Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Hating a Phoenix ❯ Chapter 5.0 ( Chapter 5 )

Hating a Phoenix, Chapter 5

By: Firey Angelwings

***Hello all! Here I am…take a deep breath *breathes deeply* and now I am writing a pretty long chapter. And I've received a LOT of e-mails asking for the real deal with Relena and all, so…I put it in this chapter! YAY!! Well, I have to write it first, though…

Note: If you have the habit of just skimming text when you're reading (like me) I suggest that you don't do it in this chapter, because all the info comes out, I'm getting the ball rolling.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, its characters, or anything having to do with the show, etc. I only own the idea behind this continuation, nothing else.

     Five months later, the Earth, colonies, and even the citizens of Mars have wound up in a state of utmost confusion. This period of time would later be called the `Chaos Rebellion'. All over, there have been random attacks by a group of revolutionary extremists calling themselves `Purifiers'.  They have an enormous amount of mobile suit troops stolen from ESUN. There have been multiple mobile suit battles everywhere, where the Purifiers have met with little resistance. Their (alleged) goal is to dominate the present world.

    Relena Dorlain's death has been shrouded in mystery. The popular debate is the motive behind her assassination. However, nobody has even guessed at the truth. It began with her mother's dilemma, but is now her problem. It was revenge that killed her. One man's revenge.

    Seven months before Jonathon Pavey's death, he had gone through a romance with a Minister's daughter. The girl, Amy Falon, became pregnant, and gave birth to a son 2 months after Jonathon's death. Her son was Maxwell Pavey.

    Her son grew to hate the race of Phoenixes. He read his father's journals when he was seventeen years of age, and immediately pinned his father's death on Rosalyn Peacecraft. Once the Royal Family of the Sanq kingdom was said to be murdered, his hatred dwindled. Upon the sudden discovery of Relena and Milliardo Peacecraft's existence, his rage doubled. After the event with White Fang, Maxwell's abhorrence settled upon Relena, and he made plans to kill her. He succeeded.

    Before doing so, Pavey (now a powerful member of ESUN) convinced other diplomats who had doubt in Relena's ways to join him. Together, they stole small amounts of mobile suits, so none of the Preventors noticed. Their numbers in suits accumulated, and nobody, not even the Gundam pilots, caught on.

    After Dorlain's assassination, Pavey had satisfied his lust for revenge, and turned his gaze towards total domination. He began this through Operation Mousetrap, his group now called the Purifiers.

     The screams and shouts were deafening, and the large, well-muscled men were having trouble holding back the blaring crowd. Flashes appeared everywhere as all eyes were fixed on one tall, slender figure, striding slowly down the carpet.

     Artemis paused, smiled, and turned to the crowd as if it were a small assembly of people. She walked towards them, and began signing autographs, as many thrust their paper and pens into her hands.

     A minute later, her bodyguard Mario touched her at the elbow, a signal for the need to leave. The singing sensation waved, then strode toward her waiting limo. Her bubbly agent jogged beside her. She could only catch several words,

  “Wonderful concert babe…great reviews tomorrow…fans out of control…perfect dancing…vocals right on target…”

     Artemis turned and thanked her agent before she hopped into the long black limo. She was now alone. The car began to drive. Then, she extracted her vid phone, and dialed in a number. Her brother's face filled the small screen.

  “S'up Lena?”

     She smiled briefly, then answered.

  “Comin' home. But now is the time to get the mission underway, so get going.”

He nodded, then the screen went blank.

     Hilde was running her hands through the day's mail. She spotted a fancy envelope. It was addressed to her and Duo.  Curious, she opened it immediately, then her face lit up with delight and surprise. She called Duo.

     Wufei was training with his sword when the mail arrived for him. A fancy envelope. He snorted with disgust. Then he read it, and looked up, bewildered slightly.

     Sally was on the phone with a friend when she spotted the envelope on her desk. She told her friend that she would call her back. Then Sally opened the fancy thing.

     Quatre opened the envelope that was addressed to all his guests and himself. Yes, Trowa, Catherine and Dorothy were staying with him again. Its contents were very interesting.

You are all invited to a grand ball, by

Special request of Artemis, who will be

Present as well.

Many famous individuals will be

Attending, so don't miss it!

Diplomats, actors, singers and many more.

This is a black tie event, so dress appropriately.

Details are printed on the bottom of this page.

     Heero put a his hands on his temples, then said to himself, as he dropped the envelope,

  “What are you doing, Relena?”

     The attendant was giving him reports on the conquest of the world. Yes, being the leader of this rebellion was great, but this was one of the dull moments.

     Maxwell Pavey pushed the man aside. He said simply,

  “I don't have time for this. I must get ready for an important ball tonight. Citizens don't know of my position with this rebel group, so I must keep up appearances.”

