Chapter 14: Finale
11:47 AM (Japan Time), Saturday February the 7th…
"… UWA~H! IT'S A MONSTER! GOD! HELP ME~!"
Count Elec ran into the storage room inside of Maha Ichiban's after spotting a gigantic black-colored skull with blue eyes on the threshold of the restaurant.
"Heh, heh, heh. Big success indeed!"
Both Charles and Martin stepped in, laughing: the "skull" had obviously been their doing.
"Don't blame us! Dr. Wily told us you were in low spirits: so that's why we sought to snap you out of them!" Charles told Count Elec as he stood next to the door.
"So! If you want to blame someone you can blame him."
"It's the "Cheer Count Elec Scheme"!" Davis announced.
"We're cunning: in case you didn't know it!" Lander added.
"Goddamn it! Dr. Wily – sama, you are a jerk!" Count Elec cursed.
"Oi, Elec! Don't go over the thin red line! You don't want to earn Dr. Wily – sama's anger!" Hinonen reprimanded him.
"I care not! Damn!" Count Elec kept on cursing.
"Those two…" Madoi rolled her eyes and looked unimpressed.
"They are like matter and antimatter." Maha commented with a smile.
"They destroy each other." Magic Man added.
"I don't see the point of it." Fire Man protested.
"Count Elec has too much of a temper." Elec Man shrugged.
"Heh, heh, heh!" Colored Man chuckled.
"Ho, ho, ho…" Wily, sitting on his usual spot, chuckled as well.
11:56 AM (Japan Time)…
"… De masu! Heh, heh, heh! All's going perfectly! De masu! I'll get my hands on those Golden Chips and sell them as "Premium Edition"! De masu!"
"That's what you think. Daydreaming won't solve anything!"
Higure was boasting again and Number Man was trying to keep him in check, as always.
"Heh, heh, heh! Ms. Glassy says my future is filled with light! De masu!"
"It's on the contrary: it's filled with obscurity." Number Man sarcastically replied.
"Ms. Glassy! You are my idol! De masu! I must remember to bring her some chocolates… Next Saturday is THE day! Masu!"
"… Next week is February the 14th… St. Valentine's, huh? So that's what you were up to."
"I'm going to put on some colony before going to see her! Heh, heh, heh!"
"And bring her a chocolate for White Day too, Yamitarou!"
"Oh! De masu! A white chocolate for White Day… De masu!"
"Pyrururu? What's this about, pyu?" Aqua Man wondered.
"Nothing. Go play with Ice Man."
"Yay! Wait for me, Ice Man! Pyu!"
"I've got a bad feeling…" Shuuko timidly muttered.
"No wonder, Shuuko – chan." Number Man agreed.
"Ms. Glassy! Provide light and glow to my future! Masu!"
"Provide some rational thinking." Number Man grumbled.
"I'm the luckiest shining man ever! DE MASU~!"
"You aren't. End of the story. Get rational!"
12:04 PM (Japan Time)…
DING DONG!
"Coming…"
Nelaus opened his door's house after checking through the peephole that Tamashita was the visitor.
"Hullo. What's up?"
"Can I come in?" She asked with a smile.
"Huh… Sure. Why do I feel this happens every day lately?"
They stepped inside and sat down on the living room's sofas: Tamashita looked very animated.
"Next Saturday I gotta bring a surprise for you!" Tamashita grinned.
"Next Saturday…? But my birthday ain't due 'till June the 27th…"
"Yeah. Why does it have to be next Saturday?" Isaac frowned.
"You really don't know what happens next Saturday? Dear me! I thought you were looking forward to it!" Felicia teased.
"No." Both replied.
"St. Valentine's!" Both announced.
"St. Valentine's?" Both asked.
"Yeah! I'm baffled that you don't know what's about! Every boy waits for this day with eagerness!" Tamashita giggled.
"Is that so? Huh… Sorry… While I was on Chicago I never was told about any festivities or anything…" Nelaus scratched the back of his head.
"Yeah. This is why we didn't know about it." Isaac admitted.
"Heh, heh, heh! Now you know! I'll be a splendid day!"
"Did you ask Miyuki – san to tell you your fortune, then?" Nelaus tried to guess without being too surprised.
"I tried! But she told me that I was "trekking down a path of false guidance"… I got pissed off, so I ditched her and started reading the horoscopes…" Tamashita explained, shrugging.
