Chasing Time
by heaven'sgirl

SYNOPSIS: December, AC 199. When seemingly isolated cases of deaths among ESUN officials and Preventers become connected to an ESUN defense project, Heero and his comrades find themselves racing against time to uncover its secrets before one of their own becomes the next target. [1xR, some 2xH and ZxN]

Standard disclaimer applies. Any names used in this story (that are not in the canon GW timeline) are fictional; they were randomly chosen for the purpose of this fanfiction.

Rated T for language and mild violence / death scenes.

Chapter I: Prologue

[ December 3, AC 199 ]

Sally Po zipped up her Preventer's jacket before stepping out of a silver sedan. The frosty air signaled the beginnings of winter, and Sally wasn't entirely fond of cold weather. An annoyed grunt from her left made her smile as she quickly put on a pair of warm gloves.

"I don't like winter much, either," said Sally, closing the driver's side door. She made her way to the trunk as her companion put on his own gloves.

"I prefer warm temperatures," stated Wufei.

Sally flashed him another smile as she handed him a briefcase. She and Wufei have been Preventer partners for almost three years, and in those years, the two have formed a friendship and comradeship based on trust and respect. And throughout those years, Wufei has warmed up to her and many of his fellow Preventers. Wufei didn't get annoyed much when his co-workers invited him to join in their conversations, he didn't scare the new recruits as much, and he replied more to Sally when the older woman was in the mood for a casual chat with him.

They proceeded to walk towards the gate of their destination and were greeted by one of the Preventers' new recruits, Edgar Ramirez. Wufei and Sally showed him their badges.

"What's the report?" Wufei asked, pocketing his badge.

Edgar saluted his superiors then immediately read his notes from a tablet, a gloomy look on his face. "The victim is Arthur Brown, Chief Executive of ESUN's Department of Justice. COD is acute myocardial infarction."

"A heart attack?" Sally exclaimed, her tone laced with shock. Wufei gave her a questioning look while Edgar was taken aback by Sally's surprised reaction.

Edgar nodded. "Yes, ma'am." Still confused from Sally's surprise, Edgar tilted his head. Sally noticed his inquiring look and gave him a reassuring smile.

"I knew Mr. Brown," said Sally as Edgar led her and Wufei to the building. "He's the pretty active and healthy type: he never missed his morning runs, stuck to a strict diet from his nutritionist, never smoked, and preferred water over any other drink. No family history of heart attacks as well."

Edgar led them to the elevator and pressed the button to the fifth floor. Sally continued with her explanation. "I guess I was surprised that he would suffer from a heart attack."

Her companions nodded. Sally took a deep breath and exhaled loudly as she entered Mr. Brown's office where he was found dead on his chair. His desk was clean except for a tray of untouched breakfast, and a glass of water was knocked down next to it. A crime scene investigator was already taking pictures for records, while another was taking notes and questioning the secretary who found her boss's lifeless body. Sally removed her winter gloves and replaced them with latex ones. Wufei did the same.

Wufei set down his briefcase, took out a tablet, and approached the coroner who was examining the body. "How long has he been dead?"

"About twelve hours, sir," said the coroner. Wufei scribbled some notes.

Wufei almost dropped his notes and glared at the coroner. "Twelve hours?" he asked, incredulous. "Nobody bothered to check in on him during those hours?"

The coroner motioned to the secretary. "The lady said Mr. Brown didn't want to be interrupted the whole day. She only came in when his wife called."

Meanwhile, Sally approached the secretary who was still being questioned by the investigator. "You're Mr. Brown's secretary, correct?" asked Sally.

"Yes," replied the young woman. Her hands were shaking.

"Are you aware of any possible allergies that Mr. Brown might have?" Sally inquired, earning an annoyed glance from the investigator.

"What does that have to do with anything?" the investigator asked irately, whose name was Audrey Mills.

"I am familiar with Mr. Brown's lifestyle," Sally began patiently. "His health records do not indicate any history or risk of heart problems."

"I'm aware of that," said Audrey. "But that doesn't mean he's not susceptible to a heart attack."

"Quite right," said Sally. "Still, it's unlikely…" she trailed off.

Wufei walked to her side, his tablet full of notes. "We'll just have to wait a few days to see results from the coroner's office and determine the source of Mr. Brown's heart failure. Until then, we'll have to debrief with Commander Une before she addresses the public."

Sally nodded in agreement, a nagging feeling in her chest. Wufei turned his gaze towards the secretary. "Mr. Brown has been dead for twelve hours. Can you explain to me why in the hell nobody had the common sense to check up on him?"

She walked to the coroner and handed him her business card. "I want you to contact me directly regarding Mr. Brown's autopsy results." The coroner gave a short nod.

On their way back to the car, Wufei asked Sally about her unusual behavior.

"I just have a bad feeling about this," she said. "Just a gut feeling though, but something tells me that there's more to it than just a heart attack."

Wufei knew she wanted to say something more. "And?"

"And I have the worse feeling that something bad is about to happen."

