Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Specters ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

~ I hope everyone appreciates this chapter. I had 4 pages of it done, when my computer decided to go on the fritz. I lost all 4 pages and had to start from scratch. This chapter is only about 4 pages long. I'm extremely upset right now, and I can't decide if I should burst into tears or beat someone to a bloody pulp... Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. *mumbles* You better... *smiles* I mean... Enjoy!

Disclaimer: They're not mine. Now go away and leave me in peace. My conscience is clean!

Specters

Chapter 2

By: Penybright

Relena slowly cracked open bleary eyes. With a groan she pulled herself to her feet, wincing at the dull ache in her head. Once on her feet, she fully took in the view of her surroundings. Almost everything in her vision was white. Soft chalky flakes drifted through the air, landing on the thoroughly snow covered ground.

"God, what happened?" Relena mumbled, rubbing her temples. Everything was so fuzzy...

"Heero!" Relena exclaimed aloud. She frantically searched around her, but found he wasn't there. She figured he couldn't have gone far and began to search for him. Wrapping numb arms around herself, Relena began to trudge through the calf high snow.

As she searched, Relena became increasingly worried. Heero was out there somewhere alone and hurt. If he was conscious, he surely would have found her by now. She had no idea how bad he was hurt, and could only hope it wasn't anything to serious. From her experience, though, Heero was awful hard to get rid of. He had a habit of cheating death.

Squinting against the glare the dull sun cast off the pristine snow, Relena's breath quickened. In the distance, she thought she saw a lump of black. Fisting numb fingers into the skirt of her gown, Relena hoisted the heavy material up so she could run. When she was close enough to clearly identify the object, she stumbled to a stop. What she had hoped would be Heero, was only a dead tree stump.

Dropping her skirt, Relena sucked in ragged breaths. Each pant was accented by white clouds puffing into the frigid air. Sitting down on the stump, Relena tried to catch her breath and pull herself together. She couldn't give up yet. Heero was out there somewhere, and she was going to find him. Alive.

Once on her feet again, Relena continued to scan the horizon for any signs of Heero. As time wore on, she realized that she would have to find him soon. If he didn't die from his injuries, he would surely die of hypothermia. When Relena's thoughts were beginning to border on hopelessness, she tripped over something. Picking herself up, Relena searched for what had tripped her.

A limp frozen hand stuck out in the snow. The rest of the body was covered in a light dusting of snow, camouflaging it. Dropping to her knees, Relena scrambled over to the prone form, dusting snow from the figure's face. She almost cried for joy when she recognized Heero's familiar features.

"Heero," Relena said, shaking him lightly. "Please wake up. I know you've made it through worse than this."

She received no response from the still and quite form. Studying his face with sad eyes, something caught her eyes. Covered thinly in snow, a vibrant red stain marred the placid white. With shaking hands, Relena turned Heero on his side to view his wounds. She choked back a sob when she saw the blood soaked jacket plastered to Heero's back. Two bullet holes were ripped in the fabric, one on the right shoulder, and the other on the left side at about the middle of his back.

"Heero, please..." Relena cried, shaking him with a bit more force.

"Relena..." Heero groaned softly, opening hazy and disoriented eyes.

"I'm here," Relena confirmed.

Heero looked up at the young woman above him and had to blink several times to clear his vision. For a moment, he had thought she had wings... Giving his head a slight shake, Heero tried to organize his thoughts. As he tried to orient himself, Heero levered himself to a sitting position. As the world came into focus, he noted something odd. There was snow everywhere. The last thing he remembered, Relena and he were in a ballroom. How did they end up outside, and in the middle of nowhere for that matter?

"I'm so glad I found you," Relena intoned, her teeth chattering as she shivered uncontrollably. Heero grunted in response and painfully lurched to his feet, biting back the urge to cry out. Relena stood up after him, expectantly waiting.

The first thing that caught Heero's eye, was a plume of sooty gray smoke. It originated from somewhere inside the forest on their right.

"We should head there," Heero explained, pointing to the rising smoke plume.

"It looks a little far," Relena commented.

"It's the only option we have," Heero replied bluntly.

"All right," Relena nodded, rubbing her arms to generate some heat. Her ball gown was definitely not made for warmth.

Heero noticed Relena's shivering and her attempts to stay warm. Silently, he walked over to her. Relena gasped when Heero looped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. She didn't complain, but she was surprised.

"We should get going," Heero uttered.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#

It seemed like hours before they spotted the cottage. It was a small dwelling, settled cozily in the dense forest the two found themselves trudging through. The large, barren tress loomed overhead, their branches clacking in the wind.

"Not much further," Heero murmured somnolently.

Relena glanced at him from the corner of her eyes. He was growing increasingly tired and weak. There was no telling how much blood he had lost, but it had been significant. For the past fifteen minutes or so, he had been pushing himself. He was on the brink of exhaustion, and she only hoped he would make it to the door.

"I wanted to thank you, Heero..."

"Hn."

"No, I really mean it. You've always put yourself in harms way for my benefit. And don't try to write it off by saying your life's cheap," Relena said quickly, before he could interrupt.

"I just wanted you to know I really appreciate all you've done."

"I promised I would protect you..."

Relena continued her mostly one sided conversation. It was something to keep Heero's attention, and to prevent him from falling unconscious. Every now and then he would lapse in and out of consciousness, drowsily trudging through the snow.

By the time they reached the cottage door, Heero was beginning to drift off, murmuring incoherently under his breath. Relena raised her hand to knock loudly. She waited a few minutes, but no one answered. She tried again, pounding forcefully on the wood. Still there was no answer. Beginning to panic, Relena furiously pounded on the door, calling out.

"Is anyone there? My friend needs help. Please..."

She was answered with silence and the mocking whisper of the wind.

~ Here's a question for you: Are they even on Gaea? Or are they still on Earth? I'll let you ponder on that till the next chapter.