     The ballroom was decorated impressively. The value of many of the items in the room surpassed many individuals yearly salary. It was indeed a celebrity ball.

     To the right of the grand staircase from the entrance was a large group of very surprised people. They were the old gang: Quatre, Trowa, Catherine, Duo, Dorothy, Hilde, Wufei and Sally, all dressed to the nines. They had said their hellos and gossiped a little, but they were now craning their necks to find Artemis in the crowd. They were all very interested in her reasons for inviting them.

     Eventually, many heads turned as they watched Artemis step down the stairs. Many analyzed her outfit in their heads, deciding to approve or not. Duo couldn't help but let his mouth hang as he witnessed firsthand Artemis in a deep crimson dress, very low backed, a high slit, and the material was only slightly sparkly. Her silvery waves were elegantly piled in a knot at the back of her head.

     They watched as she politely greeted many friends and acquaintances. But, surprisingly, as soon as she spotted the group, the celebrity made a beeline for them.

     She spoke in a silky voice,

  “Thank you for attending. I'm very glad that you could make it.”

     The group began sputtering with questions, but Artemis only smiled slightly, then spoke once more,

  “I'll be able to discuss…matters…with you afterwards. Will it be satisfactory that we should have a private meeting in one of the upper rooms after the ball?”

     Everyone glanced at one another, then nodded, unable to speak. The woman smiled, nodded, and then gracefully turned as a man came to ask for a dance.  Artemis left as mysteriously as she came.

     Duo and Quatre stood beside the bar, sipping their drinks slowly. Quatre noticed how Duo kept a close eye on Hilde as she danced by in Trowa's arms. Then, something more interesting attracted their attention.

     Heero Yuy stood at the base of the stairway; already attracting admiring glances from the women. He was looking for something.

     Duo and Quatre made their way towards him. Quatre greeted him,

  “Heero! We didn't know that you had been invited too! The whole gang is her now, you know, everyone…”

     Heero nodded, and his eyes narrowed. His thoughts raced,

`What are you up to Relena? Why is everyone here?'

     Duo and Quatre started chatting easily. Heero's eyes scanned the ballroom. He then focused on one of the whirling, dancing figures, as the song ended. Relena. Artemis. Stunning. Annoying. Selfish. Whatever.

     This dance had been without conversation. But most of them were, when she danced with somebody she didn't know. Relena, or Artemis to everyone, was dancing with a diplomat. His name was…what was it? Ah, Maxwell Pavey. Somebody she hadn't really known when she had been Minister. But the dance was over anyway.

     Artemis looked up into Pavey's eyes as she thanked him for the dance. She nearly shivered. They were…so…cold. He must be a troubled person.

     She started walking off the dance floor, when her eyes locked on his figure. His figure. So he actually HAD shown up. What a surprise. Relena felt a small stab of pain at her cold thoughts. Then she steeled herself, and recalled his harsh words to her five months ago. He deserved her loathing. Didn't he? Why was she so weak around him? Relena's mind was a flurry of thoughts.

     Artemis jerked ever so faintly as Heero began a slow but purposeful gait towards her. Those eyes…She felt like she was caught in a trap, couldn't move. Relena felt like she was drowning in the intensity of his eyes. But she wasn't sure she wanted to move, she wanted to let him catch her.

`Be strong' Relena's mind ordered. She prepared herself for the inevitable.

     Yuy stopped in front of the famous woman. Without words, he lifted his hand out in her direction. Artemis accepted the unspoken invitation, taking his hand. And they began to dance. And dance. And dance.

     They moved like they were battling rather than waltzing. Fire playing with fire, ice smashing against ice. Their eyes never left the other, daring the opposite to look away first. A true clash of wills.

     Though they danced rather…violently, Heero almost felt comforted in the sudden union, the rhythm of their motions. But as quickly as the sudden emotion came, it left. The soldier trampled it down, replacing it with the knowledge,

`You don't need to be comforted, Yuy. She's got to lose.'

     But the song was over. A draw, a stalemate, deadlock. Neither had won. Heero and Artemis let go of each other. Free of each other's clutches. They went in different directions. But it was obvious to both that something, something, had happened between them. But there was still that barrier.

     Their meeting room was elegant and stylish. Plush couches and chairs filled it, and a fire was lit in the fireplace. The two doors to the room were heavy mahogany, well detailed. The whole gang was populating this room. They were all waiting, staring at each other, waiting for Artemis to come and explain…whatever she had to explain.

     The doorknob clicked, and everyone except Heero turned to the door. Artemis, almost hesitantly, walked in, a thin black shawl covering her shoulders. And she began immediately.

  “First of all, I must apologize for the strange circumstances you have all been placed in by coming here,”

     Wufei let out a slight snort.

  “But what I have to tell you is of utmost importance. I am so, so sorry for hiding from you everything, but it was absolutely necessary.”

