The dark creature sat up, �Well, first things first, I need some clothes. Then I need to do my hair. Maybe I shouldn�t have made it so long.� Shinigami climbed to his feet and darted for his dresser, �Must get dressed quickly, been gone for too long!� He struggled into boxers and jeans; the cuffs hung several inches too short, �No! Damn it all! Stupid power surge, made me too tall for my pants!� Coming to the conclusion that he would just have to wear them as high-waters for the time being, he pulled out a shirt that he couldn�t button over his chest. Grumbling that his change in size was going to a pain in the ass, Duo gave up. He knotted his hair into a braid that came close to his knees and tied it off before going out in search of vengeance.
Amber frowned at Duo when he opened the door, while he, on the other hand, gaped. She was decked out in an outfit that spoke entirely of Little Red Riding Hood including the blood-toned cape. Two platelets hung from either side of her head and dark lip-gloss brought her pout to attention. Trowa was lounging on the floor, a pair of felt wolf ears poking out from his hair. A tail of some unknown material was pinned to his jeans, but that was all he wore. He got up and pulled the death of darkness back out the door, �Welcome back Duo. Look, some things have changed while you were gone. I know you were meaning to exact revenge on Amber for killing you, but she�s kind of berserk now.� Duo snickered, �What�s with the costumes? It�s an interesting new look for you.� Emerald eyes rolled upward, �Amber wanted me to wear them, so I did. I�m pretty sure her mind has changed a little but I don�t really care, I�ll play along. Now, get off it or I�ll punch you in the nose. Besides, I would be more concerned about your other half. Heero got a hold of her.� Shinigami lost his sense of humor in an instant, �What did he do?� �Let�s put it this way, your sweetheart grew wings and they aren�t black.�
Duo kicked open the door that blocked him from the very creature that tested his will, the wood shattered in an explosion of shards, �Helios!� The archangel regarded him with little interest, �Why did you bother coming back?� The death of darkness regained his cool aura and smirked wickedly, �Well, I couldn�t just stay in Hell while you were wandering around up here. I had to come back to kick your ass.� Fire filled the demon�s cupped hand, �By the way, my grandfather infused by body with a few new toys.� The small inferno forged itself into a flaming scythe which Duo spun on two fingers, �Where�d your cocky grin go? Didn�t you expect that?� Helios backed up and summoned a sword of light, �You may have inherited some of His abilities, but you will fall beneath my blade and then you won�t be able to come back.� The high-level demon crouched close to the ground, his hiss causing hair to stand on end; �We�ll see who falls.� He lunged; light clashed with flame and sparks flew.
Helios blocked Duo�s rapid assault, finding that every side was vulnerable to the swift creature. The blades locked and pilot two flashed his canines, �Getting a little hot?� Heero grimaced as the sword�s hilt began to sear his palm. He broke away from the heat source and tossed the blade from hand to hand, �Cheap trick.� Parrying another set of attacks, Heero jabbed at Duo�s exposed chest. The demon leapt backwards, the thin cut in his flesh smoking, �Good, but you�re far to slow. It�s time we stop playing around.�
He returned to the fray in a heartbeat, marking the angel�s skin with every movement of his weapon. When the demon stopped, Helios fell to his knees. No blood trickled from the wounds as they had been cauterized as they were created. Duo let the scythe go and it vanished; he took hold of the shadow collar with the same hand. He hauled the arch into the air, easily keeping his feet dangling above the ground, �If you dare touch Jess again, I will rip you apart with my claws. You may have kept me under your thumb but I have the upper hand now. Test me and you die.� He dropped him harshly, leaving without another word.
A young Irish woman rocked an expeditiously developing child on her knee. The little blonde angel grasped her fingers in his chubby fist, drooling on the plain nails. Tiny wings draped from the small one�s back. They seemed oversized for their bearer, like a puppy and its paws. He burbled happily, speaking words that he hardly knew the meaning of. His mother was curious about his swift maturation; amazed every passing day at how much older he seemed. At only a month, he acted as though his first birthday had already passed. She disregarded is, thinking it to be his immortal nature. She was far more interested in watching him grow, playing children�s games with him while she still could.
