"Can I cry uncle and be sent back to headquarters, sirs?" Carmichael groaned as he held a boot outside their shelter and poured water and mud out of it.
"Being sent would imply that we had control over our departure," Heero growled back as he tried to find a position that didn't hurt his joints. "We don't."
Everyone stared in shock and Duo sighed, "Good one, Yuy," he retorted. "Don't listen to him," Duo reassured them. "We have a beacon for emergency evac."
Heero glared at the half truth. Evac from a position like their's would be nearly impossible. Duo stared back steadily until Heero lowered his eyes and declined to argue the facts.
Heero grunted and shifted against his pack yet again. Duo sat next to him, the others making room for him. He leaned in close and whispered, "Take your damned pills."
Heero pretended that he hadn't said anything. He wasn't about to take an unfair advantage. Their trainees might lose confidence. He intended to stay wet with them, march in the rain and heat of the jungle, and arrive at their base camp with a successful training mission.
"Stubborn bastard," Duo muttered and used Heero's side as a backrest. He was as drenched as the rest of them, ragged bangs and long braid a sopping mess and his clothes sticking to him like a second skin. Heero could feel the tremble of overworked muscles.
"Nice cold rations all around," Tumik announced as he pulled them from a pack and started tossing them to the dispirited group.
"Eat, get your feet dry, and make sure the bug net is secure," Duo ordered as the sound of popping containers managed to drown out the steadily pouring rain. "Polente, you have first watch."
"Fuck!" she swore and got up.
"That's fuck, sir," Duo corrected.
She saluted with a disrespectful flair. After hurriedly eating her meal, she tossed the empty container into their makeshift garbage and went out into the rain.
"Carmicheal, you have second watch," Duo announced. "Maybe it will toughen you up some more. Rajmalley, you have third."
"I'll take fourth," Heero announced.
Duo didn't argue. It was a good indicator of how badly he was feeling.
"Make sure you at least get enough fluids," Duo said as he handed Heero his water canteen.
Heero couldn't disagree with that and he drank deep appreciatively. When he lowered it again and capped it, he ordered, "Get our position and route for tomorrow planned, Porter."
Porter had a 12x12 inch plastic map. He shifted and enlarged the map of the jungle by running a finger over it. He made notes on another computer and Heero was pleased to see that he was checking his work for accuracy.
Heero suddenly felt very weary. His head nodded and he jerked back to alertness with an effort.
"Get some sleep," Duo told him. He hadn't turned and Heero wondered, for a brief second, how the man could have known that he was falling asleep. Suspicion bloomed, but it was already too late.
The trainees were speaking in low, miserable tones and that speech melded together into nonsense as Heero slipped into unconsciousness.
When he climbed slowly back into the land of the living, Heero was aware of a soft bed under him and an IV hurting his left arm. He blinked open eyes and saw the concerned face of Milliardo Peacecraft looking down at him.
"Where are they?" Milliardo demanded. "I want their mission plan."
So, not concerned about him, Heero thought sourly, but concerned where their best agent had disappeared to.
Heero tried to think clearly. He felt leaden and his tongue had a after taste on it that helped him identify the drugs that Duo had used to incapacitate him. Serious shit, Heero concluded, and wondered if the man he loved had worried about overdosing him and putting him to sleep permanently. No, he corrected himself, Duo would ask about dosing from an expert. He wouldn't take any chances, even if it was an enemy and not Heero Yuy, his lover.
"Time and date?" Heero asked with a tongue that struggled to form words.
Milliardo told him and Heero's anger went up a notch. Two days had passed since their camp. Heero was certain that the trainees were now safe at a base camp and that a beacon would soon alert Preventers that they needed evac.
As for Duo, Heero knew that he wouldn't wander aimlessly in the jungle. He would have a plan, a plan that would put him safely out of reach of his pursuers.
"Unknown," Heero finally replied to Milliardo's question. He reached and pulled out the IV. Milliardo didn't stop him. He simply stepped back as Heero forced his body to sit up. he swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat there, trying to stop his whirling senses from taking him under again.
"We had to drop men into the jungle to evac you," Milliardo explained, as if he could cause some rift between Heero and Duo that would gain him the information that he needed. "You're lucky the insects and the local wildlife didn't eat you before we arrived."
Heero had been convinced that evac had been nearly impossible from their location. It told Heero how desperate Une and Preventers had been to recover Duo.
"He'll set off the beacon for the trainees and ditch them," Heero explained. "If he hasn't already."
"We received the signal an hour ago," Milliardo informed him. "A jump ship is in route."
Heero growled, "I want my clothes."
Milliardo had them ready, a flight jump suit and a pair of sturdy boots. It was hard for Heero to get them on without the dizziness making him pass out, but he managed it. Milliardo simply watched him, arms crossed, and impatient clear on his face.
"You think I'm going to give away his position and help you capture him?" Heero guessed.
"No," Milliardo replied. "I expect you to steal another jumpship, a pilot, and find Duo Maxwell." He paused and then asked with contempt, "Or are you getting too old for action? Is that why Duo left you behind?"
That stung and was too close to the truth of Heero's thoughts. Why would Duo leave him behind unless he was that anxious that Heero wouldn't be able to physically keep up?
"I'm being charged?" Heero asked.
"Yes, but you have to be present to be arrested," Milliardo replied. "I haven't officially taken you prisoner, yet. You're listed here as a John Doe."
"Your motivation?" Heero demanded as he took a gun and a palm computer from Milliardo and slipped them into the seep pockets of the flight suit.
Milliardo only shrugged. It was a waste of breath to tell Heero anything. The man had definite credibility issues. Heero couldn't trust him.
Heero glared. Don't come between me and Duo Maxwell, Heero's glare warned. Don't harm the man I love. Don't try to manipulate me into harming him. You will regret it.
Milliardo nodded, once, and Heero turned and made his slow way out of the hospital room. It was time to find Duo, to prove to the man that he wasn't excess baggage to be left behind.
_______________________________________________________
He was owed many favors and collecting on them hadn't been a problem. The jump ship of a former rebel comrade, though, had turned out to be pasted together by paperclips and rubber bands. It shook, made engine noises that were off the scale of normal, and threatened to lock in the dive position more than once. The man had kept the bird as a 'hobby', but had found little time to work on it. It was disconcerting to hear the man go on about older children, college costs, and a daughter who had gotten in the family way accidentally. Heero remembered a rebel as fresh faced as Quatre and seemingly as young. Now he seemed older than his years, face creased by worries.
