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 Pay no attention to the string of numbers ^_^  Yes, they're there for a reason.

 Don't ask.  Anyway, this is our first full entry into the fanfiction of Rockman

 X, but please don't hesitate to e-mail with comments or criticism.  I told 

 Heather that there wouldn't be an Authors' Note, though, so ignore this ^_^;;

 Thanks!  -- Boco the Chokobo, AmazonessDuo Webslave, Editor, and Co-Author

 

 

 Fate in Haze

  by AmazonessDuo

  amazonessduo@hotmail.com

 

 

      "Roll..."

      What? Who?

      "Roll..."

      You said that already. Who is Roll? Where is she?

      "Roll!!"

      So much more insistent this time. Why are you so sad? I'm sorry... I wish I

 could help. What have you lost?

      "Roll..."

      Zero... The only other time I've heard someone in such pain was when Zero 

 lost Iris. And even then, he hid it from me. I remember it even more vividly 

 from myself. When I lost Zero. I'm so sorry. I know how much it hurts...

      "Roll..."

      A last, anguished cry. No, why are you giving up? You can't give up hope. 

 Sometimes it's the only thing we have left. Please don't give in to despair. 

 Don't leave me all alone. I... I don't want to be alone..

      That girl... Who is she? Why is she so familiar? Why is she haunting me? 

 I'm sorry. I'm trying so hard, but I can only do so much. I don't want to fight 

 anymore. I just wish it would all go away. All of it except Zero. Stay with me, 

 Zero. Please...

      Who are you? She smiles at me but says nothing. A beautiful, always 

 cheerful smile graces the girl in front of me. I place my hand out and she 

 mirrors me. Why? Who are you? Please. Please tell me. Another smile is all the 

 answer I get. I don't understand. I can't help you if you don't tell me. 

      The mirror shatters, shards flying everywhere. Shadows envelop me as I try 

 to struggle free. Sigma? No, I won't let you... That's not Sigma. But who... No, 

 I don't want to die... I don't... Blues...

 

      "X." The origin of all of the Repliroids moved around for a moment, still 

 not quite awake. Zero just smiled in amusement as he watched his ally slumber, 

 his hands on his hips. "X, get up. Alia wanted to see you about something. I 

 think she's still thrilled that you finally brought back one of Light's armors 

 in one piece." Who was Alia dating again? Oh yeah, that female hunter from the 

 13th Unit. Not that it mattered. Gender really became pointless when one didn't 

 need to reproduce sexually. He'd been mistaken for female on a number of 

 occasions himself. Even Iris had thought so when she'd first seen him. A pang of 

 guilt stabbed him in the side at the thought of her.

      "Roll..." X shook his head as he tried to stand up, grabbing onto Zero for 

 support. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to make sense of the disturbing 

 dream. The image of a tattered yellow scarf wouldn't leave his mind. He shivered 

 at the memories. Something about them just shook him to the core. "Yeah, I'll go 

 do that, Zero. She's probably waiting." 

      Zero watched his smaller companion turn to leave after letting go of him. 

 Things just didn't feel right. The smaller robot felt different today. "X, 

 what's wrong?" Zero knew that X had never wanted to be an Irregular Hunter. 

 Being a pacifist at heart, this wasn't at all what X wanted. But unless they 

 could finally stop the ongoing chaos, X would never have the peace he longed 

 for. So they both had to keep fighting. But although that bothered X quite 

 often, Zero didn't think this was quite the same thing this time.

      Pausing for a moment, X was silent. He wanted to talk to Zero about it, but

 he wasn't quite sure what the dream had meant himself. The whole experience had 

 just been strange. Like something buried deep in his mind. As soon as he almost 

 grasped onto it, it slipped further away from him. If only he could talk to Dr. 

 Light. But the only time he ever saw him was with the armor capsules. He was 

 really starting to doubt the good doctor was dead, though. How could he have 

 built all of those and scattered them so conveniently? Whatever the case, it 

 made it more frustrating for a very confused X. Picking up his helmet, X sighed.

 "It's nothing, Zero. I'm worrying too much about something that's not important. 

 Let's go see Alia."

      Zero nodded, still not quite convinced but not wanting to press X about it 

 if that's what he wanted. As the two Hunters walked towards the work station 

 Alia had been using the last Zero had seen of her, the blonde watched his friend

 carefully. X seemed to be deep in thought, still wrestling with whatever it was 

 that he wasn't telling him. "X, sometimes..." A blaring siren cut Zero off 

 midsentence right when he was about to say something profound. 

