Walking Ghosts
Second: Tensions
by Lady Virgo
"The walls within the
mind crumbles
falling at your feet
Suddenly."
///
Perhaps he should have felt somewhat odd, being pressed against the wall by a much smaller body. A body that held a great deal of strength and more than enough courage to use it to his advantage. But he still had the height advantage and he was, by no means, weak on his own. Surely, if he tried, he could've gotten away. He could've done something to stop this. But he didn't. It seemed.. pointless, somehow.
You had gone through this for so long, his mind cooed coldly, why should you start resisting now? Why didn't you start then? Why do you just allow this to happen at all?
Standing there, he really had no idea.
Lips played at his collar, pulling at the zipper on his shirt as hands simultaneously slipped under his jacket. He was being unresponsive again, but he had gotten used to it long ago. They both have.
But he still pressed, he still gave into the urge to touch and taste and possess. "Freeze.." he hissed into the pale column of his bared neck.
And as the first gentle stroke of Snake's long fang brushed across his skin, Freeze leaned his head back and closed his eyes. And just let it happen.
///
"Slash is on a rampage again." Skull commented idly. "Snake hanging over Freeze again?"
"Nah. Snake's gone into hiding by now."
"Hm."
Flash looked over at the other Enforcers before turning back to his Solitaire. "One of these days he's gonna get caught."
"He knows."
"And it's not going to be pretty."
Skull snorted. "Trust me, he knows."
"That's what we're here for." Pharaoh said suddenly, bringing attention that- yes, indeed -he was still there. "No undue harm will to a Robot Master, at the hands of another." He stood quietly, leaving a bare pool of drink in his glass. "Or because of another." And just as silently, he walked out.
His attitude recently had made the other Enforcers wary. So quiet and sullen. It was almost surprising how hard- for someone that didn't even know the guy -he took Crash's death. It shook their attention and /forced/ them to realize how seriously Pharaoh took his job.
And because he allowed Ring and Shadow to continue their fights..
Because he didn't take any notice of how it affected their friends..
Pharaoh stood outside of Ring's door, knowing how broken up his brother was. And though he knew it wasn't entirely Ring's fault, he couldn't find anywhere else to place that blame, all except for the small bit he could- /should/ -shoulder. And all he could say at that moment would just add to the hurt.
Because even though he had warned them, even though he did all he believed he could, he still let them at it.
Pharaoh clenched his hands.
Maybe he was to blame..
He raised his hand to knock on the door, but then slowly lowered it.
Rifts, in time, grow larger. And their was no exception. And as much as he did care for his brother, he had no resources to bridge the gap they had neglected for so long.
Turning on his heel, Pharaoh quietly left down the hall, leaving no evidence that he was ever there.
///
"That's odd."
"What?"
"We're getting some strange readings."
"Strange how?"
"I'm not sure. Like..interference, almost. Like something's blocking the scanners but it's so subtle it's hard to tell."
"Huh. Lemme see."
Lightly, fingers danced perfectly over the keys.
"Should we do something?"
A timed sway of a head.
"Nah. Magma Dragoon can't do anything."
///
So, in hindsight, maybe it was a stupid thing to do. Well of course it was, what did he expect? That he would be grateful? That he would believe him? That everything would magically come back together and the long awaited make-up sex would begin?
Who was he trying to fool here?
Himself, apparently.
He stole into Skull Fortress as easily as the other countless times he'd done so. He couldn't believe it had taken him this long to realize what exactly it was that Dr. Wily was planning. The half-assed robots of the 8th army was a dead give-away that he was preoccupied with something else and Blues scoured all the data he had stolen and listened obsessively into the fortress. But no one seemed to know anything. It was only when someone had referenced to the Stradroids that it clicked.
That robot!
Blues had cursed himself creatively in nine different languages for forgetting. Forgiving that he had left Dr. Light to take care of it (scratch that- he knew better than to let Light know and simply leave it at that) but there was something about it that didn't like at all.
