Disclaimer: All Disney works are the property of The Walt Disney Company. All other characters and settings are the property of their respective legal owners.

Author's note: Originally posted by Anon e Mouse Jr. on 2017-11-25. This is the first of five chapters posted today.

Disney/Kingdom Hearts Loops, Chapter Eighteen, part 1 of 5 - Mega Man: Inside Out

18.1 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man]

Mega Man: Inside Out

Riley blinked as she Awoke in the car again and sighed. She'd been getting used to the repeats, but always Awakening during or right before her family's move to San Francisco (or wherever it was they were moving to this Loop) was getting depressing. She'd really like to have a Loop where she could talk with her old friends in person rather than having to do it over the phone or online.

Speaking of talking with friends, she should probably check in with the ones inside her head.

'Sadness?' she concentrated and used the mental relay system that Phineas and Ferb had installed inside her mind several Loops back.

'How'd you know it was me?' the blue emotion sent back.

'Just a feeling,' Riley thought back with a melancholy smirk. Really, if she paid attention, it was fairly obvious which of her emotions was running the show at any given moment. 'How are the others right now?'

'Looks like we're all Awake for this Loop,' Sadness sent back. 'Anger's looking over the Mind Reader as usual, Fear and Disgust are talking over first day of school plans, and Joy's rifling through this Loop's memories. She should have a good sample pretty soon and – oh, here she comes now. Sorry. I was kind enjoying our talk.'

'It's fine Sadness,' Riley thought back, 'I was enjoying it too. Beats staring out a car window at nothing in particular.'

'Aw, but Sadness loves those times!' Joy joined the conversation. 'I've never seen her more excited than over a good introspective heart-to-heart. Not really my thing, but to each their own, right?'

'Right,' Riley giggled to herself at the thought of an excited Sadness. The mental image was patently ridiculous.

'Oooo... that's a keeper, Riley,' Joy laughed.

Riley blushed as she remembered that her emotions were privy to such thoughts and promptly imagined a quiet and introverted Joy to even the scales.

'What the...? Is it opposite day and no one told me?' the gruff voice of Anger joined the others. 'Joy, have you shown her this Loop's memories yet or not?'

'Was just about to!' Joy replied. 'Riley, you remember those video games Dad introduced us to that time you broke your leg on the ice?'

'Yeah?' Riley thought back as the image of a blue guy running, jumping and shooting came to mind. Video games had never been a major interest for her, but she'd needed something to take her mind off the fact that she had a leg in a cast, a pair of crutches, and was supposed to stay off her feet (well, foot and a crutch) as much as possible. Plus her dad had apparently loved the series and his enthusiasm was a bit infectious. And they'd been fun. Frustrating as heck at times, but fun.

'I remember being torn between wanting to throw the controller through a window and wanting to shoot more of those digital things in the face for killing our character all the time,' Anger sounded happy. Which made sense. Aggression in general was his thing. He loved hockey just as much as Riley herself.

'Well, guess where Dad's new job is!' Joy cheered as a new image entered Riley's thoughts. One of a very high-tech lab, at least for the time period Riley was used to, with a great big sign proclaiming it to be 'Light Labs'. Information came with it, particularly the name of the owner: Dr. Thomas Light.

'Is that Santa Claus in a lab coat?' Disgust joined the conversation. 'I have no idea how he manages it, but he makes it work.'

'Okay, but what does that have to do with Dad's video games?' Riley thought back.

'He's the guy who made the hero in them!' Joy chirped back.

'No way!' Anger seemed much more interested all of a sudden. Riley was pretty interested now too.

'Wait,' Fear called a halt to the excitement of the moment. 'Didn't the villain in those things work with him?'

An image of Einstein's evil cousin turning into an alien from outer space came to Riley's mind and she shuddered.

'Oh no!' Sadness cried. 'If Riley has to deal with a mad scientist, it'll be bad!'

'Bad?!' Fear countered. 'It'll be terrible! We don't know how to fight a robot uprising!'

'Guys!' Joy called for calm for several moments, 'I checked and there's no mention of the guy in Riley's Loop memories, or anyone else working with Dr. Light right now. And I even think I know why!'

'You do?' Disgust questioned after a silent moment.

'Yep! You see, his name was Dr. Wily!'

Riley thought that over for a moment, and then realized the strange sense of humor the Loops sometimes had and groaned. The groan was echoed by multiple emotions inside her head.

'The sinister Dr. Wily has been replaced this Loop by the amazing Dr. Riley! Let's see what happens!'(1)

18.2 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man]

Mega Man: Inside Out - More Intros

Rock and Roll were loving the current Loop for one very important reason: Dr. Wily didn't exist in it. They were very certain of that. They'd checked every possible digital record regarding every known name variation they'd ever encountered.

The mad scientist didn't exist as a man, a woman, a child, or even an escaped chimp from the zoo that had wandered into a pharmaceutical company (that had been a strange Loop).

Of course, it meant that someone else could very well have taken his role and the other shoe was just waiting to drop, but they'd handle that if and when it happened.

"Hey dad!" Roll greeted Dr. Thomas Light as he trudged into the kitchen for breakfast. "How are things going? Awake yet?"

"Still no subspace pocket access," the man smiled as Roll placed an omelet and orange juice in front of him. "So it looks like I'm just a highly lucid Dreamer this Loop."

"Eh, we'll happily store anything you want to keep for a later Loop," Rock offered as he entered the kitchen. "How are preparations for the big presentation going?"

"My new business manager should be starting today," Dr. Light answered. "Though it'll probably just be showing him around and detailing his duties. Still, it'll be good to have more time to work in the lab on many of the projects I've been putting off so Albert didn't try to steal them."

"What's his name again?" Rock wondered. "Bill Anderson?"

"Andersen with an 'e', though the names do sound similar,"(2) Dr. Light answered. "Bill and his family have recently moved to Arcadia for this job, so he probably isn't familiar with the city yet. I'm honestly wondering if I should send Auto to show him the way to the lab or keep Auto at the store so he doesn't scare the man away."

"Probably keep Auto at the store for now," Rock nodded. "He's a little much to take in the first day on the job."

"I wonder if Mr. Andersen has any kids..." Roll mused.

18.3 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man]

Mega Man: Inside Out - Meet the Neighbors

It was early morning after moving day and Riley was reflecting that there were some rather odd and annoying constants in the Loops at times.

'No duh,' she heard Disgust snort in her head. 'Exhibit A: Our house is, once again, a complete and utter disaster area! I mean, the last people who lived here should have had it condemned rather than sell it to poor innocent people like dad and mom!'

