"So you've caught me. What are you going to do with me?" The red and white robot asked calmly as he lay flat on the floor. His shield was several feet away, too far to be useful, and there was a black and gold arm cannon pointed at his face.
There was a long pause.
Finally, the black and gold robot burst out laughing. It was a young, unforced and rather charming laugh. Reaching down roughly, he jerked the other robot to his feet.
"What in hell are you doing here, Proto?" He asked in amusement as Proto twisted one of his arms, wincing and rubbing it.
"Not much, until you found me, Bass." He answered dryly, scooping up his shield. "Just annoying Wily by writing my name on his lab instruments. He hates that." Bass smiled, running a finger over one of his helmet fins.
"Want an escort? Wily's taking one of his aromatherapy baths, he won't be finished for an hour." Bass offered, making Proto look at him in disbelief. Then he shrugged, sending ripples of color across his shining black armor. "He's being a jerk to us lately." Proto tilted his head, a sly smile on his face. He knew more about Skull Castle than Bass thought, and knew that "us" was more like "me." Bass just looked at him. His face was like a marble statue, emotionless and a little inhuman. It made Proto curious, about what was underneath...
"Well, whatever." Bass suddenly said abruptly, standing up. "Wily will be yelling for me soon. Go on, leave." Bass suddenly smiled again. Proto noticed that it was... oddly charming. "I'm going to be trying to catch you when you come in here next time, too."
"Would we have it any other way?" Proto replied sardonically, touching the teleporter on his shield.
"I suppose not." Bass smiled evilly as Proto left. That remark had just given him a few ideas...
"You nearly cut my head off, you asshole!"
"Oh, don't exaggerate. I would have used monofiliment wire for that, and it would have hurt a lot more." Bass chuckled softly as he watched Proto rubbing his neck and glowering. He was perched up on a high ledge, set in the wall. A glittering noose hung from his hand. He'd just used it to snare Proto. Thanks to the speed Proto had been travelling at, as he darted from shadow to shadow, it had been an excruciating experience, being lifted off the ground by his neck.
"That was still a lousy trick..." Proto grumbled, turning away and fingering the cut on his neck. Bass shrugged and hopped down.
"You left yourself open for it. All's fair in love and war, as they say." Smiling, Bass paced up behind Proto, laying a hand on his shoulder. Proto's shoulders twitched for a moment, but he didn't pull away. "What were you looking for this time?"
Usually, Proto answered that question, and oddly enough, Bass didn't think he would lie. If it was something amusing, he would sometimes allow him to continue or even help. But now he was met only with silence.
"I'll have to take you out." He finally said when the silence became unbearable. Proto nodded, checking his shield as they both started walking out.
"Proto?" Bass finally queried him. Proto shook his head, looking away. "Would you tell me what's wrong?"
"This was important for once and you caught me, that's what's wrong." Proto growled back, then shook his head. Bass was getting far too good at capturing him, although neither of them had gotten very hurt since the first time.
Bass stayed silent for a moment, eyeing Proto covertly. He moved very smoothly, and Bass suddenly wanted to see what was under his helmet... perhaps more... he pulled away from that thought sharply, as if it had burned him.
"See you again." Bass murmured as they reached the exit. Proto turned around sharply to say something scathing, but Bass was gone.
"So you wanted those plans of Wily's." Bass was sitting on the skeleton of a demolished building, beside a slender form with a blowing scarf.
"Yes." Proto dipped his head towards the ruined buildings. "This might not have happened if you hadn't stopped me."
"Do you expect me to feel guilty?" Bass asked derisively, leaning back against a chimney and folding his hands behind his head. Proto shook his head, and Bass gazed at him consideringly. Eventually, he decided Proto was blaming himself. "It would probably have happened anyway. Those plans weren't the whole of his plot, and he wouldn't have stopped." Then he grinned like a shark. "And I would have fought Mega freak anyway." Proto shot him an unfathomable glance.
"Perhaps. We'll never know."
"No." Bass casually slid an arm around Proto's waist. Proto seemed to almost not notice, until he leaned slightly against Bass.
They sat together peacefully, watching the sun slowly touch the horizon.
