Scene Five: Shinigami Comes Alive

Like the coldest winter chill

Heave beside you

Hell with you

And you think you have it still

Heaven beside

Hell with you

Alice N' Chains "Heaven Beside You"

Pablo Picasso: My mother once said to me, "If you become a soldier, you'll be a general; if you become a monk, you'll end up as Pope." Instead, I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.

Duo Maxwell sat without hope in the living room of Quatre's newly purchased house. It was not a large home by Quatre's standards, being only four bedrooms and two bathrooms in size, but it was home for now. Two weeks had passed since the Dekim Barton takeover had reached its cataclysmic end, the Gundam Pilot's once again the world's saviors and Heero their champion. But Duo was not happy and had not been ever since Relena Peacecraft had locked Heero in the hospital. She would not even let Sally in to check on Heero.

For the first week Heero Yuy had been lying in a deep healing sleep, as Dr. Yokatta called it, or a coma as Duo termed it. Heero had woken a week ago and still Relena had not allowed anyone to see him or have any contact with him. Normally Duo would have used his stealth skills to get in but if he were caught he would have to kill to complete his mission to see Heero, but there was peace so there should be no more killing. There was no way he could rescue Heero from Relena under such restrictions. It was time to lay Death and Shinigami aside now because they were no longer needed in this new age at least that was what the politicians and the naïve people would have you believe. Duo knew better than to believe the politicians and their lies.

This was the first time he had ever seriously considered giving up Death and Shinigami, completely shoving them aside and ridding himself of their influence. After the first war he had never really let them go, he had not really wanted to. Now Duo was not even sure it was even possible. Besides which, he was used to their company and why get rid of a partnership that worked better than a well-oiled machine? Duo had never seen the sense in silencing them. Death had been his friend for as long as he could remember. It had taken the lives of his enemies and most of the people he had ever cared for in any great capacity. He both hated Death, for all the pain he carried with him, and he respected and liked Death because he understood it. In a way he even loved it and thought Death to be beautifully sickening. This made him different to Death, and special. Duo was someone Death wanted very much to live.

Death, however, was not the same as Shinigami. Duo was one of the few people who realized that they were two separate entities. He had discovered this truth early on in life, a truth few ever fully understood until they were on Death's threshold. Death and Shinigami wanted him to know because he was a friend, a kindred spirit, one of them. The difference was this, Death marked people and helped them along the way whereas Shinigami took their souls on the rest of the journey and sent them to their proper destinations.

The Gundam Pilots were special like Duo was and both entities agreed on this because they knew that Duo could entrust everything to the Pilots if he wanted. Not only were the other Gundam Pilots faithful to Duo but when he needed someone they would be there for him. However they were special in another way as well. Death had marked each of them and Shinigami had tried to take them but the Pilots spirits were pure and they lived still.

So Duo continued to sit in the living room, wanting only to go and check on his partner and best friend, or at least give him his contact information. The only problem being that the bitch would not allow anyone who was unauthorized by her near 'her precious' Heero. Relena was making him sick and angry. It was above saying that he could not get away with killing the Queen of the World, could he?

He continue sitting silently in the cozy room, despairing that he would probably never see Heero before the Wing Pilot disappeared for good, as Duo had a feeling he would. Duo could feel someone watching him, Quatre most likely, but he did not move an inch.

"Duo?" Quatre called out after having observed his friend for several moments. "Area you all right? Can I come in and sit and talk with you for a while?"

"Sure Q-man," Duo said as Quatre took the seat across from his chair. 'Besides it's your house. I'm surprised you haven't kicked all of us out yet,' He silently added.

"I'm fine though Quatre," Duo went on talking. "Just pissed at the bitch for not letting me say goodbye. Heero was my partner and best friend, you know? Don't get me wrong, you're my little brother and all, but I can't even say goodbye."

"Well," Quatre said slowly trying to gage his friends' reaction. "If I can get you into the hospital without being detected could you get up to Heero's room?"

Duo nodded looking at Quatre expectantly, his head cocked to the side as he watched the blond Arabian from under his bangs. As an L2 street rat he would have no problem getting to Heero if he got in to the inside undetected. But Duo remained silent, he could tell Quatre had something more to say.

"Would you do something for me in return if I get you in?" Quatre asked, aquamarine eyes subdued, his voice dropping so low that Duo had to practically lean out of his seat to hear his words.

