Episode 17: Captive Confession

A/n: This was written by myself however Cute lil' red head read it over and added what she needed to. OH. I don't own Gundam Wing even though I wish I did.

A month has passed.

Every pilot had been well set during their missions to destroy OZ bases. Every now and then, they'd move closer to their true objective; home. There was, however, an ominous cloud hanging over the entire group.

Quatre continued to gain more details in his dream. It had become more violent than it had been while shadowed and the blonde pilot feared the dream would come true and blow up in their faces really soon. That worried him the most and he told Trowa about the reoccurring dream. The after effects of it were slowly taking its toll on Quatre, and Trowa didn't like it in the least.

In America

Duo was sitting at the kitchen table looking over the next set of files for his mission. Occasionally he would check his e-mail to see if his girlfriend had gotten back to him. It had been three days since he got anything from her, and he was getting worried. Skye saw the expression on his face over her mug of tea.

"Something wrong Duo?" she asked innocently even though she knew the answer.

"Melanie hasn't gotten back to me," he sighed as he refreshed the page hopefully. "Is she too busy helping Relena?"

"Relena called me yesterday," Skye told him as stood and went to stand behind him. Though she seemed to be paying all her attention to the conversation, her muscles had tensed and her eyes moved restlessly around the room. "She was ordered to go to Japan with Heero."

"Then why..." He stopped after seeing the intense look of concentration on Skye's face. She sat down her mug and walked out of the room only to return after a brief noise of struggle. She wasn't alone either for she pushed a black clad figure in front of her. With ease and speed, she tied him up with assassin wire that she always kept on her. Now the intruder was hog tied and helpless to fight. Duo just sat there looking over the files worriedly.

"What are you going to do with him Skye?" Duo asked absently as he glanced over his loves sister. Though the fight had been quick, Skye hadn't escaped without receiving a blow to the cheek that was already starting to bruise.

"I'm going to get answers first," she told Duo as she crouched in front of the captive. Reaching out quickly, she pulled off the ski mask. Her eyes widened as blonde spiked hair stood out rather matted on the persons head. Her stomach flipped with the sudden worry and disbelief. Bringing the face up with her hand, she glared into a pair of all too familiar brown eyes. She inwardly cursed her own luck, her eyes narrowing further as the curses flew through her mind.

"Of all the people they could have sent, it had to be you!" she growled as she light backhanded him. Duo wasn't sure, but he had a feeling she could have easily hit harder than she had.

"Skye," the young man defended without flinching, "you don't understand."

"Oh really?" she demanded as she stood over him, her hands on her hips. "How do you figure that one?"

"Simple," he answered with the best shrug he could manage while being tied up. "Frank sent me."

"And why would Frank, of all people, send you here?" she shouted, clenching her fist in front of her as though preparing to beat him to within an inch of his life. Duo had to admit that he had never seen her so frustrated.

The captive clamped his mouth shut before he could reveal the truth to the enraged girl. His brown eyes never left her, and they didn't miss a single movement.

"Skye," Duo asked, breaking the silence as he closed his laptop. "Who is this?"

"His name is mud as far as I'm concerned," she huffed as she seemed to relax and cross her arms in an indignant pout. "That's all you need to know."

"Is he an Omega?" Duo asked.

"Something like that," she sighed and walked toward the back of the kitchen. "He doesn't really deserve that title since he's really just a third class assassin." As she spoke, she climbed on top of the counter and reached into the upper cabinets where began to push glasses and dishes aside to reach the back.

"Hey!" the assassin whined indignantly as his fingers worked at the knots Skye had tied.

"Nobody asked you," Skye grumbled as she pulled out her prize, an unmarked bottle with a light bubbling liquid inside. Duo though the contents look suspiciously like Champaign, but he wisely remained silent to see what else would happen. "So," Skye began casually as she aimed the corked bottle toward the captive, preparing to send the cork shooting at him, "here are your options. You can tell us why you're here, or you can find out if it really as dangerous as they say it is to fire a cork at someone and then get personal with the concrete from 100 feet up."

