Into The Dark
By: Sailor Aurora Helios
Dad, your boy's about to fall.
He walks the razor's edge.
Gunshots rang through the air, the sound of explosions growing closer. The rapid stamp of feet against pavement echoed down the alley as the boy spun around a corner onto the main streets. Duo's violet eyes scanned around him as he quickly raced down the street, breaking down doors in search of any hidden enemy soldiers. The citizens of the city had been evacuated, which had been the first priority to the gundam pilots involved in this battle. As the mobile suit battle drew dangerously closer, Duo knew he had to hurry back to his gundam, Deathscythe.
He's on the brink of fading out.
He's at his bitter end.
Duo wasn't even paying attention to what the buildings around him were. The braided teen threw himself against a set of double doors. The doors budged only a little, obviously barricaded. Smirking, Duo again gave another shove at the doors, which gave way. He immediately moved forward, his finger already pressing on the trigger, gun aimed on the people inside, assuming they were soldiers.
Dad, your boy who used to run,
You taught him how to crawl.
"FUCK!!" He was caught off guard and the sound of the sudden screams of bloody murder sent him stumbling back in shock. Violet eyes widened and he almost immediately froze as he stared at the scene before him. Children. Almost twenty or so children were standing there, crying and screaming as they clung to the only two adults in the room.
"What the hell are you people doing here?!" Duo stared wide-eyed at the children, barely sparing a glance at the adults.
He left home to find his own,
Now all he had is gone.
"Go away! We want nothing to do with your terrorist acts!" The young woman cried, hugging a few of the children close to her.
"Rebekah!"
"No, Father, they're terrorists!"
"He's just a boy."
"A murderer! A sinner in the Lord's eyes!" Rebekah glared quietly at Duo then, but Duo wasn't listening. He was staring at the woman, Rebekah, at the way she was dressed. A nun, Rebekah was a nun. Duo's eyes flicked towards the man, who was a bit older, dressed in the clothes of a priest. Duo's violet eyes widened as he stared at the priest.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
"A priest… and a nun… and… oh, fuck, this is a church? Damnit…" Duo bit his lip. His gaze dropped as he quickly put his gun away. His hand moved up, wrapping around the gold cross that hung from his neck then he finally looked up again.
"Yes… San Xavier Catholic Church." The priest nodded to Duo.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to barge in like that. …What are you people still doing here? The city was supposed to be evacuated! Damn, we didn't want any civilians getting hurt!" Duo bit down on his lip, glancing at the still crying children. The image hit way too close to home.
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
"The children are too scared." Rebekah said helplessly as she tried to sooth the children, only calming them down a little.
"Damnit, why aren't they with their parents? Why are they here?!" Duo sighed in frustration glancing back over his shoulder wearily. Rebekah shot a glare towards Duo.
"They're war orphans, because of people like YOU." Rebekah hissed softly. Her soft blue eyes pinned a distrustful gaze on Duo. Duo bit down on his lip again staring down at the children.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
"I know. People like me make kids orphans… I just keep making more kids like myself." Duo murmured softly before looking away.
"What… what do you mean?" Rebekah's brow furrowed in confusion as she stared at Duo.
"I mean, I'm an orphan too, but I started fighting, because I had to. Who I am doesn't matter though! You people need to get to safety!" Duo looked up at Rebekah and then at the priest.
"We're not leaving," Rebekah's soft voice said.
"God damn, why are nun's always so stubborn!" Duo shook his head walking forward as he continued, "I don't want you people getting hurt. The MS are getting really damn close to here and you don't have much time."
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
The priest who had been quiet for most of the time kept his gaze on Duo. Silently he was trying to figure the teen out.
"You wear a priest's collar and a gold cross, young man…" The priest spoke softly, catching Duo's gaze. Duo fell silent then, hand moving to his cross again.
"He's a hypocrite, a murderer trying to atone for his sins—"
"Rebekah," The priest turned his gaze on the young woman, "judge not, lest ye be judged." The nun fell silent at that, dropping her gaze.
