Chapter 25- World Three History
The following is a fan-made work of fiction. Certain original characters made by myself will be claimed under my ownership. However, I do not, nor will I ever claim to own Mega Man Battle Network.
Mega Man Battle Network © Capcom
Reddington Bluemann, Phyllis Tina, Ripley Marduk, Myth Man, Bobby and Helena Crosby, Desiree Domin, and Castiel Lex-Ordo © HatOnFire/Me
[BGM: We Won The Case! - The First Victory, CADENZA -Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney-]
"Alright!" Lan and I yelled in triumph, energized from being cleared! Sure, the real culprit escaped and WWW had more Super Programs, but that didn't matter right now.
Lan walked out of the courtroom with his supporters and the rest of the crowd, continuing to cheer in the halls!
"I'm so glad you're here," He told Mayl, becoming a little misty-eyed. "I knew you'd wake up, but it was killing me to have to wait."
"There might be more of that…" Mayl smiled, "I signed out without permission…"
"You snuck out of the hospital?" Chaud queried, "That's unbecoming of an Official, Mayl."
"You'd do the same and you know it," Mayl pouted.
"Wow…!" Yai whispered with shock, "You're an Official now?"
"That's dangerous for you," Ms. Mari mumbled, "Look at what happened."
"Yeah," Dex looked to my brother, "It would've been nice if you told me earlier, Lan."
"Since Mom got kidnapped, there wasn't any use making you worried," Lan said, "And I didn't want to compromise her."
"It's fine," Dex shrugged, grinning to focus on a new topic. "But enough of that! You're free now!"
"That's right, huh!" Higsby cheered, "When you come by my shop later, I'll give you an exclusive discount of halved prices for life!"
"What about me?!" Dex questioned.
"For you, 20 percent discount from now until September," Higsby decided.
"20 percent for three months and a few weeks?!" Dex started grabbing the lanky man and pulling him up to his face, "Come on, you cheapskate!"
"Dex, please!" Ms. Tina pleaded, "This is unnecessary!"
"Hee-hee-hee-hee-hee!" Lan gleefully chortled, "Some things haven't changed!"
"Still a little ill-tempered," Yai giggled, giving a knowing look to Mayl.
"Hiya, Mega!" Roll called, suddenly appearing in my PET, running to give me a hug.
"Hey, Roll!" I returned the action and privately said, "Thanks for showing up and saving Lan."
"I'm just happy you're still here," Roll murmured, "I knew it wasn't true, but I couldn't do anything to help."
"You're here now," I told her, "And you fought by Mayl when it counted. Thank you."
She warmly beamed at me.
"It soothes the soul, doesn't it, Seiji?" Mr. Crosby whispered to Dr. Froid, watching Lan's mother and his friends around him.
"It does," Dr. Froid admitted, "But I let Zap get away with the Elec Program. I need to redeem myself."
"I fell for an easy trick," Chaud kicked himself on the inside, "That led me to have you arrested."
"I admit, you didn't know what to think," Lan knew that anybody would've come to that conclusion, "But you really thought I'd hurt Dad?"
"No apology will make up for my blunder, Lan," Chaud stated, "But I'll work to earn your forgiveness, however long it takes to stop WWW."
"You don't have to go so hard, Chaud," The delinquent told him, "Apologizing is enough for me."
"Me as well," Mom concurred, "You only did your job."
Chaud appeared to whisper to himself, but I knew what he said. It was, "Thank you…"
"Mayl, Lan!" Detective Bluemann came up to the group, with Ripley coming in and pulling Lan and Mayl in a quick hug. "Are you two alright?"
"Perfectly fine," Mayl chirped, patting Ripley's shoulder.
"Thanks for getting the Copy Bot out," Lan shook the man's hand in gratitude, "I wouldn't have proven my innocence without it."
"Thank you," Redd smiled, "I hope you forgive me for not helping as much."
"Don't worry," Lan assured him, "I'm used to this."
"Still, we got careless," Ripley thought aloud, breaking the hug. "WWW got to Mrs. Hikari because of that; we're lucky everything worked out."
"There's one more person I brought on the way here," Redd affirmed before correcting himself, "No, two people."
"Hello," Mrs. Crosby was at the entrance with Dad, leading him in as bailiffs held back the crowd of paparazzi blocking the stairs, taking as many snapshots as possible. "We couldn't wait any longer."
