This is Part 11 of this fic. I just bought and I am currently reading Obisidian Butterfly, Laurell K. Hamilton's next Anita Blake book, so you might see some references from that. Things are gonna get sticky... The first few lines are kinda influenced by Vision of Escaflowne...
~blah~ = thoughts, "blah" = talk
This is my first GW fic series, there is some violence, strong language and it has the yaoi pairings of Heero & Duo (Ack, they're equal partners, so I guess I would say 2x1/1x2, right?) and Quatre and Trowa (once again, I don't want to be yelled at for not saying the correct pair. Let's just say they are equal partners as well). So if you don't like male/male pairings, then don't read this, or pretend that Quatre and Duo are chicks. Okay?
It was a dream.
No, more like a vision.
Hilde was tied to a cross, her arms tied to the arms of the cross and her legs bound and broken. Heero was on a bed nearby, a woman behind him sucking his blood. The woman had fiery red hair, and when she looked up her eyes glowed an intense green, and burned with the fire of evil. She smiled, shoved her hand into Heero's chest, and pulled out his heart. It beat in her hand, pulsating ever slower. Heero's eyes were wide open with shock, and the blood flowed like a crimson river.
And I screamed myself awake.
"Aaaah!" I rolled out of bed, hitting my head on the nightstand. "Oh, crap," I groaned, and I picked myself up off the floor. I looked out the window to see the moon and the stars. My clock said it was 4:20 AM. I came home at dusk. Heero should have come back with Hilde by now.
I was about to run out of the room when I realized that I only had my boxers on. I had bandages around my wrists and one on my face where the glass had cut me. I felt a little dizzy thanks to my fall, but nonetheless better than before. Heero must have given me some of his energy to heal me.
I pulled on my priest's shirt, collar and black riding pants. Over that I put on a cloak that I got from Shinigami. It made me look cool, at least, I thought it did. And it rippled in the wind like in those old westerns. I checked myself out in the mirror. ~If looks could kill, I'd be on InterPol's top ten list,~ I thought. Of course, the cloak also protected me from minor attacks, but who cares about that?
I can't believe that I still manage to be somewhat vain in the face of danger. I rushed out to my car and hit the gas, knowing that admiring myself in the mirror probably cost me a few good moments. Oh well, I'm sure I can manage.
I pulled up to the back parking lot of Bloody Delights. I had forgotten my weaponry at home. But I don't think I'll need it. I barged into the back, and stared at all the vamps and vampire junkies. They just looked at me blankly, and then resumed their activities. I marched towards the room that I had been trapped in. The royal suite. I smashed down the door.
Inside was the exact same scene as I saw in my dream. "Let them go, now," I growled, my anger flaring. Murdida just looked at me, smirking.
"I don't think you know what position you are in," she said haughtily. She grabbed Heero's chin in her hand. "Do you see this? This is your precious little lover." Heero was awake, but not in control. Murdida's power, and the fact that he was only as half strength, was keeping him in a state of drowsiness.
Murdida put a hand over Heero's heart. "And this..." She shoved her hand into his chest, blood pouring over it.
Did I say I could manage?
I threw myself over to them, and grabbed her hand. I snapped her wrist, the sound of cracking bone creating silence in the room. A few uncomfortable seconds passed by. Murdida said nothing, and I flung her aside like a rag doll.
"You bitch! How dare you!" I screamed, but she was still in shock, and not really paying attention to what I was saying. She kept staring at her hand, as if it was a dream and she didn't believe it. I poured my energy over her, and I suddenly felt her fear. She was afraid of death, of what lay beyond this world. I felt a tinge of guilt, but I could not forgive her for what she had done. My power wound around her heart, and I felt it beat feebly in my mind. I had the power.
"For what you have done, you go to Hell."
I squeezed, and it popped like a water balloon in the grass. She started gasping. I looked into those green eyes, and I felt good. Real good. So good, that it scared me.
I flung the rest of my power into Hilde, healing her and breaking the bonds around her. She sprang up into action, and in a frenzy of hands and teeth, she ripped Murdida apart.
"Heero..." I walked over to his prone body, slouched over when Murdida had shoved her hand into his chest. I kneeled down on the bed, and pulled him into my lap, his head resting in the crook of my arm. "Come on, wake up."
All I got was silence.
"Heero, please... the dead can't die... right? Heero..."
Hilde kneeled down next to me. She was bleeding all over, but it wasn't her blood, so it was okay. [1] "It'll be okay, Duo. I'm sure he'll wake up..." She passed out, for what reasons, I don't know. I checked her pulse, and it was still there, but faint. I was guessing that she was just tired.
