Rockman EXE
Guardians of the Light Circle
Episode 5: Blooming Bonds
Opening Song:
Ikutsu namida o nagashitara
Every Heart sunao ni nareru darou
Dare ni omoi wo tsutaetara
Every Heart kokoro mitasareru no darou
Nagai nagai yoru ni obieteita
Tooi hoshi ni inotteta
Meguru meguru toki no naka de
Bokutachi wa ai o sagashiteiru
Tsuyoku tsuyoku naritai kara
Kyou mo takai sora miageteiru
Sakurai House...
Meiru had been sent back home, after waking up, and everyone was resting, while drifting into a wonderful sleep. The morning sun shone and its light's warmth reached Meiru's pale face. She laid on her soft and comfy bed. She wore her light pink nightgown and light blue shorts. It was summer, so the weather was just right. A touch of silence had arrived at the room, letting peace come forth and then-
"RISE AND SHINE!"
The red-haired girl fell (anime-style) off the bed. She lifted herself up and wobbly stepped forward, while whining, "What's with the racket? It's... 8 o'clock... wait... WHAT? I'M GOING TO BE LATE!"
Meiru ran towards the door as quickly as she could. It almost seemed as if her life depended on it. She reached the door, but before she even touched the door handle, someone harshly grabbed her arms. She was pulled back and turned, the result being Meiru having to face the person.
The person giggled and spoke, while sweatdropping, "Meiru-chan, you do know that you have no school, right?"
It was Flora, her older sister and the one who had revealed the story of both their first lives, as guardians of the light circle.
"... I forgot about that..." Meiru had completely forgotten about school being over.
The brown-haired girl let go of Meiru's left arm and grabbed her sister's right hand. She pulled her downstairs, while guiding her towards the dining table, where Magari and Haruhi were waiting for their two sweet daughters to join them for a delicious breakfast.
"Ohayou Mama, Papa!"
"Ohayou!"
The two girls sat on a chair and Flora spoke, "After breakfast... how about we go to the cinema?"
"But... what if someone sees you, don't you think that people will go crazy after seeing a celebrity in line?"
"My fans are not aggressive, besides I always book places, that way me and my fans go and have a fun time!" explained Flora
"Don't any of you fans complain? I'm sure that not all of your fans can go there, right?"
"They usually meet them after concerts, I take pictures with them, sign a few papers and they seem to be satisfied with that"
"Okay then, we can go to the cinema after breakfast!"
"Perfect!"
In the Cyberworld...
Roll was in her room, simply reading one her favourite books, Romeo and Juliet. She flipped through the digital pages, while enjoying its insides. It had been a few hours since she had awakened. She imagined this beautiful tragedy in her mind, while thinking of a certain someone...
Rockman...
After Meiru had finally awakened, in the Akihara hospital, Roll had found herself in Meiru's PET, safe from any harm. Once the red-haired girl had shown signs of consciousness, Rockman had immediately teleported to her device, with Blues, Searchman and Tomahawkman right behind him. Roll still remembered that moment, filled with relief and gratefulness for her safety.
Flashback...
The room was empty and there was Roll, who was just lifting herself from her digital bed. Four navis transferred themselves to her room, one of them showing a face with pure worry. Rockman dashed forward, towards the blonde-haired navi. He wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her in his strong grip. He dug his face into her neck, as he tried to force powerful tears to stay hidden in his bright green eyes. Roll stood there, startled for his actions. Her cheeks were a heavy red tone, while her eyes were wide open. She wanted to speak to him, to comfort him, to show the eternal love that was locked deep in her heart. She did not move. Her body simply couldn't grant her wish. She just stood right where she was, hoping that this would be enough.
"I-I thought that... I had lost you forever... Roll-chan I promise that this won't happen to you ever again!"
End of flashback...
