Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Wild Wings ❯ Chapter 12

Minor edit back in chapter 10. Duo referred to Quatre as Q during the argument with Heero, that's been changed to 'Four' since he isn't supposed to know his name yet.

 

Jess -- I'm glad you caught that Duo doesn't know Trow's name yet. I don't think I expressly pointed that discrepancy out but... yes. Good. *excited*

 

Princess - Your review brightened my day after a dreary class, thank you! All these speculations on who is dominant to whom are interesting, keep wondering out loud, you might influence the story, lol

 

Laori - Welcome to the review list! Thanks so much for your thoughts, I'm glad you're enjoying it. :D

 

 

 

Chapter 12

 

Duo crouched in knee-high grasses, somewhat satisfied. His 'Life's a bitch' shirt was inside out and nicely dark against the black sky. He could see the base in the distance, only a few lights on to signal anyone there at all.

 

"Hey Two!"

 

He turned to see Three standing on the chest hatch of Heavyarms. "The name's Duo." He called back. "I figure I owe you that much at least..."

 

"Duo... how appropriate. Here, you forgot this!"

 

A flexible shape spun through the darkness at him. Duo caught his baseball cap with a grin. "Hey man, you're amazing!" He pulled it on over his eyes.

 

"Trowa."

 

Duo looked up then grinned. "Trowa, then. See you in New Edwards."

 

The man nodded and retreated into his Gundam. Duo didn't wait for him to leave, he took off at a swift jog toward the base. His legs were screaming in no time. This little stunt was not going to help him in the healing department.

 

He scaled the first chain fence with more of a care toward not hurting himself further than efficient movement. Heavyarms took off as he landed on the other side. There wasn't a soul around to investigate the noise. Duo saluted to the vapor trail, "Good luck, packmale." He whispered.

 

Despite the silence at the base Duo stuck to the shadows and took his time weaving toward the river. Since that was where he'd left the Gundam, that was where he was going to start.

 

Duo found himself skirting the edges of the destroyed Aries hanger with a smirk he couldn't contain. That blast had worked much more effectively than he anticipated. Crouched in the dust the pilot could see the river. Spotting his Gundam's location wasn't all that difficult- it was searing with floodlights.

 

So they'd found it. He really had to expect that, though, it'd been two days since they botched the attack. His only hope now was their lack of water-side machinery. Scythe was a heavy machine- a few cranes and a tow truck weren't going to cut it.

 

Anyone unfortunate enough to be stuck on the base was milling around here like moths to a flame. Of course they were... Duo began unwrapping his arms. His injuries weren't entirely healed yet, but the bandages would draw more attention than a few smarting cuts. He left them in the ruins of the hanger, pulled his cap down, and sauntered in like he belonged.

 

Finding the supply shed wasn't hard. Knocking out it's single elderly keeper was even easier. The man wasn't a combat veteran, he handed out diving masks for a living. Duo dragged the unconscious body into a back office and shut the door on curious eyes. "Ok, time for a swim then..." He began a quick search for a wetsuit that would fit and various accoutrements that would help disguise him.

 

"Hey Mac, you getting blind or something I asked for a thirty six not a thirty ei-- ... you're not Mac."

 

Duo spun about to greet the soldier with a grin and a flick on his cap. "Hey there, nope. I'm a newbie here, name's Josh. How yah doin'?" He stuck his hand out for a shake. The soldier returned it hesitantly.

 

"Passed the dull job onto you, eh?"

 

"Yeah, no kidding." Duo eyed the flipper on the counter. "You're looking for a thirty six, then?"

 

"Yeah that's right, they're usually off on the left there."

 

Duo followed the vague gesture and rifled through a cardboard box full of rubber until he found the right size. "Here y'are. So you're headed down to check out that suit right?"

 

"Yeah. The big man finally got off his high horse and said we could do some preliminary searches."

 

Duo didn't know who the big man was but nodded anyway, "So have you figured out what kind it is yet?"

 

The soldier seemed surprised, "You mean you haven't heard?"