I heard footsteps outside of the doorway. I had kicked down the door, so people could peek in and see what was going on. I knew I needed to get out of here soon.
Dammit. Get the hell up, Heero. I started chanting.
"Rise to me now. Come to my hand..."
It wasn't working. I cut the palm of my hand with a piece of glass and shoved it into his chest wound. "Come to me, Heero. Rise to my voice, my hand, my blood. Rise and answer me. Heero Yuy, rise now and obey me!"
His eyes fluttered. His lips moved. He opened his eyes and sat straight up, then looked at me. You have no idea how happy I was. I grabbed him and held him close to me, pouring my energy into him to heal his wound. "Heero... my love, my life, I'm glad you're back..." He just nodded, and collapsed into my arms, his wound healed, his breathing steady. I carried both him and Hilde out of the building. No one questioned me. I guess it was the power I was exuding. A side effect of me getting angry.
"Nothing to see here," I said, as I walked out into the back lot, gently put Hilde and Heero into the car, and drove away. The smile on my face was brighter than the sun rising in the sky.
"Duo!!!" Quatre's voice rang out as I hopped out of the car. He hugged me tightly, glad that I was safe. "Let me help you," he said as he gently picked up Hilde from the car. Trowa was behind him, and he picked Heero and they carried them into the house. I followed behind them, but I was so tired I could barely lift up my feet. I felt myself falling...
"Tired?"
Wufei had caught me, and I looked up at him. He was a handsome guy, I'll give him that. But I usually didn't feel compassion and caring feelings from him. At least, not this openly. He never showed his caring feelings for me and the guys.
"Wufei?" I managed to squeak. Great, I squeaked twice in one week. Already I felt like a pansy.
He chuckled and picked me up and took me inside.
Hilde, Heero and I lay in a row on the floor. We were laying on some sleeping bags on a hardwood floor, and it wasn't very comfortable. Quatre, Trowa and Wufei were taking care of us, so I guess it wasn't too bad. I felt like there was a vein trying to pop out of my forehead. Trowa gave me some asprin, and I fell asleep trying to ignore the sudden ache in my heart. I think I was feeling Heero's pain. I looked over at him. He didn't look like he was breathing, but at least the bleeding had stopped.
Heero... Please get well...
I woke up to hear the radio say it was the 12th of June. I've been asleep for a week. I looked around groggily, blinking my eyes to get accustomed to the light. It probably was the middle of the day, I think. I looked over at my clock. 11:20 AM. Close enough. I threw off the covers, pulled on a shirt and trudged downstairs.
I wasn't surprised to see Hilde and Heero sipping their coffee, in perfect condition. They didn't even look hurt, or look like they felt any pain. I felt like a herd of cows ran me over. A good, strong cup of coffee will fix that.
"Feeling better?" Hilde asked. I nodded. "Heero and I healed after a couple of days of sleep. We were worried about you," she went on to say. "But at least you're awake now. Here's some coffee." She pointed to the mug sitting at my spot on the table.
I stared at it for a few minutes, then I looked at her. "How did you know I was gonna wake up?"
"I didn't. Quatre said so."
Quatre... empath, healer, and now psychic? How many powers does he have?
"Hello, Winner estates, this is Iria speaking."
"Hey, this is Duo Maxwell, a close friend of Quatre's."
"Oh, I've heard of you... what's happened?"
"Well..." I paused, not knowing what to say.
"Something didn't happen to Quatre, did it?"
"No, it's just that... well, I think you should come here and see..."
Iria, Quatre's older sister, arrived in San Francisco three hours after I had called her. She rushed over to me, and started bombarding me with questions. I just held my hand up, and we walked towards my jeep, and we drove home in silence.
"Iria! It's so nice to see you again," Quatre said warmly as he got up to hug his sister. They embraced, but Iria pulled back to look at him, with scrutinizing eyes. "What is it?" Quatre asked.
"Something's... off about you."
"Oh... well, I think have supernatural powers..."
Iria's eyes widened, and then she stood back. She closed her eyes, and a yellow glow surrounded her, and then it surrounded Quatre. "Yup, you do. I was wondering when you'd start showing your powers."
Quatre freaked. "You knew I would have powers? Why didn't you tell me?"
She shrugged. "For a while, I thought you didn't have powers... You see, only a third of our family has these powers, Quatre. Mom was half... um... I guess you could say she was half mutant."
"Mutant?"
"Think about it, Quatre. Not many people have powers like ours. Technically speaking, we're mutants; you know, genetically different than regular humans. Much like your friends." She gestured towards the rest of us. "So I can teach you a little about your powers."
