We'll Crucify The Insincere

Whatever's Left

2007-09-15T03:58:49Z

Title: Whatever's Left
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: X/Axl
Rating: PG
Warnings: None, really. Oh, well, robots making out, I guess. Pssht.

Author's Note: This is set shortly before the onset of the Elf Wars, after Zero has committed his body to research. Written for the X/Axl challenge at Rockman Elysium over on GreatestJournal.

Whatever's Left

* * *

Nothing lasts forever.

Ashes swirled around X’s feet as he stared at the remains of what was once a massive redwood tree. He ran a gloved hand over the scorched bark, and pieces fell away at his touch, staining his fingers black.

One of the oldest living forests on earth and all it took was one firefight to destroy the whole thing. He pressed his lips together in thought. Older than me, even.

His appearance, he knew, was ageless. He gave no outward indication of the generations he had witnessed or the trials he had endured. The reflection that stared back at him these days was the reflection of the wide-eyed rookie he had been back when Sigma led the hunters and life seemed a lot more simple.

Artificial life forms were designed to last. Yet he had been unparalleled in that regard, always somehow spared the lethal shot that would retire him for good, as if some higher power insisted that he witness the events unfold that he had helped bring to pass.

Compared to the length of his vision, the world around him seemed to burn out and fade away so quickly.

He jolted suddenly as he was enveloped from behind, slender arms winding around his middle in a loose hug. Assassin, he thought dryly, even as warmth blossomed in his chest at that simple touch.

The maverick hunter Axl rested his chin on X’s shoulder and gave his cheek a nudge with his nose. “Everyone else has gone back to base already,” he said. “You okay?”

X smiled faintly. “I’ll live. Just . . . feeling a little discouraged, I guess.”

He felt Axl’s soft exhalation of surprise along his throat. “Really? But we’ve been after Omicron and his buddies for months now. Today’s got to count for something.”

“Maybe, but it’s been a long time since I felt like we were making any real progress,” X said. “Every time we knock a maverick head off, it’s almost like two more pop up in its place.”

“But it’s not always gonna be this way, right?” Axl said. “We just have to hold ‘em off until Weil and those guys can figure out some way to stop the virus.”

X’s jaw tightened. “I’ve heard that one before,” he replied, darkly. “You wouldn’t believe how many people have claimed to have found a cure, only to be proven wrong later.”

“But didn’t Weil say something the other day about him making a breakthrough?” Axl insisted. “I mean, none of those other guys had a chance to study Zero, did they?”

X kept silent, shutting his mind against the memory of his absent friend before the despair could find its way to the surface.

Axl seemed to sense this and pressed harder. “C’mon, X, do you honestly think that Zero would put himself out of action for so long unless he really thought something good would come out of it?”

X twisted around in Axl’s grip to face him properly. “I want to believe that, trust me,” he exclaimed. “God, Axl – peace is all I’ve ever wanted . . . but I need it to be real, to be forever. Otherwise, what’s the point? Going from one false hope to another – how is that any way to live?”

X's chest rose and fell with his agitation. Axl just stared at him thoughtfully, his fingertips drawing random patterns over X’s spine.

X felt his breathing change pace, distracted by the familiar signals Axl was sending out. “Don’t you think that --”

Axl silenced him with a long, luscious kiss. The forest around them grew hushed except for the lonely sound of the breeze threading through blackened branches.

When they parted, gasping, Axl winked at him and murmured softly, “Let’s worry about it later, ‘kay? I think we should get out of here first . . .”

X chuckled, his face turning crimson, and held on to his partner as Axl activated his teleporter.

* * *

Somehow, in their rush to rid each other of their armor, Axl had stumbled to his knees with his arms around X’s waist, and had elected to stay there. He found a silver interface line winding around X’s hip and rubbed his cheek against it, then stretched out with both hands to rake his fingers down the back of X’s thighs.

“Mnn . . !” Leaning against his bedroom wall, X felt his body twist up with pleasure, responding sweetly as always to the attention Axl lavished upon it. It was hardly the first time that the younger hunter had seen fit to drag him away from the bleakness of his own thoughts.

Impulsively, he reached down and gathered Axl into his arms, hooking a leg around his waist to keep him close. They stared at each other, breathing hard, lips just barely touching. X marveled at how that lithe body leapt towards his touch, as he ran his thumbs down the conduits crisscrossing Axl’s chest.

The two hunters kissed and rocked against each other while flickers of energy swept across their bodies. X felt Axl’s unbridled joy washing over him like sunlight – the amazing physics that allowed them to share physical pleasure conveyed emotional data as well, and X loved that the most . . .

They came together, foreheads touching, shattering the silence with their cries of elation. As they sank to the floor, they traded slow, sated kisses, basking in the afterglow of their release.

Soon Axl gave him a parting kiss and leaned back on his heels. “You were gonna ask me what I thought, right?” he asked, flicking his damp, reddish bangs out of his eyes.

X blinked, remembering. “Yes . . .”

“I think . . . I think that, yeah, until the war really is over, there’s always the chance that everything we care about could be taken away from us, whether it’s the peace we’ve been fighting for, or the friends who have helped us on the way.”

X sat up and listened with interest.

“But I also think,” Axl continued with a grin, “that if we spend our whole lives afraid of losing what matters to us, and don’t try to enjoy what we have while we have it, well, then that’s no way to live, either.” He stroked a finger idly over the conduits along the inside of X’s thighs.

X couldn’t help but chuckle at himself. It was such a profoundly simple lesson in life he was receiving, and yet Axl had figured it out years before he had. The kid never ceased to surprise him.

“I guess I have a lot to learn from you, Axl,” he said, pulling the other back into his arms and sealing the conversation with a kiss. Not that I mind, either. He has pretty amazing way of getting his point across.

30_kisses theme #20

2007-07-16T01:16:29Z

Title: Ashes and Aftershocks
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: Zero/X
Rating: PG
Warnings: Robots kissing (oh, the immorality!), unauthorized data swapping.

Author's Note: Zero's reflections in the aftermath of X6. A sequel of sorts to As You Were.

Ashes and Aftershocks

Even limping and scuffed from battle, X still managed to captivate me. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from his face, glowing with victory, those green eyes of his bright and snapping. He leaned heavily on my arm as we made our way down the hallway from the command center, but I knew it was because he wanted to, not because he needed the help.

So brave and beautiful X had become since the day we met, sharpened by the hells Sigma had put him through over and over again. Behind his eyes existed a hardness born of survival instinct and deepened by decades of war. If I could have gone back and erased all the suffering he had endured, I would have. I had spent my whole long life, even given up my life, trying to make his ordeals easier for him to bear, listening to a deep-rooted hunch that told me he was the center of my existence. As much as that was true, though, there really was no greater joy for me than fighting alongside this, the most powerful being on earth, watching him grow stronger the more we struggled.

X caught me staring, blushed, and there was that smile of his – the one I’ve never seen him give anyone else. His smile was the earliest memory I could recall, waking up on Dr. Cain’s lab table a lifetime ago. I smiled faintly in return, remembering. Had he really changed so much since then? It was hard to imagine the soft-spoken rookie I had known fighting with the ferocity he had shown toward me during the Eurasia crisis.

My jaw tightened at the thought. Our falling-out gnawed at me, enough to cool the elation I had felt at finding him again, but not nearly enough to stop the pull I still felt towards him.

Distant laughter floated down the corridor towards us. In all corners of the base, hunters were celebrating Sigma’s latest defeat in their own ways. Morning held the promise of hard work, as everyone would be expected to help fix the damage the combined efforts of Gate and Sigma had caused. Night, however, belonged to the victors, and the air itself felt charged with their excitement.

X nudged us toward an alcove in the wall, one of the many window seats that lined the pedway between the command and residential wings of the base. Framed by the cityglow shining through the glass behind him, he sat down with a sigh. I remained standing and folded my arms over my chest to still my hands. I felt strangely possessed, watching X’s chest rise and fall as he drew a deep, shuddering breath. Something passed before his eyes, and he squeezed them shut for a moment.

“I missed you,” he said at last, opening his eyes again to look up at me.

I straightened at those words and exhaled softly.

“There’s something I wanted to tell you,” he added.

“I’m listening,” I said, thickly. He was sending out strange signals, much as he had been when we first reunited. It was doing the most maddening things imaginable to my tactile sensors . . .

X brushed the back of his hand over his lower lip, not breaking eye contact. “Come here, first,” he whispered.

His couldn’t have been any more persuasive had he held his buster arm to my head.

I grabbed him by the shoulders, lowered myself onto his lap, and kissed him. Hard.