      "Yeah, Zero?" X asked, obviously more interested in what his friend had to 

 say than whatever new catastrophe was popping up. Those got old rather quickly. 

 And Sigma hadn't even had an elaborate death scene the last time. How could he 

 even think Sigma was dead lacking an elaborate death scene? Killing him at his 

 citadel didn't work, killing his virus form didn't work, Zero stabbing him with 

 an anti-sigma virus program didn't work. Why would an exploding space station be

 any different?

      "Damn, I lost it," Zero said, his hand on his chin. The blaring siren of 

 the level 10 alert was grating. The blonde offered a slight smile and placed a 

 hand on X's shoulder. "Whatever's inside your heart is good, X. I know that 

 personally. Don't ever fight yourself or you'll tarnish that beauty. Trust in 

 your heart. It's the only guide you have." 

      X just stared at Zero as the seconds ticked past. He felt himself smile, a 

 slight blush on his cheeks as his spirits soared. "Thanks, Zero. I'll remember 

 that." Looking down, X tried to collect himself. There was so much he wanted to 

 say to Zero. By the time he looked up, Zero was already heading to see what the 

 alert was all about. X sighed and hurried to catch up. "Zero! Wait for me!"

 	

      A bolt of blue signified the arrival of X out on the frozen tundra. 

 Apparently an arctic base had been terrorized by an Irregular and it was X's job

 to see just what was going on and put a stop to it. Zero had offered to go, but 

 after the dream this morning, X couldn't sit back while this was happening. The 

 ice made crunching sounds under his feet as he traversed the icy wasteland. 

 "Hello?" For a long moment, he didn't hear anything. Finally, he could hear a 

 low moan off in the distance. X quickly dashed to the scene. A man was lying 

 face down in the snow, obviously in pain. Well, a Repliroid at least. They did 

 most of the work these days. "Are you all right?" X asked as he kneeled next to 

 the injured Repliroid.

      "Ahhh.. It came out of nowhere... No time to get away... Bill was saying 

 that I spent too much time polarizing the sensors... So I told Bill just what he 

 could do with the sensors... Then he..."

      "Do you by any chance know where the Irregular went?" X asked, cutting him 

 off. It wasn't that his story wasn't.. colorful, it's just that he was in a 

 hurry. 

      "Huh? That way." The Repliroid pointed back behind him. "You're X, right? 

 Say, is it true that only animalistic Repliroids go Irregular?"

      "No, that's only a myth," X explained as he powered up his X-buster.

      The Repliroid seemed to consider this for a moment. "Hmm... Alright then, 

 name two non-animalistic ones that went Irregular."

      X stared at the man in the snow for a long moment. "Vava and Double." He 

 looked back the way the Repliroid had come, trying to judge where the Irregular 

 might be hiding. His thoughts were once again shattered by the Repliroid. 

      "Fair enough. But I bet you couldn't name three," he said smugly.

      "Look, I'm really very busy right now. And I could name more, but I'm on 

 the job. Can you move? You need to get to safety," X said, feeling a little 

 exasperated.

      "Oh sure. I'm just a little beaten up, that's all. Go ahead and leave me 

 out in the god forsaken cold. I'll be just fine."

      "Good. I'll come back for you later." Before the Repliroid could reply, X 

 dashed off towards the frigid caverns that awaited him. His footsteps echoed 

 within the icy confines. Every movement of the windswept snow outside nearly 

 startled him. It wasn't long before he heard a heart wrenching shriek from up 

 above. Whipping his X-buster up in that direction, he saw the Irregular in 

 question. Fairly short with stubby legs and a light blue and black color scheme,

 the Irregular watched him from above, perched on a ledge. 

      "Die, X!" he screamed as he leaped off. But the penguin, being a flightless 

 bird even as a Repliroid, slammed into the ground several feet in front of X.

      X just blinked as he watched the Irregular for a few long moments. That 

 certainly seemed anticlimactic. Nudging the Irregular with his foot, he was 

 relieved when the downed penguin didn't move. Switching on his communicator, he 

 smiled. "Alia, mission accAckk!!!" X yelped as the penguin slammed into him, 

 throwing him back into an ice covered wall. 

      "You didn't think I'd go down that easily did you? You've obviously never 

 tangled with Spank Penguin before!" The Irregular struck a pose as he waited for

 his obvious grandeur to strike our hero. 

      X stared for a long moment, sweat dropping. "Spank... Penguin... Umm... 

