Revolutinary Duo-kun: Eternal Revolution Part 4
Truth Beneath the Shadows
Wufei frowned deeply, watching Heero look over Quatre's body. The young blond boy lay on what was supposed to be Heero's bed, not moving at all. His expression hadn't changed since Wufei had brought him to Heero's room, he hadn't even blinked. "You say the same thing happened to Trowa?" Wufei asked quietly.
Heero nodded. "That's what he said."
"Hn." Wufei gave a short nod and turned, heading for the door. Heero stood up and caught his arm.
"Where are you going?" Wufei yanked his arm away. "I told you before, I will not let the duels start again! And they have! It is our responsibility to end this, once and for all." He opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, yet stopped at the sound of Heero's voice.
"What exactly are you planning to do?" Heero demanded in a dangerously calm voice.
"Isn't it obvious? There is only one person who could have done this, and I intend to kill him."
Heero raced out into the hallway and stepped in front of Wufei, blocking his path. "You're going after Solo?" Heero stated. He phrased it as a question but he already knew the answer, and strangely enough it scared him. Wufei was serious, he was actually planning on killing Solo, even if he was right and there was the possibility of Solo not being Duo.
"Out of my way Yuy!"
"No."
Wufei growled angrily and tried to push past but Heero wouldn't let him.
"No," Heero repeated calmly.
"Admit it! There is no one else who could be responsible for it! No one else has the power of Death except you! Now it was either you or him. If we don't kill him the duels will never end!"
"And if you're wrong?" Heero growled back.
"Then I know it was you all along. Do not try and stop me, Yuy, you will NOT win!" With those words Wufei shoved Heero back into the wall and stormed past. Heero jumped up to go after him but paused.
What good would it do? He wouldn't be able to convince Wufei to change his mind, there wasn't a chance of that now. There was only one other option left. Heero raced into his room and grabbed a neatly folded packet out from the back of the closet. He'd hoped he'd never have to wear it again, but now he didn't have a choice. He had to stop Wufei, whether or not Solo was Duo. And protecting Solo was the only way to do that. He just hoped that Wufei was wrong. He just hoped that Solo wasn't responsible for what had happened to Quatre and Trowa.
~*~
Zechs glanced up from the papers on the student council desk to look at the door. The door opened to reveal a shadowed figure; Zechs merely smiled and placed the papers in their respective pile. He made it clear that he would give the entering figure his entire attention.
"You're back early, has something come up?"
The figure shook its head, staying in the shadows near the door silently. Zechs offered a smile and stood up, deciding he'd rather lean against the window then sit in his chair.
"There's no need to hide in the shadows, you will not be seen here. I wasn't expecting you back this early at all."
Catherine stepped out of the shadows and frowned at Zechs quietly. "You said if I took care of my side of the bargain you would help me protect him."
A small smile played across his lips. "And I have kept my side of the bargain have I not?"
Catherine's eyes narrowed. "No, you haven't. Another one, besides Wufei, has shown up at the school. His name is Heero. And he's even more determined then Wufei was. He won't leave Solo alone!" She closed the distance between them, almost in a threatening manner. "You said you'd keep them away from him."
Zechs fingered his chin in thought. "I see no problem with this, simply dispatch with him the way you've done with the others. The sooner they are all gone the sooner your Solo is safe." He gave a small shrug. "Challenge him to a duel."
"You must be joking. I've seen him fight; he and Solo did a small duel... There's no way I can beat him."
"You have the sword?"
Catherine nodded. Wordlessly she pulled it out from under her coat, unwrapping the cloth cover. She held it out for Zechs to see but did not put it close enough for him to touch. It had changed quite a bit since Zechs had leant it to her. The sword, Treize's soul sword, that and the black duelist badge Treize had always worn, both had the power to wake the gundams. Zechs inspected the blade with his eyes and gave a short nod.
"How many duelists have you combined with it?"
"Two," was all she replied.
"I agree, two is not enough to beat the Star Prince. However three or four would aid you quite well. Still... with only two duelists..." He paused to think for a moment. "I take it you have not gone after Wufei."
"No, I don't have to be a master to see he is also beyond my skill."
