"Ah, Raika!" Commissioner Kifune greets him cordially. "Please, do come in. You wanted to speak to me?"
Raika steps into the Commissioner's office. He's only been here once, when he had been given his assignment for his stay in Japan. That time, the Japanese commander of the Net Savers - a man by the odd name of Famous - had been present, and had told Raika that he was to shadow the second-youngest Net Saver in Japan, Lan Hikari.
But today, Famous isn't here. Raika has something far more important to discuss than his training.
"Is your office secure, sir?" Raika asks, keeping his tone polite and respectful. He doesn't want to give anything away, in case the security cameras pick it up - and he's not sure who might be watching them.
Commissioner Kifune looks surprised for a moment, but then he nods to Superintendent Manabe. She takes a few moments to speak into her PET, and the windows darken and the office door locks. Raika assumes that the security cameras have also been shut down - that's how it is in his uncle's office, anyway. Everything but the emergency systems are shut down or locked when securing the office of the head of the Net Police or Net Savers, to ensure privacy when discussing sensitive information.
"I have concerns about one of your Net Savers," Raika says bluntly, taking on a more serious tone now that he's sure they won't be overheard. "Specifically, Mimic Lostie."
Commissioner Kifune doesn't react beyond narrowing his eyes a fraction. "Mimic?" he repeats. "He's our newest Net Saver."
"I'm aware," Raika says. "But I've come across information that I believe you should be made aware of." He pauses. "Or, rather, I've come across a lack of information."
"What do you mean?" Superintendent Manabe asks.
He decides to get straight to the point. "Yesterday evening, I ordered SearchMan to check every Japanese database we have access to," Raika explains. "Forgive me if I was being impudent, but I wanted to find out more about Mimic Lostie. However, when SearchMan came back, he informed me that there was no record of any child by the name of Mimic Lostie. He does not seem to exist at all. And, more to the point, neither of his Navis are registered to him. ProtoMan is the Navi of a boy who's been missing for over half a year, while Arcadia was reported as stolen almost a full year ago."
Commissioner Kifune and Superintendent Manabe exchange startled looks. Raika clasps his hands behind his back and remains respectful, but inside, he's hoping that the information he's brought them will allow them to come to the same conclusions that he has.
"I believe Mimic Lostie is an alias," Raika says. He may as well inform them about his own theory - perhaps they'll realise he's an asset in this case, and will allow him to investigate quietly. "I have yet to determine his true identity, but it's clear to me that he's a Navi-thief, and seems to be targeting unusually powerful NetNavis. Both ProtoMan and Arcadia took part in the N1 Grand Prix last year, and showed exceptional talent. I'm also concerned that Lan Hikari's NetNavi, MegaMan, is at risk of being a target of this thief, due to his unusual power."
To say nothing of the fact that he's also worried about his own Navi being a target. SearchMan's Search Program is unique enough that he may be of interest to the thief. But he doesn't mention that; voicing his concerns for his own Navi may cause the Commissioner to decide to keep him away from the thief, and he wants to be the one to discern the truth about whoever he really is.
"Raika," Commissioner Kifune says, "I advise you to stop digging into this."
Raika, who had been expecting at least some acknowledgement of the initiative he took in this, drops his hands and stares at the Commissioner.
"But, sir-" he begins.
Commissioner Kifune cuts him off. "Your concerns are valid," he admits, "but I assure you, Mimic is not a Navi-thief. His situation is rather unique, and it is being handled with as much care as possible. If you dig into it, you may cause more harm than good."
"Mimic doesn't exist!" Raika insists, forgetting to be respectful out of shock. "He as much admitted that his name was fake, yesterday!"
"Did he?" Superintendent Manabe seems surprised. She exchanges a glance with Commissioner Kifune, then turns her attention back to Raika. "What did he say, exactly?"
He takes a deep breath to steady himself before replying. "I mentioned that his name sounded made up," Raika says. "He said that it was my opinion, and that it was his name, not mine."
He'd also stammered quite a bit, and had mumbled the words so quietly that Raika almost didn't hear them. Yet moments before that, he'd spoken as smoothly as anyone else.
His timid personality is clearly an act, Raika thinks. But he can't mention that at the moment, because neither of his superiors seem to share his concerns. He'll tell them what he thinks once he's convinced them, he decides.
"He didn't actually say his name was fake, then," Superintendent Manabe says.
"Well, no, but he implied-"
Once again he's interrupted.
"We're not going to arrest one of our own Net Savers based on a rumour," Commissioner Kifune tells Raika.
"Rumour?" Raika echoes, shocked. "I'm not trying to start a rumour, sir!"
"You investigated one of our Net Savers without permission," Commissioner Kifune says. "And after discovering the barest amount of information, or a complete lack of information, you jumped to your own conclusions and decided to accuse Mimic of being a Navi-thief despite having no actual evidence."
"Sir, please." Raika tries to implore the Commissioner to listen. "At least let me continue investigating him. He won't even know about it. And if it turns out that I'm wrong, then no one will be hurt." He seriously doubts that he's wrong, but if this is what it takes to convince the Commissioner and Superintendent, then so be it.
But Raika can tell that his words aren't working. Commissioner Kifune just shakes his head, and Superintendent Manabe only looks at Raika, her expression unreadable.
"That's enough, Raika," Commissioner Kifune says sternly. "As your current commanding officer, I'm ordering you to leave this alone. You're not to investigate Mimic any further, nor will you mention your accusations to anyone else, least of all Mimic himself. Do I make myself clear?"
Raika just barely keeps his expression clear of the rage burning within. "Crystal clear, sir," he says quietly.
"Good," Commissioner Kifune says. "Is that all you needed to discuss?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then you're dismissed."