"H-Haruka… Lan…" Dad walked over to us in a cautious manner, "Mega Man."
"Yuichiro!" Mom gasped.
"Dad…" Lan dropped his hands in his pockets, watching our father come over to us.
"He's here?!" I couldn't tell, but since I heard Lan, I knew it.
"I-I…" Dad stammered, "I heard the verdict over the radio. I'm glad you're alright. I'm sorry I wasn't here for that."
"Just stop, Dad," My brother smiled, "I should be saying sorry to you."
Dad suddenly got pulled into Mom's arms, keeping him where they were. Our parents stayed like that for a while, saying nothing to each other. They didn't need to say anything they already knew to each other.
"Heh…" Lan slightly chuckled, pulling the PET out so I could see. He looked away so no one would see his tears fall. "Hub?"
"Yeah?" I was getting choked up myself.
"Think we'll start being a normal family again?" He asked.
"Lan, Lan, Lan," I shook my head, wiping a tear off my cheek. "What the heck is normal when you have people like us around?"
"Point taken," Before Lan could utter anything else, our parents pulled him in as well! "H-Hey!"
"We're proud of you boys," Dad quietly told, "I'm proud of you."
"So am I," Mom strongly agreed, "You two are our pride and joy."
"Thanks, Mom," Lan felt some relief, having needed to hear that. "You too, Dad!"
"Nothing's going to keep us apart again," Dad promised, "I've reached out to someone who'll take care of everything."
"What does that mean?" Mom questioned.
"Does it have to do with the blackmail?" The thought crossed Lan's mind.
"Don't worry about it," Dad smiled, "We won't have anything to fear from it ever again."
"That's… good," Lan might've had some doubts, but from how confident Dad sounded, he stopped being worried.
"Now, shouldn't we start celebrating your verdict?" Dad suggested, "It's not every day there's a not guilty in court!"
"I could make that delicious curry you two like!" Mom added.
"Some curry would be really nice!" Lan warmed up to the idea, of course, though Yai came up with one of her own.
"Come over to my place!" She requested, "I'll have my brigade of chefs cook for us!"
"Yeah!" Dex pumped his fist in the air, "Free food!"
"Better make it invite only," Mayl whispered in Yai's ear with a smirk.
I was laughing for a bit, getting handshakes from Proto Man, Number Man, Ice Man, Myth Man, Glyde… and a crushing bear hug from Guts Man.
"Sorry to interrupt, Mega," Roll stepped up, "But about that other name…"
"O-Oh, that?" I realized that she overheard me and Lan at that time, "Well, I guess it was gonna happen."
"It sounded familiar to me," Roll looked confused, "But I can't place it."
"It's kinda my name…" I felt like it was a good time as any, since I was getting tired of hiding it. And I'd rather tell Navis who can keep secrets safe…
"Congratulations on your acquittal, Lan Hikari," A woman had declared, stopping me from talking.
The minute Lan looked behind his family to see who it was, he was almost about to gag. The justice minister, Desiree Domin, stood at the lobby's entrance with Commissioner Keifer… and Mr. Famous.
[BGM: Phalanx, Mega Man ZX Tunes]
"Terrific…" Lan glared at the scientist, sore about him not being there to support him.
"It's you," Chaud stated, "You've heard the verdict?"
"Yes," Domin nodded with a small smile, "It's good to see wrongs were made right."
"As if you really cared about that," Lan snarled, "You must be disappointed."
"Such dangerous talk, Lan," Domin shook her head, pretending she didn't hear that growl. "If you were guilty, you'd only receive a life sentence; preferable to capital punishment. And I'm confident we would've realized our error, seeing as it's you."
"That's right," Redd recalled, "It was just ruled that all WWW members would be sentenced to life."
"You and Mr. Higsby should be grateful, Dr. Froid," Mrs. Domin smiled, "False accusations occur frequently in today's world."
"Don't imply something so callous," Mr. Crosby almost barked.
"Forget about her, huh?" Higsby told us, "We should be glad it's not us."
"WWW escaped regardless…" Froid interjected, "And the government is on thin ice now…"
"You're in as much of it as well," Keifer whispered, "You don't know what you've unleashed today."
