hey hey everyone! Thanks so much for all the reviews and faves and whatnot. I'm glad there's people out there who still survive in this ancient fandom!

so to all my kindred spirits here is this especially long chapter! DO ENJOI YS PLS.

also, hope y'all had a happy holiday!

"You told me, I remember, glory, built
On selfish principles, is shame and guilt;
The deeds that men admire as half divine,
Stark naught, because corrupt in their design.
Strange doctrine this! that without scruple tears
The laurel that the very lightning spares;
Brings down the warrior's trophy to the dust,
And eats into his bloody sword like rust."

-William Cowper

The silence that greeted Duo was, perhaps, not what he had intended as his smile seemed to lose some of its intensity but he didn't falter. He moved back to the laptop and tapped a key, the map vanishing into an image of blurry half-there photos of men outside what seemed to be the entrance of an underground base, loading crates into a truck. Beside this, an in focus snapshot of a company name that appeared on the side of crate was pictured. It was the name of a well-known weapons dealer that had been giving the Preventers some trouble for quite some time now. The image changed, into one of mug shots of known terrorists and apparent members of "New Order." Duo began speaking idly on their involvement but Heero didn't hear much of it, shifting in his sheet and trying not to fidget. An odd feeling was settling over him, akin to an itchy sweater.

This threat was very sudden and…totally unexpected, to be frank. They'd had scares before, small unprepared groups of usurpers who thought they could threaten the peace but never before had they anything of this...size. Based on the statistics that Duo was displaying these terrorists could attempt an overthrow similar to that of Mariemaia. The weird sensation flared feverishly at this idea, making Heero shift again ever so slightly.

As the images continued to change, Heero slowly realized what this feeling was. He frowned, glancing around the room to discern the state of the other pilots in the boardroom. Quatre was leaning forward in his seat, forearms flat against the glass table, thin blonde eyebrows drawn down and his small mouth set in a firm line. Beside him, Wufei scowled, arms crossed over his broad chest as he leaned back in his chair. His glare darted between Duo and the images on the screen. Anyone who didn't know Agent Chang would assume the man was angry at Duo, but Heero knew better; Wufei was confused and probably feeling a bit left out.

Trowa, however, was the most interesting of the three. He was still stretched out in his seat, long legs sprawled out under the table, his arms too were crossed but loosely and lacking all the vigor of Wufei's taut biceps. Despite this lazy and uninterested pose, Heero could see the glimmer of green intent upon nothing but Duo, taking in every gesture, word and shift in the American's spiel. Heero wasn't sure what to think of that, as he leaned a bit further back in his chair and looked up towards Duo again. None of them seemed to be in the same mood he found himself in, itchy and irritated with the sudden threat that faced them. Had Heero grown over-sensitive in his age?

"So, gentlemen," Duo said loudly, bringing Heero back into the present with a sharp jolt of focus. "Let's discuss objectives. I have for you, each individualized missions that---"

"Wait," Wufei cut in suddenly, letting some of his confusion flicker across his face. "I didn't realize I'd be taking oders from an informant."

"No, Chang, he is not," Une spoke for the second time since they'd been in there---Heero's eyes flicked to the clock---forty five minutes ago. "However, he is our informant and I have consulted with him to form your assignments."

"Yes, so, each of you will be vital in bringing down the Order," Duo continued, not missing a beat. He moved about the room, handing out folders as he went. "We have to do this quick, under two months. I understand it seems...sudden and is probably a bit daunting starting so late in the game, but it will have to be. No one anticipated an uprising so soon."

"When did you expect it?" Quatre asked, head bent over in his folder.

"In two years, at least," Duo answered just arriving at Heero and handing him the folder with a smile. Heero blinked and nodded his head in return, taking the thick packet. He sat it on the table beside him, preferring to look it over later in private. Duo didn't move far from Heero, standing behind the vacant chair two seats away from the Japanese man. "They seemed content merely collecting and amassing members instead of acting on anything they preached. Only recently have they been planning any actual attacks or movements. It's mostly because they had no proper footing---no one in their group has any power."

