Megaman Battle Network - New Generation
Book 2 - Black History
By Zelloss
Author's Note: Next chapter, things change. You won't see the next chapter. Not to say it won't be written. Chances are, it's being written as you're speaking. But it will NOT be put up until certain things have come to pass. When those things have come to pass, then the chapter will be put up. Chapter five WILL be put up before four, most likely. Four will simply go up when it's time.
WARNING: This story has a tendency to be dark. Not shadowy ninja type. Violently descriptive, angst, and doomsday type.
Chapter 3 - True Shadow
"Err.. Hello, I guess" I spoke back to the navi. Was that the right answer?
"You guess? I don't think so. You meant to say it, and you knew it was right, so it wasn't a guess" Dynast shook his head. "Humans..."
"Navis..." I sighed, laughing a bit. Dynast grinned at the comment.
"Well, at least you're in a relaxed state. Like Neero was constan..." Dynast began, but I interrupted.
"Neero? Dad? What do you know about him?" I demanded quickly.
"Well, I know he began the design for me" Dynast breathed deep, then continued. "Also, that he dissapeared not that long ago."
"Not that long ago... Give me the date..." I curiously requested. Dynast may have been made by him, but he might have been deactivated for ages, and he just thought it was a short time.
Dynast paused before giving his answer. "He dissapeared the year you would have turned nine, so two years ago..."
"Two years ago? But then the letter when I was eight..." I stopped for a moment. "It makes no sense..."
Dynast paused, then opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but he shut it again quickly.
"Do you... know something?" I asked him.
"No, nothing" he turned away quickly, exposing the back of his silver robes and leather armor. I didn't believe him, but I didn't push it. Because I realized something at that moment.
Silver robes and leather armor. Silver robes and leather armor...
The vision! Why hadn't I realized it right away? This was the man who had stood with Mihillias...
"Finally remember me, do you?" I heard a faint whisper from Dynast. He turned around again. "It's about time. Make yourself comfortable, I need your help with something..."
I did make myself comfortable. "The two disks..." Dynast began, "are programs that were started to accompany my programming. The one on the first disk, yeah, that one, is the Tracker program. If you can get that up and running, then I'll be able to keep track of any navi we meet, and, as such, exactly who is within a decent radius of us."
It took a moment for that to sink in, but I plugged it into Dynast's PET. "We'll begin work on it as soon as possible."
Time went by slowly that night. The program had the bare bones, everything else had to be implemented, much slower. It would take several weeks of straight work to get it done.
I sighed. It was hot inside this lab, so I pulled my shirt off, and I looked at the scar on my right arm. From my aunt.
Then my eyes strayed across to my left arm, and something bugged me. A part of the skin there was slightly darker.
"Huh?" I wondered. It wasn't a bruise, it seemed natural, but it wasn't possible.
"Comeon, we've got work to do..." Dynast tried to catch my attention, but I was quite interested in the darkened skin.
"Alright..." I finally turned back to work and didn't give my left arm another thought.
* * * * *
To be honest with you, there was nothing really special that happened over the next nine years. Yes, nine.
I'm adult now. It's been nine long years of work. The Tracker took much longer then expected. Finally, though, it's gotten to the stage where it could be put permanently into Dynast, and worked on from there. So I finally have use of it.
Despite how I've tried, I still have yet to locate Morpheus again. I wondered if there had been progress in finding our method of revenge.
It was about this time that I discovered a hidden message board after jacking into a port inside the laboratory I had made my secret home.
It had been used once, so I decided to leave a "hello" message on there, to see if anybody would see it.
I hardly had expected a reply. So it came to my surprise when I got several.
There was a small selection of people there. Two navis there, a young samurai-style navi and a strange sorcerer-like one were constantly fighting, as if they were rivals, but I could tell they really respected each other. Yamatoman and Magician. I hardly realized just then who I was talking to.
Another navi that responded was named 'HeroSaber'. A navi that sounded rather heroic. Problem is, he also thought he was a total hero, even though he was kinda pathetic. There was a couple other navis there too, but to be honest, I don't remember them, nor do I think I will ever.
To say the least, I became great friends with them, and got to trust them. We'd often have small adventures. Hunting for data, helping each other recover lost programs, you know.
Dynast, honestly, didn't mind. Or so he said.
Dynast, over that time, became quite strong. Since we were a small community on a secretive board, we happily shared secrets of the net and other areas.
Then things changed one day. We got our biggest mission yet, a navi named Plantman had been wrecking havoc in the foreign system of Creamland. So, we decided we should team up to go fight Plantman. Only Dynast, Yamatoman, Magician, and Herosaber went to fight him.