Raika nods stiffly, and turns to leave as the Commissioner's office is taken out of secure mode. He's lucky the door is an automatic one, otherwise he would have slammed it behind him on the way out.
His bad attitude is clear to the other members of the Net Police. People stay well clear of him as he heads for the temporary office he's been assigned in the building, a small room tucked away from the noise and bustle of the main building. He'd requested such a room because he hadn't wanted to get in anyone's way, but now he's grateful because it means he can have some privacy to go over the disastrous meeting.
He closes the little office's door with more force than strictly necessary, venting out some of his anger. For a moment he stands there, glowering at the floor, and then he huffs and makes his way over to the small desk, almost throwing himself into the chair.
My uncle would've listened to me, Raika thinks. Uncle Malenkov always values his opinion, even if he's the youngest Net Saver in Sharo - the same way that Mimic Lostie, or whoever he really is, is the youngest Net Saver in Japan.
Raika curls his lips at the thought that he and that thief have something in common aside from their jobs. He's nothing like that- that liar.
He pauses as another thought suddenly strikes him.
Commissioner Kifune and Superintendent Manabe didn't want to hear a word against their youngest Net Saver, and he'd thought that they were just unfairly dismissing his concerns. But what if they aren't? What if it's not their fault at all?
What if Mimic has manipulated them into thinking that he's innocent?
Raika knows that Mimic lives with the Hikaris, and he's still concerned that MegaMan could be Mimic's next target. He may have also manipulated them, somehow wormed his way into their family to get close enough to his target. And he has that cat with him, too - huge, with long, black fur, and blue eyes. Could the cat be a part of his manipulation? After all, who would suspect a timid twelve-year-old boy with an adorable cat as a pet?
This boy could be highly dangerous, if that's the case. And no one but Raika is able to see through his manipulation, because they're all too close to him and won't want to suspect him of being anything more than what he's made them think he is.
I should ask SearchMan for his opinion, Raika decides. His Navi's analytical mind is always valuable when he's investigating criminals like this - and he could provide insight that Raika might not have considered.
"SearchMan," he says, taking out his PET.
The screen is empty.
"SearchMan?" Raika narrows his eyes. He's sure that SearchMan had been in his PET before he'd set out from his hotel room earlier. So where is he now? "SearchMan, answer me. Where are you? SearchMan!"
A faint beep heralds SearchMan's arrival before he finally streams back into Raika's PET.
"Sorry, sir," SearchMan says. "I just went out for a while."
Raika almost asks why - he hadn't ordered SearchMan to go anywhere, nor had SearchMan informed him that he was leaving - but the realisation of how dangerous Mimic Lostie could be is far more pressing.
"I need your opinion on this Mimic person," Raika tells him.
SearchMan would seem perfectly calm to anyone who doesn't know him, but Raika sees the flicker of unease in his expression as he mentions the thief.
"What about him, sir?" SearchMan asks. There's an odd note of caution in his tone.
"I've told the Commissioner and Superintendent my theory about him," Raika explains. He'd already discussed it with SearchMan last night, but at that point, he'd only come to the conclusion that Mimic is not who he says he is, and that he could be a Navi-thief. Now, Raika's even more certain, and he needs to tell SearchMan about his new theory. "They dismissed my concerns. At first I thought they were being unfair, but I've come to realise that Mimic - or whoever he is - has been manipulating them, and everyone around him."
"Manipulating?" SearchMan looks even more uneasy now.
"Yes," Raika replies. Why isn't SearchMan more surprised by this? He doesn't seem to care as much as he should, either. "This boy could be extremely dangerous. They ordered me not to investigate him any further, but I think . . . I think in this case, we may need to disobey orders."
SearchMan's eyes widen.
"I know it goes against everything we've been taught," Raika says. "But I'd rather not let a criminal escape just because I was told not to investigate him. It's better to ask forgiveness than permission, and if it turns out that I'm right, we'd be able to take down a dangerous criminal and put him in jail, where he belongs."
"I'm not sure about this," SearchMan says hesitantly. "I don't think we should investigate Mimic."
"What?" Raika blinks at his Navi, surprised. He had expected SearchMan to be reluctant about disobeying orders, but not to outright refuse to investigate a criminal.
"I just think that . . . well . . ."
Raika narrows his eyes. "If you have something to say, then say it."
SearchMan cringes, and then seems to steel himself, looking Raika directly in the eyes.
"I think you're jumping to conclusions," SearchMan tells him. "You're accusing a twelve-year-old of crimes that even most adult humans would be wary of committing."
"So you think the Commissioner's right to dismiss my concerns?" Raika demands.
"Yes," SearchMan replies.
Raika says nothing, simply glaring at SearchMan. For several moments, neither of them speak.
" . . . You asked for my opinion," SearchMan points out quietly, breaking eye contact first. "I gave it." He closes his eyes for a moment and then looks up again. "But you'll go ahead with this anyway, so if you won't listen to my opinion, at least listen to my advice - tread carefully. You're interfering in something that's far different than you think it is."
Raika's anger falls away, quickly replaced by suspicion.
"What are you talking about?" he asks. "What do you know?"
"Enough," is the vague reply.
Raika scowls and puts away his PET, ending the conversation. He knows SearchMan well enough to realise that's all he's going to get out of him - SearchMan would never disobey a direct order, but if he thought there was some way he could find a loophole to avoid answering Raika's questions, he'd use it.
Later that same morning, Raika heads out to SciLab. He knows that Mimic spends most of his time there, allowing the scientists to conduct various experiments and tests on him because his Cross Fusion is odd and very different to Lan's.
Yesterday, during the tour of SciLab, Lan had said that Mimic's odd Cross Fusion is a result of ProtoMan being a cat-Navi. But now, Raika suspects that the odd Cross Fusion is in fact due to Mimic stealing ProtoMan and reprogramming him to be loyal to the thief rather than his actual operator.
