Gundam Wing X: When Fantasy Bends Reality

GUNDAM WING X: When Fantasy Bends Reality

PART ONE: I, SPY

It was a typical summer day on Earth. There was a clear blue sky and the grassy plains over Europe were green and lush. However, this beautiful scene was lost on one individual, who was walking determinedly through the halls of an OZ base...
The beautiful and deadly serious Lady Une had just finished delivering her report to her commander, Treize Khushrenada, and was now heading back to the hanger to oversee the arrival of some new troops. OZ's forces were slowly depleting thanks to the continued attacks by the Gundams, so the only answer to that was recruiting more soldiers. Une hated this though. The constant reviewing of new soldiers. It was getting too repetitive. She just wished they could blow up the colonies altogether. That would stop the problem at its source. But she learned once already that it was not the correct step. Treize had already scolded her once for not acting with grace as an OZ soldier, and the last thing she wanted was to upset him or make him look bad. So she followed her orders.
She stopped momentarily to cast a glance out toward the airfield through one of the stone arches along the hallway. From her current vantage, even the mobile suit carriers seemed as small as toy planes. Toy planes...Yes, that was an appropriate thought. After all, planes, tanks, and even mobile suits were simply playthings to be used in attaining domination of the Earth Sphere.
And it would be His Excellency, Trieze, that would be the dominant. With her loyally at his side.
With that thought, a contented smirk graced her features, only to vanish just as quickly as she turned and continued toward her destination.
Une was almost to the hanger when she was abruptly confronted by a lower ranking soldier. "Colonel Une, Sir!" he saluted. "What is it?" she spoke in an irritated tone. "Forgive me for delaying you, Colonel, but we have a bit of a situation." "What kind of 'situation' ?" "We just got word from the shuttle that came in from the Luxembourg base. They've brought over a suspected spy that they found on the base." "A spy?" Une echoed the word with no change in her expression. "And this concerns me how? Have him interrogated as usual and then report the findings to me later." "But, Colonel", the soldier seemed insistant. "I believe this may be one you'll want to oversee personally." Une cocked a brow. "Explain."
The soldier responded by handing a clipboard to her with several papers attached. "This was sent over by the Luxembourg field team. They're the statistics from the latest Aries flight test, in which he was the pilot." Une looked down at the contents carefully for some time. Her eyes slowly narrowed as she continued to study the pages. "Are these accurate?" "Yes, Colonel. They came directly from the testing crew." Une looked up at the soldier in irritation. "In all my years, I have NEVER witnessed such pathetic test scores. You're bothering me with THIS?" "Colonel, please let me explain", the man before her was obviously insistant about the matter and continued. "These are accurate scores, but the fault is neither a technical error nor the fault of the mobile suit. The suspect was lacking knowledge of even basic Mobile Suit motor control. Yet he was believed to already be a member of OZ." "This sounds simply like outright stupidity", Une said harshly. "I'm losing patience, Nichol. Tell me what makes you think he's a spy? Did you find something suspicious in his background?" "That's just it, Colonel", he answered. "When we did a background check, we came up with nothing." Une cocked a brow. "What do you mean 'nothing'?" "Exactly that, Colonel. No records of any kind. No residence, no schooling, not even a birth record." There was a pause. "But most importantly, there was no record of his enstatement into the military, or even registration as a trainee."
Une's eyes widened slightly for a moment. "Is that right?" Her eyes went back to the document in her hand thoughtfully. "So, we have a ghost on our hands, do we?" "There's another thing, Colonel" , the soldier continued, drawing Une's eyes back to him. "We also learned that he was present in the vacinity where the Gundam pilots were last seen prior to their recent disappearance."
Une's eyes narrowed again at the mention of the Gundam's and the now possible connection this supsect had with them and their disappearance. "I see. Has anyone else interrogated the suspect yet?" "There were attempts back in Luxembourg," Nichol nodded, "but when they sent the information on him, I had him transferred here. So far, the previous interrogation turned up nothing. He's insisting that he doesn't know anything." "Hmmm. I see." Une's expression steeled into one of determination as she handed the clipboard back to him. "Where is he now?" "We have him detained downstairs now, Colonel." "Good. Take me to him."

