DISCLAIMER: With the exception of the first two characters that you will
read in this chapter, none of these characters are mine. I might have a job
not, but I have a lot of college loans to pay off, so I really don’t have
any money! Well enjoy!


Trial by Fire
Part 3
by SkyLark


Colony M7, not far from Saturn, was a place of great beauty with the
greatest amount of people living there. In one of the largest man-made seas
there, a huge battle ship sailed silently. In the repair hanger of the ship,
A large Gundam lied on its back. The suit was almost a mirror image to that
of Wing Zero. This Gundam, however, was colored mostly in deep green, purple
and black. An amethyst stone lied where the green gem on the front of Wing
Zero rested. And the pilot of the suit sat by the entrance to the cockpit.

It was a young woman the same age as Heero. She had her long, silver hair
pulled back in a ponytail and her attire consisted of sneakers, a pair of
dark brown, spandex shorts and a dark purple, loose tank top. The black
straps of her sports bra could be seen at different spots. She typed away at
her laptop as she decided what modifications could be done to her suit.

She spoke in monotone as she told herself, “It should only take a day or two
to get these adjustments finished. I’ll have to ’borrow’ the parts from some
of the mobile suits I saw on this ship earlier.”

Just then, she heard something, or someone, moving just below her Gundam. No
normal person would have heard the noise, but being trained to hear
everything, the pilot picked it up right away. She removed her gun and back
flipped off of her suit, landing perfectly straight on her feet, pointing
her gun as the person she heard coming.

“Sette!?!” she called as she looked to the young woman before her. The young
woman with the gun aimed at her head laughed, “Nice to see you, too, Kumi!”

She removed her backward baseball cap to let her long, blue hair fall to her
waist. Her sneakers, vest, t-shirt and jean shorts gave off the tomboy look
she wanted to have.

“It’s been a while, boss!” the one called Sette smiled. “Six months,” Kumi
sighed as she placed her gun back in her belt.

“No hug?” Sette frowned. Kumi looked to her with the same look Heero would
always give Duo if he ever said something that he thought was illogical.
Sette shrugged, “I didn’t think so.” She turned and looked to the Gundam
suit next to them, patting the metal arm.

“What’s up, Excalibur!?!” she smiled. “I’m adding some of the modifications
that I’ve been trying to put on him,” Kumi informed her, still with little
or no emotion behind her voice.

“That’s cool. Luckily Gundamium can locate more Gundamium. It helped Mason
find your suit.” Kumi climbed back to where she was sitting as her comrade
followed her.

“So, how have you been,” the cheerful one of the two asked. Just before Kumi
could answer, a smile widened across Sette’s face as she gasped, “Wait!
Wait! I know...” she cleared her throat, stood like a statue and with her
voice in monotone, she answered, “Hn,” before Kumi could do the same, as she
had countless times before.

This was enough to bring a smile on Kumi’s face as she giggled lightly.
Sette laughed and crossed her arms, “Well, I’m glad to see that your sense
of humor has improved since the last time I saw you, boss.”

“Why do you insist upon calling me that?” Kumi asked. “Well, you’ve been a
Gundam pilot far longer that I’ve been, and you’re the only person that I
know who can fly and fight with the Zero system in her suit,” he friend
answered as she placed her cap on again.

“I’m not the only one,” Kumi replied, with a weight of sadness in her voice
now. Sette’s smile dropped. She sighed, “I know...I just never met Heero
yet. I take it you haven’t found your cousin since the end of the war yet.”
Kumi silently shook her head and stood.

“He’s more of a brother to me than a cousin. I’m sure that he’s fine...I
just miss him.” Sette nodded to herself.

Feeling the need to change the subject, Kumi looked to her friend and asked,
“How are things on your Colony?”. Sette shrugged, “Same crap, different
day.”

“As Princess of H7, didn’t you have to take a vow not to speak unless you’re
spoken to?” Sette went burst into hysterical laughter. “I was supposed to,
but protested. They got rid of that vow just to shut me up!” Kumi rolled her
eyes, “That doesn‘t surprise me.”

