Adult-FanFiction.org : Gundam, Beyblade, DBZ, FMA

Being Human	By : greengal48 Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Het - Male/Female Views: 1025 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing. Nor am I making money from publishing this! It’s purely for fun. I do, however, own Lea Zikamo and all the other original characters. Enough said.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Chapter 10: Persephone and The Gundam Pilot

“There you are, my dear,” Jacob said triumphantly. He motioned with great pride at the small screen he had set up. “You may now enjoy the festivities in the comfort of your own booth.”

Lea laughed and hugged Jacob, “Thanks, Jacob. You’re a real life saver.”

He blushed and stuttered, “You’re welcome, Lea.”

Without giving his reaction a second thought, Lea turned on the screen and set it to the local channel. A woman dressed in a festive medieval dress stood on the sidelines of the stadium with a mic at her rosy lips. All of the archery teams were gathering behind her with their bows and arrows and horses. Lea could feel her heart racing in her chest.

“For those who are just now tuning in, or just waking up,” the reporter added with a wink and a smile, “we are live at the Mead Stadium where final preparations are being made for the first challenge: the Horse and Rider.” The camera panned over the teams before switching to a night sky and fireworks. “Allow me to recap for those who have missed last night’s fantastic events,” the reporter’s voice said in exaggerated excitement.

The cell phone in Lea’s pocket rang. She glanced at the caller ID and frowned. It was a number she had never seen before. ‘Must be a wrong number call.’ “Lea speaking,” she answered sweetly.

“Lea! Thank God!” Janis said in a raspy voice.

“Where have you been?” she hissed walking away from the crowd of customers and friends gathered around the screen. “You missed the party last night.”

Janis chuckled and said sadly, “I had a party of my own, Lea-Bean.”

His tone set the warning bells off in Lea’s head. “What’s going on, Uncle Janis? Is everything alright?”

“No,” he sighed and coughed. “I’ve been called back. My little vacation is over. Don’t ask me why,” he said cutting her off. “Does Heero have the other phone?”

Lea was frowning at the stack of yarn in front of her. “Well, yes but he’s on the field.”

“That’s fine,” he assured her in a not-so-sincere tone. “I’ll make it quick. I’m sorry I can’t say goodbye in person, Lea. I need to catch the next flight out. Take care and keep that kabana boy in line, ok?”

Lea laughed despite the tears in her eyes, “Ok, Uncle. I will. You tell those jerks you work with you have one angry niece.”

Janis returned the laugh, “Bye, Lea-Bean.”

“See ya later,” she managed to get in before he hung up. She stared at the cell phone wondering why he had to go. ‘He was so adamant about keeping me safe and now he ups and leaves?’ A tear ran down her cheek as she thought, ‘They didn’t get to him, did they?’

“Lea!” Relena bounded over to her smiling brightly. “They’re on! Come…” She froze at the sight of Lea’s tears. Relena glanced at the cell phone in her hands. “What is it?”

“Nothing,” Lea said wiping the tears from her face and smiling. When Relena gave her an oh-yeah-right look, she caved in. “Uncle Janis won’t be able to stay. His job has called him back from his vacation early.”

“I’m sorry,” Relena hugged her.

‘Something’s wrong… I can tell. And going all soft isn’t going to help!’ Lea pushed out of Relena’s arms shaking her head, “I said it’s nothing and it is.” Forcing herself to be positive and bright, she said with a little more confidence than she felt, “Everything’s fine.” Not waiting to see if her act worked, Lea walked over to the screen and watched Quatre mount his black Arabian horse.

~::*::~

Heero watched Quatre maneuver his horse in line with the other contestants. They were to parade in front of the stands and then line up to begin the first of the elimination rounds. Quatre would return to the stables and wait until the end of the second round.

“He doesn’t look smug, does he?” Trowa asked amused.

Quatre sat like a king about to ride out to battle. Reins were in his left hand, bow in his right and arrows strapped to his back gave him the added bonus of danger. That was something out of character with the gentle, hansom appearance he preferred. But a dangerous look was what he was going for and succeeded with high marks. Heero smirked as he eyed Damian McCart riding beside Quatre. He was shooting glares at Quatre between his waves to the crowd.

