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"Deception"Written By: Ashkara Disclaimer: I sadly enough do not own them. Sigh. Rating: PG 13 Warnings: violence, language, and eventually maybe
a little romance Pairings: 1+2+6 friendship (at least), 6+9 friendship,
3+? Summary: After a failed mission, Heero, Zechs
and Duo are shocked when their world turns on its head - the other
pilots are selling out one of them! What is going on and, more importantly,
what can they do to save a man in danger? "Deception " Chapter 1 Heero Yuy grimaced as bullets sprayed the wall just over his head. He had no idea how it happened, but the mission was seriously compromised. The radio in his ear was hissing static and, in a fit of anger, he tore the thing off and threw it hard against the wall. The damn thing was just a nuisance – he hadn't heard from his partner, Duo, in over ten minutes. He could only hope the young man was still alive. He had to be alive – he was one of the very best, after all. The gunfire was coming closer, and Heero checked his ammo levels before he rolled to his feet and skulked ahead, sticking to the shadows. As much as he wanted to go back and find Duo, he knew he could not. He was holding the discs of information they had been sent to find. And if he went back… Stumbling through smoke filled corridors, he never saw the man who was suddenly looming above him. The man punched him viciously, and it was all he could do not to throw up as he was forced to his hands and knees, the world spinning around him. He could feel the man's hands on him and he feebly tried to bat the hands away, only to suffer another vicious punch for it- The staccato pings of gunfire came from right behind him, and Heero barely had a moment to recognise his partner's familiar presence before he was hauled to his feet and propelled towards the exitway ahead. He still couldn't make out anything the other man was saying to him as he was thrown clear. All he knew was that Duo landed on top of him so hard it jarred all his injuries and pulled a scream from his throat. BOOM A sonic shockwave hit the two a few moments before flames shot right overhead. Debris was flying everywhere- Something hit him in the head, and Heero knew no more. ~*~ The first thing he was aware of was light. Bright, blinding light that assaulted his senses. Heero tried to lift an arm to shield his eyes and grunted in pain – what the… "Easy, Yuy. Keep your eyes closed a minute. There, is that better?" Heero knew he should recognise that voice, and was surprised at how long it took him. Zechs Marquise was sitting at his bedside?? He opened his eyes again, this time able to blink them into a semblance of clarity. He focused on the blond man at his side. "Zechs?" He got a reserved smile in return. "Welcome back. You've been in and out for the past two days." Two days! Heero grunted and sank back into what he now recognised as a hospital bed. How on Earth? The blond leaned forward. "Do you remember anything?" Heero stared at him for a long moment before replying, "I… We were on a mission and… something was wrong? We were being shot at? And then Duo found me and…" His eyes shot wide open. "Is Duo okay? Is he…" "Relax, Yuy," Zechs ordered. "Maxwell was concussed and seriously pissed off by the time we found you, but otherwise okay. He's been… called away, or he'd be here, himself." "Hn," Heero shot the man a glance. "Why are you here?" "Do I need a reason?" Zechs asked him in return, but as Heero came back to full awareness, he couldn't help noticing a tension hidden behind the other man's ice blue eyes, nor the way his eyes strayed to the door every few moments. Heero attempted to sit up properly, but gave up quickly as his chest felt like it was on fire. He grimaced as he lay back, breathing slightly hard. "Cut the crap, Marquise. I thought we were past all that." Zechs' eyes widened slightly at that last, and he tried to force himself to remain calm. It was true – when no one else was talking to him anymore (even Lucy had finally left him, opting to date Chang Wufei of all people!), It had been Yuy and Maxwell who had approached him and invited him out for pizza one evening. He'd slowly come to enjoy their company; it was indeed the only time in a day when he could simply relax around people who expected nothing of him. He thought of them as his friends, and that was why the situation bothered him so much… He shot a look at the door, and leaned closer as soon as he was certain no one was listening in. "Yuy… Heero, I'm here because Duo didn't want you left alone. Something… something very odd is going on." "Go on," Heero prompted. The blond leaned in close and began whispering, "We'd barely picked you two up before strange things began happening. Your friends… I mean the other three pilots, came to see the both of you here, but were