Chapter 7: Malice
12:49 PM (Japan Time), Monday August the 9th…
"… Area 4… All empty… Can you feel anything, Shadow Man?"
"No… Nothing."
"Good. Then they must be either in the Graveyard or the other areas occupied by them…"
"Obviously…"
"We'll have to swap members!"
The four Navis made it through Nebula Hole Area 4 unharmed and reached Nebula Hole Area 5: Search Man nodded and left so that Blues and Knight Man could come back Rock Man and Meddy.
"We heard the talk. It'd seem this is more complicated than what we'd initially thought." Blues told them.
"Foul devices are at work…" Knight Man muttered.
"Hyururu~! Ya won't get past here!" Blizzard Man called out.
"You damned mice shall be grinded into spatial dust!" Cosmo Man claimed with his usual smug smile.
"Where is the "Witch - Queen"?" Rock Man demanded.
"Hmpf… No need to know! Since you damned mice will soon be dead and your bones cursed thrice." Cosmo Man smugly replied.
"He's starting to sound like a fantasy setting guy." Pride muttered with a hint of annoyance.
"I find your lack of faith disturbing." He taunted.
"Faith on what?"
"On the "Dark Side of the Force". Obviously enough."
"Come on… Now they're quoting Darth Vader?" Netto grumbled.
"Hmpf…"
"Whatever. We'll need your "Long Sword" and Meddy's "Twin Liberation" to extend the range of our "Liberate" and fetch the "Barrier Keys" hidden behind the rows of "Barrier Panels"… We'll defeat Blizzard Man along the way and retrieve the last "Barrier Key"… We must prioritize the "Barrier Key" retrieval or we won't be able to get close to the "Dark Holes" in order to "Liberate" them…" Blues exposed the strategy.
"Alright." The other members acknowledged.
"Well then… Why don't I treat you to some fine vocabulary by Captain Haddock?" Cosmo Man taunted.
"Heck. He's picked the habit of his old bosses."
"Indeed… Do you have coke onboard the ship, mice?"
"Coke?" Netto frowned.
"Coke coal?" Enzan wondered.
"I thought no-one used coke coal anymore. Why would you carry it on a ship if it's worthless?" Laika frowned.
"Then you're not carrying anything? Hah, hah, hah… But you mice don't realize it… There is coke onboard the ship."
"Smuggling?" Laika guessed.
"Well. More or less… Hmmm… Yes… Good muscles… Fine, fine… And the teeth? Open it up, lad… Hmmm… Not bad… Pretty sane teeth…"
"I've lost track of what you mean." Enzan grumbled.
"Hey! You! Are you done acting the jockey? This man is no slave, no horse and no…!"
"That sailor dialect gotta be Captain Haddock…" Nenji guessed.
"Chut! Don't speak that word! You know pretty well that you must say "coke" instead…" Cosmo Man came up with that exaggerated foreign accent again.
"But… Then "coke" is a codename for something else…?" Pride wondered aloud.
"…"Coke"! Blistering barnacles! Tintin was right: there are still slavers around here! And you're the one doing the trading! You human flesh smuggler jerk! You deserve being hung from the mizzenmast's main yard by me!"
"That sounds like a 17th century sailing ship punishment…" Laika sounded surprised, even.
"Attention!"
"Attention… What? The smuggler tried to attack them?" Knight Man tried to guess.
"… "Barrier Key 1" retrieved… How is it over there, Shadow Man?" Rock Man called out.
"Nin! "Barrier Key 2" retrieved too… We've wasted two "Phases" already to get here but we can now go tackle the "Dark Holes"…"
"You cut-throat jerk! You're lucky that I don't make you swallow up your beard! But whatever! Flee, viper! And don't cross paths with me ever again! Flee, filibuster! Out of my sight, you gallows-bird!"
"Gallows-bird? What's gallows?" Netto asked.
"I think it's better for you not to know." Enzan replied.
"Guess so." Rock Man muttered.
"Hyrururu~! Lemme shine a bit too, Cosmo Man! Ahem, ahem! You monkey! You carpet-merchant! You paranoid! You sequel of the smallpox! You cannibal!" Blizzard Man laughed.
"Lovely. The skiing jerk joins the party!" Nenji grumbled.
"You platypus! You drunkard! Your foreign irregular! You cannibal! You monkey! You schizophrenic! Hum… You prankster!"
"No use, Captain. They've gotten pretty far by now."
"Huh? Ah! I see. Haddock and Tintin are aboard a ship and the others came in a boat or something similar which is fleeing…" Laika realized on that moment.
"… Good! Our two-front strategy was worth it: we've freed two "Dark Holes" and we can now tackle that one slightly ahead of these two: then we bring war to Blizzard Man and the other two "Dark Holes"…" Blues exposed their next move.
"… Ah! That's what you think, my lad… Well then! I haven't finished telling what I think of them!"
"So how is he going to tell them? Via radio?" Dark Miyabi asked with some skepticism.
"… Where are you going to?"
"To the bridge."
