Chapter 3
Chief Kifune wasn't surprised that they had been attacked again. He was surprised to hear about the stranger who helped save them again. Enzan was suspicious since the stranger only seemed to appear when they were fighting Sol Titanion.
Netto didn't tell them about encountering the stranger in the halls of SciLab. The theory that the stranger and Sol Titanion were connected was probably true, considering he had learnt the navi's name in that encounter even though she hadn't made an appearance.
"Have you seen the stranger's navi?" Chief Kifune asked.
Enzan and Netto both shook their heads. Rockman popped up on the screen, Blues standing tall behind him.
"But he does have a PET," Rockman reminded them.
"That's right!" Netto recalled. "It was blue! The navi symbol was covered though."
"Blue doesn't really match with the navi who is attacking us," Blues pointed out.
"It could be a red herring," Enzan said. Blues didn't look convinced but he didn't say anymore.
"We'll find out eventually," Chief Kifune said. "Your orders are the same. Detain the stranger for questioning. Capture or delete the navi when you get the chance."
Netto had been watching Rockman as the Chief spoke. He noticed Rockman's gaze drop to the ground and his eyes soften like he was going to cry. He was probably thinking that the Chief was being too harsh. Rockman hated fighting to deletion.
Netto frowned as Enzan ended the video conference.
"We're not really going to arrest this guy, are we?"
"Detain for questioning," Enzan corrected. "Not arrest. And yes. Those are our orders."
"It's not fair. What are we supposed to ask?" Rockman questioned.
"Asking about where the strange navi came from would be a place to start," Blues stated.
"And about how she's able to manifest without a dimensional area," Enzan added.
Netto sighed and ignored the glare Enzan sent his way. They both knew that Netto wasn't going to detain the stranger.
"I guess I'll have to do it myself."
"Not exactly," a voice said from the door. It was Dr Hikari, who was standing in the doorway. He stepped to the side, revealing Laika standing behind him. Laika waved the arm which wasn't wrapped up in bandages.
"Should you be here?" Enzan questioned while, at the same time, Netto asked, "are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Laika said, standing tall.
"We're still waiting for the burns to heal so Laika's off active duty back in Sharo however, he's cleared for net savior duties," Searchman said, appearing next to Rockman and Blues inside the computer.
"That's good!" Netto said happily. He walked over to Laika and grinned at him. Laika huffed and looked anywhere but at him. After a couple of moments being ignored, Netto turned to his father.
"Papa, what do you know?"
"There's a strange signal whenever the navi pops up," Dr Hikari responded.
Enzan perked up. They would be able to track her.
"It only works when she appears so we still have no idea where she is in the digital world."
"At least we can interfere before she can hurt someone," Laika said.
"You're not going out there with your arm bandaged up, even if you're cleared," Enzan said.
Laika countered that he was perfectly fine. Enzan asked him whether he would even be able to cross-fuse. Laika answered that he could.
Netto tuned out their fighting out as his father turned to him.
"Netto, Rockman, did you find the source of the anomaly the other day?"
Rockman nodded and told him about the cloaked navi.
"We also ran into the stranger. His outfit is a Scilab security uniform," Netto said.
"He also told us the navi's name. Sol Titanion."
Dr Hikari frowned thoughtfully. "In that case, there's almost certainly a link between the two. That's worrying."
"How so?" Netto questioned. Laika and Enzan had gone silent, the words from Dr Hikari causing them to stop. If he found something worrying, what did that mean for them?
"From what I've been able to analyse, this navi, Sol Titanion, shouldn't exist. Not only is she able to appear in this world but her power puts her on the level of a navi like Forte. It's unlikely that a navi as strong and destructive as her could manage to stay secret."
"As strong as Forte?" Laika repeated. "No wonder I lost."
"Are there any plans for defeating her?" Enzan asked.
"Papa has a point," Rockman commented to Netto. "Someone as strong as her, we should have heard something before now. She's come out of nowhere. How? Is there no record of her?"
"There are no records of any navi with her appearance, powers or name," Dr Hikari said. "And there's currently no plan. I have a few ideas but nothing concrete. I'll have to talk to Meijin first."
"So our only lead is the stranger Netto let get away."
"Hey!"
Netto sat on the bench at the park. He didn't want to go home as Roll had given Rockman a message saying that Meiru had collected his homework and would give it to him when he got home. He wasn't in the mood for homework.
"I can't believe they blamed me," Netto grumbled. "I did most of the work!"
"'We'," Rockman corrected. "We did most of the work. Although it was all luck, Netto. If it wasn't for the stranger, we would have been in trouble."
"I know," Netto sighed. "I suppose you want to thank them or something?"
"Actually, I think Rockman is telling you to say thank you," the stranger said, leaning over the back of the bench. They grinned at him and waved. "Hello, Netto. It's surprising to see you here, although I'm glad for it."
"What do you mean?" Netto asked.
"I heard about what happened today," the stranger said. "You have no plans for fighting Sol Titanion. Which means you're just going to throw yourself into fighting her, putting Rockman and yourself at risk."
"Well, it's not like I can just stand by and let her do whatever she wants! She's hurting people!"
The strangers expression softened, smile fading. "I know. By the way, you can call me Lan. Here." The stranger passed him a round keychain. There was a button on it.
"What's this?" Netto asked.
Lan pointed at the device. "That is a button." Netto stared at him. "What? That's not enough?" He playfully sighed, grinning again. "If you press it, it sends a signal to my PET. If Sol Titanion gives you any trouble, press that and Hub or I will come help."
"Hub?" Rockman questioned.
"My brother. He's more dependable than I am. You met him earlier today."
Netto recalled the stranger who helped. Perhaps that was the brother? That would mean that Hub and Lan had very similar looks.
"Why are you telling us this?" Rockman asked.
"Because I don't want you to get hurt. This shouldn't have happened." Suddenly the stranger looked like he was about to cry. "Sol Titanion should have stayed in the solar power plant."
"Why didn't she?" Netto asked.
Lan shook his head. "That's enough for today. I've given you a way to call us for help. I wish you and your father luck in figuring out how to stop her." With that said, he ran off.
Everything was quiet for the next couple of days. Netto spent his afternoons at Scilab, either working on homework to his everlasting boredom or training with Enzan and Laika. He kept the keychain Lan gave him a secret and didn't mention the stranger's name.
Rockman suspected it wasn't the stranger's real name anyway since he had given it up so easily.
After those couple of days, Netto did mention the device to his mother who seemed relieved that someone was watching over them. Although she encouraged them to tell their father.
The weekend arrived and Netto relished the chance to sleep in.
"You should clean your room," Rockman said the moment Netto started talking about going to the arcade the next day.
"Aw, Rockman," Netto whined.
"And you didn't remember to brush your teeth." Netto moaned at the nagging. "Also, Papa wants us at the labs. Enzan and Laika will be there too. Searchman contacted me with the news that Laika's bandages came off today."
"That's good!" Netto said with a grin. It seemed like things were going back to normal. Maybe they wouldn't have to fight Sol Titanion again. "Do you think Lan took care of Sol Titanion?"
"I don't know. Wouldn't Papa be able to track something like that?"
Netto didn't know the answer to that. He decided to ask his father the next day.