Mega Man Fan Fiction ❯ Warmachine ❯ Chapter 8: The Revenants ( Chapter 8 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Chapter 8: The Revenants

The two continued to stare at one another, sizing each other up, trying to find a weakness in the other’s resolve. When the large Reploid failed to find it he decided to throw the first punch. The cloak draped around his frame moved wildly as he raised his right fist, bringing it down on Vile like a massive hammer. The much nimbler Reploid rapidly dashed aside to avoid being reduced to nothing but a very flat plate. The giant straightened again, his fist having crushed the tiles it had hit.
“Good, good.” He spoke, chuckling. His hand gripped his cloak tightly before ripping it from around his body, casting it to the wind. Vile wasn’t intimidated by the Reploid who resembled a tank on legs. The Reploid’s frame was massive, thick armored plating covering his body in layers. His shoulder pads were broad and his boots had been reinforced to handle the force of the jet boots that had to lift the heavy Reploid. His head was the only unprotected part of his body and with white, long, balding hair and a short beard he resembled a seasoned fighter. A crimson targeting system covered his right eye and a wide grin appeared on his face.
“The name’s Onslaught, Revenant of Wrath. The boss wants you dead.” Onslaught introduced, his dark blue and silver color scheme shining brightly in the orange light of the sun. He reached back and grabbed a very long, wide muzzled rifle that crackled with energy. Three containers held the lethal plasma energy used to power the energy weapon and a large laser scope would aide him in picking out his target. His left arm seemed to have a circular device mounted on the top of its wrist and as he clenched his hand into a fist the device began spinning rapidly. A circular energy shield, half his size in radius, activated and began humming loudly. Vile only now noticed the strange, long and thick steel bars attached to his shoulders that pointed straight upwards. He spotted the same type of material attached to Onslaught’s hips.
*A particle projector… This guy is carrying around a weapon used on battleships…* Vile thought to himself, pleased to find Onslaught had deactivated it for now.

Onslaught wasted no more time on words and stormed into action. Taking aim he fired several powerful blasts of his rifle, his internal and external targeting systems making each shot lethally precise. Vile reacted quickly however, firing his shoulder cannon twice, making the spheres of energy collide with Onslaught’s shots. The explosion that followed the clash of conflicting energy forced both Reploid’s to cover their eyes briefly. The giant had opened fire again, the massive rifle apparently highly resistant to overheating as the rapid barrage seemed nothing it couldn’t handle. The Renegade had no intention of becoming target practice. Activating his jet boots, Vile took to the air, firing triple shots from his cannon, hoping to hit areas on the Reploid’s body that were less protected than the rest of the bulky frame. Onslaught raised his left arm however, the energy shield more than powerful enough to absorb the blasts.
“Nice try! But you can’t hide up there!!” Onslaught yelled out over the noise of weapon fire. The front of his shoulder pads opened up and as soon as there was an opening in the Ex-Hunter’s assault he moved his shield arm out of the way and unleashed a spray of small missiles. Using his advantage of being able to move in any direction while airborne, Vile managed to dodge the volley. The missiles were only semi-homing so they arced widely, trying to compensate for Vile’s movements and collided with the ruins around the two.
“Nana! Analyze his frame! If there’s a hole in that plate armor I want to know about it!” Vile yelled out into his com while opening his right knee and firing a glowing, light blue grenade at Onslaught.
“I’m on it! Try to keep him preoccupied.” Nana replied, taking a deep breath to stay calm and began looking over the readings she was getting from Vile.
Vile grinned viciously behind his helmet. “That won’t be a problem.” He replied, flying towards the roof of a nearby, semi-intact building. Onslaught raised his shield to guard against the grenade. The device exploded on contact but instead of a blast of flame and shrapnel it instead erupted into an orb of plasma energy that remained stationary. It crackled and sparked dangerously as it lingered, serving as both a trap and an obstacle. The Revenant growled in frustration as his energy shield short-circuited from the strange electric energy emanating from the explosive.

Vile was now behind him, still holding the high ground. The green Reploid gripped his shoulder cannon and began charging it, his other shoulder opening to reveal a small pack filled with tiny rockets.
Onslaught groaned in pain as the first volley of explosives collided with his heavily armored back. They did nothing but leave scorch marks however, and make him angry. The laser scope on his rifle activated and the red line quickly aimed for the Renegade. A thin and highly condensed stream of energy fired from the muzzle of the weapon, powerful enough to cause serious damage when aimed properly. The stream moved rapidly and despite his best efforts, Vile only managed to sway aside enough for it to hit his left shoulder instead of his chest. The impact almost grounded him but he managed to keep his balance by moving with the force, turning around 360° once and dropping to his knees to face Onslaught again. He hadn’t gathered as much energy as he would’ve liked but he needed to keep moving if he was to avoid becoming his opponent’s pin cushion.

