Aya: I don't think I've ever written a fic this fast, but I just keep having visions about what
should happen and stuff while being stuck in traffic. My other fic is really feeling the brunt of
this (it hasn't been updated in awhile)
Faith: *bounces back from being flying kicked by Omittichi in the review section, fixing her hair a
bit* Hmph. You just got lucky I was distracted by how cute X looks! *to Aya* You've just discovered
your evil fangirl inside, that's all, Aya. ^_~ Go with it!
X: Don't encourage her! I don't want an evil fangirl author! *grumble* it's bad enough having a
fangirl author.
Faith: Awww... *wraps arms around X, who struggles* but now that I've done away with Zero, we can
be all alone together...
X: O_o Meep!
Zero: *appears* I am NOT dead yet!
Faith: *blinks* Oh yeah, lets get on with the chapter then! *snuggles X, who shivers*
Aya: Dude, this is MY fic. *cough* This one will have one really short but sort of creepy violent
scene. You have been warned. On with the chapter!
--------------------------
Hunted Heart
Chapter 6: Smoke and Mirrors
"Wakey, wakey, my little Zero."
"Arugh..." Zero opened his eyes and saw the demented smile on a familiar looking face. "Oh, it's
you." He remembered his anger and reached for her throat. All he was rewarded with was a rattle
of chains. "YOU!" He breathed angrily. Zero was chained up against some pipes. From what
he could tell, they were in one of the sub basements of the hunter HQ.
"Yeah, I had to chain you up." Her eyes had an almost haunting glow. "You were going to be problematic."
She nodded matter-of-factly. "I didn't want to kill you yet... you could still be... useful. X's
heart will be a complicated one for me to earn..."
"You leave him alone!" Zero struggled against the chains again, but they held firmly.
"I wouldn't bother yelling if I were you. I arranged so that the guards wouldn't patrol this area,
so no one would hear you... except me, of course." She reached for Zero's face, but he shook her
had away. Her eyes narrowed and she gripped his face more violently. Zero winced slightly from her
fingers digging into his face. "Now that's going to leave a mark, isn't it? In any case, I still
don't want you to wear yourself out yelling too much..." She reached nearby for a roll of duct
tape and tore off a piece. Against Zero's protest, she taped her lips shut. She took a step back,
a delighted look on her face. "Now, if I didn't have to deal with X, we could have some fun!" She
giggled, very unlike an innocent girl and left Zero alone in the room.
Zero studied the chains binding his hands. His wrists were chained to either side of him on pipes
protruding from the walls. The pipes looked quite new and sturdy. Nothing around him looked useful
for his escape. Zero sighed.
//How am I so dumb?// Zero thought to himself. //I shouldn't have let my guard down.// He frowned.
//I underestimated her.// His thoughts floated to X. //If that sociopath lays a hand...// Footsteps
disturbed his train of thought. //Is she back?//
----------------------------
"Have you seen Zero?"
"Hm?" Faith turned around and saw X walking up, looking slightly concerned.
"Zero. Douglas said he missed both the unit meetings this morning. I checked his quarters, I
checked the roof, I tried to call him up... he's nowhere to be found."
"Have you checked with the 0th Unit navigator?" She looked up at X. "He would know if Zero left
on a mission."
"I did." X grew even more concerned. "Except he's out with the mysterious virus also, so he must
have missed communicating with Zero."
"Well, let me see if I can pull him up." She turned on some equipment at her desk. "Commander Zero?"
She adjusted some of the buttons. "Commander Zero, can you read me?" Her lips curled slightly.
"Zero here." Zero's voice came over the radio. "I'm on a mission right now, and unnecessary
radio contact could compromise it. I'll call in later. Zero out."
"Zero wait!" X scrambled to put on a headset, but only heard static.
"He cut off his radio." Faith continued I can't raise him anymore."
"I guess he can take care of himself..."
An alarm sounded over the intercom system. X and Faith immediately starting heading for the door.
It was the alarm for an attack on the HQ. Faith stopped by the weapons cabinet and grabbed a long
range rifle and several battery packs.
"I'm heading for the roof." Faith said as they exited the room. "I should be able to snipe a couple
of Mavericks from there."