He wants to observe Mimic, to see if he makes any more mistakes like he did yesterday. His smooth manner of speaking was in stark contrast to everything else he'd shown, and there could be more evidence that he's lying or manipulating the people around him in some way.
Raika curses himself for not noticing any of this sooner. He'd thought his conversation with the thief was odd, but had he known then what he does now, he would've paid more attention.
He finds Mimic in the observation room above the dimensional area lab. He seems to be playing with that giant cat - Raika still believes that the cat is part of the ruse, but if he can expose Mimic for what he truly is, perhaps the cat can be given to an owner who will actually care for it properly.
Raika spares a glance at the lab below them, half out of curiosity and half because he wants to keep up an appearance of normality, to avoid tipping off Mimic that he's onto him. He can see Lan down in the dimensional area, Cross Fused with his Navi, and sees a team of scientists - Lan's father, Dr. Hikari, among them - working in the lab.
"He'll b-be a while."
The voice is too quiet to startle him, but he still tenses at hearing it. He hadn't expected Mimic to try to engage with him.
"They're . . . comparing," Mimic says, as Raika looks at him. "The- the results. To see how different the F-Fusions are." Mimic blinks at him. "S-sorry if you want- wanted to talk to Lan."
His timid act is very good, Raika has to admit. If he didn't have his suspicions, he'd probably believe it.
"I didn't come here to talk to Lan," Raika replies. He wouldn't anyway, even if he'd come here for anything else - Lan is far too focused on using Cross Fusion to fight, and can't see the value in using his brain. They simply don't get along.
But Raika's moral code and sense of justice won't allow him to sit back and watch Lan's Navi be stolen from him, not if he's able to do something about it. Even if he doesn't like Lan, and Lan doesn't like him in turn, he's not that petty.
He has to find some way to expose Mimic. Then, perhaps, Commissioner Kifune will listen to him.
"I wanted to talk to you, actually," Raika continues, turning to face Mimic properly. "I have some questions."
Mimic has the same look of wariness that SearchMan had earlier. That means something, but Raika doesn't know what.
He decides to file it away for future reference, just in case it's important somehow. For now, though, he needs to focus on the task at hand.
"Why do you bring that cat with you?" Raika asks. He'd decided to start with small, innocent questions like this, so he can get Mimic to let down his guard. If he can get Mimic to do that, he may admit something that would help Raika's investigation.
"Cat?" Mimic repeats, glancing down at the large black cat.
For an absurd moment, Raika thinks maybe he's gotten the species wrong - perhaps it's not a cat at all, just an odd-looking dog. But it's still being used as a tool in Mimic's manipulation, whatever it is.
"He's- he's em-motional support," Mimic explains. "Um . . . an emotional s-support cat. His n-name's- his name's Ragdoll."
Oh, so it is a cat after all.
But emotional support? Raika has never heard anything so ridiculous. Is Mimic saying that this cat - Ragdoll, apparently - is a service animal of some kind? That's absurd. Only dogs can be service animals. How many more lies is this boy going to tell?
"M'not . . . good w-with . . . with people," Mimic mumbles. "R-Ragdoll helps."
His right hand twitches, bringing Raika's attention to it. He can see an odd-looking red scar on the skin just under his thumb, almost like a bite mark. It looks more recent than the vertical line of a scar going through his left eye, but both look fairly ragged.
Another mark against him - how many other twelve-year-olds have those kind of scars? What reason other than criminal activity could there be for someone like Mimic to have such scars?
"Hm," Raika says. "Is that why you're up here, instead of down there? Because you're not good with people?"
That has to be a lie. If Mimic really is manipulating these people, he has to be very good with people. That means this is part of the act. This boy would be an asset to the Net Police if he were actually on their side. It's a shame he isn't.
"Got kinda loud," Mimic says, glancing dimensional area lab below them. "Didn't . . . didn't like it m-much."
Or maybe he came up here to better observe the Navi he's planning on stealing.
Ragdoll makes a little trilling noise as he looks up from the small cat toy he's chewing, then pads over to Mimic. He stretches his head out and gently licks at the red scar on his right hand, and Mimic gives him a small, shaky smile as he strokes the cat's head with his other hand.
For the first time since he'd discovered the total lack of information on Mimic Lostie, Raika feels something like doubt creeping into his mind.
He suspects this boy of being a criminal, yet everything he's seen from the boy so far has been nothing of the sort. He'd lashed out yesterday, of course, but Mimic had pointed out that Raika had been the one to insult him first, so he was only reacting accordingly. He's keeping up this timid act so well and so thoroughly that maybe it's actually not an act.
Then he reminds himself of the wary look Mimic had given him when he'd said he wanted to talk to him. If Mimic wasn't guilty of being a Navi-thief, then why would he be wary of Raika wanting to ask questions?
"Do you live with the Hikaris?" Raika asks. He may as well try to gather as much information as possible while trying to get this thief to lower his guard.
"Mmhm." Mimic nods. He glances up, meets Raika's eyes briefly, and then turns his attention back to his cat.
"Why don't you live with your parents?"
Mimic stiffens.
Raika's had four year's worth of experience as a Net Saver, and in keeping his expression free of whatever emotions he feels inside so he doesn't tip off any criminals such as this one, so the triumph he feels at finally getting some sort of reaction is well-hidden. He won't be able to get Mimic comfortable enough to lower his guard, but maybe he can make him uncomfortable enough to do the same thing.
"I'm, um." Mimic's hand slides down to Ragdoll's back and gently tangles his fingers in the long fur. "M'a f-foster child. Don't h-have . . . parents. Or- or any f-family."
A foster child.
