Chapter 10: An Absolute Protector, Shield Sheldon
Back at the Maverick Hunter HQ, Alia takes a moment to pull off her headset after a rough distortion of static plagued both audio receptors. Through the laptop, she watched Shina fly away from Rainy Turtloid's domain, where her visage disappeared in a matter of seconds.
"...Are we doing the right thing X?" She pondered with a quiet melancholy, twisting her body back to look at her partner.
"I don't know..." X was calm and honest in his thoughts, "But we have to trust that she can handle this on her own for now."
"If only we could keep an eye on her...But Dynamo's too perceptive, he'd shoot down any drone we'd send." Alia hovered her fingertips over the laptop keys, but then with a lingering glance on them she realized she had nothing to do at the moment. Thus, the hands retreated to atop her legs, and she turned the chair around and stood up.
"All we can do now is wait and see." As she approached X, Alia stopped an inch beside him and widened her eyes with an almost mute gasp. The lone door opened up, and Zero walked inside.
X only had to glance at her expression to be cued in to turn around, and he welcomed his friend with a slow approach and an eased comment of, "Welcome back Zero."
"X...?" Zero raised his brows and stopped at the drop of a hat, "I thought you would've been out on a mission."
"...Not right now." X expression grew tense, alerting Zero to the overall worried ambience in the room and more importantly, the fact that Shina had vanished.
Laser focusing on his comrade's eyes with a stern posture, Zero crossed his arms and asked, "What's going on here?"
It took only five minutes for X to bring Zero up-to-date on what they'd been doing, leaving the robot's first immediate reponse to be a gesture of his hand out from the armfold and an inquiry of, "So why are you still here?"
"Huh?" X perked his brows up and said, "Zero, we can't go after Dynamo, if we do Shina-"
"Forget about Dynamo, I'm positive she can handle him on her own. But if he were to receive reinforcements..."
"That's right! There's no way Gate is going to ignore all the Nightmare Souls Dynamo has acquired!" Alia blurted out all of a sudden, and after X peered over his left shoulder she synchronized with Zero's reasoning, "We have to take down the last two Nightmare Investigators before they find out what's going on."
"Exactly. If we divide their attention between the two of us X, then that'll free her up to deal with Dynamo." Zero remarked.
"It's not a bad plan, but you're both forgetting something." X stood sideways and both looked and gestured at his comrades.
"...Right, there's still High-MAX to worry about." Zero closed his eyes and lowered the head a bit.
"We haven't seen hide or hair of him since Ground Scaravich. Either Gate's got him holed up at his location, or he's already been sent out to another investigation spot ready to ambush us..." Alia deduced with dulled concern.
"If he's with the Investigators, there's a 50-50 chance of either me or X encountering him."
"I couldn't even put a dent in him the first time we fought. If only I knew how Shina managed to fend him off." X closed his eyes to think for the few seconds he was allowed before Zero interjected.
"X, I have an idea. We'll split up still, but I'll go ahead of you. If High-MAX is at my location, I'll deal with him. If he's not, then at least you won't be taken by surprise."
"Do you think you'll be able to handle him?" X pondered.
"He's just another Maverick. I'll be fine, don't worry about it."
"Well Zero, the last two Investigators should be Shield Sheldon at the laser defense facility, and Infinity Mijinion at the weapons research lab. I'll set the coordinates for whoever you want to go after." Alia said, making her way right back to the laptop in the time it took her to finish speaking.
"Set them for the laser defense facility. And X...you be careful too, ok?" Zero looked his friend in the eyes for a couple seconds until he nodded, then turned around and made his way for the door. As it slid open, Alia stopped him with a sharp, "Wait!"
Halting right underneath the frame, Zero didn't even look back as Alia turned her chair and hesitated to look at him directly, "...I'm sorry that I didn't tell you about Gate sooner. You're right...I-I should've valued the trust between us a lot more than I did."
"...It's all in the past now. You can work on rebuilding that trust in the future...partner." Zero left things be there and exited the room, heading right for the teleporters with the Z-Saber swung and ignited right over his head. He landed on one of the pods and was sent off to his destination, though a feeling of unease washed over him as he did so.
