::Chapter One::
He woke up a little later bathed in the fading afternoon light. Even in this state, he was conscious of being watched. He kept still, listening in on the conversation going on above him.
"Luna! What am I gonna do? I can't keep him here forever! Mom's bound to find out about him and he had his energy sucked and I don't think he'll be up any time soon!!!" Her voice had taken on a whining tone. Apparently the other person thought so too.
"Serena stop complaining! It's your own fault for bringing him here. How did you ever get mixed up with someone like him, anyway? He must have been in some sort of trouble to have wounds like that." He felt the person studying him before continuing. "It's odd though...with these wounds...and even after having his energy sucked...he was still able to get up?"
"Yup! Get up and threaten me at gunpoint!!!!" He could almost imagine the girl pouting, arms crossed.
He heard the other person sigh.
"Honestly Serena...how do you get yourself into these situations?" The person had a sharp british accent and was female.
"LUNA!! This is a new one even for me!"
'Luna' sighed heavily. "You'd better go and make sure you cleaned up all that blood...your mother would have a fit, and THEN how would you explain it to her?"
"Ok...keep an eye on him, would ya?" She shuffled out the room.
He waited a moment before sitting up. He'd take care of this 'Luna' character first; then go after the other one. They knew too much about him already and he couldn't take the risk of them telling anyone.
It was then that he noticed where he was.
He was in a bed, under a soft lavender comforter. A lavender comforter with white bunnies and yellow crescent moon prints. Somehow he guessed this was HER room. He threw off the covers in disgust. Suddenly he froze; Felt the hair raise on the back of his neck. He was being watched. Turning swiftly, he raised his arm in an attack, muscles tense, coming face to face with-
A cat? He frowned. Wait. Where was that 'Luna' character? Had she somehow slipped out? But he'd only heard one person leave. So where was..? He suddenly wished he had his gun. Where had that girl put it? The cat meowed loudly. He ignored it, suddenly remembering. The disk! Where was it? He quickly scanned around the room. It was gone again?! Just how many times was he going to loose it?
He kicked himself mentally. That was twice already he'd managed to botch things up. Mistakes were unacceptable...they put the mission in jepardy, slowed everything down. But one thing was for sure. There had better be something worthwhile on it to cause him this much trouble.
That girl, he thought. She and her friend must have it. What if they were looking at it right now? No one but himself and Dr. J were supposed to see! It was classified information! He rushed towards the door, but was suddenly intercepted by the cat. He stepped over it, but it only entwined itself further around his legs. Growling in frustration, he picked the cat up by the scruff of its neck and tossed it on the bed dismissivly. Before the cat could move, he was out the door and looking around. It was then that he noticed his arm.
It had been bandaged up, and so had his leg. The blood had been carefully cleaned from his body. Had that girl done this? Even when he'd threatened her life?
Oh well. He'd never asked for her help. And a few bandages weren't going to change his mind. He still had a mission, and he wasn't going to let her jeopardize it. Pausing, he flexed his limbs, testing them for any vulnerablity. They still felt a little stiff, but already he could tell they were beginning to heal. Good. He'd need all his senses to get back to his gundam. Turning, he headed down the stairs, oblivious to the cat's suspicious eyes.
I have to warn Serena!, Luna thought worriedly. That guy could be dangerous. She ran out the door after him.
Serena sighed. She'd checked the stairs and the bathroom, and double checked again after that. Yep. She'd gotten all the blood up. And there had been a lot too! Frankly, she didn't know how the guy was even alive right now. But he seemed to be doing fine, and Luna had assured her he was just in a harmless sleep. She was about to leave the bathroom, when she noticed the disk and gun on the floor.
She went over to the items. Picking up the disk, she puzzled over what to do with the gun. She really didn't want to touch it, but she couldn't just leave it there for her Mom to find. Drats! Sighing, she carefully picked it up as well. Glancing at the disk, she felt her curiosity once again peak. What was on it? That guy had put up such a fuss about it, but it just looked like an ordinary music cd to her.
She twirled it in her hand.
Alright Serena, you don't want to get involved in this.....just give the guy his cd, and stay out of it.
But she couldn't help but wonder what was on it.
Remember... curiosity killed the cat...
She giggled at herself. "Oh well, but I'm not a cat am I?" Skipping out the bathroom, she made her way down the hall to her father's office. Once there, she shoved the disk into the hard drive and turned up the volume. That was about the only thing she knew how to do on the thing...that and play video games. Computers definitely weren't her cup of tea. Imagine her surprise when a strange screen appeared on the monitor.
"What?? What's this??" She'd been expecting music...but what was this?! She stood there blankly trying to figure out what to do. She didn't notice a menacing Heero creeping silently up behind her. He was almost on her when -
"Serena!! LOOK OUT!!!"
She turned around swiftly, coming face to face with the angry boy. Atleast, he looked angry....it was hard to tell, he'd worn that expression since she first saw him.
