Mega Man Neo
Chapter 13 - Relaxing in Cassio Town
Five days...
Rokku, Mega Man and Shade had traveled together for five days. It seemed like they were traveling mindlessly without a set location. However, Mega Man has attempted using the Comm. Link to contact Jessie or General Payne, but the frequency was screwy; Possibly due to the aftermath of their fight with the Hittite Hottide DX (and even Bass Kai). For the moment, all they could do was travel until they have leads on the next Model W or anything else regarding Maverick Activity.
But of course, given the state of the world, traveling wasn't completely peaceful. As everyone knew, the world was still in the process of restoring other continents such as Australia and Antarctica. The only continents "restored" are North & South America (commonly known as just America), Europe and Asia. Mavericks are blocking the humans path to restoring other lands and those lands are becoming more territorial to the Mavericks unfortunately. It takes a lot of effort for the humans to regain their rightful continents/land.
Due to being out in the open, Mega Man Neo and Shade had to fight wild Mavericks that got in their way. After all, they were traveling through the Outlands to get to the Innerpeace areas. However, there were two times where they were forced to sleep outside because they were unable to reach an Innerpeace area in time. It was a very risky move, but they made sure to watch each other's backs until they were ready to get moving again. Their times in Innerpeace areas were their chance to get tons of rest and ease up.
~JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven - Part 5: Naples Station~
Presently, the trio needed to seek shelter as it was getting dark out. Fortunately for them, they come across Cassio Town, another Innerpeace area.
Cassio Town, named after the constellation Cassiopeia, the Queen, is one of the oldest locations in Europe, right beside Tera City. It is the smallest of the old locations but it still holds importance. The group has traversed to a few Innerpeace areas; but unlike previous ones, this particular one was bigger, meaning there had to be a lot of important locations in there. Still, it was a town rather than a city so it wasn't that big. It was big enough to possibly hold primary locations for our group.
Rokku placed his fists on his hips with a satisfied smile. "Whew! Finally, we've reached a major city! Instead of staying in random homes (though the people were really nice about our temporary stay!), we can actually stay at a hotel~!"
The group head to the entryway to the city; Rokku using his ID card (and using one out of two guest slots for Mega) and Shade using her own to gain access into Cassio Town. Once they got inside, they noticed it was kind of busy, much like Rokku's hometown, Luna City and Neo Giga City. However, it also had the quietness of Tera City.
"Well, now that we have gained access to this area, we should look for a hotel and rest." Shade suggested.
Rokku turned to Shade and nodded. "Yeah, I guess. But first, we should eat!"
"That would be nice!" Mega said, holding onto Cassio Town's map and examining it. "There's a buffet nearby and it'd be cool to eat some high quality food instead of peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, carrots, and such."
Mega suddenly panicked as he stared at his male companion with unease. "N-No offense Rokku! I know you can't bring Five Star Meals like that!"
Rokku just waved to his buddy, chuckling. "Hehe, it's cool! I'm not upset! Maybe while we're here, I can go buy tons of bento boxes for travel~! Oooohhhh... I can imagine the wonderful taste of those bento boxes... Having those for breakfast, lunch and dinner each day~~~"
Shade noticed Rokku comically drooling at the thought of bento boxes. She truly liked this side of Rokku. It showed his innocence and lovable personality. It was quite difficult to forget that Rokku was a young teenager. She soon spoke up, "You two can eat if you wish, but I would prefer to rest up."
"Huh? You don't wanna eat?" Rokku asked curiously.
Shade shook her head. "No. Like I said, I'd like to rest up."
"C'mon Shade. You gotta eat too." Rokku told her. "We haven't ate much in the five days we've been traveling mindlessly. I don't know if you ate before we met you but even if you had a large turkey or whatever, you have to eat tonight."
"Rokku's right Shade." Mega joined. "It might be awhile before we get to eat high-quality food. Now's the time to eat and give us the energy we need to push forward!"
"I'm okay, really." Shade assured them.
"Pleaaaaaaase~?" Rokku pleaded.
Shade just folded her arms across her chest and glared at Rokku. She was "upset" that Rokku would resort to such childish methods to get her to-Wait, he practically IS a child...
