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Nov. 1st, 2005 09:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_goldenpathHeero Yuy, Secret Agent 001: of Fire and Ice
Pairings: to be established Heero and Duo.
Genre: AU, action, adventure.
Warnings: foul language, some angst.
Summary: Heero Yuy, top agent in Her Majesty’s, Queen of the World Relena Peacecraft, Secret Service, is send on a dangerous mission: rebels in the L2 colony are developing a new commanding system for mobile suits - the Mobile Doll system - with the goal to overthrow the Earth Sphere United Nations government. To execute his mission successfully, Heero pursues the lead of a mysterious young man, clad in black, with a long brown braid and blue eyes…
Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing or any of the brand names mentioned in this fic.
Author’s note: Fic loosely based on the James Bond concept; so lots of brand names, flashy cars, high-tech gadgets and a lot of made up stuff (gratuitous use of ‘artistic license’). The Gundam designs are the ones for the Endless Waltz models, except for the Deathscythe Hell, who looks like… the Deathscythe Hell. I don’t like the Endless Waltz version of the Grim Reaper, but that’s personal. Events and persons from Endless Waltz are used in this fic, mingled with events and persons from the first series, twisted to fit my evil plot. Everybody is 5-6 years older; as genius as Heero might be a 17 year old secret agent isn’t really believable in my book.
Key:
----------- scene change
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The laboratories and other practice rooms the inventors had to their disposal, were located in the basement and Heero took the stairs for his daily exercise. When he opened the large door, he was greeted with a harsh: “Close it! Close it, you idiot!”
A cloud of fire and smoke approached him and only because of his fast reflexes Heero was able to throw himself to the ground, rolling away from the blast. He was back on his feet within a few seconds, adrenaline pumping through his body.
“What the hell, J?” He barked, looking at the scorched door.
An elderly man with more synthetic prosthetics for limbs than Heero cared to remember, cackled loudly and flicked some strands of greasy gray hair over his shoulder while shuffling towards the secret agent.
“Well, if it isn’t 001! What made you come visit us geezers?”
Heero gritted his teeth. He didn’t know what came over Une when she hired this scientist- a lunatic scientist, and four extra of them to boot. They were named after a certain letter in the alphabet and Heero didn’t know -or care- if it had something to do with their first name or not. They were named G, S, O, H and J, of course- all experts in several scientific fields, and hired by Une to develop new gadgets and high-tech aids to assist the secret agents. J was assigned to the top ranks: Heero and two other agents who he didn’t know by name, even though he suspected one of them was 006, Zechs Marquise, the agent with the infuriating sloppy attitude, and who managed to wheedled himself through every mission and made sure every woman at the office received his special attention. Heero wouldn’t hold it for impossible that even Une had fallen for the man’s charms- to him, Marquise was a second rate agent who only managed to keep himself out of large trouble because of his intelligence; 006 was not to be underestimated.. he just didn’t like to do all the hard work.
The old man cackled again. “So you made the Queen of the World cry again, didn’t you naughty boy?”
“I see gossip is traveling fast, as usual,” Heero answered sourly. J patted him on the back. “You know I admire the one who can make her run around like a love stricken sap.”
Heero flinched mentally, but didn’t show any annoyance on his face. He knew that Relena was over her childhood infatuation for him -even though he doubted that sometimes, seeing her reactions- but apparently it ripped open old wounds. He still was struck by the fact that she actually bothered to come visit him and sit next to him when he was handed a new mission. Did it only have something to do with the fact that she feared political complications? He remembered the name of Dermails granddaughter, Dorothy Catalonia, and made a mental note to do some research into her and to see what danger she represented.
“Earth to Yuy,” the old scientist rumbled and tugged at Heero’s sleeve. “You might think I have all day, but I don’t. Get over here, I’ve been working on some nice new things for you.”
Heero followed the man obediently to a table covered with clutter, unfinished gadgets and junk he didn’t think was worth one penny; J started digging around in the mess and unearthed some of his equipment.
“Here you are, 001- the standard pieces.. a Watermark 1990 ballpoint pen with laser, a Breil watch with the usual functions: Geiger teller, stopwatch, chronometer, cholesterol meter, garrote, time zones calculator, etcetera.. I have here your coat..”
“What’s with the coat?”
“Ah, let me demonstrate you.” The scientist put on the coat and stuffed his hands into the pockets. Heero noticed J’s barely visible movement with his fingers, and the top button sprang away from the coat to land several feet further- and exploded on impact.
“You’ll never know when it comes in handy,” the scientist grinned, shrugging out of the coat. “Here, it’s nice for this type of weather too. Furthermore, here is your wallet with copy facilities, credit cards with bug detection, x-ray sunglasses and a fine-tuned bow tie, for if you have a ball or a dance. It can jam radar equipment and you can transmit with it as well.”
“I’m going after gundanium microchips smugglers, I’m not going to have a ball,” Heero said, eying the rest of the equipment. J turned around, a look of surprise written on his face. The elderly man whistled.
“Gundanium? Why, I haven’t heard of that material since the wars!”
“Interesting,” another voice mingled into the discussion. Heero had long since noticed one of the other scientists, G, approaching them. The man was even more uglier than J with an impressive hooked nose and mushroom shaped gray hair. “I wish we had some gundanium to work with. The things we could make for the agents! Very, very interesting…” his voice drifted off. J turned his head, addressing Heero.
“Gundanium can only be manufactured in outer space, as the process is very difficult and consuming,” he said. “It’s the most excellent material for mobile suits. It’s light compared to other materials, and has a high damage tolerance. Chips made out of gundanium make excellent commanding systems, Heero.”
“I know,” Heero answered, filing the information away for future use. He couldn’t divulge any other or more information, so he brusquely ignored J’s obvious intention to discuss the matter more. G threw him a questioning look, but didn’t continue.
“What do you have for transport?”
The scientist didn’t pursue the previous topic either. “I fixed the BMW and upgraded it, but please, don’t wreck it like you last did. No matter how advanced the car might be, it doesn’t withstand another plunge like before- not to mention how much it hurts when the wreck is brought here.”
“Sorry,” Heero mumbled. J handed him the keys.
“Here you are, it’s parked outside. Please do read the manual this time and don’t start hitting random buttons, okay 001?”
He heard the other scientists cackling and slammed the door shut, feeling pretty irritated.
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Heero finished packing and took a last look at the classified files. He had memorized every little shred of information on Dorothy Catalonia. The girl didn’t represent a very high danger to Relena, if not a danger at all- if she was to form a political alliance, it would be the problem of the Queen of the World, not his. He was only for the secret service, not for political intervention, and at this moment the smuggling and the consequences of two thousand gundanium chips had his top priority attention.
The last sighting of Chang had been at L4, confirming Heero’s suspicions about the well-funding. It wasn’t clear if Chang was the one to buy the chips, or if he belonged to a certain rebel faction; the very little information available about the Chinese man hadn’t helped him much- but at this moment, he was his only lead. Heero put in the last of his shirts in the suitcase. He would go under the name of Odin Lowe, if only to pursue his last leading trail with Dermail. Heero assumed that his contacts he established as Lowe, would give him the benefit of the doubt; anyone in his situation would’ve stayed low after the assassination of Dermail. He still had to figure out who was responsible for that as well. Enough work to do. He snapped the bands on his suitcase shut and pondered.
As long as he could remember, L4 was the home colony of the Winner family. The previous head of the family had been killed during a revolt by the population and the current Winner head -Quatre Raberba Winner- didn’t seem to have any trouble with the colonists. Maybe because everybody was sick and tired of war, or was his predecessor not fit for the job... or was the blonde billionaire, renowned for his empathic abilities, up to something? Could he really be plotting to start a war, out of revenge? Heero sighed.
His adoptive father, Odin Lowe, had taught him so much, but also transferred his paranoia on to him. Heero didn’t mind a healthy dose of mistrust, but sometimes when he thought back to Relena’s words, he knew she was right. He didn’t allow anyone in his life- not only was he not interested, they often represented danger or hurt- friends, a life partner, they could be used against him, turn against him, were a liability. He wasn’t surprised by human actions and automatically assumed the worse. Maybe it was time to change that- but his line of work made hem more cautious. He moved in dangerous circles, and he couldn’t trust anyone as soon as he emerged in those circles again.
Heero had to be in time to catch the space flight to L4. He didn’t expect to find Chang there, but he had a lead to someone close to Dermail. General Septem could be the one who had knowledge on Chang’s whereabouts. He picked up his tickets and checked his watch again. Goodbye Heero Yuy, hello Odin Lowe.
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The spaceport was crowded and Heero weaved through the stream of people. L4 was definitely one of the most prosperous colonies, courtesy of the influential Winner Enterprises. He collected his suitcase and took a cab to the nearest hotel, longing for a moment of silence after the long trip to collect his thoughts about approaching General Septem. He knew that Septem wasn’t a general, just as Duke Dermail hadn’t been a real duke; apparently, they both appreciated old militaristic titles and habits more than the newer rebel factions.
The news about Dermail’s death and the confiscation of the gundanium chips must’ve been widespread by now, Heero assumed. The news about the confiscation wasn’t worldly announced - the Earth government decided that it was in the best interest to not give rumor about even the existence of the gundanium chips- but every rebel faction would know. Still, there was that thief who stole the original Gundam construction plans and designs- quite a cunning job to steal that under the very noses of the conservators. Heero hadn’t known that there was still interest in the mobile suit designs- how could anyone be interested in reviving those dangers to society? Would anyone really be as.. desperate as to revive the Gundams for their own goals?
The cab dropped him off at Star Hotel and he checked in. An average hotel, an average room with the basic furniture- bed, chair, desk, TV. Heero took a shower first; the nightlife would be the only place to gather information and he had plenty of time to get some rest and dinner before making his way onto the streets. In his years as a secret agent, Heero had established contacts on every colony; Nichol being one of them. This man was a fence with a mean streak in him; he was one of the first to confirm Heero’s distrust towards people. Nichol was a prime example of someone who would act nicely in the face, only to turn around and give a stab in the back, and in his case, twist it a few times extra. Heero knew it wouldn’t take much time for the news about his arrival to travel around; people would learn soon enough that Odin Lowe had returned.
