Wufei woke up and attempted to stretch, his bruises were still there, but not nearly as bad as they were last night. He got up and put on his shirt, then looked out the window. By the position of the sun it looked about mid-morning. He slipped on his shoes and soundlessly padded to Duo’s room. A soft knocked and Duo admitted him in. They talked for a while, about what they should tell these people. The truth was the best, and they were the first to enter this dimension from their own so they may be able to get help of some sort getting back to their own dimension. They went to Linden and Maurynna’s room and asked to talk.
“We’re here to tell ya about our world,” with Duo having said those words they were let in and the door locked, the windows closed and shaded, then they all sat down.
“As you heard last night, in our world there is no such thing as magic, either that or it is long forgotten. We live off of the earth itself, using its electricity, oil, gases, and things like that. We even have colonies in space, since there is too little earth to hold us all. But a war has started between the earth and the space colonies. Wufei, three others, and myself are what’s known as Gundam Pilots. We pilot huge mobile suits called Gundams, they’re stronger than any mobile suit before them, with more fire power, strength, and defenses than the ones we fight. We came from the colonies to the earth to destroy an organization called OZ. Since it had hidden itself inside of the current rulers, the Alliance, we had to attack the Alliance to get to them. When OZ showed themselves they were able to take out every Alliance base on the earth and take control. After they had a firm footing on earth, they started on the colonies. Since we were sent out without anyone’s knowledge, colony or earth, the colonies took to OZ. We returned to space to see if we could do anything. One of the other pilots, Quatre, built another mobile suit, with a cockpit system that heightened the senses and showed you things of the future, or possible roads to take. Quatre couldn’t take the strain it put on his mind, and he went near mad.
“Finally after a battle with Heero and Trowa, the last of the five pilots, he realized his mistakes and refused to ever use the system, the Zero system, again.”
Wufei continued from there, “OZ had long been working on a way to travel from dimension to dimension. They found a way apparently and we were sent to destroy it. We were caught before we could do anything. They decided to use us as giny pigs and send us through the Portal Door, as they called it. Luckily, Duo had an invasion virus in his braid. An invasion virus doesn’t need to be inserted into the computer program by hand, it does it on its own. Duo couldn’t get it to attach to anything, but I was able to attach it to a wire and the virus inserted itself into the system. Duo programmed that virus, so it probably destroyed the blueprints, information of studies, and collapsed the computers entire mainframe, and they couldn’t do a thing.”
“It also sent electrical wave length through wire from the computers own power source and fried every wire connected to it. It probably run through the entire build by the time it was done,” Duo added with a satisfied smile, “And once that virus is in, it doesn’t need its chip of origin to keep going.”
“I’m glad I’m on your side, Duo,” Wufei said with a sigh.
“A simple virus did all that?” Linden said astounded.
“Yeah.”
“Why are kids as young as you fighting in this war? You should be being normal kids, Gifnu’s Hells!” Maurynna exclaimed.
“Because we are the only ones who can pilot the Gundams. Since we were trained and everything while we were still growing, we were changed enough to be able to pilot the Gundams easily. Plus, we have lost everything we ever loved to OZ. They deserve to pay for what they did to us and many others,” Wufei said his eyes gaining a dangerous gleam in them, “I lost every person I ever knew or loved when they destroyed my colony. Now all I have is my fellow Gundam pilots.”
Maurynna frowned sadly at the hatefully look in Wufei’s eyes, “What did you loose, Duo?”
“When I was about three, I lost every memory I had of my family, and my family itself, to an OZ attack, I think. I remember some guy coming into the room say, ‘OZ does not tolerate traitors,’ but that’s about it. A man named Solo took me in. Then, he died of a plague in the colony, when OZ and alliance force refused to bring in the antidote. He died while I brought the antidote we had smuggled in to the children in the Maxwell church. Then, lastly, the Maxwell church took me in, then they died too, when OZ attacked them for holding enemy spies. I went off to get a mobile suit to defend the church, when I got back the church was nothing but ash. Finally, Professor G took me in and trained me to become a Gundam pilot,” Duo’ eyes remained unseen as he spoke.
