Chapter Thirteen: Shedding Pieces
Zero had ran out of the medical bay after recovering from his shock, ignoring X shouting after him. His headache was already coming back, but this time, Zero actually managed to breathe through it, only focusing on getting back to his room and to that phone.
Zero punched the pad to his dorm room, crushing it. He grabbed the frame and ripped it off the wall, connecting wires haphazardly until the door opened. X had caught up just in time to see Zero dash into his room and grab the phone, frantically yelling at it to dial Iris' number. Whatever X was going to say died in his mouth when the phone kept ringing, but no one picked up.
"She must be at work…" Zero mumbled. He closed his eyes, and X knew he was frantically e-mailing her or instant messaging her. By the frustrated look on his face, X concluded that she wasn't answering.
"Zero," X called softly, "you know if she got called back or knew about a war, she would let you know."
Zero sat heavily onto his bed and it creaked dangerously at the sudden weight of a fully-armored Reploid. X walked over to him, placing his hands on his boyfriend's shoulders. Zero took a deep breath and wrapped an arm around X's waist, pressing his cheek against X's stomach.
"Yeah," the blond muttered, "you're right. So, Magma's gone?"
"Yes…"
"No offense… but if the bastard defected that easily, then we're better off."
X winced, but said nothing more as he lightly stroked Zero's helmet. "I sent Double to look into Magma's personal files. Maybe he'll find some sort of clue."
Zero snorted. "Oh yeah," he said, as if he'd forgotten about the round Reploid, one whom, despite his personal distaste, Zero couldn't help but admire for his data-gathering abilities. Zero sighed then, closing his eyes. "This has to be a mistake… what made Repliforce do this?"
X shrugged. "I don't know, Z. I heard there was Maverick activity at Sky Lagoon, but the next thing I know, Magma's cackling like a madman about how he's now a martyr of change. Then, General of Repliforce finds me after it fell, and when I ask him what happened, he goes off the handle. I told him the truth… if he acted this enraged over a simple question, it looks like he's going Maverick. Then he declared war."
Zero snorted again. "Honestly, as long as Iris and Colonel aren't involved, I hardly care… if Repliforce went Maverick, then we have to deal with them."
X winced, the hand he was using to stroke Zero's head stopping. "I'd like to figure out the real reason why… before we go in, busters flaring."
"Of course, love." Zero stood, glancing down at X. "Sorry I ran out like that. I guess I was just… shocked. Worried."
"Understandably. Right now, all the Hunters will be on call twenty-four, seven and any Repliforce movement will be investigated thoroughly." X sighed deeply, closing his eyes wearily. "I'm tired of fighting."
"Has to be done," was all Zero said before planting a gentle kiss on X's awaiting lips. "Are we needed for a mission?"
X shook his head. "We're letting Repliforce make the first move. If we're lucky, maybe it was a bluff."
One can only hope.
Despite the severity of the issue, X did not want Zero to dwell on it for long. Although he claimed he only cared about Colonel and Iris, X knew the blond felt betrayed by Repliforce, especially considering it was thanks to him that they had grown to the size they were today. When Cain had met up with some other official-looking humans, the ideas of a second Reploid police force began to leak out. A lot of Hunters did not want it to form in case of a split, but thanks to Zero supporting the idea, Repliforce emerged and flourished until it was able to stand on its own feet. In some ways, Zero was almost like the grandfather of Repliforce, and to see it being pit against him probably tore him up inside.
As it was, after declaring and teleporting out in a rather dramatic fashion, General had yet to employ any attacks against the Hunters, direct or indirect. Of course, Signas had attempted to open up peaceful communications, but Repliforce blocked their signal. Alia suggested waiting; perhaps General just needed to cool off and he'd get back to them to apologize for his rash behavior. When X told him that, Zero scoffed. The red-clad Hunter didn't know General as well as he did Colonel, but he knew the massive Reploid didn't exactly always take the best course of action.
"He's prideful," Zero said as he and X walked, hand in hand, to the briefing room. "If this declaration gets out into the public, he'll go through with it just to keep face, even if he didn't really mean it."
"That's the stupidest excuse for a war," X huffed.