"I'll clear the way for you." X followed.
The two got to the roof without incident, but they were not alone. A group of Mavericks were
gathered at the edge of the rooftop, about fifty yards away. Faith closed one eye to look through
the scope mounted on her rifle. She fired off two shots, downing the two at the front.
"WAIT!" X grabbed the head of her rifle. "You'll hit Zero!"
"WHAT?!" She looked at the crowd of mavericks again, now noticing the red armor and the blonde hair.
Zero's body was draped over one of the mavericks. "HEY! Let go of Zero!" She reaimed her gun,
but X grabbed the rifle again.
"You might hit Zero!" X insisted. By now, a helicopter hovered above the Mavericks. "ZERO!" X
ran towards the Mavericks, but they were already leaving. They were hanging onto ropes suspended
from the helicopter. "ZEROOO!!" X screamed after them as they were lifted off the rooftop.
-----------------------------
"Ugh..." //Did someone get the name of the truck that hit me?// Zero thought to himself as he
regained consciousness. His head throbbed, and his throat was dry.
"Look at who we have here!" An annoying voice boomed, making Zero's headache worse. "Who would
imagine we would find the commander of Zero Unit chained to the basement of HQ... dare I ask how
you got there?"
"None of your business." Zero spat. He was leaned against the wall, his hands and legs chained
together at the wrists and ankles. //Out of the pan and into the fire...// Now he was in the hands
of Mavericks, and from the looks of it, just a small fry one. "Let's just say it was your lucky
day that I was chained up, or I would have torn you apart before you even got within arms reach
of me."
"Did I hit you in the head too hard? Well, now that you're here," mused the Maverick, "I can get
some valuable information about the hunters from you. For starters I want your remote security codes
to the facility.
"You wish." Zero laughed. The Maverick raised a gun against Zero's shoulder. The red hunter
jerked back violently when the gun went off.
"Tell me." The Maverick repeated, then fired off another shot and hit the other shoulder. Zero
grunted, his face twisted with pain, but he still didn't make a noise.
"Go..." Zero's breath was labored. "To hell..." A small pool of blood was starting to gather
underneath him. The pain was subsiding from his shoulders, but everything was getting dimmer along
with the pain.
"I'll just let you think about where I would shoot next." The maverick leveled the gun between
Zero's eyes.
//This is an inexperienced guy.// Zero thought. //He has no sense of strategy. He wouldn't think
for a second about killing me just because I'm ticking him off.// Zero looked in the Maverick's eyes.
//Yep... he would shoot.//
"I don't know them." Zero shook his head. "I--"
"Don't lie to me!" The Maverick moved the gun to Zero's knees and fired. Zero gulped in a breath
and grabbed his legs with his hands. The Maverick grabbed the chains on Zero's wrists and pulled
the hunter to his feet. "Stop wasting time, because you don't have much left!" The sudden movement
stunned the injured Zero, whose eyes were now half open and focused on something else in the room.
"Hey! I'm talking to you." But Zero was already out cold. The Maverick cursed and tossed Zero's
body to the ground.
"Boss." Another Maverick entered the room. "Oh... you killed him?"
"No." The first Maverick said in a mocking voice. "He's still alive. I know what I'm doing."
"Uh... Boss?"
"What?!"
"Behind you..." The air in the room shifted. The boss Maverick turned around quick enough to see
a purple glow before his life violently ended. The second maverick's mouth hung open in shock as
the blood dripped off the fingers of the attacker. Before he had time to scream, the same hands
wrapped around his neck and snapped it.
----------------------------------
X's eyes snapped open. One moment he was sleeping, then the next, someone's hands was wrapped
around his throat. The fingers only pressed lightly against him, but the eyes of his attacker was
enough to freeze him with fear.
"Hello, X." Zero smiled slightly. "Did you miss me?"
"You again!" X tried to push Zero off, but Zero responded by pressing harder down on X's throat.
"Haven't you had enough fun?!"
"I could never have enough fun with you." Zero pulled the covers away and scanned X's body. X
shivered from the sudden exposure to the cold. He was only wearing a T shirt and boxers. "Never
enough fun..." He brushed X's hair lightly away with his free hand and smiled.
