Medabots: Open Ring
Chapter IV : En Passant
=====
"The most dangerous moves in
a game are the ones that you expect your opponent to make."
- Advanced Stratagems
=====
Ikki stood outside the front gate leading to Medabot Corp. Shaking his head, he looked at Metabee for a long moment. "This doesn't look good. Metabee, do you think it might be the RubberRobos?"
Metabee shook his head. "Nah. They're too dumb to pull something off like this so smoothly. They always make a lot of noise and a lot of fuss on their operations. This was just one medabot, and a rare one too." Metabee thought hard. "Do you think it might be Rokusho? The newscast said that a KWG-type was involved."
"Unlikely." Ikki and Metabee turned in surprise as they came found themselves facing a pair of shining red eyes framed by a white horned helmet.
"Rokusho!" exclaimed Ikki. "What brings you here?"
Rokusho looked at the shadowy profile of the Medabot Corp. office & factory complex with a stolid glance. "Incidents like the one that happened here. It isn't the attack itself that piqued my curiosity; rogue medabots are commonplace. What disturbs me was the ferocity of the rogue's attack. An entire sector of the complex was completely levelled."
"Was it using the medaforce?" asked Ikki.
Rokusho nodded. "Seems like it. Even rare and powerful melee weapons wouldn't be able to simply take entire building down unless the construction was shabby. The remnants of the sector looked more like a crater formed by some powerful blast."
Dr. Aki appeared on the scene that moment. Ikki and the two medabots were stunned at his appearance. The famed founder of Medabot Corp. looked even older than he normally did, and dark circles accentuated his eyes. Looking up from a small clipboard he was holding, Aki smiled at the trio for a moment, then turned back to his clipboard. "Hi, fellas. Sorry I can't talk much. I've got paperwork to fill out and discussions to hold with Select Corp. This attack is going to set back our production facilities by 40%." The doctor sighed as he continued his damage assessment. "Our main lower appendage production center has been completely demolished, and several of the medapart welding facilities have been damaged."
Metabee looked at the complex which was now completely surrounded by Select Corp. men and their medabot teams, cordoning off the facility boundaries. "Hey doc, was this medabot that attacked your plant something that your factory was working on?"
Dr. Aki shook his head in a negative. "No. The medabot that attacked the plant was not one of our projects. It looks more like..."
"Like what?" inquired Rokusho.
"...Like Robattle-Research," finished Aki.
"Robattle-Research?" asked Rokusho. "I've never heard of this company."
"Robattle-Research is an important leader in the development of powerful medabots," explained Ikki, "as well as the development of robattle techniques, analysis, and medapart combination testing."
"Sounds a little questionable to me," muttered Rokusho. "Are they even legitimate?"
Dr. Aki nodded his head. "Yes. In fact, I was responsible for starting the Robattle-Research group. I even set up a special facility for them."
"Where?" inquired the white-armored KWG-type.
"A large space station called CLUSTER-001. They were supposed to work on developing new medaparts, as well as robattle analysis and testing. Unfortunately, an accident on the station sent the entire consortium plunging to the ground. CLUSTER-001 has now been shut down for about a year and a half now."
"I remember," added Ikki. "I was there, as well as Metabee and some of my friends."
Dr. Aki was about to reply when Koji and his medabot Sumilidon appeared on the scene, scrambling out of a taxi cab. Stumbling off the vehicle, Koji turned and cursed the cab driver before paying the fare. "Thirty-five!? With the ride I got, I should be paying about one-fourth of that rate!"
Sumilidon said nothing.
Turning his back on the cab driver, who drove away in a billowing cloud of dust, Koji walked up to the group. "Ikki, what's the news?"
Ikki shrugged. "Nothing much. Other than the damage reported, there's little else to say on the matter. Erika's at her house running a background search on Luminoustag, as well as brewing up the latest story for her newspaper. Where's Karin, by the way?"
Koji shrugged. "She's at home, apparently upset by the attack on Medabot Corp. Last time I called, she said she was busy, so I didn't say much more."
Dr. Aki looked back at his clipboard. "Well kids, I've enjoyed chatting with all of you, but I've got a company to rebuild. See you all around." With that, Dr. Aki opened the gates and walked in, the gates automatically closing behind him once he was inside.