Ace halted his noise making, his beryl eyes locked on the door. He whined softly and curled against his mother. Jess wrapped protective arms around him before turning to see who entered. She leapt up once the face came into view, �Duo!� Ace�s gentle cries ceased her footsteps, �I don�t think he likes you.� An air of pure confusion creased Duo�s brow, �Um�Jess, where did that come from?� The redheaded girl smiled bashfully, she�d never gone over how she would tell her lover about their child, �It came from me. I named him Ace.�
Jess held the child out to his father, but he yowled as he grew near him. She pulled him back to her, �He doesn�t like Trowa either, I don�t think he feels safe around dark beings.� �It�s an angel�and it�s blonde�why Jess?! Why with Quatre of all people?!� She giggled and soothed her child; �He�s yours. I don�t know why he turned out the way he did, but he�s yours.� Duo sniffled, his eyes watering in a very convincing manner, �But he looks nothing like me!� His companion smiled sweetly, �We have some catching up to do, let me see if some one will baby-sit the tike for a little while.�
Trowa eased the door to his room shut, trying not to wake Amber. She had tried to hide what she had become, but he�d found out anyway. She was ashamed of the spikes in her wings and the way her eyes looked now, but the golden arch told her he didn�t care. Amber had given her normality up to save him, if she hadn�t�For darkness such as himself to fall on an angel�s sword was to never return. The soul is extinguished, the same occurs the other way around with a demon�s blade. Pilot six hadn�t known that at the time and Trowa had no intention on telling her now.
A hard strike hit him as he rounded the corner and Helios was on him in a moment. �What did I tell you?! What did I say?! You weren�t supposed to be with her! I told you!� Trowa rubbed his cheek and spit a mouthful of blood on the tile. His patience for this was gone, �Shut up. I�m sick of you bossing me around. I�m going to be around her if I want to and if you say otherwise, I say fuck you.� Heero pulled away sharply, �Apologize, now.� Trowa snarled his response, �Fuck you!� The perfect soldier realized he was losing his control, over everything. His eyes narrowed, �Hell beckons Barton.� Trowa laughed, this concept was amusing after so much fear, �Hell would be better than you! You�ll have your own personal hell getting me there!�
A berserk halfling stepped between them, startling them both. Trowa slid arms about her waist from behind and she smiled, �Let me tell you something Heero. We all have someone we care about. Someone we would die for. So much as touch Trowa and Relena will disappear from your life. I�ll see to it, understand?� Heero backed off for the time being, he would wait. Triton nuzzled the crook of Amber�s neck, �He�s going to fight me, but I�m stronger than he is. Don�t worry about it.� She leaned against him with a quiet purr, �I know you are, but I wanted to hang something foreboding over his head like he did to you.� The steadily darkening arch chuckled, his face buried in her hair. He knew that his angelic ways were slipping, but it felt so good to do as he wished.
Heero debated on whether or not he could take Amber�s threat seriously. Figuring that he could protect the diplomat easily enough, the ruling of getting rid of Trowa became foremost. The being had eluded death more than once, leaving the only option a direct opening to Hell itself. He bided his time to catch the fallen off-guard. He could only open the portal once and it had to be done right. Prussian eyes constantly followed the tall youth, waiting for the moment to strike. Heero�s patience paid off as Triton went outside with Amber. Out there, there was no place for him to hide. No matter where he went, the portal would swallow him and he would be out of the way. Helios went out after them with a cruel smile. They took no notice of him, heading to the thriving garden that pilot six had been attending to. Trowa stopped and looked over his shoulder, �You trail me like a lost dog, is there something I need to know?�
The silver arch ignored the comment, calling the proper steps to mind. No one had ever meant for him to learn the technique, as it was extremely dangerous to conduct on Earth. Only the highest of archs were allowed to perform the act of falling. From Heaven to Hell, there was no issue, but the mortal world was far closer to the fiery depths. He reached blindly for the seams of the plain, pulling the nonexistent thread that would open the portal. Trowa�s wings exploded from his back and he leapt into the air, �Holy shit!� Tendrils of flame soared from the gaping hole in the ground; they searched for anything to drag with them. Darkness drew them and they found an ankle, then a waist.
Poseidon�s assent jerked to a painful halt. They snagged his wrists, the edge of one wing, and slowly began to return from whence they came. Helios stepped back, a sweeping lasso scorching the air where he�d been. Amber attacked the silver arch from behind and was thrown several yards. She regained her feet quickly, �Close it!� With the last reserves of his strength, Triton landed to one side of the tear in the fabric of Earth�s plain. More ropes of fire lashed about him as he strained to break free. The halflling lunged at Heero, �Close it! Let him go!� He backhanded her sharply; �I can�t now! Shut up. It will take him and be at peace.�
Trowa pushed his weight against his binds; Amber snatched at his reaching hand, but lost it. In victory, the flames pulled their prey to his fate and the earth closed after them. Pilot six dropped to her knees where he�d disappeared, �No! I won�t lose you again! I just got you back!� She dug furiously at the dirt, her fingers scraping on stone and clay. Helios returned to the house, not caring to watch her desperate attempts at retrieval.