X responded with fire, reaching up between our bodies and around to grasp the back of my neck as I drank him in. I quickly grew mesmerized by his sweet metallic taste, so alien and yet so achingly familiar that my throat grew tight, because it was X and there had always been X . . . kissing him was as close to the feeling of coming home as I had ever felt.

Sparks danced across our lips as we crushed against each other, X’s soft panting driving me insane. My fingers slid up under his helmet and buried themselves in his hair, while his hands moved, dreamlike, over every part of me that he could reach, as if he was trying to convince himself that I was really there. Our tongues met, timidly at first, then with increasing desperation. It seemed like nothing short of molecular fusion would satisfy the mindless longing I felt. Data as subliminal and raw as the moans escaping our lips was darting between X’s body and mine. To my amazement, or his, or both of ours – it was becoming hard to tell, the way our systems were beginning to synch – X’s consciousness seemed to stretch out before me like a matrix. I pressed harder, sensing his memories, moments of quiet pride, of admiration, of a secret longing --

Suddenly I flinched, struck by a powerful feeling of despair. X had thrown down his defenses and now all of the thought patterns he buried the deepest – all of his blinding emotions! – were pouring into my mind. I felt like my core was being ripped from my chest; I was drowning, screaming soundlessly into a void – I was overwhelmed by X’s ability to feel.

I broke the connection with a cry and slumped against him. He held me, kept me from sinking to the floor as our breaths rang out in the darkness.

“X,” I gasped into the crook of his neck, “what was that-- ?” I shivered as I spoke, remnants of his sorrow still aching inside.

X tilted my chin up so I could look into his face. His eyes were wide but unafraid.

“You’ve felt something like this before, too,” he said.

I exhaled slowly, remembering. “Yeah.”

“For who?”

“The little flower,” I murmured, my mind reverting in its grief back to the nickname I had given her. The guilt was still too strong for me to voice her name out loud.

“Iris,” he whispered. “Why did it hurt so much to lose her?”

“ . . . because I loved her, X.”

“Zero . . .”

He stared at me intently, placed a hand on my burning cheek and curled his fingers into the strands of my hair that had spilled over my shoulder.

I stared back, not quite comprehending what he was trying to say, but letting our exchange trickle its way through my thoughts. Beautiful little flower. I had turned my own weapon against her, insane with fear for what she had become. It began to dawn on me – the strange symmetry of circumstances. X had been afraid for me, afraid to see me turn into what we dreaded the most. Hadn’t we both at some point told each other that it was better to be dead than to be maverick?

One realization bled into another. The outpouring of despair in X’s memories . . . had he really been mourning for . . ?

Hardly able to breathe, I kissed him, felt the connection form again, and reached out with my thoughts.

I . . . I love you too.

He rested his cheek against my shoulder as if suddenly shy – after everything we’d been through together – and looped his arms around my waist. I held him soundlessly, breathing in his scent and loving him, until some forgotten hour of the night.

30_kisses theme #26

2007-06-08T18:31:46Z

Title: Thanatos
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: X/Zero
Rating: PG
Warnings: Spoilers for X5. Eurasiangst.

Author's Note: This little piece takes place during the timeline of X5. In my imagination, X5 is about the time that our heroes begin to realize the depths of their feelings for each other, which are obviously tested by the nightmarish events of the Eurasia crisis, and their developing fear of each other.

Thanatos

X tore through abandoned corridors, furiously blinking away tears that cast halos around the glaring emergency lights.

I can’t lose you again.

From the deepest recesses of the base, X could still hear the shouts and blaster fire of hunters waging an assault against their virus-infected comrades. A sizeable portion of the non-combat reploids had simply fled in terror as news of the falling space colony spread, though there would be no safe haven on Earth if the hunters failed their mission.

But X had kept a brave face for those around them, trying desperately to incite hope – hope that the world wouldn’t end the way Sigma wanted it to, crippled by chaos and fear. He had weathered pain and fatigue with tight-lipped professionalism, reminding himself that his hardship didn’t matter, if it meant that the world would be spared.

That was until he had returned with the last shuttle component in tow, when he had heard the news that had cracked his stoic veneer like so much ceramic.

He slapped the door controls to the Level 8 lounge, normally a popular spot where fresh-faced young recruits would gather between assignments, now deserted save for a solitary figure.

The red hunter sat hunched forward with his hands resting on his knees, an inscrutable expression on his face. He made no sign, no acknowledgment of X’s presence, not even when X stood trembling before him.

X clenched his fists at his side, fighting contrary urges to either fall exhausted and weeping in his friend’s arms or to knock him senseless. Neither choice would be particularly helpful, so he steeled himself and decided to bandy with words instead.

“I hadn’t realized you were so eager to throw your life away,” he spat.

“What makes you think I won’t be back?” Zero said, his voice maddeningly calm.

“Zero, it’s suicide.”

A hint of Zero’s brazen smile appeared. “Hardly.”

“Listen, you can play the cavalier some other time. Right now, we can’t afford to lose you. Do I need to remind you what kind of hell will break loose if the colony falls?”

“Which is exactly why I need to fly the shuttle,” Zero said, matter-of-factly. “Any other pilot would be less likely to succeed and way more likely to bite the big one.”

Zero leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest, finally raising his eyes to look at his partner, and frowning slightly as he studied X’s face. X realized with chagrin that Zero could tell he had been crying. Dammit.

X lifted his chin in defiance. “I don’t buy it,” he said. “I can fly just as well as you can and you know it. Why are you so hell-bent on doing this?”

Zero chuckled weakly. “Can’t fool you, can I?”

“Not on your life.”

Zero tapped his fingertips on his forearms in thought.

“This is something I need to do for myself,” he said at length.

X stiffened in surprise. “What are you talking about?"

“You know that I am harboring what we fear the most,” Zero said. “The virus has hurt more people than I can even imagine, and yet it seems to give me strength. There can't be any other explanation.”

A pang of dread clawed at X’s midsection. He shook his head slightly and opened his mouth to respond, but Zero continued.

“Sigma has an agenda for me, I can feel it. I can feel a terrible power waiting inside me, and the virus is threatening to unleash it.” Zero’s voice had softened, taking on an almost reverential tone.

X sank to his knees, distractedly clasping Zero’s hands.

Come back to me.

Zero’s eyes, blue, heartbreakingly clear, flickered down to their entwined fingers, then back up to his partner’s face.

. . . I love you.

X winced at the thought. There was madness down that path, a tendency to value one life above the lives of everyone else in the universe. And where was the logic in getting too close to someone, when anyone, at any time, could become a maverick? He was a hunter first and foremost, and Zero was teetering on the edge, so close to falling . . .

“But I’m in control of my destiny, X,” Zero was saying, his voice again brimming with confidence, “and I choose to use my life however I see fit to protect what matters most to me.”

Zero’s smile was warm and genuine, and X couldn’t help but smile weakly in return.

“Let me do this, X – let me show Sigma that my will is stronger than he can even fathom and that I’ll never be his slave."

X bowed his head – in reverence or in defeat, he wasn’t quite sure – and then raised his eyes again, his own voice seeming to come from far away.

“Just don’t leave me here on my own, Zero.”

30_kisses theme #1

2007-05-25T17:58:45Z

Title: Black Mirror
Fandom: Mega Man X
Pairing: Zero/X
Rating: PG
Warnings: Spoilers for X4

Author's Note: Takes place before X1. Fairly canon, although I take a few licenses here and there to suit my purpose. Also, no love at first sight is meant to be implied. Ah, who am I kidding? XD

Black Mirror

Night’s calm had been disturbed at Cain Labs.

Startled and sleepy-looking lab workers – humans and reploids alike – poked their heads out of doorways and gathered in small knots, talking anxiously, appraising passerby to see if they might know something.

As the commotion outside his quarters reached a threshold, X was jerked out of standby and into wakefulness. He sat up gingerly while his peripheral systems came back online. Slowly, the interior of his recharge capsule came into focus as his optics adjusted to the darkness.

“Time?”

The capsule’s monitor flashed 02:14.

X frowned in confusion. Cain Labs never exactly slept – a small crew of hunters patrolled the grounds every hour of the day – but the human staff almost universally took their rest during the night hours. The reploids who worked alongside them, X included, had learned to synch their recharge cycles with their human partners.

And yet, the entire complex seemed to be coming to nervous life around him.

A soft chime at his ear signaled an incoming message. “This is X,” he answered, popping the hatch on his capsule and climbing out. The overhead lights sensed his movements and brightened.

“X, Cain here. I’m sorry to disturb you in the middle of your recharge, but I need you in the transporter room as soon as you can get here.”

