10:04 AM (Japan Time), Saturday June the 18th…
"Hullo! Sorry the holdup. I was cleansing up trails…"
"OK. Did you see that berserker's reaction?"
"Hmpf. Strong? They are but a child…"
"Sure, they are! Falling for taunts so easily…"
"It won't be hard to deal with them!"
A Navi walked into a Cyber World decorated with the words "Death Club" painted pale blue as background and lit with purple halogen lamps.
"Good job teasing those fools, Kurayami… I handled some fools, too!"
"Great, Kanaya!"
The Net Navi named Kurayami was a meter and sixty tall.
He had a partial helmet around his head, allowing black hair to come out from behind it.
He had thick, purple shades over his eyes.
His body was covered in black armor, and it had the silver "kurayami" (darkness) word drawn vertically on its chest.
A pump shotgun was attached to the rear of his armor.
His accomplice, Kanaya, was of the same height.
Her helmet was black, and her shades were dark red.
Red hair emerged from the sides.
She wore a black one-piece suit which had the golden word "doku" (poison) written in the chest and ran until the hips.
Her arms and legs were black as well.
She had a Gatling gun on her back, too.
"Redesigning our bodies to make them lighter was smart…"
"Indeed. Helped purge out useless cache data, too…"
"It is about time to report the fruits of my newest tests…"
"Tell us, Death Shadow…"
The figure standing in front of him was over a meter and eighty tall.
The helmet had no face and had a turquoise slit shaped like an "Y" was set on its center while it also had a dome above it.
The shoulders were round spheres with a cell pattern drawn into them.
The armor was thicker around the chest and had ellipsoid lines resembling eyes set on it while a small round spot with six membrane formations on it made one imagine it was a mouth.
The left arm had lines running down the sides before ending in a very thin and skeleton hand.
It a living round turquoise eye with a black pupil set atop the palm.
The right arm a built-in buster colored both turquoise and navy blue.
The waist had a navy-blue piece shaped after the letter "V" built on it.
The legs had two spots resembling eyes on each side plus above and below the knee.
The feet were slightly curved in shape.
"Hmpf. I have installed a new mode to control the power granted to them, and which I have named "Hyper Mode" as a placeholder name…"
"Interesting!"
"Very well, then. Hyper Mode allows a Net Navi to use the source of their "Omicron Factor" to power their abilities tenfold. Their defenses improve. But attacks which do not use "Omicron Factor" inflict lesser damage. Yet… There is a bigger draw!"
"What is it?" Kanaya asked.
"I can only make it work for a maximum of 90 seconds. The system demands a 90 second pause before starting up. I name it "cool-down time" for the time being!" He explained.
"It shouldn't be much of a hassle. I doubt the average foe being able to withstand 90 seconds of being bombarded by "OF"…"
"Fair point. But it should be improved, nevertheless…"
"Have you found out if the "Darkloids" undergo different symptoms compared to the Navis we abducted from Saiba City?"
"They seem to, for the time being. But I need more time to analyze the process and draw a comparison chart, too…" He replied.
"By the way! Do you think it's worth it sending one of the Net Navis out there to get some field data?" Kurayami suggested.
"Why not… It could be useful, ya know!"
"I agree. I was going to suggest that myself..."
"Good idea. That should allow me to see if there are improvements needed to be made in the "Hyper Mode" system…"
"But we need someone strong. The average won't do…"
"Maybe Delta of the Hunter's Guild will do? They have high combat potential as well… Plenty of battle experience…" Kanaya suggested.
"I was thinking of using the mighty hero, Rock Man, but maybe he's hard to lure out into the open… After that "duel" of half a year ago, I guess the man is going to be more cautious about exposing himself to danger…"
"It works either way. If the results are satisfactory, the means are hardly a matter of discussion…" Death Shadow argued.
"Naturally. From what I've been able to find, those fools haven't shown up around the area yet. But it's only a matter of time before a report about our demonstrations reaches them…"
"That was the point of them, no?" Kanaya argued.
"Of course. We're almost ready to head into the final phase of the plan, after all… All we need is to toy with them and blind them…"
"Hmpf. Handle that front…"
"Delighted. Besides, those who don't know anything are assuming that I'm that merc of many names and faces… We can use that to our advantage, to make them underestimate who they're dealing with!"
"I like the sound of that. Maybe I can pose as that mysterious woman who's behind Needle Man and Star Man… Which we were able to seize as test subjects… It took some struggle, though…" Kanaya smirked.
