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Family Ties	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 19194 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing/AC, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 117
- 118
- 119
“Family Ties”

January 2007 ShenLong

Chapter 118

“Commander Une, we have an incoming transmission from Agent Mercury in ten minutes,” Oak informed the Commander.

“Thank you, Oak. I’ll be right there.” Une hung up her phone and pushed her seat back from the desk. Checking she had her pager on her, she stepped out of her office, informing the secretary of where she would be if needed.

Five minutes later she was stepping into the communications room. “This seems to be becoming a second home to me,” she muttered as she walked to where Oak was sitting, transmitter in front of him.

“Ah, Commander. I expect Mercury to be back in contact with us in roughly-” he glanced at the clock, “four minutes.”

Sitting down, Une took the offered headset and slipped it on, Oak continued to monitor the remaining airwaves. Soon enough, the awaited transmission came through.

“Preventer Headquarters, this is Agent Mercury. Do you copy?”

“Agent Mercury, this is Agent Oak of Preventer communications, I copy you loud and clear. I have the Commander with me and I’ll switch over to her now.” Oak nodded to the Commander.

“Mercury, this is Commander Une. What information do you have for me?”

“Commander. Shuttles 151, 381 and 246 are on their way back to the Preventer shuttle port. ETA in four hours. Agent Oil was finishing off the last of the diagnostic tests to shuttle 121 when we left and expects it to be operational. Oil will be leaving soon and also Agent Wind. The respective agents will contact you once they are space born with their ETAs.”

“Thank you, Mercury. All three shuttles are to proceed directly to the shuttle port. I will call ahead and inform Captain Storm of your status and also the status of the cargo. The required transports will be waiting for all shuttles upon arrival. Once you have all landed safely, follow the instructions of Storm. No one, I repeat, no one is to disembark from the shuttles until cleared by either Storm or myself to do so. Is that understood?”

“Received loud and clear, Commander.”

“Good. The medical shuttles carrying the injured will be cleared first. The prisoners will follow them and the morgue people will come in last to remove and take care of the deceased.”

“Roger that.”

“Is there anything else, Mercury?”

“No, Commander, I think that covers everything.”

“Safe trip, Mercury and pass on my congratulations to the other members of all teams for a job well done. I will expect you in my office once all the formalities are taken care of at the shuttle port for a quick debrief.”

“Of course, Commander. Mercury out.”

“Commander Une, out.”

Oak flipped a couple of switches and returned the frequency to stand-by. Une removed her headset and passed it back to the agent.

“Oak, I want you to try and raise Agents Oil and Wind. See how things are with both agents and the transport shuttle. Also try to get a departure and arrival time from them. I’m going to get a coffee and I’ll be back shortly.”

“Of course, Commander. I’ll get right onto it.”

“Thank you.” Une left the communications room to hunt down a decent cup of coffee.

* * *

“The diagnostics test is all good, and all is running fine” Oil said as he unplugged the machine from the on board computer terminal.

“And that translates into what, exactly?” replied Zechs. “It's all well and good to tell me everything is fine, but there were an awful lot of figures and information scrolling down that screen.”

Oil chuckled. “It means that all systems are go.”

“Oil, this isn’t a rerun of ‘Thunderbirds’ you know.”

Still snickering to himself, Oil thought he’d better reply properly. “The damage to the heat shields has been repaired and the replacements should hold up to the rigors of reentry. The thrusters and boosters have been rewired, the damaged sections completely replaced. Plating has also been re-welded and sealed on the wing. The computer is functioning normally and showing that all vital systems are up and running properly. That all means this shuttle should not have any problem with the flight back to Earth.”

“What about the reentry through the atmosphere?”

“Again, the computer scan shows all heat shields are in place and sealed. According to the data, there should not be a problem at all with the shields and their capacity to deflect the heat upon reentry.”

“But you can’t be completely sure.”

“Well, no. But I’m very doubtful anything will break or disintegrate,” replied Oil. “Wind, lighten up, this baby will get you back safely. I’ll stake my career on it.”