Wufei touched him lightly on the shoulder, Duo turned and smiled at him reassuringly. Maurynna looked ready to kill, Linden looked similar but more of a calm resolve to make sure that they got back to their world to defeat this OZ.
“They should be KILLED for doing such things to innocent people!” Maurynna said standing up from her chair.
“Rynna calm down, right now there is nothing we can do. At least not yet,” the glint in Linden’s eyes told of revenge.
Wufei and Duo blinked at their reactions. It was good for them, but it was still strange. They must never have been in a war or seen blood and famine. They were innocent to the ways of war. They shook their head smiling.
“We should bring you to Dragonskeep, to speak to the Lady. They may know a way, or someone who knows a way, to get you home,” Linden said.
“And how do you propose to get to this Dragonskeep?” Wufei asked.
“Well, since we came here riding our Llysanyins, we best ride them back. We can get some normal horse for you two.”
“What’s a Llys—Llysan—Whatever the hell you call it?” Duo attempted, Wufei chuckled.
“It’s like a horse, only they’re smarter, and stronger. They’re not as smart as humans but smarter than any horse.”
Wufei smiled, it would be a treat to see a horse that was almost as smart as a human. He liked horse, he admitted to himself, it would be very fun to meet this Llysanyin.
By mid day Linden was buying two horse from an old farmer who said he had too many anyway. Duo was out with Maurynna get supplies for the trip, and Wufei was in the stables looking at one of the Llysanyins. He was looking at the huge black stallion. He looked right back at Wufei. Wufei smiled kindly, showing no intention of harm and cautiously put him hand out in a fist to the Llysanyin. He snorted then cocked his head at the hand. Sniffed it then nudged it. Wufei carefully ran his hand up over his muzzle and along the front of his face.
“I don’t know if you like apples, but if you do, here you go,” Wufei pulled the apple from his pocket and carefully held it out.
The Llysanyin nayed happily then snatched the apple up in his teeth and ate it quickly. The brown horse with a blonde mane grunted at him as she saw the apple. Wufei blinked then smiled and pulled the two carrots he had in his other pocket and held them out to her. “That’s all I have girl,” she didn’t seem to mind as she ate the two carrots.
“Wow!” Suddenly came a cry from behind him, “You, you can actually touch Shan and Lihta!”
“Yes, why?’ Wufei asked with a raised eyebrow, continuing to stroke Shan’s muzzle.
“No one but the Dragonlords have even been able to get near them! How is it you can?” The stable boy asked.
“I don’t know, I guess they understand that I mean them no harm.”
“Can I try.”
“If he lets you, he lets you,” Wufei stepped back.
The boy thrust his hand and met with a grunt as Shan threw his head to the side defiantly. Wufei chuckled, “You are too eager and excited. Calm yourself, be cautious and gentle.”
“Okay.”
“Roll your hand into a fist, it gives them something to recognized, since a fist looks similar to a hoof,” Shan looked up at him offensively, “Well it’s true is it not?”
Shan grunt and looked down at the straightly extended fist. Looked at it then it sniffed. The boy smelt of excitement and anxiety. He threw his head to the side again.
“What’s your name boy?” Wufei asked with a sigh.
“Jacob, Jacob Hunten.”
“Well Jacob, do you like horse or Llysanyins?”
“Of course!”
“Then think of that. Don’t think about how exciting it might be to touch Shan, only about how much you like him and his kind.”
Jacob nodded and his expression calmed. Chan sniffed the fist one last time, now that was better, not much anxiety, the excitement was still there, but in a different way. Shan nudged the hand softly. “Pet him slowly, let him know where your hand is going.”
The boy did so, gently running his hand along Shan muzzle and along his cheek, smiling happily. Wufei repeated the steps with Lihta and stroked her neck lovingly.
“Boy! What are you do—“ The stable man cut off as he so Wufei and the boy gently petting the big Llysanyins, “My gods! How is it possible you can even get close to them!”
