(Epilouge)
(Hikari Netto's POV)
In the end, R-Laserman was defeated. I'm sure he was deleted, but I'm not sure if Regal survived the blast or not. I doubt it, but you never know.
Two months have passed since then, and Kuri-chan had to go home. She was sad that Saratu had left her, and it did get her down, but she told us she would get over it eventually. Umi was going to help her with that.
She was also worried about Neta, who hadn't been cured when she left for home, and still hasn't to this day. Papa had made some progress, now the virus wasn't catchable by other Navis touching her. Now that all of us could interact with her, we've all been cheering her up. We knew we still couldn't take her out of the Science Labs' server, but she was defiantly happier now than she was. Papa promised Kuri-chan that he would keep her updated on Neta's condition, and lets her speak with her often. Speaking with Neta as often as she gets to, it's helping her get over Saratu leaving. Papa hasn't told her yet, but he's going to set up a dimensional area next time she comes to visit us and let her talk to Neta face to face. I bet she'll be happy when Papa does tell her about that.
Seems Ademu had returned to Creamland too. He explained everything to Reo, and he's now staying with him and Kurisutaru. Looks like he and Kuri-chan have got pretty close since they left the rest of us. Unfortuneatly, their Navis don't get along too well. Last time Dragoman was in Akihara, he told us that he hadn't deleted Umi yet because he knows how much trouble he'd get from Ademu and Kurisutaru. Ademu was still hurting from Heart's deletion. He's been able to get on with his life, but anyone that mentions Heart, has a death wish.
The rest of us? We're doing fine too. Nothing's happened since defeating R-Laserman, and we've had some peace time. School was going to be starting again soon, but we've had a great summer since what happened. But we haven't had any word from Kurisutaru yet.
Rockman and Gutsman were netbattling, with Roll, Glyde and Neta watching from the sidelines. "Enojoyng it Neta?" Roll asked her.
"Yeah, I still think it's funny how Dekao still has the confindence to take on Netto, I mean, Netto and Rockman have taken down Navi and Operator teams with over ten times the power and operating skill that they have. Why do Dekao and Gutsman think they can win?" Neta answered.
"I think deep down, they know they can't win, but they'll never admit it out loud. I think they do it because they enjoy the netbattles" Meiru replied from a screen in between Roll and Neta.
Neta laughed at this "Yeah, either that or they enjoy being beaten all the time" she said.
Rockman and Gutsman walked over to them, having finished their netbattle. Me and Rockman had won, again.
"How is Papa doing Neta? He hasn't been home in a while now" I questioned.
"He's been working himself hard, to try to cure me of this virus. I'm glad that he's made the progress that he has, so that I can get help from all of you, but I just wish he'd slack off a bit and take more breaks than he does" Neta answered.
"Sounds normal to me. Anyway, we should be getting you back to him" I answered, everyone present nodded. Neta raised her arm and Rockman took it to help her to her feet. Her body was still very stiff, but she had taught herself how to walk.
Soon after they started walking, Neta slumped forward and lost her balance. Gutsman caught her before she hit the ground and put her back on her feet. Roll then proceeded to turn the key on her back to wind her up. Once she was fully wound, Roll let the key go.
"Sorry about that" Neta apologised.
Rockman smiled as he patted her on the back "Don't worry Neta, we know it's not your fault. C'mon, let's get going" he told her. She nodded as much as she could, and they continued walking on.
"Rockman, do you think Yuuichiro will be able to cure me? It's been two months, and he's made progress, but hasn't cracked any of the big problems to the infection, like my body's stiffness, and my disabled netbattle program" Neta questioned.
"If anyone can cure you Neta, it's Papa. Even if he can't fully cure you, I'm sure he wouldn't delete you because of it" Rockman replied, I nodded on the screen beside him.
"You've been friends for so long Neta, it wouldn't be like him to just delete you because of this virus" I added.
"True... I guess you're right. Thanks" Neta replied, smiling slightly.
