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"Honor Betrayed"Written By: Yanagi Disclaimer: I do not own or hold any rights to
[Gundam Wing]. Those rights belong to Bandai, Sunrise, and the Sotsu
Agency. These fan fictions were written for fun, not profit. However,
this story does belong to me. Please don’t snitch it. Warnings: the usual Pairings: 1x2 But it's Wufei centric [very] Beta note: I think the days in the trip to Shanghai
are messed up. They fly east so they'd arrive in late
afternoon/early evening and Yet another note: There are a lot of FAQ at the
end of the epilogue.
"Honor Betrayed " Chapter 5 Une eyed the report she'd gotten from the American branch and sighed. She wasn't going to have to clean up a mess, Chang was keeping a very low profile but she wasn't happy. Justice was one thing, vigilanteism was another. But she was keeping out of this, she wasn't best pleased with the administration either. She put out a call to several experts and asked for their input. The replies she got made her curse and throw her mug at the wall. Her secretary came in to see what had happened and Une just told her to find Yuy and Maxwell, now. She scurried to do as she was told. Upon getting in touch with both ex-pilots she was told that they were both in the field and would be for at least the next three weeks. She didn't tell Une face to face, she chickened out and told her over the intercom. The resulting total silence in Une's office sent her to the coffee room for a hour. . Duo looked at the picture in the paper with dismay. “Heero, look at this picture and tell me I'm crazy” Heero looked but shook his head. The figure talking to a streetwalker was Chang Wufei, in the background was a cloud of smoke and dust that was obviously a bomb. “What the hell? “I don't know, but we're going to find out. Right?” “Right. So ... what search parameters and how high the clearance?” “Universal search on anything pertaining to Chang Wufei. Any were, ever.” Duo pulled a tablet over and started writing. Heero glanced over his shoulder and started typing, adding any tags he thought of as well. The search didn't take long and they read together. It took Heero nearly an hour to get Duo to stop crying, half of that because he was crying too. . Wufei slept all the way back to Sanq, only waking to make changes. He caught a train from Chicago to New York City, then a military transport moving troops from New York to Hamburg, and another train from Hamburg in Old Germany to Sanq, which was actually part of old Belgium. He arrived home in a rumpled but rested state and realized that he'd been gone for less than 24 hours, it was 2 in the afternoon. He decided to take his motor out and have some fun. His justice had left him feeling strangely empty. He took a quick shower and dressed in urban camo, which included the new boots he'd gotten at the cycle shop, pulled on his leather jacket and gloves. He relaxed on the elevator ride down and wheeled his motor in front of one roll up door. After getting his helmet on, he pushed the remote button on the upper left side of the gas tank and kicked the motor to life. He eased out the door, shut it with the remote and rolled down the dead end street, which he thought of as his, and into the late afternoon traffic. As he drove his thoughts wandered. He thought about many things and his reactions to them. All he wanted was for the right thing to be done. He'd deserved to serve time, but he hadn't deserved to be abused. He shook his head to get rid of the memories and nearly wrecked himself. He swore in Mandarin and realized that he needed to pay more attention to his driving and less to his brooding. He cut in and out of traffic, ignoring the honking and swearing. Suddenly, he remembered what he was supposed to have been doing and nearly slammed on his brakes. He sighed softly, he still had three days to find his materials. He had no intentions of letting the old Master down. The man had given him a job, for what reason he couldn't tell and he liked it. It was something constructive to do. So, he pulled over, cocked his leg on the tank and dug out a pad of paper that he had dropped in one of the saddle bags. He started making a list of exactly what he needed and where to get it. As a practiced Tsukamaki-shi, he wanted the best possible for the antique swords entrusted to him so he was going to have to hustle. He needed Honoki wood in several different size blanks for the Tsuka, saya, and sayashita, cord for the wrapping of the Tsuka, and ray skin. He continued to work on his list for several minutes then froze. He was a properly trained swordsman and had all the different skills needed to repair anything on any sword. He was even capable of forging a blade. What if? He went back to his list in a much better frame of mind. After completing his list, he decided to look for what he could find locally so he went home at a much milder pace to search the yellow pages. What he found both gladdened him and saddened him. He could get everything he needed, either special order or off the shelf. He placed orders via phone and internet then sat back to wait for conformations of the orders. As the conformations came in, Wufei's mood lightened more and more. He'd gotten Justice against 'Daddy' now he was beginning to start the life he thought he should have had, if not for the wars. He glanced around the third floor lounge, the room seemed to be missing something, but he couldn't figure out what. He'd had that feeling since the construction was finished. He decided to put that on the back burner, the