CHAPTER 11
Destiny
X, Lina and Ina continued their uninterrupted dash through the halls, just as Nightwolf had instructed. When they passed the final door they came into a room the size of a half-court. They looked around in confusion.
"Was this here before?," asked X.
"This wasn't anywhere in the O.B.S. blueprints," said Lina.
"That's because I built it," said Mackwell suddenly.
He was standing in front of the door at the other end of the room, standing tall and confident.
"Mackwell!," said X.
"I'd love to mess around with you for awhile, X," said Mackwell, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "But there are far more pressing matters to attend to. In the meantime, you'll have to entertain yourselves with these new playmates."
Suddenly multiple beams appeared in front of Mackwell, and the entire R.L.F. hierarchy materialized in front of them; Wreck, Violet, Trax, the Firestorm Bros., Swordsman, even Strikewind.
"See how you can handle these copies," said Mackwell. "They have everything the original ones had, except for the emotions." He waved at the trio and left the room. The door closed behind him.
"Ah, crap!," said Ina. "We'll waste too much time if we deal with them now!"
"And the O.B.S. will be ready to fire soon!," said Lina.
"We don't have a choice," said X. "We'll have to fight through them."
"You shouldn't," said Marduk.
His sudden appearance startled the three, who were certain he was dead. More surprising was seeing him drop Strikewind's wings from his back.
"But how--?," asked Lina.
"Strikewind saved me," said Marduk. "X, leave them to me. You don't have the time to waste fighting them now."
"But Marduk," said X.
"Please X," Marduk said. "This is the only way I can make amends for what I've done, for my mistakes."
"Thank you, Marduk," said X.
Marduk nodded. He looked at Ina. He seemed to want to say something, but once again remained silent. He turned instead to Lina.
"I'm sorry, Lina," said Marduk. "And thank you, for always believing in me."
"Master Marduk," said Lina shakily.
"Please, just Marduk," said Marduk, patting her head and smiling kindly. "You know I don't like being called 'Master.'"
Lina nodded. She sniffed loudly and managed a sad smile. "Right. Take care, Marduk"
"Now go, all of you," said Marduk as he faced the copies of his former comrades. He took out his claws. "I'll hold them off." He charged. All the others charged at him, leaving the door wide open. X and the other two dashed past the door without looking back. Marduk smiled under his mask. He was holding everyone's fists and weapons with his arms.
"And now," he said. He spread out his arms and knocked them all back. "Come and get me!" They all charged again. As they got nearer, many thoughts raced through Marduk's mind.
He had once told Dr. Light that he wasn't angry at the humans, but now he realized he was lying to himself.
I was angry, he thought as dodged Wreck's massive fists. He ran up his arm and cut off his head. Wreck's body fell limply on the floor. I was angry because I felt betrayed. Violet multiplied herself, and Marduk destroyed all the holograms and Violet herself with his shoulder cannons.
The humans had betrayed me, even after all the sacrifices I had made, all the friends I had lost. He dodged Swordsman's swings and kicked him back. Strikewind flew from behind him and rammed in on the back with his shoulder, knocking him to the ground. He stood up. I blinded myself into thinking that I fought for a just cause, when all I really wanted was revenge.
He blocked Trax's shots with his arms and punched back Tigerflame. Tigerwind grabbed him in mid-air and they both stood facing Marduk. He found himself surrounded. And because of my blindness, I sacrificed so many. I sacrificed those that believed in me, oblivious to the truth. Trax charged him. Marduk sidestepped his charge and cut Trax down. Trax exploded.
"Not anymore," he said. "With this, I will make my amends." He faced the remaining enemies. Memories of Ina suddenly came to mind. Back at that island, back at that failure of self. "I'll never sacrifice another life, be it human or reploid, for my goals! From now on, if anyone will die, it'll be me!" They all charged at him.
X, Ina, and Lina entered a very large and empty room. It was half the size of a football field, and the ceiling was so high up it seemed nonexistent.
"What the hell?," asked Ina. The door behind them closed down and an automatic lock could be heard securing it.
"Where's the control room?," asked Lina.
