I went through SERIOUS writer's block in typing up this chapter. I'm talking "Oh god I don't even know how to START this chapter" writer's block! Thankfully I overcame it, but as you can see by the late update, it kinda took a while.
Quite the plot twist in the last chapter, huh? I have a pretty clear idea of where to go from here but following up on a chapter like that can be difficult.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OCs
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"So this is the Maverick Hunter HQ? Impressive." Ashe meant it too. The only time she had seen so many people in one place before was at Legion back in her time and that was a while ago.
X, Zero, Axl and Giro had lead Grey and Ashe back to HQ. Grey was currently Megamerged, but he couldn't get out of Giro exactly why he had to remain that way.
"It'll probably be better if you just figure it out for yourself," Giro had told him.
"I'm glad you like it here. This is where you're both going to stay if you really want to hang around," said X.
Ashe became aware of the many damning looks she was getting, but she didn't question it until she heard someone near her say, "Hmph! Another one! Only a matter of time now before they decide to do away with us!"
Ashe turned to face the one who had said it, "Oh, and you are?" She asked, a bit annoyed.
Bomber Lizard snorted, "You don't need to know that right now. Where are those other two? I think one of them owes us an explanation!"
"I agree," came another voice. The group turned around.
"Commander Signas," said Zero as the commander walked up to them.
"Would you all mind coming with me to my office? I believe that we need to have a discussion."
n/n/n/n/
"So long story short, Vent and Aile had their own agenda coming here and Grey and Ashe here were the ones who bailed me out." Axl finished. Signas nodded in understanding. The group was in Signas's office. Alia was there too, although they weren't sure why.
"I see, so Vent and Aile were from Giro's time all along. And why didn't you bother telling me?" Signas asked.
Giro shifted uncomfortably, "I'm still trying to have as little impact on this time as possible, as hard as it's starting to get. I don't believe in what those two are doing, my only reason for coming here was to deal with Pandora and Prometheus. But frankly, things are becoming more and more complicated."
"And you two?" Signas asked. Grey stiffened slightly while Ashe simply shrugged.
"We came to this time in search of answers, among them the true reason why Vent and Aile attacked Axl and what kind of danger they believe the Model A possesses," said Ashe,
"Speaking of which…"Alia spoke up, "Would you either of you mind showing me?"
"Showing you what?" Grey asked.
"I mean showing me what you and Giro really look like. Your story sounds so unbelievable that I would like to see some proof."
"I'm a bit curious myself," admitted Signas.
Giro and Grey were both silent. "What are you going to do?" Zero asked.
Giro sighed, "We'll show you. But you have to promise not to tell any one else of all this. It's too risky."
Both Signas and Alia nodded in agreement and then there was a flash of light…
"Yeah, it caught us off guard too," said Axl mildly as Alia nearly fell over and Signas put on a look of surprise.
"But you look no different from humans!" Alia cried out.
"It's typical for our time," Giro explained as the Model Z hovered in front of him.
"By the way, I noticed that some of the hunters here were looking at me in a well…not so friendly way. Could you maybe offer an explanation?" Ashe asked.
"I'm afraid you won't like the answer. You're presence here specifically is going to inevitably attract some unwanted attention and potentially cause some problems," said Signas.
"Oh? And why's that?"
"Because things in this time are different," said Giro simply, "I think you'll figure it out soon enough."
n/n/n/n/
"X! Wait up!"
"Hm?" X turned around to see Alia running up to him. He had just left Signas's office and the rest of the group had already gone their separate ways, "What do you need Alia?"
"I was just thinking…" she started as she stopped in front of him, "Are you worried at all?"
"About what?"
"Well I mean…that girl, Ashe was her name, is the third human to show up here who can transform like Vent and Aile could. Isn't it only a matter of time before the government decides to take notice?"
"It is but…" X trailed off and thought for a moment, "Neither her nor her partner, Grey, seem to have any idea of the state of human and reploid relation in this time. I think it'll be interesting to see how she reacts."
"Oh…" said Alia. There was an awkward moment. They both looked liked they wanted to say something important but neither could find the words.
"Well, I better get back to my station." With that, Alia turned, and left down a hallway.
X looked in the direction she left. He heard someone behind him say, "Well she seems nice. Which is a lot more than I can say for most of the stuck up bunch around here!"
X whirled around to find Ashe, who was leaning against a nearby wall, "How long were you there!?" He demanded.
"Long enough," she said simply.
"Don't get me wrong here. None of us particularly trust you or Grey."
"I know that. But we did what was necessary, and we're going to figure out what's going on here if it's the last thing we do!" She looked in the direction that Alia had left, "You like her?"
"Huh?"
"That girl that just left. Do you like her?" Ashe repeated.
X turned bright red, "W-what gave you that idea!?"
