The Ascent Fusion Fanfic (Gundam Wing & Dark Angel fusion)
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Full Moon Entertainment owns Dark Angel: The Ascent.
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-----part 1-----

Deep in the pits of hell, the many sufferings of the damned were a way of life for the fallen angels condemned to live out their days. It had been this way for centuries. Now, nearing the end of the twentieth century, things were pretty much the same. There was more work for the fallen ones these days. So it was necessary, as it had always been, to school young demons in the art of punishment.

"Here, before you, suffer the shades of the war criminals!" the teacher told the students who followed on the usual tour. "Mark it well! As they tormented those held by them in life. so are they tormented in death."

"Hear me, teacher!"

"What is it now, Duo? More adolescent fantasy?" the teacher sounded angry. But he always sounded that way.

"I've had the same dream." Duo replied. "A beautiful blue dome with a golden light at its top. So beautiful."

The teacher slapped Duo, knocking the young demon to the floor. "You know it the law forbids us to leave this pit!" he growled at his errant student.

"Duo," another demon teenager told him. "you shouldn't mention that. Ever since the Fall..."

"The Fall was because of their faithlessness." Duo told his classmate. "Why should we pay for their disloyalty?"

"I don't know." the other teenager told him. "But you risk being punished just for talking about it."

"Punishment I'd gladly accept for just one day of freedom."

"There is a crevice that my uncle showed me."

Duo's tufted ears perked up. "Show me." he said, his tail twitching eagerly.

The two of them hurried to where a shaft of pale silver-white light could be seen. 

"Wow! I can't believe it's unguarded." Duo grinned.

"Why'd it be guarded? The usual way for our people to visit the human world is through demonic possession. Only you would make the ascent wearing your own flesh."

"Please, come with me."

"I can't." the other shook his head. "I'm afraid. I'm not like you, Duo."

Duo looked up. //Some day, // he thought. //Some day I'll be ready to go up there.//

He headed back down, then ran off to the particular pit where his father worked.

"Shere father." he addressed him.

"Your teacher left here just recently." the older demon was wroth. "You're continuing with your seditious nonsense about the mortal world?!"

"I wish to walk beneath that golden orb in my dreams."

"In sight of the Almighty?! You speak blasphemy! Repent now!"

Duo shook his head. "I won't live a lie, father."

The elder demon backhanded his son, knocking him to the floor.

Duo got to his feet and stormed off.


-----part 2-----

"Your father doesn't hate you, Duo." His mother told him as she made the family stew. At the top of the pot, a hand from an unrepentant sinner floated.. "Where's my salt?"

Duo handed her the salt. "You didn't see his eyes, mother. He's going to dismember me..."

"I know it's unbelievable, but your father and I were young once, too."

"I can't visualize that."

"We're just from a different generation. That's all." the woman smiled. "Duo. Please, apologize to your father, and promise him you'll give up your crazy ideas. If you don't... he may find it his duty to... destroy you." she looked up as her husband walked in and set down his cleaver. "Hello, dear." she told him. "You're just in time for supper."

Duo and his parents sat down to dinner. After his mom said grace, thanking God for his willingness to let them be his servants in Hell, they began to eat the stew the demoness had prepared.

"Dear," the woman broke the silence. "Duo has something he wants to tell you."

His father looked up, but Duo remained silent.

"Duo," his mother prompted. "Go on, Duo... Duo... Duo! Don't be willful! Apologize to your father!"

The elder male stood up, glaring, and reached for his cleaver. "I'll teach you to scoff at the Law!"

Duo ducked just in time as the elder demon threw the cleaver at him.

"NO!" his mother shouted in horror, trying to block him.

"We can always have more children." Duo's father pointed out. "Now step aside."

"Duo! Run!" his mother told him. "Run as fast as you can!"