"You're lying," he replied strongly, tilting his chin upward to show his confidence.

"Are you so sure?" she asked sweetly as she smiled innocently and began to press down on the cork. She closed one eye and lowered to point of the bottle toward his crotch. "I wouldn't want to gamble with my life if I were you."

Right then and there he started shaking with fear. After having lived with Skye for more than a month, Duo didn't think he blamed the man. Both men knew she would do what she threatened if pushed.

"All right! All right! Ill tell you," the captive surrendered.

"Awe," Skye whined as she lifted to bottle to point upwards before popping to cork out effortlessly, startling both Duo and the assassin. "I thought Id at least be able to have some fun before you gave in."

"Skye, stop," Duo ordered while untying the assassin. Given the circumstance of what had almost happened to the man, he felt a little pity was more than acceptable. "Go on," he urged as he sat the man down in a chair.

"Frank sent me to tell you that the Omegas have been called off," the assassin said as he regained his composure.

"And?" Skye demanded before titling the bottle back and taking a long drink. The bruise on her cheek had turned a dark purple and though she was trying to show any signs of pain, it was apparent she was hurting.

"Sorry about hitting you so hard," the captive said honestly, surprising Duo. What kind of history did these two have?

"Shut up, Caspian!" Skye ordered as she pulled a knife out of the drawer and held in threateningly. "I don't want to hear anything other than useful information out of your mouth! Why the hell were the Omegas called off?"

Caspian, the assassin, hung his head down as though afraid to deliver the information. What ever it was it must be really bad if he was acting like this. His head was bent, and he muttered something really quickly so that the words ran together.

"WHAT?" Duo shouted as he lifted the assassin by his collar and slammed him into the wall.

"What?" Skye demanded as she jumped off the counter, her eye wide at the sudden change in Duo's character. That could only mean one thing.

"Tell my girlfriend's sister what's been done to her sister," Duo ordered through clenched teeth as he tightened his grip on the young mans shirt.

He wouldn't speak at first but with the blazing inferno of hate in Duos eyes, Caspian knew he would die if he didn't speak up. Swallowing the lump in his throat he prepared to speak. "Melanie made a deal with the signer of the Omega contract."

Skye's rapidly tapping foot revealed her impatience with his lack of answer. "Start speaking, Omega, or Ill make sure you wont sire any brats," she warned as she held the dull kitchen knife up for him to see.

Caspian gulped. He hated acting like a gutless fish, but he knew Skye well enough to know that she meant every word she spoke.

"Trieze gave her a deal," he began softly. "If she surrender herself, he'd call back the Omegas, leaving OZ to deal with the gundam pilots on their own." From her lack of reaction he suspected she didn't quite understand what he was saying.

"And?" she prodded, proving his suspicion.

"She surrendered," he said sadly.

"YOU ARE TELLING ME THAT MELANIE IS IN LUCIANS HANDS?" Skye screamed, fear and anger welling up in her eyes in the form of tears. She dropped the knife and bottle to cover her mouth, gently biting one her fingers in an effort to calm herself down

He nodded meekly.

"Skye," Duo asked, keeping a firm hold on the assassin, "who this Lucian?" A dark feeling settled in his stomach and he didn't think it would leave until he held Melanie in his arms.

"He's been after Melanie much like Lance," Skye said in a shaky voice as she crouched down to pick the knife back up, ignoring the rapidly emptying bottle. "Lucian is a bit more obsessive about her."

"Where is she?" he growled as he slammed Caspian against the wall again.

"I don't know," Caspian admitted. "Somewhere near the Sanq Kingdom I suppose."

Skye gently laid a hand on Duos forearm to make him let go of their Captive. "Let him go," she whispered gently. "We need to get home Now."

"You're too late, Skye: Caspian said before he paused to think, gently touching her bare shoulder.

