Disclaimer: All characters belong to Capcom. Blind, Dr. Asuhara, and random people thrown in, unfortunately, belong to me. Blind only belongs to me until the very end, where his 'secret identity' is revealed and I must return him to his proper owners. Damn him.

I'm not making money off of this; it's for entertainment only. Dedicated to the few who have been reading since the beginning, in its wee, tiny existence and to those who...who...um.... ^_^;;; yeah.

All human names, the few there are, are in western order (given-name family-name). Yes, even the Asian ones.

Chapter 1

The year: 21XX.

The period: after the fourth Maverick war.

Time was slowly ticking away for the beginning of the end.

The beginning. Where hope would fall from the sky with broken wings in a flurry of scorched feathers, archangels pulled from heaven to aid the war-crested mortals. Such creatures never saw a war they couldn't fathom and this one was too deep in blood and sorrow to grasp the hold on it...and they learned the true meaning of fear and warfare; it was nothing like the petty squabbles they conjured up day after day.

The end, where their wings grew back and were permitted back into heaven, away from the wails of tears and the ferocious demons that crawled from the pits of hell. Away from the men whose mortal medicine could not cure a diseased companion. Back to God, who could cure all.

A mere man had conquered the barriers of Elysian, investing in the sorcery that pulled those angels down by unbreakable chains. He is no Lucifer though, only a pawn, while the true Lucifer sends out his minion to keep the creature who represents his decoy in line.

And the Devil's Cause has happened. Hell on Earth has lasted for thirty-nine years and the point of the fortieth's tip is approaching fast....

"Asuhara."

The name rumbled through the hummed silence and ricocheted off the shadows, resulting in the only organic component in the room to stop his programming and swing the chair around to face the darkness all about him. "Has it been completed?"

"The anti-matter has been properly installed like you wanted."

The shadows shifted and parted as the human nodded. "Excellent. I want you to monitor the entrances and make sure we are not discovered too soon."

"Yes sir." And the voice exited the room, leaving Kazuma Asuhara to finished his interrupted coded sequence.

"Oh, just screw you!"

Downtown was, yet again, in a state of shambles. Not like it hadn't been previous to the engagement; the officials in the presidential branch of Japan had agreed that only when the Maverick threat was annihilated will reconstruction begin. By that point though, the city was unofficially evacuated, as well as some of the other surrounding cities, as they tended to get caught in the Maverick/Hunter crossfires.

"You want some more of this?! Come and get me, you stupid iguana!"

By now, some of those buildings were threatening to collapse. It was stated, shortly after the human population reduced itself to zero, that if your previous home is somehow damaged or destroyed, the government will reimburse you for your losses. An unspoken insurance policy no firm could ever predict prior. Even with the proclamation in effect, many people still weren't happy, now having been away from their homes for a generous number of years.

It gave some, when gazing at the empty sea of buildings from afar, the bone-chilling factor of another World War.

"Jesus, where the he--You cheating scumbag! Get your scaly ass down here right now or I'm coming after you!"

And yet, the only caution given to those currently located within the city limits was to 'beware of falling objects.' What this warning included-- but wasn't at all limited to-- were chunks of pavement, flying glass, compacted cars, street lamps, human and reploid corpses, and in extreme cases, entire sides of a building.

One-third of the defaced towers still stood.

As it were, the commander of the 00 Shinobi Unit lay atop one of these mutilated stacks of metal framing, shoving the dead weight of a new type of Maverick shock-troop off of his person, freeing the energy sabre from its punctured neck as he did so.

His face was covered in sweat, blood, and oils, which trickled down and dried on his-- "Shit, I just polished this!"-- armor. And his hair...his hair! was stained good with whatever the heck ran through the creature's veins.

Zero sneered at the mechanical contraption and spat in its direction, tapping the hilt of his sabre against his thigh. "I told you not to mess with me."

The lifeless skeleton gave a protest of mistreatment as it sagged against the gravel, never to move again. Zero nodded once and turned away from the reptile, walking briskly to the edge as he tried to forget about what the abomination did to his -hair-!... Instead, there was the best distraction money could buy right below him, warding off two more creatures identical to the one behind him.

He may have been one of the few pacifist-promoting Hunters, but Megaman X danced when he battled, an unhindered waltz only he could lavish in. To another, it demostrated instinctive survival tactics than grand ballroom luxuries, but Zero hadn't been seeing X in the same light for decades, despite certain drawbacks of years past.

