Description: A new threat... an unknown enemy... a whole new frontier...              

Gundam Wing: Type 2 

Episode 5: The State's Address

In the year After Colony 199, humanity started to begin another chapter in their existence. The development of technology that would allow humans to totally break the bonds of the Earth was supposed to be the first step in a new era.

However, it became apparent that someone did not want this era to arrive. As the year After Colony 200 approaches, an alarming unrest is beginning to show itself, and it bodes ill for the precarious peace brought about by the Earth Sphere United Nation…

"You called for me, Advisor?" Duo asked as he stepped into Aelan's office.

The Advisor to North Am turned in his chair to face Duo, his head pointed downward, looking at a memo in his hand. "There has been a most disturbing development recently. I'm afraid that everything I feared has come true."

"What's that?" Duo asked, pulling up a chair for himself. Aelan handed him the memo, and the Gundam pilot looked it over. His jaw dropped, and she shook his head in disbelief, "What in the heaven's name are these people thinking?"

"I don't know." Aelan remarked, "The Congressional Body has always been a bit full of themselves, but I never really thought that they'd go to this degree. Needless to say, I can't go along with this…"

"You're damn right you can't!" Duo replied.

"The problem is, the Congressional Body holds all the cards. If I don't do as they want, they'll simply impeach me, and put in somebody who is more willing to do their bidding."

"You aren't seriously considering doing this!" Duo gasped.

"OF COURSE NOT!" Aelan replied adamantly, "We just have to make sure that it APPEARS that we have done what they want."

"Just what are you getting at?" Duo asked.

"We'll make our move at the State's Address next week. Relena will most certainly be there. We'll pull her out then, leaving nothing more than a falsified assassination."

"I see." Duo replied, "Then we can confront the Congressional Body with this outrage."

"Exactly."

Duo stood up, then looked baffled, "Why me, Advisor? Heero's the better assassin. They'd be a lot more ready to believe that Heero did the deed."

Aelan looked up, and replied, "I don't think that it would be wise to let Heero in on this. As much as he tries to hide it, he has attachments to Minister Peacecraft that I'd rather not mess with. Besides, the less people who know about this, the better."

"I see…" Duo replied, then finally agreed, "I guess you're right. All right, Advisor, I'll play this game." After he closed the door, he added, "But not until after I've informed Heero of this…"

Heero actually enjoyed the game of basketball, even though you could never tell it just by looking at him. Indeed, his visible reaction to almost anything resembled the enthusiasm of a teenager told to take out the trash. Regardless, there was a certain elegance to the game that appealed to Heero, and gave him a great deal of enjoyment that he rarely had the time to divulge in.

Which was why he wasn't exactly fond of Duo taking the ball from him suddenly. "Heero, we got to talk."

"Later." Heero replied simply, snatching the ball back.

Duo retaliated by stealing it again, "You don't understand. It's really important."

Suddenly, Heero whipped out his pistol (where on earth does he hide that thing?), and pointed it at Duo's forehead, "Important enough to risk your life?"

"Well, it's either mine or Relena's." Duo said passively.

There was no outward change in attitude, but Heero was now definitely interested in what Duo had to say. Obviously, Duo took Heero's silence as permission to continue, because the pilot said, "North Am's flipped, they've decided that it's their time to take over." He handed Heero the memo, and added, "They plan to kill Relena, and have ME do it."

The idea of Duo killing Relena suddenly made Heero's trigger finger a little itchy. Duo seemed to recognize this, then quickly added, "I'm NOT going to do it! Aelan and I have a plan to get her out of there."

"Why should I be concerned about this?" Heero replied, "Do what you feel you must." He handed the memo back to Duo, and put the pistol away.

"Are you sure this doesn't bother you?" Duo asked.

"Why should it?" Heero retorted, "All I want from you is to get out of my way. I was actually enjoying myself for once." He punctuated the statement by taking his basketball back one last time.

As Duo left, Heero couldn't help but ask himself Duo's question. It did bother him actually. As he had read the memo about killing Relena, his blood had started to boil. 'What? Bothering me?' He thought.

He could remember 4 years ago wanting to kill Relena himself. Now the idea of her dying was like slamming a dagger into his heart. When did that happen? When did he start feeling this way?

At first, he had just brushed it aside as mere guilt. He was seeing the little girl he killed in Relena. Well, when he saw Relena now, he CERTAINLY didn't see a little girl. Could he be… falling for her?

It didn't matter whether or not Duo really planned to kill her; Heero was going to get there first…

The Following Week

One of the little quirks of a tuxedo that Aelan never seemed to be able to master was the tie. It wasn't that he didn't know the principle to tying one; it was just that he couldn't see himself do it, and mirrors were known to twist things around. The material slid out of his hand for the twenty-first time (Yes, he counted), and he grunted in disapproval.

