Steiner of Final Fantasy 9: Hear ye, hear ye. The honorable Rue of the Dewprism would like to make her grand entrance!
(The world applauds. Rue steps in, looking like she's been through Hell.)
Rue: (holds up one finger…..and says) Word up.
Axl: All right-we're back on! Yee-ha!
X: How was your break?
Rue: ……
Kuja of Final Fantasy 9: We missed you so.
Zidane of Final Fantasy 9: Hey. He kinda looks like Albedo of Xenosaga.
Kuja: He's my friend.
X: So how is everything?
Rue: Better, I guess.
Dante of Devil May Cry: YEAH! SHE'S GOING TO WORK HER MAGIC AGAIN!
Zero: Don't know what everyone's so excited about. It's been ages since she wrote the last chapter, so I really don't know what's going on-
Rovin: (cautiously enters the room, but is instantly greeted by)
Inu-Yasha: HEY THERE! SAY HELLO TO MY BEST FRIEND! (unsheathes awesome sword)
Rovin: Oh crap.
It's me again. I'm back from my break, and to tell you the truth, I feel a lot better, thanks to all of my good friends. I read everyone's reviews and emails, and I just want to say, thank you…..even though I can't really ever thank all of you enough for what you have done. The support all of you gave to me really meant a lot-I'm glad all of you are so passionate about my work! And to everyone that commented on the whole gay issue-THANK YOU! I'm behind all of you one-hundred and sixty percent. I mean, come on-what's wrong with being friends? There isn't anything wrong with being nice to people.
Why must the world be so screwed up? Oh well.
I had the review I received from the mysterious 'Natt Shepard' removed from my reviews. I didn't think it needed to be there. I also had him reported, so hopefully, my request to have him eradicated worked. One of you mentioned that this Shepard has a different identity-he still needs to be eradicated, one way or another. I'm going to stick by what I believe in until the very end, no matter what. Especially since I have so wonderful friends to look to!
But Khilai? You shouldn't have asked him to email you-I feel bad for you becoming involved my fight. Of course I stood up for you-what soldier DOESN'T stand up for her ruler? Just kidding. You're my friend. But…..ewww. Don't waste time on that no-good piece of nothing. Thank you so much though…..all of you….for being here for me!
Rovin: Umm…hey.
Me: Hey. I just read the latest chapter of Khilai's story. If you do anything to Axl, SOMETHING FUN WILL HAPPEN.
Rovin: (looks at army of Gundams)
Duo of Gundam Wing: Hey there. I have a surprise for you.
Dingo of Zone of Enders2: So do I. Jehuty's just DYING to meet you.
Jr.of Xenosaga 2: I've got a surprise for you too. Heh heh. (unsheathes guns) Aren't they pretty?
Rovin: (sighs miserably)
The skies, which had been filled with the gray mists of death just a few minutes ago, were endless oceans of horrifying, astounding darkness. The flames that had been created by Gungaroo's entrance began to sing to the darkened skies winds began to rise from the depths of slumber….it was as if Gungaroo was creating some sort of ritual. A few minutes passed by swiftly, and bolts of silver lightning began to fall from the black clouds of smog, which were resting in the black skies. The flames that surrounded the Reploids were incredibly hot, but at the same time, they were viciously cold-they were flames that had descended from the underworld. Mega Man X and Zero, the two Maverick Hunters, were trying to uncover the meaning of the storm that had erupted, but the eyes of their young friend were right on the enemy.
Gungaroo's eyes were entities of bitter, unending hatred….they were fiery red stones of cold blood and wrath. He was tiny, yes-but that didn't stop him from looking like the personification of evil. The Ride Armor he was in also looked like the epitome of evil-the young Reploid felt like he was in the middle of a child's nightmare, surrounded by elements of a haunted house…..
The Crimson Flame was at his side, holding his phenomenal Z-Saber in his hands…and bearing the look of an angry lion in his perilous, ethereal eyes. X was only a few feet away from the two of them, but he too was ready to fight….
Axl couldn't believe what was going on.
"This is insane!"