"Get off of me!" X pushed back again, this time ignoring the pressure on his neck for awhile.
Zero's hand did not budge. With great satisfaction, he felt X's struggle weaken as he ran out of
breath. He glared angrily at the red hunter, breathing heavier than before. "Why are you here
again? To get me to hate Zero some more?"
"Hate me?" Zero looked slightly curious. "What do you mean? I am Zero."
"You're just a figment of my imagination." X closed his eyes, willing Zero to go away.
"I forgot, Faith did something to you." X opened his eyes wide from Zero's words. "Yes, I read her
diary, She's lusting after you, you know? A cute, cute schoolgirl crush." Zero bared his teeth
in a sadistic grin. "Of course, she's no match for me, because look who in your bed now."
X stared in horror to the hunter standing above him. The look in Zero's eyes. His smile. His
demeanor.
"Oh God..." X breathed. "...you've gone Maverick again."
----------------------------
Mob Member 1: GRUGH! I HATE it when you do that! Stupid cliff hanger!
Neo Mob Members: *slamming their head against their monitors*
Aya: Sorry! Wow, the inspiration for this one was faboux! (fabeau) I was driving around, and thinking
about what to do about my other fic, and essentially was going to have Zero go maverick in the other
fic, but then I thought it would be MUCH more amusing if Zero did so in this fic! Wow! Now there's
the real evil Zero running around, the fake one in X's head, and the evil fan girl! Can you
handle all the evil?!
Aya's Car: She's telling the truth. She almost ran me off the road when she was busy celebrating
about the fun plot twist.
Faith: Um... Zero's not going to be MORE evil than me, right?
Zero: *singing* Anything you can do I can do BETTER.
Mob Member 2: *now wearing "Go Zero" T-shirt* Wow! Someone evil more cool than Faith! Can you do
all the other evil things she did, too?
Zero: Yep, and I *winks at Faith* am actually going to get close enough to X to do something
X: Should I be looking forward to this?
Aya: Just another one... maybe two chapters. It'll be fun fun, I promise!
should happen and stuff while being stuck in traffic. My other fic is really feeling the brunt of
this (it hasn't been updated in awhile)
Faith: *bounces back from being flying kicked by Omittichi in the review section, fixing her hair a
bit* Hmph. You just got lucky I was distracted by how cute X looks! *to Aya* You've just discovered
your evil fangirl inside, that's all, Aya. ^_~ Go with it!
X: Don't encourage her! I don't want an evil fangirl author! *grumble* it's bad enough having a
fangirl author.
Faith: Awww... *wraps arms around X, who struggles* but now that I've done away with Zero, we can
be all alone together...
X: O_o Meep!
Zero: *appears* I am NOT dead yet!
Faith: *blinks* Oh yeah, lets get on with the chapter then! *snuggles X, who shivers*
Aya: Dude, this is MY fic. *cough* This one will have one really short but sort of creepy violent
scene. You have been warned. On with the chapter!
--------------------------
Hunted Heart
Chapter 6: Smoke and Mirrors
"Wakey, wakey, my little Zero."
"Arugh..." Zero opened his eyes and saw the demented smile on a familiar looking face. "Oh, it's
you." He remembered his anger and reached for her throat. All he was rewarded with was a rattle
of chains. "YOU!" He breathed angrily. Zero was chained up against some pipes. From what
he could tell, they were in one of the sub basements of the hunter HQ.
"Yeah, I had to chain you up." Her eyes had an almost haunting glow. "You were going to be problematic."
She nodded matter-of-factly. "I didn't want to kill you yet... you could still be... useful. X's
heart will be a complicated one for me to earn..."
"You leave him alone!" Zero struggled against the chains again, but they held firmly.
"I wouldn't bother yelling if I were you. I arranged so that the guards wouldn't patrol this area,
so no one would hear you... except me, of course." She reached for Zero's face, but he shook her
had away. Her eyes narrowed and she gripped his face more violently. Zero winced slightly from her
fingers digging into his face. "Now that's going to leave a mark, isn't it? In any case, I still
don't want you to wear yourself out yelling too much..." She reached nearby for a roll of duct
tape and tore off a piece. Against Zero's protest, she taped her lips shut. She took a step back,
a delighted look on her face. "Now, if I didn't have to deal with X, we could have some fun!" She
giggled, very unlike an innocent girl and left Zero alone in the room.