Within a few minutes, the soldier led Une to a room which was being guarded on the outside. The guards saluted as she came towards them. "In here, Colonel." The soldier opened the door and Une entered.
Inside the room were three other men. One was sitting in a small metal folding chair, stripped down to his tank top and shorts. The other two were standing on each side of him, each clad in OZ uniform and holding a gun, obviously guarding him. There was a slight chinking of metal as the prisoner's cuffed hands shifted behind the chair. As Une entered the room with Nichol, the one in the chair looked up at her and instantly displayed an expression of shock. Une looked at him, bemused. "Is this him?" "Yes, Colonel." The one captive continued to stare at Une in shock as she studied him for a moment. He was a fairly good looking young man, appearing to be in his late teens, with short black hair and tanned skin. Not much muscle, but not scrawny either. Une narrowed her eyes, looking unimpressed.
Within a moment, Une had taken a step forward and had her gun drawn with the barrel pointing straight at his head. His eyes widened and he instantly started sweating. "Leave us", Une ordered. "I''m personally taking charge of this interrogation. Lock the door and see to it that noone enters without my say so." The corner of her lips turned up into a sinister grin. "And if you hear any screaming, you'll know it's me having a bit of fun." "Sir!" All of them saluted and left as ordered. The clicking of the door locking from the outside resounded through the room, leaving only Une and the one sitting in the chair.

As they stepped outside, one of the soldiers who had been guarding the prisoner looked at the other one. "Should the colonel really be in there by herself? It doesn't seem very safe to me, even if the guy IS handcuffed." With that, Nichol turned to face them both. "What are you yammering about? That's Colonel Lady Une in there, not some novice. Even if that guy DOES have any relation to the Gundams, Colonel Une can handle herself just fine. And interrogation is one of her specialties." He grinned slightly. "Trust me. She'll get exactly what she wants from him. Heh heh."

