[AUTHOR'S NOTE]
And we continue on! I'm still on a roll for writing! Enjoy! And I'm sure you will get the X6 to X8 references. And some of Classic Megaman too. Megaman 11 was a good game, seriously.
Chapter 24: A Betrayal
"Wha – what was that …?" A human soldier among his contigent muttered. Everyone felt the tremor from within Area Zero. "It's been 30 minutes … why haven't we received any orders from our superiors yet?"
"An energy signature of massive proportions was just detected from within the area … and it's gone, just like that. No wait, I detect five now, same as before." A Hunter muttered from his screen outside. "X and Zero are fine. Plus Axl. And the two Mavericks are there!"
The atmosphere was uncertain. Both humans and Reploid continued to brave the snows.
"What!? What is the meaning of this!? Why are you going against the plan!?" Shou flustered.
"Isn't it obvious?" Zero clenched his grip on Shou a little more. "These Mavericks have set you up. Whoever their creator is, he or she has been playing you and your human friends for fools. You guys were used to build these fellows and, I take it, cause the Maverick incidences we had to face recently. Especially after our quarantine."
"This Hunter is smart." Adel smirked. "Our master has long wanted to feign revenge on the human you call Prez, and he merely used you the moment you humans wanted to cooperate with him. Hehe. You all allowed yourself to be led by our master's words, and now that we're built … we don't need you anymore."
"You … you … inconceivable!" Shou could only stutter. "You're dooming us all into Corp control even more down the line! How could you!?"
Agmar showed his arm cannon and projected an image from one of its blue crystals. "You get to see this, human. Thankfully you never deleted any data the master gave you to build us."
The hologram was initially static, but then stabilized to show an image of a man with thick glasses, messy hairdo, and a sneaking face. Something inside Axl stirred. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was overwhelming him. He tried to mentally calm down, but this swell of anger just won't stop for some reason. Stop it, stop it, stop it, he thought inwardly.
Axl … it's me. Don't worry, I'm not taking over … yet. Let's just watch what this human scum has to say. He recognized that voice. It was Lumine. Bro?! You're here!? He thought inwardly. Come on, Axl, back in the Hunter HQ, how did you think those Mechaniloids that had orders from me to stop you from leaving suddenly stopped doing as they were told to?
D – don't do anything outrageous okay? Axl thought inwardly again. Then again, this … is the human who corrupted you, and … made me go over … to Red Alert.
"Well, well, if Agmar is playing this viddy, that means it's time to turn the tables on those lousy humans." Holographic Bobby began. "Ha! HAHAHAH! Finally! You and Adel are to be the final instruments for me to inflict shame and dishonous back on Prez! And not for the same reasons these idiots agreed to work with my little plan to get revenge for the Wily line!"
Shou simply glared. He didn't bother to resist Zero's tough grip on him.
"For so many years, ever since childhood, Prez has always outdone me in so many aspects … all too common as my own family told me to that which happened almost 200 years ago. Dr Light has humiliated my ancestor Dr Wily so many times, the world has shunned anyone even remotely related to him! We had to endure hell, just because of what Dr Light and the man who supported Light's robotics and his lineage had done!"
"I tried my own take over plan after the Eurasia incident, but I had to stop that ridiculous rbot bearing my ancestor's personality first! Isoc will not do the job! I will! I first tried to humiliate Prez by making sure his precious new Reploid prototype was lost, but he emerged stronger with tht new creepy sickening Reploid of his! My plans were heading nowhere!"
Axl knew the hologram was referring to himself and Lumine as his replacement.
"But that numbskull Sigma had to come back from the dead thanks to his supporters which the Hunters had failed to eradicate for the past 50 years! Hunters, Mavericks, humans! Who cares about them! Everyone is guilty of shaming me and my ancestors to no end simply because we were related to Wily's brother and his name! What injustice!"
"The biggest person who embodies all these faults … Prez. And by taking him down, I will take down the entire human race as well! GRAHAHAH!" The Hunters and Shou could clearly see Bobby was deranged beyond repair. "The humans played their little game with the Jakob project, Sigma returns and his lackeys tried to hijack it? Of course! Just play along!"
"All I had to do was double corrupt that sickening Reploid to my cause! Why!? He had most of the cards that will aloow me to purge the human race on the Moon and on Earth, that's why! It's only natural since Prez still had the majority hand in everything! All I had to do was make him listen to me behind the scenes! That's all! GAHAHAHAH!"
"But … it failed … Prez got the upper hand again, quarantining all of us on Earth … so, my children, it's up to you." The hologram Bobby looked around. "Once you've settled in the newer gen bodies I managed to smuggle, thanks to the help of those silly humans, turn on them! Let the haywire device go free! If that fails … use the ultimate insult. That should be good enough if all fails. Perform the ultimate insult and goad that white Reploid into battle! Fight him! Kill him! Prez Corp and everyone on Earth will die by your hands!"
"How do you like it, Prez!? Take that! The Wily line will prevail over you now, if not in the past whereby your ancestor and Dr Light humiliated my ancestor and his family!"
The hologram Bobby laughed further maniacally, and the video ended. Agmar smirked at everyone before him. "It's not the end yet. You will see us again!"
"Wait, hold it there!" Zero let go of Shou and tried to chase after Agmar. Shou hurriedly crawled away to the edge of the chamber. Adel instantly flew off and Axl and X tried to give chase. "Get back here, you!" Both X and Axl unleashed their charged shots and bullet rain.