“Why don’t you try this on for size, oversized tin can!!” Vile cried out as he fired his shoulder cannon, the energy erupting in a blue orb of energy, the core a bright silver and it was far larger than his regular shots. Onslaught tried to get his shield to work but was instead forced to raise his left arm with the defense mechanism offline. The orb crashed into his guard, exploding in a large discharge of electrocuting energy. Vile knew better than to think that was enough so he took off to the air once more and continued to fire blasts from his cannon towards the center of the dust and sand blanket that had been whipped up by the previous impact. It became apparent rather quickly that he was barely denting the giant’s armor when several sniper beams were fired at the flying Reploid from the dust cloud.

Vile set his boots to overdrive and boosted to his right, the speed he dashed aside with enough to dodge the beams, but he had fallen into Onslaught’s little trap. As the dust cleared, the hulking tank reached for three grenades very similar to the plasma one Vile had used on his shield. Laughing boisterously he hurled all three into the air, right along Vile’s flight path. The grenades exploded in sequence and the Renegade was unable to fly past the third. The energy surged through his body, deactivating his jets and sending him tumbling down to the ground.

“Vile, I think I’ve found a weakness!” Nana reported as Vile regained his balance and landed in a crouched position on the ground. A loud ‘oumph’ was all the reply the operator got but she continued regardless.
“He’s only using energy weapons and despite constant fire, none of them overheat. That’s because they’re connected to his body and several systems on his frame aide in cooling that weaponry. Logically, heat vents like that would be located on his back, try to get around him again and hit him there. It won’t take him down but it’ll make his weapons far less of a threat, he might even destroy them himself from overusing them.” Nana explained as Vile dashed left and right rapidly to dodge more incoming fire from the Revenant.
“You’re guessing? Grr… I ‘guess’ that’ll have to do then.” Vile complained grumpily, clenching his fists and getting ready for a daring maneuver. After all, the Renegade wasn’t exactly known for prudence and collected action in the heat of battle. Vile began running at the massive Reploid, using his shoulder cannon to disperse incoming fire from Onslaught as before.

“Come to yer doom, Vile!” Onslaught roared apparently happy with the prospect of having Vile up close and personal, most likely so he could rip the much smaller Reploid to shreds with his bare hands. He pulled his free arm back and threw a powerful straight punch for Vile, who responded in kind. Their fists met halfway, but Vile had managed to stretch his arm fully, intercepting Onslaught’s attack before he had managed to put all his force behind it. The impact made the giant stumble slightly, especially the Particle Projector Rods on his back making him top-heavy and unbalanced. Vile reached for the wrist of the hand he had pushed back and pulled Onslaught down closer again, a head butt further disorienting the surprised hulk. Seeing the golden opportunity, Vile placed one booted leg on his foe’s abdomen and then a second on his chest and then he finally leaped over the Revenant, landing behind him. The increasingly violent Vile was never one to waste time so he immediately turned around to face the still stumbling Onslaught, his eyes trying to find the heat vents Nana had spoken of.