“I’m on my way, Dr. Cain,” X said as he worked his door controls. He paused before venturing out into the busy corridor. “Can you tell me what’s happening?”

“Well, I’m still trying to iron out the details myself. What we know so far is that earlier tonight, the Gamma unit came across an unfamiliar artificial life form – not one of our models - hiding in a mine shaft.”

X stiffened in surprise, attracting a few curious glances. Cain’s voice continued.

“The life form turned out to be very dangerous and we’ve labeled it as a maverick for the time being. Sigma has managed to deactivate it and it's being brought back to the lab for us to analyze. I’m not quite sure what we’re in for, but I wanted you to be here when it arrives.”

“Yes, sir,” X said, and Cain ended the communication.

X hurried towards his destination, his thoughts buzzing with questions. The advent of mavericks and Dr. Cain’s reploids had gone almost hand in hand – soon after the first models were introduced, isolated reports of malfunctions and erratic behavior began to surface. Cain had corrected each design flaw as it became apparent, but he was entering unfamiliar territory, fiddling with a technology that was so new to him. This new life form, though . . . it wasn’t one of Cain’s. Was somebody else experiencing the same design difficulties? An even bigger question troubled him: who else was building artificial life forms?

As he approached the transporter center he was surprised to see two imposing Centurion-model guards, members of the 17th Elite unit, keeping watch outside the door. Their black blaster rifles gleamed cruelly under the corridor lights.

There were more Centurion guards stationed inside. Cain was hovering behind the lone navigator on duty, a newer female model with long pink hair.

“The satellite reception inside the mine shaft is very poor,” X overheard the navigator explaining to Cain, “so our communication and teleportation capabilities have been hindered. I have directed the recovery team to a location above ground where they may teleport safely.”

“Recovery team?”

They turned around and X realized he had voiced the thought aloud.

The aging scientist smiled wearily and walked toward X, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“X, I’m glad you made it,” Cain said, then his face darkened abruptly. “Yes, I think I understated the facts when I told you that the maverick was dangerous. I’ve just found out that every member of the Gamma unit was ripped limb from limb while trying to contain it.”

Grief. X was familiar with that emotion. He’d even shed a few soundless tears over Dr. Cain’s early prototypes that had sputtered and died after being activated only a moment or two. Thinking too much about the suffering of other reploids stung like a blow to his core.

“I don’t understand,” X said in quiet dismay. “How is it possible that a single maverick could hurt so many of our hunters? Mavericks are supposed to be defects, barely even functional. They aren’t supposed to be . . . malicious, are they?”

Cain closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. “I’m afraid I have more questions than answers at the moment, X,” he said. “Until we’ve had a chance to analyze this monster, your guess is as good as mine.”

Monster. X turned the word over and over in his head as his data center supplied a slew of gruesome images to go along with it – insatiable hunger, distorted features, eyes devoid of warmth. Madness. A rivulet of dread coursed through him.

Cain turned back to the navigator. “Any news yet on Sigma’s condition?”

X’s memory brought up a video of the burly maverick hunter leader – supremely calm, wielding his beam saber with the precision of a surgeon. Dr. Cain’s not-so-secret weapon and masterpiece. The ultimate anti-maverick.

The navigator typed away at her console. She paused, and her voice shook slightly as she spoke. “Commander Sigma received extensive damage to his right arm and face, and has requested direct teleportation to the maintenance center along with the other injured personnel.”

Cain frowned deeply. “It appears that even Sigma has met his match,” he observed. “Such power, and we don’t even know how long this maverick lay inactive before the we found it.” He looked at X strangely as he spoke. “It’s possible that it whoever left it down there was waiting for the time to be right before it made its appearance.”

X wondered at that, but before he could respond a flurry of chimes issued from the transporter hub.

“Stand by, two hunters are on the way from the recovery operation,” the navigator announced. “They have the remains of the maverick with them.”

“On your toes, everyone,” Cain warned. “Inoperative or not, this thing may still be lethal.”

With that, the guards leveled their rifles in the direction of the transporter. X steeled himself for what he was about to see.

A flurry of keystrokes, then the navigator touched her headset. “Transfer!” she ordered.

The air within the transporter shivered, then dissolved into brilliant pixels as two stocky hunters appeared. X recognized them instantly as early model Enforcer units, almost buried beneath heavy armor and beetling brow plates.

The taller hunters held up a limp figure by the gauntlets.

X stared, transfixed. Whatever nightmarish creature he had been expecting, nothing could have prepared him for the sight before him.

The unconscious reploid was a humanoid like himself, slender and streamlined. Its flawless facial features looked positively serene, as if it was simply in repose and not knocked out of its senses. It was clad in sleek black armor, with sturdier red plating protecting his lower limbs, chest, and head. The most remarkable sight was its hair – over a meter of it, thick masses of spun gold that nearly kissed its ankles.

“Who is that?” X whispered, at a loss.

Cain stepped forward to get a better look. “It’s our maverick,” he declared, unable to contain a measure of awe in his own voice.

X felt his eyes widen in astonishment. This being, this supposed homicidal monster, was a vision of brilliance – there was nothing visibly disfigured or defective about it. Someone, somewhere, had to have spent many painstaking hours over its design and assembly.

He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. The inconsistencies screaming in his head were flooring him.

The Enforcer who held the golden-haired vision let go of it with obvious distaste. X winced slightly as it slumped to the floor like a broken doll.

“Well done, both of you,” Cain was saying to the two hunters. X turned and saw the shorter unit step forward and press a small device into Cain’s palm, which X recognized as similar to the fail-safe devices that Cain installed in his own models – when removed, a critical circuit would be broken and the reploid could not spontaneously activate.

“I take it that this maverick won’t be waking up any time soon?” Cain asked.

The Enforcers stood smartly at attention as one of them spoke. “No, sir. Commander Sigma debilitated it with a blow to the head, but we found and tore out its fail-safe just to be sure.”

Cain turned and dismissed the Centurion guards.

X’s gaze flicked back to where the maverick lay, oblivious. What would happen if they ever allowed it to wake up? Would its eyes fly open filled with awful rage, would it lunge at him brandishing only its hands, would that lovely hair become stained with X’s own circulatory fluids?

“I’d like you to come with me to my office and tell me everything you know about the maverick,” Cain told the two hunters. “I’ll have Sigma do the same once his repairs have stabilized.”

X wasn’t sure why, but he felt a twinge of regret at the thought of never seeing those frozen lips curving into a smile, or those long slender limbs becoming infused with life. He frowned slightly. His thought patterns were becoming erratic. Was this what happened when he wasn’t able to recharge completely?

He straightened at the sound of his name. “Yes, Dr. Cain?”

“Take the maverick over to the R&D testing lab and start running a scan. I’ll be with you as soon as I’ve finished interviewing the hunters. We must learn everything we can about it, before . . . ”

Cain’s voice trailed off, as if he’d become lost for the moment in his own thoughts.

X looked at him curiously, then kneeled over the fallen figure. His fingers drowned themselves in gold strands as he slid his hands under the knees and torso and hefted it easily.

“Dr. Cain?” he asked, rising to his feet.

The scientist nodded slowly to himself. “This maverick will redeem itself for its wrongdoings, and put its tremendous power to better use. X,” he said, watching him keenly, “we’re going to reprogram it. The hunted should become the hunter, don’t you think?”

A soft smile bloomed on X’s face as the meaning of those words became clear.

Fanfic Warning!

2007-05-19T16:36:25Z

Well, after a lengthy school-related hiatus, I'm ready to dive back into the sex and win that is MMX love.

I have two one-shots waiting in the wings for my 30_kisses claim. Their themes are 'the road home' and 'look over here.' Both are fairly believable interpretations of canon events, with the added slashy spin that I bring to every meeting of our beloved X and Zero.

Watch this space for updates within the next week or so! XD

30_kisses theme #7

2006-12-23T06:54:15Z

Title: Afterglow
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: Zero/X
Rating: R
Warnings: Kissing between consenting boybots. References to more . . . scandalous activities between same.

Author's Note: Pretty fluffy fare inside. X and Zero have a cute exchange after a particularly delicious roll in the hay. Saw the theme and couldn't resist. *shifty, shifty eyes*

Afterglow

Overachiever.

That’s the first lucid thought I can grasp, shining brightly amidst the shambles of my brain. In my lightheaded state I find it hilarious – and very apt – and before I know it I’ve clamped a hand over my mouth to quell a fit of giggles.

Zero clears his throat uneasily above me and I force an eye open to look at him.

“Uh . . . X?” he wonders aloud, appraising me with one eyebrow arched. The look behind those eyes hints that he’s experiencing a few doubts about my sanity.

