Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Attempted Bystanding ❯ 10 ( Chapter 11 )

Ten

Armed with new determination, Quatre left the apartment very early to join Trowa. He had woken up alone in Duo's bed and been severely confused before deathly embarrassed. No one had seen him leave the American's room, though, so he was able to work through that. He'd showered quickly and found the apartment to be empty of all but Wufei's friend and Matty. Both males had been in the rooms they'd slept.

Trowa was deep in conversation with Raymond and a guy Quatre didn't recognize—and something felt off.

Duo looked up to him as he moved into the room.

Quatre shook his head, focusing on the feeling. He was grateful his friends knew him well enough that so little a gesture make such a difference. He could feel their awareness of his presence blink on like light switches—until Trowa's friend Raymond.

It wasn't him.

Quatre focused on the new man as both Raymond and that other looked up.

"You're lying," Quatre informed the new man.

"What are you talking about?" the guy asked too quickly.

"You're lying," Quatre repeated, looking to Raymond. "Arrest this man."

Raymond stared at him in shocked disbelief as the second man rose to his feet.

"Never hesitate to follow an officer's orders," Trowa snarled at Raymond...and grabbed the other man as he tried to make a break for it.

"But..." Raymond started.

"No buts about it," Duo snapped, rising easily to his feet and looking mildly amused. "If it's a mistake, apologies can be made."

"It is!" the guy stated quickly. "It really is!"

"So what were you lying about?" Quatre asked curiously, moving around to the side of the table where the man had been sitting. He looked down to their spread of papers, then started to page through the leaflets. "This," he told Trowa, pushing one out. "And this...and..." he looked up to the new man in amazement.

The guy was staring at him in something like horror.

"What is your name, anyway?" Quatre asked curiously.

"He's Matthew Stater," Raymond said quietly.

"No, he needs to speak for himself," Quatre gave the man a curious sort of look. "I feel no duplicity in you. If you are our enemy, then he should have taken notes," he looked back to the other man. "What is your name?"

"Stater," the guy spat at him. "Two twenty-five MS specials."

"You maintain the outside of the colony," Quatre noted, tilting his head as he looked around to Heero. "Why don't you ask the lady Une to join us? She might be very interested in anything more he may have to say."

- -

Une couldn't help but feel relieved as she sat at the table with the five brigadiers. They'd questioned the man extensively, but he'd come up short on several of their questions. A few he didn't know the answer to, and a few he chose not to answer. He had become mildly panicked when he realized that Quatre would immediately call him on his lies.

The questioning of Matthew Stater had been followed by routing out a few of his cronies, but not all of them. Quatre knew there were more, but couldn't tell which ones. As it was, after they'd found most of the cronies, Quatre had swept through the ranks of the 225 specials. No more of them, at least, were traitors.

"Why couldn't you have done that a week ago?" Heero muttered tiredly, rubbing at his face.

Une was about to speak up and explain to the man that the situation hadn't been right—there were points where the man's former training gave him a different view of life entirely. Evidently, though, Quatre didn't give him that grace.

"Why didn't you get Stater with Trowa a week ago?" the blond retorted.

"Don't start bickering," Duo commanded the blond. "This is not the time or place."

"So what?" Quatre focused on him. "You're going to tell me what to do now?"

"Sure, that's what this is," Duo retorted.

"What's with you two?" Trowa asked blankly.

"Can I go back to the apartment now?" Wufei asked curiously.

They all looked at him blankly.

"Jinli should still be there," he explained.

"Jinli?" Une asked blankly. "No, you can't go back now, we just got information."

"No, we got information this morning," Wufei gave her a look.

"You're not doing anything here anyway," Heero noted.

Une looked to him in alarm.

"I wasn't the one who got the verbal confirmation about it being in the two cluster," Wufei agreed waspishly, gesturing with the stack of papers he had in front of himself. "Obviously I wasn't useful."

"I know. Why are you still here?" Heero retorted.

"Heero," Une started, trying to keep her voice calm.

They all looked at her blankly a long moment.

"Go," Heero added, gesturing at the Chinese man. "You need to explain to him that we're going on a raid and you might get killed."

"Killed?" Wufei repeated sarcastically. "You're kidding, right?"

Heero flashed him a wicked grin.

Une stared at the Japanese man in disbelief as Wufei rose to his feet and tossed his papers at Quatre.

"I don't suppose you can have supper ready by the time we get back?" Duo asked, rubbing at his face.