'Not to mention that the *beep* movers got lost yet AGAIN!' Anger fumed. 'And will you stop hitting the censor button Fear?!'

*Ding-Dong*

'Hey! Someone's at the door!' Joy latched onto this new fact. 'Ooooh! I wonder who it is? I bet it's some of our new neighbors coming to make friends!'

'I bet it's someone looking for whoever used to live here and now they're going to be reminded that their friends moved away and that'll be sad...'

'Oh geez! You don't think the robot uprising makes house calls, do you?!'

'Settle down you all,' Riley thought to her emotions. 'Let's find out before getting bent out of shape.'

"Hello, is this the Andersen residence?" Riley heard the voice of a boy about her age ask.

"Um... yes," the surprised tone of her father replied.

*Mr. Andersen's Headquarters*

"Red Alert!"

*Boy! Boy! Boy!*

"How did he find out about Riley so fast?! Why is he here? Who is he?"

"We should probably find out before jumping to conclusions. There is a tiny chance the boy is simply a new neighbor being polite."

*The Real World*

"Who are you?"

"Rock Light, sir," the boy answered in such a polite tone that Riley just knew he'd held his hand out to shake her father's. Peeking around a corner to spy on the doorway, she saw a young boy with black hair in a blue shirt doing exactly that. "I'm from Light Labs. Dad sent me and my sister over to see how you were settling in, sir."

'Oh, I like this guy,' Disgust mused. 'Polite, charming, decently dressed. Yeah, we could do worse for friends even if he is a boy.'

"I... see..." Riley's father blinked as he accepted the handshake. "Um..."

"And this is my sister, Roll Light," the boy continued as a blonde girl with a ponytail and a red sundress joined him holding what looked like a bag of groceries.

'Wait... Rock... and Roll?' Joy's slow voice sounded in Riley's head. 'Those... are... the... most... awesome... names... EVER! Almost as awesome as yours Riley!'

"Oh... my... god..." the girl paused and looked at the interior of the house in horror.

'See! Someone else agrees with me about the house!' Disgust crowed in vindication.

'Oh... she hates our new house... that's sad...'

"Rock, you start making breakfast for these nice people," the girl handed the grocery bag to her brother as well as a frying pan that had been hidden behind it. "I'm going to get my emergency cleaning supplies."

"Bring some of the picnic-ware while you're at it!" the boy called back after his sister after a glance inside confirming that there was not yet any furniture to speak of.

'Emergency cleaning supplies?!' Fear worried. 'Is she going to scrub our new house from the face of the earth?!'

'Not like it would be any great loss,' Disgust dismissed Fear's worries.

'But we're still inside! Aren't condemned buildings supposed to be evacuated first?!'

"Um... what just...?" Riley's father finally found his voice.

"Just let my sister work, sir," the boy smiled serenely as he entered the house. "I promise you won't be sorry you did. Now, if you could show me the kitchen, please? I'm not as good at cooking as she is, but I can do a passable omelet."

"Sure..." Riley's dad seemed to latch onto that idea like a drowning man latching onto a life preserver and began leading the boy to the kitchen. After a moment, Riley followed.

'You should introduce yourself Riley!' Joy prompted.

"Hi..." Riley began.

'But don't give away too much!' Fear added. 'We still don't know if either of these two are part of the inevitable robot uprising!'

"Are you part of the robot uprising?" Riley finished before she could stop herself. (3)

'Oh, nice one Fear...' Anger and Disgust both grumbled as Riley's face flushed in embarrassment and her dad barely stifled a snort of amusement.

"Nah," the boy smiled in amusement as he wiped down the electric stove's top. "Actually, part of what my sister and I do is help make sure that our dad doesn't engineer one by accident."

"So what else do you do?" Riley's father asked.

"I mostly help dad with his lab work," the boy said as he set out eggs and various omelet fixings. Riley was relieved to note the complete absence of broccoli. "Roll–"

"Ack!" Riley's mom suddenly exclaimed in shock from the entryway. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

*Mrs. Andersen's Headquarters*

"And where do you get your cleaning supplies? Because we could really use some around here."

*The Real World*

"Good morning Mrs. Andersen. My name is Roll Light. And I end messes."

"...does that," Rock finished.

'I don't know about the rest of you,' Disgust broke the silence in Riley's head, 'but I just found my new best friend.'

18.4 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man]

Mega Man: Inside Out - Welcome to Light Labs

Roll's claim of ending messes was apparently not made idly. She came in with a commando headband and enough cleaning supplies to be mistaken as a one-maid army ready to take on the apocalypse itself. (4) By the time she was finished, around early afternoon, the still-empty house all but sparkled.

Rock on the other hand had talked to Riley's father about the general expectations and schedule of his new job. Riley had tuned out a fair bit, but the gist was that Rock and Roll's dad, Dr. Light, was gearing up for the release of a major industrial robotics line and was finding that he just didn't have the time anymore to invent, build, and run the business side of things. Which was why Riley's dad had been hired on, with a fairly generous increase in pay over his old job. He'd also talked a fair bit about Arcadia and the various sights, as well as some of the more flamboyant celebrations that the city's eccentric mayor, Leonard Dorado, held. Joy had loved that part in particular and prodded Riley into asking more.

And then the two had offered to take not just Riley's dad to tour his new place of business, but the whole Andersen family.

Riley was excited about going with her dad to see Light Labs. Right up until she saw what she was expected to ride in.

'What in the world is that?!' Disgust yelled as Riley beheld the truck the Light twins had arrived in.

'I don't know but I think it's looking at us...' Fear added.

'Oh, come on... it's not... that bad...' Joy offered, but even she didn't seem really certain.

The truck, if it could really be called that, was bright green and yellow with an open cab. The front of the truck had a face consisting of an oversized bumper-jaw and two humongous red eye-headlights. (5)

All in all, it evoked the image of some robo-clown and neither Riley nor her emotions were thrilled with the prospect.

"It's... certainly... unique," Riley's mom offered diplomatically.

'Translation: she hates it but doesn't want to be seen as impolite,' Disgust paraphrased.

"Unique is..." Rock began hesitantly.

"...one way to describe Auto..." Roll finished. (6)

"Auto?" Riley's dad asked. "And now that I think about it, who drove you anyway?"

"Auto is Light Labs' mechanic and... somewhat eccentric. As for who drove," Rock stated, holding up a license, "I did."

The Andersen family blinked as one.

