Disclaimer: All official MegaMan characters are property of Capcom.

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CHAPTER 13

Battle in the Sky

"I'm back!" Sean called as he entered the room.

"I just came back from the pool," said Lan as he walked out of the bathroom in his swimming trunks drying his hair with a towel.

"I wasn't under the impression that this campus had a pool."

"It's part of the rec center. It's open to all students." Lan tossed his towel aside and pulled some clothes out from his drawers. "You should go."

"I don't know, Lan. I've always looked a little underweight for my age," said Sean.

"Come on, it can't be that bad," said Lan as he buttoned up his T-shirt, "Anyway, what's on this weekend's agenda?"

"There's going to be an Aki-chan concert in Net City this Sunday," said Sean as Axl accessed his schedule, "We're all planning to go. Well, our Navis anyway."

"I'm pretty excited," said Axl, "This'll be my first time to see Aki-chan live."

"Yeah. You and over a thousand other Navis," said MegaMan, "Ticket sales are off the chart. It's a good thing we ordered ours in advance."

"I've been keeping mine in a special hiding place," Axl responded.

"And where would that be?" asked Sean. Axl crouched down and touched his boot. The moment his fingers made contact, a TicketData appeared in his hand.

"You've been keeping it inside your left boot?"

"Well I certainly can't put it under my helmet," said Axl as he replaced his TicketData back into his boot.

"Looks like GutsMan and IceMan have another competitor," said Lan.

"Hey, I'm only a fan! It don't have the freaking hots for her!" Axl protested.

"Then why are you blushing? And why do you have my entire wallpaper covered with Aki-chan posters?" asked Sean.

"They're…um…for a research project. Yeah, that's it. Um…" Axl quickly morphed his hand into his Shotgun and disintegrated all the posters.

"Well now that that's been cleared up, let's get some food," said Lan as he finished dressing.

"I had a bag of Hickory Sticks on my way up," said Sean, "Damn, those things take forever to eat. Anyway, I need to get started on my English paper."

"Your loss."

"My gain."

The rest of Friday and all of Saturday seemed to pass by without a hitch and Sunday was upon them faster than QuickMan at top speed. Lan, Maylu, Dex, Yai, Tory, and Sean had all decided to meet up inside the HUB lounge, where the large TV had been set so all the students who wanted to could watch the Aki-chan concert with their Navis.

"Ready guys?" asked Lan. The others nodded. "Then let's do it! Jack in!! MegaMan, power up!"

"Jack in!! Roll, power up!"

"Jack in!! GutsMan, power up!"

"Jack in!! Glyde, power up!"

"Jack in!! IceMan, power up!"

"Jack in!! Axl, power up!"

Six Navis flew through the depths of cyberspace and emerged inside the vast cybermetropolis of Internet City. The group nodded to each other and began heading over to the coliseum, where the concert was taking place since it was the only structure in the city that could hold so many Navis.

"Man, look at those lines!" exclaimed MegaMan, who had Roll clinging onto his arm.

"They're huge!" IceMan commented.

"Miss Yai, may I suggest that you download us our backstage passes now?" Glyde suggested.

"Good idea, Glyde," the blonde girl replied. Everyone inputted a few commands into their PETs and the backstage passes appeared around their Navis' necks. The six of them easily bypassed the lines and went straight backstage.

"Aki-chan!" MegaMan greeted as they approached.

"MegaMan! Roll! GutsMan! IceMan! Glyde! It's so good to see you again," Aki-chan greeted back.

"It's been a while, Aki-chan," said Roll. Right behind them, GutsMan and IceMan were just staring at the cyber star with hearts in their eyes. Just then, Aki-chan noticed Axl standing near the back of the group.

"Oh, who's this?" she asked.

"Oh, that's Axl," answered MegaMan.

"Well anyway, the show is about to start. Why don't you take your seats and we can talk afterwards?"

"Sounds good," said MegaMan, "We'll see you later, Aki-chan." The six Navis quickly beamed out and beamed in to their front-row seats just as the face of the famous announcer Ribbita appeared on the stadium's main screen.