Still, Shade shook her head, declining his offer. "There's no need Rokku. I'll be fine, I promise."
However, she was surprised when Mega stood next to him and pleaded with him. It made her eyes widen a little and sweat sliding down the side of her head.
"Pleeeaaaaaaaaaaseeeee~~~?"
"To think the ancient hero of the 21st Century would do such a thing as well..." Shade thought. "I suppose it can't be helped... These two are persistent..."
Shade dropped her arms and sighed heavily. How could she say no? They were going to be worried sick about her if she didn't at least get one meal.
"Besides, they are right... I hadn't eaten in days, even before I met them... I have trained to not rely on food for a long time, but if Rokku hadn't shared his packed food in the past, I wouldn't be in fighting condition later... If I don't eat now, I'll surely regret it..."
"Okay... I yield..." Shade submits. "Let's go to the buffet..."
"Yes!" Rokku fist-pumped.
"But how are we supposed to pay for any of this?" Shade asked. "I doubt we can pay for such meals..."
Rokku held out his index finger, winking to her. "Oh, don't worry about that. I got it all covered!"
In truth, he did. After all, Rokku had a Zenny Card and...Who knows how much is on it...
The trio had entered the buffet known as Starlight Cafe. Rokku had miraculously gained access into the buffet using his Zenny Card and I.D., allowing them to eat as much as they want. Afterwards, they went to go get a booth nearby the windows and ordered their drinks from the waitress. With that out of the way, everyone went to go grab their own food. The trio grabbed their favorite meals and returned to the booth to eat and have conversation. For Shade this felt...odd. To have normal conversations rather than talk about Model Ws and the Knight of Despair, etcetera etcetera.
For the moment, Shade sat alone at the table, staring blankly at her plate. On it was fried rice with shrimp and small chunks of chicken blended inside and a bowl of over 20 dumplings. Beside her meal was a glass of green tea. Soon, Rokku and Mega returned to the table, but when they did, they found that Shade's plate and bowl was...completely empty.
"Hehe, I didn't know you really liked rice and dumplings." Rokku chuckled as he sat down at the table with Mega right beside him. Both were in front of Shade, sitting on the opposite side of each other.
Shade blushed in embarrassment. She just got this new plate of food and she devoured it in mere seconds.
"Don't make fun of me..." Shade muttered, tempted to put her scarf over her face to hide her embarrassment. It was unusually nice for Rokku and Mega to see this side of her. Usually they see her as a super serious kunoichi who's primarily focused on saving the world, but here, she has a obsession over food! It was cute!
Shade, attempting to ignore what has just happened a few moments ago, looks at Rokku and Mega eat their food. She saw Rokku pick up some type of food with...gooey substance being pulled via Rokku's teeth. She saw red circles on top of this particular food with hot yellow stuff that she thinks is gooey. She didn't know what this was, but she could see Rokku visibly enjoying it.
"Rokku, what is that you're eating?" Shade asked.
The teen, still trying to eat the yellow gooey substance, looked at Shade confusingly. "Hm?"
"That," She says, pointing at the slice in his hand. "What is it?"
Rokku immediately sucks up the rest of the goo and gasps in shock. "Ah! Shade! You don't know what this delicious substance is!?"
Shade looked at Rokku as he held up another slice in his hand. Seeing how shocked and surprised he was over this substance made her uneasy. Regardless, she shook her head, confirming that she indeed did not know. She has never seen anything like it in Mizuchi and she had rarely went into any cities when she was on her own for awhile.
"Oh my gosh...!" Rokku gasped again. "Were you living under a rock or something!?"
"Shade, you don't know what pizza is?" Mega asked, eating his slice.
"Pizza... Is that the name of the food?" Shade asked.
Rokku and Mega looked at each other before looking back at Shade. This kunoichi... Had no idea what pizza was...! Blasphemy! What a crime!
"Wow... You've really missed out...!" Mega exclaimed, resuming his slice. "I'm glad Rokku introduced me to it as soon as he could! This stuff's great!"
"Shade, have you ever tried...pizza?" Rokku asked. At this point, the answer was surely obvious.
