MMX Fantasy Seiryu X (All rights to Megaman reserved by Capcom!)
It was just another morning for Zero, as he and his cousin Axl trek through their favorite forest.
This forest was located in the Kirifuri Highlands of Japan, at the height of its beauty now autumn had arrived. Axl leapt happily about the swirling leaves of vivid yellow, pumpkin orange, and blazing red. While Zero solemnly strolled behind him. Usually he would enjoy this time of year, but recent events had made him feel anything but relaxed.
The past few weeks had been a chaotic nightmare that Zero gave all his might to vanquish. Unknownst to his " younger cousin " Axl, he had unwittingly revealed his secret abilities to a scientist he had long forgotten as an enemy. Zero recognized who the scientist was too late after the encounter. Grounding Axl on the pretense that he neglected an important assignment, Zero had two weeks to throw their pursuer off their tails before the worse could happen. He exploited almost all his resources and pulled multiple strings to counteract their former tormentor.
After Zero commissioned Douglas to display holographic illusions to his enemy, on the claim that it was the latest technology reploids were using to disguise themselves. The scientist changed his mind on Axl and dismissed the reploid's so-called transformation abilities as advanced holographics. Axl didn't mean to cause trouble, Zero had cunningly kept his blunder a secret from him. The young boy felt deep guilt over the past two weeks despite the true cause eluding him. So Zero made it up to his cousin by taking him for a peaceful hike in the Kirifuri Highlands.
The look of joy emanating from Axl's face as he scampered ahead the trail brought relief to the older android. Yet the crimson hunter still couldn't shake off the feeling of uneasiness he bore. It seemed his and Axl's past were always after them, waiting in the shadows to pounce and drag them back to the harrowing depths they escaped from. He couldn't tell Axl the truth-he wished he could forget the bitter memories himself. Alas, it was wiser to hold onto those memories in case another such encounter occurred.
Suddenly, Axl excitedly swerved to the side and cried out, "Hey Zero! I thought I saw a deer!"
Zero snorted, "So what's the big deal? Their everywhere." Axl cocked his head replying, "But the one I spotted had a little green on his back...Hey! Do you think that deer was actually a kirin?!" Zero rolled his eyes in irritation, "Sure it was kid, and I bet there are kitsune out here too." Axl eyes sparkled from the thrilling possibility, "KITSUNE?! I didn't think of that! So, you think if we find one, I'll get a new shape-shifting buddy?!" Feverish excitement building up in him.
" That was sarcasm Axl! " Zero slapped his face in frustration when Axl began zipping around the area for the fabled creatures. When Axl realized Zero didn't mean it, he pouted, "Zero! Why are you always so cynical?!" His elder cousin scoffed, "Well one of us needs to be the realistic one here." "I'm sure there's a fine line between realism and just being plain cynical." Axl huffed. The night-colored reploid dashed over to a tree and hopped onto one of the low hanging branches. Zero's blazing mane of hair flew wildly in the cool wind as he joined the youngster under the tree.
Axl kicked his legs casually as he eyed the older android below him. Then he thoughtfully said, "I know kirin and kitsune can't really exist but, wouldn't it be nice if they did?" Zero sighed heavily and answered, "I know the possibility of fantasy being reality looks shiny and all. However, we should be grateful it doesn't exist." Axl gaped, appalled by such a cold answer.
Yet Zero continued, "If there is one thing I've learned from our ancestors' legends, its to stay clear of anything supernatural! The beings of folklore seem to spell nothing but trouble for the thick-skulled humans who encounter them! How many times do we hear the death of innocent children from the bloodthirsty kappa?! Or yet hear another scam on the behalf of tanukis or kitsune?! Might I mention the numerous incidents where some lustful moron dies by the hands of a jorogumo?! And I'm sure its not the brightest idea in the world to wander the icy mountains with Yuki-onna on the loose! I could create an entire library dedicated to the misfortune of running headlong into the supernatural. I doubt there is an end to the list of macabre creatures only interested in using their powers to make our lives more miserable than they are. Whenever I hear of the myths, I'm just relieved that they aren't real because dealing with mavericks is difficult enough for me! "
" ZERO! " Axl protested to his cousin's rant, "You seriously can't believe its all about monsters and malicious villains!" "Well it is, isn't it?" Zero challenged. But Axl pointed out, "Sure sometimes the people from the folktales are bad guys. But there are a lot of good people too! Amaterasu is the benevolent sun goddess who cares about everyone and the imperial family wouldn't have existed without her!" "I'm still dubious about where the imperial bloodline's true origins lie." Zero commented. Axl sighed and went on, "Kirin are nice creatures who appear when some awesome ruler is going to be born. Byakko is good too, along with Genbu, Suzaka, and Seiryu! Komainu ward off evil spirits, namazu fend for the working class, baku eat nightmares, and not all kitsune and tanukis use their powers to hurt others!"
Zero considered Axl's perspective and sighed, "Ok, I'll admit that some supernatural beings decided to play nice. But whether the stories ended horribly or happily, its not sufficient proof that those creatures actually existed. " Axl pouted, feeling kind of let down by the stark reality. Zero immediately clamped up, feeling somewhat guilty from extinguishing his cousin's enthusiasm. The kid didn't have much, and the hunter life was too gruesome for him sometimes. Sure, videogames, manga, and roughing it out in nature worked as escapes from the real world. Sadly, they could not always keep the creeping and heart-piercing horrors of modern day at bay.
Before Zero could speak-Axl suddenly brightened for he caught sight of the thick, brown hide of a ussuri bear. "Hey! A bear! First dibs on a ussuri selfie!" The hyperactive hunter scurried off to catch up with the bear. "Axl! Get back here! You're not allowed to disturb the wildlife!" The older hunter ran after him. Axl burst through the trees to find the bear-only to trip over a rock which caused him to roll down the steep slope! "YYYYAAAAAAUUUUURRRGGGHHHH!" Axl cried out as his descent picked up speed! "AXL!" Zero activated his thrusters to chase after him down the slope.