"What?" she demanded icily as she flinched away from his touch, her eyes narrowing as she changed her grip on the knife, preparing to use it against the messenger of her displeasure.

Caspian shrank away from the enraged girl, holding his hands up in surrender. He had nothing to defend himself with but Skye didn't care.

"What are they doing to her?" she shouted as she pressed him against the wall and held the blade to his throat.

"What do you think they're doing to her? he snapped," his frustration getting the best of him, but he coward from the deadly glare both of the team were throwing his way.

"He wouldn't be that cruel, would he?" Duo asked Skye hoping for some glimmer of hope.

"What she did will be viewed as betrayal by other assassin families," Skye explained stiffly, her green eyes shooting daggers into her captive. "According to their justice system, she deserves the worst."

Duo felt real fear grip him like nothing else ever had. "How bad is she?" Duo asked the boy, his vulnerability revealing itself.

"If they keep her much longer, Melanie's body wont hold out," Caspian answered honestly, his voice holding the smallest sense of regret. "Franks trying all he can to help her, but Lucian won't listen to him anymore."

Skye released the assassin and looked away from both males to stare out the window. "Duo," she said thoughtfully, "go pack. Then I want you to prep the plane and Deathscythe. Were going home."

"What are you going to do?" he asked as he moved to do as she ordered.

"Pack and then transfer our school files home," she said as she turned to offer him a weak but reassuring smile. "Oh, Duo. We won't mention this to the others unless we have to."

"Get the coordinates from him by any means possible," Duo told her, giving her freedom to do what she pleased. "I'm not going home until she is safe."

"Allright," Skye agreed as Duo disappeared up the stairway.

"What are you going to do with me, Skye?" Caspian asked as he relaxed against the wall.

"Castrate you," she said without pause or bothering to look at him.

"You're joking!" Caspian gasped, his muscles tensing.

"Yeah, I am joking this time," she admitted as she smiled widely at him. "You're coming with us." Before he could react, she kicked over the chair he had been sitting in and pinned him face to the ground so she could tie him up again.

"This is getting old," Caspian complained once she rolled him onto his side. His shirt was drenched with her spilled drink that smelled suspiciously like apple juice, and a bruise was forming on his forehead.

"You should be getting faster," Skye reprimanded as she stood to complete her task.

"I'll keep that in mind."

Some Mansion in Europe

Trieze Kushrenada sat as his desk with his arms folded in front of him. His mind was completely taken over by what his spy among the assassins was telling him. One thing he prided himself on was that he was a gentlemen in everything that he did. The reports were sickening however.

"Are you sure?" he asked solemnly across the vid phone disgust keen in his voice.

"Yes, sir Mr. Kushrenada," the informant said. "I'm positive."

"Take care of it by any means possible," Trieze ordered. "That wasn't part of the agreement we made."

"Yes, sir." The spy's face vanished from the vid phone. A few moments later a knock came to his door.

Come in, Trieze called, not moving from his seat. A familiar mask clad figure walked in.

"Zechs," Trieze greeted as he stood the welcome his surprise gust. "What do I owe this visit?" he asked his friend.

"There are rumors going around the ranks that assassins had been hired to take care of the gundam pilots for us," Zechs stated blandly as he stood in front of Trieze's desk.

"That was the case before," Trieze admitted as he walked over to an alcohol cabinet to pour two glasses of brandy.

"Before?" Zechs asked

"They were but there contract was voided," he explained as he handed his friend the second drink.

"Do you not have any faith in you're men?" Zechs demanded, holding the drink in his hand but not drinking a single drop.

"The Romefeller Foundation issued the contract with the assassins," he explained, "not I."

Zechs remained silent for a moment, swirling the contents of his glass as he spoke. Nodding in acceptance of the idea he drained the glass in one shot and retreated from the room.

Trieze bent his head down in contemplation. The war had taken an interesting turn.