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"Alternative Directions: Options "Written By: Karina Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or the lovely
boys and their girls in the series. Wish I did. Please don't sue me.
I haven't even got a brass razoo to give you. Rating: Deffinately PG in Australia, at the moment,
but probably safer to say R for later chapters. Not sure about international
ratings Warnings: It will be 6x2, even though it does
not start out that way. After all, Zechs and Duo never met in Gundam
Wing and only spoke briefly over a com line in Endless Waltz. I've
tried to keep them in character as I saw them in the series. A bit
of language creeping in under stressful conditions. Pairings: eventual 6x2, past 2xH, 2+H,6x9, 1+R
Summary: Directions is set post Endless Waltz
and roughly 2 years have passed. Zechs and Noin are on Mars and Duo,
after spending some time with Hilde in a relationship leaves L2 to
join Preventers. Hilde was not happy about his decision. I guess enough
said. Here t'is, and I hope you like it. This is also AU for the standard
setting, as well as the series and Endless Waltz. Spoilers: Gundam Wing Series and Endless Waltz Many thanks to Dulin for volunteering to beta this. //... // thoughts
"Alternative Directions: Options"
Sanc New Port City Medical Wing, Preventer Headquarters Date: 1st March AC 198 Time: 16:34 Heero "Well, I am pleased to say that the x-rays agree with me and say that you broke no bones. However you have badly sprained it." Dr. Sally Po turned from examining the x-rays to the young man seated on the examination table. "You will need to keep weight off it for a week or so. I'll strap it for now and frequent ice packs will help. The more rest you can give it the sooner it will heal and the sooner I can clear you for active duty." Heero grunted. He could not believe what had happened. He could not believe he was sitting here listening to Sally P say he was banned from active duty. He had finished missions with far more serious injuries than this minor inconvenience, but the woman was giving him a look that promised dire consequences if he dared to breach the limits she prescribed. To make matters worse he had more problems than this trivial inconvenience. He had to talk to Quatre. He had to get hold of Quatre and find out about the note. There was very little time for them to plan how they would handle this matter, but he considered it important that as yet no one knew about that piece of paper Quatre had given him. He had to know so much about what had happened. He was not one to believe in coincidence and this was too whopping big a coincidence to be even remotely believable. A anonymous tip? Yes, he could believe an anonymous tip made to Preventers. Lady Une might believe that if they presented it to her in a believable fashion. He'd had the time to prepare a false note while he had waited to be brought to the Preventers Medical Clinic. Lady Une might believe it if they got their stories straight, though he doubted he himself would believe it. Quatra had to know more. The wording of the note Quatre had passed to him was all wrong for an anonymous tip off. The wording and the context were all wrong for someone other than Zechs to have sent it. In his false note he had made no mention of the brother of Relena. He had needed to be quick in what he arranged, but he believed it would do if Quatre would cooperate. Zechs Marquise had been on Mars. Was on Mars. He was unable to leave the planet. He was unable to have much in the way of contact with the rest of the Earth Sphere. No open contact, for certain. The ESUN would not allow there to be open communication between Zechs and Relena, let alone the rest of the Earth Sphere. Therefore, how had he known that there would be an assassination at that garden party? For that matter, how had he known that there was to be a garden party at all? It was not as though he had access to Relena or Quatre's personal diaries to ascertain their daily activities. More to the point, how the hell had he known about a bloody cream cake? That was what so upset Heero, and he freely admitted to himself that it was the cake incident that worried him the most. Heero wanted answers. Sally Po stopped in front of him, laying the x-rays on a side table and turned to him. "Lady Une has sent word that she wants to see you when you leave here. You will do so on crutches. No walking without them for the next four days, do you understand?" "Hn." "Yes, well, I will take that as agreement." Sally Po returned, reaching for strapping and beginning to bind the ankle firmly. "I'll give you a cold pack to use during your interview with Lady Une and in the car on the way to the palace. I will send word to Pagan to have cold packs sent to you at regular intervals for the next twenty four hours and you will use them, Heero. I don't think I really