Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Deceptions ❯ The Friend ( Chapter 10 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing

Deceptions Part 10: The Friend

By Symee-Sama

"You're crazy!" Wufei said angrily. "I can't believe that you're even suggesting this to me, Maxwell." He glared at the braided man, but it had no effect. Duo just grinned, and leaned against the wall. "Do you even understand what you've suggested?" Duo's grin faded slightly.

"Of course I understand!" He said defensively. "I know that it's going to be a problem getting permission to take him with us, but we have to. He knows where the base is. He knows what the key codes for the doors are. He knows everything we need to know to get Relena back, and he won't tell us unless we take him with us!"

"We can't take him off the base!" Wufei countered. "He'll just have to tell us the information!"

Duo shook his head slightly. "He won't tell, you can interrogate him all you want, but he won't tell you anything until you let him come." Wufei looked like he wanted to strangle Duo with his braid, but Duo didn't care. "We have to bring him with us."

"We already have a name, we can track him down through that." Wufei crossed his arms over his chest. "We've already started looking." Duo smirked, and the other man glared at him. "What is it, Maxwell?"

"I already did a search," Duo's smirk grew. "And the results were over 100 000 people who fit Heero's description, and were rich enough to buy someone from the black market on L1. Over 30 000 of those have regular dealings on L1. There's no way to narrow the search down."

Wufei scowled at Duo. "I'll see what I can do about getting Heero with us." He said in defeat. "I'll have to talk to Lady Une about this, and I'll stop the interrogation." He almost smiled as Duo's mouth fell open.

"You started it already?" Duo asked, feeling a little sick. He had heard things about Preventor interrogations, and what he'd heard had not been pleasant. He found it hard to stop himself from running to Heero's cell and killing whoever happened to be in there with him. "Stop it now!"

"I will," Wufei promised. "When I have the time." He did smile this time, and it didn't falter when Duo grabbed his shirt and pushed him against the wall. "Calm down, Maxwell."

"Stop this, Wufei!" Duo yelled at him. "I know that he hurt Sally, and he hurt you, but this isn't right!" Wufei looked unperturbed. "Beating the shit out of him won't change anything!" He released Wufei, and took a step back. "You need to stop his interrogation right now."

"Why are you defending him?" Wufei asked in a confused tone. "He's done all these things, I know that he's told you about them, and he's hurt your friends. So why are you still helping him, and treating him like he's you're friend?"

Duo crossed his arms over his chest. "Because he is my friend, and I figure someone's gotta stick by him. Because right now, I'm the only friend he's got." He looked at Wufei. "Something's wrong with him, and if he's insane like you say, then we should be getting him help." He pounded the wall in frustration. "Damn it! He was a pilot just like us! I can't just label him as a murderer, and leave it at that."

"Why not?"

"Because every time I try to, I see him flying in front of Libra, and nearly killing himself to destroy it." He leaned against the wall, his eyes closed. "Every time I look at him, I can remember him in the sky above Mariemaia's fortress, and shooting it until his Gundam exploded." Duo opened his eyes, and they had a pleading look in them. "Those aren't the actions of a murderer are they?"

An uncomfortable silence stretched between them. "I'll stop the interrogation now," Wufei said finally, and Duo bolted from the wall, and started walking towards Heero's cell. He paused at the end of the hallway and turned back to glance at the Chinese man.

"Thanks Wufei," he said softly, and then he dashed around the corner and was gone. Duo ran down the numerous hallways of the Preventors base, not caring who he knocked down in the process. Being a Gundam pilot gave him a little leeway in technical matters, he could get out of almost any problem by asking to see Lady Une.

He turned a corner, accidentally knocking over a janitor. "Sorry!" Duo yelled and kept running, trying to run faster. He had to see what they had done to his friend. Terrible scenarios ran through his head, ranging from bruises to broken bones. He was almost scared to see what he'd find. He turned the last corner and ran to nearest door on the right. He pulled out his card key, and entered the number on it on the keypad.

Duo stepped back as the door unlocked and swung open. "Heero?" he said a little uncertainly. "Heero are you okay?" He heard muffled grunts coming from the corner, and walked into the cell, closing the door behind him. "What are you doing?" There was a snapping sound, and Duo gave an exaggerated sigh. "Some things never change."

