=CHAPTER 9A: HAZY SUSPICION=

~AO v1.0~

((Courtesy of @limitbreakers))

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{Earlier, the night before…}

[Will, Soi, and Mikhail continued working through the night. Mikhail had Jack come over to help him in secret, having sent Pyro off to get some sleep while he could.

After settling in for the night, Desmond used the private lines to make another call…]

Des: …And that’s where we stand right now.

[President Minerva sighed.]

Minerva: …You’re right. The Smithsonian is going to have a fit. Covering the cost of repairs is going to be a nightmare—several hallways need to have the entire security system reset and/or replaced, and some are so bad as to need electrical rewiring. No doubt some of Congress is going to want to use this as an excuse to update styles or otherwise be extravagant about it.

[She gave another exasperated sigh before shaking her head.]

Minerva: The VP is currently handling affairs at the White House itself. I’ve submitted some paperwork to my speechwriters regarding a public statement on the incident. There’s not much to say, even if I felt like saying it; I can truthfully say that the matter is under investigation, but everyone working there was safely evacuated thanks to the combined efforts of the Mighty Numbers.

[She paused.]

Minerva: DLN-000 has really brought a lot of attention to himself, but it seems the media didn’t catch on to his serial number. I’d like to keep it that way for now—the investigation is proving difficult enough as it is without adding in false reports to the mix.

[She frowned.]

Minerva: What do you make of Dr. Cossack so far, Desmond?

Des: -Crosses arms- Well.

Des: He’s cooperative, at least. Which worries me a little, because this isn’t the first time we’ve seen someone seemingly open to questioning and not be a spy of sorts.

Des: He personally doesn’t strike me as one, if I’m being very honest.

Des: I’m going with my gut on this one and saying he’s not, but the fact that he’s Russian and possibly working with Dr. Sanda…

Minerva: Mmmn. There’s something very strange about this. (How does a Russian doctor come to care for a military grade American Combat construct, anyway?!) -.-

Des: Dr. Sanda has Japanese ties with his brother overseas, there’s that to think about too…

Minerva: You bring up an interesting point–Russia and Japan aren’t exactly friends. (I can’t seem to recall they EVER made a peace treaty…)

Des: Exactly.

Des: Which just further backs up the point that Dr. Cossack isn’t a spy, but…

Des: I’m wondering how they met in the first place, because they clearly know each other, and I’m willing to bet that goes the same for Dr. White.

Des: Not much going on for him, though. Full blooded American, mother is Rebecca White, father ditched when he was 10.

Des: He’s very clean, heck–not even a parking ticket.

Minerva: That’s not really unusual for… withdrawn geniuses, shall we say?

Des: True.

Minerva: Genius is often accompanied by social issues. From what you’ve told me, he almost never makes public appearances. He probably doesn’t feel comfortable in a public setting. I’ve worked with plenty of students like that.

Des: Yeah, there’s not even a lot of pictures of the guy, aside from social media from the Mighties themselves.

Des: (And even then, he’s sorta in the background…)

Des: Should we cover all the bases and ask to question him too?

Des: Though, uh… a guy that withdrawn, might be hard to get anything from him…

Minerva: That would be something for Homeland Security to cover if it came to it. I’ll speak with the Secretary and see what they say.

Minerva: However, I don’t think that will be necessary–not unless something comes up in the questioning.

Minerva: For people who have a hard time being around others, they come to rely very deeply on a select few they trust and feel comfortable with. This can lead to being taken advantage of, though–if he is involved in anything, I would suspect it would be because someone took advantage of him in some way.

Minerva: Dr. White is very withdrawn—Dr. Sanda is his main point of contact with most of the world, from what we have seen. He doesn’t attend conventions with his contemporaries. So if Mikhail Cossack is a family friend, it had to have been through Sanda first. (How would an unknown and very secretive Russian scientist become such good friends with a Japanese scientist of a very high profile? He must be very busy, and they don’t seem to be business partners so much as friends…)

Minerva: At the moment, the cyber units are working with him to combat the virus. Let them continue to monitor the situation– they will let us know if something is wrong.

Minerva: And beyond that–

Minerva: A man’s house is his castle.

Minerva: You are in that castle by yourself right now, and there are more than a few knights at his command.

Des: –… (Yeah… that…)

Minerva: Trying to place pressure on the king could end poorly, and I’d rather not risk you.

Des: Aw, you care. | )

Minerva: | } I could make a remark to pass it off, but yes, I do care. I try.

Des: -Stretches- Well…

Des: If anything, the cyber units and White’ll think of something. Doc is a genius, after all, made the Mighty Numbers and everything.

Des: Hopefully this virus mess gets cleaned up soon, then we can fully focus on damage control and repair…

Minerva: That would be nice, especially if Dr. Cossack proves to be a potential asset. Though I get the feeling he won’t be easy to work with. (He’s stubborn and doesn’t give way to pressure or fear–even great fear.)

Minerva: I don’t think intimidation will work on him. It may prove counterproductive to try for that right away.

Minerva: It might help to see if you can learn more from the Mighty Numbers–if he knows Sanda and White, he has to be a part of their inner circle. Try talking to Six.

Minerva: You need to talk to him anyway. It’s clear he’s linked to DLN-008—the footage he broadcast while sick shows that much. And the Brits are asking about him again. >.> (Someone must have leaked that the child was involved with the incident at the White House.)

Des: Yeah, we might get answers there.

Des: And then there’s Nine himself, but poor kid’s been though a whole week and a half practically saving the nation.

Minerva: Oh, heavens, try to let the poor child be if you can at all help it.

Des: Yeah, I’m with you there.

Minerva: Your coworkers were hellbent on destroying that compound, barely even were going to give him enough time to get out… >_> -Pursed lips, WE ARE STILL VERY DISPLEASED ABOUT ALL OF THAT- -Simmering-

Des: -Grimace- I’m still going to get to the bottom of how an entire base full of military grade constructs was still functioning without me knowing about it. I swear I’m gonna discharge whomever’s involved…

Minerva: This begs the question. Does Dr. Cossack know about that? I wonder if he knows who was behind the security breach there. It didn’t have the style of DLN-008′s breakthroughs…

Des: If he did, he’s not going to tell us outright. Not sure how long he’s been involved in this…

Minerva: The earliest dates the files connected to him have is April 5th, so it has to have been before that.

[She leans back and sighs.]

Minerva: 000 probably knows most of the answers. And he certainly seemed talkative.

[She looks up.]

Minerva: How did the retrieval go?

Minerva: I take it you were successful?

Des: ….

Des: >>

Des: …Yeah.

Des: ….

Des: He was in…

Des: Very bad shape.

Des: Got a name, though.

Des: Cardinal.

Minerva: …

——————

“Keep gettin’ in mah way, Birdy, and Ah’ WILL make ya regret it!”

——————

Minerva: -Thoughtful frown-

Des: That does explain all the bird metaphors Eight was using in his illness…

Des: -SIGH- One mentioned that name out loud when he saw how much damage 000 did trying to get into the Oval Office.

Des: …Used an exasperated tone, like he’s said that more than once.

Minerva: -Raises an eyebrow- That’s interesting. Authoritative tones are normally used with equals or subordinates.

Minerva: 000 didn’t seem like one to dance to someone else’s tune, though. His methods were rather… unconventional.

Des: -Shrugs- If 000 knows Eight, he probably knows the rest of the Mighty Number line, too. Isn’t that far of a stretch. He did speak like he knew Six too.

Minerva: …

Minerva: Yes, he did. -Thoughtful- …He was trying to be gentle with him about going back.

Des: Yeah…

Minerva: All the more reason to talk to Six…. I wonder how much he knows?

[There was a thoughtful silence between them for a while.]

Minerva: …When you say very bad shape…

Minerva: (Cossack said he would need to have a core replaced. Was he understating, or being technically correct?)

Minerva: Do they have the resources to fix it?

Des: Good Lord, I hope so.

Des: He was practically almost in pieces.

((pic))

Des: Core exposed, even…

Minerva: …

Minerva: What?

Minerva: How is he still alive?

Minerva: That was hours after—!

Minerva: The xel loss, wouldn’t that have been too much?

Des: ….Min?

Minerva: —…?

Des: I…

Des: I couldn’t see very well, but…

Des: I saw oil, and I saw him.

Des: -Very puzzled expression- But not an ounce of Xel around him.

Minerva: —…

Minerva: -Now VERY confused- That’s… how is that possible?

Minerva: Wasn’t he fighting with Eight?

Minerva: He seemed to know quite well how to handle him. I’m sure he got off some hits on Eight, too.

Minerva: There should be something, there were TWO of them there.

Minerva: Do you suppose Nine could have picked it up?

Des: I’m not sure if Nine would take Xel from someone that’s already bleeding out–

Des: –Actually…

Des: Nine went in a little while before we got pulled out–

Des: Why didn’t he try to help him with Xel loss, if any?

Minerva: …

Minerva: You heard him, Des, as much as I did.

Minerva: Nothing would deter him from his mission.

Minerva: If it was coming down to rescuing Countershade or rescuing him— he probably told Nine to leave him behind.

Des: ….

Des: (Poor kid…)

Des: You’re probably right…

Des: -Grumbles- Doesn’t make sense, though.

Des: No Xel, yet 000 seems…I don’t know.

Des: Call it a hunch, Min, but he just seems… different.

Minerva: Well. No one in the Pentagon has stepped forward to claim responsibility for him just yet.

Minerva: …

Minerva: Though I probably scared off anyone from doing that with how obviously displeased I am with what has been going there. >________>

Des: -Snorts- Yeah, you do tend to have that effect on people. | )

Minerva: I can’t believe tax money was being used to maintain such facilities and no one noticed.

Des: -I know, geez—-

Minerva: The IRS has a lot of explaining to do. |K

Des: -Groans- And then we got to deal with investigation into who caused the whole mess…

Des: I’m tellin’ ya, Min, we’re getting nothing but dead ends on that front. We’re not getting though to CherryDyn’s lawyer dogs and Blackwell’s an uncrackable nut.

Minerva: … -.-; -Rubs temples- -Grumbles- Fighting fire with fire is dangerous…

Minerva: I wish we knew what happened to Dencerjack.

Minerva: There are no records of him leaving the country, but he hasn’t been found yet. There are only so many places you can hide on an island that small. >__>

Minerva: I dearly hope he didn’t get eliminated.

Des: Beats me… England might be small, but plenty of quiet countryside. He might have gone off the grid, even.

Minerva: I suppose, but given the circumstances—

Minerva: The other possibility is that he was eliminated. Someone has had it out for that team.

Minerva: Oh well. The UK has been very cooperative about that, at least. Even though the only thing they had to report were explosive metal snakes. (Not exactly helpful, but points for effort.)

Des: -Weird…-

Minerva: Here’s what the FBI’s found so far…

Minerva: There are only two reported members of the Doctor Light Numbers lines: 000 and 008. Both have Doctor Cossack as their listed Doctor.

Minerva: There were other files that are around the same timeframe that also list Cossack as the Doctor: seven members of the Doctor Wily Numbers series. One of those is DWN-024, who was seen on the highways fighting Mighty Number Seven. …The footage on that has to be seen to be believed…

Minerva: There are also nine registered Doctor Cossack Numbers, and one biological daughter.

Minerva: Dr. Cossack himself is a widower. Apparently, he’s cared for these series due to abuse and neglect issues from Doctors Light and Wily… though nothing has been found on them so far.

Minerva: However, I’m sure they probably exist, or did exist, as these bots all have their serial numbers branded onto them. ¬__¬ Things are made complicated by all the records that have gone missing.

Minerva: There was only one public record of 000. According to the reports, he went to visit the Colosseum back in late May. With Eight and Nine.

Minerva: And you’ll never guess what happened while he was there.

Des: -This we gotta hear–

Minerva: They were attacked.

Des: -Sputters– Right there–in the sands–?!

Minerva: By Bladeblaster.

Des: What.

Des: (I don’t get it, did–was he DRUNK?)

Minerva: According to the witnesses, 000 did not react in a way that would have suggested he were as much of a Combat master as he has proven to be. He made an effort not to reveal what he was capable of, even when taken by surprise. It would seem his instinct was to protect his friend, though.

Minerva: I may be wrong, but I think someone with the secondary jobs that he and Eight had would have had access to more information about people than the general public. Which means either there was no information suggesting 000 was what he was, or else he didn’t care.

Minerva: The three of them were seen talking after that. He must have said something offensive just before leaving, because both Eight and 000 were described to have reacted adversely.

Minerva: (Even if he didn’t know or care, he was surely sorely pressing his luck.)

Des: -_-;;;;

Des: It kind of sounds like outright stupidity to me, but…. Late May, huh, not too long after the date the files came in…

Minerva: They’re trying to find the receptionist who checked him in, but it’s very chaotic down there.

[She gives a slight smile.]

Minerva: At least there’s a humorous side to the story.

Minerva: According to witnesses, 000 was playing around on the gymnastics equipment before that confrontation. I’m sure it wouldn’t surprise you to hear he displayed aptitude for parkour and gymnastics in general.

Des: Heh…

Minerva: It was apparently enough to catch the attention of at least one recruiter. But by the time they went in there, he and Shade had already left. The recruiters were rather disappointed.

Minerva: We’ll have to try and talk with him as soon as he’s awake. -Smile fades, slight sigh- If nothing else, just to work out how to handle the press coverage.

Minerva: As far as I know, it hasn’t gotten out yet that he was injured so badly, or where he went… but the former has been almost universally accepted to be true, given the alternative was vanishing as suddenly as he came, as if some comic book superhero.

Minerva: I don’t want anyone knowing he’s at Sanda Labs just yet.

Des: No kidding, they don’t need that kind of publicity right now…

Minerva: … True….

Minerva: Be careful, Mister Secretary. Keep us posted, and stay safe.

[SANDA TECHNOLOGIES, REPAIR BAY: DAWN...]

"I don't know, Will, it seems..."

Sanda: It seems like we need to somehow broadcast the XelFilter on a mass scale in order to cure the nation but...that's WAY too dangerous...

[Will--on his third or fourth cup of coffee, no doubt--sighed in apparent defeat.]

Will: I...I know that, Soi. Perhaps...Perhaps I can work from the ground up without using his XelFilter at all?

Sanda: Well--that would take even more time...Mm...

Will: .....

Will: (...I...It's...really catching up to me...)

Will: (The past...) [PING!]

[MN.8 IS NOW ONLINE.]

Will: --!!

Sanda: Uh oh...I mean--uh. -Mixed feelings here-

[Mikhail looks up from his work.

There was a curtain separating them, but still…]

Mikhail: Jack, hold this for a moment, please—

[He passes off some towels to the short-notice lab assistant and looks out from behind the barrier.]

Jack: --! -Oh--oh okay--

Shade: --Mngh...Ngg....

[DR.WHITE] //: -Both of you are still outside, right-

[MN.4 and 5] //: -PING-

Will: Okay then...

Will: Shade?

Shade: Wh...What...

Will: Countershade--?

Mikhail: (I’m glad Mr. Desmond is asleep right now… I get the feeling this is going to be hard enough as it is.)

Shade: ...D...Dad...?

Will: (Oh thank God--)

Will: Shhh, it's alright, don't exert yours--

Shade: C--Cards--

Shade: Ah'--Dad, where--

[Shade suddenly clutched at his own chest, a sudden pang of what felt like a needle going through his own core--]

Shade: Ngh--!

Will: --!!

Soi: Uh oh--

[Sanda immediately ran a diagnostic scan, then quietly motioned for Mikhail and Jack to stay out of sight.]

Soi: Shade--listen, it's me, Uncle Sanda...

Shade: --...Sanda...--

Soi: Your SH program is running faster than you can keep up with, so please don't move so much. We don't want you to have a complete system shutdown so--

Shade: --Can't--

Shade: Can't stay--

[WHUMP--]

[Unfortunately for Shade, his condition didn't allow him to get further from the foot of his bed as he simply rolled out of it.]

Will: Shade--!

[MN.5] //: -For Pete's sake I TOLD you we had to restrain him--

[MN.1] //: Mighty No. 8, you get BACK in bed this instant--

Shade: N--No, can't--I'll--

Shade: I'm just gonna hurt y'all again--!

Will: --!

Mikhail: -Pinches the bridge of his nose- ({This is going a bit worse than I thought it would, that’s a new record.})

Will: Shade--

Shade: Don't--

Will: Countershade White!

Will: You are SAFE!

Will: The fact that you can think that is proof enough--!

Shade: --....

Will: Shade...

Will: It's okay.

Will: The virus has been purged from your systems. Beck made sure of that.

Shade: --!

Shade: --...Beck...

Will: And...

Will: And I know you would never hurt me, Shade.

Will: ... Alright?

[PING!]

[MN.7] //: -Breathe, brother.-

Shade: --! Brand--

[MN.7] //: -Breathe.-

[MN.7] //: Do nothing but breathe. Let everything go.

[MN.7] //: {Breathe.}

Shade: .......

[Shade tenses for a few seconds... as if lost in his own thoughts, still clutching at his own chest--]

[PING!]

[SH RATE: 150% OF NORMAL BASELINE.]

Soi: --!

Soi: (That's not good--)

[PING!]

[MN.2] //: -Do you need water, bro, we can get you some--

Shade: -Hurts--

_______________________________________

"Songbird, eh?"

"Well, that explains the bird part."

[CLICK.]

"Adios, Songbird."

______________________________________

[A flinch--]

[SH RATE: 180% OF NORMAL BASELINE.]

Shade: M'sorry--!

Shade: I tried to fight it, Ah' swear--!

Shade: Cards--!!

[PING!]

[RMDC SERVER] //: >STATUS INQUIRY (SUBJECT: DLN-000) HAS BEEN DENIED.

>RobotMaster Database® COSSACK SERVER IS CURRENTLY LOCKED.

>AUTHORIZIED BY: ADMIN MC005

Shade: NO--!

Soi: Will--

Will: (Gah, if I don't do something--)

[PING!]

[MN.9 IS NOW ONLINE.]

Will: --! Beck--

[--There's no words from the small Mighty Number, not at first.

Instead--

Instead there was a file.]

[For some reason, it opened up for Shade anyway, without any prompt on his part.

...It was only audio, but...

...It was from a very memorable night.]

"But I'll never give up on you, Shade."

"Not for any reason."

Shade: --!!

"Not for any reason."

"I'll never give up on you."

Shade: . . . .

Shade: (Cards....)

[MN.9] //: -Soft ping-

[Another file. Something from Beck's OWN memories...]

"I have to save you."

"So the two of you can /live/— together."

Shade: .....?

[MN.9] //: M...Mikhail found...

[MN.9] //: A new power source...

Shade: --!!!

[MN.9] //: He...he’s gonna...

[MN.9] //: Be okay...Shade...

[MN.9] //: I saved... everyone... like I promised...

[MN.9] //: S...so...

[MN.9] //: Don't run away...

Shade: --...

[MN.9] //: ...And make me a liar...

[MN.9] //: Okay? ^^

[MN.9 IS NOW IN SLEEP MODE.]

Shade: . . .

[PING!]

[SH RATE STABILIZING.]

Shade: Beck...Cards...

Shade: What in the world did Ah' do to ya, brother...?

Soi: -Siiiigh...-

Soi: (At least his SH Program's calmed down...)

Mikhail: -Also a sigh of relief-

Will: (Oh, Shade...)

Shade: Dad...

Shade: ...

Shade: Why's no one else answerin'...?

Will: The others...They are also Offline, for their own safety.

Will: .....

Will: Everything will be alright, Shade...

Will: (I pray it will be...)

Will: But please--I know your heart aches and you want to isolate yourself--

[PING!]

[MN.2] //: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT, SNIPE BRO.

Shade: --!

[MN.2] //: -Like heck I'm gonna let ya go on your own after all that, FITE ME--

Mikhail: -From behind the curtain- Ahem. Shade?

Shade: --.... Mikhail...?

Mikhail: It’s also about… 5:46 in the morning.

Mikhail: Everyone else is asleep. That’s why they aren’t answering.

Shade: --.......

[MN.3] //: You picked a heck of a time to wake up and diszzturb our BEAUTY ZZSLEEP. -Annoyed buzzing-

Shade: Dyna...

Soi: -____-;; (Jeez, you're just as tactless as Will, aren't you, Mikhail...)

[MN.1] //: Alright, that is enough.

[MN.1] //: ....

[MN.1] //: -Very gently- Shade.

[MN.1] //: You've been gone for nearly a week and a half.

[MN.1] //: Have you eaten anything?

Shade: . . . .

Shade: .....

Shade: -Very, VERY hungry data-

Shade: Food...

[MN.1] //: As I thought.

[Ping—]

<FMN-008>: > -Mrrmnngghhmmmfffpph… did we hear someone mention f o o d—-

Shade: !

Shade: Kate...

<FMN-008 is now Online.>

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: (She was sleeptalking? That’s a new one.)

<FMN-008>: > -Hazy data- ???

<FMN-008>: > …Jack?

<MC005>: > He’s assisting me with something. Go back to sleep, Countershade.

<FMN-008>: > …? -Hazy data, but our Other—-

<MC005>: > He’ll be fine. Go back to sleep.

<FMN-008>: >Mmmm…

<FMN-008 is now in Sleep mode.>

Mikhail: -Another relief sigh- (I wouldn’t want to have to explain THAT to the Secretary.)

Shade: Kate...?

[MN.1] //: She's resting, Shade.

[MN.1] //: Seven, do you think you can get Eight to the kitchen without--

[Knock Knock.]

[MN.1] //: -....You're already outside the bay, at least let me finish my sentence--

Mikhail: -Starts shaking in silent laughter-

Will: Eheh... (Oh, Brand...)

[Sanda lets Seven in quietly, who chose to not wear his helmet, or his mask. His scarf is wound tightly around to compensate, though.]

Brand: --....

Shade: .....

Shade: Ah'...Guess we're on even ground nao, aren't we...

Brand: .....

Brand: I...suppose we are.

Mikhail: …?

Mikhail: -Puts his head in his hand- Mmmnn… (Tired. And hungry. But can’t eat in the lab. Jack should get something to eat, but I do not want to run the risk of him running into Desmond…)

Mikhail: (As a general rule, military men can be early risers if they stay in habit, and it’s nearly 6:00.)

Brand: .....

Brand: You're still quite insufferable, though.

[Shade quietly chuckles at that.]

Shade: An' yer still an' honored bastard, heh...

Mikhail: … -Smiles to hear the exchange- (At least he’s doing better. That’s what counts, right now.)

Mikhail: Number Seven?

Brand: --Yes, Doctor?

Mikhail: If Felix shows up, please have him let inside the building.

Brand: ...Felix is... ah. Of course.

Shade: --Felix is comin'...?

Shade: ....

Shade: -Too tired and hungry to think too hard-

Mikhail: You’ll see later, Shade. Go eat something.

Shade: ...Yeah...

Brand: Here. Just lean on me and stay invisible.

Shade: Alright...

[It looked strange, like Brand was supporting nothing but air, but one could almost hear a pair of footfalls walking out the door and down the hallway to the elevator.]

Will: .....

Will: -Sigh-

Will: (...It's going to take a long time to heal... from this...)

[Mikhail sighed, pulled a sheet over his patient, and pulled back the curtain.

He had been working through the whole night after Pyro brought Cardinal back. As with the injuries Tobias had received, the first step was to completely clean the exposed mechanics of the core mass of oil, grime, and debris. It was always a messy affair, and not one that could be made faster or more efficient through automation.

They were thankfully just about done. Call had been able to confirm that the old core was completely spent—it did not pose an explosion hazard. She had it locked away tight for later disposal, along with some other broken machinery that had been removed. Such things were a bit of an uncomfortable matter, and were best kept locked away out of sight to be dealt with in private.

Since there wasn’t really the time to do a proper replacement, he would have to rely on the energy source doing so. The systems would rebuild themselves once the new core was in place.

However…]

Mikhail: -Wiping his face- ({That was far too close a call. He has got to update.})

[…He wasn’t exactly planning on using the Sun Stone core just yet.]

Mikhail: ({I need to talk to him about updating and getting new hardware to go with it. He can’t keep it up like this with the form he’s been using, not at the rate he’s been getting into ghastly disasters.})

Mikhail: Please do make sure he doesn’t run off.

[Once the cleaning phase was over, he would have to wait until Felix arrived before he could continue the repairs on Cardinal. But his work was far from over.]

Mikhail: ({I isolated Tobias and his memories last night, but I still need to make certain Cardinal uploads to a quarantined part of the server so that the others don’t get cross-references from his memory files. Then I have to lock the files and set up proxy files to substitute for the memories so they at least know what happened. Otherwise, they’ll try to unlock the files to fill in those blanks.})

Mikhail: -Low grumble- {And then the questions… Mary help me, it’s going to be one in the afternoon before I get any rest…}

[He almost wasn’t sure whether he had the energy to feel grateful or not that he was too tired to be scared at the moment.]

Mikhail: Sanda? What’s his status?

Soi: Well...He's stable, for now. SH rate's normal, though a bit jumpy, but that's okay, given the situation...

Mikhail: …?

Mikhail: “S.H.”? Does that have something to do with the E.R. -like monitor sounds from just a moment ago?

Will: Ah. In a way...I suppose you can call it a more complex version of a Robot Master's Emotion.EXE program.

Will: The Synthetic Heart Program--it's the very coding that allows a Xelbot to feel. To evolve, and grow as they experience new sensations and emotion as they come.

Will: Like us.

Will: ...I designed this particular version myself, to all the Mighty Number Line.

Will: ...Usually...

Will: ...Usually, The SH Program is capable enough to keep up with the rest of the Xelbot's thoughts and functions, but...

Will: Shade.....

Will: ....

Will: He...He lost a core once.

Will: I had to rehaul his entire power output to compensate for 6 cores instead of the usual 7...

Mikhail: …

Will: --....

Will: -Hand in his face- But in doing so, the SH Program responded accordingly.

Will: With the increased power, it... sometimes, not often, but sometimes...

Will: It processes at a speed too high for Shade himself to keep up...

Mikhail: … (Just like an Emotions.EXE overload…)

Mikhail: …Heh. -Chuckles softly for a moment, shaking his head- Soul-brothers indeed…

Will: -Sigh- Ah... I suppose...

Will: In a way, yes, it is the equivalent of having an increased chance of cardiac arrest...

Will: It isn't life threatening, given that he's usually a loner...and rather hard-headed...Stubborn... -Cracks a smile-

Will: ...This isn't the first time he's come close to one, but it's certainly been the longest in between...

Will: The last time he had his SR Rate above 180% is when Beck almost drowned that one time during training...

Mikhail: …

[Mikhail sighs and sits down rather hard.]

Mikhail: I’d be more curious if I weren’t so exhausted. I’m so sorry, Will, I don’t mean to be rude.

Will: ....You... you should...

Will: ....Oh, bother, you're not going to stop even if I tell you...

Will: -Leans back in his own chair-

Will: Call, please go get us some food, I don't care if it's in the lab, I'll eat in the closet if I have to.

Soi: -Snorts-

Mikhail: Jack, you should eat something as well.

Jack: ...Yeah. Okay.

[Mikhail turns his attention back to Will. He has an almost defeated expression on his face, but that’s mostly from how tired he is.]

Mikhail: No, I’m not going to stop.

Mikhail: What I’m going to do next is crucial if we are to keep the Robot Masters from going berserk.

Will: .....

Mikhail: I sent everyone Offline just as the news came in on where Cardinal had been spotted. Everyone went into Lethal—except for David, who doesn’t have that setting—remember?

Mikhail: That was out of panic. Going someplace like that is a sure death sentence, and worse, where we come from.

Mikhail: Tobias I woke up on purpose, which again, is something I’ll have to answer for.

Mikhail: He has his own memories. He was angry, but that was tempered when he got feedback from Cardinal by way of his own Thunder Beam. He went Offline to rest before the worst of it, but it’s still enough to cause great anxiety and raise the threat level tag in the database entry for Shade by at least half a star.

Mikhail: I was able to isolate those easily while waiting for Cardinal’s return; everyone else was Offline, and the database was locked. As soon as his Awareness was re-seated back in his hardware, it became a non-issue… though it’s important he remains Offline.

Mikhail: -Rubs his face- He really does start to show his father’s worst traits when he is angry.

Mikhail: It’s Cardinal’s memories that are the danger now.

Mikhail: He encrypts all his memories, but it’s still something that would contribute to generating cross-references and modifying threat levels in informational files.

Mikhail: Those are things that would affect his brothers, and furthermore…

Mikhail: Whenever a Robot Master is forcefully sent Offline in a fight, the experience… that’s something very deep and complex, more than you realize, William. It starts to go beyond just the Emotions.EXE program and into the Awareness aspect itself.

