RedKatana: Surprise, surprise, an update from me. Hope you enjoy this chapter and have a happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate it!

Episode 37

No one said anything.

No one breathed.

No one did anything except stare.

It was almost as they were spellbound, under a spell that promised devastation if anyone dared break its silence, but promised peace if left intact. No one broke it in fear of its consequences. Wily and his robots, wanted criminals, were in Mega Man's house - in his sister's bedroom, doing God knows what for all the Light family knew. This situation deserved caution even if that caution became unreasonable.

"What are you doing here?" came the blue bomber's question, breaking the awkward spell that controlled everyone.

A valid question, even Dr. Wily couldn't argue with that once his brain finally registered what transpired and its ramifications. Despite how unusually slow his brain was moving, it was obvious to him that they were in Mega Man's house, specifically Roll's bedroom.

At least, he suspected it was Roll's bedroom since he doubted Splash Woman slept here. Although, anything was possible, he supposed.

"None of your damn business," Bass snared, his expression true to his design's inspiration: a cobra. Even after years, Bass' stares - stares that lacked kindness or any heartwarming emotion - still made his brothers uneasy.

From Mega Man's expression alone, they could tell it was the same for him.

Mega Man stared at him, incredulous as he stepped back and alarms went off in his head. In spite of himself, he lowered his Mega Buster for a millisecond before composing himself.

He needed to stay calm, stay in control, and not let Bass affect him. He needed to be the hero that saved the world from Wily countless times, the hero everyone called upon in their time of need.

He needed to be the hero Mega Man.

Mega Man gritted his teeth, body stiffening. "You're in my house! How is it not my business!?"

Another valid question, of course. As Wily's scientific mind devised various escape plans, he said, "We had a bit of—"

Bass rolled his eyes, arm cannon aimed at Mega Man even though his gaze drifted from his brothers to Mega Man constantly. "Who fucking cares? Are you going to fight me, or pussy out?" Although he scowled towards his brothers, a hint of playfulness remained in his voice, remained etched on his face. "You stay out of this. He's mine."

Despite himself and the situation, Mega Man nodded hesitantly. "Fine, be that way, Bass."

A grin broke across Bass' face before he charged forward, aiming to wipe that grin off that goody-two-shoes face. Mega Man simply stood there, arms crossed as he waited for Bass' strike. 'What an idiot,' Bass thought, 'giving me a free hit.' Just as he was an inch away from Mega Man's face, the blue bomber dodged. "What the-!?" Mega Man grabbed his arm, flinging him against the wall.

And the consequences of Bass' actions, of his constant pride, became obvious. As his body came in contact with the wall, his back bent in an unnatural way. Bass let loose a chocked cry before coughing violently, eyes almost vacant for the briefest of moments, as if he could not believe what occurred.

Mega Man stared at Bass, who was cradling his head, before turning to the silent intruders. "Who's next?"

The rest of the Robot Masters jumped, shirking Mega Man's stare and staring at Bass' still form.

It was a struggle to stand, even with his pride, Bass knew that. With clenched teeth, Bass hissed the air from his lungs and glared at the Robot Masters. "What the fuck are you morons doing? Help me kill him!"

Ice Man stared, jaw hanging as he kept on blinking. All the while, the Robot Master felt Mega Man's cold gaze boring into his soul. He knew the cheerful Rock was long gone in his place was the battle-hardened warrior Wily's robots feared. Despite fear ran through him, Ice Man managed to speak. "But you just said-"

Despite the agony, Bass screamed and slammed his fist to the wall, a grimace contorting his face as he ignored the pain "Forgot what I said! Use your damn head for once!"

"Right," Elec Man said as electricity settled in his hand, the sparks lighting up his face, kindling excitement throughout him. Although hiding his excitement was pointless, he fought down the thrill his power brought him, flashed a toothy grin, and muttered a simple, "follow my lead, everyone," before firing at Mega Man, the others following suit.

Dr. Wily backed away and quickly looked around before he noticed it: his escape. Besides Roll's bed was a small, open window high on the wall. Knowing that it was too high to climb out, he glanced about for something to stand on. Across the room was a colossal teddy bear. The scientist bit his lip, hoping that it would work. Despite how ridiculous it looked, he carefully stepped onto the bear, eyes on the window.

