Shattered Reality Part 17
Caged
by
Sailor Janus
Slowly, Heero opened his eyes, oddly cringing in pain. 'What is wrong with me? Everything hurts like hell,' the Prussian blue-eyed teen thought, clenching his teeth as he sat up, glancing curiously around the unfamiliar room. 'How did I get here?'
Suddenly everything which occurred yesterday from awaking in the morning with Hotaru in his arms to Iron Fist practically beating the crap out of him, then discovering the fact that Duo and himself had been captured and finally being injected by the virus came rushing back to him.
Strangely, the Perfect Soldier noticed a small figure sprawled out on the ground. His first thought that was Iron Fist had done something to Duo, but the person was smaller than the braided-haired teen.
Just then, Heero realized exactly who was lying on the floor. Hotaru.
Quickly, the boy slid off the bed, ignoring his body's protests of agony as he numbly walked closer to the dark-haired girl. 'When did she get here? Haven't those bastards put Firefly through enough?' Heero angrily thought as he carefully dropped to his knees next to her.
A cold chill coursed through the teenaged boy's bones, which he tried to disregard as well. Hotaru was more important than his own well-being.
Hesitantly, Heero reached his hand out and touched the girl's face. To his relief, she was still warm. Sliding his hand down to her neck, the blue-eyed boy discovered that the dark-haired girl's pulse was strong and steady as well.
"Hotaru. Hotaru, wake up," Heero croaked out as he gently shook her shoulder. A second later, the girl's violet eyes fluttered open.
Keeping her body stationary on the floor, Hotaru blinked but didn't move a muscle. Could she move? It felt like she was paralyzed somehow but was the teen really or was it just in her head?
The Perfect Soldier took notice to the fact that Hotaru had not even attempted to pick herself off the ground. Feeling a slight amount of concern, he laid in front of the dark-haired girl, which was fairly challenging considering the fact that he was back in shackles again.
Hotaru jumped a little, startled by the sudden face staring into hers, but it wasn't enough to really make her move or say a word for that matter.
"Firefly. You okay?" Heero question the girl who swallowed thickly as she came to realization that the presence was a pleasantly familiar one.
'Heero, I have...something to tell you,' her head said as Hotaru choked on the words. 'Wait... why can't I move or speak?! What did they do to me?! Damn it!' she urgently thought, as her eyes darted around the room.
The teenaged pilot tried to earnestly to ignore the icy feeling coursing through his skin, muscles, and bones, causing him to coolly shiver. "Hotaru, can you hear me?"
Gritting her teeth Hotaru blinked, hoping that Heero pilot might get the message.
'Something is wrong with her,' the dark blue-eyed boy thought as he watched the girl. "Firefly, try to open your mouth and say something."
In frustration, instead the dark-haired girl shut her eyes. 'What did they do to me?! Damn it father! Why?!'
Slowly Heero reached out his shackled hands to Hotaru's. 'If Firefly is for certain paralyzed then she won't be able to feel the sensation of my skin against hers. Either way, we still have a large problem,' he thought, lightly placing one of his hands on top of Hotaru's.
Oddly, sudden coolness of Heero's skin caused the girl's violet eyes to spring open. Frowning she managed to move her small hand under his to both of their surprise.
Swallowing, Hotaru released a sigh as she said, "I guess, the experiment is wearing off. Sorry to have brought you into this."
Both teens remained lying on the cool linoleum floor, staring into each other's eyes, not speaking a single word.
Stiffly, the dark-haired girl lifted her head, not quite able to decide whether to tell Heero everything or not. He had the right to know but it was just too difficult to say and form the correct words.
Taking a deep breath, Hotaru eased herself upright, and leaned against the bed on the floor. She knew exactly what she was going to have to do, confess the entire truth about their dire situation.
Getting the message, Heero followed her in pursuit, sitting next the girl who had a lot to say in a short amount of time.
"When did you get here? Have you seen Duo? The last I saw of him, they were dragging him away," the Perfect Soldier said in his usual monotone.
"He's safe," Hotaru firmly answered, as she stared into the floor.
