Twilight's Revenge
By Zoram Selrof
Chapter 1: Strategy Trap
13:13 AM (Japan Time), Friday April the 30th, 2006…
"… What heat! And we're only at April, huh…"
"Yeah… Even I can feel the slugging of my functions through the virtual heat in the Cyber World, Inukai…"
"Yeah, Beast Man…"
Inukai Takeo, former "Neo WWW" member, was talking with "Asteroid" Beast Man as he projected a miniature hologram from a new-model PET Inukai carried on his right hand.
This new-model PET had a general rectangular shape and was colored using the brown coloring Inukai had used for his previous PETs.
The upper portion was a white hill-like shape and smooth: the left side had two small round buttons set very close to each other and a smooth surface: the right side had the Slot – In slot on it plus a small red pyramid-like mark over it: the slot also had a pyramid-like shape to it and was colored white: the underside had two small holes with something set on them.
The emblem occupied the upper half of the device and a white stripe crossed through it from the top until it reached the LCD screen's border: this LCD screen was rectangular and had a black inner border plus a white outer border.
The rest of the surface was colored blue and set in a mosaic-like pattern over it: the PET looked practical.
"But I'm surprised… We're at May and I can barely remember anything I've done ever since the cops caught me back on October, the total eclipse day… I remember some weird machine popping out, making some electrical display and then… Nothing."
"And the last thing I remember was when I got deleted destroying the "Dimensional Generator" Core Blocks in the Science Labs… Someone must've bothered to rebuild me, yeah. But they didn't leave any trace of their involvement. I woke up just a few hours ago, here, on this new PET, and inside of your apartment…" Beast Man muttered.
"Along with an email telling me to come here… If it's from the benefactor then I gotta thank 'em, so…" Inukai muttered.
"Number 25's the address."
"Number 25… This is 21, so…" He muttered.
Inukai reached a small and decrepit-looking house the door of which was ajar as if inviting to come inside.
"Huh… Here…"
"Looks rather worn-out, doesn't it?"
"Yeah. Guess they want to pick a sneaky spot."
Inukai opened the door and then closed it behind him: the interior of the house was dusty and it looked like no-one had lived there for several years.
"Hullo! Is anyone here?" He called out.
Inukai looked around the rooms: they were all dusty and devoid of any furniture whatsoever.
"O-oi, Inukai… Got a bad feelin'…"
"Don't panic! They're testing us, Beast Man. Huh?" He grinned.
Inukai then spotted the door to the basement: it was open and a computer-written note had been attached to it.
"Come into the basement."
"If they say we go down then down we go."
"What if it's a trap?"
"Don't be an idiot."
Inukai and climbed down the stairs into a small hall before a door which was ajar: he looked around and then stepped into the next room.
"Hullo?"
He gasped: there was a person standing behind a desk.
They were a man about 1'90 meters tall who wore a black trench-coat, a brown hat with a navy blue band around it, a black suit below the coat, pants, and brown shoes, plus a balaclava and sunglasses.
"Eh… Cha called us 'ere?"
"Correct. Mr. Inukai Takeo."
"And ya resurrected me?" Beast Man guessed.
"True."
"Who are cha?"
"The "Shadow Schemer"." The man replied.
"…"Shadow Schemer"…? I've heard that name somewhere before… Ah! I remember! The newspapers were full about a guy named "Shadow Schemer" having managed to fill Paris, Rome, Berlin and London with terror and fear!" Inukai recalled.
"Correct. I've restored your memories and your "Asteroid" because I need your cooperation." He told him in a semi-polite manner.
"Cooperation…?" Inukai sounded mistrusting.
"Do you desire revenge?" The man suddenly asked.
"Revenge? Why should I?" Inukai shrugged.
"… Or maybe you wish to have revenge on Hikari Netto and Rock Man EXE?" The man questioned.
Inukai gasped and looked like the man had hit the mark: Beast Man also looked up at the mention of the names.
"Y-yeah…! But… The brat's a "Net Savior"… I wouldn't want the whole of the Net Police come after me… I can't be careless…" Inukai admitted.
"Y-yeah. And the brat always manages to beat me no matter what!"
