Contingency Plan
The sounds of the sirens were alive through the Neo Hunter Headquarters... Mumbling to himself incoherently, Zero rolled out of his bed and fled his quarters. Down the path he ran toward the main hall where it looked like a large contention of Reploids were gathering... Inside the main hall, there at was situated rows upon rows of chairs. Ahead of the Reploids was a large screen and a podium where Signas stood ready to make an announcement to the still slowly growing number of Neo Hunters in the hall. Sighing about the lack of people up at this hour, Signas looked to the crowd and began.
"Welcome Hunters!" Signas called, "I have news that is of the most dire! The Epsilon Factor has been stolen from a government installation! If you read the debriefs from the Black Talon attacks, you'd realize that this isn't going to be fun. If one drop of the Epsilon Factor is released into the atmosphere, we have predicted that the entire Reploid population will be infected in seventy-two hours.... that is if weather conditions are in favor... But with my luck it'll be in favor... Just try to contain the situation as best as possible... we don't want an outbreak...." Signas feigned a cough as he whispered to himself "Oh hell! What am I saying? No outbreaks? That would be a miracle..."
"What of the Matriarch Genus?" Zero questioned, "Would it be sufficient to cure those infected with it?"
"Our stockpiles of the Matriarch Genus have depleted," Signas' voice sullied, "We have no way to counter the outbreak if it occurs... You must stop them before this happens! For humanity! For Reploidom! We've gotta save us all..."
Sitting uneasily in his seat, Zero looked to Signas with the gravest look of concern... for Zero too understood the consequences of the theft... As the brief was ended, Zero stood up and turned to walk out the door... Before he could even exit the door, Signas called him back at which the greatest task ahead would be revealed...
"Zero," Signas sighed, "When I was called about this mission, I could only think of two people whom I could ever ask to take it on... You and X.... Now I know this will be hard to realize but I need you to find X.... We need our best Hunters on this Zero... Please could you do this for me?"
"It's no problem, Signas," Zero said as he turned, "I was just about to get him myself... He's had his time of comfort and relaxation..."
"You know where he is?" Signas stood shocked.
"Yes," Zero laughed, "He's been on a honeymoon of sorts with Alia this whole time. I swore to him that I wouldn't say anything since he did make it over for my wedding. I guess everything has to come to an end though. I must be going now Signas. Don't you worry! Everything will be fine!"
"That's what I'm worried about," Signas shook his head, "Just be careful out there..."
Almost across the world, X and Alia arose from their bed with the sweetest smiles on their faces. X looked passionately into Alia's eyes as he kissed her so tenderly and gripped his arms around her for a hug. It had been several months since they ever made a public appearance but they did not care. They had all they could ever want right here. They had a nice cozy place to stay, a beach outside and each other. If only this could last for only a more few moments, they kept thinking as they cradled each other... If only this moment could last was what they should have been thinking because as soon as they had each other in their arms, a visitor came in their midst... Rocking the house on the beach with plasma blasts, the warrior let them know he was there as his golden armor shimmered in the sunlight.
"Come on out X," the golden warrior cackled, "I know you're in there!"
"What the hell do you want?" X vexed.
"You," the golden warrior yawned, "I want you to be part of this. I want you to become part of the Assassin's Guild! Your power will make this world ours!"
"Why are the villains always such idiots?" X chuckled, "I told you once and I told you a billion times! I will never be part of your organization! Now stop bothering me!"
"I thought I should give one of the most powerful beings on this Earth a chance," the golden warrior shrugged, "but if you insist.... I will leave you alone for now!"
As quickly as the warrior emerged, the golden warrior disappeared and out came Alia rushing into X's arms.
"Was it that man again?" Alia questioned with her eyes deepening in horror.
"Yes," X muttered under his breath, "Xephyr cannot take no for an answer..."
"Maybe we should call the Hunters about this?" Alia's smile turned to X who was frowning.
"I'm not going there yet," X sighed, "I still have some business to take care of."