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The Sphere Lounge was packed; the mass of sweating bodies didn’t really appeal to Heero, but he made his way through the dancing crowd with his usual determination. He knew Nichol for a while now; he’d certainly find him in the back, draped with girls and a drink in his hand.
Heero spotted the man with the short cropped dark brown hair and out-of-fashion sideburns indeed at the back of the establishment. To his surprise, he was flanked by only one man sitting next to him; a young guy with light brown hair. They both looked up expectantly when Heero approached them. Nichol even rose from his chair, though he didn’t bother to outstretch his hand.
“Lowe, news had it that you were back in town again.”
“Nichol, such pleasure to see you again.” Heero didn’t hide the disdain and superiority in his voice. It was part of his Odin Lowe persona, to not allow anyone to intimidate him and to treat everybody with a certain arrogance. He was more bound to be remembered that way- a shy attitude would bring him nowhere in this kind of business.
“Have a seat.”
Heero sat down in the tacky gold and red velour chair and looked at Nichol. “What’s the status?”
“The merchandise is gone,” the man said, using wide and exaggerated moves to lit a cigarette. “Ten million down the drain. The Duke certainly was a greedy little piece of work.”
“He’s been dealt with, rather forcefully.”
“Yeah- and you were close when that happened, too.”
“I’m glad you cut to the chase,” Heero said. He eyed the young looking man sitting on Nichol’s left- a quiet observer, but too young and too inexperienced to escape Heero’s attention.
“What’s with your partner?” He prompted.
“Walker here is new to the business. He has some ties, and if he does well, he can opt for the Duke’s position.”
“So fast?”
Nichol shrugged. “You know how fast this business moves. I’m surprised to see you again Lowe, you’ve been out of it for a few weeks. If you don’t deliver or keep to your word, you’re gone.”
“My deal with Dermail was blown off. I still have the goods for sale.”
“No one wants your shitty conductors. I don’t know why Dermail was interested in them in the first place. Everybody is only talking about the gundanium chips now.”
“Dermail was interested because my conductors were the only one compatible with the chips,” Heero answered him dryly. From the look of Nichols bulging eyes, he had him hook, line and sinker.
“What the hell?”
“How do you think I feel, Nichol? I was about to make a great deal when some idiot decided to put a bullet in the Duke’s head. I still want to get my hands on the fucker who did that.”
Nichol started to laugh boisterously, closely followed by Walker. “You? Well, if your merchandise is really as good as you’re saying, than they will come out of their own to you.”
“They?” Heero narrowed his eyes.
“They,” Nichol repeated, enjoying the slight upper hand he had. He blew out a cloud of cigarette smoke. “If your conductors are as good as you say, they will find their way to you. Don’t sweat it, Odin.”
Heero started to fume. He didn’t like being addressed with his first name. “You’re walking a fine line, Nichol. What makes you so confident?”
“I’m the only one who can introduce you to the circle, so the friendlier you are to me, the sooner you can sell your wares. If you don’t mind waiting or praying for them to come to you, then I won’t do nothing for you. I know a few on the inside.”
“Good for you,” Heero snarled. “I’m not about to listen to you, Nichol. I’m offering you the scoop of the availability of the conductors- take it or leave it. They will find me eventually, just like you said yourself.”
Nichol motioned a waitress to order some drinks. “Still on the wodka-martini?”
Heero decided to accept- he needed to keep his head clear, but it would be too conspicuous to decline. The girl left after the drinks were ordered and Nichol put out his cigarette, leaning forward.
“Things are going well, Lowe. Soon, I can start on a second club and this one is doing fine as it is.”
“Does Chang protect you?” Heero asked bluntly. He was satisfied when he saw Nichol’s arm waver.
“What? Chang himself? Man, he’s way too busy to occupy himself with little ol’ me. I’m on the lower ranks, you know.”
“I know.” Heero couldn’t resist rubbing it in. Nichol glared at him.
“You don’t have a rank at all.”
“No, but I have the conductors. Point in my favor.”
“You don’t know shit if Chang wants them.”
“So Chang was behind the smuggling?”
Nichol wriggled on his chair, cornered now he had blabbed. “Well, no, not really. Chang has nothing to do with the smuggling, but he was highly interested in the chips. I don’t know if he was the definitive bidder, though.”
“Any leads to who the highest bidder was?”
Nichol scowled. “You don’t really think that I would know that?”
“You have big ears.” Heero accepted the drink from the waitress and a silence fell. After a few minutes, Walker finally said something.
“The highest bidder is only known in the highest ranks. I doubt the Duke would’ve known it.”
“What about the General?”
Nichol almost spat out his drink. “You’re certainly not thinking of approaching him about it?”
“Why not? You could introduce me.”
“Forget it. The General is way too busy- he has gundanium chips to deliver, remember? He has to get them from somewhere.”
Heero snorted. “You don’t pull two thousand gundanium chips out of nowhere. It’s going to cost you: time and money.”
“That’s why they’re going to steal them back,” Nichol smirked. “Fabrication and duplication of the chips would be time consuming and more likely than not, the new batch would be more prone to errors than the first one. That’s why it’s decided to steal them back.”
Heero barked a short laugh. “Who’s going to walk out with two thousand gundanium chips out of the fortified national vault?”
Nichol smirked again. “Simple,” he said, and took a swig of his drink. “Shinigami is.”
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The neon lights hurt his eyes. Heero closed the shutters of the hotel room and walked over to his laptop, pontifically put on his desk. He had searched the Internet for this Shinigami person- he know from his ethnic background that it literally translated to “God of Death”, but it was more of a general name. The God of Death had much more significance in Japanese mythology and Heero wasn’t even sure if it was one deity in particular- the legends and myths were far too complex to fathom. He shrugged. It had to be a code name, no doubt, for a very talented thief, if he - or she? - planned to walk out of the vault with all those chips. However, if it was the same thief who managed to lift the original Gundam designs, he probably would also succeed in stealing the chips.
Using a special program on his laptop, Heero send an encrypted message to headquarters about the intended theft; hopefully it would urge Une to take proper precautions and beef up security. If those chips would fall into rebel hands, they could cause some serious damage if they really were to rebuild mobile suits, and Gundams in particular. He knew he’d have to hurry to get to the core of this particular problem- as soon as became clear which organization was responsible for the smuggling. It was clear that Dermail hadn’t operated on his own; but he was killed before he could reveal more information.
Nonetheless, Heero knew where he could find General Septem, and that man was next on his list. He still had the solid cover of the conductors; it hadn’t been a lie that they were the only compatible ones with the gundanium chips. If the rebel faction employed their own engineers, it was certainly possible that they could produce their own conductors- it would take lots of time and effort, and Heero wanted to keep the upper hand by selling the pre-made product. It was a feeble bait, but a bait nonetheless. It was his only hope of penetrating the tight circle on his search mission for Chang.
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The ball room certainly wouldn’t outdo Relena’s idea of a good party or one of the many receptions and banquets she had to attain in her duty as Queen of the World. L4 demonstrated this evening where the colony was known for; luxury, decadence, cheap gold, too much of everything. Heero scowled at the guests, but tried to keep his face in its own, placid expression. He was on the lookout for General Septem, a man with truly the most fake smile in the world and a horrible voice to boot. The man was attending this charity ball while he was guilty of gundanium chips smuggle and possible conspiracy against the ESUN government.
Heero tugged at his collar. He left his Walther PPK gun back at the hotel- he wasn’t here to start a fight, but to observe and to establish contact between him and Septem. A perfectly dressed woman with jewelry ten times his gross income passing him was echoing the rumors floating around that Quatre Winner would be coming to this party. Heero shrugged; he wasn’t really convinced that the well-known benefactor would show up himself- the man was probably swamped with work and wouldn’t be missing out on this umpteenth ball anyway.
A woman with blonde hair tried to make eye contact with him, but after a single glare she quickly looked away and tried to harp someone else into conversation. Heero accepted a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and lifted up his hand. The sleeve of his jacket crept up and revealed his watch; the in-built camera was already working, recording the guests present. There was a great possibility of more smugglers being present here- he would file the footage by e-mail to headquarters later.
“That’s a very nice watch.”
Heero mentally slapped himself for letting his guard down. He hadn’t heard the woman approaching, and forced himself to turn around and smile at her. She wasn’t a pompous woman plastered with make-up and packed with jewelry, but a nice, albeit tom-boyish looking girl with short cropped black hair, bangs framing her face. Her dress was a plain dark blue one, and she only wore a small silver necklace.
“Is it a genuine Breil, Diamond 7400 series?” He moved his wrist so she could take a better look at it. “Yes, it is. Wow.”
“You certainly know your watches.”
“Let’s say I have a good eye for pretty things,” she winked at him, “and I always get what I want. If not legal, then illegal.”
“So, how’s the illegal business been lately?”
She laughed. “My name’s Hilde Schbeiker. You are…?”
“Lowe, Odin Lowe,” Heero introduced himself and he saw something changing in her eyes, making the connection. It immediately sharpened his senses. If she knew his name and connected him to Dermail and his demise, she was probably moving into certain circles, and not the regular ball guest he was keeping her for.
“Terrible business,” she said, shaking her head. “How did you manage to escape?”
“The shooter obviously wasn’t targeting me,” Heero answered. “I had no troubles whatsoever to leave the place.”
“Strange,” she tapped at her chin, revealing some pretty gold rings with diamonds in a rather laborious setting. “I know lots of people who wanted Dermail dead, how impersonal it may sound. His merchandise was already terrible tainted and he double-crossed a lot of people.”
Heero was taken aback. Surely this girl didn’t speak aloud about Dermails shady business at a charity ball, or was she really that stupid?
She smiled again, a disarming smile. “It’s a terrible blow for his granddaughter. She has to finish his business, I guess. Maybe she’s interested?”
He knew she was referring to his conductors. Good, that meant that Nichol had blabbed about his visit to his club and that word was spreading about Odin Lowe being back in town again.
