Eternal Flame

Disclaimer: I don\'t own the G Boys, I just borrow them from time to time and return them a whole lot happier ne? :) I do however own Shane, Paul, Colin, Mickey, Benny, Toby, Fayah and any other unfamiliar characters that crop up. I also own the plot if you can call it that.

Rating: NC 17

Warnings: Sap, angst, OC, Lemon, Lime, abuse, violence, language.

Pairings: 1x2x1, 3x4x3, 5xS, OC x OC and maybe some more... check each part to be sure ;)

Archive: http://gundam-wing-diaries.150m.com
http://sweetlysour.net
http://www.adult-fanfiction.org
http://www.theforsakenwk.com/

Status: Work in progress.

Beta: DBZVelena, Yami_Tai and Ryouga... *huggles*

Author: ShenLong

Authors notes: *sigh* Well here I am again caving into pressure. I know it has taken a while to get to this and for that I apologize but I could not come up with a plot I deemed worthy enough.... until now. This is yet another sequel... this time to United Hearts. I did promise I would write the wedding for you all and I intend to do that. For those that haven\'t read United or Lost Souls I recommend that you do, otherwise this sequel will not make much sense. All of your favorite characters are back and up to as much mischief as possible.
This is set fourteen months after the end of United and all the children are older now. The Gundam Pilots are all 20yrs, Shane and Fayah are 16, Paul is 15, Colin is 14, Mickey is 12, Benny is 10 1/2 and not forgetting that little rascal Toby who is 10.
Thank you to all those who supported me through the writing of United, I hope you enjoy this just as much.

\"Eternal Flame\"

April 2003 ShenLong

Chapter 38

Sally finished her shower and grabbed her bag, checking on Leith and Paul one last time before heading out of the apartment and to the garage where the car waited. Not long after she was driving through the streets that were only just beginning to get congested with the morning\'s rush hour traffic.

As she waited for the traffic lights to change so, she mulled over the information Une had given her. She didn\'t doubt that the ex-pilots had suffered some form of injury; she had yet to see them return from a mission without some form of damage. It was exactly what that damage was that concerned her. The agents training as Gundam pilots years ago had enhanced and altered their bodies in varying degrees. Heero being the one most affected. While she still didn\'t understand all the reasons why they had gone through what they had, she respected them for it. She could only shudder at the thought of some of the things that they had endured. It was that knowledge that always made Sally uneasy when an injury report came in regarding the five. What could be deemed as a severe injury in another agent was most likely minor to such as Heero and Wufei. She sighed as she eased out the clutch and continued on her way. She would just have to wait until the ships docked before knowing the final truth and real extent of the damage.

~ * ~

Howard rubbed his temples and looked at the damage report on the Zodiac. It could have been worse he supposed. Given all that the ship had suffered through, he was surprised that the damage hadn\'t been more severe. With any luck and being able to obtain the necessary parts, the Zodiac should only be grounded for four days he estimated. Yes, things could definitely have been worse. The com unit buzzed and Thomas answered it.

\"Howard, it\'s the guy\'s on the mother ship,\" he said as he turned in his chair to face the Sweeper leader.

\"Thanks.\" Howard moved to the com unit. \"Howard here, how\'s it going?\"

\"Nearly finished, Howard. Wasn\'t as bad as we thought it was going to be. We\'ve patched up the relay wiring and replaced some of the circuits. She should be able to make the trip back to Earth without any major problems, although she mightn\'t be as fast as the other two.\"

\"That\'s okay,\" replied Howard. \"It won\'t matter too much if she\'s a few hours behind us, as long as she will make it.\"

\"Oh, she\'ll make it all right, Howard.\"

\"Good. Actually, if she does arrive later than the Zodiac and the carrier, we shouldn\'t have too long a delay in docking.\"

\"We will contact you again in about an hour. She should be ready to go by then.\"