'I'm torn...' Disgust finally offered from Riley's head. 'The whole driving thing is automatic cool points, but that thing is, like, anti-cool.'

'He is a very brave soul,' Fear offered.

Riley had absolutely loved seeing Light Labs. The entire place had the general look and feel of something that Phineas and Ferb would want when they grew up. Or at least the chance to play around in over the summer.

The industrial robots, that Dr. Light called the 'robot masters', were six robots that Riley didn't recognize. She chalked that up to only playing the '2' and '3' games of the series that Loop she'd broken her leg (and neither to actual completion), but it still hadn't stopped Fear from ranting about the inevitable robot uprising. Nor had Dr. Light's explanation of each robot's abilities. Regardless of intended purpose, giant scissors that could cut tree trunks were intimidating.

Then had come Dr. Light talking about the AI of each robot, explaining the concept of IC chips (along with a bunch of technical details that went over all the Andersens' heads) and how each 'robot master' would be able to undertake complex emotional interactions, direct other robots in the workplace, and make complex decisions like a human.

Joy had thought that was awesome, Fear had thought that was terrifying, and before Riley could make peace between the two her father had voiced the concerns.

"This all sounds really amazing, but how do you know these 'robot masters' won't go out of control?"

"For one, I've been testing the cognitive systems and IC chips already and, after... an issue with the prototype... the two finished models are exceeding all expectations for the series, both in emotional interaction with humans and complex cognitive processes."

'But do they have fashion sense?' Disgust snarked.

"Really?" Riley asked. "Can we meet them?"

'Yeah! This is sounding cooler by the second!' Joy agreed.

'Oh... they're the first of their kind?' Sadness realized. 'They must be lonely...'

"They do sound... interesting..." Riley's mom admitted.

'More like terrifying!' Fear interrupted.

'Will you shut up already!' Anger yelled.

"I'd like to see them myself," Riley's dad folded his arms. "I want to know exactly what you're having me pitch to possible customers."

"Actually..." Dr. Light smiled serenely.

'I swear, he's like my natural enemy...' an unwillingly calm Anger grumbled.

"...I believe you've already met."

'Huh?!' Riley thought in unison with all five of her emotions.

Dr. Light took in the incredulous expressions of the Andersen family and made a sweeping gesture towards his two children.

Rock and Roll waved politely.

'I KNEW IT!' Fear broke Riley's mental silence. 'THE ROBOT UPRISING IS UPON US!'

18.5 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man]

Mega Man: Inside Out - I~dea!

"So why pretend that you're not robots?" Riley finally asked.

"Well..." Rock grinned sheepishly.

"It's kind of petty, but we really like seeing the looks on people's faces when they realize that we're not human," Roll explained. "Or whatever the main population is that Loop."

'Oh man!' Joy laughed in Riley's head. 'The look on Fear's face was priceless!'

'Yeah, it was kind of funny how he was running around like a chicken with his head cut off...' Sadness added.

'Uh... gross analogy, Sadness...' Disgust muttered.

"Sorry about how we laughed at your reaction," Rock apologized. (7)

'It was a perfectly legitimate question!' Fear yelled.

'Doesn't mean it wasn't hilarious, Fear,' Joy giggled.

'And a terrible first impression,' Disgust added. 'Way to go, Fear.'

"Yeah, well," Riley blushed a bit, "saying 'oh, so you are part of the robot uprising?' wasn't my finest moment."

"Maybe not," Roll allowed, "but we've had worse reactions."

"Anyway, you're the visiting looper, any plans?"

"Well..." Riley hedged, still not quite wrapping her mind around the two robots in front of her being the local Anchors (each of them was an Anchor apparently, it was a rare thing or something). For one, she'd never heard of a Rock or Roll in either of the games she'd played. Of course, they could have been in the endings, which would make sense as she'd never beaten either of the games. "I kind of wanted to talk to Mega Man... but since I'm replacing that Dr. Wily character... I guess he doesn't get built?"

Rock and Roll blinked at Riley's statement and exchanged wordless glances.

"You... don't know who either of us is?" Roll asked, getting a shaken head from Riley.

"I only played the '2' and '3' games one Loop when I broke my leg in a hockey accident and never actually beat them."

"Huh..." Rock blinked thoughtfully. "In that case... we won't tell you."

'What?!' Anger fumed in Riley's head.

'Oh, come on! That's just low, even for a boy,' Disgust added.

'They gotta tell us about Mega Man!' Joy insisted. 'He's like, the local superhero, right?'

"Don't get us wrong," Rock hastened to add, "we'll be happy to tell you if you guess, but we don't always get the chance to just 'hang out' with other loopers and be friends before the events that Dr. Wily kicks off become a factor. The last ones were..."

"...Phineas and Ferb actually," Roll supplied after a moment of thought on the matter.

"Oh, circuits, that was a wild summer," Rock grinned. "Those two are my favorite mad scientists after dad."

'We are totally asking about that later,' Joy said.

"You've met Phineas and Ferb?" Riley blinked. "They gave me the welcome speech."

"Which musical number did they use?" Rock asked eagerly.

'I got this!' Joy cheered as the memory came up.

"Number... 5," Riley replied.

"Awesome!" Roll grinned. "We actually helped them write that one!"

'Really?!' Joy exclaimed. 'Sweet!'

'I like her more and more,' Disgust added.

"Huh..." Riley blinked.

"Anyway, what's your Loop like?" Rock asked.

'Wait... they don't know about us either?' Sadness wondered.

'Oop, we're getting memories from long-term!' Fear alerted.

"You... haven't seen the movie?" Riley asked. Aside from Phineas and Ferb, who were often too busy running around with wacky inventions to really take much time for movies or novels in their eternal summer, most of her fused Loops had been with people who had seen the movie about her baseline. She'd watched it herself a few times, which was still a rather odd experience.

"No offense," Roll assured her, "but we don't always have the time for movies."

"And the popular fare in our Loop tends towards sci-fi anyway," Rock shrugged.

'Yeah, that's so not us,' Disgust allowed.

'Oh, oh!' Joy interrupted before Riley got back on track, 'This calls for an idea!'

Riley blinked again as a concept she'd been thinking of since Phineas and Ferb introduced her to her own emotions came to the forefront of her mind and grinned. "Actually, I think I know what I want to do this Loop..."

*Mrs. Andersen's Headquarters*

"I'm not sure I like leaving Riley with those two..."

"Yeah... robots pretending to be human? It doesn't sit well with me..."

