Ayashi no Yuugi II: The Last Sunrise Chapter 4: Never Duo, Always Shinn, a gundam wing/ac fanfic

Ayashi no Yuugi IIThe Final Sunrise

Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimers apply.

Warning: Might be a bit of strong language.

Chapter 4: Never Duo, Always Shinn

Name: Shinn Asuka
Age: 21
Colony: L2 X97260
Description: Violet eyes, chestnut hair (usually in a braid)
Origin: America
Parents: Unknown

Basic Report:
Age 6, Enrolled in Spica Training Academy in 185 AC
Age 8, Graduation Exam, Gains Codename Duo in 187 AC
Age 9, Graduated from Spica Training Academy with Honors, Valedictorian; Enrollment Mission, Gains Codename Maxewell; Enrolled in Orion Tactical Graduate Academy in 188 AC
Age 11, Graduated from Orion Graduate Academy with Honors, Top Three; Enrollment Mission, Gains Codename Shinigami; Enrolled in Sagittarius Political University in 190 AC
Age 13, Graduated from Sagittarius University with Honors, Top Five as Admiral, First Class, Type Two Unlimited; Joins GTK; Began Training as Gundam Pilot 02 in 192
Age 16, End Training as Gundam Pilot 02; Begin Operation Meteor; Search for Kamui as Duo Maxwell and Shinigami begins in 195 AC
Age 20, Kamui Power retrieved in 199 AC

Current Status: Active; Attending Joint Investigation Between Preventors and CSA

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July 10, 200 AC; 9:10 AM

Colony L2, Asuka Residence

Shinn Asuka, age 20, violet eyes and brown haired, a CSA Admiral, First Class, Type Two Unlimited, Pilot 02 of the GTK, Preventor Agent Shinigami, and Pilot 02 of Gundam Deathscythe Hell, Codenamed Duo Maxwell, frowned at the blank screen of the black vid-phone with the letters CSA stamped along the top on his desk. The call he had just received was surprising, to say the very least. He was an active CSA Agent, yes, but he was to be called during an emergency only, and yet, the call he'd received could not have been ranked among the so called Emergency calls that he seemed to receive, oh, so very often during peacetime. The last thing he had expected was to find that Gaia and Cosmos had a new mission, and that they would be working together once more, but it did explain the call about the emergency-that-was-not-quite-an-emergency.

He sighed as he leaned back in the chair to think over what he had discovered.

The tapestry of Fate weaving itself and the threads snapping without anyone cutting it?

Definitely Chaos's doing.

Chaos.

Chaos was helping the Nautilus. This was bad, at least for the mortals. It even explained why Gaia and Cosmos were back. And it meant that a normal uprising that was scheduled for squashing was no longer so normal, and the squashing would be damn near impossible. The call that he had ranked as an emergency-that-was-not-quite-an-emergency, was now officially an emergency call.

After all, anytime Chaos was involved, a small incident would always morph into a very big emergency.

Oh, no, Chaos didn't mean to make life difficult for the immortals on errantry in the Mortal Realms. In fact, his job was to create strife so the mortals could better themselves and test their limits. But he normally sent his underlings to do the work, which meant lots of chaos, yes, but the immortals on errantry could always work around or through it. But when Chaos himself went to do the work was a whole other story.

Whenever Chaos decided that he'd been sitting on his immortal ass for way too long, whole civilizations fell apart.

The last time he decided to do his job, look at what happened to Rome. It fell to pieces!

Oh, no, Chaos wasn't exactly bad at his job; he was just too damned good at it!

So, while Shinigami had to make sure Heero could control his power (Heero was by now, far enough along that he could control his power, so it was safe for them to have their lessons over vid-phone), he now had to undo or lessen the chaos that Chaos would cause! Oh, gee, that made his life a whole lot easier!

Note the sarcasm here.

To say otherwise was to ask for a gun in the face, a scythe to the neck, and a very pissed off Immortal/Gundam Pilot in your face.

Did I mention that Shinigami wasn't happy?

The CSA vid-phone rang again, and Shinn picked up the receiver and said, "Asuka."

"One more thing, Shinn," Kayla's voice said. "The Triad's just sent a Memo. They've decided that three pilots in GTK should be enough to take on missions, and that we'll do alright while they look for new agents, so members of GTK are officially allowed to get their hands dirty."