Zero arrived atop a facility positioned amongst the docile clouds, the sky appearing as though it's kept in a perpetual state of night. The floor was compromised of stainless reflective panels extending towards a sleek mobile fortress surrounded by a few large gunships. The ships had no movement to them, and loomed ominously in wait.
"Alia, what can you tell me about this place?" Zero didn't even move an inch forward as he continued to look at his surroundings.
"This facility and its workers once prided themselves on providing their top of the line defenses to the highest bidders across the globe. However, the facility was raided by a Maverick attack years ago and has been secluded off from the general public ever since."
"Secluded...so I'm guessing the gunships aren't active now?"
"Correct. They were a part of the facilities' defenses back then."
"Alright, now how about intel on the Investigator?" Zero inquired as he began his cautious march towards the facility.
"Well... you know how I said the facility was attacked by Mavericks? I was referring to the fact that one of the researchers went Maverick while under the protection of Shield Sheldon."
"Shield Sheldon caused the research to go Maverick?"
"No. The cause of the researcher's change had nothing to do with him. But Shield Sheldon was still blamed for the change by the Maverick Hunters, and out of shame he took his own life."
"Hmph, and I bet the researchers you worked with tipped the Hunters off."
"No...No not that time."
"...Figures he'd choose this location to 'investigate' then. He's looking for redemption."
"All the Investigators owe the world to Gate. They're just like sons to him."
"Children shouldn't be forced to bear the weight of their father's sins." Zero paused for a moment and closed his eyes.
"Huh, I never would've expected you to say that," After a couple seconds, Alia coughed and stammered out, "O-Oh...right, I guess you..."
"Time to get a move on." Zero opened his eyes and leapt off the precipice he was on, finding himself on the edge of a hundred foot gap between here and and the entrance. Crossing his arms and looking around, he knew that he didn't have the capability to make the jump even if he went at it full speed.
"Any ideas Alia?" He swallowed his pride to ask.
"There is actually a floorway leading to the entrance, but it's invisible."
"...Invisible?" Zero nudged his right toes along the floor until they were 'suspended' on empty air. A solid platform of relfective chrome appeared at the touch, and he put both his feet forward onto it.
"Just take your time and you should make it across, but be careful...I imagine some of the platforms have been erased to trick you."
"It'll be a piece of cake." Zero raised his buster and shot a foot ahead, testing to see where the platforms lied. With a cautious mind guiding his every move, he quickly made his way to the other side without slipping up even a bit.
Now with only solid ground to navigate, Zero rushed inside of the facility and was greeted by the many signs of desolation and abandonment surrounding him. The metal in the walls were wearing down, with their colors blackened and bits of rusted crammed around the edges. Pipes and wires were out of alignment with each other, and the lights fought a struggling battle just to flicker.
Only the glow of his blade kept the path forward illuminated, but at the same time forced his gaze to shift around to avoid being ambushed. But the atmosphere was quiet, too quiet, and not even a metal rat could be heard scurrying through the vents.
"...There's just been too many areas to cover at one time. Any Reploids that came here have probably already been victimized by the virus."
"I don't feel it's presence here. It's possible Gate's already moved on to the next stage of his plan."
"...Lets hope not."
After scaling a few platforms along a straightforward path, Zero was roadblocked by a thick silver door, with only a levitating reflective panel standing between him and it. He ran over to the door and attacked it with a rigorous swing of the blade, but failed to even scratch it. He tried a couple more times in different spots, hoping to exploit a weakness in the build, but alas it was still pointless.
Backing off, Zero looked higher up on the door and saw an inactive light present there. Holding his blade up to light his surroundings, he saw a loose plate on the left side of the door and walked over to it. Prying it off required just a simple one-handed tug, but to his surprise there was nothing behind it but dust and more metal.
"...Haaa..." Zero sighed and his shoulders went into a slump, "I must have missed something near the entrance."
Halfway through turning around, a flash of light shone bright in the corner of his eyes, and he looked up right as a laser fired out from a suspended pod. Leaping straight back to cling onto the wall, Zero grabbed hold of his blade and lunged straight at the pod. But even putting all his might into the thrust, the pod repelled his blow and caused him to plummet right to the ground.