Sette laughed again as she stated, “Well, what I really came here to tell
you was that I have some engineers working on making that suit you and Heero
designed years ago. I gave them the blueprints.”

Kumi froze and looked at Sette in astonishment. “You have people working on
building Euphoria!?!” she gasped. Sette smiled and nodded, “As we speak.”

“How were you were able to find the Gundamimum needed to build the suit?”
The blue-haired pilot sighed and folded her hands behind her head, “It’s
practically sitting in my backyard.”

Still dumbfounded, the silver-haired pilot asked, “How the hell were you
able to get the resources needed for the construction!?!”

Sette stood straight, narrowed her eyes and had the first serious tone on
her since she and her friend were reunited. She began, “There is one thing
that separates me from any other Gundam pilot to exist...” a smile spread
across her face, but her tone remained the same as she concluded, “I’m
rich.”

The pilot of Excalibur broke off into laughter as she nodded, “I almost for
got.”

“So did I,” Sette sighed. “...I was happy.” There was a brief pause of
silence as Kumi smiled to her friend. “Well, thank you for doing that for me
and Heero. I can’t wait to see his face when he sees the suit finished. We
worked on those designs when we were in training with Doctor J.”

“They’re great designs, too,” Sette added. “The engineers kept saying that
designers who have worked on suits like this for years could never have
created something at all like that suit. They said to let you and your
cou-brother know that you did a hell of a job.”

Kumi nodded to the compliment. “I’ll be sure to tell Heero when I do find
him.” As she said this, she sat, turned her laptop back on and went back to
typing away after resting it pack on her lap.

“Oh! I almost forgot,” Sette gasped. “I meant to tell you ...Remember those
assholes we were after for a long time, the ones who went from Colony to
Colony, destroying cities.”

Kumi’s attention was captured as she turned to the other pilot and nodded,
“I remember them.”

“Well, they just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when
they visited H7,” the tomboy smiled.

“You caught them!?!”

She nodded, “Mason and I took good care of them. They’re over on S9 to await
trial. I think the whole thing starts tomorrow.”

Kumi smirked, “How did they react when they saw your Gundam?” “Oh! You know,
the same ’ol, ’IT’S A GUNDAM!!!’ yadda, yadda, yadda.”

Kumi giggled and sighed, “Thank God they’re going to get what they deserve.
Good job catching them, Sette.” Her friend bowed, “No need for thanks, all
in a day’s work...They were nasty bastards, though!...Commander Starks and
Lieutenant Reinhart are their names.”

Kumi almost dropped the laptop as her face turned white when she heard the
names. “What were those names again,” she questioned, almost unable to find
her voice.

Sette saw the look of fear and shock on the other pilot and answered,
quietly, “T-They’re Commander Starks and Lieutenant Reinhart. I think they
were on Colony L1 at one point.” The silver-haired pilot flew to her feet
and closed the computer.

“I have to go,” she announced as she quickly gathered all of her
belongings. “You’re heading to S9!?! I‘ll go with you,” Sette offered, taken
back by her friend’s sudden wish to leave.

“If I need you, I’ll send for you,” Kumi replied as she jumped into her
cockpit, sealing the front of it. Sette jumped off of the suit as it began
to stand itself up.

“Alright! I’ll see you again, Kumi! Take care of yourself!” she yelled up to
the Gundam. With that, the suit was immediately in fight as it took the
shape of a small craft, much like that of Wing Zero’s craft-mode.

Sette watched until the craft was out of sight and sighed, “Guess the work
of a ’Perfect Soldier’ is never done.”

************************************************************************

Heero and Duo had met with the prosecutor that afternoon. The trial was to
begin as scheduled the day after. That night, the two lovers sat up and
talked, wearing only their boxers. The only light came from the lamp beside
their bed. Duo’s hair was down as Heero began to run his fingers through it.

“So how are you holding up?” Duo asked quietly. Heero nodded, “I’m okay.
Just anxious for the trial to start.” Duo nodded back as he ran a hand
through Heero’s bangs. He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips.
Heero rested his forehead against that of the American.

