[A/N]: HHAHAHAHAAHAAHA WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT IT CLEARLY HASN'T BEEN ALMOST A WHOLE YEAR SINCE I LAST UPDATED HA A AHAHAHA AHAHA OH MY GOD
[silently weeping]
Okay, but in all seriousness, guys, I'm super sorry for taking so long with this. What with my last year of college, struggling to actually wrench the degree from copious amounts of red tape and shenanigans, and job hunting, and then actually landing a full-time job, and applications for master's degree...yeah. Busy year. :U Ironically enough, my new part time job actually has a fair amount of downtime, so while I'm not on the computer during that time, I can have my notebook with me. So while the online version of this work was mired in chapter 7, I'm actually somewhere in chapter 10(?). It's given me a chance to rebuild the buffer I have between those two versions, which is great.
Also, the main roadblock in this chapter was that apparently, when I wrote this chapter down in my notebook like two/three(?) years ago, I apparently just jotted down a note to just stick in the same fight scene from the original anime episode. Which the me from last year took great offense to. Because ew. The fight scene from this episode was one of the things that pissed me off about it. The bullshit maneuver of suddenly "changing the airspace" to make new wave roads appear that was never used before, never explained, and never used again? That could have been used as a plot point later on, it was an interesting tactic, but the lack of details on it...eugh. However, the fact that Harp Note didn't get to do anything in that battle, and that Condor Geograph was taken out by a single Thunder Slash from Berserk? That just screamed of (1) laziness and (2) the shortened plot time that started this whole rewrite in the first place.
So yeah, no. That needed some serious rehashing.
Yes, I made you guys wait a whole year for a chapter that's pretty much a rehash episode with little new actual content (although what is added is significant, I guess?). i'm so sorry.
I need to give you guys my thanks, though. With such a small, insular fandom, and a story gone inactive for so long, I didn't really expect all of the reviews I've gotten. Not even just "please write more soon!" reviews. Critical reviews that detail what they like seeing and what they saw in my work, and what I need to work on, reviews that recount and give extra detail...it's amazing. These kinds of reviews are a ficcer's lifeblood. I can't express how grateful I am to all of you, I really can't. You guys are what kept pushing me to continue writing this even after so long, and gave me bursts of inspiration even through the busywork.
Truly and sincerely, thank you. This chapter isn't nearly enough to express my gratitude, but it's all I have.
Enjoy!
Episode 014 – Terror of God!
The interior of the temple was stark, almost plain, really. Constructed of clay and dark rock, the hallways were all the same dull auburn color, barely lit by torches. It gave the place an austere feel, almost as if the place was not meant for humans.
While the hallways themselves were bare, the rooms were decorated somewhat more. The torches in these rooms were bigger and brighter, revealing woven blankets and wall paintings, depictions of an earlier time. Despite his best efforts, Subaru couldn't make heads nor tails of them. Thankfully, the old shaman was more versed in their lore.
"Ancient history, but not of our people. This instead tells the tale of the bird gods from our conquerors' lands above the clouds, who return to watch over us in exchange for our offerings. Many stories have been told of these giant birds visiting us, even communicating with humans. Of course now, such stories have been dismissed as myth and legend, but we still believe in bringing the fruits of our happiness to them and dreaming of our offerings being carried up to Mu, as they once were."
"So, you think that Mu is still…up there? Past the clouds?" Subaru asked, remembering the picture that he had been shown by Orihime.
"Yes, of course. Call it ridiculous, but…"
"No…I think I can believe that."
The chief looked at Subaru with some surprise, but slowly a smile crossed his face.
"…I see. Thank you, child." With that, they were led into the main chamber, where a large stone platform with ornate carvings stood before an altar lined with torches.
"This is the main chamber, where offerings were left." He motioned to the platform, which indeed was bare and looked ready for a large amount of foodstuff and possessions to be laid on top of it.
"I don't sense any OOParts in here," War-Rock admitted.
"The unearthly one is correct," Berserk continued. "As expected from a mere colony…"
"I see…" With that, Subaru let the chief continue leading them out of the temple and into the village, where he entreated the two of them to stay for the festival.
"Well, I don't really have anything planned for today…what about you, Misora-chan?"
"Nah, today was my day off to work on inspiration!" she grinned. "I don't really have to be anywhere until later…no matter what Cancer and Kaneda-san say!"
"Oi, oi, should you really be pushing them like this…?" Subaru sighed, but his lamentation seemed to be either unnoticed or ignored by both Misora and the chief himself.
"Wonderful!" the elderly man cheered. "The more laughter and smiles to send to Mu, the better!"
Subaru waited for both the chief and Misora to wander off into the town before deciding to head back to the flower field on his own.
"Boy," the voices of Berserk snapped irritably, breaking him from his thoughts as the bright golden flowers came into sight. "Why do you choose to remain here, now that we know that there is nothing of value?"
"Before that, can I ask you something?" Subaru questioned back, sitting down on a ledge overlooking the field.
"You dare…" hissed Berserk.
"Just listen, please," interrupted Subaru. "Depending on how you answer, it might help me answer your question, too."
"Hmph! Impudent child!" grumbled the voices, albeit not as harshly as before. Subaru smiled at that.
"…Thanks, I guess." There was a weak chuckle as the being huffed in annoyance. "Back then," he continued, "when the chief mentioned human sacrifices…you weren't surprised at all. Why?"
The silence before the being decided to respond felt far too heavy for such a light and sunny field, and yet the flowers continued to sway in the gentle breeze, uncaring of whatever morose topics were being discussed before them.
"…We did mention before," Berserk eventually rumbled, "that each tribe had a different way of controlling our colonies? The Shinobi controlled them by rigid cultural beliefs, slowly and subtly entrenching worship, respect and fear into the humans they ruled over, seemingly allowing them freedom when truly they were restricted by the unwritten laws of belief and culture. A vile, base way of getting humans to lock themselves in their own cells and swallow the key, if you would."
"Un, you did say that…"
"Good to see that your memory is not failing," grumbled Berserk. "One of the ways they continued their reign of terror was by sending down their Denpa lifeforms to act as 'gods' and have them demand human sacrifices. After all, something that demands life itself to be satisfied…that would be something powerful, something to be feared, would it not?"
