Jungle Rot
By: Wildfire Sky
Hey all! Just got back from vacation and started shutdown at work! Wonderful, I tell you, absolutely wonderful! And I am now a certified scuba diver! Everybody say HUZZAH! And in celebration of this, I have decided to update Jungle Rot. Let me be honest with you, I don't think I've enjoyed writing a story more than I do this one…and maybe The Guardian too…meh…
Made one slight change. Decided to have Heero wake up in a sweat instead of in tears because, well, that sounds very 'un-Heero' like...amoung other things...also made corrections to language mistakes (thanks a bunch to Genti for his help in translations! You rock my socks.
Jungle Rot
Chapter Five
Warmth. It seemed to cover Relena like an invisible cloak, seeping into her skin and bringing life back to the limbs that at one pointed ached from the cold and beating water that had punished her body. It was the warmth that called her from her deep sleep and back to the conscious world.
Relena slowly opened her eyes, startled by the shroud of darkness. Yet, her brain was too tired, her body too weak to actually find the reason why. Right now, at this moment, she wanted to settle in and bask in the warmth that was holding her. She leaned back, vaguely aware of the softness of the ground or the sounds of the storm that rumbled overhead. It was obvious that she was protected from the rainfall, the droplets attack hindered by something overhead, and protection that she was grateful for.
Protection…someone was protecting me…
Suddenly, Relena's half-lidded eyes shot open as the revelation came crashing down around her. Heero! It was coming back to her now…they were running and she'd fallen, Heero ran on, the wall of rain, darkness, and then…and then she was being lifted. Lifted into strong arms that pressed her close…
But after that, nothing. She couldn't recall what happened afterwards, just waking up warm and feeling safe. Relena lifted her head, peering out into the black that surrounded them. A white flash ignited the entire area, illuminating the dark, stony walls and the millions of tiny, moving shadows. Her body stiffened, teeth clamping down to bite back a scream of surprise. Bugs…dozens of little bugs everywhere!
"Relax or you'll make yourself sick."
Relena jerked away from the voice behind her, rolling off to the side. "Who are you?"
There was a snort and the sound of a body moving. Relena stared fearfully, barely able to make out the figure sitting up in front of her. There was another bright lightning flash, the light revealing to hardened features of her guardian. Even in the brief moment, she could see the small wince of pain on his face from moving, the realization of a possible injury dawning on her.
"Are you feeling alright?" Heero asked, his usually rough voice hinting with a softness that was very unlike Heero.
Relena nodded even though he couldn't see her. "I…I think I'm fine. Why is it so dark?"
"The storm." Heero stated a matter of factly. "It's been going on for hours now. This reduces our chances of a quick rescue." She could almost feel the bitterness and guilt in his voice.
She'd known about the decision to try Mother Nature and fly across the country rather than around it. In fact, he'd approached her with the choices, his deep blue eyes challenging her to counter-act his order. It was a given that the pilot had been told by Heero to take the new route, the bodyguard was merely following routine by 'confiding' in her for a set decision. Had she voiced her concerns before, no doubt they still would have taken the new course. Unpredictable storms didn't worry Heero as much as heat seeking missiles did.
Relena shifted closer to Heero's form, trying to warm her chilled body with his heat. She wasn't sure of how he would respond, but Relena took the risk of leaning her head against his shoulder, her hand reaching down to grasp his in the swirling mud. All around them, rivulets of water racing down the slopes, cascading over the rocky overhang that provided protection from the harsh storm.
"They'll find us, Heero," she said to him, giving his hand a light squeeze, "I know they will. Milliardo won't let them quit on us."
Heero stiffened slightly before extracting his hand from hers. "How are you feeling?"
Even in such a dire time, Heero was worried about only her. Sure, it looked grim now; after all, it was his decision to go cross country in the middle of the rainy season, but like the pilots said, the storms were unpredictable. There was no way Heero could know for sure what might happen or even when it might happen. It wasn't his fault...it wasn't anyone's fault.
"I'm fine, Heero." She answered softly, reaching up and searching for his face. "It's so dark, though...I can't see where you are." Her hands hit warm flesh, something smooth and developed.
"That's my cheek..." Heero mumbled, unconsciously leaning into to her soft touch. He wanted her to touch more of him with those comforting hands...he needed her touch. Slowly he reached up gripping her hands in his own and guiding them over the features of his face. Relena gamely allowed his control, not resisting his fiery touch.
Heero let her explore his face before bring her hands down to his lips. For a moment, Relena's fingers paused in their gentle exploration, her breathing increasing slightly. Then, as if by instinct, she cupped the sides of his face, bringing him down closer to her. They bumped noses, causing a tiny giggle to escape from Relena, but Heero was in no mood for laughter.
In the next flash of light, he crushed his lips to hers, cutting of her innocent laughter in a searing kiss. Caught by surprise, Relena began to struggle, pushing at Heero feebly with her hands, but he wouldn't relinquish his attack, instead wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into his lap. Finally, she began to relax and eagerly responded to his instinctive advance.
