Appotropaic Apparatus
part twoRelena Peacecraft, once Queen of the World, sat restfully in her tired oak chair, wishing nothing more than to be left alone to think and let her troubled mind ease. The Board would not have it though. Meeting after eternal meeting passed on through the lazy afternoon, each discussing muddling into the next. After about the umpteenth speaker, her wheat colored hair became rather amusing and she took to winding it around her fingers. Who would have thought keeping peace would be so dull? She'd had enough excitement for one lifetime though. Let the world and outer space breath easily now while negotiations took place in these quiet little rooms, she thought. Still, she missed the heart pounding, adrenalin rush of it all. Perhaps Dorothy, Milliardo, the Gundam pilots and even the deceased general Treize had been right all alone. War was human nature. Whether one was Japanese or European, black or white, spoke Spanish or Hungarian, male or female, they all fell victim to human nature. It was rather amazing if one though about it. So many wars fought between groups of different people purely because they were different. And here, in this one ideology, their cause was diminished. People were people, regardless of all else. Amazing the things you learn when you've nothing more interesting to think about. Maybe that was how peace really worked out. You bored each other till someone came up with some interesting philosophy to bind all people. Well, mission accomplished. Mission... Relena let out a suffered sigh and let her head droop.
"Miss Peacecraft?"
Relena's head bobbed back up and her back stiffened. The room turned to look at her, all eyes focused on the ruler of Sanq. With more effort that should have been necessary, she stood and smiled with exhaustion, "I believe we have heard enough discussion for one day. You're all dismissed."
She sat back down, not caring to watch as the others departed in whispers. She was tired, emotionally as well as physically.
Two hands took hold of her shoulders and began unwinding her taunt muscles. Though initially startled, Relena relaxed, her head lolling to the front to give the massager more room and freedom to pleasure her thoughts and fears away.
"How long has it been since you had a good nights sleep?"
She paused, thinking, "How long has he been gone, James? The last night I remember sleeping well enough to dream was the nigh before he vanished." She tilted her head back, peering into the sea green eyes that lay framed behind blue tinted half glasses.
James Opi was a specialist in the fields of science and humanities and well sought for in times of peace when such knowledge had become the prime focus. Rather than work for any corporation or kingdom such a Sanq, James was rumored to be in alliance with an underground facilitation, which, in all means, was a complete mystery. Even James himself never revealed confirmation of his affiliations but did divulge the few, Relena included, with some clues. His beloved organization was known only to these sparse friends as Headquarters. The strict yet warm and welcoming blue haired man had quickly become one of Relena's prized friends.
Relena frowned. A good friend, but not 'Him'.
James sighed and moved his hands down her arms, "He's been gone for nearly a month now. It's not healthy to lay awake worrying over him." Another sigh escaped him as he rested his chin on her head, "Why didn't you tell me you were having trouble sleeping?"
"I didn't want to worry you or anyone else for that matter. I'll be all right." She forced a smile, "You and Headquarters have any new leads yet?"
He shook his head then straitened up, walking towards the door, "I'll inform you of any changes or information I come across. I've devoted all my time to this. I'll find him." He left.
The silence in the space he occupied seemed so cold now. Empty. Like the room down the hall.... Tears she'd kept hidden in the mess and confusion slid down her cheek and puddle in her lap. After fighting so long for peace, who would have thought the real battle would be the fight for love.
"No more tears oja-san."
That voice... Relena's head jerked back only to be met with the barrel of a pistol and a strong hand pushing her back into her chair, the steel hard grip pressing against her shoulder.
"Duo?!"
The violet-eyed teen smiled, an expression that touched his lips and nothing more. His eyes were dead. "That's Shinigami to you, oja-san. Your time has come."
Despite everything, Relena smiled, "I know we never got along but I never realized you hated me enough to throw away your future like this. Killing me in a busy building full of delegates and their bodyguards? Is one shot worth a lifetime in prison... or even your own death, Duo?"
"I'm not doing this because of any personal grudge, Miss Relena," he said, making the pleasantry sound like an insult, "I'm doing this for the money." He cocked his gun, the sound ringing like the song of the deathwatch cricket in the girl's ear.
"How much?" she asked.
Duo smiled again, "Fifteen thousand. That's the best deal I've made all season. You should feel honored."
Relena didn't bat a lash. "Three million dollars."
"Paying to spare your own life won't work. As tempting a sum as that, I never go back on a deal. I run, I hide, but I never lie and as far as I'm concerned, cheating falls right in there with the lying bit."
"Three million," she repeated, "To work once for me on a mission of my choosing. You can kill me when you've completed this task. That's your fifteen thousand and my three million. Any man of business could see this is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
With the gun pulled back just a tab bit, Duo leaned forward, "You mean you'll let me kill you and still pay me for doing a simple mission for you in return?" with a gratifying nod, he holstered his gun, "Now we're talking business."
Relena watched as Duo took his seat on the long, rectangle table of the meeting room. He was dressed in all black; skintight pants and vest, except for the blue-violet sleeves that extended from under the zip down top. All in all, it was a far way different from the preachers garbs she remembered from their past.
"How did you get in here, Duo? Security's supposed to be impenetrable."