“I haven’t heard from the Dermail estate,” Heero answered courteously. He put his glass down and offered the girl her arm.
“May I ask this dance from you?”
“One dance only,” she answered. “I’m with someone.”
“Very well.” Heero smiled back at her and recognized the foxtrot the orchestra was playing. They swiftly moved on to the dance floor.
“So miss Schbeiker, you’re in the business as well?”
She laughed again. “I’m only for the loose ends,” she said. “I know a few people, but not that much. I’m not the one to discuss your matter.”
“Maybe you know to who I can talk to?”
“Mister Lowe, not too audacious, please.”
“My apologies.” He swirled her around, carefully following the music. After the dance was over, she made a curtsy for him.
“Pleased to have danced with you, mister Lowe.” She wanted to rise up again and yelped when two arms snaked around her waist and lifted her up.
“Hilde! Why, I ought to put a leash on you. Leaving me in the cloak-room and dancing with handsome young men when I look the other way!” The unknown man put the girl back on her feet and turned her around, giving her two exuberant pecks on the cheek. Heero stood flabbergasted. Before him was the man from the picture. The one with the braid. The mechanic standing next to Chang.
“No offense,” the man addressed him, voice a bit raspy but rich in tones, “but I always get a bit nervous when she acquaints with someone I don’t know… yet.” He looked at Heero and smiled. It was as if Heero was struck with a ten ton hammer in the head. The man before him was a dream come true. He was vibrant with life- sporting the same, healthy red cheeks as in the picture, and showing large, shining eyes with blue and violet hints in it. With the dazzling chestnut hair carefully braided, swinging as if it had a will on its own, and clad in a perfectly smoking, just like Heero’s, made the stranger even look more attractive. Hilde’s voice seemed to come from far, far away.
“Duo, meet Odin Lowe. Mister Lowe, meet Duo Maxwell.”
“Please to meet you,” Heero said, quickly coming to his wits and outstretching his hand. He got a pleasant, though firm shake back.
“My pleasure,” Duo commented. “I take it Hilde has been a pleasure to dance with? Do you mind if I take over?”
“Yes and no,” Heero answered and he was rewarded with a boisterous laugh. Hilde swung her arms casually around Duo’s shoulders and Heero had trouble keeping his face straight. Damn!
“Maybe we’ll meet again, Mister Lowe,” she said and winked at him, though not in a flirtatious matter. Duo grabbed her other hand and they assumed the dance position for a quickstep. Without a partner, Heero retreated from the dance floor and looked for a place to observe without being observed himself. His eyes were glued to the man who danced like it came all natural to him. Duo Maxwell. He was no longer the ‘unidentified bystander’ from the picture. Seeing him dancing the night away, Heero firmly squashed his jealous feelings for Hilde Schbeiker. He wasn’t about to have feelings, certainly not romantic feelings, for someone he had just met, and more than likely was “on the bad side”. This was what he always feared and this couldn’t be happening. Not to him. He gulped.
Heero reminded himself that he had to find General Septem, and from the voices coming from the left, he pegged the man instantly. He had the most obnoxious voice ever, raspy and screeching. Heero abandoned his position and was about to approach the general, when he saw Duo and Hilde leaving the dance floor and walking in the same direction. No! The thought surprised him, but he didn’t have time to wonder about it- Septem walked up to the couple and greeted them, by shaking Duo’s hand and pecking Hilde on her cheeks. Septem gestured wildly with his arm, probably to invite them over at his table. They complied and two waiters were immediately at the table, presenting drinks and hors d’oeuvres. Heero gritted his teeth. This could be a long night. He decided against approaching them at this moment, not being sure about the mutual connection. He remembered from the picture that Duo was standing awfully close to Chang in a pretty friendly matter- he had to outwait the evening and hoping that Duo Maxwell would lead him to Chang.
The evening dragged on and Heero stopped listening to the music and the rumors a long time ago, declining any offered drinks. His interest had piqued when he saw the trio finally stand op; Septem, Duo and Hilde -he didn’t want to argue with his mind why he referred to them with their first names- bade their farewells and started leaving the room. Heero made up his mind; he would follow Duo. He made his way quickly through the crowd to exit after them. Duo addressed the valet boy to get his car; he had draped his coat on Hilde’s shoulders.
“What’s next?” Heero heard her say, voice clear in the night.
“Let’s go for a nightcap,” Duo answered in his strangely melodious baritone- or it sounded at least melodious to Heero’s ears. He made his way over to the parking lot to start his own BMW, not allowing himself to lose Duo out of sight. Hilde stepped into the car while Duo held the door open for her; it was a black Pontiac TransAm, probably a Before Colony one. He sped away, with Heero going into pursuit.
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It was a short, but fast drive of fifteen minutes before the TransAm finally came to a halt- not for an abandoned warehouse as Heero expected, but before a rather exclusive looking apartment complex. He parked the BMW, locking it with his electronic handheld and made sure he didn’t walk into the eyesight of the couple. They went into the large building, talking softly, occasionally laughing. Heero quickly crossed the street, but was too late to keep the entrance door open; it fell back into its electronic lock. With no one in sight, Heero used the function on his Breil to jam the circuit of the lock and it sprang open. The voices of the couple were overheard from the stair case; he could pinpoint them halting on the fourth floor, rattling with door keys. Heero cursed himself mentally for not having planted a transmitter on either of them, but he hadn’t known Hilde was connected to Duo, nor didn’t expect to meet the man from the picture so soon. He just knew there was something to Duo; his intuition never lied to him. Une would probably be pissed off to hear that he went after someone whose identity hadn’t been established yet or rather, she had dismissed as being not important. Heero’s gut feeling didn’t deny itself. Debating how to approach the situation, as he was standing on the stairs, he overheard them talk.
“… sure about that?” Hilde’s voice.
“I’m not sure, no.” Duo’s voice. “What about Gwinter? What did he have to offer?”
Hilde snorted. “He wouldn’t pay- he thinks you should crawl on your knees and thank him for getting the job. It’s not our fault that the deal didn’t go through!”
“That remind me- you spoke with the manufacturer of the conductors?”
Heero almost stopped breathing. Perfect! They were talking about him! He pulled one of his credit cards out of the inner pocket of his tux- this example had a recording facility and reach of a few hundred meters. Some genius at headquarters would filter out all excessive sounds later. Heero pushed the minuscule ‘record’ button. If they were talking about the deal, maybe he could collect enough dirt to arrest them later.
“Odin Lowe? Yes, I talked to him. A bit uptight, but okay.”
He bristled.
“I don’t know if he can be useful, though. I don’t know if Dermail really wanted to buy those conductors. Wufei had another offer.”
Wufei? Could that be Chang’s first name? Heero was of course aware of the Chinese culture of addressing a native Chinese with his last name. Europeans or Americans would rather address someone with his or her first name. Filing this information away for further use, Duo’s other words sank in. Another offer?
“Let’s first get those chips back, don’t you think?”
“I’ll leave you to prepare,” Hilde said and the door of the apartment closed- no matter how good the recording radius of the credit card was, the thick door literally stood in the way. Heero was shocked. Let’s get those chips back. The chips were about to be stolen back, he had informed headquarters about that... and this Duo Maxwell was the thief? Was he Shinigami, where Nichol had referred to? He couldn’t fathom it and was lost in thought when he suddenly heard the entrance door of the building open, realizing he was still standing on the stairs, pretty much in the open. Quickly he put his credit card away, adjusted his tie and descended the stairs, even friendly greeting the elderly woman going up. Heero decided to go back to his hotel to reevaluate the situation and the mission...
The drive back to the hotel didn’t take him more than half an hour minutes and when he checked in, the receptionist smiled at him. “Mrs. Lowe is already waiting for you,” he said.
Heero succeeded in containing the surprised look on his face. “Thank you. I do hope you’ve treated her right.”
“But of course,” the receptionist answered, almost indignant. “Dom Pérignon ’68, smoked salmon salad and crème brulée went all on your account according to Mrs. Lowe’s wishes.”
Heero almost choked, but he managed to croak out an “Excellent”. He motioned the bellboy to get the elevator to the highest floor, meanwhile thinking about what the receptionist had said. After checking that there was no one on his floor, he pulled out his Smith and Wesson .28 and loaded it. Mrs. Lowe… well, if it wasn’t one of the eldest tricks out of the book. He opened his door and carefully pushed it further open, gun in hand. The room was sparsely lit, casting a soft glow on the furniture and highlighting the silhouette of a woman with a glass in her hand. She had already noticed him.
“Come on in, Odin. You don’t want to keep a woman waiting, now do you?” Her voice was low for a woman, with a throaty chuckle. “Get in, before the crème brulée gets cold.”
Heero closed the door, gun still pointed to the woman. He walked into the room, gauging her. She wore her strawberry blond hair in two braids, carefully plaited and resting on her shoulders. She was clad in a men’s jumpsuit, possessing sophisticated class and a flair that Relena with her girlish look couldn’t touch within a mile; but this was a dangerous woman, unlike Relena. He knew he had to be careful.
“To what do I owe this honor?”
She chuckled again, putting the glass down on the small glass table next to her. “One of my friends wants to see you. I’m just here to deliver the invitation, Odin. I’ll give you a hint, though; it has to do with your merchandise. Oh, and as soon as you’ve accepted the invitation... I should inform you that he’d love to talk about the Duke’s death.”
Heero’s hand didn’t waver. “If I think I know who your ‘friend’ is who wants to see me, than I’m very surprised to learn that he isn’t behind the murder of the Duke himself.”
She shrugged and hoisted herself up from the velvet chair, with such a swift movement that Heero hardly noticed. Her large blue eyes looked at him and he felt as he’d been x-rayed. “You’re not the only player on the market, though you are an interesting one. I don’t know if my friend can offer you something you can’t refuse, but I know one thing for certain- you shouldn’t refuse the invitation.”
“Very well. I accept.”
“Good boy.” She smiled, without any emotion. “Be prepared tomorrow. We will pick you up at the hotel before lunchtime.”
