Ok! Onto the 5th chapter, though it's technically the 6th if you count the prologue...anyway...I hope there are people out there who like this fic! And for those of you who have reviewed it...THANK YOU! I'm really surprised that my character Metal has sparked an interest in anyone. I guess I just wanted to cut loose in a story, since I normally don't make a protagonist dark and profane. However, I would like to bring something up:

Attention all artists! I have a very humble request of you! If someone (who has a similar style to the Mega Man X artwork) would be interested in drawing pictures of characters/scenes from this fanfiction, I would greatly appreciate it. I would someday love to do a full-fledged manga of this, but I would need some serious support. I have some concept art myself, but I'm not that good of an artist. Anyway, if anyone's interested, feel free. With that...onto the story!

Return of Metal
Chapter 5
"Unleashed"
By MEGAMANX411

Metal stared down his opponents. There were six of them standing there, three of them he had faced before. Zero, Axl, and X were all pretty tough, but Metal knew their strengths thoroughly now. Also, he had quite the edge with his new powers. The Ultimate Armor that was meant for X now was being worn by Metal, and his power was increased greatly because of it. However, Metal still didn't know what would happen if he engaged his Hyper Mode while wearing that armor already. The only thing he guessed is that it would make him even stronger, but he didn't know by how much.

"So. Which one of you fags wants to go first?" Metal declared, a grin appearing on his smug face.

"Metal, listen to..." X began.

Before those words could even leave X's lips, Metal rushed over to the blue hunter and body slammed him with impressive force. X was sent flying back into the wall, and the wall cracked from the strain of X being smashed against it. Metal then ran up by next and rammed his fist into X's abdomen, knocking him against the wall again. He then grabbed X by the neck and flung him across the room like a rag. Axl tried to stop Metal by firing his guns, but Metal somehow managed to dodge each and every single bullet without even looking in Axl's direction. Metal slowly turned around to face Axl, and he gave him an evil smile.

Zero rushed over and tried tocut Metal down with his saber, but the dark Reploid swayed from side to side, avoiding the saber attacks wtih minimal effort. He then grabbed Zero by the throat, raised him up a little, punched him the stomach, let him go, and then did a super-fast spin kick, sending the crimson hunter sailing over to where X was. Both X and Zero quickly got back on their feet and rushed Metal simultaneously. The blue hunter rushed him from one side and threatened to blast Metal with his X-Buster, while Zero rushed him from the other side and tried to slash at Metal.

Metal quickly did a sweeping quick, knocking over X, Zero, and Axl. He then picked up Axl by the legs, swung him around, and slammed him down on top of X. Metal then vaulted himself high into the air, and started coming down with a driving knee attack. He was aiming straight at Alia. Zero quickly regained his footing and launched himself into the air. He tried his best to slash at Metal in the air, however, with a quick spin kick, Zero was sent crashing back down. Metal gracefully positioned back into his previous attack, and started descending towards Alia.

"I won't let you hurt her!" X screamed, throwing himself in front of Alia.

X's eyes started to burn with determination, and his being was almost overcome with his strong desire to protect Alia. It wasn't rage or fury driving him, it was his intense kindness that fueled his passion. X's body began to glow brighter and brigher as he collected vast amounts of energy, and he slowly aimed his X-Buster at the diving darkness. With the loud bang of X's discharge, the giant buster blast flew at Metal. However, the dark assassin merely grinned. He was actually enjoying the prospect of going up against his counterpart's best efforts.

With what seemed like minimal effort, Metal dove straight through X's attack. He didn't even flinch as he continued his descent, he only purused his murderous desires. At the last moment, X managed to push Alia out of harm's way, but he wasn't so lucky himself. Metal's knees drove straight into X's back, and there was an intensely loud snapping sound heard. X let out a piercing scream of agony, and he fell over face first. He slowly tried to get back to his feet, despite the intense pain. Metal then set his sights on Layer and Pallette. With a look of malice on his face, he engaged his "Buster Ball" attack.

Metal's "Buster Ball" was kind of like a hyper-charged spiked-ball that was fired from a cannon. Simply put, it was like instead of firing energy, it was firing a super-dense metallic spiked-ball. Not only that though, Metal could change its direction instantaneously, and its velocity was so ludicrous that it boggled the mind. Its desctructive power? Unfathomable. That was entirely part of the reason why it was an outlawed weapon. As another act of defiance, X latched himself onto Metal's arms, trying to stop him from attacking.

"P-please...stop this..." X heaved.

"Get off my arm, bitch," Metal shouted, his eyes aflame.

Before Metal had time to pay attention to anything else, Axl and Zero rushed in again. Zero raised his saber quickly, and tried to bring it down with as much power as he could. The saber did manage to inflict some damage on Metal, but what was so strange was that the damage was entirely minimal. Even if Metal was wearing such powerful armor, Zero was powerful enough to cause some damage. Metal looked back at Zero with a look containing more annoyance than pain. Axl tried to follow up with his own attack, but his bullets didn't inflict much damage on Metal either. He was merely playing with them!