"Ever read a human history book?"
"Not all the way through."
Zero smirked. "I have, and humans are warmongers. Doesn't it make sense that Reploids, who are meant to be very human, might sometimes share that trait?"
"You're such a cynic," X said, letting go of Zero's hand and putting his hands on his hips. "Why are you always so pessimistic?"
Zero held his up as if in defeat, although it was more of a reflex when X assumed his pose. "Because you're so optimistic. That optimism keeps me from outright hating humans, and my pessimism keeps you realistic. Isn't that how we generally work, X? One low, one high, good balance?"
X stared at him hard, unmoving, even as Zero froze and stared as well. This, too, was how they worked—if on the verge of an actual fight, they preferred to keep silent and see whose intense stare would make the other back down. It was more peaceful and easier to reconcile afterwards. X's left eye ticked, and when he noticed it, Zero tried hard not to smirk. Even before they became lovers, Zero had long since learned the quirks of X's facial expressions. A right eye tick meant he was seriously pissed off, but a left eye tick simply meant he refused to back down and let Zero claim the prize of being right. This was hardly a serious stare-down, and Zero thanked anything listening for it. Last thing he needed was his boyfriend and living stress-reliever to be mad at him.
"Fine," X finally granted. He grunted as they resume their walk to the room, once again holding hands.
"Knew you'd see it my way," Zero smirked, giving X's hand an affectionate squeeze.
Signas and Alia had no news of Repliforce when they reached the briefing room, although their information-gathering Hunters were reporting that the organization was doing something. Seven known Repliforce officers had taken their troops to various areas and, although had done nothing worth notice, had also been keeping a low profile. In fact, the arrival of these commanding Reploids would have been missed if not for Double and his eerily absolute ways of getting information.
"They haven't done much," Signas rumbled, "but who knows what exactly that means. Under the cover of secrecy, they may be developing weapons to use against us. The risk is too great; if they remained at Central, we could have left them be. As it is, we need to figure out what these seven are doing and, if need be, stop it." He turned to Zero and X. "I want this done quick and clean, and you two are best suited for it."
Axl's voice popped up from the opposite side of the couple. "What about me?"
"I have a special mission for you, Axl. Your copy ability is going to get us that much closer to solving this mystery. X, Zero, put a stop to these seven while we work with Axl."
Zero and X saluted. "Mission accepted!"
~*~
"Why the hell did I go to the jungle…?" Zero mumbled as he waded through the river.
Despite not being exactly vain, Zero did not appreciate the humidity of the jungle or the way his hair managed to pick up random debris from the rivers. Although he could turn off his heat sensitivity, doing so also dampened his other sensory modules, and he learned earlier that even the fish here weren't friendly. If he hadn't noticed them brushing his ankles or darting through his hair, Zero probably would have more issues with them. As it was, he now suffered the wet heat and cursed Alia for sending him so damn far from where the Repliforce Maverick was and forcing him to wade through so much jungle. Zero wasn't sure if he was just wet from water seeping under his armor or if he was actually secreting sweat to help keep his outer body cool. In either case, Zero felt miserable and sticky, and was already envisioning a clean shower and forcing X to brush his hair for the next ten hours.
Gratefully, Zero jumped onto a dry bank, pausing to wring out his hair before moving on. He looked down a cliff, seeing nothing waiting for him underneath. Zero remained cautious and, instead of jumping straight down, opted to slide down the cliff. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Zero heard a very distinct buzzing…
"Oh…" Zero moaned as he crept forward. "Crap."
A giant Mega Nest hung in his way, and already a good thirty kyunbyuun bee androids flitted around it. To make matters worse, the nest was producing more, its side compartments sliding open and more kyunbyuun flying out.
Zero could feel his skin crawl. Immediately, he knew exactly who awaited him at the end: none other than that bastard, Web Spider.
Although Web was a jovial bug Reploid and they got along on the surface, he and Zero never actually liked each other. As a practical joke, and to make Zero look bad in front of Colonel, Web Spider had released a hive amount of kyunbyuun onto Zero. Those bees weren't programmed at the time to hurt him, especially since Zero was in civilian formal clothing, but instead to freak him out. And freak Zero out they did, especially when the kyunbyuun tangled in his hair and got under his clothes.