That's a perfect cover, Raika thinks. Who would question a sob story like that? People are always sympathetic towards lonely orphans. If he actually is an orphan, that makes this cover even worse, because it shows how callous he is.
"That must be tough," Raika says, even though every fibre of his being wants to drop his own act and accuse Mimic right now. Maybe that would help - he could startle Mimic into admitting the truth. But something tells him to hold back his accusations, at least for now.
"Not . . . r-really," Mimic mumbles. "The H-Hikaris are n-nice. They- they make me . . . f-feel welcome. Happy. I like them."
"They sound like very kind people," Raika comments. He mostly keeps his tone even, but a slight edge creeps into it anyway. He doesn't like that Mimic's talking this way about a family he's wormed his way into just so he can steal Lan's NetNavi.
"They are," Mimic says, looking up at him. Raika's surprised to see such an intense look in his eyes. "I wouldn't hurt them. Maybe I lie, sometimes, but it's not to be bad. I'm not bad. That's the truth. Whether you believe me or not is up to you."
He goes back to playing with his cat, ignoring the stunned expression that Raika can't keep off his face.
The intense look in Mimic's eyes, and his words, stick with Raika throughout the rest of the day. He can't get them out of his head, and they're hammered into him when he gets called into Commissioner Kifune's office later in the afternoon, and sees Lan already in the room.
He looks at Lan and all he can think about is his concern that MegaMan is Mimic's next target, but now, that concern is tainted by doubt after his talk with Mimic. He thinks about his concern and Mimic's words echo in his mind, no matter how much he tries to bring back the conviction he'd felt when trying to investigate the thief.
Raika tries to ignore that for now, and focuses on Commissioner Kifune.
"According to eyewitness reports," Commissioner Kifune says, "ghosts were seen stealing data from the network vaults. I want you two to head over to the bank and investigate."
"G-ghosts?" MegaMan's voice squeaks from Lan's PET. Lan takes it out, and Raika sees that MegaMan is trying to vanish into the side of the screen. "What would ghosts want with bank data? And- and why ghosts, anyway?"
Lan laughs. "C'mon, MegaMan, stop being such a coward!" he says. "I'd call you a scaredy-cat, but ProtoMan's the cat, not you."
"I'm not scared!" MegaMan insists. His faint voice and the way he's trying to hide contradict his words.
Raika might have poked fun at Lan for having a Navi who's afraid of ghosts, of all things - who's afraid of anything at all, honestly. But he's weighed down with his concerns and suspicions, and still Mimic's words echo in his mind.
He still thinks it's absurd that a Navi can be afraid of something like ghosts, of course. NetNavis have logic processors that should allow them to see past such superstitions, but apparently MegaMan's logic processor doesn't work like that. He's . . . a little odd - more like a human than any other Navi that Raika has encountered before.
That just makes his concerns more valid. If he's right, then Mimic would be stealing an entirely unique Navi - but his doubts still ring clear, and he's not sure what to think anymore.
"Lan and Raika, you've both already shown that you can produce excellent results when working together," Commissioner Kifune says, looking faintly amused at Lan and MegaMan's antics. "I hope you can solve this case. Find out who or what stole the data, and track them down. Put a stop to it, if you can. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!" Lan salutes clumsily.
Raika is almost tempted to ask if he can work alone on this case. Lan hadn't been much help yesterday - he'd simply distracted the Darkloid that had materialised, while Raika had done most of the actual legwork. But perhaps if he works with Lan and builds up some sort of professional relationship, he'll be able to ask him some questions about Mimic.
Nothing that would tip him off, of course. Lan clearly cares deeply about Mimic - before the tour yesterday, Mimic had told Lan that Raika was 'mean', and Lan's first reaction had to been to ask if Mimic was okay. The fact that that conversation had been entirely in sign language was more evidence for how much Lan cares.
If he makes Lan suspicious, he may tell Mimic something that Raika would rather keep quiet for now. It'll be better to try being tactful, the way he'd done with Mimic earlier. Though he's not sure if it worked.
"We'll find the culprit, sir," Raika says, straightening respectfully.
Lan looks delighted at that. "You can count on us," he agrees, grinning.
Raika feels a flicker of guilt. He wouldn't have willingly worked with Lan for anything, and the only reason he's doing so now is to fish for information about the boy living with him. Lan doesn't know that, and he's obviously thrilled that Raika seems to actually want to work with him this time.
They head to the bank separately, despite Raika agreeing to work together. Lan says he needs to get someone first, someone who might be able to help with their investigation, and Raika is a little mystified but agrees to meet him at the bank anyway.
If they simply use SearchMan's Search Program, they'll be able to find out who or what the bank thieves are. But he's curious as to who Lan is going to bring, and whether or not they actually will be of any help.
Lan finally arrives, sporting a wide grin, and holds up his PET. On the screen is MegaMan, and standing next to him is ProtoMan, who seems to be mildly bemused at being dragged out so suddenly.
"ProtoMan's a cat," Lan explains. "So me and MegaMan thought he could use his sense of smell to figure out who robbed the bank!"
"I'm not a cat," ProtoMan protests loudly. "How many times do I have to say it?"
Raika is still a little stunned at being faced with one of the Navis who he suspects might be stolen, but he studies ProtoMan anyway. He . . . doesn't look like a cat. He has fangs that are visible even when his mouth is closed, and his long white hair is quite bushy, but otherwise, he looks like a human-Navi.
While he studies ProtoMan, Raika notices odd shadows trailing around him. Some of the shadows appear to wrap around MegaMan, but the smaller blue Navi either doesn't notice or doesn't care. That's interesting. He's never seen shadows behave in such a way - is ProtoMan a shadow-Navi who keeps being mistaken for a cat-Navi?
ProtoMan looks back at him, and bares his teeth. They're almost absurdly sharp, and Raika can hear a low growl coming from him.