He took a closer look at his friend, and was horrified by what he saw. His face was swollen and bruised, and his nose looked like it had been broken. Some of the fingers on his left hand were bent at odd angles, and his left arm was hanging unnaturally at his side. Duo put a hand over his mouth. "I think I'm going to be sick." He informed his friend. "That's-"

"Don't" Heero's monotone cut through Duo's words. "This cell smells bad enough already." He grimaced when he tried to move. "I need your help with something." Duo walked over to his friend and knelt beside him. "Hold my arm just above the elbow." Heero instructed, and Duo did as he asked, looking a little sick as Heero reached out and grabbed his wrist. "Hold it tight." Duo's grip tightened, and Heero twisted his arm until a snapping sound was heard, and the bone was back in place.

"What the hell did they do to you?" Duo asked, desperately trying to keep from losing his lunch from the cracking sounds that could be heard as Heero snapped his fingers back into place. "How the hell could they do this to you?"

"You're the only one who's not angry at me," Heero began. "There were plenty of people who would love to get back at me for what I've done." He grimaced as he flexed his sore fingers. "Zechs, for one, and there were others who had lost friends and family during the bombing." He looked at Duo. "I didn't give them any information so why'd they stop?"

"Wufei ordered it," Duo informed him. "You're going to come with us to get Relena." He saw Heero's shoulders slump forward in relief. "You have to not retaliate to anything they do to you though, you're going to be in cuffs, and some of them might try to do something to you, but don't do anything okay?" Heero nodded. "I'll probably be with you, so I'll look out for you, I guess."

"That's fine," Heero said tonelessly. "I trust you." He looked at Duo, a desperate look in his eyes. "Will I be able to go in to see Relena?"

Duo smiled slightly. "Yeah, you know all the key codes and everything." His smile faded. "Do you expect her to forgive you?" He asked quietly. "Because I don't think that's going to happen."

"No," Heero said quietly, eyes downcast. "I don't expect her to forgive me, I don't want her to either." He ignored Duo's protests. "It's true. I'm going with you to rescue her, and after that, I'm going to tell the Preventors everything I did. I'm going to tell them about the murders, the bombings, everything."

Duo gaped at him. "They'll put you away for life for all that!" He said. "They could even execute you for that!" He looked at his friend. "Are you sure that you want to do that?"

"What am I supposed to do?" Heero growled at him. "Am I supposed to forget about what I've done?" He looked at the braided pilot, his face giving nothing away, but his eyes were filled with despair. "I can't." He said softly. "And I don't want to. I deserve to go to jail, I'd rather go to jail, because an execution would be too quick. I want to suffer."

"Hey now," Duo said uncomfortably. "Don't talk like that." He sat down beside the other pilot. "There are enough people who want you in jail without adding yourself to the list."

"Don't try to talk me out of it, Duo. I'm going to tell them everything."

"I'm not," Duo said defensively. "I think that you should be punished for what you've done too. "He sighed. "But I don't want to watch you die, and I don't want you to waste away in prison." Or worse, a mental institution. He wanted to add.

"How did everything go so wrong?" Heero asked. "I learned how to follow my emotions, I learned to trust them, and then I disappeared for what was it, a year?" Duo nodded. "I can't remember anything before that year. I remember the missions, I remember the faces of those I killed, but I don't remember anything before that."

"Well," Duo began. "You were happier. I mean, you still were cold to people that you'd never met before, but to the people you did know, you were warm, friendly." He smiled at his friend. "Hard to believe, eh?" He saw Heero nod. "Everyone thought that you were going to propose to Relena soon, it seemed like you were going to. Then you disappeared, and no one knew where you went."

"You didn't look for me." Heero stated dully.

"It wasn't that we didn't care," Duo assured him. "It's just that you sort of came and went as you pleased, and we could never find you unless you wanted to be found." He ran a hand through his hair. "We started searching when you were missing for six months. That was the longest that you had ever been gone, but we couldn't find a single thing on where you went, so we figured that you didn't want to be found."

"Relena was sad, wasn't she?"

