Pairings: Duo/Heero, Quatre/Trowa

Warnings: violence, supernatural stuff, kinky moments, guns...um...gundams, implied sex, men in drag, etc...

Author's comment: And finally updated this. x.x And not much for comments since I should be going to work right now. XD

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Operation Blank Conspiracy 42

Subduing the guard set up to watch him during Treize's meeting wasn't hard. Heero had stolen the man's uniform after restraining and hiding the unconscious body in a bathroom stall before going outside and making use of the out of order sign he placed on the door. It would buy him some time at least. His own uniform was tucked away on his own body as a means of using it later, be it for himself or for whichever hostage he found. He worried for the two of them, more for Duo than for Relena. And that was only because he believed the enemy wouldn't harm her. Otherwise, they wouldn't have taken so much care into bringing her here. But Duo…what did they plan to do with him?

Heero moved casually so he wouldn't draw attention to himself, even though his mind was trying to rush him to move faster. Duo was in danger. He felt like he was taking too long. But to rush could mean certain death for the both of them. He needed to find Duo and get them all the hell out of there. There were too many soldiers here for them to be able to take them all on. Hell, it was like two small armies inside the enemy base.

His ears listened out for clues while his eyes watched out for cameras that could expose him. Considering the situation with Duo, it made sense that he wouldn't be located in an open access area. Meaning the area would be well secured. It meant he'd have to bypass security and get into the deeper part of White Fang's floating fortress. It also increased the risk of running into people like that blond girl that kidnapped Relena and Duo. He may even run into 01 which would have to be the last person he wanted to see.

But he had the Fly-Z coursing through his veins along with one vial left of the stuff in case of emergencies. It probably wasn't as strong as Duo's but it could help him. He couldn't manipulate technology or read minds, but he did have phenomenal strength. Was he strong enough to defeat 01 who he suspected wasn't even human based on his last encounter with him? He wasn't sure.

The area he found looked like a research center. Guards stood blocking the front door. There was a keypad by the door along with what looked like a fingerprint reader. Heero scanned his eyes over the area briefly not wanting to draw too much attention by staring too long. He noticed the vents overhead and took a chance on finding an empty room and climbing up into the vent closing the vent behind him.

He passed a variety of rooms listening to the scientists and doctors below waiting for the key words to find Duo. It wasn't hard since Duo seemed to be the talk of the place. With the information he needed, Heero slide out of the vent into an empty room finding it surprisingly easy to find a doctor's coat to slide into and hiding the hat inside the coat pocket to keep it hidden that he wasn't really a doctor.

Though he did get a few looks as he walked around, no one approached him about being there. The halls of the research area looked the same, but one particular door he ran across drew his attention. Made completely of Gundanium alloy, it stood out compared to the others. It didn't appear to have a latch or a handle to open it looking like another part of the wall, which was just weird to him. Remote control entry maybe? There were no guards in front of it; however, plenty of guns sat pointing towards the door from the walls as if to keep whatever was inside from coming out alive along with more than enough cameras to catch sight of anyone that entered or exited the room.

Heero frowned staring at it for a moment. He needed to get to the control room and knock out the systems that controlled the guns, the cameras, and hopefully the door as well. Moving on, he kept his eyes peeled. It would help to have something giving him a clue to where to go. He would have to follow instinct. Further away down the next hall he found what he was looking for.

Three cameras were outside the control room. It meant he'd have to be quick because whoever was inside would know he was there. It also meant he ran the risk of them setting off an alarm that would have the whole place on lock down and the two hostages on further watch. How was he going to get inside unnoticed?

"Hey you." Heero tensed at the voice, his hand itching for the gun hidden on his body as he slowly turned around staring up at the guard who was holding a box of tools and empty syringes in his hand. "Get these to the guys at the control room. I'm getting tired of walking around and looking for the place. All these damn halls look the same." The boxed was pushed into his hands before he had a chance to speak, a grunt slipping from his lips from how roughly the guard forced the box on him.

