AN: Wow, it's been two months and one day since I posted "Valor..." Time, huh? Well anyways, sorry about the shortness of the last chapter. Hope this is more to your liking. And thanks for all your encouragements. I just couldn't allow myself to disappoint you by not posting before I go.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing.
"ETA thirteen minutes, thirteen seconds and counting."
"Do we have visual?"
"Overcast weather, but tolerable visibility... should take about six minutes."
"Prepare landing procedure."
"Ready and standing by, awaiting initiation command."
This was how the exchange went between the pilot and the mission commander in the cockpit of the Preventers jet, which was currently en route to the Senne River Base. In trying to avoid detection, the jet was flying under the radar, so close to the ground that it just barely missed skimming the top branches of the pine trees, but the pilot didn't even break a sweat. Such was the maneuvering skills of the former pilot of the Gundam Deathscythe.
Beside him, the unofficial commander of this rescue mission and former Wing Zero pilot Heero Yuy sat ensconced in the co-pilot's seat but not actually doing anything in the way of operating the jet. His body was immobile, tense; his eyes were hard and determined. Only occasionally did he seem to rouse himself to give a curt command to the pilot next to him, but he spent the majority of the four hour flight staring fixedly ahead, consumed by internal thoughts. His mind was in turmoil. The events of the past twelve hours, starting with the birthday ball and extending to the proposal, the assault, and ultimately the pursuit, replayed themselves over and over again in his head. There was no escaping them, no banishing the images, no battle to focus his attention on – yet; but that was not what he wanted anyway. No, he what he wanted was to relive it all, to feel the pain, so that he could brand the experience securely into his memory. He never wanted to forget the destructiveness of his emotions. The only way to live a good life is to follow your emotions.
Duo glanced sidelong at his comrade and friend, who continued to stare straight ahead, not acknowledging or even appearing to be aware of the slight movement. He sighed. He knew that he was mentally beating himself up over this. But what could he do for him? Tell him that it wasn't his fault? Heero would never listen. Sure, that was something that he himself desperately wanted to believe. But then again, that little voice in his head would speak...
So he sighed again, and redirected his attention to the control panel before him. That's when he saw the Senne River Base appear on the camera as a tiny speck. He pushed a button that let him address the cabin and spoke into the headset, "Attention passengers. Visual contact of the base has just been established. Seven minutes and counting until landing. As is customary to the God of Death and to most of the Gundam-piloting occupation, we will be approaching target on foot, to minimize chances of detection. Baal's not gonna know what hit 'em," he added that last part in a vindictive mumble. "Make one last check of your gear, and please make sure that your trays and seat backs are in the locked and upright posit—"
"Maxwell!"
Duo's speech was cut short by the annoyed, warning tone in Wufei's voice. He was standing in the doorway, trying hard not to lose his composure but looking very much like he wanted to punch Duo. The faces of Trowa and Quatre peered into the cockpit from behind each of his two shoulders.
"All right! All right! Geez... can't take a joke..." he mumbled loudly enough for Wufei to hear clearly.
"This is no time to be making jokes!" Wufei countered.
"Hey, I'm just trying to lighten the mood a little. Don't have a fit!"
The Chinese man was about to refute that allegation when Heero spoke up. "That's enough. Go get ready." His tone left no room for questioning. Wufei and the other two Gundam pilots turned and retreated at the order. "Duo, land this thing at the first suitable site," he relayed, before he, too, slipped out of the cockpit and into the cabin.
When Heero left, Duo heaved a dramatic sigh to no one in particular, and engaged the landing sequence. But his eyes, even during his joking speech, had never softened; for the purpose of this mission had never been forgotten.
-----
Relena was roused from the light and unrestful sleep of the wary by the sounds of someone working the lock to open the door. For a split second a jolt of powerful emotion spiked up through her stomach (was it hope?) and she quickly scrambled to her feet, but it was just as quickly replaced by cold fear.
