Iia Disera Part 4
Heero wandered about the ship, having received permission from Wufei to explore the craft. He'd been on Leo for about five days already, and thus far only knew of his own room, the control center and the pantry. He'd spent the last couple of days sharing information about humans with Wufei in exchange for information about Arians, Leo and Leo's inhabitants.
Wufei had warned him that Leo was a two-level ship, but the lower level was just the engine room and cargo bay. As a result, only Trowa and Duo had access to the lower levels and Trowa alone was left with the task of moving food from the storage in the bay up to the pantry when the pantry cupboards began to empty. Wufei also informed him that two of the rooms would be locked against his command, and those were his, Trowa's and Quatre's bedrooms, although one was occupied more often than the other.
Heero didn't have to ask why.
As he wandered the corridor with the control center as his starting point, he noted the first door to his left being Duo's room, as Wufei had informed him. He didn't go inside; he wasn't about to invade anybody's privacy. The next door, situated a few steps down and to his right, was his own room. The pantry came up on the left side after he turned the corner. Instead of turning, Heero continued on forward. Two doors, directly across from each other, were closed and locked from his voice command. Heero determined that those rooms belonged to the three systems on board.
Dimly, he wondered why the three systems shared two rooms instead of each having their own. The next room he came to was yet another bedroom; this meant Leo could accommodate five beings, each to a room.
Then again, Heero figured that he probably wouldn't want to know that either.
Backtracking, Heero turned down the hall where the pantry was located; the first door to his left. To the right, he gave his voice command and discovered the room Wufei informed him was referred to as the recreational lounge. There were many things Heero couldn't identify, but he was sure that soon enough Quatre would show him what exactly was for recreational use within the lounge. Leaving it for the moment, he continued on and opened the next door. It was an empty, padded room with handles on the walls. It looked similar to a room he had been in for his anti-gravity training.
Anchoring himself by gripping the handle placed conveniently by the door, Heero stepped in and immediately felt himself float. Pulling himself back, he settled in the hallway on both feet once more, staring in amazement into the empty room. No one had told him that Arian technology allowed for single rooms to have zero gravity. On Earth, similar rooms existed based on certain controls. But Earth did not have rooms that could be isolated with a different level of gravity without completely enclosed barriers. It wasn't that Heero expected zero-g forces to float out into the hallway where he stood, but it boggled his mind that he could situate himself such that half of his body was under a normal level of gravity while the other was in zero gravity.
Closing the door, Heero continued onwards to find a supply closet just a few steps down the hall, followed by another door. He bypassed it for the moment, attracted by the very different design of the door right at the end of the hall. Trying his access code only to be denied, Heero realized that he was standing in front of the door that led downwards to the second level, which Wufei had warned he would not have access to. He was just stepping back when the door opened and he turned in surprise.
"Heero?" Trowa stepped through the doorway and the door slid shut behind him. "Did you need something?"
Heero shook his head. "I was just touring the craft. Wufei informed me that I would not have access to the doorway leading to the lower level, but I had been attracted by the odd design of the door."
Trowa nodded. "Seen anything interesting?" he asked.
Heero gestured absently over his shoulder to the anti-gravity room. "Arian technology continues to amaze me. How is it possible for a single room that isn't completely enclosed to have zero-gravity?"
Trowa led Heero back to the door and opened it. "See this?" He slid a finger along the side of the door, drawing Heero's attention to the thicker doorjamb. "There's a force field here that you step through. The anti-gravity controls are beyond this field, but it's just impossible to see."
"So something in this field repels the anti-gravity to keep it inside the room?"
Trowa nodded, and Heero slid his hand through the field and back towards himself, amazed that he could not even see a ripple; he'd half expected to see something reflect off of his skin.
"Anyway, I need to ask Wufei something; I need him to shut down one of the systems so I can touch it up. Have you seen Duo, by the way?"
"No." Heero shook his head. "But I didn't wander into anyone's rooms so he may be there. Come to think of it, I haven't seen him the past couple of day...rotations."
Trowa gave the statement some thought. "You're right. I'll check. Thanks." Trowa nodded briefly and continued on his way to the control center.
The door to the anti-gravity room slid shut and Heero turned to the last room he had yet to enter. The door opened on his command and he squinted into the semi-darkness. Stepping inside, he paused to let his eyes adjust to the lack of light as the door closed behind him.
A groan startled him and he stepped back, trying to find the source in the dim lighting. Another groan sounded suspiciously like Duo, along with a sharp intake of breath. Heero identified the sound as coming from around the left side of a gently whirring machine. He crept forward slowly.
