The Next Age Chapter Two Part Three
A very long time ago, Skull castle was a sight to be feared. An ominous fortress standing on a barren, dead field and casting a dark shadow over the land but that was a hundred years ago. Now it had been reduced to little more than rubble, hidden amongst the trees deep in a lush forest. Only scattered remains of the first floor still stood, scorched by the explosion that had destroyed the castle at the end of the Wily wars.
Xavier paused to stand before it in awe. This was the place where Rock had at last put an end to Wily's madness. Even if it was overgrown with weeds, it was still a historic place worthy of his respect. Zero sighed boredly.
"Is this it?" He asked, disappointed.
"Yeah, I think so." Xavier replied, taking a few scans of the area.
He was expecting to pick up some unique energy signals but everything registered as normal to his surprise. Maybe he just wasn't close enough yet.
"Getting anything?" Zero asked, noticing the scanner.
"No..nothing at all." Xavier replied.
"Didn't think so…" Zero grumbled, kicking at the grass impatiently.
"Hmmn..the report said something about a passage in the basement. Let's try to find the way down there." Xavier suggested, starting towards the ruins.
Zero shrugged. It was better than standing around bored. He followed Xavier into the rubble.
"So..what are we looking for?" Zero asked.
"An opening in the ground, might be covered up." Xavier answered.
Zero glanced over the metal covered floor overgrown with grass and weeds.
"Probably nothing here…." He muttered under his breath.
"HALT! YOU'RE TRESSPASSING ON RESTRICTED PROPERTY!" A loud female voice cried.
Xavier and Zero both wheeled around in shock, expecting to see an Enforcer but that wasn't what was there. Instead, their eyes fell upon a young centaur girl standing proudly a few feet behind them, a spear clenched tightly in her hands and leveled in their direction. The soft fur on her horse half was a pastel pink, contrasting with her long dark pink hair the top of which was tied in a ponytail. She glared at them with magenta colored eyes, a serious expression on her pretty face. She couldn't have been much older than Xavier was.
"HALT IN THE NAME OF THE- P-prince Xavier?? By the Goddess, can this be??" The young girl spoke in awe, lowering her spear at the sight of the youngest prince of Hakari Island with a gasp.
Xavier cringed at the sound of the word "Prince". He hated that title with a passion, it just didn't fit him. So what if he was the son of Roll and so what if Roll was practically the Empress of Hakari island? He really never felt like a prince and he wasn't fond of the type of respect that title held. He thought of himself as a normal guy and wanted to be treated like one though, for a while at least, it seemed as if he would end up an outcast for his human parentage.
"I'm so sorry for surprising you, my prince!" The young centaur spoke hastily and bowed to Xavier. "I was assigned to guard this place and I thought you were an intruder, forgive me!"
"It's alright, we're just here….investigating the ruins." Xavier spoke quickly, hoping to cover himself.
"Have you come on Dr. Zor's behalf?" The centaur girl asked, still bowed before him and Zero.
"Yes, yes we have." Xavier replied causing Zero to glance over at him strangely.
"Oh, of course! Can I aid you in any way, my prince?" She asked, looking up at him with starry eyes.
"Um…sure, but please you don't have to bow to me. Could you..maybe show us to the basement?" Xavier inquired, a bit nervously
"Me? Oh I'd be honored to Prince Xavier!" She spoke, her eyes sparkling as she got to her feet and placed the spear in its holder on her back.
It was then that Xavier noticed that she was rather cute as she stood smiling sweetly at him and he smiled back, causing her to blush and glance away shyly, pawing the ground with a hoof. Zero suddenly nudged him hard in the shoulder, frowning at him and giving him a dirty look.
"Wha-?" Xavier spoke, looking to his best friend.
Was that jealousy he saw in Zero's eyes? No…it couldn't be….
"So, exactly who are you anyhow?" Xavier asked, looking back to the girl.
"Oh! I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself! I'm Kiara of the RoseMane family." She replied sweetly.
"RoseMane?" Xavier questioned.
He knew he had heard that name before somewhere, maybe when he was younger?