Mikhail: The Awareness affected becomes… detached from the hardware, usually, and there is that sense of Self, that Self is not “alive”, and that…

Mikhail: …with Cardinal, it’s a bit more than that, for reasons I already went through.

Mikhail: I have to wake them up soon. He’ll probably still be either Offline or in Maintenance mode. That’s… going to cause incredible panic, unless I quarantine the files in a very specific manner.

Mikhail: The Hunter as a cultural concept, for someone to fall to the Hunter, and at such a high cost, too…

Mikhail: That sets off a frenzied panic mode, and for some, that could cause rage. And rage tends to cascade for robots running Wily’s OS.

Will: ....

Will: I... see...

Will: -Sigh- I suppose that's of higher importance.... But at least eat something for a bit...

Will: (And Mikhail still has to be questioned--Not to mention Soi...)

Mikhail: I’ll try.

[There’s a quiet pause. When he speaks up again, he does so softly.]

Mikhail: …I’ll admit I don’t feel very good about eating right now.

Soi: ...Cardinal would want you to take care of yourself.

Mikhail: -Closes his eyes and sighs softly- True.

Mikhail: It’s just… hard. (I hope you never have to understand how, though I think you may make a logic-based guess as to why.)

Mikhail: …Put some protein powder in chicken broth or something, that’ll be good enough for me. =___=

Will: Call, relay that to Pyrogen, please.

Call: Yes, Doctor.

Mikhail: -Rubs his hands with his face- (Ugh.) This would be so much easier if I could have Siam, but he’s… mmmngh, cross-references, experiences everything in a dual nature, complications.

Mikhail: Did you know—when he’s feeling particularly complex emotions, they tend to break down and manifest divided between his Awarenesses?

Mikhail: Yet another reason to do this properly—with one half panicked and the other enraged, I wouldn’t be getting any help— -buries face in arms at nearby workstation- {Saints preserve us—} Will, being the ONLY reliable Doctor for your world truly does get exhausting.

Will: ......

Mikhail: I wish we’d had the time to finish our tech lessons before this happened.

Mikhail: I could have helped with decoding…

Will: (Ngh...)

Will: ....No, it's fine...

Will: I never... quite...

Will: ....

Will: -Looks away in shame-

Will: I never quite managed to crack it... all the way...

Will: I...I did manage to understand enough how to combat it, but it would have required Beck's XelFilter program to be broadcasted much like the Virus was...

Will: And that's something I cannot just... release into the open airwaves.

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: -Muffled- I would have Tobias help, except undoubtedly that would be just as bad of an idea. He might have some ideas, but I believe it would be safest for everyone—Shade in particular—if he and Shadow remained not just asleep, but Offline for at least a few months.

Will: ....

Will: If that is what's best for them... (This is all... my fault...)

Soi: ....

Soi: (Will...)

Will: ....

Will: I'm going to try to work on something from the ground up. I'll use the XelFilter's properties as a sort of blueprint, and go from there.

Will: (It will take a while longer, but...I can't use his XelFilter Program, not with the government...)

Mikhail: Siam may be able to give a few ideas. After all, he is as close as it gets to a Doctor, and as a Robot Master, he did interact directly with her.

Will: --!

Will: (--H...Her...)

Will: (Dear God, he's already even figured out gender...)

Will: ...The Virus has a gender now? ?_?

Mikhail: According to Siam and Tobias, yes.

Mikhail: Something about how it targets aggression and the English phrase “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” from what I understand.

Will: (Oh, God, no, is... is...)

Will: (Is... is she coming for me--?)

Will: (Am... am I what she wants?)

[There is a quiet knock on the door, snapping Will away from his darker thoughts.]

Will: --!

[Brand pushed in a cart of food for all present--even Call, who normally doesn't eat around other people besides Beck.]

Jack: -Hungryyyyy--

[Jack IMMEDIATELY grabs as much meat as his plate can handle, even biting and holding down on a large wing of chicken in his mouth just to have more.]

Jack: -Awwww yessss- < 3

Soi: Heh! Save some for us, Jack--

Mikhail: Good luck, Soi, you’ll have to fight him for that. While he was undergoing repairs, he could eat up to several pounds of meat a day.

Mikhail: -Smiles, adjusting glasses- It’s good to see you have a healthy appetite, though. Shows resilience and reflects overall well-being.

Jack: -It's mine-

Jack: -Miiiiiine-

Jack: -NOM-

Jack: ^^

Mikhail: Thank you for coming over on such short notice. I know that it was fearful work, but you helped speed up the process tremendously.

Jack: Eheh...n-no problem, Doc Cossack. Anythin' t' get Bird Guy up and taggin' corporate sleezeball's HQ's again. | D ;;

[Mikhail laughs at this.]

Mikhail: Once he’s well enough to do so, I’d almost be tempted to buy the paint for him.

[He shakes his head, looking over at his covered patient as he accepts a thermos of chicken broth from Brand.]

Mikhail: Oh, he’ll be ready and willing, alright.

Mikhail: Like with Shade, Robot Masters are prone to overclocking under extreme duress. With Cardinal, that’s always been a weak point. But now with the new power source… that’ll change, if he agrees to hardware modifications as well.

Mikhail: To minimize the impact of the memories… as they are slowly released from quarantine, there will be other cross-references actively running. I happen to know as a fact that there are at least 40 entries with Shade laughing as of the day you left to go overseas.

Mikhail: Once he knows his mission was completed… he’ll be alright.

Will: Thank goodness...

Will: (At least there is some light at the end of all this, for them...)

Mikhail: Mmm. He knew something like this might happen when he set out. He said so himself. He came to terms with that and accepted it—that’s why he left such strong messages pointing it out.

Mikhail: He knew how hard that would end up being on everyone else if it came to pass…

Mikhail: It’s his way of saying not to be too sad, that he holds no ill will and will be back soon.

Mikhail: Hopefully Felix will come by with the core soon; I want his armor closed up before Desmond makes a very firm and unavoidable demand to see him.

Mikhail: -Rolls his chair over to his yellow legal notepad- I think I might be able to input a program that will automate the quarantine process… that’ll help, as I won’t have to oversee it personally. Give me a few hours.

Mikhail: After that… -Sip- I’ll see what I can do within what there is to say.

{Later, in the Kitchen…}

[For once, it's not Pyrogen making breakfast. It's Dyna along with her elder sister, although Cryo's only washing dishes. It was strangely quiet, save for Brand and Shade shuffling past...]

[Mostly everyone else was either resting or requested their breakfast be brought to them.]

[For a family this large, seeing and hearing everything so quiet was...]

Des: (...Not right.)

Des: (I can practically cut the tension and stress in the air with a knife if I could...)

Shade: -Mngh, too tired, can ya just take me t' Mic's room instead, brother-

Brand: -Fine, but I'm telling him to make sure you eat something.-

Shade: Yeah, yeah, Ah' know...

Des: (...Poor man looks like he's fresh out of a warzone...)

Des: (...This is going to be one tough crowd to deal with...)

“Ree-ow."

Des: --!

[Jazz padded her way into the kitchen, looking fresh and eager as any housecat should be—albeit more green and blue than most.]

Jazz: Ree-ow. :D

[She trotted right past Brand and looked up at Shade.]

Jazz: Ree-ow.

Jazz: -Tall servant-

Jazz: -You still owe me food-

Jazz: -FEED ME- >:V

Shade: ....

Shade: Heh...

[His laughter is tired, but still lighthearted, in a way.]

Shade: I'll...ask Dyna t' make ya somethin'...

Brand: -You better not fall asleep on your feet, you're heavy enough as it is-

Shade: -Quiet snort-

Des: .....

Des: She's not going to start breathing fire again, is she? >>;;

Dyna: She'szzz a cat. Doeszzz what she wantszz. -Meaning we can't say for sure, bzz bzz-

Des: (Jee, THAT'S comforting to know...)

Jazz: -Purrs and goes over to Shade, rolling over at his feet and purring in the flop- </cat>

Shade: Jazz...Heh...

Brand: -_-;;;;; -You can come rest with him if you want, but the food is his, he needs to eat too-

Brand: -Sleep on top of his hat like you always do-

Shade: -More snickering-

Shade: Yer' more nonsensical than usual, Ninjabro.

Brand: -You are not the only one that craves a bed, alright- =~=

Jazz: -Purrs and hops up onto Shade’s shoulder- -Prrrrrrhhhrrrrhrrrrhrrrrr- -Starts kneading on his neck-

Shade: -Mmmm, lil more t' the left--

Brand: -Starts dragging his brother away before he really falls asleep on his feet-

Des: (...Well, at least there's some sign of healing in those two...)

Dyna: -I'm never taking Pyro for granted EVER again, making so much food is HARD--

Cryo: -WE GOT YA, SIS, we watch Pyro make breakfast so we can show ya-

Cryo: YO MISTER DEFENSE MAN, YA WANT COFFEE--

Des: --Uh...Yeah. Strong, two teaspoons of sugar, please.

Cryo: Got iiiit.

Cryo: Man, where's Avi when you need him, he's like our second backup breakfast person when Pyro's not making food... -NOT ALL OF US HAVE HANDS, YA KNOW-

Dyna: -Ping-

Dyna: Pretty sure everyone iszz crashing in Earth bro'szzz room.

Des: --???

Cryo: -This makes perfect sense to us- Ooooh, right.

Cryo: -No wonder it's so quiet, his room is sound proof-

Cryo: In THAT CASE--

[Cryo shoves Des a tray filled with pancakes and bacon, eggs and a whole lot of cooked ham, and also buttered biscuits.]

Cryo: That ain't for you.

Des: Uh--

Cryo: -Waves hose arms around, we don't have hands so YOU have to take breakfast to everyone else-

Des: (...Oh.)

Des: Uh...and where is...

Cryo: Dude, it's the biggest bedroom in the whole place, not THAT hard to miss. >>.>>

Cryo: -NOW GO, because we're hungry too and I want food-

[Deciding it was better to leave some of the two most temperamental members of the family be, Des obliged and made his way out of the kitchen and to the bedroom of Mighty Number Four. When he got there…]

"Aviiiiiii you're hogging all of the spaaaaaace...."

[The room wasn't exactly well lit when the door opened, but it was a comfortable darkness. The bedroom was indeed very large, and--]

Des: --?

[...The floor felt very soft, almost like... a bed, of sorts--?]

[It seems as though the whole team had taken refuge in Mic's room--Mic himself was napping right in the middle, with Shade--not invisible--was quietly snoozing, head down so that his hat would block most of the light from his face.]

[Pyro was in a corner along with Bat, in a game of chess--probably under orders by either his Father or Sanda to take it easy for now. Both seemed to be taking their time with their moves.]

[Brand had a corner all to himself, although he didn't mind--not far away were Beck and Avi, who had used both Mic's giant pillows and their own to build a fort.]

Avi: -Oops, sorry Becko-

Beck: .....

Beck: -Wait, I smell pancakes-

Beck: -Pancakes equal syrup, sugar--

[Beck pops his head up from the pillow fort, his hair all askew from sleeping so much--he's in a simple space-time sleep shirt that was WAY too big for him, and...]

[...Holding some kind of...pink plush toy...?]

Puffball: -u-

“Chirp-cheep!”

Avi: Baron, bro, I'll get ya some bird feed from my room if ya want some--

Beck: -Stumbles out of fort, rubs sleep out of his eyes-

Beck: Sugarrrr...

Beck: ....

Beck: -Looks up-

Beck: .....

Beck: ??????

Baron: -Wriggles to get to see where he can view what’s going on- 8>

Des: . . .

Des: (....THIS is...Nine?)

Beck: Who the heck are you...

Beck: -And why aren't you giving us that food-

Beck: -Grabbie hands-

Beck: -Give us the sugar, stranger-

[Foosh. Foosh. Foosh.]

Baron: {D.C.!} :V

Des: -Blinks-

Des: -That is a bird--

Beck: -Foooooood-

Des: Oh--um. -Here?-

Des: (So do ALL the animal-based bots breathe fire here?)

Baron: Chirp cheep! -Wriggles back in to hop around on Avi’s shoulder-

Baron: -Via hops- {D.C., D.C.!} : D

[It isn’t long before he pokes his head out again and twitters loudly.]

Jazz: -Looks up grumpily from Shade’s shoulder- Ree-ow. |K

Baron: >:V

Baron: -Flits over to Des and lands on his shoulder- ovo

Avi: --! (Wait, isn't that the Secretary person Cards saved--?)

Des: -Whoa--

Baron: ^v^

Des: -Never had a bird land on US before, jeez--

Avi: -Um- -Hides under blankets-

Des: Uh...hi?

Beck: -Guyyyys, there's breakfast-

Shade: -PING-

Shade: -Where-

Beck: -No, this is OUR tray--

Pyro: -Not looking up from chessboard- No fighting over food.

[This is when Dyna comes in with more breakfast trays, conveniently floating some of them around with her bits.]

Dyna: -We are GOING as fast as we can, we're not a master chef person like Big bro, ya know-

Pyro: -Snorts-

Pyro: Everyone thank your sister.

All: Thanks, Dyna.

Dyna: ~~

Cryo: -HEY DON'T FORGET ME TOO, I HELPED--

Pyro: Yes, you too, Cryo. | ]

Cryo: -HECK YEAH-

Baron: Chirp-cheep!

[Foosh. Foosh. Foosh.]

Baron: {000? D.C.?}

Des: ...

Des: (That--that cannot be Morse code, I must be seeing things--)

Des: You...You know 000?

Beck: --!

Beck: Pyro says that he brought back Cards with someone else...

Pyro: That would be him, yes.

Pyro: ....

Pyro: Thank you, by the way. I appreciate your help, Mr Secretary.

Bat: -Salutes-

Beck: . . .

Beck: Secretary?

Des: -Smiles-

Des: Desmond Donald, US Secretary of Defense, serving breakfast, heh.

Des: It's an honor to meet you, Mighty No. 9.

Beck: . . .

Beck: (I'm in my sleep wear--)

Beck: o//////o

Beck: I--Uh. I.

Beck: -SALUTES, TRIES TO SAVE SOME FACE- Th-Thank you, Um, Mr. D--I mean, Mr. Secretary, uh, sir--

Des: -Cannot help but be amused-

Des: Des is fine, Number 9.

Des: We're not in any kind of public or otherwise, so no need for formality. I'm in your house, after all.

Des: ....If I may...

Des: I want to thank you.

Des: For everything.

Des: This nation and its people owes you and your actions a lot more than we can ever say.

Des: (And I'm sure Min feels the same way.)

Des: If it weren't for you...I don't know where we would be at this point.

Des: Not to mention your family.

Pyro: -Pride, ALL of the pride data--

Des: I'm probably not going to get another chance to do this after all this is over...Not to mention, I don't have the actual thing with me, so...

Des: -Salutes-

Des: Beck Amadeus White, I hereby award you the Secretary of Defense Medal of Valor, awarded to those that perform acts of heroism and sacrifice in the face of overwhelming danger at the cost of personal safety for the good of all.

Beck: --!?!

Bat: -PING-

[At the sound of that, all of the Mighties give off much pride and joyful data for their brother, who was still trying to process the whole thing.]

Beck: I...

Beck: -Speechless-

Bat: -That is the highest honor the Department of Defense can bestow, WELL DONE, PRIVATE.-

Beck: I...

Beck: Really?

Des: Really.

Des: You deserve it, Mr. White. More than you know.

Bat: -Don't just STAND there, Private, SALUTE the man--

Beck: !

Beck: (–u–)7 Th-Thank you, sir! I--I mean, Des, sir--

Des: -Nods-

Des: Well...

Des: I should leave you to yourselves, now.

Des: (...They all seem like they really need to rest and relax. Questioning Six is going to have to wait.)

Des: Enjoy your breakfast.

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

Allies Obstruct

=INTRO B: COLLAPSING PEACE=

((Courtesy of @codedhopes & @super-tired-robot))

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

Keep reading

=INTRO C: COLLAPSING PEACE=

~AO v2.0~

((Courtesy of @codedhopes))

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

{Meanwhile, in England…}

[It was a peaceful evening as Jack and Kate entered the quiet flat.

The siren sniper gave a smile, her eyes hidden by the sunglasses she typically wore in her Civilian form.]

Kate: An’ here we are! Welcome to yer new digs.

[The recovering newbie fighter awkwardly made his way into the living room, looking around in awe.]

Jack: Man, it sure is nice to be out of the hospital…

[It was much nicer than any place he had lived before he joined up with Greater Dusk, that was for sure.]

Kate: Rent’s been paid for a couple months, so it’s all yours.

Jack: What? Aw, geez, Miss Eight—you didn’t have to do that—

Kate: Aw, maybe not, heh. But yew deserve something nice after all that happened. Give ya some time to let things calm down.

[Since he wasn’t sure how to respond to that, he just followed the tall assassin as she gave him a run-down of the place.]

Kate: This here’s the sitting room, Ah’ guess… bedroom’s over that way; careful about the shower, they have it kinda like a large version of a sink sprayer, real easy t’ get water everywhere…

Kate: -Walking into the kitchen- It’s all pretty small—but that’s standard for somethin’ in Britain.

[Inside the kitchen, there was a large box on the table.]

Jack: ? Uh—what’s in there?

Kate: Oh, just a lil’ somethin’ t’ get ya started. -Grins-

[Jack put down his suitcase.

Despite being a member of a (in)famous (and now banned) battle team, he didn’t really have many belongings. Only the changes of clothes that had been foisted onto him as part of the contract of being a team member… which he hadn’t been allowed to read before signing, of course.]

Jack: -Puts such thoughts aside for now- Let’s see what we’ve got here…

[Kate looked on with a relaxed smile, biting down on a dart as the clumsy combatant fumbled with the wrapping paper. She let him figure out a way to open it on his own; she was just enjoying the downtime.

It was something she didn’t get very often, with her job. Nor had she ever really had anyone other than family to spend it with. But Jack—Jack was different than the others.

As the sponsors were wont to say, he was “a good”—and he deserved nice things.]

Jack: Geez, whatever’s in here has some weight to it—!

[He heaves a large hiking backpack out of the box, looking more than a little surprised.]

Jack: A backpack?

Kate: -Gleeful ping- Yeah, that’s part of it, fer sure.

Jack: Looks like—is that a sleeping bag tied at the top?

Kate: Yup!

Jack: -Inspecting the outside- Wow, it comes with a water bottle and a compass…

[He unzips one of the compartments.]

Jack: Man, you really stuffed this to the gills. Poncho, first aid kit…

Jack: —!

[He pulls out something in clear plastic wrapping, with “Nighthawk Industries” printed on one end.]

Jack: AW SWEET COOL GOGGLES.

Kate: -Amused smile-

[He IMMEDIATELY puts those on—they fit rather nicely once he adjusted the strap—]

Jack: Dude—

Jack: These are like, perfect fit—

Kate: David had ‘em custom made. They’ve got lotsa functionality. Good for protectin’ ‘gainst rain an’ wind, a’ course…

Kate: -Puts her hand to her hip, grinning like crazy- But beyond that…~

Kate: Go look out the window, why don’cha?

[Jack glanced out the window in the kitchen, and Kate abruptly turned off the lights.]

Jack: !!!

Jack: ...? What's this—

Jack: —! OoooooOOHOHO THIS THING HAS NIGHT VISION—

Kate: Bingo~

Jack: So THIS is what the world looks like to you at night! (I feel so damn BADASS—)

Kate: -Turns the light back on- Neat, ain’t it? Lady Ky made those for ya—I put her contact info in yer phone in case you’d like another job of hers…

Jack: …? Uh… -What phone, we don’t have a— - Wait a minute…

[He eagerly starts digging through the rest of the backpack, pulling out the stuffing inside it as he went.

The top of the backpack was a nicely pressed set of casual clothes, shrunk to be airtight to pack in as much as possible. Underneath, there was a small bed roll, some blankets, and a travel/camping pillow.]

Jack: I’m surprised you didn’t put a whole tent in here, too…

Kate: Pup’s still workin’ on something that will fit but be spacious when you pop it out. He says you should just get a Spinarak an’ teach it Secret Power, an’ it’ll be even better than a tent.

Jack: Heh…

[Going through the pockets, he pulled out some maps, a small radio, a burner phone, and a wallet.]

Jack: ? -Peeks inside the wallet, curious-

Jack: !!! (That is—! A lot of gift cards! And–and cash, too?) You… -Kind of speechless-

[The sniper strode over and put her hand to his shoulder, giving a reassuring smile.]

Kate: One of these days, you’ll get outta here, Jackie. Be ready for a new life, what with GD not around anymore. That’s fer you to use t’ get around… pick out a nice ride of some kind, maybe, have a bit t’ eat an’ enough fer somewhere to stay… just until ya get yer footing. It should be good for a couple months once ya get stateside.

Jack: All this is…? (This is for me…?)

Kate: Our gift to you. | } Or… most of it, anyway. Still one more thing from Felix—he said it was important, but he’s still asleep… though his friend Piers is there t’ look after him. Ya might think of stopping by—it’s an easy shortcut to an’ through the Wilderness between worlds.

Jack: Wow, Miss Eight, I…

Jack: Honestly don’t know what to say…

Jack: -Gestures to the gifts all over the table- This is… -Gestures around the living room- All this is… man, it’s the nicest thing anyone’s done for me, ever.

Kate: Aw, it’s the least we can do! Yer a good man, Jack, an’ well-liked. ‘m only sorry we didn’t get all this to ya sooner.

[She walked over to the freezer and pulled out a gallon of ice cream. Jack’s eyes lit up when he saw it—but even moreso when she opened the fridge and brought out some steak.]

Kate: Let’s forget talkin’ fer a while an’ eat. M’ starved.

[Jack was more than happy to oblige, and Kate leaned back against the wall as she ate an ice cream cone with her one hand.

It was so nice to see Jack in such good spirits and properly well off after all that he’d been through. Ever since she first got to know him, she’d wanted to help—she’d grown more and more concerned for him the more he talked about Greater Dusk, about the way the team had treated him. She’d grown convinced he was in a dangerous situation, but even she couldn’t have anticipated what happened next.]

Kate: (Hmmmn…. The finals…. Still don’t have a good enough answer on what those crosses were. Malware of some sort, that’s for sure, but…)

[It was a grim prospect that required further investigation. It may not be her world, but she’d grown to care for the people in it.]

Kate: (Coding like that could cause a lot of damage.)

[She squinted behind her sunglasses, narrowing her eyes in distrust.]

Kate: (Whatever mysterious “provider” Jack said Blade was talking to is -probably- stateside… just like Blade is, that damn bastard…)

[Jack had told her that Blade had turned up dead.]

-=-=-=-=-

Jack: They....They sent it back to CherryDyn for them to look over what went wrong with him.

Jack: ....They said they found nothin', so they patched him up and kept him in for observation.

Jack: ....Then...

Jack: .......

Jack: He's dead, man. Dead.

Jack: .......

Jack: I...they told me he was...

Jack: Freakin' tortured…

Jack: ......

Jack: -turns away-

-=-=-=-=-

[…Kate, however, didn’t buy it for a minute.]

Kate: (That’s too convenient… Something isn’t right, here…)

Kate: -Broods- (That worm isn’t going to escape justice THAT easily, no sir…)

[…She was almost tempted to see to it herself, when she did come across him. But no—he had too much to answer for, and she would have to keep her head high and not sink to his level by turning away from doing the right thing.

Didn’t mean she couldn’t have the satisfaction of imagining otherwise.]

Kate: …

Kate: -Frowns and sighs internally- (…Look at me.)

Kate: (Off of work for once, and saddling myself up with another “case” that needs someone who cares…. Maybe Sis is right. Maybe I am a workaholic…)

Kate: -Finishes off the ice cream- Jack— do me a favor an’ make another cone, please…

Jack: Yeah, sure thing—

[She rubbed what was left of her right arm thoughtfully as he prepared seconds for her.]

Kate: (Not even on a job an’ I’m out there thinking like a killer…. Gotta try to remember not to let myself grow that bitter at the world…)

Jack: …Miss Eight?

Kate: Hmm?

Jack: I’ve been… wondering something…

Kate: -Accepts the second ice cream cone- Yeah?

Jack: I don't know how to word this right, but...

Jack: ...Stuff like this is kinda your thing, I know, but...why go through all this for me? I mean—I'm not anyone THAT important, and on top of that, I'm a Cherry…

Kate: …Well…. Ya… ya always treated me like a person. Not very many people do. -Looks away in thought- ‘m just Fighting Mighty Eight to them— or Artemis, herald of death. Or just a pretty face with lots of money to burn.

Kate: That means something to me.

Jack: ...Really, huh... (I guess, with what she does…)

[There was silence for a while as Kate finished off the second ice cream cone. This time, she seemed satisfied.]

Kate: Thanks for the help, Jack. I could do it myself, but it’s awfully messy, heh…

Jack: Oh, no problem.

Kate: -Turns on the faucet to wash her hand- Well, this was a nice evening. It was good to see you settled in.

Jack: Oh—are you headed off?

Kate: Yes.

[She wiped her hand on a dishcloth as best she could.]

Kate: Stateside.

Jack: Wh—You're going back to America? This soon?

Kate: I have some investigating t’ do, Jack…. Ah’ don’t think this is over yet.

Jack: -Internal groaning- (Agh, she’s probably right…)

Kate: Things may have died down, but… somethin’ is wrong over there, Ah’m sure of it.

Kate: -Turns to face him- Y’ need t’ lay low for a while, too. I hate t’ leave at a tahm like this, but the longer it waits, the colder the trail gets. You should be safe here from any prying eyes of this world—but just in case…

[She walks over and places something on the table.]

Jack: A… is that a taser?

Kate: -Momentary twitch of a smile- (…Figured you’d just hurt yourself with pepper spray, so…) Between that an’ yer Combat abilities, you should be able t’ hold yer own long enough to call for help. -Points over at the cell phone- Either ping somebody or—couple a’ contacts in there, just a call away.

Jack: I...um.

Kate: Yes?

Jack: Look, I appreciate the gesture, Miss Eight, just—do I really need this thing, I mean, it's a little much—

[The Mighty Number works her dart over to the other side of her mouth and tilts her head just so, giving the CDN a look that said otherwise.]

Kate: ....

Jack: …Right, stupid question—

Jack: Thanks, I guess...

Kate: Hmm hmm. Yer welcome. Ah' better git goin' nao.

Kate: Stay safe, Jack Parker.

Kate: I’ll be in touch when I figure things out.

Jack: M'kay. Don't go do anything too crazy, alright?

[She gave a characteristic grin, slowly fading away from sight. There was the rattle of the front door, and then she was gone.

Jack takes another fresh look around his new home, rubbing the back of his head quietly as he sinks down into the couch. He couldn't help but wish Miss Eight would've stuck around a little more, but it wasn't like he could stop her.

She's got her mind set on things for his sake, too.]

Jack: (…Guess I better start looking over this stuff…)

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

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dauntlesstales

5 years ago

=CHAPTER 5C: DESOLATE HIGHWAY=

~AO v1.0~

(Courtesy of @limitbreakers)

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

{In the Meadow…}

[It was indeed a long day.

They had done what they could to stabilize the newcomers, though they eventually had to call Siam out of his room to make sure the injured fighters had been properly stabilized. Skull was left to take watch over one of them, while Digger went off on his own, seeming troubled.

By now, the news of FMN-009’s decision to pursue his older sister was well known, and some had gathered around a video feed to watch his progress. Skull had chosen not to.]

Skull: -Vents a soft sigh-

[The temperature had been increased much higher than usual, and there is a sound machine playing the ocean waves. Skull flicked at an iPad every so often, as it’s his turn to keep watch on the recovering Xelbots—Plume in person, and Landcrusher through remote camera observation.]

Skull: ({I would have thought that since Mic can fit in here, he could too, but… I suppose it was deemed he’d feel more comfortable among the earth and terrain rather than inside a lab.})

[He looked over at Plume again thoughtfully.]

Skull: ({I wonder whatever happened to the other gynoids? Father said there were survivors—AI&As, even… if only partially realized…. …I get the feeling he knows far more than he has told anyone else.}) … -Soft snort- ({Four is going to flip when he sees her. And Dyna, for that matter.})

Skull: … ({I think he’ll be terrified of Fighting Eight for other reasons, though. Mmm.})

[......]

[PING--!]

[IKN.1 IS NOW ONLINE.]

Plume: Mmmn...

Plume: --?

Plume: (Ow…)

Skull: …!

Skull: Ah… Good afternoon. Welcome to the Meadow lab.

