The Promise

Catherine Blaze looked out the window at the beautiful early fall day. It was a time of transition; in more ways than one. While it was officially autumn summer still clung on though it was losing its grip; the same could be said for her son's humanity. In just a few hours her little boy would be lost to her forever.

She scoffed; the day seemed as if it were mocking her. The sunshine and balmy wind were in stark contrast to the dark feelings swirling inside her. How had she gotten here? All Catherine ever wanted was a family; someone to care for, and someone to love her back. Shuseki had been so charming when they were courting. He was electric, ambitious, and rock steady; at the time the perfect prospect for a husband and father. Their first years had been very happy ones, but after those past by he changed. Blaze Quest soon became his wife instead of her. The atmosphere of big business and his drive turned him into something ugly.

She had been in denial when she thought children would save him. And even then she had trouble conceiving. When her doctor suggested they try an artificial womb Shuseki seemed all too happy. The prospect of having a designer child; one that would be watched over for nine months, was very appealing to him. That's when everything went wrong. Emery hadn't been perfect. The nutrients and antibodies used for gestation were underestimated leaving him with an insufficient immune system; leaving him defective. Shueski was obsessed with perfection; nothing was ever good enough; and a child that was less than healthy certainly wasn't good enough. At the same time she had gotten pregnant; naturally this time around. The resulting birth gave her husband exactly what he wanted: a perfect son; Chaud Blaze. Having the two of them side by side made it easy for Shueski to make his choice.

In that moment her waking nightmare began. It had been easy for him leaving those papers on their nightstand; documentation to terminate their parenteral rights. But it was exactly what she needed, with her husband out of the picture Emery was hers. It was just a shame that the little life she built for the two of them hadn't lasted.

The double life was hard. How was a mother to split time between two children? Either way someone was losing; Chaud in Blaze Manor or Emery in the cozy suburban home but she didn't have another option. Years past by that way until they turned six. Things were supposed to get better then. Chaud was old enough to keep a secret and Catherine was ready to reunite the two. That's when tragedy struck. Emery became sick; the flu. Though not the end of the world the doctors soon lost control of the virus and it became pneumonia; it was too much for Emery to take. Catherine thought it would be the end of him; a tragic end to a tragic life. Then there was a miracle; or was it a curse? At the moment Catherine wasn't sure.

By chance she had stumbled across a brilliant young scientist undergoing his own hell. One of his twin boys was sick. Struck by an illness with a high mortality rate; HBD. But Yuichiro Hikari was an unconventional thinker. His work on a new netnavi project had given him an idea. His theory was in order to make netnavis more relatable their programing would need to be supplemented with human DNA. But what here humans at their core other than biological programs? The human genome had been mapped out and digitized decades before; and the human consciousness was a series of electrical impulses. Theoretically it would be possible to combine the two, he could save his son, he could make him a netnavi. Catherine had overhead that shared conversation between Yuichiro and his wife; she was just a desperate as they were and they didn't have the heart to turn her away. So when Emery's eyes closed for the last time as a human they soon opened as a navi.

Catherine turned away from the window to watch her son in his world through the large household network monitor on the wall. Emery sat cross-legged on the floor, dressed in a pullover hoodie and shorts, neck bound by a yellow scarf, with a picture book in his lap and building blocks strewn around him; he was happy for the most part. It hadn't been easy getting him there. Though he was grateful he was still alive the transition took its toll. He was like any other little kid his age, affectionate and tactile; so going from that to being cut off from the physical world and his mother left its scars. The separation hurt Catherine as well but considering the other option had been death; this was the lesser evil. But sometimes it was plain evil. Like today.

Today was September 30, 2024; Emery's seventh birthday. Today should have been a day of refection and joy instead it was going to be filled with loss.

Catherine was dying. She was angry; after all she had gone through, after all she had done and sacrificed for the sake of her sons she wasn't going to get the opportunity to see them grow up. She wasn't even going to get the chance to see them introduced. Her first attempt had been thwarted by Emery's illness and then conversion. At the time Catherine was sure Chaud would be able to understand his brother's circumstances while he was human, but once he became a netnavi that was a different story. Chaud was extremely bright for his age but wrapping his head around the strange truth may have been a little much for the six-year-old. Not to mention that Emery didn't have a handle on his new circumstances himself; he would need time to adjust before any introduction.

It was during this interim that Catherine realized she was ill. At first she chalked it up to the stress of dealing with this new life; but the feelings persisted even after things started to get better. That's when they found the cancer. Cervical cancer. She felt as if she had been punched in the gut over and over when she was told those words from her doctor. That had been the reason for her conception issues. In fact due to her health both Emery and Chaud were miracles. Cervical cancer however was a smite. It was an extremely aggressive type and hers was advanced; she didn't have much time.

This wasn't to say she wasn't fighting. Her oncologist had suggested both chemo and radiation as treatment if there was to be any hope but the Hail Mary hadn't succeeded; the cancer was still unchecked. Shueski wasn't ready to give up though; since conventional medicine had failed he was looking into experimental treatments. She smiled as she thought of that. Despite it all her husband still loved her no matter how distant he was.