"What business?" Alia's innocent eyes found X's as his eyes sorrowed.
"It is dire that you do this as I say it," X's eyes shut as it was flooded with tears, " I heard the most dreadful news... The Assassin's Guild has stolen the Epsilon Factor... I have to stop them... It's my only option... Tell Zero that I'm sorry that I couldn't wait anymore... He should be coming here shortly..."
"Ummm..." Alia's eyes widened, "Why don't you tell him yourself?"
"Because..." X's eyes filled with glee as a smirk stretched across his face, "Er... He's standing right behind me isn't he?"
"Uh... Yup!" Alia flung her arms around Zero's neck, "ZERO!!"
"Hey there Alia!" Zero laughed, "X, we need to chat alone... I'm sorry Alia this is business..."
"You talking about the theft of the Epsilon Factor?" Alia pondered.
"Ok," Zero shook his head, "Nevermind... You can stay... You already know too much..."
"We both know about the theft and who did it," X informed Zero, "The Assassin's Guild did it and that I'm sure of... They've been after me for the last four months to join them... It's ran by a stubborn Reploid named Xephyr. He's been coming back here trying to coerce me into it but I keep saying no."
"That goes well with my intelligence X," Zero frowned, "Any ideas where he is?"
"That was on the agenda but that was going to come later," X hesitated.
"What were you going to do when I got here?" Zero wondered.
"I was just about to leave here toward the scene where I was buried," X yawned, "There's some data there that I need to get..."
"What's that?" Zero's look became more perplexed.
"Your Father," X stammered, "His contingency plan had been activated due to the worldwide destruction of all of his labs... He always knew that his plans would be eventually foiled, Zero..."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Zero's voice deepened, "My Father gave his life to protect the Earth against Black Talon! You above all know this!"
"Not him," X's voice became stiffened, "Sigma is alive.... He's barely conscious... He's been tinkering with his consciousness since the explosion of the lab... He's been trying to reapply the virus to himself..."
"Do you think he's the one who commissioned the Assassin's Guild?" Zero uttered.
"No," X stated, "The Assassin's Guild is doing this of their own accord... Sigma doesn't have his virus to infect anyone to do his bidding nor does he have the cash to pay them to do this... Something tells me that their true intentions will be made clear soon..."
"What about that contingency plan you've been telling me about?" Zero tried to change the subject.
"Oh yeah..." X's cheery face was darkened, "Sigma has in his hands a piece of technology that was locked away inside of that specific fortress... Inside that place was the last remaining bit of the pure evil that crash landed into one of his islands... Dr Wily had it stored there in a hardened case which could resist external attacks... In essence, Dr Wily built a bomb of sorts to spread it into the atmosphere..."
"You mean the evil concentrate from Ahriman?" Zero's face froze as the horror rushed through his body.
"Yes," X shut his eyes as he fought back the tears, "The case broke somehow... even though I stopped the countdown of it... If Sigma figures out how to utilize it.... we're all in deep shit... Here's a worst case scenario... Sigma figures out how to trigger a new virus with it... a virus of pure evil.... One in which will penetrate the hearts of everyone... men.... women.... children... Reploid... No one would be safe..."
"Oh Holy..." Zero's eyes filled with tears, "We must stop that monster! Come on X!"
All this time, Alia stood there with her eyes fixed in one point as her hands began to tremble. Her entire body was stiffened from head to sternum as X touched her shaking hands.
"What is it?" X asked looking deeply into Alia's eyes.
"I've got a bad feeling about this..." Alia stammered, "I have the feeling that Sigma and Xephyr won't be the last ones after us..."
"Why's that?" Zero turned his head to look at Alia puzzled.
"Up there..." Alia's voice trembled...
Only at that moment were they to realize that they had all forgotten about the last place of concern... Elysium... They stood eyeing the sky as the sense of terror flooded every synapse in their bodies.... For soon... the new Lord would be awakened from the forgotten depths... of Elysium and change everything.... for the worst...
