I Will Corrupt You
By karei
Capitulus Octa
Chapter 8
Quatre found himself subject to yet another night of lost sleep. He had requested his sheets to be washed every day this past week; every morning, he dragged himself out of bed, only to find the coverlet and top-sheet soaked with the cold sweat he was subject to all night long, tonight being no exception. He was tangled up in his duvet, fiercely battling off with flailing arms the visions that plagued his mind all night long. At times he would wish whole-heartedly to stop dreaming, only to be glad that what he was seeing was in fact a dream.
In his delirious slumber, Quatre was surrounded by indescribable pain. He found himself trapped at an edge, with a large, rancorous beast imprisoning the fires of hell in his eyes pushing him nearer still to the edge. Behind Quatre, he could hear the pitiful wails of endless suffering wafting up from the bottomless depths of the pit below. He was posed with two choices: either to jump or to let himself be mutilated by the beast. Neither was a pleasant option, but Quatre decided that the plunge might be less painful. Extending his arms out at his sides, he leaned back and let gravity do its work.
Very quickly he found this to be a mistake. As he felt the hot air rushing past his ears, he also felt the wails growing in volume. Soon, he was no longer hearing them, but feeling them. They ripped through his soul, tearing at his ears and heart, bringing him to levels of anguish he had never experienced in his life. The sprites in which the source of this horrid sound lay came into Quatre's view, and began reaching out with their writhing arms, clawing and tearing at his flesh. While their mist-like composition prevented them from doing physical harm, Quatre felt a pain that was wholly indescribable, instigated by the slightest touch of these wailing daemons.
Screams of his own followed, finishing off by Quatre sitting bolt upright in bed. He breathed in hard, choking sobs, tears of fear and anguish streaming down his face. His throat was dry and hoarse, making him realize that he had actually been screaming. Yet another scream was released from his already pained throat as the door opened.
"Are you all right?" came the strong but assuring voice.
"Trowa?"
"Yea." He opened the door a little further, his tall silhouette blocking most of the hall light.
"What are you doing up?"
"You were screaming like somebody was murdering you," he stated simply.
"I'm sorry. Bad dream. Go back to sleep."
"Sure." He reached to close the door, but stopped, commenting, "Oh, and Quatre? Drink some water before you go to bed. Your voice sounds like shit."
Quatre laughed softly. "Thanks, Trowa. You can go back to sleep now, I'm fine." He jumped, startled at his own rudeness, "Trowa? Where are you sleeping?"
Trowa shrugged. "On the couch."
He shook his head at that. "I have some spare rooms. Let me take you to one of them."
"Nah, you're having a bad night. Just go back to sleep." But he was too late. Quatre had already rolled out of the bed, grabbing his thin, terrycloth robe on the way out. 'True, Trowa's a guy, but I still have to maintain some sort of decency.' "Don't worry about it, Trowa. It's cool. Besides, I think I need to walk around. It'll be a while before I can hit the sack again."
Trowa whistled softly under his breath. "That must have been one hell of a dream." Quatre merely nodded in response.
Leading Trowa down the hall, he opened a door that was about three doors away from his own. "I think you should like this one. It's fairly plain, green and beige, with this sort of forest motif going for it. I kind of like it."
"Thanks. Good night. And get some water."
Quatre smiled as Trowa shut the door softly behind him. He made his way silently down the hall, his bare feet making hardly a sound as he entered the kitchen. Quietly going over to the stove, he found that the tea kettle still had some water in it, enough for a cup and then some. He began boiling the water, browsing through his cabinets for some green tea; he liked the fact that it was without caffeine, it was actually good for you, and with the right amount of sugar, smelled faintly of apples.
"What the hell am I doing to do?" he whispered. "Something is seriously not right with me here. These dreams... they're not normal." His mind turned over each vision he had, of times long gone in which he could feel himself filled with lust for power and wealth, a desire so strong that he would have crushed all obstacles by any means in order to attain it. And one by one, the obstacles fell, the sacrifices were made, anything it took. He cringed inwardly, praying that this would never be him.
"How can I even think that I'd be so heartless?" he began consoling himself. "After all, I saved the jobs of a quarter of a million today, didn't I?"
When the water had heated up to a fair temperature, not quite boiling, but sill fairly warm, he brewed himself a mug of tea with four teaspoons of sugar. Letting the faintly sweet smell fill his nose, he smiled, letting the steam that struck his face melt away the day and, yet worse, the night.