"Yes, our family has always been the personal servants to CentaurMan. We were the first family in Haven. My mother serves as a Charger at the temple but I'm still in training." She replied.
"Oh yeah, of course!" Xavier spoke. "I remember now!"
As a child, he had been taken to meet CentaurMan on one of Rock's trips to Haven. He remembered being introduced to her guard, called a Centaur Charger. Her last name had been RoseMane too. Could that have been Kiara's mother? It had to have been!
"Someday I'm going to take my mother's place." Kiara proclaimed proudly.
Xavier smiled at her while Zero stood off to the side, tapping his foot impatiently. That's when something struck Xavier as being odd. A Charger was similar to an Enforcer. They kept law and order and protected the city from harm. At the age Kiara appeared to be, she would be too young to be sent alone to guard a dangerous spot. Enforcers of that age were still in the academy. What was she doing here by herself?
At the same time, Kiara was wondering similar things about Xavier. What was the youngest prince of Hakari City doing here? Why had Zor sent him? Was Xavier a technician and who was the blonde-haired person with him? She noticed the "Z" mark on his shoulder, was he the outcast child of Blues? Her attention, however, was more on Xavier. He was actually quite dashing and handsome despite his human features. They actually seemed to give him a more exotic look. He was tall, almost muscled and his eyes had an odd shape. He had fangs like his father and his skin was slightly darker than the pale flesh color of most robots. The fact that his Robot Form mimicked RockMan's and that he was of noble blood only added to his attractiveness, making him more desirable. It was enough to make her head spin and forget her common sense.
Zero was probably the only one present with a clear mind. He wasn't tired or interested in checking out Kiara, he hadn't even bothered to ask himself if she was cute or not. To be honest, he didn't care. Checking out girls was something Xavier did much to his dismay. To Zero, Xavier's interest in girls meant he'd get a girlfriend and eventually come to prefer her over him. He didn't want to lose his best friend to some silly girl! Xavier was his only friend…losing him meant being alone and the very thought scared Zero to death.
"Kiara, are there any others with you?" Xavier asked, breaking the silence.
"No..I'm here by myself. It's a test to see if I'm worthy." She replied nervously.
"Oh I see.." Xavier replied. "I'm on one of those too I guess."
"Really?" Kiara asked with a bit of shock.
"I guess.." Xavier sighed. "Hey, how about showing us where the basement is now?"
"Sure!" She said with a smile
Xavier went to turn to Zero but saw that he wasn't there. He was picking through the ruins by himself, looking for the opening. He had probably gotten tired of waiting. Kiara trotted up next to Xavier as he walked forward to join his friend.
"Who's your friend?" she asked softly.
"Him? Oh that's Zero." Xavier replied very casually
Kiara's eyes suddenly widened, the name striking her with almost as much shock as she had felt upon first sighting Xavier only this time, it wasn't pleasant.
"He's Zero!?!?" She asked, startled, her voice going from sweet and happy to shocked and degrading.
After all that she had heard about Zero, she expected him to be someone much different. The young kid with Xavier was kinda cute, not at all the image of the unwanted child most expected.
"Yes." Xavier spoke calmly, moving to stand beside Zero.
"Yes what?" Zero asked, looking over.
"You're Zero."
"Yeah, that's my name, what about me?" Zero replied curiously.
He saw that the girl was averting her eyes from him, not wanting to look at him. He was used to this sort of treatment. It meant she knew who he was, what he was and it was disheartening to know his reputation had gotten this far.
"Kiara asked me who you were." Xavier spoke.
"Oh….yeah, well I'm Zero…" He said softly, bowing his head.
In the next moment, he felt Xavier's hand on his shoulder and looked up at his friend. Xavier gave Zero a soft smile, his eyes said everything would be alright. Zero couldn't help but feel calm when he met Xavier's gaze, there was something deep in those pools of violet that made him feel safe and at ease. It had been that way since he was very young. He smiled slightly and took a deep breath. Everything would be alright as long as Xavier was beside him.
