Author's Note: This is a longer chapter. It's set up differently, so when you come to the parts of the story in italics, it's a flash back. Hope you guys can keep up with this one, it's pretty fast-paced. ;P
Again, thank you all so much for the reviews. :D
Chapter Rating: PG-13, for language, descriptive violence, and gore.
CHAPTER THREE: The Escape
He hissed in pain as a hidden sapling's outstretching branches caught his calf, ripping through the material of his pant leg to his sore flesh, tearing the skin open. This didn't slow him though, as he felt the blood trickle down, for this was nothing compared to what he's experienced before.
All that mattered now was fulfilling the rest of his mission – and getting away from here alive.
Another tree snagged the fabric of his already tattered coat sleeve, almost trying to pull him back; back to the pile of rubble that used to be the party. No, he inwardly scolded, no. There's nothing more that can be done. Heero Yuy…you fucked up.
An uplifted root of a nearby shrub seemed to rise up out of the ground, making the tired, fleeing soldier stumble blindly through the snow-dusted forest, almost toppling over. He quickly regained his control though, and only a whimper of pain was heard from the limp figure in his strong, protective grip. His muscles ached from the constant pressure on them, and although what he was carrying was no more than 100 pounds, the weight seemed unbearable. The frail shape of his unconscious passenger stirred again as he splashed through the thin ice of a small stream, struggling to stretch out but then wincing sharply.
Heero then felt the sickening warmth of blood seep from her side, oozing out in a throb that matched her irregular heartbeat, the crimson liquid saturating the fabric of his shirt. His stomach churned as the cloth of his shirt stuck to his skin, and Heero managed to muster up enough courage to glimpse down at her.
She looked ill; deathly ill. Her once rosy cheeks were now pale as ivory, and the dribble of crimson down the left side of her face made her look even more ghostly. The perfect bronze curls that had hung delicately about her now dangled loosely from her lolling head, one of them caught in the dried blood that started from the corner of her mouth, her parted lips smeared with lip-gloss and blood. The cream-colored skin of the girl's neck was scratched in several places, and a large scrape, from her lower, left shoulder to the top of her right breast, had just recently scabbed over. This was not the worse of her injuries though, for an immense amount of blood continued to percolate from her right side, and it was definitely taking it's sweet time to clot.
She wasn't meant to survive that explosion, Heero concluded, recalling what had happened back at the ball. She knew she would die in the blast at that close of range.
Putting the mission before your life was something Heero was used to doing, but seeing someone else do it was…different. He could stand the look and feel of his blood, but when it came from someone else…Heero didn't like it.
-
Heero never took his eyes off her, knowing that if he did, she would escape. The girl seemed to be thinking the same thing, for her eyes never left him. She almost appeared to circle him, like a hungry raptor, waiting for him to slip up so she could attack.
Trying not to let on what he had planned, Heero followed the crowd of exiting guests, watching her do the same. He flexes his fingers readily as he slowly moved through the line to the door, getting ready to terminate the terrorist threat. His last successfully completed mission—
"Well, my dear boy, wasn't this a splendid get together?"
Heero swung around to face the jolly host of the party, the man's hand automatically reaching out to take his in a departing handshake. His eyes widened in surprise as the host shook his hand vigorously, his enthusiasm and friendliness making Heero want to gag. Dammit. Heero hadn't counted on running into this rambling idiot.
"Young man, I haven't forgotten about our little meeting, you know, and I have opened a space on my ever so busy schedule to take your questions. How's tomorrow at three, hmm?"
With desperate eyes, Heero searched for the girl, ignoring the man addressing him. He didn't have time to be polite, he had to stop that girl – now. Pulling away from the man's friendly handshake, he hurried toward the hall he'd discovered her in earlier, secretly readying his concealed weapon for use.
He stopped dead at the start of the hallway, and quickly glued himself to the wall, his eyes scanning the empty corridor for her. Silently, he worked his way through, drawing his weapon at any and every sound he heard.
Silence.
It appeared that the passageway was deserted.
He neared an open doorway, the room on the other side of it dark, and poised his pistol. Springing out, Heero threw his gun forward, finger on the trigger. His eyes darted around in the darkness, looking for a shimmer of jewelry, a person's figure, anything. But he found nothing; he heard nothing. Cautiously, he stepped further inside the room, his gun still held out in ready, and searched for her.
Still nothing.
Slowly lowering his weapon, Heero backed out if the room, his eyes keen to any movement. He stepped into the hall, eyeing everything carefully, and continued his pursuit of the terrorist, sliding along the wall in stealthy search.
Chk-chk.
Heero froze – it's her.
Spinning to face her, Heero's eyes widened in panic as a bullet whizzed by the left side of his face, bringing some of the flesh from his cheek and ear with it as it hit the opposite wall with a muffled bang.