"Welcome everyone to the promotional Aki-chan concert!" announced the reporter, "Today we're all here to witness one of the greatest cyber stars of all time perform right before our very eyes. Before we begin, let's see why this concert is being held. As most of you know, Aki-chan's first CD album was released at the beginning of the month! That's right, her first CD album! Now YOU can listen to the wonderful songs of Aki-chan in the comfort of your own home! This performance is being held to celebrate the release of her album! So without further adieu, here she is. The one, the only, Aki-chan!" Cheers erupted from the crowd of Navis as Ribbita's image was replaced by Aki-chan's as the star came out onto the stage that had been set up inside the arena.

"Hey, look over there!" said Roll, pointing across to the other side of the coliseum.

"Hey, aren't those FireMan, ElecMan, ColorMan, and MagicMan?" asked MegaMan.

"I didn't know they were fans of Aki-chan," said Glyde.

"Show's starting guts," said GutsMan. The familiar music began playing over the coliseum's speakers and Aki-chan began her song.

Anata no HEART ni install!

Watashi no HEART wo install!

koi no apurike wa

Ugoki da shitano

Hayaku kizuite ne!

Anata ga suki yo!

Practically everyone in the stadium was mesmerized by Aki-chan's song. IceMan and GutsMan were two of the many staring with hearts in their eyes. Axl was slumped over the edge of the wall separating the seats from the arena with a doped expression on his face. (A/N: the same one MegaMan had in ep 32.) Unbeknownst to anybody, a dark figure lay hidden in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Itsumo mite ii ni yo kokogao ga

Kyou wa naze ka tooku miete

Isshouni iru noni mieru suru

Anata kizuite yo

Keshita tsumori no deeta ga

Haato ni somaru sora

Anata ga suki no moji bakari

Koi no hajimari de

"So Axl, what do you think of her?" asked MegaMan, "Uh, Axl?" MegaMan waved his hand in front of the younger Navi's face but only got a sigh as his response.

"He's hooked," said Roll.

A sudden stop in the singing followed by a loud scream caused the entire audience to direct their attention to the arena. A Navi clad in green armor overtop a black bodysuit had appeared and was approaching Aki-chan. He had a large propeller-like object on his back and his helmet was designed to look like a flight helmet, complete with an oxygen mask.

"Aki-chan!" screamed GutsMan, IceMan, and Axl.

"Try not to panic, guys. Aki-chan's made from a different type of data than us, so that guy can't touch her," MegaMan reminded them. The mysterious Navi, without warning, held out his hand and an energy field surrounded Aki-chan.

"He's got her in a stasis field!" Axl shouted.

"GyroMan to Dark Nation base, I've secured the target. I'm bringing her over right now." The Navi, whom we now know as GyroMan, leapt up and took flight, carrying Aki-chan with him.

"Somebody help!" the cyber star screamed.

"Axl, Style Change and go after her! Sky Style!" A purplish-blue Style Change symbol appeared on Sean's PET screen and Sean activated it, causing a pair of wings formed at the bottom of Axl's dorsal attachment.

"Glyde, go with him," Yai ordered.

"We'll do what we can to save her," said Glyde. And with that said, he and Axl took to the skies after GyroMan.

"MegaMan, follow them on the ground. You may not be able to fight, but you can definitely support them," instructed Lan.

"Sucks to be grounded," sighed the blue Navi as he, Roll, GutsMan, and IceMan followed on foot.

"Damn, they're coming after me!" GyroMan muttered to himself, "No problem. I'll just give them a little parting gift." The green-armored Navi snapped his fingers and a horde of viruses.

"Damn it all! Mega Buster!" MegaMan morphed his hand into his weapon and launched an all-out barrage of shots.

"Here we go! Heart Slash!" Roll blew a quick kiss before sending a hailstorm of hearts down on the viruses.

"Blizzard!" IceMan drew in a quick breath before unleashing a freezing wind that turned the viruses before him into blocks of ice.

"Guts Punch!" GutsMan slammed his fist into a Mettaur3, sending it flying backwards and knocking down ten Mashies like bowling pins.

Meanwhile, the chase in the sky continued. GyroMan still had Aki-chan trapped in his stasis field with Axl and Glyde flying right after him.

"Axl, I'll sever the link between the stasis field and his hand. You grab Aki-chan," Glyde instructed.

"Roger." Axl broke off and flew lower. Glyde watched for a moment before he morphed his hand.

"Glyde Cannon!" He fired one shot and cut the link, which immediately caused Aki-chan to fall. She screamed loudly, but Axl quickly flew under her and she landed safely in his arms.

