The next day, something big and unpleasant landed with a thump on X's desk.
"What's this?" He eyed the paperwork warily. The fact that Zero was bringing it with a grim expression meant it was something bad, and not at all amusing. X actually dreaded Zero bringing paperwork with a grin more. That usually meant a headache was heading his way, and something Zero had nothing to do with, so he could just sit back and smirk.
"Desertion forms." X arched an eyebrow at Zero's tone. Desertion cases weren't common, but… it happened. Someone went Maverick, someone else decided that being a Hunter just wasn't for them and couldn't face telling their commander… why would Zero be upset over it?
And why was the pile so thick?
Picking it up, he discovered it was multiple copies. "How MANY desertions?" X suddenly didn't want to know. Something was definitely up.
"We're still counting, but so far, six Reploids and 2 humans." X blinked. The usual scenario for a mass defection was an outbreak of the Maverick Virus, but that seemed quite unlikely with humans involved. "Head of the list is Axl."
"Axl?" X couldn't hide his amusement. "Oh, Zero, he probably just went to Vegas for a vacation like last time." Of course, Axl had split without leave because Signas had refused his leave as a disciplinary measure… Zero shook his head.
"I might believe it if he hadn't been seen talking to the rest of them yesterday. Here's a list," he passed over a list of names. X picked it up with a frown, reading.
"Ysp? She's in my unit!" X scowled. "These names… this makes no sense at all." They were a grab-bag from various units. The only common denominator X could see was the fact that they were all vastly competent in their own spheres, but that only made the disappearances more puzzling. Why would loyal, competent Hunters suddenly up and leave? And then a pair of human Reploid specialists… Zero rubbed his head.
"I know, X. It's bizarre. Lifesaver says he introduced those two humans to Axl yesterday, and I suspect they must be behind this… or someone their working for. Apparently, someone saw the whole group talking together in one of the practice rooms." X frowned, drumming his fingers against the desk as he thought.
"Do you think this is a new Red Alert?" This disparate a group would actually be able to function well as an underground faction. Zero frowned at the thought.
"I thought of that, but some of them actually left notes to friends saying they couldn't explain but would be back soon. There are copies in that mess… but it sounded more like they think whatever their doing is temporary," Zero grinned without humor. "And too important to bother their commanding officers over."
"Well, we'll start looking for them," X decided. "But mostly to ask what their doing. They can't be Mavericks and don't seem to be a threat." Leaving the hunters like this had some penalties, but death was not among them. Zero nodded.
"I'll get right on it." He was suffering a burning need to know what in Hell Axl thought he was up to…
Elsewhere, at the same time…
"So, are we all here?" Axl glanced over his audience. The numbers had swelled to fifteen. Most of the returning souls had gravitated towards him, so they had been found in Hunter HQ. A few had been found in survivors of Red Alert, and Lyos was in the audience, looking conflicted. He knew he owed allegiance to Axl but his current life was imparting a desire to throttle the red haired Reploid.
"Except for the hidden ones," the same human woman who had fought against the Maverick purred. Her voice was like clotted cream, rich and thick. Her green eyes gleamed at him as he glanced at her.
He had been shocked to see her alive, until she had kindly explained her nature, in the gentle tone of someone speaking to a person with amnesia. She was a dhampir, the daughter of a powerful vampiress. Her history had been long when she first met him, and the magical pact that kept them all returning had enhanced her nature until she was simply unkillable. Or at least, she never stayed dead.
That enhancement would end as soon as they completed their mission, but Demona didn't seem to mind. She had been alive and awake the entire time since they had made their pact, and Axl suspected she wasn't entirely sane anymore.
Taglith had also existed since that time, but she had slept it away. Axl glanced over at her. A beautiful woman, her skin was the color of walnut shells and her hair was a delicately tinted green. She was a forest nymph, and when most of her kind had disappeared, she had remained ensconced in various trees. Her hands caressed the sword Axl had given her, and Axl's mind shied away from the part he knew she had agreed to play in their duties.
"Alright, everyone listen up!" The sound of conversation died down. "The first thing we have to do is find the hidden ones. A team of eight, including me, will take care of that." It was a very important and difficult task, so he didn't want to delegate it. "Shannon, Morton, you'll have to come. Work with Ysp on gathering up the cold weather gear you'll need." The two humans looked resigned. Their abilities would be needed for the awakening, but a trek deep into the mountains was not something they looked forward to. Ysp was a snake-like Reploid from the 17'th. "The rest of you… get started suppressing wild magical occurances. I'm leaving Duhallan in charge." The large black Reploid nodded to him without comment, and Axl nodded back. He had every confidence the formal lieutenant of the 0'th could keep everyone in line… and his memories informed him that in ancient days, Duhallan had been a general. There wouldn't be a problem.
"Let's get started."
A few days later, in the mountains…
"Why did we have to hide them here?" Lyos shouted over the growing howl of the wind. Axl conserved his breath and didn't bother to reply. Domina would do it for him, anyway.
