Tsuka No Ma No (Ephemeral)

-----part 1-----

OZ fighters fell before the combined power of the five Gundams, each one treated to a variety of remarks, such as:

"Omae o korosu!"

"Shinigami is here! Time to DIE!!!!"

and....

"I'm sorry. Really. I wish you'd just surrender. Please? I really dislike doing this."

"I'm picking up interference on your line, Quatre." Duo warned.

"Someone's trying to hack into my systems." Quatre confirmed. "Hold on. I'm going to..."

Then, Sandrock's self-destruct went off.


"QUATRE!" Duo screamed. "NO!!!!" He turned his rage on the OZ fighters, not even noticing the warnings that his own Gundam was also being hacked.

A moment later, Deathscythe exploded.

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

Quatre blinked in confusion at his new surroundings. Where was he? Last he remembered, he'd been in a battle and something had gone wrong. Something wrong with his Gundam.

//I'm in the hospital.// he thought. //This is a recovery area for some kind of hospital. It's nice. Very very beautiful.// He walked along the plushy white carpet until he came to a large alabaster door. "Hmmm. This is an awfully large hospital." he said, speaking aloud to comfort himself in the silence.

A familiar chuckle answered, but when he turned, he saw he was still alone.

//You're hearing things, Quatre. Must be a concussion. Go back to bed.// he blinked. When had he been in a bed? This was getting weirder by the moment.

///Quatre Raberba Winner,// a voice that was not his own reached into his mind. //come forth.//

Quatre was compelled to obey. He walked into the room beyond the alabaster doors...

.... and froze in utter shock.

*****
Heero kicked, violently, at the pieces of Deathscythe. //You bastard!// he thought, angrily. //You were supposed to protect him! Why didn't you protect him?! You let Duo die!// he wasn't sure whether the sentiments were directed at Duo's now destroyed Gundam or at himself.

With tears in his eyes, Trowa approached the Perfect Soldier and put a hand on his shoulder. He'd also lost someone he loved. Quatre had meant worlds to him, and now that the innocent, sweet soldier was gone, it was as if an emptiness had entered his heart.

Heero turned and looked at Trowa, seeing the tears in the other pilot's eyes. Then, he turned his eyes in the direction of the OZ base.

"Omae o korosu."

*****

"Quatre, listen," Duo told him, "It's not your time yet. You have to go back to Earth. You're going to go through a hard time for a while. You've been temporarily paralyzed, but you *will* walk again."

"You're coming back with me, right?" Quatre asked.

Duo shook his head. 'I'm sorry, Quatre." he told the blond pilot, looking back at the dark wings now outstretched behind him. "I can't."

"Then, I'm not going either." Quatre told him.

Duo looked over at a tall archangel who stepped forward.

"Quatre, Duo cannot return to Earth. He is needed here. He is loved here. He will be happy."

Quatre was crying. "Duo..." he sobbed. "I don't want to lose you."

"You won't." Duo kissed Quatre's forehead. "I promise. I will always be there for you."

"Duo...." Quatre closed his eyes and felt his soul settling back into his body.

*****

"Duo....?"

Trowa turned. "Quatre?!" 

"Duo?" Quatre looked around.

"Duo's dead, Quatre." Trowa explained

"No... he ... he can't be..." Quatre shook his head. "He promised he'd always be here for me." He felt something stir in his uchu-no-kokoro. In his mind he heard Duo's voice as it whispered.

//I will.//

-----Owari-----