Chapter 13: Mobs
09:18 AM (Japan Time), Wednesday January the 31st…
"… Nya~h! Time to die~! Weaklings! We're the strongest!"
"H-how did we end up like this?"
"I'm not sure, desu…"
"Pyururu?"
"Guts, guts?"
Glyde, Ice Man, Aqua Man and Guts Man were surrounded by a horde of Heel Navis in Internet City: they were all nervous, shuddering, and unsure of what to do.
"Excuse me! Glyde Cannon!"
"Blizzard!"
"Water Fountain!"
"Guts Hammer! GUTS!"
They all began to attack the Heel Navis: they easily fell in front of their attack but more and more began to spawn next: there was a roar and a familiar wrecking ball hit some from behind; Knight Man landed there.
"I got your message!" He announced.
"Message? What message, sir?" Glyde frowned.
"Huh? Didn't you send a SOS?"
"No, sir. We did not send any, sir."
"Odd. It said "Grand Miss Yaito Sama"…"
"It surely was a fake, sir. To lure you here, sir."
"Neo Gospel, huh? Talk about cowards. Using others' names to lure us into their traps…!" Knight Man grumbled.
"Metal Fist!"
Metal Man delivered a blow to the ground and deleted a few of the Heel Navis before helping the group.
"I got the SOS! So we gotta beat the punks?" He grinned.
"It was a fake, sir!"
"What? Who'd send a fake SOS?"
"Neo Gospel!" Knight Man replied.
"I'd heard of them…! So this is their handiwork? What for?"
"To gather battle data on us: maybe they've gotten paranoid and think we've got hidden potential! Gentlemen!" Glyde suggested.
"Could be… Wouldn't surprise me!" Knight Man agreed it.
"Quick Boomerang! I've come to help!" Quick Man rushed in next by forcing a way through the mobs.
"You got lured by Neo Gospel, sir!"
"W-what? Devil!" He gasped.
"Dice Bomb! Aqua Man! You're alright!" Number Man rushed in as well.
"Pyururu~! Number Man!"
"Hmpf! A gathering of weaklings!" Yamato Man suddenly showed up atop a building and taunted them.
"Talk about yourselves! Look at yourselves before scolding others, will you? Hypocrites." Knight Man shot back as he swung around.
"What was that?"
"You always rely on proxies!
"Grrrr! Damn you~!"
"Yamato Man!" Freeze Man hissed.
"Huh! Y-yes, sir! What is it, sir?"
"Behave! Else…!" He threatened.
"R-roger, sir! I obey!"
"You better do and don't start with your manias!"
"R-roger, sir! I shut up, sir!"
"Quick Boomerang!"
"Kingdom Crusher!"
"Metal Wheel!"
"Glyde Cannon!"
"Blizzard!"
"Water Fountain!"
"Guts Punch! GUTSSSS!"
"So. Here you were. Like I predicted."
"Who…? Devil! You lowlife!"
"Indeed. Here I am."
A voice rang out behind Yamato Man and he whipped around to end up facing Xon' Edos: he looked dull and uninterested while Yamato Man gasped; he stepped back, nervous.
"Devil. This is out of your league, Yamato Man! Pull out! Now!"
"R-roger! Grrr! One day…!"
"DO YOU WANT ME TO FREEZE YOU FOR A WHOLE MONTH?" He ran out of patience.
"N-no, sir! Escape!"
"Hmpf. Weaklings indeed… They run." Xon' Edos was hardly impressed.
There was a roar and he calmly turned around to see that the REX was aiming the railgun at him and was almost totally loaded: he shrugged and waited for the railgun to shoot: the electrical burst headed for him but broke down into several streaks that deviated and landed in different spots around him: he then hovered towards REX as it turned on the laser and shot it at Xon' Edos: he calmly extended his hands forward and formed a wormhole: the laser went inside of it and emerged again through a wormhole behind the gun: the laser hit the gun and blew it up: Twilight growled from inside the cockpit.
"You copied the Lazy Laser!" He growled.
"Not exactly. That was an ability I had installed on me." He shrugged.
