Hello, and hi minna-san! I have been reading the reviews left by you beautiful people and have taken every consideration suggested to try and make this chapter a plot landmark. I hope you enjoy the escapades of our heros and heroines! A special thanks goes out to Girl-Chama for giving me advice on how to better my character and to Sailorcelestial for being a good friend and reviewing my story for the first time.
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, or Gundam Wing, but I do own Tre and Pyrone.
Chapter 23 - Shadows of Doubt
"With the announcement of the engagement between an R.M.S Division wing commander and the princess of the Royal Family, his majesty has also reported that there will be an engagement party tomorrow night at his palace despite rumors of a ghost Gundam massacre, said to have taken place yesterday in the Ghost Cluster. Several pilots have been missing and are presumed dead, but not because of a ghost, his majesty assures..."
The newscast then switched to a recorded press conference that King Charles had arranged to meet.
"It has been confirmed that the deaths of several mobile suit pilots under our command were not done by some ghost Gundam. The enemy in question was destroyed the other day against our proud pilots and has been heard from since. Now, all accusations of such are truly groundle-"
The viewer couldn't take any more bullshit from the newscast. He was dejected, to say the least, about having to track this ghost with the very weapon that this "ghost's" father created. The man rose from his chair, looking over the city of the L2 colony once belonging to his son's best friend. How he despised the British autocracy for putting him here; they knew it would hurt him to be here, commanding his own weapons to destroy a boy that was like a second son to him. At the very least, if this ghost were doing its job correctly, then the entire British military wouldn't dare try to fight it. They knew it would kill the "engine of peace", as it was called, and the parts of the engine wouldn't function, thereby destroying the engine. Theo could only hope that would happen.
He sighed, looking at the newspaper. Over the past two days, he had been trying to hunt down Matt and Nikki Young, to try and tell them the fate of their relative. Communications on the colonies were very limited and only the rich could watch the newscasts, while others tapped into the signal illegally. Theo Reigns didn't care how the public got their news, so long as it was the whole truth and not a half-truth that would get the resistance movements fighting again. It was a terrible loss of life. He feared for the colonies, hoping the ghost would resurrect and take control of the colonies.
His desk intercom was paging him, so he responded by pressing the blinking button. A holographic video screen appeared and the face of his daughter shone on the screen.
"Father, I've received a call from Pyrone on the old phone," Sara Reigns informed her father.
"Pyrone?" Theo asked. "Did he tell you what he was doing?"
"He said something about taking back X-66618 with Tre," she answered. "He said he'd free you."
"I'll be waiting," Theo smiled. "Tah, Sara."
"Buh bye, Daddy," Sara said.
Then, the holograph died as Theo sat down again. Any minute now, those two would start their plan to free his company from the British.
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"OK," Pyrone said. "Let's go over this thing one more time, just for my health. I go in first with the wrecked Aries, since I've got the British accent, Tre and Heero here will follow up by taking out the security perimeter around the colony. They will then infiltrate the colony through the elevator and take out the British forces within. Then, you guys will bring in your Gundams to destroy the hangar task force. After that, we move to phase two and rescue my father."
"All correct," Tre said. "Now, lock and load, boys."
The pilots all loaded their side arms, and then put them on safety. Each proceeded to get into their Gundams from the shuttle, still decked in their spacesuits. Mina floated up to Tre, to give him a good-bye kiss. When she did, Tre felt something odd about her, like there was something extra to her life. Tre's eyebrows went sky high when he realized what it was. He just put it to the back of his mind and floated into DreadScythe HELL's pod. He was prepared to pull off this mission without a distraction and that would prove to be very difficult now. Every few seconds, that thought crept up from the back of his mind and started to haunt him again. He tried to forget it as he started up DreadScythe HELL and put on his helmet.
The large clamshell doors of the pod were slowly parting and showing deep space. Tre guided DreadScythe HELL out of the pod and into the vast vacuum. The rest of the Gundam group and a wrecked Aries soon surrounded DreadScythe. Then, DreadScythe disappeared altogether and one by one, so did the rest of the Gundams until only the Aries was left. Pyrone's face showed up on the screens of each Gundam cockpit, and something about him wasn't right.
"Hey Pyrone, where's your hair?" Duo jeered.
"Pattern baldness runs in the family," Tre joked.
"Ah ha! That's really funny," Pyrone said sarcastically. "Suck mine and go to Hell."
"Oh come on, Pyrone," Trowa said. "It doesn't look that bad on you."
"Sure, because you think it's a riot, Barton," Pyrone spat.
"Pyrone, it's an ancient Chinese honor to have no hair," Wufei consoled.
"Great for the Chinese," Pyrone huffed. Wufei scowled.
The seven suits came closer to the colony that Tre called home and then the Aries sent out an emergency docking call and then the DreadScythe broke away from the group to take out the security perimeter around the colony. The rest of he Gundams waited just outside the colony hangar as Pyrone crashed the suit into the hangar. The mangled Aries had disabled the rest of the suits to launch, giving Tre a little more time to work in comfortable margins.
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'Come on, let's just die peaceably,' Tre thought as the sword plunged deep into the Taurus suit.
He and Heero had taken out over half the security perimeter of the colony without so much as hearing an alarm. Several of the suits were already floating about like rag dolls, with small trickles of blood coming from the cockpit area in the torso of the suits. Tre had just released the suit he had just been working on and pulled out the beam cannon. He told Heero to do the same as he primed the weapon and readied it for a large beam. He aimed it at the elevator protection and fired. The enormous golden beams streaked into outer space, several orange fireballs appeared around them as both destroyed the majority of the remaining suits. Then, DreadScythe HELL and Neo Wing Zero slowly sneaked toward the elevator door as sirens and alarms went off on all the security channels. Tre tapped into their communications and listened to reports of resistance in the hangar and on the outside of the colony. The word 'ghosts' was heard very often. Tre proceeded to jam all communications on the British channels and then, he heard nothing except communications between the Gundams.
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-Five minutes earlier-
"Sir, are you all right?" a couple of worried lieutenants floated toward the wrecked Aries.
"Yes, I'm fine," Pyrone said with a pained tone. He was faking it, but they didn't know that.
"Well, you're bleeding, sir," one lieutenant explained.
Pyrone looked at the red spot on his suit that he had just made, "Oh, Christ!"
"Quick, Peter," the other lieutenant said. "Let's get him inside!"
They lifted Pyrone together and all three floated to the airlock up on the balcony overlooking the hangar. They looked at each other and the damage that Pyrone had caused.
"Looks like you boys can't launch your mobile suits," Pyrone sounded fatigued.
"That shouldn't be a problem, Major," the lieutenant soothed. "It's not likely an attack will happen anytime soon."
Just then, gunfire was heard and several suits blew up. The bullets seemed to come from nowhere and so did the fire. Sort of like...
"GHOSTS!!" the two lieutenants shrieked.
Dropping their grip on Pyrone, they kicked off toward the control room and Pyrone followed. They attempted to shut the doors to the hangar while the hangar task force came out. Pyrone knocked out the two lieutenants from behind, took off the helmet in the atmosphere ready room, and then ripped the bald cap off of his head. He then shed the pale blue OZ spacesuit and instead walked around in his black flight suit. He took his sidearm off of the safety setting and walked in nonchalantly, toward the tallest building in the entire colony: the office building of the former Young Corporation.