Once upon a time, the azure Hunter was no more than a child who needed a guiding hand, a hand Zero supplied. Nineteen years ago, a week after third war oficially began, that image shattered a full-lengthmirror to useless bits, killing the reflection of the babe and revealing the man caught behind it. The Great Hero had made his debut, who could finally except the blood of his breathren on his hands.

Unlike Zero, no humans appeared on his tallies.

The blonde sat himself on the edge, feet dangling roughly twenty-two yards off the ground, just watching him. Entranced, smitten, hypnotized, stricken immobile with.....

It hurt.

Like the butterfly.

The butterfly, frail and easily crushed in a fist, could change the course of event, just with the simple flap of its wings.

X didn't want to fight. Zero refused to understand what 'not fighting' could accomplish, when it was military and robotic technologies that kept the human race in one piece. He liked watching X fight, loved it when he fought like the Devil's heir, without even realizing the radical transformation.

It shamed the Shinobi, to indulge such a perverse pleasure.

And he let me touch him for so long.

They moved with the coordination of pack animals, attacking from both sides with all close-range weapons exposed. But their victim was slippery and wasn't caught so simply. It was all X could do, struggling to keep both targets in line of sight. They wouldn't stay still, however, so neither did he.

One of the lizards was already injured, missing an arm X wished was a leg instead. A single opponent like them was an even match-up, X admitted grudgedly. Two against one? His chances of victory were all but dashed.

Even with his life hanging on edge, his observation grew desperate and finally may have picked up on a possible weakness. ....Except that weakness towered him by half a foot and all its limbs were intact.

The first lizard was all hack'n'slash, no finess or regardation of itself. The second exercised caution and wary, displays akin to sublevel intelligence. Unless Zero testified otherwise, X would bet the last three of their scaley friends were duplicates of reptile number one.

Brute force and one brain.

So if I destroy the pack Alpha, how would the Betas compensate?

There was only one way to find out. A risky gamble.

The two lunged once they distinguished his shifty movements, the first a fraction of a second quicker then the second one. Raw reflex kicked in violently, propelling X beyond the reach of extended claws and teeth. One hissed angrily as they nearly collided, but X couldn't tell which one had. Frankly, he didn't care.

From that point, they weren't just batting their prey around, testing to see how much it would resist. It was a total, choreographed assault, keeping the blue-armored reploid constantly on alert as he barely avoided most of the attacks.

Even without its arm, the first droid was still very dangerous, refusing to give X the opening he needed; the second one was equally ruthless. A charged shot lay ready, dangerously reaching the point of overheating inside the buster, but it couldn't be used until someone slowed down. Or risk having his head taken off in the moment of stillness.

I need a distraction!

Blessed be, there was a god.

A sphere of yellow energy drove itself into the ground, uplifting a crater of pavement in a small cloud of debris; it was little more than a meter away from the reptiles. They may have hesitated, doing a quick visual scan for their assassinator, but X didn't.

There was a horrible screeching as the one-armed lizard swerved his head back to its companion, only to find that it was nothing but a headless corpse. After a moment, the remaining one convulsed, head thrown back and spasming; X put more faith that its relay was being redirected, rather than deactivation under failsafe, and made a mad dash for a comfortable distance away.

In its vulnerable state, X could've easily annihilated it. But this fact was crucial; the Hunters -had- to be sure of their battle functions, in the event they couldn't interpret the signals these things gave off.

Like a flash of lightning, it was back in action, now receiving its commands from a new entity. And its target was at the end of the street...

X narrowed his eyes, letting the beast close in on him. Quick recovery time, seemingly smooth radio frequency transfer, and refuses to drop dead. Sigma's getting close to perfecting his army. There's just one defect with these ones.

The lizard leaped, X tightened his defensive stance.

The lizard reached its ecliptic zenith, X prepared himself.

The lizard bore down, ready to strike... and X simply gave the machine a grin, releasing the sleeping power within him.

"Giga Crush!"

In the past...

Blood.

His chest constricted tightly at the sight.

The whole lower level of the mall was bathed in crimson, carelessly splattered like wet paint. And the bodies... He choked on a whimper.

People that ranged from infants to the elderly were everywhere. In parts. The fountain in the middle of the ground floor cascaded clean water into a soggy resting place for torn limbs and partially submerged corpses, the pool as bright as cherry-cola. Many others in the massacre mainly lay on the floor, twisted and mangled to a point where they were nothing but life-size, boneless dolls.