Dynast stepped calmly into the cyber grass. "Hmm... Plantman should be around here..."
Yamatoman stepped up beside him. "I think you're right... this grass would be perfect for him..."
"And here I am!" Plantman stepped out from behind a data cube. The navi looked normal, except for the head covered in flower petals, the grass vines coming from his back, and the pink petals that floated around him in a circle.
Something caught my eye at that moment. On Plantman's left arm was some kind of mark. I couldn't tell what, but it wasn't on his right arm. Was it a sign of something to come?
"Plantman, we're here on mission to stop the havoc you've created..." HeroSaber boldly stepped up. I saw the green energy blade shoot from his arm.
"Then try me!" Plantman shouted, dashing towards our four navis.
Magician, who had been silent until then, grabbed a red light with his hand and slammed it into the ground. A pillar of fire rose and tore across the grass, leaving nothing behind.
There was a pause as the flame tower crashed into Plantman. It dissapeared, and so did the floating petals. However, the flower navi was unharmed.
"That's pathetic!" Plantman shouted, as petals flew up from the grass around him and formed another barrier. "Let me show you how to fight!"
With that, a pair of long green swords shot from Plantman's hands, and he dashed towards the four navis.
HeroSaber took on one of the blades, but his sword barely kept from cracking against Plantman's woodsword. Magician, on the other hand, dashed forward and drew a Fire Sword, cutting through the woodsword and swinging at Plantman. The barrier stopped the sword and snapped it.
"Battle Chip," I began, drawing a chip from my folder, "Blower! Slot- In!"
Dynast held open his hands as a large fan-like object dropped into them. A whirlwind of fire shot out, blowing through the petals as they tried to form another barrier, and catching Plantman in the blast.
As the fire blast slowed down, Plantman appeared seriously hurt. "Cheater!" he swore, as he backed up and slammed both his fists into the ground.
Vines wrapped around all four of the navis, stopping them cold. I grabbed another battle chip from my folder and slipped it in.
"Battle Chip, Invis-One! Slot-In!"
Dynast dissapeared for a moment and reappeared right back outside the vines. "Ready for another round?" he asked, aiming the Blower forward. I loaded up another Blower chip, and the fan started again.
Plantman was startled as he was engulfed again. "D... Damn you..." he swore, before he tore across the grass towards Dynast, and a long sword came from his arm. It wasn't a wood sword however. I wasn't sure what it was.
I slotted in a Fire Sword, hoping it would protect Dynast, but instead the sword was torn appart by Plantman's weapon. Dynast was sent flying, as a large gap appeared in his side.
Something sharp touched the side of my stomach, and I felt a bit of blood flow out. Was something wrong? Nothing had touched me.
"Dynast!" I shouted, and felt down at my side to my folder. It was now empty. I had used so many chips, they needed to be recharged. The other three navis couldn't help my navi...
My hand grasped a chip, and I slotted it in hopefully. Dynast grabbed a silver-coated bomb and dropped it to the ground. A huge white explosion covered the field. It just barely nipped the edges of the vines surrounding the navis.
Oddly enough, as the smoke cleared, the grass had been frozen solid, along with Plantman. At the same time, Dynast stood there, damaged from the explosion but he had somehow been immune.
"I think the job is done..." Dynast muttered. He walked over to the other navis and yanked off the icy vines, shattering them.
Yamatoman lightly dusted himself off. "That was kinda easy..." he said, as he walked over to Plantman and touched the wierd sword the navi was still holding. "Huh? I know this one..." and with that, he touched it and grabbed it himself, before sending the data to his operator. I wished nothing from it.
Had I realized just what I had done, at that moment, by attacking that navi, I would have shot myself before it was too late.
* * * * *
That night, I finally discovered what chip I had pulled. A one-of-a- kind chip, called the FreezeBomb. Of course, it was a weapon of incredible destructive power.
Nothing, of course, in comparison to what I was about to discover.
The day before my 20th year of birth, Dynast dissapeared. We hunted a smuch as possible. I had to borrow an old navi my father had worked on and left in the lab, Sunstar, to do my own hunting.
Dynast had kidnapped HeroSaber and deleted him, allowing his backup data to be run. So we knew he was in trouble.
I knew it the moment he came back to the lab's system. At first, I was overjoyed.
"Dynast, I'm so happy you're back..." I began to say, but his stern looked stopped me cold. He transferred himself back to my PET, and I noticed the black mark on his left arm.
