Challenge 226 general
Title: Disillusioned and delusional
Author: ingvild
Characters: Dekim Barton, other Bartons, Relena, both Heero Yuys, others
Rating/Word Count: PG-13, 1456 words (argh!)
Notes: Stupid prompts make me want to write characters I have little to no grasp on. *Grumble* I’ve only read summaries of Episode Zero, so forgive me if I get something wrong. This wasn’t easy to write, and I’m not really satisfied with it. Too rushed.
Yuy was delusional. Peace couldn’t come the way he thought. Earth would never allow it.
Dekim knew it would happen long before it did, but it was still a shock and a personal failure when a bullet went through Heero Yuy’s body and he dropped down stone dead. It was quick, clean, professional and efficient, and the assassin was long gone by the time the crowd had stopped panicking enough to let anyone get through.
Dekim had arranged the tour Yuy was on when he was assassinated. He had been responsible for the security. He had discussed political strategy and been frustrated with Yuy’s unwillingness to employ certain methods.
Yuy’s death was a loss for the colonies, to be sure, but in the oppressive atmosphere imposed by the Alliance afterwards, Dekim could finally begin to plan his own long-term strategy, on his terms.
The identity of Yuy’s assassin came unexpectedly from Romafeller. Apparently Odin Lowe had severed all connection with the Foundation, and sent the people who went after him back in pieces. One of the very few who knew of the plot and who had carried it out had been angered enough by this that he sent Dekim a note, unconcerned that this confirmed Romafeller’s own culpability.
It took them years to track Lowe down, and in the meantime, another great pacifist fell. The destruction of Sanc Kingdom seemed to confirm what Dekim had believed for some time - that pacifism was nothing more than pretty words, and would never work in reality. When they finally did locate Lowe, they discovered that he had picked up an apprentice. Dekim studied the features of the tiny child with Lowe in the sneakshot briefly, but didn’t think too much about him. He was insignificant. Underlings weren’t important enough.
Personally putting a bullet in Lowe’s body was deeply satisfying. He and Quinze looked briefly for the boy, but didn’t bother too much. More important things were at stake.
Leia was a foolish and romantic girl, but she was a good age and fertile enough. Khushrenada didn’t need much convincing - he was seventeen year old male, after all - but the drug cocktail certainly helped. When Khushrenada left Leia was pregnant, and Dekim had stolen seed from the best Romafeller and Oz had to offer in order to build his own empire.
He was even satisfied enough to let Leia name her daughter. Mariemaia was bright and vivacious, and both Leia and her uncle Trowa doted upon her. Trowa was even satisfied with knowing that Mariemaia would be leader of the Earth once it was conquered, and he would merely be her enforcer. Leia, on the other hand, was upset about it. In a show of more brains than he had previously credited her with, she confronted him and told him that he merely wanted to use her daughter as a convenient symbol to draw fire while he did the real job. Dekim told her that the generals always did the real work, while the world leaders were only needed to declare wars and sign peace treaties. Leia threatened to take Mariemaia away. Dekim informed her rather coldly that now that she had provided him with a grandchild, she was no longer necessary.
It was still mildly upsetting when he had to dispose of her a year later. He never told Trowa. The boy was too attached to his sister.
Time passed and the scientists completed the Gundams in time for Operation Meteor. Dekim never did find out who the pilot of Sandrock was, and this annoyed him a little, but he knew that the pilot of Heavyarms, his own Trowa Barton, would tell him as soon as he found out. For Shenlong he heard the name Meiran Chang - it was only later that he found out that Chang had died and the pilot was her husband Wufei. Deathscythe’s Duo Maxwell meant nothing to him, but he hesitated when he heard the name of Wing’s pilot.
Heero Yuy.
He had to admire J’s morbid sense of humour, to give the name of a renowned pacifist to a terrorist sent to destroy the Earth.