"Damn it," the guard said scowling. "I hate coming over to the researcher side. You guys are so creepy with all your weird experiments and stuff." As if on cue, they heard the screams coming from one of the doors further down the hall that made the guard involuntarily shiver. "I'm getting out of here. Take care of that, will ya?" He pointed to the box when he said it before he was striding away quickly to get away from the tortured yells.

At the very least it wasn't Duo's voice. But that didn't make him feel any more comfortable. Looking down at the box he frowned before he looked over to the control room door again starting to walk over to it. It was convenient but he was hoping this was all luck and not some kind of trap that he was starting to be subconscious about. The researchers inside didn't seem surprised to see the box in his hand, as if this was a normal occurrence for them. One of the two inside came over and grabbed the box, the other staring up at the large screen in front of him like he was watching the latest horror movie.

"Come on, subject 02, you can do better than that," the researcher said into the mic on the control panel. "You're our pride and joy, the only experiment to ever perform at hundred percent. Your body thrives off the Fly-Z like no other." He seemed to smirk at the screen. "A little bit of water shouldn't be a problem right?"

Heero walked over to get a closer look. The sight of what he saw wrenched at his heart. He saw Duo, arms and legs stretched and spread by the chains hanging from both the ceiling and the floors. He saw blood, lots of blood. More than should be humanly possible gathered below the body. His lover's braid had unraveled caked with blood as well, much like his body was covered in it. Right now there was a device strapped over his nose and mouth, his body taunt as he struggled to breathe, water gushing down from a hose through the ceiling that didn't seem to relent even as the body struggled to get away from it.

The rage Heero felt coursing through his body was unstoppable. He snapped before he could even stop himself. The first one he attacked was the scientist taunting Duo. It was a simple action that resulted in death as he reached out grabbing the man's head and twisting his hands quickly snapping the neck and letting the body fall to the floor in a heap. The other scientist freaked out, his eyes wide in horror at the sight of what happened to his comrade. But Heero didn't even give him the chance to yell, grabbing his face and slamming his head down to put a dent in the floor, not caring if he lived through it or not. He moved to the control panel, typing into the keys quickly and ending it with frustration to see that it was locked. Damn it! He needed the code to the door!

Frustration was growing in him, his eyes turning up to the screen in panic as he saw Duo's body still. He needed to hurry, there wasn't much time left. Closing his eyes he concentrated, his fingers resting on the keys before his eyes twitched and he saw it. It must have been what Duo had done before, reaching into the circuitry and searching out the codes he needed, his fingers responding automatically to hear the resounding beep of the door opening. Good, now the guns and cameras. He shut them down, his eyes flickering more as he searched out the last thing he needed. Hearing Duo's naked body fall onto the bloody floor was all Heero needed to hear to know that Duo had been released from his restraints. The only thing left to him was to put up a code block on the system to keep it from being used before he was opening his eyes and stepping back from the monitor seeing Duo's body still lying there with the mask on.

Urgency made him move quickly, rushing out of the room and down the hall, trying not to look like he was running as he willed for Duo to be ok. The door was open. No one had come to this part of the hallway yet otherwise he was sure they'd panic. Inside Duo was still lying on the floor and Heero moved quickly, kneeling down and unstrapping the mask from his face letting the water spill out on the floor not caring that he was being soaked in it too. Worried, he quickly took the Fly-Z he had hidden on him and stuck it in Duo injecting it into his blood.

He almost got worried when there was no response to it. But when Duo's eyes opened suddenly, he felt relieved even as Duo rolled over coughing and choking throwing up the water that had been forced into his body. He wheezed, his body seeming weak as he tried to push himself to his feet slipping in the water.