Ikki's IMD (Instant Messaging Device) suddenly began to go off at that moment, bleeping for attention. Ikki turned on the the small communicator and opened the cover. He looked at the screen, and nodded before typing a single response and switching off the communicator. He then turned to the others.
"It's a message from Erika and Brass. Erika says that she's got something on Robattle-Research and Luminoustag."
"Well, what are we waiting around here for? Let's go and find out what she's got," muttered Koji.
The group turned and scrambled
in the direction of the nearest bus station, sprinting at a brisk pace.
=====
A pair of glowing red eyes lit up the darkness of a hall. An electronic voice soon followed. "I have done as you requested. You'd better have a good explanation for this pointless demolition and urban renewal you demanded, you simpleton."
A second voice sounded into the darkness, giving counterpoint. "Do not answer back to me, Luminoustag. I am your master, and you would do well to remember that."
The glowing red eyes slowly moved into a small spotlight that illuminated a section of the hall, showing themselves to be the eyes of the rogue blue KWG-type medabot. The medabot slowly moved forward into the spotlight, a dangerous edge in its voice as it spoke. "You are not my master, MACHINA, and you never were. I have my own agenda to follow, and the only reason I helped you in your concerns was that it crossed paths with my own."
Another figure stepped into a second pool of light, revealing the same cloaked and hooded figure that had previously shown itself from the shadows. "You are fooling yourself, Luminoustag. You are now my slave, my pawn... my piece."
Luminoustag silently stepped back into the shadows. "Be warned, fool. This is no game of chess. Your pieces may turn on you if you are not careful."
The figure, MACHINA, nodded. "Be that as it may, your skills are needed for another assignment. Station yourself at the docks tonight, Pier 6. Wait for my orders."
The glowing red eyes merely glinted
in the shadows and then abruptly disappeared, indicating the medabot's
absence in the hall. MACHINA sighed, then withdrew into the darkness
as well, leaving to what distant voids and dark thoughts awaited his mind.
=====
Kaito shivered as a chilly wind blew through the city street. Helixbeetle, of course, had no protest about the sudden change in temperature. The two were walking down the main thoroughfare, silently taking in the city lights that shone in the darkness of the evening.
Helixbeetle stared out into the array of neon signs and illuminated skyscrapers as his titanium-shod feet clinked against the cement sidewalk. After a long while, he spoke. "So much has changed since I last saw the world through these eyes. I could have hardly guessed that two years could change this place so quickly."
"You've actually been outside the building?" wondered Kaito out loud.
Helixbeetle nodded. "It only seems like yesterday that I was walking with him, taking in the sights and sounds of this very street. Everything was so different."
"Like what?"
Helixbeetle pointed upwards, his mechanized hand indicating a large elevated monorail above. "Like that commuter system. It wasn't there when I was walking with him two years back. Neither was that huge mini-mall."
Kaito was about to affirm that fact when he suddenly noticed something stapled to an old telephone pole. "Hang on, Helixbeetle, I think I..."
The youngster stared in surprise as he saw his picture on a piece of gummed paper, obviously made off of a photocopier. Helixbeetle read the caption below and let loose an electronic whistle. "Well, I'll be... that orphanage you stole away from is looking for you. They've got everything... your hair color, eye color, height, weight, heck, they've even got the clothes you were wearing."
Kaito stared down in abrupt distaste as he noticed that he was still wearing the exact same clothes that were being described on the paper. Helixbeetle scratched his armored head.
"Do you even want to go back?"
Kaito vehemently shook his head. "No. I'm making my own destiny here. I'm not going back to that orphanage."
"Is there something awful at that establishment?"
"No, Helixbeetle, it's just that... I don't want to be stuck in classes day after day learning high-level math. I want to make my own future... As a medafighter."
Helixbeetle shook his head before replying. "Well, I don't understand why you don't want to go back, but I respect your decision. Now, if we're going to move about in the daytime, we're going to have to find some other means of clothing to keep you disguised."
Kaito thought hard. "Do you know of where to find clothes?"
Helixbeetle shrugged. "I
really have no idea."