"Sheesh! Whatever! Eat Gatling gun!"
The Gatling gun shoot out next but Xon' Edos merely hovered away at a calm pace yet he was faster than the bullets: he built up energy on his right arm and shot a purple streak of energy at the Gatling gun: it overloaded and exploded.
"A small-scale EMP…" He let out.
"Shit. Another idea that backfires!"
"We may be explorers but we are not naïve. We did experience an age of conflict between Network Navigators… We predicted such things would happen in the worlds where we would land. We have several abilities to defend ourselves… Most of them based on a wise use of physics… In short: I use the head. You use rage. That is all." He dully lectured.
"An alien isn't gonna lecture me! The Dark Side of the Force is infinite! I'm the center of the Universe! Learn that, you worms!"
"And that means you are above your useless master?" He taunted.
"N-no! I didn't mean that! Damn it! Politician! Using my words as a blade!"
"Ah. Unless you specify… I also understand this type of warfare, too."
"Grrrr! Why the nerve of this…! Were it not for your interference!"
"Twilight! Cool it down! Else I'm going to ground you again!"
"R-roger, my lady! As you wish!" He gasped.
"Remember to use the REX itself, not just the guns! Like in the VS RAY battle in Act 4!" Anaya reminded him.
"Understood! I shall do so!"
"So you cannot do anything by yourself. You need to rely on someone else to tell you what to do. Deplorable, truly!"
"Shaddup! I travelled across Time – Space! That was not an order of Their Grace but it was necessary!" He grumbled.
"Just shut up and FIGHT! Complaining comes LATER! MORON!"
Twilight shut up and shot the missiles towards Xon' Edos: 15 of them locked on him and flew for him yet he simply slightly moved the right hand left and right: the missiles suddenly exploded and Twilight gasped in disbelief.
"I slightly increased the air temperature. I ignited the remaining fuel to disable them. I told you. I can use the head." He admitted.
"Fuck! Eat this!"
Twilight made the REX slide forward towards the building Xon' Edos was at yet the ground suddenly froze and it slid faster than expecte;d Xon' Edos floated higher into the air as the REX crashed and embedded into the building because of its high speed.
"Shit! Stupid ice! Last thing I needed!"
"What a frail machine. Its limitations are obvious!" He taunted.
There was a beep and a holographic screen with an emerald frame containing unknown glyphs showed up: some messages written in those unknown glyphs popped up.
"What? An attack on my vehicle's outer shell? Those are… RAY, was it? I see. You were a distraction and all of your men are trying to get inside of it to steal my data… So you can think, huh?" He realized.
"Too late! I win! That data will make us INVINCIBLE~!"
"I wonder about that. You seem to have forgotten I have a trump card in my vehicle the taste of which you experienced before…"
"Oh shit! That defense system thing! Damn it!"
Xon' Edos inputted some commands: there was a loud humming sound followed by an intense noise: some roars and shrieks rang out in a row before it all calmed down; Xon' Edos shrugged.
"The RAYs are deleted and your men fled due to heavy injuries."
"Fuck. I'm outta here! I'll remember this!"
The REX escaped while Xon' Edos glanced at the Navis: they had finished with their opponents and were resting.
"Good job." He called out.
"Thank you, sir! We better go report to our Operators." Glyde thanked.
"Better do so and tell them you are alright. Goodbye."
Hum. A desperate tactic. That was close. I better improve the defenses…!
11:04 AM (Japan Time)…
"… Twilight seems to be getting desperate and paranoid. To the point that he though Ice Man, Aqua Man and Guts Man and Glyde posed a threat to his plans…"
"Really. He lured other Navis as well to check out their potential. He somehow predicted Xon' Edos would show up too. At least he prevented the intrusion into his vehicle."
"Well. At least this will contribute to reducing the fear they left behind with that of London… Too bad some won't admit it happened for real!"
"There you are! Conspirers! You're not getting away!"
"Not you again. Miss Paranoia!"
"Confess! What's the "secret that change the world"?"