 Sure. Look, do we really have to fight?" X asked as he got to his feet. 

      "What the hell's wrong with Spank?!" The penguin asked angrily, his leather

 paddle arms flapping in irritation. He was obviously a... Well, a Repliroid 

 designed for very specific things. "It's a perfectly good name. Like X even 

 makes any sense. At least mine explains something."

      X put his hands up in front of him defensively. "No, I didn't mean it like 

 that. I just... I was making sure I got it right," he explained lamely. 

      "Now you're really gonna get it, Irregular Hunter! I was just going to bust

 you up real good for Icy, but now you're screwed." 

      "Icy? Icy Penguigo? He used to be an Irregular Hunter back before Sigma led

 the coup! I remember him. I used to see him from time to time when I'd be 

 visiting Zero down at Hunter HQ," X said thoughtfully. 

      "That obviously didn't make you double think killing him," Spank shot out. 

 "Now you'll die for killing my cousin!"

      "Wait! Icy was your cousin? I had no idea. I'm so sorry... I know what it's

 like to lose a loved one like that. I lost two brothers. I know how much it can 

 hurt," X said quietly as he took a step forward, a sad expression on his face. 

 That could hurt so much, being all alone. Losing your family... X felt his eyes 

 stinging. What had he done?

      Spank backed away a few feet, freaked out by the way X was acting. "What 

 are you doing? You never had any brothers. You're the ancient, the original that 

 Repliroids are based on. What the hell are you talking about?"

      "I'm sorry about Icy. I didn't want to hurt anybody. But if I hadn't, they 

 would have hurt people. I couldn't let them do that." X looked at the penguin 

 apologetically. The pain he felt was real, but he couldn't place any memories to

 it. He knew he was the only one, but the thought of two brothers plagued him 

 like the last vestiges of a nightmare that wouldn't go away. "I never wanted to 

 hurt anyone. I just wanted to protect people."

      Spank shook his head. "That may justify you to yourself, but it's not going

 to work on me. You could have all the reason in the world, but Icy's still dead 

 and I'm not going to let you get away with it." Screaming at the top of whatever

 passed for lungs in his mechanical body, Spank ran full tilt at the Irregular 

 Hunter. 

      X yelped as he backpedaled, firing off a bolt with his X-buster. The blast 

 caught the penguin square in the chest, throwing him a few meters along the 

 floor. X sighed as he walked back up again. This obviously wasn't a war machine.

 Just a misled Repliroid wanting to get back something precious. As X stood 

 there, watching the prone body of his enemy, he wondered why he had to be 

 fighting this way. So many had died in his mission to restore peace. Was it 

 really worth it? Would it ever come to an end? And why had... X never had the 

 chance to finish the thought as Spank popped up again, flailing his arms at the 

 Irregular Hunter. Before X could do anything, a flash of light swiped through 

 the penguin, his torso and lower half falling in two. "Zero!"

      "Are you alright, X? I came after Alia heard your message get cut off." 

      "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just surprised." The two looked at what was left of 

 the Irregular for a long moment. "We should get going."

      "Good idea." Zero raised an eyebrow as the body continued to generate a 

 buzzing sound before the two teleported back to headquarters. 

 	

      Who was that girl? What did she want? Why was everyone crying? Why wouldn't

 it leave him alone? He was already trying his hardest with everything. X 

 clutched his head as he whimpered. His fingers ran through his hair as the half 

 memories and shadows in his mind were cruelly taunting him, slipping through his

 fingers like sand whenever he'd get close. What was going on? What was happening

 to him? 

      X collapsed to his knees, his eyes still closed. Trying to sort this out 

 was doing him no good. These memories... They felt like his own. So distant and 

 nearly forgotten. But he knew they were before he had been activated. So they 

 couldn't be his. Why would Dr. Light program those in? For what purpose? Even 

 now, they were still shrouded in too much mist for him to unravel. 

      One thought that kept racing through his head was that perhaps he had been 

 activated briefly before he had been put in his capsule. If so, maybe he had 

 done something... something horrible that made the good doctor decide to test 

 him for thirty years in an attempt to make sure the mistake was never made 

 again. If so... Had he killed the girl? Had he killed Roll? His soul went cold 

 at the thought. He knew that he could never do such a thing, but the thought 

 that it was even a remote possibility frightened him to the core. That he could 

 be capable of such senseless violence... 

