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"Regained "Written By: Artemis Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and its characters are
copyright to Sunrise, Bandai, Sotsu Agency, and associated parties.
I make no money with this fic. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: yaoi lemon, masturbation, angst, violence,
language Pairings: 6x2, 3x4, mention of 13+11, R+1 Summary: Sequel to Interfacing: Lost. GAIA, the
new alliance, fights its first battle in Antarctica; Duo and Zechs
begin to rebuild their relationship "Regained" Chapter 24
Coming back into the main room, he paused at the sight on the bed. Duo, having lost his large "back support", had sprawled out over the bed, the braid lying atop the covers. Though Zechs was seeking his battle focus, the sight nevertheless melted his heart. Carefully he knelt with one knee on the bed and picked up the braid, kissing it reverently, then extended a gloved hand to caress Duo's cheek with the back of a finger. "Little pilot," he murmured gently. "Wake up, sweet Duo..." The boy stretched his body, moaning in mild protest as he slowly blinked his eyes open on hearing the rousing, sweet tone of his lover and feeling the man's light caress to his cheek. As his large eyes focused, he was stunned by the vision in red before him. Zechs... no, the Lightning Count was half kneeling on the bed. To the young pilot, being awakened by his lover, fully dressed for battle, could mean only one thing. "They're here!" Duo said, sitting up rather quickly, making his head swim. "The OZ fleet is here!" he exclaimed again, trying to untangle himself from the covers as his heart pounded with the fear that he wasn't ready for battle. Long arms folded around the smaller and far more agitated pilot to calm him. "Shhhh, unless you have a secret radar sense, they're not here, Pilot Duo," Zechs murmured, smiling. He gave the confused boy a swift hug, then released him as he straightened. "I'm an early riser, doubly so when I know I'm facing a fight. I need time to check on the base, then I'll be waiting in Tallgeese until they arrive, working on my focus." He gave the gaping pilot a wink. "Tallgeese demands that I be focused. You all right?" "I slept so soundly," Duo replied, scratching his head as he usually did in the mornings. "It's not like me to do that before a mission." Though he was a good sleeper, it was also true that he stayed much more alert when it came to his missions. The fact that he'd slept through the night had to be a testament to the calming effect of Zechs Merquise. "I'm good... and you?" he asked, placing his hand on the man's forearm, his fingers tracing the gold braid on the cuff. //Wish we had time... I'd like to get acquainted with him in this uniform.// "How you doing this morning? Sleep okay?" "Are you kidding?" Zechs replied, taking Duo's hand in his for a brief squeeze before he relinquished it and crossed his arms over his chest, straightening to his full height. "How could I not sleep like a baby with the light of my life in my arms?" he added, smiling down at Duo. "Who, me?" Duo asked, pointing at himself coyly and then chuckling to hide how stunned he was by the beautiful admission. //Wow! Good thing I was sitting down when he said that!// The younger man sat with his legs tucked under him on the crumpled bed, looking strikingly disheveled compared to the crisply dressed officer standing so straight and tall. An outsider, peeking into the room, would've thought the boy on the bed was this man's pampered lover. Sleeping in late, while his lover dressed and prepared for the day, the boy remained rumpled and sleepy-eyed, wearing an expensive, sensuous nightshirt. The silent observer then would've noticed the love and devotion in the boy's large, blue eyes and how the handsome soldier seemed ready to indulge his pet's every whim, his noble face also beaming with love. "I slept perfectly," Duo said with a smile. "Thanks to my dream man." "That's what I like to hear," Zechs replied, returning the smile. Then he glanced around the room, checking to see if he'd forgotten anything -though he also wanted to steal a kiss from Duo before departing. His glance fell upon the steel mask sitting beside the powered-down computer on a desk in the corner of the room. The smile faded. //Despite this uniform I wear, I am the enemy of OZ now... and I wore that as part of OZ. Never again... though I wear the face of a lost prince instead. OZ... Treize...