From behind him, he heard a feminine chuckle, "Are you having technical difficulties?" Noin asked.

"I suppose that is a most accurate way to describe my dilemma." Aelan admitted, "I've never been able to accomplish this simple task adequately."

"Well, turn around, and let me see that." Noin ordered, and the advisor complied. "The nice thing about a military uniform, even a dress one, is that it isn't quite as complicated." Noin commented, her slender fingers weaving through the knot in the tie, "There, that should do it."

"Thank you." Aelan replied with a slight smile.

"I'm glad you aren't going to carry out the order of the Congressional Body." Noin said sheepishly, "Relena's a very good friend of mine."

"What?" Aelan hissed, "How did you know…" At that moment, the bolt of realization struck him, "I KNEW I should have chosen Trowa…"

"Don't worry. Duo knows who his friends are. He wouldn't spill the beans to just anybody."

"I suppose, but I wanted this to be between Duo and I. The less people who know, the less likely someone's going to make a mistake."

"Regardless, they're waiting outside." Noin replied, "We need to get going. As it is, we'll make it just in time for the address."

Noin stepped out of the office, and Aelan followed, closing the door behind him. Trowa, Quatre, and Wufei were lined up like army privates at full attention, dressed in quite admirable finery.

"Looking good, gentlemen." Noin said approvingly.

Trowa looked a little sheepish, then replied, "Quatre had to help me with the tie…"

"Really?" Noin queried, looking at Aelan, who glared back with a face that nearly screamed, 'Don't you dare…'

Aelan looked around the reception area, then asked, "Where's Duo?"

At that moment, a blur burst out of the side offices, and slid on both knees to a stop just in front of Admiral Noin. Duo, dressed in black shorts and a black sleeveless T-shirt, his face covered in camouflage, looked up at Aelan, and chirped, "I'm ready to do the dirty work."

Aelan glanced down at the longhaired pilot, and pursed his lips slightly. "Duo, I am afraid that your current attire would be deemed socially inappropriate for such a distinguished event."

Duo looked back at Noin, and asked softly, "What the hell did he just say?"

Quatre and Trowa grabbed him by both shoulders, and Quatre said assuredly, "We'll get him cleaned up in no time."

As they drug him back to the side office, Duo screamed, "No one said I had to go in!!!"

Aelan took a deep breath, and shook his head. At that moment, Heero entered the reception area, a large bouquet of roses tucked underneath his right arm. Aelan looked at Heero curiously, and asked, "Are you sure you want to go to this, Heero? Things might get a little… uneasy."

"I received an invitation from Minister Peacecraft herself. It would not be proper for me to turn it down." Heero replied.

Wufei snorted, and replied, "From what I understand, that's never stopped you before."

Heero gave Wufei the death glare that seemed to freeze the young Chinese man like a deer on a four-lane highway. At that moment, Quatre, Trowa, and Duo emerged, Duo looking none too pleased with the way things were going…

Several Hours Later; Presidential Estate, New Port City…

The six arrivals each filtered one by one through the security units outside the Presidential Estate. Each one was searched fully in turn. As Heero passed, the guards looked questioningly at the flowers he held.

"A gift for the Foreign Minister." Heero replied. They looked over the roses, and were about to open the bouquet, when Heero added, "Now, how would I explain to the Minister that security destroyed the gift I was about to give her?"

Sheepishly, the security personnel handed the roses back to him, and he nodded to them as he passed into the estate. He quickly joined the others from North Am as they scanned the foyer.

Aelan turned to them, and replied, "I need to attend the State's Address, so I shall have my leave now. The rest of you, don't do anything until I give the word. It is imperative that we do this right the first time."

The Gundam pilots and Noin nodded in agreement. Heero watched Relena walk to the assembly hall in the distance. She turned her head in his direction, and waved as she disappeared.

"So now what?" Duo asked impatiently.

"We wait." Heero answered coldly.

"So, in conclusion, I hope that my term as President of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation will be one of prosperity and peace; a testament to the will and desire of humankind to reach out for a new and greater tomorrow."

At the conclusion of the President's speech, everyone stood up in applause with the exception of two people. Foreign Minister Peacecraft, and Advisor Aelan were not impressed, reaching similar conclusions.

"How can I believe your claims of peace if I know that's what's going to mean your destruction?" Aelan asked himself softly.

"How can a nation that holds weapons in their hearts be truly at peace?" Relena pondered at the same time.

"At this time, I would like to welcome you all the the reception that will be held in the ballroom. Let's enjoy ourselves, and shrug off our duties as leaders as the new century approaches." The president finished, motioning to the doors.

As Relena slowly filed into the line, and outside into the reception area, she couldn't help but feel that something wasn't right. The peace that had looked like was going to settle in was slowly starting to unravel. She could sense it.