     Hilde looked slightly alarmed at the tears forming in Artemis' eyes. She inquired softly,

  “Sorry about what, Artemis? We haven't met before…so…”

     Artemis looked very small. She sighed and continued,

  “Oh Hilde, what I have to say is very hard to explain. You have all been through a lot of pain because of me, and I think that you will be very angry.”

     She looked up, took a deep breath, then laid down the truth.

  “You guys, my name isn't Artemis. It's my middle name. I've been using it as a pseudonym. My real name is…Relena Artemis Peacecraft.”

     Relena's voice broke. The whole group (except Heero) looked politely bewildered. Wufei began to say something, but Relena cut in-

  “I know, I don't look the same. This is my true face; the other one you all know was just makeup and prosthetics, to hide my face. But it's really me here, and…I need you back again.”

     Hilde looked at the others, then she stared at Artemis. They stared for a minute, then it dawned on Hilde. She saw the same look in Artemis' eyes. She stood, then hugged Relena, bursting into sobs. The others watched, then it slowly dawned on them too. Hilde was falling apart.

  “Oh Lena…I missed *sob* you so much…and I wished and *sob* wished that you had somehow *sob* survived, but…” Hilde pulled herself together, wiping her eyes, “how did you survive?”

     Relena looked at the ground, then began her long explanation.

  “I knew that someone was going to kill me on that day, and I let it happen. The bullet went through my heart. It was a shot that would have killed any normal human being. The thing is…I, am, well…I'm not really human.”

     Everyone's jaw dropped. Heero finally listened in.

  “I am of a race called Phoenixes. It's genetic—my mother was one. So is my brother. He and I are the only two left.  Phoenixes are beings similar to humans, but slightly enhanced. We don't need to use our heart. It works, but our blood has the capability of moving itself, it doesn't need to be pumped. That is how I survived. I planned an artificial body, it was buried, and I left and have been living… with my brother and Lucrezia.” Relena looked up from the ground. “I'd better get him now.”

     She went through the other doors, and returned with…Milliardo, in all his tall and platinum blondness. For the first time, the gang could see the similarities between brother and sister. He leaned against the wall.  Trowa spoke,

  “Are there any other differences between…Phoenixes and humans?”

     Milliardo answered for Relena.

  “Basically, the main thing is that Phoenixes have…wings. Long, white, feathered wings, often compared to those of angels. Each feather is tipped with a tiny flame. We can sprout them at will.”

     Trowa nodded. Zechs added,

  “Each Phoenix has a strong psychic power over one of the elements. If they train that power, they can use that element for whatever purpose. For instance, I can control the wind to some extent. Relena controls fire. She has trained her power far more than I have mine.”

     Relena nodded in affirmation. Then Heero spoke, in mock-irritation.

  “Is that all you called us here for? Is that it?”

     He drew glares from just about everyone in the room.  Milliardo answered,

  “No. The main point is…this rebellion movement Purifiers. We have to stop it.” He halted in his explanation for effect. “Total domination is not the way to a peaceful world.”

     Everyone nodded, but Heero persisted,

  “We would have already fought them, but we have no mobile suits. Without our Gundams, we're useless.”

     Relena smiled devilishly.

  “Well…I took the liberty of gathering the pieces of your self destructed Gundams. We have been rebuilding them in a hangar under Milliardo's mansion, using the plans that Noin and I hacked from the scientists' files. They are done by now.”

     Hilde, Dorothy, Catherine and Sally all said,

  “Go Lena!”

     Relena continued,

  “So the mission is, should you accept it, intervening in battles and stopping the Purifiers. And, possibly, Sally could use the Preventors as extra manpower.”

     Sally nodded. Milliardo finished,

  “Is everyone going to do this? We can use my mansion on Mars as our HQ.”

     Everybody gave the affirmative. Duo jumped up and exclaimed,

  “The God of Death rises again!”

     Hilde shook her head. So once again, all were united against one common enemy. Relena's secret was out and accepted.

     Now all they had to do was win the war.

***Whew! A great weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Finally! To everyone who wanted it, there is the deal on the Phoenix race! Great, great, great! I'll add a little as the story goes on, but that is the real deal.

I might not be able to write for a while, maybe 2 weeks, because of family travel problems. I don't know, I'll see. I'll try to write more, but I can't guarantee during the next 2 weeks, OK?

You know, the feedback that I've been getting has been simply phenomenal! I didn't expect such a positive WAVE of mail! I love it! Many thanx to people like: Jenny T, Felicia, Sai, Sparring Lynch, Dana, just to name a few… ïŠ ïŠ ïŠ ïŠ

Write me more, tell me your opinion, give me advice, you fic writer veterans, flame me ïŒ, or yes/no on a lemon chapter.

Thanx,

Firey Angelwings