// The cobalt blue eyes innocently followed the man's focused gaze across the room. Duo never expecting to see... the mask. He shivered. He hadn't noticed it before, sitting there so steely gray in the shadowed light of the room. This was the first he'd seen it, besides the photographs Quatre had shown him of OZ's Colonel Merquise. "Damn," he said, quietly. Seeing it brought back intense feelings of hatred and betrayal. Feelings that told him the man who wore that mask couldn't be his lover. He had to turn his face away and close his eyes against what it symbolized to him as a Gundam pilot and a young man in love. "Please, Zechs. Don't wear that... thing." "Wear it?" Zechs glanced over at Duo, his eyes burning like cold ice, though no icy anger was directed at Duo. "I despise it. Circumstances alone forced me to wear... that." He gave a derisive snort. "I told Treize I wouldn't take it off because I still took my personal hatred onto the battlefield with me. At the time I thought the Gundam pilots were what I hated. At the time I thought you pilots represented chaos and anarchy, when such evil was closer than I thought. I met them... Chaos and Anarchy... they were named Alex and Mueller. Two of Noin's graduates. I killed them because they were on a mission to needlessly execute every Alliance officer they could find, even after they'd surrendered." Zechs's eyes went haunted for a moment. "This happened about a week before you and I met. By then I already knew I never really hated the Gundam pilots at all... in fact, I already admired your devotion to your cause... and your purity." He glanced back at the mask, then bowed his head. "I'll get rid of it," he whispered. As the story unfolded, Duo opened his eyes and faced Zechs again, immediately cringing at the tension he saw in the man's body. "Oh, Zechs..." he said, wilting a little at the pain this man still endured. It couldn't have been easy facing such treachery in his own ranks. Or making the decision to wipe it out himself. //But it was the right decision. He must know that.// Still, Duo was surprised all the more by Zechs's respect for the Gundam pilots. //What a confusing time that must have been for him. Admiring his enemy and killing his comrades...// "Zechs, please sit here a moment," Duo said, holding out a hand to him in hopes of comforting his lover in some small way. "Let your Dancer care for you." Zechs took the hand and kissed Duo's palm a little brusquely. "No, I'm all right, and I must go, but thank you." He couldn't afford to indulge in emotional outpourings when he had a battle to fight possibly in as little as an hour. Now he must put on a different mask, an invisible one, his mask of stoic efficiency and warrior invincibility. Then he saw the expression on his little lover's face. "Duo..." he murmured, untensing minutely, "you're so good to me. Later... you can care for me. We can talk about this... again." Zechs brushed a finger down the boy's cheek, then turned and walked smartly to the door, boot heels clicking loudly. Duo was impressed with the military precision of Zechs's movements. //Can't wait to see him in battle...// But right now, he also had to prepare. He quickly got out of bed, scooped up his clothes and was right behind Zechs. "If I don't see you... good luck," Duo said. Turning back, Zechs watched his lover approach. "And good luck to you as well, Duo. But first... a kiss before fighting?" he asked, his voice deep and hushed. As Duo reached him, he slid a hand up along the boy's cheek though the touch was light. "Heh. You mean a kiss for luck?" Duo asked with a grin and a little chuckle. This would be another first. What a wonderful send-off before going into battle. "Yes, a kiss..." "Yes..." Zechs whispered, bending down. He glanced into Duo's eyes with warmth, then closed his eyes as his lips met the soft lips of the younger man. It was a warm, tender kiss without passion. Fire would be used for a different purpose today. It was a sweet kiss, if a little chaste, but Duo appreciated it nonetheless. "Mmm, thank you," he said, pulling back to look up at his man... or rather the Lightning Count. "Go on now and be safe... I'll be there soon." //Actually the God of Death will be there soon.// Zechs straightened, only the barest of curves to the corner of his mouth now. "We'll be in constant radio contact, video even, if necessary. I'll check in with both you and Quatre once we're primed to head out. I'm not anticipating that much coordination is necessary, except to stay out of each other's way. We'll see how it goes." He opened the door and started through it, but cast one last glance backward. "Be safe, Duo." Arriving at the control tower a minute later, Zechs immediately surveyed the room. Captain Federi, the tower chief, was hovering over the radar station, probably helping to watch for the first signs of the OZ fleet. Noin was at the far end of the room, chatting with Bronn and Linden. Another couple of technicians were at the weather station, and there was a soldier manning the communications panel. "Commander present!" Linden called out sharply as he caught sight of their base commander. Immediately the ex-OZ soldiers stood and afforded Zechs a formal salute. "Stand down," Zechs murmured, returning the salute. Every one was wearing their old OZ uniforms, and Zechs was glad he'd worn his... for now. "We don't need to be quite so formal now, but I thank you," he added, his simple manner and unconscious grace