X looked at his young friend, his own eyes blazing with hot determination. "What is!"
Shock was all over the young one's face…..and it was causing his heart to skip several beats…..
"I don't believe this! Gungaroo's a monster! He's gone mad! He wasn't anything like this before Red Alert fell into Sigma's hands!"
Zero wanted to respond, but Gungaroo beat him to the punch.
"Awwwwwwww-is the little kitty AFRAID of me!"
In an instant, infinite hatred rushed into Axl's eyes……causing them to become beautiful, captivating jewels of incalculable valiance. He answered his enemy defiantly, his voice ringing out against the tide of evil triumphantly……
"I fear NO ONE, pal! We've come this far, and we can go even FURTHER!"
The tone of Axl's voice made the Crimson Flame smile. The warm smiles that had been so rare before were now common. Zero had never really smiled before Axl had arrived-he did deliver sarcastic ones to his opponents, but his smiles were never gentle….and filled with the emotions of a loving parent. He looked at the young Reploid the way a mother would gaze at her child during a graduation….feeling his heart fall under everlasting pride. X tossed a wink over to his dearest friend, wearing a small yet bright smile on his face. Axl's words burned themselves into his mind…….
You're right. We can go further. Much further.
Axl continued to speak to their enemy, his voice bearing a resemblance to the blade of steel-strong, firm, deadly and awesome. His eyes weren't any different-they too were gemstones of incredible power…..
"I'm not afraid of you. I'm not afraid of Sigma. I fear NO ONE-because I know what TRUE power is all about!"
Zero tossed a wink to X. X returned it.
The power of the lightning increased greatly-the sky was transformed into an ocean of silver fire because of the immense beams of light………the mighty, forceful winds carried the ballad of the flames to the sky…..the ground beneath them began to tremble……..
The world knew of the oncoming battle.
The eyes of Vanishing Gungaroo continued to shine with the eternal fire…..it was as if his eyes had been dipped into the flames that were consuming him…..his whole heart had been dipped into the flames of darkness…….
"If fear does not exist in your eyes, then you must not fear DEATH!"
The answer Axl gave him was a completely unexpected answer.
"Nope. Not really. It's like I said-I don't fear anything….because I've got these two, right here."
The silver and red flames rose to the black void, carrying the message of their enemy's heart right to the black clouds of thunder. The winds increased their power…….they transformed themselves into massive waves of tremendous, turbulent strength…….the world around them became a place of distorted reality…..
Nothing was real anymore.
The word 'reality' no longer existed.
Gungaroo studied the faces of his opponents, waiting for some type of response…..but the emotions on their faces brought him no satisfaction. All three of their hearts were lost within the same light-the light of devotion. All of them were calm and collected….like leaves dancing in a serene breeze…..nothing could touch them….nothing could taint them….
Nothing could frighten them.
The word 'fear' no longer existed.
The three Reploids were standing by each other, each bearing the light of true loyalty and admiration. To the untrained eye, they were casual, nonchalant individuals…..but the serenity within their eyes held great meaning. None of them feared anything……..none of them were willing to be taken down by any force……..nothing could stop them.
Nothing.
It was as if they were…invincible.
All of them had on the same facial expression.
Axl……X…..Zero……they were all on the same page…..the same boat…..
This can't be. Sigma promised me power-glorious, WONDROUS, INFINITE POWER! THEY CANNOT BE STRONGER THAN I AM! THIS CANNOT BE!
"I'll show you what true power is! I'll emerge from this battle as the victor-and then the world will see how powerful I am!"
As if on cue, an enormous bolt of jubilant energy struck the ground, blinding all four of the combatants…..the frosty, bloodchilling winds of Gungaroo's world became stronger……the black clouds filled themselves with astounding, perilous amounts of thunder…….and the ground beneath them began to quiver at a dangerous speed……
The world knew of the battle they were locked in.