"What I want to know," Trowa asked, sitting up and setting his folder gently on the table before him, turning in his chair where he sat at the end of the table to look at Duo better from his vantage. "Is how you got involved with a terrorist group of such insignificance that's stationed in Dubai."

Heero mentally balked at the question, eyes a little wide as he turned to look from the formerly silent man to the one briefing them. All eyes went to Duo. The man, for the first time since they'd started, had lost his perpetual smile and a small line had formed between his eyebrows. "Well, Trowa," he began smoothly, canting his head to the side to regard the man challenging him. "The Order, unfortunately, got their start on L2. I'd like to say more but this is all in the report and I need to keep this short."

Trowa surprisingly looked satisfied, leaning back in his chair, seeming to acquiesce to the answer or lack thereof to his question. Heero wasn't sure what that interaction had been about and he filed it away for later inspection. Duo moved back to the front of the table beside Une who gave him a small glance Heero couldn't decipher.

"Alright, moving on then," the L2 pilot began, shutting the laptop with a quick snap and offering them all a grin. "Assignments. Quatre, you will be contacting the Order "secretly" to support their cause. Your reason, in short, is that Winner Enterprises is losing funds due to the new government revenues. At the same time, I'd like you to be working with Une to formulate plan B---should we all fail."

The blonde Arabian nodded, meeting Une's gaze across the room causing his expression to flicker into something distorted between concern and vehemence. Duo's idea made plenty sense, in regard to the situation with Winner Enterprises and how Quatre currently stood in it. He controlled a small portion of it, a few select businesses on Earth but not much more, and had a seat on the board of directors. Much of the rest was divided between other former Winner CEOs and his sisters. Despite Quatre's PR for being all for the peace, one could believe he was not raking in the same funds as he would have during the wartime. This "New Order" would leap on the idea of having someone like Quatre Winner backing them up.

"Next, Wufei, you'll be forming a team to station in Dubai," Duo said, expression just a bit smug as he turned his gaze over to the Chinese man. "You'll be going there on the premise of following weapons trafficking while keeping a close watch on some terrorist activity in the area. It will give them a reason to look over their shoulders. I'm also hoping it'll make them slip up somewhere while trying to rush."

Chang grunted his acknowledgement, still obviously displeased about Une's earlier interjection against him and at Duo's smugness. He didn't protest, however, and seemed satisfied with the objective. It did suit him; he was a brilliant captain in such a situation and had plenty of agents willing to line up for years just to be on a team with him. Heero wasn't surprised Une would send Wufei in straight to the field to play intimidator, either.

Duo then moved on to the man sitting in the back, an expression Heero couldn't quite read flickering across Duo's features. "Trowa, you'll be infiltrating their ranks, of course," the American continued. "They're looking for a few recruits on L1 and you'll leave in a week to meet them there. You're to feel out for the weak points in their ranks and report back any movements they may make.

"Last but not least," Duo said with an air of finality, looking to Heero now with an expression that was, oddly enough, amused. "You will be here working on penetrating their computer systems, working to knock them down in any way possible. I'll be here, working with you for now." He took a breath and made a mock salute at their group. "Dismissed, soldiers!"

Preceding the briefing Heero had been intent on speaking to Duo, he had a lot of questions that needed immediate answers, but the American seemed to have disappeared after dismissing them. He frowned inquisitively, searching the long stretch of hallway outside the boardroom, and not seeing the man in either direction. Une noticed this and walked over to him, she smiled slightly in her reserved manner and looked a bit sympathetic.

"He'll be back soon, Heero," she assured, shifting the satchel under her arm as she turned to look down the hallway as well. "In the mean time, you can get started on your work. No time like the present."

Heero huffed quietly, but loud enough to earn an amused look from Une as she walked past him. The rest finally left the boardroom, Wufei and Quatre in a pair talking once again and then Trowa a second later. The tall acrobat paused next to Heero, watching the two others walk away.

