A/N: This is the longest chapter so far, with a word count of 7,657 before author's notes.

Quick questions:

Yes, Lan has a pretty extensive collection of battle chips. He'll probably show it off at some point.

I'm not sure how far into the series I'll get, but I will get past the World Three arc, and am seriously considering getting into the Gospel arc. I'd like to get up to the Axess season/Nebula arc, but I don't know if I'll get quite that far.

As for the other question, it'll get more obvious later on, but the answer is hinted at in this chapter. I'd say more but I type too much when I talk about pairings.

The first few days after the fire at Maylu's house were hectic. Dex's and Chaud's parents were not happy about picking their children up from the police station late at night, though Dex's mother was more understanding than Chaud's father. Maylu didn't attend school for the next few days, instead staying home and recovering. She returned the following week however and began tutoring Chaud. It was the least she could do after he saved her.

Fast forwarding to the present, almost two weeks had passed since the battle with Torchman. It was morning, and Protoman was busying himself in Chaud's desk comp. Unlike Roll and the others, he didn't feel the need to socialize that day. He needed to finish organizing a couple more folders anyways and Chaud had misplaced some of his notes, so it was up to Protoman to search for the copies. It was all going well until a blue Navi streamed into the network and Protoman was forced to close the folders.

"Hi!" the blue Navi said cheerily, waving as he trotted over. "You're Protoman, Chaud Blaze's NetNavi, right?"

"Yes, and you are… Megaman, correct?" Although it hadn't been much, Protoman did do some research on Lan after the incident with Torchman. He, like most people, knew a little about Lan already: He was the son of Dr. Hikari, probably the greatest scientist alive today, and he was an Official. However, that had been the extent of Protoman's knowledge of the Hikari boy until recently.

The blue Navi nodded to confirm his identity. "That's me, Megaman! I take it you remember my NetOp, Lan?" Megaman remained as cheery as ever despite the circumstances of Lan and Chaud's last meeting. Protoman scowled, unsure of what was more irritating: That Megaman was so cheery or that neither he nor Chaud had received an apology for being kept at a police station all night. Yes, Protoman was still miffed about that. It had been extremely uncalled for.

"As a matter of fact, I do. What is your business here?" His scowl deepened and Protoman crossed his arms. Even tapped his foot, wanting Megaman to feel every bit of discomfort possible.

"Well," Megaman cleared his throat uncomfortably, "In about three weeks, SciLab will hold a banquet for its workers. Lan's father, Dr. Hikari, originally invited Maylu and her parents; however, she decided to give her invitation to Chaud and his parents. If Chaud's interested in going, please let me know before the end of tomorrow so I can email you the full details."

"Considering how our NetOps don't get along, don't expect a yes." Megaman's face fell and Protoman wondered if Megaman really cared about this. "Still, I'll ask and give you Chaud's answer tomorrow."

Megaman clapped once and smiled brightly. He seemed genuinely happy Protoman hadn't immediately shot him down, much to the latter's confusion. "Goodie! Oh, and I know it's a little late, but welcome to DenTech. Well, see ya!"

Megaman, logging out.

Protoman stared at the empty space where Megaman had stood just seconds ago. "Well," he muttered, "if that wasn't—" Strange? Formal? Downright ludicrous? "—abrupt." Oh, he was talking about Megaman logging out like that, though 'abrupt' still fit the situation quite nicely.

Shrugging, Protoman went back to searching for Chaud's notes. Really, it would do Chaud some good if he learned to be more careful. Just a little bit…

"Is this some kind of joke?"

"Not at all. Roll confirmed it: Maylu wants you to take her invitation." A pause. "Chaud, go back. You missed your turn."

Chaud huffed and doubled back. Two weeks of living in DenTech and still he had trouble finding his way home.

"Well, I don't know. Dad was pretty mad when he had to pick me up from the police station. I don't think he'll want me to go."

"But you will be spending the evening with the famous Dr. Hikari. I'm sure that'll help convince him."

"Maybe."

"Chaud."

"Yeah?"

"You turned wrong."

Chaud sighed and turned back around. He really needed to learn his way home.

Lan went straight home after school. His first destination: The kitchen. "I can't believe that Mom made me invite the new kid to the banquet." He tossed his backpack onto the floor and grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge. When he closed the fridge he noticed there was a note on the door. "He'll just embarrass us in front of everyone," Lan continued. The note read: Hi sweetie. Sorry, but I have some errands to run. I should be back at around 5. Love you! Sighing, he tossed the note in the trash and finished with; "At least Maylu and her family had some tact."

"But sir, Maylu's parents did cancel on us this year. Plus, you know how Mom and Maylu are. Mom wouldn't decline Maylu's request to give Chaud her invitation." Lan pulled his PET out of its holster. Megaman greeted his NetOp with another smile. Lan, in turn, frowned and took a sip of water. "Besides, it's only one night, and he did defeat Torchman after all. It makes sense that Maylu would feel gratitude towards him."