That is where his father would be and no doubt that Tre was already on his way toward the building now. Pyrone was steadily walking toward the building but was held back by something. A beggar was clutching the pant leg of his flight suit and how strange this beggar was...
"Mr. Young?" Pyrone breathed.
"Yes, Pyrone," Matt Young answered. "I am here."
"Boy is Tre going to be glad to see you," Pyrone kept his voice down.
"That's the problem," a female voice said. "My little brother shouldn't be coming here; it's too dangerous for him now!"
"That's where you're wrong, Nikki," Pyrone said. "He's a ghost as far as the British are concerned."
"What?" Matt panicked. "Is he dead?"
"No, he was believed to be dead by the British," Pyrone explained. "But, his new Gundam has this power to cloak itself completely like a ghost does, without a trace."
"Ah," Matt understood. "So he's still alive and well."
"Yep," Pyrone laughed. "And, he's about to take this colony back riiight...NOW!"
As Pyrone said now, a blast was heard in the distance. Then, DreadScythe HELL materialized from out of nowhere, as did Neo Zero. The two Gundams slowly scanned the colony for any enemy mobile suits. Matt's eyes were flooded with tears and Nikki had already broken down crying from joy. They were going to be in power once again and have their lives back. Pyrone gave them a small cell phone and told them that he would call them once they had control of the colony again, then he said goodbye and ran off to join Tre and Heero in freeing his father.
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"Once we're done here," Heero said to Tre, "we can get your parents back in power."
"And then the British won't ever touch this colony again," Tre said.
The two were currently lowering themselves from their Gundams' cockpits. The ride took a while due to the height of the machines. Once down they tugged hard on the cables and they retracted expediously. Then, the cockpit doors closed automatically. Tre and Heero shed their spacesuits, and underneath were decked in SWAT team coveralls with earpieces and communicators wrapping their necks. They both loaded their Deutsche D5K guns with banana clips and proceeded to Tre's office building.
If the plan they had formulated on the shuttle went accordingly, the only threats that remained for these two were the security personnel inside. The rest of the British occupying the colony were either dead or busy getting killed at the moment. Tre and Heero crouched behind a large bush in front of the building's main entrance and a rustling behind them startled both. Wheeling around, guns ready the two were surprised to see Pyrone, as he was surprised to be held at gunpoint. Raising his hands, Pyrone laughed nervously, and then Tre and Heero lowered their weapons. Pyrone crouched behind them, spying the two-man security blockade at the front desk. All three nodded and slowly separated as Pyrone went inside, while Heero and Tre took wither side of the doors. Pyrone walked in and said,
"I'd like to see my father, Theodore Reigns."
"I'm sorry, but Mr. Reigns is very busy at the moment," the guard said.
"Too busy to see his only son?" Pyrone asked, playing surprised.
"Yes sir, I'm afraid he's specifically said that no one may visit."
Just then, the phone rang and both guards looked down at it. Pyrone drew his pistol, quick as a flash, and struck both guards over their heads. He also got a shot off and the doors flew open as Tre and Heero stormed the desk and seized the guards. They were relieved of their firearms and were taken outside behind the thickest bushes and bound to a tree. Tre and Heero struck them over the heads several times, to make sure they were going to be unconscious for at least an hour.
Then, all three pilots entered the building again. Each time they rounded a corner, Tre and Heero cautiously investigated their surroundings. Then, peeking around a corner, they saw what they needed to get to Mr. Reigns: the elevator. Two men, both armed very well guarded it and it was also required of the rider to have clearance codes to punch into the keypad. Tre told Pyrone the code and told him to go to the elevator and stop on the third floor once he got in. They would notify him that they were on the elevator by banging lightly on the roof.
Pyrone nodded, and then Tre led Heero to the service elevator. A lone old man guarded the service elevator and he was fast asleep. Tre pressed the button to open the doors. The bell awakened the guard and he asked,
"Who goes there?"
"It's alright, old man," Tre put on a foney British accent.
"Are you going to see Mr. Reigns?" the man looked around with a clouded gaze.
"He's blind," Heero whispered.
"Who is?" the old man asked. "Hello?"
Tre and Heero got in the elevator and the door shut behind them. Heero pressed the button for the third floor. As the elevator rose, they both knocked open the roof hatch and squeezed through it to access the roof. They both hopped from one support beam to the other, trying to get to the main elevator on the third floor. They saw the car as it was still sitting at the first floor. What was going on?
Little did they know, Pyrone was still trying to get in the elevator. On his way toward the guards, he decided to make a pit stop. Then, he proceeded toward the guards. They stopped him to ask him some questions.
"Who are you?"
"I am Pyrone Theodore Reigns, son of Theodore Reigns," Pyrone calmly explained. "I would like to see my father."
"Did the desk tell you that he was to be left alone?" one guard asked.
"They did, but he called them and said to send me up."
"We would have known if the desk got a call like that because they would have told us right after."
"Well, believe what you want, but I know that I want to see my father."
"Wait here, and don't leave this spot until I come back," one guard said.
As he walked away, Pyrone watched him. Then he pulled out a handkerchief and pretended to sneeze. The guard watched, and Pyrone folded the handkerchief as the small vial slid out of the cloth and into Pyrone's hand. Pyrone pointed to a painting on the wall nearby and the guard looked. Pyrone threw the vial down onto the ground and it burst open. A purple fog billowed from the vial, and the guard couldn't see the fist Pyrone threw his way. With the guard knocked out, Pyrone entered the code for the elevator and confiscated the gun from the guard. The doors of the elevator car slid shut and Pyrone allowed it to rise to the third floor. It stopped at the prescribed floor and the doors slid open.
Tre and Heero saw that the car had risen to the desired floor and both jumped onto the car's roof, softly landing on it. The mechanism that opened and closed the doors made the doors slide shut and Heero tapped lightly with the butt of his gun on the roof. Pyrone tapped back in acknowledgment and pushed the button for the top floor. The car rose rapidly, Heero and Tre crouching on the roof.
"Tre?" Heero called for his companion.
"Yeah, Heero?" Tre answered.
"I wonder sometimes about my feelings for Serena."
"How do you mean?"
"I've been taught and trained to not have emotions or feelings," Heero started. "Yet, when I only know this girl for one night, she and I suddenly fall in love and...uh-"
"Yeah, I know," Tre stopped him. "I think what you're getting at is are we in love with these girls because of Fate or because we see something in these girls?"
"Exactly," Heero affirmed. "Are we forced to love them?"
"What do you think?" Tre wondered.
"I think I want to make Serena happy no matter what," Heero admitted. "That's how I feel about her."
"Hmm," Tre nodded. "I think that Fate has put us together, but we found something in them that instantly drew us to them. Mina and I have been waiting for a long time to get reunioned, and so have the rest of you guys. It's hard to explain, but you'll find out. Anyway, we're at our floor."
The car had been stopped at the top floor for quite some time. Heero, in his reviere, had failed to notice this. His training was failing him as Serena intoxicated his mind. Tre was already scaling down the ladder along side the elevator car. The large car was already returning to the first floor, and Heero jumped onto the ladder, just below Tre.
