Megaman X: Elysium Rising
Mission 4: Intercept Maverick Bio-weapon
Chapter 17: Arachnophobia
By Genoscythe
Mission 4: Intercept Maverick Bio-weapon
Maverick Leader: Kinetic Arachno
Main Objective: Eliminate target and retrieve data sample
Secondary Objective: Minimize human casualties
Commence Operation
The morning was progressing smoothly, at least for awhile. X was busy unpacking his belongings, as he had shut down as soon as he could the night before. Alia never left his room, instead opting to give the built-in TV a test run. She was sprawled lazily on the couch, watching a morning news show out of one eye as X moved back and forth, hefting large boxes across the apartment.
"...and in less recent news, the damage report has come in from Maverick Hunter Headquarters. Just yesterday, the entire building was leveled by a massive cannon situated in the northeastern mountains. The weapon is being dismantled and examined by Neo Tokyo officials, and we'll bring you the full report by tomorrow. What we know now is that the Maverick Hunters have been dealt a massive blow, and resources are questioning their current combat abilitie-" The TV was suddenly silenced when Alia flicked off the power.
"Tell me something I don't know," she mumbled, burying her face into a couch pillow. X poked his head in through a doorway to the right of the living room.
"Why don't you shut down for a little bit? I'll bet you'll feel better afterward," he offered.
"No thanks...I'm not in the mood..." Alia's voice wafted through the air. "Next time I see that little green pukestain...I really will shove a plug down his throat. Or maybe I'll stick it up his-"
"Hey, he didn't mean any harm, did he?"
"Oh, come on. Why would he call me for three straight hours if he didn't mean any harm!?"
"He just gets a little carried away with his work," X said cheerfully, hanging up a shirt in his new closet. He heard Alia roll off the couch and flop onto the floor. A second later, he turned around to see her standing in the doorway.
"He's just sadistic, that's what he is," she muttered. "Mind if I grab another coffee?"
"Sure. Just remember I'm gonna start charging soon."
"Affirmative, sir," Alia walked groggily into the kitchen and started up the coffee maker. X left the bedroom and sat down on the couch to take a breather. However, his momentary peace was shattered when the door flew open and Zero walked into the room, blonde ponytail wavering behind him. He immediately spotted X on the couch.
"Hey part...ner?" He trailed off when he saw the mask of surprise and irritation on X's face.
"Don't you knock!?" X reprimanded the blonde reploid.
"Mere formalities, friend," Zero said as he sat down on the other end of the couch. "Besides, I know I'm always welcome at your place."
"Not always..." X whispered, and he jerked his head toward the kitchen where Alia paced about the kitchen, singing several notes off key while she waited for her coffee to finish. Zero flashed X a big grin.
"I got it," he said, and he leaned over and elbowed X in the ribs. "So...how late did ya stay up last night?"
"Say what?" X fixed him a quizzical gaze. Zero jerked his head toward the kitchen in the same fashion that X had. The brown-haired reploid shook his head. "I'm still not getting it. I fell asleep the second I got here. What's that got to do with Alia?"
Zero sighed, rubbing his forehead. "X, I know you're not this naïve. If you went to sleep when you got home, then what's she doing here?"
"She came over this morning 'cause Douglas was bothering her," X said, but he suddenly flushed when he realized what Zero was talking about. "Where do you get these ideas from!?"
"X...she's in your apartment. Drinking your coffee. What do you think it looks like to an outsider?"
"I still can't believe you'd immediately assume that we-" X shut his mouth when he saw Alia walking back from the kitchen.
"Oh, come on. You're mature enough to say it, aren't you?" Unfortunately, Zero's back was facing the kitchen. X punched him sharply in the stomach to alert him of Alia's arrival, but that merely caused Zero to start screaming obscenities. Soon enough though, Zero's sense of impending doom kicked in and he turned around to face the ragged-looking Alia.
"Having fun, boys?" She asked them with a note of annoyance in her voice.
"Hello to you, too," Zero responded, rubbing his wounded stomach. Gruffly, X shoved Zero to the opposite end of the couch to make room for Alia. She sat down, pressing herself against X to avoid any physical contact with Zero. The blonde reploid looked at her skeptically. "So, I guess you're still mad because I-"
"Yes," she replied before he could finish. "I'm afraid to go to work now, thanks to you. Signas could've set traps anywhere for us." She took a lengthy sip from the coffee cup. X figured she didn't plan on staying too long with Zero around.