"It'll be okay, Anger, Fear," Mrs. Andersen's Sadness reassured her fellow emotions as she called up a memory from short-term to play the interactions with the two... child robots, apparently... earlier that morning. "They seem to be very polite children after all, and the girl was helpful earlier."

"Yeah," Mrs. Andersen's Disgust chimed in with a sigh of contentment as the scene of the young girl cleaning the Andersen family's new house within an inch of its life played. "Ahhh... There's at least a week's worth of house cleaning we won't have to be doing..."

"Yeah!" her Joy chimed in. "And Riley seems to like them, so they deserve a decent chance."

"I still don't like it."

"Very well then, check in with the husband. This is his new job after all and we should follow his lead."

"Looks like dear has his 'game face on', Sadness. We can't get a clear reading."

"Then we wait for now."

*Mr. Andersen's Headquarters*

"Sir," Mr. Andersen's Fear reported as his fellows; particularly Mr. Andersen's Joy, Sadness, and Disgust; gave the current talk with Dr. Light their attention, "I've been through all of the plans for potential situations and there is nothing about child robots wanting to be friends with Riley."

"Are you certain?" his Anger asked.

"Absolutely," his Fear replied, shuffling through various large binders. "We have scenarios on what to do if there's a robot uprising, a robot apocalypse, a robot dance craze resurgence, robot doppelgängers, robot overlords, robots going haywire (I set that volume aside just in case), robot traffic cops, robot crooks, robot detectives, robots replacing honest working men (set that aside too since it's now relevant), murderous roombas, robot costumes that really want you to wear them, drones flying too close for comfort, and so on, but nothing about robot children." (8)

"Our new boss is wrapping up his speech," the man's Joy spoke up.

"Okay, recap for us."

"He wants us to manage the business side, of course, but it seems his real plan is to use robotics to accelerate the world's cultural and technological development by removing most, if not all, of the age-old problems plaguing humanity. His end-game is to essentially develop a brand new sapient race of machines to live and work alongside humanity as we go forth to settle other planets, working together to evolve far beyond what either could alone. The current line he wants to market is basically a stepping stone to achieve that."

Mr. Andersen's Anger and Fear blinked owlishly for a few moments.

*The Real World*

"I must say, Dr. Light," Mr. Andersen said after several long moments to digest what the man had told him, "when you think big, you don't do it halfway."

"Thank you, Mr. Andersen," the scientist smiled.

"Don't thank me yet," Mr. Andersen replied gruffly. "I get that you have good intentions and just want to help people, but I paid attention in my history classes doctor. I know that for every problem someone like you ever solved, at least two more crawled out of the woodwork later on. Some arguably worse than the original problem. Have you even thought about what kinds of problems a plan like yours might create?"

"Actually, I have," Dr. Light replied with a serene smile. "And I find it interesting that you mention history because that is right where I looked when I wanted to know what humanity might face living alongside a new race with potential values and desires that differ greatly from our own. What I discovered was that this would be nothing that humanity has not already faced in some form or another."

Mr. and Mrs. Andersen both blinked.

"It seems fantastic, but take into account the sheer number of different cultures among humanity itself. Do you even know how many there are on this one tiny planet? I don't, even after extensive research. Barriers of language, values, geography, morality, culture, technology levels, living conditions, sexuality, stereotypes, and more have all conspired to divide us and yet each day those divisions grow just a bit less divisive. We see more and more that those differences make humanity stronger as a whole rather than weaker. So the addition of one more group with differences can only serve to strengthen the whole in the long run, provided we are accepting of them for what they are. Yes, there will always be problems and I suppose a part of me takes comfort in that. For if there were no problems to solve, then I quite fear that I'd find life very empty indeed. Not to mention that I'd be out of a job." (9)

The Andersens exchanged a glance before turning back to him.

"So, what do you say?"

"I say it's a shame you don't run for office because suddenly I'd like to vote for you," Mr. Andersen chuckled. "Alright, doctor. You've got yourself a business manager. Let's see where this crazy road leads."

Rock, Roll, and Riley were gathered around what looked like a red sphere attached to a yellow box with blinking lights. Off to the side was a bundle of cords that looked made to attach to the box.

"Well," Rock mused as he inspected the device, "it could certainly use some maintenance after being in your pocket for so long, but otherwise this Mind Machine is in pretty good condition."

"Oh, good," Riley sighed in relief.

'Yeah, that would be all we needed,' Disgust snarked. 'Having an idea like this and then it being derailed because the thing didn't work anymore.'

"It wouldn't be that big a deal if it wasn't," Rock tapped his head with a smirk. "We both have all of Phineas and Ferb's usual blueprints in memory. Plus a few things they built just for that Loop."

"Oh, maker, the Phineas and Ferb Numbers were awesome!" Roll giggled.

'We are totally getting that story later,' Joy insisted.

"So, do you think my idea will work?" Riley asked.

"It should," Rock nodded, pulling a large circuit out of nowhere, "especially with these. This is an Integrated Circuit chip. Essentially it's what allows robots like us to have personalities."

"At least the ones not looping," Roll clarified.

"Yeah," Rock nodded. "We're... a bit beyond the usual capacity of the IC chips as a result of looping, but even so these things are so complex that, though they're manufactured the same way, each one will effectively produce a unique evolving personality."

'Wow...' Sadness whispered.

"Again, not taking the particulars of the Loops into account," Roll clarified. "Even though they're supposed to produce unique personalities even when installed in identical machines and loaded with identical programs, the robot masters we know still end up with pretty similar personalities. Usually, anyway."

"Add it to a complex enough CPU and it goes from a basic artificial intelligence to an artificially created intelligence."

'AKA, a recipe for disaster!' Fear added.

"What's the difference?" Riley asked.

"It's the difference between mimicking thought patterns and actually possessing them," Rock said. "Not always easy to define, but very, very real."

"The personality and emotions they enable are so complex that the average robot master variant is essentially a missing link between having a Soul and not having one. Our Admin says it's part of why we're able to Loop in the first place." (10)

"So...?"

"So," Rock grinned, "we should be able to essentially make a new Mind Machine that can download these additional loopers who live in your head to an IC chip, which we can then put in a robot body of their very own."

"You'll be touring Arcadia together in no time," Roll smiled.

'I love this plan!' Joy cheered.

'Yeah,' Sadness added quietly, 'we can take long walks in the rain and obsess over the weight of life's problems together...'

'And hugs! Don't forget hugs!'