He swore softly. Almost. He'd almost had her. If not for that 'Luna' character...but when he turned his head, he only found the same glaring black cat he'd tossed on the bed. If only he had his gun- his gun! She was holding it carefully in her hand, as if it were an evil filthy thing.
Just as well. She obviously didn't know how to use it, he could see that from the way she was holding it so gingerly. His icy glare turned even colder, and the girl winced. Shoving her roughly, (and rather rudely) aside, he sat down at the computer. Might as well see what was on the mysterious disk while a computer was at hand. He begin typing rapidly.
"Uh.....sorry about that!" The girl sounded sheepish, as if she had simply been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. As if this weren't some top secret disk created by an evil organization. "I thought it was just a music cd..." He didn't respond.
"How's your arm? I couldn't do much for it...I hope it was enough. But I did manage to get a C in first aid!" She gave a nervous laugh.
He ignored her.
She frowned. She was starting to get seriously steamed here. How dare this guy ignore her? She felt Luna hop lightly to her shoulders.
"Serena," she whispered. "I think you should be careful....I sense a strange energy coming from him."
"Luna...you sense something strange from everyone." She replied frivoulously. Luna sweatdropped. Why didn't she ever listen?
Serena leaned over the boy's shoulders.
"Excuse me, but do you think you could tell me your name? I can't just go around calling you nothing forever. My name's Serena." She laid the gun carefully, absently, on the desk beside the computer. He eyed it, eyes narrowed, keeping silent.
You won't be around forever, Serena... He thought to himself. Just as soon as he finished looking these plans over, he'd be done with her. These plans....it was strange. If he didn't know any better, he'd say they were the designs to some sort of new mobile suit....possibly even a Gundam. But... that couldn't be right. There were only seven Gundams, counting Wing zero and Epyon. The Talgeese had been destroyed, and as far as he knew, his first gundam, 01 was still on earth somewhere. But here they were, staring him right in the face. The plans to some new and mysterious Mobile Suit.
He shook his head.
Who'd made these? The design was similar to the other Gundams, and the scientists were the only ones who could successfully make Gundams......but what were they doing in an ENEMY base? Whose side were they on anyway? He felt sudden confusion cloud his mind. And if there was a new Gundam, then that meant that there would be a new pilot as well...but who?
"Duo! Have you found him yet?," an anxious Quatre asked. Duo shook his head. He had gone a deathly pale color.
I'm sorry Heero... He hadn't realized the possibility that Heero could be inside the base. He'd just rushed in, headfirst, destroying. He WAS the 'Great Destroyer' afterall...Shinigami, the god of death. Something had been going on in that base...something they had been trying to keep quiet. Despite their efforts however, rumors had still leaked out. Disturbing rumors about the construction of another Gundam.
But where had they gotten the Gundanium Alloy to make it? Something just hadn't seemed right about that story. And so he'd decided to take matters into his own hands and destroy the base. Regardless, they didn't need any more Gundams trampizing around; Especially ones that were working for OZ. And even if they weren't building a Gundam, they were working on something...Hilde had found that out for him.
And so he'd destroyed the base.
Halfway through, a hysteric Quatre had appeared on his moniter. He'd found Wing Zero, located about three miles from the base in an old harbor. If Zero was there, then that meant that Heero was bound to be near too. But what are the chances of him being in THIS base? And at THIS particular time?
No, Heero wasn't here. He couldn't be. He wasn't. And even if he was, he wouldn't let himself be killed. Not that guy, Heero Yuy.
That's when he heard the explosion.
Heero was here...that's why the base had exploded. He must have planted the explosives. He felt a surge of relieve. Relieve that was short lived, when as the hours wore on, there'd been no sign of the brooding teen. And Zero was still untouched. They'd searched the rubble of the base, careful not to let themselves be discovered by officials. But they'd found no sign of Heero.
He can't be dead.. Quatre thought to himself. Duo was growing desperate and Quatre was near tears. Suddenly the blond's head shot up.
"Quatre! What is it?," Duo's cobalt blue eyes scanned the blond's carefully.
"Wing Zero!!!" He gasped out, clutching his chest. Duo cocked his head in confusion. "Wing Zero...remember? Zero has the ability to tell the future! So maybe we can use it to find out about Heero..." He trailed off. Or one of the possible futures of the him, anyway. Zero never really gave straight answers... And did he really want to find out if Heero was gone? But then again, he could be lieing somewhere, hurt or dieing..
He made up his mind.
An hour later, the two had rented a boat and diving equipment. They decided that Quatre would go down, since he seemed to possess some uncanny sensory ability. And after all, Quatre had created Zero. He dived in, with Duo carefully keeping watch. After sinking several hundred feet, he came to the eery head of the Gundam. Even unactivated, the gundam emitted power. Quatre shivered. He hadn't been able to keep control the last time he'd piloted Zero. But you're not going to pilot him, a voice in his head shouted. You just want to konw if Heero's alright.
The lifeless eyes stared out at him coldly.
He sighed, opening the hatch and climbing inside.
"Quatre!! Are you ok down there?" The voice of Duo startled him slightly. He smiled.
