Bleh, this one fought me for a long time. Hopefully, it came out alright.
Disclaimer: I don't own the character of Ruby Rose. I
might have some minor claim to the Robo-Clone version, though.
Personal Disclaimer: Ky's rant towards the end of this isn't intended to upset or offend anyone, and I apologise in advance if that ends up being the case. It certainly wasn't my intention.
Oh, and the final bit? That's my intended lead-in for introducing Ky and Ruby into Wilypocalypse. Hopefully. Xhai and/or Shani currently stand as the candidate(s) for ManaVerse.
With this, the gang's all present for now. Im'ma hold off on bringing any of my other characters back for a while so I can focus on the ones currently present.
Hope you guys enjoy, and please remember, feedback and criticism are always welcome!
#010 - Roses and Rust[spoiler]
???.....
Am I.....alive?...
It's so dark....
Is anyone out there?.....
Hello....?
Whatever I did, I'm sorry!
......
Please.....
....I don't want to be alone.....
......
RPM Junkyard, early morningKy shot a bored look skyward, and gave an audible sigh. Turning, he addressed his companion. "Yo, Birdy, why're we here again?"
Xhai paused in his inspection of a particularly large pile of scrap metal, and responded with an irritated glance. "Mika gave us a list of things she needed and asked us to start looking here, remember? And
don't call me "Birdy"."
Ky smirked. "You got it, Feathers. Seriously, though.
What are we looking for specifically?"
Xhai resisted the urge to facepalm at Ky's retort, and instead consulted the list he'd been given. If he was being honest with himself, he could barely make sense of what was written on it, and was inwardly grateful that his pink-haired friend had deigned to include a basic description of each item. At least he had a vague idea of what some of this stuff looked like. Though quite why she'd insisted he bring
Ky of all people along was beyond him. He seemed to remember her saying something about using the robot as a packhorse, but so far he hadn't found a single thing she'd said she'd needed. Shaking his head, he turned his full gaze on his comrade. "Ky, if you're so bored, why don't you go take a nap in the car or something? I'll call you if I need you."
Ky shrugged. "Fine by me. If you consider what you're doing from a robot's point of view, this is pretty friggin' grim anyway."
Xhai blinked, not understanding what Ky was getting at. Ky pointed at the badly-rusted husk of a Sniper Joe, sprawled at the foot of a pile of weather-beaten cars. "Junkyards are pretty much robot graveyards. You, my friend, are a grave-robber. Can you live with that on your conscience?" He shot the demi-falcon an irreverent grin and sauntered off before Xhai could respond.
Xhai gave another confused blink before shaking his head and turning back to the task at hand.
Ky wandered aimlessly through the junkyard, his eyes fixed on the cloudless blue sky above him. He
had intended to take Xhai up on his suggestion and head back to the car, but he found he was suddenly feeling rather restless. and figured a walk might help him gather his thoughts. Perching himself on the edge of an old washing machine, he stared up at the sky again.
"Zakura loved days like this.....wonder where she is right now?"It was rare for Ky to reminisce. These days things seemed to be moving a mile a minute, what with Xhai's old friends seemingly crawling out of the woodwork, and even before his "death" at the hands of borockman he'd never really had time to just sit and daydream like this. Running a rebellion was hard work, and not something he'd particularly enjoyed now that he'd had ample time to consider it.
"Really, everything I did was for her.....If that old fool had been willing to listen....maybe things would've turned out differently...Leaning back, he closed his eyes and reached out over the wireless network. With a little luck, he'd find a halfway decent radio station to listen to while he waited for Xhai to finish whatever it was he was doing. Relaxing a little more, he folded his arms behind his head and idly "thumbed" through the frequencies he'd picked up.
Country.....country.....oh hey, Rush, cool.....rap....hello.....?.....country....wait, what?"He flicked back through his queue. One of those hadn't sounded like a radio at all.
....lone.....please......It was a credit to his reflexes that he didn't fall off his perch as he bolted upright, eyes going wide in shock. This signal was....! Concentrating, he focused on the signal and pushed his conciousness out over the network, intent on following it back to the source.....