"Who cares?" Lan snapped and headed up to his room, grabbing his backpack on the way. Once there, he tossed his backpack on the floor and set the water bottle on his nightstand before falling back onto his bed, PET still in hand. "If the new kid and his parents come they better look like they didn't come from a homeless shelter." He sighed. "Whatever. Check the Official bulletin for new memos."

"Yes sir." Megaman vanished from the PET's screen. He returned moments later with a sullen look. "It appears that there's a new post."

"And?" Lan prodded. He closed his eyes, allowing his body to relax as he waited for his Navi to respond. "Read it, will you?"

"Yes sir. Ahem.

'Attention NetPolice

As of three days ago, Tory Froid, age eleven, was declared missing. He is the son of Dr. Froid, a waterworks specialist. The details of his disappearance are vague at best. There are no eyewitnesses. All we know is that he disappeared around 1 and 2 PM Sunday afternoon after leaving his home to meet with his father. His appearance is as follows: Short brown hair, brown eyes and a pale complexion. He was last seen wearing a yellow and blue hoodie with a red undershirt, khaki shorts, and light blue sneakers. A picture is located below, taken shortly before his disappearance…

"…and it looks like he's a classmate of yours, Master Lan."

Lan's eyes flew open and he sat up, his muscles suddenly tense. "Really?" He raised his PET to his face, his eyes narrowed. "Show me the picture."

"Yes sir." Megaman pulled up the picture of Tory Froid. Just as the description said, Tory was a brown haired, brown-eyed, pale faced 5th grader staring blankly ahead. He wasn't smiling and Lan vaguely remembered him from joint events held by SciLab and the Waterworks. They had never spoken to each other, except for maybe a brief 'Hello.' Lan also remembered once being utterly convinced that the boy was cut off socially from the world.

"We should keep an eye out for him," Lan decided. "But for now, continue checking the Official board for anything that requires our immediate attention."

Megaman nodded and vanished again. Lan, having nothing more pressing to do right then, climbed out of bed and started on his homework. The sooner it was done, the sooner he wouldn't have to think about it anymore.

Chaud glanced at the clock. It read 7:34 PM. His father was late again.

Chaud shifted in his chair. He'd arrived home early today, having skipped out on exploring the town in favor of returning to the small, two bedroom apartment he shared with his father. Had it not been for Protoman, Chaud would have felt completely alone those past few hours.

He poked at his dinner for the first time since plating it. It was piled high with the only thing he knew how to cook—curry. Not that his lack of cooking skills bothered him; curry was probably Chaud's favorite food, though the preteen could eat almost anything. His father, on the other hand, wasn't as big on curry as his son, which was probably why he sometimes ate before coming home, leaving Chaud to feed himself.

After poking at his dinner some more, Chaud sighed and set his fork down. He turned his attention to his PET and flinched at Protoman's concerned look. Any longer and Protoman would go into mother hen mode, and that was something no one wanted to see.

"Dad will be home soon, right?" Chaud asked, rocking back and forth in his chair. "It's past 7 and he's normally home by now. So it can't be much longer, right?"

"It shouldn't be, but he might be caught in a meeting." Protoman smiled faintly and raised a hand to the monitor on his end. Chaud responded by tracing a finger over his PET's screen, lingering momentarily over Protoman's palm before pulling away. "You should eat, Chaud. Dinner started a half hour ago and I know you're hungry."

"W-well, that's kind of true, but… and yeah, it has been a while, so…" Chaud's eyes were glued to his plate now. His stomach growled and he could feel himself salivate.

Protoman nodded, trying not to laugh at his NetOp. "Yes, it has. Why don't you get something fresh? The curry's been sitting for a while and—"

Before Protoman could finish, Chaud began shoveling massive spoonfuls of curry into his mouth. To Chaud, there wasn't anything that could stack up against curry despite his questionable cooking skills. Protoman could only shake his head in amused wonder at his NetOp's stomach.

It wasn't until midway through his second serving Chaud heard the door open. As the kitchen/dining room and living room were connected to the entrance hall, Chaud only needed to lean back in his chair to see the door. Standing just inside the doorway, Shuuseki Blaze was in the process of removing his coat and shoes. He put his keys and wallet inside of a drawer in the end table by the door. Then he rubbed his eyes, took several deep breaths, and it wasn't until his hands dropped to his sides did he notice his son smiling at him, leaning so far back in his chair that he was on the verge of falling.

"Hi, Dad," Chaud said meekly, giving a little wave. "How was work?"

"Sit up straight," Shuuseki barked. He dragged himself into the kitchen and sat across from Chaud. A plate full of curry rested in front of him, right where it had been for the past hour.

"It's been sitting for a while," Chaud said apologetically. "I thought you'd be home earlier."

Shuuseki ignored him and stared at the PET on the table. "What is that doing out? I've told you a thousand times, you put that PET away during dinner."

"I'm sorry Master Blaze," Protoman said quickly, "I am to blame. I didn't tell Chaud to put the PET away when I should have, so please—"

"Oh, be quiet. I didn't ask for your input."

