Chapter 4: The Nightmare of the Legend
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If Cerveau was human, then he'd be downing at least ten cups of hot mocha-java coffee with caramel mixed in. The Reploid scientist was still keeping his steady watch over his patient. Looking through his visors, Cerveau was heartened that the damage that Zero suffered for the past year was almost erased. The first two bars indicating total and external damage were completely gone. But the last bar indicating internal damage was still relatively minimal yet it was at least 5%.
"Five percent..." Cerveau muttered as he pulled out a scanner. Waving the metal rod over Zero's body, Cerveau carefully observed the mini-screen. So far, all signs were well.
Hearing the chime of the door, Cerveau called out. "Come in." He continued to search for the mysterious internal damage.
"Is he awake yet, Cerveau?" said Ciel as she yawned. The haggard look on her face showed that human scientist barely got any sleep the night before.
Already, the signs of cracking were beginning to show. Her hair, normally neatly tucked beneathe her red helmet, was askew and her helmet was tucked under her arm. Her clothing appeared wrinkled as if she slept in them. But her eyes, those bright blue eyes, were a little dimmed and were surrounded by pits of darkness.
She looked at Zero. The Red Savior was lying down on his back, his arms placed neatly parallel to his legs and his helmet was on. The onyx crystal on Zero's helmet flashed a strange emblem every so often but she finally got used to it after a while. It is not unusual for Reploids like Zero's age to have those emblems. If the ancient reports were right, those crystals were used to represent who was the master or the owner of that certain Reploid. But who in the past had the initial "W"?
"He's not awake yet," Cerveau replied without taking his eyes off of his scanner. "I estimate that we successfully repaired ninety-five percent of his body."
"That's good news," Ciel managed to say as she stifled a yawn.
"No, that's not good," said Cerveau as he moved his scanner over Zero's torso. "There's still five percent damage and it's internal. I haven't isolated the exact region where it is lying but I'm pretty sure it's in the torso region."
"Isn't that where you dug out that black sphere?"
"I believe that the black sphere may have accounted for Zero's damages. However, I'm sure that the damages that Zero suffered will be quickly eliminated. I guess he'll be awake in a few hours."
"Is he going to remember anything before he got here?"
"I don't know. It might be chancy but I guess that since his circuits are intact, he might be able to recall most of what he did while he was... well, gone."
Looking over at Ms. Ciel, Cerveau gestured at the prone Zero. "Ever since he fought Copy X and his cohorts, Zero has sustained damage that almost the entire Resistance has never encountered. Do you remember those Golems from a year ago?"
Ciel nodded her head. "Those things had a ion blast that could tear circuits apart faster than our Elite Resisters. We obtained that Ion Laser when Zero made scrap metal out of several of them when they attacked the base last year," replied Ciel.
"Do we still have it?" Cerveau hopefully said. "I need it for a weapon I'm repairing. His Z-Buster is not functioning properly and I hope to improve upon its design."
"I'll tell Morris to send it to you," said Ciel. The scientist took one last look at Zero. Looking at the sleeping Reploid, Ciel felt that strange and unfamiliar warm feeling surging in her heart. Her eyes softened and she stepped next to the glass that was shielding Zero's body. Cerveau took one look at Ciel. The Reploid Scientist needed no words to figure out what Ciel wanted.
"I'll be in Supplies when you need me." Cerveau then left the room.
Ciel waited until the door quietly slid shut. When Cerveau's sharp and heavy steps were fading away, Ciel pulled up a nearby crate that Cerveau had an sat on it, directly next to Zero. Unsure of herself, Ciel placed one hand on Zero's right arm. Her hand gently slipped off Zero's battle glove and was surprised to feel skin as soft as Aloutte's. Yet it was still firm as a man's. She then placed the glove on her lap.
"Zero... I've missed you," Ciel said as she placed the unconscious Reploid's palm on her cheek. Rubbing her soft cheek against Zero's firm skin, Ciel's mind spun wildly.
(Is this it?) she asked her conscious. (Is this true love?)
