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Disclaimer: I do not own the Gundam Wing boys, nor am I making
any money from this. The idea of a Confessor is from Terry
Goodkind's Sword of Truth novels. I am using them without
permission.
Warnings; AU shounen-ai, violence
Pairings; 1+2 3+4
The Confessor Series
Part 5
"So, Quatre. How long have you been out of the academy?" Duo
asked out of the blue as they made they way deeper into the
mountains. It had been three days since he had 'joined' the
small band of soldiers. At least they didn't try to tie him up
anymore, he reflected. He had willingly submitted to the
indignity but as soon as their backs were turned he would untie
himself. He was always there in the morning though, watching the
sunrise. They were smart enough to catch on to the fact that he
was going with them on his own accord and left it at that.
Quatre looked surprised at the question. "Only a few months. Is
it that obvious?" he asked.
"Quatre, my friend, you are so green, you offset the grass here.
Why did you join the military anyway if you want to be a mage?"
Duo wasn't a believer in tact. He figured that if you want to
know, you ask. Plain and simple.
"The only way to become a powerful mage is to get experience.
Joining the military will get you the most experience in the
shortest amount of time, if you survive. There are enough
occurrences of wild magic in the world that it makes it dangerous
to travel in uncharted areas. Most good commanders make sure
that they have a mage in their party to help counteract them."
Quatre shrugged. "There are so few mages that even I got a few
choices of companies."
"So why did you pick this one?" Duo was fascinated. He knew that
Quatre was being modest. The Academy of Magic's did not turn out
underachievers. You either graduated with honors or your body
was buried out back and your name was crossed off the roster.
"Captain Yuy is one of the best soldiers alive. He has a perfect
record of completing his missions so they give him the hardest.
That is where you get the most experience. It would take me
years to get that if I chose a guard squad."
Duo smiled at the small blond. He liked Quatre a lot. Of all
the soldiers, Quatre was the only one willing to talk. Of course,
Quatre wasn't really a soldier.
Just then, Trowa appeared cantering back to the group. He had
been scouting ahead. Now, though he looked concerned, or as
concerned as Trowa ever looked, which wasn't saying much. Duo
wondered if all soldiers had some mandatory behavior classes that
they had to pass before becoming real soldiers. Like: How To Not
Laugh 101, Grouchiness for Beginners and Duo's own personal
favorite, Looking Constipated Without Really Trying. Those three
must have been class leaders, he decided. Then immediately felt
ashamed. They seemed like decent people. What right did he have
to make fun of them?
"Report." Heero said as he pulled Wing to a stop before
Heavyarms.
"There is a village up ahead, about four miles. Something is
wrong." Trowa looked uneasy.
The other three clustered around, waiting for him to elaborate.
"There is no smoke from fires, which there should be this time of
day. There is no activity in the streets, nothing moves." Trowa
looked at Heero, knowing he would decide what they should do.
"Hn, nothing obviously dangerous then?" Heero asked. If there
were no overt dangers, they would stay on the path. He hated to
lose time taking unnecessary detours. At the same time, he felt
this should be investigated. Trieze had conquered this part of
the country so it was his duty to make sure that it was safe for
soldiers and travelers.
"Nothing obvious, no. Just deserted." Trowa confirmed.
"Alright, we'll go in in the following order. I will lead, then
Wufei. Quatre, you are next, then Duo. Trowa, you will bring up
the rear. Keep us covered with your bow. If anything looks even
the slightest bit wrong, do not hesitate to kill. Understood?"
Heero caught each of their eyes as he issued the orders. Duo's
heart was pounding with excitement.
"Lets go."
They made their way to the village, briskly but not hurrying.
When they got there, it was just as Trowa had described. It was
small, even as far as villages go. There were only a handful of
houses, one store and a small temple. They walked down the main
path of the village. And the strange thing was that nothing
moved. There was no sound of animals, not even birds. Just a
slight breeze rustling the trees made the only noise.
Duo shivered as they walked by the silent houses. Their windows
reminded him of the empty stares of the people he had used his
power on: blank, devoid of intelligence. He wanted to close
them. So they would stop looking at him.
Heero stopped Wing in the center of what passed for a village
square. He slid off of Wing and looked around thoughtfully.
"Split up and look around. Yell if you find anything. There
were people here not long ago. I want to know what happened to
them."