"I think it's called the truth," I threw my voice at them, earning a small reaction from Dex. "Try it sometime, Commissioner."
"Or better yet," Lan suggested, "Just say I didn't do it. You knew I couldn't have, too, Mr. Famous."
"We didn't expect this, Lan," Mr. Famous spoke, but Lan just raised his hand, indicating he didn't want to hear it.
"Sitting back and letting me fry takes nerve," He coldly whispered, "I know Dad had a reason for not showing up. What's your excuse?"
"Don't be so cross with him," Mrs. Domin spoke, "He was working for me."
"I've been updating security and providing the Net Police tools to scan networks," Mr. Famous said, "This will help us track specific WWW Navis, hopefully to a base somewhere online."
"And this is gonna be the team's priority?" Ripley pondered.
"It doesn't matter," I exhaled some air as I raised a question, "You and Commissioner Keifer watched the team behind the scenes. Why didn't you vouch for us?"
"All I can offer is a sincere apology," Keifer muttered, turning his head in shame.
"Not good enough!" I scared my friends and family with that shout, "I almost got deleted! And Lan had a high chance of being on death row!"
"Minister Domin assured me you weren't in any real danger," Mr. Famous breathed out.
"You trust everything she says?" I had nothing but distain for him.
"That's enough," Chaud announced, getting in between Lan and Domin, just in case. "Fighting each other is pointless. You're both innocent. Our priority is WWW."
"I know that," Lan nodded, "But Chaud, Mega Man's not wrong."
"What do you mean?" The ace questioned.
"The government was willing to hide Cross Fusion by sacrificing my partner," Lan looked down, "I'm no different for making up half-truths in court, though."
"Lan?" Ms. Mari looked a little worried.
"I'm not proud of it," Lan scowled, "I'm not gonna claim the high road. But my secrets… my silence never cost anyone's life."
"Don't address me like that," Domin's cold gaze chilled the room, "You boys wouldn't be here without me."
"That doesn't mean we owe you anything," I whispered, "I'm out."
"Mega Man?" Mayl knew what that meant.
"I'm not working with people who don't trust us," I explained.
"I do trust you, Mega Man!" Famous proclaimed, "And you, Lan. We need you!"
"Too little, too late," I shut him down, "I trusted you when you saved my life, and you left us when we needed you… Lan thought you were with WWW, and you know what? He might be onto something."
"Mega!" Roll scolded me, "How can you say that?!"
"That's quite the threat," Myth Man wasn't pleased with me, "I won't let you insult him like that."
"We warned you not to bring them on," Domin huffed to the scientist next to her, "Nothing good ever comes from vigilantes."
"Maybe it's better if we leave the team," Lan suggested, "We're bad luck."
"You just need a few days away to reflect on this," Chaud murmured, "Everyone does. Mr. Famous?"
"Go…" Famous unclenched his fists as he sighed in disgrace, as well he should.
Mom led the group out, holding the door open.
"Domin, Keifer, Famous," Dad said in farewell, dropping all the formal pretenses.
"You can't leave yet," The justice minister wasn't done with us, "You still have a contract to complete."
"Famous does," Dad slightly tilted his head to him, stepping out the door with everyone else. "He's proven exactly where he stands, as have the rest of you."
We left those three behind, ashamed and a little surprised.
'Then the government will claim Hub as theirs,' Domin shook her head with disappointment as she thought to herself, 'You'll have to do what I say to get him back.'
The amount of people taking pictures at my family was something else. The attention we got from the trial, it just felt wrong. Even when we were acquitted, I still didn't feel good. No one did after that meeting.
"Yai, Mom really wants to cook," Lan whispered, "You think you could let her have some reign in the kitchen?"
"We're still on?" Yai questioned.
"Heck yeah!" Lan picked the mood back up, snapping everyone out of this funk. "Nothing's stopping me from celebrating!"
"I guess you can't stay down with food on your mind," Dex shrugged with a smile.
Later in the day, at Yai's mansion, my family, friends, and acquaintances ate a curry dinner, laughing and chatting among themselves. Yai also opened the presents Lan and our friends got her, having put off her birthday for our sakes. Looks like she grew up from her spoiled rotten self.
Roll, Myth Man, and Proto Man gave me the cold shoulder, bothered by what I said to Famous. I couldn't blame them, but how could Zap have known about my identity as Hub unless they were in league with each other? Sure, that might not be the case, but not once did he show up to help. He distanced himself from us, and that made me angry.