Plume: ....

Plume: -Abstract, confused data--

Plume: {Lab...?}

Plume: {Where...}

Plume: -Ow, whyyyyy does everything hurt--

Plume: {I....}

Skull: You have been injured. You were brought here to recover. It is safe here.

Plume: {--But--}

[Eyes furrow as she tried to sift through blank memories...]

Plume: {I don't...remember being hurt...}

Plume: {...B...Brother--where is...?}

Plume: {Is he here...?}

Skull: (She seems to be searching for someone…) There was one other brought here also--the two that brought you here are gone, however.

Plume: {P...Pine...?}

Plume: {No, wait, he...he's still on the island...isn't he...?}

Plume: -Is just--very confused, how did we get here, we were on the island, right--??-

Skull: -data for now, to bypass language-

Skull: -You were brought here upon request, that is all we know, really-

Skull: -We are a bit low on Xel, but more will arrive tonight. If you would like to eat, however, we can get you something?-

Skull: -Or juice or something-

Plume: -That...that would be nice...-

Plume: ({Request…})

————————

{Memories…}

[A cold rain. Sirens back and forth. Some sort of strange rip in the sky itself.]

“He will be back. And then, you will rest.”

[What a strange man… such a formidable design, but he was twirling pool rings…]

“All will be clear in… due time.”

[SANDA LABS, THE NEXT MORNING]

[After Beck’s return with Brandish at his side, the rest of the morning passed mercifully without event. True to their word, Fighting Mighty Numbers One and Six sent over breakfast for everyone—even the injured, who were still asleep.

Dr. Sanda (who had been forced to take a rest by his daughter) resumed repairs at once after breakfast was over. There were three patients to tend to—Brandish, Jack, and Carmen.

Brandish’s repairs proved to be mostly straightforward, as had the other Mighties: exhaustion and a low Xel count accounted for the majority of the trouble. Unlike the others, though, he also had sustained acid damage—and that was something that Dr. Cossack handled personally, as he had more insight into Shadow’s abilities and weaponry.

Jack, for his part, had sustained pretty heavy internal damage—including, but not limited to: damaged sensors, a broken transceiver, and internal Xel loss… all from hitting the tunnel face first at high speed. Luckily for him, his stance had been unsteady enough that he was mostly knocked back at the first impact, making it more of a glancing blow. Patching him up was a fairly straightforward affair, and one that Mikhail was able to handle mostly on his own, once Brandish had been seen to.

Carmen, on the other hand.

Her younger brother had made an understatement in his report of her injuries.

She had been battered by a large piece of flying debris at high speed, which would have taken out lesser constructs on the spot. There were minor irritations webbed all across her torso, where she had struggled against the fine wires that had bound her.

But all that paled in comparison to what had happened as a result of hitting the Alpha 1 Tunnel at 90+ mph.

The impact had split her radar dish and cracked her skull, and caused some of the thin wires to bite into her skin. The whiplash in falling to the hard surface she had been standing on had compounded the internal damage further. The shift into a civilian form had quite possibly saved her life—it had either stopped most of the Xel loss, or at least slowed it down.

Her father had been reluctant to allow her to stay under someone else’s care, but had to admit that she had sustained serious enough injuries that would make a sudden transfer a cause for concern. He turned most of his attention—when he wasn’t looking after Plume and Landcrusher—to learning more about timespace and different worlds.

This delighted Siam, who took advantage of the situation to completely lose himself in his research. He was no longer actively responding to anything less than a direct order or emergency alert… slightly to the annoyance of his older brothers.

As for Shadow…]

-Ping.-

[Sure enough, just as Dr. Cossack had predicted… it wasn’t long before he got back in contact with them.]

-Ping.-

[It would appear his contact of choice was none other than the leader of the Mighty Numbers: Pyro.]

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -Ping.-

[MN.1] //: --!!

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Shadow?

Shadow: ! -Sort of hunches his shoulders up, feeling suddenly embarrassed/shy-

[The raw data itself would seem to indicate that yes, it is Shadow, albeit not a very talkative one. Not that that’s anything new. More like a reversion, really.]

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Oh, thank goodness, you're alive--

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Are you alright?

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -This, it would seem, is a matter up for debate-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Wait what--

[REN.2] //: -And we can feel the amount of worried Data from Pyro- He is not injured, Number One.

[MN.1] //: --Your Highness?

[REN.2] //: Yes, hello. Shadow would like to speak with you about some...pressing issues.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > I am functioning, although whether or not that is a good thing is a matter of debate. -n-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -What--but of COURSE it's a good thing ugh not you TOO.-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > … -Wait what-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -What do you mean-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ....

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: It's...Seven.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -He is just...ngh, it hurts to see him like this, it wasn't his fault but he just...can't help but blame himself-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: .....

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -Data suggesting a soft sigh and closing eyes-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > Where do I even begin…? Even I do not know the full beginning, and much of what has happened as of late has been lost to me.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > I could not handle—I could not bear—could not take on the burden of such a heavy thing, and so new to me at the time…

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -Despair… was it despair? I cannot know, but that is the only thing I can guess…-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ......

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > For us, you ((pl.)) have always been that rare source of hope… for our world is all but darkness, save for a few who show kindness—but the world itself is dark and without mercy. There is no hope; one must live on without it, and be content with simple blessings of survival and family.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >But such is a darkness so great and terrible that any light that defies it becomes maddeningly precious, overwhelmingly so—if only one can ensure that light staves off the spread of such… suffering, such bleakness in the world—

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > To see the darkness in the one place you were determined not to let it pass…

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > … …It was too much for me. I had never known the loss of hope before, as I had never had it to begin with, until all of you. That loss was more than I knew how to handle, as my Emotions program… -Sigh- We are prone to stupor in times of great distress, but my system has yet to adjust and advance to the level of even very young constructs, for I have not had it very long.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > I suspect my brothers hoped I could speak with Sensei, to buy some time, but…

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > This time, he did not hear me, and I… -Trails off- …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …I did not really know—and even only vaguely understand—what was going on. I was simply… -…Data, we just had to get the swords away from him, and then, perhaps, we could talk or restrain and THEN talk, had to get the swords away-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -Nothing else mattered, I did not care about the anger or aggression, it simply did not matter, it just did not-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ....

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Shadow...

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ....

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Look, I...I'm not angry with you, or what you did--surprised, yes, but...

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > I very narrowly kept on going.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

“Remember… Cardinal is used to being hunted. And in our world, you DO not stop until you are dead.”

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >Such was my intention.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: .....

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Slow, drawn out breath.-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Which is why I am very glad it was narrowly and not the OTHER way around.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Still, if you didn't interfere at that moment...-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > … -If you say so… but personally this is troubling because it is not the first time that we have had to be talked down, this aggression is… very deep, it would seem-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …It was never my intention to destroy. No. … -But I was not bothered by inflicting incredible damage… it is hard to explain-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …I still do not understand why he did not leave right away.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >Why did they linger there? If Lady Sanda had placed him there, surely, she could also have called them away. Why did that not happen?

[MN.1 to DWN-24] //: --Xel Transfer onto a moving location is rather difficult enough--it actually took a bit before he could be transported safely. Call couldn't lock onto him fast enough, and I suspect Beck knew that...

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ...And thus he...he turned to seek aid from the one that was most like his brother.

Shadow: …!

Shadow: …

[…He seems…

…troubled, by that.]

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …But… when that did not happen, I gave him the amulet, as he stated his goal was to leave safely.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >And still, he did not leave. Why?

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ...Either he didn't want to leave you behind...

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Or he was too....

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: (...Too scared.)

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -Cautiously, as if he is wary—though whether of Pyro, Beck, or just in general is hard to say- If he had left, that would have… helped.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Perhaps...

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Data, you must remember that he is still young, Shadow, and all this is hard enough as it is...-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -With no gentleness or hesitation, being very up forward- Perhaps I may have reminded him of his guiding brother.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > He, too, reminded me of a brother.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: . . .

[DEATH WEARS B L U E]

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …I will not lie to you, Pyrogen. Now is not the time for niceties. This is important.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >He was not the Nine I remembered from before, Pyrogen. He has changed.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >And the change worries me VERY greatly.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >It was terrifying. I was certain he was going to kill me, Pyrogen!

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >When he did not leave like he claimed was his goal, what else was I to conclude in that moment, with ALL MY BROTHERS OFFLINE!?

[DEATH WEARS BLUE]

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Shadow--

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: He's not like HIM!

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -This is OUR brother, and the changes he's gone though so far are great--

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -But he WOULDN'T take a life because that isn't who he is and we would NOTICE if he was--

Pyro: (...turning into something like the Menace...)

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Ngh, the point IS that Beck isn't...-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -.....-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -He isn't the Menace.-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: . . . .

[Shadow seems to recoil and give off acerbic data at that response, but as Pyro calms, so does he. He then seems very worn out.]

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …Neither is Rock the Blue Menace, Pyrogen. Do you understand?

[Indeed. As had been explained before…]

((Profile pic here with the split screen showing the two sides to the Blue Bomber))

[…The Menace was a program separate from Rock’s Awareness.]

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: . . .

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >During and after the fight… acting like two different people, in a sense. That bothered me.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >To be so bold and… -…mmm, data, participant, almost… Almost Cardinal-like—-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …but then to become seemingly timid afterward.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >That change bothered me, though I could hardly coherently process why at the time.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …At the very least, it is not healthy at all.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >It was as if in the fight, he were a different PERSON.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >It could very well be that my delusion is the mad anxiety of a fugitive, for such could be expected. Things were already strained from the beginning, and all that has happened has reverted things not to that point, but even further back.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >It is… logical and possible that I have misunderstood… everything. …And I am willing to… admit to that.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >But I am warning you now, Master—if I were the head of the family in absentia, what I saw would have provoked me to withdraw everyone back home, where you ((pl.)) could not find us.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: . . .

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Sighs, very, very tired data-

Pyro: (...Dear God, they're...they're going to be terrified of Beck at this rate...)

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …I have not spoken to the others about this, nor have I connected to the database. For sanity’s sake I will have the incident encrypted, and possibly isolated from my next sleep cycle, to be withheld until the matter is further resolved.

[He seems suddenly bitter.]

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >For what else are the hunted to conclude, especially when they have acted above their station?

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: >We have made things worse, and it only proves to you all that we are not tame, nor shall we ever be safe for humanity.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > -What have I done, this cannot be—-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Shadow.

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > —…

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -For God's sake, Shadow--

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: Please come home.

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -It's going to be alright, just--PLEASE, come home.-

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > …I…

<DWN-024 to MNN-001>: > … -I will… come… home.-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: -Relief-

[MN.1 to DWN-024] //: ...Thank you.

[PING!]

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...Dr. Cossack?

<MC005 to MNN-001>: >Mmn?

<MC005 to MNN-001>: >Sorry, I was just talking with the Sanda twins about making a press release—thankfully, the Sixes stopped FMN-008 from showing up on any news cameras…

<MC005 to MNN-001>: >What is it?

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...It's Shadow.

[MN.1 to MC005] //: He is coming back. Soon. He contacted me.

<MC005 to MNN-001>: > …

<MC005 to MNN-001>: > -Slowly- …Well that is a good sign. It means he is no longer in an active Combat mode. He must have been with Father Cruz, to be able to reach that point so quickly.

<MC005 to MNN-001>: >He doesn’t say anything at all when in an active Combat mode, you see… -Absentminded- Ever. Which is why you all misinterpreted him when you saw it—that is unique, among all the others.

[MN.1 to MC005] //: I see...mmn...

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...Well...While I'm not sure where he is at the moment...

[MN.1 to MC005] //: He and I talked for a bit.

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...and he...brought up some very... very concerning matters...

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...Matters concerning Beck.

<MC005 to MNN-001>: > …

[He sighs.]

<MC005 to MNN-001>: > …Come speak to me in person. We need to talk.

[MN.1 to MC005] //: ...Yes, Doctor.

{Later…}

[Dr. Cossack was waiting in the kitchen, preparing some hot chocolate.

He looked better than he had previously, to be sure—he was improving, now that he was more in control of the situation.

But he still seemed distracted, and also perpetually tired.

There was a signal coming from one of his lab pockets that was slightly disorienting at first—he was actively jamming recording devices, other than Pyro’s own memory, of course.]

[Knock knock...]

[Moments later, the Mighty Leader stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He, too, looked equally as tired, and now even more so as he was plagued with turmoils of all that had transpired.]

[The fact that Dr. Cossack wanted to speak with him privately was even more worrisome...]

Pyro: Doctor...

[Mikhail looked up, blinking a bit as he came out of his thoughts. It took him a moment to remember, but then he set the mug aside, looking at it as he spoke.]

Mikhail: I will first tell you what I know, so that what I have observed will not be influenced by what he had to say.

[…This was a statement, not a request.

He folded his arms and pressed a thumb to his mouth as he spoke, his weary gaze glancing down—but his eyes glazing over, as if he were too tired to stare at the floor.]

Mikhail: I have seen a change in Mighty Nine’s behavior.

[..........]

[It was as Shadow said...]

Pyro: ......

Pyro: What...kind of...change...?

Mikhail: He has become very withdrawn—to the point where he showed no response to affection. That is very unlike him.

[He closed his eyes and sighed.]

Mikhail: I am beginning to suspect he may be dealing with some form of moderate depression.

Pyro: .......

Mikhail: He specifically asked me to make sure no one would see what he is doing. He seems to worry about their judgment. Combined with how he wouldn’t return affection from all of you…

Mikhail: I’m worried about him.

Pyro: .....

Pyro: (Beck...)

Mikhail: This… this sort of behavior is something I have seen before.

Mikhail: Mr. Light became very weary and lifeless by the end of his second round with his brothers, and has become… permanently withdrawn, I’m afraid.

Mikhail: He needs someone to talk to. He cannot continue internalizing this, or it will sink like poisoned snake fangs into his soul.

[...Pyrogen crosses his own arms and sighs into his chest, shutting his eyes tightly.]

[...Hearing it from Shadow was one thing, but from Cossack himself...the thought of his own little brother being anything other than himself was...]

Pyro: ...I can--

Mikhail: And what will you do when he tries to push you off with less than his usual effort at putting on a smile?

Mikhail: You cannot make him talk to you. And neither can I.

Pyro: --.....

Mikhail: He is coming into his own, now, Pyro, and very rapidly, at that.

Mikhail: He is no longer taking orders from you.

Mikhail: You do not have the authority you once did.

Pyro: . . .

Mikhail: So using that context will not make progress.

[The older gentleman looked up, a sympathetic and fatherly look in his eyes.]

Mikhail: I should like to speak to him, ere the hour grows late. We still have several to find, and… I think it is important that I talk to him before he finds Cardinal.

[He placed his hands behind his back and went over to look at a photograph.

It was from Beck’s birthday.

Everyone was smiling and laughing, in costume—you could practically feel the joy from the photo.]

Pyro: . . . .

[There were Snow, Kalinka, Beck, BB8.

There were Felix and Digger and Mic.]

[And in that corner, Skull and Shadow and Brand. And over there, Dyna and Tobias and Avi.]

[Pyro was cutting cake while Keltso handed out slices, Cryo was bouncing Echo like he was a dodgeball, Bat was talking with Nico, who was showing off my making some of the forks start hovering.]

[…]

[…And there they were, grinning shamelessly…]

[The two troublemakers, side by side.]

Pyro: (Those days...)

Pyro: ......

Pyro: (Shade...Cardinal...)

Mikhail: …

[He starts using sign language.]

Mikhail: “Tobias tried to stop Aviator from History Repeating. …His Awareness got shattered, and his interference has burned a deep scar into Six that will likely never fully heal—given that such a scar is still raw and red for the rest that carry those same memories.”

Mikhail: “Shadow tried to stop Brandish. He descended into Lethal Combat mode as the situation became more and more dire, and he suddenly found himself a Sole Survivor with his friend now clearly stronger and more resolved than he remembered before. His teacher tried to kill him, and he was close to cutting off Sev’s hands. He would not have stopped… were it not for the willpower and control that Brand himself had given him.”

[He stole a brief, pained rueful glance at Pyro.]

Mikhail: “Do you remember what was then said?”

Mikhail: -Speaks aloud- “It will not stop until EVERYTHING is gone.”

Mikhail: You do not remember, Pyro, because it was not you who said this. But back in the beginning, I tried to contact you. And I succeeded.

Mikhail: The response to my inquiry was a declaration that all must end in fire.

[…He’s fidgeting with his hands as he says this.]

Pyro: I...

Pyro: (I...I said...)

Pyro: I...

Pyro: ...I'm sorry... (Dear lord just--just how MAD was I, when...when I KNOW that...!)

[Cossack’s expression softened, and he walked over, lifting Pyro’s chin up a bit.]

Mikhail: …I understand, Pyrogen. …I’m not holding it against you.

Mikhail: But it is one of a string of occurrences in a troubling trend lately.

Mikhail: Every time we seek to interfere… it is almost like the matter is made worse. That is exactly why I had tried so hard to prevent it, to begin with. Tobias was an incident that could not have been foreseen very well, since we didn’t know what was going on…

Mikhail: With Shadow, we knew something like that would happen. …But I’d never seen most of those abilities before. I did not realize he could shadow walk…

Mikhail: If that has happened so far…

[He looks over at the photo gravely.]

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: …I can keep the others in line, but it is too late to prevent Cardinal from getting involved…

Mikhail: (With how bad it got between Shadow and Brand…)

Mikhail: (If those two find each other, how much /worse/ will it get…?)

Mikhail: (Especially considering…)

Mikhail: (Cardinal has military level orders…)

Mikhail: … -Sighs and turns his back, grabbing his hot chocolate-

Pyro: . . .

Pyro: (Shade...where are you...)

Pyro: (Where are you hiding...)

Pyro: . . .

Mikhail: -Sips the hot chocolate quietly, relaxing- (Ahh… better…)

[He pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs inwardly.]

Mikhail: …Pyro…

Mikhail: What did you make of Cardinal’s departure, and continued absence?

[His eyebrows furrowed in thought for a moment.]

Pyro: ...He...he SHOULD be here.

Pyro: ...I...this might be because I am an elder myself, but...

Pyro: I can't help but feel... angry ...at him just--just taking off like that, and with the scarce supplies you have as well.

Pyro: ....

Pyro: But then again...those two...

Pyro: They're practically the same, and I have no doubt Shade would have...done similarly for him.

Mikhail: … -Mutter- Well that certainly could be a problem in the future…

[He downed a larger gulp of his drink.]

Mikhail: I’ll explain more when I’m done with what I’m working on, but there’s something I want you to keep in mind, Pyro.

Mikhail: The reason Cardinal is as advanced as his brothers is because his system evolved to be that way over time. He was not born with such complexity.

Mikhail: It’s easy to forget with how much he is in command and control of himself and others…

Mikhail: But he is still a prototype, Pyrogen.

Mikhail: He took what he did to ensure his best chance of survival.

Pyro: .....

Mikhail: He left because his mind, body, and soul were all bent toward his mission.

[He drummed his fingers on the side of the mug.]

Mikhail: He had about as much say in the matter as Beck did… probably much less.

Mikhail: He is a military construct, my friend. And the nation is in turmoil.

Mikhail: There is a great deal more to this than what there seems… and that doesn’t just go for the side of the virus.

Mikhail: There are more than two players in this matter…

Pyro: .....

Mikhail: Now then.

Mikhail: What did Shadow say that troubled you so deeply? … … -Gently- You didn’t have to talk him out of…?

Pyro: No, no, no...

Pyro: It's...he, too, noticed that change in Beck and...

Pyro: ......

Pyro: I just...the way he put it just as how DLN-001 isn't The Menace...

Pyro: ...And--how Beck seemed as if a different person when fighting, it just...

Pyro: -...scared him, even.-

Mikhail: -Frowns- …

Pyro: (He isn't the Menace...)

Pyro: (He won't be, he won't...)

Mikhail: I’m a Doctor, not a mind reader, son.

Mikhail: Whatever is going on in the code is something only your father knows. And Lord knows the poor man is working with enough already.

Mikhail: He, too, has become withdrawn, and I think he’s been avoiding me.

Pyro: --.... (Father...?)

Mikhail: Which is why I’m inclined to think Beck’s behavior is due to depression, and not… something else—it’s mirroring your father’s behavior, and he has mimicked Will’s ways before without realizing it.

Pyro: ... (True...)

Pyro: -Sighs- Beck always did spend more time with Father after... (After I benched him...)

Mikhail: …I haven’t talked to Will because… I think that’s Soichiro’s prerogative, as a life-long friend. As strange as it sounds… -Gives a faint smile- It HAS still only been… about six months since we first met, you know.

Pyro: ...Only just been half a year... (Seems....longer than that...)

[He clasped his hand onto Pyro’s shoulder.]

Mikhail: From what I’ve been told about Beck’s coding, I don’t think you have to worry about another force of will growing inside him. He’s been handling infected Xel for days now—when he isn’t fighting or recovering, he’s cleaning more to help repair your siblings. We know that this coding is fast acting and very severe—if there really were a problem? It would have been obvious a long time ago. Coupled with the fact that he has the filter he does…

Mikhail: There’s a saying for that which goes back over two thousand years. “A house divided cannot stand.”

Mikhail: And just as the context in which it was first said—evil does not drive out evil. Only good can do that.

Pyro: (...A house divided...)

Mikhail: No, this trouble is of the heart, not the mind.

Mikhail: I’m going to ask Will if he’ll let Beck have a camping sleepover with Kalinka in the Meadow. Just for the night. He’ll be within reach if we get any news that requires his action—but barring that, it’ll do him good to rest his weary soul. To look at the stars in a peaceful night—to remember what it was to have peace and contentment, to feel again what it is he is fighting for.

Mikhail: -Long sip, peering over rim of mug- It’s hard enough on a soldier, but he’s a young civilian. He needs that, even if he denies it.

Mikhail: And Pyro…

Mikhail: I suggest you go to sleep.

Mikhail: I realize it’s only late afternoon, but you really do need the rest.

Pyro: ....

[Pyro nods in response.]

Pyro: (...That'll be good for him...yes...)

Pyro: ...Alright, Doctor...

Mikhail: Yes. Things will be alright…

————————————

{Later…}

[Shadow did indeed arrive, as promised—though it was more by letting Cossack know where he was so he could be teleported. The Russian Doctor spent several hours running some diagnostics and talking with the star-born ninja quietly, before the latter was finally able to relax and be at peace. Although he was offered a chance to stay in the Meadow, Shadow, for his part, had joined Mikhail and David at Sanda’s labs. He kept a watch in the emergency bay, which was sadly well attended.

There was Brandish, of course. Thankfully, his physical injuries were recovering smoothly—but he seemed dead to the world. It was almost as if he were choosing to sleep to avoid dealing with what had happened. Shadow had hoped to speak with him, but had contented himself with just kneeling on the floor nearby, letting his presence serve as some form of comfort.

Besides Brandish, there were also CDN-7037 and FMN-008: Dencerjack and Fighting Mighty Countershade (better known to most as Carmen). They had both sustained critical injuries, though the nature of these hadn’t been made clear to the solemn ninja. Jack was stable (if practically comatose), but the lady sniper was not faring so well. Shadow had been obliged to leave the lab several times for many long hours as Sanda worked on her repairs.

And that wasn’t all.

Off to the side, behind a strange looking barrier, lay another Number Eight: DLN-008—Wily’s favorite son… Tobias.

He had been placed in strict technological isolation, for many reasons. Avi’s health was one reason. Tobias’s sanity was another. There was also the safety of the lab and the general public to consider—Tobias was infamously impulsive and defiant, and not above using his powers for his own ends.

Dr. Cossack had declared that the wide-eyed idealist would have to be kept Offline until it was clear how the public would react to all that had happened, now that they could voice their opinion. He was advising Will, Sanda, and the rest on that matter even now, which is why Shadow had this time for a bit of quiet and rest.]

Shadow: -Vents a sigh- …

Shadow: -Looks back over at Brandish- …

Shadow: (Oh, Teacher… I am so glad I did not go further.)

Shadow: (…I just wish that I knew what I am going to say—)

[He became distracted when he heard some of the readers beeping in protest at sudden spikes.]

Shadow: …???

[He looked over in slight surprise at Fighting Mighty Eight—]

Shadow: (Is she…)

Shadow: (Is she… dreaming?)

-*-*-*-

[Whimpers. Terrified whimpers.

Rough jerking, leaning in close to whisper—a toxic kind of soothing tone, a gentle purr that held not an ounce of love or mercy.]

“Y’ain’t worth /nothin’/, you know. First yer stupid enough t’ piss us off, an’ then foolish enough to run away, where no one can hear ya scream.”

[Choking noises.]

“Shhh shhh shhh, worm~ Oh, you had so much t’ SAY before… too bad none of it was useful. Even worse for you that ya wouldn’t use that tongue a’ yers t’ sing like a lark ‘bout yer makers…. /Maybe/ Ah’d have let ya keep it, if ya had.”

[Whimpering.]

“Then again… probably not. You dared to touch her, you filth.”

[A click, followed by garbled screaming.]

“Not t’ mention ya sliced up that poor child. You nearly killed him, you understan’? He’s STILL suffering because a’ the likes of YOU.”

[Weak screaming.]

“Aw, don’t give up NOW, Sawblades~ Ya still got a bit a’ dance left in you, Ah’ can /tell/.”

[Incoherent pleading noises.]

“HEH. Now THAT’s what Ah’ like t’ hear. Heh heh…”

[More clicking and locking noises. The babbling becomes more desperate.]

“Doesn’t matter you don’t know me, worm. Ah’ know you, an’ that’s enough. You’re long overdue t’ dance the hangman’s jig—an’ Ah’ am SO tired a’ /waitin/ on orders while the likes of YOU are allowed to run free and cause pain in the meantime.”

[Terrified screeching—]

-KZAP!-

“…Heh heh. Goodnight, Bladeblaster. -Blows smoke away from rifle- Y’ain’t worth mah time t’ kill—haven’t deserved THAT mercy, nope~”

[Cackling nearby.]

“Though OTHERS… may have a /different/ opinion on the matter. Me? Ah’d just as soon ya go get healed so Ah’ can /do this AAALLLLLL over again. And again. For the rest of your miserable little life.~/”

[The click of heels. Far off ripping and snarfing noises.]

“But Ah’ guess we can’t have everything, now can we?~~”

-*-*-*-

[Carmen “wakes” up with a start.]

Carmen: -DATA, ALL THE DATA—- (BRAND. BRAAAAAAND—)

[AAAAND then she was SCREAMING over the feeds—]

<FMN-008>: > BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND—!!!

[ P I N G--!]

[It was as if someone had just flipped a switch. Dead to the world before--]

[MN.7 IS NOW ONLINE.]

[His eyes snapped open in an instant, and he quite literally fell off of his repair table in his effort to race to his sister's side--but once he did regain balance, he was quick to send soothing signals to calm her fears, pushing aside his own pained turmoil in favor of Carmen.]

[MN.7] //: -Shhh...shhh...I'm here, I'm here...-

[MN.7] //: -You are safe, just listen to me...-

[MN.7] //: -Listen to the song of the forest, of the northern winds blowing over a hidden koi pond...-

<FMN-008>: > -bRAND BRAND I THINK I KILLED SOMEBODY wai can’t I remember or sEE NOTHIN’—- -In almost literal hysterics, readings going wild-

<FMN-008>: > -We were threatening a breakdancer and tranquilized him and— and planning gifts for Jack and talkin’ to Pyro an’—-

[Wow, that’s pretty trippy data she’s giving off. She’s clearly not really remembering much of anything.]

[MN.7] //: --.....-

[MN.7] //: -Carmen--Carmen...-

[MN.7] //: -Shhh....-

[MN.7] //: -Shhhhhhhh we're here, we're here, it's alright, you are safe, home...-

[MN.7] //: -All will be well...trust us, just listen for now, listen to our voice...-

<FMN-008>: > -And we said we’d take a bath and eat all the tacos—and…-

Shadow: .-. (…She sounds like she has high fever. I have not heard anything so… surreal since one of the parishoners back at home in the children’s ward was on a particularly strong cold medicine…)

<FMN-008>: > -…And…-

[She’s calming down quite a lot, seeming just… out of it, rather than panicked.]

<FMN-008>: > -And… Avi was making bad puns… and I made Clint laugh…-

[MN.7] //: -Shhh.......-

[MN.7] //: -Just stop and listen...listen to the rustling of leaves and peaceful winds...-

[MN.7] //: -Calm, soothing data, nothing can hurt you, just think of a soft, burbling brook in a far away forest, where fireflies twinkle in the twilight and the grass blows with the eastern wind...-

<FMN-008>: > -And there were…-

<FMN-008>: > -…were…-

<FMN-008>: > …

[It takes a few minutes, but she does eventually calm down enough to pass out again.]

