THE TENTH DISK
By blackhart
copyright MM Abacus Fiction, revised 6/26/2001
Chapter Twenty-Four
X
I opened my bleary eyes, checked this way and that. I was in the med
wing of Maverick Hunter Headquarters. Suddenly, I saw a familiar face--Zero!
"How do you feel, X?" he asked.
A good question, I thought. I hadn't really had time to feel anything, but...
"Oh, crud! Feels like my back's in a torture rack!"
Zero winced at my outburst. "Yeah, forgot to mention that... You kinda
landed on the flat of your back on the ship Skyler was piloting."
"Ship...?"
"When he saw the explosion come from the giant dragon Sigma, he figured
we'd need a ride back down."
"Right," I thought as I sat up, ever so gingerly. "So we got Sigs?"
"Well, yes and no."
"Why do I not like the sound of that?"
He smiled. "We destroyed the dragon body, sure, but the virus did his
signature disappearing act again."
"So he's off again, formulating another plan?"
"I would suppose so. We've got our guards up for him to show up soon, of
course."
"Of course," I echoed. "So where are Mega Man and Protoman?"
"Off in the base chatting with Iris and Roll," he said, jerking a thumb at the
door. "They wanted to get to know some of the Reploids here before they
headed back."
"Logical," I said. "See what their future is going to be like."
He nodded. "You've been out for a day or so, actually. Skyler took the
two of them to the robotics museum where their exhibit was. In disguises,
of course."
I rubbed the back of my neck. "So has Wily been shipped back through the
portal yet?"
"No, we were going to do them all at once," he said, "and we were waiting
for you to supervise."
"Any particular reason?"
"It was your Nova Strike that took out the dragon, X. Or have you
forgotten that already?"
"Please, Zero," I feigned a stuck-up voice: "I have to have something to
brag about. Of course I haven't forgotten. You three helped me out,
though."
Pulling a glass of water from a table next to my bed, he raised it and said,
"I'll drink to that," then upturned the glass and swallowed the liquid, smacking
his lips. "Nothin' like it," he remarked.
"I'll take soda any day over water," I said.
"I mean fighting against Sigma, you dunce!" he said, burying his face in his
hands.
"I knew that," I said, with a perfectly clean expression on my face. "Well,
what're we waitin' around here for?" I piped, hopping off the bed. "We've got
a doctor and two robots to stick back in the past where they belong."
* * *
I was outfitted in a gold-and-black set of armor, light spangling from my
every angle. As I stood back in the little outpost where Sigma had brought
his own men back from the past and made a ramshackle group of Mavericks,
I gazed around once again. I wouldn't see this room again for quite a while.
Its impressive height and length did nothing to lessen the eye's job. The walls
were simply craggy brown, cut directly from the mountain walls. The time
machine sat opposite the only entrance to the chamber. Roll walked toward
me, her face beaming proudly. "Excited?" she asked.
"Excited, yes," I nodded. "But I'm also sad."
"Sad?"
"About Enker. About Rock and Protoman having to travel back. I wish
they could stay...maybe have their brains downloaded into some proper
Reploid bodies..."
She cut me off. "You and I both know it wouldn't do, X. They were never
destined to be Reploids, nor should they be. They must go back to where
they belong."
I nodded understandingly. "I know."
"As for Enker...don't be sad for him. There was nothing you could have
done."
"I know that too," I said more quietly. "I know that too."
"Do you wanna keep the others waiting?"
"I suppose not," I sighed, taking a grand walk to their position. "Zero, Iris,
how's it comin'?"
"Looks like everything's ready to go, X," Iris said.
"I'm here too, you know," came a voice from the control panel of the
machine.
I smiled. "Nice to see you too, Chakra."
Wily was, by this time, awake, of course, and we had restrained him with a
simple energy field. He and Rock gave each other cold stares whenever he
passed. I almost laughed at the old man's expression each time. His version
of a piercing stare was not at all frightening, and I wondered how Rock held in
his laughter.
I noticed Protoman in one corner, chatting with Hybric. Everyone had
come out for this event. I strode over, and Hybric suddenly left. "Didn't
mean to scare him off," I remarked to Protoman.
He chuckled. "He was leaving anyways. Got something on your mind?"
"Just been meaning to tell you something about this weird...this..."
"...Bond you feel between us, even though we've never met?"
"Right."
"Mega Man and I felt it too, when we first met. It's strange, I know.
Probably because you're a descendant of Rock's."
"Probably," I said, shrugging. "Explains the bond between me and Zero too,
I suppose."
He walked back toward his friend, beaming. I sauntered over to the
command chair at the machine's computer casually, eyeing things on the
screen.