more he worried at it the less likely he was to figure it out. He realized that he was nearly starving when his empty stomach decided to make itself known with a loud growl. He wandered into the kitchen and opened the fridge, that was when he realized that there was no food in the house. He laughed at himself and headed for the elevator. He was going grocery shopping. . At the store Wufei got a cart and started pushing it. He realized, to his embarrassment that he was going the wrong way. A woman glared at him but one of the clerks nearby grinned. “Store nazi. Just turn around and go the other way. Some people have no patience. Can I help you find something?” Wufei just waved the list and said, “No, thanks. I've got a list from hell. I'll just go up and down the aisles.” “OK, if you need anything let me know, or grab anyone in a smock.” Wufei just nodded, turned around and went the other way. It didn't take him long to fill his cart with rice, fresh chicken, shrimps and fresh vegetables. He also found noodles, sauces and spices. It took him about half an hour to fill his pantry with foods he liked. When he paid, the checker smiled at him and said, “It's nice to see someone your age with some smarts. Good food, not a bunch of junk.” Wufei shrugged, “I like junk food, but not as a regular diet. Thank you.” He took his cart out and got all his groceries into his truck. He left the cart in the rack and drove home. After putting his groceries away, cooking himself some noodles and shrimp and cleaning up the kitchen he found himself at loose ends. He decided to walk around some more, familiarizing himself with the area was a good idea. He found that there was a nice strip mall just across the busy street two blocks behind his home. He decided to explore it. He found a surprise at the back side, an arcade. He'd visited one once, with Duo. He peeked in then went inside. He stopped at the window and purchased a handful of tokens then walked around for a while. He didn't see many games that he was interested in. There was one racing game but it was occupied and had a line. He heard a loud groan from one corner and went to see what was going on. This game also had a line but it was fairly short and there was a crowd gathered just watching so he joined the crowd. He was surprised to see that the game seemed to be some sort of piloting game. He heard someone say the person in the game now was 'a lousy pilot'. A voice exclaimed, “Man, I just can't get it. This is really a lot harder than it looks.” There was some genial laughter and a few jeers. The voice came back with, “Ok, assholes, who's the next sucker?” A heavy set young man about 18 stepped up, announcing, “Ok, see what an expert can do.” He climbed in and strapped himself into the interactive seat and promptly got himself killed. Wufei snorted. This looked like a simulator he'd used when he was training, the only thing it didn't do was shake the pilot around like a real suit would. Someone in the short line heard him snort and said, “Ok, hot shot, you think you can do better?' Wufei shrugged. “Maybe. Depends on which suits are available.” “Well, just about all of them. The only ones you can't get are Shenlong or Tallgeese.” Wufei blinked but refrained from comment. “I'll give it a try.” He stepped into line but was thrust to the front with exclamations of, “Be my guest.”, “You next.” and “Go on, I'll wait.” He thanked the group and went to the front. He eased into the cockpit and realized that it was very like his old one, but a bit roomier. He was given a head set instead of a helmet. He put it on and then tried to fire up the verniers, nothing happened so he looked around. A voice from shoulder hight just by his ear, said, “You have to put the slugs in first.” He jumped a bit then realized that one of the onlookers was standing right by the game. “Here, give them to me and I'll do it so you don't have to get out again. I'll smack some heads too. Idiots.” Wufei handed over a couple of tokens only to bet told, “Sorry, man, it takes four. You got enough?” Wufei gave the kid two more with a slight smile. The tokens duly inserted, the game beeped and a female voice said, “Please tighten your belts until the light goes out.” Wufei did as requested. “Thank you. Please pick your mobile suit.” Wufei decided to treat the voice as if it was control central. “State choices.” “Taurus, Leo, Wing, Deathscythe, Sandrock, Heavyarms, Altron.” Wufei interrupted any more choices and snapped, “Altron!” “You will begin at level one. Progress is measured in battles fought. Begin.” Wufei snorted and stood on the pedals to start walking. He walked carefully, stepping over a power line. He realized that that was where the guy in front of him had messed up. You could pull the power lines down but you were likely to trip yourself with them as they could wrap around the ankles and hobble the suit, bringing it down as it over balanced. There were a few jeers but they soon quieted as Wufei continued to walk confidently. The point meter was racking up points at an amazing rate. Wufei realized that most of them wouldn't think to swing the arms along with working the legs but that was what you needed to do to walk smoothly. No human walked with their arms down at their sides and a suit didn't walk well that way either. He continued to walk for a few second then there was an alarm. “Enemy approaching be ready to aim and fire.” But Wufei had already found his target and lashed out with one of his stingers. The small light armored troop carrier exploded with a flash of light. He sped up and began to