Since then, Zero held a special hatred for both spiders and bees.
"Payback's a bitch…" Zero hissed. "Even if you repent I'm still going to kick your ass."
Unsheathing his saber, Zero rushed forward and jumped at the hive. With a single slash, he destroyed the created kyunbyuun and cut the machine down. Activating his double jump, Zero sailed over the exploding hive and landed safely on another platform, facing yet another Mega Nest.
"Why…" Zero groaned as he repeated the process. Each sharp turn and platform revealed more and more Mega Nests, and soon, Spider Cores were blasting at him.
"Why must there be so many goddamn bugs?"
Zero stood at a doorway, taking a moment to catch his breath. He hated to admit, but all the bugs Web Spider had used against him in jest were now seriously making him shudder. He was hardly afraid of them; he felt disgusted would have been closer. The blond took in a large gulp of air and held it as his auto-repair system quickly fixed the smaller injuries, although the larger ones would require some energy tanks. Zero leaned his forehead against the door, exhaling the breath slowly. He would first talk to Web Spider, try to persuade him to be friendly with the Hunters again. Yes, Zero could be civil and give the Repliforce another chance. X would be so proud of him right now.
Just then, a snake-like Reploid dropped from the branches above Zero's head, tangling itself in his hair. When he felt it, Zero let out a nearly shrill scream, grabbing at the thing with his hands. When it came untangled from his ponytail, he ripped it apart, and Zero could hear chuckling on the other side of the door.
That's it. Web Spider was going down.
"Spider!" Zero shouted as he entered the large, dome-like room. Despite it having artificial trees, and even a jungle-like atmosphere, he could see the metal walls. "Spider, show your ugly mug!"
A chuckle answered him, and leaves from the trees fell. Shortly after, Web Spider dropped down on an electric web, dangling in front of Zero. Despite not having a real face, Zero got the impression he was smirking.
"Ah… Zero, I've been expecting you. Did you like my gifts?" Web Spider cackled.
"Okay, good joke; that was fun and all, but let's get serious." Zero lowered his saber and deactivated it. "There's still time. You know as well as I do this 'war' is stupid and unnecessary. Help us convince General!"
Web Spider swung on his thread, humming to himself for a few seconds before answering. "No. I know where my loyalties lie." With that, the Reploid spider scrambled back up his web and into the thick canopy.
"Dammit."
Web Spider obviously underestimated Zero, dropping close to the Hunter's saber with an easily dodged web as his defense. Despite the few hits he landed, Spider's systems were screaming for retreat, while Zero only had a few burns and scrapes on his armor. As they studied each other, catching their breaths, Spider laughed.
Zero glared. "The hell's so funny?"
"Your hair is like a giant poof-ball."
Zero blinked, reaching a hand behind him. Sure enough, the few times Web Spider's electric webs had caught him had puffed out Zero's ponytail into a giant, bristly ball at the back of his head. Now, even more so, Zero wanted a shower and X to comb his hair.
"You giving up?" Zero asked.
"Never. A commander never returns in defeat!" and with that, Web Spider prepared to launch his most massive web ever.
With those words, however, he killed what compassion Zero might have had. As he prepared his attack, Zero dashed forward and thrust his saber right into what would have been Web Spider's forehead. The Reploids froze, and Spider tried to say something, the overload of damage and the destructive energy discharge from the saber spreading through the Repliforce commander, silencing him. Zero backed off nanoseconds before Web Spider exploded, and a smoking husk on the ground was all that remained.
Zero kicked the body over to ensure Web Spider was dead. Satisfied, he was about to teleport out when something caught his eye. Bending down, Zero picked up Spider's weapon chip. He held it up into one of the rays of sunlight streaming from the canopy, peering at it.
Too bad. The chip vanished into Zero's fist. You made your choice, Spider. You had no regrets, nor will I. Too bad you didn't live to repent for your mistake.
Zero teleported out, leaving the smoking body to rust without even a word of farewell.
