Fragments of Corruption:
Chapter Two
Lan yawned loudly while the elevator stopped at the second to last floor of the SciLabs building.
"We hit lucky Megaman; if I had to pick this or going to the mall with Mayl, I'd pick this."
"You don't really mean that, do you?" Megaman responded from the PET. "You guys are always doing stuff together."
Lan shrugged. "Sure, but she gets on my nerves after awhile. She starts correcting me and the starts nagging!"
Megaman smiled. "Well, at least she's getting some practice; when's the wedding?" Lan ignored him and strode over to the entrance of his father's laboratory. The door was presently open, so he quickly walked inside.
The room was vacant except for three people; Eugene Chaud, Lan's father, and another scientist.
They all turned to see Lan as he scratched his head. "Ah, Lan, just in time; Chaud came in just a minute ago," his father stated as Chaud nodded quickly in his direction.
"So, back to what we were discussing Mr. Chaud, no, the explosion in the Undernet occurred silently and very fast; no one knew of it before of when it happened."
Lan walked up to them. "What explosion? Did something happen?"
"Earlier today, Undernet Area Seven was found in ruins. A strange and powerful aura floated in the area, and it could not be confirmed what," Chaud explained.
The boy nodded. "Okay, but, um, why was I called here?"
"For the same reason Chaud was," the scientist replied. "You two are among the best Netbattlers in Electopia, and both of you have contributed greatly to quelling World Three's, Gospel's, and Nebula's attempts at global corruption. So, it seemed only right that we had both of you come here; there have been a few recent developments since the explosion."
Dr. Hikari nodded. "Yes, but I would like to inform you of something other than the explosion. As I'm sure you both know, we have been constructing a new battlechip, and we have called them EX chips."
"EX chips?!" Lan confirmed excitedly. His father smiled. "Now, we have been extremely busy constructing a series of prototypes, since they are extremely powerful and require a large amount of energy. We have just recently completed some of the trial chips, and have decided to grant each of you one."
Lan's eyes lit up with glee. "Really? That's awesome!" he exclaimed while his father chuckled. The scientist nodded and removed two olden chips from his coat pocket. He laid them out in his hand and showed them to the two.
"Cyber Sword EX, and Spread Buster EX. Of course Mr. Chaud, while you are an Official and are prohibited to use any battlechips, this is an exception. This is also one for you Lan, because these chips are not to be sold publicly."
He then picked up the Spread Buster EX and handed it to Chaud, who took it without a word. Lan hurriedly walked up to him and extended his left hand. The scientist gently laid the remaining chip in Lan's hand.
He stared at it for a few moments. "All right; we've got an EX battlechip, Megaman!"
"Yeah, and it's ours!" the navi replied.
Dr. Hikari cleared his throat. "Now, remember these chips are prototypes and can easily malfunction at any time; be extremely careful when handling them."
The scientist nodded once more. "Yes, and now for the real reason we called you here." He waited for complete silence and continued. "One of our dispatch team's navis returned. It was damaged badly and its appearance had changed. When interrogated about what happened, the navi answered that a foreign energy filled the area. The energy could not be tracked to a source, but it was so powerful that all of the team, except for that one navi, were deleted when they came in contact with it. Fortunately, the navi was cautious, and only its data had been altered. However, a constant strain had been put on it, and it was deleted in only one hour since its return."
Chaud shrugged. "All right, so what's the point?" The scientist stroked his chin. "Before the navi was deleted, we extracted a piece of data and studied it. The data, surprisingly, was simple, so simple we could easily alter it or imprint it upon something. Yet, after much searching, we have confirmed the energy is only contained in that area of the Undernet. We would like one of you to venture into that area and locate the source of the energy."
"How can you be so sure the source is there?" Chaus inquired while straightening his vest.
The scientist scratched his head. "Yes, it's a long shot, but it is our only lead."
Chaud nodded and turned to Lan. "Sorry, Hikari, but I'll take this one." Lan shrugged and grinned. "Doesn't matter to me, just come back with Protoman intact; we have a score to settle."
Chaud looked back at the others. "All right then, when can I go through with it?"
"Right now if you'd like," the scientist replied. Chaud quickly walked over to the main computer panel and unhooked his PET, removing the cord and plugging it in. "Fine, I'll get it over with, maybe even experiment with that chip," he stated.
(Just so you know, this story is branching off from the games, and I called the chip Cyber sword because it's the most commonly used name, I think.)