"That Miyuki – san… Whenever she wants to, she can give out useful info…" Nelaus rolled his eyes and sighed.
"Her Navi was also creepy! He had that weird-tuned voice and sounded like an old man…" Felicia complained.
"I won't deny the fact. He does give out that bad first impression."
"So? Rainon – kun? Do we keep on being a couple?" Tamashita asked him as she grabbed his right arm.
"Huh… Eh… Sure… No… problem…" Nelaus slowly replied, blushing.
"Te – heh – heh! This has a good look to it, Isaac – kun!" Felicia giggled.
"Ta, ta, ta. It's all over." Isaac replied.
"At least you don't speak Martian like Ooyama…" Nelaus chuckled.
"Really… He couldn't just say: "I'm bad at this stuff" instead of that undecipherable growl?" Tamashita rolled her eyes.
"Ooyama's got those weird moods from time to time." He shrugged.
"YEOUWAH!" Someone yelped from the Cyber World.
"What was that?" Both girls gasped.
"… Ah. The trap-bear… Guess it worked. A rip for a rip: I took them out of Biohazard 4." Nelaus was amused.
"It was a stalker Navi stalking us two who fell for a trap." Isaac shrugged.
"Hah! They deserve it: they'll regret stalking my Net Savior boyfriend."
"Huh… Guess you're my girlfriend then?" Nelaus timidly asked her.
"Of course, dear." She replied while blinking him an eye to tease him.
"Please…" He didn't think the attempt was funny to begin with.
12:29 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Huh? What's this book about? "Adventures of Bugs Bunny"… Man! I've always wanted to read this! Let's see… Uwah!"
A guard had been patrolling a corridor when he spotted the book; when he tried to open it, however, the covered opened and a wrestling glove attached to a spring came out, knocking the guard cold.
"Heh, heh, heh! Trill's "literature" strategy is a success!" Trill giggled.
"Sure is!" Omega smirked as he looked at the knocked out guard.
"Hey, Uncle Omega! Let's trick another one!"
"Sure. Leave it up to me: I know some strategies of my own too, Trill."
They both climbed up one floor via the stairs and exited into a corridor guarded by six elites at the end of it who were chatting amongst them.
"There's a general round of free beer at the cantina, fellows!"
"What?" One gasped.
"Seriously?" Another wondered.
"I want some beer! There I go~!" A third proclaimed.
"Last one is left out! Hurry it up, you turtles!" A fourth joked.
"Oi! Not fair! Wait for us! You'll regret this yet!" A fifth complained.
"You jerk! I'll have you swallow water instead!" A sixth cursed.
The six elites ran off and didn't spot how they passed close to Omega and Trill, who had hidden in an empty room: they dashed down the stairs.
"Yay! Uncle Omega's "bait" strategy is a success, too!"
"I told ya it'd be. It's all about knowing their elemental weaknesses!"
"Yay! Elemental weakness, yeah! Gotcha!"
Both of them ran into the now unprotected room and found the "GOAL" flag standing there.
MISSION COMPLETE!
Both of them departed the VR System's Cyber World and returned to the real world.
VR SIMULATOR
MODE: INFILTRATION
LEVEL: NORMAL
TIME: 05: 35
RANK: A
USERS: OMEGA & TRILL
HAVE A NICE DAY!
Once the holographic screen disengaged, Omega crouched to be at around Trill's height: they both clasped open palms.
"Yay! We did it, Uncle Omega!" Trill exclaimed.
"Sure thing! You had some good ideas as well, Trill!" Omega congratulated.
"I'm glad to see you're having fun with everyone, Trill." Iris commented as she stepped; she looked in a good mood.
"Yay! Trill likes tricking guards! Oneechan!" Trill grinned.
"Thank you for playing with him, Omega – san." Iris told Omega.
"There was no need for it, Iris. I felt like it."
"Come, Trill. Let's go have a walk in Internet City."
"Yay! Let's go meet Aqua Man and Ice Man! 'Bye, Uncle Omega!"
"See you later."
Both walked out while Omega stretched and rubbed his shoulders.
Heh. Guess Zoan Gate Man will soon be limping of the right foot… If you thought you'd get away without consequences, think again! Heh, heh!
11:42 AM (Mongolia Time)…
"… Meta… We haven't been able to find the girls who vanished."
"Bah. It matters not. We can make more of them!"
