"She'll be okay, you know," Lan says.
Chaud grunts.
Lan waits a moment, and then tries again. "Mom's looking after her. Bass is with her, too - and ProtoMan."
Well, ProtoMan being with Mimic doesn't make much difference right now, if Lan is being honest. He'd tired himself out too much when he went Poltergeist during the battle with Slur - downloading a bunch of Recovery chips was enough to restore his depleted HP, but his exhaustion is something that needs to recover with time. Not much time, but enough that it was considered safer to have ProtoMan stick with Mimic for now, and have Bass act as their bodyguard in case someone tries to attack them (in case Dr. Regal tries to go after Mimic again).
But despite Lan's somewhat-weak attempts to comfort Chaud, his friend only continues to stare out the window of the plane. His expression is carefully blank, eyes half-lidded, and he's almost too still in his seat.
It's unsettling.
"She'll be okay," Lan tries again, reaching out to Chaud. "You know-"
Chaud flashes his hand out so quick that Lan doesn't even register the movement until Chaud's fingers are clamped around his wrist. The grip is almost painful, but Lan bites his lip and swallows his pained gasp.
"Don't touch me," Chaud says quietly.
He's looking at Lan now, and although his expression hasn't even twitched, his eyes are as cold as ice.
Lan stares back at him, wide-eyed. After a few moments, the icy look in Chaud's eyes clears, and he blinks, suddenly looking faintly puzzled. He snatches back his hand as if he's been burnt, and turns back to looking out the window.
" . . . Sorry," Chaud mutters.
"I-it's okay," Lan says, gently rubbing his wrist. It still hurts, but he's not gonna complain about it.
"Just . . . just don't touch me right now." Chaud's voice is barely above a whisper, and the only reason Lan hears him is because he's used to how quietly Mimic talks.
"Alright," Lan murmurs.
He won't complain, because Chaud's hurting right now, and when people are hurting like this, they often don't really know what they're doing until they're doing it. Case in point - Chaud just grabbed him and didn't even realise he was hurting Lan until he saw what he was doing. He let go, at least. That's far more preferable to any other alternative Lan can think of.
But Chaud's not the only one who's worried about Mimic, for all that she's still in Japan while they're on their way to Netopia. Lan's worried too.
Absolutely no one, least of all Mimic herself, knows what happened. Lan hadn't even realised something was wrong at first - he'd been too busy dancing around like a fool, dragging Raika with him, because they'd finally deleted Slur and now they might actually stand a chance at taking out all the Asteroid Navis, especially since Slur isn't around to give out even more of them.
But then he'd heard a cry from Chaud, and looked over just in time to see Mimic stumbling back and then collapsing on the floor. She'd screamed and cried and it was like she was having some kind of fit, maybe a panic attack of some sort, but Lan's never seen any panic attack like that before. Not from Mimic, at least, and he's talked her down from enough panic attacks to know what it looks like when she's having one.
Chaud had snapped at anyone who came too close. Whatever was wrong with Mimic had clearly been affecting him too - is still affecting him, really. He wouldn't even let Lan come near Mimic, hissing and spitting like the cat he kind of is, fingers curled into claws he doesn't have, crouching over Mimic and glaring at everyone with a wild, dangerous kind of look in his eyes.
Not even ProtoMan and Arcadia could calm him down enough to let anyone get close to Mimic. They had to wait until Mimic herself calmed down enough for Chaud to also calm down, but even then, he was still overprotective and refused to let anyone near her.
Until Mom came, anyway. She didn't flinch, didn't even blink, when Chaud tried to swipe at her, and moved forward one careful step at a time, talking in a quiet, soothing voice the whole time. Lan's not sure if it was Mom's gentle caution or Mimic finally coming back to her senses that made Chaud back off, and Mom was able to pick Mimic up and take her home.
The last time Lan saw Mimic, she was curled up with Ragdoll in her bedroom, on her futon. She was still trembling from . . . whatever that was, and she wasn't talking - not out loud, anyway - but she was starting to get better, at least.
Lan's still worried, though. Everyone who witnessed her collapsing like that is still worried.
About Mimic, and about Chaud.
Overprotective rage still smoulders inside him, but the target of that overprotectiveness is in a different country, so the rage has nowhere to go - and that means Chaud is just left sitting with it simmering inside, ready to explode at any given moment.
Lan's talking to him, but he doesn't register the words. He hears them well enough - it's just that words don't really have much meaning at the moment, so he pays no attention.
Until he sees movement out of the corner of his eye, which makes his mind automatically flash back to when his twin sister collapsed, and his overprotective rage flares - so by pure instinct, he grabs the hand reaching for him, and the only thought in his head is protect Mimic.
He doesn't even realise he's hurting Lan until he sees the barely-suppressed pain in his friend's eyes, and he lets go. Maybe he says something, he's not really sure. Hopefully Lan doesn't try that again, because Chaud's not entirely certain he'll be able to come back to his senses long enough to let go if Lan tries to touch him a second time.
What happened to Mimic, though? That's a question he doesn't really have the answer to.
They were talking - he was trying to tell her that it doesn't matter if things are different to what she knows from the anime, and she was upset, he could feel it. Then fear had exploded through their connection, so strong it was almost a physical force, so cold that it was like being hit with an ice attack from an Asteroid Navi.
Mimic had collapsed, and then . . . then there was some kind of . . . memory, maybe? An image of some kind, too dark and indistinct for him to make out, and aside from that, it wasn't his - it was all coming from Mimic.
What was it? Chaud wonders.
A humanoid shape, holding a knife. The first thing that comes to mind is the memory of his father slashing Mimic's eye open with a knife - but no, it's different.
Father had been holding the knife in his right hand. For the dark figure, it was the left.
Not just that little difference, either. There's more. The memory of Father slashing Mimic's eye open is as clear as Duo's comet burning brightly against the night sky - both of them remember it too well, because it was the turning point in their shared life. The moment that truly traumatised Mimic.
The memory - or whatever it was - of the dark shape was nowhere near as clear. Chaud couldn't even make out any features, of the dark shape or their surroundings, and the only clear thing he saw in that memory was the light glinting off the steel of the knife, the only clear thing he felt in that memory was the explosion of pain in his - in Mimic's - stomach.
That, and the fear. The fear that made his overprotective rage burn, and he . . . he couldn't let anyone near Mimic. She was hurting, and there was nothing he could do about that, but he could stop her from getting hurt more, so he kept everyone away from her.
And when she came out of the memory, still trembling and crying and terrified out of her mind, he told her she was safe. Maybe it was true, maybe it wasn't, but he was damn well gonna make sure nothing would hurt her any further.
Then . . . what? He remembers someone else coming in, speaking in a soft, soothing tone, moving carefully. Haruka, that's it - even in Chaud's half-mad state, he still somehow recognised the woman Mimic calls 'Mom'.
And Mimic's at home, with ProtoMan and Bass, recovering. Chaud, on the other hand, is heading out to Netopia with Lan.
Why? He should be with Mimic. But Dr. Hikari insisted - there's something he needs to discuss, with the Net Savers who hold Duo's Crest. Mimic is one, too, but she's out of action for the moment, and so is ProtoMan, so it's just Chaud, Lan, and Raika. But Chaud still thinks he should be with Mimic instead of going back to Netopia to . . . discuss something. Whatever that something is.