<--- PREVIOUS CHAPTER NEXT CHAPTER --->
Zero had ran out of the medical bay after recovering from his shock, ignoring X shouting after him. His headache was already coming back, but this time, Zero actually managed to breathe through it, only focusing on getting back to his room and to that phone.
Zero punched the pad to his dorm room, crushing it. He grabbed the frame and ripped it off the wall, connecting wires haphazardly until the door opened. X had caught up just in time to see Zero dash into his room and grab the phone, frantically yelling at it to dial Iris' number. Whatever X was going to say died in his mouth when the phone kept ringing, but no one picked up.
"She must be at work…" Zero mumbled. He closed his eyes, and X knew he was frantically e-mailing her or instant messaging her. By the frustrated look on his face, X concluded that she wasn't answering.
"Zero," X called softly, "you know if she got called back or knew about a war, she would let you know."
Zero sat heavily onto his bed and it creaked dangerously at the sudden weight of a fully-armored Reploid. X walked over to him, placing his hands on his boyfriend's shoulders. Zero took a deep breath and wrapped an arm around X's waist, pressing his cheek against X's stomach.
"Yeah," the blond muttered, "you're right. So, Magma's gone?"
"Yes…"
"No offense… but if the bastard defected that easily, then we're better off."
X winced, but said nothing more as he lightly stroked Zero's helmet. "I sent Double to look into Magma's personal files. Maybe he'll find some sort of clue."
Zero snorted. "Oh yeah," he said, as if he'd forgotten about the round Reploid, one whom, despite his personal distaste, Zero couldn't help but admire for his data-gathering abilities. Zero sighed then, closing his eyes. "This has to be a mistake… what made Repliforce do this?"
X shrugged. "I don't know, Z. I heard there was Maverick activity at Sky Lagoon, but the next thing I know, Magma's cackling like a madman about how he's now a martyr of change. Then, General of Repliforce finds me after it fell, and when I ask him what happened, he goes off the handle. I told him the truth… if he acted this enraged over a simple question, it looks like he's going Maverick. Then he declared war."
Zero snorted again. "Honestly, as long as Iris and Colonel aren't involved, I hardly care… if Repliforce went Maverick, then we have to deal with them."
X winced, the hand he was using to stroke Zero's head stopping. "I'd like to figure out the real reason why… before we go in, busters flaring."
"Of course, love." Zero stood, glancing down at X. "Sorry I ran out like that. I guess I was just… shocked. Worried."
"Understandably. Right now, all the Hunters will be on call twenty-four, seven and any Repliforce movement will be investigated thoroughly." X sighed deeply, closing his eyes wearily. "I'm tired of fighting."
"Has to be done," was all Zero said before planting a gentle kiss on X's awaiting lips. "Are we needed for a mission?"
X shook his head. "We're letting Repliforce make the first move. If we're lucky, maybe it was a bluff."
One can only hope.
Despite the severity of the issue, X did not want Zero to dwell on it for long. Although he claimed he only cared about Colonel and Iris, X knew the blond felt betrayed by Repliforce, especially considering it was thanks to him that they had grown to the size they were today. When Cain had met up with some other official-looking humans, the ideas of a second Reploid police force began to leak out. A lot of Hunters did not want it to form in case of a split, but thanks to Zero supporting the idea, Repliforce emerged and flourished until it was able to stand on its own feet. In some ways, Zero was almost like the grandfather of Repliforce, and to see it being pit against him probably tore him up inside.
As it was, after declaring and teleporting out in a rather dramatic fashion, General had yet to employ any attacks against the Hunters, direct or indirect. Of course, Signas had attempted to open up peaceful communications, but Repliforce blocked their signal. Alia suggested waiting; perhaps General just needed to cool off and he'd get back to them to apologize for his rash behavior. When X told him that, Zero scoffed. The red-clad Hunter didn't know General as well as he did Colonel, but he knew the massive Reploid didn't exactly always take the best course of action.
"He's prideful," Zero said as he and X walked, hand in hand, to the briefing room. "If this declaration gets out into the public, he'll go through with it just to keep face, even if he didn't really mean it."
