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DISCLAIMER:
Gundam
Wing belongs to Sunrise and its affiliates, not the author. AUTHOR’S
NOTE:
*jaw drops* You came back for more?!?!?! ^^ Wow! Thanks so
much! Okay, so the first chapter wasn’t a hooker... but,
like I said, the story went ways I hadn’t initially
planned for it, so when I originally began writing, I
didn’t write in chapters. Thus, I’m just cutting the
story up in random places and hoping it all still meshes
well. =p Sorry if the chapters kinda seem to NOT end in
exciting places. ^^ Please review!!! EYES
By Quatre
glanced around himself uncertainly. He’d never been in
Cyber before. Odd... I thought the Dimensions were
supposed to look like real world places. He glanced down
at his feet, frowning when it appeared that he wasn’t
standing on anything at all. He was surrounded by black
shadows, but he could see his hands and body clearly, as if
the darkness were unreal. Well, duh, it is. “Ganar!”
Quatre whirled around at the sound of the voice. “Who’s
there?” A
figure appeared to his right and he turned to face it. A
beautiful woman was approaching him. She was dressed in some
sort of uniform... a black uniform that was difficult to
discern against the backdrop of 0198. It was black with
white edgings. However, the badges across her left breast
and around her right arm stood out vibrantly. The streak of
white in her midnight hair also stood out. Quatre studied
her warily, even though she was smiling. A small frown
wrinkled her brow. “What’s
wrong, Ganar? You act as if you don’t remember me.” “Erm...
Well, to be quite honest, I don’t.” “What?” “I’m
Ganar, but I’m new to this. This meaning Los Ojos and all
of Cyber.” The
girl’s pretty face was shadowed by the frown once again. “So...
you’re Ganar’s successor? The other Ganar’s gone?” “Yes...
he... he died during the war.” Silence
reigned for a moment. “He
left me instructions about Los Ojos, but I’d appreciate
some... explanation... from an actual member of Dimension
0198,” he prodded gently. “I’m sorry if Ganar meant
something to you,” he added. The
girl shook her head. “No, it’s okay. I’m just
surprised. I haven’t been a member long enough to have
experienced a changing of hands in Ganar. He was a nice guy,
and it’s sad that he died. Kind of a serious guy though...
very pacifist. That’s what attracts us to Ganar
though—we of Dimension 0198 are fiercely loyal to him
because we witness the fruits of our labors through what the
Winner Corporation does and what he does with what
information we give him. Anyway, even though his death
bothers me, I’m kind of numb to it all right now... the
war claimed more lives in 0198 than in my real life, and
I’m used to hearing that someone will never come back to
visit the Dimension.” “I’m
sorry to hear that,” Quatre said sincerely. She
smiled to hear the genuine sympathy in his voice. I think
I’m going to like this new Ganar. “So...
do you have an assignment for me?” “Um...
no actually. I really just needed someone to introduce me to
0198 and explain the workings behind Los Ojos. Do you have a
name? Or a codename, like mine?” She
smiled. “Course. Call me Meo. What do you need to know
about the Dimension or Los Ojos?” He
grimaced. “Could you start from the very beginning? I’m
completely ignorant of all of this.” She
sighed. “Okay, but I think I’ll just go over basics with
you now, okay?” He nodded in response. “You are Ganar,
essentially the commander of Los Ojos, pronounced ‘Loes-oh-hoes’.
Whom do you work for?” Quatre
smiled. His father’s files had detailed the appropriate,
exact answers to a series of verification questions for
GANAR. “The Winner Corporation.” “What
function do Los Ojos play in the Corporation?” asked Meo. “You
are the eyes of the Winner Corporation all over the galaxy.
