* * * * *

…I'm about to be on the floor again

Surely you're gonna find me here

I'm about to sleep until the end of time

Drug I take gonna wake my fear right now…

-3 Doors Down, "Better Life"

* * * * *

Chang Wufei ducked as bullets slammed through the space where his head had been only a moment before.  Wincing as a ricochet came way too close, he fired at the OZ soldier, hitting him in the chest.  Beside him, Yuy shot the last remaining soldier, leaving the way out of the base at least temporarily clear.

Wufei dug a hand into his pocket, making sure the disk they'd downloaded the stolen data onto was still there, then nodded to his fellow terrorist.  Together, they ran through the empty corridors, reaching the motor pool just as sirens announcing their presence began to wail.

A quick lock-picking later, the two were gone, tearing out of the hangar in a stolen car amidst gunfire as soldiers belatedly poured out of the violated base.

* * * * *

Back at the safehouse, all appeared calm.  Quatre had just finished taking care of dinner, while Duo and Trowa played a game of chess.  Or, it should be said, Trowa slaughtered Duo at a game of chess, as the braided teen seemed a tad…distracted.

This might have been due to the fact that his boyfriend and best friend were late coming back from their mission.  It also could have been the Mother of all thunderstorms that was raging outside, but it was most likely the first reason.

Abruptly, the phone rang, and as the closest Quatre picked it up in the kitchen.  There were a couple minutes of quiet conversation while the other two pilots strained to hear, before the small Arabian hung up and walked into the room, chuckling.

"Was it them?  And what's so funny?"  Duo demanded, jumping up.

"Hmm?  Oh, yes, that was the others.  And, well…" Quatre trailed off, putting a sad expression on his face.  "Well, you see…"

Duo growled, and Quatre put his hands up, smiling.  "Heero forgot to check the gas tank on the car he stole.  They ran out a few miles from here and had to walk to the nearest gas station."  He paused for dramatic effect, mirth warring with concern in his voice.  "In the rain."

The braided boy blinked, absorbing the information, then shook his head and smirked.  "Murphy strikes again.  We never do expect the simple stuff to trip us up, do we?"

"If we expected it, it would not affect us," Trowa said quietly, looking almost amused.

"My God."  Duo stared at the normally silent pilot.  "It speaks!  Will miracles never cease."

The L3 teen never had a chance to retort, as the eyes of all three pilots snapped upwards at a sudden sound that combined a high, thin whistle with a deep rumbling that shook their bones.  Their eyes widened as they took in the sight of the churning mass of darkness above them.  Something fell towards the boys, and well-honed instincts responded as Trowa grabbed Quatre around the waist and dove behind the couch.

Duo took cover behind an armchair, gun out and ready as he listened to the sound of the object hitting the floor in front of him.  Up above, the dark turbulence slowed and faded away, and he looked over the chair to see what had joined them in the room.

It wasn't what he'd expected.  Of course, he'd never heard of shadowy portals opening up in living rooms before, so he had no clue what to expect, but still…

The unconscious boy lying on the carpet wasn't it.

* * * * *

Wufei stumbled through the door, normally graceful limbs made clumsy by the cold, and silently blessed whichever gods were listening that no one had seen him except for Yuy, who was in the same shape.

That made him stop dead.  Usually, after a mission like this, either Quatre and Duo would be waiting with coffee and dry towels, and neither were in sight.

He turned to the Japanese pilot, who'd already pulled out his gun.  Yuy motioned for him to check out the living room as he moved towards the kitchen.  Taking a quick look through the doorway and seeing nothing, Wufei stepped in cautiously.

At first glance, nothing appeared out of the ordinary, but to the trained eye it was obvious something had happened.  The cushions from the couch were scattered all over the floor, and an interrupted game of chess still lay on a table nearby.

He searched through the room, making sure no one was present before reentering the hallway.  Yuy was waiting for him.

Sharing a worried look, the two were about to continue searching when a sound made them turn around.  Maxwell was standing at the head of the stairs, looking far more amused than he should have been at having weapons pointed at his head.

Wufei let out an exasperated sigh as the L2 pilot bounded down the stairs and glomped Yuy.  Walking past the couple, he tucked the pistol back into his waistband.

"What happened?" he asked, gesturing towards the other room.

Maxwell grinned.  "Oh, we had a bit of excitement after you called.  This weird shadow  portal thingy opened up in our living room and a kid fell out."

"Duo," his lover reprimanded.

"What?  It's true!  He was unconscious and a bit banged up, so we moved him to the spare bedroom.  C'mon and see!"  With this, he turned and leapt back up the stairs, leaving the others to follow at their own pace.

* * * * *

Quatre was curled up in a chair reading a book when the trio walked in.  Seeing the unspoken question on their faces, he told them that Trowa was getting some sleep for his mission the next day.

Curious, Wufei walked over to the bed and peered down at its occupant.  The boy was pale, almost too pale, and combined with his messy black hair, it made him look like a child.  "Do you know anything about him?"

"Well, the main reason he hasn't woken up yet is exhaustion, but…he wasn't in the best of shape to begin with.  There's some recent muscle and nerve damage, and it looks like he was systematically starved when he was younger.  His fingerprints haven't turned up anything in the computer, but I'd put him at about our age."  Quatre shrugged.  "No identification or anything in his pockets, so any other information will have to wait until he wakes up."

Ignoring Yuy's suspicious gaze, Wufei turned back to the unconscious boy.  Noticing something on his forehead, he reached out and brushed aside a lock of hair.

It was a scar, shaped like a lightning bolt.

* * * * *

A/N:  I know, I know, what the hell am I doing starting another fic, what with Akuryou, Know Thyself and the rather…dormant Strains of Melody, but this hit me on the head and wouldn't leave me alone.  Not to mention I'm kinda…stuck on Akuryou's next chapter.