"Neta, how's Kuri-chan doing? We haven't seen her since she left two months ago" Meiru questioned.
"Umi hasn't visited any of you?" Neta asked, getting nods from all the operators present "I'll be having words with her about that when I see her next. Anyway, she's doing fine as far as I can tell. She said she's too tied up with school right now to come visit, but she said she'll come see all of us when she has chance" Neta answered.
They reached the link to Yuuichiro's computer. Neta turned around to face everyone before she entered it. "Well, I guess I won't be seeing you guys for a while, seeing as school starts again on Monday" Neta said.
Netto and Dekao groaned, everyone else present, except Gutsman, laughed. "Maybe if you didn't slack off like you do Netto-kun, maybe you wouldn't dread school starting again" Rockman told his operator.
"Hey! They just sprung that last test on us at the end of the year! I didn't have time to study for it..." I replied, trying to defend myself.
"Yeah, and like you would've studied if you did have time" Rockman said sarcasticly.
"Well, I guess it can't be helped. So I guess I'll see all of you again whenever I next see you" Neta added, then turned towards to link. Everyone waved and she entered it.
(Yuuichiro's computer, minutes later...)
"Hey Yuuichiro-kun, remember when you had to make sure you knew what I'd forgotten soon after I became a Navi?" Neta asked.
Yuuichiro was taking a break before he started working on Neta again. He nodded. "Of course I do" he answered.
(Flashback)
A yellow bodied, short ginger haired Navi was cradling a baby in her arms. This was the original Neta frame, she was shorter than the newer frame, and had been designed to be cuter. The baby was just dropping off to sleep.
"Yuuichiro, you have a very lively boy" Neta said, smiling down at the baby navi. Yuuichiro logged him out, back to his PET (One of the older models, from .EXE1 and 2).
"Haruka says the same about Netto" Yuuichiro replied. "Denierure, do you feel okay about being a Navi? The scan showed you weren't fullly transferred from your body" he questioned.
"I feel fine Yuuichiro, I might've lost a few memories, but I still don't think this design is very funny" Neta answered.
"I was trying to cheer you up, but don't worry, it'll change when both you and Saito are ready as Navis" Yuuichiro answered. "Anyway, I'll need to ask you a few questions to try to find out what you've forgotten" he added.
"Go ahead" Neta replied.
"What is your real name, and where are you from?" Yuuichiro questioned.
"Keshiro Denierure, and I was born, and raised in Creamland. I came to Japan to study computer science 7 years ago" Neta replied, Yuuichiro nodded.
"Where and when did we first meet?" Yuuichiro asked.
"At college 6 years ago, I was having trouble with the work on the course we were on. You helped me out, and we've been friends since. After we became friends, I introduced you to Haruka, who I quickly became friends with when I came to Japan" Neta answered. Yuuichiro nodded again.
"How old were you when you created your Navi, and what is her name?" Yuuichiro asked.
"I was sixteen when I created my Navi, Umi" Neta replied. Yuuichiro shook his head.
"You told me you were eighteen when you created Umi" Yuuichiro told her. "Which of your daughters is older? Saratu or Kurisutaru?" he questioned.
"Um... I know this... There was about seven minutes between them, I remember that... It was Saratu" Neta finally decided.
"Right. Seems you remember the important stuff from your life, you just forgot a few facts, that's all" Yuuichiro told her.
(Real time)
"What was it like when you met Saratu again when I sent you back to Creamland? Rockman knew Netto was his brother, but he hadn't met him before as a human. Netto always remembered he had a brother, but he didn't think he'd end up becoming his Navi. I only told him right after you and Saratu infiltrated the Science Labs to try to kill me" Yuuichiro asked.
"Weird, and really tough, since I couldn't tell Saratu I was her mother, or Kurisutaru for that matter. Reo knew it was me, since you told him what was happening when you gave my PET to him to give to Saratu" Neta answered.
"Did Umi figure it out? Or did she already know?" Yuuichiro questioned.
