Megaman X2: Eternal War
Chapter 22: Last Line of Defense
By Genoscythe
One more! One more disclaimer! Okay, I'll shut up now 0o
" Calliope!!!" X nearly screamed into the commlink. He heard a weak chuckle from the other side of the link.
I'm going to make it... I want to see the end...of this conflict... with you
" Hold on for me, Calliope. I can't take the thought of losing you,"
I know...I'll be waiting when...you get back... She shut off the communication. X gripped the side of his helmet tightly, feeling a warm flow of ecstasy through his system. In the silence of the descending elevator, X knew that what he had thought before was foolish. This conflict had already been started, and the only way to end it would be to fight. He wiped the thought of the dead Maverick Hunter from his mind, telling himself that after the war ended, he would never fight again. That would be his consolation to all the people he had killed. Fighting was the only option for him now, and not even his surrender upstairs had told him that. It was the thought of what would happen to Calliope if he did nothing, if he absolved himself to peace now, that told him that he had to fight.
" Look X, I don't know what the hell happened to you while I was gone, but these mavericks are vicious. Talking to them won't do anything but get yourself killed. If you wanna go pacifist, do it after we're done killing, okay? I need a partner, not a preacher," Genoscythe said to him.
" I know, Commander. I realize that peace is out of our reach now,"
" The dinosaur tank is their final defense. Once we've destroyed it, Sigma will be out of tricks. I know the location of their base, and you can find him there,"
" First we have to worry about the task at hand," X lowered his head. " Destroying this thing,"
" I've had plenty of time to study this machine's layout. This elevator will take us to the secondary control room. Are you ready for a tough fight?"
" Yes,"
" You're done being all wishy-washy on me?"
" Yes, Commander,"
" Good. There are two powerful mavericks down there in the secondary control room. One of them is Velocity Raptor, and the other is Wheel Gator. You've seen what Raptor can do, so leave him to me. You should be strong enough to take down Wheel Gator,"
" Affirmative. How do we shut this thing down?"
" The tank's core is slaved to Gator's control unit. If you kill Gator, you kill the tank," The elevator slammed to a halt. A green light blinked on the control panel.
" Here we are," X said wistfully.
" Shoot to kill," Genoscythe turned to him. X nodded and they stepped toward the door in front of them. In the blink of an eye, something flashed in front of X and jumped at Genoscythe. X blinked again, and a vicious looking reptile was grappling with his commander. He looked back to the control console in the middle of the small room to see a bright green reploid with what looked like spiked wheels on his shoulders. The maverick turned around, and he saw the elongated mouth, sharp teeth and beady eyes of an alligator.
Shoot to kill... Genoscythe's last words rang in X's mind. He raised his buster, and Wheel Gator gripped one of his shoulder wheels. X waited, still reluctant to fire on another living being. Gator threw the wheel, and X fired a charged blast into the spinning disc. The force knocked the disc back at the maverick, and it imbedded sharp spikes into its chest.
Gator growled, grabbing the wheel and pulling it out. X readied another charge shot. This time, he fired first, but Gator held up the wheel to block the shot. Though the wheel absorbed the energy, it was sent backward due to the force, smashing its owner in the face. This maverick is an amateur! X thought, He barely has any combat skills... The maverick jumped at him, and he rolled to the side.
Wheel Gator sank his teeth into the metal floor, and X leveled his buster at the maverick's head. Before he could fire though, he was knocked off his feet and sprawled on the floor near the control console. He heard an unnatural roar, and assumed it was emanated from Velocity Raptor. He saw, for a brief moment, the beast standing where he was only moments before. Then, an energy blade swung out from the shadows and imbedded in Raptor's chest. It screeched and disappeared, leaving Genoscythe in its place. Then he too disappeared, in chase of the maverick.
X noticed that Wheel Gator had disappeared. He looked to the left, but as he did so a massive jaw closed around his right arm and bit with incredible force. X felt his armor being pierced, and a moment later nauseating waves of pain surged from his arm. He tried to activate his X buster to shake it loose, but the transformation wouldn't start with teeth imbedded in his buster arm. Thinking quickly, he remembered that a function of his new armor was that he could fire reserve energy from the palm of his left hand.