"Beyond your skill or not you will just have to deal with this in your own way. I gave you the key to protecting Solo. It now depends on how much you wish to protect him. If you fail now it is your own doing, not mine. I only gave you the tools, you are the one who must use them. Heero and Wufei should not be a problem."
Catherine's eyes narrowed dangerously and for a moment her mouth opened to snap out a comment. She reconsidered a second later as a knock sounded on the door behind them. Catherine turned to see Relena enter the room.
"Brother-? Oh, I'm sorry am I interrupting?" She glanced between her brother and Catherine intently.
"Nonsense, come in. Ms. Bloom was just leaving." Zechs shot a look at Catherine and she nodded slowly, her glare melting away. She turned to head for the door but paused as she passed Relena.
"Your name is Relena, isn't it?" she asked quietly.
Relena nodded. "Yes, Relena Peacecraft. And you are?"
Catherine smiled sweetly and offered her free hand. "Catherine Bloom. I hope you don't mind me asking, but I was just curious. You were once a duelist weren't you?"
"Y-yes," Relena froze at those words and jumped as she heard Zechs' fists hit the desk. She glanced to her brother to find him fixing a death-glare on Catherine's back.
"Goodbye, Catherine."
Catherine turned around, a sly smile settled on her face; she kept a tight grip on Relena's hand. "No, I have a few things to take care of first." With those words she yanked on Relena's arm and sent her tumbling to the floor. Catherine swung the sword around and rested the bladed against the girl's neck, restricting her from all movement. Zechs raced around the side of the desk but stopped as the blade came to rest on his sister's neck.
"Just what the hell do you think you are doing?!"
Catherine merely smiled. "You said it yourself, you gave me to tools. I just have to use them." Catherine leaned down with her other hand and touched Relena's chest, still keeping the blade at the girl's neck. Zechs jumped forward but Catherine brought up her sword and flung it at him. In the air it broke into two separate swords, each pinning him up against the wall by the shoulders of his uniform. Catherine turned back to Relena and shoved her to the ground. Once again she placed her hand on Relena's chest.
"What are you doing?!" Relena demanded in fear.
"Shh. Just close your eyes and take a deep breath, you won't notice a thing." With those words Catherine clenched her hand into a fist, the black duelist badge glowing brightly. Relena gasped as a hilt appeared in her chest and Catherine yanked it out before she could even scream. Zechs growled in anger as his sister's body grew limp and crumbled back to the floor. Catherine stood up, Relena's soul sword in her hand. She faced Zechs and waved her hand, the two swords which pinned him up against the wall detached and flew back toward her, melding with Relena's sword and Treize's.
"How dare you!" Zechs hissed.
Catherine's smile dropped away and her expression became deadly calm and serious. "You can't help me protect him, you never could. Well... least not in your current state." She smirked. "However your sister's sword and your own will be a great help."
"Is that what you think?" Zechs stood up and moved across the room, wrapping his fingers around the hilt of his own blade from the duels, which leaned against the wall next to his coat rack. Catherine merely smiled as he unsheathed the weapon. He pointed it toward her in challenge. "Is that what you think?!" he repeated in an angry yell.
Catherine laughed. "I don't think, I know!" With those words she tilted the blade to catch the moonlight. The black duelist badge on her chest blazed to life and a large black cloak appeared across her shoulders, shrouding her figure in darkness and shadows. She charged forward, the force of her incoming blow trapping Zechs up against the wall.
"You gave me this power, you said yourself that I should use it to protect Solo, and that is exactly what I am doing!"
Zechs gritted his teeth and pushed her back as much as he could, but he only gained enough time to duck ungracefully out of her way and was forced to move quickly to block her next blow.
"I have the power of three duelists in this sword! Plus the power of Death itself! Isn't this what you wanted?! Isn't this the power you wanted me to collect?" Catherine charged forward once again, swinging at high speeds. Her blade was blocked once, but it immediately spun back around and caught Zechs in the shoulder. He hissed in pain and grabbed his shoulder with his free hand. She simply smiled and laughed as he sought refuge and protection behind his desk.
"No..." she whispered quietly. "Protecting Solo was never your real plan was it? You wanted me to do your dirty work, to collect the blades of these so-called duelists for you. And then you'd take the blade from me, wouldn't you?"
