Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Circle of the Earth ❯ Chapter 4

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

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Standard Disclaimer #4: Do I really have to put this disclaimer in again? I guess I really don't have to, but better to be safe than sorry. So you all can skip right down to the story if you want....
I don't own Gundam Wing and no money goes into my empty pocket because of this story. Oh, and if Arys sounds like anyone you know, then she probably needs some help cuz Arys isn't exactly stable right now.

Circle of the Earth
Chapter 4

Dorothy Catalonia brushed back a strand of long blonde hair. She smiled at the computer screen as she scanned the flags Arys had set up. Arys was indeed a computer genius. Only a fellow computer genius could have found those flags. Like Dorothy.
"So Arys Walker has found out what she is." She almost clapped her hands together. "Grandfather should know about this."
Dorothy's fingers flew over the keyboard as she contacted the Romefeller Foundation. Soon, her grandfather's face appeared on the screen. He had piercing eyes and an ever present power hungry look about him. Dorothy was a lot like him.
"Dorothy, this had better be important." Duke Dermail glowered at her. "We're preparing for Relena Peacecraft's visit in a few days."
Dorothy's expression was gleeful. She smiled roguishly at her grandfather. "Oh, this is definitely important, Grandfather dear. Arys Walker has discovered her identity."
Duke Dermail's brow furrowed. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "That is indeed a problem. We need to find out how much she knows."
"That can be arranged." Dorothy leaned her chin against her hands. "She can come with Relena and me in two days."
"Excellent idea, Dorothy!" Duke Dermail gave his granddaughter a grateful smile. "Follow your plan and I'll have the interrogators take over when she gets here."
"Good-bye, Grandfather." Dorothy cut off the transmission.
She stared at the empty screen, her thoughts elsewhere. "Hmm... The interrogators. Won't that be fun, Arys?" She began to laugh, long and loud.
___________

Arys sprinted down the hall, her feet barely making a sound on the plush carpet. She would have climbed out her window again but there were still a few people milling about in the gardens. She would just have to pretend she was going out if she happened to run into someone.
Bang! Arys fell to the ground in an undignified heap of black leather. Her duffel bag flew out of her hands and landed against the wall. It slid down and hit the ground with a thud. Arys winced. She hoped her computer was not broken.
Arys looked up to see Dorothy walking over to her duffel. The blonde girl picked it up and held it out to Arys.
"Arys! Watch where you're going! You almost knocked me over!"
Arys took the bag and muttered a superficial "I'm sorry."
Dorothy eyed the raven-haired girl warily. "Are you leaving without saying good-bye, Arys?"
Arys did not reply. She was too busy pulling her computer out of her bag. She checked it over and found it still intact. All her clothes must have cushioned it from the bag's impact with the wall. She would see if it actually still worked later. If it was broken, it would be no problem for Arys to fix it. She put the computer back in the bag.
"No, I'm not leaving, Dorothy." Arys stood to her feet.
Dorothy's grin was razor-sharp. "Then, why do you have all your clothing in that bag?"
Arys was saved from replying by Quatre, who walked up beside Dorothy. He greeted both of them with a smile. Arys quickly compared Quatre's smile to Dorothy's. Underneath the friendly exterior, Dorothy always seemed to be scheming about something and Arys could see it in her eyes. Quatre, on the other hand, with his trusting blue eyes, treated people at face value, never judging, always forgiving. Arys tried to hide the duffel bag behind her. She knew Quatre would be hurt about her leaving.
"Are you... um..." Quatre's eyes studied Arys' slightly bowed head. Then, he noticed the bag. He frowned. "Why are you carrying that bag, Arys? Are you leaving?" He looked disappointed. "Heero won't like it."
You bet Heero won't like it.
Arys shuffled her feet nervously and looked up at Quatre. The look in his eyes pricked her conscience. She blew out a sigh of frustration and slung the duffel over one shoulder.
"No, I'm not leaving," Arys said again. She whirled around and began to walk back to her room. "Not right now, anyway," She added under her breath.