The reckless kid braced himself as he crashed into brittle tree, bounced off sharp rocks, and rolled in the numerous fallen leaves and pebbles. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" A large boulder smoothly shaped into a ramp came up ahead- and Axl veered off it. "GYA!" He landed with a soft thud as Zero skidded down besides him. "Kid, your alright?!" Axl groaned as he creakily sat up. His armor was caked with dirt and pasted with leaves, a few twigs were even trapped in his spiky hair. "I'm alive I guess, but I missed the bear." He winced a bit from the failed effort.
Zero knelt down eye level to the scuffled junior, "Do you know what else you missed?" Axl stared at Zero in a confused daze-than his cousin slapped him. "Ow!" Axl exclaimed as he held a stinging cheek. "Some common sense!" Zero scolded. He turned his head to the other direction-only to freeze. Axl noticed, "Zero?!..." "Kid, do not look to your right." Unfortunately Axl was prompted to turn to Zero's direction and gasped at what he saw.
Lying vulnerably on the ground was a cyan colored humanoid shape, and the tell-tale signs of staggering breathing meant it was still alive. Zero backed away from it and prepared to teleport both of them out of there. "Zero...what is it?" "I don't know..." Zero whispered as he reached for his trusty Z-Saber. He cautiously tread to where the mysterious figure laid. He scratched the escape plan earlier because he realized that unidentifiable humanoids shouldn't be wandering the Kirifuri Highlands-and possibly endangering the visiting public. He inspected the body, an even worse mess than Axl. Multiple scars, bruises, and disturbing blood marks over the body, all caked with mud and leaves.
Axl hurried to Zero's side, "Do you think we can help him" He questioned hopefully. Zero focused his sensors on the victim, his super computer brain processed the newfound data. The results were: Condition 17%, 50% Homo Sapiens, 50% Unidentified Species. Zero reanalyzed the data again. Still the same results. As something unfathomable dawned on the crimson hunter, Axl carefully noted the details of the mysterious humanoid. On closer inspection there were cyan colored scales, paws with sharp claws, a finned tail rested at the side, more fins along the backbone, and a pair of slightly large ears that resembled a cat's except the blue skin replaced fur.
Slowly, a picture began to form in Axl's mind. An image of a blue dragon rising from the waters completed the puzzle. "Zero, do you know what we've found?" Axl almost spoke breathlessly. "The beginning of an monster movie." Zero mused, too deep into his own worries to properly reply. "WE FOUND A SEIRYU!" Axl exploded in excitement and the echoes carried his cries! Zero muffled Axl in a flash. He reprimand in a hushed tone, "Are you nuts?! Do you have any idea whose nearby and most likely to cause panic?!" "Bumpt itsm a seiryu!" Axl protested.
Zero's ice colored eyes widen as he stared at the dragon in disbelief. "The Seiryu? One of the guardians of Kyoto? Symbol of the East, waters, and spring?" "The one and only!" Axl gestured grandly to the comatose legend. "Besides, what other explanation is there?" Zero sat down to contemplate the matter. "You know, you could be both wrong and right." He spoke at last. "Huh?" Axl looked up from trying to brush off the leaves on the seiryu. Zero explained, "The body checks out as Seiryu's, but 50% of its DNA was human. And I don't recall Seiryu being remotely human"
Axl piped up, "But in folklore there are stories of humans interbreeding with kitsune. Considering that supernatural creatures can interbred with the human race, maybe this is one of Seiryu's kids!" Zero took a few deep breaths. "If Seiryu had a human wife, it must be recent. This dragon is only 40 years old. With all the advanced technology we possess today-how come none of us ever found out?" A powerful gust of wind suddenly blasted past them, waking the supposed seiryu hybrid. Its faded green eyes were humanlike and dragon-like at the same time, it stared at the two robots surrounding it.
With little strength it had left, it lifted an arm to point to a scroll nearby. Zero reached over to pick it up while Axl gave the seiryu water from his H2O tank. Zero unrolled the crinkled scroll and translated the following transcript, "If you are reading this, I might already be dead. I apologize if my corpse has disturbed you somewhat. You can take my scales since I won't ever need them again. I have traveled far into Nippon for one reason...to die in peace. I hail from the oceans which were once my home. Unfortunately, I can never hope to go back and reclaim what is my own. Everyone I cared for have been killed in an harrowing war. I won't go into the details, just be grateful you weren't there. I have nothing left to live for. If I continue this miserable existence I would only end up as an unwilling tool or worse, a weapon. It is better for me to just pass away to hopefully see my loved ones again. Its alright if you can't save me, I'm ready to leave this sorrowful world... Sincerely yours, Ekkusu.
Zero dropped the scroll and stared at the seiryu in disbelief. Why the smelt did this had to happen today?! He groaned inwardly to himself. "What does it say?" Axl asked as he attempted to give the bedraggled creature more rejuvenating H2O. Zero hesitated before breaking the sad truth, "Kid, we can't save the seiryu. It wants to die..." "NANI?!" Zero winced from Axl's reaction, realizing he wasn't going to comply with the hybrid's wishes. "NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
WE CAN'T LET HIM DIE! HE DESERVES TO LIVE LIKE ANYONE ELSE! MAYBE HE WAS JUST HYPERVENTILATING WHEN HE WROTE THAT!"
Zero sighed exhaustedly, "No Axl. He explained that there's recently been a war where he came from. The war killed all his loved ones and if he stayed, he would had probably ended up as a slave or unwilling soldier. He feels as if he has nothing to live for anymore..." This only caused Axl to hold onto the dehydrated hybrid tighter, "Then-then, were give him a reason to live! "
Zero jerked, "I'm sorry, my audio receptors must be glitching. You were saying kid? " The reploid pre-teen shot his cousin an no-nonsense face, "Bruh, what you thought you heard is what you heard." Zero felt like clunking his head on the nearest tree trunk.
"Axl, please, this seiryu is already near the point of death and the last thing HQ needs to handle is an misplaced mythical dragon!" "It's OUR JOB as maverick hunters to perserve the lives of the innocent and defenseless!" The hunter rookie quoted straight from the hunters' official oath. Zero tried to counteract, "Look kid, I know how important our duty is and I will commit my best efforts to uphold that. But not even we can save everyone, especially those who don't want to be saved. "
An unfortunate tragedy that sometimes occurs when people lost the will to live.
