Winding through the trash and debris in the Robot Junkyard, X turned a corner and grimaced. The sensor in his Head Parts picked up a veritable nest of Pararoids- the insectile mechaniloids originally designed for crop fertilization and now coopted by the Mavericks as defensive drones.

Pulling back behind the corner and pressing his back to the wall, X raised his buster close to his chest and began to charge, waiting until his interior meters pegged. He quickly moved out around the corner then and released his shot, the third-level blast spiraling down the hall and shattering the hovering, hopping menaces, leaving the hall clear.

X moved forward warily, cycling through another charge-build, when a slight weight dropped on his head from the ceiling and six 'tick-ticks' sounded around the crown of his head as the object folded its legs around his helmet; there was a dull thump at the back of his neck as something round and blunt nudged against it.

He realized immediately- it was another Pararoid, a V-1; that kind could...

And then he didn't care.

The worry, anxiety and fear gnawing at his wiring simply melted away as a rush of white heat poured down through his head, through his neck and spine; like he was revving up to 15,000 RPM and climbing. A few more Pararoids dropped from the ceiling and rage flared through X like a solar flare- vicious and expansive.

"I'm better than you! I'm better than all of you! Get out of my way!"

He charged forward, all sense of caution forgotten, reckless, firing wildly.

The Pararoid was in control, but X just didn't care; he felt good- better, he felt invincible! He noticed, without real understanding, that he was sliding back and forth in the same hallway, that the Pararoid was steering him away from the ladder leading down to the next part of the building, that it kept just running him back and forth along the same hall.

He didn't care.

The Pararoid had tapped into something deep inside, a hidden rage that was now being pulled forcibly to the surface. X was screaming as he dashed back and forth, firing blindly.

"I hate this! I hate this! I hate you for doing this to me! GIVE ZERO BACK TO ME OR I'LL KILL EVERYTHING HERE!"

His rage swelled beyond reason, X inadventently triggered the Giga Crush, causing a blinding hail of falling fire to obliterate everything around him - including the Pararoid latched onto his helmet. Shuddering, he dashed back to the end of the hall and climbed down the ladder he found there... then stopped at the floor below and paused to try and get himself back under control. His hands were shaking, and his core was too fast; he was sick with anger and grief, and the words he'd shrieked seemed to echo back at him from above.

He leaned back against the wall, breathing hard, eyes closing.

Zero... I'm doing all this to get you back...

I...

I think I... might need you more than I thought...

Terrifying emotions raced through his chest, and it took him another two minutes to calm down enough to take in another breath and return to the battle.