Silence answered her. Ciel waited and waited. But no reply. Brushing her blonde hair back, Ciel put Zero's hand back down. The glove remained in the scientist's lap.
(Is it?) Ciel called out into the recesses of her mind. (Tell me please!)
(Follow your heart, Ciel,) that familiar ethereal voice finally replied. (Follow your heart as you have always done so. It was your heart that led you to find Zero, it was your heart that sent me to resurect Zero, and it was your heart that led Zero to strike down Zero.)
(Passy! Is that you!) Ciel replied mentally. (But... how?)
(There is always a back-up copy of us, Ciel,) Passy the Cyberelf replied. (We always have a strong bond with whom we lend our services to. Part of me is with you and part of me is with Zero. It is not the fault of mine nor yours that led to my sacrifice. It was my heart that led me to bring us to freedom.)
(Passy... why didn't you tell me before?)
(... ... ... I never knew about this before. Why did it take a year for us to come back as memories of data files? I don't know why. But there is a way I can return. Open your Cyberelf data files on your Palm PC.)
Ciel was confused by the request but she did what she was told. Opening the file labeled "Cyberelves", a small but faint shimmering light suddenly appeared on it. It appeared at first as a faded image of a nurse Cyberelf. It was Passy!
"Can... understand... me..." the broken image of Passy spoke. "Can... speak... me..."
"Passy!" Ciel exclaimed. She quickly realized that she just shouted and placed a hand over her mouth. "How'd you do that?" she said in a hushed tone.
"Hold... please..." said Passy. She disappeared from the screen and a waiting message came up.
A little bit of movement was sighted out of the corner of Ciel's eye. The ungloved hand twitched a little, the fingers clenching and unclenching spasmodically. Looking at Zero's helmet, the crystal was flashing more and more rapidly. Ciel quickly stood up, shutting the Palm PC and storing it away in her pocket. Zero's white glove got stuck on the corner of the unit and was also stuffed quickly into her pocket.
"Zero?" Ciel gently asked as the Red Legend's head moved from side to side. "Are you alright?"
A faint movement of Zero's lips moved. Ciel bent her head down and heard Zero mumble something.
"Iris... no... don't... you can't... please don't... Iris... I... why... Sigma... pay... X... help... kill... revenge... Iris... die... must help... sorry... Colonel... sorry... General... sorry... Iris... live... or... die...?"
Ciel shook her head sadly as she watched the obviously tortured Zero relive the worst memories of his entire life as a former Maverick Hunter. Now labeled as a Maverick himself by Neo-Arcadia, those nightmares are haunting him. As Ciel gently took hold of Zero's ungloved hand, the door slid open.
"Ciel? My bio-sign indicator alerted me that Zero's suffering from something. What is it?" Cerveau asked as he hastily ran next to the schematics indicator. All the bars were low but both scientists knew what Zero must be undergoing.
"His past..." Ciel said quietly as she stroked Zero's hand. "He's reliving his past life... as a Maverick Hunter..." A single teardrop fell from her eyes and splashed on their clasped hands.
Cerveau looked at Ciel and sighed. "If he doesn't wake up soon, I'm afraid that we may lose him to the past. These ghosts of the past are haunting him. I'm afraid that we can't do much. All we can do is hope."
Ciel looked as Cerveau through tears.
"I hope so too..."
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"Iris! Noooooooooooooo!!!" Zero yelled as slammed his titanium fists against the concrete walls that made up of the training arena in the Maverick HQ. His fists made a deep indentation into the concrete.
The alarm had sounded merely moments ago for all Maverick Hunters to scramble to chase after the escaping Repliforce that was formerly led by Colonel, Iris's own brother. The alarm then sounded once more and the operator's voice sounded on the intercom again.
"Maverick Hunter, Zero! Scramble orders to coordinates Alpha 25, Omega 41 are imminent! Must comply!" the woman said in a smooth but hard tone. Zero could tell that High Command gave her to give all of them the order of that could determine the path of Reploids and humans.
"I'm on my way!" Zero yelled as he pressed the button on the intercom. When he released it, Zero activated his Dash Boots and muttered something to himself. "Don't do this to me, Iris..."
