Who I Am. (OT, MM:ZX, AA. G)

[TheWebbuilder]

A.N.: Well, I figured that I'd try my hand at a MM:ZX novelization. I've got a gut feeling that this is going to be just a touch darker than the other things that I've written, but I don't expect it to be any worse than Axess was. So if you were able to stomach Axess then you should be fine here.

I just wanted to explain that I didn't go into a whole lot of detail in this chapter, primarily because this is just the prologue and I'll be explaining it and the events that transpire in future chapters.

Begin!

Soon.

It wouldn’t be long now.

Protectus studied the land below him; much like a chess master would study a game board. The humans and reploids milled about like the pieces of the game, and very soon they would be falling beneath his soldiers as he played out his strategy.

The huge robot nodded the two centimeters that his mighty armor would allow his head to move. It was exactly as his master had said; they were oblivious, helpless, just waiting to be picked off. It was for their own good, they had suffered enough over the course of time. It was long past due for someone to ease them of their suffering.

The bulky Reploid was built for strength and power; his limbs were short and thick, his head built close to his body, his armor plating could withstand almost anything. He was a powerhouse, a massive force that would carry out the events that would propel mankind to new heights.

It would be done.

“So, we ready, yet?” An unwanted voice shot up Protectus’ audio receptors and shattered his train of thought. “What’re we waiting for?”

Protectus slowly turned his massive frame around to look that long-armed purple annoyance in the eye. His partner was built to resemble a monkey- and he certainly acted the part.

“Purpill,” The gray robot growled. “The master has stressed to us the importance of maximizing those involved in this venture. We must wait for the crowds to thicken, the fear to grow, the seeds to sprout. Once they are in place, then we will make our move.”

“Yeah, but when?!” The second-in-command whined. “How long are we going to stand around here waiting?”

“Not much longer,” Protectus turned back to survey the game. “Not much longer at all…”

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“Giro!! Where on earth are you!?”

The blond-haired man winced and pulled the phone away from his ear. Even at arm’s length he could still hear that angry voice blaring from the receiver’s speaker. Sighing, he adjusted his half-glasses with his free hand while he waited out the angry torrents issuing from his client. He’d been down this road before and knew exactly when it would end: the client would exhaust himself and cease speaking, only then would Giro be able to get a word into the conversation.

While the words continued to pour from the telephone, Giro let his gaze wander over his equipment. The trailer was still securely attached to his bike, the connections were still tight, and the door still sealed. His red motor-bike was none the worse for wear now that he had replaced that faulty coolant pump with one that worked. Although he was grateful that he’d fixed the problem before it had blossomed into a major disaster, he was more than a little annoyed that the pump had deteriorated to such a bad condition before he’d noticed it. He’d have to be more careful in the future, it wouldn’t do to have a blowout and get stranded in the middle of the Outer Realm.

An annoyed feeling began to eat at Giro. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he felt like something was wrong. Slowly he looked over his equipment; it was exactly as it had been five seconds ago. His eyes traveled over the nearby brush and woodwork, seeking anything that even seemed remotely out of place…

Every thing was calm and quiet. Not a sound could be heard.

Not a sound...

The phone!

With a start, the blonde realized that his cell phone had gone silent. The client had stopped barking into the receiver, and, by now, had no doubt realized that Giro hadn’t been paying attention.

“Hello!?” The man slapped the phone up against his ear, hoping that he hadn’t been ignoring the client for too long.

“Are you deaf as well as late? Where in blazes are you!?”

The blonde breathed a silent sigh of relief, he was still safe- for the moment.

“I’m not too far out, I’ll be there in about an hour and a half.”

“Then step on it! I’m not going to wait forever!”

The connection went dead, signaling that the conversation was over. With a sigh, Giro dropped his phone into his pocket. He then threw his leg over his motor-bike’s seat and settled himself into the grooved surface.

It was days like this when he was almost tempted to hate his job.

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Children’s pleas for their parent’s attention poked holes in the cover of laughter in the air. The whir of machinery created an undertone of work amidst the pleasure and fun of the amusement park’s visitors and proprietors.

A brown-haired child darted around the strangers and workers as she ran aimlessly around the park. Tears raced down her cheeks to stain her blouse with moisture. Her breath came in ragged spurts while her eyes tried to peer through the building moisture in an effort to discern strangers and workers from the object of her search.

For several moments, the child ran… and slowly but surely reached the conclusion that her actions weren’t helping her situation at all. Her run slowed to a jog, and then to a walk. Her footsteps continued on for several more feet before she stopped completely. Running wasn’t solving anything.

For a long moment she did nothing but try to contain her sobs. Then, devoid of any other worthwhile ideas, she lowered herself to doing the only thing left to do. She screamed at the top of her lungs.

“Mommy!”

No one paid any attention to this screaming child, or offered to help her in any way. Exasperated, she shouted again with the same result.

Unable to take any more of her fear and despair, the girl screamed once more…

“Mommeeeeeeee!”

And, like a gift from heaven, a wonderfully familiar voice responded to her call.

“Aile!”

The girl spun around, her tears changing from terror to joy as she spotted her mother hurrying to her side.

“Aile!” Relief flooding her voice, the mother repeated her daughter’s name as she dropped to her knees and embraced her ten-year-old child. “I’m so glad you’re safe…”

The child didn’t reply; she was content just to soak in the relief of having her mother’s arms wrapped around her.

Maurice didn’t care about any answer, she was just glad to have her daughter back safe and sound. And inwardly she vowed to keep a much closer eye on her daughter in the future so that they wouldn’t get separated again; especially in a place as crowded as this amusement park.

“I’m sorry, Mom…” Aile was finally able to get the words out of her constricted throat. “I’m sorry I got lost…”

“It’s O.K.; we’re both alright, so there’s nothing to worry about.” Maurice slowly stood up. For some reason, she suddenly felt very tired. “And we’re back together again, that’s what matters.”

The brunette child nodded slowly, accepting that statement for the moment.

“Alright, I think we’ve had enough fun for the day.” The mother looked at her watch and noted the time. It was mid-afternoon… and by the time they got back to the settlement it would be dusk. The recent rise of Maverick attacks had her slightly concerned, and she’d prefer it if she could spend the night hours safe in the settlement instead of out in the middle of nowhere on the deserted roads.

“Do you think it’s time to head back?”

“Yeah.” Aile, having no desire to get lost again, agreed. “Let’s go home.”

The two joined hands and began walking towards the park’s exit. The rows of inviting festivities, fast-paced rides and colorful attractions had no appeal to the two. The mother and daughter just wanted to get home as soon as they possibly could.

And as it turned out, that would be impossible.

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“Now?” Purprill begged eagerly as his massive arms began itching to do something. One thing he really hated about Protectus was the rhino’s insistence on order and strategy. Purpill had no doubt that he could have this entire mission done and over with in the time it would take Protectus to sit down and think it out; but the boss had put Protectus in charge, and Purprill new what would happen should he try to act on his own.

“Now.” The Rhino Reploid agreed.

With a cry of joy, the ape-like robot bounded forward and easily vaulted over the amusement park’s outer wall. Finally! A chance to do something fun for a change!

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The wall exploded, bricks, ash and soot shot inward and covered the area.

