Ars Moriendi

Chapter 7

Slowly Settling

AN: I swear I format these in Word. It's just so troublesome to go back and put another space between all the paragraphs when I remember FF eats my formatting. Ran a little late with this chapter because coursework had me down, and, honestly, this chapter was a bit rushed.

_Z_

Zero stood near the door to the strategy room, occasionally glancing down either hall, trying to see if there was anyone who was near enough to overhear them. Once again, Axl had gotten him in trouble by virtue of his sense of mischief, and this one was a mess. Was it possible that Axl had been the one to initially mislead Era? She had said someone said he liked her. Given how juvenile it sounded, it was beginning to sound like a possibility, a very likely possibility.

"Era," he began, running his hand nervously through his thick hair. "Listen, it's not what you think."

"There's no reason to be so distraught, really," she smiled awkwardly. She looked startling like a bashful Axl when she did that, and he found himself feeling unsettled by the similarities.

"Everyone suspects it."

"What?" His optics went blank then wide with horror. Everyone suspected it? Really? Oh Asimov, this was worse than he'd initially thought. Axl was really going to get it this time.

"No. Really, it's not what you think—this has nothing to do with X at all!"

She paused, and her head tilted, a curtain of pale orange hair rippling like water. "Oh…?"

If Axl had anything to do with this rumor being—apparently—widely accepted then he was doubly dead, and nothing X did or said would stop him. X might even encourage Axl's discipline given how frustrated he got with rumors. Though, the brunet did find some of them amusing—like the one about Zero secretly being a female unit. Of course, there had been a similar rumor about X, which Zero had found equally amusing; but the truly funny thing was that the rumor about X being female still persisted to this day, more than even Zero's did.

X didn't mind that one so much, it was too harmless and ridiculous to be more than a joke. Not all rumors were so mild, however, such as the one about X secretly being a psychopath. That one hurt X more than he liked to let on, but Zero always used it to his advantage: Nothing scared a naïve rookie more than conspiratorially warning them about X and his numerous torture devices, which (in Zero's versions of the story) may or may not usually feature a frying pan. And, despite his exasperation, it made X laugh.

Zero turned his attention back to the baffled—and, oh, Asimov, she looked hopeful—female. "It's not that, Era. I'm not dating anyone else, and I am not dating X, nor am I interested in dating X. Or anyone else for that matter, I'm not dating at all."

"You're… you aren't?" Now she looked uncertain again.

Maybe she thought it was because he didn't find her attractive? He might have intensely disliked her for her behavior toward him, but he knew better than to let her think he was slighting her. Again. Scorned women were almost as terrifying as enraged Xs.

"No, I'm not. And, I think my reputation precedes me, see, I haven't exactly been a ladies man in a long time." He really didn't flirt so much anymore, even if he couldn't help but eye a few women every now and then. He wasn't dating, after all, not uninterested in women.

She gave him a suspicious glower.

"No, really. I was told I should stop teasing the women because they were starting to be hostile toward each other." And that wasn't a lie; it was just a version of the truth that didn't involve Iris.

Zero hoped he could wrap this up soon, he was starting to lose his composure and he did have a mission to finish. With Era as his Navigator. What a pain. But, if she was serious about making amends then he couldn't begrudge her for much longer.

"Era, look, I don't know if you actually believe me—" Which was okay because he didn't believe her either. "—But I have a mission waiting for me and if I don't get in that room soon, then…" Either Signas or Alia would have his hide.

Era hesitated for a moment before bobbing her head in acknowledgement. With a sigh of relief, Zero turned and entered the strategy room. A piercing gaze immediately focused on him. Signas gave him a look that was both stern and puzzled, and Zero couldn't blame him; he'd all but begged for this mission and yet here he was, late. Zero just shook his head, freezing when the door opened up behind him and his Nav came in.

Era moved silently behind him as she went to take her place beside the other Navigators. Something like understanding crossed Signas' face, and, with that, the unspoken subject was dropped.

Zero was given a run-down of his mission again: C-rank, destroy a few dangerous mechaniloids, come back in one piece. Simple enough. Alia whispered good luck to him, but all that did was fill him with a sense of dread. He'd been so eager to get back out on the field, and yet, now he wasn't so excited anymore. What if he messed up again? What if he got someone else hurt? What if it really was the Virus acting up again, but only in the heat of a mission when he was too occupied with surviving to notice it? What if it reared its head again while he was rescuing—

Let it go.

Zero held back a groan as X's words came back to him, earning him a look askance from Alia. I know, X, he thought. I know.

X would kill him if he knew he was still worrying over this, or at least give him a disappointed look. Zero hated the disappointed stare, it was piercing. Not as much so as, say, X's saber, but it seemed like a close match at times—Well, no, that was dramatizing things. However, his conscience-X was right, he shouldn't be worrying so much before starting a mission. He needed to concentrate, to do well.