Shade shook her head. "Sorry, I haven't. I mostly ate dumplings, rice, eggrolls, sushi, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, and much more, but not pizza..."
Rokku then smiled brightly. "Then, you have to try one!"
Shade shook her head. "No, that's okay."
It was Rokku's turn to shake his head. "Nope, you gotta try one!"
Shade's expression changed from stoic to a bit agitated. "I said it's okay."
Rokku's smile just brightened. "And I said you gotta try one~"
Shade's eyebrows narrowed further. "I said it's. O.K."
Rokku's eyebrows just raised, his face expressing pure joy (and a hint of teasing). "I said you. gotta. try. one."
The two just stared at each other, one with a irritated expression and one with a genuine happy face; All while a reploid was eating peacefully and unaware of this staring showdown. This occurred for a good minute until the happy one broke the silence.
"Shade, just try at least one. After that, I won't bother you anymore." Rokku said, dropping his happy face.
The kunoichi sighed in defeat. "O-Okay... I will try one."
Rokku's smile returned. "Great! You can choose pepperoni or just plain cheese!"
Shade looked at her selection. She didn't quite know what pepperoni is, but considering one of Rokku's choices was plain cheese, she would assume the slice with nothing special on top was the plain cheese one and the other with red circles was the one with pepperoni. Uncertain if she wanted to eat the pepperonis, she decided to go for plain first.
"I'll choose.. Cheese..." Shade said, slowly scooping a slice from Rokku's plate. She watched at the slice's gooey parts were still sticking on the plate a bit, evidenced by the long strings of cheese. Eventually after pulling enough, the string of cheese was unstuck from the plate but dangling beside Shade's hand.
The kunoichi held the slice of cheese pizza before her face. She was quite nervous to try it. But looking at Rokku's excited look of anticipation, she felt a bit eased. Besides, the smell of this slice of pizza... It did smell quite...delicious.
With her decision made, she opened her mouth and placed the tip of the slice into her mouth, closing her teeth on it. Her taste buds signaled the kunoichi of how ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS this tasted. Shade blushed and her eyes widened. She then proceeded to eat the entire slice, swallowing it whole. Rokku just grinned in glee while Mega simply smiled.
"I-It's...delicious...!" Shade exclaimed, blushing pink. "I-I never tasted anything like this...!"
"Ahhh yes~... This wonderful dish that has existed since the neolilion age is the ultimate food; the best in the universe~!" Rokku spoke in a "connoisseur" voice, rubbing his index finger and thumb together. "The deliciousness that is flatbread topped with cheese and other ingredients make it a absolutely mouth-watering meal~!"
Mega Man and Shade just sweatdropped at Rokku's "analysis" and "opinion" of pizza.
"Rokku, when you said neolilion age I think you meant neolithic age..." Mega corrected with a nervous smile.
"Nonetheless, this pizza tastes incredible...!" Shade commented, grabbing another slice.
The trio continue eating more food. Shade gets more pizza with Rokku and Mega Man, but in exchange for trying the pizza, Shade asks that Rokku and Mega tries her dumplings. As they ate, they had conversations.
"So," Mega began, grabbing a dumpling. "Shade, where do you come from?"
Shade held the slice of pizza in front of her mouth. Upon hearing that question, she had refrained from eating for a moment. She then glanced at Rokku and Mega, returning back to her normal "stoic" expression and...tone.
"Yeah, that's a good question~!" Rokku said happily, stuffing a slice of pizza into his mouth. "We've been hanging out for almost a week and we don't know the best kunoichi in the world's origin story~!"
Shade blushed bashfully, but her face remained the same... Well, save for her mouth opening a bit in surprise of being praised as the "best kunoichi in the world". She personally didn't think she was the best, but it was nice to be thought as such from her friend.
"Where do I come from?"
The boys nodded quickly to answer her question. She was quite hesitant in telling her past to them. But they, or more specifically Rokku, was right; It had been at least a week since teaming up and befriending them. They deserved to know where she came from. In response, she, although reluctantly, told them her story.