"Over there!," said X, pointing at the lone door on the eastern side.
"Why hello there, X," said Mackwell, who had appeared apparently from nowhere to stand in the middle of the large chamber. "I gotta admit, I didn't think Marduk would actually survive and come to help you."
"Damn it," said Ina. The trio got their guard up.
"Well, Lina, what are you waiting for?," asked Mackwell. "Aren't you supposed to stop the countdown?"
"What?," asked Lina.
"The control room's right there," said Mackwell. "If you can stop the countdown from here, then all the O.B.S. will stop."
"Why are you telling us this?," asked X.
"Because I know," said Mackwell with an arrogant smile.
"Know what?," asked Ina.
"That no matter how hard Lina tries, she'll never make it."
"We'll see," said X. "Go," he told Lina. "You can stop it. I know you can."
Lina nodded and dashed into the control room. Inside, she took out her wires and got them through the consoles into the mainframe. Now inside the computer, she began to hack the extremely difficult encryption codes. Now even she wasn't sure that she could make it.
But I have to try, she thought determinedly.
"What do you hope to gain from all this?," X asked Mackwell.
"Not hope, X, but will."
"What?"
"It's really quite simple. It's Marduk's dream, but much grander. I plan to ensure the future of both Reploidkind and Humankind."
"By destroying them?!," asked Ina disgusted. "Just what kind of future is that?!"
"Evolution has always followed destruction," said Mackwell. "When the dinosaurs ended, the mammals were free to evolve and expand. I plan to do the same. With humans and reploids gone, the world will be free to accept its new future."
"What are you talking about?," asked Ina.
"Your arm, Ina," said Mackwell. "Your arm is an example of this new future. Your arm is the pinnacle of all my work. I discovered that humans could never evolve more than we already are; we've reached the peak of our evolution. The same truth applies to reploids; the awakening of a conscious and the power to choose freely is the peak of reploid evolution. The only way for both to continue forward is through the interchanging of parts. The organic parts in the reploids takes them one step closer to achieving humanity, while the mechanical parts will allow us humans to reach unprecedented levels of physical and mental abilities."
"But killing off the entire world isn't the answer!," said X. "You can't toy with billions of lives just because you think it's the proper step for evolution!"
Mackwell scoffed. "You really are Dr. Light's creation, aren't you?"
"What?"
"He said the exact same thing." Mackwell began to glow an eerie white light. A mysterious wind that seemed to come from him made his lab coat flutter wildly. "I was hoping you'd understand better, but it seems Light did a better job on you than I hoped."
Ina fired, interrupting the tense atmosphere. Mackwell smiled. He placed his right hand in front of him and sent an EMP1 shockwave. The missile suddenly bucked and struck the wall behind him, exploding harmlessly.
"Did you really think it would be that easy?," asked Mackwell. "I built the damn arm you're using, and that launcher." He clenched his fists and charged. "Didn't you think I'd use that same technology on myself?!"
He jumped up high in the air and fell like a missile on top of the duo. The two jumped out of the way as Mackwell's foot crashed right into the floor. X fired. Mackwell dodged the shots as he charged for X. He kicked X under the chin and sent him airborne. He grabbed his foot and tossed him against the wall. He launched another EMP wave that sent X screaming through the wall. Ina charged behind him, her right arm raised and her veins throbbing. Mackwell did a simple sidestep and grabbed Ina's right arm. He placed his middle and index fingers into her arm joint. Ina suddenly stopped. She began to make choking sounds.
"I built this weakness into the joint too, you know," he said with his sardonic smile. "Right now I blocked off two arteries from the rest of you body. You'll choke on your own blood in a matter of minutes."
Ina coughed out blood just as he finished this sentence. Then, suddenly, a buster shot went right through Mackwell. Circuits, blood, and gore splattered all over Ina. Mackwell looked back in shock, letting go of Ina.
"D-damn it," said Mackwell. "H-how did you survive the… EMP?"
"Did you forget?," X asked, and he smiled confidently. "I'm Maverick Hunter X."
Mackwell took four staggering steps back. Lina ran out of the control room.
