Chapter Three

"Oi! Wu-man, you sure this is the right road?"

"...."

"Man, Wufei, we're in the middle of nowhere! We shoulda taken the high road with Sally and Noin. You sure this is the spot where they said the van went over?"

"...."

"Man, I sure hope they're all right! Heero, I'm not worried about. Hehehe, hey Wufei, that's funny, ain't it? I'm not worried that Heero just took a roll off a cliff, ha ha ha!"

Wufei eyed the American pilot dubiously. Duo's laughter had a faint hysterical note to it, which just showed how worried and upset Duo was. Wufei himself was very on edge, and being in the same jeep with a slightly hysterical Duo Maxwell was not going to soothe his raw nerves anytime soon.

The call from Zeches had been...shocking, to say the least. Looking back, Wufei was very glad that Sally had taken the call, instead of him. He might be roaming the city streets right now, sword in hand, hunting down the bastards that called themselves the Red Fang. He still planned on doing that, but right now, there were more important things to consider.

The lives of two of the most important people in the world, being first and foremost.

"....hee hee, and then there was the time the baka jumped off the top floor of a building and wasn't about to open his parachute; and the time he tried to self destruct..." Duo was still going on, and Wufei rubbed at his aching temples. If he didn't shut up soon...

"Shut up, Maxwell."

"... and the time he went up against Mariannie all by himself..."

"Maxwell..."

"...so why the hell am I so worried that the baka took a nose dive down an eighty foot gorge? Heck, why am I even..."

"DUO, SHUT UP!!"

Wufei turned in his seat to yell at the noisy American, but the braided pilot's eyes suddenly went wide at something in front of them. "Wufei, look ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuutt!"

Wufei instictively hit the brakes, and the jeep slid forward on the slick forest floor, it's headlights illuminating the lean sillouhette that suddenly appeared out of the trees.

"Heero!" howled Duo, bouncing up in his seat as the vehicle rocked to a halt. He would've leaped out of the jeep, but Wufei firmly grabbed his shoulder and sat him down again. "What?! Wu-man, what's you prob--"

"LOOK at him, Maxwell."

Duo blinked and gazed back at the figure of his friend, drawing in a quiet breath as he realized Wufei's point. Heero was standing in the glare of the headlights, unblinking as he pointed a gun directly at the windsheild. His clothes were torn, especially his shirt, and the pair could see dried blood staining the fabric. The look in the hooded blue eyes spoke of nothing but death.

"Oi, he looks like he's been through hell," whispered Duo. Cautiously, he cracked open the door.

KACHING! Duo yelped and ducked as a bullet instantly careened off the door. Wufei dived under the dashboard as Heero fired another shot, splintering the glass and shattering the windsheild into a thousand fragmants.

"Heero! Knock it off already, will ya!" Duo bellowed, wincing as another bullet missed him by centimeters. "Damn it, Heero, cut it out! It's us, already! Duo and Wufei! DUO and WUFEI! Will you STOP shooting that blasted gun!"

Heero stopped. But he didn't lower his gun.

"Well, that's a start, I guess." Cautiously, Duo opened the door and stepped out. Wufei sat up very carefully and turned off the lights, leaving only the low beams on to see by.

"Oi, Heero," Duo greeted, plastering a silly, relieved grin on his face as he approached his friend. "It's good to see ya, ya know? Man, everyone is worried sick over you and Releena. Zeches is ready to break limbs. But, I suppose the perfect soldier has it all under con-- Heero!" Heero pitched forward suddenly, and Duo was quick to catch him. "Wufei!"

"Kisama," muttered the Chinese pilot as he joined them. "He's weak from loss of blood, not to mention exahaustion. Heero..." Wufei slapped his cheek to get his attention. "Where is Releena? We have to get both of you out of here. Where is she?"

"Releena." Heero stared at them, and the look in his eyes made them both shudder. It was the look of a dead thing; no life, no spark of feeling, nothing. Then the Japanese boy dropped his head, falling to his knees as Duo was unable to keep him upright.

"She's...she's dead. I killed her."

"There's the van!"