"Well for one, you're blushing right now," she shrugged, "But I suppose it's not really my place to ask you about those kinds of things." She turned and left, leaving behind a puzzled X.
n/n/n/n/
"What do you think, X?"
"I'm not sure Zero. I suppose the ends justify the means in their situation but..."
"But the cold hard truth is that they still had to trick us, and it's particulary hard to trust after what happened with Vent and Aile."
"Speaking of which Giro, any chance of that happening with you?"
"Ha ha! No, Axl. I'm simply here to stop Pandora and Prometheus, nothing else..."
"What's up? You don't look so good..."
"It's nothing Zero."
"I'm less worried about Grey than I am about Ashe."
"Why's that Axl?"
"Because Ashe is human. And it's only a matter of time before they find out that she's here..."
"We'll just have to trust that she has enough sense to make the right choice when that happens."
n/n/n/n/
The next day...
"I don't get it! No matter where I go, all I get is glares all around!" Ashe and Grey were walking around the base, curious about this new place they had wound up in. Ashe had naturally seen several things that would fetch for a decent bounty back home.
"I don't really understand it either. Can't say I had any luck getting anything out of Giro either," Grey looked at the Model A armor.
I'm starting to understand why me and Grey have to remain Megamerged though. Model A piped up.
"Really?"
Yeah. The reason is so that so you look a bit more like the reploids of this time! No offence but with those cords you have, it would be hard for you to be passed off as a human in this time.
Grey blushed slightly as Ashe laughed, "It's got a point there!"
"If I may ask, who exactly are you talking too?" came a smooth polite voice from behind them. Grey and Ashe whirled around. Standing there, was none other than Draynor, in his usual, up kept manner.
"And you are?" Ashe asked.
"My name is Draynor Cornelius. I am here to check up on the Hunter's newest human recruit," he responded in his usual voice, "I was called here by the commander you see."
Grey didn't like the vibe he was getting from this guy, "What do you want?" He asked.
Draynor half-ignored him, talking to Ashe, "What I want is for you-Ashe is your name isn't it?-To come with me for a few moments. I would like to talk in private."
Ashe leaned in close to Grey to whisper in his ear, "I don't like this guy. For some reason, he reminds me of Albert."
"Just go along with it for now," Grey whispered back, "We'll figure it out later."
"Excuse me, but are you coming or not?" Draynor asked a bit impaitiently. Ashe turned away from Grey and nodded towards Draynor.
I don't like that guy very much either, said Model A as Ashe walked away with Draynor, He gives me the chills and I can't help but think of Albert with every word he says!
"Yeah, I know..." agreed Grey.
n/n/n/n/
"So what exactly do you want?" Ashe asked.
"I just want to make sure that you are getting settled in," replied Draynor as the pair walked to an empty hallway, "You know that with the other two, Vent and Aile, having departed, you are the only human Hunter there is."
Ashe looked mildly surprised, "You mean that humans can't become Hunters?"
"Of course not! It's much too dangerous to risk human lives in this war."
"You seem willing enough to put reploid lives on the line though," she pointed out, leaning against a wall, "Why's that? What makes the reploids more qualified than humans?"
"It's not a matter of qualification," began Draynor, "That's another reason I wanted to talk to you. I made the mistake of letting your predecessors go too long here without my intervention. It's not a mistake I intend to repeat. So let me begin by saying this; the reason we let reploids fight as Hunters instead of humans is because reploids are much more expendable. Using them is the best way to reduce human casualties, by not forcing our own to go out there and fight the Mavericks. In fact, the only reason that we're allowing you to stay with the Hunter is becuase I have recieved personal assurance that you posses a transformation abillity similar to Vent and Aile and are just as capable in battle."
"Back up a few minutes! What do you mean reploid lives are more expendable!?" Ashe demanded.
"Because they are nothing," said Draynor as calmly as ever, "Let me put it this way, a machine, no matter how complex, is still a machine. And that is exactly what reploids are. Your predecessors made the mistake of getting attached to them. I hope that you don't intend to do the same. We need someone here to help us monitor the Hunters' activities. We don't want another rebellion on our hands."
Ashe went dead silent, taking in everything Draynor had just said. She looked like she was about to say something when Draynor continued, "By the way, the reploid I saw you with earlier, I had heard a bit about him from the commander. I did a little research before coming here. He is not registered anywhere, not even with the Hunters. He is the first one I would like you to check into. An unregistered reploid is always a bad sign, Maverick or not."
Ashe couldn't believe this guy! "Listen!" She hissed, seething with anger, "Grey happens to be just as much a part of this as I am! There's nothing about him to 'investigate!"
"But-"
"Grey happens to be my friend! You say that reploid lives are more expendable! That couldn't be farther from the truth! They're living things! You don't have the right to determine that they're worth less then anyone else!"