"So that's why you weren't completely convinced of it being a Shinobi colony until then…" Subaru frowned, before getting up and stretching. "Well, even if they don't observe those sorts of practices anymore, a lot of their customs are still similar, right? The Shinobi's OOPart is the only one we have yet to find, you know. Any information about the Shinobi that we could find could help lead us to it, especially if they're as sneaky and subtle as you keep claiming they are."
Berserk was merely silent, and Subaru took the lack of opposition as some sort of assent. He looked around the field again before turning away to continue his search before his Star Carrier rang, signaling a phone call.
"D-Doctor Orihime-san!"
"Are you alright, Subaru-kun?" she immediately questioned upon seeing his shock. "You seem troubled…"
"N-no, it's nothing!" He quickly worked to compose himself and to divert his mind away from the sober thoughts it had taken after the brief conversation with Berserk.
"There's a small village in a distant country I want you to investigate. It may have ties to the Mu."
"Ah, alright…" A thought occurred to Subaru then, and he began to murmur to himself. "Does this mean I have to miss the festival…?"
"Is there a problem?" Doctor Orihime's voice cut into his thoughts again, and he immediately backpedaled.
"N-no, there's no problem!"
"Very well. I will send you the coordinates momentarily."
The call ended there, and as promised the information came up on the screen. Subaru couldn't help but gape at what he saw.
0-0-0-0-0
"Misora-chan!" Subaru had finally found her, talking away with the Class President. Evidently once the first symptoms of fannish glee had been passed over, it was easy for the Class President to resume her usual (admittedly) intelligent but domineering side. With such a personality, it was a simple matter to engage Misora in pleasant conversation. Misora, on the other hand, was still somewhat wary of her, especially after witnessing her both refuse to and yet acknowledge Rockman's identity; not to mention her previous behavior to Harp Note. Judging by Luna's current behavior to her, she didn't seem to know that Misora was the pink warrior, but still…
As it was, she was more or less lying about how she knew Subaru (they had met earlier in the village, it was surprising to see another person from the same country in such a remote place, he was easy to talk to since he didn't immediately devolve into fanboy behavior upon seeing her, etc.). Of course, when he immediately came up to her and Luna, exclaimed that he had something to tell her and then dragged her off with little more than a hurried greeting to the person who he should have known better than the starlet he supposedly just met, it really didn't help her case. But what else could she do other than wave haplessly to Luna and promise that they would talk again later and pretend that she didn't see the first degree of suspicions slowly come on the Class President's face?
"I just got a call from Orihime-san," he started, leaning close to her and whispering due to the fact that the village square was quickly becoming more crowded. Couldn't have anyone overhearing, after all. "She just sent me the location of a place she wants me to investigate."
"Oh no, does this mean we'll have to miss the festival?" Misora lamented. "It's just about to start!"
"No, look!" Subaru showed her the coordinates on his Star Carrier, and she gasped.
"Wait…she wants us to look here?! But, you said that you couldn't feel any OOParts around, right?"
"Yeah, but we do know that this place does have ties to Mu. Agame-san said so himself! Maybe we can find some information at the festival…"
"Aww…and here I was hoping we could relax and enjoy ourselves a little…"
"We can do that, you just have to keep your eyes out for more information about OOParts too!"
"Geez…" She began to pout, only to be cut off by Harp as Subaru focused on his Star Carrier, oblivious to her discontent.
"He's so focused and serious. Way unlike you, Misora!"
"Hmph!" Just as she had crossed her arms to pout more, the two of them were accosted by an increasingly suspicious Class President.
"What are you two talking about?" Immediately the question threw the two of them off–guard and into a flurry of excuses.
"W-Well, that is, Class President…"
"Nothing really, Luna-san…"
Well, attempted excuses. She was prevented from inquiring further when a loud fanfare cut them off. The chief appeared at the head of a large amount of steps that led to nothing but an ornate chair under a carefully constructed roof.
"It is time for the festival to commence!" he announced, a brightly colored bird now sitting on his staff. "And now, for the offering! Who will be chosen this year?" He threw his hands upward, and at the signal the bird flew off the staff, circling over the village square. Its long tail feathers rippled in the sky, trailing the bird as it came to land, perching straight on Luna's head. Naturally, her first reaction was to scream in confusion even as the villagers clapped eagerly.
"W-what?! What's going on?!"
"Congratulations!" the chief boomed, pushing through the cheering crowd in order to appear next to them. "You have been chosen by God!"
"Me? Chosen?" She blinked in confusion, before raising her hand to her mouth and laughing. "I don't understand what's going on, but I'm pretty amazing, aren't I?"
"Th…that's one way to put it…" Subaru murmured to himself. He was appreciative that something would happen to divert her from questioning him and Misora any further, but he wasn't sure if the price of having to hear the Class President brag about this nonstop for at least the next week was worth it.
Some time afterwards, Luna had found herself sitting on that same chair, the bird still perched on her head.
"To be chosen by God! I can't wait to tell Gonta and Kizamaro about this when I get back, ne, Hoshikawa-kun?"
"Ah…yes…" At that, Misora turned to Subaru as well.
"Agame-san said that since this is the first time that a tourist has been chosen, the special offering can come later." It made sense to Subaru, since a tourist was unlikely to have much on their person to offer in the first place, never mind something precious and dear to their heart…
"Speaking of, where is Agame-san?"
"The chief is in the temple-ska," Ogamu said, having been situated by the throne. "He's offering up the harvest for a happy and prosperous new season-ska!"
"Ah…"
0-0-0-0-0
"Geez…Misora-chi is always running off all of the time. It's always on my head when she's gone, too, buku…" Cancer Bubble muttered to himself as he appeared by the temple. "Let's see, Harp Note's signal ends here, so…let's try that temple, buku!"
Approaching and entering it got no results. Instead he happened on the main temple's chamber instead, where Agame was praying over a large bowl of assorted fruits and vegetables. "I'll ask that old man, buku!"
Before he could, however, the torches suddenly exploded into large bursts of flame, and between the two pillars of fire a bright red denpa being shaped like a large bird appeared. It let out a screech, golden eyes fixed on the old man who had stepped back in shock.
"What…what is this?!"