"I... Come from a metropolis known as Mizuchi." Shade began. A serious look grew on her face as she continued. "It's located somewhere in Japan. The place is awful and the leader of that place is just as bad. It only makes since after all; That leader being the one who caused Mizuchi's degrading reputation. Before he came along, Mizuchi was lively, fair and a wonderful place to be in. I unfortunately grew up in a state of corruption and mostly poverty. I left to escape the terrible atmosphere, but that was after I got my armor..."
Shade waves her wrist to show the guard armor on it. She didn't have much armor on her, just arm and legs guards.
"It may look like I have no real armor, but I truthfully do... In a way." Shade sighed and looked away sadly. "I... I do not wish to continue any further... For now at least..."
Rokku nodded. "I-It's okay. We understand."
Shade glanced at the boy and sighed. She resumed eating her slice of pizza, but even after they had dropped the conversation, the thoughts of her past still roamed through her head...
"Hey Shade," Mega said, catching Shade's attention. "Take it easy. We won't be fighting for a while."
"Besides," Rokku jumped in with a grin and pointing at himself with his thumb. "You got us~! We'll beat that evil jerk together~!"
Shade smiled. "Thanks." Then she frowned. "But keep those type of conversations privately, okay?"
Rokku and Mega looked at each other and sweatdropped. In unison, they said, "R-Right!"
The trio resumed eating their meal. Shade felt...welcomed with the boys; Even if one of them was technically older than them all being centuries old and all. Still, she enjoyed this time of rest and relaxation.
However, a part of her wanted to find the Knight of Despair and put an end to this conflict as soon as possible.
Four Days Earlier...
Immediately after recovering from his battle with Mega Man Neo, Ignitus stormed out of the recovery room with his fists clenched. He's been waiting to have a word with his "father" ever since he's returned back to home base. The automatic doors slid open and the fierce fire warrior entered to see the doctor tending to his work at the large mother computer.
"Yo! Pops!" Ignitus yelled with a annoyed look.
The doctor who oddly looked like a teenager around Ignitus' age turned the swivel chair around to face him. He had a very smug smirk and he was resting his cheek on his fist. Ignitus hated that smirk. It was much too smug for his liking.
"What's the deal?!" Ignitus cried angrily. "Neo was stronger and smarter than you said he was!"
The doctor, aka Wraith, looked at the ceiling with an intentional, and possibly legit, innocent expression.
"Hmm? Did I tell you that?" He asked, placing his finger below his lips. "I recall saying 'He has tons of development potential. Be cautious.' Those were my words Ignitus. You were the one who decided to judge Neo's abilities based on his battle against Nero and Bass."
Ignitus' eyebrow twitched. Unfortunately, Wraith was right. That was something else Ignitus hated; Being corrected over something as small as this. "Yeah, yeah, whatever..."
Wraith rested his cheek on his fist again and spoke once more, "Given the thrashing you received, I take it that Neo was able to beat you~?"
Ignitus growled. "What do you think?!"
"I think he kicked your-"
"Blahblahblah, shut up!" Ignitus silenced his "father". "Anyway, there's something else I wanted to talk to you about! His Weapon Copy Thing! Tell me about that!"
Wraith's face expressed legit surprise. "Huh? His "Weapon Copy Thing"? You must mean his Variable Weapon System... What about it?"
"That dirty son of a gun copied my abilities! My Special Weapons!" Ignitus growled. "My Hell Blazer and Inferno Bombs!"
Wraith got up off his feet immediately and walked towards his "son". The 176cm teenage doctor stood before the 170cm warrior. "He copied your weapons?"
Ignitus folded his arms. "Yes! Didn't you hear me the first time!?"
Wraith waved off the boy. "Of course... I just find that hard to believe..."
The doctor walked away and pondered deeply. "Mega Man still has his Variable Weapon System...? But I thought I had removed that from his body...? Nonono... I remember, I was planning on removing it and giving him a new one... That primitive Variable Weapon System shouldn't have been able to copy special weapons from Ignitus; Let alone TWO Special Weapons...! Is that shard the cause of it...? It doesn't sound too far fetched... After all, that shard has the same evolution technique as any other Biometal... Specifically the same as a Model W... Could that shard be transforming the Variable Weapon System within Mega Man to allow him to copy Special Weapons from much more sophisticated and complicated technology that is from the 26th Century, 25XX...?"