"Finally! Thanks, Kayla."

"No problem."

Shinn set down the receiver and just then, the green vid-phone next to the CSA vid-phone rang, and Shinn took a deep breath, and hit the speakerphone button.

"Asuka speaking."

"Maxwell?" Wufei's voice held a hint of confusion.

"Hello, Chang. How are you and to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"

"Fine, and this is not a call for pleasure," Wufei snapped, irritable now that he had ascertained that the person he was speaking to was indeed the Deathscythe Hell Pilot. "Why can't you ever answer to your name, Maxwell?" he growled as an afterthought.

"Wufei," Shinn said warningly. "Duo Maxwell was my codename during the war. My given name is Shinn Asuka, and I must ask you to at least remember it, even if you don't use it!"

(On the other side of the line, Wufei winced at the harsh tone of his friend's voice. Ever since the discovery of the CSA and the discovery that Duo Maxwell was merely a codename, Duo, or Shinn, no longer saw the need to maintain a cheerful front at all times anymore. He had reverted to his old/original personality, which was a combination of the personalities of all the Gundam Pilots AKA the G-boys.)

"I take it that you were told what happened by the GTK," he said.

"I was told about a vandalism group in North Vietnam and that an Intern was sent to see to it, yes. Why?"

"The intern we sent is dead. We decided we should call you in, it'd be a good idea to get the Gundam Pilots in on this."

Shinn sighed. "I thought so. Where and when do you need me?"

"Mengzi, preferably in twenty-four hours."

"I'll be there in two hours."

"Two hours?" Wufei's voice was incredulous, "Maxwell, not even the fastest Preventor shuttle can get you from L2 to Mengzi, China in two hours."

"Wufei, the farthest CSA Colony is L11, colony HC98403 in Sector Q7. If I take a CSA shuttle, I can get from there to a shuttle port on the other side of Earth in less than two hours. If I take a CSA shuttle, I'll get to Mengzi in two hours at most."

"Maxwell! If you take a CSA shuttle, wouldn't you be going against orders?"

"I'm a CSA Admiral, and on of the best to boot. My GT has been reactivated since the Triad has decided that three should be sufficient to take on missions while they search for replacements for the two empty seats."

"Very well," Wufei's voice didn't sound convinced. "We'll see you in China. But Maxwell, take your time. We don't need you getting hurt, or worse, killed."

"Yeah. I'll see you in China."

Shinn hung up and turned to the CSA vid-phone and punched in the number for the CSA Colony L2 Orbital Base. The screen lit up and Noin appeared.

"Hey, Shinn, what do you need?"

"GTK has been put on active duty. I need a Transfer Shuttle for one from Colony L2 V76924, Sector H4 to Megnzi, China."

Noin blinked. "The Triad only issued that Memo ten minutes ago!"

"Trouble never rests for a moment, Noin. The Shuttle?"

"L2 Transfer Shuttle Juliet in CSA Hanger 3 is free."

"Thanks Noin."

"How soon do you need it?"

"Right now."

Noin blinked. "A little eager to run into the line of fire, aren't you?"

"I spent nearly four months on the Emergency only list in Preventors because of the Triad's orders, and those four months were spent doing nothing at all for the CSA. You can't blame me for wanting some action."

Noin sighed. "I know how you feel. Can you wait an hour? We need to get the fuel tank full and make a quick check of the Logic Crystal."

Shinn nodded. "I'll check in later then."

"Sure thing. CSA L2 Orbital, out."

"Asuka out."

Shinn sighed and left his study. He had a bag to pack, and a war to prevent.

XoXoXoXoXoXoXoX

July 10, 200 AC; 11:15 AM

Mengzi, China

Mengzi, China was perhaps one of the few places that had always been aware of the CSA since it's creation in 23AC, so it was no surprise to the people when a composed figure, openly dressed in the CSA uniform, marched through the streets. The occasional tourist might see people greeting the agents with welcoming and relieved smiles, and wonder at the strange and unfamiliar uniform. Obviously, the inhabitants of Mengzi felt that the CSA did a better job protecting them than Preventors ever did. They especially liked the CSA Agents who were also Preventor Agents, since they thought that they were most likely the ones who made Preventors as successful as they currently were and the inhabitants of Megnzi were right. The people who were easily identified as CSA Agents who worked for Preventors as well, often had a Preventor badge pinned under the CSA logo on their left sleeve, and the inhabitants of Mengzi avoided these, since they were obviously high ranking CSA Agents, and were most likely on some sort of mission. Tourists especially avoided these agents at the advice of the locals.

