Note: If it isn't already apparent some things in the story may not line up. While I'm working from a basic outline, I'm pantsing the writing. Once the story is complete, I plan to go through it and make sure everything lines up. However, due to a busy writing schedule at work, I don't have as much time to spend making this fic perfect the first time through.

 

The sunrise over New Port City was always a sight to behold. Around 0630 every day, regardless of the season, the first signs of the new day began to show in the form of purple and green mixed with golden rays over the Baltic Sea. The light would bounce around on the ripples in the water during the summer months. During the winter months, it would shine over the ice accumulated over the shallows. Typically, between twenty and thirty minutes later, a giant fireball would appear over the horizon with tinges of purple surrounding it. The full sun would appear about ten to fifteen minutes later, and the day would begin.

 

Heero watched this from the balcony of the sixth-floor guest room Relena had been given at the presidential palace. The sunrise only enhanced the beautiful palace grounds spread out below him. In total, the backside of the palace, which the guest room was oriented towards, covered around thirty acres, with the far sidelined by a security gate bordering the old coastal road. On the left side of the palace grounds was an extensive hedge maze that covered at least ten acres. Down the middle of the palace grounds was an extra-wide walkway with statues of ancient roman figures on either side and a large and extravagant fountain in the middle. To the right of that walkway, opposite the hedge maze, was a large greenhouse. Heero could see rows of colorful roses, tulips, and even hydrangeas through the transparent glass roof. Next to the large greenhouse was a smaller one that contained only orchids and had become famous among botanists worldwide for growing exquisitely beautiful and rare species. 

 

A cool breeze came in from the coast, causing goosebumps to raise over Heero's exposed arms. At the moment, he was wearing one of the giant gray terrycloth robes that were in all of the guest rooms of the palace. About ten minutes prior, Heero had woken from the comfortable poster bed where he and Relena had finally fallen asleep the night before. 

 

He was now standing on the oversized balcony smoking a cigarette, a habit he'd picked up over the past few years to distance himself from thoughts he'd rather not dwell on. Presently, it was the young woman in the room whom he desperately loved yet hopelessly knew he'd never have beyond their current secret relationship. It wasn't the first time he'd been on this exact balcony having these very thoughts. At this point, it was almost becoming a ritual every time he was here with her.

 

Despite the beautiful scene in front of him, Heero found it almost impossible to change his thoughts to something brighter. He thought over the previous night with Relena and the feel of her warm, smooth body. The faint smell of ambergris from her perfume still lingered on him, making its way to his nostrils between the harsh smell of fine British tobacco. After one more pull from the now mostly smoked cigarette, he stubbed out the rest in the giant crystal ashtray on the table at the center of the balcony. His eyes turned up from the table, looking at the naked body of Relena Peacecraft, covered only by a silk sheet. He remembered her words from last night, despite his best attempts to forget them.

 

"Is this really what we sacrificed everything for?" she asked. Her head was resting on his chest, both still enjoying the relaxed post-coital feeling. "Is this corrupt existence really what we almost died for?"

 

The question took Heero off guard. Though, he had to admit it reflected thoughts he'd had many times since she'd entered into the arranged marriage. He decided to draw out whatever she was thinking before committing to an answer. "What do you mean, Relena?"

 

"You know exactly what I mean," she looked up at him. "You Gundam pilots, along with many other former soldiers we know, almost died pursuing some warped ideology that things could finally be peaceful. I almost died on multiple occasions. Yet, here we are. Nothing is different, and everything has been corrupted as it was when the Alliance ran things."

 

"Do you really think things are that bad?" Heero asked.

 

"That corruption killed my father, Heero," she said bitterly. "It's what took my sister-in-law and what's consumed my brother ever since. Nothing is different Heero, except now we're on the inside of it, just like my father. We've become unwitting participants in schemes around long before either of us was even born. Only the players have changed, but the situation is as dire as ever."