“She’d better, otherwise I will come back to haunt you. I’ll stake my life on that,” Zechs shot back.

“You worry too much,” Oil laughed. “I’ve been in this job for a long time now, Wind, and I’ve not lost a shuttle through a faulty repair yet.”

“Then you had better hope that I’m not the first,” Zechs replied with a smirk.

Oil offered his hand which Zechs took and shook firmly. “I’ll see you back dirt side then.”

“I’m planning on it,” Zechs replied wryly.

“Nice working with you, Wind. If you ever bang up a shuttle again, feel free to call me and I’ll come and do the repairs for you,” Oil said with a wide grin.

Zechs shook his head. “Take care and a safe flight. I’ll start to get this baby fired up and ready to go.”

“Roger that. We will wait until you are space borne before taking off.”

“Thank you. We’d better contact Headquarters too and bring them up to speed with what is going on.”

“I’ll put in my call once I get back to my shuttle.” Oil turned and headed for the belly of the shuttle and the decompression chamber.

Zechs checked his flight suit and fetched his helmet. Once he was back in the cockpit, he closed the shuttle’s doors after Oil had departed and began to start up sequence for the shuttle. With the engines slowly coming on line and warming up, he checked the gauges for the pressure build up in the thrusters and noted all appeared to be working to schedule.

Reaching for the headset, he glanced out the cockpit window and watched the telltale heat trail from the other shuttle which indicated the engines beginning their fire up sequence.

“Preventer communications, this is Preventer Shuttle PA 121. Do you copy?” There was a burst of static down the line.

“Shuttle 121, this is Agent Oak of Preventer communications. I copy you loud and clear. I was about to try and contact you,” replied Oak.

“Looks like I beat you to it then, Oak.”

“That you did, Wind. Anyway, go ahead please.”

“Repairs to shuttle 121 are complete and I’m initiating the engine fire up sequence. All clear so far. I expect to lift off from Satellite XRB 23 in approximately five minutes. Unless there are any new orders, I will proceed as per the last instructions given to me by the Commander.”

“Roger that, Wind. Commander Une hasn’t issued any new orders at this stage that I am aware of and right now she’s not in the communications room. She will be returning shortly though and I expect she will be in touch with you then to update you if and where necessary.”

“Copy that. I’ll leave the communications channel open. Wind out.”

“Oak, out.” Oak fiddled with the dial of his transmitter and made contact with Oil in the other shuttle.

Zechs checked the engines and noted they were warmed up and ready to engage. The boosters and thrusters were also at capacity and the computer confirmed all on-board systems were functioning normally. Strapping the harness tightly around his form and slipping on his helmet as a safety precaution, Zechs grasped the joystick, placed his feet on the pedals and began to ease the stick backwards a touch. At the same time he turned a couple of dials and flipped a switch, noting the slight increase of power to the engines. The shuttle gave a low hum and began to rumble forward, inching her way to the open doors of the hangar. To the left, Zechs watched the other shuttle powering up before returning his concentration to the doors ahead and getting the shuttle out to the satellite surface.

Once he was clear of the hangar, Zechs gave the shuttle a little more throttle and taxied along the powdery surface until he was clear of the Dome and the wreckage from the battle between the Gundams and Barton’s mobile suits. Once he determined he was at a safe enough distance, he brought the shuttle to a stop and began to power the engines further.

The engines began to pick up in volume, the vibration and hum shaking the craft slightly as the energy built. Once the engine revolutions were high enough, Zechs released the throttle and eased the joystick back. The craft began to move, picking up speed as it went and leaving a trail of dust in its wake. The speed built, the shuttle rattling along the surface and gaining momentum. Zechs hit the boosters and pulled the joystick fully back.

The nose of the craft began to rise, the rest of the body following and breaking away from the weak gravitational pull of the satellite. Blackness surrounded the craft as she sped into the void of space. Eyes watched the dials and gauges carefully, noting the airspeed, trajectory and climb of the shuttle. Once he was at the required distance from the satellite, Zechs eased off the joystick and let the craft level out. He cut the boosters and powered the engines down to a steady thrum, the propulsion from their take off would be enough to power the craft through the inky blackness; space had no resistance in the form of atmosphere.

