Lan's never seen the vaccine chip in action before, but he has to say, it looks a lot like how Arcadia's Holy Fire burns away darkness.
He's watching the last of the contained NetNavis at SciLab be cured. Kifune and Manabe are here as well, to see the full extent of the vaccine chip in action, since Dad's been sending regular reports on how well it's been working. They wanted to see it for themselves, so Dad invited them to watch, and it's easy to tell they're impressed so far. Lan certainly is - and even though Chaud's apparently seen this before, he still looks at the working vaccine chip like he's only just seeing it for the first time.
Dad said Chaud had cried when he told him they'd completed it, and that they could get ProtoMan back using the vaccine chip. Looking at Chaud now, Lan's not at all surprised.
After the last Navi has been cured of the Dark Aura and is being checked by the rest of the vaccine team, they head into the main room to discuss it. Dad and Famous are determinedly optimistic - in both the vaccine chip and their creation of SciLab's own version of the dimensional converters - and Kifune and Manabe seem hopeful as well, but their hope is more cautious, Lan thinks. He's not sure why, because Dad's right; with the vaccine chip now finished, they can cure any Navi afflicted by the Dark Aura, including ProtoMan.
"Nebula could strike at any moment," Kifune reminds them gravely. "They've attacked SciLab in the past - and they could easily do it again. Last time, they attempted to destroy Lan's PET before it could be completed. This time, they may attempt to destroy the vaccine chip, or put a stop to your efforts in creating dimensional converters."
"We have the data backed up," Famous points out.
"And Nebula would be fully aware of any backups, we believe," Manabe says. "They could easily destroy those, too. The majority of their Darkloid forces have been depleted, but they still have plenty of human operatives."
"And we still don't know where Dr. Regal himself is," Kifune adds. "He could be anywhere on the planet."
"No, he's not."
Lan blinks at the quiet voice beside him, and glances at Chaud. So does Dad, Famous, Kifune, and Manabe.
"He's in space," Chaud goes on. "Hiding. In a . . . thing. Satellite. Space station. Whatever."
Everyone stares at him. Several moments pass by in shocked silence, and Chaud blinks, suddenly looking very confused, and extremely awkward, like he's said something he shouldn't have and is deeply regretting it.
"Did . . . did I not . . . ?" Chaud trails off. He tries again, and his next attempt at speech isn't any less awkward than the previous attempt. "I thought I . . ."
"You didn't tell anyone," Arcadia says gently.
" . . . Oh," Chaud says, in a very small voice.
It's only Arcadia speaking up that makes Lan realise Chaud honestly thought he'd already told them about this. He feels a pang of sympathy for Chaud - it can't be easy, having that kind of knowledge because of his power, and it's clearly difficult to keep things straight. How much trouble does he have trying to work out which dreams are of the future and which dreams are just dreams? How much information about the future does he have in his head, and he can't tell anyone about it because it's too much and he just can't remember until someone says something or does something that reminds him?
Lan doesn't know the full extent of Chaud's precognition. He's not even sure Chaud himself knows. It must be overwhelming.
"What do you mean, he's in space?" Kifune steps forward sharply, and Chaud winces, like he's expecting to be yelled at for not speaking up sooner.
"Chaud," Dad speaks up softly, "it's alright. No one's angry at you. You have an extraordinary power, and no one expects you to be able to control it - or handle it. You're just a child."
"Should've said something," Chaud mumbles, ducking his head.
"You did," Famous points out. "Just now. Better late than never, right?"
Dad nods. "That's right," he agrees. "Now, what else can you tell us about this . . . satellite, was it?"
Chaud hesitates for a moment, and then looks up again. He focuses on Dad - Lan doesn't think he's imagining that Chaud is avoiding looking at Kifune and Manabe. He's probably gotten yelled at by Kifune too much, and is afraid of it happening again, just because he forgot he didn't tell anyone that Dr. Regal is in space.
"It's . . . hidden," Chaud says. "Invisible. M'not sure how . . ." He pauses, and then suddenly his eyes widen. "Stealth! It has a stealth feature. The satellite. Station. Thingy. Whatever it is."
"A stealth feature would certainly explain why we can't find it," Famous remarks. "But it should still have some sort of signal - we can access the tracking satellites orbiting the planet, and use them to track infrared rays that bounce off it."
Chaud shakes his head. "Not enough," he says. "You'll need Control X."
"Control X?" Kifune repeats. "If I recall correctly, that's the air traffic control system. It's highly advanced."
"And Nebula once attempted to destroy it," Famous reminds everyone. "I think I know why - it may be used to control air traffic, but Control X has the capability to connect to every satellite in orbit around the planet. I'm willing to bet Dr. Regal wanted it destroyed because he knew it would be able to find him."
"So we use Control X to connect to the satellites, and then go through each one until we find Dr. Regal," Dad says. He turns to Kifune. "I know the Net Police ordered the system to be dismantled in order to protect it from further attempts to destroy it, but we need it now."
"And you'll have it," Kifune replies, with a short nod. "The system is locked away inside HQ - will you be able to set it up?"
"Of course."
"We can set up something like that easily," Famous adds. Dad glances at him in surprise, and Famous raises an eyebrow at him. "What, you think I'd let you do this on your own? It'll take more than one person to set up something as complicated as Control X, you know."
"Um," Lan speaks up. Everyone turns to face him, and he swallows, suddenly nervous. "Won't Nebula attack HQ if we start using Control X to find their leader? I mean, they're not stupid . . . They'd definitely try and do something about it. Right?"
Kifune narrows his eyes as he considers that. "The Net Police HQ is one of the most secure buildings in the entire city," he says slowly. "If we utilise every safeguard we have at our disposal, we should be able to defend Dr. Hikari and Famous while they're tracking down Dr. Regal."
Manabe nods, and looks at Chaud. "Did your dream tell you anything else? Other than Dr. Regal being in space, that is."
"Darkloids," Chaud says. "They're gonna attack. Like Lan said."
"How many?" Kifune demands.
Chaud only hesitates for a split second. "All of them," he simply replies.
Lan's eyes widen, and he stares at Chaud, horrified. All of them? Does . . . does that mean every single Darkloid they've ever fought will be coming to try and stop Dad and Famous from finding Dr. Regal? That's insane, they can't beat that many!
More to the point, how can that even be possible? No one's sure how many Darkloids Nebula has left - considering they were looking into recruiting independent Navis like MistMan and Bass, they must be short on cyberworld Nebula operatives. Dad even thinks that Dark ProtoMan might actually be the only Darkloid Nebula has left. But it looks like that's about to change, now.
"Dr. Regal can resurrect them," Chaud says into the stunned silence. "Don't know how. Just saw LaserMan on a throne, and all the deleted Darkloids waking up. Then they attacked HQ. And . . ." He hesitates again, and then hunches his shoulders. "And Dark ProtoMan will attack Control X."
Dad sucks in a gasp of shock, and Lan barely stops himself from doing the same.
