Chapter 3: Dreaming in Technicolor

- A/N: This is the end of part one, there'll be a two week break before part two begins updating.


Inevitably Dr. Cossack found himself being pulled deeper into the sphere of Break Man's support network. He was one of the longest standing members of that exclusive group, but he'd also been the most isolated. So he was delighted when Officer Giertz was able to reach out to him.

They'd actually met before, peripherally, because Dr. Cossack had worked with the robotics crime division in the past. While their numbers had increased after Zero, you could still count the department on one hand.

"Such a charming accent. You're Australian?"

"Kiwi here," she replied with a smile.

"Of course, my apologies. It's a beautiful country, very scenic."

"Just don't make any cracks about sheep," Bass warned. "She gets punchy."

Dr. Cossack laughed. "I'll try to resist the urge."

"And no funny business. You're not her type."

"You don't say." He winked knowingly at Giertz. "Don't worry, we'll keep things strictly professional."

"Also, I'm married," Giertz said sternly to Bass.

"Also, she's married," he repeated. Then he gave her a strange look. "Dr. Cossack 'gets around'."

"Thanks for the heads up."

"Wily never did any of that kind of stuff with other people." Apparently Bass had gone on a tangent. "Like dating or whatever. Dr. Cossack drinks too, vodka, then goes on and on and on about Kalinka or his dead wife. Wily never drank. Sometimes he'd take stimulants, you know, to get through a project." It'd been a nasty little habit Dr. Wily had picked up in college. "He never smoked either, but Dr. Cossack does, usually after entertaining some—"

"Bass," Giertz said, cutting him off. "That's not really your business to share."

Dr. Cossack chuckled. "It's alright, I don't mind. None of what he's said is exactly secret."

"And he swears in Russian sometimes, but I'm fluent in all major languages."

"Scandalous." With that, Giertz laughed and gave Dr. Cossack a grin. "So tell me more about this vodka you've got stashed somewhere."


In theory, they were on the same side these days… or at least, no longer on opposite sides.

In practice, Mega Man and Bass still had an uneasy, tumultuous relationship.

As far as Bass was concerned fighting with Mega Man was still his main hobby. Half of their so-called 'team ups' ended with Bass pressuring him to fight… or even outright attacking. About a quarter of the time, he didn't even wait for the original threat to be neutralized before going after Mega Man.

The other twenty-five percent would be those times when Bass won against their actual opponent, and was too full of himself to hassle Mega Man. There were some occasions where Mega Man purposely let him win, just so he wouldn't have to deal with him afterwards. It was tricky, because he couldn't be too obvious about it.

This was not one of those times.

Roll gasped in surprise when the two of them teleported into the lab, with Bass more or less dragging the badly injured Mega Man. He aggressively hauled him onto a table.

"Ow! Would it kill you to use a little care?"

"Yes," Bass replied, deadpan. He wasn't in great shape either, but nowhere near Mega Man's sorry state.

Roll was there in an instant, examining the extent of the blue bomber's injuries. "Dr. Light's out on a conference," she said. "Hold on a second." She darted out of the room, and was back in moments with energy tanks for both robots. "What did you get into?"

"It was some kind of military defense machine that went haywire," Mega Man replied.

"A robotic tank," added Bass, unable to hide his excitement. The tank had been a serious challenge, which Mega Man gladly could've done without, but was the kind of thing Bass lived for. "I beat it and had to save this loser at the same time."

Considering all the times Mega Man had rescued him from certain doom, Bass could've been a lot more gracious. Could have.

Roll took a moment to page Dr. Light, then set to work— not that there was very much for her to do, just support and pain management so that Mega Man's body could repair itself. Indifferent, she listened to Bass's version of the story, which was a gross oversimplification and not entirely accurate version of events. Mega Man was too tired to argue about it, he'd give Roll the full scoop later.

"How's Dr. Cossack doing?"

"He's fine."

"How about Kalinka?"

Bass shrugged. "She's getting good grades."

"And?"

"And what?"

"Ugh." Roll groaned and shook her head, then started asking about the scientist's latest projects. While he wasn't exactly passionate about the subject, Bass was perfectly capable of understanding Dr. Cossack's work and carrying a conversation about it. Heck, how many years had he been Wily's only sounding board?

Mega Man started to pep up, joining in with some thoughtful observations or the occasional quip. He'd cracked a joke along the lines of 'it's not the size of the chip, it's the processing power', and in spite of the corniness they all laughed, and for one quiet moment things were… pleasant.

Then Bass started making a small rasping 'kk-kk-kkt' sound— internally, not vocally. He caught the edge of the table that Mega Man was on as he collapsed, before falling hard to the ground.

Mega Man jumped down to help Roll. "Quick, shut him down." Then—

The world instantly blinked back into existence, just as sudden as it had gone.

"Hey stupid," Roll said. "I need to see how this program is interacting with your system, but you don't need to be awake for this. If you want I can turn off your negligible cognitive functions."

"Nah, it's okay." Bass propped himself up on his elbows, looking with curiosity at his open chest panel and the heavy duty connectors that linked him to one of Dr. Light's computer terminals. "What happened?"