Each word that he had said filled Roll's ears with a soft and touching feeling in her heart. It was the first time that she had ever seen Rockman cry. Her Rockman, the navi that had gone through frightening experiences, the navi that had navi that had defeated evil over and over without stopping, that navi had cried... and he had cried... because of her. He could have cried for Netto, his best friend, who had gone through the same dangerous adventures as him, maybe his family, his friends, but no. He cried because he thought that he would lose her. That is it; he suffered when he watched as she was taken away from his reach, away from his protection.
Roll closed the digital book, not being able to finish it with enjoy anymore. She lifted her right arm and a screen appeared. She placed the book right in front of the screen and it was teleported back to its rightful place, inside a file.
The blond-haired navi fell on top of her and laid there. She closed her eyes and let a wave of tiredness enter her body. A peaceful feeling was all around her, it was relaxing, calm and... she heard footsteps... the steps were heard, but just for a brief second. Someone is here... but who?
Roll's eyes snapped open; she lifted herself up and jumped off the bed, landing right in the middle of the room. On top of her bed was her just met sister, Emmie, who was meant to be the most powerful guardian, the Supreme Light. She sat there, with a cheerful smile on her face.
"So... you are in love with that blue navi... what's his name... Rockman, am I right?"
Emmie's delightful smile had turned into obvious grinning. The blonde-haired navi stared at her with shocked eyes. How does she know who Rockman is? Most importantly... how come she knows about my feelings towards him... I have only told Meiru-chan about it... no one else...
"How... do you know about Rockman?" asked Roll
"I almost forgot to tell you, stupid me, umm... I can read thoughts and once I find a connection to your mind... I can get any information that I need, or in this case... want", Emmie scratched her left cheek while answering Roll's question.
"... wait a second... WHAT?" Roll was panicking now, every person knows that everyone deserves a little privacy in their life, for example secrets and her feelings towards Rockman were no exception.
"You can't read my mind without my permission!" bellowed Roll
"Well... I am your sister and sisters are supposed to give each other advice... so my first action as your onee-chan will be helping you with this little crush that you have!" Emmie was getting excited about this idea.
Roll could feel butterflies in her stomach. Her sister could know anything she wanted and anything that Roll would want to keep as a secret.
The ginger-haired navi grabbed Roll's arm and pulled her towards her face. Emmie chuckled while whispering in her ear, "I have gone through what you are experiencing before, trust me, I know how it feels to be in love with someone".
Roll smiled, with relief in her eyes. Her sister knew exactly how she felt and that was something that she was thankful for.
"Now then... how about we go and meet your friends?" asked Emmie, as she wrapped her right arm around Roll's left arm.
She sweatdropped, while answering the question, "Umm, I guess... but I don't really know where they are right now..."
"Then how about we start walking?" questioned Emmie, while pulling Roll towards the exit.
"O-Okay"
At the Cinema...
"It's been a long time since I came to a cinema!" exclaimed the red-haired girl.
Meiru and Flora had arrived at the entrance of the cinema, after being driven there by a limousine, which Flora had personally ordered. Not many people were there at first, but once the brown-haired girl stepped outside the expensive-looking limousine, a huge crowd of people surrounded them.
"Didn't you say that your fans were not aggressive?" complained Meiru
"I did say usually, didn't I?" Flora had been two meters away from the entrance and just when she was going to enter the cinema, those few meters were taken away by hundreds of cameras and reporters.
"Sakurai-san, why did you come to Japan?"
"T-That's a very long story"
"Flora-san, who is that girl?"
"Her? That's my sister!"
"In love with a certain someone Flora-san?"
"EEH?"
It was 'Flora-san' here and 'Flora-san' there. This was going to take a long time. Flora quickly took her PET and a screen appeared. It showed a digital schedule.
She took a pen and faced the crowd of people, "How about I meet each of you in my next concert? Just say your name and then I'll make a list of the people that want to meet with me!"
The crowd had amazingly turned into a long line, Flora being at the very front. One by one, each person took a picture, or wrote their names down. The red-haired girl stared at her sister in amazement. How did she do that? For one second, there was a battle going on right in front of us and all of a sudden, everyone is happy?
Meiru smiled, her sister was definitely someone to look forward to knowing. The last name was written and the flashing of the cameras ended. The crowd was still there, but it was far calmer than before.