Sure enough… "Because this place would take forever to wear away!" She shouted back to him. "And we wanted them undisturbed, remember?" Axl glanced back at her, then looked away quickly. The sight of her usual outfit in this setting was disturbing in the extreme. If she weren't already undead, she'd have frozen to death hours ago.
They were climbing the Himalayan mountains. Except for Domina and Taglith, every last one of them had lived a past life as a mountaineer for just this purpose. Axl was wearing that earlier identity as a Swiss mountain climber like a cloak over his thoughts, instead of just drawing on the skill. The last thing he wanted to do was screw up, and he was keenly aware of his own incompetence. Mavericks sometimes put their bases in arctic settings, but he couldn't think of any that had been put high in the mountains.
Lyos swore, but didn't comment further. Axl was actually quite sympathetic with his aggravation, but Domina was right. These mountains had been old when the magic had died, and they had lasted long enough, undisturbed.
"There'sss going to be a blizzzzard!" Ysp shouted up at them, hissing her sibilants. She was more than a little stressed as well, it seemed. "Where will we ssshelter?" Reploids could tolerate the cold better than humans, but there were still some extremely unpleasant side effects to being frozen. Axl preferred not to think about it.
"I… brought… a tent." Shannon gasped out, panting harshly. She was fit enough for a human scientist, but still not really up for this kind of thing. Still, she had fought through it gamely. Axl had thought she would need to be carried before the day was out, but she had proven him wrong. "Magic… tent!" Axl blinked at that. But… the mountains were very stable, or they would never have put the hideaway here.
He glanced up at the sky, and extended a few feelers. Then he swore. The blizzard would arrive in a few hours at most.
"Look for a good place to set up!" He ordered. "Will that tent blow away?"
"No! Magic… secured!" Axl nodded to himself. That would be the main magic of the tent… a sealing spell so it could be safely secured to any surface with no danger of blowing away. Most features they needed in a tent could be done with technology, although it was probably also magically condensed into a small package, and had automatic set up magic.
The sealing magic made finding a spot to put it much easier. The first outcropping it would fit on, in fact, although they set it up so the entrance was facing the mountain. That way, the two humans in their team could step outside for a bathroom moment without worrying about walking right off the edge.
Once they got into the tent, Axl spotted an immediate problem.
"Is this a four man tent? There are eight of us!" Shannon and Morton, their two humans, Taglith and Domina, who were semi-human, and Axl, Lyos, Ysp and Thorn making up the Reploid members. They were crowded just standing. Shannon flushed.
"I hardly had any power… I put the spell on the biggest tent I could!" She was red-faced and exhausted, so Axl decided to just deal with it. Chewing her out wouldn't make it better, anyway.
"Alright… let's pile up the packs in a corner." With some serious organization, they took up a minimal amount of space. The tent was starting to heat from several small generators placed around the perimeter of the tent. It was also illuminated with glowstrips on the ceiling, and Axl was glad of it. Four man or not, this was the best kind of tent on the market. "Screw the bedrolls. With the heating and body heat, we should be fine."
"We're going to be curled together like a nest of kittens." Lyos observed, sitting down. Ysp laughed, and sank to the floor of the tent in a graceful puddle. Thorn followed, spooning up behind her and whispering something in her ear.
The rest of them got sorted out, with a few snarls, muttering and even some flirting. Domina ended up sleeping on top of Lyos, who couldn't bear not sleeping on his back. The rest of them slept on their sides to minimize wasted space.
Soon, the tent was warm and more than a little rank. The stench of unwashed human mixed unpleasantly with the fainter, but more penetrating smell of equally unwashed Reploid. Domina's musk was more pleasant, but couldn't begin to cover up the other smells. Just to add a touch of the bizarre, Taglith added a fresh touch of mint and pine to the air. It smelled like someone had burned a couple of incense sticks and used air freshener in a vain attempt to keep the other smells under control.
But everyone was too exhausted to care. A muttered word from Shannon winked the lights out, and they slept…
The next day, the blizzard was still going full strength. Everyone wanted to keep going, but old memories of past lives said that mountaineering in a blizzard was the most idiotic of ideas.
Fortunately, the tent wasn't as cramped when everyone was sitting. And one person had considered the possibility of this kind of thing occurring.
"Argh!" Lyos grimaced as Ysp beat him handily at Tetris. She'd brought a small, portable game system complete with mini-screen and two controllers. "Do you have any other games?"
"Not too many for two people… let me sssee." She sorted through her cartridges. "Ha! I have that new game with Xss and Zero." She pulled it out with a small grin.
"I've always wondered about that," Morton said idly, propping himself against a corner of the tent. "Who gets the royalties for those games? X and Zero should be entitled to a big piece."
"They are," Axl said absently, doing a crossword puzzle. He'd also anticipated some idle time, although he hadn't thought it would start this soon. "X gives his part to the Maverick hunters… it's the only reason he lets them make the games and dolls and stuff at all. I don't know about Zero." The red hunter had some expensive tastes, so it was possible he kept it.
"Well, that should be fun." Lyos grabbed the cartridge and put it in. "I'll be Zero." Axl smiled as the team played. It felt almost like old times…