In his relaxed state, he finished the tea more quickly than he had intended, but soon found himself ready for bed. He went quietly down the hall, being careful as not to disturb Trowa, and he went into his own room, flopping back onto the bed. He was slowly letting sleep overcome him, hoping that his exhaustion would allow him to pass the dreams this time.
However, he would not be so lucky.
His eyes slowly fluttered shut, closing just as a small droplet of sweat was easing down his forehead and into his eyes, trapping the pearl on his eyelashes; it almost looked as if he was crying. Sleep conquered him quickly, and within moments he was wildly rampaging through REMs, already beginning to move in terror. Only, the visions he saw in his dreams were not so terrifying this time. He found himself in a sea of white, not blinding but more of a creamy, off-white tone, which was warm and inviting. There were few physical stimuli outside of sight, but what he was sensing was far beyond anything the five senses could touch. He felt peace, bliss, joy, love, everything, all at once in such strong doses that he felt his heart would explode from the overwhelming honesty of it all; it was pure, purer than anything he had ever known, and it was more than he could handle. He began to cry, very softly, only letting the tears run from his eyes.
"Quatre..." came yet another far-off voice, but this time it was new: it was male.
"Who's there?" he shouted, trying to sound as forceful as possible.
"Don't be afraid," he said, as if he could sense the tortuous fear within Quatre's heart. "I'm here to help you."
"You still didn't answer my question."
"Fair enough." A figure slowly materialized in Quatre's line of sight. "Is this better?"
The voice gathered its source from a figure that looked neither taller than Quatre, nor older than Quatre, with a creamy tan complexion. His eyes carried a mysterious slant which, while at times could bring down rains of sulfur, now read of pure benevolence. His deep eyes were black as pitch, but warm, reminding Quatre of the mid-June night sky. His hair was similarly shaded, bound at the nape of his neck by some transparent means, drawing the locks tight around his face. He stood before Quatre, robed in white with a golden aura about him, which filled Quatre with both awe and apprehension.
"It'll do," Quatre replied impassively.
He smiled. "Dry wit, one of my favorites; although I do prefer irony." He noticed how Quatre stood rigidly, his head turned away, unresponsive to anything he said. "Quatre? Is there something wrong?"
"Very much so," Quatre replied quietly, the venom in his voice coming through clearly.
"What is it?" he asked in a half-condescending tone, as if he already knew.
Quatre glared at him, his normally warm aquamarine eyes frozen over with a look of hatred... and fear. "Cut the crap and tell me who you are."
"You may call me Wufei if you need a title."
"Well, Wu-fei," Quatre said, stressing each syllable as painfully as possible, "What in hell do you want?"
"What in Hell do I want?" Wufei iterated, a slight smile on his face. "Well, that's another story. Right now I just want to help you."
"Oh?" Quatre mocked.
"Yes," Wufei affirmed. "I believe you've been lead astray and I want to put you back on the right track."
"Oh, please," Quatre pleaded dryly, "enlighten me."
Wufei heaved a gentle sigh, having already known that it would be difficult with Quatre. "You have been contacted by a being who calls herself Lucinda. She claims to be your guardian but I assure you, she is not." He spoke clearly and matter-of-factly, with a slight drone, as if he had lived this moment before. "It may be difficult for you to believe, but I am watchful for your best interest."
"How selfless of you."
"Please, Quatre, don't make this difficult. Even if I do manage to convince you that what I'm saying is true, it will still be a hard battle after that." His eyes rose to Quatre's and were met with a look of disbelief and vehemence. "At least it's good to see you taking this seriously. Most wouldn't."
"I suppose I'm just a cut above the rest."
Wufei laughed. "You might say that."
"You've still given me no reason to trust you."
"Look, if you expect anything good to come of your existence, you need to follow me. I know the way for you to survive. You," he paused, letting the words sink in, "and Trowa."
"What's Trowa got to do with this?" Quatre demanded.
"Nothing... and everything... It's complicated."
"I did ask you to enlighten me, didn't I?"
"True, but I'm not at liberty to fill you in on everything. That would be cheating."
"So you expect me to follow you without knowing what you want from me?"
"Quatre, it's not so difficult. I promise you, what I speak is the truth. If you don't listen to what I'm saying, you and Trowa will probably be injured."
Quatre looked Wufei over angrily. "Is that a threat?"
