Chapter 14: Second Strike
07:06 AM (Japan Time), Wednesday June the 22nd…
"… Early again! You're becomin' an early bird."
"It's bad to get used to sleep too much."
"I knew that."
Future was standing in the balcony of his apartment, which seemed to be on the 4th floor of an apartment block tower: the ocean could be seen a few kilometers from there.
He sported a green emerald summer pajama, black socks and slippers.
His Link PET had been left on top of a nearby desk and Destruction Man's hologram was floating next to Future.
"Well… Oosaka's a nice place, yeah… This breeze is what I like the most: it brings forth the smell of the ocean… Heh, heh, heh… And I'm sure we'll end up findin' somethin' 'bout Octopus – han sooner or later…"
"Yeah! That's Angou Saizou for ya!" Destruction Man laughed.
The entrance bell suddenly rang and Angou frowned.
"I wasn't expectin' anyone so early… Maybe it's someone from the high school who's got a hangover or wants a loan… Or wants more beer… Sheesh. Even though that's illegal!" He grumbled.
He walked over to the entrance door and looked out through the peep hole: Prophetess was standing in the hall.
"What the… Prophetess? What is the gal doin' 'ere? I never told anyone my address!" He gasped.
"Dunno…" Destruction Man muttered.
He opened but left the security chain in place: Prophetess blew a provoking kiss at him.
"Hiya~! Found ya~!" She giggled.
"Hey, missy! What's the meanin' of this?" He grumbled.
"Don't be so hostile!" Witch grinned.
"Wait a min… Ya followed me!" Destruction Man realized.
"Oh… Catching up?"
"If Priest – sama knows 'bout this…" Angou grumbled.
"… He'll be amused." Prophetess finished.
"Sod off! If ya wanna a guy to hang out with, use a dating site!"
"My, my, my... Why not? But just that ya know… Emerald-eyed handsome guys are in high demand nowadays… You better be careful, cutie~. No pain, no gain! Bye-bye!" Prophetess giggled.
"Destroy 'em all!" Witch teased.
"Yeah, yeah… Sure, sure!" Destruction Man dully replied.
Prophetess ran down the stairs while Angou shut the door and locked it up with his key.
"Man. Now Prophetess is a stalker, too. What a lovely morning! She'll be teasin' me nonstop." Angou grumbled.
"Guess so…" Destruction Man muttered.
"Anyway… I better get all ready in case they ring me up for a job… Ya take care of security and make sure no-one can get in sans my explicit permission."
"Roger…"
Destruction Man's hologram vanished while Angou unfroze a bar of bread to prepare a sandwich along with a glass of water: he then looked out at the landscape and sighed.
"One day I'll be a pro bike mechanic. And, in the meanwhile, I can show my skills thanks to Rama. This'll get interestin'! Maybe I'll go after that Laika guy next!" He grinned.
07:58 AM (Japan Time)…
"… O. K. So this is the place."
"I guess the guy is an early bird!"
Nelaus was standing in front of a warehouse-like building: it looked slightly worn out and rusted with some of the windows being broken or damaged to a certain degree: both he and Isaac looked calm.
"Let's go in, then. Time for a hot, burning rematch!"
He stepped inside and found Past leaning against a column while a Duel Stage had been set on the ground: Balrog was inside of it and looking ready for a fight.
"So! The envoys of Gondor came out to challenge Sauron – dono! Ya must want to go straight to the bottom of the ocean as a corpse! Wroh, hoh, hoh, ho~h!" Balrog laughed.
"Yeah. That's gotta be it."
"So. Past. You want a rematch."
"What are we waiting for? Let's get this show in the road! Showdown! Go for it!" Isaac grinned.
"Plug In! Isaac, Transmission!"
Isaac entered the arena while Balrog made a step forward: the ground shook once he placed his right foot on the ground as if trying to impose an intimidating aura: his body's flames became incandescent red while the atmosphere seemed to heat up all of a sudden.
"Whoa. This guy got an upgrade!" Isaac whistled in surprise.
"You will become mere cinders!" Balrog proclaimed.
"Battle Chip, Geyser! Slot In!"
"Geyser!"
"Futile!"
The Geyser hit Balrog but it barely managed to make his flames die down at all: he laughed and suddenly levitated some centimeters above the ground before shooting forward: Isaac jumped to the right and rolled across the ground to dodge it.
"Whoa! Fast!" Isaac gasped.
"This is nothing!" Past exclaimed.
"Uh-oh. This doesn't look good!" Nelaus muttered.