It can't be as important as making sure his twin sister is safe. There's nothing more important than that.
"Chaud seems . . . pretty out of it," MegaMan says. "Is he okay?"
"I don't think anyone is, after . . . that," Arcadia murmurs. "Chaud is . . . He's kinda blank at the moment, for lack of better terms. I can sense anger, but it's the protective kind, like a wild animal protecting an injured companion."
MegaMan lowers his head a little upon hearing that. It's an apt analogy - especially considering how Chaud reacted after Mimic collapsed. A wild animal is exactly what Chaud seemed to be at the time, and not even ProtoMan and Arcadia could calm him down. Only Mom, whose calm patience seemed to be enough to convince Chaud to back off enough for her to take Mimic home.
But Chaud's barely even reacting to anything now, aside from when Lan tried to touch him back on the plane. He had to be carefully led into the helicopter waiting to take them to the research facility at the crater - and wasn't that a tense few moments, watching Lan and Famous try to figure out how to get Chaud to move without actually touching him.
They're in the helicopter now, of course. But Chaud still isn't reacting to much, and it's worrying. MegaMan's also worried about Mimic, who's still shaken by whatever made her collapse in SciLab, and also ProtoMan, who's still worn out from going Poltergeist.
Lucky for them that Bass was perfectly willing to stay back in Japan to keep an eye on them, and protect them if anything - or anyone - tries to attack them. Far from becoming the problem MegaMan feared he would be, he's turning out to be their biggest ally.
"He just needs a bit of time, I think," Arcadia goes on, jolting MegaMan out of his thoughts. "Like Mimic. Once they both calm down, they'll be . . . back to normal."
MegaMan suspects he was about to say 'they'll be okay'. Mimic and Chaud are never really okay, though, are they?
"Do you know what caused it?" MegaMan asks. Arcadia should have a little more insight into what happened in SciLab, more than anyone else.
"I'm not entirely sure," Arcadia replies. He's got his hands threaded together in front of him, and he's staring at them through half-lidded, worried eyes. "They were talking. Mimic was wondering how much use her knowledge would be if things are too different to what she knows, and Chaud was trying to tell her it's okay. But she was pretty upset, and she was . . . not exactly angry, but desperate, I think."
He frowns, and looks up at MegaMan with an almost puzzled expression.
"If things are too different to what I know, then what am I even in this world for?"
MegaMan blinks. "What . . . what does that mean?"
Arcadia hesitates for a brief moment. "That's what she said, right before she . . . collapsed. I'm . . . I'm just wondering if that's what triggered it."
"Asking what she's doing in our world triggered a panic attack?" MegaMan's not quite sure if he understands. Why would asking a question as simple as that - a question Mimic has probably asked countless times before - trigger something so intense that it caused her to collapse and Chaud explode into overprotective rage?
"I don't think it's what she was asking, exactly," Arcadia says, obviously sensing MegaMan's thoughts. "It was the way she said it - the phrasing she used. She always wonders how she came into this world and how she might be able to figure it out, but I don't think she's ever asked why."
"So . . . I'm right, then."
"Maybe." Arcadia shakes his head helplessly. "I'm just guessing, based on what happened. Maybe it wasn't that, exactly - she was already upset before anyway, so it could've just been building up until it exploded like that. Maybe that was the final trigger, or those just happened to be the words she said before she collapsed. I . . . I don't know."
MegaMan's expression softens, and he reaches out, because Arcadia looks-
-lonely, he's so lonely, why does he feel like this, why why why-
MegaMan flinches and presses a hand to his head. Arcadia's giving him a worried look now, a contrast to the scared expression he'd had mere moments ago.
"Are you okay?" Arcadia asks him.
"I-" MegaMan hesitates. "I-I don't-"
What was that, just now? It wasn't him, he can tell that much. Someone else's feelings, someone else's thoughts, just flashed through his mind - kinda like how Arcadia Soul gives him access to Arcadia's Empath Program, but the emotions and thoughts he senses from that are easy to distinguish from his own, and that flash of emotion and thought he just felt was different.
" . . . Someone else's thoughts were in your head for a brief moment, but you don't have my Empath Program," Arcadia says. He blinks slowly, head tilted. "Mimic said you and Dark MegaMan have a connection."
MegaMan stares at him, wide-eyed. Could that be it? That random flash of foreign emotion and thought was from none other than his dark counterpart?
The loneliness, the sadness, that question of why - could it really have come from Dark MegaMan?
He knows the answer before he even thinks of it. Of course it came from Dark MegaMan. Their connection isn't anywhere near as powerful as the one between Mimic and Chaud's souls, but it's still there, and the emotions Dark MegaMan was just feeling - likely still is feeling - were powerful enough, even for just the briefest of moments, for MegaMan to sense them, to feel them.
Dark MegaMan is lonely, and so sad. Why does he feel that way? Why now? Does he even realise that he was feeling strongly enough for MegaMan to sense it?
The answers to those questions aren't so easy to figure out.
Dad meets them outside as the helicopter lands, and he looks deeply concerned when he sees Lan and Famous trying to gently herd Chaud out.
"Let me help-" Dad begins, stepping forward.
"Don't touch him," Famous quickly says, before Dad can get any closer. "He, uh . . . he got a little violent when Lan tried to touch him earlier."
The concern turns to alarm, and Lan decides to speak up.
"He didn't hurt me too much," he says. His wrist is still kind of aching from when Chaud gripped it, but otherwise, he's perfectly fine. "He's just kinda . . . well, we gotta be careful right now."
"Maybe I should've just asked for you and Raika," Dad murmurs, stepping back to watch Chaud climb out of the helicopter.
"Not much you can do about that, now," Famous says. "Haruka's looking after your daughter - but no one's really sure how to deal with Chaud."
Lan glances at Chaud, wondering if he's even paying attention to the conversation, but he's staring out across the crater at the Space-Time Tower - the tower that Mimic insists is the Temporal Tower, despite people telling her it's not called that. Lan wonders if being at the crater is making Chaud think about Mimic, or maybe he never even stopped thinking about her in the first place.
"Chaud?" Dad steps forward again, more cautiously this time. Chaud barely even acknowledges him, but Dad continues regardless. "Come on, now. Raika's waiting inside. Let's go, alright?"
Dad holds out his hand, palm up. Chaud slowly turns his head to look at Dad's hand, and after a few tense moments, he blinks - then he reaches out, grasps Dad's hand, and lets him carefully lead him into the research facility.
"There's a good reason why taking Chaud to your dad was a good move," Famous murmurs to Lan.
Lan blinks up at him, puzzled.
"Your parents have a way with those two," Famous clarifies. "They just seem to be able to get Mimic and Chaud to respond even when other people can't."
Huh. Lan honestly never thought of that before.
But now that Famous has pointed it out, he realises it's true. Not just with Chaud, but Mimic, too. He remembers being the only person who could calm Mimic down when she was having a panic attack, the only person Chaud would be comfortable with aside from their sister. The realisation that his parents have become something like that to Mimic and Chaud is . . .
