Disclaimers Note - I don't own Gundam Wing, or any of the characters therein. All of the unfamiliar characters are my own, but some unfamiliar ones might become familiar, in which case they are not mine, or they may not! You'll have to read this and find out! Any correlation of this story to any persons living or dead is purely coincidental, honest. Phew! The characters of Hayley Reo and Emma Kentley are mine, 'though, all mine! MINE!
[Authors Note]-Thank you Dark Vengeance and DeathSi for the reviews. Yes, DV, that's right. I obviously wasn't being as subtle as I thought *sweatdrops* This is my first fic if you hadn't guessed, so I'm dead chuffed that someone reviewed. *hugs you both and laughs as you run away screaming* Arigato *bows*
**The Original Age Part 5 – Developments
By Espion
It's always me being brought up to date, thought Hayley miserably, but I could've been someone. Oh I miss you Trensa…
Quatre sensed that Hayley was getting tired, and the nasty head wound was taking it's toll, 'though she hid it well. He'd told her about how Operation Meteor had been implemented, and all about the numbered Gundams, and Wing Zero. She had taken it all in, up until now, with the same kind of sad resigned look on her face. Quatre realised that she felt she'd lost her place in the world.
Hayley realised that Quatre had finished speaking and looked up.
'Thanks, I appreciate the favour. I hope I'll be able to help you in some way…' Her sad tone of voice triggered something in Quatre. He walked over to her and shook her gently, and her head shot up in surprise.
'Hello? I'm speaking to the one of the original Gundam pilots. Respect, Okay?' Hayley blinked at him, then hung her head again.
'It's ironic that the weakest of the original three was the only one that survived.' She whispered bitterly. Quatre sighed.
'We've seen you fight. You aren't weak, why would you say that?'
'My friends died because of me.'
*
Relena padded down the corridor of the Arts section of the school. Her head was in such a spin that she didn't trust herself to talk to anyone right now. She paused by a window. After all she'd done, no one would ever remember her, despite what Otashki had said, but she didn't mind at all. She had done her part in looking after Hayley, but now that Hayley was gone, she had no further purpose, except her duty to the school. She walked on.
Most people who commented on the school had never been there, and simply assumed that she was using it as a facility to brainwash young students into believing her pacifist ideals. That was hurtful, as she'd never done anything of the sort. As soon as the War had truly begun, she'd realised that pacifism achieved nothing but only irritated other factions. Other factions who weren't pacifist. She had been sorry to go against her father's teaching, but where had they got the kingdom anyway?
A girl running towards her shook Relena from her thoughts. The girl was in the first year, but was already as tall as she was. Her name was Kaia, and she had also been 'given' to the school. Relena held out her hand to Kaia, and she grasped it frantically.
'Miss Peacecraft, you won't believe what I've just seen!' She stopped speaking and panted for a second.
Try me, thought Relena.
'It was…like a meteor. It lit up the sky.' Kaia took a deep breath. 'It landed in the mountains.' Kaia pointed out of the window. Relena followed the direction with her eyes, and gasped as she saw half the forest on fire.
*
'What the bloody hell was that?' cried Hayley as red light filled the room. Trowa was instantly at the window.
'Something's come down in the forest. Something big.'
*
'Relena, you can't go out there!' exclaimed Hilde, as she watched Relena saddle Atlantica helplessly. 'God knows what came down.'
'I'm not going to get too close,' Relena reassured her, 'I just want to see what it was, ne?'
Kaia stood nearby, not wanting to leave in case she missed something. She had always had a better developed interest in current affairs than others in her year, and also, something was wrong…
'Miss Peacecraft,' she said, suddenly desperate to tell someone.
'Kaia, oh. You should get inside and stop the others panicking.' Relena gave her a smile. Kaia was often successful in calming the jitteriest of girls.
'There are two of them.' Hilde blinked.
'Two of what?'
*
'Heero and Duo are away, and Wufei isn't interested in "saving the rain forest" as he so eloquently put it,' muttered Quatre, 'but we've got to stop that fire before the entire forest is gone. It's almost our only cover.'
Hayley and Trowa both nodded.
'I have an idea,' said Hayley slowly.
*
'How do you know this?' Hilde asked Kaia. Kaia shook her head.
'That isn't important, but what is, is that we reach the crash site before anyone else.'
Hilde opened her mouth again, but Relena cut her off.
'If that's true, then we'd better move quickly. Hilde, take Autumn, and Kaia, you take Suvius.'
*
'That's damn dangerous, Hayley,' muttered Trowa.
'Do you have any other ideas?' snapped Hayley. Her wound was beginning to make her edgy.
*
Relena pulled Atlantica up short as a burning branch crashed down in front of her. Atlantica snorted and champed but didn't bolt. Relena patted the horse's sweaty neck thankfully.
'It's getting more dangerous,' she muttered. She heard Hilde cry out as more branches fell.
'Hilde! Where's Kaia?'
'She's okay. Suvius is looking after her.' Relena nodded. That was why she had given Kaia that horse. She knew that Suvius would look after the girl.
The three riders reached the clearing of the crash, and stood for a second to take in the sight.