Dark ProtoMan is going to attack Dad and Famous? That . . . that's horrifying to think about. He's one of the most sadistic beings of the cyberworld that Lan has ever come across, and every time he shows up, he goes out of his way to torment poor Chaud. And now he's going to be attacking Lan's dad.
"It sounds like the resurrected Darkloids will only be a distraction, then," Kifune says.
"But we won't be able to take on that many Darkloids in the cyberworld and defend HQ from an attack in the real world at the same time," Manabe points out worriedly. "It'll be impossible."
Lan glances at Chaud, just in time to see his expression set. He knows Chaud well enough to recognise that look - he only ever has that expression when he's made up his mind about something that's probably going to put him in serious danger, and usually leads to Chaud getting in trouble with Kifune afterwards.
"You have a plan, don't you?" Dad asks Chaud, getting everyone's attention again.
Chaud nods. "Fight the Darkloids in the network," he says. "Let me and Arcadia deal with Dark ProtoMan."
"No," Kifune says firmly, before anyone else can protest. "We all know that Dark ProtoMan would drop whatever mission he has in favour of tormenting you - and you'd be putting yourself directly into his path!"
"That's the point," Chaud replies, and Kifune stares at him in shock. "Dark ProtoMan will be distracted by me. He won't bother with Control X."
"So this plan is basically the same thing you came up with back when Dark ProtoMan tried to destroy Lan's PET," Dad says, in a tone as hard as stone. "You'll turn yourself into bait, relying on Arcadia to protect you, while we find Dr. Regal."
"Yes," Chaud replies.
Before Dad can protest, Lan decides he should probably add in his own opinion. He doesn't want Chaud to get hurt any more than Dad does, and he definitely hates that Chaud is planning to turn himself into bait - again - for Dark ProtoMan, but this is pretty much the only option they have.
"It worked last time," Lan points out, and winces when Dad gives him a sharp look. "I mean, kinda. Chaud managed to keep my PET out of Dark ProtoMan's hands, and Arcadia did protect him. Who's to say it won't work again?"
"The only reason it worked was because the two of you have an absurd amount of sheer dumb luck," Dad snaps. "I refuse to allow this to-"
"Your plan is approved," Kifune interrupts, nodding to Chaud. Dad fixes his stare on him, mouth gaping and frozen out of pure shock. "If it worked once before, we have no reason to think it won't work again. Dark ProtoMan is highly dangerous, but also very predictable. Do you think you and Arcadia will be able to keep him busy long enough for Dr. Hikari and Famous to find Dr. Regal?"
Chaud nods, and Arcadia speaks up to add, "I won't let Dark ProtoMan hurt Chaud, or destroy Control X."
"But-" Dad tries to protest.
Famous puts a hand on his shoulder. "This is the only plan we've got," he says gently. "Look, I know you're worried, but do you have any better ideas?"
Dad stares at him helplessly, and then slumps in defeat. "No," he admits quietly. He buries his face in his hands. "I just wish 'the only plan we've got' didn't always involve putting one or both of my kids into life-threatening danger every single time . . ."
The set-up of Control X takes very little time, with both Dr. Hikari and Famous working on it. Mimic wonders if she should be doing anything to help as well, since this was, basically, her idea - all of it, literally. Sure, she got the idea from what happened in the anime, and she's just making sure everything goes the way it should, but as far as anyone else is concerned, this is all her.
It'd be too strange for you to help, Chaud says reasonably. Like you've said before, you've already established that you're smart, but not that kind of smart.
I could always pretend I saw this all in my dream, Mimic points out, though even she sees how ridiculous that idea is before the words are out of her . . . mind? Whatever.
There's absolutely no way you could pass off such detailed knowledge with the 'I saw this in my dream' excuse, Chaud replies. I'd definitely be able to help Dr. Hikari and Famous with this, but you can't - and you don't want to draw any more attention to yourself, do you?
. . . No, Mimic admits. Alright, I'll stay back and just watch. Still feel like I should be doing more, though.
"You've done plenty," Arcadia's quiet voice speaks up. "You told them where and how to find Dr. Regal, and came up with a plan to stop Nebula from destroying Control X. Asking you to do anything more at this point would just be . . . well, rude, I think."
I still should've told them sooner, Mimic frets.
She still can't believe she forgot to tell the Net Police about Dr. Regal being in space. What kind of an idiot forgets a detail that important? Well, okay, she didn't forget-forget, but she just didn't remember to tell anyone else. That's actually even worse, and she still feels the burn of shame from realising that no one knew what she was talking about - because she never told them in the first place.
That's not your fault, Chaud tells her. You're human, just like anyone else - and even if your knowledge doesn't come from the power of precognition, we can't expect you to remember everything. Last I checked, your memory isn't perfect. It's not the end of the world if you overlook a few details.
It could be, Mimic replies miserably.
Chaud doesn't have any argument for that, so he falls back on another point. You remember what Famous said? 'Better late than never', right? At least you did tell them. Would you prefer to have forgotten entirely, and leave Dr. Regal to his own devices?
Of course not! Mimic exclaims.
Chaud sends a wave of smugness through their connection. Well, there you go, then, he replies.
She sighs mentally and decides it'll be better to just stop arguing with him. He makes a good point anyway - Mimic can see the logic in what he's saying, even if she believes otherwise. She's not so self-conscious that she won't listen to reasoning like that.
After a few minutes, Mimic becomes aware of a half-familiar set of footsteps making their way toward the room. Of course she'd already known he'd be coming in - not just because of the anime, but also because Kifune told Dr. Hikari he was bringing him in to help. But it's still a pleasant surprise to hear those half-familiar footsteps.
Raika steps into the room, pausing at the sight of the Control X system being set up at the foot of the balcony overlooking the floor. Dr. Hikari and Famous are too engrossed in their work to notice him, but Mimic has nothing to do except sit and wait for Nebula's attack, so she raises her hand and waves Raika over.
"Commissioner Kifune told me the situation while I was on the way here," Raika says, nodding a greeting to her. "Your power allowed you to figure out where Dr. Regal is hiding, right? And now we're using Control X to find his exact location."
"Nice to see you too," Mimic jokes.
Raika huffs, a half-smile spreading on his face. "Good to see you still have your weird sense of humour," he comments amiably. His tone grows more subdued and serious as he continues. "I think you might need it, considering the role you're going to play."
If Kifune explained the situation to Raika, that obviously includes the plan that Mimic came up with. Or recycled, whatever. He doesn't look like he disapproves of it, but he doesn't look entirely happy about it, either - which is basically the same reaction everyone else had, aside from Dr. Hikari, who was outright against it.
"Be careful," Raika warns her gently. "I've never met Dark ProtoMan personally, but from what I've read in the reports . . ." He trails off uncertainly.
"I'll protect him," Arcadia says. "The plan might be to distract Dark ProtoMan from Control X, but I won't let him touch Chaud if I can help it."
"And if you can't?" Raika asks.
Arcadia's voice takes on an edge as he replies. "I will protect Chaud."
