The Lonely Dark Knight

Chapter 10 – Old Enemy Returned!?

A pink shot went through the body of a dark colored NetNavi, plugging him out. A blue figure pointed his buster at another group of dark colored NetNavis coming at his way before letting a few more shots and plugging them out one after another. More of them came, surrounding him as he reached the edge of the platform he was standing. He pointed his buster at the incoming group, but then lowered it as he fell to his knees, exhausted.

"There's… no end… to them…" The blue NetNavi said between his tired panting, "Netto-kun, chip… Do you still have more chips with you?"

"I only have a few left with me. A Sword, a Wide Sword, and Long Sword for the Program Advance, a Bamboo Sword, and… a Spreader Gun! I can use this!" The brunette operator took the Spreader Gun chip and put the others back into his chip holder, "Here it is, Rockman! Battle Chip, Spreader Gun! Slot in!"

Netto put the chip into the chip slot on his PET and Rockman's Rockbuster on his right arm turned into a blue barrel-like gun, "Spreader Gun!" Rockman aimed his gun above the group of NetNavi and let out a single shot, which broke into many shots showering the NetNavis below them and plugging them all out, clearing the whole area.

The gun turned back to his arm again as he sighed in relief, feeling that he had finally secured the entire airport's cyberspace from the rampaging NetNavis. In the real world, Netto also sighed in relief as he leaned against the information desk, "Finally! I thought the battle wasn't gonna end!" Netto looked at his PET screen to check on Rockman when he saw a moving shadow behind his NetNavi, "Rockman! Behind you!"

"What!?" Rockman quickly turned and jumped back, letting the shadow move from the edge of the platform and stopped behind his current position. The shadow stretched and formed a shape of a NetNavi taller than him with bat wings as his arms, "Y-You! But… it can't be…"

"Shademan!" Netto added, feeling his anger rising, "What do you want now? Do you still wish for the Darkloids' resurrection?"

"Seems like my form resembles another NetNavi with the name Shademan…" The dark colors of the shadow faded, revealing the vampire-like NetNavi's true colors, "But I am not the 'Shademan' the two of you know! I am, Chaos Shademan!"

The vampire-like NetNavi's body was gray in color, leaving his face, his claw-shaped hands and feet in light blue color. Chaos Shademan looked at Rockman with his red eyes and licked his upper lip as if a bat eyed its lunch prey. A pair of sharp fangs stuck out from his mouth was seen as he spread out his arms, which had turned into bat wings.

'He… he's not the same Shademan who led the Darkloids before…' Rockman took a step back as he swallowed, studying the gray NetNavi standing before him, 'Not just his colors… His aura is very different from Shademan!'

"Crush Noise!" A wave of sound was shot from between Chaos Shademan's arms and straight at Rockman, who wasn't completely aware of the attack and was pushed over the edge, leaving him hanging for life as his left hand was supporting his whole body on the edge of the platform, "This shall be the end of you, Rockman! Then our Lord will be pleased with your deletion!"

Chaos Shademan raised his right arm and was ready to hit Rockman off his grip on the platform's edge, not noticing that another NetNavi was in the same area nearby the portal heading to the next area, "Sonic Boom!"

"Argh!" The flying slash had knocked Chaos Shademan a bit to the side, making him miss Rockman's arm.

Rockman quickly took the opening and jumped up onto the platform, but not missing the red NetNavi approaching the scene, "Blues!"

"If Blues' here, then that means…" Netto turned away from his PET screen and outside through the glass, spotting his white and black-haired rival, "Enzan!"

"Blues! It's a good thing that you're here!" Rockman approached his rival, "But aren't you and Enzan supposed to be in Amerope right now?"

"Enzan-sama and I have been called here to help with the situation here in Japan. It seems like the condition here is worse than in Amerope or other countries, as we had been informed," Blues replied before turning towards the gray NetNavis, who was slowly getting up, "Not to mention there is a Plutonian commander here…"

"A Plutonian commander…?" Rockman looked at his rival in confusion before he suddenly turned to Chaos Shademan as he stood up, giving them death glares before spreading his wings wide, "Blues! Here he comes!"

Chaos Shademan flew straight towards the two NetNavis, who jumped to opposite directions to dodge. As Rockman landed, he turned his right arm into his default Rockbuster and began shooting at him, only to miss as Chaos Shademan flew away from the shots. As Chaos Shademan dodged the Rockbuster's shots, Blues ran behind Chaos Shademan and managed to slash one of his wings and made him lose his balance. Chaos Shademan's falling opened a chance for Rockman to land a charged shot on him, which covered the area around Chaos Shademan with smokescreen.

"Ugh… I am not… I am not done yet!" Chaos Shademan's voice echoed throughout the area before he suddenly appeared right in front of Blues, his right arm raised, "BEGONE!"

"Battle Chip, Area Steal! Slot in!" Before his arm dived to slash him with his claws, Blues had disappeared in a flash and reappeared a little farther behind him, "Battle Chip, Wide Sword, Fumikomizan! Double slot-in!"

A Wide Sword replaced Blues' right arm before he disappeared and reappeared right in front of Chaos Shademan, slashing him across his chest before jumping back. Chaos Shademan clutched on his chest as a stream of data slowly poured out from his wound. He glared angrily at Blues, but then distracted as Rockman had shot him with his Rockbuster. In anger, Chaos Shademan forced himself to fly towards him.

"Battle Chip, Bamboo Sword! Slot in!" Netto slotted the chip in and Rockman's Rockbuster turned into a green sword.

Rockman held the sword in front of him and blocked Chaos Shademan's incoming arm before he could slash him. With enough effort, Rockman pushed Chaos Shademan's arm off his sword, giving him the opening for him to land a big cut on the gray NetNavi's gut with his Bamboo Sword and let more data stream poured out from the gray NetNavi.

"Tch… You two may be strong… but you do not… stand a chance… against Plutonian!" Chaos Shademan finally said before he gave them more death glares and plugged out.

"He got away…" Blues looked at the direction where Chaos Shademan used to be and curled his hands into fists.