At first, everyone in the nearby crowds turned and looked at the blast of chaos that had entered their festive arena. They all just stared in disbelief at the smoking cloud as it slowly faded away.

A row of five gray and purple robots marched through the hole and emotionlessly stopped to take in their surroundings. Four more groups of five robots entered the park and lined up beside the original four. Without a word, the center robot took a step forward and pointed at the crowd of people.

If any thoughts of danger or impending doom hadn’t yet reached the crowd’s mind, it did when the robots simultaneously raised their weapons and opened fire.

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The earth groaned and heaved, making it difficult for Maurice and Aile to keep their balance. Off in the distance, a plume of smoke shot skyward from the ground as Maurice’s sense of security dropped like a rock. Without being told she knew… the worst fear of every Outer Realm settler was taking place right here and now.

The Mavericks were attacking.

As soon as that realization had hit home, another group of gray and purple Reploids stepped out from behind one of the amusement park’s booths and looked down the row towards the mother and her daughter. Instantly their weapons were raised.

Maurice snatched up her child-

And ran.

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Giro’s blond hair settled complacently against his back as he slowed his motor-bike to a stop at the peak of the mountain. A frown passed over the blond-haired man’s lips as he surveyed the surrounding area.

It didn’t take much to realize what those towers of smoke where in the distance.

Refusing to take his eyes off the scene, Giro watched as another burst of flame lit up the area and constructed another tower of ash in the center of the amusement park. A growl worked its way up his throat.

Without hesitation, the man yanked his phone from his pocket and hit a sequence of buttons that were permanently ingrained into his memory. He slapped the phone to his ear and waited for the object of his call to pick up the phone.

An eternity rode the length of the dial tone, before he heard someone on the opposite end of the line.

Giro didn’t wait for that person to answer. The lives of the people below didn’t allow him to waste any more time than necessary… and maybe not even that.

“This is Giro, Agent Brushfire. We have a Code M at Metrax Amusement Park. I need clearance.”

“You’ve got it. I’ll inform the Commander. Be safe.”

With those three sentences, the blond had what he needed. Hastily he snapped his phone closed, dropped it into his bike’s storage bin and pulled another strange object from his pocket. It was a long and thin object, with a white border and gray and red markings. A small face-like emblem sat in the lower center of the item.

Giro stared into that face for a moment, and then closed his eyes as he opened the channel and connection that he shared with this strange stone.

“Model Z…” The man thought hastily. “I need your help again.”

“I heard.” An non-verbal voice came back to his mind. “My aid is always open to you, Giro. Let’s do what we must.”

With a nod, Giro opened his eyes as he dismounted his bike. There was nothing left to be said. Resolve and determination filled his spirit as he walked to the extreme edge of the cliff face.

“Let’s do it.” The blond snapped his arm forward, holding the colored object at arm’s length. “Rock on!”

The world exploded around him.

Streams of data and energy erupted from the stone, and circled out around Giro. Within seconds the streams had wrapped themselves around the blond-haired man as the power from the strange stone flooded into him. Black protective armoring formed around Giro’s thighs, and stretched downward to meet a pair of red, form-fitting, metallic boots. Red armor locked itself about the man’s torso and shoulder, followed by a pair of red and yellow gauntlets forming over his forearms. A dark purple visor masked his eyes; while a green, white-handled sword materialized in his right hand.

The bands of data and energy shattered away, revealing the transformed Giro, he now had the power of Mega Man Model Z within himself.

Giro’s eyes hardened behind his new visor as he surveyed the destruction taking place below. Without a word he leapt from the cliff and effortlessly dropped down to the valley floor below.

An unlucky Reploid was unfortunate enough to be split in half upon Giro’s landing.

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How much time had passed, Giro, Mega Man Model Z, didn’t know. Nor did he know how many robots and attackers had fallen beneath his blade. All he knew was that every time he took down one, two more would appear. His blade whipped through space… and another stock Maverick attacker.

To his credit, he had managed to make some decent progress. He’d worked his way almost to the very center of the Park, and saved four or five people along the way. But he was frustrated. Mavericks were always lead by a leader, once the leader was removed from the equation; most of the Mavericks shut down and ceased to function.

The difficulty was that he hadn’t come across the leader yet. And the longer it took him to find that Maverick commander, the more people died. Even with the power of Model Z coursing through him, he was only human. He couldn’t be everywhere at once. Yet it angered him that so many were perishing around him, and it was taking him too long to put a stop to it.

Giro ripped another one of those purple attackers apart and easily leapt over a burst of cannon fire from a would-be ambusher. The golden-haired man somersaulted once, and then came down in a blur of red and green fury.

The Maverick fell away from his blade- it wouldn’t be making any more trouble.

And then he sensed it. A movement of air, the force of motion…

The Mega Man, Giro, flew into the air- just as a blue sphere slammed into the spot he had been standing mere moments before. The red-clad warrior crashed feet first into the side wall of a game booth and pushed off it. The momentum changed the course of his jump and sent him flying back the way he had come- right into the path of his new attacker.

The Giro’s blade lashed out, carving an arc of green through the air…

He missed. The purple ape-like Maverick had dodged at the last second.

The warrior flipped in mid-air and slammed into the ground facing his opponent. The large purple Reploid grinned and hooted at him, probably jeering at the thought of someone challenging their slaughter.

Giro didn’t bother to say anything or to translate the robot’s strange speech. This one was obviously the Maverick commander, and the commanders were always the same. They ridiculed you for attempting to stop them and then the vowed to destroy you in one form or another. It was always the same.

The red Mega Man bounded forward, his blade arcing through the air…

The purple Reploid howled and leapt upward, allowing Giro’s sword to harmlessly cleave through the air. Within seconds the ape was launching a counterattack.

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Purprill laughed as he latched onto an electrical cable and began to spin around the line. This red guy was putting up a decent fight, and he was giving Purprill the best time that he’d had in as far back as the Maverick could remember. The ape released his grip on the wire, allowing himself to go flying into, and hopefully flattening beneath his large frame, this red pest who had challenged him.

The purple Maverick slammed into the ground- but his red attacker wasn’t there. A whish of air caught the ape’s attention, and he jerked sidewise just in time to avoid another cleaving chop from the red dude’s sword.

Purprill responded by trying to punch the guy’s face in.

The red guy answered by ducking under the punch and slamming his foot into Purprill’s stomach. For such a little shrimp, the red dude packed a punch. The ape was sent flying backward and he crashed into the side of a game booth, destroying it and anything inside.

A shriek tore from Purprill’s lips as he was forced to dodge out of the way of another sword strike. This guy just wouldn't quit…

The ape snatched up a length of wooden board from the flattened booth and swung it like a baseball bat at his red attacker. The board split into two halves as it slammed into the red man’s sword, and the two halves went flying on either side of the red man without touching him.

Panic welled up inside of Purprill. He couldn’t touch this shrimp! The red guy was dancing around him avoiding everything that Purprill was throwing at him!

In desperation, the ape grabbed another grenade from his belt and hurled it at the red attacker. The red warrior’s blade easily ripped through the grenade, and then…

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Giro, Mega Man Model Z, smoothly landed on the ground; his sword still at arm’s length from his attack.

Behind him, Purprill the Mandroid shrieked in disbelief.