Wireless Network/CyberspaceHis progress was halted by one of the largest and most complex firewalls he'd ever seen. He paused, examining it, and mentally cursed up a storm when he figured out what it was.
"I thought I recognised this coding pattern.....the Doctor again...."Taking a metaphorical step back, he examined the firewall again, more focused this time, and another wave of frustration surged from him when he realised it was dual-coded. He could crack the protection on the incoming side, but he'd need to do the same on the outgoing side before the damned thing would come down. Unfortunately, even with that knowledge, he'd need a stronger connection to this mysterious signal if he was ever going to be able to do more than scratch it. Reigning himself in, he got as close to it as he dared, and briefly flared his presence, hoping to attract the attention of whoever it was that was apparently on the other side.
???.......
......?
....Is someone there?
......I can't move.....
....Whoever's there, can you hear me?
Wireless Network/Cyberspace"....Whoever's there, can you hear me?"Ky breathed a mental sigh of relief when he got a response. He'd taken a big risk in announcing his presence like that, but it seemed his gambit had paid off. The response was faint, almost as though the one speaking to him was still a great distance away, but he'd cope with that. Taking another tentative step towards the firewall, he called out.
"Yes, I can hear you.....-" He paused, unsure of how to proceed.
"-...I guess you'll want some help with this barrier, hm?"There was a long moment of silence, and for a moment Ky thought he'd said the wrong thing....again, but the response he got wasn't quite what he expected.
".....You'll.....help me? Please!"The voice sounded almost
frantic. Ky frowned. What the hell was going on? He shook his head. The first thing he needed to do was try and get a better connection. Keeping his voice level, he called out again.
"Yes, I'll help you, but I need a stronger hold on your signal to do it. Could you do something to let me know where you are?"For a moment, he felt the other presence grow stronger, before it faded again. With a speed that belied his normal, casual air, he latched onto the point he'd felt it emanate from and his eyes went wide.
It's in the junkyard!?The voice spoke up again, weaker than before.
"Sorry.....I can't do any more.....so tired...."The connection was growing weaker by the second, so Ky pushed a strong feeling of gratitude through it, and broke the link with a final statement.
"Sit tight. I'll find you, I promise.
RPM Junkyard, mid-morningKy hopped from his perch as his conciousness returned, and he shot a calculating look around his surroundings, trying to use the data he'd gotten from the brief link he'd shared to work out where he was headed. His sensors finally locked on to a
very faint distress signal coming from somewhere east of his current position. Making a note of his current location, he turned and jogged back to where he'd left Xhai. The demi-falcon hadn't moved too far from his original position, and stood up to greet Ky when he came running up.
"Yo. Something wrong?"
Ky was unusually serious when he responded. "You might say that" He turned to stare into the distance. "Going to need your help, I think. You mind coming with?"
Xhai blinked, taken aback by his comrade's sudden shift in attitude. "Sure. Lead the way."
"Here? You sure?"
Xhai cast a dubious look at the large pile of -thankfully inactive- Rabid Mets that dominated the middle of the yard in front of him. Ky strode past him and started tossing the bodies to one side. "Yes. I'm sure. Now stop asking questions and give me a hand."
Taken aback by the irritation in the normally laid-back android's voice, Xhai did as asked, and found himself staring in shock as Ky eventually pulled a small, black clad figure from the depths of the pile.
Laying the figure on the ground in front of him, the two got a better look at their find. It was a young-looking girl, clad solely in a black, mesh-like undersuit. The exposed skin on her hands and feet sported numerous small tears, and small flashes of silver could be seen from underneath if the light caught them in the right way. Her hair was an inky-black, turning to a deep crimson at the tips. Her face was stained, presumably by coolant leaking from one of the Mets she'd been buried under, but it was the sightless grey eyes that caused Ky's anger to spike despite himself. His sensors swept across the form of the girl, scanning for damage and anything that may present a problem if and when he managed to get her back on her feet. He knelt, and was just about to attempt to reconnect with her on the network, when Xhai's hand on his shoulder stopped him short. The demi-falcon's expression was stony, his eyes betraying nothing, and when he spoke his voice was tight with barely concealed anger.