"I didn't say you wouldn't," Raika says calmly. "But Dark ProtoMan is apparently insanely powerful. And actually insane, too. He may be predictable in terms of his priorities, but beyond that, it'll be impossible to try and map out his movements."
"I know," Arcadia murmurs. "But if I don't at least try, this will all be for nothing."
Raika nods with a quiet grunt of acknowledgement. He heads out after that, to the control room where everyone else is waiting to defend HQ's network - there are three levels of firewalls, each as strong as the Net Police could make them, and more Police Navis than Mimic cares to count. Adding in MegaMan and SearchMan, they should be able to at least hold off the resurrected Darkloids.
In the anime, they'd been expecting Nebula and had been ready for an attack - but they hadn't been able to predict that Dr. Regal would be able to resurrect every single deleted Darkloid and send them to attack the network. Now, though, thanks to Mimic's warning, the Net Police are fully prepared for them. She's not sure if a massive amount of Police Navis and stronger firewalls will be enough to keep the Darkloids at bay, and it definitely won't be enough to stop the dimensional area and Dark ProtoMan, but at least they won't be taken by surprise.
Scarcely a few minutes after Raika's brief visit, Dr. Hikari and Famous finish setting up Control X. Mimic steps up next to Dr. Hikari just as he pulls out his PET, and he rests an arm around her shoulders while he calls Manabe.
"We've finished setting up Control X," Dr. Hikari reports. There's a tension in his voice that Mimic knows is entirely her fault - he was outvoted and basically forced to allow Mimic's plan to go ahead, and is still against it even now. "We're ready to begin the search."
On the screen of Dr. Hikari's PET, Manabe nods. "Good work," she says, and then the call ends.
Kifune's voice echoes throughout the building a moment later.
"Attention all hands!" Kifune calls. "The operation to find Dr. Regal has now begun! Everyone to your places, and remember - we must protect Control X at all costs!"
Dr. Hikari waits until Kifune's voice has faded, and then nods to Famous, who nods back and turns in his seat. He's sitting at the main console that will handle the data for Control X, and Dr. Hikari will be making sure the rest of the system runs smoothly.
As Famous starts up Control X, Dr. Hikari steps away from Mimic and begins working on the machines and server. Mimic turns around just in time to see a huge holographic sphere appearing in the middle of the room, and then what looks like hundreds of orange lines circling the sphere fade up around it.
Those are all the satellites that Control X has detected, Chaud says.
I wonder which one is Dr. Regal? Mimic gazes at the lines, even though she can't tell any of them apart.
They'll find him, whichever one it is, Chaud says.
That much Mimic can agree with, at the very least. What happens after that is entirely up for debate - and rests almost entirely on Mimic's shoulders. If she can't get Dark ProtoMan's attention, this might all have been for nothing, and they won't get another chance at this; because as far as Mimic knows, Japan's Control X is the only one left. All the others were destroyed by ShadowMan, before SearchMan deleted him.
If Dark ProtoMan destroys this one . . . they're pretty much screwed. Mimic doesn't know any other way to find Dr. Regal, because this was the only thing that worked in the anime.
Barely a minute after Dr. Hikari and Famous start up Control X, Mimic hears the distant sounds of battle. She remembers enough from the anime to know that it's coming from the control room, which isn't that far from here, and she recognises some of the faint voices she hears as the resurrected Darkloids.
"The battle's started already, hasn't it?" Dr. Hikari asks, seeing her expression change.
Mimic nods, and Dr. Hikari's expression tightens into a look of pain before he sighs and seems to force himself to relax.
"Be ready," he says. "And . . . stay safe. Please."
I can't promise that, Mimic wants to say, but she can't bring herself to speak the words.
While Dr. Hikari and Famous work on narrowing down the number of lines circling the holographic sphere, Mimic waits tensely and listens hard for any indication that the dimensional area is appearing. She also keeps her ears pricked - such as it is - for the battle in the network.
From what she can hear, the battle's going better than it did in the anime. She can hear the Darkloid's voices, outnumbered by the unfamiliar voices of the Police Navis, and even fainter than that, MegaMan and SearchMan. Despite her guilt that she should've said something sooner, Mimic feels an overwhelming sense of relief - it looks like her warning was enough to help the Net Police fend off the Darkloids.
"I can sense my Soul being used," Arcadia says suddenly.
Mimic takes out the white PET and looks at him curiously. He can sense Arcadia Soul being used? She supposes it makes sense - with Arcadia Soul, MegaMan has all of Arcadia's abilities, and his power is boosted by the Dark Immunity Program. With their powers being the same, of course Arcadia would be able to sense MegaMan using his Soul.
"It feels odd," Arcadia goes on, tilting his head. "Almost like me, but it's different enough that I can tell it isn't me." He pauses. "I . . . suppose that doesn't make sense, does it?"
I'm the queen of 'doesn't make sense', Mimic reminds him.
" . . . Good point," Arcadia admits.
The building suddenly shakes with an explosion, and Mimic claps her hands over her ears, hissing in pain. Dr. Hikari snaps his head up to look around wildly, but Famous only tenses for a brief moment before continuing with his work. Another explosion has Mimic wishing she'd thought to bring her earmuffs, but she needs her sensitive hearing, however much of a curse it is with loud sounds like this - without it, she wouldn't be able to tell what's going on in the control room, and she'd probably kill herself wondering and worrying.
She wants to wait until the explosions have died down before trying to listen to what's going on in the control again, but it turns out she doesn't need to. A voice rings out on the intercom, just as the alarm starts blaring and red emergency lights start flashing, turning Mimic's vision red on and off.
"The Darkloids have breached the final level," the voice, not one that Mimic recognises, declares. "It's possible the system will go haywire. Please evacuate the premises immediately!"
Famous looks up at that, gritting his teeth. He and Dr. Hikari exchange a glance, and then Dr. Hikari looks at Mimic.
She's terrified, because they're getting closer and closer to Dark ProtoMan showing up, but they have to keep going. If they can't find Dr. Regal now, they won't find him ever. He'll be free to plot and attack and do whatever he wants, and Mimic refuses to let that happen, even if she's terrified.
Mimic meets Dr. Hikari's eyes, hoping to convey her determination. It must work, because after a short pause, he nods and turns back to Famous.
"Keep going," Dr. Hikari says, raising his voice to be heard above the alarm and the voice.
Famous nods and gets back to work. Dr. Hikari does too, keeping everything in working order, and the orange lines circling the holographic sphere vanish steadily, until there are only ten left. One more vanishes as Mimic watches, leaving just nine.
And then a dimensional area fades up around them, and Mimic stops paying attention to the holographic sphere.
Barely a moment after the dimensional area appears, Arcadia materialises next to Mimic. His feathers are rippling already, a sure sign that Dark ProtoMan is here, and Dr. Hikari glances over his shoulder and looks at Arcadia with an almost scared expression. It's not difficult to tell he doesn't want this to happen, and he'd rather Mimic stay the hell out of the way - but unless they want Control X destroyed, Mimic has to be bait for Dark ProtoMan again.