Especially when the Enforcers talked about 'preparing Forte'.
He went through the information he had taken regarding the Stardroids and that robot hidden in Wily's fortress. He had figured out that merging one complete mind with even a partial one saved months of time that Wily really didn't have at all. And, using certain sequences, one could negate personality parts they didn't want or enhance those that they did without having to wade through a head full of chemicals and miles of information.
Going through the data he realized Dr. Wily was planning on merging Forte with this beast. And once they merged..
Forte would, technically, no longer exist.
Blues couldn't allow that. Not with his beliefs, not with his mission and, definitely, not in his heart. Because, as absurd as it may seem, Blues still held Forte dearest of all and it frightened him more than anything those two humans could ever come up.
So he had it planned out in his mind. He'd find Forte, explain the situation to him, make him understand what was going to happen and then they'd both leave together and..and..
Well, he didn't plan that far.
Because, as he feared, he wasn't making much headway on Step 3.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Forte said for the umpteenth time. He looked, for the life of Blues, as if he didn't believe anything he was being told. And not only that, he didn't seem to care.
"Look," the older bioroid said, "I'm sure you remember the Stardroids."
Forte rolled his eyes. "We've already been to that part."
"But you remember."
"/Yes/." Forte hissed. This was becoming a waste of time. He really hated wasting time.
"Then you remember what happened to the Robot Masters that were used for it."
"Yeah, so what?"
So what?? Blues felt ready to shake him till he understood. "So, what happened?"
Forte raised an eyebrow at him. But, after a length, decided to humor him. "They were out of commission." That was an understatement and he knew it, but refused to say what Blues wanted him to say.
"They were dead." The other quickly corrected. "Everything that made them 'them' was taken away. Merged until they were nothing like themselves, they, as everyone knew them, were gone." He clenched his hands, quelling the urge to put them on Forte's shoulders. "And that's what's going to happen to you."
"But they're still here."
"Backups."
"And there's a backup of me, too, I'm sure."
"Forte," Blues said harshly, "Wily's almost dead. He knows this. That's why he's been working so feverishly on that robot."
"He had time to create the 8th army."
"They were never brought back. Neither was Crash."
"Crash would've had to have been rebuilt."
"So were many of the Robot Masters after Rock got through with them. Or each other."
Forte scowled. It wasn't that the black crested robot didn't want to believe that Wily waould do something as stupid as that. He just wouldn't believe Blues on principle. And, just like anyone else, he was technically immortal. What fear had he for dying? After all, he wasn't an emotional weakling like that drill bomber.
So he growled low in his throat and said, "What's it matter to you? Old man?"
Something about that just set him off and suddenly Blues didn't have control over anything. He held Forte tight in his hands, teeth bared like an animal. He didn't know if he was desperate or frustrated or angry.
"Because he's going to use you!"
"Since when do you care?"
"I do! I always have!"
Forte ruthlessly broke out of the hold. "That's why you left me for your precious /Rock/, huh?"
"Forte-!" He bit his tongue to keep from cursing. "This isn't the time to be jealous."
"You're right on that. I was jealous a long time ago." His gold eyes were narrow beams. "It's over, just like you trying to act the hero with me. I'm not some bitch-in-distress that'll jump into your arms on a moments notice. We're through. We've been through."
"Forte-"
"Get the fuck out of here. I see you again after the next five seconds I'll blow your fucking head off."
Blues opened his mouth to say something but the look in Forte's harsh stare grabbed him and /forced/ him to realize it was, indeed, over. He had screwed everything up in that one day and, unlike Shadow, he would never get another chance.
Truly the precise problem with foresight, as Terra had once explained, was that it was /not/ hindsight..
///
"Where's Snake?"
The other immediately fell silent and fidgeted under Pharaoh's gaze.
"..Well?" He prompted.
"He-" Flash cut himself off, flinching a bit as he directed attention to himself. "We don't know."