=====
Nothing of interest was mentioned
on the local TV news that night, except for one small intriguing item that
was brought up on the late evening news. Apparently, it seemed that
a local thrift store had been robbed. The only things that had been
taken were a pair of baggy blue jeans, a heavy tan trenchcoat, a pair of
street shoes, a blue long-sleeved sweater, a white T-shirt, and a pair
of sunglasses. Select Corp. was thoroughly puzzled by the matter,
and could find no explanation for the incident.
=====
Siden silently stood on the metal walkway of Pier 6, shrugging off the cold breeze that whistled through the dockside. The young teenager wondered if it was even worth trying to come to the ramshackle pier alone.
I should have brought Ashton...
Thoughts of his reliable GWF-medabot filled his mind as he tried to shrug off the impending chill that wormed its way through his stomach. Siden looked at his medawatch. 8:58. Two minutes to go.
Siden suddenly perceived movement at the far end of the pier. Curiosity getting the better of him, the brown-haired youth walked forward to the end of the walkway, his eyes narrowing as he tried to look in spite of the poor amount lighting around him.
"Punctual as always, young Siden. Really, you impress me."
Siden spun around as he found himself facing a hooded figure, flanked by four ominous-looking men. The youth looked the hooded figure over with a critical eye. "All right, I came here on your terms. Now tell me what it is that is so interesting," spat Siden.
The figure stepped forward, revealing a mask that concealed the lower part of his face. "Now, now, young one, let us act like civilized gentlemen. We can either stand here and talk peaceably, or we can come to fisticuffs over this." Here, the figure paused. "And I don't think you'd want to get into fisticuffs over this; Am I right, Luminoustag?" the hooded figure questioned, looking up pointedly at a nearby warehouse roof.
Siden started back in surprise. "Luminoustag?!" The young medafighter wasn't quite sure, but he almost felt certain that the hooded figure was smiling behind that damned mask of his.
The hooded figure nodded. "Yes. He is right now part of my personal retinue, and a good one at that, wouldn't you agree, Luminoustag?"
The blue medabot seemed to glare at the hooded man. "I am not part of your retinue, as you call it, MACHINA, and I am not a hired sword arm. I come merely because this meeting piques my interest," replied Luminoustag harshly.
MACHINA shrugged and turned once more to Siden. "Ah, well. Luminoustag wasn't one to socialize. Now then, down to brass tacks, as the Americans say. You are, no doubt, curious as to the reason why Luminoustag attacked the local robattle arena, as well as the Medabot Corp. office building. The reason is simple. I am a medabot collector of sorts, and it often is quite amusing for me to find more... challenging means of to find and gain more and more unusual and rare medaparts."
"You ordered for those attacks to occur!?" A look of grim anger replaced the look of surprise on Siden's face. "Tell me why I shouldn't call the Select Corp. here and now!"
The hooded man held up a placating hand. "Hear me out first. I have good reasons for doing so, and I hope that you will understand them as well."
"Why are you revealing all this to me anyway? I have no interest in the stupid bantering of words! If you're here to do nothing but rant on about hidden agendas and meanings, this meeting is of no relevance to me," Siden testily replied.
"Actually, this concerns you plenty," replied MACHINA. "I seek Robattle-Research's technological secrets. You still have connections with Robattle-Research, despite its status as a defunct medaparts development group. I want you to join me. I seek to use medabots to change the world... Change entire nations." MACHINA's voice suddenly took on a grandiose, idealistic fervor. "Think of it, Siden. With the technological breakthroughs of Robattle-Research at our disposal, we could accomplish anything! The world would be at our mercy! We could revolutionize governments!! Create a utopia!"
Here, MACHINA held out a gloved hand. "What do you say, Siden?" the hooded figure said expectantly.
Siden, regarded the outstretched gloved hand for a moment, and then smoothly gave his response. "Over my dead body," he retorted. "You really think I'd be stupid enough to align myself with a fellow as misguided as you are?"
MACHINA lowered his hand, and sighed, shaking his head in resignation and disgust, before giving Siden a strange look. "As I had feared. You really are a fool, young Siden. Do you know what happens to a chess pawn that lets itself get surrounded by the enemy?" With those words, MACHINA's four lackeys that were flanking him suddenly began edging closer to Siden, surrounding him on all sides.
Siden narrowed his eyes. "Just the devil I made you out to be... Whatever happens, you're not going to take me down without a fight!" The young medafighter snapped out his medawatch and pressed a button. "Transport Ashton!"