very cold with Duo. And shortly afterwards… a Military Police squad under Une's personal direction came in and arrested Duo. They've taken him away – I pulled strings with Sally Po and found out he is facing a courts martial today. The timing of this is very suspect – she said it is based on the loss of information in your last mission, and accusations that Duo has been leaking information to parties unknown." Heero's heart monitor began beeping as he tried to sit up again, and he forced himself to calm down, not wanting a doctor to intrude just yet. "What the hell?! That is preposterous. Duo is one of the bravest, most loyal…" "I know, trust me I know," Zechs said soothingly, speaking more quickly now. He could hear approaching voices. "But that's the oddest part. The other three… they were the accusers, and Une is going along with it." Heero was about to speak again when the doctors came bustling in, and Zechs was forced to back off. What the hell was going on? ~*~ Resplendent in his dress uniform, Duo's posture was partially a matter of habit, a reflection of his indignation and anger, and lastly an attempt to face what was happening with as much strength as he could muster. Now that he could truly tell what was happening, Duo was surprised he'd actually been given a chance to go home and get cleaned up before this mockery of a trial. He strongly suspected it was only through Sally's influence; the woman looked almost as bewildered as he felt. One thing he was certain of – Wufei, Quatre and Trowa had sold him out. He refused to even glance in their direction. Him? Leaking secrets to an enemy? Blabbing out their plans? Putting anyone, let along Heero Yuy, at risk? It was utterly ridiculous, and yet… Lady Une had apparently thrown her full support behind the three. And this so-called courts-martial… His lawyer hadn't been provided copies of any of the evidence against him. Shit, they hadn't even met or spoken to one another until a few hours before the trial, itself. All he hope was that Zechs could somehow look after Heero for him, since it seemed certain he was about to be screwed over royally. Speaking of royal: even Relena was in the room to hear the verdict and sentencing. Duo ground his teeth but remained standing ramrod straight, unwilling to give them an inch of satisfaction. He simply shut himself down, altogether. And he waited. As the verdict was read, he closed his eyes in acceptance and, though he choked down on it, a stinging sense of betrayal. Guilty. And his own friends were behind it. Lady Une was standing from her spot, and Duo was vaguely aware of being sentenced to immediate incarceration at one of the many penal colonies in the L-1 sector. He trembled and his eyes shot open – immediately? Wasn't he going to get a chance to see Heero, at least? Guards had surrounded him – nice to know they at least still respected his known abilities, at least – and Duo shot a wild glance around the room as his arms were pulled behind him, and his insignia was ripped off his chest. Trowa wouldn't meet his eyes, but Wufei, Une, Quatre and Relena all did. And all of them looked… satisfied. As a syringe was stabbed into his arm, Duo finally began to fight. He was looking around frantically, hoping against hope that he was dreaming, or that maybe Zechs or Heero would come bursting in… But they didn't. He felt whatever he'd been injected with slowing him down, and was only vaguely aware of hearing Sally Po yelling as his senses clouded over. She made it to his side just before he blacked out, and he looked up at her. "Take care of Heero." His world went black. ~*~ Sally tuned on Lady Une almost immediately after the door was closed. "What the hell was that?" The woman lifted a groomed eyebrow. "It was a courts-martial, Sally. What else would it be?" The other woman rolled her eyes. "You know as well as I do that was a mockery of anything approaching justice. Just what the hell is going on? Duo is one of the best…" "I acted on the information I had, and I acted as quickly as possible to ensure no other disasters were promulgated by his treachery," Une said coldly. "Based on information about a mission that transpired the same day as the arrest?" Sally queried, her hands on her hips. "What about testimony from his partner?" Une shook her head. "It can only be assumed he would have backed up Maxwell's rather insane account of events, and it is only to be expected. Rumour has it… the two of them were closer than just friends. Which is also forbidden per our bylaws." Sally shook her head. "Is that what this is all about? So they're gay, so what? Heero's testimony…" Une's hand slashed through the air, shutting down the other woman's argument abruptly. "Is unnecessary. Really, Sally, his own friends are the ones who raised the red flag on his case. I don't see the problem, here." There