"Another of ex-Boss' lies: obviously enough!"
Netto, Saito and Nelaus had been talking on the classroom next to the windows when Karazawa rushed in; they sighed in defeat while she began to question them.
"Why do you keep on believing the woman who wants to make of you a catalyst to start a civil war? And who looks down on everyone else?"
"Because you reek! Of plots! Plotting plotters!"
"Huff! Miss! Do you need to know that to survive?" Saito shot back.
"Yeah! That'll make me stronger than those commoners!"
"No. It won't. I fail to see the logic, but that will not help you find a job."
"And you're one to decide? Who cares about that right now?"
"It's common sense, miss. You seem to lack it. Unfortunately enough!"
"WHAT? WHY THE NERVER OF THESE MEN! I'M GONNA...!"
"I totally agree! Lower your voice! That's enough fuss!"
"Yikes! The homeroom teacher!"
The homeroom teacher showed up to intervene and Karazawa gasped.
"That criminal's manipulating you. What are you, her puppet?"
"NO! I'm not a puppet! I'm using that bitch for my goals!"
"You're not proving it. You are definitely being used by her."
"What! What in the… Sheesh!"
"You act like a puppet. You don't think. You act on impulses of jealousy and paranoia. Hikari Sr. is right: you don't need to know things that don't involve you to survive. All you need to do is to act RATIONALLY. TO USE THE HEAD! THAT'S WHY YOU HAVE ONE, GIRL!" She scolded.
"Shut up, granny! I'm in charge! I'm not done with these jerks!"
"GRANNY? ME? YOU'VE DONE IT! YOU'RE COMING WITH ME TO SEE THE HEAD TEACHER! AFFRONTS TO ME? YOU'LL REGRET IT DEARLY!"
"E~H? NO WAY~!"
The homeroom teacher dragged her by the right arm despite Karazawa's attempts to get loose: the guys rolled their eyes while Meiru and Tamashita silently nodded in approval.
"That's the natural result of one's actions! Jigou jitoku! Sheesh. What a stupid farce! When will it end?" Both girls muttered.
"I wouldn't be surprised if they filed her an expedient. Hope that becomes a lesson: you allow Anaya to manipulate you; you end up running into one hell of a mess." Netto calmly muttered.
"Sure thing…" Nelaus shrugged.
"Guys! News, news!" Dekao rushed in.
"What happened, Dekao – kun?"
"I got the trophy of "Greatest Student On Akihara Middle" by Sir Cloud! I'll show up on the news!" He laughed.
"That's a troll by Cloud Man. Use the head." Netto sighed.
"E~H? NO WAY~!"
"And "greatest" must mean in terms of body. In short: fattest student on the school." Netto explained.
"That rascal! Guts Man and I will beat 'im!"
"If he doesn't beat you before that." Nelaus warned.
"E~H? GATTSU~! NO WAY~!"
"What's with that idiot-like face?" Meiru scolded.
"Yikes! W-well, that's… Huh… Well… That's…"
"Flee. We're not in the mood!" Tamashita ordered.
Dekao ran away and Hikawa came in, unsurprised.
"I heard what happened. Really." He rolled his eyes.
"Yeah. Dekao doesn't change."
"He needs a mild shower!" Yaito giggled as she came back in.
"Guess that." Meiru sighed.
"Greetings, Reclaimers!" Guilty Spark suddenly hovered into the classroom from the corridor.
"What are you doing here, Spark?" Saito asked.
"I felt like studying the environment." He admitted.
"Did someone else see you?" Netto questioned.
"No. I used my camouflage."
"Good. We don't want people to see you and start panicking thinking it's Neo Gospel." Netto warned.
"Understood. Hmmm? Ah. New information from the Sentinels… They found a pink snake trying to sneak into a restricted section…"
"A pink snake? What the heck is that?" Nelaus frowned.
"Never heard of those." Saito muttered, surprised.
"I'm afraid Cloud Man faked that report."
"Vexation! Such an interloper shall not fool me!"
"Well… No offense, Spark, but… He's fooled you several times with those "Explosive News"…" Nelaus warned.