Automatically, he dropped down to his hands and knees, and swept his adversary's feet out from under her with an extended leg. She fell with a small cry followed by the dulled fire of her revolver, but Heero did not hear the thud of her body landing. Looking over to her quickly, he saw that the girl had somehow caught herself in mid fall and counterbalanced her weight, now getting to her feet with weapon still in hand.
Before she could fire again, Heero jabbed the tip of his pistol into her stomach roughly, shoving her against the nearest wall. He glowered at her dangerously, his cobalt eyes screaming at her to drop her weapon while his hands twisted both of her arms painfully above her head, the girl struggling against him wildly.
"Who are you working for?"
Those bright green eyes framing her face narrowed sharply at his cold monotone, her teeth bared. Heero was only inches from her face, glaring daggers at her, the pressure of his pistol pushing into her stomach increasing sharply as she squirmed more.
"Bastard…!"
He didn't know how it happened, but the girl managed to slip a leg out and dig the heel of her shoe into his foot, the pain triggering a reflex to make Heero step back and grunt out. Before he could raise his gun again she sent the heel of her hand violently into his chest, making him reel back several feet. Feeling some of his emotional control slipping, he sprang at her, grabbing and pushing her gun away as she came at him. Another deadened shot was heard as he did this, the shell barely missing his foot. Swiftly and with military precision, Heero then sharply connected his fist with her jaw.
The impact knocked her flat on the floor, but she seemed to be two steps ahead of him, snaking her legs out to trip him. Heero cursed as his reflexes failed him, falling back with a sharp wince as her heel dug into his shin while the other foot's tip pulled his heel forward.
After his nasty spill to the floor, he rolled onto his stomach and his hand immediately reached out for the pistol that had managed to escape his firm grasp during the fall. Heero felt blindly for it, his eyes darting nervously to where the girl once was.
"Shimatta…!"
Heero writhed in pain as he felt the sharp heel of her shoe sink into his wrist, the pressure of all her weight at one point on his arm making his fingers go numb. He bared his teeth in agony as one eye squinted up at her, seeing her aim the pistol at his hand. Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, Heero waited for the splintering ache of a bullet to tear through his palm as three softened shots rang out.
The pain never came.
Looking over at her, he followed the direction of her pistol, which was aimed at his gun, now in several pieces.
She was motionless, her revolver still aimed at what used to be his firearm. The girl seemed to hesitate, being as silent as she was, her face contoured into an expression of insecurity.
Suddenly, with what sounded like a reluctant sob, she turned her weapon to Heero's face, pulling the trigger when her eyes connected with his.
-
Heero had almost seen regret in those big, lime eyes of hers, an emotion Heero was once familiar with.
Glancing down, he looked to her eyes, now closed and swollen, to see if she'd wake. Heero knew it was pointless, but he also knew that if he didn't get answers soon, he might go on a shooting spree.
Who IS she?
-
The gun barrel registered a blank as the bullet chamber snapped back; the ammunition depleted.
Heero's eyes narrowed – act now.
With breakneck reflexes, Heero swung his knee out at her legs, making hers buckle as he snatched her gun away. As soon as he felt the weight lift off his wrist, he rolled away from her, leapt to his feet and stepped back, not wanting to get knocked to the floor by her nimbleness again.
She was standing seconds later, her eyes darting to him discreetly, waiting for his reaction to her foul play.
He scowled at her, his dark eyes glaring, and savagely pulled apart the gun, throwing the empty cartridge at her feet.
"Your life could have depended on whether you had enough ammunition. You were careless."
The girl's eyes widened at his comment, but soon narrowed and glowered at him.
"What would you know?"
"I know I always have backup."
The girl seemed to give him a small smile, crossing her arms and leaning to one side slightly, her posture telling him she had something up her sleeve.
"Oh…I do have back up. I promise you, with this plan, you will leave here in pieces. You really shouldn't have followed me. It would have saved a lot of pain…for me as well as you."
What?
Heero watched suspiciously as the girl slowly lifted a hand to her throat, pulling her shimmering choker loose with a modest tug. Putting the diamond-shaped charm in her open palm, she gently popped it open, revealing what looked like a miniature circuit board. With nimble fingers, the girl gracefully punched in something, a faint beep answering her typed command.
His eyes widened slightly; she wouldn't. A bomb…?
Lifting her head up, she held the small jeweled-amulet to her breast, and Heero could swear he saw her lip quiver as her delicate brow creased in woe.
"You have fifteen seconds to get away from here as fast as you can."
She WOULD.
Heero backed away slowly in disbelief. She…can't…
"In the memory of the honorable Doctor J…!"
What the hell! His jaw dropped at her parting words, but his instinct promptly kicked in, and Heero dashed away, diving into any room closest to him and covering his head as the corridor exploded.
-
What happened after that was a blur. Heero vaguely recalled coming to under a large piece of plaster, most likely from the ceiling, and staggering to his feet. But rerunning what had happened no more than minutes ago, it seemed to be coming back to him.
-
Disoriented and only able to hear a loud ringing in one of his ears, Heero sluggishly made his way through the wreckage and rubble, seeming to favor his left leg as he stumbled over to what was a doorway before the explosion.