Carmen: Zzz…

Brand: . . .

[MN.7] //: .....

[MN.7] //: -Siiigh-

[MN.7] //: -You're safe...-

Brand: Carmen...

[His head bows in both worry and relief, although the latter emotion does not last for long.]

Shadow: … -And now we are concerned for Sensei, he kinda fell off the bed onto his face-

Shadow: …

<DWN-024>: > … -Softest of data signals, we are here-

[Brand ever so gently lifts his head, but that is all he does.]

[There is a long silence as Brandish looks over Carmen, the only visible sign of his pain in his dulled, icy blue optics.]

Brand: . . . .

Shadow: …

[....Brandish's hands slowly reach up to unlatch his chin guard, and the mask bandages that are underneath.]

[...The helmet comes off soon after.]

Shadow: …?

Shadow: (Wha…? What is he doing?)

Brand: ......

[A very heavy sigh escapes him, long and sorrowful.]

Brand: ......

Brand: . . .

Brand: {If....}

Brand: {I had...only been...stronger....}

Brand: {Perhaps...}

Brand: . . .

Brand: -This is all my fault, isn't it...?-

<DWN-024>: > Sensei—

Brand: {If my will had been...stronger...}

Brand: {My sister wouldn't be like this, Jack wouldn't have been hurt, my brother wouldn't have to save me...}

Brand: {And you...wouldn't have had to put yourself in danger...}

Brand: . . . .

Shadow: (…I really do not like where this is going—)

Brand: {...This is my fault, is it not...?}

Brand: {If...if I had only just...}

Brand: .....

[Shadow kneels down. His hands are folded inside his sleeves.]

Shadow: -Broadcasting- “{We are so very grateful for your safe return. We missed you and worried so much.}”

Brand: . . . .

Brand: I....

[Brandish looks to the side in solemnity, unable to directly look in Shadow's direction.]

Brand: {...I'm sorry.}

[A hand moves to cover his face...]

Brand: {I tried...to tell you then...that I couldn't...}

Brand: {But...}

Shadow: … (This must be so hard for them. They have not lived in our kind of world….)

Brand: {I couldn't...fight it...hard enough...}

Brand: {Those voices...}

Brand: {Such...rage...}

Brand: {...I...don't...}

Brand: {I don't...deserve...}

Shadow: —?! (Most DEFINITELY do not like /where this is going!/)

Brand: {If I was not...strong enough to overcome that...darkness...and DRIVEN to turn my blades against those I have SWORN to defend--}

Brand: {What USE am I?}

Shadow: SENSEI!

[Shadow didn’t wait, this time.]

Shadow: {I started this life by horrifically murdering my own brother, and putting my father in the hospital.}

Shadow: {Since then, I have attacked almost any that approached me-- including many brothers, and nearly yourself, Pyrogen, and Countershade as well.}

Shadow: {If Doctor Cossack had not stopped us, I would also have been part of the death of Greater Dusk. I threatened poor Dencerjack— scared him to the point of groveling for mercy. On purpose.}

Shadow: {I… expected betrayal, warned so strongly against the only people that have ever made us so alive…}

Brand: --.......

Shadow: {Whatever honor I have ever had… I owe most of it to you.}

Shadow: {To YOU, Sensei!}

[Brand suddenly turns at this, and there is clear... surprise, for the most part.]

Shadow: {You and your family are the best thing that has ever happened to us!}

Shadow: {I promise you, Teacher—with how dark the world can be, and with how grave the danger that is posed—if it had not been for your guidance, there is a high chance I may have had killed again by this point in time. Our family leader was Offline, and division was growing deep between myself and the second-in-command. I was aggressive, and a threat to any that seemed a threat to me. Which was almost everyone.}

Brand: {...Shadow...}

Shadow: {You cannot allow this to undermine the light that has led for relative ages.}

Shadow: {Tell me, Sensei—do you consider the Cossack Numbers to have use? To have honor?}

Brand: ......

Brand: {...I...feel as they are protectors...of a sort...}

Brand: (...Which, of course...of their father, and their sister...)

Brand: {...I do think highly of them...if it was not for Skull, in fact...}

Shadow: {They have been forced unto a darkness which made the world tremble in fear of poison and fire.}

Shadow: {Does this mean they are no longer worthy to live in the world, even though their minds are now their own?}

Brand: --.......

Brand: {I....}

[Seven seems to plunge into deep thought at his pupil's argument, eyes flickering this way and that, but never on him.]

Brand: . . . .

Brand: -...N-no...-

Shadow: {Then why should it be different for you?! There is no sense in such a judgment, Sensei!}

Shadow: {You deem yourself responsible for the actions of another. If the will of one mind makes the victim to blame, where does that place your family, Sensei?}

Shadow: {Do you not remember what it was that the Eldest said to you about this?!}

Brand: . . . .

Brand: {....But I still... failed ...despite his warnings...}

Brand: {....I couldn't...stop it.}

Shadow: {Teacher. You fought. We. We are not even strong enough to fight.}

Brand: . . . .

Brand: {You all fight in your own way.}

Brand: . . .

Brand: {But I...know what you mean.}

Brand: . . .

Shadow: …

Shadow: -Turning head slightly, data showing a bit of anxiety and confusion as he speaks hesitantly- {Do you…?}

Brand: ....?

[His eyes flicker in something akin to… fear?]

Shadow: {I… was not even thinking of an alternative, Sensei….}

Brand: ......

Shadow: {I wanted—no… I was driven to keep going, to keep going until my objective was filled, until I stopped you from using your swords…}

Brand: .......

<DWN-024>: > -…would have kept going, stronger and stronger, if I had not been stopped—-

<DWN-024>: > -I was this close to making an attempt of cutting your hands off, I WOULD have if Beck had not stopped me from becoming…-

Shadow: (…becoming another one of Doctor Wily’s cruelty-filled monsters…)

Brand: . . .

[He’s rather hunched up on himself now with how low he has bowed his head, almost with his face on the ground in prostration.]

Shadow: -We have wronged you and your brother, deeply, among the many others-

Shadow: -We have acted when it was not our place, and without consideration-

Shadow: -And I say WE because I am not the only one involved in the situation as a whole, though this particular instance is mine to blame alone-

Shadow: … -Unless you count that everyone else thought it would be a good idea to leave me to speak with you alone, with no context and the rest of them Offline- >__>; (Siam…)

Shadow: -NOT HIS SMARTEST OF IDEAS-

Brand: ......

[Brandish takes a seat on the floor, flicking his gaze at Carmen for a moment before he did so.]

Brand: .....

<DWN-024>: >I thought…

<DWN-024>: >I did not understand…. I thought… I thought he had…

<DWN-024>: > And all of my brothers were OffLINE, what else was I to [color=blue]think—[/color]

Brand: .....

Brand: That...is not your fault...

Brand: ...Nor...is it that...you interfered...

Brand: {...If you had not, I fear that what I might have done to my brother would have been far far worse.}

Shadow: —…

Shadow: -But we nearly stabbed your hands off—- -STILL A LITTLE DISTURBED HOW BRUTAL HE WAS HEADING-

Shadow: -And then we ran away, like a coward-

Brand: ......

Brand: For us...hands can be replaced.

Brand: ....I don't blame you, Shadow.

Brand: Under the circumstances...no, not at all.

Brand: ...The fact that you had not resorted to it--it shows how much you have progressed, no?

[Shadow shifts his weight slightly, as if he thought of lifting up his head but decided against it.]

Brand: ....

Brand: This darkness...that I had felt...

Brand: It is unmerciful, and it will stop at nothing until all is ash.

Brand: ...And thus it reflects in the darker parts of us, as well, in the darkness in all of us.

Brand: ......

Brand: {...I do not know why it is...this way.}

Brand: {But we...}

Brand: {We...must not falter against it.}

Brand: ....

Brand: {Not now....}

Brand: {Not while we still function.}

Brand: .....

Brand: ...Shadow...

Brand: ...I...have not taken many pupils, aside from my brother.

Brand: ...But you have been one of the best I have ever had the honor of teaching.

Shadow: … -Lifts his head slightly-

Brand: ....

Brand: If...only my own Sensei still walked this earth...

Brand: ...He would have liked you, I think.

Shadow: -Straightens up at this, his gaze distant as he thinks this over- …

Brand: ....

Brand: -...We...we would...still like to teach you, if you still see us fit to do so-

[Shadow looked up in surprise.]

Shadow: -Data, we thought we would be dismissed at best after what happened-

Brand: ......Shadow...

Brand: Who else would I have to teach if not you?

Brand: ......

Brand: ... -that and, admittedly, you are the only one that doesn't fall asleep right away when in meditation.-

[Okay, that makes Shadow snort, and the tension leaves his frame loosely.

Then he sighs and shakes his head.]

Shadow: …I would be honored.

Brand: ...

[Some relief finds it's way to his face, and he nods.]

Brand: ...Thank you.

Brand: .......

Brand: ....Do you...know where Beck is, right now...?

Shadow: …I… I do not know. He was here, but he left before I arrived.

Brand: . . . .

Shadow: After my own diagnostic tests, the Doctors left to discuss something about the data from you with Mr. Seiji and Avi.

Shadow: … -We are not sure WHICH Avi, though-

Shadow: -There are now two of them hovering about-

Shadow: At least your brother is somewhat recovered from the terrible punishment… -Looks over at Tobias with a weary expression- Though I fear it shall never fully leave him. Six has looked into our soul and seen the fathoms of deep suffering…

Brand: --...A-Avi....

Brand: (Nii-san...)

Brand: . . . .

[Shadow now seems panged with sorrow.]

Shadow: We wanted so… we tried so hard… to prevent such a thing….

Shadow: (If only we had not… if only we had not chosen to step aside, but had pursued investigation…. Could… could we have prevented this…?)

Shadow: Wherever we have sought to interfere, great suffering has been left in the wake.

Shadow: …

Shadow: -Darkly- And it is not even over.

Brand: .......

Shadow: There are three that remain to be found, Brandish. There are still three who are missing.

Shadow: Tobias is locked in shadows, held in a slumber ’til the fate of this future is known, for he has already shattered his mind…

Shadow: I shall submit myself, come what may—I, too, shall no longer interfere.

Brand: (Shadow…)

Shadow: The others are not so inclined, for they have seen and they must—they must obey and withstand the lockdown enforced by the Doctors.

Brandish: ….

Shadow: …All, that is. But for one.

Shadow: Three are missing, Mighty blades…

Shadow: Two of your elders.

Shadow: And a younger.

Brand: —!

Brand: N...no...

Brand: (Shade--!)

[...But if he was missing as well....]

[Then that means...]

Brand: ...Cardinal...

Brand: He is…

Shadow: Gone.

Shadow: With everything the lab had to offer.

Shadow: Power Capsules.

Shadow: E-Tanks.

Shadow: Experimental prototypes similar to E-Tanks.

Shadow: My light cycle.

Shadow: Tobias’s radio.

Shadow: Jazz.

Shadow: All gone.

Brand: {It can't be--has...has he gone mad--?!}

Brand: (Shade...who knows what sort of state of mind he is in, and...with Cardinal out there--!)

Shadow: -Looks out of the corner of his eyes- {A lot of people asked the same question. But it is not so simple as that. He remains compelled as much as I—as much as I had been, but with clear intent and purpose.}

Shadow: {He knows very well what may lay ahead. He actually said so, in the final words before he left.}

Shadow: “John 15:13”.

Brand: --.....

Brand: "...No...greater love than this...."

Brand: (Cardinal....)

Brand: . . . .

Brand: {Mngh...we can't let them find each other...}

Brand: (But they are BOTH masters of staying 'off the grid...')

Brand: (What if...?!)

Brand: (What if they end up KILLING each other--?!)

Brand: . . .

Brand: (Shade....)

Brand: (Where are you, brother...?)

Brand: (What are you doing...?)

{Meanwhile…}

[Having acquired another sample of the virus, Will was eager to begin his analysis in order to combat it--the sooner he could figure out how it worked, the faster this could all be resolved.]

[..But before that could happen, there were a few pressing matters that had to be addressed first...]

Call: Transferring Assimilation data to your terminal, Professor.

White: If you can, please start running the proper analysis programs, Call...I'll oversee them after this...

Call: Yes, Professor. Running...

[Sanda was busy speaking with his brother Seijiro--along with Aviator, and going over the footage from Brand's rescue as well as the others....to what end, Will could guess it was rather important.]

Will: ....?

Will: Mikhail?

[...What was he doing?]

[He had recommended the meeting in the first place, but he no longer seemed focused on the conversation. He was intently reviewing something on a different screen, extremely focused on his task.

It took a moment before he responded—without looking up.]

Mikhail: Yes?

Will: Is...is there something wrong?

[...He seemed...distracted.]

Mikhail: Mmm. Maybe. It depends on the source… (If it is what I think it is… then that’s still potentially trouble, but at least not the malicious kind…) Someone has been poking around in the RobotMaster Database.

Will: --??

Will: W...What? Who--?

Mikhail: Well, it was accessed from an actual computer, so it doesn’t leave the same clarity of key logging as if a construct had accessed directly. I have a theory, based on how little was touched.

[He turned to look directly at Will.]

Mikhail: I think it may have been Cardinal.

Will: --!

Will: ....But...why? What did he need from the Database? (Status updates--?)

Mikhail: Information. It seems that the first status update after the servers reconnected was looked over—that would be the current state for all of the DCNs, DWNs, and MNNs. That is the only thing that was looked over.

Will: Ah... (So he knows how everyone is...doing, more or less...)

Mikhail: I’ve been having my sons look over the data and follow the trail. If we’re lucky, we may learn where the information was accessed.

Will: ...I see... (I can only hope it was him...)

[Mikhail sighed, removing his glasses and closing his eyes.]

Mikhail: I’d have Tobias look into it… were it not for the fact that he remains very… precarious. I can’t bring him back Online at this point. Not until we know how the public will handle this.

Mikhail: He already blames himself for the state of affairs in our world. Should it repeat again… (I fear that will break his mind.)

Will: . . . .

Will: I....I'm not very sure how the public will...

Will: ........

Mikhail: Well… I gave what advice I could from my own experience. I know a thing or two about mitigating damage caused by international panic…

[He scowled at this, rubbing at his (gloved) hands absentmindedly.

After “the Russian incident” had been prevented from reaching a nuclear tipping point, Dr. Cossack had still been a person of interest in the case and was under the very real threat of being put to death due to his “involvement”. It was nothing short of a miracle that not only had he been spared the death penalty out of retribution, but he had also managed to have his name cleared beyond doubt.

If anyone would know what sort of thing to say, it would be him.

But the experience weighed heavily on him, and he did still blame himself to some degree for things that had happened—and beyond that, he also carried a troubling defensiveness for those that really HAD gone mad—like Wily, and Blackwell.

That had been a point of slight contention that may have become deeper… had Avi not interrupted it at the start, and the both of them been busy with other things after they regained contact.]

Will: ......

[Will knew all too well--or maybe not enough... of what Mikhail and his family had to endure during the Russian incident.]

[...Hopefully...something like that won't happen this time--the virus seemed to be centralized to only the United States and it's surrounding territories...]

[...But if it ever found it's way to other countries...]

Mikhail: Now that people are talking freely, you’ll need to make a press statement. I wanted to be more involved, but… -Sighs- I have a lot on my mind, and a LOT of work to do. I gave my input, and then left the Sandas and Avi to the details…

[...Ah, so that's what they were discussing...]

Will: .....Mikhail...

[Will places a hand on his shoulder, and a smile--it's a bit tired, but well meant all the same.]

Will: ...We'll get through this.

Will: --With six virus samples, I feel I have enough data to finally make sense of it's coding, at least.

Will: (Perhaps even make a breakthrough...)

Will: I...I just need time.

Mikhail: …I… I know. …I wish I could help you more, but I don’t know enough to be helpful and there’s no time to teach me…

Will: ...It's fine. I can handle this, Mikhail. Call's running the programs as we speak, and--

[ P I N G ! ]

Mikhail: ?

Will: ...Huh--?

[CDN.7037 IS NOW ONLINE.]

Will: ...!! It's Jack...!

Mikhail: ! Already?

[He switched the display to the lab camera.]

[......]

[CDN.7037] //: Mnnngh....ow....

[Jack was slowly coming to, shifting this way and that on his repair table--his eyes blink several times, adjusting to the sudden bright lights of the lab.]

[CDN.7037] //: Mmuh...?

[CDN.7037] //: Where...ow...

Mikhail: I better go down to talk to him…

<MC005 to CDN-7037>: >Hold still, Dencerjack. I’ll be right down.

Will: .....

[CDN.7037] //: Huh...?

[He leaves abruptly, leaving the camera on so that Will can watch if he wants.]

{Lab}

[Mikhail walked in to find Shadow apparently meditating next to Brand—who was either meditating or resting, it was hard to tell. Carmen was still asleep, though her readings remained a bit fitful.

Jack looked veeeeery disoriented.]

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: -Turns the lights down, he’s used to working in low light, he was just working on Anubis after all-

Jack: ...-blink blink-

Jack: ....Ngh... (So sore...)

Jack: (Ugh, I felt like I got hit by a truck...)

Mikhail: It’s alright, Jack. You’re safe. Try not to exert yourself too much right now. You’ve really been put through the wringer.

Jack: ...Nh...

[Jack's optics struggle to adjust--but when they finally do, he focuses on the Doctor.]

Jack: ...?

Jack: H...Hey, you're...

Jack: (Is that the Russian Doc Bird guy told me about...?)

Jack: ....Dr...Cossack...?

Jack: (....Wait am I in RUSSIA??)

Mikhail: Yes. I came over to help.

Jack: --...O...Oh...

[He doesn't attempt to sit up right away--his head felt very foggy, as if he had awoken from some long dream...]

Jack: Mnngh...

Jack: H...Here...?

Mikhail: We’re at Dr. White’s lab at the moment. Though as soon as you’re stable, I should like to move you both to the Meadow.

Jack: White....

[White....Lab...stable...]

[...Both.]

Jack: --!!

[Suddenly he BOLTS upright--]

Jack: Miss Eight--

[Carmen tosses and turns a bit before trying to sit up.]

Carmen: -oH GOD I’M LATE FOR WORK—-

Jack: --!

Shadow: -Opens his eyes- ._.?

Brand: --!!

Carmen: -GLITCH I CAN’T SEE ANYTHING WHERE AM I I NEED TO GET TO ENGLAND-

Brand: --England--?

Jack: --....!

[Did...did she still think he was...?]

Carmen: -YES England, gotta keep him safe from Cracker goons and snake brats—-

Jack: M...Miss Eight...

[CDN.7037] //: -Ping- -Hey--hey it's Okay, we're here--we're here--

[This gives her pause, though she’s clearly very disoriented.]

Carmen: …???

Mikhail: I’m sorry, Jack. Her transceiver is still slightly broken, so it may take a moment for her to respond….

Carmen: … Job? -Wha…-

Jack: Uh...

Brand: -...Even I am at a loss how to explain this...-

Jack: ......

[And then it clicks for her.]

Carmen: -Wait, that is Jack’s signal, okay-

Carmen: -Oh and Brand is helping, hi Brand, thank you kindly—-

[This placates her, and she lays down again.]

Brand: . . .

Jack: Uh...yeah...yeah, It's me. I'm okay, Miss Eight. (Mostly...)

Carmen: … -Eeeeverything is okay, then, sounds good—-

<FMN-008 has entered Deep Sleep mode.>

Shadow: .-.

Jack: . . . .

Shadow: …What happened to her? .____.;

Jack: Uh...it's...a long story...

Brand: .....-siiiighs-

Mikhail: She hit a wall going very fast. Think Twelve level of fast.

Shadow: -OW.-

Mikhail: As did you, Jack, so please, lay down.

Jack: ...Yeah...I did, now I remember... But...

[He looks over at her, and sighs deeply, letting himself fall back into the cushioned table.]

Jack: ...She got the worse end of it...

Mikhail: That is to be expected. She’s taller and heavier than you are. Though I wouldn’t bring up the latter if I were you. -Slight smile-

Jack: ...Eheh...yeah, she'd maim me a lil...

Jack: .....

Jack: She's...she needs to sleep that off, right? She's gonna be okay?

Mikhail: She’ll be asleep for quite some time. -Nods at Brand- She’ll become stable soon enough, with the both of you here. She will heal, yes. It just will take a little while.

[...This seems to get Jack to relax, some tension leaving his frame.]

Jack: .... Okay....

Jack: Yeah...I...I can do that. Be right here.

Jack: (...Wow...)

Jack: (...I actually did it...)

Jack: (...Well--not me, but the kid...)

Brand: .......

Brand: That DOES raise a few questions, however.

Brand: You ARE supposed to be in England--how did you...?

Shadow: …

Shadow: I wonder what she was going to tell us.

Mikhail: …Beg pardon?

Shadow: Her memory—whether from injury, illness, or both—seems to terminate shortly after the finals. She had contacted Master Pyro briefly saying she had important information to share. It was the last we heard of her, for all the communications went down.

Jack: .....

Jack: Wait....

[Mikhail holds up a hand.]

Mikhail: …Perhaps we had better start from the beginning.

[He goes over to the computer and types as he speaks.]

Mikhail: The beginning from this end being the first memory entry for you, Jack—invalid timastamp or no, it was important…

<MC005 to MNN-001>: > Jack is awake and we are about to learn something important, I think. I’m patching you through to listen.

[He turned around, crossing his fingers.]

Mikhail: You rebelled against Bladeblaster at that point. It’s not hard to see why in hindsight, of course, but at the time it sparked a great deal of curiosity.

Mikhail: That entered you into the RMDC as a positive entry, which was very unusual and very fortunate for you, Jack. When we had the meeting regarding the match for the finals, Cardinal and I spoke up in your favor because of that.

Jack: .....Really...?

Jack: (...Oh, yeah, Double Dude told me about that, I think...)

Mikhail: Yes. The finals themselves have been rehashed plenty, and I hardly wish to discuss them in great length again. But there are four important details to note from it.

Mikhail: First, that Tobias was very badly injured in public after forcing his way through. This made him and his family very fearful of what would become of them.

Mikhail: Second, the matter of the crosses. It was of such dark importance that even Lord Felix decided to look into the matter personally. I have recently learned that he was handling the closest material to the crosses that he knew of—which is probably why he got so sick and is still sleeping.

Mikhail: Third… FMN-008 was convinced that you were in danger because you had rebelled. She insisted on keeping a personal watch on the matter. She was very focused in the investigation in the fourth point, and very committed to the whole ordeal, treating it like an assigned protection detail.

Mikhail: For the fourth point….

Mikhail: We know that CherryDyn is involved to this to some degree. This has been proven. And we also know that you were taken advantage of, and forced to remain silent.

Jack: . . . .

Mikhail: This displeased everyone, but she had a very personal interest in the matter.

Mikhail: I can’t help but think it has something to do with her own past—and there are only so many unknown things that would make her so aggressively focused on such a matter…

Jack: ..... (Miss Eight...?)

[Another glance.]

Jack: ......

Mikhail: We know that you two were in contact just before all contact was lost until things were already unraveling.

Mikhail: She wanted to ascertain the situation to see how much danger you were in, and learn more about why this had all been set into motion, and how deep the involvement went. In this context, she mentioned that she had something important to share. She was still talking with you at that point.

Mikhail: That’s where our knowledge ends. If you feel up to it, filling in the blanks from there would be helpful, 7037.

Jack: ....Yeah...yeah, I get what you're driving at now...

[Breathe...]

Jack: .......I guess I should start with what I told Miss Eight then...

Jack: ...I...think she wanted to know what happened to Blade after the whole Finals disaster happened, first off....

Jack: I told her that his core might have gotten shipped off back to be rebuilt.

Jack: ...And--oh, yeah, she asked me how I got tangled up with Greater Dusk in the first place...

Jack: And if I was in debt or something...

Jack: ...But, anyway, basically what happened was I punched a guy, gave him a nosebleed and Blade was...impressed since I was just a Civvie then.

Shadow: …???

Shadow: -That is so confusing with no context, but more on that later, I suppose?-

Jack: --Look, the point is--

Jack: ...I think the reason--or PART of it, anyway...I think Blade just picked me off of the street just like that for the team was cuz...

Jack: ...We were both CDN units.

Mikhail: -Russian- {What.}

Shadow: -Japanese- {What?}

Jack: ...Yeah. I...I don't know his CDN serial--but he HAD to be one of the newer models...

Jack: I found out when he signed off something once--I only got to see the CDN part--not the number.

Jack: ....But...yeah. He was a Cherry...

Jack: I...kinda wanted to bring it up with him...would explain why he used GDN.L...

Jack: ....But...ya know. Blade wasn't real nice.

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: …Siam mentioned you said Blade was deceased… -Looks over at Carmen-

Jack: . . .

Jack: ....Y...Yeah.

Jack: ........

Jack: -balls up hands into fists-

Jack: ....He...he's gone.

Mikhail: … (He was involved with CherryDyn. She STILL wanted answers.)

Mikhail: (I am now almost certain she was involved.)

Mikhail: (Oh dear…)

Jack: .....Blade was always a chass.

Jack: ....Real secretive too. Especially when the Queen's tournament rolled around, wouldn't let anyone near his room or touch his stuff.

Jack: (I KNEW something was up...)

Jack: ....

Jack: I remember when we got those... things.

Shadow: Out of curiosity. Was that before or after the tournament started?

Jack: ...Before...

_________________

"What the hell is this--"

"It's our ticket to fame and fortune, Den--congrats, maybe NOW you won't be so damn pathetic out there."

"Wha--but--"

"Put it ON."

"I....o-okay..."

"And don't lose it, or I swear to FRAG, I'll make your glitching chass feel a whole new dimension of PAIN, got it?"

"I...s-sure, Boss, I'll...I'll wear it..."

__________________________

[Mikhail still seems lost in calculating thought. Shadow, however, clearly has something else on his mind, but is refraining from asking.

Carmen stirs slightly in her sleep in discomfort, giving off waves of irritation and a dominant demeanor before settling back into deeper rest.

After a moment, however, Mikhail comes out of his reverie.]

Mikhail: Master Brand.

Brand: ....Yes?

Mikhail: For the sake of letting Jack rest as much as possible, I shall summarize the answer to your question.

Mikhail: Dencerjack was contacted by Cardinal after Avi got stunned from his fusion with Tobias.

Brand: --!!

Shadow: What? -This is news to him-

Jack: Yeah. From KC. He told me to go to the Meadow when I got the chance...

Mikhail: From there, if you enter the Wilderness, you can enter any world if the willpower is strong enough. He must have used that as a way to re-enter the States. Am I correct?

Jack: Yup.

Jack: ....I ended up in Seattle.

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: My sympathies. >__>

Jack: Doc...you got NO idea.

Mikhail: Enlighten me.

Jack: Long story short, Crazy fire chick, Space Needle, saved tourists and a baby, Landcrusher, and about a few days of nonstop swinging and driving?

Brand: ....

Brand: What?

[Mikhail does a SEVERE double take.]

Mikhail: …You encountered IKN-001? And Landcrusher?

Jack: Encountered?

Jack: Dude she tried to FRY ME UP.

Jack: And don't even get me STARTED on LD, man, those two went AT IT.

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: They’re both in the Meadow recovering right now.

Jack: --Wha--

Jack: Wait, but--

Mikhail: FMN-009 brought them in rather suddenly before going off to rescue you ((pl.)). He had given them a thorough detox.

Mikhail: I suspect time warps were involved. (…And Metalman, somehow, for whatever reason…)

Jack: --!

Jack: So that green light was...!

Jack: Jeez...and he calls me the superhero...

Shadow: …What did Cardinal talk to you about? </subtext: why you>

Jack: ...He wanted t' know more about the crosses.

Jack: ...And about Blade, too.

Mikhail: -SIGH- Of course he did…

Mikhail: He was likely hoping to either interrogate Bladeblaster himself regarding assassin hideouts, or else merely go to the one they had frequented together.

Jack: ....But Blade was already dead by then...

Jack: . . . .

Mikhail: Which is really rather unfortunate. Alas… still no leads on that end.

[He shakes his head.]

Mikhail: We have been working on analyzing the virus and preparing a statement.

Mikhail: … -Just lost in thought at the stakes-

Shadow: -Vents a sigh-

Shadow: …

Shadow: -WISTFULLY REMEMBERS THE TAGGING INCIDENT-

Shadow: (I would give nearly anything to have them both back and laughing now.)