At the end of the day, working with Keifer, Domin and Famous would be a mistake. That's why I refused to trust them. I really needed some time alone, so I distanced myself from the other Navis.
'Lan's the only one I could count on…' I told myself. Maybe it was better this way. Maybe we didn't need anyone else…
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An apartment was mostly pitch black, only lit by a desk lamp and a laptop screen, running a program. The person using it was performing a process.
"Forget…" A man's voice told, managing everything on that laptop. It was also connected to an odd device that these suction cups connected by wires, sticking to the forehead of Desiree Domin. "When you awaken, you will also forget everything about Hub Hikari being the Navi Mega Man."
Minister Domin laid still, having been induced into sleeping.
"Sleep…" He whispered, having done what he could do. "Sleep…"
Once it was over, he took everything he brought with him, and made sure to electronically lock the apartment door, eliminating his presence completely.
"It's done," The unknown man whispered in his PET, sending the message to someone. He then went to the stairs, confident that the cameras couldn't pick him up.
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[BGM: The Chosen One, Mega Man ZX GIGAMIX]
"It was my greatest performance, Lord Wily!" Count Zap laughed, taking a bow in their lair. "They ate it up!"
"And you've got the Elec Program, to boot," Wily added, "We finally retrieved the Wood Program as well."
"The people's trust in the government is tearing at the seams," Yahoot smiled, "Thanks to you and Lan revealing Cross Fusion's existence."
"My plan went far better than I expected it to!" Zap formed a manic grin on his face, "It was a little risky stuffing my Synchro Chip in the robot in that trash chute, but hey! Whether the government or the Hikari name gets attacked, it's a win for WWW!"
"Lan created this Blue Avenger persona to separate himself from Cross Fusion," Yahoot mentioned, "That way, he could keep his role in his former team secret from the public."
"If his choice is to have a secret identity, then let it be so," Wily stated, "Exposing him is not required for completing EndGame. Besides, I want to learn more and see how far he'll go to achieve his justice."
"Yes sir, but what about the Fire Program?" Zap wondered, "It's what you lack to create the Life Virus, isn't it?"
"Our time to claim it will come shortly," The leader declared, "Bring the other two in. You all will have the same objective: get that program."
01001101 01001101 01000010 01001110
A few days after the most insane trial in recent times, Lan and I were at home, finishing up some homework from class. Lan's peers were still talking behind his back after all we've done but they didn't matter. No one did.
With Cross Fusion confirmed, Judge Lex-Ordo and Mr. Ito supported the claim of the Blue Avenger being different from me and Lan. Dr. Froid covering for us in trial really saved from hassle. That didn't stop rumors, but they'll go away as long as Cross Fusion doesn't have to happen for a while.
"Finally!" Lan breathed, dropping his pencil. "Now we can go hunt WWW."
"I want to go as much as you do, Lan," I shared his feelings, "But is it smart to leave Mom and Dad alone?"
"We put it off long enough, Hub," Lan said. "And we could always earn back more trust."
"That virus attack on the police and the Cabinet was a warning, as you know," I refreshed his memory, "This means they're getting closer."
"Whatever the EndGame is, it involves the Super Programs. They have Aqua, Electricity, and Wood."
"Fire is all that's left. Dad wouldn't say where it is, though."
"I hope it's not at the Complex after everything," My brother shook his head, "I can't stand going back there, no offense to Dr. Froid."
As I wondered what to do next, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Lan shouted, dashing downstairs for the front door.
"Lan, please," Mom was dismayed as he slid in front of her to check who was outside, "I upgraded the doghouse to check on people."
"I know, but still," Lan opened the door once he saw who it was. We weren't expecting her, though.
"Hello, Lan," The one and only Helena Crosby was right there, looking a little bit nervous.
"Mrs. Crosby?" Just when he believed nothing could surprise him, there was the ex-governor's wife. "What are you doing here?"
"Is it alright if I talk with you?" Mrs. Crosby politely requested, "It's important."
"Okay," Lan let her inside and closed the door.
"Would you like something to drink?" Mom asked, but our guest shook her head.
"I'm surprised to see you here," Dad stated, "What's your business?"
