#what u were doing before. its so annoying. unless the beam of my attention actually sticks to something and im sitting there extremely

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[gsremade]

Since you’re open to request could I ask for a lil rhyiona thingy? Maybe something short and sweet? Thanks in advance unless u can’t do it in which case just ignore me lol

They’re standing at the base of an old signal tower, light from Elpis shining down on the flats around them and reflecting off the parts of the metal framework that aren’t rusted to all hell.

“I don’t like heights,” Rhys informs Fiona for what must be about the hundredth time as they both consider the structure in front of them.

He can see her nod in his peripheral. “I know you don’t.”

“Is that why you neglected to tell me until the very last second that the fuse you needed me to replace was at the top of goddamn Barad-dûr?”

“The top of… what?”

Rhys sighs, bringing up a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Never mind.”

A cool breeze rolls through, making him shiver. As if it wasn’t already bad enough that Fiona dragged him all the way out here at whatever unholy hour of the night it is right now. He genuinely has no idea how she even convinced him to do this in the first place, considering he has a pile of overdue paperwork collecting dust on his desk and a meeting with a potential investor first thing tomorrow morning.

There’s plenty of other things he could be doing right now. Plenty of other things.

And yet here he is, standing around in the middle of nowhere with his shoulders hiked up around his neck and bouncing on the balls of his feet to try to generate some semblance of warmth like a jackass.

“Sooo.” Fiona bumps her hip pointedly against his. “Are we going up or what?”

Rhys scoffs in her direction, fisting his hands in his sleeves. “Somewhere along the line, I think you started severely overestimating how much I’m willing to risk my life for you.”

“Oh, come on,” she says. “It’s not that tall. You wouldn’t die if you fell. Well, okay, you probably would. But it would be quick and painless!”

He rolls his eyes. “That is sooo not reassuring.”

Huffing impatiently, she stomps around to stand right in front of him and plants her hands on her hips. “Look, I told Sasha I would take care of this before tomorrow because we all know how cranky everybody gets when the radio isn’t working. August opens his stupid mouth way more often and Athena threatens to kill everybody at least twice an hour and Sasha spends so much time trying to pry those two apart that nothing ever gets done. Annoying pop music is the only thing that keeps us all from self destructing.”

Rhys thinks- and not for the first time- that he is very lucky to have his own private office. “If you were going to take care of it, then why am I here?”

“Because,” she starts, and then falters for a moment before continuing, “I… sort of broke it even more and now I don’t know how to fix it.”

He blinks a few times. “Broke… what, exactly?”

“The fuse? I think?” she says, but it sounds more like a question than a statement. “It was stuck in there pretty good so I tried to rip it out, but, well.”

She makes this vague hand gesture that he’s not sure actually conveys anything meaningful, but he thinks he gets the gist.

“I know it’s a lot to ask for,” she continues, “but I could really use your help on this one. Plus we’re kind of already out here and it’s a half hour walk back to base, so.” She steps forward to lay a hand on his arm. “Please.”

Shaking his head and trying to fight back the impending sense of doom twisting his stomach into knots, Rhys motions towards the very unsafe looking ladder on the side of the tower. “After you.”

It’s a long way up, the structure creaking and groaning ominously around them and the metal railing shuddering with every tiny shift of their weight. He half expects the entire thing to come crashing down before they even make it to the maintenance platform, but the structural integrity of the tower remains sound and they get up to where they need to be in one piece.

It’s colder and breezier up here than it was down below, but at least the view is sort of nice in its own barren and desolate way. The flat desert around them is cast in a purpley hue, sporadic gusts of wind kicking up sand clouds all across the landscape. Even the sky looks different, somehow more vast and unending than it had looked from the ground.

The ground that is. Very far away. He can see that once he makes the grave mistake of looking all the way down.

Shit.

He stumbles backwards until his back hits the central beam of the tower to get a safe distance away from the edge. Which might have been way more helpful had the platform they’re standing on right now been made of something solid instead of grated panels, because he can still see just how high in the air they are through the slats. He squeezes his eyes shut, willing his heart to stop pounding and his breathing to slow because dammit, he’s fine, nothing bad is going to happen and everything is fine.

But what if it’s not? What if the supports start collapsing, or what if the rails around the perimeter give way and one of them falls, or what if what if what if-

“Hey,” Fiona says softly as she takes his hands from where they’re clenched into fists at his sides and carefully works her fingers between his. “Hey. Look at me.”

“I don’t like heights,” he tells her again without opening his eyes. “I really, really, really don’t like heights.”

“I know.” She runs her thumb over the back of his knuckles, and her hands are so warm compared to his. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t- I didn’t know this would be-” He can hear her take a breath and blow it back out. “It’s okay, Rhys. You’re okay.”

That’s funny, because they’re, like, hundreds of feet in the air right now, which definitely doesn’t feel okay. But he forces himself to focus on the sensation of her tracing shapes over the back of his hand until he feels less panicky and more just incredibly, nauseatingly anxious. Which, frankly, still sucks, but at least it’s a considerable step down from before.

Once he feels like he’s able to, he cracks open his eyes enough to look down at her. She’s watching him so carefully, so tenderly, green eyes wide and searching as she continues to hold his hands in her own. And then she smiles up at him, a little hesitant, a little crooked, but still full and warm and earnest.