Zero studied the chains binding his hands. His wrists were chained to either side of him on pipes
protruding from the walls. The pipes looked quite new and sturdy. Nothing around him looked useful
for his escape. Zero sighed.
//How am I so dumb?// Zero thought to himself. //I shouldn't have let my guard down.// He frowned.
//I underestimated her.// His thoughts floated to X. //If that sociopath lays a hand...// Footsteps
disturbed his train of thought. //Is she back?//
----------------------------
"Have you seen Zero?"
"Hm?" Faith turned around and saw X walking up, looking slightly concerned.
"Zero. Douglas said he missed both the unit meetings this morning. I checked his quarters, I
checked the roof, I tried to call him up... he's nowhere to be found."
"Have you checked with the 0th Unit navigator?" She looked up at X. "He would know if Zero left
on a mission."
"I did." X grew even more concerned. "Except he's out with the mysterious virus also, so he must
have missed communicating with Zero."
"Well, let me see if I can pull him up." She turned on some equipment at her desk. "Commander Zero?"
She adjusted some of the buttons. "Commander Zero, can you read me?" Her lips curled slightly.
"Zero here." Zero's voice came over the radio. "I'm on a mission right now, and unnecessary
radio contact could compromise it. I'll call in later. Zero out."
"Zero wait!" X scrambled to put on a headset, but only heard static.
"He cut off his radio." Faith continued I can't raise him anymore."
"I guess he can take care of himself..."
An alarm sounded over the intercom system. X and Faith immediately starting heading for the door.
It was the alarm for an attack on the HQ. Faith stopped by the weapons cabinet and grabbed a long
range rifle and several battery packs.
"I'm heading for the roof." Faith said as they exited the room. "I should be able to snipe a couple
of Mavericks from there."
"I'll clear the way for you." X followed.
The two got to the roof without incident, but they were not alone. A group of Mavericks were
gathered at the edge of the rooftop, about fifty yards away. Faith closed one eye to look through
the scope mounted on her rifle. She fired off two shots, downing the two at the front.
"WAIT!" X grabbed the head of her rifle. "You'll hit Zero!"
"WHAT?!" She looked at the crowd of mavericks again, now noticing the red armor and the blonde hair.
Zero's body was draped over one of the mavericks. "HEY! Let go of Zero!" She reaimed her gun,
but X grabbed the rifle again.
"You might hit Zero!" X insisted. By now, a helicopter hovered above the Mavericks. "ZERO!" X
ran towards the Mavericks, but they were already leaving. They were hanging onto ropes suspended
from the helicopter. "ZEROOO!!" X screamed after them as they were lifted off the rooftop.
-----------------------------
"Ugh..." //Did someone get the name of the truck that hit me?// Zero thought to himself as he
regained consciousness. His head throbbed, and his throat was dry.
"Look at who we have here!" An annoying voice boomed, making Zero's headache worse. "Who would
imagine we would find the commander of Zero Unit chained to the basement of HQ... dare I ask how
you got there?"
"None of your business." Zero spat. He was leaned against the wall, his hands and legs chained
together at the wrists and ankles. //Out of the pan and into the fire...// Now he was in the hands
of Mavericks, and from the looks of it, just a small fry one. "Let's just say it was your lucky
day that I was chained up, or I would have torn you apart before you even got within arms reach
of me."
"Did I hit you in the head too hard? Well, now that you're here," mused the Maverick, "I can get
some valuable information about the hunters from you. For starters I want your remote security codes
to the facility.
"You wish." Zero laughed. The Maverick raised a gun against Zero's shoulder. The red hunter
jerked back violently when the gun went off.
"Tell me." The Maverick repeated, then fired off another shot and hit the other shoulder. Zero
grunted, his face twisted with pain, but he still didn't make a noise.
