AN: Flames won't acknowledge, constructive criticism I will. A sad attempt to make a third chapter. SIKE!

PAIRINGS: 13x2, 13x6x5, 1x2, 3x4, one sided 1+R...

Warnings: Mild Relena-bashing, yaoi , violence and um... yah. I do not own Gundam Wing or Eragon which the characters the Ra'zac are from and the scene with Quatre the elf in the prison and the dragon eggs. Thank you knowing for reminding me in your review. I wanted a twist to my fav. fiction and my favorite books. I might throw some other stuff in, but not till much later.

Previously:

He had a dream, of five men...

Chapter 3 Riddles

"They've been up there for quite some time." Duo said disapprovingly as he peered up the stairs and strained his ear to listen. He heard the low rumbling of their voices but could not make out anything said. He sighed and was forced to sit back down. Wufei snorted.

"Zechs is probably giving him the real knowledge of Thundermoon." he stated simply and Duo folded his hands together, brow furrowed.

"What's the real tale? Tell me please."

Wufei looked at the quiet Prince, as is asking to tell the story to the curious servant, but he gave no notion to even open his mouth. He just kept staring at Duo, as if he were merely staring at an interesting part of the wall. Duo shifted under his gaze.

"Well?"

Wufei pursed his lips. "Well you heard what Thundermoon was prophesied to be. Every three hundred or so years, a blue moon is high in the sky at night. An old ancient seer, made a prophecy that a human boy was going to be born on a blue moon and would grow to be powerful. His power was the act to use nature to his will, elemental things such as lightning, the earth, and even fire. That's basically what everyone knows. However there was a second part to the prophecy.

"The old seer, whose name has been lost over time also stated this. When the world is bathed in darkness and evil threatens to break free, Thundermoon would vanquish it back into the darkness, but not without the help of the Stargazer who will give you Selfish Help, The Dragon who sheds Red Tears, the Noble Assassin, The Man with a Heart of Stone, the Last Prince, and last of all Necromancer. In the cave of Istari, which only Thundermoon and his guardians can enter are six weapons which will unleash the guardians power and a red jewel that is rumored to be where all magic came from."

Duo bit his lip. It did indeed sound like some fairy tale with a group of heroes who would save the world from the bad man. "So what is your plan, to find Thundermoon and the guardians?"

"We are some of the guardians." Wufei said. "The guardians are marked like Thundermoon with a star on their left wrist. I knew not of this but it was Zechs who found us. He studied the map the prophecy of Thundermoon was copied on and found our locations. There were clues and two red dots on the map. One was my Clan and the other was Kaladwar, where Heero was discovered."

Wufei pulled up the sleeve to the silk acket he was wearing and bared his left wrist. On it was a dark star, almost black that marred his olive skin. The star was perfectly shaped with one point slightly larger than the others, indicating the top of the star.

Duo sat back. He was impressed. "He found you both without help? Didn't you think he was crazy?"

Heero gave a tilt of his head in a nod.

"But you still came anyway."

Wufei scowled. "Malachia is far from being the only one who is being consumed in this evil the Ra'zac are creating. Over the past seventeen there have been towns attacked with dark creatures such as ogres and goblins, sightings of necromancers and evil wizards. There's been kidnappings, massacres, dwarves and elves have sealed themselves from the outside world. It is not only the Ra'zac that's the problem. They are skilled creatures but they are meant to be owned. No, only one being is the reason for all the chaos that been happening over the last seventeen years."

Duo's fingers hovered over the plate of pastries, fingers finally pulling out an iced pastry. You keep saying seventeen? Why in that time period?"

"Because," said a vioce from the staircase, "Seventeen years ago was the year one day had the blue moon."

Duo turned from the armchair to see Treize. He was not smiling but he had a glow in his eyes. Duo stood up and grabbed Treize's left wrist. There on his wrist, was a star just like Wufei's."

"Sir you are..."

"Yes."

"So then Zechs too."

"Yes."

"And you need the find the last two guardians?"

"Yes."

"And Thundermoon?"

"Yes Duo."

"Do you have that map?"

Sigh. "Yes."

"And you're trying to figure out the clues that lead you to them?"

Yes, Duo which is precisely why I came down here to invite Wufei and Heero up to my office where we can discuss the map."

"Me too!" Duo practically shrieked and bounded up the stairs and into Treize's office. Zechs was sitting in Treize's chair, looking at an old piece of parchment with a look of sheer concentration on his face. Duo walked over and peeked over his shoulder. It was the back of the map, covered in paragraphs of black, cursive letters, that swirled and looked very beautiful. Duo wonder who had written it. Treize, Heero, and Wufei, entered finally and Treize closed the door behind them. All huddled close to Zechs much like Duo had to look at the map.

"Soooooo," Duo drawled. "Which guardians are you?"

"You come across our first problem Duo." Treize said. "Until we find Thundermoon, we may never know. We must figure out the riddles."

"I'll read the first." said Zechs.