Feeling Trowa�s absence, Quatre came out in curiosity. He understood in a moment what had taken ten minutes to occur, �Amber, stop. You can't get him back like that.� A gentle hand on her shoulder received an angry welcome; she slapped it away, �Leave me alone!� She continued to burrow. The blonde angel knelt before her, taking her already bloodied hands, �You can�t dig your way to Hell! There are other ways to get there.� Amber swiped dirt caked claws across his cheek and he fell back. Thin streams of crimson trickled from the shallow wounds.
The small Arab sniffed back impending tears, coming forward again with unnatural boldness, �Please stop. You�re going to hurt your hands like this. I�m sure you could talk to Duo, he would know a way to get into Hell.� He caught her wrists, �Stop!� Pain exploded from his chest in a blinding shock wave. Another feeling took over, as if everything was falling around him and he was going with it. It left him cold and shaking. Amber�s wings hung limp at her sides; both dripped scarlet liquid from the spikes. Quatre stared at the demon appendage with dread. He was a very low-level angel; the slightest contact with dark flesh would�
The small boy dashed into the garage, one thing on his mind, I have to get out before anyone finds out! He all but ran into Duo as he sprinted past the mechanical humanoids. The dark boy grabbed his shoulders to keep him standing, �Whoa! Quatre, what happened?! You�re bleeding bad.� The youth was sobbing heavily, relying on Shinigami�s grasp to make up for his faltering muscles, �I can�t stay here duo! He�ll send me to hell if he finds out, I don�t want to ho to hell! I can�t! Trowa�s okay there, he�s strong, but I�d never be able to�� He gasped desperately for un-breathed air and Duo shook him a little to pull him out of shock, �You�re okay, stop hyperventilating! You're probably right though, Heero will never stand for you being a fallen. Get out of here for a little while till things can cool down.�
Power exchanged bodies as the death of darkness healed his cuts, �How about this, the mission board has been stacking up and I know you haven�t seen your men in a while. Kill three birds with one stone and get out of this place for a bit.� He turned the noble of the desert around and gave him a gentle shove towards Sandrock. Quatre continued on his own accord, �Maybe you�re right. I�ll be back later.�
�Master Quatre, everything is going as planned. The targeted base is approximately one-point six kilometers to the northeast of our current location. Abdul and Mohammed have gone ahead to scout out the guard and number of suits currently operational.� A quiet voice came across the system, �Very good Rasid. We�ll continue on current root.� The burly man frowned, �What�s wrong master Quatre, you are not yourself today.� His young savior shook his head and adjusted the goggles that were his symbol of leadership over his eyes, the reflection hid the sorrow in their deep blue color, �Nothing, let�s move out.�
The Maganoc core followed the young boy through the sifting sand, ready to go with him to the end. They reached the point of visibility, but found no base. Quatre switched viewing screens for his cockpit, �There�s nothing there? That can�t be right. The calculations are off.� An answering voice came through the speaker, �No, the calculations are accurate master Quatre. There�s no base. The mission description must be incorrect.� Disbelief reined in Apollo�s movement, replacing it with caution, �No, they�d never feed us false information, the base it here. Stay on guard and search the area.�
The group split into smaller sections and combed the area. The general radio quiet was gashed by a yell that was cut off by an explosion. �The enemy is here, some kind of newer model. It�s�� Connection was broken from the smaller squad. Greasy smoke billowed into the scorched Sahara sky. Chaos ensued as enemies made themselves apparent all around the scattered core. Quatre shouted evasive orders into the hissing com-link and Sandrock withdrew sickles to battle with.
Suits fell; both foe and companion. The numbers of assaulting legions seemed to have no end. Rasid appeared on the screen to the noble�s left, �We must retreat master Quatre! They outnumber us to a great extent.� Pilot four noted the fresh blood on his guard�s face and turned his mind to an escape root, �Alright, we must create an opening, everyone, fall back!� His remaining troops clustered to him; there were so few left. Quatre hacked down a suit directly before him. The models were faster than average, but seemed only a minor change from the serpent suits he�d faced before. Aware his men had never faced these weapons, he found the explanation for them being new.
