AN: Chapter 10. SOOOOOOOOOOO…. Sorry that I haven't submitted in a while. First off I didn't have the internet, secondly, once I did get new internet I had to change my e-mail address. So yeah it's been a while and I'm going to give you two new chapters! Yeah! Wow, seems like this story is much longer than what it really is. I think that for the last couple of chapters I forgot to put a disclaimer up. So please do not sue me any one. I do not own Gundam Wing or any of its characters. I just love the show and all of the things that comes with it. Please enjoy this chapter!
IMPORTANT FROM NOW ON I WILL NOT POST UP ANOTHER CHAPTER UNLESS I RECEIVE AT LEAST FIVE MORE REVIEWS FROM PEOPLE. I HAVE ONLY RECEIVED A FEW SO FAR. I NEED TO KNOW IF YOU LIKE THIS STORY OR NOT. IF INTEREST IS TOO LOW I WILL NOT CONTINUE TO WRITE. SO PLEASE READ AND REVIEW. I LOVE TO HEAR ALL THE COMMENTS. (NO FLAMES PLEASE!) THIS IS JUST MY FIRST MULTIPART FIC!
"After looking over the disk of information that Mr. Penn used to hold, I have come to a conclusion. I wish to send someone in undercover to this place. This person will gather all the information they can about this group, whoever they may be. We need to know what materials they have, what they are capable of, and most importantly, who their leader is."
"Who have you chosen Commander?" asked Noin.
"Since many of you already have your duties to uphold, I have chosen Wufei to go in. Now Wufei, on the disk I am about to give you, there are security codes and passwords. You must learn all of them. Mr. Penn also held an identification card. You will use it when necessary."
Wufei nodded his head in affirmation. He was glad that he wouldn't have to be a mechanic for a little while.
Sally spoke up,
"Commander, I have an announcement. Early this morning I took the liberty to research Mr. Penn's background. And I made a strange discovery. Mr. Penn was originally from Earth, North America to be precise."
"So maybe he liked it better in the colonies?" Duo half-joked.
"No, I don't think so. He was living in North America during the war. He kept a low profile. Nothing about him being a soldier or belonging to any organization. However, his criminal record was a mile long. It went from armed burglary to even murder."
"But he was positioned out on the colonies?" asked Lady Une.
"Yes."
"Perhaps he was hired as some sort of mercenary for this group?" suggested Quatre.
"We'll see. Wufei, when you go in, try to find out more about this," Lady Une said. "Now, that that is taken care of, I wish to move on to our second matter at hand. I wish to reinforce the Vice Foreign Minister's security."
Relena moved forward with a start.
"Things are fine the way they are. I can assure you that with Heero, Trowa, and Quatre I am perfectly…"
"Relena please try to understand that we can not take any risk at all," interrupted the head of Preventers. "Besides, you well know that I am not the head of your security."
Relena glared at her brother across the room, who simply stood unemotionally. She knew he would pull a stunt like this. The last thing she wanted was bodyguards surrounding her all the time.
Relena excused herself as politely as possible and left the office. Everyone sensed the tension in the room rise as she left.
Lady Une continued though,
"Zechs and a few other Preventers will be accompanying you from now on," Lady Une said to Heero, Trowa, and Quatre. "It's not that you aren't doing a good job, it's just that with things the way they are…"
"Understood," Heero stated without any emotion.
"Good. Well that is all. This meeting is adjourned."
Mobile suits careened through outer space. Their destination: Earth. Some were manned and some were dolls, but all were aiming for destruction.
Leading them was a suit larger than the rest of the fleet. The massive body of the machine was painted black and crimson red. In its left hand it carried a large sword, capable of slicing through anything it wanted. Death lingered wherever it went. And fear was spread when its name was mentioned. The Gundam called Gehenna made its way towards the Earth.
Inside the cockpit of Gehenna the communicator kicked on,
"Bret my boy, I see that you are doing as you have been told. Good job. However, I believe that your man did not succeed in his mission as I was told he would."
"We won't be seeing him anymore," replied Bret Mavica coldly.
"I'll think of another way to get the Vice Foreign Minister. But for now, I want you to hit Earth and hit them hard. You have your coordinates. Oh and Bret," said the man.
"Yes sir?"
"Don't screw up like your friend."
The communication was shut off. Mavica prepared himself for the attack he and his team were about to uphold.
Relena sat on her bed, holding her head in her hands. She was so frustrated at the moment. Milliardo only wishes to do what he deems best. I am after all, the only family he has left. Besides, if anything were to happen to me, the peace would corrupt. The thoughts made her feel better, but also managed to send a shiver up her spine.
