I'm gonna cry. I had to put this chapter up three times to make it work right...Here's another semi-dark chapter of Breaking the Fall. Thank-you to all of you who left a review. Here's the response.
Response:
Jade eye's: Ah, Silent Hill 1. Yeah, some events are from it, but others are from two, three, and four. No pressure? You mean I can act like I'm going to update every single day and not do it? Sweet! (I'm joking. I'll try to be faster.)
Ri2: Yet another mystery of Silent Hill. Still, it adds to the wierd factor, so I went with it.
Shadowneko003: Um... I'm sure you do like seeing X go to school ...
Toni da Big-Eared Cat: Thanks. And as for killing me... Well, that's fine. I can die as soon as I'm immortal.
Rioni Riishu: Indeed, head screwage is fun. As for the games, I've tried to get ahold of them since the last chapter, but no one has them. Not even EB Games, which supposedly has everything. Oh well... And thanks for being patient with me. Not many are.
Black Metalmark: Alia is equipped to fight, but she's not trained. Besides, friendly fire probably wouldn't look good on her records. And though Axl may be hurt and not involved in this chapter, he'll be back eventually. And do boss fights count as plot advancement?
Shenka: Don't worry 'bout Axl. He's a sturdy little reploid. See? If I yank on his arms like this... (cracking noise) Oh crap... Um, you didn't see that.
MysticMaiden 18: Well, I'm continuing it. Hope you enjoy!
CHaPteR Four: Flower in bloom…
The sea was crashing against the beach, sending small sprays of mist into the air. Zero could feel her resting against his shoulder, sighing contentedly as their hands intertwined. Carelessly, Zero let his Z-saber drop from his hand as Iris caressed it with her own. Blushing slightly, Zero turned to her and laid a soft kiss on her head. She too blushed, lifting her head to see his eyes. He smiled as they broke their hand's embrace, only to bring their lips closer together in a different, but much more enjoyable embrace…
Opening his eyes, Zero looked around. He wasn't in the hotel room anymore. Instead, he was in some kind of dojo. A bloody dojo, but a dojo none the less.
"This is getting old really fast…" Groaning slightly, Zero lifted himself from the floor. Looking around again, he noticed a Katana sitting on the floor before a sword rack, a wall scroll of a samurai in blue hanging just above it. The Katana itself was covered in blood and missing its sheath, obviously dropped by its owner before he or she died. A trail of blood led out of the room and into the rest of the house. Zero could only guess as to what happened, and all the idea's that came to mind were unpleasant at best. The lesser half of the Daisho set was still on the rack, obviously forgotten in the heat of battle. "Well, there's no sense in letting a good weapon go to waste. Hell, maybe it'll actually work."
Grabbing the sword from the floor, Zero made his way toward the exit. As he passed through it however, he heard a voice speaking to him from behind. It was harsh in tone, and sounded as if whoever was speaking had a throat of sandpaper. He couldn't quite make out what it was saying until he turned back to the room…
"…Honor me…"
Shuddering slightly, Zero bowed to the room. "Forgive me, fallen warrior, for taking your sword. I have no choice in my actions. I will return this sword when my deed is finished."
Feeling that the spirit was pacified for the moment, Zero quickly found his way out of the house. Dealing with spirits of the dead wasn't really his forte. As he stepped out the back of the house, which he had accidentally assumed was the front, he found himself in an alleyway. Sighing at the memory of his previous experience, Zero headed south with the Katana held at the ready. He wasn't sure if the sword would even work, but it was better than trying to fight with his fists. True, he felt that he could probably kill anything this town had to throw at him with his bare hands, but having a sword in his grip was a more appealing idea. Amazingly, nothing attacked him as he walked down and out of the alleyway. He stepped out onto the street, surveying the general area he was in before heading east. The crimson warrior was making quick progress in his exploration until he reached an intersection. Said intersection had fallen into nothingness.
"Okay, what the hell is this? Nightmare creatures, Iris's hat, and now holes in the earth…? Damn. This had all better be a dream that I'm going to wake up from eventually."
Pushing aside all of the possibilities that presented themselves to Zero as he stared at the abyss, he quickly turned from it and proceeded in the opposite direction. Holes with a visible bottom were one thing, but Zero had past experience with bottomless pits. Experience that he wished never to gain more of. As Zero continued west, he came upon a T intersection that lead north and south.
"Alright Zero, make a choice. North or south? North or south…"
Before he could come to a decision however, a small photograph flew past him on a non-existent wind. Catching it in his hand and observing the photograph, he found that it was a picture of 'Death' holding his scythe, a large spider sitting on the unholy weapon. The blond haired hunter furrowed his brow and turned it over, finding an inscription on it.
