"It was so real, when I woke up I expected to see him lying there. I expected to see his smile, to hear his good morning, to be able to tend to his wounds. But it was only a dream, and the emptiness only mocked me. I couldn't stand to wait any longer, not after that. I organized the raid immediately, and I pushed things as fast as I could, even though I knew it meant that I would fail my mission. I made myself a new mission; to make the dream into a reality."
As he talked, one hand rested on the computer, not typing any longer, just keeping it there. Neither of us were prepared for the sudden explosion, for the harsh crackle of lightning or the bright explosion of sparks. Dark smoke plumed from the piece of machinery as both of us jerked away from it; more smoke than was natural, it filled the air and dimmed the light. No, that wasn't the smoke, it was the lights themselves. Dimming, dying. And it was too cold; my breath frosted into clouds.
But -- I realized with a sinking feeling of dread -- not Heero's. Not Heero's.
He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the room, away from the electrical fire, into the corridor. It was dark there, too, and we could faintly hear sirens and claxons going off in the distance. In the hallway, Heero grabbed onto my shoulders, leaned in to my ear and began to speak again. "We reached the base --"
"Heero!" I shouted, clutching at his shoulders, panic overwhelming me. "Heero, it's Duo -- it has to be! We can't talk about this now --"
"We have to." His voice was urgent, but resigned. "I don't have much time left --"
"--we have to do something, stop him!"
"There's nothing you can do, Quatre, except listen! I can't hold on for much longer!"
I stood, stunned, and he seemed to take my silence for acquiescence; he struggled on. "We did the run as planned. It was a mess. There were... casualties. Not as many as I thought there would be. But too many. We secured the base. Found where they kept the prisoner, brought in the doctors. Opened the hole they kept him in and brought him out. He was, he was worse than in my nightmare. His hair... they cut off his hair. He was so thin. So tiny. Broken. And then I realized that he wasn't moving." His hands clutched at my shoulders, and he sank to his knees. His grip was so tight, and my legs so unsteady, that I went to the floor with him. A trickle of blood ran out of the side of his mouth; he ignored it. "And then, and then... I knew I had failed him, failed myself, failed my mission, failed my men, failed everything. Everything. Do you understand, Quatre? It was never your fault -- it was never anyone's fault but mine --" He choked and coughed, and when he blinked a drop of blood ran from the corner of his eye like a tear. His eyes no longer focused on me, and his movements became sluggish, uncoordinated. His hand reached out, groping blindly, and I automatically caught it in my own. He tried to speak once more, blood spilling from his mouth. "Tell Wufei -- take over -- tell Duo -- tell him that I --"
Through his hand, I felt it hit him. He convulsed once, and it passed to me; it surrounded me like a tidal wave, drowning me, battering down walls I never even knew I had. I tried to let go of his hand, but it was much too late, as everything that made up Heero Yuy was torn away into darkness.
Re: Torn 6
Date: 2006-02-21 11:31 am (UTC)As he talked, one hand rested on the computer, not typing any longer, just keeping it there. Neither of us were prepared for the sudden explosion, for the harsh crackle of lightning or the bright explosion of sparks. Dark smoke plumed from the piece of machinery as both of us jerked away from it; more smoke than was natural, it filled the air and dimmed the light. No, that wasn't the smoke, it was the lights themselves. Dimming, dying. And it was too cold; my breath frosted into clouds.
But -- I realized with a sinking feeling of dread -- not Heero's. Not Heero's.
He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the room, away from the electrical fire, into the corridor. It was dark there, too, and we could faintly hear sirens and claxons going off in the distance. In the hallway, Heero grabbed onto my shoulders, leaned in to my ear and began to speak again. "We reached the base --"
"Heero!" I shouted, clutching at his shoulders, panic overwhelming me. "Heero, it's Duo -- it has to be! We can't talk about this now --"
"We have to." His voice was urgent, but resigned. "I don't have much time left --"
"--we have to do something, stop him!"
"There's nothing you can do, Quatre, except listen! I can't hold on for much longer!"
I stood, stunned, and he seemed to take my silence for acquiescence; he struggled on. "We did the run as planned. It was a mess. There were... casualties. Not as many as I thought there would be. But too many. We secured the base. Found where they kept the prisoner, brought in the doctors. Opened the hole they kept him in and brought him out. He was, he was worse than in my nightmare. His hair... they cut off his hair. He was so thin. So tiny. Broken. And then I realized that he wasn't moving." His hands clutched at my shoulders, and he sank to his knees. His grip was so tight, and my legs so unsteady, that I went to the floor with him. A trickle of blood ran out of the side of his mouth; he ignored it. "And then, and then... I knew I had failed him, failed myself, failed my mission, failed my men, failed everything. Everything. Do you understand, Quatre? It was never your fault -- it was never anyone's fault but mine --" He choked and coughed, and when he blinked a drop of blood ran from the corner of his eye like a tear. His eyes no longer focused on me, and his movements became sluggish, uncoordinated. His hand reached out, groping blindly, and I automatically caught it in my own. He tried to speak once more, blood spilling from his mouth. "Tell Wufei -- take over -- tell Duo -- tell him that I --"
Through his hand, I felt it hit him. He convulsed once, and it passed to me; it surrounded me like a tidal wave, drowning me, battering down walls I never even knew I had. I tried to let go of his hand, but it was much too late, as everything that made up Heero Yuy was torn away into darkness.
And took me with him.