What the hell are you doing? His mind screamed at him. He tried to ignore it. You're lost in the middle of the jungle and the only thing on your mind is increasing the human population?
Heero's world collapsed around him like a ton of bricks. Eyes snapping open, he froze despite the wanton urgings by Relena. His mind was right...this was the wrong time, and definitely the wrong place to be thinking of such things. He wanted to kick himself for such a dangerous lapse in concentration. He knew this would happen...he knew that if he stayed around Relena too long his emotions would start to get the better of him. It seemed that this dire situation was the final push his body needed in order to take over his better judgment and pursue its wants.
He pulled back, eyes narrowed in the darkness. He remained still as Relena tried to pull a response from him, her lips falling to his neck. When even this failed to get a stir, she pulled back, staring at the outline in confusion.
"Heero?" she asked, touching a hand to his arm, "Heero, what's the matter?"
The stoic pilot jerked his arm back. "We shouldn't, Relena."
Relena blinked. "Shouldn't what?"
"We shouldn't be doing this." Heero snapped, still angry with himself for his bout of weakness, "You're in danger, don't you understand? It was inappropriate and dishonorable for me to take advantage of you." Lightning flashed, revealing Heero's anger filled face. His harsh, blue eyes seemed to glare at her as if blaming her for all that had happened.
Relena lowered her eyes to the ground, feeling hurt and even more confused. "You...you weren't taking advantage..."
"Stop." Heero bit, half rising. "I was. The only thing I wanted was..." he trailed off, unable to finish the thought. "The only thing I want right now is to get you home safely. And afterwards..." he sighed, "...just...go to sleep. There's nothing else for us to do until the storm passes."
Relena heard the hesitation, but decided against urging him to complete whatever he was going to say. She'd rather not get another tongue lashing. "So, this was a mistake, right?" she said, her voice barely catching over the roar of the storm. You were a mistake...
Heero lowered his head, the overhang erupting with light again. Was it a mistake? He couldn't deny that he hadn't enjoyed her warmth, the feel of her lips against his own...the sensation of the world being hefted off his shoulders and thrown into some deep abyss as they kissed. But he was a soldier and he knew that something so subtle could turn into a primal wanting, and eventually, he would be obsessed with her...
But aren't you already?
It was true. He couldn't get her out of his mind, day or night. Relena plagued his thoughts and body. Every time she was near him, it was as if the world had dropped away and only she was there. Even when they fought, the furious look on her face made him want to crush her against him, say that of course she was right...she was always right, and then sweep her off her feet and make up with her. But he couldn't...and wouldn't.
Once, he'd woken up in a sweat when he'd dreamt that she belonged to someone else, one of those snobby aristocrats that would never deserve to even be near her. And because of it, he'd been hell bent on keeping any and all aristocrats away from her. Relena had to eventually threaten to replace him if he didn't stop scarring away the diplomats and guests. How could he tell her why he did? He was afraid that his intentions were already too obvious (even after two black eyes Duo just didn't know when to shut the hell up), and if he told Relena it would get around the entire Sanc Kingdom within the week.
He had to cut off his connection with her immediately. It was a mistake to come to Earth. It was a mistake to let her live. It was definitely a mistake to become her personal bodyguard. And was finally following his emotions a mistake?
He turned, watching her hopeful face as lightning flashed, illuminating her beautiful features.
"Yes."
Herald Issen stood in front of terminal one at exactly 2:58pm. The last thing he wanted on this already hectic day was to be late and miss the delivery, whatever the hell that was. The phone call this morning had put him on edge all day, causing his already high blood pressure to spike. He was beginning to regret even getting involved in all of this, but under the current circumstances, he was quite sure he was on the right side of the bar.
Herald had often found himself the unwilling go between when it came to many of the shipments that arrived in Buenos Aires, especially packages of high importance to the owner, many of which were less than legal. Sure, it was an excellent source of income, for he was usually paid handsomely for his participation, but more often than not, those payments were also associated with a gun stuck up his nose and a few choice words of encouragement to keep his mouth shut.
He glanced at his watch again. 2:59...he vaguely wondered if the package would be delivered on time and how it would get to him. And furthermore, what the hell was he supposed to do with it? He certainly wasn't a mechanic; in fact, anything that wasn't written down a paper was too complicated for him! Perhaps he was just here to make sure that it arrived...maybe when it came his contact would call with further instructions.
Herald began to wring his hands. Whatever happened, he wanted it to hurry up and get here...it was unusual for him to be out of his office except for lunch and he didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention. Thankfully, the terminal was more crowded during the afternoon, the peak hours of the workday. Even though there were few international flights, the terminal was filled with people trying to fly from Buenos Aires to whatever city or country they were from.
And good riddance to all of them...Herald thought bitterly. He hated his country so much...
"Pasajeros de atención, el Vuelo 182 ha llegado al terminal un. El vuelo 182 ha llegado al terminal un. Gracias...Attention passengers, Flight 182 has arrived at terminal one. Flight 182 has arrived at terminal one. Thank you."