 

Duo tried to look apologetic, "Naw, I haven't heard a word. I've been cooped up in the office all day." He jabbed a thumb to the closed door.

 

The excuse seemed to satisfy the man. "Well, if you want to believe the rumors, it's a Gundam."

 

"You're kidding, here?

 

"You heard about the attack, right?"

 

"Of course, that's why they sent me over. Said you guys were short on men."

 

"Well they're saying it was by the Gundam pilots."

 

"But wasn't it botched?"

 

The soldier nodded, "Or something, we think one of them had to leave the mecha behind. But we don't have any of the machinery to lift the thing out of the river so it's going to be stuck there until we get some units transferred over. All our Aries suits were wiped out."

 

"Well bring those flippers back in good shape and tell me what you find, yeah?"

 

"Sure thing. Later!"

 

Duo waved briefly then got to work finding his own set of flippers and mask. None of the suits were really small enough for him but he made do with what he could find. The bandages around his right leg were tinged pink but he couldn't do anything about it at the moment. The wetsuit would help, in any case. He stuffed his cap in where he could fit it and zipped himself up. A pair of goggles and some flippers made him look like just another support diver. No tanks of air- he didn't need them for such a short distance- kept the weight nice and light.

 

"Excuse me..." The dock was full of people, some trying to help, most just trying to watch. All of them in Duo's way. The lack of organization was on his side, though. "Pardon me, excuse me... finally!" He found an open spot and shoved his flippers on. The goggles fit well over his eyes and without further ado he dropped into the river.

 

Ah, Scythe. Good to see you again. His first kick with the flippers sent a spasm of pain up through his legs. The second made screaming look like a very interesting option. He bit his cheek and fought through the water, feeling every single inch he moved. The other divers paid him little mind.

 

By the time he reached the hatch Duo was greatly regretting his lack of air tanks. His vision faded out from pain and holding his breath, but his fingers found the control panel and he tapped the code quickly.

 

He let himself sink into the chair and called up the drainage commands. The hatch sealed with a clunk and every bit of water sucked out of the cockpit via emergency drains was emptied into the river. Duo gasped on thin air. Life support kicked in seconds later. Duo shucked the flippers and, still panting, brought Deathscythe back to life.

 

He pushed the mask up on his forehead and turned up the heat. The last of the river water evaporated in a sudden misty cloud leaving the cockpit dry, if still stinking. His fingers shook with a chill the heat couldn't drive away. At least one of the stitches in his right leg was torn, probably more. The left seemed fine but without pealing the suit away he couldn't be sure and right now wasn't the time.

 

Duo hit the thrusters and exploded from the river in a sudden expulsion of power.

 

Right now he needed to get to New Edwards and save Heero from himself. Duo braced himself against the pain and fatigue, cloaked his Gundam from radar, and sent the machine soaring in the direction of New Edwards.

 

--//--

 

The base blipped on his map in appropriate blood red. Duo saw rounds exchanged before he could make out the suits that were firing. The outlook did not appear in the Gundam's favor. Heero maneuvered his mecha around a command tower and fired through it at a Leo unit, taking them both out at once. Duo spotted a white and yellow Gundam he didn't recognize take out a pair of Aries with its curved weapons. That must be Four.

 

Packmale Trowa was surrounded. Heavyarms leapt up and to the right executing a sickeningly acrobatic move. Thanks to his cloaking no one noticed his extra blast of speed until the four suits Trowa escaped exploded where they stood.

 

"Thanks Duo." Trowa's acknowledgement was curt. He turned and skewered a Leo with bullets.

 

A small vid blinked open in one of Duo's monitors. He glanced at a wide-eyed blonde before spinning his scythe about to decapitate another Leo. "Nice to finally meet you, Four!" He swept a tank and several ground troops into the side of a building with a perfect golf swing. Hah.

 

"I'm Quatra—" The blonde cut himself off to take care of an enemy. "Quatra Rababa Winner." He smiled through the vid, "Pleasure." Then grunted.

 

Duo couldn't be bothered to check on the kid, another Leo trampled through the mess of ground troops and fired at him. He dodged left, sliced through another tank, and cut the mecha with an upswing. He followed the motion around and hit the thrusters to catch an Aries before it landed behind him.