I'm never going to have that kind of life, Heero thought, and wasn't certain how to feel about that. He had never expected to live past his teenage years, he was gay, and his body had decided that it was three times older than his years. He didn't want to give up the life of adrenaline rushes and saving the day. He didn't want to give up a lover who was damaged goods, who would probably never overcome what had happened to him recently or in the past. There would never be little Heero Yuy's, college funds, or daughter's accidentally getting in the family way. They weren't THOSE kind of people who could have that. They were not parent material or the kind of people to have a quiet home and a day to day job. Their new home would always be a stopping place only; a bit of quiet where they could put their combat boots by the door for a little while, but not forever.
"Do I get to know why you want to be dropped in the middle of a jungle?" The man was called Killjoy, but his real name was Frank Fernandez. Heero had never asked why people had given him the nickname, but after two hours of talk about his mortgage, bills, and an incontinent beagle, he was beginning to have his theories. During the war, he had saved this man's life by pulling him out from under his collapsed mobile suit, at great risk to himself, and that had warranted the payback in the form of the trip;no questions asked. His glare reminded Killjoy of the terms and the man sighed and went back to babying his controls.
He still didn't feel a hundred percent. Sitting in his seat behind the pilot chair, Heero had tried to relax, had tried to ignore the man's chatter and snatch some sleep. The constant danger of the jump ship killing them both had kept him from it, though. He was exhausted, still battling the drug in his system, and aching in every joint. He was dreading the jump from the ship. His knees felt swollen and useless. His hands were having trouble checking his equipment. They locked and ached in the joints like badly oiled hinges.
Fleetingly, Heero considered that Duo might have been absolutely correct in leaving him behind. It was embarrassing to have to dry swallow some of his pills, to admit that he couldn't handle the pain and that he had to acknowledge that his body might try to fail him at a critical moment. He was still better than most men, Heero reminded himself, and still much stronger than most, Duo included. Of course he could help Duo. It was Duo's concern for him, not his doubt in Heero's abilities that had made Duo leave him behind.
"Jump time," Killjoy announced. "Good luck, Yuy."
A name that wasn't his, Heero thought sourly as he moved to the jump hatch. He had lived by a string of aliases. His only two father figures had probably faked their names as well. Junior Lowe was just as false as Heero Yuy. Duo suffered from the same problem. Their birth names were lost to a war and neither of them had bothered with DNA matching. He supposed that even Duo had doubted that their parents lived or that happy reunions were likely. A child didn't end up on the street because there were loving relatives waiting in the wings. Heero supposed that his name was as good as any other. When Duo cried out his name in passion, or growled it in that sexy loving voice of his, he made it Heero's, made it mean something other than a collection of letters. he wanted to hear Duo say it again. He wanted to find his lover and make Duo mean something for him as well.
Base camp was to be avoided. It was possible that Une had left agents waiting after the trainees had been picked up. She would suspect that he might try this very stunt. Picking a more remote location for the drop meant added dangers, though. Heero hated relying on someone else's piloting skill, but Killjoy had been rated highly, as he recalled, and he was proving it by easing the ship between trees and avoiding vines and jungle debris to get as close to the ground as possible.
That wasn't close enough for Heero's tastes, but he couldn't fault the man for choosing a hovering point when he did. Any closer and their odds of surviving became slim to none.
Heero hit the release button and the jump light began to flash, warning of an unsafe distance to the ground. Heero chose his spot, balanced carefully on the balls of his feet as the winds from the motors blasted into him, and then simply dropped down.
A rope would have been far too dangerous. There was no auto-wind on the ship. It would dangle on take off and endanger the ship and the pilot far too much on take off.
Heero hit the ground and rolled to break his momentum and ease the force of the jump. He felt jungle debris jam into flesh and break under his weight. Something hit his head painfully. The blast of the ship taking off immediately was planned and he was ready for it. Quick in and out would lessen the chance of detection.
Heero managed to get to his feet and stumbled into the thicker jungle. He had a plan and it was based on his knowledge of Duo. Duo hated nature. A colony orphan, he had grown up in the sterile debris of a burned out station. A jungle full of insects, wildlife, and wall to wall vegetation, let alone the unpredictable weather of earth were things that Duo would hurry to separate himself from. He would lay low until Une tired of spending money on search missions and then easily avoid any surveillance drones she might leave behind.
The beach, Heero had guessed, where clean winds and an end to the jungle would appeal to his lover. Once there, he would play cat and mouse for however long it took to find a ship off planet. Once there, Une would find it impossible to find him. A man who had intimate knowledge of all things mechanical and who could break the best encryption codes wouldn't have any problem blowing through security checkpoints and making up a new identity.
Would he go that far, though? Duo had a strong sense of selfless sacrifice, Heero knew. Would he risk triggering an episode where civilians might be involved? Heero could imagine Duo taking ship off planet and finding a hidden orbit;alone and ready to stay that way to keep everyone safe. He had to find Duo before he left Earth, Heero thought worriedly. Once out bound, the vastness of space would make it almost impossible to find a man who didn't want to be found.
-------------------------------------------------
Heero had expected to take weeks combing the shoreline and investigating every nook and cranny where an ex gundam pilot might make a home. He was almost certain that Milliardo and Une would mounting their own search, griding off the jungle and the beach and sending men into each area in a methodical manner. The last thing any of them had expected was for Duo to make a clear straight line through the jungle to the nearest beach.
erratic, careless, and obviously panicked, Duo had crashed through undergrowth, leaving broken plants, footprints, bits of clothing and gear, and strands of hair everywhere. It said a lot for his state of mind and Heero found himself caressing his gun more than once, worried about how Duo would greet him when he finally did catch up to him.
The trees turned into palms and scrub. A salt marsh appeared to Heero's right, mangroves and salt grass thick enough to hide anyone and make the place a maze. The ground was both sandy and full of broken coral and shells. A few dead fish, in varying stages of decay, so far inland could only mean that storms were not infrequent there.
Heero was limping badly, knee joints hating him. The worst was popping in the kneecap, sending jabbing pains up his leg. The rains had stopped for now, but he still felt damp and chilled even in the sun that was now beating down on him with a vegeance.His fingers felt useless, swollen nubs of ache that went bone deep. They didn't want to close on the straps of his pack when he tried to shift it and one thumb felt as if he had tried to twist it off along with the cap to his canteen.
The land dipped suddenly and Heero heard ocean waves crashing on a shore. Ground shells and coral turned into sand and Heero found a way between dunes covered in sea oats to get to the beach.
The water was turquoise, the waves frothy and white as they hit a beach that looked like an ancient volcano had breathed its last there. Black sand mingled with the white and made a long ribbon that stretched for miles on either side before disappearing behind a curve of the land.