It was this latest tragedy that was forcing her to take drastic measures. Odds were nothing was going to work; she was going to pass away, and that meant that Emery would need a way to survive.

He couldn't live as a child navi on his own; and if he was going to have any stability in his life he would have to be with family. The only family he had was Chaud. This came with its own challenges; while it was uncommon for a child as young as he to have a navi it wasn't unheard of. In fact Shueski had been playing around with the idea. There was just one problem; a six-year-old net-op couldn't have a seven-year-old netnavi. Not only that, but Shueski would never allow it. That left only one solution; Emery would have to be artificially aged.

The thought of that make Catherine cringe. Emery had already been through more than any seven-year-old should have. He had already lost his human life he shouldn't have had to lose his childhood too, but as things stood what was their only choice.

Catherine Blaze took Emery's PET into her hands before she looked up to her son.

"Are you ready sweetie?" She asked.

Emery looked at her with his wide smile and bright azure eyes. "Yes Mama!" he exclaimed as he scrambled to put his things away swapping out his human attire (except for his scarf) for his jumpsuit and helmet that he only wore when he and his mother went out before jumping into the devise. "Where are we going again?" he asked.

Catherine Blaze took in a deep breath. "We're going to SciLab, dear, to see Dr. Hikari. Remember him? He's the one that saved you."

"So I'm going for a checkup?" Emery asked. He was aware that something was off. For the past couple days his mother had been acting strange.

"Yes baby," Catherine replied as she clipped the PET to her purse so Emery couldn't see the tears that were gathering in her eyes, "You're going for a checkup."


"I want to see Lan, Daddy! Can't I just tell him? Please?" Hub begged.

Dr. Hikari sighed deeply as he bowed his head running his hands through his hair. He hated this. He hated every bit of this. No parent relished putting their children through this pain, not unless they were a monster. But who knows? Maybe he was a monster. Wouldn't only a monster place their children (and others) in this predicament?

"Hub you know very well why you can't do that."

"It's for my protection I know." Hub replied crossing his arms. "But Lan wouldn't tell! I know he wouldn't! He just cries all the time and it's because of me. He shouldn't have to go through that. I'm not dead!"

"Do you think I enjoy this? Hub I hate seeing Lan go through this just as much as you do but you have to hold on. I just can't take the chance that you'd be taken away from us again or worse. Lan will be told the truth eventually. And besides you know you'll be back with him before then."

"That's too long away. Everything will be ruined by then. How is he ever going to trust me again after I lie? And how is he ever going to fall for it?" Hub said under his breath breaking off eye contact.

"Do you trust me?" Dr. Hikari asked.

Hub looked back at his father; his vibrant green eyes sharply honed. Usually the answer to a question like that would be 'Yes' without hesitation, and it still was. However right now he didn't want to give his dad the satisfaction or reassurance; so he just stared instead.

Dr. Hikari's pulled his hands over his eyes and down his face; his patience was beginning to grow thin. While Hub was the better behaved twin his temper tantrums were always doozies; way worse than anything Lan ever doled out. The young father was about to speak again when he heard a knock on his door.

"Hub I'm going to need you to go to your homepage ok? My appointment is here."

Hub didn't budge.

"Son, please?"

"Fine." Hub answered but not before stomping his foot sending a jolt of electricity through the network which shorted out one of Yuichiro's terminals before area stealing away. The father sighed; some days he just didn't know how they were going to make it through this.

"Come in." He said after he managed to pull himself together. He smiled sadly when his guest entered the room. What he was fixing to do now was another regrettable consequence born from miracle he was responsible for. "How are you doing Catherine?" he asked.

"I'm okay." She replied; the answer was empty since she didn't mean it, but she didn't want to give Emery any pause before she had to. Catherine caressed the PET in her hands.

"And how are you doing Emery?" Yuichiro asked addressing her son.

"I'm good."

"Good. How about you jump into this computer and we'll check you out ok?"

"Alright." The young boy replied as he did what he was asked. Once he had Dr. Hikari tuned the computer's internal microphone off so he and his mother could have some privacy as he began the initial scans.

"So how's Hub doing?" Catherine asked trying to head off the conversation that was to follow for as long as possible.

"He's and handful; he's not taking this transition easily, all he wants is to be with his brother. Not that I can blame him. You however have a very mature young man on your hands I would have thought he'd be upset; nervous at the very least." When Catherine didn't comment on her son's good behavior Yuichiro began to question her. "Catherine?"

No reply.

"Emery does know why he's here doesn't he?"

Catherine shook her head as tears began to spring up once more. "I just couldn't do it." She said. "I didn't even tell Emery what was going to happen when he transitioned. I couldn't hope to have the heart to tell him this. Who would want to?"

Yuichiro's eyes widened. "Catherine you have to tell him. He can't go through this without knowing. It's going to be hard enough as it is."

"I can't!" she cried shaking her head and shrinking back.

"CATHERINE." Yuichiro said in a strong steady tone as he took hold of the woman by her shoulders. "You have to. Emery can't go into this as a seven-year-old boy and come out of it a fifteen-year-old teenager not knowing the truth; especially with what he's going to lose. I know this is hard. But it's going to be worse for him."