 

She had been right, Heero thought as he looked over her sleeping form. They indeed had become unwitting participants in the schemes of old men and their heirs. It seemed around every corner there was the influence of Romafellar or OZ. He thought that these institutions would have been wiped from the history books after the war. Still, in the end, they simply took a backseat and retained the power they'd had before the end of the war.

 

How naive he'd been to think the powerbrokers of the war would somehow give up their positions and power and let the ESUN run the show. No, they instead infiltrated and overtook the new world government and continued as if there had been no war. The Romafeller group and the remnants of OZ were now hard at work in the background, a corrupting force that bribed politicians and bought security forces worldwide and in space. Even the Preventers weren't totally immune, with several agents having gone down for taking bribes to overlook things like weapons shipments over the years. It was what ultimately got Noin killed as she sought to investigate and bring an end to the corruption in the organization.

 

The world had indeed become a corrupted place, and both he and Relena had sold their souls, naively believing that they could keep everything together. Relena, when she married Jonah and turned a blind eye to the criminal enterprise behind the man, and he for also turning a blind eye to the corruption just to stay with her.

 

Maybe for their sins, neither he nor Relena deserved peace, he thought. Perhaps this was punishment for the wake of death and destruction he'd left throughout the universe. For all her talk of pacifism, Relena herself had always stood by him. Maybe God was balancing the scales through their pain as compensation for the lives both had led until now. Then again, it was also possible that evil simply prospered and that Romafellar taking over again and all of the corruption that came with it was inevitable, no matter which side won the war. Heero, however, found both trains of thought to be too depressing.

 

At this time, the phone in one of the pockets of the terrycloth robe began to vibrate. Heero shook his head to clear the melancholy before answering, assuming that it was Wufei without even looking at the caller ID.

 

"We're on at 0900," Wufei got straight to the point. "We only have one hour, but my contact said he may have some information that can help. Let Duo know the meeting point, at the Dragon Gate entrance to Chinatown on Darlian Street."

 

"Understood," Heero acknowledged before hitting the end call button. He quickly sent a message to Duo before replacing the phone in the robe pocket. The meeting was in just over two hours, leaving him an hour to get ready and check-in with Relena's substitute guard detail before he'd need to go.

 

Relena began to stir on the bed, turning first to where he'd slept next to her and then to where he was standing on the balcony. "Hi, handsome," she said with a slight bit of sleepiness still in her voice.

 

She slowly stretched out like a cat and settled back into herself before sitting up. Next, she looked him in the eye with a mischievous smile before patting the empty part of the bed next to her. "Not planning on leaving before round two, are you?"

 

Heero let a sly smile creep onto his face before walking to the bed and taking the offered place next to her. He bent low and kissed her slowly and then with more passion. After a moment, he broke away, immediately missing her touch. Before telling her the plan, he took a moment to admire her body. She'd filled in nicely over the years and now was the embodiment of perfection as far as he was concerned.

 

"You're beautiful," he said, giving her a quick peck on the forehead.

 

"Of all the men that tell me that daily, you're the only one I believe," she said. Her left hand was on the part of his chest not covered by the robe. On more than one occasion, she'd mentioned how nicely he'd filled in from the scrawny boy she'd met on the beach.

 

"We may have a lead about Zechs," not one for beating around the bush. Heero went ahead and dropped the information on her. "I have to go in an hour to meet Wufei and follow up on it."

 

Relena didn't say anything at first. Instead, she moved the hand on his chest to the right side of his face and then through his eternally messy hair. "Have you found my brother, Heero?"

 

"No," he answered honestly. "Just a lead that may ultimately point us in the right direction."

 

"No wonder Jonah was so upset last night," Relena seemed to take pleasure from this. "I love my brother, Heero. Despite hardly ever knowing him, I can't bring myself to hate my blood. But, he can't be brought back alive."

 

This last statement caught Heero by surprise. "Relena?"