"I told her soon after I became Saratu's Navi. I planned to keep her offline after I became a Navi, but I decided she was going to waste, and I didn't want that. So I asked Reo-kun to give her to Kuri-chan. She was happy, because as far as she knew, I was dead. I left it a few weeks after I became Saratu's Navi, but I explained it to her" Neta replied.
(Flashback)
"So you're Saratu's new Navi? How long was I out...?" Umi questioned.
"A good ten years, but I haven't been Saratu's Navi for that long" Neta answered.
Umi folded her arms over her chest as she looked at Neta "I don't know why, but I feel like I've met you someplace before. Why do you look so familiar?" Umi asked.
"I'm not an ordinary Navi, Umi" Neta replied as she walked over to Umi, put an arm over her shoulders and pulled her closer. "Please, don't tell Saratu and Kurisutaru what I'm about to tell you. Promise?" she questioned, Umi nodded.
"How'd you know my name?" Umi said.
"As far as you knew, your old operator died, and Yuuichiro put you offline ten years ago, right?" Neta began. Umi looked at her in shock.
"That's right, but how'd you...?" Umi wondered, Neta smiled at her.
"I'm a Soul Navi" Neta replied.
This confused Umi "Yuuichiro explained the term to me, before he put me offline, after my old operator died. But he said his son was meant to become a Soul Navi then, who are you?" she questioned.
"I'm your old operator Umi, Denierure. Yuuichiro's son did become a Soul Navi, I became one by accident" Neta answered.
It took a few seconds for it to register in Umi's head. "Keshiro Denierure?" she asked, Neta nodded. She hugged Neta tightly "Denierure-chan! I missed you..." she said.
"Easy Umi, please" Neta told her, Umi let go of her and floated herself up to face her ex-operator. "I never thought I'd get to see you like this. Get to see you up close. Be able to touch you..." she said with a smile as she touched Umi's face.
"I'm just glad to have you back, I thought you died..." Umi replied, a few tears formed in her eyes, but Neta wiped them away.
"Remember, keep this a secret from Saratu and Kurisutaru, so act like you don't know me yet" Neta told her, Umi nodded.
"Okay Neta" Umi answered.
(Real time, elsewhere...)
"I need time to heal up from the battle. I'll call upon you and Pyra once I'm healed, understood?" Regal asked over a phone call, Saratu nodded. "Until then, do what you want, but keep out of sight from any Net Saviors" he added, she nodded once again.
"We got it Regal-hakase. Is that all?" Pyra asked.
"No" Regal replied "Saratu, I know you freed your sister from the server while Laserman and me were gone. I anticipated you would, and I counted on it happening. You will be punished for it when I return to the base" he added as he ended the call.
"At least she's safe..." Saratu replied as she lied down on her bed. She was at the base, but it was pretty much deserted, except for her and Pyra.
"You'd take anything to protect your sister, wouldn't you?" Pyra questioned.
"I would Pyra, I'm not going to let her get hurt because of something that I did" Saratu answered.
"I'm curious Saratu. How'd you end up working for him? You had a good life back in Creamland, didn't you?" Pyra asked.
"I did, we were pretty well off because of Dad's job as a doctor, and he took time off when he could to be with Kuri-chan and me. My parents met in Japan, and me and Kuri-chan were born there. Haruka did help raise us, moreso after Mom died, and became a Navi. I guess... it started when I started researching into Mom's death. I was just seeing what I could dig up in Creamland after we moved there, then I took a trip to Japan to see what I could dig up there. When I was in Japan, that's when I met Regal. I think most, if not all the infomation he gave me was false, but I didn't know that then, so I believed it" Saratu answered.
"And now you're stuck working for him" Pyra said, Saratu hung her head, nodding.
"That was over a year ago now, and it's too late to turn back. The Net Saviors will arrest me if I go home, and if I run away, Regal will send his operatives to hold Kuri-chan and Dad hostage" Saratu replied.