“Smug’s not what he was going for.”

Trowa followed Heero’s gaze and gave an understanding, “Ah.”

Both men chuckled softly at Damian’s continuous attempts to outshine Quatre. As the announcer introduced the group of riders as they filed onto the field, the phone in Heero’s pant pocket vibrated. ‘Who would be calling me? Lea?’ Heero’s solider instincts kicked in. He checked the caller ID. The number wasn’t Lea. “Heero,” he answered in an icy tone.

“I didn’t break the truce,” Janis rasped. “He did.”

Heero turned away from the line of cameras and moved into the crowd of teams. Trowa followed wondering about the sudden change. When he felt he was safe to continue, Heero asked, “What happened?”

“In short,” Janis chuckled sadly, “a shit storm! I was called to Rodecker box at the stadium about Lea. I didn’t say anything threatening. Just eased in a few … er… suggestions.” He started coughing hard for a few seconds. “The next thing I knew, I was knocked out, strung up and used like I was some damn piñata!” The coughing fit returned stronger than before and Janis fought to regain his voice.

The world around Heero was heightened as he scanned the area. No one looked out of place. Trowa had picked up on the switch to solider mode and glanced around as well. He casually motioned to Heero that he would continue surveillance while he talked.

“What did they want?” Heero gripped the phone tightly, hoping for anything but Lea’s name.

“The key to Patrick’s last project.” Janis sounded winded and tired. He said panicked, “I didn’t work with him on it. He never said anything about it! I told them this but…” Another coughing session hit.

Heero’s heart sank. All the training he had was telling him Janis was beaten up badly and if left unattended, the injuries would be the cause of his death. Behind him, Trowa cleared his throat. He gave a nod toward the returning riders and the mass of cameras following. “Can you lay low until I can get to you?”

“What the fuck can you do?” Janis snapped. “This isn’t cops and robbers!”

Completely freezing over, he said, “No shit. Sit still and wait for me.” To Trowa he asked, “Got any heat in your car?”

Trowa’s keys were tossed to him without any hesitation. “Zero count,” he reminded. “You’re no longer covered.”

This wasn’t the Khushrenada war or a mission with the Preventers. He wasn’t protecting Relena or a part of her staff. He wasn’t a Gundam pilot anymore. He was on his own. If anything happened, he would be left to the mercies of the law. Rodecker undoubtedly owned every inch of the law. His resolve was resolute. Heero nodded and headed for the nearest exit.

~::*::~

“No shit. Sit still and wait for me.” Heero hung up.

Janis stared at the pay phone’s receiver with his mouth and good eye gaping wide. ‘He couldn’t be serious!’ He rolled his eyes, “When is he not serious?” ‘What can that kid do? He acts like he’s some action hero!’ That made him snort with laughter. The pain in his lungs made him stop. ‘It’s not like you’re in any good or fair condition.’

He glanced around to make sure no one was tagging him, then scanned again for a place to “sit still.” Most of the businesses were closed due to the fair. The only open businesses close by were a bar and a motel. Searing pain shot up his legs as he moved towards the bar. ‘A good drink will do this old body good.’

~::*::~

Searching around for a weapon in Trowa’s car made Heero wish he never left the Preventers or Relena’s staff. Not only did he find a gun but a portable phone tracer as well. A closer look at the truck reveled more hidden weapons along with tracking and ease-dropping devices. Starting up the car, Heero thought grimly, ‘Memo to me: Ask Trowa what the hell he’s doing here!’

~::*::~

The bar was relatively empty except for the bartender and a waitress. Janis propped himself into a chair near the front door. The waitress sauntered over. She was very young, curvy and beautiful in a dark and dangerous way. She had a tattoo on the left side of her neck that trailed down the front of her nearly exposed chest.

“What’ll it be, Pops?” she asked with a huge grin.

‘God! Do I look that old?’ A sting from his bad eye made him sigh. ‘I feel old.’ “JD and coke.”

“Sure thing, Pops.” She wiggled her way to the bartender. He didn’t look very friendly either. His baldhead was covered with tattoos along with the rest of him. Judging from what he could see with the dirty gray tank on, only his face and chest wasn’t touched with the inking needle. The handle bar mustache and bandana tied to his right arm, which looked as thick as a small tree trunk, topped off his I’m-bad-as-hell look.