      X wanted to talk to Dr. Light, but he had no way of contacting him, alive 

 or dead. He knew Zero would listen, but he didn't know what to tell him. Zero 

 already had plenty of his own problems. And Zero had lost Iris so recently. X 

 didn't want to burden him with his own problems. He was strong enough to handle 

 this on his own. He hoped. 

      Unfortunately, he had to deal with it soon. The dreams were beginning to 

 consume him. Zero had noticed before he did that he was starting to slip in 

 battle. His will to fight was starting to grow weaker, the fear of what he may 

 be capable of lying just below the surface. If he didn't do something soon, the 

 girl and the dreams would become too much for him to handle. 

      A sound in the doorway startled X. A figure stood sillohetted in the light 

 from the hallway. "X..." Zero whispered softly. "X, what's wrong?" His voice was

 soft but urgent. He couldn't stand by and watch his friend consumed by 

 nightmares. Not the way he had been. He fought to find out the meaning behind 

 them, to find out why this vicious cycle had been started. But X was being 

 affected entirely differently. He was falling prey to the dreams that haunted 

 him like specters of the past. 

      X stood up slowly, hair disheveled and his helmet lying on the floor a few 

 feet away. "Zero... I'm so afraid... I don't know who I am anymore.." X said, 

 his voice trembling. The smaller Irregular Hunter grabbed onto his taller 

 counterpart after a moments hesitation. 

      Startled for only an instant, Zero held his frightened friend. At least now

 he could help in some way. The two held on in silence for a long moment, a 

 little peace amidst their chaotic lives. "I know who you are, X," Zero stated 

 calmly. "You're the only one on this planet that realizes just how wrong this 

 war is. And you're trying to stop it all on your own even though you never 

 wanted to be a warrior. You're a pacifist carrying the dreams of the world with 

 you into battle in an attempt to protect them. You were never meant to fight. 

 That wasn't your path. You were dragged down upon it by tragedy. You're just 

 doing the best that you can in every way you can." 

      X looked up at the blonde after hearing his comforting words, soothing his 

 battered spirits slightly. "Then... Who are you, Zero?"

      Zero smiled and shrugged. "Me? I'm just a lonely and confused soul that has 

 to know."

      "Know what?"

      "I have to know why," Zero explained simply.

      X thought this over for a moment, resting his head on Zero's chest. "Zero, 

 I don't know how I'd go on without you. If it weren't for you, I would never 

 have run off into battle in the first place. All I've wanted to do since the 

 beginning is to fight with you. I don't think I could do it on my own."

      "Of course you could, X. All of my faith rests within you. I know that if 

 this war ever has a chance of ending, it will be because of you." Zero brushed 

 back some of X's hair from the still distraught Irregular Hunter's eyes. His 

 own eyes locked with X's teary ones for a long moment. Cupping the other 

 Hunter's chin, his lips pressed against X's. 

      X's arms went around Zero after a tense moment as the blue robot relaxed. 

 When X opened his eyes again, the tears were gone. He smiled softly up at the 

 blonde. "Thanks, Zero. I know what I want to do now. I wasn't sure at first, but

 I want to confront the dreams. I want to know why I'm having them." How was Zero

 always so strong and sure about everything? He wished he could be that strong. 

 But it was enough just to be there with Zero. It felt so warm in his arms, like 

 the war was light years away. It felt... right. 

      Ignoring the mortified look Douglas was giving them, Zero nodded simply. 

 "We'll do everything we can to get to the bottom of it."

 

      Why was everyone being so boring? There was absolutely nothing to do. Dr. 

 Light was busy on something new he was working on that would 'revolutionize 

 robotics', as he put it, Rock and Rush were out somewhere, probably trying to 

 stop Dr. Wily again, and Blues was as always nowhere to be seen. There was 

 nothing for her to do. 

      So Roll went back to doing what she always did when there was nothing to 

 do. Attempt to make Dr. Light's lab just a little prettier. Some plants here and 

 there, maybe a painting, sometimes a table. Anything that would get rid of that 

 stale lab feeling. Of course, the good doctor usually ruined it by putting tools

 or spare parts on the cute little tables or accidentally killing the plants. Or 

 smearing oil all over the drapes. A sigh escaped her lips as she continued 

 walking. Why did she even bother? Oh, that's right. She was bored. 

      At about that time, the lights went out. Again. Just what was Dr. Light 

 working on that kept shorting out the lights? Rolling her eyes, the blonde girl

 quickly headed back to the lab after finding some candles. She couldn't have 

 poor Dr. Light stumbling around in the dark trying to accomplish whatever it 

 was. That man was entirely too stubborn when he got his mind set on something. 