(Back at the Science Labs...)
"Have you seen your grave?" Yuuichiro asked.
"My family go to visit it every year. Saratu missed it this year, and so did I since I was with her. But yeah, I've seen it" Neta answered. "I remember, the first time. It was a year before I was going to meet Saratu, you sent me to Reo after we'd arranged everything. He arranged for a friend to look after Saratu and Kurisutaru, then came to Japan with me. Saratu and Kurisutaru didn't know about him going earlier that year, but he went with them later. The first time, it scared the heck out of me. Looking at my own grave. I was having nightmares about it for weeks" she added.
(Flashback)
"Well, here we are" Reo said to Neta, he was looking at a gravestone that read 'Keshiro Denierure'.
"I'm a Navi now, but I just can't believe that I'm dead" Neta replied, with tears in her eyes.
"Don't worry about it, it's been hard coming here all these years" Reo told her.
"You've brought Saratu and Kurisutaru before?" Neta questioned, Reo nodded.
"It was hard on them, finding out that you were dead, but what could I tell them?" Reo asked.
"Yuuichiro asked me to keep this a secret from everyone, I think he asked you the same when he told you. You did the right thing, don't worry about it" Neta replied. "Though I'm going to have a field day explaining this to them if we ever decide to tell them" she added sarcasticly.
"They'll be ready one day Denierure" Reo told her. Neta nodded.
"How are they doing by the way? I don't think I've asked during this whole trip" Neta questioned.
"They're both doing fine, I've been making sure I've taken all the photos with the digital camera, so you can go through them when you become Saratu's Navi. I brought some with me for you to look at" Reo answered as he took out a chip and slotted it into Neta's PET.
Neta looked through the files, and a another tear slid down her cheek. "I can't believe I've missed out on so much" she said. She came to a photo with a younger Saratu and Kurisutaru hugging Reo, both of them looked very happy. "If you don't mind Reo-kun, I want to hold onto this one" Neta told him.
"Go ahead, take that chip with you if you want. I've kept them for you" Reo replied.
Neta saved the contents of the chip to her PET, and the chip popped out. "I'll have to ask Yuuichiro to put in a restricted area to my PET, so Saratu doesn't find them" she said.
Silence followed for a few minutes, until Neta spoke up again "I'm sorry Reo-kun, I know this has been hard for you" she told him.
"I didn't want you to take part in that experiment Denierure, I was scared something was going to happen to you. I never expected you to become stuck as a Navi" Reo replied "I just miss you so much" he added.
"I know, but this is permanent and I have to live with being a Navi. I've got used to it now, and I just hope Saratu and Kurisutaru understand when and if we tell them the truth" Neta told him.
"Which one of Yuuichiro's kids was it that became a Navi? Was it Netto?" Reo asked.
"Saito. They haven't met yet, but they'll meet when Yuuichiro thinks he's ready to be Netto's Navi" Neta answered.
"How is he?" Reo questioned.
"He's doing fine. Yuuichiro doesn't think it'll be too long now until he sends us to our operators. Reo-kun, I want you to do something for me" Neta replied.
"Anything" Reo told her, she smiled at this.
"When Yuuichiro-kun calls to arrange with you to pick me up for Saratu, I want you to put Umi back online and give her to Kurisutaru" Neta said, he nodded.
"I'll put her back online a couple of weeks after you get home so you can settle in with Saratu first" Reo replied.
(Real time)
"One day, I'm going to go see my grave on my own, and then probably Saito's too" Neta said.
"The way technology is advancing, you'll probably be able to" Yuuichiro replied. "Well, I'd best get back to work, this virus isn't going to remove itself, even though I wish it would" he added as he opened up a few programs on his computer, and began work again.
"What's the main problem that you have Yuuichiro-kun? You might've forgotten how you programmed some of my programming, and I remember everything" Neta asked.