"Relena's already taught him a little," I said.
She looked at me quizzically. "She has the same powers as Quatre?"
"Well, mostly. Quatre also can heal and has psychic abilities..." I trailed off, because I didn't have anything else to say, really.
The room grew silent, and then Iria walked over to Quatre and took his hand. "Come little brother, let's see what you've learned."
They left to some room in Quatre's house, probably in the back. That left me and the guys sitting around in silence. Wufei got up and left, saying something about taking care of the baby. I'm surprised he's spent so much time with us as it is.
Trowa left to roam around in the forest. Lately he's been training, making himself stronger. I guess ever since he was nearly killed by those vampires, he's wanted to become stronger, so he protect those he loves.
Hilde and Heero went to sleep, because it was 3 PM, and as you know, vampires don't like the daylight all too much.
As for me, well, since I was half-vampire, I could kinda feel the effects of the sun, but since I was also half human, the effects weren't as strong as on Heero and Hilde. I went outside, and basked in the sun. I think I fell asleep.
A shadow crossed my sunlight, and I blinked open my eyes. Wufei stood over me, staring me in the face.
"Shouldn't you be training for the battle? Hm?"
"Jesus Wufei, haven't you ever heard of R&R?"
"Yes, but it won't help now. You need to train."
"I just had a serious power leak, and you expect me to be up on my feet and prancing around?"
"You've been asleep for the past week."
"Oh. Eh heh..." I got up, feeling quite sheepish.
"Here." Wufei thrust a scythe into my face. I took it, and checked it's weight. The staff was light, so it was probably made out of some special metal. The blade was heavy, and as I looked closer, it was inlaid with something; I think it was silver, against the undead and lycanthropes.
"What's this for?"
"It's for you. Take your rightful place as the God of Death."
"Thanks, Wufei." I smiled, and he smiled back. I think we had a clear moment of perfect understanding before everything turned back to the fuzzy grey that was normality. "So, how do I use this thing?"
"I'll train you."
"Oh boy..."
After what seemed like hours, wait, it was hours, but anyway, I felt like horse crap. Wufei had beaten me on numerous occasions. I think I tripped more than that ancient president, Gerald Ford. [2]
And Wufei had just a wooden staff.
"Wu-man, why is it that you can kick my ass with a measly stick?"
"Maybe because you suck at using real weapons."
"Shut up."
He laughed, and I laughed along with him. He was right though. I did suck, and I would need to stop sucking as soon as possible.
Wufei had left after the sun went down. I watched him go, riding that souped up Kawasaki of his. I'm glad that he was willing to help and all... but for his sake, and the sake of Sally and Liu Po, I'm not letting him come along anymore. No more battles for him. I've seen the blood of friends too much as it is. I don't really want to see any more.
I walked inside, and went straight to my room. I needed some sleep. I shed my clothes and was about to plop down on my bed when I stopped. Heero was sprawled out on my bed, nothing on but his boxers. His expression was content, and he looked like he was enjoying his dream, from the small smile that he had on. I sat on the side of the bed, and brushed his hair from his eyes. He leaned towards my hand, a content little noise coming from his throat.
The wound that was in his chest had healed completely, except for a little pockmark where his heart was. I leaned over him and kissed it.
"Duo?" He looked up at me, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He looked totally different, like a little boy who has found his home.
"Hey," I said. I smiled softly as he yawned and sat up. He snuggled himself into my arms. "Duo-sama..."
I gotta teach him to just call me Duo...
The next morning, I found Quatre with Iria outside in the backyard. They were flying. I blinked a few times to make sure that I hadn't died and gone to heaven. Why did I think I had gone to heaven? Well, the fact that they had white angel wings kinda made me think that. I don't know why, but they were flying around, white feathers falling here and there. They looked like two angels out of the bible, with their blond hair and fair skin. [3]
I shook my head and walked back inside. I've seen so much supernatural phenomena recently that I wasn't really surprised anymore.
I chugged a cup of coffee and pulled out my scythe. It was state of the art. Wufei said that the doctors had the blue prints for a huge one for my Deathscythe. It was for when the thermal scythe broke or got lost in space; there would be extra ones on the belt of my gundam just in case. Wufei had gotten the plans for it and had Howard build one for me.
The scythe when it was compacted was about the size of an paper towel tube. When I pushed a button on the side, it would expand to about my height, and a blade would come out from the top. Well, usually it came out from the top. Sometimes I would hold it the wrong way. I quickly learned, for the blade had come quite close to chopping off my foot on several occasions.