"HEY!"
Wraith snapped out of his trance upon hearing the sound of Ignitus' voice. He had been pacing around the room thinking.
"I hate when you just walk around like that...!" Igntius growled, also hating being ignored. This guy hated a lot of things...
"My apologies Igntius..." Wraith apologized. He then walked over and folded his arms. "Refrain from going after Mega Man Neo for a few days."
Wraith began to head back to his computer, leaving Ignitus a bit confused. "Why?"
The doctor sat down on his chair with a serious look. "Because you will confront him at a more important time... That I assure you. You will use this time to rest and relax and prepare for the big event that I talked about...!"
Ignitus, though reluctantly, nodded and followed his master's instructions. "Alright."
With that, Ignitus left the room. Wraith covered his mouth with his connected hands, pondering deeply about how quickly Mega Man and his host, Rokku, were evolving. He feared that they were reach the fullest of their evolution: Full-Synchronization. This was something he learned about from the Combi-Carrier he had obtained. Truth be told, Wraith was lucky that he had the proper tech and skills to get information from the Combi-Carrier. It's not as easy to hack as it seemingly was. In fact, Wraith doesn't have ALL the information from the Combi-Carrier, but he has enough to make a replica. Although it may be slightly inferior than the real deal, it will be useful to Bass Kai due to his strong mind.
"It looks like things aren't going exactly as planned..."
Wraith's eyes slowly turned to the right. He had an annoyed look as he could see someone in the shadows with purple glowing eyes. The mysterious figured stepped out of the shadows and grinned menacingly at the doctor.
He was wearing yellow, black, brown and bronze armor. He had sharp purple eyes and light skin. He also had large disengaged wings on his "pack" that would look large should they be engaged. He also had gloves that strangely had sharp fingers that seem to resemble knight fingertips. His bodysuit was black with white highlights. He looked like he was 171cm, a centimeter taller than Ignitus but still 5'4".
"Taranis..." Wraith muttered in a rather cold tone.
"That Neo guy is evolving more than you initially thought." Taranis said with a smug grin. "With that Combi-Carrier in his possession, he and Mega Man will eventually reach that Full-Synchro stage of his evolution. How about we go after them and destroy them while we have the chance."
Wraith clicked his tongue. "It may sound like I'm screwing myself over, but we have to study Mega Man Neo more before we defeat him."
"It does sound like you're screwing yourself over." Taranis snarled. "Here's what I think is going to happen: You're going to let him do what he does, he's going to reach that full-synchro stage, he's going to find and defeat us and you, then your plan's going downhill. We need to destroy him now while he's weak."
"Maybe I'll fail, maybe I won't." Wraith snickered. "Hehehe... In the end, I'll be the true victor. You are to defeat the boy and Mega Man. Refrain from killing them."
Taranis shrugged and turned around. "Whatever you say Lord Wraith. If you need me, I'll be talking with my sister so she can be prepared for the assault in a few days. If Neo shows his face, and he'll more likely show his face, then I'll fight Neo."
The aero fighter turned his head with a devilish grin and his purple eyes glowing for a moment. "...But if I have to hack up a few limbs from his body to defeat him then so be it...!"
After "warning" his master/father, Taranis had departed and a hush falls over the laboratory...
Present Day...
As he entered the hotel room along with his two friends, Rokku began to think about what he has been doing for awhile now. On June 23, his 13th Birthday, Rokku wanted to begin his adventure and he got his wish. He left home to start his adventures the next day on June 24. Rokku would have never thought that in two days, he would meet Mega Man, an ancient hero from the year 20XX. It was quite amazing. Then he's spent his time at the Sanctuary from June 27 to July 22. He didn't realize that he's spent so much time at the Sanctuary but all of the training he's been doing must've made him forget the concept of time. But even so, along with Mega Man, he's fought a brainwashed Magne, he met his uncle who's in charge of the continent's military force, he met his "rival" Bass Kai, met his new friend Shade, fought Ignitus and traveled for awhile until they've reached Cassio Town.