Both Sally and Wufei knew that Sally's gut intuitions were often right. Even though the official's death didn't seem to be out of the ordinary, both Preventer agents knew that Sally's hunch couldn't be ignored.

Relena Darlian was restless.

Out of excitement or anxiousness, she couldn't tell. The young woman was on a trip to the L2 Colony to visit the newest housing development built under the ESUN's Affordable Housing Project, a project launched by the ESUN and spearheaded by Relena for the thousands of individuals and families who lost their homes from the Eve Wars.

Relena folded her hands on her lap and smiled to herself. After the conflict started by Mariemaia and the Barton foundation three years ago, Relena had dutifully and faithfully fulfilled her responsibilities as Vice Foreign Minister until her two-year term ended in the spring of AC 198. Believing that peace was finally achieved and the ESUN has established a strong leadership, Relena decided against running for a second term.

However, the ESUN and almost the entire Earth Sphere population asked her to stay, albeit in a less demanding position relative to her former VFM post. They hoped that as someone who epitomized peace, Relena's presence in the ESUN would help the organization with its peacekeeping efforts. So, Relena took the offer as Head of ESUN's Affordable Housing Project (AHP) in the Fall of AC 198 and has since busied herself with that venture.

"Miss Relena?"

Relena turned to the source of the voice and smiled at the beaming face of Quatre Raberba Winner. "Hello, Quatre. Are we almost at L2?"

"We'll be there in thirty minutes," replied Quatre, taking the empty seat across Relena. Quatre studied Relena's face and noticed the small bags under her eyes. He also noticed her slouched shoulders. "Did you get any rest at all?"

Relena shook her head no. "I'll be okay, Quatre. I think I'm just too excited to fall asleep. By the way, thank you again for offering to take me to L2. I really appreciate it."

"It's no problem, Miss Relena," said Quatre. "Besides, we work together on this project."

Relena's smile widened. Quatre was her loyal partner and confidant in this AH Project. The former Gundam pilot offered his services to her as soon as she took her AHP position. His family's business involved providing affordable supplies to the many construction projects under the ESUN, and when he found out about Relena's latest project, the Winner heir willingly supplied the housing developments throughout the Earth and the colonies.

"Duo contacted me last night and told me he'll be in the security detail at the housing complex today," said Quatre, changing the subject. "I think Hilde will be there as well."

"Those two are inseparable," added Relena. "I'm not surprised they're partners at the Preventers Office in L2."

A black limousine was already waiting at the hangar when the shuttle arrived. Relena, wearing a simple blue dress and dark coat, took Quatre's offered hand as she descended the stairs. The ride to the L2's Affordable Housing Complex was another half hour.

When their party arrived at the complex, the awe was evident in Relena's expression. Her ocean-blue eyes were wide in admiration and a quiet "oh!" escaped her lips. The complex consisted of three adjacent, two-story buildings that formed a U-shaped complex surrounding a courtyard where residents built a small patch of garden filled with vegetables and fruit trees. At the other end was a playground for the young children and a large picnic area was next to it.

"It's beautiful," Relena said breathlessly.

"It is, isn't it?" a new voice stated from behind. Relena and Quatre turned around just in time to see Duo Maxwell, clad in his Preventers uniform, wave at the pair. His violet eyes twinkled in happiness, and a cheerful grin was on his face.

"Duo! It's been a while," Quatre exclaimed, giving his friend a hug. Duo patted Quatre's back as Relena looked on smiling.

"Quatre, buddy! So good to see you," said Duo. He faced Relena and gave her a wink. "Hi, milady! Welcome to the completed L2 housing!"

Relena returned his grin with one of her pretty smiles. "The place looks wonderful. Have you and Hilde moved in already?"

"We're almost done moving in," replied Duo. "That's why Hilde's not here, actually. She's in our apartment tidying things up."

Duo, who grew up a war orphan, didn't have a permanent residence during the wars. When Relena's housing project in L2 was in the process of being completed, the former VFM personally contacted Duo and offered him and Hilde one of the first spots to receive a housing contract. Relena was aware that Duo owned a junkyard with Hilde, and despite being a Gundam pilot, he didn't have a stable job to afford a nice place for the two of them. So, Relena had asked Commander Une to invite Duo and Hilde to join the Preventers Center in L2, while Relena gave the couple the housing offer.

The head of their security detail approached the trio and gave a curt nod to Duo. "Miss Darlian, we're ready in fifteen minutes."

"Thank you, Agent Greene," said Relena. She walked alongside the Preventer, with Duo and Quatre following behind. Today, Relena was going to have a small speech to welcome the newly moved-in residents before visiting each tenant. Her smile widened; she was looking forward to meeting each of them.

Duo and Quatre noticed her cheerful demeanor. "Even though she's no longer VFM, she's still as busy," commented Duo, his face still holding his bright grin.

"That's Miss Relena. I think she becomes quite restless if she's not doing anything that helps the people," said Quatre.