I shake my head and swallow my laughter for the moment as I pull him closer for a reassuring kiss. I sigh languidly as one last shiver of pleasure arcs around my lower body. For a moment the only sound is that of my pounding energy core, slowly descending from its feverish, climax-driven pace.

Sensing the curiosity flowing from him, I break the kiss but continue to cup his face in my hands.

“I was just thinking,” I muse, tongue neatly held in cheek, “about how you always try to be the absolute best at everything you do.”

Zero sits up and crosses his arms over his chest with an affected air of defensiveness.

“And?” he demands. His eyes dance, giving away his amusement.

“Well . . . ” I look at him significantly, cursing the blush even as it rises in my cheeks, “I think you’ve just proved that you are.”

A look of triumph flashes across his face in his customary manner – unapologetic, but not quite conceited, simply exuding an effortless self-confidence that I envy and love.

My partner stretches out beside me with his chin in his hands. “X, are you really putting sex on the same level as, say, killing mavericks?” he asks, chewing on his lower lip teasingly.

“Well, don’t you?” I fire back, thumping him on the chest and grinning. It certainly seems that way. He’s been known to spend about as many hours in the training simulator as he does poring over my naked body, searching for new ways to make me come, tapping into sensory circuits and pleasure centers that I thank my lucky stars for having been built with.

Instead of answering me directly, Zero lowers his lips to the flesh just below my chin, where my pulse flutters in a quickening rhythm.

“Mmnn–!”

There’s no way to keep the sound from escaping me, not when his teeth are grazing the hypersensitive skin, perfectly ordering the delicious interplay between pain and pleasure --

He pulls away and I gasp, feeling the warmth flood back into my face.

While I fight to regain my composure he positions himself over me with a satisfied smirk. I smile sheepishly in return and reach up to brush away a strand of hair that has fallen endearingly across his forehead. For one brief, smoldering moment our eyes lock and I give silent thanks for whatever inconceivable twist of fate has thrown our lives together.

Zero finally breaks the spell. His golden-tinged voice sends a volley of pleasant shudders down my spine as he speaks in answer to the question that I’ve nearly forgotten.

“Honestly, I don’t think you care either way.”

I can only chuckle as his lips move to claim mine because I know he’s right.

30_kisses Completion List

2006-11-05T00:27:08Z

For my own reference:

1. look over here
2. news; letter
3. jolt!
4. our distance and that person
5. "ano sa" ("hey, you know....")
6. the space between dream and reality
7. superstar
8. our own world
9. dash
10. #10
11. gardenia
12. in a good mood
13. excessive chain
14. radio-cassette player
15. perfect blue
16. invincible; unrivaled
17. kHz (kilohertz)
18. "say ahh...."
19. red
20. the road home
21. violence; pillage/plunder; extortion
22. cradle
23. candy
24. good night
25. fence
26. if only I could make you mine
27. overflow
28. Wada Calcium CD3
29. the sound of waves
30. kiss

30_kisses theme #29

2006-11-04T19:23:21Z

Title: Sunkissed
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: Zero/X
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Porn. Boy-on-boy sex. Shameless fluff. Bring sunscreen.

Author's Note: Fairly lighthearted romp experimenting with the more playful side of X and Zero's relationship.

Sunkissed

The heat wave continued to throb outside, but Douglas paid it no heed. In the windowless confines of his workshop he focused on the project before him. He heard the dull roar of the maintenance bay’s air conditioning unit as it fought to keep the human mechanics working in comfort. It was a relatively peaceful morning around hunter base, so humans and reploids alike took it easy, making repairs here and there while guzzling plenty of rehydrating fluids.

Douglas, however, once he started to make real progress with one of his designs, was loath to put it aside. He readjusted his magnifying goggles and took up his spot laser, cutting the last few notches in the exterior of the tiny gadget he held in his hands. Satisfied, he held it a few feet above his work surface and let it drop, waiting eagerly to see what would happen. The little machine hummed as it bounced and began to emit a blue energy field. Douglas reached out with his hand and found it repelled by the field. He nodded his approval, trying to suppress a sense of childish glee as it rose within him. It would take a bit more tinkering, of course, but he had high hopes that this prototype, which converted impact energy into a protective barrier, could be interfaced with maverick hunter armor to allow its wearer a few seconds to reach safety when he or she was under fire.

His technical musing was interrupted by a knock and a familiar voice hailing him.

“Hey, Douglas!”

He rotated his chair to see the two S-class hunters leaning against his doorway, obviously dressed for the weather. Their new skin upgrades shone under the harsh glow of his worklamps. Douglas had politely declined the offer to have his exterior modified, feeling much more at home in his familiar green body armor.

He lifted his goggles and smiled at his visitors. “X, Zero. What brings you guys down here? Did they finally give you a day off together?”

“Sort of,” X retorted, his hand flying to his mouth to stifle a rogue yawn. Douglas chuckled sympathetically. He knew the two friends had been put on opposite shifts for the last few weeks, a measure taken by the ever short-staffed organization to stretch their expert hunter coverage as much as possible. Judging by X’s appearance, he had just returned from night duty.

“Mind if we borrow a couple ride chasers for the day?” Zero asked as he shoved a wayward blonde strand away from his face. Even out of his armor, Douglas noticed, the Crimson Hunter cut an imposing figure. His striking head of hair flickered around him whenever he moved, making him appear larger than life, and his hardened eyes seemed to take in everything at once.

Douglas consulted his mental inventory. “Let’s see . . . most of ‘em are down for preventative maintenance or signed out already, but I think we have two Sirius models tuned up and ready to go.”

“And you’re sure you won’t need them?” X wanted to know, blinking and swaying almost imperceptibly. Zero placed a steadying hand on his shoulder and X gave him a wry smile. Zero’s features softened, as was often the case when he was around X, and they shared a meaningful glance before remembering their company.

Douglas hid a smile of his own. It was really something to watch those two together. Decades of living and fighting side by side had left them so completely in tune with each other that one could swear they moved as two parts of the same whole. Rumors, of course, had long been circulating the base that the two star hunters were much more than best friends. Douglas wasn’t really concerned either way. He was aware of the hellish trials that X and Zero had braved together, and if they could find any solace in each other’s company, well, they certainly deserved it.

He waved them away good-naturedly. “Go and have fun! Just bring them back in one piece,” he joked, turning briefly to enter their ID numbers, which he knew from memory, on the vehicle sign-out screen.

The hunters left with a chorus of thanks, Zero scooping his partner up effortlessly in his arms amid X’s sleepy protests that he could walk just fine.

Douglas shook his head and chuckled to himself before turning back to his work.

* * *

X rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand and managed to keep his ride chaser level. He usually found that having a task to concentrate on made it easier to stay awake, though he had downed an energizing drink on the way out of the base just to play it safe. It had been his idea to plan a mini-getaway for their mutual day off, knowing full well that he was on shift the night beforehand. He supposed he’d overestimated his ability to function after a long night patrol with no rest in between, but he was determined not to let sleep deprivation get the better of him. He kicked in the booster engine and the small craft rocketed forward, nearly unseating him as he strove to keep up with Zero.

The location he had chosen was a stretch of beach about twenty kilometers from the base. Years ago it had been a popular tourist trap, but the complete dissolution of the ozone layer had since made sunbathing a fairly lethal pastime. Luckily for reploids, any harmful ultraviolet rays would simply bounce off their artificial skin. The upshot was that the seaside would be deserted and pristine, perfect for wiling away a restful afternoon. As they neared their destination X perceived a marginally cooler breeze blowing in from the ocean. He was relieved that his internal temperature regulator kept him pretty comfortable, even if it had to work a little harder in the intense heat.

The hunters drove in easy silence, Zero looking back every so often to make sure his friend hadn’t fallen asleep at the handlebars. X basked in a warm feeling when their eyes met briefly, Zero flashing him a quicksilver grin before turning his attention back to the shimmering highway. X sensed that Zero had been looking forward to their outing as much as he had.

At length they reached the coast, and X felt a grin spread across his face as he took in their surroundings. Zero hummed in approval beside him. The beach was completely theirs, as expected, the dazzling white sand sprawling before them in wind-whipped peaks and valleys. The only signs of human presence were long abandoned shacks and stands in late stages of decay as nature slowly reclaimed the land. White-capped waves soughed endlessly against the shoreline in a tranquilizing rhythm.

They stowed their ride chasers in the ruins of what might have been a souvenir shack and picked their way through the scorching sand. X settled on a resting place a stone’s throw from the shoreline and pulled an old blanket out of his backpack. He spread it over the ground and sank onto it with an exaggerated sigh of relief.

