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, Kaia McInrae and Emma Kentley are mine, 'though, all mine! MINE!
**The Original Age Part 13 – Separation and Reunion
By Espion
Song by Natalie Imbruglia
Hannah sat in the medical bay of the school, shaking like a leaf. The nurse could find no injuries, but the girl just wouldn't stop shaking.
'Hannah, Hannah darling…' No response.
*
Hilde pelted down the corridor towards where Hannah was being seen to. Several pupils had reported seeing Relena and Hannah ride into the valley at around five o'clock. Now, two hours later, only Hannah had returned.
*
The beep of Duo's pager broke up the mission briefing. Quatre, Trowa and Wufei were being commissioned to attack terrorist anarchists holding a colony hostage. Unfortunately, they had also acquired mobile suits…
Duo gave an apologetic grin and began to read the message.
'As I was saying, we need to discover from where these people have acquired their arsenal. They have even claimed that they have acquired a…' began a developer, but then Duo cut him of with a yell of 'HOLY SHIT!'
'What…?' began Quatre, but Duo was out of the door and down the corridor before he could finish his question.
*
'What happened? Hannah?' Hilde gently pushed the nurse aside and crouched down in front of the petrified girl.
Hannah looked up into a kind face framed by very dark hair. Honest blue eyes looked into hers, and she felt she owed the deputy headmistress the story.
'W-we were j-just getting onto the valley floor, when we were attacked by monsters…'
This childish remark would have made many other enquirers roll their eyes and tutt, but Hilde just nodded to show she'd heard, and then asked-
'Metal monsters?'
Hannah looked up in surprise.
'Y-Yes! Huge horrible metal monsters!'
The nurse squealed.
'What happened next?'
Hannah swallowed and continued.
Miss Darlian told me to get on Autumn and ride home, then she hit Autumn and he galloped all the way home, I couldn't turn him around.'
The last remark surprised Hilde somewhat.
'You'd've gone back?'
'I might have been frightened, b-but given the choice, I'd have rather been with Miss Darlian.'
Hilde was desperate to know what had happened to Relena, but this was obviously all that Hannah could tell her.
'Can you tell me anything else? Anything at all?' Asked Hilde, feeling disappointed but trying not to show it.
Hannah thought for a moment, then dug her hand into her pocket and withdrew the small black ball that Relena had given to her, and she hadn't needed. She gave it to Hilde without saying a thing. Hilde took it and looked at it reverently.
'Darkness,' she murmured, 'oh dear, oh dear.' She pocketed the ball.
Hilde stood up and motioned for the nurse to return to Hannah's side.
'Thank you for telling me what you knew Hannah. You should get some sleep now.' She put her hand on the door handle.
'Miss Schneider!' The little voice was urgent. Hilde turned.
'Miss Darlian c-coming back…isn't she? S-she's all right…i-isn't she?' The voice was getting toward hysterical now. Hilde thought it best to avoid the question.
'We're doing everything we can to assure that, Hannah.'
Satisfied, Hannah's head sank onto the table, and Hilde caught a glimpse of the nurse helping the sleepy child into a bed before the door clicked shut.
I hope this is the last time you ever come into contact with any of those…metal monsters, she thought as she walked down the corridor, only to be met by a very tall man in combats with about six other similarly clad men standing just behind him, rifles trained on her.
*
Emma stopped Heero.
'She needs to go to a hospital, we can't move her around in this condition!'
'If you could speak to her right now,' said Heero in a low voice, 'then I think you'd find that she'd agree with me. If we take her back, she only might die, but if we leave her here, her death is a certainty.' He kept walking.
Kaia was in shock. She had never seen someone that badly wounded before, and to add onto that, it had been someone she'd known. She hoped against hope that Miss Darlian (for she was another who honoured her request) recovered, but what would her reaction be if and when she woke up in the base?
She busied herself with patting Suvius' neck. Suvius walked very carefully, as they had decided it best to place the badly wounded girl on his back, as he was much stronger, and able to move faster with the load.