"What do you mean 'you don't know'?"
"We haven't see him."
Pharaoh narrowed his eyes. "I told you to watch him."
"We know, but-"
"You know how attached he was to Freeze."
"Well, yeah-"
He slammed a hand against the bar top. "And if he decides to follow Crash's lead? And you'll just allow that?" They shrank under the volume of his voice. "Go and find him! NOW!" They scrambled over each other as they hurried out.
All except for Flash.
"What?" The Russian-made bot growled, half turning away.
"Boss? How.. How's Magnet dong? He's okay, right? He's not.." He trailed as Pharaoh's hands slowly clenched.
"He's alive." Came the quiet reply. His anger, Flash understood, was just a farce to hide the fear and strain he's been holding on to. "But- " Pharaoh voice caught slightly, as if it were sore. "The reaction from the explosion reversed the polarity of his core."
"So..what? He can't use his power?"
He turned away fully, to keep any cracks of emotion from being seen. "..he's being crushed by his own power." He said finally.
Flash took an unconscious step back. So that's why..that's why he's so worried about Snake. Crash and Freeze, two of the many he was held responsible for were dead, Magnet slowly dying. If anyone else dies..Flash shook his head slightly. Pharaoh always took responsibility even for things he didn't have to, for the things he couldn't control, trying to protect everyone from things he couldn't stop. Flash vowed he'd never have to deal with that pain again.
"Don't worry about Snake, Boss. We'll take care of him." For everything the Boss has done for me, for all of us, Flash decided, this is the least I can do.
///
"Stupid old coot." He grumbled, arms crossed. "The hell he want me for now?" Taking a deep breath, he called out into the large room. "I'm here! Get it over with already!"
His voice echoed for a few breaths and he started growling obscenities to himself again. He huffed, minutes spanning and crossing as he waited, scuffling at the tarnished floor and glaring at the walls around him. He /really/ hated wasting time.
It took a while for it to register, several deep breaths to realize the faint odor in the air. It struck a cold chord inside him and he looked around, trying to find the source.
He wasn't stupid. He knew how insane the man was, to what lengths he would go. But still, even as he ceased to acknowledge the way the floor flew into his dimming view, he refused to believe that he could die.
///
It took a lot of guts for him to finally go and still he had no idea what he was going to do. But, Quick told himself, screwing up his courage as best he could, he was here now so he might as well get it over with.
He held up a hand and with only slight hesitance, knocked on the door. There was silence, though he didn't think there would be anything else coming from Shadow's room. After a long while he knocked again and cleared his throat. "Shadow?" Quick asked quietly, then again a little louder.
When there was no sign of movement inside, Quick grew a little worried. He went to the control panel by the door, punching in the access code- he knew he wasn't suppose to know it, but when you have hacker virtuoso buddies bragging about having the codes to everyone's rooms, one couldn't help but be curious as to what some of those codes were. Shadow hadn't changed it from the one Dr. Wily had given him, Quick thought to himself, it was just so obvious, he probably would've guessed it on his own.
"Shadow," he said, just loud enough to be heard through the door, "I'm coming in." Slowly he slid the door open, half afraid of what might happen once it was completely out of the way.
But, to his surprise, the room was empty. "That's odd.." Quick said to himself. "The locator said he was here.." He stepped into the room, looking around. It hadn't look like it was lived in at all. Nothing was moved, nothing was added and a fine layer of dust settled over everything, even the bed. But, on the desktop that protruded from the wall sat a piece of paper. Somewhat nervous, he went over and picked it up.
On top of it sat two chips that Quick recognized in an instant: the locator and the choke chip.
He let out a breath, stance drooping. "Not again.." He picked up the paper, reading it:
'I'm sorry that I, once again, do not have the courage to tell you this in person. And I'm sorry for what I had help driven Crash to do (here Quick had to restrain himself from shaking his head and telling the paper it wasn't its fault). But I'm afraid I don't have much time to explain, nor do you have much time to understand. Please, if you hold my opinion of any value, you will listen to me now. We are all in great danger in the fortress. Don't wonder how I know, don't wonder what sort of danger it is. Just know that you are not safe, no one is. Tell everyone you believe would trust you, leave the fortress now. I wish I could have stayed to make sure you- at least -left, but I can't.