Jacob chuckled, looked at Wufei, who simply pressed a finger to own his lips to keep him silent of the trick. Jacob understood and simply smiled at the stable man. Then Linden, Maurynna, and Duo came in. Linden stared for a moment then smiled, Maurynna did the same, Duo just trotted over to Wufei, chatting in their own language.
“You’re talented Wufei, no one has ever gotten that closer a Llysanyin without their Dragonlord there. And you boy, who taught you such?”
“He did,” he pointed to Wufei, who continued to lovingly stroke Lihta’s neck.
Linden laughed and said, “Well, we have horses for you two.”
“We got the supplies, so we’d best be off,” Maurynna added, pulling Lihta’s saddle and bridle down from its perch.
They saddled the Llysanyins without trouble and head out once all the supplies were settled on both the horses and Llysanyins. Duo and Wufei seemed to have no trouble riding them. “I take you were trained in that too?” Linden said raising an eyebrow.
“I was trained to,” Duo said.
“It was the only hobby I had that my training allowed,” Wufei said, stroking the horses’ withers.
They waved to as they left. Jacob waving gleefully at Wufei and yelling thanks to him.
Duo smiled at the comfortable Wufei /This is where he belongs. I can feel it. He feels at home in this setting. Just as I do./. They traveled for about two weeks since the normal horses couldn’t move as fast as the Llysanyins could. When they reached Dragonskeep the Lady and her soultwin Kelder stood waiting for them. A strange little man called a kir took them to the guest chambers and Linden and Maurynna went with the Lady and Kelder to talk. After explaining the situations and relaying the pilots story to the rest of the Dragonlords there.
“Is there anything we can do for them?” Maurynna asked pleadingly.
“I don’t know,” the Lady answered, “I know someone who might be able to help, but she is months away and quite old.”
“They could wait out those months here,” Linden offered.
“Yes, but from what you’ve told, I have a strange felling about these two young men. Do they have any strange marking on them, or the like?”
“Well, with Duo I’d say his eyes, but Wufei doesn’t have anything that I know of, why?” Linden asked raising an eyebrow at her.
“I felt a strange energy around them both. Like what you feel when a fledgling is about to Change for the first time. It is odd… Bring them to me, I wish to ask them myself,” the Lady order, clasping her hands together.
Linden went and got Wufei while Maurynna got Duo. They brought them to the Lady with forewarning.
“Now, Duo, are your eyes of odd coloring in your world?” She asked placing her hands on her armrests.
“They’re rare but that’s about it, why?” he cocked his head to the side slightly in question.
“I will tell you later. Wufei, have any odd marks or deformities?” She turned to Wufei.
“Yeah,” Wufei bent took off his shoes and socks and pulled up his pant leg to show a near black birthmark.
But it wasn’t the color that was odd, it was more the shape. It was like a backward ‘S’, it could be a tattoo. But on closer inspection, it was shown that it could never have been made be needles, it was a part of his skin. The Lady leaned back.
“I’ll be straight forward with you, Duo Maxwell, Wufei Chang,” the Lady said clasping her hands together, “I believe you may be fledglings, of our world or yours I don’t know.”
Wufei sputtered, “Bu- but how?! Dragonlords don’t exactly exist in our world, y’know!”
Duo just stared dumbly as Wufei went off raving in Japanese. Then suddenly the language changed to a strange longer syllabled one. Duo blinked on hearing the language and shook his head, then turned to Wufei say, “Fei, susumu, odayakana tori no!”
“I AM CALM!” Wufei said spinning around on his heel.
Duo frowned, “Yeah and I’m Trieze Kushrenada.”
Wufei took a deep breath, “Okay, now I’m calm.”
They began to discuss it in Japanese, as they called it.
/translation ^_^.\
“*Y’know it could be possible, that in coming here it activated something like that inside of us. It would explain do some things even though we weren’t trained for it,*” Duo reasoned.
“*True, but still, how, I mean, something like a Dragonlord hasn’t ever been seen or heard of. How could we be Dragonlords?*” Wufei with his on hands his hips.