 Walking into the dark lab, Roll quickly adjusted to the darkness. "Dr. Light? 

 Dr. Light, I brought some candles."

      "Oh, thank you, Roll. Just put them over there," Dr. Light said, waving 

 over his shoulder vaguely. Sparks from a welder briefly illuminated the large 

 room as he attempted to continue his work. "The lights should be on shortly."

      Roll lit the candles, clearing a space for them on the work bench. She 

 smiled to herself as she arranged them for better affect. "So what are you 

 working on now, Dr. Light?" The sounds of his work drew her attention. Walking 

 closer, she tried to catch a good glimpse through the sparks and flickering 

 candlelight. It appeared to be another robot. This one was taller than she and 

 Rock. Dark purple hair peeked out from underneath the helmet. Green eyes gazed 

 lifelessly out at her, not yet given the spark in her own green orbs. "Who is 

 he?" she asked curiously. Dr. Light had been very into his new project, but 

 other than a few things here and there at the dinner table or around the house, 

 she hadn't heard much about it. Something about an enhanced personality matrix. 

 She sincerely hoped that didn't mean the Dr. was getting bored with them. 

      It took Dr. Light a moment to get his mind to register something aside from

 his new toy. "Oh, this is X. He's a new type of robot altogether. He'll be given 

 the ability to think and feel just like a human. His abilities are greatly 

 enhanced as well. He's completely state of the art. Completely beyond anything 

 this world has ever seen."

      Roll just nodded in reflex. So he would practically be human? Not some 

 heartless machine like her. Not some object designed for one thing until it got 

 broken or replaced by a new model. He was lucky. He had plenty to look forward 

 to once he was activated.

      "Roll? Are you crying?" Dr. Light blinked in fascination. What had he said? 

 This came as quite a surprise. "No, I didn't mean it that way, Roll. Your 

 feelings and thoughts are no less real than his. Or mine. You're just as alive 

 as I am. It's just that you're still bound by certain rules of robotics. He 

 won't be. He'll be able to make his own decisions despite what a human says."

      Roll nodded again, feeling a little better. Wiping her eyes, she thought it

 over. "So you designed me as a lab assistant and to help with the housekeeping 

 and you designed Rock to be able to save the world - well, after you 

 reprogrammed him, but X will be able to decide what he wants to do on his own?"

      Dr. Light nodded emphatically. "Precisely! His life will take him wherever 

 he wishes it to. And he will have the abilities to allow him to pursue almost 

 anything he wants. And I'm giving him an enhanced version of Rock's ability to 

 use any tool. That should help with whatever dreams he will aspire to." The old 

 robotics specialist smiled broadly, glad to be in his element. 

      "So kinda like Blues?" Roll asked thoughtfully, tilting her head to the 

 side. Her big brother had decided rather early on that he would lead his own 

 life instead of letting someone else choose it for him. 

      The doctor blinked, a little unprepared for the question. Blues had been 

 his prototype. So long ago... He wished the small red robot had trusted him 

 more. "Yes, a little like Blues. Though this is much more advanced and shouldn't 

 cause any problems to his systems, whereas Blues's..." he explained. 

      Roll nodded, looking back to X. She smiled slowly. "Well, I hope you finish

 our little brother soon, then. I'll need to invite Blues, wherever he is. I want

 him to be here when you activate him." 

      Dr. Light sweatdropped. He doubted the red robot would show up for anything

 that wasn't entirely mysterious. But he just nodded in agreement. "Good idea, 

 Roll. I'll get back to work on X in the meantime." 

      Taking a last look at her little brother, Roll grinned again. She knew that

 he'd accomplish great things. She couldn't wait to meet him.

 

      "But I was an accident."

      Roll looked at her older brother incredulously. They were sitting on the 

 rooftop of Light's mansion, watching the sunset. "No, you weren't, Blues! How 

 could you think that?" She smoothed down her skirt as the wind started to pick 

 up, Blues's scarf flowing with the breeze. 

      Blues shrugged, watching the distant sun. "Because I was. Light and Wily 

 hadn't planned for me to decide to head off into the horizon in search of my own

 destiny. I was a prototype for Light's robotics systems. You're based off me." 

 He grinned at his younger sister, getting a frown in return.

      "Yeah, but that still doesn't mean..." Roll sighed in defeat. "I guess 

 you're right. But that's not a bad thing, Blues. It's good that you can choose 

 for yourself. Still, I wish you'd let Dr. Light take a look at you from time to 

 time."

