Disclaimer: I don't own Megaman Battle Network. Capcom does. All other characters are the social property of the Chaos Coalition.

Author's Note: Finally managed to get a chapter out on time. Thanks again to Cory Chung for reviewing, and to the rest of you as well. And many thanks to Pavo for supplying me with the topic that allowed me to write this flashback. Hmm...I don't think I have anything left to say. Enjoy!

-

Pain. Darkness. A burst of light.

These are the last things that Shroud Taruka remembers as he faintly awakens. His vision seems to be blurry, and he blinks twice, moderately improving it. Looking around, he sees that he is in a austere white room, with a steady beep coming from a machine beside him. Shroud realizes that the device is attached to his left arm, and pieces this information together to determine that he is being medically treated, perhaps in a hospital. The fact that it's taking this long to put together isn't a good sign.

A woman in a medical coat comes in and checks his vitals, apparently unconcerned with him being awake. "Well, you seem to be doing fine, Mr. Taruka. I must say, it's a bit surprising, considering your injuries."

Shroud frowned, trying to focus in on the doctor or nurse's eyes. "And am I to be told what my injuries are?" He could feel small pains about him, but if he was in a hospital, it must have been more serious than that, and he was most likely on a drug of some sort to stop the pain.

The medical personage looked him over quizzically. "We were hoping you could tell us. You came in with a rapidly dropping body temp. I've never seen anything like it. It was almost like your body was battling itself, trying to kill itself."

That made sense. Shroud couldn't remember all the details, but for the last month or so, he had been feeling controlled, or manipulated, and occasionally had complete blackouts. He faintly remembered fighting the Chaos Union, which really didn't make much sense, and then nothing afterwards, just this hospital bed.

"We were about to give up hope, when all of a sudden, your body temp went back to normal quickly. You must have subconsciously responded to something your friends were saying."

Shroud's eyes opened wide. "My friends! Are they here?" The nurse (the girl seemed too inexperienced to be a doctor) nodded, and Shroud relaxed with a smile. "Could you send them in here please?"

The nurse bit her lip and looked at the door. "I-I don't think that--"

"Please?" The nurse finally gave in, and left the room. Soon after, Matthias, Mikoto, Link, and J.G. entered, glad that he was all right.

"Shin!" Miko hurried over to her cousin and gave him a light hug, while the other three came up closer to him, pulling up chairs. "The doctors didn't think that you were going to make it." The normally tomboyish girl seemed to let her mask slip a moment, and was in no hurry to raise it again.

"We made sure not to tell the doctors more than we had to," J.G. said, getting right to the point. "All we said was that we headed over to your house and we found you like this, semi-conscious and muttering. And SX is in their systems right now, 'helping' them find a prior medical record for you."

Shroud nodded. "Good work, everyone...but what happened to me? Was it Nation Z?"

Even Link's face dropped. That wasn't a good sign. "Shroud..." Matthias began. "It wasn't Nation Z. It was you." Shroud frowned, and Matthias continued. "You were...corrupted by the Dark Synchro Chip you used in Nation Z, and you formed a group to fight us. The Dark Union."

With those words, memory came flooding back. He had formed a group of netcriminals and manipulated the Chaos Union, both secretly and openly. He remembered the others coming to find him at Mount Belenus, and the subsequent battle, where he and Matthias had dueled in Full Synchro, their navis and their human bodies fighting move for move, until Shadow X was able to seperate his dark and light sides, allowing Matthias and Galaxyman to wound his darkness, apparently causing the wounds he faintly felt and the temperature decline that had previously plagued him.

Suddenly, he became aware of something in his pocket, and pulled it out. It seemed to be a note of some sort, and he unfolded it while the others watched.

Thank you for the vacancy your departure has created. I assure you, the Dark Union will be managed much better under my leadership.

Master Shadow

Shroud paled, and not just from his wounds. "It seems that I may have created a rather large problem."

-

Chaotic We Stand

-

Chapter 4: Tenebrae Revenit

-

-- 4: 47 PM, somewhere in Neo Arcadia --

A dim light lit the small room as a figure in a black cloak entered it. A black crescent moon glistened against the light on his breast, pinned as a symbol of his rank and strengths. The other four people in the room got to their feet as their leader walked towards them, and reseated themselves only after he had sat in his own chair.

