The bitter melody of venom struck Axl's mouth mercilessly, and his eyes filled with both hatred and disbelief. The rhythm of his heart became slower, as if it too was surprised to see Red…..and his mouth became as dry as a desert. The air became painfully thick with the flames of insufferable tension…..and the eyes of his two dear friends became gemstones of impenetrable bravery….

The eyes of the demonic Reploid shimmered with a light that caused Axl to become sick to his stomach. The heart of the Red Alert Syndicate leader was soaking itself in a everlasting ocean of implausible obscurity….the smile on his face made that perfectly obvious. His eyes were like the eyes of a cat that was about to pounce on the tiniest mouse-smooth yet devilish and deceitful. The hatred within the young Reploid's eyes increased with every passing second…..Red, the one that had taught him so much, the one that had saved him from certain death…..

Had become a minion of evil.

Axl quickly picked up both of his guns and aimed them at his enemy, remembering the last conversation they shared with each other in the Red Alert homebase. Red threw his malicious smile in the young one's direction, bearing a great resemblance to a witch-

"Hello there, Axl. It's nice to see you too."

Axl was in no mood for games.

"What are you doing here? And where's Sigma?"

"Why, he's here, somewhere. Waiting for his three friends to show themselves. I thought I would come out and greet you."

The fires within Axl's eyes became even greater. He went into a battle stance, ready to fire at the one that had betrayed him….X looked at him worriedly, Zero looked at him with quiet yet fierce excitement……

"We've got no time for this. I'm through with you."

The smile on Red's face vanished in an instant, but his voice remained the same-he still sounded like a deceitful black cat. "I'm not finished with you, you filthy little bastard."

he snapped savagely, his eyes flashing with the mists of sickening brutality. "It's time for me to pay you back for everything you've done, my little friend."

Those words caused Axl's voice to become even more powerful than the cry of an eagle. The eyes of the young Reploid became brighter than the most powerful flames, and the power of his voice almost caused the windows to shatter into a million pieces.

"No, it's time for me to pay YOU back for what you've done, pal! I'm ending this, right here and now! I no longer need you-I'm ready to soar on my own, so it's time for you to say good-night!"

A second later, a brilliant flash of white light split through the eyes of Axl, Zero and X, and a cry from the young Reploid's mouth scorched the ears of the two Hunters. The windows within their current location shattered, and the walls began to tremble….when the light vanished, the two Hunters spotted Axl, who had been buried deep within the wall because of an attack from Red. A sharp gasp tore itself from X's throat, and he cried out to his friend frantically, but Red got to the young one first. Wearing the facial expression of a sadistic, merry cat, the Red Alert leader continued to attack Axl mercilessly, delivering a countless amount of energy balls to his opponent. The Crimson Flame came up behind Red like a ghost, grabbed him by the throat and placed his Saber at his enemy's neck, smiling….

"You're going to pay for that, my friend."

X's attention was on Axl, who was no longer visible. The motherly Maverick Hunter dashed over to his dear friend, who was on the ground, consumed by pain. The gentle, tender eyes of the Hunter were bright with concern and devotion-

"Axl! Are you all right?"

"Ugghh….yeah……" The young one was obviously in a great amount of pain, but was unwilling to let it himself succumb to it. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

A moment later, a cry of pain reached their ears-the cry didn't from Zero. The Crimson Flame was battling against Red with the same speed and elegance he had used against their previous enemy-the Red Alert leader was putting everything he had into the duel, but was definitely outclassed by the Crimson Flame. He had escaped the situation Zero had put him in, but he had no chance of defeating the Hunter. Streams of dark red blood were flowing from the body of the Red Alert leader like waterfalls, and there was an indescribable look within his savage eyes-

"You……all of you will FALL beneath the blade of Sigma! All of you shall perish!"

The ground beneath the three of them rose into the sky, and the windows continued to shatter all throughout the base. Waves of bright light continued to consume their vision….but Zero could see his enemy perfectly. Red was standing in the very center of the room, laughing….

Laughing the way Sigma always laughed.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! ALL OF YOU WILL DIE! THERE IS NO HOPE-GIVE YOUR BODIES AND SOULS TO THE GREAT DEITY!"

Axl looked away from X and frowned. The young one sounded like someone watching a disgusting movie when he released his opinion about Red's behavior.

"Sheesh. Sigma really did screw him up. I mean, 'give your bodies to the great deity'? Come on. A little perverted, don't you think?"

"Yes," the gentle Maverick Hunter laughed, "but now isn't the time for jokes, Axl. Save them for later. We've got a job to do."

Axl rose to his feet and prepared his guns once again, smiling warmly at his dear friend. "Right." he said valiantly, ready to protect his dear friends with everything he had.

It was time to meet the future with open arms.

Wearing one of his trademark smiles, the young one fired out at his enemy with the same amount of agility and elegance Zero possessed.

(A/N: If any of you have played Xenosaga 2, and if you are familiar with Jr.'s fighting style, then you have an accurate picture of Axl's fighting style.)

