Chapter 6 is finally up! I am so sorry this wasn't up sooner; as I'm sure many of you know, I was pushing to finish Troubles on White Day before Valentine's Day (not including the ending omake, which was done on the 15th) so all of my other stories kind of got put on the back burner. Now that Troubles on White Day is over, though, my other stories should start to resume their normal pace. I'd also like to apologize because it was supposed to be up earlier, but I had to go to the dentist, and a technician came over to fix my dad's computer... But I made a longer chapter to try to make up for it, and I'm very happy with how this one turned out. On that note, we'll get to the review replies (late as they may be).

WindGoddess Rune: Oh, maybe. I won't tell. ;) Isn't it annoying? You'd think the guy would learn after they broke it the first time. Thanks. :)

ultimashadow: Nah, he just didn't feel the collar until he stretched. Though being in Nene's place, he'll probably see some robots or Deathroy soon enough. Thank you. And I was just kidding when I said/wrote that.

Prince of Tennis' Shaman: Thanks; I'm feeling much better now. :) I hate medicine, I sleep a lot as it is, but I did everything I needed to so I would feel better. Go ahead and send it whenever you feel like; I think I mentioned this already, but I hadn't read your other two stories because I wasn't familiar enough with the series. But I'd still like to read what you wrote. :) Aw, thanks; there'll be plenty more of those things in this chapter. I don't usually correct other people, but with my own stuff, my sometimes-perfectionist nature tends to hit hard when it comes to grammar. Er... I didn't make any mistakes last chapter, did I? Or did you just mention it because of Jiro? Or just because you felt like mentioning it? Ah, either way. Sorry this took so long, but I think you're going to like this chapter. ;)

WindGoddess Rune: He's sturdy; he should be okay for at least a little while. Unfortunately, since Shu is basically the only one who knows about Bouquet and cares about what happens to her - except for her supposed friend - we won't be finding out what happened to her for a while. But I'll try to get to that point soon.

WindGoddess Rune: Thank you. :) Coincidentally, while I'm writing this, I'm actually about to go to sleep right now. *insert sweatdrop here*

WindGoddess Rune: Who knows? Even I'm not entirely sure yet. But knowing him, it can't be anything good. We'll have to hope that Shu can hang on long enough for the others to rescue him.

Okay, there are the replies. Again, sorry about the lateness. But after the disclaimer, we'll get to the long-awaited chapter.

Disclaimer: Do I have to keep putting this? Okay, okay... I don't own Blue Dragon.

Chapter 6: Gekihen (Upheaval)

Kluke and Marumaro weren't really able to move until much later, after the sun was high in the sky. At least, that's how long it took for the crowd to clear out.

"Maro think's someone stepped on Maro's foot." he held it up to his face for investigation.

Kluke, though, was too worried at the moment to consider any injuries. "Jiro, where are you?!"

"Kluke, Jiro probably got lost. He'll come back soon."

"What's to say he isn't hurt?" Kluke looked around frantically.

Marumaro sighed, exasperated. "If you're that worried, we'll just go and look for him." he started pulling her along.

"Marumaro, this city's huge!"

"That's why we have to start looking now."

"But- ah!" Kluke cried out as something barreled into her, knocking her to the ground. Sitting up, her eyes widened in surprise as she saw what had done this. "Jiro!"

"Kluke!" His voice was more panicked and urgent then it had been in a while, like that time back then... "We've got problems!"


Shu had tried several different ways to get off the collar, but hadn't had any luck at all. In a last resort, he'd thrown himself against the locked door and started yelling for someone to come get him out.

He called for someone for a long time, but received no answer. He sunk to the ground, holding his now injured shoulder. "How the heck did this happen? Everything had been going fine... If Bouquet hadn't-" He snapped upright as he realized that he still hadn't found her. What had happened? Did that weird flute player take her, too? Out of frustration he banged his head against the wall. "I have to figure out a way to get out of here. There must be something I can use..."