need to remind you that the more you keep off the foot, the better, do I? While I have taken you off active duty, I have cleared you to work in an advisory capacity. There are other people to do the leg work." "I will see that he remains off the leg, Dr. Po." Quatre Winner stood in the doorway, looking as though he had just come from a pleasant afternoon stroll with a pretty girl. Sally smiled at him, completing the strapping as she glanced over her shoulder and nodded in greeting. "Nice to see you again, Quatre. It's a bad sprain and it needs taking care of. If he wants full use of the ankle as quickly as possible, he had better see that he obeys my instructions." "He will." Quatre met Heero's eyes and grinned, glancing again at the doctor. "If you are finished with him, I will accompany him to see Lady Une. I have a few things to tell her that pertain to this business, so we can deal with it all at once." Quatre glanced back at Heero. "Relena is secure." Heero felt as though a weight lifted from his shoulders. He had been concerned that Relena was now in the hands of others, though Quatre had seen him before he had left the hotel and assured him that he would accompany Relena to the palace, along with her security contingent. Quatre had also refused to allow Heero to go anywhere other than to the Medical Clinic and Relena had backed him. "Mrs. Darlian?" "Mrs. Darlian has a few scrapes and bruises, nothing more." Sally commented stepping away from Heero and tidying her tray of bandages. "I looked in on her before you were brought in. No doubt by now she is back at the palace and having tea with Relena." "Exactly." Quatre was quick to confirm. "I checked with the palace security before I came up to Medical. Mrs Darlian has been returned to the palace and all is quiet there. Cancellations have been sent for the dinner and negotiations this evening. I believe that Wu Fei has been placed in charge of the investigation, so it is in good hands. If you are ready, Heero, we had best see the Lady." Heero resisted the urge to throw away the crutches as soon as he left the medical center as the look in Quatre's blue eyes said a great deal might happen if he did and he admitted, if only to himself, that his ankle, despite the strapping, was hurting a lot. Once, not so long ago, he would have ignored the injury as unimportant. The more he lived the kind of life others found normal the more he realized just what his life had been like. He had not found it in him to revert to the days of the One Year War, when the mission was everything. He had a high pain tolerance, no doubt due to the genetic modifications, but he had learned over the intervening years that it was perfectly acceptable to be human. He could acknowledge that he hurt without being weak. He was silent until they reached the elevator. "Where did you get the note? When?" he was careful to make certain they were alone in the hallway before he questioned his companion. He winced when he realized he sounded as though he was accusing Quatre of something underhanded. "I'm staying in that hotel, remember? I could not have gotten to you any faster than I did, Heero. The note came in as an email, no address supplied. I've tried to trace it but failed so far." Quatre called the elevator and motioned Heero in ahead of him when it arrived. "Heero, I want to know what is going on. I get an email off a guy I have not seen or heard from in years and you accuse me of something to do with this assassination attempt? I had nothing to do with the assassination, as you would very well know, if you started to think about more that Relena's safety and her pretty blue eyes. Where is Zechs? What's more, how did he know my email address? It was the private one I gave only to you and the other guys. Is he working for Preventers undercover, or something?" "We have to talk." a sigh. "I'm sorry Quatre. I know you did not have anything to do with the assassination. I'm sorry if it sounded that way. No, Zechs is not working undercover for the Preventers. In actual fact he's being confined by the ESUN Security Agency. Held as insurance by persons yet to be positively identified, who wish to ensure that Relena cooperates with them. We have to talk as soon as we can get away from here. There is much I have to tell you and I don't know who we can trust." Quatre nodded slowly, accepting the apology, feeling with his empathy that Heero was generating sincere apology, confusion and unease at this time. There was also a background of pain in the contact, a result of the injury he had sustained. "Alright. We do need to talk. In the car, on the way to the palace would be a good start, I suppose. You say that Zechs is being held by the ESUN? To ensure Relena cooperates with them? I thought Relena could not care less about her brother? She certainly gave me that impression after the Barton Incursion." he shook