"What was that about, earlier?" he asked, scrutinizing what little he could see of Trowa's face. The man hadn't changed much, for what Heero could see, over the past few years. His hair was the still ever present and visible curtain between Trowa Barton and the world. The one green eye Heero could see darted from Quatre and Wufei's retreating forms to Heero's face at his question.

"It was a legitimate question," Trowa replied, shrugging his broad shoulders and finally moving past Heero. "I was curious, aren't you?"

The information Duo supplied Heero with was rather inadequate. He was aware that Duo, while not being an acclaimed expert on the matter, was quite well versed in handling computers. Yet, what he found in the folder lacked any of the knowledge Heero had expected of someone he had regarded as being nearly equal to his skill in hacking. He was insulted that Duo would think the information provided would be anything worthwhile.

What had been in the packet was primarily all the information on the "New Order" and what little there had been on what Heero had to hack, he had thrown away. It was mostly locations of servers, unnecessary lists of the computer models the terrorists used, and such other inane factoids. Heero didn't even want to know why Duo thought such information was pertinent.

However, a lot of good did come from the rest of the information in the packet. Such as the startling new fact that Duo was among the founding members of "the Order." Heero was yet again handed a new fact about Duo he wasn't sure what to do with. The man had always been something of an enigma, but Heero had always known where Duo stood in all things. Now…he didn't know what to think. Trowa's provocation earlier and his subsequent comment had implied Heero should examine Duo's motivation with a critical eye. Should he not trust the L2 pilot? Is that what Trowa had been trying to say to them?

Heero did not like that in the least. He wasn't sure, but instinct was telling him not to accept what Trowa was trying to stir up. Still, though, he wanted to know why Duo was apart of this. As far as Heero had been aware, Duo had had little to no connection to the Preventers and didn't desire it. Immediately after the war, he'd rejected Une's offer and fled to L2 fast enough to make Wing seem sluggish. They hadn't heard a word from him since, except for the occasional email or card on the anniversary of the wars. Duo's sudden absence after the meeting did little to quell Heero's suspicions.

These thoughts weren't getting him anywhere but in circles, and he hadn't even started on the assignment. Heero shook his head, carefully stacking the papers back into their sleeve. He didn't think on it any further and set to the task of working out a way to find a way into the "New Order" database.

"Heero, you didn't even wait for me!" came the indignant exclamation from behind him. The line of code that had been meant to set up a back wall now, instead, was going to cause a hiccup in the system whenever someone accessed the trash bin. Heero sighed, swiveling around in his chair and fixing Duo's grinning visage with a glare. "Aw, c'mon, bud, don't be that way. At least that'll annoy them," he continued, leaning past Heero to look at the mucked up code.

"Yes, well, I suppose that's why you're here," the Japanese pilot retorted, "to provide stimulating optimism for every mistake."

Duo shrugged, moving away from Heero to lean on the desk beside him. "Actually, I've got quite the access codes and set up back doors for a lot of the primary Order terminals," he said seriously, effect ruined as he pulled himself up onto Heero's desk, sitting cross-legged on it like some sort of office invading Indian. "Its all in the folder, 'Ro."

Heero raised an eyebrow, looking at the plain black folder next to his keyboard and thankfully not under Duo's rear. "There wasn't anything in there but server locations and computer models---"

"That was it, I did that on purpose. It's in code."

"Code?"

"Well, yeah---" Duo stopped himself, fixing a questioning look on Heero. "Do you want me to explain?"

"Please do."

"Alright, well, I knew their access codes but I couldn't remember them all, so I made a code out of them by listing the models they had," Duo answered candidly, shrugging one shoulder in a smooth movement that would have looked awkward on anyone else. "I didn't want them accidentally stumbling upon it either, so I told them I kept an inventory of the models should they end up somewhere they didn't belong or some shit."

Heero grunted in reply, leaning back in his office chair and looking at the papers sitting in his trash bin next to his feet. "Oh, well, I threw them away."

"What!" Duo balked, looking mildly insulted. "Jesus, you shoulda waited till I got here before you went off doin' whatever you pleased!"