“I love you,” he whispered to the American. A soft smile spread on Duo’s
face. “I love you,” he whispered in return.

Duo wrapped his arms around Heero’s body and embraced him tightly. The Wing
pilot melted into the hug and returned the favor as they just silently held
each other. “Make love to me, Duo?” Heero whispered in his ear. The plea
sent shivers throughout the American’s body.

“I was just about to ask you the same thing,” he replied the same way. They
looked into each other’s eyes before sharing a passionate, hungry kiss.

************************************************************************

The next morning, Heero and Duo walked into the courthouse, wearing suits
and walking side-by-side, their shoulders almost touching the whole time.
When they entered the front doors of the massive building, they began to
head to the designated courtroom in the midst of the huge, long hallways.
The courthouse was busy with countless people walking in and out of rooms.
Duo stopped and turned to his lover, a look of concern on his face. He
whispered, so that nobody else could hear him.

“Heero, maybe we shouldn’t walk so close, if anyone in there finds out that
we’re lovers, they’ll be talking about that when you go up to the
stand...they‘ll make you uncomfortable because of me.” Heero looked around
to see all of the people walking about.

He smiled to the man he loved, brushed a hand against his cheek. Duo wasn’t
sure how to respond so he simply stood there as a statue.

“H-Heero?” he whispered. Heero leaned in, pulled the American into him and
landed a hard kiss on his lips. Duo smiled in the midst of the action and
went on to kiss back. The kiss became deep and passionate in an instant as
the lovers held onto each other tightly. There were some small gasps and
quickly spoken words of shock and some in disgust around them. But neither
pilot paid any mind as they went on kissing passionately. When they
finished, they were both out of breath and sweating a bit as they turned to
see the countless stares and shocked expressions from the passer-byers that
stood frozen all around them. Heero and Duo began giggling at the audience
that they had.

Still in each other’s arms, Heero winked, “So let them talk.” He then took
Duo’s hand as his lover beamed and nodded to all of the people who still
stood frozen with their expressions. His nod and smile was good enough to
say, “Yep...He’s MINE!”

When they entered the courtroom, the biggest in the building, there were
almost on seats left to witness the trial from. Even the small balcony in
the back was full. The two pilots sat in the back. Soon, every seat was gone
as people proceeded to stand. The two soldiers were with their lawyers and
had their backs to the spectators. Heero didn’t need to see their faces to
feel the cold chill run up his spine. Fortunately, Duo detected the shiver
and squeezed his hand as he whispered, “It’s okay, love.”

Heero was not to be called on until after a few more trials. The lawyers of
the defendants were given the right to call their witnesses first. The first
two witness that had been called upon had down a wonderful job in trying to
clear the names of the men in question. Still, it was obvious by the end of
the first day that the case could have gone either way, had it not been for
the testimony that Heero would eventually give. Little did they realize that
three young men had been following them as they took their motorcycle back
to the hotel room. Duo was somewhat suspicious, swearing that he saw a black
car with tinted windows was following. But the man driving that car made
sure that he was not seen more than twice. Duo shrugged, thinking that he
was paranoid, and held tightly to Heero’s waist as he drove.

The couple entered their room as three pairs of eyes watched from their car.
“Gottch ya,” the driver smirked, removing his shades to show his deep green
eyes. “We’ll be seeing you tonight, Yuy,” the man in the passenger seat
growled. The man in the back leaned forward and asked, “So, how are we going
to do this?” He was obviously the youngest of the three and looked just a
bit nervous as he ran a hand through his short, light brown hair.

The driver turned and smiled to him, “Don’t worry, Johnson, we’ll be quick
with killing him.” Johnson’s brown eyes looked more calm at this point.
Matthews turned to the driver next to him.

“You have the stuff, Davis?” he asked. The driver nodded and pulled a small
duffel bag from under his seat. “Never leave home without them,” he
answered. Mathews laughed, “Good. We’ll get rid of Heero Yuy and his friend
in one swipe.”