“*It might be a new phenomenon and we’re only just the beginning,*” Duo offered.
“*Or, it could have existed so far in the past that we no longer remember and we’re the come back,*” Wufei suggested.
“*I think we’re on to something. We’ve gotta find more out about this Changing then,*” they both turned back to the Lady.
/end trans (Jumpin’ Jack Flash! Jumpin’ Jack Flash!).\
“I take it you have a agreed on something?” The Lady asked.
“Yeah, we’ll give this fledgling stuff a world. But we need to get home no matter what, if it’s possible,” Duo said and Wufei nodded.
“Agreed, know, go and bath and get dressed in the clothes the kirs give you. We will wash the ones you are wearing,” She waved them to the door.
“Thank you,” Wufei said with a Duo and Duo just nodded before he left.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~o.O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~T^T~~~~~~~~~~~~
Duo yawned as he sat in his bath. God, traveling and then the news that they may be fledglings wore him out. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
Why, hello Duo, Duo jumped he heard the voice.
Whoa! Hey- what- Duo quickly tried to cover himself.
It’s okay Duo, it’s me Linden. I figured you were resting and didn’t want to disturb you if you were indecent.
If you’re not in the room, then how are you talking to me? He relaxed.
Mind Speech, all Dragonlords can do it, and Dragonlords with truehumans they know well. With truehumans you have to be close in friendship, with fellow Dragonlords it’s immediately there.
So what are you saying?
Nothing, I was traveling with you for more than two weeks, we have a strong enough friendship, and we’re close enough, that I can do this. So, What did the Lady tell you?
That Fei and I are possible fledglings.
WHAT!?
Yeah.
Ha ha! Well, what does she believe your markings are?
Me with my eyes, and Fei with his birthmark.
Why a birthmark?
It’s near black and it looks like a backward ‘S’. At first you think it a tattoo, but when you look closer you can see that nothing made with needles could make that.
Well, welcome, pretty soon we may be calling you or Wufei little one, as the name is designated the youngest of us.
Yay…
Well I shall see you in the morning then.
Later! Duo almost waved, but stopped himself.
He got out of the bath and dressed in the black tunic and black pant he was given. He liked it here, they wore his favorite color. He ate in his room since the kir named Jun said he should he did, taking it as advice. He yawned as night fell, he’d go to bed in a few hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^_^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~@_@~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They met a few more of the Dragonlords over the course of a month, Kief Shaeldar, Tarlna Aurianne, Lleld, and a few others. They didn’t seem to mind them, but Duo and Wufei could only really get into conversation with Linden and Maurynna, sometimes Wufei talked with Kief, but not much else. Wufei spent his time out in the forests or with the Llysanyins, and Duo in then kitchen, library, and roaming the towers aimlessly, or mischievously. It was long before he and Lleld became friends though. Jokes were their specialty, as were bets.
Wufei was the only one who could stand them, since they found out he had had to keep a hyper Duo busy for about six hours. “I wonder what Duo’s like hyper?” Kief asked out of nowhere during one of their conversations.
“Take how he is with Lleld and times it by ten,” Wufei said nonchalantly.
“How do you know?”
“He and I were at a safe house when he snuck out and got a frapucinno from Starbucks. Those things are really high in sugar and caffeine so by the time he got home, he was ready to literally bounce off the walls. For six hours straight I had to find ways to entertain him and expend his energy. I slept for 24 hours straight afterwards, so did he.”
“Gifnu’s Hells! How the hell did you keep him busy?”
“Let’s see, I’ll only name a few, fixing up mine and his Gundams, and making them shine. Tennis for half an hour, cooking channel, fixing the car, a trampoline, rollerblades, bungy jumping with rope instead of a bungy, boulder climbing, and about ten other things.”
“My Gods, he gets no cherry tarts.”
“Sugar filled?”
“Very.”
