Chapter 10: Factory
18:18 PM (Japan Time), Tuesday August the 31st…
"… I see. So he got away with the data on the fusion reactor located in the repulsive Underground City… I should really speed up the dismantling of that place if I want to cleanse it from the "ghosts" roaming there. The "ghosts" of those who suffered at the hands of those criminals…"
"Calm down, Boss… It's very possible that our guy is headed for the factories in SS3 to try to figure a method to speed up P – series robots construction…"
"Yeah. And I guess he's gonna show up any moment now."
"Subaru and Misora found out that Tabuu has designed some kind of barriers for resurrected "Darkloids" which counter any attack but end up breaking if hit repeatedly with Breaker attacks…"
"Good!"
"But the guy claimed he'd quadruple their resistance, too."
"Crap."
Lartes and Vadous were talking inside of the command bridge and Vadous looked somewhat unpleased at the news.
"Can't be helped… I should try to focus on digging out the bloody schematics, too! I dunno where I stored them. I really should've set up a system of folders organized by year and month…!" Vadous cursed.
"We are not perfect, Boss…" Lartes reminded him.
"I knew that, but sometimes…" He scratched the back of his head.
"Don't try to rush it all." Lartes advised.
"Yeah, yeah… Where are Subaru and Misora, though?"
"In Observation Deck #04… They're resuming the talk I interrupted."
"Ah. Fine." Vadous smiled.
18:23 PM (Japan Time)…
"… So, like we were saying before… Do you think Luna – chan has a crush on you, Subaru – kun?"
"Iinchou? She always claims I don't interest her and that she only cares about "Rock Man – sama" yet I know she does worry about us. But I wouldn't describe that as a "crush"… I'd rather say admiration, Misora – chan…"
"Hmmm… Yeah. Guess admiration fits better."
Subaru and Misora were resuming their earlier talk as they looked out at the planet beneath them: War Rock was swinging the air in silence while Harp looked amused.
"It's not like I'm jealous, Subaru – kun. We're all friends and we share a Brother Band, don't we?" Misora reminded him.
"Yeah… I still feel silly for what I did after the Gemini Spark incident and how you got into danger trying to help War Rock…" He admitted with a sigh.
"Don't worry. I was also acting in a risky manner back when Empty was using me to find the Mu Continent." She patted his back.
"Ah… Yeah… We're not perfect, yeah. We've all made some mistakes from time to time, too…" Subaru formed a weak smile.
"And if that Tabuu guy thinks he can get away with making me sweat then he's gonna regret it dearly." She giggled.
"Huh! Sure, sure…" Subaru looked slightly nervous.
"By the way… Are you looking forward to starting middle school?"
"Of course! I'm sure I'll do just fine." Subaru smiled.
"Good! And whatever happens, I'm not quitting my contract with Okudama Studios. Take that, ugly competency!"
Subaru let out weak laughter while Misora made a challenging gesture…
18:33 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Pom, pom, porom… Let's see… Yessir! This place is the remains of the half-dismantled P – series production factory. Heh, heh, heh. And I'll make sure to study it to make sure I can speed up my own factory's production ratio… Catch me if you can, gentlemen! My new envoys are waiting to challenge you…"
Tabuu showed up inside of a building which was missing the ceiling and was exposed to a downpour: all equipment inside had rusted and had long become dysfunctional: some half-assembled P – series robots parts could be seen standing in a row next to a half-built carrier ship and fighter ships pending construction.
"My, my! Construction was halted in a very rushed and sudden manner: there are five factories on this planet and I know three of them are totally dismantled, this one is 25% dismantled while the fifth one is 90% dismantled… I came just in time to find this. But aibou has surely deployed a system to check if I'm roaming around… Well then… What are ya waiting for, Vadous? Come at me. You and your beloved collaborators… Heh, heh, heh…" He muttered with obvious amusement.
"Warning. Warning. Intruder detected. Warning. Warning. Intruder detected." An auto-voice rang out.
"Hmmm?"
He turned around to see a Police Wizard facing him: Tabuu chuckled and drew a golden-colored sword over his right hand which he used to slice the Wizard in half.
"Is that all? Oh. Wait. This guy was security! Which means that… Those two will be coming for me… Well then… Let's give them though adversaries, shall we?" He amusedly muttered.
He headed inside of the factory building and waited until he spotted the purple gateway opening: Rock Man and Harp Note rushed out and began to look around.
"Now! Come out, you two!"
"… Intruders detected. Unit Gravity Man's orders state: "immediate disposal of intruders"…"
"Hmpf. Save the machine talk. Flash Man – sama can do it alone."
