I've gone back and fixed a few things. The most prominent one is I fixed the time placing (see first chapter).
Dan's and Cain's footsteps echoed throughout the empty hallways of MHHQ. A party was being held in the lounge and the only reploids that weren't there had more important things to do. Dan kept his head bowed, his gaze fixated on the linoleum floor. Every time he looked up into the reflective metal walls, an unfamiliar person looked back. For all he cared, Cain could take him apart and never put him back together.
After several minutes they arrived at Cain's lab. The door slid up and they stepped through. Dan looked up and saw his capsule still standing right where he remembered it to be.
"Okay Dan, I need you to go and lie down on the table to your left," Cain said as he walked over to start prepping the computers. The process only took a few moments and when he looked up, Dan was all set.
"Alright, I'm going to put you into stasis Dan. From your point of view, it'll be just as if you're sleeping."
"Whatever."
Cain picked up a tool lying on his desk and walked over to the table. "Pleasant dreams." Before Dan could reply, Cain turned on the instrument and pointed it at his eye. The shining beam emitted a signal and Dan was out like a light. Cain flicked the instrument off and put it into his pocket. He attached several cables to Dan's sleeping body and set to work.
Zero was sitting on a chair and enjoying the party. There had been a pretty big bout with mavericks that day and everyone was celebrating their victory. He looked across the room and saw X standing by the snack table trying to decide whether to have either the lasagna or the burgers. A smile crept onto Zero's face as he immediately thought of his promise of revenge from two weeks ago. Rising from his chair, he walked over to the drinks and poured himself a pint of punch. After taking a quick sip, he calmly walked over to X.
X gasped and dropped his plate as he felt something cold and wet pour onto his head, drenching his black hair. Looking up he saw Zero standing over him, empty cup in hand and a grin on his face.
"What the hell was that for?!?"
"Your little run with my beam saber," Zero smugly replied before tossing the cup in the trash and walking out into the crowd. His mood and appetite spoiled, X picked up his fallen plate of food and threw it away.
X stepped out of the stuffy room and outside into the night air. Closing his eyes and deeply inhaling, he felt relaxed. The past few months had been very hectic. The fourth Maverick Uprising had been one of tragedy.
'The Repliforce had been a good group of hunters. But because of that dammed Sigma they're nearly all dead.' X thought. Zero was forced to kill Iris, the first woman he had loved. It had done a good number on the Crimson Hunter's emotions, but he had gotten over it.
X looked up at the night sky. 'I just wish that the peace will last.' But like the storm clouds he could see gathering on the horizon, another Maverick Uprising was unavoidable.
Meanwhile, in the Cain's lab, Dan slept. In his mind he was reliving the greatest moment of his life. The year was 20XX. Dan was fourteen and he was standing on his back deck looking out on the forest.
"We're almost ready to go Dan," his father called out to him.
"Alright Dad," he replied. They were moving from their current home in Vermont to a growing city out in Iowa.
Dan absently whistled a four tone, five note song he had heard years ago. He could remember the robot in red armor that he learned it from. When he was that young, the only robots that were revealed to the world were ones like the fliptops and metools. He could vividly remember the robot, its bright red armor, the shield it had on its back, the shades in its helmet and its whistle.
"Dan, it's time to go now." His father shouted. Whistling once more, he joined his parents and left.
The ride was long and the traffic hell. Everyone was trying to get to this arena where a man, calling himself Mr. X, was holding a tournament to determine who could create the most powerful robot. Word was he was a war profiteer and was holding the event as a way to make up for what he did.
"If Megaman was there, he would be the winner hands down," Dan commented when the announcer gave the list of the robots competing.
They had reached Indiana when it happened. The sixth Robot Rebellion had begun. Mr. X took eight of the most powerful robots and said that he was the one pulling Wily's strings the whole time. And just as fate would have it, Dan and his family were staying in one of the towns that were attacked. Dan could never recall everything that happened early-on that day. One minute he and his parents were carrying their bags out to the minivan. The next his parents were lying on the ground unconscious.
