Chapter Twenty-two

The five boys, Noin, Zechs and Relena were all seated at a long rectangular table. " We will need to gather more soldiers," Zechs said. " Noin and I shall personally see to that."

" Brother," Relena hesitated.

" Don't worry. I won't force them. I'll only choose the best so the weaker and innocent ones will be spared."

" No, I don't mean that. It's just that all these fighting have made me so tired. Maybe I can have a talk with this Master instead and hopefully we can come to some sort of agreement."

" No!" Noin intervened vehemently. " You have not seen that devil before. You don't know what he'll do to you. He's a monster, that's what he is. He has no sense of mercy."

" This, Noin knows best," Zechs said to his sister. " She had suffered under him. Don't be silly, Relena."

Relena leaned back. " I just don't want to see any of the people here dying."

" War means killing, it is inevitable. War is no place for pure souls like you," Heero told her. " You can choose to stay out of this."

Relena frowned at him. " I'm already in this. I cannot back out. I just want to minimize the casualty rate. I understand that in war there is no mercy, which is precisely something that I hate. Why do people want to fight? Is it so fun to see someone dying? OZ must be destroyed; I do not tolerate its atrocities."

" You have become strong, Relena," her brother commented.

Though Heero did not show much expression, Relena could feel him smiling at her. She blushed.

" I…I want to help," she said softly.

" Good, then help us to create a more peaceful place to live in. We will be counting on you," Zechs said.

*************************************************************

Relena knocked on the door of Heero's room. There was a muffled "come in" from inside. Relena entered. " Hi Heero…" She stopped. The curtains in his room were gone. Heero's face was hard to read.

" The curtains…"

" I burnt the curtains," he stated calmly.

" Why?"

" I was practicing my skills and I accidentally burnt it."

" Why don't you go down and practice?" Relena was amused. She had never seen Heero in such a sheepish situation before.

" Duo is down there practicing with Wufei. I pity him."

He said it in such a straightforward manner that she had to laugh. Holding her sides, she struggled to speak coherently. " There's…the garden…"

" I don't want to burn the flowers."

" So it's okay to burn the curtains?"

Heero laughed. He really laughed. He just threw back his head and laughed. Relena laughed even harder. She had never heard such a precious sound before. Their laughter travelled throughout the palace, into the ears of Duo and Wufei who were coming up the stairs; to Trowa who was coming out of his room; to Quatre who was talking to Rasid; to Sylvia who was outside; to Noin and Zechs who were just a room below them; to Pargon who was ironing his clothes.

" You heard that?" Duo asked, grinning widely.

" Even the rats below heard it." Wufei grinned back.

Trowa had just finished practicing his magic and was taking a walk round the palace. It was late afternoon and in less than two hours time Pargon would announce dinnertime. Royalties always have their dinner early, or well, the royalties here always have theirs early at seven. Trowa was used to having his dinner past eight.

" Hello, Trowa," someone called from the back. The person was none other than Sylvia Noventa.

Trowa waited for her to catch up with him.

" Mind if I walk beside you?" she asked.

" Suit yourself."

The two walked in silence for a while.

" How long have you known the other four boys?" Sylvia asked carefully.

" Almost three years," he answered.

" So you have always been good friends?"

" We are sort of a mismatched kind of group. We were very different from the other students right from the start. And so we stick together."

" Among the four of them, who are you closest with?"

Trowa stopped. " Why do you ask?"

Sylvia shrugged casually. " I'm just curious. Even best friends can turn enemies you know."

" We do quarrel, but I can tell you we are all best friends. All of us know this."

Trowa strode ahead and Sylvia ran to catch up with him. " You are a very cool boy, you know."

He did not answer her.

" Have you ever fall in love before?"

" Do you know you talk too much?"

She laughed. " After sticking around with Wufei for so long in silence, I guess my tongue is eager for some exercise."

He smiled slightly. " That's Wufei."

" He's sort of anti-social, like Heero. And you too. Only Duo is talkative."

" Heero used to complain that it's our misfortune."

Sylvia laughed again. Trowa glanced at her. She's rather pretty.

" What about Quatre?"

A pause. She realized her mistake. " My apologies, I shan't ask."