"Woah, woah, woah. What the hell are you doing? You see those wounds? If she's a robot she's probably one of
his."
Ky would admit he was slightly surprised by the amount of venom injected into that last word. He took a moment to formulate a response, knowing why Xhai had reacted in such a way. He'd been told what had happened to two members of Xhai's group before he'd reawakened in Alastor's body, and it seemed that particular incident was still weighing on his friend's mind. Keeping his tone level, he met Xhai's gaze evenly.
"I'm helping her. Yes, she's probably one of the Doctor's, but I don't see how that's relevant. She needs help, and I'm in a postion
to help. Be honest with yourself, Xhai. Are you seriously telling me you're okay with just
leaving her here?"
If Xhai had caught the subtle rebuke, he didn't acknowledge it. "How do you know she needs help? Looks like nothing more than an empty shell to me."
Ky tapped his forehead. "I'm a robot, remember? I picked up a signal on my comms network. She's
still in there, Xhai. I am NOT leaving her like this."
The two stared each other down for a long moment, before Xhai averted his gaze, apparently unwilling to argue the point.
"Fine. I won't try and stop you, but.....why do you care so much about this anyway? I've never seen you this focused before..."
Ky turned his attention back to the girl, and for a moment Xhai thought he was ignoring the question. Then, Ky's shoulders visibly slumped, and when he responded, his tone was thick with.....
self-loathing?
"I care because she
begged me to help. I care because she reminds me of a promise I made to someone a long time ago.....a promise I couldn't keep." He turned back to face his friend, a loose grin decorating his features. "And besides, when a cute girl asks for help you don't say no, y'know?" Seeing the wary expression on the brunette's face, his expression softened slightly. "Look, I get why you're concerned, I do. But....could you really live with yourself if you just ignored this?"
Xhai scowled. THAT had been something of a low-blow. Ky wasn't quite finished, though.
"If it makes you feel any better, you have my word that I'll take full responsibilty for anything that may come about as a result of what I'm about to do."
If Xhai responded, Ky didn't hear it. He'd already reconnected to the network and reached out for that presence again....
Wireless Network/CyberspaceTaking a moment to reorient himself, Ky scowled at the sight of the firewall. Flaring his signal again, he was relieved when he felt the other presence respond, and a faint, indistinct figure materialised on the other side of the barrier. The girl spoke again, her voice tinged with surprise.
"You came back!"Ky bowed his head.
"I promised you I would. I can take this barrier down, but I'll need your help to do it."The girl was silent for a moment.
"But....I don't know how to....-"Smiling, he pushed a little more on the link and sent a wave of what he hoped was reassurance along it.
"Just relax. I'll tell you exactly what you need to do, okay?"He explained what he'd discovered while analyzing the firewall, and the girl nodded her head eagerly. She moved further down the length of the barrier, and stood waiting for his signal. Ky studied the barrier again, and finally raised a hand, holding it over the portion his analysis had identified as "his" side of the lock. The girl mirrored his motion, and after another moment to confirm her positioning was correct, they struck as one, hands sinking deep into the barrier in an eyeblink and withdrawing just as quickly. A few seconds passed, and Ky was beginning to think he'd gotten it wrong, when cracks started to spider-web their way from the points of impact, picking up speed as they travelled outwards. Finally, the barrier collapsed on itself, sending a shockwave through the network. Flashing the girl a thumbs-up, Ky withdrew from the network and reawakened in the real world, shuddering as he did so. The girl spasmed violently and went still, though her eyes sported a faint glow that hadn't been there before. Ky grinned. He'd helped with the hard part, now the rest was on her.