In front of him, the front half of Purprill’s right arm crashed to the ground.

The red warrior turned back to face the Maverick attacker and watched as the ape waved his one remaining arm at him as if making threats. But then the Maverick obviously thought better of it and decided that it wasn’t that great of an idea to continue the fight. The ape turned and ran off, more concerned with saving his hide that avenging his pride.

Giro breathed a sigh of relief. He could hear the Mavericks turning tail and beginning to leave the park; he had survived another battle… and saved a few lives in the process.

An anguished cry ripped through the air, drawing Giro’s attention. It was coming from behind the last booth that the ape had flattened during their fight. It was a young, high-pitched human cry… and that could only mean one thing.

With a sinking feeling, Giro slowly walked around the destroyed shed, and his heart crumbled inside of his chest.

On the ground before him was a panicking ten-year-old girl and her mother.

The child was fine.

The mother was dead.

End!
_________________

[Unknown Neo]

That was nice. And it lends some interesting thoughts to the back story.

[CrimsonZero]

Can't really say anything bad..no really since I don't have a DS or access to the game. Looking forward to the rest of the story!

I'll be reading this story to fill in my knowledge of the ZX world!!!

[TheWebbuilder]

This chapter's not quite as long as the other. But I needed to set the stage for a few things. Enjoy.

Begin!

“Let’s go, Fortemon!”

In response to that cry, a caped figure materialized. The only part of the being that was visible was his head, but even that was hidden beneath a helmet. Two wide fins swept out of his helmet and stretched out a fair distance from his head.

“Let her rip, Rollmon!”

The moment those words filled the air, a pink lady-like being formed in the area opposite Fortemon; the only unique feature about her being the two long ribbons that hung down from her hair. The two beings studied each other for a long moment, waiting on their trainers to tell them what to do.

“Fortemon, let her have a Overloading Darkness!” The first voice cried out.

The caped figure leapt into the air as a sphere of raw power appeared in his palm. Fortemon’s cape whipped back as he hurled the sphere into the ground. Upon contact, the sphere detonated- filling the area with flame and raw energy.

“Rollmon, Teleport and Roll Whip!”

The pink figure vanished from sight, escaping the deadly onslaught. A split second later she reappeared behind her attack and was attacking him with her long hair ribbons. The bands arced about, knocking the caped being senseless.

Fortemon crashed into the ground and lay still.

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“AAAAAAUUGH!!” A red-haired boy tumbled over backwards and crashed into the ground. “You beat me again! Do you know how hard I had to work to find that Fortemon? And you beat him in two moves!”

Aile’s green eyes twinkled as she snapped her portable game closed. Once again she’d successfully defended her title of Regional Exemon Champion.

“You put up a good fight,” The brunette replied sincerely. “Maybe next time you’ll get me.”

“Yeah…” The boy slowly rolled to his feet. “Maybe next time…”

With a cry of “Catch you then!”, Aile took off running. She knew that she shouldn’t have stopped to compete with Jordan, especially since Giro was waiting for her back at the Express. But it was done and over with, and she knew that Giro’d understand. He’d always taught her never to back down from a challenge.

The girl’s footsteps pounded across the pavement as she worked her way along the city streets. It didn’t take her long to find the object of her search- after all, it had been her home for the past several years.

The Giro Express.

To anyone else it was just another warehouse where you dropped off packages to have them shipped for you. To her, it was all the life that she knew. Ever since her parents had been murdered in a Maverick raid, Giro had taken her in and cared for her. Now she was finally able to help him out and pay him back for his kindness.

With a contented sigh, the brunette pushed the door open and entered the building. The lingering smell of smoke didn’t even register in her mind; nor did the occasional cloud of soot. Instead her focus was on the pile of packages resting in the file system’s ‘Out-box’. Giro must have been planning on making a few more deliveries this evening.

Aile stepped through the side door. The scene on the other side of the portal would have been hilarious- if she hadn’t seen it a half dozen times. There was Giro, fire extinguisher at the ready, standing in front of a blackened, battle-scarred stove. The remains of some unidentifiable meat poked it’s head out if it’s foam blanket as it lay in the oven’s center rack.

“I‘m back.” Aile dubiously announced her presence.

Giro stopped eyeing the stove just long enough to glance at his adoptive daughter and nod.

“That was fast, did the delivery go alright?”

Aile nodded.

“It went down fast and easy. No problems at all.” The brunette used a nearby dish towel to wipe off a section of the foam-laden counter. Once that objective was accomplished, she leaned back against the surface and studied the charred oven. “You tried to cook again, didn‘t you?”

“Yeah… well...” Giro chuckled nervously and dropped the extinguisher no the floor. “You can‘t fault a guy for trying.”

“You can if he‘s tried five times in the past and nearly burned down the warehouse in the process.”

“O.K., O.K…” The blond threw up his hands in mock surrender. “I admit it. I‘ll forgo all future attempts at cooking.”

“Sure.” The brunette grinned teasingly. “I‘ve heard that song before.”

Giro grinned back and then surveyed the disaster of a kitchen.

“Alright then… I guess I‘d better go ahead and get this mess cleaned up.” The blond adjusted his eyeglasses.

“You do that.” Aile‘s grin widened. “I‘ll go check the fridge and see what kind of insta-meals we‘ve got left.”

With an approving nod from Giro, the brunette turned to walk to the basement and collect a few microwavable meals.

It was at that moment that a glob of flame retardant foam smacked into her cheek.

“You did not just do that.” Aile pulled the sticky mess off her face and stared at it in disbelief.

“Do what?” All business, Giro was hastily wiping the interior of the stove clean of the white extinguishing ooze. He looked way too serious to have thrown the glob of goo at her.

The teen shot a hard look at her mentor, and then turned to resume her journey.

Another round smacked into her back.

Without a second’s thought Aile spun around, snatched a handful of the material off of the counter and hurled it at Giro. The blonde spun away from the stove and avoided the glob of foam. The man’s hand swept out and another sticky projectile shot from his fingers. The goop sailed through the air and crashed into the side wall- Aile had ducked in plenty of time to avoid the projectile. A laugh burst from her throat as Aile gathered up a handful of material.

Giro’s own laughter was silenced as a round blob splattered over his face. He gagged and blindly returned fire.

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It took them the better part of an hour to conclude their little foam war, and around another hour to restore the kitchen to its former glory. Or as close to the former glory as they could get with a charbroiled stove.

By that time, neither Giro nor Aile was in the mood for insta-meals. Instead they decided to pool their meager stockpile of ECs and stop off at an out-of-the-way café known as Deno’s for their supper.

And, as always, Giro figured that they might as well get something profitable done during the evening and deliver two packages that were supposed to go to that general area.

“Number 329, East Avenue 56.” Aile scanned the boxes’ label and removed it from the ‘Out’ bin. A few more seconds of searching resulted in the discovery of the other parcel. “And 487, East Avenue 23. Got ‘em, Giro!”

The blond-haired man nodded and marked the two packages off as having left the warehouse. He was fairly faithful about keeping the packages whereabouts documented, and that was the way he preferred it.

“I‘ll take number 487, if you don‘t mind.” The man dropped his paperwork on his desk and eyed the oblong package marked ‘487’. “And you can deliver 329. We‘ll meet up at Deno‘s once we‘re done.”