Duo did run. His beast, Shinigami running alongside him. He didn't stop until he came to the crevice. And then, his heart screaming in his chest, knowing there was no turning back, he climbed upward, his four legged companion following right behind, until they emerged through a manhole cover the opened out onto the street of one of the cities where the mortals lived.

He stood there, marveling at the sights around him, as his body changed, the soot, horns, wings, and tail leaving him. His clothes also vanished. Now he looked like all the other humans who walked the streets, albeit it much less dressed.

The crowds that passed commented or considered his nudity. They referred to him as vulgar or obscene or well-endowed. Stared at him. But no one offered him even so much as shirt. Then, sensing a summons from his beast, he fled from the unkind crowd and found a dead homeless man lying in the street.

The animal pulled at his coat and Duo picked it up, gratefully.


-----part 3-----

Dr. Quatre Raberba Winner met the paramedics as they raced an angry young male patient into the corridor accompanied by a policeman.

"What's the story?"

"He tried to pay for his groceries with a gun and the old lady gave him his change with a 38."

"Let me up, you pig!" the gunman growled. "Damn you, pig! Let me up!"

"Okay, get me pressure bandages and start an IV." Quatre told the other doctors on his team. 

"We got another one!" a nurse called as an old woman, probably the one who'd given this guy the surprise bullet or two in change, was wheeled in on a gurney.

"Oh, we've got a bleeder here!" one of the nurses said, urgently.

"I'll kill you, you fuckin' bitch!" the gunman swore, coughing up blood and bits of something that was damaged inside of him. "I'll kill you!"

"Get him to surgery!" Quatre said, in disgust as he approached the other gurney. Reaching it, just as the nurse looked up with sad eyes.

"She's gone."


"Good work, Quatre." the nurse told him, after he'd managed to save the life of the gunman. "I didn't think he'd live."

"This world is going to hell." Quatre grumbled as he trudged down the corridor.


-----part 4-----

Quatre stood on the balcony of his apartment, watching the usual nightly ballet of old newspapers and wind, when he saw a young man walk into view. The young man didn't seem to be wearing anything but a long, dirty jacket. As he watched, his heart went out to the youth.

All at once, the young man looked up. Quatre was mesmerized by violet eyes that seemed to look into his very soul.

Then a horn sounded, and a car struck the young man.

Quatre called for an ambulance, then grabbed a blanket and hurried out to the street.

In minutes, Duo was at the hospital being raced down a corridor.

"We could be looking at a subdual, so let's get him prepped, just in case." he said. noting the young man's lack of any apparent injury.

After several tests, it was determined that the boy had not been badly injured. He was put to bed and the dog that had followed him was taken to the pound to be cared for until he could recover.

-----part 5-----

Quatre walked into the hospital room and shivered. "Nurse, what's going on. It's freezing."

"I know." the nurse told him. "We've moved him twice, and already the heat's broken down on us both times. It doesn't make any sense."

"That's just too weird." Quatre shook his head.

"You think that's weird. Look at this." the nurse pulled back the blankets, revealing the sleeping boy's rather nice erection, or rather the pup-tent it was making in his hospital gown. "That's the biggest one I've ever seen on a teenager in my life."

The nurse smiled, then left the room to tend to other matters.

Quatre replaced the blanket and fluffed the pillow.

"Can you hear me?" he asked.

The boy opened his beautiful eyes.

"I don't wish to alarm you, but you're in a hospital." Quatre told the boy. "You've been in an accident."

"Where's my beast?"

Quatre looked confused. But only for a moment. "Oh! You mean your dog. He's fine. They're watching him at the pound."

"I want him with me." Duo went to the window.

"Hey, I don't think that's a good idea.

"Who are you?" Duo asked.

"I'm your doctor." Quatre told him.

"What kind of doctor?" Duo asked. "Are you a priest?"

"Hardly." Quatre laughed. "Tell you what. You get back into bed, and I'll check up on your dog."

Duo returned to bed and Quatre tucked him in. "So, what's your dog's name?" Quatre asked.

