Title: Two Worlds

Author: Lyndaura
Rating: Back to PG-13
Warnings: Um, none really for this chapter. Maybe some weirdo stuff, but mostly just plot development. Stupid plot, always getting in my way. A little language, nothing heavy.
Authors Notes: Only a few this time. Pyro George sucks, and I think I need more coffee. I can''t think when I am caffeine deficient. And I think I am going to get the website hosts angry with me by writing all this stuff and forcing them to post it all. Muhahahaha! Well, finally, lets get back to the neglected GUNDAM WING PILOTS!

Part 4: Decisions

""Mission denied.""

Heero felt the sting of the words in his mind. Why couldn''t they join the two worlds? Heero couldn''t see any significant reason why the two worlds could not be united, but he knew nothing of this world, and nothing of the procedure involved. Heero decided to inquire about the decision at a later date, but now he focused his attention on the scene unfolding before his eyes.

Terra was fuming over the last statement and Heero feared with good reason, for Katara''s and Luke''s lives. Heero braced himself for a battle that was brewing between the three.

""What did you say?"" Terra took a step closer to the couple.

""Mission denied. To accept would be to destroy the two worlds, as we know it, and make a way for class 6 ghosts. I cannot in good conscience accept this mission,"" Luke stood firm in his decision. He paled at Terra''s obvious aggressiveness toward his actions, but he had no choice. He knew what joining the two worlds would do, and he couldn''t let that happen.

""Do you know what declining your mission means?"" Terra snarled at the rebellious man.

""Yes I do,"" Luke bowed his head solemnly, but then raised his head, as he stood upright. He tried his best to appear intimidating before Terra, but she knew better. Luke couldn''t scare her. She was ten times as powerful as him, and more experienced. She also had rank behind her, and he couldn''t compete with that.

""I will be forced to kill you and Katara immediately,"" Terra withdrew a staff and pointed it at them. It was quite similar to Katara and Luke''s staff, only the small diamond on the end was black. Pure black. Heero mused to himself that it was a fitting colour given her attitude and past transgressions.

""I suggest you do not even try. Katara is in control of the demon now, but if you were to attack her now, in this state, she could easily lose control and we would all be slaughtered,"" Luke picked Katara up and held her protectively against his ample chest.

""Although I hate to admit it, you do have a point. I will spare you for the moment, but be aware that there will be military personnel from both worlds hunting you down. You are no longer safe. You will not survive the month. I can guarantee that Luke. I am sorry to lose such a good soldier as you. Goodbye my friend,"" Terra nodded her dismissal and turned to leave.

""You realize that I will try to stop you. And I will survive the month, and so will Katara. I promise you that, and I never break a promise,"" Luke calmly informed his ex-superior officer.

""I understand that, but I believe that you are gravely mistaken. But ignorance is bliss, and you are in a constant state of euphoria my friend. Now, I must take my leave. Goodbye Luke. Give my regards to Katara when she awakens,"" in wisp of wind she departed. It left a sour taste in Luke''s mouth to have her so cool and calm in her attempt to kill him. He knew that living through the next few months was going to be a strenuous and difficult, but he would endure to at least the end of the month. He would live to see Terra fail. For perhaps the first time
in her life, Terra would fail, and Luke was going to see to it.

It was a small calm assurance in his mind. It wasn''t just a thought, or a plan of action, it was a steady knowledge that he would succeed. There was no doubt left to convince him otherwise.

""What now?"" Heero''s question startled all of them. They had fallen into a lapse of silence since Terra had left, and now they were left wondering the same thing. Heero was only the first to voice his thoughts.

""We have to get out of here. The town will try to kill us once they realize we are responsible,"" Luke shifted Katara in his arms and began to walk out the crumbled door.

""What do you mean US? WE didn''t do anything, KATARA did,"" Wufei hissed.

""The townspeople will view you as no different. Their husbands, their wives, their sons, their friends, they are all dead. In their minds, justice is blind and wrathful. Any survivors are guilty. It is unfortunate, but you are stuck with their mindset. Though I assure you that you will get a chance to depart from Katara and I, you must stay
close to me now, or you will surely die,"" Luke''s heart went out to the five pilots. He had no idea what he was getting into by accepting the mission to be their guides.