It's a nice feeling, to be honest. The knowledge that his parents can help Mimic and Chaud even when he can't, even when their NetNavis can't. So Famous is right - bringing Chaud to Dad was a good move, after all.
Raika looks up as Dr. Hikari comes back into the control room, with Chaud clinging to him and following him like a lost puppy. Or a lost kitten, in this case.
Chaud . . . doesn't look entirely okay. Not that Raika expected him to be, after what happened to Mimic - well, whatever happened to her, anyway. No one knows for sure, some kind of panic attack maybe, but no panic attack Raika has ever seen caused someone to collapse like that. Chaud didn't exactly reacted well either, and Raika has a few faint red marks on his cheek from where Chaud scratched him to prove it.
Not that he's angry at Chaud for attacking him like that, of course. At the very least, he seems to be doing a little better than he was at SciLab - aside from the blank expression, anyway. That's a little bit unsettling.
He's not attacking anyone, though. Dr. Hikari is leading him carefully, talking to him in a calm tone, and Chaud is looking at him, and not attacking him even though Dr. Hikari is touching him. Raika isn't keen to repeat the experience of discovering just how sharp Chaud's nails are despite not being claws, so he stays at a respectful distance, standing next to Lan when he comes into the room with Famous.
Raika glances at Lan questioningly, and Lan is only able to give him a slightly-helpless look before Dr. Hikari gets their attention.
Chaud is still practically clinging to him, but Dr. Hikari doesn't seem to mind. Famous is nearby, and seems to be keeping an eye on Chaud - whether he's checking to see if Chaud's okay or checking to make sure Chaud's not about to turn violent is a matter of debate.
"I brought the three of you here because you have more experience with temporal anomalies than most of Duo's chosen," Dr. Hikari begins. 'Most of' meaning everyone aside from Mimic and Baryl, for very different reasons.
Mimic, with her knowledge of the future, along with the fact that she's spent the last several weeks practically living at the crater. And Baryl, whose very existence makes him a temporal anomaly, who assists them by sending his NetNavi Colonel forward in time to fight in his name.
But Mimic is currently resting at home, and Baryl is, of course, in the past. So that leaves Raika, Chaud, and Lan.
"Last night, we initiated a test with the Past Tunnel," Dr. Hikari says. "We now have full control over it, and were able to send a probe through to the very end."
"A probe?" Lan repeats, blinking at his dad.
"The Past Tunnel, for reasons we weren't entirely certain of until last night, is only capable of going back thirty years into the past," Dr. Hikari explains. "Thanks to the books found in the ruins, we know that Duo's technology is responsible for its existence - our time marks one end of the tunnel, and at the other end is what created the tunnel in the first place. Everything between is linked through the Past Tunnel."
"Did the books say anything about how this was possible?" Raika asks.
Dr. Hikari shakes his head. "Sadly, no. And it would take far too long to go through the untranslated books to try and find an answer. But the books we already have on the technical aspects of Duo's creation were able to give us a plausible theory - the thing that created this crater and the Past Tunnel no longer exists in this time, because it was sent back in time the moment it came into contact with our planet.
"Duo's power makes him very nearly omnipotent - his role was to be an observer, after all. But his creators also gave him the ability to . . . not exactly control time, but to twist it, I suppose. To warp it, by using the Past Tunnel as a conduit of sorts."
Dr. Hikari nods to Famous, who quickly types something into the console nearby. Up on the main screen, an image appears - a huge black object, metallic in nature, half-buried in the desert. A glowing red mark is clearly visible on the black material of the object.
"Duo's Crest," Raika breathes. Beside him, Lan is gaping at the screen, too stunned to speak.
"This is what we found when we sent the probe to the very end of the Past Tunnel," Dr. Hikari tells them. "Duo's comet itself - the thing that created the Past Tunnel in the first place, linking thirty years of the past with our time. It's likely that Duo sent it down to this planet after he stopped his destruction the first time, then used his abilities to send it back in time to thirty years ago, which in turn created the Past Tunnel."
"But . . . but why?" Lan seems to be struggling to get his words out. "Why thirty years? What's significant about that?"
"It could be because thirty years ago was when net society really started to kick off," Dr. Hikari says. "We already know that Duo's personal mission is to eliminate planets that seem like they could be threats - with his power, it would be easy enough to look through our history and determine exactly at which point things started to 'go wrong', at least in his eyes."
Cold realisation strikes Raika. "So Duo is attempting to erase those thirty years of our past, and with it, our future."
Lan draws in a sharp gasp, and Chaud, who's been more or less unresponsive the entire time, looks up.
"That's right." Dr. Hikari nods gravely. "And from what Slur said, we know that the Asteroid Navis she was giving out were collecting energy to power Duo's comet - if it activates in the past, everything will be destroyed. The comet has probably already started its countdown, though I suspect it's been slowed down with Slur's deletion and the dwindling number of Asteroid Navis."
"It's still there, though," Raika says darkly. "And it could activate at any moment."
They don't know a thing about the countdown sequence of what's essentially an extra-terrestrial bomb, after all. And Raika doubts this was ever explained in Mimic's anime, so it's unlikely that she'd know anything about it - and besides that, she likely wouldn't have understood anyway. That's not a mark against Mimic, of course. She has her own strengths.
Knowing how the countdown sequence of Duo's comet works doesn't matter, anyway. What does matter is finding some way to stop it from erasing thirty years of their history - and the key to that would lie with Duo himself, or perhaps with the Crests. They have to mean something, even if Mimic seems to be convinced they're nothing more than identification marks.
A sudden earthquake snaps Raika out of his thoughts, and he looks up sharply.
"Dad!?" Lan exclaims, trying to keep his balance.
"Are earthquakes common in this location?" Raika demands.
"No, they're not," Dr. Hikari replies. He looks a little pained, which alarms Raika for a moment, until he sees that Chaud has tightened his grip on Dr. Hikari.
A multi-coloured sheen fades onto every surface. Raika stares incredulously, not registering it, too shocked to do so, until Dr. Hikari speaks up again.
"A dimensional area!"
Raika gapes at him, and then Lan yelps and he jerks his head around just in time to see a pillar of bright purple light sparking into existence just a few feet away from them. A familiar figure appears in the middle of the pillar.
Dr. Regal opens his eye as the pillar of light dies down.
"Greetings," the madman intones. "I have come to use the Space-Time Tower. If you would be so kind as to-"
A loud growl cuts him off.
Raika glances over at where the growl came from, and is surprised to see Chaud glaring at Dr. Regal with hatred burning in his eyes. It's a startling change from that unsettling blankness to this visible hatred.
Chaud pushes past Dr. Hikari, and it's only then that Raika remembers - Dr. Regal has hurt Mimic in the past. And Chaud isn't exactly in the right frame of mind to have any self-control at the moment.
"No!" Raika shouts, as Chaud darts toward Dr. Regal.
He hurls himself forward instinctively, and somehow he manages to grab Chaud before he gets more than a few paces away. He drags Chaud down to the floor and stays on top of him, only just barely managing to keep him there, because for all that Chaud is half his size and skinny to boot, he's surprisingly strong.
Chaud hisses his hatred and struggles so much that Raika nearly loses his grip on him more than once. He has to put his full body weight on Chaud, almost crushing the poor boy underneath him, but it's like Chaud doesn't even notice - his only focus is Dr. Regal, who looks almost amused at the sudden display of sheer rage.