The horse wondered why the weight on his back wasn't moving. Normally his riders moved about more than this one did. It wasn't his mistress. His mistress spoke to him, patted his shoulder and fiddled with his mane while they were riding together. No, this wasn't her.
'She was running away…' muttered Kaia, '…she didn't wanna be in the way…and now this has happened…'
'Things happen,' said Heero shortly, causing Emma to glare at him angrily, but Kaia only nodded. When they were around fifty metres from the base, Duo ran out to meet them with Trowa and Quatre.
*
'What the hell is going on!' yelled Hilde. She didn't have the same restraint as Relena in situations like this. She was more likely to behave more like Duo.
One of the commandos stepped forward.
'Co-operation is recommended, Miss Schneider; the school is now under our control.'
'Shit!'
*
'Who are you?'
It was some time later, and Hilde and her captors were sat in Relena's office.
'We belong to an elite government sector. You will not have heard of us.'
Hilde grunted.
'What do you want…?' she began, but then remembered about her missing friend, 'Do you have another girl in your custody?'
The man laughed. It wasn't a nice laugh. Hilde's stomach contracted.
'Oh, yes. There was another girl in the forest…but let's just say…we probably won't be hearing from her…' he paused, and leaned close to Hilde, close enough for her to be able to smell his vile breath, and continued in a malicious whisper, '…ever…again…'
Then she hit him.
*
Instructor H closed the door quietly, even though it wasn't necessary, as the girl within was oblivious to the outside world right now. He shook his head.
'This can't work for long. We need to get her out of her as soon as possible.'
'She isn't our priority right now,' cut in Wufei, 'our priority is to stop those bandits who've acquired a…' he paused. They'd never discovered, due to Duo's outburst, what the anarchists had acquired.
'…believe it or not, another Gundam.' finished Dr G.
'Any proof to back up their claims?' asked Heero, moving slightly so Kaia could see into Relena's room.
'Only this.' Dr J handed Heero a printout with numbers printed on it in very small script. He scrutinised it briefly, then returned his gaze to the Doctor's.
'These could easily be faked.'
'I know that, they could be random numbers, but they've laid the snare now, and you must dodge it to disable them.' Kaia blinked.
'What about me?'
'You will remain here with Heero, Duo, Hayley and Emma.'
Duo, who obviously hadn't been paying attention earlier, burst out, 'Whaddya mean!? You can't send only three Gundams!'
'I can and I am. Three Gundam's will be enough, even if their claims turn out to be true.'
'I can't believe you're snubbin' me,' pouted Duo, and collapsed into a nearby chair.
'Good, that's settled. Gundams Sandrock, Heavyarms and Shenlong will depart tomorrow, 0300 hours.'
Duo blinked, then stretched out in his chair.
'Ya know, that almost makes me glad I'm not going, ne Heero?'
Heero didn't reply, but Duo, used to minor details such as that, didn't even look up. He didn't notice the emotionless soldier watching Kaia.
*
'You shouldn't have done that Miss,' said the man guarding the now bloody-lipped, black-eyed Hilde. She glared at him in contempt.
'Why are you here? What do you want?'
'We are hear to try to confirm or disprove reports of mobile suits here Miss…'
'Stop calling me that! If you had any respect at all…'
'We'll soon be gone, and we shan't hurt anyone…'
'…else,' added Hilde bitterly, thinking of her friend, not even knowing if she was dead or alive.
'So, what if you find it?'
'What?'
'What if you find what you're looking for? Shall we still be left alone?'
'That matter is out of my hands.'
'Fantastic,' muttered Hilde, then she had a thought.
'Will you let my address the students? Tell them that this is a training exercise or something, not an occupation…'
'…but it is…'
'…I know that, but it'll stop them from panicking.'
The soldier thought for a moment.