"But-"

"No. Either you tell him what's happening or I'm not going to do the procedure."

Catherine looked at the monitor as Emery floated there in stasis as the scans continued to run. When a notice alarm went off a few seconds later Yuichiro spoke again.

"He's coming out of stasis; he's clean, no bugs, no system errors. We're free to proceed once he knows. - Look I won't leave okay. If you need help explaining anything I'll be here.


Emery blinked sleepily as he came out of stasis only to be met with his mother's sad face. Either something was seriously wrong with him, or like he figured he wasn't here for a checkup. He chose however to play ignorant.

"Is my checkup over?" he asked. "Do I get a cyber-sucker now? …Mom? Are you okay?"

Catherine tried her best to smile. "You're such a good boy you know that?"

Emery shifted uncertainly beginning to play with his scarf. "Is there something wrong with me?" he asked.

"No sweetie." His mother answered. "There's something wrong with me. Remember when I told you I was sick? As sick as you were when you were in the hospital?"

Emery began to fidget even more. He didn't like where this was going. "But you went to the doctor for your medicine. It made you hair fall out but it's growing back. And you're still getting medicine; special medicine. You're going to get better! You're getting better."

"Even so Emery…I told you odds were I wasn't going to get better. I'm not getting well baby. Just like you didn't get well."

"So is Dr. Hikari going to make you a navi too?"

Catherine's smile grew bigger as tears began to fall. She shook her head. "No Emery he's not."

"Why? You could be with me again!"

"Because I wouldn't be able to pull it off; I'd be surrounded by too many people and Dr. Hikari has to keep what he did for you a secret. Besides if we were both navis we'd need someone to look out for the both of us. It wouldn't be safe for us alone."

"What about Aunt Deborah? She's your best friend, and she looks after me when you're away with Chaud. Couldn't she be a net-op?"

"No, she has her own life. I couldn't burden her with both our secrets. It would be too dangerous."

Tears were now welling up in Emery's eyes as well.

"So you'd just leave me all alone?" he asked. "What would be the difference in her operating both of us or just me? What's going to happen to me?"

"You know I don't want to leave you Emery, but I'm not being given a choice. That's why we're here today. You remember what our plan was right? My plan for you and Chaud?"

The platinum blond lit up a bit at the mention of his brother; he knew this by heart. "You were going to introduce us. He was going to be my brother first and when he was old enough my net-op second."

"That's still the plan. It's just getting moved up is all."

"To when?"

"Soon. Very soon."

Now the young navi was confused. "I don't understand. Chaud's just six; I can't be his navi now, I'm too little. He needs a navi that's bigger. Like a big brother. I know I'm his big brother but I'm just three months older. That's not old enough."

Catherine sighed. That was the rub.

"You still want to be his navi don't you?" She asked.

"I want that more than anything." Emery replied.

"Would you be willing to grow up for it?"

"Grow up?" Emery asked as he glanced behind his mother to Dr. Hikari. He wasn't sure he liked the sound of that, but his mom continued.

"Because you're a navi now you can be programed to mature at an accelerated rate. By-by the time I'm gone you'd be ready to look after Chaud. You and he need to be together. You'd be all each other has left in terms of family."

"How much?"

Catherine closed her eyes in shame before she looked back up locking eyes with her son.

"A teenager. Fifteen."

Emery stuttered. "B-b-but I'm seven."

"And that's not all." Catherine continued. "You know you're special; a human and a netnavi. For this to work though something else needs to be done. Those two sides of you are going to have to be separated. While your binary half can be accelerated, your human side can't; not without risks. So you're going to have to rely on your navi side. You'd be more of a navi. And unfortunately that's going to affect your feelings. You'd be different, less than yourself; but you'd still be you."

Emery could only blink when he saw his mom was finished. Things were bad enough for him as it was. He couldn't imagine them getting worse and yet they were. He felt numb; like his soul had been ripped out of him already. The only thing he could think to do was turn and run away.


Hub kicked a bug fragment as he walked along sulking in the back of his father's computer having disobeyed and not gone back to his home page. All of a sudden he was knocked to the ground when someone ran into him.

"Sorry!" The boy said as he dashed off before Hub could properly register what had just happened.

Who had that been?


Catherine could only cry as she looked at the empty screen. She felt as if she had just made a big mistake.

"It's going to be okay." Yuichiro reassured her. "You explained everything like a pro. You sure you're a baker/chef and not a scientist?"

The mother still felt lousy. "I wish I could have told him everything. That it's not going to be permanent. That once his human systems catch up to where we're going to accelerate his binary ones the two will reconnect; he'll be whole again."

"But that's not a sure thing." Yuichiro admitted. "We don't know what the future's going to hold for him. Something could occur that could cause injury to his programing and prevent that reconnection. It's best he be surprised than to be waiting for it and it not happen."

The woman sighed. "I hope you're right."