A strange, twilight-black fang-like mark. "What...?" I wondered, before I felt a pain in my own left arm.
I took off my shirt, and looked at the darkened spot on my skin, to discover it was slowly forming the same mark.
The color darkened, and formed a deep black fang-shape.
"Greetings, servant!" I heard a deep, dark, devilish voice inside my head. I felt everything inside me shatter.
"What are you?" I whispered silently, but I recieved no answer. I felt like everything was dissapearing from inside of me, like there was nothing there.
"It is Blackfang" Dynast's voice rang in my head. "Created to turn everything into darkness... by fusing Human and Navi!"
"No!" I shouted out, trying to stop it, but I could barely feel my body. It seemed as if I was floating.
"Yes..." the devilish voice of Blackfang came back in my head. "You're my servant, destined to work for me..."
Everything went black.
* * * * *
Where am I? It's so dark and lonely here...
Is this what it's like... to be dead?
"No..."
Dynast? Is that you?
"Yes..."
Where are we? Are we dead?
"No. It's Blackfang..."
Blackfang... I... I see it all now...
"See what?"
The vision... I told you about it, didn't I?
"Yes..."
The Blackfang is the Darkness... why didn't I think about it before...?
"Because you didn't know it was here..."
True... Blackfang... Isn't there a way to stop it?
"It's fighting with Yamatoman... If it's possible, he can stop it..."
Yamatoman? How could he stop it?
"He's not a normal navi..."
Huh?
"He doesn't even know it, but he's got an incredible power built into him that's activated when him and his operator are in danger of being consumed by a darkness..."
Consumed by a darkness... I see how Yamatoman is in danger, but Gemini? How is he in danger...?
"What Blackfang has created is the King of Darkness. Dynast Grausherra. It's a fusion of the both of us, making our minds match. So it exists in both worlds..."
How can we help him?
"Fight the darkness... You may have started this darkness, so you can help to end it!"
* * * * *
"Blackfang! It's time that you end this!" I shouted out, expecting an answer. I was awake, my mind alive inside a cavern of darkness.
"I will not..." the voice answered.
"You will! I was not made to serve you, you were created for me to control!"
"I was not, and you will follow me!"
"Never. Leave my body and mind, and be gone!"
I forced back the darkness, making everything around me seem to hesitate. A prick of white light shot into the heart of the darkness, tearing it apart.
"Yamatoman!" I heard Dyanst shout, and I slowly felt everything return to focus. I blinked.
I blinked? I had a body of my own again.
There was a young man standing over me, probably about my age, holding out his hand to help me up. I gladly took it.
"Hello, Zelloss" he said to me, and I paused.
"Gemini?" I asked. We had never actually met. I was hoping it was him.
"Yes" he nodded. "Welcome back to reality..."
I smiled, and rolled up my left sleeve. The mark was still there, but it didn't seem quite as black as before. "It's not gone..." I muttered. He seemed slightly puzzled, but I really was confused.
"Ichize Mezxa" I muttered softly. Gemini inquired, but I didn't translate for him.
* * * * *
Not long after that, things changed greatly for me, towards the better for the first time in my life, although I doubted it would stay so good.
Gemini had become a good friend, and although he changed his name from Gemini to Zennith, he was still the same person to me.
Magician's operator I met, a fine young man who was a chip collector, Nemo. Him and Gemini really were rivals, I noted, but I doubted the rivalry would always be such.
I also met HeroSaber's operator, a young kid named Fred. What a plain name. He did have heart though, and that was something I appreciated.
There were others I met, too. I met a young collage-man, Jen, and his navi Geminiman. For some reason, he reminded me of me, although I couldn't quite place it.
The last one I met was a young boy, and my heart skipped for a moment. At first glance, I swore to god that I had seen Matson again.
Shinju looked just like Matson had, before he died. The sight of him brought a tear to my eye, and I swore to protect him better then I had Matson.
On the other hand, his navi was incredibly fierce competition. Ark, as he was called, was only one-armed, but was very well equipped for battle.
We indefinatly had adventures, of more magnitude then before, although I doubted anything could ever overcome what had happened, the magnificent battle between good, and, well, me.
The day of my 21st birthday, everything seemed wierd. My vision had blured, my senses had nearly died. I was weak, through and through, and so was Dynast.
Before I knew it, the blackfang had made itself known, taking over the spot on my left arm again, and trying to take over my mind.
I felt energy from Zennith and everybody else helping me, but it hardly made a difference.
Before I was ready to give in, I felt one last burst of strength, from the promise I had made. Shinju, and the others, needed to be protected. I had the chance to help them, now, before I hurt them.