"Heh. Then how about we go by the proverb "to fool the enemy first fool the ally"?" The man sounded amused.
"Cha mean…?" Inukai seemed to guess what he was up to.
"Correct. I'll make them learn the consequences of their idiocies and have them engraved within their flesh forever. That is where you come in, Mr. Inukai." The man told him.
"I see! I like that! Boss." Inukai looked animated.
"Hah! It's about time I sliced that blue brat up!"
"Mind you, Mr. Beast Man… I will not allow you to delete them. I have plans for it." The man warned in an icy tone of voice.
"Huh! Ah… Then I'll be content with inflicting pain to the brat…" Beast Man sounded scared, for once.
"Y-yeah… Same goes for me…" Inukai gulped.
"Excellent. Then let's get on the move ASAP. Strategy Trap: Start."
"Okay, Boss… What do I have to do?" Inukai asked.
"You'll be my business partner for today. Go to this address and wait there." The man commanded.
He handed him a torn piece of paper which had an address written into it: Inukai looked at it and then pocketed it on his jeans' right pocket.
"Heh. Looks interesting. Don't they, Beast Man?" Inukai smiled.
"Yeah! I'm gonna have my revenge! Bwah, hah, hah, hah!"
"Yeah… Today we'll have them regret getting in the way… Wait for my orders there and don't do anything on your own."
Today terror and fear will rule you two!
17:47 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Hum, hum, hum!"
"You're really taken in by that melody. Eh, Netto – kun?"
"Sure, Rock Man."
Hikari Netto was walking down a street while eyeing the pedestrians around him: he carried a blue and white-colored new-model PET set on an arm-strap which had a white plastic structure built on it and Rock Man was "sitting" on Netto's right shoulder as he projected with the miniature 3D hologram.
"This "Link" PET Enzan came up with is cool! This hologram allows ya to see the real world!" Netto grinned.
"Sure… Otouto."
"Don't worry, Saito – niisan… Nobody's paying attention!"
"Yup. I know."
"But, really…! We've gone through a lot ever since November! We had the "Zoanoroid" Invasion and our adventure into "Beyondard" which stretched from late November to until the 22nd of December. We luckily made it back just before Christmas. And starting around January the 9th and spanning until March the 30th… We had the "Professor", several lone incidents, and, finally… That "Cache" guy!" Netto listed.
"Yeah! But it'd seem things have settled down a bit ever since that. You're improving in your school results, too, Netto – kun! Otouto!"
"Guess so, Saito – niisan… By the way…"
"Yeah? What's up?"
"We haven't seen a hair outta that mysterious man ever since some days after Cache's defeat… You know… That man named "K. S."…"
"Yeah. I figure he's been monitoring us from afar from some reason or another and doesn't want us to interact with him…"
"Why would he, though?"
"Maybe he thinks we'll see a "freak" on him seeing how… Well. You know what I mean." He trailed off.
"Oh… True."
They didn't spot a pedestrian looking at a black and brown Link PET which displayed what seemed to be overhead live footage of Netto as seen from above and behind in a diagonal angle.
This man seemed to be around 25 or 26 years old and past a meter and eighty in height.
He wore a brownish trench coat over a black suit with a brown tie, black pants and brown shoes plus a brown hat having a black band circling it atop his head: a pair of sunglasses covered his eyes.
Yes. That's the main reason. But the other reason is because I still feel guilty for not warning you gentlemen about "that man"… I know he's been fooling around in Western Europe but anyway… I thought Mr. Forte or Mr. Freeze Man would've told you about them but maybe they think they're not dangerous as long as they fool around there… Mr. Hikari Sr. and Mr. Hikari Jr…
"… But, really… Dekao's now buying whatever Bubble Man comes up with and they end up failing! Bubble Man doesn't learn his lesson: he still believes he can make the world become the land of "Darkloids"…"
"But since he's rather harmless then we tolerate him."
"I know he was cooperating with Kurohige and Chirol when trying to build "Copy Roids" but he ended up solo after that… He sold a "Mini Roid" to that guy who was Element Man's Operator and botched our fun in the aquatic amusement park. Sometimes Ice Man and Aqua Man go and play with him, right?" Netto asked Saito.