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Zero buried his Z-Saber into the gut of a Repliforce drone and slashed upwards, destroying the command unit. As the dust of combat settled, Zero saw that nothing was blocking his way to a door. He had already arrived at the space port and luckily not a single spaceship had taken off yet. Most of his comrades had already seized the other smaller ships but this ship was his to tackle. He advanced slowly and warily towards the doors. He stopped before the door and his fingers were mere inches away from pressing the button to open it. Zero's hand grasped itself into a fist and shook with fear and fury. Finally, he punched the button.
The door slid open Zero wasn't ready to see what was waiting for him. Iris was standing in the center of a spacious room with no other guards to defend her. Her eyes were shut but Zero could sense the anger and hate that she now harbors against him. But in her hands was a strange glowing purple orb which floated mere inches above her hands.
"Iris!" Zero called to her as he slowly advanced, his saber deactivated and sheathed on his back. Iris's eyes flashed open and Zero saw that they were no longer the calm blue-green color. They were red with fury and anger.
"So..." Iris slowly said as the purple orb continued to float in her hands. "You fought my brother... you should've died..."
Zero kept his saber deactivated, wishing not avoid all harm. "Iris... I'm sorry... I couldn't stop him... he was... not himself..."
"Then it's over." Iris said heavily as she noted the slouch in Zero's form. "Everything... is over... all that we have worked so hard for..." She shut her eyes once more and the orb began to slowly rise.
"Wait, Iris!" Zero stepped closer to his former girlfriend. "Listen to me! Colonel told me that he..."
Iris's eyes flashed open again and Zero halted speaking. The orb was directly above her and a strange golden substance was falling upon her.
"Iris!" Zero tried to grab her but Iris knocked him aside.
"Good bye, Zero..." Iris said as she raised her hands to meet the orb. The golden substance fell onto her body and a suit of flexible combat armor formed on her, with a crystal powering it from her chest. Two beam sabers activated from her hands and a demonic look appeared on Iris's face.
"This is the end of what you've worked for..." a strange and completely wild Iris muttered to Zero. Zero had no choice but to draw and activate his weapon.
It was either his life or Iris's life...
Iris rushed at Zero, forcing the Red Reploid to dodge her strikes. Zero countered by slashing at Iris's back. His strike was true and Iris reeled back in pain.
"You should pay dearly for that!" Iris yelled as she lunged once more at Zero. Zero didn't sidestep this in time and was locking weapons against Iris. Both beam weapons grinded against each other, each one seeking who could outpower the other. Zero managed to shove forward, knocking Iris back. He then charged forward and pulled off several combos.
He began with a series of simple slashes which Iris dodged. But then he followed up with Raijingeki, a long ranged electrical skill. His first ten strikes mostly missed a very quick Iris but the rest managed to find his target. Electrical surges shot through Iris's system and forced her to collapse on the ground. Zero thought it was over but then Iris leapt back up and charged him once more.
"For my brother!" she cried as she lunged with her sabers slashing at every direction.
Zero let out a moan of pain and agony as each sharp projectile pierced his armor, forcing him back. As more and more holes appeared in him, Zero felt his energy begin to deplete. But a strange quiet power awoke in him. As another slash came at him, time seemed to slow down for the Crimson Warrior. He slowly brought his Z-Saber up to block it. He made contact and leapt back, surprising Iris. As he landed, Zero summoned an powerful force he had take from Cyber Peacock. Nine seperate energy orbs appeared about him and homed toward Iris. They all made hard contact with her and Iris flew back and struck the wall. She then slid down the wall and collapsed on the ground. Her strange suit of armor faded away in a flow of data and the Iris that Zero once knew reappeared.
Zero collapsed onto his knees down on the ground also, his energy drained from using his "Rakuhouha" technique. What had made him do such a powerful move, he does not know. He would do it again if he were battling Sigma but Iris? That was an entirely different story. Zero struggled to get back onto his feet.
"Zero..." Iris weakly called from the other side of the room. "Zero..."