Axl squirmed but relentlessly went on, "So even if there are people who don't want to live-I think its because they have forgotten how awesome it is to live! So if we take him in, maybe we can change his mind if we show him how cool life is on land! And considering its our job as hunters to keep the public safe-it's a bad idea to leave a legendary dragon near public access where some random citizen can find it and cause hysteria for crying out loud!" He took deep breaths before sitting down beside the seiryu. (Who didn't understand a word he said, yet realized the conversation was in favor and felt gratitude.)
Zero held his forehead in acknowledgement that Axl was right. Leaving a human/dragon hybrid around within the citizens' contact was basically asking for public upheaval. Plus, his gut twisted by the thought of leaving the hybrid to die when he could be saved. "Alright kid, were see what we can do. Even if the chances aren't promising..." Axl pumped a fist in silent victory. Zero just shook his head and turned to the ailing creature. "Hey, your still online to hear me?" He slightly joked knowing that the dragon probably had no clue about modern conveniences.
The dragon still couldn't comprehend his language, yet he could hear him so he weakly lifted his head. Zero told him, "As much as you want to die in peace. Were maverick hunters and its kind of our job to keep people alive. Also your nearby the populace and if they found you here there is going to be an uprising of chaos. I'm sure neither you and I wouldn't want that now? We know that your former life ended a bit harshly, but were offering you a second chance to help you get back on your-er, paws again. So what do you say?" The dragon cocked his ears in confusion. Zero slapped his face. "I'm guessing the only power a seiryu lacks is language translation." Axl shrugged.
The scarlet red warrior slid his hands under the worn-out hybrid and lifted him up. The creature slightly balked from this causing his tail to twitch. "Come on kid, lets beat it to our ride chasers before anyone gets here." "Yyyyyyeeeeessssss! We found an actual-mmfff!" Zero growled, "Would you mind keeping your trap shut for once?!" "Sorry, my bad!" Axl whispered as he rubbed the back of his head. Then he asked, "Hey, since I helped rescue a seiryu, can I be ungrounded now?" "If it will keep you quiet, fine." Zero grumped. Axl nodded excitedly. As the dragon realized these strangers were going to take him away. He wondered if he should be afraid. However, from the way they treated him kindly earlier maybe he had nothing to fear...
( An hour later. )
Alia was typing away at her keypad, updating her results on her latest experiment. She reached for a cup of coffee crackling with electricity and daintily sipped the energizing liquid.
Ping! An alert flashed on her holoscreen that someone was waiting outside her private lab for access. The professional navigator checked the cameras to see Commander Zero of the 0th Unit patiently waiting. She granted permission to admit him and the elite maverick hunter stepped inside.
"Enjoyed a nice day off Commander?" Alia asked politely. Zero nodded in agreement, "Well, it was relaxing for the most part...Except we ran into a little problem..." Alia turned to face Zero in her shiny white hover chair to inquire for details. "What happened this time? Did you run into mavericks, cyber terrorists, a humanoid whose mechanical parts malfunctioned, or-those dreadful yakuza?..." She shuddered in disgust at the last option. Zero offered her an uneasy smile, "No, the yakuza probably decided to give us reploids a break today. However, what were dealing with right now may make you wish it was the yakuza instead." The usually clam blonde's eyes flared at the last sentence. "Anything is better than getting tangled with the perverted yakuza!" Alia hissed venomously like a snake.
To make a long story short, HQ was invaded by an bold yakuza gang around two years ago. The nasty criminals wanted to get their dirty paws on the advanced weaponry reserved only for reploids. Unfortunately for a certain pink navigator holding down the base at the time...One of their members had the gale to corner the poor blonde believing she couldn't fight back because he was human. The douchebag jinxed it for his gang of course. By the time Signas (who was at a meeting), and the police were alerted and rushed to Hunter HQ. Half of the gang was sealed within one of the training rooms, the other half were in hiding and nursing black eyes or punched stomachs, and the guy responsible for his gang's demise was knocked silly and tied up like a mummy.
Considering the criminals' intentions and that Alia's defense had sabotaged their plan to endanger numerous civilians. The yakuza were hauled to their thirty-year long prison sentence and Alia's actions were deemed as self-defense. Following after the incidents, parliament met up to create new guidelines that ensured the safety of reploids against the yakuza. The yakuza have proven to become more notorious in the modern age and special measures had to be taken so that they couldn't take advantage of reploids. Despite the favorable outcome the navigator to this day still detested the yakuza ten times more than disorganization at its worse. (You wouldn't want to be caught red-handed with disorganization when she was within radar.)
Zero held up a hand and soothed, "Alright Ally-san, we know how you feel about yakuza-"
"And how I feel about Ally." She narrowed a piercing glance at Zero. The blazing red warrior resumed, "Alia-san, although I'm relived myself this is not about dealing with those devious criminals...I'm afraid Axl and I's recent discovery might wreck all your scientific beliefs. Or at least smash a hole into your idea of reality." Alia crossed her arms while raising an disapproving eyebrow at the irritating commander. "So suspend the riddles for now and fast-forward to the point."
She huffed.
Zero gestured to the doorway, "I think seeing the guest we brought back with us will explain itself." The female scientist just rolled her eyes before sighing, "It better be worth my time Commander." She emphasized her point. Alia reluctantly followed him, wondering what on earth could shake her other than a yakuza or King Kong. The latter she had little to fear from but she still regretted watching the movie all the same. Their destination was one of the private training grounds reserved for the elite 0th Unit. The pool room to be exact where the unit hone in on aquatic skills.
On the inside of the pool room however, Alia wasn't the only one about to find out...
"TADA! Presenting the legend come to life!" Axl gestured grandly to the seiryu, although the hybrid's appearance at the moment wasn't going to garner any awe. "Oh dear! Is this why you asked me to bring medical supplies?!" Exclaimed an adorable angelic-like reploid hovering above the floor with a custom first-aid kit in hand. Axl came down to business, "Yeah. He's been beaten up pretty badly and he needs treatment ASAP." The nurse reploid, Cinnamon, already went to work dabbing ointment on the open wounds.
Axl assisted her by unwrapping and cutting bandages for Cinnamon to cover up the injuries with. "Aaawww, you poor thing! What happened to you?" The young reploid girl sympathized.