"That's the stupidest excuse for a war," X huffed.
"Ever read a human history book?"
"Not all the way through."
Zero smirked. "I have, and humans are warmongers. Doesn't it make sense that Reploids, who are meant to be very human, might sometimes share that trait?"
"You're such a cynic," X said, letting go of Zero's hand and putting his hands on his hips. "Why are you always so pessimistic?"
Zero held his up as if in defeat, although it was more of a reflex when X assumed his pose. "Because you're so optimistic. That optimism keeps me from outright hating humans, and my pessimism keeps you realistic. Isn't that how we generally work, X? One low, one high, good balance?"
X stared at him hard, unmoving, even as Zero froze and stared as well. This, too, was how they worked—if on the verge of an actual fight, they preferred to keep silent and see whose intense stare would make the other back down. It was more peaceful and easier to reconcile afterwards. X's left eye ticked, and when he noticed it, Zero tried hard not to smirk. Even before they became lovers, Zero had long since learned the quirks of X's facial expressions. A right eye tick meant he was seriously pissed off, but a left eye tick simply meant he refused to back down and let Zero claim the prize of being right. This was hardly a serious stare-down, and Zero thanked anything listening for it. Last thing he needed was his boyfriend and living stress-reliever to be mad at him.
"Fine," X finally granted. He grunted as they resume their walk to the room, once again holding hands.
"Knew you'd see it my way," Zero smirked, giving X's hand an affectionate squeeze.
Signas and Alia had no news of Repliforce when they reached the briefing room, although their information-gathering Hunters were reporting that the organization was doing something. Seven known Repliforce officers had taken their troops to various areas and, although had done nothing worth notice, had also been keeping a low profile. In fact, the arrival of these commanding Reploids would have been missed if not for Double and his eerily absolute ways of getting information.
"They haven't done much," Signas rumbled, "but who knows what exactly that means. Under the cover of secrecy, they may be developing weapons to use against us. The risk is too great; if they remained at Central, we could have left them be. As it is, we need to figure out what these seven are doing and, if need be, stop it." He turned to Zero and X. "I want this done quick and clean, and you two are best suited for it."
Axl's voice popped up from the opposite side of the couple. "What about me?"
"I have a special mission for you, Axl. Your copy ability is going to get us that much closer to solving this mystery. X, Zero, put a stop to these seven while we work with Axl."
Zero and X saluted. "Mission accepted!"
~*~
"Why the hell did I go to the jungle…?" Zero mumbled as he waded through the river.
Despite not being exactly vain, Zero did not appreciate the humidity of the jungle or the way his hair managed to pick up random debris from the rivers. Although he could turn off his heat sensitivity, doing so also dampened his other sensory modules, and he learned earlier that even the fish here weren't friendly. If he hadn't noticed them brushing his ankles or darting through his hair, Zero probably would have more issues with them. As it was, he now suffered the wet heat and cursed Alia for sending him so damn far from where the Repliforce Maverick was and forcing him to wade through so much jungle. Zero wasn't sure if he was just wet from water seeping under his armor or if he was actually secreting sweat to help keep his outer body cool. In either case, Zero felt miserable and sticky, and was already envisioning a clean shower and forcing X to brush his hair for the next ten hours.
Gratefully, Zero jumped onto a dry bank, pausing to wring out his hair before moving on. He looked down a cliff, seeing nothing waiting for him underneath. Zero remained cautious and, instead of jumping straight down, opted to slide down the cliff. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Zero heard a very distinct buzzing…
"Oh…" Zero moaned as he crept forward. "Crap."
A giant Mega Nest hung in his way, and already a good thirty kyunbyuun bee androids flitted around it. To make matters worse, the nest was producing more, its side compartments sliding open and more kyunbyuun flying out.
Zero could feel his skin crawl. Immediately, he knew exactly who awaited him at the end: none other than that bastard, Web Spider.
Although Web was a jovial bug Reploid and they got along on the surface, he and Zero never actually liked each other. As a practical joke, and to make Zero look bad in front of Colonel, Web Spider had released a hive amount of kyunbyuun onto Zero. Those bees weren't programmed at the time to hurt him, especially since Zero was in civilian formal clothing, but instead to freak him out. And freak Zero out they did, especially when the kyunbyuun tangled in his hair and got under his clothes.