The admiration disappeared when time passed and he realised that the scientists had upstaged him and changed the Gundam pilots’ orders. What was worse was that Heavyarms’ pilot was Trowa Barton - but not his son.
In his fury after this Quinze had enough and left. Dekim could have told him that his silly White Fang would never work. Quinze wasn’t a leader, and he foolishly trusted a Peacecraft to lead in his stead. The Peacecrafts weren’t competent enough, and how that little girl managed to convince the world otherwise, he would never know.
His brother went down with Libra like a good captain, but Dekim was the general. Always in the background, directing the flow. However, now was almost the time to take centre stage.
The coup went off perfectly. Treize’s second did her best, but he had too big a head start on her. The recruitment of Chang and the boy who had stolen his son’s name was a bonus. The Peacecraft girl, now calling herself Darlian again but he knew her true colours, was annoying, but her words meant nothing. Deeper meaning of fighting? What meaning was there, other than to win?
And then it all began to go wrong.
He should never have let Chang persuade him to let the name-thief live, because there he was, fighting along Sandrock, Deathscythe, Tallgeese and Taurus against Dekim’s Serpents. It was futile...
...What was that fool girl doing?
“It’s much too early for your appearance, Miss Former Queen.” He didn’t bother listening to her response. No longer a Peacecraft? Like that was something she could just get rid of.
“Nothing can be achieved with revenge!”
She was wrong, wrong, so wrong. Look at what he had achieved! This was revenge, revenge for Yuy, for his son, his brother...his daughter.
He was the master planner, and he had won. The Gundams had stopped fighting.
“Another Gundam confirmed, sir, it’s in the sky.”
What? “What?”
“Mister Dekim, we’re online with one of the Gundam pilots.”
“Heero!”
He didn’t need to hear Dar...Peacecraft’s exclamation to know who this was. Pilot 01, the pilot of Wing who took over Wing Zero. Heero Yuy. Dekim’s knees suddenly felt weak, not because of the pilot’s reputation but because he recognised that face. The boy was twice as old now as he had been the first time Dekim saw him, but there was no mistaking those eyes. J had given Heero Yuy’s name to his assassin’s apprentice. Any admiration Dekim might have had of the morbid humour in it vanished at the realisation of this...obscenity.
He only barely heard the boy’s question. “What are you planning?” But he knew. He knew before the shot came and rocked the supposedly secure shelter to its core.
“Gather all the Serpents here! Shoot down Wing Zero!” Get rid of him, get rid of this boy who had usurped Yuy’s name, whose eyes seemed to strip his soul bare. Yuy had died five years before this little brat was even born. How could he have his gaze?
The second shot did more than rock the shelter.
“This is impossible! How can this be happening!?” They were dead, all his plans would go up in smoke, unless...”Stop it. Don’t you realise Relena Peacecraft is in here?”
For a moment he thought it had worked, but then he looked at her and realised how she could have moved a world, and how this boy could have saved it. Hope, strength, purity. The third shot came, and the shelter collapsed.
He was dimly aware of Treize’s second sprinting into the room and pushing Mariemaia and Peacecraft...Darlian...Relena to safety.
Somehow it wasn’t surprising that Chang had turned coat again, but the people came as a shock. Who the hell were they? What did they matter? They were insignificant!
A tiny part of his mind that was still capable of rational thought pointed out that he’d thought the same about an eight-year-old apprentice assassin.
He felt Treize’s second’s cool glance, noticed Mariemaia standing with her and Relena. He’d lost.
No. Yuy was long dead, and this little upstart with his name had just shot himself to pieces. He could still salvage the situation...
His last hope burst when Relena’s palm met with Mariemaia’s cheek.
Mistakes? Mistakes? He’d show her mistakes...
Oh.
“We can always create a replacement for Mariemaia. I made her, after all!”
“Dekim!”
The shot came from nowhere. An underling? It took an eternity for his body to hit the ground. He thought he saw them - both Heero Yuys, all the Peacecrafts...