Bass face was empty and expressionless as marble, and as pale. Proto took a deep breath as Bass slid a hand over his back...
"I can't tell what you're thinking." He murmured. For a moment, the mask cracked, and Bass smiled.
"I can never tell with you, either." Bass gently traced a finger along Proto's jaw.
Their friendship had taken a physical turn lately, and Bass didn't seem to mind. Secretly, the thought excited and frightened him... probably a normal reaction, given...
Bass shied away from his own thoughts again, and dropped his hand. Proto glanced at him curiously, surprised at his suddenly blank expression. The way things had changed was worrying him too, but he also enjoyed it...
"Blues?" Bass murmured, using the oldest name Proto had. Proto tilted his head slightly in acknowledgement.
"Take off your helmet. I want to see you." Bass asked him, his tone oddly gentle. Proto blinked, but...
"Okay." He quickly slipped off his helmet. Bass stared in fascination at the bright blue eyes, the messy black hair...
"You look like Mega Man." He said in surprise. Blues smiled wryly at the obvious comment.
"Of course I do. He was created from my plans." Bass considered that information for a moment, then shrugged slightly.
"I didn't know that." He admitted, then smiled slightly as Proto looked at him in disbelief. "Wily never tells me more than I need to know. History lessons aren't included." And Bass had a sneaking suspicion Wily's memory might be getting a bit faulty. He was a bit vague about times and dates.
That didn't sadden him, but it was a sobering thought. Mega Man would win soon, by default... unless Wily's robots kept the fued alive. Bass wondered what would happen then... what plans had Wily made, if any, for his death?
Bass discarded the thoughts. He lived for the moment, mostly out of self defence. He had no power to make plans...
Proto's hair slipped down, a thick lock obscuring one eye. He didn't seem to mind, but it suddenly annoyed Bass, and he reached up to push it back.
"What are you, my mother?" Proto joked, shaking his hair back. It made deep blue highlights flash in his thick, silky black hair. Bass just sat back, watching.
"Hardly that." He said softly. Proto shot him a glance. Bass's face was empty, yet oddly... open. A void waiting to be filled by some emotion, deep inside.
Proto was silent for a long moment, and Bass seemed content to let the moment stretch. Proto finally broke the silence. "Bass?"
He blinked slowly, as if awakening from some reverie, before answering. "Yes?"
"Can you take off your helmet?" He asked abruptely. Bass blinked, then nodded slowly, carefully pulling his helmet free.
Brown hair, thick and messy as Proto's, was revealed. Bass ran a hand through it, pushing the locks out of his face, then ran a finger down his cheeks, along the purple slash there. It was an old, familiar gesture. He tilted his head, looking into Proto's eyes... and Proto smiled.
"Bass, you're handsome." He said, gently teasing. He'd known that long before the helmet came off. Bass just looked at him for a moment, face still empty, waiting. Finally, he reached up to touch Proto's cheek...
"Proto..." He leaned forwards, until Proto could feel the warm touch of Bass' breath on his lips... "Do you want this?" He asked so seriously. But Proto had thought about it since this feeling had started to bloom, and had the answer ready.
"Yes." Their lips met, in a gentle kiss. It was an odd kiss... Bass body was stiff, but his lips and tongue were alive against Proto's. A shudder ran through Bass, a wave of relaxation, as if he'd finally come to some conclusion.
His hands suddenly sought out Proto, not roughly, but knowing just where to touch. He tore a gasp out of his partner's throat, and Bass smiled slightly, leaning forward to brush his lips against Proto's again.
With a partner he wanted, this was sweet...
Proto could still hardly credit it, although he'd observed it so many times there was no doubt. It just didn't seem to make sense.
When it came to sex, Bass had the reactions of someone who had been badly abused. At the slightest hint of violence, his face changed into that emotionless mask, like a door slamming shut. He would still be pliant, responsive, but the emotions were suddenly walled away. Proto always carefully teased him out of that, until he could see what Bass was thinking, hear his soft moans and make him mew in passion. He couldn't imagine taking him while he was wearing that beautiful, empty expression, more like a porceline statue than anything alive. It would be like taking a... a whore... someone accepting it because they couldn't do anything else, so familiar with that sensation they didn't even bother to show distress...
