Chapter Ten

Zero
I took a ship out alone after checking back in with Iris and Roll at base. I
needed to clear my mind, and I didn't feel like hopping into the meadow; I had been
there that day once already. I flew almost silently over the Grynchon mountain
range, in whose valley lake we had fought Sigma those few short months ago.
Chuckling, I again asked myself: "IS Wraith Sigma?" I couldn't say at this point. I
needed more time to think and gather more evidence before I could form any kind
of hypothesis.
I flew on, passing the small Italian restaurant Iris and I had eaten at on our
first official date. "Mama Pepelli's..." I muttered. "Good sherry. Good pasta."
But amidst the noise I tried to keep constant, a solitary thought still nagged at
the back of my mind: Where in the heck is X?
I still hadn't been able to overcome the fact that my best friend hadn't
considered to take me with him.
"Aw, criminy!" I shouted, finally realizing: "I haven't sent him a message
that the girls came back yet!"
I composed a short note on my arm computer as I steered the ship, typing out
finally:

Dear X,
Zero again. Listen, I know you're out searching for the girls, and I hate to
burst your bubble, but they came back! You've gotta return to base ASAP and
give Roll a monster hug! (Just don't let her squeeze the life out of you; she
nearly did me.)
Hope to see you soon,
Zero.

I sent the message off to the same Hunter protocol address I had used before,
and kept flying. Over rivers, lakes, roads, and forests my small jet roamed, with
myself never truly having a destination. I flipped on the autopilot, once I had
eventually realized that. I tuned the radio channel to something catchy, quiet.
Settling back in the comfortable command chair and closing my eyes, I slipped into
a state of absolute complacency, devoiding my mind of any notion or memory of
Sigma or Wraith for a few brief minutes.
Absolute bliss...utter and complete comfort... A feeling like I'd never have to
fight a war ever again, if everyone could just learn to be this calm and content...