"Um," MegaMan says, looking between ProtoMan and Raika with wide eyes. "ProtoMan? Are you okay?"
"Fine," ProtoMan replies. He doesn't bother making any attempts to mask the growling.
Raika is thoroughly confused now. It seems ProtoMan acts somewhat like an animal-Navi at least, but he still looks like a human-Navi. And, for whatever reason, he doesn't seem to like Raika.
Well, that's not his problem. He's not trying to please anyone - he's trying to investigate Mimic Lostie, and solve this case with the ghosts stealing data. If they even are ghosts.
They head inside the bank, and Raika jacks in SearchMan. Lan jacks in MegaMan and ProtoMan along with him, and the three Navis make their way through the network to the vault that had been robbed.
"Open it," Raika tells SearchMan. Access to the network vault is automatic for them due to their status as Net Savers, so they have no need to ask the bank for their access codes.
The Navis step inside as soon as the vault opens. Raika would normally tell SearchMan to begin searching for traces of footprints, but he's curious to find out what ProtoMan is able to do, so he motions for SearchMan to stand back and allow ProtoMan to step into the middle of the vault.
"I'm not sure what you expect of me," ProtoMan admits.
"You're a cat," MegaMan says. "So . . . I dunno, sniff around?"
ProtoMan stares at him.
"I was gonna bring Rush, but I figured you'd be better, since Rush tends to get easily distracted," MegaMan tells him. "Please, ProtoMan?"
"I'm still not a cat," ProtoMan says, "but you do realise I have a tracking program installed in my helmet, right?"
MegaMan looks like someone has just slapped him in the face.
"I assume you didn't," ProtoMan sighs. His head moves in a way that suggests he's rolling his eyes. "But why bother bringing me at all? You could just ask SearchMan."
Beside Raika, Lan blinks and looks up at him. "Does SearchMan have some sort of tracking ability?" he asks curiously.
"He has the Search Program," Raika tells him. "He can use it to identify or track data."
Lan's eyes widen. "Why didn't you say anything?" he demands. "We didn't even need to waste time getting ProtoMan!"
"Rude," ProtoMan mutters.
"I wanted to see what help ProtoMan would be," Raika explains. "It sounds as though he has a similar ability to SearchMan's Search Program, though." He glances at the red-armoured Navi. "Would it be any use in tracking down these ghosts?"
ProtoMan curls his lip, baring his teeth again, and his tone is laced with another growl as he replies. "If I know what the actual culprit is, I could track them easily."
"Then we can use SearchMan's Search Program to identify the ghosts, and ProtoMan's tracking ability to hunt them down," Raika decides. He ignores the growling, though it's starting to bother him. Why does ProtoMan seem to hate him so much? He doesn't growl when he looks at SearchMan, yet he growls when he looks at Raika.
That distinction is important, somehow. Yet Raika, for the life of him, can't imagine why. Surely if ProtoMan has something against Raika, he'd also be biased against SearchMan as well?
But wondering about ProtoMan's bias against him will do nothing to help them solve this case. He orders SearchMan to use the Search Program, and the screen of his PET becomes tinted blue as the program activates.
ProtoMan steps back and out of the way so SearchMan can properly scan the vault, and within moments, Raika can see footprints. There are many of them, suggesting more than one culprit - and they seem quite small, all of them the same. Viruses, then.
"Traces detected," SearchMan reports. "Analysing data now."
He runs the footprints through the database, and quickly discovers the identity of the so-called ghosts.
"Mettaurs," Lan says, when Raika shows him the image on his PET. "ProtoMan, can you track them down?"
"See if you can track them to their next target," Raika suggests, before ProtoMan can begin using his own tracking ability. "We have Paint Bullets that can be used to put tracers on these Mettaurs. If we wait for them to regroup, we can follow them back to their base of operations."
"That's great!" Lan's eyes are practically sparkling. "We make an awesome team!"
You've done literally nothing, Raika is half-tempted to point out. But antagonising Lan may make him unwilling to answer any questions he has about Mimic, so he keeps that thought to himself.
ProtoMan tracks down the Mettaurs as easily as SearchMan had traced their footprints. It's impressive, and Raika wants to tell him that - he may not like any of the Net Savers he's met so far, but he can recognise and praise good skill when he sees it - but every time he looks at ProtoMan, the red-armoured Navi growls at him. It's very much bothering him now.
The Navis make their way through the networks, following ProtoMan's tracking program, while Raika and Lan follow in the real world. ProtoMan leads them straight to the Giga Net Bank, where they find data in the process of being stolen by the invisible Mettaurs.
Now that they've been uncovered as viruses, not ghosts, MegaMan seems to have no problem attacking them. The viruses are invisible, but the data being stolen makes it easy to find them, and the three Navis know exactly how big a Mettaur is - not to mention, SearchMan's Search Program allows him to detect invisible data, so he has no need to use guesswork anyway.
SearchMan raises his Scope Gun to begin firing, but a red blur shoots past him. ProtoMan launches himself at one of the invisible Mettaurs and quite literally tears it to pieces, using claws that Raika hadn't seen until now.
Retractable claws? Sharp teeth? Growling?
ProtoMan says he's not a cat, but Raika's not so sure about that. Why is he insisting that he's not a cat when he very clearly is?
SearchMan hesitates for a brief moment, and Raika suddenly remembers his report from when he'd sent SearchMan into Japan's network after that ShadowMan Navi. He'd pointed his Scope Gun at MegaMan, and ProtoMan appeared out of nowhere and had attacked him, possibly in the same way that he's attacking these Mettaurs right now.
On the other hand, MegaMan doesn't even blink. He aims for where the Mettaurs would be if they were visible and begins firing his own weapon, which Lan has informed him is called the Mega Buster, and works around ProtoMan's seemingly-random pattern of attack.
