Disclaimer - I do not own any of the Gundam Wing characters, the only thing that is mine is the characters Allyson, Mayven and the plot. (If I forget to put this on my other chapters I apologize, I have a really bad memory for junk like this)
Rating - Another safe chapter people (It will take a while for the characters to get comfortable with one another I can put more interesting stuff in it, but if I rushed it, it just would make any sense)
Chapter 7- A Rescue
Heero sat in a chair, rubbing the back of his head as Relena rubbed his shoulders. He could feel himself relax under her touch as her fingers messaged his tense muscles, moving from his shoulders to his neck, rubbing gently with her soft skin touching his. He could have gone to sleep right there in that chair if Duo wasn't laying in front of him, his wounded side back at its worst, out cold and in a lot of pain. He couldn't help but pity him, knowing that once the boy would come to and realize that Mayven was back with Oz he'd lose all control.
He couldn't stop the sigh that escaped his lips as he felt his stomach drop at the thought of what Mayven was going threw, what they were doing to get back at her for showing them were Oz's new location was. If they'd torture her for not wanting to be a part of their new association, then what would they do for betraying them?
"What are you thinking?" Relena asked, cutting into his thoughts as she leaned down and whispered the question ever so softly into his ear as she stopped rubbing his shoulders, awaiting an answer.
"Nothing," he replied simply as Duo stirred, moaning to the pain that ran down his spin, feeling his side burn with ever breath he attempted to take. Relena sighed softly, not really content with Heero's response to her question, knowing that he was lying but not wanting to push the issue any further, for the moment being.
Trowa walked passed Heero and Relena, giving the boy a gentle glance before placing a cloth on Duo's forehead, hoping that the boy's fever would break soon and that he'd come through without to much damage done to his side. Duo was in a lot of pain, that much was obvious to anyone that was in the room, but Trowa knew that the pilot was stronger than most gave him credit for and would pull through. He was far from dead and was out of the woods. It was now up to Duo to how long he would remain in bed, but knowing Duo Trowa's guess was that he'd be awake by noon tomorrow, if not sooner. He just hoped that Duo would be up soon enough to help Mayven, now he wished that Mayven would be the one with the will power to hold on.
Mayven could still feel the touch of Duo's hand on hers before was pulled away form her grasp and she was drug away kicking and screaming. She struggled against them as they tied her down to the table in the middle of the small dark room and she could still taste the blood that had run threw her mouth when she had sunken her teeth into one of the soldiers arm as he held her shoulders down firm against the table. She was alone now, the only sound the sound of that damned typing that she had learned to hate so much, the only feeling that of pain as both of her sides were burning like fire from all the burns and her stomach bleeding from all the whippings, which left her shirt in threads. She tried to move her hands, feeling the rope burns that had encircled both of her wrists, leaving them red, cut up and irritated.
She had cried all the tears that her eyes could create and was now left to think about her betrayal, something that she surprisingly didn't regret. She was clad that she had told Duo and the others where Oz was located and she would do it again, even if it meant being caught and tortured. Although at this point she could argue that the Gundam Pilots had used her and would now leave her at the mercy of Oz and its "punishers". She shook her head roughly, making her sick to her stomach and dizzy, pushing the thought from her mind obviously violently. Duo wouldn't, no he couldn't, just leave her here! Mayven sighed, feeling her stomach drop to the thought, as she let her head rest back on the table, blood running to the floor in a giant pool that made the floor slippery and even sticky. She closed her eyes, giving in to the blackness that was over coming her every being and fell unconscious.
Duo had slept through the night, with Trowa keeping a close eye on him, making sure that his temperature didn't sudden rise dangerously. Heero had also stayed up, but not because of Duo, he had faith that Duo would pull through fine, he stayed up on his laptop. He hacked Oz's systems all night, trying to recover a map to their facilities in an attempt to find Mayven before it was to late.