He saved some energy for a dire situation like this, and he threw out his arm and opened his palm toward Wheel Gator's head, which was busy chewing on his right arm. With a yell, he activated the program and a massive wave of destructive energy exploded from his hand. The burst of light was right in front of his face, and he was temporarily blinded. He blinked to clear away the brightness, and he felt more pain burst from his arm. He looked down and saw waves of blood running down his crushed arm, but not all of it was his. A few feet away from him, a blackened husk lay smoldering on the ground, its edges curled inward like a budding flower. He could tell it was the remains of Wheel Gator.
The tank lurched. From somewhere outside the room, he heard a reptilian scream as the giant machine stopped, then began to tilt sideways. A flash of movement, and Velocity Raptor was in the doorway of the secondary control room, looking horrified at the smoldering husk that was Wheel Gator. He stood only for a second, and then a green energy blade ripped him in half. Genoscythe ran into the room, pushing aside Raptor's still form.
He saw X, almost covered in blood, and ran to him, grabbing his outstretched arm and pulling him to his feet. As he did, the tank rocked again, and then began falling sideways. Genoscythe and X fell against the wall as the machine thudded to the ground. Wheel Gator's remains almost landed on the Commander's head. X groaned, clutching his arm. He was startled when his commlink started up.
Commander X! You won't believe it, but we got a new IT satellite working! The voice of a young operator came through the static. I'm reading dangerous vital signs, sir. Would you like to be recalled?
"...Yes," X said. He looked to Genoscythe.
" Get back to the base. I can take care of myself," The commander said.
" You're coming back to...the 17th, aren't you?" X asked. Before he heard a reply, he felt himself being converted to energy, and he appeared a moment later in the middle of Maverick Hunter HQ. Sighing, he shut himself down as Lifesaver units approached him.
" Wait, I thought I just saw...him..." VR said to Mobius. They were trying to find their way through the wreckage of the dinosaur tank when VR thought he had seen a dark blue figure dashing through the debris. It looked exactly like his former commander Genoscythe , but Genoscythe was killed by that raptor maverick...
" Who?" Mobius asked, turning to face VR.
" Uh...nothing. It was just my imagination," Mobius shrugged.
" If you say so," After clawing through more debris and broken ride armors, they found the hatch they had used to break into the tank. Grabbing part of VR's armor, Mobius jumped out of the hatch and fluttered as slowly as he could to the ground below. It had taken them so long to get out of the wreckage that the fight was all but over. Weary Maverick Hunters stood in the streets, looking up at the blasted, smoking dinosaur tank. Dead bodies, human and reploid alike, nearly filled the street. Buildings and walkways were coated in blood, and smoke filled the air. Mobius said in a subdued voice, " What dark times we live in," VR nodded unconsciously. Some hunters were digging through the rubble of the building that had been blown apart by the tank's cannons, the building that the ambush had been executed at. VR and Mobius rushed over to the rubble and began searching for any signs of Drake.
Mobius began digging furiously with his large claws, shredding neocrete and titanium. VR warned him to be careful in case he cut into a survivor instead of debris. The large bat paid him no heed. Finally, after half an hour of searching, they found a large plate of metal that looked like part of an elevator. Mobius picked it up with ease and hurled it away. Underneath it, a green-clad reploid lay motionless, covered in dust. Mobius bent down to inspect him.
" He shut down. Probably internal system fracture from some kind of impact," He said with a laugh, " He'll be fine!" VR let out a huge sigh of relief. Suddenly, his commlink activated.
This is a general announcement. A new IT satellite has been installed and is ready for recall A cheer rose from the crowd of Maverick Hunters, and the announcement brought a smile to VR's lips.He turned to Mobius.
