Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing or the quoted word "egocentralism". A friend told it to me and I thought it was funny. I also don't claim that Trowa would know something like that….

Chapter 10

"Hmm, looks like we didn't get here soon enough." Trowa said, looking at the city they were approaching. Duo's eyes looked on sadly and said, "We have to stop these guys, this just isn't right."

Duo, do you read me? Rachel called over the comlink. Duo hit the button and said, "Yeah, I read ya."

Since this city's gone, we should head to the next one over now and make sure they're okay.

"But you couldn't possibly-"

Duo, stop worrying about me. I'm Supergirl, remember? Duo could almost see Rachel winking as he let a soft smile cross his face.

"Yeah, and you're gonna save the world."

Exactly, so let's just go on.

"Okay, I'll radio the others." Duo recalibrated the link and called Heero and Quatre's plane, "Hey, anyone alive over there?"

What do you want, Baka. Heero responded. With an eye roll, Duo said, "Rachel wants to just head over to the next city over if you guys don't mind."

But I thought she was flying in her gundam, will she make it? Quatre's voice asked in concern.

"She said not to worry so. . .I guess so."

Let's go then. Heero out. The connection ended and Duo sat back in his seat, leaning his head against the headrest. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and said, "Hey Trowa, pilot for me a little, will ya? I want to check on something."

"Uh-"

"Thanks! Here ya go!" Duo said, jumping up and running off to the cargo hold. Trowa leapt for the steering as the plane tilted a little, pulling on the steering to level it out again. With a sigh, he settled into the seat and grumbled mentally about Duo.

You awake over there, Duo? Looks like you're taking dancing lessons! Rachel called over the comlink. Trowa hesitated and stared at the button.

I don't want to talk to her. . .but if I don't she might start talking about Duo. . .hmm. . . Trowa thought and decided to sit back and see what happens.

Duo? Hello? Trowa, is he asleep?. . . .Trowa?. . . .Look, if you're still mad at me about what happened I'm sorry but I didn't really have a chance to explain the controls. . . .Come on, Trowa, say something, please? Trowa cocked an eyebrow and reached to press the button to respond.

And don't you dare say 'something' or I'll have to come over there and hurt you. Trowa grunted.

How'd she know what I was going to say? Trowa thought as he put his hand back on the steering. He looked out the window but couldn't see Verein anywhere in sight.

Trowa?. . . .Please say something to me, at least tell me off if you really don't want to talk or you just hate my guts. Finally, Trowa pushed the button.

"Do you know the theory of geocentralism?" Trowa asked.

Um. . . .yeah, some scientist guy had a hypothesis that the universe and all the stars in it revolved around the Earth. Why? Rachel wasn't sure where this was going.

"Well, you have EGOcentralism."

Huh?

"You think the universe and everything in it revolves around you."

What? I do not!

"Then why are you so concerned about how YOU are effected by things? You think everything is your fault, therefore you have egocentralism."

Listen, buddy, I don't know how much this gundam scrambled your mind but I haven't been concerned about myself at all! I'm more concerned with how everyone else is! If I was so 'egocentral' I wouldn't have saved you when you fell, I wouldn't have risked my life by trying to pilot that plane and crashing, I wouldn't have even wanted to come on this mission if I was so egocentral! If anyone is guilty of being so, it would be you and Heero! Trowa blinked and he said, "How do you figure that?"

You're mad at me because of something one of my creations did to you, even though I reversed the damage to your mind. You're still mad because it makes you feel right, or am I way off? Trowa thought about it for a while.

"And you can honestly tell me that you do not still hold a grudge against Heero?"

I never did in the first place. I may have been mad for him doing that but believe me, I don't care about it anymore.

"Do you now. . .then go fly with Heero for the rest of our journey."

Huh?

"If you're so forgiving you wouldn't avoid being near him."

I only do that because he avoids me. I tried to ask him if he hated me but he ran away. Who's avoiding who? Look, Trowa, I don't want to argue with you. You can go on feeling the way you do but please, don't hate me. The connection ended and Trowa stared blankly at the button.

I don't understand her. . .Trowa thought as he sighed and slouched in his chair.

"Oh crud, they've attacked this city too!" Duo said, feeling a bit guilty for not being able to stop the slaughter.

