Megaman NT Warrior: Requiem's Awakening

Chapter 3

"A NetBattle… and the 4 Vital Parts"

Several weeks have passed since April started working. She and Dr. Hikari talked often, but they never touched on the same topic as they did that first day. April felt no need to dwell on the past, though she caught Dr. Hikari looking at her with the most peculiar look. It was as though he was seeing her grandfather in her, especially when she was working. April choose to ignore it. She kept her mind on her work instead.

And it wasn't hard, at first. As the weeks progressed, Dr. Hikari gave her more and more challenging tasks, until Dr. Hikari allowed her to work on her own projects in the privacy of her office. He still gave her other things to do, but they were quick and easy things that forced her to socialize with others working in Scilab. April didn't mind this, but she hated being interrupted in the middle of her work.

One day, April sat in her tiny office, leaning back in her chair, staring intently at the monitor on the wall. Curtains were covering the windows; the light of the monitor was the only thing in the room. Colors flashed over her face, and her metal plates glinted in the darkness.

April shifted in her seat, her eyes following the action on the screen.

"Stop!" She yelled suddenly. Nocturne obliged, and the image of Megaman and Bass during their fight on the S.S. Queen Ocean froze. She leaned forward in her chair. "Zoom in, please." The camera closed into Bass, his arms spread wide, and Megaman, as Hub-Style, making contact on Bass' chest. "Zoom in on the impact, please." Megaman's fist filled the screen. All around it was the white glare of the impact. "Can you remove the glare?"

"Are viruses annoying?"

As the glare gradually disappeared, April leaned close enough to the screen to see the pixels, and as it disappeared completly, she gasped. Megaman's fingers were reaching into Bass's chest… and the tips were defragmenting…meaning… "That's his Get-Ability Program activating…Megaman was probably too wrapped up in the battle to notice…and he probably healed that right away…and yet…Bass was able to copy the Hub-Style with that small amount of data?" April leaned back in her chair and ran her fingers through her hair. "How did you do it, Grandpa?" She murmured to the ceiling. "How am I supposed to copy a power this awesome? Why does it have to a primary piece in her programming?" She yelled in frustration, yanking at her hair

"April?" She looked over at Nocturne, standing on the screen in front of the still shot of Megaman and Bass. "Doesn't that hurt?" He asked, pointing at her head. She pulled her hands out of her hair and started smoothing it back down. "Only a little. I don't pull very hard." She admitted.

Nocturne shook his head. "Sometimes, I just don't understand you."

"Thanks." April replied sarcastically. "Will you put that video back where it belongs?"

Megaman and Bass disappeared from the screen, and only Nocturne remained, standing against a blue background. "Oh yeah." He said. "Lan wanted to know if you wanted to join him and Chaud for lunch." April perked up at the mention of food. "He'll be waiting for you in the lobby at noon." She glanced at the clock. It was 3 minutes till noon.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner!" She cried, grabbing her backpack and her PET.

"You were working." Nocturne replied from the small screen. "You specifically told me not to bother you unless it was important information."

"Lunch is important!" April jabbed the elevator button, trying to make it come faster. It never worked, but she couldn't help it.

In the elevator, she also pushed the button marked 'L' for lobby several times per second. "Go…faster…"

"April…I've been thinking…"

She didn't take her eyes off the numbers as they slowly passed from level to level. 23…22…21 "About what?"

He took a deep breath, like a diver before taking the plunge. "We need to get more information about Bass. Aside from Dr. Cossack, Lan and Megaman are probably the ones that know him best. We should ask them about him…I was thinking we could also challenge them to a NetBattle. I don't know about you, but I want to see what it is about them that defeated Bass."

April looked sharply down at her PET, and she stopped pushing the button. "You…want to…NetBattle?" She croaked out. "We haven't battled since my operation! Why should we start back up?"

"Information collecting. And it's just fun. You'll regain your touch in no time at all."