Relena took a deep breath and counted to ten. She closed her eyes and tried to relax. So much had happened the last two weeks. So many events had taken place and so many people had entered or reentered her life, one in particular.
Heero: The thought of him made her feel strange. During the war, she had such an infatuation with him it was almost sickening. In fact, when Relena looked back, she cursed herself for behaving in such a way. When everything had ended, she was disappointed that he had left, but accepted the fact that he needed to find a place in the world for himself. She too, needed to grow out of her own childish ways and start to act like the young woman she was meant to be. And she played the part beautifully.
She considered herself over the Perfect Soldier, telling herself it was a simple schoolgirl crush. And the thought worked for a while. When she thought about him, it was more the fact that she was proud to have known such an extraordinary human being. Then all this happened.
Seeing him again after so long had certainly surprised her. And all of the memories from the past came flooding through her mind. Their encounters with each other, the many times he had saved her life and the deep infatuation that she carried for him. She felt the same feelings creep up on her that had years ago. That and something more, something deeper, and much more terrifying than any schoolgirl crush. This new feeling made her lose her whole composure whenever he was around her. She couldn't understand it.
She didn't notice many changes in his demeanor. He was still emotionless and cold. His eyes still stormed with a Prussian blue hurricane. And he was still the soldier he had always been, ready to fight at any cost. Ready to protect her with his life. A promise which had had kept for years and would never break.
Relena smiled at the thought. The promise to protect her was always a comfort. The memories that it sent through her mind were soothing and tranquil.
Her thoughts were invaded when a knock came on her door.
"Come in," she replied quickly drying the few tears that had made their way down her flushed cheeks.
The door opened revealing Zechs. He was hesitant at first to enter the room, but forced himself forward despite the warnings he kept sending to his mind.
"Relena please do not be angry with me. I only want what is best for you."
"Milliardo, I am no longer angry. I'm sorry for the way I behaved earlier. It's just the past couple of weeks have been long and tedious. I understand the reason behind your decision."
Zechs walked over and sat down next to his younger sister on the bed.
"It's just that I care so much about you. I don't know what I would do, if anything were to happen. Relena, you must understand, you are the only family I have left."
"And the same goes for you brother. Remember that I will always love you, even if we do not always agree."
Zechs smiled. He could most certainly see why she got along with nearly everyone. Her character was soothing and peaceful. The smile that she wore on her face right now lighted up her blue eyes. But Zechs could soon see it start to disappear almost as quickly as it had come.
Relena looked away with downcast eyes. She focused her gaze onto the white sheets of her bed.
"Milliardo, what were our parents like?"
Her question certainly shocked him. She had never asked him about the Peacecrafts before. It was indeed a painful thing for both of them. He stumbled over his next words,
"Well, it was such a long time ago. And… and although I was young, I remember them both very well. I suppose I look a lot like father did the same hair and stature. You, you took after mother. Beautiful in about every way; the way she moved and spoke. I suppose we both received her blue eyes though. And of course, you have father's political skills, something I could never learn," he said with great sadness in his voice.
Relena looked at her brother with a single tear rolling down her cheek.
"Milliardo, you can do anything I can. You just have to have the confidence to do it. I know you can, I believe in you…"
"Relena, I chose my path a long time ago. I can not choose otherwise now. But, I will always be here at your side when you need me."
With that he stood up. He bent over and lightly kissed her on the forehead, then left leaving her with her own thoughts.
As Zechs shut Relena's door behind him, a gentle voice spoke,
"She's so lucky to have a brother like you Milliardo."
He spun around to meet Noin's kind and gentle eyes.
"How much of that did you hear?"
"Enough," Noin said with a small smile.
Zechs managed to let out a grin. He stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Noin reacted by encircling her arms around his neck.
"Milliardo, when you leave tomorrow, please be careful."
"You know I will Lucrezia."
"Yes, but things are much more different than what they were during the war."
Zechs looked into her worried eyes. He spoke his next words with true sincerity,
"I love you Lucrezia, and I will always return for you."
Noin managed a small but sad smile before she replied,
"I know."
They leaned towards each other and as their lips were about to meet a Preventer ran towards them through the corridor, tearing them apart.
"To the Commander's office right away! Another attack has been launched upon the earth!"
Zechs and Noin sprinted down the corridor without question. The Preventer lagged behind trying to keep up.
4 hours later…
"Senator Duncan, please. Try to remain calm. I am doing the best I can. I urge you not to make any accusations against the colonies until we have proof of who is behind this."
"I know damn well, who is behind all of this! It's those colonials! They think that they are oppressed. Always wanting others to feel sorry for their poor pathetic situation! What about us? We are the ones who have been attacked repeatedly!"