""Where are we going?"" Heero needed to know details before he trusted this man.

""There is a town nearby which we can get supplies at. Katara and I need to stop Terra. There is no choice. Your choice lies in whether or not you choose to help us or not. I would not blame you if you were to decide against helping us. Along the way to the town, there is a river. Katara can wash up there, and then you can make your decision. Please don''t take the decision lightly though. I couldn''t ask you to risk your lives by helping us, but we need your help more than you realize. If not for us, then for your own world. I beg for your assistance. Do not answer now, but be aware of my request, that is all I ask.""

""What is it that is so dangerous about joining the two worlds?"" Heero had to ask. In order to obtain the best assessment, Heero would have to be more informed. The more informed he was, the better the assessment.
Heero thought about what was being brought before him and understood what the man was requesting. Heero knew that Luke would be risking his life in what he was about to do and he was asking Heero to do the same.

""Come, I''ll explain on the way. Right now we need to get the horses and get out of here,"" Luke could feel the presence of the angered townsmen growing closer, the grief fueling their hatred.

Heero, Wufei, Duo and Trowa followed Luke out. Luke was carrying Katara, and Trowa was handling Quatre in the same manner. They could all feel the tension as people drew nearer to them, ready for vengeance.

Luke called the stable master over. The grateful servant, still under the influence of Katara, led the horses to them. The horses were groomed, fed and restocked with money, blankets and food. Luke was thankful for Katara''s liberal use of her magic for once. Without it, they would probably not be able to get the horses, or the extra utilities.

Luke rode quietly down the rode and then abruptly halted and turned down the fault line created by the earthquake.

""Where are we going?"" Duo asked surprised at the sudden change in direction.

""To the river. It would be wiser to take this route instead of heading through the town,"" Luke answered easily.

As Luke turned his horse the others followed, but the two unoccupied horses began to stray. With a small glow of Luke''s staff, they were guided back to the correct path.

""How did you do that?"" Duo asked amazed.

""Do what?"" Luke responded innocently.

""You just made the horse come back to us,"" Duo explain his question further.

""Oh, that? I told you, my staff allows me to manipulate energy to control any of the four elements to an extent. Animals are included in earth. I know that sounds weird, but I have the ability to plant thoughts into animals, but nothing with a conscious mind. Katara''s the one that can control people,"" he smiled wistfully.

""You like her don''t you,"" Duo earned a sharp glare from Wufei. Sometimes he had no manners.

""I do, and she knows it. She''s just having fun at my expense. I''ve liked her for decades, and she has just shrugged off all my advances. I can understand her not returning my feelings, but she has this way of teasing me about it. She uses it against me in arguments, and she plays upon it when we are alone. She enjoys tormenting me about it, and I like her nonetheless for it. I''m an idiot, but a happy one at that. I just can''t stand to see her hurt like she is right now.""

""Ouch,"" Duo was certainly not expecting that sort of openness from Luke at that point. But he supposed Luke must have been waiting to share that frustration for a long time.

""Tell me why it is so important to stop the merger of the worlds?"" Heero changed the subject purposefully.

""The two worlds joining in itself is not that bad. A fraction of the population will die because their double on this world is either dead, or incompatible, but most will cross over successfully. Basically what that means, is that the doubles from the two worlds will merge together to form one person. They will take the form of the stronger bodied of the two, and the two minds will exist as one. The process of merging two people has been preformed before, but it a difficult and risky procedure. The worlds will then merge, and everyone will probably be transported to this world, because it is about three times the size, and less polluted. The only problem is the rip in the barrier,"" Luke took a deep breath, making sure he wasn''t missing anything and that the pilots understood, ""the rip in the barrier to merge the two worlds will leave an opening to the ghosts. You have been told about the ghosts before. The rips that are made by people passing from one side to the other are relatively small, and only class one or two get through, occasionally class three or four if it is big enough, and once or twice there has
been a class five. But there is a class six, and if the rip is large enough, it will come. The world cannot survive a class six. I am almost sure of that fact.

