Mega Man Fan Fiction ❯ Warmachine ❯ Chapter 10: In the Shadows ( Chapter 10 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Chapter 10: In the Shadows

The sky was pitch-black and the moon’s rays barely seeped through the heavy storm clouds that were gathering overhead. The almost complete darkness was the perfect cover for a black hover-car that made its way towards a large, secure facility. This military installation once belonged to the Repliforce, but its insignias had long since been removed from the facility’s walls. It was now used to house top secret projects and prototype equipment researched by the government. Reploids and humans patrolled the structure inside and out, they were armed to the teeth with ordnance that would make anyone think twice about approaching the compound without the necessary clearance. The blackness hid most of the facility from sight and high, concrete and steel walls obscured the rest. Atop the walls were several different kinds of turrets, some armed with Vulcan cannons while others had been outfitted with missile launchers. But each of the weapons served only one purpose, to keep unwanted individuals out.

The lone vehicle approached the checkpoint at the end of the road, one of five massive gates that were the only way in and out of the complex. A Reploid soldier raised his arm to signal the vehicle to halt. The black car stopped just beside a small booth that dwarfed in comparison to the main gate. While the other guards simply stayed in their positions, their attention did turn to the vehicle. They would be ready to react to any suspicious behavior in the blink of an eye. The guard that approached the car was a tall Reploid with a military green color motif. His body was reinforced with layers of plated armor and the rifle he carried on his back was far from the only weapon most likely installed inside his frame. He bent forward slightly so he could look through the window on the driver side of the vehicle. The driver had already rolled the window down and looked up at the guard.
“ID card, confirmation code and reason for entry please.” The Reploid stated calmly, his disciplined voice hiding the fact that he was sick and tired of saying that sentence day in, day out.
The Reploid behind the wheel was clearly an official. He had a black frame with white trimmings, a sharp featured face with hazel eyes and sleek, stylish Reploid hair. A black hand that was modeled to resemble a glove extended towards the guard, an ID card trapped between the index and middle finger.
“ID: Ian Cegas, Code: IA-CE- 5543543-beta. Delivering a report to Doctor Stern.” The Reploid recited with a casual, but respectful voice. The guard accepted the card and tapped his left lower arm once. A small terminal opened up from his wrist with a card reader. The guard kept his eyes on the driver and the female Reploid that sat beside him with her legs crossed. He inserted the card into the slot and after it checked out he reached out to return it. Ian gripped the card but the guard did not let go just yet.
“No personal driver?” the guard inquired.
“No. I couldn’t trust any of them while transporting the documents in this case. Besides, I much rather drive myself.” Ian replied calmly.
The guard’s eyes moved their focus from Ian to the woman and back. The female Reploid had quite the pleasing frame with the same basic look as Ian. It was a design that resembled a business suit and her silver hair had been raised in a neat bun. Her skin was pale with two lightning strike patterns vertically over her eyes. Her face didn’t seem to match the rest of her appearance but the guard thought nothing of it as he let go of the card.
“Go on through, have a pleasant evening, sir.” He stated before motioning for the soldier in the booth to open the gate. Ian rolled up the window and drove on through the steel gate.
“So far so good.” The female stated, her lips curling up in a seductively evil smile.
“We should’ve given you a mask of sorts.” Ian replied as they drove past several structures along their way to the main compound in the center of the facility. The entire base was a maze of tall buildings and parking spaces for the staff of each department. There was no doubt that below the concrete they drove on there were even more floors, hiding sensitive material from sight.

