Skew Universe
Chapter 11: Free
X awoke with a start, the vivid images of his nightmares immediately forgotten, but the paralyzing chill remained quite real. The lights were out, heightening his already worn nerves near the breaking point. Something about the darkness stripped him, body and soul. This must be the other X's fear of the dark. X thought to himself, wiping the cold sweat off his brow. This is going to get worst before it gets better.
As if on cue, X felt the soft comforter wrapping around him. Immobilized, X stared up dumbly at Vile, who now had X tightly wrapped within his arms.
"You're cold, so don't kick the sheets off your bed." Vile said calmly. X stared incredulously at Vile.
"Let go of me." X demanded, hearing his voice shake from his shivering. Instead of complying, Vile started to rub the comforter, as if warming a child from just in from the snow. Despite himself, X actually started to feel better.
"I can read you like a book, X." Vile's voice got progressively softer, trying to coo X back to slumber. "You need me."
X stared away without responding, but gave a small grunt of disapproval. He was much too tired to speak right now. The chill was gone, but the weariness was quickly catching up.
"My X likes it that I can read him like a book." Just a hair above a whisper, Vile continued. "He liked it that I understood him completely."
"Vile?" X was going to hate himself for it later, but he allowed his body to relax. He was just so tired, and having someone-anyone-to anchor against seemed much more important.
"Mmm?" Vile brought his face closer to X's. X had already closed his eyes, and struggled to finish his sentence before falling back asleep.
"I hate you."
"I know." And Vile rocked X slowly as the blue hunter fell back into dreams.
****
"This is where Vile is holding X?" Zero asked, studying the complex intensely. Commander X nodded, stepping up with Zero. "It's quite a large complex. Do you know where he might be holding X?"
"No idea." Commander X replied, shaking his head. "I never really got a good idea of what the inside layout was." Zero gave a sideways glance at Commander X, and then nodded.
"Shall we split up? We can cover the area faster. Keep in touch via the comm. link okay?"
Commander X nodded.
*****************
Vile marveled the glow from X. Every bit of light seemed to be drawn to the soft curves of the sleeping hunter's face; every degree of warmth in the room hovering just above his skin. Vile did not resist the urge to move his own face closer, to breathe in the light.
X struggled a bit, even in his sleep, troubled by something from his dreams. Is he afraid I'll do something to him? Vile mused. One of X's hand got free from between the comforter still wrapped around him, and he moved it around to Vile back, holding the Maverick closer. Or maybe he doesn't want me to leave.
He watched as X-satisfied now that he still got something to hold onto- settled back down against his chest.
It'll be much more fun with both of you around. Vile stroked X's hair, petting him possessively.
**************
Vile!
The urgent cry in his dreams awoke X with a start. He was in bed again, but this time, certain he was alone. X sat up in bed, getting a better look around him. Vile was definitely not in the room, but X seemed cautious anyway. To his surprise, his legs were in working order again. He leapt out of bed, shedding the sheets away as if they held some bad memory. Immediately his eyes turned to the closet. He was still wearing only his boxers, and thought that this might not be the ideal escape gear.
After a few moments rummaging, he found some light clothing and slippers. As he headed for the door, he thought about how these might be Vile's clothing. A chill ran up his spine at the thought, but he quickly got over it, as the prospect of escape seemed closer to reach.
The door was unlocked, and as X stepped though the doorway, a disturbing thought occurred to him. All this seemed too easy. His legs functioning again, the door unlocked. Could Vile really be that confidant that I wouldn't escape? Or is this some kind of game? X paused in the poorly lit hallway, listening for footsteps. Convinced it was safe to move on, he continued. His choice seemed foolhardy when--not three steps later--he felt someone approach him from behind and immediately spun around to defend himself.
"X?!" X yelled, recognizing his mirror self standing behind him, even in the darkness.
"I've finally found you, Copy." The other X patted X on the shoulder. "Zero and I have come to save you."
"You.have?"