Duo's violet eyes narrowed just a fraction. This sounded like a trick to him, some sort of bargaining tool where a person like Duo was sure to get the short end of the stick. This was Quatre though and he was not like that with friends, at least not normally. Duo still felt he could trust him so he flung himself against what his head was telling him. He threw caution and everything else to the wind and listened to his heart. True it sounded like a business deal to his ears and he probably would get cheated but the chance to say goodbye made him more than willing to go along with whatever Quatre was proposing.

"Ok," Duo calmly leaned back in his chair, folding his hands in his lap. "Name your terms my good man and I'll take care of each and every one of them if it's within my power to do so. You can trust my word."

"I know I can trust your word Duo," Quatre gave an innocent smile and Duo inwardly snorted at the sweet and tender expression Quatre was trying to project. "Even Wufei agrees on that. Your word is worth more than any signed contract in the Pilots eyes because we all know what it means to you.

"Let's move on to my terms though," Quatre dropped the smile. "Do you recall telling me a few days ago that if you hadn't slacked off there was a chance the whole Dekim Barton uprising could have been avoided? Well I want you to watch the peace for me. And send me a report on what's going on in the Colonies and on Earth once a month. Could you do that?"

"How would you want the report sent to you?" Duo asked, curious to see if Quatre had thought this out at all.

"You will deliver it to a Magunac on L4 every month," Quatre said. "In a red envelope for no major problems or in a blue one if a possible war is coming."

"Before I agree to this," Duo sat up, his tone clipped and serious. "There are some things you should be made aware of. Before I tell you what those things are you need to swear on oath to me on all that you hold dear that you will not tell anyone what I am about to tell you unless I give permission. Do you swear?"

"I swear it," Quatre breathed. "And I know what the implications are. Go on."

"All right, here it goes," Duo muttered. "First thing you need to know is that most of my information will be coming from the Underworld here on Earth and in the Colonies. That's where I plan to get my information from. Could you deal with that because for this agreement to work you need to understand this and be ok with it."

"It doesn't bother me in the slightest," Quatre spoke without breaking eye contact. "At least not in the way you'd think. I'm mostly concerned with you getting the information on time."

"Most of the Underworld owes me," Duo explained. "From the war. They owe me more than they could ever repay me and they'll have some of their people gather information for me. Basically I'll be setting up an information network on Earth and the Colonies."

"How can they owe you so much?" Quatre was confused. "What did you do for them Duo?"

During the war Heero and I hacked OZ accounts and money of their supporters," Duo pulled his braid over his shoulder and fiddled with the end of it. "I took most of my money and started giving it to the Shadows on L2. But I started to realize how bad off the other Colonies' Underworlds were too so I spread my charity to them as well. I kept some of the money and invested it, more than tripling my profits and combined with my thievery I had more money than ever. The next step, naturally, was to expand my charity to Earth and the Colonies which is what I ended up doing. I got them transports with cloaking devices so they could traffic their drugs, guns and other illegal products all over, and they only had to pay for the fuel. Towards the end of the war I helped stabilize them enough so that they would prosper during peace more than they had during war. They owe me."

"Oh Duo," Quatre was slightly horrified that his friend had done all of this but he was a shrewd enough business man to see the benefit of it. "Well I'm not exactly approving of everything but I don't understand how it all works so I won't question your judgment. So they'll get you the information?"

"I can get it," Duo promised without a second though. "This conversation never took place. You know nothing about the Underworld or my affiliation with them."

"What conversation Duo?" Quatre managed to sound slightly confused and look innocent.

"You're going to do just fine Q-man," Duo smiled at him.

'Q's got a poker face Trowa would envy,' Duo thought smugly. 'This will work out just fine.'

"There's a car out front for you Duo," Quatre immediately came out of the joking mode and moved right back into business. "Abdul is driving and he will take you where you need to go. Good luck. And don't forget Heero's in room 603."

"Thanks Q," Duo stood and moved to the door. "Even if I can't get in to see him I'll keep my promise."

He got into the car and felt the engine start and the vehicle began to move. He looked out back through the tinted window at Quatre. Duo knew he would not be coming back after going to the hospital, he was going straight to work.

'Bye Q-man,' He turned forward. 'Hope the other guys don't get pissed at me for disappearing on them.'

He watched the passing buildings with little interest as Abdul continued to drive on and on. Normally he was the smiling jester among the Magunacs but he could not seem to pull it off on this trip so he did not even try. Half an hour later Abdul stopped the car in a deserted enclosure in front of a maintenance tunnel.