Trowa stared ahead. " Quatre's really the one who got us all together. He isn't as exuberant as Duo or as quiet as Heero. He's somewhere in between, always there for any of us. He listens when Duo chatters and speaks to fill up the silences for the three of us. Little by little, we began to open up but now, because of the war, we clam ourselves up again. It's a mistake. This kind of thing should never happen to such a gentle soul."

Sylvia's footsteps faltered. He turned back to look at her. " War is so horrible," she muttered. " I wish it would be over soon." She took a deep, refreshing breath and smiled. " But no matter what, we all got to live, right?"

" You are a strong girl," he told her.

She shook her head. " You boys are strong. I just try to be strong. Hey, there's Duo!" She grinned and grabbed his wrist. " Come on, let's see what he's up to."

She pulled him forward.

*************************************************************

Lady Une knelt before Master, seeking for his forgiveness. Without a word, Master threw a dagger out at Lady Une from behind his protective white cover. She could not dodge in time.

" Lady Une!" Treize pulled out the dagger and held her trembling body. " Master –"

" Incompetent rat. Not only have you failed, you have put them on their guard. You deserve to die," he said angrily.

" On my account please let her go," Treize said. " It's all my fault. I told her to show them mercy."

" Treize, you do not display any mercy before an enemy. Zechs may be your friend but that's in the past. I would tolerate no more failures. Anyone who stands in my way must die. Understand? Zechs can never escape from OZ. Oh, I have a good piece of news. Catherine Bloom, sister of Trowa Barton, is dead. Isn't that wonderful for him?" Master howled with laughter.

Trieze did not laugh with him. He bit his lips.

Master stopped laughing. " Get out, I don't want to see her face. I shall pardon her on your account, Treize. Take her in hand."

" I thank you, Master." Treize helped Lady Une out.

One they were out of the secret compartment, Lady Une suffered another relapse. She rolled on the ground in pain, her head bursting with pain.

" Une!" Treize caught her. " Une, what's wrong?"

Une only screamed out her agony. She shivered violently, twisting her body in strange angles. " Help me…Treize…"

Treize hugged her close to him. " I'm here, Une. Don't worry, everything will be fine. I'm right here."

She rolled her eyes upward, her pupils hidden behind her eyelids. "OZ…Trieze…principal…evil intention…the world…" She was not making any sense.

Une fainted.

He embraced her even harder. " Une…"

I don't know what's right or wrong anymore. I don't know whom to trust. Une…. He picked up the weak shell of Lady Une and carried her all the way to the doctor.

*************************************************************

" Hilde wait!" Sally cried as she ran after her.

Hilde did not stop. " Something has happened to Catherine, I know it! I haven't been able to contact her at all!"

Sally blocked Hilde's path. " Calm down, Hilde! Listen to me!" She lowered her voice. " You can't just go out like this. Think of your situation now. I know you are worried about your friend but if you would listen to me, I can a suggestion."

" What suggestion?"

Sally led her back into the room. After she had safely shut the door behind them, she sat down on the bed beside the anxious teenager.

" Tell me, Sally," Hilde said.

" As you know, my group is to have a real-life exercise tomorrow. We will be attacking a small village not far away from here. I'll make an excuse, leave my group and secretly make a replica of myself. I will send this replica back to the group and make a trip back to Magic Town to find your friend for you. It shan't take more than an hour, I hope."

" Are you sure you can do it? Won't it be dangerous for you?"

" Save your worries for your friend. Nothing will happen to me."

Hilde's eyes were moist. " Thank you, Sally. You are indeed a friend."

The next day, Hilde went about doing her task as normally as she can. Sally left with her group at seven and they hiked to a small village. Halfway through, Sally ran up to her leader and excused herself, stating a tummy ache excuse. Disgusted, he gruffly excused her for five minutes. Sally rushed behind a huge boulder. She checked to ensure her solitariness and raised her arms.

A few minutes later, ' Sally' ran out to join her group, who had already gone on without her. The real Sally peeped out from behind the boulder. Satisfied with her work, she hurried away in the opposite direction.

When Sally arrived at Magic Town, the first place she headed for was the school. Catherine was rather popular with the students and they would surely have an inkling of her whereabouts.

This school sure brings back memories for me. Three girls paused upon seeing her. " Miss Po!" They recognized her. Sally waved. She recognized them as the students of Gundam Girls' School of Magic. The school was now a sanctuary for the homeless and needy.