A lone tent was pitched on the sands just above the waterline as if in defiance of the tides and the weather. Preventer issue. Footprints were all around it, but, when Heero leaned to cautiously look inside after announcing his presence, he found it empty.
Squinting against the sun, Heero slowly looked around and began to formulate a search plan.
"Just in time for lunch," Duo said from behind him. He grinned as Heero whirled and almost put a gun in his face. He slowly lifted a string cleaned fish and waggled it at Heero. "I know you like fish."
"I do," Heero said after a long moment of hesitation and he slowly lowered the gun. "Explain."
Duo tied the fish onto a stick in the sand and they hung there. Seagulls drifted close in interest. Heero didn't miss the flinch when the birds made their signature calls.
"Only you could manage to express anger, disappointment, sadness, abandonment, and curiosity all in one word," Duo said as he dug in his tent for cooking tools. He waved with them, grabbed the fish again, and proceeded into the dunes.
"That is an evasion," Heero replied as he gritted his teeth and forced feet through the deeper sand.
There was a cook fire with crude metal skewers. Duo started the fire with a lighter and then teased it into flames with bits of dried see weed."Makes it taste better," he explained absently as he skewered the fish and placed them over the flame.
"Duo..." Heero crouched on the other side of the fire, winced, and then sat down heavily with his legs stretched out before him. They had finally signaled that they were through supporting his weight.
Duo forgot about the fish and came to Heero's side of the fire. Sitting down next to him, he observed, "You look like shit."
Duo's eyes were smudged with shadows and he had a tension about him that spoke of many sleepless nights and constant stress.
"So do you," Heero replied. "What happened?"
"I needed to remember," Duo replied quietly as he settled against Heero's side and leaned into him. Heero slid an arm around his waist and held tightly. "I didn't want anyone around to see me... fall apart... not even you."
Heero nodded, understanding.
"I didn't want to hurt anyone either," Duo continued.
"So you always planned to be recovered?" Heero wondered.
Duo nodded. "I was confident that I could regain my marbles after I remembered... and I did. I knew you would find me first. I just didn't expect that you would slog through the jungle instead of using a ship to get here."
"I anticipated spending days searching the area," Heero replied. "The last thing I expected was to find you on the beach and ready for pickup."
"Let's just call it a short vacation," Duo chuckled.
"There are charges filed against you," Heero retorted. "You may have ruined your career."
"I didn't endanger anyone," Duo shot back. "I made sure our trainees were safe."
"You drugged a Preventer officer and abandoned your command," Heero pointed out.
Duo sighed and replied plaintively. "You don't think Une will forgive me?"
Heero frowned and tried to get a grip on his anger. "I don't know," he replied truthfully. "My intention was to find you and join you, not return and place ourselves on trial."
Duo looked into his eyes and smiled. "You love me that much... to give up your career?"
Heero nodded as he rubbed at his kneecaps. Duo shifted position and took over for him. Facing him on the sand he took Heero's leg and began kneading muscles and joints with strong fingers. Heero leaned back on his hands and sighed with pleasure, though he wasn't going to be distracted by it.
"Tell me what you remember," Heero asked. "I need to know."
Duo's eyes went to the fire to check their food, his head turned away at what looked like a painful angle. His hands didn't stop kneading though. Finally, he looked back at Heero with haunted eyes, swallowed hard, and then stared very hard at what his hands were doing. His fingers trembled when they weren't putting pressure on sore muscles.
"It was the birds," he began and then stopped and swallowed again.
Heero listened to the jungle birds in the distance and the lonely cry of the seagulls. He didn't understand. He waited patiently for Duo to explain.
"They sounded like little kids... crying." Duo wiped a shaking hand over his face, one hand still on Heero's knee. He hid his eyes as if shading them from the sun and took a deep breath. "I lost it for a little while... came back to myself walking up and down the beach aimlessly with my gear scattered everywhere. I had my gun in my hand." he paused, frowned, and then lowered his hand to look at Heero with pained eyes. "I had fired a few rounds."
Heero tensed. It was what Duo had feared the most;losing control completely. "Duo, tell me what you remembered."
"They strung me up... naked... and..." Duo tried to find the right words. "They attached wires... watched my reactions... every muscle, every nerve... every brain cell... They took samples of every part of me... blood, semen, sweat, and strips of skin... just sliced them off and used the wounds for other things... They kept saying they didn't want me to talk... didn't want me to do anything for them... they just kept telling me they were killing kids... one at a time... I counted... twenty two... heard them scream... heard torture... they showed me things... proof, they said... I wanted to kill them!"
Heero went very grim, trying to control his reaction, trying to control the urge to find those men and accomplish what Duo had been unable to:kill them all. "I think," he said carefully, "That they were measuring your adrenaline levels, your heart rate under stress, your reaction times..."
Duo nodded shakily and then he was suddenly in Heero's arms. His weight sent Heero onto his back. Duo's hard, wiry body was a heavy weight on already stressed joints, but Heero didn't care. He wrapped arms around Duo and held him close.
"There weren't any kids there," Duo breathed against Heero's collarbone. "Too much trouble. They wanted quick results and a quick exit. Babysitting wasn't their style."
"I think you're right," Heero replied and hoped that Duo was right, for his sake.
"Une didn't give me enough credit," Duo mumbled. "I can handle this. I'm a tough shit. I've already been through a hell of a lot. This is just... one more thing to throttle down and get over. No problem."
Heero thought of Duo wandering the beach firing his gun and had doubts. "You'll still need to see a doctor," he insisted.
Duo nodded. He was quiet for a long moment and then he said, "Sorry, for drugging you. That was rotten."
"I understand," Heero replied. "I'm not physically capable of carrying out these types of missions any longer. You made the right call. I'll inform Une that I should remain at headquarters as an instructor only."
"Hey!" Duo exclaimed, though he sounded hoarse and he didn't raise his head to look at Heero. He clutched at Heero tighter though, fingers digging in. "That's not why I left you behind! I didn't want you... I didn't want you to see me get my shit together. I knew I couldn't shake you off with less than enough medication to drop an elephant."
Heero felt every ache, every throb of a joint in his body. He said bitterly,"Whatever your reasons, I have come to the realization that I can't lead these types of operations any longer. I don't want to walk back through that jungle. I want someone to pick us up here."
Duo knew how hard it was for Heero to admit that. He sighed and replied, "I think I need pick up as well... and a hot bath... and a comfortable bed. We've both gotten old before our time, Heero. I need to admit it too."