The hurting seiryu couldn't see Cinnamon clearly, but her sweet voice and gentle touch made him feel better. When he was all bandaged up, Cinnamon held up a bottle of medicine. "This concoction is for humans suffering from dehydration. And since he is 50% human, it should help him. Hand me a spoon Axl-kun." The young hunter quickly handed over the utensil. The nurse poured out the appropriate measure of the amber colored liquid to spoon into the hybrid's mouth.
The patient licked it up with no fuss at all. Cinnamon smiled brightly, "Good. He'll have no problems with taking his medicine. Now hand me the-huh?!" To the shock of both robotic kids, a airborne trail of water wrapped itself around the bottle. The law-defying trail of water drew the medicine to the patient's mouth-who gulped the entire container dry. The two robotic kids stared speechlessly for a few minutes. "Uuuuuhhhhh, Cinnamon-chan? What exact ingredients were mixed into the medicine?" "I think it was the honey, its one of the main contents." She answered Axl's question.
The patient had a contented expression on his face, it seemed to have acquired a new taste for honey. Yet a few minutes after the happy expression twisted as if he tasted something sour. The seiryu gripped the sides of the swimming pool and began breathing sharply. The two reploids looked worried, "Cinnamon-chan, is having too much of it making him sick?!" "Oh dear! Because he isn't fully human I think it did!" The seiryu began gasping heavily as a water ball formed in his mouth...
At the exact moment Zero opened to the door to the pool room. To see the seiryu about to vomit-
"BLAAAAUUUUUGGGGGH!" The patient blasted water out of his mouth which hurled Zero against the wall. The seiryu splashed weakly into the pool after painfully ejecting his stomach's contents. Zero ended up on the floor dripping with water mixed with medicine. "This is...flat-out gross." Zero cringed as he wring out his ponytail.
Alia stared in disbelief at what happened to her friend. When she turned around to find who did it-her pupils dilated. Her sensors immediately began scanning the strange blue human-like creature lying before the pool. The results were: Condition 20%, 50% Homo sapiens, 50% Unidentified Species. The scientist froze with indecision and panic. Alia was already hyperventilating hard enough when Axl burst out, "Hi Alia-san! Guess what? Zero and I found an Seiryu in the Kirifuri Highlands!" The inevitable came of course...
"KKKKKKKKYYAAAAAAAAAA!" The navigator screamed.
As for the sick seiryu before her, his unclear focus dimly saw her as a straight and fuzzy object. Noting her bright pink color he mistaken her for coral. "That's the prettiest piece of coral I've ever seen." He mumbled to himself in draconic tongue. Zero stood up feeling disoriented and tainted with foreign contamination. He walked slowly over to Alia who was going through the reploid equivalent of a meltdown. Zero rested a hand on her shoulder, " Alia-san, sorry for dragging you into this but-" "HOW ON EARTH YOU MANAGED TO COME ACROSS AN ACTUAL SEIRYU?!" Alia beseeching demanded as she began furiously shaking Zero by the shoulders.
As for the patient himself, he became confused when he swore he heard the lovely piece of coral talking! "Magic coral? Or maybe an enchanted instrument made from coral. Or possibly some type of coral creature I've never met before." The possibilities were piling up in his imagination.
He stared on as the mysterious coral screeched at one of the strangers who had found him. For some reason he couldn't place his claw on, the coral was extremely upset. Seven minutes later it appeared that the red stranger has calmed down the coral. What a relief, the argument has given him an headache.
Alia breathed deeply before finally accepting the mind-shattering situation. "So you and Axl-kun discovered him injured during your outing?" "Yes, and as Axl pointed out we couldn't exactly leave him where he could possibly be picked up by untrustworthy parties." Zero reasoned. Alia walked over to the hybrid who could inspect her more closely. The personable coral was actually an strange humanoid like the other strangers he met already. Only she happened to be more captivating. Her eyes reflected an intelligent and altruistic soul.
"Alia-senpai!" Cinnamon pressed a honey drop into her hand. "Oh, no thank you Cinnamon-chan."
"It's for the dragon." The junior nurse gestured to the seiryu. Alia unwrapped the drop and offered it to the bedraggled creature lying beside her. To her astonishment, a thin tentacle of water reached out to take it. The drop floated along into the seiryu's mouth. It licked in satisfaction from sampling the heavy sweetness of honey. To her surprise , she found herself smiling. "Its...Almost too good to be true...It's almost incomprehensible to believe creatures like the mythical Seiryu actually exist."
"I know! It's the coolest thing ever right?!" Axl beamed happily. "The only catch is, can we even save it?" Zero brought the astounded audience back to earth. Alia skimmed over the critical wounds hindering its body. Some would heal, others would leave him a cripple for life.
Her supercomputer brain formulated many different solutions to help out the hybrid-but only one remained as the best option. She cleared her throat and sighed, "His case is severe, if he's going to survive will have to-cyberize him." A few silent minutes past by for the diagnosis to sink in.
"Cyberization?! Is that really necessary?" Axl voiced out in concern and turned to Cinnamon who was training for the medical field. Sadly, she shook her head in agreement with Alia. Their patient's situation was too compromised to bypass cybernetic surgery and expect a full recovery.
"And were have to inform Signas, Gate, Lifesaver, and Gaudile of our predicament as well." Alia declared.
"NANI?!" Cinnamon gasped. " Are you kidding Alia?! He might get shipped to a lab!" Axl panicked.
"Kids, she's right. Breaking the rules around here won't get our friend here the adequate care he needs. Plus, we can trust the adults in this matter. I'm sure your oyaji wouldn't do anything to harm the dragon right, Cinnamon-chan." Finished Zero. Cinnamon nodded and replied, "I know Otosan would always do his best to help others. But I wasn't worried about him or Signus, just Gate...He's a little scary.." The young girl nervously shuffled her feet. "Don't worry Cinnamon-chan! He's not scary-he's just crazy whenever it comes to science. Just like a mad scientist-GYA!" Alia lunged at the kid and pinned him down. "MY sensei is by no means insane! He is an eminent gentleman of his field!" Alia seethed.
"But Ally-san, you do have to admit the guy can lose it when he encounters anything scientifically challenging..." Zero remarked smarty. "And you call accepting great challenges for the benefit of science INSANITY?!" Alia challenged as she marched over to Zero and locked her eyes with his.
