THE TENTH DISK
By blackhart
copyright MM Abacus Fiction, revised 6/26/2001
Chapter Fourteen
Zero
Once we returned from Epsilon's, X and I traveled personally to the
data scanning sector to check if X's theory about the archives could be right.
When the three disks were run through the computer, X gave a triumphant
nod. There were absolutely no contents on the disks.
"The only question now is how to find the tenth disk."
"Shouldn't be a problem," I said. "Sigs' goons're all defeated now.
He'll come out of hiding soon. Wherever he comes from has go tto be the
holding place for the last disk."
"Right on, Zero," nodded Crysto.
"So how long do you think it'll take him to attack?" Iris asked.
X answered. "I think he'll pop in up in about an hour or so, maybe
less. We'll have to stay on our toes. Right now, whatever body he's had
made for himself has got to be going through last-minute tests and spec
checks."
"That seems reasonable," I said, nodding. "Tell everyone to be on
guard. I want Hunter Headquarters on Code Yellow status. Be ready to jump
at the slightest hint of Maverick activity."
"Will do, Zero."
I drew X aside, walking out into the corridor. "Now, I'll ask you this
personally, because I don't want everyone to go off fighting with no
confirmation that Sigs is there...but while he was in your head, were you able
to pry for any kind of location, any special dates, names?"
He smiled. "A step ahead of you, Zero. Unfortunately, the only thing
I can give you is this: you know the lake in the Grynchon mountain valley?"
I nodded. "Been there a few times before."
"In that lake, there's something that Sigma was constantly thinking
about. I can't say what exactly, but it's worth a check."
I squeezed his shoulder. "Thanks, X. Have people waiting here to
back me up in case I need it. Go to Code Blue if I call you."
"Sure thing, buddy," he said, walking off, instantly finding someone
to talk to.
With a smile, a nod, and a shut of my eyes, I changed to a streak of
orange light and flew out of the building, to the Grynchon valley lake.
* * *
I smelled the fresh, thin air. I was high in the summit of the
Grynchon mountains, a few miles well away from the traffic and bustle of
Jolozt. I loved this place. If I hadn't had the mission and the stakeout here,
I'd've just sat and bonded with nature a bit.
Unfortunately, until Sigma was gone, there'd be no relaxing. I did,
however, lay down on a slab overhanging the lake to get a better view, and to
relax as best I could without falling asleep. Sigma can't take nature's beauty
away from me, I thought as I watched the sunlight reflecting on the lake.
For an hour and a half, at least, I sat and watched. When I was
convinced X must have been wrong about this place, I began concentrating to
begin a teleport away. My body was phasing into the orange light when my
concentration was broken suddenly. I opened my eyes. What was that?
Rising from the lake, there was a small outpost, not much bigger around than
a small jet plane, yet crowded with wires and antennae.
Bingo, I thought. "HQ, this is Zero," I radioed quickly. "I have visual
confirmation of Sigma's hidden outpost. I'll continue to monitor events as
they happen. Just get some backup out this way, will ya? X knows where I
am."
Crysto's voice broke over the static. "Hang in, Zero. We'll be there
soon."
"Out," I replied, then turned my eyes back onto the building that had
risen from the water. A door opened vertically from the side of the building
opposite me. Thrown out of it came a man with wild white hair sticking from
the sides of his head, white bushy eyebrows, and wearing a white lab coat.
Following the flung man was Sigma, in a bright, shiny new body. Whoever had
built it was an absolute genius of warfare. Swiveling lasers were mounted,
one on each shoulder, his eyes were equipped with his customary laser
systems, and he held an energy saber as well. From the leanness of the
body, it looked as if he could be extremely fast as well.
As the Maverick completely emerged from the portal, He walked to
where the old man now lay, flinging him face-first over to the bank of the
lake. The little man found his footing after a second, stood up, and shook his
fist in Sigs' face angrily.
Even from here, I could see who the old guy was. It was Dr. Wily, the
scientist who had created so much trouble for the original Mega Man a
hundred years ago. He created evil robots to do his bidding in droves of
eight. Each time, Mega Man foiled his plans. But how did Sigs bring him here?
Must have a time machine somewhere, I thought. Wily died decades ago
of natural causes. I flashed out of thinking and looked back at him again.
Sigs and Wily were exchanging some angry words with each other, and Sigma
took confident steps toward the old scientist. Wily kept creeping backwards,
and held a fixed look of nervous fear on his face. As Sigma's eyes suddenly
began to give off a red glow and an abundance of matching red energy, I
realized what his intentions were.
Crap! If he kills Wily, history could be altered! Mega Man would have
no purpose! Whatever the alteration did to the space-time continuum would
be irreversible, potentially fatal to all of us, no matter how much damage
Sigs ended up doing.
As I saw him finally drawing a bead on Wily with his eye beams, I
gasped. Glancing around quickly for troops, I saw that the dropships weren't
even close yet. I swore. "Can't wait for backup," I muttered. "I have to do
something about this on my own."
