Colony L4- 10:45 PM- April 18
The desert wind was cold that night… it whistled past, blowing gusts of sand from the many dunes, swirling the light dust in the breeze. Rashid stared out into the night, watching the familiar shapes move across the desert skyline. The Maganac Corps mobile dolls were still used, but with the peace and the demolition of certain weapons, only a few were armed with guns and lasers. The rest had beam swords and shields, just in case. Rashid turned from the view outside of the tent he was in and found a frequency on the two-way radio he was looking for.
"Master Quatre, how does everything look?" Rashid spoke into the microphone. The reply was fading in and out of static, but able to comprehend.
"Everything's fine, Rashid! It feels good to be using a mobile suit again."
Rashid smiled. "I remember when you first took my mobile suit, fought against those OZ soldiers. You used it like a professional, but now it's more of a carnival ride, eh, Master Quatre?"
The voice that came back held a hint of sadness. "Sandrock was an amazing machine, Rashid. Almost like a friend, more human than machine. But it was just a machine, and now that Sandrock and the others are gone, we have no need for… wait…" Quatre's voice came in, the sadness gone, now more professional. "There's a person out here… coordinates eight-seven-zero-nine…"
"Any backup required?"
"No backup necessary, I'll bring them in. Quatre, out."
The radio cut off. Rashid tried contacting Quatre again, but it was no use. He sighed, but a small smile appeared on his face. Quatre always welcomed the Maganac Corps, but whenever they tried to help, Quatre would refuse, attempting to handle it on his own. But if he needed back up, he wouldn't hesitate.
"Quatre is becoming a man now… learning to deal with problems by himself. There's nothing wrong with that."
Quatre used the harness line to lower himself down to the sand. He wasn't sure if it was a girl or a boy, the figure covered by the sand, huddled in blankets shielded from the cold. He moved closer, gingerly touching the child on their back. They looked up quickly, light brown hair dancing from the breeze as their hazel eyes stared up at Quatre.
"Are you real? You're not a mirage, are you?" The child asked, staring in amazement. Quatre smiled kindly, noting by the voice and appearance, the child was a girl... though more of her growth would show in time.
"I'm real. Are you?"
The child blinked then, looking down at her clothing. "I think so…" The child smiled as she swayed, the smile fading and collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Quatre picked the child up, and carried to the harness line, holding the child as he was lifted up into the mobile suit. He turned the suit and made his way home.
Rashid watched as his mobile suit walked into the hangar and down powered, the door opening, and Quatre lowering himself to the ground, the child in his arms. He made his way toward the main house from the hangar. "Rashid, please get a doctor! This girl needs medical attention…"
Rashid noticed Quatre's urgency and nodded. "Right away, Master Quatre!"
Quatre went into one of the guest rooms, placing the child into a bed and pulling the covers over the still form. One of the servants brought a bowl of water and a washcloth, setting it on a table near the bed. Quatre picked up the washcloth, squeezed the excess water out, and passed the damp cloth over the child's face, cleaning off the dust and sand gathered there. There were some scratches on their face, but only one was prominent, a deep red gash that curved down from the lip to the bottom of the chin.
"Do you need anything else, Master Quatre?" the servant asked, looking wide-eyed at the child. Quatre turned, catching the servant's expression.
"No… I have things handled here… the doctor should be along any minute. I'm sure this child will be all right."
Quatre dismissed the servant, looking at the child's face. The skin was red from sunburn, almost burnt from the sun's rays. He wasn't sure, but he thought that her eyes were emerald colored… and a scar on her arm, looked like a scratch… may have been from a bullet… The doctor came in then, rushing up to Quatre, looking down at the child in the bed. "This is the child then? When did you find…"
"About an hour ago… but she looks as if she was wandering the desert…" Quatre's Space Heart ability wasn't picking up anything from her, since she was unconscious. The doctor gave her a quick physical examination, checking the child's vital signs, temperature, pulse rate and overall physical condition.
"Is everything alright?" Quatre asked, looking at the "Will she be alright?" Quatre asked, looking at the doctor worriedly. The doctor tucked the blankets closer around the girl, turning toward Quatre with a small smile.
"She'll be fine, young Master. This girl was wandering through the desert for a while, with no proper protection from the sun or any predators… the scratches on her face probably caused by sand thrown up by the winds, but this one there," the doctor traced the scar on the girl's face, "some metal wire or shrapnel must have cut her, and this one," the doctor traced the scar on the girl's left arm, "this resembles a flesh wound caused by more debris or-"
"Bullets. Someone fired a gun at her," Quatre finished, looking at the girl, his heart filled with anger and pity for the child's fate. "Who would do such a thing? And to a child?"
"With all due respect, sir, the best we can do right now is to make sure this child lives. Maybe then you can ask her what happened."
Quatre nodded wearily. "Yes… thank you for coming out here, sir."
The doctor shook Quatre's offered hand. "Thank you, Master Winner. I will be by tomorrow to check on the girl's condition." With that, the doctor left, leaving Quatre by the girl's bedside.
The girl's eyes slowly came open, looking up at the blonde stranger beside her. Her eyes were emerald colored, and she blinked the sleep away, realizing where she was. She tried to rise out of the bed, but a sudden wave of nausea made her fall back down onto the bed. Quatre caught her and gently guided her down, pulling the covers and tucking them around her.
"It's alright, you're safe now," he said, softly. She looked up at him, smiling.
"Thank you for saving me…"
He brushed some of her hair out of her face. "Hush now, you need to rest…"
The girl blinked, then shook her head, struggling to raise herself up on her arm. "Wait… please listen… the attack in the desert, that's why I was there…"
Quatre moved, but held still as the girl fell back onto the bed, exhausted from her efforts, but still speaking. "You're… Quatre Winner, aren't you? He said you'd probably find me…"
"Who said that?" Quatre asked softly, holding the cold washcloth to the girl's forehead.
"An stranger… he was wearing a lab coat… showed me the way out."
Quatre pushed away the feeling of déjà vu that was threatening to surface. "He showed you out of a lab?"
The girl nodded feebly. "It was a development lab, for a mobile suit… I don't think they found the project, though…"
Quatre looked at the girl, wanting to know more, but her health was more important that his curiosity. "You just try to sleep now, we'll go back to the lab later… do you have a name?"
The girl appeared to try to remember and gave up, her teeth gritted. "I don't remember my name… my real name. I just remember the nickname the lab guy gave me… he called me Nuhad…"
Quatre nodded. "Nuhad, it means confidence. Right now, I want you to sleep."
The girl smiled again, pain still in her eyes. "Okay, Master Quatre…"
Quatre reached out and gently held the girl's hand. "Please, call me Quatre."
"Okay…" the girl yawned, dropping off to sleep. "Quatre…" Her eyes closed as she was taken to the land of slumber.
Quatre sighed. At least this girl was alive… but the lab guy… the description sounded like Instructor H, but it may have just been coincidence… but the code name to watch for, meaning 'confidence'… Nuhad…
Either way, this girl had suffered enough for now.