"A hate so deep
so pure, it
can only be
the poison of love"
A whistle blew shrilly and several of the Robot Masters snickered. Sure, some of them were tired of the constant arguing, but no one could deny that it was rather entertaining to watch.
"What the hell are you doing?" Quick shouted. "Jesus, I thought you were actually getting the hang of it the last few times!" Shadow didn't even bother to look at him, but he could see the snarl on the dark robot's silent face. "The entire point of this game is for teamwork. Do you not know what teamwork is?"
"I do."
"Then why don't you do it?"
He turned around, glaring from beneath the silver gleaming band glinting beneath midnight bangs. "I did in the last game."
"Then why didn't you in this one?"
"Why should I depend on others," he asked, using the level, almost condescending tone that made Quick bristle, "when I can get it done myself?"
"The point of teamwork is to develop trust between you and the others."
"I trust in my own abilities. If I know I can't get it done, then I'll trust it to someone I know that can. Is that not proper?"
"It's selfish."
"Then play it yourself." That said, Shadow dropped the ball in his hand and began to walk off the court as Quick called out,
"Do you enjoy giving me a hard time? Or are you just stubborn?"
"Are you always so bossy? Or do you just hate me?"
"I don't hate you." Quick said, something in his tone changed, making Shadow stop and listen. "It's just that I wish you'd talk to me so I know what's going on with you." Then the tone changed back and Shadow's shoulders tensed and he growled. "I wish you'd listen to me sometime, maybe then I wouldn't be yelling at you so much."
He began to walk away.
"Shadow!"
"If you don't like how I do things," he said, not bothering to look over his shoulder, "then do it yourself."
That encounter was not much different from all the others the two had and each time the story would be told and retold and morphed out of proportion during the course of the day. Their fights had become somewhat legendary during the few weeks the third generation had been activated. Some agreed with Shadow, that if something worked better their own way, they shouldn't be forced to do something else. Others agreed with Quick, saying that Shadow was too static and haughty, thinking he was better than the rest. And others still just took either sides or no sides at all, just finding the entire thing their perverse form of entertainment.
But, oddly enough, whenever someone spoke ill of Shadow, the first person to defend him was Quick.
"He really should learn to conform."
"No, actually, we don't." He'd reply. "It would be nice if he cooperated more often, but we don't want him, or anyone, to conform. When you act alike, it gives us strength, but if you keep your different skills and use them well, it gives us versatility."
But for many, becoming part of the Robot Masters wasn't so much as conformity, in fact, it didn't seem that way at all. It was more like being part of a family you had been away from but one that had never forsaken you. They had a place open for them, it was just a matter of falling in, as if they had always been around. And when Quick dealt with them, it was with the same respect and teasing humor he used with the older robots, making them feel even more like they belonged.
But to Shadow, it was.. different, to say the least.
He was a loner at heart, perhaps he could never really fit in, no matter how much he'd try because of that. The one thing that Shadow held dear, the one trait he respected most, was honesty. Straightforward, even brutal honesty. And, as he watched Quick deal with the same smiling, laughing face, day after day, it felt as if he were being cheated, in a way, told by a lifeless, mindless mask to drop his shields and submit to something that lay buried, to something that would stay hidden.
And asides from all that, he huffed as he moved, he had something more important to deal attention to. There was something in these halls, something deep within the heart of Skull Fortress, that called to him in his sleeping and waking hours. Something that wanted to be found, wanted him to find it. Something that demanded to be obeyed, that forced his body to move to its call.
But each time he thought he had come close to it, someone always intercepted him, keeping him from finding that thing that demanded to be released.
"What are you doing down here?"
And this time, he wasn't alone.
Beside him was Magnet, possibly the only other robot that stroked Shadow the wrong way. There was something about him that seemed even viler, even more disgustingly false than Quick. While Quick annoyed him more often than not, Magnet made him tense, almost battle ready.
"Little far from your usual prowling grounds, isn't it?" The red robot purred. Shadow had to repulse the urge to shudder.
"This is a restricted area. You're not granted access here."
"And he is?" He shot back, glaring at Magnet.
"Now, now," he tsked, "no need to get haughty with me. I'm not the one sneaking around where I'm not supposed."
"What I do -- "
"Is none of my business. I've heard." Quick narrowed his red-hued eyes at him. "Well I'm making it my business. Now, tell me what you're doing here."
There was a long moment's pause. "What are you doing with him?"
"What does it matter?"
Looking at the two, it was apparent that Shadow was the only one that could sense the hollowness behind Magnet's compliant face. "Of course you wouldn't know." He said, turning to continue his prowl of the hall. "You're just like him."