To Zero's vast surprise, Era preformed her job properly, and he didn't slip back into his anxious line of thought again. This proved to be a killer combo because he finished eradicating the mechaniloids in record time. Well, record time for anyone who wasn't Zero; for Zero this was merely average. It still pleased him anyway, so, after giving Era a somewhat curt thank-you, Zero left for his living quarters in high spirits.

_Axl_

It started with a foreboding message of "I know what you did". Axl had immediately run to X; he hadn't wanted to disturb the wounded unit, but Alia had left for work so he was the only one left. X had asked him what he'd done, and then muttered something about him probably deserving it. Axl protested that he did not deserve to be brutally murdered by a psychopath, and X had responded by leveling him with a flat stare. He wouldn't find any help there, though X had said that, yes, he could hide under his bed if things got to be that bad.

The gunner retreated to the living room then, creeping about as if expecting Zero to pop out of a shadow and tackle him. He locked the front door and peered out into the hall, waiting for his blond reaper. Axl waited there, tense and anxious, for thirty minute, an hour, two hour—just ten minutes? Really? X had always said he was impatient, but geez.

And then he saw him. Zero was furious; it was easy to tell by the blank, but somehow slightly peeved, look on his face, and the way he held his shoulders. And he was staring right at the door—at Axl? No, that was impossible; he was just watching the door, right?

It was a terrible thing to watch, like a lion mowing down a tiny gazelle—no, no, maybe not that terrible, he thought. But then he saw Zero's wrathful blue eyes and decided that maybe, just maybe, it was.

Zero tried the door, but nope, it wasn't letting him in. Axl wasn't letting him in, he had self-preservation instincts—good self-preservation instincts, despite what X thought. Axl allowed himself a moment of relief as he watched Zero glare angrily at the door, having been thwarted in his attempts to take Axl's life. There was no way he could get in now, after all, Axl had—

The door slid open. A very un-manly scream came from Axl then. Though, if you asked him about the incident, he'd deny it and say it was plenty masculine. Not that he was ashamed of it; the idea of an angry Zero was enough to make some grown units queasy, and Axl had an actual angry Zero out for his blood. He'd reacted pretty well, given the circumstances.

Then Zero appeared, nearly seven feet of rage and killer intent, glaring murderously down at him. Axl did the most logical thing he could think of and ran. Zero caught him quickly enough, one hand in an iron grip on the collar of his shirt while he squirmed and howled for assistance.

"Ahhhh! No! Bad Zero! Put me down! Help! Murder!"

"Shut up, you miscreant, you brought this on yourself!" He snarled, shaking him vigorously. Axl had, indeed, and he knew it.

"I've done nothing!" He protested loudly. "Besides, nothing is worth bringing Hell down on my head!"

"Oh really? Nothing? So, why did Era tell me that she knew I was dating X?"

Axl froze, mentally swearing, because, yes, that had been his fault. And then he burst into laughter as he registered exactly what Zero had said.

"She believed me?! And she said that? Was it in public?"

Zero's already displeased expression morphed into a snarl, causing Axl to freeze in terror. Okay, so maybe he'd brought that on himself. "Now, wait a minute, you wouldn't kill your buddy, right?"

The blond actually growled at him and Axl recoiled nervously. "Why in the world would you tell her that?"

"Uh, because it's funny? Besides, it got the fangirls off your back for a bit!"

Zero paused, maybe because he was suddenly struck with gratitude—Axl fell to the floor with a thump, terror bubbling in his chest as he heard Zero's furious growl and felt something press on top of his back with crushing force. A saber lit up, Axl screamed again.

Then he heard the voice of an angel.

"Zero! Not on my rug, do you understand? And if I find so much as one stain…."

He was so grateful that he was sorely tempted to kiss X. Except, then Zero would turn his own rumor against him, and he'd probably have proof. Axl tried to slink away while Zero was grumbling under his breath, upset at being scolded by X; but then, who wouldn't be? Despite his childish appearance, and his occasional behavior to match, X was the elder, and something like a parental figure to a lot of younger units.

"Hey!" Zero barked as he noticed his prey trying to slink away.

Axl yelped and ran, bolting for X's room. Zero stomped after him. "I'm not through with you, kid!"

By the time he arrived, Axl was already draped across X's lap with the older unit staring down at him like he'd suddenly sprouted another head. Zero growled at him again, like a feral wolf eager for his blood. Which he was. But, as if they were playing a game of hide-and-seek, X was "safe", and Zero didn't move to attack him.

"What in the world are you two doing?" X sighed, reaching up to gingerly rub the injured side of his face.

"Dishing out justice," Zero explained, eyes never leaving Axl. "So you're a lap dog now?"

"Yes," Axl said flatly. That was better than dead.

"Axl…." X groaned, clearly not in the mood for their antics.

"Is he hurting you?" Zero asked dangerously, and Axl had to bite back a yelp as his glare intensified.

"No. But can both of you behave, please? Axl, apologize and don't do it again, alright?"