Mom, your baby's on his way.
He'll soon be at your side.
"If you really must know, it's to honor the only people I could come close to calling family, but they died seven years ago. I took on the name of the priest, too, Maxwell. Duo Maxwell's the name." Duo said softly, turning away from the priest and nun, moving to walk towards the doors again.
"A survivor of the Maxwell Church Massacre…" The priest said quietly, staring sadly after Duo. Duo nodded quietly, not daring to look back at the priest.
Cause he's forgotten all he's known.
A part of him has died.
"Maxwell Church Massacre?? You were there? You're from the L2 colonies?" Rebekah whispered, staring wide-eyed at Duo.
"Born and raised," Duo shrugged, glancing over his shoulder and smirked, "on the streets, of course, until Father Maxwell and Sister Helen took me in, closest I ever had to parents… Well, take care. I still say you need to get out of here, but you won't." Duo smiled before he took off running outside, racing down the street and returning to his mission.
Mom may never understand,
Why baby's come and gone.
Duo cursed as he stared at the mobile suits drawing closer by the second. What if there were more people in the city?
"No time to look now, damn." Duo sighs turning and running down the street. He kept running until he finally reached where he'd hidden Deathscythe. As quickly as he could he climbed into the cockpit, the engines revving to life as his fingers moved over the controls.
He left home to find his own.
Now all he has are lies.
The battle was fierce. The two gundam pilots fighting found themselves easily out numbered.
"MAXWELL! BEHIND YOU!" Wufei's worried voice shouted over the com-link as he rushed behind to stop the attack on his friend from behind, but ended up taking the damage.
"Shit, 'Fei! Are you ok?!" Duo bit his lip as he watched the com-link's screen flickering with static for a moment before it finally settled. Wufei only nodded slightly to Duo before returning to the battle.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
Duo was trying his best to keep the mobile suits from getting any further into the city then they already were, but he was slowly backing up; retreat was looking like the best options for the gundam pilots at this point.
'No, we can hold out longer…' Out of the corner of his eye he saw a mobile suit go crashing down. Duo's eyes widened as he realized it was dangerously near the church, and spun around to see a corner of the church was destroyed.
"SHIT!" Duo eyes narrowed at the painfully familiar site as he spun around, holding his ground and refusing to let any more damage come to the church, or the people he knew were still inside.
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
"Father… that… that mobile suit is… protecting us!?" Rebekah murmured softly, shrinking closer to the older man having grown almost as afraid as the children. The priest only nodded as he pulled her away from the broken windows.
"That's a gundam, Rebekah, and that gundam pilot seems intent on protecting us." The priest said quietly before turning his attention on the young children again.
"DUO! MOVE! You're gonna get yourself killed!" Wufei bit down on his lip as spared a glance at the constant readings on the damages to his gundam. Duo shook his head slightly, glancing across the screens to where Wufei was fighting, the two having been separated.
"No, Wufei, I can't…"
"Duo, look out!" Wufei shouted and Duo's eyes darted forward again. His eyes widened as a mobile suit moved forward quickly to attack, catching Duo off guard.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
Duo wasn't sure what had happened, everything went crazy. His head hurt like hell having hit the back of it when he recoiled from an impact. He was pretty sure he had a pretty bad gash on his forehead, seeing as blood was trickling into his eyes. All the screens around him were filled with static and nothing seemed to respond. A monitor next to Duo exploded, flames starting to grow, reaching out to lick at Duo's arms. Cursing, Duo struggled to get out of the safety harness. Finally free, and having gotten the cockpit door open, Duo tumbled out. Sighing, Duo laid on the ground, staring blankly into space. When he finally sat up Duo wished he hadn't, not wanting to see the sight before him.
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
The church… it was in ruins. Numbly, Duo stood walking towards the ruin, carefully making his way through the debris, desperate to find any survivors. Blood was all around him and he cringed at the site. Duo paused to stare at two small children huddled together, covered in blood. They had been crying but the blood mixed with the tear as if they'd been crying blood. Duo bit down on his lip, turning away from the scene as he walked through the ruins.