"I'll make it. If it's cold, that's your own too bad," Wufei turned and saluted Une formally—and darted for the door.

"Hey!" she protested after him.

"Telling him he's useless probably isn't the best tactic," Duo noted pointedly to Heero.

"That really was uncouth," Une agreed quickly, starting to rise.

"Oh, and Jinli," Duo noted to her. "He forgot to explain that. It's Wong Jinli. I guess it was his best friend until they were thirteen."

Une stopped, focusing on him sharply as the door out of the room closed. It took her a moment to recover from the shock of it as the four men watched her with interest—and she dropped back into her chair.

They were fast when they were leaving. It might take them ten minutes to get to her, but if they had a thirty second window they were gone.

She gave Duo an arch look.

"What?" Duo asked curiously, opening Wufei's folder—he and Quatre were sitting side-by-side. "So we now need to get agents," he looked to Trowa. "We need some good and quiet recon."

"And how do we do that?" Trowa asked laconically, sliding down in his seat. "Stater didn't say who he had there."

"Well damn," Duo said dryly. "All we have is a space heart who can tell motives as soon as he sees a face—it's too bad we didn't have something electronic that could transmit real-time video and audio. You know, something like a camera, only live."

Trowa gave him a very level look.

"Like, a phone," Duo said as if the notion had just occurred to him. "A phone that can transmit audio and video in real time."

"Do you feel better now?" Trowa snapped, sitting back.

"Yes, actually," Duo reassured him, sliding down in his own seat.

"You're going to wrinkle your uniform," Quatre snapped at him.

The look he gave Quatre portrayed many things that Une didn't understand—but it did make Quatre look away wordlessly.

"What is with you two?" Heero asked them blankly.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Duo retorted, making a slight gesture with one hand and looking back to his files. "Quatre can call the guys on 13 and get them to do recon around the colony."

"You've all lost your minds," Une informed them all, rising slowly to her feet and gathering up her paperwork. "I have all sorts of internal bullshit that needs my attention. You know what needs to be done, so do it."

A wicked smile crossed Trowa's face as they all stood and saluted her.

She started for the door, glancing back at them once again, then headed from the room.

- -

"Leir?" Ranger asked blankly. "What are you doing calling here?"

"They've got Matthew!" Cruz replied in a breathless sort of squeak. "They got Matthew and Chase and...and...I don't know if they realize...I shouldn't have called!" the call ended.

Ranger blinked at his phone uncertainly—then realized what that meant.

Matthew had been the one in charge of hiding the MS from 27.

He started cursing, hitting the button to dial Rab.

"Why are you calling here?" Biden, the man in charge of Rab's vid asked sweetly.

"I'm not even kidding, get him now," Ranger retorted.

The guy gave him a startled look, then turned around. The screen flickered and the entire control center came into view with Rab turning toward the screen. J was sitting on the far side of the man Rab'd been talking to.

"Leir called," Ranger informed Rab quickly. "He said that they have Matthew and Chase...I'm not sure who all else, but evidently he wasn't in custody."

Most of the people in the room froze, turning to look at him.

"Run," Rab whispered, staring at his friend. "Take or leave the prince and go...if...when did it happen?" he added.

"Leir was panicked. I have no idea."

"Go, now!" Rab ordered, stepping toward the screen in alarm. "The most time you have is the four hour transit...unless they have MS," he looked around to J in alarm.

Rabid didn't need telling twice. After all the stories he'd had of the pilots from Rab, he'd figured he didn't have much time. Compounding that with the expression in Rab's eyes...he knew it was true.

He turned to Hoss.

"What?" Hoss asked blankly.

"Evacuate the premise," Ranger snarled at him. "Get me the sedative."

- -

Zechs looked tiredly up from the screen, wondering what wonderful cuisine he was going to be offered for lunch this day—and froze when he saw Ranger holding a syringe.

So they'd been found and they were moving.

Zechs rose to his feet, backing away from the man nervously.

"Don't be difficult," Ranger suggested, moving forward. "We don't have the time for this."

"If you think I'm going to cooperate with you," Zechs returned, meeting his eyes, "then you're a fool."

"I was hoping you'd say something like that," Ranger noted, tucking the syringe into his pocket and pulling off his jacket.

Special.

Zechs realized the man was a special, not just a soldier.