_________________

Quatre turned to Dorothy, a puzzled look on his face. His blue eyes were worried. "What was that all about?"
Dorothy suppressed a grin. She shrugged indifferently. "I don't know."
"Why would she try to leave and then all of a sudden change her mind?" Quatre gazed at Arys' closed door down the hall. "I should tell Heero about this."
"You just did," came an emotionless voice from behind them.
"Heero!" Quatre spun around to find Heero standing only a few feet behind him.
Something clicked in Dorothy's brain. Heero and Arys had been spending a lot of time together lately. In fact, Relena had mentioned it to Dorothy a few times. If Arys knew her true identity, then Heero probably did too. The guy was always on that computer of his. Surely he had found some information on Arys' past on the Net. She glanced at Heero. His blue eyes were impassive as usual, but Dorothy could see the murderous intent in them.
Dorothy leaned against the wall languidly. "So, Heero, were you just going to see Arys?"
Heero glanced at her.
"Yes."
"She's in her room now."
Heero stared past Dorothy. Then, he lowered his head to its usual position, eyes down, dark brown hair flopping down over them. "Thanks. But I'll talk to her later." Heero turned away and walked down the hall, away from Arys' room.
Dorothy couldn't help chuckling to herself.
Too many witnesses, Heero Yuy?
Dorothy stole a glance at Quatre. The poor boy looked confused. He watched as Heero walked away then shook his head.
"I don't understand."
Dorothy leaned back against the wall. There are a lot of things you don't understand, Quatre. She smiled. "Don't even try, Quatre. I don't think anyone can understand those two."
_______________

Later that night, Arys climbed out of bed once again at twelve midnight. She grabbed her still-packed duffel bag from the corner of the room and went to the door. She stopped in front of it, her head bowed.
"Is this the right thing to do?" Arys asked aloud.
Her hand clenched around the strap of her duffel. She raised her head determinedly and slipped the strap over one shoulder. Quietly, she pulled open the door and walked out into the hallway. The shadowed walls seemed to glower at her as she drifted toward the stairs.
It is right. It has to be.
A few minutes later, Arys stepped into the elevator that would take her below the Institution. She stared for a few moments at the down button. It blinked at her persistently. She pushed it and felt the familiar lurch as the elevator descended. Arys leaned back against the handrail until the elevator bumped to a stop. The doors slid open and Arys walked into the mobile suit storage chamber.
The elevator doors shut behind her as Arys pulled out her pistol from its hidden holster underneath her trench coat. She expected trouble, particularly in the form of Heero Yuy. Arys carefully maneuvered her way over to where Silverwind stood, pointing her gun around her methodically, trying to sense any movement in the shadows. When she reached Silverwind, Arys kept her gun out but relaxed her guard a bit. She tapped her transmitter.
Hello, Silverwind.
The Gundam's eyes flashed silver in response.
Arys reached out for the haul cable. Before she went up though, she glanced up at Heero's Gundam. Its eyes remained dark; its wings lay close against its back.
A sleeping giant.
Arys hit the button to carry her up to the cockpit. She touched her transmitter again and activated the continuous transmission function.
Can you open the bay doors, Silverwind?
Affirmative
The ceiling began to open up at the far end of the room. The bay doors were located below an isolated area of the gardens around the Institution. Below the appearing hole was a heavy lift, perfect for raising mobile suits up to ground level.
Good job.
Arys leapt onto the cockpit platform and climbed into the pilot's seat. The cockpit door shut behind her.
Systems check.
Lights began dancing across the console in front of Arys. Occasionally a red light would appear and Arys had to make a few adjustments to the Gundam's systems. Soon, all the lights were green.
We're green across the board. Let's go, Silverwind.
Silverwind plodded across the floor to the lift. Slowly, the platform rose, taking the Gundam with it. As soon as Silverwind cleared the edge of the hole, Arys fired the thrusters and the Silverwind hovered briefly above the bay doors.
Destination?
Arys smiled within her helmet.
Outer space, Silverwind. I've heard the Earth looks beautiful from outer space. I want to see it, for real.
The Gundam's wings opened up into a position best for high-speed takeoff. Arys flicked a switch on the flightsticks which dumped more fuel to the engines. The roar of the thrusters intensified. Arys looked up at the stars as Silverwind's head followed suit.
Arys reached up above her head, took a deep breath, and pushed forward the two levers hanging there.
Silverwind screamed into the air, transforming into fighter mode as it did so, blowing dust and leaves into a whirlwind and then vaporizing them in its engine wash. In a few seconds, the Gundam had become only another point of light amongst millions of twinkling stars.
_____________________

