Summary; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter.

Finally - another chapter out for yet another long-forgotten fic. I recently had a brainstorm, so thank all the chocolate I had in my system at the time for this chapter. And the next...oh well. I hope you who've read and liked this continue to read and not lose hope for me!

Please review. Comments, ideas, suggestions, and helpful criticism welcome.

"You were very lucky, miss," a maid informed Kina, as the young woman prepared for bed. "So many people died from a gas leak in the sewers. Will that be all?"

"Yes," Kina nodded absently, and waited for the woman to leave until she sat down. "A gas leak…?" she murmured, and suppressed a laugh. She knew many ways of killing someone, and the marks on the bodies weren't from a gas death.

Standing up, she began to pace the room, her hands clasped behind her back. Her mind racing, she tried to imagine what could have happened. Duo had again disappeared once she had managed to find a room in a nearby city in a run-down hotel, and Trowa still hadn't shown up.

"He's not dead…" she pushed the thought of her mind quickly, and flopped onto the bed in exasperation. "I can't think clearly," she chided herself, and pulled the covers over herself. "I'll wait until morning. I'm sure things will be easier then."

"Raining," she saw dismally, pulling on her silver-blue shirt, and slipped into her black boots, zippering her gray jeans. Digging around the things she had bought – luckily, as an agent she always had money on her person – she found a dark-green raincoat, and shrugged into it.

Glancing out the window one last time, she slipped on dark sunglasses before striding out of her room, prepared to do what it took to find her partner again.

"Some base," Trowa commented dryly, waking up to find his hands tied behind him, his ankles bound to the chair legs. Looking around, he smirked at the dismal surroundings, earning a glare from Wufei.

"Sarcasm won't get you very far," Heero commented casually, approaching. "Just thought you'd like to know."

"I doubt anything will."

"Good man," he nodded approvingly, and then gestured to Quatre.

"Where'd Duo go?"

"Who? Oh, him? I have no idea."

"Really," Heero stated, and stared at Trowa. "That's surprising – considering you're the enemy."

"You guys are working for the mafia?" he asked in disbelief, and suddenly the pieces fit. "I see – you're mercenaries."

"Yes," Quatre nodded, and then gestured to the others. "I'm Quatre, and this is Heero and Wufei. Since we're going to kill you before you leave, I suppose it doesn't matter if you know our names or not."

"You may as well tell me what the hell killed those people," Trowa prodded. They remained silent for a few moments, appearing to converse among themselves. Heero, apparently the leader, finally nodded briefly, and Quatre turned back to Trowa.

"It was a memory-suppressant drug that the mafia was experimenting with," he said. "The people who were…dead were specially-picked for their backgrounds. No one would have missed them if their memory suddenly disappeared. Unfortunately, you can see that there are a few…problems to work out. It suppresses memories, but the mafia doesn't want it to kill everyone. The toxin also became airborne."

"So, that accounts for the people who've fallen ill, even in this city," Trowa realized, having heard the news that a surprising number of people had mysteriously fallen ill, causing a panic of an epidemic. "Those people were just guinea pigs?" Trowa gritted his teeth and glared at his captors. "And that old man – Gregory Allistar? Was he working for you?"

"Us?" Wufei repeated in disbelief, and laughed shortly. "No – he was working separately for the mafia to dispose of you two. Obviously, he grew too old for his job, so we stepped in there as well."

Trowa remained silent as Heero stepped forward, and it was apparent they weren't going to answer any more questions.

"We'll use more truth serum in the morning," he decided, checking his watch. "It wore off anyway – he slept too long. Wufei, you get first guard."

"Sure," he nodded sharply, and took a chair across from Trowa as the two other young men left the room. Trowa, seeing Wufei close his eyes slightly, was left to his thoughts and began to form a plan.

Thanks to his ability to turn luck in his favor, Trowa managed to work the bonds on his hands loose after several hours. Though still tied, they were loose enough for him to move his hands around to get the feeling back into them, and he began to squirm his ankles around as well.

"What are you doing?" Wufei noticed Trowa's movements almost an hour, since the spy had moved subtly, and jumped to his feet. Trowa whipped his hands out from behind his back, and a swift kick outward freed his legs. Facing off the martial-artist, Trowa felt his muscles tense.

