Chapter 10: Express bail out
18:51 PM (Japan Time), Wednesday December the 14th…
"… It's gotta be around here… Here! This must be the place."
"Yes, Enzan – sama. Probabilities are high."
Enzan had made his way to the lake and was examining the ledges leading towards the cave.
"Damn. I go to Netto's home to discuss the riddle we found while having a new look at the Silver Arrow HQ mainframe and I find the answers listed in a Word file along with the suggestion that there's a machine of those hidden around here! Netto went there with Saito. I'm sure he knew it was a trap! But he's obsessed on getting to the bottom of this!"
"But even if Hunter Man was there, Saito should be more than enough to handle him given how his materialization program was so weak."
"I know. But I'm sure Obihiro didn't forget that. He must've called in accomplices. Standing idle won't do us any good! We gotta hurry!"
"Roger, Enzan – sama."
Enzan jumped down the ledges and entered the hidden cave.
He ran over to the machine and began to type into the keyboard.
"It was last used 55 minutes ago! Nobody has come back through it! Damn! I knew it! They've fallen into a trap are being held hostage! Gonna go and free them no matter what!" Enzan cursed aloud.
"Given how Enzan – sama managed to borrow an experimental "Copy Roid" based off Iris' design, I could materialize and assist."
"Come out and be ready for battle. Things are gonna get hot and hectic! Our opponent won't be limited to Hunter Man!"
"Roger, sir."
"Sheesh! Netto! And here I thought we agreed to work together! What's gotten into you?"
10:53 AM (Barcelona Time)…
"… Hmmm? The call I was waiting for!"
Obihiro stood next to the house's main door when a cell phone began to ring, so he drew it from a pocket he took it out and looked at the display.
"Luigiano. Let's see… Luigiano? Cosa pasare?"
"He asked "what's up?" to the caller…" Saito whispered to Netto.
"Let's take note." Netto suggested.
"… Cinco minuti? Perfetto. Ciao." Obihiro grinned.
"… "Five minutes? Perfect. Bye"…" Saito translated.
"He's gonna arrive in five minutes and I guess he has a car."
They heard the sound of Navi logging into the laptop's Cyber World and a close up of Death Shadow appeared onscreen.
"Obihiro. I have the reference data. We can start planning from these."
"Perfect! Lemme have a look at 'em."
"Sure."
Obihiro walked over to the laptop and unplugged the charger to store it on its case.
He typed into the screen and read something.
"What! Is the date on this file correct?"
"It is."
"Research on this began as far as the 70s!? Even before "Spectrum"! And I thought that decade was very dull!" He exclaimed next.
"Military always have technology superior to their age."
Military? Some research which began in the 70s?
Guess it's gonna be the base for this "STS" weapon!
They heard the noise of a van parking close by and someone stepping down from it.
"Quien sere questo giovento?" A man's voice asked.
("Who's this young lad?")
"Agente dil Padrino." Sidier replied.
("Godfather's Agent.")
"Il Padrino…! Entendo, entendo… Capo sere negli la casa?"
("The Gofather…! Gotcha, gotcha… Boss is in the house?")
"Coretto. Di dentro."
("Correct. Inside.")
"Grazie."
("Thanks.")
The door opened and a man stepped in.
He looked on his early thirties and had some blonde hair.
He wore a simple navy blue tie with a black suit and brown shoes.
He sported sunglasses and a hat as well.
"Capo. Io avere arrivato." He announced.
("Boss. I've arrived.")
"Bene, bene! Caricare dela bagaglio negli il veicolo."
("Good, good! Load the luggage in the car.")
The man complied and paid no attention to the twins.
He grabbed the wheeled suitcase and the laptop case.
He headed outside while Obihiro took out a piece of paper and a pencil.
He began to mark some items written on it.
"Luggage. Check. Computer. Check. Food will be there and I already made sure nothing remains here to rot! I've got everything." He muttered.
"But we're gonna take it all, ya see." An amused voice rang out.
"This is as far as you two come to." A second voice rang out.
The door slammed open and both Enzan and Blues appeared on the threshold.
"Enzan!" Netto exclaimed in relief.
"Buruusu!" Saito exclaimed.
"Crap. Ijuuin!" Obihiro cursed.
"Blues…! You lowlife…!" Hunter Man hissed while inside of the Link PET.
"That's my motto." Blues shot back.
"Give it up." Enzan told them.
"Who's gonna give it up, Ijuuin?" Sidier announced.
He drew a black, curved blade.
It had a purple sphere on the spot where the handle and blade fused.
"What the…! Sergei!" Both cursed.
"My name is Sidier. I'm based on them. But I work for Emperor S – sama."