* * *

"Zero..." a gentle female voice called. "Zeroooo..."
I was sitting in the pilot's chair of the ship I had been piloting, but it was
completely disembodied from the vessel; I had no idea where I was.
"Zeroooo..." the voice called again, more ghostly now. "It's time for you to
come home, Zero."
I sat up from my reclining position in the seat. "Who--are you?" I asked the
void before me. A swirl of purples and blues rained down into my vision, as the
female voice relaxed more and chuckled softly.
"Silly Zero," she said. "You can't recognize my voice?"
"Should I?" I asked blindly as I stood up and began moving in the direction I
thought I had heard the voice come from.
"You really have changed, Zero," she replied ambiguously. "A shame."
"What would you know?" I asked. "You say I've changed...from what?"
"From your true form, and your true intent. You've lost your way."
"I'm interested...go on."
"Your past has become a jumbled confusion of skewed memories and events.
Your purpose has been completely forgotten. Your memory banks have taken a
good number of hits over the years...that didn't help anything."
"I wouldn't have supposed so," I said. "There's a lot of junk still in my
banks that I wish could be deleted."
"Ah, the countless scenes of helpless Reploids, droids, and even humans
falling to your terrible grasp. Such beautiful memories."
I walked further, coming to a peak...a cliff... Standing atop it, I looked out
over the canyon below and gasped.
Blood...blood flowed freely in the canyon's river...I saw a Reploid arm bob
up from the murky depths...
"What is this?!" I screamed. "Why have you brought me here?"
"To show you how terrifyingly beautiful evil can be, Zero. Why can't you
begin to see things this way? You know that was your original purpose,
Zero...destruction."
"Things change," I said, "and in this case, change is good."
"Stubborn Hunter," retorted the voice. "You can't be moved from your
views, even in your immense lack of logic."
"Lack of logic, my eye," I yelled. "Name one reason why the Hunters are
illogical."
"Certainly you must believe that Reploids are overall superior to humans,"
she said.
"In most respects," I said. "Physically, yes. We are also more mentally
stable, certainly...but..."
"But nothing," interrupted the voice. "Reploids are superior to humans, and
are therefore wasteful."
"And you don't consider the thousands of Reploids that have been sacrificed
for the Mavericks to be wasteful?" I asked.
"It was necessary. Sigma uses the most efficient methods to overturn his
enemies, and if others get in his way...well, that's when inefficiency must ensue."
"You Mavericks...you're all the same...power-hungry, full to the brim with
propaganda. Lying, filthy, cheating parasites. Did I get that right?"
"The Hunters' entire purpose is to protect the humans, correct?" she inquired,
ignoring my insult.
"And ourselves," I added.
"But if the humans didn't exist, then the Hunters would have no reason to
fight the Mavericks!"
"The virus would still enslave us...it has to take over other things to survive."
"But perhaps our joining could be a great deal less hostile," she said.
"Humans are the reason this planet is not perfect."
"If everything was perfect about life, would you not find it to be boring?" I
asked. "Or have you ever taken the time to think about it that way?" And after a
second thought, I asked additionally: "...Or have you ever had the ability to think
that way?"
"I am a Maverick," she said. "It is not my responsibility to question my
programming, only to execute it."
"You're just like Sigma," I said. "This encounter has proven to me that he's
still behind all this nonsense. You'd do well to find yourself within his
consciousness and escape, whoever you are."
"And here I thought you knew quite well who I was, Zero."
"You're Sigma himself, aren't you?"
"A friend, Zero. A friend of a friend. Pay attention to the others around you.
Your Hunters will make or break you through this fight. Make certain you know
who is working for whom."
"I won't make that mistake again!" I yelled, leaping toward the source of the
voice. Out of nowhere, a large black room materialized. I landed on its floor,
finding whatever opening I had come through was now closed behind me. Looking
forward, lights played across a mangled form in front of me. I didn't want to look,
but knew I had to in order to sort out this strange vision.
The lights darted across the grey and healthy fleshy tones of the mass before
me. I found my saber in my scabbard and ignited the blade to try to make out for
myself what lay there. Following the gentle green blade's glow to the body, I saw a
female Reploid's form, unfamiliar to me, one lovely violet eye sparkling back at me.
She looked to be nude, her body mostly wrapped in layers of grey, shining metal.
Her stomach was left bare, and her navel held a small purple jewel. Her hair,
golden in color, flowed freely behind her, incomprehensibly floating in the air.
Numerous wires, thick and thin alike, ran out from her skull, connecting
presumably to her most well-controlled hosts. Her other eye, I saw, was absent of
her face, and had been replaced with a red LED that pulsed steadily. The golden,
ghostly "W" I had noticed stamped on Portal Wasp's outer housing was tattooed
just below her breastbone.
"You have come," she said simply. "I am your speaker. Pardon me for not
cleaning myself up before inviting company."
"You..." I stammered, "...you must be..."
"I am Wraith," she interrupted. "I am the very essence of the virus that
plagues your world right now."
"You--you are--"
"A female by nature. Yes, quite. How lovely of you to notice. I thought the
body was rather attractive myself."
"You were--introduced into a female Reploid's body?"
"Originally, yes. I was allowed to infect a female's body to begin with. I
have been with her since the day she came off the assembly lines."
"I won't even bother asking you who she is," I replied.
"It wouldn't do much good," she admitted.
"You are a more advanced virus than Sigma, are you not?" I asked.
"Indeed," she said. "Of that I will tell full truth. My capacities are larger in
all respects than his."
"Then it was indeed possible for you to stay undetected in her form until you
released yourself," I said. "Correct?"
"Not entirely," she said. "It would have been perfectly simple for me to
masquerade myself up to that point...but I did it one better. I've managed to keep
myself hidden from those around her, even now."
"So even if I knew your original host, I wouldn't begin to assume that she
was your carrier," I said. "Is that it?"
She nodded, the first movement I had seen from her since I looked upon her
form initially. "This is why I say you should pay close attention to your friends,
Zero. Stay alert at all times."
"I will, have no doubt," I said. "But the others will know of this."
"It will not make any difference," she said. "I still live in my host, like it or
not."
"Perhaps I should be going," I muttered. "Would you mind?"
"Certainly not," she said. "Fare thee well, Zero," she said. "I'll be seeing
you soon, I believe."
"Goodbye for now, Wraith," I called. "I will live to discover your secret."
Her red eye flashed as she smiled and began glowing violet. Energy collected
in her hands, feet, head, chest, and the jewel in her stomach, then grew to saturate
her entire body. Her nude form, curled into a purple ball, rose about five feet out of
the metal covering, began pulsing slowly, then sped up as she threw her limbs
outward and the energy seared into me.

* * *

The black room dissipated, and after blinking, I found myself back in the
pilot's chair of the small ship I was flying.
I sat back. "So Wraith is a female," I said out loud. "And her original host is
still alive, still hiding her ties to Wraith."
I moved the chair up, out of its reclining position. "I'm not as worried about
her as I am Sigma, even if she says she's more advanced than him. From what I
saw while I was there, she looks as if she's not in the best repair."
I frowned. "But why the whole half-naked getup? Would it be to lure male
Reploids to her?"
I doubted that. It hadn't worked on me. Maybe that was because I was
dedicated to Iris, though... I'd keep a lookout on the younger Hunters when we ran
into her in person.
For now... I thought, checking my arm computer, I'll not worry myself with
it. I saw that X had left me another message. I opened it hastily.