'Please, believe me. If I were to lose you, everything I've ever done and must do will be rendered meaningless. As will I.
'I (a word was scribbled out in a dark blotch) wish you well.
'Shadow'
///
Coils were stacked haphazardly around the floor, crisscrossing in only a pattern Wily understood. The heavy lines gleamed dully and thrummed like metallic panthers, lying in wait for the kill under an unforgiving sun. The prey they stalked was stretched out on the lab table, unclad and waiting for the slaughter, waiting for the butcher to take what he wanted and through the scraps to whatever vulture was creeping in the wings.
Forte shivered a bit, the aftereffects of the drug still making it difficult for him to think. So instead, he looked in the direction his head lay, where- it had to have been purposeful -he stayed aware by studying the unfamiliar face before him. The creature, he noticed dully, was similarly propped against a vertical table, held securely by straps and had to be at least- if not over -six feet in height. And, though well muscled, was still leaning towards lanky. Long blonde hair was unbound, curtaining down his back, a few cusps over his shoulders, long bangs partially obscuring his closed eyes. The things saving this new robot from utter femininity by his long hair and smooth face was an undeniably male body and the sharp cut of his chin and cheeks.
Countless measures of time passed before the old doctor passed in his view. He knew, all along, that Wily was there, but couldn't seem to remember and, as he tried to croak out words, he had forgotten how to talk.
However, Dr. Wily appeared to have seen his attempts to move and turned to look at him, tiny eyes smoldering, moving his body on pure adrenaline. Once that burned, Forte figured the old man would finally be forced to accept his fate and die. He wondered idly what would happen to the Robot Masters once that happened, what would become of this new one.
Then, to his surprise- as slow as it was growing -the human smiled at him, not even attempting to cloak the cruel intentions behind it. "Welcome- temporarily -to the land of the living." Forte tried to speak again, but was betrayed by his helplessness. "Don't worry, you don't need to talk. Soon you won't need to do much of anything." Wily frowned as he turned back to the other robot, dark scowl on his narrow chin. "I should have known better than to trust anything connected with those shadow slinkers. It's because of Blues it came to this." He harshly tightened a cord into the blonde creature and Forte's eyelashes flickered slightly as it began to strip the metal. "Because Blues couldn't see my plan. Because Blues infected the Robot Masters with his belligerence, because he drew Shadow into his path." Wily seethed, knotted hands having surprising strength as he ranted between gritted and rotting teeth. "And Shadow drew up the plans for you and I didn't see it. I didn't see that you were just another device developed between the two of them just to ruin my plans all the more." Forte managed an audible breath. He had never known he wasn't designed by the doctor.
"But," he turned back to the purple marked bioroid, manic grin on his face giving him a wild and mindless air of living about him- the presence of self-destruction, "it doesn't matter now. Because soon I'll be rid of one problem. And then the world will be mine. And Thomas and Rock and Blues and anyone else that dared to stand in my way will no longer be a threat!" He cackled with such insanity, Forte was certain that he'd be reduced to a quivering wreck of coughs. But the tiny old man held on and he stumbled slightly, leaning in close to Forte. The robot tried to move his head away, able to smell the stink of creeping death over his crumbling skin, as wide dark eyes glazed at him.
"It will all be over soon. And then, after all these long years, I can rest." He put a strange contraption over Forte's face, covering from his eyes to his chin. "It will all be over in a moment." He heard the man whisper, panicking slightly, not knowing what was going on. There was a soft noise and Forte wondered idly if Wily was crying. "After so, so long.."