Arching an eyebrow slightly the pilot glanced at the girl, realizing she was not saying everything she wanted to say. "Explain.... Firefly, you're hiding something. I can sense it."
"Duo is safe because I traded him for myself. They never wanted him to begin with. It was me that Iron First was after. And you," Hotaru admitted, avoiding Heero's eyes completely.
"Me? Why Me?"
"I..." Hotaru began to reply but froze in mid-sentence, unsure of where to start.
"Hotaru, tell me," Heero firmly ordered earning a sigh in return.
Staring into the wall for a brief minute the violet-eyed girl crisply said, "You're not going to like what you're about to hear Yuy." Swallowing thickly, Hotaru began her explanation. "They need both of us in order to fulfill whatever the big plan is," Pausing momentarily, the girl glanced at Heero. "You're not the only one from L1, because I descend from that colony as well. Perfect Soldier, meet the Perfect Weapon."
"What?!" Heero could not believe his ears. She could not be serious, could she?
Taking a deep breath the teenaged girl continued. "I was not supposed to kill any of you. Iron Fist used me, they planned all the events from the mind control device malfunctioning to Relena's death and even the virus. Everything was set up and thanks to my stupidity, I gave them everything they wanted. You and I are the main puzzle pieces. To make everything even more twisted. Prof T confessed that he is indeed my father."
"So you're from L1?" the pilot asked as he tried to take all of the hard to swallow information in.
"Yes. We were both trained in the same laboratory by the same people at the same time only in different areas of the building. I know they are not bluffing because I saw you when I was a child, Odin Lowe Jr."
Heero's eyes grew wide at the name which appeared from the mouth of the teenaged girl next to him. "I can't recall seeing you."
Nodding her head, Hotaru quietly said, "It was only for a split second. A few years later I was taken away by my father whose mind became corrupted, granted by a lab explosion which took the life of my mother. Training changed and I became what you see today."
"We have to get out of here," the Perfect Soldier quietly said, recalling the information the man who aided him in finding the antidote to the virus. He was indeed not lying.
"Escape from this cell is near impossible. The room is constantly monitored by surveillance cameras and the halls are heavily guarded. The door is made of iron or perhaps even gundanium, not to mention both our wrists and ankles are shackled," the violet-eyed girl reported, appearing frustrated at the same time. "They intend on keeping us here at all costs. I doubt the others will be able to find us even if they tried. He wants to correct us, as he said."
The Prussian blue-eyed pilot scoffed at the word correct. "Whatever that means, it can't be good. Why did you come here in the first place? Are the others here?"
Silently the girl shook her head. "No, I came alone. I thought for certain that they were using both of you as bait, but I was dead wrong."
Slowly, Hotaru turned to Heero and abruptly kissed him on the mouth as she wrapped her shackled arms around his neck to the Perfect Soldier's shock.
Lightly, the girl brushed her lips across his while she carefully twisted her body around to where she could easily sit in his lap. This action too stunned Heero speechless, as he intensely stared at her.
Slyly, Hotaru hugged the boy lightly as she leaned against him whispering in his ear quietly, "Put your arms around me soon as I remove mine from around your neck. I am fairly certain that this room may be bugged. Act as if you're making out with me to look less suspicious."
Understanding perfectly well what the girl was planning, Heero turned his head, gently taking the girl by her chin with one hand and pressed his lips firmly against hers.
Taking the signal, the L1 girl removed her arms from around the pilot's neck long enough for him to slip his restrained wrists over Hotaru's head and down her to her small waist, slightly pulling the dark-haired girl closer to him.
Briefly, the boy pulled away staring deep into Hotaru's crystal-like violet eyes, as if expecting her to wrap her arms around his neck as she previously had done.
Gazing into Heero's sapphire blue eyes, the teenaged girl brought a hand up to his face, running her finger tips delicately across his face before encircling her arms around his neck. Momentarily Hotaru paused to run her fingers through the pilot's thick dark hair as he slightly shivered, drawing her closer.