“Better?” she asks.

He’s not sure how to answer that. It still feels the same- the paralyzing fear of being in danger of plummeting to his death at any moment. But it’s also different, somehow. Farther away. Like he’s here with her and everything else is just a step or two behind them, looming right over his shoulder and chattering viciously in his ears but never quite able to catch all the way up.

So. Maybe not better, not in the sense that it’s all magically gone away. Maybe just… easier.

“A little,” he finally decides to say for simplicity’s sake, and then clears his throat a bit awkwardly. “I, uh. Might have to throw up here in a second, but-”

She takes a very generous step away from him at that. “Over the railing, not on me, please and thank you.”

Wow. He guesses he just found the limits of her helpful patience. Brutal. Rhys gives her the flattest look he can muster. “I was kidding.”

Fiona gives him an even flatter look in return, clearly disbelieving. “If any of it gets on me, I swear I’ll push you over the edge.”

He doesn’t doubt it. After he’s actually sure he really isn’t going to puke, he turns to make his way around the platform towards the fuse box. Fiona attempts to explain what she did as he struggles to figure out how in the hell she even jacked it up this badly. The fuse she tried to pull out wasn’t even the one that was busted. He tells her as much but she doesn’t believe him, insisting that she, quote, “Knows a blown fuse when she sees one, goddammit.”

Which she clearly doesn’t, otherwise he wouldn’t be having to fix her mess right now. She doesn’t have a lot more to say once he points that out. But she does shoot lots of dirty looks in his direction as he finishes the job she attempted to start, like it’s his fault that she can’t handle the cold, hard truth.

Once he replaces the correct fuse and fixes the one Fiona messed with, the lights on the tower come back on and everything seems to be functional. Rhys lets out a deep sigh of relief when they finally get back down on the ground where they belong, swearing to himself up and down that if Fiona ever asks him to do anything like this again, he’s changing his name and moving to the Southern Shelf to dig a complex tunnel system in a snowbank so he can live out the rest of his life in relative peace.

He’s so busy fantasizing about his future as a hermit that he doesn’t notice Fiona creeping up behind him until she pokes him in his ribs to get his attention. “Hey.”

“Hey,” he gripes back, spinning around to catch her hand before she can jab him again because dammit, she knows how ticklish he is.

But it doesn’t appear that her intention is to start a tickle fight, because she rolls her eyes and shakes her wrist free of his grip to twine their fingers together instead.

“I didn’t get to say thank you before you were hauling ass down the ladder,” she says, taking a few steps closer. “So, you know. Thank you. I mean it. And I’m sorry for tricking you to get you out here in the first place.”

Sighing, he brings his free hand up to tuck a loose lock of hair behind her ear. “You do know if you had just told me, I still would have helped, right?”

“Would you have, though?”

Rhys has to think about it for a second. Like, really think about it. “Okay, yeah, no. Probably not.”

She grins and stands on her toes to press her lips gently against his. He’s not sure if she means it more as an apology or just as an incentive to stop being mad, but either way, it’s surprisingly effective. She lowers herself down to stand flat on her feet again after a minute and he follows her, making her huff out a laugh against his mouth that turns into a sigh when he runs a hand up her side. Her breath catches when he pulls her closer by her hips, and he swallows a groan when she closes her teeth down on his bottom lip. When she starts to pull back, he catches her, pulling her close again and again to give her fleeting kisses until she swats him away with a laugh.

“That was easy,” she tells him as she moves both her arms up to wind them around his neck. “One kiss and I’m already forgiven. I’ll have to remember that for next time.”

“Hey, don’t you dare make me feel cheap,” he pouts as he slides his hands past her coat to run his thumbs along the seams of her vest. “And who said you were forgiven? I’m obviously still furious. Seething with rage, actually.”

She nods. “Right. Of course. Luckily, I know exactly what buttons to push to get back on your good side.”

He raises an eyebrow at her dubiously. “And… what buttons would those be?”

“I don’t want to spoil the surprise,” she says. “But I’ll give you a hint.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“Two words.”

“Uh-huh.”

“You and me.”

“Right.”

“In your bed.”

Rhys makes this big show of mulling it over before gasping dramatically and releasing her to grab her by the shoulders. “Pillow forts?”

Fiona laughs so loud it echoes across the plains, taking him by the hand and not letting go the entire way home.

[megamanxfanfics]

S.IV - Ep. 3: Negotiation Failure

Written by Metal Man X

------------------------------------------------- INT. LAYE LABS – Corridors - DAY -------------------------------------------------

-Fade in-

Caption: June 2, 2120. The day after the Erasure Incident.

Alia walks down a corridor and sees Gate on the phone in his office.  He smiles at her as he closes his door.

ALIA: Hm?

GATE: (muffled) Aw, come onnn Scaravich! I take care of you, don’t I??

Her eyes widen as she puts her ear to the wall.

-pan inside his office-

Gate is sitting down at his desk chair with the phone close to his ear.

GROUND SCARAVICH: (o.s, filtered) Not interested.

GATE: Look, I don’t even know if you’ll find anything. Just- ..just go to the Forbidden Place and-

GROUND SCARAVICH: (o.s, filtered) The Forbidden Place!? Are you out of your mind???