"Careful," Heero said slowly helping him to his feet. He felt the body tense at his touch and frowned not liking the reaction one bit. Duo looked startled, his eyes wide as he shivered from the cold. Should he be shivering? His violet eyes seemed dim to him, almost deadened by how blankly they stared at him. Frowning, Heero reached into his clothes pulling out the uniform of Treize's faction before he reached out to hand them to him. The fact that Duo recoiled from him literally ate at his heart reminding him of the time he'd been tackled when Nurse Sicily had first went to see him. But they needed to hurry. It'd only be a matter of time before they were found.

"I won't hurt you," Heero said hating that he had to say these things to the man he'd devoted his heart to. "But we can't get out of here unless you put these on." It took a moment for Duo to even nod his head, eyes looking dead before he reached out taking the clothes from him. He hadn't spoken since Heero found him. That was worrisome. Was he afraid to talk? What had these guys done to him?

He coughed more clearing his throat as he dressed, the water used beforehand to rinse away the blood. His movements slow, steady as if afraid to move too much or he'd feel pain. Though the marks themselves were gone, Heero could see the redness of skin where it looked like new skin had grown in around his body. They looked tender, as if they could probably hurt if he touched them. He wondered if Duo was feeling pain now or just remembering the pain now that the Fly-Z was in his system again. They'd toyed with him, found some way to remove the Fly-Z's effects enough to make him feel the pain before injected him again to make sure he didn't die. He frowned. He didn't like it, not one bit. There were more people he wanted to make pay for the pain they caused, but for now he needed to focus on getting Duo out of there. Maybe when they got back, he'd bring Wing Zero out here and destroy the whole thing. That would definitely let some steam off.

Duo was dressed, finally really looking at him for the first time since he got there. He seemed to gain a little of that glow back in his eyes and stood up straight now that he wasn't so naked, so exposed. Heero wanted to question him, to ask him how he was doing, to tell him everything would be ok. But instead he just gave a nod of his head as he started for the door only waiting for Duo to follow before he left. They'd have to find some boots, hopefully before anyone noticed. But at least Duo was able to curl the long hair up into his hat some kind of way. He just hoped the others were having better luck.

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Trowa found Relena with ease, his experience telling him she would be on the upper level where the higher up people would hide. It hadn't been easy to get there either, using the laundry chute to climb up to the top floor. Relena was kept captive by two guards at her door. It was easy to knock the two guards out simultaneously and drag the two bodies into the guest bedroom to restraint and gag them. He was lucky that the enemy didn't think to put a camera here or else the strategy would never have worked out…which was strange considering who it was being kept inside the room.

Relena jumped up from the bed at his entry. As he took his hat off letting the long bang fall free, the look of relief seemed to spread across her face. "I'm so glad to see your face," she said smiling as she walked over.

"We're here to rescue you and Duo."

"Duo?" She blinked stopping in front of him before she frowned. "I didn't know they had him here too. Why would they capture him too?"

"That's…something we'll explain to you later," he said pulling out the disguise before handing it to her. "Please wear these. We need to get back to the others before the enemy grows suspicious." He turned his back letting her dress quickly before the two of them headed out. "If everything goes right, we'll make it out before the meeting is over. Aftewards, it's just a matter of getting back to the shuttle."

"Wait, there's something I have to tell you."

He frowned, waiting beside the laundry chute as he looked back at the queen wondering what it was she had to say that looked like it was important. From the look on her face it was crucial information that could probably affect the outcome of their mission. "What's wrong?"

"White Fang," Relena said swallowing and staring up at him. "The leader of White Fang…he's…"

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He wanted to be done with this mission for more than one reason. One being that he wanted to get as far away from Treize as possible, but the main reason was to have Duo and Relena back safe and sound. He felt a little guilty for wanting Duo back more, but he knew it was because he was in more danger than the queen. Whether Duo died or not wasn't a big deal to them. Or maybe it was seeing as they took him alive. But that only made it worse since the only reason they would have for taking him would be to experiment on him. They knew about the Fly-Z. And they knew about how to nullify its effects. He didn't like it one bit. He wanted to be out there helping to look for him, but he needed to stay to keep up appearances.