 

"Come on! Is that all you've got OZ? I've had worse fighting my grandmother!" He wrenched the scythe around in another loop that cut through two Leos and a magazine. The building blew. Deathscythe staggered back before Duo could orient the machine. Wind cut through the smoke and Duo spotted another wave of mecha rising to meet them.

 

Heero's vid popped up in a corner of his screen. "Duo?" The man asked mildly. The braided pilot saw him strain against the weight of his rifle. "Never challenge the power of worse." Wing fired along the line of suits. A good half of them exploded or fell to pieces. Heavyarms opened its shielding and let loose half a dozen missiles. Duo aimed his own projectile and let the small shield fly. Quatra charged the last staggering few with his blades and a frustrated yell.

 

"There it is!" From Heero. Duo turned to see a small shuttle curving through the air to escape. His screen blinked 'OZ'

 

Wing dropped into bird mode and sliced through the sky to catch up. It unfolded again, plasma sword high, and cut through the defenseless machine. The two halves fell through the air before combusting in a ball of fire and smoke.

 

"Whoo! Mission accomplished guys!" Duo cheered.

 

Heavyarms sliced the last Leo in half almost negligently with a satisfied "Yes" from its pilot.

 

Quatra's laugh was cut off with a gasp. Duo turned in time to find a pillar of fire blast by his Gundam. "Whoa, hey- what's the dea—another Gundam?!"

 

"I knew there was a fifth..." Quatra muttered.

 

The green mecha lowered its flamethrower. "Congratulations, you idiots."

 

"Hey!" Duo shouted, "Who's got your tights in a wad, Mister?"

 

"You have no idea what you've just done, do you?" The voice over the radio was smugly superior and righteously angry. Wing landed with a heavy vibration. "Check the Alliance's announcements; you've just murdered the peace delegates you morons!!"

 

"No... Impossible." Heero's voice was small. Duo called the news up on screen and felt the blood run from his face.

 

"...has been attacked where Martial Noventa was leading a peace meeting between Alliance leaders and Colony representatives. This assault was led by none other than the Gundams, sent by the colonies from outer space. The Alliance hereby declares war against the colonies..."

 

"Now do you see?" Five spat bitterly, "you've destroyed any chance we had of ever ending this war."

 

"Oh my God..." Duo clenched his cross through the wetsuit and t-shirt. "Oh my God what have we done...?"

 

"No, not you." Heero growled. "Me. I've done this."

 

"That is such crap!" Duo hissed.

 

Trowa seemed resigned already, the bastard. "We're all in this."

 

"All of us..." Quatre echoed sounding the most distressed.

 

"Not me." The green Gundam turned to stride away. "I've had no part in this."

 

Duo slammed his fist on the console. "Oh what? You're going to toss the blame around and just leave? Is that it?"

 

"That's exactly right."

 

"Guys?" Quatra's voice was ignored.

 

"Get off it Five you're a part of this as much as the rest of us. You'll be targeted too!"

 

"Guys?!" The blonde was a little distressed now.

 

The green mecha turned, "Not through any fault of my own—"

 

"GUYS!"

 

"What!?" Duo and Five chorused, turning.

 

"We have a bigger problem then who's to blame. Someone just set several nuclear missiles below the base to explode!"

 

"How much time do we have?" Heero's voice clipped the words.. Heavyarms and the green Gundam began moving steadily away.

 

"Not enough to escape." Quatra growled. A display suddenly popped up on Duo's main screen. It was not a pretty picture. "That's the blast radius... this is the fallout. We've got three minu—One what are you doing?!"

 

"Stopping this madness." Wing shoved its shield between a pair of blast doors in the ground. Heero dropped from his Gundam into the darkness.

 

Trowa stopped his retreat with a sigh. Five continued slowly west.

 

"You can't get out of this, Five!" Duo called over the radio. "We're all in it now." He got nothing but static Duo grabbed at his cross again, "Damnit, Christ, we're really in for it now..."