A lanky looking machine had crashed into the side of the cliff, causing rocks to randomly fall onto it, but, Relena noticed, they didn't make any marks. The black skid marks showed that the machine had been travelling at a tremendous speed when it had crashed. Relena suddenly started.
'The pilot! Do you think they're okay?' Hilde slowly shook her head.
*
'I'm positive. Fires need oxygen, so dropping carbon dioxide tanks into the flames should work. Anything, carbon dioxide doesn't burn.'
'That's brilliant! Let's go.' Sandrock leapt forward, and as Trowa and Hayley
used their Gundams to throw CO
*
'Relena! No one could survive that impact! Get down!' cried Hilde as the slim girl climbed onto the machine.
'I just wanna see…' muttered Relena, her voice fading as she got further away.
*
'Guys, there's some people near that thing,' muttered Hayley as the three Gundam pilots made their way towards the cause of the recently extinguished fire.
'I'll get them away,' replied Trowa, 'You and Quatre find out what that thing is…' He was suddenly cut off by a loud thud.
'Trowa!' Quatre's voice rang out. Trowa stood up slowly and examined the rock that had been thrown at him. Much harder and it would have knocked him out.
'I'm okay, but there's someone around…' Hayley tensed and Focused. She opened her eyes again and found herself stood next to a younger girl with another rock in her hand. The girl gasped and turned to run, but Hayley grabbed her wrist and twisted the girl's arm behind her back. To her astonishment, the girl wrenched herself free and began to run. Hayley chased her.
She's fast, but I'm faster, thought Hayley as she began to gain on their attacker. She was running towards the crash site.
Quatre and Trowa had run ahead and were lying in wait on either side of the rough track.
'Trowa! Look!' whispered Quatre as a tall grey horse trotted past them, going in the opposite direction.
'What the…' mumbled Trowa, as there was the sound of cracking vegetation, and the horse galloped back, but now, someone was riding it. Kaia didn't know how Suvius had found her, but she was glad he had, as she was exhausted.
'Hilde!' she cried, as she slid from Suvius' thin back, 'there are people coming. We've gotta go, 'cos I think they're…'
'Here.' Finished off Hilde as Trowa broke out of the trees with Hayley and Quatre just behind.
'Relena get outta there now!' cried Hilde as she tried to grab Kaia and drag her away, but Kaia growled and grabbed a branch from the forest floor and swung it at Quatre, who jumped back.
Trowa sprang forward and tried to restrain Kaia, but found himself on the receiving end of her attack. She swung the branch around, attempting to knock his legs from under him, but he wasn't a Gundam pilot for nothing, and dodged. He leapt forward and wrapped his arm around her neck, while Hayley ran towards the machine. Hilde hovered, unsure whether or not to run. Relena was still inside the machine.
There was a yell from Trowa as Kaia bit him on the arm.
'Little scorpion,' he growled, as the smaller girl ran for her horse and vaulted onto it. At that second Relena emerged from the machine, holding something in her hand. She quickly took in what was going on.
K'so, time to leave.
She leapt from the machine's head and clicked to Atlantica, who trotted towards her. Suddenly everything stopped.
Trowa looked up at the huge Gundam standing over them. Quatre and Hayley gulped, despite themselves. Wing Zero took in the scene. The machine that had caused so much fuss hadn't been moved, but about 50 yards from it, three women were standing on horseback. Hayley suddenly turned and ran towards the metal structure, and the three horsewomen turned and galloped away. Trowa and Quatre looked at each other helplessly, and Hayley stopped running. That had gone badly. Very, very badly. Wing Zero turned and shot off into the sky.
'We messed that one up. We need to catch them!' said Trowa, but Hayley shook her head.
'They were from the school.'
'Relena's school?' replied Quatre in surprise.
'That little one's got a nasty bite,' muttered Trowa, looking at his bloody hand. Quatre walked over and took Trowa's hand in his, examining it.
'They took something…hey! This thing's a mobile suit!' Hayley exclaimed.
*
'What does it say, Relena?' asked Hilde after they were all back, with the horses fed and watered.
Relena opened the Doc. Then she began to read.
'To whoever may find me. Ore no na wa Doloria. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.*' Relena looked up. 'This reads like an adoption letter.'
'Keep reading,' urged Kaia, her eyes shining.
'I have been sent from the colonies to aid you. My colleague lies undiscovered and incomplete. This is your mission.' Relena stopped.
'What?' asked Hilde, 'what is it?'
Relena looked up.
'That's all. Well, what can I say?' A loud bang made Hilde and Relena both jump. Kaia had slapped her hand against the wall. She looked at them with a passionate gleam in her dark eyes.
'What can you say, except nimru ryokai?' Relena smiled.
'Indeed.'
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I will answer all question posed by DeathSi in the next few chapters, I promise.
Ore no na wa ……. means My name is…….
Yoroshiku onegai shimasu means Please take care of me.
Nimru Ryokai means Mission Accepted
K'so means….oh, don't you know? It means shit/damn/bugger, ya know.
Thank you reviewers!! Luv ya! *glomps you all*
Espion