In a replay of another cell-door-opening a few hours ago, a figure once again stepped into the cell. When her eyes adjusted to the strong light, she once again discerned the face of her captor, Dekedenz Cocytus. "Then you shall see me tomorrow, and we shall... begin," she heard his voice say in her memory. Immediately she grew fearful, but she tightened her hands into fists and tensed her body, refusing to tremble in his sight.
"Good morning, Relena." He bowed. "I trust you slept well?" he baited her purposefully.
"If I can get any rest, and what happens to me, is of no consequence," she looked at him levelly. "But know this, Dekedenz. You will never be able to steal the peace, because the people truly desire it in their hearts. They do not have peace because I give it to them, so no matter what you do to me, they will never have to let it go."
"What happens to you is of no consequence, indeed?" An amused gleam entered his eyes as he chose to ignore her pacifistic assertions and instead to focus on her self-minimization. "Why, if you say so, my dear. Thank you for giving me carte blanche. You have eased the last of my reservations about all this." He laughed heartily as she paled. "But before we formally begin, I feel it is my duty to re-pose my offer, and then to address a certain issue. First, common courtesy dictates that I ask you this question once more: Will you spare yourself, and surrender to me?"
"You know my answer already," she said with resolution, though her voice was shaking just barely.
"I admire your conviction – just one of the many things that set you apart from everyone else and draw me to you, and the one thing that, possessing, will give me the most pride when you... finally come to see things my way."
She glared at him.
"Then the second item on the agenda before we proceed: An earnest discussion. About peace."
Relena blinked incredulously. Did she hear him correctly? He, Dekedenz Cocytus, the man who kidnapped her and aspires to rule the world, would like to discuss peace? Perhaps this was her chance; if she employed all her skill, she might be able to talk him out of this insanity.
"I felt that during my first visit to you in this cell, we got off on the wrong foot. We were both excited – you from your abduction, myself from anticipation... But I do want to talk. Despite what you may think, I am really not a crass individual. I truly believe in courtesy and chivalry. Ambition and genius are no excuse for lacking manners."
As if to prove his point, he signaled for two stiff-backed but comfortable chairs to be brought into the cell. He took one of them, the one with its back facing the door, and motioned for Relena to take the other. She did so, hesitatingly.
"There. Are you comfortable, my dear? Shall I send for some refreshments? By no means would I desire you to fatigue while we debate. You must merge from this with the freshest of spirit, for there's so much waiting for you afterwards."
Relena shuddered, but she said to him, "I am fine. Let us begin."
He looked at her intently as he put his fingertips together and rested them against his lips. "Very well."
-----
Outside, five young men in brown Preventers uniform wove their way stealthily through the pine trees and toward the base. Each one carried two pistols, spare magazines, three grenades, a pack of explosive putty, a multi-use detonator, and a dagger in their boot. And that was only what could be seen on the exterior. As they neared the steel-walled compound, they began to spot miniature surveillance cameras wired to the trunks of some pine trees, concealed by masses of their dark green needles. Heero, with his eagle eyes, was the first to see one. One look from him to each of them in turn was enough to alert the others of his discovery. It was a mystery, how these five men could communicate so clearly with something so fleeting and nebulous as a glance, but they were all soldiers who understood the battlefield and comrades who understood each other. Not wanting to alert the security of their presence, the former Gundam pilots opted to go around the cameras' viewing ranges instead of taking them out. But it wasn't easy. The cameras had been skillfully positioned so that together they covered almost every inch of ground; there was no direct way to advance, so they were forced to take wide looping detours and change direction frequently and abruptly. Still, headway was headway, and, not as slowly as one would expect or Baal would hope, they approached the base.
In just a few minutes, they arrived at the gray, chain-link fence that surrounded the compound. They stopped to conceal themselves in the shadows of the pine trees as two guards walked by in front of them, just a stone's throw away – or a bullet's flight. Duo took the safety off of his pistol and gave Heero a raised eyebrow in a questioning look. Heero shook his head once and pointed to his ear. They're wearing microphones. Gunshots will be heard by the others. Dejectedly, the God of Death uncocked his gun and slipped it back into his waistband.