"Hum! Fine. Let us admit it." He fumed.
"Speaking of the devil…" Sigma grumbled from Netto's PET.
"They're on the hall… AGAIN." Blood Shadow was annoyed.
"Hullo there! Your favorite comedian, Cloud Man, is here!"
"Didn't we upgrade security?" Netto rolled his eyes.
"Sure did! The Net Police sent several technicians to do so… Ah! It's a damned hologram. A psychological trick." Blood Shadow realized.
"Beware! The DUSHMEN will beat the SMASHMEN!"
"HUH? It's stupid!" Sigma grumbled.
"The envoys of the envoy will envoy an envoy of the envoys to envoy the envoys of the envoy!" He made up a lame tongue twister.
"Not Vincent again… Someone shut the guy in a madhouse!"
"Over my dead body! Try it, I'll bury you in the Mexican deserts!"
"I see. Then that means that you're… Drunkard buddies?"
"Wha~t? Darkloids can't get drunk! Nonsense!"
"Who knows?"
"GBDXGFLGHKLDHLGHL!" He growled something undecipherable.
"Vexation! I am sure it is some insult directed at me!"
"Just you wait…! One day we'll raze cities to the ground…! Like we did in London…! This time Tokyo will be razed to the ground!"
"You didn't raze it to the ground. You just damaged the bridge in front of the Parliament. To pull a lame stunt out of some movie!"
"SHEESH! Robbing us of the glory~! Damn them all!"
"And besides. It doesn't fit with Anaya's ambitions to raze cities. She doesn't want to run out of "businesses"."
"Huff! I feel so annoyed…! I'm off! But we'll be back! That of a couple hours ago was nothing! Next time this Internet City will be blow up to pieces! I swear! With our newest "Ultra Bomb"!"
"Bluff all you want. Kindaichi will figure out your tricks. And the Ultra Bomb will only detonate your ego." Blood Shadow shot back.
"Kindaichi? Sheesh. Damn the meek guy~!"
"The rascal's hologram has fled." Sigma reported.
"The guy wants to build up tension and to frustrate us. We must be careful not to let it build up or we'll start to yell at each other." Nelaus warned.
"Understood." Netto calmly nodded in agreement.
"Hmmm… What could it be?" Saito looked pensive.
"What's up, Saito – niisan?" Netto asked.
"I suddenly got the hunch there's something from the past that I'm overlooking…" He admitted.
"Something these guys did?" Nelaus asked
"No… I've got the hunch it was from the WWW era… I'm not sure what it was… Maybe I'll later remember."
"Alright. If you say, so…"
"It surely was my security system: an empty basin over the tree-house door! Meijin – san fell for it!" Yaito giggled.
"No, that's not it. It had to do with the WWW… Maybe I can drop by Maha Ichiban's later and try asking Hinoken…" Saito rubbed his chin.
"OK. If that'll help you remember!"
"Hey! Guys! I've been nominated King of Brawls! A guy named Bargog told me that!" Dekao rushed back in.
"That's Balrog, a member of Rama… And he trolled you." Netto grumbled.
"No way! Shuuko – chan passed her misfortune into me~!" He yelped.
"Don't be so superstitious." Meiru scolded.
"Maybe he needs the Cold Empty Stare of Emptiness? That should freeze his moods away for a while!" Yaito giggled.
"Don't involve Miyuki – san next." Netto rolled his eyes, exasperated.
"Maybe you need some scolding by your dad." Meiru suggested.
"E~H? NO WAY~!" Yaito gasped.
"Let's go have some fresh air before break ends. We really need it."
"I agree with you, Nelaus. Let's shake off tension. Maybe Sigma will come up with a clever joke, for once. Or Rush will drop by. Heh!"
12:35 PM (Japan Time)…
"… So, Charles… Did Vadous contact you?"
"Yeah. Things haven't changed much. Anaya is constantly scolding Twilight, Izono looks on and Opoulos manipulates the intelligence agencies to start a feud between them and dragging the Marine Corps, the Navy and the Air Force into it…"
"By the way… Nokay isn't here today?"