"Iris!" Zero yelled as he scrambled quickly. He slipped and got back up and knelt next to Iris. He picked up her battered body and held her head. "Iris..."
"Zero..." said Iris as she looked into Zero's eyes. A bit of blood appeared on her lip and she coughed. She smiled weakly as Zero sought to find an apology.
"Hang in there, Iris." Zero tried to make her more comfortable. Iris shook her head to his attempt.
"Please..." she pleaded weakly. "Stay away from Repliforce... Let's live together in a world... where only Reploids exist." She looked beggingly into Zero's eyes.
Zero stopped and stared into Iris's eyes. For as long as he had known her, Zero had wanted to be with her alone. He had wanted to get to know her personally without all the military protocol. He wanted to know the person underneathe the smile and the beret. But he wanted mostly to learn if she's also in love with him as he was with her. But are Reploids supposed to have these emotions?
"Iris, there's not such worlds just for Reploids," Zero gently said as he cradled Iris's head. "It's only a fantasy."
"Yes... I know..." Iris said as she reached up and stroked Zero's cheek. "But I wanted to believe it!" She then coughed up some more blood. "But I wanted to live in a world where only Reploids exist..."
(Yes, so do I. But there's no such place for us. We are the discards of society, the people who live on the edge of infinity, the edge of uncertainty.)
"With you..."
"I wish to live in a world as you described, Iris. But I've sworn to defend the humans as a Maverick Hunter. If we could just... just run off together without anyone knowing... I wouldn't care what would happen to me... I'd rather fret my entire life about you." Zero leaned over and kissed Iris on the lips. "I never knew that you loved me secretly. But your brother..."
"Hm... what about him?" Iris weakly said as she savored the kiss.
"He... he told me to tell you that... that he died happily..." Zero shut his eyes to prevent tears from rolling down his cheeks. A battle hardened warrior should not be losing control of his emotions...
Zero felt Iris wipe away the tears and another kiss alighted upon his lips. They kissed each other back, tasting and sensing the other Reploid. But soon, Iris was losing power, fast.
"I can't believe that this is happening..." Iris faintly said as her visual sensors slowly began to fail. "This must be a dream..."
"... ... ... ... ..." Zero wanted desperately to tell her it was all reality but his heart halted him from giving out such logic. He then placed his mouth next to her ears.
"I... I love you..." Zero said shakily.
"I love... you too..." Iris said weakly. She gave a shudder and looked at him with a smile. "Zero..." She exhaled and a she never gave another breathe.
(This was impossible!) Zero mentally yelled. Emotions bounded through him. Hate, anger, rage, sadness, and many other emotions balled together roiled through his systems. He wanted revenge on who did this to them. They could have lived together peacefully as lovers rather than comrades. They could've done many things that humans considered normal for couples. But they weren't humans. They were Reploids, beings created for specific purposes.
"Iris! Iris! Iris! Iris!" Zero screamed at the ceiling. He looked down at Iris's limp body. She was dead, dead as the drone he slew outside. Dead as Magma Dragoon, dead as Split Mushroom, dead as the other leaders of the Repliforce.
Zero was still screaming Iris's name at the cold room. His head bowed forward, with tears streaming down. His shoulders slumped and he gently stroked the hair out of Iris's face. She was so beautiful to him, so elegant and refined, and so much the soul mate he was searching for all these years. He had wanted to quit the job as a killer of Reploids but who would he have spent the remainder of his days with?
Looking at the still smiling form of Iris, Zero completely broke down. Gone was the look that could scare a thousand of Mavericks, gone was the demeanor that made him the Commander of the Stealth Platoon, gone were the days where Zero was once happy and joyful, and gone were the days he could've spent with Iris.
"No..." Zero muttered to himself as he stood up with Iris's limp body in his arms. "This isn't happening! There's no reason for me to go on!" He looked at Iris's inert form and a sudden realization struck him.
"What... what am I fighting for?!"
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Ha, there's the end of this chapter. All reviews will be taken into account and I wish that more people would read and review this. Enjoy!