Emery ran through SciLab's system until he collapsed from exhaustion. He didn't want to do this. He didn't want to give up his childhood! As he continued to think it over he pulled at the scarf on his neck and held it close. It wasn't the real one but it was all he had. The real one was his mother's. He remembered the day he had claimed it as his own. It was an early winter morning and the season's first snowfall had happened the night before. He had so desperately wanted to go outside but winter was a season where he rarely ever got to. After a bit of begging his mom had given in, bundling him up in an insane amount of layers and taking him through their neighborhood in his little red wagon. During the outing though he still managed to get a chill so Catherine gave him her scarf; her favorite, it smelled like her and her perfume, sandalwood and jasmine. Needless to say his mom didn't get the scarf back.

However as the time passed by Emery began to see that just like his mother he didn't have a choice in this matter. His mom was dying; Emery knew that, he just didn't like hearing those words out loud. But the facts weren't changing. And the fact was one way or the other this was going to have to happen. He couldn't survive on his own the age he was and as a navi he needed an operator. Chaud needed family; once their mother was gone he wouldn't have anyone either. The two of them fit together like two pieces of a very depressing puzzle.

And he couldn't be a proper navi for Chaud as a seven-year-old. His brother would also need someone on his side that genuinely loved him. Though he was sure that the household staff of Blaze Manor cared it wasn't the same as blood. The idea still scared him though. Just who was he going to be when it was over? It didn't seem like an eight year jump would leave him the same; not to mention having his human and navi sides disconnected. He didn't know what it was like to be a full navi but he knew enough about them that they didn't process emotions the same way. He didn't want to spend the time his mother had left in that state and he didn't want to meet his brother that way. But what choice did he have? He would need to know what he was doing when the time came.

He was really going to do this wasn't he?


Catherine looked down at the cup of coffee she had been nursing. This day seemed like it was going on forever. This was an impossible situation with no right answer. She was going to lose, Emery was going to lose and Chaud was going to lose. She could only hope that when the pieces were picked back up they would fit together.

"I know that this is going to be of no consolation, but everything is going to be alright." Yuichiro said.

The mother scoffed. "You're right. It is of no consolation. I've said those words so many times they've lost their meaning. I'm so scared that Emery's going to stop believing me when I say I love him. He's had nothing but strife since the day he was born; I've always tried to fix it but no matter what I did it's just gotten worse."

"You don't mean that, you're frustrated and tired-"

"I'm at the end of my rope. All I've ever wanted was to have a family and for my children to be happy. I want Emery to be happy; I want Chaud to be happy. They have to be happy."

Yuichiro sighed. "Their circumstances may be unconventional but I believe they will be."

"They have to be. Otherwise all of this will have been for nothing."

The two adults looked back at the empty monitor as a knowing silence grew between them. Not another word was spoken until Emery came back.

"Mom? Dr. Hikari?"

Catherine's eyes lit up with relief when she saw him. "Oh, Emery you're ok! I was so afraid that- I thought you might have…"

"That I'd run away? I have to admit the thought did cross my mind but where would I go? Besides I could never leave you."

"Sweetie; you don't have to do this if you don't want to. You know that right? We still have time to find another solution."

Emery took in a deep breath. "I understand; but there is no other solution. Trying something else will just waste time that we don't have." He then looked back to Dr. Hikari. "I'll do it."


The small navi looked around the network space; it was ordinary enough but soon he would be placed within a pair of stasis rings and be changed forever.

"I know everything seems mixed up right now but I don't want you to be worried," Yuichiro said reassuringly as he set up the protocol, "Everything's going to work out in the end."

"What's going to happen if my mom gets better?" Emery asked as he looked to her; she was getting more nervous by the second. Dr. Hikari gave him a sympathetic glance. "Just humor me." The boy continued, "Could you reverse this?"

"Technically yes," Yuichiro admitted beginning to type again, "but I wouldn't advise it. Your programing is very intricate. Regressing you wouldn't be easy; there'd be too much risk in my opinion." As he completed the last of his key strokes the man looked up at the young child on his screen. "Are you ready?"

The answer was no but the boy shook his head yes.

"Okay. I wish there was something I could say to set your mind at ease but this is going to be over before you know it. I'm going to place you into a dark mode; now, when you come out of if you're going to have to stay as calm as possible. There is going to be a lot of information rushing at you as your new programs fall into place. You can't panic; otherwise you may cause yourself irreparable damage."

Emery laughed to himself as he thought of something. Thanks to the way his life had turned out so far sometimes he had a sick sense of humor. "Well at least one good thing is going to come out of this." He said.

"What's that?"

"I get to skip my awkward years."

"Ha!" Yuichiro laughed; maybe everything would work out for the best. An intact sense of humor was usually a good sign.

This was it. No going back.

"Emery?" Catherine said addressing her son as a child for the last time. "I need you to promise me something. Whatever happens you have to stay true to yourself. You have such a kind heart. That's the only way you and Chaud are going to make it. Your father's influence is very strong; you can't allow him to corrupt the two of you."

The boy looked at Dr. Hikari before answering his mother. He wasn't sure how much of his heart was going to survive this process but he would try is best.

"I promise." He replied as Yuichiro nodded to Catherine and struck the enter key.