A fired beam landed a perfect hit in the joint of Sandrock�s plating. The side panel adjacent exploded in a shower of sparks and a propelled chunk of shrapnel tunneled deep into Quatre�s shoulder blade. He bit back his cry of pain, determined to get his men out, �Forward! We have to break that line! Let�s go!� The Arab at his side fell under a beamsaber and the blonde fallen swatted the culprit off. What remained of the core hit the enemy wall in waves. An opening formed, but only two suits fled from it. Rasid shot back mobile suits that wished to patch it, �Go master Quatre, I will hold them off!�
The youth saw what he needed to far too late, �Behind you! Rasid, look out!� The valiant warrior was struck from the sky in a streak of fire. Quatre screamed and barreled at the nearest MS, tearing off its head. They held strong against his retaliation, but began to fade. Rage fueled actions and men died at its hands, until there were none left. Sandrock stood in the midst of destruction and blood. The sands of the Sahara were stained with the life of machines and humans, the survivor neither.
The Gundam collapsed with a horrendous screech and its pilot tumbled out. His light blue eyes were fearfully wide, thick crimson running into them. Everywhere ached, sharp pain that wasn�t felt, �Rasid�Ali�they�re all gone�gone�and it�s all my fault.� Quatre looked out across the sea of gold, unsure of which way to go. A voice resounded in his head, much stronger than usual, *Apollo, what�s wrong?! I felt your anger.*
He sank to his knees on the blood stained earth, *Cassandra, I�m lost. My men are dead and I don�t know if I can get out of this desert with my wounds. I think I�ll need you now more than ever, if not for aid, then for encouragement. I can�t do this alone.*
Quatre set out across the harsh sands with a heavy heart. The girl he�d never met kept him in constant company, reading him poetry she�d written and discussing things of little relevance. His responses to her became fewer and farther between as time went by, his emotions reaching her mind in a kaleidoscope of colors. As his words ceased, she began interpreting the swirling pigment. Red and white were most often present and Cassandra determined them to be his pain and fury. Those colors were only soothed when she spoke to him gently, encouraging him. Then they would melt into dark blues that she decided to be depression and the occasional splash of yellow that was happiness. Cassandra lost count of the days of this, as they stretched into weeks and months. After a while, it seemed that it had always been this way.
It was a curious box. Wrapped so neatly in a faint aquamarine paper, the silver bow tied with such care. The tag was an odd thing to behold though. There were two short scripted messages on the small square of paper. One read, �To the stuck up bastard.� The other simply stated, �From me.� Heero pondered at this box, the suitcase he�d fetched from the hall closet still clutched in one hand. It was nestled comfortably in the clothes he�d put out to pack for his trip to stay with Relena. Instinct told him to stay away from it and war hammered nerves said it was some kind of bomb. Ignoring both, he dropped the bag on the floor and walked over to pick it up.
It was surprisingly heavy for its size. He put his ear to its side for a moment, his inhuman senses straining to pick up any sound. Figuring he was just being paranoid, the perfect soldier pulled the bow.
Shock settled in far before his mind could really register what the object inside was. The head was severed so precisely that the neck was a perfectly straight line. The face was serene, as though she hadn�t seen the killing stroke coming. She hadn�t been dead long, maybe an hour or less. It was Relena, or, what was left of her. Barely visible in her golden locks was the wedding ring, taken from her right hand. Heero tried to move to close the lid, but his arm didn�t listen to him. Instead, he sat staring at this face he knew so well.
Duo stepped inside the open room, sniffing the air slightly, �Hmm, is that blood?� he waved a hand in front of Heero�s unmoving face, �Hello? Anybody home? Ooh, whose head?� Gripping the bodiless object by the hair, the death of darkness picked it up to examine it, �Oh, poor Relena�you know, I always found her really annoying, but didn�t really want to say it because I knew you�d beat my face in.� Helios snapped, his voice shrill, �Put her down!�
He dropped the diplomat�s head back into the box on Heero�s lap, �She warned you.� Shinigami leaned close to the angel�s face, �She said that Relena would die if you touched Trowa and you didn�t listen. It�s your fault. Do you like the way that agony twists your heart, knowing you lost someone so very precious? Feels great, doesn�t it? This is what you do to everyone else; this is the anguish you put them through. Revel in it Heero, cause your bitch was a fallen when she died. Not to mention pregnant.� The demon turned on his heel, marching contently after his words.