"Senator," said Relena. "If you please. As I said I am doing the best I can. My tour was postponed but I will pick it up once again tomorrow. I promise you that through negotiations we can solve this problem. You are only making matters worse by causing uproar."
The middle-aged man who had been speaking to the young woman over the Vidphone fumed with anger. But seconds later he tried to remain the calm and dignified politician he was elected to be.
"Very well, my dear. But I am only doing this for your sake. Some others will not be as reluctant as I."
"Yes and I understand that perfectly. The best thing you can do to help me right now though is to spread my message: No one shall make any accusations against the colonies. No arms shall be taken up; no declaration of war shall be made. In other words, nothing is to be done without my consultation. Understood?"
"Perfectly. Good luck to you. I shall do my best. But if anything else happens…"
"I can assure you I am doing the best I can to prevent that. Goodbye Senator Duncan."
Relena shut down the communication line. Over the past three hours she had been speaking with earth as well as colonial delegates and politicians. Three more attacks on the Earth had just been made: Two in Japan and one in Europe around Italy. Again, the attacks were in major cities that were filled with important politicians and members of the ESUN.
Relena rubbed her stiff neck. She was struggling to keep her eyes open. Luckily there had been no casualties during these attacks, however, the toll of the injured was climbing and the destruction was rated as devastating.
The Vidphone blinked again with an urgent message. Relena accepted the call. The screen soon showed Representative Clemens looking as ragged and weary as she was.
"Your tour seems to be working very well," he said curtly.
"I am glad that you think so," replied Relena remembering that they had reason to suspect the old man. The thought that he might have actually planned the attacks infuriated her. However, she quickly reminded herself not to jump to any conclusions.
"Minister Darlian, I thought I told you that the longer you wait to make your move, the more complicated the situation will become."
"How may I do so when the puzzle is yet to be solved?" retorted Relena using one of her political defenses.
"Clever girl, but it won't work. I know all about you: your political moves and defenses. Be careful with your next move Minister."
Relena widened her eyes in surprise.
"Is that a threat Representative Clemens?"
"Consider it a warning," said the old man before he shut off the conversation completely.
Five young men stood inside the large Preventers spaceport. They each stared outside of a massive window, totally unaware of anything but each other. Earth was just outside the window, the seas of green and blue reflecting in the light of space. And the colonies were near by glowing with the light and energy that they needed to survive.
The young men stood in silence. Each was in a different position; each had different thoughts running through his head. Most of the thoughts however, were memories from the past that flooded through their minds like waterfalls.
"I told myself that I would never have to fight again. But deep down I think I knew that things would come to this," spoke Quatre softly breaking the silence.
"We all did," muttered Trowa.
Duo shifted from his position uncomfortably. "Man, I hate the fact that we can't do anything to stop these guys. They have a Gundam, and a really powerful one at that. Until we finish reconstruction on our own Gundams, there's nothing to do but watch as people's lives are destroyed."
"Well one thing is for sure," said Wufei as he stared out the window, "when the Gundams are rebuilt justice will be served. I can promise you that."
"Yeah, our only problem is that time is not on our side," muttered the braided pilot sadly.
"Duo," started Quatre. "Do you think that you could have the Gundams completed within the next two weeks?"
"I don't know, man. With the rate thing are moving right now with the attacks and all, I doubt that we will finish before an all out war breaks loose. Plus I'd need about twenty more people to get on this thing if we want to jump the ball."
"Well, I'm sure that that can be arranged," Quatre insisted. "I can call Rasheed and the Magnuacs to help."
"That would be just peachy. Except we still need more time. We're not just building five mobile dolls here."
"It's up to Relena," said Heero suddenly.
The others looked at him curiously. Then Trowa spoke,
"Heero's correct. Right now the only one who can buy us time to complete the Gundams is Relena. She must continue with her tour in order to keep the colonies and Earth from declaring war."
"Yes," added Quatre, "and it is up to us to help her with that. We must make sure that nothing happens to her, not only because she is Vice Foreign Minister, but because she is a friend."
Trowa and Duo nodded their heads approvingly and Wufei gave a small grunt. Heero simply stood still his eyes unreadable as usual.
"Well," said Duo, "I'm beat and I think we all need to get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a big day."
The pilots dispersed and went their separate ways, except for Heero. He still stood, as still as a statue, overlooking the vastness of outer space.
"I promise that I will protect you Relena, at any cost."
AN: Well that's it for this chapter. By the way if you have sent me an email in the last month and a half I prolly didn't get it cuz I had to switch servers. So please email me again at this new address so I can read your comments and respond to you guys. Email WildRose1404earthlink.net
Gehenna- this is a word that is a synonym for fire hell, death; you know all that good stuff.