"X, we have a problem!," said Lina. "I can't deactivate the O.B.S. from here!"
"What?!" asked X.
Mackwell laughed weakly. "D-did you… really think I'd… let something that simple… just slip?" He shook his head. "You… ran past your… only chance… a while ago."
They all remained silently puzzled for a moment, then gasped. The same thought went through their heads. Mary!
"Mackwell!," X said angrily.
Mackwell laughed. "You're… running… out of time. Mary… is too s-strong to… lose against… Nightwolf."
"Why don't you just shut up and die?!," said a furious Ina.
"Me… die?" Mackwell laughed even louder. He spread out his legs a little and stretched his arms to either side. "Me?! A living god?!"
His glow brightened to such an extent that they were actually blinded. Mackwell began to transform. His glasses shattered to pieces. His eyes began to turn entirely blue. A cruel and sleek-looking reploid armor burst from within his skin. His face was covered with a helmet that had demonic looking horns. His fingers became sharp metallic claws. Mackwell laughed maniacally.
"What the hell are you?!," asked Ina.
"I am the one that will lead the new era!," said Mackwell. "My new species shall dominate the world, just as nature intended it!" His chest plate opened, revealing a small, blue orb. "Now die, you relics of the past!" Mackwell fired a large, blue beam of energy straight for the trio. X stood in front of the others and summoned a bubble of energy that covered the three of them. A large explosion that rocked the O.B.S. occurred. The smoke cleared, and Mackwell scoffed. "Of course," he said.
X was standing unscathed in front of the other two.
"That was Swordsman's power," said Lina. "The Bubble Shield."
"I should have known," said X. "You're just another megalomaniac that thinks he alone can change the world!"
"You just don't understand, X!," said Mackwell. "It is people like myself that have the only right to rule the world! Those who are willing to achieve their vision by whatever means! This is my destiny! Light could have become part of this destiny, he could have shared this glorious moment, but he was too soft! He relied too much on an individual's personal ability to learn and evolve!" He pointed at X. "You are the embodiment of that naïve dream! Destroying you will be the herald of my new age!" He charged X. He swung down his claws at him. Just as he did though, Marduk dashed from the other room and kicked him back. Mackwell flipped and landed on his feet.
"You're okay!," said X.
"You didn't really think I'd lose against my own underlings, did you? Especially bad copies of them?"
"Guess not," said X with a smile.
"Now, I believe you were fighting Mackwell before I came," said Marduk.
"Yeah," said X, now staring at Mackwell. Even though they couldn't see his face, they could tell quite clearly from his eyes that he was boiling with rage.
"When will any of you understand?!," asked Mackwell. "You can't win!"
"If I had a dime for every time I heard that," said X. He fired a charged shot as Marduk charged.
Mackwell summoned an electromagnetic shield that deflected the beam. He blocked Marduk's claws with his own. He slashed at Marduk ferociously. Marduk almost danced around Mackwell to avoid being cut by the claws. X fired again. Mackwell jumped out of the way. Marduk jumped after Mackwell. They both got caught in close-combat midair. Ina fired a missile. Mackwell kicked Marduk back and fired at the missile with his orb beam. X dashed towards Ina and took her to safety, away from the blast. Lina used her wires and wrapped them around Mackwell, then pulled down and slammed him against the ground. Marduk dropped on Mackwell, his left fist drawn back with his claws out. He punched down and hit only ground as Mackwell rolled out of the way. Mackwell got back up and fired small, multiple missiles at everybody from his back. They all dashed to dodge them.
"Damn it!," said Ina.
"He's so strong it's unbelievable!," said Lina alarmed.
"We still have to try!," said Marduk. "We can't let him get away with the deaths of so many people!"
"That's right!," said X. "No matter how long it takes, we will defeat him!"
Mackwell laughed. "You're all too much, really. You should know by now." He shouted furiously, "YOU CAN'T WIN!!!" He dashed towards them again.
Nightwolf stood a good distance from Mary. The entire hallway was slashed almost to ribbons because of their fight. Nightwolf had felt the O.B.S. shake twice already, and he was worried that something might have happened to the others. Mary was, on the other hand, calmly approaching him, holding her parasol like a sword.