Scorpion had come to report to Meta inside of his office over the failure to locate the missing Valkyries.
"Cobra and I did manage to eliminate the override code from the remaining units, though. Nobody but us will be able to control them."
"That's good. I'm sure that we'll soon be able to make the first move as the Desert Wraiths." Meta smiled.
Vulture was revising figures on a holographic map in the meanwhile.
"The chances of this operation working smoothly clock at an approximate 76%, Meta – sama." Vulture reported.
"Hmmm… We'll try to increase it a bit." Meta replied.
"Roger, Meta – sama."
Scorpion headed down a corridor and got into another room where Cobra was sitting behind a desk and working with a laptop: he stood up and saluted so Scorpion returned the salute.
"… What did Meta – dono say, Scorpion – sama?" Cobra asked.
"He doesn't care about it. He'll be in a good mood as long as we can produce something satisfactory."
"We should continue working on strengthening our firewalls and encryption protocols, then."
"That's correct. Let's get to work, man."
"Roger, Scorpion – sama."
Scorpion sat down behind his desk and began working on drawing some figure with a holographic projector and revising documents while chuckling under his breath…
11:49 AM (Mongolia Time)…
"… Don't you think Meta – dono will be unpleased at what we have done, Viper – sama?"
"He won't, Bella."
Bella and Viper were walking down a corridor and talking about something: both of them carried blue backpacks, which seemed to contain several items.
"If you say so, Viper – sama… I won't deny that it was worth it: but we could've jeopardized our preparations…" Bella seemed to have her doubts about something.
"We just need to think it more carefully next time." Viper assured her.
"Roger, Viper – sama." Bella saluted.
"Tee, heh, heh. That guy, Twilight… He sent us an email with info on some clubs where I had fun with some little girls… It's more fitting to punish little boys but slipping the Devil inside of little girls is fun too…"
"You mean making it in a way that they will crave for more as time passes and maybe they will become Mistresses to rule over others and have the cycle begin anew?" Bella deduced, snickering.
"Bravo." She clapped.
"Thank you very much."
"Tee, heh, heh. And I'm starting to get a lil idea… But I want to do some research firstly… A lil something between you and me without the need to involve those bad boys…" Viper smirked.
"It sounds intriguing, ma'am."
"Oh my. Doesn't it, my dear disciple? Tee, heh, heh."
"Hmpf. The Desert Wraiths will haunt their dreams."
"Of course, my cute lil girl… And their dreams will morph into nightmares from which they won't be able to escape… ever! Tee, heh, heh!"
12:58 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Hmmm… Zzzzz…"
"… Boss."
"… zzzzz …"
"… Boss."
"… hmmm… zzzz…"
"BOSS!"
"YIKES!"
Vadous suddenly awoke when he heard someone yell at him; he looked around, apparently disoriented.
"Wha…? What the hell?"
He was sitting on his command armchair in front of the control consoles: he looked at his right and spotted Omega: he didn't look in a good mood.
"W-what happened? Those dudes…? Twilight…? Vadous asked.
"That's not it, Boss. Falling asleep on the armchair is not good for your health. Lartes has told you many times, no?" He sighed.
"Huh… Sorry… I stayed up until late last night trying to narrow down where those guys could be at… Twilight included…"
"Next time make sure to go to your own room to rest. If you fall asleep like this then it won't be a good thing."
"Uh-huh… You're right… We're going have another long calm before the storm… We need to be on our toes…" Vadous barely repressed a yawn.
"By the way… Do we have any news regarding Regal and Laser Man?"
"The Net Police have decided to extend the current status quo until May, more or less… Dr. Regal hasn't complained because he knows he lacks a lot of credibility but at least they've removed the mikes on the house and they monitor his PC and PET instead to allow him some privacy."
"Hum. Alright. Say… If we encountered that biker… We let them go without asking questions?" Omega asked.
"Yeah. If the police feel like they should ID the guy it's their decision: as long as they're not as violent as Red Hood…" Vadous confirmed.
"Huff. Let's hope Twilight doesn't try to imitate the guy either."
"He's busy enough spoiling us, anyway. Let that "Talon" come out anytime: I don't give a cent for it." Vadous got animated.
"OK, Boss…"
"…owls and talons and bats and robins shall struggle and wriggle alongside a blood-stained "Dark Sea" and…" Dragon Hell's voice echoed.