" Hi girls, how have you been? You are Jamie, right? And this must be Eileen and Shiina," Sally said.

The three were thrilled. " You still remember us!" the blond-hair Shiina exclaimed.

" What are you doing back here, Miss Po?" Jamie asked. She has a habit of pushing up her spectacles whenever she gets excited.

" I'm here to find Catherine Bloom. You were in the same class right? Do you know where she is?"

A dead silence fell upon the three gregarious girls.

" Jamie? Shiina? Eileen?" Something was wrong. " Tell me please."

Shiina cleared her throat. " Catherine…she…"

" What has happened to her?" Sally prepared herself for the worst.

" …The OZ soldiers killed her. We saw it with our own eyes, along with many others."

" She was trying to protect Trowa and the four boys," Eileen cut in.

" We buried her outside the town. The cemetery here is already full," Jamie said quietly.

Though Sally was not close to Catherine, she was after all one of her students and a very courageous girl. " Take me to her grave."

They showed her the grave. Someone had placed a white lily next to her name. It was a simple grave made in haste but nevertheless, it oozed with righteousness and the respect her old classmates felt in her. Eileen was crying.

" She was a good person…"

Sally bowed thrice and turned to the three friends. " Thank you for showing me her grave. You did a nice job."

" We all liked Catherine," Jamie said.

" Does Trowa know about this?"

She shook her head. " No. We don't know how to contact him."

" Leave the rest to me."

Hilde's legs failed her. She sank to the floor, tears flowing down her face. " C-C-Catherine…"

Sally put an arm around her. " Take it easy, Hilde."

" Heaven is so unfair!" Hilde sobbed, covering her face with her hands. " This is so unfair…H-How long has it been?"

" Today is the fourth day."

This made Hilde cry even louder. Sally pulled her nearer, and like a good sister should be, allowed her to cry and cry until she could cry no more.

*************************************************************

Duo and Trowa were outside Quatre's room, waiting for the doctor to finish his examination of their companion. Sylvia was with them, just as apprehensive as they were about the result. As soon as Doctor Dermail came out, they knew the answer. His face had the same gloominess as that from his last two visits.

" I'm afraid this might take a long time. His condition is very…special."

" What do you mean?" Duo asked.

" I used mental penetration on him just now. It's a rare treatment in which a doctor forces out the memories in him. Only highly skilled doctors can use this magical treatment. When a person loses his memories, there is a dark cloud in his mind that is blocking all his previous memories. Mental penetration removes this dark cloud, or part of it, and slowly releases all his memories. We doctors do not usually opt for this method because not only does it exhaust us a lot, we prefer to let the patient recover naturally. As far as I know, there are only five doctors who can currently perform this 'surgery'.

" Quatre, he…I just cannot break through this dark cloud in him. Something is preventing me from doing so. It's like this dark cloud in him doesn't want any outside force to disturb him. There are only two reasons – either he himself does not want to recover or someone more powerful is controlling him."

" What?" said Duo in disbelief. " How can this be?"

" Quatre does want to remember," Trowa said. " So someone else must be doing this to him"

" Who could be so evil?" Sylvia shook her head. " Poor Quatre."

Doctor Dermail adjusted his glasses. " The only way to save him now is to seek out the culprit. There's nothing more I can do."

From behind the three teenagers came Heero's voice. " Thank you Doctor. You have done your best."

They turned round to see Heero and Wufei.

" I'll take my leave then," the doctor excused himself and walked away. The five of them waited till he was gone before they went in to see Quatre. The blond boy was looking out of the window.

Without turning around, he said to them, " The doctor has told me everything."

" Don't worry, we'll find that bastard for you!" Duo promised.

" But do you know who that person is?"

Silence.

Quatre's face was strangely expressionless and placid. " It doesn't matter. In life, we should always look forward. No one should be left stranded in the past. It makes life too miserable. Much as I want to find that person, we should think about the future too. What if we never find him? What if I never recover? Instead of wasting our energy looking for an unknown stranger, why don't we try to create a future?" He faced his friends. " Would you help me find my tomorrow?"

Though each of the boys was shaking with rage and despair, they knew what he had said is true.

You are so brave, my friend.

" Quatre," Trowa answered for them. " We will help you. You can trust us."

Quatre nodded and managed a smile. Inside his right pocket, his fist was closed tightly upon his Sandrock tablet. And his heart cried silently.