"Come to bed Heero," Relena called softly from across the room, sighing at the boy's stubborn persistence, "I'm sure that Mayven can survive one more night." Heero had been spending most of his nights with Relena, although nothing had ever really happened between them, either she had been in meetings or Heero had been working all day and neither of them wanted to do anything but sleep, making the relationship strictly platonic.
"The point is that she shouldn't have to," he replied simply as he continued to type away, "go to sleep, I'll be here in the morning." Relena sighed, rolling over and going to sleep without argument.
Morning came slowly for both the Gundam Pilots and Mayven. Duo with his side burning, Trowa with his nagging feeling of having to watch him ever minute of the night, Heero with his personally mission, and Mayven with every muscle and bone aching in any possible way. But just like every other day, the sun rose and the day started with Duo waking up as Heero came into the room, throwing a piece of paper down on the bed.
"I know how to get Mayven out," he announced as Duo sat up, grabbing the piece of paper and reading the list of passwords and maps of the under ground base, "We leave as soon as everyone is ready." Heero stood, going to the closet and grabbing his old black combat jacket, pulling it on and zippering it up.
Duo jumped out of bed as soon as the words had passed Heero's tiered lips, grabbing some clothes and going into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him, resurfacing minutes later, dressed and hair combed. Heero tossed him his jacket, which Duo caught with little to no effort and put in on over his fresh clothes.
Mayven on the other hand hadn't woken up in such a pleasant manner. She had come to in the early hours of the morning, not that she had known that at the time, to the feeling of her stomach and ribs burning like fire. With a groan she opened her eyes, realizing that she was no longer chained to a table, but was now chained to the center of the floor by her ankle, the table gone completely from the room. She brought a hand up to her face, brushing her bangs to one side, feeling a sticky substance being smeared across her face along with the action. She looked down at her shacking hand to see it covered in, what she guessed was, her own blood. Looking to the floor she was able to confirm that allegation, seeing the pool of blood that she now lie in the middle of, her side, back and face bleeding extensively. Rubbing her hand across her stomach she realized that all her old scares were now gone, covered by fresh burn marks from the electrical sticks.
The last thing she could remember was struggling against the Oz soldiers, biting one and kicking another. Then she was tied down to the table, and was beaten. Although she couldn't remember every minute she did remember the feeling of fire, and a lot of sudden sharp piercing shots of pain. She looked down at her arm, seeing the wipe marks that cover them and what she guess would continue down her back. Feeling suddenly sick to her stomach, she closed her eyes tightly, trying to go to another place, a place where she wouldn't have to think about the pain that came from her sides, back and face, a place where she could laugh and be a normal teenager. Suddenly, the thought of Duo came to mind, and she couldn't help but smile. Duo would be her strength, as Allyson had been the first time around.
Mayven opened her eyes to the shining silver metal that covered every wall, not the dungeon type setting,
but Oz was not a cheap organization. Bringing a hand up to her scared cheek, she let a sigh escape her lips. This scare was a constant reminder of how cruel Oz could be. She was not much older than 15 the night her family was murdered right in front of her eyes. Oz had come in to remove the bodies of the people that had given up, letting themselves died without a fight, without any more pain when her older brother, who would have been 19 at the time, had decided that he had taken enough abuse and was going to put an end to it all. When he lunged out at one of the unsuspecting soldiers, causing the soldier to drop a blade, Mayven could only watch as the two hit the floor, rolling as both men struggled to gain control of the situation. Mayven had managed to crawl her way over pushing the blade out of reach so the soldier couldn't use it against her brother.
"You'll never lay a hand on another person again!" her brother had cried, landing a strong punch on the soldier's right cheek, just before the soldier had kicked the boy across the room, hitting the cell wall a couple feet behind him. Mayven could remember hearing the sound of her brother's moans as his head hit the steal coated walls. She couldn't remember though, how the blade that she had pushed away had gotten in her brothers hand, or where the soldier had gotten a gun, but what she did remember was running to her brother's side just as he pulled out the blade, running the sharp object down her left cheek accidentally. She had cried out then, feeling the blood run through her fingers as she covered the fresh wound...that much she remembered but the rest was a blur, except the sound of a single shot ring throughout the air and the sound of her brother's corps hit the ground, his head slitting open as it made contact with the floor.