"Master Duo," Abdul was serious as he looked into his rear view mirror at the former Pilot of the Gundam Deathscythe. "About one hundred paces into the tunnel you will come to a smaller maintenance shaft that leads into the hospitals basement where the laundry is washed. Once you're inside you should be able to get to Master Heero's room. I'll remain here for your return Master Duo. Good luck and may Allah go with you."

Duo could only nod his thanks as he hurriedly made his way into the tunnel. He found the shaft easily and a few minutes later he found himself crouched on the floor in the hospital basement with carts of dirty laundry. Over the intercoms he heard news that made his heart drop to his stomach. Heero Yuy had escaped from his room two hours ago. Duo knew that he was long gone, the trail would already be cold. Duo knew that Heero was just that good, all the Pilots were.

'But Heero's the 'Perfect Soldier' who would be able to get himself out of here if he had a broken leg,' Duo reminded himself bitterly.

He felt old and drained as he stood from his crouched position. He felt a shift within himself as he stood and he swore in his heart that from that day on he would no longer be Duo Maxwell but Shinigami, two in one at the same time. He crawled back through the shaft and tunnel on auto-pilot, collapsing heavily into the back seat of the car and startling Abdul. Abdul asked no questions, merely started the car and began driving.

"Master Duo?" Abdul asked with some concern. "Are you all right? You look very pale."

"I'm fine," Duo stuck a smile on his face. "I need to get to the shuttle port though. As quickly as you can manage it Abdul."

"What about Master Quatre?" He asked as he headed in the direction of the shuttle port.

"Just get me there," Duo shook his head, squeezing his eyes tight. "I'll deal with Quatre later."

Abdul reached over to the passenger seat and took a package off of it.

"Master Quatre asked me to give you this," Abdul said handing it over to Duo. "Do you need anything from the house?"

"If I do I'll send for it later," Duo opened the package.

Inside he found a shuttle ticket good for any flight to L2 for the entire day. Quatre had given him enough credits that he could live on L2 like the visiting rich, although he had other plans for the cash. And in the very bottom was an envelope and a short note from Quatre thanking him and telling him to make contact within two months to his house on L4 in person. The envelope was sealed and Quatre had written that he was not supposed to open it until the shuttle had left Earth far behind.

'Sure thing Q,' Duo smiled faintly at the note.

Duo exited the car and walked swiftly into the shuttle port. He boarded the very next flight to L2. It was time to go back home, to his roots.

When he reached L2 no one would be able to find him unless he wanted to be found. He would be in his element and in the Shadows Duo would get all the information he needed to keep his promise because eventually everything of note passed through the Shadows. And he had ways of speeding up how quickly that information got there.

There were no authorities there except for the heads of the five families but they owed him just like everyone else in the Underworld. Cops in the Shadows were all crooked and even then they were only allowed so far in and none of them were stupid or desperate enough to try and get deeper inside. No one there would dare to touch him or try to kill him unless they wanted to face the consequences. He could be more powerful than just about everyone there.

The Shadows were an unforgiving place, completely wild and owning only to the rules of the jungle. There it was the strongest and fittest who survived and even then it was no picnic or guarantee you would make it. Most people there died young. It was there he would build his power base and then all in the Underworld would know the name of Shinigami.

Once his shuttle landed he quickly made his way to the edge of the Shadows. Duo spotted a small waif-like creature standing before a slightly kept up building. He knew that he would have to talk to her if he wanted to get in to see the boss.

"I need to speak to your employer," Duo was abrupt. "Now."

"I don't take orders from people fresh off the shuttles," The girl snorted impudently. "Get lost unless you want trouble."

"I wouldn't do that," Duo smiled sweetly but his eyes held the threat of danger. "It will only cause you more problems. I'm not here to hurt anyone. Tell your boss that Shinigami is here to see him."

A seemingly drunken man woke almost instantly at the name of Shinigami.

"Hey there buddy," Duo grinned. "I see my name sure woke you up. I've got to say though that the drunk routine went out ages ago. Now can I get in or what?"

"Take him down Tahil," The large man told the girl. "Don't argue. He's the Shinigami. I remember him from the first war."

"That was a long time ago indeed," Duo said slowly. "Another lifetime ago in fact. But sometimes past lives get relived a second time."

"So you're here for good then?" The man asked.

"Probably for good," Duo shrugged.

"Take him down Tahil," The man commanded. "His coming is long over-do. Don't keep him waiting either. If you have to kick out anyone who's meeting with the boss right now."

