The Kingdom of Taigaria was no more, in its place was a newly formed people's republic, governed by the revolutionary party that committed a heinous regicide.
The year is After Revolution 021, Operation Silent Ewe. Heero Yuy, a top operative of the Specials was sent to seek out and assassinate the last known heir to the late Grand Duke Peacecraft.
Heero tracked his target down to a remote outpost village in the Sanc mountain ranges. After months of chasing crumpling paper trails that lead to dead ends, he was glad for the change of scenery.
Commander Une expected updates of any possible leads, but, Heero scoffed as he shrugged on an old and worn hunting jacket, Headquarters could wait until he had visual confirmation of the target.
Stepping out of the decrepit hunter's cabin that served as his temporary hideout, he slung a rifle over his shoulders and headed down the grassy slopes, descending onto the village like a folktale wolf.
The schoolhouse was a one room stone structure at the east end of the settlement, Heero found a comfortable spot by the edge of the woods to observe.
He heard it before his eyes caught her in the morning mist, a young maiden in a heavy, blue linen dress rode down the dirt footpath on a black bicycle, the bell rang with each bump and dip in the road.
She slowed in front of the schoolhouse and swung a leg over the seat and hopped off in one smooth motion, leaning her bicycle on the wall beside the door and shook out a key from the folds of her dress. She opened the creaky wooden door and went in, leaving it open.
It didn't take long before the window shutters were all opened from the inside, and the woman reappeared at the door, broom in hand, sweeping yesterday's dust out of the room and down the well-worn stone steps.
Children dressed in the regional colours of red and white filed in by twos and threes, older ones leading the younger, fourteen in all when the morning recitations began.
Heero noted the time on his pocket watch, she was alone until eight-thirty in the morning, and school should let out by five-thirty in the evening. It wouldn't be hard to make her disappear.
He stayed until the voices of the children were replaced by the clear diction of the young woman, their teacher, as the day's lessons started. She taught well enough, perhaps the children will miss her. But the Bureau will send a replacement as soon as he files his report. Being a teacher in the new republic was a cushy job.
"The Peacecraft was confirmed sighted in a village thirty kilometres north of New Port," Lady Une adjusted her glasses to scan the report in her hands, "I'm sending in two additional agents to ensure her termination."
Treize raised his head to cock an arched brow at his second in command, staring at her from across his desk, stacked so full of documents that not one inch of the surface was showing, "Yuy is one of our best, Lady, I doubt he needs help handling a solitary maid."
"Under normal circumstances perhaps, but given the target's profession, and Yuy's history…" Une shifted her weight from one foot to the other, "…his psychological history with missions that involve minors, I thought it prudent to have insurance."
"A school teacher?" Alex laughed at the transmission, "Meuller can you believe our luck?"
Meuller squinted at the print out and grinned from ear to ear, "She's a young one, huh? Maybe we'll have a little fun before we dispatch her."
"Don't make me jealous!" Alex slapped the other agent on his bottom as they left their barracks, Alex jumped into the sidecar and propped his boots up on the windshield, "It's a long ride, you drive the first leg."
Heero did a quick full body stretch and hopped on both feet to get his blood flowing. Spring was well on its way but evening temperatures were still frosty, and the cabin was draughty as a sieve.
His plan was simple, acquire target, dispatch target, dispose the body in the fresh grave he dug in the woods this afternoon, and he should be back at Headquarters in time for the midnight report.
Heero stalked down the path down to the teacher's residence, and circled the little cottage, annoyed as he realized the bicycle was not there.
He walked the path back to the school in the rosy dusk, only to find her bicycle still leaning by the open door, the soft light of a gas lamp flickered inside. Heero cursed silently and ran to the wall and ducked under a window.
Peering in, he saw the woman sitting with a small girl no older than nine, her hand draped over the child's smaller one, tracing letters in a workbook. Heero sighed and crouched back down, he'd wait for the child to go home.
The loud purring of a motor engine interrupted his planning, it was getting closer and fast. Heero sprang onto his feet and slipped behind a stand of big elms in the school yard.
