Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Chimaera ❯ Chapter 120 ( Chapter 120 )

Please see previous chapters for notes, disclaimers etc.

 

"Chimaera"

 

October. 2003 ShenLong

 

Chapter 120

 

[Outside the Glasshouse]

 

"Agent Winter, this is Mother Earth, do you copy?"

 

"Winter here."

 

"Status?"

 

"Terrorists are secured, hostages have been checked over and apart of shock, mild dehydration in a couple and a few minor injuries, all are well. Agent Snow will be leaving in a moment and escorting the hostages down to you for transportation to the debriefing. I have two agents who will bring the body of the senator out once the others are clear. Terrorists are still unconscious and I would prefer for a proper medic to check them over and administer the antidote before we attempt to remove them from the scene.""Roger that." Une looked around and noted the medic sitting to one side. "I'll have the medic here come up once he's checked over the former hostages and assist you with the terrorists. I'll contact headquarters and have secure transportation sent down to take them through to the Preventer holding cells ready for interrogation."

 

"Okay. Winter out."

 

"Mother Earth, out." Une reached for her cell phone only to be reminded that her missing agents had it and she scowled. Walking over to her car, she unlocked the vehicle and put the call to headquarters through on the car 'phone. With everything under control, there really wasn't much more she could do other than wait for the people to finish being evacuated from the building. Once that was complete, her agents could photograph and catalog the evidence in preparation for the case they would need to put together to present to the court once charges were laid and a hearing date set. When they had everything they would need they could allow the police in to do their investigation. While the immediate drama was over, there was still a lot of work remaining to be completed. Une sighed, that hot bath and cup of tea seemed to fade further from view.

 

***

 

[Preventer Hospital]

 

Trowa growled softly at the hospital bed. The damn thing seemed to have a mind of its own. It didn't matter which way Trowa tried to steer it, it didn't want to respond. It reminded Trowa of those stubborn shopping trolleys; regardless of which one he selected it seemed all four wheels wanted to go in opposite directions - all at the same time. After his last encounter with one of those wretched things he'd ended up in the middle of a toilet paper tower, the display so lovingly set up by the store boy reduced to ruins in mere seconds when Trowa and his trolley had collided with it. At least he'd managed to avoid the stack of baked beans tins on the aisle previous. Trowa had no doubt in his mind that the toilet paper raining down on him hurt far less than the cans of baked beans would have.

 

Come to think of it, the toilet paper didn't hit as hard as the muesli bar packets he'd run into the previous week; or the chocolate biscuits the week before. Trowa had finally begun to think he was getting the advantage on his trolley 'opponent' when the damn thing had shot to the left when he'd tried to turn right, the back end swinging out, just missing the baked bean tins. The force of Trowa's counter move sent the trolley and himself spiraling out of control to be pulled up short by the toilet paper stack.

 

Trowa had clearly remembered the one thought that appropriately went through his head as the paper fell around him and the distraught face of the store boy peered at what was left of his lovely display.

 

Shit happens.

 

After being exhumed from underneath the floral prints, Trowa had slunk from the store and not returned since.

 

His decision to shop elsewhere had nothing to do with the argument he'd had with the store manager upon his departure regarding the hazards of the shopping trolley, nor the restraining order that came two days later forbidding him to set foot within twenty meters of the store in the future.

 

Now it seemed as if the hospital bed was determined to do the same to him. Rounding a corner and heading down another corridor it was all Trowa could do to stop the damn bed from colliding with a supply trolley parked by the wall. No sooner had he evaded that than a laundry trolley appeared on the horizon and the bed zeroed in on it. Hastily, Trowa applied evasive action.

"Fuck, Tro! I'm glad you don't drive a car like this," came Duo's muttered curse as he banged against the safety rails Sally had put up on the sides of the bed.

 

"Sorry. I can't seem to get the thing to go where I want it to. Ah, shit!"

 

There was the sound of clattering bed pans as Trowa side swiped yet another small trolley.