They were both physically and emotionally exhausted. Nothing was really resolved, Heero thought as they lay in the sand together until their dinner was cooked and then sat in miserable silence while they ate. He wasn't certain why they decided to spend the night, but neither of them made a move to contact Preventers for pick up.
----------------------------------------------
The surf was warm. Heero floated, letting the roll of small waves bob him up and down while he closed his eyes and rested. The seagulls swooped low to investigate, floating by and eying him as a potential meal. The sun was hot on his skin, but he was enjoying himself. He couldn't recall the last time he had pushed the world away and just lived in his own head, peacefully and without duty forefront in his thoughts.
It was easy to understand why. He might ask Commander Une for a position that was more to his reduced abilities, but it wasn't required that she give him one. She might forcefully retire him, like an outdated mobile suit, and leave him to rust without a backward look. His lazy day floating in the surf, might be the first of many.
Duo was respecting his space, allowing Heero his peace while he hunted for their next meal. That morning he had built a fish trap with some stones. He had stacked them in the water in a v formation with the point facing towards the ocean. When high tide receded, fish would be caught inside the inner v. He had gathered bamboo shoots, palm fruits, and was now gathering items from both their packs to make a drip that would gather water for them. Since the rains, that wasn't a problem, but Duo wanted to be ready in case it became one.
That begged a question that Heero was trying to ignore. They were both acting as if they didn't intend to leave that place anytime soon. Though Heero had watched Duo's preparations without helping him, he hadn't spoken against them either. The need to call Preventers and tell them their location as per their duty, wasn't a priority.
"Let's build a home here," Heero said aloud.
"Is that legal?" Duo swam up alongside him, long braid floating behind him like a wet, brown snake.
Duo had tried to be quiet, but it was as if Heero could sense him by means that had nothing to do with logic. With his 'Space Heart', he thought sourly, not liking the idea of mysticism, but not sure what small sound over surf, birds, and a light breeze, had allowed him to know that Duo was approaching. Duo had been as quiet as a seal slipping effortlessly through the water.
"If someone owns it, would we have been allowed to hold a training maneuver here?" Heero asked.
"Beaches are notoriously prime real estate," Duo chuckled. "I'm sure there's a resort down the coast who might not like us 'slumming' on their pristine sands."
That was an answer in of itself, Heero thought. Duo might enjoy the sun and surf, but not permanently. Heero asked tentatively, eyes closed against the glare of the sun,"Where do you want to live?"
"Houses don't mean much to me," Duo replied. "The people in them do. I live where you live... even if you want to stay here on the beach."
Heero rolled until he was bobbing upright in the water facing Duo. Duo's bangs were plastered to his forehead, his unusually wide purple eyes looking back at Heero seriously.
"You're getting a sunburn," Duo told him as if it were part of the conversation.
Heero nodded and they slowly swam back to shore. They walked, naked, until they were in the shade of a few palms leaning out from the jungle. They sat in the sand side by side. Clothes seemed foolish, just then, and they both needed to dry.
Heero saved Duo's braid from the sand, draping the dripping wet rope of hair over Duo's shoulder. Duo smiled a little, but seemed pensive. He finally said, "Heero, do you really think we won't have a job waiting for us when we return? Or is it that you don't want one?"
"I'm tired," Heero replied. "Maybe I just need a vacation?"
Duo rolled eyes at him, but he was grinning. "What do you think this is?"
"It won't last long," Heero reminded him. "Commander Une will find us."
"I called her while you were swimming," Duo admitted. "I told her everything was alright, gave her the information that she wanted, and then told her to back off. I told her I would do therapy sessions and sit for court martial proceedings when we returned."
"Preventers isn't the military," Heero began to argue, but then sighed and hung his head a little. He stared at the sand between his knees, noting a few strays shells, a bit of palm frond, and small tracks that might have been from a crab.It suddenly made him uncomfortable with his naked state.
Heero stood up with embarrassing difficulty. The swim had tired his muscles and his joints.
Duo looked up at him, water glistening on his tanned skin. "Did I do the wrong thing? Are you pissed at me? You seem to be enjoying yourself. I wanted that to last."
"We discuss decisions like that one," Heero replied as he brushed sand off of him.
"Are you pissed?" Duo asked again.
"No," Heero replied as he looked down at Duo. Duo's skin grafts were lighter than the rest of his tanned skin. It made Heero think of their long lives of sacrifice and how much Duo had suffered.
"Heero?" Duo said in a tone that was both frustrated and anxious.
"We discuss decisions," Heero repeated and asked,"I would enjoy a few more days here, but the reality is that we both want to eventually return home. The question then becomes, what decisions will we make once we do return?"
"I never make long term goals," Duo replied. "We'll enjoy ourselves here and then see what shit hits the fan when we get back. Staying in Preventers might not be our decision, or, if it is, then they may make it impossible for us to remain with the organization. They may not want two desk jockey ex-pilots."
"I don't like-," Heero began but Duo stood, cutting him off. He grabbed Heero by the chin and looked into his eyes as if staring him down.
"Too many variables," Duo told him firmly. "Does that make more sense to you? We can't decide when the decision is based on a fluid situation and a lack of information."
Heero tried to nod, but Duo was holding him too firmly, almost bruising his skin.
"I need the rest, too," Duo told him. "Don't think. Don't plan. Just enjoy."
Heero replied, "Acceptable."
Duo released him, caressed Hero's chin as if in apology and then walked awkwardly through the sand to reach the tent and their clothes. "First order of business!" he called back, "Is a better shelter. I'm going to cut some supports. I'll start building where those rocks make a windbreak and are high enough to keep us out of a storm surge." He waved vaguely toward the jungle.
"I'll help," Heero said as he followed Duo, but Duo waved him off.
"You can help when I start setting the supports. Stay here and relax. Keep an eye on the tide. I want to make sure to be there when the fish trap starts doing its magic."
"Duo!" Heero caught up to him as he pulled out a machete and eyed the edge. Duo blinked at him over that razor edge as Heero demanded,"Stop acting like nothing happened to you!"
Duo frowned and lowered the blade. "I'm not the kind of guy that gets into the drama and the handwringing, Heero. You know that. I have my meltdown, hit the ground on both feet, and keep on running. Yeah, I'm tired, and a bit twitchy, but just having you here grounds me. I'm okay."
Heero tried to read Duo, tried to see if that statement was true. Duo was too good at shouldering burdens, though. There wasn't a chink in his armor. He wasn't going to allow Heero to see him weak now, or any time soon, he suspected.