Currently, it was July 29. It's been a whole month since he started his own adventure; and it's quite a bizarre adventure so far.
Rokku was in his pajamas that he packed... Which was merely his "workout" clothes he wore back in Tera City when he and Mega decided to jog. He lacked his wristbands and his headband, but it was still overall the same outfit. Mega Man was also wearing his "workout" clothes again.
Shade had left the bathroom coincidentally wearing similar clothes as Rokku. She had a black tanktop and shorts and white socks.
Unfortunately, there was only one bed available in this room. Rokku had suggested getting rooms for each of them since he apparently had the money to do so, but Shade disagreed. She feels that Rokku shouldn't be spending too much money... Though she doesn't have any idea how much money he has... But point is, they had a few options: One sleeps on the bed while someone else sleeps on the floor or they all sleep on one bed.
...The group choose the latter.
Though she was not in the middle, Shade admittedly found sleeping right next to the boys embarrassing. She had never slept so close to them before; or anyone else for that matter. While traveling for the past five days, they either slept a few feet close to each other, when outside that is, or possibly be in separate rooms, when they had stayed in someone else's home temporarily.
Her cheeks reddened from feeling Rokku's presence right next to her. She sighed silently and tried her best to get some sleep.
The past few days with Rokku and Mega have been drastically different. She's so used to being alone. However, when she learned about Mega Man Neo, she felt that partnering up with the Blue Bomber would give her an easier chance of beating the enemy; the Knight of Despair. But Rokku and Mega's child-like personalities made her feel more...alive. She had gained two friends because they choose to trust her. She could have been deceiving them the entire time but they would have no idea until she actually revealed her intentions. Of course, Shade's intentions were to essentially protect the world and to do that, she had to stop her enemy.
The boys' positive energy is what allowed Shade to feel more relaxed and lively. She was beginning to enjoy herself and those around her, primarily evident at dinner an hour ago. Thanks to Rokku, she found a new favorite food: Pizza. It was awfully delicious and she wanted more.
She cared for Rokku and Mega and do whatever it takes to make sure they were still close to her. She would hate it if something bad happened to her new and only best friends...
She rolled over to her left side. To her surprise, she found Rokku still awake. Even stranger was that she found the boy looking at her curiously.
"Wa...Was he awake this whole time...?" Shade questioned herself.
The two just stared at each other. Shade felt completely awkward at the moment.
Unable to sleep for the moment, Shade decides that now was a time to find out more about her new partner.
"How did you meet Mega Man?" She asked.
Rokku was admittedly unsure on how he was going to answer that. Of course, the reason was obvious; To him at least.
In about a minute, Rokku came up with something.
"Around 9 PM, I was in the meadows... I-It was nearby Neo Giga City. While relaxing I saw what I thought was a shooting star, and, umm, it wasn't and..." Rokku needed to calm down. It wasn't going to be convincing if Shade notices how he lacks composure. "It wasn't actually a shooting star. It was heading right for me so I ducked and it crashed. I went to check it out and... There he was... His armor was cracked and stuff... I have no idea where he came from or why he was sent flying, but I knew he didn't come from space or anything like that. That seemed weird... Like, more weird than us fighting Mavericks..."
Rokku was telling the truth for the most part. What he decided not to tell her was about he, Mega Man, was initially a Biometal before changing into a more "humanoid" shape.
"Right next to Mega was this wrist-watch thingie; The Combi-Carrier. Again, I have no idea where it came from. It was with Mega when he crashed to the ground. I decided to put on the watch thing and it was a perfect fit. Then out of nowhere Mega turns into digital particles and enters the watch. Then... I transformed into Mega Man Neo... Mega explained that this watch thing was the Combi-Carrier and all that, but he doesn't remember anything about how or why he was flying in the sky..."
Again, Rokku was omitting the fact that Ciel was the true creator of the Combi-Carrier and that her, with Rokku's help, "revived" Mega Man. He was also telling prominent lies, but that was for obvious reasons.
Shade nodded, buying his story. "I see... You weren't lying about the weird part."