"I don't really want to kill you, you know," he warned Wufei, who merely snorted. Trowa narrowed his eyes and prepared for the attack he was sure was coming. Sure enough, Wufei leapt at him, legs outstretched for a blow to the chest. Trowa ducked and came up behind the Chinese young man. Wufei spun around with a counterattack, but Trowa was prepared, and a kick to Wufei's throat dropped him to the floor instantly.

Trowa checked his pulse, and shook his head.

"Dead – throat collapsed in on itself with that kick," he murmured, and straightened, feeling no remorse for what had to be done. Looking around, he saw no weapons, but didn't mind that much. Moving toward the door, Trowa rushed out, surprised when no alarms went off.

Kina had barely made it into the city, with its tall buildings shooting into the sky, when she realized someone was definitely following her. Glancing back slightly, her breath caught when she saw Gregory Allistar, and her eyes narrowed.

"All right then…" she muttered, and quickened her pace. He easily matched it, and she continued her quick strides for a few more blocks before beginning to jog. Seeing that the apparently-old man still wasn't slowing down, she broke into a sprint, praying her boots didn't slip in the pouring rain.

Skidding into a car as she turned a corner, she saw him catching up, and rushed across the street. Finding herself in-between cars, she began to step back onto the sidewalk when Allistar suddenly stopped, and she heard a faint boom. Spinning around, she saw a car a block down explode into flames – setting off a chain reaction. Barely noticing a taller man that was standing calmly amid the panic, she swore and rushed to get out of the way as the cars quickly continued the chain, heading right towards her. Gasping for air, she raced down the street, and managed to outdistance the cars enough to rush into a nearby building. Looking around with a trained eye, she realized it had been turned into a makeshift hospital to counter the sudden onslaught of illness, which no one knew what had caused it.

"Are you all right, miss?" a nurse asked in concern, and Kina flipped her dripping hair out of her eyes just as the car outside exploded. The window shattered, and several shelves stocked with medicine fell, catching fire.

"Damn it!" Kina swore, and shoved the nurse away just as the drugs proved that they were indeed flammable. The flames spread easily, and the building was threatening to be engulfed the flames. Overcome by the sudden heavy smoke, Kina began to choke. Affected by the drugs' toxic release in the air, the room began to spin in front of her – and she blinked suddenly, seeing a young man in front of her.

"Come on, Kina," he said roughly, and heaved her up in his arms. Passing out despite efforts to stay awake, she went limp, and he rushed out of the building as firefighters appeared on the scene.

Jogging down an alley, he continued further into the city, until he reached a deserted street. Looking around, he grinned when a helicopter arrived, its blades whirring.

"Took you guys long enough," he commented, and then froze when a tall man with dark-blond hair and pale-blue eyes appeared at the door, his face stoic.

"Duo Maxwell, you're being taken into our captivity until further notice," the twenty-eight year-old man informed him calmly, taking Kina from his arms. The assassin stood in shock as he was handcuffed and shoved onboard.

"Treize…?" she murmured, the helicopter's whirr bringing her awake slightly. He glanced down at her, and nodded.

"We're going to headquarters to explain this mess to Boss," he told her shortly, and she nodded weakly. Securing himself in a seat, he nodded sharply to the driver, who gave him a thumbs up and started it up again. Duo muttered something to himself, to the extent of how stupid he was.

"This is probably Treize's work," Trowa muttered, seeing the destruction. "It's certainly his MO. Damn bastard…couldn't even leave it alone for another day."

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he stalked off, his quick mind forming a backup plan – especially one on how to get back to their headquarters, which was only accesible by helicopter or a special airship that Boss had designed. Even those who worked there weren't sure where on the globe the base could be found - they only knew where it was through instinct, somehow.

"Are you feeling all right?" Treize asked calmly, seeing Kina's eyes flutter. "Those drugs did a number on you, but the doctor fixed you right up. Boss has been waiting for you to wake up."

"I'm glad everyone was so concerned," she muttered, sitting up stiffly. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she saw gratefully that she was still fully dressed. Seeing Treize's small smirk, she glared at the double-agent. "What?"

"No need for sarcasm, Kina," he chided her gently, standing up. Shiny black shoes were under white trousers, with a matching jacket over a dark-blue dress shirt without a tie. "Allistar was caught in the blast, luckily. Of course, that was my intent anyway."