"This way." The other X turned and headed the opposite direction. X started to follow, but what Vile said about the other X still bothered him.
"Wait! X." The other X stopped at his voice, and turned around to look at X, who started to fidget. "We have to talk."
"Now is neither the time, nor this the place, Copy. Let's go."
"But I need to know!" X insisted. "Are you really on Zero's side? Or are you still betraying him?"
"What makes you think I'm not on Zero's side?" The other X tiled his head, studying X's every movement. "I'm here to rescue you for him."
"The way you." X started to back up, sensing something wrong about the other X. "Where is Vile? You know, don't you?"
"Where is Vile?" The other X repeated, heading matching X step for step. With every inch he moved, his curiosity at X's distrust twisted into something more sinister. Though he has faced many evils in his past, X still found himself shaking. This was. himself staring dangerously back at him.
"You are still betraying Zero!"
The other X simply flashed a sinister smile.
"Do you want to start running now, or just give up and come into my arms?" The other X stopped moving towards X, and instead, held out his arms. "You know you can't outrun me without armor."
X bowed his head and considered his situation, then finally nodded and headed the other X, but instead of falling into his arms, X gave a battle cry and decked his other self as hard as he could bare handed sending the surprised X flat on his back before running away in the other direction.
The other X got up slowly then looked in the direction which X ran. "Heh, I should have known he would try that."
******************
Zero circled the base's exterior, trying to get a better perspective of the place's layout before entering. Many thought he liked to dash in and slash, but on rare occasions he plotted a point of attack.
"Have you come to join the fun, Zero?" Vile's unmistakable voice quickly drew Zero's attention.
"X!" Clutched in Vile's arms was X, still unconsciously slumped forwards. Something painful tore through Zero's chest. "Bastard! What did you do to X?!"
"Miss your boyfriend that much?" Vile laughed. "Did you forget you were here to find the little one?"
Zero's eyes narrowed into slits, trying to think clearly through the haze of anger in his mind. He still has no idea of Copy's whereabouts, and Vile has X in his arms. For Zero, it was hard not to jump at Vile right now and start slashing, but he knew Vile would probably use X as a shield.
"What do you want?!" Zero growled.
"I want you taste you, Zero." Vile said, a strange look on his face.
"What?"
"You can understand a bit, can't you, Zero?" Vile set X down on the ground. "Wanting to dominate your enemy in every possible way? Sometimes when you're done killing, you're still hungry for something, no?" He straddled over X's body, but his eyes were still fixed on Zero. "The look on his face when he knows he's about to be taken. I wonder if that's what you look like in his bedroom."
Zero gritted his teeth, on the verge of killing everything in sight, including X.
"Why don't you come over here and let me find out, Zero?" Vile leaned down, his face inches from X's. "Or would you prefer to watch first?"
"ZERO!" All eyes turned towards Copy, who was running towards the crowd at full speed. "STOP! It's a trap!" Before Copy could move another step, X had disappeared from under Vile, and somehow gotten a strangle hold on Copy. "Arughmmm!" X muffled Copy's cries, and stared at Zero with cold, hazy green eyes.
"Did you really think I would really let my own puppet prance around my compound without some means of controlling him?" Vile laughed. "Unfortunately for him, he ran into me first."
Zero had his fill of talk for the day, and dashed towards Vile, strands of electricity sparking dangerously off of his light saber as he charged. X's green eyes suddenly appeared before him, and X powered his own Z-saber against Zero. It was too late for Zero to stop. Zero looked sadly at X, his own energy levels dropping rapidly from his wound. Still under Vile's influence, X stared emotionlessly at Zero, completely ignoring Zero's sword embedded in his armor.
"Sorry. X." Zero's grip loosened from his sword, and his body slid off of X's sword, falling heavily against the dirt.
"Ze-Zero!" Copy ran towards Zero and picked him up. "Zero! ZERO!"