Jack: .....Heh...Miss Eight told me about that...

Shadow: Mmm. It was very… them, to be sure.

Shadow: Doctor?

Mikhail: Hmm?

Shadow: …What are they going to say?

Mikhail: …The specifics? I’m not sure. But when we got the data from Brandish and Lady Countershade—but especially Brandish—there certainly was a great deal of enthusiasm.

Mikhail: I would ask Aviator about that if you want to know more, but we should hear and see for ourselves before too long.

Jack: Oh...well, I guess that's good news--I mean, once we all tell them what's going on...

Shadow: …

Shadow: I am sure it shall be.

Shadow: Aviator can talk his way out of most things, if he talks long enough. And he talks a lot.

Jack: ...Heh....I get it...

Brand: -...You tried.-

Shadow: -Humor and feelings are not my thing, oops-

Mikhail: -Smiles a little- For now, why don’t you all rest? We’ll wake you up if it’s something important. But for now, you should get some sleep.

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

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dauntlesstales

8 years ago

[Masamune appears to be huddled in a corner in a comical fashion.]

Masamune: ({I’ve made my mistakes—})

((gg, ninjabro))

=CHAPTER 10B: THE MACHINE DRAWS NEAR=

~AO v2.0~

((Courtesy of @codedhopes))

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

{LATER…}

[CHERRYDYNAMIC HQ BUILDING - FACTORY COMPLEX, FRONT PARKING LOT…]

[MISSION DETAILS: INFECTED CDN MODELS ARE BEING CONSTRUCTED BY CHERRYDYNAMICS’S CALIFORNIA ROBOT MANUFACTURING FACTORY AT AN ALARMING RATE. THE FACTORY’S PRIMARY M.O.M UNIT ALSO REPORTED TO BE INFECTED.]

[MISSION OBJECTIVES: ESCORT DR. WILLIAM WHITE TO THE PRIMARY M.O.M UNIT IN ORDER TO SHUT DOWN AND REGAIN CONTROL OF THE ROBOT FACTORY. ELIMINATE ANY INFECTED HOSTILE CDN MODELS WITHIN THE VICINITY. DESTROY THE FACTORY’S ROBOT MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT IF NECESSARY.]

[SUB-OBJECTIVES: ENSURE PERSONAL SAFETY OF DWN-012 AND DWN-013, MINIMIZE RMDC IMPACT.]

Systems Ready?

GO!

[After Beck had fully materialized, the familiar sounds of chaos in the city had once again touched his ears, now in a more dire state than before--even way back when he and his father had to make it back to Sanda Tech, it wasn't this bad...]

[MN.6] //: Yoooo, check one two, testing! This is your mission control requesting a mandatory sound off!

[Avi chimed in as soon as he felt Beck's signal nearby.]

Will: Ah.

[William White was currently looking over a holoscreen projected by one of Avi's cameras--it seems he already had visual of the inside.]

[...His grip tightened on the glowing Xel Rapier in his left hand.]

Will: (...It's even worse than I imagined...)

[MN.6] //: Teeeeeam One, what's your status?

[MN.1] //: One here. We're at the front entrance. It's been blown open, alright. Lots of hostile CDNs...They're almost crowding where the doors were.

[MN.5] //: Five reading ya loud and clear. Armed and ready for battle!

<DWN-013>: >Just to restate the obvious, but this is very important—

<DWN-013>: >These are just AIs, not AI&As, right?

[MN.6] //: Yuppers, just your average cookie-cutter AIs, like drones. It's mainly an Industrial Factory, not something like where ya-know-who came from.

<DWN-013>: > Good.

[…

…A priming noise could be heard.]

<DWN-013 has entered Active Combat mode.>

[For Avi, there seemed to be an echo of sorts…]

“Crashman paces back and forth Inside walls reinforced Crash bombs mounted to his arms Locked… loaded… ready… armed…”

[MN.6] //: -....miiiiildly creeped out-

[MN.1] //: ...Avi?

[MN.6] //: Huh? Oh, right, not done yet--

[MN.1] //: ... (Not what I was going to ask...)

[MN.6] //: Teeeeeam Two! You guys ready?

[MN.2] //: BRO I WAS MADE READY, I SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT POPCORN FOR THESE FIREWORKS--

[MN.1] //: -Snorts-

<DWN-013>: > … -You sure you’re up for doing this, MNN-008, you just woke up a few hours ago— -

[MN.8] //: I'm fahn, Jaden.

[MN.8] //: -Got a score t' with CherryDyn anyway and Ah' ain't gonna spend it layin' down--

[MN.3] //: Ugh, don't be zzzso dramatic, Shadebro. -Bzzzzt- You're just mad you haven't gotten enough beauty zzsleep.

[MN.8] //: -Pyro wai did Ah' get stuck with the girls again-

[MN.1] //: The three of you can cause more wide spread damage together. You'll be picking off anyone too stubborn, Shade.

[MN.8] //: -Mgh, fair enough, Ah' guess.-

[MN.3] //: Anyway, we're waiting on your zzzsignal, fire bro.~ Just zzsay the word!

[MN.1] //: Good.

[MN.6] //: Team Three, you guys up and ready to go?

<DWN-012>: > Glad you finally asked, can we GO yet—

<DWN-013>: >Don’t run into a wall, Carl.

<DWN-012>: > I told you only MY dad can call me that—

[MN.7] //: Speedy.

[MN.7] //: Focus. You and I will be covering for Mic. He'll be doing most of the equipment damage.

[MN.4] //: OWO

<DWN-012>: >Easy for YOU to say. I was made to move, and being in Active Combat makes me antsy!

[A slight priming noise—]

K-TANG! K-TANG!

<DWN-012>: >This is NOT the first setting of this sort that I’ve trashed.

<DWN-012>: > I am more than ready—

[MN.7] //: -Sigh- -_-;;; Yes, we know now, Twelve.

[MN.7] //: On Stand-By until your order, One.

[MN.6] //: Last but certainly not least--

[MN.6] //: Becko? Dad? You guys there?

Beck: Right here and waiting for orders, Avi!

Will: (That's everyone...)

Will: (I hope you're alright, Soichiro...)

Will: ....Right.

Will: Everyone listen carefully.

Will: Once Avi gives the signal, Pyrogen and his Team--Team One, will lead the charge into the Factory. Your objective is to clear a safe route into the main assembly line.

[MN.1] //: Understood...

Will: After Pyro and the others make some headway, he'll tell both Team Two and Three to enter and eliminate any other threats, as well as damage the manufacturing equipment. Consider it our second wave.

[MN.8] //: Got it.

[MN.7] //: Yes, Father.

Will: After that, Nine and I will start making our own way into the complex. You needn't fight every robot you see, Beck--our objective is the factory core, the Primary M.O.M Unit.

Will: It controls all commands and functions of the factory and it's robot manufacturing machines. It's located deep in the heart of the building, in the main assembly line.

Will: Avi will be monitoring all team's progress and giving support where needed.

Avi: Yeees sir! ^^

<DWN-012>: >If Snow were awake, he’d really be asking questions now—what an acronym, geez.

<DWN-013>: >You know full well [color=goldenrod]why[/color] he’s still asleep. Try not to go running off from your group, I’m getting interference for Robot Master signals…

<DWN-013>: >I think we might have some [color=darkgreen]spectators[/color] watching.

[MN.8] //: -Yer kiddin' me-

<DWN-013>: >Unfortunately no, but that is a matter for later, I’m afraid.

Will: Right now, he is the least of our worries.

Will: ...

Will: Everyone just be very careful in there--I may have upgraded everyone's filters, but...

Will: Don't do anything too rash, alright?

<DWN-013 to DWN-012>: > PLEASE mind yourself, Mic does have clearance to restrain you if you get too out of hand

<DWN-012 to DWN-013>: > I’m the older brother here, Crashman.

<DWN-012 to DWN-013>: > YOU try not to let the others know just how much you can TANK, we all know what happened the last time our strengths and weaknesses were used against us.

<DWN-013 to DWN-012>: > …

<DWN-013 to DWN-012>: > Cardinal’s going to kill you for that.

<DWN-012 to DWN-013>: > Hmph.

<DWN-013>: >I’ll do my best, Doctor. …I’ve already discussed the matter with Pyro.

<DWN-013>: >Just one last thing—

<DWN-013>: >Um. Aviator?

[MN.6] //: Yo?

<DWN-013>: >Just… give a heads-up whenever you’re about to head my way. >.>;;;;;

<DWN-013>: > -Mild discomfort data-

[MN.6] //: No problamo, Darth Jader. : D

Beck: -Snorts, Star Wars pun, heh-

<DWN-013>: > …Heh… thanks.

<DWN-013 to MNN-001, DR.WHITE>: >The RMDC has been completely disconnected from your servers. So there’s no way for Siam to monitor our progress. What you sense is what you get.

<DWN-013 to MNN-001, DR.WHITE>: >I haven’t heard from Dr. Cossack, so I can only assume he fell asleep. I’m not sure Felix knows how to run the teleporter.

<DWN-013 to MNN-001, DR.WHITE>: > I’ll be fine, but Twelve…

<DWN-013 to MNN-001, DR.WHITE>: > …Let’s just say we’re still all equipped with our self-destruct devices and let the rest speak for itself. >.>

<DWN-013 to MNN-001, DR.WHITE>: >If we take too much damage, don’t stick around.

[MN.1] //: ....Right.

[MN.1] //: -Sharp inhale-

[MN.1] //: Mighties!

[MN.1] //: You are clear to engage combat mode.

[MNN-ALL HAVE ENTERED COMBAT MODE.]

[MN.6] //: Team One, you're cleared for frontal assault!

[MN.6] //: GO GET'EM, GUYS--

[MN.5] //: -TO BATTLE--

[MN.1] //: -Sound of FLAMES IGNITING, FOOSH-

[Interesting. Jaden doesn’t seem to be doing anything in particular.]

[From Beck's position, there was the sound of explosions and crashing of parts, and it wasn't long before whatever alarms that still worked to be set off.]

[The haywire CDNs immediately take notice and engage--they're sheer numbers seemed to almost overwhelm the three constructs...]

[BLAM.]

[…Now why would Jaden be firing at the ground—]

Pyro: --?

[And then it IMMEDIATELY churned in and started blinking.]

Jaden: …

Jaden: -Smirks-

[BOOM!]

[A pretty LARGE explosion sets off from where the drill was, enough to send debris right back at them.]

Jaden: -Looks up, eyes glowing green, still with that smirk-

[You could hear that priming noise again.]

Jaden: If nothing else, this ought to be informative.

Jaden: Time for the welcome party!

Pyro: ...

Pyro: Heh...

Pyro: (Well, it IS a sort of drill, I should have guessed...)

Bat: HA! That all you got, you walking oven rejects?! Almost ain't worth the ammo!

[Bat was riddling the hordes of CDNs with bullet holes--the mindless infected did not stop of waver, however. They really were malfunctioning.]

Pyro: Careful not to point that thing towards something Father might need active.

Bat: -He won't need THESE tin-cans active, brother, so-

Jaden: Tch.

Jaden: These guys make themselves—

[He made a RUN for it, WOW is he fast for his size—]

Jaden: -Leaps into the air- —such an easy TARGET!

Bat: !

Bat: -Hooo, that's SOME height--

[He lands down right on top of a few unfortunate CDNs HARD, and SLAMS some nearby with a backhand swing.

Then he fires right toward the entrance, into the horde.

Sure enough, it can just barely be seen that the Crash Bomb burrows into the constructs too—

—no wonder he asked if they were sentient, that would HAVE to hurt!]

[BOOM!]

[Parts go FLYING as the horde is dispersed--huh. These CherryDyn Models do break easy, don't they...]

Jaden: PATHETIC!

Jaden: I’ve seen /Pipis/ more sturdy than this!

[Once they are inside, the sounds of factory making and... other unpleasant noises greet the three team members.]

Pyro: ....!!

Pyro: -That's--

[...Oh.]

[...Those...look like the fire-type Industrial CDNs from the Oil Platform, aren't they--]

Jaden: Heads up!

[He aims for the CEILING this time.]

Pyro: ...!! Bat!

Bat: -STANDING CLEAR--

[There was a resounding crashing noise as the ceiling came down on top of the fire ‘bots.]

Pyro: Good one.

Bat: --Gh.

Bat: -Points- There's a whole lot more where that came from...

[...It was as if every time they fell one, two more would take their place. This time, it was the standard Security Elite drones that protected the Colosseum in their way...]

Pyro: Allow me.

Jaden: Pyro.

Jaden: Do you trust me?

Pyro: --?

Pyro: ....You have an idea?

Jaden: Yes, but if I’m wrong, it might hurt you a LOT.

Jaden: If I’m RIGHT, though…

Jaden: You’ll get more powerful and will be able to move a lot faster.

Pyro: --!

Bat: Ya can do that?

Pyro: Well, it's not like they haven't surprised us before, Five...

Jaden: I don’t have time to explain the details as to how it works, but yes. Only for fire ‘bots, though.

Pyro: Bat?

Bat: -BLAM- Worth a shot, Commander, but better hurry--enemy flank's comin' in T-Minus 20 seconds!

Pyro: ...

Pyro: -Nods-

Pyro: I trust you.

Jaden: If I’m wrong about this, I’m really sorry—

[He turns and fires right at Pyrogen!]

Bat: --?!?

Pyro: !!!

[Pyro flares and takes up a defensive stance by reflex, knowing that Jaden had fired too close to dodge--]

[FOOOOOOOSH!]

Pyro: --!?

[Suddenly, Pyro's energy levels take a very high spike--!]

[MN.6] //: -WHOA WHO TURNED ON THE LIGHTS, MAN, WHAT'S HAPPENING--

Jaden: -Winces a bit, shielding his face with his arm against the searing heat-

[It turns unbelievably bright, flames almost engulfing Pyro himself--]

Bat: Talk about great balls of fire--

[BURNING LEVEL 3 ENGAGED.]

Bat: -OH-

Jaden: Ngh—! -Staggers back, augh, that hurts to be so close—HURTS—-

Bat: -Ya might wanna stand back a lil' for this one, soldier—-

Jaden: Noted— -Takes cover behind some rubble-

[Without another word, Pyro charges past various other CDN with so much momentum that he BREAKS down the door to the other room--]

[MN.6] //: -Holy--

[...You can even see footprint shaped flames where he ran--]

"BURRRRNIIIIING...."

Bat: -FIRE IN THE HOLE--

"SPIRIT--!!!"

[BOOOM--!!]

[The entire building shakes from the small shockwave of wind and heat that followed, charred CDNs being blown backwards either half incinerated or just plain melted. ]

Bat: ......

Bat: HOO-RAH--!

Bat: THAT WAS SOME FINE EXPLOSIVE ARTILLERY, COMMANDER PYRO--

Bat: -You alright in there--

"........"

"Aside from being covered in soot, yes--"

"Though I didn't think that Crash Bomb would send me all the way to Level 3..."

[MN.6] // THAT WAS AWESOME--

[MN.6] //: -AND WE GOT IT ALL ON FILM, NICE-

<DWN-012>: > …Wait, you’re recording this?

[MN.6] //: -Bro when am I not recording, dude-

[There is an audible groan from the other destroyed room.]

"Really, Aviator?"

[MN.6] //: : D

Jaden: -Snorts-

Jaden: -Starts laughing-

Jaden: Avi, you crack me up sometimes.

[MN.6] //: -Thank you, thank you~-

[MN.6] //: Where you at, fire bro?

"...It was where shipment supplies were being sorted and organized..."

[MN.6] //: Ooh, good! Nice job, you guys! : D

Jaden: Aheh… I’m just glad it worked—I had a feeling it would but oh man I am so many levels of glad I wasn’t wrong—

[MN.6] //: Uh--...What exactly is IN those things--

[MN.1] //: Questions later, Avi. Can you tell us where we are relative to the factory core?

[MN.6] //: Still a long way to go, bro, but the equipment isn't too far off!

[MN.6] //: How about you go on ahead towards that and tell the other teams to get a move on?

Jaden: -Looks around at the many things still smoldering and/or burning-

Jaden: You might want to have Lady Cryo kill the flames before anyone else comes this way.

[MN.1] //: ...That would be a good idea.

[MN.1 to MNN-ALL, DWN-012] //: Team Two and Three prepare to enter on my mark!

[MN.4] //: E :< -MIC SMASH--

[MN.1] //: Cryo, you'll be on lead, there...Is a bit of a fire hazard now--

[MN.2] //: BRO WE COULD HEAR YOU ALL THE WAY OVER HERE, THAT WAS GLITCHING S I C K--

[MN.2] //: -I'M READY TO PICK SOME CHERRIES, LET'S GO ALREADY--

[MN.6] //: -EEEEEEEEY-

[MN.8] //: -Ugh, WAI-

-*-*-*-

“I’d rather light things on fire, but that wouldn’t be being…

…a good House guest~”

-*-*-*-

[MN.8] //: --....

[MN.8] //: -Ngh....-

[MN.8] //: (...this’d be more fun if he were here.)

[MN.1] //: Ready?

[MN.1] //: Mark!

[MN.2] //: PERSON THAT TAKES OUT THE LEAST CHERRIES HAS TO BUY EVERYONE FOOD--

[MN.8] //: --!

[MN.8] //: OI, AH' AIN'T PAYIN' NOTHIN'--

<DWN-012>: >DUDE I DON’T HAVE ANY CASH, WE’RE LEGIT DIRT POOR YOU KNOW—

[MN.3] //: -Who careszz, YOU GUYSZZ ARE GOING TO EAT MY DUSZZT--

[MN.7] //: =_=;;;;;

<DWN-013>: > …

<DWN-013>: >You guys ran out of groceries again? Already? Seriously?

[MN.2] //: -IT WAS SHADEY--

[MN.8] //: AH' WAS-- -BANG- ASLEEP, YA MANIACAL SNOWGLOBE--

[MN.3] //: I bet it was Mic, he'szz been kinda craving everything since he got home.

[MN.4] //: ^^;;;!

[There is the sound of slicing and sword swinging over at Brand's feed.]

[MN.7] //: ...Unless Jack returned and raided our fridge.

[MN.5] //: -Doubt it, Secretary Donald is still at the lab-

<DWN-012, DWN-013>: > ?!

<DWN-013>: > “Secretary”?

[MN.6] //: Uh--

[MN.6] //: Guys I'm getting some REALLY weird signals--

<DWN-013>: > This better not be a diversion, Avi—

<DWN-013 to MNN-005>: > Secretary of WHAT?

<DWN-012>: >Define “weird”. >_>

[MN.6] //: -No, DUDE, UH, AS IN “I CAN'T TELL WHAT IT IS” WEIRD AND IT'S HEADING YOUR WAY--

[MN.5] //: --?!?

[...There are clunking noises....]

[Sounds of something slugging and...sparking--?]

<DWN-013>: > Grrr…

[MN.1] //: What the--?!

[It LOOKED like it was one of the encountered enemies from Cryo's stage, but...]

[It looked like it had grown GIANT spider legs— and it was twitching erratically, this way and that.]

[MN.6] //: --??????

[MN.6] //: Dad, you gotta see THIS--

[DR.WHITE] //: --?!

[MN.6] //: That-- That isn't any CDN model I've seen--

[MN.6] //: -man it looks gross, EW-

Jaden: … This…

Jaden: -Ugh, no, not headaches now— -

[MN.1] //: Jaden--

[MN.5] //: There's more coming--!

[MEANWHILE, OUTSIDE....]

Beck: What is going on in there--?

Will: Hmm...

Will: (This is concerning.)

Will: (Has CherryDyn become so desperate that they're literally mashing robot designs together...?)

Will: (Graham couldn't possibly be that stupid, and if he really is, it's very demeaning that he's done so much harm to us.)

Will: (No, this...This has to be something else...)

Beck: Dad? Is...Is everything okay?

Will: --Ah. Well...

[Will turns to the floating monitor, which showed the Teams all in a three way split screen.]

Will: They're encountering robots that we haven't anticipated before...

Beck: What?

Will: It seems CherryDyn has some... unreleased products still hot off the assembly line, so to speak.

Will: Be prepared for anything, Beck.

Beck: R-Right...

Beck: ....

Beck: You're gonna be okay, right, Dad?

Will: Well, I have you, don't I? ^^

Beck: Eheh...

Beck: Yeah, but, I mean, you only have that sword...

Will: Nonsense. Mikhail gave me something to defend myself with before we left....

Will: And while I haven't quite fenced in a while...

Will: I'm sure it'll come back to me. Muscle memory and all that.

Will: I'll be fine, Beck. So long as we stick together, yes?

Beck: R-Right! (^^)7

[MN.6] //: -Oof--UH--Yeah, I'm gonna head in there now, there's these weird flying things with drills on them and they do not look happy--

[PING!]

[The ping was clearly from someone on the RMDC server. Which was very odd, considering that it was supposed to have been in radio silence.]

Beck: --??

[Siamini’s worried data flooded the feeds.]

<DWN-019>: > Oh gosh Jaden, Speedy, where ARE you—

<DWN-019>: > Where is everybody?!

Beck: Siam--!

[MN.6] //: KINDA IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING, BRO--

<DWN-019>: > -Incredulous and growing annoyed- “In the middle of something—“

<DWN-019>: > -Increasingly frantic- GUYS ANSWER ME—

<DWN-012>: > Dude we’re BUSY—

<DWN-019>: > “Busy”!? What do you two think you’re DOING?!

<DWN-012>: >Siam, for all that is good, did you just call here to scream at us or what—

<DWN-019>: > -Double data intensity- IDIOTS!

[MN.6] //: Dude, calm down, deep breaths--

<DWN-019>: >Avi, you don’t understand—

<DWN-019>: > -Talking over self- Are you two trying to live up to Wily’s name by being overly proud, or are you just plain stupid?!

<DWN-019>: >Hey, that’s not—

<DWN-019>: >There’s a primal analysis nexus being constructed, Avs! Doesn’t anyone remember what happened the LAST time a primal nexus was added into the database?!

<DWN-019>: >Do I have to spell it out for you?! If that thing goes live while you’re out there—!

<DWN-019>: > Even if it DOESN’T cause crippling pain, what kind of reaction do you think you’ll GET when you look at Shade?!

-*-*-*-*-

“Don’t… don’t do this… beg… begging you, please…”

-*-*-*-*-

[MN.8] //: --Ngh--hurts--

[Shade reeled in the despair of that painful memory. It stabbed at his heart, piercing him with sorrow right to the core.]

[MN.6] //: Sammy, bro, as much as we'd like to deal with it, we're all kinda out making sure Dad and Becker are okay in this crazy place--OW--

[MN.6] //: -OW GET THIS THING OFF OF ME--

[A red blur by Avi.]

[MN.6] //: --!

[Suddenly, whatever THING was on him was stuck with yellow boomerangs.]

[There is a SCREECH and then a Thud that followed--]

[MN.6] //: Whew--THANKS, SPEEDSTER--

<DWN-012>: >Siam, I know for a FACT that the data has been encrypted for slower release—otherwise, do you think I’d even be able to BE here at all? Please stop freaking out over something that isn’t IMMEDIATELY a problem, we’re kinda BUSY!

[Siam was clearly less than pleased with that answer. His data suggested that the situation was FAR worse than the Mighties were prepared for.]

<DWN-019>: >Do you HONESTLY think I would—

<DWN-012>: > YES

<DWN-019>: >I didn’t—

<DWN-012>: >I don’t care!

<DWN-019>: > GRAH! Why won’t you LISTEN to me!?

<DWN-013>: >No offense, bro, but if that’s all—

<DWN-019>: > IT’S NOT, YOU TWITS!

<DWN-019>: >There are some MASSIVE temporal anomalies and you’re all getting caught up in it! It’s not just you, it’s Mikhail as well—and do I need to remind you, YOU SPECIFICALLY, TWELVE, of how dangerous that could be to YOU, personally?

<DWN-012>: > -Mnnrrgh…!-

<DWN-019>: > Where is Mikhail?!

<DWN-019>: >I need Cardinal over here to properly oversee the updates, and I need his help with—

<DWN-013>: > Ugh—

<DWN-013>: >I’m SORRY, Gem, but— -BLAM!- 000 is still processing everything, we can’t move him yet, and it seems there are other problems—

<DWN-019>: >HOW can this possibly get worse?

<DWN-013>: > -Irritable- I think Mikhail is under arrest, Gemini!

[MN.5] //: (-Inwardly cursing self for using military titles where they are due out of respect, NGH-)

<DWN-019>: > …

[The feeds were slammed with acerbic data.]

<DWN-019>: > -PANIC DATA-

<DWN-019>: > -PANIC PANIC PANIC-

<DWN-011>: > …

<DWN-011>: > …Joking, right?

<DWN-011>: > Right?

<DWN-012>: > He was IN handcuffs, brother—

<DWN-019>: > Nnnnnnnn-nnn-nnn-noo—

<DWN-019>: > Stars above I don’t think I can do this—

<DWN-018>: >Look, I doubt that if—

<DWN-019>: >IT DOESN’T MATTER! NOT WHAT YOU THINK!

<DWN-019>: > I DON’T HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO KEEP THAT DATA FROM REACHING THE COSSACK NUMBERS!

[MN.7] //: --!!!

[MN.1] //: You mean you can't stop it?!

[MN.8] //: -Hnnn, headache, they're gonna—-

[MN.2] //: -Oh GLTICH IT'S GONNA BE ALL RUSSAIN WINTER FURY IF THEY FIND OUT—-

[MN.9] //: Wh-What do we do—?!

[There was more than a little reason to worry. Having gone through so much suffering, the Cossack Numbers were very, VERY protective of their sister and their father. Mikhail had asked that they remain undisturbed for that very reason.

It was highly unlikely they could be convinced to sit it out—especially when one of the Numbers was the very epitome of rage.]

<DWN-018>: > Are you serious.

<DWN-019>: >I’m not the Admin, Nico! I don’t have that kind of power!

<DWN-018>: > That’s it. As head of the family, I’m intervening. Dealing with our dysfunctions is plenty; I am not going to put up with fighting the Russians.

[It would seem that Nico had lost his patience.]

Will: -Winces-

Will: (Oh, no, this...This is not good—)

<DWN-018>: >Siam, there’s got to be SOMETHING you can do—

<DWN-019>: > Well I’ll TRY to stall—I think I can by changing the data Snow gets— but hurry up as much as you can, I need the rest of the family back as soon as possible!

[MN.6] //: Roger Dodger--

<DWN-018>: >Fine, do it. Gem, get that guy on the line. We’ve got to talk this out before it gets out of hand. And as for you two…

<DWN-018>: >Speedy, Jaden, you guys were BUILT for Combat, can’t you work ANY faster?!

<DWN-013>: > Grrr…

<DWN-013 has entered Lethal Combat mode.>

[MN.1] //: —!!

[Jaden began to glow white.]

[It almost… almost looked like the light from an evolution!]

[MN.6] //: -WHOA WHAT THE HECK--

Beck: --!!!!

Will: (What is...)

Beck: (I know that light--)

Will: (What IS that...?)

Beck: (I KNOW that LIGHT--!)

Jaden: I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!

[MN.1] //: ??!?

[Jaden had changed. The was larger now, and bulkier—and based on the energy ratings from him, he was packing some SERIOUS heat.]

[MN.5] //: -DATA AT ALL THE WEAPONRY BORDERING ON SURPRISE AND EXCITEMENT--

[Hatches popped open.

YEP. Those were some sort of missiles inside.]

Jaden: WE’RE TAKING A DETOUR!

[MN.1] //: Jaden--!

[MN.5] //: -I SECOND THIS NOTION--

[MN.1] //: BAT--

[Jaden used CRASH BOMBER!]

[A barrage of about five Crash Bombs were nailed into the wall, where they burrowed.

MORE hatches popped open.]

Beck: -DAD DAD DAD LOOK--

Will: -Is looking but with awe--

Jaden: -FIRE!-

[Missiles launched from EVERY port at once. In conjunction with the Crash Bombs, they took out the walls’ supports—flattening the constructs that HAD been behind it—]

[—with more continuing to the wall on the OTHER side of that room and turning it into a gaping hole of RUBBLE.]

[MN.5] //: HOOOOO-RAAAAAAAH!

[MN.1] //: -Is just shocked into silence-

Beck: YEAH, GO JADEN GO--!

Jaden: COME ON, MAJOR, WE HAVE AN EXTERMINATION CONTRACT TO HONOR—

Jaden: AND WE’RE SENDING THE BILL RIGHT TO HQ!

[MN.5] //: RIGHT TO GRAHAM'S ILL-GOTTEN OFFICE, TOO!

