Disclaimer: I never have and I never will own Gundam Wing. I’m not that
fortunate. :P
Rating: PG-13 for the most part
Pairings: Non-yaoi, see Raptures of Paradise and Phases of Memory for pairings.
Surprises: Enough to make your head spin. ;P
Genres: Sci-fi, drama, horror, some fluff, and other delightful things.

AN: A shout out to my beta Midii Une, Bryony, and everyone else who reviewed my
fics. You’re my cheerleading section! ^_^

Gundam Wing: Legend of the Dream Stalker
Part 3: Fields
By Sailor Celaeno

Quatre was reluctant to do it again. He had been startled and jolted when he
tried to contact Fiona again. He gently took her small hand into his. This time
he was prepared for the experience. He breathed calmly, and then images came.
It was a large field. “That’s strange… her dream is a large field?”
There was tall green grass swayed in the wind. The warm sun smiled gently and
birds sang their calls in the distant trees. It was so peaceful, yet something
terrible was lurking here. It was haunting the minds of innocent people like
Fiona. Quatre kept walking through the waving grass. He was wearing his
trademark khakis but he had short-sleeves on. The sun grew warmer, an oddly
realistic occurence even though he inhabited another’s dream.
Quatre sighed. “Fiona must be here…” Just then he heard a song. A girl’s voice
was singing. He followed the sound through the field. “Miss Laramie?”
The singer turned around and stared at Quatre. She had dandelions in her
hands. She had more in the pockets of her pale blue sun dress. “It’s you…” she
said with a quiver in her voice.
“Miss Laramie?” Quatre was surprised to see her abruptly search around.
“Don’t come back. It’ll find you and you’ll never escape,” she said fearfully.
“The dream stalker…” Quatre murmured.
“This is the only dream I can hide myself in, but soon, it’ll find me again.”
“You mean, you’ve been hiding in dreams…?”
“Every time I dream, I am trying to hide, but soon… it finds me. And then… I
run…” She began crying. “Why can’t… I get out here? I’m getting so tired…”
Quatre offered his shoulder to lean on. He winced as the frightened girl dug
her fingers desperately into his arm as she burrowed her head into his chest.
Everything she said was explaining the erratic vital signs that Sally and the
other doctors had noted. Fiona, like the other victims, alternated between a
stable condition to sharp spikes in her brain activity. The spikes, he
reasoned, must have been caused when this rogue Newtype had began attacking the
victims. “Don’t worry Miss Laramie… We’ll find a way to help you.”
“Please… hurry… I don’t know how long I can keep running from it…” She stood
upright and wiped her tears with the back of her hands. Quatre’s shirt was
moist with her tears. “Just tell Duo and Dad… that I miss them… and I hear
them… when they talk to me.”
“Of course I…” Just then, a crackling noise was heard nearby. “Smoke?!”
“Oh! It’s found me!” Fiona stumbled backwards. “I have to run…” Fiona slowly
morphed into a bird flew away. The terrified speed of the small flapping wings
made Quatre’s heart wrench with a mixture of pain, horror, and an awful
helplessness.
“What good are my powers if I can’t help her?” he growled with frustration as
the stench of burning grass reached his nose.
Quatre was concentrating hard to leave the smoldering dream. His astral body
felt tingly and a warm glow surrounded him. The last of Fiona’s field joined
into the growing sea of flames. An angry, monstrous voice blared over the
roaring fire. “No one… escapes my wrath!”

*****

Quatre woke abruptly to the sound of the medical equipment monitoring Fiona’s
brain waves beeping furiously. Quatre watched sadly as doctors rushed to
stabilize her. He left the room with much on his mind. This was going to be
another sleepless night. What could he do now? Every moment, she was fleeing in
terror from her own dreams. Dreams becoming ashes, as a sinister being pursued
it’s prey for who knows what evil.

*****

Midii flipped through the photo albums and her other personal belongings,
hoping that something would part the clouds of her memory. She tried on her
clothes, used her appliances, and even walked around her neighborhood. Yet only
fragmented shadows came to her. She rummaged her room and tried to clean the
cobwebs of her old life. She still wondered, if maybe amnesia wasn’t really a
blessing in disguise. The scanty details she got from Trowa suggested the old
Midii had a pretty wretched life.
“Maybe I should just walk away from that life,” she often said aloud softly to
herself. But those consuming green eyes made her heart beat faster, like it was
so natural to feel that way around him. Something about that Trowa Barton just
made her feel so very different. He was from her past. An intriguing piece of
her past. She just had to know, even if she’d never be with him, the memory of
him would be comforting. It made her desperate to remember something, anything.
She had wandered all over the Earth and colonies researching what she could
about her life. She had read over and over the copies of her military records
which she had gained access to hoping for some clue to spark a recollection. It
wasn’t easy reading about the missions she had done in the past, including the
one in which she met a young boy without a name. The nameless boy… Midii
sighed. She wanted to know… wanted to remember. But she was afraid. What if
there was something in her past that would come after her?