run as he got the feel of the controls. He kept up a constant barrage of fire on targets that came up with regularity; all on the ground, all nearly telegraphed. The female voice announced, “Level one complete. Mid-air combat now a possibility.” Wufei snarled, “So find me a damn target.” “Target acquired. Launch sequence initialized.” “No! Manual launch only. Lock on target.” Wufei hated it when he was unexpectedly shot into the air. The computer would launch the second the target was locked, whether that was strategically wise or not. Three Leos flew by in a triangular formation. If Wufei had let the computer have it's way, he would have launched the second the first one was in range. Instead, he waited until his launch brought him up in the middle of the formation and got all three in a seconds violent combat that made the onlookers whistle and gasp. Two more dog fights and the game announced, “Level two complete. Larger groups of opponents with heavier armor now a possibility.” Wufei snapped, “Ya think? Bring 'em on.” He went through levels three through eight in a similar manner, beating everything that came his way and enjoying himself thoroughly. “Level eight complete. You will now be sent into space. Three dimensional combat is probable.” Wufei yelled, “No shit! It's space. Go.” The game replied, “First target acquired” Wufei found the target in his left side screen but it was farther away than he liked so he put out an anchor to wait until the target came to him. “Please advance to the combat area.” “Not enough fuel. I'll run out half way there.” The game kindly informed him, “You do not use fuel until actual combat is engaged, please advance to the combat area.” Wufei whooped and jammed the throttles to their stops. It took him a second to enter the combat zone and realize that targets surrounded him, coming from all directions even 'underneath' him. He fought with guns until the game informed him, “Ammunition exhausted, do you wish to forfeit.” “No! No forfeit. “ He fought on using his trident and stingers until the game announced, “All levels cleared. You are a Gundam Pilot. Welcome Major Chang Wufei.” He yelped as the screens all exploded in color and lights, proclaiming, “Congratulations!” He burst into laughter. “Well, shit. That was ...” He didn't get any farther as he was pulled out of the seat of the game and slapped on the back, hugged and in general molested by a crowd of young men, eager to congratulate him. Finally a voice yelled, “Ok! OK! Hey, you heathens, let the man breath.” Wufei straightened his clothing, grinning link a maniac. “Give me some space, you animals!” But he was laughing and grinning so no one took offense. “Hey! Come on, we ordered a pizza and it's here. Have a piece. I'll get you a soda. On me.” Wufei thought about that for a second, he was tired of being angry all the time. Duo would say he'd just worn out his angry gear. He decided that pizza and a soda wouldn't hurt anything. After all, his honor was a very tattered rag by now. “Thanks. I'm about as dry as the Sahara.” He hopped up the two steps to the area where they were allowed to eat and drink and was offered a stool at the tall table. “Thanks.” The server who brought the soda gave Wufei a nasty look and Wufei barely missed having the soda in his lap. Instead, it hit the floor, splashing the sticky, fizzy drink everywhere. One of the others at the table yelped, “Hey! Watch what you're doing.” But Wufei reached out and grabbed the server by the shirt, finding out in the process that his tie was not a clip on. He jerked the man into his face and snarled, “You have a problem?” “Yeah, you ...” Just then the owner noticed and hurried over. “Is there a problem here?” He eyed Wufei sharply. Wufei shoved the server away and said, “Yes, there is. This fool tried to dump a soda on me. I haven't done anything to him so I was inquiring if he had a problem with me. I don't need trouble in here. I like it here. But I will not tolerate attitude from the staff.” “Oh, sorry. He must have heard someone call you Chang. Won that game, I see. I'll have a word with him. Soda and pizza on the house. I'll order you another pie. Supreme?” Wufei took a visual poll of the table then said, “That would be fine. Thank you.” and sat back on his stool. “Idiot! What's his malfunction. Hey, Chang, what's your real name. Mine is Avery, that's Joe, Mike, Peter and Olaf.” They didn't get much farther with introductions as Joe said, “He got a really raw deal. Sucks.” “Yeah,” Mike put in. “He did what he thought was right. Peacecraft and Noin are on Mars. Where'd he wind up? Alcatraz-2.” “Why there?” Olaf grumbled. “At his age ... Christ eating a cupcake, I'm older than he is. He should have gone to one of those re-education camps. Learn how to be a proper, upstanding citizen. Learn a craft or something.” “How's he going to be a good citizen if all they do is stick him in with a bunch of hardened criminals. It's disgusting. No justice at all.” There was general agreement which startled Wufei quite a bit. “Shit. I got sidetracked. We've been calling you Chang because you won the game in Altron but what's your real name?” Wufei felt his stomach drop. “I'm sorry. My name really is Chang Wufei. If that's a problem, I'll leave.” “Not a problem.” Wufei braced himself for some sort of explosion from someone at the table but all he got were sympathetic looks from everyone. Olaf cleared his throat and said, “One question and we'll talk weather or something. Please?” Wufei nodded, a regal tip of the head that showed his upbringing. “Ask. I don't promise to