Hello everyone! Now look, I know it's been a while, but please understand that New Year's is very popular in the human realm and Auntie and I were busy. I hope you can forgive me for taking so long. Thanks to MoonlitPikachu for the request, it was so much fun to write about! Now, without further ado, here is "Virus in the Works". Enjoy!
(—)
The sound of quiet snores filled Rock's quaint little bedroom as the sun slowly rose from the horizon, which would've been nice to wake up to if not for a splintering headache that was just bad enough that it woke the usually healthy Blue Metal Hero.
Groaning, Rock lightly tossed his white blanket and Paddington onto the other end of the bed, sat up and rubbed his head, feeling his coarse, uneven gingerbread-brown hair weave through his fingertips like a friendship bracelet. He slipped Hinawa's locket over his head and wobbled a little as he slid off the sky-blue covers of his bed, slowly staggering to his feet.
Rock slowly and carefully dodged the sleeping bags of his friends, being wary to not step on the comatose contents. Lucas was below the surface of his orange blanket, Ethan had somehow managed to get himself upside down, Dark Pit was covered in his own feathers, Elliot was buried in a mound of pillow, and Toon Link was sprawled on the top of his bright green sleeping bag, wrapping his arms around his pillow in his sleep like a large pot.
Smiling, Rock pulled out some utensils from the cupboard and a cookbook that he had ordered from a farm in the Galar region earlier that week, so breakfast curry, as Toon Link has put it the previous night, was bound to get mouths watering. "Mega Man', Tabuu piped up as Rock took a small wheel of Moo Moo Cheese and some Apicot berries out of the fridge, 'your systems are detecting something strange. Talk to Programmer once you've finished here".
About 20 minutes later, Toon Link woke up to a shrill cough and the smell of cheese and fruit. Whipping his head toward the mini kitchen near the front door, Rock was pouring the smooth, deep yellow curry into a green bowl with a wooden ladle. "I knew it! Breakfast curry!" the young Hylian exclaimed, hurrying to a tall seat at the bar-like table that separated the tile kitchen from the carpeted room.
Heart aflutter with warmth, Rock set the bowl and a spoon in front of Toon Link, only to turn around and let out a hoarse cough a moment later. "You alright, Rock?' Toon asked, slurping the soup down, 'you seem sick". "I'll talk to Dr. Mario if I get the chance', Rock replied quickly as he saw Lucas sit up, 'but for now, I'm really glad you like the curry. It was your idea, after all!"
The frequency of Rock's loud coughing only increased as he cleaned up the curry and sent his friends to their respective matches with a lunchbox and a hug. "Okay, no more stalling', Tabuu barked from inside Mega Man's head once the door clicked shut, 'talk to Programmer, right now". Sighing, Rock took out Chihiro Fujisaki's forest green laptop and flipped it open. "Morning Programmer", Rock cleared his throat. "Good morning, Rock', he smiled shyly, 'is something the matter? You sound a tad hoarse." Plugging a small socket on his arm into the computer with a small black cord, Rock sighed, "Diagnostic please".
A few moments of tapping later, Chihiro returned to the computer screen, ready to deliver some, less-than-optimal news: "Rock, I'm sorry to say that you might be showing signs of a virus that I didn't clear you for', he sighed, only to share, 'I'll work on a way to cure you, but you'll have to be careful not to exhaust yourself, or it could get worse". "Understood', Rock smirked, 'thank you so much, Programmer". Unplugging himself from the monitor quickly reminded him of the nasty headache that woke him up that morning and frowned slightly.
Slipping on a coat and the hat X gave him, Rock took a shortcut out the back door and went for a walk along the frost-ridden sidewalk to clear his head a little. The crisp air nibbled at Rock's ears as he got to the entrance to Console City, the shopping center for the inhabitants of not only the mansion, but those who came to witness matches.
Leaning up against a familiar telephone pole, Rock peered down into an alley with a small black dumpster near the back. He remembered that dumpster all too well: it was where he has collapsed after Capcom, despite his friend Dante desperately trying to prevent it, had kicked him out, where Master Hand had found him, and where nearly a year and a half of silence and shyness began. That was something he wasn't about to forget.
It wasn't long after Rock had sat down on a nearby bench that his headache began to worsen rapidly, which Tabuu immediately took notice of. "Rock, we have to leave, and fast", he ordered as Rock had already taken off for the mansion.