"What is the status of the Vile 5, Prelude? Are their plans ready to be put into action?" Their leader never was one for small talk.

"They need a bit more time, Master N." As was custom, Prelude spoke using the customary title of her superior, something that now came naturally to the lowest ranked member of their group. Like the others around her, Prelude wore a dark black cloak, but in the place of her leader's pin of rank was her own, a silver star. "Perhaps Lord B can create a diversion?"

"We are not to reveal ourselves, Prelude. Have you forgotten your commands already?" Lord B himself was in the habit of challenging Prelude whenever possible, if only to keep her from attempting to steal his position. His voice was crisp, as were his opponents, and upon his cloak was pinned a raging bronze flame. "The most I can do is send in a proxy. Perhaps Omega?"

"I don't trust him." This last came from another female navi, this one sitting beside their leader himself. She had worked hard to gain this position, and defeating everyone but her master himself wasn't an experience she'd like to repeat. She wore a golden lily, most tranquil of flowers, but her mood was anything but. She deeply wished she could overthrow N and get this charade of fealty over with, but she couldn't. Prelude's eyes met hers for a moment, but she visually rebuked the girl. There was a time and place for plotting and this wasn't it.

"My dear Lady M, I believe you are mistaken in your estimation of Omega's loyalties. After all, simply because we were able to turn him from his owner does not mean he is easy to turn. He will obey us until his deletion, if need be." Bolero had never liked her, but that was a resent she could bear. She would need to for now.

"No luxury do we have of time," the cryptic Requiem said, breaking a silence no one else had noticed. No one save N knew whether Requiem was male or female, but no one dared ask their grimmest member. Regardless of gender, it wore an equalized cross of ivory upon its chest, and rarely spoke.

"Requiem speaks truth. The Chaos Union may already have found the Vile 5, and in any case, we should test their strength. Bolero, send out Omega, and watch from the sidelines. Let him fight until the very last instant before deletion, and then stop the Union with your own strength. We are through here." Master N stood, and the others followed, watching as he spun on his heel and left.

As soon as Master N had left the room, Bolero quickly got to his feet and began shouting at Lady M. "What right have you to countermand me? You may hold the rank of second now, but as soon as I can defeat Requiem and take the ivory--"

A previously unseen whip cracked, and Bolero fell to the ground. The hood of his cloak was knocked aside, and a draconian face emerged, humanoid features almost lost in a sea of crimson scales and the new, venomous-looking slash across his face. "I shall not remind you again of your place, Bolero. Regardless of how you feel about your chances against me, our code dictates that you must defeat Requiem first. Now apologize to our dear comrade, with the proper title this time." Lady M coiled her thorned whip around her hand as Bolero reluctantly got to his feet.

"Forgive me…Comrade Requiem." The words were forced, but Requiem paid him no mind, giving only a brief nod and then leaving. Bolero followed quickly, contacting Omega as he went. With their companions gone, Prelude stepped over to Lady M and lowered her hood. Beneath its dark confines, one could see that she could be considered almost pretty, a stunning blonde whose hair was tied into a ponytail. Her yellow irises flashed as she confronted her superior and best friend.

"Attacking Bolero wasn't wise, my friend. You and I both know that he's looking for any excuse to have you expelled from the Quintet." Lady M only shrugged, pushing back her hood as well. Her face was almost teardrop-shaped, and she had wavy red hair with thin strands of vines woven through.

"Not attacking him would have been more foolish," she whispered to Prelude as she put away her whip. "Requiem is surely reporting to N, and I can't afford to show weakness to him. And recall that Bolero is Lord B to you, N has eyes everywhere." She then hurried out of the room, intending on going to her rooms, the only place in their base she could be sure wasn't bugged.

"Forgive me, Min--Lady M." Prelude bowed and followed her out, but stopped her rather than continue to her chambers. "I cannot visit with you this evening. Master N has commanded me to attempt to contact Serenade again, and I cannot dally. I shall see you when I return."

Lady M nodded. "Of course. Do what you must." Prelude knelt quickly and then turned to a console beside the door, pressing her hand upon it. A stream of data encircled her, and she dematerialized into their computer server.