""There is also another threat. Besides the ghosts that we have to deal with, the two people that brought the worlds together will merge. They will then become immortal, invincible and they will have infinite supply
of energy. With King Dirk and Terra''s father merged and invincible, they will rule the world. Their rule will be a military rule of death and destruction. We can''t let that happen,"" Luke sighed. The difficulty of the mission did not deter him. He had to continue. The fate of the world rested on his shoulders.

""So you''re saying that if the merger of the worlds were to occur, King Dirk would be invincible and all powerful while reigning in violence, while class six ghosts ravaged the planet, and many would die due to
unsuccessful merges with their doubles?"" Wufei summed up.

""Generally, yes. It is slightly more complicated than that, but that is basically true,"" Luke nodded casually.

""What would be involved in stopping them?"" Heero asked cautiously.

""In order to join the two worlds, both sides need to gather the three neutrally charged stones. Terra''s father already had obtained the three stones on Earth, and all that is needed is the one remaining stone on Castalia, then there is no stopping it. We need to find the stone and destroy it. After that, there will be no threat of the merger and you may return to wherever you came from,"" Luke concluded heavily.

""You are asking us to go up against a superior military power, to go into unknown territory with unspoken dangers, and to fight for something that is not our fight. All in all a losing battle,"" Wufei casually remarked.

The words stung Luke but he knew that what Wufei spoke was true.

""I cannot argue against you, but may I be able to bring forth the idea that if I am unsuccessful that your world will be affected too?"" Luke chose to remain silent and let the pilots think about what he had said. They were used to fighting and all had a warrior''s spirit, but even warriors grew weary of war. They were so young, and they need not be involved in more fighting, but did they have a choice? He was backing them into a corner on this, forcing them to risk their lives for a concept vaguely familiar to them. He hated what he was doing, but he had to do it. There was no choice, he needed them.

""How do we know that you are telling the truth?"" Wufei finally brought up a question that had crossed the others'' minds more than once.

""What use would lying to you be? I suppose I could tell you that I don''t tell lies, and I don''t deceive, but what value would that have to you? I guess the only thing that I can offer is Terra''s actions, and my actions against her. I guess you could even argue that to be a very elaborate deception itself. But would we go as far as to kill dozens of people in such a cruel manner as to just trick you into destroying a stone that would be worth thousands, perhaps millions on Earth? Why would we not just use Relena against you instead of going to such lengths to trick you? I know I cannot offer you something substantial now. I suppose you will have to trust me. I guess that''s what it comes down to. Do you trust me?"" Luke looked at Wufei and knew that the solitary dragon was not one to easily trust. Luke would have to admire that quality if it were not for the fact that it was making this an extremely difficult decision for the others.

""Quatre''s waking up,"" Trowa halted his horse and set Quatre down on the ground.

Quatre''s eyes fluttered open with bewilderment and he smiled.

""I don''t feel anymore pain,"" he directed his statement to Luke rather than to the others.

""Katara is fine now. I''m sorry you had to go through that,"" Luke apologized though it was not his place given he had no role in the past events.

""I''m glad she''s fine, but what about you? If you went through what I had to, then I would be as worried about you as Katara,"" Quatre was always the compassionate one.

""I''ll be fine. As soon as Katara wakes up and I know that she is mentally well, I will be much more relieved though,"" Quatre smiled at Luke''s comments and felt the fatigue wash over him again.

""Can you ride?"" Heero''s voice was soft yet still audible.

""I think so,"" Quatre accepted Trowa''s outstretched hand and climbed upon his horse.

Quatre quickened his beasts pace and came up beside Luke.

""We have some things to discuss,"" Quatre smiled.

""That we do young one,"" Luke smiled back.

Two hours of riding later they were brought to the small river. Quatre and Luke had been discussing the science of the energy and Quatre''s reaction to it. Luke was in perfect understanding and now Quatre was in the same mindset.