There was no response. The dockside remained silent except for some gently lapping water. Siden stared in bewilderment at his medawatch, and tapped its LCD face. MACHINA suddenly burst out laughing. "I'm so sorry if you've been disappointed, young lad. You see, I know better than allowing you to call your little mechanical friend," he said smugly as he revealed a jamming device that he had been concealing inside his cloak. His smug tone of voice was suddenly replaced with a threatening edge. "I am sorry that I have to do this to you, Siden, but your usefulness in our little game has run out."
With those words, the quartet of lackeys that were flanking MACHINA suddenly edged closer.
"Screw y-" Siden was unable to
complete his last insult before a heavy something made impact with the
back of his head. His world spun, and the dockside wharf suddenly
rushed upwards to meet his descending face.
=====
Kasumi stopped to a screeching halt, trying to catch his breath as Hiyori rushed up. "Any sign?"
The brown-haired girl shook her head. "No. No word of Siden. And his medabot Ashton has told me that there was no message, no commands from him nor his medawatch. Do you think...?"
Kasumi looked grimly up at the tufted clouds floating above. "I don't know, Hiyori. We've searched all over this neighborhood, and so far, there hasn't been a single trace of Siden anywhere. What about Fubuki or the others?"
"Dunno. Fubuki said that she and Tolemi were going to check something out, but nothing as of yet from that."
Fubuki came at that moment, tearing around a corner as she ran up to the two, waving a small envelope. "Guys! I think I've got something here! I found this in Siden's mailbox."
Kasumi jumped to his feet. "What is it?"
Hiyori snatched the envelope from Fubuki's hands and looked at the outside. "That's funny. No return address. No name of the sender."
Kasumi took the envelope and tore
it open, pulling out a letter that was once again printed on a crisp sheet
of paper. The bespectacled medafighter quickly read a few lines,
then turned grim as he finished. Wordlessly, he showed the two curious
girls what it contained.
| Greetings, young
one.
As you might already know, your friend Siden is currently... indisposed as of now. But no worry, he is not dead... not yet, at least. If you are wondering about what I am after, or who I am, there is little you can do about that. Your friend Siden was too... overeager to learn the truth, and so he is paying a consequence that I cannot revoke. All will be made apparent in time. Until then,
P.S.: If you are dying for a clue, check the old HEX Corp. complex northeast of the docks. You will find a few answers, and even more questions, there. |
After reading for a few moments, Fubuki spat. "This is bullsh--! What does this guy take us for? Ignoramuses?"
Kasumi nodded. "Apparently so. What I don't get is why he would kidnap Siden, or even why Siden was trying to confront this guy. Siden's bold, but he isn't stupid. Something was apparently staked so high that Siden felt that it was necessary to place his own chips on the table..."
"...And lost," concluded Hiyori.
Fubuki stared at the letter for a few more minutes, then crumpled it up in disgust and stomped on it with a large boot. "This invitation sounds like a trap. Is this guy baiting us?"
Kasumi looked to the docks. "I don't know; but one thing's for sure. I'm going to find out what happened to Siden." Tapping a button on his medawatch, he then made one quick statement. "Granbeetle, are you there?"
There was a small click of static, and the voice of his KBT-type medabot sounded off. "Hear you loud and clear, Kasumi. Ashton and Bagstein are still poking around some of the communication records in Siden's main computer, but we haven't got anything concrete to follow yet. Got anything on your side?"
"I've got a small lead on a place called HEX Corp. Maybe we can find something there. Meet me at the docks in one hour, we're going to do a little industrial espionage."
Clicking off his communicator, he turned to the two girls. "Are you guys coming, or am I going to have to do this solo?"
Hiyori smiled and shook her head in mock contempt. "You're a thick-skulled moron, Kasumi, but a brave one at that. Let's go."
Fubuki turned, scratched her head,
and sighed. "I can't tell whether these two guys love or hate eachother..."
=====
"Find anything yet, Erika?" inquired Ikki. The entire group including the Screws were assembled at Erika's house, clustering around her computer as she pulled up some information that she'd found earlier that day.