Had he ever really been in charge?
He died.
Author: ingvild
Characters: Dekim Barton, other Bartons, Relena, both Heero Yuys, others
Rating/Word Count: PG-13, 1456 words (argh!)
Notes: Stupid prompts make me want to write characters I have little to no grasp on. *Grumble* I’ve only read summaries of Episode Zero, so forgive me if I get something wrong. This wasn’t easy to write, and I’m not really satisfied with it. Too rushed.
Yuy was delusional. Peace couldn’t come the way he thought. Earth would never allow it.
Dekim knew it would happen long before it did, but it was still a shock and a personal failure when a bullet went through Heero Yuy’s body and he dropped down stone dead. It was quick, clean, professional and efficient, and the assassin was long gone by the time the crowd had stopped panicking enough to let anyone get through.
Dekim had arranged the tour Yuy was on when he was assassinated. He had been responsible for the security. He had discussed political strategy and been frustrated with Yuy’s unwillingness to employ certain methods.
Yuy’s death was a loss for the colonies, to be sure, but in the oppressive atmosphere imposed by the Alliance afterwards, Dekim could finally begin to plan his own long-term strategy, on his terms.
The identity of Yuy’s assassin came unexpectedly from Romafeller. Apparently Odin Lowe had severed all connection with the Foundation, and sent the people who went after him back in pieces. One of the very few who knew of the plot and who had carried it out had been angered enough by this that he sent Dekim a note, unconcerned that this confirmed Romafeller’s own culpability.
It took them years to track Lowe down, and in the meantime, another great pacifist fell. The destruction of Sanc Kingdom seemed to confirm what Dekim had believed for some time - that pacifism was nothing more than pretty words, and would never work in reality. When they finally did locate Lowe, they discovered that he had picked up an apprentice. Dekim studied the features of the tiny child with Lowe in the sneakshot briefly, but didn’t think too much about him. He was insignificant. Underlings weren’t important enough.
Personally putting a bullet in Lowe’s body was deeply satisfying. He and Quinze looked briefly for the boy, but didn’t bother too much. More important things were at stake.
Leia was a foolish and romantic girl, but she was a good age and fertile enough. Khushrenada didn’t need much convincing - he was seventeen year old male, after all - but the drug cocktail certainly helped. When Khushrenada left Leia was pregnant, and Dekim had stolen seed from the best Romafeller and Oz had to offer in order to build his own empire.
He was even satisfied enough to let Leia name her daughter. Mariemaia was bright and vivacious, and both Leia and her uncle Trowa doted upon her. Trowa was even satisfied with knowing that Mariemaia would be leader of the Earth once it was conquered, and he would merely be her enforcer. Leia, on the other hand, was upset about it. In a show of more brains than he had previously credited her with, she confronted him and told him that he merely wanted to use her daughter as a convenient symbol to draw fire while he did the real job. Dekim told her that the generals always did the real work, while the world leaders were only needed to declare wars and sign peace treaties. Leia threatened to take Mariemaia away. Dekim informed her rather coldly that now that she had provided him with a grandchild, she was no longer necessary.
It was still mildly upsetting when he had to dispose of her a year later. He never told Trowa. The boy was too attached to his sister.
Time passed and the scientists completed the Gundams in time for Operation Meteor. Dekim never did find out who the pilot of Sandrock was, and this annoyed him a little, but he knew that the pilot of Heavyarms, his own Trowa Barton, would tell him as soon as he found out. For Shenlong he heard the name Meiran Chang - it was only later that he found out that Chang had died and the pilot was her husband Wufei. Deathscythe’s Duo Maxwell meant nothing to him, but he hesitated when he heard the name of Wing’s pilot.
Heero Yuy.
He had to admire J’s morbid sense of humour, to give the name of a renowned pacifist to a terrorist sent to destroy the Earth.
The admiration disappeared when time passed and he realised that the scientists had upstaged him and changed the Gundam pilots’ orders. What was worse was that Heavyarms’ pilot was Trowa Barton - but not his son.