Power surged in the fortress and a voiceless scream ran wild in the halls in droves. But no one heard it. No one noticed a thing.
by Lady Virgo
"The walls within the
mind crumbles
falling at your feet
Suddenly."
///
Perhaps he should have felt somewhat odd, being pressed against the wall by a much smaller body. A body that held a great deal of strength and more than enough courage to use it to his advantage. But he still had the height advantage and he was, by no means, weak on his own. Surely, if he tried, he could've gotten away. He could've done something to stop this. But he didn't. It seemed.. pointless, somehow.
You had gone through this for so long, his mind cooed coldly, why should you start resisting now? Why didn't you start then? Why do you just allow this to happen at all?
Standing there, he really had no idea.
Lips played at his collar, pulling at the zipper on his shirt as hands simultaneously slipped under his jacket. He was being unresponsive again, but he had gotten used to it long ago. They both have.
But he still pressed, he still gave into the urge to touch and taste and possess. "Freeze.." he hissed into the pale column of his bared neck.
And as the first gentle stroke of Snake's long fang brushed across his skin, Freeze leaned his head back and closed his eyes. And just let it happen.
///
"Slash is on a rampage again." Skull commented idly. "Snake hanging over Freeze again?"
"Nah. Snake's gone into hiding by now."
"Hm."
Flash looked over at the other Enforcers before turning back to his Solitaire. "One of these days he's gonna get caught."
"He knows."
"And it's not going to be pretty."
Skull snorted. "Trust me, he knows."
"That's what we're here for." Pharaoh said suddenly, bringing attention that- yes, indeed -he was still there. "No undue harm will to a Robot Master, at the hands of another." He stood quietly, leaving a bare pool of drink in his glass. "Or because of another." And just as silently, he walked out.
His attitude recently had made the other Enforcers wary. So quiet and sullen. It was almost surprising how hard- for someone that didn't even know the guy -he took Crash's death. It shook their attention and /forced/ them to realize how seriously Pharaoh took his job.
And because he allowed Ring and Shadow to continue their fights..
Because he didn't take any notice of how it affected their friends..
Pharaoh stood outside of Ring's door, knowing how broken up his brother was. And though he knew it wasn't entirely Ring's fault, he couldn't find anywhere else to place that blame, all except for the small bit he could- /should/ -shoulder. And all he could say at that moment would just add to the hurt.
Because even though he had warned them, even though he did all he believed he could, he still let them at it.
Pharaoh clenched his hands.
Maybe he was to blame..
He raised his hand to knock on the door, but then slowly lowered it.
Rifts, in time, grow larger. And their was no exception. And as much as he did care for his brother, he had no resources to bridge the gap they had neglected for so long.
Turning on his heel, Pharaoh quietly left down the hall, leaving no evidence that he was ever there.
///
"That's odd."
"What?"
"We're getting some strange readings."
"Strange how?"
"I'm not sure. Like..interference, almost. Like something's blocking the scanners but it's so subtle it's hard to tell."
"Huh. Lemme see."
Lightly, fingers danced perfectly over the keys.
"Should we do something?"
A timed sway of a head.
"Nah. Magma Dragoon can't do anything."
///
So, in hindsight, maybe it was a stupid thing to do. Well of course it was, what did he expect? That he would be grateful? That he would believe him? That everything would magically come back together and the long awaited make-up sex would begin?
Who was he trying to fool here?
Himself, apparently.
He stole into Skull Fortress as easily as the other countless times he'd done so. He couldn't believe it had taken him this long to realize what exactly it was that Dr. Wily was planning. The half-assed robots of the 8th army was a dead give-away that he was preoccupied with something else and Blues scoured all the data he had stolen and listened obsessively into the fortress. But no one seemed to know anything. It was only when someone had referenced to the Stradroids that it clicked.
That robot!
Blues had cursed himself creatively in nine different languages for forgetting. Forgiving that he had left Dr. Light to take care of it (scratch that- he knew better than to let Light know and simply leave it at that) but there was something about it that didn't like at all.