Proto took a deep breath, shelving that thought. His thoughts skittered away from the question... who could make Bass do what he did not want to?... there was only one answer to that, and he didn't want to think about it.
Deep in the throes of passion, though, Bass would show what Proto thought was his true nature... a dark playfulness, erotic and wonderful. That was the time he'd give impulsive nips... Proto shivered as he remembered how Bass had nibbled, then delicately knawed the sensitive skin under his chin just before they...
Mind OUT of the gutter. It was hard, though. He was feeling greedy for his lover, and thought Bass felt the same way. They met so often, and sometimes in strange places, for their trysts. Proto dwelled lovingly on those memories, a small smile crossing his face. Behind the waterfall had perhaps been the best... or maybe the hot rocks, in that national park. At least, after they'd gotten rid of that couple.
Proto's face pinked thinking about it. Thank goodness he and Bass had just been starting... the couple had taken one look and fled. Proto had felt much the same way, until Bass, who apparently didn't mind being observed, had worked it out of him. He had to wonder what that couple had been doing there at all, it was well off the beaten path..
"Boo." Proto went completely stiff at the soft voice, almost in his ear. He'd been too caught up in his thoughts, not paying attention...
"Thank you Bass, I think you scared me out of ten years of my life." He finally managed to say, turning around to view his lover. Bass looked contrite, and amused, at the same time.
"Sorry." He said quietly, wrapping his arms around Proto, giving him a gentle nuzzle.
"No, you're not." Proto said with a smile, but nuzzled him back. He could never stay angry with Bass, or even annoyed. "Why don't you make it up to me?"
"Right here?" Bass tilted his head, glancing around with a smile. They had decided to meet in a deserted building... Proto had snuck in easily, and Bass had gotten in just as readily. The place was furnished, albeit sparsely, and no one had been here for months. Due to the water damage in the basement from a recent flood, no one wanted the house. The settling would make it dangerous someday.
"It's a good place." Proto glanced around as well. "There's even a bed in the back... no sheets, though." Bass chuckled softly.
"Good enough..."
Weeks later...
Bass came back to Skull Fortress, feeling loose and content. Wily hadn't been doing anything interesting, he'd had the day free... and he and Proto had spent most of it at an amusement park, in human guise. It had been amusing, especially since Proto had money... god knew how, but Bass couldn't care less.
Quickman gave him a friendly leer as Bass walked in, and Bass gave him a friendly, one fingered salute. Most of the Robot Masters knew what was going on. Depending on which one, they found it disgusting, sweet, or funny.
Shademan poked his head out, spotting Bass. "Oh, Bass... Wily wants to see you." Bass felt his shoulders tighten, but gave Shademan a cool nod. Quickman looked away.
No one thought the other thing was funny...
Bass stepped into Wily's lab, relieved to see the scientist was working hard on some project. Bass glanced at the plans on the computer monitor. Very, very intricate. A new Robot Master of some sort, he thought.
"You wanted me, Wily?" He tilted his head, wondering what mission Wily had in mind for him. Stealing parts, perhaps? Wily looked up, irritated.
"It's about time you got back. So busy with little Protoman." Bass stared, feeling like his tongue was glued to the roof of his mouth. Who could have told Wily? An evil, evil grin crossed the mad scientist's face. "But we can make use of that."
Bass stared, frozen, as Wily rummaged up a hypospray of pink liquid.
"Use this on Proto. I'm sure you'll find a good chance." Bass took the hypospray, feeling numb, running on autopilot. Wily grinned again, an insinuating grin. "When you finish, bring him here."
"...Why? What do you want him for?" Bass managed to ask, and Wily scowled. He plainly didn't feel that it was Bass business to question... only to obey. But he answered, mostly out of his pride. He wanted to speak of his newest idea.
"You remember those plans you stole from Dr. Light, so long ago? This is my little twist on them." He motioned to the diagrams on the screen. "This will be my greatest creation! I call him Zero. But." Bitterness suddenly shone from Wily's face. "I need some very expensive parts... to make him the mechanical way." Then a nasty smile crossed his face. "But a bioroid possesses the same parts... only better, with the unusual construction. Protoman will be perfect to finish my creation."