"The command bridge, you mean to say?" Nenji guessed.
"You pirate! You ectoplasm! You colocynth! You rapacious! You death-defying! You Ostrogothic! You vandal!"
"… I think that they really are pretty far by now…"
"Yea! But it served them well… To those slavers!"
"Hyururu~! My turn to shine! Quick, quick! Let's unlock this damned machine! PCKRA~PRVT! TRRKHRA~H! You damned bazaar-like stuff of stuff! Take this! OUWA~H!" Blizzard Man laughed.
"He tried to unlock a blocked mechanism, got hit and then tried to hit it in rage only to feel even further pain?" Shadow Man chuckled.
"Take this! You dirty slot machine! Take this!"
"Heh, heh, heh. Amusing." Shadow Man chuckled.
"Good! 3 "Dark Holes" have fallen… Blizzard Man! You lowlife's turn has come!" Blues announced.
"Hyururu~! Come! I'll turn ya into ice!" He laughed.
"Ice and whatever. You can't hope to come even to Freeze Man's level of power!" Rock Man taunted.
"Wha~t? Damn you!" He cursed.
"The way's clear! Let's go!" Blues rallied.
"I'll go! The enemy has 1600 HP… But I can clear it on 3 Turns! Blizzard Man! Get ready!" Rock Man announced.
"Grah! I'll bury ya under a snowy grave!"
"Come! Battle Operation, Set!"
"In!"
"Hyururu~! Here I come~!"
Blizzard Man immediately began to move around the field and he began to kick snow balls towards Rock Man which he dodged: he grinned and Blizzard Man gasped.
"Program Advance! Elec Pulse 1, 2, 3! Slot In! Destroy Pulse!"
"Eat this!"
"Hyuwawawa~h!" He yelped.
"Its base power is 400 HP: you're weak to Elec-Type Viruses so you suffer double that amount plus paralyzing and HP bug!"
"Wha! Damn you! Snow Rolling!"
Blizzard Man compacted into a ball of snow and rolled towards Rock Man who dodged yet he caused for some mounds of snow to drop around the field and limit his movements.
"Let's finish it now! Air Shot! Counter Hit! Program Advance! Sword, Wide Sword, Long Sword! Slot In! Dream Sword!"
"Go back to Alaska~!" Rock Man yelled as he formed the "Dream Sword" and charged towards Blizzard Man.
"Hyuwawawa~h! IMPOSSIBLE~! MISTRESS!" He yelped.
"You lowlife are next!" Blues told Cosmo Man.
"Hmpf! Cosmo Planet!"
"Uck! That hurt…!" Blues growled.
"Nin! "Barrier Key 1" retrieved… Let's go for the last two "Dark Holes" and we can defeat that golden man." Shadow Man announced.
"Hmpf… Hello, Colonel Ahmed? Me, Mull Pacha, of Sheik Bab El Ehr's HQ… Order your "mosquitoes" to take off immediately… Hello? Yes. Mission: strike down a group of riders which have escaped Wadesdah headed for the Jabal… Hello? Get it? Good… Armored cars are also in route… Hello? Yes, it is partisans of Ben Kalish Ezab… Yes, strike down…"
"A phone call?" Laika wondered.
"And that's somewhere in the Middle East given the names." Barrel deduced next.
"… There! Fire!"
"… Oh! Listen! They're shooting at something in the desert!"
"Our own planes! They're crazy!"
"You're not gonna tell me the planes actually bombed the armored cars thinking it was their target…" Enzan looked skeptical.
"Hello! Me, Black Panther… First mission accomplished: both armored cars have gone up in flames…"
"… Hello! Yes… Ah! Mission successful… Perfect! Both armored cars have been destroyed? Congratulations, Colonel Ahem! Your pilots are real aces! The armored cars… WHAT?" He began to sound amused but then let out a yelp of shock.
"Oho. The boss is catching up." Shadow Man chuckled.
"Quick! Connect me to Colonel Ahmed… Ah! It's you… Eh… I must've misunderstood. You haven't told me that both armored cars…" He nervously told the other person.
"…have been destroyed! Well. Just like you ordered. I've already congratulated the pilots in your behalf… Excuse me?" A cheery voice answered.
"Say what? Did I order that to you? Triple imbecile! The only thing you had to strike down was the riders! Council of war…! Martial court…! Stand trial…! Degradation…!" He hissed as menaces.
"It'd seem Colonel Ahmed got himself into a pretty tight spot. Speaking of spots, both remaining "Dark Holes" are gone…" Shadow Man chuckled and shrugged.
"Good! Rock Man! Tackle the guy!" Blues commanded.
"Roger!"
"So you've come to try again." Cosmo Man taunted.
"You sound like I'd lost last time around." Rock Man grumbled.
"Who knows?" He taunted next.
"Whatever. Bring it on, Cosmo Man!"
"Hmpf! I'll turn you lowlife into spatial dust!"
"Coming, Netto – kun!"
"OK! Battle Operation, Set!"
"In!"
"Cosmo Ring!"