 

"If he comes back, he'll have to stand trial," a tear rolled down her left cheek. "We've sacrificed too much for the dirty secrets that keep this country and the ESUN moving to be exposed. While I can't stand the thought that Jonah and those other corrupt former Romafellar people will win, I also can't risk everything being exposed."

 

Everything she was saying was right. Heero knew this. However, something about hearing all of this come from her was too much for him. He drew back a little, letting her hand fall from his chest to the bed and taking in what she'd just said. That young and innocent girl he'd met so many years ago who just wanted peace, for the first time, Heero realized that girl was gone completely. She'd been corrupted over the years just like he had. Over time, this had finally stripped away all of that innocence by dealing with the darker side of humanity and making backroom deals to preserve what she'd built. All that was left was a reflection of all the things he hated about himself.

 

"Are you okay, Heero?" she was concerned, not realizing how her words had affected the young man in front of her.

 

"I'll take care of things, just as I always do," he said slowly and with intention behind each word. "However, I don't ever want to hear you talk like that again. I'm here to do your dirty work, and you're here to be a ray of hope for the people around you. So, don't let all this darkness corrupt you too."

 

She took a deep breath, his words striking at her core. "I'm sorry, Heero. It's just, all of this mess I've gotten into, I feel so hopeless."

 

He put his hand to her cheek and brushed the tears away from her eyes. "I know how you feel. During the worst parts of the war, I felt similarly hopeless. But you have friends, and you have me. I promised you from the start that I'd be by your side, and I mean that. But I don't want to hear you talking like one of those corrupt assholes again. You're better than that and, despite what you think, things aren't hopeless. We'll find a way to bring down all of them and still keep the stability of the past five years."

 

"I believe in you, Heero," she let a few more tears drop before willing herself to smile. "I always have. Go, do what needs to be done. Just promise me that my brother won't suffer."

 

"I promise," Heero gave a solemn vow. He kissed her one more time before getting up and collecting his uniform and utility belt with his service weapon and handcuffs. He then went towards the bathroom, giving Relena one final look over before going to the shower to be alone with his thoughts.

 

*****

 

"You're not to let her out of your site today, understood?" Heero addressed the two bodyguards sent from Preventers HQ. He had placed the call shortly after finishing his shower. The last thing he wanted was for them to see him leaving Relena's room. Ash and Fredrick were the two on-duty officers from Relena's regular guard pool. Both were capable men whom Heero trusted.

 

"Yes, sir," the two men said in unison.

 

"I will be gone until the afternoon, at which point I will relieve you of duty," Heero continued his brief. "You are to do as she instructs. It's the weekend, so don't stop her if she wants to go out. But, don't lose track of her as we are on heightened alert right now."

 

"Understood, sir," Ash said. 

 

"She's upstairs in her regular room," Heero turned as he said this. He'd met them in the palace's entry hall but would need to move quickly to make it to the garage where his McLaren was parked. "I've told her you're coming, so you can leave her be until she decides to leave. You're dismissed."

 

"Sir," again in unison.

 

Heero was moving quickly through the massive labyrinth of halls that made up the ESUN presidential palace. Previously, it had been the Peacecraft royal palace. However, the place had fallen into disuse since the Talgesse had crashed into it during the war. The Sanc Kingdom had funded the repairs of the palace as a historical monument. Later on, the Preventers deemed it a good place for the ESUN president to live after the ESUN headquarters was moved to the Sanc Kingdom. Aside from being the president's residence, it was also used to host foreign dignitaries and other important visitors to the Sanc Kingdom and during ESUN conferences and events. The ESUN had struck a deal with the Sanc Kingdom's new parliament to rent the palace and shoulder the responsibility for upkeep, which took a massive financial burden away from the small country. However, this setup wasn't pleasing to everyone. It had been a sore spot for some ESUN member countries that felt it shouldn't be their responsibility to share in the upkeep fees for the giant palace. Relena, who had been the primary person to help arrange the deal, had taken a lot of flack for the agreement. 