It won't be as bad as it was at SciLab. She won't be running around this time. Arcadia will be right here, right next to her, and he won't let Dark ProtoMan touch her without a fight.
Raika's warning echoes in her mind, suddenly casting doubt through her determination. He's right - Dark ProtoMan is only predictable in that he'll go after Mimic if given half a chance, and beyond that, no one knows what he'll do. No matter how determined Arcadia is to protect her, he may not be able to match up to Dark ProtoMan.
He can fight him to a standstill, sure - but last time they'd fought, Dark ProtoMan had only left because Lan had been there too, and he'd run away because he didn't want to fight both of them at the same time. No one had defeated him. He'd left on his own.
They can't know what will happen this time. This Dark ProtoMan is different to the one from the anime - Mimic only knows what the anime showed her, and what the anime showed her is of absolutely no help when dealing with this Dark ProtoMan.
Her sensitive hearing only gives her a split-second warning before an explosion caves in part of the wall just beyond the holographic sphere. As Dark ProtoMan steps through the resulting dust cloud, Mimic guesses he must have snuck around until he came right up to the wall, just to avoid her giving the others an early warning.
Arcadia tenses as Dark ProtoMan looks around, bringing up one of his wings to brush against her back. Dark ProtoMan's gaze passes over Control X entirely and settles on Mimic the absolute second he sees her, and his sharp teeth bare in a terrifying grin.
Mimic feels a cold jolt of dread flood through her. He's not interested in Control X at all - even though that's what they'd intended, there's definitely something off about this.
Dark ProtoMan springs forward in a burst of movement. Arcadia is too stunned to react, having expected him to go for Control X and then Mimic, and Dark ProtoMan is barely feet away before he finally recovers.
Arcadia steps forward and hurls a Flashfire directly in Dark ProtoMan's face, forcing the Darkloid to stop. Dark ProtoMan hisses in the stream of Holy Fire for a moment before dodging out of the stream on all fours, trying to run around Arcadia to get at Mimic.
Arcadia turns with him and blasts him away with a Firebomb. Mimic steps back, heart pounding so much that she just barely hears Dr. Hikari calling out to her.
"Chaud!" Dr. Hikari finally gets her attention. "Get over here, now!"
She scrambles over to him immediately, and he wraps her in a protective embrace as he watches the battle between Arcadia and Dark ProtoMan. They're grappling with each other now, Dark ProtoMan seemingly not caring about his armour sizzling and burning where Arcadia touches him, and Arcadia using every single move that SearchMan taught him to try and keep up with Dark ProtoMan.
But he can't keep it up indefinitely - no matter how well he practised the moves in training, nothing will be able to prepare him for using these kind of moves against Dark ProtoMan, who moves faster and hits harder than any old dummy Navi in a training program.
Dark ProtoMan screeches wildly, and the Dark Aura flares up around him. Arcadia's feathers flare up in a burst of white fire, but even his Dark Immunity isn't enough - Dark ProtoMan slashes at him with his claws, hurls him into the wall, and barely pauses before he looks at Mimic.
Dr. Hikari's grip on her tightens, and Mimic almost wants to tell him to let go. Dark ProtoMan's target is her, and he'll be perfectly willing to kill whoever gets in his way.
Dark ProtoMan wastes no time on threats. He launches himself forward, bounding across the room in the blink of an eye. Dr. Hikari barely has time to gasp before Dark ProtoMan rips him away from Mimic and hurls him into the server of Control X. The server itself is undamaged, but Dr. Hikari slams into it with such force that Mimic flinches at the sound.
"Get away from him!" Famous shouts, abruptly reminding Mimic that she's definitely not safe enough to get distracted.
She looks up at Dark ProtoMan and sees his black claws reaching out to her. Choking on a gasp of terror, she steps back, but there's nothing she can do when he's literally right in front of her.
Dark ProtoMan grabs her, ignoring her yelp, and tucks her under his arm like she's nothing more than luggage. The floor rushes by as he turns and runs, and Mimic hears Arcadia screaming a protest before Dark ProtoMan gets through the hole he'd blasted in the wall and takes off through HQ.
"No!" Arcadia screams, but he's too late to stop Dark ProtoMan from taking off with Mimic.
He can feel Dr. Hikari's mingled despair and shock, cutting through the dizzy fog that Arcadia had sensed after Dark ProtoMan threw him at the server. He seems fine, just a little dazed - but not dazed enough that he can't react to Dark ProtoMan kidnapping Mimic right in front of him.
Arcadia hisses through his pain and forces himself to stand up. He stumbles, regains his footing, and then spreads his wings and takes off after Dark ProtoMan.
He said he'd protect Mimic. He can't let Dark ProtoMan take her. He refuses to let that happen.
For all his determination, though, he can't follow them. He can't sense Dark ProtoMan, and even though he can sense Mimic, he's not capable of following them indoors like this. His wings are too big, and he can't fly at his full speed or he'll risk crashing into a wall, which will slow him down even more.
But maybe he doesn't need to fly.
Arcadia skids to a mid-air stop and lands as that thought occurs to him. His Holy Fire illusions had been solid when he'd last fought Dark ProtoMan, at SciLab - the Holy Fire dog he'd created had ripped Dark ProtoMan's skin, and the Holy Fire dragon had been pretty heavy despite being made entirely from fire.
He brings up his hands and allows Holy Fire to flow from them. Arcadia crafts as quickly as he dares, knowing that time is of the essence but unwilling to screw up his creation in case something goes wrong because he doesn't get this right.
Within moments, a white horse made from his Holy Fire stands in front of him. Arcadia wastes no time in jumping onto its back, boosting himself with his wings, and then he moves his hands and conducts it to start galloping after Dark ProtoMan and Mimic.
His Holy Fire horse is able to run a lot faster than Arcadia was able to fly in here. Hallways blur past him, and he barely pays attention to where he's going, focusing almost exclusively on conducting his horse and using his Empath Program to track Mimic's mind. It's easier to find her mind than it is anyone else's, because it's coupled with Chaud's mind, and Arcadia has a deeper connection with both of them because he'd looked at their souls.
He suddenly feels a flash of two - no, three - familiar minds up ahead, far closer than he thought they'd be, and his horse rears up as he makes it stop.
Lan yelps and stumbles back, wide-eyed, and Raika ducks behind him before realising it's Arcadia. They both gape at him - and Lan is in Cross Fusion, so that explains why Arcadia was able to sense MegaMan the same way he could sense Lan.
"Is that a horse?" Raika asks, looking Arcadia's horse up and down. "How did-"
"I can't fly properly indoors," Arcadia explains in a rush. "Dark ProtoMan has Chaud."
The abrupt change in topic shocks all three of them. Lan and MegaMan are the first to recover.
"Do you know where they are?" Lan demands, stepping forward.
