A/N: Yatta! Another reviewer! Don't worry, I'm not going to kill off my
main chara this early on. Later, tho, there's no guarentees....
Sorry that there hasn't been much X so far. His chara's just less developed
at the moment. However, he's showing up this chapter.
The chapter title has changed from what I said it would be for 2 reasons:
It would be too long a chapter if I tried to make it what I said it would
be, and I'm not sure how encouraged adding non-canon charas in main roles
is. It's necessary in this case, because Axl is the only chara that would
work but he shows up after this story... somewhere. I'm still not clear on
exact time.
Japanese term gloassary:
Anou = "um," pretty much. Used if you're not sure what you're about to say
is offending.
-sama = "Sir." used for superiors or people you respect greatly.
-san = "Mr./Ms." Pretty generic suffix for accquantinces or buisness
partners or suchlike.
-chan/-kun = Used amoung friends. Not sure on exact meaning, as sometimes
-chan is used for female friends, and sometimes for young children of both
genders. -Kun seems to be male-specific, but can still be used for little
kids as well as friends. If someonme can clarify this for me, I'll be
happy.
-gomen = The informal form of "gomen nasai", or "I'm sorry."
And now the incredibly long A/N is over! Once again, critisism is
appreciated. Please R/R.
---
Chapter 3: Mikata (Friend)
Zero stalked through the halls of the base, shoving people aside to cut a path to his room. After a short while, there was no need to shove, as the younger Hunters were too afraid to get near him, so the crowds parted in front of him easily. However, one corageous Hunter approached him, managing to keep pace with the taller and incredibly angry Hunter.
"Anou... Zero-sama, is something wrong?" asked the frightened young hunter.
Zero turned to look at the shorter Repliroid and narrowed his eyes, causing the poor Repliroid to wince. "Oh, I'm just FINE. Everything's peachy keen and wonderful! In fact, today's been so good, I'm in the mood to give you a promotion! After all, you're newer technology, so you MUST be better than anyone else! Here, take my job! After all, I'm just an old geezer who nobody gives a bleeding damn about!" Zero's voice had gone up several decibels in volume from when he had begun.
By this point, the other Hunter was cringing horribly and deeply sorry that he had first talked to Zero in the first place. "Zero-sama... You're a much better hunter than I am..." he managed to whisper.
Zero gave a harsh laugh. "Like that matters anymore? Now it's just who has the biggest gun! Talent is the thing of the past, I'm afraid! I'll miss it, but it's not like anyone else will, because it means they get to get rid of old geezers like ME!" With that, he stalked off, leaving the poor hunter to wonder whether this really counted as a promotion or not, and if he wanted it to be one.
X lounged in the base's large courtyard, a shounen manga held in one hand. His helmet was off for the first time in quite a while, and the hand that was not occupied with manga had been put to the impossible task of flattening his deeply messy brown hair, which was fairly short and spiked off in whatever directions it chose. However, just as he was getting truly settled, the first rumours came.
"Didya hear? Zero-sama's gone completley off the deep end!" he heard a female Hunter state in a giggly voice to a group of her friends.
"No way!" replied one of the group. "Zero? The blonde sexy one? He's always so calm and collected!"
"Nope, he's definatley bonkers. Hitomi-san said he threatened to kill himself, and Kage-san's still trying to recover from what Zero did to him," stated the first one.
"Oooh, what did he do?" asked a third one. X was having severe difficulty telling them apart now.
"Well, Zero just yelled at him for a while, to tell the truth," said the first one glumly. The others sighed at the lack of good gossip.
The second one thought for a while, then giggled slightly, and apparently not noticing X's presence, said "I bet he's actually deeply in love with X-sama, and has gone mad because he knows X will never love him back..." She then sighed melodramatically and clutched her hands to her chest. "It's so romantic!"
The others stared at her, and X's eyes were wide. Finally the first one managed to gain her composure and said, "You are SO strange, Artic- chan."
"What? It could be true!" shouted Artic. The others all broke into a gigglefit, while the poor Artic fumed at the center.
X shook his head. Although he severly doubted Artic's statement, the rest sounded interesting. He wondered what really could've set his friend off, and decided to check it out. Zero had been slightly more irratable and prone to brooding after Iris-chan's death, but nothing this severe. With a sigh, he put down his manga and stood up, his armor making a noise as he shifted. The pack of still-giggling girls turned around to investigate and fell silent as they saw X.
"Don't worry, girls. I'm just off to solve any romantic problems Zero- san may have," he assured them, grinning slightly despite his worry about his friend. They relaxed and giggled slightly, while Artic went even redder. Grinning at her, X headed into the compound itself. He followed the path to Zero's room, a path he knew as well as the back of his hand.
Zero sat alone in his room, his helmet off and lying in one of the corners of the fairly large room. The walls showed signs of saber slashes, as did his recharge capsule. However, the destruction was apparently now temporarily on hold, and he was instead staring at the ground. His blonde hair fell in his sapphire eyes, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.
