Chapter Text
"Thank you," Roll told Natsenka, the redhead confused as to what exactly she was talking about.
"For what?" She inquired with a raised brow, all the while she, the robot disguised as a human, and Eddie ran forward, looking for a way out of the mine, or at least in the direction the real Kalinka had gone.
"For coming," Roll answered. "I'm not sure how you figured out I was in the cage," she then thought about it. "Then again, I don't exactly have a good track record with keeping out of a set of bars sometimes."
"Wait a moment," Natsenka paused. "You believe that I came to rescue you?"
Roll tilted her head. "That IS what you were doing right?" she asked. "After all, it's not like you would just leave me behind," a small smile came to the blonde's lips. "You're too cool for that."
The redheaded agent was silent as if just suddenly struck by an unfamiliar emotion. Emotion…now that in itself was up for debate. Still, seeing Roll's optimism and hope in the other machine couldn't help but bring a sinking feeling to her core.
Dare she correct the one who believed her to be her savior?
"You're certain they went down this way?"
"Positive, sir! At least, judging from the shadows on the wall."
Both Natsenka and Roll were drawn from their conversation as the two familiar voices echoed down the tunnel, Eddie held tightly in Roll's grasp against her chest. "Oh, great!" the blonde hissed. She then turned to Natsenka. "I don't suppose you know the way to where we came in, do you?"
"I have our pathways tracked in my processor, but we won't be able to get past them here!" the Russian alerted the American robot. "And besides, from what you said, Cossack's child went upward, right?"
"Yeah, with Skull Man," Roll relayed, earning a shocked look from the other machine.
"What?!" Natsenka cried out. "You allowed her to go with one of Wily's machines?!"
"Technically one of Cossack's," Roll corrected. "But, oddly enough, I don't really think that guy's like the others."
"How is…you know what? Never mind," the agent shook her head. "We can discuss that later. For now, we just need to find a way to the upper levels!"
"But how?" Roll questioned. "Unfortunately, I don't see any stairs nearby!"
The two continued to run, out of answers and any other options. Still, they knew they couldn't continue on forever, Elec and Ice Man would eventually close the distance between them, and both had their doubts that they would be simply thrown back into their prison. One of them would surely be scrapped, Elec Man seemingly itching to make use of his powers to their maximum setting.
They had to get away, or at least draw closer to their goal! But how?
"Hey, what's that?" Eddie asked, Roll and Natsenka looking forward to seeing, oddly enough, a pair of minecarts deserted in the middle of the tunnel, two parallel trails going forward into the deeper darkness of the ever-extending corridor.
Both humanoid machines gazed at the transport vehicles, then back where they had come from, seeing the beginnings of shadows dancing on the walls, indicating that their pursuers were closing in on them.
"Get in!" Natsenka ordered, Roll hopping in along with Eddie while the redhead began running, pushing the cart's weight until it began to gain momentum. Then, once it had reached an adequate speed, the agent leaped upward and got in as well, opposite of Roll and able to view what was behind.
"See?" the blonde then said. "I knew you would come through."
Natsenka ultimately didn't respond.
Citadel
All right, she did not think this through. But what else could she have done? Dr. Wily was right there, and he would surely send her back down into the mines again! She had to run! Still, running meant nothing if she had yet to learn where she was going.
"Not to mention these boots are so heavy." Kalinka sighed, pausing momentarily to rest against a wall.
Even as she let herself breathe for a moment, the Russian/Ukranian/Swedish girl couldn't rest yet, knowing well that Wily wouldn't stay down long. And, even more, who was to say he hadn't already sent some of his goons to come collect her? So much to do all at once, and she still had no idea where her Papa was being kept!
It was then that she noticed a nearby computer panel with a medium-sized screen, detailing the location of all the building's occupants via glowing dots upon a schematic of the structure. The sight of a small square surrounded by eight larger spaces drew her attention, a dot in the center of the smallest, yet then it appeared that the occupant wasn't alone, as a red dot manifested in the middle, the yellow dot approaching the red, yet pausing just before the two of them made contact.