" I think the sun has finally risen, my friend,"
X awoke, he did not know how much later, in the medical ward. He was sealed inside a recovery capsule, since his injuries were relatively minor. The white hunter looked down at his right arm to find that it was in perfect condition once again. The capsule door slid open, and he sat up. The ward was close to empty, and the room was dark. His capsule had been set with an auto-release timer to awaken him when his injuries were repaired. He swung his legs over the side of the capsule, and a pins-and-needles feeling shot up them as he stood. Still, he hobbled over to the door to the intensive care ward.
Even inside the white walled corridors, it seemed to have calmed down. From time to time Lifesavers would walk through doors or pass him down the corridor, but other than that it was completely different from when he was there earlier in the day. He didn't know which room Calliope was held in, so he asked a Lifesaver. The reploid pointed him in the direction of the room, and soon enough X was in front of the door. Before he could turn the handle, a nurse reploid ran up to him.
" I'm sorry sir, you can't go in there," She said. X gave her a skeptical look.
" Why not?"
" Well, frankly sir, I don't think you'd want to go in," X fixed her with a deadly gaze.
" Why not?" He said more insistently. He tried to keep the panic from bleeding into his voice.
"...er, she's being operated on, sir. First, it would be a distraction to the Lifesavers, and second, she's being cut ope-"
" That's enough!" X silenced her. " I don't need to hear what they're doing to her in there,"
" This is a necessary procedure, sir. If we do not fix her skeleton, she cannot possibly live much longer,"
" I said that's enough!"
" But sir, you sounded like you didn't approve of the operation, so I was trying to explain it to you so-"
" Forget it," X turned and began walking down the hall, leaving the nurse to look questioningly at his back. Halfway back to the main medical ward, he realized that he had made a mistake in being so harsh on the nurse. Thinking back, he didn't know why he had gotten so angry. It seemed to come on him instantly; the need to lash out at something. It was the kind of thing a maverick would do. X shuddered as he continued down the hall.
When he walked into the main ward, he was greeted by a slap on the back. " X! What the hell are you doing here?" Drake said. X turned to see the green Maverick Hunter behind him.
" I could ask you the same thing,"
" Me? Hell, I'm always here. I'm not one of those super reploids like you are. I can't take much of a beating,"
" I'm here because a maverick crushed my arm," X turned and continued walking toward the exit. Drake kept pace behind him.
" I didn't think anything could break that white armor of yours," He said.
" Well, something did,"
" Musta been one helluva maverick,"
" No,"
" Then how'd he get to ya?"
" Dunno,"
"...the hell kinda answer is that?"
" Dunno,"
" What's up, X?"
" Dunno,"
" If you want me to shut up, then just freakin' tell me! Don't keep giving me the cold shoulder,"
" Alright then. Shut up,"
" Can I just ask you one thing?"
" No,"
" You sure?"
" I already told you to shut up! What else do you want me to do?"
" I want you to tell me what's bugging you,"
" Nothing's bugging me,"
" Come on. You know I'm not that stupid,"
" Then how stupid are you?"
" Quit changing the subject,"
"Why not!?" X whirled around and glared at Drake. " I don't want to talk. Is that clear with you? Can you leave me alone now?" Drake said nothing. X spun again and slammed his fist into the door lock. It hissed open and he stepped through, hitting the button again on the other side and closing the door. Drake did not move.
" What the hell are you thinking, X?" He muttered to himself. Then, he remembered about Calliope. " I guess he can't help it, then. If I were him, I'd probably be the same way,"
The previous night, X had gone straight to sleep after arguing with Drake. Now, he awoke, feeling worse than he ever had before. Something had possessed him the night before. He didn't know if it was the thought of Calliope being cut open and pulled apart like a machine. Then he reminded himself that she was a machine. Machine or not, she was a living, sentient being, and X couldn't imagine anything more horrible than to be taken apart like that.
Then, X thought it might have been a side-effect of shutting down. Before he could think any further, though, there was a knock on the door to his room. He got out of his bed and opened it, surprised to see Dr. Cain waiting on the other side. Without waiting for an invitation, Cain brushed past X and walked inside, sitting down on the edge of his bed.