Even after several years of experiencing the wonder of the Dimensional Chip, Minuet was amazed by its effectiveness. With one of the chips, a navi could materialize in the real world, exactly as they were on the Net. What's more, it didn't require a Dimensional Area, so these navis could travel anywhere undetected. Very few had been developed, and the five used by the Quintet had been stolen from the Underking himself by Prelude. The girl had been naïve and foolish, a perfect mark. More importantly, she had been Serenade's protégé, one of the few navis allowed to speak to him that were not Undernavis or criminals.

It had been easy for Master N to convince Prelude to obey him. Their last operative to attempt to gain the prized chips had been deleted, their very own Golden Operative, second in rank. She had risen to that height that day, and to her current sadness, had pointed out Prelude to N. She had come to the girl, pretending friendship, and convinced her that the Quintet was working with Serenade and needed the chips. When she had returned several days later, N bound her with the silver star that she now wore, linking her to them until her death or expulsion.

As if to make up for it, she had befriended Prelude, and soon found that the girl was strong, easily as strong as she was. But while Prelude wanted to challenge Bolero for supremacy, Lady M had told her not to, instead telling her that her place was at the lowest point, so N wouldn't watch her as closely. So far, their plotting had paid off.

Speaking of plotting, she had work to do. She went into her chambers and sealed the doors shut, keeping prying eyes out of her business. She removed her black cloak and hung it on a peg, revealing her to be wearing a green shirt, earth-toned pants of brown, and light slippers, a variation on her battle wear. Sitting at a computer, she turned it on and interfaced directly with it, one hand extending glowing vines that spliced themselves into the system.

A window on her browser opened, asking whether she would like to begin a video conference. She chose to accept, and the face of one of her collaborators appeared on the screen, that of a teenage boy. "Hello, my dear M," the boy said. "How did your meeting go?"

"Better than expected, Lee. It seems that your father and his friends should be confronting Omega any minute now."

-- 5: 08 PM, 8498 Floppi Place, Electown, Electopia --

"What have we done?"

In years to come, neither Luke nor Aeon would know who uttered those fateful words. But it truly did not matter, for as the light faded from the screen, Luke saw something that would become even more fateful. The Fallen.

They were surrounding Aeon, and he slowly turned to look at them. Seven magnificent creatures, ranging from his size to a towering height and from dragons to cities. "What are they?" Luke asked hesitantly.

"They are my Fallen," Aeon responded simply, walking up to the most humanoid one. It was Glacios, a being in a blue parka whose face was hidden from view by a large hood. As Aeon approached, his gloved hands raised themselves to the hood, revealing a wispy semblance of a face, his only corporeal form. Luke could only watch as Aeon set his hand on Glacios' shoulder, absorbing him into his body. Once the Fallen was gone, his eyes shone blue a moment, before he moved on to the next Fallen.

This one seemed to be a cross between a snake and a dragon, with sharp fangs and jagged fins. Azul was currently coiled in the air, and Aeon absorbed him as well, the vicious-looking creature extending his head from him to touch.

Aeon then moved onto the next Fallen, which held a large shield and knelt before Aeon as he stepped towards him. "Hello, my liege. My name is Ector, and it shall be an honor to serve you."

Aeon bowed as well, accepting Ector's vow of fealty. "Thank you, my Fallen." Extending another hand, he set it upon Ector's shoulder, and absorbed him into his body.

The next was Alexander, a miniature city, with medieval architecture and a large clock tower in the center. As Luke watched, a small man actually appeared and spoke briefly to Aeon before he absorbed it. "He wanted me to make sure I kept his people safe," Aeon later told him. "I told him that I'd do my best."

Ramuh was the last of the humanoid ones, a seemingly weak mage clad in gold robes who held a staff with a crooked tip. As Aeon absorbed the stoic Fallen, a jolt of electricity ran up his arm, and he had a strange feeling of foreboding that he quickly shook off.

The penultimate Fallen was similar in appearance to a tree, having a trunk for feet and branches extending from his back and shoulders. His head was all but hidden behind his leafy boughs, and his arms were heavily armored, huge bracers strapped to his wrists. Aeon absorbed Exodus, and felt a thin thread of resentment from the Fallen. It seemed Exodus was more suited to absorbing than being absorbed.