“Very well,” he repeated, but she was already through the door, the click of the lock closing the only sound to rupture the silence.
-----------
Heero yawned. He had stayed up late to perform an Internet search for Duo Maxwell and Hilde Schbeiker, but he didn’t dig up any important information, even the profound databanks of headquarters had left him empty handed. He had relayed the two names through to Lucrezia Noin, hoping that she’d be able to pass him something he could work with. After a simple breakfast Heero had spend the morning doing meditation and exercises, as well as mentally preparing himself for his “lunch appointment”. If he really was to face Chang so soon, he had to have his story ready- even the slightest mistake could cost him his head. He felt the usual surge of adrenaline flowing through his body while he pumped himself up. This was the work he was cut out for, and any relationship, any bond or friendship would undermine it. He’d never allow one of his friends or lovers to be used against him and he wouldn’t want to endanger anyone close to him. This was where he was born for to do and nothing would stand in his way... though he couldn’t deny that a certain braided man had featured in his dream last night. Well, looking is okay, touching is not. Feeling is not okay. Keep your head clear.
The telephone rang and he picked it up.
“Lowe here.”
“Mr. Lowe, there are two men down here to pick you up,” the pleasant voice of the receptionist rang out to him.
“Excellent. I’m coming down.” Heero hung up. He quickly finished dressing, putting his black jacket over the holster with the Smith & Wesson. His escort certainly would be donned with a gun as well, no doubt about it. If they’d search him and took the Smith & Wesson- well, he wasn’t dependant of the gun to ensure his life.
Heero went downstairs, taking the stairs instead of the lift, and greeted the two young men. He recognized the left one as Walker, the one who was with Nichol when he visited him yesterday. The other one was pretty burly and probably strong enough to throw Heero across the lobby without breaking a sweat. Neither of them bothered with introductions and Walker didn’t show any sign of recognition.
“The car is outside.”
Heero wasn’t surprised to see a silver Mercedes, limousine class, and he stepped in. The burly man took a seat next to him while Walker took the opposite chair. Nobody uttered a word, and Heero didn’t mind- he didn’t want to waste his time dealing with cronies when he was on his way to the big fish.
The car drive took at least one hour and a half- he noticed immediately they were out of town, despite the heavy tinted glasses. The amount of traffic noise diminished rather quickly, meaning they were on the countryside- L4 had lots of specific areas where the rich could relax in relative privacy, away from the smoking cities.
The limousine came to a halt and the door was yanked open by an impeccable groomed young man, looking extremely bored.
“Mr. Lowe? The General is expecting you.”
So it was Septem who had orchestrated this meeting, not Chang. Heero was almost disappointed. He reminded himself that it would take some time to catch the big fish, and that he had to deal with the small fry first. He would get to Chang eventually- assuming that he had something to do with the whole gundanium chips business. Heero followed the servant through pompously decorated hallways and antechambers until he came to stand in front of a very elaborated oak wooden door.
“The General will receive you now.”
He didn’t bother to thank the man who opened the doors to announce him. Noticing that Walker and the burly bodyguard had disappeared, he stepped inside the luxurious room.
“General Septem, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
The man balked a short laugh, sounding like grating chainsaws on a chalk board. “To tell you the truth, Lowe, I was a bit nervous at first. It seems that everyone you talk to, have the nasty habit to get killed.”
Heero straightened his face. “I’ll be sure to when I catch the killer, I will tell him to refrain from doing so, sir.”
“You want to catch Dermail’s killer?” Septem motioned for Heero to sit. He had already seen that the corner of the room was a bit dark and he clearly distinguished the outlines. Someone was sitting there. Could it be the woman of yesterday? The outline was too obscure to distinguish if it was a man or a woman.
“Why not? He ruined my transaction and my reputation. Something I pride myself in.”
“Ah, your transaction. Circuit conductors, hm? Cigar? Real Havanas.”
Heero declined politely. He didn’t smoke. Septem used the occasion to lit one up, making a big show of it and inhaling deeply.
“Circuit conductors compatible for Gundam chips. Interesting niche of the market, Mister Lowe. Don’t you think you’re restricting yourself too much? Gundanium isn’t that widely available, nor that much in use.”
“There’s enough to make a living,” Heero informed him, quite deadpan. “And with the deal I was about to make with Dermail, it would’ve lasted me a lifetime.”
“Very true,” the man said. “About that deal with Dermail. You certainly know by now that we’re pretty much interested in your conductors. We tried fabricating them on our own, but it turns out to be too labor intensive and our output isn’t as flawless as yours. So why do all the hard work when someone already did that?”
Bingo. Heero didn’t change the expression on his face.
“We can’t promise you the same deal, however. I don’t know the exact details.”
“I think you know them just fine. Or else your mysterious partner over there in the corner knows them,” Heero said, nodding with his head. He wasn’t about to get caught in this web, he had too much invested and worked too hard to fall for such a trick.
A short laugh erupted from the corner and a chair scraped over the floor. The person who had shrouded himself in the shadows, emerged rather quick. Heero managed to keep a smirk off his face. It was Chang, no doubt about it.
The young Chinese, stern and rigid in every move, approached him. He wore traditional Chinese garb, akin to the one he’d worn on the picture. The golden and crimson broidered dragon shone in the sunlight, filtered through the large window panes. Chang came to stand in front of him and Heero was confirmed in his earlier suspicions- this was a dangerous man as well. Chang didn’t sport one ounce of fat on his body, being one and all toned and slender muscle. His dark ebony eyes had a piercing glaze; once again Heero felt like he was being x-rayed. He maintained his position and refused to be intimidated by the glare. Chang didn’t offer Heero a hand, only looked at him
“Despite what you think, I wasn’t au courant with Dermail’s plans,” the Chinese young man said, speech and diction controlled and composed. “He left our Earthly plane before I could talk to him about it.”
“Convenient, or not?”
“Highly inconvenient. I’d love to have known the details. It makes our deal so much more difficult, don’t you think? Septem!”
The General almost fell out of his chair. “Yes?”
“Have some tea brought up to us. I’m going to discuss business with Mister Lowe in the green room.” He excluded rather significantly Septem and Heero duly noted the sullen look on the face of the general, now reduced to mere errand boy. His voice was rather curt when he answered: “As you wish.”
“Mister Lowe?” Chang motioned him to walk forward and Heero left the room via another door. There was a huge hallway behind it and he wondered how much corridors this mansion had. He easily could get lost in here.
“This way.” Chang opened a door that was hardly noticeable, as it was decorated with the same pattern as the wall paper. The green room was named green for a reason- everything was decorated in several hues of green and showed lots of traditional Chinese influences on the furniture. Heero couldn’t help but admire the beautiful silk screens depicting large parrots, elephants and other animals, all hand painted and crafted. While he followed Chang to the seats, he threw a look out of the window; and saw, to his surprise, a beautiful rose garden.
“Are you the owner of this mansion?”
A servant came in with the tea, carrying a silver tray with Chinese porcelain cups, and started pouring. Chang shook his head. “This mansion belongs to the good General.”
No doubt, Heero mussed and looked outside again. “Beautiful garden. Peons, roses... lilies…” Suddenly his eye caught something. Two men walked through the garden, relatively close, talking amiably. They were too far away to lip read or to understand what they were saying, but Heero recognized them. Quatre Winner and Trowa Barton. What the hell were they doing here in a mansion owned by Septem? Septem wasn’t very clean, and for a prominent business man like Quatre Winner, any connection between him and the shady general wasn’t good for his public relations. Heero assumed that the man walking next to Winner was Barton; but as he had a far lower profile in society, Heero wasn’t sure. He ached to active his Breil to take a picture, but the distance was too far. He cursed mentally.
“Septem’s roses always win on the local fairs,” Chang said, voice amused. Even Heero couldn’t suppress a snicker at the thought of the crude General with a bulk of roses at a garden fair.
“Please have a seat, Mister Lowe.”
“Thank you.” Chang still hadn’t introduced himself and Heero didn’t ask.
“The circuit conductors for the gundanium chips. What was your price?”
“Ten thousand a piece,” Heero said. Chang held a cup of tea in his hand and didn’t waver. He had his emotions under a rigid control.
“That’s quite the price, Mister Lowe. Are you sure you aren’t overrating your merchandise?”
“You’re quite welcome to bargain, and of course, feel free to manufacture the conductors yourself. I haven’t upped the price, if that’s it what you mean. I had a deal with Dermail for two thousand conductors, for two million.”
“Two million earth credits,” Chang mussed. He put down the tea cup. “All right, you got yourself a deal. I’ll take it over from Dermail, and I’m a man of my word.”
“I rather see something more official, if you know what I mean.” Heero took a sip of his own tea, if only to hide his slight surprise that Chang agreed so fast. That could only mean that they really had no other methods of producing the conductors themselves, or were quite desperate to get the conductors... because of what? Lack of time?
“I understand. I’ll give you an advance of five hundred thousand.”
“Five hundred thousand is just fine.”
Chang smiled a mere tugging at his lips. “It’s a pleasure doing business with you.” He reached forward to the ebony coffee table, opened a small drawer and pulled out a check book. Heero waited until he was finished writing the check and accepted the paper.
“You can cash it at any bank on L4, no questions asked. If you want, I can have someone accompany you.”
“No thank you,” Heero shook his head. “It’ll be quite all right. Do you already have some details about the delivery?”
“We are a bit dependant on the delivery of the chips ourselves, but I expect them any day now. We’ll let you know immediately when you can deliver.”
Heero pocketed the check. “Do you need help with the retrieval of the chips?”
“Thank you for your offer, Mister Lowe, but no, thank you. The retrieval is in good hands. Why don’t you be our guest for the rest of the day? Dinner is at seven.”
“Thank you,” Heero said. It was no use to decline- it hadn’t been a question either. Sipping the last of his tea, his thoughts drifted to Duo -he corrected himself- the braided man, who more than probably had something to do with the upcoming theft. He could only hope that Une had increased security around the stored chips, as he had recommended in his last e-mail.
Chang suddenly rose from his chair, a sign that the meeting was over and he bowed lightly to him.
