Chapter 4

Wily stands outside the front door of a modest looking one story country home. Three large oaks 100 years old each shade the walkway from little , but not much of the elements now pouring down in buckets on Alberts head. Hes not smiling... He knocks in a shave and a haircut pattern on the door. A short old man with a beard down to his belly button answers the door.

Dr light- Oh, its you. Albert how are you? (light forces a fake smile for a half moment before resuming a resting face of nuetral nothingness)Please, come in , come in...

Albert Wily - Thomas"...wily nods as he enters. Wily ducks his face under his hat as he enters.

Wily turns to await further instructions from Light...

Dr light - please Albert this way , surely youll want to get dry.

Light turns to call someone for a blanket and some warm tea but remembers that , the only one to ask is ROck and ...well...best I get it for him myself he thinks.

Albert please? a moment? here make yourself comfortable. Light points to his own chair, green nylon and cotton woven like a quilt tapestry with yellow checkers on it. It was so heavily worn and used that Wily opted for a different chair. The black leather recliner. Light returns with two cups and a small tea pot. Steam rises up from each small cup.

Dr light - here you are Albert. I can only imagine the reason you suffered this dreadful storm is to have one final conversation with me before killing us off. Well old friend, here we are it seems. The final checkmate. What can I do for you in this final surrender Dr Wily?

Wilys face turned dead serious, as if light had just insulted him heavily but that is not the emotion wily is feeling. Its just the face hes making. The emotion Wily is feeling is tremendous guilt. Not once in his entire life , not during their college days, not during their years working together, not during all the years fighting each other , not untill this very moment has Dr Thomas Light ever shown a side of himself like this. Hes not once ever called him by his last name. It was something done out of affection. Something done to remind Wily year after year that Light still thought of him as a friend. It was a great source of infuriating power to a man as brilliant and egotistical as Wily. Light showing attitude and ego like this is breaking Wilys heart and wily cannot hide that from his face. He chooses instead to use expressions that can be construed a few different ways. A masterful charade of pride and weakness all at once.

Wily- Ive come to apologize. Thomas. Apologize and also formally declare myself the victor. I must do this Light, or else I cant tell myself the ones that died died for any reason at all. If I dont win, after coming this far, losing so many of them, I will never sleep at night! I havent slept for 10 years Light! Im sick of it! Im sick of losing them! IM sick of YOU Light. If sick of you making these decisions for all robot kind like you are the messiah. All you do is teach them how to get hurt! I was right.

Light- You did come here to gloat after all."

Wily - A little yes, because I feel passionate about robot freedoms and the freedom of all life to evolve how it wants to evolve. Not how its told too. No I came to apologize, claim victory and one more thing. I want to see him...

Light - absolutely NOT! Light suddenly shows a fatherly instinct as if not agreeing to some daughter of his going out with a ruffian. I cant say what he might do and quite frankly, I dont think he could take anymore guilt! If you force him to hurt you he may not come back to us the same young man. Right now Albert...he is barely holding on to his entire personality. Ive written Rock to be able to think and feel for himself you know, that means he can rewrite his own program. Wipe his own memory if he truly wills it hard enough. Its really no different than a human practicing forced denial. THe higher the level of intelligence, the more capable they are at manipulating memory access and storage. With Rock, hes far more intelligent than normal humans and is equal with me in my research studies. He was originally intended as my assistant after all so his logic and problem solving processors are overclocked and hyper cooled but you probably knew that since you designed the , dont . Plz.

Wily- Im neither afraid, nor concerned for his feelings right now, Thomas...excuse me...

Wily walks past Light. Light hangs his head down and frowns...

Light - " Albert...you need to be" Light looks up to meet Wilys eyes one more time before WIly turns away to enter the room where Rock awaits...The look on lights face said something very very clear and very very specific...

Wily...you have wounded us both irreversibly...

Wilys face ...remained stoic as he closes the door behind him...