Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Appleseeds ❯ Episode 9: Appleseeds ( Chapter 9 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing. Never did, never will. Everything else is mine (unless otherwise stipulated)

Episode Nine: Appleseeds (January 2-3, 280 AE)

“Did the girl discover anything useful?”

“Somewhat. She was able to confirm that there was in fact a captive taken into custody and that Heero Yuy is injured and currently at home.”

“No additional information on the captive?”

“No Grandpapa.”

“So we have no way of knowing if it's one of ours or an UNDIS.”

“No Grandpapa, should we eliminate him?”

“Yes, we cannot take any risks. The captive must be eliminated immediately.”

“I concur, Grandpapa. Striking while Heero Yuy is away from the captive is ideal.”

~*~

Noin sighed heavily as she took her place at the conference table, opposite her grim-faced agents. Wufei and Trowa solemnly stared at the tabletop while Quatre anxiously fidgeted in his seat as if he were about to burst.

“Alright, what happened last night?”

“The UNDIS recognized Trowa,” Wufei stated bluntly. “He woke up and started screaming. We had to subdue and sedate him. Sally believes we should keep under sedation until he recovers further.”

Noin raised a brow. “From the capture? I don't see how that rates as a crisis…”

“No,” Wufei cut in sharply, “from the S.A. He called Trowa by his codename, Pierrot.”

Noin swallowed a gasp. “How is that possible? Have you ever come in contact with the subject before?”

Trowa shook his head. “Not that I recall.”

“It doesn't make any sense!” Quatre finally exclaimed, unable to contain himself any further. “Pierrot was based out of L3 and his missions were only on L4 and L1… right Trowa?” Quatre asked uncertainly at the end.

“My missions didn't bring me in contact with the UNDIS… at least not the quarantined ones.” Trowa replied quietly.

“What do you mean? Trowa, what haven't you been telling us?” Quatre begged, desperation shining in his eyes.

Trowa was silent for a moment before answering slowly. “I did come in contact with a group of Reborn once.”

“You mean those UNDIS fools who allowed themselves to be brainwashed into becoming S.A. pawns?” Wufei scorned.

“They were only trying to survive Chang,” Noin admonished gently. “It's not our place to judge them. After all, they paid for their mistake with their lives.”

“I was part of the team in charge of their `disposal' three years ago,” Trowa admitted with a bowed head.

“You mean Pierrot killed them?” Quatre gasped, turning pale.

“My assignment was to arrange their transport to L2. What would happen from there was unclear, although we all knew the end result would be their extermination. There were even rumours that they were going to be used for scientific testing.”

“The secret lab on L2?” Noin asked.

“Possible. I was never able to find any details; all I was able to discover was that General Septum was in charge of the operation on L2.”

“And since that dishonourable bastard took the coward's way out,” Wufei scowled, “we have no way of knowing what actually happened.”

“We still may be able to find something in the files that we recovered from the lab,” Noin proposed, trying to curtail Wufei's upcoming rant on the injustices created by Septum's suicide.

“Are you saying that our UNDIS might have been a member of the Reborn?” Quatre asked, steering the conversation back to the original topic.

“No, I would have remembered someone as distinctive as him,” Trowa replied promptly, “but…”

“Spit it out Barton!” Wufei ordered.

“One of the names in the UNDIS mausoleum seemed familiar. I didn't realize it until now, but there was a `Hilde Schbeiker' on the list of Reborn that were shipped to L2.”

“Do you think she could have been a double agent?” Noin wondered.

Quatre crossed his arms, deep in thought. “That could be a possible link between our UNDIS and Pierrot. The other explanation would be that the UNDIS subject somehow caught sight of Pierrot on L3…”

Trowa nodded solemnly, “L3 is the only other explanation. I took great care that no one saw me on my missions on L1 and L4.”

“Don't forget that by the time Trowa became an operative, there were no UNDIS left on L1 or L4,” Noin remarked.

“What is the likelihood that our UNDIS managed to travel to L3?” Wufei questioned.

“He managed to travel to L1, not to mention undetected. And I still haven't discovered how!” exclaimed Quatre as he jumped from his seat and marched to his desk, the others forgotten and his attention clearly fixed on his current puzzle.

Noin chuckled quietly. “I suppose that this meeting is adjourned. Barton? Chang?”

“I'll go relieve Sally,” Chang responded as he rose from his seat.

