Zero couldn't believe it; Fefnir was dead. Fefnir was dead. The thought alone scared him. He couldn't bear to stare at the ruined arm cannon anymore so he dashed off, jumping off the platform and dashing back to the base at incredible speed; kicking up sand behind him.
He ran across the desert like a sand storm nothing stopped him. He suddenly stopped in his tracks. A familiar brown cloak was sticking out of the sand.
He remembered wearing it when he wondered in the desert; he dropped it right before he reached the resistance base about a year ago. Seeing that cloak made him feel so lonely as he realized that now Fefnir was dead and Leviathan was under repairs. He was so alone.
Zero felt someone was behind him, he heard the soft sand squashing under his or her boots. He drew his Z-saber and whirled around to face a surprised Harpuia who raised his hands in the air to signify he was unarmed.
"Calm down Zero, it's just me." Harpuia said, his arms still raised.
"How do I know it's you?" Zero asked.
"Zero look at my eyes, remember the Harpuia you thought in the pyramid? What color were his eyes?" Harpuia asked.
"Red, but yours are green. Still how do I know they haven't just colored your eyes?" Zero asked, his Z-saber in his hand.
Harpuia looked at him apprehensively and then flew high up into the air.
"It's the chip isn't it?" he asked Zero.
Zero's eyes turned wild again and he stared at Harpuia.
"Harpuia, you killed so many reploids. Hundreds of reploids were retired because of you." He said quietly.
"Zero, that was before. I was wrong but I see that now..." He never got to finish because Zero burst into a red flame and shot at him.
"It's time to pay Harpuia! I'll kill you and then I'll destroy Neo-Arcadia! The humans mistreated reploids for too long!" Zero shouted.
"Zero stop, what are you doing? You are talking just like Elpizo!" Harpuia yelled as he narrowly avoided Zero's saber.
"Protect your precious humans before I'll get there?" Zero said calmly.
"Zero! Fight the You know that the chip had taken over me already so why don't you run away and chip Zero. I know you can do it, it's me after all Harpuia!" Harpuia tried to encourage Zero to fight the chip.
"It won't work Harpuia, whoever made this chip was too smart." Zero suddenly said.
"The more Zero resists the stronger the chip will become." Zero said, using his name in third person was the obvious sign of being controlled by the chip.
Harpuia said nothing and looked at Zero.
"Zero, please." He said, "If you can hear me you have to fight the chip or I'm afraid that I won't have any choice but to make sure you will be destroyed." Harpuia said and slowly drew a buster.
"And how do you plan to do that?" Zero asked with a malicious smile.
"I know exactly where the chip is, if I shoot that area you will self-destruct. It won't matter now because we're out in the desert. But unless you'll stop I'm afraid I won't have a choice." Harpuia aimed the buster and charged it, "So what do you say?" he asked.
"I say no, you'd die too. And even if I'm dead the executioners will destroy Neo-Arcadia, without any guardians it should be a cinch." Zero said coldly.
"You agreed to become a guardian, to defend all of the humans and reploids in Neo-Arcadia. That was a decision you cannot change! You will not destroy Neo-Arcadia or I will have to destroy you." Harpuia said fiercely.
"Then go ahead, shoot! I don't mind, if I die than Neo-Arcadia will too and you know that." Harpuia landed in front of Zero and lowered his buster.
Zero looked at him curiously but surprisingly Harpuia punched him in the face.
"Snap out of it." He said, "This is not the Zero I know, the Zero I know would fight the chip. He would do anything he could to protect Neo-Arcadia."
At the sounds of those words the flame around Zero started fading into nothingness.
"I'm sorry Harpuia." Zero said and sat down on the sand.
"This chip, it's causing so much trouble..." Zero said, as he drew a circle in the sand with his finger.
"Don't worry Zero, I have our top men working on it. Once we find a way to deactivate that chip or to keep it dormant, you'll be fine." Harpuia reassured Zero.
"You're right, I have to put myself together! But I've had it; I'm going to that stronghold by myself. You should stay inside Neo-Arcadia, I will go there and make sure that those executioners won't trouble us anymore." Zero said.
"I'll tell the operators to transfer you to the entrance then." Harpuia said and talked into his comm. with a wave of goodbye Zero vanished in a flash and reappeared in front of a stronghold, he recognized this place. He had been here once. It was a lab. It was destroyed once but mavericks that fought each other to the death rebuilt it.
He remembered coming here for the second time, seeing the place full of maverick bodies.
He walked slowly and entered inside, there was nothing the place was just walls and floors; there was no furniture or equipment.
Zero kept walking and searched around the place, he found a large room filled with reploid parts. There were torn bits of clothing everywhere, all of them olive green.
He stepped into the room and the door behind him shut.
"Zero." A voice behind him said.
Zero turned around to look at Vulture his eyes menacing.
"You killed Camazotz." Vulture said,
"Listen, I wasn't controlling myself. I have this darn chip and I..." Zero started but was interrupted by Vulture's voice.
"Silence pathetic guardian! You have destroyed him when he begged you to spare him! He had only asked for a second chance, he was even willing to leave us executioners!" Vulture shouted.
"Listen, I had no control over myself." Zero said.
"You know that this place wasn't destroyed by Maverick internal wars? Do you know who killed all of those mavericks? Me." Vulture said his eyes narrowing.
"I don't care if you killed a thousand Mavericks. Now I warn you, give in or I will destroy you. You killed Fefnir." Snapped Zero.
"An eye for an eye." Vulture said proudly.
"I see that you only want to fight." Zero said, "The look in your eyes leaves no doubt."
"Let's get to it then." Vulture said and drew his double-edged beam saber.
"Prepare to be retired." Zero said and drew his Z-saber.
They stared each other in the eyes and stood their grounds. Waiting for the opponent to move.
Who would win? The almighty Zero or the deadly Vulture? You'll see next chapter...
To be continued...Author notes: This chapter is intentionally short, seeing as the next one would be a large battle sequence.