In his fury after this Quinze had enough and left. Dekim could have told him that his silly White Fang would never work. Quinze wasn’t a leader, and he foolishly trusted a Peacecraft to lead in his stead. The Peacecrafts weren’t competent enough, and how that little girl managed to convince the world otherwise, he would never know.
His brother went down with Libra like a good captain, but Dekim was the general. Always in the background, directing the flow. However, now was almost the time to take centre stage.
The coup went off perfectly. Treize’s second did her best, but he had too big a head start on her. The recruitment of Chang and the boy who had stolen his son’s name was a bonus. The Peacecraft girl, now calling herself Darlian again but he knew her true colours, was annoying, but her words meant nothing. Deeper meaning of fighting? What meaning was there, other than to win?
And then it all began to go wrong.
He should never have let Chang persuade him to let the name-thief live, because there he was, fighting along Sandrock, Deathscythe, Tallgeese and Taurus against Dekim’s Serpents. It was futile...
...What was that fool girl doing?
“It’s much too early for your appearance, Miss Former Queen.” He didn’t bother listening to her response. No longer a Peacecraft? Like that was something she could just get rid of.
“Nothing can be achieved with revenge!”
She was wrong, wrong, so wrong. Look at what he had achieved! This was revenge, revenge for Yuy, for his son, his brother...his daughter.
He was the master planner, and he had won. The Gundams had stopped fighting.
“Another Gundam confirmed, sir, it’s in the sky.”
What? “What?”
“Mister Dekim, we’re online with one of the Gundam pilots.”
“Heero!”
He didn’t need to hear Dar...Peacecraft’s exclamation to know who this was. Pilot 01, the pilot of Wing who took over Wing Zero. Heero Yuy. Dekim’s knees suddenly felt weak, not because of the pilot’s reputation but because he recognised that face. The boy was twice as old now as he had been the first time Dekim saw him, but there was no mistaking those eyes. J had given Heero Yuy’s name to his assassin’s apprentice. Any admiration Dekim might have had of the morbid humour in it vanished at the realisation of this...obscenity.
He only barely heard the boy’s question. “What are you planning?” But he knew. He knew before the shot came and rocked the supposedly secure shelter to its core.
“Gather all the Serpents here! Shoot down Wing Zero!” Get rid of him, get rid of this boy who had usurped Yuy’s name, whose eyes seemed to strip his soul bare. Yuy had died five years before this little brat was even born. How could he have his gaze?
The second shot did more than rock the shelter.
“This is impossible! How can this be happening!?” They were dead, all his plans would go up in smoke, unless...”Stop it. Don’t you realise Relena Peacecraft is in here?”
For a moment he thought it had worked, but then he looked at her and realised how she could have moved a world, and how this boy could have saved it. Hope, strength, purity. The third shot came, and the shelter collapsed.
He was dimly aware of Treize’s second sprinting into the room and pushing Mariemaia and Peacecraft...Darlian...Relena to safety.
Somehow it wasn’t surprising that Chang had turned coat again, but the people came as a shock. Who the hell were they? What did they matter? They were insignificant!
A tiny part of his mind that was still capable of rational thought pointed out that he’d thought the same about an eight-year-old apprentice assassin.
He felt Treize’s second’s cool glance, noticed Mariemaia standing with her and Relena. He’d lost.
No. Yuy was long dead, and this little upstart with his name had just shot himself to pieces. He could still salvage the situation...
His last hope burst when Relena’s palm met with Mariemaia’s cheek.
Mistakes? Mistakes? He’d show her mistakes...
Oh.
“We can always create a replacement for Mariemaia. I made her, after all!”
“Dekim!”
The shot came from nowhere. An underling? It took an eternity for his body to hit the ground. He thought he saw them - both Heero Yuys, all the Peacecrafts...
Had he ever really been in charge?
He died.