* * *
Sigma
I was about to terminate my loose end, Dr. Wily, my eye beams
centered on his pitiful, shaking form. He had no spaceships or any of his
primitive robot men to help him now. Face-to-face, he was just as pathetic
as any other human being.
With a kind of sixth sense, I felt a minute rushing of wind from my
immediate left. I turned quickly out of instinct to meet whatever was
attacking me, but was struck in the cheek with a foot. The attacker landed,
hopping over to assist Wily. As I glanced back up, I recognized my assailant
as Zero, one of the prominent Maverick Hunters, and one of my men in the
past. Unfortuantely, my eye beams had been wasted on a cliff face a few
hundred yards away. I addressed my Hunter friend: "Why have you gotten
yourself involved with this again, Zero?" I asked. "You're only delaying the
inevitable."
He smirked, kneeling to talk with the shaken doctor. "Wily, you
okay?"
The doctor, first surprised at how Zero knew his name, gaped, then
gasped as looked into his eyes. Zero looked back at Wily with the same
curious stare. I was sure this action conveyed some importance, but it was
none of my concern at this time. The old man tried to speak, but could find
nothing intelligent to say. "You're- you're--"
"Cut the chat," Zero snapped. "I'm not helping you `cause I like you.
Just get outta here."
He gave the man a short head-start by pikcing him up by the
trousers and tossing him a few feet. The old man then scrambled to his feet
and ran out of my vision. Zero put a hand to his head, as if gathering his
thoughts, then rose again and met eyes with me.
"Zero, why must you further complicate things?" I asked. "I was
merely getting rid of unneeded garbage."
"And you would've bent time by causing his death," he said. "Wily
died of natural causes, not by your hand. The time-space continuum would've
been needlessly jarred by the event, and neither of us might be standing here
now."
I paused, considering. "Perhaps you're correct. However, I still
must destroy you for intruding, you know. I cannot allow anyone who knows
of this location to live."
He snickered. "All the Hunters already know," he said. "I radioed
them not five minutes ago with my location. They'll be here in five, ten
minutes tops."
I shook my head at him. "Zero, Zero, Zero... Never can leave
anything simple for me, can you?"
"Never, Sigs."
"So it's come down to yet another showdown?" I asked.
"It would appear so," he said. "I've defeated you when you were in X's
body, Sigma. I can do it while you're in this one."
"I hope, for your sake, that you are right, Zero. I shall tell X and Iris
both goodbye for you."
By blackhart
copyright MM Abacus Fiction, revised 6/26/2001
Chapter Fourteen
Zero
Once we returned from Epsilon's, X and I traveled personally to the
data scanning sector to check if X's theory about the archives could be right.
When the three disks were run through the computer, X gave a triumphant
nod. There were absolutely no contents on the disks.
"The only question now is how to find the tenth disk."
"Shouldn't be a problem," I said. "Sigs' goons're all defeated now.
He'll come out of hiding soon. Wherever he comes from has go tto be the
holding place for the last disk."
"Right on, Zero," nodded Crysto.
"So how long do you think it'll take him to attack?" Iris asked.
X answered. "I think he'll pop in up in about an hour or so, maybe
less. We'll have to stay on our toes. Right now, whatever body he's had
made for himself has got to be going through last-minute tests and spec
checks."
"That seems reasonable," I said, nodding. "Tell everyone to be on
guard. I want Hunter Headquarters on Code Yellow status. Be ready to jump
at the slightest hint of Maverick activity."
"Will do, Zero."
I drew X aside, walking out into the corridor. "Now, I'll ask you this
personally, because I don't want everyone to go off fighting with no
confirmation that Sigs is there...but while he was in your head, were you able
to pry for any kind of location, any special dates, names?"
He smiled. "A step ahead of you, Zero. Unfortunately, the only thing
I can give you is this: you know the lake in the Grynchon mountain valley?"
I nodded. "Been there a few times before."
"In that lake, there's something that Sigma was constantly thinking
about. I can't say what exactly, but it's worth a check."
I squeezed his shoulder. "Thanks, X. Have people waiting here to
back me up in case I need it. Go to Code Blue if I call you."
"Sure thing, buddy," he said, walking off, instantly finding someone
to talk to.
With a smile, a nod, and a shut of my eyes, I changed to a streak of
orange light and flew out of the building, to the Grynchon valley lake.
* * *
I smelled the fresh, thin air. I was high in the summit of the
Grynchon mountains, a few miles well away from the traffic and bustle of
Jolozt. I loved this place. If I hadn't had the mission and the stakeout here,
I'd've just sat and bonded with nature a bit.
Unfortunately, until Sigma was gone, there'd be no relaxing. I did,
however, lay down on a slab overhanging the lake to get a better view, and to
relax as best I could without falling asleep. Sigma can't take nature's beauty
away from me, I thought as I watched the sunlight reflecting on the lake.