 

"Good morning, Heero," the president of the ESUN was sitting in his usual morning spot in one of the reception rooms near the parking garage entrance. The parking garage was really the former undercroft of the castle on which the current palace had been built. During the renovations, the undercroft had been made into a parking garage. Where the current president was currently sitting had been a solar. The walls had been knocked down to allow entrance from the hall heading toward the undercroft. It was quite common to find the president here taking his morning coffee before beginning his day. "I do hope you enjoyed yourself last night, despite having to work."

 

"Of course, sir," Heero liked the man. Over the years, they'd developed a mutual trust. It hadn't hurt that Heero had saved the man on likely more than one occasion. Or that on more than one occasion, the president had more than likely kept Heero's true identity as a former Gundam pilot secure. 

 

"I was informed of the trouble our unfortunate benefactor caused last night," nothing ever went by without the president knowing. As he always said, 'Information is my currency, and for that, I'm a very wealthy man. It was another quality that Heero liked about him. "I hope the situation was dealt with properly?"

 

"It was, sir," Heero said.

 

"Good," the president stated before taking a sip of coffee. The man looked like he was a permanent fixture of the oversized antique wingback chair that he sat in. Despite the modern luxury of most of the castle, this room the president sat in was like stepping into a different era. "It's an unpleasant business that we have to deal with that man. His father was always a corrupt and petty tyrant, but at least he understood how to properly conduct business and manage his affairs properly. The man's son, unfortunately, is a problem on many levels."

 

Heero didn't respond. While they had never spoken of this topic, the president likely knew the young agent's thoughts on the matter. After all, the president was the only person outside of the pilots, Sally, and Une, who knew of Heero's relationship with Relena. 

 

"It's also unfortunate the arrangement with Relena and Jonah and everything he has against us," Heero flinched only slightly as the president brought the topic up. "I'm continually working to remove what influence the man has over us. However, we have enemies everywhere, and we can't afford to be caught off guard. I hope you understand."

 

What the president was saying was clear to Heero. There was nothing to misunderstand. They couldn't afford for Relena and Heero's secret, or any of the many other secrets surrounding their group, to get out.

 

"One day, and that day may come sooner than you think, we'll deal with the unpleasant Jonah Brinnely. However, until that day, please play things close to the vest."

 

"Understood, sir," Heero said. "I have to be going. Please give my regards to your family the next time you see them."

 

"I will, Agent Yuy," the president nodded. "And despite my warning to you, make sure you cherish your time with family, including our dear vice foreign minister. Our time on this earth is short, as you well know. It's the kind of special relationship that you two share that makes this sometimes dreary world worth it."

 

The president offered a sly smile before taking another sip of his coffee. Heerlo, for his part, returned the look before continuing down the hall and through the door. He had precisely forty-five minutes to get to Chinatown.

 

******

 

"We're supposed to keep a low profile due to our positions, and you choose a hunter-green hypercar to get you around." Wufei admonished Heero's choice of vehicles. "Duo's black Ducatti is bad enough, but that thing sticks out too much."

 

"Are you saying we should all be boring like you, Woofie," Duo joked, using a name he knew that Wufei hated. "Standard armored SUV to get around and avoid crossfire, is that right?"

 

"When the bullets start flying, you'll think twice about your choice of transportation Duo," Wufei let the name jab pass.

 

"Enough, both of you," Heero stated. "Where's Trowa?"

 

"Oh, he's doing some desk duty as a favor to the security officer from last night," Duo said. "Trowa took over the last half of his shift in exchange for keeping Jonah off the books. We'll let the little shit out Monday."

 

This brought a slight smile to Heero's face. "Let him know that I owe him one."

 

"Don't think twice, buddy," Duo patted Heero's back which drew a look of ire from the usually stoic former pilot. "What are we walking into here, Wufei?"