"Yeah," Duo replied. "She was devastated, and she sort of ended up just going through the motions." He heard footsteps coming down the hall, and stood up. "Well, I'm pretty sure that's our escort to our VIP jet." He smiled down at Heero, and pulled him up. "C'mon, you gotta keep up appearances," he joked. "Besides, it will really freak them out if you're able to stand, and use your arms after the beating they gave you."

Heero nodded, and stood as tall as he could manage in his state, staring at the door when it opened, and glaring at the guard who stepped inside. The young man stared at him in shock, he had been one of the interrogators. "How is this possible?" The question slipped out before he could stop it, and Heero smirked at him.

"Was that the best you could do?" He asked coldly, and the guard flinched, wondering if he had made a mistake by beating up this Gundam pilot. They had broken his arm, and one of his legs, but he was still standing, and his arms were crossed over his chest. This wasn't possible.

"Don't taunt him, Yuy," Lady Une stepped into the cell. "Why do you want to help rescue Relena? You're the one who kidnapped her after all." She looked at him warily.

"He had a change of heart," Duo put in cheerfully. "Does he need a better reason?" He crossed his arms over his chest, and glared at her.

Lady Une glared back at him. "I'm sure that he can speak for himself. Can't he?"

"I wanted to make amends." Heero said simply. "I will not give any other reason." Lady Une's glare turned to him, but he shrugged it off. "Are we going or not?"

She nodded. "You do understand that you're going to be handcuffed, right?" Heero nodded, and she gestured to someone outside of the cell. Duo gaped as a guard came in holding the biggest pair of handcuffs that he'd ever seen. They looked like they were two inches thick, and they ran from the wrist to the elbow. Heero's face showed no expression when they put the restraints on him, but Duo knew that he had to be in pain. He'd just had his arm broken after all.

Lady Une checked over the restraints, and nodded her satisfaction, and Heero and Duo were led out of the cell, and through the endless hallways of the base. Duo found that the pace that they were setting was too fast, especially for Heero who had just broken a leg. They were practically running down the halls. "Hey Lady!" He said, and Lady Une turned to face him.

"What is it, Maxwell?" She asked impatiently, and kept walking, pulling Heero along with her. Duo's face darkened. She knew that Heero's arm had been broken, but she was still pulling him like that. He pushed his way past her, and moved her hands away from Heero's shackles. "What the hell are you doing?"

Duo gave her a pointed look. "You don't need to pull him along like that." He told her angrily. "He's a big boy now, and can walk all by himself. He doesn't need your help." She glared at him, and tried to grab for Heero again, but Duo blocked her with one hand.

Lady Une let out a growl, slapping him as hard as she could, but Duo only smiled, and raised a hand to his burning cheek. "You should try to be more graceful," He smirked. "Lady Une" He saw her mouth drop, and he silently thanked Noin for telling him about that insult. Lady Une walked swiftly ahead of them, and punched in the key code to the door, motioning for them to go inside.

Duo led Heero towards the shuttle that they were supposed to take. They walked up the ramp, and entered the small shuttle. "Hey guys," Duo said amiably to all the other pilots. "When are we leaving?"

"We were waiting on you, Maxwell." Wufei sneered. "What took you so long?"

"Sorry Wufei." Duo said without a trace of an apology in his voice. "We were held up by Une." He glanced around the shuttle. Zechs and Wufei were glaring at him, and Trowa was glaring at Heero with hatred so intense, Duo wondered why Heero wasn't melting. Quatre was smiling slightly at Duo, but was refusing to acknowledge Heero's existence. This wasn't going to be a fun trip. "What's our destination?" He asked Heero.

"We're going to the northern border of Sanq." Heero said, ignoring the glares of the other pilots. "Relena's about five miles west of the capital." The pilots burst into accusations, there was no way that Relena could have been held there. It was too close to the Preventors. Duo began defending Heero, and arguing with Wufei and Zechs.

"Duo?" Quatre spoke quietly, but his voice easily cut through the noise. "You can pilot." Duo nodded, and he started walking towards the cockpit, throwing an uneasy glance back at Heero.

"He better be alive when I get back." Duo growled.