"Stop!" Raika begs. "Chaud, please, just- agh!"
Up until right this second, he never fully appreciated just how ridiculously sharp Chaud's teeth are. They sink right through the material of his sleeve and pierce the skin on his arm, and even though the sharp pain is the only thing he can feel right now, Raika is pretty sure he's bleeding.
"Infighting, is it?" Dr. Regal sounds just as amused as he looks. "Truly pathetic. To think that I assumed you would pose any kind of threat to my plans."
"And what plans are those?" Dr. Hikari demands.
Lan appears beside Raika as Dr. Regal answers, crouching down to try and help detach Chaud's teeth from Raika's arm.
"To rule this world, of course," Dr. Regal replies, as if it's so simple he's surprised that no one has guessed already. "My goal has never wavered or changed. Perhaps the means to do so are different, but there is technology beyond humanity's wildest dreams hidden within Duo's comet - I will use it, as Duo used me, and take control of the power that comet holds!"
A harsh, silvery light shines from him. It's almost like a physical force, and it pushes Raika and Chaud down, pushes Lan down, and forces Dr. Hikari and the other people in the control room to back off a few paces.
Through the light, Raika can just about see Dr. Regal turning to face a nearby console. He raises one arm and then slams his hand down on the console, sending sparks dancing across the machine.
"Go forth, Dark MegaMan!" Dr. Regal declares.
The main screen now shows an image of the Space-Time Tower in the crater. It activates with a burst of light, and then they see the Past Tunnel on the screen - Dark MegaMan is moving through it, along with a small army of the strange silvery humanoid creatures that Dr. Regal used during the island incident.
Dr. Regal gives them one last evil smirk before he vanishes back into another pillar of bright purple light, and the dimensional area fades with him.
As soon as the source of his hatred is gone, Chaud stops struggling. His teeth are still attached to Raika's arm, though, and his jaws are clamped so tight that Raika can feel his arm starting to go numb. He sits up, wincing, and Lan once again tries to help detach Chaud from his arm.
"They're moving through the Past Tunnel!" Famous reports, from the console. "Heading straight for Duo's comet!"
"Dammit," Dr. Hikari mutters. "If Dark MegaMan gets Duo's power, we're doomed!"
"Dad!" Lan looks up desperately. "Chaud won't let go of Raika!"
Raika hears a confused grunt from Dr. Hikari, and a moment later, the man himself appears in front of him, crouching down. He sees Chaud's teeth clamped tight around Raika's arm and winces.
"Chaud," Dr. Hikari says gently, a stark contrast to the tense look on his face, "you need to let go now. You're hurting him."
There's no indication that Chaud can even hear Dr. Hikari. His grip on Raika remains just as strong, and Raika, even though he's currently in a lot of pain right now, is beginning to wonder if he'll end up with a scar like Detective Misaki of the Japanese Net Police. He's met the man exactly once, when he was on his way to Commissioner Kifune to make a report, and saw the ragged scar on his arm - a scar that Mimic gave him when he attacked her while he was possessed by the Dark Aura.
Please let go, Raika begs silently, in too much pain to say the words out loud.
With Lan and Dr. Hikari working together, they somehow manage to gently prise Chaud's jaws open enough for Raika to slip his arm out. He has to stifle a cry of agony when the pain sharpens, and then he sees the state of his arm.
It really is as bad as he thought it was. The material of his sleeve is practically in tatters where Chaud was biting him, and he can barely see the skin of his arm through all the blood. It's not deep enough for him to see bone, but it's deep enough that it's not difficult to imagine seeing bone through the blood. His arm is virtually useless right now.
One of the on-site paramedics appears as Lan and Dr. Hikari get Chaud away from Raika, and has to tear the remains of Raika's sleeve away to get at the wound. His arm's shaking so much that Famous has to come over and steady it before the paramedic can start to clean the wound and bandage it.
He looks up, over the paramedic's head, and sees Chaud standing between Lan and Dr. Hikari. Chaud looks almost confused, as if he doesn't even know what he did, and Raika can't hold back a shudder when he sees the blood - his own blood - around Chaud's mouth.
"What're we gonna do about Dark MegaMan?" Famous asks, looking up from Raika's arm to Dr. Hikari.
Dr. Hikari hesitates.
"We'll stop him!" MegaMan speaks up. "Me, Arcadia, and SearchMan!"
"Chaud and Raika can't operate their Navis at the moment, though," Dr. Hikari points out.
"They won't need to operate us." Arcadia alone seems to be completely calm, which is odd considering his Empath Program definitely allows him to sense Raika's pain, but maybe that's why - he's used to sensing other people's emotions, so he's able to stay calm even with something like this.
"Arcadia and I can simply use our basic attacks," SearchMan agrees. "But, please . . . make sure Raika's okay."
The worry in his tone makes Raika smile, despite the pain. Typical SearchMan, worrying about him even during a crisis such as this.
"Alright," Dr. Hikari says, to both the Navis' plea to go after Dark MegaMan and SearchMan's plea for the others to look after Raika.
Lan carefully takes Chaud's PET from its holder - without touching him, in case it sets him off again - and then comes over to Raika and suddenly looks a little uncertain. Raika uses his good arm to take out his PET and hand it to Lan - his dominant hand is his right, but his arm is too messed up for him to use it right now, and SearchMan just said he and Arcadia can handle themselves anyway.
With all three PETs, Lan has a little difficulty jacking the Navis into the Past Tunnel's network. He manages by jacking them in one-by-one, and places Raika and Chaud's PETs down on the console in front of him so he can focus on operating MegaMan. That's good, Raika thinks - with his and Chaud's PETs in front of Lan, he'll be able to keep an eye on all three of them, whereas if he were simply trying to hold all three PETs at once, he'd have to juggle them constantly.
Dr. Hikari keeps Chaud with him as he and Famous direct the activation of the Past Tunnel - it's already been activated, of course, but they have to adjust the settings for three more NetNavis going through it. And then the sudden but welcome arrival of a fourth NetNavi surprises all of them.
An odd portal-like gate appears near the trio of NetNavis, and Colonel bursts out, landing with a lightness that doesn't match his sheer size - he's twice the size of even SearchMan, and wearing heavy armour and a cape. That seems to suggest he should be fairly heavy, but he moves with the grace of a much lighter Navi.
"Colonel!" MegaMan exclaims, shocked but pleased. "What're you doing here?"
One of the smaller screens next to the main screen lets out an odd static sound, and a fuzzy image appears on there. It's Colonel's operator, Baryl, who replies.
"We're here to help stop Dark MegaMan," he says. "If you'll allow us, that is."
"Anyone who'll help is welcome," Dr. Hikari agrees. "Adjust the settings to include Colonel!"
"Yes, sir!" one of the team working at the consoles replies.
It takes only a moment to adjust the settings accordingly, and finally, the four Navis are able to head into the Past Tunnel after Dark MegaMan.
Raika wishes he could do something to help, but it's like Dr. Hikari said - he can't operate SearchMan at the moment. One good arm is nowhere near enough for him to be able to do anything other than hold his PET; he'll have to trust that Lan can handle all three NetNavis at once. At the very least, Lan won't need to operate Colonel as well.