"This was a lot of fun," said Mary with her disturbing sweetness and serenity. "But I'm afraid I have to end this battle now. I need to go back to Mackwell."
"You won't go anywhere so long as I'm alive," said Nightwolf.
"I know," said Mary, and she suddenly dashed towards Nightwolf.
Nightwolf slashed at Mary's neck with his pole axe, but she had already ducked under his attack. She turned her parasol around and drew out a hidden laser blade from the other end of her parasol, cutting open Nightwolf's abdomen. She then opened her mouth and fired a powerful red beam of energy that went right through Nightwolf. He slid back a good five feet, but amazingly, he remained standing.
"It's over for you, Mr. Wolf," said Mary with her sweet smile.
Nightwolf began to laugh.
"What's so funny?," asked Mary.
"I see now," he said. He laughed again. "You really are a weakling."
"What?"
"An attack that weak could never have killed the general." He looked up at her with contempt. "Never."
"What are you--?" She gasped. Nightwolf's wounds were healing rapidly, until he looked brand new. "No."
"So tell me," said Nightwolf. "Just what is Mackwell anyway?"
Mary blinked.
"There's no way he can be Giovanni's son," said Nightwolf. "So who is he?"
Mary shook her head. "He is Giovanni's son," said Mary.
"The hell he is," said Nightwolf. "He was born after Jason died."
Mary smiled. "Did you forget that the corpses were never really found?," she asked.
"What?"
"Giovanni is the son of Jason Mackwell. When he was born, he was kept hidden from the public for a long time."
"Why?," Nightwolf asked.
"Because no one would have understood his existence," said Mary.
"What?"
"Giovanni is the very embodiment of Jason's beliefs. From birth he was fused with reploid technology through the use of forbidden science. Since his appearance would have shocked the world, he was left in a tank until his skin fused with the rest of his body."
"And you?," Nightwolf asked.
"I was created to be his mother," said Mary. "It's why I was created in his biological mother's image."
"Why would Jason experiment on his own son?," Nightwolf asked. "If you ask me, that's not exactly real parenting."
Mary chuckled. "He is what he is because he has been chosen to lead the new world."
"The new world, huh?," Nightwolf asked.
"Yes, a world of beings just like him," said Mary. "Our species will finally evolve, and Mackwell will be the head of this new future, and I shall stand by his side in the shadows as his guardian."
"What a load of crap," said Nightwolf.
"What?," Mary asked.
"I've had it up to here with all this philosophy," Nightwolf said annoyed. "Evolution, destiny, beliefs." He scoffed. "It's all worthless in the end."
Mary flinched.
"What all of you radicals always seem to forget is that X is alive," Nightwolf said, getting into his fighting stance. "His entire existence is based entirely on destroying psychopaths like you. So long as he lives, you will never succeed."
"Bastard," said Mary, her face suddenly losing some of its serenity.
"Now come, Little Red Riding Hood," said Nightwolf. "Come to the big, bad wolf."
Mary charged again, and slashed off his helmet. What she saw made her want to scream.
Under his helmet was a metallic skull, shaped exactly like a human skull. He had two eyes, though only the left one glowed red. He had razor sharp metallic teeth. He leered at Mary. He looked like he had a permanent smile in his face.
"Surprised?," he asked.
Mary was shaking with fear. "Y-you monster!" She made to attack again, but Nightwolf grabbed both her arms and ripped them out. She let out a scream as blood oil drained from her arms and body. Nightwolf grabbed her by the throat and lifted her high.
"Do you know how the story of Little Red Riding Hood ended?," asked Nightwolf. He opened his mouth, his teeth gleaming menacingly. Mary let out a shriek of terror as Nightwolf bit down on her neck.
The group was lying around Mackwell after he had unleashed a shockwave attack that knocked them back. They all shakily stood up. Mackwell growled in frustration.
"When will you give it a break?," asked Mackwell. "It's obvious at this point that you won't win!"