"Or you'll what, Maxwell?" Wufei asked with disdain. "You can't do anything to four of us."

"Heero," Quatre's voice was strained, and he spat the name like it pained him to say it. "Go with Duo to the cockpit." He turned to Duo, still watching Heero warily. "If there's any problems, shout, and we'll help you."

Duo stalked towards the cockpit, Heero following close behind. He wanted to yell at the other pilots for being such jerks, but he managed to refrain from commenting until Heero and him were in the cockpit and the door was close.

"They're being such jerks!" He exclaimed, and Heero smiled slightly. It was nice to have a friend when the world hated you. It had shook him to the core when Quatre was rude to him. He knew that he had no right to expect any sort of kindness from the pilots. He had given them no reason to, but he found it hard to swallow that Quatre, who had been the kindest and most accepting of them all would turn against him.

This is what you deserve, he thought bitterly. This is what you're going to face everyday from now on, so you might as well get used to it. After all, he had killed Quatre's sister, he had attacked Sally, he had tried to kill Catherine, and he had kidnapped Relena. He had a lot to answer for, just from his close friends… former friends, anyway. He almost sighed at the thought of facing the wrath for all the other people that he had killed. This was his penance, and he would see it through to the end. Whatever that may be.

"Heero?" Duo's voice pulled him from his reverie. "Are you listening?" Heero shook his head and Duo sighed. "I go through all this trouble to stick up for you, and you don't listen to me talk?" He pretended to be hurt. "I don't think that we can be friends anymore. Heero?" He noticed that his friend's eyes were glazed over, and he groaned. "Shit, not again."

* * * * *

Heero found himself lost in the golden light, but this time, he didn't find its presence comforting. He struggled and fought, trying to free himself from it, but it held him tight. Let me go! He screamed at the light, unsure of the response that he'd get from it. He heard someone laughing, and the light grew brighter. Heero kicked and struggled, but nothing worked, and his head was throbbing. He found himself surrendering to the light, his kicks grew weaker, and his arms began to feel heavy, like there was weights attached to them.

No! He screamed, he couldn't lose this fight. He couldn't be fighting against something that wasn't real. He fought with renewed strength, but still nothing worked. He could hear people talking, but it sounded like they were far away, and their voices echoed inside his mind.

"He's completely out of it…" Quatre's voice came through softly.

"We can't take him on a mission like this." Wufei protested.

"C'mon guys, have a little faith! He'll snap out of it, don't worry."

"Lets hope that you're right, Duo."

Help me! Heero tried to scream, but his voice just echoed inside his head. Wake me up! I'm trapped! But there was no response other than the soft laughter inside his mind. Zero? Heero asked quietly, suddenly afraid of the answer that he might get.

//So you've come crawling back.// Their was a slight sneer in Zero's voice. //Were your lying friends not good enough for you?//

I don't crawl. Heero replied dryly. You're the one who brought me back. Let me out of here. He tried again to escape from the golden light, but he couldn't. Let me go Zero! He wished that there was an actual enemy that he could fight. He didn't know how to react to these mind games.

//I can't do that.// Zero informed him. //You have to do it yourself.//

I know that you can let me go. Heero growled. You're lying to me Zero! You've always been lying to me! He tried again to escape the light, and managed to get a hand free before he was pulled back in. Now, set me free!

//So you've decided that I'm real?// Zero sneered. //Before, you were convinced that I was merely a figment of your imagination.// Heero would have sworn that if Zero had a physical form, he would be smirking. //And figments of your imagination can't help you.//

Damn it, Zero! Heero yelled. Stop doing this! Let me go!

//Why should I?// Zero asked nonchalantly. //You didn't trust me.// Heero was struggling desperately now, fighting with all his might against the light. It seemed like it was getting thicker. Before, it had appeared to be a light mist, and he could see the darkness beyond it, but now, it was brighter, and he could see nothing but the golden light. The golden light was everything.

//I shouldn't let you go.// Zero's voice started to sound dangerous. Heero gasped, putting a hand to his throat. He couldn't breathe! The golden light pushed in, and he fought harder than ever. He needed air! Blackness began to form on the edge of his vision, and he attempted to breathe with all his might. //I shouldn't even let you live.// Heero heard Zero's laughter echoing through his mind as the light smothered him.