Nocturne was spared April's retort with a ding and the elevator doors opening up to the lobby. April stepped out and waved. "Hey guys!"

Lan waved back. "We thought you'd never make it!" He said as April walked up to them "Now that we're all here, let's go!"

They took the train out of Scilab into DenTech City, and they headed for the nearest restaurant, chatting about nothing in particular.

They sat at their normal table at Noodles 'N Burgers and ordered their usual: April got ramen with chicken and some fries, Chaud got a BLT, and Lan ordered the extra large cheeseburger with bacon and no mayo.

While they were eating, April kept thinking about what Nocturne had said earlier, in the elevator.

He was right; she did miss NetBattling. She had always been too busy, either with work or school, and she had never gotten back around to battling when her schedule cleared up after she graduated.

All right. I'll do it. And who knows…I might find out something useful after all…

When they had finished and paid for their meal, the three walked out of Noodles 'N Burgers. April took the lead and started heading for the arcade. "Hurry up, slowpokes!" She called to the two boys. They looked at each other, shrugged, and ran to catch up.

Once inside, April took a deep breath. It's good to be back. She thought, while looking for an open arena. She located one, ran to it, and then whirled around to face Lan and Chaud. "So, which of you boys is going to battle me and Nocturne?"

Chaud looked completely taken aback. Lan, however, pulled out his PET.

"Megaman and I are always ready to NetBattle!" As he jacked in, lights around the arena turned on, and hologram projectors showed a life-sized image of Megaman.

April walked around to the opposite side, pulling a box of battle chips out of her backpack. "Ya ready, Nocturne?" He jumped up and pumped his fists. "I've been ready for years! Let's go!"

April jacked in Nocturne, and a hologram of him showed up next to Megaman's. A small crowd of people started to gather around the edge of the arena.

Chaud sighed. "I guess there's no stopping them…"

A loud buzzer sounded, and the words 'Battle Start' flashed above everyone's head.

"Go for it, Megaman!"

"Let's show him our stuff Nocturne!"

The two Navis leapt at each other, and the battle was on.

They punched and kicked, each barely managing to miss the other. Faster and faster they went, zooming around the arena and drawing an even bigger crowd. Nocturne leapt again, and Megaman ducked, sending the other Navi flying over his head.

"WAHHHHH!!!" He landed face first on the ground. April and the crowd cringed. "Nocturne! Take this!" April inserted a battle chip in her PET. "Mettaur Virus 2! And an Omega Cannon! Download!"

A hole opened up in the ground and two little black viruses, carrying pickaxes and wearing hardhats jumped out. They hit the ground with their axes, and two shockwaves fired at Megaman. He jumped and turned towards Nocturne. "Is that the best—"

BOOM!!!!

Nocturne fired off his cannon and Megaman caught the blast full on. "Is that the best you've got?" He retorted.

"It most defiantly is not!" Lan shouted. "Megaman! Full-Synchro!"

April chuckled as a light surrounded Lan and a breeze came from nowhere to ruffle his hair. "Two can play at that game. Full-Synchro Nocturne!"

The same light and breeze surrounded April, and the two Net-Op's were frozen, staring intently at each other.

On the battlefield, the Navi's speed and ferocity of attacks increased. Several hits connected, and the damage showed on the Net-Op as they received cuts and bruises seemingly from nowhere.

April smirked over at Lan. "Ready to finish this?"

"You bet!"

They each pulled out a battle chip and inserted it at the same time. "Cyber Sword! Download!"

Megaman and Nocturne's right arms changed shape and formed a shining sword: Megaman's was blue and Nocturne's was purple.

They leapt at each other again, and more cuts appeared on the Net-Op's bodies.