"Hrmm..." Zero grabbed his blade in both hands and swung it by the hip, targeting the same spot he attacked before.
"Wait a second Zero!" Alia's shrill alert halted Zero from even jumping, though he held his stance for a moment as she explained, "Take a look at the wall."
He turned his head to the spot he was just at, and found that there was no damage done. Standing upright and holding his sword beside in one hand, he focused back on the pod and commented, "I get it now, the facility uses lasers as keys."
Zero walked in front of the reflective panel while keeping his eyes on the pod. The lens flashed open, and a laser built up in a second. Moving just a bit to the right, Zero watched as the laser struck the panel and ended up deflected at the light atop the door. A brief click, and the door flew open.
Zero leapt through, and the lighting got a little better thanks to the presence of a faint energy core in the background. There were more laser pods to traverse, and relfective surfaces to help direct their paths. The puzzles got a little more complex, but without the threat of enemies or the virus in the vicinity Zero could take his time setting the lasers on their proper path.
"The technology here reminds me a lot of what I saw in Izzy Glow's lab." Alia made a casual observation to break the quiet tone.
"Wasn't he stingy about letting his creations see the light of day?" Zero commented as he opened up the second door in his path.
"This must've been an exception. Doesn't seem like there's any weaponry in this base, at least...as far as we've seen."
"Doesn't seem like there's a need."
"A facility like this needs more than puzzles to keep it safe, Zero." Alia said, getting a little cross in her tone.
"It's taking all my strength just to budge these panels. I doubt the average Maverick would be able to break in." Zero paused for a moment to look at his Z-Saber, then struck the nearby panel with it to shift the laser's path upward.
"I see..." She murmured with a twinge of apologeticness, "I guess that's the tragic irony here. For how much they bolstered their defenses, they were sabotaged from within..."
"Sigma and his virus are gone. Once Gate's dealt with, we'll never have to worry about Mavericks created by viruses ever again."
"...Tssk..." A hollow sigh came through the communicator, causing Zero to stand still and say, "There's no other way."
"I know that...I guess...until now, I never really understood how hard it's been for you and X to keep fighting like this."
"Hmph..." Zero blinked slow and then leapt up to the ledge beside the last reflective panel in the room. With one drawn-out slice he shifted it and then stepped away, watching as the laser deflected to the door resting on the floor. However, only then did he recognize that there were two doors in the room this time.
"...Doubt the basement's where I need to go." Zero faced the reflective panel and gave it a gentler slice so it'd line up properly with the back door. A whole half a minute passed by before he knew it, but there was no activity from the laser.
"What's going on here..." Zero sprinted and hopped his way back to the pod, giving it a quick strike with his bare knuckles twice before pulling back and staring it straight in the lens.
"It couldn't have ran out of power now, could it?"
"...No. I get the feeling I'll have to check out the basement before I can open the other door." Thus he made his way back at double the pace and dropped down the opened passage. The room was by far the most secluded part of this entire facility, having so much darkness that it took ten seconds for Zero to see again thanks to his Z-Saber. But when he had a bearing on his location, the first thing that caught his attention was the presence of a Dr. Light capsule right in front of him.
He put the Z-Saber away and approached it, allowing the hologram's all-encompassing light to flourish through the darkness. The robot and the doctor stood face-to-face, both comfortable with the other's presence.
"I see you've happened upon another one of my capsules, Zero."
"It's starting to become routine at this point. So what part will this be?" Zero kept things swift and serious.
"This shall be the body part of the Blade Armor. With this, X will only need one more part to complete it."
"So he's already gotten all the parts for that Shadow Armor?"
"Correct. Shina picked it up not too long ago...before she went in pursuit of Dynamo."
"...Doctor, you've been close attention to what's been going on." Zero commented with a brow-raised glare.
"I am doing whatever I can to help in this restrictive state." Dr. Light responded with a self-assured tone.
"Then you already know who's occupying this area. Tell me, is one of them High-MAX?"
"Yes..." Dr. Light closed his eyes, and his tone sounded hesitant to say anything further. But even that slightest hint of weakness was enough for Zero to exploit.
"There's someone else here..." He remarked with a firm voice.