answer but I won't get angry either.” “Good enough. How old are you. You Orientals fool me every time. I'd swear you're not more than 20.” “I'll be 21 soon.” Wufei blinked at the exclamations from his table mates. “How the hell. I don't get it. You couldn't have been more than ...” Wufei took a drink of his soda. “I was fifteen. Heero and Duo don't know exactly how old they are but the professors said around fifteen. Trowa was older but he's not sure either, he thinks seventeen ... maybe. Quatre is the only other one of us who knows exactly how old he is and he was fifteen.” “Fifteen ... fifteen? Jesus on a pogo stick. That means you were ... seventeen? When they sent you to Alcatraz? Fuck me. That's ... that's ...” Wufei's sour expression shut them all up. He grimaced, trying not to disgrace himself. “I do believe that it is supposed to rain tonight.” Joe caught on at once and nodded. “I think you're right. Do you play any sports?” Wufei shook his head. “No. I do martial arts. I work at the Yang dojo.” “Yeah? Man, that must be great. All that ... stuff to learn.” Wufei shook his head. “I'm just a ... maintenance man. A dojo helper. I clean the dojo and keep a garden up. I'm also working on restoring six of his swords. Students damaged two and the other four are just old and in need of some work.” He sighed. “What's wrong? Don't you like it?” Peter looked concerned. He had liked Chang from first sight, the guy seemed so sad somehow that he wanted to fix it. “I do like it. I was classically trained, poetry, history, sciences, and martial arts. I am an accomplished smith, even if I do say so myself. I wanted to be a master before all this. Now, I'm not sure what I want.” There were nods from around the table. “No shit.”, “Me neither.” Wufei blinked, no one at the table showed any surprise that he was at loose ends. “I suppose I am a bit young to be deciding on a career ... it's just ... I have to have some kind of job or they'll send me ... somewhere. I'm not sure.” “That sucks. But ... if you like the job, just stay there. And ... well, I'm not sure about what you need to be a smith. But, if you can afford it, why not? Is there some law or something?” Wufei gave him a stunned look then ducked his head. He was going to cry, right here in the middle of the arcade. Why not, indeed. “Excuse me, I have something in my eye.” He fumbled for a napkin and found a red bandana handkerchief thrust into his hand. “Thank you.” Wufei wiped his eyes and tucked the bandana into a pocket. “I'll return this, just tell me were to ... that is, if you don't mind giving me your address.” Joe shrugged. “I don't mind.” He gave Wufei his address and offered him a pen to write it on a napkin. “I'll remember. Thank you. I'll see that this is back to you as soon as I can.” Talk wandered over several topics and they parted, full of pizza, soda and friendship. Wufei was very pleased with himself. As he walked back to his home he wondered, why couldn't he start a smithy? It wasn't as if there were no places for him to set up. He decided he had to check the zoning ordinances. There were several other empty buildings near by that were more than suitable. A smithy. It had been a dream of his when he was little but he'd been told that he was going to be Chang of Chang and it wasn't proper. He sighed, a dreamy little sound, smothered completely by a passing truck. . Wufei took a shower and went to bed, he was tired, more tired than he expected. The game had been fun but stressful and physical. He was going to sleep well tonight. He settled between the sheets and dozed off, only to wake about an hour later sweating and shaking. He never really remembered his dreams but he woke in terror. He wiped the sweat off his chest with the damp sheet and got up. He pulled the sheets off the bed and dumped them in the hamper. He only had two sets of sheets but he'd had the others washed at the laundromat. He was going to have to get a washer and dryer soon. He remade the bed then wandered down to his office area. He started a search for another of his six. He got nowhere much but he didn't expect to. He would have to wait until one of them committed another crime, then he'd find them. He decided that he should check his email as he hadn't done it since he'd left for Chicago. He found that he had a mail from Duo, chatty and full of nothing much, one from Heero that detailed their last mission, and one from Une that warned him stringently not to go off on his own. He sent Duo a run down of what he was doing for the dojo, thanked Heero for the rundown, saying he found it interesting. And Une got an email that informed her that as long as he was black ops, she could suck hind tit. He almost immediately got another from Une that warned him he was treading on thin ice. His return mail was simple, he sent her one sentence. “I will have Justice, my own or yours.” Une read that, remembered some of the things she'd read in the files from Wufei's chip and shuddered. This was time for her to let sleeping dragons lay. She sent mails to Heero and Duo telling them that it was time for them to go see Wufei. She even sent them his address. He was going to be furious but she didn't care. The psychologist had told her she'd made a mistake when she'd told them to give him time. They said he needed contact with his friends more than he needed solitude in which to brood and feel ill used. She was inclined not to agree but her approach was failing miserably. She hoped she wasn't making another mistake. . Duo eyed the email with a very jaundiced eye. “Well, now Une says we should