Flora used this opportunity to grab Meiru's hand and to rapidly run towards the entrance of the cinema. She took a right and went through the hall. Meiru was having a hard time to follow, for her sister's speed was increasing more and more. The hall was filled with doors, but Flora continued. Meiru was starting to get nervous, for the doors passed by and they still didn't stop. A dead end!
The red-haired girl tilted a little to look at Flora's face, while shouting, "Onee-chan it's a dead end! We need to stop running"
"Why should we stop?" Flora was grinning once again and her speed doubled. If anyone had seen those two, they would have thought that a navi had used an Area Steal battle chip inside the building.
"ONEE-CHAAAAN!"
Flora's body began to glow, as a turquoise aura surrounded her. She sprinted to the air, her target being the ceiling. She reached the black coloured ceiling and went through it, together with Meiru. The brown-eyed girl lifted her head and explored her new surroundings. W-What happened? We were running... and then... Flo- no Onee-chan went through the ceiling...
The green-eyed girl turned around and faced her sister, "I think that you have forgotten who you are, am I correct?"
"Yeah... I'm going to have to get used to this... right?" asked Meiru
Flora chuckled, as she stretched her arm out, lending Meiru a hand. She grabbed it and lifted herself up.
Meiru smiled at her sister and murmured, "We haven't even paid and we are already in the cinema"
The brown-haired girl sweatdropped and replied, "Meiru-chan... this cinema has got a reserved room just for me, I booked it right before we left!"
"So you already paid?"
"Of course!"
The red-haired girl sighed in relief and they stared at each other. After a few seconds, a round of laughter filled the room. Who would have thought that having a sister would be this fun!
In the Network...
The two sisters had enjoyed a few hours of pure shopping, while dodging a few crowds of navis from time to time. Emmie was irritated about the amount of distractions and so she ordered a few bodyguards to stop them, which definitely helped.
"Don't you get annoyed of those navis?" asked Roll
"Sometimes, but it's a prize that you need to take for being famous" answered Emmie, who was walking towards a fountain.
Next to the fountain was a group of navis, who seemed to be familiar looking to Emmie. Roll tilted a little, to see the faces of those navis. Her eyes grew wide and a huge smile appeared.
She waved at the navis while exclaiming, "Rockman!"
It was Rockman, Blues and Searchman. They turned around to face the blonde-haired navi and Rockman waved back, "Roll-chan, what are you doing here?"
"Just shopping with my sister", replied Roll
"SISTER?" not only Rockman, but Searchman and Blues were startled as well.
"Oh right... you guys don't know her... well then!" Roll grabbed Emmie's arm and pulled her towards the group, "This is my big sister Emmie! Meiru-chan has a sister too! Sakurai Flora!"
"Nice to meet you Emmie" smiled Rockman
"The pleasure is mine" greeted Emmie
The blue-haired navi then pointed at Blues and Searchman, "This is Blues and that is Searchman"
Searchman bowed while introducing himself, with a serious voice, "I am Searchman, it's an honour to meet"
"I'm Blues, it's a pleasure to meet you" Blues bowed as well and showed a soft smile.
"It's very nice to meet all of you" Emmie was really glad that she met Roll's friends.
She stepped forward to ask them something, but right before she spoke, dizziness reached her mind. Her vision was becoming blurry, while her body was becoming heavy. She tripped and was about to fall straight to the ground, but before that happened, Blues dashed forward and caught her.
"Onee-chan!" Roll kneeled and reached her sister, with worry in her face, "Are you okay?"
Emmie's eyes snapped open, she rapidly stood up and her eyes moved from the digital ground, to the roof of a tall building. Her eyes shone and they were filled with a pure turquoise light. A navi stood there and she could see the disgusting grin on his face.
"You had better be ready for me Nature, because when we meet again... I will have no mercy... I'm going kill you... and this time, Empress will not have to stain her hands with your blood, or should I say... red petals"
"I am far more than ready for you, Dark Star"
"Don't worry, I will wait a little longer... and if I were you... I would do something about Hatto"
"What about Hatto?"