Heero leaned in and whispered, "I don't want to lose you. This is for life."
Duo pulled him in for a sloppy kiss that was an attempt at humor. He said, "I love you too, Heero, which is why I intend to keep it together and have your back... for life."
They stood back from one another. Duo smiled and Heero suddenly smiled as well. Duo took that as an end to the argument. He saluted Heero with the machete and started off towards the jungle.
Heero sighed as he put on his own clothes. Maybe he couldn't trust Duo not to cover up his problems, but, as Duo said, he could have Duo's back if his problems returned. They were partners and they would defend each other, even against the sharp claws of bad memories.
________________________________________
Their trainees came out of the jungle looking irritated, filthy, and weary, but proud as well.
"Why didn't you stay for pick up?" Heero wanted to know as he finished spearing fish over their nightly fire. The sun was just beginning to set. A fire on the beach was safest, but the nightly gathering of biting insects always drove them into the jungle and into their shelter once the sun dipped behind the horizon.
"We thought it was a test, sir!" Polente exclaimed in clear horror. "Are you telling me that we spent days in the jungle for nothing?"
Duo snickered as everyone looked outraged. They all turned to him as he held out his hands and grinned at them. "I'll make it a test. You passed with flying colors."
Carmicheal nodded to the fish, his blue eyes hopeful. "Is there more of those?"
"Plenty," Duo replied. "We were going to smoke them, but let's have a party instead."
"Thank God!" Polente said as she dropped her heavy pack into the sand. "If I eat one more can of whatever that shit is they gave us, I'm going to puke. I don't care if it does have all the protein and nutrients a soldier needs."
Heero hated that their peace had been shattered. A few days on the beach, relaxing in the surf and talking about both their problems, had done a lot of good for their mental health and their relationship. Going back to civilization was inevitable, but Heero had been finding it increasingly difficult to make that call.
"There are bites on my bites," Porter complained as he sat down heavily in the sand. His fair skin was peppered in bite marks.
"Why don't we all pretend that we aren't soldiers and really enjoy ourselves?" Duo suggested. "The beach is safe. Heero scouted yesterday and didn't find even a bungalow for miles. Swim, wash off in a pool of water to your right and about twenty five yards into the jungle, and then we'll have a beach party."
"No booze," Tumik complained as he raked fingers through his red hair.
"Can't have everything," Duo replied, "But we do have fruit, palm dates, and something that passes for onions. We can call for a morning evac and take it easy tonight."
"Deal, sir," Polente agreed as she yanked off her boots and then began running for the surf while she pulled off her clothes.
"She's definitely not shy," Duo chuckled as he watched her naked body dive into an incoming wave.
"Please, sir!" Tumik snorted as he unlaced and pulled off his boots as well. "That's like ogling a sister. Really unappealing." He walked more slowly toward the waves, pulling off his shirt and pants, but leaving on his boxers.
Rajmalley simply collapsed onto his back with a groan and closed his eyes. "Rest and eat, then I'll worry about getting clean."
Sanchez was looking puzzled. He took out his handheld and checked it thoughtfully.
"Sanchez?" Heero prompted.
Sanchez finished his check and then handed his device to Heero. Heero took it with stiff fingers. "If this wasn't a test, then our observations of a suspect camp wasn't part of a test either."
Duo stopped in the act of spearing more fish to put over the fire and leaned in to look at the device as well.
"Metal buildings, a jump ship under cover, offloading of equipment," Sanchez reported. "Not part of a Preventer group or a government operation?"
Heero checked the gps coordinates,"No," he replied without hesitation. "Why didn't the others mention this?"
"They didn't look like terrorists," Rajmalley said as he sat up again and looked concerned. "They had mostly equipment to clear land and construct buildings. We took pics and made observations, but nothing seemed illegal."
"If they are doing something illegal then they are in for a surprise," Heero said.
Duo laughed outright. "Of all the jungle to pick, they choose a stretch of jungle used for Preventer training."
"I don't know about that, sir," Rajmalley said. "They wouldn't have been found if we hadn't attempted to track you."
"How did you find us?" Duo wanted to know as he began spearing the fish again.
Heero was surprised. He had expected Duo to make the call to Preventers. He was, instead, acting as if he intended to carry out his plans for a beach party.
"DNA signatures, footprint analysis, and running likely scenarios," Sanchez replied.
"Dumb luck?" Duo translated.
"Dumb luck, sir," Sanchez agreed without breaking into a smile as he took back his device and studied it again.
"Polente said that she was going to the beach and to hell with finding you, sirs," Rajmalley explained. "That's when we picked up your trail."
"Should I give you half a credit, then?" Duo wanted to know.
"We did find you," Tumik complained.
"In a jungle," Rajmalley added. He filed his assessment and info and asked, "Send to headquarters, sirs?"
Heero looked at Duo with a raised eyebrow.
Duo sighed. "Yes, of course. Maybe we'll get to eat the fish before they show up. Everybody get their swim in, company is coming."
-------------------------------------------------
"We're supposed to investigate?" Heero confirmed irritably as Duo finished dressing in full fatigues. The vacation was over.
"We're in the area. It makes tactical sense," Duo replied. Heero could hear his tension.
"Taking newbies and having two agents with physical difficulties does not make tactical sense," Heero complained.
"They expect it to be a land clearing team," Duo told him as he finished checking his weapons. "Safe and normal. We're supposed to observe and then approach if we decide it's safe. We're to inform them that they are on Preventer property and to vacate the training grounds at once."
"It's damn far from the beach, sirs," Polente said as she hefted her back back onto one shoulder. "There's no reason to clear land in that area."
"Some people like their privacy," Duo replied.
Polente looked skeptical. "Just considering the nearly impossible logistics of getting equipment and supplies into that area, sir. It must have taken them months to assemble there for this land clearing operation."
Heero glared. "Did you put your suspicions into a report?"
Polente looked uncomfortable.
"If you want to be an agent you have to have the balls, even if you don't physically have them," Duo said. "If you see crap, call on it. You thought the subjects were suspicious even though your fellow trainees didn't. You have a good, solid, point to make Polente. Let headquarters be the one to shoot you down."
"Yes, sir." She looked flush with her reprimand but her chin was up and her eyes had a new confidence.
"Get the team ready to move out," Duo ordered curtly and she hurried to follow his order.
"Duo," Heero began and then stopped. He knew any argument was useless.
They had their orders. Preventers knew of Heero's health and Duo's breakdown. They had decided that the risks were acceptable. It was clear they didn't expect anything transpiring at the suspect's camp. Polente's suspicions nagged at Heero, though, because he agreed with them. Natives, and the resorts far down the coast were not above taking advantage of supposedly unclaimed real estate, but that real estate was usually prime and not lost in the jungle.