"Yes, Bill, all's clear at the south side," said the nearest and pitifully unaware guard, who raised a hand to touch his in-ear transmitter with his fingertips. At the same time, Wufei and Trowa nodded to each other and leapt up simultaneously to clear the fence, the Chinese man with dignified poise and the acrobat with fluid flourish. They landed silently just behind the pair of hapless guards, who barely even had time to open their eyes wide in shock let alone turn around to defend themselves. One received the rigid edge of a right hand at the side of his neck, just below the ear where the jugular runs; His partner, who found one hand on his chin and one hand gripping the back of his head securely, was treated to a spine-snapping jerk. One-two. Just like that, with no noise made during the entire process, the guards fell down dead at the feet of the Gundam pilots, and Baal's ranks was less two members.
Trowa and Wufei looked up from the bodies to find that their three comrades had already jumped over the fence. In a flash of nostalgia, Trowa folded his right arm across his front, extended his left arm out to his side, and bowed low at the waist to them. Duo flashed him a grin of amusement and looked down at the dead guards. At the sight, he lifted both eyebrows and puckered his lips in a soundless whisper, a clear sign that he was impressed with their work. Quatre grimaced at the guard with the broken neck. His head was twisted at an impossible angle, but mercifully he had fallen with his face turned away. Heero looked at them and then at the two Preventers with a blank face and emotionless eyes. I don't have to kill anyone... anymore, he heard his own voice play in his head. He said that once upon a time, long long ago, just before he fell into the embrace of an angel. With a blink that, for him, was equivalent to a start in anybody else, he snapped out of his unwelcome memory and started moving again.
"Shouldn't stay long," he murmured to the others. The microphones in the guards' ears were probably still on. The others nodded their assent, and as soon as clearance keys and ID barcodes were collected from the pockets and the bodies cleverly hidden in some bushes, they sprinted for the base.
Luckily, they only saw a few other guards pacing the grounds from a distance before they reached the South entrance, but there were no other encounters. Judging from their semi-relaxed posture as they walked to and fro, central command had not gotten whiff of the infiltration.
"Idiots," Heero heard Duo mutter under his breath as he eyed the guard that had just passed by above them, giving him a pitiful shake of his head. Deciding to pay him no mind, he returned his attention to the door and the access panel beside it. Before it stood Trowa, clearance key in hand. He took a moment to study the design, making sure that the way he believed the door opened wouldn't actually set off the alarm. Then he slid the card across the receptor, magnetic side down.
"Identity confirmed. Officer Josh Nelson. Please enter clearance code," read the display above the number pad. Trowa gazed down at the numbers in puzzlement. He didn't know the code. Suddenly he felt a shoulder nudging him out of the way. He stepped to the side and looked up to find Heero standing in front of the panel now, eyes boring intently into the number pad, narrowed in deep thought. Then he entered the numbers 185125141. The other four pilots held their breaths for three seconds before the display lit up with a green back light and the steel door slid open. With no reaction, Heero strode inside. They glanced at each other with questioning looks before they followed him in.
When the door slid closed behind them, Duo grabbed Heero by the shoulder. "How did you know the code?" he asked for everybody there.
Heero met his curious eyes with a level glare. "Think like Cocytus."
Duo turned his head to that one ear was closer to Heero and shook his head a little, indicating that he did not understand.
He sighed mentally. "It's Relena." Then he walked on.
The other three pilots widened their eyes at his genius. Duo thought about this for a while. Suddenly his eyes lit up. "Oooooohhhh," he said to his comrade's back, "Wow Heero, that was inspired."
He walked on, giving no indication that he heard the brazen comment.
Geez, the freak uses Relena's name as a password, only in number form, he thought to himself. And either Heero's really good at villain-divining, or he, too, has got Relena on the brain. And not just in a mission way... He was glad that he could have this little idea to brighten his mood as he followed the rest of them deeper into Cocytus' base.
AN: Not that bad of a cliff hanger, right? And now, I go to college. I'm sorry to say I don't know when the next update will be, but I can say with certainty that I will not forget about this fic. So don't forget about me, ok? Keep poking and prodding me with your reviews, my readers. I couldn't live without it. I'll be back.