Zero,
Greetings again from your true friend X. I got your message about the
girls...good news; just what I needed right now. I'll return as quickly as possible,
but I took a ship out, so don't expect me back for a few hours. I've missed you,
brother. See you tonight.

- X

I grinned. Roll would finally have X back. That brought a happiness to my
system that couldn't be destroyed right now. I pulled the flight stick to jar the ship
out of auto-pilot, turned the vessel around to face the way I had come, and hit the
afterburners to jet this baby home.


* * *

Lomae
I checked back in at the medbay. Zero had locked it up tight, just like he had
promised he would. I smiled. I could depend on him for most anything.
When I entered the lab, however, I shrieked so loud I was afraid I had
cracked the beakers in the room. "WHAT HAPPENED HERE?!" I yelled.
I saw broken beakers, multicolored chemicals, and various lab tools spread
all over the floor. "It seems like someone was looking for something," I said
quietly. "But what? I wasn't hiding anything here."
I heard someone coming up behind me--no, two people. They had heard me
yell, obviously. I turned around. It was Dragonness and Hale, coming to check out
the lab. "What is it?" Dragonness asked, then stepped inside. "What happened
here?"
"I'm not sure," I said frankly. "I just unlocked it a minute ago, then came in
and found this disaster."
"You're sure this was like this when you came in?" Hale asked, looking over
some chipped glassware.
"Yeah...I have no idea how this could have happened...we've been really
careful about who we've brought into the Hunters this time! Could we have let
another double-agent in?"
"I don't know," Dragonness said. "But, Lomae...right now, you're our prime
suspect."
"What?!" I shrieked. "You must be joking! I've been a loyal Hunter for
years! Why would I do something like this?"
"You've been away since our last fight with Sigma," Dragonness said. "You
could have contracted the virus in six months."
"So could you!" I shouted back.
"But I wasn't here when you yelled, was I?" she asked.
I frowned. "So what are you going to do, arrest me?"
"Lomae, don't take this personally. If I had anyone else to suspect, I'd point
my finger at them...but you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I
believe that you didn't do it...but until we find whoever did, I need you confined to
your quarters for awhile."
"Fine," I grunted softly, "but get someone to take care of the lab for
me...someone who we know we can trust."
"I'll have Cain mandate virus tests in the near future," she said. "Go get
some rest or something back in your room. I'll contact you when we get an update
on anything."
"Right," I muttered, dashing off to my quarters.

Dragonness
Lomae hadn't done anything, I knew...but the others would be suspicious of
me if I hadn't done something. As I watched her dash away, I felt like my best
friend was leaving me...
I watched Hale as he continued poking around the broken glass and colorful
chemicals that had been strewn around. He reminded me so much of Chakra...
Zero's getting to you, Dragonness, I thought as I shook my head. You don't
love Chakra. You don't even hardly know the guy.
Then why was I feeling this way about him every time I heard his name? I
hadn't ever needed anyone before...why should that change now? Maybe I did feel
something for him...
No, Dragonness...don't question it. Not now. It's not the time nor the place.
I heard Zero running down the corridor, stopping when he ran into Lomae,
talking for thirty seconds or so, then continuing to the lab.
"Dragonness! Hale!" he hailed us.
"Yes, Zero?" I returned. "Did you have a good flight?"
"It was...informative," he said. "What's this I hear about you confining
Lomae to her quarters?"
"She said she unlocked the medbay, walked into the lab, and found it
like...this," I gestured to the mess. "She said she had no idea what could have
caused it, but she swore it wasn't her."
"Maverick?" he asked.
"A fungus among us, it would seem," I said with a nod. "After she screamed
when she saw what had happened, Chak...I mean Hale and I came running to see
what was the matter, and found this chaotic scene."
"Lomae didn't cause this," Hale said. "I know she didn't."
"How so?" I asked.
"She's the tidiest one of the lot of us," he said. "She can't stand to see a
speck of dust on her beloved beakers over here."
"What if she's been infected, Hale?" Zero asked.
"I have a feeling she's impress a sense of neatness on the virus, sir," he
replied with a grin.
"I had no choice, Zero," I said. "I had to do something, or it'd make me look
like I was letting her get away with it, like she and I both were Mavericks, and both
helping each other out."
He nodded. "It's true, you have a degree of power as far as base security is
concerned. You made a good call, Dragonness. Now, for my news..."
"Good news, I should hope, sir."
"Indeed. I got a message from X while I was out flying. I told him about the
girls being back here, and...and it appears he'll be back in a few hours!"
"That's wonderful, Zero!" I said, smiling earnestly. "Hale and the others will
finally get their first taste of X, then."
"Oh joy," I heard from behind me. Drex had come up silently, now lounging
against the doorframe with his arms crossed.
"Drex," Zero said. "Good to see you."
"And you, sir. Hale," he acknowledged, giving his former teammate a nod.
"Dragonness! To what do I owe the honor of your presence being taken from me?"
"If you want me gone, all you have to do is say so," I said, smirking. "Call
me when X gets in," I said to Zero as I walked away.