It was just a hunch, yet Kalinka couldn't help but wonder if one of them was the one that she knew was on her way to see her father. Which also led to her wondering if she could perhaps follow.
The platform in the center shifted, rising upward to reveal not a stand or any other sort of device, yet what appeared to be some sort of elevator, the destination surely where Dr. Cossack would be. Normally, Mega Man would enter without hesitation, yet now, he found himself rather unsure of what to do.
What he had initially suspected was true, Dr. Wily was involved and responsible for all of this, but also that an innocent party was involved and, for all he knew, either fleeing somewhere in this massive building or back in the mad doctor's clutches. Nevertheless, he had no way of knowing, let alone, to his chagrin, any way to do anything about it.
Just as Cossack himself.
Blue optics eyed the elevator, mechanically powered legs slowly taking him forward until he was inside. The transport acknowledged the added weight and that it had just become occupied, rising upward through the ceiling and to the highest point of the fortress, Dr. Cossack surely waiting for him.
For once, the Blue Bomber wasn't certain he wanted to do this.
So, that was where he was going! Well, if that was the case, then she would simply follow! The only thing was, where to find an elevator?
"Hey! Look!" a voice suddenly declared, high-pitched and somewhat nasally, not to mention more than a little familiar. "I see her!"
Whirling around, Kalinka backed up, spotting Guts and Cut Man a short distance away. How did they get up here?! Regardless, she had no intention of going back underground anytime soon, so she wasted no time in turning tail and running as quickly as her legs could carry her, weighted boots notwithstanding.
"Oh no you don't! Get back here!" the larger of the two, booming and gruff, demanded, he initiating the chase after the human, along with his robotic partner.
Mine
"Maybe this was a bad idea." Natsenka lamented, biting her lip.
"What do you mean?" Roll questioned. "So far, this is the most fun I've had on this entire trip."
"Fun?" the Russian Agent was flabbergasted. "You call this fun?"
"Well, most recently, I was almost ground up in the clocktower of Doc's School, so this is sort of a breeze at the moment," the blonde explained. "What about you, Eddie? What do you think?"
The green energy dispenser chirped with glee. "Eddie like minecart ride! Wheee!" he declared, twirling around and tripping, falling on his head, in where he had to be collected by Roll.
"Well, I only bring it up because we have no idea how stable this vehicle is, let alone where these tracks lead to," Natsenka responded, eyes on the walls, watching for any potential changes. She didn't see anything yet, but she couldn't help but sense that they weren't alone. "Not to mention that this entire mine hasn't been used since the Cold War, so much of it has already been…wait," she paused, turning her attention back to Roll. "Did you say…School?"
"Ruff! Rome on ran right!" Rush barked, raising his paws as if they were fists and he a professional boxer ready to take on his opponent.
Reggae merely huffed, flapping high up above the robotic dog. "Fat chance, mutt!" he squawked, seeing Beat coming in from behind, and, with one swipe of his fan-like tail, took out the blue bird, sending him plummeting to the ground.
"Reat!" Rush cried out, running over to the downed bird, who thankfully still showed signs of functioning.
"Whoa, I'm fine, Rover," the blue bird assured the red dog. "However," he then looked, noticing that all he could see of Reggae was that blasted tail of his. "It looks like the blackbird is getting away!"
"So, let me get this straight," Natsenka repeated. "Your creator, Dr. Light, began a School for Robots?"
"Yep!" Roll answered with a nod. "We had students and everything! I even enrolled in a few classes!" she relayed excitedly. "Of course, Wily had to go and screw things up with Doc's gravity device. Not to mention I got my robo-heart played with by some jerk named Toppy-"
"Wait a second," the Russian Agent interrupted yet again. "Gravity device?"
