Relinquish the Soul

A Gundam Wing Fan Fiction by The Manwell

Sequel to Savor the Darkness

- Two -

"We're moving out," Rashid commands without looking up from the computer screen. The data Abdul had managed to decode stares back at him, defiant and unchanging.

"But, sir, I've detected a satellite signal focused on our location. It very well may be that Zanoah is watching us."

Rashid straightens. "It makes little difference. We have sworn to protect Master Quatre. We will be airborne in thirty minutes."

There is no disgruntled muttering in the wake of this declaration. Even though everyone is fighting their own private battles against exhaustion they are all aware that they have lingered here too long. And there will be no rest until they have returned to their rightful place at Master Quatre's side.

"Notify the rest of our brothers," Rashid commands softly. "Anyone not on the shuttle two minutes prior to takeoff will be spending an unexpected vacation here with only the dead for company."

Immediately, everyone except himself and Abdul leaps into action. Rashid retains his seat, resolutely absorbing the data before him just in case there might be a moment in the immediate future when the knowledge will prove useful. Time ceases to pass for Rashid as he feeds his mind with the nefarious plans in which his brethren, the Bedouin, had so recklessly indulged.

He feels his fingers curl into fists at the evidence of their betrayal and knows that if Master Quatre had not eliminated the threat of them, Rashid would have done so himself. And his methods would not have been as merciful as Master Quatre's.

"Sir."

Rashid looks and is satisfied to note that several of his brethren are moving through the room, carefully sorting and packaging the evidence they'd gathered. After all, they cannot afford to leave anything behind that might reveal either Master Quatre's or Master Duo's true natures.

"If you still want to be in the air within the half-hour, we need to begin loading the shuttle."

Rashid nods at the man's words and gets to work himself. He directs the men to begin the trek to the shuttle and begin warming the engines. After the room has emptied of everyone but himself and Abdul, he hears the other man's voice softly enunciating, "They'll be sure to know we're on the move, sir."

"We have no other options, Abdul. Master Quatre needs us."

"I am not arguing with you, sir," the other man points out. "But this place is not only a city. It's a fortress. We could, perhaps, redirect their attention while we slip away..."

"That could take hours to set up. We don't have that kind of time." Taking a moment to absorb the tomb-like silence of the city around them, Rashid concludes sadly, "I find it unlikely that we ever did."

"But–"

"No. We will leave now. This is my decision. Abide by it."

"Of course, sir. I'm..." A brief flash across the screen in front of Abdul draws his attention. "What in the...?"

"What is it?" Rashid demands, bracing himself for the next serving of undoubtedly bad news.

After a few experimental pecks at the keyboard, Abdul shakes his head in stunned bewilderment. "It seems that an attempt at redirection would be redundant anyway."

Rashid takes a step closer in order to get a good look at the screen.

Abdul supplies, utterly confused, "It appears as if all communications from Zanoah have ceased."

"Ceased?" Rashid repeats carefully.

Abdul nods. "I'm looking at a dead zone, sir."

Rashid's expression tightens. "Let us hope that is not an apt and literal description, Abdul." He notices the sudden pallor of the man's face but does not comment. After all, words take time to utter and time is something Rashid is beginning to fear they have now lost irrevocably.

oooOOOooo

"No."

That is all he can say when faced with Zanoah. That is all he can say to articulate the churning shock and fear and dread blossoming with reckless pain beneath his breastbone.

Wufei Chang finds himself mesmerized by what had once been a formidable Preventer base stationed in the unforgiving wilderness of the desert. Hundreds of agents dedicated to the peace had performed their duties here. Thousands of lives had depended on the information this place had gathered, analyzed, and distributed.

But no more.

Now only smoke and rubble remain.

There are so many questions he hardly knows where to start. Should he begin with wondering about the fate of Duo, Heero, and Trowa? With wondering how this could have happened in the first place? The identity of the catalyst? Who should be notified?

For the first time in his known life, Wufei is overwhelmed into indecision.

It's the sound of a car door slamming shut that brings him back into focus. He watches as Quatre wades toward to the charred ruin, unmindful of his pale, pristine clothing.

It seems so surreal that Quatre Winner, now a man of dark and potentially deadly cravings and instincts, still prefers light cottons in pastel shades. Aren't vampires supposed to wear black vinyl and whatnot?

A knock on his window startles Wufei from his completely random, shock-induced thoughts.

"Get out here," Quatre tells him through the glass. "Smell this."

Scowling, Wufei draws in a deep breath. It's time to pull himself together. There's a situation to be unraveled here.

"What is it?" he growls, stepping out of the car.

"Smell the air," Quatre directs yet again.

Wufei does so.

"There's no gunpowder..." Quatre continues.

"Or C4..." Wufei finishes. In fact, there is nothing but the scent of spent fire. His frown deepens. "An electrical fire?"

Quatre wanders even closer to the ruins. "The place was solid concrete," he differs.

Wufei shakes his head in bewilderment at the lack of an obvious accelerant lingering in the air. With destruction of this magnitude, there ought to be something.

"Wufei."

Looking up, he meets Quatre's gaze with his own. Standing thus in the sun with his dark sunglasses shoved hastily up into his hair, Quatre is an unexpected vision. Golden and pale and forthright.

"We need to figure out what started this and if the others were inside when it happened."

Wufei nods. "Perhaps if we can locate the surveillance operations room –"

"That will take hours, maybe even days."

"Then what are you suggesting?" Wufei demands, crossing his arms over his chest as he senses a highly unpleasant alternative on Quatre's mind.

"Meditate."

Wufei's jaw clenches. "You must believe me to be an utter idiot if you think I'm going to –"

"We don't have the time to do this any other way."

"And the last time I meditated in your presence –"

"I know what almost happened, all right? I was there!"