Especially when the Enforcers talked about 'preparing Forte'.
He went through the information he had taken regarding the Stardroids and that robot hidden in Wily's fortress. He had figured out that merging one complete mind with even a partial one saved months of time that Wily really didn't have at all. And, using certain sequences, one could negate personality parts they didn't want or enhance those that they did without having to wade through a head full of chemicals and miles of information.
Going through the data he realized Dr. Wily was planning on merging Forte with this beast. And once they merged..
Forte would, technically, no longer exist.
Blues couldn't allow that. Not with his beliefs, not with his mission and, definitely, not in his heart. Because, as absurd as it may seem, Blues still held Forte dearest of all and it frightened him more than anything those two humans could ever come up.
So he had it planned out in his mind. He'd find Forte, explain the situation to him, make him understand what was going to happen and then they'd both leave together and..and..
Well, he didn't plan that far.
Because, as he feared, he wasn't making much headway on Step 3.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Forte said for the umpteenth time. He looked, for the life of Blues, as if he didn't believe anything he was being told. And not only that, he didn't seem to care.
"Look," the older bioroid said, "I'm sure you remember the Stardroids."
Forte rolled his eyes. "We've already been to that part."
"But you remember."
"/Yes/." Forte hissed. This was becoming a waste of time. He really hated wasting time.
"Then you remember what happened to the Robot Masters that were used for it."
"Yeah, so what?"
So what?? Blues felt ready to shake him till he understood. "So, what happened?"
Forte raised an eyebrow at him. But, after a length, decided to humor him. "They were out of commission." That was an understatement and he knew it, but refused to say what Blues wanted him to say.
"They were dead." The other quickly corrected. "Everything that made them 'them' was taken away. Merged until they were nothing like themselves, they, as everyone knew them, were gone." He clenched his hands, quelling the urge to put them on Forte's shoulders. "And that's what's going to happen to you."
"But they're still here."
"Backups."
"And there's a backup of me, too, I'm sure."
"Forte," Blues said harshly, "Wily's almost dead. He knows this. That's why he's been working so feverishly on that robot."
"He had time to create the 8th army."
"They were never brought back. Neither was Crash."
"Crash would've had to have been rebuilt."
"So were many of the Robot Masters after Rock got through with them. Or each other."
Forte scowled. It wasn't that the black crested robot didn't want to believe that Wily waould do something as stupid as that. He just wouldn't believe Blues on principle. And, just like anyone else, he was technically immortal. What fear had he for dying? After all, he wasn't an emotional weakling like that drill bomber.
So he growled low in his throat and said, "What's it matter to you? Old man?"
Something about that just set him off and suddenly Blues didn't have control over anything. He held Forte tight in his hands, teeth bared like an animal. He didn't know if he was desperate or frustrated or angry.
"Because he's going to use you!"
"Since when do you care?"
"I do! I always have!"
Forte ruthlessly broke out of the hold. "That's why you left me for your precious /Rock/, huh?"
"Forte-!" He bit his tongue to keep from cursing. "This isn't the time to be jealous."
"You're right on that. I was jealous a long time ago." His gold eyes were narrow beams. "It's over, just like you trying to act the hero with me. I'm not some bitch-in-distress that'll jump into your arms on a moments notice. We're through. We've been through."
"Forte-"
"Get the fuck out of here. I see you again after the next five seconds I'll blow your fucking head off."
Blues opened his mouth to say something but the look in Forte's harsh stare grabbed him and /forced/ him to realize it was, indeed, over. He had screwed everything up in that one day and, unlike Shadow, he would never get another chance.
Truly the precise problem with foresight, as Terra had once explained, was that it was /not/ hindsight..
///
"Where's Snake?"
The other immediately fell silent and fidgeted under Pharaoh's gaze.
"..Well?" He prompted.
"He-" Flash cut himself off, flinching a bit as he directed attention to himself. "We don't know."
"What do you mean 'you don't know'?"