Another tirade was about to explode in the room until Cinnamon spoke up- "Can we have this debate later? The patient needs our attention first." The three other androids stopped to realize the dragon was groaning and his countenance expressed illness. Alia cooled down for a minute then said, "As much as I want to assert that my sensei is by no means psychotic. Business first, we need to get the dragon to the medical ward."
A week later the extensive operation that followed after the revelation was almost complete. Floating in a upright capsule filled with numerous fluids, was the seiryu/human hybrid, otherwise known as Ekkusu which Zero had earlier made clear. Thanks to the combined efforts of Gate, Gaudile, Lifesaver, and a renowned marine biologist named Dr. Allanna. (The marine biologist happened to be a close friend of the hunters and she could be trusted with secrets.) Not only would Ekkusu fully recover, his seiryu side would never risk discovery. His mutilated limbs were replaced with robotic ones, his punctured chest wore a matching chest plate formatted for his size. A smooth helmet crested with a bright red crystal rested on his head. With the armor fitted to his body, anyone could easily believe he was just another reploid. Tubes were attached all over his body, including one for breathing on his mouth. Four reploids and one human were watching Ekkusu's progress via the master computer monitoring his condition.
A dark purple reploid wearing a white lab coat trimmed with gold, scribbled new calculations on his holo-pad. The scientist declared, "According to the rapid progress Ekkusu has made, his operation should be completed eight hours, eleven minutes, and 34 seconds from now." The calculating reploid happened to be the renowned, (or infamous?), Dr. Gate. A reploid dressed in black military attire and towering above all the other reploids decided to ask the good doctor a question. "Will any risky side-effects come from his transition into a cyborg?" The tall reploid, Major Signus, questioned with concern
Dr. Gate confidently closed his eyes, "The only side-effect that will come from the transition, is perhaps shock from becoming part machine. I assure you Major that no harm will come to our patient." He smiled easily. His other colleague, Lifesaver, dressed in a similar lab coat, nodded in assurance. The Commander-In-Chief of the maverick hunters seemed satisfied with the doctors' input. "Good to hear Dr. Gate. I'm relieved you were able to offer your expertise despite the exceptional identity of this individual. You were able to cope?" Gate's face darken after being reminded of why the entire situation put him on edge for the whole process. "Nanities are wonderful." He muttered. Causing his colleague to chuckle softly. Signus held off from more conversation knowing that the scientist had so far not lost his cool despite the incredible circumstances.
On the other side of the monitor, a platypus inspired reploid, stroked up a friendly chat with the marine biologist a few feet taller than him. "I had never dreamed in my past youth that one day I would meet face-to-face one of the legends of our dear Nippon " Dr. Gaudile raised his arms to Ekkusu in the capsule. Dr. Allana, her turquoise eyes shining said, "I agree, I've hoped to encounter new aquatic species during my career. Yet I never imagined such a fascinating encounter." She then frowned as she remembered what Commander Zero had told her. "Its such a travesty for what happened to the poor boy." Dr. Gaudile gravely nodded,
"Ekkusu's past is exactly why I joined up as a engineer for the hunters. War will strike time and time again, which is why I want to be there to prevent the worse..."
(Two days later.)
At first he only saw darkness, then his eyes opened to light...The light was dim and tinted with blue color. He heard an Beep! and the world suddenly opened up to him. Ekkusu's eyes adjusted to the bright light glaring from the ceiling. Feeling somewhat stiff, he slowly sat up to face his surroundings. His new quarters were bare, save for a steel table and cabinet. The walls were clinical white and it seemed he had slept in a circular bed with a glass covering. He studied the glass ceiling that somehow moved itself aside to let him out. He stood up to inspect the odd bed that kept him soundly sleeping.
A eight feet long and four feet wide oval built from glass and metal. Inside it was well-cushioned, he never seen the likes of it before. His old bed was an giant oyster shell with fresh seaweed for bedding. His eyes searched for anything else of interest and to his delight a large cup of water waited on the table nearby. He went over to pick up the metal mug. Thirstily, he drained every refreshing drop it contained. He let out a sigh of contentment, "Aaaahhhhh... That sure felt-eh?!" Glancing where he held his mug, he realized that his paws were now white with not a hint of his claws... "Gya?!" He dropped the mug only to find to his horror that the rest of his body had changed.
Trembling, he reeled in shock to see his lower paws concealed in heavy boots of blue metal. His limbs and torso were also the same metal and lacking scales. His breathing became border-line panic as he frantically spun around for a tail that somehow vanished during his sleep. As he tried to figure out what the thunder had happened to him-the back of his eyes caught a reflection. He whirled around to notice a body-length mirror tucked away in a corner where he had missed it. He hurried over to it only to stop a few steps away. Gaping back at him from the mirror, stood a humanoid in cyan colored armor with a fiery red gem adorned on his forehead.
Then came the inevitable...
"RRRRRAAAAAAUUUUUGGGHHHH!" A janitor cleaning the hallway heard the extremely loud roar of anguish. "What in tarnation was that?!" He wondered. His sensors detected that it came from one of the rooms reserved for recovering patients. Worried, he cautiously tiptoed over and reached his hand for the doorknob-BAM! A blue reploid burst out and caused the door to slam on the poor janitor. The innocent MH employee slid unconscious to the floor as Ekkusu ran out of the hallway roaring bloody murder.
This can't be happening! Who would dare do this to ME?! The hybrid-turned-cyborg thought as he rushed to locate any means of escape. He veered away from the strange humanoids he stumbled upon, noting they were all wearing armor like he was. When he spotted another doorway at the end of a large room, he made a dash for it until someone caught him by the shoulder. "Woah there little one. What are you doing here?" Ekkusu looked up to face a towering eagle of royal purple. Unknown to him, it was Commander Storm Eagle of the 7th Airborne Unit.
The short cyborg squirmed in Storm Eagle's firm grasp, "I-I, got lost that's all...But I was just about to leave, honest!" He tried to make a break for it, but the stern eagle wouldn't let him go. Storm Eagle informed him, "Getting lost huh? Highly unlikely since only authorized members of the Hunter Syndicate can enter our base alone. It seemed as if you somehow snuck in without tripping our security system." He theorized. Ekkusu struggled from the stranger's steel grip on him, "I'm sorry! I didn't even want to be here! Just let me go and I promise never to return!" He pleaded.