~Kingkazul400
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If Cerveau was human, then he'd be downing at least ten cups of hot mocha-java coffee with caramel mixed in. The Reploid scientist was still keeping his steady watch over his patient. Looking through his visors, Cerveau was heartened that the damage that Zero suffered for the past year was almost erased. The first two bars indicating total and external damage were completely gone. But the last bar indicating internal damage was still relatively minimal yet it was at least 5%.
"Five percent..." Cerveau muttered as he pulled out a scanner. Waving the metal rod over Zero's body, Cerveau carefully observed the mini-screen. So far, all signs were well.
Hearing the chime of the door, Cerveau called out. "Come in." He continued to search for the mysterious internal damage.
"Is he awake yet, Cerveau?" said Ciel as she yawned. The haggard look on her face showed that human scientist barely got any sleep the night before.
Already, the signs of cracking were beginning to show. Her hair, normally neatly tucked beneathe her red helmet, was askew and her helmet was tucked under her arm. Her clothing appeared wrinkled as if she slept in them. But her eyes, those bright blue eyes, were a little dimmed and were surrounded by pits of darkness.
She looked at Zero. The Red Savior was lying down on his back, his arms placed neatly parallel to his legs and his helmet was on. The onyx crystal on Zero's helmet flashed a strange emblem every so often but she finally got used to it after a while. It is not unusual for Reploids like Zero's age to have those emblems. If the ancient reports were right, those crystals were used to represent who was the master or the owner of that certain Reploid. But who in the past had the initial "W"?
"He's not awake yet," Cerveau replied without taking his eyes off of his scanner. "I estimate that we successfully repaired ninety-five percent of his body."
"That's good news," Ciel managed to say as she stifled a yawn.
"No, that's not good," said Cerveau as he moved his scanner over Zero's torso. "There's still five percent damage and it's internal. I haven't isolated the exact region where it is lying but I'm pretty sure it's in the torso region."
"Isn't that where you dug out that black sphere?"
"I believe that the black sphere may have accounted for Zero's damages. However, I'm sure that the damages that Zero suffered will be quickly eliminated. I guess he'll be awake in a few hours."
"Is he going to remember anything before he got here?"
"I don't know. It might be chancy but I guess that since his circuits are intact, he might be able to recall most of what he did while he was... well, gone."
Looking over at Ms. Ciel, Cerveau gestured at the prone Zero. "Ever since he fought Copy X and his cohorts, Zero has sustained damage that almost the entire Resistance has never encountered. Do you remember those Golems from a year ago?"
Ciel nodded her head. "Those things had a ion blast that could tear circuits apart faster than our Elite Resisters. We obtained that Ion Laser when Zero made scrap metal out of several of them when they attacked the base last year," replied Ciel.
"Do we still have it?" Cerveau hopefully said. "I need it for a weapon I'm repairing. His Z-Buster is not functioning properly and I hope to improve upon its design."
"I'll tell Morris to send it to you," said Ciel. The scientist took one last look at Zero. Looking at the sleeping Reploid, Ciel felt that strange and unfamiliar warm feeling surging in her heart. Her eyes softened and she stepped next to the glass that was shielding Zero's body. Cerveau took one look at Ciel. The Reploid Scientist needed no words to figure out what Ciel wanted.
"I'll be in Supplies when you need me." Cerveau then left the room.
Ciel waited until the door quietly slid shut. When Cerveau's sharp and heavy steps were fading away, Ciel pulled up a nearby crate that Cerveau had an sat on it, directly next to Zero. Unsure of herself, Ciel placed one hand on Zero's right arm. Her hand gently slipped off Zero's battle glove and was surprised to feel skin as soft as Aloutte's. Yet it was still firm as a man's. She then placed the glove on her lap.
"Zero... I've missed you," Ciel said as she placed the unconscious Reploid's palm on her cheek. Rubbing her soft cheek against Zero's firm skin, Ciel's mind spun wildly.
(Is this it?) she asked her conscious. (Is this true love?)