Ian pulled over when he spotted a parking space close to the gigantic central structure and locked the car doors after getting out.
“Remember your job?” Ian asked. The female Reploid bared a few pristine white teeth when she grinned and nodded.
“Good, we have only one shot at this.” He added as they began walking the rest of the distance into the main lobby of the building. The tower consisted of at least 43 stories of R&D departments and there were probably a lot more below the surface. Underground, that’s where they had to go. Ian’s ID card got them past the second barrier and into the many corridors and hallways of the ground floor. Despite it being night there were still a fair share of patrols, researchers and other staff members moving from one floor and room to another. The odd pair walked calmly towards an elevator in the far back of the structure, one that also lead to the lower floors of the building and was reserved only for privileged staff members. A single guard was keeping an eye on the comings and goings of personnel from behind thick, bulletproof glass. When the coast was clear, the two approached the booth and turned to face the guard.
“Excuse me. Is this the elevator down to level B9?” Ian asked politely.
The guard looked up from his viewscreen where he’d been watching video output of one of the cameras in the corridor. The way they were positioned allowed them a good security view of the corridor itself and the elevator, but not the booth in which the guard was and any persons standing directly in front of the glass.
“Yes, among others. Just slide in your executive ID card. If you don’t have one, I can’t let you in.” The guard stated.
“Shame.” Ian replied. Before the guard had even raised an eyebrow at the odd reaction his throat had been gripped by the gloved hand of the female Reploid. Her arm had passed through the solid material of the glass as if she was a ghost and after bashing his head against the window the guard went limp in her hand. Using her other hand she snatched a security key card from his desk, one that would grant them access to the elevator. The woman retracted her hand from the booth, the strange blue glow that had enveloped her body fading away when her last fingertip reappeared through the solid material. The guard slowly tilted to the side until he dropped to the floor. Ian’s body transformed, revealing the ebon frame of Spectrum. But he didn’t remain in that form for long as in the blink of an eye he had taken on the form of the guard. He had fallen behind his desk so it would take some time before anyone noticed he was out cold, especially if people saw him wandering through the halls. The woman slid the card through the slot next to the elevator and called for the lift. Moments later the doors opened and the pair continued through the hallways of floor B9. Spectrum greeted any guard in a friendly manner that did so to him first, that way he was sure he only greeted guards the Reploid he was posing as was actually on friendly terms with.
“This is it.” Spectrum whispered as they stopped in front of a glass window that looked down on an enormous hall. In the center of the spherical hall was a column with a bright, glowing core. Terminals had been installed all around it that showed technical read-outs and other research results. A small sign above the window simply read: ‘Supra Force Metal’. Spectrum nodded for his partner to continue while he remained there. Her body once again started glowing and she passed through the window easily. Two researchers were still working on what could potentially be a volatile piece of Force Metal, which is why the room was closed off even to those with their new level of access. The Reploid floated in mid-air while passing through any other object in her way. She circled around the room unseen, diving down only to insert a small information stick into the sole camera that overlooked the room. The moment she inserted the device it began feeding false information to whoever watched the corresponding viewscreens.
Time was of the essence so she landed on one of the walkways that lead from the main entrance to the circular platform built around the protective column. Her glow dissipated and she began walking elegantly towards the researchers. Both men quickly spotted her unstealthy approach and turned to face her.
“Excuse me, ma’am, but how did you get in here? We’re conducting delicate and dangerous simulations here, please wait outside if you wish to talk to us.” One of the researchers stated as he approached her. The Reploid didn’t make it very far as a shot from a buster pistol hidden in her right thigh drilled a hole between his eyes. Before he hit the ground she slapped him aside, letting the body drop to the floor of the spherical room by pushing it over the railings of the walkway. The other researcher met similar ends before he could call out for aid. The Reploid’s nimble fingers skimmed over the keyboard of one of the terminals as she terminated the tests and simulations they had been running. After deactivating the safety mechanisms she opened the hatch that lead into the core of the column. The Force Metal kept inside had stopped glowing and rested serenely on its pedestal. Retrieving the valuable material was as easy as reaching out and grabbing it. With the Metal in her hands she phased through the same window as before and stored it in the briefcase the pair had taken in with them. Their employer had supplied them with all the information and equipment they needed to return safely, no detector would know what they carried with them.

It wasn’t until they were long gone that alarms started to sound and the bodies of two dead researchers and an unconscious guard had been found. There would be hell to pay for those responsible for letting one of the most valuable items in the entire facility be stolen right from under their noses.

~~*~*~~

A few days had passed since the fiasco at the prison and Vile had recovered from the damage he had sustained. Nana had covered their tracks expertly so the Maverick Hunters had no clue where to start searching. The hunters had equally bad luck when trying to track down Spectrum who had vanished without a trace.
The Renegade sat in one of the chairs in the kitchen. He had found a Buster Pistol hidden in the small cupboard next to the refrigerator. Whoever owned this place before Nana had probably left it there when he moved out. An odd thing to forget but he didn’t really care, it kept him busy. Sort of. Using his index finger he rotated the weapon in his hand, spinning it around like he’d seen on vids of humans in dusty old towns with archaic six-shooters. He let his chair tilt back with his boots up on the table. The entire view made it all too obvious just how bored he was with this period of inactivity.
Nana on the other hand had had her hands full keeping the Hunters off their scent. Now that they had finally called off the hunt she could turn her full attention to finding some kind of lead. She’d gone over the security data from Giga City a dozen times now and hadn’t learned anything they didn’t already know. The data she had gathered from East City didn’t yield much more either. She just felt like they were running out of time. It wasn’t a simple cover-up, something more was going on. And the more time they wasted sitting around, the more time those responsible had to put their plans into motion.