"I am God!" the bird spoke in a deep booming voice. "And you shall be my vessel!" With that, the whole room was engulfed in that same red light, forcing Cancer to close his eyes. When he did open them, the old man was left alone, kneeling on the cold stone floor. He stood, a now wicked grin on his face.
"I am God!" he proclaimed. "That girl will be my sacrifice!"
"Th-this is bad, buku!" Cancer Bubble backed away, flailing about as he pondered what to do. "I gotta get outta here, buku-"
"Who's there?!"
"Waagh!" At that, the crab fell down in shock, effectively ruining any chances he had at getting away undetected. He backed up against the wall as the now possessed old man came up to him.
"I-I was just passing by, buku!" Cancer cried out in desperation. "I-I didn't' see anything at all, buku!"
"Is that so?" the man boomed, and the crab sighed in relief. He did sound like he believed it…
"Yes, buku…"
"Very well, then." Suddenly, a flash of red light appeared, and Cacner Bubble let out a gasp as the monstrous figure of a bird became visible in the old man's place.
"How about I show you what you missed, then?!"
Cancer Bubble's screams of terror echoed into the distance, and a large red and white bird appeared outside of the temple's highest point not seconds after they'd died out. Its angular shape made it look more like some sort of plane or a glider than any sort of natural bird that existed, and the metallic sheen coupled with the rocket thrusters only contributed to that impression. It soared through the skies, letting out a cry of challenge into the air.
"And now, for my sacrifice!"
0-0-0-0-0
The atmosphere in the village was cheerful and happy. The food that Luna and the others had made was a resounding success. The mood was, in fact, so relaxed, that neither Subaru or Misora had noticed the large bird until surprised shouts came from the crowd below them.
"W-wha…It's God!"
"God!"
"Oh, God!"
As Subaru, Misora, and Luna (plus bird) came down the steps, they all gawked upward at the large, plane-like bird circling above them.
"That's right!" the bird declared. "I am Condor Geograph, your god!" With that, the majority of the villagers all bowed in respect, still crying out for the god in unison.
"That's the god who chose me?" Luna whimpered in some tone that was between disappointment and fear.
"That's no god!" declared War-Rock. "That's a denpa lifeform in his Denpa-Henkan!"
"What?!" yelped Subaru in response.
"What's a guy like him doing here?" Misora asked.
"Who knows…" War-Rock muttered, almost dismissively.
"Your tone is disappointing, unearthly one, given that that's not just any sort of life form…that is one of Mu!" Berserk declared.
"M-Mu?!" Subaru yelped, drawing strange looks from Misora and Harp. Before they could question him, however, Condor spoke again.
"Be awestruck by my power!"
Beams of light came from its mouth and wing thrusters, burning the ground and gouging lines into the earth as they set houses aflame. Subaru and Misora were forced to take cover behind one of the still untouched houses to keep from getting hurt. If they could have seen the full spread of the damage, they would have realized that Condor Geograph had drawn a replica of a bird into the ground that spanned the entirety of the small village.
"He's trying to use fear to control the villagers!" concluded Subaru, causing Berserk to grumble in reluctant agreement.
"We can't let him do as he pleases! Denpa-Henkan!" Next to him, he could hear Misora transforming as well, and they both leapt back into the village square as Rockman and Harp Note. Above them, the bird was laughing as it continued its rampage.
"Now, bring me more offerings! If not, this is what will happen to you!" More beams of light cut through the village as Rockman and Harp Note leapt in. A quickly fired Rock Buster and Shock Note forced Condor Geograph to briefly divert his course. "Who dares to attack a god?!"
"Rockman-sama!" Of course, Luna would have been in the village square. "You came this far for me?"
"Get to safety!" he demanded, all too used to her fannish glee.
"Yes, of course!" And thankfully, she did leave the area, allowing Rockman and Harp Note to fight freely.
"Who are you? I am God! It is perfectly natural for a god to use his powers to control his people! Anyone who disobeys will not be forgiven! Wing Raider!" Again, the lights came, and the two young fighters leaped upward to dodge. This only lead them into his trap, however, as with a cry of "Flying Impact!" the birdlike Denpa-Henkan rocketed forward and rammed into them, sending them crashing down to the ground. The two quickly recovered-as the dust from their impact cleared, both of them were already standing, having activated Battle Cards as soon as they hit the ground.
"Battle Card, Plus Cannon!" Rockman already had the transformed arm aimed upwards towards Condor Geograph.
"Battle Card, Plasma Gun!" Harp Note followed his lead, and both began to fire at the giant bird above them. None of their attacks hit: Condor was too far away to aim at properly, and the distance between him and their attacks allowed him to dodge around them easily.
"Hn! Do you think those weak attacks would hit a god? Foolish!"
"We can't hit him!" Rockman confirmed. "He's too high up!" More lasers came as he said those words, and Rockman quickly threw up a Barrier to shield both him and Misora. The battle card could only block the laser fired from Condor's mouth, however, and the two subsequent lights from his wings struck them, leaving a crater in the ground that Rockman and Harp Note sat up in.
"He…he's strong…" Rockman grumbled, holding his head. Harp Note agreed with a short grunt herself.
"Missile Bird!" A barrage of small green and yellow rocket-propelled birds came flying towards them.
"Battle Card, Long Sword!" the two children declared in unison, and between both of them slashing the long blades about, they barely managed to repel enough of the erratically flying birds away from them. The effort left them winded, however, and with no opportunity for a window to attack.
"He just keeps attacking-!" Rockman yelled. Harp Note straightened herself up next to him.
"At this rate…"
"Hn! You're finished!" More beams of light erupted from Condor's wings, this time hitting both Rockman and Harp Note straight on before they could do anything. The blast left them stunned as the bird soared upwards.
"This is what you get for defying God!" Condor declared. What they "got" certainly wasn't pretty. Sprawled out on the ground in their stunned state, they looked almost lifeless, which was enough to prompt Luna to run out in concern.
"Rockman-sama!"
That, unfortunately, was all that was needed for Condor Geograph to swoop in and take her. Rockman and Harp Note were only able to sit up in time to see the bird that had perched itself on her head near constantly cry out in worry as she was snatched away. Sitting up more to chase after them only cancelled the tenuously-held Denpa-Henkan, and the two children forced themselves to their feet.
"Damn it! Class President!" But the sky Subaru reached out to in desperation was already empty.