Arcadia nods. "I can sense Chaud," he says. "Just follow me. Your Dark Immunity Program should give you enough of a boost to keep up."
Lan nods, and then Raika steps forward. Arcadia senses his resolve before he even opens his mouth - it's not difficult to tell what he's going to say.
"Let me come too," Raika says. He gives Arcadia's horse an uncertain glance before adding, "I should be able to ride that. Right?"
"No," Arcadia says, before Lan can speak up. "Dark ProtoMan is too dangerous, and SearchMan is exhausted - I can sense it. You'd be a liability."
He knows how harsh his words are, but he can sense Mimic and Chaud's minds getting further away by the second. He can't let Dark ProtoMan get away with his operators.
"If Dark ProtoMan took Chaud, there must be a human operative waiting outside the dimensional area," Raika points out impatiently. "You can fight Dark ProtoMan all you want, but you won't be able to save Chaud if he's handed over to a human agent of Nebula."
They don't have time for this. Arcadia has to save Mimic now - and he's fully aware that Raika makes a good point, one that he hadn't even considered. Last time Dark ProtoMan took Mimic, he'd only wanted to talk, so there had been no human operative waiting to snatch her the moment the dimensional area vanished. This time's different, Arcadia can feel it. The fact that Dark ProtoMan didn't even look at Control X and instead went straight for Mimic is a bad omen.
"Fine," Arcadia says tightly, nodding to his horse. "Climb up. The fire won't hurt you - it's mine, it only burns what I want it to."
Raika still looks uncertain even as he hauls himself up behind Arcadia, but Arcadia can't give him time to get used to sitting on a horse made of fire. He sets off at speed once again, feeling Raika throwing his arms around him with a yelp, and is just barely aware of Lan racing along behind them with the white sparks of the Dark Immunity Program lighting up his entire body.
Arcadia follows Mimic and Chaud's minds throughout HQ until they burst out onto the street. They're behind HQ, in a wide street that's cut in half by the barrier.
Dark ProtoMan is just bounding over to the dimensional area barrier, with Mimic still tucked under his arm and too paralysed with terror to fight back. Beyond the barrier, Arcadia can see Ms. Yuri waiting, and even before he sees her expression, he can sense her smug triumph.
Like hell you do, Arcadia thinks, conducting his horse to go faster.
He's within metres of Dark ProtoMan before the Darkloid whirls around, dropping Mimic onto her feet. Before she can even think of running, Dark ProtoMan wraps one arm around her, and unsheathes the claws on his free hand with an almost audible snap, right next to her face.
Arcadia stops his horse, and Lan skids to a halt beside it, the white sparks quickly fading out.
"Unless you want Dark ProtoMan to rip out his other eye," Ms. Yuri calls, "get rid of that . . . thing." Her hesitation upon seeing Arcadia's solid Holy Fire illusion barely makes her smug triumph flicker.
He knows she means it, however much his solid illusion makes her hesitate. Dark ProtoMan would probably enjoy ripping out Mimic's real eye - and he might even go beyond that and rip out her cybernetic one, too. Then she'd be blind or at least half-blind for the rest of her life, and even more traumatised than she already is.
Arcadia reluctantly climbs down from his Holy Fire horse. He waits until Raika has done the same before banishing it, allowing it to flicker out of existence in a ripple of fire.
"Give him back," Lan demands. Arcadia sees his twitch and knows he tried to step forward, but stopped himself just in time - they don't know if Ms. Yuri will order Dark ProtoMan to hurt Mimic if they get any closer than they already are, after all.
Ms. Yuri narrows her eyes. "You're in no position to be making demands right now!" she snaps. She gives them a dark smirk that fills Arcadia with dread even before she continues. "This boy can see the future, and you think we'd just give him up because you told us to?"
Lan, MegaMan, and Raika's shock pierces through Arcadia's Empath Program at the same time that Arcadia's own shock jolts through his systems like a bolt of electricity. Mimic's terror spikes and mixes with Chaud's, but she's still paralysed with fear and can't move beyond trembling.
"Oops," Dark ProtoMan purrs. "I guess I changed my mind."
"So . . . you didn't come here for Control X?" Raika asks, fighting through his shock to speak.
"Of course not," Ms. Yuri scoffs. "Control X is nothing compared to a boy who's capable of seeing the future in his dreams. Why would we even need to bother with something like that ridiculous system when this boy exists?"
So their true goal had been to kidnap Mimic all along. That's why Dark ProtoMan barely even looked at Control X - of course, they'd been expecting him to go after Mimic, but not for something like this.
The only saving grace they have is that Dark ProtoMan told Nebula the wrong 'truth'. If he'd told them the actual truth, everything that Mimic has worked so hard to keep secret would have come crashing down around them. And Dark ProtoMan is fully aware of that, so although he told Nebula about Mimic's 'power', he's still technically holding the actual truth over her head.
Even if Nebula doesn't know the actual truth, though, knowing the 'truth' is just as bad. They think Mimic has the power to see the future in her dreams, just like the Net Police do. But they certainly won't be as passive in getting Mimic to use her 'power' to help them - Nebula will likely try and force her to dream, and will torture her to make her tell them what she sees, even if she won't be seeing anything.
Arcadia's resolve solidifies. He reaches out to Lan, brushing his claw-tipped fingers against his palm. He feels Lan's puzzlement even as he offers his palm to Arcadia.
[do you have bomb] Arcadia signs onto Lan's palm.
Lan's expression doesn't change, but there's a pulse of realisation from him that tells Arcadia he understands exactly what he's talking about.
[one mini] Lan replies, copying Arcadia and signing on his palm in return.
[use throw distract] Arcadia tells him.
He snatches his hand away as Dark ProtoMan looks at him suspiciously. There's no way Arcadia could have whispered this to Lan - Dark ProtoMan would've heard it easily, because his hearing is even better than Mimic's - and he also couldn't have signed normally. ProtoMan knew sign language, so Dark ProtoMan would know it too. Signing onto Lan's palm was the only way Arcadia could convey his plan.
"Step away slowly," Ms. Yuri says. "Let me leave with this boy, or I'll order Dark ProtoMan to-"
Lan doesn't let her finish. "Mini Bomb, download!"
Dark ProtoMan stiffens at that - Arcadia may not be able to sense his emotions or thoughts right now, but he clearly understands what this is. Ms. Yuri, on the other hand, seems completely stunned and confused. Nebula knows Dark ProtoMan is a cat, but clearly they don't know how much of a cat.
That's their mistake.
As soon as Lan has the Mini Bomb in his hand, he hurls it. Not at Dark ProtoMan, but to the side, far away from them - and far away from Mimic. Dark ProtoMan practically vibrates on the spot, like he's trying to physically hold himself back, and Arcadia sees Mimic's wince of pain as Dark ProtoMan tightens his grip on her.
The Mini Bomb bounces on the ground, and Dark ProtoMan loses all control. He lets go of Mimic and launches himself after the Mini Bomb, much to the confusion and shock of Ms. Yuri, and pounces on the Bomb.