“Fine by me.”

The two mounted their motor-bikes and pulled out onto the highway. A few minutes brought them to the East Avenue. Giro turned his bike the right; Aile went to the left.

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Aile’s eyes swept up and down the houses on either side of the street and then returned to guide her motorbike down the street. It was still early evening so traffic was still relatively light, but that just made her all the more wary of having an accident. She turned to look at the next house, it was number 280.

“Just a little farther…” Aile thought to herself.

Ahead the light clicked over to red, forcing her to bring her vehicle to a stop. As she did so a few mechaloids began hopping and walking across the street. The brunette eyed them warily. She never did like the idea of this new ‘no-questions-asked’ policy; Slither Inc. had enough power as it was without giving them the right to open fire on someone just because they had a weapon.

Maybe a small part of her mistrust was due to the fact that her parents had been killed a few years ago by Mavericks while Slither Inc., and its do-good president, was cooling its heels doing nothing. But by and large, Aile just flat out didn’t like the place or what it did. Slither Inc. left a bad taste in her mouth- regardless of what everyone else said about it.

The light flipped over to green, allowing her to proceed. Aile instantly kicked her bike into gear and shot up the street. She had a package to deliver.

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Giro allowed his bike to idle as he coasted around the corner and into the alleyway. This street could use a little lighting, but that was probably why his client wanted to meet with him here. The walls might have eyes, but they couldn’t see in the dark.

The blonde killed the engine and dismounted the vehicle. Without hesitation he started forward into the blackened street. The client would make his presence known soon enough.

His eyes surveying the territory, Giro looked the place over. Not only was it dark, but it was also dirty…

“Giro!”

The blond man turned in the direction of that hoarse whisper. And to no surprise he found a heavy-set man dressed in white and green combat clothing waiting on him. ‘Heavy-set’ was putting it mildly; the guy looked like a mountain that had wandered away from the rest of his range.

“Ah, Thon. It’s good to see you again.” A grin tickled Giro’s lips.

“Same here.” The giant slapped his large hand against Giro’s back- nearly toppling the transporter over. “You’ve been under too long, Giro. It’s been what… four years?”

“Almost six.” The transporter shrugged. “But that’s not important right now. Here’s your ‘present’.”

Thon accepted the package that Giro had selected to deliver and shoved it into one of his massive pockets. “The Commander’s calling for a meeting tomorrow. You’ll need to be there, pal.”

“I do? What’s this about?”

”Only what you’ve been working on for the past half-dozen years.” Thon shot a look at his friend. “The Commander thinks that she’s finally found the secret to all this madness; we might not need them anymore.”

“If that’s the case, it’ll be better for everyone.” Giro nodded slowly. “Then this masquerade could end… That would be nice…”

“That’s what we’re all thinking. Can you get away?”

“Does a duck swim? You just name the time and place.”

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“This is the place.” Aile turned her gaze from the package to the house in front of her. The place was a little worn, but still in decent shape. It almost looked homely.

The girl dismounted from her bike and headed up the stairs towards the doorway. Her stomach rumbled as she walked, reminding her that she still hadn’t eaten yet.

“Just as soon as this package gets delivered.” The brunette told her rebellious stomach.

Another rumble. Aile ignored it.

By now, she had reached the top step and was reaching out to press on the doorbell button. A musical chime filled the air as she waited on an answer.

“Giro Express!” The transporter called out for good measure.

Several moments passed, and then the door slid open. A scrawny kid stood there, looking up at her with wide eyes.

“Hey there.” Aile smiled slightly at the child. “Are your parents home?”

The kid slowly shook his head. They weren’t.

“Oh, O.K. then. I’ll just leave this with you then.” The brunette held her package out to the boy. “Will you make sure that they get it?”

The boy took the box, then nodded slightly.

“Alright then, uh, have a good night!” Aile slowly backed down the stairwell while the child watched her every move. She felt more than a little weirded-out at the moment; something about this was just down-right creepy.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Aile swept into Deno’s parking lot and began the long process of trying to find a spot to park her motorcycle. As it turned out, that process was drastically cut when she found the Giro was already there- and there was enough room left in his space to squeeze her vehicle into.

Thankful that that hadn’t taken long, and within minutes she was in the building and seated in a dry booth across from Giro. The two placed their order, after making absolutely certain that they could afford the price being asked, and settled back to enjoy the evening.

“So…” Giro asked as he absent-mindedly cleaned his glasses. “How’d your day go?”

Aile shrugged.

“Alright, I guess. There weren’t any problems with the deliveries, everybody paid up for the services… and I made it back on time. Overall, I’d say that’s good.”

“And…?” The blond tried to draw out more of a response. He knew full well how the deliveries went; it was the other parts of the day that concerned him. “What about class?”

“Uh… fine. No real problems with the schoolwork; I think that I’m understanding most of it.”

“That’s nice. But how are things with the other students, are they still giving you a hard time?”

“Who told you?” A spark of annoyance lit up the back of Aile’s eyes. “Was it Ms. Condra?”

“Whoa! Easy there. And no, it wasn’t your teacher.” Giro caught the unbelieving look in his adoptive daughter’s face. “I promise you that, it wasn’t Ms. Condra. Shirley wouldn’t tell me about these kinds of things.”

Suddenly Aile looked like an inflatable toy that had just sprung a leak.

“How much do you know?”

“Enough.”

The brunette sighed again and then dove into the conversation. “Most of them don’t care, but a few people are causing trouble because… well…”

“Because a dirt-poor transporter took you in.”

“Your words, not mine.” Aile couldn’t help but grin slightly at the remark. And for some strange reason, she no longer felt quite so bad about letting Giro in on the situation. “They’ve got me branded as several things… none of which are complementary. But… I don’t really care what they say. My life’s probably better than theirs is any day of the week.”

“Well, I don’t know about that.” Giro shook his head in amusement. “But you honestly aren’t letting them get to you?”

“Nah, they aren’t worth it.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Remember, Aile, no matter what anyone tells you, there are great things in store for you. And someday, you’ll be more than a simple transporter. I can just about guarantee it.”

The brunette didn’t respond, but she did smile a little.

”That brings up another matter.” Giro sobered. “I had an emergency delivery show up on my transponder a few minutes ago. I’m afraid that I’ll have to take it and be gone most of tomorrow. I know this is a bit sudden, but…”

“I’ll be fine.” Aile answered the unspoken question. “You’ve been gone longer than a day and I’ve been fine, so don’t worry. I can take care of myself.”

“I guess that’s true.” The blond couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’ll leave some ECs in the credit bin just in case something happens; just promise me that you won’t leave the C District until I get back.”

“I promise. No Maverick Hunting for me.”

End!
_________________

[Unknown Neo]

That's nice. The relationship between them is very well written. Plus the exemon thing at the start was funny.

[TheWebbuilder]

And here's chapter 3...

Start!

Giro slowly slid his door closed and felt through his pockets to make sure that he had everything with him that he would need. Wallet, keys, ID, his ‘partner’… The blond nodded, yes, he had everything.

The man’s eyes strayed over to the clock resting above the hallway door. It was just past dawn… that was perfect for his plans; the roads would be navigatible but no one else would be around. With a nod of satisfaction, Giro headed down the hallway towards the garage.