"Go..." Zero's breath was labored. "To hell..." A small pool of blood was starting to gather
underneath him. The pain was subsiding from his shoulders, but everything was getting dimmer along
with the pain.
"I'll just let you think about where I would shoot next." The maverick leveled the gun between
Zero's eyes.
//This is an inexperienced guy.// Zero thought. //He has no sense of strategy. He wouldn't think
for a second about killing me just because I'm ticking him off.// Zero looked in the Maverick's eyes.
//Yep... he would shoot.//
"I don't know them." Zero shook his head. "I--"
"Don't lie to me!" The Maverick moved the gun to Zero's knees and fired. Zero gulped in a breath
and grabbed his legs with his hands. The Maverick grabbed the chains on Zero's wrists and pulled
the hunter to his feet. "Stop wasting time, because you don't have much left!" The sudden movement
stunned the injured Zero, whose eyes were now half open and focused on something else in the room.
"Hey! I'm talking to you." But Zero was already out cold. The Maverick cursed and tossed Zero's
body to the ground.
"Boss." Another Maverick entered the room. "Oh... you killed him?"
"No." The first Maverick said in a mocking voice. "He's still alive. I know what I'm doing."
"Uh... Boss?"
"What?!"
"Behind you..." The air in the room shifted. The boss Maverick turned around quick enough to see
a purple glow before his life violently ended. The second maverick's mouth hung open in shock as
the blood dripped off the fingers of the attacker. Before he had time to scream, the same hands
wrapped around his neck and snapped it.
----------------------------------
X's eyes snapped open. One moment he was sleeping, then the next, someone's hands was wrapped
around his throat. The fingers only pressed lightly against him, but the eyes of his attacker was
enough to freeze him with fear.
"Hello, X." Zero smiled slightly. "Did you miss me?"
"You again!" X tried to push Zero off, but Zero responded by pressing harder down on X's throat.
"Haven't you had enough fun?!"
"I could never have enough fun with you." Zero pulled the covers away and scanned X's body. X
shivered from the sudden exposure to the cold. He was only wearing a T shirt and boxers. "Never
enough fun..." He brushed X's hair lightly away with his free hand and smiled.
"Get off of me!" X pushed back again, this time ignoring the pressure on his neck for awhile.
Zero's hand did not budge. With great satisfaction, he felt X's struggle weaken as he ran out of
breath. He glared angrily at the red hunter, breathing heavier than before. "Why are you here
again? To get me to hate Zero some more?"
"Hate me?" Zero looked slightly curious. "What do you mean? I am Zero."
"You're just a figment of my imagination." X closed his eyes, willing Zero to go away.
"I forgot, Faith did something to you." X opened his eyes wide from Zero's words. "Yes, I read her
diary, She's lusting after you, you know? A cute, cute schoolgirl crush." Zero bared his teeth
in a sadistic grin. "Of course, she's no match for me, because look who in your bed now."
X stared in horror to the hunter standing above him. The look in Zero's eyes. His smile. His
demeanor.
"Oh God..." X breathed. "...you've gone Maverick again."
----------------------------
Mob Member 1: GRUGH! I HATE it when you do that! Stupid cliff hanger!
Neo Mob Members: *slamming their head against their monitors*
Aya: Sorry! Wow, the inspiration for this one was faboux! (fabeau) I was driving around, and thinking
about what to do about my other fic, and essentially was going to have Zero go maverick in the other
fic, but then I thought it would be MUCH more amusing if Zero did so in this fic! Wow! Now there's
the real evil Zero running around, the fake one in X's head, and the evil fan girl! Can you
handle all the evil?!
Aya's Car: She's telling the truth. She almost ran me off the road when she was busy celebrating
about the fun plot twist.
Faith: Um... Zero's not going to be MORE evil than me, right?
Zero: *singing* Anything you can do I can do BETTER.
Mob Member 2: *now wearing "Go Zero" T-shirt* Wow! Someone evil more cool than Faith! Can you do
all the other evil things she did, too?
Zero: Yep, and I *winks at Faith* am actually going to get close enough to X to do something
X: Should I be looking forward to this?
Aya: Just another one... maybe two chapters. It'll be fun fun, I promise!