There were beautiful trees surrounding them as the came to a stop near a small meadow. There was a clearing, and then a slight slope that lead out to the beach at the edge of the river. Quatre was amazed at how similar Earth looked to this land, only this land was much more exotic and new to him.

""We''re here,"" Luke dismounted carefully with Katara still in his arms.

""I''m sorry to do this, but I''m hungry,"" Duo''s words were accented with a loud growl emanating from his stomach.

""I think you may enjoy some sugar fish,"" Luke smiled and checked through his things strapped to his steed.

""Sugar fish? I like the sound of that!"" Duo smiled and bounced over to Luke, braid swishing through the air with ease and grace.

""You fish?"" Luke asked amused.

""Nope, but I''m a fast learner,"" Duo hungrily grabbed the net that Luke pulled out.

It was circular with long strings attached to hold onto. It was approximately ten meters in diameter.

""We don''t have fishing rods, but we do have nets laced with fish pheromones. The sugar fish will flock to it,"" Luke propped himself up against a tree and settled down.

His red cloak shone in the slightly deepening sky. The two ''suns'' were starting to set and the sky began to change colour.

""Isn''t that thing hot?"" Duo commented as he fixed his net.

""Yes,"" Luke responded simply and relaxed.

""Why don''t you take it off?"" Duo asked the obvious question.

""I like it. It sets me apart, earns me respect. I''m a mage, a sorcerer, a magic user, a demon, I go by many names, but they all strike fear and from fear usually come respect. Its only when that fear is aggravated that that fear turns to violence. So as long as I don''t use my magic, I am respected and revered,"" Luke leaned his head back against the tree and basked in the slowly dying rays.

""You''re around us now, you don''t have to wear it,"" Duo commented.

""I know, but it reminds me of who I am, and why I am who I am,"" Luke sighed. There was so much more that he wasn''t telling Duo, but he couldn''t help it. He couldn''t trust Duo just yet.

""Come on, you must be boiling!"" Duo prodded.

""Duo,"" Heero''s voice came from a few feet away.

""What Heero?"" Duo looked innocently into Heero''s eyes.

""Shut up baka,"" Heero turned back to sorting through the items contained within the sacks attached to his horse.

Duo smiled and then laughed at his nickname and then relaxed a little. It had been a long time since he was able to relax and let loose. The thoughts of the end of the world as he knew it was far from his mind as he could see dinner approaching.

""So, how do you do this?"" Duo asked looking down into the water.

""Easy,"" Luke got up and brushed some imaginary dirt off his pants and nimbly descended down the small hill to the river. He took the net and threw it over the water.

""That''s it?"" Duo cocked an eyebrow.

Luke laughed at the inquisitive gesture and took a seat on the sand. ""Come on Duo, I''m going to need your help.""

""MY help?"" Duo titled his whole head at the comment. Luke was quite muscular and even the thought that he would ever require assistance was a foreign thought to Duo.

""Yeah, come on and I''ll show you why,"" Luke got back up as he could feel the ends of the net jerking in his fingers.

""What the---"" Duo was cut off as Luke pulled Duo close to him and handed him one end. Duo took it firmly and then felt the net starting to give way.

""Just hold tight, I''m going to need your hands in a second,"" Luke tugged the net a little and was rewarded with a giant fish struggling in the holes of the net. Luke ran into the water and wrestled with the large creature. It was easily the size of Duo and Luke fought with the beats for a moment or two before he began to drag it towards the water''s edge.

""Grab it Duo! Just hit it on the head and you''ll kill it!"" Luke was soaked and the fish was resisting every movement. Duo hurled himself on the fish. It''s scent was not that of the fish from Earth, but a sweet almost fruity musk to it. Duo banged on its head, and found that it still prevailed in throwing Luke across the water. Duo attempted in vain to subdue the animal, but the result was similar to that of Luke''s attempts.

""I can''t get it! It''s too strong!"" Duo shouted at Luke who was charging after the escaping aquatic creature.