A few arms and legs stuck out of the dirt in the decorative potted plants along the floor, like poorly kept grave sites, bodies were draped over the railings of the second floor, dolls be positioned, it almost seemed, and a select few were horizontally crucified on metal spikes, piercing the hands, knees, and neck; a child, no more than two, was the only one subject to being pinned to a far wall.

But the final insult, a derogatory 'craft' project hanging from a line normally reserved for banners. It was a person... only all parts didn't belong to the same person. ...Like a modern Frankenstein..

The smell was unbearable, rancid and vulgar. Too real. So unreal. Just... A horrified shivered crept down his mechanical spine. His mind was assaulted by the sight, the smell, --and once his bare hand touched the wall beside him and came back with blood on it --the touch...

He wanted to run, to curl up in the bathroom, and empty his stomach of the tormenting nausea that dwelt in his belly. But he fought it and took a step forward.

The floor beneath him rippled, as delicately as a teardrop falling soundlessly into a motionless pond. His eyes fell towards the floor and watched the small, imbalanced waves make their way to a cleared spot among the still chaos.

His breath caught.

Forte

The ebony machine's profile sat on a seat that didn't exist, an air of tranquility surrounding him. The wings of his Gospel Boost were fused to his back, like the true extensions of his body that should be, and his eyes were closed, his expression....wistful. A shaft of sunlight encased his body, the circumference of the light pushing all things evil away from the robotic angel.

A sanctuary for all things pristine.

Fine, pale-gold hair brushed lightly against the neck of the black armor, framing synthetic, ivory skin and those trademark markings raging down his face.

Silence kissed the air, leaving a void for a few eternal moments before violet-ruby eyes opened. They didn't seem to see anything as they gazed about the room, until they stopped..

And stared directly at him.

"Ro~ock."

His pulse quickened as the younger 'bot's voice drifted into his ears; a siren calling her prey out to his death. Never could he imagine how sultry the blonde could sound..

Forte frowned gravely as his rival didn't step forward, only stared at him with astonishment in those bright green eyes of his. "Rock, please. Come here."

Across? No Not across the blood Please don't make me cross the floor

Please Forte

"Rock, you must," he pleaded. "Here. Give me your hand."

As Forte's hand reached out, a million things ran through Rocks mind in the blink of an eye.

Thats his right hand

My right hand touched the wall The one with the blood

The light only protects whats inside the circle

Rock screamed.

Forte's hand passed through the barrier; his fingers were coated red as they emerged on the other side.

Don't !

But it was too late. The ebony robot retracted his hand, but it hadn't changed. His hand glistened in the sunshine...

The ray of light began to pull away, too quick for anyone to stop it. Forte's face twisted in fear as the illuminance passed over him; he fell to his knees, pained, like the light stole something from within when it disappeared.

Rock bit at his lip, as watched as Forte rose his now, helmed head. ...The Blue Bomber gasped.

Back in Forte's eyes was the hunger for pain and suffering, the monster that thrived on the carnage all around them. Blood leaked out of the jewel upon his forehead, dripping onto his face and staining his skin.

Staining his soul.

It's too late, little brother.

Rock never turned around to acknowledge the new voice, but a hand was put upon his shoulder, a comfort.

The scenery began to distort.

You don't have what it takes to reform him, Rokku, if you can't face the fear of despair in your private world.

The setting that was once a shopping mall became a desolate and jagged landscape. Chasms, up lifted rocks like multiple spikes littered the dry, barren earth. Rock turned his head towards his brother, only to find him much taller and donned in strange armor, his scarf tied over his eyes..

But you'll have another chance. One day. ...One day, you'll find your heart beats stronger than your justice, or your fear. Until then, you'll only look on... and watch as Forte destroys everything you've worked hard to preserve.

What /I/ worked hard to preserve.

The brunette tried to reply, but found no voice inside of him. A shriek snapped him back to the current world and green eyes widened in horror.

Forte was morphing, into a creature that held no bars on the real plane. Hideous, corrupted, deceitful...

And all Rock could recall of the demon when he awoke were the surreal blue eyes in its head.

In the present...

Zero tapped the severed torso of the lizard machine, inspecting the... explosive job X had laid upon the unsuspecting creature. "Well... shit, Yakasa. Couldn't have done it better myself."

X merely gave a slight roll of his eyes at the gleeful commander, shaking his head absently. "You can't do it at all."

"Your point?" The hunk of useless metal received a swift kick, sending it meters away. Zero sauntered over to the azure-clad reploid, eyeing him. "But really, I thought you told me you wouldn't be reckless with that damn... whatever it is."