The bartender caught Janis staring. He winked at him, smiling shyly. Janis shivered and searched for something else to look at. There was a screen in the far corner of the bar. It was set to the tournament. The first round of the Horse and Rider event had started. His shoulders slumped. ‘I’m so sorry, Lea. I didn’t expect for him to come and get me!’ He glanced at the door. Heero wasn’t there. ‘How the hell is he going to find me anyways?’ Janis’ lungs clinched making him cough and gasp for air.

“Hey, Pops?” the waitress asked as she set his drink in front of him. “You don’t sound so good.” She handed him some napkins. He snatched them out of her hand and shoved them over his mouth. He hacked into the napkins a few more times before settling down. “Should I call you a taxi?”

“Nope,” he gasped. Janis flashed her a weak smile after a quick wipe of his mouth. “I’ve got one comin’. Thanks.” He turned his attention back to the screen and shoved the bloody napkins into his coat pocket.

One of the team’s archers was going through the course. The guy was a good rider but a horrible archer. He couldn’t hit any of the targets. The announcer called the score and the team’s last place standing. ‘One less bugger to worry about!’ He lifted his glass in a silent salute and took a sip. The drink burned as it went down. ‘A few more cups and you won’t feel a thing. Just remember to make Heero pay.’

“Who ya cheering for, Pops?”

Janis jumped and winced at the pain that was caused from the sudden movement. “Must you call me ‘Pops?’” He took a large gulp of his drink.

The waitress smiled her apologies, “Sorry, sir.”

He chuckled, “The Zikamos.” It felt good to say the name again. Janis saluted the team name and downed the rest of the drink. This time the burning sensation wasn’t as strong as before. He slammed the glass against the table, “Another, please.”

The waitress was about to agree but something caught her eye. She frowned, puzzled at something behind Janis. Her face fell. “Sorry, Po- sir. Looks like you’re ride’s here.”

Strong hands grasped Janis’ already sore shoulders. “I think you’ve had enough, Janis,” Brock growled out. “Time to go.” He pulled Janis up out of the chair by the shoulder of his shirt and jacket. Brock pushed him towards the door just in time to make him tumble into the person coming in. “You’ve caused me a lot of…” he started to snap at Janis but stopped.

The most deadly pair of Prussian blue eyes Brock had ever seen was staring at him. Heero Yuy had caught Janis and set him back onto his feet. All anger Brock had felt towards Janis suddenly melted away. The only think he could think of was how quickly he had to get away from the evil gaze.

“I’m sorry you had to waist your time coming here, Brock,” Heero said his name as if he was talking about filth. “Be a good boy and pick up the tab, will ya?”

Numbly, Brock nodded. He remembered what Rodecker had told him about Heero’s file and what he was capable of. Picking up the tab was far better than anything Heero was promising with his Death Glare. Brock fished into his pocket to get some money. When he looked back up, Janis and Heero were gone. Brock ran to the door, yanked it open and watched in dismay as they sped away. He was so flustered he couldn’t remember the make or model of the car or the license plate.

“Fuck me!” he growled. ‘Rodecker’s gonna kill me!’

“If that’s how you plan to pay, buddy,” the bartender cheerfully said, “that’s fine with me.”

Brock paled and slowly turned around to see the bartender gazing at him as one would a piece of steak. “Oh, God!”

~::*::~

“We can’t go back,” Janis argued. “I’ve already told Lea I was leaving! Brock and Rodecker will be waiting for me. I won’t be able to continue searching for the answers if I stay here!”

Heero knew he was right. Janis would be a sitting duck if he were taken back to the fair. But he also knew that Janis would be vulnerable without some sort of protection. Eyeing the bruises on his face, Heero figured he would need all the protection he could get.

He pulled into an alley, locked the doors and pinned Janis with a glare. “Fine but I need to know what’s going on! What was Zikamo working on that would have gotten him and his wife murdered, Lea raped and you nearly killed!”

“Lea told you about the break-in?” Janis asked in shock. He added in awe, “You two are closer than I thought.”