Tre checked on Heero as the car passed his companion, and used his telekinetic power to open the doors. They slid open easily and Tre scaled the ladder to hop in the opened doors. A hand met him, Pyrone's hand. The older pilot helped his two comrades into the hallway from the elevator shaft. When all were out of the shaft, Tre shut the doors.
"Ready?" Tre asked.
"Affirmative," Heero said.
"Let's go," Pyrone answered.
Pyrone led the way, Tre and Heero following with their guns ready. Pyrone approached the secretary's desk to ask for admittance. She saw the other two with guns and gave no argument, letting the men in.
They opened the large wooden doors to the office and saw Theo Reigns sitting in the large executive chair behind the large desk. He smiled when he saw his son and Tre. Rising from the chair to greet the three young men, Theo's heart went into a rapid beat as the two downstairs guards burst into the room, guns about to blaze. Tre rounded on them and opened fire. The two were caught off guard and were bomabrded with bullets. They flipped backwards from the extreme force of the bullets hitting their upper torso. Still alive, they were trying to right themselves as Heero and Pyrone confiscated their weapons, and flipped them onto their backs. No blood was found on the bodies...
"They're wearing bullet-proof vests," Theo explained. "I designed them myself and I now have had the chance to see how well they work.
"They work well," Heero said. "Tre didn't kill them."
"I know that, young man," Theo said shortly. "Which one are you?"
"Heero Yuy," Heero introduced himself.
"Ah yes, Heero Yuy," Theo mused. "I've heard of your escapades."
"Mr. Reigns," Tre voiced. "I am in dire need of your help to regain control of these colonies."
"What is it you need?"
"The Space Wasps," Tre answered. "Are they ready or not?"
"Well, you could say that they are," Theo said. "Or, you could say they aren't. Why do you need them so badly?"
"The Gundams aren't going to be enough in a final battle should the British stage one," Heero explained. "We'll need some assistance."
"I see," Theo said. "Well, they aren't ready."
Tre was livid, "What do you mean they aren't ready? You've had multiple resources to build these fucking things and what have you to give me? They aren't ready? What the HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR THE LAST SIX MONTHS?"
"We're going to need a lot of pilots, Tre," Theo said. "That's why they aren't ready."
Tre felt very sheepish for yelling like that, especially at a friend. He felt absolutely terrible and yet very childish and selfish. His temper was flaring up an awful lot lately, a fault he surely would have to control.
"The pilots can be found," Tre said. "Just give me the truth: are the actual craft ready for a battle?"
"Yes, the crafts are prepared for a full battle right now," Theo sighed.
"Good," Heero said. "Pyrone, call Tre's relatives and get them up here."
"Right," Pyrone said, pressing the speed dial on his phone.
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Later that day, Nightshift had docked inside a private hangar reserved for the Young family and all seven of its occupants were brought to the tall office building of Young Corp. Soon after, another shuttle carrying the rest of Tre's family and Doctor X docked into the private hangar and a stretch limo was waiting for them. The sidewalks were lined with the well-wishing citizens of the colony, glad that their freedom had returned with the Young family. The colony was no longer under the control of the British and Matt Young was once again taking control of the multi-quadrillion dollar business that he owned and created from a penniless existence.
The Gundams were all safely tucked into a secret hangar connected by a system of tunnels that could get the pilots to their machines in an instant.
Tre was anxious to see his family, and especially his mom. He had met up with his dad and Nikki already, and was very glad to see that they were alive, even after being tortured. Both were showered and cleaned up, looking professional. Tre had elected to change into his black outfit, the long sleeve shirt, loose jeans, and sleeveless trench coat. Nikki was anxious to see her daughter Missy, after being separated from her little angel because of those British military men.
"So, you excited?" Tre asked his eldest sister.
"Absolutely," she answered shakily.
"You're very nervous," Tre said.
"Really? No shit," Nikki laughed.
Just after she said that, the doors opened and the rest of the Young family walked in. Tre and Nikki both approached them at a rapid gate. Missy came out from behind Jade Young, yelling,
"MOMMY!"
"Missy!" Nikki hugged her daughter.
Tre and his mother embraced, Jade Young crying her eyes out. Tre was crying too, glad that his mother was safe and that his little brother-to-be was safe also. They both stood there, waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, they finally looked at each other. Tre wiped a tear off his mother's face. Then, Tre was attacked by his other siblings, getting hugs from all his sisters and brothers. Once everyone was hugged and caught up by Tre, he waved Mina over.
"Mom, Dad, guys," Tre addressed his family. "This is my girlfriend, Mina Aino. She and her friends are from the past and they're here to help us Gundam pilots. Mina, this is my eldest sister Nikki, my older brothers Anthony, Jason, and Derrick. These are my other sisters, Ashley, Julia, Mika, and Crystal."
"Well, nice to meet you, Mina," Matt bowed.
"Arigato," Mina used her native language. "It is nice to meet all of Tre's family. It sure is a big family!"
They laughed, it was true that they had a big family. Mina was quick to find out that all Tre's brothers were triplets and the younger of his sisters were all quadruplets. They all gravitated toward each other in bond shared only by children of multiple births. She felt safe around them, like she did with Tre. But she was still wary of them all.
Tre began to catch up with his siblings. Over the past six months that they had aged, he found out that Anthony had married his girlfriend of over three years. She was a well-known local rock musician in a band called Thresher. Jason and Derrick had gone on to produce records and record their own records for a small label. They called themselves 2 Thirds and did all their own music. As for the girls, Tre found out that Ashley had opened a tattoo and piercing parlor on the far side of the colony, far from home. Mika worked there as a partner with her sister, and as for Crystal and Julia, well they great things going for them. Julia was engaged to a pilot for the Air Force and she planned on working at the base as a mechanic. Crystal was going to open her own restaurant soon and she was having a baby in about three months. Her boyfriend had proposed to her only a month before she got pregnant, and she accpeted of course.
"Wow," Tre said. "A lot of things have happened while I was gone, huh?"
"Yeah," Anthony said. "What happened to you, bro?"
"Me?" Tre asked. "Well, I'm not supposed to be alive, because the British have declared me dead."
"Those mother fuckers," Jason seethed. "They tried to kill you?"
"Uh huh," Tre answered. "Thankfully, DreadScythe ejected me out of harm's way in time."
"Gundams," Julia scoffed. "Why couldn't you have been a pilot with Jeff?"
"Because," Tre said. "I have a Gundam to use and I have a duty to the colonies, that's why!"
"You would be so much more safe if you were an Air Force pilot and not a Gundam pilot," she argued.
"Julia, I am not a pilot that wants to risk my life a little bit everyday. I want to risk my life everday with the thought of not surviving going through my head at all times," Tre said.
"If you die," Crystal said. "What then? What would that accompish?"
"I will have done that good for the colonies," Tre said. "I'd be a martyr, and that's the worst thing the British want me to be at this point; even worse than me being a Gundam pilot."
"Dude," Derrick started. "You could come be in our band, you're an awesome guitar and bass player."
"Thanks," Tre said. "But no. I want to be a Gundam pilot. Period, end of sentence."
Mina watched as Tre looked at each of his siblings in turn, seeing as they wouldn't get their way. He then turned and left, to eat. Mina approached him at the table, and sat down to tell him something.
"Tre," Mina started. "I have something to tell you."
"What is it?" Tre asked sincerely.
"I'm not just one life anymore," she tried to explain.