Inside the mobile suit storage chamber, the Wing's eyes lit up an eerie green. Heero eyed the red dot blinking across the radar screen in front of him. He had put a tracer on the Silverwind before Arys had showed up. Heero disliked waiting, but he knew that patience was a valuable asset to an individual such as himself. In fact, he had been waiting in the Wing's cockpit for four hours, wondering when Arys would come for her Gundam.
"She's going to outer space."
Heero flicked a few switches and the Wing straightened up from its resting position. As the Gundam hovered toward the lift, Heero performed a quick systems check. All the lights lit up green immediately. He waited patiently as the lift rose beneath his Gundam. As soon as they were above ground, Heero had the Wing transform into fighter mode. He expertly maneuvered the Wing into a takeoff position. With a roar that woke people for miles around, the Wing took off, on a bearing for the stars.
"She has picked the battlefield. It's time to start the battle..."
Heero finished his last statement just as he punched through the last layer of the atmosphere and saw the circle of the earth behind him.
"...in outer space."
For a moment, he let his gaze trace the outlines of the continents, the swirling cloud formations, then he switched his viewpoint so that he could see the stars.

__________________

Quatre and Noin rushed into the mobile suit storage chamber. Noin ran over to the lift and looked up through the still-open bay doors. The stars peeked back at her, sparkling merrily.
"What do those two think they're doing?" Noin slapped her forehead in frustration. "They'll kill each other!"
Quatre nodded sadly. "I think that's the point."
We can't let them do this."
Quatre put a hand on her arm, surprised. "You mean, you want us to try and stop them in the Taurus suits?"
"Yes."
Quatre smiled in spite of the gravity of the situation. "Two Taurus against two Gundams. Doesn't that seem a little unfair?"
"Quatre, we're not going to join the battle!" Noin said, shocked that Quatre would even think of fighting his two friends. "We're just going to talk them out of battling each other."
Quatre grinned at her. "I know."
Noin glared at him, but she was not really angry with him. She playfully cuffed him on the shoulder. "You tease me too much, Quatre."
Quatre merely smiled again.
Noin shook her head and walked over to the Taurus suits. "Now, let's get going before those two turn each other into orbiting debris fields."
__________________
Heero caught up with Arys in no time. He bore a hole in the back of the Silverwind's head with his eyes. She was not to escape.
"All obstacles must be removed."
Heero's Gundam sped up slightly as if spurred on by his thoughts. Heero's targeting system made a familiar sound as the Silverwind came into range. Heero had heard the sound many times before, usually before obliterating an unworthy enemy. Somehow he knew this time would be different.
Something else caught Heero's eye as he sped toward Arys. There was a slight blip on his radar. It was erratic, but Heero's instincts had alerted him of it. Heero checked the distance of the radar contact, and seeing how far it was, gave his full attention to the matter at hand.
"I'll deal with it later." Heero set the Silverwind back in his sights and opened fire.

____________

Arys dodged the blast of energy coming at her from behind. It slid past her harmlessly, vanishing into the void of space. Arys spun her Gundam around to see Heero flying straight toward her in his Gundam.
"Heero?" Arys asked, her voice filled with anguish.
He responded by slamming straight into her. Arys tumbled backwards and for a moment, all she could see on her screens were stars spinning around her. She quickly regained control and found that she was still facing the Wing. She gritted her teeth as she pulled her double beam sabers from her shoulder sheaths and activated them. The bright blue blades crackled with suppressed energy. A blue hue washed itself over the Silverwind. The pilot within seemed emotionless but her eyes were filled with an infinite sadness.
"You want to fight, Heero?" Arys raised her sabers with a low sigh. "So be it."
With her sabers pointed at the Wing's head, Arys charged.
__________________