“Focus, Janis.” Heero forced his tone and appearance to soften, “Just… tell me.”

There was a flicker of doubt in Janis’ eyes before he gave in. “Patrick was working on a project called Persephone. The military wanted to harness the destructive power of the weather. Patrick was the leading man for making weather! At first he had his heart set against it. I don’t know what happened to change his mind but he did. And he forced me off the project and a couple dozen others, too. Said it was for our own good.” He snorted in disbelief.

“Was he successful?”

Janis gave a bark of laughter, which quickly turned into a groan. “Of course he was. He based it off the WCFC’s core. Persephone is portable, compact and even more deadly than the WCFC’s system.” He snickered softly, “But the damn thing’s a pile of junk without Hades’ key.”

“I thought you didn’t know what it was,” Heero said feeling frustrated at the new information and Janis’ worsening condition.

“I don’t!” he admitted. “I know what its purpose is. What it’s made for. Patrick destroyed anything that might say as to what or where it was.”

‘Oh, you’ve really done it now!’ logic snapped. ‘You’ve let her charm and woo you into her life and now you’re in way over your head! You’re pissing without a pot to piss in!’

‘No,’ Heero thought sternly. ‘For once in my whole life, I feel the truth behind my own motto. I really can act on my emotions. I want to help.’ He eyed Janis who had leaned the car seat back and closed his eyes. His breathing was steady but there was a pained look on his face. Heero racked his brain trying to find a way out of this mess. There was only one quick fix to all the immediate medical and covert issues while maintaining a low profile. ‘I have to get my old job back…’ “They’re gonna have a field day…” he growled before starting the car.

“Who’s gonna have a field day?” Janis asked opening his good eye.

Heero sighed, “My old boss, her husband and all my ex co-workers.” When Janis didn’t loose his puzzled look, he added, “Relena, Quatre, Trowa and the others you haven’t met yet.”

“What do they have to do with this?” He was worried now, even looked like he was going to panic and jump out of the car. “And what do you mean by ‘yet?’”

“I know I haven’t been exactly open about my past,” Heero said slowly as he guided the car back onto the open street. Janis propped the car seat back into its upright position. The worried expression only darkened. Heero didn’t let that stop him. “I’ve had good reason to. I didn’t think I could trust you at first.”

He paused trying to find the right words. ‘A straight forward approach would be good,’ logic suggested. The little voice remained in silent agreement. Heero sighed his defeat. “Relena Darlian Peacecraft Winner is Prime Minister to Earth. I was her bodyguard. I was also a member of the Preventers. Before that I was the pilot of the Wing Gundam, Wing Zero, Mercurius and Epyon. I’ve been a solider ever since I could walk.” He was glaring at the car in front of them, “I’ve known so little of normal life and the moment I find it…”

His voice trailed off. He had never expected so much anger and despair to rush him. It frightened him. He glanced at Janis to see if the little outburst had startled him, too. It did. Janis was staring at him as if Heero had grown horns. Then the expression rapidly transitioned from awe, to bewilderment and finally amusement. “Well I’ll be damned,” he finally said. “No wonder you said you could help.”

“I can’t right now,” Heero growled. “Normal life has my hands tied! With the Preventers, I would have access to cars like this and …” He blinked a couple of times before tossing his hands in the air, “Of all the…” He pressed the radio button three times. The radio display flickered before the words, “Now Transmitting,” scrolled across.

“Code,” a playful female voice demanded.

“Mine expired over three months ago, Hilde,” Heero said. “Where’s Duo?”

There was a loud gasp followed by, “Oh my God! Heero! What the hell are you doing with Trowa’s signal? Is he hurt? Oh, don’t tell me he’s…”

“Where’s Duo, Hilde?” Heero’s patience was running real thin. Janis was gawking again but now at the dashboard. “If he’s not there, then I’ll talk to WuFei.”

A gentle, sexy yet demented laugh made Heero growl under his breath, “Ah, kuso!”

“Normal life too hard for you, Yuy?”

Heero bit back a snide remark and swallowed his pride. ‘Field day was putting it mildly.’ “I need a safe house and… a doctor.”