For a moment, Wufei is startled by Quatre's outburst.

In a tone that's been forcibly softened, Quatre continues, "I can control it now. And I've fed recently. A lot. I won't harm you."

Wufei wavers.

"If you have another suggestion, I'd like to hear it," Quatre invites.

But he doesn't. Quatre is right. The other methods of investigation will take far too long. And they don't know what kind of time they have. They don't know what kind of shape the others are in... if they'd survived the destruction at all.

Decidedly unhappy, Wufei marches toward the only bare patch of earth within fifty feet. "All right. Just don't interrupt me, Winner." And with that, he seats himself on the hard-packed sand and clay, exchanges one deep breath for another, and closes his eyes.

He focuses on the soft but slightly quickened rhythm of his pulse and follows it through his veins back to his heart. There, his awareness sharpens until his entire world is darkness and drum beats. The fog of reality is burned away by the light of consciousness.

And he can only watch.

A flame... no, an inferno such as he has never known, never witnessed or even conceived in his thoughts and dreams, erupts around him. He is the building itself, blistering and crumbling under the assault. He is the structure tumbling down around the hapless humans he has protected for years. Now he traps them, crushes them. And still the fire is not satisfied. It rages with a mind of vengeance and anger of such intensity that it steals his breath away. And when all of the humans within the crumbling walls are silent, the fire is still not satisfied. It turns its intent to Wufei and he senses the likeness of a creature – a great winged serpent, a dragon of myth and legend – draw together its incredible power focus its gaze upon him and open its infinite, burning jaws. He is trapped. And he is staring into the abyss itself...

"Wufei!"

With a gasp of breath, Wufei lurches away from the strong hands curled painfully around his shoulders. Weak and still burning as if his own flesh had been set alight, he loses his balance and falls roughly to his side. He feels something rough scrape his arm and winces, knowing the skin there has been abraded raw. He drags in one cool breath after the other, soothing his seared throat and relaxes as Quatre makes no further efforts to touch him. Not that touch is a necessary component to Quatre's ability to feed.

"Are they dead?" the young man kneeling nearby finally asks.

Wufei struggles to find his voice but he's too exhausted. He can only shake his head but even then he's not completely sure of his answer. The feeling is too vague. He knows Duo, Trowa, and Heero had been here. That the existence of the fire is somehow related to their presence. That it had vanquished their enemies. But beyond that, Wufei can only guess; he had been completely overwhelmed by the sensation of the fire itself.

"Wufei..."

The young Preventer agent forces his eyes open for an instant. Through his blurred and watery vision, he reads Quatre's concern and urgency.

"Will you let me help you?"

He wants to ask how Quatre thinks he can help. How a vampire can banish exhaustion and pain except through death? But the vision has taken everything from him. Even the ability to respond. He's tied and trapped within the dizzy forerunner of unconsciousness and tries to summon a spark of adrenalin with which to fight it. But there is nothing.

And then there is light. So much light. And so white. A color so pure he'd only ever imagined it abstractly as the source of justice. And then there is a touch. A simple brush of warmth against his forehead. It ghosts down his sweat-beaded skin and stops between his eyes. And then...

Wufei's eyes fly open. He discovers himself reclining in Quatre's arms, watching as Quatre withdraws his fingers from where they had been hovering over Wufei's forehead. He's so startled to discover his strength and awareness restored that he doesn't push himself away. Instead, he remains perfectly still, regarding Quatre's somewhat dimmed sky-blue eyes. Perhaps it's his imagination but a few lines of strain seem to have suddenly appeared around the young man's mouth and eyes.

"What have you done?" Wufei hears himself ask, he barely recognizes the rusty sound as his own voice.

"I don't only have the power to take, Wufei," he replies softly.

Wufei stares until one corner of Quatre's mouth twitches upward.

"Come on. We have to track the others."

Reluctantly, Wufei abandons the subject of Quatre's abilities. But he saves the topic for a later discussion. Perhaps after Duo and the others have been found, they will have time. But not now.

Still somewhat off balance, it takes Wufei a moment to gain his feet. When he does so, he regards the horizon circling them in all directions. Very softly, he says, "They headed north."

Quatre nods. "North it is then. Shall I drive for a while?"

Wufei hesitates briefly as he steps toward the still idling car. He considers the offer but discards it. It seems strange after such a trauma to feel perfectly fine, but he is fine. "No. It'll be easier if I take the wheel."

"All right."

The tone of the other man's voice is softer somehow. Less dark, less dangerous. Wufei looks up over the roof of the car and thinks, startled, that his companion actually sounds like the Quatre Winner of old. His friend.

And over the roof of the car, Quatre meets his gaze with his own and offers up a small, very human smile.

oooOOOooo

Heero says nothing but he watches in the rear view mirror as Trowa takes great care in tucking one of the thermal blankets around Duo's still form. He does not meet Heero's eyes as he folds his arms and legs around Duo, cradling their unconscious Keeper with his lithe body.

Heero notes the light trembling of Trowa's hands thinks the gesture of comfort is as much for Trowa's own sake as it is for Duo's. And if this is the case, then Heero feels entitled to something reassuring himself. Thus, he indulges in the luxury of uttering the words that have been pressing against the back of his teeth since they'd escaped – all of them mysteriously unscathed – from the explosion of Zanoah:

"After Duo wakes up, I'll expect you to explain exactly what the fuck happened back there, Barton."

Still Trowa doesn't look in Heero's direction. He merely curls his head closer to Duo's soot-darkened braid and nods. Heero watches a moment more as the taller man tightens his hold on Duo. Then, with a silent sigh, Heero starts the engine of their Jeep and turns onto the faded ribbon of desert road.

End of Chapter Two