"Where did they come through from?" I asked Chakra.
He acknowledged my presence. "August 15, 20XX," he said. "Sigs was
close."
"That he was," I said, patting the old tech worker on the shoulder. "Good
work, Chakra. When you finish here, take a few weeks vacation, my treat.
You've earned it."
"Aye, sir."
Back over with Zero and company, I discovered Iris and Roll talking
privately. Zero was beside himself, just itching to know what they were
saying.
"I can't stand it when females talk privately," he said. "It makes me
antsy. `Are they talking about me?'"
I grinned. "Yeah, I know the feeling. Anyway," I gathered another breath,
"everything seems to be in order. Enker's remains have already been buried,
right?"
He nodded solemnly. "Yeah, um...Dr. Cain got them this morning. He
found a spot close to HQ. He's dedicating a cemetery there for Reploids
killed in battle."
I nodded. Just the kind of thing for the old guy to do.
Suddenly, Chakra's voice: "It's ready to go, X!"
I nodded at Zero. He nodded likewise, and without a word, I turned to take
my place at the front of all this. "All right, Hunters," I addressed the room,
"we have been very honored by the presence of these two fighters from the
past, Mega Man and Protoman, and..." but I was cut off sharp applause. I
allowed it for a moment, then raised my hand to silence them again. I
continued: "...And of course, you all know Dr. Wily here..." I gestured to where
the old doctor lay inside the force-field. He growled back.
"Charming," I heard Khizarr mutter.
"And as fortunate as we have been with their presence, we know they do
not belong here."
"Hear hear," Crysto said with a snicker. "All in good fun."
"Fortunately, during this whole thing, we have not lost our one assurance
that time would not be forever without its Mega Man and its Protoman. If
either of these two very valuable pieces were removed from history's
museum, disastrous results could have come about. We might not all stand
as we do now. Some of us might be worker droids. Some of us might be
nonexistent, and others might be Mavericks," I added with a stab of disgust.
"This has been a very small battle that was bravely fought, valiantly fought.
Of course, as in all wars, there have been sacrifices, casualties. You know
the ones I speak of: Lujon, Enker, Netrix, Argyle, Gilley, and even Sigma, the
Reploid.
"Their lives have all shaped ours in some way," I said. "They have all
benefitted the Maverick Hunters much. But what they gave to history, as did
these two brave robots you see standing before you today, is invaluable and
can never be changed. Let us take a moment of silence to remember those
we have lost for the good of our cause. Let us remember them in the name
of the freedom we continue to be recipients of."
Roll glided up to where I stood, taking my hand and grasping it firmly as
the entire large room, once buzzing with chatter and humorous talk, stayed
absolutely silent for near two minutes. I broke the silence by speaking up
once again: "Learn from their examples. As defenders of the people and the
Reploid race, I entrust to you once again the future of this planet, and, in the
future, others like it. Let us not be swayed by the promise of power, or the
lure of more money or better living. Let us not be deceived: paying for a
better life with your freedom is no bargain, and no deal. I say good-bye to
Rock and Protoman, and Dr. Wily as well. Continue making your infamous
robot creations, doctor," I addressed him. "They affect the future as well."
He growled again, banging on the field. I laughed. "Chakra, power up the
machine!"
As he did, the door of the machine flung itself open and belched out
smoke, covering our feet. Removing Wily from the field, Hybric and Crysto
tossed the old man into the chamber, and the doors shut automatically.
"Setting date for June 1, 20XX," Chakra noted orally. "Booting up memory
erasure system now."
A flash of bright white light moved down the crack of the chamber doors,
and a second later, Chakra gave me a nod. "Back where he should be, boss."
I nodded back. "Thanks, Chakra." As I looked over at Zero, he and
Protoman were shaking hands fervently, giving each other last-minute quips.
"Date set?"
"August 15, 20XX," Chakra confirmed. "Proto goes first, right?"
"Right."
The red robot hopped in the machine a second later, waving to everyone in
the room. "`Bye, guys!" he called. "Don't forget to write!"
The doors shut behind him, and then he was gone.
Turning to face Rock, I held out a hand. "I suppose we have to say
goodbye now."
He took it. "I suppose so."
"Have fun back where you live," I said. "You have longer vacations from
your enemies than I do from mine."
He smiled. "It's been a definite pleasure, X. Treat Roll right. She is my
sister, you know."
I chuckled. "Will do, Rock. Give Roll a kiss from me when you get back."
"I'll do that," he said as he walked into the empty time chamber. "See ya
`round."
I looked wistfully at my predecessor take a bow to wild applause, then
fade into the smoke and disappear with a flash of the white light. "See ya
`round, Mega Man," I whispered to no one.