DrWilyII's base, location unknownDrWilyII looked up from his magazine as a light started blinking on his computer. Scooting his chair over, his fingers ghosted across the keyboard as he read the report he'd just received. Steepling his fingers for a moment, he lapsed into thought. At length, he reached over to a panel at his side and tapped a series of commands in. He'd planned for this eventuality.
RPM Junkyard"What did you just do?"
Ky turned around at the question. Xhai was still casting wary glances at the still-prone form of the girl, but he couldn't quite keep the curiosity from his tone. It took the android a few seconds to compose an answer that his friend would understand. Describing the network to anyone that didn't already know about was a difficult prospect even at the best of times. He'd admit that part of his response was likely nothing more than conjecture, but if he knew the one responsible as well as he thought he did, it made more sense than any of the alternatives he'd considered.
"I'll spare you the technical stuff, but basically the old man locked her personality away and just dumped her here. In human terms, I guess the closest thing I could equate it to is lobotomising somebody then just tossing them out onto the street."
Xhai still didn't seem at ease. "Why would he do that?"
Ky shrugged. "Only he could answer that question with any certainty. She
might be able to tell us, but..."
Xhai raised a questioning eyebrow. "But...?"
Ky's expression turned serious again, his tone oddly flat, as though he were trying to keep his emotions from showing. "If he's disowned her like this, chances are good he mind-wiped her first. It doesn't seem like he tampered with her personality at all, aside from suppressing it, but I'd be surprised if she could remember anything meaningful from before I met her on the network."
Xhai's eyes turned glassy and unfocused for a second, before his expression tightened. What Ky had said had apparently struck a chord with him and managed to force his initial objections to the side, if only briefly. "So, what do we do now?"
Moving his attention back to the girl, Ky reached out to her over the network and requested a status update. The automated systems responded quickly enough, and he frowned as he studied the data. "She's still trying to reboot. If I'm understanding this correctly, she's missing about three quarters of her programming, and that's caught her in a feedback loop. Gimme a sec." He shifted his focus back to the network and gently pushed through the still-weak defensive systems now protecting her core programming. It took another minute to locate her activation protocols, and about half that to locate the issue. Reaching out, he took a gentle hold of her core program and steered it
around the mass of corrupted data that was preventing her from waking. He felt a brief spike of
irritationconfusionhappiness from her, and withdrew once more.
Blinking his eyes back into focus, he requested another status update, and smiled at what he got. He turned back to Xhai even as the girl shifted slightly, fingers twitching as more of her systems reactivated. "There. She should be wide awake soon, though she'll probably be pretty confused. Xhai,
please try to avoid scaring her, yeah?"
Xhai was silent, but nodded. Inwardly, his desire to help was warring with the trust issues he'd developed following Luna and Typhon's betrayals. It wasn't until the rational part of his brain reminded him that
neither one of them would've wanted that that he was able to push the issue from his mind. He gave a weak smile and nodded again. "I'll do my best. Heh....looks like our little band of misfits and outcasts might've just grown by one, no?"
Ky was about to respond when his defensive systems
screamed at him as they detected an incoming teleport signal. His eyes went wide with shock. "Xhai! Take her with you and get the hell out of here, now!"
Xhai look confused for a brief moment, but the urgency in his friend's voice quickly broke through and spurred him into action. "I'll see you back at the car." With that, he scooped the girl up in his arms and shot off towards the junkyard entrance. He disappeared from view scant seconds before the distinctive
ba-woop of a teleport heralded the arrival of a newcomer.
Luckily for Ky, his back was to the intruder at the time, and he had a few seconds to try and formulate a plan. He'd recognised the encryption pattern on the teleport signal, it was the one DrWilyII used for his elite troops. Mind racing, a devious smirk split his face when he came up with an idea. A wonderful, horrible, terrible idea. Digging deep into his personality programming, he dredged up as much of Alastor's lingering code as he could and layered it on top of his own. A quick code-change had his eyes shifting from their usual mikado yellow colour to the deep scarlet that Alastor had sported during his time in DrWilyII's service. With any luck, this newcomer would take one look at his face and think that he
was Alastor. Schooling his features into a neutral expression, he turned to face the new arrival.