Treize seemed his ever calm self, sitting at the table and swinging his crossed leg casually like it wasn't anything new to be waiting on a diplomatic leader to show up. He glanced at Wufei from time to time, giving him a reassuring smile that made Wufei blush and look away quickly. He stood beside him, keeping his gaze steady on the table more so than his supposed leader. He was here pretending to be the Romefeller Representative's personal guard. He wasn't even sure how long he'd been playing this role now, pretending to protect someone he wanted dead. But he was finding it harder to hate the man the longer he stayed near him. He needed to escape, to get away before he found it too hard to. That was going to be his plan as soon as they got back. They'd have no need for Treize anymore besides the Fly-Z.

"Sorry to keep you gentlemen waiting. Let's proceed with the meeting." Wufei tensed up at the sound of the voice, his mouth gaping open before he caught himself and closed it reaching up to tilt his hat down more as he tilted his head back just enough to peek under the rim of it. The shock registered on his face before he could stop himself, seeing a man sitting before him that should have been dead months ago. Even wearing the silver mask on his head, that voice and those graceful movements could belong to none other than Milliardo Peacecraft.

Milliardo seemed to catch his eyes, giving a smirk in his direction before returning his attention to Treize. Did he know who he was even with him in this disguise? Was he suspicious at all of why he was there? Wufei felt the cold sweat going down his back before he felt Treize reach up and hold his hand beneath the table. Whatever magic the man was using, it worked to help calm him down as he regained his composure feeling the soft, warm hand slip away from his again.

"My name is Zechs Merquise," the man said making Wufei frown at the name. He'd never heard it before. Was he wrong? Was this man just some secret twin that no one knew about? Maybe it explained why he wanted to protect Relena if she was really his family. This, at least, was what he wanted to believe but that platinum hair was almost like a trademark for their family. This was most definitely Milliardo Peacecraft. "I am the leader of White Fang. We're having this meeting to discuss what the plan of action is for the Gundanium alloy."

"As I can remember from our agreement," Treize said leaning back in the chair far too relaxed for someone in the presence of enemies. "Since I'm in touch with a person who knows how to use Gundanium alloy, we agreed that I would make two mobile suits with them and as payment, you would receive one of those suits."

"That was the agreement, yes," Zechs said grabbing a glass of red wine from the table and taking a sip of it. "But now I have no more need of your assistance."

Treize frowned but otherwise didn't seem all too alarmed as he sat there, eyes watching the man across from him. "Interesting. Even after signing the papers in agreement to our plans?"

"I have a hard time working with people I'm in disagreement with me." Zechs sat the cup down on the table, looking across at him as he seemed to smirk more. "Because despite what you say, you really do love the Earth, do you not?"

"…I won't lie and say that I don't."

"…And yet even knowing that you would willingly join sides with a man who hates the Earth?" Zechs stood up from the chair. "I love the colonies, but I hate the fact that they are cast aside like mere animals as if they don't share the blood of humans. The ones that cast them away are the people of Earth."

"There are some that would probably wish the colonies completely destroyed," Treize admitted staying in place as he watched the other man walking his way. While he seemed to stay calm himself, Wufei felt himself tensing reaching for a sword at his side that wasn't there. This was dangerous. And yet Zechs still had his sword strapped to his side putting him on alert even more. "However, not everyone thinks that way. I happen to love both Earth and the colonies."

"Interesting," Zechs said stopping beside the chair before his sword was pulled and the tip was pressed to Treize's neck, drawing blood even as the icy blue eyes stared up at the man without a single fear in them. Wufei, on the other hand, felt like he was having an internal panic effect. He reached out, maybe a little too quickly grabbing the blade not seeming to care that it cut into his skin making him bleed. Zechs seemed pretty amused by the action, his lips drawn up in a partial smirk as he stared. "Relax, little guard, I have no intentions of hurting your leader. Not here, anyhow."