"You couldn't have done it sooner?" she asked, rolling her shoulders. The young man shrugged gracefully, and then helped her to her feet.

"The young man named Duo Maxwell is in custody."

"What?" she blinked in surprise. "I can't believe he was that stupid to let himself be fooled…Where's Trowa?" Seeing Treize's pause, she narrowed her eyes and took a step forward. "Where is he, Treize?"

"Calm yourself, Kina," another man's voice said gently, and they both snapped to attention as Boss walked in. "No need for that – be seated, both of you. Trowa was captured by Maxwell's partners, Kina, but he has no doubt escaped by now."

"Sorry," she mumbled, barely glancing Zechs Marquis in the eye. The young man, in his late twenties, was the leader of the government agency in charge of covert operations and reconnaissance, and the three agents were all under his control.

"Apology accepted," he inclined his head slightly, and sat down as well. He wore black shoes underneath dark-gray slacks, and a matching jacket was over a crimson-red shirt with a loose white tie. "I've read the files you and Trowa sent me over the past few days, and it seems our suspicions were indeed correct. Relina is decoding several messages sent out of the hotel by certain suspicious parties now, as is Noin."

"What about Trowa?" Kina pressed.

"I've sent Une to bring him back, don't worry," Treize spoke up, referring to his subordinate Une Mikataci. "She'll find him soon enough."

"Duo Maxwell is currently incarcerated in Level-Five security in the base, don't worry," Zechs mentioned, seeing her open her mouth to ask him. "And we have three guards inside with him, as well as six outside. He's not skilled enough to escape from there, trust me."

"I hope so," she commented. "He's a skilled assassin, and I'd be more concerned about his teammates coming to break him out rather than him breaking himself out."

"We'll post extra guards then," Zechs nodded, and peered at her. "Did you manage to learn anything else past your last report?"

"Um…my last post was right before the incidents, so I don't think so," she shook her head. "Do we know what caused the deaths? It appeared like some kind of gas poisoning."

"It was, but we're still investigating that," Treize said, looking a bit disgruntled. "It seems that the mafia was developing a prototype of some kind of gas, but it's almost impossible to discern what the purpose may have been."

"How could they have that level of technology to bypass our own system?" Kina wondered. "Someone in the government must be involved for us not to be able to correctly process the gas."

"Our thoughts exactly," Zechs agreed with a short nod. "We've tried investigating Maxwell, but he refuses to talk – unsurprisingly. Do you think you'd have any better luck?"

"Me?" she asked in surprise. After thinking for a moment, she shrugged. "Probably not, but it's worth a shot. I don't know how his mind works, but his aura is certainly open and cocky. He may let something slip through bragging – it doesn't seem out-of-character for him. Give me some time and I should be able to compile a personality profile on him, at the least."

"All right," Zechs smiled briefly as he rose and strode to the door. "I'll have it arranged. Treize, get Une whatever she needs to find Trowa – we need the information he may have as well. Have someone examine Kina before she prepares for the interrogation. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask," he added, glancing at his agent.

She nodded, and the two waited until their boss left until Treize sat back down. He had been captured and forcefully recruited into the institution from another organization as well, but didn't appear to have much to complain about, having risen through the ranks quickly.

"I'll do my best to find Trowa, so just concentrate on cracking Maxwell," Treize said, suddenly reassuring. "He seems to have a weakness for women – pretty ones especially, from what I've observed in his reaction to Une and Relina –"

"I can't say much for his taste then," Kina mumbled, having a great dislike for Relina Darlian.

"–so I'll send you up some clothes I think will be appropriate," Treize finished, and she looked up sharply.

"What's that supposed to mean – 'appropriate'?" she demanded, but he merely smiled calmly at her.

"I'll send the doctor in when I leave," he said, and strode from the room without another word. Glaring at the door, Kina swung her feet back on the bed as the doctor returned, followed by a nurse carrying a chart.

"Une?" Trowa realized, and stopped trying to shake off the woman gripping his upper arm.

"If you had listened, you would have realized that sooner and saved us a lot of time," she hissed, pulling him further in to the alley, away from prying eyes. "Treize sent me to find you and bring you back to base. Kina is already there, and Maxwell is currently in our custody as well."