Heero let the semblance of a smile touch his lips. He had been chasing Arys for the past five minutes without a response. She had continually dodged his shots. He was not surprised. Arys was an excellent pilot. Now, she was finally fighting back. Maybe she would be a challenge. Heero flipped a single switch on his control panel. A compartment on the Wing's left shoulder popped open. The silver hilt of the beam saber poked out into the vacuum of space. Heero brought his right hand up to his shoulder and grabbed the weapon. He ignited it just as Arys came down on top of him. Blue blades clashed against his single green, sparking as they scraped against each other. Arys bore down on him harder, but Heero matched her strength easily. The two Gundams pushed away from each other.
Like two medieval knights jousting in a match, they charged toward each other again. Sabers glanced off each other like small packets of fireworks. The battle was being neither won nor lost by either party. After another deadlock, Heero spun with his saber outstretched to distance himself from the Silverwind. Heero was actually breathing hard due to the exertion of fighting a worthy enemy. He knew Arys was in the same condition. Heero turned until Arys was in the middle of his center screen.
"Are you going to use the Zero System, Arys?" Heero asked as he positioned his saber into an offensive stance.
A cynical laugh filled the Wing's cockpit. Arys' helmeted visage came onto the comm screen. "If I use the Zero System, Heero, I'd destroy you." The comm clicked off.
"What's next, Arys?" Heero mused to himself. He saw the Gundam opposite himself pop open its shoulder compartments.
"Vulcan cannons? What is she thinking?" Heero almost laughed as the Silverwind charged toward him guns blazing. Heero steeled himself for the somewhat weak attack. He throttled up his engines and blasted toward Arys. The Vulcan rounds bounced harmlessly off of Heero's Gundam. As the two Gundams closed the distance between them, Heero saw the sun glint off of an object coming up on the Silverwind's right shoulder.
"What's that?" Heero's eyes widened somewhat at the size of the weapon now pointed directly at his viewscreen. With the velocity each Gundam was traveling, it was impossible to stop. Heero brought his beam saber up as strange discs fired from Arys' weapon flew toward him.
The discs were easily absorbed by the beam saber, but with each hit, Heero was knocked further and further off-balance. One disc made it through his defenses and slammed into his right arm. He staggered backwards. He immediately regained his control and switched his beam saber to the Gundam's left hand. He raised the saber. Arys was heading straight for him.
Heero seethed inwardly. He had actually been damaged! That was something he was not used to. Rage fueled his actions as the Silverwind flew toward him, its Shiv rifle still firing. He dodged the half-moon discs easily until he was within touching distance. Heero's instincts took over and his speed greatly increased. He no longer thought, just acted. He was moving so fast, Arys could not react quickly enough. Heero knocked the strange rifle up so it was no longer a threat to him, and a nanosecond later he violently swung his beam saber into the Silverwind's right shoulder. The attack was so intense it actually pierced the gundanium armor. Sparks of electricty traced a web across the Silverwind's torso. Heero expected to hear Arys yelling at him to stop as Quatre had done when they had fought, but the other Gundam pilot was silent. Without warning, Heero jerked back in his seat as his Gundam was shoved backwards, breaking contact with the Silverwind.
He looked up at the middle screen to see the Silverwind's eyes flash with gray fire. Its shoulder was smoking from the saber cut, but Arys seemed to be ignoring it.
The comm screen flickered to life again. "You leave me no choice, Heero." Arys' voice was different. Cold. Distant. Heero looked closely through the visor covering her face and saw her eyes. They were an icy gray and utterly devoid of emotion. Either she was ignoring or she did not even notice the blue streaks of electricity shimmering across the cockpit walls. He could hear warning bells going off in the background. Apparently, his strike through her armor had damaged some of the Silverwind's systems.
"Oz is not the enemy. The Cinq Kingdom is not the enemy." Arys reached off-screen. The sound of the bells ceased and the electric shimmer in the cockpit disappeared. "You are the enemy, Heero." Through the visor, Heero saw Arys' eyes flash golden with the activation of the Zero System. The comm flickered off. Static replaced her voice.