"I told you before Zero. It is up to you to find the truth. Do not let my observations be your crutch."
"...I guess I'll find out soon enough." Zero ruffled his shoulders a little then breathed in the dusty air.
"Are you sure you're ready?" The doctor gave him a stern and solemn look.
Zero kept his mouth shut and avoided eye contact as he stepped onto the capsule. As the data flowed over his body, he opened his eyes and waited for the process to pass. Getting off right when it was over, he went back the way he came, with the doctor's hologram giving one last word of advice.
"Tread cautiously Zero...You cannot underestimate our enemy."
Zero paused underneath the door for a few seconds, interrupted only by the flash of light coming from above. The laser opened the door that he needed to go forward, and he reached the hallway behind it with one powerful leap from where he stood. He drew his Z-Saber and headed for the door at the end, trying to avoid making a sound as he slipped inside the room.
The floor here was composed of silver chrome hexagons surrounding the edge of a cylindrical testing site. There was a large but inactive laser cannon on the ceiling in the center of the room, and the walls were plated with durable emerald panels that wouldn't suffer the high concentration of heat that once pushed through here.
After a brief scan of the room Zero widened his eyes and silently slid up to the back of a fuel capsule just tall enough to cover his body. He peered around the edge towards the opposite end of the room, where three Reploids had gathered in front of a complex console.
One was a pink Reploid with a wide frame consisting mostly of curves, and half a metallic clam shell were attached atop each shoulder. Neither shell looked cumbersome for the Reploid either, as he paced around in front of the other two. His company was High-MAX and Isoc, both of whom Zero was seeing for the first time.
"So that's High-MAX...Doesn't look that impressive." Zero whispered.
"Looks can be deceiving Zero." Alia commented, toning down her voice as well.
"I know...He's the one that gave X trouble after all." Zero pulled a little further back and tried to listen in on what the Reploids were talking about, concentrating on Isoc the most of all.
"Why did you bring High-MAX here Isoc? Does Gate not trust me to guard this facility?" A chipper adolescent voice came out of Shield Sheldon.
"Don't be a fool. With Turtloid slaughtered by that traitor you and Mijinion are our last remaining Investigators. It's for the best that you take High-MAX's assistance regardless of your silly pride." Isoc turned for the console and tapped away at it with one hand. Windows shut down on the screen as a download began at 1% and increased every couple of seconds.
"...Isoc, he's up to something." Zero commented.
"I can't get a look at what he's doing. Think you can get closer?"
"Negative, there's no more canisters." Zero poked his head out a little more and looked over at High-MAX next. The Reploid was silent as he exchanged glances with Shield Sheldon.
"I'm not so sure about this. I heard Mr. 'Ultimate Reploid' here got roughed up by some blonde chick." Sheldon sneered, holding not an ounce of respect towards the beefy Reploid.
"The outsider's wound was a fluke. My perfection has been completed, and I shall never suffer harm again." High-MAX carried a haughty air to him that left Sheldon's face in a dejected slump.
"Could you try and take this seriously?" He then turned right towards Isoc and complained, "This Reploid's too arrogant and green to be on guard duty. Gate's life has too much value to entrust it to this waste of junk."
"Arrogant and green hmmm? The same could have been said for you not too long ago, Shield Sheldon..." Isoc turned around and tugged on the right of his mustache, "Or perhaps I should use a more present tense, seeing how you've failed to notice a certain red intruder..."
The scientist grimaced and slid his fingers off the mustache, snapping his fingers a couple times beside the face while yelling, "There's no use hiding Zero! Your choice of concealment is as predictable as it is insulting!"
"Darn, I've been detected!" Zero remarked, keeping his cool in spite of how surprised he was.
"Can you disengage? If you get far away from High-MAX, I can-"
"No dice Alia. Just send X after the last Investigator..." Zero ignited the Z-Saber and thrust free palm against the back of the capsule, "I'll handle these three on my own!"
He then pushed the capsule with all his strength to throw it at his enemies, pooling energy into the blade to slice a crescent wave after it right away.