 

"This is the headquarters of the Sun On Yee," Wufei motioned to a modern five-story building that looked out of place among the older shophouses along the road. "We have one hour with Wang Xin, the leader of the European branch of the organization. Une lets him operate here in return for information and keeping the crime in the city under control."

 

"He has information about Zechs?" Heero asked, not really caring about the shady deals Une had worked out.

 

"That's what he said," Wufei confirmed. "I asked him about the shooter we've got in the fridge at headquarters. Xin said he had information about it and revealed that it may have something to do with our investigation into Zechs."

 

"Well then, let's not leave the man waiting," Duo made a grand gesture with his hands in the direction of their destined building. "You lead the way, Woofie."

 

Duo grinned at Wufei, who shot the braided man a death glare. However, the former Shenlong pilot proceeded toward the building in question. Heero and Duo followed behind, eyeing the people milling about the walking street. Some of them were obviously guards protecting the very building they were heading towards.

 

Two Chinese men stood guard at the entrance, halting their progress into the building. "Where do you think you're going, Agent Chang."

 

"We have an appointment with Mr. Xin," Wufei responded, shooting a death stare at both of them and daring them to do anything more to stop him. For their parts, Heero and Duo also provided equally intimidating glares which, coming from Agents in full uniform with open weapons and a license to use them, held substance. 

 

"It is you who has an appointment with Mr. Xin," the brute to the left said. "These gweilo can wait outside so as not to stink up our hallowed halls."

 

Wufei moved closer to the two of them, covertly pulling his pistol from the backside holster and placing it into the man who spoke's stomach. "Don't you forget for a minute who lets you operate in this city, Feng. I can have a full Preventers assault team here in ten minutes to take all of your gangster shitheads down. Or, I can put one in your gut, and my friends over there put one in your partner. Tomorrow, your daughter will read how her father died assaulting a Preventers agent during a drug raid. You're choice."

 

Feng looked over at his partner and then back at Wufei and the other two pilots, "Okay, go ahead."

 

Wufei holstered his weapon and then gave one more nasty look at both of the guards before proceeding through the large full glass doors of the building. They walked towards an elevator at the back of the building, passing five black-suited hoods in the lobby who looked confused at the foreigners. A few of them made to get up before Wufei pulled his agent badge and flashed it, "Official Preventers business, keep seated."

 

Heero pressed the button for the elevator. The trio didn't have to wait long as the elevator car was on the bottom floor. The doors opened, and all three agents walked inside, where Wufei pressed the button for the top floor. The trip was short and silent to the top. When the doors opened, they were greeted with the sight of a large and luxury modern office with floor-to-ceiling windows at the far side and an extra-large Brazilian Rosewood desk in front of it.

 

"How dare you let these gweilo enter our headquarters, Wufei," an angry voice came from one of the two men at the far side of the office. The man who spoke was standing, while the other was in a plush leather executive chair behind the desk.

 

"Forget it, Haitao," the man sitting behind the desk held his hand up in a sign of dismissal. "It was I who invited them here. What we discuss today could affect the future of our brotherhood. As they say, desperate times call for desperate measures."

 

The man behind the desk, whom Heero assumed was Wang Xin, rose gracefully from his seat. He was dressed in a dark gray sharkskin three-piece with a white silk shirt and white tie tucked meticulously under the vest. Wang gestured towards four chairs placed in front of the desk, "I wasn't sure how many of you would come, but for something this important, I was confident Agent Chang here wouldn't come alone. Please, be seated."

 

The three agents walked forth and took the offered seats, remaining silent and waiting for Wang to make the first move. The leader of the Sun On Yee sat down and then pulled a folder from in front of him. 

 

"Before we get started, I thought that you agents would be interested in these," Wang tossed the folder towards the three. 