The sounds of the sirens were alive through the Neo Hunter Headquarters... Mumbling to himself incoherently, Zero rolled out of his bed and fled his quarters. Down the path he ran toward the main hall where it looked like a large contention of Reploids were gathering... Inside the main hall, there at was situated rows upon rows of chairs. Ahead of the Reploids was a large screen and a podium where Signas stood ready to make an announcement to the still slowly growing number of Neo Hunters in the hall. Sighing about the lack of people up at this hour, Signas looked to the crowd and began.
"Welcome Hunters!" Signas called, "I have news that is of the most dire! The Epsilon Factor has been stolen from a government installation! If you read the debriefs from the Black Talon attacks, you'd realize that this isn't going to be fun. If one drop of the Epsilon Factor is released into the atmosphere, we have predicted that the entire Reploid population will be infected in seventy-two hours.... that is if weather conditions are in favor... But with my luck it'll be in favor... Just try to contain the situation as best as possible... we don't want an outbreak...." Signas feigned a cough as he whispered to himself "Oh hell! What am I saying? No outbreaks? That would be a miracle..."
"What of the Matriarch Genus?" Zero questioned, "Would it be sufficient to cure those infected with it?"
"Our stockpiles of the Matriarch Genus have depleted," Signas' voice sullied, "We have no way to counter the outbreak if it occurs... You must stop them before this happens! For humanity! For Reploidom! We've gotta save us all..."
Sitting uneasily in his seat, Zero looked to Signas with the gravest look of concern... for Zero too understood the consequences of the theft... As the brief was ended, Zero stood up and turned to walk out the door... Before he could even exit the door, Signas called him back at which the greatest task ahead would be revealed...
"Zero," Signas sighed, "When I was called about this mission, I could only think of two people whom I could ever ask to take it on... You and X.... Now I know this will be hard to realize but I need you to find X.... We need our best Hunters on this Zero... Please could you do this for me?"
"It's no problem, Signas," Zero said as he turned, "I was just about to get him myself... He's had his time of comfort and relaxation..."
"You know where he is?" Signas stood shocked.
"Yes," Zero laughed, "He's been on a honeymoon of sorts with Alia this whole time. I swore to him that I wouldn't say anything since he did make it over for my wedding. I guess everything has to come to an end though. I must be going now Signas. Don't you worry! Everything will be fine!"
"That's what I'm worried about," Signas shook his head, "Just be careful out there..."
Almost across the world, X and Alia arose from their bed with the sweetest smiles on their faces. X looked passionately into Alia's eyes as he kissed her so tenderly and gripped his arms around her for a hug. It had been several months since they ever made a public appearance but they did not care. They had all they could ever want right here. They had a nice cozy place to stay, a beach outside and each other. If only this could last for only a more few moments, they kept thinking as they cradled each other... If only this moment could last was what they should have been thinking because as soon as they had each other in their arms, a visitor came in their midst... Rocking the house on the beach with plasma blasts, the warrior let them know he was there as his golden armor shimmered in the sunlight.
"Come on out X," the golden warrior cackled, "I know you're in there!"
"What the hell do you want?" X vexed.
"You," the golden warrior yawned, "I want you to be part of this. I want you to become part of the Assassin's Guild! Your power will make this world ours!"
"Why are the villains always such idiots?" X chuckled, "I told you once and I told you a billion times! I will never be part of your organization! Now stop bothering me!"
"I thought I should give one of the most powerful beings on this Earth a chance," the golden warrior shrugged, "but if you insist.... I will leave you alone for now!"
As quickly as the warrior emerged, the golden warrior disappeared and out came Alia rushing into X's arms.
"Was it that man again?" Alia questioned with her eyes deepening in horror.
"Yes," X muttered under his breath, "Xephyr cannot take no for an answer..."
"Maybe we should call the Hunters about this?" Alia's smile turned to X who was frowning.
"I'm not going there yet," X sighed, "I still have some business to take care of."