The Past Tunnel is exactly as MegaMan remembers it, but the ride is much smoother than the last time he was in here. Of course, last time he was pushed in by Arcadia (not that he's gonna blame Arcadia for that, since he was trying to help his operators), and the ride was . . . well, it wasn't pleasant, he can say that much.
And he's not alone this time, either. Colonel is a veteran for time-travelling like this, Arcadia's wings makes gliding through the tunnel an absolute joke, and SearchMan, for all that he doesn't have the same experience or flight ability, is moving with surprising ease. There's also the fact that they're all powerful allies, so they'll be able to fight Dark MegaMan and those silvery humanoid creatures.
It's a shame ProtoMan and Bass aren't here, too, MegaMan thinks, before he can stop himself. But it's true - having them along would be extra assurance that they'd succeed in stopping Dark MegaMan.
They'll do this without them, though. ProtoMan needs to rest for now, and Bass is protecting him and Mimic in case anyone tries to attack them - though MegaMan suspects Dr. Regal won't bother to go after Mimic while Dark MegaMan is trying to steal Duo's power like this. He'll be sticking around somewhere to make sure his plan works.
So at least that's one worry off of MegaMan's mind - now all he has to do is deal with the biggest worry he currently has.
Something shines in the Past Tunnel ahead of them. It's not the white light of any of the time periods they're passing, but the same odd silvery colour as the silver humanoids that Dr. Regal created.
"Watch out, it's an ambush!" Lan warns them. The humans in the control room have a better view of the Past Tunnel as a whole than the NetNavis who're going through it.
MegaMan activates his Mega Buster and starts blasting out rapid-fire shots before he even sees the silver humanoids properly. SearchMan manages to get into a proper attack position and begins sniping as many as he can with his Scope Gun, and Arcadia does the same with his Avenger's Arrow bow.
Colonel, on the other hand, doesn't have any ranged attacks he can use right now - none that MegaMan knows of, anyway. He's pretty sure Screen Divide only works if Colonel is standing on a floor of some sort, but that doesn't seem to bother Colonel, because he simply waits until the silver humanoids are close enough before slashing his Sword with such speed that MegaMan only sees brief flashes of movement.
They break through the ambush easily and continue onward to the very end of the Past Tunnel. MegaMan's only done this once before, but the feeling of landing in a cyberworld that isn't his own is familiar to him - he doesn't think he'll ever forget it, to be honest.
Light briefly overtakes his vision, and when it clears, all four of them are standing in what looks to be space. He recognises this place - it's where Duo spoke to them back when he first began to destroy their world, before he stopped and decided to give them this test of his, whatever it's supposed to be.
"Are we in space?" SearchMan murmurs, looking around with a puzzled expression. "No, that can't be right . . ."
"This is Duo's comet," Arcadia tells him. "MegaMan and I have been here before."
"It looks the same as it did last time," MegaMan adds.
"Be careful," Colonel warns them, lifting his Sword up into a defensive position. "This is Duo's cyberworld - I doubt he'll keep quiet."
As if to confirm his words, balls of energy begin to attack them immediately. Arcadia shoots off three Avenger's Arrows at once and manages to take down several of them, while MegaMan and SearchMan start taking pot-shots at energy balls gathered into groups. Colonel, finally having a floor to stand on even if they can't see it, unleashes a powerful Screen Divide that cuts down even more balls of energy than Arcadia's attack did.
"Go on ahead!" Baryl's voice tells them. "Colonel can deal with these!"
Colonel blasts out another Screen Divide, clearing the way for them.
"Thank you!" MegaMan cries, taking off with Arcadia and SearchMan by his side.
He only sees a brief nod from Colonel before he immediately goes back to defending himself against the balls of energy. Likely some sort of guard system, MegaMan guesses, but not one that he's ever seen. Then again, Duo is an alien NetNavi, after all - he could have all kinds of stuff in this cyberworld, and they couldn't even begin to understand any of it.
"Arcadia, can you sense Dark MegaMan anywhere?" SearchMan asks, as they glide through the cyberworld.
Arcadia's eyes narrow in concentration for a moment, before he shakes his head. "I can't sense him at all," he reports. "Either he's not here, or whatever darkness is inside him is enough to block my Empath Program."
"Your feathers aren't reacting, though," MegaMan points out.
"'Enough to block my Empath Program' isn't the same as 'enough to activate my Dark Immunity'," Arcadia clarifies. He looks at MegaMan. "But you've got a way to track him down."
For a split second, MegaMan honestly can't think of what Arcadia means. Then his mind flashes back to when they were on the helicopter on the way over to the crater, and he remembers - his connection with Dark MegaMan.
He doesn't know if he can force it to work, since he only felt a strong flash of emotion from Dark MegaMan before, but . . .
Is there any need to force it, when his dark counterpart is still feeling so strongly?
MegaMan thinks of that flash of emotion, that loneliness and sadness he felt, and it's not so difficult to imagine following them like a thread. A very thin thread, but still a thread all the same - and it's all he needs to know exactly where Dark MegaMan is.
I will get stronger, thoughts that aren't his whisper. I'll become the strongest NetNavi in the universe!
But why? MegaMan tries to ask. There's no answer, though.
"That way," MegaMan says out loud, pointing. He follows up by aiming his Mega Buster, quickly charging it up, and then unleashing a powerful blast.
There's a flash of shock through the odd connection he has with Dark MegaMan, confirming that he was right. MegaMan leads the way, following the thread of emotion, until they finally come across Dark MegaMan with a small army of Dr. Regal's silver humanoids.
Some of them are melting into puddles and vanishing as they arrive. Those are the ones that MegaMan managed to hit with his Charged Shot - a surprise attack so unexpected that Dark MegaMan didn't have any time to prepare for it. Is he even aware that MegaMan's figured out how to use their connection the same way Dark MegaMan uses it, if he even uses it like this at all?
If he is, he gives no sign of it, visually or otherwise. Dark MegaMan's anger sparks through the connection that MegaMan still doesn't fully understand, and he sends the silver humanoids after them.
SearchMan raises his Scope Gun and starts firing before any of them even come close, and Arcadia adds twin streams of Flashfire into the mix. MegaMan begins firing as well, but when the silver humanoids get too close, they have to switch to close-combat - it's easy enough for him, because Lan downloads a Sword for him to use, but Arcadia and SearchMan are essentially operating themselves at the moment.
Arcadia forms a Bound Sword and becomes a whirlwind of white limbs and feathers. MegaMan didn't even know he could move like that - it's almost like watching a martial arts demonstration, but more brutal. The silver humanoids who get caught in his furious flurry of close-combat attacks can't regenerate quickly enough, and vanish into puddles of liquid.
To MegaMan's surprise, SearchMan is doing more or less the same thing. He banishes his Scope Gun, something MegaMan wasn't aware he could do, and an odd-looking knife materialises in his newly-formed right hand. A military knife, that's it. Like Arcadia, SearchMan unleashes a flurry of close-combat attacks, but his small knife isn't really enough to cut the silver humanoids like Arcadia's Bound Sword. SearchMan makes up for it by brute-forcing the deletion of his opponents, grabbing them with his free hand and physically tearing them apart once he makes small cuts with his knife.