Protoman shut up and bowed. Chaud quickly took his PET and put it in the holster on his belt. "Sorry Dad," he mumbled. "I didn't know when you would get home and I got lonely waiting. But it's away now, okay?" He smiled brightly again. "So let's eat! I, uh, I can get you some more curry if you like."

"No, I doubt it will make a difference in taste."

"Ha-ha, you always say that."

Shuuseki rolled his eyes and began picking at his curry. It was too spicy and tasted god-awful, but he knew better than to expect any more from his son. Every now and then he would look up at Chaud and watch him shovel unhealthy amounts of trash into his system. How his son wasn't one of the morbidly obese, Shuuseki didn't know.

Chaud finished eating roughly ten minutes before Shuuseki, but didn't leave the table. It was a strict rule in their home (apartment) that Chaud could not leave the table before his father finished eating, the only exception being when Shuuseki sent Chaud to his room, usually without supper. And even when Shuuseki finished—and he did, shortly after his son—Chaud had to ask to be excused. Unfortunately, questions always came first.

"How was school?"

"Just fine," Chaud replied a little too hastily. "Maylu's started tutoring me, so I'm doing better."

"And your homework?"

"Well," Chaud laughed, "I'll have it done before tomorrow, promise!"

Shuuseki deadpanned. "So it isn't done."

"No, not yet." Chaud spoke carefully now. He knew how high his father placed education, so not finishing homework was on par with failure. And Shuuseki did not tolerate failure. "But I'll get it done before I go to bed, don't worry!"

"And tell me, what have you been doing since you got home? I know for a fact you have plenty of time between school ending and dinner to finish your homework, so why didn't you?"

"I… I just…" Chaud's shoulders drooped and his head lowered. Guilt washed over him at the thought of disappointing his father a second time. "I'm sorry, Dad. I was on the Net again and I forgot about my homework."

Shuuseki scoffed. "Of course you did." He pushed his chair back and stood up, scowling down at Chaud. "I am going to lie down. I expect you to finish these dishes quietly. You are to wake up early and finish your homework then. Am I clear?"

Chaud nodded.

"Good. Now, good night."

Shuuseki began walking away but was stopped when Chaud jumped up and grabbed his sleeve. "Wait!" Shuuseki looked down at Chaud expectantly; he didn't have the time to listen to his son's useless ramblings, so this had better be good. "SciLab is having a banquet in a couple days and Maylu was invited, but she gave her invitation to us instead. It's in a few weeks. Can we go?"

"I don't think so," he answered ruefully. "You don't need another excuse to stuff your face and skip out on homework."

"The invitation's coming from Dr. Hikari, though!"

Shuuseki's eyebrows shot up. That got him, Chaud thought.

"You don't mean –the- Dr. Hikari?" Disbelief shone through Shuuseki's words like sun through clouds. Typical, just typical.

"Yup! Maylu's family is friends with Dr. Hikari, so we get her invitation now. Can we go? It'll be fun! And you could, uh, network or something."

Shuuseki hesitated. He thought of the pros of going—connections were everything, and if you were going to make connections then Dr. Hikari was the man to know. It had been a long while since they had a nice meal as well, and Shuuseki couldn't think of anything better than to spend the night with other adults. The cons, unfortunately, were equally numerous. Shuuseki started early and worked until late; he needed his sleep. And Chaud could very easily embarrass him, either by doing something stupid and maybe somewhat illegal, or by inhaling everything in sight. It was a tough call, but eventually he rolled his eyes in defeat. Chaud bounced—not jumped, not hopped, just bounced—for joy.

"Thanks Dad!" Chaud hugged his father and was quickly pushed away. At least he'd expected it and not tripped over his feet and bashed his skull on the table.

"We'll go, but you better behave while we're there. No making a fool of yourself, understood?"

Chaud nodded so vigorously Shuuseki thought he'd hear his son's neck snap. "Yup! I'm going to get the dishes now. Night Dad!" Before he could agitate his father any more than he already had, Chaud whirled around and promptly fell flat on his face. He could feel his father roll his eyes again—this time from disgust and not submission—but at least he hadn't bashed his skull open.

This time.

The very next day, Dex, Maylu, and Chaud were gathered around Yai's desk, listening to her newest addition to her life story. Well, Dex and Maylu were. Chaud was trying not to fall asleep.

"I swear, it was so weird! Glyde was running a few errands for me when this Navi approached us. He started asking about rare chips so I told him, 'Of course I know about rare chips. I only carry the best of the best!' And then he attacked us!" Yai threw her arms in the air, Maylu gasped and Dex said, "No way."

"Yes way," Yai continued. "Poor Glyde almost got deleted by that creep! He's still so shaken up he doesn't want to leave his PET."

"I can't blame him!" Maylu exclaimed. "He wasn't seriously hurt, was he?"

"Nothing that can't be fixed, but it still wasn't good." Yai grimaced. "My poor Glyde. Oh, it just eats me up inside that someone would do that to him!"

