" One more blast and the door's going down!" Zero said as he charged. The others stood behind him, waiting.

" What bothers ME is that I haven't seen that Rookie Chip anywhere!" Bo whispered as he prepared to leap as soon as the door was down.

" He's around here somewhere," Met said, unconcerned. Zero let loose his blast. The door blew clean off it's hinges. The Hunters leaped in, expecting resistance. They were absolutely surprised when they received none. In the middle of the room, on a throne, sat a shadowy figure. A rasping breathing came from the figure. Met couldn't contain himself.

" Luke! Luuuuke! I am your father!" Met said, his voice rasping and deep. Zero snickered. X rolled his eyes and pretended he didn't hear it.

" How pleasant for you to show up!" the figure said, cheerfully. Neon Tiger, Blast Cheetah, and Tunnel Rhino hid behind the throne. Bit, Byte, Dr. Doppler, and Vile were next to him. They had something on the floor behind him. Probably a weapon. X froze. The voice did not belong to Sigma. But, it was vaguely familiar to X. Met looked very surprised. Proto Man gasped.

" That's not Sigma!" X whispered.

" It can't be!" Proto Man hissed.

" It's impossible!" Met added.

" You two remember me!" the figure noted. " I am very surprised at you, Met! Working along side Mega Man X?" he said. Met growled. " Surely you have told them?" the figure said, pleasantly. X looked quizzically at Met.

" Shut up and fight!" Met yelled. He crouched and prepared to pounce.

" Before you do anything drastic, think it over. You wouldn't want to put HIM in any more danger than he already is!" the figure said as he motioned to Byte. Byte turned around and picked up what he had been standing in front of. X gasped, horrified. It was Chip! Zero growled while Met bared his teeth.

" Release him you slime ball!" X yelled, furious. The figure laughed.

" Do as he says you scum sucking, boot licking, glue sniffing, yellow, pencil necked geek with his brain in his rear!" Met howled.

" Not likely. Unless, of course, we come to a deal!" the figure said.

" We don't deal with kiss-up little weasels like you!" Zero growled.

" Insults, insults! Is that all you can do?" Vile laughed.

" You want INSULTS?? We'll GIVE you insults!" Met snapped.Proto Man and Zero nodded.

" What happened to your face? Did a car run over it?" Proto Man called.

" Your rear's so big it has it's own daily tour!" Zero yelled.

" Last time I saw a mouth THAT big there was a fish hook in it!" Met snarled. All the Mavericks were snickering at Vile.

" Am I supposed to be insulted?" Vile managed to growl. He was trying his best to keep calm.

" Isn't it dangerous to use your entire vocabulary in a single sentence?" Met asked. Neon Tiger burst out laughing. This prompted Met, Zero, and Proto Man to yell out more and more insults. Soon, Vile couldn't even speak. He stared, horrified. X hadn't said a single word. He just stood there, his mouth wide open and his eyes huge. Finally, the trio of foul mouthed reploids stopped and smiled with satisfaction.

" *Ahem*.... as I was saying before.... we shall have to deal. Or else Chip will...," the figure began.

" Yeah yeah, Chip will die!" Zero hissed.

" No. Actually, I was thinking of infecting him with the Maverick virus! Dr. Doppler has some of it right now!" the figure said. Dr. Doppler waved a shot containing a pulsating green liquid. X gasped. " All I ask is... that you take the shot instead, Met!" the figure hissed. Met jerked back. X held his breath and stared. " I shall hand Chip over to X and his little 'buddies' if you, Met, take the shot instead of Chip!" the figure said. There was absolute silence. Met stared hard at Dr. Doppler. X shifted uncomfortably. Zero clenched his sword. Met peered back at them.

" It's your choice, Met. I don't know what to do," X whispered. Met nodded.

" How do we know you won't do it anyway, if Met takes the shot? You've always lied in the past! You're as untrustworthy as they come!" Proto Man growled. The figure laughed.

" You don't. You'll only have to take the chance," the figure hissed. Met snorted.

" Fine. I'll take the shot," Met growled, surprising everyone. " But FIRST you release Chip!" he snarled. Byte walked up to Zero while Met walked up to Dr. Doppler. Byte slowly handed Chip to Zero. Suddenly, Dr. Doppler grabbed Met's arm and jabbed the needle in him. Met howled in pain as the virus emptied in to his system. Byte yanked Chip away and began to run.

" DOUBLE CROSS!!" Zero yelled. He leaped and dug his sword in to Byte's head. Blast Cheetah, Tunnel Rhino, and Neon Tiger attacked him. Bo rushed to Zero's side to help him defend against the Mavericks. X ran over and punched Dr. Doppler, catching him totally unaware. He grabbed Met, who was staggering on his feet.

" My arm hurts...," he mumbled. Then, he passed out. X picked him up and began to run over to the others. Vile leaped in the way. X backed off a bit, staring angrily.

" Get out of the way, Vile!" he hissed. Vile smiled.

" You're not getting away THIS time, X. Neither you nor your friend!" Vile said. He aimed at X. X, daringly, kicked Vile in the gut. " You'll pay for that!!" Vile managed to wheeze out.

" Cash or credit card?" X snapped. Vile charged his shoulder blasters. Proto Man leaped and wrapped his arms around Vile's neck. He jerked backwards, choking Vile.

" Run, little bro!" Proto Man said. Vile grabbed Proto Man's arms and tried to rip Proto Man off of his back. X bolted past Vile. Vile managed to throw Proto Man. Proto Man flew a couple of feet and landed with a THUNK. He laid there, stunned. Vile rushed to take advantage of the situation. He aimed at Proto Man as he ran, charging up. Bo leaped over and tripped Vile.

" Hurry! Over here!" X yelled to his friends. They broke and ran. X carried Met (who was a bit too heavy for the short little reploid) while Zero carried Chip. They raced through the halls. As they ran, they heard a roar. Bo turned around and saw that all the newest Mavericks were chasing them. Blast Cheetah, who was suffering from two blows to the head, was with them. Zero wanted to stop and fight but decided against it when he felt Chip move. They dashed and jumped over the wreckage of the Mavericks they had toasted. They came to the outer court. Zero leaped up the wall. As X was about to leap over as well, Stomp Unicorn flew by and knocked him to the ground. X cried out, startled. Stomp Unicorn screamed a challenge and dive bombed at X. X gritted his teeth, angry at what the Mavericks did to him, at what they did to Met. He stood tall, and glared. Then, he charged. He began to glow brightly.

" HUH???" Stomp Unicorn gasped. X flashed faster and faster. Suddenly, he leaped in to the air.

" G. CRUSH!!" X screamed. A white explosion completely engulfed X and Stomp Unicorn. Stomp Unicorn squealed in pain and crashed to the ground. He shook himself and gingerly stood up. X dashed off, carrying Met. He caught up with the rest of the group. Torrent Leviathan approached Stomp Unicorn.

" It seems they have vacated the area!" he said. Stomp Unicorn snorted.

" It does not matter if they escape the base or not. Met is infected with the virus and they are taking him with them. When he awakes, he will be a Maverick!" Stomp Unicorn growled. Torrent Leviathan smiled and nodded. He glanced at the full moon.

" We had best get repairs underway. We will also have to repair all the Mavericks destroyed in the attack," Torrent Leviathan said. He turned and headed back inside. Stomp Unicorn stood where he was for a minute, silent, before following.