"Had some urgent business to do…"
"Urgent indeed!"
"What happened?"
Charles and Martin had been chatting in the meeting room Charles had been at some days ago: Nokay suddenly burst in, totally annoyed and angered, to their surprise.
"My bro, Matthew…"
"He's working in a Barcelona company, no?" Charles recalled.
"Turns out the President of that company was a criminal!"
"What did he do? Embezzlement?"
"No! He picked young guys around our ages in the company who had no connections here because they'd come from other countries and suddenly appointed them as his secretaries… That mean higher salary but more work… It was usual for them to stay extra hours…"
"And then?" Martin asked.
"One night he'd tell them "good work" and drive them to their flats… The man would leave but it turns out that there was an ambush of some Choina mafia men in the building… To kidnap them and force them to take part in underground gay sex movies…"
"Fuck! What the hell!" Charles cursed.
"That happened to 3 of them before it happened to my bro too. The rascal said that the previous ones had quit because they got better offers. No – one questioned anything because all of them had been there for a little time and hadn't interacted much with other workers…"
"But you found it odd that you couldn't get into contact with your bro so you asked the local police to investigate?"
"Yeah. Through the "Committee"… They sent an agent to ring at bro's flat door during 3 days but he never replied. The agent then checked the public staff list of the corporation and found that, in the site, the previous secretaries' names were still there… He began to look at LinkedIn but their profiles said they were still working on that company… He brought that evidence plus a couple workers' statements to the police… And they began to investigate…" Nokay explained.
"And found the connection between the President and the mafia?"
"Yeah. The Mafia man openly came to the company but everyone thought it was a man from some Chinese corporation. The police had him on the Interpol's "WANTED" list: he'd been smuggling drugs into France through the Marseille port… They knew he was up to something but lacked evidence to raid his locales… They gathered witness accounts that said they'd seen that man dropping by the flats of the vanished workers and checking the mailboxes… That wasn't a coincidence."
"Of course not. So that gave them enough arguments for the judge to justify a raid of the place?"
"Yeah. They raided it and found the four vanished workers, bro included, being forced to take part in gay sex… The President rascal was there too and some other presidents… They arrested them all; the head of the gang included, and freed them… The "Committee" just sent me the report an hour ago… I can't believe what a mess happened!"
"Anaya could be involved at some stage…" Charles muttered.
"Or maybe it's something that mafia did on its own. I guess that President guy had some debts or something and came up with a deal with those to get the money to pay off the debts…" Davis guessed.
"Man. What rascals." Lander fumed.
"Huff. At least bro is alright… He's under observation at the hospital to make sure he didn't develop any illness… He's still confused and disoriented so I haven't been able to speak to him yet…"
"What'll happen to that company now?"
"The VP will be appointed head of it. The police investigated him but he's totally clean. But maybe they will go to another one in the end."
"Alright. Being there might bring painful reminders, so…"
"Maybe we should take this as a warning that other people connected to us that live in other parts of the world could get dragged into this… But we mustn't panic either." Charles muttered.
"I know. Ayase got involved into their plots…! At least he's managed to overcome it, but…!" Martin angrily muttered.
"I know, Martin. But going over that won't lead anywhere."
"You're right. Huff."
"Heh! We only need tell those rascals we've got the Bates Ranch on our side… "I just bought the Bates Ranch and…!"… "THE BATES RANCH?"… "The Bates Ranch! Someone save us!"… "Mommy!"… "Hah, hah… The Bates… Ranch… Hip… The Bates Ranch… THE BATES RANCH? MOMMY~!"… All the manly guys in the Saloon run off!" Lander quoted.
"Really. What was so special about that ranch?" Martin asked without being really interested.
"It had a reputation of being cursed!"
"But it wasn't true, right?"
