Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Firestorm ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

LSE // 9-8-06

(Firestorm - Chapter Two)

rated: R - language, content, violence, sex

shounen-ai/yaoi

Chapter Two

I open my eyes to darkness; the tiny window just barely provided any light. I scoot so I can see the moon, small sliver. Nearly the new moon… My heart sinks with dawning horror, and I realize the moon had been full the first night. Two weeks… already? That couldn't be… It was hard to keep track of time.

Every morning I get a mug of water and one stale bread slice, and then Tarsen and the General take turns questioning me. The General never told me his name, just his rank. I had his name burned into my memory; he would die when I escaped. Tarsen alternated between beating me himself and turning me over to the goons. They were both bad, but I dreaded the goons more; I didn't trust they knew when to stop. With a sigh, I hold out my arms, staring at the smooth skin in the moonlight. Faded bruises snake up to my shoulders and down across my chest, all of different colors and ages. I marvel at them for a moment. Surreal. It hardly hurt, anymore. Just numb.

My arms look thinner, which was no surprise given the menu. I gasp softly, gazing at my wrists. I give one an experimental twist and found some slack. I strain and twist, but the metal was still too tight. If I dislocated the joint…? It was something Heero would do. I'm not even sure how to do it. I slam the shackles down in frustration, the steel clanking loudly against the floor. How long did they plan on holding me? Until I'm dead? Until I crack?

I can't tell if my leg is getting better or worse anymore. The joint feels stiff. I can barely move it, let alone walk, and it was often just easier to crawl the short distance from the corner to my daily ration. The wound no longer bled, but the skin around it feels swollen and tender to the touch; hot like fire but numb. I become dizzy so often.

I hate the waiting the most, lying awake waiting for either sleep or soldiers.

“Duo…”

I lift my head, staring across the cell. “Wha…?”

Light pools into the room and Heero is standing over me, face obscured by shadow. He's offering his hand down to me. I stare up at him, mesmerized. “Heero…?”

“Get up, you fucking cunt,” he barks, sounding nothing like Heero. He kicks me in the side, face twisted up in disgust.

“Ha... Tarsen,” I mutter, shaking free the delusion. In the dark like this, there is a slight resemblance. I realize abruptly that the Lieutenant had also shaved his mustache, but at day's worth of stubble gathered on his chin. I shake my head slightly, struggling up to my feet. “Isn't it past your bed time?”

He casually back-hands me, scraping my cheek with a heavy ring, “Don't get smart!” he snarls. Oh, shit. The usually clear-headed Lieutenant reeks strongly of whisky, but his hands are steady as he slams me up against the wall. “Do you have any idea what you've done, brat?”

“Uh… world peace…”

He shakes me like a rag doll, “You…! Your fucking Preventer buddies killed the General! You'd been planning this all along, hadn't you? Son of a bitch!” He throws me down, eyes wild.

The General is dead? I laughed shakily, coughing. Someone cheated me out of revenge. But, still, the cavalry had arrived! If I can only stay alive long enough for Heero to find me…

“I fucking knew it, Gundam scum.”

I snort, too woozy to be surprised. So, he knows I was a pilot, but not which one. Funny, I always thought I stood out.

“I've signed your termination order. This is your last chance, though at this point I might just kill you anyway for pissing me off. What's it going to be, Preventer?” Tarsen leans in close, hand wrapped firmly around my braid. He tugs with it, jerking my head up. “Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing you dead.”

“Ha,” I pant, struggling to take some of the weight off my hair. “Like to see you… try.”

Pain laces up and down my leg and I hear an awful screaming as Tarsen stomps his boot down on my wound. I realize the screaming is me and I stop, sobbing pathetically. Heero's looking for me! He's here! I remind myself of this over and over. Just hang on until they find you…

The Lieutenant's screaming, but I can't make out a word. My ears are full of cotton. I gasp for breath, staring at Tarsen's boots. Where is Heero? Why is Tarsen wasting his time with me instead of defending the base? A metallic snap, then clunking. I stare in amazement as the Lieutenant tosses the chain aside. My wrists are still shackled, but now I can…! I shift, ready to barrel past the drunken soldier and to freedom, but my leg is a dead weight refusing to cooperate. Tears of frustration sting at my eyes. Move, Duo!

He keeps a hand wrapped around my braid, tugging it like a leash. “Get up!” he shouts, pulling harder.

