X had finally pulled himself forward enough for his hand to fall upon something thick and crusty, his trembling hand almost recoiling at the suddenness of it. Through his glitching vision and the blinding white all around them, it was difficult to discern what it could have been at first.
But as his sight trails to the scene around him, he knows what it is, and why. Rubble, and fragments of Reploid bodies are blown across the landscape. X isn't sure how far he managed to travel, but it was enough for the weight of the sight to fall upon him.
Frozen blood. Those were bodies. He'd... finally found his unit.
X's body shakes violently as he slumps back down into the ice, curling inward slightly. He kept failing people. Maybe that had been a hallucination earlier. Or Techno's ghost. Maybe he deserved all of this, everything that was happening. Did he deserve to keep going like this? Maybe he should just die out here, stop getting innocent people hurt.
If he stopped moving, his body wouldn't generate heat. The ice would clog his vents, cutting off circulation until it eventually suffocated him. He could lay here with the bodies of the rest of his unit. He would apologize for everything when he finally faded into Cyberspace.
But... what about Zero? He probably got wind of what had happened by now. He was probably already on his way. If Zero found him like this, dead and busted and frozen in the middle of some snowfield...
...he would still be hurting more people, wouldn't he?
X's fingers curl inward more, optics vacant as he weighed his options. It... was getting difficult to think coherently, and the sun had already long-since set. It drifts back to his encounter with Techno, wondering if he was already in the late-stages of a permanent shutdown. But the boot on his helmet felt so real, it couldn't have been--
"Hey, buddy!"
The voice cuts off any further thought, and his attention refocuses. That... that voice...
Already? Here?
"Wow, I thought you'd be happier to see me."
Heh... of course. Zero wouldn't let him just give up and die out here, would he?
Relief and sadness clash with each other at his friend's presence, and X makes a little more of an effort to look up and greet his companion. It's difficult to make out his form properly, but--
Just as X was about to allocate the energy for some kind of response, he freezes. The words catch in his throat, and his relief turns to sudden, abject horror.
It was Zero. But... that form...
Before the incident at Sigma's palace. Before X had to spend almost a year trying to locate his friend's body parts and reclaim them from the X-Hunters. Before X had to feel the life from his friend draining rapidly in his arms. And he was just here, stance proud and smiling down at him like none of that ever happened.
He had to be dreaming. Hallucinating. Whatever. This wasn't real.
"Looks like you need a hand getting up, huh?" The words were colder than they'd just been, fear settling in X's chest as he struggled to scramble back. "Here..."
A hand rushes for his throat, peeling X's body off the ground and suspended in midair as his eyes lock onto his friend. Or this... thing with his friend's face. Parts of Zero's armor start dissolving away, resembling scorch marks from an explosion. A rush of energy sparks through X's body, and his legs kick in mid-air, trying to wrench his way out of the creature's grasp.
"It's always like this, huh?" 'Zero' continues, locking eyes with the blue Hunter. "You can't do anything for yourself. I always have to come scrape you off the ground because you messed up in some stupid way."
The hand tightens.
"And you can't argue because you know I'm right."
The words hit like a truck, and X gradually stops struggling against the grip. Logic should have told him that this... creature, hallucination, this-- thing was just trying to worm its way into his conscience. But he... can't argue. He can't fight it. Zero's right. He always is.
Couldn't he save anyone? Can't he do anything right?
"You can fix this, though." Zero smirked, X was listening intently. Good. "I'm not gonna kill you, actually. It'd be too much of a waste. Instead, you're gonna come with me. You're gonna work with us to undo all the damage you've done."
Zero's chestplate starts bubbling, like searing acid, melting and warping into something...
Familiar...
X's eyes widen at the large red eyes glaring up at him, remembering the sensation of something parasitic overriding his routines long ago. Zero's grin widened.
no subject
But as his sight trails to the scene around him, he knows what it is, and why. Rubble, and fragments of Reploid bodies are blown across the landscape. X isn't sure how far he managed to travel, but it was enough for the weight of the sight to fall upon him.
Frozen blood. Those were bodies. He'd... finally found his unit.
X's body shakes violently as he slumps back down into the ice, curling inward slightly. He kept failing people. Maybe that had been a hallucination earlier. Or Techno's ghost. Maybe he deserved all of this, everything that was happening. Did he deserve to keep going like this? Maybe he should just die out here, stop getting innocent people hurt.
If he stopped moving, his body wouldn't generate heat. The ice would clog his vents, cutting off circulation until it eventually suffocated him. He could lay here with the bodies of the rest of his unit. He would apologize for everything when he finally faded into Cyberspace.
But... what about Zero? He probably got wind of what had happened by now. He was probably already on his way. If Zero found him like this, dead and busted and frozen in the middle of some snowfield...
...he would still be hurting more people, wouldn't he?
X's fingers curl inward more, optics vacant as he weighed his options. It... was getting difficult to think coherently, and the sun had already long-since set. It drifts back to his encounter with Techno, wondering if he was already in the late-stages of a permanent shutdown. But the boot on his helmet felt so real, it couldn't have been--
"Hey, buddy!"
The voice cuts off any further thought, and his attention refocuses. That... that voice...
Already? Here?
"Wow, I thought you'd be happier to see me."
Heh... of course. Zero wouldn't let him just give up and die out here, would he?
Relief and sadness clash with each other at his friend's presence, and X makes a little more of an effort to look up and greet his companion. It's difficult to make out his form properly, but--
Just as X was about to allocate the energy for some kind of response, he freezes. The words catch in his throat, and his relief turns to sudden, abject horror.
It was Zero. But... that form...
Before the incident at Sigma's palace. Before X had to spend almost a year trying to locate his friend's body parts and reclaim them from the X-Hunters. Before X had to feel the life from his friend draining rapidly in his arms. And he was just here, stance proud and smiling down at him like none of that ever happened.
He had to be dreaming. Hallucinating. Whatever. This wasn't real.
"Looks like you need a hand getting up, huh?" The words were colder than they'd just been, fear settling in X's chest as he struggled to scramble back. "Here..."
A hand rushes for his throat, peeling X's body off the ground and suspended in midair as his eyes lock onto his friend. Or this... thing with his friend's face. Parts of Zero's armor start dissolving away, resembling scorch marks from an explosion. A rush of energy sparks through X's body, and his legs kick in mid-air, trying to wrench his way out of the creature's grasp.
"It's always like this, huh?" 'Zero' continues, locking eyes with the blue Hunter. "You can't do anything for yourself. I always have to come scrape you off the ground because you messed up in some stupid way."
The hand tightens.
"And you can't argue because you know I'm right."
The words hit like a truck, and X gradually stops struggling against the grip. Logic should have told him that this... creature, hallucination, this-- thing was just trying to worm its way into his conscience. But he... can't argue. He can't fight it. Zero's right. He always is.
Couldn't he save anyone? Can't he do anything right?
"You can fix this, though." Zero smirked, X was listening intently. Good. "I'm not gonna kill you, actually. It'd be too much of a waste. Instead, you're gonna come with me. You're gonna work with us to undo all the damage you've done."
Zero's chestplate starts bubbling, like searing acid, melting and warping into something...
Familiar...
X's eyes widen at the large red eyes glaring up at him, remembering the sensation of something parasitic overriding his routines long ago. Zero's grin widened.
"We need you, X..."