Giro paused at Aile’s doorway and made a mental farewell to his adoptive daughter. It was a ritual he had performed for the past six years. Since he really didn’t want to wake her up when he left he would just issue a mental good-bye and go on his way.

His task completed; the blond left the hallway behind and entered the garage. His eyes swept over the area, making sure that everything was in order. Yes, the garage had dropped his usual gleaming red motorbike off last night, which meant that those repairs had finally been completed. Giro breathed a sigh of relief over that fact, the spare motorbike he’d been driving around for the past three weeks was alright, but it was nothing compared to the one he had been driving for years.

The blond man walked over to his prized bike, threw his leg over the side and kicked down on the starter. A quiet hum filled the room as the engine caught onto the starter and came to life.

Giro then pointed his remote at the doorway and hit a button, causing the garage door to swing open. A gentle nudge of the throttle caused his motor-bike to creep forward and within minutes he was out on the open road and heading towards the A District.

Maybe this meeting would solve a lot of their problems… If that was true, then Giro would be able to breathe a lot easier; this deception was beginning to wear on him.

~~

Aile moaned and did the only sensible thing that any rational being would do under the circumstances. She slammed her hand down on her alarm clock’s ‘off’ switch and breathed a sigh of relief as the noise ceased.

Slowly she turned over to peek at the clock. She had an hour to get up, ready and at school… Even when she cut her prep time down to a minimum the morning came way too early for her tastes.

The brunette sighed anew, tumbled out of bed and set about her morning routine. A quick wash and a change of clothes later left her feeling slightly better as she left her room and kicked the door shut behind her.

“Strange…” Aile paused as she realized that something was missing this morning. Slowly she ran through her mental checklist of all morning-related items…

Then it hit her, the smell of coffee was absent. Giro was a caffeine-fiend’s worst nightmare. The poor guy couldn’t get started in the morning without several cups of coffee, and until then you almost wondered if he was even awake… because he certainly wasn’t coherent.

The brunette wondered about this disturbing development for a split second before she remembered that Giro was away on some emergency run. It was slightly strange how those became more and more frequent as time went on… But then, that was expected as more and more territory was lost to Innerpeace and fell to the Mavericks. Some colonies depended entirely on the Giro Express for their sustaining supplies and foodstuffs, without the Express, they would have collapsed long ago.

Aile continued on and headed down into the kitchen. There she was pleasantly surprised to find an automeal resting in the microwave for her, and a note perched atop the electronic device. Curious, she pulled the note off and scanned it.

“Be back sometime tomorrow, you’ve got meals in the ‘fridge and enough EC’s on the company card to cover most emergencies.

No Maverick Hunting while I’m gone, ‘k?
-Giro”

Aile stifled a giggle as she shook her head. Only Giro could write something like that…

A buzz from the microwave yanked her out of her reverie; her meal was done.

~~

A loud crunch filled the air.

Another muted crash echoed as Protectus’ large foot slammed into the floor. A small depression formed beneath his heel as the lumbering giant moved along; but Protectus didn’t notice. His mind was busy on the plans for the morning.

The Catalyst... they needed more of it. And his job was to provide it.

The rhino-based Reploid waddled to the edge of the building and studied the lay of the land. The Inner City stretched out below him; it’s orderly streets and buildings lying in complete ignorance of the disaster to come.

Protectus paused to think through his next few moves in the game. They needed Catalyst... and it was only to be found in the Inner City. His window of opportunity would be small as they couldn’t risk drawing attention to their master yet... If they stayed around this place too long then too many people would start asking too many questions.

And those ‘too’s would not be acceptable.

They would hit and hit hard. It would be over before anyone even realized what was happening.

“Now... This is the time to strike.”

The large rhino turned to face the small force assembled behind him.

"Move out!"

~~

Aile dropped the remains of her automeal into the trash can as her eyes slid up to glance at the clock. She still had another hour before she was supposed to be at school... And if she could make a delivery in that time it wouldn't hurt anything...

The brunette left the kitchen and worked her way through the hallways to the main storage room. Upon her arrival she walked over to Giro's desk and glanced over the list of deliveries lying there. It didn't take her long to find a package that was supposed to be delivered to a location near her school.

Aile collected the package and then made her way over to the garage. Within minutes she was out on the road and leaving the Giro Express far behind… or so she had planned. All that she accomplished on those few minutes was to discover that her own motorcycle had gone on the fritz- it was refusing to start.

In exasperation, the brunette slammed her foot down on the starter again with similar results. Nothing happened.

“Strange…” Aile shook her head as she replayed the previous few days in her head. “It hasn’t been acting up recently… I wonder what’s wrong with it...”

The girl dismounted and began the careful process of looking the engine over. Nothing she saw presented itself as the obstacle that prevented her bike from starting up. Aile continued looking and checking the bike out for several more minutes, and then gave up. Whatever was wrong with the motorbike had to be beyond her mechanical abilities since she couldn’t even find the problem.

Aile swept her eyes over the room, wondering just how she was going to be getting anywhere with a broken-down cycle… when she saw the Express’ spare motorcycle leaning up against the back wall. It didn’t take her long to realize that Giro must have gotten his back from the workshop before he departed, and left the backup motorcycle behind… which meant that it was free for the taking.

With a breath of thanks, the brunette walked over to the spare motorcycle and threw her leg over the saddle. Unconsciously she held her breath as she slammed her foot down on the starter…

A throaty roar exploded from the engine’s cylinders; and a relieved sigh from Aile’s throat. A split second later and she was out on the open road, package in hand and ready to deliver it.

~~~~

A half-hour’s journey brought her to the third section of the A District; and it didn’t take her much longer than that to find the house to which her package belonged. A smile danced over her lips as Aile dismounted her cycle and began heading up the stairs towards the building’s front door.

Upon her arrival, the brunette reached out and knocked on the wooden surface twice.

“Giro Express!”

For several long moments nothing happened, causing Aile to fear that she had shown up at the wrong time. While missing the package’s receiver wouldn’t have been the end of the world (she could always try to drop it off after school), the brunette never liked carrying the box around throughout her classes. The school bullies would target the package and might even destroy it before she could deliver it.

Thankfully, that didn’t happen. The door slid open a crack and a middle-aged man’s face peeked out of the opening.

“What?”

“Uh, I’m from the Giro Express…” Aile held out the parcel and a clipboard to explain her presence. “We received this package for you, if you’ll just sign here…”

“Oh, right, right… I’ve been expecting this... Now if you’ll excuse me…” The man hastily scrawled his name on the delivery slip, snatched his package out of Aile’s hands and bolted down the steps and out onto the street; the screen door slamming shut behind him.

“Have a nice day.” Aile dryly said to the rapidly retreating figure. With another sigh, the green-eyed girl turned to walk down the steps and head towards school.

Fate wouldn’t let her.

A faint hum radiated from the street on the opposite side of the building that she had just come from. The sound drew Aile’s attention and caused her pause as she tried to figure out just what that sound was.

She received her answer when the entire building exploded, erupting into a column of fire, smoke and ash. Aile felt her eyes widening as she reflexively threw her arms in front of her face to shield herself from the shockwave and flying debris. Small stings erupted along her arms as minute particles slammed into her skin; she ignored them, trying to comprehend what was happening.

The figures emerging from the base of the column of smoke answered her questions. They were obviously mechanical- and blatantly unfriendly… This could only mean one thing…

“Mavericks!” The dreadful words ripped away from Aile’s throat, even as she had trouble believing in what she was seeing.

Two more explosions sounded off from somewhere in the distance, and then a fourth made itself known. The Mavericks were everywhere, and they were on the offensive.

The platoon of Mavericks before Aile, all of them purple and vaguely humanoid, zeroed in on her presence… As did the blaster cannons mounted on their arms.

Aile’s eyes widened as she realized that they were targeting her.

“NO!”

A rain of plasma energy leapt away from Maverick’s blasters; it was headed straight for her. Her mind clicked into high gear, overriding her paralyzed muscles. In the nick of time, Aile launched herself into a backward somersault and just avoided her death- the brunette landed on her open palms and pushed off of the pavement to go into another long leap.

She landed behind her motorcycle and a grin. And Giro had said that that gymnastics course in school was pointless.

Aile’s grin vanished as she realized that the Mavericks were targeting her again. Without giving them time to fire again, the girl leapt onto her bike and ripped away from the curb. She was gone before another shot could be made.

Ahead, she could see yet another column of smoke rising into the air… There was no doubt about it, a mass of Mavericks had invaded Innerpeace…

Which meant that there was no such thing as safety.