Heero sheathed his beam saber and took out his buster rifle. The Silverwind reached over its left shoulder and pulled out a double-barreled attachment. It placed the barrel against the front of the Shiv rifle. The barrel clicked into place. Heero vaguely recognized the form. It looked somewhat like his buster rifle. Where had she gotten the attachment?
The Silverwind detached the Shiv/buster rifle from its shoulder and leveled the gun at Heero's Gundam. But Arys never had a chance to use it. A white Taurus suit rammed into her left side, knocking her Gundam off-balance. Arys managed to break away from the suit and turned to aim her rifle at the new arrival.
"Quatre." Arys lowered the rifle. "Get away from here."
Noin hovered beside the Wing. Heero wondered why Arys had not known that Quatre was approaching. Didn't the Zero System tell her everything about the enemy?
"Noin, what are you doing here?" Heero asked as he switched to audio/visual direct communication. Noin's face appeared on the comm screen.
"You can't do this, Heero. You and Arys are allies, not enemies."
"I have my orders."
"That doesn't matter, Heero." Noin leaned closer to the screen. "You have to stop this fighting!"
"It does matter." Heero flicked off the comm switch and the screen blanked out.
He left the open channel on though so that he could hear any conversation going on between Arys and Quatre.
"Arys, you shouldn't be fighting!" The Taurus suit floated right in front of the Silverwind's rifle.
"Quatre, you wouldn't understand..." Arys replied. The Silverwind drifted sideways, trying to keep Quatre's mobile suit out of the rifle sight. "Get out of the way, Quatre. You aren't the enemy. Heero is."
Quatre stubbornly followed her, refusing to get out of danger. "I can't let you do this, Arys."
Arys groaned. She seemed to consider his words. The Silverwind finally lowered its rifle in acquiescence. "Okay, Quatre, since you won't move, I'll stop fighting. I've deactivated the Zero System." Her voice sounded weary, defeated. "I just have one question for Heero."
Heero thumbed on his comm. "I'm listening."
"Why are you trying to kill me?"
Heero grunted softly. "Your Gundam dumps data to an Antarctic Oz base every week. That makes you and your Gundam a security leak and therefore a threat to the Cinq Kingdom. You must be destroyed."
Arys began to laugh, but her laugh was not a mirthful one. "Heero, you know me better than that. I found that datalink as soon as I arrived in the Cinq Kingdom. I didn't know what it was for, so I just reprogrammed the datalink to download files from my Gundam's core dumps, not the hard drive. The dumps contain junk from diagnostics I run on my Gundam's systems. In other words, Oz is getting info on what's wrong with my Gundam."
Then, Arys smiled. Heero was taken aback by the way her face lit up when she smiled. Even her eyes lit up. The effects of the Zero System were already beginning to wear off.
"Pretty smart, huh, Heero?" She actually winked at him. "Bet even you couldn't do that."
"Uh..." Heero stammered, still in shock.
The Silverwind holstered its rifle and slowly approached the Wing. The hatch in the torso of the Gundam opened up and Arys stepped out. "Truce? If you promise not to kill me."
Heero gazed at Arys silently for a few moments until he decided to open his own hatch. Then, he nodded. "Truce. The mission is unnecessary. There is no need to kill you." The ice seemed to melt between the two pilots.
Noin keyed in a direct comm link to Quatre. She grinned at him. "Mission accomplished?"
Quatre breathed out a sigh of relief and smiled at Noin. "Mission accomplished."

________________

Author's notes: So what do you all think of the story? Is it good, is it bad, is it ugly? Oh, sorry to all you Relena fans. I kind of bashed her in chapter 2's disclaimer. I don't like her for some reason. Maybe it's because I know if she tried to pilot a Gundam, she'd probably crash it into something. Also, I think Heero needs someone with a little more spunk (is that the right word? :-) Don't worry though. Relena will get to be one of the main characters in chapters 6 and 7. After all, she does become Queen of the World for a little while. I'd give a little teaser for Chapter 5 but I don't have the chapter written yet. It's still floating around in my head in itty-bitty pieces. Soon, I'll get them put together into a chapter. Remember, patience is a virtue (but not always rewarding :-)
Update: Chapter 5 is written. Arys and Heero take on 30 Oz mobile suits (but not all at once) And (drumroll) Duo Maxwell makes an appearance in his Deathscythe! Also I have to give a little credit here, my brother wrote parts of the battle scenes for me. He ain't a bad writer! :-) He's also my prereader and tells me whether or not to put things in. (In other words, he tells me if I've written something stupid :-) Hope you all are enjoying the story, cuz I sure am enjoying writing it!