his head. "I'm confused. I think I have been missing a great deal." after a moments silent consideration he glanced at Heero. "What do you want me to tell Lady Une?" "Nothing about the note. I took the liberty of having a fake note prepared. I know, I don't like lying to her, but we need time, Quatre. You'll understand when I explain to you what is going on. We tell Lady Une that you were passed an anonymous tip that there would be trouble. Someone you did not see clearly gave you the note, or it was delivered to your door before you left your suite. Your choice how you present it. You passed me the note since I was designated security and you were there as a private citizen, not as an agent. It just says the L3 representative would be assassinated at that time. Nothing else." After a moments consideration Quatre nodded. "Well enough. I trust that you know what you are doing." "There is a lot going on that we don't know, Quatre, and I intend to find out what it all is about. Don't mention Zechs. Don't admit to knowing anything. It was an attack against the L3 Representative. I want it investigated by someone else to check against the information in the email." Heero shrugged. "I have made no mention in the note of the K5 or the personal vendetta against the victim. I want to see if that is correct before I do anything else about it. At the garden party, to all concerned, I acted on instinct and a tip off. There was no time to validate the warning, only time to act." "Fine. You tell me the truth in the car." "I'll do more than tell you what I know. I have something you will find interesting, Quatre. Very interesting. Duo started this all off. I'll explain later." The elevator pinged and the doors slid open, depositing them on the executive offices level of the building. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanc Palace Time: 20:53 hours Quatre "How's the ankle?" Quatre questioned, settling into the large overstuffed arm chair across from Heero's settee, pulling a foot stool closer and propping his feet up as he leaned comfortably back. "I've had worse. A lot worse, in fact." "I know." the blonde chuckled, knowing what Heero was like during the war. Duo had told him about the incident when he had broken Heero out of the Alliance Medical Center, when Heero had walked away with a broken leg and later set the break himself. He had seen how dedicated Heero was, himself, during their time together in Sanc, before it's fall to the Romefeller controlled Oz. Heero could be quite scary a times. "That's less than a scratch compared to what we used to incur during a mission. Now, you promised to tell me what is going on, Heero? You promised to tell me on the drive back to the palace and we got lumbered with extra security in the car and then when we returned we've not had the chance for a private conversation since we have been back. So spill. No ladies now fussing to make sure you put your foot up and rest." Heero blushed a rather becoming shade, ducking his head. He had not expected Relena or her mother to fuss when they had returned to the palace. He had to go straight to his room and be settled to a couch, his foot propped up on a pile of cushions, pillows and cushions supporting his back. While they had fussed and had ice packs brought and refreshments, Quatre had stood in the background and barely restrained his amusement beyond a smile. Heero had looked to be in something of a daze as he was fussed over. "Now that the ladies have retired and we can expect some time in peace, I can tell you." Heero returned, waving at a tray. "Pagan brought supper. With the garden party ending the way it did the dinner party tonight was canceled, so the entire palace staff can retire early. He made sure that we have enough to keep us occupied half the night. That old man does too much. I assured him once we had supper he could go and get an early night." Quatre sighed, watching Heero closely. Confused. It looked like Heero was actively avoiding the subject. "It's not like you to avoid the subject." "I'm not. Just assuring you that we should be undisturbed for the remainder of the night. Now. What do you want first? The fiasco at the garden party?" cobalt blue eyes pinned Quatre to his chair. "However it comes, so long as it comes." Quatre returned, plumping a couple of cushions and settling himself more comfortably into his chair. "What's K5? I've never heard of it. The note said they were K5." For a moment Heero looked pained then shrugged. "K5 is a very select group of assassins. They are very expensive to hire. Many of their members are fanatics, prone to suicide missions. I first learned about them from Odin Lowe. Not many people outside the business know of them." Quatre resisted the impulse to wince at the oblique reminder of Heero's checkered past. The former Wing pilot had noticeably developed emotionally since the war, the