“They’re on his lower back!” Nana cried out triumphantly. Vile didn’t know how she had managed to learn that, but he didn’t really care either. To keep the pressure on his opponent the Renegade opened fire with his shoulder cannon, aiming each hit for the shielded heat vents just underneath one of the light plates on Onslaught’s back. The blasts sent pain shooting through the Reploid. Vile’s advantage was short-lived however when Onslaught swung around, the back of his fist connecting sharply with the side of Vile’s face. The powerful blow sent Vile skidding over the ground for several feet before he finally slid to a stop. Onslaught’s expression and the obvious damage to his back made it more than clear that the barrage had caused internal damage.
“Hahaha! What’s the matter? Fight not fun anymore?” Vile mocked, raising a hand and motioning for Onslaught to approach, if he dared. Like a stampeding rhino, Onslaught lowered his body and began charging Vile, his energy rifle securely fastened to his back once more. Vile waited until the absolute last minute before activating his jet boots to dodge the incoming brute.
“I’m picking up another energy signal, watch out!” The pink-haired Giga City official warned as warnings began popping up on her view screen. Her words had come too late as Vile did not find himself propelled into the air. Looking down Vile saw both his booted feet frozen to the ground. When his eyes turned up he saw that Onslaught was upon him.
“Crap.” He muttered calmly before feeling the full force of Onslaught’s shoulder tackle. The massive body, paired with the momentum of the long charge, hurled Vile over 12 feet through the air, the ice breaking under the strain immediately. The Renegade grunted in pain as he collided with the base of Doctor Cain’s old statue in the middle of the dried up fountain. The knock had scrambled his sensors, a concussion for a Reploid one could say. His vision was spinning and his entire body ached in pain from the powerful impact. As his focus returned, Vile slowly got up on his feet, his teeth clenched in anger at the cheap shot.
“Who’s the slimy coward who hit me with my back turned?!” He called out, losing his very short temper. It was then that he noticed the newcomer. The much smaller Frostbite had appeared on the scene, still hidden by his cloak. The tiny Reploid crossed his arms smugly and stood beside his colleague. Onslaught was having trouble containing his rage but slowly began calming down.
“I’m Frostbite, most talented and gifted member of the Revenants.” Frostbite introduced, grabbing hold of his cloak and ripping it off as Onslaught had done before him. The tiny Reploid had a very lithe and nimble body with soft blues and silvers. His armor was very light and most of his body was covered by a basic silver undershirt with two vertical black lines running down his sides, past the belt and down to his boots. His shoulder pads were cylindrical with a thick spike sticking out front, back and side. His head was protected by a helmet shaped like a wolf, its muzzle flattened and mouth wide open so his face was visible. His skin was pale and his features resembled a young boy’s. His strange purple eyes stared at the Renegade with a strange smugness, the odd black lines running down from them to just above his lips giving him a strange appearance indeed. The dwarf put his hands arrogantly in his sides and tilted his head up, an act that indicated he felt superior to those around him, like a noble looking down on peasants.
“Revenants?” Vile inquired, Onslaught having used the same name.
“I’m sure your operator can fill you in on that, but right now Spectrum wants you dead. You’re a danger to our mission, poking your nose in where it doesn’t belong.” He spoke, grinning widely, baring two sharp fangs.
“Nana, any readings on the short one?” Vile quickly asked.
“No, nothing that I can learn from basic analysis, you’ll have to be careful.” Nana replied, pouting slightly as she was growing worried for her associate.

Without further delay, Frostbite gritted his teeth, the smile that belonged to a teasing pest remained on his face. He clenched his small hands into fists and an ice cloud began forming over the circular indents on top of his shoulder pads. Soon two large icicles, easily the size and thickness of his torso, shot out of them. Vapor wafted from Frostbite as he ‘fired’ up his systems, activating what seemed to be an array of abilities involving ice and frost.
“Ready? Set Go!” Frostbite proclaimed with his high pitched voice and darted for Vile, rapidly.
Vile braced himself and opened fire, the blue orbs of energy heading straight for the charging Frostbite. The tiny Reploid was rapid however and leaped over the barrage, using small bursts of his dash boots to remain airborne until he was located straight above the renegade. The ice-controlling Revenant’s body began spinning rapidly while he remained stationary overhead, his body tilting downwards so the icicles on his shoulders aimed down at Frostbite’s target. Cold fumes and ice dust surrounded him like a thick fog as the rapid spinning motion blurred his frame and made him resemble a large spike ready to come tumbling down and impale any unfortunate enough to be caught in its path. Without warning Frostbite activated his boots and descended on Vile, who had turned his gaze upwards in time to spot the attack coming. The Ex-Hunter jumped aside, out of the fountain and barrel-rolled over the ground several times to make sure he avoided the attack completely. His opponent crashed into the base of the fountain behind him, a mist of ice cold air whipped up and the sound of the icicles shattering reaching Vile as he turned to try and get a fix on Frostbite. Vile barely had time to react to what came next. The icicles that had shattered were apparently anything but normal ice. The razor-sharp shards scattered in all directions like the fragmentation of a grenade. The only thing preventing the shards from reducing Vile to a pincushion was the large piece of debris he dashed behind.

Vile could hear the Reploid’s mocking laughter from where he stood. Frostbite slowly climbed out of the fountain, crossing his arms smugly.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” He called out, trying to taunt the hot-tempered renegade into action.