Zero chuckled but remained standing, his gaze fixated on the restless waves. X peered up at him, shading his eyes against the sun’s glare.

“Going for a swim?” he asked.

“Mmn,” Zero nodded eagerly, his hands moving to the hem of his shirt.

X’s breath caught in his throat at the sight of Zero’s bare skin as he tugged the shirt over his head. Like X, Zero was very pale, strikingly so, since reploid skin was immune to the sun and could never develop a tan. It also reflected light a great deal more than human flesh, betraying the fact that it was composed of an extremely malleable crystalline alloy rather than layers of cells. Nonetheless, Zero looked incredibly human to X’s eyes as he shook out his hair and rotated his shoulders. X couldn’t help watching Zero’s muscles move fluidly beneath his skin, the image evoking a host of exquisite memories. He was also reminded, rather abruptly, that the past few weeks had given them little opportunity to trade more than the occasional kiss, usually stolen whenever their paths happened to cross during shift change.

Zero must have read something in his expression, as he bent and surprised X with a brief, breath-stealing kiss before smirking knowingly and turning to leave.

X’s fingertips flew to his tingling lips as he watched Zero wade into the water and dive beneath the waves. He shook his head to dispel the racy thoughts before they could torment him further and pulled his electronic reader out of his backpack. He had hoped to catch up on his reading and had downloaded some interesting philosophical texts for the purpose, but the words swam before his eyes and he quickly switched it off. Sighing drowsily, he laid his head on his folded arms, allowing the ocean to lull him to oblivion.

He awoke some time later, feeling rested, albeit a bit woozy from the length of his nap. Rolling over, he opened his eyes to see Zero sitting cross-legged beside him, the data reader in his lap. Zero looked up from whatever he had been reading and grinned at X.

“Decided to rejoin the land of the living?” he asked, setting the device aside and leaning over him.

X blinked in surprise. “How long was I asleep for?”

“You don’t want to know.”

X glanced around at his surroundings and perceived that the shadows had, in fact, lengthened considerably. A few clouds had gathered as well, brimming with the promise of rainfall.

“Oh,” X said, rather sheepishly. He hadn’t really meant to spend so much of the day sleeping, since he could have easily done that in his quarters. He frowned slightly, wondering why Zero hadn’t woken him earlier, then dismissed the question before he voiced it. Zero had probably just assumed he needed the rest, and as much as X disliked to admit it, he did feel a lot better.

As it was, Zero simply shrugged and lowered himself to rest his cheek against X’s chest, his limbs splayed in a lazy hug. X ran his hands through Zero’s hair as it spilled over them both, relishing the feel of the dewy strands as they glided between his fingers. The soothing sound of the surf filled his ears and he could have easily drifted off again, but he was far too distracted by Zero’s weight against his lower body. With a pang he realized how long it had been since they had last held each other in such a way.

He slid his fingertips down Zero’s spine, reacquainting himself with the texture of his skin and the shape of the muscles that coiled dangerously beneath it. Planting a kiss on Zero’s flaxen head, he breathed in a familiar scent intermingled with something more exotic – the sun and sea had woven themselves in his lover’s hair. Zero shifted his weight slightly, drawing a contented hum from X as he slid upwards to claim a long, languid kiss. Warmth pooled in X’s midsection when he tasted the salty residue of the sea spray on Zero’s lips. He couldn’t keep an eager noise from escaping his mouth, causing Zero to pull away with a snicker.

Zero propped himself up on his elbows and stared down at X with bemused blue eyes. “And here I thought you were still out of it,” he teased, taking his lower lip between his teeth suggestively.

X felt his cheeks warm. “Maybe all this fresh air is doing something to my hormones,” he replied blithely.

A doubtful look crossed Zero’s features. “But we don’t have -- ”

“Shut up,” X chuckled as he tried tugging Zero back down again, to seal his illogic with a kiss.

Zero favored him with a roguish grin and entwined his fingers with X’s. Slowly, inexorably, X felt his wrists being pinned on either side of his body. He tensed as the metal joints creaked in his forearms, then all the fight went out of him as Zero’s voice came warm and throaty by his ear.

“Looks like you’ve missed this as much as I have,” Zero murmured, bewitchingly, grazing his teeth along the delicate curve of X’s neck.

X gasped and shivered. He was hardly able to stutter a reply before Zero moved quickly to seize his lips with another bone-melting kiss. Their tongues met this time, restlessly, trying to make up for too many lonesome, aching nights all at once. X moaned and rocked his hips upward, knowing his reactions would spur Zero on – it was a game they played, and they both took pleasure in it. Sure enough, Zero growled and set upon his neck, leaving X panting in the wake of his ferocious handiwork. He could hear Zero’s own breath rasping in his chest, sending electric thrills down X’s spine. As unsettling as Zero’s barely-controlled bloodlust could be on the battlefield, X found it intoxicating elsewhere, even if he blushed to admit it to himself. He knew it was hardly becoming for a hunter leader of his reputation to enjoy playing with fire.

For the moment, though, X simply looped a leg around his partner’s waist and dismissed all thought from his brain. They grinded against each another urgently, X groaning at the incredible sensation of Zero’s body against his erection. Zero heaved himself up abruptly and leaned back on his heels, releasing his fierce grip on X’s wrists so he could begin coaxing open the buttons on X’s shirt. He gazed down at X as he did so, his lips parted ever so slightly and his eyes dark with desire. X tilted his head and lowered his eyelashes demurely in an expression he knew drove Zero over the edge. He carefully tucked away a smile as he felt Zero’s tongue, warmer than the sun that beat down on them both, tracing maddening patterns over his suddenly bare skin. Now that his hands were free, X could grab handfuls of the luscious blonde hair as it tickled his ribs. He gently tugged on it to guide his lover where he wanted him to go, though there was really no doubt as to where Zero’s impassioned caresses would take him.

Zero’s hands and teeth made short work of the removal of X’s remaining clothing. X drew in an uneven breath, almost lightheaded with anticipation. An exultant cry tore from his lips as he felt Zero’s mouth close around him. Zero worked him relentlessly, visibly enjoying making X writhe underneath him. A dull ache quickly spread throughout X’s lower body and he fought to keep his breathing under control, trying to prolong the unbridled pleasure for as long as he could. Inevitably, though, he heard himself yelping as the tension left him in a rush, his hips bucking in time with the shockwaves of bliss that had commandeered his sensory systems.

X sank to the ground with a shuddering sigh, and through his daze he sensed Zero stretching out beside him. Muscles still twitching joyfully, X clambered on top of his partner and began peppering him with grateful kisses. Zero chuckled softly and snaked an arm around to pull X in for a hug, planting a rough kiss on his forehead.

“Sounded like someone was enjoying himself,” Zero murmured, tilting his head back a bit to get a better look at X. Zero’s eyes shone with affection, though a restless hunger still seethed in their blue depths.

X felt himself blush. His pleasure-addled brain couldn’t supply a witty comeback, so he opted to kiss Zero instead. Now that he had sufficiently caught his breath he was anxious to reciprocate, anyway.

Zero grunted softly as X shifted to straddle him. He cupped X’s chin while they kissed, his tongue demanding and receiving entrance. X reached between their bodies to gently stroke Zero through his clothing and marveled at the noises he inspired. He started kissing a trail down Zero’s chest, pausing briefly to tease an already hardened nipple with his teeth. He grinned just a little to himself as Zero moaned and twitched impatiently beneath his touch. In spite of, or maybe even because of, the deep admiration the two hunters had for each other, X always took secret satisfaction in turning his powerful friend into putty in his hands.

X shifted again, moving downward while he worked Zero’s shorts open. He ran his lips along the hollow curve of his waist as he slid the garments down over his lover’s hipbones. After taking a moment to soothe Zero’s arousal with a few swirls of his tongue, he took him in fully and began using his hands and lips in tandem to guide him towards release.

Zero’s hands buried themselves in X’s hair and X heard him exhale hoarsely. “God, X,” he gasped, his breath starting to hitch.

The responses he was evoking from Zero sent tingles down X’s spine. He started to move faster, moaning a little himself as Zero yanked agreeably on his hair and growled deep within his throat. A few minutes later, the raging lust had subsided and Zero’s relieved gasps rang in X’s ears.

Zero clasped X’s hand and hauled the smaller hunter forward to lie beside him. They held each other loosely, Zero’s breath still whistling in his chest. X gazed into his lover’s suddenly tranquil features and devotion rose fierce within him. He leaned in and kissed him tenderly. Zero raised his eyes and gave him a crooked smile, squeezing his hand a little more tightly. A sigh of pure enjoyment escaped X’s lips as they lay in repose, foreheads touching, a welcome cool breeze gusting over their naked skin.