Duo soon found Amber with a knife to her wrist, he snatched it, �What are you doing?! Gimme that!� She stuck out her bottom lip; �I want to go see Trowa.� �Just because you kill yourself doesn�t mean that you�re going to get to hell! You are half angel after all�Come on, I�ll take you to him for a little while.� Pilot six followed the boy she�d shown so much ill will, �Why are you being nice to me?� The demon shrugged as he rearranged the shadows to his liking, �You remind me of my sister when she went berserk. Not my mortal sister, I have no one related to this body, but my demon sister. No one spoke to her after she snapped, but I tried to treat her the same.�
He grabbed Amber�s wrist and stepped into the darkness, �Now, don�t� let go of me because you�ll never find your way out of here if you do. The shadow realm is a place that some of my kind put their enemies to let them wander until they die. Not even fallens can navigate this place.� It took Shinigami several minutes to work his way through the ebony labyrinth, he explained its existence as he went, �This place is a near duplicate parallel of earth and can be accessed in any shadow dark enough. The movement of the sun and people turning lights on and off is always altering entrances and exits. There are loopholes here that make for easier traveling than out there. A demon can go ten times the distance in this place than on earth in a lot less time�Here we are.�
Both stepped out of the unnerving darkness into a room of similar consistency. Duo led Amber to a door on one wall she couldn�t have picked from the shadow with her own eyes. A second demon stepped out of the inky wall near them; this was one of the entrances to Hell. He took in Duo with one quick glance, �So Shinigami has returned to the place of his birth. Long time no see man!� The trio left the dark space with amber sticking tight to Duo�s side, despite her despise of him.
Shinigami smirked at his old companion, �It has been a while, but, I�ve got a question for you.� �Shoot.� �We�re looking for a recent fallen. He�s a big, intimidating guy with golden tips on his feathers. He was an arch.� The demon he questioned scratched his auburn head of hair, �that guy? Yeah, I think I know who you�re talking about. Last time I spotted him, he was down in one of the bars. Good luck though, he�s hard to approach.�
Amber stiffened at the possibility of Trowa being in a bar. Duo thanked him and bid him farewell before they went that way. They indeed found Poseidon in a bar, but a soda sat on the marble before him. Not realizing this at first, his soul mate slapped him hard across the cheek. The death of darkness laughed at them and stated that he�d be back in an hour to take pilot six back home.
The demon threaded through the thickening crowds of the underworld to a vaulted iron door few passed through. It groaned at his shove and tortured screams hit his ears. The inferno pits that hell was most often depicted with filled his vision, but it wasn�t what he was looking for. When the fires were stared at long enough, one could see the writhing souls that burned eternally within them.
Duo turned away from the pit and walked along the edge. A slender, green-eyed woman nearly tackled him as he came into view, �Shinigami!� he leaned forward to keep his balance, �Kara!� The berserk nuzzled him softly; �I missed you brother! Where have you been?!� the siblings quickly caught up on things they had missed in each other�s lives.
Duo�s second stop was at Satan�s office. Currently in the position was his aunt, who rolled her eyes as he entered, �Why you? Why must you of all people torment me today? I knew this day wasn�t going to be good. What do you want?� He plopped into the overstuffed armchair across from her desk with a sly grin; �I have a favor to ask of you, dear auntie. You see, Ow! What the hell?!� Duo glared down at the thing that would dare sink its teeth into him. A French shaven black poodle snarled at him, the thing that threw him off was that it had three heads.
Laughter he had no chance to suppress burst forth, �Your Cerberus is a poodle! Ow! Stop biting me mutt!� The princess of darkness called her guardian to her lap, �Tell me the favor so you can leave.� Shinigami grumbled and healed the bite in his leg, �Fine. I found my soul mate and I need your position to turn her into a demon. An arch has changed her into an angel and, for some strange reason, I can�t fall her. I would�ve brought her now, but we�d have to find a babysitter for my kid.�
�You�ve produced offspring? Oh Lucifer help us.� The beast in her lap opened its mouths in silent, mocking chuckles. �Hey!�Look, I don�t want to fight with you today. I just want a simple yes or no, and, if no, I guess I�ll just have to make myself comfortable in your office until you change your mind.� The she demon sighed, �That won�t be necessary, I have an opening next week. I�ll come to you.� Duo grinned; things were finally starting to look up, �Good.�
