AN: To all my wonderful readers out there! I'm sorry it took me so long to update this fic, but this chapter gave me a lot of problems till the very end. It's not the best I could do, but I've been struggling with this one for so long that I just want to be done with it, regardless of the end result.
It's a slow chapter, action wise, but I need this, and possibly the next one, to set up the stage needed for the next part of the fic where things will progress.
Thanks to my beta-readers, SoulAura777 and Mistrevar for picking out the errors and telling me where to correct sentences to render this chapter less of a mess.
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It was another nice summer day, with only a few puffy, white clouds floating into the bright blue sky, uncaring of the dangers afflicting the planet below. Birds were singing to their hearts' content in the branches of the trees, challenging each other to see who was better and to conquer a female for nesting, while a faint scent of baked goods came from an opened window of the mansion.
Forte would have enjoyed the peace if it wasn't for the fact that he was sitting on a bench in the middle of the garden and staring at a pile of books sitting on his lap. Books that had been carefully dropped there by a very determined girl with the firm order of Netto having to do them before the end of the month before sauntering away at a brisk pace.
Rockman hadn't been of much help either. All the blue navi did was smile apologetically at Forte and inform him that it was either the completion of the homework or risk the wrath of a really angered Meiru Sakurai. Something that Netto briefly felt worried about despite having faced far much worse in his life.
"This is ridiculous," Forte muttered as he carelessly pushed the books aside to let them slide on the bench with a rustle of paper. "I'm a navi. A warrior. I'm not going to stoop so low as to make… useless homework."
With the peaceful day ruined by a measly human girl, the navi leaned back onto the bench and looked up at the lush green foliage of the tree hanging above, enjoying the rhythmic movements of the leaves in the wind.
"To think that before this I would have gladly destroyed all this…" he muttered to himself, eyes closing. "What's happening to me? What have you done to me, Hikari boy?"
He waited for several seconds, but when no answer came, Forte took a deep breath and released it slowly. Netto had been silent for days now, quietly sitting in the back of the head and just observing things with a detached interest, and often… 'zoning out'.
The navi gritted his teeth and growled his displeasure out loud. He knew exactly why the kid was acting so differently than usual. The 'nightmare' hadn't come back to haunt them in their sleep after the first time they had it days ago, but the images, the sounds, even the feelings were so vivid in their memories that it was as if it had just happened.
He brought one hand to the chest and felt the steady thump of the heart for several long seconds, reassuring himself of what was the true reality. Still, the memories returned every time he focused his attention on his uncharacteristically silent partner.
They had been laying on a cold stone floor, with blurred figures hovering above them, quick in their movements as they shifted their unresponsive body in a less haphazard position. They were shouting to each other, with one commanding the others to do certain things, but the words were incomprehensible blobs of sounds to them, often overlapping with the sharp, intermittent whine of a dying machine laying somewhere outside their fading sight.
But laying on the ground while people fussed around them was not what disturbed the kid to the point of retracting into a shell of silence. What changed Netto's mood so drastically was that during those five minutes or so, there was no heart beating in their chest.
Yet, the 'nightmare' wasn't a problem until they woke up and realized that the figment of their imagination wasn't just that, but a real memory. It was then that Netto had gone into some sort of mental lockdown, leaving him alone to try and understand why all they could remember of it were images, sounds and physical feelings, but no emotions.
Forte wasn't too troubled by that memory because of his previous near-death experience, but everything was just so confusing…
"Forte…"
For a moment, the black navi didn't bother answering Rockman's call and did move from his slouched position on the bench. It was only when his rival shuffled his feet against the dusty ground of the park that Forte opened one eye and glared at him, wondering if he should just ignore him or know what he wanted from him.
"The wound is healing as Doctor Hikari had expected," Forte said, anticipating the question lingering onto Rockman's lips. How odd, though… he couldn't remember when he had started to refer to Netto's father as 'doctor' instead of 'human'. "The stitches have been taken off this morning."
The blue navi shook his head. "I know that the wound is healing," he said, taking a step towards the other, but still maintaining that minimal distance so that Forte would feel comfortable. His green eyes moved from the bandaged leg to the single red eye gazing at him. "Physically, you're recovering, yes. But… how are you two doing?"
Forte closed his eyes and pondered. Rockman was right. They were healing physically, but what about mentally? He could say that he was as fine as he had ever been since he was used to being on the brink of death. Netto however… he was physically as fine as he was since they were sharing the same body, but mentally… he wasn't alright.
Since that nightmare, Netto was behaving like Forte himself. Quiet, moody and distant. The kid had issues, and wasn't doing anything to deal with them. Yet, for some strange reason, he was reluctant in letting anyone know how Netto was really doing. Sure, he probably needed time to sort things out. After all, the vivid memory of being 'dead' was not easy to digest, especially for a kid his age, but Netto's inability to bounce back up like he had always done in the past was annoying him.
And Forte hated it when something annoyed him.
He was unable to understand why he hated the silence more than Netto's continuous chit-chatting. At times, the hate grew so much to where it frustrated him to no end, leading him to walk restlessly around the huge garden and shoot dark glares at anyone who dared to approach him.
Forte had been doing just that that day until he decided to sit on the bench to think. That was when that red-headed girl and Rockman broke the peace with their demands. Well, only the female kid had demanded something, Rockman had just asked.
That line of thought brought Forte back to the present, with the blue navi still standing in front of him and looking at him with a mixture of worry and confusion, waiting for an answer.
"If you want to know how Hikari Boy is doing, find a way to talk directly with him," he replied, standing up and watching as a book fell from the bench with a thump. Unlike the others, which looked as if they had just come out of the factory, this one was worn and with the cover full of scratches.
Rockman reached down and grabbed it, patting the dust away. "I know Netto has a passion for NetBattling, but I didn't know he would use this book to the point of nearly wearing it out…"
As the blue navi turned the book around so that both could see the front cover, Forte felt instant recognition coming from Netto. It surprised him because it was the first time the kid paid so much attention to something since the nightmare.
"Look, Forte…" Rockman's voice made the black navi look up at his rival and their eyes met. For a moment they remained that way, trying to peer into each others' hidden emotions. "I know you don't trust anyone, but if you really need help, or even just ask something, everyone will be happy to help."
Forte frowned, his eyes narrowing in annoyance, but before he snapped back with one of his hate filled comments, Rockman shook his head and handed him the book he was holding. "If it makes you feel better, I can tell you that no one will hurt you as long as you are fused with Netto."
The black navi's gloved hand reluctantly grabbed the worn schoolbook, but still with a hint of curiosity lingering in the back of Forte's mind. Perhaps that book could bring Netto out of his shell and end the long silence he had fallen into. After all, it was better to have an annoying chatterbox rather than a quiet pot brewing dangerous emotions that could explode at any given moment.
Not that he cared about the kid, but headaches were no fun to deal with.
"And then what, Rockman?" Forte asked, glaring at the blue navi standing in front of him and behaving as if they were old friends talking about the weather. "Once I am separated from your operator, what do you think they will do to me? Of course, they will try to delete me just as they tried to do years ago."
Rockman was surprised by Forte's verbal jab but he didn't let his emotions show on his face and maintained a neutral expression. "Maybe they will, Forte," he replied, his eyes expressing determination and trust. "But do you really think Netto will let that happen? I thought you would at least know that since you and Netto spent months together in Cross Fusion."
Forte frowned, but had to silently agree with his strongest rival. Netto would never let anything happen to him, but would he be able to do that? Forte could trust the fact that Netto was audacious in fighting for what he believed in, but he was still a human kid bound by human rules.
Unless he became an outcast and outlaw. Just like him…
For some odd reason, Forte both liked and hated the idea, but he couldn't figure out why he felt conflicted about it.
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"Blues," Enzan's voice gained a strange echo in that unused part of SciLabs's net, almost creepy. "Did you find anything else?"
Blues shook his head, his long white hair waving behind him in a slow motion. "Not yet, Enzan-sama," he replied calmly. Behind his visor, however, his eyes narrowed in frustration at the unfruitful search he had been conducting for a couple of hours now. "I don't think we will find more here…"
Enzan sighed and rubbed his eyes, tired. He had lost track of time in how long they searched every corner of SciLabs' servers in search of any little detail that could be of importance to them. So far, they had discovered that someone had copied a lot of data regarding Cross Fusion, the Dimensional Area, with what little of Forte's data had survived Doctor Cossack's purge and something called the 'Alpha Project'.
The boy had been intrigued by the Alpha Project, but not even his level of clearance had gained him the rights for looking at the original copy of the files.
All in all, they had collected a good deal of stuff and Enzan was sure that if he presented the plethora of data to Dr. Hikari, it would shed light on several dark points of the situations they were dealing with. When the data mining was done, Enzan made Blues return where he had first followed the shady figure and discovered the broken pieces of data that hinted about someone selling information to Dark Mu.
"I don't think they will use this path again," Blues said after a while, walking along the firewall in search of something of interest. "Perhaps they are using another path, or even exchanging information through the real world."
Enzan frowned and let his eyes do a quick scan of all the data they had collected. "Or maybe there is nothing left to sell. Cross Fusion, Dimensional Area, even what information was left of Forte and something about 'Alpha'," he replied, voice etched with worry. "Those are the most important projects SciLabs is taking care of. And Alpha? Those files are so guarded that not even my official license and NetSavoir badge gave us access…"
"Perhaps Doctor Hikari might be of assistance here," Blues suggested as he gave up on following the firewall's internal parameters. It was clear to him that there would be nothing else of value there. "If anyone can access those files, it is him."
The white-haired boy nodded his head in agreement. "Good idea, Blues," he said as he held the PET up for his navi to log out of the internet.
Once Blues was back into the small device, Enzan grabbed the Materializer from his pocket and loaded his partner into it. Enzan's eyes observed as the blue squares of data appeared in the air and joined together to form the frame of his navi, soon leaving the two facing each other.
With no further need for words and with all the data they had collected secured into Enzan's PET, they left the room without rushing so that they wouldn't look suspicious if someone was spying on them.
They maintained the calm facade all the way down the building of NetPolice Headquarters until they disappeared into the waiting limo. Only then Enzan relaxed a bit and breathed a faint sigh of relief. "To the Ayanokouji's mansion."
The driver, someone that had served Enzan for years, replied with a polite nod and started the engine. "Should I make haste, sir?"
The boy took a few moments to think, then nodded. "Yes, but make sure not go too fast."
The car started to move immediately after, pulling out of the park and into the still empty street. A week after the last attack, NetPolice still hadn't deemed the situation safe enough to let citizens go out of their houses unless strictly necessary.
People still went to work and to the grocery store to get food, and kids still went to school, but the lingering feeling of fear was still present in the air, and Enzan couldn't help but feel like they were in a war.
Perhaps it was true, though. Dark Mu, although still a rather small and shady organization, had caused a great deal of damage and possessed enough power to wage a true war on the planet by using materialized viruses, navis and maybe even the new kind of Cross Fusion they had all seen on Netto and Forte.
At that thought, Enzan looked up at his navi and wondered how it would feel to share the same body for so long. "I do wonder…" he said softly. "I do wonder if Netto feels… if his Cross Fusion makes him feel different…"
Enzan's murmur attracted his navi's attention. "Doctor Hikari and Doctor Cossack have ascertained that his and Forte's fusion is different and that the two are sharing a symbiotic relationship," Blues replied, recalling all the data he knew about it. "Perhaps it does feel different."
Enzan nodded, turning his eyes to look out of the window as the city rushed past. The two doctors had also found that Forte's personality data wasn't located in the chest emblem along with the digitalized PET, but had loaded himself right into Netto's brain.
That was why Forte had been able to take control of Netto's body during the time when a hematoma would have knocked the boy unconscious. With the heightened healing ability the two had, the blotch of blood had been reabsorbed in a couple of days. Still, for some reason, the control hadn't shifted back to his friend and Forte didn't seem like he was keeping the boy relegated in the back on purpose.
Enzan gave a soft humph and slumped against the back of the seat, rested his head against it and closed his eyes while the car sped towards their destination.
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As Meiru walked down the path with her head bowed, she thought back at her earlier encounter with Forte. She was not sure what she had hoped to accomplish by giving him all those books and homework that Netto needed to do. It was so unlike her to make a dangerous move, but she was tired of just sitting around and watching as others did all the work.
Perhaps she was hoping that her presence would have brought Netto back in control, but when the navi's red eyes glared at her, she felt small. How someone could have so much hate and contempt in them was beyond her understanding. It was as if Forte had tried to kill her with his gaze.
They had warned her of the navi's hatred for humanity and that he could react badly at any given moment. Netto's father had been precise on what to do when crossing path with Forte. Leave him alone and he would not bother with you.
"Meiru-chan, are you alright?"
Dekao's voice broke her out of her thoughts and she looked up, smiling at the sight of her two friends and their navis standing in the middle of the path. Meiru's navi, Roll, had a worried look on her face, but understood her operator's need to do something for Netto, even if just a little bit.
"I'm fine, Dekao," she replied as she quickened her pace, trying to forget those sharp eyes still impressed in her mind. "I gave Forte the homework for Netto, but he didn't seem like he was going to bother with keeping it for him."
The large boy frowned in confusion, not understanding why Meiru was so intent on risking her life to do something that had no apparent benefit for their trapped friend. "Meiru-chan," he started with a low voice, almost scared to upset her. "I don't think that Netto has the time to deal with homework…"
As those words left Dekao's mouth, Yaito was instantly in front of him and pointing her right index finger at his nose. "Can't you see it, Dekao?" she asked, her eyes almost shining dangerously as her forehead reflected some of the sunlight into the boy's face. "Netto has been wandering for more than three months, unable to call for help. Think about it…"
"Yaito is right, Dekao," Meiru nodded at the younger girl, smiling at the fact they had both reached the same conclusion. "Netto has been dealing with a lot in these past three months, and no he's not even in control of his own body. He might not want to do them, but having to deal with them will give him back some semblance of normalcy."
There was a moment of silence as the trio thought about their friend's current situation and how much they had missed him and wanted to talk to him again. Everyone agreed that Netto should have asked for help earlier instead of trying to do everything on his own.
"I can't believe that as soon as we leave him for five minutes, he gets in trouble," Meiru said, suddenly breaking the uneasy silence and gaining a couple of raised brows from her friends. Roll brought a hand to her mouth and chuckled while Gutsman looked confused and Glyde tried to remain neutral. "First the WWW, after that the Darkloids and the Dark Chips, then Nebula Gray, Duo and now Dark Mu… Why does it always have to be him?"
Meiru knew that Netto was perfectly capable of taking care of himself or he wouldn't be one of the best NetBattlers and part of the NetSaviors, but she couldn't help feeling worried about her childhood friend. She wasn't sure what he had gone through in the past three months, but from what little she and the others had gathered from rumors in the net and from Doctor Hikari and Cossack, it looked bad. No kid their age should go through all that.
"By the way…" her eyes narrowed in thought and her voice gained a hint of deep musing. "I do wonder when was the last time he took a bath, or brushed his teeth…"
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The work on understanding and finding a way to undo the symbiosis that had been forced on Netto and Forte was massive. The large room of the tree-house, which Yaito had kindly let them borrow as some sort of laboratory, was cluttered with scattered papers, post-it notes hanging from every available surface and a few machines crammed in the corners to keep them out of the way. The super computer at the end of the room was still humming gently while working endlessly on data analysis and possible outcomes of various theories.
Cossack didn't mind the workload. It was somewhat refreshing to put his brain to good use after ten years of idling and he had discovered that he had missed working with Yuichiro and to keep him from overdoing it.
But right now they were taking a pause, as ordered by Haruka, and were eating the food she had cooked all morning. She had explained to them that she had to do something special for her son and his friend after going through months of near starvation and several days of simple soup.
"Your wife's cooking is simply delicious, Yuichiro," Cossack muttered after cleaning his plate. He was not sure why, but the food made him feel rested and relaxed. "You're a lucky man."
Yuichiro's face reddened slightly and he almost choked on a spoonful of rice. "Yes, she's really good at cooking," he replied after he made sure to swallow what he had in his mouth. "Not just that, though. She's a good mother for Netto and she has an infinite patience with me when I don't go back home for weeks."
There was an amiable silence for a few seconds, with both men trying to sort their own thoughts on the latest events. Then, Cossack looked at the third plate on the table and his eyes softened upon seeing how Yuichiro's wife had carefully wrapped it with aluminum foil to keep it warm. It was the one reserved for Netto and Forte from when they came back from their daily stroll.
"How is she taking this, Yuichiro?" He asked, his green eyes locking with the brown ones of the man sitting on the opposite side of the table. "It must be hard on her. Her son come back home after all these months and she can't even talk to him."
Yuichiro sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. "It's a difficult situation," he replied, his voice filled with worry. "She knows that Netto is alright and she is sure we will find a solution, but she is worried. She says that Netto is not being himself lately, that something is troubling him. And to tell the truth, I'm starting to see it too… If Netto was fine, by this time he would be annoying Forte to do something that could entertain both of them."
"From what you told me," as he spoke, Cossack's face became serious and his eyes narrowed as he recalled every small piece of information he knew regarding Netto. "He's a boy that isn't easily troubled. At least not to the levels you think he is now."
"Something must have happened," Yuichiro resumed. "But I don't know how to talk to him directly. And Forte doesn't look like he'd be willing to speak for Netto, nor answer my questions…"
Then there was the fact that Netto wasn't back in control like they had thought he would be once the head injury had healed. It was as if the boy refused to step forwards, leaving Forte to deal with the outside world while he remained in the back. Consciously or not, however, Yuichiro had a feeling that it had to do with whatever was currently troubling him.
The man lowered his head and brought his hands to his head, almost pulling at his hair as he was not sure what was happening to him. He had always been sure of his actions, had always known what to do and when, especially when he had to help Netto. But now… that feeling of certainty was gone, leaving him with nothing but the feeling of confusion and guilt.
"I think I just found a way to talk to your son directly."
Yuichiro looked up, confusion evident on his face, and noticed that his colleague was looking to the side. More specifically, to some papers attached to a magnetic board. For a moment he did not understand what Cossack had meant, but when he took a better look at the diagrams depicted on them, he was instantly glad that Forte's creator was there.
What the two men were looking at now were the blueprints of a machine that had held the two buys prisoners within a server specifically designed to keep them from waking up or even fighting back. To get them disconnected, Blues had to log in and locate Forte. However, the red navi hadn't seen any sign of Netto.
He, Cossack and Meijin had thought that the boy hadn't been logged in, but, after reading the several logs the system kept, they were surprised to see that Netto's consciousness had not only been forced inside the server too, but had never left Forte's side.
"It has been bugging me for a while now," the older man continued, standing up and walking to the magnetic board. His hands moved to his back, holding each other while he tilted his head slightly to the left, thinking. "But only now, as I really think about it, I realize that this machine is based on an old project of mine."
Yuichiro stood up, almost pushing the chair to the floor with his fast movement, and did a mixture of surprised gasp and excited yell. "The Pulse-In Project!" he exclaimed in elation. At the time Doctor Cossack had been working on the project so that he could finally met his son face to face by letting his mind log into the net, he had been his assistant and, although he didn't know the finer details, knew enough.
"Dark Mu must have gotten their hands on some information on it. Not enough to perfect it, but enough to build this," Cossack continued as he waved his right hand at the papers on the board. "It's far from being complete, but the machine works. I don't have the blueprints of the original project anymore, but I can still perfect this."
Still not sure where to take their research on the symbiotic fusion without further information, the two scientists decided that it was time to work on this side project for a while. There was a chance that Forte would not trust them enough to take part into this little experiment, but it was all that Yuichiro and Cossack could do at the moment.
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Forte was not sure when he had lost his legendary aura that kept everyone away from him, nor why the red-haired female human was so intent on taking off his helmet.
"For the last time, human," he snarled, trying to get free from being held like a doll by Gutsman's large hands. However, because he and Netto were still recovering and he had no grasp on the modified abilities they shared, all his attempts resulted only in getting more tired. And the insistent pulling wasn't helping at all. "You can't take it off!"
"Meiru-chan…" Dekao was standing next to the girl, watching in increasing worry as Forte started to spew insults towards her and humanity in general. How Netto had managed to put up with that for months was beyond his understanding. "I don't think it'll come off…"
Meiru pulled harder, gaining a loud grunt from Forte. "It'll come off," she informed him, taking a pause and grasping the black helmet better. One hand took hold of the front rim while the other grasped the bottom, near the neck. "I know it can be taken off."
Yaito, standing right next to the large boy and holding Netto's worn textbook on NetBattle strategy, was observing how things were proceeding. Like Dekao, she was unsure if the helmet could come off like Meiru had said, but she knew that once the red-haired girl decided to do something, there was very little chance of her giving up regardless of the death threats the black navi was currently throwing at her.
Not even Gutsman, the kind of guy that loved to boast about his strength, dared to go against a very determined Meiru Sakurai. That was the reason he was still holding the raging Forte down despite feeling the tremendous power brewing somewhere within the fused duo. Perhaps he wasn't as strong as Rockman or Blues, but even he was capable of recognizing what was best not to play with.
Rockman was looking apologetically at Forte whenever red eyes glared at him. He had tried several times to make Meiru desist from her current crusade against black helmets, but each time he was stopped by a glare from said girl that promised cruel revenge if only he dared to speak a single word in defense of the innocent head protection.
Which left Roll free to help her operator in trying to yank the finned helmet without detaching Netto's head from the rest of the body and causing a brutal death for the fused duo. The two boys were lucky that the symbiosis had rendered their shared body capable of enduring extreme situations without gaining a single scratch or pulled muscle.
The odd tug-of-war continued for several minutes, heedless of the navi's protests, until the helmet was finally detached with a gentle swish, revealing an interesting sight. Netto's hair was dirty blond and slicked back, save for a few strands on the front.
"See?" Meiru said as she showed the black helmet to the small audience. "I knew it would come off!"
Forte stared, his red eyes never leaving what used to be an integrated part of his body. He had always known the shape of his helmet because it was programmed into him, knew it so well that he could even reproduce it if he wanted, but it was the first time he actually saw it this way.
And he felt weird and unprotected without it.
"Fine! Fine!" he growled out, red eyes trying to kill Meiru with the power of sight alone. "It can be taken off. Now, give it back and let me go!"
The red-haired girl, however, had other plans. Stuffing the finned helmet under her left arm, Meiru walked in front of Forte and leaned far too close for the navi's liking. "Not so fast," she replied as she sniffed the air lingering around the fused duo and observed the mutated hair with interest. She knew little about this particular fusion, but she knew that the different coloring and style was related to it. "You two need a bath."
Choosing to ignore her wonder about Netto's new hair style, and paying no attention to Forte while he tried to get out of Gutsman's grasp, Meiru commanded the large navi to follow her through the garden with a single motion of her hand. It was an odd procession of humans and navis that headed straight towards the large bath of Yaito's mansion.
Meiru and Yaito were in front of everyone, followed by Dekao, and Gutsman, who was still holding a struggling Forte in his large hands. Behind them, Roll had managed to convince Rockman into following and actually helping them into getting the two boys clean from months of filth.
Although Forte felt outraged and humiliated, he could do nothing but be carried around like a doll until they reached the double door of the immense bathroom. Meiru stopped in front of it and turned around like a general surveying his platoon.
"Rockman, Dekao and Gutsman!" her strict voice made them tense at attention for further instructions on carrying out whatever plan she had in mind. "You will go in and make sure they get cleaned. I don't want to see them walk out of this bathroom until the scent of wild and sewer is gone."
The doors of the bathroom opened, revealing a bowing Glyde to the side. "Everything is ready," he simply informed as he moved to stand next to Yaito. While Meiru and the others had been busy removing Forte's helmet, he had been sent to prepare a hot bath. Or in this case, a hot pool filled with soapy products.
"Do you think this is right to do this?" Yaito asked as she watched the four boys disappear behind the decorated doors of the bathroom. "I know you're doing this for Netto, but what about Forte? The rumors about him… they paint him as a bad navi. One that doesn't hesitate to kill someone…"
Meiru sighed, looking down at the helmet she was holding and noticing only now that it was slowly fading away into blue digital dust. "Maybe, but they are only rumors. So far Forte hasn't attacked anyone," she replied, the finned helmet falling through her hands and exploding into small pieces of data upon hitting the ground. "I think there is more to him than that, or Netto would have never acted this way."
Yaito frowned, her hands grasping the book she was holding. "You mean… him acting as if he was Forte?"
"Yes," the taller girl replied with a nod, her own face wearing a frown of worry for her childhood friend. "Netto didn't reveal the truth as soon as he was back because he was protecting Forte, even though it meant being unable to talk to any of us and extending this forced fusion."
The blond girl opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by an outraged scream just before a loud splash coming from behind the closed doors. "Gutsman is as tactless as ever," she commented with a lighthearted sigh, gaining a small giggle from her friend.