"We haven't see him."
Pharaoh narrowed his eyes. "I told you to watch him."
"We know, but-"
"You know how attached he was to Freeze."
"Well, yeah-"
He slammed a hand against the bar top. "And if he decides to follow Crash's lead? And you'll just allow that?" They shrank under the volume of his voice. "Go and find him! NOW!" They scrambled over each other as they hurried out.
All except for Flash.
"What?" The Russian-made bot growled, half turning away.
"Boss? How.. How's Magnet dong? He's okay, right? He's not.." He trailed as Pharaoh's hands slowly clenched.
"He's alive." Came the quiet reply. His anger, Flash understood, was just a farce to hide the fear and strain he's been holding on to. "But- " Pharaoh voice caught slightly, as if it were sore. "The reaction from the explosion reversed the polarity of his core."
"So..what? He can't use his power?"
He turned away fully, to keep any cracks of emotion from being seen. "..he's being crushed by his own power." He said finally.
Flash took an unconscious step back. So that's why..that's why he's so worried about Snake. Crash and Freeze, two of the many he was held responsible for were dead, Magnet slowly dying. If anyone else dies..Flash shook his head slightly. Pharaoh always took responsibility even for things he didn't have to, for the things he couldn't control, trying to protect everyone from things he couldn't stop. Flash vowed he'd never have to deal with that pain again.
"Don't worry about Snake, Boss. We'll take care of him." For everything the Boss has done for me, for all of us, Flash decided, this is the least I can do.
///
"Stupid old coot." He grumbled, arms crossed. "The hell he want me for now?" Taking a deep breath, he called out into the large room. "I'm here! Get it over with already!"
His voice echoed for a few breaths and he started growling obscenities to himself again. He huffed, minutes spanning and crossing as he waited, scuffling at the tarnished floor and glaring at the walls around him. He /really/ hated wasting time.
It took a while for it to register, several deep breaths to realize the faint odor in the air. It struck a cold chord inside him and he looked around, trying to find the source.
He wasn't stupid. He knew how insane the man was, to what lengths he would go. But still, even as he ceased to acknowledge the way the floor flew into his dimming view, he refused to believe that he could die.
///
It took a lot of guts for him to finally go and still he had no idea what he was going to do. But, Quick told himself, screwing up his courage as best he could, he was here now so he might as well get it over with.
He held up a hand and with only slight hesitance, knocked on the door. There was silence, though he didn't think there would be anything else coming from Shadow's room. After a long while he knocked again and cleared his throat. "Shadow?" Quick asked quietly, then again a little louder.
When there was no sign of movement inside, Quick grew a little worried. He went to the control panel by the door, punching in the access code- he knew he wasn't suppose to know it, but when you have hacker virtuoso buddies bragging about having the codes to everyone's rooms, one couldn't help but be curious as to what some of those codes were. Shadow hadn't changed it from the one Dr. Wily had given him, Quick thought to himself, it was just so obvious, he probably would've guessed it on his own.
"Shadow," he said, just loud enough to be heard through the door, "I'm coming in." Slowly he slid the door open, half afraid of what might happen once it was completely out of the way.
But, to his surprise, the room was empty. "That's odd.." Quick said to himself. "The locator said he was here.." He stepped into the room, looking around. It hadn't look like it was lived in at all. Nothing was moved, nothing was added and a fine layer of dust settled over everything, even the bed. But, on the desktop that protruded from the wall sat a piece of paper. Somewhat nervous, he went over and picked it up.
On top of it sat two chips that Quick recognized in an instant: the locator and the choke chip.
He let out a breath, stance drooping. "Not again.." He picked up the paper, reading it:
'I'm sorry that I, once again, do not have the courage to tell you this in person. And I'm sorry for what I had help driven Crash to do (here Quick had to restrain himself from shaking his head and telling the paper it wasn't its fault). But I'm afraid I don't have much time to explain, nor do you have much time to understand. Please, if you hold my opinion of any value, you will listen to me now. We are all in great danger in the fortress. Don't wonder how I know, don't wonder what sort of danger it is. Just know that you are not safe, no one is. Tell everyone you believe would trust you, leave the fortress now. I wish I could have stayed to make sure you- at least -left, but I can't.