"Duo…" A weak voice said and Duo turned to stare at the nun. Tears stung Duo's eyes as he fell to his knees beside her.
"You're dying, aren't you? Oh…god… not again… I can't do this again…" Duo whimpered slightly, staring down at Rebekah, feeling like he was eight years old again. The young nun only smiled sadly up at Duo.
"You were the gundam pilot that was protecting us, weren't you?" Rebekah asked softly and Duo nodded weakly.
"I was wrong about you, Duo, and I'm sorry. I hope… you can forgive me. Not… all soldiers… are the same. You… you have such… a kind… heart, Duo… I pray that you… you live through this war… and get… to be happy… God bless you, Duo…" Rebekah said softly.
"NO! Don't say that! Not again… God should damn me to Hell!" Duo trembled slightly as the tears flooded down his cheeks. Rebekah weakly lifted her hand and brushed away Duo's tears.
"Don't say that… Keep living strong and win this war, Duo… Don't let the world become run by those soldier's I hate… God bless you, Duo Maxwell, I'm glad I met you…" With that said Rebekah's smile slowly faded and her eyes closed.
In your eyes…
Duo stood weakly stumbling back away from the dead body but Duo collapsed again. A soft sob escaped Duo's lips. This was all too familiar. He curls up on the ground, crying softly to himself. He didn't care about the battle anymore, about the war, about anything…
In your eyes…
Wufei struggled to get to Duo's fallen gundam. He'd barely managed to end the battle, nearly losing his life while he was at it. He cursed when he found Duo's gundam empty, returning to the ground, his gaze moving to the ruins ahead of him. Wufei cringed at the dead bodies around him, trying to ignore it all. He froze when he saw Duo sobbing quietly.
In your eyes…
Slowly, Wufei walked forward resting his hand on Duo's shoulder. Duo jerked away turning around to stare up at Wufei.
"Go away!" Duo looked away again, choking on a sob. He pulled his knees to his chests as he clutched desperately at his gold cross, staring at the ground in front of him.
In your eyes…
"No, Duo…" Wufei moved in front of Duo, kneeling in front of him. Gently cupping Duo's chin he raised Duo's head to look at him. Dark eyes stared into amethyst. He could see the pain from the memories that tormented the braided teen. He watched those crystal tears slowly slide down Duo's cheeks.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
Gently Wufei brushed Duo's tears away then pulled the American into his arms, hugging him close. Duo's eyes widened in sudden surprise at the kindness from Wufei before burying his face in Wufei's chest and sobbing quietly.
For almost an hour the two just sat like that. Wufei gently rubbing Duo's back and doing whatever he could to comfort Duo as he cried.
"Duo, I know your past haunts and torments you, but you need to move on. You're letting yourself be dragged into the darkness, and I can't stand to watch that." Wufei whispered gently in Duo's ear.
"I can't…"
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
"You can," Wufei whispered, "because you're stronger than this. I'll help in any way I can, but you have to let me help you." Wufei tightened his arms around Duo. Duo nodded slowly after a moment, sighing as he looked up at Wufei. Wufei leaned down, brushing his lips gently against Duo's forehead. Gently he moved lower kissing away Duo's tears before his lips brushed over Duo's in a soft whisper of a kiss. Wufei smiled down at Duo before pulling away.
In your eyes I see a darkness that torments you,
And in your head where it dwells.
Violet eyes were wide as he stared up at Wufei watching as he moved to stand. He stared into Wufei's eyes catching the loving and caring look rarely shown. He slowly and hesitantly smiled back up at Wufei.
I'd give you my hand if you'd reach out and grab it.
Let's walk away from this Hell.
Wufei kept silent as he held out his hand for Duo. Hesitating for a moment Duo reached out grabbing Wufei's hand. Wufei helped Duo to stand, turning and walking back towards their gundams, the braided teen following at his side.