"Kiara, show us where the basement is please." Xavier spoke in a calm voice, trying to redirect the girl's attention.
She nodded, still keeping her eyes from Zero and went to a large metal plate nearby, half hidden by clumps of grass and dirt.
"This is it, the stairway is under this plate." She said, turning back to Xavier.
Xavier walked over to join her, bending down and moving the metal plate away with ease.
"Hmmn…pretty dark down there." Xavier spoke, peering down the opening.
He reached into his backpack, pulling out a flashlight and checking the power level.
"Any idea how large of an area the basement is?" Xavier asked Kiara.
"Well….I haven't really been down there too often." Kiara admitted, shifting uncomfortably.
"You haven't? Hmmn..okay..I just hope it's not too big. I only have one flashlight." Xavier replied and handed it to Kiara. "Zero, c'mere, time to go."
Zero walked over slowly to join them as Kiara nervously took a step down, ducking to make sure her entire body would fit.
"Do you really think that's safe?" Zero asked as he watched.
"It'll be fine, we're not the first ones to go down there anyway. Just stick by me." Xavier said with a smile.
"If you say so…." Zero spoke.
"Don't worry. This is our adventure, remember?" Xavier replied and followed Kiara.
Zero shrugged his shoulders.
"Whatever" He sighed and went to start down the earthen stairway.
Xavier's heart was in his throat as he glanced around the darkened area, shining his flashlight into the corners and frightening more than a few spiders from their webs. Zero stood behind him, peering over his shoulder and Kiara was off to his right. The place was a mess, broken shelves and jars littered the floor along with the deteriorating remnants of past experiments. No one had set foot here in a while it seemed. This was it, here he was in a place he had been forbidden to set foot in. No turning back now. Creatures scurried out of his way as he moved forward, motioning for Kiara and Zero to follow behind which they both did with some reluctance.
"Where's the passage?" Xavier asked, walking cautiously ahead, careful not to step on any of the items strewn about the floor.
"Not far..I think…" She replied.
"You think?" Xavier questioned.
"Yes…I think that's it up there." Kiara said. "Shine your flashlight up ahead."
Xavier shown the flashlight ahead to a plain wall, watching as the light played off the gray surface until an opening came into view, cut rudely into the stone.
"That's got to be it." Xavier said softly, moving closer.
They all went over to the door sized opening, glancing inside curiously. It was a long tunnel that seemed to have been carved from the earth itself the end of which could not be seen. Xavier stepped inside first, taking a deep breath as he pulled out his scanner. His footsteps echoed as he made his way down the path before him. Zero and Kiara joined him shortly, both unsure of what to expect.
The readings were normal, Xavier could hardly believe it but they were. He had expected at least something. This was after all the passageway where Zor had discovered a room full of ancient technology that had just vanished the next day. He sighed in disappointment and exhaustion.
"There's several rooms up ahead Prince Xavier." Kiara spoke.
"Do you know if there's anything in them?" He asked, glancing back.
"I'm sorry..I'm not sure." She spoke.
"It's okay, we'll check them anyhow.." Xavier replied.
They didn't have to go too far until they came across the first room but it was far from being the spectacular discovery Xavier was hoping for. The room had been stripped bare and was empty except for the mice that had made a nest there. With a heavy sigh, Xavier and the others continued down the passageway. There were several other small rooms along the way but they, like the first, contained nothing of interest nor did they match the description of the large room where Zor had discovered the mysterious remains. Zero followed along boredly, kicking at the dirt floor thinking about what a waste this whole trip had turned out to be, while Xavier tried to keep his exhaustion and his disappointment from showing.
It was obvious the tunnel came to an end up ahead, a wall of stones blocked the way. There was one last room off to the side, one last chance to find something. Xavier shown his flashlight inside and saw that this was a very large room. Could this be the one Zor had written of? He stepped inside hesitantly, looking around for something that perhaps Zor had missed. Zero leaned against the doorway, peering inside uninterested until he caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye. A glimmer, like something metallic off in the corner. His curiosity got the best of him and he stepped inside, feeling around the wall while Xavier was off at the other end of the room, taking scans. His fingers touched something smooth and like metal yet strangely warm like skin. Probably some ancient device that Xavier would fawn over for hours.