"You must have been wondering where to begin, right, Lan?" Mrs. Crosby's beautiful face showed a frown, "In your search?"
"Yeah, how'd you know?" My brother replied, "Are you okay?"
"I helped build WWW with some of my cosmetic company's finances," She plainly uttered.
"What?" Lan reacted slowly to this revelation, "What?!"
"I-Is this a joke?" Dad faltered.
"You're kidding, right?" I added.
"I wouldn't have this if I were," Mrs. Crosby brought out her old PET, transmitting something to me. When I saw the data materialize, it combined into a key with the WWW signature.
"Why…?" I whispered with contempt growing in me, "Why do you have this?"
[BGM: WWW Theme, Rockman EXE Sound Navigation 01]
"I was with WWW from the beginning," Mrs. Crosby was beginning to tear up, holding in a conflicting secret for a good deal of her life.
"Why?" Lan was shocked to be sure, but not angry. He and Dad were too confused for that.
"It was originally a group that stood against injustice, believe it or not," Mrs. Crosby whispered, "We'd use the net and other high tech devices against corruption. But it became less about standing against it and more about utilizing it…"
"What changed?" Dad questioned.
"The leader changed, whoever he was…" She mumbled, "He went by Noble."
"So, he had a fancy name?" Lan got confused.
"A codename," Mrs. Crosby took it a list of written names from her purse, giving it to Dad. "We were all assigned these names by Noble. Mine was Adeline."
"Why have you never told anybody about this?" Dad asked.
"I was proud of the good we had done," She sadly recalled, "Not of what WWW became. Creating a secret organization that performed acts akin to vigilante justice carried risks. Admitting to that would ensure I never saw the light of day again."
"Because of the law..." Lan could relate to that.
"Because of the corruption. I've learned secrets not for the faint of heart, and I have the burden of holding them until I can't go on. And seeing what WWW tried doing to your family and Mayl… I'm tired of keeping quiet."
"Better late than never, I suppose," Dad shook his head, "I'll contact the Anti-WWW Team."
"No," I spoke up, "Lan and I can do this."
"No offense, Mega," Lan scratched his head, looking at the list of names. "But how will we know who used to work with WWW?"
He saw that on the notes, the name Yahoot was written next to the name Arya, and Zap was next to Tennyson.
"I'll give you a clue to who Alice is," Mrs. Crosby whispered, "She once told me she wanted to teach troubled kids, having been one herself."
"That doesn't help much, but okay…" Lan accepted that.
"Oberon talked about his connections in the science community. He supplied us with these high tech chairs that allowed us to go into cyberspace if we needed to."
"The Pulse Transmission System?" Yuichiro gasped, "Oh no…"
"I can see that happening…" Lan nodded, acting like it was new to him. "What does he have?"
"Alice and Oberon hold digital maps for our Navis to navigate the old internet," The ex-WWW founder explained, "Those old networks were phased out, and like the Undernet, there's less security and really strong viruses. The current WWW could be using one of those areas as a staging ground."
"In that case, thanks for the list, Mrs. Crosby," Lan thanked her.
"Where do you think you're going?" Dad inquired, "You're not leaving the house."
"Come on, Dad," Lan sighed, "This is huge. If we identify Noble, we end WWW."
"I don't want to lose you after all the past incidents, Lan," Dad grabbed his shoulders, "It would kill me."
"Dad, I'm only looking for ex-WWW members. If they don't like WWW, they'll help us."
"We're the only ones who can do it, Dad," I tried persuading him, "Please."
Dad facepalmed, smudging his glasses with his fingers.
"Every single time," He groaned, "Fine, take the list. You search for Alice. I might have an idea on who Oberon is."
"Thanks, Dad!" I cheered as Lan got his shoes on, grabbing his detachable roller skates and orange jacket.
"It's drizzling outside!" Mom reminded us, "Be careful!"
"Okay!" Lan waved goodbye, closing the door.
"So, Zap and this Yahoot guy were there from the beginning," I commented, "Guess creeps got to stick together."
"Maddy worked for Mrs. Crosby's company for a while," Lan added, "Does Match have a connection?"
"Who cares about what they were doing?" I thought, "They broke the law several times. They deserve to be brought to justice."
"Let's worry about that later," Lan suggested, "I remember Zap calling Ms. Mari someone else when he grabbed me. It could be connected to who Alice is."
