The Next Age Chapter Three Part Two
It wasn't very hard for Xavier to find his way back through the forest, his acute sense of direction told him which path to take to get to the tunnel again although his mind was elsewhere.
In his dreams, he had pictured this so differently. He imagined touring the city, asking Lord Sigma about his people and making some great discovery…….not spending all day asleep and rescuing Zero from his own lack of judgement. This had been a disaster. Now he was going to be grounded forever the moment his parents saw him. So much for his "Great Adventure". How in the world was he going to explain this?
Kiara, on the other hand, wasn't worried at all or at least not even half as much as Xavier was. She already knew she'd lose some privileges for a bit but it was more than worth it for the thrill of being in the company of Prince Xavier and seeing an ancient and almost magical forest. She would be the envy of all.
Neither spoke much as they passed back through the forest and tunnel, returning once more to the ruins of Skull Castle and the "normal world". Xavier paused for a moment, gazing out over the forest. It was hard to believe that he had ever set foot outside of here now, the ancient city seemed so far away.
"What will you do when you get home, Xavier?" Kiara asked, trotting over to stand beside him.
"Huh..? Well, get in trouble I guess." Xavier replied as he was shaken from his thoughts.
"Did you really plan on going back?" She inquired.
"I hope….if Zor will let me. I've got to make sure Zero gets back." Xavier spoke with a soft sigh.
"Can I come with you? I…I would love to see you again." Kiara asked, offering him a gentle smile.
Xavier flushed slightly in embarrassment. She was a rather pretty girl after all.
"Er..sure, if you want to." He replied scratching the back of his head. "We better get going though, I don't wanna get home any later than I have to."
"Xavier?" Kiara called as he took a few steps forward. "Can I ask you something?"
He glanced back, almost knowing what she was about to say.
"Sure, go ahead." He answered.
"Do….do you have a…...girlfriend?" Kiara asked and quickly turned her gaze to the ground, pawing at it shyly with one hoof.
He knew what that question meant, he'd been asked it plenty of times by girls before. He could just see the little glimmer of hope in Kiara's eyes, she was hoping he'd say no. He looked her over without a word noting that she was attractive though not as pretty as Vyctori. Not that it mattered much in the end though, appearance was only a small part of a girl anyhow. She seemed good natured and easy to talk to, even if she really didn't like Zero all that much.
"Not yet……." He replied after a brief silence. "I really haven't found anyone I'd like to be with."
Or anyone that can deal with Zero being around… He added to himself.
Kiara raised her head to gaze at Xavier, her cheeks blushing a shade of rosy pink. This was better than she had hoped for.
"Would you be willing to..go out with me sometime?" She asked in a soft voice.
"Sure..why not?" Xavier replied. "If my parents don't ground me forever that is."
"There's a wonderful restaurant in Haven we can go to after all this blows over." Kiara spoke with a smile.
"Well….alright. It's a date then. I've never been taken out by a girl before really but change is good, right?" He said a bit uneasily.
Kiara nodded enthusiastically. She couldn't believe her luck, Xavier Light-Hibiki had just agreed to go out with her!
"C'mon, my bike is just up here a little ways. If we hurry, I can get you home before lunch." He said.
"Great!" She said. "I really do appreciate you escorting me back."
"Well, I did get you into this mess." Xavier said and started forward into the forest. "The least I can do is help you out of it…"
They continued on and through the forest until they came to the spot where Xavier had left his bike. It was untouched, apparently no one had found it. He checked it out, making sure everything was all right before he hopped in the seat and turned on the ignition.
"Don't worry, I'll ride slow." He said to Kiara with a smile.
She looked the bike over appraisingly. Truly only a Prince could afford such an impressive vehicle. He glided forward at a leisurely pace, slow enough that Kiara could trot beside him.
"That certainly is a nice Hover Bike." Kiara remarked.
Xavier smiled proudly.
"Yeah it is. I haven't used it much though." He replied. "I'm glad it didn't get scratched up out here."
"Did you buy it yourself?" She inquired.
"No, it was a gift from my parents. I'll probably never see it again after today." Xavier said and frowned. "Kiara, are your parents going to be home when we get to Haven?"