Quatre and Iria walked back inside the house.
"So, are you guys going to tell me what's up?"
"What do you mean, Duo?"
"I mean, Quatre, what's up with the angel wings."
"Oh... I guess you saw us flying out there. When everyone else gets up I'll tell you."
And so the gang gathered around Quatre and Iria, gawking at their wings. Quatre smiled angelically; heh, go figure.
"Well, let me explain. Our mother was one of the last few houris [4], a race of beautiful angel-like people who had wings like ours. It is said that they were the ones who caused the destruction of Atlantis. Mother was only half-houri, but she still had a lot of power.
"Our father and mother met on earth, while my father was on a business trip. They fell in love, and went to the colonies. I was the only child that Mother gave birth to, for my 29 sisters are all test tube children. Mother wanted to give a natural birth to a son, so that Father would have an heir."
We all nodded, absorbing the information.
"We need to start planning." Wufei stepped out from behind a corner, and looked at Quatre for a moment. "A houri... I thought they were all extinct by now."
Quatre shrugged. "I'm living proof..."
Wufei nodded. "Now, we need to start thinking about getting rid of this Morbius character. He seems to be a problem..." We all nodded in agreement. Now was the time to act.
We had laid out the plans. Hilde was to lead us to him, then I would go in and fight him. Alone. I wasn't going to risk anyone else getting hurt. The others would cover me while I got in. It was going to be tough, since Hilde had told us that there were many goons that were willing to fight for Morbius. I didn't know exactly how many, but from what Hilde said, it seemed like a lot.
By the time we had planned everything, it was late into the night. Wufei left once again, and I told him to stay home this time. He smirked and said, "I'm not missing out on this. Don't worry, Sally and Liu Po will be okay."
I hoped so. I clutched my gold cross, and prayed that no one would get hurt. If anyone was going to get hurt, it was going to be Morbius for turning my world upside down. I stayed in the living room until everyone had left, and stared out the window. I wondered how Shinigami was doing. After all, he is my father, right?
"It's nice to know that you care," a familiar voice spoke.
"Well, if I didn't, it'd be pretty dishonorable of me, wouldn't it?"
Shinigami laughed, and floated down to sit next to me. "I think Wufei has influenced your thinking," he joked. Then he turned serious. "Son, I hope you know what you're doing."
"Don't worry, I know."
"You know, I never got the chance to tell you... how much..."
"Don't even say it, DAD. I know." I put emphasis on the word Dad, for I knew...
The bond between father and son goes beyond logic sometimes.
Shinigami disappeared, to whence he came. I dragged myself upstairs to my room. Hilde was using Heero's room, so Heero was going to spend his nights in mine. It wasn't like he was using his room anyways. I threw off my clothes and crawled into bed. A hand reached over and touched my boxers. "Mmm... silk," Heero mumbled in his sleep.
I smiled, and thought about how much he had changed. I mean, if you compared him to before he was a vamp, and then now... He was a totally different person. I think I like him better this way. He's a bit more open.
I drew him into my arms, and fell asleep.
It was a dream.
Maybe it was a vision.
No... I'm pretty sure it was a dream.
I was in a black room, with all sorts of weaponry on the wall. Intricately carved black double doors were in front of me. I turned around and saw a silver throne, and a man in a cloak. He stood up and flung his cloak away with a flourish, revealing his features. He looked like a young man, probably about my age, but I could feel that he was older. Much older.
"Welcome, son of Shinigami. Welcome to my humble abode." He bowed down, then looked up to meet my eyes. He had the bluest eyes I've seen, even bluer than Heero's.
"I am Morbius."
I gaped for a moment, the recollected my wits. "You... how did you get into my head?"
"I can get into anyone's head. I am more powerful than you could possibly imagine." He floated over to me, and we stood eye to eye. He tilted his head to one side, and looked me up and down. "Come with me. Forget being heir, and taste the power that I can give you."
He leaned forward and kissed me, and I felt the power flow through my body. I hungered for more, but against my body's wishes, I broke away. "No. I'll never join you."
He just started laughing and floated back to his throne. He sat down, and stared at me with those hypnotic blue eyes of his. "Oh, you WILL join me. Come to me." He lifted his hand, and I felt myself drawn to him. I took one step, then another, until I stood before him. "Kneel," he commanded, and I obeyed, kneeling at his feet. He pulled me into his lap, and I lay there, content like a puppy. "I can give you happiness, peace. Isn't that what you want? Peace..."
I closed my eyes and let him hold me like a little child...