His last Fallen was Adremmalech, a fiery red dragon. The beast was larger than all but Alexander, and white-hot flames spewed from his mouth and his fiery tail. "You are the last," Aeon said to himself as he gingerly set a hand upon the warm scales and drew the beast within himself.

His work accomplished, Aeon returned to Luke's PET wordlessly. "I hope you still didn't want to use the Net," he said as he appeared on the screen. To Luke's eyes, nothing had changed with his navi, but faint fluctuations in the screen were occasionally visible to the teenager as he stood and picked up his PET.

"No, I'll be all right." The doorbell rang, and Sam began frantically screaming for Luke to get the pizza, but all he could do for the moment was stare into the changed eyes of his navi, and for his navi to stare back into his operator's scarred ones.

-- 5: 12 PM, Twilight Desert, Neo Arcadia --

Chris slowly got to his feet, looking about him. The first thing he noticed was that he had been blown out of Cross Fusion by the explosion, and the body he soon tripped over was not Cross Fused either. Falling to the ground, Chris rolled off a prone figure he now recognized as Pavo, and quickly checked to ensure he was breathing. He was, and after a shake or two from the ninja, he sat up stiffly.

"Ouch…anyone get the number of that cactus?" Chris helped Pavo up, and the two of them looked for the others. They had been apparently blown backwards by the explosion, or so it appeared from a quick study of their trail left in the sand, and sand still flew through the air, clouding the air as if it was fog. The two of them followed the direction they had came from, and within a few minutes, nearly stepped over the edge of a cliff.

To be more precise, the cliff was actually the lip of a crater, presumably formed by their explosion. The edges of the depression were made of smooth glass, and a small hole lay beneath its center, only a few inches of glass keeping its depths closed to entry. If this truly was the results of their combined attack, Omega was nowhere to be found, nothing in the crater, save a small piece of paper that Chris couldn't read from the edge.

He wondered if the others were all right, but he didn't have long to worry, for the other Chaos Union members soon emerged from beyond the sandy fog, most of them healthy-looking. They all still held Cross Fusion, but data could be seen leaking from several of them, and they quickly began to apply Recovery chips to themselves.

Shroud saw the two of them and flew over via his digital wings, briefly motioning for Golex to examine the crater. "What the hell happened to you two? Pavo's radioactive spheres stand up to everything else in the known universe, and you split it like a melon?" The depression that their leader appeared to have been feeling earlier had slipped away, replaced by rage at their near defeat: rage that Chris disliked when used against him.

"Well, obviously my attack was designed to break things. It's a laser that disperses energy on contact, which makes it an excellent weapon against Copyroids. When it hit Pavo's sphere, it did the same thing, but it must have pierced through the outer shell and sent the energy everywhere." Pavo nodded, affirming that he believed this take of the events also.

"I could feel the orb snap, Shroud. That's exactly the way it felt. But my only question is, why haven't we grown another arm because of the radiation yet?" The three of them were silent, until SH spoke up from behind.

"Chris already explained this. Since his beam of light disperses energy, radiation could, theoretically, be completely destroyed by it. If it had any effect at all, it was only upon the two of them, knocking them out of Cross Fusion." Chris silently nodded to SH, thanking him for the save, and noted that Shroud was watching the two of them closely.

"At any rate, someone needs to get Fefnir back to Neo Arcadia for repairs, and since your Synchro Chips are surely corrupted by the feedback, run over there and get him to move into one of your PET's. Then shrink down the copyroid and head on back." Pavo nodded and hurried over, Chris following a moment later with one last look at Steve and Shroud.

It was obvious to him that there was a measure of distrust between Shroud and himself, and it seemed that SH was included within that grouping as well. For his own part, he knew that he held no harmful intentions towards his leader, but he knew nothing about SH. He would confide in Pavo, but he couldn't risk saying the wrong thing, in case his friend was taking orders from an alternate source. So it seemed that it would be up to him to discover who the traitor in their midst was, if there actually was one at all.

A call came from the inside of the crater as Chris approached Pavo and the sparking copyroid, and the ninja half-turned to go back. "Chris, you heard Shroud. We're of no use now, so let's go."

He sighed, and reluctantly bent to shrink the copyroid, disabling its sparks and putting it into his pocket. "I suppose that you're right," he said before leading the way to the ship. Something told him that this wasn't over, though. Not yet.