"Shinigami." Duo replied.

"That's charming." Quatre smiled. "Can I get you anything to help you sleep?"

"No thank you." Duo closed his eyes. A second later, he was snoring.

Quatre shook him and even snapped his fingers at him. But the boy remained asleep. Concerned, he took out his stethoscope and placed it over the braided boy's chest. Instead of a heartbeat, he could hear people screaming in anguish. He pulled back the ear plug and listened to hear if it were coming from outside, a street brawl perhaps, but it wasn't. With a slight frown, he listened once more, then sat back and put his stethoscope away.


-----part 6-----

True to his word, Quatre called the pound. To his dismay, he discovered that Shinigami had done some damage to the property and had escaped the pound. 

"No, I'm sorry. I don't know who will be paying for the damages." He told them. "Look, why don't we discuss this at another time. Thanks." he hung up the phone. "Just great." he muttered as he went to tell his patient the bad news.

"Good morning, Quatre." the boy said as Quatre walked in.

Quatre barely managed to put some things that he'd brought along with him down without dropping them. "How'd you know my name?" he asked.

"I must've heard it spoken." Duo shrugged.

"I'm afraid I've got some bad news." Quatre confessed. No sense in holding it back. "I just spoke with the pound and it seems your dog has escaped."

"Its a beautiful morning, don't you agree?" Duo asked.

"Maybe you didn't hear me." Quatre repeated. "I said your dog escaped."

"My beast is fine." Duo replied. "See for yourself."

Quatre went and looked. The dog was sitting there, quietly, in the courtyard. "He's so well-behaved."

"His heart is pure." Duo replied, then, turning and looking into Quatre's eyes, he added. "Like yours, Quatre."

Quatre broke away and went over to the pile he'd put down earlier. "The staff put together some clothes for you." he told the boy.

"Thank you." Duo told him. "They say I'm to be released."

"Who said that?!" Quatre blinked.

"A slave." Duo replied.

"A slave." Quatre asked, nervously. He figured he probably meant a disgruntled orderly. The hospital was full of them. "Wait here a minute."


Within moments, Quatre was standing in front of Dr. J's desk, while Dr. J was clipping his nails. 

"I'm not happy just turning him out in the street." Quatre told his superior. "I think a few days are imperative for a good recovery. And besides..."

"These are patients, Quatre." Dr. J told him. "They aren't puppies. We can't take them home with us." he clipped another nail. "You know better than to get personally involved."

Behind him, the blood sample they'd taken from Duo shook with anger.


Quatre returned to Duo's room to give the young man the bad news. He'd managed to get the boy's first name, but nothing more. At least it was a start.

"I want you to accept me into your dwelling." Duo said to him.

"Duo," Quatre asked. "Where's your family? Don't you have a home?"

"I'm asking you to accept me into your dwelling." Duo repeated. This time, a beam of sunlight passed between them, and, as if in slow motion, the button directly over Quatre's heart popped off and dropped to the floor, unnoticed by its owner.

"You know, that's an excellent idea." Quatre decided. "I'll take you home right after my shift."

"Bless your immortal soul, Quatre." Duo replied, gratefully.

-----part 7-----

Quatre lead Duo to the apartment building where he lived. Surprisingly, at least from Quatre's point of view, Shinigami walked on ahead, stopping exactly in front of the building where he lived even before he and Duo turned onto the street where it stood.

"How on Earth?" Quatre asked, in amazement. To his even greater amazement, the dog walked right up to his doorstep inside the building and waited for them to arrive. "The dog even knows what apartment I'm in!"

Quatre opened the door and followed Shinigami into the apartment. The dog walked in and sat on the steps between the living room and the bedroom.

"Well, this is it." Quatre told Duo. "Can I get you anything? Are you hungry?"

"I have no needs at this time." Duo told Quatre.