human side of him creeping into more prominent display. Quatre had not expected to face a reminder of Heero's past, nor the bland delivery of the report. "So, likely this email was not from Zechs? How would he have known of them?" "Maybe Oz had dealing with them? I don't know. The warning was sent to you, specifically. Containing information about the assassination, clearly identifying the target and his location at the time of the attempt. So, one question would be were the women involved? Were they K5, getting the target into a pre determined position for the kill?" Quatre shrugged. He had no way of knowing. "I was to get Relena away from the area, that was clear but if it was Zechs who sent the note, how would he have known so much? I mean, how would he know what the women were wearing or exactly where the target was to be at the time of the shooting? He knew the number of assassins that would be involved, he knew Relena would be there and he knew what those two women would be wearing. One thing the email never claimed was that the women were K5." "Wu Fei will uncover that." Heero responded. "If the women were involved he'll know it within days. Maybe Zechs found out about the attempt and if the women were involved, they would have planned things right down to what clothing they would wear, to aid in identifying them to the shooters. No, its not the women that bother me, not even the assassination attempt itself. What bothers me is that he knew about the cake, Quatre." Quatre blinked. His empathy received such a jumble of emotions from Heero that he hesitated, confused. Cake? Heero was concerned about cake? What cake? Why would cake offer up this complex mix of anger/humiliation/curiosity/exasperation that he sensed coming from his companion? "Cake? You've lost me... Oh, that's right. The email said something about a cream cake, but I don't get the reference. Is it a code of some kind? You recognize it?" Heero `hnned' and shook his head. He was almost embarrassed about it. "Not any code I recognize. I don't see how he could know about it, though. It's not possible. The way it happened, its just not possible for him to know about it." Quatre sighed, reaching to pour tea from the tea setting supplied by Pagan. He could feel the total confusion in his companion. Waves of confusion and humiliation poured from Heero, the genuine embarrassment felt by his friend intrigued Quatre. "Heero. What about the cake?" Quatre passed the first cup to Heero, poured a second for himself and settled back, waiting. "I was running toward the L3 Representative, yelling for everyone to get down. There was a woman. She was pushed over in the crush. She had a cream gateau on a plate. It fell." Heero's voice was barely above a mumble. A faint pink tinge crept into his cheeks. Quatre looked confused, watching that faint pink tinge deepen slowly. "Huh? Some woman had a cake? What's that got to do with it?" Heero irritably jabbed at his injured leg. "That's how I got this, Quatre. I slipped on the damn cake and came down hard on my ankle." Mercifully Quatre looked blank, but then blue eyes widened as he realized what Heero was saying and then he fought the urge to snigger. It really was not funny, but honestly, the Perfect Soldier laid low by a cream cake. The snigger quivered into a shudder somewhere deep inside him, visions of a running Heero and then like some cartoon character slipping on a banana peel, legs and arms flailing... Who was he kidding? Of course it was funny, especially with Heero pink eared with embarrassment. The snigger slipped out and became a gurgle, the shudder deep inside tightened and erupted, finishing with a full bellied laugh. "Quatre, it's not funny!" Heero snapped, the pink tinge turning a flaming red. "Oh, I don't know. It definitely had its moment, don't you think?" Quatre grinned, sniggering when at last he was able to banish the repeating vision of slips and falls; the falls being in various ludicrous cartoon characterizations. Heero scowled and death glared the blonde, picking up a cheese stick and waved it threateningly in the air. "You just watch it or I will slay you with my mighty cheese stick. If cream cake can get me, a cheese stick can do away with the mighty Quatre Winner. If I eat the evidence, no one will ever know it was me." The blonde gurgled is shocked delight before dissolving into helpless laughter. He was utterly delighted! When did Heero develop a sense of humor? When had he missed that? He was really rather shocked but delighted in this new version of Heero Yuy. The Heero from the war would never have cracked a joke and certainly would not have seen the funny side of being downed by a refugee from a bakery. "You've been spending time with Maxwell, haven't you?" Quatre grinned, his wide smile reminiscent of Duo's famous manic grin. "We worked together on a few assignments." Heero affirmed, thinking