"My father should be. My mother is at the temple this time of day." Kiara replied. "I'm sure he'll be excited to meet you if he's not in a bad mood."
Xavier shrugged. That wasn't what he had been concerned about. It was bad enough his own parents were going to chew him out, he didn't need to be yelled at by somebody else's.
It was around mid-morning when they finally reached Haven. Kiara lead Xavier down the paved stone path that lead to her home. He couldn't help but notice how much different Haven was from Hakari City. It was quiet, hardly any traffic and all around little gardens bloomed close to carved marble buildings. Kiara calmly walked to the door of her home while Xavier parked his bike in the street. By the time she had knocked, he had reluctantly joined her on the doorstep.
"Yes? May I help…Oh! Kiara!" A male centaur spoke as the door slowly opened. "Dear Elistra, we had half the Chargers looking for you! Where have you been?"
"I'm sorry dad, I went out to see the ruins with-out asking." She admitted to him then quickly thought to add something before he could scold her. "But it's okay, Prince Xavier of Hakari was there with me, he made sure I didn't get into any trouble."
Xavier nearly choked at the mention of his name, watching the centaur turn his gaze to him doubtfully, his expressing changing to that of astonishment as his eyes met those of the young prince. With a gasp, the centaur quickly went down on one knee.
"My Prince, I'm sorry, I did not know you were here!" He said hastily. "Thank you for seeing to the safety of my daughter."
"It was no big deal." Xavier replied, feeling awkward. "Please, no need to bow to me for it."
"Daddy, Xavier escorted me home." Kiara spoke as her father rose from kneeling.
"I was heading this way anyhow….I wanted to make sure she got home alright since I helped get her into this mess." He explained in a soft voice.
"Then I offer you my sincerest thanks for seeing to her safety. Let me offer you some tea and a rest for your efforts."
Xavier shook his head, hating to decline the offer.
"It's a long way back to Hakari, I've got to get home but thanks anyhow." He sighed.
The centaur nodded, seeming to understand his reasons.
"Xavier? Will you call me when you get the chance?" Kiara asked.
"Sure…..that is if I ever get my privileges back." He replied with a bit of a smile. "Take care Kiara, I'll see you again."
"Good luck Xavier!" She called to him as he turned and went back to his bike, starting it up and giving Kiara a small wave before riding off.
He was alone now as he rode down the streets of Haven. It felt strange not to have Zero with him. How on Meika was he going to explain all this to Rhythm? She was going to flip out when he told her he was still back in Arasa. He could almost hear her panicked reaction in his mind as he explained that Zero had not only chosen to stay in the ancient city but that part of his reasoning for doing so had been because his father beat him.
Why had Zero pulled all those weird stunts in the first place? Because Zero was Zero, that was why. That still didn't completely explain to Xavier why Zero had been so adamant about remaining in Arasa. Through out their childhood together, Zero had never been more than a few steps away from Xavier, close enough that if he got in trouble he could run back. It had always been that way despite gentle coaxing from Xavier's parents to depend more on himself. Arasa was certainly more than a few steps away, if Zero got into a situation he couldn't handle, he couldn't just run back home this time. Maybe Zero was growing up now, maybe he had decided to test himself and felt safe on his own. Xavier frowned at the thought. The Nine Hells would sooner freeze over. No, this was something else. Something Xavier couldn't quite figure. Maybe all the abuse had finally broken him, maybe he just wanted to hide for awhile from everyone. That in itself wasn't unusual but why had he chosen to hide in a place so far from his family? At least it would only be for a day, Xavier would see to it that Zero was brought back home by tomorrow evening at the latest.
Xavier had to wonder what Lord Sigma thought of all this. His first contact with other lifeforms in hundreds of years and they're inexperienced kids who make a royal mess of things. He had to have noticed, probably didn't think too highly of the situation either. That was hardly the impression Xavier had hoped to leave on the Repliroid Lord. It didn't matter really, he had just made history, he had just discovered a ruined city ans a whole new form of technorganic life even though the whole discovery had been less than picture perfect.