GATE: Well..-

GROUND SCARAVICH: The last time I dug up info on ancient robots, I almost got pinched for it by the Maverick Hunter Police.

GATE: …and I rewarded you handsomely for that information… Did you forget that?

GROUND SCARAVICH: Hmph…  

GATE: Have you forgotten whose taken you off the grid? …Hmm?

-flash-

GATE: (persuasive, taunting) I’ll pay you Douuuuuble…

There is a pause on the other end of the phone, until finally, an annoyed grunt can be heard.

GROUND SCARAVICH: Aggh, alright I’ll do it!

GATE: Yes!

GROUND SCARAVICH: But this is the last time; you hear me?  If you dig too deep, you’re going to get dirty.

GATE: Why yes, of course…  Just get me anything you can find on them.

GROUND SCARAVICH: …Why are you so interested in them… Out of curiosity.  As your Treasure Hunter, I have a right to know…

Gate closes his eyes and smiles.

GATE: (growing excited) If I knew the secrets behind their power, just think of how much Good I could do!!  I could make even better Reploids, stronger allies, and far more enhanced co-workers that I can actually count on.  Hell! We could even develop a whole new race of-

GROUND SCARAVICH: Whoa! Forget I asked…  I’ll check out the area, okay?

GATE: Okay.  …Will you go today?

GROUND SCARAVICH: …Yeah…

-pan outside of the office-

On the other side of the wall, Alia stops listening in and stands upright with a frown and a clenched  fist.

ALIA: (v.o, thinking) Gate’s up to his old tricks again! If he’s back in touch with Scaravich… and wants something from the Forbidden Place… then it can only lead to no good.  (gasping) It’ll probably result in our termination!!  I’ve got to stop him before it’s too late!

-cut to-

------------------------------------------------- EXT. THE FORBIDDEN PLACE – DAY -------------------------------------------------

Outside of an excavated mountain, Ground Scaravich is seen walking into an exposed Lab Bunker.  He passes under a series of yellow police tape, that reads: Police Line – Do Not Cross.

Alia teleports into the area with a large beam cannon in her hands. She carefully and quietly treads through the police tape and primes her borrowed weapon.

-pan inside. The high pitched squeak of the cannon's charge rises.-

ALIA: Going somewhere?

Completely startled, the scarab stops dead in his tracks and turns around.

GROUND SCARAVICH: Gyaah. U-uh…  Its not what it looks-

ALIA: (interrupting) I don't think the Maverick Hunters would appreciate it if they knew what you were up to...

GROUND SCARAVICH: N-now wait a minute.  I can explain. Gate hired me!

ALIA: I know!  …You've been a problem for quite some time, and it’s all because of him.

She sets the safety off of her cannon and points it at him.

GROUND SCARAVICH: B-believe me. It's all for a good cause! ALIA: Don’t even… Last time you were hired, it caused my old boss to go Maverick! You may have heard of him. His name was Doctor Doppler.

GROUND SCARAVICH: What!?

ALIA: I WON'T LET YOU RUIN OUR LIVES AGAIN!!!!

She fires the high-powered cannon and unleashes a thick stream of blue plasma upon the Reploid.

GROUND SCARAVICH: GYAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

He attempts to block his face but is overtaken by the blast.

-zoom in on the blast-

-fade to white-

------------------------------------------------- INT. LAYE LABS – Main Work Area – DAY -------------------------------------------------

Caption: November 16, 21XX. NOW

ALIA: (v.o, thinking) It may not have been Scaravich's fault, but the scrap robots he found, aided Doppler's research in Roboenza.  Which, ultimately lead to a stronger strain of the Maverick Virus…  I had to do it. I just had to…  If he never existed… Maybe the World wouldn’t be how it is today…

Alia winces and frowns at the recent memory as the rest of the researcher's draw their attention to the news.

-pan to the wall mounted TV screen-

ANCHOR: (filtered) …and in response to Repliforce's attack on Sydney, the Maritime Battalion awaits further orders at the border of Repliforce's Naval Territory. Sources say that despite this attack, the Maverick Hunters are still willing to negotiate with Repliforce!  As a further preventative measure, Maverick Hunter operatives have arrived in New Guinea in hopes of starting a dialogue with Repliforce's Guerilla Unit Commander, Web Spider…

[Insert Title Card: Negotiation Failure]

The Researchers react as the report goes on.

BLAZE PHOENIX: Hmph.. Fools. They should all just blow each other out of the sky!  Then we wouldn’t have to hear about it..

GATE: (firm, disappointed) Heatnix!

INFINITY FLEA: If you ask me, we're already headed in that direction…

COMMANDER YAMMARK: We can only hope this whole thing blows over.  Otherwise we really are in for some tough times ahead.

BLAZE PHOENIX: I don’t care who wins. Might makes right! Only the strongest will survive!!

GATE: (reacting) Nooo!

ALIA: (reacting, overlapping) You are so wrong!

BLIZZARD WOLFANG: You Hot-Head!  Can’t you see that this is affecting real lives?  We could be next.  Regardless of who wins, the Reploids lose.

COMMANDER YAMMARK: …The only thing I'm concerned with is the potential damage that this War will do to the environment.

Gate snaps his fingers, at a sudden idea.