"Take your pills, Heero," Duo said softly. "We'll take it slow and easy."
Heero felt embarrassed. "Fuck easy," he growled.
Duo grinned. "That's the Heero I know and love," he chuckled. "We'll watch each others backs. We're a team, not a couple of invalids."
Heero took his pills, swallowing them down with water from his canteen. His expression set hard. "A team," he agreed.
Duo had challenged him and he had accepted. They wouldn't make concessions for weaknesses. Instead, they would work together to overcome them and push through them. Pain wasn't going to be a consideration, especially not in front of their trainees. They were proud bastards, Heero thought as he put on his own gear. They'd gladly die proud bastards as well.
There was grumbling as they trekked back into the jungle. Heero and Duo stayed at the rear while Porter took point. Whenever Heero's aching knees and ankles protested stepping over underbrush, Duo's rock solid hand was there to tug him forward or stop a fall. When Duo looked haunted when birds began making noises that sounded like crying children, or his muscles began to tire and his pack became a dragging weight, Heero was there to lighten his load, distract him with mission contingency plans, and allow him to rest under the cover of checking GPS and maps.
It wasn't a perfect system, but it got them to the suspect's camp with most of their dignity intact.
A light rain was only welcome for the length of time it took to cool off, but then the biting insects appeared and the forest turned wet, muddy, and dim. Rajmally set up an undercover camera on the suspect's perimeter and then returned with a thumbs up.
Duo and Heero sat on a fallen log with the flat monitor between them as they directed the camera to pan the clearing. A few men were looking miserable as they stowed equipment in a metal building to save them from the rain. Their clothing was nondescript and they looked local.
"Checks out as a civilian operations so far," Duo whispered as he swatted at a mosquito.
"It would," Heero muttered.
"Paranoid," Duo retorted.
"For good reason," Heero grumbled back.
"Everything isn't always a secret base full of killer machines waiting to rain destruction on.... oh..." Duo blinked and then sighed."An elevator. Just once I wish it wasn't a secret base for terrorists."
"Call it in," Heero ordered Rajmally. The man didn't look any more pleased than Duo as he took out his equipment to make the call.
"Are we going in there?" Tumik asked nervously.
"Are we equipped to go in there?" Heero asked acidly.
"No sirs," Polente answered. "We should fall back and wait for Preventer orders."
"Very good," Duo replied with a grin. "All of you fall back and wait. Heero and I will-"
"No, you won't sirs!" Polente cut in firmly. She looked uncertain and then stiffened her backbone. "With all due respect, we ALL need to fall back and wait for orders."
"Reasons?" Duo wondered.
"She doesn't need to tell us what we already know," Heero grumbled. "Thank you, Polente. We will ALL fall back."
Duo scowled and looked ready to protest, but then he realized that making Polente list the many reasons why a closer look and possible infiltration by two agents not in optimal condition would be a bad thing would be embarrassing.
"Agreed," Duo sighed, but it was obvious that he felt as if he had been deprived of a good time. Heero felt the same way. He was missing the adrenaline kick of a mission.
The rain continued to fall as they regrouped a half mile away.
-----------------------------------
"The front door?" Duo looked disgusted.
"Command informed me that there are volcanic caverns in the area and that several are beneath the suspects. They suspect the elevator leads down into one of those caverns," Polente reported as she stood at stiff attention with the rain running off the brim of her helmet in steady droplets. "Air support is in the area and backup is incoming from the beach. We're to approach the facility and demand entrance for an inspection."
"They could start shooting," Heero said and wondered if hoping that would happen was a good thing.
"They could," Duo agreed with the same enthusiasm. He didn't usually wear his helmet but the rain had made them all brave the heat and put them on. He looked far too young in his and his smile was impish as he checked his weapons.
"How far away is backup?" Heero asked Polente.
"They reported E.R.T. twenty five minutes," she replied with a puzzled frown. "What's E.R.T., sirs?"
"Estimated rescue Time," Duo replied sourly as he slowly got to his feet. "Sounds like Chang."
She looked impressed. "Commander Wu Fei is coming here?"
"I detect hero worship," Duo snorted.
"His reputation..." she attempted to explain and then looked embarrassed. "You are all highly respected, sirs."
"Of course we are," Duo replied with a bit of sarcasm that made Heero step in to deflect the situation.
"Get ready to move in," Heero ordered Polente.
She nodded and joined the others as they all stood and tried to put themselves in order.
"She wasn't being critical," Heero said softly to Duo.
He glared at Heero with shadowed eyes. "I know. I also know that Chang Wu Fei doesn't have our problems. He'll continue fighting long after we're both in wheelchairs."
Heero hadn't considered that eventuality. He didn't want to consider it now. "It won't come to that," he replied firmly.
Duo didn't reply. Heero ignored the hand that Duo tried to give him and managed to get up on his own in an ungraceful scramble. He shook out his cramping fingers and tested his knees to make certain that the drugs were still working and they wouldn't betray him if there was action. He found himself flexing fingers near the butt of his gun, suddenly wondering if firing it might prove to be a problem in the middle of a fire fight. When he looked up, Duo was watching him with sympathy. Heero hated it. He scowled and began to turn away.
"We'll work together," Duo said. "Together we can make a whole Gundam pilot." The bitterness was undeniable, but Heero found himself nodding. It was the only way they could function now.
This wasn't supposed to happen Heero thought after giving everyone their assigned positions and outlining a plan in case the situation should collapse. He didn't think the trainees were ready to see blood. He couldn't imagine them pulling a trigger and willfully killing someone. He wasn't sure who might run or who might find the core of strength that allowed a person to stand steady in the face of incoming death. He wasn't certain why headquarters was sending them in ahead of battle tested backup.
"Heero?" Duo said as they took their positions and everyone waited for the signal to move out.
"I know," Heero said as he came to stand by Duo's side and met his worried eyes. "This is a bad command decision."
"It doesn't make any sense," Duo replied with a firm nod. "We should stand down until Wu Fei arrives. They should be the ones to move in, not us."
"Verify orders?" Heero asked.
Duo chewed on his bottom lip for a moment while their trainees nervously waited around them. He smiled suddenly. "This is hard. I want to go in and take them out, but taking these people in with us... We should leave them behind."
"Not happening, sirs," Polente argued and the men around her nodded, some of them shakily, in agreement.