"Arcadia, behind you!" Lan shouts.
Arcadia whirls around, slapping a silver humanoid away with his wing, and hacks another one to pieces with his Bound Sword.
"SearchMan, on your left!"
SearchMan switches his knife to his left hand and forces the blade into the neck of a silver humanoid, then grabs its head and rips it off with a grunt of effort.
"MegaMan! In front!"
As MegaMan cuts the silver humanoid in half, he can't help but marvel at Lan's ability to keep up with three entirely different NetNavis in the middle of a battle as chaotic as this one. He did something similar when they went to Choina in search of a cure for a panda's illness - Lan had to operate both MegaMan and GutsMan while defending a temple high up on a mountain, with the help of Meddy and Jasmine.
It's nothing short of impressive, MegaMan has to say. Mimic technically operated two NetNavis when Arcadia was still independent, and that was skilful enough - but operating three personal NetNavis at once? And keeping up with the battle? That's another level entirely.
He senses more than sees Dark MegaMan prowling around the edges of the battle. Looking for an opportunity to strike, perhaps? But MegaMan can't allow that to happen - somehow, he just knows that defeating Dark MegaMan will end this fight. He's not sure how, but that's how these things usually work, right?
MegaMan finishes off the silver humanoid he's tangling with. His Sword vanishes from his arm, its durability spent, and he switches to his Mega Buster as he makes straight for Dark MegaMan.
Dark MegaMan's eyes widen, and surprise flashes through their connection. MegaMan lifts his Mega Buster and fires a few rapid shots, but his dark counterpart easily dodges them, expression twisting into a hateful scowl.
"MegaMan!" Dark MegaMan growls. He dodges another blast and raises his arm high. "Dark Sword!"
Despite the situation, MegaMan still feels a jolt of surprise. He knows Dark MegaMan is powerful, and that he can basically copy MegaMan's own abilities and attacks - but he didn't know Dark MegaMan is capable of using battle chips on his own.
An independent NetNavi who has the ability to wield the Dark Aura with no drawbacks. A truly terrifying opponent, to be sure.
"Long Blade, download!" Lan announces.
The Long Blade appears on MegaMan's arm and he jumps into the air with a cry, raising the Blade above his head. Dark MegaMan backs off a few paces and dodges the first strike, but MegaMan gets to his feet quickly and slashes with the Long Blade again.
His dark counterpart blocks the attack with his Dark Sword. A normal Sword would've been shattered by such an impact, especially by a much stronger weapon such as the Long Sword, but this Dark Sword clearly isn't a normal Sword. It's sickly purple and MegaMan can almost feel dark, evil energy radiating off it, for all that it just looks like an odd-coloured version of the normal Sword.
They struggle together for a moment, their weapons of equal strength, and then Dark MegaMan shoves forward with his Sword and kicks MegaMan's leg. He buckles and Dark MegaMan tries to press his sudden advantage, but MegaMan manages to bring his Blade up at the last moment to block the attack, the same way Dark MegaMan blocked his.
MegaMan suddenly feels a flash of emotion so strong it nearly startles him into letting go. Then there's a memory that doesn't belong to him playing out in his mind.
The first thing he sees is Dr. Regal, staring down at him. Then he sees the network they're in. It's an odd network - not one that MegaMan recognises from anywhere in the surface cyberworld, so his only guess is that they're either in the deep web or the UnderNet.
"Dr. Regal," MegaMan's mouth says, "why do people yearn for bonds?"
"Bonds?" Dr. Regal seems surprised by the question, though it's difficult to tell since his expression hardly changes.
MegaMan feels an odd sense of hesitance, but his desire to know the answer to his question is stronger than whatever loyalty or fear he has of his creator.
"Like MegaMan with his operator," he clarifies. "I want to know why people would want those kind of bonds."
Dr. Regal looks almost bored, now. "Such a question is beyond your understanding," he says. "But I will answer. People yearn for bonds because they are weak."
"Weak?" MegaMan repeats. That doesn't sound right to him, but Dr. Regal is already speaking again.
"Yes, weak. People like MegaMan and his operator, Lan Hikari-" Dr. Regal sneers as he says the names of MegaMan's hated enemies. "-are weak, and thus they flock together to create some semblance of strength. They cannot survive alone, so they create their pathetic bonds of friendship."
That . . . that still doesn't sound right. Because if it was right, why would he struggle so much against them? Why would MegaMan not be able to defeat them, when he has the same power they do? Why has his creator failed to defeat them so many times?
"Are you lonely, Dark MegaMan?"
The question startles him, and he looks up. Dr. Regal's expression is just as blank as it always is, but there's something in his eye, the kind of look that you'd only have when dealing with a computer program that doesn't work the way you want it to.
"I . . . No," MegaMan lies.
Dr. Regal narrows his eye. "You will have no need of bonds or friendship once you take Duo's power," he tells MegaMan. "Strength is the only thing you need. You will not feel lonely when you have that." His creator raises his chin and looks down at him. "Dark MegaMan, you must become the strongest NetNavi in the universe!"
" . . . Yes, Dr. Regal," MegaMan says reluctantly.
He comes back to himself with a gasp, startled to find that he's still struggling to fend off Dark MegaMan's Dark Sword with his own Long Blade. He half-expected Dark MegaMan to have taken advantage of his distraction, but though the memory seemed to last an eternity, it was only a brief moment in reality.
"Dark MegaMan . . ." MegaMan whispers.
"I will become the strongest NetNavi!" Dark MegaMan snaps. He obviously knows that MegaMan has seen the memory, and he's not happy about it. "I don't need any bonds!"
"Wait-" MegaMan begins.
His dark counterpart shoves him so suddenly that he's completely unprepared, and he unbalances. He nearly topples over, but quickly banishes the Long Blade and shoves himself away just in time to avoid Dark MegaMan's downward slash.
"MegaMan!" Lan exclaims. His full attention is on this battle, now - Arcadia and SearchMan will have to work things out on their own. "Custom Volt, download!"
MegaMan pushes himself to his feet as the Custom Volt materialises on his arm. He takes aim and fires as soon as his dark counterpart is within his sight, but a lightning rod materialises just in front of Dark MegaMan, absorbing the Elec-attack.
He barely manages to dodge the rebound, his own attack being blasted right back at him. Dark MegaMan attacks him with another Dark battle chip, this time a Dark Meteor, and again MegaMan only just manages to dodge - it's harder this time, because the Meteor is a barrage of attacks, and each one in this Dark attack is potentially devastating.
Lan downloads Life Aura, no doubt in an attempt to protect MegaMan, but Dark MegaMan uses North Wind to blow the barrier away easily. He's assaulted by whatever Dark Meteors are left, of which there are considerably more than there should be - perhaps Dark Meteor throws out twice the amount of Meteors that a normal Meteor would, which is an absurd amount already - and falls to his knees with a pained cry.
"MegaMan!" Lan shouts again. "Ah, what's going on!? He counters everything we do!"
"Dark Wide," Dark MegaMan says, taking aim as the Dark weapon materialises on his arm. "You mean to say you haven't figured it out yet? I told you, when we first met! I have all of MegaMan's skills, his memories, everything that makes him him! The two of you combined isn't enough to defeat me, because I'm more than you!"