The guy's first lunge was pointed enough, but also testing. Ranger wasn't sure of Milliardo's hand-to-hand skills. It wasn't too hard to play-up the clumsiness he didn't feel. It didn't take the prince too long to have the man convinced he was useless in hand-to-hand. It was a common mistake when a person's main fame was made in a mobile suit. It didn't take into account years of the intense focus on revenge. It didn't account for harsh anger that could never be satisfied.

The moment was slight, and an opening made from Ranger's own conceit.

Zechs dropped his façade instantly, moving through the man's guard and slamming his knee into the man's stomach.

Ranger gasped, almost to the point of gagging.

"You're a fool," Zechs hissed at him, pulling the syringe from the man's pocket. "Not only did you think you could take me hand-to-hand, but you don't even know my training."

"Fuck you," Ranger gasped at him.

Zechs slammed the needle into the man's leg, watching the tranquilizer there-in empty into the guy's veins—or muscles, since the pants obscured the skin. "Is this Procilian?" the man added, blinking at the liquid with interest. "Didn't you know I'm immune to Procilian?" he sneered down at Ranger a moment. "Why in the nine-hells did you come here alone?"

Ranger laughed weakly. "My men are coming, and they'll find you."

"Yes, but I've done got one up on you now," Zechs reassured him, smirking slightly. He ripped the man's over-shirt off. It was a deep green, and all the men on the premise seemed to wear them. "It's too bad you didn't have your hat," Zechs added as he buttoned that up over his white under-shirt. "My hair is so damn obvious, don't you think?"

Ranger, however, had closed his eyes.

Zechs snorted, taking the man's gun and tucking it into one of the pockets of his cargo-pants.

It was time to leave.

- -

"Come in Jupiter...Jupiter, are you on?"

"Of course I'm on," Heero retorted into the mic.

"The circuit's been cleared, Sir," whoever it was on the other end noted irritably. "We usually follow a formula."

"Yeah, but my rank and general attitude make it more amusing to annoy you."

There was a long silence before the line cut.

"Come in Earth...Earth, please respond."

Duo was smirking happily as he replied. The usual set up for small fleets used seven of the eight planets in the solar system—earth usually wasn't used for those communications.

Heero had to figure that only Duo would choose such a name for himself.

Something about their mission seemed lacking, really. It was like the night they'd spent on 27 before they made their rush in to save Matty. They were all being far too nonchalant about the whole thing.

But then again, they'd all expected to be dead by sixteen, hadn't they? None of them had thought they'd live to fight a second war, or at the very least that they'd live through that war.

"Ready to fly?" Heero purred to his four comrades, stroking the controls of the Leo he'd taken.

"I'm ready," Duo agreed. His small octagon was highlighted in yellow, the word Earth flashing in the corner.

"I'm good," Wufei noted, his octagon flashing—he was dark enough, and his border a dark blue, that the white of his name, Mars, seemed to almost glow.

"Let's get on with this," Trowa agreed. Saturn was almost lost on his screen.

"What are we waiting for?" Quatre snapped.

Mercury—the messenger god.

That didn't really suit the blond, but then again, it was better than calling him the god of war...or the ocean.

Heero smirked at the camera briefly, then looked back out his window. "Let's get this party started."

"Right," Wufei agreed.

He hit the button, turning on his booster...and almost as one, the five suits jetted forward.

- -

Zechs ducked into a back alley, moving around a dumpster to lean against the wall. He'd ducked into a room that ended up being someone's quarters—it had been just a moment, long enough to hide—and he'd found a hat. His hair was short enough that it hadn't taken him more than a moment to tuck it up into the thing before he darted from the room.

People had been shouting orders all around him, and as he'd found his way out of the blasted building, he'd realized that computers were being loaded haphazardly into a van.

There would have been no way he could have gone out a main exit and not been spotted, so he'd doubled back and head into what ended up being an office. He'd taken an emergency exit out and ran across the property.

It was a mostly square building with no particular distinguishing markers. It looked like it could have been apartments, offices, or even a school.

He'd lost the uniform shirt and hat within a block of the building.

If he'd been smart, he'd have searched Hanager for money.

What was going on?

Well, the first thing to do would be to figure out which colony he was on. V08744 had a certain look to it that distinguished it—the buildings were built a certain way, and this colony definitely did not have that. He needed either to find out which he was on, or find the military depot.

All of that while avoiding being spotted by myriad enemies he did not know the face of or being spotted by the media.

He grinned a bit ruefully to himself as he looked around again.

This was going to be fun.