"I'm going to reduce to bones which will pile up in the foothills of Minas Morgul as an offering to the Witch-King of Angmar! Heat Quake!" Balrog laughed.
Balrog shot skywards only to fall down and hit the ground with force causing a radial flame shockwave to expand around the area: Isaac jumped into the air and made a grimace.
"Battle Chip, Ice Cannon Ball! Slot In!"
"Ice Cannon Ball!"
"Same trick won't work twice!" Balrog laughed.
"I wonder about that." Nelaus grinned.
The Ice Cannon Ball hit Balrog and caused for white fog to expand from the point of impact: there was the hum of a Drill Arm and Balrog roared something for some seconds before turning around and starting to swing his tail around.
"Death Wrecking Ball!"
He spun the Death Wrecking Ball and threw it towards the south-east: he hit something but Isaac apparently attacked from elsewhere.
"I can't see anything! Battle Chip, Suikomi! Slot In!" Past cursed.
The fan removed the fog to reveal Isaac having two Drill Arms equipped and Balrog trying to hit him: some cracks had formed on his back near the wings to evidence where Isaac had hit him.
"Damn. You used the fog as a cover along with a kawarimi."
"Yeah. I'm crafty."
"And you drained 220 HP out of 1400… But that's nothing! Balrog's terror is just starting." Past announced.
"Come!" Isaac challenged.
"Hroa~h! Death Wrecking Ball!"
Balrog threw it towards Isaac: he suddenly jumped over it as it plunged into the ground and got stuck tensing the chain: Isaac ran up across its surface and then plunged both Drill Arms into the upper section of the head's armor: Balrog roared and he was surrounded by incandescent flames: but Isaac had already jumped away to a safe distance.
"Crap. Too much armor and mass has slowed Balrog down by 18%! And Isaac is taking profit of it to strike before Balrog can retaliate!" Past cursed.
"Maybe Han Solo's tricks had an effect on you, Feet?" Nelaus taunted.
"Grjtfx!" Past grumbled.
"I'll take that as a "yeah"." Nelaus lifted his eyebrows.
"Gruo~h! Hell's Tornado!" Balrog exclaimed.
A large tornado made up of incandescent flames formed around him and began to suck everything around him inside: Isaac lifted his eyebrows and looked amused.
"Battle Chip, Heat Body! Slot In!"
Isaac crouched and suddenly began to spin while flames built up around him: he shot inside of the tornado and impacted Balrog on the chest thus pushing him backwards although his tornado didn't slow down: Isaac jumped out of the tornado while Balrog tossed the Death Wrecking Ball at him: Isaac jumped out of the way.
"Damn. 480 HP drained…! It's gone over one third… But there's still ample margin before deciding if I use my tool or not."
"Guo~h, hoh, hoh, hoh! Yeah! I missed some thrill… Behold my new Special Ability! Hell Soldiers!" Balrog laughed.
His body began to emit a reddish glow: several copies of him formed and they quickly spun around while switching places: Isaac was unable to keep track of the real one and he was surrounded by eight of them.
"Too slow! Balrog Breath!"
Balrog's attack hit Isaac before Nelaus was able to complete the Area Steal's Slot In: Isaac grumbled something and then jumped towards one of the enemies only to pass through it: the other seven chased him.
"Damn. They took out 240 HP. We need to counter, Nelaus!"
"Yeah! Battle Chip, Cannon Ball! Slot In!"
"Take that!"
Isaac threw it at one of the enemies and it hit his head, making an echo-like sound ring out inside of his armor and dizzying him
"Here I go~!" Isaac grinned.
"Battle Chip, Golden Fist! Slot In!"
Isaac jumped into Balrog and hit his head with the Golden Fist repeated times thus further confusing him as well as delivering some kicks to his upper chest: Balrog recovered and grabbed Isaac before shooting skywards, turning around, and tossing Isaac towards the ground: he'd already brought out a Tank Cannon Battle Chip.
"Tank Cannon!"
The blast propelled Isaac towards the ground while Balrog was pushed back by it: Isaac calmly flipped and gallantly landed on the ground: however, Balrog had already recovered and he fell down surrounded by flames as if he was a meteor: he hit the ground and caused an explosion which pushed Isaac back before he recovered.
"Huff… Huff… 810 HP of damage insofar… Two thirds… But this is the kind of battle I wanted!" Balrog laughed.
"And I've lost 390 HP myself… Guess I can't complain." Isaac muttered.
"Hmmm… If it goes over 1200 then I'll use the tool." Past decided.
"Program Advance! Hi Cannon, Triple Slot in!"
"Giga Cannon!"
Isaac shot the Giga Cannon at Balrog's chest and the blow pushed him back before he recovered and shot forward while leaving a trail of flames behind: his left claw's fingers grew larger and he "cut" the air opening some kind of gateway and making four red-colored Spark Bees come out and attack Isaac.
"Gah! That guy's armor can reduce my attack's power by half, so he got 250 HP from the Giga Cannon and has lost 1060 HP… But this attack drained me another 120 HP: I've lost 510." Isaac cursed.
"And if he uses the Annihilator Chip, then… I guess the new Battle Chip I got will come in handy." Nelaus muttered.
"Oho. You got it from Higureya?" Past sounded amused.
"Who knows?" Nelaus teased.
"Balrog Dash! Hro~h!" Balrog roared.
He continued dashing forward and Isaac barely jumped out of the way as he swung his tail around the area thus making some small craters on the ground: the ground shook with violence and Isaac was having trouble keeping his balance.
"Battle Chip, Holy Dream! Slot In!"
The blast of energy momentarily blinded Balrog before Isaac drew a Silver Fist and hit his upper chest four times in a row before jumping away.
"1220 HP lost… Time for a power-up! Annihilator Chip, Slot In!"
Balrog's flames turned purple and his eyes also turned purple: Annihilator Man's chuckle rang out of his mouth.
"So! Danna – sama came out to say "destroy us all"!"
"Why. You seem eager to be destroyed!"
"And you seem eager to join Bert Saxby." Isaac shot back.
"Ah. Bert Saxby… Diamonds Are Forever… I remember that."
"Showdown! S – Program: Start!" Nelaus commanded.
Isaac was surrounded by reddish energy and switched to another form.
This alternate "Bestialize" form had a helmet with a golden edge and a red shape aiming backwards and upwards protruding from it: a greenish jewel in the form of a bird was set on the forehead as well.
The face was partly hidden by the mouth-guard yet the eyes displayed that Isaac was conscious of what he was doing.
The upper part of the chest armor had a brownish/grayish color plus a red stripe just underneath the blackened chest emblem: it looked like a bird's torso, even.
The forearms had red armor with a grayish/brownish edge around the wrists plus a small triangle-like piece near the start of it: the hands had become finger-claws colored white.
The boots had a greenish/azure diamond set over the knees and a general conical shape with three large metallic claws instead of the usual feet fingers.
Two sets of wings of four each one colored red with an azure edge emerged from the back of the body and seemingly allowed for Isaac to fly upwards.
"Falzer Form!" Isaac announced.
"Interesting! Come!" Annihilator Man sounded amused.
"Feather Shoot!"
Isaac drew a weapon similar to the Wide Shot Battle Chip and shot some brown-colored feathers at Balrog: they exploded upon making impact but Balrog didn't seem to care.
"That should've drained close to 1310 HP… But there's still a lot ahead so I've gotta be careful…" Isaac muttered.
"Death Wrecking Ball!"
"Fly!" Nelaus commanded.
Isaac flew skywards and grabbed the Death Wrecking Ball: he tugged it and suddenly let go of it as it hurdled towards Balrog: he was hit in the upper torso and some cracks formed on that segment of armor.
"Damn." Past cursed.
"His own attack took out about 90 HP, so… He's exactly at 1400 HP with another 1400 to go…" Isaac muttered.
"But we could shatter that bit of armor and be able to deliver 2X damage to the guy." Nelaus whispered.
"Gruo~h! Balrog's Breath!"
Balrog flew towards Isaac while shooting out a streak of purple flames: Isaac dodged and flew towards Balrog from beneath; Isaac plunged the right claw into the cracked armor segment and ripped it off thus revealing the skin beneath it: he attacked it with both hands before Balrog whipped his tail around and pushed him away.
"Good! I did about 200 HP of damage… 1600 HP drained… Still another 1200 to go… But I won't give up!" Isaac exclaimed.
"Battle Chip, Recovery 200! Slot In!"
"Hmpf. Clever tricks! But that won't be enough to defeat me."
"I wonder about! Program Advance! Yoyo, Triple Slot In!"
"Yoyo Blade!"
The combined Yoyos plunged into the wound and inflicted damage to Balrog: he suddenly grabbed the weapon and tugged it to draw Isaac towards him: but Isaac let go of it and placed a Count Bomb on top of the device: it detonated in front of him and Balrog roared.
"Yeah! 380 HP of damage… 1980 HP drained… Another 800 HP to go: we're making progress!" Isaac exclaimed.
