"You can come in now."
Aile looked over at Mikhail, who had just appeared standing inside a nearby door. About an hour had passed since her and Grey's conversation, the young Mega Man still clutched in her tired embrace as gentle daylight played off his features. The Model ZX Mega Man's arms were sore, but even so she managed to give the Legion leader a polite, if wan smile. Mikhail noticed this, tilting his head in amusement.
"It seems that one of you is a little tired, no?"
Aile gave him a small smirk, "Two of us, actually."
Mikhail's face split into a sympathetic grin, "Bring him in here then, we have some spare chairs. Poor dear, can't be good on your back holding the lad like that." The kindly old man motioned as if to usher her into the room. "By the way, I was wondering..."
"Yes?" Aile asked, following him into the small yet comfortable space.
"I was hoping that you could ask Model Z some questions. For the most part we've succeeded in calming the Mega Men and him down, but they refuse to talk to us about what happened. Would you be so kind as to assist us with that?"
She nodded, "That's fine with me. I've been looking forward to talking with Model Z anyways."
They stopped at a long, thin table. The room was like an interrogation room, bland, although the chairs around the table were cushioned. Aile placed Grey in one of the chairs before taking stock of the room and its warm gray colours. She turned to look at Mikhail.
"Where is everyone?"
Mikhail responded simply, "Well, since we couldn't calm them down completely, we decided to give them rooms for the night. I just sent off for Model Z, so he should be here any-"
"Aile!" a small red zephyr raced into the room, stopping to float in front of Aile. "I'm so glad you're okay!" The small biometal looped around in pleasure and relief before rotating somewhat to view the nearby occupants, "It would seem that Grey is okay too!"
"Model Z! Me, okay? I was worried about you!" Aile held out her arms, letting the biometal float just above her palms.
"Worried about me? Aile, you know me better than that. Would I really get myself into a situation that I couldn't get out of?"
"..." she frowned at him, an unimpressed look on her face.
"Come on, you can't still be mad about that, can you? It was only once, and it wasn't even my fault!"
Her stare continued.
"Alright, alright, I sometimes get into trouble that I can't get out of. Happy?"
"I don't know... I say we ask Model X." She reached into her jacket's pocket, bringing out a blue, box-like object. "So, what do you think?"
The object began floating, a plain, gentle face turning to face Model Z, "I may not have my memories, but my systems seem to recognize that you always get into suicidal dilemmas."
"Oh sure, side with her," Model Z grumbled.
"Only because it's true!" Model X chirped.
"Shut up already, you annoying blue midget."
"You're not much taller than I am, you know."
"I said shut up!"
Aile beamed as the two had their usual argument, the good humour evident on her face. Mikhail also smiled, facing the Guardian leader, "It seems that this is quite a happy reunion! Alas, since I can't hear half of what is being said, I feel like I'm intruding! Perhaps I should leave?"
Aile turned to him, still smiling. "No, you aren't intruding! Please don't feel that you have to leave."
"No, no, that's quite alright. I have some other business that I need to attend to anyways. Busy busy as always, you know. Just brief me later on Model Z's response, alright? I'll be seeing you, then!" Mikhail left the room with a friendly wave, heading down a hallway.
Model Z looked at Aile, "My response? What does he mean by that?"
She looked back at him. "What Mikhail meant is that he wants me to ask you about what happened."
The biometal stayed silent for a moment, "You mean, what happened between the time I left you, and the time I got here?"
She nodded. Model Z was quiet for a while, not responding. Then he spoke up again, "I'd rather you not tell him everything that I'm about to say."
Aile nodded again. "I'll tell him what he needs to know, and no more. I trust him, but I also know you have your reasons. Are you okay with that?"
"Yes. Thank you."
Model Z hummed approvingly then began explaining about what had occurred, starting from when he "froze" the Mega Men to the moment he arrived at Legion, and then some. After he was finished, Aile let him rest in her hand.
"So, when you felt that aura, you came here as soon as possible?"
"Yes."
"Do you think that the aura could be a surviving Model W?"
He paused, "No. I did not feel the aura of a single Model W. They were all destroyed during the crash. That aura... It was something else, something far worse."