Zechs glared. "You know nothing of the power behind those blades!"
Catherine laughed. "I don't need to! I know they can help me protect Solo and that's exactly what I plan to do!"
"This is not a game!" Zechs jumped over the desk and charged at her, using all his force to knock the sword from her grip and send it flying across the room. Catherine fell back to the floor, her concentration broken and the cloak of death disappearing from her shoulders. He rested the tip of his sword on her neck as she stared at him in disbelief. "You have no idea what the truth of those swords are. This is not a game for children. You are not a duelist and I should never have given you that sword."
Catherine closed her eyes and gave a small nod, as if giving in. But then her eyes opened once more and deep in those misty blue orbs was a glint of something very dangerous. "Like it or not, Zechs Marquise, you handed me that power. And I intend to use it."
"Nani?" Zechs gave a cry and dropped his sword, staggering forward with surprise. He grasped the wall and looked back at her in surprise and fear. The black duelist badge was glowing on her chest and now three sword floated in the air around her. Three of the four swords she held. The fourth sword was lodged in his shoulder, the biting pain shooting through his body. He began to feel light headed and had to drop to his knees just to stay conscious.
Catherine stalked toward him, a calm expression on her face, dangerously calm. "Zechs," she said softly shaking her head. "I don't know what 'game' you were playing but I will not be your puppet. And I will not let you hurt him, no matter what. I'll kill everyone on this earth before I ever let them touch my Solo." She reached out and slid her hand down his cheek to rest over his chest, just over his heart.
And, like his sister, Zechs didn't even get a chance to cry out.
~*~
"Catherine? Are you here?" Solo glanced around the empty and dark schoolyard and shoved his hands in his pockets. He didn't see her anywhere. He'd returned home to find a message on the machine of Catherine asking him to meet her behind the school near the basketball court. But when he'd arrived he'd found only darkness. "Cat?"
There was a sound of movement behind him and Solo spun around. He watched with a blank face as Wufei stepped out of the shadows, his curved scimitar gleaming in the moonlight. Solo backed away slowly.
"Ah... can I help you with something?"
Wufei's eyes narrowed, he didn't answer. Instead he bared his teeth and jumped forward, swinging out the sword. Solo jumped to the side and spun his foot around, connecting with the back of Wufei's knee, causing him to stumble forward. Wufei recovered quickly and spun around to glare at the longhaired boy. But Solo didn't waste any time, he dove for Wufei and knocked the blade from his hand, sending them both tumbling to the ground, the blade sliding across the grass and out onto the basketball court. It landed too far away to be of any use to either of them.
"You mind explaining to me why you seem so intent on killing me?"
Wufei snarled and shoved Solo away from him, racing for the sword. Solo moved to his feet and dashed after him, arriving a second before him. Solo placed his foot firmly on the blade, blocking Wufei from picking it up.
"I mean, I don't quite understand this, what did I ever do to you?" His face showed bewilderment, Wufei didn't care.
"I will not let the duels start again, and if that means killing you-"
"Duels?"
Wufei growled and threw his entire body at Solo, knocking him down onto the pavement. Solo's head slammed against the black top and he gave a small cry, pain shooting through his body. He groaned and rubbed his head as Wufei retrieve his sword and headed for him. Solo froze when he saw Wufei turn toward him with the blade.
Suddenly a figure appeared and blocked Wufei's blade, forcing him to pause. Solo blinked when he realized who had saved him, it was Heero! But it was Heero dressed in some strange yellow outfit that made him look like a prince... the Star Prince.
"I swear Wufei, if you lay one hand on him I will kill you."
Wufei gritted his teeth and glared at Heero, ready to accept that challenge whole-heartily.
"I thank you for your help, Heero, but that won't be necessary."
All eyes turned to the shadows to find Catherine stepping into view. Solo's eyes widened as he saw her draw a blade and the black badge on her chest began to glow.
"Catherine?" he whispered in disbelief.
She ignored him and merely watched the other two boys with a gleam in her eyes. "I appreciate the gesture, but protecting Solo is my job!"
And she charged forward, the black cloak of Death appearing over her shoulders.
TBC...
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