visit him at every opportunity. Wish she'd make up her mind. What the hell do we tell him?” Heero shrugged. “What about the truth. We've been on assignments, Une said that he needed time to adjust. The physiologists told her she was wrong and here we are. How's that?” Duo rubbed his face. “Sounds like a bunch of shit to me.” “Me too, but what happened the last time we second guessed the experts?” Duo groaned then answered, “We nearly got blown to hell and gone. Ok, ok. I get it.” “Good, 'cause I'd hate to have to sit on you.” Duo stuck out his tongue and made a sound usually referred to as a raspberry. . Wufei was surprised to find that he was now sleepy. He ambled off to bed again, noting that it was nearly two in the morning. He was going to get up a six but realized that he could get up whenever he wanted to as he still had two days off left. He set his internal alarm for eight. He woke at ten till and took care of his personal hygiene, happily doing his best to run out of hot water. He made miso with tofu for breakfast along with some tea. When he had finished his breakfast he went down to the dojo and worked out. He started slowly with some stretching and then a slow tai chi form. After warming up thoroughly he did a kata. He wished for a sword then realized that he had several he could choose from. He wanted a rack on the wall and resolved to get one very soon. He chose a sword, the Katana from the daisho he'd helped himself to. It was a nice sword for working out but he was sure it wouldn't keep an edge worth a shit. However, he liked the weight and balance. He worked his way through several kata until he was sweating and starting to pant. Then he cooled down with more tai chi and settled to meditate. He now had a proper meditation zafu and zabuton set. A bit worn but good quality. He'd found it on the loading dock with a note from Shigung. He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth nor wonder how the man had known were he lived. He meditated for over half an hour and felt much better, calmer and better in control of himself. He washed off the sheen of sweat with a wash cloth and put on clean BDU's, a t-shirt that said, “Do not annoy a dragon, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.” on the back. The dragon on the front was western but Wufei liked it anyway. He rummaged in the floor of the closet for a moment, trying to decide which pair of boots to wear. He finally realized that the pair he'd worn all through prison were in such bad shape they needed tossing. He got out the motorcycle boots he'd bought on his shopping spree and tucked the others under his arm. He'd toss them into his dumpster on his way out the door. He shut the lid of the dumpster with a clang and looked around. He would really like to get one of the nearby buildings, so that he didn't have far to go to reach his smithy. He was beginning to have a very good feeling about this. As he walked to the mouth of the street he looked at each building to see if any of them might suit. He noticed that none of the other buildings had loading docks facing inward so they weren't suitable. He sighed, he couldn't have everything. Suddenly something struck him, there was a deep nook right next door too him. He'd never bothered to even look there, just assuring himself that there was nowhere for anyone to hide inside it. He backtracked to take a better look. If it was even near suitable he'd get it. That way he could knock a hole in the wall somewhere and have instant access. It would be even better if his access was through the side of the garage. He could keep the mess contained better. He entered the nook and stopped long enough for his eyes to adjust. It didn't take long and he was peering around the area. He realized that it had been some sort of parts place or, he gave up speculation and went to see if he could see inside. Just as he was cupping his hands around his eyes to try to see into the dim interior through the dirty, wire covered glass, a voice called, “Hey, boy! No trespassing, there's no place to sleep in there. Come on.” He turned to see a police officer standing, hands on hips, in the middle of the entrance. “Hello. I live next door.” Wufei walked up to the officer and pointed to his place. “I converted it.” “I see. Can I see some ID, please?” Wufei produced his ID and handed it over. The officer checked it out then handed it back. “Ok, Mr. Chang. Why are you poking around in here? Just curious, as you don't seem to be doing much of anything you shouldn't. Not like you're a terrorist or anything, right?” Wufei declined remark on that and said, “I ... um ... I work for the Yang dojo and I'm in need of a smithy. I thought I might make this work.” “I know the realtor in charge of the property. No one seems interested in this but let me give him a call. I have a key, if he says ok, I'll let you in and hang while you look around. But if I get a call we'll have to leave. That ok?” Wufei bowed slightly, this man, who didn't even know him, was going out of his way to help. He deserved a bow. “Thank you, that would be very kind. And, of course, you would leave if you're called.” So the officer took a ring of keys off his belt and unlocked the door. While Wufei was looking around he called the realtor to tell him what he'd done. The realtor said that Wufei could stay if the officer got a call as he was on his way to talk to Wufei. Wufei poked around in the front area, which was obviously a service desk. This could be ripped out easily. He went through the floating wall and into the back area and he fell in