-

Shroud floated down into the depression as Golex called him over. He hated sending both Chris and Pavo off, especially if the former was betraying them, but they were useless at this point. Granted, their unintentional combo attack had possibly saved them all, but it was a miracle the only one to have been eradicated was Omega. It was a shame that Chris might be a traitor to their cause, because being able to harness energy of that magnitude might just save Neo Arcadia.

Shroud's boots clacked upon the glass beneath him as he approached Golex. He had lodged his sword in the ground beside him, and was holding a small note in his hand. "This was above the sealed hole, Shroud. It must have been dropped after the explosion."

He nodded and took the note from Golex. "Thank you, my friend. Go assemble the others and assess their injuries." He hated having to be lenient and generous towards the very three people he hadn't determined the allegiance of yet, but at the moment, they were among the first to have approached him after the explosion. Maybe that was the problem.

He unfolded the small slip of paper twice, unveiling it as a small sheet of paper, roughly the size of a memo pad. He skimmed the contents quickly while Golex gathered the other five around him.

My dear Shroud,

I will assume that this letter is reaching you, unless your injuries were more severe than they appeared moments ago. If they are, my condolences. I so looked forward to challenging you.

Yet that is neither here nor there. Let me simply begin by informing you that, yes, Omega is still alive. Satellite technology is a wonderful thing, is it not? My lieutenant Bolero informs me that it is foolish to play our hand too soon, to reveal ourselves to you. Yet that is not our way, as I am sure you will recall once I tell you who we are. I can only hope that our satellite cameras will accurately capture the look on your face.

Another matter. I trust that you have not forgotten your old navi, the one known as Cloud? Well then, I highly suggest you do, for we have managed to capture him, and take the Chronus Shards that he has searched for all these years. We had a decent percentage of them on our own, and with his stock, I can roughly say that we have roughly 90 to 96 percent of them. Your navi is now quite expendable, and will be deleted as soon as a study of his data is completed, within roughly two or three weeks.

While you are welcome to inform your team of this letter, I would ask that you keep this last bit to yourself. The Vile 5 are doomed, and their efforts shall be in vain. However, if you choose not to confront them, we will not either, and then they will succeed. So, if you want to destroy them, fight on, but the final blow will not be by your hands.

Lastly, I have chosen to tell you the name of our group. This is not to be taken lightly, despite the fact that you have surely heard of us before. No one knows we have arisen, save the Vile 5, and only the fact that I lead has permitted me to inform you. Until we meet face to face, I leave you with a name to know me by: Master N.

Goodbye, Shin Taruka. The Dark Union Quintet wishes you luck.

Shroud looked at the paper in disbelief, and crumbled it slowly in his fist. This was his fault again, as it had always been. The Dark Union had been born of his hatred and rage, brought to the surface by a corrupted Dark Synchro Chip he had been forced to use in his teenage years, to save his father from an evil general. His dark side had taken control of him, and he'd formed an evil agency for the most evil of criminals, those who now would be considered Darkloids.

He had broken free of them eventually, but he'd left worse in his wake: the Nation Z prototype known as Atos had filled the vacuum left by his departure, and made even more trouble for them. They had deleted Atos years before, but such an unchecked power was not so easily destroyed, fragmenting into the very Chronus Shards this Quintet claimed to hold in their possession. With all of the shards, one could theoretically resurrect Atos…and unleash him into the world once again.

That was why he'd given up Cloud all those years before, because his navi was the only one properly attuned to find the shards. He'd never bonded the same way with Juno. A bolt of remorse ran through him and he hurriedly rejoined with his navi as he felt their unity slip.

"I know I can never be your old navi, Shroud," his navi said from within. "But I would have hoped for at least some sort of recognition after all these years." Shroud could hear the jest in his navi's 'voice', but the sadness lurked there as well.

"Forgive me, old friend. It is merely the distress of the news. I can scarcely believe it."

"Neither can I, but you must not let your friends see your weakness. As our rivals said, we must keep this secret. Atos simply unnerves me, but you have fought him before, and I can feel the fear of him running off of you in tendrils."

"Eloquent as ever," Shroud finished his private conversation with Juno and turned to face the others who now came down the crater. "Are you all fine now? Pavo and Chris have returned to the city with Fefnir, and it seems that our friend Omega has somehow survived, if this message speaks the truth."