As the process began Emery felt himself slip away as the deep stasis took over. This wasn't a typical dark mode though. Usually once a navi was placed into this state it was lights out but a part of him was still conscious. Maybe it was because of the extreme nature of the procedure; maybe it was because he wasn't a normal navi but whatever the reason Emery could feel himself change.

The experience reminded him of the dentist visit he had had when he was five. The doctor had numbed his gums so he wouldn't feel the pain of his baby tooth being pulled. What he could feel was the pressure; and that was what he was feeling now. He could sense his body adapting itself to the new form; the lengthening of his torso, the extension of his limbs, not only that but his mind as well. It was as if a window had been opened and endless knowledge was pouring in; all of it understood instantaneously. At the same time however a door closed as his human side was pulled away.


"So what do you think?" Yuichiro asked as he and Catherine looked over the finished result. The mother was at a loss for words.

"He's so tall." She stammered. "Isn't he tall for fifteen?"

Dr. Hikari took note of Emery's newfound 5 foot 10 stature. "A bit." He said. "But everything you see is him. The acceleration program followed the course of his DNA. If he had lived to this age as a human he would have been this tall at that point. Is there anything you see that needs changing?"

The woman found herself chuckling a bit. "If you don't mind me asking, what's with the long hair?"

Yuichiro smiled, "Goes along well with the whole lone samurai vibe don't you think?"

"I guess." Catherine said as the smile faded. She was looking at Emery's face. His closed eyes in particular that showed through his transparent purple visor. "There is one change you need to make."

"Oh? What?"

"His visor; it can't be transparent anymore. With the exception of the hue Emery and Chaud have the same eyes as my husband. That was the one thing I think Shueski found pleasing in Emery's case. Shueski can't be allowed to ever see them."

"Alright, how about we split the difference?" Yuichiro asked. "We'll make this the new default." He said as he keyed in a couple commands turning Emery's visor from see through purple to opaque black. "And this," he said bring the visor back to its original state, "will be a second option."

Catherine smiled, "Thank you."

"You ready to wake him up now?"

"In all honesty, no; but he can't stay asleep forever."

Yuichiro took the young mother into a side hug as he brought her son out of the stasis.


"MMmmmhhhhhmmm…" Emery groaned as he felt himself being pulled from the deep sleep. His mind was a cloudy jumbled mess with all the newly installed programs and information vying for his attention. As he tried to wade through it he thought he could hear voices but they sounded far away.

"…ry…Eme….y….Emery, EMERY; EMERY!"

The last call brought him out of the fog.

"M-mom?" he asked, Emery was certain it had been both his mother and Dr. Hikari calling his name but it had been Catherine who screamed.

Catherine for her part caught her breath. She hadn't expected her little boy's voice to be that deep. But he wasn't really "little" anymore was he? Emery caught the foreign tone as well. This was not going to be easy getting used to.

He even found staying on his feet hard due to his new size and weight and he slowly dropped to his knees.

"Are you alright?" his mom ventured.

"I don't know." Emery answered. "I think-s-AGAHhhhh!" Suddenly the boy gripped his head by the helmet as another wave of new information hit him. It was then that he noticed something long and white fall over his shoulder.

Was that his hair?

The pain continued to persist and in an attempt to find some relief Emery pulled the helmet off; it didn't help but he did see the new long locks disappear. Well it was nice to know that wasn't permanent.

"EMERY!" Catherine called again, but Yuichiro stopped her from doing it anymore.

"You can't keep calling out to him." He said. "He needs to get through this with minimal distractions; he's still not stabilized.

After what seemed like forever the pain finally eased up, fading away as the information stopped coming, and then something inside the navi clicked. Like the final turn of a Rubik's cube.

Only when Catherine saw Emery stop writhing did she dare to call his name again.

"Emery?"

When the boy opened his eyes and looked to his mother she stopped breathing; already she could see how different he was.

"Mom what's wrong?"

She tried to put on her most winning smile. "N-nothing sweetheart." Then she looked to Yuichiro, "When can I take him home?"

Her son wasn't convinced; she had seen something. But as he allowed the pause in the room to grow he realized what it was. He really was different. Something about him was now artificial and mechanical. As he gazed into his mother's eyes he could still feel his love for her but it wasn't the same anymore. In that moment his heart broke just like Catherine's had. It was like an invisible barrier had been placed between them.

Yuichiro could see it too but instead of addressing it, in which there was no point, he changed the subject if only slightly. He had been running background scans on the navi ever since he had been taken out of the dark mode so he knew that all his programing had settled correctly. What he was concerned about now was his state of mind. He knew if he asked this Emery wasn't going to get into the dirty details but he would tell him enough to let the scientist know he was able to go home.

"How do you feel Emery?"

All Yuichiro got was a one word answer.

"Weird."

"Do you know where you are? Why you're here? What just happened to you?"

The infantile teen cut his eyes.

"Scilab by way of Dentech City in the county of Japan on the planet Earth; I'm here because I needed to be artificially aged in order to become a proper navi and guardian to my little brother Chaud Blaze age six years, eight month, and twenty-five days. What just happened is I went from a seven-year-old kid to a fifteen-year-old teenager in a proverbial blink of an eye. Happy?"