going far to reassure these soldiers. "And I thank you for being here, for joining this new endeavor with me and two young, fine pilots from the colonies. We will be counting on every one of you to provide the excellent support I have come to rely on in the past." Bronn spoke up, though hesitatingly. "Sir, then you'll be facing the OZ fleet with just the two Gundams and Tallgeese?" Zechs smiled, a tight, almost chilling smile. "You haven't seen a Gundam in action, Bronn, have you? I keep forgetting... as I told you last night, the Aries will defend the base should any of the enemy get past us. But you're likely to have a rather boring day. We shouldn't need much help." "Commander," Noin said, as she crossed the room. She had to suppress a grin at Zechs's comments. Even though Bronn had probably seen tapes of the Gundams in battle, there was no comparing that to the real thing. He would be blown away. //Maybe that'll also keep him in his place... for Duo's sake.// "The weather looks clear for battle, sir." "Thank you, Noin," Zechs murmured gravely, still thinking about Bronn's comment. "Ah, did you intend on fighting with the Aries group here?" "I'd like to, sir, unless you'd prefer me to coordinate from the tower," she said, noticing that Bronn's eyes were still fixed on Zechs. //This has got to stop.// Zechs looked straight at Noin for the first time. //I may need to send her back to watch over Relena,// he thought, considering the choice. "Noin... as you would like. Federi has a fine crew up here. I'm sure Bronn would appreciate another pilot on his team." //But you just said we'd be bored,// Bronn thought, then snapped to, saluting again. "Yes, sir, we'd be honored to have Lieutenant Noin join us!" "Down, Bronn," Zechs murmured, sighing. "No ranks. We're nothing more than a pack of rebels right now." "Thank you, sir," Noin said, hiding a smirk at another dismissing comment by Zechs. //Oh, he's had enough of this fellow.// "I'll reinforce the line around the base with the Aries group, sir." "That's my Noin," he said automatically, and was glad as he said it that Noin was with their new alliance. As Bronn turned back, wilted, Zechs gestured to Noin to approach closer. "Ah, I wanted to thank you for a fine little bit of reconnaissance yesterday... and ask how it went." He gave her a meaningful look, hoping she would respond discreetly. "It went very well, sir," she said, and then leaned in closer. "Your little pilot is quite independent, but not entirely opposed to taking orders," she said with a wink. Then she straightened and raised her voice to a normal level. "Pilot Maxwell and I scanned a wide perimeter and agreed the search party will most likely approach from the west, sir." "Thanks," he replied sotto voce, then in a more normal voice, added, "Federi, concentrate the radar scans to the west." "Already doing it, sir," the tower Captain replied, smirking. Just then the radio beeped, and Meiser's face appeared on the screen. "Sir," he addressed the commander. "What is it, Meiser?" Zechs inquired, coming over. "Sir, the left arm of Tallgeese is completely restored now." //Yes!// "Fine work, Meiser. And the Gundams?" Meiser looked down at a clipboard, then back up. "Sir, 04 and 02 are ready for battle." "Gundams, I said, Meiser," Zechs snapped, wondering what the young Chief Engineer was using for brains this day. "We have four Gundams on base!" "Sir!" The man was flustered. "Yes, I meant to say that all the Gundams are recharged, rearmed, and ready for anything." "That's more like it," Zechs muttered, exchanging a glance with Noin. "Well. As you were, Meiser." The man sighed off hastily, not wishing to delay the commander any longer. "I'm going to the hangar now," Zechs started to say, but when he turned in the direction of the door, Trowa Barton entered the control room at that very moment. "Trowa... welcome. I was just going down to Tallgeese." The slender teenager regarded the OZ uniform, a hint of distaste in his expression. "You don't need to show me around or anything," he murmured, his glance sliding away. "I'm fine." "Very well..." Zechs looked over the boy who was Quatre Winner's lover, wondering where he stood on the alliance. //Guess I'll have to ask Quatre if I get a chance. I really thought... oh, well...// "I'll see you later, perhaps." Trowa gave a slight nod, then looked away as the commander left the tower control room. He glanced up at Noin who was watching him, then frowned. "So... what's with the uniforms?" "They're our 'work' clothes," she snorted, "and the least of our worries." //This one runs deep,// she thought as she noted him turning to stare out the window without responding. Even on their journey to Antarctica, Trowa had been far more quiet than his ever-serious companion, Heero Yuy, but both were equally focused and ready to fight when the time came. //I hope he'll want to fight if we need him today.