'Guys, I really think we should take a closer look at this idea before we go through with it...' Fear worried. 'I mean... something's bound to go wrong.' (11)

'Oh, don't be such a spoilsport,' Disgust scoffed. 'Riley, you better be ready for one heck of a shopping spree because I intend to leave you looking fabulous.'

'Heh...' Anger chuckled, 'don't forget to leave some time for a little one-on-one on the ice!'

'Guys!' Fear insisted.

'Oh, lighten up, Fear!' Joy chastised.

'Yeah, think of being able to see a scary movie with Riley,' Sadness prodded. 'I mean, you'll probably embarrass yourself screaming, but that's okay, right?'

'Okay... yes, I'd like that; not the being embarrassed part, the other one; but still...!'

'Fear, do you have one solid reason why we shouldn't do this?' Anger sighed heavily.

'No! I don't! I can't think of a single one! Or find one in my disaster planners! And that should worry you!'

'Oh, give it a rest Fear,' Disgust scoffed. 'I say we go through with it.'

'Yay!'

"It's settled then!" Riley smiled at her new friends.

18.6 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man] / [Mythos Hackers]

Mega Man: Inside Out - Mind Master

"What is that you're installing?" Riley asked Rock as the latter fiddled with the generic robot bodies her emotions would inhabit. The technical specs went way over her head, but the gist was that on download, the bodies would be reconfigured to something more closely resembling the personality on the IC chip. Rock and Roll had mentioned something about 'Color Masters', but Riley hadn't asked for clarification. The last time she had, it had resulted in a technospeak lecture that had left her eyes crossed.

Come to think of it, she might regret asking her latest question...

"I call it the Zen Buster," Rock told her. "It's an energy blaster I developed that calms the target's emotional state. Completely harmless and nonlethal, but it could come in handy if by some misfortune there ends up being trouble. I developed it after..." (12)

'Joy, don't fall asleep now!' Fear yelped in Riley's head.

Riley tuned out, smiling and nodding politely as Rock went on about something called 'broforce'.

Joy smiled as she looked out at the Islands of Personality that made up Riley visible from headquarters.

Proud and center was the improved Family Island, powered by a core memory formed from Joy and Sadness, three times as large as almost any of the others, and also supported by Riley's pre-Awake yellow core memory. Also at the back were the reformed versions of the other four personality islands that Riley had possessed prior to that disastrous baseline incident. Hockey Island, reformed in the baseline by a core memory from Joy and Anger; Honesty Island, reformed by a core memory from Joy and Fear; Friendship Island, another Joy and Anger one; and Goofball Island, the only one of the original five that was still pure Joy (if smaller than the others for that fact). Next to Goofball Island was a similarly small island, formed from a purely Sad core memory, its imagery morose and lonely, calling out for a hug. The core memory Sadness had formed that Joy had prevented from reaching the chamber originally.

Then there were the other Islands Riley had formed after the baseline incident in the year following while reforming the original five. There was School Island, formed from a core memory by Sadness and Anger after Riley spent a week on a particular science project only to have it completely ruined by an accident; Vampire Romance Island, that Sadness was rather fond of despite being formed from a core memory of Disgust and Fear when reading a book that Riley had found utterly creepy and disturbing yet could not put down (13); Fashion Island, powered by a core memory of Joy and Disgust that had formed on a shopping trip when some of Riley's friends tried to get her to try on the most ridiculous outfit for laughs; and Communication Island.

"Heh..." Joy chuckled at that one, with its cell phone imagery. "Insert young girl with her phone joke here, folks."

The Loops had formed a few interesting ones as well. Perhaps foremost was Concert Island, formerly Boy Band Island, the original core memory joined by one from a Loop where Riley had learned to play the guitar and had found she was pretty good at it. There were several others that were new in the Loops, not all clearly visible from the windows of Headquarters. One that was clearly visible was Zombie Island, formed by Fear and Anger (much to both of their dismay) during a Loop they'd been the only two of Riley's emotions Awake during a zombie apocalypse. The island featured a large statue representation of Riley holding a hockey stick that Joy thought held a rather brave and heroic pose as it faced off against an oncoming tide of undead.

But the one that was the most impressive was Unity Island, located directly below Headquarters and thus only partially visible from the windows, and extending out to engulf the connections tethering the other islands to Headquarters in a way that turned them from precarious walkways only meant to channel power to and from Headquarters into proper bridges, with railings and everything. The island had been formed during a group hug between all five emotions and Riley herself the first time they met face-to-face. A feat made possible thanks to the genius brothers Phineas and Ferb and their miraculous Mind Machine. The brothers had not only brought Riley inside her head (an action only necessary because all five of her emotions had come to blows over the confusion of the Loops, and unwittingly thrown Riley's mind into chaos as a result), but they'd helpfully explained the Loops, taught them all the art of subspace pockets and pings, and even upgraded their console to allow direct telepathic communication between Riley and her emotions without Riley needing to enter her own mind again. An upgrade that looped with them (or at least Riley) even!

And now... now they were going to actually attempt the feat in reverse. The emotions leaving Riley's head to join her outside.

It was going to be the best day ever!

What could possibly go wrong? (14)

"Everything set?" Roll asked her brother.

"Five bodies, three female standard, two male standard, ready and waiting. With a few spares just in case," Rock replied as he looked over the alcoves housing the prepared bodies.

"Check!" Riley noted.

"New mind machine showing all systems green."

"Check!"

"Remote override in place and operational?"

"Check!" Riley confirmed as she adjusted the failsafe headband the Light twins had developed for her.

"Five sapient emotional entities ready and waiting...?"

'Ready!'

'Waiting...'

'Let's get this show on the road already!'

'I still think this is a bad idea!'

'Oh, put a sock in it already!'

"Check, check, check, check, and check!" Riley smiled, strapping herself into the main chair while Roll adjusted the headgear.

"One young lady hooked up and ready to rock and roll?" Rock grinned.

"You know it!" Riley grinned back.

"Then, let's get started!"

The five emotions in Riley's head stared up at the repurposed memory recall tube, which in short order would put its new functionality to use by moving them to new bodies of their own with which they would be able to interact with their mutual favorite person in the multiverse.

"I still have a really bad feeling about this!" Fear shuffled nervously.

"It'll be fine, Fear," Riley's voice sounded from the control panel. "I mean, you haven't found anything wrong with the plan, right?"

"Not a thing!" Joy chirped for her fellow emotion.

"And not for lack of trying either," Anger grumbled. Searching through Fear's planners for something on this scenario had not left him in the best of moods the first time the emotion had grabbed him for the job. Nor had the subsequent attempts.

"Anger, be nice," Sadness scolded half-heartedly.