"Well, please forgive me," Quatre apologized, "but I'm on call tonight. So I should try to get some sleep. But if you need anything, just holler."

"Sleep well, Quatre." Duo smiled. He watched as Quatre headed into the bedroom, then went to explore the house. He'd never been in a mortal household before and he was curious about how the mortals lived and what they ate.

In the refrigerator, Duo found a plastic lemon that contained artificial juice to be squeezed onto fish. Of fish itself, there was no sign. Actually, that was the only thing in the refrigerator as far as food was concerned. There was also a couple of cans of soda. But other than that, it was empty.

Duo closed the refrigerator. He wasn't going to be finding out how mortals ate tonight. But that was okay. He wasn't hungry, only curious. It could wait. 

Another thing he was curious about was the large rectangular box in the middle of the room. It was oddly designed, with a large window in the center that glowed a soft iridescent shade of lavender. He placed his hand upon it, curious as to what its function was. Nothing happened at first. Then, he noticed a series of buttons at the bottom. One was marked "channel". He knew what channeling was and wondered if this were some strange human way of doing it. To his delight, he found he wasn't far off. Images appeared in the magical window and he watched them curiously. Next to the magic box was a small device which, he discovered, bore the same name as the box. Pressing numbers on the device, he found that it made the channels from the box change from a distance.

Sitting back on the sofa, he flipped through the channels, unwittingly becoming the world's first demon channel-surfer. There was all kinds of evil to be found, but one particular image stood out among the others.

"...And as Queen of the World, I propose that we the people of Earth withdraw funding for the worlds' military forces and I propose we do it by the next elective session."

"Queen Relena, this move will put a lot of military families out on the street." A reporter pointed out.

"Yes." Relena replied. "But for the sake of world peace we must all do our share."

"That was Relena Peacecraft, at the steps of the Romweller Foundation." the reporter closed off. "Now back to our show, already in progress."

Duo slumped back and sighed, despondently.

Quatre woke about this time, it being morning already, and splashed some cold water onto his face. As he was washing up, he heard the TV going. He dried off, and went to join Duo on the sofa. "Duo, what's wrong?"

"Oh, Quatre." Duo sighed. "I knew there was evil in this world. But I never realized how much."

"...are children really being sacrificed in Satanic rituals in rural America?" a talk show host asked, cheerfully. "Stay tuned. We'll be speaking to a panel of moms who say they've done it themselves."

"Why are you watching this garbage?" Quatre turned it off.

"It's not in my nature to ignore evil." Duo told him.

"What do you mean?" Quatre asked.

"To ignore evil is to be its accomplice." Duo pointed out. "Now what about that Queen."

"Relena Peacecraft?" Quatre asked. "What about her?"

"She's evil incarnate." Duo replied, darkly. He looked up at Quatre with concern and wonder in his eyes. "How can someone like that be permitted to rule?"

"The people voted her in." Quatre admitted, embarrassedly. "Including myself."


-----part 8-----

"I'm just working a short shift, so I'll be home in a few hours." Quatre told Duo "There's some money on the counter, so if you or your dog gets hungry you can go to the store on the corner and pick up some food."

"Bless you, Quatre." Duo smiled as Quatre left.

Sometime later, Duo himself left the apartment, taking the money and keys Quatre had left behind. He was at a newspaper stand, looking at an image of Relena, when two nuns bumped into him.

"I abase myself." he said, instantly dropping to the ground when he saw their crosses.

"That's not necessary, dear." the older nun told him. "Come up here, dear."

Duo stood.

"Are you a runaway?" the younger nun asked.

"I have left home, yes." Duo confirmed.

"Perhaps you'd care to stop by for a sandwich." the younger nun offered.

"We offer temporary lodging in our church for young people who've lost their way." the older nun offered. "You'd be more than welcome to stay for a while."

"In a church?" Duo asked, in wonder. "I couldn't."

"Why not?" the older nun asked.

"I would... surely combust."