I should get it loose for him so he can get a better look. Zero thought to himself. Maybe then we can go do something fun like play hide and go seek or find a decent arcade before we get in trouble.
With that thought in mind, Zero began to use his fingers to pry the strange object loose from its place in the wall. Hearing a few noises behind him, Xavier turned and shown his flashlight where Zero was standing, surprised to see his friend there.
"Hey Zero, what are you doing?" He asked.
"I found something for you but I can't get it out!" Zero replied, tugging on the object.
"Zero, wait!! Don't touch anything!!" Xavier called but his warning came too late as with a final pull, the object came free and sent Zero stumbling back, holding it tightly in his hand.
With a proud smile, Zero walked over to his friend and held it out for him to see, feeling it begin to grow cold in his outstretched hand. Xavier shook his head in dismay and wasn't sure if it was even safe to touch whatever it was that Zero had found. It was a metal ball, flawlessly formed and solid looking with a strange symbol, "S", etched into it.
"Where did you get that thing??" Xavier asked, sounding frustrated.
"In the wall over there." Zero answered. "It was just stuck is all, I got it loose for you. It was warm when I found it…."
Xavier shined the light over against the wall but all the remained was an indentation where it had been. No wires or components were there. Why would someone just leave an odd metal ball in a place like this?
"Let me see it." He spoke and took the ball from Zero's hand.
It felt ice cold and very light. Xavier quickly ran his scanner across it but got nothing, no readings of any sort. Whatever it was, it was dead and non-functional.
"You said this was warm when you found it?" Xavier asked.
Zero nodded.
"Well…whatever it was, it's dead now. Guess I should take it back to Zor so he can have a look at it. I wonder what this symbol means?" He questioned.
"Maybe it's the ancient symbol for 'Can Opener'." Zero replied with a grin.
"Knock it off Zero." Xavier said playfully and with a laugh. "We might as well make our way back out. Maybe Kiara can show us the exact spot where they found those Enforcers now. Hey…where IS Kiara anyhow?"
Xavier shown his flashlight around, surprised that she had suddenly vanished.
"Kiara? KIARA?" He called loudly.
"Prince Xavier!!!!" She called back, her voice sounding slightly distant. "You're never going to believe this!! Come out and see!!"
Concerned for the girl's safety, he quickly tucked the ball in his backpack and headed back out into the passageway, Zero close behind him. The sight that was before him caused his mouth to hang open in shock. The blockade of stone was gone completely and the passageway sloped up ahead, leading to stairs and a large opening through which the sun shown in brightly. Kiara stood at the top of the earthen stairway, gazing down at Xavier and Zero, her face aglow with excitement and the sun casting it's rays on her body.
"Prince Xavier…I don't know how this happened but….you have to come see this! It's incredible!" She called.
"But….There was no opening here before…" Xavier said.
He turned to look at Zero who was just as confused as he was.
"Kiara…."
"Please, I don't know how to explain it, you just HAVE to see this!" She insisted again and passed through the opening, disappearing from view.
"Well…it's GOT to be better outside than in this place." Zero remarked and headed forward. "C'mon Xavier, maybe we can find a tree to climb."
"I don't understand…" Xavier spoke.
"Who needs to understand? It's a way out of this place! Maybe we'll find some place old nerdy Zor hasn't seen yet!" Zero said with a smile and raced up the steps.
"Hey! Wait for me Zero!" Xavier cried, rushing after his friend.
Zero, Dr.Wily, Skull Castle, and others are copyrights of Capcom of Japan, Capcom of America does not deserve credit for these cool characters and places. So =P
Xavier, Kiara RoseMane, Kianna, Haven and others are copyright Roll-Chan Productions, wanna use em? PLEASE ASK!
I don't get a dime for writing this story, only tons of hate mail.
Mail all comments to Roll_Chan@Yahoo.com
Boy am I glad this version of Microsoft word has Greek text ^^;;
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