'Please, believe me. If I were to lose you, everything I've ever done and must do will be rendered meaningless. As will I.
'I (a word was scribbled out in a dark blotch) wish you well.
'Shadow'
///
Coils were stacked haphazardly around the floor, crisscrossing in only a pattern Wily understood. The heavy lines gleamed dully and thrummed like metallic panthers, lying in wait for the kill under an unforgiving sun. The prey they stalked was stretched out on the lab table, unclad and waiting for the slaughter, waiting for the butcher to take what he wanted and through the scraps to whatever vulture was creeping in the wings.
Forte shivered a bit, the aftereffects of the drug still making it difficult for him to think. So instead, he looked in the direction his head lay, where- it had to have been purposeful -he stayed aware by studying the unfamiliar face before him. The creature, he noticed dully, was similarly propped against a vertical table, held securely by straps and had to be at least- if not over -six feet in height. And, though well muscled, was still leaning towards lanky. Long blonde hair was unbound, curtaining down his back, a few cusps over his shoulders, long bangs partially obscuring his closed eyes. The things saving this new robot from utter femininity by his long hair and smooth face was an undeniably male body and the sharp cut of his chin and cheeks.
Countless measures of time passed before the old doctor passed in his view. He knew, all along, that Wily was there, but couldn't seem to remember and, as he tried to croak out words, he had forgotten how to talk.
However, Dr. Wily appeared to have seen his attempts to move and turned to look at him, tiny eyes smoldering, moving his body on pure adrenaline. Once that burned, Forte figured the old man would finally be forced to accept his fate and die. He wondered idly what would happen to the Robot Masters once that happened, what would become of this new one.
Then, to his surprise- as slow as it was growing -the human smiled at him, not even attempting to cloak the cruel intentions behind it. "Welcome- temporarily -to the land of the living." Forte tried to speak again, but was betrayed by his helplessness. "Don't worry, you don't need to talk. Soon you won't need to do much of anything." Wily frowned as he turned back to the other robot, dark scowl on his narrow chin. "I should have known better than to trust anything connected with those shadow slinkers. It's because of Blues it came to this." He harshly tightened a cord into the blonde creature and Forte's eyelashes flickered slightly as it began to strip the metal. "Because Blues couldn't see my plan. Because Blues infected the Robot Masters with his belligerence, because he drew Shadow into his path." Wily seethed, knotted hands having surprising strength as he ranted between gritted and rotting teeth. "And Shadow drew up the plans for you and I didn't see it. I didn't see that you were just another device developed between the two of them just to ruin my plans all the more." Forte managed an audible breath. He had never known he wasn't designed by the doctor.
"But," he turned back to the purple marked bioroid, manic grin on his face giving him a wild and mindless air of living about him- the presence of self-destruction, "it doesn't matter now. Because soon I'll be rid of one problem. And then the world will be mine. And Thomas and Rock and Blues and anyone else that dared to stand in my way will no longer be a threat!" He cackled with such insanity, Forte was certain that he'd be reduced to a quivering wreck of coughs. But the tiny old man held on and he stumbled slightly, leaning in close to Forte. The robot tried to move his head away, able to smell the stink of creeping death over his crumbling skin, as wide dark eyes glazed at him.
"It will all be over soon. And then, after all these long years, I can rest." He put a strange contraption over Forte's face, covering from his eyes to his chin. "It will all be over in a moment." He heard the man whisper, panicking slightly, not knowing what was going on. There was a soft noise and Forte wondered idly if Wily was crying. "After so, so long.."
Power surged in the fortress and a voiceless scream ran wild in the halls in droves. But no one heard it. No one noticed a thing.