Sally Po took a deep breath as she stumbled after Lucrezia Noin, shining her flashlight to see where she was going. She had always considered herself to be in top condition, but hiking down a gully in the middle of the night was trecherous to put it mildly. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy as the other woman moved down the steep ravine with the speed and grace of a mountain goat.

All her petty emotions disappeared, however, when she saw the twisted, shapeless lump of what used to be a vehicle, lying in a mangled heap at the bottom of the gorge.

"Oh, God...no."

"Releena!" Noin was calling as she half ran, half staggered to the van. "Heero!" Sally watched her with a sense hopelessness. Nothing could've survived that. Nothing, not even a perfect soldier. With a sigh, she began walking towards the ruined heap of metal, ready to calm Noin if need be, resigned and suddenly very bitter at what she knew they would find.

'Why, God, why?' she cried to the heavens. 'They were still only children. Both of them were still so young...'

Noin had fallen away from the twisted vehicle, but the look on her face was one of confusion. "Empty," she stated in bewilderment. Sally's heart gave a leap even as her face registered disbelief, and she peered in for herself.

Noin was right. No broken, bloody corpes greeted her inspection. The van was completely deserted. There were a few splashes of blood in the front seat, but that only proved that they had been here, recently too, by her reckoning.

"Could someone have taken the bodies?" she asked Noin.

"Possibly," the leiutenant muttered. "But, knowing Heero and Releena..."

Sally Po smiled faintly. "Let's keep looking."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Duo pulled away from Heero in horror and the young Japanese pilot slumped even further, his eyes downcast, his shoulders hunched in exahastion or misery.

"Releena is dead," came that flat, hoarse monotone, turning Duo's insides to ice. "And I'm the one responsible."

While Duo was still processing this statement in shocked silence, Wufei stared at Heero, first in surprise, but then a look of utter contempt and loathing passed over his face. Without warning, he suddenly snatched Heero's gun from where it lay forgotten on the ground and pointed it directly at the Japanese boy.

"Oi! Wufei!" Duo barked, startled out of his paralysis. "What are you doing?"

"Something I should've done a long time ago," Wufei replied. His voice was low and controlled as he sighted the weapon at the figure slumped not three feet away.

"I'm going to kill this heartless bastard before he hurts anyone else."

"Wufei, don't!" Duo made a grab for the gun, but the Chinese pilot backfisted him without taking his eyes from Heero. Heero still hadn't moved, but now he raised his head and looked Wufei in the eye. Picking himself off the ground, Duo saw the look on Heero's face, and his stomach turned. There was the perfect soldier, on his knees in front of Wufei, staring down the barrel of his own gun. Duo knew from experience, that at that close range, Heero could easily snatch his gun back before Wufei even knew what was happening. But Heero didn't move, and the look in his empty blue eyes seemed to beg the Chinese boy to pull the trigger.

"Wufei!" Duo called, desperately trying to get a hold on this situation.

"Hey, come on, man! Don't do anything stupid! Think about this for a second!"

"I have thought about it. I know exactly what I'm doing," came the unrelenting reply, sounding more like Heero than Duo thought possible. Heero was silent; he had dropped his head again and was now staring at his hands. Duo was running out of ideas, and time; he could almost see Wufei's fingers tightening on the trigger. Desperately, he played his last card.

"Wufei! Shooting someone point blank in cold blood is not honorable!"

For a moment, Duo thought that Wufei would ignore him again. He could see the resolve on his chiseled face, ( Dammit, Heero, help me out here! Say SOMETHING in your defense, willya? ) and braced himself for the gunshot that would kill one of his best friends. Then Wufei turned with a growled: "Damn you, Maxwell," and hurled the gun at his head. Duo had to duck to avoid being creamed.

"Another time, then, Yuy," Wufei spat at the still unresponsive Heero. "And there WILL be another time, I promise. Justice WILL be served!"

And with that, Wufei turned and stalked into the trees.