"Jin?" The look on Treize's face surprised him being the first time he generally showed shock or concern for anyone. But he calmed himself quickly, reaching into his pocket ignoring the laugh from Zechs as he pulled out the handkerchief quickly tying it around Wufei's hand to stifle the bleeding not bothered in the slightest by the cut on his neck or the blood from Wufei's hand getting on him. Wufei barely even noticed that Zechs had pulled the sword away and sheathed it again starting back to the other side of the room as if satisfied with the results of his actions.

His eyes were still staring in shock at Treize's actions. He seemingly showed no regards to his own life, but as soon as Wufei was injured he changed. The fact that Treize's hands seemed to shake a bit caught his attention, but then it was lowered down into his lap hidden from sight, Treize returning once more to that nonchalant personality.

"If we are done with this meaningless meeting," Treize said slowly pushing up to his feet. "I'd like to return to my ship before Romefeller learns of my absence."

"That's fine," Zechs said resting his hands on the chair he stood behind as he looked across the table at them. "After all, your true intentions in coming here were to take back 02 and the queen, correct?" Treize didn't even react which was far better than Wufei did, his frown deepening even as he felt the ache pulsing from his hurt hand. "Our use for 02 is completed for now and the queen would be safest with you." Whether he was talking to Treize or Wufei at that last part he wasn't sure seeing as the head did turn a little in his direction. "Don't worry. I'll come get them when the time has come."

Wufei shivered staring at the man across from them. Was this man really Milliardo Peacecraft, the same man they'd worked beside for years who was against fighting and killing? Did his personality really become so warped? How had he lived? It was true they never found the body and only pieces of the gundam but it still made no sense that he lived. Amnesia maybe? Well it wasn't like he could ask since he was still playing as Jin. Hell, Treize didn't know his name yet, right?

"Come along, Jin," Treize said standing up. "Let's get you back so we can treat your wound."

"Ah…yes sir," Wufei said frowning before he followed him. He glanced back once before he was left out the door, wishing he could see more of what lay beneath that mask. When they made it back to the shuttle, the first thing Treize did was take him into the back to treat his wound. Despite protesting, Wufei found himself in the awkward situation of Treize sitting in front of him tending to the stitches he didn't think the man was capable of handling. He didn't seem to mind that he was getting blood on his hands, even though Wufei had dripped a good deal of it onto his clothes earlier when he grabbed the sword.

When he was finished and all bandaged up, Wufei thought he could evade this weird moment by escaping to the front to wait for the others. He thought Treize would return to normal and pretend the whole thing never happened while making snide and sometimes lucid jokes about him while picking at his fake names. He hadn't expected the other to pull him into his arms and hold him tight like he was some final lifeline. He knew his eyes were wide in shock, his lips parted with nothing to say even if he wanted to speak.

"Never do something so foolish again," Treize said into his ear sending a shiver down his body despite the situation. "There is no reason to put yourself in danger for me."

"…I'm playing as your personal guard, aren't I?" Wufei said frowning slightly as he pulled back looking down at the man. "It's my job to…" He stopped speaking, the look in the eyes of the man before him almost startling himself. He'd never seen Treize in such a weakened state, the definite signs of fear reflected in his eyes. But in the blink of an eye, the look seemed to die away as Treize broke the gaze looking towards the front of the shuttle at the sound of voices.

"It sounds as though everyone is here now," The eyes returned to his and that icy, calculating look was back as Treize stood reaching out and grabbing Wufei's uninjured hand to pull him to his feet. "Shall we check on the mission's success?" He smirked letting the hand go and turned heading towards the front leaving Wufei standing back to stare at the man's back anxiously before he started to follow. Whatever that had been, it wasn't normal. What was Treize thinking about? Why had he looked scared? He wasn't sure if he was ready for the answer.

TBC…

Yay success! I think...