"Uh huh," Tre responded. He knew what she meant, but he wanted to let her tell him in her own way.
"I am carrying another life in me," she stuttered.
"So you're possessed," Tre concluded jokingly.
"No, not exactly," Mina said. "I'm...Tre, I'm pregnant."
Tre acted like he was caught off guard. His expression was that of surprise at first, then into an expression of joy and comforting as Mina began to well up. Hugging her, he soothed her,
"Mina, that's great! You and I are going to start our own family and we're going to have so much fun with the baby. This is a good thing, why are you crying?"
"I'm scared," she sobbed. "I don't know how to handle it. I mean, I'm still a Sailor Soldier."
"I know that," Tre said. "But this doesn't mean you have to stop now! You still have another nine months to go with this; you've only been with it for two days, right?"
"How did you know?" Mina asked.
"I have mental abilities, you know."
"Oh. I forgot."
"So, don't worry about it."
"OK."
She dried her eyes and joined Tre in having dinner. Heero and Serena joined them, shortly after a long conversation with Tre's siblings. They were so unlike Tre, at least that's what Heero thought. Serena couldn't care less because she was having a good time talking with Tre's quadruplet sisters. Speaking of Serena, the odango haired blonde was eating plate after plate of full dinner entrees. Tre could not believe what he was seeing, and neither could Heero. Boy was it going to be hard to keep food stocked in his house!
After everyone had finished dinner, Matt Young took the podium and started to announce something very important.
"No one will report that this gathering had my youngest son, Tre, here attending it. As far as the British are concerned, he is dead and it needs to stay that way in order for Tre and the other Gundam pilots to win the war against the British and their autocratic regime."
Everyone understood the announcement and went about their business once again. About after midnight, the party started to wind down and guests were beginning to take their leave. When the last had gone from the high office, Tre, his father and mother, Pyrone and his father, the Sailor Scouts, and the other Gundam pilots were gathered around a small circle in the carpet of the office. Matt pressed a button on his shirt sleeve and the circle started to descend past the floor.
When all the heads had cleared the floor line, a hatch closed above them, concealing the opening. As the platform descended, a warroom was seen with people rushing about or sitting at consoles attending to late breaking information. The platform stopped and all the occupants stepped off and headed to a large illuminated table. Several high ranking officers were already gathered around it.
"Ah, good to see you again, Mr. Young," a gray-haired and muscular general greeted Matt.
"Yes, it's good to be back, General Raynard," Matt shook his hand.
"Tre," the general nodded.
"General," Tre smirked.
"Let's get to the point," a uniformed woman started. "The British around this colony have been eliminated and no reinforcements have been called in. Which means only one thing."
"WE did our job perfectly in taking over this colony," Heero stated.
"Yes," a bespectacled and frail military man said. "You have infiltrated and seized power."
"So what is all this?" Serena asked excitedly. "Is it Christmas lights?"
"No, they aren't Christmas lights," the general sighed. "They are positions of enemy suits."
"Oh, so they're concentrated around the remaining L3 colonies," Tre said. "Why?"
"Maximum security for the few days before the wedding," the bespectacled man said.
"That little bitch of a princess has gone too far by trying to overrun my colony," Tre spat.
Jade Young looked very uneasy when Tre made this comment, and she stared at her son with a very guilty gaze. He happened to glance in her direction and catch the look on her face. She walked away from the table at this point, holding a hand over her mouth. She felt sick, and very uncomfortable. Did someone raise the heat in the room? She couldn't breathe very well and she became panicked. Tre rested his hands on his mother's shoulders, and she instantly calmed down. Tre rubbed her back as he asked for a couple of chairs. She sat in a chair while he sat in the other.
"Tell me what's wrong, Mom," Tre requested.
"I can't keep this secret from you anymore, son," Jade said sadly.
"What secret?"
"Princess Elizabeth of the British is your half-sister," Jade spoke. She felt naseous and vomited on the floor.
Tre bolted from his seat the moment he heard his mother speak that last word. She had felt so sick about it, and she vomited all over the floor. Tre felt sick now; that bitch was his half-sister? Matt, Theo, and Pyrone all tried to make her feel better while Mina, Duo, and Lita tried to console Tre. Tre was trying to keep from going all over the floor like his mother.
"Mom, you can't be serious," Tre said shakily.
"When I was 18, I donated some of my eggs to the British Royal Family for their continuing genetic research," Jade explained.
"No," Tre said lowly.
"Back then, it wasn't corrupt and I figured I was helping. I was very young. I found out that the queen and king used it for artificial insemination and raised the embryo inside the queen herself."
"No, she can't be my sister," Tre choked.
"She is your sister by my genes, Tre," Jade sobbed. "I'm sorry."
"FUCK!!!" Tre shouted, rounding on a nearby table and smashing it.
"So help us, God," a Scottish voice was heard.
"You knew about this?" Tre hissed at the doctor.
"Aye," the doctor sighed. "'Tis a sad thing to learn, laddy."
Tre grabbed the man by his collar and put him up against a wall, "WHY!?!"
"Calm down," Doctor X said. "It isn't as bad as it seems."
"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN!?!"
"She is your half-sister," the doctor explained. "And therefore you are a member of the Royal Family and cannot be killed and neither can your family."
"How?"
"It's coded in THEIR genes not to kill their own family members, but you can kill them easily if you wanted because it is NOT coded in YOUR genes."
Tre breathed heavily for a few minutes, staring daggers at the doctor. Then, he let the Scottish man down and walked around the warroom. His mother was still crying because of the news he had just received. Tre looked at the other Gundam pilots and said,
"We need a plan. Anyone got any bright ideas?"
"I have a plan," Amy said meekly. "It's very risky, and highly dangerous."
"What is it, Amy?" Heero asked.
"Well, if I could just connect my computer to the large screen-"
She swung her Mercury computer toward the large screen, and it began to flicker. It went into static, then something showed up on it. It matched what was on the Mercury computer. Tre saw a diagram of the Royal Palace inside a far off L3 colony and the floor plans for the massive ballroom and dining hall that spanned the entire third floor of the palace.
"What I-uh...propose we do, um, is-"
"Amy," Quatre stopped her. "It's OK, but be brave."
She nodded, and continued, "What I propose we do is this: we infiltrate the colony using the cloaking technology of the DreadScythe HELL. Then, some of you Gundam pilots would stay in your Gundams, monitoring the situation from the vantage of your Gundams, while the rest of us disguise ourselves as attendees of the party or as servants. After we have successfully done that, we will poison the food of the Royal Family and get out of there before the rest of the colony knows what's going on.
"After the death of the Royal Family, we could break the news of your heritage to the throne as the only living relatives of the Royal Family. And then, you'll control the military of the British and peace will once again reign in space."
"Sounds good," Wufei commented. "What if the family has people who test their food before they eat it?"
"They would have no use for that in their own palace," Trowa reasoned.
"But, what if they did?" Quatre insisted. "We would have to have a back-up plan."
"Take a few firearms with us into the party, concealed by our clothing," Duo suggested. "That way, we have a chance to defend ourselves."
'This is getting better and better,' Tre thought triumphantly.
"So we agree?" Pyrone asked.
"Yes," Serena said. "I speak on behalf of all the Sailor Soldiers here."
"We are ready to do what we can as Gundam pilots," Heero answered.
"Then let's get this shit going," Tre said.