The whole hallway was totaled.
Staggering forward after spitting out a mouthful of almost black blood, Heero looked for her body, for unknown reasons, and found it, but not like he'd hoped he would.
The girl's body was mangled amongst large plaster scraps and steel piping, covered in drywall dust and some cement pieces from the floor above them. Heero thought she was dead, seeing as much blood as he did, but was proven wrong when she tried to get up with a feeble, painful cry.
Standing to the side of her silently, he beheld her futile struggle to move, wincing violently whenever she leaned to the right. The girl's last attempt to get up erupted in an agonizing sob, a bloody hand clutching her side as she fell back weakly.
Hearing her tormenting scream, Heero felt a wave of nausea come over him, his stoic façade faltering slightly when the girl whined in agony again, wincing slightly.
By some unknown force, Heero found himself dropping to his knees beside her, staring down at her with clouded and emotionless blue eyes. She appeared incoherent, oblivious to him and her surroundings until he leaned in closer to her, her pain-filled eyes widening in panic.
Abruptly, Heero put a finger to her lips, silencing any protests she could muster in her current state. He skimmed over her body with an eye out for any serious injuries, and then slowly pulled the hand clasped securely to her side away.
"Kuso…"
A long piece of rebarb had gored her ribcage. The steel rod was coated with her blood, now collecting in a crimson puddle under her, and stuck out several inches from her body at a gross angle. Feeling his stomach curdle sharply at the sight of the dripping pipe piercing her side, Heero tried to speak, his voice husky and broken.
"Listen to me. I need you to trust me."
Heero took his hand and forced her to look at him so they were face to face, his dire blue eyes inches away from her pain-stricken expression. The girl stopped her weak thrashing at the sound of his monotone voice, her eyes searching his in confusion.
"…Why—?"
She was cut off by a violent cough, blood trickling down her chin, and struggled to catch her breath. Warily, her breathing now heavy and raspy, the girl nodded, her eyes begging him for help.
"Relax…"
She weakly nodded again, trying to steady her gurgled breathing for him.
Heero took a deep breath, gingerly placing both hands tightly around the crippling bar that pierced her side.
He then jerked his hands upward, ripping the pipe free in one smooth motion.
-
She gave an earsplitting scream before she passed out.
He could still hear it, echoing in head, and could still see the wound erupting with blood, the crimson fluid spurting out and staining his hands and shirt with its' life-giving warmth.
He shuddered.
THUMP.
Heero suddenly jumped at a sound to his right, a small thud falling behind him. Glancing back in alarm, he caught sight of a dainty, silver object that shimmered in the moonlight.
Her shoe; it's only her shoe.
Turning back, Heero immediately ducked as a thick branch tried to knock him over, sending him barreling into a thorny brush. Subconsciously, he shielded his wounded cargo from the ground as his balance slipped, his shoulder hitting the hard, snow-covered ground with a crack. Instantly the pain seemed to spread like fire through his entire arm, licking his sore muscles with a spiny tongue. He panted out every obscenity that came to mind as he struggled to his knees, now noticing that the unconscious person accompanying him was several feet away.
"Uhhh…"
He groaned out as he staggered after her, his legs feeling as heavy as lead. It felt like it took him forever to finally near her, her limp figure sprawled out among the dead leaves and melting snow, looking ghastly unhealthy under the moon's lulling glow. With frost bitten hands Heero scooped her up into his tired arms, huffing several times as he lifted her.
Cradling her gently as it began to snow, Heero trudged off through the clearing he had stumbled into, praying to god that this was the direction to a safe and secret place; for the girl's sake, not his own.
Faintly, in the background, Heero heard sirens fly toward the smoldering mess that used to be the ballet.
-Later-
An abandoned and dilapidated church about two miles south of the explosion seemed a good enough place to hide. Heero stumbled toward it blindly in the moon's soft glow.
Flinging the heavy, delicately carved wooden doors of the church open, he pushed his body to the very limits as he shuffled to the hospital wing in the chapel. It was not uncommon for a house of God in the colonies to have an infirmary, for when they were built, the colonies were at war with the earth.
With an exhausted huff, Heero heaved the wounded young woman onto a faded, dusty mattress. Taking a few moments to catch his breath, he quickly limped over to a pair of stainless steal cabinets, digging through it until he found bandages, antiseptics, tape, and empty syringes. Stuffing them into his tattered over coat, Heero grabbed a nearby respirator and staggered back over to the girl, immediately taking a syringe head off with his teeth and spitting it out to his side. Tapping the crook of her elbow several times, he gingerly guided the needle tip into a blood vessel, his patient whimpering slightly.
He must work quickly, Heero thought, as he slid the mouth covering from the respirator on to her mouth and nose, she could slip away at any moment. Warily, he glanced up at her, seeing the corner of the girl's eyes laced with dried, pain-filled tears and the color in her face fading.
This was going from bad to worse.