Why...? he thought. I've been here forever... Why does it have to come to a halt like this? I want to die in combat, not because I fall apart from age... He buried his head in his hands. Damnit... This isn't the right way to go out! Not like this!
A knock came at his door, fairly soft and tenative, shocking him out of his thoughts. "Zero-kun, are you willing to let me in?" came X's voice.
"...No, not particularly, but I doubt you'll stop bugging me until I let you in," Zero said, sighing slightly. He stood up and opened the door to reveal his friend's worried face. X stepped in and sat in one of the less damaged chairs, looking worried as he noticed the amount of destruction. Zero returned to his own and slumped into it, staring at the ceiling, apparently unwilling to face X.
"So, Zero-kun, what's up?" queried X. "The entire base is in an uproar. We're all fairly worried, trust me."
Zero shrugged. "They act like they are, but in reality, half of them are probably glad I'm finally going to leave my position for someone younger and better. Personally, I couldn't care less about the lot of them."
"Zero-kun, that's mean!" protested X. "They honestly care about you, OK? You're one of the greatest Hunters of all time! We can't afford to lose you now!"
"...All I am now is scrap," stated Zero. "Even if they wanted me to keep fighting - which I doubt - I'd probably be killed by a Mettool. Even they're more advanced than I am." He closed his eyes and half-whispered the next scentence. "I'd be better off joining her..."
X sighed as well, although more with annoyance than depression. "Trust me, Iris-chan does not want you dead, OK?" X leaned over across the short distance and put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Noone wants you dead, especially not her. She loved you, and she would not want you to collapse like this."
Zero opened his eyes and looked into X's face. X met Zero's gaze with one of his own. Zero's sorrowful blue eyes and X's determined green eyes met for what seemed for like an eternity, until Zero sighed and looked away. "I guess that much is true. I'm sorry, X... I'm just..." He closed his eyes again and slumped even further in his chair. "Whether the other Hunters want me around or not, pretty soon everyone's going to be so much more advanced I'll be useless, and I don't know if I can bear it..."
X nodded, but smiled slightly. "Whatever happens, I'll be with you, OK? I promise you that much. If you're forced to retire, I'll leave too."
Zero shook his head. "You need to stay with the force, X. They need at least one of us..."
X grinned slightly, although a hint of sorrow rested in his eyes. "There's something you seem to have forgotten. I'm as old as you are - more likely, I'm even older. When you're obsolete, I will be too..."
Zero's eyes flared open, and he looked embarrased. "Oh my god, I hadn't even thought... I've been talking only about me, and never even though about you... Gomen!" He hung his head, causing blonde hair to spill over his shoulders.
X shook his head and patted Zero's shoulder again. "Think nothing of it. You're hit harder by it than I am. I don't even want to fight, so retirement might be quite nice."
Zero nodded, but continued to stare at the ground. "...Thank you, X- san."
"Hey, anything for a friend, right?" X grinned, and Zero managed to look up enough to smile back, although weakly.
"So, now what...?" asked Zero.
"Well, since I doubt they'll get rid of us any time soon, I guess we go back to normal life."
"Like our life has ever been normal?" said Zero, managing a grin.
X returned the grin as he stood up. "I guess this is as normal as it gets..." With that, he left the room, while Zero began to repair the damage he had caused...
Zero stalked through the halls of the base, shoving people aside to cut a path to his room. After a short while, there was no need to shove, as the younger Hunters were too afraid to get near him, so the crowds parted in front of him easily. However, one corageous Hunter approached him, managing to keep pace with the taller and incredibly angry Hunter.
"Anou... Zero-sama, is something wrong?" asked the frightened young hunter.
Zero turned to look at the shorter Repliroid and narrowed his eyes, causing the poor Repliroid to wince. "Oh, I'm just FINE. Everything's peachy keen and wonderful! In fact, today's been so good, I'm in the mood to give you a promotion! After all, you're newer technology, so you MUST be better than anyone else! Here, take my job! After all, I'm just an old geezer who nobody gives a bleeding damn about!" Zero's voice had gone up several decibels in volume from when he had begun.
By this point, the other Hunter was cringing horribly and deeply sorry that he had first talked to Zero in the first place. "Zero-sama... You're a much better hunter than I am..." he managed to whisper.
Zero gave a harsh laugh. "Like that matters anymore? Now it's just who has the biggest gun! Talent is the thing of the past, I'm afraid! I'll miss it, but it's not like anyone else will, because it means they get to get rid of old geezers like ME!" With that, he stalked off, leaving the poor hunter to wonder whether this really counted as a promotion or not, and if he wanted it to be one.
X lounged in the base's large courtyard, a shounen manga held in one hand. His helmet was off for the first time in quite a while, and the hand that was not occupied with manga had been put to the impossible task of flattening his deeply messy brown hair, which was fairly short and spiked off in whatever directions it chose. However, just as he was getting truly settled, the first rumours came.
"Didya hear? Zero-sama's gone completley off the deep end!" he heard a female Hunter state in a giggly voice to a group of her friends.
"No way!" replied one of the group. "Zero? The blonde sexy one? He's always so calm and collected!"
