Search for a Soul
Chapter 14
"Masks"
By MEGAMANX411
Alia and Zero quickly made their way back to Maverick Hunter HQ. Before reporting to Signas, Zero took the time to put X in the medical quarters. He was still out, and hadn't even opened his eyes once since the incident. Both Alia and Zero were very worried at this point, but there wasn't much they could do. X laid calmly on the bed, his eyes were closed. He looked like he was sleeping so peacefully. Alia was holding his hand.
"I'll go repot in with Signas," Zero began. "You stay here with X."
"Right," Alia replied, nodding.
Zero walked off, and approached Signas. The commanding officer was still relatively calm. He expected positive results for the mission, and he was right in a lot of ways.
"Was the mission succesful?" Signas asked.
"Yes. We achieved our mission objective," Zero replied.
"Who was the employer?" Signas asked.
"It was Sigma. He hired Dynamo to capture Alia. I managed to sneak in and prevent them from killing Alia, while X took care of Sigma," he replied.
"And what of Dynamo?" Signas asked.
"He escaped," Zero replied.
"So where is X now? Is he doing alright?" Signas inquired.
"He's resting in the medical quarters. After the fight with Sigma, he passed out. I'm not entirely sure what's wrong," Zero muttered.
"You did well Zero. Let's just concentrate on helping X at the moment," Signas replied.
Meanwhile, X slowly opened his eyes. However, he wasn't treated to the warming presence of Alia, and apparently, wasn't in Maverick Hunter HQ at all. He saw that he was in a completely white, blank room. He slowly stood up, and looked around. Nothing. Vast amounts of nothing was all he could see.
"Where...where am I?" X asked. "What is this place?"
"You can't figure it out?" a voice asked.
X jumped at the sound of the voice. He turned around. There was no one there. He used his basic optics to look all over, and even scanned around. Still no one.
"Who's there? Where are you...and who are you?" X asked.
Suddenly, Dr. Light appeared before him again. Or someone that X assumed was Dr. Light, at least. The appearance was familiar, yet there was something off. He still had the lab coat, the white beard, everything, but still...it was something that X couldn't quite place.
"Hello X. Don't get excited, I'm not really Dr. Light," he replied.
It was just as he predicted. He wasn't really Dr. Light after all. But who was he then?
"Then...who are you?" X asked.
"I am Dr. Light, yet I am not. He is deceased. I am the embodiment of him as perserved through your memory. Your conscience, so to speak," he replied.
His conscience? Then were could he possibly be? How could he be talking to his own conscience? Things were becoming more and more strange by the second.
"You...are a part of me?" X asked.
"I am merely a reflection of a thought you have had, a thought that you consider an ideal," the figure replied.
"What is this place? Why am I here?" X asked.
"This place is blank. It has nothing, yet holds the potential of becoming far greater than it is now. Just like you X," the figure replied.
"Like me? What do you mean?" X inquired.
"X, you were created with unlimited potential. That does not mean that just your fighting ability is limitless, but everything. You can become whatever you want to be. You have the power to create, to destroy, to make friends, to lose them, to love, and to hate. You have that power," the figure replied.
"But why am I here now?" X asked.
"You are here because you have a great inner conflict," the figure answered.
"A great inner conflict? I don't understand," X muttered.
"X, you have been at war with yourself. You, like everyone else, have several personalities, or masks as some call them. They are you, and you are them, but you choose to favor one over the other," the figure replied.
X shook his head. He couldn't believe this. Here he was, having a discussion with Dr. Light...or his "conscience" it seemed. He was thoroughly discussing matters about his own psyche with himself, like the other party knew things he didn't. But wasn't this Dr. Light a part of him? How could he know things that X didn't know?
"Have I...died?Is that why I'm here...? Or have I simply...lost my mind?" X questioned, chuckling a bit.
This seemed so unreal. It was like a dream, but it was so truthful. It was inspirational, yet unrational. X had no idea what was going on. How could he predict anything that would happen? When would he wake up from this dream? Was it really a dream? X didn't know what to do. Dr. Light gestured for X to follow him.