Storm Eagle knew the mysterious intruder was being sincere, but he still needed to know how he found his way inside the base without detection. Extending a wing, he attempted to usher the shaking android with him. "Its alright, I'm not going to hurt you. However, you have to come with me for questioning." He said. Ekkusu couldn't believe the mess he gotten himself into. He had to escape but he didn't want to hurt the eagle...In a flash he blasted Storm Eagle with a wave that sent him flying to a couch far enough from Ekkusu. The seiryu hybrid activated his thrusters for the first time and rocketed out of the room.
Storm Eagle gawked at the unplanned birdbath the stranger had given him. He saw the blue android getting away and contacted his unit, "7th Unit! There is an infiltrator within the base! He's a cyan colored reploid with a red head gem. He isn't a maverick so capture him with minimum force!"
He ordered. Somewhere in the building a relieved Ekkusu thought that the rest of his getaway might run smoothly. Until out of nowhere a gigantic falcon swooped down to snatch him. A quick flick of his fingers knocked the falcon to the punishing floor. Yet he wasn't the only one-a raven humanoid with four wings and a intimidating archer with fiery wings blocked his path. He delivered a mighty tidal wave that slammed them against the bulletproof windows.
It wasn't long before more metal humanoids began ambushing him from every corner he turned. The entire 7th Unit had complied with their leader's orders and charged at their prey. They had every exit way blockaded and their members were covering every floor of HQ. To make matters worse for the seiryu, some of them invited their buddies from other units to join in the chase. The poor cyberized hybrid constantly wiped out scores of them with his waves-only for more of their numbers to spring at him.
After evading his predators again with a tidal wave, Ekkusu took a breather to review his predicament. The mug of water he drank earlier couldn't sustain him forever. Unless he ran into a hydrogen supply to generate more water-he was doomed. Hearing new voices honing in, he dove into a darken room frantically searching for a hiding spot. The shadowed room didn't offer many secure hiding corners, except for a huge metal contraption with a hollow space behind it. Ekkusu used all his dragon might to push it aside, and scrambled to fit inside the hole. After getting as comfortable as possible, he moved it back to shield him from his pursuers.
The now-cyberized seiryu curled up into a ball wondering what would become of him. Not only did he barely survive a war, he was trapped on all sides by strangers whose intentions were unknown to him. He dwelled on his past and reminisced the joyous moments he might never relive again. For what felt like forever, huddled in the darkness. A familiar voice finally rang out, "Ekkusu, where are you? Are you alright?" The hesitant dragon recognized the voice as the red humanoid he encountered before his transformation.
Entering the room were a apprehensive Zero and a frazzled Axl. Minutes ago they received word from Alia that Ekkusu had woken up earlier than expected. Turned out the dragon had run into a scuffle with Storm Eagle's unit. Zero and Axl rushed over to inform Storm Eagle what was going on before things escalated for the worse. They tracked down Ekkusu to one of the storage rooms and were now trying to coax him out of hiding.
They waited for a few minutes, but the seiryu didn't budge from his hiding place. Zero spoke up again, "Look...X, I'm sorry if we scared you. Your probably feeling really uncomfortable and confused now. But we don't mean you any harm, and your still a seiryu despite the new cybernetics." Ekkusu looked up, realizing the stranger had called his name in the other form, X. Feeling something sharp but pleasantly familiar, he touched his body and felt immense relief his scales came back. This meant that the stranger was telling the truth. He'll probably explain why is his body had suddenly become so...different.
Zero and Axl jumped back a little when "X" moved aside the bulky steel contraption and stepped out. The dynamic duo were flabbergasted by the shimmering scales and tail that somehow reappeared on X's body. Oh boy, wait until Lifesaver and Dr. Allanna heard about the latest developments. A few moments of awkward silence passed before X decided to break it. "What are...cybernetics?" He slowly spoke, finally discovering the foreign dialect his tongue was able to mysteriously master.
"Oh yay! You can talk to us now! And you even got your scales back!" Axl grinned cheerfully. X felt a wave of comfort and started to feel a bit more confident. "I guess I now can...But I couldn't speak, your native tongue before...Is this because of the cybernetics, you implanted in me?" Catching up with the new vocabulary being fed to his mind by a mini computer. (Lifesaver had fused the computer to X's brain due to the hefty damage it suffered.) Zero nodded, "Thanks to our staff's work, yes you can converse with us now. The new reploid cybernetics you possess now offer you new capabilities to adapt to life on land."
Capabilities? X swallowed before asking, "Uummmm...Can I ask, about something?" "Sure X! You can ask about anything! Like how cool life is on land. Or how crazy Gate is. Or the origins of reploids. Or how Zero is the best hunter and I'm going to-" Zero covered his chatty cousin's mouth. "Let him talk jabber jay." "MMMFFFF!" Axl protested. X secretly chuckled in amusement by the high energy levels the black humanoid emoted. He finally built up the nerve to ask, " How come you made me...a cyborg?"
Zero's computer brain processed the request for a few minutes to compute an adequate and alleviating response. "I'm not sure if you can recall. But the first time we met you were half-dead. Much of your body couldn't be restored and even if we could save your life without resorting to cybernetics. Your probably live life as a cripple. So reconfiguring you into a cyborg was the best option for you. I know you wanted to be left for dead earlier, yet, that would have been unnecessarily heartless."
X blinked. They rather have him alive then dead? He willingly granted them the permit to pluck his valuable scales, treasure any mere mortal would kill for. Only for these absolute strangers to turn around and use their best resources to save his life. Without even asking for reward. It touched him that they valued his life over the power he wielded.
"Oh. Thank you for that. Although, I kind of freaked out when I discovered my body was part-robot. Sorry for the trouble I caused." He apologized as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "That's ok, good to she you've clamed down." Zero replied. The door creaked open as Storm Eagle peaked in to see how it was going. "Yo! So the room hasn't been flooded yet?" He pressed, recalling back to earlier when his unit was bombarded with water.