Silence answered her. Ciel waited and waited. But no reply. Brushing her blonde hair back, Ciel put Zero's hand back down. The glove remained in the scientist's lap.
(Is it?) Ciel called out into the recesses of her mind. (Tell me please!)
(Follow your heart, Ciel,) that familiar ethereal voice finally replied. (Follow your heart as you have always done so. It was your heart that led you to find Zero, it was your heart that sent me to resurect Zero, and it was your heart that led Zero to strike down Zero.)
(Passy! Is that you!) Ciel replied mentally. (But... how?)
(There is always a back-up copy of us, Ciel,) Passy the Cyberelf replied. (We always have a strong bond with whom we lend our services to. Part of me is with you and part of me is with Zero. It is not the fault of mine nor yours that led to my sacrifice. It was my heart that led me to bring us to freedom.)
(Passy... why didn't you tell me before?)
(... ... ... I never knew about this before. Why did it take a year for us to come back as memories of data files? I don't know why. But there is a way I can return. Open your Cyberelf data files on your Palm PC.)
Ciel was confused by the request but she did what she was told. Opening the file labeled "Cyberelves", a small but faint shimmering light suddenly appeared on it. It appeared at first as a faded image of a nurse Cyberelf. It was Passy!
"Can... understand... me..." the broken image of Passy spoke. "Can... speak... me..."
"Passy!" Ciel exclaimed. She quickly realized that she just shouted and placed a hand over her mouth. "How'd you do that?" she said in a hushed tone.
"Hold... please..." said Passy. She disappeared from the screen and a waiting message came up.
A little bit of movement was sighted out of the corner of Ciel's eye. The ungloved hand twitched a little, the fingers clenching and unclenching spasmodically. Looking at Zero's helmet, the crystal was flashing more and more rapidly. Ciel quickly stood up, shutting the Palm PC and storing it away in her pocket. Zero's white glove got stuck on the corner of the unit and was also stuffed quickly into her pocket.
"Zero?" Ciel gently asked as the Red Legend's head moved from side to side. "Are you alright?"
A faint movement of Zero's lips moved. Ciel bent her head down and heard Zero mumble something.
"Iris... no... don't... you can't... please don't... Iris... I... why... Sigma... pay... X... help... kill... revenge... Iris... die... must help... sorry... Colonel... sorry... General... sorry... Iris... live... or... die...?"
Ciel shook her head sadly as she watched the obviously tortured Zero relive the worst memories of his entire life as a former Maverick Hunter. Now labeled as a Maverick himself by Neo-Arcadia, those nightmares are haunting him. As Ciel gently took hold of Zero's ungloved hand, the door slid open.
"Ciel? My bio-sign indicator alerted me that Zero's suffering from something. What is it?" Cerveau asked as he hastily ran next to the schematics indicator. All the bars were low but both scientists knew what Zero must be undergoing.
"His past..." Ciel said quietly as she stroked Zero's hand. "He's reliving his past life... as a Maverick Hunter..." A single teardrop fell from her eyes and splashed on their clasped hands.
Cerveau looked at Ciel and sighed. "If he doesn't wake up soon, I'm afraid that we may lose him to the past. These ghosts of the past are haunting him. I'm afraid that we can't do much. All we can do is hope."
Ciel looked as Cerveau through tears.
"I hope so too..."
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"Iris! Noooooooooooooo!!!" Zero yelled as slammed his titanium fists against the concrete walls that made up of the training arena in the Maverick HQ. His fists made a deep indentation into the concrete.
The alarm had sounded merely moments ago for all Maverick Hunters to scramble to chase after the escaping Repliforce that was formerly led by Colonel, Iris's own brother. The alarm then sounded once more and the operator's voice sounded on the intercom again.
"Maverick Hunter, Zero! Scramble orders to coordinates Alpha 25, Omega 41 are imminent! Must comply!" the woman said in a smooth but hard tone. Zero could tell that High Command gave her to give all of them the order of that could determine the path of Reploids and humans.
"I'm on my way!" Zero yelled as he pressed the button on the intercom. When he released it, Zero activated his Dash Boots and muttered something to himself. "Don't do this to me, Iris..."