\"Thanks, guys. When you\'re finished I\'ll send a shuttle across with the two of the agents who will pilot her back to Earth\'s orbit.\"

\"Roger, Howard. Crew out.\"

\"Zodiac out.\" Howard turned to Thomas. \"At least that\'s a bit of good news,\" he said as he stared at the ream of damage reports again. Tossing the papers aside for the moment, he turned and left the control room, saying,. \"I\'m going to wake the agents.\"

~ * ~

Leith lay cuddled in Paul\'s arms for a while after Sally had left. Neither youth had said anything, words not being important at the moment. Paul was happy that his boyfriend\'s father had been found but he was a little worried about Wufei. He hoped with all his heart that his foster father wasn\'t too seriously hurt. Knowing Sally, she would no doubt inflict her own personal pain on the Chinese man for putting her through so much worry. Although at least her attacks wouldn\'t be physical.

Leith\'s mind was whirling with the thoughts of his father. He hoped he wasn\'t too seriously injured, though Sally had said he\'d had to undergo surgery so that could mean anything from simple cuts to all out dismemberment. Leith shuddered with that thought and tried to put the more gruesome ones out of his mind. He switched tracks and began to think about where his father would be taken. Would he be transferred to the Preventer hospital or a normal one? How long would he be hospitalized for? Would he be able to visit him? Sighing softly, he tried to push all the thoughts from his mind. His father was safe and on his way home, that was all that mattered.

\"Are yer okaeitheith?\" Paul\'s concerned voice said.

Leith turned his head slightly and nodded. \"Yeah, I\'m all right. Just thinking about my dad.\"

\"I\'m sure he\'s doin\' all right. If there had been anythin\' really bad, I\'m sure they woulda told Sally.\" Paul began to stroke Leith\'s back in a soothing gesture. Gently he pressed a kiss to the top of Leith\'s head.

Leith found Paul\'s hand and entwined their fingers together. \"Thanks, Paul.\"

\"Thanks fer what?\"

\"For caring.\"

Paul snorted. \"I told yer once before, Leith. Yer my boyfriend and there\'s no way yer gettin\' rid of me easily. Like it or not, yer stuck wiv me.\" Paul lowered his head and took Leith\'s lips in his own, kissing away all the fear and anguish these past few weeks had showered them with.

They shifted subtly on the bed, Paul turning and lifting his legs up onto the bed, then sliding down next to Leith until he lay on his side, propped up by one arm, Leith still on his back lying next to him. Their lips parted for a second and eyes locked before Paul surged forward again. This kiss was deeper than the other, hungry and demanding. Tongues met and danced together, stroking over teeth and gums as the kiss deepened even further. Just when Paul thought he would black out from lack of oxygen, their lips parted anddrewdrew in a shaky gulp of air.

Leith rested his forehead against Paul\'s, exchanging warm air and staring intently into Paul\'s deep blue eyes. Their lips once more joined in a sensual and arousing kiss, Paul could feel himself reacting to his boyfriend and the sensations overwhelmed him. In all his young life he\'d never felt this strongly before. The sex he\'d been forced to endure in order to survive when he was younger had always been quick and detached, Paul having found that disappearing inside his head to a distant place was the only way he could cope with what he needed to do to stay alive. To feel himself responding in this manner was alien to him, he\'d never become aroused when \'servicing\' customers, regardless of how nice some of them had been to him. But now, now he was responding in a manner that surprised him and excited him. Leith felt good in his arms, he felt right pressed against his body and the kiss...

Paul desperately wanted more of this feeling, ached for it even. He wanted to know what it felt like to be with someone you cared about. Gently he began to move a hand down over Leith\'s back and around his hip, pausing there for a moment and running his thumb in soft circles over the hip bone that was covered by the thin sheet. He didn\'t want to upset Leith or hurt him. His erection had swelled to the point where he couldn\'t hide it any longer and he gently thrust against Leith\'s thigh, unsure of what his boyfriend would do.