Xavier smiled to himself. Zor was going to literally wet his pants over this, punishment or not, he had proved himself in some twisted way and would either go down in history as the one who rediscovered the ancients or the kid who received the worst punishment in the history of Meika. Either way, he had done what he had set out to do, he had made his mark.
Hakari City never seemed so beautiful as when Xavier caught sight of it, riding in across the elevated highway towards his home. He couldn't ever remember being so glad to be back even with his punishment still impending. The sun shown against the tower ahead, seeming to mark it as his final destination. As he pulled into the parking garage, he knew it was time to finally face the music. He'd been dreading this moment the whole time. It had been bad enough when he had overheard those things at the lab and gone through Zor's notes, now he had actually acted on them. If they didn't kill him, he was going to wish they had.
Roll cast a worried glance to the clock over the sink in the kitchen. Xavier had been gone for over a day now. No one had seen him since he had retired to his room for the evening two days ago. He never came to breakfast the next morning and his bed was found empty. He wasn't the type to just run off without an explanation, that was more Zero's department which was probably why it was no surprise that he was missing as well. Maybe Zero had run away and Xavier had gone after him, that seemed to be the most likely reason. Xavier had told Rock that Zero was having problems, she certainly couldn't blame Zero if he had run off knowing what she did about his family life but Xavier was different. If he had gone to find Zero, why hadn't he left a note? It wasn't like him to just take off without a care. He was her youngest and her most "fragile", she could still remember a time when she doubted he'd even survive long enough to be born. Not knowing where he was frightened her.
Rhythm was beside her, nervously chopping up carrots. All of her thoughts were focused on her son Zero and it had taken Roll all morning just to get her to calm down enough to help with lunch.
"He's just like his father….." Rhythm had told Roll. "Always running off somewhere."
Roll had reassured her sister that Zero was safe wherever he had gotten off to and that they should both just wait.
Rock was silent as he set the table, not his usual self at all. The enforcers sent to find Xavier had come back empty handed, not that Forte cared enough to send his best men out to find Roll's "half-human brat" anyhow. Maybe he had been a bit hard on the kid, he had been much the same in his youth. What if Xavier had gotten the notion of proving himself to the world stuck in his head and had gone to do it? Rock shook his head in dismay, he would go search for him with Ryoga after lunch.
That's when Xavier slowly made his way into the kitchen in his armored form, looking a bit dirty with a backpack slung over his shoulder and his eyes downcast.
"XAVIER! Where in the Hell have you been!?" Rock cried at first sighting him.
At hearing that, Roll glanced over with bright, hopeful eyes.
"Xavier-Chan!! We were all so worried!" She exclaimed and ran to embrace him.
With a sigh, Xavier put his arms around her as well.
"I'm sorry Mom, I missed you too." He spoke.
"Where were you? We looked everywhere." She asked, pulling back to look into her son's eyes.
Xavier bit his lip, looking down at her guiltily
"It's a very long story mom…." He sighed.
"Maybe you'd like to start telling it." Rock suggested and motioned for Xavier to take a seat at the table.
It was the moment he had been dreading. Xavier went to the chair and set his backpack down with a tired sigh. Both Roll and Rock had turned their full attention to him and he felt as if on trial.
"Well….." He began in a meek voice. "I kinda went off to the ruins of Wily's castle and…"
"You did what!?" Rock exclaimed. "You wandered off to that place alone?"
"Not exactly…." Xavier said. "Zero came too, we both snuck out the other night.."
"Oh Goddess!" Rhythm cried. "Where is he? Why isn't he with you??"
Xavier paused for a moment.
"I left him there…" He answered softly.
"YOU WHAT!?" Rock exclaimed, his mouth falling open.
Rhythm shrieked, nearly falling into a faint.
"Xavier Light-Hibiki, you had better have a full explanation for this because you are in deep-"
"Rock! Give him a chance to talk!" Roll objected as she put an arm around Rhythm to calm her.
Rock fell silent, crossing his arms across his chest and giving Xavier a stern look as a sign of his displeasure.
"We found a city out there, it was at the end of that strange tunnel in Wily's basement, through this weird forest. Zero wanted to stay there, I tried to talk him out of it." Xavier explained but Rock only looked confused.
"A city?" He questioned.