I felt the bonds of the darkness break, and I slowly returned to normal, although I was, as I was informed, out of comission for several days.
* * * * *
Things changed after my 22nd birthday. Although the force of darkness came stronger, Zennith and Yamatoman were ready, helping both me and Dynast.
In the days that followed, after I had recovered, I finally understood what Blackfang had done. Perhaps the virus wasn't all bad.
Because me and Dynast had 'fused' at one point, our minds and bodies were now in surprising sync. At times, it was so strong we could communicate to each other through our minds, without words. On the other hand, we found a slight downside. Damage one took, the other took. Which wasn't good for me.
Often, after a tough battle that I lost, I'd end up fainting from exhaustion or pain. I began to realize that my life depended a surprising amount on Dynast.
It was about the time I found this out that another change happened.
* * * * *
I opened my eye. I had returned to the old streets I had made my home with Dark Blade, and somebody had found me there.
Slowly, I sat up and looked down the alley, catching a slight movement. My hand moved to my gun.
The figure rose up, and I grabbed the gun from the holster, not making a sound. Did he or she know I was here?
"Zel" a man's voice said, answering my question.
"Scan" I silently communicated to Dynast, who started up the tracker program at my command.
"Scanning" I heard the silent reply. The man moved closer, and I prepared to fire at Dynast's command. That wasn't what I got.
"Hold your fire!" Dynast said aloud, startling me, but not the man. He turned and looked down at me, and I looked up at him, holding the gun steady.
"Settle down, Zel..." the man rolled his eyes, I think, and clicked his tounge. "You're still high-strung, after all these years..."
I lowered the gun a bit. "Who are you?" I asked.
"Don't remember me? Shame on you" the man sighed and shook his head. "Zel, I thought your memory was better then that..."
I took the hint without surprise. "Morpheus?" I asked him. The man nodded, so I lowered the gun and stood up slowly.
"Why are you here?" I asked him.
"You know the answer, Zel" he stared at me, memories lingering in his eyes. I got the hint again.
"You found our revenge?" I asked nervously.
"Is something wrong?" he curiously looked me over. "What is it?"
I gulped. "I... I've made friends in the ONBA... Zennith is nearly an elite... Nemo is head of the Collectors, and the others are on their ways..." I whispered.
Morpheus seemed to consider this for a moment. I awaited his answer.
"Zel..." he sighed, then his face brightened. "This works perfect. Now, you can easily get access for us..."
I was a bit surprised. I had expected an attack, at least a shout, but not him to be happy about it. "Huh?"
Morpheus looked at me. "Welcome to Neo Gospel, buddy" he gave a slight smirk and a wink.
I blinked a couple times. "What?"
"I just told you. Welcome to Neo Gospel."
"Another crime group? I'm not sure..."
"Don't call it crime. Unlike the old Gospel, we're here simply to remove the ONBA..."
"Serious?"
"I'm commander, Zel. We're small now, but with you on our side, we'll be stronger. We need your help, Zel."
"I... I don't know..."
"Doesn't matter your choice, Zel..." Morpheus pulled out a black- handled knife, just like the old Dark Blade ones. "If you don't, the fact you know about us requires that I terminate you..."
I stuck out my tounge, mocking him. I sighed and let my thoughts flow.
"Do it..." Dynast recommended mentally. "You're stronger then he is... If he crosses you..."
"Ichize Mezxa" I sighed. "I'll do it."
Morpheus nodded, and pulled back the knife, then paused. "What exactly did you say?"
"Can't tell you..." I grinned slightly. My secret.
Morpheus looked at me rather funny, but shrugged it off. "Ichize Mezxa, huh? Whatever it means, I wish you'd tell me..."
"I really can't tell you" I sighed. "Perhaps someday you'll understand..."
"Well, good, because I don't understand right now." Morpheus chuckled a bit. "Come on, I've got places to show you..."
* * * * *
It felt odd, being back in crime, but it was what I did before, and what I expected I'd always be doing. Just one thing bothered me.
I was betraying those that had helped me. I didn't mind much. There was 3 months until my next Blackday, as I had come to call it.
"Ichize Mezxa" the simple saying kept calming me.
Everytime I heard it, I thought of my dad, wherever he was. Perhaps he wasn't really gone, I hoped. Just perhaps.
I had my goals set out. Revenge. Finding my father, or any sign of him. Surviving.
"Ichize Mezxa. Death was once Life" I muttered again the ancient saying associated with the Grausherra name, as Morpheus called me over to give me a job.