This made the younger nun nervous. "Then, here." she offered Duo a small golden cross.

Duo looked down at it, in wonder, then dropped it as ignited and began to burn.

"Why would you hurt me this way?" he asked, tears coming to his eyes. "I've always served the Lord well." he ran off into the night, ignoring the nuns' urgent calls to him.

In time, he found himself witnessing a mugging and would-be rape.

"Take the purse." one of the thugs told his accomplice. "I'll hold her." he ripped the woman's shirt, trying to tear it off, but she was putting up one terrific fight.

Duo picked up an iron post and advanced, his fingernails turning into long black claws as he gripped the weapon.

"We've got company." one of the muggers grinned. "Come on, Pretty Boy. Join the party."

Duo's eyes flashed, rooting the beckoning thug to the spot. Then, he threw the post as if it were a javelin, impaling the man.

"I... I know what you are!" the other said, turning and staring at Duo with terror. "P-p-please! Get away!" He turned and started to flee, but Duo grabbed him and thrust his hand into the man's back, yanking out his spine.

"Oh God!!!" the woman they'd been attacking stared in horror as Duo approached her carrying the dead man's backbone.

"Keep this." Duo offered it to her. "Look upon it to allay this memory." He returned to where Shinigami was already starting to feast upon the dead thugs. This would do just fine, he decided.

"Nice." he appraised, as one might appraise a fine steak.

-----part 9-----

Police Detective Heero Yuy approached his long-time partner, Police Detective Trowa Barton who waited for him at the recently discovered crime scene. "Kami!" he said, in disgust, as he eyed the two hanging corpses. Both had been hanged by their ankles and stripped of meat, as though they were carcasses in a slaughterhouse.

"I knew you'd be impressed." Trowa remarked.

"Talk to me." Heero said, by way of requesting information.

"Well, we have a witness." Trowa told him, looking over at the ambulance. "A woman. She's on her way to All Saints'. She was incoherent."

"I can't say I blame her. This is something." Heero was nearly speechless. He'd seen murders, but this was worse than anything he could imagine.

"Detective," one of the police officers said, noticing the coat that Duo had been wearing. Duo had taken it off, after killing the muggers, having not wished to walk around with a sinner's blood on him. "I think you'd better have a look at this."

As Heero examined the coat, Trowa peered at it over his shoulder.

"I guess they ain't *all* saints." he remarked.

Heero nodded and watched the rest of the evidence being collected. It was going to be a long night.

Trowa eyed the corpses, speculatively. "What'd you have?" he asked his partner. "Fish?"


-----part 10-----

"Duo," Quatre said on the phone. "If you're there pick up." there was a pause in which Duo answered the phone. "Just calling to see how you're doing." Quatre said, cheerfully. "I'll be home in a few hours so..." 

"These are the final days!" a distraught woman being brought in by wheelchair was proclaiming. "The demons! The demons from Hell are coming!"

"Oops!" Quatre apologized. "Gotta go!" he hung up the phone, and went to the woman's side, examining her. The woman was clearly terrified. "What's her story?"

"Found her at a murder scene over at Fifth and Willis. It was pretty bad."

"Great. Right by my apartment." Quatre sighed. "Get some valium!" he ordered the nurse, then, he turned his attention back to his new patient. "Just calm down miss. Just calm down." he said, gently, trying to soothe the poor woman.

The woman would not be soothed, however. She'd seen too much terror for that. 

Quatre made his decision. "Alright let's get her into the emergency room." he said, all this having happened in a span of two minutes.

"Doctor," Heero told him, "it is vital we speak to this woman just as soon as she's..."

"Coherent." Trowa supplied.

"I'll try to calm her down, detective," Quatre told him, "but I can't promise anything." he wheeled the wailing woman into the emergency room.

As the doors closed, Heero and Trowa were treated to one final chilling proclamation.

"Aaargh!" the woman screamed in warning. "The dogs shall eat their entrails!"