“I suppose I'll try and find out more about our UNDIS,” Trowa sighed, moving to his own desk.

~*~

Duke Dermail stormed into his study and tore off his suit jacket. Rolling up his sleeves, he poured himself a glass of port from a decanter on the sideboard and drained it with large hasty swallows. Calming slightly, he poured himself another glass and began to sip at it more sedately. A second glass emptied, he poured himself a final glass and took it with him to his desk. There, he sat with a resigned sigh and stared at the vidphone.

Steeling himself, he punched a code into the vidphone, let it ring three times before disconnecting the line. He repeated the process twice more with difference codes before cutting the line one last time. Picking up his glass of port, he settled back into his chair to wait.

Dermail did not have to wait long before his vidphone began to ring. Checking the displayed code, he quickly answered the line, the screen remaining blank.

“This has got to be good, you don't often use the emergency code Duke,” the voice on the line dripped with disdain.

“How dare you use that tone of voice with me!” Dermail barked.

“Then I presume you do not need my services?” the voice mocked.

Dermail ground his teeth in irritation but held his tongue. “I have a target for you. You are in the ideal position to strike.”

“The target?”

“The Preventers' most recent captive.”

“Access to the captive is severely restricted; it won't be an ordinary job. Give me a few days, I'll see what I can do.”

“It needs to be done in all haste, before Heero Yuy returns to duty!” Dermail snapped.

“It will cost you.”

“I'll double your usual.”

“Make it triple,” the voice oozed with greed.

Dermail clenched his hands into tight fists but kept his voice level. “Fine, half now, the other half will be deposited into your account once I receive confirmation of death.”

“Then I will take care not to disappoint you Duke,” laughed the voice with thinly veiled contempt.

“If you perform this task well, Midek may deem you worthy of the inner circle of the S.A.” Dermail tried to bait his operative.

The voice on the line howled with laughter. “I will pass on your very generous incentive. I find that money is a far greater master than any individual could be, no matter how powerful.”

“Why you vile little-” Duke Dermail was cut short as the condescending voice disconnected the line.

Dermail buried his head in his hands. He comforted himself with the thought that, soon, he would not have to operate from the shadows.

~*~

Sally trudged wearily out of the elevator and headed towards her lab. Wufei had just taken over guard duty and now she had an IV treatment to concoct before she could collapse onto her cot and catch a few hours of rest. She swiped her ID card and scanned her thumbprint to open the glass sliding doors and made her way to her workstation. Yawning widely, she switched on her computer and turned to remove several vials from the small refrigeration unit next to her worktable.

“Poor boy is severely lacking in just about every single essential nutrient…” she muttered under her breath as she measured out the various components. “Oh, can't forget to change the dosage since he'll be sedated for a few more days,” she reminded herself.

“Did you need something Dr. Po?”

Sally jumped. “Walker! I didn't hear you come in!”

The young lab assistant laughed, his green eyes sparkling with mirth. “I've been here the entire midnight shift!”

“Oh, I'm sorry Walker, I didn't see you when I came in…” Sally apologized.

“It's alright,” Walker smiled, running a hand through his wavy blonde locks, “you must have a lot on your mind.” His handsome face took on a more serious expression. “You've been away from the lab a lot, is everything alright?”

“Walker,” Sally warned, “you know what I told you-”

Walker raised his hands in mock surrender. “I know, I know, curiosity killed the cat. I'm just worried, you look exhausted.”

Sally smiled tiredly. “Thank you for your concern Walker, now if you don't mind.”

“Of course, of course!” the tall assistant grinned, “I'll leave you to your work and I'll get back to mine!”

Sally nodded to herself in satisfaction before turning back to her work. She soon lost herself in carefully measuring and preparing ingredients before adding them to a large beaker that she would later siphon into an IV bag. As she was adding the final components to the beaker, she started when a steaming cup of tea was thrust into her line of vision. Snapping her head up, she stared at the grinning face of her lab assistant.

“I know, I know,” Walker pre-empted Sally, “your workstation is off-limits. But you looked like you could use a hot drink.”

Sally took the mug of steaming tea with a grateful smile. “Thank you Walker. Is your shift over?” she asked noting that he had his jacket slung over his arm.

“Yeah,” Walker smirked, “we're not all workaholics like you are Dr. Po. I've finished running the samples you gave me. I've taken the liberty of uploading them to the lab's databank.”

Sally frowned slightly. “You know that I upload everything myself.”

Walker shrugged. “Just trying to make your life a little easier Dr. Po., you really look like you could use some help. Promise you'll get some rest once you finish whatever it is you're preparing?”

“Thanks Walker, you're a great lab tech,” Sally answered, softening her glare. “And I promise to get some rest. Enjoy your day off.”

Walker winked and gave a jaunty wave over his shoulder as he exited the lab.

~*~

Early the next morning, Quatre let out a whoop of excitement as he jumped from his desk. “I finally figured it out!”

Trowa looked up from his desk and raised a questioning brow.

“It was genius!” Quatre exclaimed happily. “I can't wait to talk to him when he's awake, he has such a creative mind!”

“The UNDIS?”

“Yes, I finally managed to piece together how he got to L1! Of course he depended a lot on his cloaking device.”

Trowa gave his excited partner a pointed look.

“Oh right, you want to know how he pulled it off!” Quatre chuckled. “He snuck onboard the Preventers Investigation shuttle as part of the evidence cargo collected from the L2 base.”

“I can see how he would get past the scanners with his cloaking device but I checked the evidence cargo with my own eyes,” Trowa countered.

Quatre smiled mischievously. “Did you count the body bags?”

“Body bags?”

“Yes!” Quatre laughed with glee. “There were 23 bodies recovered from the base but 24 body bags recorded in the cargo of the shuttle. The Preventers morgue only recorded 23 bodies at intake.”

“Bold,” Trowa commented with obvious admiration.

“Isn't it brilliant?”

“What's brilliant?” Noin asked from the open doorway, attired from head to toe in her Preventers garb.

“Body bags!” Quatre chortled in delight.

“I never knew you had such a morbid sense of humour,” Noin commented dryly.

“The UNDIS stowed away on the Preventers Investigation shuttle in a body bag,” Trowa filled in the blanks for Noin.

“That's gutsy,” Noin remarked. “Well, I have to go mollify some stuffy politicians, everything under control here?

Trowa nodded, his long bangs shifting slightly with the movement.

“Good. I'll leave my com unit on vibrate so you can contact me if there are any significant developments,” Noin informed her agents before disappearing down the hall.

Quatre, still high from the euphoria of solving his latest puzzle turned back to his desk with enthusiasm. “Now, to find out more about our intriguing UNDIS! Do you known when Sally will ease him off the sedatives? I can't wait to meet him!”

“I don't know Quatre,” Trowa replied, absently gazing at his computer monitor, “Sally deemed it prudent to keep me away from her patient.”

“Oh Trowa,” Quatre sighed gently, “Don't worry, we'll get everything straightened out. I'm sure he'll understand when he finds out that you were really on our side. No one can blame you for what you had to do.”

Trowa didn't reply but watched Quatre work for several long moments, a mournful look in his eye.

~*~

Sally yawned widely and stretched in her small cot. Rubbing her eyes, she glanced at her watch and pushed herself out of bed. Grabbing the IV bag out of the locked cooling unit, she exited the lab and walked briskly towards the elevator. Scanning her card and her thumbprint, she took the elevator to the bottom level and made her way towards the small makeshift hospital room containing her latest patient.

Wufei greeted her with a nod, unfolding himself from his lotus position on the floor. “Did you get some rest?”

“Yes,” Sally nodded, “and the patient?”

“Slept soundly the entire time, not like he was going to do anything else with all the sedatives you gave him.”

Sally replaced her patient's IV with the fresh bag she had just brought down. “You never know, patients can react in unpredictable ways to sedation. And this patient is full of surprises,” she commented, checking Duo's oxygen levels.

“Everything looks good here, thanks for keeping watch.” Sally smiled, “I hate to ask, but could you go check on Heero for me? I'm worried that he's not at home resting but off cavorting on some other self-proclaimed mission.”

“Alright,” Wufei agreed. “Heero's monthly shipment just came in on the Preventers supply ship. I'm sure delivering his order would be a sufficient justification to make a house call.”

“Perfect,” Sally smirked. “Don't tell him about the patient's little incident with Trowa.”

“I'm not stupid,” Wufei grumbled. “We both know that there would be no keeping Heero away if he finds out.”

“Good. Oh, and if he's not at home, track him down and let him know he has an appointment with Mr. Needle!” Sally declared, brandishing said needle.

Wufei shook his head as he exited the room. “What is with that woman and her needles?!” he muttered to himself.