"Michelangelo got loose!" Vadous yelled.
"UWA~H!"
"Yay! Dragon – san runs like an athlete!" Trill giggled close by.
"Trill! I told you that this area IS off-limits! Don't sneak away when we were going to head to Internet City!" Iris scolded.
"Jeez. The "mad ship" curse began again. Shadow Man! I know you're listening, say something!" Omega fumed.
"Calling On He Who Brings Conflict Along With A Bang And A Kiss." He replied over the radio.
"Sigma told you my "Codec" frequency, didn't the moron?"
"Heh, heh, heh… Oh yes. Now we need Chinese proverbs by Ms. Mei Ling to relax the tension of the mission. Don't we, fellows?"
"Shadow Man! Enough fooling around: there's job to be done!" Miyabi scolded over his end.
"Sure, daishogun Miyabi. My proud step brother."
"THERKZBHAT!" Miyabi growled something undecipherable.
"Sheesh. This is so ridiculous. Hope no-one overhears this circus!"
13:23 PM (Japan Time)…
"… What? So Dark Land was behind this?"
"Yes, Priest – sama. And the main responsible guys, the former Foreign Department Executives, have deserted and gone into hiding."
"Mwro~h… I sneaked around but found nothing close to the borders of Dark Land… They could've gone to Burma or Taiwan even."
"Hmpf… A string of headaches, huh?"
"Past" was reporting to "Priest" from a wide plaza, which served as motorbike parking; he was sitting in the ground left of the bike and speaking through the PET without having bothered to take out the helmet or turn on the PET's holographic screen.
"That's how it seems to be, Priest – sama."
"Fua~h… Yeah, I'm listening… The Earl Grey tea relaxes but also makes me feel sleepy, too! I kept on pushing myself but at least this thing walks until the square…" The interlocutor grumbled.
"A walking robot…? Is that what the project is about, sir?"
"I was being sarcastic… I mean… It works decently but not at full capacity: I need some more tuning… I'm busy updating my LAN each week too to make sure nothing comes in and nothing is leaked. My project could have important far-reaching consequences and the world isn't ready to know about it yet. Besides: it's MY pet project. I won't hand it over to anyone else: NO MATTER WHAT!"
"W-whoa! R-roger, sir."
"Sorry if I scared you, Past… But I had to say it aloud. I feel better. Some things are better off expelled aloud!"
"That's good to know, sir."
"By the way… What happened in that Utah crater thing in the end? Do you have any info on that? It's all very hush-hush out there. I don't want to try to get too close and get detected."
"From the looks of it… There's a facility named "Time-Space Tower" which studies something…That's all I got: NASA is being surprisingly quiet. It must be a new phenomenon which requires new theories and hypotheses to understand it and they mustn't want rush it up and then get shot down by private or amateur researchers."
"Not unlike me! If the world isn't ready to know yet then so be it: forget about them and focus on those ex-Dark Land guys and their weapons: Raith Siennar's descendant must be the one making them for the Legacy Era Empire..." "Priest" added with some sarcasm.
"No wonder, sir. They can't be original!"
"Muwro~h… AM – dono. Is there no way to try to get Priest – sama to properly rest? Past's worried about his health." "Unit B" asked-
"And I am too but I have no means to materialize and when Priest – sama gets a fit of bad mood he shuts off my speakers too." The Navi replied.
"Lovely. Let's hope His Grace doesn't collapse." "Unit B" sighed.
"I know. You haven't been at his side 24/7. And yes, that's what I fear the most. I can see it coming at any day!"
"OUCH! That wrench had to fall from the table and hit my foot! It's possessed by Jinx Man!"
"Jinx Man…? Priest – sama, sir…!" "AM" sighed out of exasperation.
"Huff! If only I cared to place things on the toolbox… I'm getting lazy and that's no good. I need to be sharper! Anyway… Past! Keep avoiding the cops but bust those guys whenever you see a chance. Remember to work on the cover too."
"Roger, sir. Don't push yourself, sir." "Past" acknowledged.
"I know… Huff. I better have some hours' rest!"
"Well, well, well… Let's go back to the turf and I'll work on the stuff."
"Mugro~h! I'll train by busting some Viruses out there… Wroh, hoh, hoh! And then get inside the TV in Inaba City to beat up some Shadows! Heh!"