"Duo?" He called out. "Are you all right?"
"Heero..."
Heero's eyes widened at the sound of his name and he stalked forward quickly, hoping to see Duo in case anything was wrong. That groan hadn't sounded very good.
"Duo?"
Heero rounded the corner and stood in shock. Of all the scenarios he had imagined of Duo having fallen, hurt himself, being sick or maybe just sleep-talking, he hadn't expected to see Duo sitting on a panel, naked from waist down and clutching another being to himself. The other being was still moving in the unmistakable act of intercourse; Heero couldn't see the face as it was hidden against Duo's neck and shoulder. Duo's braid was gripped firmly in one hand as the person pushed against Duo's body, hands gripping the Arian's hips. Heero tried to tear his eyes away from Duo's face as darkened eyes stared at him, only to find himself staring at Duo's hand as it pumped up and down his hard member.
Duo smiled in a feral way; he didn't seem embarrassed to have been caught in such a situation. "Harder," he moaned, wrapping his free arm around his partner's shoulders and pulling hard at him. "Harder...yes! Do that again!" He threw his head back with a moan although darkened eyes continued to stare at Heero.
Heero stammered his apology and left quickly, running into Quatre as the blond system exited the pantry.
"Heero?"
"I'll be in my room." Heero brushed past and made his way quickly into his room. The door closed and he leaned against it, eyes darting about the area as if he expected to see Duo there too. He didn't have to actually see the Arian, Heero realized as he closed his eyes, trying to will the heat in his cheeks to go away. The image was already burned behind his eyelids. Heero didn't want to, but he found his hands unbuckling his belt so he could slip his hand into his briefs to touch himself.
As he quietly brought himself to completion, aided by the mental images behind his eyelids, Heero told himself that he wasn't attracted to aliens or Arians, and had simply been attracted to the sight of intercourse as acted out by two-legged males.
It didn't matter that he preferred males to females; he was only aroused by what he'd seen and not because of whom he'd seen.
The strangled groan leaving his lips upon his completion didn't sound at all like Duo's name.
~*~
"Is there someone else on Leo?" Heero asked as he sat down for the evening meal.
Trowa, Quatre and Wufei glanced at each other. "If you're talking about Duo, he's passed out and wouldn't wake. We don't need to wait for him to eat; he'll eat in the next meal cycle," Quatre said.
Heero shook his head. "No one else? Just five of us?"
"Who else would there be?" Wufei asked.
"What's that room across from the anti-gravity room?" Heero answered Wufei with another question.
"It's the back room. That's where another series of computers are. Duo likes to use it as his lab of sorts to create new things. Programs, machines, all sorts of things. Why do you ask?" Trowa asked. "Did you see someone in there?"
Heero nodded.
"Duo often wears different gear in there to protect himself as he makes...whatever it is that he's made his new project," Quatre explained. "Perhaps you aren't familiar with the gear and thought it was someone else?" he hazarded a guess in answer to Heero's original question.
Heero shook his head. "There was someone else, although I couldn't see very clearly."
"Do you want to clearly state what it is, or who it is you thought you saw?" Wufei asked with a frown.
Heero flushed a little, cursing the feeling of heat in his own cheeks. "After I ran into you, Trowa, as you left the second level, I went to explore the last room, which was the back room. I...walked in on Duo...relieving himself."
"You identified Duo, so who's this other being you're talking about?" Trowa asked, seemingly unperturbed by such a thing as walking into such a private act.
"Someone was..." Heero swallowed, looking down at the table to avert his gaze from the six eyes directed at him. "Someone was taking Duo," he said quietly.
"Someone taking Duo?" Wufei asked after a moment. "Are you sure it wasn't the other way around?"
"What?" Heero asked, wondering if perhaps the intimate ways of Arians were different than that of humans, even though it looked exactly alike.
"Duo has one friend back on Adua. Adua technology allows for conferences even at this distance, and it's not impossible to send forth a hologram to do such a thing. She, Hilde that is, is known to make advances to Duo although Duo has always refused. Perhaps this time he broke --"
"No," Quatre stated firmly. "He would never give in to Hilde. He's too proud of his ability to wait for his other and he's sure Hilde isn't it."
"That, and he's too damn horny for --"
"Trowa! Not at the table!" Quatre cut him off.
"I wasn't aware that Duo had another being stashed around. Maybe he created another system?" Wufei guessed.
"Why don't we just ask when he wakes?" Trowa rolled his eyes. "No point in guessing."