"M…Misora-chi…" Cancer Bubble's weak voice could be heard just next to them, somehow appearing unnoticed beside them. Looking down, both children recoiled in shock. He looked to be beaten severely, one eye swollen and puffy and his usually polished claws scuffed and nicked.
"Cancer! When did you get here-no, how did you get those injuries?" She knelt down and held his head close, and Subaru knew that if the crab hadn't been flayed so thoroughly he'd be cheering by now. Instead, Cancer started babbling out an explanation in a single breath.
"I came looking for you-buku, and there was a weird old man in a temple-buku, and then he did a Denpa-Henkan with a strange bird thing-buku, and then…and then…"
"He found you and beat you up, didn't he?" Misora finished, looking on him with concern.
"A weird old man in a temple?" Harp repeated.
"That must be the chief. Condor must have found him and forced a Denpa-Henkan on him!" War-Rock concluded.
"Then we have to go save Agame-san and the Class President! Come on!" Subaru finished, readying to transform again as soon as he got his second wind.
0-0-0-0-0
Shrill screaming could be heard as Luna was dragged into the altar room, cornered next to the pedestal where the array of fresh fruits was still displayed proudly as a centerpiece.
"Now, offer your heart to God!" the possessed shaman declared, pointing the butt of his bird-tipped staff directly at the girl's chest. She instinctively flinched back.
"My heart? No way!" Immediately she clutched at her arms, curling up as she cried.
"A human heart is the best offering that can be given to a god! Now, give it up!"
"My heart only belongs to Rockman-sama!" Maybe the absurdity of such a statement coming out at such a crucial moment had snapped his feeble patience, because it was then he raised the staff up to bludgeon her into submission.
"Stop this, Agame-san!" The third voice interrupting them came just in time to stop the man from bringing the staff down, and they both turned to see who had just come in the doorway.
"Rockman-sama!" And Harp Note and Cancer Bubble as well.
"You two again?! Haven't you learned your lesson already?"
"Don't do this, Agame-san!" Rockman simply repeated, reaching out for the two.
"You said humans weren't sacrificed anymore, didn't you, Agame-san?" Harp Note reminded him. "Let her go!"
"Shut up!" the priest retorted. "This girl will be sacrificed to God, and that's final!" Suddenly he smirked, and a red aura surrounded him. "Then again, I am God, anyway…" Everyone else in the room tensed at that statement.
"Anyone who disobeys me will not be forgiven!" he declared, and suddenly the red energy intensified, forming into the general shape of a large bird that phased through the ceiling as it soared upward.
"Cancer, you're still hurt, so stay and watch the Class President!" Rockman decided, before vanishing after Condor Geograph.
"Please, Cancer!" Harp Note added, and disappeared after him.
"Ehhh!? Bu-buku-!" They were gone before he could answer them, leaving an awkward silence in the room. Wasn't this the girl he had tried to anger before, and she'd…he didn't want to remember.
"I only want Rockman-sama looking after me!"
"Buku?" That didn't help him feel better about this mess he'd suddenly walked into, really.
0-0-0-0-0
The two Denpa-Humans reappeared outside the temple, watching Condor Geograph soar up above. He had the same tactical advantage as last time, so how could they make the battle go any differently…?
"None of our attacks will hit him from down here," grumbled War-Rock.
"But we can't fly up there to reach him…" Rockman responded.
"We don't have to fly," Harp quipped. "Just change the airspace around with your denpa!"
"What?" the children asked.
"The Wave World encompasses the whole earth, you know, even here!" Harp reminded them. "How else did you even get here?"
"True…but there was really only one road here, and it's not nearby…and even if it was, just one road to maneuver around that guy? He'd just get out of range again!" Harp Note responded.
"Misora, didn't I teach you anything?" the FMian scolded. "Listen to the waves! There's more connections than you think! It's just that since this is an isolated area, the Wave Roads here aren't as strong. They're not used as much to send signals, you know!"
"So then, how are we even able to use them?" Rockman demanded.
"It's just like Harp said, kid!" War-Rock declared. "Change the airspace around you-saturate it with denpa! With our power, and the OOPart's help ("don't assume that we'd waste our power on such a whim!" could be heard protesting in the back of Rockman's mind, but was thusly ignored), we can easily make the airspace temporarily filled up with waves-that'll get other roads around to solidify as they absorb and direct that energy into proper pathways!"
"R…right!" the children agreed, and they both took a combative stance. Their bodies radiated concentrated denpa: Harp Note's showing as a light aura of the standard rainbow-like hue, Rockman's aura decidedly more dense and tinged with a deep yellow. Above them, the familiar translucent Wave Roads began to appear, crisscrossing randomly through the sky. With this many available paths to leap from, then…
"We can reach him now! There's no time to lose-we have to get him, now!" With that, Rockman leapt up to the lowest pathway. Harp Note called out in shock before she followed after him.
"Foolish! You think you can challenge a god?" Condor Geograph demanded. Rockman ignored him and only continued to leap higher and higher, until there were no more roads nearby to leap off of. The avian Denpa-Human circled him, before rearing back to strike.
"Flying Impact!"
"Battle Card: Henge no Jutsu!" Rockman disappeared in a poof of smoke, and left in his place to take the hit was a small raccoon-like virus, leaving Condor Geograph surprised at the sudden change of target. As the bird tried to swerve around to search for the boy, Rockman pounced down from above with his left arm changed into a sword, managing to chip off some feathers off of one wing. The impact managed to send Condor Geograph spiraling momentarily, but his recovery was quick; and his next attack quicker.
"You dare to harm a god?! Missile Bird!" The small rockets swarmed the skies, threatening to overwhelm the boy. He snarled and pulled out a blazing sword in response, destroying the birds until he lost sight of everything in a cloud of smoke. Condor Geograph took this opportunity to launch another attack. "Wing Raider!"
Rockman was able to block the initial laser blast by deflecting it with his sword, but the second caught him head on before he could react. The impact sent him plummeting down, down…
His fall was abruptly stopped as he found himself bouncing on what felt like a net. Thin, barely visible threads had been strung out between two wave roads beneath him, perfectly positioned to catch him.
"Geez, Rockman, don't forget that I'm here to help, too!" Harp Note scolded as she leaped up past him.