'Why is he acting like he's freezing.... Heero is still trying to battle the virus. His body heat had dropped significantly as the damage in his system began and continued the rebuilding process,' the violet-eyed assassin thought defeatedly. 'No wonder he is holding me so tightly.'
Leaning forward Heero whispered in Hotaru's ear, "What do you need to tell me?"
Dropping her gaze to her lap, the girl lurched forward, and hugged the Prussian blue-eyed teen tightly. "I received an email from someone called E addressed to Firefly and the Gundam Pilots. It stated he or she had something we may be interested in and to meet him or her in a warehouse in Draven City. I ordered the other guys to check it out when I came here to free you and Duo. Instead I gave Duo my jacket and directions to the warehouse."
Nodding, Heero ran his hands lightly up and down Hotaru's back as if trying to appear reassuring. "What do you think it could be?" he softly whispered as the girl slowly pulled back. They stared at each other in the eye for a few seconds before the Perfect Soldier roughly forced his mouth against the dark-haired girl's, holding her shoulders steady with his strong hands. Taking a breath he asked, "What if it were a trap set by Iron Fist?"
Taking a breath, glanced at each other. Lightly, Hotaru brushed her lips across Heero's face whispering, "Doubt it. Stanz or my father would have mentioned it. We do speculate that it could be new Gundams."
"But how? The scientists are dead and the Gundams as well as the blueprints have been destroyed."
The Wing Zero pilot turned his head so his mouth met the girl's once again. Breathlessly against Heero's mouth she answered, "I don't know, but we need something to fight with otherwise, there is no hope."
Abruptly, Hotaru dropped her head, leaning it against the boy's chest. Oddly, she began to feel fatigued, regarding it as a lovely side effect to whatever her bastard of a father did to her.
Heero too could feel his eyes drooping, knowing that it was from the antidote but couldn't bring himself to let the girl in his arms go. Her warm body felt pleasant against his chilled one. "You're right. We do have to get out of here before they have the chance to take us over," the Prussian blue-eyed pilot whispered, feeling the girl nod her head from under his chin.
Hotaru slowly slipped her arms from around Heero's neck and snuggled close to him. She couldn't understand why she was acting the way she did. For some reason, she felt more secure in his arms. She knew, considering whatever her father was planning, they both needed all the security they could get.
Expressionlessly, Heero sat holding Hotaru close to him. Who knew when they'd next be able to sit like this again? It was likely that this could be the last time.
Before the teens knew it, the Perfect Soldier was lying on his back clutching the dark-haired girl close to him. Neither said a single word, as they listened to each other softly breathe before falling into a peaceful sleep. Separated from the bloodshed and terror they experienced in their everyday lives. At least Heero and Hotaru appeared to be at peace. For how long? Not nearly long enough.
*~*~*~*
Deidra sat against the wall of the small jail cell she shared with Trista. The burgundy-haired girl didn't care how dirty the floor was she was going to sit on it and that was that. "I never even once dreamt I'd be standing behind bars. Usually my blood is gushing out the back of a bullet wound to my head," Deidra eerily said, taking her hair down.
The green-tinted haired teenager slightly frowned at her friend, "Deidra, I think I prefer your lighter side." It was just too disturbing to hear the normally cheerful girl talk so darkly.
With a small smirk the L2 girl nodded, "The accommodations here suck! You call this a jail cell?! A refrigerator box would have been bigger!" Softly, she sighed, 'Once again I pick up my wonderful mask. Maybe the world is not ready for my dark side.'
Silently, Trista gazed out of the iron bars on the windows, her garnet eyes slight glittering. "I hope the guys are okay."
With a shrug, Deidra climbed up to her feet and stood beside the L3 teen. "Yeah. Any regrets on committing treason against Iron Fist and joining the gundam pilots?"
"No. You?"
Grinning the burgundy-haired ex-cat burglar shook her head. "Not even the slightest bit. Iron Fist needs to go down."
Nodding Trista inquired, "I wonder why Stanz had us imprisoned in the city jail rather than his own. Also why didn't he just execute us? It does not make sense."
Twisting around, Deidra leaned her back against the cool wall as she folded her arms in front of her. "Good question. We're gonna have to figure a way out of here! There is no way I'm going to live in a smelly jail!"