"Doc, watch out!" Sheldon leapt in the capsule's path and tucked his body into both shells, which began to glow with a pristine orange energy. The capsule blew up when the projectile struck it, consuming Sheldon's body in a deafening blast of fire. Isoc's cape blew around wildly, while High-MAX remained as stoic as ever. As the blast faded out, the scientist tucked his hands back and smirked, watching as Zero charged through the smoke with the Z-Saber positioned to stab at his chest.
An inch away from connecting the blade, Zero was forced to bear the brunt of High-MAX's fist to his face. The Reploid came out swinging in a forceful curve, his knuckles being followed up by the rim of his biceps before Zero was sent flying through an arc in the air. The robot recovered and made a safe landing, sliding on the ground until he was now twenty feet away from his targets. Shield Sheldon emerged from the smoke unscathed, and warped himself on over in front of High-MAX with an overdramatic opening of his shell.
Isoc kept his distance and gestured the right hand beside his face, taunting the scowling Zero with rigorous pleasure, "You missed your chance to end me, Zero! A pity! That hesitation shall cost you dearly!"
Zero swung his blade out and stood with unwavering defiance of his foes as he roared out, "Don't get cocky! It'll take more than a couple brutes to keep me from getting to you! You're going to answer for your crimes whether here and now!"
"I am going to answer for my crimes? That's rich...coming from the progenitor of the Maverick Virus!" Isoc volleyed back Zero's boast with an unflincing demeanor that bordered on obscene arrogance. Then, with a couple snaps of the fingers, Isoc declared, "Do whatever it takes to stop him, as long as you don't destroy him! I want him captured...alive!"
"Command received..." High-MAX released a cloud of steam from his body, "Zero...I shall surpass you as well."
"Fine, fine! I guess I have no choice but to fight alongside you! Just don't screw this up High-MAX, Gate's counting on us!" Shield Sheldon spread his shells like wings and threw his arms out, causing them to detach and be flung at Zero.
The robot leapt in anticipation of the shell flying lowerer to the floor, landing atop and grounding it with a ear-grating noise. He then grabbed onto his blade and slashed it forward to repel the other shell, though his arms recoiled overhead upon making contact.
Sheldon tugged his hands back left and then right, warping the shells back onto his shoulders so he could tuck into them. While High-MAX kept Zero occupied with a bombardment of energy balls, Sheldon began to spin his shell around with it pointed further along the counterclockwise path the Hunter was running. Once fully charged, he launched himself forward like a torpedo and crossed over the gap in a second.
Zero glanced right and flipped back in the nick of time, but after slamming against the wall Sheldon rebounded right after and took him by surprise. The Hunter was thrown in a downward spiral towards the chasm, his left hand latching onto the edge of the platform with a grip almost as slick as oil. He made haste to throw his body back up, then turned around as Sheldon came charging at him from above.
Zero hopped back and sliced two crescent waves at the clam in quick succession, sending him teetering off balance near the edge. Zero charged forth in an attempt to topple him over, but then with a sonicboom in his wake High-MAX jettisonned over and hammered the Hunter in the chest with a large energy ball.
With his body pounded back against the wall like he was rammed by a bulldozer, it took Zero a couple seconds to pull himself free and stare down his unrelenting foe, who sent wave after wave of energy spheres swarming his way. Zero rapidly swung his blade out with one hand and cut down each and every projectile, his body consumed by a vicious storm of slices as he charged forward with vigorous momentum.
Once underneath High-MAX he leapt up with a slicing uppercut, only for it to be deflected by Sheldon throwing one of his shells out like a boomerrang. Zero dropped down in an instant, ducking underneath the kick of High-MAX's left leg and using his buster to get a couple shots in on the vulnerable clam. The impacts distracted them enough for Zero to close in and perform three swift and broad cuts across the body. But true to his name, the clam's defenses were strong, and Zero could not penetrate deep enough in the time alotted.
Sheldon grabbed onto his returning shield and used it like a gullotine, bringing it down straight towards Zero's head. The Hunter swiftly used his sword to hold it back while he scanned his surroundings to look for an escape route. Eyeing another, small fuel canister to the right, Zero stopped holding back and sprinted straight for it, glancing back only to know when to turn around and slice down High-MAX's flurry of projectiles.