~*~

Dermail rode silently in the back of his chauffeured car, staring absently out at the passing scenery. The car came to a halt in front of the Parliament building and a uniformed attended rushed forward to pull his car door open.

The attendant bowed and tipped his hat. “Good morning Sir! Colony climate controls are rumoured to be malfunctioning today and word is that things might get a little chilly later. I took the liberty of bringing you a jacket Sir.”

Dermail absently thanked the man and allowed the attendant to help him into the jacket.

“Have a good day Sir. I hope today's outcome will be in your favour,” the attendant bowed with a flourish before disappearing into the growing crowd outside the Parliament building.

Dermail gazed disapprovingly after the chatty attendant when he felt the weight in his jacket pocket. Drawing out a small digital box, he frowned in confusion at his hand. Noticing that the device was emitting faint pulses much like a heartbeat, he finally deciphered the strangely dancing line on the screen: a heart monitor.

Pocketing the device once more, Dermail smiled for the first time in days as he made his way into the spacious lobby of the Parliament building.

~*~

Hearing a sharp knock at his door, Heero checked his apartment's monitoring equipment. Seeing Wufei standing patiently at his doorstep with a small crate in his hands, Heero quickly unlocked and opened the door.

“Yuy,” Wufei greeted with a small bow of his head. “I trust you have been getting some rest?”

Heero merely grunted in reply, stepping aside to allow his fellow agent to enter his small one-roomed apartment.

Wufei glanced around the room and took in the unmade bed and the half-finished remains of a nutrition pack. “Sally will be glad to hear that you've been sleeping and eating. Although,” Wufei placed the crate on the narrow kitchen counter, “perhaps you would enjoy something more food-like than nutrition packs?”

Heero didn't respond but moved forward to pry open the crate. Quietly examining the gleaming red apples, he nodded to himself in satisfaction and selected an apple, biting into it with vigour. Glancing up to see Wufei watching him studiously, he picked up another apple and held it out to his visitor.

“Thank you,” Wufei accepted graciously. “Could I trouble you for a knife and plate?”

The requested items were duly handed over as Heero continued to munch on his apple. Delicately placing the apple on his plate, Wufei cut into the apple with precise movements. Efficiently slicing the apple into uniform wedges, he left the core intact. Popping the first slice into his mouth, he closed his eyes in obvious pleasure. Polishing off the remaining slices, Wufei picked up his plate and made his way to the small sink.

“Don't-”

“I know Yuy,” Wufei cut him off, amusement colouring his tone. “Don't throw away the seeds. Where is the box?”

Heero produced a small, intricately carved wooden box. Wufei carefully extracted the seeds from the apple core with the point of his knife. Seeds extracted, he washed and dried them before adding them to the small mound of apple seeds within the box.

“Have any of the seeds sprouted?”

Heero glanced at the row of miniature pots lining the ledge of his room's only window and shook his head mutely.

“Ah,” Wufei observed. “Don't give up Yuy, I'm sure one of the seeds will sprout one day.”

“I hope so,” Heero finally spoke.

“Thank you for the hospitality,” Wufei pronounced with a small bow as he made his way towards the door. “I will show myself out.”

Heero watched as Wufei let himself out of the apartment before returning his gaze to the window ledge.

“I really hope so,” Heero whispered once more as he picked up the knife and began to pry the seeds out of his own apple core.

~*~

Sally was jolted out of her light doze when the shrill alarm of the heart monitor pierced the air. Rushing to her patient's bedside, she stared at the readings displayed on the heart monitor in horror.

“That can't be!” she exclaimed as she grabbed a syringe from a nearby drawer and injected it into her patient. “Come on…” she urged desperately.

The alarm continued to sound shrilly and her patient began to convulse. Punching on the com unit, Sally frantically shouted, “Trowa, Quatre I need you here stat!”

Footsteps thundered down the hall as Sally grabbed another filled syringe and plunged it into her patient's arm. Trowa and Quatre burst into the room as Sally grabbed the crash cart from the corner of the room and wheeled it next to the bed.

“Trowa, I need you to tube him!” Sally commanded, “Quatre, get him clear of these blankets, I need to restart his heart.”

Trowa quickly removed the patient's oxygen mask and opened his mouth to insert the ventilator as Sally coated her paddles with gel.

“Clear!” she shouted, paddles posed above her patient's bony chest.

The heart monitor's alarm continued to ring shrilly as the body below jolted with the shock.