So, how's that for a major plot twist, huh? Tre and that princess are related, that sucks. Oh BTW, please review this story after you've read it because I really could use more reviews.
Ja ne, minna-san
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, or Gundam Wing, but I do own Tre and Pyrone.
Chapter 23 - Shadows of Doubt
"With the announcement of the engagement between an R.M.S Division wing commander and the princess of the Royal Family, his majesty has also reported that there will be an engagement party tomorrow night at his palace despite rumors of a ghost Gundam massacre, said to have taken place yesterday in the Ghost Cluster. Several pilots have been missing and are presumed dead, but not because of a ghost, his majesty assures..."
The newscast then switched to a recorded press conference that King Charles had arranged to meet.
"It has been confirmed that the deaths of several mobile suit pilots under our command were not done by some ghost Gundam. The enemy in question was destroyed the other day against our proud pilots and has been heard from since. Now, all accusations of such are truly groundle-"
The viewer couldn't take any more bullshit from the newscast. He was dejected, to say the least, about having to track this ghost with the very weapon that this "ghost's" father created. The man rose from his chair, looking over the city of the L2 colony once belonging to his son's best friend. How he despised the British autocracy for putting him here; they knew it would hurt him to be here, commanding his own weapons to destroy a boy that was like a second son to him. At the very least, if this ghost were doing its job correctly, then the entire British military wouldn't dare try to fight it. They knew it would kill the "engine of peace", as it was called, and the parts of the engine wouldn't function, thereby destroying the engine. Theo could only hope that would happen.
He sighed, looking at the newspaper. Over the past two days, he had been trying to hunt down Matt and Nikki Young, to try and tell them the fate of their relative. Communications on the colonies were very limited and only the rich could watch the newscasts, while others tapped into the signal illegally. Theo Reigns didn't care how the public got their news, so long as it was the whole truth and not a half-truth that would get the resistance movements fighting again. It was a terrible loss of life. He feared for the colonies, hoping the ghost would resurrect and take control of the colonies.
His desk intercom was paging him, so he responded by pressing the blinking button. A holographic video screen appeared and the face of his daughter shone on the screen.
"Father, I've received a call from Pyrone on the old phone," Sara Reigns informed her father.
"Pyrone?" Theo asked. "Did he tell you what he was doing?"
"He said something about taking back X-66618 with Tre," she answered. "He said he'd free you."
"I'll be waiting," Theo smiled. "Tah, Sara."
"Buh bye, Daddy," Sara said.
Then, the holograph died as Theo sat down again. Any minute now, those two would start their plan to free his company from the British.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"OK," Pyrone said. "Let's go over this thing one more time, just for my health. I go in first with the wrecked Aries, since I've got the British accent, Tre and Heero here will follow up by taking out the security perimeter around the colony. They will then infiltrate the colony through the elevator and take out the British forces within. Then, you guys will bring in your Gundams to destroy the hangar task force. After that, we move to phase two and rescue my father."
"All correct," Tre said. "Now, lock and load, boys."
The pilots all loaded their side arms, and then put them on safety. Each proceeded to get into their Gundams from the shuttle, still decked in their spacesuits. Mina floated up to Tre, to give him a good-bye kiss. When she did, Tre felt something odd about her, like there was something extra to her life. Tre's eyebrows went sky high when he realized what it was. He just put it to the back of his mind and floated into DreadScythe HELL's pod. He was prepared to pull off this mission without a distraction and that would prove to be very difficult now. Every few seconds, that thought crept up from the back of his mind and started to haunt him again. He tried to forget it as he started up DreadScythe HELL and put on his helmet.
The large clamshell doors of the pod were slowly parting and showing deep space. Tre guided DreadScythe HELL out of the pod and into the vast vacuum. The rest of the Gundam group and a wrecked Aries soon surrounded DreadScythe. Then, DreadScythe disappeared altogether and one by one, so did the rest of the Gundams until only the Aries was left. Pyrone's face showed up on the screens of each Gundam cockpit, and something about him wasn't right.
"Hey Pyrone, where's your hair?" Duo jeered.
"Pattern baldness runs in the family," Tre joked.
"Ah ha! That's really funny," Pyrone said sarcastically. "Suck mine and go to Hell."
"Oh come on, Pyrone," Trowa said. "It doesn't look that bad on you."
"Sure, because you think it's a riot, Barton," Pyrone spat.
"Pyrone, it's an ancient Chinese honor to have no hair," Wufei consoled.
"Great for the Chinese," Pyrone huffed. Wufei scowled.
The seven suits came closer to the colony that Tre called home and then the Aries sent out an emergency docking call and then the DreadScythe broke away from the group to take out the security perimeter around the colony. The rest of he Gundams waited just outside the colony hangar as Pyrone crashed the suit into the hangar. The mangled Aries had disabled the rest of the suits to launch, giving Tre a little more time to work in comfortable margins.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
'Come on, let's just die peaceably,' Tre thought as the sword plunged deep into the Taurus suit.
He and Heero had taken out over half the security perimeter of the colony without so much as hearing an alarm. Several of the suits were already floating about like rag dolls, with small trickles of blood coming from the cockpit area in the torso of the suits. Tre had just released the suit he had just been working on and pulled out the beam cannon. He told Heero to do the same as he primed the weapon and readied it for a large beam. He aimed it at the elevator protection and fired. The enormous golden beams streaked into outer space, several orange fireballs appeared around them as both destroyed the majority of the remaining suits. Then, DreadScythe HELL and Neo Wing Zero slowly sneaked toward the elevator door as sirens and alarms went off on all the security channels. Tre tapped into their communications and listened to reports of resistance in the hangar and on the outside of the colony. The word 'ghosts' was heard very often. Tre proceeded to jam all communications on the British channels and then, he heard nothing except communications between the Gundams.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Five minutes earlier-
"Sir, are you all right?" a couple of worried lieutenants floated toward the wrecked Aries.
"Yes, I'm fine," Pyrone said with a pained tone. He was faking it, but they didn't know that.
"Well, you're bleeding, sir," one lieutenant explained.
Pyrone looked at the red spot on his suit that he had just made, "Oh, Christ!"
"Quick, Peter," the other lieutenant said. "Let's get him inside!"
They lifted Pyrone together and all three floated to the airlock up on the balcony overlooking the hangar. They looked at each other and the damage that Pyrone had caused.
"Looks like you boys can't launch your mobile suits," Pyrone sounded fatigued.
"That shouldn't be a problem, Major," the lieutenant soothed. "It's not likely an attack will happen anytime soon."
Just then, gunfire was heard and several suits blew up. The bullets seemed to come from nowhere and so did the fire. Sort of like...
"GHOSTS!!" the two lieutenants shrieked.
Dropping their grip on Pyrone, they kicked off toward the control room and Pyrone followed. They attempted to shut the doors to the hangar while the hangar task force came out. Pyrone knocked out the two lieutenants from behind, took off the helmet in the atmosphere ready room, and then ripped the bald cap off of his head. He then shed the pale blue OZ spacesuit and instead walked around in his black flight suit. He took his sidearm off of the safety setting and walked in nonchalantly, toward the tallest building in the entire colony: the office building of the former Young Corporation.
That is where his father would be and no doubt that Tre was already on his way toward the building now. Pyrone was steadily walking toward the building but was held back by something. A beggar was clutching the pant leg of his flight suit and how strange this beggar was...