He winked and smiled, this time the gesture was genuine, "Impenetrable for any ordinary thief or assassin but not this one."
"So you're a professional then?"
Duo nodded, "Long story. Keeps my stomach full and cloths on my back though."
"You mean killing innocent people in times of peace means nothing but a paycheck to you?" Relena spat, feeling rather sickened at the boy before her.
"It's not exactly like that." He twisted his long braid around his wrist, "The way I see it, I'm helping keep the peace."
"Peace can't be accomplished through dea-"
A pale fingers silenced her, "Let me finish before you switch to bitch mode, okay? Look, you keep your peace by knowing what you're doing is right, correct? It's the same with me, only my peace comes from knowing that the man at the receiving end of my gun was doing something wrong." He let his words sink in before he spoke again, "Yeah, most of our wars start with death or misunderstanding but I'm not the one killing the delegates and presidents, I'm the one you see taking care of the would be assassin."
"And what about me?" Relena asked, "What am I endangering?"
Duo shrugged his shoulders, "You could be funding a dangerous organization, or even unknowingly signing bills which isolate and punish a certain group of people. The list goes on and on when political people are the concern. I'm not the one who decides who kicks it and who doesn't. I just do the deed like a good lil' Shinigami." He glanced at Relena for s second, violet daggers baring into her blue eyes, "I never make things personal.. as much as I would like to in some cases."
Relena nodded in understanding, "So you're not just some cold blooded killer... in your mind anyway." She watched Duo wince, "You had other skills... you could have been anything..."
"Excuse me oja-san but you don't know anything about my options as far as vocation goes so just drop it. I thought you had a mission for me."
She nodded. Perhaps a subject change was in order. "I want you to find someone for me."
"That easy huh?" Duo laughed, "I love a good game of hide and seek. Who's my target?"
"This isn't a seek and destroy mission." Duo nodded and she continued, "I want you to find Heero Yuy."
Duo jumped up, standing on the table top, "What?! No way, I am not going to play that little game! No deal, no mission."
"It's not what you think!" Relena stood as well, palms laying hard against the table surface, "Heero's been kidnapped! This is a rescue mission!"
"Kidnapped? Are you sure he didn't just get tired of being your personal lap dog?" Duo winced at his own words. God, it hurt to think of the two of them together. Sure, he and Heero had been nothing but friends... but...they'd been close and... Duo cursed. Who was he fooling? He had loved the self-destructing baka and the guy had seen him as nothing but a formidable ally. What a relationship there. Romance novel material for sure. Yeah right. Whatever.
"Duo," Relena's voice was firm and commanding, "I've got copies of the criminal reports if you need them. He was kidnapped. His room was in shambles and all we found was a strange black disk in his laptop."
"Black disk?" Duo shot back to a sitting position, "Can I see it? Where is it?"
"I don't know. It was stolen from the crime scene. We haven't seen it since his disappearance."
"Were there any strange markings in the room?" Duo asked.
"Strange? Like what?"
Duo bit his bottom lip, seemingly thinking something over. He unzipped his black tank top, revealing that the blue-violet sleeves were really pieces taken from a shirt that had been cut away and tied in the front and back with string so as to only over his arms and most of his chest. He untied the string and pulled the left one off completely. Relena gasped. Twisting shades of blue wound up his arm to the elbow. They looked like horrible burns but appeared solid and unnatural. Strange indeed.
"I.. I didn't see anything like that... how.."
Duo quickly covered it back up, "I was hacking into a stolen black disk I'd recovered on a mission and the information inside caused this... I thought it was a fluke but I tried it again. This time, my pen was completely covered it this... whatever it is."
Relena nodded, spellbound, "Do you think it was the same disk? That Heero..."
"I don't know for sure but I don't think there's much of a chance that there are two suspicious black disks flying around. If the crime fits the time line then there is a possibility it's the same one." Duo interrupted, " If it wasn't kidnap and he did just leave though, I could see why. Who wants to have people see this stuff on them.."
Relena nodded. The prospect of Heero scared or damaged in the way Duo's arm was was just too... disconcerting. She wanted her Heero to be all right. "Does it hurt much?"
Duo shook his head, "Only sometimes... it's more a blemish than a pain I suppose."
Feeling sympathetic, Relena put her hand on his left arm, "It isn't as bad as you think. It's almost pretty."
"Yeah, in that swamp thing, creature from green hell kind of way.." Duo sighed, "So, Heero had the black disk... do you know who he got it from?"
"It came by mail." Relena answered, "It came the day before he vanished."
"Who sent it?"
".... It had no name. Just a city." Relena offered, calling on her memory, "It was in Manifest, England. A PO box but I don't remember the number. Heero threw the envelope away." She let her head fall to the table, "Why didn't I think to look at the disk for clues... I could have found him weeks ago."
"Weeks? How long has he been gone?"
"A month next Tuesday."
Duo straitened up, slid off the table and walked to the door, "Then I'd better get started."
"Wait!" Relena shouted, "You can't leave through the front door! Security will have you arrested looking as suspicious as you do."
Duo turned the knob and walked into the hall, glancing at her over his shoulder as he left, "No one sees a blind beggar when their pockets are full. Why should a man see Shinigami when he has so much left to live for?"