love. The place had been some sort of small manufactory which made small parts of some kind. He stood in the middle of the shop and blinked. There was a small but powerful trip hammer, an anvil which was still accompanied by hammers and tongs and both an open forge and a smelting furnace. The furnace wouldn't be very good for steel but he could melt copper, brass, and silver easily. Bar stock was readily available. He looked farther and found several bins of scrap, bits of steel cut from jobs. There were also a lot of chunks of brass and copper, nubs cut from castings and the trees needed to cast multiple parts at once. “If you buy or rent, we'll clean all that out for you.” Wufei turned, dropping into a defensive crouch. He straightened, saying, “No, that would be a great misfortune to me. I do want this premisses, as is.” “It could use a great deal of cleaning.” The realtor's tone was doubtful. “Not since I'm putting in a forge. I make and repair swords. I specialize in antique Japanese items. I will need to clean about half of it rather thoroughly as that will be where I make scabbards and grips.” “I see. Well, Mr ... Chang?” Wufei nodded. “I'll tell you what I'll do. This is really a thorn in my side. I'm tired of fooling with it frankly. I live across town and this is the only property I have anywhere around here. I'll give it to you as is for ..” Then he gave Wufei a price that he knew was nothing. “Why? Not that I don't want it, but the price is so low. Does the roof leak?” “No. It's in prime condition. But, it's too small for anything anyone wants it for...except you. So I'm going to make you a steal of a deal just to get it off my books. The owner is the grandson of the man who actually used it and he just wants it off his books. The taxes are eating him up and he has no use for it but doesn't want to let it go for taxes. Deal?” Wufei nodded and pulled out his debit card. Again, it didn't take long to complete the transaction. Wufei was beginning to be a bit suspicious that Une had a hand in this somehow, but he realized that he really didn't care. “And ... there we are. Your deed will be in the mail, unless you'd rather come to my office and pick it up?” Wufei decided that he'd rather not trust the mail and said he'd come to pick it up when he was told it was ready. The realtor made a note of his phone number and handed Wufei his card and a preliminary title so he could start cleaning out whatever he wanted to. They shook hands and the realtor left. Wufei wondered vaguely what his name was, but wasn't curious enough to even look at the man's card. He decided to celebrate by going to the arcade and seeing if any of the people he'd met the other day were there. On his way, he stopped to pick up his laundry and realized that he still hadn't gotten machines of his own. He took out his phone and made a note to himself. He took the laundry back home, realized that Joe's bandana was in the bundle, stuffed it in his pocket and headed back for the arcade, mumbling, “Third time's a charm.” As he walked, he realized that, while this neighborhood wasn't the best, it wasn't the worst either. There were businesses all around, grocery stores, a dry cleaner/laundry, several very nice restaurants and some other businesses. The warehouse area where he had his home seemed to be a sort of fringe area, set between the nicer parts of the area and the highway. The mall was just on the other side of the highway but he had to go some distance out of his way to get to the raised bridge across it. The highway was fenced and Wufei was not inclined to climb a fence, dodge traffic, climb another fence and risk getting arrested just to avoid a half mile walk. Besides, the walk was good for him. When he reached the arcade, Joe was there, as well as some kid Joe introduced as Adam. Wufei looked at them and realized that Joe was really upset and Adam was eyeing him with an odd expression on his face. “Joe, what is it? Can I help?” Joe bit his lip then said, “Chang, we need to go to Adam's place. It's close. Come on.” “Joe, what's going on.” Wufei didn't like it one bit but he was sure he could take both Joe and Adam with one hand so he followed them out the door and around the back of the arcade. Adam led the way. They squeezed through a fence and into a back yard. They were in the yard of a nice house, big back yard, patio, everything that said he was upper middle class and safe. Wufei refrained from comment until they were in Adam's room. “Ok, Joe. I trusted you this far, but my trust is getting strained. What's going on?” Joe looked at Adam who just shrugged and said, “I'm not looking at one second of that shit again. I'm going downstairs and work on something in the den. You need me, I'll be there. Bye.” And with that he left them alone in the room. “Chang, I ... this is really, really hard. And you're so not going to like this. Just ... don't kill the messenger, ok?” Wufei sighed, “Ok, I'm not going to like it. Let's get on with this.” “Ok. Sit down and kill the screen saver.” Wufei did and stared in total shock as a video of him started to play. It was horrible in two ways. One, he'd had no idea that it was out on the net. Two, it showed him being beaten and raped. He felt sick. All he could do was sit and gape. He nearly jumped out of his skin when a hand reached out and shut it off. Joe's enraged voice snarled, “That's enough. You don't need to see anymore of that. Now, what do we do?” Wufei sat in stunned disbelief as what he'd seen sunk in. “I ... I need to ... Shit!” He contained his fury with considerable difficulty, this