GATE: We need to help them.  Yammark, Forest Protection is your area. Go ahead and investigate.

COMMANDER YAMMARK: (dilligent, dutiful) With pleasure, sir.

Dr. Laye looks worried as she offers a nod of approval for this mission.

DR. LAYE: Be careful out there. We don’t want to add any more layers of chaos to this mess.

COMMANDER YAMMARK: Yes ma’am.

Four of Dr. Laye's researchers share a sheepish look as Commander Yammark passes them by.  

?????: Hey. Don’t start another fire, okay?

COMMANDER YAMMARK: Shut up, Malek.

MALEK and his three friends, LIAM, TERRANCE and ZACH all burst out laughing unable to contain themselves.

Dr. Laye scowls at her own crew

DR. LAYE: Everyone, get back to work! All we can do now, is hope for the best.

She looks back at the TV screen as the news displays a live image of X and Zero standing by at the Jungle.

-cut to-

------------------------------------------------- EXT. NEW GUINEA – Papua Jungles - DAY -------------------------------------------------

X and Zero stand by their Unit members, ZEPHYR and TAKUMA while they wait for the 9th Unit to arrive. After a short moment LEAP FROG, CROSS- HARE and RECON RACCOON teleport in to join them.

X: Is this everyone?

RECON RACCOON: Baryon and Scorche are still training the newbies.  Besides, it wouldn't be a good idea to have Scorche lightin' the place up.

ZERO: Good call. This is more than enough.

X nods in agreement with a sharp, determined glare in his eyes.

X: Lets go.

X leads the group down to a river, where he can spot Repliforce activity to his left, a short distance away.

X: I think it’s this way.

ZERO: Yeah, come on.

Zero takes the lead with a dash as he fearlessly hops down a short waterfall.

-pan to-

------------------------------------------------- EXT. PAPUA JUNGLES – Mubi River – DAY -------------------------------------------------

X, Zephyr, Takuma, Leap Frog, Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon drop down from the Waterfall into the shallow end of Mubi River.

The Maverick Hunters follow the path along the river.  As they pass by large chopped tree stumps, the Repliforce Mechaniloids go into defense mode.

X: Do not engage unless they attack us!  Remember, we came here to /taah.

At the dash, X gets /struck by a Kill Fisher mechaniloid, which swiftly rams into his chest.

ZERO: Hmph. So much for that!

He pulls out his Z-Saber as the Kill Fisher quickly flies by, toward the other Hunters.

ZEPHYR: Hmph!

He strikes it down with a quick buster shot.

Two more Kill Fisher mechaniloids suddenly activate and hover up from the riverbed.  They fly past X and Zero to enact their revenge, while X looks at a Fish-based Reploid ahead.  The Reploid impressively flips his trident and guards himself in a defensive position.

X: Hey!  Stand Down!!  We just want to talk to Web Spider.

????: Hmph.  Intruders!  You want to speak to my Commander??  None shall pass the great King Poseidon!

ZERO: Uhh, what?

TAKUMA: Hahaha!  The only way to Spidus is through him, Boss!!!

ZERO: Heh, fine with me.

He dashes over to KING POSEIDON and swings his saber, but the reploid high jumps away and rolls up into a ball in mid-air.  A series of spikes shoot out from his back as they rain down on the group.

RECON RACCOON: Agh!!  What the Hell, man!?

He throws a grenade back at the soldier, which latches onto his chest.  Upon landing, King Poseidon explodes.

RECON RACCOON: Hahaha, yeah!!  /Awhh!

Just then, another Kill Fisher /rams into Recon Raccoon from behind with a surprise attack.

CROSS-HARE: Hahahahaha!

He points and laughs at his cocky counter-part, while Leap Frog quickly blasts it away with a pistol.

LEAP FROG: Stay focused guys.  C’mon!

He leads the 9th Unit, while The Elite and Shinobi Hunters lead them down to a cavernous waterfall.

-pan to-

------------------------------------------------- EXT. PAPUA JUNGLES – Bisi Falls – DAY -------------------------------------------------

X drops down and shoots at a Blast Raster, then he hops down further into the cavern.  As he drops down, he notices two more Blast Raster’s and a Metal Gabyoall, that he passed by.  Within moments, Zero and Takuma take on the strays that he missed.  Nothing can be done about the Gabyoall, spike mechaniloid though.  They only seem to stun the device, freezing it momentarily.

X nods at their admirable teamwork and looks below him.  A short drop down is a further landing along the cavernous waterfall.

X: Let’s move on, guys.

He drops down and the rest join him. From a short distance, within an alcove of the cavern, X spots something that makes his heart skip a beat.

X: (gasping) On second thought…

He slowly walks towards the cavern, attracted to the teal light emitting from inside.

Zero smirks.

ZERO: (smiling) Heh.  We’ll let you explore while WE move on, X.

Zero leads Takuma and the 9th Unit down further below by the Water Fall.

Zephyr stays behind.

ZEPHYR: Uh, sir?

X: Stand by, Zeph.  I just need to check this out.

X runs inside the alcove as Zephyr stands by and folds his arms, somewhat confused.

-pan inside the alcove-

The glow of a Capsule illuminates X’s surprised face as Dr. Light’s form appears once again for the first time in a while.