"Huh! Fast…!" Rock Man gasped.
"Total HP: 1500… Hmmm… Yoyo, Triple Slot In! Program Advance! Yoyo Great! Fire!" Netto grinned.
"Cosmo Gate!"
Rock Man ignored the raining meteors and hit Cosmo Man 6 times with the Program Advance: he growled and stepped back while Rock Man dodged the meteors.
"Come! Cosmo Man!" He taunted.
"Hmpf! Cosmo Buster!"
The three gigantic planetoids with their rings came up and Rock Man was able to destroy two of them but got hit by the third: yet he suddenly vanished in a cloud of smoke and the kawarimi doll was left on his place: Cosmo Man didn't look impressed and spotted Rock Man high in the air who threw a shuriken at him.
"Hmpf… A mere attack of 100 HP won't…!"
But Rock Man didn't stop there and kept on shooting shuriken at Cosmo Man thus stopping him from moving.
"You lowlife…! Bodyguard Program Advance…!"
"Yeah! I'll shoot 10 shuriken in a row! And since I'd deduced 600 HP from you before you'll be defeated when the 9th one rains down! I came prepared! Go back to your intangible world and never come out again, "Darkloids"!"
"Like when the Valar finally overthrew Melkor and chained him in the Void forever!" Princess Pride exclaimed.
"So that's why he wasn't around by the trilogy's time?" Netto asked while looking up.
"Correct. He'd been gone for over 6000 years. Sauron was a lesser deity compared to Melkor but powerful enough thanks to his "One Ring" which is the central axis of the Lord of the Rings…"
"Good! These areas are free again." Blues sighed in relief.
"Let's advance into the core section. But let me warn you: your own "Dark" reflections are lurking there. And if they're not defeated then we can't investigate the central section where the "Lord of Chaos" had its abode… Something tells me that "Witch - Queen of Angmar" has set her throne there." Rock Man warned them.
"We know."
"Meijin – sama, Meijin – sama. A visitor is waiting on the 4th conference room. Please come immediately."
"Visitor for me? Weird. Dunno who it could be… Oh wait. Could be a fan of me or another… If they want a sign then no problem… We've restored power to the Reverse Internet anyway." Meijin muttered.
"Tonight, my Program – kun brethren… The revolution!"
"Shut up, Frank."
"What was that?" Enzan wondered.
"Some prank left behind by those two?" Laika suggested.
"Could be, yeah… I thought Programs didn't have names and I find it odd that they should use a foreign name…" He muttered.
"Smaug the Dragon will come forth from the halls of Erebor the Lonely Mountain and burn it all!"
"The dragon in the "The Hobbit"?" Pride wondered.
"Shut up, Frank."
"Raid On the City, Knock it off, Evil Tusks!" The Program – kun exclaimed in English and emphasizing some letters.
"What's that supposed to be? A movie tag-line?" Netto wondered.
"Dunno." Nenji scratched the back of his head.
"R! O! C! K! E! T!" The Program – kun chanted.
"R – O – C – K – E – T?" Everyone wondered.
"ROCKET! ROKKETO DAN!"
"Rocket Gang? From Pocket Monsters Fire Red Leaf Green? Is that supposed to be their tag-line?" Netto wondered.
"Hmmm… It'd seem that's on the popular manga adaptation named Pocket Monsters Special… From what I can find that's supposed to be the origin of the name "Rocket"…" Rock Man reported.
"Well! That sounds cool!" Netto grinned.
"Cosmo Man. How are…? Damn. Stronger than I thought!"
"So! You've come back, "Witch - Queen of Angmar"!" Rock Man challenged by looking upwards and spotting her cloaked figure.
"Che! I won't let you get past this spot! Rise, "Hatred Door"!"
"No big deal! Healing Pulse!"
"Che! Forgot about you, woman… I got carried away when taking care of a loose end and it'd seem I need to bring down some punishment into you too to make sure you don't get in MY way." She scoffed.
"Come on. Admit it already. You're trying to seduce Rock Man and come up with some ploy in which you turn him into your servant."
"I don't need to do such idiotic things! Regarding Rock Man I'll find out that guy's weakness and totally erase him from this world! Forever! My word!" She cursed.
"Then maybe you should've tried to do this when I was trapped inside of Proto for months." Rock Man taunted.
"Che! I wasn't around here yet! I was travelling! But who cares! I'll annihilate all of you lowlifes sooner or later… You may have won this territory, but we hold the WWW Area and the Underground! And also Black Earth, the Graveyard and the Immortal Area plus all of Saiba City's Reverse Internet! I've got plenty of servants to spare! And I can always bring them to life again! Countless times! An unending campaign! Such is my desire! That you will be filled with despair and abandon all hope thus destroying your own selves!" She exclaimed in a rush.
"Sorry. But we won't let that happen in our watch! We "Darkloid Suppression Unit Team of Colonel" won't give up!"
Rock Man and the others aimed their weapons at her and she let out a terrific echoing shriek before she fled into the inner area.
"After her!" Rock Man rallied.