Author's Note: Next chapter, things change. You won't see the next chapter. Not to say it won't be written. Chances are, it's being written as you're speaking. But it will NOT be put up until certain things have come to pass. When those things have come to pass, then the chapter will be put up. Chapter five WILL be put up before four, most likely. Four will simply go up when it's time.
WARNING: This story has a tendency to be dark. Not shadowy ninja type. Violently descriptive, angst, and doomsday type.
Chapter 3 - True Shadow
"Err.. Hello, I guess" I spoke back to the navi. Was that the right answer?
"You guess? I don't think so. You meant to say it, and you knew it was right, so it wasn't a guess" Dynast shook his head. "Humans..."
"Navis..." I sighed, laughing a bit. Dynast grinned at the comment.
"Well, at least you're in a relaxed state. Like Neero was constan..." Dynast began, but I interrupted.
"Neero? Dad? What do you know about him?" I demanded quickly.
"Well, I know he began the design for me" Dynast breathed deep, then continued. "Also, that he dissapeared not that long ago."
"Not that long ago... Give me the date..." I curiously requested. Dynast may have been made by him, but he might have been deactivated for ages, and he just thought it was a short time.
Dynast paused before giving his answer. "He dissapeared the year you would have turned nine, so two years ago..."
"Two years ago? But then the letter when I was eight..." I stopped for a moment. "It makes no sense..."
Dynast paused, then opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but he shut it again quickly.
"Do you... know something?" I asked him.
"No, nothing" he turned away quickly, exposing the back of his silver robes and leather armor. I didn't believe him, but I didn't push it. Because I realized something at that moment.
Silver robes and leather armor. Silver robes and leather armor...
The vision! Why hadn't I realized it right away? This was the man who had stood with Mihillias...
"Finally remember me, do you?" I heard a faint whisper from Dynast. He turned around again. "It's about time. Make yourself comfortable, I need your help with something..."
I did make myself comfortable. "The two disks..." Dynast began, "are programs that were started to accompany my programming. The one on the first disk, yeah, that one, is the Tracker program. If you can get that up and running, then I'll be able to keep track of any navi we meet, and, as such, exactly who is within a decent radius of us."
It took a moment for that to sink in, but I plugged it into Dynast's PET. "We'll begin work on it as soon as possible."
Time went by slowly that night. The program had the bare bones, everything else had to be implemented, much slower. It would take several weeks of straight work to get it done.
I sighed. It was hot inside this lab, so I pulled my shirt off, and I looked at the scar on my right arm. From my aunt.
Then my eyes strayed across to my left arm, and something bugged me. A part of the skin there was slightly darker.
"Huh?" I wondered. It wasn't a bruise, it seemed natural, but it wasn't possible.
"Comeon, we've got work to do..." Dynast tried to catch my attention, but I was quite interested in the darkened skin.
"Alright..." I finally turned back to work and didn't give my left arm another thought.
* * * * *
To be honest with you, there was nothing really special that happened over the next nine years. Yes, nine.
I'm adult now. It's been nine long years of work. The Tracker took much longer then expected. Finally, though, it's gotten to the stage where it could be put permanently into Dynast, and worked on from there. So I finally have use of it.
Despite how I've tried, I still have yet to locate Morpheus again. I wondered if there had been progress in finding our method of revenge.
It was about this time that I discovered a hidden message board after jacking into a port inside the laboratory I had made my secret home.
It had been used once, so I decided to leave a "hello" message on there, to see if anybody would see it.
I hardly had expected a reply. So it came to my surprise when I got several.
There was a small selection of people there. Two navis there, a young samurai-style navi and a strange sorcerer-like one were constantly fighting, as if they were rivals, but I could tell they really respected each other. Yamatoman and Magician. I hardly realized just then who I was talking to.
Another navi that responded was named 'HeroSaber'. A navi that sounded rather heroic. Problem is, he also thought he was a total hero, even though he was kinda pathetic. There was a couple other navis there too, but to be honest, I don't remember them, nor do I think I will ever.
To say the least, I became great friends with them, and got to trust them. We'd often have small adventures. Hunting for data, helping each other recover lost programs, you know.
Dynast, honestly, didn't mind. Or so he said.
Dynast, over that time, became quite strong. Since we were a small community on a secretive board, we happily shared secrets of the net and other areas.
Then things changed one day. We got our biggest mission yet, a navi named Plantman had been wrecking havoc in the foreign system of Creamland. So, we decided we should team up to go fight Plantman. Only Dynast, Yamatoman, Magician, and Herosaber went to fight him.