'I'll speak to the deputy squad leader, I mean, the squad leader…'
'The deputy? What happened to the top man?' called Hilde as the man walked quickly out of the room and down the corridor, leaving her bound, alone and vulnerable. She felt ill. What a wreck she was.
I'm cold and I am shamed, bound and broken on the floor
Illusion never changed
Into something real
I'm wide awake and I can see the perfect sky is torn…
*
0245
Duo watched with his hands in his pockets as Trowa, Quatre and Wufei made their final preparations, checking fuel gauges, counting ammo stocks, and so on.
Kaia was standing next to Sandrock. Quatre was around the back, checking for tampering, and didn't see how Kaia put her hand on the metal of Sandrock, and followed it upwards with her eyes, her gaze coming to rest on it's solemn 'face'.
At that moment, Quatre walked around the front again and spotted her. He smiled. He liked Kaia, she tried to be so brave, but she was still only twelve years old.
He couldn't stop himself from thinking, I wonder what her reflexes are like…
I wonder who said that? Thought-muttered Emma to herself. She felt lonely without Relena on the other end of the telepathic 'line'.
'Good luck,' muttered Kaia, and backed away.
'Thank you,' said Quatre, and climbed into his mech. He gazed at Kaia's solemn little figure standing far below him before the hatch closed.
There's a place for you somewhere, Kaia McInrae, I hope you find it soon…
I definitely heard something that time! Only very faint though… Emma looked around herself surreptitiously.
Kaia didn't quite re-join Duo and Emma, but stood in the centre of the hangar, and watched the enormous suits climb laboriously out. It was too dangerous to simply jet into the sky, not with all these strange people around.
Then something went wrong.
Somehow Trowa, the last person anyone would expect to slip, lost his Gundam's grip on the roof, and hung for a moment by one arm from the heavy rafters. Sandrock instantly grabbed Heavyarms' shoulder and dragged it onto the roof, but with one last kick, Heavyarms' hit the nearest rafter a resounding blow, leaving it swinging, seemingly free. Everyone sucked in a breath, but eventually the rafter stilled, and the danger of it falling seemed to have passed, which was good, as it was about five feet by forty foot. A serious rafter. Everyone exhaled simultaneously.
Kaia kept watching the Gundams rise into the night sky with only their thrusters burning dimly against the stars. In what seemed like no time, they were gone from view. Kaia turned to rejoin the other two, and then a terrible noise froze her instantly.
It sounded like…no adjective could describe it. It was a deep, loud sound of twisting metal, which meant - Run!
But it was far too late for Kaia to run. She stayed frozen to the spot, directly in the way, while Duo yelled at her to - 'Move! MOVE YOU IDIOT!'
The falling rafter dragged down a lot a roof material, so as it fell, the descent was blocked from Emma and Duo's view by a dense cloud, made up of dust which had accumulated on the rafter, broken wood and roof material, and was completely impenetrable for eyesight. They heard the terrible crash, and they both cried out.
'Kaia! Oh god…'
'KID! Kaia!'
Their cries bought Heero and Hayley dashing into the hangar.
'What happened?' asked Hayley, slightly breathlessly, eyeing the dense cloud of dust, which was beginning to dissipate slightly.
'The rafter fell…'
Hayley exhaled audibly.
'Oh, that's Ok I s'pose, we can always get a new one…What?' she asked, seeing the looks on their faces, then her brain clicked.
'Oh God, no one was under there…' she didn't need their answer, she could tell from the looks on their faces.
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Felflowne : *yawns* It's been a long time, I know, sorry, but I've been busy, and what with ff.net crashing I gave up on fic for a bit. My cpu and I are at war, or rather the Internet and I are at war…Who will win….stay tuned…
Hey, all ye who read this! Do me a favour and visit
Next chapter soon, soz bout the cliffhangar *^_^* gotta get it outta my system…
Coming up - Will the truth about Kaia come out? What will happen when she accidentally gains control of Zero @.@ Eeeek! Read on…