"H-Harp Note!" After the initial surprise, however, he found himself smiling. Rockman thought he recognized her handiwork. "I'm right behind you!"
"Well, you'd better hurry up! Machine Gun String!" A strum of the guitar brought more of the thin, but strong, strings aimed at Condor Geograph's flight path. The large bird, however, spotted the attack coming head-on and veered to the side. The strings were as quick as their namesake, however, and managed to snag the very same wing that Rockman had damaged, looping around and securing themselves tightly.
"What?!"
"Ha! Now I've got you!" Harp Note crowed, not thinking about whether a small girl like herself could successfully lasso a Denpa-Human more than twice her size. Instead, she grabbed at the strings with one hand in an attempt to pull him nearer, and at first, she was successful. Condor Geograph found himself being dragged closer and closer with every second.
"You little charlatan! Only fools think that they can successfully capture a god!" Condor fired his thrusters at that declaration, and Harp Note found herself quickly losing footing on the piecemeal Wave Road. She screamed as the large bird suddenly took off with that extra boost, causing her to come flying off the Wave Road helplessly as Rockman looked up in horror.
"Harp Note!" Immediately he hopped to the nearest Wave Road beneath the two other Denpa-Humans as Condor Geograph crowed loudly.
"You can't restrain me so easily!" He took a sharp turn, causing Harp Note to be swung haphazardly around by her own strings. It seemed as if he was aiming for her to either become dizzy enough to let go, or to slam her against something solid if that didn't work. From Rockman's point of view, he looked close to doing that.
"That wasn't what I was going for!" Harp Note declared, and her grip tightened on Harp's guitar form. Suddenly, she flipped herself around just as Condor Geograph would have swung her into the nearby temple wall. With her new position, she was able to be thrown onto that wall feet-first. Instead of slamming directly into it, she was able to redirect the momentum of her flight instead, bouncing off the wall with the most agile of moments and using that energy to leap skyward over Condor Geograph's body. Her strings followed, looping around the large red body and binding it as she fell downwards again. Holding tightly onto the strings, she used them to swing around and loop around Condor's body one more time until the tension in them grew to be too much, and they snapped clean off her guitar as she swung herself up.
The resulting momentum flung her up past Condor Geograph again, who could only let out a spluttered "What?!" as the supposedly lowly human girl flew over him. She flipped and turned upward, before somersaulting down as her guitar vanished in a burst of pink-colored energy. She was silhouetted by the sun behind her, bathing her in bright light as she twisted back into view.
"Eat this! Battle Card: Buki!" An almost comically large mallet appeared in her hands, the handle so large that it required both of her hands to hold, and the head almost as large as her whole body. The weight of the hammer was no joke, however, and the increased power from her rapid descent meant that the strike had impressive force behind it. Condor Geograph was barely able to dodge roll away from her nailing him completely dead on, but the hammer smashed through the wing that had first been damaged by Rockman's sword, leaving the thrusters on that side completely useless.
"Gyarrgh! " With the thrusters on one side barely functioning, the avian Denpa-Human's flight pattern was destabilized, and he spiraled through the air for several moments before he could right himself. "You-dare-!"
"We so dare!" she laughed as she landed next to the stunned Rockman. "Neh, Rockman?"
"Un! Agame-san, don't do this! This isn't what being a god is supposed to be!"
"Silence! You will all perish at my feet! Wing Raider!" The attack, angrily thrown and missing a good third of the lasers usually fired due to the damaged thrusters, was easily dodged by the two children jumping upwards again.
"Battle Card, Cannon!" they both cried, and Condor Geograph found himself on the receiving end of several cannon blasts.
"Grragh! I won't allow this! Flying Impact!" While the speed behind the attack was not so great as before, it was enough for Condor to power through the blast with sheer force of will, and enough to stun Rockman and Harp Note with how easily they were countered. The short pause in shock was more than enough for him to hit them dead on, knocking them back into one of the many Wave Roads surrounding their battle.
"Guh…! He still has that much power in him…?!" Rockman growled as he stood up.
"Then we'll just have to keep wearing him down!" Harp Note declared. "Machine Gun String!"
She managed to catch onto the other undamaged wing and began to use it as leverage again, but Condor Geograph was aware of her intended strategy this time.
"I won't allow you to come close to the realm of the gods again! A human should never climb to such heights! Flying Impact!" He barreled towards Rockman once more, who leaped to the side. However, Condor simply made a sharp turn, causing Harp Note to be whipped around so that she flew straight into him, knocking them both back down. They tumbled across the Wave Road and fell off the edge, landing on another road in a heap.
"That's it! Grovel at my feet! Wing Raider!" Neither child was able to untangle themselves in time to reach for a Barrier card, and they screamed as the lasers hit them head on. "Missile Bird!" The blasts from the lasers had separated them enough that Rockman was able to get partially free, and he'd been about to call up another card when one of the missiles buried itself in his stomach. The bruising impact alone was enough to get him to double over in pain-the explosion that blew him back into Harp Note and off the Wave Road into freefall was only salt in the wound.
"This is the end! Be buried in the dirt where you belong! Flying Impact!" Condor Geograph purposefully lost what little control he had left and went into a spiraling dive propelled by his now unevenly-spaced thrusters. The bird hit them both head on with the full force of gravity behind him, just as Misora had done to him before, driving them into the ground at the temple's base. A nearly six-foot deep crater formed where they landed, and the remaining bird-shaped missiles flew around the newly-formed pit's opening. Some drove themselves into the lip of the crater and exploded, causing more dirt to tumble down into the hole and start burying the children. Other missiles seemed to be patrolling, just waiting for either of them to make a move to leap out of the pit to divebomb them. It seemed as if they were truly trapped.
"Do you see now?" Condor Geograph declared. "This is what happens to those who defy God-who defy me! No one will be spared my wrath!" He circled around them, periodically deploying more missiles to finish the job, slowly and tortuously.
Rockman and Harp Note barely managed to sit up through the thin layer of dirt that was already beginning to cover them, and the constant explosions above them shook the ground enough that they had a hard time finding stable footing. Thankfully, the pit was deep enough that the explosions around the rim weren't harming them, but the dirt that was constantly trickling down was quickly illustrating how deeply buried they would be if they continued to try and take shelter there.