"Well, if I find any land mines in the hallway, I'll be sure to tell you about it," Zero said sarcastically. "I don't get what you're worried about. Signas has too much on his plate to follow up on some petty revenge scheme." Alia downed the rest of her coffee and got up.
"I've gotta go get dressed," Alia said, leaving the cup on the nearest kitchen counter and moving to the door. "I'll be back when I'm done, ok X?" The unspoken words were: "And he'd better not still be here by then." She whisked the door open and walked out, letting the air blow the door shut behind her. As soon as the apartment had settled again, Zero let out a long sigh.
"And here I thought you had finally made a move on her..." The blonde reploid said quietly. "There's gotta be a reason for it, right? I mean, I know you're not that naïve." X nodded. "So? Why haven't you made a move yet?"
"It wouldn't feel right. I'm sure of it. I was with Calliope for so long, I couldn't imagine loving anyone else."
Zero gave a mirthless chuckle. "I know how that feels..."
"You're right. I'm not that naïve. I'm just torn between keeping Calliope's memory alive and moving on. I just don't think I'm ready yet."
"You've had over ten years to move on. What's the holdup?"
"She was like a part of me, and she still is. I feel like if I started a relationship with Alia, all that's left of Calliope will fade away." X felt fresh memories of his first love rising within him. They had been together since the Second Maverick War, even before he had become Commander of the 17th division. "We never separated, never got into an argument. We were perfect for each other. Can you really blame me for wanting to hold onto that, even after ten years?"
"X..." Zero began. His comrade sighed. "You know what I'm about to say, don't you?"
" 'Calliope wouldn't want you to suffer because of her. I'm sure she would want you to move on.' Is that it?"
"Yeah, something like that," Zero murmured.
"I know...it's just hard..." X's eyes appeared glazed over, as if in a trance.
"Hey, don't worry about it. Alia's waited for you this long. I'll bet she'll wait longer." Zero reassured him. "Speaking of Alia, she'll probably be back soon." Zero got up and moved to the window behind the couch. X gave him a quizzical stare.
"What the hell are you doing?" He asked as Zero opened the window all the way.
"Making my escape," Zero said, flashing a grin.
"That's what doors are for."
"No good," he said, perched on the windowsill. "I hear her coming down the hallway, and if you picked up on those hidden meanings like I did, then you know she won't be happy to find me still here." X sharpened his audio receptors, and he could indeed hear faint footsteps down the hall. He looked back at Zero, but the windowsill was empty. He moved over to the window and stuck his head out. To his horror, Zero had landed on a balcony several stories below, right next to a couple sitting in lawn chairs. From his viewpoint, it seemed like Zero and the couple were arguing. It also seemed like a very one-sided argument, with Zero constantly bowing and shaking his head.
Finally, Zero cast an angry glance up at X that said: "You owe me for this," and he jumped off the balcony with the couple yelling angrily at his back. X immediately jerked his head back through the window when he heard a knock at the door. He opened it to see Alia in a white lace tank top and black skirt, brown duffel bag around her shoulder. She gave him a heartwarming smile when she noticed that Zero was no longer nearby.
"I'm heading over to Cain Labs. Wanna join me?" She asked.
"Sure. I've gotta report in sometime today anyway," X replied. Together, the two of them left the building and began walking down the street.
This wasn't the kind of thing Signas envisioned when he applied for Commander. He envisioned glory, respect, and drama. He didn't envision cleaning up after everyone else's mess. He didn't envision being laughed at behind his back, either. Now, as he sat at the command chair, resting his chin in his hands, he wondered if it was time for a career change. Something that didn't involve all these boring procedures and paperwork.
As he lamented his misfortune, an operator ran up to the impressive-looking command chair carrying a stack of papers. "The surviving equipment from the hangar bay just arrived. These are the bills from the transport company," the operator said, handing him the thin stack. Signas sighed and pulled a pin from his uniform's lapel.
No leader ever became famous by filling out bills... he thought to himself. If only we knew where the Maverick's base of operations was.
"Sir!"
"What is it?" Signas perked at the voice of another operator.
"One of the hunters in the 9th is requesting lodging here. Says he can't find anywhere to stay."
"...fine. Let him stay," the excitement drained out of Signas's voice. This drudgery would be the death of him. He just wished X and Alia would get here so he could liven things up a bit...
"Sir!" Another damn operator.
"What now?" Signas inquired lazily.
"I'm...not sure. Come take a look at this," the operator's voice leaked a bit of concern. A slight smile blooming on Signas's lips, he raised himself off his chair and stood behind the operator, peering over his shoulder at the monitor. "See that?" The operator pointed to a tall wire-framed spike in the midst of a sea of smaller spikes. The label 'General Energy Graph' was displayed at the upper right corner of the display, and Signas was starting to get an idea of what the image identified.