"DO ANY OF YOU REALIZE JUST WHAT IT MEANS THAT I CAN'T FIGURE OUT WHAT COULD GO WRONG?!" Fear shouted.

"Not really," Disgust rolled her eyes as the memory recall tube began powering up and smirked as a thought occurred to her.

"I SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND SOMETHING WRONG WITH ANY–" Fear was cut off as Disgust gave him an unceremonious push towards the recall tube and he was whisked away.

"What?" Disgust asked when the other emotions stared at her. "I just did what we were all thinking."

If he had a mouth, he would have smiled. It had taken a great deal of patience and hacking to arrange the opportunity he was about to have, from arranging the current fused Loop to ensuring that both that fool Hephaestus and that idiot Janus were out of their offices for reasons that would not have them interfering any time soon to subtly steering the thoughts of all involved away from the very obvious consequences of their endeavor. But it was about to pay off big time. And with a personal touch, he would get both revenge on the ones that had humiliated him before as well as a follower all his own. Perhaps the first of many.

Everything was going his way this time. He could almost taste his triumph already. For once, he lamented his lack of a mouth, because this was a prime opportunity to laugh.

Rock and Roll watched as the first of the male robots reconfigured itself into a tall skinny form with a purple color theme, and then proceeded to freak out.

"AAAHHHHHH!" 'Fear Man' screamed as he looked around the room. "I wasn't ready yet! What if there were alligators out here! Or jump ropes!"

"There are no alligators in the lab, moron," a green-armored 'Disgust Woman' scoffed as she finished the transition.

"And we haven't had weaponized jump ropes around here for a few dozen Loops now," Roll added. (15)

"Wait, that's a thing?" the short, squarish, and crimson 'Anger Man' asked in confusion as he stepped out of the alcove.

"It's not even the most ridiculous one we've had," Rock nodded as 'Sadness Woman' began her transformation. "Dr. Wily's a mad scientist after all. How are you feeling, Riley?"

"Pumped!" Riley grinned like a kid on a sugar rush. "I can't wait to finish this!"

"No anxiety?" 'Fear Man' asked? "Trepidation? Discomfort? Annoyance that it's not yet over?"

"None at all!" Riley grinned, not noticing the dawning looks of horror on her emotions' faces as the final download commenced. "In fact I–oh..."

"Oh what?" Roll asked in alarm even as 'Joy Woman' began to take form.

"With us out here..." 'Anger Man' began.

"The party is getting started!" 'Joy Woman' declared.

"No, Joy," 'Disgust Woman' trembled. "With us out here, Riley can't feel..."

'Joy Woman's' happy expression froze and slowly melted into a look of horrified realization. "We have to get back in there," she declared.

"No worries," Rock told them hastily. "All we need to do is hook you back up so we can reverse the process. We'll have this sorted out in a few–"

"Who...?" Riley began speaking in a monotone, like she was certain she was supposed to be terrified, but couldn't pull it off.

Ah, it was so good to be inside such a user-friendly mind for once. Especially with all the troublesome distractions and resistance so thoroughly removed. Arranging a mindscape avatar was generally tricky even for the best of divine operators, but mental purviews were something of a specialty of his.

"Who... who are you?" the emotionless monotone voice of the mind's owner called out, somehow sensing his presence. Somehow able to sense that his presence was wrong, even absent her emotions. "What are you doing here?"

He couldn't speak, of course, but he sent out the mental impressions he had perfected in place of such a crude communication method. As he walked over to a bin of lightbulbs, and what a droll way to represent ideas that was, he gave her a sense that everything would be fine.

There... There was the idea he knew would be here. The idea that couldn't help but form, especially in a branch like this one. After all, ideas did not form with discrimination about which were bad and which were good. Only their execution cared about that distinction. And with those troublesome emotions gone, there was nothing to stand in the way of this idea.

"You're not supposed to be in here..."

As he walked over to the console and found the place to put ideas, unceremoniously extracting and discarding the one already there, he sent the impression that such details as him not belonging no longer mattered. He was here now and all she had to do was follow his lead, stop resisting, not cause trouble, and give in to the madness.

He inserted the idea forcefully and twisted it in such a way that accepting it would be simple reflex.

"THIS IS THE WORST POSSIBLE DISASTER EVER!" 'Fear Man' screamed as he ran in circles. It was perhaps a testament to the others' agreement that they didn't try to calm him down.

"Hurry!" 'Joy Woman' urged. "If someone's poking around Riley's headquarters while we're not there..."

"We're working as fast as we can," Rock and Roll assured them.

"Who the hell could even get in there and how?!" 'Anger Man' demanded.

"We should have listened to Fear..." 'Sadness Woman' sighed.

"Yeah, we shoul–" 'Disgust Woman' cut off suddenly.

"Guy–?" Roll began to turn around, and caught a bolt of green energy to the chest that blossomed like a massive flower before collapsing in on itself, leaving Roll to drop to her knees and wrap her arms around herself protectively.

"Roll?!" Rock turned to check on his sister, mentally wondering why the energy burst hadn't affected him when a sunshine yellow bolt of energy slammed into him and flared like a flash grenade.

"Oh maker, this is all our fault," Roll muttered to herself, shaking and rocking in place with a self-reproaching grimace twisting her features. "We should have never suggested this. It's all our fault. All our fault."

"Hahahahahahahahahaha!" Rock rolled on the ground, laughing up a storm at a joke only he seemed to get.

"Riley?" 'Joy Woman' asked with a pained smile, her buster arm still pointed at Rock. "Why did you make us do that?"

"That was a very mean thing to do, Riley!" 'Sadness Woman' admonished, staring wide-eyed at the girl still in the chair for the new mind machine. "You should feel ashamed of yourself."

"I should..." Riley agreed listlessly. "But I don't..."

"Riley, stop this right now!" 'Anger Man' demanded, beginning to move in the girl's direction, but finding that his body refused to act against her.

"The override..." 'Fear Man' realized, having gone so far into sheer terror that he was now experiencing a strange sense of calm.

"Yes..." Riley confirmed. "You can take no action I do not command, my Emotion Masters... Now go. Conquer the world in the name of Dr. Riley..."

"Riley!" 'Disgust Woman' yelled back even as the five marched unwillingly towards the exit. "This is a terrible idea!"

"I know..." Riley intoned as the five exited the room, leaving the self-reproaching Roll and the laughing Rock behind. "But I can't seem to stop myself..."

Of course she couldn't stop herself. In the absence of her emotions, she belonged to whomever took command of her ability to feel. In this case, him.