There was silence on the other end. Heero had begun to wonder if Zechs had disconnected when he asked, “Why?”

Heero opened his mouth to reply but Janis beat him to it. “Because if you don’t, the hell he’s uncovered here will spread to Earth and the rest of the colonies like a plague! Time’s a ticking, mister. So what’ll it be?”

“Who is this?” Zechs demanded. “Identify yourself!”

Janis’ coughing drowned out Zechs’ yelling. Blood splattered onto the dash and Janis’ pants. He fought for breath as Heero pulled into a nearby parking lot. Janis had doubled over groaning in pain. Fear hit Heero so hard that neither logic nor the little voice could get through to him. The one thing he had promised himself he would never do flowed from him as he yanked the car into park.

“I need your help, Zechs. Trowa and Quatre are tied up right now. I can’t get back to them in enough time to save Janis. Without him I have no way to shut down the Persephone Project.” He placed a hand on Janis’ shoulder trying to help him sit up. Janis’ appearance had worsened in the last few seconds. He was very pale which made his bruises stand out. The vibrant life in his eyes was fading fast. “Janis?” The man slumped against the seat, eyes shutting. “Janis!” He didn’t respond. Heero checked his pulse. It was faint but steady. “Damn it, Zechs!”

“Transmitting information now, Heero,” Noin announced.

“Noin!” Zechs barked at her.

“Quit being an ass, Zechs!” Noin snapped. “Since when does Heero ask YOU for help? Get going, Heero, and call us back when you have more information.”

The radio display flickered back to normal. On the nav center’s screen were directions to the safe house and the code. “Thank you, Noin,” Heero whispered and sped out of the parking lot.

~::*::~

“It’s getting late,” Trowa stated with a hint of worry. He scanned the crowd of contestants and horses. There was no sign of Heero. He glanced up at Quatre who was mounted on his horse.

He shook his head and said sadly, “I can’t sense a thing.” Quatre added as an after thought, “Probably a good thing. I wouldn’t want to feel like killing someone while going through the course.”

“Contestants participating in the final round, please take your place on the field.”

Quatre sighed, “Where could he be?”

“Win this,” Trowa instructed, “then we can go find Heero.” Quatre nodded and maneuvered his horse to the field. Trowa watched with a heavy heart. ‘This is my entire fault. If I hadn’t sent him to Ms. Zikamo…’ He shook his head to clear it of such thoughts. ‘You could have never known. Perhaps, this is for the best? Besides, you have your own mission. Rodecker’s got to screw up sometime.’

Trowa sighed and walked toward the sidelines to watch the final rounds. He made his way to the team bench to find a tired and pissed Heero perched on it. He had his head in his hands with the elbows resting on his knees. Trowa guessed he saw whose shoes it was that stopped in front of him because Heero grumbled, “We’ll talk later, okay?”

“Agreed,” Trowa answered calmly. He sat beside him and watched the first contestant ride through the course. There was one question begging to be asked by Trowa. As the announcer called out the scores, he asked, “Is the car in one piece?” Heero shot him a puzzled and hurt frown. Trowa shrugged, “It’s Pramjeet’s car. She’ll torture me if there is something wrong with it.”

Heero shook his head in disbelief. “Tell her to send me the cleaning bill.” He waved Trowa’s bewildered frown away, “I said we’ll talk later.”

Both men fell silent and watched as team after team rode through the course. Damian McCart was second to last to go. He scored the highest with less than half of his shots hitting dead center. Trowa had noticed Heero had eased up considerably and was watching the tournament with great interest. As Quatre started through the course, Heero scooted to the edge of the bench. Trowa had seen Quatre ride through the courses at his home. They were by far more difficult than the one on the field. Quatre rode through it with ease. Each shot made dead center. When he made it to the end, the crowd was on their feet cheering and chanting, “Zi-ka-mo!”

“At least one thing went well today,” Heero sighed.

~::*::~

This chapter was really hard to do. I like Janis and didn’t want to put him through too much. Unfortunately, my muse has more dark things like this in store for you. Please bear with us as we wade through it. I promise there is bright spot on the way. Thank you to all who have reviewed! You’re comments are a great boost!
- 9
- 10
- 11
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Being Human