"No," said X. "If we can still fight, we can still win."
Mackwell growled. "You stubborn bastards."
"Hey," said Lina. "It stopped."
"What stopped?," asked Marduk from the other side.
"The countdown," said Lina. "It's already past the time limit, and it hasn't fired."
"What?!," asked Mackwell. She was right of course, but he hadn't noticed till now. "Mary!," he called in his headset. No response. "Mary, answer me, damn it!"
"That's our win," said Marduk.
"It looks like it," said X.
"Mary!," called Mackwell desperately, ignoring them. Suddenly the door hissed open, and Nightwolf entered, holding his pole axe in his right hand and another, more shocking item in his left.
"I'm afraid she won't answer you," said Nightwolf. He lifted her head, which he was holding in his left hand. "I'm afraid she left ahead of things."
"Mary," said Mackwell in horror. Nightwolf threw the head at Mackwell, which landed on his feet. Mackwell picked it up and pressed it against his chest.
"She was a good girl," said Nightwolf. "Good enough to eat," he added maliciously, his left eye glowing brightly.
"No," Mackwell sobbed. "Mary, you were supposed to be my guardian. You were supposed to live for me." He remembered how Mary always watched over him back when he was still a child and was unable to go out to the world. She was the only one to ever show him true kindness. He felt an upsurge of anger and hatred inside of him just then.
"Damn it, that's just wrong," said Ina.
"You think this is funny?!," asked Mackwell furiously, who was holding Mary's head close to his chest. "You bitch?!"
He fired his claws at her. Everyone was taken by surprise. Marduk did the first thing that came to mind. He dashed at high speed, and stood in front of the incoming claws, facing Ina. The claws all struck him in the back and almost came out the other way. Ina looked up in horror.
"Marduk!," she said. Then she noticed something. It something that brought her back to the C sector tragedy.
When she was looking at Marduk's face, she had thought he was expressionless. But then she remembered something. There had been something shining in his eyes.
Tears.
"I'm… glad," he said, tears rolling down his face. "I was… finally able… to protect… you."
"Marduk," said Ina.
"I'm… sorry… Ina," he said, finally saying what he couldn't tell her long ago. "I'm… sorry… I wasn't there… to protect you before. All… I did… was hurt you… more."
"No," said Lina.
"Good… bye… Ina." His mask fell off his face, revealing a sad smile. Mackwell reconnected with his claws behind Marduk and slashed him to pieces.
"Marduk!," screamed Ina.
"Die," said Mackwell. "Die, and take all your ideals with you."
Lina threw her wires and wrapped them around Mackwell's arms. Nightwolf charged and slashed his chest plate, revealing the orb that he had been hidden. The impact also turned him around facing X.
"Now!," shouted Nightwolf.
X fired a fully charged blast that struck the orb squarely in the middle. Mackwell screamed in pain and was sent back flying. When he collided against the wall, there was a tremendous explosion. Everyone waited with tense silence. Then, to their shock, Mackwell came out. He was clearly in bad shape, as his armor was cracked in various places and he was crackling electricity. His orb was gone, and a big gaping hole was all that remained.
"If… I can't… realize… my father's dream…" Said a dying Mackwell. "Then… I'll take you all… with me!" He suddenly glowed red, and the same gust of wind from before the transformation began to blow from him.
"He's self-destructing!," said Lina in alarm. X quickly aimed his buster at Mackwell.
"What are you going to do?!," asked Mackwell. "If you shoot me, the sudden shock might trigger the bomb! I don't doubt that you'll survive the explosion, but the others won't!" He laughed maniacally.
"Damn it!," said Nightwolf.
"What do I do?," asked X, his X-buster shaking. "If I fire, I could kill everyone here, and yet if I don't…"
If he didn't, the explosion could send the entire colony hurtling towards the Earth, and judging by the size of the O.B.S., whatever landmass this hits will be gone for good, thought Nightwolf. Damn that Mackwell.
"I want to be myself again," said Zero suddenly.
"Hmm?," asked the voice.