It explodes in his face. Dark ProtoMan lets out an outraged screech of pain, hair bristling and spiking out even more from its bushy state.
"Chaud!" Raika shouts. "Over here, now!"
Arcadia rips his eyes away from Dark ProtoMan to watch Mimic scramble over to Raika. He catches her and wraps her into a protective embrace, and she clings to him, eyes wide and blank with terror as she trembles.
Dark ProtoMan spits out a hiss and shakes his head, turning to face them. Arcadia and Lan step in front of Mimic and Raika - Arcadia's Holy Fire sparks along his arms, ready for use, and Lan activates his Mega Buster and aims it at Dark ProtoMan.
After a short, tense pause, Dark ProtoMan glances at Ms. Yuri. Her smug triumph has been replaced with frustration - both at the fact that she couldn't kidnap Mimic, and Dark ProtoMan being so easily distracted. For a moment Arcadia feels afraid of how Nebula will punish Dark ProtoMan for letting Mimic go in favour of chasing a bomb, but he forces himself to remember that this isn't his big brother.
"Leave it," Ms. Yuri snaps reluctantly. "We can't get at him right now. Head back to base."
Dark ProtoMan bows his head. He gives them all one last growl before vanishing, and Ms. Yuri glares before turning on her heels and running out of sight. Arcadia tracks her mind until she's out of his range, and then the dimensional area starts to fade.
He has enough time to see Lan being forced out of Cross Fusion and Mimic breaking down into terrified tears, but even though he can't do much to comfort her from the cyberworld he's being forced back into, he knows Raika and Lan will be able to help her. Raika's already awkwardly trying to comfort her, and Lan heads straight over to her after catching his PET.
Dr. Hikari hasn't let go of her since she came back. It's understandable - she doesn't want him to let go either, because she'd been terrified the entire time, and it only been Arcadia's stroke of sheer genius that had saved her from becoming a puppet for Nebula to torture. Dr. Hikari's clinginess is comforting. And of course Dr. Hikari doesn't want to let her go; she'd been kidnapped right in front of his eyes, and he couldn't do a thing to protect her. Dark ProtoMan had thrown him away like he was nothing.
So she's happy to let Dr. Hikari hold onto her. Famous sticks close by her side as well, likely for the same reason that Dr. Hikari won't let her go, though she suspects his reason for not leaving is due to guilt for not being able to stop Dark ProtoMan from taking her. Mimic wants to tell him that he's got nothing to be guilty about, but she knows he won't listen - she's been there enough times to know that simply being told 'it's not your fault' will hardly ever work.
She watches the Net Police try to attack Dr. Regal's satellite with their Killer Satellites, but each one gets shot down by a blast from an invisible source. The officers working at the main console report that it's Dr. Regal's satellite, based on where the blasts came from.
She remembers this from the anime - and it had been cut over with scenes of Lan at the local hot spring (which technically isn't a hot spring), waiting for his friends to arrive.
Mimic glances around as subtly as she can manage with Dr. Hikari's arms around her. She can't see Lan anywhere - which confirms what she's already aware of. He's about to head into space, without permission, to try and attack Dr. Regal's satellite.
In the anime, it had seemed like something Lan would do. Now, though, it seems more like something Mimic would do. She wonders if his decision to go ahead with this kind of plan was at all influenced by her this time. Influenced by what she'd do, that is.
"Sir!" one of the other officers at another console calls out suddenly. "We've just received a notification from a spacecraft that's about to fly to Nebula's satellite!"
"What?" Kifune demands sharply. "But who-" He breaks off abruptly, looking around with narrow eyes. "Where did Lan go?"
Dr. Hikari had been entirely focused on the main screen, showing the Killer Satellites being gradually destroyed, but upon hearing that his son is apparently missing, he jolts and looks around.
"That idiot," Kifune hisses, after apparently realising what Lan has done. "This is subterfuge at best!"
Is it really a good idea to call Lan an idiot with Dr. Hikari literally right here? Mimic wonders, glancing up at Dr. Hikari. He doesn't look offended that Kifune just insulted his son, but he's probably too occupied with the fact that Lan has fucked off into space to fight Dr. Regal.
"Contact that spacecraft," Kifune orders. "We cannot allow this to happen."
Lan's gonna go ahead with this anyway, isn't he? Chaud asks.
Oh, yeah, definitely, Mimic replies. By the way, get ready - I'm pretty sure Kifune is gonna yell in a minute.
Oh, jeez . . .
The attempt to contact the spacecraft is successful - mainly because, Mimic suspects, the Net Police have more authority than a bunch of maids who follow the orders of a girl who can't be told 'no'. She has to admit the maids' work ethic is pretty hardcore, though.
"Lan Hikari!" Kifune calls angrily. "Just what do you think you're doing!?"
Lan's face fills the monitor, and he looks a little nervous at Kifune's tone. He recovers quickly though, and his solid determination returns with a hint of what Mimic knows to be cockiness.
"Hi, Commissioner Kifune!" he replies cheerfully.
"Do you intend to go to Nebula's satellite?" Kifune demands. "Going without permission is-" Mimic quickly covers her ears as Kifune takes a deep breath, and then bellows the last word. "-UNACCEPTABLE!"
On the screen, she sees Lan wincing as well, and the others with him - Maylu, Dex, Chisao, and Yai. Though one of Yai's maids is covering her ears for her, and she doesn't look at all bothered by Kifune's rage. Mimic's been on the wrong end of that too much to not instinctively be afraid, and she can't help but be impressed when Lan uncovers his ears and faces Kifune unashamedly.
"If I had told you I was doing this," Lan says, "you would never have given me permission."
"That's not the issue!" Kifune snaps.
Lan shrugs carelessly. "Alright, then we've got nothing else to talk about," he replies. "I'll bring you back a souvenir!"
"Lan . . ." MegaMan's voice sighs in exasperation, just as the transmission ends and the monitor goes blank.
"Get them back!" Kifune snaps to the officers working at the consoles.
"It's no use," Manabe says, considerably calmer than he is, but no less annoyed.
Kifune scowls. "What the hell is that boy thinking?"
"Well, at least he went willingly this time," Mimic speaks up. She doesn't realise how loud she'd said that before she notices every single pair of eyes in the control room staring at her, and she blinks as a sudden rush of embarrassment floods over her.
Most of them seem incredulous, but Dr. Hikari is giving her a look that makes her think he's torn between being annoyed with her thoughtless comment or laughing about it.
She's distracted from her embarrassment as she detects a rapid set of footsteps, just beyond the control room. There's something urgent about those footsteps that sets her on edge immediately, even though she knows the only real danger right now will be for Lan and the others up in space.
A Net Police officer rushes in through the door, stops in front of Kifune, and salutes. He's barely out of breath, and there's nothing in his expression that suggests there's any sort of emergency, so Mimic is left wondering why he was running.
She gets her answer shortly.
"Everything's ready, sir," the officer reports. "The car is waiting out back."