Once inches away from the canister Zero scooped it up underneath his right arm and leapt back to the wall, sticking to it for just a few seconds to lure out his enemy's attacks. High-MAX threw both his hands up and began charging his 'Death Ball', while Sheldon tossed both his shields out.
"Right on cue..." Zero sprung off the wall and let the canister loose into one of the shells, then immediately leapt towards High-MAX, getting right in his face to flash a smirk. The Reploid tried to clap his hands together to swat him like the pesky fly he was being, but Zero was able to drop right to the ground and dash behind him before the bottom of his hands could graze his helmet.
High-MAX turned around and swiped his right hand out to send out a volley of projectiles. Zero cleaved through them in one slice, then spun his blade behind him and held a hand up, waving his fingers towards him. High-MAX raised both hands up out before the chest and remarked, "It's futile. Your immature taunts mean nothing to me, Zero."
"That's right...Stay distracted..." As High-MAX focused all his efforts onto creating a 'Death Ball', Zero glanced over and saw Sheldon reattach both shells to his shoulders. He turned around, and the sudden movement caused the fuel canister to wobble it's way close to the edge of the left shell.
Zero swung his left hand up and fired a swift buster shot at it, giving Sheldon no time to react beyond a frightened gasp as the explosion blew him away. After that there just a modicrum amount of time for Zero to face the so-called Ultimate Reploid and attack the incoming 'Death Ball' with a two-handed slice. His feet were dragged back at a ludicrous pace as sparks went flying in all directions behind him. However, once both heels were pressed against the wall Zero managed to swivel his blade at a downward slant and force the sphere to fly up into the ceiling, decimating a hefty chunk of it.
Shield Sheldon pried himself off the ground, his right shell having lost a portion of the bottom lip and his arm struggling to move. With a pained wince of his eyes he stared at the valiant robot and stammered, "W-Why is he so strong?!"
Isoc rubbed his chin with a smirk and commented, "Speed, power, analytical capabilties...Indeed! Zero is the perfect robot! A true...God of Destruction!"
He swung his arms out and boasted at the top of his lungs, causing the fighters to pause for a brief moment. As High-MAX turned his head, his brows slanted a centimeter down and then he channeled a large energy ball into his right fist. Right as Zero looked back at him, he lobbed it out with all his force put into it.
The Hunter vaulted over the attack and had his back grazed by the blast, then he grabbed the handle of his blade in both hands and charged straight towards High-MAX. The Ultimate Reploid rose up and pointed his hands down, assaulting Zero with a rain of projectiles. Zero back up with a short hop and twirled his blade around in circles to deflect the attacks, but a couple slipped on by and pelted his legs to the point of weakening his stance.
Zero hopped back further and swung the blade back to send another crescent wave at High-MAX. The Reploid levitated in place and held his hands up, but Shield Sheldon flew right in front of him and used his shell to block the attack.
"Don't worry! I got-"
"Move aside." With a swift and blunt retort to his ally's enthusiasm, High-MAX wrenched his right hand around the rim of Sheldon's right shell and shoved him aside, thrusting that very same hand forward to send a smaller 'Death Ball' towards Zero.
Zero attacked the sphere right in the center with his blade to reflect it back at High-MAX, who just let it strike his chest without any concern towards being damaged. The Hunter followed up on this by firing a couple buster shots at the head, but only succeeded in making the Reploid wince like he was being buzzed by an insect.
"Futile...I am the Ultimate Reploid." High-MAX spread his arms wide and began to create a large 'Death Ball'.
"You're nothing but a hunk of metal." Zero responded as he got into a hunched down stance and focused on his opponent's attack, taking only a moment to glance left and check up on Shield Sheldon's position.
The clam propped himself back up and yelled out angrily, "What's the big idea?! We're supposed to be-"
"You are an obstacle. Remove yourself." High-MAX remarked while firing his attack off at Zero, who cut it down in half with all his might.
"Obsta...?! Ghhhhhhh...! No no NO! Stop worrying about your pride and focus on protecting our master!" Sheldon cried out in vain, as High-MAX didn't even give him a glance. Then, stamping his feet on the ground a couple times, he tucked himself into a shell and flew straight into Zero's body.