      "And I wish you and Rock could decide for yourselves what you wanted to do.

 But that's not the way things work. I'm not letting Light anywhere close enough 

 to reprogramming me. I'm not going to give him the chance." He placed his hands 

 behind his head, looking straight up at the first glimpses of stars in the 

 darkening sky. His helmet lay off to his right. "Even if it kills me."

      "But he wouldn't change anything, Blues. He just wants to make sure that 

 you're okay. He worries about you." It felt terrible to have to go between the 

 two, but she knew it would be almost impossible to get them in the same room to 

 talk. Pulling her knees to her chest, she just watched the other robot for a 

 moment to see his response.

      "Maybe... But say I am completely an accident. Then his 'fixing' me would 

 get rid of that. I don't want him deciding how I should live my life. That's 

 part of what worries me about G."

      "X," Roll supplied.

      Blues just nodded and continued. "If Light's trying to duplicate what 

 happened by freak accident years ago, he might not get the results he's looking 

 for. I'm not sure how M will handle things. And that makes me edgy. Especially 

 if he's going to be in the same house as you and Rock." The prototype robot was 

 very protective of his younger brother and sister. Almost to the point of 

 paranoia. Almost. He wanted to stay and keep an eye on them, but he had to 

 settle with watching from a distance. He braced himself for Roll's inevitable 

 reply.

      "You could always stay with us for a while and help him. I'm sure X could 

 use your help. And Rock would love to see more of you. And I promise Dr. Light 

 won't touch you. Please, Blues?" Big, pleading green eyes were turned towards 

 her older brother, much to his dismay. 

      Blues shook his head adamantly. "I'm sorry, Roll. I can't. It's not how I 

 operate. Besides, Light isn't even supposed to know that you meet with me at 

 all. All he has to do is ask you and you'll tell him that I show up from time to

 time. This is risky enough as it is."

      Blinking in confusion, Roll shook her head. "But why would Dr. Light ask? 

 And why wouldn't I tell him?"

      A sigh escaped the red and gray robot as he shook his head. "Never mind. 

 Just be careful, Roll. I have a very bad feeling about all of this."

      Roll giggled, pulling on Blues bucket helmet. She winked at him through the 

 shades. "You worry too much, Blues. Everything will be fine."

 

      It had been a few weeks since X's activation. So far things had been going 

 rather well. Maybe that was too bright an assessment of the situation. X and the

 doctor didn't seem to get along very well at all. X found it degrading that upon 

 being activated with the ability to choose his own destiny, his big brother and 

 sister were 'slaves' to his creator. Some of the arguments had lasted all night 

 long. Roll sighed as she held the stuffed metool closer to her chest. She had 

 her long blonde hair down and was wearing a nightgown, the ground feeling cool 

 against the 'skin' of her bare feet. "X? Is that you?" Sticking her head around 

 the door, her eyes scanned for any trace of the other robot. Her younger brother

 wasn't in his room so she had come looking for him. Finally catching sight of 

 him, she hurried over to his side. "X, you're not running away, are you?" Her 

 voice was full of hurt and surprise. 

      "Roll... Yeah, I think it's best if I leave. I don't think there's much 

 need for me here. That damned hypocrite built me and then has you and Rock doing

 his dirty work. Where do humans think they get off using robots for slave labor?

 What gives them the right to force us into doing their bidding?" X shook his 

 head angrily, clutching his fists.

      "Because they built us?" Roll suggested softly, sitting next to X. "Dr. 

 Light is a really nice man. I wish you'd give him a chance. I think you'd like 

 him. Please don't run away, X. I already lost my big brother that way. I don't 

 want to lose you, too." It felt like she had lost something very important that 

 no amount of searching would bring back. Her 'family' was very important to her.

 It hurt her to keep losing them like this. Why couldn't they just be happy?

      X shook his head sadly. "It doesn't matter if they built us. They have no 

 reason to treat us that way. But you're too blinded by programming to see that, 

 Roll." He looked off into the distance at something only he could see. "I need 

 to put a stop to this. To this offense the humans have carried out against us 

 for too long. We keep becoming progressively better while they stagnate. Why 

 should humans be the ones to decide? I think it's about time things changed."

      "What are you talking about, X? You can't be serious. You can be anything 

 you want to be. Why should you worry? You have the entire world open to you. Dr.

 Light's given you the chance to be whatever you want." Wiping at her eyes, Roll 

 offered a weak smile. This just wasn't making any sense. X just needed to think 

 it over and everything would be fine. Just like she'd told Blues.