"What?!"

"That's what she said," he looked off in the direction he'd left the girl. "I'm sure she wasn't lying."

"But what are we gonna do?!" Marumaro hopped up and down, eager to get "equal footing" in the conversation.

"There's only one thing we can do: go to where Nene's hiding."

"How are we going to do that?! That thing-" Kluke stopped herself for a moment, thinking. "Where is that thing? We never went back to check."

Jiro shook his head. "We were too caught up in getting our Shadows back. But it hasn't been that long since we left; it's reasonable to say that it's still there or somewhere nearby."

"Why are we going after Nene anyway?" Marumaro asked.

"Whoever did this warped Shu away, which means they know magic. The only way that we know of to get magic is from Nene, so he must have given this person a part of his soul for whatever reason. Maybe our's weren't enough for him."

Marumaro put his hands on his hips. "You're presuming an awful lot, Jiro."

"And who's to say that this person is working for Nene?" Kluke added.

"I already thought of that. If they aren't working for Nene, that would probably mean they're fighting against him like us. But he would still probably know where and who they are."

"What, we're going to go up and ask him 'Oh, Nene, you wouldn't happen to know who else is attacking you besides us, would you'?"

"... It sounds awful when you say it like that. But, yeah, that's basically it."

"Jiro, I never thought I'd say this to you in my entire life, but that's a stupid idea."

"Well, what else are we supposed to do?!" he was angry, but his voice trembled. "All I know is that Shu is in danger, and we don't have time to chase around some person who can warp away at any second!" he calmed down a little. "I never said this was a good plan - it's just the fastest one."

Kluke swallowed, still a little stunned; Jiro was usually so calm, even in a crisis, so she hadn't expected him to yell. Still, he hadn't really yelled that loudly. She supposed that losing his cool was the real shock. "Okay, Jiro. We'll try it."

His eyes widened as he realized what he'd done. He yelled at Kluke... Of all people, he yelled at Kluke. "Oh, Kluke, I... I shouldn't have done that."

"No, it's okay. You're upset, I'm upset... And you didn't yell that loud, anyway."

"But..."

"Are you two done yet?" Marumaro angrily looked between the two of them.

"Oh, right," Jiro shook his head, as if he was ridding himself of a bad dream. "Well, another advantage of going there is that we can go through Nene's database."

Kluke furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "What's in his database?"

"Do you two remember how Nene used those screens on the robots?" He continued when they both nodded. "Well... This is just a theory, mind you... But I think he's using all of the Ancient machines to observe everything across the continent."

"What? Why would he do that?" Marumaro tilted his head.

"It's just... The way he's always ready for us, it's like he's been watching us. He always knows what to attack with, what to defend with. It's too many coincidences."

"I never thought about it like-"

"That's it!" Jiro yelled suddenly, cutting off Kluke. "If we could find some kind of Ancient machine, I might be able to rig it up so it would tell us where Nene is, kind of like the radar on the mechat."

"Really?" Kluke brightened; some good news at last.

"How would you do that?" And then she promptly deflated as Marumaro asked the question you never, ever ask Jiro.

"Well, at the back of the machine there should be a..." Both of them tuned him out as he delved into his explanation.


"Man, I hope this works..." Shu still didn't know why he found these coins all over the place, but he was grateful for it now. It took him a while to think of it, though the idea itself was a stretch, and it would be a little while before it worked. But it was better than just sitting on his hands, right?

The coin just barely fit in the narrow space between the door and the wall; he was basically hoping to hit the lock and have enough strength to break it. It probably wasn't the best idea, since if the lock broke the wrong way, he'd be locked inside. But the thought hadn't really crossed his mind. But it probably-

"Oh, shoot!" the words were out of his mouth before the coin had even finished slipping through the other side.

Shu groaned, leaning against the door. He was trapped in a room, in Nene's hideout if the collar was anything to go by (though if it was someone else, that would probably explain why he was trying it again). And now he was one coin poorer. Thinking about it, he guessed it didn't really matter, but it bugged him nonetheless.