“The little bastard’s mocking me…” Vile cursed, clenching his fists in anger. He needed to get close to him, take away his advantage of speed and agility. Leaping from cover, Vile opened fire while Frostbite was still laughing at his own words. The plasma spheres raced toward the small Reploid but never hit their mark. The Revenant had opened his palms and small discs of ice had formed and hovered an inch from his hands. Each disc shattered when one of Vile’s shots collided with them but Frostbite easily replaced the simple but effective means of defense. Trying things from a different angle, the Renegade activated his jet boots and flew up into air, all the while firing a volley of rapid but weaker orbs of energy from his shoulder cannon.

“Ya-ha! You’re so easy to predict!” Frostbite shouted as he blocked two more energy blasts before dashing forward, passing underneath the airborne Vile and dodging the rest of the volley. Frostbite stopped near the other side of the fountain and began gathering more cold around his hands. The mist began packing together in his palms, condensing into solid ice and elongating into semi-translucent, silver javelins. With another amused cry he hurled the first of the dangerously sharp weapons at Vile, who was forced to descend quickly to dodge the projectile. The second javelin soon followed and missed the flying Reploid only by an inch. Vile cursed at struggling to keep up with the tiny Frostbite, who in turn reveled at having the upper hand and continued to throw javelin after javelin, his aim becoming more precise with each thrown spear.

Vile realized his next maneuver was risky but taking a chance was what made battle so thrilling. Putting his boots into overdrive he tilted his body forward and began to dive down, straight for his enemy down below. His descend was rapid but Frostbite wasn’t caught off guard. The blue Reploid continued to spawn javelins and hurled them one after the other at the semi-vulnerable Vile. None of the spears hit their intended target however as Vile either reduced them to shards and vapor with his shoulder cannon or adjusted his flight path enough to have them pass him by harmlessly. When he got close enough he activated the rocket pack on his shoulder but instead of firing a volley of smaller rockets he set the device to fire a single, spherical, metallic object. The sphere profited from the momentum Vile’s descend had built up to race rapidly towards an unwary Frostbite. As soon as the Revenant came in range the device activated. On both horizontal sides of the sphere a pair of panels opened up to reveal a deep blue energy core. The device began spinning in place, projecting a spherical barrier of electrical energy around it. It was a drone of sorts as it was semi-aware of its target and continued to move closer. Frostbite was unable to move away in time and the left side of his body was caught in the electric field projected by the drone. The Reploid cried out in pain as he felt the shocks coursing through his frame, overloading some of his circuitry and frying others. The damage itself was minimal but his entire left arm and leg were completely paralyzed and because his left side was less than responsive it became a struggle to even pivot his torso. It was more than enough of a distraction for Vile to get up close and personal like he had wanted to. Before landing behind Frostbite he fired another blast, painfully scarring the Reploid’s right arm. The moment he landed he turned around and slammed his fist into the side of the Revenant’s head and then grabbed hold of the lightweight Reploid’s right leg, hurling him over his shoulder into a nearby roadside lamppost with little effort. Behind Vile the drone had used up all its energy and dropped to the ground and exploded soon after. In an attempt to defend himself, despite being prone and vulnerable, Frostbite placed his right hand on the ground. The frost his power generated began expanding across the pavement and the asphalt Vile stood on. In less than a second the floor surrounding Frostbite was covered in a thin layer of perfectly flat, and as such very slippery, ice. Had Vile not boosted up into the air again he would most likely be frozen to the ground like he had been before. The Revenant got back up slowly, pleased to find control over his left side returning slowly. Frostbite was angered however and he returned to creating Javelins and throwing them at his opponent. This time he hit his mark as the ex-Hunter was still distracted by the ice-covered ground. The Javelin penetrated his shoulder but didn’t go all the way through to the other side. With a painful grunt Vile pulled it free and shattered it. The next attack from the tiny ice-generator was a direct hit to one of Vile’s Jet Boots and a strange stream of ice cold air generated by Frostbite’s shoulder pads froze that same boot solid. The sudden loss of one of his jets caused Vile to spin out of control before he deactivated the other. The force that had been generated by his brief, erratic flight through the air sent him crashing into the face of one of the few relatively intact buildings in the city and he hit the pavement below with a loud grunt.

Vile heard Nana on the other end of the communications link shouting out his name in worry but he didn’t bother with answering, her view screen would show her enough information about his status. Vile rose to his feet and quickly located a nimble Frostbite as the tiny Reploid had begun spinning his body again and charged for the Renegade like a massive drill. Because of the vapor and mist surrounding the Reploid it was very difficult to properly aim for Frostbite actual frame. Vile decided to take a chance and fired three shots from his shoulder-mounted weapon, all aimed at the approximate center of the charge. Two of his blasts were simply deflected by the torrent but the third was a perfect hit. Frostbite’s right shoulder had been painfully damaged by the blast and the loss of focus as well as the force of impact made him spin out of control. Soon the mist was lifted and he crashed, head-first, into the old fountain basin’s outer wall.