"I see," the young man regained his composure quickly and processed the new information in his head. "So Kina is at the base, and so is Duo…" "Is she safe?" he asked abruptly, and Une regarded him coolly.

"Of course," she said primly. "She had a rather nasty accident with toxic fumes, but she was recovering nicely at the time of my departure."

"How fast can we get back?" Trowa pressed, and she appeared taken aback momentarily before pausing in thought.

"A day, at the absolute most. We have transportation waiting, of course. Are you ready yet, or are you just going to stand there gaping like an idiot?"

"You want me to wear this?" Kina demanded, holding up the outfit in distaste. "This is…disgusting!"

"It's not that bad," Noin commented dryly, earning a dirty look from Kina. "Well, it isn't. I convinced Zechs to send something a little better than what you were supposed to wear, trust me."

"Maxwell better crack, or I'll bust his skull open for making me wear this," the other woman, quickly beginning to change into the new outfit her boss had sent down. The skirt and jacket were a dark navy-blue with matching heels – a barely opaque white blouse was paired with a skirt that went several inches above her knees, and the jacket was fitted so closely that she couldn't even button it up.

"At least it's better than before," Noin informed her, and Kina looked faintly green.

"I'm actually scared to know what the outfit was before this," she managed, and took a deep breath. "Do you have the files for me?"

"Yes," Noin nodded, and handed her the files. Although Kina was technically a subordinate, her unusual position forced higher-ranking officers defer to her often, as well as Trowa. "That's everything we could manage to find on him and the others as well."

"Good," Kina said absently, already skimming through the papers. "Give me a few minutes to go through this stuff to plan my attack. I'll buzz when I'm ready to go down."

"All right," Noin grinned, and shut the door behind her. Due to the high security surrounding Duo, only a select few were allowed clearance, and the only way Kina was able to get there was through Noin or Treize.

"Hmm…" Kina murmured, taking a closer look at several files she found. "He was arrested as a private for conduct unbecoming a soldier, but no mention of what happened. Dishonorable discharge…several hits in his juvenile records, nothing too major. It doesn't seem like he'd be a mercenary, and there's no mention of what his abilities are. Probably something like espionage." She chuckled wryly at the thought of Duo Maxwell being a spy, and abruptly shoved the files into the briefcase-like bag she had beside her. Reaching over she pressed a small button, and waited by the door until Noin reappeared.

"That didn't take too long," the woman commented, and Kina shrugged.

"I guess."

"Are you sure you have enough?" Noin pressed, and the young woman nodded.

"Positive. I was wondering, though," she added, as they headed into the security elevator used only by officials to access the secure zone.

"Yeah?"

"Why is there no mention of his abilities?" Kina asked. "And he was discharged from the military for conduct unbecoming, but there's nothing to indicate what that was."

"There's nothing about his abilities because we don't have anything on him about that," Noin told her, looking a bit disgruntled. "As for the records, the military won't give us any info, having sealed his record, and Boss won't let us hack into the database for it."

"Interesting," Kina said thoughtfully. "I'll have to bluff my way through some things, I guess."

"You'll do it," Noin assured her. "Oh, and Une picked up Trowa not too long ago. They're on their way back now, and he's in normal condition."

"Really?" the other female asked in surprise, and grinned when Noin nodded. "Good – that's even more leverage I have. Don't worry, I know when to say anything," she added, seeing Noin open her mouth to object. "I'm not going to give him information that'll help him, of all things."

"I didn't think you would," Noin agreed calmly, keeping an eye on the level they were at. "We're almost there – the security zone is fifteen kilometers underground, and this elevator is the only way up or down, besides a tunnel entryway in case of emergencies."

"I've never been down here," Kina commented. "Trowa and I were held elsewhere, I believe."

"So was I," Noin nodded, having been a military soldier working with Treize and Une before they were caught. "But I've been here once or twice – not a pleasant place, but even harder to get out than it is to get in, believe me. He's there. And alarm would've gone off if anything happened."

"I know," Kina told her. "I figured as much. " She stopped when the elevator abruptly shook to a halt, a flashing light indicating they had arrived at their destination.

"Here we are," Noin grinned, opening the door and stepping out into the tunnels.

There - a bit of a cliffhanger, but this is over eight pages long, so be happy! Please review.