DR. LIGHT: This war should never have happened, X…  Why must Reploids fight each other?  Why do these peace keepers persist in fighting each other?  This must be some sort of mistake…

X frowns as his heart aches.  Light tears form in his eyes as he nods in agreement.

X: I’m doing the best I can to prevent this from happening.  But I don’t know how successful I will be.

The A.I of Dr. Light, his creator and only remaining father figure silently nods in response.

DR. LIGHT: I know…  X, enter this capsule.  Equip all four pieces of the Force Armor to discover the truth.  Equip with this boot module and you will be able to hover in the air along with your air-dash.  Be careful though, for you will only remain airborne for a few moments.  

X: Right!

DR. LIGHT: It is effective for negotiating through higher and more dangerous terrain. Go now, my son.  Stop this tragic war as soon as possible.

With those words, the form of Dr. Light’s A.I fades away.  Before X enters the capsule, he is surprised by the sight of yet another capsule behind the one before him; only this one is pink.

X: Huh??

X enters and looks ahead at the Special Capsule curiously as rays of light upgrade his boots' processing data.  With a new, yet familiar look, his boots now shine in layers of white and blue with a gold trim above the shoe.  New tiny red thrusters are embedded into the boot’s design, which impress X a lot.

After receiving his upgrade, he steps out of the capsule and walks up to the pink one.  He examines it and notices empty compartments along the bottom of the capsule, to which he already knows he must insert Sub-tanks and a Heart-Tank into.   Only, this time there are two slots, which don’t seem to resemble that of sub-tanks. X: Hm.  It must be locked.  I’m just going to have to come back later.

He touches the rigid teal light, which repels him as if bidding goodbye.  He looks bewildered at the capsule and shakes his hand, before turning around and dashing with his new thrusters over to Zephyr’s position.

ZEPHYR: Hey, boss.  What took you so- Whooaa!!

X stylishly dashes to his soldier and strikes a victorious pose as he shows off his new boots with pride.

X: New boots!

ZEPHYR: Ah..hah…

X: Come on, Zephyr.  We’d better catch up with the others.

ZEPHYR: Yes, sir.  

-cut to-

------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. BISI FALLS – Mountainous Caverns - DAY -------------------------------------------------------------

Along the vast Bisi Falls, a series of logs fall from the top, all the way down to a dangerous water rapid, below.  Zero, Takuma, Leap Frog, Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon all carefully jump from log to log, one after another as they make it to the other side of the Waterfall, back to a new mountainous cavern.

Takuma, Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon all pant feeling exhausted, while Leap Frog stands upright and looks ahead with Zero.

ZERO: Heh, you guys alright?  You all look winded.

LEAP FROG: (smiling) As much as I’d hate to admit it, my team could do with a little more training.

ZERO: Mine, too.

TAKUMA: Heeey.

ZERO: Come on, guys!  There’s more Guerillas up ahead.

Zero jumps across the rocky terrain as river water, splashes at his feet.  He jumps onto a ladder and climbs up.

From above, a green Reploid who strongly resembles King Poseidon steps on his hands.

ZERO: Aaagh.

KING POSEIDON: You fools dare try to kill me?

A smart missile flies past Zero and curves towards the green reploid, destroying it.

-pan below-

CROSS-HARE: Yeah, we do!!

-pan above-

Another green version of King Posiedon hops down a ladder and points at them angrily with his trident.

KING POSEIDON: Hmph!!  Soon you will find that I am everywhere!!

Zero narrows his eyes.

ZERO: Clones…

Zero dash-jumps across a rock on the other side, to ascend to his level and strike him down with a swift cut of the blade.  The Reploid is cut in half and destroyed instantly.

Leap Frog, Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon catch up to his position as they focus their attention on shooting down the Blast Rasters in the area that are clinging to the walls around them.

As Takuma slowly catches up to his leader he gives him a worried look.

TAKUMA: Do you really think they all cloned themselves?

ZERO: (annoyed) I don’t really care to be honest…

They continue their ascent up the numerous ladders along the cavern and spot another version of King Poseidon; only this one is blue.

KING POSEIDON: You will soon care very much what the Repliforce has in store for you, after you’ve betrayed us.

ZERO: (growling) Huurgh!  SHUT UP!!!!

He fearlessly dashes into King Poseidon, taking the spikes head on as he cuts across his chest with his saber.

The rest of the group look worried, but feel justified in Zero’s actions.

Zero lets the others pass him up the last ladder as he takes a moment to compose himself.

-pan to-

------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. PAPUA JUNGLES – Guerilla Cave Entrance - DAY -------------------------------------------------------------------

Takuma climbs up a ladder and becomes excited when he spots, what seems to be a security door.

TAKUMA: (gasping) Guys, look!

Leap Frog, Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon join him.

LEAP FROG: Wow.

RECON RACCOON: Nice.

CROSS-HARE: Hmph.

Immediately a blue King Poseidon drops down from a tree, ahead of Takuma.

TAKUMA: (annoyed) Huuuuur!!

He runs over to the reploid and bashes him over the head with his deadly hammer, the T-Breaker.

LEAP FROG: Good one, Takuma!

CROSS-HARE: We’re not through yet!!

As they near the entrance to the cave two more King Poseidon’s surround the 3 of them from both sides.

RECON RACCOON: What, these two?  Oh please..