Admiral Shinn Asuka, better known to the general public and the Preventors as Duo Maxwell, wore his CSA uniform with the badge under the CSA logo on the left sleeve, marking himself as one of the high ranking CSA Officers who was a Preventor Agent, stepped out of the CSA Mengzi Base. He had arrived in Mengzi the day before, and his contact had told him that the meeting would be held on the next day. So he ended up staying the night in the CSA Mengzi Base. Not that the Commander of the base objected. It wasn't often that the Heir of the Shinigami of the Triad would arrive too early and need a place to stay because of his relatively small blunder.

Shinn took note of his path, and hurried toward the Hilton Hotel. Most of the people merely smiled and nodded and got out of the way so he could move faster, but others stopped to wish him well. He smiled politely at a young mother who paused to show off her newborn son and to ask for a blessing, and moved on after obligingly giving his blessing. He allowed the smile to fade from his face after he passed the woman, and sped up his gait.

The people of Mengzi were convinced that the members of the CSA had some sort of power, and parents always asked whichever Agent they found to bless the child. Yes, certain Agents had some sort of power, telekinesis, fore-sight, telepathy, far-sight, empathy, and Omnyoujitsu, and more, but this was just too much!

The inhabitants took one look at his worried face and noted his harried walk, and no more proud parents came forward to ask him to bless their child, and the masses parted to let him pass. No local born and raised in Mengzi wanted to hinder a CSA Agent while on a mission; especially not one who was a Preventor, and if the mission was enough to crack the CSA Agent's famed composure, all the more reason to allow them to get to their destination faster.

Once inside the elegant lobby, he strode up to the reception desk where a brunette sat typing on the computer.

"Excuse me," he said.

The brunette looked up and broke into a smile at the sight of the CSA uniform. "How may I help you sir?"

"I am Admiral Shinn Asuka, codename Duo Maxwell. I am here to see Sally Po and Wufei Chang in the presidential suite," Shinn said briskly.

"Yes, Admiral," the woman said. "Go right on up, they're expecting you. Top floor, suite 11."

"Thank you," Shinn said, and walked over to the elevator.

Once inside the elevator, he pressed the button for the twelfth floor and leaned back against the wall. Then, somewhere around the seventh floor, a figure in a black ski mask entered the elevator. He, (Shinn assumed it was a he, but the figure had a very slight build and could've been a skinny girl), closed the door and waited for the elevator to resume its ascent. Between the ninth and tenth floors, he suddenly looked over.

"Duo Maxwell?" the voice was low and concealed the gender.

Shinn slowly turned his head to look at the figure. "Yeah?"

The lips revealed by the ski mask smiled and the figure slammed its hand against the emergency stop button. "I've been sent to kill you. Say goodbye."

A knife flashed dully in the dim light in the elevator, and Shinn's eyes widened in surprise as he twisted from the waist up to avoid getting stabbed in the eye. The knife slashed across his shoulder, drawing blood. The attacker passed the CSA Admiral and spun around and lunged forward for another go. Shinn was ready for the attack this time. Faster than a blink, his saber left its sheath and batted the knife away. In one smooth motion, he struck the would-be assassin with the hilt. The would-be assassin crumbled to the ground, unconscious.

Shinn studied the figure on the floor and said calmly as he slipped his saber into the sheath, "Kill me? Really. Now, let's see who the assassin is."

He knelt beside the body and gently pulled off the mask. His eyes widened in shock. "Gods…" he whispered. "You're only a child!"

Swiftly, Shinn searched the body, and found an ID in one of the pockets. His eyes narrowed dangerously.

Experiment DX249
Codename: Tenshi
Age: 12
Purpose: Nautilus Assassin and Mole

Shinn stood up, drawing his saber once more. His eyes had become icy cold. "Child or not, I cannot allow you to live. May your next life be better than this one." His saber descended, and blood pooled around the body. Shinn dropped the ID on the body and snapped a chiburi, and sheathed the saber.