"Duo-sama..."
Heero...
I gasped and pulled away. "Dammit! No, I can't give in to you. I have other friends, people to protect. You're going down!"
Morbius just chuckled. "Ah, but you already have given in to me. We'll see..." The throne floated away, carrying him with it. I chased after it, but it kept getting farther with each step I took.
"Bastard!"
I woke up rather calmly, instead of the screaming and cold sweat which I had become accustomed to lately. I looked over and watched Heero sleep. It was he who saved me from becoming Morbius' footstool in that dream. I leaned over and kissed him lightly on the forehead.
"Duo-sama?"
"Damn, how many times have I told you? Just Duo."
"Duo."
I sighed. Was he always going to be like this? I was already starting to miss the old Heero.
He closed his eyes and went back to sleep. I looked at the clock. 12:20 PM. I decided that getting up would be a good idea.
I went downstairs after changing, greeted Quatre and Trowa who were downstairs, and ate some of Iria's lunch. She's an okay cook... not as good as Trowa, of course.
"You ready?" Quatre asked.
"Huh? Oh yeah..." Tonight was the night where we were going to go against Morbius. Tonight was the night of destiny, where the future of this world, and Shinigami's world, was to be decided.
"But Wufei isn't coming," I stated firmly.
"Like hell I'm not coming." Wufei walked into the room, his usual outfit on. The weird pants, the tank top, and his jacket. His sword was strapped to his belt, and he had a few throwing knives too.
"Wufei," I reasoned, "if you get hurt, or killed, how am I going to explain to Sally?"
"I won't. And she understands. In fact, she got me the knives."
I gave up. Let him come. He was better at using weapons than me anyways.
The rest of the day passed in quiet contemplation. Quatre and Trowa were out on the swing, quietly enjoying each other's company. Wufei was meditating on the porch. Hilde was sleeping, and Heero... well, Heero was with me. And where was I? I was at the amusement park, riding on the ferris wheel.
"Tell me again why we're here," Heero said.
"I've never been on a ferris wheel before... never had the chance when I was young."
"Shouldn't we be training?" Ah, that's the Heero I know: always thinking about the mission.
"Aw, come on! This might be my last chance to do anything!"
"Hn."
"You're no fun."
In response, Heero pulled me into his arms for a gentle embrace. I was surprised for a moment, but then I sank into his arms and looked out the window, and watched the world go 'round.
"Dammit Maxwell, why are you always late?"
"Chill out Wufei, it's not like we're going to miss anything."
"Hmph." Wufei crossed his arms and looked the other way.
I smirked. That guy still needs to loosen up.
I looked at my friends. Quatre had on a loose long sleeved shirt and some khakis. Trowa had on some old jeans and a large white T-shirt.
"Alright, let's go. We need to go back to the warehouse on Fisherman's Wharf. I can find our way from there," Hilde said as she came out. She was wearing black pants and a black tank top. She had combat boots and she had a gun holster on both sides of her hips. She looked dressed to kill.
Wufei, Quatre and Trowa piled into Quatre's Mustang, and Heero, Hilde and I got into my Jeep. We headed out towards Fisherman's Wharf.
"Over here. Take a left." I followed Hilde's directions to a T, as we drove through a winding forest road.
When we had arrived at Fisherman's Wharf, Hilde closed her eyes and suddenly knew the way, which to me was very odd. It was also very suspicious. I didn't know if Hilde was under Morbius' control or not.
After driving for what seemed like hours, we arrived at the foot of a small hill. On top of the hill was a fortress. It looked like one of those old Spanish forts that they built here to keep an eye out for the British. I looked at Hilde, and she nodded. We had to get out of the car and climb the rest of the way. Quatre pulled up behind us, and we all got out of our respective cars.
"Well," I said a little too nervously, "the moment of truth. You guys ready?"
They all gave a nod of assent. I turned and started hiking up the hill, the others following me; my posse.
I just hoped my 'posse' could hold out against Morbius' goons, or we'd all be dead. Well and truly dead.
Back to: Part 10
[1]: I got this from the first line in Obsidian Butterfly, the newest book in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series.
[2]: I've got nothing against Ford, but he was quite clumsy, or so I've heard...
[3]: I just watched the episode of Escaflowne where Van gets the angel wings... So you might be seeing some more Escaflowne references...
[4]: Houri - one of the beautiful virgins of the Koranic paradise from the Islam religion. I just kinda tweaked with the mythology to fit my purposes...
Anyway, feel free to e-mail me your rants and raves, just don't cuss me out, okay?
Copyright reserved 2000 Top Ace