“The nameless boy, could he be… Trowa?” Those eyes…
There were those green eyes. She wanted to know more about their owner, but he
was in her past. “The past… I must know the past,” she murmured to herself. She
touched the pictures, but nothing. Nothing was making any sense. Only the facts
she knew. She had no memories, no emotions to things she was looking at. There
was nothing. It frightened her.
“Why can’t I remember anything?” she began crying. She carefully wiped her
eyes. She closed the book and laid it aside.
Midii stood up and began pacing about the living room. She was struggling hard
to make sense of this life she was re-entering. So many of these faces were a
complete mystery for her. There was a terrible heartache within her as those
nameless faces went through her head. She knew what they were to her, but they
sparked no feelings. It was like ice water in the veins. Ice water… ice
water… A memory…?

*****

AC 192-laboratory… location unknown…

“Subject S-173. We will inject subject with solution labeled Blue 102.
Uncertain whether vial is placebo or solution. Dr. Vargas Moritz will
administer injection…” Dr. Moritz spoke into the tape recorder. He pressed stop
and immediately put on a pair of hospital gloves.
Midii was strapped onto a slanted table. She had been given sedatives. She
remained quiet making them think she was too out of it to understand what was
happening. But she could understand. She was a guinea pig. She felt the needle
go into her arm. It was strange… the liquid injected into her vein… it was
like… ice water…

*****

Paris apartment-Present

Midii stared at her left arm. Her blue, throbbing vein tingled with remembered
pain, it was the place where the needle had gone in. She put a hand to her
lips. She could almost feel the ice water again. The cold liquid in her veins
was flowing all over her body. She began shivering. “Why is this memory so
painful?” Midii collapsed onto the floor. Her body shook as more memories
emerged.

*****

AC 195-office, unknown

“Do you know why you are here, Miss Une?” a man in lab coat asked her, his
eyes going over her sharply.
“I’m not quite sure,” Midii replied.
“We’re going to examine you. The injection administered to you three years ago
was an… experimental vaccine, and we want to test the effectiveness of the
solution.”

*****

Midii quivered and shook. Quivered and shook. Quivered and shook, until
everything went dark.

*****

Trowa arrived at Saint Denis Hospital 24 hours later. He had been summoned by
an urgent, but mysterious phone call the evening before.
“Hello?”
“Is this Monsieur Barton?” a man replied.
“Yes,” Trowa replied.
“I’m Cesar, Mademoiselle Une’s landlord. She said to contact you for an
emergency.”
Trowa frowned. “What has happened?”
“She is in the hospital. She collapsed in her apartment. Her neighbor, Sophie,
heard a noise and tried to contact Midii. I unlocked the door and found her.”
“I will get the next plane to Paris. Which hospital?”
Before long, Trowa quickly packed a duffle bag with a few days worth of
clothes. If he had to stay longer, he could find a laundromat, or buy more
clothes.
He entered the hospital and asked for Midii’s room. “Room 312,” he repeated
silently to himself. It would be a lie to say he wasn’t worried. He was worried
to the point of agony. Nearly a year away from her made him think things over.
She went away to try finding her identity. He understood that need better than
anyone. He did wonder, on occasions, where she was at that moment. He found her
room. He entered the room and saw she was asleep. He clearly saw her chest
moving up and down. He was relieved to see she was fine for the most part. A
doctor entered the room. “Pardon sir, who are you?”
“I’m Midii’s fiance,” Trowa replied.
The doctor nodded. “Of course. Miss Une is in stable condition. However…”
“However?” Trowa asked. He showed some anxiety on his face.
“There is something rather unexplained that we would like to ask you since you
are her fiance.”
“What’s that?” Trowa was feeling a little nervous as he awaited the question.
“Did Miss Une have any vaccinations or transfusions not listed in her records?”
Trowa was puzzled. “I don’t quite understand.”
“Well, we’ve traced an unidentified chemical in her bloodstream. According to
her records she showed no signs of this substance in her last exam just last
year. We thought maybe you could explain the source of her exposure.”
Trowa frowned, “I don’t know where she could have been exposed. I would have
to ask her. But tell me what you know. I’m a Preventer and this might be
important information for the future.”
“There’s not much we can tell you. It’s almost certainly the cause of your
fiancee’s collapse. Her immune system reacted to this as it is supposed to. It
was treated as an antigen. She had a high fever, which has since dissipated.
Otherwise she’s perfectly fine, and free to leave tomorrow.”
Trowa thanked the doctor and went to sit by Midii’s side. There were some
questions waiting for her when she woke up.