"I know, it sounds wrong, I know there's not suppose to be anything out there but this city appeared out of nowhere and there were other types of robots there, they were ancients, they called themselves Repliroids and their Lord told me the name of the city was Arasa." Xavier said.
"Arasa? But that's the name of the ancient city of technology." Roll noted.
"I know.." Xavier sighed. "I couldn't believe it either but the Energen readings for that place were off the charts. It was pure, type A+, I know Zor's gonna flip out when he sees the scans and – "
"You left my son there!?" Rhythm cried, interrupting him.
"He wanted to stay Auntie Rhythm and Lord Sigma promised he'd be safe…." Xavier tried to explain, leaving out Zero's reasoning to stay in the first place.
"I think you need to start from the beginning Xavier and I think Zor and Ryoga need to be here to hear this too." Rock spoke.
As much as he hated to agree, Rock was right. He was going to have to tell them all the whole story and hope they didn't all yell at him at once. When everyone had eaten lunch, they all sat down in the living room, all eyes on Xavier, waiting to hear his explanation.
He started at the very beginning with his trip to Haven and his meeting with Kiara, going on about the tunnel and the strange room and taking the metal ball Zero found there out of his backpack for Zor to examine. Then he tried to explain the forest they had come upon, the dragon like creature and finally, the city of Arasa itself and it's mysterious lord, Sigma. He carefully avoided the whole story of Zero getting drunk and why Zero had wanted to stay behind, Rhythm was already interrupting everytime he mentioned Zero's name. For some reason, he hoped that when he finished and given Zor his scans to examine, everyone would be so in awe of his discovery that they would forget about punishing him.
No such luck.
"I can't believe you went out there and disobeyed me!" Zor spoke. "That's a restricted area!"
"This isn't like you Xavier. You ran off and just left Zero there?" Roll said disappointedly. "He's your best friend…"
"How could you!" Rhythm sputtered.
"Well he isn't staying there. Zor, you and I are going to go down and get Forte to accompany us to that city. We'll get Zero back and see this place for ourselves." Rock announced.
"No, you can't. I promised Lord Sigma I'd return tomorrow. He wanted to talk to Zero." Xavier objected.
"You're not going anywhere tomorrow Xavier and we're going to get Zero back right now!" Rock insisted.
"No, daddy Rock, please don't go storming in there. Zero, Kiara and I are the only outsiders they know. I don't know how they'd react to you!" Xavier said.
"He's right dad." Zor agreed. "These…repliroids probably trust Xavier, if we go in there with a group of Enforcers unannounced they may think we're hostile. If Xavier promised he'd return tomorrow, then to avoid any misunderstandings, we should hold off until then."
Rock frowned, not liking the idea but understanding his son's logic all too well. No need to start a war just because he was angry with Xavier.
"But what about Zero!?!?" Rhythm insisted frantically.
"He'll be okay Auntie Rhythm." Xavier said. "I..think he needs to be away from here right now anyways."
Rock spoke up before Rhythm could object, giving Xavier a stern look.
"And I think you should go to your room while we decide what to do about this." He said.
Xavier had been expecting that since the moment he had arrived home. There was no need to argue as he stood up and headed towards the hall. He hadn't gotten this many stern glances since he had broken his mother's favorite vase when he was five.
"Rock!! Please, you could just go there and bring Zero home, right??" Rhythm asked.
"Zero isn't going to come back just because you go get him you know." Xavier spoke, pausing.
"Xavier, go to your room." Rock ordered with a touch of anger in his voice.
Xavier knew he meant business that time and quietly slunk off without another word. He had got what he wanted after all. He had made the find of the century…
Roll, Rock, Forte and others are copyright of Capcom of Japan (as if you didn't know that by now)
Xavier, Kiara, Zor and Arasa are copyrights of ME!!!!!!
Ryoga is copyright of Rumiko Takahashi, bweee!
I'm still not making any profit off this fic so don't sue me, I'm very poor.
Xavier: THIS SUCKS! Why do I have to go to my room? I just discovered the ANCIENTS!
Zero: The fic writer believes that if you spare the rod, you spoil the child you know.
Xavier: Oh shut up =P
This fic is copyright Roll-Chan productions 2000
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