" X, I heard from the Medical Ward this morning. Apparently you were in quite a foul mood last night," X raised an eyebrow. Who, or why, would anybody mention that to Dr. Cain? He thought. " I'm here to straighten some things out with you,"
" Did Drake tell you?" X asked.
" I can't say. X, you know about age modifiers, right?"
" A little bit,"
" You know that age modifiers are programs that set the rate for reploid maturity, since newly created reploids would be like helpless toddlers without it. You know that they are set at a constant rate, correct?"
" Yes,"
" Yours is set to four human years per year, and for the first year after you were activated, it was set to eight. By now that would make your mind..."
" Sixteen,"
" Correct. In a human body, you would be going through puberty right now. Since you aren't in a human body, Dr. Light somehow programmed you to feel the mental effects of puberty without any of the physical effects, as those are impossible. These mental effects include sudden anger, and occasional mood swings. Dr. Light was a genius, but even he could not accurately program these effects into you. As such, I suspect that last night's problem was due to a glitch in your program,"
" A glitch?"
" Yes. Though I can't be certain, as I wasn't there myself to see it and I'm ages past puberty myself, but your reaction certainly sounded like a glitch. These reactions aren't that instantaneous,"
" So...this phase changes the way humans think and act?"
" Yes, in many ways. I feel that I don't need to elaborate any more on this subject, and I'm sure you're eager to find out the result of last night's operation," X's heart jumped. He knows about Calliope's operation too?. Almost as if reading his mind, Cain said, " I pay closer attention to your life than you may think. To this day I think of you as one of my own children, and I try to look after you as best I can," X didn't know quite what to say. He settled with a simple 'thank you'. Dr. Cain smiled.
" I'll be sure to watch my temper from now on," He got up and headed for the door, leaving Dr. Cain to sit on the edge of X's bed, thinking, as he always was. Suddenly, Cain's personal communicator began to beep, startling the old man. He pulled it out of his pocket and turned on the screen.
Dr. Cain, we know the location of the maverick's base! Dr. Cain's eyes widened.
" What? How?"
A transmission just came in. Whoever it was gave us the exact coordinates
" Did you check the IFF frequency?"
...Yes, sir
" Who or what was it?"
...er, we don't know
" That's impossible. The HQ only accepts transmissions with IFF frequencies attached,"
I know... er, there is an IFF frequency. But It's impossible
" Start making sense, operator,"
It's Commander Genoscythe's IFF
As the white doors opened, X saw Calliope sitting upright in a white bed, a weak smile on her face. X could have died that instant and lived a happy afterlife. He rushed to the side of the bed, placing his hand over hers.
" I got a brand new skeleton," She said weakly. Tears began to form at the edge of her eyes.
" H-how..." He asked, trying hard not to start sobbing.
" I held on long enough...long enough for them to bend my energy conduit back into shape. They supplied me with energy, and kept me hooked up to an energy tank while they took apart my old skeleton and replaced it,"
" You...held on?"
" Yes. I would've died had I not thought of you, though. I had to see you again, and that was all I thought about, the only thing that kept me from losing..." X couldn't help it any longer, tears began streaming down his face. She held his head close to her, lacking the strength to cry.
" So, this is the kind of greeting I get, huh?" The tall reploid said, flexing his arm a bit, working in the new joint.
" Yes. I'm sorry this is on such short notice, but X has been fighting himself to death. I would feel better about it if you went,"
" Of course. Hell, you know I couldn't refuse a good fight,"
" Thank you for understanding,"
" I'm a Maverick Hunter, aren't I? I'm just doing my job,"
" But, you've been in stasis for so long, I thought you might..."
" Don't worry about it. I need to work into my new body anyway,"
" The coordinates are 0 longitude, 0 latitude, sir,"
" The North Pole, huh? You don't think the X Hunters threw in a jacket with this new body, do ya?"
" Don't worry, Zero. Your systems are completely cold-resistant,"
" I know, Dr. Cain. I see you still don't know how to take a joke,"
" Especially not one of yours,"
" As always..."
" As always,"
" Am I going solo?"