"Follow MegaMan's lead," Raika tells SearchMan.
"Yes, sir," SearchMan says, snapping to attention and aiming once again.
The plan is to leave enough of the viruses alive to shoot with the Paint Bullets. With the three Navis working to delete most of them, the ones that remain will retreat, and hopefully lead them straight back to their hideout.
Raika hopes that ProtoMan remembers the plan. He seems to be going after every single Mettaur nearby, clawing and biting and hissing at them (he is definitely a cat) without bothering to check what he's doing.
"The viruses are retreating," SearchMan suddenly reports, lowering his Scope Gun. MegaMan also stops firing, and ProtoMan immediately scrambles away - on all fours - and abandons the virus he'd been mauling.
Raika quickly switches the Scope Gun's settings to Paint Bullets. For this part of the plan, MegaMan and ProtoMan won't be able to do anything - MegaMan doesn't have any way to use Paint Bullets, and ProtoMan's tracking ability might not cover a wide enough area for them to find the viruses' hideout.
SearchMan raises his Scope Gun and fires rapidly, shooting the Paint Bullets at the viruses. He hits every single one of them that's left, and they vanish into the network, but Raika already has a good read on where they're heading.
"Perfect," Raika says. "Now, let's head back to HQ - we can wait for the viruses to converge, and then move in on them when they do."
Lan cheers and MegaMan almost bounces, but ProtoMan only stares at Raika, still growling faintly.
"They appear to be heading north," Raika murmurs. On the monitor, the moving dots of light indicating the Paint Bullet-covered Mettaurs seem to be heading toward the same focal point. "Our attack shook them, and they split up, but they're now heading in the same direction."
"Good work, you two," Commissioner Kifune says. "We've almost finished processing the stolen data from the banks. Now all we need is for you two to take down the criminals."
Raika nods, still focused on the screen.
ProtoMan speaks up suddenly, prompting Raika to turn his attention to a smaller screen, showing the three Navis. ProtoMan stands in the middle, oddly fitting because he's taller than MegaMan yet shorter than SearchMan. Raika hadn't noticed before, because ProtoMan had spent most of his time growling at him or running around on all fours like the cat he insists he isn't.
"If this is all you need from me," ProtoMan says, "can I go back to my operator now?"
"I was kinda hoping you'd come with us." MegaMan looks disappointed, but not surprised. "But, sure, if you wanna go back to Mimic, we don't mind at all. How is he, anyway?"
"He's fine," ProtoMan replies, a slight smile on his lips. For Raika, who he's only growled at, it's a little surprising to see. "Dr. Hikari thinks the noise affected him so much because that's how I usually react to loud noises."
"Oh, so it was transferred over to him, like the night vision and your agility?" MegaMan asks curiously. "So he's basically a cat, but he's still human. Just like you!"
"Still not a cat," ProtoMan says, sighing.
"I'm not sure why you insist on that," Raika speaks up, before he has a chance to think better of it. "You've been acting like a cat this entire time. You have fangs and claws, you growl, and you also run around on all fours." ProtoMan starts growling at him again, and Raika's patience snaps. "And why do you keep growling at me? I've done nothing to you!"
"Oh, haven't you." The coldest winter in Sharo couldn't compare to the ice in ProtoMan's tone right now.
SearchMan, oddly enough, gives ProtoMan a warning glance. Raika is absolutely sick of all these secrets, especially from his own Navi, who shouldn't be keeping anything from him.
"What is going on here?" Raika snaps. SearchMan jerks his head up to stare at him, wide-eyed, and there's a hint of alarm in his expression, but Raika's too worked up to care about what that could mean. "You seem to be dead-set against me for no apparent reason, and now my own Navi is apparently working against me as well!"
"Says the human who's accusing my operator of being a criminal!" ProtoMan snaps back.
Raika freezes.
"How do you know about that?" he asks slowly.
ProtoMan ignores his question. "You were ordered to stop investigating by Commissioner Kifune, Mimic told you the truth to get you to stop, and even your own Navi tried to talk you out of it! But did you listen? No! You continued to act on your own, jumping to conclusions, deciding that Mimic is a criminal even though you have literally no evidence! And you wonder why I'm growling at you?"
"What?" Commissioner Kifune's voice is sharp as he turns to give Raika a hard stare. "Raika, I told you not to dig into this. Why did you disobey a direct order?"
"He's manipulating you!" Raika exclaims, whirling on him. He looks around at Superintendent Manabe, and then Lan. "He's manipulating all of you, and you're all too close to that thief to see it."
"Thief?" Lan repeats. He looks just as shocked as MegaMan, who's completely speechless. "Ch- M-Mimic's not a thief!"
"Isn't he?" Raika narrows his eyes at him, and gestures at ProtoMan. "He's the NetNavi of Chaud Blaze, who's been missing for over half a year. And that other Navi, Arcadia? He was stolen a year ago. Both of them are with Mimic, and you don't find that strange at all?"
"No, because they're both his Navis!" Lan exclaims. "Look, there's a good explanation for all of this, and if you'd just let us explain-"
"I've heard enough," Raika speaks over him. "There's no need to explain, because I already figured it out. Mimic is not a real person and never existed, that thief is using a fake name and a sob story to blind you all to the fact that he's a highly-dangerous criminal!"
A wild screech splits the air and half of the machines in the room glitch. Every single light flickers spastically, more than a few of them going out entirely, and it's only pure instinct that gives Raika enough warning to allow him to leap backwards and avoid getting crushed by the falling light above his head.
He, along with the other three humans in the room, stare at the broken light on the floor in shocked silence for several moments. Then, slowly, he turns his attention to the small screen.