"Nope, he's definatley bonkers. Hitomi-san said he threatened to kill himself, and Kage-san's still trying to recover from what Zero did to him," stated the first one.
"Oooh, what did he do?" asked a third one. X was having severe difficulty telling them apart now.
"Well, Zero just yelled at him for a while, to tell the truth," said the first one glumly. The others sighed at the lack of good gossip.
The second one thought for a while, then giggled slightly, and apparently not noticing X's presence, said "I bet he's actually deeply in love with X-sama, and has gone mad because he knows X will never love him back..." She then sighed melodramatically and clutched her hands to her chest. "It's so romantic!"
The others stared at her, and X's eyes were wide. Finally the first one managed to gain her composure and said, "You are SO strange, Artic- chan."
"What? It could be true!" shouted Artic. The others all broke into a gigglefit, while the poor Artic fumed at the center.
X shook his head. Although he severly doubted Artic's statement, the rest sounded interesting. He wondered what really could've set his friend off, and decided to check it out. Zero had been slightly more irratable and prone to brooding after Iris-chan's death, but nothing this severe. With a sigh, he put down his manga and stood up, his armor making a noise as he shifted. The pack of still-giggling girls turned around to investigate and fell silent as they saw X.
"Don't worry, girls. I'm just off to solve any romantic problems Zero- san may have," he assured them, grinning slightly despite his worry about his friend. They relaxed and giggled slightly, while Artic went even redder. Grinning at her, X headed into the compound itself. He followed the path to Zero's room, a path he knew as well as the back of his hand.
Zero sat alone in his room, his helmet off and lying in one of the corners of the fairly large room. The walls showed signs of saber slashes, as did his recharge capsule. However, the destruction was apparently now temporarily on hold, and he was instead staring at the ground. His blonde hair fell in his sapphire eyes, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.
Why...? he thought. I've been here forever... Why does it have to come to a halt like this? I want to die in combat, not because I fall apart from age... He buried his head in his hands. Damnit... This isn't the right way to go out! Not like this!
A knock came at his door, fairly soft and tenative, shocking him out of his thoughts. "Zero-kun, are you willing to let me in?" came X's voice.
"...No, not particularly, but I doubt you'll stop bugging me until I let you in," Zero said, sighing slightly. He stood up and opened the door to reveal his friend's worried face. X stepped in and sat in one of the less damaged chairs, looking worried as he noticed the amount of destruction. Zero returned to his own and slumped into it, staring at the ceiling, apparently unwilling to face X.
"So, Zero-kun, what's up?" queried X. "The entire base is in an uproar. We're all fairly worried, trust me."
Zero shrugged. "They act like they are, but in reality, half of them are probably glad I'm finally going to leave my position for someone younger and better. Personally, I couldn't care less about the lot of them."
"Zero-kun, that's mean!" protested X. "They honestly care about you, OK? You're one of the greatest Hunters of all time! We can't afford to lose you now!"
"...All I am now is scrap," stated Zero. "Even if they wanted me to keep fighting - which I doubt - I'd probably be killed by a Mettool. Even they're more advanced than I am." He closed his eyes and half-whispered the next scentence. "I'd be better off joining her..."
X sighed as well, although more with annoyance than depression. "Trust me, Iris-chan does not want you dead, OK?" X leaned over across the short distance and put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Noone wants you dead, especially not her. She loved you, and she would not want you to collapse like this."
Zero opened his eyes and looked into X's face. X met Zero's gaze with one of his own. Zero's sorrowful blue eyes and X's determined green eyes met for what seemed for like an eternity, until Zero sighed and looked away. "I guess that much is true. I'm sorry, X... I'm just..." He closed his eyes again and slumped even further in his chair. "Whether the other Hunters want me around or not, pretty soon everyone's going to be so much more advanced I'll be useless, and I don't know if I can bear it..."
X nodded, but smiled slightly. "Whatever happens, I'll be with you, OK? I promise you that much. If you're forced to retire, I'll leave too."
Zero shook his head. "You need to stay with the force, X. They need at least one of us..."
X grinned slightly, although a hint of sorrow rested in his eyes. "There's something you seem to have forgotten. I'm as old as you are - more likely, I'm even older. When you're obsolete, I will be too..."
Zero's eyes flared open, and he looked embarrased. "Oh my god, I hadn't even thought... I've been talking only about me, and never even though about you... Gomen!" He hung his head, causing blonde hair to spill over his shoulders.
X shook his head and patted Zero's shoulder again. "Think nothing of it. You're hit harder by it than I am. I don't even want to fight, so retirement might be quite nice."
Zero nodded, but continued to stare at the ground. "...Thank you, X- san."
"Hey, anything for a friend, right?" X grinned, and Zero managed to look up enough to smile back, although weakly.
"So, now what...?" asked Zero.
"Well, since I doubt they'll get rid of us any time soon, I guess we go back to normal life."
"Like our life has ever been normal?" said Zero, managing a grin.
X returned the grin as he stood up. "I guess this is as normal as it gets..." With that, he left the room, while Zero began to repair the damage he had caused...