With the shuttle cruising, Zechs switched his attention to the computer and checked the proposed flight plan. He keyed in further information, changing the flight plan slightly to suit as he would need to return his cargo to the fold before he could take the shuttle back to the Preventer port. With the information logged into the computer, Zechs did a final check and then set the auto pilot. With the auto pilot engaged, he removed his helmet and once more checked the flight plan and sighed in relief when he noted it was all as he’d programmed it.

Taking a moment to run his hands over his face, he stretched and then grabbed the head set once more. He needed to speak with Une.

*

Having found a decent cup of coffee, Une returned to the communications room to be brought up to speed by Oak on the current situation. Oak had been pleased to inform the Commander that both shuttles 121 and 134 were now safely on their way back from the satellite. Agent Oil would contact Preventer shuttle port with an ETA and Storm would be in touch with headquarters with an update on all shuttles’ expected landing times. Agent Wind had called in and was awaiting the Commander’s return contact at her earliest convenience.

“Thank you, Oak. I’ll contact Agent Wind now. If you would kindly put in the call I will take it in private.”

“Certainly, Commander. The room to the side that you used before is vacant.”

“Pu the call in now, please.” Une picked up her coffee and moved into the other room where she put the headset on and waited for Oak to patch her in. Taking a seat, she sipped at the coffee.

“”Preventer Shuttle 121, this is Agent Oak of Preventer Headquarters. Acknowledge please.”

“Hey, Oak. Wind here, I read you loud and clear.”

“Wind, I have the Commander on a separate line. One moment whilst I patch you through.”

“Thanks Oak.”

“My pleasure. Commander?”

“Oak?”

“Communication is patched through. Proceed when ready.”

“Thank you, Oak. Wind, do you read?”

“Commander, I am receiving you loud and clear.”

“What is your status?”

Zechs gave Une the complete run down on the shuttle, the repairs and how the craft was handling things so far. “I am on course for the sheep shed and expect to land there in another six hours.”

“Roger that, Wind. Proceed as previously ordered. Return the sheep to the flock and secure. Once completed, return the shuttle to the Preventer shuttle port. I will advise Storm of your expected return once you are on your way.”

“Confirmed. Commander?”

“Yes?”

“How is Agent Night? Is he out of surgery yet? Will he be okay?”

“Wind, As you are aware, I cannot divulge any details of Night’s medical situation, but I can tell you that Sally did operate successfully and the knife has been removed. He is expected to make a full recovery.”

Zechs gave an audible sigh of relief. “Thank god for that.”

“I think we all agree with you, Zechs,” Une chuckled.

“Yeah, he is an exceptional young man and an excellent agent.”

‘You have no idea just how exceptional he is’, Une thought. “Yes, he is, Zechs and I’m relieved that he will be okay after some much needed rest and recuperation.”

“Commander, please pass on my best wishes to him and once I’m back and get the opportunity, I’d like to pay him a visit.”

“I will pass that on, Zechs; but you will have to check with Doctor Po in regards to visiting him.”

“Of course.”

“Safe trip, Zechs and contact me again once you have landed safely with the flock.”

“I will, Commander. If there is nothing else, Wind out.”

“No, there isn’t anything else at this point in time. Une, out.” Removing the headset, Une smiled to herself. Finally everything was coming together and the light at the end of that tunnel was getting brighter by the hour.

* * *

Nurse Brown moved swiftly through the halls of the medical section and arrived at the waiting room within minutes of leaving Duo. She smiled as three anxious faces turned to greet her. “Duo is doing fine,” she informed them all.

The relief spread over the three faces along with a couple of sighs.

Snickering to herself, Margaret thought how pleased Duo would be to know that his friends cared so much about him, the little scene before her told her just how deep the bonds between the ex-pilots ran. She sincerely hoped her little talk from earlier would have helped Duo a little.