* * * * *

Relena felt sick. She hadn't eaten in days, and her stomach felt like it had collapsed. She smiled at the irony of it all. She had been so powerful, she had been in control, but now, she had no power, no control. He was the one who possessed those things. The only thing that she controlled was when it would happen. By getting herself hurt, or antagonising Him until He hit her, but her control on that was tenuous, and she knew that one day, bruises would not deter him from taking what he wanted.

She walked towards the tiny bathroom at the end of the hall. This was only her second time there. He had said that she would be able to go more often, but He had been disappointed with her reaction to His surprise. Relena shuddered. She had ripped the bear to shreds, and thrown them at Him the next time He came to see her. She was afraid because He had not hit her that time. He had opted instead to starve her.

Millions of thoughts came to her, and none of them were good. If He wanted her to bathe today, then could this be the day when He- Relena would have thrown up if she had anything in her stomach. That would explain why He hadn't hit her that day. He didn't like his women blemished. She entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her, and nodded to the attendant.

"Hello Miss Relena," the attendant greeted her. "How do you feel today?" Relena looked at her hands and didn't answer. She let the woman undress her, and she stepped in the bath, still not looking at the woman. Neither of them talked until Relena had stepped out of the bath, and was getting dressed. "Miss Relena," the attendant began nervously. "There's something that you should know."

"Let me guess," Relena said tonelessly. "Today is the big day?" She saw the attendant nod, and buried her face in her hands. She'd still harboured some hope that she would be rescued before it happened, or that He would get tired of her resistance and forget about her.

"Please don't cry," the attendant placed her hand on Relena's shoulder. "It's not as bad as it seems." Relena looked up at her, and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. "He's rumoured to be quite gentle." She flinched when Relena glared at her, and wrung her hands nervously.

"And where did you hear this?" Relena asked angrily. "From the other women that He raped?" Relena clenched her hands into fists, and the attendant tensed. "I won't be one of the broken women who spills her heart to you after He's finished with me." Her eyes lit up with determination. "I'll die before I sleep with Him."

"Please, think about what you're saying." The attendant grabbed Relena's hands. "Don't throw your life away because of Him."

Relena laughed and pulled her hands away, and fastened the last button of the dress the attendant had given her to wear. . "Why shouldn't I?" She asked. "He's going to kill me anyway, isn't he? I can't see Him letting me free. So why shouldn't I choose the time and place of my death?" She had a crazed look in her eyes. "You have to help me."

The attendant backed away from her. "Don't give me excuses," Relena advanced on her, and grabbed her shirt. "You have to help me! Find me something that I can use!" She was shaking the woman now, and she knew that she was probably hurting her, but she didn't care. She needed to get away! She needed to escape, even if she died in the attempt, at least she would be beyond His reach.

"Guards!" the attendant screamed at the top of her lungs, and two armed men rushed in, pulling Relena away from the other woman. The attendant straightened her clothing and her hair, before she noticed that the two guards were standing there, holding Relena and awaiting her orders. "Take her to His chambers," she ordered them, and tears entered her eyes, when she saw Relena's face crumble, and watched her struggle to escape from the guards.

"No! No! No!" Relena screamed, and kicked, twisting her body in an attempt to escape their grip. "Please! Don't do this!" She was nearly in tears now, as they opened a door, and brought her into a room. She let out a moan when she heard a familiar voice telling them to leave her.

No. He was here! Relena knew what that meant, and as soon as the guards let go of her, she tried to run past them through the open door. They pushed her to the floor, and closed the door, locking it behind them. She could hear their laughter echoing down the hallways. No!

She turned to face him, tensing as He walked towards her. "So, my dear," His smooth voice filled her with fear, and He pulled her to her feet easily, despite her resistance. He pressed his mouth to hers, and smiled slightly when she tried to bite His tongue. That wouldn't work this time. He pulled away, and looked at her beautiful face, noting the fear in her eyes, and loving her all the more for it. "Shall we begin?" He asked her and gestured towards the bed.

Author's Note: Hm.. Not sure what to think of this chapter. Anyway, please tell me what you think!