"Whatever, just send me in the net," I was more pushy than usual, but we couldn't keep wasting time.
"Jack in! Mega Man, Execute!" Lan jacked me in, taking off on his skates under greying clouds. He avoided skating on areas that had puddles, of course.
On my end, I hit the cyber floor running out from Lan's Computer into the Cyberworld, searching for the outdated internet areas.
As for Dad, he was wearing his raincoat in his car, starting it up. He got on the road and drove the route he took to SciLab.
This was our chance to get a leg up on WWW, but also to prove that Lan and I could still handle things ourselves. I needed to validate my existence and justify my choice to leave the team. As long as we trusted each other, then we don't need anyone else… right?
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"I'm glad you came on short notice, Dex," Redd greeted him as they entered SciLab's Mission Control, "We could use the help."
"If this is the best I can do, then I'll do more," Dex nodded with a little pride in himself, and he's not wrong to feel self-assured.
"I imagine that helping to expose a WWW plot will boost your reputation?" Redd inquired.
"I guess," Dex shrugged, "But I'm considering dropping out of the class president race. I don't want it to get in the way of tracking WWW."
"We might get lucky with this, Dex," Mayl cut in, standing next to Chaud and Ripley. She wasn't wearing a bandage for her head, a clear sign that she had healed. "You might not have to do that."
"Just don't be surprised if this drags on for a while," Chaud stated, "And we appreciate you for signing on."
"Now then," Ripley typed away on the keyboard, bringing up some links from the web. "We have the Net Police authenticating various links to check for any WWW presence, but it's just a distraction. We know they're not crazy enough to have a public link or chat room for their Navis to gather."
"The police are simply covering digital ground while we go deeper," The detective crossed his arms, "And to do that, we have brought in someone important."
"And who is that?" Dex questioned.
"Me," A man affirmed, getting the group's attention to the entrance.
He wore yellow-green pants with a jacket in the same color, over a brown vest that obscured a yellow shirt and red necktie. His dress shoes were in a dark color and he had glasses over his green eyes. His golden blonde hair was short but had a few spikes from his front, and he had a moustache and beard.
"Everyone," Famous announced, shutting the door behind him off. "This is Dr. Cossack, a former scientist here."
"Dr. Cossack?" Dex questioned, "THE Dr. Cossack?"
"I understand my reputation precedes me," Cossack averted his eyes for a moment, "If only there was anything positive about me…"
Hardly anyone in this day and age doesn't know who Dr. Cossack is, but it's very infamous. Long story short, he created the first solo Net Navi, but several incidents by the Navi caused machines connected to the net to malfunction. With the net nearly destroyed by the Navi, it was deleted, but the damage left behind by it led to the country's greatest recession in its history.
Cossack was jailed and forbidden from returning to the scientific community, even getting attacked by the public for what he created. But if he's here, then the situation must be dire.
"Allow me to clear the air," Famous spoke again, "Dr. Cossack has been erroneously ostracized by the public. That incident with the first solo Navi was not his doing nor intention."
"You don't need to defend me, Famous," The exiled scientist let a sigh escape his lips, "I'm guilty of a few other things."
"What else is new?" Roll murmured with a cross expression.
"Regardless, he is here to help us," Famous proclaimed, "He is still a scientist, so always refer to him as such."
"Dr. Cossack," Mayl chose to be straightforward, "What is your business?"
"Information on WWW," Cossack sighed, "I've been holding this back for some time."
"How long?" Chaud wondered.
"Since I first helped Noble build WWW," Cossack replied.
"S-Seriously?!" Ripley exclaimed.
"Noble?" Redd was thrown for a loop, "Who is that?"
"I didn't think that you would be with them," Roll made a sharp sound with her voice as though she was annoyed, "But it's no surprise."
"Roll," Mayl was concerned by her Navi's sudden change in behavior.
"We used codenames back then," Cossack clarified for everyone, "The leader's name was Noble. Mine was Oberon."
"The king of fairies," Chaud recognized the name, "From A Midsummer Night's Dream."
"There was always a name that carried a meaning of nobility," Cossack continued, "Hence why we were given them. WWW's purpose to battle corruption was a noble desire, after all. It's such a waste…"
"Dang," Dex was still astonished, "That's wild."