"The night is clear and the stars are bright, destinations are revealed in one foresight. With a werewolf for his whelp is the Stargazer with Selfish Help."

"That makes no sense!" Duo exclaimed.

Wufei held his chin with the other hand tucked by his waist. "It is indeed a puzzling one. Could it be one of us?"

Zechs made a few notes on another piece of parchment and shook his head. "I doubt it. Stargazer and foresight. None of us have the ability to see into the future."

"And what's with that werewolf business. They are dark creatures." said Treize not very happy with the idea of encountering a werewolf.

"So is a necromancer, but he's one of your guardians." said Heero and Duo blinked at him. That was the most he heard the Prince say. He silently decided to make it his mission to get Heero to talk as much as he did. Zechs spoke again.

"Do you think it could be a seer with who will be reluctant to be a guardian? It says selfish help."

"It's possible." said Treize. "But that would make it harder for us.

There was an awkward silence as everyone pondered. Zechs was hunched over, letting the tip of the feather quill pen tickle his nose. Wufei was standing there with his arms crossed and eyes closed and it seemed as if he were meditating. Treize was drumming hi fingers on the desk and Heero...well the prince was just standing like a statue, looking at the scenery, but Duo supposed he was thinking as well. Several minutes passed and Zechs impatiently threw his hands up and gave an exasperated sigh, leaning back in the chair hands running through his hair. With his head out of the way, Duo took the time to study the words closely. Something looked funny with one of the capital S in the riddle. It seemed more elegant than all the letters.

"That S wasn't there before." Duo told them and pointed to the a S with his finger. When he touched the paper, he felt surprised when it felt not like dry parchment, but soft and somewhat fuzzy like paper thin animal skin.

"What are you talking about?" Wufei demanded. "How would you know that?"

Duo glared at him. "This S, it's slightly thinner than the other letters and it's more fancy. Besides from where I'm standing the color is a rather brown than black." he said. He was the closest to the lantern that sat on the table and the map was forty five degrees in his perspective. Treize walked over to where Duo was and looked directly over his shoulder. Duo was short, so it was easy to crane over him to look at what he found.

"He's right. That S is different."

Duo felt smug and smart.

Zechs looked back at the map and put his finger over the S. "The Stargazer with elfish help!" Duo piped and jumped up and down. Zechs looked surprised. "An elf? Could it really be an elf?"

"It is probable." Wufei said. "Elves are known to be stargazer's and have a certain bond to nature no being has."

"Excellent job Duo. We probably would not have caught that until much later." Treize said and placed a hand on Duo's shoulder who beamed up at him. Zechs sneered. "Let's move on." he said rather sharply and read.

"The isolation of love is what the dragon fears, for his loss he sheds red tears."

The five men all thought into silence. Wufei spoke up.

"I am, or was, the heir to the dragon clan. Perhaps it is me."

Duo looked at him and pointed to his eyes. "Well you don't shed red tears and that's what the riddle says."

"Exactly, it's a riddle. It could have a double meaning. It can't be literal. Nothing sheds red tears."

"I say it is."

"Stop jabbing that finger in my face!"

"You two jabber like children." Treize admonished but Duo and Wufei did not hear him."

"I say I'm the Dragon."

"And I say you're not!"

"Quiet." said Zechs. "We will move on and come back to that one later. I want all these riddles figured out tonight so we can start out on our journey tomorrow."

Duo began bouncing around the office and Wufei yelped when he bounded on his foot by accident. "Wow an adventure. A journey. Oh can I come? Can I come with you please? Please sir Treize I beg you!" he said and Zechs pursed his lips.

"Of course you can't go. This is a dangerous quest for the guardians. We don't need to be carrying extra baggage like you around."

"Are you calling me fat?" Duo demanded and Zechs looked shocked when Treize started laughing. He glared back at Duo.

Treize simpered down. Duo had his hands on his hips and was staring directly back at Zechs with equal animosity, pouting.

"What he means," Treize explained. "Zechs and I are very skilled at swordsmanship. Wufei and Heero are from races of warriors and they know how to fight skillfully as well. We are most likely going to run into trouble on our journey, through dark forests, giant inhabited mountains, and such. It could be very dangerous for you. It would be best if you stayed here or perhaps stay with Kento, the blacksmith. He's nice to you right?"

Duo's shoulders sagged. "Please Treize I don't want to be left behind. I won't be trouble at all. I'm fast. If there's the first sign of danger, I'll turn back quickly I promise." Duo's amethyst eyes were wide and sad and filled with tears. "Besides, I want to stay with you. What if you leave, and then don't come back? I'll be here alone forever." He clutched onto Treize and cried into his shirt, the older man patting him on the back.

"Shh, don't cry Duo. I am just looking out for your well-being." he said soothingly.

"Well don't." came Duo's muffled response in his shirt.

"This is ridiculous. You obviously spoil that little wench you bought. I say just sell him to the highest bidder in town."

Duo wheeled around in anger. "Take that back! You take that back right now!"

Zechs sat back smugly. "Oh did I hit a sore spot? I don't want to drag around Treize's little whore. This is business."