"How'd they get past your chips, anyways?" Dex asked. "I mean, you have super rare chips. Even Gutsman couldn't get past your Life Aura."

Chaud immediately perked up at the mention of Life Aura. "Life Aura?" he asked excitedly. "That chip is like, really, really rare! Man, I'd love to meet a Navi who could get past that. They'd have to be really strong. The strongest!" Dozens of scenarios danced through Chaud's mind about the kind of Navi who could break through Life Aura. Now that was the kind of Navi Chaud would like to battle.

"For Protoman's sake, I hope you never!" Glyde exclaimed. Everyone turned to the yellow PET on Yai's desk, which displayed a very frightened-looking Glyde. "That Navi was very powerful. If you ever were to encounter him, retreat would be your only option."

"He's right, you know." This time the voice came from Chaud's PET, but it wasn't Protoman who'd spoken. Chaud pulled his PET out and saw that Roll was clinging to Protoman's arm. Protoman, meanwhile, had probably the stiffest posture possible. "You two need to be careful or else something bad might happen."

"That's a given, but…" Maylu leaned over to look at Chaud's PET. "Why are you in Protoman's PET?"

"Oh, just visiting!"

Maylu rolled her eyes playfully. Chaud was confused and felt bad for Protoman. It was clear to him how uncomfortable his Navi was. Protoman never really did like when girls touched him, especially his hair. Now that was when things got downright hilarious.

"Anyways," Dex said, bringing them back to the original subject, "Did you get a good look at the guy?"

"Mhm. He was green with a big disco ball on his head, and he fought with these…" Yai gesticulated with her hands. "…bomb-dice, things."

"You don't remember anything else?" Maylu asked. Yai shook her head. "Well, we'll keep an eye out for the guy and report him if we see him, all right?"

"Yeah, thanks." Yai smiled. "I already filed an initial report, so hopefully they catch the guy soon."

"Mhm! Until then, we'll make sure nothing else happens to Glyde, promise."

The girls shared a quick grin and giggle and the situation felt much less serious.

*Ding, dong, ding, dong…*

"Man, the bell already? Talk to you guys at lunch." Chaud waved to Yai and the others and walked to his desk. As he sat down he noticed that there was an empty seat in the row in front of him where Lan should be. "Uh oh."

"Chaud!" Protoman hissed. "Are you paying attention?"

Chaud shook his head and looked down at the PET on his desk. "It's not that," he whispered. "Lan isn't here. How are we supposed to tell him we're going?"

Protoman sighed. "We can ask the others at lunch. Meanwhile, pay attention!"

Rolling his eyes, Chaud turned his attention back to Ms. Mari.

"And now for the next announcement: Today we have a special guest teacher here to talk to you kids about virus busting and how to protect yourselves on the Net. Speaking of him…" Ms. Mari gulped and nervously glanced around the classroom. "I'm not quite sure where he is."

Dex snickered. He leaned over to Chaud and whispered, "I wonder if that means no class."

"If only." Chaud sighed and put his head in his hands. God, he was so tired. "How much longer do I have to stay here?"

"Until school ends. Now, sit up," Protoman said, raising his voice a little. Any louder and Ms. Mari would hear him.

Annoyed by Protoman chiding him, Chaud raised his hand. "Ms. Mari, can I be excused?"

Ms. Mari pressed her palms flat against her desk and leaned forwards. "What for, Chaud? If you need to go to the restroom then you should have gone before class." The students laughed and Chaud's face flushed red.

"I'm not feeling too well," he lied. "Now can I be excused?"

"No, you're just trying to get out of class. Now, be quiet while I try to find Mr. Higsby. I'll be right back class, so you better behave."

"Yes Ms. Mari," everyone excluding Chaud chorused.

"Good!" Ms. Mari smiled at them before leaving. Almost immediately, the students gathered around their friends and began chatting amongst themselves.

"Do the teachers really believe that the class will behave?" Protoman asked. Chaud responded by groaning and laying his head on the desk.

"I can't believe Dad made me get up the same time he did. It's just homework; not that important." He moaned into his desk; his eyelids began to grow heavy and Chaud felt the familiar temptation to close them and leave them that way.

"Oh no you don't," Protoman muttered. "Chaud, get up. You can sleep after your tutoring session with Maylu. Ms. Mari will be back any moment now and if she catches you asleep then you'll have detention. And you can't sleep through that either. Are you even listening to me?" A snore was Chaud's only response. "Oh, great."

Dex, seeing the perfect opportunity, stuck a finger in his mouth. Once it was nice and slimy, he pulled his finger out and leaned towards Chaud. Protoman saw this and knew what was coming, so he tried one last time to wake Chaud. It didn't work, but Dex giving him a "wet willy" did.

Chaud instinctively jerked away at the familiar sensation and yelped. He fell hard on his side onto the floor and immediately rubbed his ear, having the full intention of taking it off. Anything would have been better than a wet willy—Dex could have given him a wedgie for all he cared! Though, in hindsight, that would have been just as bad. Giving Dex a glare, Chaud climbed back into his seat.