"Grrrr… Clever guy… But our power is more than this! Hell's Door: open! Unleash the monsters!" Annihilator Man exclaimed.
Balrog "cut" the air again and opened that gateway again: two Garuu Viruses ran out and began shooting flames at Isaac: he grabbed them and tossed them towards Balrog to distract him.
"Feather Shoot!"
The feather embedded into the flesh and detonated thus inflicting damage to Balrog again: he quickly shot forward and rammed Isaac with the right shoulder thus pushing him to the ground: he delivered five to six stomps of his feet before jumping away.
"Damn. I've lost up to 840 HP! And I'd healed to be around 300! This guy is getting serious even though I drained another 240 HP: he's lost around 2220 HP but there are close to 600 HP left…!" Isaac groaned.
"Battle Chip, Recovery 300! Slot In!"
"Death Wrecking Ball!"
Isaac jumped but Balrog corrected the aim of the weapon and it hit Isaac fully thus pushing him towards the ground: he managed to stand and quickly skid across the ground before jumping into Balrog and hitting the exposed flesh with his claws.
"Falzer Claw!"
"Burning Body!"
Purple flames surrounded Balrog and Isaac was forced to jump away as he flew into the air while Balrog beat his wings and shot skywards as well: Isaac grumbled.
"I did about 180 HP of damage, so… He's lost 2400 HP insofar and is at the last 400 HP! And it hasn't even been four minutes… The Chip's effects won't vanish for another six minutes…" Isaac muttered.
"Feeling anxious? I guess Vader is about to sneak on you, Rainon."
"Yeah. And Sidious is gonna pick you as his new apprentice to replace Vader. Like how Twilight picked Bapgei." Nelaus sarcastically replied.
"Oho. That'd be intriguing." Past sounded intrigued.
"You lowlifes walked into a trap! Balrog's Anger!"
"Damn! It must be something like that "Pain Barrier" Witch used: it'll deliver damage back to me!" Isaac cursed.
"Vanish!" Annihilator Man exclaimed.
Balrog glowed as purple electricity built up: an energy beam shot forward:
"Battle Chip, Warp Hole! Slot In!"
"W-Warp Hole…? I'd never heard of it!" Past sounded surprised.
"It's a little something Blood Shadow came up with. He let it to me for test purposes." Nelaus grinned.
Isaac built up energy and opened a hole similar to the Black Hole Battle Chip colored white: the energy traveled inside of it and vanished: a new hole opened behind Balrog and his own attack hit him from behind thus causing major damage and for most of his rear armor to crack and fall off as well as damage to his skin: he was logged out while Isaac sighed in relief and cancelled the Falzer transformation.
"It'd seem Gandalf pulled a trick out of his hat."
"Hmpf. Whatever. It's not like we pretend to be invincible, anyway. And you had an unforeseeable trick, too. I'm off and don't try following me: you'll regret it, Rainon! Some stuff is better not known!" Past grumbled as he drew the sub-machinegun.
He jumped into the bike and quickly ran off while Nelaus sighed in relief and picked up the Duel Stage.
"He should've said he's cha Kansai cousin."
"Miss Ayanokouji? Why are you here?"
"Heh! I got tipped."
"Yes, sir. It was the Net Navi known as Swallow Man."
"Swallow Man? He must've wanted to set up a gag scene."
Yaito stepped in while drinking some strawberry milk and looking amused while Glyde told Isaac why they were there.
"So! Are cha gonna go out into a date with my Kansai cousin?"
"You've got no Kansai cousin. Unless ya mean Future… Also, are you impliying that I am homesexual, or…?"
"In the Future there'll be a Futuristic Cousin. Also, regarding the second question… You never know, nee-chan!" She giggled.
"How lame. Are you saying Nelaus is a "okama" character next? Based on what, missy?" Isaac grumbled.
"Totally, sir! Yaito – sama! This can end up badly! It's injury to one's honor, and a libel can he held over it, ma'am! And you know that, ma'am! Your father told you many times, ma'am!" Glyde exasperatedly replied.
"Oh The Timeless Kansai Cousin With Malice And Evil! Also, libels? Hah! Once they hear it's ME they'll chicken!"
"One: patent it, Miss Ayanokouji. Two: please stop saying odd things about me or I'm gonna be bullied. Three: don't be so sure about your father approving of using the business name to avoid a libel. Four: to begin with, you're being use by Swallow Man to start a feud. Five: it would be wise of you to go back before we get to an argument." Nelaus grumbled as he listed, lifting his right hand's fingers in a row.
"Too bad, Isaac! That was actually me! Using Bird Man's name!" Cloud Man's voice echoed.