"Do you know what this is, sir?" the operator explained. Signas smirked.
"I know what a General Energy Graph is," Signas's tone indicated that it was a ridiculous question, though until he noticed the label on the computer screen, he had never seen one before.
"What about these energy readings? Can you make 'em out?"
"...of course."
"What do you think it is?" The operator's inquiry stopped Signas dead in his tracks. How was he going to fake this one?
"It looks to me like...an energy spike," Signas mused, trying to sound more thoughtful than clueless.
"Should I run a more narrow search?"
"Yes." The operator began punching keys on his console at Signas's request. A moment later, the green wire frame graph was wiped clean and replaced by a blue graph. The energy spike disappeared.
"It's not weapons-grade energy, that's for sure," the operator barely whispered, his mind already racing ahead to other possibilities. He hit more keys, and the graph became red. "Looks like there's a slight increase in pilot energy." Pilot referring to the energy used and generated by reploids to power themselves. Without it, reploid CPUs would be unable to 'pilot' their bodies.
"What other options do we have?"
"Well, it'd guess this thing is a high-end reploid, so that narrows the search a bit. I'll check for wave-form particles." Signas didn't know what the hell wave-form particles were, but no leader ever became famous by asking stupid questions. The graph changed to a dark purple. "...nope. It's all normal. Switching to psychic concentration scanner." The monitor was wiped once more, and the now-orange graph startled them both.
"Looks like we've found the source," Signas said proudly.
"There's a...massive collection of psychic energy condensed in an extremely small area. I don't understand...we usually see this kind of phenomenon at rallies or music concerts, but that's over a wider area and it's not nearly this strong. What do you think this means, sir?"
"I think..." Signas murmured, placing a hand thoughtfully on his chin. "This warrants further investigation."
"But sir, shouldn't we address the possibility that this could be some kind of weapon? There's at least fifty thousand megajoules of psychic energy condensed into an area of a few meters. Even if it isn't a weapon, having that much volatile energy packed so close together could cause unexpected results..."
"Just tell me where it is," Signas ordered. Soon, the black backdrop of the monitor dissolved into a map of Neo Tokyo City. The operator looked for a second at it, then hit another button and the map disappeared.
"It's near 5th and Katsuragi. Want me to call in some hunters to investigate?" The operator spoke in an excited tone. Perhaps he was as eager for something to happen as Signas was. However, if Signas had one thing going for him, it was that he knew how to maintain a clear head.
"No. We don't know yet if this is already being taken care of by the Neo Tokyo MPs. It's not the best idea to go stepping on their toes, especially not with this current mess to deal with."
"But...if we just leave it there, it might cause a reaction."
"I think we'll know soon enough if it's a problem or not," Signas's tone indicated there was no more room for discussion. He moved slowly back to his command chair, but as he did so, an alarm began blaring from one of the operators' consoles.
"Sir! Maverick report from north Katsuragi street! This one sounds bad..." Signas cast a glance back at the operator he had just spoken to, who merely shrugged with an 'I-told-you-so' look on his face. Then, he turned back to the operator that had just addressed him.
"Notify Megaman X and Zero on their personal comm. links. Also, send out a call to any nearby Maverick Hunters. Tell them to use extreme caution!" Signas barked, though he thought it just a little bit redundant to tell them to use caution. This maverick attack was making him uneasy. He didn't like being uneasy.
"Say what? We're on Katsuragi, and I don't see anythi..." X stopped his sentence short as a human was tossed, seemingly by the air itself, out of a nearby window. The middle-aged male landed with a sickening splatter on the street to their right. In the same instant, the building out of which the man had flown exploded, flinging bits of metal and debris in all directions. Out of the chaos, a large figure soared through the dust clouds and landed awkwardly on the sidewalk before X and Alia.
"Oh, god..." Alia stammered, disgustingly captivated by the thing before them. At first, it was hard to tell exactly what it was. Soon enough though, what they thought was a deformed reploid was really a heavyweight combat reploid with a...thing attached to its back. The thing was spider-like, half organic matter and half metal, with four devilishly clawed arms arcing out of each side of the poor reploid's back. The thing seemed to have a head; a thin appendage that looked almost like a stumpy leg with a single blood-red eye affixed to its anterior. The head was resting on the head of its host, a tall reploid with massive arms built for destruction. Everything about the reploid seemed normal, except that the skin of its face was missing. Beneath the featureless monochrome helmet, metal skeleton took the place of a normal human face. The metal jaw worked itself into a sinister smile, adding to the already terrifying display. Then, the reploid's blank eye lenses lit up in a brilliant display of black and green.