Herald felt his breath hitch in the back of his throat. He turned to the large glass window and sure enough, there was the large, blue and white passenger plane pulling up to the extending walkway. He could see the small amount of people on board moving about, standing and retrieving their luggage from the overhead bins. He waited impatiently by the walkway door, ignoring the people that flowed around him,for an opportunity to search the plane for whatever might be left for him.
"Sei Herald Issen?"
Herald blinked, turning at the mention of his name, despite the fact that it was in a foreign language. Three men stood behind him, a black and two whites, each one dressed in black shirts, camouflage pants, and military style boots. The one that spoke, a white man with gelled black hair fashioned into waves of short spikes, removed the dark sunglasses that they all seemed to wear, revealing piercing gray eyes.
"Sei Herald Issen?" he repeated more firmly, frowning at the lack of response. "Hai capito cosa ho detto?"
Herald shook his head, backing away. "I am sorry, I don't understand."
The man sighed, shifting the heavy looking, black duffle bag on his shoulder. "I should have known." He said in heavily accented English, "It's always a damn Brit...you are Herald Issen, are you not?"
"I...I am..." Herald managed to squeak, casting a look at the other two stern looking men, "Can I help you with something?"
The man gave a short nod. "You were expecting us?"
Herald stared at them. "You...you are the packages? But I thought that you'd be...well, be something else actually."
The man motioned behind him with a jerk of his head. "We are here to take care of situation. I am Leonardo," he motioned to the black and the other white, "And they are Massimo and Roberto."
Herald glanced at the black man, Massimo, finally able to place the accents with the aid of the names. "You are all Italian? All of you?"
Leonardo shrugged, knowing full well what Herald was implying about Massimo. "Slave trade. Ancestors were born in Italy and his family remained there. He doesn't speak much English; in fact, he doesn't speak much at all. Neither does Roberto."
Herald glanced at the thinner looking man. Roberto had long, bleached hair and pale green eyes. He was the shortest of the group, but seemed to be able to hold his own weight judging by the massive case he carried on his back. However, both Roberto and Leonardo were dwarfed by the huge black man that towered above any in the terminal. A distinctive scar ran from one side of Massimo's face to the other in a jagged, downward diagonal that cut across his right eye, his nose, and the corner of his mouth. Bulging muscles rippled out from the tight black shirt and leather jacket, the dark colors matching that of his eyes and short braided hair.
Herald nodded nervously at the other two. "How are you doing?"
Massimo grunted and Roberto answered with a curt. "Benissimo."
Leonardo laughed at the confused look on Herald's face. "He said he was fine, Mr. Issen. Perhaps you should learn some Italian...expand your horizons."
Herald let the barb go by, not wanting to anger the clearly stronger men. "My office is this way, gentlemen. We can talk there." He reached for the bag at Massimo's feet. "Here, let me take your bags."
Before Herald's hand could even touch the bag, another clamped down around it, easily lifting it up and back. Massimo jerked Herald forward, bending down until they were nearly nose to nose.
"Non tocca, capisci...Do not touch, understand?" He growled his voice amazingly quiet for such a huge person. Herald winced as Massimo's grip tightened.
"Massimo." Leonard said, starting to walk away. "Arresto."
Massimo immediately released Herald's bruising hand, picking his bag up and walking away without a second glance in Herald's direction. Roberto hung back for a moment, casting the British man a superior look.
"We will contact you when time comes." He said slowly. "Until then, arrivederci." Roberto turned sharply on his heel and quickly strode after his two companions.
Herald stared after them warily, nursing his bruising wrist. Whatever those men had planned, he was sure that it wasn't at all pleasant. Turning away from the now empty gate, Herald slowly walked back to his office, so enwrapped in his thoughts that he didn't notice the dark shadow watching his progression.
"And what might you be up to, Harry?" Duo said to himself, pulling out his vid communicator and slipping back into the men's bathroom.
Leonardo entered the tiny cab waiting at the curb of the airport pick-up area, giving directions to the cabbie as his partners climbed in, Roberto sitting in the back beside him while Massimo crunched in alongside the cabbie. Even before they pulled away from the curb, Leonardo had his cell phone out, pressing the speed dial for the only number he had.
"What?" said the answering voice.
Leonardo spoke quickly. "The Preventers have an agent stationed at the airport. He saw our arrival and meeting with Issen."
"Has he reported it yet?"
"Undoubtedly. Issen will be taken in for questioning very soon. He believes we're here to protect him from the government."
"I have my men in place. He knows only what he needs to and will break easily. This is good Find the Peacecraft woman, or her body, I don't care which. Kill anyone else with her."
"Right away, sir." Leonardo hung up the phone, leaning forward towards the cabbie. "Vamos."
Alright! Done with another chapter! BTW, if you scuba dive and live in San Antonio, drop me an email...we can go diving together sometime. Also, if you're wondering and/or confused by the amount of foreign language, don't be. Anything that you could figure out by reading the rest of the sentence, I translated.
Thanks for reading! Please R&R!