Seeing Copy cradling Zero in his arms, a tear slid down X's face, and he, too, slumped to the ground. Copy gasped, and reached out for X. "X!" Still conscious, X grasped Copy's extended hand tightly. An electric shock went through Copy, and the world dissolved around him. All but darkness remained, yet he was fully awake, knowing this wasn't a dream at all.
"What? X?!" Copy heard himself say.
"I'm already dead, Copy." X's voice replied, filled with sadness. "I killed Zero, and he killed me."
"But."
"I need your help, Copy. We can only stop Vile together if you let me take over your body."
"No. I want to stop him, too."
"Right now, you can't stop him. You have to let me join you."
"How can I trust you?"
"You know very well when I'm lying to you and when I'm telling you the truth. I'm you. I. I'm already dead X. This consciousness of me inside you is all that's left, and soon that will be gone, too."
".will you promise not to kill Vile?"
"Why do you ask that?"
"Because I know you want to kill him."
"Alright, I promise not to kill Vile." X paused. "Please.we don't have much time."
************
X opened his eyes. Several seconds later he realized Vile was carrying him away somewhere. He looked over Vile's shoulder and saw Zero and his own lifeless shells lying unceremoniously on the ground.
"You must have been shocked to see both of them die in front of you. X." Vile left a punctuated pause before calling him X. "Now that there's only one of you, I can call you X. It's really a shame they have to both die." Vile smiled. "I would have enjoyed playing with you and X. and perhaps, even Zero."
X stared back at Vile, showing absolutely no emotion on his face. Being in a different body allowed him the luxury of thinking outside his usual scope, somehow freeing him from the emotional traps Vile had carefully laid over the years. He hadn't been able to think so clearly while in Vile's presence in years.
He would enjoy killing Vile.
____________________
Aya: Woooo, X can't read himself as well as he thought, it seems.
X: Wheee! I get to kill Vile!
Vile: O_o man, why am I always dying?
Zero: It's better than staying dead. *pout*
Axl: I'm here for no particular reason. I'm not in the fic, nor does my appearance here affect the story anyway. I'm simply born from Aya missing playing X7 since she has no power.
X awoke with a start, the vivid images of his nightmares immediately forgotten, but the paralyzing chill remained quite real. The lights were out, heightening his already worn nerves near the breaking point. Something about the darkness stripped him, body and soul. This must be the other X's fear of the dark. X thought to himself, wiping the cold sweat off his brow. This is going to get worst before it gets better.
As if on cue, X felt the soft comforter wrapping around him. Immobilized, X stared up dumbly at Vile, who now had X tightly wrapped within his arms.
"You're cold, so don't kick the sheets off your bed." Vile said calmly. X stared incredulously at Vile.
"Let go of me." X demanded, hearing his voice shake from his shivering. Instead of complying, Vile started to rub the comforter, as if warming a child from just in from the snow. Despite himself, X actually started to feel better.
"I can read you like a book, X." Vile's voice got progressively softer, trying to coo X back to slumber. "You need me."
X stared away without responding, but gave a small grunt of disapproval. He was much too tired to speak right now. The chill was gone, but the weariness was quickly catching up.
"My X likes it that I can read him like a book." Just a hair above a whisper, Vile continued. "He liked it that I understood him completely."
"Vile?" X was going to hate himself for it later, but he allowed his body to relax. He was just so tired, and having someone-anyone-to anchor against seemed much more important.
"Mmm?" Vile brought his face closer to X's. X had already closed his eyes, and struggled to finish his sentence before falling back asleep.
"I hate you."
"I know." And Vile rocked X slowly as the blue hunter fell back into dreams.
****
"This is where Vile is holding X?" Zero asked, studying the complex intensely. Commander X nodded, stepping up with Zero. "It's quite a large complex. Do you know where he might be holding X?"
"No idea." Commander X replied, shaking his head. "I never really got a good idea of what the inside layout was." Zero gave a sideways glance at Commander X, and then nodded.
"Shall we split up? We can cover the area faster. Keep in touch via the comm. link okay?"
Commander X nodded.