"Scythe Spider. He stalks the street. Rest in peace. Okay… That makes me feel a whole lot safer." Rolling his eyes, Zero dropped the picture and decided to head north. As he began walking again, something shot past his face and stuck into the cement before him. He instantly traced where the object had come from, which happened to be a nearby rooftop. Upon said rooftop was a black armored figure. One which Zero had been forced to see over and over again, mercilessly tearing apart the one he loved.
"It's you!"
The Shadow Zero smiled, its blood red eyes seeming to laugh at him. Zero's body melted into a defensive stance as he spoke, Katana positioned directly in front of him.
"Where's Iris! I know that you have her!"
Silence. Shadow Zero simply flipped an index card at Zero's foot before leaping off over the rooftops. Dropping his stance, Zero retrieved the card from the ground and read it.
"I may have her, but you won't live much longer? The spider isn't imprisoned anymore?"
As if to answer Zero's impending flood of questions, a loud scraping noise echoed from further down the street. Whirling around, he found himself looking at Iris, minus her beret.
"Iris! Is… Is it really you?"
"Zero… RUN!"
That was all she was able to say before a large blade fell from the sky and bisected her, which caused her body to explode. Zero traced the blade to its origin and found that it merged with something living. He couldn't really tell through the fog, but it looked like a spider…
Scythe Spider: Master of Sorrow, the first seal. (Cue the boss music, folks.)
"YOU… just ruined ANY shred of happiness that I could have found here!"
The Scythe Spider didn't care about Zero's taunts. It merely swept away Iris's remains with one of its scythes and prepared to attack him. The beast was big, somewhere around the size of a Crab Ride Armor (X7). The crimson warrior didn't wait for an invitation and dashed forward, Katana at the ready. The Scythe Spider countered his charge and swiped at him with one of its arm-scythes, but Zero merely smirked as he jumped on the creature's limb, using it as a springboard to the creature's head. A mighty slash earned Zero a guttural roar from the beast as his blade cut through several of its eyes. It thrashed about, forcing Zero to beat a hasty retreat as it chased after him. After getting a good distance ahead, he turned back to face the monster once more.
"That was for Iris, you bastard!"
Scythe Spider screeched as it attacked again, trying for a pincer move with both of its frontal appendages. Ducking below the attack, Zero dashed forward and brought his blade into a rising slash. It cut through Scythe Spider's head a little bit more, but the favor was instantly repaid as it clamped down on Zero's mid-section with its jaw. Yelling out in both pain and rage, Zero jammed his blade into Scythe Spider's head. The wound was not fatal unfortunately. It did cause the beast to drop him however, allowing Zero to retreat once more. Scythe Spider gave chase again, slamming its scythe equipped limbs into the ground in a mad attempt to draw blood.
Ignoring everything in front of him, Zero looked over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of his pursuer. From what he could tell, the creature had lost four of its eyes in his first strike, a split lip from his second blow, but two more eyes had been destroyed in his third attack. Grinning madly, Zero turned again and charged at Scythe Spider in an attempt to finish the fight. Unfortunately, he didn't notice the beast's incoming right hook. With a loud crash, the crimson hero smashed through a shop window and into the counter behind it, dropping his Katana in the process. Though disoriented, he managed to scramble over the remains of the counter as the spider tried to slash at him again, crushing the center of the counter as it did so.
"That… was way too close…" He sat there for a moment, catching his breath and calming himself down. Fighting in a fit of rage like he had been would only make his abilities suffer. A point that had been driven home rather abruptly. As he peaked over the broken counter, he found the Scythe Spider staring into the shop with its remaining two eyes. "Great, I'm trapped… Wait a second…"
Sitting on the floor, right next to him in plain view was a shotgun shell. And with shotgun shells nearby, one could only guess that a shotgun would follow close behind. Digging into the rubble of the counter, Zero discovered the weapon and a case of shells.
"Hm. Old School, but it will do in a pinch." Smiling, he began loading five shells into the weapon. "Kinda like a plasma rifle, now that I think about it."
Putting the weapon to his shoulder, Zero spun into a kneeling position facing the beast and took aim before firing off two blasts. He smiled with grim satisfaction as the spread shots tore through its face, ripping through its remaining eyes and blinding the creature. In a fit of rage, the creature began slashing wildly at him, forcing Zero to dive behind his cover again. Shoving two more shells into the breach, the hunter waited for the beast to calm down again. When it finally did, he charged forward and shot it in the face until he had spent three of his rounds. It screeched in pain as the spread cut through its body, hitting several key areas and crippling the monster. Dropping the shotgun and grabbing his fallen Katana, Zero finished the creature with a stab to its brain, sending blood spraying into the air as it broke through exoskeleton. Breathing hard in an attempt to cool his systems, Zero pulled his blade out of his fallen foe and picked up his shotgun. Looking back at the dead spider, he shook his head before having a seat and lying against the broken counter.
