Disclaimer: Mega Man X and any recognizable characters belong to Capcom.
AN: I wrote this for the February prompton 31 Days, over at LiveJournal. This my first fic for this fandom, as I only recently returned to this series. I know Zero is likely the one who defeats the Colonel. However, I was inspired by the prompt "Accursed be he that first invented war." And since X is the one who is more torn by the dilemma of fighting, I chose to go with him. So consider this a fic set in the universe of X's scenario.
Read and review, but leave constructive criticism. No flames.
Original summary at 31 Days: A Maverick Hunter confronts his determined enemy. Based on X's side of the game.
Price of Battle
The Colonel was already at the end of the spaceport, just as X anticipated. He was an imposing figure, covered in his battle armor, beam saber drawn. X wasn't intimidated. He had seen far worse enemies in the past.
"Colonel, step back!" he ordered, hoping once and for all that they could resolve this without another battle.
This was their last chance. If the Colonel did not relent now, they both knew what he would have to do.
"I'll stop anyone who tries to interfere with our independence!" the Colonel challenged.
X cursed the impulsiveness of the other, the one that had led them to this stalemate. And it was all on his shoulders. The Colonel decided they were being judged as Mavericks. The Colonel decided that they should fight rather than compromise. But the others were convinced. And like dutiful little soldiers, they followed him into oblivion. Even his own superior.
Couldn't he see that he was doing this for no reason whatsoever? A simple communication would clear this up. There was still time to turn the Repliforce back into protectors, instead of aggressors.
Again, he was struck by the irony of the situation, as he had many times throughout this mission. Protectors created for the purpose of protecting mankind and the Reploids turning on their creators on a whim, for the most inane of reasons.
Why did they have to fight? Why couldn't Reploids learn to coexist with each other? This should have ended years ago when X first defeated the original band of Mavericks, yet here they were still fighting over the fate of their race.
Would there ever peace?
He had read that mankind had fought for thousands of years before they achieved peace. It seemed the Reploids were doing the same thing.
X wanted to shout at him; to yell at him that he was being a fool for no reason whatsoever. But that would just make things worse.
If only he could reason with him; convince him that if he would just stand back and listen, they could get this settled without the destruction of his whole unit.
He knew the chance was slim. This was a war machine. Indeed, his very name was that of a military rank, born with the purpose of its carrier doing nothing save fighting. There would be no reasoning with him, no appealing to his higher sense of logic. Once he decided what to do, he would follow that path up until its destructive end.
But X had to try.
He was tired of fighting this war, of being torn between humanity and the Reploids. And always it came down to him and Zero, two hunters who fought to restore peace, only to find themselves facing the same situation again and again.
"Enough of this! It's only an illusion!" he appealed one last time to the Colonel.
If the Colonel was in any way shaken by that logic, he didn't show it. "…You hunters will never be able to understand us! Get ready, X!"
Again, X cursed the impulsiveness of the other. He couldn't really believe that he would pull this off, did he? The Repliforce was doomed. If the Colonel would just use some reason, he would see it. Now that they had rebelled, every Maverick Hunter in the world was on alert, ready to go after them with a vengeance. And if X didn't stop them, Zero would, and he would do it with far less hesitation. Perhaps he didn't want to believe it. Perhaps he wanted to believe that he could succeed and build a nation of Reploids. X knew there was no purpose in that. That was an illusion. There would never be a nation of all Reploids, so long as mankind lived.
But people were still willing to fight for it. No matter the consequences.
He was reminded of an old saying: "Accursed be he that first invented war."
The taste of bitterness lingered in his mouth. Truer words were never spoken.
There was nothing more to be done. X had no choice. He could not allow this madman to go ahead with his plans. Sparing one last regret that he had not been able to avert the tragedy, the hunter knew what he had to do.
He fired his X-buster.