X suddenly grew tense until Zero stepped in helpfully, "Don't worry about Stormy X, he didn't mean any harm to you. He was just trying to figure out how he ended up here." "And I might add it would had been extremely considerate if you told me about him in the first place hot-shot! " Storm Eagle scowled as Zero shot him a teasing grin. "I had to admit it was comical to see the 7th Unit getting knocked over like bowling pins from the security camera feed." Zero smirked which sent Storm's temper flaring. "First thing tomorrow morning, I am going to beat the scrap out of you blondie."
Zero casually shot back, "About time you finally scheduled a duel man. You've been leaving me quite bored." "Oh don't worry buddy, I'll make sure you enjoy every last minute of your life..." The eagle hunter promised. "NO WAIT! You don't need to kill him! It was my fault for blasting you guys with water! You don't need to fight over me!" X jumped in the conversation.
Both hunters reeled in shock for it appeared the dragon had taken their banter quite seriously. Storm Eagle held a wing up, "Do not fear seiryu-kun, I intend no grave harm towards Zero. I only ask for Zero to engage in a training battle against me and I assure you their are no deaths or major injuries involved." "We were only joking X, your hear jokes like that around here 24/7." Zero affirmed.
X felt bewildered at how they applied violence as light-hearted humor. It seemed almost sickening considering where he came from. But he was placated nevertheless that one of the people who saved his life didn't have to die. And since Zero mentioned that his new capabilities were supposed to help him adapt to life on land... He had a feeling he'll have to get used to the ironic humor of reploids...
Evening descended upon Abel City, the ethereal orb of pure white light switched places with its' fiery counterpart to guard over the night. Soon after countless twinkling lights blanketed the dark blue sky. However, they were harder for X to see...The newly-minted hunter sat on the roof of Maverick Headquarters. He observed that the nocturnal lights of the city hindered one from seeing the sparkle of the stars clearly. Whenever he rose from the ocean no other lights stole the spotlight from the celestial beings.
This was only one of the differences from inhabiting the land instead of the sea.
The cyberized hybrid had already made a decent list of comparisons from today. No gills needed for oxygen, the buildings are constructed from concrete and metal, everyone walks with feet instead of swimming with fins, grass and soil replaces sand, apparently the humans co-exist with metal replications of themselves known as reploids... He chalked off what he learned in his head. Earth above the ocean happened to be bizarre and a little unsettling. Sentient beings of metal? Being vulnerable to the airy atmosphere instead of being submerged in infinite water? A world where everyone used computers, teleporters, busters, light sabers, capsules-those material things were known as technology right?
Science had advanced quite far on land compared to my ocean home where "science" is only treated as a trivial hobby of amusement. X mused to himself. Alas, he couldn't help but feel a fresh prick of loss knowing he'll never return to the sea. Earlier when Zero and Axl took X to their leader-Major Signus. The domineering but benevolent reploid explained to X that creatures he knew were real-were believed as childish fantasies and nothing more on land. (X had to swallow down scandalized anger and shock over the land creatures' inaccurate assumptions.) Major Signus also emphasized how it is of the utmost importance to keep his existence classified as possible.
If word got out one of the legendary guardian creatures of Kyoto appeared in Japan. People would be storming the HQ to drag X to a lab for study, demand to lock him up due to his dragon side, or in the worse case scenario: attempt to kidnap him in order to take advantage of his unique powers. The major gloomily informed him that he would have to live as a hunter so that his supernatural origins wouldn't be leaked. X had squirmed not feeling too happy he was forced to keep his true nature a secret. Unfortunately, there were no other options available to him.
As if that was not bad enough, the major concluded the talk asking if he could possibly conceal his beloved scales and tail. It was nearly too much for the devastated dragon to bear. Sadly, Major Signus was adamant about keeping true to his reploid disguise. So taking the burden of humiliation, he withdrew his draconic features into the confines of his armor. Then hid his face behind Zero for the rest of the day. What kind of dragon bore no scales or tail for crying out loud?!
Still, he accepted the kindly offer of hospitality and tried his best to not freak out again...
Now here he was on the roof. A castaway on a strange island with no hopes of resuming life as a normal seiryu. He never felt so cornered in his life... As his depressed eyes gazed at the dazzling star fields high above. A voice broke the contemplative silence, "Hey Xxxxxxxx! How you navigate your way to the roof?!" X jolted as Axl tagged him, his scarlet armored cousin only a few steps away. "So this is where you snuck off to. I'm guessing you enjoyed stargazing?" Zero raised an eyebrow quizzically.
X shuffled his boots in silence for a few moments until finally answering. "Yeah, I do enjoy stargazing a lot. The only problem is its hard to see them from up here because of all the lights below." He pointed out. Zero agreed, "True, the light pollution kind of blots out the light of the stars. Now to another topic, how come your here all lonesome?" "Yeah, what's wrong X?" Axl asked concerned. X rubbed the back of his head and replied, "I...I'm grateful to you guys for letting me stay here...Its just that er-I just feel a little out of place." "Like a fish out of water?" Axl caught on. "He's a bit oversized and rare to be a fish kiddo." Zero slyly cocked.
X let out a weak laugh for continuing, "I'm just not feeling sure if I can fit in here that's all." He claimed. Zero prodded his chin thoughtfully. Axl wasn't sure if he could compute an encouraging response. Then a light bulb went off in his head. "You don't have to worry about fitting in X-in fact, you don't need to fit in at all! " X gaped at him incredulous, "WHAT?"
Axl went on excitedly, "I mean its super-cool how your a seiryu and there's no point in not being yourself right?!" Axl grinned wildly.
For a few seconds X thought Axl was a little crazy, until Zero stepped in. "Chill X, my hyperactive hamster of a cousin isn't asking you to shout out your secret to the world. Although he might if circumstances weren't so risky." "HEY!" Axl protested. Zero clarified, "You may not exactly be a reploid or a pure human, but were willing to accept you for who you are. You can be yourself and were protect you for it. So don't waste a second thought on trying to be like us reploids. The only thing you need to focus on is retaining your identity even if you're in a tight spot."
The seiryu felt comforted by those words. He didn't have to assimilate himself completely, all they ask was to keep his secret under warps so he could live safely in Abel City. Other than that, he was free to be who he is. "Feeling better?" Zero questioned. X returned a smile and said, "Yes thank you. Although I'm inquisitive on one thing." "What?" Zero cocked his head. "What is a hamster and why are they hyperactive?" Axl had an expression as if he's been punched while his elder delightfully answered.
