"Are you guys sure about this?" X asked his double dubiously. The alternate X blew a bubble, popped it, then shrugged.

"As sure as I am about anything. We need to recruit, and getting publicity will help." X tapped his fingers against his hip nervously. "God, why won't they let me smoke my cigarettes here?" They were waiting for the news crew to show up.

The alternate Hunters had decided to give a whole series of interviews. The press had already reported the basic information about them and their situation, along with video clips they had taken before they had left, but people were still really curious. Normally, X and Zero wouldn't have given a damn, although Axl might have liked the attention. But right now, they were building a satellite HQ that could comfortable hold four hundred hunters. They had only a hundred. It would take a long time to fill it up, but they needed to get started attracting new recruits right away.

"Not everyone wants to swallow your smoke, X," Zero said dryly. "When are you going to give those things up?" X favored him with a glare, then popped a bubble of gum at him.

"As soon as you give up all the women in HQ." Zero flushed lightly as X blew another bubble. "Not to mention half the men-ah!" The reporter had finally arrived. X sucked in his bubble, and stood up to shake her hand with a friendly smile.

The interview went very smoothly, but it left the real X's head spinning. Zero was about what he had expected… he answered some very embarrassing questions about his activities with aplomb and not a bit of shame.

It was his own double that shocked him. To the interviewer, he was warm, smooth and personable. He didn't blow a single bubble, didn't tap his fingers, and generally acted like an entirely different person. The change was strangely disturbing to the real X. His double was playing to the cameras, putting up a false personality, and it just seemed… wrong.

As soon as the reporter was out of the room, though, his double was pulling out a cigarette. With the human reporter and her staff gone, he didn't need to worry about inflicting his smoke on them.

"God, I'm glad that's over," he said, puffing idly on the smoke stick. "I hate acting the gentle soul for these things."

"Then why do you?" X asked, staring at him.

"Don't want to scare the viewers," The alternate X answered briskly. "I just hope that does the job." They had taken care to mention the location of their new HQ, the need for new Hunters, and all the amenities that were being built in. Hopefully, they'd get plenty of recruits.

"Well, we ought to get back to work." Zero rose from his seat gracefully. "Ready to rock, X?"

"Always!" The real X followed the two of them out, looking at his double's back with very mixed feelings. He just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something badly wrong with how his double could act so completely different…

At the same time, elsewhere in Hunter HQ.

Iris regarded the vase in front of her, bemused. It was an exquisite crystal vase, square in shape, with an engraved iris on each side. The play on her name was rather sweet, and there was a beautiful bouquet inside of white roses, ferns, and more irises. Iris reached out to tap the vase gently with one finger, and it chimed like good crystal should.

"Brother? Is there some reason I should be mad at Dynamo?" Colonel looked up at her sharply. They were sharing a room, and right now they were both off duty. He had already practiced for several hours, and had finally come back to their room to read a book. Colonel frowned, and ran all of Dynamo's recent actions through his mind.

"Not that I can think of. Why?" Iris sighed, and then shrugged.

"He usually doesn't give me gifts like this unless I'm mad at him and he's trying to make up." She picked up a card that had come with the vase. "He wants a date on Friday, too." Colonel's face settled into a painfully neutral expression, and Iris giggled as she saw it. Colonel didn't approve of Dynamo at all. He also didn't approve of Zero, so he was just trying to stay out of everything.

"It's up to you," Colonel shrugged, then frowned. "That reminds me. Dynamo hasn't officially joined the Hunters yet." The blue haired mercenary had joined them on patrols… usually with Iris… but didn't have an official schedule or standing. He just tagged along and occasionally killed Mavericks. "He should either join, or leave. I'll talk to X about that."

"Mmm hmm," Iris agreed, tapping the vase again. "You don't think he might be turning over a new leaf?"

"Dynamo?" Colonel said incredulously, and they both laughed. "Maybe he's just in love with you." That made Iris laugh even harder.

"One's as likely as the other!" she grinned, then touched an iris lovingly. "But this present deserves a reward… I already have a date with Zero for Friday, but I'll set one up with Dynamo for Saturday." Colonel lifted on eyebrow at her.

"You're going to date both of them at once?" he asked. Iris frowned at him.

"You don't have to sound so disapproving. I hardly know Zero," she pointed out. "And Dynamo's been pretty casual. I won't 'go steady' with either of them for at least a month, probably more like three."

"I usually date one person at once," Colonel said dryly. Iris scowled at him.

"And how many dates do you go on, anyway?" Colonel looked offended, but didn't answer, which was answer enough. Iris grinned maliciously. "Nevermind, brother dearest. I already know." Colonel snorted and looked back at his book. "When are we on patrol tomorrow?"

"Eight hundred hours."