 

"I think you had better let me drive," came Nurse Brown's irritated voice. "At this rate we won't just be delivering a baby but treating for accident injuries as well."

 

Trowa was only too happy to surrender the 'controls' to the nurse. "Five bucks says she hits the vase stand up ahead," he whispered to Duo.

 

"I'll take that bet. Five bucks says she gets me to theater without hitting a thing," Duo whispered back.

 

Nurse Brown was well aware of the whispering that was going on but chose to ignore it. She gripped the top end of the bed with hands that were used to dealing with wayward objects; human or otherwise, and gave the bed a test push. With determination in her eyes, she glared at the hospital bed and shoved off. The bed seemed to sense that it had met its match and obediently allowed itself to be pushed along the corridor. The vase stand was cleared without so much as a ruffling of the petals on the flowers from the slipstream created as the bed zoomed past.

 

Slowing her pace as she approached the doors to the operating theater, Nurse Brown twisted and turned the bed frame without losing any forward movement and cleared the door frame with inches to spare. Once inside, Nurse Brown pushed the bed to one side and locked the brake in place.

 

Trowa gave a whistle of appreciation at the nurse's skills. "Just how the hell did you manage to get it to behave?" he asked.

 

"Ah, that's a trade secret," replied the nurse.

 

"Can you control shopping trolleys as well?"

 

"Piece of cake."

 

"Well, I'll be. Any chance you can show me how to do it?" asked Trowa, his eyes wide with admiration.

 

Nurse Brown patted Trowa on the shoulder. "I don't fancy your chances, son. Shopping trolleys are a completely different kettle of fish. A female has a much higher success rate at taming the shopping trolley than a man does; actually, from memory the mortality rate for men at the mercy of a shopping trolley is quite high."

 

Death by shopping trolley was not on Trowa's list of things to do. "In that case I think I'll quit while I'm behind and stick to the shopping baskets."

 

"Wise decision, young man. Leave those trolleys to the experts," said the nurse with a smile. "I'll be right back, I'm just going to fetch the shaving equipment." Nurse Brown disappeared through another door.

 

"Trowa?" Duo's voice was unusually high and held a tremble to it. He'd heard the words 'shaving equipment'.

 

"I'm here, Duo."

 

"Promise me you won't let her shave me."

 

Trowa gazed into the scared violet eyes of his friend. "I won't let her, Duo. If it makes you feel any better, I'll do it for you seeing as how Heero hasn't gotten here yet."

 

"Thanks, Tro." Duo gave a loud sigh of relief followed by a soft moan of pain.

 

"Contraction?"

 

"Sort of but not quite. More discomfort from the pressure. I think Sunshine is getting a little impatient and is venting its frustrations on my insides." Duo moaned softly once more.

 

Not sure of what exactly he could do to help his friend, Trowa moved to the side of the bed and gently rubbed Duo's abdomen. The belly beneath his palm felt impossibly tight and hard. "Shit, there is a lot of pressure there, Duo."

 

"You don't have to tell me," replied Duo. "I reckon you could pretty much play the drums on my stomach, the skin's that tight. By the way, you owe me five bucks."

 

Trowa snorted. "You know I'm good for it."

 

"You mean Quat's good for it," snickered Duo.

 

"I am not a kept man," huffed Trowa. It was a sore point with Trowa that people thought he sponged off Quatre. The rest of the ex pilots knew this and Duo especially took delight in teasing his friend any chance he got. "Just remember who's going to be on the end of the razor in a moment," Trowa added for good measure.

 

"Ah, right. I'll behave."

 

"Here we are," said Nurse Brown as she returned with the shaving equipment. "Duo, I need you to roll onto your back and lift the gown up a little please.""If you don't mind, Trowa will shave me. I'd do it myself but I can't see and I'd hate to remove anything vital," said Duo as his cheeks colored a little.