Since then, Zero held a special hatred for both spiders and bees.
"Payback's a bitch…" Zero hissed. "Even if you repent I'm still going to kick your ass."
Unsheathing his saber, Zero rushed forward and jumped at the hive. With a single slash, he destroyed the created kyunbyuun and cut the machine down. Activating his double jump, Zero sailed over the exploding hive and landed safely on another platform, facing yet another Mega Nest.
"Why…" Zero groaned as he repeated the process. Each sharp turn and platform revealed more and more Mega Nests, and soon, Spider Cores were blasting at him.
"Why must there be so many goddamn bugs?"
Zero stood at a doorway, taking a moment to catch his breath. He hated to admit, but all the bugs Web Spider had used against him in jest were now seriously making him shudder. He was hardly afraid of them; he felt disgusted would have been closer. The blond took in a large gulp of air and held it as his auto-repair system quickly fixed the smaller injuries, although the larger ones would require some energy tanks. Zero leaned his forehead against the door, exhaling the breath slowly. He would first talk to Web Spider, try to persuade him to be friendly with the Hunters again. Yes, Zero could be civil and give the Repliforce another chance. X would be so proud of him right now.
Just then, a snake-like Reploid dropped from the branches above Zero's head, tangling itself in his hair. When he felt it, Zero let out a nearly shrill scream, grabbing at the thing with his hands. When it came untangled from his ponytail, he ripped it apart, and Zero could hear chuckling on the other side of the door.
That's it. Web Spider was going down.
"Spider!" Zero shouted as he entered the large, dome-like room. Despite it having artificial trees, and even a jungle-like atmosphere, he could see the metal walls. "Spider, show your ugly mug!"
A chuckle answered him, and leaves from the trees fell. Shortly after, Web Spider dropped down on an electric web, dangling in front of Zero. Despite not having a real face, Zero got the impression he was smirking.
"Ah… Zero, I've been expecting you. Did you like my gifts?" Web Spider cackled.
"Okay, good joke; that was fun and all, but let's get serious." Zero lowered his saber and deactivated it. "There's still time. You know as well as I do this 'war' is stupid and unnecessary. Help us convince General!"
Web Spider swung on his thread, humming to himself for a few seconds before answering. "No. I know where my loyalties lie." With that, the Reploid spider scrambled back up his web and into the thick canopy.
"Dammit."
Web Spider obviously underestimated Zero, dropping close to the Hunter's saber with an easily dodged web as his defense. Despite the few hits he landed, Spider's systems were screaming for retreat, while Zero only had a few burns and scrapes on his armor. As they studied each other, catching their breaths, Spider laughed.
Zero glared. "The hell's so funny?"
"Your hair is like a giant poof-ball."
Zero blinked, reaching a hand behind him. Sure enough, the few times Web Spider's electric webs had caught him had puffed out Zero's ponytail into a giant, bristly ball at the back of his head. Now, even more so, Zero wanted a shower and X to comb his hair.
"You giving up?" Zero asked.
"Never. A commander never returns in defeat!" and with that, Web Spider prepared to launch his most massive web ever.
With those words, however, he killed what compassion Zero might have had. As he prepared his attack, Zero dashed forward and thrust his saber right into what would have been Web Spider's forehead. The Reploids froze, and Spider tried to say something, the overload of damage and the destructive energy discharge from the saber spreading through the Repliforce commander, silencing him. Zero backed off nanoseconds before Web Spider exploded, and a smoking husk on the ground was all that remained.
Zero kicked the body over to ensure Web Spider was dead. Satisfied, he was about to teleport out when something caught his eye. Bending down, Zero picked up Spider's weapon chip. He held it up into one of the rays of sunlight streaming from the canopy, peering at it.
Too bad. The chip vanished into Zero's fist. You made your choice, Spider. You had no regrets, nor will I. Too bad you didn't live to repent for your mistake.
Zero teleported out, leaving the smoking body to rust without even a word of farewell.
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