The motorbike ripped down the dirt road and stopped right at the front steps of the schoolhouse, the harsh headlight shone into the doorway. Heero realized with a start that the two men were wearing the Specials grey uniforms. The one of darker complexion climbed out of the sidecar and leapt through the door, the blond agent followed suit with a devilish grin.
The door slammed close, desks and chairs crashed against the stone walls. The woman's voice said something in an alarmed tone, the young girl let out a shrill scream.
Blood rushed in Heero's ears, he ran to the door and ripped it open. The teacher stood holding a chair against her chest, using its metal legs to keep the two men away from the young girl. When he saw the child hiding behind the woman's skirts, her little girl dress ripped at the shoulders and terror in her big watery eyes, Heero felt his heart burn cold with rage.
The two agents were toying with the woman like a pair of cats with their prey, but their laughter died when Heero opened the door, dark against the blinding headlights of the motorbike.
"What have we here, Meuller?" One agent mewed to the other, "You know I'm not into foursomes."
"Oh please, like he's my type!" The grinning one cackled and fingered his pistol, raising it to aim at the intruder, "For the Revolution!"
Heero moved in a blur, knocking the pistol out of the man's hand, and pinning the offending arm between his own. He slammed that smug face into the stone floor with a pivot of his hips, and twisted the arm to dislocate the man's shoulder.
The remaining agent turned his attention away from the girls and pulled out a collapsible baton from his belt, turning to face Heero, "How dare you attack a Revolutionary Guard!"
Heero kicked the pistol toward the door and rose to his feet, locking eyes with the other man. They shifted and circled, testing each other for an opening. The man went for a strike to Heero's temple, this was the chance Heero has been waiting for.
Blocking and twisting in one fluid move, Heero grabbed and pushed the offending hand down, while the edge of his other hand connected with his opponent's chin. The man's teeth clacked loudly. Not letting go of the baton hand, Heero wrapped his other arm around the man's neck and dropped the two of them to the ground, where he planned to finish the job.
Heero saw the muzzle-flash before feeling its impact, pain burst through his left shoulder. The man in his grasp jerked and twisted, then went completely still.
The blond agent, who Heero thought he had knocked out, was standing there with a toothless bloodied smile, the pistol smoked in his good hand, other arm dangling limply. He wobbled on his feet slightly, clearly still disoriented.
He was insane, Heero thought, or he was one of the drugged up boys. The Specials were infamous for supplying their agents with mind altering substances, empathy blockers that allowed the agents to carry out terrible atrocities. Either way, he had just killed his own partner.
The headlights of the motorbike finally ran out of juice and died, leaving the schoolhouse in darkness, the oil lamp long since extinguished.
Heero let the dead body fall to the ground, and turned to face the maniac, the twisting motion brought stabs of pain in his wounded shoulder. He could no longer hear the sobs of the small girl, and realized he'd also lost track of his target.
A chair flew over Heero's head and smashed into the agent's face, and he crumpled to the floor.
The teacher ran past him and said to the girl, "Keep your eyes closed Rosy!" She picked up the agent's pistol and shakily aimed it at the man's head.
Heero got up with a groan, another gunshot was sure to draw out the whole village. He walked over and took the weapon from the woman's hands, took out the mag and stuffed it into his pockets.
Pulling a knife out from his pack, he quickly slashed the tendons of the agent's hands and feet, the man was never going to be a threat to anyone again.
Heero was suddenly very, very tired, the edges of his vision blurred and shrunk to a small dot, he sat back on the stone floor, the room tilted like he was on a boat.
A soft warmth enveloped him, confused, Heero looked up to find the woman, his target, leaning over him. Her hair draped around and tickled his face, the whites of her worried eyes shone in the near-darkness.
"Thank you for saving us," He heard her say softly, "Rosy, go get the village medic, please."
Heero felt the rush of wind from the little girl's skirt as she ran past, surprised at her fortitude given the brutality she'd just witnessed at such a tender age.
The totality of the situation struck him all at once, and he barked out a dry laugh. He squinted at the woman's face, but her features blurred in and out of focus.
"Relena Peacecraft," he managed to mumble out before his consciousness left him, "I was supposed to kill you."
Tbc.