Dr. Hikari ruefully huffed. Emery was definitely an adolescent now; and he was fine.

"You can take him home anytime you're ready."


When Catherine opened the door of her suburban home she dumped her purse onto the coffee table as soon as she came in. The whole trip back had been one of silence for the mother and child. She didn't know what to say and neither did Emery. She could only pray that things would be better in the morning.

"What happened to my scarf?"

The woman looked down at her PET. "What?"

"My scarf, it's gone."

"Oh, Dr. Hikari nixed it. He said that it was cute for a child navi to be bound in a huge scarf but once…once you were changed over it just didn't seem to fit anymore."

"Oh, okay."

"Listen; it's been a long day; how about the two of us get some sleep? What do you think?"

Emery mustered up the biggest smile he could. "Sounds good, goodnight Mama."

Catherine returned one of her own. "Goodnight baby boy."

As Emery jumped into his homepage he inwardly sighed; his scarf wasn't the only thing that didn't fit anymore, neither did he. The room was the same as it had been that morning but it was no longer relevant. He walked over to his toy chest and pulled out his favorite toy; a velveteen rabbit. If only the power of love could make him real again. All of a sudden he found himself over come and wrapping his arms around the cloth bunny he curled into a ball and allowed the tears to freely flow. If he could feel this much pain without his human side he didn't want to know what he'd be experiencing if he were whole.


"Come on wake up; no sleeping on the job." A security navi said as he nudged his partner who was once again nodding off.

"Are you serious?" The drowsy one replied. "Nothing interesting ever happens here. You know as well as I do that Blaze Quest is where all the action is; not the bosses home network."

"Still, if you have a job do it well. No matter what it is."

The unmotivated navi smirked. "Ha! That is such a human philosophy. You can't actually tell me that at the end of the day you have anything to be proud of. Look at this place! It's a ghost area!" He said waving his arms then transforming his right one into his default weapon mockingly staking around the netspace looking for imaginary threats. "Besides the rare wandering virus that's unfortunate enough to come in here there's no excitement."

In actuality he wasn't wrong; Blaze Manor's network was expansive and empty. In fact tumbleweeds should have blown through ever so often; at least then the place would have some character.

The netnavigator continued his act until something caught his eye; suddenly he got serious as he turned back to where he'd seen the movement.

"What?" His partner asked. "What is it?"

"I saw something."

The diligent guard activated his weapon as well looking toward the same spot, but whatever the other navi had seen was either gone or was never there to start with.

"Well it's gone now. Come on, we have other sectors to patrol."

Emery breathed a sigh of relief as the two navi's attention turned away from him. That had been too close; and that was saying something. The security within the manor's cyberspace was pretty lax. Filled with netnavis that didn't meet the requirements for white collar assignments but sometimes even the inept had a good day. Once he was sure the two were leaving he continued his journey; stealthy making his way through the winding network toward his mother's room.

It had been eight months since his latest transformation and he had finally gown into it. No pun intended. His relationship with his mom had also survived the interim as they once again found their center. Unfortunately as they were finding each other again Catherine's health continued to fail. She still managed to put on a brave face but everyone could see the signs; she was losing her battle. By this point she was practically bedridden which meant she was confined to Blaze Manor. And since Emery was still supposed to be a secret that mean he had to sneak in to see her. It was early that morning before anyone in the house was stirring so the timing was perfect. Mornings were also Catherine's best time of day.

Emery walked up slowly to the monitor just to make sure no one was in the room. He sighed as he took in the scene; his mom lied peacefully in her bed asleep with something in one of her hands. As he got a closer look he saw that it was a framed photograph; one of only two that existed of her and her two children together.

"Mom?" he asked softly. "Mom wake up."

No response.

"Mom come on, it's time to start the day."

Still no response.

"Mom?" Emery questioned again this time starting to get a bad feeling. He was just fixing to check her vitals when he heard voices coming down the hall and the knob of the door began to turn. Acting quickly the navi moved out of view.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" a young female voice asked.

"Oh course! Why wouldn't it? Mom loves breakfast in bed." An equally young male voice answered. While Emery didn't recognize the voice of the girl right away he knew who the boy was; it was Chaud.

"Well we did just sneak into the kitchen before your staff is even up to make this. If we were doing something that's completely fine why skulk around?" Once the two entered Emery recognized his brother's friend; it was his neighbor Terra Javedson. While Chaud went right on in Terra stuck close to the door.

"Because that's what one does when they're trying to keep something a surprise. Isn't that right Mom?" Chaud asked as he placed the tray of food he had in his hands on the bedside table having to stand on his tiptoes to do it. "You want to help me wake her up?"

Terra looked over uncertainly at her friend's mother. She had been humoring Chaud for weeks now. She knew he was aware that his mom was dying so she played along with his game; pretending that everything was fine. But she knew what loss was and continuing on this way wasn't going to help Chaud when the moment came. "Okay."

"Hey Mom guess what? You've got a visitor! Terra came over to say hello." Chaud said as he placed his hand on Catherine's arm and gently attempted to wake her up but she didn't react. "Mom?"

