Chapter 5 / 20
Written by Jessi Maxwell - send C&C to Megami_no_Remon@hotmail.com
Taulis was nervous as hell. He heard the clanging of huge mobile suits stomping around for hours. He felt the slight vibrations of the ground as they walked around. He turned on the viewscreen of the camera he had set up outside. He swore and broke into a sweat as the sight of a Gundam looking almost directly at him. But, luckily for him, the camera was well hidden. As he switched views he saw that 2 other Gundams were there too, and they were all like a set of worried parents looking for their lost child. The fourth had flown off. For hours Taulis fretted, worried that they would find some clue as to their companion's whereabouts. That would be simply disastrous. He'd be killed for sure.
A morbid thought occurred to him, and he giggled. At least this was something to do! He had been here for over a day, and had quickly discovered that there was NOTHING to do. His Leo had no damage, so there was nothing to repair. He wandered around, doing basic maintenance on the other suits, which really didn't need it. He recalibrated his weapons. He even crawled up to the Gundam to take a look at the world from its eyes. It was WAY more advanced and nice than any suit he had ever seen. It smelled faintly of some flower; he didn't know which, he had never been interested in such things. Eventually he stopped playing around, an image of a small child pretending to 'drive' when their parent was somewhere and they were inside the car, which was not on, popping to mind.
Then, he sat at his desk for a few hours. There was NOTHING to do, and it was clear he was going to be here for a LONG time. What if OZ DIDN'T come? Best not think about that. They would come. They had to.
After the sun set, the Gundams gathered, and the one that had left earlier returned. They stayed there for a few moments, likely discussing something. Then, they lifted off and headed away. Taulis crowed with delight.
"Haha! Two points for Taulis Majeare!" he laughed as they disappeared from sight. He stayed with the camera, watching the screen, until he fell asleep at his desk.
~ ^ * ^ ~
Quatre felt a surge of hope as he heard the solid thunk of 4 separate mobile suits landing. He knew it was them. They had come to rescue him! He heard one lift off...someone must have decided to look around elsewhere. Oh praise Allah, he was going to get out of here! He smiled happily, crawling to his feet to alleviate some of the pressure on his raw wrists. He couldn't wait to get out of here!
Many hours later, his mood had darkened. He got worried. // What if they don't find me? Why haven't they found this place? What's wrong? // He heard the clang as one of the Gundams fell, and he wondered briefly if they were under attack. No further noise ensued. It was all quiet. // No! // he silently cried out. // No, don't leave! I'm here! Please, please come back! No! I'm here! Here! Please! //
His plea didn't reach the pilots above. They hadn't realized this base even existed, here underground. Tears trickled down his cheeks as he briefly despaired. // No! They won't give up on me. Until they find my body, or my Sandrock, they won't give up! They won't...will they?... //