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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"
Chapter 78 Mars Colony Base Dome Time: 20:42 [Approx 18:32 Sank time] Giles //Damn! He's impossible! I'm supposed to be keeping him alive.// It was too late to stop the blonde from acting as Zechs had already thrown himself from their safe position and was a quarter of the way to the next cover, a rover vehicle. He seemed to be inclining toward a cluster of crates at the corner of building C, the big warehouse between the enviro maintenance department and the main control tower. He gave no opportunity for Giles to protest his action beyond a muttered curse and some serious swearing to himself about stubborn blonde suicidal idiots. //Raydon had better understand just how independent this one is, or he's not going to have a chance with him. Damn. He's quick.// With a sigh of exasperation Giles abandoned his own cover, praying he would not feel the bite of either automatic weapons or the stun of the electro shock weapons. He hurried forward, reluctant to attract attention but knowing that there was no other option. They were committed. If Zechs was determined to get himself killed then the least he could do was ensure that these three techs did not fall victim to the assassins lurking in the vicinity. He had to trust that his partner knew what he was doing and this would not result in the deaths of the techs or himself and Zechs. He had at least attracted the notice of one of the three and he waved madly, signaling them to come toward him. //That's it, look at me and stop right where you are. You probably are already in range of those bloody shock guns and you certainly are in range of an automatic pistol. If they fire one of those things in here, this close to the dome and miss the target, they could possibly breach the dome. Doesn't bare thinking about.// “Giles? I thought you would be outside with the others.” “Kristy.” //God. If I don't do something fast they'll kill Kristy.// “Over here! Fast!” He watched as the blonde woman slowed to a stop, catching the arm of one of the men in her company and drew his attention. The third man was still moving toward the elevators, but now was walking, turning to look behind him and see what had attracted his companions. Giles refused to move closer, motioning imperiously to them and then he gestured toward the building they had so recently left. “Back inside! Get back inside! Quickly.” He had all of their attention now, he noted as he stepped toward the building himself, pleased that Kristy automatically took a step toward him. He dragged air into his lungs and caught a glimpse of Zechs diving for the cover offered by the rover. Nor was he the only one who noticed the blonde as one of the men half turned from him, a frown deepening as he hesitated. “What is going on?” “No time for an argument! If you value your lives get back inside! We have infiltrators trying to take over the base.” He hated being rushed in the use of his talent, but this was a situation where he felt he had no option other than to engage the abilities that Raydon had been most delighted to discover. Raydon had ushered him to his trainers with all speed, claiming to have been long awaiting his arrival and welcoming him to Station One with open arms. With the training he had undertaken his confidence in his abilities and more importantly in himself had increased to the point that he no longer shied away from everyone, certain that he would be considered a freak should his abilities be discovered. “Infiltrators?” They had come toward him, at a cautious pace, but at least they were no longer rushing into the ambush Zechs was certain was waiting for them. This was taking too long and he was uncertain if he could influence so many as quickly as he needed to. The effort certainly was not going to do his head any good. He slipped up to them, daring to go away from the building that was his intended destination and gently took Kristy by the arm, taking two steps in the direction he needed them to go. “I'll explain later, once we are safely inside and you have the door barricaded. Is there anyone else inside?” “Of course. Joe. He stayed to continue preparations for the shift's return. We have a lot to do and there was an explosion. Haydon, what is going on?” A few deep calming breath and a moment to centre his perceptions was all he dared. He could not be effective if he was not balanced and in harmony with his Gift. His instructors had been adamant in the training of him. If he was to influence people then he must be able to maintain stability of mind and he must be able to close out all distractions. “We need to get inside and prepare defenses. We have hostile infiltrators in the dome and they have blown the main elevators down to the sub base. That was the explosion you heard. There is nothing we can do about it now.” “That is Merquise. What is he doing?” //Trying to save you no good skin!// Shift focal point. Steady. Confidence. He must project confidence and calm. Agitated subjects were difficult subjects, almost impossible to manipulate. He did not wish to manipulate them, but wanted to guide them into wanting to go back to safe cover and he had to be quick. Zechs was running for those crates and those shock guns had a half way decent range on them. If the agents broke cover they would not have to go far before they could use them. “Gaining us time to get the hell out of here.” He had to be himself or Kristy would hesitate. As it was she was edging toward the building. That was progress. He needed to be calm and confident and to project his talent and have his will seep into their consciousness. “We need to get to cover quickly. Zechs has had training for this type of thing and I don't know about you, but I know that Kristy at least is not a soldier.” He had her moving toward the building at last. One step. Two. Three. The man who had been closest to her was following and the third was lingering, uncertain, glancing toward Zechs who was pulling something from his belt. Giles saw the movement in the crates and focused on the laggard. There always had to be one who was difficult to convince. “The fire from the explosion …” “The automatic systems will take care of things for now, at least until we know its safe to head that way.” he grasped the mans arm and pulled. “They are out to kill us all and take over the base.” “Who? Who are they? Raiders?” //No! Damn. What am I supposed to answer to that? Why is it that the first thing everyone thinks of is Raiders? Raydon, we have some really bad press to deal with.