Finally into the ballroom, Relena frantically started looking around for him. Did he even come? Did he shrug her off again? As she started to lose hope, she saw him, and the other Gundam pilots as well, all in a circle around Aelan and Noin. 'Did Aelan force them to come?' Relena mused, then decided it didn't matter. Heero was here after all.

As she approached, Aelan looked up, and said in greeting, "Madame Minister! It's nice to see you. Care to join us in whimsical banter?"

Relena blushed, and said, "Actually… I was wondering if I could… borrow Heero for a while. The dance floor is rather inviting."

The catcalls began almost immediately from the other pilots, actually, only Duo. "Heero, the lady killer! They ask HIM to dance… OWWWWW!!! Leggo my hair!!!"

Relena turned in interest to see Trowa pulling rather roughly on Duo's braid. When the sorrowful looking pilot finally released Duo's hair, Duo hissed, "You guys are always picking on me."

"Well, I don't know…" Aelan started to reply.

"I'd be honored." Heero replied, not even looking at Relena. The rest of group, even Relena, was a little taken aback. Relena hadn't expected it to be this easy. The best she had expected was for Heero to reluctantly agree after about a half-hour of badgering.

Heero stood up, and gracefully took Relena's hand as he escorted her out to the dance floor. Once there, he handed her the bouquet, and she blushed again.

As they started to dance, Relena remembered just how good of a dancer Heero was. His natural grace and movement was always apparent, whether he was fighting or dancing, or even walking. Everything he did always seemed so smooth, so fluid, like he wasn't even totally a solid being.

Even though they participated in three dances, it seemed like it was mere seconds to Relena. When he stopped, Relena had to fight the urge to throw her arms around him and cling to his person until he agreed to dance one more time. Just one more time…

Heero looked at her for a few moments. Relena had believed that you could see a person's soul through their eyes; their deepest secrets would be revealed, their true feelings opened like a book. That is, until she met Heero. Everything about him was an enigma, a diary that refused to open even if you had the key. You had to guess what he was feeling based on the situation he was in.

In situations like this, it was always difficult. She couldn't tell whether he was looking at her with admiration or contempt, with love or indifference. These moments were the ones she hated, because they always made her seem so vulnerable. These moments were the ones that could make or crush all her fantasies.

"Is there anywhere that we can talk for a moment? Privately?" Heero asked.

Relena was stunned, and for a moment, forgot just where she was. Did she hear him correctly? She didn't move, unsure how to respond, lost in her own thoughts.

"Is there?" Heero asked again.

Relena finally nodded, and said, "My office. It's on the third floor."

Aelan watched as the pair walked up the stairs. "This might complicate things…" He muttered.

Duo leaned over to him, and asked, "Should I make my move?"

"No, let's wait for Heero to leave first. I'd rather not have him be there. There's just no way of knowing how he'll react."

Relena unlocked her office door, and motioned for Heero to enter. She followed him inside, and watched from the doorway as he walked over to the window, and opened it wide, letting the breeze filter into the room.

"I like to do that sometimes. The air feels so fresh and pure." Relena admitted.

Heero stuck his head out the window, and said, "It's amazing how after everything humanity has put this planet through, it has maintained its beauty. This world, and all the multitude of beings that it bore through the ages is in such incredible contrast to the insane destruction that we have put it through."

He pulled away from the window, and led Relena into the center of the office, right in front of her desk. He took the bouquet that he had given Relena back, and opened the paper that held the roses.

Inside was a military grade plastic explosive.

"I have longed to end the insanity, and sometimes, this seems like the only way to do it." Heero dropped the explosive on the ground between them, and pulled out a pen from his inside suit pocket, his thumb poised on what would normally be the button to pop the pen tip, but was obviously the detonator.

From downstairs, the assembly began the countdown to the new year.

"Heero, what are you doing?" Relena asked, but she didn't move.

Heero didn't respond.

"Heero…"

From the ballroom, the countdown became louder.

"FIVE!"

"FOUR!!"

"THREE!!!"

"TWO!!!"

"ONE!!!"

**click**

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!" The crowd shouted in unison as confetti rained from the ceiling. The new president, from his position on the raised stage, looked quite pleased with himself.

Duo became impatient, and then said, "I don't think that they're coming down anytime soon."

Aelan agreed, "Let's get this over with. They're probably in her office."

As the pair climbed the stairs to the upper floors, the entire building was rocked with a near deafening explosion. Small pieces of plaster from the ceiling rained down on the ballroom below.

Aelan suddenly looked grim, and said, "Unless Heero does something first." With that, Aelan and Duo rushed up the stairs.

---------------------------------------------------------

Next Time…

The peace of Earth hits a critical breaking point. Every nation under the banner of the Unified Nation blames the others for the death of Relena Peacecraft. Meanwhile, Duo makes a discovery that triggers another confrontation with Aelan, and the disturbing truth of his rise to prominence.

Coming in Episode 6: Tales of Paradise