She left a tear fall, running down her scared cheek to rest amongst the blood on the floor. It had been so long since she had thought of that night, her brother dying because he was to stubborn and strong willed to take anymore of their abuse, and her mother dying hours later as they beat her to death to make up for her sons outburst. Mayven had stayed very quiet after that, not wanting to upset them any further, hoping that she would just fade into the background and they would forget her. It wasn't long after that when she met Allyson and had become close to her. If only now she could find the strength to hold on until the Gundam Pilots arrived to save her, but after everything she has gone through, the only thing she feft like doing was dying.
Heero and the other, except Wufei who had stayed behind to get the room ready for casualties, stood out side the door where they had been ambushed the first time. Heero was just about to finish putting in the manual codes when he stopped short of the last number, turning to the others.
"Once this door is fully open we will have ten minutes to get in, find Mayven and get out," he said, tossing them each a map, "we slit up, you all have your section, and we met back at the van," he pointed to the van just a couple of feet away, "in ten minutes, if you don't find her, you leave and hope that someone else did…got it?" He eyed Duo on this question for a moment before looking at the others, who all nodded. Heero nodded in acknowledgement and pushed the button.
The large steal door began to open upwards and Heero took the opportunity and ducked under the door, giving himself an extra minute or two. The others soon followed his example and did the same before they all headed down their sections quickly, following the map so to avoid control rooms, training rooms, and highly populated areas.
Mayven was almost unconscious when the alarm sounded, the sound only faint in her ear. With a sigh and a light cough, she attempted to sit up but gave up, falling down and letting her head rest on her arm, avoiding the pool of blood if at all possible. At this point she wasn't going to bring her hopes up that it was Duo and the others, and even if it was, there was no guarantee that they would find her and get her out.
Suddenly the door to her cell flew open, and the light from the hall filled the room, making her groan as the light hit her sensitive eyes. She could hear the person walking up to her, but she couldn't bring herself to open her eyes and face them, fearing that it was and Oz soldier that had come to move her to another section of the base so her friends couldn't find her.
"Mayven," the voice held authority, but was also filled with worried, so that ruled out Oz. She felt suddenly a hand on her back, and she could help hiss in pain as her entire being burned to the touch. She opened her eyes just as the figures hand covered them gently and the sound of a gun, which made her pull away and wince, sounded throughout the room.
"You came," she said simply as her vision was given to her and the hand was removed, realizing now that it was shielding her from any part of the chain that might had flew up when it was blown away from her ankle.
"Of course we did," she recognized the voice now as Heero's as she brought her eyes up to meet his, "Now let's get you out of here," he said, rapping her tightly in his jacket and picking her up. She did groan, but only because his arm was touching her back, but she soon sucked back the pain and rested her head on his shoulder gently, letting her blood smear his shirt. She could feel the warmth that was coming from his body, warmth that she couldn't help but nuzzle into, her skin cold, and his so warm.
Heero hadn't been surprised when Mayven snuggled into his neck, feeling the sticky blood that had been smeared on her face touch his bare skin. The feel of it was a feeling that he knew well, a feeling that he hadn't missed in the least, but he couldn't be angry at her for doing it, after all it really wasn't her fault that she was full of it. The blame lay in the lap of Oz for touching her. He felt the girl in his arms tremble to his touch, knowing that he was hurting her sensitive back. He was trying to be as gently as possible, but let's face it, how gentle can one be when they are running down halls and up corridors in an attempt to get free from the base and back to the van, the ride was more than a little rough.