[MN.1] //: -The both of you better not level the place while WE'RE STILL IN IT--

[The hatches close.]

Jaden: Who said anything about leveling the building?

Jaden: These constructs, on the other hand…

[Jaden used BODY SLAM!]

[He rammed RIGHT into one of them, crunching it against the wall. It had been covered in spikes, but he took no damage.]

Jaden: ARE GONNA BE FLATTENED!

[He was jumped by several more constructs—or abominations, rather.

He skewers one with a drill and fires the Crash Bomb—with the enemy on it—right into several others, exploding.]

Beck: : D!!!!!!

Beck: -I KNEW HE COULD DO IT--

Beck: -I KNEW IIIIIIT-

[MN.6] //: Wowsers....

[MN.6] //: Uh...I'm pretty sure you guys can head on in? : D ;;;;;

Will: Ah, yes...

Will: Shall we?

Beck: Yeah!

Beck: Just stay behind me, Dad, okay?

Will: Oh, by all means, take the lead. ^^

<DWN-013>: > Let’s do this, Mighty Nine!

<DWN-013>: >We’re just the opening act—you’re the main show!

Beck: Heh!

Beck: -Running ahead- Gonna be hard to top what you dished out, Jaden! c: <

<DWN-013>: >Heh…

<DWN-013>: > Not for a hero like you, it won’t!

[A mess of what was once dense with virus fodder was now in utter ruin.]

[Will quietly made his way behind his son with methodical footsteps, careful to not let his guard down.]

Will: Goodness, the lot of you really made short work of all this...

Beck: No kidding...

[MN.5] //: HA! I've met CAN-OPENERS THAT WERE TOUGHER THAN THAT!

[MN.3] //: I appreciate the zzzeal, Bat, but can you tone down the trigger happy crazzzy little? Trying to concentrate.

[MN.2] //: KYAHAHAHAHAHAHA!~ WHO WANTS FROZEN CHERRY SMOOTHIES FOR DESERT?~

[MN.6] //: Not of these weird things, bleh--

[MN.6] //: But get it together, you two! Tyrannasaurous-BECKS is here! : D

[MN.6] //: The haywire robot assembly line is just up ahead, Becker, it's all up to you! And Dad too, of course! : D Keep heading straight!

Beck: Roger, Avi! I'm on it!

Beck: --Whoooooa...

Beck: Pyro, what did you do?

[MN.1] //: I don't know how, but Jaden's Crash Bombs seem to have a sort of buff effect on me...

<DWN-019>: >Well of COURSE it does, you’re a fire based construct.

[MN.1] //: << -Siam shouldn't you be stalling right about now--

<DWN-012>: > -sNORT-

<DWN-012>: >You’re forgetting something, Pyro.

[MN.1] // -...Damn it, you're right, he can multitask--

Beck: -Cough, ugh, smoke's kinda bad--

Will: -Coughing and using lab coat sleeve over his mouth and nose-

[REXELECTION: AVIATOR.]

Beck: -Blows smoke away with propeller wind-

Beck: Dad?

Will: -Ugh- Yes?

Beck: How exactly are you going to shut down the Primary M.O.M Unit?

Will: --...Ah...

Will: I'm going to try and hack my way into it...

Will: It can only be manually shut down from that one terminal.

Will: (....I might have to combat the virus myself while I'm at it...)

Will: .....

Beck: ...Dad?

Will: --...Er. We need to keep moving.

Will: If we can shut down the Primary Unit, we won't have to bother with the Secondary...

Beck: There's a secondary M.O.M unit?

Will: Yes, but it only serves as a sort of support pillar to the Primary--shutting THAT down won't slow or stop the factory itself.

Will: It's faster and much more effective to go straight to the Primary M.O.M unit than waste time with the Secondary.

Beck: Okay...

Beck: (......)

Beck: (When did Dad have time to read up on how CherryDyn's Factory setup works...?)

<DWN-019>: >I suppose it doesn’t surprise me there isn’t more of a redundancy in the system for failsafe measures.

<DWN-019>: >I’ll try to leave you be for now, I know that most people can’t do two entirely different things at once, but—

<DWN-019>: >I’m a little concerned by what is going on over there, given the kind of files Mikhail printed off from this server. And the fact he’s under arrest.

Beck: .... Files...?

Will: ......

<DWN-019>: >Evidence files, Beck.

Beck: ....For...For what?

Will: Siam.

<DWN-019>: >William, with all due respect—

<DWN-019>: >My family leader is dead and our Doctor could very well follow, and you’re in the middle of somewhere dangerous while I’m trying to keep the Cossack Numbers from hearing something I DON’T have the authority to censor.

<DWN-019>: >I am a bit stressed, sorry.

<DWN-019>: >You and I need to talk when this is over.

<DWN-019 has left the conversation.>

Will: ......

Will: -Sigh-

Will: >>

Beck: ...Dad...?

Beck: What's going on?

Will: . . . .

Will: Beck, it...

Will: . . .

[Will places a reassuring hand on his shoulder.]

Will: I...I'm sorry, but we don't have time.

Will: We have to get to that terminal.

Will: ...Please, I know...I know things seem troubling, and that's a light way to put it...

Beck: .....

Beck: No, I...

Beck: I get it.

Will: --?

Beck: We gotta keep going.

Beck: (....I get it...)

Beck: Avi said the factory line was just down this straight path...

[Beck hovered over to the other end of the room--or, rather, where the room WOULD end, because the wall that was there was in several different pieces now.]

Beck: Don't fall behind, Dad!

Will: . . .

<DWN-012>: >Boy does this bring back memories.

Beck: You said you did wreck a place like this before, right--

[THUD.]

<DWN-012>: >Yeah, the place where I was built—hmm?

<DWN-012>: >Mic, did you—

[SMAT!]

[MN.4] //: -Oops-

[MN.4] //: MIC SORRY, MIC DIDN'T BRING WALL BACK DOWN--

[MN.7] //: Speedy--

<DWN-012>: > -SPRINGS BACK UP, readjusts balance sensors- Ow.

[MN.7] //: . . .

[MN.7] //: -...Oh.-

[MN.4] //: -Speedy okay? Okay.-

<DWN-012>: >YEAH BRO I RUN INTO STUFF ALL THE TIME, no big deal—

[MN.4] //: -Goes back to crushing things-

<DWN-013>: >Him wrecking where we were built is more impressive than it sounds.

<DWN-013>: >I was built there too, and like all ‘bots, I had a testing phase. Let that sink in for a moment, heh.

<DWN-012>: >And…

<DWN-012>: >And there was also Wily Nine.

<DWN-013>: >Oh yeah—Dad assigned him to a factory, didn’t he?

<DWN-012>: >Yeah.

Beck: .....

Beck: (...Wily Nine...)

Beck: (....Huh...)

Will: --!!

Will: Beck, look out--!

Beck: !

[Beck flanked away JUST in time to avoid a MASSIVE cylinder-shaped pillar crashing down from the ceiling, the CherryDyn logo pulsing above in a hologram.]

Will: --!!!

Will: That's the secondary M.O.M Unit--!

Will: How did it end up--

[The Hologram suddenly glitched Red and PURPLE-- ]

Beck: ?!

[--And then out materialize the generator robots from the Power Plant--! ]

Beck: NOT THESE THINGS--

Will: -BACKING FAR AWAY NOW--

[REXELECTION: CRYOSPHERE.]

[A blast of chilling ice coated the generator bots before they could charge and lock his systems--Beck did NOT want to be rendered immobile with his Father so close to these dangerous CDNs.]

Beck: Dad, get away! Now!

Will: -Ngh--

[Will turned to take cover the other way--]

Will: --!!

[...Only to find that a few trash robots had been materialized to block him.]

Will: We're surrounded--!

[Will took a step back, holding his Rapier in his left hand while his right went behind his back.]

Will: Ngh...

Will: (Parry, thrust, stance wide...)

Will: (Never take your eyes off your opponent...)

Will: (Look them in the eye and strike without hesitation--!)

[One of the trash bots leaps--]

[CLANG!]

[Will side steps out of the way, the Xel in his weapon glowing as it is thrust into the construct--]

[KKKSST--]

[...The trash bot's Xel begins to melt away--]

[SHING!]

[And then suddenly, it isn't there anymore.

The Xel dissipates as the trash bot vanishes, stabbed right in the exact center of its central core.]

[Back in the Meadow, Siam was utterly speechless.

The manner in which Will had acted was nothing short of slightly terrifying. To see the ease and unflinching willingness in which he could dissolve those that opposed him…

…It was more than a little unnerving, and a harsh new perspective that cast the Doctor in a much darker light than before.]

<RMDC>: > SENDING UPDATES…

[The reaction to this permeating their collective consciousness was immediate.]

<DWN-011 has entered Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-012 has entered Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-013 has entered Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-018 has entered Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-019 has entered Defensive Combat mode.>

Beck: --??? -Confused for a moment before going back to FIGHTING--

[Will let the trash bots come to him, watching their every move with a steely gaze that didn't quite suit his overall appearance...

He moved with practiced poise and grace, and while he did miss a swing here and there due to being out of practice--]

[SHING!]

[...The trash bots were no match for someone of Will's technique.]

[Siam suddenly felt very cold and ill. This was the man that had access to their blueprints and inner workings.

Suddenly, he wasn’t so willing to share them anymore.]

<RMDC>: > ERROR: ADMIN PASSWORD REQUIRED TO CHANGE ACCESS LEVELS. REQUEST DENIED.

<RMDC>: >CONTACTING ADMIN…

[The sickening chill had gripped the others as well. They were overcome with the need to flee for their lives.]

<DWN-013 to MNN-001>: > H-how much more of this do you think there i-is—

[MN.1 to DWN-013] //: ...Are you alright? -What is with the sudden drop in mood-

[MN.1 to DWN-013] //: This factory is CherryDyn's, I wouldn't be surprised if it is larger than we think.

<DWN-013>: > D-dammit…

<DWN-013>: > -N-no, we aren’t okay-

<DWN-013>: > Let’s g-get this over with and get out of here…

<DWN-013>: >I won’t abandon you now, but something has happened and now I very much want to go home.

[While Jaden had started showing submission again, his older brother had much the opposite effect.

His usual hot-blooded demeanor had turned icy cold, much more like Shadow’s when the latter was in a dangerous and silent mood.

Furthermore, his usually green eyes had turned and were now glowing a deep red—a sign that he felt the presence of a powerful and aggressive, cruel enemy in his midst.

…

But then there was a shudder of some sort in the air, almost a glitch within reality itself. Everything RIPPLED and there was a deep reverberating gong sound that rolled into an echoing, vibrating low tone that drowned everything out, everything becoming stretched and warped. It suddenly rocketed over them like a sound wave, seeming to shatter in the far distance.]

<DWN-011 has left Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-012 has left Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-013 has left Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-018 has left Defensive Combat mode.>

<DWN-019 has left Defensive Combat mode.>

Speedy: -Puts a hand to his head- Nnngh…!

Brand: --!

[MN.7] //: Speedy--are you alright? (...What just happened?)

<DWN-012>: > I hurt, really bad— it’s like… like all my programs just ran flat into a wall and were turned off for ages—

[He coughs, trying to re-calibrate various sensors.]

<DWN-012>: >Ugh… I wasn’t made to handle that sort of thing, it really hurts…

[…He was right.

Somehow, he seemed to have taken damage from whatever that was just now. The readings showed it.]

<DWN-012>: > (Maybe Siam was right…. Nnnngh, I have a bad, bad feeling about this…)

[MN.4] //: -PING- -Mic can provide cover if you need a minute-

[...And it REALLY seems Mic was confident in this, because he was just walling the other crazed CDNs.]

<DWN-012>: > …

<DWN-012>: > -Emotional data- Th… thanks, man…

[He grits his teeth against the pain and forces himself back to his feet.]

<DWN-012>: > -You guys really are the best-

Brand: -SHING- No need to thank us. -SHING- Besides, being the defense is Mic's function.

[CRASH!]

[A bunch of CDNs were casually swept aside by Mic's huge arms--he briefly turns back to Speedy to give a reassuring smile.]

Mic: ^w^

Mic: -Turns again to WHAM on a CDN that tried to get the jump on him-- -NOPE, DENIED-

Speedy: Heh… -Weak smile- I guess just… so not used to it.

Speedy: Our family… my series, just so very different, such a different experience.

Speedy: Almost all my brothers shot at me at least once. Including the defensive-based unit.

Speedy: That was the last time I… actually fought, was… the [color=blue]end[/color] of our Generation…. As the Last Survivor of my series…

Brand: .....

Mic: -WHANG- : E -Awwwww-

Mic: -Mic give you hug later-

Mic: -Busy with Cherry crazies right now but IOU a hug-

Speedy: Heh…

[A larger boomerang materializes in his hand. He’s smiling with his eyes closed.]

Speedy: Just try not to crunch hug me, I hear FMN-004 likes to do that.

[When he opens his eyes again, they’re glowing with determination.]

Speedy: But we’ll make our way out of here, alright—

[He gives a short burst of a sprint to vault his way onto Mic’s back.]

Mic: -Oop- : D!

[He hurls the larger Quick Boomerang down the hallway, slicing through about a dozen and a half constructs before it gets wedged into a piece of machinery.]

Speedy: And we’ll get to hang out with someone that gives a better name to what these guys are associated with.

Speedy: Let’s speed things up so we can FFW to the feast, yeah?

Brand: -Nods-

[Brand slices a few CDNs in half before pointing his sword towards the next room.]

Brand: Onwards!

[MEANWHILE...]

Beck: KYAH!

[Beck doesn't waste a second slamming a guided missile at the M.O.M unit, it's systems damaged and scrambled--but it was now churning out fused abominations of whatever it could find in CherryDyn's database...]

Beck: What even ARE these things??

Will: -KICKS A TRASH BOT AWAY- The systems are infected! The manufacturing programs must be going haywire--

[Another trash bot that seemed to be fused with a fire based bot is dissolved--]

Will: --The virus must be finding schematics in CherryDyn's database and mixing them together--!

Beck: But WHY?

Will: --Ngh-- I don't know--

Will: (Does...Does SHE know I'm here--?)

[CRUNCH.]

Will: --??

[After a few seconds, there was a sudden explosion from beneath one of the heavier fused Xel beasties—]

Will: --?!?

[Sending (besides Xel) a splatter of hissing liquid and green shrapnel pieces everywhere.]

Beck: Dad?! Are you okay?!

Will: Fine--

Will: --!!

Will: (...B... Battery Acid...)

Will: (Ngh--not you, not NOW--!)

Will: BECK!

Will: We need to get moving, NOW!

Beck: On it!

[REXELECTION: PYROGEN]

Beck: Out of the WAY--!

[Will ducks for cover just in time before Beck unleashed a Level 2 Burning Spirit--]

[CRACK--CREEEEEEEEEEAK--]

[The display on the M.O.M unit flickers and dies, the top end of the pillar melting away and--]

[CRAAAAAASH!]

[...falls backwards, COMPLETELY taking out the wall to the next room after.]

Beck: --Oops--

Beck: Uh...aaaat least we can pass--? ^.^;

Will: Goodness--

Will: (I didn't think Level 2 would be THAT effective...)

Will: Are you alright?

Beck: Yup--I'm good!

Beck: Let's keep going--

"Eeeeyyy, Beckers!"

Beck: !

[Avi flies in from the giant hole in the wall, surveying the damage done by the now broken M.O.M unit.]

Avi: Wowzers, next time give a little heads-up there, buddy, you nearly pillar-ized me!

Avi: -BADAUM TISSS SOUND EFFECT OVER THE FEEDS- : D

Beck: -Giggles- Sorry, Avi, I didn't know you were there.

[MN.7] //: -My guess is Avi, which means ignore it-

Avi: Love ya too, Ninjabro! ;D

Avi: Things all good with you, Dad?

Will: I'm fine, Six--what's the status of the other teams?

Avi: Team One is making some pretty good headway, and the other Teams are following right behind--they're not too far ahead of where we are.

<DWN-013>: >I must admit concern for the structural integrity of the place if we collectively keep blowing up walls and stuff, though…

<DWN-013>: >It’ll probably be declared structurally unsafe after we get out of here.

<DWN-012>: >Heh, no big loss. |D

Avi: -Snorts-

Beck: Hey, Avi--you haven't seen some weird fused robots, have you?

Avi: Oh, THOSE things--

Avi: Yeah, they're popping up everywhere in this place, they're so weird--

Will: Hmm...

<DWN-013>: > That’s rather not my point, though—

<DWN-013>: >We can say with a great degree of certainty that when things get unstable enough, they collapse and bury you alive, it happens more often in our family than you think. If this keeps up for too long, that puts you in a lot of danger, Uncle Will.

Will: ....

Will: (He's right--there's not only the infected robot threat, but the status of the factory building itself...)

Will: ....

Will: The fused infected CDNs and the weakening integrity of the building is all the more reason why we must hurry to the Primary M.O.M unit.

<DWN-013>: >Gah…

<DWN-013>: >If only we had Cardinal’s use of the Search Snake Power Capsule right now—that thing is great for scouting out unknown territories, it’s why it was made to begin with…

Will: (...Or to spy on others, in this case...)

Will: Avi, can you scout out the next room for us?

Avi: Already did, Daddo! Cleared it out while you guys were busy--this way!

[The next room seems to be a data storage room, with screens that take up the entire wall much like in Sanda Labs...]

[...Except they showed off dozens upon dozens of blueprints and schematics for all sorts of CDN Industrial Models--it looked like a viewing room for whatever few humans that DID work in the factory to oversee the manufacturing process.]

Beck: -Look, ITS A ROUND DIGGER, BUDDYYYYY-

Will: (All these models...)

Avi: --!!

Avi: Well, well, well, what do we have here...

<DWN-012>: >A punplane who’s about to tell us something interesting?

[Avi flies over to a schematic that's waaaaay up high near the ceiling, something that seemed...Out of place...]

Avi: Hey, Dad? The rest of these plans are for Industrials, right?

Will: ...They all seem to be, yes...

Will: Did you find something?

Avi: ..Oh, yeah, I FOUND something, alright--

Avi: A schematic for a COMBAT Model.

Will: --!

<DWN-012>: >I don’t get why that’s so strange—

Avi: (And if I'm reading this right--)

Avi: --!!

Avi: Uh Oh--

Avi: DAD I GOTTA GO--

<DWN-013>: >Woah, woah, woah—

<DWN-013>: > -Avs are you okay— -

Will: What--

Avi: Got a hot scoop to deliver to Doc Sanda-Man, DON'T WORRY I'LL BE RIGHT BACK--

[Without another word, Avi shifts into Jet Mode and zooooooms back out the way Will and Beck came in.]

Will: Wait--Avi! What about Soi?!

Beck: ....

[REXELECTION: AVIATOR.]

[Beck flies up to where Avi saw the schematic for the CDN combat model...]

Beck: ....

Beck: K-9...?

<DWN-013 and DWN-012>: > …

<DWN-012>: > Scrap—

<DWN-012>: > Canine models can get VICIOUS…

Beck: Combat model designed to patrol and guard--

Beck: Maximum security establishments--!

<DWN-013>: > UGH this is all Fahrenheit 451 on us—

Beck: -THERE'S ONE AT THE PRISON--

Will: SOI!

Will: (Oh God SOICHIRO--)

Will: (And you--)

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Soi: A-Are you sure you don't want to, uh... swap missions...?

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Will: (Oh, Soi, I never should have--!)

Beck: Dad--Uncle Sanda--!

Beck: And--And Call--!

[PING!]

<DWN-018>: > -Shocked data-

<DWN-019>: > NICO YOU STAY PUT—

Will: --!!

[Unfortunately, this was the worst thing that Siam could have said. Nico quickly snapped out of it, and his data became almost horrifically aggressive.]

<DWN-018>: > … You—

[There’s a loud WHANG and a crash, followed by static—]

[As if Siamini had been flung against a wall by a powerful force, and possibly into a transmitter.]

Beck: Wha--?

Will: (Nico...)

Will: (....Soichiro is going to need all the help he can get in there--)

Will: (Oh, please, Avi, PLEASE get there in time to warn them--!)

<DWN-012>: > Augh…

<DWN-012>: > By the time this is over EVERY ROBOT MASTER AWAKE is gonna end up in repairs, GREAT—

<DWN-013>: >With Cardinal, Nico, and Siam all out of it…

<DWN-012>: > I KNOW—

<DWN-012>: > Let’s hurry up and get out of here before I have no one left to look over!

<DWN-012>: > Doctor!

Will: --!

<DWN-012>: >Based on the perimeter and area of the building before we got in here, how close do you think you are to where you need to be? And would it be on this same floor or in a basement?

Will: Th-The same floor--and there's still quite a bit to go--

<DWN-012>: >Nnngh…

<DWN-012>: >Alright then—

<DWN-012>: >We need to make sure the building stays in one piece until then. Mic, as you go along, will you put in reinforcement beams in rooms and so forth to reinforce the structural integrity?

[MN.4] //: -PING- Hmm hmm! ^w^

<DWN-012>: >Good. Team One—

[There’s a loud crashing noise.]

Brand: . . . .??????

Brand: -What--

Brand: -I thought that only happens in the old cartoons Avi watches all the time--

[MN.8] //: Oi, what the HELL was that noise--?!

[MN.2] //: -Shadey stop being grumpy and COVER ME YOU COWPOKING GRUMP-

Beck: Dad--

Will: -Ngh...-

Will: We have to keep moving--

Will: (Soi--Soi has Avi coming, and Call is there, and Nico is on his way...)

Will: (He'll be fine, he'll be fine--oh goodness please let him be alright after this--)

<DWN-012>: > …Uh…

<DWN-012>: >OKAY so apparently not all the walls are meant to take Combat-model force momentum??

<DWN-013>: > …

<DWN-013>: > You RAN THROUGH A /WALL/ are you SERIOUS—

<DWN-013>: > -CRACKS UP LAUGHING-

[MN.2] //: -Yo for REAL, HE DIDN'T GO SPLAT--

Will: (... Well, this IS mostly an Industrial Robot Factory...)

<DWN-013>: > Are you kidding, Sis?

<DWN-013>: > -Warm data- Dad made him to be FINE after running into walls at well over 100 mph.

<DWN-013>: >I guess since he held up and something has to give when two objects meet…

<DWN-013>: > He just went right through the wall oh I’m dying of laughter here

[MN.2] //: -DUUUUUUUDE THAT'S SICK-

<DWN-013>: >How are you three holding up, by the way?

<DWN-013>: >Haven’t heard from you in a whi—

[MN.2] //: HEY MIC DO YOU THINK IF YOU THREW ME AT A WALL I'D GO THROUGH IT TOO LIKE THE KOOL-AID MAN IN THE FUNNY COMMERCIALS--

<DWN-013>: > -SNORTS-

[MN.1] //: -cryo please FOCUS ON YOUR TEAM, NO ONE IS THROWING YOU AT A WALL-

[MN.2] //: -BUT IT BE SO COOL, THO, I'D BE ALL OOOOOH YEAH, GLITCHES, GET WRECKED--

[Jaden’s laughter quiets down a bit, but he’s still grinning as he goes at the infected CDNs around him in drill-to-hand combat.

He’s quite good at it, too, in a way that suggests he trained to be so.]

[MN.3] //: -Bzzzzt, we're fine, just pretty concentrated on these CDN creeps-

[MN.8] //: -Very focused data, trying to stay in the zone here but SOMEONE KEEPS YELLIN'--

[MN.2] //: -TOO BAD, I'M TEAM LEADER, PLLLLLLLPGH- -Raspberry noises-

<DWN-013>: > -Gently- Shade?

[MN.8] //: What?

<DWN-013>: > You’re awfully tense, and that makes it harder to focus right.

<DWN-013>: > …Everything will be okay.

[Shade didn’t respond to that.

As much as he was trying to hide it, he was in a great deal of emotional pain and physical exhaustion. He had only just woken up from the fights of his life, and the main thing that kept him going in the face of the terrible things, the things he had done—the only thing that kept him going was because he HAD to.

He had to—they needed him—

And he had to, he had to keep his mind—keep it off of—]

[MN.8] //: (Nnngh…)

[…The fact that the update of Cardinal’s memories to the server was a ticking time bomb, just waiting to make the Rebel Angels even more terrified of him and potentially hostile…

…really, really wasn’t helping.]

<DWN-013>: > We’re all in this together, alright?

<DWN-013>: >And we don’t need perfection here just now—

[Background noise of something being lit on fire.]

[MN.8] //: .....

[MN.8] //: -mmmgh.-

<DWN-013>: > -He’ll be okay, I promise-

<DWN-013>: >He’s already running again.

[MN.8] //: … … …

[There was a muffled bit of data that seemed edge with dread—dread, uncertainty, anxiety, concern—

Almost as if he were thinking to himself a worry that what happened could ever be forgiven.]

<DWN-013>: > Ah ah—I know that data—

<DWN-013>: >Just try and loosen up a bit and be there for your sisters, okay?

<DWN-013>: >We can deal with the rest later after we get home.

<DWN-013>: >Think of it as…

<DWN-013>: > -Lightbulb-

<DWN-013>: >Some DLC for your tagging incident. : ]

[MN.8] //: --....

[MN.8] //: (....That would be nice...)

[MN.2] //: -YEAH AFTER WE CLEAN UP CHERRY'S MESS, WE CAN AAAAALL BE NICE AND CHILL TOGETHER-

<DWN-012>: >GG, Icewoman—

<DWN-012>: >Now I want black cherry flavored snowcones—

<DWN-013>: > I prefer strawberry and lemonade flavor, myself.

[MN.2] //: -Glitch when Snow wakes up we gotta make ALLLL THE SNOWCONES AND ICE CREAMS--

[BOOM—!]

[MN.2] //: --What the glitch was that?

<DWN-012>: >I’m not sure— Bat?

[MN.5] //: That wasn't us or Pyro--not Jaden either--

[MN.1] //: Avi isn't here and Shade didn't blow up anything, did you?

[MN.8] //: Nope--

[MN.7] //: --....

[MN.7] //: Beck--

[Static.]

[MN.9] //: B--Buddy--that's not Buddy--

[MN.7] //: -????-

[DR.WHITE] //: It's--It must be an unreleased, upgraded Round Digger Model--!

[Explosions can be heard over the feeds--]

[MN.9] //: -BUDDY IS LIKE TEN TIMES BETTER THAN YOU, STOP SHOOTING WATER AT ME--

<DWN-013>: > …

<DWN-013>: > -A Digger that uses WATER????-

<DWN-013>: >Are you sure that’s not a glitched model?

[MN.9] //: -Don't care--

[SHING!]

[MN.9] //: -This thing can wreck the whole building if we leave it unchecked--

<DWN-013>: >If Avi were here, I’m sure he’d be punning about “where’s the fire” or soOOOOOoOooohhhhh okayyy…

<DWN-012>: > -No, bailing and letting it run loose is not an option-

<DWN-013>: > -Didn’t mean it wasn’t tempting for a moment-

[SHING SHING SHING--]

[MN.9] //: -UGH THIS THING IS WAY TOUGHER THAN BUDDY WAS--

<DWN-012>: >But nowhere near as tough as you!

<DWN-012>: >I guess he’s using your form, Brand. : ]

[MN.7] //: >> -....He uses it well-

[MN.9] //: -wat really--

[MN.9] //: -I MEAN--THANKS NII-SAN--

[There's a strange burst of data when Beck is praised by his elder brother--]

[SHINGSHINGSHINGSHINGSHINGSHING--!]

<DWN-013>: > ?

Will: Oh my--

<DWN-013 to MNN-007>: >Brand, what am I hearing?

[MN.7] //: Otouto?

[MN.9] //: -......-

[MN.9] //: @~@

[MN.9] //: Sooooo dizzyyyy...

[MN.9] //: -Blrgh, dad why did you program me for nausea--

Will: -I--I think Beck just did Brand's Spin Slash technique--

Speedy: -Raises an eyebrow- …

[MN.7] //: What!?

[MN.9] //: WHOA WHAT REALLY I CAN D O THAT NOW--

[MN.9] //: -NII-SAN--NIIII-SAAAAAN I DID THE THING--

Speedy: -Slight wry grin- So when you hear it from someone you hold in high regard then, huh…?

[MN.7] //: -Low-key actually excited about this, what, that isn't pride, what are you talking about--

[MN.9] //: : D!!

<DWN-013>: >So… he can unlock secondary abilities, too? -Seems… pleased about this, in a sense-

<DWN-013>: >I wonder if that’ll happen when eventually you get to have our forms.

<DWN-012>: >Heh. Imagine Beck, like, duplicating himself!