Dynast stepped calmly into the cyber grass. "Hmm... Plantman should be around here..."
Yamatoman stepped up beside him. "I think you're right... this grass would be perfect for him..."
"And here I am!" Plantman stepped out from behind a data cube. The navi looked normal, except for the head covered in flower petals, the grass vines coming from his back, and the pink petals that floated around him in a circle.
Something caught my eye at that moment. On Plantman's left arm was some kind of mark. I couldn't tell what, but it wasn't on his right arm. Was it a sign of something to come?
"Plantman, we're here on mission to stop the havoc you've created..." HeroSaber boldly stepped up. I saw the green energy blade shoot from his arm.
"Then try me!" Plantman shouted, dashing towards our four navis.
Magician, who had been silent until then, grabbed a red light with his hand and slammed it into the ground. A pillar of fire rose and tore across the grass, leaving nothing behind.
There was a pause as the flame tower crashed into Plantman. It dissapeared, and so did the floating petals. However, the flower navi was unharmed.
"That's pathetic!" Plantman shouted, as petals flew up from the grass around him and formed another barrier. "Let me show you how to fight!"
With that, a pair of long green swords shot from Plantman's hands, and he dashed towards the four navis.
HeroSaber took on one of the blades, but his sword barely kept from cracking against Plantman's woodsword. Magician, on the other hand, dashed forward and drew a Fire Sword, cutting through the woodsword and swinging at Plantman. The barrier stopped the sword and snapped it.
"Battle Chip," I began, drawing a chip from my folder, "Blower! Slot- In!"
Dynast held open his hands as a large fan-like object dropped into them. A whirlwind of fire shot out, blowing through the petals as they tried to form another barrier, and catching Plantman in the blast.
As the fire blast slowed down, Plantman appeared seriously hurt. "Cheater!" he swore, as he backed up and slammed both his fists into the ground.
Vines wrapped around all four of the navis, stopping them cold. I grabbed another battle chip from my folder and slipped it in.
"Battle Chip, Invis-One! Slot-In!"
Dynast dissapeared for a moment and reappeared right back outside the vines. "Ready for another round?" he asked, aiming the Blower forward. I loaded up another Blower chip, and the fan started again.
Plantman was startled as he was engulfed again. "D... Damn you..." he swore, before he tore across the grass towards Dynast, and a long sword came from his arm. It wasn't a wood sword however. I wasn't sure what it was.
I slotted in a Fire Sword, hoping it would protect Dynast, but instead the sword was torn appart by Plantman's weapon. Dynast was sent flying, as a large gap appeared in his side.
Something sharp touched the side of my stomach, and I felt a bit of blood flow out. Was something wrong? Nothing had touched me.
"Dynast!" I shouted, and felt down at my side to my folder. It was now empty. I had used so many chips, they needed to be recharged. The other three navis couldn't help my navi...
My hand grasped a chip, and I slotted it in hopefully. Dynast grabbed a silver-coated bomb and dropped it to the ground. A huge white explosion covered the field. It just barely nipped the edges of the vines surrounding the navis.
Oddly enough, as the smoke cleared, the grass had been frozen solid, along with Plantman. At the same time, Dynast stood there, damaged from the explosion but he had somehow been immune.
"I think the job is done..." Dynast muttered. He walked over to the other navis and yanked off the icy vines, shattering them.
Yamatoman lightly dusted himself off. "That was kinda easy..." he said, as he walked over to Plantman and touched the wierd sword the navi was still holding. "Huh? I know this one..." and with that, he touched it and grabbed it himself, before sending the data to his operator. I wished nothing from it.
Had I realized just what I had done, at that moment, by attacking that navi, I would have shot myself before it was too late.
* * * * *
That night, I finally discovered what chip I had pulled. A one-of-a- kind chip, called the FreezeBomb. Of course, it was a weapon of incredible destructive power.
Nothing, of course, in comparison to what I was about to discover.
The day before my 20th year of birth, Dynast dissapeared. We hunted a smuch as possible. I had to borrow an old navi my father had worked on and left in the lab, Sunstar, to do my own hunting.
Dynast had kidnapped HeroSaber and deleted him, allowing his backup data to be run. So we knew he was in trouble.
I knew it the moment he came back to the lab's system. At first, I was overjoyed.
"Dynast, I'm so happy you're back..." I began to say, but his stern looked stopped me cold. He transferred himself back to my PET, and I noticed the black mark on his left arm.
