The man pointed the gun directly at Heero. The other men were all pointing
their guns at the other Gundam Pilots. There seemed to be no escape. The
man flexed his finger on the trigger.
"Wait." Heero said, more calmly than he felt. With great concentration he managed to keep his voice on a monotonous level. "Shouldn't you at least tell us who you are and why you want to kill us in cold blood?" The man shook with rage, but lowered the gun slightly.
"If you wish to delay your deaths further, like the cowards you truly are, then we shall explain." He snarled. He crossed to the window and looked out at the chaotic street below. "George, phone the cops and tell them that if they try anything we will kill the five hostages."
The smallest man left the room silently. Quatre weighed up the odds. There were seven men and five of them. Either side could win a fight, but statistically the other men were stronger. However the Gundam Pilots had a lot of experience in battle, especially Wufei and Heero who were very skilled at hand-to-hand combat.
"I shall explain." The man said. "My name is Clive. This is my brother Garth. The others are Martin, Pete, Sam, George and Phil. We all have one thing in common."
"What, y'all are totally nut cases?" Duo asked, but was silenced by three of the men pointing a gun at him. George re-entered the room, obviously having been successful in letting the police know that they wouldn't stand for any interference.
"Silence!" Clive said. "We all have one thing in common. Our fathers and our families. All of our fathers were killed in the war three years ago. Pete and Martin also lost their wives and children, and Garth and I lost our sister. And all at the hands of the Gundam Pilots."
"So this is all about revenge." Heero guessed.
"Got it in one." Clive sneered. "You murdered our families and for that, you will die."
"Don't you think this is a bit pointless?" Trowa asked quietly.
"War is pointless." Clive said shortly. "We want to avenge our families. You murdered them and now we will murder you."
"I guess it is kind of fitting." Heero said sarcastically. "I mean, your fathers chose to oppose us and we never had any quarrel with them. They would have killed us if we hadn't killed them first. So now we will be killed because we fought for our lives. Life finally makes sense to me now!"
"Silence!" Clive bellowed. "You chose your own path, now you will pay for it dearly."
"Do you think we wanted to kill those people?" Quatre asked angrily. "We never wanted to be the Gundam Pilots, but we accepted our destinies. Don't think that we never shed a tear for the people we killed!" Tears were even now pricking Quatre's eyes, but he held them back defiantly.
"I don't wish to hear your pleas for mercy." Clive snarled. "Now that we have explained, we are going to kill you, one by one. And you will watch your friends die, as we watched our families die. You will now know how it feels!"
Guns were raised at the four boys, but Wufei held up his hands. "Wait! In my country it is a custom for a man to give his victim one last wish. Will you grant me mine?"
Clive nodded, as did a few of the other men. Wufei continued. "I wish to shake hands with each of you before I die. I have always said that I want to be killed by someone I know, rather than an unknown stranger."
Duo looked shocked by this statement, but Quatre quickly poked him in the ribs and Duo nodded. "Me too!" He said. The rest of the Gundam Pilots agreed. Heero walked forwards and shook the hand of one of the men. Trowa stepped up to that man next as Heero moved to the next man. And so it went on until Heero was shaking hands with the last person, Clive, and the other boys were also shaking hands with someone. Two of the men were not engaged by the Gundam Pilots.
"NOW!" Wufei shouted. He took the hand of Martin, standing in front of him, and flipped him over. Next to them Quatre punched Sam in the stomach and Duo wrestled with George. Heero hit Clive in the face as Trowa dodged an attack from Garth. The other two men sprang into action, but Heero had already wrestled the gun out of Clive's hand.
"Hold it!" He shouted at one man, who had Duo in an arm lock. The man, George, let go of Duo and raised his hands. But a gunshot sounded as Sam fired his gun at Heero. The bullet hit the gun in Heero's hand, sending it spinning to the floor. Heero cursed and nursed his hand, turning to face Sam, who had a gun trained on him.
Sam fired at Heero. Heero dodged and the bullet only glanced off his leg. Sam lined up the gun again and Heero was backed into a corner, with nowhere to run. A gunshot sounded. Sam dropped to the floor and Trowa was revealed standing behind him, holding a smoking gun. Heero barely had time to smile his thanks to Trowa when two more gunshots sounded. Heero turned to see Quatre holding a gun and had fired the two shots into the air. Wufei was holding two guns trained at the other men, two of whom were lying injured on the ground. The remaining men with guns dropped their weapons and held their hands in the air.
"Good work guys." Duo said, handing Heero a gun, which he pointed at Clive.
"It's nice to see we can still work as a team." Heero said.
"We should do it more often." Trowa added, a smile playing on his face despite the seriousness of the situation.
"I'll phone the police and get backup." Quatre said, backing out of the door to try to find a telephone. No one spoke until Quatre burst back into the room, with armed policemen with him. The men quickly took in the situation and the limp body of Sam was removed on a stretcher the other men went quietly.
