Chapter 22
Several light footsteps sounded behind her, but Rei didn't turning around to face them.
"Hands on your head!" Relena cried indignantly.
"Rei snorted and looked back at her, not surprised to see her same, irritated expression on every other face.
"We'll handle this, Relena." Heero said impatiently. Relena pursed her lips but fell silent. Heero turned to Rei. "Your shield failed."
"I can see that." Rei relied shortly. "How'd you do it?"
"We spat on it." Duo's smug reply came with an equally smug grin.
Rei rolled her eyes. (Please. The darkness probably just waited until you tried something to suck my power out...)
"You can't run anymore, Rei." Treize stepped forward, unarmed and strangely sympathetic. "You are going to have to start explaining."
Violet eyes narrowed in hastily concealed panic. (Explain... What...should I say?)
"You could start with the truth." A hoarse, feminine voice suggested.
Rei's head shot up and she looked frantically around the room. "There! That voice!"
"I'm right here, princess." The voice spat the title. In the shadows by the auditorium door, stood a bony, but obviously feminine figure draped in a crimson robe.
"Nia." Rei hissed, her anger already pulling at her power. "You know I banished you for a reason."
"Yes." Nia's claw-like fingers clutched at her sleeves. "Fear!"
"Fear?" Rei scorned, suddenly forgetting the eight pairs of eyes that darted between her and Nia. "I banished you because of your betrayal!"
"Betrayal?" Nia sneered. "You are unfit to be princess. You simply took your power, and ran off to Earth with it, not so much as giving an extra thought for your own planet!"
"At least I kept Mars safe!" Rei was nearly screaming in anger. "Don't think I don't know what you were planning to do! If you had succeeded, you would have destroyed us all!"
This time, Nia kept silent. Slowly, a smile crept onto her thin face. "Oh, look what you've done, princess." Her eyes went to the small crowd separating her and Rei. "You've gone and revealed your secret."
Realization checked anger and quickly spiraled into fear. Rei's eyes shifted and locked onto Heero's. "I...um..."
"Mars?" He questioned softly.
"Um, it's...complicated." Rei searched for an explanation.
"Think, princess... so many years of secrecy," Nia taunted. "Just to be broken now."
"Shut up." Rei's voice wavered. "It's your fault."
Nia covered her mouth in mock modesty. "Oh my, it is isn't it?"
A click pulled attention to Heero. "You obviously betrayed Rei, a princess, which makes you a traitor." His cold voice condemned Nia. "Traitors deserve to be punished."
"Aren't we the self-righteous one?" Nia snarled.
Several other guns unholstered and aimed for Nia.
"He's right." Wufei defended. "Traitors deserve nothing but death."
"Now, now... Weren't we all aiming for our dear little princess just a moment ago?" Nia taunted.
"This new bit of information seems to shed light on things." Quatre stated easily. "Her actions seem a bit more understandable now."
Nia's face soured and she snorted. "Fine. Be that way."
Then, without any further theatrics, she was gone. Simply vanished.
"Well..." Zechs muttered softly. "That's...interesting."
"Considering we've just heard," Heero lowered his gun but did not holster it. "I'm not exactly surprised."
Nia's P.O.V.
"Understandable?!" Nia shrieked into the circle of darkness around her. "How is she now 'understandable'?! I had them! I had them all against her!" She paced back and forth in her circle of dim light, power crackling around her. She stopped, and closed her eyes. (Calm. Be calm. You don't need them. They were just the insurance, remember?) The thought struck her and she stopped. (Yes, insurance. Well, I think it's time they proved their usefulness...)
She waved her hand before her and a swirling scarlet orb floated up from the floor. A harsh smiled spread across her face as the swirling mists parted in the orb and revealed a small group.
Quatre's P.O.V.
(This is why. This is why she's been running from us. To protect us.)
"Why do you have to be so stubborn?!" Rei shouted at Heero.
"I'm not being stubborn. I'm being logical." Heero remained as collected as ever, though Rei was obviously close to blowing up something, perhaps literally.
"What logic? I. Can. Handle. Myself. I don't need protection! I've been running around here in just as much danger as you!"
"We didn't realize you were someone of status." Quatre sighed, somewhat reluctant to get involved. "If you died here, which is obviously Nia's plan, she would use the opportunity to take your...planet." He shifted and looked around. "Sorry, I just can't get used to the idea of a princess of another planet."
Rei sighed heavily and crossed her arms. "You shouldn't have to get used to the idea. You're not supposed to know."
Trieze cleared his throat loudly and stepped forward. "We need to move on. Nia will be planning something by now."
"Yes. We need to take you somewhere." Heero agreed.
"Take me somewhere?!" Rei cried indignantly. "I'm not going-"
She stopped. Heero, Duo, Treize, Zechs were all gone. Vanished.
I'm soooooo sorry I haven't updated in forever!!!!! I just lost touch with this story and I couldn't get a single thing down... But I'm back! And I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed me during this blue period. *sigh* But I'm back in action, and you can expect another chapter up soon! I was going to try to end it in this chapter, but when I started, I just couldn't imagine cutting out all my plans, so I'm going to keep going! Review, please!