Leith pressed his lips even more firmly against Paul\'s, his tongue plunging into the warmth of Paul\'s mouth and stroking over sensitive spots. He could feel the weight of Paul against his side and the soft pushes of Paul\'s hips against him and knew instantly that his boyfriend was aroused. Leith felt a moment of panic; he didn\'t know what to do. The last time they had been intimate of sorts he had been the one to put a stop to things before they got out of hand; but now, given his half paralyzed condition, it wasn\'t as if he could do much. Kissing, cuddling and a little making out wouldn\'t hurt anybody, it wasn\'t as if they were going \'all the way\', Leith wasn\'t sure if he would ever be able to \'go all the way\' again so he really couldn\'t see anything wrong in pleasuring his boyfriend, it was the least he could do.

Somehow Leith managed to work his good hand down between their bodies to rest upon Paul\'s hip. Another kiss distracted his boyfriend from his actions and Leith was able to slip his hand in-between them, working his way under Paul\'s dressing gown and finding the erection still hidden inside the pajamas. He palmed the hardness beneath the cotton, enjoying the feeling of the hard heat against his hand, savoring the soft pants and moans that came from Paul.

As Leith gently caressed him through his pajamas so Paul began to lose all rational thought. It felt so good to have someone touch him like this, knowing it was of their own free will and that he wasn\'t being paid for it. His hips thrust firmly, trying to get more stimulation and he wasn\'t disappointed. Leith\'s fingers found the flap to his pajamas and slipped inside, instantly exploring the hard length. Paul moaned softly and buried his face in the crook of Leith\'s neck, panting and pushing his hips forwards, demanding more caresses.

Slender fingers worked their way around the cloth, stroking the soft skin over the steely length. Paul was uncut and Leith enjoyed the feeling of the foreskin as it slid up and down with his hand\'s movements. He squeezed a little harder on the upward tug and ran his thumb over the wet head, spreading the pre cum and aiding his hand. He knew instinctively that it wouldn\'t take much to push Paul over the edge and despite his reservations, he wanted to do this, wanted to bring Paul pleasure in release. So he began to pump faster. Completely engrossed in his actions of pleasing his boyfriend, Leith didn\'t register the tingle in his own groin or the twitch of his own cock as it began to slowly harden.

Paul\'s eyes were closed tight, his hips having found their rhythm and thrusting without his conscious thought. His mind was swimming with pleasure and only one goal was in sight. He began to moan against Leith\'s neck, soft cries and whimpers of need, requests that Leith seemed happy to try and fulfill. There was a slow thrumming building in his belly, the fire igniting and spreading quickly through his body until he knew his orgasm was imminent. \"Leith... I... I... Ahhhh...\" Paul\'s voice completely deserted him as his back arched and body drew tight. Muscles spasmed as his climax took him over the edge and into oblivion. Thick, hot seed pulsed from the head of his cock, covering Leith\'s hand, his pajamas and the inside of his dressing gown, but at that point in time Paul couldn\'t care less, he was too busy enjoying the best orgasm of his life.

As his high began to recede so Paul\'s hand slipped from its place on Leith\'s hip, landing in Leith\'s groin. Immediately Paul froze, then his eyes opened wide and his hand flexed. He looked down at Leith\'s groin. Sure enough the youth was getting hard. A smile of shock and happiness lit up his face and he quickly turned to face Leith. \"Leith, can yer feel that? Yer gettin\' a hard on.\" Paul didn\'t mean for his words to sound so crude but there really wasn\'t any other way for him to say it. Since Leith\'s accident the teen had been paralyzed from the waist downwards, which included any sexual function. While Doctor Stokes had assured them that the paralysis should only be temporary as far as the tests they had done showed, he couldn\'t confirm that fact. Now it looked as if some measure of feeling was returning to Leith\'s body.