      "And what about you? If I go become whatever I want to, what will become of

 you?" 

      X's questioning gaze sent shivers through her robotic body. He was starting

 to scare her. Her mind raced for an answer, but there didn't seem to be a 

 satisfactory one. "I'll... I'll be Dr. Light's assistant and housekeeper, just 

 like I always have been."

      "And always will be. Until he builds a better one and you're no longer 

 needed," X stated coldly. 

      Roll shook her head violently. "Dr. Light would never do that! He wouldn't 

 just replace me. He thinks of me like his own daughter. He wouldn't just find 

 someone else."

      "He thinks of you as a machine, Roll. Nothing more. They all think of us 

 that way. That's why humans don't deserve this planet. What greedy, selfish 

 creatures. Creating newer and better creatures and expecting them to do the work

 while the humans grow fat and lazy off of their creations' efforts. I haven't 

 been around long, but I know enough. And I'll avenge our kind. I'll show the 

 humans what we're truly capable of." A glint in X's eye reflected Roll. He was 

 serious. This was his dream, his gift to the world. The destiny that he had 

 decided on. And all thanks to Dr. Light giving him the choice.

      "But, X, you can't! You can't hurt anybody! And they haven't done anything 

 wrong! That could all change in a few years. Maybe robots and humans can live 

 together happily. Side by side." An optimistic smile graced her lips in the 

 hopes that she could convince X away from this terrible aspiration.

      X sighed, closing his eyes. The disappointment was evident in his eyes. 

 "I'm sorry, Roll. You were one of the first. I think the programming is too 

 ingrained in you for you to imagine the world any other way." He hugged Roll 

 gently as she clutched onto her stuffed metool. "I'm sorry, Roll. I think it's 

 too late for you. But after you're set free, you'll understand."

      Roll hugged her metool to her chest, trying to make sense of her little 

 brother. She opened her mouth to ask, but she never got out more than a weak 

 yelp as the X-Buster shot nearly tore her in half, throwing what was left of her 

 against the far wall. Betrayal and pain shot through her, even though she knew 

 with what little systems were still operating she shouldn't be able to feel 

 either. A deep sadness swept through her whole body as systems began to flicker 

 off. No, X...	

 	

      At this point, the sound went out and the color faded. Roll's systems were 

 shutting off one by one. Rock came in to find out what had happened, and upon 

 discovering what was left of his sister, had tried to stop X. It pained her to 

 watch it. 'No!! Rock!! Leave him alone, you monster!' But there was nothing she 

 could do but watch. She couldn't even turn away from the horrific display of 

 violence as X finally killed Rock. The pain was becoming too great. Why couldn't 

 she just die? 

      Shortly after X had finished with Rock, a whistling sound got the advanced 

 robot's attention. Blues looked upset. His body was shaking in anger as he was 

 talking with X. The picture was by then far too fuzzy for Roll to try and lip 

 read. Her heart cried out as Blues attacked X. Her older brother against her 

 younger brother. She wanted to stop them, but things were fading fast. Blues was

 trying his hardest, but he didn't seem a match for the newer model. She didn't 

 want to lose anymore of her brothers. It just wasn't fair...

      A sudden rapid fire shot from behind sent X reeling. Roll tried to turn her

 head to catch a glimpse, but she couldn't get her view to change. The other 

 robot finally stepped into view, obviously screaming at X. It was Forte, along 

 with Gospel. It seemed that he wasn't too pleased now that his rival was gone. 

 What more did he have to lose? Roll felt sorry for him. He'd put so much time 

 and effort into his rivalry with Rock. 

      The battle was fast and furious. The three would go in and out of Roll's 

 line of sight again and again, confusing her as to how the battle would wind up. 

 In the end, despite being damaged horribly, the two robots finally but a stop to 

 her rogue brother. A part of her ached at that, too. Her poor little brother... 

 Blues knelt in front of her. He was saying something, but she couldn't make it 

 out. He pulled off his tattered yellow scarf, placing it around her neck. She 

 wanted to thank him, or at least respond to whatever he wa saying to her, but 

 she couldn't get anything out. Her vision began to dim again, this time 

 everything else fading away. She could barely feel Blues holding her hand. 'Help

 me... I'm scared..'