"A computer virus," Mega Man replied. "A pretty nasty one at that."

"How come you weren't infected?"

"I guess my 'immune system' was able to fight it off before it could take hold." It was a little surreal, honestly, he was used to being on the other side of this kind of thing.

"Nope," Roll said. "This was designed to search for certain coding signatures. It only targets—"

"Dr. Wily's programming." Bass laughed and then gave Mega Man a baleful look. "See? This is what I get for trying."

Mega Man, however, was lost in thought. "That tank was a military weapon. It must have originally been built to defend against one of Wily's attacks and it… sat in storage all these years? They decide to repurpose it, and no one thinks to delete this auxiliary virus weapon. I wonder if the tank was even meant for defense, or if it was built to deliver the 'package' right to Wily's fortress…"

"In that case I'm kinda impressed. Still ticked, but also impressed."

There was a lull as Roll worked, occasionally clicking her tongue or shaking her head. She had far more experience with hardware than she did software, and like Dr. Light, she was used to Mega Man's self-repair doing the heavy lifting.

"Anything from Dr. Light?" She asked Mega Man, but he shook his head 'no'. Then she glanced at Bass. "I put out a call to Dr. Cossack too, but didn't get a response…" She fell silent, and after a few minutes started grumbling quietly.

"I'm going to die." Bass didn't seem concerned, just annoyed.

"You can't die if you're not alive," Mega Man teased, although he shot a worried glance at Roll.

"He's fine," she said, exasperated, but it was hard to tell if she meant it or was just saying that to shut them up.

At that Bass sat all the way up, a devious expression on his face. "Hey. They can put me in the Robot Museum, but only if they put up a plaque that says: 'The Greatest Robot Ever Built'" He made a sweeping gesture as he said it. "Otherwise, I want to be plated in copper and put over Wily's grave like a statue."

"Oh, well I was thinking… you're made out of that MIRA stuff, the living metal from Signal's planet, right?" Mega Man tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't help breaking into a goofy grin as he continued. "Dr. Light could recycle it to make some killer upgrades for me and Break Man. Then you'd always be with us."

"Ugggghhhh." Bass gave him a look of complete and utter disgust, then turned his head to the side and pantomimed vomiting. "Why. Why would you say that. Ugh!"

More time passed— Bass realized his internal clock was down, so he didn't know how much— and things were getting progressively worse. "Can you find Break Man? I don't want to go out like this, I want to be fighting. Tell him I'll let him win this one, since it's just for show."

Mega Man held his hands up in dismay. "You know I'm right here, right?"

"He's fine," Roll repeated, only to be ignored.

"Hmph. Like I'd give you the honor of finishing me off."

The blue robot slapped his forehead and groaned. Seconds later he cried out in horror when Bass suddenly shut down and toppled over.

"Oh, sorry," Roll said cheerfully. "I probably should've said something before cutting his power."

When he came back online the second time, Bass could tell the virus was gone. Roll stood over him, looking decidedly smug.

"Unfortunately, I was able to save your miserable life. You're welcome."

"Thanks…?" He sat up, instinctively checking his access panel, but she'd already taken care of it.

"There's still some data corruption. Dr. Cossack will take over from here and get you back in working order."

"You finally got hold of him?"

"By the time he got the com notice, Roll had already deleted the virus," Mega Man said. "I can't believe that we still haven't heard from Dr. Light."

"I can't believe you almost got me destroyed," Bass muttered.

"What!"

"I wouldn't have caught that stupid virus if I hadn't been there doing your job and saving your butt."

For a half-second Mega Man looked offended, but then he grinned. "Now I know you're okay."

"Don't get it twisted," said Roll, "Bass is so bereft of intellect and character that you could scramble half his circuits and never see a difference."

Bass sneered and was about to say something, then thought better of it. "Never mind. Look, I'm out. I'd say it's been fun, but frankly, it's been anything but." He hopped down from the table and then teleported.

"I do not understand why you still hang out with that guy," Roll said to her brother.


"Come on."

Mega Man blinked in surprise. Break Man was in the doorway, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed. He was dressed casually, a roguish look on his face.

"Er, sorry, I must have forgotten…" Honestly, he had no idea what his brother was talking about, and tried desperately to remember what it might be.

"You said you'd wanted to go out. So, come on, let's go."

The response was vague and nebulous and perfect. Grinning, Mega Man headed for the door, then paused. He'd been working in the lab and was wearing some pretty grungy work clothes, replete with grease stains and holes, the hem of his tee shirt partially unraveled. "Hang on, let me change first."

After leaving Dr. Light's lab they caught the monorail, riding atop the roof of the passenger cars just like old times.

"Where are we going?"

"I don't know, you tell me."

He thought it over for a few moments. "Soccer field?"

"Sure."


They hadn't brought a ball, so they'd stopped to pick one after getting off the train.