Dan managed to get both of them into a nearby alley. He collapsed against the building opposite of them and started to shake. With all the other rebellions, his location in a remote forest community had sheltered him from the worst of the destruction. How he managed to remain awake, Dan didn't know. After a few minutes he peered out and looked around. The streets were empty and he could hear the sounds of fighting in the distance. Leaving his parents behind, Dan cautiously went to go and find help.
Dashing in-between the deserted cars, Dan managed to make it to the police station. Opening up the doors he could see that the station house was nearly abandoned.
"Hello? Is anyone here," he called out in vain. When only silence responded, he left to go and look somewhere else. After seeing no one for nearly fifteen minutes, Dan was starting to get desperate.
'There HAS to be someone else left in this town.' A minute later he walked into uptown, the center of the fighting.
"Can anyone hear me?"
"Shut the hell up and get over here!"
Up ahead Dan could see two policemen hiding in an alley, one of them motioning with his hand. He ran over. "Okay, stay quiet now." One cop said, the other keeping a nervous lookout.
"What's going on?" Dan asked.
"There's this robot in the intersection up ahead, tearing that entire block up. Almost the entire force has been killed trying to stop it." The other cop nodded grimly. Dan looked in the direction of the robot. 'Maybe I can do something…'
And without word or warning, Dan took off towards the robot. "Where do you think you're going?!"
"To stop that machine!"
"WHAT!?! ARE YOU CRAZY!?!" The cops watched Dan disappear around the corner and then looked at each other. "What could a single boy possibly do?"
(A/N: I'm experimenting with first person for the first time, so bear with me if it isn't good.)
I ran through the streets of the city. Inside my head there was an argument going on which my body didn't pay much attention to. You probably know what one of the voices was. It was the quiet, nagging voice that told you not to do things such as jump off ramps with your bike and that the things labeled "Danger" are just that. I believe it's something called 'common-sense.'
If my common-sense was a person, instead of just quietly nagging, it'd be hitting me over the head with a two-by-four. Anyways I didn't listen to it and just kept on going for the robot, always keeping myself concealed the best I could.
They say that a brave man is one that will put himself on the line for others. That wasn't me. I was just a stupid kid with a crazy idea. I glanced backwards to where the policemen were hiding. Heh, I bet they think I must be insane. Heh, they might be right but I don't care.
I got up behind a trashed Ford and got a good look at what exactly I was going to try and destroy. I'd seen some messed up robots before, but that was always over the TV. Seeing one in person is something I would NOT recommend to anybody, especially someone who's been living out in the boondocks for most of their life.
I can remember thinking, 'Just what the hell are you doing here Dan?' To be honest, I didn't know and I still don't know. I looked around for something to fight with, 'cause I'd be seriously screwed if I tried to take it on with just my bare hands.
I spotted a dead cop lying in the corner. Looked like he barely had enough time to curse before getting a hole blown through him. I creeped over and took out the energy pistol he had holstered. I checked the battery and it was at 50% charge. Oh well, it'll have to do.
I walked out into the middle of the street, a quirky little half-smile on my face. The robot was busy knocking down some poor sap's office with its extendable fists and didn't notice me. So I whistled the four tone, five note intro to this song I knew to get its attention.
The reaction I got from the robot wasn't something that I expected. It promptly halted and turned around to face me. 'Note to self,' I thought, 'don't do that ever again.'
Now imagine, if you can, a kid, no more than five feet, four inches tall, wearing a red t-shirt, tan cargo pants, generic brand sneakers and with messy black hair trying to stare down a ten foot instrument of destruction. Now quit laughing.
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The robot shot a small burst of plasma at Dan, who jumped to the side and landed hard on his right leg. Dan got right back up and shot at the robot with the energy pistol. The glowing spherical round harmlessly bounced off the robot's armor, went right through a window, and blew up the stereo it hit. 'Shit.' The robot shot a series of smaller bursts of plasma at Dan. Taking cover behind a piece of wall, Dan watched the shots slam into an abandoned car and blow it to smithereens.