It was strange how sometimes the greatest breakthroughs came unexpected and completely by accident. She’d been going over classified information via Giga City’s connections with Hunter HQ, to which she still had access, when she spotted something very interesting. One of the last remaining fragments of Supra Force Metal had been stolen from a government facility. There were no clues, no traces, no security leaks. It was a complete mystery how the perpetrators had gotten away with it. Nana knew however that a certain Copy Reploid would have a useful ability for infiltration. And the mysterious employer of the Revenants most likely had full access to the information and equipment Spectrum needed to pull something like this off. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that their enemy was behind this and now she knew they were after Supra Force Metal. She… They had a lead again and she almost felt like smiling.

“Vile! I’ve found something!” She shouted, only slightly tilting her head in the direction of the room Vile was in. She’d done some research and had determined their next course of action. The ex-Hunter heard his temporary partner call out and placed the pistol on the table before getting up and making his way over to the large terminal.
“About time. I was starting to think you were just slacking off.” He muttered.
“Yeah, I’M the slacker.” She shot back through narrow eyes. Vile had no time to reply however as she began to guide him through her reasoning.
“A couple of days ago a fragment of Supra Force Metal was stolen from a government controlled facility out in the Rubora Desert.” She started.
“Supra Force Metal?” Vile inquired.
“You’ve heard of Force Metal right? Well, Supra Force Metal has far more powerful properties. A single fragment, properly processed and installed, can make a Reploid virtually invincible. It was what Colonel Redips was after in Giga City and what Epsilon had used to help in his Rebellion.” Nana explained, occasionally bringing up data files and photos to add to her explanation. “The way the theft was executed, or rather the fact that no one can figure out how it happened, makes me believe it was partly an inside job.” She continued.
“You think Spectrum and his gang of misfits are behind it?” Vile interjected.
“And their employer, yes.” The pink-haired Reploid pressed a few more keys and brought up a sky photo of a large installation built into the face a mountain somewhere in a snow covered landscape. “This is the Nordic Research Facility. They’re currently researching another fragment of Supra Force Metal. This one, together with the one stolen from the government, are the last known useable fragments. Needless to say this makes it very valuable.” She stated.
“And you think they’re going to go after this one too?” Vile asked.
“Hmmm… Maybe. But one fragment of Supra Force Metal already contains enough power to fuel just about anything you could imagine and since their main weapon is the fact that they still operate in secret, I doubt they’d risk exposure by planning yet another theft. And since this facility is property of an international research corporation, our friendly neighborhood Maverick Hunter traitor won’t be able to help Spectrum out.” Nana reasoned. “No, I was thinking of paying the place a visit and maybe learn more of the possible ways the metal could be used. If we can somehow narrow down what use they’d have for it, we could have our next lead.” She explained.
“You want me to break in there? Humph. It’s doable but I’m going to need more to go on than just a fancy aerial picture.” The Renegade responded while crossing his arms as he immediately began studying the facility on the photo.
“Not necessary. The Reploid scientist currently heading the research into the Force Metal is an old friend of mine. He’s always had a bit of a crush on me so if I work my charms I might be able to get a tour of the place. It’s the perfect opportunity to get the information we need.” She explained.
“You have charms?” He asked rhetorically, a grin appearing on his lips behind the T-visor of his helmet at the insult. Before Nana could get angry over it he added another clause to their plan. “Either way its best I tag along. My face is plastered over every wall of the known world so I doubt I’d get inside but I’d observe the place from the outside, the cold won’t bother me.”
“You worried about me?” She asked with a slight, taunting smile.
“Don’t flatter yourself. If Spectrum does show up, I’ll have another crack at him. We won’t need all this sneaking around anymore if I can beat the answers out of the coward.” Vile stated.
“Alright than, we’ve got a plan. I’ll contact him and make the arrangements, with any luck we’ll be in the cold north by tomorrow.” She smiled. At least seeing her old friend again would cheer her up even if they didn’t learn as much as she hoped from him.