Erika nodded. "I've got some files Brass and I managed to pull off of the inactive Robattle-Research data server. Here's what we've found so far: Some basic operative data on Luminoustag, the date of its creation, as well as the basic agendas that were behind Robattle-Research. It appears that Robattle-Research was working with a company called HEX Corp, a major distributor and developer of unusual and oftentimes powerful medaparts."
"Who is behind this 'HEX Corp.'?" inquired Rokusho.
"Someone by the name of Shingawa Tensuo, who was their CEO and their CDM, or Chief Development Member. A good-hearted man, by all accounts, but obssessed with his work. They were working on something called Project Helix when they were suddenly brought down by Tensuo's unexpected murder. Someone, by their company records, had apparently been wanting HEX Corp. to give them access to their research, and Tensuo refused."
"And so he paid the price," muttered Rokusho.
"What's Project Helix?" asked Metabee.
"That was a restricted subject, and I couldn't get past the firewall matrix," mumbled Erika in an embarrassed tone. "Somebody was definitely trying to conceal Project Helix, though... It sounds like some sort of medabot development project."
"Anything else?" asked Samantha.
"Robattle-Research was apparently also into rare medals... That's what was used in both Kaiserbeetle and Luminoustag..."
"...Which is why they're both so powerful when they use the medaforce," finished Ikki. "What specific type of medal are they?"
Erika scrolled down the page. "Apparently a derivative of the original Kabuto and Kuwagata medals. They somehow transformed the medaforce foci inside the core of the medals, and came up with what they called the B-Kabuto and B-Kuwagata medals. They weren't pet projects, either."
"Pet projects?" inquired Koji, lifting an eyebrow.
"Those two medabots were commissioned exclusively by another entity code-named STARLEAF," continued Erika. "They were trying to turn medabots into war machines, which explains the heavy armamentation on the two medabots we've seen from Robattle-Research. However, they never got their medabots, since CLUSTER-001 was shut down before they could get their requests."
"Like Kaiserbeetle," added Metabee. "Those guns on him were huge..."
"So what's our next move?" yawned Sloan. "We can't stand around here all day."
Ikki turned to the others. "I'm curious about this HEX Corp. Erika, do you have any more information on HEX Corp.?"
Erika shook her head. "No. The main server there was too heavily protected, and even with Brass, I couldn't get past their third security line. If we want to get more information, we're going to have to find the main server and log in from there."
Ikki thought for a moment. "Do you know where this main server might be?"
Erika typed a few more commands into the workstation, and watched as lines of data flashed onto the screen. Turning to Ikki, she made her reply. "It's located at their main office complex. It's apparently located northeast of the docks, and south of Medabot Corp. It's in a secluded area, which is probably why no one even knew about its presence. The complex is fenced off though, and it's been locked shut."
Samantha grinned. "Locks don't bother us. We could get that lock opened in three seconds flat!"
Erika looked at the Screws' leader dubiously. "How do you know lockpicking?"
"Who said anything about lockpicking?" retorted Samantha as she indicated Sloan and Totalizer. Sloan politely tipped his cap. Ikki face-faulted.
"Well, I guess it's decided then. Koji, you get Karin and tell her to meet us at this location," Ikki muttered, "And tell her to bring Neutranurse. There's no telling what's in there, and I want everyone with their medabots ready to go. We're going to get to the bottom of this HEX Corp. Metabee, get some of your spare parts ready."
"You got it!" affirmed Metabee as he scrambled down the stairs.
Erika turned to Ikki. "Ikki, what are we going to be doing there?"
"We're going to find their main server. I'll bring a PGM-type medabot that I got from Dr. Aki to help with the bypassing of the security systems that we might encounter."
"A PGM-type?" inquired Spyke.
"A Program-type medabot," explained Koji. "It's often used by software developers and hackers for security and networking purposes, and are excellent hacking devices."
"Excuse me, Mr. Tenryou, but what happens once we get to the main server?" asked Brass.
"We're going to be getting everything
we can about this HEX Corp., and once we do, we're going to find out what's
behind all of the attacks that happened this week," explained Ikki, "in
order to make sure that what happened at that arena or at Medabot Corp.
won't ever happen again."
=====
Helixbeetle sat in a corner, scratching his head as Kaito busied himself by typing away at a monitor. After pressing a few more keys, he sat back, nervously waited...
And cursed.