Los Ojos is a network of highly skilled spies who serve to
promote the peace policies of the Winners. Los Ojos are free
to refuse the assignments, but have absolute loyalty to the
Winners and the organization.” “What
is the language from which the titles ‘Los Ojos’ and
‘Ganar’ are derived?” “Spanish.” “Why
is your codename ‘Ganar’?” “Ganar
means ‘to win’. GANAR always represents the Winners.” “Who
makes your decisions?” “Quatre
Raberba Winner, head of the Winner family.” She
paused a moment. Quatre? Trowa’s friend? She
suddenly felt a twinge of guilt. She remembered slapping the
young heir to the family she was loyal to when she’d first
encountered him. She’d met him a few times after the war,
and come to appreciate his kindness more, but she hadn’t
actually connected him to being the ‘head’ of the Winner
family. She shook her head, clearing it of her thoughts. I
DO trust Quatre’s compassion and personality. He is the
perfect heir to the Winner Corporation. “Meo?” “Ah...
ah, yeah. Um, the last question is... uh... what is the
code?” “29.” “Very
good.” She grinned jubilantly. “Welcome to Dimension
0198, hang-out of Los Ojos, the Winner Corporation’s best
spies.” So long as Quatre’s the head, I’ll be loyal
to the Winners, she thought determinedly. Los Ojos
has always given me a reason to live... a purpose... but now
I have Trowa... but I still want this... “So...
Meo...” She met his gaze again, losing her train of
thought. Quatre continued to speak, oblivious to her
inattention. “How do you handle your assignments? How many
of you are there? What are those badges on your uniform? Is
there a special uni—“ “Whoa.
Hold on there. We handle our assignments quickly and,
usually, successfully. At least, I like to think so.” She
winked. Certainly not my idea of the ideal spy,
Quatre thought. “We
utilize both the real world and Cyber to gather information.
We lurk, we fight, the works. When one of us dies, it is
logged into the status reports that you, Ganar, will receive
each month. To access those logs, you use whatever codes you
inherited from your predecessor. You must have a stack of
death reports already from the war. Death reports are
generated immediately because everyone who uses Dimension
0198 has a heart monitor, a tiny implant that was made
mandatory a few decades ago to prevent searches for dead
MIAs among Los Ojos. “Right
now, our numbers have dwindled considerably to about 143
members. We usually maintain at least 300 members so that
the network is diverse and spread throughout the known
universe. New members are always initiated by old members.
They are tested and screened for loyalty to the Winners’
peace efforts and skills in the actual field of espionage.
Generally, we stumble across new members on our missions and
undertake students all the time. Except recently, that is.
No one is taking students while Ganar seems to have taken
several months on hiatus.” Quatre nodded. “The
badges on our uniforms are standard Cyber issue. Plainly
put, they’re just IDs of Cyber and are not unique to the
Los Ojos organization. Do you really know nothing about this
virtual reality world?” Quatre shook his head, his head
whirling with the slew of information she was giving him. “Well,
the first thing you’ll notice is that everyone has the
same face. All the girls look identical, all the guys look
identical. The guys even have this same funky hair
coloring—black with the white streak. It’s just one of
the features of Cyber. The only discerning factors are the
badges. Thus, if you think you see me next time, you might
be mistaken. Always check the tag. See mine?” She pointed
to the clearly written ‘MEO’ on her badges. “They’re
very easy to spot. In fact, it’s uncannily the first thing
you notice about a person in Cyber. And, whenever someone
comes on, a light flashes his or her Cyber name. Your name
will always be flashed in red in here, though, 'cause
you’re the founder of 0198. Otherwise, we have no special
uniforms and it is unlikely that you will ever meet any of
us in the real world.” Quatre
frowned. “Everyone has the same face?” She
nodded. “Something about no one has to care about the way
they look in here. In attracts a lot of users to Cyber who
might otherwise use some other virtual reality technology
for their entertainment needs.” Quatre
nodded, seeing the logic in that. “So... there are
Dimensions other than this one?” “Of
course. Visit one someday. This Dimension is a Special
Restricted Access Dimension, or SRAD, but there are many
public Dimensions out there, too. Cyber was created
primarily to produce public Dimensions. Personally, I love
the movie dimension.” She grinned cheekily. “I think
it’s Dimension 7821. All they have are theaters and all
they do is show movies all day. Great place to take a Cyber
date. Most people aren’t like Los Ojos and they just use
Cyber simply for fun and entertainment.” She stopped,
evidently finished with her explanations. They both stood
silently for a moment.