Hale
"What do you want?" I asked Drex.
"Only to speak with you and the commander a moment," he said. "I know
our friendship's been well disintegrated for some time," he continued, "but that
doesn't mean I've stopped worrying about your well-being."
I raised my eyebrows. "You still care about me?" I asked.
"Not what I said," he replied darkly, striding over to me. He put a hand on
my shoulder. "I'm worried about your welfare, Hale. Can you honestly look me in
the eyes and tell me you haven't gone Maverick?"
"Always the accuser," I said. "Must you always lash out at those you don't
agree with, Drex?"
"Just look at me," he said, gripping both my shoulders firmly.
"What should stop me from thinking you're the Maverick here?" I asked.
"Absolutely nothing," he said. "Isn't it exciting?"
"I trust you, Drex," Zero said firmly. "I believe you're yourself."
"Thank you, sir," he said.
"And why don't you trust me?" I asked.
Zero looked at me. "You haven't given me reason to trust you just yet,
Hale," he replied shortly. "Drex did when he took out Glacial Snowcat. You, on
the other hand..."
"I did my best!"
"You might have beaten me when we sparred earlier," I said. "If that were
true, I know you could've beaten Sand Scarab without much trouble."
I frowned.
"The question is: were you toying with Scarab...or did you let him get away
on purpose, because he was one of your fellow soldiers?" he asked.
There was a dead silence for a half-second, then I spoke up: "He just got
lucky. His sand drones confused me, that's all."
"But do you see how I justify my view?" he asked.
I nodded. "Yes sir. Noted, sir."
"Keep that in mind," he said.
"Wait!" Drex said. "I still want to test him my way."
"Fine with me," I said. "Go ahead."
He took my shoulders again in his hands, his black eyes peering directly into
my own. "Have you been infected with the Wraith or Sigma viruses?"
I let out a long breath. "No," I said. "No, I haven't."
He stared there a few seconds, then nodded to himself. "He's himself."
"But just in case," I said, "I'm confining all newbies, save for Drex, to their
quarters as of this moment. I'll have to get a bulletin out to Dr. Cain. Hale, go find
your room, and tell any newbies you see along the way to do the same until further
notice."
"Aye, sir," I said dispassionately. "Have fun staying out of your room,
Drex," I hissed as I turned to go.

* * *

Zero
"This is an announcement to all Maverick Hunters," Cain said over the
intercom. "We will be conducting standard viral testing procedures over the next
few days. Until then, only those who have been notified ahead of time will be
allowed out of their quarters. There will be regular patrols running through the
Hunter Base complex to encourage all of you to stay put. We know this will most
certainly displease a large number of you, but due to our current circumstances, it
would be more beneficial for all of you to obey these orders.
"We have reason to believe that one or more Mavericks are among you," he
continued. "Please cooperate so that we can root out these double-agents. That is
all."
"This is Commander Zero Omega," I said over the radio. "The only Hunters
privileged to walk outside their rooms for the time being are as follows: myself, Iris,
Roll, Skyler, Hybric, Khizarr, Chakra, Dragonness, and Drex. If you did not hear
your name, then you must stay in your quarters for these few days while we conduct
tests and root out this problem. Thank you for your cooperation."
And our numbers have taken a definite hit... I thought. We need some kind
of backup...we need help!
Cain met my gaze and nodded, as if he heard my thought. "Sigma 2.0 is
complete," he said. "He is ready to go whenever you see fit."
I raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't tell me until now?"
"You were busy," he said. "On another of your quests to rid your mind of
stress." He clapped a hand on my shoulder. "I have great respect for you, Zero,
but...be realistic. Until we are rid of this blasted virus, you have no chance of your
stress just disappearing."
"I know, Doc," I replied. "Thanks."
"I just say what needs to be said," he responded with a smile. "Why don't
you come with me? We can go see your newly resurrected ally."
"Sounds like a good idea," I said, telling the Hunter computer to put my
helmet away. It erased itself into wireframe upon my head, then disappeared
completely. I pulled the blue tie that held my hair in its ponytail and let my blonde
locks fall free. "Let's go."