// “Not certain.” He had the man moving toward the building even though he was watching Zechs. “Some of them came in on the supply shuttle from Earth, so may be a rebel faction out for new ground if things were a little hot in the Earth Sphere? Or not. Come on, man. Get inside before we end up as a blood smear on the pavement.” The man resisted a precious second or two but then turned and jogged back toward the building. With a heart felt sigh of relief Giles followed, glancing back in time to see Zechs hurl two shuriken in quick succession at the agents moving from the cover of the crates and then tuck himself into a roll, coming up somewhere in the nest of crates, hidden from view. He glimpsed one go down, a weapon flying from his hands which clutched at his throat and Giles turned his attention to the techs. Mr. Hard to Convince was gaping behind him at the carnage being done and Giles hustled him into the building. //For God's sake stay alive. Raydon will skin me if anything happens to you.// He slipped into the building last, quickly closing the door and dropping the lock bar in place, thumbing the electronic lock to seal the chamber. He heard the answering alert to the lock down from the monitoring emergency computer and turned to face three pairs of eyes. Each looked from the bar sealing the door to him and he sighed. Now for the explanations. Every building in the enviro dome was constructed to be a secured location should the great dome ever be breached by a meteor strike. If the dome was penetrated or broken in any way anyone in the open beyond a building's security would have a minute or two, no more, to get to a secured area. All buildings were capable of sustaining a secured atmosphere and stored oxygen supply for some three days and the exterior doors and entry rooms were actually airlocks which would lock automatically in the event of a dome breach alarm being registered. As an emergency safety feature the doors could also be operated manually, both to release the locks and to initiate the system. “Zechs will let us know when he's ready to come in. I'm not planning on moving from here until he's here anyway.” With a deep breath he turned from the door to face the three people whose lives he had just saved. “Kristy. You know this man?” the tall man with dark blonde hair who had been the last to return to the building was scowling at Giles, dark eyes suspicious. “Of course I do. Haydon Giles, this is Brian Maynard and Gerry Parker. Brian is my boss, Haydon. He's okay, Brian. Haydon works with the maintenance teams as a rule.” “So why not today?” came the deep rumble. “I was with the team, up until a couple of hours ago.” he did not need to give them a blow by blow description of events, just enough to convey the seriousness of the situation. Enough to make certain they did not leave the building. “I had a few problems with my suit so I came in to replace it and before I could go back outside I ran afoul of the bastards running around killing everyone they could find.” “Why? Why would they?” the one called Gerry was scowling, eyes going to the glass panel in the door, seeking any indication of activity outside. //I am not saying that they are Raiders. Zechs and I already decided that its not a good idea to lie outright, though, and these people are suspicious as hell. I think Brian and Gerry both saw Zechs take down that guy. I only hope they noticed the gun that went flying too.// “If they are killing everyone how did you escape?” Brian gently pulled Kristy back from Giles, angling his body to protect her. “I'm ex-military, Brian. Spent a few years in the war, and some months in a Special Ops Unit.” //No need to fill in my entire history or be too explicit. Just enough to make it plain I'm efficient at staying alive.// “I'm good enough to take down the bastard who tried to do away with me just after I left the airlock. So far I have found around twenty bodies in my investigations and since no one from the control centre seemed to respond to that explosion I think it's safe to say that there are a lot more dead than that. The internal communications system is out and only the emergency life support systems isolated from the main computer system seem to be functioning. I met up with Zechs in HD Two. We were both on the run from agents out for our blood.” “What is Merquise doing up in the dome, anyway? He should be in the maintenance bay at this time of the day.” Warning bells went off in Giles mind. He focused his attention on the one introduced as Gerry, alert to something off about the way the man was trying to get a look through the glass and something in the tone of his voice. How would a maintenance tech for enviro suits know where Zechs was supposed to be at this particular time of the day? Under the weight of his stare the man blushed, not much Giles admitted, but it was enough to give himself away to someone as suspicious as Giles had to be. If this man was a Sleeper then he was about to go down, witnesses or not. Giles could not afford to take chances. “Some of those people out there who are doing the killing have been living amongst us for years. Some of them came in on the shuttle this morning. What about you, Gerry?” //Focus on him. Calm, controlled breaths. One. Two. Three. Focus in and extend out toward him. Four. Five. Tell us who you are, Gerry. It's alright, you are calm and relaxed and you want to tell us about your interest in Zechs Merquise. You want to tell us who you are and who you work for. // “What about you? Why are you here, on Mars? You are not a terra former, so what is it you came to Mars to find? What is your interest in Zechs?” He pinned the man with his eyes, as he had been taught. He must hold the attention of his subject in an intense situation, and this certainly qualified. He needed speedy results and he had to ignore the warning thunder in his head. He was pushing his talent when he was already over extended, but the situation demanded it. He was aware of Kristy and Brian, watching in surprise as Gerry actually squirmed under his piercing gaze. He could not afford to be distracted by the others and he needed answers to his questions before Zechs entered the building. Whatever was going on outside would be bloody and short and likely nearly over by now. He needed answers and he needed them soon. He would not have the man walk into trouble. //I can feel him. It's rare that I can actually feel the emotions of a subject, but I can with him. He's uneasy. Guilty? Yes, he's feeling guilty. He's not just a tech.