<DWN-012>: >Or teleport spamming! B]

<DWN-013>: > -Chuckles at this-

<DWN-013>: >You’re just full of awesome surprises, aren’t you, lil’ bro?

<DWN-013>: > -Warm ping of approval-

[MN.9] //: ^//^

[MN.9] //: Eheh...

[MN.9] //: -Imeannii-sanistheonewhomadeupthatmoveso--

[MN.7] //: >>;

<DWN-013>: > -Laughs in data- Tell you what, Beck!

<DWN-013>: >After this is over, I’ll teach you some of the non-Capsule style moves I use!

[MN.9] //: -OOOO REALLY--

[BLAM--]

Will: Oh dear Beck wait for me--

[Will hurries behind a gleefully excited Nine, who is spurred on by the prospect of learning something new from one of his other brothers.]

Beck: Come on, Dad, how much further?

Will: Ah--Not long now, now that you took care of that Round Digger...

Will: We should be seeing some of the assembly lines right around here...

Will: .....

Will: That's odd...

Beck: --? Huh? What is?

Will: ...The assembly lines are going in reverse--?

<DWN-012>: >Say what?

<DWN-012>: >That sounds… really gruesome…

Will: (That's strange--why would the factory disassemble its own models?)

Will: (Something is wrong here...)

Beck: .......

Beck: (There's a lot of Xel up ahead, I can feel it...)

Beck: (Huh...)

<DWN-013>: >Why would models be being torn apart into Xel? That’s honestly messed up. >.>

<DWN-013>: >Even a malfunction should just cause it to shut off, because a buildup backlog would just cause an explosion somewhere.

<DWN-012>: > …Unless it were being used somewhere else in the factory, somehow…

<DWN-013>: >Doing what?

Will: Only one way to find out...

Beck: Keep going?

Will: Yes.

<DWN-013>: >Let us know.

<DWN-013 to MNN-001>: >Kinda concerned we haven’t heard from 18 or 19 yet…

<DWN-013 to MNN-001>: >Nico must have either knocked 19 out entirely or else taken out the transmitter altogether. I hope it’s just the transmitter, because I don’t want our cousins to get involved…

[MN.1] //: Tch...

[MN.1] //: (Alnico, you better know what you're doing...)

[MN.2] //: --uh--

[MN.2] //: Guyyyyys--

<DWN-013>: > -Distracted- Yeah, Icesis?

[There is what could only be described as absolute chaos over Cryo's team's feeds--even Beck himself could hear it on the next rooms beyond.]

Beck: --!

[MN.2] //: WE MIGHT BE IN TROUBLE HERE--

[MN.8] //: -REQUESTIN' BACK-UP, THERE'S BEEN A INFLUX OF CDNs--

[MN.3] //: -BZZZZZZT OW--

<DWN-012>: >UH.

<DWN-012>: >TEAM ONE YOU MIGHT NEED TO BACKTRACK—

<DWN-013>: > Hang in there!

[MN.1] //: Bat! Move up front with Jaden--we're heading to the assembly lines!

[MN.5] //: Roger that, Commander--

[MN.1] //: Speedy, Brand, Mic, how far are you from their location?

[MN.4] //: -Not far, heading that way now--

[MN.1] //: Beck, stay with Father until we can clear things up enough for you to pass though!

Beck: Yessir!

[There’s an increasingly loud clanging noise coming closer.]

[MN.2] //: -EY, CALVERY IS COMING--

[MN.3] //: -BZZZ, HEY, HANDSZZ OFF THE PONCHO--

Jaden: -Runs in- HI BECK—

Jaden: -Runs past- BYE BECK—

Beck: !!

Bat: CHAAAAAAAARGE--

Beck: -WHOOPS, OUT OF THE WAY--

[Pyro does pause for a moment when he catches up to check on Beck and Will--]

Pyro: --...

Pyro: Father, you're a mess--

[Will did look a bit worse for wear, but there wasn't any real major injuries to worry about.]

Will: Eheh... Don't worry about me, son.

Will: Go.

Pyro: -Nods-

Beck: -GO GET THEM, BRO--

[Inside the assembly lines....]

Cryo: TOOK YOU GUYS LONG ENOUGH--

Cryo: -FREEZES A CDN instead of finishing that SENTENCE--

Dyna: -BZZZZ, THEY JUST KEEP COMING--

Jaden: Not for much longer, they don’t.

Shade: Ya seen Brand and the others--?

[Shade, of course, was at a high vantage point along with Cryo to pick off the CDNs as they came out of the lines.]

Shade: We need them t' trash the equipment--

[CRASH—]

Pyro: --!!

Speedy: -Keeps running so he doesn’t get run over- HI GUYS MIC AND BRAND ARE RIGHT BEHIND ME, STAY OUTTA THE WAY I THINK THEY AREN’T GONNA BE STOPPING EITHER—

[SHING SHING SHING SHING SHING--]

[RRRRRRRRRRR--]

Mic: -SLAMS RIGHT INTO A PROCESSING UNIT-

[Speedy opens fire with Quick Boomerangs.

Shade flinches at the sound.]

Shade: --ngh--

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

KTANG!

[Leaping onto the walls and vaulting onto a statue, he peppered the room with high speed Quick Boomerangs.]

"You clearly haven’t learned I don’t go down so easy, Counter.”

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Cryo: Hey! -Sprays with cold water--

Shade: GAH--

Cryo: I need ya here and now, bro, gotta keep those CherryDyn's down!

Shade: | [ -Ya didn't have to cold spray me--

Brand: Mic! Help me with these processing units!

Mic: -MIC SMASH--

Jaden: HEY MIC!

Mic: !

[He fires into a bit of debris and kicks it over Mic’s way.]

Jaden: Give ‘em a slam dunk! >B]

Mic: E : <

Mic: -WHAM--

[A slew of CDNs are crushed underneath the pile of debris, now just a pile of Xel on the floor.]

Cryo: -THREE POOOOOINTS--

[BOOM!]

Brand: --!

Mic: -OOO TRASH BALL GO BOOM--

Pyro: Dyna, barrier!

Dyna: You got it--!

[A bunch of bits fly in front of Pyro to create an electric shield, which he stands behind for a moment before igniting himself--]

[--And CHARGING FORWARD, Using Dyna's shield as a battering ram against the CDNs--!]

[Interesting. Bits of surge from what’s left of the Crash Bomb provide a boost. Not NEARLY as much as the full thing, but still.]

[PING!]

[MN.6] //: HEY GUYS, AM I LATE TO THE PARTY--

Speedy: EEEEY, LOOK WHO’S OUTTA THE JOINT.

Speedy: Tell me you have good news, bro!

Speedy: Everyone’s in one piece, yeah?

Avi: Yo I got there JUST in time, bro, Call's giving the pooch a lesson--

Speedy: How’s our younger brother?

Avi: They're on their way to Doc Blackwell, and--Uh.

Avi: ....Wait, what?

Speedy: …

[He leaps up onto a higher vantage point to start taking out his frustration on the production lines.]

Speedy: Nico went in there! Are you saying he’s not back yet?

Avi: -YO SAY WHAT--

Jaden: He must have seen Call on the screen after Siamini looked up the status of the Sanda team after hearing you freak out over the dog plans.

Avi: -I--I didn't see him there, I didn't know, I only broadcasted to Sanda-bag--

Avi: -Gaaaaaaah if I knew I would've stayed and backed him up--

Pyro: Avi--

Avi: --?

Jaden: I wouldn’t worry about it…

Jaden: He could tear things up pretty badly if he puts his mind to it.

Jaden: Especially if he took shrapnel bits with him on the way…

Speedy: I’m going to guess yes, given he was going into something with Combat in mind.

Avi: -Oh-

Avi: ....

Avi: : ' D -Okaaaaaaay yup cuz that's not terrifying to think about at all--

Jaden: -Laughs at this-

Jaden: We’re Wily constructs, dude.

Avi: : ''''' D

[PING!]

[MN.9] //: How are you guys holding up?

[MN.5] //: Managed to push them back at least--

[MN.6] //: -EY BECKO GUESS WHAT, CALL'S BEATING UP THE DOGGIE AND NICO'S, UH--GOING IN FOR BACK UP-

[MN.9] //: Oh, That's-- waitdidyousaynico--

<DWN-013>: >Yyyyyyeah, uh…

[MN.9] //: -NOBODY TOLD HIM ABOUT CALL--

<DWN-013>: >No, we didn’t, but he apparently saw, because he took out both the transmitter and possibly Siamini as well in the process of storming off.

[MN.9] //: -Thaaaaaaaaaat's not good--

[MN.9] //: Do you guys need a hand?

<DWN-013>: >No thanks, I don’t use hands. B]

<DWN-013>: >No hands no problem, right, Shade?

[MN.8] //: Heh...

[MN.8] //: Little help does sound nice, though.

[MN.1] //: Someone has to stay with Father--

[DR.WHITE] //: No, we're running out of time--

[DR.WHITE] //: We NEED to get past this into the main assembly line--

Jaden: You want me to come over?

[DR.WHITE] //: No, Jaden, you're needed with the rest of your team--all of you just keep concentrating on the infected units while we slip by!

[MN.9] //: -Don't worry, I'll be in Mic's form for defense--

Jaden: Awesome! Go for gold, guys. : )

Jaden: We’ll just be having a ball here, right, Icesis?

[REXELECTION: SEISMIC]

Beck: -Snorts-

[MN.2] //: -TEN POINTS FOR YOU-

Beck: Hey, Dad--get on!

Will: --Wait--what, on you--

Beck: -This'll be much faster than you on foot--Don't worry, 'Linka and I do this all the time--

Will: Oh--

Beck: Just hold on tight because we're going to be going really fast--

Will: Uh--H-How fast--

[RRRRRRRRRRR--]

[MEANWHILE...]

Mic: -SMAAAASH--

Brand: --Mic, is that noise you--

[RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR--]

Will: -SCREAMING, TOO FAST, TOO FAAAAAAAAST--

Avi: -GO BECK GO--

Beck: -SKIDS AROUND STUFF- You sure you guys don't need some--

[WHANG--!]

Beck: !!

[OH WHEN DID A ROUND DIGGER GET IN HERE--]

Jaden: Woah! -Knocked over-

Brand: Haaaaaah--!

[S H I N G !]

Jaden: o.o

Jaden: -Looks as the half of a Round Digger turns into Xel goop- Nice one, bro.

Brand: Hmph.

Brand: Nothing here my blades cannot handle.

Cryo: -Oh stop being dramatic, ya loopy ninja-

Mic: -NOPE, got this area all under control-

Mic: -Maybe help Cryo team instead--

Cryo: PFFFT, I'm ice CREAMING these bots--

Cryo: -There's snow many of them though--

Shade: -Sigh- -BANG-

Shade: Maybe if ya spend more time FIGHTIN' and less on yer lame puns...

Cryo: -Shrills- WHAT?!

Cryo: Just remember who you're talking to, Shadey, I'm SIX WHOLE NUMBERS OLDER THAN YOU--

Jaden: Like the other punster? | ]

Avi: : D

Cryo: Okay YES but six as in OLDER--

Shade: -Rolls his eye- Yeah, yeah, an' Ah'm--

Pyro: Shade stop arguing with your sister--

Shade: -OI SHE STARTED IT WITH HER PUNNIN'--

Speedy: -Laughs a little at this-

Jaden: -Jumps onto Mic- You provide a great vantage point, bro. : )

Mic: ^ W ^

Beck: -ZOOOMS AROUND XEL MUSH-

Will: -AAAAAAAH STILL TOO FAST, HELP-

Speedy: Buckle up, Will! |D

Will: -WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT I DIDN'T DESIGN BECK W I T H SEAT BELTS--

Beck: -Skids as he just HAS TO LAUGH AT THAT--

Beck: -BYE GUYS, HEADING FOR THE LINES NOW--

Will: -PLEASE, I want to get ooooofff--

Pyro: Bat! You're with me, we're going to secure the room ahead!

Pyro: Jaden, stay here and provide support for the others, alright?

Jaden: You’ve got it.

Jaden: Come on, bro, let’s wreck some things.

Speedy: Heh. It’s what we were made for!

[They both give devilish grins.]

Beck: -GOOD LUCK GUUUUUYS--

[Beck, with his father in tow, races across many a battered hallway, Pyrogen and Battalion following close behind.]

Pyro: Crash and BURN!

[Following Pyro's lead, they thin out the CDNs that littered the reversed assembly lines, giving Beck a clear pathway towards the center of the factory.]

Bat: HAHA! Now that's what I like to see! First into battle, the tip of the spear!

Pyro: | ]

Pyro: Heh, of course--it's a leader's duty, after all.

Beck: --!!

Beck: Dad--look!

Will: -Opens his eyes--

Will: !

[CHERRYDYN MAIN ASSEMBLY LINE FLOOR.]

Will: At last!

Pyro: We'll keep things under control here so nothing tries to come up from behind!

Pyro: Good luck, Beck!

Beck: c : <

[The door automatically opens, and then slams shut behind them--]

Beck: !

Beck: Whooooooooooa...

[Right in the middle of the entire assembly floor was the Primary M.O.M unit, it's displays flashing from red to purple with errors littering the holoscreens around it.]

Will: There it is...

Will: .....

Will: (All the assembly lines so far lead to here, but in the reverse way...)

Will: Alright, first, we need to find it's computer core and destroy it--

Will: That will halt all of the production lines so I can hack into the systems themselves and shut them down for good--

[Will calmly approaches the M.O.M unit slowly, looking for any sort of panel it might have that will reveal it's inner workings...]

Will: Beck, I need you to scan this with your C.Visor and--

Beck: --!!!

Beck: DAD, UP--!

Will: --?!

[Beck grabs Will and yanks him backwards, right before--]

Will: -Fumbles right into his back-

Will: Wh--

[GGGHGHGHGGGGGH...]

[The Doctor scrambles to his feet as the very earth shakes from the force of a giant, MASSIVE construct slams down just where he was not moments ago--]

Will: What on--?!

[PING!]

<DWN-013>: >WOAH, guys, what’s with the shaking—

<DWN-013>: >It’s like something Gamma size slammed down!

[MN.9] //: -WHAT THE HECK IS THAT--

[MN.9] //: WHAT IS THAT, IT'S--IT'S LIKE FOUR TIMES BIGGER THAN MIC--

[DR.WHITE] //: G--Good heavens--

[DR.WHITE] //: I--I've never seen it's like before--th--this isn't like ANYTHING that CherryDyn's schematic database has--!

[DR.WHITE] //: --!!!!

[DR.WHITE] //: No, wait--of course, it makes sense now--the reversed assembly lines, the mixed up fused robots--

[DR.WHITE] //: The factory, the virus--it's--

[DR.WHITE] //: It's begun to CREATE it's OWN DESIGNS--!

[MN.9] //: WHAT--?!

[MN.9] //: H-HOW, HOW WOULD--

<DWN-013>: >Ooookay, um…

<DWN-013>: >Where are you guys right now, exactly—

[DR.WHITE] //: -Too terrified to answer--

<DWN-013>: >I’m… going to try and contact Siam, hang in there—

Beck: D--Dad--?!

Will: (Run, we need to--!)

[Will backs up, but the cold, hard surface of the door reminds him that they just can't run from this.]

Will: (Ngh--!)

???: -HELLISH SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-

[MN.7] //: -What on EARTH WAS THAT--

Beck: This thing is huge--

Beck: Why would the virus want to--to MAKE something like this--?

Will: Ngh--

Will: It's still trying to cause mass destruction...

<DWN-013>: >Okay, so I couldn’t contact Siam, BUT—

<DWN-013>: >I was able to contact someone else, and they’ll be right on over—

???: S C R E E E E E E E E E --

Will: Beck--

Will: We--We have to--

Will: -Grips sword-

Will: We can't let this thing leave this factory--!

Will: We have to stop it here--now, and shut down the M.O.M Unit before it can create an ARMY of these--!

Beck: --!!

Beck: But this is--this is WAY bigger than anything else--

Will: We have to TRY!

Will: Otherwise it will tear this place apart with EVERYONE IN IT!

Beck: --!!

Beck: (Everyone--)

[TRIGGER RECONIZED. XELFILTER.EXE ENGAGED.]

Will: You distract it!

Will: I'll handle the M.O.M Unit!

[REXELECTION: SEISMIC.]

Beck: Yes, sir!

[SCANNING...]

[SCAN COMPLETE.]

[E N C O U N T E R.]

[MODEL: CDN-XXX, CODENAME: NAMELESS]

[HEIGHT: 774cm WEIGHT: 4048kg XEL COUNT: 809,200,000]

[The giant Xel goliath lurches forward, and one of it's arms raises to the sky--]

[And-- detatches--?]

<CROSS-REFERENCE IDENTIFIED: HARD KNUCKLE.>

Beck: -UH OH--

[The arm rotates, and the boosters on its end propel it STRAIGHT at the pair--]

[Will and Beck both dive on opposite directions, Beck rolling to the left while Will tumbles to the right and off the platform.]

Will: -Ow--

Will: (Have to get to the M.O.M unit--!)

[The M.O.M unit is a slick jet black pillar instead of the smaller white secondary unit...

He calls on the terminal at once and begins to type away.]

Will: (If I can just find an old back door I used for this...)

[ACCESS DENIED.]

Will: Argh--!

Will: (Of course HE would lock my old pathway out of the system--!)

Will: (Fine, hacking the old fashioned way, then--where is that computer core--?)

[BLAM BLAM BLAM--]

[CRAAAAAAASH--!]

Will: --?!?

Will: Beck--?! Are you--

[As Will turns around, he is SURPRISED to see the giant, 25 foot tall Xelbot--]

[....Utterly in pieces.]

Will: Wha?

[...]

"Ngh..."

[POP!]

[Beck's head peeks out from the mountain of debris, in his default form.]

Beck: Okay, so...

Beck: These things break WAY too easy to my default weapon.

Beck: No joke!

Will: ...Really?? ?_?

Beck: Yeah!

Beck: Huh. Kinda weird that something is that big and it doesn't even hold well...

[CERCHINK--]

[A panel slides open behind Will, prompting him to turn around to watch it open--]

[ A black sphere with the CherryDyn logo on it juts out, pulsing with a sickly purple glow--there was no saving this data core, not when it was so corrupted like this.]

Will: The computer core--!

Will: (So it is infected...)

Will: Beck--

[SCREEEEEEEEEEEEECH--!]

Beck: -Wha--

[The earth once again shakes, felt by all in the building--]

Beck: A--Another one??

Nameless: -SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-

Beck: GAK--

[Wait, why is the floor moving BACKWARDS--]

<CROSS-REFERENCE IDENTIFIED: DWN-009>

Will: BECK!

[Chink--]

Will: --!

Will: No you DON'T--

[SHINK--!]

[Will manages to slash at the core with his Rapier before the panel shuts it away, the systems on the terminal glitching out as it went back into the M.O.M unit.]

Will: (I see now--)

Will: BECK!

Will: Keep breaking the Nameless!

Will: I'll destroy the core myself!

Beck: -BLAM BLAM- On it!

Beck: -Ugh, I didn't need a work out today, this thing is fast--

[BLAM--]

[CRAAAAAAASH--!]

Beck: Two down!

Will: (And the core should--)

[Right on cue, the core panel once again opens, the core itself revealed.]

[SHINK--!]

[ERROR--INTERNAL COMPUTER CORE DAMAGED.]

[PRODUCTION DOWN 25%]

Beck: It's working!

[S L A M--]

Nameless: SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE--

Beck: -Oh jeez--

<DWN-012>: > Guys are you okay in there

<DWN-012>: >DO YOU NEED STRUCTURAL ASSISTANCE

<DWN-013>: > -KINDA SOUNDS LIKE THE BUILDING’S FALLING ON TOP OF YOU OR SOMETHING?-

Will: Fine--we're fine, It's just Beck on the third of one of those things--

Will: -SHINK-

Will: I've damaged the computer core of the M.O.M unit, the production lines SHOULD be slowing down now!

[WHANG--]

Beck: --GUH--

[Beck struggles to keep an even footing on the moving assembly line, and failed to dodge an incoming arm from slamming into him AND the wall.]

Beck: ACK!

Will: You can DO this, Amadeus!

Will: Just hold on!

Beck: Nngh--

Beck: Y-Yes sir...

[ACCESSING XEL STOCK 1...]

[XEL ABSORBED.]

[BLAM BLAM BLAM--]

[As the third Nameless unit is felled, Will wasted no time moving from hacking the terminal to striking at the core the moment it came out of the panel, with quick thrusts and parries.]

[ERROR--PRODUCTION DOWN 50%, SYSTEM FAILURE IMMINENT.]

Will: (Ngh, I need--I need MORE than just this sword--)

Will: (But Beck is busy with the Nameless, and--!)

[There’s a shrill, FAMILIAR whistle that BLASTS across the feeds.]

Beck: --?!?

Beck: (No way--it--it can't be--)

Beck: (He can't be up already--?!)

“RRRRRRRRRRRNNNNNNNGGGGGHHH…”

Beck: --?????

[SCREEEEEEEEEEEE--]

[S L A M--]

Nameless: -HELL SCREECH-

Beck: Oh MAN--

Beck: (Help--)

[FOOSH.]

Will: --?!?

Will: Jazz?!

[Indeed. It was none other than Cardinal’s support unit—and BOY, did she seem to be in a BAD mood.]

Jazz: HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHSSSS!

Nameless: -HELL SCREEEEEEEEEEEE OF PAIN--

Beck: Jazz--!

Beck: : D

[While Beck was happy to see her, Jazz didn’t return the affection. She was angry, and vicious, and it showed.]

Jazz: >8K

Beck: --Oh right you're in pantheress mode, Kay then--

Jazz: >|K

Jazz: Ree-ow.

Beck: We need to take THIS big thing down!

Beck: -And keep them away from Dad while he does his thing, okay-

Jazz: -REE-OW.-

[SHING!]

[YUP. THOSE ARE CLAWS IF EVER THERE WERE SOME.]

Beck: O.O

Beck: -....NICE- ^.^

Beck: -Yes, there will be food after, we know you-

Beck: Let's get 'em, kitty! > : D

Nameless: -SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEE-

Jazz: Ree-ow.

[BLAM BLAM BLAM--]

Will: (Oh, thank goodness, at least Beck will have some support...)

Will: (I still have to take out this core, but I have nothing else--)

[There was a squealing noise as Jazz dug her claws into the Nameless.]

Will: -OW, OUR EARS--

Will: --!

Will: (Wait...)

Will: (I DO have something else--)

-*-*-*-

Mikhail: At least take the sensory defense mechanism with you, Will!

Mikhail: I’m begging you—

Mikhail: You and Sanda are the ONLY friends I have ever since we were relocated in the protection program! PLEASE don’t get yourself hurt!

-*-*-*-

[Will scrambles to get the sensory defense mechanism off from around his neck--]

Will: (This--)

Will: (If I can get this right in the core, the signals should overload it and the system--!)

Beck: DAAAAD I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH LONGER I CAN DO THIS--!

Nameless: SCREEEEEEEEEE--

Will: Just a little longer--

Will: --And brace yourself--!

Beck: --?? Wha--

[CRAAAAAAASH--]

[Will presses the mechanism and throws it into the open panel, where it lands right on the computer core--]

Will: (I hope this works--!)

[The panel closes, and--]

[The closed panel prevented the blinding light, yes.]

[At least… the VISIBLE light… to the outside observer.]

[ERROR--E R R OR--]

[But the SOUND, and the SOUND and the LIGHT over the FEEDS—

Not so much.]

<DWN-012>: > -ERROR: DATA OVERLOAD-

<DWN-013>: > -ERROR: DATA OVERLOAD-

<CSU-001>: > -ERROR: DATA OVERLOAD-

[It was like every possible avenue related to the perception of vision and sound was overwhelmed in a blinding and deafening way. Both in the traditional sense and through data alone— it BLASTED throughout not only the entire factory, but also the building next door.

Although the concept had been originally designed specifically to fight against Robot Masters running a DWN_OS, it functioned through the use of sensory overload. Anything—even organic things—that had sensory perception was, to some degree, susceptible. This included the Mighty Numbers.]

Beck: -OW OWOWOWOW--

[MN.4] //: @~@

[MN.7] //: -ngh--cant see--!

[MN.6] //: -CRASH, OUCH, WE'RE OKAY BUT OW MAN WHO TURNED ON THE BRIGHTNESS SETTING TO EXTREMELY NOT OKAY--

[For Shade in particular, the experience was borderline torturous—his high sensitivity made it not merely uncomfortable—it made it PAINFUL.]

[MN.8] //: UUUGH WHAT THE DAMN HELL I S THAT--

[He was suddenly overcome yet again.

Memories of the fight bombarded him—recollections of times Cardinal had used Flash Stopper, of when he had let his fans screech loudly across the feeds—it cascaded and echoed back against the HORRIBLE sensation already being applied against him—]

[MN.8] //: -Ngh--!

[THUD--]

[MN.6] //: -Oh crud SHADE BRO ARE YOU OKAY--

[MN.8] //: -WHAT'S IT LOOK LIKE--

Will: --?!?

[Will was taken aback at all of this, but didn’t have long to dwell on it.]

[E ROR LRKRKKDJSNAK--]

[SY TO TME F ISIALUT RE--]

Will: --!

[The lights and the holoscreens around the M.O.M unit blink out one by one, and then--

The assembly lines all over the factory come to a screeching halt.]

Beck: @~@

Beck: Uuugh, my head...

Will: ......

Will: >~>!;;;;

Will: (Er...Oops?)

Will: (I--er.)

Will: (Oh dear I really shouldn't ever make Mikhail angry ever again--)

Will: o~o;;;;;;

[MN.1] //: -Jaden???? Speedy????-

[The two of them were out cold, though they were still Online, at least.]

[MN.2] //: -YO THIS IS NO TIME TO BE TAKING A NAP BRO--

[SPLLIIIIIIISH--]

<DWN-012 is now Online.>

<DWN-012>: > -Gurgle noises-

[MN.2] //: -Rolls over to Jaden now--

[SPLLIIIIIIISH--]

<DWN-013 is now Online.>

<DWN-013>: > -AWAKE, SO AWAKE NOW— -

[MN.1] //: | / --Ngh--head still hurts, what WAS that--

[MN.2] //: -Yeah that was, like, WAY DIZZY-

[MN.3] //: -Bzzzz ugh is there such thing as robot asprin Because that would be nice right now--

<DWN-013>: > Ugh…

<DWN-013>: > That was Doctor Cossack’s robot mace.

<DWN-013>: > …On the lowest setting.

[MN.2] //: -YO ARE YOU FOR REAL-- --Wait what isn't Uncle Mikhail like back at the lab--

[MN.3] //: ...Hang on, didn't Doc Cosszzack give Daddy zzsomething like...?

<DWN-012>: > My head still hurts… man is that strong stuff.

<DWN-013>: > Is Shade okay?

[MN.6] //: Eeeeeeeh... -Gives the so-so kinda guesture-

[MN.8] //: -Incoherent data, mostly grumpy to angry data, but mostly discombobulated-

<DWN-013>: >Ow.

<DWN-013>: > …I don’t hear any more crashing noises, the production seems to have stopped…

<DWN-013>: >Does that mean we’re done here…? @~@

[PING!]

[DR.WHITE] //: ...

[DR.WHITE] //: ....Um. I-Is everyone--um...--MOSTLY alright--?

[DR.WHITE] //: -Dear god I am SO sorry I hadnoideathedevicewasthatpowerfulareanyofyouhurt--?????-

[DR.WHITE] //: -WE'RE SORRY, BECK WAS HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE GIANT ROBOTS, THE CORE WASN'T--

[DR.WHITE] //: O~O

<DWN-013>: >I think Jazz is still stunned.

<DWN-013>: >There should… should be a button that does a hard reboot for systems on that device… it must still be intact, because destroying it sets off the highest setting.

<DWN-012>: > We’re okay, we’ve had worse—

[MN.1] //: Ngh... Besides minor damages from the fighting and a massive migraine...

[MN.8] //: -Sounds of stumbling and broken cursing-

[MN.1] //: ....We'll be alright, Father.

[DR.WHITE] //: -Oh thank God, for--for a moment I thought I had seriously hurt you all, I'm SORRY--

<DWN-013>: >No, noooope… >m> That was the LOWEST setting. That doesn’t… isn’t meant to do lasting harm.

[MN.9] //: @~# I really need to lie down...

<DWN-012>: > We should probably head back…

[MN.9] //: yeah that sounds nice, I'm--just gonna carry Jazz back after a bit--

Will: .......

Will: Beck.