"Yup. And we've also become stronger thanks to the "Bestialize Chips" and the "Cross Links" with other Navis: you use the touch-pen to link two PETs and the Navi's data can work like a "Soul Unison"…"
"… Yes. And such the payload it must bear will have to be increased by another 5% and… OUCH!"
"WHACK!"
Netto suddenly crashed with someone coming from the corner right ahead: they ended up in the floor and Netto rubbed his forehead while the other pedestrian his chest.
"O-ow!"
"O-ouch…"
"Huh? Ah! Meijin – san! If it isn't Meijin – san!"
Oh my. Mr. Meijin discussing about some Science Labs project and ending up not looking when he was turning the corner…
"O-o-ouch…! San wa iranai! Netto – kun…!" Meijin groaned as he managed to stand up and pick a cell-phone.
"Meijin? You alright?" Someone asked over the phone.
"Y-yeah… Just a little accident… Well! As I was saying… Once I wrap up this little investigation I'll come give you a hand with the development, Kanie…" He told the caller.
"OK. Later."
"What a surprise! I thought you were working on some new Science Labs project with Papa…" Netto grinned as he stood up too.
"Well… Yes: an improved "Vaccine Chip"… Anyway… I was about to check some info related to the "Net Saviors"…"
"Huh? An incident?"
"Well… I received a call regarding mysterious activities in an abandoned house. I then found out that the culprit was Bubble Man. And he'd amassed what looked like real "Copy Roids"." Meijin explained.
"Crap. That Bubble Man… When will he realize it? The "Darkloids" are over! There'll be no "rule of Darkloids"!" Rock Man rolled his eyes.
True, true. The onlooker thought.
"Yeah… I suspect he might pop out to defend his stuff, so maybe you two would be able to deal with him… I was gonna check it out myself in case it was someone's idea of a joke but…"
"Then I'll come! Meijin – san!" Netto announced.
"Is that okay with you…? I could call Enzan – kun or Laika – kun as well, you know…" Meijin suggested.
"Don't mind 'em! I can do it without sweating! Let's go, Meijin – san!"
"San wa iranai… I'm not middle-aged yet!" Meijin sounded frustrated.
"Heh, heh! Who knows?" Rock Man teased.
"… Fine… Please follow me…" Meijin sighed in defeat.
Netto and Rock Man giggled as they followed Meijin towards somewhere else: the onlooker shrugged.
Well. Let's go have some cooling at the Game Center. This seems to be a simplistic mission anyway.
"By the way… Meijin – san!"
"San wa iranai!"
"Are you going out in a date with Makoto – san?"
"HUH! Makoto – kun, you say? Eh! No! That's...!" He suddenly blurted out while blushing.
"Then Meiru – chan was right!"
"B-but… That's… Hum… W-well…"
"Aha! It's supposed to be a secret to everyone~? Don't worry, Mei – jin – sama! I'll keep it!" Netto's grin grew wider.
"… Sama wa iranai…" He sighed in defeat.
"Let's go tackle the mission!"
17:55 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Phew! I'm tired…"
"About time! Dingo!"
Dingo had come into the Maha Ichiban Curry Shop while looking exhausted and defeated: Maha looked towards the entrance and sounded annoyed.
"Gimme a break! It wasn't easy finding the way there!" Dingo complained.
"You'd found it out ASAP if you'd asked me…" Tomahawk Man grumbled with obvious annoyance as he stood above Dingo's right shoulder.
"Really… You're always like this!" Ooyama Dekao told him as he popped out of the kitchen with his cook uniform on.
"Guts, guts!" Guts Man added as he swung his arms.
"Hmmm… It would seem the Lord is not intended on guiding you." A familiar voice commented with a hint of sarcasm.
Dingo looked at one table and spotted Dark Miyabi sitting next to it: he'd finished a curry dish and looked somewhat amused.
"Miyabi…! Drop that "Lord" stuff already… This ain't the Sen-something at all!" Dingo growled.
"You mean the Sengoku Era." Shadow Man corrected as he came out with the hologram.