The redhead grumbled and sat up, glaring at Zero from over X's head. "…..Fine. Even though it was hilarious, perfect, and well-deserved—"

"Axl."

"….Sorry. I won't do it again." Any time soon, at least. And that was the best Zero was going to get.

Zero stared him down for a few moments, utterly silent, waves of killer intent rolling off of him. And then he leaned over them. For a moment he was terrified he was going to get his head punched off, but, instead, he was on the receiving end of a relatively gentle whap on the head. He deserved it, yes, but boy was it worth it. He only wished he could have seen the look on Zero's face.

_Z_

Over the next few weeks, Zero took on increasingly difficult missions. Era maintained her status as a good Navigator, but both Zero and Signas were reluctant to let her off for her previous behavior. The Supreme Commander often remarked that he was surprised he hadn't fired or demoted her yet. Zero felt like a cad for agreeing that she deserved it, especially given she seemed to be trying so hard to make it up to him and befriend him now. That sort of behavior just couldn't be tolerated, doubly so in this establishment.

Still, Zero eventually let his guard down around her, and she didn't stab him in the back for it. Her hard work to redeem herself was admirable, Zero had to admit, but he was still reluctant to accept her offers to go out. As friends, she insisted, but even then he usually denied her. And then he decided to try, just once. After all, he was bored.

Apparently she was a young unit, just over a year old, and a sniper model, much to his surprise. She also had some skill with a beam knife, though it didn't hold a candle to his saber. Era had been raised in a research facility, one run by Reploids, so that explained why she was a little more geared toward relationships than some of the other Hunters and Navs. Reploids pre-loaded with information—rather than learning as they aged, as X and a few others had—tended to be cooler and more machine like. But that was to be expected given they were usually the production line type, meant to be flung straight into whatever task they were built for. X was vehemently against this sort of treatment, arguing that they were sentient beings who needed at least some emotional guidance and nurturing to perform their best. It didn't look like it was a practice that was going to be dropped any time soon.

He liked Era, he decided. At least quite a bit than before; but he wasn't sure if he could date her. He was still incredibly peeved with her childish tantrum from before—as it had almost gotten him killed more than once, after all, he had a right to be angry. And then there was….

Zero grunted and shrugged off everyone's attempts to discuss Era with him, he almost always responded with "It's nothing." Or, "We're not together if that's what you want to know." He was almost afraid she'd blow up on him again, but she seemed to understand, frustrated as she was.

He saw less of Axl for about a week after attempting to kill the redhead, and then things were back to normal—minus X limping around like a pathetic, wounded duck. He was almost entirely better: He had full use of both hands now, and his right eye was only a little blurry now, the burns on his torso had healed as well. But his leg remained an issue. X's Lifesaver insisted that it would heal on its own without anything needing to be replaced, and X was content to meander around and get paperwork and personal things sorted out. So everyone was happy, if a little concerned still, and things were slowly settling back into normalcy.

Until Zero found out Era wasn't going to be able to Navigate for him anymore, at least not for a while. She'd caught a bug, apparently, and was to be reassigned once she was better. He was suddenly Nav-less and frustrated. He liked his missions, they were great stress relievers, but now he was being told he couldn't take missions anymore. Well, honestly, he wasn't, but he doubted he'd be let out in the field in a serious mission without a Nav.

To his surprise, the day after hearing the news he was given a somewhat challenging mission—a few nameless, low-ranked Mavericks that had holed themselves up in a small compound. And he apparently he had a replacement Navigator. Well, that was wonderful because that meant they'd gotten more transfers from over bases, right? They'd sorely needed some new Navs.

He was told to hurry, and so he teleported to the mission area without greeting his Navigator. He didn't even have any idea who they were as Alia hadn't told him as much as a name to go by. Well, that could be rectified soon enough, given how easy the mission was proving to be.

Zero's Navigator was very quiet, discreetly letting things drift over to Zero's HUD rather than blurting out warnings. It was both a relief and a little disconcerting, but Zero carried his mission with little issue—until he was about to enter the compound and confront the Mavericks. Then he heard a tense, verbal alert of "Above you."

Zero immediately looked up in spite of his was a lupine mechaniloid hurtling down toward him; despite his surprise, he was able to easily dispatch it. It might have been powerful ordinarily, but its dive left it wide open to his saber; it was soon lying on either side of him, split neatly in half.

The blond Hunter paused for a moment before pressing inside, muttering, "So this is what you're doing to keep yourself occupied these days?"

"I like making myself useful," X responded easily. "You don't sound pleased to hear me,, but you're not getting rid of me easily, Zero. And try to concentrate, you're on a mission, remember?"

Zero let his lips quirk into a sharp, fleeting grin. Era's sick leave was either going to be terrifying or stupidly fun.

_AN_

AN: We're actually pretty close to wrapping up this story, actually. Please tell me what you think, and if there's a fic in particular that you'd like to see me focus on next. Remember, reviews are awesome~