"Of course you would know what a whore is!" Duo shouted. "Now take what you said back!"

"No. If you don't want to hear the truth..."

"Say you're sorry!"

"You're nothing but a waste..."

Duo had grabbed the lantern and ran to the door.

A vision crept into his mind.

"It was my great great great grandfather who made the prophecy of Thundermoon!" a man with wispy brown hair shouted fist in the air. Clenched in his fist was a rolled up parchment. "And you know what? My father said, "You want the solution? Burn it! Burn it!"

"Papa, you're crazy!" said a teenage boy with blue eyes and black hair. "Give me the parchment! You've gone to far with this Thundermoon nonsense!"

"BURN IT!"

The man ran to the fire so placed the parchment close so that it began to sizzle. The son yanked his father back in attempt to take the map. The man and the black haired boy scuffled and he managed to snatch the parchment from his father's hand. "I'm sending this piece of crap to a city with lots of scholars for money. They'll like an ancient map like this."

"They'll never find the secret, not unless they inflame..."

"SHUT UP!"

Without realizing it, he turned around flung the lit lantern at the desk. Zechs, who thought it was aimed for him, ducked, but it fell short and landed on the desk, shattering. As if doused in oil, the entire map burst into flames. There were shouts of horror and Zechs jumped up and tried to subdue the fire with his jacket, cursing Duo while Wufei and Treize ran to the bathroom to retrieve water.

"You fool! You stupid wench! YOU DEMON!"

Wufei and Treize came running back and poured the buckets of water on the map. THe fire was extinguished in a cloud of smoke and Zechs looked down at the black and wet remains. It was intact but the writing was completely burnt out.

"Look what you did! You may have just destroyed the chances of ridding this world of evil. It's gone! It's all gone." He lifted it up and showed Duo the charred site of the parchment.

"There is no other map like this. This was Thundermoon's map and you destroyed it. Or only chance to..." Zechs faltered as he looked at the map side of the parchment.

"What is it?" Treize asked and Zechs slammed the map on the desk. "The last I looked at this map was when I found Wufei and Heero and we were on our way to find you. When I got this map there were three dots. Heero, Wufei and you. That's how I was able to locate you. I did not know it was you specifically, but I had a notion that it was. Look Treize. Three more dots are here."

Treize looked. Bunched together were four little red dots, all varying shades of red, in the mountainous region where they were now. He looked at the rest of the map. One dot was far on an island in the middle of the sea and the other dot was on another landmass, deep in the depths of what looked like to be a giant forest that was split in between a mountain range.

"Those are the dots of the last two guardians."Wufei said as he looked at the dots. "The riddles might be gone, but we have found the locations of the last."

Treize looked shocked at Duo. "I saw how you threw that lantern. You weren't aiming for Zechs. You were aiming at the map weren't you?"

Duo would not meet anyone's eyes. "I...I don't know what came over me. I just knew...I just knew." No one questioned him.

Zechs sighed and rolled the parchment up. "We will leave tomorrow for Tythoch. That's where the closest dot is. It's strange considering Tythoch is uninhabited by humans. It's mostly forest, mountains, and enchanted creatures."

"And monsters." Wufei said bitterly.

Treize looked at the soggy parchment that had been ruined by him and Wufei pouring water on his desk. But he cared less for it right now. "We will have lunch and I will pack so that we may leave early in the morning before the sun rises so that we will not attract attention."

Duo turned to leave, eyes downcast.

"Duo?"

Duo did not turn nor look up. "Yes sir?" he said in a soft voice.

"You will need to pack too. Make sure you do not pack heavy. A few warm clothes, waterskins, and travelling necessities will do."

Wufei and Treize looked amused, as Duo's sad demeanor disappeared and they could hear him whooping and running all throughout the house.

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The blue eyed prisoner could feel the drug wearing off. He had not drank his water in two days so the dosage had not entered him. He tucked his bangs behind his pointed ears and closed his eyes to concentrate. He had to send this message. He had to tell them, he had to. Find Sandrock at Hogolden's bay. He is the only one who can lead you to me. The elf collapsed in exhaustion and hoped he had gotten his message through.

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Duo stopped his dancing when he heard the soft, almost whispered words in his head. He tried to place it in the back of his mind, but he knew it would stay there forever. Who had spoken to him?

An: Short yes I know. You guys are smart. I love how you guys can spot the Eragon/Edlest similarities. I can't wait to read book 3 when it comes out. Anyway, I'm sorry it took long for me to write this. Homework interferes you know. I have exams next week so bear with me please. I want this story to be like ten chapters or fifteen. When I drag out stories I get writer's block so I'm not taking that approach.

Review and give me pointers. I'm open to all suggestions. Doesn't mean I'll do it, but alot of people come up with good stuff. Oh and how do I find a BETA reader. Hell, I don't even know what beta means. Oh well. Our Gw guys will be starting on their adventure. You can already tell which guardian is who.

My separaters are l and v's to stand for Las Vegas baby.-----Kenya