"I knew it. A billion blistering barnacles. Go compete with Super Man!"
"Fine! I'll go tell that Super Bird Man that it's time to get ROASTED!"
"Sheesh. How stupid. Remember my words, Miss Ayanokouji!"
09:29 AM (Japan Time)…
"… I shall not offer any excuses."
"Don't be concerned."
"You fought to the very end but they used a clever strategy: and you proved them that even that Bestialize form had its limitations. You should take a rest: go challenge that Hinoken man for a thrill."
"Understood."
Past had come to report to Priest, but he wasn't angry or anything.
"Oh. And beware of Prophetess: she's getting somewhat out of control as of late. She might try following you to your home: Future contacted me about that. I'll deal with it, though. If she does show up, just tell her to go away." Priest warned.
"I had that feeling, sir. I will be careful, sir."
"You may go. Rama will guide you." Priest finished.
"Thank you, sir."
Past stood up, saluted, and headed over to the garage to pick the bike: he climbed into it and turned it on.
"OK… Well, then… We're just getting into the interesting part, our dear public. Stay tuned!"
"Wroh, hoh, hoh! Sauron – dono's armies will march out of Mordor and sweep the lands with anything standing on it!" Balrog laughed.
"Yeah. You'll then come out, too, and paint Minas Tirith blood red in honor of the Southern people." He got in the mood too.
"Ain't it obvious, aibou?"
"Sure. Make sure no-one is stalking us and let's go!"
"Roger! Where's our next destination?"
"Full speed ahead! To Rohan we go! Yahoo~! Let's go there~!"
09:33 AM (Japan Time)…
"… Annihilator Man. Contact Ancient. I've got a little job for him and he should take on the stage. Check up with Present, too, and give him a new set of orders."
"Yes, sir! I'll be back immediately, sir."
Annihilator Man bowed inside of the hologram capsule and exited the base's Cyber World.
"Huff. Let's take this off."
Priest lowered his hood to reveal his face: he hadn't changed much ever in the years which had ensued following that encounter with Dr. Regal but his eyes' irises were purple by now while his hair reached past his neck.
"… Power… Without it… I'd be dead by now. It's the only way to keep my nightmares at bay… I now have power." Rick Anderson muttered.
He tapped both armrests as he read down a holographic screen with some data being displayed over it.
"Hmmm… That lead on Octopus – han is too vague… I know that he's being hidden by the "Committee", yet… Something is picking me. He showed up for the first time four years ago during the period when Darkloid Shirakami took control of the Darkloids…"
"My Master. I am back." Annihilator Man announced.
"That was fast." Anderson lifted his eyebrows.
"Yes, sir. I issued the orders, sir. And Axe Man gave me some info Destruction Man had picked up: a little file taken out of IPC."
"Oh? Ijuuin wrote that? Wait… Does that mean…? Oh…! I see…! So this is why no-one knew how to locate him…"
"Indeed, sir. There's no mistaking it." Annihilator Man confirmed.
"Things are about to get thrilling!"
"Define "thrilling", Reclaimer."
"Jeez. When I did turn that thing on?" He slapped his face.
"Eh… 4 minutes 37 seconds ago, sir."
"Not 11 minutes 6 seconds ago?"
"Eh… No, sir? Why?"
"Jeez. I thought it'd been 666 seconds." He rolled his eyes.
"Ah… I see, sir."
"Don't be so stiff. I did program you to be dynamic and have humor and all after all. You're not my servant."
"I knew it, sir."
"Huff. Alright, alright. Do as ya like… That which doesn't kill ya makes ya stronger… Mighty Ducks… Watched it some years ago… Speaking of which: the secret base of the FOD looked like the one of the Mighty Ducks. Talk about a curious coindience!"
"Good idea, sir."
"Define "Mighty Ducks", Reclaimer."
"Jeez. That software imitating 343 Guilty Spark is silly. I'm a Halo fan but nevertheless… At least I'm not as terrible as Twilight given his mania to rip out stuff and spoiler us." He sighed.
"Truly, sir."
"I'm worried about that "apprentice" named "Darth Bapgei"… We really don't have any clues to their ID? It could help narrow down Twilight's location in Melbourne."
"No, sir. They pretend to be a foreigner or they are a foreigner."
"Hmmm… Maybe they're from Melbourne even… But it's hard to search in such a huge city… We're talking about the capital city of Australia!"
"Maybe we could focus on the current strategies and shove it aside, sir?"
"Why not… Well then. Father. Witness… How I shall make you proud!"