" No; You're just going in for a pre-emptive strike. The rest of the hunters will land directly after you,"
" As long as I still get plenty of mavs to fight,"
" Don't worry about it. Operator, bring the IT satellite up to full power,"
" Affirmative, sir,"
" I'm ready," The crimson hunter disappeared in a flash of light. Dr. Cain sighed. The X hunters had severely modified Zero's body, including the addition of a beam saber, but he still worried about him. No reploid could shake off six months of stasis instantly, but then again, Zero wasn't just any reploid. Only time would tell how the stasis would affect his system.
Minutes later, after the rest of the hunter team had been dispatched, X walked into the command center. " How's Zero's condition?" He asked Dr. Cain. The old man smiled at him.
" Zero is now penetrating the Maverick HQ," X's eyes widened.
" What!? How did you find it?"
" That's...not important," Cain said detachedly.
" Well, if Zero's there, then I'm going too!" X said as he spun about and headed for the door.
" Wait X, you can't!"
" That's right, he can't," A deep voice enveloped the room. A face had appeared on the large center monitor, a bald head with gleaming eyes and a red jewel set into its forehead.
" Sigma!!!" X yelled.
" Yes, X. You don't seem very surprised to see me. Did you miss me at all?" The deranged reploid cackled. " I'm anxious to see you again,"
" You monster! Where are you hiding?"
" Heeheeheehee, I'm not far. Just a little stroll into the city, and you're practically there! Look for a familiar building. I'll be waiting for you," The transmission suddenly cut. Without a word, X spun about and ran down the hall. Dr. Cain attempted to follow him, but he was far too fast to catch up to.
X knew exactly where Sigma was. He suspected that he had been there the whole time. After donning his combat armor, he programmed his IT receiver for the Central Control building. In moments, he was standing atop the roof of the building, staring at a pile of dead reploids. They were all Maverick Hunters from the 14th division, and they had been ripped to shreds. These must be the hunters Dragoon sent to secure the building, X thought. He walked to the door protruding from the roof, but before he was even close to it, it slid open. Looking around, buster drawn, he made sure the area was clear.
X began to descend the stairs, sweeping his buster around as he went. When he reached the bottom and kicked aside the busted door, he was in the main control room where he fought Magna Centipede. Wind whipped through the room from the magnificent hole in the wall across from X. He looked to the left to find the huge Central Computer, a giant pillar of metal and wires. Otherwise, the room was empty.
Suddenly, an incredible rumble began to spread cracks along the already decimated floor. X still felt no presence in the room. He did feel, however, the floor begin to give. He made a dash for the elevator, but didn't even get close before the floor crumbled away and he began falling into near-blackness. The only thing he could see as he fell was the giant pillar, descending down into the depths of the building.
After what felt like hours, X's feet slammed into neocrete, and the ground beneath him began to buckle. He was now at the base of the Central Computer, where the pillar widened and formed a large control panel where all the digital data in the city was stored. The room was fairly small and without doors; X had no idea how anyone was supposed to get in here without taking his route. Everything was silent, but now X felt a presence.
" Ah, X. So wonderful to see you again," A strangely melodic voice echoed from behind the large pillar.
" You sound more insane than ever, Sigma," X could see a glowing red beacon in the shadows behind the pillar.
" Don't I? Hmph, you're getting bolder, X. You were green when we last fought. Green and lucky,"
" I'm more powerful than you'll let yourself think. If you come out of hiding, I'll show you what I mean,"
" Where's the fun in that?"
" Be that way, coward," Now, X could see a pair of glowing orbs beneath the red light.
" I've been called many things before, X. Never a coward,"
" A miracle," X said while pacing back and forth in the midst of the room. He heard a dull scratching sound, and the orbs began to move. Soon, he could see a form emerge from the shadows, clinging to the wall with long, wicked claws.
" I never knew you were the violent type, X,"
" I hold pity for those doomed to die. For you I hold only hate," Sigma sighed.
" Such harsh words. I can already tell, this will be a good fight,"
End
A/N: Wow, that went fast! Two chapters out in such a short time. God I love summer =P