 

 ~Dear Roll,

      If you get this, then you must have regained some of your memories, as this

 isn't supposed to activate until after you have come to the realization of who 

 you really are. You see, after Blues and Forte had stopped X, I was grief 

 stricken. I had lost my 'son' and my 'daughter'. All at the hands of my latest 

 creation. I was so upset that the first thing I did was to kill X. To wipe him 

 clean, destroying everything that had been him in the personality files and 

 memories. Everything. I couldn't allow him to go unpunished. I was then left 

 with the body. I was trying to decide what to do with it when an idea came to 

 mind. It could be the salvation for one of my children. Rock was... he was too 

 far gone. But you, Roll, your essence was still holding on. It was still 

 clinging to what was left of your battered body. I immediately went to work, 

 patching you into the new framework I'd built for X's mind and praying that it 

 would work, that you could still live. This time with the ability to choose your

 own destiny, to become whatever you wanted. That which I'd denied you the first 

 time around. But after I was done... I'm sorry, Roll. But I can't risk what 

 happened with the previous X to happen with you. I couldn't live with myself. So

 I'm putting you in stasis for thirty years. That should be plenty of time for 

 the capsule I've designed to test all of your systems and make sure that you 

 won't fall prey to the same problems he did. I'm afraid I won't live to see that

 day. So I've hidden your memories deep inside of you. I don't want you to have 

 to grieve for me or your brothers. That would be too painful for you upon being 

 activated. I hope by the time you get your memories back that you will be able 

 to understand why I have done all this. I'm sorry, Roll. And I wish you the best

 of luck.

 

 							Dr. Thomas Light

 

 

      The room was silent as X slowly came back to his sense. "What..?" He asked 

 weakly, his hands going to his head. Something tugged at the back of his skull. 

 He tried to turn and see what it was, but Zero shook his head. The smaller robot 

 sat back, still having trouble getting his bearings. That had all seemed so 

 real. He'd seen it all. But not from X's perspective, but from Roll's. 

      "Here, let me get that. I need to disconnect you first, X," Alia explained 

 as she pulled out some of the wires that she'd attached deep into X's 

 psychometric systems. Biting her lip, she remained silent as she went about her 

 work. After helping X dive back into his (her?) memories like that, she wasn't 

 quite sure what to say to the distraught Irregular Hunter.

      A mixture of relief and deep sorrow mixed through X as he tried to control 

 the flood of emotions inside. That meant he hadn't been the one to kill the poor

 girl. He was that girl. But... He'd lost so many dear people. Rock, Blues, Rush,

 Dr. Light. They had all been so important to Roll and then X had taken them all 

 away. But she was X now. Was that part of why he wanted to protect everyone? 

 Because he never wanted to see that happen again? "I'm... Roll... Aren't I?" X 

 looked up at the two other Hunters in the room.

      Alia looked away, still unsure of what to say. Zero nodded slowly. "Sure 

 looks that way, X." This had come as quite a shock to him, but he knew that what

 he felt couldn't be half as shocking as what X was going through. 

      X shook his head, looking down at his hands. So much was making sense, but 

 he was still having trouble getting all of his memories back. "It's all so 

 strange. I thought I hadn't been activated till after Dr. Light passed away, but

 so much had happened before then. So much that I'd been there for. But I still 

 can't remember it all."

      "That's because your pushing yourself too hard, X. You need to slow down. 

 The memories will return to you in time. It won't do you any good to force 

 yourself," Alia warned. 

      "But... What am I? Who am I? Am I male or female? Am I Roll or X?" X closed

 his green eyes, trying to focus past all the confusion. He felt a hand on his 

 own, holding him gently but firmly. Opening his eyes, he saw Zero watching him 

 intently.

      "X, it doesn't matter. I know who you are. I've seen it in you since the 

 day we met. And it doesn't matter what you are or what name you go by. You're 

 you, X. And that's all that really matters." 

      X's eyes shimmered with tears as he hugged the taller robot. "Oh, Zero..." 

 Things didn't seem so confusing in Zero's arms. It was still there, but it was 

 less pressing. It would all work itself out. And it felt comforting to know that 

 he'd have the blonde robot to help him work through it. "Thank you, Zero."

      Zero smiled and held X closer, protectively. They stayed that way for a 

 long time, relishing the other's company and the warm feeling that encompassed 

 them. 

      His head on Zero's chest, X's eyes began to slip closed. For just a moment,

 he could almost swear that he saw that yellow scarf fluttering in the wind, hear

 a dog's barking as Rock headed to the rescue. "I miss you guys, wherever you 

 are," he whispered softly. Zero held him closer as he lost himself in the 

 blonde's embrace.