It was a good enough answer for Heero; any more discussion and he'd probably never be able to look any of Leo's inhabitants in the eyes ever again.
~*~
Quatre sat across the small table from Heero, instructing the human in how to play the board game sitting on the table between them.
"Your pieces may only move one step, but in any direction, but if one piece is set in place and an opponents piece steps diagonal from it in the forward direction, you are forced to skip over them. Skipping over an opponent's piece will enable them to duplicate their piece so that one stays in place and another is placed either left or right of that first piece by the player's choice."
Heero nodded slowly at Quatre's demonstration, so Quatre continued on with his explanation.
"The piece that skips over the other is forced to return to the starting slot closest to the player. The goal is to move as many of your pieces across the board to the opposite slots until all pieces have crossed the board. The winner with the most pieces invading the opponents slots wins."
So concentrated was Heero in trying to understand the rules that he didn't notice Duo enter the recreational lounge and approach them until the Arian spoke.
"Quatre? Trowa's looking for you. He's in the control center."
"Oh? What for?" Quatre asked absently, studying the colorful pieces on the board, waiting for Heero to make a move. Heero kept his head down, not meeting Duo's eyes.
"I don't know. But he looked like he could use a reboot. He'd been downstairs for a long time."
Quatre nodded, his eyes darkening a few shades although it was hardly noticeable. "He was there all through the past sleeping portion of the rotation. Making some upgrades, he said."
"I can take over here if you want."
"Sure." Quatre stood. "Sorry, Heero. I need to check on Trowa. That system will run himself down if you don't check on him sometimes." He smiled apologetically and left the room.
"I'll be back in my room," Heero muttered, but Duo blocked his way.
"Let's finish the game, Heero."
"I'd rather not."
"Can I talk to you then?"
Heero knew it would be rude to refuse; Duo and his crew had saved him and he was living aboard Leo now; at least until he figured a way to get home. He remained in his seat, offering the lack of movement as his agreement to listen to Duo.
"Look, I wanted to apologize that you walked in on me last rotation."
Heero shook his head. "I should have knocked or something."
"You came around the corner pretty fast."
"I thought you were hurt or something."
"Arians don't get hurt easily."
"I wasn't aware."
They lapsed into silence for a bit before Duo spoke again.
"Maybe I should have been more discreet. It's a public room."
"It's my fault, really," Heero insisted, although he didn't want to prolong the topic. "I wasn't aware that I had entered the back room; I was merely touring the craft."
"It's a public room," Duo said again before he gestured at the board, asking silently for Heero to make his move. Heero moved his piece and waited. "I want to ask you something though," Duo said after a moment.
"What is it?"
"What did you think...of what you saw?"
"I thought I was fairly embarrassed," Heero answered honestly.
Duo leaned forward. "Do you like males, Heero?"
"That's private."
Duo chuckled. "But I already know the answer."
"You do?" Heero furrowed his eyebrows although he still didn't look up at Duo.
"Yea. You certainly didn't look disgusted. That could only mean that you were attracted. Maybe not to me, but at least to the act."
Heero didn't answer.
"I was half naked, Heero! That had to do something for you. I'm fairly fit for an Arian, you have to admit, despite my tendency to over-eat."
Again, Heero didn't answer.
"You rushed off pretty quickly, and admittedly the clothes you wear don't hide too much...luckily." Duo stretched his arms upwards and leaned back in his seat. "Perhaps I can activate those security cameras and see where you headed to when you ran out of the back room."
Heero looked up and glared. "What's your point, Duo?"
Duo's eyes had darkened slightly. "It's been a long time since I've interacted with anyone other than those three systems who are completely taken with each other. I'm curious as to whether or not I'm losing my...appeal."
"You're wondering if I'm attracted to you," Heero stated clearly.
"You could put it that way. Like I said, I'm fairly fit for an Arian, and Arians have a reputation of being lookers."
"Even if I were, Duo," Heero stood. "I've no interest in entering a relationship with someone I've just met. Not to mention someone who was clearly...taken by someone else."
"I can explain that --"
"I understand that Arians are prone to falling prey to their urges," Heero interrupted. "I guess Wufei didn't see fit to inform me that they have no qualms as to invading other's privacy via cameras, or being promiscuous. Excuse me." He walked towards the door, not liking the conversation that had just taken place. The door slid open and just as Heero stepped out, he heard Duo speak quietly.
"I'm all too aware of Arian faults, Heero, but I will not stand by while you place those other accusations on me and my kind."
The door closed behind Heero, separating him and Duo with a quiet hiss.
TBC...
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