// “Gerry? Giles?” Kristy took a half step away from Brian, but back from the players involved in the staring match that had ensued so suddenly. “Well, Gerry? You'll understand I am sure considering what is going on out there that we really don't know who we can and can not trust just now. I have to ask would they have targeted you if you had continued toward the elevators? Would they have taken you out, or are you one of them? Are you?” The man was sweating under the weight of his talent. He dared not let up the pressure he exerted. Too many lives hung in the balance for him to fail here and now. If this was a Sleeper then he had to know and if he erred with the pressure he was exerting on his mind he could turn the man into a blithering idiot. Gerry shuddered, a delicate tremble under the weight of the eyes that seemed to bore into his very brain, picking him apart. Unusual, intense eyes, neither brown nor green in colour but somewhere between the two. Boring into him, and seeming to have the ability to weigh his soul. He felt that a heavy weight was on his shoulders, pushing at him with a grip that was not exactly painful but was inescapable, no matter the struggle he might put up against it. His head throbbed in time with his suddenly racing heart and his mouth wanted to spill his every thought to those eyes. “Patrice. Patrice Mining Corporation. I'm an agent for Patrice. I … I was sent here to keep an eye on Merquise and to make certain that he does not start anything. I was sent to keep an eye on him and to watch how the mining projections develop as the project neared the colonization stage.” He did not dare to ease the pressure now, though he was well aware of the stares of Kristy and Brian who looked between the two of them, no doubt half expecting a punch to be thrown. //Well, I knew there were agents from the various mining consortiums here but that is at least three from Patrice. If I can believe you, that is. You could be lying, but you don't feel as though you are, though I can not accurately assess truth from lie. That just is not my talent's strength. I have to push a little more. I need to be sure.// “You have been on Mars two years, haven't you?” “Yes.” he was becoming aware of the other two people in the small entry chamber and the surprise of the maintenance techs watching them. He was also only too aware of the flicker of betrayal in the eyes of Brian. He would need to do some quick explaining there, or his lover of a year would never forgive him the deception. He had not liked keeping secrets from the man, but he was an employee of Patrice and you did not betray that organization and expect to ever work again. “Yes. Yes, I have been here for two years. I was assigned the job when Patrice first learned that it was Milliardo Peacecraft who fought in the Barton Incursion using the Tallgeese III. I have no idea how they found out he was on Mars. I just follow orders and my instructions were to keep an him under observation and to report if he should vanished from Mars.” “You were to report if he left Mars?” at the man's nod Giles grinned. “How? How were you to report?” He leapt on that, hopeful that the man might have an independent communications array. “By radio, of course.” “You were going to access the base communications array to send a message?” “No. Well, yes, sort of. Look, I was to bounce a signal through the main array using a pre-arranged code hidden in a personal message to a prearranged source. It's standard practice with Patrice.” //Yes, I know it is. Damn. That means he is who he claims to be and that at most he only has a local unit that needs a pretty big push to get beyond the planet in the event of an emergency. With so many bloody agents running around on Mars you'd think that at least one of them would have a decent radio. I need to get access to that bloody suit! It seems to be the only independent radio array with enough grunt to get beyond the planet and reach the area I need. // “Alright. Just listen and listen well. Merquise is about our only hope of surviving this fiasco, so I would appreciate it if you would keep your grubby paws off of him. Does anyone here have any military training? Combat experience?” He looked expectantly at Brian, knowing that Kristy had none. “Jesus, Giles. We are maintenance techs, not soldiers. I suppose I'm pretty reasonable with a spanner in a brawl, but that's about all.” Brian grunted. “Not everyone was a soldier in the war, you know.” “Joe is ex military. An Alliance mechanic, I believe.” Kristy responded. Giles nodded, relieved. “He'll have had at least basic training then. That's better than nothing. One of you had better bring him in here so we can explain what is going on.” “He's just …” at the glare Gerry winced and nodded, lowering his hand from indicating the door into the main bulk of the building. “Right.You said you were not moving from the door until Marquise turned up. I guess I'll get Joe.” He would have to leave them in the care of the tech who had some military experience when Zechs joined him. Even techs had to do basic training in the Alliance and that would be handy for the situation they now found themselves in. If Zechs had not arrived by the time this Joe had been briefed on the situation then he was going out after him. //The man should have arrived by now. It would have taken seconds to finish that skirmish with the skills he had displayed. Unless Zechs ran into trouble. How many of them were in those crates? Two he should be able to handle easily, but what if there were more? I really need to get out there.//
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