Aile's eyes opened wider, "Something worse? What could be worse?"
"I don't know. My body, if you can call it that, recognized the presence. It was my body that told me that the thing, whatever it was, is far more powerful than any single Model W we've faced before. Although, I doubt it could be more powerful than Ouroboros was before the crash."
She scratched her chin, "That your body remembered something you couldn't... This is troubling news."
"I agree," blinked Model X, who was floating by Aile's shoulder. "Hey Z, if we ran across whatever it was, do you think you'd recognize it again?"
"If it was using a large enough amount of energy, then possibly."
"Good. When we have time, we should focus on finding it."
"Agreed!" they exclaimed together. Just then, Grey began to stir, soft green eyes blinking ponderously as he awoke.
"Hey, Grey. Up so soon?" Aile asked. Grey glanced over her way, rubbing down some wayward hair.
"Well, it wasn't very comfortable. It felt like I was sitting on a rock."
"Mmf!"
"Huh?" He looked down at the seat of his pants.
Aile peered at him quizzically, "Excuse you?"
Grey kept looking at his pants. His eyes shot open. "Model A!" His hand shot into a pocket on the back of his shorts. When he brought it out, a quivering biometal was in it.
"About bloody time! What the heck was that for? I was taking a nice little nap after our battle, and I suddenly end up squished! What did you do, anyways?"
Grey looked away, sheepish. "I think I sat on you-"
"Sat on me? SAT ON ME! You jerk, that's no way to treat a powerful biometal like me! That's it, I'm out of here, you ungrateful Mega Man!" With that, he began gliding swiftly towards the door.
"Model A-!"
BANG!
Everyone in the room was silent.
"...Uh, Model A? I think you're supposed to open the door before you use it..."
The multi-coloured biometal lay face down against the floor. "I'm not talking to you."
"You just did."
"Shut up."
Aile shook her head as she placed one of her hands on it.
After they were finished with their conversations, Aile went to Mikhail and reported what Model Z had told her, excluding a few key points Model Z warned her about, specifically the familiarity of the new aura. The Legionnaire thanked her, offering her a place to stay for the night. She accepted since the Guardian Base was docked for repairs. The day passed quietly with nary an incident, and she soon retired to her quarters. Grey came in with her, quietly plonking himself down to sleep in a bed beside hers.
In the morning she woke up, fully refreshed from the comfortable housing. She stretched languorously before looking over at Grey. He was shivering, undoubtedly because his bed's covers had fallen to the floor some time last night. She got up and grabbed the covers, placing them over him. He smiled, quickly snuggling under their warmth. Aile gently ruffled his hair before wandering over to a window. The city looked like it always did, bright, white, and shining.
And deep inside, she felt that today was a new beginning.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
The day was fresh and calm, the sun casting gentle rays as it rose ever higher into the air. Gentle, cold breezes whisked young looking clouds along the horizon, a mist rising from the waterfall central to Hunter's camp. One apartment in particular, home to a peculiar group of Hunters, caught the sun's gaze.
The God of Destruction was still as stone in the morning's light, his head bowed in thought. A low shuffling was heard, soft footsteps breaking him from his reverie in the dull glow of the rising sun. "Oh? Morning. Up already? Huh." Diamond sauntered lazily into the living area, his eyes somewhat hooded as he struggled to wake up properly. His normally spiky hairdo seemed like a mishmash of frizz and tangles, the white strands splaying randomly about thanks to a severe case of bedhead. Omega turned to face him, alert but calm.
"Hey, Diamond, can I ask you something?"
Diamond glanced over at Omega, giving a dopey morning nod. "Sure, anything." He walked into the kitchen area, rooting around in the fridge lazily.
"Is there somewhere around here where I can make some money?"
The chinking of glass objects was heard, the group leader raising his head to gaze curiously at the red reploid now that the fridge's cold air had woken him up somewhat, "Money? If you want to make money, just ask around. There's lots of people in the camp that'll pay you to do an odd job. Another place to look is Legion. They have a big job board full of well-paying stuff, although those jobs tend to be a bit tougher."
"Thanks," He got up off the couch, heading towards the door.
"Whoa, where're you going?" Diamond half-yelped, much more awake now that his brain was back in action, "You're gonna miss breakfast!"