"Eat that, you Bastard. Rot in hell for… killing Iris … again…"
Exhausted and damaged once more, Zero allowed himself to drift into a blissful slumber. As his systems began to repair themselves, footsteps echoed outside of the holed shop. Someone was coming, and with her came the thing that Zero dreaded the most … his Past.
With his Pistol fully loaded once more, X began leading Alia over the bridge. So far, nothing had attacked the blue and pink duo since they had left the police station, but that didn't mean that they would be lucky enough to make it though the entire town without being attacked.
"X, are you sure? I mean, we've only got two guns, and if the school is a trap that Zero set up…"
Furrowing his brow, X turned to her. "Alia, I'm sure Zero's not behind this. I mean, Sigma has made a Zero clone once before. Hell, I almost had to fight it, and this could be the same thing! When we find Zero and Axl, then we'll know what really happened. And… if worst comes to worst, I'll stop him, alright?"
"X…"
From that point on, Alia was silent as they continued walking through town. X began to regret the tone he had used with her, but he rationalized it by chalking it up to emotional stress. Having a dream about being killed could mess you up for a good while, especially when the nightmare was still going.
"Let's see, we're coming up on Blotch and Levin… After that, we just have to get to Midwich Street and head south… What the?"
Indeed, like Zero had found before him, there were holes in the town. Immediately, X took a few steps back from the hole for more breathing room, though he and Alia had been a good distance from it when they noticed it.
"Alia, did I ever tell you that I hate bottomless pits?"
The spotter nodded. "Yeah, about two days after I was assigned to the 17th."
"Good. Then you know exactly why I want to find an alternate route. Come on, let's start backtracking."
Alia shivered slightly. The town itself was haunted. Why did they even need to stay? Axl could take care of him self, and Zero… As their footsteps echoed throughout the seemingly abandoned town, Alia found herself wanting to escape more with every moment.
"X, why don't we leave? This place… It just gives me the creeps… I knew that something really disturbing was happening in this town, but…"
"If we leave now, we'll never know what happened."
Alia stopped. "W-what…?"
"Alia, I don't know if you can understand me when I say this, but something happened to this town. I know there were people here once, people who lived a normal life, just going about their business every day. Now they're all dead. Every single one of them died, and we don't know why. Even though it…" X hesitated, collecting himself, "Even though it happened a long time ago, I won't let what happened here go unpunished. Someone is responsible for both the letter to Zero and for all of this, and I need to find out who it is. No matter how disturbing this place is… Now, come on, we need to keep moving if we want to get out alive."
X turned, walking back toward the police station as Alia followed meekly. Abruptly, Alia stopped in mid step as something stepped out of the Shadows. A squeal of static in both of their radios announced the shambling mass of flesh which dragged an oversized fist into the light. It hesitated before lifting it and savagely clubbing X in the back. Rolling with the almost unexpected blow, the blue bomber hit the ground in a semi-controlled spin. It was only a second until he was on his feet once more, the pistol finding the target and firing twice. Luckily, Alia had been so startled by the creature's sudden appearance that she had fallen back, over the curb and into the street, away from X's line of fire. The bullets struck the creature high, both hitting an artery in its neck and leaving a bloody aftermath as the creature retreated. Standing, X turned on his helmet lamp and focused on where the monster had retreated to, finding the opening to an alley instead of the wounded beast. Turning away, X found Alia still lying in the street, holding her back in pain. Looking her over, she seemed fine, but he wasn't about to make that assumption.
"Alia, you okay?" He kneeled next to her, looking around to make sure the creature couldn't get the drop on him again.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine X. Are you okay?" She reached up, asking him to help her up. Generously, he didn't refuse her and pulled her upright.
"A little scratched, and possibly a dent in my shoulder, but nothing serious. I just hope you aren't afraid of the dark Alia."
"Huh? Just a little. Why?"
X pointed at the alley. "Because unless I make sure that Thing is dead, it might come after us again. Just stay behind me and you'll be fine, okay?"
"…Okay…"
Alia did as she was instructed, practically smashing herself against X's back. Leveling the pistol in front of him, X stepped into the fog shrouded Alley. His headlamp barely pierced the dark, but it was enough to spot a vaguely human shape shuffling toward the opposite end of the alley. He took aim, but before he could squeeze the trigger a giant knife slashed through the creature, bisecting it and splattering blood across the ground and walls. Behind him, Alia gasped and choked on a scream, holding it in as best she could. The static in their radios was increasing, rising to a level that X had only heard once, in the dream-like moments before waking up in the diner. The scraping noises and the heavy footsteps that echoed down the alleyway…
'…It's that Pyramid Head thing … The one from before…'
It was then that something came alive in X. At the time, he couldn't explain it, but some part of him just wanted to run away, leave everything and just go. Anywhere but here had to be a better place. He would have rather fought Sigma eight times in a row than take another step forward. He was afraid for one of the first times in his long life, and it didn't feel good. But it didn't matter. X knew he had to take that next step. And the one after that. And many more, if the future would let him. So that's just what he did. Shoving all of his thoughts aside, X began walking, following the noise of death that had once consumed him. Alia was gripping his shoulder now, and he could tell that she was shaking, but it didn't matter. He wouldn't stop.