"What-"
"He's saying he has both MegaMan's skills and yours," Dad breaks in grimly. "He has a counter to every attack you try because he already knows what you're going to do ahead of time."
Shocked despair jolts through MegaMan's systems at that, but before he can even properly register it, Dark MegaMan fires his Dark Wide. He can't dodge this one, and gets blown back by the attack - he hears Lan crying out, worried for him, and MegaMan silently apologises to his operator because he's not sure he knows how to defeat an opponent with the exact same skillset as him, combined with Lan's own battle skills.
MegaMan struggles to get to his feet as Dark MegaMan banishes his Dark Wide, replacing it with a Dark Drill. The loneliness that Dark MegaMan feels has been forcibly pushed down to make room for dark satisfaction as he slowly prowls over to MegaMan, relishing the taste of victory - and the knowledge that he's finally beaten MegaMan at something.
Why would he want to beat MegaMan at anything, though? Why does Dark MegaMan hate him so much? It can't just be because Dr. Regal created him. That doesn't make sense - Dark MegaMan has his own mind, his own personality, his own reasons. So he must hate MegaMan for a reason that isn't anything to do with Dr. Regal.
MegaMan sees a flash of white out of the corner of his eye, and glances over at Arcadia without turning his head away from Dark MegaMan. Arcadia's just finished cutting down three more silver humanoids, and as if he can sense MegaMan's look - he probably can, actually - he turns around.
Inspiration hits MegaMan just then.
"Dr. Regal's wrong, you know," he calls, turning back to Dark MegaMan.
His dark counterpart pauses. "What?"
"Just being strong won't make your loneliness go away," MegaMan tells him. "Yes, there's a limit to the strength that Lan and I have, even together . . . but with our friends helping us, there's nothing we can't do!"
Dark MegaMan's eyes widen a split second before Arcadia's Holy Fire engulfs him. MegaMan jumps away to avoid getting caught in the blast, wincing when he hears Dark MegaMan's scream, sensing the pain of darkness that isn't his being burnt in the white fire of Light.
It looks like Dark MegaMan has just enough Dark Aura in him to be truly hurt by Arcadia's Holy Fire, even if he doesn't have enough of it to make Dark Immunity activate.
Arcadia's Holy Fire dies down, leaving Dark MegaMan kneeling on the floor, skin sizzling with white flames. He's trembling and gasping, ashen-faced, and MegaMan reflects that he's never actually met Arcadia for himself - so he can't have known how much Holy Fire would hurt him. Did Dr. Regal think that only having a little darkness would make him safe from Arcadia's power? It clearly doesn't work like that.
"Give up," MegaMan pleads softly. "Please. You don't have to fight anymore. We can-"
"Dark Thunder!" Dark MegaMan screams, slamming his burnt hands onto the ground.
The Dark Thunder explodes out from him, in every direction. MegaMan is only saved from it thanks to Lan downloading a Barrier, and Arcadia just barely manages to get into the air and out of the way. The remaining silver humanoids are caught in the attack, dissolving the moment the thunder touches them, and luckily it doesn't reach far enough to hit SearchMan, who has no way of protecting himself like MegaMan or getting out of the way like Arcadia.
Just underneath the crashing thunder is the odd sound of something like glass shattering, and then there's an odd bright light shining from somewhere.
A hole. The Dark Thunder attack has blasted apart the silver humanoids, and has shattered a hole in the cyberworld - a wall of some kind, maybe a firewall (though not the type that MegaMan is familiar with), and who knows what's beyond that hole.
"I-" Dark MegaMan gasps desperately. "I- I will become the strongest! I have to!"
He struggles to his feet and stumbles over to the hole, then falls in before anyone can stop him.
MegaMan follows, barely aware of Arcadia darting after him, of SearchMan cursing to himself and running after both of them. They jump into the cyberworld beyond the shattered hole, and once again, they find something that's nothing like anything they've seen on their planet.
It's a control system, that much is obvious. Tremendous power radiates from the giant glowing ball of energy - an energy core, no doubt - in the centre, so much that it practically outshines everything else nearby. It's almost overwhelming, the sheer pressure in this alien control system, and MegaMan wonders just how much of this power comes from the Asteroid Navis that Slur distributed. Probably quite a lot. And this is what they're trying to stop? This is what's going to destroy their planet?
He sees Dark MegaMan heading straight for the glowing energy core. MegaMan, Arcadia, and SearchMan haven't quite managed to get halfway before Dark MegaMan touches down on the surface of the energy core, and then they have to stop - because the tremendous power is reacting to Dark MegaMan, shifting and growing, and there's no telling what could happen if they dare get any closer than they already are.
Dark MegaMan raises his arms, and all of the Crests that Dr. Regal has already collected flow out of his NaviMark into a rotating circle. They glow like stars, somehow visible even through the massive energy of the control system.
"He has all thirteen Crests!?" SearchMan gasps. He makes to move. "We have to stop him-"
"Twelve and a half," Arcadia speaks up.
SearchMan stops and turns to stare at him. MegaMan looks at him too, puzzled.
"Look," Arcadia says, pointing at the floating Crests. "One of them isn't complete. It's only half a Crest, not a full Crest."
MegaMan looks closely, and is shocked to see that Arcadia is right - indeed, one of the Crests rotating around Dark MegaMan is only half the image of a Crest. It seems that Dark MegaMan hasn't noticed or even realised, because he's entirely focused on taking control of Duo's power, too focused on his goal to see that he doesn't actually have all the Crests.
"Dr. Regal never got Mimic's half-Crest," Arcadia murmurs. "She made sure of it."
Dark MegaMan's eyes are closed, anticipating the power that should be flowing through him - but after a few moments of nothing happening, he begins to look puzzled, and he opens his eyes.
It's at that moment that the energy core turns from bright white to bloody red, and a deep gong-like sound echoes throughout the control system. Energy pulses out from the core in a half-translucent wave, and when it passes through MegaMan, he shudders - to use a human phrase, it's like someone has just walked over his grave.
There's another deep gong-like sound, more energy pulsing out at the same time, and the energy core's power grows to overwhelming levels. The sheer pressure in the control system nearly threatens to crush MegaMan, Arcadia, and SearchMan. If it's this bad here, it's even worse at the core itself, and Dark MegaMan has collapsed to his hands and knees with a strangled gasp.
"What's going on!?" SearchMan demands, struggling to stay upright - as much as he can, when they're floating in mid-air.
The energy continues to pulse out of the core, each time with a deep gong-like sound, and the pressure intensifies. MegaMan is just barely aware of a faint rumbling, and for a moment he's afraid that Dark MegaMan's attempt to take Duo's power for himself has somehow activated the comet prematurely - but then he feels a flash of shock and fear from his dark counterpart, so strong that he chokes on it, and sudden comprehension dawns on him.
"The comet's forcing Dark MegaMan to self-destruct," MegaMan gasps out.
Arcadia looks at MegaMan sharply, and SearchMan utters another quiet curse.