The two police detectives gave each other a quick glance, then watched through the tiny mesh-enforced windows of the emergency room doors as the woman was taken away.


-----part 11-----

Quatre walked into the house and found it even tidier than when he'd left. There were two lit candles on the table, and two places had been set, though the silverware wasn't what he'd normally use.

"Look at this place." he said, happily impressed. "You didn't have to wait up for me. And whatever you're cooking smells wonderful."

"Old family recipe." Duo smiled.

"Interesting place settings." Quatre observed.

"One only needs to look into your kitchen to notice you don't cook very often."

Quatre went into the kitchen and returned with two dinner knives and two forks. "Here, try these."

Duo found the small utensils did very nicely.

"This is delicious." Quatre said, tasting the meat and finding that delicious fell a bit short of the mark. "What is it?"

"It's a secret." Duo smiled.

Quatre shrugged, and took another bite. Something troubled him, but the meat was too delicious for him to speculate too much on what it might be.

"What's wrong?" Duo asked.

"Nothing." Quatre replied. "This meat is excellent." he took another bite.

"So, how were things on your shift?" Duo asked, eating a bit of his own meal.

"Mmm.." Quatre paused to swallow his food. He'd never tasted anything so delicious in his life. "There was one woman who came in." he said. "She witnessed a double murder. In fact, it happened in this neighborhood, so you've got to be really careful if you go out at night."

He looked up, to see if Duo was paying attention. He was, so Quatre continued. "These two detectives were all over this woman, trying to question her, but she was hysterical."

"Do they seek the killer?" Duo asked.

"Of course." Quatre said, taking another bite.

"Do they wish to reward him?"

Quatre blinked at Duo. "No, they want to lock up whoever did it and throw away the key."

"Maybe the slain were evildoers."

"It doesn't matter." Quatre told Duo. "We can't have people taking the law into their own hands. That's why we have police."

"Punishment of evil is the highest virtue one can ascribe to." Duo told the young doctor. "It's God's work."

"What's godly about hanging someone up by their feet and gutting them like cattle?"

Duo glared.

"I'm sorry to be so graphic." Quatre apologized. "It's just I heard these two cops talking about it." he decided to try a different tactic. "I believe all life is sacred." he told Duo. "That's why I became a doctor."

"Human life is a gift from God." Duo told Quatre.

"Exactly my point." Quatre said.

"And when a person dishonors this gift through deceit, fraud, or malice, then he or she deserves to be cast into the deepest pit of Hell." Duo said, with feeling.

"You don't seem to have any doubts about anything, do you?" Quatre asked. 

"I have no doubt when it comes to sin." Duo replied, darkly. "You have no idea how vile sin is in the eyes of God."

"Okay, I get your point." Quatre conceded with a smile.


-----part 12-----

In the pits of Hell, Duo's mother knelt in prayer before a small blue window that opened up onto Heaven.

"Powers of Heaven that keep watch on us here in the underworld," she prayed, "please keep watch over my implacable and savage little Duo. Keep him safe. Please bring the light of understanding to my dear husband."

A small sphere appeared above the praying demoness. Within was the smiling face of a young man who appeared to be of Chinese descent.

"Your son has broken with the traditions of your people." he said.

"I know that Duo has broken the law, I do not deny that." the woman nodded.

"Inform your husband to set aside his legendary wrath." the angel, Wufei, told the woman, "for Justice has willed, where Will is Law, that he be given over in his current endeavor to cleanse mankind and give hope to the downtrodden."

The demoness began to raise her eyes, her wonder causing her to momentarily forget herself.

"No. Do not look upon me." Wufei warned, smiling as the demoness quickly lowered her eyes again. "Be of good cheer, for your beloved son has been sanctioned by the First Cause."

The demoness let out a cry of joy and ran to tell her beloved husband of their son's good fortune.

Duo was free.

-----OWARI-----