It took Zero a lot of soul-searching, but he finally came to the conclusion that it was worse to remain incomplete and having to deal with his other self constantly than becoming whole again and choosing a different path… if he could.
"I said I want to be myself again," said Zero.
"And you're certain of this decision?," asked the voice.
"I am," Zero said determinedly.
The voice chuckled. "I knew I could count on you, Zero," he said. Black Zero suddenly appeared in front of Zero.
"About time," said Black. "I was getting bored."
"So how do we do this?," asked Zero.
Black Zero just smiled. "Just relax," he said. He began to vanish. "It'll come on its own."
Zero suddenly felt an upsurge of power and freedom he had forgotten a long time ago. And with it came memories of his past, and the identity of the voice.
"Rockman," said Zero.
"The clock is ticking!," shouted Mackwell, laughing maniacally.
X was still indecisive. What should I do?, he wondered again.
Suddenly, an alarm rang all around the O.B.S. Someone had activated the self-destruct sequence.
"But who?," asked Mackwell. A hidden door suddenly hissed open, and everyone watched Zero dash out of the door straight for Mackwell.
"It can't be!," said Mackwell.
Zero drew out his beam saber and slashed at Mackwell. It took two seconds for Mackwell to fall in two halves. He looked up at Zero weakly.
"Amazing," he said, a manic smile in his newly revealed face. "He was able to recover his original form so quickly." He closed his eyes. "This is… the true Zero. This is… Absolute… Zero." He exhaled one last time, and died.
"Zero!," X said happily, but his smile faltered as soon he saw Zero's unfamiliar eyes. He understood immediately. He talked to the others. "Everyone, leave!"
"What?," asked Ina.
"You have to go. Beam back to HQ if you can, but leave!"
"What about you?," Ina asked.
"I can't go," said X. Everyone looked back at Zero and understood.
"All right," said Nightwolf. "But don't you dare die on me." He pointed at X. "I might not let Vile influence me anymore, but that doesn't change anything. I will destroy your legend."
X nodded, and actually smiled. "I'll take you on anytime you want, Nightwolf."
Nightwolf remained silently impressed by this response. "Hmm," was all he could say in return. He turned to the others. "Let's go!," he said, and dashed out of the room, followed by Lina.
"Ina," said X. She turned and caught a pearl tied to a string that X had thrown at her. "Marduk told me to give you that earlier."
Ina looked at it silently for a moment, then closed her hand around it. "Thank you," she said. "Don't you dare die on us, X! We still need you at HQ!"
"Right!," said X. Ina dashed out of the chamber. He turned to Zero.
Maverick Hunter HQ
The entire headquarters was a buzz of activity. There had been reports that various transport beams had arrived just outside, and they all wanted to see if it was X. Axl was in front of the mob that accumulated outside. To his dismay, he found only Nightwolf, Ina, and an unknown reploid.
"What happened?," asked Axl. "Where's X and Zero?"
The three simply looked up.
"You mean, they're still there?," asked Axl, also looking up.
Ina suddenly coughed out blood and fell.
"Ina!," said the pink haired reploid, who caught her before she hit the ground. So did Axl. They're eyes met. They remained in a stunned silence for a moment.
"Who… are you?," asked Axl, sounding as though he were dazed.
"Lina," she said. "And you?"
"I'm Axl," he responded.
Ina scratched her throat loudly, shaking them off their trance.
"How about a little help, eh?," she asked annoyed. The last thing she needed was to die because a couple of love-struck reploids wouldn't take her to the infirmary fast enough.
"R-right!," said Axl. "I'll take you to the infirmary!"
"I'll come with you!," said Lina. Axl didn't object; quite the contrary, he almost seemed overjoyed.
They both dashed past Signas, who had just arrived.
"What was that about?," he asked.
"The usual," said Nightwolf, crossing his arms.
"Will X be alright?," Signas asked.
Nightwolf chuckled. "Of course he will," he said. He looked up at the sky, in the direction where he knew the O.B.S. was, where he knew the source of all his hatred and respect now fought for his life. "After all, legends never die."
1 EMP- Electro Magnetic Pulse- capable of messing with anything that might have an electric circuit on it.