“Clear!” Sally yelled again, sweat beading on her forehead. “Dammit, don't give up now!” she shouted at the limp figure below her.

Quatre remained frozen at the foot of the bed, clutching a bundle of blankets, his horrified eyes glued to the single flat line floating across the monitor.

~*~

An insistent buzzing in her pocket jolted Noin to awareness as she half-heartedly listened to politicians debate the finer points of governing. Automatically reaching into her pocket, Noin pulled out her small com unit and felt her blood freeze. Swallowing shakily, she shoved the device back into her pocket as a cold sweat began to bead on her temples.

“Is everything alright Ms. Noin?” Duke Dermail asked from across the room.

“Uh, yes of course,” Noin struggled not to stammer. “Just a small chill in the air,” she lied badly.

“Malfunctioning colony climate controls, I hear,” the Duke agreed with a sickly sweet smile on his face.

“Yes, I suppose that's it,” Noin struggled to get past her constricting throat as the message played itself over and over in head.

UNDIS Subject expired at 2134 hours. Unnatural causes suspected.

Across from her, Dermail smiled smugly as he glanced covertly at the horizontal line scrolling across his small heart monitor.

~*~

Heero dashed into the cool night air, his com unit crushed to pieces in his tightly clenched fist.

“You can't be dead Duo!” he growled at the shadows. “Not after I finally found you!”

~*~

AN: Ok… that was pretty intense to write. It's a pretty crucial chapter in the story (hint, look at the title!) Please don't let this chapter scare you off. There's lots of good stuff to come including a totally badass Trowa, relationship stuff etc. etc.

About the medical scenes, I'm not an expert so I probably made quite a few errors there. All my knowledge comes from TV shows and a few courses in Bio…

Yes, Quatre is calling Trowa `Pierrot' at certain times. This will come into play later on in the story.

So I realized that I've been a little unclear in my writing about all the different factions and what not so I've decided to rectify that (even I confuse myself most days…) I guess that means I need to rewrite some chapters but I feel like I'll lose the story if I do that now so I thought I'd cheat and do what a lot of fantasy/sci-fi novels do and provide a glossary. (And sorry, the confusion was totally my bad!!)

AE: `After Earth'. The era that began after Earth was completely evacuated.

Advantaged: Individuals' whose genes were altered while still in embryo form. Their genes are screened for genetic defects, which are then eliminated, and receive the `best' genes from both parents. `Advantaged' are only born from government approved pairings. At present, only the advantaged populate the colonies.

S.A.: `Sanctity for the Advantaged'. A political/military group, that gained power during the mid-second century AE, who believed that UNDIS were a threat to the colonies with their `defective' genes and systematically eradicated the UNDIS population.

S.A. Liberators: Military units under the command of the S.A. The Liberators were tasked with `liberating' the human race from `defective' genes, more specifically the UNDIS population. Their operations were covert at first, but soon turned to full out massacre of UNDIS populations.

S.A. Liberators ELITE: Highly trained soldiers within the Liberators often tasked with eliminating opposition against the S.A. and assassinating high-ranking public figures who were sympathetic to the UNDIS.

S.A. Reborn: UNDIS individuals who were recruited by the S.A. and officially `pardoned.' They worked as spies and informants against the UNDIS. They were later exterminated by the S.A.

UNDIS: `Unauthorized Disadvantaged'. Individuals conceived naturally without any genetic screening or authorization by the government. Under S.A. rule, UNDIS children were taken from their parents and placed in special orphanages. When they reach adulthood, they were given menial jobs and quarantined from the rest of the population. They are widely believed to no longer exist.

Rebels: Individuals who fought against the S.A. Their ranks consisted mainly of UNDIS who had fled underground although a few `advantaged' joined their cause.

Preventers: A volunteer military unit that protected the `advantaged' public against the S.A.; now an official peacekeeping force.

Gundam Ten: A super-elite group of guerrilla soldiers who fought to take down Liberator cells and overthrow the S.A. Not much is known about this group, their name is believed to come from their distinctive body armour and the number in their unit. Heero Yuy is the only publicly known member of the Gundam Ten.

Sweepers: A loosely-interconnected group of salvagers, known widely for their great technological prowess and numerous inventions. They travel around space, collecting debris and searching for new supplies of resources as well as maintaining the working order of the colonies and resource satellites. Headed by Howard, they are rumoured to be responsible for supplying the Gundam Ten with their armour and weapons, as well as one of the founding entities of the Preventers.