And it didn't help that he was unceremoniously dropped to the floor as the door suddenly opened, and he found himself looking up into the mechanical face of Szabo.


"Jiro... How did you know there would be one of these monitors in the antique shop?" Kluke looked over his shoulder as he worked, though what it was that he was doing was beyond her.

"It seemed like the most obvious place," he said nonchalantly, taking out some parts. "To anyone else, this thing is just junk."

"What does-" Marumaro couldn't finish what he was saying, as Kluke had clamped her hand over his mouth.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Jiro!" Kluke replied, cheerfully, then turned to glare at Marumaro, whispering harshly, "Do you want him to go into another explanation?" She released him after he'd quickly shaken his head.

"Can one of you do me a favor and check the supplies to see if there's a spare Broken Eternal Engine? A Part of Eternal Engine would help, too."

"I think we have at least one of each... Here they are." she brought the two items and set them down next to him.

"Thanks."

"What do we need those for?" Kluke had to try very hard not to smack Marumaro.

Jiro looked over his shoulder with lidded eyes. "Do you want me to go into another explanation?" Without waiting for them to reply, he went back to his work.

Kluke and Marumaro looked at each other, then at Jiro, then back at each other again.

"Oh, and I'm going to need the Green Barrier Device..."


Since Szabo didn't really have a mouth, you could never tell if he was smiling or frowning. But if the sound of his voice was anything to go by, it seemed like right now he'd love to be grinning. "I see you're enjoying yourself down there."

Shu pushed himself up, rolling away and landing on his feet. He pointed accusingly at the robot. "What am I doing here, Szabo?!" They had defeated Szabo; why had Nene repaired him? "And what happened to the girl I was with?!"

"Oh, you were with a girl?" Szabo thoroughly enjoyed as the boy turned as white as a sheet. "Lord Nene will want to know all about this."

"You're not telling him anything!" What had he done? Bouquet had gotten away, otherwise Szabo would have known. Or was he just pretending not to know, so he could toy with him? Whatever it was, the goal remained clear - he had to find a way out of here.

"And how do you plan to stop me?" Szabo chuckled. "Without any magic to protect you, I could shoot your body full of bullets in a matter of seconds."

"I'd like to see you try." Shu talked absentmindedly, biting his lip, already trying to think of a way out of this. Szabo was still in the open doorway; there had to be a way to get out. Maybe, if he could get behind Szabo fast enough, he might be able to get to Szabo's operational panel. Shu was skilled with the mechat, but aside from metalworking (which also led to repairs), that's just about as far as his knowledge of machines went. But he did know enough to know how a robot worked, and if he could get to that panel, he would probably be able to paralyze Szabo for at least a few seconds...

"Don't push your luck, human. Lord Nene needs you alive, but he doesn't need your limbs."

"He doesn't need you, either, but you still seem to be alive." Yes, it would be enough time to escape. He just needed to figure out how to get close enough.

He couldn't grin, but he could narrow his eyes, and Szabo's eyes went dangerously low. "I won't warn you again."

"You don't need to." He briefly wondered if he'd pushed his luck, but this might be just what he needed; if Szabo attacked him in a blind rage, and he managed to get behind him, he might just be able to get behind him long enough to do what he needed.

Szabo readied his gun. "You're an annoying little pest, but in a minute, you'll be an annoying little pest without an arm."

Shu smirked. "Bring it."


"It worked!" Jiro punched in a few commands into the device, and both Kluke and Marumaro expected a laser to come blazing through the ceiling at any second. However, the only thing that happened was for the screen to turn on, displaying a dark green background with different colored dots scattered about.

Marumaro pointed at it. "It looks like the mechat radar."

"I already told you that it would. Besides- Huh?" Jiro leaned forward, squinting his eyes at the screen. "That doesn't seem right..."

"What is it?" Kluke looked at the screen, unable to tell what anything was.