No task is without its challenges, however, for as soon as Rock shut the door, a blue blur shot in his general direction. It was Sonic. "Hey Megs!' Sonic chuckled enthusiastically, 'mind if I drop in?"
With an increasingly bad headache, Rock shook his head and waltzed to his room dizzily, nearly gripping on his own feet thrice. "Any ideas on what this could be?" Tabuu asked, using his magic to soothe Rock's headache a little. While Tabuu said that, Rock tripped on Piranha Plant and nearly got a chunk taken out of his boot.
"From what I can tell, this seems like Roboenza, but I would be bed-ridden by now if that was the case', Rock coughed as he got to his room and locked the door, 'Duo destroyed all the Evil Energy in my universe, so it couldn't have leaked into this one, and Master Hand has virus-proofed the mansion multiple times on top of Programmer's help. In short, I have no idea".
Sipping an E-Tank and clearing his throat, Rock grabbed a broom to start with the chores, and the doorbell rang. "What now?!" Tabuu scoffed, flaring his wings in anger whilst pouting.
Expecting it to be Samus, Rock nearly hit the deck in surprise as Princess Peach rushed in with something that looked like soup. "Sugar Muffin, why didn't you tell me you were sick?" she exclaimed, setting the "soup" on the table and giving Rock a suffocating hug. 'Fiddlesticks, fiddlesticks, fiddlesticks!' he thought as he tried to escape in vain.
As soon as the hug was over, Rock had no time to react as Peach gestured him over to his bed. "Get in', she ordered, 'I'll get the broth and some medicine". Rock began to politely protest, "But, your Highness, with all do respect, I-". "Rockefeller Pitch Light get in that bed this instant or so help me", Peach interrupted with gritted teeth in a forced smile. Terrified, Rock did as he was told.
Once he was bundled up and disgruntled, Peach sat on a small chair beside him, thermometer in hand. "Now, I need to check your temperature. Open wide, sweetheart". Annoyed, Rock came to the realization that he had no tongue, just taste sensors on the inside of his mouth. "Ah." Rock opened his mouth to let Peach know that he had no tongue, only for the thermometer to get jabbed into his mouth anyway.
A few seconds later, Peach pulled it out while it beeped shrilly. A quick temperature check later, and Peach ran to get the bowl off the counter. Cringing, Tabuu muttered sarcastically, "I think this the end. Good luck, robot boy".
Peach, smiling widely, put a spoon in front of Rock's face at the speed of sound. "Alright, time to take your medicine", she sang; before Rock could comprehend what was happening, the spoon was in his mouth and an oily taste soon followed. Almost immediately after the soup went down his artificial throat into his energy processor, Rock felt a growing sense of dread rise from his core.
"So, what do you think?" Peach acted as if nothing had happened. "Rock', Tabuu barked concernedly, 'I know this is probably going to end badly, but I need you to stay calm." Gripping the blankets, Rock slowly turned to Peach and stuttered, "Your, your Majesty. What, what did you put, put in that, that, soup?" Grinning evilly, Peach ruffled Mega Man's frazzled hair and whispered, "Sh, sh, it's alright sweetie." As his surroundings began to go dark, Peach cupped his chin in her hand and smiled, "It'll be over before you know it". Rock shut down.
Kamui smiled wickedly as she left Mega Man's room with the soup, her disguise spell wearing off. "Finally! That annoyance is out of my hair', she laughed, dumping the soup into the garbage, 'Now, Lucas and Ethan are mine for the tormenting". Gleefully skipping down the hall, Kamui forgot one minor detail of her foolproof plan to make Mega Man stop messing with hers: she forgot to shut his door.
"Gonna go see Meg-Meg, gonna go see Meg-Meg", Sparky the Pichu sang in her Pokèmon language as she raced down the hall. Hungry and tired after a long match, she ran eagerly toward her friend's room. Stopping at an air vent door along the way, Sparky leaped into it and took the shortcut she and Rock set up.
Popping the hatch above the door open, Sparky dropped into Rock's room and was surprised by the draft of the open door. "That's not right. Meg-Meg always keeps the door closed". Sparky deducted, nudging it shut.
She was even more surprised to turn around and see Rock asleep in his bed. "And he doesn't take naps either", she shuddered, 'something is wrong here!" Sparky jumped onto Rock's chest to wake him up and panicked when nothing worked. "Meg-Meg! Wake up!" Sparky wailed, using Nuzzle as fast as she could. When that didn't work, she took a closer look at her sleeping friend's face, noticing the black marks around his eyes and the symbol on his forehead. "Wait! Reflet's book! Meg-Meg read about this in one of her books! I must find her and get help!