of the past assignments he had been on involving the former Deathscythe pilot. After a moment he shrugged. "He grows on you, after a time." Quatre grinned, finally gaining control of errant visions of a cheese stick wielding Heero taking pratt falls. Mention of Duo reminded Quatre of the current location of the long haired pilot, and the matter of his now being designated Guardian for the infant son of his friend. "It was you who told him about Hilde and the baby?" at Heero's nod Quatre sighed. "I'm glad. He had a right to know." "Hn." Heero absently bit into the cheese stick. "There is a lot going on at the moment, Quatre. Lady Une has assigned me to Relena's protection. We have to keep her safe as long as possible while this business is dealt with. She will retire from politics, there is likely nothing we can do about that, but we can't afford to have her retire just now. Too many important projects are in delicate stages of negotiation." Quatre sipped his tea and considered Heero for a few minutes. Heero emanated concern/anger/confusion when he thought of Relena. He also subtly softened her name, Quatre noticed. He resisted the urge to smile at the private thoughts that occurred to him then. At one time he despaired that Heero would ever drop the Perfect Soldier persona enough to realize just how much Relena liked him. Or allow himself to respond to her advances. "Why would Relena want to retire?" Heero drew a deep breath and finished off his cheese stick, giving his entire attention to Quatre. "After the Barton Incursion the ESUN Security Agency found out about Zechs. They confirmed that he was the pilot of the Tallgeese III and they came to arrest him. They wanted to prosecute him for war crimes." Heero paused and shook his head slightly. "No, they just wanted to kill him, no trial involved, really. If they could have gotten away with it, they would have, too, until they realized that they had another use for him. To stop the ESUN Security Agency from taking him Relena and Lady Une sent Zechs off to Mars, to become a part of the Terra Forming Project. When Noin found out she insisted on going with him." "I had wondered what had happened to Miss Noin." was the low rejoinder. Quatre considered in silence for a few minutes, the implications of what he had been told, and Heero waited, patient. "But why, Heero? I don't understand why they are using Zechs to try to control Relena. She made it plain enough on MO II that she wanted nothing to do with her brother." "Relena had a change of heart. The year after the war seemed to give her the chance to think. She had time to consider and mellow her views on her brother, despite what he did. I think she is finally realizing what he was trying to do. The Security Agency learned where Noin and Zechs went. Likely they knew before they even left Earth. As a result, they have been blackmailing Relena with their knowledge, claiming the panic in the Earth Sphere would bring about war, if it was widely known that Milliardo Peacecraft had survived. It seems to have progressed beyond just that, though. She has been told that if she does as she is told, her brother will not be harmed. If she does not conform to their will, they will kill him." "No. That would remove their power over her. They would never do it." Quatre shook his head in denial. Heero considered that and admitted to himself that that was true. For those councilors involved in this blackmail to kill Zechs would remove any control they had over Relena, and she would be free to retaliate however she wished for their rude treatment of her, if not her brother. He shrugged and shook his head, choosing to leave repercussions from the aftermath of however this turned out for later consideration. "Regardless of how extensive their control would have been, then, they now would have the means to blackmail her. Two, to be precise. Relena received word that Noin gave birth recently." "Ah." Quatre sighed softly. While he was happy for Miss Noin, he could only too well understand how the implications of the birth would be used to strengthen control over the Vice Foreign Minister. "A baby would complicate matters and Relena always liked Miss Noin." Heero shook his head, "Noin doesn't figure in this. Two babies. Twins, a boy and a girl. We now know that the ESUN has sent a team to Mars to remove the children from their parents and place them in protective custody, here on Earth, to be reared as loyal citizens of the new age." Quatre stared at Heero, his mouth a perfect `O' of surprise before he regained control of his voice. "I see. If they could do that and keep Zechs alive, they will have three levers to pull to get Relena to jump when they wish something to go their way. They could even afford to make their point by killing Zechs or harming one of the children. If Relena has had a change of heart over how she feels about her