He stylishly throws two sticky grenades at the King Poseidon’s which blow up upon impact.

CROSS-HARE: Not them, you idiot.  /Them!

He /points off-screen and we do a 180 degree turn to see the stronger forces of the Guerilla Unit waiting for them. Poison Toad, Venom Varanus, Plated Platypus and Carapace Turtle all glare at them with wicked grins on their faces.

Leap Frog gasps at the sight of his brother.

POISON TOAD: Heheheh, well well well…  If it isn’t Cross-Hare and Recon Raccoon…

VENOM VARANUS: Long time no sssseee.

RECON RACCOON: Haaaugh. You’re both just as skeevy as ever, I see.

POISION TOAD: Heheh.  Leap Frog though…  What’s a wimp like you doing with the Ranger Unit?

LEAP FROG: (annoyed) I’m their LEADER now!!  Things have changed since you left us, brother.

POISON TOAD: Shya. They were desperate enough to let You command a combat Unit.

The Guerilla Unit all laugh at the Maverick Hunters they were once a part of.

PLATED PLATYPUS: Yes, I can see that Maverick Hunter standards have gone to an all time low.  It was a good thing that we left when we did.

TAKUMA: And you really think you're so much better!?  

CARAPACE TURTLE: We left because your leader is a Maverick, Takuma.  You just haven’t realized it yet.

TAKUMA: Wha-  How DARE You!!?

CARAPACE TURTLE: He nearly took out all of the Hunters when we investigated the X-Hunter Base 3 years ago.

TAKUMA: That was a Misunderstanding!!!

CARAPACE TURTLE: No.  It was an act of treason, and Zero is about to commit another one upon the entire Repliforce unless we stop him and the rest of you pesky Hunters.

RECON RACCOON: Well if it’s a gang fight you want, you got it buddy!!

He takes out his grenades, ready to pounce.

PLATED PLATYPUS: Hmhmhm.  You simpleton, this is not a gangfight.  This is a War.

RECON RACCOON: I DON’T CAAARE!!!!

Recon Raccoon makes the first move, throwing a grenade right at Plated Platypus.  The blast damages his armor, but barely affects him.

Meanwhile, Cross-Hare quickly sets his crosshair eye to focus on Venom Varanus, who just went invisible with camoflauge.

CROSS-HARE: Oh no..  Can’t hide from me, big guy.

He shoots a missile directly at Venom Varanus and causes his camoflauge to reveal itself.

Just to the right of them, Leap Frog and Poison Toad are rolling on the ground, attempting to choke each other out.

POISON TOAD: My my, little brother…  You’ve become a feisty one, I see…

He punches him in the gut and cuts across the chest with a Poison Dagger that was hidden in his fist.

LEAP FROG: Gaaaaah!!!!

His blood already turns purple amidst the wound opening.

He falls to the ground, shivering.

POISON TOAD: Hahahahah…  It’s been real, brother.

Further by the cave entrance, X and Zero stand with Zephyr as the group seems to get further and further away from them.

X: We don’t have time for this!

ZERO: That’s why we brought them, X.  It’s gonna be fine.

X watches Leap Frog die with wide eyes.  He gives Zero a crooked look, and then Zephyr a strong-willed look.

X: Zephyr.  Zero and I need to move ahead.  You have to step in for Leap Frog and take care of them for me.

Zephyr nods and salutes his Commander with a smile.

ZEPHYR: Yes, sir.  It’ll be my honor.

With that, X and Zero nod to Zephyr as they destroy the core of the security door to the cave entrance.

As they run inside, we pan back to the battle.

TAKUMA: HUUUURRRR-aaaghh!!

Takuma rushes after Carapace Turtle and strikes him hard across the chest with his T-Breaker.

CARAPACE TURTLE: Kaaauuughh.

The dents in his armor show.  Carapace Turtle is no match for Takuma’s hammer.

Takuma shoves him to the ground, plants his foot on his chest and violently smashes Carapace Turtle in the face, crushing his skull entirely.

Plated Platypus turns to his fallen friend and throws Recon Raccoon away like a rag doll.

RECON RACCOON: Whuh? Aaaaaah!

Recon Raccoon is flung near Cross-Hare, who seems to have damaged the ocular nerves that power his crosshair eye.  With a useless eye-piece dangling from his eye, it only serves as a distraction, so he pulls it out of his socket.

VENOM VARANUS: Hahahaha, you’re MIINE NOOW!!!!

He spits out deadly acid all across his body, as Cross-Hare is unable to protect himself.

CROSS-HARE: (suffering) Guuaaahh… N-nnooo…

Boils appear across Cross-Hare’s white fur and Recon Raccoon can tell that this is it.

RECON RACCOON: (afraid) C-Cross Haare???

Cross-Hare and Venom Varanus dive after each other, as the reptile lays out another stream of viscious acid in mid-air.  This causes Cross-Hare to explode as Venom Varanus touches down to the ground with a wicked grin.

RECON RACCOON: NOOOOO!!!!!!

He tosses an array of sticky grenades at Venom Varanus and pulls out his handheld laser pistol. He fires and aims directly at the heart.

VENOM VARANUS: (reacting) GAAAAAAHHHHH.  /OHHH!!!!