"Mr. Young?" Pyrone breathed.
"Yes, Pyrone," Matt Young answered. "I am here."
"Boy is Tre going to be glad to see you," Pyrone kept his voice down.
"That's the problem," a female voice said. "My little brother shouldn't be coming here; it's too dangerous for him now!"
"That's where you're wrong, Nikki," Pyrone said. "He's a ghost as far as the British are concerned."
"What?" Matt panicked. "Is he dead?"
"No, he was believed to be dead by the British," Pyrone explained. "But, his new Gundam has this power to cloak itself completely like a ghost does, without a trace."
"Ah," Matt understood. "So he's still alive and well."
"Yep," Pyrone laughed. "And, he's about to take this colony back riiight...NOW!"
As Pyrone said now, a blast was heard in the distance. Then, DreadScythe HELL materialized from out of nowhere, as did Neo Zero. The two Gundams slowly scanned the colony for any enemy mobile suits. Matt's eyes were flooded with tears and Nikki had already broken down crying from joy. They were going to be in power once again and have their lives back. Pyrone gave them a small cell phone and told them that he would call them once they had control of the colony again, then he said goodbye and ran off to join Tre and Heero in freeing his father.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Once we're done here," Heero said to Tre, "we can get your parents back in power."
"And then the British won't ever touch this colony again," Tre said.
The two were currently lowering themselves from their Gundams' cockpits. The ride took a while due to the height of the machines. Once down they tugged hard on the cables and they retracted expediously. Then, the cockpit doors closed automatically. Tre and Heero shed their spacesuits, and underneath were decked in SWAT team coveralls with earpieces and communicators wrapping their necks. They both loaded their Deutsche D5K guns with banana clips and proceeded to Tre's office building.
If the plan they had formulated on the shuttle went accordingly, the only threats that remained for these two were the security personnel inside. The rest of the British occupying the colony were either dead or busy getting killed at the moment. Tre and Heero crouched behind a large bush in front of the building's main entrance and a rustling behind them startled both. Wheeling around, guns ready the two were surprised to see Pyrone, as he was surprised to be held at gunpoint. Raising his hands, Pyrone laughed nervously, and then Tre and Heero lowered their weapons. Pyrone crouched behind them, spying the two-man security blockade at the front desk. All three nodded and slowly separated as Pyrone went inside, while Heero and Tre took wither side of the doors. Pyrone walked in and said,
"I'd like to see my father, Theodore Reigns."
"I'm sorry, but Mr. Reigns is very busy at the moment," the guard said.
"Too busy to see his only son?" Pyrone asked, playing surprised.
"Yes sir, I'm afraid he's specifically said that no one may visit."
Just then, the phone rang and both guards looked down at it. Pyrone drew his pistol, quick as a flash, and struck both guards over their heads. He also got a shot off and the doors flew open as Tre and Heero stormed the desk and seized the guards. They were relieved of their firearms and were taken outside behind the thickest bushes and bound to a tree. Tre and Heero struck them over the heads several times, to make sure they were going to be unconscious for at least an hour.
Then, all three pilots entered the building again. Each time they rounded a corner, Tre and Heero cautiously investigated their surroundings. Then, peeking around a corner, they saw what they needed to get to Mr. Reigns: the elevator. Two men, both armed very well guarded it and it was also required of the rider to have clearance codes to punch into the keypad. Tre told Pyrone the code and told him to go to the elevator and stop on the third floor once he got in. They would notify him that they were on the elevator by banging lightly on the roof.
Pyrone nodded, and then Tre led Heero to the service elevator. A lone old man guarded the service elevator and he was fast asleep. Tre pressed the button to open the doors. The bell awakened the guard and he asked,
"Who goes there?"
"It's alright, old man," Tre put on a foney British accent.
"Are you going to see Mr. Reigns?" the man looked around with a clouded gaze.
"He's blind," Heero whispered.
"Who is?" the old man asked. "Hello?"
Tre and Heero got in the elevator and the door shut behind them. Heero pressed the button for the third floor. As the elevator rose, they both knocked open the roof hatch and squeezed through it to access the roof. They both hopped from one support beam to the other, trying to get to the main elevator on the third floor. They saw the car as it was still sitting at the first floor. What was going on?
Little did they know, Pyrone was still trying to get in the elevator. On his way toward the guards, he decided to make a pit stop. Then, he proceeded toward the guards. They stopped him to ask him some questions.
"Who are you?"
"I am Pyrone Theodore Reigns, son of Theodore Reigns," Pyrone calmly explained. "I would like to see my father."
"Did the desk tell you that he was to be left alone?" one guard asked.
"They did, but he called them and said to send me up."
"We would have known if the desk got a call like that because they would have told us right after."
"Well, believe what you want, but I know that I want to see my father."
"Wait here, and don't leave this spot until I come back," one guard said.
As he walked away, Pyrone watched him. Then he pulled out a handkerchief and pretended to sneeze. The guard watched, and Pyrone folded the handkerchief as the small vial slid out of the cloth and into Pyrone's hand. Pyrone pointed to a painting on the wall nearby and the guard looked. Pyrone threw the vial down onto the ground and it burst open. A purple fog billowed from the vial, and the guard couldn't see the fist Pyrone threw his way. With the guard knocked out, Pyrone entered the code for the elevator and confiscated the gun from the guard. The doors of the elevator car slid shut and Pyrone allowed it to rise to the third floor. It stopped at the prescribed floor and the doors slid open.
Tre and Heero saw that the car had risen to the desired floor and both jumped onto the car's roof, softly landing on it. The mechanism that opened and closed the doors made the doors slide shut and Heero tapped lightly with the butt of his gun on the roof. Pyrone tapped back in acknowledgment and pushed the button for the top floor. The car rose rapidly, Heero and Tre crouching on the roof.
"Tre?" Heero called for his companion.
"Yeah, Heero?" Tre answered.
"I wonder sometimes about my feelings for Serena."
"How do you mean?"
"I've been taught and trained to not have emotions or feelings," Heero started. "Yet, when I only know this girl for one night, she and I suddenly fall in love and...uh-"
"Yeah, I know," Tre stopped him. "I think what you're getting at is are we in love with these girls because of Fate or because we see something in these girls?"
"Exactly," Heero affirmed. "Are we forced to love them?"
"What do you think?" Tre wondered.
"I think I want to make Serena happy no matter what," Heero admitted. "That's how I feel about her."
"Hmm," Tre nodded. "I think that Fate has put us together, but we found something in them that instantly drew us to them. Mina and I have been waiting for a long time to get reunioned, and so have the rest of you guys. It's hard to explain, but you'll find out. Anyway, we're at our floor."
The car had been stopped at the top floor for quite some time. Heero, in his reviere, had failed to notice this. His training was failing him as Serena intoxicated his mind. Tre was already scaling down the ladder along side the elevator car. The large car was already returning to the first floor, and Heero jumped onto the ladder, just below Tre.
Tre checked on Heero as the car passed his companion, and used his telekinetic power to open the doors. They slid open easily and Tre scaled the ladder to hop in the opened doors. A hand met him, Pyrone's hand. The older pilot helped his two comrades into the hallway from the elevator shaft. When all were out of the shaft, Tre shut the doors.