~~~~

“Move, Move!!” Thon gestured wildly at the panicked crowd that was streaming around him. “Don’t stop for anything, just keep moving!”

It was an evacuation, pure and simple. The Mavericks had struck so hard and so fast that Guardian was caught completely by surprise; the most that they could do now was get as many people out of here as they possibly could. Their orders were simple: hold the Mavericks off while they got the civilians to safety.

A bad taste flooded Thon’s mouth. He despised running away from a fight, but he knew the value of the Commander’s plan.

He just hoped that Giro was somewhere out there making enough of a difference for all of them, because there was nothing that they could do but play escort at the moment.

~~

So far, Aile had done fairly well. She’d managed to outrun the Maverick squads that had targeted her, and avoided injury. If she could just keep this up… for how much longer? Right now her only viable option was to get out of Innerpeace as fast as she could- the relative safety of the Outlands was a safer bet than being in the middle of this death-trap.

The only problem was that the Mavericks had been ready for that move. They’d sealed the city tight; so far she hadn’t found a hole in their perimeter that she could sneak out through.

And as it turned out, her salvation wouldn’t be made by running away. It was created by the explosion under her feet.

Before Aile realized what was happening, the ground beneath her motorbike had erupted into smoke and flame. The force of the explosion ripped her away from her motorbike and sent her flying through the air…

She slammed into the ground a good distance away, and came out of the attack much better than her motorbike did. By the time the machine stopped tumbling, it was obvious that it was done for- she, however, was still in reasonable shape. How she escaped as much injury as she had, Aile never knew.

What she did know was that she was lying in the middle of a street… with a band of Maverick foot soldiers marching down on her. A loud whimper caught Aile’s ears as the brunette forced herself to her feet. The girl looked over her shoulder, and gasped when she found a mother and her child laying on the ground behind her… The mother was holding onto her ankle- apparently having injured it, while the child hovered over his mother in terror.

Then it hit her, Aile froze as she recognized that child; it was the same boy that she had made that delivery to last night!

And then another memory forced itself to the surface of Aile’s mind. Her own mother… in a similar situation…

Not again.

Never again.

The brunette set her jaw. She could probably outrun the coming destruction, but there was no way that she’d be able to just walk off and leave that mother and child to the mercy of the Mavericks. Never again… she wouldn’t let anyone else suffer the way she had…

Unbeknownst to Aile, a strange stone was resting her destroyed motorbike’s side pouch. And it was beginning to glow faintly…

In a second, Aile was bending over the mother and offering her hand.

“Come on, we’ve got to get out of here!”

The mother looked up at her rescuer, and then hastily accepted the offer. The brunette wormed her way under the blond-haired woman, and tried to take the weight off of the injured lady’s bum leg. Together, they managed to move in a fast hobble, with the child trailing close behind.

“We’re not going to make it!” The woman looked back at the incoming wall of soldiers; panic began to lace her voice. “We’re not going to make it! They’re going to kill us! I just know it!”

“Not if I’ve got anything to do about it.” Aile grunted as she continued to drag the woman along. But behind her bravado, the brunette knew that it was hopeless. Without her motorcycle they didn’t stand any chance of outrunning the Mavericks… but they had to try… She refused to just stand there and let death catch up to them, if she was going down, then those blasted Mavericks were going to have to work for it!

The stone continued to glow, it’s intensity slowly building.

Aile risked a look over her shoulder, scarcely daring to hope that a miracle had occurred. Her hesitation was justified; the Mavericks had closed in enough that they were already starting to take aim at them with their blasters. In any moment, it would all be over…

One of the Mavericks brought his weapon up and stared down the length of his cannon at the Aile…

A faint glow of energy began to build up in his blaster…

Aile knew that it was coming, but there was nowhere to run. Not with this injured woman in her arms…

She steeled herself for the coming impact and pain…

A burst of light shot away from her destroyed motorbike and arced through the air. The beam of light whipped through the Maverick hordes and raced the Maverick’s bullet to reach Aile first.

The light won.

Don't worry, I'm here to help you...

Aile felt a scream bursting from her throat as the blase of light engulfed her. The light settled into her palm and dissolved away a strange stone, it looked vaguely face-like, with a raised mound forming a face over a dark blue background. Two green slits formed a pair of eyes, while a duo of long blue lines trailed up and over the back of the stone. The brunette stared at the stone in disbelief, was it actually talking to her?

We're ready, Megamerge!

Aile didn't have any idea what that last word meant, all she knew was that something unbelievably mystical was happening. Knowledge that she had no means of learning flooded her mind, showing her the way out of this mess. The girl raised the stone so that she could look into it's 'eyes', clutched it tighter as she breathed a wish to protect this mother and her child, and then snapped the stone out so that she was holding it at arm's length. Without any real idea as to why, she uttered the first two words that came to her mind.

"ROCK... ON!!"

Streams of light and data exploded away from the stone and circled out around Aile.

BioLink established, M.E.G.A. System online!

The blazing data wrapped itself around Aile, and then shattered away to reveal some startling changes. Blue metalic boots sheathed her legs, while an azure gauntlet covered her right arm. A round Buster locked itself about her left wrist, while a white and blue helmet with a red gem in the forehead materialized over her head.

MegaMerge Complete!

The entire process had taken only seconds.

For some strange reason, Aile understood exactly what was happening. This stone had lended it's mystical powers to her; and now she could use them to save those around her. Acting entirely on knowledge she didn't have a few seconds ago, Aile snapped her Buster up and took aim at the incoming bullet. Her concentration was focused on her own weapon- and almost instantly a bluish-white glow had built up in her cannon's barrel.

"Kuwaaaaigh!!" The charged shot ripped away from Aile's Buster, decimated the incoming attack, and then continued on to demolish a few of the Mavericks that were unfortunate enough to get in the blast's way.