"Come with me X. You must come to terms with yourself," the figure replied.
X followed behind the figure resembling Dr. Light. Soon enough, they came upon another X. He was huddled on the ground, visibly tearing, looking entirely distressed. The vision was strange though. It was still in the blank field, but it was kind of like an unidentified ripple of time and space. It was like a memory ripped straight out of X's mind, displayed onto thin air. X could see everything perfectly, he could see himself...this was odd.
"What is this?" X asked.
"This is the personification of your sadness X. The sadness that you felt all this time, the despair, the unhappiness, the regret, the remorse..it's all embodied here. You see what this amounts to? Such sadness is not the answer. Drowning yourself in sorrow does not uphold your ideals," the figure explained.
"So...are you saying I should get rid of this side of me?" X asked.
"No. For that is impossible. You cannot have happiness without sadness. One cannot exist without the other. What I'm trying to tell you is that you cannot let sadness envelop your soul, because you can overcome it," the figure replied. "Come, let us go."
Next, they came upon yet another X. This one was smiling, visibly having a good time. Like the previous vision, this one also was like a tear in space and time. The blank space that used to be where X stood was being filled up with the memories of his past. It was like the space was being used as a sort of outlet for memories, where they could be visually represented.
"You see X, this is an emotion that people and reploids love to experience. You have experienced this, and you do appreciate it a lot. But there are times when you have overlooked these situations because of the sadness you have felt. This is one side of you that you need to let free of your body, free of your bonds of sadness," the figure explained.
"So you're just saying for me to be happy? But it isn't that easy. I can't simply be happy, it...it's more complicated than that," X replied.
"Is it, really? You've experienced this emotion a lot in the past, and you've retained it to this day," the figure answered. "Come, to the next one."
Next was a very serious looking X X remembered this memory. It was a guise he wore everytime he had to fulfill a serious duty. X remembered it from many of his missions, when he resolved to handle something with the most intense dedication. It was an all too familiar feeling. It wasn't so much that X saw it...he could feel this memory. He could remember it vividly.
"This is the essence of duty in your life. It's a very prominent figure in your existence X. But it too is at war with your essence of sadness. Tell me X, what is your mission as a Maverick Hunter? Is it to merely hunt down Mavericks? No, it is to protect the innocent from harm. That's what your duty side wishes to do, but the lack of desire to fight, even for a just cause, restricts it so. You are denying yourself," the figure explained.
The figure resembling Dr. Light slowly turned around, and faced X. He looked rather serious. A grim feeling washed over X. Why did this figure look so grave now? What was going to happen? X almost didn't want to know.
"X, you are now about to face your final persona. You must ready yourself for this one," he explained.
X nodded slowly. He nearly regretted doing so.
"I'm ready..." he muttered.
The figure resembling Dr. Light motioned for X to step forward. The room suddenly grew dark, and there was a faint red glow. X came to what seemed to be a cage, and inside he saw the glow to two terrifying eyes. Two beacons of pure hatred. They were eyes...the eyes he wore not too long ago. This seemed very familiar, and very recent. It was something X had experienced recently, but he didn't want to. It was like a nightmare he couldn't escape.
"This...is the embodiment of anger, rage, vengeance, and negativity. The emotion you've bottled up the most, and the one that consequently craves being released the most," the figure explained.
X slowly approached the cage. The other X inside, the vengeful X, walked forward to apparently greet the real X. It was like standing in front of an evil, twisted mirror. X saw himself, twisted by rage, warped by hate. He saw what his face looked like if he was overcome with hate. This was the person that X detested becoming. A monster.
"Hello there," vengeful X hissed.
"You...are a part of me?" X asked.
"Of course I am," vengeful X replied.
"But...you...can't be...you're the monster...that Dr. Light warned me of," X muttered.
