-

Axl's drew in a sharp breath, shaking his head slowly. He hesitated for a moment, oblivious to what was going on. "I just told you, hurting me isn't going to help your cause. You could mutilate me 'til you couldn't even even tell what I used to be. It still wouldn't make any difference." The determination he was trying to uphold in his voice was clipped with the terror that manifested within his heart. "So, don't bother anymore..."

Red narrowed his colorless eyes viciously, sending the injured youth a malignant glare. His facial expression closely resembled that of a berserk demon, sent out to maim innocent civilians; even his teeth seemed to have adopted an intricate curve to them, making them appear more like fangs. All were obvious signs that any patience he may have had, was now long gone.

"I thought you were so much smarter than this," Red mumbled angrily, gazing at his distorted reflection upon the jagged vial. "But, seems I was wrong. A first time for everything, I suppose." A grim smile played on his lips, before he lowered his gaze to the stunned child.

Axl then took the opportunity to position himself in a more upright sitting position, having just recovered from the blow he had recieved earlier. As he did, he watched Red's every movement, taking into consideration how potentially dangerous the larger Reploid was at the moment. His mind searched it's regions for a solution for the predicament he'd been forced into; but, Red's voice cut his chain of thought very short.

"Just always remember, I gave you so many chances." Red's tone dripped with the darkest of malevolence, while his eyes reflected his wicked intentions. In one swift movement, he brought the glass down upon Axl's face, grinning at the sound of shattering. Axl had turned slightly, saving himself from the vial being lodged between his eyes; yet, it had caught from his left eye, down to just below his chin. Because of the way the glass had broken, tiny, sharp shards had fallen to Axl's neck, and a few of them had even managed to become embedded within the soft, exposed area.

Red's countenance had been marked with a look of achievement, and the laughter that followed supported this. Horror had developed on Axl's facial features, before a distressed scream burst from his cybernetic lung system. Everything was so horribly confusing, twisted, and wrong. How could anyone take so much pleasure in the pain of another? Especially, one they had once deemed their son?

"Why don't you just slit my throat!" cried Axl, fighting to keep tears from spilling. That would only prove his weakness further, and would do no good for the circumstance. "It would be faster!" It took an lot of emotional strength not to gasp at his own words. It wasn't so much what he had spoken that surprised him, it was more the truth to them. Here and now, he wanted nothing more than to pass on to a better place.

Red slowly ceased his laughter, shooting the child a complacent look. "No, my intentions are not to kill you. Although, you may not see it that way." He then paused, noticing the furious expression that had been etched onto Axl's face. "Killing you off would do me very little good, as I would lose what I've come for. Otherwise, I would be perfectly happy to comply with your request."

Axl moved his hand to the lacerated flesh that had once been his left cheek, feeling the warm liquid he'd become so familiar with. He took caution around the certain areas where glass protruded from the skin, as he did not wish to mangle his hand. After a brief moment, he soon came to realize just how deep the glass had sunken in, and how much damage it would cause. Most importantly, though, he found he would never again see the the brilliance of daylight through his left visionary.

He was half blind; only because of the selfish greed of his former adoptive father.

"Oh, please. Don't look so surprised," snapped Red, with a particularly dangerous edge to his voice. "Surely, you know I wouldn't have raised it up if I had not intended to use it. You should consider yourself lucky." He added a little emphasis to the word 'lucky.'

The statement was almost laughable. Lucky? Red couldn't have put much thought into those words, unless they were meant for sarcasm. Although, Axl never thought Red was exactly an intelligent person, especially if it came to something like common sense; or maturity, for that matter. There was no other explanation for the immoral actions that had taken place.

"Yeah, let me tell you," Axl muttered bitterly under his breath. "I'm so thankful for these cuts. I can't think of anything better than this."

"Trust me, it could have, and should have, been much worse." Red spoke these words with utmost bitterness.

Red's face darkened considerably, almost as if the raging flames of hell had casted a shadow upon him. He cackled at the remark, and at the waves of throbbing pain that coursed through Axl's systems. The volume of Red's laughter increased, thus buying Axl a little time to think. It would be difficult, that was for sure; but, he for now, he had to change his outlook on the circumstance, as the direction he was headed was going nowhere. Right now, he had to assess the matters at hand. That is, if he didn't get a headache first.

'All right...Red's going to do everything he can to get what he wants. Uh, and I don't know how many hunters he killed, meaning there's nobody around who can help me fight. There's probably no medical units, or smart surgical people, either. So, I can't get anything healed. Not that I could with Red here, anyway. Oh, and I can't move one of my arms. That's probably not good, either. Fits right up there with having a messed up eye. Anyway, this means the only thing I can do, is...'