"Ghh…it's just like before, he's attacking constantly," Rockman bit out, wincing as he attempted to stand. His attempt was unsuccessful as another blast brought him to his knees.
"If we could just get out of here quickly…" Harp Note observed.
"Maybe if we weren't so far down, we could," Harp pointed out. "But in your state, and with how high up he is, he can easily see us coming-"
"That's no reason to not try!" snapped War-Rock. "C'mon, Subaru!"
"U-un!" Rockman pushed himself to his feet, and surged upwards in green light. Almost instantly, a missile slammed into his back, sending him plummeting downwards back into the pit. Harp Note barely managed to roll out of the way before he landed on her. "D…damn it…"
"Rockman!" The pink-clad girl sat up, observing him grimace as he tried to do the same and failed. She saw him grit his teeth in pain, before the expression suddenly vanished, replaced with a blank stare upwards. It was almost enough for her to think he had gone unconscious, until she saw his mouth move, listen to him mutter something barely under his breath.
"Berserk…?" Her eyes widened. It couldn't be…
Oblivious to Harp Note observing him, Rockman listened to Berserk's indignant voices.
"Damn it, child!" they screeched. "A Murian being is nothing to be taken lightly-especially the ones the Shinobi sent down to act as gods! They were given enough power to be self-sufficient, to make their own decisions-to essentially run a country! You may not be fighting a real god, but it is something with significant power regardless! Why have you not resorted to using our power yet?!"
The sudden screeching demands disoriented the stunned child, and he had to shake his head to clear it before he could answer.
"Ghaah…Berserk? You…"
"With our power, we can easily eliminate the mangy beast. Why are you fooling around like this?"
"Berserk! We can't just destroy him like that! Besides, isn't he from Mu like you are? Why would you-"
"That is not one of ours. The Condor served the bastard Shinobi. There is no reason to show it pity. Doing so is a mark of human weakness."
"Not wanting to kill something doesn't make you weak, Berserk! We just need to separate him from Agame-san to stop this, anyway! And besides, you said that the Murian denpa beings only got split up when this war of yours started. The Condor used to serve all of Mu! He was your comrade once, wasn't he?"
"Comrade? You speak as if we would remember such naïve, amiable sentiments. Why should you be so desperate to preserve it, anyway? It is simply one of many tools that we once had at our disposal. There are likely others like it still around. This one can easily be disposed of."
"I don't know why…that's just something natural to think, for a human! We don't want anything to die if we can help it!"
"Tcha! Weak sentimentality-"
"It. Is. Not. Weak. To want to protect something!" Rockman ground out. "If it wasn't for that feeling, I wouldn't be here as Rockman! You would have no means to channel your power in the first place! And I wouldn't be channeling your power, if I wasn't using it to protect those around me! That's final!"
"You think you can command our power so easily? You, a sliver of a boy, who only can use a portion of it safely without being overwhelmed? You think you have sovereign over us?! Enough of this foolhardiness, boy! Acting above your station will do you no good if you end up buried beneath the earth, will it not?!"
"Probably not, but it's better than mindlessly slaughtering enemies like you want us to! We'd be out of control!"
A long silence passed between them before Rockman spoke again.
"If you don't want to think that way…listen to this," he slowly said. "It might be like how it was with Brachio Wave-no, Dossy. Condor might have some information for us that we might not have otherwise. And even if we don't, we might get a new friend out of all this-someone who could help us. If it wasn't for Dossy back then, we wouldn't have gotten free from the Dinosaur, would we?"
"We would have," Berserk snorted dismissively. "Your fragile human mind might not have taken the strain so well. However, we do agree that such interference was…an inconvenience. The Brachio creature proved to be not completely useless when it wasn't turned against us. However, that one had already strayed from its path long before we met it. This Murian lifeform is still very much following its programming. Do you still believe it's worth being saved?"
"Of course!" Rockman replied without hesitation. "If we can help it...we might be helped in return. That's how humanity's grown so fast, you know! I don't know why you can't understand…"
"Enough. We care not for your modern views."
"Berserk!"
"However. We do care for your physical safety, at least for the time being. After all, we gave this power to you to use at your own discretion. We'd rather not have your naive worries leave us at a disadvantage. Do as you please."
With that, Rockman felt new strength pool in his limbs, and he found himself sitting up with little trouble. Unbeknownst to him, he was glowing with an electric yellow aura that was slowly healing his wounds, and as he stood up, Harp Note leapt up in surprise.
"Rockman…! You…"
"Don't worry, Harp Note…I'm fine. We should hurry and-"
"Rockman, wait!" She grabbed his hand with a grip stronger than her weakened body led him to expect, and he turned to her. The expression on her face was worried, fearful…
"You've been talking with it…haven't you?"
Pause. Then comprehension.
"Eh?!" Rockman waved his hands in front of him in a placating gesture. "What are you even talking about-"
"Don't think you can hide it from me! I heard you muttering to it, 'Berserk, Berserk'! And Dossy said something strange, too! He said that the OOParts had a consciousness, that you were communicating with it, that you...did you really made a deal with something like that, Rockman?!"
"A deal…? Not really…War-Rock and I just beat it when it tried to take over that one time, and…"
That was the wrong thing to say, if Harp Note's rapidly paling face meant anything.
"Take over?! You mean like with the Dinosaur OOPart?! Rockman, what are you thinking? How do you know it's not waiting to try again?! You heard what Dossy called the OOPart's voices-angry and unfeeling-do you even know the things it made you say?!"
"Eh…it made me fight you guys, didn't it…? I don't remember…"
"It called Dossy a useless, broken tool!" she shrieked, making Rockman flinch. The conversation he'd just had with Berserk flashed in his mind-they'd called Condor a-
"It made you attack without mercy, it was ready to restart some war, and the things it said to us…it was talking down to us, it didn't even see us as human! How could you trust something like that, Rockman?!"
"That's…we've got it under control, Harp Note! It's fine, really!" he stammered out, still holding his hands out defensively.
"Are you sure?" she demanded. "You haven't used its power properly since you had the OOPart, right? I remember that form just popping out at random before-and when did that thing try to take you over?! Is there something going on that I don't know about, Rockman?! I know you said there were people after these OOParts, and that it'd be dangerous for the world, but how dangerous are these OOParts to you? Have you ever thought about that?!"
