Waking Up In Vegas
Chapter Fifty-Five
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*beep, beep*
*beep, beep*
*beep, beep*
Jasper listened to the never-ending beeping, surprised at the comfort it brought him. That beep meant she was alive. That beep proved that she hadn't yet sacrificed her life for him.
He fought against the tears that wanted to fall. His mother had always said he was much too sensitive. To softhearted. And well, he was, he admitted. It was why he couldn't go through with Vet school- he couldn't stomach the thought of loosing any of his patients.
He couldn't join the Army, because he couldn't stomach the thought of even maybe having to kill another human. He was as softhearted as a marshmallow. He didn't like scary movies. He didn't like adrenaline rushes- the most risky thing he ever did was raise the fences to give the horse a challenge.
His father said he had no drive, no aspiration. He was content to work for someone else, help them train their horses instead of trying to branch out on his own. And he was content. He liked working for the Maxwells.
And this had to be the stupidest thing he'd ever done, he thought. They couldn't be more different, she and he. They were polar opposites. Truth be told, he'd started to fall for her from the first moment he'd saw her. Maybe. Well, probably. She was his dream. Lithe and slender, no stranger to physical labor- since that was a good part of his life. Petite, which was good because he himself wasn't that tall. And Lord, the hair. A long, silken fall of it, like moonbeams. And her eyes, like the blue-gray color of Sodalite, even with the dark little flecks of sapphire here and there- if you looked close enough.
And she had the most beautiful laugh, the cute little crinkle where her eyes tilted at the corner. Her little nose, the way her lips tilted. Her sense of humor, the kind way she had interacted with both child and adult alike.
He hadn't even thought about the ramifications of falling head over heels with someone like her. A soldier. A woman raised to shoot without second thought. To take a bullet to the chest and laugh it off. A woman who would not think twice about sacrificing herself and another to save the world as a whole. Who would use herself as a human shield for a man she barely knew.
He was raised as a Christian. He didn't believe in killing, for any reason. He didn't believe in killing oneself. And yet... here he was all the same.
He loved her. And yet, somewhere, deep inside, he knew...
They were much too different.
Love didn't stand a chance.
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Wufei stopped and turned around when he heard a noise behind them. The door they'd just came through opened again, and three figures walked into the building.
"This day keeps getting better and better," Duo laughed when he turned around to see none other than Heero Yuy walking up behind them.
"Duo!" Emily laughed brightly, throwing herself at the man. "Oh, God, Duo! I thought you two might have been dead! I'm so damn happy your alive!"
"Hey, hey. We're alive. A little worse for wear, thanks to James Bond Barbie, but at least we're alive."
"James Bond Barbie?" Midii asked, confused.
Duo tilted his head, and the three newcomers finally saw Dorothy.
"Dorothy Catalonia?" Emily demanded. "What the..."
Dorothy's eyes narrowed to Emily. "We will talk later. For now, can we please just get rid of this thing and go on with our lives? There's a matter of importance that needs taken out, and we still have a few enemies left out there."
"Dermail is dead," Heero said.
"Yes," Dorothy nodded. "But Quinze and Tsubarov are not."
Heero nodded. "True. And I'm damned certain that Dekim Barton is in on it, too. Somehow."
"They were all backing Dermail," Dorothy added. "They are weak and floundering without their leader for the moment, but it won't last for long. Let's do what we need to do here and take them out."
"Midii? Midii, is that you?"
"Annika?" Midii turned around, a gasp falling from her lips as she came face to face with her elder sister. Lady Une gasped and tossed her arms around around the slightly more petite woman.
"Lady?" Treize asked, blinking.
"My sister, Treize," his girlfriend-cum-receptionist smiled. "Treize, this is my sister, Midii."
"Charmed," the man replied, nodding to the younger woman. "But I'm afraid I must agree with... Dorothy... here. Time is of the essence. I need answers. You need to blow stuff up. Shall we go and do these things?"
"Agreed," Heero said, then pushed past the group. With a unanimous shrug, the others fell in line and followed him deeper into the building.
"Intruder Alert," the computer stated complacently.
The aging Dr. G looked up at the screen. "Ah. M, it's that Heero Yuy boy. Have the doors opened for him at..."
*BOOM*
"What the fuck!"
The door to the inner lab exploded inward, sending dust and shrapnel into several different directions. G peeked up from where he'd ducked behind a table.
"What the fuck! What'd you have to go and do that for? We were opening the doors you impatient little hooligans."
A figure stepped through the dust cloud, dusting his hands together, a long braid trailing behind him.
"Are you an idiot?" G demanded.
The figure shrugged. "If we weren't idiots, we wouldn't be fighting, would we? You Dr. G?"
"Of course I'm Dr. G, you numbskull. Who the hell are you?"
The figure bowed. "Duo Maxwell. God of Death."
"God of Death?" the doctor grumbled. "Why such a... juvenile name?"
Duo shrugged. "God of Death? Sounds better than a hero who commits mass murder."