"…X…" She was afraid, but he already knew she would be.
'One foot in front of the other.'
"…X…!" It seemed a little cold not answering her, but his concentration was only on moving.
'Just keep moving.'
"X!" But her voice broke that concentration. He still took another step however.
"…Alia. I've got to kill that thing." And another. "It killed me once before," They were past the corpse, stepping out onto the street. "And I won't let it happen again."
The radio became fainter. The scraping noise had stopped. They were out of the Alley, and if X's head mapping was correct, they were only a block and a half away from the School. Both he and Alia breathed a sigh of relief, turning to eachother and, sadly, laughing uneasily at eachother. "…Well, that was fun."
"…Yeah… Hey X? What did you mean when you said that it had killed you before…?"
"Oh. That. …Um, I didn't tell you this before, but I had a dream, or something like one, where that thing killed me because my buster didn't work on it. It was rather freaky…"
Alia paused, looking to the side. "…Oh… I'm… Sorry."
The blue bomber sighed, turning in the direction of the school. "It's okay Alia. It was just a dream, after all. And I'm sure we can kill it. Nothing is invincible, after all."
She smiled, reassured for the time being. But then, something dawned on her. "But … your not invincible either, X … so please, be careful…"
He smiled as they began walking again. "I will. After all, I wouldn't want to leave you alone. I just hope we can make it out together."
"Yeah…" She smiled, cheeks going a tinge of pink. On a childish impulse, Alia hugged him from behind. "X, thank-you for protecting me…"
"Not a problem, Alia. Besides, I--!" Static. The hunter raised his weapon, searching the area for an enemy. There was a scraping noise. Heavy footsteps. Soon enough Pyramid Head was clearly visible in the fog, knife dragging behind him.
Pyramid Head; Master of Fear, the second seal.
X aimed and fired, striking him in the chest with the nine millimeter bullet. There was a small flash of blood, but Pyramid Head didn't seem phased by the impact in the least. Raising his aim, X fired at the metal faceplate that the creature wore, striking it three times with no visible effect. Alia too joined in, trying to take the monstrosity out at the kneecaps. Her aim was terrible though, as she didn't have an auto-targeting program. Once again, cost cutting at it's finest prevented her from having the software. She made a mental note to get upgraded if they survived this, finally getting used to the weapon and hitting her target. Amazingly, it seemed to almost knock him off balance.
"Good shot." X had noticed the hit and adjusted his aim. Firing two shots that head dead center in the kneecaps, he grimaced as Pyramid Head stumbled a bit but failed to fall down. Knowing that they would eventually run out of ammunition, X searched around for something, anything to use in close combat. There was a lead pipe in the gutter… 'That's rather convenient… but I'd better make use of it anyway.'
There was a sudden clicking noise from Alia. One that the blue bomber didn't like in the least. "X, I'm out of bullets!"
"Here, it's the last clip, so make it count! Just try to knock his knees out!" He shoved the clip in her hands and fired the last round in his own, hitting the monster in the knife-wielding arm's shoulder.
"What about you?"
He grimaced. "Once you're out of ammo, I'll try grappling with it!"
"WHAT!"
X didn't have time for talk though, as Pyramid Head was dangerously close. He ran and grabbed the pipe, taking it up and getting into an attack position while Alia unloaded her clip into Pyramid Head's knees. Even with the constant hits however, the freak refused to fall down and kept walking. Once again, X heard a clicking noise as Alia's pistol ran out of bullets. Pyramid Head wound up, getting ready to swing his giant knife. His aim was centered on Alia.
"Alia, run!" Without a second thought, X dashed at the bloody figure and smashed his pipe into his kneecaps. This time, there was a distinct crack as something broke. The left leg buckled, a moaning sound penetrating the metal headpiece as it sank down. It's arms were still in perfect shape with the exception of the bullet hole in it's right shoulder, and it's left quickly smashed into X's face. The impact sent the blue hunter against a storefront, but didn't have enough force to send him through the pillar that stood in his way.
"X!"
His vision blurred for a second, systems quickly resetting themselves after the hit to his face. When they returned to normal, he found Alia rushing toward him, and Pyramid Head about to bring his knife down on her head.
"ALIA!"
She noticed too late, screaming as the blade dropped. There were sparks as steel hit steel…
I hate having a job. It saps all my free time. Thankfully, school starts Monday, and since it's my senior year and I have a ton of easy classes, I should have some free time again. Anyway, here's chapter four. Sorry it's a cliffhanger, but it was unavoidable.