The Red Alert member's attention was Axl. He made the young one his first target by leaping out at him, the way a black panther would leap on its prey……but the attack was interrupted by the Crimson Flame. Holding his Saber in his left hand, Zero lashed out at their enemy, streaming through the darkness of the night like a mysterious harbinger of Death. With the speed and grace of a true samurai, the Maverick Hunter delivered several blows to Gungaroo, his face still as calm as painting. The Hunter truly was the silent Angel of Death-his face bore no emotion, but it was easy to tell that he was determined to eliminate all forces of evil. The cries of his enemy brought out no pity-
All servants of evil deserved no mercy.
A minute elapsed, soaring by them like a second. The Maverick Hunter was still slashing away at Gungaroo, using his Saber the way a dancer would use a ribbon-the Crimson Flame was beyond breathtaking. The speed and style of the Flame defied all boundaries of description passionately-there was no proper way to describe the performance he was giving. The assault against Gungaroo continued for several more minutes, and then a tremendous wave of energy beams began to fall from the sky. The Crimson Flame brought his attacking to a halt and gazed into the sky, his eyes falling upon none other than the Black Tiger, who was evidently having a lot of fun tormenting their newest enemy. There was a huge grin on the young one's face, and his eyes were as bright as a child's during Halloween-
There really wasn't a proper way to describe Axl either.
Words no longer meant anything.
The young Reploid showered his new "friend" with an amazing amount of crystal blue energy beams, while wearing a bright smile of great jubilance. He wanted to attack Gungaroo incessantly, but he could only stay airborne for a few minutes, so he was forced to land. However, he decided to go out with a bang-he performed a back flip, fired one last beam of energy at Gungaroo, and then landed with the grace of a mischievous, crafty feline. Zero tossed a good-natured wink at the young one, and received a smile in return.
X was up to bat. The legendary Maverick Hunter fired his X-Buster at Gungaroo's Ride Armor, wanting to break his enemy's shell. Gungaroo made an attempt to dodge the Hunter's fiery onslaught, but his attempts came down to nothing-X emerged as the victor in the duel. After several powerful shots from his faithful Buster, the Ride Armor of his enemy fell off in flaming pieces-Gungaroo was forced to reveal his true self. However, his appearance shocked all three of them-the tiny Reploid was actually a lot smaller than they assumed he was.
Assuming didn't really work most of the time.
Their enemy was small, but he still had the look of a vicious vampire about his entire body. Frustration was bountiful in his vermillion red eyes-he looked like a child that was sick and tired of being tormented all of the time…..and he also looked like someone that was ready for world domination. The look of Gungaroo's face caused X's face to become a picture of apprehension, but Axl and Zero kept their cool. The Black Tiger knew that Gungaroo was just filled with hot air, and of course Zero was never affected by dramatic physical appearances.
Their enemy was on his last two legs, unstable and shivering from pain….
"I…..don't…..believe this…..how….can….this….be?"
X and Zero looked back at Axl.
Axl said nothing.
But he didn't need to. The look on his face gave his friends everything they needed.
"How…….I….wanted…..to….be….the…..best….."
Silence.
Axl looked around at his environment, bearing a resemblance to a bored student sitting in the middle of a classroom.
X turned his attention back to Gungaroo….who was lost among an eternal sea of fire. The Maverick Hunter's eyes became sad for a moment-pity struck the Reploid's heart, and filled his eyes……feeling like the poison of a snake's soul. Tears didn't rise to his eyes, but the emotions that filled him were painful……seeing an enemy fall to eternal slumber was painful…..
The forces of evil knew nothing of light.
They dwelled in darkness.
And Gungaroo was starting his new journey…..his new life….
In the abyss of infinite, cold slumber.
The skies above them began to clear, bringing a warm song of iridescent light to all three of them. The thunder became silent……the lightning bolts became silent….only the winds remained…..but they became calm and gentle, refreshing and pleasant. The bolts of silver lightning transformed themselves into bolts of light pink energy…..the sky became an ocean of black and silver light……and the ground ceased its trembling. Everything was calm now, but….the world was still trembling…..for it knew of the battle that was about to take place. Every element of the world knew of the battle that was about to rise…….and so did every heart.