"Hamsters are little fur balls that humans love to keep as pets. The little guys have a ton of energy when you least expect it. Which is why humans buy hamster wheels to keep them from bouncing off the walls-" "Don't listen to him X! I'm NOTHING like a hamster!" Axl pleaded.
X playfully prodded Axl, "Well you're not exactly furry Axl, but I can easily imagine you bouncing off the walls if you're not kept occupied." "No kidding, my little cousin here is a zippy energetic sprite!" "GUYS!" Axl whined as he began kicking his cousin to stop his irritating snickering.
Zero slung his arms to around Axl and gave him a noogie. "I was only teasing little cuz! Although it's kind of hard to keep you grounded." "Ha, ha. Very funny cousin..." Axl groaned as he wriggled free. Zero directed his attention back to X, "So you're turning in for the night or staying out here? It can get noisy when the helicopters make their nightly rounds." X blinked as he accessed his new database. Helicopters were machines humans used for individual flight as it described to him. After a few moments he decided, "Sure, guess I'll call it a night."
X willingly followed the two cousins to their room where he was also lodging. (Spacing was nearing its limits within the hunters' base.) A spacious room with two sides distinguished by the fiery red paint trimmed with gold and black paint striped with dark blue separating them. A third capsule had been installed between the line. X surveyed the entire room before shyly voicing, "Is it ok if I stay here? I don't want to be infringing upon your private space." Zero dismissed it with a wave of his hand.
"No biggie, there's still enough room. And since not every hunter knows who you truly are. It safer to stay here instead of lodging with the other B-rookies who will most likely exploit you on the Internet given half the chance." He huffed in annoyance over the burdens of social media. "Yeah! Its ok! And this means we have another person to join in for video game night!" Axl cheered.
Ten minutes later the trio has settled in for bed. Zero and Axl were already sound asleep, the only one still up happened to be X. He laid back in his own capsule, which was altered a bit from the original design to cater his needs. He kept the glass shield from closing by resting a hand against it. He couldn't help but still wonder what his new life would bring. A tiny drop of dread slid down his throat fearing that this life might end disastrously as his old one. As his chest start to tighten with paranoia, one of the last memories from the war resurfaced...
During the last battle, he had taken refuge in a cave with his grandfather. His grandfather's entire body suffered from deep cuts and Ekkusu had hurried him of out of the battlefield. He remembered the scene all too well. The water outside of the cave smelling of death and tainted with the tell-tale signs of spilled blood. The piercing screams of the fallen and ear-shattering war cries of the relentless warriors. Sea creatures from the smallest shrimp to the hugest whale were fleeing for their lives only to be accidentally slaughtered in the turbulent struggle.
He had to close off the cave's entrance with a bubble shield to prevent the intrusion of the enemy. The shield was the only thing his powers could muster-they were already spent trying to save the injured from the horrific battlefield. Hapless and lacking supplies, he tried to heal his grandfather's wounds with some ointment leftover. Other than that, he was forced to watch his beloved grandfather's life slowly drain away before his eyes. The end of the last battle spelled the end of his elder as well. The ancient seiryu painfully lifted his bandaged head to speak the last words of wisdom for his remaining grandchild.
"Ekk...Ekkusu...My time is dawning near." "No! Don't say that! Will win the war and your recover! Just please hang on!" "Ekkusu...Please listen to me...Death comes to all mortal creatures, even we ourselves are timed on this earth. I had lived my fair share of three thousand years-" "You're not three thousand yet! Your only 2345 ojisan! You still have time to live!"
"Ekkusu...I do not have a say in how long I'll live...I take what I am given and nothing more. But the important matter here...is not about me, an old dragon near its time...This is about you... You've survived what had killed many noble and innocent lives...I need to tell you one last thing before I move- * hack * * cough * *choke * Blauugghhh!"
The old seiryu heaved out a pool of dark blue blood. Ekkusu held onto his shoulders to keep his grandfather steady. "Ojisan-" "Enough is enough Ekkusu! Listen to the final words of your elder-* hack * * wheeze * As much as I know you prefer peace over violence and resent the war for all its done. I warn you this war will not be the last...There will always be some type of conflict...
There will always be someone who decides that hurting others is the only means of vindicating themselves...Most of these conflicts can be solved peaceably through reasonable means...But some of these conflicts erupt into war...And war has to be vanquished in order to protect what's most important and stop the people who started it...Ekkusu, you will face conflict in your life.
You either remain indifferent to save your own scales or step in to resolve the conflict...By means of reason or leading the defense...Ekkusu...I don't want you to live the rest of your life in hiding...I want you to truly live instead of merely trying to survive...You can't evade problems or troubles...they will always come...You need to give it your all to become the dragon you were meant to be...And to change the world for the better...Don't give up hope my- "
His beloved grandfather was cut off when a dark-armored ningyo burst through the bubble shield and finished the wounded seiryu off. "NOOOOOOO!" It was in that pulverizing instant that Ekkusu forgot what his ojisan had told him. Next thing he knew, the malicious mermaid bagged him in a net and taken him hostage...X shook himself to return to the present. Albeit of horrid ningyos and blood. After his grandfather's demise and his capture, it became a bitter struggle to escape his captors.
By the time he was able to escape his traumatized self couldn't handle it anymore. So, he fled to the land in order to die somewhere in peace...Yet that didn't happen, Zero and Axl rescued him from the jaws of death. The reploids here gave their best to ensure that he recovered from his injuries and had taken him in. Having survived once again, his grandfather's wisdom could proceed to take root in his heart. He reflected on his elder's last words before death came.
"You can't evade your problems or troubles...they will always come...You need to give it your all to become the dragon you were meant to be...And to change the world for the better...Don't give up hope my-" "Don't give up hope. I have to hold onto hope... " X breathed. Rolling his hand into a fist, and placing it on his chest he swore, "Don't worry ojisan, I won't give up on my life again. I'll be the best person I can be! I'll use my powers to fight for justice! To fight for hope! I will give it my all to secure peace for this world!" After he placed that solemn promise within his heart. He finally let go of the glass covering and it sealed him up for the night. He tucked himself in the soft blanket and fell into a blissful sleep...