X wasn’t sure how long they wiled away the time in that manner, but eventually their reverie was disrupted by a rumble of thunder and the startling cold of oversized raindrops. The heat wave had finally broken, it seemed, and they were in for a spectacular summer storm.

“Time to go, I guess,” X chuckled, a little ruefully.

Zero nodded. “Yeah. We still have the drive home to get through.”

They were soaked by the time they had dressed and gathered up their few possessions. Zero’s hair clung wetly to his skin as he yanked their ride chasers out of the ruined shack, but he still looked stunning to X’s eyes. On impulse he stole a quick kiss from Zero and found himself enveloped in a fierce hug. As they parted Zero held him at arm’s length and gazed down at him mischievously.

“Let’s do this again someday, if they ever cut us another break,” he suggested with a wink, before mounting his ride chaser and hitting the ignition switch, the engine’s whine filling the air.

X hopped on his own vehicle and started it up. “Definitely,” he replied, grinning to himself.

The hunters took one last look at their surroundings before engaging the thrusters and racing toward the highway, kicking up a wall of sand as they did so. As the sound of the machines faded away, the seaside was desolate once again, and the waves continued their weary march against the unheeding shore.

30_kisses theme #6

2006-10-17T18:19:28Z

Title: As You Were
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: Zero/X
Rating: M
Warnings: Mild shounen-ai. Massive spoilers for X4 and X5.

As You Were

The sun peered through a prism of radiation and toxic haze, bathing the figure in unnatural violet light.

He wore his familiar red armor, the hilt of his unlit beam saber resting easily in one hand. Golden hair spilled down his back and dipped below his knees. A few shining strands had wound themselves around his waist and fluttered there in the wind. He bowed his head as if contemplating the confused wreckage beneath him.

Beautiful, X thought distractedly. If Zero detected his presence he didn’t acknowledge it; he stood preternaturally still against the bruised sky. X swallowed hard and took a step forward. The concrete crumbled alarmingly beneath his feet, and he was acutely aware that the whole ruined structure could give way at any moment. He tried hard not to think about the dizzying drop inches away from the ledge where his friend perched. Why had Zero invited him here?

“I guess I missed my true calling,” came Zero’s voice, harsh with contempt.

X froze, taken aback by his tone.

“The old man would spin in his grave if he knew that I’d become a hunter.” Zero chuckled darkly. “Not that I really care what he thinks, but I’m the one that has to live with his legacy. Fuck, I am his legacy.”

“Zero?” X asked, hesitantly, not quite comprehending what he was hearing.

Zero finally glanced over his shoulder and X gasped to see a face much altered. His normally calm features were twisted with a malice that sent shudders down X’s spine.

“X. You and Dr. Cain were the ones who wrote over my original program, right?” Wild blue eyes bored holes in X’s vision.

X lowered his eyes, unable to withstand the intensity of Zero’s gaze.

“Yes, but you already knew that,” he replied, his mind racing with confusion. Since finding out the truth about his past, Zero had always seemed so reluctant to discuss it. It was a source of uncomfortable tension for them both.

“Why?” Zero persisted.

X briefly recalled jostling with the other lab assistants, long ago, to get a glimpse of the crazed red maverick that had wiped out an entire hunter unit with its bare hands before being shut down.

He blinked and returned to the present. “He thought you would make a powerful ally,” he answered, raising his eyes again to look at his friend.

Zero laughed bitterly and X cringed at the sound.

“Isn’t that painfully ironic?” Zero hissed, turning to look over the ledge once more. “Never knowing for a second that I was the cause of his and everyone else’s suffering in the first place. Never knowing that I turned Sigma, his pride and joy, into the raving, murdering freak that he is!” Zero’s laughter pealed out again, though X distinctly heard the harsh, retching sobs he was trying hard to mask.

Tears of compassion sprang to X’s eyes. It pained him to see the soul he cared about most in the grip of such anguish. As far as he was concerned Zero had repaid whatever debt he might have owed the world a thousand times over. Even if he hadn’t, Zero had been the bright center of X’s life for as long as they had known each other.

X moved forward and placed a tentative hand on Zero’s shoulder. “Don’t forget,” he said softly, “every reploid ever created has inherited my flaws. If you’re to blame then I’m equally to blame.”

Zero turned to look at him, his face pinched with sorrow. “Don’t . . . don’t you ever blame yourself,” he whispered hoarsely. “You’re too good, X.”

Wordlessly, X wrapped both arms around Zero’s waist and rested his cheek against the red chest plate. Zero sighed softly and kissed the jewel on X’s forehead, his free hand snaking around to pull him a little closer. X felt his heart soar and blushed to be held so even as he feverishly prayed that Zero's fit had passed. The breeze tossed the endless mane of blonde hair around them both, and they shared a few moments of comfortable silence.

Finally Zero spoke softly, stirring X from his reverie.

“Maybe we aren’t to blame for what’s happened . . . we can’t help how we’re made. But we can blame those who made us.”

X’s eyes flew open and he stared up at Zero in shock.

“W-what?” he breathed.

Zero wasn’t looking at him. His gaze was far away, a dangerous glint forming in his eyes.

“Smart enough to give us life, too lazy to take any responsibility for how we turned out,” Zero whispered, his voice hardening with every syllable. “Making us work for all these years to fix their mistakes.”

X backpedaled in alarm, shrugging off his hand. He stared at Zero intently as dread pooled in his midsection. “Do you mean just our creators?” he asked, cautiously. “Or humans in general?”

Zero snarled and coiled his fingers more tightly around his saber hilt. “They’re all as bad as each other. I hate them all!”

X felt his heart sink. His hunter reflexes screamed at him to subdue his friend, but his buster arm lay dead at his side, unable to fathom such a deed. He bit his lip as his conscience raged within him. Their relationship, in its strange myriad of guises, meant the world to him. More and more his affection for the Crimson Hunter teetered on the brink of that terrifying emotional abyss he did not dare name, for fear of being swallowed whole by it. On the other hand, he knew precisely how dangerous Zero could be if he was misguided by hatred. His virtuosity with his blade was unrivaled, and he'd always had that unsettling tendency to lose himself in battle . . .

“Zero,” X tried, “what you’re saying, it sounds like – ”

“I know what it sounds like!” Zero snapped, glaring at X. He saw the hurt in X’s eyes and his tone softened. “What happened with Sigma . . . the humans brought that on themselves. But they have yet to pay for toying with you and I.” With a flick of his thumb Zero ignited his saber handle and the glowing green blade appeared.

All at once Zero’s intentions became clearer and X’s mouth fell open in horror.

“No . . .” he whispered, his plea drowned out by the humming sword.

Zero gazed at him, almost mournfully. “I don’t expect you to follow me, X,” he said, before turning and readying himself for the daunting jump from the ledge.

X stood dumbfounded, moving his lips several times unsuccessfully before he found his voice.

“Wait!” he croaked at last.

Zero paused and glanced back.

X thought rapidly. “Zero!” he cried. “You gave your life to save mankind. If you do what I think you’re going to do, you’ll erase from their minds every sacrifice you’ve ever made for them.”

“For them?” Zero asked incredulously. He shook his head. “X, I did it for you. It’s always been for you.” With a sad parting smile, he turned and disappeared from view.

“No!” X shouted, leaping forward to grab his partner and grabbing empty air instead . . .

* * *

X awoke with a gasp as his hands struck the transparent glass bubble of his restoration capsule. His last shout rang in his ears, and it took several bewildered seconds before he could convince himself of his surroundings.

He slumped backwards and groaned softly. Another nightmare. He’d been experiencing them with terrifying regularity ever since . . .

His eyes flew open. Hardly daring to breathe, he fumbled around the capsule with his right hand, spirits flagging once more as his fingers closed around the Z-saber handle. He brought it before his eyes as his vision began to waver around the edges.

X had kept the keepsake close at hand in the aftermath of the very recent Eurasia crisis. He carried it as a reminder of all that Zero had given him in life, but in his depressed state it only served to remind him of his death. He shook his head slightly, still trying to comprehend what had happened. Zero had managed to survive a near suicide mission to stop the colony in its collision course with the planet, but had fallen in the end to an old nemesis, Sigma. X flinched at the still-fresh memory of holding Zero’s barely recognizable body in his hands, looking desperately for some glimmer of life before the blackness had overtaken him as well.