"Mama! Mama!" said the bear. Wily flinched and glanced at the fighting Robot Masters.

"Come on! Is that the best you guys have?" Mega Man taunted, a glint of excitement in his eyes as he grabbed the Thunder Beam from Elec Man's remains.

Pain filled Ice Man's stomach as electricity crackled in Mega Man's hand. His voice soft, he said, "Oh, no…"

"Damn," Wily sighed, wiping away the beads of sweat on his forehead, "that was close." Since the bear wasn't tall enough, the scientist had to stand on his toes, elongating his spine more and more."Come on, come on, so close..."

"Who's next?" Mega Man said, buster charged as he stared down at the remaining Robot Masters, a look of disinterest upon his face.

Bass stared at Ice Man's remains and kick the body across the room. "Useless." He glanced at Punk standing beside him before glaring at Mega Man.

"What about you, Bass? You wanna to try me?" Mega Man spat.

Bass glanced at Punk and the other shrugged. "After you," Punk said, stepping aside.

"Finally," Wily whispered as he grasped the ledge of the window. He glanced back at Mega Man as he started pulling himself up the window. The idiot hadn't seemed to notice.

Good.

Mega Man winced as Bass landed a punch, knocking him into the wall.

"About time," Bass muttered as he began to trek towards his nemesis' prone body. He cracked his knuckles, and the sound resonated throughout the room. "Oh, how I've longed for this." He smiled, one that seemed wistful; as if he regretted that this would end so soon.

Struggling to stand, Mega Man's legs wobbled as he looked to his side. Besides him resided Crash Man's curled body, still as a corpse. He laughed and placed his hand on the robot's skull for leverage as he gained strength. On his knees, he said, "I wouldn't do that, Bass. Roll and Splash Woman called the police. They'll be here any minute."

At that, Bass snorted, disinterest evident. "So? Is that supposed to frighten me?" Even though his head was injured, he threw it back and laughed.

"Bass!" Quint cried. "Use your head, please! What's the point of beating Mega Man if you die?"

Bass shook his head and didn't even try hiding his exasperation. He didn't even look Quint's way either, he kept watching Mega Man. "Out of my way, twerp. This doesn't involve-"

"No."

Bass froze. He slowly turned around, eyes wide when he finally faced Quint, as if seeing him for the first time in his life. "What… What did you just say?" His voice was low, so low that it surprised Punk. He'd never heard Bass speak that gently.

Quint stood his ground, eyes hardening and fists tightening. "I said no. I'm not going to let you do this. What you're doing is suicidal."

Bass took a few steps -almost tentative steps - forwards before his eyes darted to Punk, as if asking him if this was real.

And Quint still didn't quit; he simply couldn't quit, despite how he hated fighting Bass. He was on a roll, a roll that got stronger every second. There was passion in him that, despite how small it may have been, grew with every second, a passion Bass and Punk had never before witnessed. "What do you think will happen when the police get here? Wily will get arrested and we'll get scraped." He took deep breaths, his anger dying as his eyes watered, desperate-pleading, really. "Please, Bass. I'm begging you. Let him go. You'll have another chance to defeat him. I promise you."

Bass glanced at Mega Man who eyed him, his expression unreadable. With a heavy sigh, Bass' shoulders slumped. "Fine. Let's get outta here, Punk."

Punk jumped, startled as his eyes settled on Bass. "Are... Are you sure? Don't you-"

Bass glared daggers at him, snaring. "What do you think!?"

Despite Punk's usual toughness, he shifted, uncomfortable and unsure about this new side of Bass. However, he did not press the matter. "A-Alright…"

"Um, guys?" Zero spoke up. When all eyes were on him, he tilted his head to the side, face filled with childlike wonder. "Where's Wily?"

They all searched the room before their eyes landed on the wall. There was an open window; the breeze from outside sent shivers down their spines and highlighted one fact: how barren a room can feel when someone important is gone.

Wily was gone.