"We'll need to get a statement from two of you." A female senior officer said to the five boys.
"I'll go." Duo offered.
"No Duo, my sister will want you with her. I'll go." Quatre said. "Tell her that I'm alright and not to worry."
"I'll go too." Wufei said. "My word is highly trusted among the security service."
The officer looked to Heero and Trowa. "I don't need anyone else to come to the station, unless you really want to. This looks like an open and shut case to me."
"I won't come." Heero said. "I need to find Relena."
"Sienne!" Trowa exclaimed. "She was in the building next door. Officer, has everyone been evacuated?"
"I don't know, but I arrived on the scene late." The officer said, leaving them.
Heero and Trowa quickly picked their way through the rubble in the corridors, finding a way to get to Relena and Sienne. "If anything happened to Sienne." Trowa began.
Heero stopped in the middle of the corridor. The overhead lights flickered because of the short power supply. "What is happening with you two?" He asked. "One minute you are friends, then you are not. I get the feeling that you like her more than you tell us."
"I can't explain." Trowa sighed.
"I'm not asking you to explain." Heero said simply. "What I'm saying is that you should try to work things out. If things had gone horribly wrong today you would never have seen her again. Would you really want your last memories of each other to be other than happy ones?" Heero didn't wait for a reply. He was surprised at himself for saying this, so instead he walked on, leaving Trowa alone with his thoughts.
Trowa caught up with Heero and they walked outside in silence. "Relena?" Heero called hopefully. Then he saw her, standing facing him. She looked up and saw him and smiled with relief.
"Heero!" She gasped, running over to him. She flung herself into his arms and he held her close. Trowa smiled at the happy couple before scanning the crowd. Suddenly he saw a head of hair that he recognised. He didn't call out to Sienne though. Instead he walked up to her and stood in front of her. He put his hand under her chin to lift her face, and saw that it was stained in tears.
"Don't cry. You look much prettier when you smile!" He said, wiping away her tears with his hand.
"Trowa!" She gasped.
(AN - Obviously Trowa didn't say this exactly to Sienne when he was explaining to her what happened, this is just to make it easier for you to understand!)
"I think we should all go home and get some rest." Heero says presently, when all the explanations are over. I nod numbly and allow Trowa to help me up. We say farewell to Relena and Heero and Trowa leads me back to the van. I climb in and he starts the engine. We drive off and soon are clear of the wailing sirens and throngs of people.
I sit back in my seat, feeling the coarse material against my bare arms. I wipe my face, which still feels damp. I don't know what to say to Trowa, but as it turns out it is he who initiates the conversation.
"Wait." Heero said, more calmly than he felt. With great concentration he managed to keep his voice on a monotonous level. "Shouldn't you at least tell us who you are and why you want to kill us in cold blood?" The man shook with rage, but lowered the gun slightly.
"If you wish to delay your deaths further, like the cowards you truly are, then we shall explain." He snarled. He crossed to the window and looked out at the chaotic street below. "George, phone the cops and tell them that if they try anything we will kill the five hostages."
The smallest man left the room silently. Quatre weighed up the odds. There were seven men and five of them. Either side could win a fight, but statistically the other men were stronger. However the Gundam Pilots had a lot of experience in battle, especially Wufei and Heero who were very skilled at hand-to-hand combat.
"I shall explain." The man said. "My name is Clive. This is my brother Garth. The others are Martin, Pete, Sam, George and Phil. We all have one thing in common."
"What, y'all are totally nut cases?" Duo asked, but was silenced by three of the men pointing a gun at him. George re-entered the room, obviously having been successful in letting the police know that they wouldn't stand for any interference.
"Silence!" Clive said. "We all have one thing in common. Our fathers and our families. All of our fathers were killed in the war three years ago. Pete and Martin also lost their wives and children, and Garth and I lost our sister. And all at the hands of the Gundam Pilots."
"So this is all about revenge." Heero guessed.
"Got it in one." Clive sneered. "You murdered our families and for that, you will die."
"Don't you think this is a bit pointless?" Trowa asked quietly.
"War is pointless." Clive said shortly. "We want to avenge our families. You murdered them and now we will murder you."
"I guess it is kind of fitting." Heero said sarcastically. "I mean, your fathers chose to oppose us and we never had any quarrel with them. They would have killed us if we hadn't killed them first. So now we will be killed because we fought for our lives. Life finally makes sense to me now!"
"Silence!" Clive bellowed. "You chose your own path, now you will pay for it dearly."
"Do you think we wanted to kill those people?" Quatre asked angrily. "We never wanted to be the Gundam Pilots, but we accepted our destinies. Don't think that we never shed a tear for the people we killed!" Tears were even now pricking Quatre's eyes, but he held them back defiantly.
"I don't wish to hear your pleas for mercy." Clive snarled. "Now that we have explained, we are going to kill you, one by one. And you will watch your friends die, as we watched our families die. You will now know how it feels!"