Duo met Heero's eyes again as if leaving the decision to him. Heero felt the clock ticking and his adrenaline kicking up a notch. He wanted to see action. Taking their trainees in with them, though, might turn out to be a slaughter.
"Verify orders," Heero told Polente. "Report that situation calls for Wu Fei's experienced team to move in first."
Polente made the call.
"This isn't going to look good," Duo sighed. "Chang's going to have a lot to say; Two Gundam pilots standing down from battle."
"He can say it," Heero growled, feeling the same embarrassment. "The decision is the correct one."
"Stand down," Polente finally reported. "Suspect base has been identified as friendlies."
Duo looked angry. Heero nodded and sighed as he took off his helmet and let the rain cool off his head. "A test," he said to no one in particular.
"I hate commander Une sometimes," Duo snarled. "No, most of the time," he amended.
Heero understood her, even if he didn't approve of her methods. She had wanted to test Duo before his return to headquarters. Possibly she had wanted to test them both. Heero suspected that Polente was more than she seemed. He had admired her leadership qualities and her courage, but now he began to feel that she was too good to be true.
Heero slid eyes at Polente and Duo nodded, once. He was having the same suspicions.
"All right people. back to the beach," Duo sighed and took point. "Call for dust off Polente."
-----------------------------------------
Une tossed release papers towards them across her desk. "Sign."
Heero picked up his form while Duo ignored his, frowned, and said, "I'd really like to know when the military will finally give up doing everything on paper in triplicate?"
"Paper can't be hacked," Une replied coolly.
"This is a form making us official instructors," Heero read and then looked at her, matching Duo's frown. "We've been assigned aids, seconds, and field officers."
"When needed, of course," Une said. "We can't tie up scarce resources if you don't need the agents all the time."
"If I sign that, then I can't go looking for the people who are trying to make more Gundam pilots," Duo told her. "That's a lose end I'm not willing to leave untied."
"It will remain an active investigation, but I've come to my own conclusion on the matter based on your report," Une replied and seemed to find her computer more interesting than the two men standing before her desk. "They've been deemed a threat, but not an eminent one."
Heero picked up a pen and looked at it as if he couldn't remember what it was for. He clicked it several times, thinking her words over carefully, and then nodded as he bent and signed the paper on the desk.
Duo was still hesitating. "Is it classified or are you going to tell me?"
"Re creating a Gundam pilot didn't work in the past," Une replied. "I don't think they are sophisticated enough to do it now. This is a case of finding the terrorists, not defusing a ticking time bomb."
"So, my beef is personal, not professional?" Duo said as he picked up his paper and scanned it.
"In my estimation, yes," Une replied. She took Heero's paper and slipped it into a file. She held out her hand for Duo's. "No compromise," she warned. "I don't have to explain why."
She didn't. Duo signed his paper and shot it back across the desk at her. She took it without comment and filed it. "Put in mothballs," he complained.
She looked at them both and then said, "According to psyche, you were considering this career choice. I only made it mandatory." Her eyeglasses glinted in the overhead lights as she added, "Of course, you could quite Preventers and become mercenaries." There was an obvious threat being made. Unspoken words hung in the air between them. Lone wolf Gundam Pilots, even crippled ones, were not to be tolerated.
"Ditch Polente," Duo said;his own warning. "We don't need spies."
"This isn't grade school," Une pointed out acidly. "If I command one of your trainees to give me reports, then they don't have the option of a refusal."
Heero blinked, surprised. "She is a real trainee, then?"
"Yes, and she respects you highly," Une complained, "She gave me bare bones reports. Her lack of information was so marked she might as well have reported that you were having tea and crumpets." She sighed and then said firmly. "You don't have any say in who I send to you as a trainee. I expect you to turn them all into top notch agents."
"Yes, ma'am," Duo said with a smart assed salute. "Come on, Heero. We still have two days downtime. After our checkup at the docs, we can sit and have some us time."
Fucking Une! Heero thought and wanted to argue some more, but he knew that look on her face. Gundanium. Instead, he followed Duo to medical and let the doctors take their tests, marvel at their ability to heal quickly, and remind them to keep seeing the psych doctor. Gundam pilots were unstable, as everyone informed them. No one knew what would happen when one didn't have a battle to fight and at least one of them was still battling the mental effects of an attack.
Getting back home was a relief. Closing the door on the world and sitting side by side on the couch made them both sigh and lean together for comfort.
"What are you thinking?" Duo wanted to know, head pillowed on Heero's shoulder.
Heero took hold of Duo's long braid and played with it gently in one hand. "I might... much later... think this is all a good thing."
"Right now you're just pissed as hell, like me, right?" Duo wanted to know.
"Yes," Heero replied. "What did psyche tell you? First comes denial, then bargaining, and lastly acceptance. I think we're both at the bargaining stage."
"Maybe we won't get over this?" Duo said thoughtfully. "Maybe we'll go crazy and become mercenaries... crippled, worn out, mentally challenged mercenaries... but... okay, maybe even THEY wouldn't take us now... How about a vigilante team of two; just you and me?"
"Definitely bargaining," Heero chuckled.
"You laughed," Duo said in amazement. "Maybe you 're skipping bargaining and acceptance and taking a left turn to psychotic?"
Heero was quiet, thinking, and then he said, "My knees hurt."
Duo smiled. "Is that foreplay?"
"It can be," Heero replied as Duo pulled Heero's leg into his lap and began kneading the knee. Heero sighed in bliss.
They both were quiet as Duo's hands worked diligently.
Finally Heero ventured, "It was challenging... working with the trainees. When I saw them working so well in the field, I felt... proud."
"Me too," Duo agreed. "Like building a jump ship from scratch out of sticks and bubblegum and then seeing it fly."
Heero nodded. "We are not useless. We are highly trained and we are creating a force that is just as highly trained."
"Don't push it," Duo laughed. "Well trained, maybe."
"Well trained," Heero amended.
Duo's hands kneaded up towards Heero's groin with sure intent. "Let's take this into the bedroom."
"Definitely." Heero replied and they both struggled off of the couch.
They only half undressed, pulling each other onto the bed and rolling to the center with limbs tangled together. Duo's kisses were hot and needy and Heero devoured his lips in turn, hands stroking their excitement in tandem as Duo's hands smoothed and kneaded up and down Heero's backside.
When they finally came together, they were spooning, Duo pushing in from behind, one arm hooked under Heero's knee and lifting it with care. Heero stroked himself as Duo rode him. When they both came it was a powerful release of tension, both sexual and mental.
Panting and riding the after wave of pleasure, they lay together for a long time. Finally Duo asked, "Okay?" as he smoothed a hand over Heero's knee.