 

Wufei picked up the folder and opened it to reveal full-page black and white photos. The first photo was a headshot of a man known to all three Gundam pilots. Though the photo had been taken from far away, it was quite clear the subject was none other than Zechs Marquis, clad in his trademark mask he had been known to wear during the war. There was nothing else in the photo to give away where he might be or when the photo was taken. However, the following few photos were of some kind of jungle base. It was evident that Zechs was leading some sort of army as the photos from further out showed him speaking with a group of men in BDUs. They were obviously deep in the jungle as the whole compound was surrounded by tropical trees and foliage.

 

"Where did you get these?" Heero was the first to speak up after viewing all of the photos. "And how recent are they?"

 

"These photos are about a month old," Wang Xin said to the group. "At the time I received them, I wasn't sure how to proceed. However, in light of recent events, I thought it best I turn them over to you. They were taken in the southern jungles of the Sukhothai Kingdom. That's a Red Wa training base. Up until recently, they've been a major partner supplying narcotics and massage girls. However, things have changed."

 

"How so?" Duo asked.

 

"Our operations were disrupted about six months ago," Wang continued his story. "We were just beginning to recover after you lot disrupted that gun-running operation Julian Benton was running for the Brinnely Group and the higher-ups in the Sanc Army. However, shortly after this, all communication from our Red Wa connections ceased. About a month after we lost contact, I sent a man to Bangrak in the Sukhothai Kingdom to figure out what was going on. After all, an entire organization the size of the Red Wa going silent is unheard of."

 

Wang paused his story to pull out a cigar from a jeweled box on his desk. He offered the box to the agents across the desk from him, who all refused. About a minute passed as the man snipped the tip-off and lit his cigar, taking a few puffs to keep it going before settling back in and continuing his story.

 

"The man I sent was able to track things down to that training camp in the south of the Kingdom," Wang said. "However, the man went silent about a week and a half later. Over the next few months, our members in the region began to turn up dead, along with members of other organizations. Even various leaders of the country to who we paid a small fortune each month were silent. Finally, an admiral in the Sukhothai Navy gave me a call around three months ago. He told me a man matching the description of Zechs Marquis had shown up and, with an army of about twenty former soldiers, had completely taken over the country's underworld."

 

"So why has none of this made it back to Preventers?" Heero asked.

 

"Those twenty men, together with their leader, left a trail of bodies behind them in such a brutal fashion that they got everyone scared," Wang replied. "Word on the street is they've been recruiting members and storing up weapons. The man I assume is Zechs Marquis is at the head of all of it. He's even managed to buy off most of the local military, police, and politicians. Those he couldn't buy off apparently met untimely and unpleasant fates."

 

"What about the hitman who came in a few days ago?" Wufei asked. "Know anything about him?"

 

"Unfortunately, that assassin isn't the only thing coming into the ports that you should be worried about," Wang took another puff from his cigar before continuing. "My men have been reporting suspicious cargo coming in along with soldiers. All of this going on in Brinnely owned ports. We used to have deals with Brinnely before he and that weakling Julian Benton decided they were going into business for themselves. Now days though, who knows what's going on or who they're working for. But, I sense a war is coming, and you Preventers should be on your toes."

 

A loud crump could be heard about two miles from where they were. The windows shook a few seconds after and, through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, the three agents could see smoke rising up near where the harbor was located.

 

Only a few seconds later, the phone on the desk rang. Wang picked it up and spoke rapid Mandarin to whoever was on the other line. The call lasted about thirty seconds before Wang cradled the phone and looked up at the agents. "Let me correct myself. That war seems to already be here. That was one of my warehouses that just blew up."

 

"We should be going," Heero got up and began to walk towards the back elevator.

 

"I'll need to keep these photos," Wufei told the crime boss. "Also, give us some time to sort this out before you tear the city apart."

 

"Then you better hurry, Agent Chang," Wang spoke solemnly. "As it is not I that wants to see this happen. It's bad for business."

 

"We'll be in touch," Wufei gave a nod of understanding to the man and then followed Heero and Duo into the elevator and to the ground floor.