"Its alright, Duo," the darker-haired man said, trying not to roll his eyes at Duo's overreaction and leaning over to pull the papers out. "I didn't rip them or anything."

"Good!" Duo huffed, snatching the papers from Heero and dropping them in his lap. He didn't say anything further, carefully looking the lists over and obviously seeing what Heero had missed.

Heero found himself searching for words in the silence. He had…questions but was unsure how to broach them. He chewed them over in his head, watching Duo's bent head absently as the man read. Knowing Duo, he wouldn't answer them—or at least, not plainly. The American never lied, sure, but it didn't mean he wasn't one to bend the truth so it suited him. Especially when it came to covering his ass and Heero was definitely seeking to expose Duo in any way he could.

"What's on your mind?"

He blinked, coming into the realization he'd been staring at Duo now for at least three minutes and had, yet again, been caught. Clearing his throat in embarrassment, he sat up a little straighter in the odd need to adjust himself in Duo's eyes.

"There's some…questions I have," Heero finally answered, looking Duo in the eye.

The L2 colonist didn't break his gaze. "Shoot."

"Why are you apart of this…"New Order" business? It says in the file you're a founding member. Why did you do undercover work for the Preventers when you don't even want to freelance? Why---"

"Whoa, whoa, one at a time there, buddy," Duo interjected, not seeming insulted at all by the questions. In fact, he almost seemed pleased. "I…well, it's kind of a long story… but I supposed I should get it out of the way." He sighed, leaning back on his hands on Heero's desk, as he seemed to think over how to begin.

"It started five years ago, I'd been living with Hilde and we had a rather decent scrap yard going on," Duo began easily. "We'd had it for something like two years by then, it was our baby and we were damn proud of her." He snorted, giving Heero a sardonic look. "And here it comes: But it was in the middle of May when the L2 economy collapsed, again."

Heero remembered that, it had been on the news for a good year after the fact and L2 was still in shambles over it. The L2 economy had been rapidly rebuilding itself after the war and had become rather important in supplying the Mars Project with materials from their large mining satellite. However, its dependence on the mine sent L2 into an immediate depression when it had been destroyed in a massive asteroid shower. The ESUN tried to salvage what they could and help wherever possible, but it hadn't been enough. Riots broke out and accusations were thrown implying that the ESUN wasn't experienced enough to handle such a crisis. It was mayhem for a good year, riots spreading through all of the L2 colonies as the economy dropped and dropped. Lately, everything had been settling down and L2, while still reeling from the blow, was again rebuilding itself but the process was debilitated. Heero hadn't even been aware Duo had been affected, his emails or cards never implied otherwise, but they had never implied he was living with terrorists either.

"We were hit pretty hard---everyone was---and there was no way to escape it," Duo's tone had become much more subdued as he stared ahead. "We were there, in Tusgen when a riot broke out. I got a broken leg and Hilde got a bullet to the arm for helping up some lady up because the dumbshit police didn't know any better." The American shrugged again. "I wasn't that pissed and neither was Hilde, it was a fucking riot after all, shit like that happens in all the confusion. But…the locals started getting ideas, about war and going back to the old ways."

Duo let out a bitter chuckle, rolling his eyes before he continued. "Can you believe it? Of all the colonies, L2 thinking it was better off during the war? I couldn't believe it, who was telling these people this shit? So, I found out," Duo concluded, leaning forward again and running a hand through his short hair. "Not my smartest decision… Anyway, so when I finally figured out who was putting these absurd notions in people's heads I was just in time for them to actually be forming their fucked up little group. I realized that this could be something pretty substantial, so I notified Une and the rest is history."

Heero nodded once, absorbing this information and finding it more than what he had anticipated. Duo didn't seem to have glossed any details over and the missing pieces Heero had in the folder. Still…

"You don't believe in their ideals then?"

"Heero, I fought for change," Duo snapped vehemently. "I wouldn't fuck over all I sacrificed to bring back something I didn't believe in."