Wufei chuckled.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Duo smiled as he snuck into the kitchen, he felt like something sweet, something very sweet. He smelt the strange little red tarts on the table and his mouth watered. Before any of the cooks could even see it was him, he snatched up two, took them to the tower balcony and ate them gleefully. Kief came up the stairs calmly. He saw Duo licking his fingers.
“And what did you just have?”
“Dunno, but they were good!”
“What did they look like?” Kief asked cautiously.
“Well, they were red, pastes, on bread, with cherry chunks in them. I had two, they were really good!”
Kief paled and back away slowly and took off to get Wufei. “WUFEI!” He cried as he reached the stabled.
“Yeah?” Wufei said looking at him curiously.
“Duo just ate two off those Cherry tarts I told you of.”
“Shimatta, where’s, or was, he?”
“In the tower.”
“See ya.”
Wufei took off into the Keep at speeds not natural for a human, no matter how hard they were trained. Wufei reached the top of the tower in record time. Lleld was there trying to talk Duo off of the balcony ledge as he walked across it. Wufei frowned, walked over there, grabbed Duo’s braids and dragged him off the ledge, “Baka! That’s dangerous!”
“Yep! And Plus it keeps me busy! MAN! I’m hyper!” Duo bounced over to the stairs and slid down the railing on his feet.
He flew down the railing, skipped off the end and slid across the floor as he landed. Wufei followed suit to keep up with the hyper American. The Lady appeared at a run.
“What’s going on?” She asked breathlessly.
Lleld appeared behind Duo and Wufei, “Duo ate two of those cherry tarts and now his hyper. So, we’re going to have to find out ways to keep him busy till the sugar wears off,” Wufei said suddenly hitting Duo upside the head.
“Like what?”
“Got any rope?”
“Yeees…..”
They stood out by the cliff side, Duo had one end of the rope tied around his feet and the other around the base of a boulder. Duo bounced to the edge and back.
“Wufei, what are you doing?” The Lady asked.
“Keeping him busy.” Wufei answered curtly.
“By telling him jump off a cliff!”
“And if I didn’t, he might be tearing through the kitchen content on simply spilling the flour all over the floor.”
“All right I get the point, but still…”
“Really, you don’t need to worry.”
Then, in one smooth motion, Duo sprang off the cliff with a cry of, “BONZEYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” They waited for the crunch of bones and body but heard none. After about half an hour of staring at the meditating Wufei, Duo appeared, climbing up the rope.
He reached to top, Wufei kept them from helping him up. “AGAIN!” He cried as he bounced.
He dove off the cliff three more times, and climbed back up, three more times. Then asked if there was anything else to do. Wufei told him to boulder climb the tower. Duo did it in three hours. What next? Wufei, who was reading a book, told him to run up and down the tower stairs, ground Keep floor to the top of the tower, ten times. Duo did it and came back, finally winded.
“Okay, I think I’m done in,” Duo said leaning against the rail.
“Good, then go to sleep,” Wufei said chuckling at his ragged form.
“Sounds to good to be true,” he slid down the railings of the tower into the keep and went to his room.
“Now that that’s done, I suggest we all sleep, since it is nearly midnight,” Wufei said beginning towards the stairs.
“Wait, how did you know he would have no trouble doing all the things you told him to?” Lleld asked.
“I’ve had to deal with him in that condition many times, most times it’s milder than that. The worst was the one I told you of Kief.”
“But he lasted longer than that time,” Kief said his brow knitting.
“That because I was able to expend his energy with things different from what I had excisable here. If we were in my world, we would have been through with this much sooner.”
“Does he do that often?” Tarlna asked worriedly.
“No, only when craves something really sweet, and that doesn’t happen often.”
“Good, we don’t need that sort of thing happening too much,” the Lady said with relief.
“He’s gotten better though, that’s was his first craving in about four months.”
“That’s it.”
“Yeah, but it’s good, because his cravings are getting less and the need less. When I first met him, he would have had about ten of those cherry tarts. Believe me, he’s gotten much better,” then Wufei turned and went to his room, the others followed suit.