"H…Harp Note…"
"I don't know if you know how much of an effect they really had on you…if you saw yourself…and those scans…how much stress your body was under…it was a miracle that you were able to hold yourself together long enough to get treatment in time! What would have happened if you didn't, or if you hadn't gotten free in time, or if we hadn't been able to distract you, or…" She trailed off, and the air between them grew heavy until she spoke once more.
"Rockman…please…don't use that power again…"
The voices of Berserk crackled and sparked in his head at that, snarling angrily at the impudence of the girl before him, but Rockman ignored them, instead focusing on her. Was that really the true nature of the OOParts? He shouldn't have been surprised-they'd been sealed up by themselves for so long, but still…
He couldn't run away from this.
"Harp Note…I can't do that, I'm sorry…"
An explosion rocked the ground, and more dirt trickled into the pit, covering their feet. The aura emanating from Rockman blasted it away from him almost immediately, but neither of them noticed.
"Why?! Is it because Berserk's stuck in War-Rock?! Are they trapping you together with it? We'll find a way to get them out, I promise-"
"Harp Note."
His voice was quiet, but she was silenced all the same.
"I can't…I have to do this, Harp Note…"
"Why?!"
"Because…we need Berserk's power."
They both knew that. So far, the victories they had…the discoveries they made…Berserk had played a key part in all of them. But it was Berserk being stuck in Rockman that got him involved so deeply in this mess…right?
Then again, they both knew that as Rockman and Harp Note, they would have found such trouble soon enough.
"…But…still…" Harp Note sniffled. "Rockman, I don't like this…I don't like you being at risk like this…"
"We put ourselves at risk every time we're fighting, don't we?"
"But this is different! With this, the risk is still there whether we win or lose-it's something stuck with you for I don't know how long! It's something that could completely erase you without you knowing, make you into something else before you knew you were gone...Do you really have to make it worse? Can't you just-just-ignore them, or get Amachi-san to help you get Berserk out, or at least not trust them? Something…"
Silence again.
"Harp Note…I don't think that's possible anymore." It went unspoken that Rockman already trusted Berserk, to some degree. At the very least, he knew Berserk wouldn't let him die-which was better than their enemies, at least. Even so, her face screwing itself into a scowl spoke volumes.
"Rockman-!"
"Just listen for a second!" he insisted, holding up his hands again. She stood back and waited as he took a deep breath to steady himself.
"I can't ask you to trust Berserk. That's understandable, especially after what you've seen, but…"
"But what? Are you gonna ask me to trust them anyway? That's impossible!"
"No! That's not it! I'm just saying…can't you trust me, instead?"
"Eh…? What…?" All her protests seemed to die away at that request.
"Just…can you trust me to not lose? If Berserk or the other OOParts try something, I'll fight back with all I have, just like I did last time with War-Rock. Even if I lose control…I won't let it happen without a fight, I'll stop myself somehow. I won't let the OOParts win. Can you trust me to do that? Please?"
A minute passed, in which more explosions rocked the hole they were in. Again, they were oblivious to the dirt slowly burying them.
"Okay…" Harp Note finally whispered. "I'll…I'll trust you." Her face settled into a determined frown, and she looked directly at him.
"But if you break that promise, I'll deal with you personally!"
"Eheh…" Scary…but heartening. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Now, come on! We've got a bird to shoot down!"
"Right! Stand back, Harp Note!"
Harp Note leaped backwards as the yellow aura surrounding Rockman became more intense. This was the first time he was really calling on Berserk's power on his own, and she tensed as the light grew bright enough to blind her.
When it faded, he was standing there in the form of Thunder Berserk, the armor somehow glinting brightly despite the two of them being in the shadows of the pit.
"Rockman?"
"I'm here, Harp Note." Her body relaxed, and she was finally able to give him a firm nod with a smile on her face.
"Get ready to jump! Thunder Slash!" He swung the large electric blade above him in an arc, and a burst of electricity surged upward in the form of a lightning bolt. The attack caught several of the bird missiles at once, and they all exploded in mid-air.
"Now, Harp Note!"
"Un!" She leapt up through the opening his attack had provided, and she was able to reach the lowest Wave Road. Up and up she jumped, until she found herself face-to-face with a startled Condor Geograph.
"What-!?"
"Pulse Song!" A strum of her guitar gave Condor Geograph a full face-on blast of sound waves, and he tumbled backwards.
"Tch! You dare-! Flying Impact!" Harp Note was still in midair, and unlike the avian Denpa-Human, had no means of maneuvering her flight so quickly. It was guaranteed that she'd be hit, until-
"Thunder Slash!" Another lightning bolt from below drove itself between them, and Condor Geograph veered off course. This gave Harp Note the opportunity to let loose a blast of guitar strings to swing herself onto a nearby Wave Road and fire a Shock Note at the disoriented bird. He barely dodged both attacks, and turned to attack her again.
He was cut off again by yet another bolt of lightning as Rockman jumped out of the pit and began barreling towards the cliffside. He had an idea…an idea that wouldn't bow down to Berserk's desires of destruction!
"Harp Note! Drive him over here!"
"Got it! Machine Gun String!" Condor dodged the attack that was fired past him, and barreled towards her, only to find her jumping upwards to another Wave Road. "Machine Gun String!" This attack sailed overhead, clearly missing him.
"Hah! Foolish girl, did you think you could hit me with an inferior attack like that?" A cry of "Thunder Slash!" cut Condor off, however, and he found himself veering away from her. He found himself dodging more and more strings, fired seemingly haphazardly in his general direction from behind him. He scoffed, and decided to aim for the impudent boy instead-those sudden lightning strikes were the bigger threat, and the power behind them…that wasn't something he had felt before in this fight. He had to deal with it.
Charging ahead, he didn't notice the glint in the air until he was nearly upon it-a large web of guitar strings held up by the Wave Roads directly in front of him. By the time he realized that this was the girl's true aim, he'd already flown into it, sputtering as the web obstructed his vision and caused him to fall away from his path, towards the ground where Rockman was waiting for him in a field of yellow flowers.
"Agame-san, remember this! Typhoon Dance!" He leapt up and spun rapidly in the air, pulling up a whirlwind that picked up numerous flower petals from the ground and blasted them upwards in a buffeting wind that further blinded Condor Geograph.