 

Nurse Brown knew that wasn't the complete truth but she let it slide. It was better to keep the patient calm and happy in this situation. "If you're happier with Trowa doing the shaving then that's fine with me." The nurse turned to the Latin. "There's no need to remove all the pubic hair, just shave from the navel down to the base of his penis, that should be enough. If Doctor Po needs any more removing we can do it in surgery."

 

Trowa nodded. "Okay."

 

"I'll leave you to it then. I'm going into theater to assist Doctor Po with the final setting up. I'll be back in about five to ten minutes. If he has another contraction or you need me for any reason the call button is right here." The nurse pulled a cord from the wall which had a large, white bulbous end complete with red button and placed the thing on the pillow next to Duo's head. "I'll be back shortly."

 

Once the nurse had cleared the room, Trowa picked up the razor and studied it.

 

"Let's get this over with," said Duo as he wriggled on the bed, levering the gown up a bit and pushing his boxers down to reveal a dark thatch of hair. "Word of warning, bang boy. Take off anything that isn't pubic hair and you will be planning your own funeral."

 

"Would I do anything like that?" Trowa replied in innocence.

 

"I know you've worked with knives before but that doesn't mean shit."

 

"I've had a few close shaves too," stated Trowa as he wiped a little of the shaving gel over Duo's groin.

 

"Always the clown, aren't you?" Duo replied with a touch of sarcasm.

 

Trowa declined to answer, preferring to concentrate on the task at hand and leave Duo with all his vital bits in tact.

 

* * *

 

[Inside the Police Car]

 

"For crying out loud! I've never in my life seen such morons!" Wufei snapped as he braked hard to avoid running into the rear end of the car in front that had simply decided to stop. "Get out of the fucking way! Can't you see I have lights and sirens going?!"

 

The offending car inched out of the way and Wufei was once more stepping on the gas. Despite the seat belt, Heero found himself being jolted around and wished he had a harness like the one he'd had in Wing.

 

Quatre was happily providing encouragement, telling Wufei where to turn. Fortunately Wufei was too engrossed in his suicidal driving skills to take much notice otherwise he would be likely to tell the blonde where to go. Wufei knew this city like the back of his hand, Quatre had only paid a few visits.

 

Turning onto the major road, Wufei floored the accelerator, vehicles scrambling to get out of his way. "That's better, shift your ass," Wufei muttered as a car pulled over to let him through.

 

"Ohhh, wonder what the rest of these do?" Quatre had turned his attention back to the dashboard and the remaining buttons and switches.

 

"Quatre, I don't think you should push anymore buttons," said Heero with an edge to his voice.

 

Quatre ignored Heero's comment and busied himself with checking out the remaining buttons and switches on the dashboard. He flicked one; nothing happened. He pressed a few buttons with various results of the minor kind then flicked another switch and presumed that one to do nothing as well. After a moment he grew bored and picked up the radio handset.

 

"Quatre..." came Heero's warning.

 

The Arab turned slightly in his seat and gave Heero an angelic look. "I'm only going to listen in," he replied.

 

"I know you, Quatre. You're as bad as Duo when it comes to gizmos and gadgets," growled Heero.

 

"Move, asshole!" Wufei's snarl echoed in the car.

 

"Oh, get the stick out of your ass, Heero," snorted Quatre and turned to look at the road ahead, his hand still clutching the handset. The sudden swerve of the car caused Quatre's fingers to grip the handset tight and depress the small 'talk' button. "For fuck's sake!" Quatre complained as his dislocated shoulder hit the side of the vehicle and sent a jolt of pain through his body.

 

Immediate silence followed as the three occupants realized what had just transpired.

 

Quatre's words had been heard not only in the car but also in the street.

 

"Um, Quat? Did you by any chance push the talk button on that handset?" asked Heero.

 

"Errr... I think I must have." The blonde's eyes lit up and a grin came over his face. "Way cool!"

 

"Now we know what that last switch does," muttered Wufei.

 

"Hey! Get out of the way, clear the road, coming through!" Quatre yelled into the handset.

 

The words were magnified as they spilled out of the police car's loud hailer system and into the surrounding air for all the citizens to hear.