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Pairings: to be established Heero and Duo.
Genre: AU, action, adventure.
Warnings: foul language, some angst.
Summary: Heero Yuy, top agent in Her Majesty’s, Queen of the World Relena Peacecraft, Secret Service, is send on a dangerous mission: rebels in the L2 colony are developing a new commanding system for mobile suits - the Mobile Doll system - with the goal to overthrow the Earth Sphere United Nations government. To execute his mission successfully, Heero pursues the lead of a mysterious young man, clad in black, with a long brown braid and blue eyes…
Disclaimer: I don’t own Gundam Wing or any of the brand names mentioned in this fic.
Author’s note: Fic loosely based on the James Bond concept; so lots of brand names, flashy cars, high-tech gadgets and a lot of made up stuff (gratuitous use of ‘artistic license’). The Gundam designs are the ones for the Endless Waltz models, except for the Deathscythe Hell, who looks like… the Deathscythe Hell. I don’t like the Endless Waltz version of the Grim Reaper, but that’s personal. Events and persons from Endless Waltz are used in this fic, mingled with events and persons from the first series, twisted to fit my evil plot. Everybody is 5-6 years older; as genius as Heero might be a 17 year old secret agent isn’t really believable in my book.
Key:
----------- scene change
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The laboratories and other practice rooms the inventors had to their disposal, were located in the basement and Heero took the stairs for his daily exercise. When he opened the large door, he was greeted with a harsh: “Close it! Close it, you idiot!”
A cloud of fire and smoke approached him and only because of his fast reflexes Heero was able to throw himself to the ground, rolling away from the blast. He was back on his feet within a few seconds, adrenaline pumping through his body.
“What the hell, J?” He barked, looking at the scorched door.
An elderly man with more synthetic prosthetics for limbs than Heero cared to remember, cackled loudly and flicked some strands of greasy gray hair over his shoulder while shuffling towards the secret agent.
“Well, if it isn’t 001! What made you come visit us geezers?”
Heero gritted his teeth. He didn’t know what came over Une when she hired this scientist- a lunatic scientist, and four extra of them to boot. They were named after a certain letter in the alphabet and Heero didn’t know -or care- if it had something to do with their first name or not. They were named G, S, O, H and J, of course- all experts in several scientific fields, and hired by Une to develop new gadgets and high-tech aids to assist the secret agents. J was assigned to the top ranks: Heero and two other agents who he didn’t know by name, even though he suspected one of them was 006, Zechs Marquise, the agent with the infuriating sloppy attitude, and who managed to wheedled himself through every mission and made sure every woman at the office received his special attention. Heero wouldn’t hold it for impossible that even Une had fallen for the man’s charms- to him, Marquise was a second rate agent who only managed to keep himself out of large trouble because of his intelligence; 006 was not to be underestimated.. he just didn’t like to do all the hard work.
The old man cackled again. “So you made the Queen of the World cry again, didn’t you naughty boy?”
“I see gossip is traveling fast, as usual,” Heero answered sourly. J patted him on the back. “You know I admire the one who can make her run around like a love stricken sap.”
Heero flinched mentally, but didn’t show any annoyance on his face. He knew that Relena was over her childhood infatuation for him -even though he doubted that sometimes, seeing her reactions- but apparently it ripped open old wounds. He still was struck by the fact that she actually bothered to come visit him and sit next to him when he was handed a new mission. Did it only have something to do with the fact that she feared political complications? He remembered the name of Dermails granddaughter, Dorothy Catalonia, and made a mental note to do some research into her and to see what danger she represented.
“Earth to Yuy,” the old scientist rumbled and tugged at Heero’s sleeve. “You might think I have all day, but I don’t. Get over here, I’ve been working on some nice new things for you.”
Heero followed the man obediently to a table covered with clutter, unfinished gadgets and junk he didn’t think was worth one penny; J started digging around in the mess and unearthed some of his equipment.
“Here you are, 001- the standard pieces.. a Watermark 1990 ballpoint pen with laser, a Breil watch with the usual functions: Geiger teller, stopwatch, chronometer, cholesterol meter, garrote, time zones calculator, etcetera.. I have here your coat..”
“What’s with the coat?”
“Ah, let me demonstrate you.” The scientist put on the coat and stuffed his hands into the pockets. Heero noticed J’s barely visible movement with his fingers, and the top button sprang away from the coat to land several feet further- and exploded on impact.
“You’ll never know when it comes in handy,” the scientist grinned, shrugging out of the coat. “Here, it’s nice for this type of weather too. Furthermore, here is your wallet with copy facilities, credit cards with bug detection, x-ray sunglasses and a fine-tuned bow tie, for if you have a ball or a dance. It can jam radar equipment and you can transmit with it as well.”
“I’m going after gundanium microchips smugglers, I’m not going to have a ball,” Heero said, eying the rest of the equipment. J turned around, a look of surprise written on his face. The elderly man whistled.
“Gundanium? Why, I haven’t heard of that material since the wars!”
“Interesting,” another voice mingled into the discussion. Heero had long since noticed one of the other scientists, G, approaching them. The man was even more uglier than J with an impressive hooked nose and mushroom shaped gray hair. “I wish we had some gundanium to work with. The things we could make for the agents! Very, very interesting…” his voice drifted off. J turned his head, addressing Heero.
“Gundanium can only be manufactured in outer space, as the process is very difficult and consuming,” he said. “It’s the most excellent material for mobile suits. It’s light compared to other materials, and has a high damage tolerance. Chips made out of gundanium make excellent commanding systems, Heero.”
“I know,” Heero answered, filing the information away for future use. He couldn’t divulge any other or more information, so he brusquely ignored J’s obvious intention to discuss the matter more. G threw him a questioning look, but didn’t continue.
“What do you have for transport?”
The scientist didn’t pursue the previous topic either. “I fixed the BMW and upgraded it, but please, don’t wreck it like you last did. No matter how advanced the car might be, it doesn’t withstand another plunge like before- not to mention how much it hurts when the wreck is brought here.”
“Sorry,” Heero mumbled. J handed him the keys.
“Here you are, it’s parked outside. Please do read the manual this time and don’t start hitting random buttons, okay 001?”
He heard the other scientists cackling and slammed the door shut, feeling pretty irritated.
------------
Heero finished packing and took a last look at the classified files. He had memorized every little shred of information on Dorothy Catalonia. The girl didn’t represent a very high danger to Relena, if not a danger at all- if she was to form a political alliance, it would be the problem of the Queen of the World, not his. He was only for the secret service, not for political intervention, and at this moment the smuggling and the consequences of two thousand gundanium chips had his top priority attention.
The last sighting of Chang had been at L4, confirming Heero’s suspicions about the well-funding. It wasn’t clear if Chang was the one to buy the chips, or if he belonged to a certain rebel faction; the very little information available about the Chinese man hadn’t helped him much- but at this moment, he was his only lead. Heero put in the last of his shirts in the suitcase. He would go under the name of Odin Lowe, if only to pursue his last leading trail with Dermail. Heero assumed that his contacts he established as Lowe, would give him the benefit of the doubt; anyone in his situation would’ve stayed low after the assassination of Dermail. He still had to figure out who was responsible for that as well. Enough work to do. He snapped the bands on his suitcase shut and pondered.
As long as he could remember, L4 was the home colony of the Winner family. The previous head of the family had been killed during a revolt by the population and the current Winner head -Quatre Raberba Winner- didn’t seem to have any trouble with the colonists. Maybe because everybody was sick and tired of war, or was his predecessor not fit for the job... or was the blonde billionaire, renowned for his empathic abilities, up to something? Could he really be plotting to start a war, out of revenge? Heero sighed.
His adoptive father, Odin Lowe, had taught him so much, but also transferred his paranoia on to him. Heero didn’t mind a healthy dose of mistrust, but sometimes when he thought back to Relena’s words, he knew she was right. He didn’t allow anyone in his life- not only was he not interested, they often represented danger or hurt- friends, a life partner, they could be used against him, turn against him, were a liability. He wasn’t surprised by human actions and automatically assumed the worse. Maybe it was time to change that- but his line of work made hem more cautious. He moved in dangerous circles, and he couldn’t trust anyone as soon as he emerged in those circles again.
Heero had to be in time to catch the space flight to L4. He didn’t expect to find Chang there, but he had a lead to someone close to Dermail. General Septem could be the one who had knowledge on Chang’s whereabouts. He picked up his tickets and checked his watch again. Goodbye Heero Yuy, hello Odin Lowe.
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The spaceport was crowded and Heero weaved through the stream of people. L4 was definitely one of the most prosperous colonies, courtesy of the influential Winner Enterprises. He collected his suitcase and took a cab to the nearest hotel, longing for a moment of silence after the long trip to collect his thoughts about approaching General Septem. He knew that Septem wasn’t a general, just as Duke Dermail hadn’t been a real duke; apparently, they both appreciated old militaristic titles and habits more than the newer rebel factions.
The news about Dermail’s death and the confiscation of the gundanium chips must’ve been widespread by now, Heero assumed. The news about the confiscation wasn’t worldly announced - the Earth government decided that it was in the best interest to not give rumor about even the existence of the gundanium chips- but every rebel faction would know. Still, there was that thief who stole the original Gundam construction plans and designs- quite a cunning job to steal that under the very noses of the conservators. Heero hadn’t known that there was still interest in the mobile suit designs- how could anyone be interested in reviving those dangers to society? Would anyone really be as.. desperate as to revive the Gundams for their own goals?
The cab dropped him off at Star Hotel and he checked in. An average hotel, an average room with the basic furniture- bed, chair, desk, TV. Heero took a shower first; the nightlife would be the only place to gather information and he had plenty of time to get some rest and dinner before making his way onto the streets. In his years as a secret agent, Heero had established contacts on every colony; Nichol being one of them. This man was a fence with a mean streak in him; he was one of the first to confirm Heero’s distrust towards people. Nichol was a prime example of someone who would act nicely in the face, only to turn around and give a stab in the back, and in his case, twist it a few times extra. Heero knew it wouldn’t take much time for the news about his arrival to travel around; people would learn soon enough that Odin Lowe had returned.