The question was, 'Did I hurt you holding your knee that way?', but neither of them wanted to hear the words out loud.
"It's okay," Heero replied and turned on his back. Duo wrapped him in his arms and rested a chin on Heero's shoulder. His bangs tickled Heero's cheek.
"I don't want to sound sappy," Duo said, "but, as long as we can do this... be together, here... not just the sex, I mean... I'm good."
"That's a half truth. We both need challenges," Heero replied.
"You're not a challenge?" Duo chuckled. He sobered in the next instant. "You're right. You and a challenge."
"Training might be enough of a challenge," Heero ventured.
"Time will tell," Duo replied with a smile as his hand wandered down the length of Heero's hard body. "For now, I'm good."
"I feel the same," Heero replied and turned to make love to Duo again. At least in that, they were still young.
-------------------------------------------
"
An award ceremony would have been nice," Polente grumbled.
"This is an award ceremony," Duo replied as he tossed the woman a new name badge that said Agent Polente.
"Streamers, cake, the congratulations of our peers... Commander Une at least nodding her head at us... something," Rajmalley said as he caught his new badge and replaced his old one.
Heero grunted and straightened from the desk he had been leaning on. The training room did seem the last place to usher in trainees who had proved themselves more than desk techs. The stack of new ID badges that Duo was tossing out like beads at a parade seemed disrespectful of their efforts. Heero stopped him with a hand on his lover's arm. He took them from a mystified Duo and told his trainees, "At attention, please."
The please startled them and they lined up and came to attention without protest. Heero finished putting the IDs on the trainees himself with a careful air of military correctness. When he was done, he stepped back and surveyed them critically.
"Don't disgrace us," Heero said, "and don't die."
Duo snickered irreverently and covered his mouth with a hand to stifle it.
Heero glared over his shoulder, but then surveyed the trainees again. "I'll speak with Commander Une about a proper graduation ceremony, but, for now, I think I can make amends for the lack. Everyone to jump ship Firestorm."
They looked confused. So did Duo. After they had filed out of the room, he asked Heero, "You know we can't pilot. What's going on?"
Heero smirked, even though deep down he felt the bite of lost abilities. "I know someone who's an excellent pilot. With the right motivation, I think he can make the trip... exciting."
"Exciting?" Duo frowned. "You and that word, 'exciting' can be a scary combination."
"Get a case of champagne," Heero told him, his smirk turning almost predatory. "I'll get the pilot. Meet me at the ship."
"Roger that," Duo chuckled. "I don't get a clue, though?"
"No," Heero replied firmly. "I hope you haven't eaten yet?"
"Now you're really being scary," Duo laughed. "I feel sorry for the trainees-"
"Agents," Heero corrected.
"Agents," Duo said, "I probably should save that sorry for myself, shouldn't I?"
"You don't have to go along," Heero told him seriously.
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Duo replied.
-------------------
Sanchez pressed himself flat on the deck and groaned. "Tell me again that
we're on the ground and safe?"
"He's a top flight pilot," Duo assured him. "You were in no danger at all... well, he did come pretty close to that one plateau wall... I mean, shaving off that bush hanging off the side and then spinning to fling it through that narrow pass like it was a goal post... That could have gone sooo very wrong."
The rest of the trainees were seated just behind the pilots' chair, all of them looking green and slumped with exhaustion. Wu Fei unbuckled from the pilot's seat and stood up, looking at them all disdainfully. he said aside to Heero, in the co-pilot's seat, "They didn't do too badly. They were certainly not the group that you led me to believe needed to be taught a lesson in over confidence."
Heero was flushed with excitement and was having trouble coming down from the adrenaline rush. He had thoroughly enjoyed Wu Fei's piloting. He didn't have Duo's skill, but he was definitely still at the top level of a Gundam pilot.
Carmichael was the first to straighten and take several deep breaths. He grinned then and said, "That was awesome! Or I'll think so as soon as my gut catches up to me."
Wu Fei gave him a nod for the compliment and then said to Heero and Duo, "Are we done here?"
"You can stay for the champagne," Duo suggested. "We're celebrating their graduation to field agents."
Wu Fei scowled. "I do have other duties." He paused at the secured box of champagne, reading the label on the box. He looked at Duo, then with a raised black eyebrow. "Your trainees must be very special to merit $200.00 champagne."
Heero started as he unbuckled and stood up. "For the box?"
"Each bottle," Wu Fei clarified and then shrugged as he opened the hatch. "You and Maxwell must have increased your pay rate rather nicely when you became instructors."
Wu Fei went down the steps as Heero glared at Duo. "Where did you get these?"
Duo looked embarrassed and uncomfortable. "Well, when you know someone with a private stock... who happens to be out on an assignment and not home... who won't miss one box, really he won't... you improvise."
"You mean steal?" Heero snapped.
"He would have offered if he had been home," Duo assured Heero. He shoved on Tumik's shoulder to put the man upright when he looked ready to fall over and then unstrapped the crate.
"Maybe this isn't a good id-" Heero began, looking around them at the green agents. Duo stopped him with a frown and a shake of his head.
"Everyone wants some $200.00 a bottle champagne?" Duo called out. Hands raised weakly and the agents attempted to unstrap and pull themselves together.
"That was an awesome ride, sirs," Polente said. "We're just not used to those kind of g-forces."
There were nods all around. Duo grinned as he popped a cork and the champagne went bubbling out. "You all have what it takes. That was the last test. Nobody threw up and you all looked excited... well... right up until Fei did that looped de loop through the rock arch on top of Granson Ridge. I think that's when everyone started looking green."
"I'd love to fly like that!" Porter suddenly exclaimed. He was the only one not looking ill.
Duo poured the champagne into plastic cups and handed one to Porter. "Well, Heero would be your best trainer if you really mean that. Maybe he can't control the ship any longer, but that doesn't mean he can't teach you all the tricks."
"Could you do that sir?" Porter asked Heero.
Heero nodded and felt a flush of pleasure. It would hurt not to fly the ship himself, but Wu Fei had proven that he could still enjoy it. "I think something can be arranged."
Porter let out a whoop and then downed his champagne at one go. He held out his cup for more. "A toast!" he shouted. "To the best trainers on Earth or in Space!"
Heero looked embarrassed but Duo leaned into him and prodded him in the ribs with an elbow. "Thanks Porter," Duo replied.
Everyone raised their plastic cups and made the short toast, but Heero and Duo could see that they meant it sincerely.
"I'm starting to like my new job," Duo chuckled and Heero nodded in agreement.