"It's still going, look." Trowa said, pointing to lasers and fire in the distance, bursting up now and then. Duo didn't hesitate as he kicked the engines into high speed and flew to the ongoing battle up ahead. When they got within viewing distance, they saw a group of mobile suits attacking a single suit that lashed out at a nearby Leo with its right arm that seemed to grow longer to reach its prey.

"What the heck is that thing?" Duo said as he stared at the lone fighter.

It's Shenlong, or Nataku as it's called by its pilot. Rachel said over the comlink, as if reading Duo's mind.

"Nataku?" Duo was confused.

"Who's the pilot?" Trowa asked.

Chang Wufei, our last Gundam pilot.

"Heero, did you hear that? It's Wufei!" Duo said, bringing the other plane into the conversation.

I know. Heero responded.

"Huh? How?"

He contacted me just before you did, said to sit tight for a few minutes while he finishes off his enemy.

"Geez, this guy is full of himself. . ." Duo mumbled.

Let me guess, he called them his 'weak opponents'? Rachel asked Heero.

"As a matter of fact, he did." Heero responded.

Sounds like Wufei all right. . . Rachel said, sounding a bit sarcastic. With a sigh, she said, Man, he's taking forever. That's it, I'm going in.

"What! Wait, you've never been in battle!" Duo tried to stop Rachel but she cut off the transmission as she sped off to the feud. Like a bullet, she spiraled through the gathering of Leos with her sabers drawn and sliced through the whole lot of them with one pass. With one tremendous explosion, the battle ended and Shenlong stared on in slight aggravation at the rude interruption of his fun time. Rachel returned to the planes and said, "All gone. Now, can we get on with the greeting?"

Woah. . .uh, yeah. Duo said, shocked by her clean sweep of kills. The planes landed and Shenlong walked over to them, opening up and revealing the pilot who looked a little less than pleased to see them. Verein landed near him as Chang yelled, "Who are you? How dare you barge in and-" The hatch door opened and Rachel stepped out, smiling slightly at the shocked look that crossed Chang's face. With his mouth open, he said, "You-you're a girl!"

"I sure hope so or else I'm in the wrong body." She said with a grin.

"Wufei, I'm glad I found you." Heero said as he walked out of the plane. The Chinese boy jumped down from his Gundam and strode over to the cold faced Japanese boy, both shaking hands with no look of pleasure to see each other.

"Who's the onnaku?" Wufei asked as he glanced back at Rachel as she made her way down to join the group.

"My name is Rachel. And I'm not an onnaku, I'm an onna." She responded with a tinge of annoyance. Wufei looked her over and said, "You are far from being a woman."

"Hmph, shonen. . ." She mumbled as she crossed her arms and glared back at him. Duo walked up and said, "So, Wu-man, you're the last Gundam pilot, eh? Nice to meet ya!"

"It's Wufei, not Wu-man." Wufei growled. With a chuckle, Duo nervously scratched the back of his head and tried to smile.

"Sorry."

"My name is Quatre, it's nice to meet a fellow pilot." Quatre said with a smile, outstretching his hand to shake Chang's. Chang grunted. Quatre slowly pulled back his hand and said, "And. . .this is Trowa."

"We've met." Wufei said, glancing at the quiet boy off by the plane. Trowa looked up briefly before returning to his sight seeing.

"There's an OZ base about 200 clicks from here that I was on my way to when I was ambushed by these weaklings." Wufei said to Heero, looking in the direction he spoke of.

"I'll come with you for backup, let me get my Gundam." Heero said, turning to walk to his plane.

"Huh? What about us?" Duo called after Heero.

"You would just be in the way. Stay here and scrounge the city for supplies." Heero said before disappearing into the hangar. With a growl, Duo started after him and Quatre grabbed his arm and held him back desperately.

"Why you little-in the way! I'll show you-why I oughta-GET BACK HERE!" Duo stammered as he fought to find insults to throw at Heero's back. Rachel cringed as Duo began to curse. She ran over and covered his mouth and he automatically stopped, looking over at her.

"Stop, just let them go do their thing, there's no point in arguing with them." Rachel tried to calm her infuriated friend.

"What! Why! He said I'd get in the way!" Duo yelled.