"Nope! A shadowy fellow set up all kind of mechanisms to give the impression paranormal phenomena happened… Ghostly voices, beds would rise until the ceiling, a buffalo's nostrils would smoke, another one's eyes would glow… Mysterious figures appeared and disappeared around the perimeter… There even was a walking skeleton! "Don't make that face, ma'am! It's not like the Grim Reaper's standing behind me, no?"… The skeleton lands the right hand on Luke's shoulder! "Early morning visit! Go back to your road! Femurs, tibia, scapula, humerus… Nothing's lacking!"… He then picks the skull and looks pensive with a Shakespeare canvas on the background… "To be or not to be… Well, there ARE some guys here!"…" Lander began to narrate, excited.
"A reference to Hamlet, huh?" Charles guessed.
"Obviously. Skull, Shakespeare, to be or not to be…" Davis shrugged.
"Luke finds a hidden staircase behind a wall leading to a basement… "There's no disgrace sans venture… I've got a lil idea of what awaits us… At the end of the stairs… We've got company! A mirror! Of course! Only I could be faster than myself!"… "Lower your weapon, cowboy! It's useless against the Prince of Darkness!"… "Guess that!"… "Huh?"… THUD! "Now let's have a closer look to this "Prince of Darkness"… Hmmm… Looks like the vendor is the mastermind."…"
"I see. The vendor made up the tale and the setups to frighten buyers away and buy it back for a meager price. To then sell it again."
"Yep! Heh, heh, heh. I always like how Luke takes the man's proclamation literally… If the weapon, the Colt, doesn't work then… Resort to a good uppercut!" Lander chuckled.
"Well. It did help to improve the mood a bit."
"Beef! Hear me, Tuna Agency! I'll invent the Beef Agency!" Commander Beef yelled from the street.
"You got trolled!" Charles ran out into the corridor and popped his head out through the window.
"E~H? NO WAY~!"
"I knew it." Shark Man sighed.
"Ah! Mariko – sensei! This agency's tuna is bad! Never buy them tuna!"
"I'm Yuriko! Can't you tell us apart by the clothes, Commander Beef? Couldn't you pay more attention?" Yuriko sighed.
"And that's the Justice Council, not a tuna agency. By the way. Are there tuna agencies to begin with?" Dark Miyabi added.
"Well… Now that you bring it up…" He trailed off.
"Nope. There's never been!" Shark Man quickly confirmed.
"Devil! But Commander Tuna said that…"
"That's Cloud Man! Shah, shah, shah! I'd stake anything on that."
"Obviously." Shadow Man wasn't surprised.
"Devil! Let's go, Shark Man! Time to bust down those evils! By Beef and Tuna I go and step and advance and march!"
"Hmpf. What a fool!" Miyabi was hardly impressed.
"This man won't change." Yuriko sighed.
"You needn't tell me."
"Souls filled with darkness haunt us, you folk…" Miyuki suddenly showed up there and announced in her usual cold and monotone voice.
"Yikes! When did you…?" Yuriko gasped, for once.
"I didn't feel their presence!" Miyabi was baffled, for once.
"I didn't see her either and I'm on the first floor…! Almost like she just appeared out of thin air!" Charles was surprised as well.
"She must've been hiding close by." Martin calmly guessed.
"When will she stop bringing up occult stuff? This isn't Yu-Gi-Oh! We need realistic advice!" Nokay complained behind them.
"I foresee bloodshed…" She dramatically muttered.
"Oh come on. Miyuki. Be realistic." Skull Man complained.
"Tell Saloma to shower her!" Yuriko told Skull Man.
"Already did so… But it doesn't seem to have worked."
"Wha? No way!" She was incredulous.
"If one strengthens their will then no outside force shall shatter it. It would seem my presence awakens forbidden spirits. I shall go fetch a tool to purify the souls. Such is my prediction…"
"She should be in a terror film." Yuriko ironically muttered.
"That glare…! Not even I can do something like that." Miyabi sighed.
"What's with her?" Nokay was horrified by now.
"I don't wanna know. Really." Charles rolled his eyes.
"I don't, either." Martin fumed.
"Now, now! Guys!" Davis tried to calm them down.
"We gotta calm down!" Lander added.
Lander's got a point… Let's calm down… Then we'll win…!