Davis sighed as he lied his head back, his red hair shining in the light
coming from outside beyond the tinted windows. “I still can’t believe that a
mere kid is considered the ‘Perfect Soldier.’ He cant be more than
seventeen.”

Johnson replied from the back, “Don’t let his looks deceive you. Apparently
a lot of people made that mistake, a fatal mistake at that.” Matthews
nodded, “That’s right. While there is no way to be sure as to whether or not
his friend is a Gundam pilot as well, it would be best to assume that until
we know for certain.”

Davis agreed, “So, we hit tonight. The security at this place is easy to get
through, with Johnson taking care of the surveillance cameras. After the
explosion, there won’t be anything left of the powder that’s set it off.”
The soldiers nodded in acceptance of the plan as Davis pulled out of the
spot they rested in. Driving past the hotel, the driver looked to stare at
the room that their target and his lover went into.

“Pleasant dreams, Yuy,” Davis whispered as an evil smile went across his
face.

************************************************************************

Heero and Duo spent the remainder of the day and early evening outside once
they changed out of their suits and into more comfortable attire. They
avoided the subject of the trial once they left the courthouse. It was just
best left unmentioned unless they needed to discuss it. Right now, the need
was not there. After eating at a restaurant near the park they both loved,
they drove to the huge, manmade lake just beyond the city to watch the
sunset together along the shoreline.

Just their luck, they were the only people for miles that had the same idea,
they learned. On the grass just beyond the water, Heero sat between Duo’s
spread legs as the American wrapped his arms around the front of his chest.
Duo had his head rested on his lover’s shoulder as Heero rested his head
against his and wrapped his arms over those that embraced him. They sat
there quietly as they took in the beauty. Though the sunset was not natural,
it was still enough for them to stay and watch. At least when the faze into
night would allow them to see the stars that burned all around the Colony.
The ‘sun’ was almost gone when the silence between them was broken.

Duo placed a soft kiss on Heero’s temple. The Japanese soldier then turned
to look at his lover and smiled. “I think the others are onto us,” he
giggled. Duo’s eyes shot opened as he gasped, “Are you sure?”

Heero’s smile grew as he nodded, “I know that Trowa’s the closest to
figuring it out that we’re together, if he hasn’t figured it out all ready.”
The violet-eyed pilot laughed, “Well, you’ve been staying there since I
stayed at L2 for a while. We’ve been living at our beach house when we don’t
spend weekends with them.”

Duo then looked at the other pilot as a look of concern fell on his face.
“We can’t hide this from them for much longer if you’re sure that Trowa’s
close to putting his finger on it. I honestly feel bad that we haven’t told
them from the start,” he stated.

Heero nodded, “I do, too, love. I just didn’t know the right way to tell
them.” Duo nodded, “Same here. It’s not like we can just go up to them and
say, ’Guess what guys!?! The reason the two of us have been so close is
because we have been madly in love with each other since pretty much the
first time we met...Oh and now we’re lovers!...Just wanted to let you
know!’”

Heero laughed at just the thought of that confession, and the reaction that
it might get. Duo laughed with him. Then he squeezed the young man in his
arms a bit. “We’ll tell them, together...as soon as the trial is over,”
Heero promised him as he kissed Duo’s lips softly.

Duo smiled and sighed with relief, “Okay.” After a brief pause, he went on
to ask, “How do you think they’ll react?” Heero didn’t even think about it
as he answered, “It really doesn’t matter. Whether they accept it or not, my
feelings for you will never change. I’m sure that they’ll get used to the
fact that we’re together. But even if they don’t, that won’t change anything
between us, I promise that.”

The American’s face lit up as he landed several, soft and quick kisses all
over his love’s face. “Thank you, Heero. You have no idea how much that
means.” His lover smiled and kissed him passionately.