was outrageous. He took a deep breath, calmed himself and asked, “Where is this? How did you find it?” “Adam does some computer work on the side. Pocket money. His dad's an asshole, said that, now that he's eighteen, he has to earn his own money. Like he really has time; school, you know. And he's got to get a scholarship, or he's not going to be able to go to school. He can't take classes and work too. Not if he wants grades good enough to be a lawyer. Not anymore. So, anyway. This girl he knows lent her laptop to her brother, he filled it with porn, including this. He hacked it off a paid membership site. I checked, you have to pay to belong and they fill your hard drive with trojans and junk. So, Adam was trying to get this all off and opened the file to see if he couldn't find the address for a report to Preventers. He nearly fell over when he saw it. Man, that's just ... sick. How ... Never mind, I don't really want to know. So now what do we do?” Wufei thought hard and quickly. “You don't do a thing. I'll need this computer, I'll clean it up and bring it back tomorrow or the next day. If Adam has any objections ... well,” Joe gave Wufei an evil grin. “If he objects, or Sally does, I'll just threaten to tell their dads. Sally's kind of in a bind though, she needs that computer for school.” Wufei just shrugged. “Then she shouldn't have loaned it to her porno loving, asshole brother. Right?” “Too right. So, do you need some help?” Wufei shook his head. “No, I'm going to get some help from a friend of mine. Thanks anyway.” “Um ... Chang? You ok? That's got to have been a shock. Really?” “It was a shock. But ... I'll fall apart later. Justice now. Hysterics, tomorrow.” “Ok, but ... Justice? How.” Wufei met Joe's eyes and the look in his made the other young man flinch. “Trojan, anyone? Any one who's ever accessed that particular vid will have left their address in the main files. They're going to get a virus that eats their machine for breakfast and you did not hear me say that.” “Say what? Temporary deafness is sometimes a problem for me. I'll just stuff that thing into its case and drive you home. Ok?” Wufei sighed, he really didn't feel like walking home but it was sure to be a long way for Joe to drive, due to having to deal with the highway. “It's out of your way.” “Shut up, you. It's not a problem. Come on.” Wufei followed Joe down stairs and told Adam that he was taking the computer. Adam started to protest but was interrupted by a man who could only have been his father. “Here, what's going on? Who are you? What do you think you're doing?” “My name is Chang Wufei and I'm taking this computer with me. It's evidence in a porn investigation I'm undertaking.” Wufei didn't bother to tell him that he'd just started. “Porn? Porn! That's Sally Carter's computer, I recognize the case. She'd never download porn.” Adam decided something. “Yeah? Sally, no. That shit bum brother of hers? Yeah. And some really nasty stuff too. How many times has her dad told her not to loan it to him? Serves her right. I can't get it off. She'll get it back, clean and factory fresh. Mr. Chang promised.” Adams dad looked from Adam to Wufei, who glowered fiercely, he was taking this machine. Joe bit his lip. “Sir?” Joe was ready to jump in, for whatever good it would do. “I want a receipt.” “Write it up.” The man wrote on a sheet of paper, Wufei read it. It was just a quick, rough description of the computer, case and contents; owner and purpose of confiscation. Wufei signed as close to the body as he could then stamped his hanko right in the middle of the document. “There. I'll be leaving now.” Wufei realized that he was starting to shake. He had to get out of here. Joe seemed to realize that Wufei was operating on nerves alone. “Look, I promised him a ride as his car is at the mall. We cut through the back way. I'm going to be late home and Dad's gonna freak. We gotta go.” And with that, Joe hurried Wufei out, into his car and left, before Adam's dad figured out what was wrong with all of this. He followed Wufei's directions and found himself parked in front of a warehouse. “Are you sure? I mean, I know you know were you live but ... a warehouse?” Wufei gathered himself together and got out. “Come in. You'll see.” He had doubts about inviting Joe in, but he already knew the address and had trusted Wufei with his address. Joe followed Wufei into the garage and was startled when Wufei thrust the computer case into his hands, shoved him behind a truck and hissed, “There's someone in here. Stay right there.” He ghosted away, into an elevator that was open. Wufei knew someone was in his house as the elevator had been closed on both sides when he left. Before he could stress too much a cheery voice called, “Wufei, don't shoot. It's just me ... and Heero. Dude, there's no security system and no washer or dryer. What are you thinking?” Wufei holstered his pistol and barked, “Maxwell! Damn it, give me a heart attack, why don't you? Where's Yuy?” “Checking for places to stick cameras. Why?” “Just a sec. I brought a friend home. He's still in the garage, probably scared to death.” Wufei went to get Joe and found him eyeing Heero, clutching the case and saying with commendable stubbornness, “Chang told me to stay right here until he got back.” Wufei laughed a bit shakily, “So, I'm back. Yuy, stop glowering at Joe. Joe, come in.” Joe blinked, gulped and whimpered, “Don't tell me I just disobeyed an order from the Heero Yuy.” Heero grinned, especially as Wufei said, “Ok, I won't. But ... Joe, I'm running out of gas quick. I need to get inside