"Good work," Kifune says, nodding to the officer.
Dr. Hikari figures there's something up with this as well, as the officer snaps to attention and steps back to wait. For what, Mimic doesn't know, but she has a horrible feeling she isn't going to like what's about to happen.
"What's going on?" Dr. Hikari asks suspiciously, as Kifune and Manabe turn to face him and Mimic.
Kifune hesitates for a split second. "We're taking Mimic to a secure location outside the city," he says. "A safe house, where we'll be able to keep him out of Nebula's hands."
"Now that they know about his ability," Manabe adds, with a quick glance around the room, "his safety is top priority for us. It's no longer safe for him to stay in the city. I'll be heading to the safe house with him, so you won't need to worry about-"
"What?" Dr. Hikari bristles, and his grip on Mimic tightens. "You can't just take him away like this!"
"I'm sorry, but we have no other choice," Manabe says. She's trying to keep her tone even, but it's easy to see her frustration bleeding through. "His ability makes him too much of a target for Nebula - they've already proven that today, when they attempted to kidnap Mimic rather than destroy Control X like we thought they would."
Even through the shock of hearing this, Mimic wonders if anyone has spotted the one obvious flaw in today's events - Mimic's 'dream' was wrong. She'd told the Net Police that Nebula would come to attack HQ to destroy Control X, and 'saw' that Dark ProtoMan would attempt to destroy it from the real world. But maybe the aftermath of her attempted kidnapping is too great for anyone to realise that she was wrong.
"I'm not letting him out of my sight," Dr. Hikari snaps. "He'll be just as safe at SciLab as he will at any safe house of yours!"
"With all due respect, Dr. Hikari," Kifune begins, "SciLab is no longer safe. Nebula has attacked it multiple times already, proving they can easily get past your defences. Who's to say they won't try again, bringing an even greater force next time? Mimic will not be safe at SciLab, or anywhere in this city. Our only option is to take him out of the city entirely."
To take her away from the Hikaris, he means.
They're going to lock me away forever, Mimic thinks with a jolt of horror.
"No!" she cries, clinging onto Dr. Hikari and burying her face in his chest. "No, I don't wanna go, don't m-make me- please don't make me go!"
"You hear that?" Dr. Hikari glares at Kifune and Manabe. "He doesn't want to go. You can't force him."
"It's for his own safety," Manabe tries to argue.
Famous steps forward now. "I'm his superior officer," he points out, "and you said nothing about this to me. Don't you think I should know when you're trying to steal one of my Net Savers?"
"Would you rather he be kidnapped and tortured at the hands of Nebula? Again?" Kifune snaps, losing his patience. "Dr. Hikari, is that what you'd prefer?"
"Don't you dare!" Dr. Hikari snaps back. "I'd rather have him safe and happy at home, not locked away in some safe house for the rest of his life!"
"It's only until Nebula has been taken down," Kifune tells him. "Given how much progress we've made, we suspect that day won't be long coming. In fact, he may even be back with you at the end of the summer - which is hardly more than two or three weeks away."
To Mimic's shock, it looks like Kifune is somehow managing to convince Dr. Hikari. Even more horrified than before, she tightens her grip on him, shaking her head as he looks down at her. He seems conflicted, but even she can see this is rapidly becoming a losing battle.
" . . . It won't be for long," Dr. Hikari murmurs.
"No," Mimic chokes out. "Don't wanna go!"
Dr. Hikari leans down and kisses the top of her head. "He's right, though," he murmurs, and every word sounds like it's being dragged out of him by force. "If you stay here any longer, Nebula will come for you. There's nowhere in the city you'll be safe."
"No . . ." Mimic protests weakly.
"I'm sorry," Dr. Hikari whispers, drawing back. She's shocked to see tears swimming in his eyes. "I'm so, so sorry. I love you. So does Haruka, and Lan. You know that, right?"
Her own tears spill over far too easily, and she nods. Dr. Hikari reaches out to give her one last hug before reluctantly stepping back, allowing Manabe to take his place. Mimic looks up at Dr. Hikari as he backs off until he's standing next to Famous, who looks just as torn up about this as Dr. Hikari himself.
"We have to go now," Manabe says gently, putting a hand on Mimic's shoulder. "Nebula could strike again at any moment."
There's not even any time to say goodbye - not that Mimic would be able to get the words out if she tried. On the way out of HQ, she sadly reflects that she hadn't even gotten to say anything to Lan before he left, and knows Haruka will be worried sick when Mimic doesn't come home with the male Hikaris. She won't even get to say goodbye to Ragdoll, or that mouse she's studying for her project.
The only people she has left are Chaud and Arcadia. At least the Net Police won't be able to take them away from her.
The safe house is nothing at all what Mimic expected. She'd almost been thinking it would be some one-roomed stone brick of a house in the middle of a wasteland, but it's actually a rather pleasant-looking cottage in the middle of a heavily-dense forest area.
She feels too wretched to enjoy the forest, though. At any other time she might have been thrilled to be here - all these trees to run through, to jump and climb around in, and it'd look beautiful at night, she knows that just by looking at the place. But the fact that this is going to be her prison for the next however-long sours whatever feelings she might have had about being in a forest like this.
She can't even bring herself to enjoy the cottage, for all that it's a nice, cosy place with enough room for Mimic to promptly ignore Manabe and wander off further into the single-floor structure, ignoring Manabe's protest of I need to give you the rules, come back!
Mimic already knows the rules. They'll be the same as her orders, but worse - she probably won't be able to leave the cottage at all, will have to do exactly what Manabe tells her to do, and won't be allowed to do anything other than sit and cry.
A flash of anger cuts through her wretched sadness, and then mixes with it, leaving her even worse off than before.
This isn't fair! she cries silently. Why me? What did I do wrong!?
Aside from Mimic and Manabe, there are five Net Police officers on guard around the cottage. One stays inside at all times, while the other four patrol the perimeter. There might be more, but Mimic has only seen and heard these five so far.
They're also very touchy. There are sensors in the cottage and a wide area around the cottage, something Mimic wasn't even aware of until she tried to open the window in the room she's currently sleeping in. An alarm started screaming, bringing Manabe and the officer inside the cottage running into the room, and it was only after Mimic finally managed to explain that she was just trying to open the window that they calmed down. So, she learnt the hard way not to touch the window. Manabe forced her to sit down and listen to the rules after that, and Mimic was right - she's not allowed outside at all, and if she tries to leave, the sensors will go off again.
Apparently the sensors are there to warn Manabe and the officers if someone's trying to break into the cottage. Mimic suspects they're also there for her, to stop her from leaving. It's ridiculous - she can't go outside for fresh air, and she can't even open a goddamn window. Manabe keeps calling this a safehouse, but it's definitely a prison.
Hours after they arrive at the prison-cottage, Mimic hears Manabe talking on her PET. She listens idly at first, because it's the only interesting thing that's happened since they arrived and she's bored and angry (which is never a good combination), but then she hears what Manabe is saying and her interest grows.