The stars were now out in the dark sky above them. Neither of them wanted to
leave that spot, but they knew that they needed to prepare for another long
day in court. The trail was being sped up, in regards to the fact that the
crime in question was being broadcast all over space and Earth. The lawyers
and prosecutor were only allowed five people to call upon each, beginning
with the lawyers. The court system had changed greatly from the way that it
had been in the beginning into the 22nd century. It was especially different
when it came to trials of this magnitude. Neither pilot was complaining,
since they wanted to see Reinhart and Starks behind bars as soon as
possible. The sooner the better. The trial was expected to last, at the
longest, three weeks. Many had reason to believe that it would not even take
that long.

That day, the second person to stand and give a testimony in the favor of
the accused was able to get through the questions of the defendant’s
lawyers. Tomorrow, the prosecutor would have the chance to cross-examine.
When he was finished, there would be only three more to go before the
prosecutor would call the fife he had planned to call upon. Then, there
would be closing statements from the lawyers and the prosecutor. And of
course, the rest would be up to the jury.

Back in the hotel room, the couple stayed up and watched some sitcoms to
keep them entertained. Heero fell asleep around 9 o‘clock. Duo smiled and
gently tucked him under the covers. Turning the television off, the room was
left in complete darkness. Duo smiled and kissed Heero’s forehead.

“I’ll be back soon, hon,” he whispered as he slipped out silently. He was
waiting for the opportunity to sneak out. He walked down to the motorcycle
and sped off.

When he returned, he had a huge smile on his face as he climbed the stairs
back to the room. It was almost one in the morning when he returned. Duo
never intended to stay out so late, but he was elated at the surprise that
he picked up for his lover. So, to get rid of some of the energy he got from
the second wind, he took the chance to drive throughout the city for a
while. He was just about to enter the room when a strange, heavy smell hit
him as he cracked the door opened slowly.

“What the-!?!” he asked himself as he covered his nose and mouth with his
right hand. It only took a second to register. Doctor G had taught him how
to direct the smell of natural gas. “HEERO!?!” he cried as he threw the door
opened and ran to the bed where his lover lied.

As he reached the bed, Duo noticed a thin, nearly invisible, thin trail of
some powder. “SHIT!” he screamed as he lifted Heero into his arms and ran
outside with him.

He then saw that the trail of powder ran down the long patio of hotel rooms,
with a flare eating up the end quickly as it made its way to the room filled
with gas. Duo clutched onto his lover tightly as he made a break for it down
the stairs. Just as he reached the bottom, the flare made it to the room.
The explosion was enough to blow apart almost every room on the second
level. Duo knelt and held Heero tight to avoid the debris that flew all
around them. He was hit and cut by several pieces of metal, stone and other
materials. He wasn’t even thinking of the pain, his concern was with the
pilot that he held.

After the blast, Duo’s back was slashed and bleeding all around. He caught
his breath and looked down to Heero’s unconscious face.

“HEERO!?!” he cried as he tried to revive him. Luck was on their side that
night as the sound of sirens came soon. The hotel was located just a block
from the several of district’s rescue stations. Three ambulances, fire
trucks and five police cars screeched to a stop just before the hotel. Duo
carried Heero onto a stretcher and jumped into the first ambulance with him
as they were rushed to the hospital.

In the ambulance, the rescue workers placed an oxygen mask on Heero and
pumped at his chest to start his heart again. Duo held his lover’s hand
tightly with both of his.

“Don’t leave me, Heero! You have to fight this!” he yelled in the midst of
the commotion of the efforts of the rescue staff. He kissed the hand and
kept in close to him as the ambulance continued to speed off.

The firefighters and the medical staff did everything they could to save any
and everyone still in the hotel. Fortunately, there was only room that was
filled with gas. The people caught in the blast didn’t face any fatal
injuries, since the rooms beside the room that had been blown apart were
vacant. As the fire raged on, a black car with tinted windows slowly drove
past the inferno. The three passengers watched the efforts to save people
and to stop the fire with nasty smiles on their faces.

Matthews chuckled, “Mission accomplished.” The car drove off in the midst of
the confusion, not to ever be noticed by the police.

TBC