X instinctively threw his hand back to protect Alia, but the monstrosity merely regarded them with mild curiosity. Then, slowly, it began to lumber across the street. The reploid body paid no heed to the oncoming cars, as the spider arms tossed aside any that were in danger of hitting it with horrifying strength. When the thing reached the opposite sidewalk, it looked up at the building before it with the same curiosity a child displays when seeing a new toy.
Then, suddenly, its demeanor changed completely. It thrashed its head about violently, and its eye went wide. A moment later, the entire top half of the building seemed to come apart at the seams. Cracks trickled along the neocrete walls, and windows seemed to collapse in on themselves. Then, as if an invisible giant had blown a great gust of air, the building was swept away in an explosion of kinetic force and dust. X looked on in disbelief as chunks of neocrete and human flesh rained down on the city up to several blocks away.
"Commander X? What the hell's going on!?" X's comm. link buzzed, and numbly he tapped it.
"This thing's definitely a maverick. Call Zero, Axl and Marx," X's mouth moved independently; he was too shocked to think about what he was saying. The monster had already begun attacking another building, ripping out large bits from the walls. Alia was the first to come to her senses.
"Hey! Aren't you supposed to stop this thing?" She gently, but firmly, gave X a shove toward the maverick.
"...you're right. Find cover somewhere, Alia," he said, talking once again into his comm. link. "Send me my combat armor," his voice rang clear now, the effect of the encounter with the odd beast having worn off. He tensed as an electric sensation enveloped him, and suddenly he felt metal enclose his head, arms, legs and chest. Instant Transit technology had recently been reworked to teleport armor, fully combat-ready, onto a waiting Maverick Hunter. Now, this technology was being put to full use.
"Hey!" X yelled, waving his hands in the air. He was hoping the maverick would stop tearing at the building, but it seemed to have a one-track mind. He decided that the best distraction would be a nice thick plasma blast to the head. X let loose a volley that peppered the armored back of the spider-symbiote thing. It gave an unearthly howl, and turned to face X. Rather, its head turned. The rest of it proceeded in its destructive path.
"Pay attention to me, damnit!" X roared, firing at the maverick's big red eye. The plasma hit dead on, and the creature stopped its rampage, human female in one of its eight claws. X winced as the female was quickly crushed and discarded by the maverick. It turned to him for a second, examining him, almost as if it didn't know what he was. Then, without further hesitation, its reploid legs jumped into the air, and its symbiote arms stretched out and latched onto the ground ahead. It pulled itself forward at a blinding speed, using the strength of its arms to counter its excessive weight. It hurled itself at X, and he nimbly leapt to the side.
The spider-symbiote-reploid hybrid careened into the wall where X had stood moments before. The wall began to cave in, but the spider arms simply sloughed off the neocrete and turned back to X, who was firing off feeble plasma blasts that bounced off the symbiote half's reflective armor. The thing began lumbering at him, and he switched tactics. He shot at the reploid host, and as soon as he did, the spider arms closed around it protectively. Well, well, we've got a weakness... X thought to himself as he continued his barrage.
To his chagrin, the maverick resumed its march with arms still in their protective positions. "HQ! Suggestions!?" He screamed into his comm. link. The creature was almost upon him.
"We're still getting an analysis from your optical feeds. It'll take a bit more time," said the operator, worry bleeding into his voice. X swore under his breath, but then the maverick stopped. Above the armor-plated spider appendages, the creature's head reared up and fixed him with an almost hypnotic stare. X was about to shoot for the eye when he felt a strange floating sensation. Suddenly, he felt as if he had been slammed in the chest with a giant hammer, and he was sent sprawling all the way down the block.
X got up slowly, feeling as though more than one of his joints had been broken. At least there's some distance between us now, X thought. His thoughts were interrupted by his comm. link.
"Commander, don't kill it!" the operator sounded frantic.
"Say WHAT!?" X replied in kind. "Why not?"
"No time to explain. Pull back before it kills you,"
"There's still humans here!"
"That's not our primary concern now. If you don't pull out, either you or the maverick is going to die. And believe me, if the maverick dies, you'll be dead too."
End of Chapter 17
AN: And so ends my wonderful updating spree. School is back in full force, and soon enough I'll be the mindless little worker bee that I was before Christmas break. So, hope you enjoy, and I'll try to get working on the next chapter ('cause I know this cliffhanger is already killing you).