Duo made his way to a small cottage off to the right. It was
obvious that the occupants were poor, but the cottage had been
well cared for. A small garden, free of weeds, was in full bloom
near the unpainted fence surrounding the yard. A few toys were
scattered here and there. Duo could picture children happily
playing in the yard with those toys, leaving them there as they
ran when called for dinner. A doll that was nothing more than a
bundle of rags with eyes drawn on it leaned against the doorjamb.
Like the little girl who owned it had put it down just for a
minute and would be right back. He picked it up and walked
quietly into the cottage.
He paused for a few seconds in the doorway so his eyes to adjust
to the gloom. Dust motes filled the sunbeams that were stabbing
through the narrow slats in the shutters. The cottage was silent
except for a buzzing of a few flies. He took a step into the
main room, wincing at the creaking the boards made under his
boots. Unease began to seep through his body, like an itch just
out of reach. A thick cloying smell filled the room; some part
of Duo, deep inside began to insist that he get the hell out of
there now. But another part, the part that didn't want to let
his new comrades down kept him moving forward. He put the
rag-doll in his left hand and drew his knife out of its sheath,
grateful for its presence. It was the one that he had thrown at
Heero, who had been nice enough to return it, despite the
shoulder wound. When Duo had tried to apologies Heero had just
shrugged it off. He didn't even seem too angry about it.
He spotted something lying at the far end of the room near the
fireplace and cautiously made his way over to investigate. When
he got a few feet away he was able to see more clearly and dearly
wished he had listened to the first voice, the one that wanted to
leave.
A young boy, no more than nine or ten was lying in a crumpled
heap in a corner. A tremendous blow had caved in his head, his
eyes were still open, staring unseeing up at Duo as if pleading
with him to explain what he had done to deserve this. Blood and
gore clotted the fragments of skull that had splattered on the
wall behind him. The body lay in a thick pool of blood, dry and
black. Flies crawled over his face and in and out his parted
lips.
Duo ruthlessly clenched his stomach and his jaw, trying not to
vomit. He forced himself to look dispassionately at the scene,
trying to find details of the obscenity before him. Then his
eyes were drawn to a door leading to the back of the small
cottage. Knowing that he had to find out what happened, he made
his way to the door. He felt curiously suspended, like his legs
were no longer attached to his body. He felt like he was
watching from far away, he saw himself open the door and step
into the small back room.
It was a small bedroom. Undoubtedly the whole family slept there.
A small chest that held the clothes that they wore for nice
occasions lay open and ransacked on its side. Pallets that had
once been arranged neatly were now scattered here and there.
Under one of the overturned pallets, Duo saw a bloody hand lying
palm up on the floor as if in supplication. He edged his way
over to it and moved a blanket with his boot. The sight of a
middle-aged woman lying in a pile of her own intestines nearly
sent him over the edge, but he held on. He forced himself to
study her face. She had prematurely aged with harsh living
conditions and childbirth, but she had a pleasant face. One that
told you she would bake a pan of bread to comfort a skinned knee
or rock you back to sleep when there were monsters under the bed.
Lying next to her was undoubtedly her husband. His throat had
been cut so deeply Duo had no problem seeing the white spine
inside the huge gash. But it was hard to tell if that had killed
him, or the deep stab wounds in his chest and abdomen. The
copper smell of blood was so thick that Duo was surprised it
didn't cloud the air with its scent alone. Looking up, he saw
that it had splashed on the walls and pooled on the floor, making
it sticky under his boots. He forced himself to breath, in and
out.
"Look at this and remember, Duo." He whispered to himself. "I
will find who did this, and I will pay them back tenfold for each
hurt they have paid on this family. I swear by all the devils in
the seven hells, by Shinigami herself, this will be avenged."
A hand tapped him on the shoulder and he whirled around,
automatically reaching out to grab his attacker.
And found himself staring into cobalt eyes that flashed with
compassion at the horrific sight in the bedroom. Duo flushed
when he realized that he had been standing there staring for
quiet some time. Heero motioned for Duo to follow to follow him
back out into the sun. Duo was glad he hadn't spoke, it seemed
wrong to do so in that place.
"Is the whole village like this?" He asked, keeping his voice
soft.
"Yes, whoever did this was quite thorough." Heero confirmed in a
queerly flat voice. Every man, woman and child in this place had
been butchered and each home had been ransacked. The others had
gathered back in the square. Quatre was pale but composed.
Wufei was seething with rage, his black eyes practically shooting
off sparks. Trowa was more expressionless than usual. And Heero
was focused with an intensity that held the red, sullen glow of
obsession.
"We will find out who did this, and then we will punish them."
Heero bit off each word. He had a new mission.
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