"He didn't exactly point that comment at you, it was aimed at all of us."

"It still includes me! That-" Rachel muffled his screaming as Wing gundam came out of the hangar and stalked over to them, stopping by Shenlong.

"Let's go, we don't have long till they send reinforcements here." Heero said through outer comlink. As Wufei nodded and ran back to his Gundam and jumped in, Duo screamed, "What! You're leaving us here as bait to distract them, aren't you! Why you-" Rachel struggled to keep her hand over his mouth as she sighed, saying, "Geez, Duo, calm down."

"You can handle them, can't you? Or are you scared of chipping the paint on your gundam?" Heero taunted Duo as his gundam turned its back to him and rocketed off. The sounds of the rockets drowned out Duo's screaming as he wrestled free of Rachel and Quatre's hold. With a huff, Duo kicked a stick on the ground and said, "(BEEP)! That (BEEP)(BEEEEP), I'll (BEEP) kick his (BEEP) (BEEP)!"

"How'd you do that?" Quatre whispered to Rachel.

"Eh, I just thought of Jerry Springer." Rachel said with a sigh as Duo ranted on, screaming censored curses.

"Land on the south side of the building and sneak in through the security door, there'll be at the most 15 guards between you and the central communications room. Can you handle it alone?" Wufei asked Heero.

"Can you handle your part?" Heero said back.

"Hmph." Wufei ended the transmission and flew off. Heero hid his gundam in a stand of trees and jumped out, running stealthily to the door. He decoded the access pad and pulled the door open, slipping inside and quietly shutting the door behind himself. As he snuck through the hallway straight to the communications room, he ran into a group of guards and tackled them in less than a minute, but triggered the alarm. With a grunt he took off in a run for the room but went flying across the floor with a cry of pain. Reaching back, he grasped his bleeding leg and looked up to see a man walking up to him in a red, white, and black uniform, his black boot heels clicking on the tiled floor as he approached. With a gun trained on Heero's head, the man said, "If you want to live you better not make any sudden moves, intruder." Heero glared at the officer but couldn't see his eyes.

"You. . .you're-"

"Lieutenant Zechs Merquise, and you're under arrest." The masked man replied.

"I can't take this anymore, I want to go blow something up too!" Duo said as he pouted in the hangar by his Gundam. Rachel leisurely leaned her elbow on Deathscythe's Gundanium armor as she said, "Duo, he said to stay here and scrounge, so let's go 'scrounge'."

"Why do we have to listen to him! Has he suddenly become the leader or something? Cause if so no one bothered to tell me!" Duo said, leaning his chin on the heel of his palm and sticking out his lower lip with a frown. Leaning forward a bit, Rachel said, "Ya know, a little birdie's gonna fly over your head and poop on your lip if you stick it out like that."

"Huh?" Duo said, looking a little confused and disgusted. Rachel tilted her head against her arm and said, "Nevermind." Rolling her head back and turning to rest her back against the gundam, she looked out at the debris left from the battle as she laid her arms down by her sides against Deathscythe's armor. Duo stood and sauntered over to Rachel, putting his hand on the gundam next to Rachel's shoulder and resting his other hand on his hip as he looked at her face. She looked back at him and said, "What? Don't glare at me, I can't do anything about it." She blinked as he said, getting closer to her, "I'm not glaring." He took his hand off his hip and placed it on her waist, moving closer again. His lips were inches from hers as Trowa walked up into the hangar and said mildly, "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Duo stepped away from Rachel and glared at Trowa, saying, "Maybe." Rachel let out a soft sigh and melted down the side of the gundam, slipping away from Duo and racing off down the ramp. Duo looked back suddenly and whipped his head back and forth, finally spotting Rachel running across the burnt field. Taking off after her, he yelled, "Hey, where are you going? Rachel, come back!" She leapt for the rim of Verein's foot and climbed up, quickly making her way up to the hatch and hitting the open button. Duo stopped at the base of the Gundam and called up to Rachel.

"Wait, was it something I said!" Rachel looked back him over her shoulder as she knelt down to climb inside.

"No, I think it was just the moves you were making on me!" She yelled back. She got in and closed the hatch door. Duo grinned, still staring up after her, and thought to himself, She's beautiful from every prospective. . .