The Hunter was thrown to the ground, taken completely by surprise by the assault. After recovering from the dizzying strike, Zero rolled right to avoid being smashed to bits by Sheldon hammering his shells down. Then he got on his feet and drew his Z-Saber back, leaping three feet away as Sheldon exclaimed, "I don't need High-MAX to take you down! I'll beat you and earn Gate's favor!"
"You're playing for the wrong team kid. But it's too late to change sides now." In the time it took for him to speak, Zero charged his Z-Saber full of energy and sliced it out. Sheldon swung his arms out and his shells converted into a four-directional energy shield. When Zero's attack struck the frontal shield it was absorbed and reflected back in the form of a swift firing energy bolt.
The Hunter became exasperated as the bolt struck his chest and sent him flying all the way to the other side of the room, smashing right into the wall hard enough to form a crater. It took him a second to dislodge, but he landed on his knees.
"What the hell was that...?" Zero looked up, watching as Sheldon rammed at him once again. One quick roll evaded the attack, and as he stood up the Hunter tried to deduce what happened. High-MAX sent some projectiles his way to break his concentration, and Zero leapt away a couple times while spinning his sword to deflect any shots that strayed his way.
"Watch what you're doing you fools! I said to capture him ALIVE!" Isoc yelled out with growling frustration.
After a couple short hops, Zero registered what had happened to him and thought, "A reflector shield...Of course!"
Planting both feet on the ground, the Hunter darted straight for Shield Sheldon with his blade swung down at the left of his hip. Sheldon threw his left then right hand out to try and toss his shields, but as the left one flew off Zero approached him from the right and swung his blade straight up. In a flash the clam's weakened arm was cleaved off, and the shield flew skyward.
"AAAAAAHHH!" Sheldon's scream was shrill and glass-shattering, with him then twisting his head towards Zero and saying, "I won't fail! I wo-"
The edge of the Z-Saber penetrated the right of Sheldon's nape and began to cut through it as though it were as delicate as water. Zero was leaving nothing to chance, he was pushing his body to it's absolute limits to ensure he'd succeed. In silence, Sheldon's head was cleaved right off the shoulders, with Zero not even leaving him a parting comment.
A few projectiles pelted his back and caused him pain, but he turned right around and leapt up to grab the shell shield to protect himself from High-MAX's continuous barrage. Holding on with his feet bearing the brunt of the assault, Zero was impressed by how well the shield held up under pressure.
"Don't have much time, have to figure this out fast!" Zero connected with the shield in a couple of seconds and tried to analyze it's inner workings while Isoc watched on with a smile brightening his face.
"Fascinating..." He murmured, turning his attention towards High-MAX as the Reploid charged a 'Death Ball'.
"Cowering behind a weakling's defenses will not save you, Zero..." High-MAX launched the sphere straight forth with a thrust of the hands, but with a smirk Zero fought back with a sharp retort, "You shouldn't have underestimated your comrade's power!"
In perfect sync with the shield, Zero caused it to transform into an energy field like how Sheldon utilized it. The 'Death Ball' was absorbed into the field and reflected back at High-MAX in the form of a massive energy bolt. Struck dead center in the chest, High-MAX was dropped to the ground with sparks and steam shooting from the creases in his frame.
"D-Damaged...again...? Impossible...I am supposed to be...perfect...!" High-MAX's voice showed the beginning signs of frustration as he tried with all his might to stand up.
Zero flung the shield back and swung his blade out to the right as he walked towards the Reploid, "You may call yourself the Ultimate Reploid..."
He raised his blade up high and charged it as full of energy as it would take, causing it the blade to expand and tower towards the ceiling. As the ground trembled and High-MAX's eyes widened, Zero grit his teeth tight and roared, "But you're nothing more than another Maverick!"
With a thunderous cry of 'ITTOURYOUDAN', Zero unleashed a massive cresent wave of energy upon his target. High-MAX froze up, letting out a harrowing scream as the energy consumed his body, assaulting him with the equivalent sharpness of a thousand knives. After five seconds has passed, everything went silent. High-MAX was left with a clean cleave down the center of his body. He hadn't been penetrated through all the way, but his inner workings were so torn apart that there was no way he'd be able to move on his own.