"You're safe, Aki-chan," said the young Navi as he landed. He fired a few shots from his Axl Gun until the stasis field shattered.

"Thank you," the digital idol sighed. She leaned forward and kissed Axl on the cheek. His face turned beet-red.

"Well...uh…take care.…then…uh.…yeah.…" Axl quickly took back to the skies. He placed his right hand over his cheek.

I can't believe she kissed me! he thought. He returned to see Glyde getting shot down by GyroMan.

"Gyro Slicer!" Another cross-shape projectile appeared in GyroMan's hand and he threw it at his target.

"Axl Gun!" A yellow energy shot knocked the Gyro Slicer off its course and sent it falling harmlessly to the ground. "Glyde, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'll be fine," the butler-like Navi muttered.

"Take five, Glyde. I'll take over from here." Axl turned to face GyroMan as Glyde floated down to the ground.

"So, you must be Axl of the Gospel chips," said GyroMan, "You don't look so tough. You're actually pretty puny."

"You'll see just how powerful this puny Navi is," Axl replied with a grin on his face.

"Well said, Axl," said Sean, "Variable Sword Battlechip in, download!"

"Axl clenched his left hand as it morphed into the oddly-shaped blade.

"You aren't allowed to use Battlechips in Net City," reminded GyroMan.

"Technically, we've above Net City," Axl corrected. He flew at GyroMan and swung his sword before the green-clad Navi could react. The slash left a gash on the front of his armor.

"Not bad, but now you're going to regret it! Gyro Slicers!"

"Guard Battlechip in, download!" A round yellow shield with a green cross in the center appeared on Axl's right arm and he brought it up just in time to block GyroMan's attack.

"Well GyroMan, I hope you're up for a little close combat," Axl taunted.

"Fine, we'll settle this the old-fashioned way!" GyroMan took out two of his Gyro Slicers and flew straight at Axl. The younger Navi donned his visor and blocked with both of his weapons.

"Question: why are Sean and Axl the only ones fighting GyroMan?" asked Dex.

"Glyde's been damaged and Axl's the only other Navi we know who can fly," answered Maylu.

"Oh."

"Time to download another chip," Sean produced a Battlechip from his pocket and spun it between his fingers before sliding it into his PET. Axl's Variable Sword instantly dissipated and was replaced by a FireSword.

"A FireSword? Why?" he asked. The next chip seemed to answer his question as an his right arm took on the form of an AquaSword.

"Oh, I get it!"

"ElecSword Battlechip in, download!" Sean slid another chip in and prepared for another one.

"He's going to use the Element Sword Program Advance!" exclaimed Tory.

"BambooSword Battlechip in, download!" With the last sword in place, Axl's arms began to radiate with the power of the Program Advance.

"ELEMENT SWORD!" Four blades cleaved through GyroMan's body and the Dark Nation Navi fell to the streets below and landed with a loud thud.

"Shimatta.…" GyroMan slowly got onto his knees. He heard a clicking sound and looked up right into the barrel of MegaMan's buster. (A/N: Shimatta is Japanese for "shit".)

"Hasta la vista, baby." The blue Navi fired and the shot went right through GyroMan's head with a sickening splurch.

"Did you really have to shoot him in the head?" IceMan asked.

"No, but I've always wanted to try it," answered MegaMan as GyroMan's body broke up into fragments of data. He brought his Buster up to his face and blew out the barrel.

* * *

"Master Chaos, I have bad news." Blaise shuddered as Master Chaos turned around in his chair and faced the pyromaniacal Dark Nation agent.

"I am already aware of GyroMan's failure. In truth, he deserved to be deleted. Now that that headache's been taken care of, we may resume the operations for Project UltraNavi."

"Yes, Sir." Blaise saluted Master Chaos before walking out the door while the leader of the NetTerrorist organization returned his gaze to the screens above his desk.

"GyroMan was expendable. But as a NetTerrorist, he was able to invoke fear by capturing the one being so many NetNavis love and respect. Perhaps next time, I should have her erased." Master Chaos laughed silently. The very thought of the consequences of Aki-chan's deletion filled him with feelings of pleasure and delight.

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IMPORTANT NOTICE: I'm leaving on vacation this weekend and I won't be back until a week later. So don't expect any updates at least until next Saturday.