"Whatever!" Dingo sounded exasperated.
"Rebellious youth, it'd seem!" Another voice exclaimed.
Dingo spotted Dr. Wily sitting next to another table: he was ruffling his moustache and looked in a good mood.
"Dr. Wily… Those mottos of yours are outdated…" Dingo told him while rolling his eyes.
"Dingo! That's not the way to speak to Wily – sama!" Maha scolded.
"Gimme a break! The WWW ended long ago!" Dingo complained.
"No. And watch and your manners." Maha replied.
"Ah! By the way! Dingo! Speak up! I need to know it!" Dekao suddenly told him.
"Know what?" Dingo frowned.
"… Not again…" Tomahawk Man seemed to know what it was about.
"Why can you do "Cross Fusion" and I can't?" Dekao questioned.
"Again… Dekao! You can't. I can't. That's all there's to it." Maha sounded annoyed.
"But, Master…!" Dingo protested.
"No "but". This is life. You can't change what's done." Maha scolded.
"But I don't want it to show-off! I want it to protect Meiru – chan!" Dekao insisted.
"I'd rather say the miss can defend herself quite well." Maha dully sentenced.
"No way! Meiru – chan needs a strong man to protect her!"
"Dekao. That's in the movies. Get back to cooking." Maha sounded annoyed by now.
"… Yes, Master… Damn it!" He growled.
He headed back inside of the kitchen while Miyabi stood up.
"I'll be going. Shadow Man! Take care of the payment." He announced.
"Fine, Miyabi." Shadow Man shrugged.
"You might find a Sengoku descendant around the corner." Wily suddenly announced with a hint of amusement.
"Dr. Wily. Your attempts to make up jokes are not good." Miyabi dully told him.
"Heh, heh, heh… Who knows?" He replied.
"I know." Miyabi settled.
"Payment: complete." Shadow Man announced.
"Farewell."
Miyabi stepped out while Dingo drank a glass of water and Wily finished off his dish.
"Well… It'd seem that disciple of yours is somewhat old-fashioned, Maha Jarama." Wily told him.
"True, Wily – sama. He will not accept reality no matter how many times we tell him the same thing." Maha confirmed as he dried dishes with a towel.
"Yeah. "I wanna do Cross Fusion"… He brings that topic up every friggin' month." Tomahawk Man quoted before folding his arms and sighing in defeat.
"Yo~! Meiru – chan! I'll protect you!" Dekao suddenly blurted from the kitchen.
"No need to, Dekao – kun. I alone defeated "Asteroid" Desert Man back when the "Yggdrasil Incident", see." Meiru replied through a phone call Dekao had apparently started up.
"WHA~T?"
"Yeah. And if you don't cook the curry then I'll get angry."
"YIKES!"
"Saw it comin' a mile away…" Tomahawk Man wasn't surprised.
"Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…" Wily chuckled.
"DE – KA – O!" Maha yelled.
"YIKES!"
"Get to work, you fool! Or else someone will regret it! Move it!"
18:11 PM (Japan Time)…
"… * yawns * … What time is it, Blues?"
"PM 18:11, Enzan – sama."
Ijuuin Enzan was stretching while sitting on his chair placed inside of his VP office: he looked rather sleepy and Blues was projecting with the PET's hologram projector.
"… Guess I gotta take a break… I've been working way too much in this stuff." Enzan muttered.
"It would be wise, Enzan – sama." Blues agreed on it.
"Let's go to the "Game Soul" Game Center… Maybe I can show Netto this new security upgrade and ask for his opinion." Enzan suggested.
"I am sure Saito would like trying it out." Blues smiled and sounded like he thought it was a good idea.
Enzan sluggishly stood up and picked some stuff before leaving the office: he suppressed a yawn.
"By the way, Enzan – sama… Ooyama Dekao sent a mail, sir."
"Dekao? Not again. "Why can't I do "Cross Fusion", Enzan?"… Ask that to Sakurai." He fumed.
"True, sir."
"Or, rather… To Mr. Smith."
"Who is he, sir?"
"Don't mind. I was kidding." Enzan grinned.
"Roger, sir."