The three Reploids stood side by side with each other, each of them with their own thoughts….and their own emotions. X had his hands on his heart, and his eyes were closed……Zero's eyes were in the sky, serene yet fierce…..and Axl's face was the perfect picture of bravery……but at the same time, it was also the perfect portrait of child-like innocence. None of them said a word for what seemed like an eternity…..time still had no meaning to any of them…..
X broke the silence ten minutes. He removed his hands from his heart, looked at his two friends….sighed…..and smiled. His gentle eyes were shimmering with tears, surpassing the light of the incandescent lightning bolts, which were falling from the sky like drops of dew. He sounded like he was just taking a trip to the nearest park, but to his friends, he was a little anxious, excited…..fearful……..and…..
Happy.
"Well then. I guess….."
"Don't say it."
X's eyes widened a little, and they went straight to the sharp eyes of the Black Tiger. Axl looked like a child that was being accused of a non-existent crime.
"What?"
"Don't say what you're going to say. Please. It's not true."
"What were you going to say, X?" Zero asked his dearest friend, folding his arms. He closed his eyes, but X wasn't calm about the current situation. The Hunter's eyes darted to both of them, filled with gentle waves of confusion.
"Uhhh……I was just going to say that…..Red Alert's no longer…."
Axl's face fell when his friend's words violently pushed his heart into sadness. The sadness was strong, but not extremely strong. He knew X's words were true….but since he had spent so much time with the Red Alert Syndicate, a part of him refused to believe that everything was gone. His eyes filled with sadness, regret and reluctance….
He was ready to move on to the future, but that little part of his heart was getting in the way.
"Axl, I'm…..I apologize. I-"
"No need for an apology. It's all me. What you said is true, X. A small part of me just refuses to believe it."
"This isn't anything unnatural." Zero said firmly. "You're moving on to the future, but you can't truly leave your past behind. The past molded you into who you are now. You can't ever truly forget anything you've been through. Your emotions are not abnormal, Axl. Sadness still strikes me whenever I think of what happened with Iris. You miss the time you spent as a Red Alert member. There's nothing wrong with that."
"I know this is going to sound silly…..but…..I still think…..it's….alive."
"What's still alive, Axl?" X asked his friend gently, sounding just like an affectionate mother speaking to her child. A smile lit up the young Reploid's face-he was just like a kid that had discovered a four-leaf clover for the very first time.
"The spirit of Red Alert's still alive…..because…..it's within me. I'm the only one that was able to escape from Sigma's clutches….and I still believe in….everything Red taught us. I still believe in everything Red taught ME…..so Red Alert isn't completely gone. I'm still here. I'll always think of myself as a Maverick Hunter….and a member of the Red Alert Syndicate."
That was just way too cute.
"I'm proud of you, my friend." X said to the young Reploid happily, embracing him. Zero, however, wasn't in the mood for sweet, precious moments.
"I don't understand how the two of you can be so sappy when we're surrounded by nothing but fire. This isn't really an ideal place of Kodak moments, you know."
"Yeah it is. Just pay attention to the sky."
"Shut up, Axl. So now what, X? Should we return to base for a while, or should we just head straight to Sigma's?"
"Hmm. We just left the base a few hours ago….all three of us are in perfectly good conditions…..so I see no need for maintenance checks…..but you two were up all night. Were you able to sleep well?"
A second later, a bolt of mischief crashed right into his eyes.
"Oops. I shouldn't have asked that question. Of course the two of you slept well. What baby cub doesn't sleep well in the warmth of its mother's embrace?"
Zero wanted to slice X's head right off of his chest.
"Don't look at me like that. I didn't tell you to treat Axl like a stuffed animal."
"X, you'd better cut it out."
"Why? He knows I'm speaking the truth. He can't hurt me. If he does, I'll have him court-marshaled."
"Don't speak to me for the rest of the day. If you do, you'll regret the day Dr.Light brought you into this world."
"Oh be quiet. You won't really do anything to me. I know you."
A loud and heavy sigh left Axl's mouth. The young Reploid folded his arms-he was playfully pretending to be impatient. "All right, already! Save it for later, you two! What's the plan here?"
