleading, begging. One hand slipped and she was just hanging by the fingertips. But she kept looking into his eyes. Until he turned his head away, severing the connection. And she fell. She fell and kept falling. Falling into darkness, the light disappearing above her. Falling..
And then she woke up. The blanket was tangled around her in a sweaty mass. Her clothes were damp against her body and her limbs were soaked. She was breathing quick, short breaths. Her heart was pounding in a fast paced rhythm and her stomach had totally failed her. Her wide eyes moved restlessly about the room until they came back to a stop on her brother. His back was turned to her and his shoulder rose and fell steadily.
She glanced at the window and saw the moonbeams pouring through the bars. Pushing the wet hair out of her eyes, Relena stood and went a to the window, welcoming the cool breeze to her hot body. She leaned on the high sill and looked between the thick steel bars to the forest surrounding the "prison".
Suddenly, a patch of yellow light appeared on the grass. A vague shadow also vaporized inside the patch. Relena perked her ears and picked out faint words drifting down to her, probably from a few stories above. She could only hear bits and pieces of a conversation. The voice was very deep, probably the gunman from the limo. "We have no choice..... sacrifices must be made.....no, but.....I know...she doesn't deserve..."
Relena realized they were talking about her. A gasp escaped and she covered her mouth instinctively, even though she wouldn't be heard. The voice continued.
"I hate...she...will catch....we will triumph...she'll understand...after all, a pacifist!" It laughed at that remark. Relena tried to piece together the sentence fragments. She wasn't even listening to the rest of the conversation. A look of horror dawned on her face as she realized what was going to happen to her. It all fit together. She finished the sentences in her mind.
"We have no choice, she has to go. Some sacrifices must be made. She doesn't deserve to live. I hate her. We will triumph over the world. Of course she'll understand and go quietly. She is, after all, a pacifist!"
They were going to kill her! She was the only thing in their way of world domination. And they thought she wouldn't put up a fight because she was a pacifist. Relena narrowed her eyes in anger. Well she certainly wouldn't go "peacefully". She would show them what would happen when you crossed a "pacifist".
* * * *
Around the same time that evening a heated discussion was occurring in a small trailer right behind the big tent. All the carnical rides were closed and silent, strangely still in the artificial moonlight. The circus animals were all sleeping soundly. The giant cats, which killed their food, seemed as demure as kittens, quiet in the warm hay of their cages. Everything was calm and peaceful, except for a certain clown and the ringmaster who were arguing forcefully in the ringmaster's trailer.
"My business has nothing to do with politics and peace!" the ringmaster's face was an unhealthy shade of purple. "I am entertainer, not a Preventor!"
Trowa, too, was giving signs of great annoyance. Uncharacteristic as this was, it was very frightening to see Trowa use sarcasm and emotion.
"Oh, and I suppose when these rebels take over the earth and all its colonies the circus, the CIRCUS, will be immune to them."
The ringmaster fired back at him.
"What will they care for a simple hand full of clowns and elephants?"
"Of course, I would know!" yelled Trowa. "Noo one knows what they are capable of. No one knows what they will do. Can't you understand that?", he said, his last word dripping with sarcasm. Then more quietly, "I made a promise to do what I can. I have to go."
The ringmaster sighed and sat down at his desk. He looked up at Trowa's one visible eye.
"And what about the rest of us? I can't just very well put our whole crew in danger." He pointed at Trowa. "They did not make your promise."
Trowa nodded impatiently.
"I already thought of that. It will only be Catherine and me. She has already given her consent. If anyone asks, just tell them a family member has died and we had to leave at once. After we are finished, we'll hide out for a few days. Just in case."
The ringmaster rubbed his eyes and shook his head.
"No. It's too risky."
Trowa rolled his eyes and put his hands on the desk.
"I'll give up my pension to pay for the trip." he said temptingly.
At that, the ringmaster looked up. Slowly, his mouth formed a grin and he held out his hand. Trowa took it.
"It's a deal." said the older man. "But you had better not get killed. I would hate to have to lose my best clown."
Trowa smirked slightly, nodded ,and left to tell Catherine.
* * * *
Quatre "worked" in his den, the lights shut of, all the curtains drawn, and the doors locked. Wufei's face was on the videophone on his desk. Quatre had an anxious look written across his tired face.
"Everything is in place. Trowa has sent word that he will handle the firepower. I have all the information right here. We just need to wait for the signal from Heero and Duo."
Wufei sighed with relief.
"Good. But keep a low profile. If they find out what's happening too soon, all our work will have been for nothing. When will we expose what we have found?"
"There's a meeting over the dispute over armistice in a couple of days. All the diplomats will be together. It'll be perfect."
"All right, I'm going to back up Heero and Duo. Good luck." Wufei ended the connection. Quatre massaged his temples.
"This war is never really going to end," he said to himself.
* * * *
Hope you've enjoyed. Review, s'il vous plait? Merci, if you do. Up yours if you don't. Have a pleasant day.