"Anyway… The sales for the PET have gone up?" Enzan shrugged and switched topics.
"5% compared to last month. The software upgrading was well-received as well, sir."
"Excellent."
"Yet… It was a close thing, sir."
"You mean "Cache", right? Yeah. Weren't it for Trill, who somehow made it here again from "Beyondard" and managed to undo his "cache" state, none of us would've survived. That guy was crazier than Twilight, even. Or maybe he was imitating him: I mean, the "Spectrum Incident" was similar in the aspect that all was turned into cybernetic data…" Enzan reflected.
"Yet that monster left the environment largely untouched and only digitized living things or small objects… And according to Netto, he came up with some hallucination of an alternate world where PETs and Net Navis had never existed but it was all a hallucination brought forth by those Jamming Men…" Blues muttered.
"That guy was nuts. Thankfully we all poured our power into Netto and broke away from being cache data on the jerk's servers which stopped providing them with power."
"Switching topics… Do you think "Beyondard" is progressing on their rebuilding?" Blues asked.
"Maybe. But a war which has extended for over 15 years or close to 20 and ravaged the whole planet… It'll take decades to recover to the level before the war… The computers we found on the very first day there were a hint of the lasting of the war: they were things which existed here on the 80s or early 90s…" Enzan recalled.
"And in the end, thanks to Trill's power, the "Super Cybeast" and Beyondard's Dr. Wily were defeated… And the "Bestialize Factor" erased from the world, returning it to normal…"
"Yeah. It was sad to part with them but who knows… Maybe we'll find a way to create "Fossa Ambiences" too and meet them again…"
"I wouldn't mind, sir… Yet I'm sad that Beyondard's Colonel had to sacrifice himself for everyone's sake too…"
"True… Too many sacrifices already…"
18:29 PM (Japan Time)…
"… So? Where does the Mistress wanna go next?"
"Who knows?"
Charlie Airstar was confronting Tesla Magnets while inside of his apartment's living room: Tesla was sitting on the sofa and flipping through a magazine which suggested trips to the Seychelles Islands: she seemed to be ignoring Airstar's presence.
This girl…
Airstar, on the other hand, was standing in front of her while looking unimpressed.
"You do."
"Oh boy…" Gyro Man muttered in a resigned tone.
"… This does not look good." Magnet Man muttered.
Gauss Magnets came in with the vacuum cleaner.
"… Father sees there will be a discussion!" He muttered loud enough to be heard over the noise.
"… I've decided!" Tesla announced.
"Yeah? Where to, then?" Charlie dully asked.
"Victoria, Seychelles! They say it's exotic!" She exclaimed.
"Oho! Should I begin to arrange everything, Tesla?" Gauss ran up next to her and looked thrilled.
"Please do so, Father." Tesla smiled.
Airstar merely rolled his eyes and seemed to have been expecting this.
"I knew it." Gyro Man told him.
"It was predictable, even." Magnet Man added.
"Ho, ho, ho, ho! To the Seychelles we go!" Tesla laughed.
18:47 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Battle Chip, Mega Cannon! Slot In!"
"Mega Cannon!"
"Uack!"
"Crap!"
Sakurai Meiru had been taking part in a Net Battle inside of the "Game Soul" Game Center and Roll EXE had shot a Mega Cannon blast at one standard Navi, thus logging defeating them.
"YOU WIN!" The machine announced.
"Heh, heh, heh! I'm becoming stronger!" Meiru giggled.
"Yeah, Meiru – chan!" Roll giggled.
"Man. This is the last time I go by the cliché." The Operator muttered.
Meiru walked away while humming a tune and spotted someone familiar using another Net Battling Machine: Hikawa Tooru.
"Ice Man! Go for it!" He exclaimed.
"Okay, desu! Blizzard!"
He blew out snow towards a Curse Shield Virus and froze it up just as it was about to attack Ice Man.
"Battle Chip, Zeus Hammer! Slot In!"
"Zeus Hammer!"
Ice Man hit the block of ice and it shattered, exposing the Virus to attack given its momentary paralysis: the hit from the Zeus Hammer deleted it and Ice Man landed on the ground.