- -

Wufei knew he wasn't the only one reveling in their flight. The extended use of the boosters gave them power to mimic the engines of their gundams—a force and ability. The poor Leos, though, could not maneuver nearly as well.

They were quiet as they flew, very aware that they did not have to keep one eye open for enemies. Theirs were the only suits flying through space, the ships were not armed.

But then again, if they'd been that ignorant, the 27 idiots would have overrun them.

"Mark," Quatre noted suddenly, starting them all from their reverie.

"Huh?" Duo asked blankly.

"Mark," Quatre repeated, pointing. "There's something coming up on the left."

It took a moment, but Wufei's sensors detected the same blip.

"Should we investigate?" Duo asked curiously, studying the thing.

"We have to get to 13," Heero denied. "We can't afford to stop and investigate some ship."

"Our circuit is supposed to be clear," Trowa reminded him. "I think we should hail them."

"You'd have to drop the boosters," Heero retorted.

"You're going to make me do it?" Trowa asked blankly.

"Oh, fine," Duo muttered...and his suit dropped out of the formation.

"That's not what I meant," Heero protested.

Duo laughed. "Ahoy ship, you are flying in restricted space."

- -

Ranger opened his eyes, blinking up at the ceiling. His vision was completely blurred...and they were moving

"You awake?" Hoss asked curiously.

"Ahh...where are we," Ranger groaned back.

"Nearing 44," Hoss explained. "I gave you the counter injection about two minutes ago."

Ranger groaned again, closing his eyes.

"What happened?" Hoss demanded.

"That damn prince got the syringe from me," Ranger retorted. "What's it look like?"

"Your leg is bruised to shit," Hoss retorted, then realized that the man hadn't actually been asking. "Your leg is going to burn for a few days."

Ranger groaned again, feeling the sensation in question suddenly.

"He seriously slammed the needle into your leg?"

"Yeah," Ranger agreed. "He thought it was Procilian."

"How the hell did he even know what that looks like?" Hoss asked blankly.

"Because he's immune to it," Ranger reminded him, rolling his eyes. He pushed himself up slowly, then rubbed at his leg.

"Don't fuss with it," Hoss muttered, knocking his hand off.

"Where do you have the bastard?" Ranger retorted.

"Have?" Hoss asked in mild amusement. "We don't have him. We got our shit out of the building and you weren't there, so I went to look for you. He's far gone."

Ranger focused on him sharply, realizing that they were in space.

"He was long gone by the time we realized you were in his room. What were you doing, going in there alone? Hell, Hanager, you're a special...what happened?"

"I underestimated the prince," Ranger snapped back. "I forgot he's also Zechs Marquise and the Lightning Count."

Hoss rolled his eyes.

"You didn't wake me up because you knew I'd make you search for him," Ranger noted, narrowing his eyes at the man. "You waited until we were well in flight to wake me up."

"And what are you going to do about it?" Hoss returned in a low and dangerous voice. "If you start making a fuss, I'll brain you. I was standing right there with you. I heard Rab. With or without the prince."

Ranger exploded, shouting at the man in his frustration and anger. He couldn't stand because of their proximity and his burning leg, but he had full use of his arms.

Hoss watched him levelly a long moment and set himself. "Calm down," he ordered.

Ranger, of course, had no such intention, and informed the man of that...he barely had time to the man's hand moving before it was on his throat, and for one horrid moment he thought the guy might be choking him—but his airway wasn't restricted...

...and that tasted nasty.

He gagged as a fiery liquid slid down his throat, choking and spluttering. He had no choice but to swallow...and his stomach instantly swam.

"We aren't going back," Hoss informed him happily. "Actually, considering that we can't get to 27, and our network has been penetrated, we aren't even staying in space. This was our backup plan for this eventuality, and Rab will figure it out. What I just gave you is another sedative. It won't interact with either the Eptol or the Capton. You'll sleep at least four hours."

Ranger blinked, realizing his eyes couldn't stay open. The lethargy had sank through his body to the point that he couldn't even sit up.

"You'll probably have a dry mouth when you wake up, and your leg will still burn, but you'll be healthy and well slept. Sleep well, Hanager."

Ranger glared up at him as best he could, realizing that the room had went dark—then groggily realizing also that it was just his eyes. He couldn't keep them open.

He was going to kill Hoss...he was going to hurt him so...so...

Hoss shook his head, covering the guy with a blanket and looking around the small infirmary.

He needed to get Ranger into a sleeping bunk for re-entry...or at the very least, restraint.