By blackhart
copyright MM Abacus Fiction, revised 6/26/2001
Chapter Twenty-Four
X
I opened my bleary eyes, checked this way and that. I was in the med
wing of Maverick Hunter Headquarters. Suddenly, I saw a familiar face--Zero!
"How do you feel, X?" he asked.
A good question, I thought. I hadn't really had time to feel anything, but...
"Oh, crud! Feels like my back's in a torture rack!"
Zero winced at my outburst. "Yeah, forgot to mention that... You kinda
landed on the flat of your back on the ship Skyler was piloting."
"Ship...?"
"When he saw the explosion come from the giant dragon Sigma, he figured
we'd need a ride back down."
"Right," I thought as I sat up, ever so gingerly. "So we got Sigs?"
"Well, yes and no."
"Why do I not like the sound of that?"
He smiled. "We destroyed the dragon body, sure, but the virus did his
signature disappearing act again."
"So he's off again, formulating another plan?"
"I would suppose so. We've got our guards up for him to show up soon, of
course."
"Of course," I echoed. "So where are Mega Man and Protoman?"
"Off in the base chatting with Iris and Roll," he said, jerking a thumb at the
door. "They wanted to get to know some of the Reploids here before they
headed back."
"Logical," I said. "See what their future is going to be like."
He nodded. "You've been out for a day or so, actually. Skyler took the
two of them to the robotics museum where their exhibit was. In disguises,
of course."
I rubbed the back of my neck. "So has Wily been shipped back through the
portal yet?"
"No, we were going to do them all at once," he said, "and we were waiting
for you to supervise."
"Any particular reason?"
"It was your Nova Strike that took out the dragon, X. Or have you
forgotten that already?"
"Please, Zero," I feigned a stuck-up voice: "I have to have something to
brag about. Of course I haven't forgotten. You three helped me out,
though."
Pulling a glass of water from a table next to my bed, he raised it and said,
"I'll drink to that," then upturned the glass and swallowed the liquid, smacking
his lips. "Nothin' like it," he remarked.
"I'll take soda any day over water," I said.
"I mean fighting against Sigma, you dunce!" he said, burying his face in his
hands.
"I knew that," I said, with a perfectly clean expression on my face. "Well,
what're we waitin' around here for?" I piped, hopping off the bed. "We've got
a doctor and two robots to stick back in the past where they belong."
* * *
I was outfitted in a gold-and-black set of armor, light spangling from my
every angle. As I stood back in the little outpost where Sigma had brought
his own men back from the past and made a ramshackle group of Mavericks,
I gazed around once again. I wouldn't see this room again for quite a while.
Its impressive height and length did nothing to lessen the eye's job. The walls
were simply craggy brown, cut directly from the mountain walls. The time
machine sat opposite the only entrance to the chamber. Roll walked toward
me, her face beaming proudly. "Excited?" she asked.
"Excited, yes," I nodded. "But I'm also sad."
"Sad?"
"About Enker. About Rock and Protoman having to travel back. I wish
they could stay...maybe have their brains downloaded into some proper
Reploid bodies..."
She cut me off. "You and I both know it wouldn't do, X. They were never
destined to be Reploids, nor should they be. They must go back to where
they belong."
I nodded understandingly. "I know."
"As for Enker...don't be sad for him. There was nothing you could have
done."
"I know that too," I said more quietly. "I know that too."
"Do you wanna keep the others waiting?"
"I suppose not," I sighed, taking a grand walk to their position. "Zero, Iris,
how's it comin'?"
"Looks like everything's ready to go, X," Iris said.
"I'm here too, you know," came a voice from the control panel of the
machine.
I smiled. "Nice to see you too, Chakra."
Wily was, by this time, awake, of course, and we had restrained him with a
simple energy field. He and Rock gave each other cold stares whenever he
passed. I almost laughed at the old man's expression each time. His version
of a piercing stare was not at all frightening, and I wondered how Rock held in
his laughter.
I noticed Protoman in one corner, chatting with Hybric. Everyone had
come out for this event. I strode over, and Hybric suddenly left. "Didn't
mean to scare him off," I remarked to Protoman.
He chuckled. "He was leaving anyways. Got something on your mind?"
"Just been meaning to tell you something about this weird...this..."
"...Bond you feel between us, even though we've never met?"
"Right."
"Mega Man and I felt it too, when we first met. It's strange, I know.
Probably because you're a descendant of Rock's."
"Probably," I said, shrugging. "Explains the bond between me and Zero too,
I suppose."
He walked back toward his friend, beaming. I sauntered over to the
command chair at the machine's computer casually, eyeing things on the
screen.