"Yeah! We did it!" Hikawa exclaimed.
"Hey! Tooru – kun!" Meiru greeted.
"Ah! Meiru – chan! What's up?" He greeted with a smile.
"Training?" Meiru asked.
"Yup! I want to be able to fight back any Virus attack!"
"You have a good strategy, Ice Man!" Roll told him.
"T-thanks, Roll – san…" He blushed a bit.
"Say! Have you seen Netto?" Meiru asked.
"Netto – kun? No. But I wouldn't be surprised if he drops by later on. We sometimes parry together."
"Okay! I'll be going home: I have a piano lesson to take care of. See you on Monday, Tooru – kun!" Meiru told him.
"Good –bye!"
Meiru walked out of the Game Center and hummed a tune.
"But, really, Dekao – kun… He'll never tire of claiming he wants to protect with "Cross Fusion" when I can do that perfectly enough… Jeez." Meiru sighed in defeat.
"I know, Meiru – chan. I prefer to tag with Saito – kun to him. Last time it happened, way back in September, 2004, it almost ended up in disaster as we tried to tackle Fire Man."
"Yeah, I remember…"
"MEIRU – CHA~N!" Dekao suddenly showed up on-screen.
"Go to the Bahamas." She grinned.
"NO WAY~!"
"DEKAO! Do you want to anger me in purpose?"
"M-master!"
"COOK THE CURRY NOW! OR ELSE YOU'RE FIRED!"
"NO WAY~! MEIRU – CHA~N!"
"Shut up already and do us a favor, Dekao – kun."
18:52 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Good! This new style suits ya, Nenjirou!"
"I AIN'T "NENJIROU"!"
"Hot, hot!"
Rokushakudama Nenji had overseen some fireworks simulations done by Napalm Man and had praised him: Napalm Man, as usual, didn't like the nickname, so he started to burn up and heated up Rokushakudama's Link PET.
"I'm NAPALM MAN!" He exclaimed.
"But that's too impersonal! Nenjirou is way better!" Nenji protested.
"Sheesh! Stubborn guy." He grumbled.
"Come on! Be reasonable, Nenjirou!" Nenji insisted.
"Reasonable, the guy says! Hah! Then try thinking of somethin' for five minutes without gettin' a headache or your brain goin' up in smoke! Ya jerk!" Napalm Man challenged.
"Wha~t?"
"Hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah!"
"OI! NENJIROU! BEHAVE ALREADY, WILL YA~?"
"SHADDUP!"
"Wha~t?"
"Square root of 16!" Napalm Man challenged.
"Huh… Square root? What's that? A root in the form of a square?"
"Hah, hah, hah, hah, ha, hah, hah!"
"OI! What's that about?"
"It's 4, ya jerk! Even Rock Man's Operator knows that much! I win! Hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah, hah!"
18:57 PM (Japan Time)…
"… And here's the place."
"Hum…"
The building was an abandoned house: Meijin signaled the basement trapdoor the lock of which had been broken in a very clumsy way.
"Looks like Bubble Man alright."
They climbed down the stairs and Meijin took out a flashlight.
"… The "Copy Roids" are down here, then? Meijin – san?" Netto asked as they climbed down the stairs.
"San. Wa. Iranai." Meijin sighed in defeat.
"I guess he means "yeah"." Rock Man ventured.
"Here we are… Be careful!" Meijin whispered.
He slowly opened a rusted steel door and illuminated the next room: six "Copy Roids" were standing and leaning against the far wall like if they were dolls: there was nothing else to be seen.
The "Copy Roids" were doll-like objects about a meter and fifty tall and looked very simplistic human frames of no specified sex: their "skin" was made of a grayish material.
The arms ended in small spheres instead of hands and had no care to details like the legs: the chest had a small metallic circle set on it with three metallic trapezes forming at the north, SE and SW spots of the structure and having a small dome-shaped emerald jewel set in the concave cavity inside of it.
"Sure look like the real thing…"
"Check them out, Netto – kun."
Netto walked over to one of them and began to examine it while frowning and looking unsettled for some reason or another: Meijin was nervously looking around as if expecting a trap.