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The Sphere Lounge was packed; the mass of sweating bodies didn’t really appeal to Heero, but he made his way through the dancing crowd with his usual determination. He knew Nichol for a while now; he’d certainly find him in the back, draped with girls and a drink in his hand.
Heero spotted the man with the short cropped dark brown hair and out-of-fashion sideburns indeed at the back of the establishment. To his surprise, he was flanked by only one man sitting next to him; a young guy with light brown hair. They both looked up expectantly when Heero approached them. Nichol even rose from his chair, though he didn’t bother to outstretch his hand.
“Lowe, news had it that you were back in town again.”
“Nichol, such pleasure to see you again.” Heero didn’t hide the disdain and superiority in his voice. It was part of his Odin Lowe persona, to not allow anyone to intimidate him and to treat everybody with a certain arrogance. He was more bound to be remembered that way- a shy attitude would bring him nowhere in this kind of business.
“Have a seat.”
Heero sat down in the tacky gold and red velour chair and looked at Nichol. “What’s the status?”
“The merchandise is gone,” the man said, using wide and exaggerated moves to lit a cigarette. “Ten million down the drain. The Duke certainly was a greedy little piece of work.”
“He’s been dealt with, rather forcefully.”
“Yeah- and you were close when that happened, too.”
“I’m glad you cut to the chase,” Heero said. He eyed the young looking man sitting on Nichol’s left- a quiet observer, but too young and too inexperienced to escape Heero’s attention.
“What’s with your partner?” He prompted.
“Walker here is new to the business. He has some ties, and if he does well, he can opt for the Duke’s position.”
“So fast?”
Nichol shrugged. “You know how fast this business moves. I’m surprised to see you again Lowe, you’ve been out of it for a few weeks. If you don’t deliver or keep to your word, you’re gone.”
“My deal with Dermail was blown off. I still have the goods for sale.”
“No one wants your shitty conductors. I don’t know why Dermail was interested in them in the first place. Everybody is only talking about the gundanium chips now.”
“Dermail was interested because my conductors were the only one compatible with the chips,” Heero answered him dryly. From the look of Nichols bulging eyes, he had him hook, line and sinker.
“What the hell?”
“How do you think I feel, Nichol? I was about to make a great deal when some idiot decided to put a bullet in the Duke’s head. I still want to get my hands on the fucker who did that.”
Nichol started to laugh boisterously, closely followed by Walker. “You? Well, if your merchandise is really as good as you’re saying, than they will come out of their own to you.”
“They?” Heero narrowed his eyes.
“They,” Nichol repeated, enjoying the slight upper hand he had. He blew out a cloud of cigarette smoke. “If your conductors are as good as you say, they will find their way to you. Don’t sweat it, Odin.”
Heero started to fume. He didn’t like being addressed with his first name. “You’re walking a fine line, Nichol. What makes you so confident?”
“I’m the only one who can introduce you to the circle, so the friendlier you are to me, the sooner you can sell your wares. If you don’t mind waiting or praying for them to come to you, then I won’t do nothing for you. I know a few on the inside.”
“Good for you,” Heero snarled. “I’m not about to listen to you, Nichol. I’m offering you the scoop of the availability of the conductors- take it or leave it. They will find me eventually, just like you said yourself.”
Nichol motioned a waitress to order some drinks. “Still on the wodka-martini?”
Heero decided to accept- he needed to keep his head clear, but it would be too conspicuous to decline. The girl left after the drinks were ordered and Nichol put out his cigarette, leaning forward.
“Things are going well, Lowe. Soon, I can start on a second club and this one is doing fine as it is.”
“Does Chang protect you?” Heero asked bluntly. He was satisfied when he saw Nichol’s arm waver.
“What? Chang himself? Man, he’s way too busy to occupy himself with little ol’ me. I’m on the lower ranks, you know.”
“I know.” Heero couldn’t resist rubbing it in. Nichol glared at him.
“You don’t have a rank at all.”
“No, but I have the conductors. Point in my favor.”
“You don’t know shit if Chang wants them.”
“So Chang was behind the smuggling?”
Nichol wriggled on his chair, cornered now he had blabbed. “Well, no, not really. Chang has nothing to do with the smuggling, but he was highly interested in the chips. I don’t know if he was the definitive bidder, though.”
“Any leads to who the highest bidder was?”
Nichol scowled. “You don’t really think that I would know that?”
“You have big ears.” Heero accepted the drink from the waitress and a silence fell. After a few minutes, Walker finally said something.
“The highest bidder is only known in the highest ranks. I doubt the Duke would’ve known it.”
“What about the General?”
Nichol almost spat out his drink. “You’re certainly not thinking of approaching him about it?”
“Why not? You could introduce me.”
“Forget it. The General is way too busy- he has gundanium chips to deliver, remember? He has to get them from somewhere.”
Heero snorted. “You don’t pull two thousand gundanium chips out of nowhere. It’s going to cost you: time and money.”
“That’s why they’re going to steal them back,” Nichol smirked. “Fabrication and duplication of the chips would be time consuming and more likely than not, the new batch would be more prone to errors than the first one. That’s why it’s decided to steal them back.”
Heero barked a short laugh. “Who’s going to walk out with two thousand gundanium chips out of the fortified national vault?”
Nichol smirked again. “Simple,” he said, and took a swig of his drink. “Shinigami is.”
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The neon lights hurt his eyes. Heero closed the shutters of the hotel room and walked over to his laptop, pontifically put on his desk. He had searched the Internet for this Shinigami person- he know from his ethnic background that it literally translated to “God of Death”, but it was more of a general name. The God of Death had much more significance in Japanese mythology and Heero wasn’t even sure if it was one deity in particular- the legends and myths were far too complex to fathom. He shrugged. It had to be a code name, no doubt, for a very talented thief, if he - or she? - planned to walk out of the vault with all those chips. However, if it was the same thief who managed to lift the original Gundam designs, he probably would also succeed in stealing the chips.
Using a special program on his laptop, Heero send an encrypted message to headquarters about the intended theft; hopefully it would urge Une to take proper precautions and beef up security. If those chips would fall into rebel hands, they could cause some serious damage if they really were to rebuild mobile suits, and Gundams in particular. He knew he’d have to hurry to get to the core of this particular problem- as soon as became clear which organization was responsible for the smuggling. It was clear that Dermail hadn’t operated on his own; but he was killed before he could reveal more information.
Nonetheless, Heero knew where he could find General Septem, and that man was next on his list. He still had the solid cover of the conductors; it hadn’t been a lie that they were the only compatible ones with the gundanium chips. If the rebel faction employed their own engineers, it was certainly possible that they could produce their own conductors- it would take lots of time and effort, and Heero wanted to keep the upper hand by selling the pre-made product. It was a feeble bait, but a bait nonetheless. It was his only hope of penetrating the tight circle on his search mission for Chang.
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The ball room certainly wouldn’t outdo Relena’s idea of a good party or one of the many receptions and banquets she had to attain in her duty as Queen of the World. L4 demonstrated this evening where the colony was known for; luxury, decadence, cheap gold, too much of everything. Heero scowled at the guests, but tried to keep his face in its own, placid expression. He was on the lookout for General Septem, a man with truly the most fake smile in the world and a horrible voice to boot. The man was attending this charity ball while he was guilty of gundanium chips smuggle and possible conspiracy against the ESUN government.
Heero tugged at his collar. He left his Walther PPK gun back at the hotel- he wasn’t here to start a fight, but to observe and to establish contact between him and Septem. A perfectly dressed woman with jewelry ten times his gross income passing him was echoing the rumors floating around that Quatre Winner would be coming to this party. Heero shrugged; he wasn’t really convinced that the well-known benefactor would show up himself- the man was probably swamped with work and wouldn’t be missing out on this umpteenth ball anyway.
A woman with blonde hair tried to make eye contact with him, but after a single glare she quickly looked away and tried to harp someone else into conversation. Heero accepted a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and lifted up his hand. The sleeve of his jacket crept up and revealed his watch; the in-built camera was already working, recording the guests present. There was a great possibility of more smugglers being present here- he would file the footage by e-mail to headquarters later.
“That’s a very nice watch.”
Heero mentally slapped himself for letting his guard down. He hadn’t heard the woman approaching, and forced himself to turn around and smile at her. She wasn’t a pompous woman plastered with make-up and packed with jewelry, but a nice, albeit tom-boyish looking girl with short cropped black hair, bangs framing her face. Her dress was a plain dark blue one, and she only wore a small silver necklace.
“Is it a genuine Breil, Diamond 7400 series?” He moved his wrist so she could take a better look at it. “Yes, it is. Wow.”
“You certainly know your watches.”
“Let’s say I have a good eye for pretty things,” she winked at him, “and I always get what I want. If not legal, then illegal.”
“So, how’s the illegal business been lately?”
She laughed. “My name’s Hilde Schbeiker. You are…?”
“Lowe, Odin Lowe,” Heero introduced himself and he saw something changing in her eyes, making the connection. It immediately sharpened his senses. If she knew his name and connected him to Dermail and his demise, she was probably moving into certain circles, and not the regular ball guest he was keeping her for.
“Terrible business,” she said, shaking her head. “How did you manage to escape?”
“The shooter obviously wasn’t targeting me,” Heero answered. “I had no troubles whatsoever to leave the place.”
“Strange,” she tapped at her chin, revealing some pretty gold rings with diamonds in a rather laborious setting. “I know lots of people who wanted Dermail dead, how impersonal it may sound. His merchandise was already terrible tainted and he double-crossed a lot of people.”
Heero was taken aback. Surely this girl didn’t speak aloud about Dermails shady business at a charity ball, or was she really that stupid?
She smiled again, a disarming smile. “It’s a terrible blow for his granddaughter. She has to finish his business, I guess. Maybe she’s interested?”
He knew she was referring to his conductors. Good, that meant that Nichol had blabbed about his visit to his club and that word was spreading about Odin Lowe being back in town again.