"For one thing, it looks like it can't get into your AI, even though I think it usually would. The problem is the infection is rewriting some of your data, disabling any program that it thinks is any sort of threat. It's somehow evading the anti-virus I put in, and it's not done with changing you. I can't predict how it's going to affect you next" Yuuichiro answered.
"Can't you try designing a new frame, transferring me to it, and then deleting this one?" Neta questioned.
"Removing your AI was one of the first things I tried, but even though it can't get into your AI to change it, it's holding onto it I can't get you out of there" Yuuichiro replied.
Neta hung her head. "Am I going to be stuck like this?" she asked, with sadness clear in her voice.
"Unless I can get rid of the infection, then yes. If I can get rid of the infection, then I can start undoing the damage" Yuuichiro answered.
Neta tried to speak, but she couldn't get anything out before the key stopped turning and silenced her. Rush popped out of a hole and started turning the key.
"Well, have you been able to sleep?" Yuuichiro asked.
Once Rush had wound Neta back up, she answered. "Barely, but when I do finally fall asleep, I can't dream like I could before I was infected" she said.
"Your Dream Program has been disabled? I can't see how the virus would think it could do any harm to it" Yuuichiro wondered.
"Me neither" Neta replied. At that moment, her helmet began to glow, and it disappeared. Her hair changed to blonde as it usually did, and became loose again. "Yuuichiro-kun, hurry!" Neta cried out in panic. She felt like something else was going to change, but the feeling went away.
"Calm down, it looks like it's stopped for now. This virus is very patient with changing you, isn't it?" Yuuichiro chuckled.
"Yuuichiro, this thing could change the rest of me right now if it wanted!" Neta shouted at him.
"I know, but we both know I can't get this virus out of you right here and now. It's going to take some more time, and you might have a few more changes done to you before I can get the virus out of you" Yuuichiro replied.
Neta felt an incoming call. Rush went back into his hole, and returned with a screen. He showed the screen to Neta, and it had an IP address on it. She recognised the IP Address as Kurisutaru's. "It's Kuri-chan, I guess we must've lost track of time" she said.
"Okay, but I need to keep working. I'm sorry Denierure, but I need all the time I can get now" Yuuichiro replied.
"I understand" Neta replied as she touched the screen, and Kurisutaru's face appeared on it.
"Mama! How are you?" Kurisutaru asked cheerfully, then noticed something "What happened to your helmet?" she questioned.
"The virus is still changing me. It just got rid of it. How's your schoolwork?" she asked.
"Fine. Sensei thinks I'm doing really well" Kurisutaru answered.
"What's got you in such a good mood Kuri-chan? You're not normally as cheerful as this when you call me" Neta questioned.
"I got an email from Saratu-chan last night, and she's doing well, I'll forward it to you now" Kurisutaru answered as she sent the email to Neta. Rush grabbed the file when it appeared and held it up for Neta to see. 'Kuri-chan, how are you? I know I'm probably going to get into trouble for sending you this, but I don't care, I promised I'd email you. Anyway, I hope you're doing well when this gets to you. Despite still having to work for Regal, I'm doing pretty well. Umi will probably notice I sent an attachment on this email. It's a little surprise I managed to get hold of, it's a battlechip called Kawarimi. I know you don't Netbattle if you don't have to Kuri-chan, but it's just a little surprise in case someone tries to surprise you, but you and Umi notice them'
"Well, it's good to hear from her, just don't let your father see it. She could get into trouble if he tries to trace her." Neta replied.
Kurisutaru nodded, then continued. "There's that, and I'm getting better at programming thanks to school, so I've been upgrading Umi. Dad thinks I might have what it takes to become a Net Savior here in Creamland" Kurisutaru smiled.
"A Net Savior? I don't know Kuri-chan, that'll put a lot of pressure on you, along with your schoolwork" Neta told her.
"I know, but I'm taking my test mission in three months. It's to make sure I can work in a team to complete an objective, I think" Kurisutaru replied.