"We- we have to save him!" MegaMan struggles to his feet and takes a step forward, but Arcadia holds out his wing and bars his way. "Arcadia, let me go, he'll-"
"We need to leave, now!" SearchMan snaps, grabbing his arm and dragging him back.
"He doesn't want to!" MegaMan protests. "We have to save him-"
"There's no saving a NetNavi who's self-destructing!"
MegaMan twists free of SearchMan's grip and tries to go for Dark MegaMan again, but Arcadia gets in front of him, shoving him back.
"No!" MegaMan cries, stumbling. "He's- he's scared, he doesn't want this!"
"Doesn't matter what he does or doesn't want, we need to go!" Arcadia insists, giving him another shove. "If we stay, we'll be deleted too!"
MegaMan grabs Arcadia's shoulders desperately. "Please, Arcadia!"
He's not sure what makes Arcadia stop. Physical contact makes his Empath Program stronger, so maybe Arcadia can feel MegaMan's desperation, or maybe he can sense something of Dark MegaMan's fear within MegaMan's own mind. Whatever causes it, Arcadia stops, and MegaMan clutches at him like a lifeline.
"Please," MegaMan whispers.
Arcadia closes his eyes for a brief moment. Then he opens them, looking at MegaMan and SearchMan.
"Get out of here," he says, turning around.
"Wait, what are you doing?" SearchMan demands sharply, stepping forward with a look incredulous shock on his face.
Arcadia sighs. "Something incredibly stupid."
He spreads his wings and heads straight for Dark MegaMan's self-destructing body. MegaMan makes to follow him, but SearchMan grabs him again and starts dragging him away, out of the control system.
"Are all you ultimate program NetNavis such reckless idiots?" SearchMan barks. "Let's go already!"
He gets them both out of the control system and back into the other cyberworld. MegaMan looks behind them, into the hole, but it's too bright for him to see anything beyond, and then SearchMan is tugging him away, back through the space-like cyberworld.
They head straight for the Past Tunnel. Colonel is still there, down on one knee and looking ragged, but as soon as he sees MegaMan and SearchMan coming toward him, he pushes himself to his feet.
"What happened to-" Colonel begins.
"No time, we need to go!" SearchMan darts past him.
MegaMan sees a bewildered and startled expression from Colonel before the three of them jump back into the Past Tunnel.
There's a low rumbling from behind them before they even make it a few metres, and MegaMan glances over his shoulder. An explosion of fire and data is blasting through the cyberworld of Duo's comet, and MegaMan can no longer feel the presence of his dark counterpart.
As he watches, still being dragged through the Past Tunnel by SearchMan, he sees a white figure flying ahead of the explosion. The figure darts into the Past Tunnel and catches up to them quickly, cradling something in his hands that seems to be glowing faintly with an odd pale light.
"Arcadia?" MegaMan asks softly, hardly daring to hope. "Is- did you-"
"He's gone," Arcadia tells him. "Dark MegaMan self-destructed."
MegaMan bites his lip and blinks back the tears that suddenly well up in his eyes. Of course it was a stretch to think that Dark MegaMan could be saved after the comet forced him to self-destruct. SearchMan's right - no NetNavi who's self-destructing can be saved from that. But despite that, MegaMan still hoped that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance. Just the smallest little chance, one in a million, that Dark MegaMan wouldn't have to be deleted in such a horrible way.
His hope was for nothing, and they're going back empty-handed. Technically this mission was a success, of course - Dark MegaMan didn't get Duo's power.
So why does it still feel like they failed?
Colonel leaves them after they get back to their own time, using the Space-Time Server to return to his operator. He leaves them with a warning to be careful and watch out for Dr. Regal, because it's obvious that his ambitions are still just as strong as ever, and while MegaMan is already fully aware of that, he's grateful for the warning all the same. They all are.
SearchMan heads back into Raika's PET and inspects the bandages on his operator's arm, making sure it's fine, and MegaMan goes back into Lan's PET, despondent despite their victory. He doesn't have to wonder why he's not feeling any sort of triumph - he wanted to save Dark MegaMan, and he couldn't. He was forced to leave his dark counterpart to be deleted in the worst way imaginable for a NetNavi.
Lan tries to talk to him, but he realises that MegaMan needs to be alone at the moment, and mercifully leaves him to his own devices. He knows his operator will fuss over him later, but for now, MegaMan just doesn't want to see anyone.
So it comes as a surprise when Arcadia appears in Lan's PET, still holding the odd glowing thing.
"Arcadia . . ." MegaMan swallows and fights to keep his voice steady. "Please, I just want to be alone for a little-"
"I told you Dark MegaMan was gone," Arcadia interrupts. "I said he self-destructed. But I never said I couldn't save him."
MegaMan's thoughts skid to a halt and he stares at Arcadia incomprehensibly.
Arcadia holds out his hands, bringing MegaMan's attention to the glowing thing. It's a sphere of pure energy, made of solid light, pale purple in colour. It takes him a moment to realise what he's looking at.
The core of a NetNavi.
"This is all that was left of him," Arcadia tells him, carefully placing the core into MegaMan's hands.
"Dark MegaMan," MegaMan breathes, cradling the core as gently as a human would a newborn baby.
As if in response to his words, the core pulses faintly, and MegaMan feels a slight tug on his mind - on the connection he has with Dark MegaMan. Whatever's left of it, at least.
I wanted what you have.
MegaMan's hands tremble.
He finally has the answer to his questions. He knows now why Dark MegaMan hated him so much, even more than Dr. Regal's poisonous programming could ever hope to put into him.
MegaMan has everything Dark MegaMan ever wanted - the love of his operator, his friends, his family. Dark MegaMan hated him so much because he was jealous of what MegaMan had, jealous and sad and so, so lonely. He wanted the same love that MegaMan has, but could never have it because of what he was and how he was created.
You can have it now, MegaMan whispers, gently hugging the core to his chest.
He stays like that for a moment, feeling faint gratitude and something like peace flowing from the core. Then he becomes aware of Arcadia, still standing in front of him, watching him holding the core with an unreadable expression.
"Thank you," MegaMan says, looking up at him, speaking so softly that he's nearly whispering the words. "You didn't have to do this, you had every reason to want Dark MegaMan deleted, but . . . still, you . . ."
"You're right," Arcadia murmurs. "I do have every reason to want him deleted. He tried to trick my brother into deleting himself, and he's attacked my primary operator multiple times."
MegaMan winces at the reminder, and feels a slight twinge of fear from the core in his hands. But then he blinks, surprised, as Arcadia continues.
"But I care more about you than I do about getting some petty revenge," Arcadia says. He reaches out and brushes his clawed fingertips against the core. "He may have been our enemy, but Dark MegaMan is just as much your brother as ProtoMan is mine."
"Thank you," MegaMan says again. He doesn't know what else to say - what words could possibly convey the sheer gratitude and relief he feels?
But he doesn't need words, not when Arcadia's Empath Program allows him to sense MegaMan's feelings anyway. Arcadia's unreadable expression wavers, and the tiniest of smiles appears on his face, before he turns and leaves - going back to Chaud's PET, no doubt, to make sure his own operator is alright.
MegaMan smiles softly as he looks at the core in his hands. It pulses in response, and settles into a faint tranquillity that makes MegaMan feel warm right down to his own core.