"Feh, I wasn't reckless," said X as he leaned up against an overturned car, slouching some. "Unlike you, I think about what my next move is going to be."

"Okay, so I improvise." Zero frowned. "And what would you have done if that thing had survived? I can't save you every time you're in a jam."

X's expression turned indignant. "You have a superiority complex; anyone ever tell you that?"

"What the hell put /that/ idea in your head?!" The blonde glared at him and leaned in closer, in hopes of intimidating him.

His desire were shattered. X scowled and pushed Zero away with a hand to his shoulder. "You rescue me from impending doom two or three times-- I have yet to return any of those favors-- and you /constantly/ keep smearing them in my face like you expect me to get down on my knees and worship the very ground your hair brushes against."

"Oh yeah?" An eyebrow arched sharply. "And tell me, what would you do without me, huh? You would've been dead on only your first mission as ranking commander of the 17th. See, you need me like pretzels need peanut butter."

X's face was blank for a moment, before a half grin twisted his lips. "Peanut butter and pretzels?" he chuckled. "Jesus, I'm a pretzel."

"Hey, hey! Don't knock it 'til you tried it, blue boy. Just because you're a freakin' vegetarian who doesn't eat /anything/ but rabbit food, does /not/ mean you can make fun of my midnight snacking buddy!" Zero hmphed. "Ignorant health nut. S'not like you can get /fat/ or anything."

X made a sound of annoyance, even though he heard the light tone of amusement in his partner's voice. But he didn't reply. Instead, he wandered over to where the discarded torso lay and gave it a thoughtful lookover. Then he tapped a small button on the side of his helmet and held it down. "Dnuthre. Have you engaged those lizards yet?"

"Engaged and terminated, sir!" came the breathless response. "All four are now scrap metal and Okudo was our only real casualty."

"How bad?"

Weary chuckle. "Not bad enough sir, considering he still has use of his vocal chords. Swearing like a sailor and complaining about a lost leg."

"Then get him to the infirmary and let Aesculapius and those new Lifesavor droids take care of him."

"Copy. Dnuthre out."

The link was broken with the release of the button and X found Zero sitting on top of the same junk heap he had been up against. "It takes all the members from the best unit to get rid of four of the lizards, and between the both of us, we can clean off five. ...I don't like this."

Zero shrugged. "Has there ever been a time when Sigma was capable of winning? God, yes. But!....Has he won during /any/ of those times? Hell no." He motioned with his finger. "C'mere, 'Kasa-chan."

He hated that nickname. Really, he did. Except no one ever called him that; Zero was the 'barely tolerant' exception. But, he was convinced that if anyone else ever called him 'Kasa-chan', they would be very dead. ... Well, no, first he'd be mortified, and /then/ the person would be dead, because he /wasn't/ female; he wasn't even feminine looking, for crying out loud! --Wait, what started this again? Oh. Right. Zero.

Bastard.

"Don't call me that." But, despite that he was scowling, X marched back to the car and its occupant. "What's on your mind?"

Zero grinned mischievously as he leaned forward, poking at the tip of X's nose. "You're beginning to owe for certain services, pal. Being your knight in shinning armor, as well as providing backup, is a costly job and friendship is cheap. How do you plan to pay me?"

Even as a hard glare directed itself at the blonde, a light pink accented his cheeks; X slapped the hand away from his face. "You know what I told you, because I know what your answer was."

The Shinobi commander snorted angrily and hopped down to the ground. "That was nearly four fucking years ago, X. I don't want to screw random people; I want /you/."

X turned away from him, folding his arms. "I won't let that happen again."

"Aie yah!" Zero threw up his arms in exasperation. He grabbed X's shoulders and brought him face-to-face. "/Listen/ to me this time, X. ....I've known you for a little over the length of the Wars, ever since that first day I was activated on Cain's table. We were partners-- we /still/ are-- and that won't change, because we're the best.

"And seventeen years ago, I would have bet my life we would have sacrificed it all for just one night together. Then that rookie-- what's her name-- Toreno, get's herself caught on a landmine left over from that desert camp. You blame yourself, because you believe that if you had been one hundred percent focused on that mission instead of only ninety-nine percent (the one percent being myself), you would have been more cautious.

"Four /years/, X. You've become the drill sergent from hell, and only Dnuthre and Yuiko know how to have fun anymore. And let's not forget what /I've/ had to go through..."

X pursed his lips together; he's heard this rant before and, quite frankly, didn't want to hear it again. "I know. Iris."