"..."
"Answer me Dark Star!"
The navi disappeared and Emmie's eyes stopped glowing. Her vision and strength had come back.
Roll asked with worry, "What happened? You stood up all of a sudden and then... y-your eyes begun to shine... did anything happen?"
"Don't worry, everything is fine", explained Emmie, while still showing her back to her sister and her friends.
"Roll-chan, why didn't you tell us about your sister before?" questioned Rockman with curiosity in his eyes.
"Well-"
"Rockman!"
A screen appeared right in front of the blue-haired navi. It was Netto and he could tell that his operator needed help, "What's wrong, Netto-kun?"
"A dimensional area appeared and it's just around the 'Night Fun' cinema that just opened a few months ago"
"WHAT? But Meiru-chan and Flora-chan are there right now!" exclaimed Emmie
"Meiru-chan is in there?" Netto panicked, Meiru had just come out of the hospital and if she would get then surviving might not even be a possibility for her.
"I'm coming Netto-kun!" Rockman faced the two net saviours and Blues spoke, "Enzan-sama has just ordered me to go back to fight by your side"
"Raika-sama has commanded me to follow you too" explained Searchman
"Alright!" the blue-haired navi turned to Roll, "Roll-chan, I want you to stay here, we will make sure that Meiru-chan is safe"
"NO WAY! I'm coming with you, you like it or not!" bellowed Roll. She didn't want to stay there, waiting as if she was a damsel in distress who would be waiting for her prince charming to come and rescue her.
"You three need us!" yelled Emmie, which startled both navis, "I'm sure that you would go to your operator if he were in danger!"
Rockman answered with a hum and the group of navis ran forwards, their target being the 'Night Fun' cinema.
At the Night Fun cinema...
Netto had met with Enzan and Raika at the entrance. They were just outside the dimensional area, when their PETs rang.
The brown-haired boy watched as a digital version of Rockman appeared on top of his shoulder, "Netto-kun! Roll-chan and Emmie-chan are inside the dimensional area already, we need to find Meiru-chan and her sister before they get hurt!"
"Right!" Netto stood in between Enzan and Raika, while exclaiming, "Let's do this!"
The three of them ran to a helicopter, which Raika had used to reach the cinema and once the helicopter had reach the skies, the three net saviours jumped off and down they went.
"CROSSFUSION!" shouted Netto and Rockman
"CROSSFUSION!" bellowed Enzan and Blues
"CROSSFUSION" yelled Searchman and Raika
The transmission was successful and they were each in their crossfusion forms. The stood up and looked at their surroundings. The walls were filled with cracks, the floors were incomplete and broken lights were all spread over the area. The building was filled with people, fear showing every face. Fire was beginning to spread and if those three wanted to safe everyone, then they would have act and quickly.
Netto was about to leave the scene to find out what had been the cause of this mess, but Enzan grabbed his shoulder and stopped him in his tracks, "Wait Netto, you go and take these people to a safer place, their safety is what really matters, Raika and I will find out who did this"
"Good Luck!" Netto ran towards the people and raised his arm while exclaiming, "Battle chip, Barrier!"
An immense shield surrounded the people, keeping them safe from the fire. The people looked at the brown-eyed boy, finding a touch of relief in their hearts.
"This will keep you safe, now stay together, I'm going to find the rest!" commanded Netto.
He sprinted to the entrance and took a left. The fire was spreading and if he wasn't fast enough, then many lives were going to be lost in this inferno. He needed to find them. Time's running out...I need to find the rest... find them... oh no...
The fire roared as Netto shouted, "MEIRU-CHAN! WHERE ARE YOU? MEIRU-CHAN!" Netto was going to lose her again; the fire had already covered the entire first floor.
In despair, the brown-haired boy lifted his face and shouted, "Battle chip, Aqua Shot! A blue blaster replaced his arm and he pointed it at the roaring fire.
The burning of broken objects had stopped, the water had spread all over the area and people were safe, but someone was missing. He stared at the ground and found a light pink napkin, with a red rose printed on it.