Duo nodded, but his expression suddenly turned severe and grim. Quatre noticed the change. "What's the matter?" Quatre asked, worried.

"Wufei contacted me this morning about a death of an important ESUN official," Duo replied in a hushed tone. "Arthur Brown. The dude worked at the Department of Justice. Heart attack."

Quatre gasped. "Mr. Brown?" He glanced at Relena walking in front of them, thankful that she didn't hear. Arthur Brown was a friend of Relena's who helped her pass an important decree during her term as Vice Foreign Minister: the Universal Disarmament Edict. The ruling banned the production of every type of weapons of mass destruction and ordered the elimination of existing weapons. It was a successful proposal.

"Yeah," confirmed Duo. "Miss Relena doesn't know yet. I know she's friends with Mr. Brown and his family. She'll find out eventually."

"She'll be devastated," said Quatre.

"Oh yeah, so we can't let her know yet while she's doing the tour. Wufei and Sally asked me to let you know so when she finds out, she'll have someone to support her."

"I understand," Quatre stated, nodding solemnly. Poor Relena. The girl was already exhausted from her back-to-back tours of the affordable housing projects on Earth and the L1 and L4 colonies. Quatre knows that once she finds out about the tragic news, Relena would immediately take the first shuttle to Earth to visit the family of her deceased friend.

The voice of Relena interrupted their hushed conversation. "Are you two alright?"

"Of course, Miss Relena!" Duo reverted to his usual cheery self. Quatre gave her a reassuring smile.

"Time to go," Agent Greene said, ushering Relena to the podium. The former VFM flashed everybody a genuine smile then commenced her welcoming speech.

"We believe that expanding our biological and chemical defense research program would benefit the ESUN's mission to maintain the peace by developing more advanced defensive measures against any type of agents that might be produced and weaponized by terrorists and extremists," stated Dennis Webb, a representative of the ESUN Department of Security and Defense.

"Of course, the program will continue to be under strict supervision. The research program would adhere to ESUN rules to follow the regulations of the Disarmament Edict.

"Additionally," continued the representative, "one of the program's first goals is to find a vaccine against all types of biological agents classified as weapons of mass destruction."

"Yes, we want to be ready for any type of biological attacks in the Earth Sphere," commented another delegate. "We wouldn't want another pneumonic plague like the one that occurred in AC 197." He slammed his fist on the table. "What an utter disaster!"

"Ladies and gentlemen," started Grace Pruitt, ESUN Vice President, her voice calm yet authoritative, "as Vice President of the ESUN and representative of the President's cabinet for this conference, I do not believe that it is necessary to expand your department's research program."

"But–"

"Mr. Webb, let Mrs. Pruitt talk," Preventers' Commander Une stated in a firm tone. Dennis shrunk back in his seat, embarrassed at his rude interruption.

Pruitt gave a smile of thanks to Une then continued with her speech, "While the concept of researching for defensive purposes is and has been beneficial to the earth sphere, the cabinet has decided not to give you its support for expansion. It would go against the edict that Ms. Darlian has worked for during her tenure as Vice Foreign Minister."

Une let her gaze fall on Dennis Webb and saw his hands balled into fists. He frowned but let the matter drop. He closed the binder that held the proposal before closing his eyes in defeat. Pruitt cleared her throat and waved at another representative.

"Ms. Lee, can you give us an update on Ms. Darlian's Affordable Housing Project? The President is keen on the progress of that program," said Pruitt, a genuine smile forming on her lips.

The delegate called Ms. Lee stood up with a folder in hand. "Madam Pruitt, the housing complex in L2 has been completed, and Ms. Darlian and Mr. Winner are there to visit as we speak…"

While the rest of the delegates in the conference were focused on Ms. Lee's information, Une noticed that Dennis Webb's focus were entirely on the unsuspecting Pruitt, his eyes full of anger and resentment.

The completion of the terraformation in Mars required the construction of a Preventers outpost on the planet. The center was located on its capital, Cydonia, where other political buildings were already established. Due to the planet's status as the newest member of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation and its completion in the summer of AC 199, the position of deputy of Mars's Preventers Center was still vacant, an issue temporarily resolved with the presence of Zechs Merquise, a Preventer officer stationed in Mars.

The former Lightning Count was ready to make a move in his chess match with Lucrezia Noin when another Preventer radioed in.

"This is Preventer Wind," said Zechs. He moved one of his bishops and took out one of Noin's knights.

"Preventer Wind, Preventer Fire, there's an urgent situation at the hangar." The trembling and terrified voice at the other end of the line made Zechs and Noin look up.

"What's the situation?" asked Noin.

"Ma'am, the Vice Foreign Minister was found dead in her private shuttle."

A/N: This story is set three years after the events of Endless Waltz (hence, AC 199). I will be incorporating canon information from the TV series, Endless Waltz, and a few from the manga such as Blind Target. I have not read nor am I familiar with the events in GW: Frozen Teardrop, so I won't be incorporating any of its plot.

Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome.

Yours truly, HG

Edited: 2/11/18