Bass felt sick. His face showed nothing of his feeling, but his breathing speeded up, as the sensation of being trapped in a tiny box closed in on him... what was he to do?
But there was only one thing he could do at this moment, only one answer he could give his mad creator.
"Yes, Dr. Wily." And he turned away to leave, still feeling so numb...
Proto was stunned by what had happened... but stunned in a good way. They were in the national park again, the two of them, and Bass had accosted him so desperately it would have been called a molestation, if it hadn't been so willing. The way they had coupled on the hot rocks, sliding over each other...
But that hadn't been the end, it hadn't been even close. Bass didn't seem to want to stop, even when they were both tired... very tired. Proto lazily put a hand on Bass chest as he was kissed again.
"We may be bioroids, but there are limits, you know..." He murmured into his dark lover's ear. Bass replied with another kiss, and a caress that made Proto moan softly.
"I don't think we've reached them yet, do you?" Bass breathed into the red raider's ear, and made his back arch as he sought out the most sensitive areas... and Proto returned the attentions, making his lover groan.
"Not yet." Came the quiet answer, faint with desire, as they twined together again.
Finally, Proto was asleep, so deeply nothing short of an earthquake could have woken him. Bass almost closed his eyes, feeling the tug of sleep upon him. But he jerked them open. He couldn't afford sleep now.
He sat up, and looked at the hypospray in his hand. One dose from it, and Proto would know nothing else. Only this last night, together... a goodbye...
Bass' fingers tightened on the hypospray. His mind could hardly wrap itself around the concept, but... if he refused...
It would still be a goodbye. Bass closed his hand tight, shattering the hypospray, and looked at his lover sleeping beside him. So sweet, so wonderful... Bass reached out to stroke a hand down his hip, then leaned over to kiss him gently on his cheek.
"I love you." He whispered, knowing Proto wouldn't hear him... and was startled when his love stirred, just a bit, and breathed out an answer.
"...love you too..." Bass closed his eyes for a moment, pain stabbing at him, as he heard that. Proto was still asleep, and Bass gave him a final gentle kiss, before standing to go.
He might be able to disobey this one order... but he had to return, and pay for it...
Bass stared at the wall. Wily had been berating him for the past hour, and he was trying not to listen. Fear made him feel sick... he knew he was in trouble, the worst trouble of his life.
Wily finally ran down, and stood glaring at Bass for a long moment. "A simple task. An easy task. You should have been able to do it in your sleep! Or rather, on your stomach." Bass almost flinched at that crudity. "Bah. You are worthless." Wily turned away, rummaging through the mess he called a lab, and he finally turned around, a sly smile on his face. "Come here, Bass."
Bass felt his mouth go dry with fear, anticipation of what he suspected was going to happen... but he went willingly. He couldn't find the strength to defy his programming, to do anything else.
But it wasn't what he expected. Wily's hand moved, and touched his neck with a soft hiss, and Bass staggered as the drug hit his system.
"Why... what... have you done...?" Bass slumped against the table, and Wily grunted as he grabbed Bass arm, levering him up onto the table. Bass couldn't resist, his limbs as heavy as lead.
"You will do as well as Protoman. I had hoped to keep your... services... for longer, but if you disobey me once you will again." Wily commented, reaching for another needle. Bass blinked, his eyelids feeling so heavy.
"But... you needed... a bioroid..." He managed to say. Wily needed a living machine, and Bass was just a robot... but Wily laughed.
"What did you think you were?" He said mockingly, and slid a needle into the base of Bass' throat. Bass gasped softly, a mute little cry... his vocal cords were numb, and he couldn't express the pain. "A bioroid can be programmed to a certain extent... but I knew you would break free someday. Well, you'll be useful to me, even in death."
Bass felt the weight of despair, although he'd known it would happen... he had known Wily would not tolerate his disobedience, that that last meeting with Proto would be the last, no matter what else happened.
But he hadn't known he was a bioroid. He'd never guessed there was a choice. Could he have escaped, and lived with his shadowy love?
It was too late now. But at least he'd told Proto.. that he loved him...
Bass closed his eyes as the drug sent his body into a deep, dreamless sleep...