"Is that some kind of comment on my Epyon? Stupid kids."
"Dr. G," Heero said, coming into the room. "Enough. Where is Epyon? It needs destroyed."
"Destroyed?"
"Ya," Duo nodded. "Something about doomsday and Armageddon and all that. I think there was something about asasigns or something in there, too. Not that sure on the details, though."
'Armageddon?" G asked, confused.
Duo rolled his eyes. "Stop making me repeat myself. It's bad for my health, y'know?"
G grumbled and turned to Heero. "Heero, what is with the company you keep nowadays?"
Heero cast a look over his shoulder at Duo, then shrugged. "I have no idea."
"G," Treize called out as he and the two Une's stepped through into the lab.
"Treize? Treize Kushrenada? Is that you?"
"Indeed, old friend. I have a few questions. Someone is trying to blackmail me and my fiance'," he said.
Lady Une blinked at the term, but didn't say anything. "I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on who and why."
"I already know who and why," Midii admitted. "You weren't meant to be drug into this. If they hadn't tried to blackmail me into helping them against Quatre and Trowa, then you wouldn't have even been to come in. "It's my fault."
"Charming family reunion," G said, "But can someone please tell me what the hell is going on? Heero? Did you say destroy Epyon? Are you mad, boy?"
"We have to stop this senseless war before it starts," Heero said.
"War will continue as long as humans exist," Treize said softly. "That is the truth of things, Mr. Yuy. No matter how you strive for peace... it will only be a fleeting, ephemeral thing."
"I will fight," Heero said. "I will fight injustice and work until every child on this Earth is safe and healthy. From disease. From famine. From war. We are not the one's making a mistake. This war is crazy in and of itself."
"Your struggle will never end," Treize concluded quietly. "The enemy you describe... is fate."
"Without fighting," Lady Une spoke, "nothing can be created."
"Great," Duo moaned. "We're stuck in here with a bunch of philosophical war-enthusiasts."
"We're not war enthusiasts," Lady Une replied evenly. "We just don't believe in total pacifism as a viable achievement."
"Show me where Epyon is," Heero demanded, ignoring the others around him.
"No. I can't let you just destroy such an amazing creation. Quatre Winner would never allow that."
"Quatre sent me," Heero said. "No show me."
G gaped for a moment, but then set his face. "No."
"Stubborn old men are always disliked," came a voice from behind G. From the shadows stepped a young woman. Dark brown, almost black, hair pulled into a ponytail on top of her head, a pair of glasses hanging from a chain around her neck.
"If you're not stubborn, you can't get far in life," G grumbled.
"Smart ass," the woman shook her head. "Enough is enough, Grandfather."
"This fruit-basket-case is you grandfather?" Duo asked, blinking at the tall, rather pretty woman.
"He is. "I'm Dr. M. Doctor Melora Germaine," she nodded. "Heero, Epyon is behind that door," she pointed across the room.
"M!" G declared.
"Enough is enough," she repeated. "Heero, do what you must."
"Ryoukai," Heero nodded, homing in on the door.
"Wait up, buddy! I'm the one with the explosives, don'tcha know?" Duo followed him.
"Should you be worried that you husband has found a new friend?" Emily asked Wufei as Duo trotted after Heero like a puppy.
"I'm just worried that after all of this is over, he won't want to lay down his pyromania again," Wufei sighed. "He does have a thing for explosions. Never misses an episode of Mythbusters."
"Am I missing an eyebrow?" Emily giggled, only for Wufei to roll his eyes at her.
"That's what we're destroying?" Duo asked, rather unimpressed with the anti-climatic view before him. "It's... it's a VR game. Looks just like the one at the arcade in Huntsville."
"This machine can kill millions," Heero stated. "If one has the inclination to, and the knowledge to use it."
"So... Epyon. Weird."
Heero didn't bother replying, merely stepping inside the so called 'VR game', and setting up.
He didn't even blink when the machine turned on, flooding his mind with information. Without thinking, he did what he knew he must and typed in the self-destruct code, pleased when he saw the screen go blank, the link sever, when he heard the unmistakeable hiss of the circuitry frying itself.
"That's it?" Duo asked. "That's so... dull. No fireworks?"
"Not yet," Heero said. "The wires are fried, but we still need to destroy the rest of it. Set up a charge of C-4, please. Behind the seat will do."
Duo hummed to himself, setting up the charge. He pulled back out, handing Heero a small black detonator.
"Wanna do the honors?"
Heero took the detonator, and walked with Duo out of the room.
"Peace is the only outcome of war," Heero mused, then held up the detonator. Everyone in the room looked at him. He closed his eyes, and depressed the button.
The lab shook, but held firm, even as a small wave of dust rolled out from the open door behind him.
"Ninmu kanryou," he said softly. "Ninmu kanryou. This war is finally over."
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AN: Nope. The story's not over yet! Don't go anywhere. As per always... this chapter is dedicated to Kiddi-chan and my two 'daughters'... Quatre and Duo! *huggles you all!*