"Why...?" the girl asked again.

Because he could. Because she was his perfect vessel now without those troublesome emotions. And besides, wasn't it so much better without such conflicting views muddling her thoughts? Besides, it was considered polite to help others, and he was so very much in need of her help.

"I don't want to hurt people..."

Oh, but she did. Everyone wanted to hurt others. Some simply hid it better than the rest. Wasn't it so much better now that she didn't have those sweet little lies of polite society holding her back?

"No..."

She really needed to stop lying to herself like that. He knew what was best for her after all. She should trust him. He knew how to get what she really wanted. Because what she wanted was what he wanted.

And the Slenderman got what he wanted. (16)

18.7 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man] / [Mythos Hackers]

Mega Man: Inside Out - Emotionless

Riley's emotions were breaking down fast in the current crisis. Riley had, for whatever inexplicable reason, decided to send them to conquer the world. And because she had the emergency override for their systems, they weren't able to do much to stop themselves.

Sadness was weeping up a storm already, Disgust was muttering a never-ending string of insults at the group in general and herself in particular, Anger was so livid that the override was the only thing keeping him from rampaging out of control, Joy had the most fake and pained grin embedded in her face that had ever been seen, and Fear...

Actually, Fear was rather comfortably in his element. Maybe it was just from panicking so much over not being able to think up the problems with this idea before, which had turned out totally justified, or maybe he'd somehow found some sort of zen zone by complete accident. In any case, he was furiously cataloging everything he could and coming up with possible reactions beyond screaming in terror. He was already doing that internally, so there was no need to be redundant.

Riley was having them secure Light Labs. Check. They were to begin automated production on more generic models for... reasons. Check, and disturbing in implications. They were then to head out to the city and cause as much of a panic as possible. Check, and definitely something to try and head off if possible. Too bad he couldn't see how just yet. They apparently had weapons that could induce pure emotional states in their targets. It didn't matter that they didn't seem to deal damage, starting a riot would be small potatoes for them at this point.

"Oh my god!" Fear exclaimed. "I just realized!"

"What?" Sadness sniffed morosely as they all continued on their way.

"We're the robot uprising! Oh, this is bad, this is very bad!"

"What in the world?" a new voice cut in, giving Fear a sinking feeling as he turned to look. Yep, there was Doc Light at the end of the hall. With Riley's parents.

'WORST! CASE! SCENARIO!'

"Riley... no..." Joy strained as the overriding command to neutralize all opposition caused them all to raise their weapons at the three. "That's mom and dad! You can't!"

"What's...?" Mrs. Andersen wondered wide-eyed as she took in the sight.

"Please!" Joy pleaded.

"Don't make me do this..."

Oh, but she had to. It was all or nothing.

"I shouldn't hurt them..."

They were already hurt, one way or another. Either they became casualties like everyone else, or they watched the unfeeling monster she became. Which was the more merciful option?

"I can't..."

She could. It wasn't like she could feel bad about it, anyway. They were just two more people in her way in the end.

"I won't... Not them..."

...

Perhaps not now. But in time. There was no stopping things after all.

*Mrs. Andersen's Headquarters*

"That..." Mrs. Andersen's Joy spoke up after an extended period of stunned silence. "That was another Joy... wasn't it? On the outside?"

"I... think she was crying..." Mrs. Andersen's Sadness had trouble taking her eyes off the visual display, as if the current scenery of hurried retreat (being directed by Mrs. Andersen's Fear, who was the only one even barely functional) would offer insight into the supposedly impossible phenomenon that had been witnessed.

"I... I think they might have been Riley's emotions..." the woman's Disgust offered, having noted the presence of the other four.

"What are they doing outside though?" her Anger wondered, the very concept rendering her incapable of her usual forms of expression.

*The Real World*

"Doctor, what–" Mr. Andersen tried to ask as the man hurried him and his shell-shocked wife away from the strangely colored robots. The ones that had supposedly been begging Riley not to hurt them.

"No time," Dr. Light hurried them through the lab's halls away from the other robots, though not towards the exit. "We have to find our children and get them out of here!"

The Andersens exchanged a look and picked up the pace as Dr. Light led the way to the lab that their children had taken over for some personal project or other. Fortunately, no one stopped them on the way, but the sight when they arrived caused all three to come up short.

Dr. Light's creations were rocking back and forth on the ground, Roll muttering a string of self-depreciations while Rock shook with uncontrollable laughter. Nearby, strapped into a seat, staring blankly straight ahead, was Riley.

"Riley!" Mrs. Andersen cried out and rushed for her daughter, followed closely by her husband. They didn't know what was wrong, or why, and they didn't care just yet. Their only concern was the safety of their dau–

*Bzzzvvvmmm*

Mrs. Andersen collided with an energy field a few feet from Riley and fell backwards like she'd run into a wall, into her husband who barely managed to keep them both standing.

"You shouldn't be here..." Riley muttered in a tone that sounded half dead from sheer lack of emotion. "You shouldn't see this..."

"Riley!" Mrs. Andersen yelled, pounding on the energy field, the otherwise invisible force lighting up at each point of impact. "Riley!"

"Rock! Roll! What happened?"

"Em-m-motional Pro-ha-ha-ha-cessing-ee-hee Overloa-ha-ha-ha-ha-d! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Rock managed to wheeze out between laughs.

"We should have known it would go wrong," Roll added in disgust. "We're such failures."

"Riley! You need to let us through! We can help!" Mr. Andersen yelled past the forcefield keeping him from his daughter.

"I can't..." Riley replied listlessly. "It's the rules... Dr. Riley has to take over the world..."

"No you don't, little monkey!" Mr. Andersen insisted.

"Riley, what's gotten into you?" Mrs. Andersen cried.

"He did... After the others got out of me..."

A sudden chill ran through everyone, so pervasive that the concerned Andersens took a step back from their daughter and the robot duo's emotional breakdowns grew silent in response.

Five pairs of eyes were drawn to a holographic display floating above Riley.

"I... don't recall hooking that up..." Rock ground out as he finally started getting his systems back under control.

*Mrs. Andersen's Headquarters*

"Is..." the woman's Fear stared at what Mrs. Andersen was seeing. "Is that... a Headquarters?"

*Mr. Andersen's Headquarters*

"Are we actually seeing another Headquarters?" Mr. Andersen's Fear finished.

"More than that," the man's Sadness added. "I think it's Riley's..."

*The Real World*

"What's...?" Mrs. Andersen began before a face so pale it was sheet-white filled the screen.