and sit down before I fall over. Come on ... please?” Joe shuddered all over, once. “Fine. Here,” He shoved the case into Heero's hands and wrapped an arm around Wufei's waist. “Come on.” He walked Wufei through the elevator and into the ground floor. He looked around, whistled and exclaimed. “This is a warehouse? Ok. Sit down. Where?” Wufei made it to a small table in the corner and plopped into a chair. “Here. For now. I'm going up to my office in a few. As soon as I stop fucking shaking. Damn it!” Duo, noticing that Wufei was really upset, raised an eyebrow at Heero and Joe. Heero shook his head, mouthing, 'No idea.' Joe just snarled. He wasn't sure who he was mad at, he was just mad. “Fuck, Chang, what do you want to do?” Wufei, realizing that what he was going to do was highly illegal, sighed. “Joe, you're a good friend so I'm just going to say, these guys saw me through one war, fought me in another and are the best friends I could wish for. Go home. You don't want to know what we're getting up to. Oh, and here's your bandana. Thanks.” Joe opened his mouth, realized what he was about to say was really stupid and shut it again. “Ok, I'm going. But...” He did his best to match Heero's icy glare. “you take care of him. He's had a hell of a shock. Me too. I think I'll go home and get drunk. Bye.” And, with that, he turned and left, hoping he wasn't making a hell of a mistake. He didn't think so. Duo eyed Wufei then sat down in another chair. “Ok, Wufei, what's going on?” Wufei sighed. “Let's go upstairs and I'll make some tea. I really need it.” Heero just went to close the outer door on the elevator and the garage. Wufei and Duo followed him into it and closed the door. “Have you been all over?” Wufei realized that the knowledge that Duo had broken in didn't bother him much. It only pointed up the need for a good security system as soon as possible. “No, we just sort of walked in. I snooped a bit on the ground floor but we decided to wait for you there. Heero was outside looking for places to put cameras, like I said.” The elevator leveled at the top floor and Heero opened it. Duo whistled at the part of the private quarters he could see. Wufei snorted, “You should see the rest of it ... later.” He set the kettle on and put the computer case down. “After we have tea, I'll show you this ... not now. I need tea. And no questions. Later. Please.” Duo started to ask a question but Heero patted his shoulder and shook his head. “Later. He's not looking good. Give him a little space.” “Seems like he's had a lot of that and look where it got us.” “I said a little. Wufei, you will be explaining the source of your discomfort, soon.” “I will. I need your help. But tea first. And an explanation of your own.” The kettle whistled and Wufei made tea. He served it in silence, realizing that his hands were still shaking. Heero took his cup with two hands, bowed slightly and sipped. Duo grabbed with his usual exuberance and took a gulp. Wufei shared an eye roll with Heero. “Ok, tea's all gone, now what's got you shaking like a leaf and don't put me off again.” Duo gave Wufei a glower and stuck out his lip. “Come down to the next level and I'll explain.” They took the elevator down one floor in silence that stretched to the snapping point. Wufei hooked up the computer to his entertainment center and started the vid. Neither Heero nor Duo said a word as the watched about four seconds of it then Duo exploded. “Fuckers! Assholes! Cocksucking bastards! I'll gut 'em all. Every last mother. Heero?” Duo turned shocked eyes to Heero. Heero just fingered his pistol with a snarl on his face. “Chang, what do you want to do?” Heero's question made Wufei stop and think. “I don't know. I want Justice. I ... what can we do?” Duo was already on his phone. He spoke to someone, listened for a moment then said, “I'll send you a file asap. Get right on it. Absolute desecration.” Heero nodded. “Intake?” “Yeah, they want a copy of that asap. They'll find out who the assailants are and they're all toast. Une's going to have kittens. I want a piece of them all. Damn it!” Heero smirked. “And now. We do two things. We clean up this computer and take out that web site. If we happen to leave a little something behind ... well ... ooppss!” Wufei felt something inside him loosen, snap, open, something, he wasn't sure but it felt good. “I was thinking. It's easy to find the people who accessed that particular vid, the place is members only with a record kept of what's been downloaded as it's pay per vid as well. Those who belong but didn't download that vid should get a ... I'm not sure how to put this except to say, a 'shame on you'. Those who actually downloaded that vid should have their entire systems wiped. Completely. I want that vid gone from human sight. I'm not sure I even like the idea that Preventers has a copy.” “As soon as the evidence is collected and the trials take place, it'll be deleted too. And the trials will have closed hearings to present the evidence to a judge. Believe me, the man is as mum as a nun's hen. Why a nun's hen is particularly silent, I'm not sure.” Wufei laughed softly. “Maxwell, you're ... a good friend. Come on. Let's get busy.” And they fired up various computers and interfaces.
The resultant programs wiped the companies drives and set up a worm
that wiped their content off every computer that had anything. Those
people who'd downloaded the vid of Wufei also had their hard drives
corrupted beyond recovery. Except for Sally, Heero swept her computer
and put it back factory fresh just as promised. ~ * ~ tbc... |