"Where did they come through from?" I asked Chakra.
He acknowledged my presence. "August 15, 20XX," he said. "Sigs was
close."
"That he was," I said, patting the old tech worker on the shoulder. "Good
work, Chakra. When you finish here, take a few weeks vacation, my treat.
You've earned it."
"Aye, sir."
Back over with Zero and company, I discovered Iris and Roll talking
privately. Zero was beside himself, just itching to know what they were
saying.
"I can't stand it when females talk privately," he said. "It makes me
antsy. `Are they talking about me?'"
I grinned. "Yeah, I know the feeling. Anyway," I gathered another breath,
"everything seems to be in order. Enker's remains have already been buried,
right?"
He nodded solemnly. "Yeah, um...Dr. Cain got them this morning. He
found a spot close to HQ. He's dedicating a cemetery there for Reploids
killed in battle."
I nodded. Just the kind of thing for the old guy to do.
Suddenly, Chakra's voice: "It's ready to go, X!"
I nodded at Zero. He nodded likewise, and without a word, I turned to take
my place at the front of all this. "All right, Hunters," I addressed the room,
"we have been very honored by the presence of these two fighters from the
past, Mega Man and Protoman, and..." but I was cut off sharp applause. I
allowed it for a moment, then raised my hand to silence them again. I
continued: "...And of course, you all know Dr. Wily here..." I gestured to where
the old doctor lay inside the force-field. He growled back.
"Charming," I heard Khizarr mutter.
"And as fortunate as we have been with their presence, we know they do
not belong here."
"Hear hear," Crysto said with a snicker. "All in good fun."
"Fortunately, during this whole thing, we have not lost our one assurance
that time would not be forever without its Mega Man and its Protoman. If
either of these two very valuable pieces were removed from history's
museum, disastrous results could have come about. We might not all stand
as we do now. Some of us might be worker droids. Some of us might be
nonexistent, and others might be Mavericks," I added with a stab of disgust.
"This has been a very small battle that was bravely fought, valiantly fought.
Of course, as in all wars, there have been sacrifices, casualties. You know
the ones I speak of: Lujon, Enker, Netrix, Argyle, Gilley, and even Sigma, the
Reploid.
"Their lives have all shaped ours in some way," I said. "They have all
benefitted the Maverick Hunters much. But what they gave to history, as did
these two brave robots you see standing before you today, is invaluable and
can never be changed. Let us take a moment of silence to remember those
we have lost for the good of our cause. Let us remember them in the name
of the freedom we continue to be recipients of."
Roll glided up to where I stood, taking my hand and grasping it firmly as
the entire large room, once buzzing with chatter and humorous talk, stayed
absolutely silent for near two minutes. I broke the silence by speaking up
once again: "Learn from their examples. As defenders of the people and the
Reploid race, I entrust to you once again the future of this planet, and, in the
future, others like it. Let us not be swayed by the promise of power, or the
lure of more money or better living. Let us not be deceived: paying for a
better life with your freedom is no bargain, and no deal. I say good-bye to
Rock and Protoman, and Dr. Wily as well. Continue making your infamous
robot creations, doctor," I addressed him. "They affect the future as well."
He growled again, banging on the field. I laughed. "Chakra, power up the
machine!"
As he did, the door of the machine flung itself open and belched out
smoke, covering our feet. Removing Wily from the field, Hybric and Crysto
tossed the old man into the chamber, and the doors shut automatically.
"Setting date for June 1, 20XX," Chakra noted orally. "Booting up memory
erasure system now."
A flash of bright white light moved down the crack of the chamber doors,
and a second later, Chakra gave me a nod. "Back where he should be, boss."
I nodded back. "Thanks, Chakra." As I looked over at Zero, he and
Protoman were shaking hands fervently, giving each other last-minute quips.
"Date set?"
"August 15, 20XX," Chakra confirmed. "Proto goes first, right?"
"Right."
The red robot hopped in the machine a second later, waving to everyone in
the room. "`Bye, guys!" he called. "Don't forget to write!"
The doors shut behind him, and then he was gone.
Turning to face Rock, I held out a hand. "I suppose we have to say
goodbye now."
He took it. "I suppose so."
"Have fun back where you live," I said. "You have longer vacations from
your enemies than I do from mine."
He smiled. "It's been a definite pleasure, X. Treat Roll right. She is my
sister, you know."
I chuckled. "Will do, Rock. Give Roll a kiss from me when you get back."
"I'll do that," he said as he walked into the empty time chamber. "See ya
`round."
I looked wistfully at my predecessor take a bow to wild applause, then
fade into the smoke and disappear with a flash of the white light. "See ya
`round, Mega Man," I whispered to no one.