"Ready?" Tre asked.
"Affirmative," Heero said.
"Let's go," Pyrone answered.
Pyrone led the way, Tre and Heero following with their guns ready. Pyrone approached the secretary's desk to ask for admittance. She saw the other two with guns and gave no argument, letting the men in.
They opened the large wooden doors to the office and saw Theo Reigns sitting in the large executive chair behind the large desk. He smiled when he saw his son and Tre. Rising from the chair to greet the three young men, Theo's heart went into a rapid beat as the two downstairs guards burst into the room, guns about to blaze. Tre rounded on them and opened fire. The two were caught off guard and were bomabrded with bullets. They flipped backwards from the extreme force of the bullets hitting their upper torso. Still alive, they were trying to right themselves as Heero and Pyrone confiscated their weapons, and flipped them onto their backs. No blood was found on the bodies...
"They're wearing bullet-proof vests," Theo explained. "I designed them myself and I now have had the chance to see how well they work.
"They work well," Heero said. "Tre didn't kill them."
"I know that, young man," Theo said shortly. "Which one are you?"
"Heero Yuy," Heero introduced himself.
"Ah yes, Heero Yuy," Theo mused. "I've heard of your escapades."
"Mr. Reigns," Tre voiced. "I am in dire need of your help to regain control of these colonies."
"What is it you need?"
"The Space Wasps," Tre answered. "Are they ready or not?"
"Well, you could say that they are," Theo said. "Or, you could say they aren't. Why do you need them so badly?"
"The Gundams aren't going to be enough in a final battle should the British stage one," Heero explained. "We'll need some assistance."
"I see," Theo said. "Well, they aren't ready."
Tre was livid, "What do you mean they aren't ready? You've had multiple resources to build these fucking things and what have you to give me? They aren't ready? What the HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR THE LAST SIX MONTHS?"
"We're going to need a lot of pilots, Tre," Theo said. "That's why they aren't ready."
Tre felt very sheepish for yelling like that, especially at a friend. He felt absolutely terrible and yet very childish and selfish. His temper was flaring up an awful lot lately, a fault he surely would have to control.
"The pilots can be found," Tre said. "Just give me the truth: are the actual craft ready for a battle?"
"Yes, the crafts are prepared for a full battle right now," Theo sighed.
"Good," Heero said. "Pyrone, call Tre's relatives and get them up here."
"Right," Pyrone said, pressing the speed dial on his phone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Later that day, Nightshift had docked inside a private hangar reserved for the Young family and all seven of its occupants were brought to the tall office building of Young Corp. Soon after, another shuttle carrying the rest of Tre's family and Doctor X docked into the private hangar and a stretch limo was waiting for them. The sidewalks were lined with the well-wishing citizens of the colony, glad that their freedom had returned with the Young family. The colony was no longer under the control of the British and Matt Young was once again taking control of the multi-quadrillion dollar business that he owned and created from a penniless existence.
The Gundams were all safely tucked into a secret hangar connected by a system of tunnels that could get the pilots to their machines in an instant.
Tre was anxious to see his family, and especially his mom. He had met up with his dad and Nikki already, and was very glad to see that they were alive, even after being tortured. Both were showered and cleaned up, looking professional. Tre had elected to change into his black outfit, the long sleeve shirt, loose jeans, and sleeveless trench coat. Nikki was anxious to see her daughter Missy, after being separated from her little angel because of those British military men.
"So, you excited?" Tre asked his eldest sister.
"Absolutely," she answered shakily.
"You're very nervous," Tre said.
"Really? No shit," Nikki laughed.
Just after she said that, the doors opened and the rest of the Young family walked in. Tre and Nikki both approached them at a rapid gate. Missy came out from behind Jade Young, yelling,
"MOMMY!"
"Missy!" Nikki hugged her daughter.
Tre and his mother embraced, Jade Young crying her eyes out. Tre was crying too, glad that his mother was safe and that his little brother-to-be was safe also. They both stood there, waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, they finally looked at each other. Tre wiped a tear off his mother's face. Then, Tre was attacked by his other siblings, getting hugs from all his sisters and brothers. Once everyone was hugged and caught up by Tre, he waved Mina over.
"Mom, Dad, guys," Tre addressed his family. "This is my girlfriend, Mina Aino. She and her friends are from the past and they're here to help us Gundam pilots. Mina, this is my eldest sister Nikki, my older brothers Anthony, Jason, and Derrick. These are my other sisters, Ashley, Julia, Mika, and Crystal."
"Well, nice to meet you, Mina," Matt bowed.
"Arigato," Mina used her native language. "It is nice to meet all of Tre's family. It sure is a big family!"
They laughed, it was true that they had a big family. Mina was quick to find out that all Tre's brothers were triplets and the younger of his sisters were all quadruplets. They all gravitated toward each other in bond shared only by children of multiple births. She felt safe around them, like she did with Tre. But she was still wary of them all.
Tre began to catch up with his siblings. Over the past six months that they had aged, he found out that Anthony had married his girlfriend of over three years. She was a well-known local rock musician in a band called Thresher. Jason and Derrick had gone on to produce records and record their own records for a small label. They called themselves 2 Thirds and did all their own music. As for the girls, Tre found out that Ashley had opened a tattoo and piercing parlor on the far side of the colony, far from home. Mika worked there as a partner with her sister, and as for Crystal and Julia, well they great things going for them. Julia was engaged to a pilot for the Air Force and she planned on working at the base as a mechanic. Crystal was going to open her own restaurant soon and she was having a baby in about three months. Her boyfriend had proposed to her only a month before she got pregnant, and she accpeted of course.
"Wow," Tre said. "A lot of things have happened while I was gone, huh?"
"Yeah," Anthony said. "What happened to you, bro?"
"Me?" Tre asked. "Well, I'm not supposed to be alive, because the British have declared me dead."
"Those mother fuckers," Jason seethed. "They tried to kill you?"
"Uh huh," Tre answered. "Thankfully, DreadScythe ejected me out of harm's way in time."
"Gundams," Julia scoffed. "Why couldn't you have been a pilot with Jeff?"
"Because," Tre said. "I have a Gundam to use and I have a duty to the colonies, that's why!"
"You would be so much more safe if you were an Air Force pilot and not a Gundam pilot," she argued.
"Julia, I am not a pilot that wants to risk my life a little bit everyday. I want to risk my life everday with the thought of not surviving going through my head at all times," Tre said.
"If you die," Crystal said. "What then? What would that accompish?"
"I will have done that good for the colonies," Tre said. "I'd be a martyr, and that's the worst thing the British want me to be at this point; even worse than me being a Gundam pilot."
"Dude," Derrick started. "You could come be in our band, you're an awesome guitar and bass player."
"Thanks," Tre said. "But no. I want to be a Gundam pilot. Period, end of sentence."
Mina watched as Tre looked at each of his siblings in turn, seeing as they wouldn't get their way. He then turned and left, to eat. Mina approached him at the table, and sat down to tell him something.
"Tre," Mina started. "I have something to tell you."
"What is it?" Tre asked sincerely.
"I'm not just one life anymore," she tried to explain.
"Uh huh," Tre responded. He knew what she meant, but he wanted to let her tell him in her own way.
"I am carrying another life in me," she stuttered.
"So you're possessed," Tre concluded jokingly.