"… Hey… Is it me or they have a strong smell?" He asked.
"… True… I hadn't noticed it the first time…" Meijin muttered.
Netto tried tugging one doll's right arm and it suddenly came out.
"Whoa!"
He looked inside of it: it was empty and it was actually made of papier-mâché.
"These dolls aren't real! They're just papier-mâché imitations!" Netto grasped.
"Yeah! I couldn't feel their cores' signatures, either!" Rock Man added.
"Bubble Man… What a fright he gave me! He keeps on being the same square-headed "Darkloid"!" Meijin sounded relieved and was smiling.
"The guy won't change!" Netto shrugged and laughed.
"Yup. He's a stubborn one." Rock Man added.
"Sorry to have bothered you in vain…" Meijin apologized.
"Don't worry, Mei – jin – san!" Netto grinned.
"I give up…" He grimly muttered.
"Don't be so defeatist, Meijin – san!" Rock Man encouraged.
"So? What do we do?" Netto asked.
"Hum… Wait here a minute. I want to check out the house. You never know: Bubble Man might come in and attack anyone who enters the basement." Meijin suggested while scratching the back of his head.
"Leave it to us! If Bubble Man shows his hide around, we'll have him run away to Ameroupe!" Netto grinned.
"And he'll know that Detective Meijin – san found him out!" Rock Man improvised a joke.
"… You guys win…" Meijin grimly muttered.
He headed out and Netto turned on his Link PET's flashlight to check on the rest of the dolls: they were also papier-mâché imitations.
"That Bubble Man… Who was he expecting to fool, anyway?" Netto wondered aloud with a grin.
"He must've been hoping to catch a desperate guy who'll buy them in a rush and then run off with the money." Saito suggested with obvious amusement.
"Yeah. That'd be his style." Netto agreed on it.
He finished checking the fake dolls and then stood up, stretching and letting out a yawn.
"Fua~h…"
He rubbed his eyes afterwards: he looked sleepy.
"Netto – kun? Otouto? Are you okay?" Saito asked with a hint of concern given his face.
"Y-yeah… I just… stayed up… late… thinking… about… Net Battles…" Netto replied while barely repressing some yawns.
"That's no good, otouto!" Saito told him.
"I knew… that… even if… you hadn't… told me…! I'm just… sleepy… wanna… sleep…" Netto replied.
"No. It's not time to sleep, Netto – kun. Besides… Weren't we gonna go to the Game Center and parry with Tooru – kun and Ice Man?" Saito reminded him.
"Y-yeah… Tooru… kun… and…" Netto muttered.
He suddenly collapsed into the ground atop the imitation dolls.
"Ah! Netto – kun! Meijin – san! Please come ASAP!" Saito gasped and began to call out.
He didn't notice a tall and ominous unidentified figure silently heading towards him from behind.
Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh…
The figure suddenly closed the right arm around Saito's neck and used the right hand to muffle his yells.
W-who…? Saito wondered.
Before he could think of fighting back or trying to identify his attacker, the figure's left hand gripped his chest emblem and provoked an electrical discharge which spread all across Saito's body.
T-this guy is forcing me into sleep mode…!
He suddenly lost consciousness and his body became limp: the figure let go and he collapsed into his PET's space ground.
"Heh." The figure muttered with a smug smile on its face.
It suddenly disappeared and appeared on the real world next to the unconscious Netto.
"… Heh… It's been a while. Whatever… This experiment is gonna be thrilling. Strategy Trap: Success." The figure muttered in an amused tone.
He picked Netto up and placed him over his right shoulder before stepping out of the basement while chuckling under its breath.
Fear and Terror are just starting!
He climbed up and headed inside of a van: he opened the cargo bay and immobilized Netto's wrists and ankles with cello-tape: he placed one over his eyes and another over his mouth next before seating him on the seat and fastening the seat-belt.
Good. Happy dreams, my half-brothers...
The culprit climbed into the driver's seat and turned on the van before booting up a black and gray Link PET with no emblem whatsoever: a GPS map popped out.
Yes… I've fooled the damned traitor who's relaxed and recalled the vigilance on them… Heh, heh, heh, heh… I win!