“Can we see him?” Quatre asked politely.

“That’s what I’m here for. Doctor Po said you may all come through and spend a few minutes with him, but please remember he does need to rest, so no exciting him in any way.”

“Of course,” Quatre replied with a beaming smile.

“Gentlemen, if you would follow me?” Margaret turned and exited the waiting room, moving slowly to accommodate Trowa who was finally mastering the crutches.

Wufei moved up to walk beside the nurse. “How is he really?” he asked.

Margaret gave him a smile. “Like I said, he’s doing fine. I cannot divulge any other information to you at this point in time, medial ethics and all that.”

Wufei nodded. He understood what the nurse was saying.

“Doctor Po will be in very shortly to check him over properly, then it will be up to Duo to tell you whatever he wishes you to know, or give his consent for the doctor to inform you and answer any questions.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” A sly smile found its way to Margaret’s lips and she glanced out the corner of her eye to see where the other two were. Noting they were still following behind, but a short distance away, she lowered her voice. “Wufei? May I call you, Wufei?”

“Please do,” Wufei returned, curious as to what the nurse wanted.

“You can call me an interfering old biddy if you like, but just when exactly are you planning on letting Doctor Po know that you are serious about her?”

It was all Wufei could do to keep walking when all he wanted to do was stop and stare at the nurse. “I beg your pardon?” he growled.

“You’ve been out on a few dates, I know, but don’t you think it’s high time you stopped stringing her along and let her know what your real intentions are?” Margaret wore an amused smile. She wasn’t at all fazed by the look of thunder that appeared on the young man’s face.

“I really don’t think it’s any of your business,” Wufei stated stiffly.

“No, it probably isn’t, but Doctor Po is a very dear friend of mine and I happen to know she does like you rather a lot. But she isn’t going to wait around forever either whilst you make up your mind what you want. It would be a shame if she were to settle down with someone else, and believe me, there are quite a few others that wouldn’t mind sweeping her off her feet.”

Wufei paled a little at that thought. “There are?” he questioned.

Knowing she had the fish on the hook, all that was left to do was play him and then reel him in. “Oh, yes. There’s that nice young Doctor who joined the team a few months back, a Doctor Crispin I think his name is, he seemed to be quite smitten by her if I remember correctly...”

Wufei scowled.

“There’s also that lab technician, the young man in accounting, oh, and the agent in supplies...”

“Thank you, I think you have made your point.”

Margaret smirked. “Good. Take a word of advice from an old lady, grasp what you want with both hands and don’t let it go.”

Wufei thought for a moment and then gave the nurse a rare smile. “You’re not an old lady,” he murmured, “Just a good and caring friend.”

Margaret winked at him and then turning slightly, she called out over her shoulder to the other two, “Here we are.” Knocking on the door, Margaret opened it slightly and stuck her head around the jamb. “You have visitors,” she announced to the couple on the bed and then opened the door wider to allow the other three to enter the room.

Duo lay on the bed, his shoulders and torso propped up a bit with lots of pillows. He wasn’t allowed to sit up fully due to his injuries. Heero was reclining slightly on the bed next to his husband, Keitaro sitting between them and amusing himself by trying his best to grab at the bandage on Heero’s arm.

As the other three all filed into the room, Duo’s face lit up into a grin. “Hey guys,” he said softly.

“Duo, thank Allah you’re okay,” Quatre cried and moved swiftly to the side of the bed intending to give his long haired friend a hug. He changed tactics slightly when he remembered Duo’s injuries and settled for a one armed embrace and a kiss to the cheek – much to Duo’s embarrassment.

“Maxwell, I’m glad to see you are well and recovering,” Wufei said as he approached and offered his hand.

“Thank you, Wufei,” Duo replied, a little shocked but took the offered hand and shook it. A sly grin formed and he followed with the words, “And it’s Maxwell-Yuy to you.”

Wufei shook his head and rolled his eyes.

Trowa managed to work his way forward. “How are you doing, Duo?” he asked, unable to give his friend a hug of any sort as he needed both hands on his crutches.