A sober grin passed over Aile's lips as she looked over the Mavericks around her. Somehow, she knew that she could save those around her- and herself.

Because she was Mega Man Aile, Model X.

End!
_________________

[TheWebbuilder]

EDIT: Browser got hung up, my apologies.
_________________

[TheWebbuilder]

Gah, I can't believe I let this fic lay for so long...

Begin!

Another spurt of energy ripped away from Model X’s Buster and took out another cluster of Mavericks. Without hesitation Aile snapped her blaster around and unloaded another Charge Shot on another attacking column. Both targets went up in smoke.

Alright, let’s run through this again. Aile thought as she fired off another blast at her attackers. Behind her the mother and her child were staring at her- dumbfounded. You’re something called a BioMetal who goes by the name Model X. BioMetals have the power to interact with some humans and give them the abilities of old Repliods? And not only are you sentient, you also have the ability to read and interact with my thoughts?

<In simple terms, yes. Four Drillers, 3’Oclock.>

Aile, Model X, instantly adjusted her aim and took out the incoming renegades. Without consciously realizing it, the brunette started charging up her Buster in preparation for the next onslaught.

<… You’re something of an…an anomaly…> Model X said slowly.

<X, I’m fused with a sentient rock; it doesn’t get more anomalous than that.>

<Actually I was… never mind. This isn’t the time…>

Aile shook her head over that strange comment and turned her attention back to the stand off. And a stand off it was since the Mavericks seemed to be completely dumbstruck that someone had dared to stand up to them- and had enough power to pose a threat. At the moment, they were satisfied to just hang back and stare at the brunette Mega Man, as if unable to comprehend that this squirt of a girl was taking out everything that they were throwing at her.

<Eh, X, any idea how to get out of this mess?>

And then suddenly she knew. Memories that weren’t hers came flooding back to her, she saw herself in another situation much like this one… only… she wasn’t the object of the memory. It was like she was looking at the world through borrowed eyes, watching in first-person perspective as a movie scene played itself out.

A strange robot, bearing a strange resemblance to a monkey, stared down at… her? X?

Aile watched as the object of her view turned his head to look at the injured humanoid reploid standing behind him.

Mandrill’s, how did she know his name?, large arm snapped backward and then shot forward at incredible speed. So much so, that it almost looked like the monkey’s fist was dragging the rest of his body along for the ride.

Aile’s perspective changed, and she realized that her host was jumping backwards. The next second, he had the Reploid in his arms and was leaping up into the air. His boots slammed into the wall behind them as he jumped again, this time using the wall as a brace to send him sailing out over Mandrill’s head.

A familiar sphere of bluish energy ripped away from her host’s hand and sailed through the air towards Mandrill…

Aile jerked as she came back to reality. The entire process had taken place in the span of a split-second,

Whoa… mind telling me what that was? The brunette asked mentally.

<They’re my memories. You asked if I had any way out of our present condition, and so I pulled up an old memory of what I did in a previous situation that was similar to this one.> Model X replied. <It should still work.>

Yeah… that’s great… just… how about giving me some warning next time?> Aile stumbled over her thoughts. <It would have been pretty bad if they had jumped us while we were both in dreamland.

<Ah… good point… I’m sorry. I’m still new to this.>

You’re telling me.

<Aile… they’re coming!>

Aile jerked her head up. Model X was right, the horde of Mavericks had grown tired of waiting, and now they were making one last mass attack against her.

“Alright then, here’s hoping that your memories still work.” The brunette hissed under her breath. Aile’s legs retracted and then uncoiled like tightened springs. Her leap sent her flipping over backwards, and she touched down just behind the injured mother and her child.

“Hang on, this is where we leave this party!” Aile picked up her charges, one person under each arm, and leapt for all she was worth.

Although she was able to hide it, the Brunette was astounded as her legs propelled her much higher than she'd expected. Before she knew it, the Mega Woman was at least a story above ground. Without really thinking about it, Aile spun around and kicked at the building behind her. To her amazement the move propelled her up higher and sent her rocketing off at a forty-five degree angle towards the opposite side of the street. As she neared the building located their Aile duplicated her previous maneuver and went still higher.

Aile repeated this process until she was able to vault over the building itself and land on the structure's rooftop. Once topside, the brunette gently released her hold on her companions and eased them to the ground.

"Sorry about the wild ride," Aile grinned uneasily as she looked at the child and her mother. "but it got us away from them."

"What... what are you?" The child looked up at her rescuer; wonder and hope filled her eyes. "How did you... transform like that?"

"Uh, I'm... that's... I'm Aile." The Mega Woman grinned as she came to terms with her new identity. "Mega Woman Aile. And don't worry about a thing; I'll get you out of this."

"Mega... Woman?" The child repeated, turning the name over on her tongue.

<If I could interrupt.> Model X interrupted his host's thoughts. <I suggest that we draw those Mavericks away from here. If we don't then these two will eventually get caught in the cross-fire.>

Good idea.

"Hang tight, I'm going to create a diversion. With any luck, those rust-buckets will follow me away and leave you up here safe and sound." Aile began walking towards the edge of the roof. "Are you guys alright with that?"

"If... if you think that it's best." The mother said.

"O.K. then, I'll check up on you as soon as I can." With those words, Aile bounded over the edge of the roof and disappeared from sight. Acting entirely on instinct, the Mega Woman snapped around and slammed her feet into the building's wall. There was a snap-ckich as Aile's new armored boots clamped onto the wall and provided enough friction to slow her descent.

"Hey, bozoes!" The Mega Woman snapped her Buster out at the hordes and squeezed off a few shots to get her attacker's attention. "Catch me if you can!"

The Mavericks took her up on her words; they immediately began racing off after their armored prey.

Once Aile was satisfied that she had their attention she pushed away from the building and began bounding from one dwelling to another, criss-crossing from one side of the street to the other in order to keep herself airborne. The Maverick's weren't impressed with this feat as they began taking pot-shots at her as she vaulted about above their heads. None of their shots came close to connecting, however, since Aile was rarely in one spot longer than a few seconds.

<Any idea where we're going?> Model X inquired.

Kinda. But so long as we're getting them away from the others I don't care.

<We will have to deal with them eventually. We can't keep running forever.>

I know, what I don’t know is what to do about it.

<Action without foresight is a dangerous thing. Try to have some kind of a plan before you make your move.>

Aile filed a mental note over Model X’s warning. As she continued working her way down the streets the brunette slowly became aware of a startling fact. The number of Maverick bullets filling the air had thinned out… and so were the Mavericks. The hostile robots had evidently grown wearing of chasing this blue-clad figure and were drifting off to attend to other matters.

The brunette dropped to the ground and frowned as she dispatched the last of her followers with a few well-placed Charge Shots.

Did we do enough?

<If by that you mean 'did we draw them away from the hostage?’ Then I'd have to say 'yes'. Mavericks aren't that smart, once we got the hostages out of the Maverick's sight they were safe.>

If you say so. Aile slowly looked around. A vague feeling of danger began gnawing at the back of her mind. So why do I feel so uneasy?