"Heero," Duo groaned, crawling over to the motionless pilot. Oi, his jaw hurt pretty bad--there would definately be swelling there tomorrow. "Heero, you baka! Snap out of it!" He grabbed Heero's shoulders and gave him a shake. The Japanese pilot's lack of response unnerved him even more, and he slapped him across the face, hard. Heero's eyes finally snapped up to his with that familiar Omoe o korosu glare, and Duo didn't know whether to befrightened or relieved. He opted for relieved. He had never seen Heero looking so.....hopeless. Annoyed, angry, contented--he had caught glimpses of these emotions behind that impassive mask Heero always wore, but the utter deadness in his friend's eyes was truely disturbing.

"Heero, listen..."

"Maxwell!" came a shout from a nearby clump of trees. "Get over here, NOW!"

"Shimatta," Duo muttered, rising to his feet. "Stay there, Heero. Don't do anything stupid, okay?" As a precaution, he took the gun with him, thinking that it probably wasn't safe for either Heero OR Wufei to have it in their possession.

"Geez, Wu-man, what big, hairy bug crawled up your AAH!" Duo leaped forward, flinging himself down beside Wufei, who was kneeling beside a still, prone figure on the ground.

Releena.

She was almost completely white, save for the dark stains of blood that marred the perfecty smooth skin. Her eyes were closed, and Duo couldn't tell if she was breathing.

'Well, of course, baka. Heero already said she was...'

He couldn't allow himself to finish the thought. A terrible sinking feeling was beginning in his stomach, as he watched Wufei lift the slender wrist between thumb and forefinger. After a short pause, Wufei sighed and laid her hand on the still chest with the grimmest expression Duo had ever seen.

"Wu? Is...is she...?" Wufei looked at him and shook his head. There was no hope in the slanted black eyes.

"GOD!" Duo slammed both fists into the ground. This couldn't be happening! The war was supposed to be over! No more having to kill! No more innocent deaths! And Releena Peacecraft was the one who would lead them into this era of peace. Duo couldn't believe he would be having to fight yet again. He'd had enough violence and bloodshed to last him two lifetimes. He had been looking forward to a peaceful future with Hilde, one where he could go out and not worry if he would come back alive.

But with Releena's death, war would start again. And his skills as a Gundam pilot would once more be in demand.

He sighed miserably and hung his head. It seemed that God would never let him live a normal life. It seemed he didn't deserve it, none of them did. They had too much blood on their hands.

"We should call Noin and let her know," he murmured, as Wufei started to pick up the body. "Zeches too, although I want to be far, far away when he gets the news." His pathetic attempt at humor only made him feel more wretched. Fleetingly, he thought of the gun in his belt. It would be easy enough to wait for Wufei to leave, then turn it on himself. But Duo had been taught that suicide was the most selfish act a person could commit. HIS pain would be over quickly, but what of the others he'd be leaving behind?

"Hilde," he whispered, and felt ashamed of his earlier thought. 'SHE would never just give up like that. I swear, we'll get through this somehow. I won't let them beat me. I won't let them take me away from you, I promise.'

"DUO!"

"Oi, now what?!" he snapped at Wufei, pain and misery making him unusually snappish. "I'm getting sick and tired of you yelling at me, man!"

Wufei ignored the outburst. He had set Releena down again, and was staring at her intently. "Come here a minute."

Duo sneered. "Sure thing, your majesty." Hell, he really must be upset. Well, if he was going to be an asshole, he might as well make it grand. That was his style, after all. "And would his majesty like some tea as well? What else can I fetch him? Newspaper? Slippers? How about a crowbar to pry his head from his ass?"

"Will you shut up and get over here?! I thought I saw her lips move."

Duo's belligerence fell away instantly, and he again dropped to his knees beside the other pilot.

Releena looked as lifeless as ever, her lovely face pale and still in the moonlight. Daringly, Duo bent his face very close, his ear almost touching her lips, while he pressed two fingers to the base of her throat.

And he waited.

Hours passed, or so it seemed. Duo didn't move, waiting to feel something--the faintest beat of a heart, the tiniest breath of air against his cheek.

'Please,' he begged, casting his thoughts to the heavens, toward the God he had always believed in. 'God, if you can hear me...I know you want this war to end as much as I do, right? And, the only way to do that right now is to keep Releena Peacecraft alive. So, come on, I know she'd make a perfect angel and all, but we really need her down here at the moment. Couldn't we borrow her for a little longer, please?'