"More "Darkloids"…!" Rock Man cursed.
"Che!" Harp Note cursed.
"And now…" Tabuu muttered.
He snapped his fingers: yellow circles opened on the ground to make those cylinders filled with circuitry boards come out in different heights and angles: they ignited and formed a "Dimensional Area" which sealed the factory off.
"These "Dimensional Converters" sure are useful to keep visitors away while you're busy… Heh, heh, heh."
"Gravity Drive."
"Neon Light!"
"Gua~h!"
"Yikes!"
Gravity Man didn't move from his position yet he was able to form a gravitational shaft which glued Rock Man to the ground: he then lifted his arms and made him crash with the "ceiling" of the shaft: he aimed the arms downwards to make him meet the ground.
"Welcome to my gravitational Hell."
Flash Man pressed his right hand into the ground and created a small dome of yellowish electricity which travelled across the ground: Harp Note dodged it just in time.
"H-Harp… Note…! Give me a… hand… please…!" Rock Man called out between groans.
"You lowlife's opponent is me! Neon Light! Neon Light! Neon Light! Neon Light! Mwah, hah, hah, ha~h!"
"Che! Holy Panel, Super Barrier!"
Harp Note had to shield herself from the volley of Neon Lights while Rock Man was struggling to break free of the "gravitational Hell": he cursed and tried using his buster, but all shots bounced off the walls and had null effect: Gravity Man kept on tossing him up and down.
"C-crap…! Someone…! Blood! Gimme a hand!"
"Useless." Gravity Man proclaimed.
"Yeah? I wonder about that!"
BLAM!
"Gu… Ga… Gah… Guh…!"
"Saved…!"
"Why, you~!"
Blood Shadow had showed up behind Gravity Man and shot his shotgun at zero – range thus inflicting damage and cancelling the "gravitational Hell" where Rock Man had been trapped at.
"Hmmm… A bit unfair… Let's add one more to the roster. This one should do…" Tabuu chuckled under his breath.
"Hah! Morons. Drill Man – sama will do it!"
"Reinforcements…! Bothersome Tabuu…!" Blood Shadow cursed.
"Why, you…! Delete! Delete! Delete!" Gravity Man intoned.
"Che. I'll handle this robot! Rock Man! Try to handle that drill!"
"Yeah! Leave it up to me: I remember this guy's moves!"
"Boast while you can! Triple Drill!"
Drill Man compacted into a two-end-drill and then jumped into the air while summoning another two small drills to accompany him: they dived towards Rock Man who was trying to dodge them and he managed to hit Drill Man's exposed body with the Sword Fighter X Battle Card.
"Gruh!"
It was followed by the Break Saber X Battle Card: Drill Man growled something and drove into the concrete ground.
"Tunnel Crusher!"
He suddenly emerged from beneath Rock Man and plunged his drill into his back: Rock Man didn't yell and merely jumped towards the ground while gripping Drill Man's right arm with his left hand so as to drive the Drill Arm X Battle Card into him.
"Gua~h! You lowlife~!"
"Cheap." Rock Man grinned.
"DIE~!"
"Nope. Giga Card, Gorgon Eye!"
Ophiucus Queen showed up on the field and shot a continuous laser at Drill Man's exposed chest thus piercing through him and making him explode while roaring.
"One down!"
"Ugh… Guh… Gah… D-delete… Delete…!"
"Shut up. Light of Saint!"
Blood Shadow had given Gravity Man quite a fight as evidenced by his multiple wounds: Queen Virgo descended into the field and projected her rotating spears of light which hit Gravity Man 8 times in a row before deleting him with a bang.
"C-crap… Neon… Light!"
"Dragon Sky GX!"
Dragon Sky, the AM Sage, appeared on the field and formed a tornado made up of countless green leaves: its power was more than enough to destroy Flash Man: the group sighed in relief and stretched before getting their bearings.
"Good! All that's left is getting inside of that." Rock Man calmly muttered yet he was still tense.
"Sadly… While you guys were playing around with my pawns… I already got all the info I desired." Tabuu let out as he flew out of the factory building and shrugged.
"Why are you always stalling for time when you know we can't beat that armor yet?" Blood Shadow demanded.
"Well… You see… It's not fun to be overwhelmingly powerful. I'd desire to have a more intense battle in which you can actually harm me. That'd be way fairer, don't you think so? Heh, heh, heh. I'm a genius, or so they all say…" Tabuu teased.
"Hmpf. Maybe. But I don't like men who make girls sweat. So don't be surprised if I go all out on you." Harp Note signaled him with her right hand's middle finger.
"My, my… Bring it on." Tabuu challenged.