14:34 PM (Melbourne Time)…
"… OH YEAH! LET ZA JEDI HIT ZA TEMPLE!"
"That's lame, Cloud Man."
"Did ya mention the great me, Swallow Man?"
"Huff. Behave."
"Yamato Man! They need you to guide them with the Battle Meditation!"
"This fool!"
"I know that Fool's Killer is obsessed over me, Cosmo Man."
"Cloud Man!"
"Yikes! Commander Freeze Man!"
"Stay quiet! I'm trying to recover there!"
Cloud Man kept on with his countless parodies: Swallow Man glanced at him with an annoyed look: Yamato Man, who'd been sitting cross-legged in a corner and seemingly meditating, grumbled: Cosmo Man was fed up and Freeze Man called out while Zoan Gate Man (out of sight) called out to complain.
"Twilight – sama told you: go sing those in front of Thunder Man!"
"Oho. And then I'll prove to Raoul The Thunderbird he's outdated!"
"Whatever! Just get out of here! On the triple! NOW!"
Cloud Man's 3D image vanished as his consciousness program travelled across the printed circuitry tracks out of the Cyber World: the others sighed in relief and Zoan Gate Man groaned.
"Metto~…"
"Yeah! Put some more bandages and finish that hover-pack! First a shark and then a bear-trap! What's with those guys?" He groaned next.
"Huff. Zoan Gate Man ran into some trouble, huh?"
"I know, Bapgei. The Subspace has gotten serious at last."
"You did well on telling Cloud Man to go off… Master went out to take care of some stuff and we don't want him to get annoyed…"
Philip began to chat with Freeze Man but he didn't seem to be too surprised at Cloud Man's behavior.
"The Court of Thunders sentences you to… CRUMBLE!"
"OH MY THUNDER!" Raoul's voice gasped.
"Raoul! You moron! That's Cloud Man!"
"The fool now patched us live to Thunder Man's PET, huh?"
"Say, Freeze Man… If you guys can travel across the circuitry… Then why couldn't you get inside of the Subspace HQ and listen in?"
"No good. Vadous already designed sensors to catch up abnormal power spikes and re-shape all pathways to force us into a U-turn and out of the systems. Swallow Man tried it." Freeze Man explained
"Cypher installed that system and the other guys must've done the same by now, anyway." Swallow Man sighed.
"Ah. Of course: they suspected you'd do that ever since the summer, half a year ago…" Philip calmly realized.
"Hum! But there will be a way: one must meditate!" Yamato Man muttered.
"If we give it some time and try some different tactics…" Cosmo Man suggested.
"I'll remember this!" Zoan Gate Man cursed.
"You stay quiet and heal." Freeze Man called out to him with a sigh.
"Lovely. Guess we'll need a new strategy drawn from scratch."
"Lord Twilight will come up with something, as usual… Heh, heh, heh."
"You're right. If it's Master then… This isn't over. Not yet. Heh, heh, heh."
22:22 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Alright, Sigma… I do the first round and you stay here…"
"Mwah, hah, hah… Roger, Regor."
"Jeez. When will you stop doing those puns, anyway?"
"Hmmm… Let us sleep already, Sigma…!"
"We want to enjoy a fresh Sunday!"
Blood Shadow was going over with Sigma about the nocturnal shifts when he pulled a "mirrored" word on him and both Netto and Saito complained at his behavior: their voices were picked over by the PET's microphones and it'd seemed they'd already hit the sack.
"It'd seem that Xon' Edos guy will keep on monitoring us and is likely challenging us to try to reach him too to see if we're worth a few "gifts"; luckily this guy is peaceful and doesn't seek to start a fight." Blood Shadow commented.
"Mwah, hah, hah… Sode Nox! The newest energy beverage…!"
"Jeez. How lame." Netto groaned.
"Mwah, hah, hah… Scorpion, Vulture and Bella, eh? Then! Noiprocs, Erutluv, Alleb!" Sigma laughed.
"Go patrol the firewall already or Commander Omega WILL get annoyed for REAL this time around. And shut you down for 3 weeks!" Blood Shadow warned.
"Yikes! G-gotcha! I don't want a repeat of the summer!"
"About time… Good night, Blood…" Netto yawned and sounded relieved.
"Remind Sigma who the Boss is!" Saito advised.
"Leave it up to me! And I'll send those jerks running away!"
As long as I'm around, those jerks won't get away with it! My word!
THE END