He had tried several times to organize a search to look for Zero’s remains, hoping feverishly that he could be salvaged, but each time he had been pulled away by his duties to the Maverick Hunters. The organization was now screaming for able bodies after the virus had wiped out two thirds of the force. It grieved X when his loyalties became so divided, especially when attending to one meant abandoning the other. His dream, he realized with a frown, had played off that intense fear of choosing between his responsibility and his friendship.

There had long been a suspicion, however quiet, among the hunter ranks that Zero would at some point revert to his original, maverick self – after all, Sigma had flooded the planet with his virus in an attempt to force such a transformation. X moaned and wrapped his arms around his middle, trying to block out the memory of his last encounter with Zero. X’s paranoia had clashed with Zero’s pride, and, caught up in the desperate heat of battle, the two friends had fought bitterly. His hand flew to his lips as he recalled the look of betrayal in Zero’s eyes that had quickly morphed into the savage, almost rapturous, expression he wore when he fought his enemies. Afterwards, as they both lay sorely wounded in body and spirit, X had realized, belatedly, what he had already known to be true: Zero had long overcome his maverick past. He was loyal to the core, especially where X was concerned. He had fought until his dying breath to protect him from Sigma.

X cursed himself for allowing mistrust to get the better of him, for raising his arm self-righteously against the one he cared about the most. More than ever he resolved to find whatever trace of Zero that still existed in the world and to try to make him whole again, if only so he could look into those profound blue eyes and ask for forgiveness.

He touched his forehead, where he had imagined Zero's kiss had fallen, and smiled weakly in spite of himself. As disquieting as his dreams could be, they did tend to fulfill his suppressed, starry-eyed fantasies about the Crimson Hunter. Yet another reason to continue with the search.

He clutched the Z-saber handle tightly as he whispered an oath aloud.

“Zero . . . I’ll find you somewhere. We’ll be together again. I promise.”

* * *

Benediction

2006-10-09T01:16:13Z

Title: Benediction
Fandom: Mega Man X
Characters: Zero/X
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Porn. Boy-on-boy sex. Potential spoilers for X4, X5, and X6.

Benediction

People tended to give me a wide berth when I was in a foul mood, and that was just fine with me. I scowled as I strode through the harshly lit corridor, parting a stream of wary-looking humans and junior hunters who drew back against the walls and gawked as I passed. It occurred to me that few of them had seen me out of my red battle armor before, certainly not in civilian clothing. I clawed my badly tangled mane out my eyes and wished I had taken a few minutes to straighten it out after my turbulent mission. I'm such a spectacle, I thought dryly to myself, cursing as I nearly tripped over my borrowed jeans. Wearing clothing was taking a lot longer to get used to than I had anticipated.

So far only a handful of us high-ranking hunters in the base had received the latest hardware upgrade, which helped explain some of the stares I was receiving. Some reploid scientist hoping to make a killing had initially developed the upgrade to allow humans the ability to venture outdoors, where the fallout would eat away at their delicate systems, by replacing their biological components with synthetic ones. He hadn’t anticipated the overwhelming response he’d received from fellow reploids, who wondered if the same procedure could be modified to allow them to live human-like lifestyles. Hundreds flocked to him to have their outer armor removed and their metallic underbodies replaced with synthetic muscular-skeletal systems, nerves, and flesh, making them appear human to all but the most sensitive scan.

We hunters had signed up for the upgrade under the assumption that it would improve relations with our human coworkers. At least, that was how X had justified it on the expense claim form he’d filed with Guardian Arms, our new corporate overlords. Truthfully, we’d all had our own reasons, some less diplomatically minded than others. I sincerely had hoped, though, that it would inspire the managerial types to treat us a little less like mindless, expensive equipment and more like the sentient, rational beings that we were.

The perks of the upgrade continued to impress us with each passing day: the ability to sleep in a real bed, to shower, to feel all kinds of sensation against our synthetic skin, even pleasure and pain. My scowl melted briefly as I recalled the day when X and I had discovered just how thorough the upgrade process had been. It had certainly added a new dimension to our friendship. . .

I entered the turbolift and slapped the controls, leaning wearily against the wall as it rose. My mission had taken me to New Atlantis, one of the areas worst hit by the near-apocalyptic Eurasia crash. We hunters had kept a small dispatch center there that had been destroyed and presumably abandoned with the rest of the city. I was sent in to retrieve whatever records I could from the main computer since it was too badly damaged for a remote recovery. Once inside I’d been ambushed by the surviving staff, who seemed to have all been infected with the Sigma virus before becoming trapped in the ruins. My buster arm was rendered completely useless in the ensuing scuffle, so when I returned to base I’d been forced to leave my armor in Douglas’s workshop and pilfer some clothing for the walk back to my quarters.

Even so, it wasn’t the mission itself that frustrated me, it was the quagmire of meetings and red tape that haunted every operation we undertook these days. Signas had been there to greet me a short while ago as I stepped out of the teleport hub, and had reluctantly informed me that I was to report to a department debriefing session within the hour. Having suffered through several of those already, I knew exactly what kind of circus I was in for this morning: sitting in the hot seat of the boardroom, surrounded by suits and the stifling scent of too many bodies, and being bombarded by mind-numbing questions about the mission until even I began to doubt my own judgment. Then the paperwork would begin, followed by any number of performance reviews and either a slap on the wrist, which I didn’t care for, or a stiff commendation, which I cared for even less.

I bit the inside of my cheek in disgust. What the hell do a bunch of suits know about fighting Mavericks, anyway, I thought. They would all die of a heart attack if they came face-to-face with Sigma!

I knew that after the Nightmare fiasco we’d been too exhausted to refuse the arms conglomerate’s offer to buy us out, our staff and supplies having already been decimated by the colony crash. Still, I couldn’t help longing for the old days, when our teamwork and intuition alone had been enough to keep the Maverick threat at bay.

The turbolift glided to a halt, and I stepped out into base’s residential wing. The thought of spending a few minutes with X before my torture session cheered me up immensely. As I headed down the hallway to our shared quarters I tried raking my fingers through my hair so it looked less like I’d walked through a hurricane to get there, giving up when I realized the magnitude of the task. Maybe I would enlist X’s help later. I reached our door and keyed the unlock code.

The sight of X before the mirror greeted me as I stepped inside, locking the door behind me. He cut a striking figure in his olive grey dress uniform, even if he seemed to be having difficulty buttoning his jacket. He looked up from his task and smiled.

“Hey, you,” he greeted me, his voice filled with a genuine warmth that my ears had been missing for days.

“Morning, sunshine,” I drawled, lazily. He scowled at the inane expression and I chuckled. “What’s the occasion?” I asked, nodding towards his formal attire.

“I just heard from Signas. He wants me to be present at your debriefing, acting as sort of a middleman between you and the executives.” X gave me a wry grin. “I guess he doesn’t want you flying off the handle at them again.”

“Doesn’t he, now,” I snorted, recalling the incident in question. “Well, that’s handy. After last night I’m going to need all the help I can get against those vultures.” And maybe X and I’ll get to spend a bit more time together, I thought eagerly.

“How’d that go, by the way?” he asked. “I know I’ll hear the whole story in painful detail soon enough, but it’d be good to hear the condensed version from you first.” He watched my progress in the mirror as I picked my way across the room and sank into his desk chair.

I kicked off my borrowed sneakers and chuckled darkly. “Wouldn’t have been so bad if the welcome wagon hadn’t been rolled out for me.”

X furrowed his brow at his reflection. “What do you mean? I thought the base was supposed to be deserted.”

“ So did I. Turns out most of the hunters there survived the collision, they’d just been trapped in a bunker when the power failed – ”

X spun around, his eyes lighting up with excitement. “Survivors! After all this time? That’s incredible!”

“ – all of them berserk and infected as hell,” I finished.

His face fell abruptly. “Go on,” he said, after he’d had a moment to digest the bleak news.

“They must have received a massive dose of the Sigma virus. I’ve never seen it so bad. Some of them were screaming,” I recalled, shivering a little. “Anyway, they put up pretty heavy resistance, but I managed to take them all down.”

X recoiled as if struck. “You did what?”

“I retired them, X,” I said, raising an eyebrow at his outburst.

“Our guys, Zero!”

“Not anymore, they weren’t,” I retorted, finding myself growing defensive even though we’d been arguing along these lines a good deal lately. Stop torturing yourself, X.

“You could’ve brought them back. We could have done something to – ”

“No, I couldn’t have,” I countered. “X, they were so far gone, they didn’t even know who they were anymore. Sooner or later they would have figured a way out of the ruins, and then what?” He still looked doubtful, so I pushed a bit harder. “I had to take care of them, X. I’m sure that’s what they would have wanted.”