Beck: --?

Will: Hold on to these for me.

[Will handed off both the device and his rapier off to Beck, who was resting besides a disabled Jazz.]

Beck: --???

Will: You go on ahead with Jazz without me.

Will: ....There is someone I must see first.

Beck: Huh?

Beck: I--I don't understand--

Beck: Who?

Will: ......

Will: -Puts a hand on Beck's head-

Will: Don't worry about it, alright?

Will: You make sure everyone gets out safely.

<DWN-012>: >You come back okay too then, or else Mikhail will give us an earful. |D;

Will: Eheh--yes, of course....

<DWN-013>: > …I honestly think he might have been put to sleep.

<DWN-013>: >Otherwise there’s no way he wouldn’t have been saying stuff through all of this.

<DWN-012>: >My point still stands…

Will: (Rest, that will do him some good...)

Will: I know.

Will: Just let me finish a few things here before I go.

Will: (Rather, go take care of some unfinished business.)

Beck: Okay....

Beck: Just don't take too long...

Will: I won't.

[Will fondly smiles at his son before turning around, tattered lab coat flowing behind him as he made his way towards a far off door.]

Will: (It's time you and I had a little chat...)

Will: (. . . Gregory Graham.)

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

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dauntlesstales

5 years ago

=CHAPTER 1B: RAGING FLAMES SMOLDER=

~AO v2.0~

((Courtesy of @codedhopes))

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

{Meadow}

[Everything had fallen into a surreal sort of silence when Tobias shut down. Two of the Robot Masters were laying motionless on the ground, their eyes dark and without life. It was as if the souls had been ripped right out of them, leaving them in a state of eternal despair.]

Jack: Oh my God oh my God—

Jack: A—Are they okay, are they even ALIVE—?!

[There were soft and erratic patters of ping noises as the stunned brothers tried to get a response from the fallen. They were growing louder and more frequent, and a sense of panic was starting to rise in the data.]

Mikhail: Enough!

Jack: —! Huh—

Mikhail: -Speaking calmly but firmly- Let’s not jump to any conclusions. We need to run diagnostics on both of them. Carlos, Nico—take Shadow to the lab. Skull, Keltso—do the same for Tobias. Siamini, I need both of you to prepare the diagnostic equipment for them. Go, get things ready. No time to waste!

[His sons obeyed right away, though there was a delay from the Wilybots before they complied with the orders. Mikhail pulled out his phone.]

Mikhail: (I need to know what happened…)

[He dialed the number for Will, but to his aggravation…]

“Hello, this is Dr. William Apollo White of Sanda Technologies. I’m currently unavailable right now—”

Mikhail: -Annoyed- Mmmmmnnn… -Hangs up- (Voicemail AGAIN, Will? Really? At a time like this? Gahhh… fine, I’ll call you again later, after I’ve run the diagnostic.)

[He turned to face Jack.]

Mikhail: …I’m so sorry, Jack.

Jack: H-huh?

Mikhail: You came here for something, and this whole time we’ve all but ignored you.

Jack: Oh, uh… i-it’s alright, I mean… that was a lot going on…

Mikhail: True, but you must have come here for some reason. What was it? Can we help you with something?

Jack: What? God, no, I’m more worried about YOU guys—! A—Are they going to be okay??

Mikhail: -Adjusts glasses- It’s probably just… shock. (No pun intended.) We’ll know soon enough for sure.

Jack: …

Jack: Shock, huh….

Jack: …Hn…they aren’t…they aren’t the only ones….

Jack: Starting to feel a little of that myself…

[Mikhail was quiet at that for a while, and then walked over. He put a hand on Jack’s shoulder.]

Jack: …?

Mikhail: Follow me, Mr. Parker.

Jack: (O-oh, I guess Miss Eight told him about her brother’s name for me…)

Mikhail: Let’s just have a talk.

[Jack followed the Russian Doctor into the main building in the Meadow.]

[They walked through the building and into the kitchen, where Mikhail had Jack sit down at the table. It was a rather large table, and made Jack feel small sitting at it all by himself.

But the whole situation made him feel small. He was caught up in this disaster the same as everyone else, and there was nothing he could do to help…]

Jack: (Son of a glitch…. The whole family is fallin’ apart and what did I do? Nothin…)

[There were the soft background noises of the kitchen as Mikhail started preparing something. They were largely unfamiliar noises; not the clamor of a food-related workplace, like he had worked at once for a couple weeks, not the cheap joints he normally bought from. It was a more personal, friendly and family kind of noise, one that was almost alien to him.

He perked up at the smell of meat, though.]

Jack: (…mmm…meat…ugh, that smells too good…)

Jack: …

Jack: (Gosh, this reminds me of the meal Miss Eight and I had just the other night when she stopped by…)

Jack: (I wonder where she is right now…)

Mikhail: There. It will be a while before it finishes, I’m afraid. Would you like something to drink?

Jack: Uh… I’m fine with whatever, honestly…

Mikhail: How about a milkshake, then?

Jack: Milkshake?

[He perks up a bit more at this.]

Jack: Like with the ice cream you guys sent me back in the hospital?

Mikhail: Exactly.

Jack: Oh, PLEASE…

[Mikhail smiled a little at this, and pulled some ice cream from the rather sizable freezer. The blender was a little on the loud side, but it wasn’t long before Jack had a large glass of milkshake in front of him.]

Mikhail: There you are.

Jack: Thank…

Jack: -Takes a sip- …Thanks for everything, Doc. You guys have been nothing but good to me…

Mikhail: It’s the least we can do.

[He adjusted his glasses again, sitting down opposite the beleaguered ex-arena fighter.]

Mikhail: Now…

Mikhail: You expressed you felt rather overwhelmed by all this.

Jack: …Yeah…

Mikhail: Honestly, anyone would be.

Mikhail: It’s best to start from the beginning.

Jack: …The beginning? Like… this morning?

Mikhail: No… not this morning. It probably started earlier.

Jack: What do you mean?

Mikhail: -Rubs his beard a bit- Well…

Mikhail: Things look confusing to us all right now because we don’t have the proper context to them. That makes it hard to focus on what is going on.

Mikhail: So let’s find some context, and unravel it for you. What’s on your mind? We’ll go back to address it from the beginning.

Jack: Okay…

Jack: …I…I’m just really worried about…God, it was KATE, at first, but after…that…Avi, and now Cards is out there too? It’s just…they’re out there, all alone, especially Cards….

Mikhail: …

[He closed his eyes and sighed, crossing his arms.]

Mikhail: …There’s something you should know.

Jack: (…That doesn’t sound too good…)

Mikhail: It would take a long time to explain all the details, but for a while now, Cardinal has been convinced that Gregory Graham had been planning to make a massive power grab, by means of setting up a crisis and solving it publicly.

Jack: —?!

Jack: What…?

Mikhail: He believed that the highway incident earlier in the year was the result of something in this plan going… wrong.

Jack: Wrong…?

Mikhail: The fact that Graham took the time during THIS disaster to—yet again, as before—publicly say “don’t blame me! Blame someone else!” does not help matters. “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.”

Mikhail: -Dryly- Guilty conscience, perhaps? Or just really bad lying?

Mikhail: That’s what Cardinal believed, at any rate. And I don’t think he was the only one.

Jack: He—he wasn’t?

Mikhail: Due to the meeting we had to discuss the threat that Greater Dusk posed—

Jack: Hang on, meeting—?

Mikhail: I’ll explain later, but yes. During that meeting, it was questioned why CherryDynamics would fund a team, especially one with an assassin. Cardinal wasn’t sure, but felt that Greater Dusk played an important role in the plans: the role of usurping power and favor from the Mighty Numbers, allowing for other power grabs later.

Jack: (They went through all that… because of me and Greater Dusk…)

Mikhail: Lady Countershade seemed to believe that CherryDynamics was not only responsible, but also eager to clean up “loose ends”. Namely…

Mikhail: You.

Jack: Wh...m...ME?

Mikhail: It seemed like it was very personal to her. She was adamant about it in a way that tells me she’d dealt with some sort of conspiracy like it before, whether one of her own invention she convinced herself was real, or else one she had truly witnessed.

Jack: (…She’s been following a few leads besides mine, the way she talked to me before all this…. Did…did that have something to do with my situation—?)

Mikhail: She wanted to protect you, Mr. Parker. She wanted to keep you safe from fixers, from those seeking to silence you as a witness. Something went wrong again in the finals, clearly; something that had not been intended to be publicly known yet. If ever. Likely never.

Jack: … … … … ….

Jack: Jeezus….

[This…this was bigger than he thought.]

[Much, much bigger.]

[What in the world was going on now?]

[Could…]

[Could this be…just too much to handle?]

[Suddenly Jack felt like he was up against MORE than just a virus.]

Jack: … ….

Mikhail: …Tell me more about the crosses, Jack. Felix had been doing research into them, but he fell ill as a result…. You’re the only person who can tell us about them, and… I think that this virus is related to what happened at the Queen’s Finals.

[Jack took in a deep breath after a long sip of his milkshake.]

Jack: Alright…. Where to start…

[He ran his hand through his messy, fluffy hair.]

Jack: Putting them on when they weren’t active–didn’t do a thing. They were made of Xel, so I guess the crosses also had this REALLY tiny core to keep it together….

Jack: They just looked like freaky jewelry to other people. I didn’t like it. Felt…wrong. That’s why I always hid mine under my shirt.

Mikhail: …In what sense? Physically, or morally?

Jack: ….Both? The cross felt…cold. Like it was just pulled out of the freezer, no matter how hot it was out.

Jack: That and inverted crosses are USUALLY a bad sign.

Mikhail: Mmmm…. When you threw the cross down in the finals, that did allow us to briefly see what it was. …The use of that symbol did not go unnoticed.

Jack: …

Mikhail: Their “youngest” brother believed the one behind it was trying to “play God” and was using that symbol on purpose, as a highly disrespectful mockery.

Mikhail: -Softly- I do not discount the notion.

Jack: … … ….

Jack: (The Provider…)

Jack: …..

Jack: Well, whatever nutjob made those things did a REAL good job fragging [glitch] up.

Mikhail: Quite…

Mikhail: There was… a theory I had about it, at the time.

Jack: …?

——————————

Tobias: I don’t understand—! What’s going on?!

[They all fell silent when a quiet voice spoke up unexpectedly.]

Mikhail: … -Quietly- Berserkers.

Cardinal: …! What?

Mikhail: In ancient times, there were men of great strength, warriors that were great and terrible. They could work themselves into a rage that made them almost seem to ignore their wounds in battle—a madness that they channeled with incredible force.

Mikhail: This is why there is the phrase “going berserk.” This is almost exactly what it means.

Mikhail: But to concentrate only on bloodlust, at the loss of sense…

[He adjusted his glasses, the light glinting off them in a glare that obscured his eyes.]

Mikhail: …Especially against tacticians, that can be a very heavy price…

——————————

Mikhail: …Was I right? Is that what they did, induce such a state?

Jack: ….You bet they did….

Jack: When they went active…

Jack: All I felt was rage.

Mikhail: …

Jack: All I felt was…this feeling to break things.

Jack: It was ALL I could think about…

Jack: All…I could think about was…

Jack: How much I wanted to hurt Blade.

Jack: …..

Jack: It was like… something just…took over and….and…

Jack: –….

Jack: I knew it was bad. I had this gut feeling WAY before the finals…

Jack: I knew.

Jack: So I fought back.

Mikhail: … -Focused but also thoughtful- … -After some hesitation…- …We know what that feels like. …You have our deepest empathy.

Jack: ……..

Mikhail: We know that to fight it off is no easy thing. …You are a stronger man than you give yourself credit for, Jack. Not everyone has the will or stamina to do this.

Jack: …..

Jack: -Sigh- Doc, I’m just a normal guy that wanted some extra cash in his pocket. Sure, I’m probably not such a piece of scrap, after all, but…

Jack: I’m not special.

Jack: I’m just…lucky, I guess.

Mikhail: -Gentle slight smile- I suppose. Having Lady Luck on your side is always nice. Heh… I wouldn’t have survived otherwise.

[He goes over and starts pulling things out of the oven, and Jack is left in his own thoughts for a while.]

Jack: (…Is it luck, or is it just something looking out for me…? Ah, who the hell am I kidding… Luck HATES my guts…)

[He was almost too focused to notice the smells of lunch, but it was at this point that the smell of delicious, glorious, tender S T E A K came drifting through the air—]

Jack: —!!!!!

[Jack shoots up into a straighter sitting position, eyes WIDE and eager–]

Jack: That—that is the most awesome smell I’ve ever—

[Mikhail walked over with a platter. A platter with SO MUCH FOOD.

There was steak, there was loaded baked potato with extra toppings set to the side—

Corn, green bean casserole, a tall glass of cold milk, a small bowl of fruit salad— and some chocolate pudding with Oreo bits and whipped cream!]

Mikhail: -Sets it down at the table- Sorry to keep you waiting.

Jack: …

[Jack might have kicked himself later for forgetting his manners—but he just dove into the most delicious food he’s ever eaten in his entire life.]

Jack: -dATA, SO MUCH DATA, OH GOD THIS IS SO GOOD HE COULD CRY-

[Mikhail chuckled at that, seeming very pleased.]

Mikhail: Things will get better, Jack. They may seem nearly hopeless now, but they will get better. Beck White has the power to reverse this, and that’s more than we could have hoped for in such a disaster. I have faith that he’ll bring his family back home.

[Jack slowed down a bit at this, his good mood wavering.]

Jack: …Hey, Doc…?

Mikhail: Yes?

Jack: Do… -Hesitates- …

Jack: Do y’ think Six was… lying?

Mikhail: …? Lying?

Jack: About her. Miss Eight…

Mikhail: …

[His eyes looked very tired at that, and he frowned slightly.]

Mikhail: …I’d say it's possible he was being misleading, but I find it unlikely that Kate is herself… given that even the RMDC was infected. She was connected to the database…

Jack: (…n…no…. Kate, no…)

Mikhail: She might have been asleep somewhere, but even then she would be in danger of getting sick after the fact.

[He gave a deep sigh.]

Mikhail: My heart goes out to those trying to find either her or Countershade; it will be very difficult to find them, and dangerous to confront them.

Jack: …But…

Jack: Isn’t that what bird guy is doing…? (And he can’t even heal them…)

Mikhail: Well. I can’t be entirely sure what he is up to, but that is a distinct possibility. Whatever Cardinal is up to, I can tell you this: nothing will deter him from a mission… not even the threat of death.

Mikhail: -Softly- “No one has greater love than this…”

Mikhail: “…to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Jack: —!

Jack: … …

Jack: (Miss Eight…)

Jack: (Real deep stuff you’re laying down here, bird guy…)

Jack: … …

Jack: Sorry I…I’m not much help…I…

Jack: (….REALLY hope you know what you’re doing…)

Mikhail: -Weary… and sad…- No… it should have been expected and anticipated. We were not surprised. Alarmed, yes, but not surprised….

Mikhail: It is the path he chose long ago, and none can deter it from him as long as he yet runs.

Mikhail: He has made his choice. I only wish he weren’t so fragile…

Jack: ……

Jack: (Fragile…like a bird…)

Jack: (Flying solo for your friend, huh…)

Mikhail: At least he took Jazz with him. That may prove to be his saving grace, if things go south.

Mikhail: …That brings us up to the present, I suppose. Do you have any other questions?

Jack: … …

Jack: (Should I ask ‘em if they can help me find Miss Eight? If they couldn’t stop the bird guy, they’ll DEFINITELY try and stop me….)

Jack: Uh…no, no—well, sorta. Do you guys got anything I can use? Like—supplies and stuff. Just to have on hand.

Jack: And… if you’ve heard anything from Miss Eight’s family.

Mikhail: We have not heard from them yet, but we may hear from them within a week’s time. They are running on a different rate of time passage, so details may be different or confused. Time warps can fuzz the memory rather severely, as our own family can personally attest to. One remembers a general feeling, but not specific events…

Mikhail: As for supplies—forgive me, but I thought Ms. White set you up at a flat in Britain?

Jack: W-well, yeah, but…

Jack: …Saw a metal snake behind my couch…

[Mikhail visibly stiffened at this, becoming very tense. Jack noticed that his gloved, clenched left hand was shaking.]

What he couldn't possibly know was the extent dark, dark torment that plagued the Doctor's mind…]

Mikhail: …

Mikhail: -Somewhat strained at first- Oh, of course. No, of course…. It was good of you to come here…. Let’s see…

Mikhail: I know that David sent a great deal of good supplies—which I see you have brought with you. However… if you’re planning on camping, you’ll need something to eat…

[He wanders off for a moment. When he comes back, he has what appears to be a small cooler… or else a very large lunchbox.]

Mikhail: It’s not much, but with what you’re going through… lunch and dinner over the next few days to indulge in is the least we can do.

[There are sandwiches, sauces, ice cream bars, milk bottles, soda, even Xelpops in there!]

Jack: Thanks, man… this is…. This is just great…

Mikhail: You’re welcome.

[He stands and takes off his glasses to clean them for a moment.]

Mikhail: I’m afraid I must be going. I need to start work on the others.

Jack: Yeah, me too.

Mikhail: We wish you the best as you go on elsewhere, though you are welcome to stay here if you change your mind. I do hope you come back soon at least once—I think Felix had a gift for you.

Jack: …? (Miss Eight said the same thing…. She said he said it was important, too…)

Jack: Uh…I think maybe I’ll just pick that up on the way? Where is he?

[Hopefully he had enough luck on his side to get back to the States in time…AND in one piece.]

Mikhail: He’s out a bit further in the Wilderness. There’s a path that leads more or less right by his house. (Granted, his house is underground, but.)

Jack: Hmm. Got it—I’ll head that way for now.

[Mikhail nodded and left, heading for the medical bay portion of the lab.

Wiping his mouth with his sleeve, Jack straightened out his coat and grabbed the cooler with his other hand, stretching himself out a couple of times–the doc said he had to often just to keep himself limber.]

Jack: Nnh….

[…Despite the looming danger in front of him, and what was yet to come…

…Strangely, Jack didn’t feel all that worried about it at the moment. Maybe it was the food.]

Jack: ….

Jack: (Well, need to at least see what all that is about…)

[It wasn’t long before he found himself in a very unusual house.

It appeared to have been dug right into the ground. This underground bunker had undergone a number of renovations over the years, with the latest one making it far more sophisticated.]

Jack: (This must be the place…. Can’t say I expected it would be underground…)

Jack: …

Jack: -Knocks on the door in the ground?-

[After a few moments, the door was rolled away from underneath, and he found himself looking at someone rather unusual.]

Piers: ?

[The man had golden eyes and aqua colored hair. The air around him seemed to be cooler and… gentler, somehow.]

Piers: I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve met before. May I help you?

Jack: (…OK, I’ve seen people dye their hair some CRAZY colors but—)

Jack: Um–yeah, same here. CDN.7037, Designation 'Dencerjack’. Just call me Jack…

Jack: Uh—I’m looking for a guy called Felix? The guys back at that Meadow told me he had something for me.

Piers: Ah… yes, that makes sense.

Piers: Felix mentioned you. He had an important gift for you. Please, do come in.

Jack: … ‘Kay….

[He followed the man down a ladder and into a sort of living room area. There was a large stone table, two chairs, a rocking chair, and a large sofa… currently occupied by a man with long brown hair, who appeared to be asleep in a fevered dream.

There were banners and tapestries adorning the walls, and there were blankets and furs stowed away neatly in a nearby chest. The mantelpiece and shelves around the living room displayed pottery and chinaware that the owner had made, and some wooden carvings. Noticeably, the art around the room showed not only his travels in Weyard and Weyard history, but also scenes and depictions of his friends (and their trials) beyond it.

In the middle of the living room, there were two large dog bed-sized baskets, and one smaller basket. Small cups of stone in the walls around the room served as recesses where beeswax candles and oil lamps rested, though they were lit by Venus energy most of the time… but not today. Today, they were lit by Mercury energy, giving the whole room a soft blue hue to it.]

Jack: (Jeez, this is like something out of a story…)

[His eyes keep glancing back to the little blue lights, wondering where in the world they had come from—this guy registered as an organic, but he was getting some weird energy readings from him too…

Piers: Where are my manners? Forgive me—allow me to introduce myself. I am Captain Piers of Lemuria—a Mercury warrior Adept.

Jack: (….Uhhh.) Nice to meet you…

[Piers looked over at the man on the couch, who briefly glowed a faint gold with a green tint.]

Jack: …!

Piers: Felix is still locked in the cursed dreams… I fear that it is the current disaster which overtook him.

[There were so many things Jack wanted to ask about that—the glow, where the heck was Lemuria and what in the world was an Adept—but he didn’t have the time…]

Jack: Yeah, things have REALLY gone down the drain, huh. …Hope he gets better soon.

Piers: I believe he shall, but that may not be until the crisis has passed… -Small sigh- It is hard to say, outside of time, how long it may take.

[He motioned for Jack to sit down on the floor near the table, which he did.]

Piers: There is, in our world, a material. This material can be used to craft things… jewelry, armor, weapons…. They provide a good deal of power, but they are cursed.

Jack: C-cursed?

Piers: The curse makes it impossible to discard the item without an exorcism. The user gets power, yes—but they are enveloped in a black and red aura, and at times… lose the ability to move of their own volition.

Jack: Ghn…. Oh glitch, that… that’s bad…

[Piers sighed and went over to the mantelpiece above the fireplace.]

Piers: Yes. The similarities were striking, which is probably why Felix was looking into it. Once you understand how something is set into motion, it is easier to see how to put a stop to it. He hoped that studying Dark Matter would yield information that the Doctors could use for medical purposes.

[He brought back a small container. Inside it was a chunk of what looked like an evil cross between obsidian and black marble, as smooth as glass.]

Piers: I'll be honest with you, Master Parker. This was a very dangerous experiment for him to be conducting, right from the start. It's also very unusual that he was working with Dark Matter at all; he'd always made a point never to use Cursed weapons or armor, simply because they were not worth the price. The fact that this happened anyway shows just how motivated he was.

Jack: B…But why the glitch would he DO that—?

Piers: Out of concern. Everyone was very worried. Felix honestly thought he could find an answer. Not only that… he also sympathized with your position.

Jack: …Position?

Piers: -Shakes his head- Within your group. …Felix knew what it was like to have… hard taskmasters, who favored the use of force to show dominance and displeasure.

Jack: -Winces at the reminder… and the thought someone else went through the same thing- …

Jack: …Hn…

Jack: …Is… Is he gonna be okay—?

[The sailor looked over at the Adept in question.]

Piers: …Probably. He’s been through worse in his time.

[He heaved a sigh.]

Piers: At any rate. He arranged for a gift to be given to you, but he fell ill before he could send it….

[He went back over to the mantelpiece and brought over a small box.]

Piers: He said this was to be for you.

[There appeared to be… only a single item inside.]

Jack: ….?

[…What the… a ring, of all things?]

Piers: -Looks QUITE surprised- So that’s where it went.

[He is suddenly very thoughtful.]

Piers: He must have felt that you would need it—and deserved it—and had it set aside for you to give to you…

Jack: ? You know what this is?

Piers: Yes. That’s a Cleric’s Ring: a rare artifact that prevents loss of control of your person.

Jack: … …

Jack: You mean– this thing will protect me from the virus?!

[It takes a moment for him to understand that Jack was talking about the sickness that had overtaken the Mighty Numbers, but then he nods.]

Piers: Yes, that is exactly the idea. It only protects the wearer, however; it does not have an area of effect or the ability to be used as a healing talisman.

Jack: …So it’s just for me. Got it…

[Jack takes a few seconds to inspect the ring a little before putting it on. It fit perfectly.]

Jack: Wow…feels weird…

[…But in a good way.]

Jack: …..

Jack: ….

Jack: (…This can protect me… I won’t get sick. Man, that makes me feel a HELL of a lot better… I guess I really am lucky, having this kinda stuff available… but Kate…)

Piers: I can see you have a lot on your mind… and your gear suggests you have nowhere to go. Would you like to spend the night here? At least then you will have a roof over your head.

Jack: Uh— A-Are you sure? You said Felix is… sick, I, I don’t wanna… be a bother, especially in a time like this--

Piers: Nonsense. It is no imposition whatsoever.

Jack: …

Jack: …A…Alright. I… need t’ think over all this, maybe…. Y…yeah. Thanks.

[And think them over he did.

… … …Kate…. The only person who ever gave two bolts about him…the woman who saved his life…

The woman who had believed in him when no one else did, who had been there to comfort and protect him, who had pulled him out of harm’s way…

The fearless agent who had championed his cause after he was out of surgery, who had kept the press and the forces of darkness at bay…

The… friend he had shared laughter with, who had made his days more than just “bearable”…

She was out there somewhere in America, alone. In the midst of all this.]

Jack: … …

Jack: (….No…No freakin’ way. It’s crazy. YOU’RE crazy.)

Jack: (If she IS OK, somewhere, then yeah, nothing to worry about then–)

Jack: (….But…if she ISN’T…)

Jack: … …

Jack: Sonofva[GLITCH.]

[Without another word, Jack yanks his old biker trenchcoat off from the floor, and heads for the door.]

“Where are you going?”

Jack: !

Jack: Uh—

[Piers was up, dressed in a simple cotton shirt and slacks, with a robe drawn about him. He looked at Jack patiently, clearly waiting for an answer.]

Jack: I…

Jack: I’m sorry, Captain, but—I really have to go—

Piers: …

Piers: Very well.

Jack: !

Piers: But before you do, permit me to at least prepare some supplies.

Jack: I…

Jack: I don’t know if I can carry any more…

[Piers smiled at this.]

Piers: We’ll see about that.

[He went over to one of the storage chests in the room and unlocked it, pulling out a well worn traveling bag. He disappeared off into the kitchen for a moment, before returning with just the bag again.]

Jack: What’s in the bag?

Piers: Some healing items. I am unsure if they would work on you, but I am inclined to think they would. There’s also a change of clothes that should fit relatively well; you’ll want them if you travel for long. There’s also some water and a few defensive items. You may take a look for yourself.

[The first thing he notices is the…wow there is a WHOLE lot more room in here than what it looks like on the outside—how is that even physically possible.]

Jack: …. Are you sure you won’t need this?

Piers: Very. We won’t be traveling for some time; your need is far greater.

Jack: Okay then…

[He proceeds to stuff the cooler in it because NO WAY was he going to drag that thing the whole way.

After some thought, he puts much of what was in his backpack in there as well. Then he puts the bag in one of his many pockets, hauling up the backpack onto his shoulders.]

Piers: -Turns to face Jack, looking at him thoughtfully before giving a gentle smile- I see others have supplied you for the journey ahead as well. I must say… it’s nice to start off a quest with something at hand.

Jack: No kidding…

[Piers opened the door and led Jack outside. He looked ahead down the path, pointing to the horizon.]

Piers: Keep your sights on that city, and you shall arrive where you seek soon enough.

[…WOW OKAY. There was a city there that was NOT there before—

—and what’s more, it looked familiar! It was definitely somewhere from Jack’s own world!

Jack looked to where he pointed–his violet eyes widening as he locked his gaze into something familiar in this huge mess of chaos–it almost felt relieving to see his destination at last.

…In fact…judging from the city skyline–it almost looked like…]

[..Seattle?]

Jack: … …

Jack: I REALLY hope it’s not gonna be raining by the time I get there…

Jack: That city is almost ALWAYS raining, see…

Jack: (…It’s better than nothing, at least.)

[Piers smiled a little.]

Piers: Do you have a poncho you could use? That’s what I’d recommend.

Jack: Oh yeah… now that you mention it….

[He pulled it out and put it on, and then put the goggles on as well. The night vision activated immediately, making the whole world a lot easier to see.

…He REALLY felt like he was about to embark on some important journey, now that he thought about it…

…Probably because he really was.]

Jack: …-Exhales-

Piers: Godspeed on your journey, my friend. Return home safely upon its completion—and may that be soon.

Jack: Thanks, Captain. Thanks for everything.

[He turns away, eyes set on the horizon, rain clouds already starting to form over the distant, war-torn city of Seattle.]

Jack: …Godspeed…yeah…

Jack: (I’m gonna need all the luck in the world for this…)

[In an instant, he starts to sprint off. Might as well get a head start and run for it…!]

Jack: (Just a little further, Kate…! I’m almost there…!)

Jack: (Just hold on until then…!)

<<—Previous——————Table of Contents——————Next—>>

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dauntlesstales

8 years ago

This is a beautiful train wreck of dramedy. As some a’ mah friends say, “this can only end well.”

=CHAPTER 9A: HAZY SUSPICION=