"You realize that whatever you say, we will have to arrest you?" The ace Official wanted to make sure the exiled scientist was aware of this.
"I've been told that I can be pardoned for my involvement," Cossack murmured, "I just need to reveal everything I know. But I need your help to do that."
"Since when were you ever about helping people?" Roll countered, leading Mayl to adjust the PET volume to mute her.
"Continue," Mayl beckoned the programmer.
"I don't want to leave out other defectors, just in case they want to help," Cossack sent something to the computer, letting Famous present it on the monitors. "But I only have their codenames. We have to find out who they are to get their input."
"If you know WWW's net address, why don't you take us there?" Chaud pondered.
"I deleted my link a while ago," The former doctor replied, "I didn't want to continue being associated with WWW. But I still have a digital map. I even remember how to get in."
Famous sent copies of the list to everyone's devices, bringing up a digital map of the old Internet Area.
"We'll multitask for this mission," He informed, "Chaud and Mayl, you'll search for ex-WWW agents, while Dex and Ripley will explore the Internet Area. I'm told that there are some blocked off pathways set up by WWW. So, Dr. Cossack will help you break through them."
"I still have the key data for those encrypted locks," Cossack added, "They will be helpful considering Noble's net security."
"I'll keep patrolling to make sure WWW doesn't have more surprises," Redd saw himself out, but not before gesturing to Cossack by tilting his head to Mayl.
He sighed, knowing what had to be done.
"That's all, everyone," Famous dismissed the team, heading to his desk to work.
"Mayl," Cossack called, "A moment, if you please."
"All the time I heard Roll talk about her creator," She said as they left stood in the corner of the room, "I never expected you to be the one."
"Why not?" The ex-WWW associate pondered, "She doesn't speak highly of me, and I'm said to have stopped society."
"I don't believe everything I hear," Mayl claimed, "Your solo Navi may have rampaged, but that was his choice."
"I see…"
"Are you worried this friction with Roll will distract us?"
"I just want to make sure she's alright, even if she'll only yell at me. I miss her."
Mayl sympathized with him, having such a strong bond with Roll herself. As her creator, he was still concerned for her.
"Did you hear that, Roll?" She raised her PET up to see her Navi crossing her arms.
"What do you want from me?" Roll questioned the man once they could hear her again, "To welcome you back like nothing's wrong?"
"You still remember me, at least," Cossack sadly smiled, "I'm glad."
"The feeling is not mutual," Roll didn't budge an inch, "Even if I'm fine where I am, it doesn't excuse you."
"You're right," Cossack accepted that, "If I knew what would've come founding WWW, none of this would've happened."
"But it does explain things," Roll muttered with chagrin, "Why you had technology that wasn't yours; why you had a basement when no other house in the area did."
"I'm so sorry…"
"You knew where I was, and you never came back. Maybe it was for the best."
Mayl and Cossack frowned upon hearing that.
"I forgot about part of my past and about you," Roll turned away from their faces, "Seeing you again made me remember again… I hate you so much."
Cossack sighed with a hurt expression on his face.
"That wasn't nice, Roll," Her operator scolded her for that.
"You wouldn't defend him if I told you everything, Mayl!" Roll fired back, "He was going to take out my free will!"
"You had the wrong idea," The blonde man denied that claim, "It was a throwaway remark that meant nothing."
"Liar!" Roll shouted, "You were going to program me to be more obedient!"
"That's not true," Famous said, coming up to that group, "We were only referring to your stubbornness. That's all."
"Mr. Famous?" Mayl whispered.
"W-Wait…" The pink Navi looked through the PET camera in disbelief, "You knew?"
"Yes," Famous admitted, "I knew what was going on."
"He was there that day, too…" Cossack spoke up, causing Roll to turn to him. "We were trying to figure out what to do."
Roll blanked out for a moment, staring at the space ahead of her. Then, she jacked into a computer, leaving Mayl's PET on her own.
"Roll, where are you going?!" Mayl cried, seeing her connection to her Navi get severed! The jack out command wouldn't register because of this.
"I want to be alone!" Roll yelled, teleporting to a warp point out into the net. "I'm sorry, but I have to clear my head!"
"Roll…" Mayl whimpered in vain.
"I'm sorry," Cossack apologized, "She needed to know everything. If she won't explain herself later, I will."