With grenades latched onto his shoulders, legs and a thin red laser burning a hole directly through his chest, it was only a matter of time, before the bombs would /explode and scatter Venom Varanus’ body to pieces.

Without warning, Zephyr blasts a golden charge shot at Poison Toad’s back, which bowls him over.

With a blackened back, he slowly rises to his feet.

POISON TOAD: You damned fool.

ZEPHYR: The only thing that’s ‘damned foolish’ is the fact that I haven’t used full power yet.

He pulls in two hands and controls the density of his Buster into a steady stream of golden plasma, which wipes out Poison Toad, at the expense of all of his power reserves.

Plated Platypus and Takuma stop in mid-battle to admire the extremely powerful blast of light.  Then Takuma takes advantage of the distraction and knocks Plated Platypus out with his Hammer jammed across the side of his face.

RECON RACCOON: Wh-what.. the Hell.. was that!?

ZEPHYR: It’s my Ultimate Move..  The Zephyr Cannon.  The only problem is, once I use it, I’m down for the count.

RECON RACCOON: Fshhhhh.  Right.

Takuma walks over to the two with a solemn face.

TAKUMA: Did we get ‘em?

ZEPHYR: Looks like it.

RECON RACCOON: God damn it…  There goes my Team..  again…

ZEPHYR: What now?

RECON RACCOON: I’m headed back..  I gotta break the news to the other guys.  Ahhh damn it. This sucks.

With that, Recon Raccoon teleports out of the Jungle.

The two look blankly at the disappearance of Recon Raccoon.  Then they survey the damage.

TAKUMA: …Let’s go back to our Commanders.

ZEPHYR: Good idea.

-cut to-

------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. PAPUA JUNGLES – Guerilla Repliforce Facility - DAY -------------------------------------------------------------------

X and Zero run out of the cave entrance, into the walled off campus of the Guerilla Unit's facility.  It is mostly outdoors with small depot stations where weapons are manufactured.

Upon their path, they are instantly greeted by mechaniloid snakes.  X quickly shoots them down as they run up to a tree stump and jump over it.  

X: Ya know, all of this shooting on their turf will only make negotiating more difficult.

ZERO: Like we really have a choice..  You know this is all gonna amount to a fight against Webs anyway.

He cuts down a Blast Raster in their way.

X: Right, but any chance that we can prevent that we have to /taahh.

As they climb a short hill, an unseen electric web shoots out a solid line of electricty, which /catches X by surprise and stuns him as they pass.

ZERO: Grr!

An annoyed Zero slashes at the solid beam and manages to shut it down somehow.

X: Ah.

X dashes ahead and jumps over the next web beam he sees. He fires upon a Blast Raster ahead of him and looks down.

A waterfall trickles down into a shallow river, which leads to steps inside a depot station a story below him.  

X: Hm.  I think we're getting close.

X drops down into the shallow river, where he is lead to a cave, which looks more technologically developed on the inside.

-pan to-

------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. Guerrilla HQ – Depot Stations - DAY -------------------------------------------------------------------

X walks in and spots a few bee mechaniloids flying past a set of Blast Rasters, which are attached to the ceiling.  X aims at the Blast Rasters, as Zero touches down to the watery floor behind him with a splash. Zero narrows his eyes at the familiar bee mechaniloids and swats at them with his Z-Saber.

ZERO: What is this place?

X: I don’t know..

They run through the corridor and take a short stairwell down, where they spot a series of bee hives with the Repliforce logo on them.

ZERO: What the-

X: Huh?

ZERO: These are the same hives from the Reploid Research Facility on Laguz Island!!

X: Whaat??

Numerous bees sift out from open panels of the hives.

ZERO: Web Spider must've grabbed them from Blast Hornet's station after I took care of him.  Huuuurgh!!!

Completely revved up and annoyed, Zero rushes through the hall, tearing away at the swarm of bees and the hives they come with his Z-Saber.

X is awestruck at the sight of Zero's new skills on the saber. Whatever Colonel did last summer, he taught him well.  If only they could end this War right now, before it could get any worse.  Then, maybe they could retain a friendship with the Repliforce again.

The end of the hall becomes cavernous once again as they leave the depot.  Ahead of them, they spot another waterfall dropping down a small crevice with ladders leading further down into the forest. The area is protected by a few Blast Rasters, which Zero quickly destroys in no time.

- pan to-

------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. GUERILLA  FACILITY -  Forest Area - DAY -------------------------------------------------------------------

When X and Zero drop down, they spot what seems to look like a labyrinth of tall trees ahead of them.  X analyzes the path ahead of them and lets out a short sigh.

TAKUMA: (calling out, from afar) Hey!  Wait for us!!

X: Huh?

X and Zero look up to see Takuma and Zephyr drop down to their position from the ladders above them.  They both smile as their subordinates join them.

X: Where’s the rest?

Zephyr shakes his head with a frown.

ZEPHYR: The Raccoon went back to HQ.  The rest of them didn’t make it…

ZERO: (whispering) Shit.

X’s eyes widen in despair and he grimaces with a frustrated brow.  He clenches a fist and slowly charges up.

X: (charging up) God damn it!!  This didn’t have to happen!!!  I’ll never forgive Web Spider for this!

With that, he dashes ahead of the group, fully charged as they all follow.