A strange, twilight-black fang-like mark. "What...?" I wondered, before I felt a pain in my own left arm.
I took off my shirt, and looked at the darkened spot on my skin, to discover it was slowly forming the same mark.
The color darkened, and formed a deep black fang-shape.
"Greetings, servant!" I heard a deep, dark, devilish voice inside my head. I felt everything inside me shatter.
"What are you?" I whispered silently, but I recieved no answer. I felt like everything was dissapearing from inside of me, like there was nothing there.
"It is Blackfang" Dynast's voice rang in my head. "Created to turn everything into darkness... by fusing Human and Navi!"
"No!" I shouted out, trying to stop it, but I could barely feel my body. It seemed as if I was floating.
"Yes..." the devilish voice of Blackfang came back in my head. "You're my servant, destined to work for me..."
Everything went black.
* * * * *
Where am I? It's so dark and lonely here...
Is this what it's like... to be dead?
"No..."
Dynast? Is that you?
"Yes..."
Where are we? Are we dead?
"No. It's Blackfang..."
Blackfang... I... I see it all now...
"See what?"
The vision... I told you about it, didn't I?
"Yes..."
The Blackfang is the Darkness... why didn't I think about it before...?
"Because you didn't know it was here..."
True... Blackfang... Isn't there a way to stop it?
"It's fighting with Yamatoman... If it's possible, he can stop it..."
Yamatoman? How could he stop it?
"He's not a normal navi..."
Huh?
"He doesn't even know it, but he's got an incredible power built into him that's activated when him and his operator are in danger of being consumed by a darkness..."
Consumed by a darkness... I see how Yamatoman is in danger, but Gemini? How is he in danger...?
"What Blackfang has created is the King of Darkness. Dynast Grausherra. It's a fusion of the both of us, making our minds match. So it exists in both worlds..."
How can we help him?
"Fight the darkness... You may have started this darkness, so you can help to end it!"
* * * * *
"Blackfang! It's time that you end this!" I shouted out, expecting an answer. I was awake, my mind alive inside a cavern of darkness.
"I will not..." the voice answered.
"You will! I was not made to serve you, you were created for me to control!"
"I was not, and you will follow me!"
"Never. Leave my body and mind, and be gone!"
I forced back the darkness, making everything around me seem to hesitate. A prick of white light shot into the heart of the darkness, tearing it apart.
"Yamatoman!" I heard Dyanst shout, and I slowly felt everything return to focus. I blinked.
I blinked? I had a body of my own again.
There was a young man standing over me, probably about my age, holding out his hand to help me up. I gladly took it.
"Hello, Zelloss" he said to me, and I paused.
"Gemini?" I asked. We had never actually met. I was hoping it was him.
"Yes" he nodded. "Welcome back to reality..."
I smiled, and rolled up my left sleeve. The mark was still there, but it didn't seem quite as black as before. "It's not gone..." I muttered. He seemed slightly puzzled, but I really was confused.
"Ichize Mezxa" I muttered softly. Gemini inquired, but I didn't translate for him.
* * * * *
Not long after that, things changed greatly for me, towards the better for the first time in my life, although I doubted it would stay so good.
Gemini had become a good friend, and although he changed his name from Gemini to Zennith, he was still the same person to me.
Magician's operator I met, a fine young man who was a chip collector, Nemo. Him and Gemini really were rivals, I noted, but I doubted the rivalry would always be such.
I also met HeroSaber's operator, a young kid named Fred. What a plain name. He did have heart though, and that was something I appreciated.
There were others I met, too. I met a young collage-man, Jen, and his navi Geminiman. For some reason, he reminded me of me, although I couldn't quite place it.
The last one I met was a young boy, and my heart skipped for a moment. At first glance, I swore to god that I had seen Matson again.
Shinju looked just like Matson had, before he died. The sight of him brought a tear to my eye, and I swore to protect him better then I had Matson.
On the other hand, his navi was incredibly fierce competition. Ark, as he was called, was only one-armed, but was very well equipped for battle.
We indefinatly had adventures, of more magnitude then before, although I doubted anything could ever overcome what had happened, the magnificent battle between good, and, well, me.
The day of my 21st birthday, everything seemed wierd. My vision had blured, my senses had nearly died. I was weak, through and through, and so was Dynast.
Before I knew it, the blackfang had made itself known, taking over the spot on my left arm again, and trying to take over my mind.
I felt energy from Zennith and everybody else helping me, but it hardly made a difference.
Before I was ready to give in, I felt one last burst of strength, from the promise I had made. Shinju, and the others, needed to be protected. I had the chance to help them, now, before I hurt them.