*****

Une sighed. Trowa requested one week’s leave when he heard what happened to
Midii. At first she was reluctant, but a couple reasons occurred to her, which
made her decide to grant his request. One, Trowa Barton had rarely requested
leave. He worked the thirty-nine weeks every year he promised, as well as the
time for emergency situations. This particular situation was such that his
immediate presence was unnecessary. Secondly, everyone in their social circle
was aware of his complicated situation with Midii Une. As a friend, Une
understood that it was one of those special times that the stoic man wanted to
follow the demands of his heart. He would return if she refused permission for
him to stay, but they both knew his heart would be in Paris, not New York.
Une was sitting in the darkness of her bedroom. At first she just laid in bed
silently wondering what to do. All around her, there were deadlines and
progress reports to be filled. She couldn’t help thinking about Mr. Treize and
how none of those things seemed as important when she was beside him because
his words were so inspiring. His belief in the spirit of honor and glory in the
human soul was what gave her the focus she needed. It was the source of her
love. She loved Treize Khushrenada, the man and his passion for battle. “What
would Mr. Treize do now?” she often wondered.

*****

“Miss Nova, my savior and my jailor. But a charming jailor I grant you,”
Treize stated as Nova appeared at his opened door. Three months after Iria
began working with him, Treize was responding well enough to treatment that he
no longer needed to stay in his hospital room. Treize was given a comfortable,
private suite. He had a bathroom, bedroom, and a sitting room when his very few
visitors came to see him.
Nova smiled. “I did let you leave a few times.”
“But if you really know me as much as you seem to, then you will understand
that walking in an enclosed greenhouse, and visiting my grave isn’t very
satisfactory,” he replied without breaking his calm, almost playful demeanor.
Nova returned a smile. “But you see General… I have perfectly sound reasons
for this secrecy. You are dead to the world. You have chosen a rather public
way to die, and it made my job difficult, but not impossible. You forgive me if
I don’t give in to your wishes in spite of your desire.”
Treize nodded. “But there is some confusion I truly hope you will enlighten me
from.”
“And what is that?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about Mariemaia?”
Nova demurely folded her hands. “I was going to tell you about her, but it
wasn’t exactly a piece of news you’d want to spring on someone when they’ve
just been resurrected from death.”
“Do you always have perfectly logical answers?” Treize watched her as though
she was a chess opponent about to declare her victory.
“Believe me General, in my line of work, it’s a must that I cover my tracks as
well as possible. I’ve done difficult things, but they had to be done. I’m sure
you can understand that.”
Treize had a sort of sad smile. “That is sadly true.”
“As your jailor, I’m planning on giving you a truly good opportunity to change
things for yourself.”
Treize stared at his guest quizzically. “Indeed? And how is that?”
“You will prove to be a very interesting player. You could shift the balance
of things quite substantially.” Nova smiled at the ex-leader of OZ.
“I see that I will provide much amusement for you, but for a guardian of
destiny, you seem to enjoy entanglements a great deal,” Treize was sipping tea
that he had made just before she appeared.
Nova picked up a tea cup that he had offered her. “As I said, the true nature
of my work requires much secrecy,” she replied.
Treize remained silent. He was only wondering, what he was getting himself
into. “I’m glad to hear that my dear lady is fairing well.” He readily changed
the subject to something more pleasant.

*****

Relena was finally adjusting to her life as it stood at that point. Zechs and
Noin were now on Mars with little Annie. From their frequent messages, Relena
knew that the one-year-old was crawling about and a complete delight. She was
sitting in her office reading the latest proposals sent to her. She yawned at
the second late night in row. Her eyes were getting tired as the digital on her
desk glowed 10:33pm. She decided to get up and take a much-needed break. She
been at her desk for over an hour. The tediousness of the work was making her
more tired. She decided that walking a couple of laps around the floor would be
beneficial. Relena stood up and stretched. Her arms and back muscles were stiff
and made the stretch all the more satisfying. She opened the door to her
office. Just at the end of the hallway, she saw Heero approaching her. “Heero!”
“Late night?” he said with slight smile.
“I was about about to ask you the same thing,” she said as she reclined
against her door post.
“This dream stalker is frustrating. There’s no evidence we can track, except
what Quatre can tell us. Even if we knew who this dream stalker is, we can’t
prosecute the perp since there’s no physical evidence he did anything.”
Relena nodded. “Besides, if the one responsible is a Newtype, there are
implications that we can’t even begin to deal with.”
“Exactly. Any evidence that we do report will be classified, just like the
Raptures, and Cassandra Taylor. These people never existed as far as anyone
else is concerned,” Heero replied.
Relena was glad she could help Heero and the Preventers with what she could.
“Heero, do you think that this business with crazed people like this… dream
stalker will ever end?”
“I highly doubt that. The enemy is more powerful and dangerous and cunning
every time. But you don’t have to worry because I won’t let everything we’ve
all worked for fall apart.”
“Hey Heero! Relena!” Duo appeared.
“Duo!” Relena smiled at the braided man.
“Something happened?”
“You bet. Trowa has discovered something that might turn out useful.” Relena
watched the two Preventers hurry to their offices.

Next time: Just what does Trowa have that would really be helpful to their
investigation? Will they find out who the Dream Stalker really is?