Ahead of X, a web beam juts out from a tree.  He fires his charge shot at it and closes off the beam, allowing him the ability to kick-jump up the tree.  Two metal braces bind the tree, which serve as platforms for X to climb up.  At the top platform, the tree has been partially cut in the middle.  X surmises that this was made to serve as cover during enemy raids such as this.

When X gets to the top he turns around and looks at his companions.

X: Be careful guys.  We might get some unexpected surprises in these trees.

As he speaks, a series of mechaniloid snakes all crawl over him from the top of the tree.

X: Wauuugh!

He shakes them off, skeeved out as he shoots some of them down, and steps on a couple.

X: Agh.

X jumps away, down to the next metal braced tree.  Zero takes care of the stragglers, while X stands by the next cover spot within the tree below them.

Ahead of X, the metal braces stick out further, connecting the set of trees ahead of them as if it were some sort of obstacle course.

X: Web Spider had a lot of time on his hands.

ZERO: Shya.  You’re telling me.

He lightly chuckles as he follows his partner through the obstacle.  They take down a couple of more snake mechaniloids, before a web beam blocks the two of them from dropping down to the ground.

They fire and slash at the beam, but it doesn’t go down.

X: (annoyed) Agh.

ZERO: What the Hell?

Two little spiders climb the electric beam, so X takes his aim at them.  Suddenly the beam disappears.

ZERO: Huh?

X: Oh.

They jump away before the trap can reactivate again.  Takuma and Zephyr follow them and touch down to the ground.

X: I think the beam isn’t created by the web, but the spiders who Made the web.

Zero shakes his head annoyed.

ZERO: Ugh, whatever!

They move on together as a group, carefully climbing between the next set of trees, while avoiding the web beams that attempt to stop them.  At the top of the tree obstacle, the web beam traps only get more intricate as X and Zero let Zephyr and Takuma tackle them.

TAKUMA: Hurr!

ZEPHYR: Yah!!

They strike the next two web beams down, while Zero cuts down the snake mechaniloids crawling at their feet.  Just ahead of them, a third web beam blocks their path, which X shoots down, next to their subordinates.

When they drop down from this obstacle, X can spot the gateway from afar.

X: Yes!  We made it!!

Suddenly from a distance, a violent explosion can be heard, north of them.

X: Haww?

ZERO: What the-!?

ZEPHYR: What do you think?  Suicide bomber??

Takuma looks hard at the fiery explosion by the trees in the distance.

TAKUMA: I dunno.  I don’t think so.  That area doesn’t seem to be occupied by Repliforce at all.

X: You two investigate.  We have to talk to Web Spider.

ZEPHYR & TAKUMA: Yes sir!

They run off in the other direction, away from the labyrinthine tree obstacle, and eventually out of the brush, which seemed to enclose this Facility.

X looks over to a bee hive ahead of them and fires off a charge shot, which destroys the whole thing.

A few angry bee mechaniloids fly out, which Zero destroys with a jumping slash.

Just ahead of him, right before the gateway, two well-placed electric webs create a wall with their beams, blocking them from entering.

ZERO: Oh, please.

He makes a downward axe-handle slash and the beams are gone.  Then, he quickly dashes with X toward the actual gate.  As it opens, they notice that they have entered yet another depot. Such a gateway must indicate that they have reached their destination.

X and Zero stop before the gate and give each other a look.

ZERO: Okay man, you ready for this?

X: Yeah.  …Whatever happens, happens.

Zero grins as he opens the next gate and they both walk through.

-pan to-

---------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. GUERILLA FACILITY – Secret Weapon Storage – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The moment X and Zero step inside the last gate of the depot, they spot a gigantic laser cannon, larger than life.

They both gasp.

ZERO: You were right, X.  We did the right thing by coming here first.

Suddenly, from out of the brush of the trees, Web Spider appears, hanging from his web.

WEB SPIDER: Ah... Zero. I've been expecting you.  ..but X too..  Now that’s a surprise…

ZERO: Spider!  You work for Repliforce now?!

WEB SPIDER: Ah Yes... You weren’t around for our little encounter on Laguz Island.  I lead a renegade unit now.  Far more respectable than your insipid Maverick Hunters!!

Zero glances at X, then looks at Web Spider and takes a quick breath.

ZERO: There's still time. Call off the coup!

WEB SPIDER: No.  I know where my loyalties lie.

X: Spidus, I know we have our differences, but this is ridiculous!!  We don’t need to do this.

Web Spider accusatorily points at X.

WEB SPIDER: You've labeled us all as Mavericks! I won't let you pass. Turn back now!

X: I can't do that.  You’ve been storing a secret weapon here, which is disconcerting to us.

WEB SPIDER: And you falsely labeled us as an enemy to the public, when the real enemy is standing right /There, NEXT TO YOU!

At the dash he /points directly at Zero, who offers a wicked grin in response.

ZERO: Then we Fight!!  It’s the only way to settle this!!!

X: (shocked) Zero!

Zero dashes and jumps over to Web Spider with his Saber out.

ZERO: Haaaaaaaaaah!

He lifts up his arm and swipes the blade in a downward slash as Web Spider attempts to pull himself away from his web.

-Freeze Frame.  Grainy Effect-

-Fade to Black-