"Damn straight," hissed the blonde, tightening his fingers over the blue armor. "I could very well has lived happily ever after with her, X, and left you behind. I loved her... not as much as I love you, but it would have sufficed. And having to retire her just /killed/ me.

"You can lose anything when you make decisions, 'Kasa, even when the decision is the right one."

It was silent, emerald eyes locked onto pools of ultramarine, the latter pleading, the former void of emotion..

"Please X. Just change your mind, or even let your guard down again, like you did that one time. ..Onegai..."

X closed his eyes and grabbed one of Zero's wrists, slowly pulling it away from his body. His gestures gave nothing away, nothing about what was crossing through his mind....--

"Gomen nasai, Zero. ....But no."

Zero's expression fell in pure devastation, as X walked out of his loosened fingers. His heart gained a hairline split down the center when X's back turned to him, cracking with every step that hit the pavement.

His eyes blazed over in fury. "Goddammit, Yakasa!" he screamed. "One day, you are gonna realize you aren't the hot piece of shit you thought you were! And on that day, you will /crawl/ back to me and /beg/ me to take you back!"

X didn't even flinch in his strides.

"You bastard! I'm not waiting for the end of the damn war to be with you! What the hell makes you think either of us are going to /see/ the end of the war, huh?!"

He was a building away when he stopped; a tiny ray of hope shone down on Zero, instantly growing brighter when X turned around. He desperately wished that he could trap it...

"Because," he said quietly, but strong enough to still be heard, "you said it yourself. We are the best."

That hope disappeared, leaving the crimson-armored reploid empty inside, as X fell back into step. But, as empty as he felt, Zero let just the briefest smile cross his face. That, we are. But it eased itself away and he glared at the retreating figure, clenching his fists. "That doesn't mean the best always survive!"

But there was no reply direct reply. Instead, he received, "Thanks for the save, by the way," before X decided that walking was out of fashion and teleported to the vicinity of his unit. And Zero was alone.

Or so he thought.

"Commander?"

The blonde tensed, startled and off-guard, as he swung around to come and face his own second-in-command, the last of her own teleporting wisps faded into nothingness. "....What is it, 'Tori."

Reitori frowned slightly. "Sir, the threat has been eliminated and I'm reporting back to you."

Zero sighed with weary and put a hand to his forehead. "Stop being so damn formal, 'Tori. The rest of the Shinobi are back at base, so there's no point with it."

"But sir--"

He held up a firm hand. "Just. Stop." His tone left no room for argument.

Reitori grimaced and gave a respectful bow. "Alright."

Zero exhaled through his nose and started pacing, agitated. "You didn't hear what I was saying before your TD-static disappeared, did you?"

She cocked her head to the side, blue-hair-streaked-silver falling with the motion. "Um, no si-- ah...no, I didn't. Should I have?"

He shook his head. "No... Come on, let's go back. I want to hear how the 17th faired against the lizards."

"Hai." Pause. "Um, sir?"

Zero's eye ticked. "Didn't I just tell y--"

"It's your hair..um, Zero.."

"My wha?" He looked over his shoulder and grabbed the large pony tail. He had forgotten all about the cleaning job he would have to put into it--

"FUCK!"

Overhead, twin witnesses bore the scene to memory. Every word, every motion had not gone unnoticed by four eyes spying from their aerial pirch, and committed with it the obvious assumptions. Their expressions were gaunt, pale, and dirtied with pension. And now alone, they drew themselves deeper into the cloak of doubt.

"Masaka...." rasped one.

"I hear you," murmured his companion, frowning all of his disapproval at the sudden red and white beams of distilled energy speeding off to the Hunter base. "This is ridiculous. Who could've guessed the same sappy romance would play back /in reverse/?!"

Sadly amused, the first smiled bitterly. "Not the same, Dee. 'They' never fucked before, let alone had a relationship. This is far more serious."

"......." The other closed his eyes and shook his head, unhappy. "We need to report this back to Blind. He'll know what to do."

† ‡§‡ † ‡§‡ †

Happy fic go byebye. Ahahahaha! Meanwhile, I know X could only use the Giga Crush when he had at least his body armor. It's not a mistake on my part.

Japanese Vocabulary!:
Rokku = Rock (duh)
shinobi = play the namesake game
onegai = please
gomen nasai = I'm (very) sorry
masaka = (it's) impossible

Terms!:
TD = Teleportation Device (I'm cheap)

Fun facts!:
Reitori = spirit [rei] chicken [tori]