"X, how many times have you thought of doing something that you simply didn't do because it interfered with those ideals of yours? How many times have you wanted to silence an arrogant human? How many times have you wanted to not only detain a Maverick, but kill him? How many times have you considered just releasing your anger? You've bottled up every negative emotion you've felt, and I am the result. I am trapped in this cage, because you've trapped me here. But answer me this X, what did you feel when you released me last? I know how you felt. I should, after all. I am you. And you are me. We are one in the same. You felt relieved. You felt content. You finally expelled your rage. You didn't care that you massacred those Mavericks. In fact, you were glad. As was I. Of course I was. That's what I am. The personification of your rage. Do you realize how much anger you've suppressed in your lifetime X? Do you realize-" vengeful X mocked.
X was becoming angry himself. He didn't want to hear any more of this.
"Shut up!" X shouted.
"My, my, did I strike a nerve?" vengeful X mocked.
He slowly drew his face closer to the real X's, being hindered only by the boundaries of the cave. He had an evil, sadistic grin on his face, accompanied with those horrific, demonic eyes. X felt uneasy looking at him.
"I did not feel that way. I felt horrible for what I did," X replied.
"Is that so? So you're not happy you saved Alia?" vengeful X mocked.
"That's not it! I mean, I was happy to have saved her, but I didn't mean for...I didn't want to kill the Mavericks!" X shouted.
"But that's the only way you could've stopped them. Weren't you at least glad that you tortured Sigma the same way he tortured you?" vengeful X hissed.
X knew that torturing Sigma would have been just retribution for his crimes. But he wouldn't give in to his demonic version of himself.
"No. That is wrong. I am not a monster!" X shouted.
"You refuse to fight, yet you do at times, and when you do, you are as terrifying as a demon. I say you are a monster," vengeful X mocked.
"No! I...can fight! I will fight to protect Alia, Zero, and the innocent. I will not fight for pleasure or petty things like vengeance!" X replied.
"You say you can fight? X, you've clung to your ideals so long, you won't be able to keep this up. You wil have to let me out some time or another," vengeful X hissed.
X smirked. He didn't get it before, but he understood now. He understood what he needed to do. He had to accept the nobility of his cause. He had to weigh the importance of his friends and his mission, and dictate as to whether or not it was right. He had to decide if he could fight. He know understood the depth of Dr. Light's wisdom. X wasn't created to fight. He was given life, he was given the ability to live his life, and choose what he wanted to do. And he could stand firm in the decisions he made, and protect the things he loved with the power Dr. Light bestowed upon him.
"You just want out of your cage. But I will not let you out," X replied.
The vengeful X started slamming on the bars.
"Let me out! I want to get out of here! Let me out now! X, you know you want to release me. Think of the unbridled relief you'll feel when I vanquish your enemies...now let me out of here...NOW!" he screamed.
"And what assurance do I have that you won't hurt my friends? Meaningless fighting is not the answer to any problem. If I am to fight, then I will fight when need be. I won't submit to you," X replied, standing firm.
"I will always be there X...waiting. I can wait. I can always wait. I've been waiting for a long time, and I will never go away," vengeful X hissed.
"Then you should expect to wait forever," X mocked.
The figure resembling Dr. Light approached X, and patted him on the shoulder. It felt warm. Even if it was an imitation, this Dr. Light gave X a comforting feeling.
"I see you understand now. Or more accurately, we understand now," he began.
"There's one thing I don't get though. If I didn't understand, how come you did? Aren't you a part of me?" X asked.
"You have known the answers all along. You simply refused to see them. Eventually, your mind began to run several different through processes at once for each personality, until it led to this. Your mind needed to sort itself out. You are the dominant X, because you are X. You are the unlimited potential, you shape up what X amounts to," the figure replied.
"I see...I am one with all of you. But I am in control," X replied.
"That's right. Now X. What is it that you fight for?" the figure asked.
"I fight...to protect my friends and the innocent! I fight...for everlasting peace!" X shouted.
Slowly, X opened his eyes. He was greeted by the warming presence of Alia. A smile appeared on his face.
"He's waking up!"