"Ah, good," Iris said, mentally running through her plans for the next day. Now that the alternate Hunters were here to stay, Signas had begun rearranging the patrol schedules so that they were given routes in the territory they would ultimately be responsible for. Since they were building their HQ in Hawaii, they had gotten the duty of checking out numerous small islands for hidden Mavericks. So far, they hadn't found anything. But eventually they might.

Iris smiled, picking up her cell phone and dialing a number. "Dynamo? I just love your flowers. I'm busy on Friday, but we can meet on Saturday…" Colonel sighed quietly, and ignored her. He desperately wished Iris could find a decent man and settle down, preferably someone he knew and approved of. He could think of several under his command he would have been overjoyed to see her with. Naturally, Iris thought they were boring.

He'd just have to hope he didn't end up with Dynamo as a brother-in-law. The very thought was enough to give him chills.

The next morning, Iris was exploring a small island in the Pacific Ocean. Colonel was taking point, Iris right behind him, the two others in their squad taking the flanks.

"Boring boring…" One of the flankers, a male in red armor, complained. Colonel gave him a hard look.

"Pay attention, idiot." The red Reploid flushed, then turned his attention to the surroundings. Colonel scowled. They hadn't met any Mavericks since they began patrols, and despite all his drilling, he'd noticed a certain slackness creeping in. He had already considered requesting being placed in an assault team just to knock the complacency out of them. In his experience, a bored scout was usually a dead scout.

There was suddenly a faint whistle. The flankers didn't notice, but Iris looked around, puzzled. Colonel's blood ran cold as he recognized it.

"DUCK!"Colonel shouted, and tackled Iris. She screamed as the world went mad around them.

The red Reploid was obliterated instantly as the missile hit them. The other flanker and Colonel both suffered cruel injuries from the shrapnel. Colonel rolled off Iris with a grunt, drawing his sword as the first Mavericks appeared, flying in off the sea.

A trap. Colonel felt sick as he saw the numbers arrayed against them. How had they known his squad would be on this island? There should have been no way they could predict that! Unless they had put in sensors on this island? But why?

"Iris, can you teleport out?" His own teleporter was down… but Iris shook her head, her face pale.

"No, they're scrambling," she answered. Colonel cursed, and they all got ready to meet the attack.

Iris was the only still intact, and she fought valiantly as the first Mavericks landed. But they were all good, no drones, and soon the second flanker had exploded. She and Colonel ended up fighting back to back, until a clever shot took Colonel in the stomach. He collapsed, his body going into emergency shutdown as his generator got dangerously close to overloading. But he stayed conscious long enough to see a steel tentacle shoot over him and hit Iris in the back.

Iris! Colonel tried desperately to reach for her, but instead, he blacked out…

Perhaps an hour later, Dynamo was hanging around the lounge. He was having a ton of fun being a general pain in the butt.

"Isn't it awfully nice to have a penis… isn't it frightfully good to have a dong…" Several female Hunters gave Dynamo disgusted looks, while a few giggled. He winked at one, who laughed out loud. "It's divine to have a- ah?" There was some serious activity going on outside the lounge. Some yelling, too. Dynamo scratched his head, then went to see what was going on.

"Hmm, damaged Hunters." He could hardly make out who it was, what with all the hurrying to the repair bay. He tagged along well behind, and blinked as he saw Gate in the repair bay. Gate was still doing research, but was going to be taking over as head medic when the new HQ was finished. If he was down here, it probably meant that some of their guys had been shafted.

Dynamo looked over the first guy from a discrete distance. He'd been filled with shrapnel then put through a couple rounds of hard fighting. The medics had him on his stomach, exploring his back, but Dynamo suddenly froze as he recognized the hat on a table nearby.

His gaze darted to the other still form, and he hissed a curse as he saw mint green armor. Iris had taken back her beret, but decided she liked the new paint job. He managed to squeeze over to listen to the medics conversing. Colonel's mangled body was receiving most of the attention, but Iris wasn't looking good in a different way. She moaned and tossed fitfully, hands flailing weakly at phantom enemies.

Oh SHIT. Dynamo paled. He had seen that kind of reaction before. He quickly grabbed a medic by the arm.

"Have you checked her jewel chip?" He demanded of the smaller Reploid. The medic blinked slowly, tilting his head back to meet the bounty hunter's eyes.

"No, why?" It hadn't occurred to him at all. Dynamo ground his teeth in frustration.

"The way she's moving. It's active, you idiot!" The medic paled as he realized what Dynamo meant, and he made a bee line to Lifesaver. Dynamo stepped back, content that Iris would at least be put under now. He'd endured an active jewel chip once himself, and he knew that unconsciousness was a blessing. The anti-virus might work to save them, but it was an absolute horror to experience.

He could only hope Iris would survive the experience, the way he had…