“All things considered, I’m doing well. What about you, Tro? You look pretty banged up to me.”

Trowa went to shrug his shoulders, then thought better of it. “I’ll survive.”

“He needs a lot of rest so I’m planning on taking him back to L 4 where I can look after him properly,” Quatre piped up.

Duo translated that into, ‘Mothering the life out of Trowa’. He couldn’t help it, he snickered.

“What? I could do with a bit of pampering after all this crap we’ve been through,” Trowa sniffed.

“And I’m sure you will get it too, Tro,” Duo said with a grin.

“You better believe it, Duo,” Quatre stated. “I fully intend to see that he rests and makes a full recovery from all his injuries.”

Trowa resisted the urge to poke his tongue out at Duo in a ‘so there’ gesture, instead he opted for a smug smile.

“Now, Duo...” Quatre began as he settled Trowa into a chair and took the crutches from his lover.

‘Uh oh,’ thought Duo.

“Just how bad are your injuries? What did Sally say, how did the operation go, and what about the – you know?” Quatre couldn't bring himself to say ‘baby’ out loud, just in case there was something wrong that he or the others didn’t know about.

The barrage of questions hit Duo full on and it was all he could do not to cringe under the onslaught. Luckily for him, Heero intervened.

“Sally will be here in a few minutes, once she arrives I’m sure she will be able to explain everything, not just to you all, but Duo and myself as well. Although we are aware of most of it, there are some areas we still need clarification on.”

No sooner had Heero finished speaking than Sally knocked on the door and entered the room.

Wufei’s eyes immediately went to the woman, noting the soft smile, the way her eyes crinkled at the corners with that smile. He also saw the underlying exhaustion, the tiredness etched into those features and his heart did a funny twist in his chest. Nurse Brown’s words came back to him and he vowed to make his intentions clear to the woman as soon as he could.

The doctor’s eyes swept over all present in the room, taking in their various conditions by the different items of medical supplies they wore. “I see that everyone has been treated for their respective injuries,” she said as she walked to her patient currently propped up in the bed.

Several affirmatives came back to her.

“If you will all excuse me for just a moment, I wish to check Duo,” she informed them and pulled the curtain around the bed to give the man a little privacy, leaving the other three sitting on the other side. Margaret handed her the chart with Duo’s latest vitals on it and Sally quickly checked it over. Then she turned her attention to the patient himself. “How are you feeling now, Duo?”

“Not too bad,” Duo replied honestly. “The pain meds must still be working as there’s only a dull ache in my abdomen and ribs, and my ankle doesn’t hurt at all.”

“That’s good,” Sally replied. “I’ll just check the dressing and make sure there’s no bleeding.” Duo dutifully lifted his gown for Sally to check his abdomen, Heero having moved off the bed and holding Keitaro in his arms so the doctor could work freely. “All is looking just fine,” she told him as she pulled the gown back down and assisted Duo to pull the sheet and blanket back over his body to keep him warm. “Duo? The other guys, just how much do you want them to know about your condition?”

Duo thought for a moment and then raised his eyes to meet with Sally’s. “You can tell them everything, Sally. I don’t mind them knowing what has happened, they are a part of my family too,” he said softly.

Sally patted his arm, Heero gave his partner a loving look. “Would you like to tell them, or would you prefer it if I were to do so?”

“I think it would be better if you did, you can explain it better but please, explain it in simple terms,” Duo chuckled.

“No problem.”

Lowering his voice to a whisper and motioning for Heero to come closer so he could hear too, Duo asked the question he’d been wanting to ask since Sally came into the room. “Sally, did you manage to harvest any of my eggs?”

Sally gave him a beaming smile. “Yes, Duo, I did.”

A soft sigh of relief left Duo’s lips, a similar one coming from Heero a second later. With tears in his eyes, Duo managed to grasp the doctor’s hand in his own and squeezed it gently. “Thank you, Sally.”

“You are most welcome, Duo.”

~ * ~

tbc...
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- 119
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Family Ties