It flickers just as badly as everything else in the room, but as he focuses his attention on it, the screen stops flickering abruptly. ProtoMan may be in the cyberworld, but the look on his face promises that if he could get into the real world somehow, Raika would not survive the encounter. MegaMan and SearchMan are pressing against the sides of the screen, looking equally terrified, and though Raika usually doesn't approve of SearchMan showing such emotion to others, he can't blame him for it right now.
"Did- did you just try to drop a light on my head?" Raika demands incredulously.
"Consider yourself lucky it wasn't the entire building," ProtoMan growls. Raika flinches at his tone, more terrifying now that he's seen what ProtoMan is capable of. "You listen to me, you arrogant dick. Leave my operator alone. Don't investigate him, don't accuse him of being a criminal, and most of all, do not insult him. And next time your Navi tells you to stop digging yourself into a hole, you'd better listen to him, because he seems to have more sense than you do. Try thinking before you speak, and maybe you won't get a light dropped on your empty head."
ProtoMan leaves before anyone has a chance to respond to that.
"Raika?" Lan whispers. Raika turns his head to look at him, numb with shock and fear. "Do . . . do you really think that Mimic is a criminal?"
"I- I-" Raika stammers.
"You're lucky you only insulted Mimic," MegaMan says quietly. "I've seen ProtoMan do far worse than that."
He's used to the cold, but he's never had it coupled with the fear that sparks through his blood as Raika stares at MegaMan. What could be far worse than trying to drop a light on his head, and threatening to bring down an entire building? He . . . he doesn't want to find out.
Lan's quiet shock gives way to hot anger suddenly. "What is wrong with you?" Lan demands. "Mimic's the nicest person I know! The only thing he ever stole was food when he was starving to death!" His eyes widen, and Raika wants very much for the ground to open up and swallow him as Lan continues in a voice trembling with rage. "Is- is this why you were suddenly willing to work with me? Because you wanted to get information out of me? About Mimic?"
" . . . Yes," Raika admits.
He's made a terrible mistake. His four year's worth of experience as a Net Saver doesn't tell him that - his common sense tells him, with as much subtlety as a brick to the face, that he's done something terribly, terribly wrong.
"You're a horrible person!" Lan snaps. "I thought you were just a jerk, but you're worse than that! Chaud's been through enough without people like you trying to accuse him of being something he isn't! Forget working with you, I'll solve this case on my own. MegaMan, can you download the tracker for me? We'll follow the viruses wherever they lead us."
The only way they can download the tracker is if SearchMan allows them to, since it comes from his systems, but SearchMan doesn't protest and hands over a copy without a word.
Lan stays long enough to allow the tracker to download, and then he gives Raika one last scathing look before barging past him and storming out of the room. Raika is left with Commissioner Kifune and Superintendent Manabe, who are looking so disappointed in him that he's half-tempted to book the first flight back to Sharo just to escape.
" . . . Lan said Chaud, not Mimic," Raika suddenly realises. "What . . . what did he mean by that?"
"We told you Mimic's situation was being handled with care," Commissioner Kifune tells him. "What you've done is the furthest thing from care there is." He sighs. "It's not my place to tell you anything. I'd advise you to talk to Mimic, but I don't think ProtoMan would let you get anywhere near him right now."
"I . . . I need to fix this," Raika says, almost begs. "Please."
"Go after Lan and help him," Superintendent Manabe suggests. "He may not welcome you at first, but keep being persistent, and try not to antagonise him further. One thing we've noticed with Lan and Mimic is that, if one of them trusts you, the other will also trust you."
He has serious doubts that Lan will ever trust him after this, but if he can get into Lan's good graces, maybe he'll get an opportunity to talk to Mimic - not to try and fish for information about a potential criminal identity, but to actually talk to him, and listen to his side of the story.
I should've done that from the start, Raika thinks.
He's ashamed of how he's acted. What would his uncle think of him now? He's hardly worthy of being a Net Saver.
But he has to try and fix this. Whether or not Mimic is a criminal no longer matters - he can figure that out later. For now, he has a case to solve.
Raika follows the tracer's signal to an abandoned factory. Given that Lan had run out ahead of him, he suspects that he's already there and is likely already battling the viruses - or whoever has been commanding them, because it's very unlikely that a bunch of Mettaurs would be capable of making themselves invisible and coming up with such a complicated plan to steal data.
"You're sure this is the place?" Raika asks, taking out his PET.
"This is where the signals lead," SearchMan reports quietly. He's been far quieter than normal ever since the incident at HQ.
"Alright," Raika says, slightly awkward. He'd guessed that SearchMan had known more than he was letting on about this situation with Mimic, but the look that his Navi is giving him suggests that he's extremely disappointed in Raika. The only reason that SearchMan isn't being as open about it as the Commissioner and Superintendent were is because his loyalty prevents him from doing so.
He heads into the factory, rushing to find the nearest jack-in port. But most of the ones he could use are either too rusted over for him to jack SearchMan in, or they're too old for the Advanced PET to use.
Eventually, he finds a jack-in port he can actually use, and sends SearchMan in ahead of him. The screen changes to show the network of the abandoned factory, and MegaMan being held in the grip of a giant, sandy Navi. No, wait, the data signature is too strange to make this a Navi - so it must be a Darkloid.
SearchMan makes a rush for the walkway above them while Raika heads off in search of Lan. He finds him quickly, in a larger room just up ahead, and comes to a stop just as SearchMan gets to the walkway and aims his Scope Gun at the Darkloid.
"That's enough!" SearchMan calls. "Release him now!"
"SearchMan?" Lan sounds shocked. "How did-" He pauses, stiffening as Raika steps up beside him. "Oh. You again." The flat anger in his tone is far worse than the childish outbursts that Raika's been dealing with for the past couple of days.
"We came to help," Raika tells him.