"What about you, Famous?" The maroon-haired Official called him out, "What happened to Roll that made her act this way?"
"Perhaps she should to tell you," The scientist appeared troubled, brushing his hair with his fingers. "I'm not qualified."
"Well, be ready anyway," Mayl demanded, "You're haven't given me any confidence in you since Lan left."
"Mayl, we should go," Chaud suggested, "If Roll doesn't contact you, Dex and Detective Bluemann will find her. But we have a job to do."
Mayl nodded silently while keeping her glare on Famous, who used a handkerchief to absorb his sweat.
"Does everyone have secrets around here?" Dex looked to Redd as the two Officials walked out of here.
"Apparently so," Redd replied, staring daggers at Famous for hiding something significant from him, being Mayl's guardian and all.
Regardless, they got back to their task: searching for the old Internet Area.
01001101 01001101 01000010 01001110
In Den Town, at a restaurant close to a summer school building, Lan was waiting for two people to show up. He checked back in with me as drank from a straw.
"Mega Man, did you find the Internet Area?" He asked me something I already knew the answer to.
"No. Stop asking me every five minutes."
"Look, I don't know what else to do," Lan grew a little impatient, waiting there for twenty minutes. "It'll be ten before six soon."
"Hello, Lan!" Ms. Mari waved at him, entering the place with a woman who looked exactly like her. Her hair and clothes were identical in style, only her dress and boots were colored red with a white top and white tights.
"Hi, Ms. Mari!" Lan waved back, "How's it going?"
"Fine," The elementary teacher nodded, turning to her twin sister. "I'll order for us both, Yuri."
"If you insist, Mari," Yuri replied, deciding to sit at the table Lan was at. "You know her, so you wouldn't mind if we sat here?"
"Not at all," Lan breathed out through his nose, uncomfortable for being right in his hunch. "Do you teach at a school around here, Ms. Yuri?"
"It also serves as a summer school," Ms. Yuri added, "I think every child deserves to have a beneficial education, so I teach at it. It's what I've wanted to do for a long while."
"Ms. Yuri, if I can be frank," My brother paused for a second, "Does the name Alice mean anything to you?"
"Alice?" The summer teacher kept her composure, "There are many girls with that name. Could you be more specific?"
"How about your former leader, Noble?"
Ms. Yuri caught her breath, knowing just what Lan meant.
"How about Oberon?" He pressed on, "Adeline? I can tell you who Tennyson and Arya are."
"W-What are you saying?" Ms. Yuri did her best to refute what she heard, but she couldn't ignore what Lan said next…
"Tennyson is Count Zap and Arya is Yahoot."
"…How did you know about those names?" She gave in, confirming Lan's suspicions.
"Adeline told me. If you want to get in touch with her, dial Helena Crosby's number. I think it's only fair you know each other."
"So that's who she was… I never would've guessed."
[BGM: Reform, Mega Man Legends]
"Ms. Yuri, do you have a map to an old Internet Area?" Lan requested, "WWW could be hiding in it."
"I wanted to bury my past once I set myself straight," Yuri sadly frowned, "I realized Noble wasn't being as honest as he claimed. But I still held on to this."
With her PET, she shared the map that was left undisturbed with Lan, who quickly brought it up.
"Is there anything else you can tell me about the Internet Area?"
"I've attached an old WWW ID pin to the map," She stated, "This should help you get in most WWW doors. You'll have to decrypt the more sophisticated ones to go further."
"Does Ms. Mari know about you being with WWW?"
"No, but she did tell me that Zap called her my name."
"You should go to the cops," Lan suggested, "WWW will cross any line."
"I can take care of myself," Ms. Yuri's face grew serious, "I have before you were out of elementary."
"I'm speaking for Ms. Mari's sake, too," Lan responded with his own facial expression, "But I promise I'll end it."
"If you could pull a fast one in court, then I believe you can stop them," Ms. Yuri smiled when she saw the determination in Lan's eyes. "WWW knows everything about you, so be careful, Blue Avenger."
My brother figured that someone well aware enough would find that out, but he chuckled along with Ms. Yuri.
"Well, Mega Man?"
"Okay, I'm on it!" I shouted, having a clear heading to reach our goal.
I was so focused on the search; I didn't notice Lan was texting someone to update them…
CHAPTER 25 END