Disclaimer: I in no way own Gundam Wing or AD&D. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

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"Ah, nothing like rabbit on a spit to make a man's stomach rumble, neh Wufei?"

The eastern boy simply arched a brow at the sorcerer beside him. "I thought you were studying your spells, magician. Why are you hovering over the fire?"

"Done for the moment. Brain's 'bout to explode."

A nasal voice broke through the clearing, interjecting, "Doesn't that describe every moment of your day, baka?"

"Shaddup, Heero!"

"Hn. No brain mage, hardly able to cast a fireball."

Wufei laughed as Duo grinned manically, his eyes closed and eyebrows knitted, fists clenched at his side.

"Just you wait, Yuy. One day, just one day..."

"What? You'll pay me back for gagging you with your braid like you've been threatening to do for the last 3 years?"

"... Shaddup."

Turning the rabbit on its makeshift spit, Wufei shook his head, not bothering to pay attention to the commotion as the warrior and the mage continued their 'discussion' that soon boiled down to Duo attempting to give Heero a concussion with his spellbook. Glancing off into the trees, the ex-City Guard narrowed his eyes. 'Their loud mouthed bickering is certain to draw the attention of everything in this wood. Easily sets us up for an ambush, it does.'

'Barton had better be standing a decent watch to prevent that.'

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However, Trowa was nowhere near standing a decent watch. Rather, he was staring at the moon from his seat thirty feet in the air amongst the branches of an ancient pine tree, lost in thoughts and memories.

Running through his mind's eye was the visage of a pale skinned boy that lived in a lush, frigid mansion.

"Lord VonWinner, eh?" he sighed softly to the stars as he stared at the constellations overhead.

Frowning, he closed his eyes, reflecting on his thoughts.

Until just three days ago when he'd been asked to entertain the boy, he'd never known that Vincent VonWinner had a son, even though he'd lived in Waterdeep for the better part of a year and had connections with persons who had connections with virtually every family of influence that ran the City of Splendors.

Lord Vincent VonWinner was known to be an eccentric old human man, estimated to be in his seventies by the number of wrinkles and white hair that covered his features. Reputably a powerful mage, the man had reportedly retired from the adventuring field and diverted his talents instead to the realm of management and trading, soon coming to head the treasury and holding a good share of the trade industry and market industry in Waterdeep. He lived a surprisingly modest life for a man of his power, prestige and wealth, apparently having divulged himself into his wish to live amongst the more common people instead of heading a Lordship or Sorcerers' Academy as was his right as an experienced, intelligent and well-versed adventurer of the Realms.

Over the course of his career, he'd run with the Avatars of the Gods during the Time of Troubles, fought hordes of dragons in the defense of the Dalelands along side with Elminster, adventured through the Mysterious East, braved the Jungles of Chult, and freed the imprisoned king of Cromyr from the tyrant who'd taken over that kingdom but a few months after the conclusion of the Year of the Banner.

Nowhere in his legacy was it mentioned that he had a son.

Knitting his brows, Trowa frowned. The boy he'd encountered had to be at least fifteen years of age, approximately four years junior to himself, judging by his build and voice.

Fifteen years ago, Lord Vincent VonWinner was supposedly with the Waterdeep Armada, assisting with the defeat of the pirates that had raided the harbor in that era. He was also supposedly in his mid to late fifties and very, very single.

"Just doesn't make sense..."

His thoughts were interrupted by a gargled cry that screeched from deep within the woods.

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Trowa was second to the scene, defeated in the desperate race for the location of the strange scream only by Wufei Chang.

"Chang, what's up?" he puffed breathlessly, trotting to the dark- haired boy's side.

Turning his onyx gaze to his companion, Wufei sighed. "Whoever it is, he's dying. His aura..."

"Fading?"

"It'll make it impossible to find him."

"But he's in this area?"

"That's an affirmative."

Nodding to one another, they began to thoroughly search the clearing they'd both stumbled into.

It was Trowa who found what they were looking for, accidentally tripping gracelessly over something that had been hastily buried in a pile of leaves he'd been trying to traverse through. Hurriedly brushing the leaves away, frowning as he heard that faint and pained groan ring away, he lifted his gaze. "Chang! Found him!"

The knight was already at his side, dagger in hand. Kneeling at Trowa's side, he scowled. "How... barbaric."

The old man's eyeless sockets stared heavenward as his tongue-less mouth opened and shut, blood bubbling at the corners of his lips as he desperately attempted to draw breath through his shallowly slit throat into his punctured lungs. Vainly trying to lift one of his broken limbs, he flung his limp and obviously shattered hand towards the sky, whimpering tonelessly at the heavens.

"Can you make out anything he's saying?" Trowa quietly asked.

"No."

"His thoughts?"

Sighing, the warrior closed his eyes. "I... can't. His mind's too clouded by pain and sorrow for me to discern what he's thinking."

Heero's voice rang from behind them, "Concentrate, Wufei."

Glaring over his shoulder, Wufei snorted. "I'm a wild-talent, not a trained psionisist, Yuy."

Sighing, Heero crossed his arms over his chest. "Who is he?"

"Hells if I know," Wufei sighed, turning back to the man.

"Put him out of his misery," Duo, who'd silently stood by behind the brown-haired warrior, whispered gravely. "Don't make him continue suffering... that's too fucking cruel."

Trowa's eyes widened, even as Wufei drew his dagger across the man's throat.

"Jeeves."

Three sets of eyes focused upon him. "What did you say, Trowa?" Heero questioned, a brow arching.

"Jeeves. He was a servant of House VonWinner. He hired me to entertain Vincent VonWinner's son."

"A servant of VonWinner...? Brutally murdered and thrown out into the woods?" Duo muttered with a frown, scratching his chin.

"Oh Gods, save us. He's trying to think."

Wufei was promptly smacked with the magician's staff.

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Bowing deeply, his movements hindered only slightly by the heavy armor he was wearing, the man sighed. "Jeeves has been eliminated, my Lord."

"Good," a deep voice rumbled from the soft black shadows that draped themselves like rich curtains over the rear of the poorly lit chamber, obscuring all that resided there, giving only the barest glimpse of a robed man in a large throne-like chair and an end-table set adjacent to that chair with a large wine goblet set upon it. "And my little Quatre?"

"Still missing, my Lord."

"Unacceptable."

The armored man gulped.

"Otto, you will gather your finest warriors and locate that boy. I want him returned to me as quickly as is possible."

"Yes, my Lord. We will recover your son as soon as we can." Rising and saluting smartly, the guard hurried out of the room.

The figure in the shadows sighed, lifting that barely-seen goblet to his lips and sipping the liquor it held. "I can't have that creature on the loose."

"I won't allow that wicked little demon to run unchained."

"For the sake of the Realms, I can't..."

tbc...