His reasoning came to a sudden standstill. His functional eye traveled about the perimeter of the room, as if desperately searching for a lost item. Axl had enough sense not to bolt for the Navigation Room, as Red was in the way of the entrance. This meant there was only one other exit, which was the way he'd come from. This was accesible, and would be an easy task to accomplish, except for the fact Red held one of his handguns. First, Axl would have to lower the tension between the two. This, of course, was much easier said than done.

"You know, there's something I don't understand." Axl said softly, keeping his voice as level as he could. "What was the point of killing all the others? Seriously, what did they have to do with anything?"

Red hesitated for a moment, before giving a sharp nod. "Ah, well, that was merely for my own security reasons. Surely, having a horde of rookie hunters squealing to X about this, would make things much more difficult." He paused, running a hand through his pale blonde hair. "Of course, I knew there was no need to kill all of them. That would only be a waste of my time, especially if the majority of Reploids here are those pointless field navigators, or inexperienced rookies."

Axl had managed to move a few feet towards the doorway, in the time it had taken Red to make that speech. So far, it was working out all right. Still, judging by the way the rest of the day had gone, something was bound to go horribly awry.

"Okay, fine," replied Axl. He made a sudden movement backwards, which was sure to make Red suspicious. However, the young Reploid covered it with a short display of pain, making it seem more as if it had been accidental. "But how did you even get in here? I know the base has better-than-average protection."

"Oh, please. There isn't nothing-" Red was interrupted by a strangely proud-looking Axl.

"That's 'anything.' Double negative, you know." Axl smirked, giving his attacker an arrogant glare. Often times, Red would get caught up in lyrical speeches, and would forget simple things like that. Nobody back at the Syndicate had the courage to tell him when he was wrong, for they knew the consequences; so, of course, having a little teenage boy correct him wasn't going to make him all too happy.

"Axl. I'm the leader of the Red Alert Syndicate. You honestly think, something as little as your 'double negative' has any specific importance whatsoever in my duties?" retorted Red, who crossed his arms to show the extent of his irritation.

"Yes. Even I know that. Grammar is always good," answered Axl. "Especially if you're a leader. Nobody wants an idiot who can't speak proper English to represent them."

Red closed his eyes to refrain from strangling the child. Had Axl not been so vitally important, the stronger Reploid would have murdered the kid in a second. As a result of this minor pause, Axl seized this chance to fully regain his footing. Instinctively, he turned to face the exit, trying to stifle the cries that were threatening to burst from his vocals.

Naturally, by this time, Red had finally caught on to what was happening. His eyes snapped open, and he soon had one of Axl's guns raised. He fired a projectile of plasma, but as expected, failed to hit the moving target. He muttered indistinct profanity to himself, before tossing the small weapon aside. As soon as he had, he drew his double edged plasma scythe, and reluctantly followed after his prey.

Before he had begun running, Axl understood his energy would not last long, due to the loss of blood he was experiencing. He also knew he had little knowledge of the base layout, so finding a safe destination was highly unlikely. Without warning, the heavy footsteps of the larger Reploid broke the serenity of the silence, as they were coming in rapid succession. Axl heard the sound of Red spinning his default weapon, a trademark technique that he always performed before striking the enemy.

With a quick jolt, the scythe soared through the air, striking the area where the boy had stood. Axl had anticipated the move, however, and had jumped a safe distance above. He remained suspended in midair, the hover attachments on his leg armor allowing him this ability. The only flaw of this skill, was the fact that it had to eventually abide by the law of gravity. The youth dropped to the ground, a few feet in front of where Red stood. He lost no time in resuming his departure.

'Ha. What was I so worried about? I'm an escape artist. This really might be easier than I thought.' He repeated this to himself constantly, although he knew darkness would rise up to defend it's reputation, and his faint wisp of optimistic light would fall.

He discovered a narrow hallway to his right, and immediately turned to it. Axl's breathing was heavy, and clearly agonizing; yet, he managed to keep it somewhat regulated. The hollow sound of metal armor coming in contact with the flooring behind him caused him to visibly tense. The child could feel the once abundant energy slowly escaping from his body's circuitry, along with his precious life blood. Only a little further, and maybe he could lead Red out of the base, or at least find a survivor of the previous assault; and after a while, he finally reached what became his final destination.

What he saw, however, made his heart sink into it's lowest depths.

-

It's been almost two weeks, hasn't it? Sorry about my lazyness. You know, the double negative thing was based on a real conversation between my mom and I. Of course, I changed some things, because obviously my mom isn't the leader of the Red Alert Syndicate. (Although, that would be so cool. I think..) I know I make my share of errors that burn your retinas, but I had to add it in there. I just thought you should know that!

And there was a question about how Red got in; I'll answer it through the story later on.

Thanks for reviewing! You all make Khilai a happy person, 'cause she's easily amused. Also because you're just cool like that.

( I fixed a couple things. If you catch any mistakes, tell me. You know, I have a feeling I'm going to get yelled at because of the bad flow of this chapter.. )