*******************$_$
Duo sat up straight in his bed. He craved… What did he crave? He didn’t know, but he had to be outside, and fast. He slipped on his pants, shoes, and his shirt. Grabbing the dagger he had, instinct told him too, he raced from the Keep to the cliff. His blood boiled and his skin felt raw as he stood and took in a deep breath of the mountain air. It filled his lungs and his mind, then the second voice was there, gently speaking its vows to him.
*****************-_-
Everyone, including Wufei, jolted awake and raced to the cliff. There they found a great cloud of black and red hovering around a human figure.
****************(0.0)
Duo floated in nothing as the dragon appeared. He blinked at the huge black scale, the red translucent wings and the fringe of alternating black and red long, spikes along its spine. He looked up at the fierce violet eyes, and smiled.
/*I am Shinigami.*/ A voice boomed at him.
Will you vow, Shinigami? Duo asked holding one hand out to the Shinigami.
He chuckled, I vow, humansoul Duo, I vow never to kill thee, and not to harm if it is possible. I vow to remain dormant till thees death of the weariness, and I vow to answer these questions and obey thee unless it will do no good to the mother earth. They shook heads and the vows were permanent and Duo finished changing outside.
A huge black dragon appeared. He stretched his red wings, the single claw at the last large joint retracting, and threw his head back with a roar. The front of his neck was covered in large, deep red armor scales. The curved spikes from his skull gleamed slightly and the red and black fringe along his spine was oddly shaped, having a strange curving to them. To form of the dragon was like nothing they’d ever seen. It was thin and lithe, the body had no barrel like resemblance. The muscles coursed with every movement and the claws of his feet dug into the ground mercilessly. This dragon was different from any they had ever seen before. As it turned towards them, it didn’t seem awkward on the ground at all, but the way he used his wings made it look as if he was well talented in the art of flying.
Back in the place between consciousness and unconsciousness, Duo and Shinigami talked.
/*I am what is known as a space dragon. I still live off of oxygen, true, but I have special glands under my front scales that are constantly in the act of catching air molecules when I’m in space. The scales of my body are the structure that keeps me from collapsing in on myself, and my wings are made of a special fiber that doesn’t need to have blood flow to it. And my eyes, they have a special clear film over them that stands as a structure to keep my eyes from collapsing.*/
Wow, it’s almost as if I won’t even need my Gundam anymore.
/*Thee won’t. I can stand the same kind of explosions that Deathscythe can, even more actually, without pain. My claws are your thermal scythes, and my fireballs are thees ammo. Don’t worry.*/
It’ll be hard for me to let go of him, but, using something someone like you would be better than anything those doctors could cook up. No offense.
/*None taken, now, thee must return to consciousness, the Dragonlords are getting worried. WAIT! One more thing, thee mustn’t act on thees instinct to take Wufei.*/
Why the hell not! A raging fury encircled his mind.
/*Because, thee cannot bond with thees soultwin till he is Changed as well!*/
Soultwin? But isn’t that supposed to be a woman?
/*In this world yes, in our world not particularly, in our world gender matters not, only the person beneath it. The Dragonlords will be surprised at first, but they will accept it. You must hold from Wufei, please.*/
I’ll try. Duo sighed and went back to consciousness.
Duo looked out over the cliff from Shinigami’s eyes, then let his mind wonder as he changed back into his human form. He turned to the other Dragonlords and smiled, “I guess the sugar high triggered it.”
“Did the dragon take his vows?” The Lady asked, taking a step forward at the dagger in his hand.
“Yeah, pretty willingly too, even explained a few things without me having to ask.”
“Incredible!” Tarlna said.
“Eh? Anyway, his name’s Shinigami, so I guess I’m Duo Shinigami now, right?”
“Yes, now what did he tell you? We have never seen a dragon like him,” Kelder said.
Duo relayed all that he was told to them, except for Wufei being his soultwin. As they contemplated what this could mean, he looked over at Wufei and felt the longing, to just touch him would be more than enough to send him out of control. He quickly tore his eyes from him and went back to bed as everyone went too.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
C&C please, i hope you like!