"No, not exactly," Mina said. "I'm...Tre, I'm pregnant."
Tre acted like he was caught off guard. His expression was that of surprise at first, then into an expression of joy and comforting as Mina began to well up. Hugging her, he soothed her,
"Mina, that's great! You and I are going to start our own family and we're going to have so much fun with the baby. This is a good thing, why are you crying?"
"I'm scared," she sobbed. "I don't know how to handle it. I mean, I'm still a Sailor Soldier."
"I know that," Tre said. "But this doesn't mean you have to stop now! You still have another nine months to go with this; you've only been with it for two days, right?"
"How did you know?" Mina asked.
"I have mental abilities, you know."
"Oh. I forgot."
"So, don't worry about it."
"OK."
She dried her eyes and joined Tre in having dinner. Heero and Serena joined them, shortly after a long conversation with Tre's siblings. They were so unlike Tre, at least that's what Heero thought. Serena couldn't care less because she was having a good time talking with Tre's quadruplet sisters. Speaking of Serena, the odango haired blonde was eating plate after plate of full dinner entrees. Tre could not believe what he was seeing, and neither could Heero. Boy was it going to be hard to keep food stocked in his house!
After everyone had finished dinner, Matt Young took the podium and started to announce something very important.
"No one will report that this gathering had my youngest son, Tre, here attending it. As far as the British are concerned, he is dead and it needs to stay that way in order for Tre and the other Gundam pilots to win the war against the British and their autocratic regime."
Everyone understood the announcement and went about their business once again. About after midnight, the party started to wind down and guests were beginning to take their leave. When the last had gone from the high office, Tre, his father and mother, Pyrone and his father, the Sailor Scouts, and the other Gundam pilots were gathered around a small circle in the carpet of the office. Matt pressed a button on his shirt sleeve and the circle started to descend past the floor.
When all the heads had cleared the floor line, a hatch closed above them, concealing the opening. As the platform descended, a warroom was seen with people rushing about or sitting at consoles attending to late breaking information. The platform stopped and all the occupants stepped off and headed to a large illuminated table. Several high ranking officers were already gathered around it.
"Ah, good to see you again, Mr. Young," a gray-haired and muscular general greeted Matt.
"Yes, it's good to be back, General Raynard," Matt shook his hand.
"Tre," the general nodded.
"General," Tre smirked.
"Let's get to the point," a uniformed woman started. "The British around this colony have been eliminated and no reinforcements have been called in. Which means only one thing."
"WE did our job perfectly in taking over this colony," Heero stated.
"Yes," a bespectacled and frail military man said. "You have infiltrated and seized power."
"So what is all this?" Serena asked excitedly. "Is it Christmas lights?"
"No, they aren't Christmas lights," the general sighed. "They are positions of enemy suits."
"Oh, so they're concentrated around the remaining L3 colonies," Tre said. "Why?"
"Maximum security for the few days before the wedding," the bespectacled man said.
"That little bitch of a princess has gone too far by trying to overrun my colony," Tre spat.
Jade Young looked very uneasy when Tre made this comment, and she stared at her son with a very guilty gaze. He happened to glance in her direction and catch the look on her face. She walked away from the table at this point, holding a hand over her mouth. She felt sick, and very uncomfortable. Did someone raise the heat in the room? She couldn't breathe very well and she became panicked. Tre rested his hands on his mother's shoulders, and she instantly calmed down. Tre rubbed her back as he asked for a couple of chairs. She sat in a chair while he sat in the other.
"Tell me what's wrong, Mom," Tre requested.
"I can't keep this secret from you anymore, son," Jade said sadly.
"What secret?"
"Princess Elizabeth of the British is your half-sister," Jade spoke. She felt naseous and vomited on the floor.
Tre bolted from his seat the moment he heard his mother speak that last word. She had felt so sick about it, and she vomited all over the floor. Tre felt sick now; that bitch was his half-sister? Matt, Theo, and Pyrone all tried to make her feel better while Mina, Duo, and Lita tried to console Tre. Tre was trying to keep from going all over the floor like his mother.
"Mom, you can't be serious," Tre said shakily.
"When I was 18, I donated some of my eggs to the British Royal Family for their continuing genetic research," Jade explained.
"No," Tre said lowly.
"Back then, it wasn't corrupt and I figured I was helping. I was very young. I found out that the queen and king used it for artificial insemination and raised the embryo inside the queen herself."
"No, she can't be my sister," Tre choked.
"She is your sister by my genes, Tre," Jade sobbed. "I'm sorry."
"FUCK!!!" Tre shouted, rounding on a nearby table and smashing it.
"So help us, God," a Scottish voice was heard.
"You knew about this?" Tre hissed at the doctor.
"Aye," the doctor sighed. "'Tis a sad thing to learn, laddy."
Tre grabbed the man by his collar and put him up against a wall, "WHY!?!"
"Calm down," Doctor X said. "It isn't as bad as it seems."
"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN!?!"
"She is your half-sister," the doctor explained. "And therefore you are a member of the Royal Family and cannot be killed and neither can your family."
"How?"
"It's coded in THEIR genes not to kill their own family members, but you can kill them easily if you wanted because it is NOT coded in YOUR genes."
Tre breathed heavily for a few minutes, staring daggers at the doctor. Then, he let the Scottish man down and walked around the warroom. His mother was still crying because of the news he had just received. Tre looked at the other Gundam pilots and said,
"We need a plan. Anyone got any bright ideas?"
"I have a plan," Amy said meekly. "It's very risky, and highly dangerous."
"What is it, Amy?" Heero asked.
"Well, if I could just connect my computer to the large screen-"
She swung her Mercury computer toward the large screen, and it began to flicker. It went into static, then something showed up on it. It matched what was on the Mercury computer. Tre saw a diagram of the Royal Palace inside a far off L3 colony and the floor plans for the massive ballroom and dining hall that spanned the entire third floor of the palace.
"What I-uh...propose we do, um, is-"
"Amy," Quatre stopped her. "It's OK, but be brave."
She nodded, and continued, "What I propose we do is this: we infiltrate the colony using the cloaking technology of the DreadScythe HELL. Then, some of you Gundam pilots would stay in your Gundams, monitoring the situation from the vantage of your Gundams, while the rest of us disguise ourselves as attendees of the party or as servants. After we have successfully done that, we will poison the food of the Royal Family and get out of there before the rest of the colony knows what's going on.
"After the death of the Royal Family, we could break the news of your heritage to the throne as the only living relatives of the Royal Family. And then, you'll control the military of the British and peace will once again reign in space."
"Sounds good," Wufei commented. "What if the family has people who test their food before they eat it?"
"They would have no use for that in their own palace," Trowa reasoned.
"But, what if they did?" Quatre insisted. "We would have to have a back-up plan."
"Take a few firearms with us into the party, concealed by our clothing," Duo suggested. "That way, we have a chance to defend ourselves."
'This is getting better and better,' Tre thought triumphantly.
"So we agree?" Pyrone asked.
"Yes," Serena said. "I speak on behalf of all the Sailor Soldiers here."
"We are ready to do what we can as Gundam pilots," Heero answered.
"Then let's get this shit going," Tre said.
So, how's that for a major plot twist, huh? Tre and that princess are related, that sucks. Oh BTW, please review this story after you've read it because I really could use more reviews.
Ja ne, minna-san