It wasn't much of a soccer game, seeing how it was only the two of them. Even just two more people would've made a more satisfying competition, and Mega Man found himself wondering how realistic it'd be to try and convince Roll and Bass to join them. (Very unrealistic, if he was being honest.) At first he treated it as nothing more than play, but Break Man gave his all, and Mega Man stepped it up. If nothing else, it was interesting to see how their individual fighting skills translated to sports, and a reminder that although they were built of the same design, the eldest was just not as 'athletic' as the younger brother.

After kicking the ball around for a while (score: Mega Man with five points, Break Man with four), they decided to go for something that was actually meant for two players. As they left the field Mega Man rubbed his forehead, where Break Man had managed to nail him right between the eyes. "You did that on purpose."

He put on a look of mock offense. "Me? Never!" Then he fell in step next to Mega Man, throwing an arm across his shoulders. "So, where to next?"

"I don't know… basketball? Tennis? Bowling?"

"Dodge ball?"

"You need more than two players for that."

"Golf?"

"Golf?" Mega Man repeated, incredulous, then realized Break Man was teasing.

"Did you seriously say 'bowling'?"

He shrugged. "It's something two people can play."

"Hoverbike race?"

"Do you have a bike?"

"Nope."

They ended up in a one-on-one game of basketball, because there was a court in the park not far from the field, and the kids playing there let them borrow a ball. There was a tennis net, too, but no rackets and neither of Light 'bot had them (nor the inclination to go back to the store).

"Alright," Break Man said, on their way back to the monorail train. "Next one's my call."

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise." He clearly had something specific in mind. Not only was being cryptic, he spent part of the ride sending written com notes.

But when he wasn't distracted with that, the two of them relaxed, talking and horsing around, soaking in each others company. Mega Man was thinking about trying his hand at DJing, because he enjoyed the club scene but always felt a little self-conscious and out of place, and he enjoyed mixing and editing music. He felt this blended the two together nicely. Break Man went on a lengthy and in-depth tirade about the recent drop in yarn quality, of all things.

"Yarn… like… knitting yarn?"

"What else?"

He couldn't tell if Break Man was joking or not.

They hopped another train when they got to the station, then walked for a bit, then much to Mega Man's surprise, Break Man flagged down a hovercar and hitched a ride.

"It's kind of dangerous for kids your age to be hitchhiking," said the concerned driver. "Do your parents know where you are?"

"Yes, ma'am," Break Man said.

She looked uncertain, glancing back at them in the rear view mirror, but made no further comment.

They got further and further from Light's lab, leaving the outskirts of the city. After another long trek, they went down a dirt driveway onto someone's land. At the end of the road, Bass was waiting by a shed.

"Augh, no! Break Man, why'd you bring him? You've ruined it!"

"Ruined what?"

"Just trust me, would you?" said Break Man, addressing both of them.

Bass sulked while Break Man entered a code and unlocked the door. Inside the shed was an assortment of hand-held weapons. Guns. Something told Mega Man that they weren't harmless light replicas.

"Break Man… these are illegal…"

With a playful smile, he handed him a laser rifle. "Yep. How's it feel to be on the other side of the law?"

Mega Man shifted his weight from one foot to the other, uncomfortable with being put on the spot like this. He looked down at the rifle, then up at Break Man, and then back to the rifle… all the while trying to ignore the death glare Bass was giving him.

With an armful of targets and the device to launch them, Break Man headed out. Bass followed, and after a few moments of hesitation, so did Mega Man.

"There's a real firing range, which rents out legal laser guns, not far from—" he started, but then realized what his brother was doing. It wasn't about the sport, or the rush that came from breaking the rules. After spending the day with him, Break Man was bringing him in on something that he and Bass had shared, making a display of trust in front of the Wily 'bot, fostering a sense of camaraderie between the two.

Plus having fun with target shooting, not to mention the excitement of breaking the rules.

Mega Man looked once more at the rifle in his hands, before propping it on his shoulder.

Well…

Sometimes rules were made to be broken, right?


The fact that Giertz was back in Dr. Cossack's lab was a bad sign. That the two of them where reviewing something on a screen— that was worse. Whatever they were up to involved him, of that Bass had no doubt.

"What's going on here?" he demanded.

Dr. Cossack startled but then offered a warm smile. "Ah, we were, we were going over options for a major overhaul."

"Overhaul?" He didn't like the sound of that. Not one bit.

"Yeh, so you can lose the armor and go out in public like a normal person," said Giertz.

Technically he could go anywhere now, but in his armor was still (understandably) viewed as a dangerous Wily 'bot. So unless he was fighting, he avoided it. He shook his head. "Wait, a chassis rebuild? Why? I don't care about doing 'normal person' stuff like those other morons."

He walked out, muttering to himself about how pathetic Mega Man and Break Man were for trying to be human.

Four minutes later he was back.

"Do you have schematics drawn up already? Could you add tactile sensors?" He peered between them at the monitor, but he definitely wasn't curious about this, no, not at all. "I'll still be taller than Mega Dork, right?"

Giertz laughed.

"It's only a five centimeter difference," Dr. Cossack said, confused… but then he saw the intensity in the robot's eyes. "Yes, you'll still be taller."

"Good."

And things really were.