“0198 is an SRAD that is used for highly
confidential and serious operations. Thus, as you can see,
it doesn’t have any special effects or backdrops. Just
your basic black hole, I suppose.”
Silence again.
“Well, um, I don’t have much else to tell you, I
think. I guess that’s it for now.” She shrugged.
“Um... yeah.”
“If you have more questions, look me up. Since
you’re here now, I’ll try to drop in every night to
check for missions.”
“Thank you for answering my questions, Meo.”
“No problem, Ganar.”
“I’m transferring back now, okay?”
Meo nodded. “Ciao ciao!”
Quatre waved as he faded away. Blinking, he opened
his eyes and sat up in the Cyber Trans* he’d found in a
secret compartment behind his office. He shook his head. I
really need time to absorb all this. *Cyber
Trans are how people enter Cyber, ‘kay? They can be small,
convenient devices like Catherine’s, but most people use
large Trans that resemble stasis chambers because they’re
more comfortable, like Quatre’s. ~*~
Meo stared after Ganar’s fading figure for a while.
A new Ganar! Wait till the others hear about this. I’d
better hit cyberspace and e-mail everyone when I get back.
It’s probably late already. I guess I’ll get something
to drink, drop a frog in Trowa’s bed, and then head back
to the console to e-mail everyone before turning in. She
focused her mind and began the transfer back to reality. ~*~
Trowa had been sitting by Catherine’s bed for hours
already. He stood up and limped. Ow! Leg cramp...
He’d been hoping she’d leave Cyber earlier, like she had
been doing recently, so that he could find out when she
wanted to reschedule their rehearsal. He felt a bit guilty
about leaving without saying anything... but only a bit. He
sighed. Oh well, I suppose she’s not coming out anytime
soon. At least it’s amusing to watch someone in Cyber. Her
face is just a rainbow of expressions when she’s in there,
and she always seems happy. She was serious tonight though. He
shrugged. I guess you can’t control your expressions in
the real world when you’re in Cyber. He shuddered.
If I ever went to Cyber, enjoyed myself, and let Cathy watch
me from outside, she’d die of shock to see my face.
Trowa headed to the restroom to prepare himself for bed, his
face as calm and expressionless as ever. Just as he left the
room, Catherine’s eyes fluttered open. She grinned happily
to herself, got out of bed, removed the Trans from her neck,
and headed to the kitchen section of the trailer she shared
with Trowa. ~*~
About twenty minutes later, Catherine could be heard
sipping her water and tapping at the keys on her computer
console. The tapping paused only for a distinctly outraged
cry of “Cat!” and the sound of something crashing to the
thin trailer floor. Catherine grinned gleefully in the
direction of Trowa’s room and resumed her typing. Trowa
may be a great soldier, but the frogs get him every time... ~*~
Quatre rubbed his eyes wearily. He’d stayed in
Cyber really late the night before, trying to meet as many
of the Los Ojos members as he could. He picked up his fork
and ate absently.
Trowa, meanwhile, was carefully keeping his right
elbow from touching anything while also trying to eat with
his elbow at an awkward angle. Quatre noticed this odd
position after a while and smiled, looking on in amusement.
“Trowa, you look like a crab who’s lost a joint
somewhere.”
“...”
“What’s wrong with your right arm?”
Trowa quickly swallowed a spoonful of food before
stopping to point to the large, painful looking bruise on
his elbow.
“Gosh, Trowa! What happened? Did you fall during
the trapeze act?”
Trowa shook his head, and then resumed trying to
maneuver his right arm. He finally gave up and picked up a
fork with his left hand. He really preferred his right arm,
though. Quatre glanced at him quizzically, but said nothing.
What’s the point to using an injured right arm when you
can use your left arm as gracefully as if it were a healthy
right arm? He sighed. Trowa would always be an enigma,
he supposed.
“What was it? Looks awfully painful for just a
bruise. Is it stiff?”
Trowa gave Quatre a LOOK.
“Um... so, what happened?”
Trowa swallowed his food and said two words.
“Catherine. Frogs.”
“I
see...” |