"Heero!" Duo cried as they got in eye's view of the door and freedom. Heero could tell that the boy's eye had lit up once they met up with the sight of Mayven in his arms, "Come on man!" he cried as Heero reached the top of the stairs, handing the girl off to Duo. Mayven moaned in pain as Duo grabbed hold of her, looking down at her with a look of disbelief.
"Take her to the van," Heero ordered, turning to head back down the stairs, "I've got to finish something." He went to walk away, back down the stairs but there was a strong grip on his shirt sleeve, holding him back.
"Heero don't," he turned slowly to see Mayven holding on to his sleeve surprisingly strongly, "It's not worth it," she coughed violently, spitting the blood from her mouth to the floor at their feet. Duo looked down at the girl in his arms and back up to Heero.
"We can't wait for you," he said suddenly, eyes filled with guilt and hope that Heero would change his mind and return now with everyone else, "What ever happened to the ten minutes, no matter what, rule?"
Heero groaned, turning around and walking out the door, "Let's get her back to Relena's," he mumbled, as Mayven's grip was released and she rested her head on Duo's shoulder with a sigh of relief.
Once in the van, everyone relaxed a bit, Trowa driving and Heero in the passenger seat. Mayven was placed on the floor in the middle of the van where the pilot seats should have been, but were removed just for that purpose. Heero's jacket was still covering her frail body as Duo sat down next to her, stroking her cheek gently in an attempt to calm her nerves, feeling her tremble under his touch. He sighed, seeing her pain and feeling her blood run through his fingers with ever move. He shook his head, wondering how someone could do this to another human being without guilt or remorse. How someone could beat a girl into a bloody mess and then leave her chained to the middle of the floor alone and cold. She groaned suddenly, forcing Duo to look down at the girl's head that lie in his lap, fondling her hair and stroking her scared cheek gently.
"Shhh," he whispered gently, "you're alright now." The girl opened her eyes slowly, looking up at him, her midnight blue eyes broken and hurt as they locked with his violent ones.
"For now," she mumbled before closing her eyes again, trying her best not to pass out, "Duo," she said suddenly, hearing the boy acknowledge her with a small grunt, "You did save Allyson and her friend May," she said suddenly, remembering that she had promised Heero that she would talk to him about the fact, but feeling now that this might be her only chance to keep that promise. "You regretted not finding Allyson's friend in time to save her and show her what true happiness was all about…but you did," she continued as Duo put on a look of confusion.
"What are you talking about," he said softly, moving his hand from her cheek to her shoulder, "You didn't even know Allyson or her friend…how did you find out about any of that?" Mayven smiled, forcing herself to fight the darkness that was starting to overcome her sight and open her eyes again.
"I knew Allyson very well," she said in a whisper, "she was my best friend while we were in Oz's grasp…I'm May…" she added, her voice trailing off as the corners of her eyes became very dark and she could feel herself falling into unconsciousness.
Duo gasped, putting two and two together and finally put the story of Allyson and May together and realizing that the girl that he had kicked himself so hard for not saving was now in his arms. That Oz had played them both and now, this was his way to finish what he started so long ago, he could now save May. He could do the one thing that he wanted to do for so long, he could put Allyson at rest and he could help Mayven rebuild her life.
"Mayven," he said as the girls eyes closed slowly, "Don't give up," he whispered, kneeling down over her and kissing her forehead, "Do it for Allyson…hold on and show Oz that they can't break you, just like they didn't break her," he placed one hand over her cheek and the other over her stomach, letting his head rest gently on hers. A tear escaped his now tightly closed eyes, running down his cheek and falling onto hers where it continued down to the floor. His soft sobbing could only be heard by Mayven as she fell, for the second time that day, into unconsciousness.
Okay this is where is starts to get interesting. Duo is almost ready to admit that he falling in love once again and this is when my rating comes into play. In the next chapter or two is when Duo gets to feel love once again I get to have fun. (The next chapter could take a while because I really have to be in the mood to right violence and love scenes, but I will try)
R&R