It sounds like Lan and the others have come back from space. Well, crashed from space is the more appropriate term, since Dr. Regal sent his satellite crashing into the planet in an effort to kill Lan. They're lucky JunkMan intervened and protected them from burning up in the atmosphere and then smashing right into the ocean. Mimic knows this from the anime, but Manabe's conversation on her PET mentions one detail the anime left out - JunkMan's fate after the crash. He survived, amazingly enough, and has been given a job in SciLab's network overseeing the recycling of data.
Good for him. Space must have been horribly lonely for him, even with all his junk-friends, and now MegaMan and the other Navis can visit him whenever they want, instead of having to head up into space for a visit.
"He absorbed it?" Manabe's voice sharpens with shock, and Mimic realises she must have been told about Lan almost turning Dark ProtoMan back into ProtoMan. "How is that possible?"
"We think it was the Dark Immunity Program," the officer Manabe is talking to on her PET replies. "At least, that was Dr. Hikari's theory. From what we could see of the footage left over from the wreckage, Lan was able to absorb the Dark Aura, and was turning Dark ProtoMan back into ProtoMan."
"Did it work?" Manabe demands.
The office sounds regretful now. "No, ma'am. Dark ProtoMan pulled away, and whatever damage Lan did to him was fixed immediately."
"But it almost worked . . ." Manabe murmurs thoughtfully. "Thank you for reporting this to me. Dismissed, officer."
"Yes, ma'am."
Mimic hears a faint click, signalling that the call has ended, and a moment later she hears footsteps heading toward the room she's staying in. Manabe opens the door and is about to speak, but Mimic cuts her off before she can get a word out.
"I heard," she says shortly, refusing to look at Manabe. "I'm not deaf."
" . . . This is good news, you know," Manabe says carefully. "If Lan can absorb the Dark Aura-"
"I know what it means. I'm not stupid," Mimic snaps, baring her teeth. She still doesn't look at Manabe.
She also doesn't want to talk to Manabe any more than she has to. This woman willingly tore her away from the people who love her, despite her protests. Mimic wants nothing to do with her, but she knows she can't avoid Manabe entirely, given that she's sharing this prison-cottage with her. Limiting the amount of time they speak is all she can do, short of turning on the woman and ripping her throat out.
Manabe gets the hint, and leaves the room. Mimic is left on her own, in a room where she can't even open the window, and can only glare at the wall.
The day passes slowly, and then the next does the same. It feels like Mimic has been stuck in this prison-cottage for an eternity, even though it's only been two days.
On the third day, she tries to swallow her anger and beg Manabe to let her go home. They've been here long enough - she misses the Hikaris, misses Ragdoll and the mouse, and she just wants to go home.
"I'm sorry," Manabe says, and Mimic would almost believe the regretful tone she uses if she wasn't keeping her locked up like this. "You know I can't let you go back to DenTech City, not while Nebula is still around. We have no idea where Dr. Regal has gone since his satellite crashed, and he could easily try to take you the absolute second you set foot inside the city, or even outside this cottage. We have to protect you - you're our greatest asset, Chaud."
Mimic's anger spills over and she gives up trying to beg. "Is that all I am to you?" she snaps. "An asset?"
"That's what I meant-" Manabe begins, but Mimic's not having any of it.
"You're no better than Nebula!" she exclaims. "You're keeping me locked up just to use me! The only difference between you and Nebula is that you're not torturing me yet!"
"That's not true and you know it," Manabe retorts, dropping any pretence of being calm and letting her own anger edge her voice. "We're keeping you safe from Nebula, and-"
"And hoping I'll have a dream and tell you how to lick your own ass?" Mimic snaps. "I don't need a fucking dream to tell you that - your head's already so far up there I'm surprised you can't see your own bastard intestines!"
"Chaud!" Manabe exclaims, looking shocked at her language.
"Go fuck yourself, lady," Mimic hisses, turning on her heel and storming out of the living room.
That didn't go well, Chaud comments sarcastically, as she stomps into the room she's staying in.
Don't even start, Mimic warns him. She slams the door behind her, not even flinching at the sound, and falls onto the bed.
Sulking isn't going to make this any better, you know, Chaud tells her. You'll just have to deal with it. Getting angry won't help.
I know, Mimic mutters. Her anger fades just enough to be in the background, but it's still there, festering like an open wound. But I just wanna go home.
"I don't like this any more than you do," Arcadia speaks up quietly. "If there was any way I could convince Manabe to let us go home, I'd do it in a heartbeat. You know I would." He sighs wretchedly. "I'm sorry. If I'd been able to protect you, this wouldn't have happened. You wouldn't be locked up like this."
Mimic forces herself to sit up and take out the white PET so she can look at Arcadia directly. He looks just as miserable as Mimic feels.
It wasn't your fault, Mimic tells him. Dark ProtoMan told Nebula the 'truth', so this probably would've happened either way. Doesn't mean I need to like it, though . . .
"Maybe . . ." Arcadia looks up with a faint glimmer of hope. "Maybe when we finally get to go back home, ProtoMan will be waiting for us. You said they managed to get him back in the anime, right? And with the vaccine chip, it should be easier than how you described it."
"I hope so," Mimic murmurs out loud.
Time still passes with agonising slowness. Mimic loses count of the days and only knows how long she's been here because Arcadia helpfully tells her how many days it's been every time she wakes up in the morning - five, so far. Five days she's spent being locked up in this prison-cottage with no one but Manabe and those five Net Police officers for company.
Aside from Chaud and Arcadia, that is. They're the only ones she's willing to talk to, and she's resorted to speaking only in her mind now, letting Arcadia interpret her words if Manabe ever tries to speak to her. Most of what she wants to say through Arcadia consists of curses and insults, but Arcadia doesn't translate that directly, and instead just very politely informs Manabe that Mimic would rather not speak to her at the moment.
His politeness is cold, telling Mimic that he's not happy about this either. Even Chaud, who had basically told her to suck it up, is starting to get despondent about this. But no matter how much all three of them agree that they've been here for long enough, they can't leave.
On the fifth day, Mimic hears Manabe talking on her PET again. This time, it's about Ms. Yuri - who's gone missing after trying (and intentionally failing) to kill her twin sister, Ms. Mari. Mimic only listens to the report because Chaud doesn't know about it, and she can't remember enough about that episode to recount it properly.
She is a little worried about Misaki, though. He'd only just come out of the hospital, according to the report Manabe gets, and now he's gone right back in - and is apparently in a medically-induced coma. He's had far too much trauma recently for the doctors to be confident in his ability to recover without one, and falling off a bridge and almost drowning in the river is definitely not going to help him get better quickly.
Manabe doesn't try to tell Mimic about the report afterwards. Clearly she learnt her lesson after the first time - Mimic can hear everything just fine, and doesn't appreciate being treated like a child.
Maybe she is a child, and she's definitely sulking like one, but they're the ones who're keeping her locked up in here. It's their own fault if she lashes out.