 

"Better watch your language now, Chang," stated Quatre with a smirk. "Could give the constabulary a bad name if they hear your cursing over the speakers."

 

Wufei opted to remain quiet.

 

"Move, people, get out of the way! Emergency!" Quatre continued to call out over the loud hailer. It had the desired effect. Quatre's voice combined with the lights and sirens effectively cleared the road ahead of them.

 

In the car, Heero slunk down in the seat and cradled his head in his hands. He was certain they would be arrested for this little jaunt.

 

Unfortunately one elderly gentleman behind the wheel of his car was taken so much by surprise to hear a voice demand he move out of the way, that he swerved in front of Wufei. Chang immediately hit the brakes and swerved to the side, a barrage of curses leaving his mouth as he clipped the rear of the gentleman's car. Wufei slowed enough for Quatre to turn and see if the man was okay. He appeared a little shaken but otherwise all right.

 

"Errr... Sorry," Quatre said over the speaker system as Wufei sped off.

 

Wufei turned the last corner, tires screaming in protest, the car groaning with the force of taking the corner on two wheels. Chang slammed on the brakes, bringing the car to a sudden stop. "Ground floor, Preventer Hospital. General surgery, pathology, x-ray and maternity. Please step outside," said the Chinese agent as he opened the driver's door and exited the vehicle.

 

"I hope they have more drugs," said Quatre. "The morphine I was given back at the Glasshouse is starting to wear off, I think."

 

Heero groaned. The thought of Quatre on more morphine set his teeth on edge, although not as much as what he saw next. Pulling himself from the police car, he stumbled as pain shot through his injured thigh. He grabbed for the door to steady himself and winced, waiting for the burning pain to ease enough for him to be able to walk. That's when he saw Chang. Heero's eyebrows shot up and a scowl appeared on his face. "I am not getting into that," he stated flatly.

 

Wufei brought the wheelchair to a halt beside the injured agent. "Yes, you are."

 

"I can walk."

 

"Stumble, limp, fall down, crawl, yes; but not walk. Now, shut the fuck up and get into the chair," snapped Wufei.

 

"Ohh, more transport," chimed the blonde and sat himself down in the wheelchair. "Come on, Heero," said Quatre as he patted his lap. "Wufei can push us both."

 

Heero gave the Arab a glare. "No way."

 

Chang had had enough. Checking that the brake was on, he quickly lifted the blonde from the chair and stood him to the side, ignoring the pout. Then he turned to Heero and bodily heaved the Japanese man into the chair. "You will sit in this chair; you will let me push you and you won't make any complaint." Seeing Heero's mouth about to open in protest, Wufei pulled rank. "And that's an order, Agent Day. Right. We have a birth to attend so let's not delay any further." Wufei grabbed the handles of the chair and took off at a run. With the same expertise he'd used when driving the cop car, Wufei weaved and dodged through the corridors of the Preventer medical section.

 

"Chang?... Chang?!... CHANG?!" Heero yelled in the end.

 

"Yes?"

 

"You're going the wrong way."

 

"No, I'm not. This is the way to the maternity section."

 

"Duo isn't in the maternity section."

 

Wufei came to a screeching halt. "He isn't?"

 

"No. Think about it, Wufei."

 

"Ah. Acknowledged."

 

"Sally has set up a special ward for him in the isolation block."

 

"Right." Wufei scanned around.

 

"The isolation block is that way," said Quatre helpfully, pointing down a corridor to their left.

 

"How come you're so familiar with the layout of the Preventer hospital, Winner?" asked Wufei as he changed course and sped down another corridor.

 

"Easy. It said so on the signs," replied Quatre with a grin.

 

Heero rolled his eyes then suddenly grabbed the hand rests hard as he was nearly thrown from the wheelchair with Wufei's sudden stop. "Now what?"

 

Before them stood the closed doors to the isolation unit.

 

"We need a pass card to get in," said Wufei.

 

"Shit!"

 

~ * ~

 

tbc...