The young man was sweating bullets as he sat before the woman at gunpoint. Again there was the clanking of the cuffs against the metal chair as he fidgetted nervously. Une walked towards him, bringing the gun even closer to his head. He sweated even more, his eyes nearly bugging out from their sockets. Une narrowed her eyes at him. "So... Are you ready to answer my questions?" "Y-y-y-yes! Anything!" he answered frantically. "I'll tell you whatever you want, Colonel Lady Une!" Une's normally diamond-hard expression was cut into a sudden grin of amusement. "My, I never thought I'd meet such an obvious coward. You're not even trying to hide it." There was no reply from the frightened prisoner, other than a small whimper of fear. Une was obviously enjoying this, still bearing that malicious grin. "Then let's start with your name." "Chris!" he blurted out almost immediately. "My name is Chris Mendoza!" "Good", Une's grin curled up further at his reactions. However, her face returned to a plate of stone as she came to the next question. "Now tell me what you have to do with the Gundams." "Nothing!" Again, the response was blurted out frantically. "I don't know anything about 'em! I swear!" Obviously displeased, Une shifted her gun closer to him, causing him to jump enough that the chair wobbled backward a bit. "Don't lie to me." Une's tone was that of ice, cold and hard. "I have little patience." "I SWEAR!" Another frantic shout was the reply. His eyes were shut tight in fear as a large bead of sweat ran down the side of his face. "I don't know anything about the Gundams! Nothing more than what anyone else does!" "Then what were you doing in the same area they disappeared?"
"I DON'T KNOW!" The exclamation left Une both bewildered and aggravated. "What the hell do you mean 'you don't know'??" There was a seering hiss to Une's voice just then as her impatience grew. "I don't know!" he repeated with a whimper. "I don't remember! I don't know what I was doing there at all! I don't know what I'm doing HERE! I can't remember!!"
Une was silent for a moment after that. The young man sat petrified with fear as he continued to sweat, Une's gun mere inches from his head. After a deafening silence, Une pulled back her gun to rest at her side as she let out an annoyed sigh. "Perfect...Amnesia. That's all I need." The prisoner dared to open an eye and look at Une. She folded her arms over her chest in irritation, still gripping the gun firmly in hand. "Hmmm. So you don't remember...yet you at least remember your name. Hmm." Une studied him carefully. "Well....Lets try to get some things clear here. For one thing, you seem to have no background whatsoever, as if you appeared in a cloud of smoke. Yet, somehow, you became a member of OZ without anyone knowing. That's not something an amatuer can pull off." "I don't even remember joining OZ", he answered shakily. There was a brief pause. "But I..." Une looked at him, awaiting him to continue. "What?" "I can remember...WANTING to join OZ..." The young man looked down at the floor in thought. "I remember that I wanted to join OZ to help destroy the Gundams. After I heard about what the Gundams did...killing the Alliance's pacifist leaders...I chose that I wanted to help stop the Gundams at all costs." Again, there was a pause as he swallowed hard. "But I don't remember joining OZ or anything... I can't remember any of it."
Une tapped a finger against her arm as she listened to his story. "Hm...Well it seems you don't have TOTAL amnesia. But that still doesn't answer the riddle about your lack of background. Searches turned up nothing. It's as if you don't even exist." There was yet another pause. This time, though, Une's expression melted into a look of intrigue. "Hmmm...A ghost. Perhaps we can use that to our advantage." "Huh?" The young man lifted his head and looked at Une in confusion. "The Gundam pilots themselves are considered ghosts. They appear out of nowhere to strike and then just as quickly seem to disappear. We have no information on them at all other than the make of their mobile suits. And they've disappeared once again. Into thin air, it would seem. There have been no attacks or even any remote sign of them since then." The man's face was etched in further confusion, as well as a look of shock. "Disappeared?" Une noticed the look on his face and her own switched stern once again. "Why the concerned look? You know something, don't you?" At asking the question, Une stepped forth and rose her gun towards him again. "No wait!!" The prisoner jumped in his seat again fearfully. This time, the chair wobbled back too far and fell backward, causing a loud thudding clang to bounce off the cell walls. The young man cried out painfully at the impact and let out several painful grunts and wails as he felt his cuffed hands being crushed underneath the chair by his own weight.
Une walked toward him and placed a boot against his chest, pressing him harder against the floor. She pointed her pistol down at him, bearing a look of malicious intent. "You know something. I can see it in your face. I want you to tell me everything you know. Now. Because if you don't..." Une shifted her aim to the side before there was a piercing explosion. The young man let out a yell of fear and pain at the deafening sound. After several moments, he slowly turned his head to his left, noticing the now smoking hole in the floor that lay mere inches from his head. "...the next one will be much more on the mark." He looked up at Une fearfully as she concluded her statement. "B-But," he stammered, "I-I-I don't know anything!!" "Don't give me that!" Une pressed her foot even harder on his chest. "You have a connection to the Gundams and you're going to tell me what it is!!" "I DON'T!! I DON'T I SWEAR!!" he yelled frantically. "Please, I don't know anything!! I SWEAR!"
There was another term of silence then. The young man on his back had his eyes shut in fear once again. Even the pain of his hands being crushed under him was absent as all he could feel was the fear coursing through him. He was expecting any second to hear the blast that would end his life.
But it never came. Une let out a huff and removed her foot from his chest. She then gave him a swift kick in his side before taking a few steps back. The prisoner let out a cry at the kick, grunting painfully as she stepped away from him. "This is going nowhere", Une sighed in annoyance. "Well it certainly seems that you're no spy. Just a stupid coward who slipped into our ranks." Une moved to slide her gun back in the holster, but halted. "Or maybe..." she aimed down at him again, "that's what you WANT us to think." "Wha-!?" His eyes widened again at seeing the gun towards him for the third time. "For all I know, this is a very cleverly staged act on your part." "It's not!! I swear!! Please, I don't know anything!!" The next sound heard made his blood freeze as Une cocked her gun. "Even if that's true, you could still prove to be a liability. And I won't have anything around that's going to cause a problem for the general."
"NO! PLEASE! Don't shoot! I'll do anything you want!" "You have no Mobile Suit skill and you're a pathetic coward", Une said coldly. "What reason could I POSSIBLY have for letting you live?" "PLEASE!" he pleaded. "Don't kill me! I'll do anything you want! ANYTHING!!"
Une narrowed her eyes, studying him once more. The young man lay trembling on his back with his eyes shut tightly again. After several moments, Une's lips curled back into a deep and wicked grin. "Alright." Breaking the silence, she brought the pistol up to the side of her head. "I'll show mercy for now. At least until we can find some information on you. But if you want to live to see another day, you had better do EXACTLY as I say. Understand?" He nodded repeatedly. "YES! YES!" Anything!" "Good." With that, Une holstered her gun for the moment and turned to the door, knocking her hand against it. "Open up."
In response, the clicking of the door being unlocked was heard and the two soldiers reentered. Une nodded her head toward the one on the floor. "Get him on his feet." The soldiers did as told and and lifted the chair and the prisoner back to sit upright. "This interrogation isn't over yet. Have him taken to solitary for now. Put a watch on him with hourly rotation." "Yes, Maam!" The prisoner grunted both in pain and in relief as he was lifted up from the chair. The two soldiers then led him out to his new cell.
Une watched as they left, grinning to herself. "Heh. Well, my little ghost... Soon we'll see if you really ARE worth keeping around."