Dan stuck his right hand around the corner of the rubble and let loose a couple of potshots at the machine. Two of them were absorbed, but the third one hit an exposed section of the hydraulic system. Fluid started to leak out, slowing down the arms and treads. The robot, mindless of the damage done to it, raised its left arm and prepared to crush Dan. The squealing of the arms rising warned him.
Dan darted out from his hiding place just in time to avoid getting flattened.
"Oh shit! That was close!" He glanced at his battery. 'Thirty percent!? Damn, I've only got six more shots left.' Raising his pistol again, he squeezed off two more rounds at the machine, aiming for one of its eyes. The first shot hit home and blew the optic sensor apart while the second one missed and flew into the sky. The robot, its limited AI realizing that the probability of its defeat was higher than first calculated, charged forward and swung its arms down.
The robot smashed two large craters into the road, sending chunks of blacktop flying. Dan had managed to get out of the way, but was hit by a stray piece in his left arm. He cried out and stumbled. Hitting the ground hard, he instinctively began to nurse the wounded arm. The robot began looking for Dan, despite its damaged sensor. Dan dragged himself behind a mailbox and rested for a moment.
The pain began to lessen into a dull throb and Dan's anger started to rise. He rolled out into view of the robot and fired off a three round burst into its core. Each shot hit critical systems, but the damage was negligible.
'Shit, I've only got one more round left.' Dan began searching the robot for anything that could destroy or at least neutralize it. Its right arm swung fast and low attempting to crush his fragile body.
Dan ducked underneath it and ran out into the middle of the road, out of its arms reach. The robot turned to face him and began charging up its plasma cannon. Dan got an idea. A crazy one, with only a minor chance of success, but it was the only way. He aimed his pistol for one last shot. If he failed, he'd be vaporized two seconds later. He fired. Time seemed to slow down. He could see his shot hurtling through the air and hit home.
The plasma blast went right into the charging cannon. The sudden influx of energy caused a backflash into the circuits of the robot. It made several sounds, and then began to spark. Dan could tell that an explosion was imminent and took cover behind an expensive Jaguar. The robot started to shake and screeched one final time before blowing up. Chunks of metal and circuitry flew everywhere. One of its pieces of armor flew right towards the Jaguar.
Dan heard the car squeal and felt it buckle right before the armor piece flew out above him with only inches to spare. He got up and walked back out into the street. Looking at the flaming remains of the robot, all he could do was stare. The exertion he had made fighting the machine suddenly overwhelmed him and he fell onto his left knee.
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I sat there for a moment, taking long, deep breaths of the cool refreshing morning air. I heard fire truck and ambulance sirens coming closer to me. About time they showed up. I heard a vehicle stop behind me and someone rushing over to me. "I'm fine." I told them. "Just resting."
When my parents woke up later that day and found out what I had done, they had mixed emotions. Fear, anger, concern, pride… Just to name a few.
Next week I was given a medal by the governor for what I had done. Some people said that Megaman might show up and congratulate me. But he didn't and to tell the truth, I didn't think he would. The sixth Robot Rebellion was wrapped up and Dr. Wily, who had murdered Mr. X, taken his money, and posed as him, was finally put behind bars.
I got my fifteen minutes of fame and was satisfied with that.
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Cain finished up his examination and brought Dan out of stasis. Dan opened his eyes and looked around. For a moment he forgot when and where he was.
"All finished," Cain said with a smile. Dan swung his legs around and hopped off the table.
"So, what did you find?"
"Nothing special, in design you're just the same as X." Dan nodded and started to leave when Cain stopped him.
"What?" Dan answered with a hint of annoyance. Cain promptly hit him over the head with his stick, causing him to flinch in surprise. "Go down to the party and relax!" Dan snorted and walked out.
As soon as the red armored man walked out, Cain's face turned grim. He had lied to Dan. He had thrusters built into him, unlike X initially did. He was also equipped with a buster as well, but it was a unique model. The other thing was that his brain was also of a unique design. The examinations had only lasted an hour but the majority of it was spent trying to examine Dan's mind. Cain did discover one thing however.
Dan was immune to the Maverick Virus.