brother, then they will exercise every advantage they have to gain what they can, while they can. It would be more than just controlling Relena, though. Those children are a part of a very old, select bloodline. Bloodlines still mean something in political circles, Heero. Those children would mean considerable power to whoever controlled them." "As we speak, Quatre, their plan is in operation. The supply shuttle that landed on Mars this morning, our time, contained a ESUN Security Force. We won't know what is happening for a while. If anything is happening at all. The last report we had suggested the ESUN team might sit tight until the shuttle was ready for the return flight. That would be in seven days." "They would be fools to." Quatre whispered. "Zechs and Noin would have more time to plan their resistance and protect their children." Heero nodded. "I know. I think it is all happening now, and that is why we have heard nothing in the last few hours. Aside from this matter on Mars, there is also the matter of Romefeller to be dealt with." Quatre blinked, thrown off center for a moment. "Romefeller? Romefeller was disbanded after the One Year War." Heero sighed and shook his head in a negative gesture. "It would appear that they have not been dealt with as thoroughly as we assumed. I have some information to show you that Duo managed to lift from the Romefeller central data base. You'll find it makes for interesting reading. Some of it is very personal. For us, and certain individuals that we know. One of the things that will interest you is that Romefeller has a file on all of the Gundam Pilots." Quatre shrugged, choosing a cheese stick from the pile on the tray. "Not so surprising. It stood to reason that once we started blowing up Oz bases they would make files on us." Heero shook his head slightly. It would be interesting to see what Quatre's reaction to this would be. He knew that Winner Enterprises prided itself on its security. Personal information on the Winner family was jealously guarded and he could just see the stir amid their security when this news was made known to them. He had no doubt that when Quatre heard of this a storm would shake up their security division. Someone somewhere within Winner Enterprises was leaking information. Not unusual when you considered industrial espionage was a lucrative enterprise, and what was wrong with selling off some personal information on your boss and his family? Not so surprising to Heero, either, having delved into something of the history of the Romefeller Foundation. It appeared that if they wanted information they found a way to get it. "Did you know that Duo's real name is Justin Anthony Simpson? His birth name?" When Quatre stared at him in shock, Heero continued. "His parents were L2 Accountants, killed in a riot protest against the Alliance. Thanks to those records I now know what my real name is. My birth name. I am a genetically modified human being, Quatre. I was modified not to be the Perfect Soldier, but to be a crewman on an exploration vessel, that would go into deep space. I was modified to survive extended exposure to space flight. According to my file there are others out there, just like me." "How did they know?" Quatre almost whispered, eyes big and very blue as he stared at Heero in something very close to total disbelief. Heero shrugged, a slight lift of his shoulders and ducked his head, choosing another cheese stick and a strawberry from the platter on the tray. "Your records are there too, in the files. I can show you them. I know Trowa's birth name. I know what his parents names were. I know a lot, Quatre. Romefeller exists. They are still out there. What was disbanded after the One Year War had to be their public front, but not Romefeller itself. They have been keeping stud books on the nobility and aristocrats of Europe for centuries. Duo and I are trying to access their data files, to learn what else they contain. To date we have found genetic records for a lot of the nobility of Europe. The older the family the more detailed the genetic records are. There is information in there that is pertinent to what is going on now." "Allah." a soft oath. Quatre stood and paced the length of Heero's room. After a few minutes of pacing and thinking he returned to his seat, settling down and subjecting Heero to an intense look. "They have records on me? On you? Show me the records, and then tell me everything you know. I don't know what is going on, but we do need to find out. If they found such records on us, then what else do they know that no one else knows? What records did you mean, when you said they pertain to the current situation?" "Duo found a back door into the main frame of the Romefeller computer center, where ever that is. Through the files that we have accessed so far, we know that Treize Kushrenada and Milliardo Peacecraft were genetically