"Oh yeah, Doc was having some of the students help build it," the blonde responded. "Of course, Wily stole it and jostled up some buildings downtown, but things got set right. Not to mention Mega totally kicked that Proto-jerk's butt-"
"You speak of all of this as if it was some sort of pleasant journey!" Natsenka declared, completely baffled by both what she was hearing and the other robot's general attitude regarding the situation. "Dozens of robots could've been reprogrammed into Wily's forces, not to mention that you said you were nearly crushed by a pair of gears!"
"Well, yeah, that wasn't exactly my favorite part," Roll confessed. "But everything before was awesome!" she then crossed her arms, giving a disappointed sigh. "Shame they had to close it down because of that old coot tarnishing its reputation with the whole gravity device fiasco."
The redhead paused. "It was…closed?"
Roll nodded. "Within its first weeks of being open too," the blonde responded. "The entire project with the gravity device was to better relations between robots and humans, at least in the sense that we could do more than just destroy or smash things," her brows narrowed in anger. "Everything Wily destroyed in a matter of a few days."
The darkly-dressed robot turned her gaze downward, feeling a twinge of a bizarre sensation developing in her core. Nevertheless, it compelled her to speak. "...I'm sorry."
The coat-wearing machine looked up, and Eddie was confused as well. "For what?"
"The way you speak of it, the other robots you met," Natsenka answered. "It seems that you enjoyed it."
Roll's frustration aimed at Wily slowly transformed into a more lamenting nostalgia for that short period in her life. "It was fun while it lasted," she told her present company. "I'll admit, I still wish I could've convinced Mega to take a few classes. I would've totally loved to see him and Kung-Fu Bot have a match or two together!"
"Another student at the school?" Natsenka inquired.
"Yeah, along with a few others," Roll relayed. "I think I got a few offers for the cheerleader squad, although I was honestly a little more interested in the archery club," she stopped, realizing she was getting off-topic. "But the point is, it just seems that no matter what Doc tries to do, Wily's always one step away from ruining it all."
Natsenka was silent for a few moments, taking in all she had just heard. "A school," she muttered. "Not a training facility or camp," her dark eyes then turned to Roll again. "Were they all different?"
"Uh, yeah, each of us was unique in their own way," Roll confirmed. "Even the cheerleaders and football team members had their own individual quirks," she noticed the agent's expression. It appeared downcast. "Why?"
The redhead bit her lip, uncertain of how to answer. "Things seem so different for you where you are," she mused aloud. "Your creator…he seems…involved."
The blonde grew confused. "Wait, you're a creation of Dr. Cossack, aren't you?" she asked.
"Technically," Natsenka answered.
"Well then, doesn't he come and see you?"
The other robot was quiet for a moment. "I'm the ninety-fifth unit based on his design," she answered dully. "He probably doesn't even know I exist."Roll was about to speak again, yet the familiar sound of wheels rolling against a track met her ears. "Look!" Natsenka cried out, Roll turning her head to see the second cart that they had seen before barrelling in their direction, a pair of hostile Robot Masters occupying the vehicle.
"There they are!" Elec Man declared, gesturing to the other cart, then turning to Ice Man. "Now, go on! Fire! Freeze the wheels!"
Ice Man wasted no time in doing so, his blasts of frozen energy at the tracks, missing by mere inches, yet he managed to snag a few hits on the cart itself. Ducking downward, neither Natsenka nor Roll, nor even Eddie, were prepared for the sudden pull of gravity to take them down.
"Where did they go?" Elec Man questioned aloud, seeing the cart quite literally go over the edge. "Wait…" he paused, noticing that they too were approaching the same drop-off point. "Stop the cart!" he commanded Ice Man. "Stop the-?!"
Too late.
They went over as well, vanishing into the darkness below, the mine then going silent.