"Agreed."
*~*~*~*
"Nobody knows the troubles I've seen. Nobody knows my sorrows," Duo sang, as he leaned against cold steal bars of the men's jail cell.
"Maxwell, please shut up. You're giving me a headache," Wufei grumbled from where he was trying to meditate in a corner on the floor.
With a scoff, the braided-haired teen ceased his singing. "I hate being stuck in jail! Didn't exactly expect this to happen. Completely sucks."
"How do we get out of this one?" Quatre asked his friends with a sigh from where he sat on the bed. The Arabian was growing tired of things constantly going wrong. This was the least anticipated event to take place.
"No idea," Trowa murmured from his place against the wall. "We'll figure something out. I just cannot seem to understand why they sent us to jail instead of killing us."
"Iron Fist is probably planning something. It'll just take time before they get their act together if it already isn't," the Chinese teen quietly said as the others nodded in agreement.
With a sigh Duo leaned further against the bars, "I wonder what they are planning for Heero and Hotaru?"
"I don't want to know. Whatever it is, it's probably very bad," the aquamarine blue-eyed boy answered as a chill coursed through his body.
"We still have to go back. We can't just leave Heero and Hotaru there," the tall teen reminded his friends.
"Hopefully, next time we won't be sent directly to jail, can't pass go or collect $200," Duo sarcastically mumbled as he scratched his head. "Think the girls are okay?"
"They should be," Trowa answered, resting his head against the wall, glancing up at the ceiling.
Standing up, the cobalt blue-eyed pilot stretched as he said with a yawn, "How do you suppose we get out of here? I've spent too much of my life in jail."
"Didn't we warn you not to get caught?" a new voice said from the shadows of the hallway.
Quickly, the four teenaged boys spun around to find Dr. E standing before them. Puzzled they stared at the man, wondering why he was there. Hopefully it was to free them.
"We could not exactly help it. They knew we were there the entire time," the Quatre explained as he rose from the bed.
"I don't suppose you four would like out of this gilded cage?" the white-haired man snickered.
Duo rolled his eyes in annoyance as he dryly said, "Nah, I was thinking of making this place my summer home. You know a little paint here, some curtains, the joint could really turn around."
"Suit yourself Maxwell," the Chinese teen snorted as he climbed to his feet.
"Hey! I was being sarcastic! Since when did you actually, ever take me serious Wu-man?"
"Stop calling me that you fool! My name is Wufei," the Altron pilot practically growled.
Dr E, who appeared to be losing his patience rolled his eyes at the two bickering teens. "Ahem. Should I just leave you four here and allow Iron Fist to complete their plans of world domination?"
"Please excuse them. They always act like that," Quatre sighed appearing embarrassed on their behalf's.
"Very well, then," the scientist said when to the amazement of the four captive teens, he pulled out a pair of keys.
The cobalt blue-eyed pilot stared dumbfounded at the man. "Wait! How'd you get a hold of the keys?!" he exclaimed, as Dr. E unlocked the door.
Chuckling he replied, "Just because I'm scientist does not mean I can't pick up a few other skills here and there."
Gratefully, the four boys exited their confinements and quickly followed the older man down the hall only to be reunited with Deidra and Trista who appeared pleased to be freed as George trailed after them.
"Thank you so very much! I take back every bad thing I said about you guys!" the burgundy-haired girl rambled seeming to be very relieved to be out of the small cell.
"Are you girls all right?" the Arabian questioned the two newcomers who in turn nodded.
"Other than being stuck in a room that made a cat's dirty litter box smell wonderful, yeah, I'm good," Deidra grinned, pushing a lock of hair out of her face.
The balding dark-haired man quietly glanced at his watch. "We better leave now. The gas should start wearing off in ten minutes."
"You gassed the police officers?" the tall teenaged girl inquired of the shorter man.
"How else do you think we came to acquire the keys? We will take all measures to be sure that Iron Fist will not complete their reign of power and the only way that is even possible is if you six are able to fight," Dr. E crisply explained, leading the pilots out of the station.