"...Meiru-chan..."
Netto's hands became fists and he squeezed them, hard. He lifted his right fist to the air and punched ground, as he shouted with exasperation in his voice, "No! Not again! W-Why can't I protect her... Meiru-chan... AAAH!" his punches continued and did not stop, he felt weak.
People may think that he is strong, almost invincible, but he knew that protecting the people that he truly cared was his weakness. His eyes were filled with tears. He lifted his face and yelled to the world, the message being for just one person, "MEIRU-CHAN! PLEASE COME BACK! MEIRU-CHAN!"
Netto took the delicate napkin in his hands, while letting tears flow. At that moment, he heard footsteps. They became louder and louder. Something was coming and it was coming his way. The brown-eyed boy summoned his blaster and pointed it at the shadow.
"Who are you?" demanded Netto, "Show yourself!"
The shadow turned into a person. It was girl. Her long hair was put in a half ponytail, which was being held by a long white ribbon and it reached her knees. She wore a short-sleeved white dress with diamonds around the collar. It reached her knees and a turquoise bow was right in the middle of the chest area. In the middle of the bow was a diamond, in the shape of a heart, the edges were gold and tiny crystals decorated the edges. A pair of silver wings was behind the symbol. This symbol was on top of the girl's forehead as well. She wore long white boots that went over her knees and her white gloves reached the top part of her arms. Behind her back were pure white wings. She looked like an angel.
In her arms was another girl. Netto had suffered, almost killed himself, because of her. It was none other the Meiru. Her clothes were dirty, her face was paler than usually, but there were no injuries, Meiru was safe.
As Netto stared at the sleeping Meiru in amaze, Enzan and Raika reached Netto, while Enzan complained "Oi Netto! You didn't protect the people like I told you!"
Enzan expected Netto to complain back, but he didn't. The brown-eyed boy's eyes were set on the girl. The two net saviours were shocked, for what they saw was something that they had never seen before.
"Who are you?" asked Raika
The angel looking girl walked towards the dimensional area, for the entrance was left in ruins. She turned around and faced the three net savours.
"I am Sakurai Flora, Meiru-chan's sister and half of the soul of Sakurai Linphea Nature" her eyes made direct contact with Netto's and she continued "Don't worry, Meiru-chan is fine, but soon her life and the lives of this world will be at stake. Netto, if you truly love my sister, then I will fight... at your side"
Her white wings revealed themselves as they spread and with one flap, she reached the skies, with Meiru in her arms.
"What was that all about?", wondered Raika out loud
"I have no idea", commented Enzan
Netto's eyes had not moved from Meiru and he watched as she disappeared, together with the angel looking girl. Sakurai Flora... is... Meiru-chan's... sister...
Flora flew towards their home, while staring at her sister's delicate face. Her grip increased and she lifted her head, her face looking directly forwards. Dark Star... if you ever touch my sister again... I am going end your life... personally...
Flora: It seems as if we have a new enemy...
Emmie: More of an old enemy for us!
Flora: And Meiru-chan is in danger...
Emmie: We won't let that happen!
Flora: Please read & review!
Emmie: While the story goes on!
Flora & Emmie: Coming next... The return of Dark Star!
Ending Song:
Fureta yubisaki
Kokoro tomoshite
Nagaredasu senritsu
Ai o nozomu
Kizutsuketa eda no saki
Kuchite yuku sadame na no ?
Tozasareta toki no hazama ni mayoikonda
Chiisana hikari no shizuku
Yume no owari tada kimi dake o negau
Hitomi ni utsuru
Gin no tsukikage
Yasurakana senritsu
Douka towa ni
Kizamiyuku hari no oto
Aragaenu sadame na no ?
Chigirareta kono gensou o tsutsumikonda
Utsuro na hikari no rasen
Motomeru no wa tada shiawase na kotae
Hari iro no toki no hazama ni michite yuku yo
Odayaka na hikari no shizuku
Yume no owari tada sore dake o negau