modified. How or for what purpose, we don't yet know. That's just the tip of the iceberg, Quatre. I don't know what was done to them, or why, but I think we really need to know what was going on then. It might help us to understand what is going on now. We know that someone in the palace reports to Romefeller. Duo found messages that alerted their agents to their search for Zechs. Romefeller are actively searching for him, and I intercepted a message from their agent here to Romefeller. They now know he is on Mars, and that he has children. Not a good thing, I think. I believe there is also another agent, in the palace. Whether they are Romefeller and from another faction, as there were different factions in Romefeller in the war, I don't know, but I intercepted another message that I believe pertains to Zechs and his current location. Some people are very interested in him. Somehow I doubt the second message I intercepted was an ESUN operative. There is a third faction involved in this entire mess involving the Peacecrafts. Romefeller, this other, unknown group and the ESUN Security Agency, working for a group of politicians who want control of Relena. We need to know who these people are and we need to know why they are all after one man. We also need to know how they found this information on us." Quatre finished his cheese stick, considering Heero for a long while, sipping his tea occasionally. He was beginning to see just the tip of the iceberg, he thought. Romefeller still very much active, just working quietly in the back ground was not a comforting thought. In fact, it frightened him. He needed to know more information before he could clearly formulate a broad picture and a plan to work from, but that was going to take time. Romefeller, political parties in the ESUN and a third party, whose identity at this time was unknown. "What ever help I can be, Heero, you have only to ask. If we need to use Winner resources we can do so discreetly. There would not be much in the way of resources unavailable to Winner Enterprises." "The fewer who know the better. For now we need to keep this just between us Gundam Pilots. As yet, only you, I and Duo know about this. I want to tell Wu Fei and Trowa in person, as I don't trust putting any of this over the air waves, even supposedly secure ones." "Wu Fei is likely to be the easiest to reach for a private conference. If his investigation does not take him off Earth, that is. Trowa won't be back for another week or two, will he?" "Perhaps longer. We need him to wind up the investigation as quickly as possible, though. He won't find the identity of the person who sent the warning to us about the threat to Relena. Get my lap top and I will show you our files." "You are so sure that Trowa will fail? Why?" Quatre rose from his seat, but watched Heero, making no other move. "Because I know who did send the warning. Duo is far from sloppy when he chooses to go unknown. Trowa will not find proof of who sent the information or why it was sent. I'll explain, just bring me the lap top. Its all there." "Duo? Duo sent the warning? This just gets better all the time." Quatre sighed and shook his head. "You say there is information on me in these files? The Winner Corporation security is supposed to stop that kind of thing." Quatre retrieved the laptop and set it on the low table near Heero. "I am beginning to wonder if anything can stop Romefeller." Heero sighed. "They are a lot more than we assumed, Quatre. They have been around for a lot longer than we thought and they are, I believe, not what we took them to be. Something is very wrong with the information that Doctor J gave me about Romefeller. Whether he was misinformed or if the misinformation he gave to me was deliberate, I don't know. " A chime drew Heero's attention to his wrist communicator and he grunted as he read the message, noting the scramble code and adjusting the settings accordingly. He sighed after a moment and leaned his head against the pillows and cushions he was propped against. "Damn." "Heero?" Quatre queried. Heero groaned, shaking his head with a growing sense of dread. As he had feared. "Lady Une. Word has just come in from Mars. It's old news to those on Mars, but I guess it gives us a fair indication of how bad it's going to get up there." "So?" Quatre prodded softly. "How bad is it?" "The Preventer team in Alpha Dome have sealed the Dome, effectively separating half the known ESUN security team. There are eight of the ESUN agents missing from Alpha Dome. They are reported to have infiltrated the Base Dome complex. At the last count Noin had killed two of the ESUN team, with there being one casualty in the Base Dome personal. Report says the person is not critically injured, but she has been seriously hurt. No word given of the location of Zechs." "Damn." ~ * ~
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