He was met with the sight of a lean, humanoid figure in black and red armour. A small, shoulder-mounted flamethrower sat to the left of a smooth, featureless black mask. Straightening from it's crouch, the newcomer regarded Ky with a mixture of curiosity and disdain. "You are Alastor, correct? The Doctor's files list you as retired."
Fighting back a scowl at the disrespect in the Wilybot's tone, Ky kept his tone level and responded as he imagined Alastor would. "That's right. I was offline for a time, but I recently reactivated, and have been searching for a way back to the Doctor's side."
The newcomer tilted his head to the side, and shot a link-request across the network. Ky accepted, and pushed Alastor's code to the forefront again, pulling his own presence back to try and escape from the stranger's notice for now. He was apparently successful, as the Wilybot maintained the connection. They exchanged status reports, and Ky was intrigued at the apparent disconnect between the other android's physical status and it's mental status.
A reploid body.....with the AI of a Fortress Boss? What the hell is the Doctor thinking?"After another moment, the newcomer nodded, and shifted it's gaze to study the area around it. Ky remained still while he digested the information he'd unknowingly been handed, and began to ponder the implications of it. He was snapped from his musings when the newcomer spoke again. "Very well. Since you appear to still be loyal to the Doctor, I think he'd approve if I enlisted your aid in my mission. My name is Typhon, and I have been tasked with locating and eliminating a rogue unit."
Ky raised an eyebrow. "Rogue?"
Typhon nodded. "One of the Doctor's Copy-Bots was deemed to be a drain on resources, and was retired and left here. Somehow, it appears to have reactivated. The Doctor assures me that it remembers nothing of it's time serving him, but he has no desire to leave any potential "loose-ends" lying around. My mission is to locate this Copy-Bot and destroy it before the Resistance has a chance to potentially turn it against him."
Ky was silent for a long moment.
He's talking about that girl.....Hmph, I suppose I have no choice now....With deliberate slowness, he began to reactivate his dormant combat subsystems, being careful to avoid Typhon's notice. Mindful of his audience, he spoke up.
"I see. Did the doctor inform you that this isn't the first time he's had to do something like this?"
Typhon seemed genuinely confused. "No. I wasn't aware this had happened before. You know differently?"
Ky gave a loose shrug. "Yeah, a
long time ago. One of the original Copy-Bots.....Zakura, I think her name was. Apparently she got a little too independant for the Doctor's liking and tried to strike out on her own. He ordered her termination, but I heard she got away when one of the Big 4 intervened and destroyed the units he'd sent to retire her."
Typhon nodded. "I had heard rumours that there were traitors in the Doctor's ranks in the past. Zakura was listed as destroyed not too long ago, and it's common knowledge amongst his forces that Robo-Ky was the other traitor. He was killed by borockman sometime last year, wasn't he?"
Ky nodded, privately amused by this whole conversation. "That's what I heard. I gotta say, though, some parts of that story strike me as ringing a little false."
The Fortress Boss-turned-Reploid sounded confused. "How so?"
Now.
RPM Junkyard, same timeXhai gently set the girl down in the passenger seat of the rental car, still slightly conflicted over his actions. Turning his head to look back in the direction he'd come from, his thoughts turned to his friend.
Hope you know what you're doing, Ky....Movement behind him caught his attention, and he shifted to see the girl staring at him, worry and fear evident in her eyes. Seeing such
human emotions reminded him of the first time he'd met Luna, and any objections he'd had regarding this girl's presence died as he shot her a warm smile and saw her return it. It was small, and carried a distinct hint of nervousness, but it was a smile nonetheless. The wind picked up around them, and the girl shivered from the cold. Before he was even concious of what he was doing, Xhai had doffed his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She snuggled into it and shot him another smile, a
genuine smile this time, before speaking.
"Thanks...."
He grinned at her. "Don't mention it."