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Zero buried his Z-Saber into the gut of a Repliforce drone and slashed upwards, destroying the command unit. As the dust of combat settled, Zero saw that nothing was blocking his way to a door. He had already arrived at the space port and luckily not a single spaceship had taken off yet. Most of his comrades had already seized the other smaller ships but this ship was his to tackle. He advanced slowly and warily towards the doors. He stopped before the door and his fingers were mere inches away from pressing the button to open it. Zero's hand grasped itself into a fist and shook with fear and fury. Finally, he punched the button.
The door slid open Zero wasn't ready to see what was waiting for him. Iris was standing in the center of a spacious room with no other guards to defend her. Her eyes were shut but Zero could sense the anger and hate that she now harbors against him. But in her hands was a strange glowing purple orb which floated mere inches above her hands.
"Iris!" Zero called to her as he slowly advanced, his saber deactivated and sheathed on his back. Iris's eyes flashed open and Zero saw that they were no longer the calm blue-green color. They were red with fury and anger.
"So..." Iris slowly said as the purple orb continued to float in her hands. "You fought my brother... you should've died..."
Zero kept his saber deactivated, wishing not avoid all harm. "Iris... I'm sorry... I couldn't stop him... he was... not himself..."
"Then it's over." Iris said heavily as she noted the slouch in Zero's form. "Everything... is over... all that we have worked so hard for..." She shut her eyes once more and the orb began to slowly rise.
"Wait, Iris!" Zero stepped closer to his former girlfriend. "Listen to me! Colonel told me that he..."
Iris's eyes flashed open again and Zero halted speaking. The orb was directly above her and a strange golden substance was falling upon her.
"Iris!" Zero tried to grab her but Iris knocked him aside.
"Good bye, Zero..." Iris said as she raised her hands to meet the orb. The golden substance fell onto her body and a suit of flexible combat armor formed on her, with a crystal powering it from her chest. Two beam sabers activated from her hands and a demonic look appeared on Iris's face.
"This is the end of what you've worked for..." a strange and completely wild Iris muttered to Zero. Zero had no choice but to draw and activate his weapon.
It was either his life or Iris's life...
Iris rushed at Zero, forcing the Red Reploid to dodge her strikes. Zero countered by slashing at Iris's back. His strike was true and Iris reeled back in pain.
"You should pay dearly for that!" Iris yelled as she lunged once more at Zero. Zero didn't sidestep this in time and was locking weapons against Iris. Both beam weapons grinded against each other, each one seeking who could outpower the other. Zero managed to shove forward, knocking Iris back. He then charged forward and pulled off several combos.
He began with a series of simple slashes which Iris dodged. But then he followed up with Raijingeki, a long ranged electrical skill. His first ten strikes mostly missed a very quick Iris but the rest managed to find his target. Electrical surges shot through Iris's system and forced her to collapse on the ground. Zero thought it was over but then Iris leapt back up and charged him once more.
"For my brother!" she cried as she lunged with her sabers slashing at every direction.
Zero let out a moan of pain and agony as each sharp projectile pierced his armor, forcing him back. As more and more holes appeared in him, Zero felt his energy begin to deplete. But a strange quiet power awoke in him. As another slash came at him, time seemed to slow down for the Crimson Warrior. He slowly brought his Z-Saber up to block it. He made contact and leapt back, surprising Iris. As he landed, Zero summoned an powerful force he had take from Cyber Peacock. Nine seperate energy orbs appeared about him and homed toward Iris. They all made hard contact with her and Iris flew back and struck the wall. She then slid down the wall and collapsed on the ground. Her strange suit of armor faded away in a flow of data and the Iris that Zero once knew reappeared.
Zero collapsed onto his knees down on the ground also, his energy drained from using his "Rakuhouha" technique. What had made him do such a powerful move, he does not know. He would do it again if he were battling Sigma but Iris? That was an entirely different story. Zero struggled to get back onto his feet.
"Zero..." Iris weakly called from the other side of the room. "Zero..."