"Their accomplice didn't waste time in beefing them up and turning them into competent fighters…"
"Maybe you did underestimate them?" Death Shadow suggested.
"Won't argue that. To begin with, we have very little actual combat experience outside of those fools… And we didn't get a chance to have a real battle with them, either…" Kanaya admitted.
"We need to find more though foes… Maybe Mist Man will do…"
"Do not try to take them as a research sample. It would bring unnecessary attention from that strong one, Serenade…"
"I know. The scope of their powers is an enigma, so we'll be better off not trying to piss them off…"
"Posing as an angel doesn't help, either…" Kurayami grumbled.
"Hmpf. There is nothing invincible or indestructible… It is a matter of time and strength… They will eventually yield to my might…"
"Naturally, Death… I'll be making use of Bubble Man to spread dead ends, that should keep types like Blues or Search Man busy…"
"Hmpf. Give the weakling a purpose apart from being prey of the strong…"
"Maybe I can use them to figure out about that woman…"
"If you do, tell me. I'll deal with them myself!" Kanaya sneered.
"Go ahead. The less interlopers, the better for us…"
"Before that, I'll reload the shotgun and stock on grenades…"
"These "OF Grenades" are useful to generate chaos in a strife and then turning the tables…" Kanaya giggled.
"Sure. The Darkloids did punch a lot, but between the grenades and Death himself joining the fray, we managed to seize them before they could call for reinforcements…"
"They were strong and resilient. Regal, was it? They might have been a fool but their skills at designing programs were competent…"
"Sure. Save for that Nebula Grey freak… While the concept resembles that of us, that thing was too dumb for its own good… Good riddance!"
"Hmpf. That thing was pathetic compared to the power I have!"
"Truly! It can't compare to the might of the Universe…"
"Humans are stupid, thinking they can rival it…"
"Indeed… They need a decisive hit to realize their folly!"
"And we'll make sure to provide it with this strategy…"
"Which will shake them up roughly!"
"Enough idle talk. Let us resume our tasks…"
"OK! I've got a candidate for the guineapig that we'll send out…"
Kurayami formed a blue data cube on his left hand and handed it over to Death Shadow, who also used his left hand to receive it.
"Interesting choice. Very well. I shall begin readying it…"
He hovered a few centimeters over the ground and displaced away.
"By the way, Ka. Let's have our deal later, OK?"
"Sure. I need something to shake off tension…"
Both chuckled and giggled together…
12:29 PM (Japan Time)…
"… I'll be blasted. Where the heck are those two?"
A policewoman was driving a small patrol car across an avenue.
She had short, black hair and brown eyes.
She wore the traffic policewoman uniform.
She was mumbling as she glanced at a smartphone set on a support glued to the inner side of the windshield.
The phone screen displayed several messages.
"UNIT NEEDLE MAN: SIGNAL LOST"
"UNIT STAR MAN: SIGNAL LOST"
"UNIT BUBBLE MAN: SIGNAL ACTIVE"
"Sheesh. Cortana! Connect me with Bubble Man!"
"Affirmative. Opening secure line…"
"Puku! The mighty Bubble Man, on the scene!"
"Have you seen Star Man or Bubble Man?"
"Who? Puku! You gotta be Nijima Makoto! Puku!"
"Exactly! I always get you out of the messes! I am Dr. Wily's top-secret field agent!"
"Puku! I haven't seen them for days!"
"But didn't Needle Man come to your place today?"
"No! Only that Red Sword jerk! Puku!"
"Weird. Needle Man said he'd come bring you a new weapon! Did anyone ask you about him?"
"Some guy named Jupiter Warrior…"
"The culprit of the mess at the middle school? Hmmm…"
"Wanted to know a good hiding place, I said Sapporo at random! Puku!"
"Which means that they won't go there; it'd be too obvious!"
"Why won't they listen to the mighty Bubble Man!? Puku!"
"It's a smug jerk. What did you expect?" She sighed.
"Sheesh! I'm going to bring out the Ultra Mega Heavy…!"
"Save me the childish, edgy names! Else I'll send you to the BRIG!"
"YIKES! PUKU!"
"Send me a picture of that Jupiter Warrior rascal!"
"I can't, puku. I can only describe the jerk, but when I try to output the data there's a lock… It says "the key that'll never make it to the brawl"…"
"What kind of nonsense is that? That jerk is getting on my nerves!"
"Dunno! Puku! Maybe it was when he gave me this stupid joke!"
"Sheesh. Sneaky jerk. Sneakier than Irino Vanitas…"
"Who's that? More smug jerks? Puku?"