Leith pulled his hand from inside Paul\'s pajamas and stared down at his groin. Sure enough his penis was hardening and what was even better; he could feel the sensation of Paul\'s hand against his groin. His eyes widened and a smile began to form on his face. He concentrated hard on his legs and feet, there was a small tingling in his toes but he still couldn\'t move his legs. It was enough to spark the flame of hope though and he turned to face Paul, the grin nearly covering his entire face. \"I... I\'m getting the feeling back, Paul. There\'s a tingling in my toes.\"

Paul\'s smile was almost as wide as the one on Leis fas face. \"Are yer sure? This is great, Leith.\" Paul cuddled close to his boyfriend, his hand still resting in Leith\'s lap. \"We hafta tell Sally, get her to check yer out.\"

Leith was still too much in shock to reply; instead he hugged Paul closer to him and buried his face in the mess of black hair. \"Thank you, Paul. Thanks for sticking with me.\"

Paul raised his head and stared at Leith, the green eyes of his boyfriend shimmering with unshed tears. Paul felt the catch in his own throat then captured Leith\'s lips in a warm kiss, a kiss of hope. \"Everythin\'s gonna be just fine now, Leith, yer just wait an\' see.\"

~ * ~

Howard strolled along the corridor of the Zodiac in the direction of the crew quarters, mulling things over in his head. The Zodiac hadn\'t suffered as much damage as he\'d first thought so shouldn\'t take too long to fix. The shuttle Alpha though had been a complete write off. There wasn\'t much that could be salvaged from it body wise although the circuitry might be okay in some areas. Howard sighed to himself. The two agents had been lucky to get out of that wreck alive. Then there was the problem of the Gundams. Of them all Desert Storm was still in the bay being completed, although work on it had ceased for the time being. Eagle One was still on board the mother ship, awaiting someone to pilot it back to Zodiac. Hercules... now Howard hadn\'t had a chance to look at the damage report on the suit as yet so he was unsure as to whether the suit would be salvageable or not. Grim Reaper and Puff, although they had sustained major damage in some areas were certainly fixable. That led to the next problem.

Une.

To say he wasn\'t looking forward to speaking with the Preventer Commander in that respect would be an understatement, but at least he could console himself with the thought that if he hadn\'t built the suits then most likely they wouldn\'t be here in space right now. What the Commander wanted to do about the suits, he wasn\'t sure. Personally he felt they should be kept intact and stored somewhere, just in case the occasion ever arose when they would be needed again. But on the other hand that would be in direct violation of the peace treaties between Earth and the Colonies. Howard ran a hand over his balding head. This was all becoming just too hard.

Besides the obvious dilemma about the suits there was also the other question... Why had he built them? Now that was going to be a tough one to explain and Howard wasn\'t too sure if his answers to the questions that would be asked would be enough to satisfy the Preventer organization that his intentions were purely honest, that the suits were not built for the purpose of war, quite the opposite as was proven today. They were a last ditch weapon, something to be used only when every other avenue had failed.

All Howard could hope for was that Une and the Preventer organization would believe him in his explanations and not charge him with violating the peace or any of the many other rules he was sure he must have broken. Still, he had one thing in his favor. He\'d helped to save the Earth, Colonies and the citizens so hopefully that would counteract the violation of the rule book. Deciding that all this thinking was only giving him a headache and that no amount of worrying over it would change anything, Howard shoved it to the back of his mind. He glanced up and noticed he\'d walked right past the doors of the crew bunk rooms that the agents were using. He back tracked to the first one and knocked on the door. A muffled \"Yeah?\" greeted his ears and he smiled to himself.

