Disclaimer: Megaman and all related content is not mine; they, albeit somewhat regrettably, belong to Capcom Ltd. But don't even think about stealing my original characters! Just ask first, and give credit where credit is due. As usual, spelling/grammar/formatting mistakes are fault (feel free to point them out, though). Without another minute of five-month wait time, to the show! (A/N chapter suffix)

Titanium Showdown: Tale of the Zero Clones

Chapter Sixteen: The Red Demon

As the parts cleared and the dust began to settle, the room became as silent as it had been before Sigma's monologue.

"You're wrong." The voice was low, controlled. In a slow, awkward ripple, the enforcers left standing around the crash began to step back, clearing another path: to X and his companions.

"But I've got everything figured out; your precious 'virus' told me everything." Sigma's expression had changed. From one of triumph to one of confusion, and from there to one of fear. Sigma was afraid –enough to let it show through in his face.

"I'm not just some tool for you, I don't need that extra part of me to kill you for good. There is a reason," X could identify the voice now; it filled him with both joy and fear. "that the doctor named me 'The Red Demon.'"

There could be no doubt –this was Zero, but even that thought could not budge X. He was frozen completely as his counterpart across the room. The mindless enforcers finished moving away; the path they cleared left everyone, who was not already, stuck with a mixture of awe, fear, and confusion. Zero stood in strange, new armor that glowed with an inborn radiance. His wounds and blemishes were all gone, replaced by a vibrant new strength. Zero looked hardly like his old self in his new raiment. He held no weapons, but he seemed about to fight.

"So far, you've been able to escape and, ultimately, return; that changes now." The gleaming red metal on his fist flashed slightly in the glare as Zero made and raised a fist. "I've spent many, many hours doing nothing but plotting, 'talking' with the so-called 'virus;' planning your death, and so far, everything has gone to plan. That 'madness' was an act every time, but not for you –for you, Sigma, this 'madness' is about to become very, very real."

Everyone in the room watched amazedly as Zero rushed forward almost too fast to see. Three swift punches had Sigma, dumbfounded, against the wall behind him. As the tall, megalomaniac reploid stood up again, it was plain that something was wrong –something was not normal. Now enraged, he attacked his new opponent. It was almost as if a moment from history was repeating itself, except the two roles were now reversed; just as it had happened when first the two fought, one dodged every attack with deft ease and the other frantically swung his fists.

The two continued dueling for minutes more, and still it was only they who moved; the insentient enforcers did not budge, and the small band of rebel fighters did not move either. The only noises were of Sigma and Zero's battle and the tiny whirring of internal cooling systems; it was as if the fight was happening in a gallery of statues.

Then, at last, there was a pause. A powerful green glow ensconced a small area; it was the glow of a beam-saber.

"What?" Sigma gasped in horrified surprise to see that his weapon had made no cut, made no dent. Zero had blocked with his wrist –the blade repulsed harmlessly by his new armor.

"I have spoken with the 'virus,' Sigma, it has helped me, just as I have helped it. Now…" In a single, fluid motion, the red reploid grasped Sigma's hand with his own, and ripped it free of its arm. The beam weapon was still humming down to deactivation as Zero sliced Sigma into three parts, severing waist from torso and torso from neck.

"Die." The beam sword rushed downward toward Sigma's vulnerable forehead, but stopped short. Just as it had when Zero first broke through the vent into the crowd, time itself seemed to stop.

Oi, I hate to leave you with such a horrible cliffhanger, especially after making you wait so long for an update (sorry about that. ; you'd be surprised how much stuff can just take up time and attention.), but that's the way the coin has landed. I promise whoever among you may still be reading that I will absolutely not make you wait another five months for an update (even if it is a little short like this one).

Thank you to all the wonderful reviewers that I, rather unfortunately, missed when I put up the proceeding chapters. If I understand things correctly, I'm not allowed to answer individual reviews any more, but all the same, thank you.

As it stands, I've got a pretty full plate from school, hurricane season, "work," and all the other bits and bobs I have to take care of, but I should be able to manage another chapter within a reasonable time frame.