"Sure thing! Biggest of them! I'll have them pay for their humiliation, too!"
"A customer's coming!"
"I'll cut the call and the logs will be deleted, as usual! Later!"
The call ended and she sighed.
"A traffic officer, I have the perfect excuse to move around and check that no major offenses are being committed… Well, not like I care about those but it's a way to patrol without calling for attention… And to be able to hear a lot of information… Irino has been missing every then and then, which is odd… Maybe he's literally hiding underground…"
"Incoming call from Mr. Ida, the barman…"
"Good timing. Maybe Irino dropped by the usual place and has left a message for me… He's still in the game… As I predicted!"
"Ms. Nishi? It's me, Ida. Sorry for bother you, but I've got a lawyer here who brings me a will from Mr. Irino…"
"What!? A will!? Irino died!?" She gasped.
"He asked for you to come to his office to discuss the contents of it…"
"Did he leave a name and a contact number?"
"But of course. He gave me a business card… Takamiya Shu, works at the Morimura Law Office of Sangenjaya, Tokyo…"
"Understood. I'll contact him as soon as possible. Thank you!"
"It's nothing, ma'am. If you'll excuse me…"
"But of course. I'll drop by soon to enjoy another of your cocktails!"
"I'll be looking forward to it. Goodbye…"
Nishi fumed as she entered the parking lot of a Family Mart store.
She stopped the car and climbed down from it, locking it.
She entered the store and looked around.
"Welcome!" A clerk greeted.
"Good morning…" She distractedly replied.
She grabbed a basket and bought some groceries as well as hot food before she brought them to the cashier.
"This'll be the total…"
She nodded and drew a wallet from which she grabbed a couple of bank notes and placed them on the tray.
The clerk gave her the change and the ticket.
"Thank you for your visit!"
"Good morning…"
She walked out and stepped into her car.
She ate the hot sausage and fumed as she thought about something.
"I'm sure that the whole lawyer tale is but a joke. A trap to spark my impatience and lure me out! Too bad, Irino Vanitas! I'm not going to fall for it so easily! Go play that game with your old buddies of the underground society!" She fumed.
She finished her food and put the remains in a paper bag.
"Cortana! Connect me to Bubble Man!"
"Connecting…"
"Puku! It was some smug gal called Venus Warrior! When I questioned about the key thing, she sneered and said "the key-holder kiddo whom everyone wants to join the brawl but won't happen because WDC is so super strict with copyright and all!"…"
"Venus Warrior? Must be confident on her looks!" She sighed.
"And ditched me another useless "Dark Chip" imitation! Puku!"
"Hmmm? Wait. The brawl… WDC… Key-holder kiddo?"
"I'm gonna watch Kirby beat those big jerks!"
"I see! It's it! Dairantou Smash Brothers! The Big Brawl Smash Brothers! The kid with the key that everyone wants to see there… Sora!"
"What's that, puku?"
"Shut up. WDC is Walt Disney Company! Input "SORA"!"
"It unlocked! Puku!"
"Sheesh! Sneaky duo! Anyway! Send that data to the cloud!"
"OK! Puku!"
"And if they come again, leave a message in the cloud too!"
"Sure! Puku! Lord Wily made me! Puku! I am smart!"
"When you're motivated to put a use to it…!" She sighed.
"Did you say something? Puku?"
"Nothing! If they show up again, tell them you don't sell to scammers and that the "End-of-Century Champion Senpai" will smash them with their "Steel Fist Punishment"!"
"Delighted! Puku!"
"If someone tries to ask about me, say you don't know me! That'll trigger an automated purge of any data about me…"
"OK! I won't let Lord Wily's best agent down!"
The call ended and she sighed as she resumed her patrol.
"Report status, Agent Nishi…"
The car's police transmitter turned on.
"This is Nishi, reporting from Area 6… No anomalies. Over…"
"Understood. Continue the patrol…"
"Roger that…"
The transmitter turned off and she focused on the driving.
The phone buzzed to signal that new messages had come in.
"OK! I'll check them out later…"
She resumed driving once the green light turned on and hummed a tune.
"Nevertheless… These odd jerks have only become noticeable for the last 2-3 weeks… There was nothing about them before… Either Irino Vanitas bothered to make up new pawns or they're another party who's come from a remote location, maybe from overseas… If they're behind the disappearance of my two men, they aren't amateurs…"
She stopped at the next red light and tapped the edges of the wheel.
"But I set up failsafe systems to erase my traces, anyway!"
She giggled and formed a smug grin…