Now.With Typhon's question, Ky saw his moment, and he realised exactly what he wanted to do. Closing his eyes as though collecting his thoughts, he brought all of his offensive and defensive subsystems to bear, and extended his presence over the network to catch Typhon's in a vice-like grip. The Fortress Boss struggled, but his AI wasn't on the same level as Ky's, and he wasn't able to do anything other than flail uselessly, lacking the creativity required to try more esoteric methods of escape.
In the real world, Ky let the coding on his eyes revert back to normal, but kept them closed even as Typhon sank to his knees with a pained grunt, his motor controls shutting down under Ky's relentless pressure. He tried to speak, but found his vocal systems were offline too. All he could do was sit there, and listen.
Maintaining his previous conversational tone, Ky answered Typhon's query. "Well, for starters, Zakura was never a traitor. The only thing she was guilty of was managing to exceed the boundaries of her programming. She wanted
freedom, and the Doctor wasn't willing to grant it, so he sent the termination units. Robo-Ky got involved because he was....attached....to her and refused to let her be lost for such a pointless reason. The whole "destroyed" thing might be accurate, but since she dropped off the radar entirely, who knows where she is right now?. As far as Robo-Ky goes, he rebelled afterwards in disgust, and you're right, he
was destroyed by borockman. Funny thing, though....-" He activated the remote recall on his armour.
Typhon's eyes went wide behind his mask as "Alastor"'s armour materialised around him. The Doctor's files had listed Alastor as wearing simple blue and white armour, with nothing to really set him apart from any of the Doctor's other minions. Now, though, the reprogrammed Reploid was covered in more ornate looking white and purple, with a purple cape covering his back, from his shoulders down to his knees.
Ky flashed Typhon a manic grin as his armour finished materialising, eyes glittering with amusement. "-..."destroyed"
isn't the same as "dead"." He couldn't help laughing as he caught an echo of Typhon's emotions over the network. Confusion, anger,
fear all at once. He threw his head back and roared with laughter at just how
lost the Fortress Boss seemed to be. Forcing himself back into a calm state, he regarded Typhon with an almost pitying look, though his tone remained light and cheery. Unfortunately for Typhon, he'd spotted an opportunity to get some things off his chest, and wasn't about to let it pass.
"Tell me something, is that smug, jumped-up prick boforte still mouthing off to anyone who'll listen about how great he is because he's one of the Big 4? Funny how he never mentions he only got the job because
I wasn't around anymore. Heh, if you think about it, he's the USAgent to my Captain America. It's kinda sad, honestly. I'd be more inclined to take him seriously if his main weapon wasn't
[tornado fang]ing durians. The biggest, baddest group of 'bots under Doc's command, and his go-to beatstick is a crappy borockman knockoff that attacks people by
throwing fruit at them? Ridiculous......although, now that I think about it, producing underwhelming crap seems to be all the old man's good for these days. I will admit there ARE exceptions. The Copy-Bots are an amazing idea, but I'll get to those in a second. For now, let's look at the evidence, shall we? We have boforte, who -as I've mentioned- is a crappy borockman knockoff. We have buns, who's a crappy
Roll knockoff, and now we have
you, a Fortress Boss who thinks it's a Reploid. What's the phrase....."You can't polish a turd?"....doesn't matter how much he upgrades your body or how many pretty toys he outfits you with, it's never going to amount to any more than dolling a Push-Bike up to look like a Harley. Sure, it looks pretty, but it'll
never perform to the same standard. Now that I think about it, he seems to have made a career out of stealing other people's ideas. He's great at conceptualising, but innovating? Have you
seen some his "Robot Masters"? Vuvuzela Man? Coffee Man? Let's be honest, in terms of his original ideas, he's the
Ken Penders of evil geniuses. Able to copy, but can't create worth a damn. I'd call the Copy-Bots the exception, but even then, the proof is in the name."
Taking a slow step forward, he crouched to look Typhon in the face, his tone and expression turning serious and almost....
sad.