The kunoichi then pointed at him. "But with that said, why are you fighting?"
"Huh?" Rokku was a bit confused.
"You heard me. Why are you fighting?" Shade repeated. "You just met Mega Man yet you choose to fight. Why?"
Rokku thought it was clear why he was fighting. But I suppose it would be better if she heard it from his mouth.
"I'm fighting to protect people..." Rokku said, looking away. "I sometimes wished I could do something good for the world and with by Mega's side, I can do that. I don't want the world to crumble because of bad people. I want to protect not only innocent people but my family! I don't want others to suffer!"
Rokku then clenched his fist. "That is why... I fight. Mega and I... Mega Man Neo, is the one who fights for innocent people! For those who can't fight for themselves! To give people a reason to live their lives to the fullest! I won't stop... Even when all hope is lost, I won't give up! I just know that we, together, can reach everlasting peace... I don't believe it's a fantasy... I know it can happen and I want to be one of those who can make it happen!"
He then points at Shade dramatically. "I may not understand a lot of things... But what I do know is that I can feel true evil when I see it!"
Finally, he points at himself with his thumb. "I'll fight even if it was the end of the world! I'll keep fighting for not only my future but for everyone else's! Because this world belongs to us!"
Shade, after absorbing his miniature speech, closed her eyes and smiled a little.
"Well, I now know that I have befriended a genuine hero..." Shade said, finally satisfied. "Thank you for informing me. You won't have me doubting you, Rokku Akihiro."
The young teen smiled cheerfully, blushing with pride.
Unbeknownst to the two, Mega Man had been faked being asleep the whole time. He had heard everything and he was even more proud of his best friend...
An hour after the sun had officially risen, the trio were fully prepared to head out again.
However, upon reaching the lobby, they, specifically Rokku and Mega, were surprised to see very familiar faces.
"He's here...?" Rokku said in awe.
The man and young girl turned their heads, seeing their familiar companions. Immediately, they approached them.
"Finally, we have found you." The man said with a sigh of relief.
"General Payne?" Mega was also in awe. "Jessie?"
"How did you guys find us?" Rokku asked in panic.
"We've tracked you via Comm. Link!" Jessie explained. "We couldn't properly connect with you because the connection wasn't great, but it allowed us to find your locations!"
"Though, each time we found your location, another location popped up." General Payne added.
Mega had realized that he had accidentally sent Payne and Jessie hopping to different locations... Whenever the trio stopped at a location to rest, Mega would try to contact the General to no avail. Fortunately, they found them this time.
"Luckily, you were close by the tenth time you tried contacting us." Payne said.
The General turned to the kunoichi, curious about her presence. "Ah, who might you be?"
"...Shade." She greeted hesitantly.
The General then looked at Rokku and Mega. "Do you two know her?"
"Yeah! She kinda "saved" us after Bass Kai threw us into the ocean!" Mega explained.
General Payne turned to Shade again. "Is she now? You have my thanks, Shade."
The kunoichi watched as the General bowed in respect and gratitude. She felt... Uneasy around him. But that was primarily because she had no idea who he was.
"Excuse me if I sound rude, but who are you?" Shade asked.
General Payne stood up straight and frowned. "Further explanations will come soon. We will have to take this elsewhere. Follow me."
The General and Jessie began walking with the trio following right behind him.
After walking for about four minutes, they came across the Milos Defense Force airship that was used to get to Cassio Town. It was "parked" right outside the entryway to the innerpeace area. Once the group entered the airship, it rose off the ground and took off through the sky. They got comfortable in their seats as the General sat before Rokku, Shade and Mega Man.
"Now, to answer your question from earlier." The General began. "I am General Maxwell Payne. I am Rokku's uncle."
Shade was a bit surprised internally. "You're his uncle...?"
He nodded in confirmation.
It would have never crossed Shade's mind that this military general was also Rokku's uncle. It was surprising to her in all honesty. She had respected the man even more because of this recent fact, however.
"So unc', where are we headed?" Rokku asked.
"There is a very important place that we absolutely must go to." General Payne said with a serious look.
"We, are heading to Luna City."