Somehow, I stumble to my feet, but collapse the moment I try and put weight on my leg. The Lieutenant kicks me in the side and I roll over with a moan. He goes quiet, perhaps realizing I'm not getting very far on my own power. With a surprisingly strong grip, he takes up the shackles, pulling my arms over my head. I shriek in protest as he drags me toward the door. My brave boxers, tattered beyond repair at this point, slip further down my hips with each yank the Lieutenant gives.

“Wait, wait, I'll walk, please,” I gasp, shoulders screaming with pain.

Tarsen ignores me, determinedly dragging my ass out into the hall. I squint, the overheard lights too much for my eyes. It's my first look at the exterior of my prison, and I fuzzily wonder where he's taking me. A soldier runs past without a even glancing at us, and in the distance I can hear alarms. Go, Heero, kick their asses!

An explosion rocks the hallway, slamming the Lieutenant into the wall. He releases me, and I grab the opportunity with all my remaining strength. A kick drops him to the floor, and I crawl forward, slamming my shackled wrists onto his throat. He lets out a gurgle, but I'm too weak for the maneuver to break his neck. Sweat pours down my face as I press harder. “Die, you son of a bitch!”

We grapple for a moment, Tarsen trying to throw me off, and me desperately trying to strangle him. Only the fact the Lieutenant is drunk makes this anyway approaching an even fight. Tarsen throws me off and grabs my wrists, pinning them over my head. His thighs press into mine as he pants for breath, face twisted into pure malice. I am so fucked. I struggle anyway, desperate to get my good leg free.

The Lieutenant's free hand closes around my throat. Blood runs down his face from a cut near his temple and drips on to mine. A high pitched whine works its way out of my throat before Tarsen's grip cuts that off, too. Panic explodes in my chest. The darkness, when it comes, is a relief.

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Gunfire echoed across the hanger bay as he ran, eyes focused on the target. He dove just in time, the entire ceiling and much of the north wall collapsed in a terrible rumble, sending dust and debris scattering into the hallway. Heero stood and pressed his back into the wall. The communicator in his ear rasped to life, “Agent Yuy! Status.”

“I've exited the hanger bay and am in pursuit of the target,” Heero responded, advancing forward with his gun raised carefully.

“I've found the holding cells!” Wufei's voice broke in, the agent shouting above the sound of gunfire. “Send Yuy the coordinates.”

“Roger!” Heero started running, boots pounding down the corridor. His heart pounded in his chest from adrenaline and fear. Two weeks since that awful night when the mission went horribly wrong. Pursued by the soldiers that poured of the base like so many ants defending their hill, Heero had taken shelter on the complete opposite side of the forest from the rendezvous point. It had taken him a full day to bypass sentries and track Duo's mad flight through the forest. He found a pool of blood and assumed the worst. Hacking into the base computers revealed nothing, until a few days ago an outgoing message had mentioned the prisoner. Convincing Une to mount an all-out defensive had been easy, convincing himself Duo was still alive, and that prisoner, was harder.

When he reached Wufei's location he found the other agent busy setting a cluster of explosives near the control panel. The other agent turned, dark eyes heavy. “Yuy, I'm sorry…”

Heero froze, heart going cold. “He's dead.”

Wufei just shook his head and gestured down the short hallway. Heero could see the holding cell doors and… His heart sank further at the sight of crimson splattered against the walls and floor. “He's not here,” Wufei corrected in a soft voice.

“Not here?” he repeated, tone flat. Of the doors, only one was open, revealing the small, dark holding cell inside. A steel pin secured a metal chain in the corner, but besides that there was only a small mug. Heero knelt in the middle of the floor, one hand pressed to a dark bloodstain. Scattered here and there were long chestnut hairs, some stuck to the floor with blood. He swallowed convulsively. Duo had been here, and by the look of the blood in hall, recently.

Despite their force consisting only of a dozen agents, the base was largely neutralized and only small pockets of resistance remained. Heero had personally killed the base commander within minutes of the attack. The goal had been a swift, focused disabling of the entire base with Heero and Wufei zeroing in on the holding cells as soon as possible.

“I'm sorry, Duo,” Heero whispered, touching the cell floor. “I've failed.”

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Author's Notes: Sorry this chapter is so short! I promise the next one will be longer, and hopefully out soon. Here's looking forward to chapter three, eh?

Feedback/reviews are very much appreciated!

LSE - Violet Nyte

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