And as a matter of fact, gravity offered a helping hand in dragging his hefty frame right to the ground.
Zero took a couple steps forward and made certain his foe had been vanquished. Close examination of High-MAX's body would have to wait, as a slow and methodical clap drew his attention left towards the approaching Isoc.
"Hehehehe...HAHAHAHA!" Isoc was overcome with immense glee, the smile across his face more white and shiny than the rest of his body.
"What's so funny?" Zero thrust his blade up at the scientist, who still walked towards him without a hint of fear in his expression.
"How could I not be amused Zero? X struggled so hard just to try and put a dent in High-MAX, but you not only defeated him but one of our Investigators at the same time! It...it's just so hard to contain myself after witnessing your magnificence first-hand!" Isoc swung his arms out and eyes were as wide as discs.
"Shut up..." Zero growled and took a couple steps closer, aiming the full intensity of his blade at Isoc's neck, "I'm taking you in for questioning! You've got a lot to answer for..."
"Well, since you're so intent on us spending time together, why don't we start now?" Isoc raised his brows and tucked his hands back, "Aren't you curious to know why I've chosen to work for Gate? Or perhaps you'd like to know my history? Or maybe...you're more interested in my name."
"...Save it, you're not getting questioned until we get back to HQ." Zero closed his eyes and groaned a little.
"Hehehehe...But of course. I guess you wouldn't be interested in my name...Cause you already know who I am, Zero..."
"...You're Isoc." Zero responded with a persisting sigh.
"No Zero. Say my real name. Come on now...we both know you pieced the truth together long ago. So humor me...and say it."
"Will you be quiet already?" Zero reached for his helmet and remarked, "Alia, what's taking so long?"
"The interference from High-MAX is taking some time to disappear. Just give me another minute and I'll be able to bring you both back."
"A whole minute? See Zero? You don't have an excuse not to say my name...it'll be over in a nanosecond." Isoc tilted his head down and smirked. Zero now resorted to complete and utter silence, but his glare turned cross. Humored, Isoc leaned his head back and raised his right brow.
"Are you afraid Zero? Afraid of what you truly are...? I can give you all the answers you desire...all you have to do is say my name," Isoc's grin grew wide and thin, "No, don't just say my name. Scream it...scream it to the world!"
He whipped his right hand out and clasped the fingers together into a fist, "Let all the worthless humans and Reploids know just who has crawled his way out of HELL to claim his rightful place...as ruler of the entire world!"
Zero's knuckles tightened as he gripped the Z-Saber, his gaze shifting over to the console as the progress bar was now close to 100%. Looking back at Isoc, the scientist tucked his hand back and yelled, "SAY IT!"
"That's..." Zero bit his teeth down and leapt straight at Isoc with blade drawn back. Right as the progress bar filled up, he swung his blade down and exclaimed, "ENOUGH!"
Isoc threw his left hand up without looking the Hunter's way. In a millisecond, Zero was frozen in suspended animation within a containment field made of pure laser energy.
"Just as I predicted. I know your programming inside and out Zero...did you honestly think I wouldn't have been able to come up with a means of restraint?" Isoc's lips twisted into a cocky smirk, and he drew his hand back into the pockets of his lab coat. Zero could only focus on him with a persisting scowl until the scientist had walked around him and gone over to High-MAX.
"As fun as it would be to take you back, I know I don't have the time to spare now...Lest I deal with the wrath of that antiquated piece of junk, X." Isoc laid his hand down on High-MAX's back and glanced over his right shoulder as sparks of light surrounded the two of them.
"But if you still have any interest Zero, then come and find me once you've finished your time out. I'll be more than eager to answer any questions you may have...Ehehehe!" In a flash of light, the two were gone, and Zero could do nothing but growl with fury until it swiftly tired him out.
"That technology...It's built to function around your specific hardware. I'm...sorry to say Zero, but there's nothing I can do to free you. But the good news is, it will be deactivated within an hour."
With little else to do but reflect on his own thoughts, Zero closed his eyes and hoped that X would be able to finish the Investigators off, while around him the entire world began to be shaken by a terrible, terrible tremor...
Next Time: Selfishness