*****************
Vile marveled the glow from X. Every bit of light seemed to be drawn to the soft curves of the sleeping hunter's face; every degree of warmth in the room hovering just above his skin. Vile did not resist the urge to move his own face closer, to breathe in the light.
X struggled a bit, even in his sleep, troubled by something from his dreams. Is he afraid I'll do something to him? Vile mused. One of X's hand got free from between the comforter still wrapped around him, and he moved it around to Vile back, holding the Maverick closer. Or maybe he doesn't want me to leave.
He watched as X-satisfied now that he still got something to hold onto- settled back down against his chest.
It'll be much more fun with both of you around. Vile stroked X's hair, petting him possessively.
**************
Vile!
The urgent cry in his dreams awoke X with a start. He was in bed again, but this time, certain he was alone. X sat up in bed, getting a better look around him. Vile was definitely not in the room, but X seemed cautious anyway. To his surprise, his legs were in working order again. He leapt out of bed, shedding the sheets away as if they held some bad memory. Immediately his eyes turned to the closet. He was still wearing only his boxers, and thought that this might not be the ideal escape gear.
After a few moments rummaging, he found some light clothing and slippers. As he headed for the door, he thought about how these might be Vile's clothing. A chill ran up his spine at the thought, but he quickly got over it, as the prospect of escape seemed closer to reach.
The door was unlocked, and as X stepped though the doorway, a disturbing thought occurred to him. All this seemed too easy. His legs functioning again, the door unlocked. Could Vile really be that confidant that I wouldn't escape? Or is this some kind of game? X paused in the poorly lit hallway, listening for footsteps. Convinced it was safe to move on, he continued. His choice seemed foolhardy when--not three steps later--he felt someone approach him from behind and immediately spun around to defend himself.
"X?!" X yelled, recognizing his mirror self standing behind him, even in the darkness.
"I've finally found you, Copy." The other X patted X on the shoulder. "Zero and I have come to save you."
"You.have?"
"This way." The other X turned and headed the opposite direction. X started to follow, but what Vile said about the other X still bothered him.
"Wait! X." The other X stopped at his voice, and turned around to look at X, who started to fidget. "We have to talk."
"Now is neither the time, nor this the place, Copy. Let's go."
"But I need to know!" X insisted. "Are you really on Zero's side? Or are you still betraying him?"
"What makes you think I'm not on Zero's side?" The other X tiled his head, studying X's every movement. "I'm here to rescue you for him."
"The way you." X started to back up, sensing something wrong about the other X. "Where is Vile? You know, don't you?"
"Where is Vile?" The other X repeated, heading matching X step for step. With every inch he moved, his curiosity at X's distrust twisted into something more sinister. Though he has faced many evils in his past, X still found himself shaking. This was. himself staring dangerously back at him.
"You are still betraying Zero!"
The other X simply flashed a sinister smile.
"Do you want to start running now, or just give up and come into my arms?" The other X stopped moving towards X, and instead, held out his arms. "You know you can't outrun me without armor."
X bowed his head and considered his situation, then finally nodded and headed the other X, but instead of falling into his arms, X gave a battle cry and decked his other self as hard as he could bare handed sending the surprised X flat on his back before running away in the other direction.
The other X got up slowly then looked in the direction which X ran. "Heh, I should have known he would try that."
******************
Zero circled the base's exterior, trying to get a better perspective of the place's layout before entering. Many thought he liked to dash in and slash, but on rare occasions he plotted a point of attack.
"Have you come to join the fun, Zero?" Vile's unmistakable voice quickly drew Zero's attention.
"X!" Clutched in Vile's arms was X, still unconsciously slumped forwards. Something painful tore through Zero's chest. "Bastard! What did you do to X?!"
"Miss your boyfriend that much?" Vile laughed. "Did you forget you were here to find the little one?"
Zero's eyes narrowed into slits, trying to think clearly through the haze of anger in his mind. He still has no idea of Copy's whereabouts, and Vile has X in his arms. For Zero, it was hard not to jump at Vile right now and start slashing, but he knew Vile would probably use X as a shield.