Several light footsteps sounded behind her, but Rei didn't turning around to face them.
"Hands on your head!" Relena cried indignantly.
"Rei snorted and looked back at her, not surprised to see her same, irritated expression on every other face.
"We'll handle this, Relena." Heero said impatiently. Relena pursed her lips but fell silent. Heero turned to Rei. "Your shield failed."
"I can see that." Rei relied shortly. "How'd you do it?"
"We spat on it." Duo's smug reply came with an equally smug grin.
Rei rolled her eyes. (Please. The darkness probably just waited until you tried something to suck my power out...)
"You can't run anymore, Rei." Treize stepped forward, unarmed and strangely sympathetic. "You are going to have to start explaining."
Violet eyes narrowed in hastily concealed panic. (Explain... What...should I say?)
"You could start with the truth." A hoarse, feminine voice suggested.
Rei's head shot up and she looked frantically around the room. "There! That voice!"
"I'm right here, princess." The voice spat the title. In the shadows by the auditorium door, stood a bony, but obviously feminine figure draped in a crimson robe.
"Nia." Rei hissed, her anger already pulling at her power. "You know I banished you for a reason."
"Yes." Nia's claw-like fingers clutched at her sleeves. "Fear!"
"Fear?" Rei scorned, suddenly forgetting the eight pairs of eyes that darted between her and Nia. "I banished you because of your betrayal!"
"Betrayal?" Nia sneered. "You are unfit to be princess. You simply took your power, and ran off to Earth with it, not so much as giving an extra thought for your own planet!"
"At least I kept Mars safe!" Rei was nearly screaming in anger. "Don't think I don't know what you were planning to do! If you had succeeded, you would have destroyed us all!"
This time, Nia kept silent. Slowly, a smile crept onto her thin face. "Oh, look what you've done, princess." Her eyes went to the small crowd separating her and Rei. "You've gone and revealed your secret."
Realization checked anger and quickly spiraled into fear. Rei's eyes shifted and locked onto Heero's. "I...um..."
"Mars?" He questioned softly.
"Um, it's...complicated." Rei searched for an explanation.
"Think, princess... so many years of secrecy," Nia taunted. "Just to be broken now."
"Shut up." Rei's voice wavered. "It's your fault."
Nia covered her mouth in mock modesty. "Oh my, it is isn't it?"
A click pulled attention to Heero. "You obviously betrayed Rei, a princess, which makes you a traitor." His cold voice condemned Nia. "Traitors deserve to be punished."
"Aren't we the self-righteous one?" Nia snarled.
Several other guns unholstered and aimed for Nia.
"He's right." Wufei defended. "Traitors deserve nothing but death."
"Now, now... Weren't we all aiming for our dear little princess just a moment ago?" Nia taunted.
"This new bit of information seems to shed light on things." Quatre stated easily. "Her actions seem a bit more understandable now."
Nia's face soured and she snorted. "Fine. Be that way."
Then, without any further theatrics, she was gone. Simply vanished.
"Well..." Zechs muttered softly. "That's...interesting."
"Considering we've just heard," Heero lowered his gun but did not holster it. "I'm not exactly surprised."
Nia's P.O.V.
"Understandable?!" Nia shrieked into the circle of darkness around her. "How is she now 'understandable'?! I had them! I had them all against her!" She paced back and forth in her circle of dim light, power crackling around her. She stopped, and closed her eyes. (Calm. Be calm. You don't need them. They were just the insurance, remember?) The thought struck her and she stopped. (Yes, insurance. Well, I think it's time they proved their usefulness...)
She waved her hand before her and a swirling scarlet orb floated up from the floor. A harsh smiled spread across her face as the swirling mists parted in the orb and revealed a small group.
Quatre's P.O.V.
(This is why. This is why she's been running from us. To protect us.)
"Why do you have to be so stubborn?!" Rei shouted at Heero.
"I'm not being stubborn. I'm being logical." Heero remained as collected as ever, though Rei was obviously close to blowing up something, perhaps literally.
"What logic? I. Can. Handle. Myself. I don't need protection! I've been running around here in just as much danger as you!"
"We didn't realize you were someone of status." Quatre sighed, somewhat reluctant to get involved. "If you died here, which is obviously Nia's plan, she would use the opportunity to take your...planet." He shifted and looked around. "Sorry, I just can't get used to the idea of a princess of another planet."
Rei sighed heavily and crossed her arms. "You shouldn't have to get used to the idea. You're not supposed to know."
Trieze cleared his throat loudly and stepped forward. "We need to move on. Nia will be planning something by now."
"Yes. We need to take you somewhere." Heero agreed.
"Take me somewhere?!" Rei cried indignantly. "I'm not going-"
She stopped. Heero, Duo, Treize, Zechs were all gone. Vanished.
I'm soooooo sorry I haven't updated in forever!!!!! I just lost touch with this story and I couldn't get a single thing down... But I'm back! And I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed me during this blue period. *sigh* But I'm back in action, and you can expect another chapter up soon! I was going to try to end it in this chapter, but when I started, I just couldn't imagine cutting out all my plans, so I'm going to keep going! Review, please!