"I knew it! Yamikawa has been hiding your location from the very start! The double-faced guy! I'd like to go and fill his smug face with scars!"
"Hmpf. That happens because you're slow-witted!"
"So you lowlife are the reason their attempt to catch Obihiro failed."
"Wrong. That was my hand." A voice rang out.
The atmosphere chilled and both Enzan and Blues felt a shiver go down their spines.
Blues' Long Sword began to freeze before it shattered.
"What!" He gasped.
"Ijuuin Enzan. Blues EXE. You two will be granted my mark as well."
"Who the…?" Enzan demanded.
Death Shadow's left hand showed up from nowhere and pressed against Enzan's torso.
He gasped and seemed to freeze on the spot as the "shi" Kanji formed on his jumper's chest area.
"What in the…?" Blues cursed.
The hand gripped his helmet's forehead and the Kanji formed there.
Death Shadow turned off the optical camouflage.
"W-who the…?" Enzan demanded.
"My name is Death Shadow: the reincarnated Grim Reaper!"
"T-this guy…!" Enzan muttered.
"The power levels…! I can't measure them!" Blues cursed.
"Like those two over there… I shall come to take you lowlifes' meaningless lives in less than 5 days starting today." He announced.
"Less than 5 days…!" Enzan gasped.
"You lowlife…!" Blues hissed.
"Hang it!" Enzan grumbled.
"But, today, I am merely introducing my role in this "show", as they vulgarly name it! The name "drama" sounds more fitting to my intellect instead... Experience the cold which comes before eternal sleep…"
He charged up his arm cannon and placed the barrel on the ground.
A mass of ice spread across the ground, forming tall and wide columns.
The ice formed on both Enzan and Blues' feet and it encompassed their hands as well.
"Farewell."
He ran off along with Sidier and Obihiro and slammed the door closed.
"You cowards!" Netto cursed.
"Fight us!" Saito challenged.
The door froze and they heard the sound the van turning on and leaving.
"Shit." Netto growled.
"Buruusu! That ice is temporary! It can be easily broken!" Saito called out.
Blues tried hitting the closest solid object he could find and broke the ice on his hands before shattering the one on his legs.
He lost balance due to the poor friction, sat on the ground and rubbed his lower back.
Enzan had managed to break the ice as well and he fell into the ground, rubbing his lower back.
The ice dematerialized and both were able to stand up and walk over to the twins.
"Gomen, Enzan! We fell for it." Netto apologized.
"Sheesh! Hadn't we agreed to be honest with each other?"
"I know, but… The temptation was so strong…"
"Sheesh! Fine, fine… But, nevertheless… Even a whole team would've been unable to handle such a guy… What the hell was it, anyway?"
"That's somewhat of a long story. I'll tell you on the way back home! Can you cut these?" Netto asked.
"Sure."
Enzan took out a scout knife and cut the ropes while Blues used a Sword Battle Chip to cut the cable.
Both stood up and stretched their feet and wrists for some seconds.
"Guess we need to call a full investigation team to search this place… But I doubt them having left any hints behind." Netto muttered.
"I get the same feeling."
"I really don't want to find that guy twice… His mere presence seems to invite death!" Blues muttered.
"And I'm sure he wasn't kidding when he "granted" this mark into all of us four… He'll be coming for us." Enzan grimly muttered.
"No. Let's get the hell outta there. It's almost 7:00 PM in Japan and Mama must be about to get worried." Saito told them.
"Let's go, Enzan."
"O. K. You two go home: I'll go report to the Net Police and bring an investigation team to work here." Enzan nodded in agreement.
"The problem will be locating those creeps again." Blues sighed in defeat.
"Sure thing. This place itself was so discrete, nobody paid attention to it in the first place… I'm sure they'll find one that's harder to detect!"
"If they're gonna build a weapon, I guess some old factory."
"But they'll obviously use a proxy or camouflage…"
"Sheesh! Standing here and speculating won't solve anything…"
"Hmmm? Netto – kun, there's an email from Dingo…"
"Dingo? Talk about rare. What does he want?"
"As expected, he wants you to be a middle man…"
"Sheesh. He expects me to negotiate with Maha to give him back the tomahawk that Maha confiscated!" He grumbled.
"He won't learn!" Enzan sighed.
"No comments." Blues dully muttered.
"Anyway! Let's get back home right away!"
10:57 AM (Spain Time)…
"Excellent!"
The black van reached the end of a hill and turned left to run a road overseeing a city and the sea.
Only Obihiro and the man named Luigiano were onboard.
"So? Where are we going to?"
"We'll need a custom-built facility to work on STS." Obihiro replied.
"True."
"They must be feeling terrified by now." Sidier chuckled.
"Obviously."