<I'm not- DUCK!>
The Mega Woman dropped to the ground, just as something large, long and hostile whipped over her head. A split second later- a resounding smash ripped through the air. Aile scrambled to her feet and looked up in an effort to find out what had just tried to take her head off. She received her answer when the girl found herself staring up at a large snake-like mechaloid. The thing's body was made up of many circular segments that vaguely resembled vehicle tires. Purple and gray paint covered its body; while green spikes poked out from its body at various places.

<The Leader>

The what?

<The Leader. Mavericks operate on a hive-mind principle; they receive orders and direction from one main 'roid. Take out the leader and the others tend to stop causing trouble.>

So if I take this guy out the attack on the city should stop.

<That is correct.>

"Then that's what I'll do!" Aile snapped her Buster up and pointed it straight at the snake mechaloid, Giga Aspis. Bluish-white energy began circulating about her blaster as she charged her weapon. "I won't let anyone else die. I won't let anyone else suffer! If I have to take out this bucket of bolts then I will!"

Giga Aspis wasn't all that impressed with this statement. He just threw back his head and roared.

"KUUUAAAAHH!" The large energy burst ripped away from Aile's Buster and rocketed through the air... only to ping harmlessly off of Giga Apsis' chest. Aile frowned at her weapon's lack of effectiveness for a split second and then squeezed off two more experimental shots. The two energy bullets just bounced harmlessly off of the 'Roid.

"Its armor must be too thick." Aile said aloud.

<Probably. It has to have some kind of weak spot though. Once we find that we can- WATCH OUT!>

Aile's eyes widened in disbelief as Giga Aspis jerked his head backward and then pitched forward. The snake shot through the air, open mouth first, with the Mega Woman dead in its sights.

"No, you don't!" Aile threw herself to one side, and just barely evaded being flattened by the snake. The brunette's momentum sent her crashing to the ground; however, the girl was able to turn her fall into an ugly shoulder-roll which brought her back to her feet. As soon as she had righted herself, Aile thrust her Buster out and unloaded a Charge Shot. Again her attack just rebounded off of the snake.

<Aile, you also have the ability to Dash. That might help you avoid some of Giga Aspis' attacks.>

Dash? The brunette repeated.

<Dash. Part of Model X's power is the ability to dash forward at intense speed. We can do this because of the two Jet Thrusters located on your back.>
We can, huh? Well then, let's give this a try. Aile kicked herself forward, and was surprised as she was suddenly sent flying forward. As the brunette shot forward a scream of 'WHOA!' exploded from her throat. Aile's eyes widened in fear. Scared stiff over the sudden velocity, the Mega Woman snapped her foot out and dug it into the ground. Almost instantly she came to a complete stop. On second thought, let's hold off on that move for a moment.

<Just remember that you have that option. Watch it!!>

The Mega Woman's head jerked up, only to find Giga Aspis' tail swinging through the air- on a perfect collision course with her head. With a grunt, the girl vaulted aside and escaped being crushed by a wide margin. Aile's jump carried her through the air and towards one of the buildings lining the street. The Blue Bomber kicked her leg out, pushed off of the building and rebounded off into the air. Aile's momentum carried her over the length of Giga Aspis and deposited her in front of her opponent.

The Bomber slammed into the ground just in front of Giga Aspis' face. Reacting entirely on force of her newly acquired habit, the Mega Woman dropped her blaster down to bear on the snake and fired. Her Buster kicked backward as a Charge Shot tore away from the gun barrel and into Giga Aspis' face. The attack detonated against the mechaloid's skin; almost instantly Aspis jerked his head away from the explosion and roared in pained fury.

X, did you see that?

<I did. It looks like Aspis' head is his weak spot. Aim everything we have at that spot.>

You got it!

"Eat this!" The brunette snapped her Buster around and fired again. Another burst of plasma shot through space on it's way towards the Maverick's head; unfortunately the mechaloid was smart enough to dart away from the line of fire and escape the attack altogether.

Roaring, Giga Aspis launched itself forward, mouth agape, towards his opponent.

Aile didn’t have enough time to dodge. Her Buster vanished from her arm, leaving behind her left hand…

Giga Aspis came to a complete stop- and blinked with surprise.

Aile’s two hands held Giga Aspis’ jaw apart; and prevented the snake from finishing its attack run. Sweat began pouring out from underneath her helmet as the brunette struggled to hold the giant snake back from her. It took all of her strength to hold the Maverick motionless.

I can’t believe that worked. Is this the power of BioMetal? I’m holding this mechaloid at bay with my two hands!

<You’d be surprised what you can do now.>

I’ll take your word for it.
Unfortunately, Giga Aspis had no intention of allowing this conversation to proceed. His opponent might have prevented him from moving laterally, but he could still move vertically. The snake snapped his head back at intense speed, pulling his attacker along with it.

The Mega Woman was jerked back to reality as she found herself airborne. Her fingers slipped away from Giga Aspis’ jaws as centrifugal force tossed her into the air.

The snake jerked backwards, jaws open, towards the spot that Aile would land at. His intent was clear- to swallow the Mega Woman before she could get her feet under her.

“Nice try, but no go!” The X Buster reappeared on the brunette’s wrist. The girl revved up a Charge Shot and unloaded it. The burst of energy ripped through the air and crashed into Giga Aspis’ head.

The Maverick jerked backwards in pain.

Aile hit the ground and broke into a dash. Without realizing it, the girl had absorbed enough power from Model X to control the intense speed this time.

“Let’s get one thing straight!” The brunette’s fist flew backwards and then snapped forward to crash into her opponent. Amazingly, the impact knocked the recoiling serpent off balance and sent him tumbling over backwards. “This is our city, not yours!

“And it’s going to stay that way!” Giga Aspis righted himself- only to find himself on the wrong end of a fully charged X Buster. Two Charge Shots leapt through space to do more damage to the snake.

The snake Maverick shook his head once, then spun around and sent his tail arcing about to flatten this pest who dared to attack him. Aile ducked out from under the weapon, bounded onto her opponent’s flattened tail, pushed off from her precarious perch and rocketed through the air so that she was eye-to-eye with the Maverick Boss.

“So you and your hordes can just get out!!” Aile pointed her Buster right at Giga Aspis and fired.

That was the end of the mechaloid.

Unfortunately, that was also the end of Aile.

Giga Aspis’ eyes went dim as the last remains of his strength fled him. Just before shutting down completely, the snake-bot managed to activate his self destruct sequence.

The Mega Woman’s jump carried her back down towards the earth; no sooner had the brunette touched the ground than did a ball of flame and smoke replace Giga Aspis. A mushroom cloud filled the sky.

The force of the explosion sent Aile tumbling over backwards- not even the power of the BioMetal could stop her. She was aware of a terrible impact and a sharp pain in the back of her head.

The brunette blinked, wondering what had happened… and then realized that she was staring down the length of her unmerged body. Her transformation had been lost somehow… and a splitting headache left in its place.

<You did well, Aile.> Model X’s voice came to her thoughts. <I’m proud to have worked with you. You did it. You saved the city…>
Aile smiled softly… and then her eyes slid closed.

Darkness claimed her.

101010101010101010101010101010101

High overhead, perched atop the remains of a skyscraper, Protectus looked down over the city. His eyesight was focused on the small girl lying at the foot of his building, and he studied her as a Chess Master would study some unprecedented move.

“… Interesting.” The rhino-bot muttered.

His master would want to know of this.

End