Guns were raised at the four boys, but Wufei held up his hands. "Wait! In my country it is a custom for a man to give his victim one last wish. Will you grant me mine?"
Clive nodded, as did a few of the other men. Wufei continued. "I wish to shake hands with each of you before I die. I have always said that I want to be killed by someone I know, rather than an unknown stranger."
Duo looked shocked by this statement, but Quatre quickly poked him in the ribs and Duo nodded. "Me too!" He said. The rest of the Gundam Pilots agreed. Heero walked forwards and shook the hand of one of the men. Trowa stepped up to that man next as Heero moved to the next man. And so it went on until Heero was shaking hands with the last person, Clive, and the other boys were also shaking hands with someone. Two of the men were not engaged by the Gundam Pilots.
"NOW!" Wufei shouted. He took the hand of Martin, standing in front of him, and flipped him over. Next to them Quatre punched Sam in the stomach and Duo wrestled with George. Heero hit Clive in the face as Trowa dodged an attack from Garth. The other two men sprang into action, but Heero had already wrestled the gun out of Clive's hand.
"Hold it!" He shouted at one man, who had Duo in an arm lock. The man, George, let go of Duo and raised his hands. But a gunshot sounded as Sam fired his gun at Heero. The bullet hit the gun in Heero's hand, sending it spinning to the floor. Heero cursed and nursed his hand, turning to face Sam, who had a gun trained on him.
Sam fired at Heero. Heero dodged and the bullet only glanced off his leg. Sam lined up the gun again and Heero was backed into a corner, with nowhere to run. A gunshot sounded. Sam dropped to the floor and Trowa was revealed standing behind him, holding a smoking gun. Heero barely had time to smile his thanks to Trowa when two more gunshots sounded. Heero turned to see Quatre holding a gun and had fired the two shots into the air. Wufei was holding two guns trained at the other men, two of whom were lying injured on the ground. The remaining men with guns dropped their weapons and held their hands in the air.
"Good work guys." Duo said, handing Heero a gun, which he pointed at Clive.
"It's nice to see we can still work as a team." Heero said.
"We should do it more often." Trowa added, a smile playing on his face despite the seriousness of the situation.
"I'll phone the police and get backup." Quatre said, backing out of the door to try to find a telephone. No one spoke until Quatre burst back into the room, with armed policemen with him. The men quickly took in the situation and the limp body of Sam was removed on a stretcher the other men went quietly.
"We'll need to get a statement from two of you." A female senior officer said to the five boys.
"I'll go." Duo offered.
"No Duo, my sister will want you with her. I'll go." Quatre said. "Tell her that I'm alright and not to worry."
"I'll go too." Wufei said. "My word is highly trusted among the security service."
The officer looked to Heero and Trowa. "I don't need anyone else to come to the station, unless you really want to. This looks like an open and shut case to me."
"I won't come." Heero said. "I need to find Relena."
"Sienne!" Trowa exclaimed. "She was in the building next door. Officer, has everyone been evacuated?"
"I don't know, but I arrived on the scene late." The officer said, leaving them.
Heero and Trowa quickly picked their way through the rubble in the corridors, finding a way to get to Relena and Sienne. "If anything happened to Sienne." Trowa began.
Heero stopped in the middle of the corridor. The overhead lights flickered because of the short power supply. "What is happening with you two?" He asked. "One minute you are friends, then you are not. I get the feeling that you like her more than you tell us."
"I can't explain." Trowa sighed.
"I'm not asking you to explain." Heero said simply. "What I'm saying is that you should try to work things out. If things had gone horribly wrong today you would never have seen her again. Would you really want your last memories of each other to be other than happy ones?" Heero didn't wait for a reply. He was surprised at himself for saying this, so instead he walked on, leaving Trowa alone with his thoughts.
Trowa caught up with Heero and they walked outside in silence. "Relena?" Heero called hopefully. Then he saw her, standing facing him. She looked up and saw him and smiled with relief.
"Heero!" She gasped, running over to him. She flung herself into his arms and he held her close. Trowa smiled at the happy couple before scanning the crowd. Suddenly he saw a head of hair that he recognised. He didn't call out to Sienne though. Instead he walked up to her and stood in front of her. He put his hand under her chin to lift her face, and saw that it was stained in tears.
"Don't cry. You look much prettier when you smile!" He said, wiping away her tears with his hand.
"Trowa!" She gasped.
(AN - Obviously Trowa didn't say this exactly to Sienne when he was explaining to her what happened, this is just to make it easier for you to understand!)
"I think we should all go home and get some rest." Heero says presently, when all the explanations are over. I nod numbly and allow Trowa to help me up. We say farewell to Relena and Heero and Trowa leads me back to the van. I climb in and he starts the engine. We drive off and soon are clear of the wailing sirens and throngs of people.
I sit back in my seat, feeling the coarse material against my bare arms. I wipe my face, which still feels damp. I don't know what to say to Trowa, but as it turns out it is he who initiates the conversation.