The older robot frowned while Magnet stiffened behind him. "What do you mean by that?"
"Two robots, showing the world a confidant, appealing mask, only to hid something behind it. Leaving everyone guessing who you really are, but giving them the illusion of knowing who you are. You throw them off because you don't want them to know what you think, either to protect yourself or your own interests. I have no business with someone like that."
"Shadow." Quick barked, his tone leaving no room for insubordination. "Turn back the other way."
It took a long moment and Quick thought he would be disobeyed yet again. But Shadow slowly turned, gliding down the hall, neither looking nor acknowledging the existence of the two older robots. Quick turned and watched the dark robot disappear down the hall and he said to Magnet,
"I'll never understand him. What the hell did he mean by all that?"
The younger smiled slightly, placing a hand gently on the other's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Some people are just like that. You shouldn't let him bother you so much."
But it couldn't be helped as Quick frowned, still looking off to a distance no one else could see.
He could never explain it. There was always something about Shadow that made him.. that was.. it was, well, different from the others. Something that made him feels differently, oddly. Maybe it was just the fact that Shadow wouldn't trust him, wouldn't let him know what was going on behind the blank slate he passed off as a face. Maybe it was just because, deep down inside, Quick wanted to be like that.
"Hell no," he shook his head. "No way I want to be like that. He doesn't care about anyone but himself. They need me to look out for them, I must be getting stupid thinking like that."
"But despite it all," Quick jolted, turning to see Metal grinning over his shoulder, "he has an amazing affect on you. Never seen you introspective before and now, suddenly you get that faraway look nearly every day. I must ask him how he does it."
Quick growled. "It's not how he does it. It's what he doesn't do that does it." He folded his arms on the table, resting his face against them. "I don't know what it is, but it's bothering me. It's like.. I don't know. Something about him I want to know about. I mean, I respect the fact that he doesn't want to share it, but I want him to share it with me. I want him to open up to me, at least once. Is it.. is it really so odd?"
"It's not so much as odd as it is a difficult thing to accomplish. Especially when you consider the two people involved."
Auburn brows furrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Well, think about it. You two are obviously at ends with each other. You want to be friends with him, but he won't let you for some reason or other. However, you're the only one that's really making the effort to know him, so you're the only one that gets a reaction out of him. That should account for something."
"But it's not helping anything!" Quick nearly wailed, clenching his fingers through his tousled hair. "I still don't know him! I don't know what he thinks, I don't know why he does things, I don't know what he's looking for when he sneaks through the fortress! I'm totally in the dark about this and he's leading me around by the ear!"
Metal patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about it so much. Maybe you should give this introspective thing a little break. You'll hurt yourself."
"Look, just because I'm not the most intelligent guy around doesn't mean I'll hurt myself thinking." The younger Robot Master pouted, making Metal laugh.
"You know what I mean." The blade wielder suddenly turned sober. "You've been hanging around Magnet lately, haven't you?"
"Somewhat, yes."
"How is he? What's he like?"
Quick leaned back, gnawing on his lip thoughtfully. "He's.. I don't know, really. He seems nice enough, real friendly-like, always wanting to know more about everyone and everything. But.. it's not so much as he's learning as he is soaking everything up, you know? Like he just wants to know things for another reason. I didn't realize it before someone pointed it out, but there's something missing from Magnet, something that strikes me wrong. Like he's hollow, with something.. hidden underneath, something almost sinister."
"You feel it too, huh?" Metal asked. "Who pointed it out to you?"
Pause. "..Shadow."
Metal couldn't help but laugh. He stood up, patting Quick's arm. "I'm not surprise. But really, you shouldn't be too worried about Shadow. You're starting to obsess over him."
"I am not!"
Another form entered the room, the air it brought with him made the other two immediately quiet and give him their full attention.
"Guys," Elec said quietly, "Wily-sama's speeding things up. He wants the third army battle-ready in two weeks.
They gaped at him. "Two weeks? But he gave us three months to get prepared for our fight!"
The black robot shook his head. "Don't ask me why. He's made up his mind, there's no changing it."
Quick growled, kicking at the coffee table he rested his feet on. "Son of a bitch. He wants to kill them all."
Deep within the heart of Skull Fortress, amide the mass of blinking lights and computers whirling, humming loudly, ensure the captivity of the shaded one, he had found his goal.
"You're the one calling me." He asked, hovering in the darkness.
"So I was." Came the level reply. He lay strapped to the table, bereft of his helmet, dark red eyes swarming with unclouded emotion, smiling at him mysteriously. "It took you long enough," Shadow crouched low in the dark, hidden from the cameras, emotions closing in a cold shell as those knowing eyes pierced him effortlessly. "...my dear copy."