\"Time to rise and shine, the mother ship is nearly fixed and we need to get you guys transferred for the ride home.\"

\"Okay, Howie. Be with yer in ten.\"

\"Right. I\'ll be back on the bridge.\" Howard moved to the next door and knocked again. \"Time to get going, people.\"

\"Okay, Howard. Thanks for the wake up call.\"

Howard shook his head. The little blonde was always polite, no matter how upset or frustrated he got at times. He moved to the next door. \"Time to make a move, Wufei.\"

The door opened and Wufei stood before Howard. \"Thank you. I am ready.\"

Howard wondered if the Chinese agent had slept at all. He strode off along the corridor, heading back to the bridge with Wufei at his side.

Fifteen minutes later the five agents sat around the bridge, mugs of tea and coffee in various hands as Howard handed them each a clip board with the plotted course back to Earth. Heero studied the figures and notes, nodding in agreement at the planned course. Wufei also checked the coordinates and planned route.

\"The mother ship should be up and running any minute now. Once we have confirmation of that then we can move out. There are two small pods that will take you back to the ships; the sweepers can pilot them back. Once you have the course plans loaded into the computers and the navigation systems ready to go, then contact me and we will move out.\" Howard turned to Quatre. \"The communications on the carrier are all still functional, I will leave it to you to contact Preventer and keep them informed of our progress as well as our ETA. When you receive conformation of the destination port, please let us all know.\"

Quatre nodded. \"I\'ll be sure to keep you all updated.\"

Howard turned to face Heero and Duo. \"The mother ship isn\'t going to be as fast as the carrier or Zodiac, the damage to the engines has been fixed to a point. She will get you home but her speed has been pretty much cut in half so you two will arrive a while behind us. It shouldn\'t be a problem as by the time you make it to orbit, the carrier and Zodiac should be docked so you won\'t have to wait long to bring her in. Just nurse her along and you guys will be fine.\"

\"Okay, Howie. I think we can manage ta do that. I\'m pretty good at nursin\', or so I\'ve been told.\" Duo turned to Heero and gave his lover a wink.

Heero rolled his eyes. \"What do you want me to do about Eagle One? The suit is still on board the mother ship.\"

\"Leave it there. We can move it back to the Zodiac once we have arrived back on Earth. I have to meet with Une in regards to the suits and what\'s going to happen to them.\" Howard gave a sheepish smile but declined to elaborate any further on the other things that had been mentioned between himself and Une. By the looks on the agents faces though he knew they had already figured it out.

The com unit crackled into life and Thomas was quick to answer it.

\"Zodiac, this is the mother ship.\"

\"This is Zodiac; go ahead, mother ship.\"

\"The engines are as functional as they\'re going to be for now. Ship has power enough to make the trip back to Earth.\"

\"Roger that.\" Thomas looked at Howard.

\"We will transfer the agents to the ships now, if they are all ready.\" Howard turned to the group and received nods of acknowledgment.

\"Mother ship, this is Zodiac. Agents will be arriving on board shortly to take command. You are to return to Zodiac in the pod.\"

\"Roger that, Zodiac. Will clean up and prepare to leave. Mother ship out.\"

\"Zodiac out.\" Thomas turned to Howard again. \"Shall I contact the carrier and tell them to be on stand-by?\"

\"Yes, please.\"

Thomas turned back to the com unit and relayed the message to the carrier ship while Howard turned back to the agents. \"Does anyone have any questions?\" All five shook their heads. \"Then I suggest we go down to the pod bays and prepare to leave.\" Howard led the way out of the bridge and down into the belly of the Zodiac where the pods awaited them.

Entering the small area, so Heero and Duo headed towards the one pod while Wufei and Quatre went to the other one, Trowa holding Quatre\'s hand as they arrived at the pod door. They paused for a moment and gave each other a hug. \"You be careful, Quatre,\" Trowa murmured softly.

\"You make sure to get some rest, Trowa. You took quite a beating in the Alpha as well as Hercules.\"

\"You worry too much,\" Trowa smiled and kissed his lover.

\"And you don\'t worry enough,\" returned the blonde as he took a kiss of his own.