"But how can we stop them when they seem to be one step ahead not to mention they still have Yuy and Tomoe," Wufei calmly asked. He knew being hot-headed would not improve their situation any. He was growing fatigued with constant failure.
"That is up to you," George answered, annoying the pilot greatly. "We will provide the tools, you must figure out how to use them."
"I suppose we should head back to the girls' apartment in order to device another plan," the green-eyed pilot softly spoke as the others agreed.
*~*~*~*
"Who wants to bet they're probably gonna move Heero and Hotaru elsewhere?" Duo grumbled, from the floor where he was lying on his stomach in the living room, with his hands propping up his head appearing completely bored and disgusted at the same time.
Trowa stiffly nodded his head from his place at the kitchen table. "I'll have to agree with Duo. If they are really intent on keeping Heero and Hotaru for whatever they are planning, relocation is highly likely."
"I wonder where they are going to go next. Are we even going to be able to find them in time?!" the blonde inquired with a slight tone of panic quivering in his voice as he glanced out the window from the small sofa. Quatre knew they were running out of time fast. Each hour wasted could be an hour of success for Iron Fist.
"We will know when the time comes. I'm more concerned about when they plan on releasing their mobile suits," the Chinese pilot quietly said from his seat at the kitchen table. A steaming hot cup of tea sat temptingly in front of him.
Trista glanced thoughtfully and the scratches on the wood table. "It is likely that they want us alive for a reason," she softly said before raising her garnet stare. "Perhaps to test whatever they are planning for your missing friends."
"Great, so you mean we are going to be guinea pigs for their brilliant experiments? I love my life," the burgundy-haired girl drawled, momentarily adverting her attention from the small deck of cards spread out before her on the floor.
Frowning the tall circus performer whispered to the green tinted-haired girl, "Is Deidra using tarot cards?"
"Yes. I do not understand why she does, but it seems to put her at ease," Trista answered she watched her friend shuffle the small deck before spreading it out and taking out a few cards.
Lifting his head up, the cobalt blue-eyed teen watched the ex-cat burglar whisper a few inaudible words before flipping over a card. "Hey babe! Whatcha doing?"
"Tarot reading," Deidra quietly murmured, her eyes completely focused on the cards. Suddenly her jade green gaze widened upon lifting a single card. Staring into her face was the one card which was oddly most feared but did not possess the same meaning as its name. "Death."
"Huh?" Duo mumbled, as a confused look filled his face. Clumsily he crawled over the curly-haired girl, peering over her shoulder. "Hey you drew the death card! Um, is that a bad thing?"
Lightly Deidra shook her head as she stared at the plastic card with the Grim Reaper plastered on the front. "It means transition," Swallowing thickly, her green eyes seemed to burn through the card as if there were more to it than what she said. 'But I also drew the wheel of fortune and the tower. There is something wrong. Too many cards indicate change.'
Bewildered, the others blinked as the burgundy-haired girl scrambled for a regular deck of cards. Whispering something as she shuffled the well-worn cards before cutting the deck and drawing four. Gasping, she stared in horror at the four black cards.
"Deidra, what's up? What's wrong?" the braided-haired teen concernly asked, gently shaking her shoulder.
Without saying a word, the girl climbed to her feet and bolted into her bedroom as everyone in confusion watched.
"She's lost it," Wufei grumbled as Trista began to stand up to check on the L2 girl. Trowa and Quatre exchanged perplexed glances wondering what exactly was going on as Duo who was already on his feet, began heading towards the girl's room.
Just as he reached the door, it suddenly swung open, nearly slamming him in the face as a very frantically Deidra rushed out. "Everyone we must get out of here NOW!"
*~*~*~*
Author's Notes: I'm so glad everyone is liking this. Truthfully this has got to be my favorite story I have written so far. I love all the twists I have thrown into it.
This is probably the turning point for excitement and suspense. The next chapters on, are going to be rather, interesting. Two different story lines are still going to go on at once (Heero/Hotaru and the others) before I'll mesh them together. There's still plenty in store for our eight friends.