“I’m going to enjoy this.” Vile stated as he took aim for the dizzy Frostbite, ready to pelt him with a barrage of energy until nothing but scrap remained of him. His window of opportunity vanished as quickly as it had come however as Nana’s voice sounded over the com link.
“I’m picking up a massive energy build up from down the road… It’s Onslaught’s Particle Projector! He’s ready to fire!” Nana warned, hoping her warning did not come too late. Vile quickly looked to his left to find the giant standing with both feet firmly planted into the asphalt of the road. The obsidian steel rods on Onslaught’s hips had pivoted so they now aimed directly forward, the rods on his shoulders having done the same. Dark energy crackled along the length of all four projectors and a massive sphere had appeared between them. The energy the giant had collected was off the charts and a direct hit wouldn’t leave enough of Vile left to fabricate a pencil sharpener. The Renegade had just switched on his sole defrosted boot when Frostbite quickly responded by freezing the ground once more. The thick layer of ice spread up Vile’s legs, holding him in place.
“Damnit! I’ll rip your tiny head off for this!” Vile cursed as he attempted to free himself. Just as Onslaught prepared to fire he was able to shatter the ice holding him in place with a solid punch. He wasn’t about to waste any time checking to see if both his boots actually worked and he immediately boosted up into the air. A blinding flash swept across the city as Onslaught “pulled the trigger”. The massive orb of energy was propelled forward with incredible speed and past underneath Vile, missing him by a measly few inches. The sonic shockwave it’s passing emitted was enough to push him up higher and knocked him through the window of one of the nearby buildings. The glass shattered and he crashed into what was left of the second story floor. The sound of the energy orb colliding with a derelict structure was deafening and the blast could most likely be seen from the other side of the large ruinous city.

“Vile! Come in! Are you alright?!” Nana inquired. A grunt was all she needed to be reassured at least to some extent. Planting the palms of his hands firmly on the floor, Vile crawled onto his knees and shook his head.
“I’m fine… That heavily armed blockhead missed.” He muttered as he got up off the floor.
“They’re still trying to trace our whereabouts through some of the files you uploaded, I’m afraid if I keep the com link open any longer they’ll find us! But it means I have to shut down all lines of communications between us, which includes your remote transfer signal.” Nana explained.
“So you won’t be able to get me out of here if things get too hairy?” Vile checked.
“Too hairy? You’ve been impaled, frozen, beaten and almost incinerated! Please tell me when it gets “too hairy” for you.” She lectured. “They’ve started ganging up on you, ego or no ego I’m transferring you out of there now, while we still can.” Nana ordered.
“I see you’re going to be spoiling all my fun from now on.” Vile complained before knocking down one of the room’s doors and dashing through to avoid being blasted apart by an incoming volley of missiles from the towering Reploid below.

“I’ve almost got a fix on you. They’re jamming the city pretty thoroughly.” Nana reported.
Vile realized he was a sitting duck inside the ruined building he had been knocked into. He figured if he stuck to the high ground and stayed out of sight he could buy Nana the time she needed to get a proper fix on his signal. Shattering another window down the hall he dashed out of the corridor and onto the rooftop of a building on the other side of the alleyway below. A well-aimed and charged blast from Onslaught’s rifle reduced the building to rubble and like a wave of destruction, Onslaught began systematically destroying each building Vile traversed. He wasn’t about the give the Renegade a single moment to rest. Vile cursed as he reached the edge of one of the rooftops. There were no more buildings left standing within jumping distance so he took a few steps back and prepared to take flight.
“Hold it! Turn around… I wanna see your face before I smash it in.” Frostbite threatened as he had jumped up onto the rooftop and stood ready and armed on the other side. Vile turned to face the annoying, child-like Reploid, his cannon charged and ready for use. But just as Frostbite pulled his arm back to throw the newest javelin he had formed, Vile vanished in a flash of green light, his dematerialized body ascending into the skies rapidly. Frostbite gritted his teeth as he watched the stream of energy disappear from sight, the arm that held his weapon lowering slowly.
“Spectrum’s going to kill us…” He muttered with a slight pouty expression on his face.