""Is that the way Gundam Pilots talk? I misjudged you!"" Luke challenged. Duo was not one to go unchallenged and joined Luke in chasing after the beast and found himself on top of the sweet-smelling animal.

""I got it!""

Duo then found himself underneath the enormous fish and could feel its full weight on his chest.

""Duo!"" Luke shouted and leaped on the fish. With a deafening smack, the fish relented and ceased moving. Luke had been successful in killing the sizeable animal. Duo felt his lungs burning with the need for air and
finally was relieved from his uncomfortable position as Luke rolled the fish off of Duo.

""That was fun,"" Duo smirked.

""That''s what I thought,"" Luke threw an arm around Duo and then stared at their prize. The little escapade had earned them an audience of Gundam Pilots. Luke had to appreciate the group. They were so perfectly formed.
He knew their history, more than they knew most likely. Luke wondered if they realized how little luck and more of planning it was that they were brought together. They were a perfect team, each complimenting each
other and each having a specific role to play in the group dynamics. Luke forced himself not to think about fighting for a moment and just soak in the sun and the reality of the feat accomplished.

""Come on, let''s get this sucker cooked!"" Luke grabbed the gray fish by the gills and heaved it up the small ridge up onto the grass of the camp.

""Time to go to town Katara,"" Luke sat proudly on his horse and waited for Katara.

She looked like crap. Her hair was still matted, and her body was showing the strain the episode the other day had caused. She sighed and mounted her horse. It bucked up for a moment yet she kept perfect poise until it calmed down and all four feet were back on the ground. Katara kicked the horse harshly and it sped away, Luke followed her slowly, wisely deciding not to get too close. She was in a viscously bad mood and no one, including him, would get in her way.

As soon as Luke and Katara were out of ear shot Wufei turned to his comrades.

""They will want a decision when they get back,"" Wufei stated simply.

""We should go with them. If the worlds merge, our world will be destroyed. I don''t'' know about you, but if Terra''s father is anything like her, I don''t want him being invincible,"" Duo added his two cents first.

""Luke did bring up some good arguments,"" Quatre sighed.

""That is, if he is telling the truth. He even said it himself, he can''t offer proof,"" Wufei reminded them.

"Relena," Heero whispered her name ever so softly.

"I know," Quatre nodded his head. He knew what Heero was thinking. Since Luke and Katara were their 'keepers' and they had disobeyed Terra, Relena would probably be punished or killed.

"We cannot do anything until we get back," Trowa spoke softly to Heero.

"How are we supposed to get back?" Heero asked the question that had slipped their minds. They would need a sorcerer in order to get back and Luke and Katara were the only ones they knew.

"If we don't go with them, we'll be left alone here. We don't know enough about this place to survive," Wufei struggled with the two choices of staying and leaving.

"That would be like hanging with blood thirsty lions without Trowa," Duo closed his eyes and sighed.

Trowa looked over at Duo for a moment, almost amused by the comparison, but he needed to keep serious.

"Well, there's only one thing I can say," Duo took a deep breath, "We're royally screwed and Katara and Luke are the only ones willing to help."

"We need to get back to Earth though. I suggest we ask them to send us back to Earth, and if they can't do it, we go with them," Heero advised.

"Sounds like a plan," Duo nodded his head.

"I still don't trust them," Wufei just had to add his thoughts in.

"Understood," Quatre got up and wiped off his pant.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry, anyone up for some sugar fish?" Duo smiled his lop-sided grin.

Authors Tidbits: Well, that was VERY long. And I didn''t even get to the big part that I wanted to. See I wanted to get past this part in the third part! ACK! Oh well. Pyro George is being nice today. He''s really
cool once you get to know him, and you get past the whole burning off your hair and holding your teddy bears hostage. See, he came up with the idea for this one, and he also helped incorporate SOME Heero torture,
although I''m not sure if it is what the person wanted. Oh well. Time to throw up! Oh did I mention that I was sick when I wrote this and that is why it is so screwed up? Oh well…… if your still reading, you must be at
least a little used to my ranting by now. Buh-bye!

Chapter 5