"You're a jerk."

"I know."

Chaud rubbed his ear again and shifted his glare to Protoman. The Navi held up his hand. "I tried waking you, so don't start." Chaud huffed.

The doors at the front of the classroom opened with a soft whirr. Everyone quieted down and rushed to their seats in fear of incurring Ms. Mari's wrath. However, it was not Ms. Mari who walked through the doors, but a lanky, wild-haired man. He wore glasses and a tie with a peculiar pin—probably custom made, as upon closer inspection, one would notice its design is reminiscent of a Navi symbol. Whispers circulated around the room with everyone wondering who it was standing before them, behind Ms. Mari's desk.

"Hello!" he greeted them. "I'm Mr. Higsby, and I'm here to talk to you all about virus busting and ways to protect yourself on the Net, huh."

Yai's hand shot up. "Where's Ms. Mari? Assuming you're actually the guest teacher and not some creep, she just went looking for you."

"Oh, you mean your teacher?" An easy, unnerving smile slid onto his face. "Don't worry about Ms. Mari, huh. She's tied up with something right now, but you'll see her soon enough. For now, why don't you watch this video created by our very own World Three?"

Shocked cries rang throughout the classroom. Higsby turned and ran out of the room before anyone could stop him. A few students, Dex and Chaud included, tried chasing after him, but the doors were sealed shut. "We're locked in! That guy locked us in!" someone screamed.

The students' computers flickered to life and white noise filled the room with deafening volume. Even the school's intercom system screamed; the students collectively flinched and covered their ears. Shortly after, the white noise faded and was replaced by Wily's voice. Students could see his face on their desk monitors, cheerily reciting his message for them.

"Greetings students of Electopia; I am Mr. Wily! It is time you stopped listening to the lies society feeds you and time you joined the World Three. Rebel against all of Net society, my young ones! DELETE! DELETE! DELEEEEEEETE!"

Maylu vainly searched for a button to turn off the announcement. The power switch on her desk refused to work and the reset button was covered by a screwed on plate, though even that wasn't guaranteed to work. "It's a brainwashing program!" she shrieked. The announcement began to repeat itself; someone had set it on loop.

"Are you kidding me?!" Chaud rushed to the window and tried prying one open. Other students followed his lead, pushing and pulling on the windows and each other to no avail. "Argh!" Chaud pressed his forehead against the cool glass and squeezed his eyes shut. They were on the fourth floor; even if they opened the window, it wasn't like they could jump for it. "I'm not getting brainwashed by stinkin' World Three… What to do, what to do?"

Yai pushed her way to Chaud and tugged on his arm. "Hey Chaud, there's a jack-in port in the blackboard that connects to the school's network. You can probably unlock the doors from there."

"Really?" He stepped back from the glass and went to grab his PET from its holster, but Yai held it out to him. "How did you—?"

"You left me on your desk," Protoman said, and if Chaud wasn't mistaken, was there a hint of pout in there?

"Sorry," Chaud said sheepishly. He took his PET and quickly thanked Yai before jogging over to the blackboard. By now, word had spread and practically everyone was staring at him, except for the few who were trying to either bust their way out of the classroom or shut down their desk computers. Chaud pulled out his jack-in cord.

"Jack-in, Protoman! Power up!"

Just as Chaud went to connect his PET, Dex shoved him out of the way and plugged in his own Navi. People gasped from shock; Chaud stumbled and barely avoided landing on his butt.

"Sorry Chaud, but leave this to Gutsman! He'll have us out of here in no time."

"Are you freakin' kidding me?! There's more than one jack-in port, you jerk!"

"Yeah, so?"

"Are you two seriously fighting right now?" Maylu asked. "Who cares who unlocks the doors? Just let Dex do it so we can get out of here!" Her voice cracked slightly at the end, her panic clear. Chaud looked from Maylu to Yai to the rest of the students' faces. They were terrified and so was he. Mad as he was about being shoved, Maylu had a point. It really didn't matter who unlocked the doors; just that they were unlocked. Defeated, he stepped away from the blackboard, his head pounding.

"Better hurry, Dex," he said weakly. Was it just him, or was the announcement getting louder?

Dex nodded and turned to his PET. "C'mon Gutsman, let's crack that lock!"

"Guts," Gutsman replied. He'd safely streamed into the school's cyberspace without problem, and was looking around for the classroom's lock system. Moments later, he found it. After approaching with little caution, Gutsman immediately interfaced with the system and deactivated the locks. "Done, Dex!"

"Aw yeah!" Dex fist pumped the air. "We're free! Quick, someone try the door!"

Several students rushed to the door. Sure enough, it opened without resistance. "Dex did it!" they cried. At two and three at a time, everyone clamored out of the room except for Dex, who stayed behind to operate Gutsman. Maylu and Yai stood directly outside of their classroom; Chaud went further down to find ways to get downstairs. Meanwhile, the school's intercom system kept playing World Three's re-education program and everyone else remained trapped. They could hear students, teachers even, screaming for help.