"Iris!" Zero yelled as he scrambled quickly. He slipped and got back up and knelt next to Iris. He picked up her battered body and held her head. "Iris..."
"Zero..." said Iris as she looked into Zero's eyes. A bit of blood appeared on her lip and she coughed. She smiled weakly as Zero sought to find an apology.
"Hang in there, Iris." Zero tried to make her more comfortable. Iris shook her head to his attempt.
"Please..." she pleaded weakly. "Stay away from Repliforce... Let's live together in a world... where only Reploids exist." She looked beggingly into Zero's eyes.
Zero stopped and stared into Iris's eyes. For as long as he had known her, Zero had wanted to be with her alone. He had wanted to get to know her personally without all the military protocol. He wanted to know the person underneathe the smile and the beret. But he wanted mostly to learn if she's also in love with him as he was with her. But are Reploids supposed to have these emotions?
"Iris, there's not such worlds just for Reploids," Zero gently said as he cradled Iris's head. "It's only a fantasy."
"Yes... I know..." Iris said as she reached up and stroked Zero's cheek. "But I wanted to believe it!" She then coughed up some more blood. "But I wanted to live in a world where only Reploids exist..."
(Yes, so do I. But there's no such place for us. We are the discards of society, the people who live on the edge of infinity, the edge of uncertainty.)
"With you..."
"I wish to live in a world as you described, Iris. But I've sworn to defend the humans as a Maverick Hunter. If we could just... just run off together without anyone knowing... I wouldn't care what would happen to me... I'd rather fret my entire life about you." Zero leaned over and kissed Iris on the lips. "I never knew that you loved me secretly. But your brother..."
"Hm... what about him?" Iris weakly said as she savored the kiss.
"He... he told me to tell you that... that he died happily..." Zero shut his eyes to prevent tears from rolling down his cheeks. A battle hardened warrior should not be losing control of his emotions...
Zero felt Iris wipe away the tears and another kiss alighted upon his lips. They kissed each other back, tasting and sensing the other Reploid. But soon, Iris was losing power, fast.
"I can't believe that this is happening..." Iris faintly said as her visual sensors slowly began to fail. "This must be a dream..."
"... ... ... ... ..." Zero wanted desperately to tell her it was all reality but his heart halted him from giving out such logic. He then placed his mouth next to her ears.
"I... I love you..." Zero said shakily.
"I love... you too..." Iris said weakly. She gave a shudder and looked at him with a smile. "Zero..." She exhaled and a she never gave another breathe.
(This was impossible!) Zero mentally yelled. Emotions bounded through him. Hate, anger, rage, sadness, and many other emotions balled together roiled through his systems. He wanted revenge on who did this to them. They could have lived together peacefully as lovers rather than comrades. They could've done many things that humans considered normal for couples. But they weren't humans. They were Reploids, beings created for specific purposes.
"Iris! Iris! Iris! Iris!" Zero screamed at the ceiling. He looked down at Iris's limp body. She was dead, dead as the drone he slew outside. Dead as Magma Dragoon, dead as Split Mushroom, dead as the other leaders of the Repliforce.
Zero was still screaming Iris's name at the cold room. His head bowed forward, with tears streaming down. His shoulders slumped and he gently stroked the hair out of Iris's face. She was so beautiful to him, so elegant and refined, and so much the soul mate he was searching for all these years. He had wanted to quit the job as a killer of Reploids but who would he have spent the remainder of his days with?
Looking at the still smiling form of Iris, Zero completely broke down. Gone was the look that could scare a thousand of Mavericks, gone was the demeanor that made him the Commander of the Stealth Platoon, gone were the days where Zero was once happy and joyful, and gone were the days he could've spent with Iris.
"No..." Zero muttered to himself as he stood up with Iris's limp body in his arms. "This isn't happening! There's no reason for me to go on!" He looked at Iris's inert form and a sudden realization struck him.
"What... what am I fighting for?!"
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Ha, there's the end of this chapter. All reviews will be taken into account and I wish that more people would read and review this. Enjoy!
~Kingkazul400