"Tell your Reploid brother he's free to get all the humans that besmirched your human creator. We're not so lowly as some human to taint his person. We have other interesting and honourable ways. HAHAH! Farewell!"
Adel swung her rapier in all directions possible, sending energy waves and causing bigger explosions everywhere. Zero's fight with Agmar was cut short, causing Agmar being able to deliver a last kick to Zero in the chest and able to escape as well.
The smoke settled down. X searched around and found Axl and Zero. The entire chamber was still fine. Adel and Agmar were gone. "Drat … at least we got the human –"
"Hii! Help help!" Shou crept out of his corner and tried to head to the nearest door he thought was operable. Axl felt a pound inside him. His vision receded, and he was not in control.
"Don't try to run." The exceedingly-cold voice of Lumine downed over Shou, as he grabbed the human, clearly fearful for his life, and looked down angrily and his eye was beaming a fierce red colour. "I saw everything. Don't think you and your friends will get away."
"But – but – the Prez Corp has always been excessive! You're just a Reploid who's maybe only 15, 20 years old! You don't know what we humans have been through under your creator before you were made!" Shou was at first afraid, but then tried to be gutsy.
"I know your secrets, mister Shou. Do you believe I will simply ignore the massive amount of bribes you took from those same humans before the Jakob project?" Lumine bit his own lip. "Do you want me to recite every single conversation you had –"
"I GIVE, I GIVE! You win! You … win …" Shou found himself a dead man. "My friends … we lost … we're under this Reploid's thumb forever …" He cried on the spot.
"I will make the Federation turn that Temporary Act into a permanent one, if you're curious. But don't worry, everyone else on Earth will know this. And … I will deal with you just the same as how father dealt with your kind all this while. Your heads are mine."
Before Axl (inwardly) and X and Zero could do anything, Lumine gave two punches to Shou's face and flung him cruelly over to the edge of the chamber. The human groaned and was then unconscious. Lumine wanted to pace over to Shou, but X firmly stopped him.
"That's too much! Stop it!" X protested. "There's no need to hurt him anymore!"
"Hmph." The white Reploid grunted, showing a face of disregard and anger. "I know. But a few more won't hurt since … his end is coming. I made sure Iris deals with them all."
L – Lumine? Axl muttered. Um … uh … aside the fact it's amazing to see half of your vision in clear and in purple, due to your hair blocking half my vision … are you okay? P – please … don't get any more angrier … The white Reploid felt shivering inside him.
"Axl …" He said softly at first. "Ah, so you transferred over to Axl's body and silently took over." X commented. "He – he's fine, X. Don't worry." Lumine stopped his angry face and sighed calmly. "I just needed to see this all for myself. That's all."
"Ah, Zero, don't bother looking around. Every single evidence of those Mavericks and the humans that banded together in this room is gone, no thanks to that Sigma body explosion." He sensed what the red Reploid was thinking. "We should get going."
"L – leave those two Mavericks to us." Zero started. "Adel and Agmar, was it? The final creations of the human who recently caused the Maverick outbreaks. We will get him for you. It's here, I can sense it. The end to all this needless fighting …"
"I really appreciate your sentiment, I do." Lumine smiled weakly. "Now, if you don't mind, I have to get back to the Corp. Axl, I will issue instructions to have you free to join other Hunters to fight and deal with any possible Maverick from here on. Don't worry. I really want to make things better from now on. Just the way it should've been when father ended his quanratine of the human and Reploid races not too long ago. See you around."
His form warped in white, and Axl found himself back. His head stirred, and he knew his brother had left. "Well … that was something. I find it odd … actually, dad said he already dealt with Bobby – their human creator – a long while back …"
Suddenly, X's commlink buzzed. "Hello? X here."
"Alia here. We just got orders that all human soldiers, Reploid soldiers and the Hunters are to move in and clear out Area Zero of any possible item of significance, but only on your mark, X." Her voice said aloud. "Are we clear? And Axl is not in HQ …"
"We got him covered." Zero turned on his commlink. "He helped a lot, actually."
Axl sighed with a guilty smile. "I'm not sure abou that though …"
"We're good. Bring them in. X out." The Reploid muttered before signing out.
It was merely an hour since Adel and Agmar's confrontation in Big City earlier. The three Hunters slowly made their way out of the Eurasia ruins, and humans and Reploids alike entered the ruins to secure everything. Of course, Axl found himself dragging Shou out.
The police secured a beaten-down Shou. X curiously noted the presence of construction labourers alongside the regiment of Hunters. He surmised that Lumine would want to blow up this site and convert for some industrial or whatever use.
It was busy around Arcrik Zone. The few passersby who dared to take note of what's happening quickly ran as soon as they came. The cold wind and snow bellowed over this settlement. Zero's commlink then buzzed.
"We've managed to identify the energy signature of those two Mavericks properly." Layer said over the commlink. "They're hidden for now, but we've devised a plan so that our Hunters will confront them the instant we find that."
Zero sighed, as he looked at Axl sitting on the tarmac with snow and grinned and laughed at X. X was verbally lecturing him on something, but Axl must've felt very relieved to not want to pay attention and play with X instead. "Glad to hear it."
"Is it over? Or at least, will it be over soon?" Layer asked over the commlink.
"I take it that it will." Zero remarked. "Pretty soon, I'm sure of it."