It seemed simple enough and Heero had no reason to doubt it. As he had been aware of earlier, Heero was again faced with the fact that Duo had fought for more than any of them during the war. He didn't know those reasons exactly, but they ran deep in Duo's psyche and were as essential to him as his braid was---or had been. Turning his back against it over some petty differences the peacetime brought would be stupid. Heero was satisfied despite that much was still in the dark and Duo seemed to sense this, moving on in the conversation in a way that would have seemed suspicious if it were anyone other than Duo.

"Jesus, sure have talked enough today," Duo complained, rubbing at his throat as if to drive his point further home.

"Really?" Heero remarked offhandedly, turning to the computer that had long slipped into hibernation. "It seemed rather sub par to your old standards. Age has not treated you well, Maxwell."

"Oh hardy har-har," came the drawled reply as the entire desk shifted slightly as Duo moved to make himself more comfortable. The wooden desk was rather old, Heero was sure it had come with the historical police headquarters they currently sat in. He hoped Duo didn't break it. "Just because you can get by telling a joke, doesn't mean age is better on you, Yuy."

It was something to be marveled at, how easy they fell back into a routine that they hadn't acknowledged for seven years. Their friendship seemed immune to the passage of time, immune to Duo sitting in the den of terrorists and immune to Heero's slow decline into the veil of anonymity.

Their idle banter continued but slowly lost one of its contributors as Heero got drawn into his hacking work. Soon, Duo was abating his earlier complaint and chatting away about Relena or some such. Heero took a moment to be quite proud of himself, he had accomplished quite a task earlier: having gotten Duo Maxwell to actually say something when he spoke. Anyone who knew the American pilot knew he could talk but also new that that talking rarely ever contained any substance.

Despite Heero being beyond used to Duo's often running and unnecessary commentary, it didn't mean he never noticed when it stopped. When it did either meant trouble or something was about to explode. Heero blinked and paused, as Duo had indeed stopped talking somewhere between the last ten lines of code. A glance in the L2 pilot's direction was an immediate way to answer why: he'd found Heero's picture.

Duo looked up as well, most likely because Heero had stopped typing, and their eyes met---the briefest, bereft contact of planets colliding but Duo blinked and ruined the moment. Heero was sure, in spite of its sudden death, that he'd seen an emotion in Duo's eyes similar to what had captivated Heero only hours earlier.

"Where'd you get this?"

It was a simple enough question, but Heero found himself floundering. "A reporter, just after---"

"Mariemaia, I know," Duo interrupted absently, eyes intent on the photo.

Heero stopped himself from mentioning why Duo had even asked if he'd already known the answer. He found himself floundering for the second time that day because of Duo. It was true Heero rarely spoke, but it was never because he had no idea what to say. Seeing his emotions reflected back at him was both disconcerting and comforting, yet he hadn't a clue what they meant. What could he say to Duo when he couldn't say it to himself?

It didn't matter as Heero had missed his chance and Duo leaned back over to return the picture to its place. "It's nice you have a picture of us," he said, turning back to Heero and offering him a smile.

"Is it really?" Heero said absently, looking at the photo---crookedly hung back on his pushpin board, trying to see what Duo saw. "I've had it forever. I think Wufei hates it."

"Hmmm, maybe," Duo replied before slapping his thighs and hopping off the desk. Heero's pen jar and monitor rattled on the desk and he tried not to feel a bit frazzled. "Either way, it's quitin' time soldier! I have no place to stay and I'm sure your couch is comfortable."

Heero watched Duo leave his small office, noting the lack of braid that now no longer accompanied Duo's whirlwind. He sighed, looking down at his old desk, lonely monitor and blank walls that enclosed him. Had he been missing so much in all this time? While he sat, growing duller and duller with every line of code, Duo had rubbed elbows with terrorists. It seemed almost ironic. Now Duo was back, here to swoop in and rouse all the settled dust over Heero.

"Please don't tell me you actually live here or sumthin'," Duo groaned, head poking in over the threshold. "I'm too old to sleep on the floor!"

"Baka."

to be continued...