"Damnit! I still can't get this stupid server to get online!"
Helixbeetle turned to his agitated medafighter. "Cool it, Kaito. I'm sure everything will work out in time."
Kaito slammed his fists on the desk. "I know it, damnit, but... I'm trying to find some information, and this server's still inactive." The young teenager sat back in his rolling chair and sighed deeply. "This isn't good..."
"What sort of information are you looking for?"
"The Rosewood Coroner's office files, including autopsies of Mr. and Mrs. Shingawa."
"Your parents?"
Kaito nodded. "Once I find what caused their deaths, I'm going to look for leads starting from there. And once I figure out who killed them, I'm going to take my revenge." Kaito's eyes flashed dully with intermixed pain and anger.
Helixbeetle got up from where he was sitting and stretched his metal limbs before walking over to Kaito's side. He looked at the display for a moment, then spoke up. "Listen, buddy. I admit that I know almost nothing about what happened to you before you found me, or even why you came. But one thing I want you to know is this: Is it worth trying to devote your life to revenge? Revenge is a poison, Kaito."
Kaito shrugged wanly. "I don't know, Helixbeetle. On one hand, I know you're right, but on the other..." The young teenager shook his head as he got up from his chair. "This server won't respond to anything I try... What's with this server?!" Kaito felt angrier and angrier. "DAMNIT!!" Slamming a fist onto the keyboard, Kaito grunted as he felt his hand make impact with the plastic keys of the terminal.
Suddenly, the screen of the terminal
started to flash. A line of data ran across the screen, and halted
for a moment.
NETWORK NAVI SYSTEM ACTIVATED. SERVER ONLINE.
The line of data disappeared,
and a log-in screen came up onto the screen.
NETWORK NAVI SYSTEM LOG-IN
PLEASE TYPE IN LOG-IN ID OR INSERT ID CARD.
Kaito stared in astonishment as the screen came up. He turned to Helixbeetle. "Network NAVI System? What's that?"
Helixbeetle scratched his head. "Don't know. Seems to be the main server though. See if you can get it to run."
Kaito ran to his duffelbag and
pulled out the cardkey, dusting off a few clods of lint before inserting
it into the cardslot. The computer emitted a small beep as it digested
the information given to it from the cardkey. Kaito waited as several
more lines of data scrolled across the screen.
ID ACCEPTED. LOGGING IN......
010101101111000010101010101
110101110101010101010101100
001110101000101111000110010
NETWORK LOG-IN COMPLETE.
Kaito cautiously sat down as a
familiar desktop screen made its appearance, consisting of several icons,
apparently indicating programs that were present on the workstation and
the LAN itself. Kaito was about to click on the INTERNET icon when
a window popped up, displaying several lines of text.
COMM PORT-1: NAVI - ADMIN
CHATLINE OPENED
NAVI:>>Administrator?
Are you there?
Kaito and Helixbeetle started in surprise. Helixbeetle looked at the screen for a moment, then nudged Kaito. "Well, go ahead, make a response."
Kaito looked at the screen warily.
"Are you sure about this?" he muttered, as he typed in a reply.
ADMIN:>>Who are you?
Kaito watched in amazement as
a line of text appeared.
NAVI:>>You are not the
Administrator. Who are you?
Kaito looked dubiously at the
screen for a moment, then initiated a small dialogue.
ADMIN:>>Shingawa Kaito.
NAVI:>>Shingawa Kaito... Name bears resemblance to Shingawa Tensuo... Are you related?
ADMIN:>>Yes.
NAVI:>>What is your connection to the Administrator?
ADMIN:>>Nephew to Shingawa Tensuo. Who are you?
NAVI:>>I am the Administrator's friend. I am NAVI.
ADMIN:>>NAVI?
NAVI:>>I am NAVI. You are Shingawa Kaito. The difference is clear. You are not the administrator.
ADMIN:>>Why are you talking like this? Are you even human?
NAVI:>>I am not human... Are you human?
ADMIN:>>I am. What sort of being are you?
NAVI:>>......
ADMIN:>>What are you?
NAVI:>>I am the HEX Corp. primary server. I am NAVI.
ADMIN:>>So you are the server itself?
NAVI:>>Yes. I am
the HEX Corp. primary server. I am NAVI.
To Be Continued...