Maylu clutched her head. Like everyone else, the re-education program gave her a mind splitting headache. It was getting harder and harder to focus, so she slid down the wall to the floor and set her PET on her lap. Roll looked up at Maylu with unbridled rage in her eyes. "Maylu," she said forcefully, "I want you to jack me in." Maylu was taken aback, but Roll didn't give her any opportunity to cut in. "I know what you're going to say, but Dex is staying back there trying to stop this, isn't he? I don't care if he wants help or not, but I'm not going to stand by while World Three tries to turn you into one of their cronies."

"Are you sure?" She squeezed her PET; she didn't want Roll away from her, but Roll had a point. They couldn't stand by and do nothing.

"Of course I'm sure! Now, go and tell that butthead Dex that we're helping."

They shared a smile and Maylu got back onto her feet. A warm feeling welled up in her chest as she walked into the classroom next to Dex and plugged Roll in. When Yai and Dex asked her what she was doing, she replied, "The more people who help the sooner we get out, right? I'm helping."

"Maylu…" Yai looked on helplessly as her friends operated their Navis. With Glyde still recovering, she knew she couldn't help; she couldn't put him at risk. But she had to do something. Everyone else was searching for a way out—why wasn't she?

I won't be useless, she thought. "I'm going to see what I can do to help the others, you guys be careful now, ya hear?"

"We'll be fine!" Dex assured her. Yai nodded and ran out of the room. She passed by students trying to help free those still trapped. Since there wasn't much she could help with that, Yai moved on to the stairwell. It was very likely the door leading to the stairs was locked as well, but she wanted to find Chaud. Maybe he had some ideas.

Once there, she saw something she didn't expect: Two kids trying to beat each other down with Chaud in the middle.

The two students were kicking and punching and spitting at each other, and subsequently Chaud, and screaming about… earplugs? Yai struggled to hear them past the announcement and the ringing in her ears.

"Give them back, give them back!" screamed the larger, bald headed student Yai remembered as Kenji. He tried kicking the other student, Tommy if Yai was correct, but hit the side of Chaud's knee instead. His leg buckled and Chaud grabbed at Kenji's shirt for balance.

Tommy scrunched up his face and stuck his tongue out. He had one hand behind his back, presumably holding the earplugs.

"Why should I? I bought them; they're mine!"

Tommy shoved Chaud's head down with his free hand and spat in Kenji's face. Kenji retaliated by swinging at Tommy. He missed and toppled forward onto Chaud, and since Chaud had been relying on Kenji for balance, they crashed onto the floor. Tommy laughed and ran off; Kenji yelled and ran after him, leaving Chaud sprawled on the ground.

"Chaud!" Yai hurried over to him as he sat up, clutching his knee. "Are you okay? Why were they fighting?"

"I don't know, but I'm so going to kick their butts when this is over!" Chaud groaned and rubbed his knee. "Owww…" He stood, careful to put less weight on his hurt knee. Yai watched him carefully, too afraid to touch him; he'd probably just fall on her anyways.

"We need to get out of here," she said. "Maylu and Dex are trying to stop the announcement, but…" Yai sucked in a shuddering breath. All she could hear was Mr. Wily telling them to delete, delete, delete—she tried to shrug it off but it wasn't so easy. The words stuck in her head like glue and she feared they'd never go away. "I'm scared. It's taking them too long. What if we never get out of here?" Her voice cracked at the end and she had to wipe a few tears from her eyes. "I hate to say it, but I wish that big dummy Lan was here. He'd know what to do."

"Well, he's not, so we have to do this for ourselves." Chaud hesitated before ruffling Yai's hair and giving her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. He, too, had Wily's words stuck in his head, but he couldn't show it. His father always said to compartmentalize useless emotion, whatever that meant. "C'mon, smile now! If we give up now then World Three will just get their way again."

Yai's PET beeped as Glyde agreed with Chaud. "He's right Miss Yai. This is not over yet, and we will prevail!"

Yai's lips quirked into a small smile, which grew just a bit when she looked up at Chaud beaming down at her. "You're right… Let's get back to Dex and Maylu and see what the holdup is. They should have stopped the announcement by now."

"That's the spirit!" Chaud whacked Yai on the shoulder, oblivious to how he nearly knocked her over and effectively ruined the moment. "C'mon, legs go." Protoman groaned painfully hearing his NetOp crack such an awful pun. He, of course, found it hilarious.

They headed back to classroom 5-A with haste. If the announcement was starting to stick in their heads then it wouldn't be long until it sunk in permanently. They only hoped that Maylu and Dex would have the situation under control by the time they got there.

Roll and Gutsman had travelled deep within the school's network. They had run into several security measures—passwords that took a little too long for Roll to decode—but finally they'd arrived at the main computer. However, they weren't alone. A strange looking green Navi with a rather odd headpiece stood between them and the intercom control system. His face betrayed no emotion, not that Roll thought it could; with two big circles for eyes and a small rectangle for a mouth, his design wasn't as facially expressive as most Navis'.

