About 10 minutes earlier...
Axl tapped furiously on one of Troia Base's computers. From what X and Zero has taught him, he knew at least the basics of how the target range functioned. Regardless, he wasn't about to lose (again) to some girl from nowhere. Kylie had come to watch this session, which was fine with him. Hey, he could focus when he felt like it.
The girl in question tapped her foot, a mix of impatience and confusion plastered on her face.
"Are you done yet? I want to beat you again."
With a growl of frustration, he finished and headed to the set of targets.
With another set of targets aligned, Axl fired a volley of shots at them, in the blink making them a nothing more than a memory.
"Ha! Beat that, Princess!" the navy gunner taunted, spinning his handgun just to show off. The targets reset with the press of a button.
Annoyed, London closed her eyes and focused. Upon opening them, her hands moved like lightning. She pierced every target at double the speed of her mentor. For the second time in as many days, Axl found his mouth wide open.
"I win," the girl noted, but stopped when she saw his frozen state. Now, she just felt awkward. She looked to Kylie, baffled.
"Um, does this always happen?"
"Let me handle this." Kylie calmly walked up to Axl, produced a metal staff from (seemingly) nowhere, and swifly whacked him across the leg.
"Gah!" He grunted in pain, hopping on one leg. "What was that for?"
The little girl merely shrugged. "Hey, you were frozen, and it was awkward to look at."
When he calmed down, and realized that London had been laughing at him, he glared at her. "Why don't you shut up, Princess! You may be a little bit faster on the draw than me, but let's see what you've got when it comes to accuracy."
Within about two minutes, London and Axl were both at each other in the heat of competition. Kylie watched them longingly, occasionally eyeing her staff. She knew that arguments like these were what began friendships. Unfortunately, if she revealed the real reason she was here (or rather, when), this friendship wouldn't get very far. Neither would the Maverick Hunters. Scenes like this made her wish she was just an ordinary girl.
Present time, a hidden laboratory...
Black stewed in his private chamber deep in thought. Having reviewed X and Cody's recent conflict with Boomer Kuwanger, he considered his options. Sure, X seemed very much battle-weary, but Cody seemed weaker and more psychologically malleable. In fact, he realized, if he wanted to get the Hunters where he needed them to be, he would need some old data to use to… tug on their heartstrings.
You're planning to use dead reploids?
He knew the source of the voice. A brutal warlord that was responsible for this world's suffering for decades now.
"Yes. I would mostly need access to Repliforce data sources. Certain ones."
You'd better make this good, worm. My powers are being stretched thin as it is.
While Black would've rather killed the source of this voice if he was able, but he did need his power to survive as well as put his plan into motion.
"This won't be intensive. All I'll need is to get the… the boy around my finger. And then, the rest will follow.
Do not fail me, old man. You should be well aware of what happens to those who do.
"Yeah, yeah." The voice faded away with Black's answer. He looked to his drones invisibly flying and recording events involving the Hunters.
"Move over, Maverick Hunters," the man said to himself, smirking. "This world's true savior has arrived!"