Wily Fortress 2 (Mega Man IV) 1
#12 of Music Story
Arya needs to infiltrate the laboratory that her uncle owns, but her human disguise isn't going to make it through. It's go big or go home, and the snake needs to choose if she's going to give up or reveal herself.
This is the an entry of the Music Story series commissioned by Ash_Sukea with art by ShortConcepts. This piece was inspired by Wily Fortress 2 from Mega Man IV.
This is a commission. If you'd like to commission some work from me, please see my Commission Information
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Arya's mind swims as she crawls along the pipeworks in the chemical plant. The only navigation she has are the footfalls of the guards she follows. Hopefully, they indulge their desires to pay Jay a visit, because once she knows where he is, she can mount her rescue attempt. The further along she goes, the less hospitable for a humanoid form the piping becomes. Hissing in annoyance to herself as a pant leg gets caught on an exposed bolt, she yanks the leg, ripping through fabric. This disguise isn't going to work much longer if it gets totally destroyed. No, a human can never navigate down here. There's only one option left to her.
She thought it was so easy to betray her uncle if it wasn't actually her doing the betraying, but she cannot go halfway on this. If she keeps crawling at this rate, she'd lose the goons and she'd never find Jay in time. Resigning herself to her decision, Arya shakes her head and then begins to roll around on the ground. Like she does in her natural form, Arya uses the friction of the hard metallic surface to scratch at her outer layer, cutting open dead and fake skin. It is instinct, yet it is not enough, so she takes sharp fingernails and claws at herself, eviscerating her human form until Arya the infiltrator becomes nothing more than a soulless husk, discarded aside like so many other false identities, leaving her completely exposed to the eyes--and weapons--of her uncle's henchmen.
Finally feeling her tail roll free from its imprisonment, Arya immediately sets to slithering through the system. Ducking and weaving and sliding and dodging, she makes such headway that she once again hears the voices of those two thugs.
"Yeah. He's just down the hall,"
"Ooh, boy. Just got the confirmation. Boss says we could mess him up real good now that the doctor's stuff wore off."
Just down the hall. Right. Arya zips past them now. So far, the workings of this building have given her free access. Perhaps her uncle actually uses these passages himself? The thought sends both excitement and concern shuddering through her scales. If he's here, she could be in for a rude reunion.
But she can't worry about that now. She has to get to Jay. She has to tell him she's sorry. She has to let him know that this wasn't her idea and that her Uncle made her do it.
She finds a vent, and beyond the vent, light trickles through. Excitedly, she slithers on up to it, peering through without making a peep.
Two sets of feet are there before her. The first she recognizes as Jay's, bare with toes twitching. The second are in a sharp pair of black shoes paired with a white skirt. She bites back a hiss, knowing full well who wears that particular ensemble.
"Subject shows signs of recognition," the squeaky voice says, followed by a snapping sound. "Yes, he's coming out of the haze now. He can recognize my signals, good. Good. How are you doing, Jay?"
"W... where am I?" Jay's voice comes slurred, yet more cognizant than when he was initially drugged.
"You are safe," the voice, the Doctor, responds. "Just relax."
With a rattle, the chair Jay is tied to scoots closer to the doctor.
"Oh, subject is not compliant. I need to administer another dose."
"Not now, you aren't," Arya can't hold back any longer and she slams through the vent. The grate flies off, clattering to the floor as she emerges from the underside and raises herself up to intimidating levels.
The doctor squeaks, taking a step back as he looks up to her with his thick lenses obscuring his eyes. "B...B... Boss? What are you-?"
Arya strikes, plunging her fangs into the mouse's shoulders, holding his arms and pulling him in close so he doesn't run away before the full effect goes off. Once she's satisfied with the dosage, she drops him and whispers. "Be a god boy and sit still and don't tell anyone what happened here."
The mouse rolls his head around, over his shoulder one way and then over the other way. "Yes, Miss..." he says in a sing-song voice.
Satisfied, Arya coils behind Jay, working to untie the knots that hold him to the chair.
"Arya?" he asks, blinking out the last of his haze. "What the hell is happening here?"
"You've been drugged," she admits, pulling the last of the bindings off of him. "We have to get out of here.
"I felt like how that guy looks," he responds, rubbing his wrists. "How do I know this isn't part of some set-up?"
Arya hisses, slithering around to face him. "I'm going to assume you're still high, or at least just forgot I covered for you back there."
"Good point," he says. "But, now what? Unc's not going to be too happy."
Arya looks over her shoulder, "We can always squeeze through there. You can fit in tight spaces, yeah?"
He sighs, rubbing the back of his head. "Geeze, it's been awhile, but I can try."
The door slams open, and the two goons stare in the door, wide-eyed at the sight they see.
Arya hisses, spitting out at them a spray that has them clutching at their eyes.
Jay picks up his chair, hefting the heavy thing as he rushes the two.
With the legs striking at them, they fall down easily, leaving him with a clear way out.
"Come on. This way!" he shouts.
"What!? That's the way I know!" She says, pointing to the vent.
"I got dragged in here. It shouldn't be hard at all to get out."
Arya huffs and slithers past the downed guards. At the last moment, one of them grabs her by the tail, trying to pull her back into the room.
She yelps, but yanks her tail towards herself, dragging the blinded and downed guard along with her, screaming down the hall for a bit before he finally lets go.