On the battlefield, Megaman and Nocturne were swinging, stabbing and blocking for all they were worth. Nocturne jumped into the air. "It's done, Megaman!" As gravity took over and Nocturne started falling, he pointed his sword down, straight towards Megaman. He gained speed and landed hard, throwing up a huge cloud of dust and lodging the Cyber Sword firmly into the ground. His eyes were wide and he twisted around, trying to free his sword and find Megaman at the same time. He felt something sharp against his neck. Megaman was standing there, holding his blue saber to the other Navi's throat. "It is over…" he whispered. "Your Full-Synchro is gone, and your only weapon is useless."

The smoke cleared, and April stared up at her Navi. "Oh, Nocturne…"

The black Navi smirked but still bowed his head. "I concede."

The buzzer rang again, and the words "Battle Over" flashed over everyone's heads. The crowd dispersed, talking excitedly about what they had just seen. Chaud stood still, arms folded, letting others maneuver their way around him. April had jacked out and was slowly making her way down to where he was, pressing buttons on her PET.

"We'll fix you up, Nocturne don't worry. All we got was a few scratches."

"Why didn't we keep Full-Synchro?"

April made a small waving motion with her hand, as though physically brushing the question aside. "That was my fault. I'm sorry. I became so excited when I saw you two fighting and I realized that Lan and Megaman must've felt the same way I did when they were fighting Bass. I got excited…and distracted. Sorry. We were pretty close to."

Lan came up behind her and patted her on the shoulder. "You were. We barely dodged that last attack. Good battle." He held out his hand and April took it.

"You too. Now I can see how you were able to defeat Bass…Well…since our lunch hour is well up, shall we get going?"

Lan looked at his watch and jumped. "Dad's gonna kill us!" he exclaimed, and ran out of the arcade at top speed. April and Chaud laughed and jogged behind catching up with Lan at the subway station for the train that wouldn't come for 5 more minutes.

While Lan and Chaud were waiting, talking about all the kinds of work Dr. Hikari had in store for them, April and Nocturne were arguing a ways off.

"Just ask him." Nocturne was saying. "And if he asks why, just tell him you wanted to know more because your grandfather didn't tell you a whole lot about him. Look. The train ride is 17 minutes. I bet you could get at least one useful fact during that time if you ask him right as you get on."

"Fine." April said, as the train arrived. She got on first, grabbing Lan and Chaud's arms and pulling them all the way to the back, where no one was sitting. The doors closed with a gentle swish, and the train started gliding towards Scilab.

April pulled Chaud and Lan into a seat, then sat down opposite them. "Sorry about the rough handling boys, but we need to talk privately." She glanced down at her PET, and Nocturne gestured impatiently for her to go on.

"I want to know what you know about the Navi named Bass."

Lan spoke up at once. "The first time we met him, I remember it was a complete disaster. He struck Megaman and me down with barely a flick of his wrist. The next time we met, we had gained control of the Hub-Style—"

"Control?" Chaud laughed. "Yeah right. You nearly deleted Protoman before you were able to think straight, let alone control the Hub-Style."

Lan shrugged, letting the comment pass. "Whatever. During that fight, Bass also gained the ability to control Hub-Style. We had our butts handed to us before we finally stopped him. We next saw him when the Dark Power had combined the real world and the Cyber World. Bass had absorbed the power of Serenade, Lord of the Undernet, and Megaman and I were able to defeat him by sharing a double soul with Chaud and Protoman. That, too, was a very difficult battle, and it was after that, that Bass promised that he would be the one to bring us down."

"The wish for a perfect rival filled the gap that the betrayal of Scilab had left…" April murmured. She leaned back in the seat, staring at the ceiling; ideas swirling and taking form in her mind. But when that perfect rival is gone…he'll need a perfect partner that was meant to be with him from the beginning…I understand the 'why' now Grandpa…it's the 'how' I'm concerned with now…

"April, we're here." Chaud said. "Are you okay?"