\"See you on Earth.\"

\"You can count on it.\" Quatre gave his lover another kiss and then stepped inside the pod to join Wufei who was going over the controls.

The hatch closed and Trowa stepped away, turning to meet with Howard and head back out of the bay so the pods could leave. Heero and Duo had climbed into the other pod, checking the control panel and preparing to leave. Once Howard and Trowa were safely out of the bay so the pressure began to change as the bay doors slid open and the black void of space met their eyes. The two pods launched out into the darkness, each heading for their respective ships and the trip home.

Wufei and Quatre docked with the carrier ship and handed the pod over to the sweepers who were happy to be going back to the Zodiac. Leaving the sweepers to pilot back, Wufei and the blonde headed for the bridge with the clip board. Once there, Quatre notified the Zodiac of their arrival while Wufei set to work on keying in the flight plan that would take them back to Earth. With the \'necessities\' out of the way, they sat back and relaxed whilst waiting for confirmation from the mother ship that Heero and Duo had arrived safely and were ready to begin their journey home.

Duo piloted the pod into the gaping cavern of the mother ship\'s cargo bay and brought it to a stop by the \'worm\'. Eagle One still stood to the side, waiting patiently for someone to pilot it again. The sweepers were ready in suits and connected the \'worm\' to the pod\'s hatchway, removing themselves from the area before alerting the two agents that they could now leave the pod with safety. Short pleasantries were exchanged and a quick briefing of the ship\'s engines status was given before the sweepers climbed into the pod and headed back to the Zodiac, leaving Heero and Duo to bring the mother ship back.

There was blood still evident in a couple of the corridors as well as in the bridge itself but both Heero and Duo ignored it, Heero punching in the plotted course while Duo contacted the Zodiac and carrier to let them know of the status.

\"Mother ship and carrier, this is Zodiac. Have you entered the flight plan?\"

\"Roger, Zodiac. Mother ship all set.\"

\"Carrier ready to begin engine fire up sequence.\"

\"Good. Begin to fire up engines and prepare to leave.\"

Heero ran the pre-flight check while Duo tapped away at the console, bringing the engines slowly to life. He was pleased to note that the sweepers had done a pretty good job on patching her up and the engines seemed okay so far. Well, no alarm bells were ringing as yet so Duo took that to be a good sign.

Quatre ran through the pre-flight check on the carrier while Wufei engaged the engine ignition sequence, the huge machine shuddering slightly as the engines fired up and then idled.

\"Carrier ready to leave.\"

\"Confirmed, Carrier. Zodiac fired and ready to go. Mother ship?\"

\"Ready ta rock and roll.\"

\"All systems go. Have a safe trip back, guys, and see you all planet side. Remember to keep in contact and alert Zodiac immediately if you have a problem.\"

\"Houston, I think we has a problem,\" Duo\'s voice snickered down the com unit followed by the sounds of a thwap and a muttered \"Ow!\"

\"Ignore that comment, Zodiac. We will see you planet side.\" The sounds of Heero and Duo arguing could still be heard over the com link and Howard smiled to himself.

\"Dunno why yer had ta whack me, Hee-chan. I\'ve always wanted ta say that line,\" whined Duo.

\"Baka!\"

Chuckling away to himself, Howard spoke again. \"If everyone is set then let\'s engage those engines and go home. Warp factor eight if you please, Mr. Barton. Zodiac out.\"

There was stunned silence along the various com lines then a snicker. \"I knew I shouldn\'t have got Howie that box set of Star Trek fer his birthday, the show\'s gone ta his head.\"

\"Well, at least it\'s better than \'To infinity and beyond!\'\" muttered Heero.

\"And what\'s wrong wiv that, I liked that movie... Buzz.\"

\"Watch it, Woody.\"

\"With pleasure,\" was the seductive reply.

The mother ship\'s com unit closed down then and the trio set forth on their journey back to Earth and their waiting loved ones.

~ * ~

tbc.......