"Is something wrong?" Terra asked when Chaud began to push harder.

"She won't wake up."

That statement managed to pull Terra in from where she still clung on to the sideline. She came over to Chaud and took a closer look at his mom noticing that she couldn't see the rise and fall of her chest. Taking the woman's hand Terra attempted to wake her herself, "Cathy?" she asked. Catherine hadn't allowed the little girl to call her anything but; Mrs. Blaze always sounded too formal to her. But once the girl grasped her hand she instantly let it go.

"What is it?" Chaud asked.

Tears began filling Terra's eyes. "She's gone Chaud."

"What? No! She was fine last night!" Chaud exclaimed as tears began form for him as well.

"Chaud she's cold."

"No, it isn't true!" Chaud sobbed as he took his mom's hand. But it was true; there was no warmth there.

"No Mama…DADDY!" Chaud screamed as he ran from the room with Terra right behind him.

"Chaud!" she called, "Chaud wait!"

Once they were gone Emery came back into view placing his hand on the window. He had prepared himself for this but he never expected to have been the one to find her. Even worse Chaud had found her too. He looked over to his mom again lying peacefully on the bed surrounded by her pristine bedding with that picture in her hand. She must have felt it coming; she had died looking at that photograph.

Emery took in a deep breath. He knew what his job was now.

"Bye Mom."


It had only been a few days since his wife's funeral but Shuseki Blaze was already making changes. First he had moved he and Chaud back to their old home in Dentech City away from the pain and fresh memories that were in Metro. Second he had disenrolled his son from public school so he could receive the best education available from a private tutor. And third he was currently judging the worth of a netnavi.

The navi was Protoman EXE.

After Catherine's death the cyber being was sent to him; his wife having set up the whole thing in advance of her passing. The AI had been designed by her especially for Chaud. It was as if he were a gift from beyond the grave. But Chaud was no ordinary child, and if this program was to serve as a guardian there were certain rules that it was going to have to follow.

Emery held his breath as he watched his father pour over his schematics. His mother had made sure they were as impressive as possible. He had the most advanced battle routine available at the time and plenty of room left for growth. Shuseki himself was fascinated by Japan's past and culture, especially the samurai, so that was why Catherine had chosen swords and speed as some of his talents. But all of it would be for naught if he were rejected anyway.

"Impressive." Shuseki said as he placed the papers down on his desk. "I've never seen a netnavi quite like you. You're everything I could have wished for and more if I were to have commissioned you myself; powerful, skilled, exacting, and most importantly anonymous."

"Anonymous sir?"

"Yes, what I wish most for my son is that he take my place as CEO of Blaze Quest someday. For that to happen he's going to need ambition. Nothing kills ambition more than personal attachments. And well, how can a child become too attached to a net-navigator with no face? There's a reason why it's said the eyes are the window to the soul. People tend to not get close to or even trust individuals whose eyes they can't see."

The navi inwardly cursed, he hadn't thought of that and apparently neither did his mother. She had created the option for his blacked out visor so his father wouldn't be able to see his eyes; but he hadn't thought about how not seeing them could affect Chaud.

"I want one thing to be clear though." Shuseki continued. "You may be advanced and top-of-the-line but you are still just a tool, and you always will be. If you ever compromise or interfere with how I've chosen to raise my son I will not hesitate to replace you. My wife was no fool and she and I never agreed on how I wanted to raise any children we brought into this world. I know what she expects of you. She had you created to undermine me. To make sure Chaud would have as 'normal' of a childhood as possible. All of your bells and whistles are just for my benefit; to ensure that I'd keep you. But if you and her views come in between me and my child you'll find yourself in a net shop faster than you can process the idea of abandonment. Do you understand?"

Emery was shaken; how was he supposed to keep the promise he made to his mother now? What she wanted most of all for him and for Chaud was for the two of them to be together. But she also wanted Chaud protected. She didn't want him to become another Shuseki.

"Protoman I asked you a question. Do we have an understanding?"

The boy sighed; he would have to find a way to toe the line if at all possible. But right now that was looking very unlikely. Not if he wanted to stay in the picture.

"I understand."

"Good. Marissa?" Shuseki called as a young maid entered the room.

"Yes Mater Blaze?" she asked.

"I have something I need you to do. This is Protoman EXE. Catherine had him made for Chaud."

Marissa smiled at the mention of Shuseki's wife. "That was very sweet."

"Yes indeed it was. My wife also left behind a gift box for the PET to be placed in and a letter. Do me a favor and put it all together for me…and I want you to read the letter first."

"Sir?"

"Catherine had very strong views as to what she wanted for our son, views in direct conflict with mine; she wanted him soft. If that letter says anything of the like I want it destroyed."

Marissa's face fell when she heard her orders. "Y-yes sir." She said as she reached forward taking the PET. "As you wish."


Emery looked at the young woman through his view window as she walked through the mansion. She had seemed quite the timid mouse when in his father's presence but that demeanor disappeared as soon as she closed the door to his office.