Or rather, the distinct lack of a face where there should have been one.

"You..." Dr. Light whispered in a combination of stark fear, primal anger, and utter loathing.

A sense of dark amusement, the kind found in people who liked to torture small animals for fun, washed over them, as well as a sense of recognition. Whoever, or whatever, this faceless individual was, they were unconcerned with the doctor's ire. And why shouldn't they be? They had already won. Riley was theirs now, fully under their power and beyond anyone's ability to save.

"Stop..." Roll ground out.

No, he would not stop. Not until the world was Riley's, and Riley was his. It had already begun, and there was nothing any of them could do about it. Riley only listened to him now. What he wanted became what she wanted.

"Stop listening to him..."

"What?" Mrs. Andersen shook off the paralyzing foreboding that she'd been feeling at the words. Seeing her do so prompted her husband to do the same.

The pathetic little robots didn't know what they were talking about. How could they? It wasn't like they were human after all. Not like their monster of a daughter who was going to conquer the world and wreak untold havoc on–

"Those thoughts you're getting..." Rock huffed with effort. "That's how he communicates..."

They were supremely annoying little robots. But it was no matter. The lab was already under Riley's control, and by extension, his. Soon enough, none of them would be any problem whatsoever.

"Dr. Light..." Mr. Andersen shook his head furiously as if that would rid himself of the sinister thoughts invading his mind. As he did, he clutched his wife firmly on the shoulder, though he was uncertain if it was for her benefit or his own. "What is...?"

"I'll explain later," the good doctor replied with effort as he helped his children to their feet. "Right now, we need to get out of the lab."

"But Riley–"

"You can't help me if you're all dead..." Riley stated in an emotionless monotone.

...Fine. They could run like the scared little mice they were, but it would make no difference. There was no saving Riley anymore. There would be no saving themselves either. Why, by the end of the day there would be no saving anyone. (17)

18.8 (Crisis): [Inside Out] / [Mega Man] / [Mythos Hackers]

Mega Man: Inside Out - Regrouping

"Doctor, what was that... that... thing?" Mr. Andersen finally asked when the five of them had gotten back to the Andersen household. His mind was a whirl and his emotional state was more unsteady than a land dweller after riding a rollercoaster and stepping onto the deck of a ship in the middle of a storm. (18)

"He is called the Slenderman," Dr. Light informed the Andersens as he went to check on Rock and Roll, only to be waved off.

"We're fine, dad, really," Rock assured the man with a weak grin. "Finish telling them."

"Very well," Dr. Light sighed before turning back to the worried Andersens, Jill having to lean on her husband for support. "The Slenderman is a memetic lifeform, a sapient being manifested from pure thought, and perhaps the most sinister and vile to have ever existed."

"A... a what?" Jill asked in confusion. "And how did he get ahold of our daughter?!"

"Our fault," Roll sighed heavily. "Rock and I didn't take possible intruders into account when we helped Riley develop a way for her emotions to come outside her head and spend time with her."

*Mr. Andersen's Headquarters*

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...A-buh?"

*Mrs. Andersen's Headquarters*

"I... what?"

"They can... do that?"

"Oh god... that thing was in Riley's headquarters!"

*The Real World*

"I think he might have been steering our thoughts away from the problems with the plan, like Riley's emotionless state once her emotions were outside her head," Rock theorized, "but I can't prove it. In any case, we were expecting possible problems with the emotions going out of control with their own bodies and gave Riley the ability to override their controls. And now..."

"How do you fight a... 'memetic lifeform'?" Mrs. Andersen asked finally.

"With belief," Roll answered. "They gain strength through belief, but they can also be weakened by it. You just have to believe that they can be beaten more than you believe they can't. It's... sometimes harder than it sounds."

"How... how do we save Riley?"

"First, we have to get her emotions back," Rock replied as he fiddled with the television remote, intending to find the news on any developments. He didn't have long to wait.

"–where an attack by unknown machines has started a massive riot," the voice of BNC's news anchor Chest spoke up from the emergency broadcast the moment the television came on. "We not go live to Reporter Ripot, already on the scene."

"Thank you Chest," the green reporter bot with helicopter blades jutting from his back said as behind him a crowd of angry people were tearing apart storefronts and fighting each other viciously in the streets with no rhyme or reason. Men, women, rich, poor, old, young, all kinds of people were tearing apart the street and each other in a blind rage. "As you can see, the riot behind me broke out after a short squat red robot fired an unknown weapon into the streets and in moments the scene became what you see here. The police have been dispatched, but I'm told that a tall, thin purple robot intercepted them and all units have fled. As things stand, there is no telling when the violence will subside and–"

A roll of thunder was picked up by the camera, and moments later a rain of shining blue washed over Ripot.

"–it's just the most heartbreaking thing ever!" the robot wailed pitifully, tears of lubricant seeping out of his optics as the reporter curled up into a fetal ball and sobbed on live television. From the way the camera managed to maintain a partial view of him, and the sound of more sobbing, it seemed the cameraman had succumbed to the same fate.

"Uh..." Chest looked disturbed as the news feed cut back to him. "W-we're told that Mayor Dorado has called for the support of the armed forces to contain this disaster, but there is as-yet no confirmed response. Citizens of Arcadia are advised to remain indoors and–"

"We have to get out there now," Rock lowered the television volume so he could be better heard.

"What?!" Dr. Light objected. "But your current systems aren't designed for–"

"We don't have time for you to upgrade us, dad," Rock reminded the man. "We have to get their IC chips back, intact, before something happens to them. As it stands, the military might either fail and become part of the riot being started, or they'll succeed..."

"...and possibly destroy one or more of Riley's emotions 'forever'," Roll finished, deciding not to state the likely possibility that any emotion lost would be restored for Riley's next Loop. That wouldn't serve to reassure her parents this Loop, nor would it fix whatever Riley suffered due to a Loop with an incomplete emotional state.

"We'll figure it out, dad," Rock smiled. "We both have the Variable Tool System and the Copy Chips installed. We can subdue them and get their IC chips without damaging them in any way." He intentionally left out that their current versions were much less versatile than the weaponized Variable Weapon System and Copy Chip combo, rendering almost all of their looping Master Weapon Libraries unusable, but they would just have to do. They would have to face this crisis without the benefit of being Mega Man or Mega Woman.

"You... You can save our daughter?"

"Of course," Roll nodded. "Just have faith in us."

Compiler's note: This arc was so big I had to split it into five chapters total. Keep going to read the rest.