"After I remove X's head from his shoulders, we'll head straight to Sigma's. How's that?"
"You won't get me if I get you FIRST, my good friend. Remember, I can use ARMOR."
"Do the words 'I hate you' mean anything?"
Axl released another heavy, comical sigh…..but then a smile spread across his face. He looked at his two friends fondly, thinking of every memory he had created with them….thinking of all of the tears he had shared….the embraces….the conversations…the conflicts…….
Both of them meant so much to him.
"Have you two always been like this?"
"Nope." X answered cheerfully, grinning. "We didn't argue with each other until you walked in on us. You may want to change your dormitory plans, young one. You're going to grow up and Mommy won't be able to hug you anymore."
The way X mocked Zero caused Axl to go into a small fit of laughter. Zero tried to restrict his own laughter, but failed. The Crimson Flame looked at his dear friend after a few moments, smiling dangerously through sheets of tears-
"If you don't shut up, Mommy's going to kill you. Okay?"
The Black Tiger turned away from both of them and gazed into the heavens. The smile on his face became even warmer…..and his eyes became reflections of the stars in the sky. Recent events surfaced in his mind……but to him…..they were all parts of a dream he had been in. Zero's virus….the uneasy silence he was forced to endure because of X's anger…..Red's hatred……it was as if none of it had happened….and he had been with both Maverick Hunters the whole time. He felt as if his life had started with the two Maverick Hunters…..
He was ready…..
To move on…..to the future.
To the future.
I made it. I'm ready……
For what ever the future will bring.
"You guys?"
"Yeah?" X and Zero answered him simultaneously, both of them bearing the very same facial expression. Axl smiled at the two of them, his face shining with excitement-
"I'm ready."
"And so I am." X said to him, unable to accurately describe the emotions that were held in his voice. His heart was at peace, but it was extremely difficult to measure that happiness it was lost in. The depth of his happiness was too great to be believed. "I'm ready too, Axl. To tell you the truth, I've BEEN ready."
"I'm ready to jet too. I think Sigma will be happy to know that I'm alive."
"Yeah." the young Reploid said to the Crimson Flame, still smiling….
"I'd hate to in that guy's shoes."
The three of them stared out into the vast, immeasurable oceans of dreamlike starlight….thinking…..thinking of everything they had experienced with each other…..everything they had felt….everything they had said to each other….
This thought was on all three of their minds.
I'm ready.-
Uzu-Chan, thank you for your constructive criticism on the 'Infinity' chapter! Thanks for pointing out the mistakes I made-I didn't really notice anything, so having someone point stuff out is really cool. But what you said about Alia needs no correcting-she WOULD have keeled over and died if she had seen Axl, since he's just the cutest little thing alive. As for Zero, he was speechless several times through out the chapter-but the last time I mentioned it was when he was COMPLETELY unable to think of anything to say or think. I just wanted him to appear as completely stunned. Guess I didn't go a good job! Ha ha on me!
As for the Red bashing…the recent outbreaks of bad reviews and Rovin's appearances in Khilai's story have kinda brought the Red assaults to a halt. Red's safe, for the moment.
Red: (wipes off forehead) Whew.
Musashi of Musashi Samurai Legend 2: Don't think you're off the hook yet. (brandishes huge sword)
Lu Bu of the Dynasty Warriors Saga: Yeah. The story isn't over yet!
As for your question about my remaining chapters: I can safely say that there will be at least three more chapters. Then 'Strings of Fate' will be over.
I can just tell that Red's getting ready to spring up again in 'Complexity of a Soul'. And Rovin needs to die. Seriously. Zero should kick his ass. I swear, if Axl dies-
Tal from Suikoden 4: He's not going to. I don't think he will.
Rovin: How do you know that? (snickers)
Leon of Resident Evil: Easy. I'll kill you right now. That'll save us all A LOT OF TROUBLE. (unleashes a pair of huge red guns)
Once again, thank you…for all of your support. It really does mean a lot.