"What business?" Alia's innocent eyes found X's as his eyes sorrowed.
"It is dire that you do this as I say it," X's eyes shut as it was flooded with tears, " I heard the most dreadful news... The Assassin's Guild has stolen the Epsilon Factor... I have to stop them... It's my only option... Tell Zero that I'm sorry that I couldn't wait anymore... He should be coming here shortly..."
"Ummm..." Alia's eyes widened, "Why don't you tell him yourself?"
"Because..." X's eyes filled with glee as a smirk stretched across his face, "Er... He's standing right behind me isn't he?"
"Uh... Yup!" Alia flung her arms around Zero's neck, "ZERO!!"
"Hey there Alia!" Zero laughed, "X, we need to chat alone... I'm sorry Alia this is business..."
"You talking about the theft of the Epsilon Factor?" Alia pondered.
"Ok," Zero shook his head, "Nevermind... You can stay... You already know too much..."
"We both know about the theft and who did it," X informed Zero, "The Assassin's Guild did it and that I'm sure of... They've been after me for the last four months to join them... It's ran by a stubborn Reploid named Xephyr. He's been coming back here trying to coerce me into it but I keep saying no."
"That goes well with my intelligence X," Zero frowned, "Any ideas where he is?"
"That was on the agenda but that was going to come later," X hesitated.
"What were you going to do when I got here?" Zero wondered.
"I was just about to leave here toward the scene where I was buried," X yawned, "There's some data there that I need to get..."
"What's that?" Zero's look became more perplexed.
"Your Father," X stammered, "His contingency plan had been activated due to the worldwide destruction of all of his labs... He always knew that his plans would be eventually foiled, Zero..."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Zero's voice deepened, "My Father gave his life to protect the Earth against Black Talon! You above all know this!"
"Not him," X's voice became stiffened, "Sigma is alive.... He's barely conscious... He's been tinkering with his consciousness since the explosion of the lab... He's been trying to reapply the virus to himself..."
"Do you think he's the one who commissioned the Assassin's Guild?" Zero uttered.
"No," X stated, "The Assassin's Guild is doing this of their own accord... Sigma doesn't have his virus to infect anyone to do his bidding nor does he have the cash to pay them to do this... Something tells me that their true intentions will be made clear soon..."
"What about that contingency plan you've been telling me about?" Zero tried to change the subject.
"Oh yeah..." X's cheery face was darkened, "Sigma has in his hands a piece of technology that was locked away inside of that specific fortress... Inside that place was the last remaining bit of the pure evil that crash landed into one of his islands... Dr Wily had it stored there in a hardened case which could resist external attacks... In essence, Dr Wily built a bomb of sorts to spread it into the atmosphere..."
"You mean the evil concentrate from Ahriman?" Zero's face froze as the horror rushed through his body.
"Yes," X shut his eyes as he fought back the tears, "The case broke somehow... even though I stopped the countdown of it... If Sigma figures out how to utilize it.... we're all in deep shit... Here's a worst case scenario... Sigma figures out how to trigger a new virus with it... a virus of pure evil.... One in which will penetrate the hearts of everyone... men.... women.... children... Reploid... No one would be safe..."
"Oh Holy..." Zero's eyes filled with tears, "We must stop that monster! Come on X!"
All this time, Alia stood there with her eyes fixed in one point as her hands began to tremble. Her entire body was stiffened from head to sternum as X touched her shaking hands.
"What is it?" X asked looking deeply into Alia's eyes.
"I've got a bad feeling about this..." Alia stammered, "I have the feeling that Sigma and Xephyr won't be the last ones after us..."
"Why's that?" Zero turned his head to look at Alia puzzled.
"Up there..." Alia's voice trembled...
Only at that moment were they to realize that they had all forgotten about the last place of concern... Elysium... They stood eyeing the sky as the sense of terror flooded every synapse in their bodies.... For soon... the new Lord would be awakened from the forgotten depths... of Elysium and change everything.... for the worst...