"How would Reo... " Neta said, then something clicked in her head, and she turned to the screen beside her, with Yuuichiro's face on it. "Yuuichiro-kun, you didn't get any calls about this from him, did you?" Neta questioned.
"He asked me to monitor her and Umi, and I thought she was doing up to the level the Net Saviors need. I called Meijin, and he got in touch with Creamland's commander. He was impressed with Kurisutaru's improvement in netbattling and programming skills, so he wanted to give her a chance" Yuuichiro answered.
"Well, I guess it's your decision Kuri-chan, I'm not going to stop you. Can you send Umi here? I want to see what you've done to her" Neta questioned.
Kurisutaru smiled and nodded. "Thought you'd never ask" she replied. A flash of light appeared in front of Neta, and a Navi was revealed when it faded.
Neta's eyes widened as she looked at her old Navi "K-kuri-chan, what have you been learning?" she asked.
Kurisutaru smiled "I've been learning some of the advanced stuff. Sensei says that I did a great job with upgrading Umi" she answered.
It looked like Umi was no longer a mermaid Navi. She had legs, and a skirt-like form that looked like the top of her old fin, and her new light blue boots were scaly. Her gloves were the same color as her boots, while the rest of her body was light blue, nearly white, except for her face, which was it's usual color. Her hair was the same blue shade as her gloves and boots, and was longer than it used to be, though she still had no helmet. Her lips were now a blue color too.
"What happened to your fin Umi?" Neta questioned.
"Kuri-chan made it retractable, so I can have more movement when I want it" Umi smiled. To prove this, she put her legs together and closed her eyes. Her legs started to glow and change. When the light faded, her new legs had been replaced by her fin.
"Well, I'm sure there's more than you have time to tell me about Umi. Kuri-chan, I like what you've done to Umi. My Hydro Mermaid Style can still fuse with her, right?" Neta asked.
"Don't worry Mama, I left the fusion program you gave me in Umi's programming. She can still fuse with you" Kurisutaru replied.
"Is Yuuichiro still working on you now?" Umi asked, Neta nodded.
"I got scared something started the virus off with changing me again when it got rid of my helmet. Yuuichiro-kun is trying to cure me as fast as he can now" Neta answered.
(End of Chapter, and Story)
That's it for this fic. I'm in between fics now, but I have some ideas knocking
around my head for a new one. A prequel to this story..
Here's who I want to thank.
Bookman (EXEHQ Forums). A guy who's been reading my fics since early on in Neta.EXE, Rockman's Counterpart, which is a long time! Thanks Bookman!
Iceman.EXE (REO Forums) My first reviewer for this on REO, even though the post was lost in the hack attack. Like a lot of writers, I keep EVERYTHING. Hehehehe.
Megawoman.EXE (REO Forums) A recent reviewer, and a great writer in her own right. She's been giving me a few ideas, and there's a surprise coming in her fanfic.
Midnight Critic (REO Forums, and I think he only commented on one chapter, but at least it's better than nothing. Hope you get around to reading the rest!
YukiJudai (REO Forums and EXEHQ Forums) He's read this, and likes it. Thanks!
Diamond Avatar (EXEHQ Forums and A friend of mine that has supported me in the early stages of this fic. Then he disappeared off the face of the planet. Or just got REALLY busy, and can't get on the net at the moment. Hope I see you soon Diamond!
SamBerry (REO Forums) For drawing my characters, and very well too.
I know that there are many people that I missed, mainly because I missed getting your pennames when I recieved the alerts in my inbox. There's one guy who didn't leave his name or anything. Baka.
Still, like I said. My next works will most likely be a prequel to this story. I'll probably also be helping out some of my fellow writers with ideas and stuff. For those of you who are expecting me to be back on the net anytime soon at home, don't keep your hopes up. My parents, and mainly my brother, are evil, and it's because of them I can't have the net. I get a scheme to get it back on, but it ends up failing every damned time. I will get on eventually, but if I say I might be able to get on during the course of the next fic, don't listen to me unless I say I'm actually back on. Oniisan no baka.