“I haven’t heard from the Dermail estate,” Heero answered courteously. He put his glass down and offered the girl her arm.
“May I ask this dance from you?”
“One dance only,” she answered. “I’m with someone.”
“Very well.” Heero smiled back at her and recognized the foxtrot the orchestra was playing. They swiftly moved on to the dance floor.
“So miss Schbeiker, you’re in the business as well?”
She laughed again. “I’m only for the loose ends,” she said. “I know a few people, but not that much. I’m not the one to discuss your matter.”
“Maybe you know to who I can talk to?”
“Mister Lowe, not too audacious, please.”
“My apologies.” He swirled her around, carefully following the music. After the dance was over, she made a curtsy for him.
“Pleased to have danced with you, mister Lowe.” She wanted to rise up again and yelped when two arms snaked around her waist and lifted her up.
“Hilde! Why, I ought to put a leash on you. Leaving me in the cloak-room and dancing with handsome young men when I look the other way!” The unknown man put the girl back on her feet and turned her around, giving her two exuberant pecks on the cheek. Heero stood flabbergasted. Before him was the man from the picture. The one with the braid. The mechanic standing next to Chang.
“No offense,” the man addressed him, voice a bit raspy but rich in tones, “but I always get a bit nervous when she acquaints with someone I don’t know… yet.” He looked at Heero and smiled. It was as if Heero was struck with a ten ton hammer in the head. The man before him was a dream come true. He was vibrant with life- sporting the same, healthy red cheeks as in the picture, and showing large, shining eyes with blue and violet hints in it. With the dazzling chestnut hair carefully braided, swinging as if it had a will on its own, and clad in a perfectly smoking, just like Heero’s, made the stranger even look more attractive. Hilde’s voice seemed to come from far, far away.
“Duo, meet Odin Lowe. Mister Lowe, meet Duo Maxwell.”
“Please to meet you,” Heero said, quickly coming to his wits and outstretching his hand. He got a pleasant, though firm shake back.
“My pleasure,” Duo commented. “I take it Hilde has been a pleasure to dance with? Do you mind if I take over?”
“Yes and no,” Heero answered and he was rewarded with a boisterous laugh. Hilde swung her arms casually around Duo’s shoulders and Heero had trouble keeping his face straight. Damn!
“Maybe we’ll meet again, Mister Lowe,” she said and winked at him, though not in a flirtatious matter. Duo grabbed her other hand and they assumed the dance position for a quickstep. Without a partner, Heero retreated from the dance floor and looked for a place to observe without being observed himself. His eyes were glued to the man who danced like it came all natural to him. Duo Maxwell. He was no longer the ‘unidentified bystander’ from the picture. Seeing him dancing the night away, Heero firmly squashed his jealous feelings for Hilde Schbeiker. He wasn’t about to have feelings, certainly not romantic feelings, for someone he had just met, and more than likely was “on the bad side”. This was what he always feared and this couldn’t be happening. Not to him. He gulped.
Heero reminded himself that he had to find General Septem, and from the voices coming from the left, he pegged the man instantly. He had the most obnoxious voice ever, raspy and screeching. Heero abandoned his position and was about to approach the general, when he saw Duo and Hilde leaving the dance floor and walking in the same direction. No! The thought surprised him, but he didn’t have time to wonder about it- Septem walked up to the couple and greeted them, by shaking Duo’s hand and pecking Hilde on her cheeks. Septem gestured wildly with his arm, probably to invite them over at his table. They complied and two waiters were immediately at the table, presenting drinks and hors d’oeuvres. Heero gritted his teeth. This could be a long night. He decided against approaching them at this moment, not being sure about the mutual connection. He remembered from the picture that Duo was standing awfully close to Chang in a pretty friendly matter- he had to outwait the evening and hoping that Duo Maxwell would lead him to Chang.
The evening dragged on and Heero stopped listening to the music and the rumors a long time ago, declining any offered drinks. His interest had piqued when he saw the trio finally stand op; Septem, Duo and Hilde -he didn’t want to argue with his mind why he referred to them with their first names- bade their farewells and started leaving the room. Heero made up his mind; he would follow Duo. He made his way quickly through the crowd to exit after them. Duo addressed the valet boy to get his car; he had draped his coat on Hilde’s shoulders.
“What’s next?” Heero heard her say, voice clear in the night.
“Let’s go for a nightcap,” Duo answered in his strangely melodious baritone- or it sounded at least melodious to Heero’s ears. He made his way over to the parking lot to start his own BMW, not allowing himself to lose Duo out of sight. Hilde stepped into the car while Duo held the door open for her; it was a black Pontiac TransAm, probably a Before Colony one. He sped away, with Heero going into pursuit.
-------------
It was a short, but fast drive of fifteen minutes before the TransAm finally came to a halt- not for an abandoned warehouse as Heero expected, but before a rather exclusive looking apartment complex. He parked the BMW, locking it with his electronic handheld and made sure he didn’t walk into the eyesight of the couple. They went into the large building, talking softly, occasionally laughing. Heero quickly crossed the street, but was too late to keep the entrance door open; it fell back into its electronic lock. With no one in sight, Heero used the function on his Breil to jam the circuit of the lock and it sprang open. The voices of the couple were overheard from the stair case; he could pinpoint them halting on the fourth floor, rattling with door keys. Heero cursed himself mentally for not having planted a transmitter on either of them, but he hadn’t known Hilde was connected to Duo, nor didn’t expect to meet the man from the picture so soon. He just knew there was something to Duo; his intuition never lied to him. Une would probably be pissed off to hear that he went after someone whose identity hadn’t been established yet or rather, she had dismissed as being not important. Heero’s gut feeling didn’t deny itself. Debating how to approach the situation, as he was standing on the stairs, he overheard them talk.
“… sure about that?” Hilde’s voice.
“I’m not sure, no.” Duo’s voice. “What about Gwinter? What did he have to offer?”
Hilde snorted. “He wouldn’t pay- he thinks you should crawl on your knees and thank him for getting the job. It’s not our fault that the deal didn’t go through!”
“That remind me- you spoke with the manufacturer of the conductors?”
Heero almost stopped breathing. Perfect! They were talking about him! He pulled one of his credit cards out of the inner pocket of his tux- this example had a recording facility and reach of a few hundred meters. Some genius at headquarters would filter out all excessive sounds later. Heero pushed the minuscule ‘record’ button. If they were talking about the deal, maybe he could collect enough dirt to arrest them later.
“Odin Lowe? Yes, I talked to him. A bit uptight, but okay.”
He bristled.
“I don’t know if he can be useful, though. I don’t know if Dermail really wanted to buy those conductors. Wufei had another offer.”
Wufei? Could that be Chang’s first name? Heero was of course aware of the Chinese culture of addressing a native Chinese with his last name. Europeans or Americans would rather address someone with his or her first name. Filing this information away for further use, Duo’s other words sank in. Another offer?
“Let’s first get those chips back, don’t you think?”
“I’ll leave you to prepare,” Hilde said and the door of the apartment closed- no matter how good the recording radius of the credit card was, the thick door literally stood in the way. Heero was shocked. Let’s get those chips back. The chips were about to be stolen back, he had informed headquarters about that... and this Duo Maxwell was the thief? Was he Shinigami, where Nichol had referred to? He couldn’t fathom it and was lost in thought when he suddenly heard the entrance door of the building open, realizing he was still standing on the stairs, pretty much in the open. Quickly he put his credit card away, adjusted his tie and descended the stairs, even friendly greeting the elderly woman going up. Heero decided to go back to his hotel to reevaluate the situation and the mission...
The drive back to the hotel didn’t take him more than half an hour minutes and when he checked in, the receptionist smiled at him. “Mrs. Lowe is already waiting for you,” he said.
Heero succeeded in containing the surprised look on his face. “Thank you. I do hope you’ve treated her right.”
“But of course,” the receptionist answered, almost indignant. “Dom Pérignon ’68, smoked salmon salad and crème brulée went all on your account according to Mrs. Lowe’s wishes.”
Heero almost choked, but he managed to croak out an “Excellent”. He motioned the bellboy to get the elevator to the highest floor, meanwhile thinking about what the receptionist had said. After checking that there was no one on his floor, he pulled out his Smith and Wesson .28 and loaded it. Mrs. Lowe… well, if it wasn’t one of the eldest tricks out of the book. He opened his door and carefully pushed it further open, gun in hand. The room was sparsely lit, casting a soft glow on the furniture and highlighting the silhouette of a woman with a glass in her hand. She had already noticed him.
“Come on in, Odin. You don’t want to keep a woman waiting, now do you?” Her voice was low for a woman, with a throaty chuckle. “Get in, before the crème brulée gets cold.”
Heero closed the door, gun still pointed to the woman. He walked into the room, gauging her. She wore her strawberry blond hair in two braids, carefully plaited and resting on her shoulders. She was clad in a men’s jumpsuit, possessing sophisticated class and a flair that Relena with her girlish look couldn’t touch within a mile; but this was a dangerous woman, unlike Relena. He knew he had to be careful.
“To what do I owe this honor?”
She chuckled again, putting the glass down on the small glass table next to her. “One of my friends wants to see you. I’m just here to deliver the invitation, Odin. I’ll give you a hint, though; it has to do with your merchandise. Oh, and as soon as you’ve accepted the invitation... I should inform you that he’d love to talk about the Duke’s death.”
Heero’s hand didn’t waver. “If I think I know who your ‘friend’ is who wants to see me, than I’m very surprised to learn that he isn’t behind the murder of the Duke himself.”
She shrugged and hoisted herself up from the velvet chair, with such a swift movement that Heero hardly noticed. Her large blue eyes looked at him and he felt as he’d been x-rayed. “You’re not the only player on the market, though you are an interesting one. I don’t know if my friend can offer you something you can’t refuse, but I know one thing for certain- you shouldn’t refuse the invitation.”
“Very well. I accept.”
“Good boy.” She smiled, without any emotion. “Be prepared tomorrow. We will pick you up at the hotel before lunchtime.”