was a dark gleam to Lady Une's eyes, and Sally took a step back. She was about to open her mouth again as a knock sounded at the door, and another person walked in. "Lady Une! What on Earth is this I've heard about Maxwell going to…" Sally grabbed Noin's arm before she could finish the thought and dragged her back out of the office as Une's eyebrow twitched convulsively. Lucrezia Noin rounded on her the second the door was closed. "What the hell are you…" "Not here, Lucy. Come with me," Sally ordered, and turned to walk out immediately. She knew the other woman would follow. ~*~ It was hours later when Zechs Marquise heard a light tap on Heero's hospital door. Neither man had said much once the doctors had left. Halfway through his check-up, Heero had watched as Zechs took a call, his facial expression sating everything either of them needed to know. Duo's supposed 'trial' was over, and had ended as suspected. To say the Japanese man had been angry was putting it mildly. The doctor sedated him, and threatened to do the same to Zechs if he couldn't calm down. The blond felt he owed it to Duo to remain calm and look after his friend. He looked up now as the door opened and Lucy walked in on silent feet. She gave him a small, worried smile. "How is he?" He shook his head, rubbing a hand over his jaw. "He's going to be flaming pissed when he wakes up and it really hits him. Shit – what the hell is Une thinking? Or Winner, Barton and Chang, for that matter? They can't possibly believe…" "Peace, Zechs," Lucy said, lifting her hands in a classic 'stop' gesture. "Wufei won't even tell *me* what's going on. What they accused him of… I can't believe it. That's not the Duo we all know and love." "What did you get out of Sally or Une?" he asked. She shook her head. "Sally knows about as much as we do, and Une is sticking to the story that the other pilots had concrete evidence against him. Sally's as unconvinced as we are." Her frown darkened. "She told me… they ripped his insignia off and drugged him to drag him off directly from that farce they called a trial. She's not sure which penal colony he was taken to yet, but she's going to find out." He stood and moved to the darkened window, his face set in an angry scowl. "What about the other pilots?" Lucy grimaced. "No idea – Barton disappeared shortly after the trial and Winner was called back to his offices." She stepped closer to the bed and reached out a hand to stroke through Heero's bangs gently. "Wake up, kiddo. We need you, and you can bet Duo needs all of us." ~*~ His head throbbed, and he grimaced as the hood was yanked off and light assaulted his drug-muddled senses. But even through the drug haze, he knew something was very off. It took a moment for it to register, but Duo had always metabolised drugs much faster than he should have, and he felt his brain clearing. And as it did, the smell hit him – he wasn't on L1. No, this was L2, and not a nice part of it, either. "Get up, kid. This ain't no vacation, you know," a voice growled. Duo turned to look up at who he assumed to be his jailor. The man's grizzled appearance fit matched his voice completely, and Duo took a mental note to stay on the guy's good side, if he had one. The man tossed a bundle of clothes at him. "Strip, kid. And take care of your new clothes – you only get two sets and you don't get the other set until we collect that one for the laundry." Duo frowned. He wasn't shy, per say, but he had a healthy fear of being vulnerable in front of a much larger and clearly more in charge individual. He stood, though, and quickly doffed what remained of his uniform to pull on the green jumpsuit the man has chucked at him. "Where am I?" The man gave a dry laugh. "Welcome to Colony L2-Romeo-Oscar-4. Otherwise known as Hell." Duo froze, his jaw dropping open. RO-4? Oh yes, he knew where he was. Shit, he was in trouble! The man continued. "Once you're done changing, I'm going to fit you with your E-tag. It will track you every moment of the day and night so we can tell where you are and whether you are doing what you are supposed to be doing. You'll notice we don't have a lot of guards here. We don't give warnings. You do as you're told, or we'll find you, taze you, and throw you in solitary to rot. Your E-tag is fitted with a charge and anyone in the guard centre can activate it at any time if you piss us off." Duo snorted. He knew. Dear God, did he know that already! He stood and allowed the burly man to fit him with an E-collar. With a growled, "Good luck, kid," he was shoved out of the shuttle with nothing but a map to tell him where to go, an ID for his new work program, and a growing pit of despair in his stomach. RO-4. Whose sick idea of a joke was this? After all he did to get away and make a new life for himself… He knew this place well. He'd been born here.
Chapter 2 |