"Let the "Net Saviors" be filled with fear and terror, guys. We're gonna prove we triumvirate are no joke."
"Indeed. There is a limit to what one can do on their own. Combinating resources for a common purpose is the most logical course of action."
"Such is how civilization has evolved."
"Indeed. It is thanks to it that I exist here now, so I shall make good use of it in an efficient manner."
"Sidier. Status report!" Yamikawa called out.
"My lord. As expected, Ijuuin and Blues appeared but Death over here used a fraction of his strength to keep them busy. We have left the house behind and are about to head for the new base, sir."
"Excellent. They shall know the fear." Yamikawa sneered.
"Of running out of gags." Kagehi laughed.
"How original." Kuroumi sighed.
"Alright, Luciano! Set course for Aragón!"
"Si, Capo!" ("Yes, Boss")
19:20 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Where were you!? You didn't contact me!"
"Net Savior stuff popped out, Mama!"
"We're sorry!"
Haruka was scolding Netto and Saito for c and they both apologized.
"If it was a "Net Savior" mission, then I can understand… Just have a quick shower and get ready for tomorrow, Netto." Haruka told him.
"I'll have to go brief the Net Police with Buruusu tomorrow, so… I guess Knight Man will take care of security." Saito told Netto.
"Sure."
They climbed into the upper floor bedroom and Netto headed into the bathroom while shutting the door behind him
Saito sat down on the chair and sighed in relief.
He looked at the Kanji on his helmet's forehead and grumbled.
"Jeez. This is so annoying!"
He pressed his fingers against it and it vanished, but it formed again a second later.
"Damn. It's a repetitive program. That Death guy sure doesn't want people erasing his "mark"!"
He inputted commands and his helmet faded away to reform, deleting the Kanji.
"Now I can sleep in a normal manner." He muttered.
He grabbed Netto's bandana and wiped the drawing from it, making sure it didn't reappear either.
"Who'd want to sleep when you're marked with such a symbol, anyway?"
"Nobody!" Netto grumbled.
19:45 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Hmpf. So things have become complicated, then…"
"The information is scarce. But it seems this will be something extremely complicated to solve, Shuryou."
Gospel was listening to a report by Freeze Man.
"So. Apart from that presence, that names itself Death Shadow, there's a man named Sidier! A Cross Fusion human turned into a Net Navi… Those fools who defeated you and the man known as Forte…"
"Indeed. Insofar, what's known of Death Shadow is the following… He has a habit of "granting" the "death" Kanji to foes! He announced that he would try to kill those marked in less than 5 days from today. He seems to be fond of dramatic speeches and has the ability to freeze the room in the blink of an eye! His power may be above mine when it comes to that!"
"Hmpf. Else, it wouldn't be worth our time…"
"However, we should be careful. A man that powerful, make one misstep and they can destroy us in the blink of an eye."
"Hmpf. True. We'll resort to sensor hacking."
"Understood, sir. By the way, sir… About Forte… What do we do?"
"Same as always. Ignore them. With some luck, they will destroy those interlopers and pave the way for our comeback."
"Roger, sir. As you command."
"Reinforce security. Put on more scramblers."
"Right away, sir!"
"Also, set up more mines on the perimeter. Aerial mines, included!"
"Understood. I shall make the defensive perimeter thicker."
"That's it. Move it."
"Glory to Gospel!"
19:58 PM (Japan Time)…
"… I managed to wash off that thing somehow."
"Damn it. What was that guy?"
"Cool it, Blues."
"Yes, sir. I apologize, Enzan – sama."
Enzan had managed to wash off the Kanji and Blues had removed it, too.
He growled as he projected with the hologram.
"That guy gotta be the scariest thing I've ever felt."
"Damn Yamikawa. We should've been mistrustful of the jerk."
"Sure. I knew he was up to something! But to this extent… What can you expect of a guy who's lived 15 years in such a dreadful place, had to fight for 5 years to gain his freedom, and then had to kill his deranged father in self-defense? His head must be a mess."
Enzan grumbled as he washed his face with water from the sink's faucet.
"No wonder, sir. And that guy's companions are too strong: heck, Solo was able to beat the hell out of me, sir. I apologize for my language, sir, but I feel extremely annoyed, sir."
"Don't mind it. Lash out all you want! That proves you have freedom of thought and you're not a repetitive program."
"Roger, sir."
"Little brother! Let's crash!"
"Damn. Since he's in the "Net Police related" archive of phone numbers his call is patched in and treated as an emergency call."
"Oh yeah! Let's struggle~! The Unending Struggle~! Only in theaters!"
"Cut that thing off, Blues… What a day!"
Who the hell was that "Death Shadow" guy? Damn you, Yamikawa!