// With a last glance at the thoughtful boy, Noin headed down to ready her Aries. Within a quarter hour, Duo Maxwell had changed into his new battle clothes. Red high-neck shirt, black jacket, pants and boots. And of course, his cross necklace... the symbol of his fight. He was always the God of Death for the Maxwell Church and Orphanage. Always avenging through that persona. Dispatching his enemies without mercy, just as they had destroyed his adopted family. He'd tucked his handgun inside his waistband. The cold steel at his back and the cross at his chest reminded him of his mission. //And it's time to remind OZ whom they're dealing with.// As Duo emerged into the hangar, his nerves fairly sizzled with the activity. There was always a buzz before going into battle, but this was even better. He wasn't alone this time. A dozen men scrambled in preparation, pilots and ground crew waiting for word of the search party's arrival... a search party looking for the OZ defector, Zechs Merquise. For the first time, Duo would be fighting for more than just the colonies. This time he would also be fighting for the survival of the new Gundam alliance and for the defense of his lover. //I wonder what he'd think if he knew I was protecting him... Heh.// But the reason for the battle didn't matter... every battle won was a battle closer to ending this war and freeing the colonies. Scanning the hangar, Duo saw Quatre milling about and looking a bit sad. "Hey, buddy." "Oh, hi, Duo," the Arab said, unsuccessfully hiding his melancholy. "Where's Trowa?" "He's on his way up there," the blond boy said, inclining his head toward the control tower. Duo's eyes widened. "You mean he's not fighting with us? I thought for sure..." "He's still not sure." //But I can feel we're good... solid. So why, Tro? Why not join us?// "Going along with Heero, isn't he?" Duo asked, a bit sharply. "Yeah, I guess so. But things will work out... I have a feeling," Quatre said, forcing a grin. "You look ready, Duo. But then you're always ready for a fight." "I'll take that as a compliment," the long-haired pilot said, and then his eyes caught a glimpse of red. He turned fully to see Zechs - or rather the Lightning Count - walking up to the Tallgeese. "Uh, good luck, Quatre. I'll catch you after..." and he walked off toward his new ally. Duo's gait slowed as he neared... stopping about twenty paces off from the other man. The God of Death was curious to truly face the Lightning Count. To see how a gentle, loving man such as Zechs Merquise could transform himself into a battle-fierce warrior. And to learn, perhaps, how Zechs's own experience of the God of Death had knocked him off-balance. //What will I see when I look into his eyes?// Duo wondered. Standing completely still, with his arms at his sides and his fists curled with battle tension, the God of Death waited to be seen. Waited for a flicker of recognition and acceptance... pilot to pilot... warrior to warrior. //We need to see each other this way.// Something about this time was definitely different for Zechs; he felt as if he'd put on a new skin: "Enemy of OZ". Yet he wore the uniform proudly as if he'd stolen that, too, and made it his own as much as he'd made Tallgeese his own. OZ did not possess them! Crossing the hangar toward his mobile suit he felt alive with the new determination growing in him, his new cause to stop OZ's domination, stop the insanity. //I will wear this uniform when I fight, OZ, just to spite you...// Then a glimpse of a figure in black standing a short distance away caught his attention. Abruptly he turned sharply to face him... face the God of Death, for indeed it was Duo Maxwell, Gundam pilot... his beloved. The gaze he cast the way of the other man was focused, intense... measuring. //I've joined you now, God of Death, for ill or nay, in life and perhaps in death if all the gods demand it of us. May the One God watch over us all...// The man's ice-blue eyes, so sharp and focused, pierced through the hard facade of the God of Death. //My Zechs... So this is your other self,// Duo thought. He let himself absorb the image of the warrior; to see and admire the fierce determination in his lover's eyes without recoiling. //Such intensity... I am stronger for knowing it... seeing it in him.// Zechs gave the other pilot a short, curt nod, accepting, acknowledging an equal. Then he abruptly drew himself up straight and saluted, clicking his boot heels together in the traditional manner. He did not expect a similar response back; the God of Death would not be one for such formality. He cast a last, intense look into the cobalt-blue depths, then turned sharply and continued on his way to the Tallgeese. //I will fear you no more, Death...// The salute was accepted by the God of Death with a nod, and a slight raising of his hand. He was satisfied, soothed by his meeting with the Lightning Count. //Together we will defeat OZ,// he thought and then turned to face his own machine of war... Deathscythe.
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