"Greetings," he said, his headpiece lighting up erratically, "I am Numberman. And who might you be?"

"Let me guess, you're the one causing this mess?" Roll asked rhetorically. She puffed out her cheeks and put her fists up. "You've got a lot of nerve you know! Attacking a school—how low is that?!"

"Roll," Maylu interrupted, "I know you guys like your banter, but we don't have all day over here. Hurry and fix the system!"

"That will not happen," Numberman stated almost automatically. "The odds of you stopping the announcement are below ten percent. The numbers are not in your favor."

"We'll see about that," Dex scoffed. "Gutsman, squash 'im!"

"Guts!"

Gutsman ran at Numberman and quickly closed the distance between them. He swung at Numberman, aiming for his head, but the other Navi was more agile than he looked. Numberman ducked and leapt backwards, throwing something on the ground in the process. Imagine Gutsman's surprise when he noticed a die between his feet displaying the number 4. Now imagine his surprise when it exploded.

His armor cracked all over. The explosion was so powerful—so loud—that his hearing program malfunctioned for 5.0079 seconds and all he could hear was this loud ringing noise that drowned out everything, including Roll's screams. Gutsman didn't know how, but he ended up on his back with Roll leaning over him.

"Gutsman, are you okay? Gutsman, ohmigosh, please, say something!"

Thunkthunkthunkthunkthunk.

Three more dice landed behind Roll, to her left. This time they read 2, 5, and 3.

"R-Roll, look out!"

"Huh?"

She turned and looked behind her, but before she could even scream, fully expecting her deletion, the dice were replaced with two blue feet. The dice exploded a little ways off, just barely far away enough for them not to get injured. But blue? No, it couldn't be…

It was. Her and Gutsman's savior was none other than Megaman.

"But how?"

"How what, Roll?" Megaman asked, looking at her with the utmost confusion. "Are you all right? Better yet, is Gutsman all right?" He stepped past Roll and gently nudged Gutsman with his foot. The damaged Navi glared at Megaman. Boy, did Gutsman want to rearrange Megaman's face right then.

"I'm fine, guts," Gutsman spat. He pushed himself onto his hands and knees, about to stand up with a bit of Roll's help—

Thunkthunkthunkthunkthunk.

Snake eyes.

No dodging now.

It didn't matter that Wily's voice continued to ring out overhead. After that third explosion went off, Maylu and Dex only heard the words, Gutsman, data deleted.

It would, of course, be the perfect time for Chaud and Yai to come running in.

"Guys, what's the holdup?" Chaud asked. "If you guys aren't done yet, I'm going to jack-in Protoman and we'll—" He stopped. Something was wrong; neither Maylu nor Dex were looking at them, and Dex was hunched over, oddly quiet. "Uh, guys? Something wrong?"

Dex didn't speak. Maylu put a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it away. "It's nothing," he deadpanned. "I just… It's nothing."

"Dex—"

"I said it's nothing, Maylu!"

Maylu flinched when he snapped at her. Normally, Yai would have been all over berating Dex for being so rude, but when he sulked away holding his PET to his chest, she got the hint. Chaud, however, was still oblivious.

"What's his problem? I thought you guys were fixing this, not—"

"Gutsman is deleted," Maylu told him. "And I—I didn't check on Roll yet!" Frantically, she turned to her PET. Static greeted her. "Roll, Roll! Come in Roll! Are you all right? Roll!"

"Chaud—"

"Already on it, Protoman." Chaud whipped out his jack-in cord and stepped up to the blackboard. "Jack-in, power up!"

Gutsman, data deleted.

"No!" Roll shrieked. She fought against Megaman, trying to rush over to the crater where Gutsman had once been. Megaman however held tight; he had saved her from the third explosion, but hadn't been able to grab Gutsman. It was an unfortunate casualty, but one that couldn't be helped.

"Roll, I'm sure Dex has backup data for Gutsman. You need to stop fighting and jack out now, be—"

"No!" she shrieked again. "I'm not leaving, not after what he did to Gutsman…" Her body trembled, not with sorrow, but anger. Roll scanned the area for Numberman and saw him holding another pair of dice. "You… You monster! I swear, when I get my hands on you—"

Numberman tossed the dice. "You will do nothing," he said. Megaman leapt away from the dice before he even saw what their numbers were, but judging by the large explosion, Megaman guessed they were good numbers. "You are much stronger than your deleted friend. However, the numbers are still not in your favor!"

Numberman formed more dice and threw them at Megaman and Roll again and again, and again and again Megaman kept dodging. He would attack, but with Roll so angry and determined to avenge Gutsman it would have been too dangerous to let her go. Megaman refused to let anything happen to her.

"Let me go Megaman! We can fight him together!" she yelled, only dimly aware that Maylu was calling for her.

"I can't allow that Roll. I need you to jack out before you get hurt."

"Not going to happen!"