"But that's the thing. You
could be so much more than what you are. Hell,
every single robot he has could be so much more if he was willing to let them
think for once. The Copy-Bots are the only truly decent idea he's had in
years, and even then they're so heavily restricted by their programming it's a wonder they're not all a bunch of drooling idiots. Creating an AI so advanced it can actually
pass for human is an amazing feat, and one he should be proud of. Instead, he's so afraid they'll get sick of his [parasitic bomb] that as soon as one of them starts exhibiting
any kind of truly independent thought, BOOP - RESET BUTTON. Look at Zakura, look at that girl you came here to kill. He's decided they have to die, when all they appear to have done is
exactly what they've been built to do, and that's just
live. It wouldn't take much, just a couple extra lines of code, and you could have a mind like mine. Free, governed only by your own thoughts. S'why he always tried to keep me happy, y'know? He couldn't put me under his thumb like all his other mooks, much as I'm sure he'd have liked to. The truly sad part is, he's never going to do that. He'll
never let you, or any of his other minions, off the leash because he's afraid the first thing you'll do is abandon him. He's afraid of being alone, so instead of trying to cultivate meaningful relationships with other people, he builds a bunch of fawning, sycophantic yes-bots whose sole purpose in life is to cater to whatever ridiculous whims he's decided he has that day."
He broke off for a moment to clamp down on Typhon's struggles over the network before resuming his speech.
"I'll let you in on a little secret that a good friend of mine told me. Zakura, that girl and that Copy-Bot PB aren't the only WilyBots to have broken their programming and earned their freedom. There were two more, but he found them and dragged them back. My friend and I are determined to rescue them, but I really don't know if we can save them both. All I'll say is this: If he hasn't mind-[tornado fang]'d you too badly, you should know both of them
very well."
Rising from his crouch, he tore through Typhon's mental defences and fiddled his activation protocols so the Fortress Boss would regain access to his systems on a time-delay, before slamming a boot into his face and pinning him to the ground under his heel. Fishing a cellphone out from a compartment on his forearm, he snapped a quick picture of something and strode from the clearing, leaving Typhon flat on his back, unable to do anything other than stare at the sky above him. Pausing at the very edge of the clearing, he called over his shoulder. "Take a message back to the old man for me, would ya? If he still wants that girl dead, he can send anyone he wants. Just tell him not to send anyone he wants
back". With that final threat hanging in the air, he left and headed to the place Xhai said he'd be waiting.
Xhai hefted the bundle into the trunk of the car just as Ky appeared from around the corner. Quirking a brow at the sight, the Reploid asked "What's that? You find something important?"
Xhai slammed the trunk closed and turned to his friend, an audible shrug in his voice. "I 'unno. Ruby said she'd lost something important, so I went looking. Apparently, I found it."
Ky blinked. "Ruby?"
Xhai shot him an odd look. "That girl you were so insistent we help? Her name's Ruby Rose, but she prefers Ruby. Oh, and sorry, but you'll need to ride in the back on the way home, she's kinda fallen asleep in the passenger seat."
Ky shot a glance through the window. Sure enough, Ruby was snuggled in the passenger seat, sleeping peacefully with Xhai's jacket still wrapped around her. He smiled at the sight. Knowing he'd been able to help her was worth all the trouble he'd probably just brought onto his head. Once she woke up, he'd have to find a way to stop the Doctor from tracing her. Wouldn't do for Xhai to have his home attacked
again, especially after Ky had promised to take responsibility for taking her in. Shrugging, he popped a rear door open and slid inside. "Fair enough. Um, I
might have let DrWilyII know I'm still alive, by the way."
Xhai, who'd just strapped himself into the driver's seat and started the ignition, shot him a look over his shoulder. "What did you do?"
Ky just grinned.
The following day, the citizens of RPM -and some of the outlying Orbital Stations- were surprised to see a long-dormant social media account listing a new activity. A single photo of a young-man clad in white and purple armour, standing proudly over a fallen robot met their eyes, along with a caption:
"Just roflstomped one of DrWilyII's Elite Mooks. LOL. #RideTheLightning #DESTROYED."[/spoiler]