Draynor was silent for a few minutes before talking again, "I can see that your opinions lie among the minority. Nevertheless, we still need someone to help us watch the Hunters. I doubt you would be foolish enough to refuse us."
This guy was unbelievable! Ashe turned to leave, "I've done crazy things before. And where I come from, you would be considered any better, or even worse, than those damn Raiders!" And with that she turned and left.
n/n/n
"What happened?" Grey asked as Ashe entered the command center. They had just been called there along with X, Zero, Axl, and Giro. Ashe looked very pissed.
"I don't want to talk about it!" She snapped, "Just unmerge so I can transform!"
"Yikes! Alright!" There were a pair of flashes of light and Ashe was soon Megamerged. She was still seething over her encounter with Draynor. Just who did that guy think he was?
"Hey Grey, what's with Ashe?" Axl wispered, nudging Grey slightly.
"Beats me." Grey wispered back.
"Ahem," everyone turned to face Signas as he began to speak, "If I may begin the reason all of you were called here is because we dectected an odd yet familiar pair of signals."
"Pandora and Prometheus," said Giro without even asking.
"Wait, are you saying that those two are in this time!?" Grey asked, slightly shocked.
Giro looked at him oddly, "Yes, are you familiar with them?"
"It's a long story, but yeah, we are." Ashe looked at the nearby computer screen, "We heard Vent and Aile mention them but..." her voice trailed off. She and Grey remembered all too well their last encounter with Pandora and Prometheus.
"I don't think there's any need for explanations," said Signas, "The teleporter is already prepared, I'm trusting you all to hopefully get rid of them for good this time."
"With any luck," Axl murmered. He then noticed that X look a little, well, odd, "What's up X?"
"I can't really explain it but I have a feeling that this won't be the end of it, far from it actually." X responded darkly.
n/n/n/n/
"Right on time! I knew you were all bound to show up sooner or later!" Prometheus's cackle was one of the first things the group heard when they landed in the area. It was an abandoned residential district, with much shorter buildings than in the newer district. Prometheus was standing on top of one of these squat structures.
Ashe looked towards where Prometheus was standing and growled, "Prometheus...and I'm going to guess that Pandora isn't too far behind." As if on cue, Pandora warped in right next to Prometheus.
"The Model A Chosen Ones..." said Pandora, "This is unexpected..."
"Not like it's going to matter in the end though! Especially after we've achieved our goal!" Prometheus reminded her.
"I know what you two are up to!" Giro snapped. Prometheus cocked an eyebrow,
"Oh really? And what exactly are we up to?" He asked cooly.
"You're after the time crystals! I don't know what you plan on doing with them, but I've had enough experience with Mavericks to know that it's nothing good!" X shouted.
Grey and Ashe both blinked, a tad confused, "Time crystals?" They echoed simultaneously.
Prometheus laughed, "Oh, comparing us to the Mavericks of our time, are you?" X faltered slightly. The feeling of dread that he had since before leaving HQ was growing stronger...
"It is foolish to assume...that we are anything like the Mavericks of this time..." said Pandora.
"Because you two aren't Mavericks," said Grey simply, "But just what are you doing in this time?"
"It's nothing you need to know Defective!" Grey stiffened at Prometheus's snarling comment. Ashe looked at her friend in concern. They weren't going to use his past against him were they?
"What does he mean by 'Defective?'" Zero inquired.
"It's a long story," said Grey.
"And one he would prefer not to discuss," added Ashe.
"We have the upper hand..." said Pandora. The groups' attention shifted to her, "We will succeed...Failure is not an option for us..."
There was the sound of a few more warping into the area and then...
"What the-!?" Axl cried out in confusion. They had seen two of those figures before, but what did it mean?
"What the hell is going on here!?" Zero asked, also recognizing two of the newcomers.
"This isn't good..." X trailed off. His feeling of dread had proven to be a warning...
"I don't know what's going on, but this is starting to get out of hand..." Giro couldn't believe what was happening. Pandora and Prometheus were indeed desperate...
"Not good!" Ashe exclaimed.
"You all shouldn't be here!" Grey shouted.
Standing near Pandora and Promethues were four new fighters that Grey and Ashe recognized all too well...
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Who can guess who the four newcomers are?
Since the Biometals relatively don't talk much in the games and because of the sheer number of characters in this fic, sometimes I find it hard not to let them just fade into the background. There has been a few times where I have edited a scene just to make sure that they can get a few lines in! It should be a bit easier with the Model A because it's very chatty in the games in comparison to the other Biometals.
Not spoiling what happens in the next chapter!
A sincere thanks to all my reviewers! I'm SO SORRY for not replying to most of you for the last chapter!
R&R!