Citadel
Momentarily ducking behind a corner, the blonde let herself have another breather, the air in this place stifling and far from the best quality. Not to mention Roll's boots felt as if they were small weights attached to her legs. Still, she had to keep going, not just for her father, but for her friend's family as well.
"Ok, I have an idea of where Mega Man may be going, and where Papa may actually be," Kalinka mused to herself. "If I can get there, then maybe I could try and convince them not to fight!"
"Don't count on it, brat!"
The Russian gazed upward and found Cut and Guts Man had caught up, standing above and towering over the smaller, more demure human.
"And if you think of trying to put a stop to Wily's plans," the red, scissor-headed robot removed his namesake weapon, holding it dangerously close to the young woman's neck. "We'll have to CUT that out, won't we?" a breathy giggle followed, the blonde biting her lip, trying to look for a potential escape route.
"You can't hurt me," the human rebuttaled. "You're not allowed to."
"Maybe not directly," Cut Man admitted. "But once you're back down in your cell," he began, letting his girthier partner take over.
"We'll have fun tearing Mega's sister apart while you watch!" Guts Man added, reaching forward to make a grab for the young woman.
Upon hearing such a threat, the blonde girl stumbled back, the added weight of Roll's boots causing her to fall, but this allowed her to escape the grasp of the larger robot, Guts Man's massive hand missing her by mere inches.
"Ok, I can't continue on with these!" Kalinka remarked, removing the robotic footwear and leaving her with little more than a jumpsuit and socks.
"Hey, stop!" Cut Man shouted, yet was met with a red boot being thrown directly at him, hitting his facial place directly in the center. Guts Man followed suit but was also stopped by another boot, this one knocking his blue jaw to the side while it disconnected at the right.
Seeing that this at least put some distance between her and her pursuers, the human wasted no time in finding an elevator, immediately pressing the first button that her fingers landed on and letting the doors shut. Where she was going now, she had little idea, yet at least it would be away from here.
And perhaps closer to her Papa.
Outside of the safe confines of the elevator, Guts, and Cut Man were recovering from the surprise hits only to find the girl nowhere in sight.
"Hey, you two!" a familiar voice called out, both Robot Masters turning to see a rather disgruntled Proto Man approaching them. "A blonde brat come this way?"
"Blonde? That's yellow hair, right?" Guts Man questioned. Proto nodded. "Oh yeah, we saw her! She threw these shoes at us! The nerve!"
"Forget the boots, which direction did she go?" the scarf-wearing machine inquired, wanting nothing more than to throw the disrespectful cretin back into a cell where she belonged!
"Oh, that," Cut Man said. "Well…she…kinda took the elevator."
Lower Levels
This wasn't the right way, she knew that much. But she couldn't go back up, not unless she wanted to go back to her cage. Stepping out of the elevator, Kalinka found herself meeting a long hallway that seemed to have nothing but a door at the end. Was that maybe the way?
Running to the door, the girl opened it wide, letting in a burst of fresh, Siberian air that chilled her to the bone and almost robbed her of breath upon meeting it face-on. She quickly shut the door, allowing the heat of the place to warm her flesh once again. Still, she then realized her dilemma.
She couldn't stay here, yet she couldn't just do nothing. She had to contribute somehow! She had to make some sort of change! Yet what could she do?! Her Papa was being used as a pawn by a madman while America's biggest hero was at his mercy! Or lack thereof, considering it was her life that was on the line.
Opening the door again, albeit slowly this time, it was then that Kalinka noticed something, a sight in the distance that she hadn't realized through the dense snowfall, yet upon examining her surroundings further, she saw its vague outline among the sea of white.
A small village was nestled a few miles away from the citadel, small and probably not too populated, yet there were a few homes that resided together in what must've been some form of community. A community that could perhaps help her.
Her time would be short if she stepped out in this freezing tundra. She probably wouldn't reach it. Not by a long shot.
Still, it was better than staying here, doing nothing.
She had to contribute, somehow.