He flinched and looked away, his hands balling into fists at his sides, and for a moment a tense silence hovered between us. I chewed my lip worriedly, immediately regretting my choice of words. Deep down I knew I wasn’t the intended target of his frustration. X must be under even more stress than I am, I thought, my earlier huff melting away with a twinge of guilt.

I tried to lighten the mood. “I made it back in one piece, thanks for asking,” I teased.

He immediately looked back at me, his eyes filling with remorse. “I’m sorry, Zero,” he sighed. “You’re right, you’re absolutely right. It’s just that all we’ve done, what little good we’ve managed to secure. . . sometimes it doesn’t seem worth all the wasted lives.”

“I know,” I replied, softly, catching the veiled reference to his own life. I knew X often mulled over what might have transpired had he done things differently. More and more often he seemed to be reaching the conclusion that it would have been better for everyone involved had he not bothered to take up arms in the name of peace. The contradiction had always placed a strain on his conscience.

He blew out his breath and managed a weak smile, which indicated to me his willingness to move away from the subject. The chair creaked as I stood, succumbing to a sudden urge to take him into my arms. He chuckled as I enveloped him from behind, nipping playfully at his ear. Retaliation came swiftly, as he twisted in my grip and commandeered my lips with his own. Surprised, I closed my eyes and let him have his way for a moment while his hands reached up to grab handfuls of my hair. Before long I was inspired to deepen the kiss, parting his lips with my tongue. He sighed softly against me and I felt the heat blossom in my core. The sounds I managed to draw out of him when we were together always awoke something fierce inside me. I could hardly resist pulling him closer so that his inviting hips brushed satisfyingly against mine, where they fit so perfectly well. The sensation proved a bit much for X as he broke the kiss with a gasp, panting slightly. My own breath was a little ragged as I stared down at him hungrily, a smirk tugging at my lips. He colored beneath my gaze, and I thought I could detect a bit of longing behind his own eyes, but nevertheless he opened his mouth to chide us both.

“Aren’t we going to be late for your – ”

“We have time,” I cut in, dismissively. X raised a dubious eyebrow. “Hey, it’s not like they can start without me,” I retorted.

He shook his head and chuckled at my logic. There was no way in hell that I’d win him over with words – that was his talent – so I elected to take a more hands-on approach. X’s laughter died with a muffled yelp as I snatched up his lips in a devouring kiss, sliding one hand surreptitiously under his half-buttoned jacket. He resisted virtuously once his initial shock had passed, but I knew better, rolling my thumb over one ersatz nipple until it became hard as candy. The instant I felt his resolve begin to waver I decided to press my advantage. I let up on his lips for a moment and began kissing a fierce path along his neck, pausing every so often to nip at his tender earlobe. He shifted his hips slightly and moaned before he could stop himself, making me shiver with sudden surge of lust. I sank my teeth into the shell of his ear before running my tongue over the reddening flesh. X inhaled sharply then, his fingernails tracing restless patterns along either side of my spine. He craned his neck to look at the wall chronometer over my head, and I pictured a squabble taking place between his nagging conscience and his largely untapped rebellious streak. Finally he tugged on my hair to make me stop tormenting the sensitive area behind his ear. I leaned back to meet his gaze and nearly lost control when I saw the sensual resolve there. X favored me with a wry smile, and then rocked up on his tiptoes to whisper in my ear.

“I just can’t say no to you,” he murmured, mischievously, before shoving me without ceremony onto the twin cots we’d pushed together to make our bed, the fall and the erotic turn of events knocking me speechless. Pushing the hair from my eyes, I watched him fumble briefly with his jacket buttons before tugging the whole thing over his head and letting it fall to the floor. I followed his lead, barely managing to shrug out of my sweater before X leaned over me, his fingers having better luck with my belt buckle. I growled eagerly in anticipation as he planted blazing kisses above the waist of my jeans before removing them and my underwear in one practiced motion.

He stretched out beside me and leaned over for a kiss, one hand cradling my neck while the other slid in maddeningly light patterns over my torso, venturing ever lower until my hips jerked in impatience. Still, I wasn’t quite prepared for when he suddenly seized my aching arousal and gave it one firm, forceful stroke, eliciting a cry from me that I knew the entire residential wing had overheard. I started to chide him but the words dissolved into hitching moans as he took up a slower, though hardly less deliberate, rhythm. I clutched the sheets around me and writhed under his touch, forcing my eyes open so I could look up at my tormenting lover. He had let up on kissing me, like he always did, so he could watch my reactions, his eyes wide with wonder. I bit my lip and reached for the waist of his uniform pants, watching breathlessly how he shivered when my fingers brushed his erection. He quickly understood my intent and released me so I could remove the last remaining barriers to his naked skin. No sooner were the offending garments around his ankles than I positioned myself between his legs, swirling my tongue around the tip of his length before taking him into my mouth fully. He gasped and hummed contentedly, raking his restless fingers through my hair as I moved up and down with gusto. Soon enough I sensed by his breathing and the way his muscles tensed that he was nearing release, so I slowed immediately, smirking at his ensuing grunt of frustration. Emboldened, I reached underneath him with two fingers and began gently teasing his opening, still running my lips along his shaft. He shivered and murmured something I couldn’t quite understand, though it sounded like a plea, so I left off my oral ministrations for a moment and pulled myself up to lie down next to him.

“What’d you say?” I asked, continuing to work him with my fingers. X blushed endearingly and averted his gaze. I smiled and leaned in closer to listen as he whispered something in my ear. I nearly bit through my lip to keep my desire in check, so fired was I by his request and the sweetly plaintive manner with which he had voiced it. I was only too happy to comply, scrambling to position myself over him so that our hips were almost touching. He reached up with one hand to stroke my cheek and I kissed it affectionately.

“I love you,” came his voice then, dreamlike, breathless with anticipation. My heart panged at those words. A surge of emotion rendered speech impossible, so instead I took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly before moving forward to claim him. He flinched and sucked in his breath between clenched teeth as I worked my way inside of him. Wanting to help him fight through the pain, I rocked him gently until his breathing grew more even, and he began to relax a little around me. I angled my hips in search of the deep pleasure point the upgrade procedure had supplied us with beyond all belief. X bit his hand to stave off a moan of delight, his emerald eyes pleading and wide with profound devotion. I was so overcome by the sheer seductive sight of him beneath me that I buried my face in his neck and thrust harder, dimly aware that I was sobbing his name. We clutched each other desperately, locked in a rhythm and dimension of our own creation and fighting toward release. Suddenly X gave a cry of relief and shivered, his nails digging deeply into my shoulders. The pain was enough to jolt me into my own shuddering climax, and my vision dissolved into static as I rode wave after wave of pure electric pleasure.

Soon, far too soon for my liking, reality came crashing back over us. At some point we stared at each other with the wide-eyed realization that if we didn’t move now we’d be hopelessly late for the damned debriefing. I quickly kissed him, moaning a little against his lips as one last shudder wracked my sated body. We unhooked ourselves and immediately set to the task of making ourselves decent. I scooped up X’s jacket from where he’d let it drop and tossed it in his direction. Groping blindly under the bed I found where I had stashed my own uniform. As we dressed I couldn’t help but chuckle softly at X’s expense. His neck was covered with suspicious red welts that his collar just wouldn’t hide. He glared at me, but there was mirth behind his eyes.

“Might give them something to think about,” he observed sagely. “And so might this,” he added, tugging on my mane, which was much the worse for wear from our roll in the hay.

I laughed and rolled my eyes. “Whatever. Let’s get this charade over with.”

“Agreed.”

Before we turned to go I pulled him in for one last kiss. Fate had been pretty sadistic to us both, I realized, not least of all by sticking our beloved organization in the hands of grasping pencil pushers. Worse, X seemed to be on the verge of losing faith in himself and all that he’d accomplished through agony and tears. I held him tightly, hoping that would never happen. X was the source of all my faith, and so long as he and I fought side by side, I knew I could never do wrong.

Commencons!

2006-10-01T00:18:25Z

Welcome.

I decided that creating a separate journal for writing would probably be A Very Good Idea, as most of the folks on my friends list, though lovable, would probably blow a gasket if they read some of the slashy, cracky, fanfic-y stuff I plan on posting here.

Posting, by the way, will be very sporadic; such is my nature, coupled with the fact that I'm working on my degree in political science (read: very many essays).

I plan on putting something up within the next week or so, as Canadian Thanksgiving is approaching and the holiday should give me enough time to finish a Zero/X porn I've been working on.

If you want, you can read about my hermity existence at the University of Alberta by clicking here.

Much love.