"Yes, I'm fine," he spoke back into the clear transmission. It felt strange to be back inside Zero. The last time he'd sat here, he'd almost killed Trowa. He sat still for a moment, getting refamiliar with the controls and calming himself. Finally, he activated the Gundam. Wing Zero came to life.
For a while, nothing happened.
He wasn't sure how long he sat there. Hours. Days. But it couldn't have been more than thirty minutes. Suddenly he felt a strange sensation, and the screen came to life. Quatre was awed. He saw it all. Heero, holding tight to the disk. Heero, being shot twice. Heero crawling through the ventilation. And then Duo, destroying the base. After that, Zero was silent, and the screen went dark.
Quatre gasped.
"Wait!," he cried. "This can't be all!! Where is Heero! Please Zero, you have to tell me!!" Zero didn't answer and he began to loose hope that it ever would. How could this be? How could Zero show him everything else, but stop at the most crucial information? But then suddenly, shockingly, in a swirl of bright lights, a form began to take shape.
It was a girl. A young girl, no older than they. She seemed full of happiness and love; she radiated sunshine.
Quatre was confused.
"What does a girl have to do with Heero?"
He saw the girl in all her forms. The innocent school girl, the beautiful young warrier, and finally the elegant princess. He didn't know how he was understanding everything. Was Zero doing it? But why was he seeing her? Why was she so important? Did Heero know her? But then the screen changed once more, and he saw her again, this odd girl, but this time, this time she was being killed by some great evil.
And then Zero went silent. He was speechless.
"QUATRE! QUATRE ARE YOU THERE?!" It was Duo, calling to him. He clutched his chest, gasping for breath. He hadn't realized how hard he was breathing. His heart was racing.
"QUATRE!"
"I'm fine Duo," he answered slowly, his voice sounded hoarse. Never had he seen something so horrible.
"Quatre! What happened?! You've been down there forever!" Shutting his eyes, he took a deep breath, trying to speak calmly into the intercom.
"Duo! I know where Heero is!"
"WHAT?! He's alive?!"
Quatre nodded, then realized Duo couldn't see the gester. "He's okay, Duo!" Tears of happiness ran down the boys cheeks.
"Quatre! Where the hell is he??!," Duo asked impatiently. Now that they knew he was ok, he wanted to get to him as soon as possible.
Quatre laughed. "Duo," he began, "I know this is going to sound a bit crazy, but.." He paused, then suddenly changed his mind. "Wait, I'm coming up!" He wanted to be there face to face when he told Duo what he'd seen.
Above the water, Duo sighed. His life was all about suspense, and people keeping him in suspense. But then he grinned as the full impact sunk in. Heero wasn't dead. That was good. He didn't want another death on his shoulders, and besides that, however much Heero didn't want to admit it, he'd become to think of the cold boy as a comrade...if not a friend.
"OH CRAP!" His eyes widened. If Heero wasn't dead, and if he had been in the base when Duo had started his destructive frenzy, then....
"HE'S GONNA KILL ME!!"
"HE'S GONNA KILL ME!!!!" Serena wailed. The boy had somehow snatched his gun without her noticing and now had it pointed dangerously close to her face.
"Say goodbye, Serena," he murmured quietly, emphasizing her name in a softly sarcastic way. The girl didn't reply. Her blue tear-filled eyes simply stared into his hard prussion ones without comment. He stared back intently. So she wanted to watch as he shot her? Hmph. Well that was fine by him. His finger tightened, and he started to pull the trigger when something caught his attention. A calendar on the wall behind her head. It was november, he knew, but the year..the DATE...it was all wrong.
The year read, 2001.
But...that couldn't be! It wasn't 2001!!! It wasn't even that CENTURY! It was A.C 195!
In that split second while he was distracted, the cat leaped up, scratching the hand his gun was holding, causing him to drop it.
"Serena! Get the gun!," it screamed.
He glared. So there hadn't been another person at all....it had been the CAT he'd heard talking. Anyone else would probably have freaked out, but as it turned out, he was Heero Yuy; Perfect soldier, model agent, and a very good multi-tasker. Ignoring the fact that he'd just heard an animal talking, and not only that, but intellegently as well, he tuned back into the situation at hand. The girl made a grab for his fallen gun, but he intercepted her, reaching it himself.
He stood, glaring at the two and grasping the gun tightly. First thing first. "You," he nodded towards the cat, gun ready. "How can you talk?" The cat was silent and seemed to glare at him. His frown deepened and he aimed his gun on the confused Serena. "Talk now, or blondie gets it."
"I've always been able to talk," the cat replied stiffly. "Who are you?" He ignored her and turned his attention to the girl.
"What year is this?" She stared at him, her confusion growing.
"Um...2001...why? Did you hit your head?"
2001? Then he really WASN'T imagining things. He'd somehow been transported to another time...which explained the calendar and why he'd never heard of Juuban distract. But...how had he gotten here? His brow furrowed.
Duo...I'll kill you..., he thought again.
The thought comforted him.