"Can someone pass me the Blue Barrier Device?"

"Here." She was tempted to ask him why he needed it - or even the green one for that matter - but thought better of it and didn't.

A second or two later and he had hooked it up to both the Green Barrier Device and the monitor. "That's better."

"What was wrong?" Marumaro scratched his potted head.

"Wrong color configuration," he said simply. Taking in the stares he received, he added, "Don't look at me like that. It takes too long to explain. Now, let's see... We're here... And Nene is... here." he pointed to the yellow dot.

"Which is where exactly?" Kluke was starting to rethink learning about how all of this technology worked.

Jiro smirked. "Perfect. He's only moved a mile from where he was, if even that. We can get to him easy."

"So does that mean we can rescue Shu now?" Marumaro asked.

Jiro nodded. "Yeah," he stood. "Let's go, guys."


Szabo let loose with a string of harsh curses; he didn't remember much after the little "conversation", but he knew enough to know that the brat had gotten away.

He'd practically turned the room over, but it was a moot point - there was hardly anything in there to use for hiding.

So, he headed outside; if he hurried, maybe he would catch him. "As soon as Lord Nene is done with him, I'll kill him myself..." He headed down the corridor.

As soon as Szabo was gone, a figure landed fairly gracefully (and barefoot) onto the spot where the robot had been hovering; for all of his faults, Shu was still agile and acrobatic.

"Thought he'd never leave..." he mumbled to himself as he pulled his shoes out of his pockets, relieved that they were out and wishing that he'd put them in the front instead of the back. He pulled them on and headed in the opposite direction of Szabo.

He had no clue where to go; the layout was typical of Nene's haunts - at least, the ones he'd been inside. And it was likely to be another maze that he would spend hours trying to get out of. But maybe he'd get lucky and find something that would help him escape. He didn't know what that would be, but there had to be something here.

He wished Jiro was here; if you had him with you, all you really had to do was tear a hole in the wall, and the genius would have a navigation system up and running in seconds. Of course, Shu didn't know how to do this.

This way probably led to something awful - possibly Nene - but it couldn't be as bad as following Szabo. Especially not now that he was out for Shu's blood; if there was anything the robot hated, it was being shown up.

He didn't really know how long he walked - though it was enough to make his feet hurt - before he finally came to a door. Normally, he wouldn't have gone inside just any door. But normally, you didn't hear sniffling on the other side.

His thankfulness at the door being open quickly gave away to shock as he took in the sight. He didn't know how many of them there were - Twenty? Fifty? More? - but all across the floor were children.

He swiftly and quietly made his way over to the closest one. Upon getting closer, he could see that they'd been collared like him, and they had a similar device to the collar on their feet, attached by energy to the ground so they couldn't get away. He shook her shoulder. "Hey. Are you okay?"

The little girl looked up at him in surprise, but seeing the collar, figured that he was just another one of them and not someone who had come to rescue them. "That person in the white cloak took me away from my family..." she whimpered.

A nearby boy stuck his head up. "Me too. They played a flute and I got dizzy, and then the next thing I knew, I was here."

Shu looked around at them, still shocked. "Is that what happened to all of you?"

At the same time, there were "yes's" and sounds of agreement, nodding of heads.

"What is Nene thinking?" Shu asked himself. "Why does he have all these kids here?"

"It's nothing you need to worry about," Shu felt a chill go down his spine as he heard the voice, fear hitting him hard as he realized he had no way of protecting himself or the children from Chimera's power. "You'll all find out soon enough."

"Soon enough!" Once he'd finished mimicking, Deathroy cackled loud enough to echo throughout the room.

Whew! Finally done. :) Like I said earlier, I'm very happy with this chapter, especially towards the end. I'd had some writer's block at first, but even though it wasn't related at all, I found this extremely well-written Sonic the Hedgehog story and my writing just seemed to roll from there... So, review if you get the chance. Hopefully the next update won't take me quite so long. See you in a while. :)