She stood up next to him, her eyes still slightly unfocused as ideas kept coming together. "I'm alright. Just thinking…"

The train stopped and they got off, hurrying to reach the Silver Tower. When they got there, they ran up the stairs from the thirtieth floor up—the elevator was taking too long. They finally got up the level 50 and, each breathing hard, walked into the lab. An empty lab. On the screen right in front of them was a message from Dr. Hikari.

Went to lunch. I'll be back at 2. Dr. Hikari.

As one, the three looked at their watches, and moaned in disbelief. It was only one o' clock!

"Well…that sucks…" April said. She sighed and walked back into her office. "If Dr. Hikari needs me when he gets back, I'll be in my office." She walked in and slammed the door.

"You're scheming, I can tell." Nocturne said as she placed him back on the PET holder. "I hate to say it, but I told you that you would find out something useful."

"Shut it." April replied, opening a small pocket in her backpack and pulling out a disc. She inserted it in the computer next to her PET and sat down in her chair, rolling across to the big screen. Nocturne appeared in the corner, but a big window opened up, taking up most of the screen. Lines of text scrolled up, and April typed a command on her keyboard. Several lines were pulled away from the main group and were magnified. She kept typing and the lines fell apart, forming a different shape.

"This is her frame." April explained to Nocturne. "Once this is done, I'll put in her different programs, and she'll almost be complete."

"Almost?"

April rolled her eyes at the Navi standing in the corner of the screen. "You read Grandpa's directions. Before she can be fully compete, she needs 4 things, remember?"

"The Get-Ability Program, data from a female mind, data from her partner, and a name."

"Right! You were paying attention! I'm collecting data from myself using the data card installed in my eye. And the name comes last. But there are still two other vital parts. And that's where you come in. In order to re-construct the Get-Ability Program, we first need to see if there's any data about it stored away here at Scilab, since it was first created here. If that fails, we need to get the data from the one other source where it exists."

"From Bass?!"

"None other. We already need a short data strand from him anyways, as the data for the partner. While we're…you're getting that, all you have to do is find one little piece of data from this programming. From what Grandpa and Lan have told me, I believe this program is a great part of Bass's programming. It shouldn't be hard to find. All we need to do is find him, and get the data before he deletes you."

Nocturne slumped in the corner. "Thanks for the confidence booster."

"No problem." April said, still typing away. "Like I said, the hardest part will be finding him. After that, I have a special little program I've been working on just for you. Will you let me install it in you?"

Nocturne leaned against the edge of the screen, watching April pull out more lines of programming, and as the shape of a female Navi started to take place. He wondered what on Cyber Earth April could've created for him, and how useful it would be against someone as powerful as Bass. He shrugged. "I trust you April. Just tell me what to do."

April smiled and looked over at him, but she kept typing. "Great. Thanks. I just need to tweak a few things and it'll be done. Then we can test it…" she added with an evil laugh.

Nocturne shuddered a bit. He hated it when April laughed like that… "And who will be the poor guinea pig?"

"Megaman and Protoman…" she snickered. He cringed. "Boy, do I feel bad for them…"


HAHA!!! I feel bad for them too, but that's cuz I know what's gonna happen… muahahahahahahahaha….evil laughter…

I apologize for the badly written fight scene. That's my one weakness as a writer, and it makes me ANGRY!!! Rarh… fear me…

Music for this chapter!! 'It's My Life' – Bon Jovi; 'Knight of Fire' – Initial D; and 'Mr. Roboto' – Styx. (why am I telling you this? I don't know…)

I wish there really was a place called Burgers N' Noodles… I'd eat there all the time… mmmm….French fries…

Next time: April and Nocturne test their new program on a double soul of Megaman and Protoman! Chaos ensues! Wheeee!!!! You will laugh!

Oh, and if you want to read about Megaman and Bass' fights: the first one is in vols. 3-5, the second in vols. 6-7, and the double soul in vol. 11. The Hub-Style first appears in vol. 4. But I recommend you read all the books, not just these ones. You'll get sooooo confused…

Love me and review please.