“Very well,” he repeated, but she was already through the door, the click of the lock closing the only sound to rupture the silence.
-----------
Heero yawned. He had stayed up late to perform an Internet search for Duo Maxwell and Hilde Schbeiker, but he didn’t dig up any important information, even the profound databanks of headquarters had left him empty handed. He had relayed the two names through to Lucrezia Noin, hoping that she’d be able to pass him something he could work with. After a simple breakfast Heero had spend the morning doing meditation and exercises, as well as mentally preparing himself for his “lunch appointment”. If he really was to face Chang so soon, he had to have his story ready- even the slightest mistake could cost him his head. He felt the usual surge of adrenaline flowing through his body while he pumped himself up. This was the work he was cut out for, and any relationship, any bond or friendship would undermine it. He’d never allow one of his friends or lovers to be used against him and he wouldn’t want to endanger anyone close to him. This was where he was born for to do and nothing would stand in his way... though he couldn’t deny that a certain braided man had featured in his dream last night. Well, looking is okay, touching is not. Feeling is not okay. Keep your head clear.
The telephone rang and he picked it up.
“Lowe here.”
“Mr. Lowe, there are two men down here to pick you up,” the pleasant voice of the receptionist rang out to him.
“Excellent. I’m coming down.” Heero hung up. He quickly finished dressing, putting his black jacket over the holster with the Smith & Wesson. His escort certainly would be donned with a gun as well, no doubt about it. If they’d search him and took the Smith & Wesson- well, he wasn’t dependant of the gun to ensure his life.
Heero went downstairs, taking the stairs instead of the lift, and greeted the two young men. He recognized the left one as Walker, the one who was with Nichol when he visited him yesterday. The other one was pretty burly and probably strong enough to throw Heero across the lobby without breaking a sweat. Neither of them bothered with introductions and Walker didn’t show any sign of recognition.
“The car is outside.”
Heero wasn’t surprised to see a silver Mercedes, limousine class, and he stepped in. The burly man took a seat next to him while Walker took the opposite chair. Nobody uttered a word, and Heero didn’t mind- he didn’t want to waste his time dealing with cronies when he was on his way to the big fish.
The car drive took at least one hour and a half- he noticed immediately they were out of town, despite the heavy tinted glasses. The amount of traffic noise diminished rather quickly, meaning they were on the countryside- L4 had lots of specific areas where the rich could relax in relative privacy, away from the smoking cities.
The limousine came to a halt and the door was yanked open by an impeccable groomed young man, looking extremely bored.
“Mr. Lowe? The General is expecting you.”
So it was Septem who had orchestrated this meeting, not Chang. Heero was almost disappointed. He reminded himself that it would take some time to catch the big fish, and that he had to deal with the small fry first. He would get to Chang eventually- assuming that he had something to do with the whole gundanium chips business. Heero followed the servant through pompously decorated hallways and antechambers until he came to stand in front of a very elaborated oak wooden door.
“The General will receive you now.”
He didn’t bother to thank the man who opened the doors to announce him. Noticing that Walker and the burly bodyguard had disappeared, he stepped inside the luxurious room.
“General Septem, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
The man balked a short laugh, sounding like grating chainsaws on a chalk board. “To tell you the truth, Lowe, I was a bit nervous at first. It seems that everyone you talk to, have the nasty habit to get killed.”
Heero straightened his face. “I’ll be sure to when I catch the killer, I will tell him to refrain from doing so, sir.”
“You want to catch Dermail’s killer?” Septem motioned for Heero to sit. He had already seen that the corner of the room was a bit dark and he clearly distinguished the outlines. Someone was sitting there. Could it be the woman of yesterday? The outline was too obscure to distinguish if it was a man or a woman.
“Why not? He ruined my transaction and my reputation. Something I pride myself in.”
“Ah, your transaction. Circuit conductors, hm? Cigar? Real Havanas.”
Heero declined politely. He didn’t smoke. Septem used the occasion to lit one up, making a big show of it and inhaling deeply.
“Circuit conductors compatible for Gundam chips. Interesting niche of the market, Mister Lowe. Don’t you think you’re restricting yourself too much? Gundanium isn’t that widely available, nor that much in use.”
“There’s enough to make a living,” Heero informed him, quite deadpan. “And with the deal I was about to make with Dermail, it would’ve lasted me a lifetime.”
“Very true,” the man said. “About that deal with Dermail. You certainly know by now that we’re pretty much interested in your conductors. We tried fabricating them on our own, but it turns out to be too labor intensive and our output isn’t as flawless as yours. So why do all the hard work when someone already did that?”
Bingo. Heero didn’t change the expression on his face.
“We can’t promise you the same deal, however. I don’t know the exact details.”
“I think you know them just fine. Or else your mysterious partner over there in the corner knows them,” Heero said, nodding with his head. He wasn’t about to get caught in this web, he had too much invested and worked too hard to fall for such a trick.
A short laugh erupted from the corner and a chair scraped over the floor. The person who had shrouded himself in the shadows, emerged rather quick. Heero managed to keep a smirk off his face. It was Chang, no doubt about it.
The young Chinese, stern and rigid in every move, approached him. He wore traditional Chinese garb, akin to the one he’d worn on the picture. The golden and crimson broidered dragon shone in the sunlight, filtered through the large window panes. Chang came to stand in front of him and Heero was confirmed in his earlier suspicions- this was a dangerous man as well. Chang didn’t sport one ounce of fat on his body, being one and all toned and slender muscle. His dark ebony eyes had a piercing glaze; once again Heero felt like he was being x-rayed. He maintained his position and refused to be intimidated by the glare. Chang didn’t offer Heero a hand, only looked at him
“Despite what you think, I wasn’t au courant with Dermail’s plans,” the Chinese young man said, speech and diction controlled and composed. “He left our Earthly plane before I could talk to him about it.”
“Convenient, or not?”
“Highly inconvenient. I’d love to have known the details. It makes our deal so much more difficult, don’t you think? Septem!”
The General almost fell out of his chair. “Yes?”
“Have some tea brought up to us. I’m going to discuss business with Mister Lowe in the green room.” He excluded rather significantly Septem and Heero duly noted the sullen look on the face of the general, now reduced to mere errand boy. His voice was rather curt when he answered: “As you wish.”
“Mister Lowe?” Chang motioned him to walk forward and Heero left the room via another door. There was a huge hallway behind it and he wondered how much corridors this mansion had. He easily could get lost in here.
“This way.” Chang opened a door that was hardly noticeable, as it was decorated with the same pattern as the wall paper. The green room was named green for a reason- everything was decorated in several hues of green and showed lots of traditional Chinese influences on the furniture. Heero couldn’t help but admire the beautiful silk screens depicting large parrots, elephants and other animals, all hand painted and crafted. While he followed Chang to the seats, he threw a look out of the window; and saw, to his surprise, a beautiful rose garden.
“Are you the owner of this mansion?”
A servant came in with the tea, carrying a silver tray with Chinese porcelain cups, and started pouring. Chang shook his head. “This mansion belongs to the good General.”
No doubt, Heero mussed and looked outside again. “Beautiful garden. Peons, roses... lilies…” Suddenly his eye caught something. Two men walked through the garden, relatively close, talking amiably. They were too far away to lip read or to understand what they were saying, but Heero recognized them. Quatre Winner and Trowa Barton. What the hell were they doing here in a mansion owned by Septem? Septem wasn’t very clean, and for a prominent business man like Quatre Winner, any connection between him and the shady general wasn’t good for his public relations. Heero assumed that the man walking next to Winner was Barton; but as he had a far lower profile in society, Heero wasn’t sure. He ached to active his Breil to take a picture, but the distance was too far. He cursed mentally.
“Septem’s roses always win on the local fairs,” Chang said, voice amused. Even Heero couldn’t suppress a snicker at the thought of the crude General with a bulk of roses at a garden fair.
“Please have a seat, Mister Lowe.”
“Thank you.” Chang still hadn’t introduced himself and Heero didn’t ask.
“The circuit conductors for the gundanium chips. What was your price?”
“Ten thousand a piece,” Heero said. Chang held a cup of tea in his hand and didn’t waver. He had his emotions under a rigid control.
“That’s quite the price, Mister Lowe. Are you sure you aren’t overrating your merchandise?”
“You’re quite welcome to bargain, and of course, feel free to manufacture the conductors yourself. I haven’t upped the price, if that’s it what you mean. I had a deal with Dermail for two thousand conductors, for two million.”
“Two million earth credits,” Chang mussed. He put down the tea cup. “All right, you got yourself a deal. I’ll take it over from Dermail, and I’m a man of my word.”
“I rather see something more official, if you know what I mean.” Heero took a sip of his own tea, if only to hide his slight surprise that Chang agreed so fast. That could only mean that they really had no other methods of producing the conductors themselves, or were quite desperate to get the conductors... because of what? Lack of time?
“I understand. I’ll give you an advance of five hundred thousand.”
“Five hundred thousand is just fine.”
Chang smiled a mere tugging at his lips. “It’s a pleasure doing business with you.” He reached forward to the ebony coffee table, opened a small drawer and pulled out a check book. Heero waited until he was finished writing the check and accepted the paper.
“You can cash it at any bank on L4, no questions asked. If you want, I can have someone accompany you.”
“No thank you,” Heero shook his head. “It’ll be quite all right. Do you already have some details about the delivery?”
“We are a bit dependant on the delivery of the chips ourselves, but I expect them any day now. We’ll let you know immediately when you can deliver.”
Heero pocketed the check. “Do you need help with the retrieval of the chips?”
“Thank you for your offer, Mister Lowe, but no, thank you. The retrieval is in good hands. Why don’t you be our guest for the rest of the day? Dinner is at seven.”
“Thank you,” Heero said. It was no use to decline- it hadn’t been a question either. Sipping the last of his tea, his thoughts drifted to Duo -he corrected himself- the braided man, who more than probably had something to do with the upcoming theft. He could only hope that Une had increased security around the stored chips, as he had recommended in his last e-mail.
Chang suddenly rose from his chair, a sign that the meeting was over and he bowed lightly to him.
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