"Hah! I'm not silly enough to fall for that." Harp Note replied as she lowered the right arm and made it lean against the right side of her body's torso.
"Hmmm… That pose looks ideal for a poster." He teased.
"You pervert!" She snapped at him.
"My, my. That's some language."
"Come here!" She growled.
"Sadly, Ms. Lioness, other stuff recalls my attention. Maybe you'll meet me in a rather freezing spot next time around? Beware of the summer flu and of the Saboteur Tribe. Bye!"
He deactivated the "Dimensional Area" and flew upwards before vanishing out of sight while his laughter echoed around the artificial island's surface.
"That pervert…! He'll pay for that!"
"Sure, sure." Rock Man and Blood Shadow muttered.
"Did ya say something?" She suddenly asked.
"No, no!"
"Ya act like twins, even." She grinned.
"Can't be helped. I was supposed to act like I was him!" Blood Shadow defended himself.
"And he did a rather convincing acting, too." Rock Man added with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Whatever. Let's go back. I feel tired." She shrugged.
"Hai~…" Both muttered.
"Now, now… Hibiki. Don't take out your frustration on them because they're not to blame for that." Vadous told her over the radio.
"I know. But I sometimes feel like I should."
"That won't do. Maria began like that."
"E~H? That tyrant began like that? Taking out frustration on people she found annoying?" She gasped.
"Yeah. Envy, lust, frustration, hunger for power… They can make anyone become a tyrant. History has taught us this. So be careful about what you think of the world, Hibiki. Don't make the same mistakes the previous generation did. Learn from them. And move on forward. That's what humanity does with each passing generation."
"… Alright. I understand. I'm sorry. I'll think it again." She formed a weak smile.
Rock Man and Blood Shadow exchanged a glare before Rock Man brought a hand to his chin.
Huh… Well then… A cold place, he meant to say, then? Where? Siberia? The North Pole? Antarctica? Or Alaska? Dunno…! Where is Tabuu headed to? And what is his aim? We lack enough info!
"Brad Shad! Got some news for ya." Sigma contacted.
"What now."
"Someone sent you a proposal ring!"
"… Very funny." He wasn't impressed.
"Oh?" Harp Note looked interested.
"It's a troll, Misora – chan…!" Rock Man whispered.
"Oh. Say that earlier." She sighed in disappointment.
"Pororon! This isn't a TV drama!" Harp sighed.
"Oh man." War Rock sighed in disappointment, too.
"Stop bullying me if you may!" Blood Shadow complained.
"Sigma! What have you done now? Huh?" Lartes questioned.
"Huh! Eh… Nothing, just…"
"Making fun of me, sir."
"I knew it. When will you do something productive?"
"R-roger, sir! I'll go inspect the logs!"
"NOW!"
"R-roger, sir!"
"About time." Rock Man muttered.
"Lupin the 3rd is about to jump into the skies with a lil diamond courtesy of Blofeld! James Bond VS Lupin the 3rd! Only in theaters!" Tabuu's voice suddenly rang out.
"Oh come on." Vadous groaned.
"Kaitou Kid is coming to steal the lady's heart! He's already forwarded his advance notice to Senior Advisor Suzuki!"
"Who? A pervert?" Harp Note complained.
"A daring gentleman thief!"
"Got no interest."
"Maybe you'd like to research about the "Phantom Lady", the mysterious 20-faced lady thief?"
"Hmmm… It could be an idea for the next production… The scriptwriters seem to be stuck…" Harp Note rubbed her chin and looked up: she obviously had entered another trail of thought and wasn't paying attention to the surroundings.
"Ah! That reminds me. Hoshikawa! Beware. He might steal the crown jewel you hide in your desk's drawer."
"Crown jewel? Me? Stop trolling us, Tabuu!"
"Tabby~! I'm going to turn ya into a mess!"
"… Will you quit it with the nicknames?" He sighed.
"Hah! That's ya weak point! Tabby – chan!"
"I'm a man! Not a girl!" He complained next.
"There are guys who can pretend to be gals! It's named Kazuji!"
"Kabuki!" Blood Shadow corrected.
"Ah! That was the name? Man. I always mix them up."
"Sheesh. That's unrelated! Kabuki is kabuki! I am who I am!" Tabuu protested with building indignation.
"The dragon and the tiger will dizzy ya~!"
"Sheesh. My mood's gone. This must be nature's vengeance, even. I need something to get back into the mood."
"Such as beating your wings to a pulp?" War Rock laughed.
"How do I do THAT to begin with? Youth nowadays! SHEESH!"
Sheesh. I gotta agree with the guy: you overdo it, Rock! Oh boy.