"I make no threats. I tell you now that both you and Trowa will be hurt; I only wish I could tell you in what capacity, but that is completely unforeseeable."
"So, assuming I trust you, what is it exactly you want me to do?"
"At the least? Cut off all contact with Trowa."
"And at the most?"
Wufei hesitated. 'I told him I spoke the truth. I cannot lie now.' "Destroy him."
Quatre's face fell in shock, his mouth hanging open. "You want me to what?!"
"It may seem like a hard thing to-"
"You bet it's a hard thing to do!" he nearly shrieked. "I can't turn my back on Trowa now, much less harm him!"
"You don't understand, Quatre, it's not harming him. You'd be saving him."
"By destroying him."
"Yes."
"You're insane."
"Some say that. Actually," he looked down as if remembering, "a lot of people said that. But insane or not, I've given you the only light you may receive for your situation."
Quatre glared at Wufei, looking as though he was about ready to strike. Unwilling to let himself lash out angrily, he drew himself into his business mode, speaking as cordially as possible. "You daemon. No spirit of goodness would ask me to harm anybody. Whoever sent you needs to seriously rethink their tactics."
"But I-" Wufei faltered.
"Lucinda!" Quatre cried out for the one being he could trust.
The shimmering guardian appeared by Quatre's side, her eyes vehemently fixed on Wufei as she materialized. With a slight growl in her already deep voice, she greeted the opposing spirit. "Hello, Wufei."
"Hello, Meiran."
"Don't call me that," she snapped. "I'm Lucinda."
"'Bringer of the light?'" he smiled.
"Yes, and I'd thank you to leave Quatre alone now. As you can see, he wants nothing to do with you, so be gone."
"Mei... Lucinda," he corrected, "if you're still upset about the defeat, know that there is still room for you with me."
Lucinda laughed. "With you? Why would I want to join you when I have everything I want?"
"Lucinda, please, don't do this," Wufei pleaded, his tone carrying a great force.
"Wufei," she groaned, shaking her head, "I already told you: Quatre wants you gone, and so do I. You've lost this round. So long." She gave him a little wave.
Wufei's eyes left Lucinda's and fell on Quatre's. "Know that it does not matter whether you choose her side, I will still be here, as I always have been."
"Always have been?"
"Yes," Wufei affirmed. "I'm always here. I only wait for you to come to me."
"Yea, yea, yea," Lucinda said, rolling her eyes. "Now go away."
As if on her command, Wufei vanished from Quatre's general view, leaving him astounded and filled with questions.
"Lucinda, please, explain to me what the fuck is going on here?"
She sighed, her eyes locked in Quatre's importuning gaze. "I can't tell you too much, Quatre. It truly would be cheating. But I can tell you this much: that man is after both yours and Trowa's souls. He'll stop at nothing to get to them, employing any device possible. Please, keep a watchful eye over Trowa. I fear for him, as I fear for you."
"But why?" Quatre asked, begging for an answer. "What makes us so special?"
Lucinda's blank look gave the same reply her mouth did. "I wish I could tell you. I truly do." She heaved a gentle sigh, exhausted from begging Quatre's questions. "I promise that some day you will know it all. I just... just not today."
"Look," Quatre growled, growing forceful with his new aid, "for all I know this could be some weird hallucination brought on by bad seafood. I'm not sure if I can trust all that I've been seeing in my dreams for the past few days, and if I can't, that probably means I need to see a shrink, or be committed or something."
"No!" Lucinda cried. "Quatre, there's nothing wrong with you!"
"Then what in hell is going on?" he shouted, demanding an answer at the top of his lungs.
"I told you," she sighed, "that I can't tell you. I'll find a way to prove that you're not insane, but please, you must let me help you." Her entire body was pleading with him to open up his mind.
Quatre sighed, his shoulders falling; it hurt him to be forceful for an extended period of time, and that day had just worn him out completely. "Okay, I'll give you time. But prove it somehow, okay? And in a way that won't make me think I'm truly insane," he added.
"Of course," she smiled. "Thank you for the chance."
He glanced her over. "How can I even be certain that I should trust you?"
"Quatre," she sighed in frustration, "what have I ever asked you to do?"
"Trust in you... and make friends with Trowa," he shrugged.
"And what did Wufei ask of you?"
"That I..." he fell silent.
"Case in point. I think that speaks louder than anything I could hope to say."
Back | Next | Gundam Wing