Marissa smiled; she could feel the navi's attention on her. With as covered as his face was she couldn't be sure just exactly what he was feeling but she had a pretty good guess. "Don't worry Emery; I wouldn't dream of destroying your mom's letter. Everything is going to be fine."

"W-what? How do you? Do you-"

The maid chucked as she heard the shock in the boy's voice. "Yes I know who you are, as does most of the staff. Your mother was a very determined woman and your father is an island to himself in this house. Now let's get you to that little brother of yours shall we? He's going to be so excited to see you.


Chaud shuffled his feet as he scrawled in the soft ground with the stick he had in his hand. He was in his favorite spot on the grounds; the gardens. His mother's garden in particular; while all the other ones were exclusively maintained by staff this one had been all her own before they moved to Metro City. It was the one piece of her the small boy still had; everything else had been taken away. He didn't understand his father. It was like he wanted to erase her; it was like he wanted to erase everything.

After the funeral Shuseki had told him to say goodbye to her; right at her grave. But it hadn't been just her; Chaud had ended up saying goodbye to everything. His friends, his school, Metro City; all of it. Chaud missed his friends. He especially hadn't wanted to leave Terra behind. Just a few months before her sister had died, and his mom had been like an adopted aunt to her. She was the only one who could hope to understand what he was going through now.

Since the young boy had his head down he didn't see that he was being approached, but he looked up when the person's shadow fell over him. It was one of the maids.

"Hello sweetie." She said in a calm empathetic voice as she kneeled down to his level. "Visiting your mama huh?"

Chaud nodded.

"Well how about we go inside now?" she asked as she held out her hand. "There's a surprise waiting for you."

"What is it?" Chaud asked curiously.

The maid laughed. "Well if I told you that it wouldn't be much of a surprise now would it? Come on."

The coaxing worked and Chaud placed his small hand in hers and allowed her to lead him back inside to a familiar room; one of his mother's favorites. She had used it for hosting and her daily tea. On the table that stood in the center of the room was a small decorated box. It was purple with red trim and a black ribbon. When Chaud took a closer look he saw that the tag with his name on it had his mother's hand writing. He looked to Marissa. "I don't understand." He said.

Marissa gave him a sad smile. "Your mom wanted this to be given to you when she passed. It's very special."

Chaud eyes brimmed with tears that he hurriedly wiped away with his sleeve as he carefully lifted the top off the box first seeing the letter that his mom had left. He boy ran his finger across the top the envelope before he opened it taking out some of the last words his mom had penned. As he read it he could her speaking to him.

Dear Chaud

It your reading this letter it means I'm gone. I'm sorry. I know you're sad but that's not what I want for you. I want you to be happy. And I want you to have a happy life. I also know you're probably sad for other reasons as well. If I'm right and in all likelihood I am, you're not in Metro City with your friends anymore; Daddy has moved the two of you back to Dentech and you feel all alone. But don't worry you're not going to be alone anymore; I've made sure of that. This is my gift to you; take care of each other always.

With all my love

Mama

After placing the letter down Chaud tentatively removed the curly q's of ribbon that the box was stuffed with until his mother's gift was revealed; a shiny red brand-new PET. The boy hesitated before turning it on.

"Go on, it's okay." Marissa said coaxing him again.

Meanwhile Emery sat in the quiet darkness of the deactivated handheld running the words of his mother's letter to him through his mind.

Dear Emery

Life never gives us break does it? Either of us, after everything we've been through you'd think that we'd be given a chance. I hate leaving you sweetheart but I can't carry on this fight anymore, this cancer is unrelenting and as much as I fight it, it's taking me away, but not my love, always know that I love you. And you know what you need to do. Please, look after your brother, besides me and a few other people he has no one. Just like you my dying will hit him hard. He'll need you; you'll need each other. I've already arranged for you to be given as a gift to Chaud after my death. I'll leave it to you to decide when to tell him who you really are. Do good with your life, cherish your little brother, and know that I am proud.

With all my soul

Mama

As the last bit of the letter was recalled the PET came to life. Within seconds Emery and Chaud were face to face. Not for the first time; but for the first time as net-op and netnavi.

Chaud spoke slowly and unsure.

"My name is Chaud. I guess you're my new net navi?"

Inwardly Emery took a deep breath…

"Nice to meet you; my name is Protoman. I'm at your service so if there's ever anything you need I'm right here."

Chaud's eyes lit up. "Wow that's cool! We're going to be best friends and you'll be my navi forever right Protoman?"

Emery hoped so. "Defiantly, you can count on me."

"I will. Awesome!"

"No problem."

Chaud was happy then; if his mother had gotten this navi for him he was going to make sure they were together forever. He hugged the PET to his chest. "Protoman…" Suddenly an idea popped into the seven-year-old's head. "Hey Protoman you want to see my favorite place?"

Emery gave Chaud a small smile. "Sure why not?"

"Ok!" Chaud exclaimed happily as he ran back outside and into the garden but before they got there Emery caught sight of Shuseki behind them.

The man shook the older brother to his core but he was determined. He was always going to be there for Chaud. He didn't know how well he'd be able to protect him from their father's influence but one thing was for sure; he'd never leave.