Silence was his answer, and Duo closed his eyes. 'Guess that's a no...if he even heard me at all...'

And then, there was the faintest beat of life under his fingertips. Duo's violet eyes flew wide open. Thinking he had made a mistake, holding his breath until his head swam, he waited to feel that thin pulse, to make sure that his desperate imagination wasn't playing tricks on him.

And Releena sighed into his ear.

Duo let out the breath he'd been holding, and with it, the acute misery that had been plaguing him ever since he'd heard the news of the assassination.

'Thank you, God.'

Sitting up, he turned to Wufei, who, by the resigned look on his face, had already assumed that Duo had found nothing.

"Wu-man, I'm sorry."

Wufei nodded and tried getting to his feet.

"SHE"S ALIVE!" howled Duo, and pounced on the startled Chinese in a feirce bear hug, driving them both to the ground. Wufei choked and sputtered at the indignity, but Duo didn't even notice. Alive, she was alive! Everything was going to be fine.

"Maxwell, get off me!" The exasperated Chinese pilot raised a fist and punched him in the ribs, shoving him off with a grunt. "Idiot! If she is still alive, she won't be for long in that condition! We have to get her to a hospital immedietly!"

"Don't worry, Wu," Duo gasped, a little breathless from his discovery and having a fist in his gut. "She'll make it. Me and the Man upstairs sorta worked out a deal. She ain't gonna die; not tonight."

"Idiot," muttered the other, not convinced. "I think the stress had gone to your brain."

He bent down and pressed two fingers to her pulse, wanting to see for himself, and his black eyes grew wide.

Duo grinned at his expression, then remembered something.

"Heero! Man, he still thinks she's dead!" Leaping to his feet, cursing himself for not watching the unstable Japanese a little closer, Duo bolted out of the trees to where he'd left Heero a few minutes ago.

Not surprizingly, Heero was gone, but then Duo whirled around at the sudden roar of the jeep. "Heero!" he yelled as the vehicle spun it's tires, spraying him with dirt, and sped away into the night. Duo could only watch helplessly as the red taillights got smaller and smaller, until the jeep turned a corner and the darkness swallowed it up.

He quickly jogged back to where Wufei was yelling into some sort of walkie talkie.

"Yes, I said we found Releena Peacecraft! And yes, I need an airlift out here right away! Good god, Woman, how did you ever make it to the rank of lieutenant? Oh? Well, I accept! I usually don't spar with weaklings, but if only to put you in your place...WHAT?! How dare you?! You have no sense of priority....well, same to you! Women!" he snorted, shoving the walkie talkie into his pocket. He then noticed Duo grinning at him and scowled. "Not a word out of you, Maxwell."

Duo gave him his best "Who, me?" look, but quickly sobered. "Heero's gone," he stated unhappily. "He took the jeep."

Wufei muttered something Duo didn't catch, but it included the words: "dishonorable," "justice," and "sword." "It doesn't matter," he finally said, though there was still a self righteous gleam in his eyes that Duo didn't like. "An airlift is on it's way. We'll catch a ride with them."

Duo nodded, sitting crosslegged on the ground beside Releena. Just to reassure himself, he felt her pulse again, and was rewarded with the faint, yet steady beat. She was a fighter, all right. He smiled at her, but it turned a little sad as he thought of Heero.

He sincerely hoped his moody best friend wouldn't do anything stupid like, say, self destruct again. If Duo knew the sullen Japanese boy, he knew that Heero blamed himself for this accident, and would hold himself responsible. He shook his head. Heero was so bent on being perfect; he couldn't accept the fact that he was human and bound to make mistakes once in a while.

'He looked so lost tonight.' Duo shivered as he remebered the look in Heero's eyes. 'Heero, don't do anything you--' He spared a glance at Releena. 'You'll BOTH regret. She's alive, Heero. But if she finds out you went and killed yourself over this, then we might lose this angel a little sooner than we need to.' He sighed at the thought and buried his face in his knees.

'God, you helped us out before, but look after that baka if you could.' He peeked another glimpse of Releena and closed his eyes. 'We need them both.'