The girl nodded and moved into the building, Duo followed. He was led down a dimly lit hallway, the wallpaper peeling and yellow from age and climate. None of it repulsed him. The girl took him past another checkpoint where two armed guards stood at the ready, and then down a flight of stairs to the basement, the safest place for a boss on the edges of the Shadows. She banged a special knock with her little fist on the heavy reinforced metal door and it swung open to reveal another set of armed guards. Obviously they were having a few problems with the cops or there would have just been one guard at each checkpoint.

The girl ushered him through the hallway and into a small cramped waiting room, which was full of people. Without looking at any of the waiting people she strode to the wood door and began opening it.

"Hey," A loud angry voice piped up. "How come he gets to go in front of me? I've been waiting here for more than two hours."

"For a very good reason," Duo said spinning around to glare at the man. "I'm Shinigami."

Several recognized the name and stared openly in incredulity at the figure who proclaimed himself as such. Duo looked them over and moved into the room, leaving silence behind him. The door led to a tiny hallway with one more guard, the most heavily armed, before opening into another room where the boss was.

"Shinigami," The boss was seated in his chair but he bowed his head respectfully. "What can I do for you?"

"I need a base of operations," Duo spoke, reverting fast into his war persona. "Preferably in the heart of the Shadows near the old church that was destroyed and never rebuilt. A big place. Can you find one?"

"I should be able to," The man was thinking rapidly of all the big buildings that he knew of. "I know that the Hawthorne's mansion is available. One of the five was thinking about taking it over but I'm sure that won't be any problem. I can have my men refurbish it and have it livable again in three weeks. Is that what you had in mind?"

"Perfect," Shinigami remembered the Hawthorne family, how petty and cruel they were. "What happened to the family that lived there?"

"The eligible men were drafted into the military," The boss said. "The five forced the issue. The remaining members of the family moved off the colony."

"There is one more thing," Shinigami said as though he had just remembered something. "I require information. I wish to set up a network using the Underworld to get information to myself as quickly as possible. Would that be possible?"

"Many people and places are already being watched," The boss admitted. "We just have to bribe to get the information sent here. I'm assuming you won't want to do that?"

"No," Shinigami frowned slightly. "Contact the other's in the Shadows who have outside connections and have them pass the word along that Shinigami is back and he wants an information network set up. I'll be in touch and until my new home is ready I'll stay at Mimi's."

Mimi's was a famous brothel in the Shadows but Mimi was a personal friend and she would set him up with a room.

"Can you get information on the Gundam Pilots?" Shinigami asked, breaking the brief silence.

"On all of them, even Heero Yuy," The boss smiled a little. "One of Kincaid's spotted him and is keeping tabs on him. He's hiding from Relena and the word is he'll move around quite a bit."

"Inform Kincaid to be careful and give Yuy a wide berth," Shinigami instructed. "He will move around a lot. But be careful with him because he's paranoid and suspects everyone and everything."

"And you don't?" The man asked before thinking and he paled once he registered just how his question sounded.

"We all are," Shinigami referred to all the Gundam Pilots. "But not on Yuy's level. Besides, I know the Underworld and I have a long term mission to fulfill for a friend."

"What would that be?" The boss leaned forward slightly in his chair, curious.

"Watching the peace," Shinigami was vague. "You know, putting out fires and things of that nature."

"L2 thanks you," The boss rose from his chair. "We owe you and we will do everything you ask of us if it is within out power to do so."

Shinigami nodded and turned toward the door. Tahil led him out of the building and onto the street. She fell into pace beside him on the walk to Mimi's. Shinigami said nothing about her decision to accompany him but he felt that she might be useful to him with a little more training.

"Shinigami," A voice called out causing Tahil to spin around with a knife in her hand. "Is that you?"

"Who wants to know?" Shinigami asked without turning to the speaker.

"Shai Ichii sent me," The voice continued. "He wants to have a meeting with you, at your convenience of course. So do the others."

"Of course," Shinigami drawled turning around. "And who are you that he would entrust such a message to?"

"I'm known as Cottonmouth," The man slipped out of the shadows expertly.

"I've heard the name before," Shinigami acknowledged. "Tell Ichii I'll meet with him. I'll send word through the Arman cartel."

Cottonmouth nodded and slipped away again. Shinigami merely shook his head.

'It sure didn't take them long did it?' He thought to himself as Mimi greeted him and showed him to a room. 'But everyone knows Shinigami here.'