With a quick motion of his arm, Metal cast X aside. The blue hunter was once again hurled into the wall, but this time, Metal went over to make sure he wouldn't get up again. Metal angrily stomped on X's neck as hard as he possibly could. There was a loud cracking sound, and moans of pain, but the demonic robot merely smiled. Zero even ran his saber through Metal's body in order to get the assassin to stop, but he didn't even slow down. What horrible power could have possibly been fueling this monster? Zero slashed and stabbed over and over, but Metal didn't even seem to pay attention to it. Suddenly, Metal stopped torturing X. Mega Man X, considered the most powerful being in all the world, was reduced to a heap on the floor. Perhaps it was his incredible kindness that kept him from releasing his full power, or perhaps he simply didn't want to fight Metal? Whatever the case, he certainly didn't look fit to fight any more for the time being.

Metal turned to face Zero and Axl. His eyes still blazed with horrible demonic fury. The light shining in his eyes was unlike anything else in this world. It was so terrifying and evil. Could a being be so cruel? Whatever transformation had taken place within Metal must have been one of the most vile things imaginable. In an instant, Metal was right next to Axl. Axl may have been promoted to a high-ranking Maverick Hunter rather quickly, but that he didn't mean he was without fear. He was certainly showing he had plenty of that now.

"I remember you, little bitch. You're the one that shot my eye from before. Time for a little payback," Metal hissed.

Metal jammed his fist into Axl's abdomen with amazing force. It almost seemed like he was going to rip all the way throgh Axl's body, but instead, he just kept on slamming him over and over. He then grabbed Axl's head, and drove it down into his knee as hard as he could. Blood started to splash around as Metal proceeded to beat Axl over and over. He kicked and punched repeatedly, and kept on striking Axl even when he was on the ground. When Axl was on the ground, Metal quickly put his knee on Axl's neck, and started to pull on his head. He was threatening to rip his head off!

Zero obviously couldn't stand for this. Something had to be done. Even if he was the only one left. But then, he noticed that some blasts came from somewhere else. Pallette and Alia both shot at Metal, trying to get him to stop. Layer even had her rapier drawn. Metal stopped what he was doing, leaving the seriously injured Axl on the ground. He turned to face Zero, Alia, Layer, and Pallette. In a couple seconds, Metal appeared by Layer and Pallette. A wicked grin emerged on his face once more. It seemed as though he gained such pleasure through this torture. With a swift spin quick, he hit both Layer and Pallette. The force behind it was intense and brutal, and the two navigators were sent hurdling backwards. Layer and Pallette did have some power to brag about, but they weren't as well-trained as the famous Maverick Hunters X and Zero. They could easily wipe out lower level Mavericks, but Metal was not exactly someone to take lightly. That just left Alia and Zero.

"Alia, get out of here. Try to get something to help us. I'll take care of this," Zero commented, his voice still cool.

Zero turned to face Metal. His blonde hair swayed elegantly as he moved. His emerald-green eyes focused intently on Metal, and he refused to look away. Unlike X, Zero could handle any sort of task with a clear mind. He had a lot of power on his side, and he had the attitude to back it up. Zero was by no means someone to trifle with. Seeing as how Metal not only took out Axl and X, but also harmed Layer and Pallette was inexcusable. Zero was not about to let that pass.

"Heh...you're still puttin' on that act, eh Zero? Why don't you go back to whatever boy band you came from?" Metal teased.

Zero couldn't believe how Metal thought this was some kind of game. He had seriously injured Axl and X, and he hurt Layer and Pallette. That was horrible. X was even holding back to an extent, Zero felt that much. His anger was flaring. He had to take care of this menace. He had the feeling that there was something else behind this whole attack, like there was something else orchestrating this whole ordeal, but that didn't matter now. He was pissed, and he was going to get back at the attacker.

"You're in no position to talk. You're just a stubborn, idiotic child. Any moron can kill. You just use your past as an excuse. You're just a child calling out for his daddy," Zero replied, his naturally calm demeanor giving way to anger.

Metal's face grew even darker at that last comment. That was clearly crossing the line. He knew Zero had guts, but that last statement really got his blood boiling. No one had talked to him that way before, and based on the way Metal was, no one really wanted to if they wanted to live that long. Metal would make him pay. He would make him pay dearly.

"What the fuck did you say? You don't have the fucking right to talk about my past, bitch. You have no clue, and you never will," Metal hissed.

The tension was growing and growing. It almost felt like the very room was going to explode. That's when it happened. Zero's body was encased in a strange light. A spherical collection of light surrounded his being, and massive amounts of energy was being collected. Suddenly, wings sprouted from the sphere. They were dark and foreboding, like the wings of some kind of enraged demon. Next came Zero himself, but it wasn't quite the same Zero. It truly was Absolute Zero, the incredibly powerful incarnation of the famous Maverick Hunter. His Hyper Mode was engaged. Zero was, to be blunt, really pissed off. Zero's hands turned into fearsome metallic claws, and even his boots had spikes on them. He resembled a sort of twisted, vampiric creature now.

And yet, there was someone far away who still managed to smile at this. His face was shrouded in veils of darkness, but still, his happiness seemed to be evident.

"Everything is going well. Who will win? Will Metal, X's other half, beat the legendary Zero? Or will Zero retire yet another Mavierck? Either way, I'm sure that naive Metal will keep on fighting as long as he's forgotten about the girl he cared about."

Behind the figure, a girl could be seen. Tears were streaming down her pale cheeks. She continually tried to reach out to Metal, yet had no success in doing so. When would her voice finally be heard? Would that be what was needed to free Metal of this? What would she have to do to stop this? Whatever the case, she wanted to stop Metal, to save him.