"What do you want?!" Zero growled.
"I want you taste you, Zero." Vile said, a strange look on his face.
"What?"
"You can understand a bit, can't you, Zero?" Vile set X down on the ground. "Wanting to dominate your enemy in every possible way? Sometimes when you're done killing, you're still hungry for something, no?" He straddled over X's body, but his eyes were still fixed on Zero. "The look on his face when he knows he's about to be taken. I wonder if that's what you look like in his bedroom."
Zero gritted his teeth, on the verge of killing everything in sight, including X.
"Why don't you come over here and let me find out, Zero?" Vile leaned down, his face inches from X's. "Or would you prefer to watch first?"
"ZERO!" All eyes turned towards Copy, who was running towards the crowd at full speed. "STOP! It's a trap!" Before Copy could move another step, X had disappeared from under Vile, and somehow gotten a strangle hold on Copy. "Arughmmm!" X muffled Copy's cries, and stared at Zero with cold, hazy green eyes.
"Did you really think I would really let my own puppet prance around my compound without some means of controlling him?" Vile laughed. "Unfortunately for him, he ran into me first."
Zero had his fill of talk for the day, and dashed towards Vile, strands of electricity sparking dangerously off of his light saber as he charged. X's green eyes suddenly appeared before him, and X powered his own Z-saber against Zero. It was too late for Zero to stop. Zero looked sadly at X, his own energy levels dropping rapidly from his wound. Still under Vile's influence, X stared emotionlessly at Zero, completely ignoring Zero's sword embedded in his armor.
"Sorry. X." Zero's grip loosened from his sword, and his body slid off of X's sword, falling heavily against the dirt.
"Ze-Zero!" Copy ran towards Zero and picked him up. "Zero! ZERO!"
Seeing Copy cradling Zero in his arms, a tear slid down X's face, and he, too, slumped to the ground. Copy gasped, and reached out for X. "X!" Still conscious, X grasped Copy's extended hand tightly. An electric shock went through Copy, and the world dissolved around him. All but darkness remained, yet he was fully awake, knowing this wasn't a dream at all.
"What? X?!" Copy heard himself say.
"I'm already dead, Copy." X's voice replied, filled with sadness. "I killed Zero, and he killed me."
"But."
"I need your help, Copy. We can only stop Vile together if you let me take over your body."
"No. I want to stop him, too."
"Right now, you can't stop him. You have to let me join you."
"How can I trust you?"
"You know very well when I'm lying to you and when I'm telling you the truth. I'm you. I. I'm already dead X. This consciousness of me inside you is all that's left, and soon that will be gone, too."
".will you promise not to kill Vile?"
"Why do you ask that?"
"Because I know you want to kill him."
"Alright, I promise not to kill Vile." X paused. "Please.we don't have much time."
************
X opened his eyes. Several seconds later he realized Vile was carrying him away somewhere. He looked over Vile's shoulder and saw Zero and his own lifeless shells lying unceremoniously on the ground.
"You must have been shocked to see both of them die in front of you. X." Vile left a punctuated pause before calling him X. "Now that there's only one of you, I can call you X. It's really a shame they have to both die." Vile smiled. "I would have enjoyed playing with you and X. and perhaps, even Zero."
X stared back at Vile, showing absolutely no emotion on his face. Being in a different body allowed him the luxury of thinking outside his usual scope, somehow freeing him from the emotional traps Vile had carefully laid over the years. He hadn't been able to think so clearly while in Vile's presence in years.
He would enjoy killing Vile.
____________________
Aya: Woooo, X can't read himself as well as he thought, it seems.
X: Wheee! I get to kill Vile!
Vile: O_o man, why am I always dying?
Zero: It's better than staying dead. *pout*
Axl: I'm here for no particular reason. I'm not in the fic, nor does my appearance here affect the story anyway. I'm simply born from Aya missing playing X7 since she has no power.