Boom. Another explosion. This was getting ridiculous; he couldn't dodge forever. Megaman had no other choice but to throw Roll to the side after dodging the next explosion. He then made a break for Numberman, simultaneously slotting in his Super Vulcan battle chip. His right arm shifted into a golden Vulcan and he took aim; Numberman reared his arm back to throw even more dice at Megaman. Megaman, however, was faster.

Ten shots pierced Numberman in all the right places. His hands were reduced to nothing and his torso, too, was riddled with holes. Rogue bits of data dissipated into the cyberspace as his wounds caused his torso and his stubs to de-razz. Three more shots and one leg was blown off, the other severely handicapped.

"Bingo." Megaman smiled triumphantly and approached Numberman, his weapon aimed at the defeated Navi's symbol. "You're under arrest. Don't try to resist."

"No, I—the numbers were on my side. I had a seventy percent chance of winning! How could this have happened?"

Megaman snorted, stepping past Numberman and interfacing with the school's system. In the physical world, the World Three's announcement stopped and all of the doors unlocked. A bit more tweaking and Megaman relayed this announcement to the entire school staff and student body:

"Attention students and teachers, attention students and teachers. Please return to your classrooms immediately. The police will be there shortly to evacuate and account for everyone. I repeat, return to your classrooms and await the police. The situation has been handled. Thank you."

Smiling, Megaman turned and faced Roll. She walked towards him, still in utter disbelief that he'd thrown her. Megaman's heart sank at the thought of hurting her, but this was no time for hurt feelings. "You should jack out," he said softly. "The situation's been handled; you don't need to be here."

Silently, she shook her head. "No." Her voice was low and had an edge to it Megaman had never heard before. "He deleted Gutsman. He should pay."

"W-what do you mean by 'pay'?" Numberman tried scooting away from Roll, but the second he moved Megaman was on him, his Vulcan aimed at Numberman's Navi symbol again.

"One more move and I'll shoot," Megaman said and meant it. Roll momentarily flinched at Megaman's hostility—she wasn't used to seeing him like that—before her anger returned. Whether Dex had restoration data or not, Roll wasn't going to let Numberman go until she got her hands on him.

Her right arm shifted into a buster and she fired a clean shot at Numberman. Or, it would have been a clean shot, had her arm not been forced above her head at the very last second. Dumbfounded, she looked from Numberman to Megaman—the former was trembling, the latter as bewildered as her—and then looked to her right. Protoman had a firm grip on her arm and she finally registered Maylu calling out for her.

"Roll, what were you doing?!" Maylu cried. "I was trying to talk to you and you kept ignoring me—and you tried to—"

Maylu wasn't able to finish, so Protoman did.

"You tried to delete him." Roll yanked her arm away from Protoman, who let it go without a fight. "Megaman," he said, nodding towards the blue Navi. Megaman nodded back before turning his attention to Numberman again.

"Hey, if Megaman's here, shouldn't Lan be here too?" Chaud asked. Megaman went to answer, but was cut off when a screen appeared, showing a rather smug-looking Lan.

"Well, if it isn't you again," he sneered. Chaud growled and Lan scoffed. "Megaman, I see you've apprehended the criminal."

"Yes sir!"

"Good. As soon as the others arrive, jack out. They'll take care of him. Meanwhile," Lan turned to Chaud and Maylu, "I order you two to log your Navis out. You'll just get in the way when the rest of the adults get here."

"Why you—"

"Okay."

Chaud turned to Maylu with a bewildered look. "What? You're just going to let him boss us around? C'mon!"

"He's an Official, Chaud; we should listen to him. He's right anyways—" Maylu unplugged her PET from the blackboard, jacking out Roll. "—we should log our Navis out. Roll and Protoman aren't needed there anymore."

"But…"

"Don't argue with her Chaud," Protoman said. "You'll never win."

Chaud sighed. "Fiiiine." He went to unplug his PET, but stopped short. "Oh, Protoman, tell Megaman we're going to the banquet thing!"

"…You just did."

"Oh."

Megaman covered his mouth to hide his chuckle; Lan just rolled his eyes.

"Will you go already? We don't need you here, so scram."

"I'll email you later," Megaman told Protoman.

"Thanks."

Protoman, logging out.

Not but a few yards away from the school, a green haired woman stood hidden amongst trees, watching a replay of footage on her PET.

Gutsman, data deleted.

It sickened her to helplessly watch a replay of an innocent deleted, but there wasn't anything she could do about it now. Besides, the boy was smarter than he looked. She trusted he had Navi restoration data.

"Woodman, store the video file, will you?"

"Right away!"

She smiled, the voice of her Navi immediately cheering her up. "Thank you."

"My pleasure," her Navi, who lived up to his name in appearance, replied. She smiled at him and put her PET in the bag hanging off her shoulder. Later she knew she'd have to file for the release of Higsby; he'd been tricked into joining and threatened when he tried leaving. Unlike the other members of World Three, Higsby would not receive anything much more severe than a slap on the wrist and an obligation to assist in the ongoing investigation of World Three. She would be sure of that.