For an hour and a half, at least, I sat and watched. When I was
convinced X must have been wrong about this place, I began concentrating to
begin a teleport away. My body was phasing into the orange light when my
concentration was broken suddenly. I opened my eyes. What was that?
Rising from the lake, there was a small outpost, not much bigger around than
a small jet plane, yet crowded with wires and antennae.
Bingo, I thought. "HQ, this is Zero," I radioed quickly. "I have visual
confirmation of Sigma's hidden outpost. I'll continue to monitor events as
they happen. Just get some backup out this way, will ya? X knows where I
am."
Crysto's voice broke over the static. "Hang in, Zero. We'll be there
soon."
"Out," I replied, then turned my eyes back onto the building that had
risen from the water. A door opened vertically from the side of the building
opposite me. Thrown out of it came a man with wild white hair sticking from
the sides of his head, white bushy eyebrows, and wearing a white lab coat.
Following the flung man was Sigma, in a bright, shiny new body. Whoever had
built it was an absolute genius of warfare. Swiveling lasers were mounted,
one on each shoulder, his eyes were equipped with his customary laser
systems, and he held an energy saber as well. From the leanness of the
body, it looked as if he could be extremely fast as well.
As the Maverick completely emerged from the portal, He walked to
where the old man now lay, flinging him face-first over to the bank of the
lake. The little man found his footing after a second, stood up, and shook his
fist in Sigs' face angrily.
Even from here, I could see who the old guy was. It was Dr. Wily, the
scientist who had created so much trouble for the original Mega Man a
hundred years ago. He created evil robots to do his bidding in droves of
eight. Each time, Mega Man foiled his plans. But how did Sigs bring him here?
Must have a time machine somewhere, I thought. Wily died decades ago
of natural causes. I flashed out of thinking and looked back at him again.
Sigs and Wily were exchanging some angry words with each other, and Sigma
took confident steps toward the old scientist. Wily kept creeping backwards,
and held a fixed look of nervous fear on his face. As Sigma's eyes suddenly
began to give off a red glow and an abundance of matching red energy, I
realized what his intentions were.
Crap! If he kills Wily, history could be altered! Mega Man would have
no purpose! Whatever the alteration did to the space-time continuum would
be irreversible, potentially fatal to all of us, no matter how much damage
Sigs ended up doing.
As I saw him finally drawing a bead on Wily with his eye beams, I
gasped. Glancing around quickly for troops, I saw that the dropships weren't
even close yet. I swore. "Can't wait for backup," I muttered. "I have to do
something about this on my own."
* * *
Sigma
I was about to terminate my loose end, Dr. Wily, my eye beams
centered on his pitiful, shaking form. He had no spaceships or any of his
primitive robot men to help him now. Face-to-face, he was just as pathetic
as any other human being.
With a kind of sixth sense, I felt a minute rushing of wind from my
immediate left. I turned quickly out of instinct to meet whatever was
attacking me, but was struck in the cheek with a foot. The attacker landed,
hopping over to assist Wily. As I glanced back up, I recognized my assailant
as Zero, one of the prominent Maverick Hunters, and one of my men in the
past. Unfortuantely, my eye beams had been wasted on a cliff face a few
hundred yards away. I addressed my Hunter friend: "Why have you gotten
yourself involved with this again, Zero?" I asked. "You're only delaying the
inevitable."
He smirked, kneeling to talk with the shaken doctor. "Wily, you
okay?"
The doctor, first surprised at how Zero knew his name, gaped, then
gasped as looked into his eyes. Zero looked back at Wily with the same
curious stare. I was sure this action conveyed some importance, but it was
none of my concern at this time. The old man tried to speak, but could find
nothing intelligent to say. "You're- you're--"
"Cut the chat," Zero snapped. "I'm not helping you `cause I like you.
Just get outta here."
He gave the man a short head-start by pikcing him up by the
trousers and tossing him a few feet. The old man then scrambled to his feet
and ran out of my vision. Zero put a hand to his head, as if gathering his
thoughts, then rose again and met eyes with me.
"Zero, why must you further complicate things?" I asked. "I was
merely getting rid of unneeded garbage."
"And you would've bent time by causing his death," he said. "Wily
died of natural causes, not by your hand. The time-space continuum would've
been needlessly jarred by the event, and neither of us might be standing here
now."
I paused, considering. "Perhaps you're correct. However, I still
must destroy you for intruding, you know. I cannot allow anyone who knows
of this location to live."
He snickered. "All the Hunters already know," he said. "I radioed
them not five minutes ago with my location. They'll be here in five, ten
minutes tops."
I shook my head at him. "Zero, Zero, Zero... Never can leave
anything simple for me, can you?"
"Never, Sigs."
"So it's come down to yet another showdown?" I asked.
"It would appear so," he said. "I've defeated you when you were in X's
body, Sigma. I can do it while you're in this one."
"I hope, for your sake, that you are right, Zero. I shall tell X and Iris
both goodbye for you."