Alistor opened his mouth in shock, but the others simply tensed, their lips settling into a thin line. They had all seen worse come back from the grave. "So now what?" Link asked, rotating his right arm stiffly.

Shroud smoothed the note again and folded it back up into quarters, stuffing it into a pocket that both appeared and disappeared seamlessly. He then strolled briskly over to the opening beneath the glass, and put his foot through it. "We go down there, whatever it is," he said, kicking the jagged edges in as he spoke. "We find out who created this base beneath the sand, and if it's the Vile 5, as I presume, we finish them here and now. Any questions?"

Silence.

"All right, then. Get in there." Shroud stepped back, and allowed everyone to slip through, those with wings using them, the rest following after and ensuring to land on their feet. Eventually, Matthias and Shroud were the only ones above ground. Shroud looked over at Matthias and put a gloved hand on his shoulder. "It's not too late, old friend. Go back to your children, if you want. If it were not for my country, I think I would too."

Matthias smiled sadly and looked back at Shroud, removing his hand from his shoulder. "It's been too late since the day Alysse died. What does another step matter when one's already fallen over the abyss?" Shroud could see the sadness he spoke of in his speech and face, but in his eyes dwelt another, one that Shroud had been faintly denying until now.

"I'm sorry, Matthias. But I loved her too." This was the core of their division, and both of them knew it.

Matthias nearly spoke of his darkest sadness then and there, but he could not. He never would. All that came was a thin smile as he stepped towards the abyss. "I know."

Matthias fell through the hole into the hidden base, and Shroud followed with a sigh soon after. Neither of them noticed the slender figure that crept over the edge of the ridge moments later, framed by the setting sun.

-- 5:41 PM, Hurr Repossession Agency, Dentown, Electopia --

The empty office hummed with the sound of an ancient air conditioner. The Hurrs could easily have found the funds for another, considering that their business was a lucrative one, but no more than one of them was in at any time, so why did it matter? Besides, moneys gained from the office were better spent on non-lethal weaponry.

Currently, the Hurr in the office was the younger of the repossessing pair, Peter Hurr. The youth in question lounged in his swivel chair, leaning backwards with his feet against the desk, pushing lightly back and forth. He wore a blue t-shirt and a pair of shorts, but not for the weather; he scarcely wore anything other than his routine apparel. His blond hair was pushed carelessly to the right, and strands of it hung across his eyes, shades of green. His mother had told him to get it cut before going off ton a mission with her team, but that was several months ago, and Peter hadn't yet taken the initiative. She was a marine biologist, and as such, wasn't home often, leaving Peter and his father to repossess in her absence.

His netnavi lurked in the store's finance section, begrudgingly working his way through the ledgers. Normally this was Kyra's task, but with her out with SH, the duty fell to him. The navi's form was a bit unorthodox, taking the form of a blue orb with a face on it, and several other orbs of blue and yellow that rotated about him like a maelstrom, and contained the scalpels and blades that gave him his name: Surgeonman.

Peter was nearly ready to doze off. No one had come in all day, and he still needed to keep the store open another three or four hours. His eyes closed, and he wondered what his father was doing at this moment, preparing himself to imagine an adventure with the Chaos Union.

Unfortunately, preparing was as far as he got, before a man wearing sunglasses thrust the door open. He wore a dark cloak about him, and Peter quickly made the assumption that it was a disguise of some sort; no one would be wearing a cloak like that today, even with the afternoon drawing to a close. He lowered the sunglasses a moment, and then readjusted them and stepped up to the counter. Bad vision in darkness, or just a gesture implying social precedence?

"I hear you're the best people to go to if you're looking for someone," the man said, leaning up on the desktop. "Was I correct in my assumption?"

Peter quickly sat up, his feet slamming to the floor alongside the chair's groans of protest. "Yes, sir! Hurr Repossession Agency is at your service!" The teenager crossed his fingers in front of him in imitation of his father's stance during deals, and waited for a name.

"Excellent," the man said, removing his sunglasses to reveal piercing blue eyes. "I need you to find Shroud Taruka."

Peter smiled greedily, and turned his head to the monitor beside him. "Surgeonman, bring up those payment forms for our friend. The expensive ones."