Reflet was in the middle of a conversation with Zero and Ashley about ways to limit Robin's magic when Lucas and Ethan burst in, tears streaming down their faces. Taking notice immediately, Reflet paused and uttered, "One moment, you two', before turning to them and asking woefully, 'Lucas! Ethan! What's wrong?!"
Sniffling, Lucas showed Reflet the cuts on his wrists and legs and told her through tears that Kamui had attacked them and laughed in their faces that 'their precious savior wasn't going to be around to protect them anymore'. "Wait. Zero, they're talking about Little X', Ashley whispered into Zero's ear, 'something's wrong. Very wrong". "You're probably right', Zero replied, standing up to join in the conversation, pulling Ashley onto his shoulders, 'I'll ask around".
Before Zero could stand up, a small yellow thing zipped past his face and onto a nearby bookshelf. After calming down the kids, Reflet whipped around to see Sparky the Pichu pulling a tome titled, "Advanced Sleeping Enchantments", off the shelf. "Woah! Just what do you think you're doing with that?" Reflet giggled, picking up Sparky by her large ears. She struggled excessively, shouting, "Put me down! Put me down! Meg-Meg's asleep and won't wake up! I have to help him!"
Ashley's eyes got much wider than usual and yelled atop Zero's shoulders, "Wait! Reflet, put her down, and Sparky', Ashley cast an Animal Interaction Spell quickly, 'repeat what you said".
Confused, Reflet set Sparky on Zero's head as the Pichu sniffled whilst holding back tears, "Meg-Meg is asleep in his bed in the middle of the day, and I can't wake him up, no matter what I try. I'm scared that someone hurt him because I saw the door open when I came through the vent and the black marks under his eyes and on his forehead."
"Kamui!" Lucas and Ethan shouted simultaneously. "That would be the logical explanation', Reflet debated, 'but how can we prove it?" "Let's talk it over while we go wake up Little X", Zero chimed in halfway down the hall.
Sparky was the first one to reach the door, Zero quickly following suit, with Samus, Toon Link, Dark Pit, and Elliot tagging along close behind. "Whoever did this is about to die", Samus murmured from under her helmet. Toon Link, Ethan, and Lucas agreed at once, prompting Zero to reach for the doorknob… and find the door locked!
"That's weird!' Sparky asked, perplexed, 'I didn't lock the door when I left the room to find you, Reflet!" Without warning, a dark, menacing laugh arose from the closed door; it was undoubtably Mordegon's! "Mordegon', Elliot screamed through the shut door, 'don't lay a finger on-"
"Hush, Luminary', Mordegon fussed in a repulsively sweet voice, 'the boy's sleeping~". Filled with rage, Samus and Zero rammed the door down and the group raced inside, only to find Robin, sitting on Rock's bed, reading a tome titled, 'Voice-Changing Spells'. Snickering, Robin smirked, "Surprise, Ref. The boy's been spelled to sleep. Kamui is-". Robin stopped talking when he saw Lucas and Ethan, both covered from head to toe in bruises and burns from Kamui and felt sweat drop down his head.
Furious and slightly annoyed, Samus demanded an explanation and a cure. Robin got one down: Kamui, who was sick and tired of Mega Man getting his way all the time, came up with a plan to get her flipping way for once. The virus was merely a recently-discovered virus called "Mondowada", which gave those infected cold and flu symptoms, but it didn't cause the infected to become violent. Kamui had concocted a sleeping draught that would keep Mega Man asleep for a minimum of a week and mixed with an E-Tank. That way, he would be out for as long as Kamui needed. Unfortunately, there was no magical cure, and they would just have to wait for the draught to wear off.
Understandingly, Samus huffed and scooped Rock up bridal-style to Dr. Mario to make sure that nothing would happen while he was unconscious. Tabuu was not a fan of this. "Rock! Oh, I swear to the gods", he snarled as he glared at the small blue bubble that surrounded the avatar of Rock's consciousness. To put the design simply, it looked like the Japanese OVA Mega Man. Touching the marble that surrounded his Rock and kept him in a deep sleep, Tabuu vowed two things: that Kamui would pay for her insolence, and…
"If the danger of your capture become too great, Rosalina will see, and you are coming to Subspace with me…"
-End of One-Shot
Thank you for waiting out the holidays and all that jazz. I had fun over the holidays, and I hope you did too, so have a great day, and Angel is out!