I felt the bonds of the darkness break, and I slowly returned to normal, although I was, as I was informed, out of comission for several days.
* * * * *
Things changed after my 22nd birthday. Although the force of darkness came stronger, Zennith and Yamatoman were ready, helping both me and Dynast.
In the days that followed, after I had recovered, I finally understood what Blackfang had done. Perhaps the virus wasn't all bad.
Because me and Dynast had 'fused' at one point, our minds and bodies were now in surprising sync. At times, it was so strong we could communicate to each other through our minds, without words. On the other hand, we found a slight downside. Damage one took, the other took. Which wasn't good for me.
Often, after a tough battle that I lost, I'd end up fainting from exhaustion or pain. I began to realize that my life depended a surprising amount on Dynast.
It was about the time I found this out that another change happened.
* * * * *
I opened my eye. I had returned to the old streets I had made my home with Dark Blade, and somebody had found me there.
Slowly, I sat up and looked down the alley, catching a slight movement. My hand moved to my gun.
The figure rose up, and I grabbed the gun from the holster, not making a sound. Did he or she know I was here?
"Zel" a man's voice said, answering my question.
"Scan" I silently communicated to Dynast, who started up the tracker program at my command.
"Scanning" I heard the silent reply. The man moved closer, and I prepared to fire at Dynast's command. That wasn't what I got.
"Hold your fire!" Dynast said aloud, startling me, but not the man. He turned and looked down at me, and I looked up at him, holding the gun steady.
"Settle down, Zel..." the man rolled his eyes, I think, and clicked his tounge. "You're still high-strung, after all these years..."
I lowered the gun a bit. "Who are you?" I asked.
"Don't remember me? Shame on you" the man sighed and shook his head. "Zel, I thought your memory was better then that..."
I took the hint without surprise. "Morpheus?" I asked him. The man nodded, so I lowered the gun and stood up slowly.
"Why are you here?" I asked him.
"You know the answer, Zel" he stared at me, memories lingering in his eyes. I got the hint again.
"You found our revenge?" I asked nervously.
"Is something wrong?" he curiously looked me over. "What is it?"
I gulped. "I... I've made friends in the ONBA... Zennith is nearly an elite... Nemo is head of the Collectors, and the others are on their ways..." I whispered.
Morpheus seemed to consider this for a moment. I awaited his answer.
"Zel..." he sighed, then his face brightened. "This works perfect. Now, you can easily get access for us..."
I was a bit surprised. I had expected an attack, at least a shout, but not him to be happy about it. "Huh?"
Morpheus looked at me. "Welcome to Neo Gospel, buddy" he gave a slight smirk and a wink.
I blinked a couple times. "What?"
"I just told you. Welcome to Neo Gospel."
"Another crime group? I'm not sure..."
"Don't call it crime. Unlike the old Gospel, we're here simply to remove the ONBA..."
"Serious?"
"I'm commander, Zel. We're small now, but with you on our side, we'll be stronger. We need your help, Zel."
"I... I don't know..."
"Doesn't matter your choice, Zel..." Morpheus pulled out a black- handled knife, just like the old Dark Blade ones. "If you don't, the fact you know about us requires that I terminate you..."
I stuck out my tounge, mocking him. I sighed and let my thoughts flow.
"Do it..." Dynast recommended mentally. "You're stronger then he is... If he crosses you..."
"Ichize Mezxa" I sighed. "I'll do it."
Morpheus nodded, and pulled back the knife, then paused. "What exactly did you say?"
"Can't tell you..." I grinned slightly. My secret.
Morpheus looked at me rather funny, but shrugged it off. "Ichize Mezxa, huh? Whatever it means, I wish you'd tell me..."
"I really can't tell you" I sighed. "Perhaps someday you'll understand..."
"Well, good, because I don't understand right now." Morpheus chuckled a bit. "Come on, I've got places to show you..."
* * * * *
It felt odd, being back in crime, but it was what I did before, and what I expected I'd always be doing. Just one thing bothered me.
I was betraying those that had helped me. I didn't mind much. There was 3 months until my next Blackday, as I had come to call it.
"Ichize Mezxa" the simple saying kept calming me.
Everytime I heard it, I thought of my dad, wherever he was. Perhaps he wasn't really gone, I hoped. Just perhaps.
I had my goals set out. Revenge. Finding my father, or any sign of him. Surviving.
"Ichize Mezxa. Death was once Life" I muttered again the ancient saying associated with the Grausherra name, as Morpheus called me over to give me a job.