Red attempted to make another devastating attack on the young Reploid, but X swiftly intervened by leaping out in front of his dear friend and firing his X-Buster. The Maverick Hunter's shot was so powerful that it caused the ground to tremble, and it also caused Red to become buried beneath the rubble of the wall. Zero dove in after the evil Reploid with his Saber, and delivered a strikingly mighty uppercut, sending the Red Alert leader into the air. The attack created a breathtaking ray of light-it was like watching a dolphin break the ocean surface. The phenomenal Maverick Hunter landed with the grace of a feline, wearing a smile of satisfaction-his enemy, however, landed with a painful thud, covered in blood that was dangerously close to being black…..Axl and X looked upon the broken body of the Red Alert leader silently….waiting for him to speak…

"…….Axl…….."

The tone of Red's voice shocked the young one greatly. A small gasp ripped itself from his throat, and his eyes became bright with disbelief. Red had used the tone of his voice he had used so many times with him...during their days as strong Red Alert members….

"…..Red?"

Red slowly sat up and wrapped his arms around his body. The look on his face shocked Axl even more-it was drenched in infinite pain….he looked like a helpless, wounded wolf. Rivers of blood were all over his broken, shattered body……and he could barely even breathe…..

"Axl…….my little Axl……"

Before the young one had a chance to react, the entire room was consumed by flames. An enormous explosion reached his heart and the hearts of his two friends…..the walls became engulfed in flames, millions of glass shards fell to the floor….and the ground continued to tremble…..Red remained in his place, tears falling from his eyes…..

Zero hurriedly scanned the room, and then spoke to his two friends urgently. "Listen to me-Red activated a self-destruction device! If we don't leave this area soon, we'll all die!"

Axl was not yet ready to move. Even though the vicious, unrelenting song of fire was streaming into his ears…..his eyes were on the silent, still body of Red, the one he had cared for so much in the past. X had heard Zero's words perfectly, but was greatly worried about the young Reploid-

"Axl! We've got to leave-NOW! We don't have much time!"

The look within the young one's eyes caused his heart to skip a few beats, and he realized something….he realized that it was time for his dear friend to say good-bye….

To the past.

The eyes of the Crimson Flame fell onto the young Reploid, filled with apprehension….the eyes of the gentle, soft-hearted Mega Man X were filled with warm, deep compassion and sadness….both of them watched their young friend silently….and waited for him to speak……Red broke the silence between them, smiling weakly through millions of tears…..tears that shimmered like starlight….

"Axl……little one……you are ready, aren't you?"

Axl nodded, trying very hard to keep his casual, calm smile on his face. "Yeah…."

"I'm glad to hear that……I can't tell you….how happy I am…..to know that you're happy…..and well. I'm glad these two gave you a future…..and….."

Tears of pristine, ethereal light soared into the young Reploid's eyes…the way eagles soared through the crystal blue sky. "Red……"

"I'm…….sorry…..sorry for everything that happened….."

"It's okay. Really. Everything's fine. No need to worry, old man. You didn't do anything."

Red's eyes, which were only small slits now…..moved over to the faces of the two Maverick Hunters. He spoke to them, his voice a small, distant….yet warm song of pure, eternal love…..

"Please…….please…..take good care of Axl. Promise me…..you'll continue to watch over him…."

X and Zero nodded instantly. The blue Maverick Hunter saluted Red in the fashion of a true, dedicated soldier. "We will." he said firmly, leaving not a scrap of doubt anywhere. "Don't worry-we'll take care of him. Won't we?"

"We sure will. I owe my entire life to him anyway."

"Thank you……both of you……"

The flames continued to rise higher and higher….the ground began to tremble even more…..

"Axl?"

"Yeah, Red?"

The leader of the Red Alert Syndicate said one last word to his most precious friend….

His son.

"Fly."


Five minutes passed.

The area they had been in with Red went up in flames. Millions of flames soared into the sky……..as they continued to burn every piece of the room they had been in…..as they continued to burn the remnants of Axl's past……..and as they continued to open the path…..

To the future.

The three Reploids silently watched the flames rise to the sky…..each of their hearts drenched in the same emotion-sadness. A few minutes passed between them, and then X lowered his head and closed his eyes…..silently honoring the Reploid that had cared for Axl so deeply so long ago….Zero placed a hand on the young one's shoulder…..

And received a smile in return.

The flames continued to burn through everything that had remained from his past life……

But……

It was time to meet the future……with open arms.

There were tears in the young one's eyes, but his smile was bright and warm…..his eyes shimmered with appreciation as they beamed at Zero…….two words left X's mouth in a soft, serene yet sorrowful whisper…..

"Thank you."


Dedicated to my friend Khilai.

Thank you…..to everyone out there. I am almost done.

Uzu-chan, your story is awesome. Thanks for continuing it.

The same goes to YOU too, Star Ninja. Big hugs to everyone out there.