He opened the escape hatch and, ignoring his bloody shoulder, climbed up the cables to the next landing, then opened the doors. He was relieved to find no one around as he casually shut the doors, walked down the hallways to the stairs, and climbed the remaining two floors.

He knocked on the door of Suite 11, and the door was answered by a familiar blonde.

"Hello, Quatre," Shinn said calmly.

Quatre smiled. "Hello, Duo." Quatre studied his friend and his blue eyes widened when they landed on his shoulder, where the cloth had been slashed. The red material was dark with Shinn's blood, and the wet patch was spreading steadily.

"Duo!" Quatre yelled. "What the hell happened!"

Quatre's shout attracted the attention of the six people inside the room. Sally, Zechs, Hilde, Wufei, Trowa, and Heero came running.

Wufei saw the wound immediately and snapped, "I thought I told you to be careful, Maxwell!"

"I was," Shinn said calmly.

"Then what is that?" The Shenlong Pilot roared.

"This," Shinn gestured toward his shoulder, "is a twelve year old assassin by the name of Experiment DX249, Codename Tenshi."

"You got hit by an assassin?" Zechs said, shocked.

"I wasn't expecting the Nautilus to send a twelve year old!"

"Did you follow through?" Sally said.

"I'm attacked by an assassin and you ask me if I followed procedure?" Shinn asked, incredulous. "Of course I followed procedure and followed through!"

"Follow through?" Quatre said, confused.

"You killed him," Heero said bluntly.

"Yes," Shinn answered, his eyes blank.

"You killed a twelve year old boy?" Trowa asked.

"Yes."

"He was a twelve year old boy!" Wufei yelled. "You said so yourself!"

"I was trained to kill at age 6," Shinn said calmly. "All of us, Gundam Pilot and CSA Agent alike, were trained to kill from an early age. There is no innocence in a child who is capable of killing."

"I think I preferred Duo Maxwell to Shinn Asuka," Wufei said quietly, his eyes showing his horror at the calm with which Duo had stated that fact.

Shinn's eyes became sad and wistful, and he said quietly, "That's why I was against telling Lady Une about the Hidden Colonies and the CSA in the first place. I knew you wouldn't like to see the part of people who are trained to kill at an early age, trained to become Perfect Soldiers that could easily blend into the crowd."

Zechs, Hilde, and Sally nodded in agreement.

"You all relied so heavily on his happy-go-lucky mask," Zechs said, "and once Preventors knew about the CSA, then the Records of the Agency members would have to come out. The records contain everything, including personality reports throughout the agent's life. Once Preventors had the records, the masks that we wore would drop, since they would be obsolete, all of them, including the codename Duo Maxwell."

"None of us wanted you to shatter your own illusions," Sally said, "Since you relied so heavily on Shinn's mask, you'd built your lives around Duo Maxwell. The moment the mask dropped, your lives came crashing down around you, and you had to rebuild, you had to compensate for the lack of smiles and jokes, you had to compensate for the lack of a braid to threaten. If living with a person who didn't exist made you happy, we were willing to allow you to live with the illusion of truly knowing Duo Maxwell. Gods only know that after all that you've done, you all deserve it."

"And as long as you knew Shinn as Duo Maxwell, you would give him a reason not to return to the CSA," Hilde added. "As long as you lived with the illusion that Shinn Asuka was Duo Maxwell, his mission, to give the Gundam Pilots a reliable friend who would always be there, would remain in effect. As long as you believed that Shinn Asuka was Duo Maxwell, you would always have the Jester at your side, and Shinn would never have to return to the front lines and risk dying before his time as Tsukino and Tsukishirou did. But once you found out that Duo Maxwell wasn't real, that there was only ever Shinn Asuka, that mission was aborted, and the Gundam Pilots no longer had a friend who would always be there. Duo Maxwell ceased to exist, and Shinn Asuka returned to the front lines to keep the Nautilus from starting another war."

"Enough of these melancholy thoughts!" Shinn said suddenly. "We're waiting for Lady Une, right? So let's go inside and wait!"

The group entered the living room, and Shinn took off his jacket and the white dress shirt underneath so Sally could tend to his injury. While they waited for Lady Une, the Gundam Pilots thought over the consequences of their actions nearly four months ago.

XoXoXoXoXoXoXoX

Night fell.

The group waited.

Lady Une never came.