Before Lan can respond to that, the sandy Darkloid shifts and holds MegaMan above a boiling pit of digital lava. NetNavis can survive quite a lot of damage, but even their data would break down and burn if they were dumped straight into lava like that.
"If you shoot me," the Darkloid rumbles, "he falls. Go ahead, make my day - delete your own comrade just to get at me!"
Lan's eyes widen, and he stares at Raika with undisguised mistrust. He clearly expects Raika to order SearchMan to shoot the Darkloid and cause the deletion of his Navi.
And maybe Raika would have done that, but now, he doesn't want to. Orders mean absolutely nothing in the face of the anger and shame he's been forced to deal with since deciding to investigate Mimic.
"Shoot the lava," Raika tells SearchMan.
"Wha-" Lan begins, clearly shocked.
SearchMan shoots the lava without hesitation. The lava freezes into stone, completely nullifying the Darkloid's threat, and Raika doesn't bother containing his smirk.
"It's called Freeze Bullet," he tells Lan, who's still gaping at him. "It'll freeze anything, even lava. That Darkloid's threat is meaningless now."
"R-Raika," Lan says, blinking. There's a hint of hope in his expression now.
Raika nods to him, then snaps his attention back to the battle when the Darkloid calls out suddenly.
"Great Lion Head!" the Darkloid shouts, dropping MegaMan and bringing both of his hands together to form what looks like a giant lion head made from sand. It shoots out, aiming straight for SearchMan, far too fast for him to dodge.
SearchMan screams in pain, getting flung back and slammed into a nearby wall. The walkway is half-destroyed with the powerful attack, and Raika's heart nearly skips a beat when the dust clears, revealing SearchMan slumped against the wall, bleeding bits of data from his wounds.
Raika checks SearchMan's hit points, and is horrified to discover how low they are. How powerful is this Darkloid, that it could do that much damage in one hit?
The Darkloid is busy laughing, gloating over the easy victory, and he doesn't notice MegaMan slipping away and rushing up the walkway to SearchMan. Raika watches him check SearchMan over, looking horrified at the damage.
"S-SearchMan," MegaMan stammers out. "Thank you . . ."
SearchMan gives him a small grin, and then slumps down in MegaMan's arms.
"How touching!" the Darkloid crows. "And here I thought you wouldn't be able to get your acts together enough to fight me properly!"
"Go, MegaMan," SearchMan whispers.
A light shines from both PETs, blinding Raika and making him unable to see what happens next. When it dies down, SearchMan is nowhere to be seen, but MegaMan stands firm, wearing SearchMan's armour, with a Scope Gun attached to his arm.
"Double Soul!" Lan exclaims joyfully.
"What?" Raika looks at him, shocked. What in the world is Double Soul? Where has SearchMan gone? Why in the hell is MegaMan wearing his Navi's armour?
MegaMan takes aim at the Darkloid and fires, using a targeting system that's far too similar to SearchMan's. Has MegaMan somehow absorbed SearchMan, and is now using his power? Is that what this Double Soul is?
The shot fired from MegaMan's Scope Gun is far more powerful than anything SearchMan could ever achieve without a power-boost, tearing apart the Darkloid's sandy body with ease. The sand ripples and covers the wound instantly, but the Darkloid clearly feels the attack, wincing and snarling in response.
Two odd shadow-covered pillars materialise in front of the Darkloid. The shadows remind him of ProtoMan, but these ones aren't as dark as those shadows, and the pillars move around the Darkloid. He turns invisible immediately - this must be how the Mettaurs became invisible, Raika realises.
MegaMan looks around, using SearchMan's Search Program to scan for the Darkloid. After a few moments, he turns his attention to the walkway beneath his feet. He takes aim, and shoots once - blasting the walkway beneath his feet and hitting the Darkloid, sending him back wherever he'd come from.
As soon as the Darkloid is gone, MegaMan shifts back to his normal form. Lan, grinning, inserts an empty chip into his PET - it pops back out a moment later, with SearchMan's NaviMark on it, and Raika has never been more confused in his entire life.
A faint beep startles him, and he looks at his own PET just in time to see SearchMan come back. He looks as calm as ever, but there's an obvious hint of satisfaction in his expression, and his wounds and hit points are completely healed.
" . . . Good work," Raika says quietly. SearchMan acknowledges his praise with a nod.
"Hey, Raika," Lan says. Raika glances over at him, and is surprised to see a full grin being directed at him. "Thanks for coming to help us. And thanks for Search Soul!"
Raika smiles back at him, and then his smile falters as he remembers the reason why he'd come in the first place.
"I need to speak to Mimic," he says bluntly. Lan's grin freezes in place. "Please," Raika goes on, almost desperately. "His Navi won't let me anywhere near him, not unless you help."
"His Navi?" Lan echoes, narrowing his eyes. "So you're not thinking that Mimic stole ProtoMan anymore? Or Arcadia?"
"I don't know what to think," Raika confesses. "But I need to talk to Mimic."
"I don't think I can do that," Lan says reluctantly. "I mean, I want to, and Mimic'll probably be willing, but I can't tell ProtoMan what to do."
Raika slumps, almost defeated, but Lan continues speaking.
"I could ask Arcadia to talk to you, though," Lan says. "Even if ProtoMan won't let you talk to Mimic, Arcadia's the next best thing. He's more reasonable than ProtoMan is - plus, he has the Empath Program, so if you're actually sincere, he'll be able to sense it."
"I am sincere," Raika insists, even as he wonders what the Empath Program is, and why it apparently gives Arcadia the ability to sense his sincerity.
"Then I'll get Arcadia to talk to you," Lan replies. "You know what he looks like?"
"SearchMan showed me an image of him and ProtoMan after the incident with ShadowMan," Raika confirms.
Lan nods, and together they leave the abandoned factory.