Omega didn't even turn around. "Out." With that he exited the apartment, heading to the elevators.
Diamond watched the door closely, staring at the blank portal for a while after Omega left."Weird guy. Hope he'll be okay? Ah well, like I said yesterday," Diamond returned to the food at hand, "more for me!" He began cooking breakfast with gusto.
x-x-x-x-x
A trio of birds chirped as they flew upwards towards the sky. The rag-tag Hunter's Camp buzzed with activity despite the early time, people bustling about and shouts rising about the mumble of many normal conversations. As Omega looked around people bartered, laughed, and told stories to each other. The jovial atmosphere was infectious to most of the residents in the area. But Omega, surly as ever, was unimpressed. Looking for a job here would be a mission in itself. He stopped in the middle of the road, hoping to get a better view of potential employers.
Within a few minutes, his keen senses had alerted him to an elderly man, a scientist of some type, asking stuttering questions to various passerbys. Most of those he asked shook their heads and walked off, the rest laughed. Curious, he went over to investigate.
When he was within hailing range he called out to the scientist, "Hey, you! Old man!"
The man jumped and looked around, alarmed.
"Over here! I want to ask you something." The man spotted Omega, retreating somewhat at the intimidating figure stomping towards him.
"Y-Yes? What w-would you like...?"
Omega stopped in front of the odd person, having to look down because of the man's short stature. He had scraggly, pale facial hair that denoted both age and a fair bit of wear and tear. Omega didn't really give one hoot about this though, instead glaring down at him ruthlessly, "You seem to be asking a lot of people questions. I would like to know what those questions are."
The scientist seemed surprised, but quickly gathered his composure while adjusting his glasses, "I was just asking them for some help, is all. I've discovered some old ruins and I want to excavate them, but me and my archaeological team are worried about raiders attacking."
Omega raised his eyebrow. "Raiders? What do you mean?"
"You, know, those low-life scum who keep attacking others and stealing things to sell on the black market. One particular band, the Corpse Sparrows, keeps hounding my group. They know that we've uncovered a potential treasure-trove of goods, and they're waiting for us to excavate it before they move in and steal it all. No good, parasitic..." He mumbled on angrily, oblivious of his audience member.
"If someone were to take the job, how much would they be paid?" interrupted Omega.
The man mused, "Well, good help is hard to find, so if someone were to take the job, then... They would be paid well, I suppose. So long as they did well of course," he answered. Omega scratched his chin for a moment. The eviction notice had said that the tenants of room 311 and 312 had one week to pay a sum of three thousand. A lot of money, but...
"How about three thousand?"
The man looked at him, eyes open wider than usual, "That much? Well, uhm, s-sure I guess, but there'd have to be some major conditions attached."
Omega eyed him suspiciously, "What kind of conditions?"
"It would have to be paid in cash, the recipient would have to be an exceptional worker, and keep things extraordinarily hush-hush, if you know what I mean..."
The white-haired reploid raised his brow again. "And why would things have to be kept quiet?"
"Well, uh, you see..." his voice trailed off.
"You wouldn't happen to be a raider too, would you?"
"..."
"I knew it. No wonder why no one else has taken the job yet!"
"You're right. No one has taken the job because no-one wants to work with a raider. I guess we'll have to risk being attacked..." the man began to walk off dejectedly.
"Hold on. I commented on why no one else has taken the job. I didn't say that it bothered me."
Stopping abruptly, the raider turned around, his eyes wide once again. "Are you saying... that you'll accept the mission?"
Omega gave him a menacing smirk, sending chills down his spine. "If you'll pay me what I've asked, then sure. I'll do whatever you need me to."
"Your price is high, but if you can guarantee quality work, then it's a deal."
"Fair enough. When do I start?"
"How about right now?"
"Fine with me!" Omega cracked his knuckles, his blood coloured eyes gleaming demonically. With any luck, he thought, I might get to kill again! He smiled, canines glinting.
"Well then, we'd better get going. Follow me." The man walked off, pointedly ignoring the killer aura his new companion was now exuding, and leaving Omega to follow. The crowd around them ignored the two business partners, more intent on their own affairs.