Q&A Time! Okies, so here's the plan - I'll answer the reviews at the top, and make further author's notes at the bottom. If anyone has a problem, let me know in the reviews and I'll see what I can do to change it up/make it better.
Thank you to Chi's Creed, Thecowinspace/Dubby Cat, BlueStar Palette, 2211Nighthawk, and Answerthecall for your support! And also, a shout out to Shinryuu Uroborus for constantly kicking my butt over Skype. As for questions:
Thecowinspace/Dubby Cat: Your question is hard to answer without spoilers, but I will tell you that OCs are not thrown in willy-nilly, and I swear that the plot isn't as plain as "oh another war let's kick butt!". I do use these little things known as "character development" and "plotlines" in my stories. If you do find this story too plain, I recommend waiting for Insurgence, which will be written after this one.
.: Prologue II :.
The next day could not come soon enough for X and Zero. By eight in the morning the two hunters and their commander were already at the Centre, impatient to see their friend.
Walking through the front doors, Professors Axiom and Kirov were already waiting in the lobby.
"Professor Axiom… Estelle," Signas greeted the two, "How is Axl doing? Are there any improvements in his situation?"
"All appears to be well, and his systems are all online and fully operational," Axiom started, flipping through a datapad. "However, we shouldn't rush things - it will be at least another twenty-four hours before we will allow him to start moving around on his own, and of course his memory loss is of g-great c-concern."
Signas sighed. "Of course. May we see him now?"
"I was just about to ask the same!" Estelle laughed. "He's been wanting to see you guys since he woke up. Let's not keep him waiting, shall we?"
The two professors led the way to the room they were forced to wait outside of the night before, leading them through. Inside, it was a rather large room, with a female Reploid working at the computer workstation, connected to a recovery pod. X and Zero immediately rushed to the pod while the professors and Signas made their way to the working Reploid.
"Delilah," Estelle addressed her, "you've been working all night. Shouldn't you take a rest?"
"Can't do," she shot back. "I just got the records that were requested from the Maverick Hunters. I need to do the comparison while everything is still fresh in my mind."
"Just now?" Signas questioned. "Those should have been sent days ago."
A voice came out from the computer, "Forgive me, I was not being diligent. I assumed the automatic filters were functioning properly, so I did not think to check them to find the missing email message. I will do so from now on as soon as a missing message is reported."
"So it got caught in the filters…" Estelle muttered under her breath. "Thanks, Nicol. It was probably a one-time error, but could you let Eshidi know about this? I want him to minimize the chances of this happening again."
"Professor Eshidi has already been informed and will be examining the issue at his first available opportunity. Tekk has also been alerted and will be doing as I am, checking the filters for any further lost email communications."
"Always two steps ahead. Thank you again."
"Speaking of communications, Commander, may we talk?" Axiom asked. "Elsewhere, preferably."
Signas nodded, moving aside to let Axiom pass. The two exited the room, leaving Estelle and Delilah to watch over the three hunters.
"Eugh, do we have to let them in now?" Delilah questioned. "I want to complete this quick as possible, and the distractions won't help one bit. Just a few hours is all I need."
"Yes, they can come in now. We agreed last night that they could. I know you're married to your work, but I honestly think you need a rest. You're crankier than usual…"
"I'm not cranky. I just want to get this done. I need to know what happened, what went wrong, how to prevent it…"
"Delilah." Estelle rested her hand on the other's head, causing her to look up from her work. "Go, recharge. Running on e-tanks will not get this done faster. I'm fully capable of running an analysis, you know."
"But-"
"No buts about it. You rest, I work. You can comb over my results and re-analyze if needed after you've had a nice, long nap. Got it?"
Delilah stayed silent, then dug her face into her hands. Without another word she got up and left.
"Rest well, Delilah. You deserve it with the way you work too hard."
Axiom led Commander Signas to another empty room, identical to the one they had been in before. Axiom locked the door before addressing the Commander. "I h-hate to dampen the mood, but have you received the initial report as requested by the council?"
"Yes, unfortunately. Those numbers are quite disturbing." Signas' gaze drifted towards the floor, and his face twisted into a frown. "If they're anywhere close to accurate then this will end up being the largest Maverick outbreak in our current history... worse than Eurasia."
Axiom fidgeted with his datapad, quickly flipping through its pages. "I'm s-still hoping that what happened with Lumine and the others was s-simply an isolated in-in-incident. If not… I hope our numbers are n-n-not accurate."
"If I may ask, but are there any securities or methods in place for DNA distribution? It's odd that so many have Sigma's DNA within their copy chips, considering his status."
"Yes, yes, o-of course! Even with the non-existent risks of copying his appearance, we've established early on that n-not just any New Gen should have access to such h-h-horrible DNA. However, what's done is done. All we can do now is d-damage control…"
Several hours passed. Commander Signas returned to the room where Axl stayed, unsurprised to see X and Zero still talking with him. A smile filled his face hearing the three of them talk and laugh. He approached the pod.
"It's good to see you up, Axl," he greeted. "You're feeling better?"
"Of course!" Axl exclaimed. "Ready for the front lines, sir!"
Signas let out a laugh. "Let's not push it that far yet. Just focus on your recovery, one day at a time, no need to rush."
The cheeky grin on his face disappeared, and let out a sigh. "Yes, sir…"
"Hey, no need to be so down, Axl," Zero chimed in. "Think of this as a well-earned break. Involuntary, maybe, but well-earned."
"Easy for you to say, you're not the one strapped down."
"Well, it's better than the alternative options for a forced break. Wouldn't you agree, Zero?" X smirked.
"What are you talking about?" Zero took a moment to think, his eyes going wide after a few seconds. "Hey, not funny!"
"As much as I know you two would like to stay," Commander Signas cut in, resting his hands on X and Zero's shoulders, "we should be taking our leave now. Don't worry, you two can come and visit again tomorrow, and every day after that until he's cleared to return. Granted, this won't interfere with your required duties. Axl, you should get some rest. Remember, don't rush your recovery."
The three responded with a unified "yes, sir" before Signas, X, and Zero took their leave.
Out in the lobby, Professor Axiom waited for them. "Ah, there you are. One thing before you go - I a-apologize for my outburst last night, it was entirely out of character for me."
Signas nodded. "I understand, Professor. With everything that's been happening, we're all exceeding our limits. There's no doubt that it has been a stressful time, especially for you and your team."
"You're too kind, Commander." Axiom bowed his head, allowing the three to leave. "You're much too kind."
Author's Notes: GAAAAAAAAH, I FINISHED. FINALLY. I wanted this done months ago… I thank my friends, my family, my followers, and the flu for allowing me to get this done and posted before the New Year.
Final thing: The next chapter will be the third and final prologue chapter before finally diving into the thick of things. Why not mash it all into one? Because then it would be YEARS between updates instead of MONTHS. Also, it flows better when it's broken down into logical sections, and you guys can read in short sittings and not have to quit halfway through a chapter. Chapters will be taking this format as well for these reasons.