"Agame-san, don't you remember these flowers, what you told us?! Please!"
When those flowers bloom every morning, they reflect the heart of that little girl. There truly is no better offering than this.
"Agame-san!" cried Harp Note. "You know what Condor wants isn't truly the best offering for a god! This isn't what you send to Mu anymore!"
"This isn't what Mu needs now, Agame-san! You know that better than anyone!" Rockman finished, bracing himself.
Condor Geograph screamed in agony in the air, as the two beings making him up began to struggle for control. As the old shaman began to awaken and be aware of what he was doing in that body, the fusion began to destabilize.
"Nan-ska-ai-ai-I-I-I-! I-AM-GOD! ALL WILL BOW-TO-ME-All who oppose me does not deserve to live!" Condor finally screeched as he subverted the shaman's will once again, shaking off the flower petals and guitar strings to charge at Rockman once again.
"You're not a god!" Rockman declared, brandishing his sword. "A true god doesn't rule through fear! Trying to use your power to control people…that's not what a god does!" With a final swipe of his sword, a blast of lighting dug through the earth until it hit the airborne Denpa-Human. The impact finally stopped him in his tracks, and he cried out.
"Gyaaargh-! This is…the power of Mu…!" Condor Geograph finally fully destabilized at that moment, vanishing into pixilated bits of light as the form of Agame-san was seen reappearing amongst them. As the bird disappeared, he dropped from the sky. Rockman leaped up to catch him, and the shaman was safely in his arms by the time he landed back in the field of flowers.
"Who-who are you? What have I been doing…?" the old man asked, worry and shock on his face. Rockman didn't answer, instead choosing to help the shaman to his feet. As the two of them stood, however, it quickly turned out that he didn't need to answer the first question, at least.
"Rockman-sama!"
"Rockman!"
The two girls (and Cancer Bubble) were running towards them, but Luna quickly managed to outstrip the others. Rockman was left unable to react other than in surprise as she jumped on him, knocking the two of them to the ground. He found himself quite uncomfortable as he pulled himself up to sit cross-legged in the field, for she had latched her arms around his neck and snuggled against his face.
"My one and only god is Rockman-sama!" she cried triumphantly.
"Hey!" Rockman barely heard Harp Note's voice of complaint, instead looking down as War-Rock laughed softly in amusement.
"She called you a god."
"Wueh…"
As this was going on, the shaman observed the children with a speculative expression that slowly turned to awe as he processed his own scanty memories of the recent events.
"When our village is in danger, our god will come down from Mu and save us…Rockman-sama…" He looked down at the children, then walked towards them, raising his hand to the sky. "Ohhh! Praise God!" All the children looked up at him in surprise as he got on his hands and knees in front of the two that were sitting down.
"Rockman-sama! Nanska!" As he said those words reverentially, he bowed his head, and Rockman let out a surprised yelp. Did they really think he was a god?!
"Misora-chi! It's gonna be time to go back soon…" Cancer Bubble's plaintive sounding interruption was a relief.
"Eh? Oh, yeah! I've got great inspiration for my next song now!"
"Wait, Misora!" cautioned Harp. "Something's not right!"
"She's right, kiddo," commented War-Rock. "That presence…it seems like our little god-wannabe is still hanging around!"
"What?!" Rockman immediately stood up, ignoring Luna's cries of protest at having to let go. Looking over to the very edge of the flowerbed, the group all saw a red mass of denpa raise itself up.
"W-what is that?" the shaman murmured, garnering surprise from Harp Note and Rockman.
"He can see denpa?" the boy asked.
"Berserk's power has saturated this field," grumbled War-Rock. "It's just like at Dombra Lake. Even if there was only one OOPart this time, you were purposefully flinging it around earlier to fuel the Wave Roads, remember? The effect should be temporary, but until then, he can see him just as well as you can."
"Huh…" Rockman began to walk cautiously towards the downed birdlike denpa being.
"Stay with them, Cancer," Harp Note commanded, following Rockman warily. She didn't like the way the sound of his pacing seemed to change subtly as he got closer to the Condor: he was starting to step with more forcefulness than the polite Rockman would ever do.
"Ch-che…for a god to lose to likes of you…impossible!" the bird growled, looking up at Rockman. Rockman only looked on impassively, his face unreadable and his eyes not visible at the angle he was standing.
"If you are a god…then what does that make us, who defeated you?" Rockman hissed back in a tone that was very much unlike him. Everyone stiffened at the voice, feeling a chill of foreboding pass through their bodies. Harp Note recoiled in fear despite herself.
"N-no…Rockman…" It couldn't be. If so…it happened so seamlessly, so quickly…was he really not aware of just how much influence the OOPart had on him?
"You…how dare you, a mere human, talk to a god like this!"
"Remember your place, wretched thing." Rockman's voice was harsh, like a crack of thunder, and everyone other than the downed Condor involuntarily stepped back.
"You, servant of Shinobi, are naught more than a tool of the Murian people. As superior as you are over the common man, this does not put you above us, the people of Mu, in any shape or form whatsoever. Forgetting such a thing…is unacceptable."
"H-hah! You are not of my people! The foolish tribe of Berserk, forced to resort to commanding about the body of a young human child? An inferior tribe like yourselves in such a position has no right to speak such a way!"
"No..nor does the loser…do they?" A malicious edge seemed to enter his voice, and everyone felt fear starting to take hold.
"R-Rockman-sama…" Luna whispered, her voice quivering as Rockman slowly raised the sparking sword.
"Submit. Acknowledge your loss and your inferiority."
"Tchah! Never, not to some denizen of Berserk!"
"Is that so…?" The arm holding the sword tensed, and everyone jumped back when they saw it move.
"Rockman, you can't!" Harp Note screamed, starting forward and preparing her guitar for attack. Sure, Condor had caused nothing but trouble, but somehow striking him down like this, deleting him when he was down and out..it felt wrong, somehow. And those words, those chilling, familiar words…Rockman wouldn't do this! He would never say such cold things…
She was stopped in her tracks by a single look from "Rockman." He was barely looking at her, just one eye showing as he glanced over his shoulder…but what a terrible eye! Glowing completely red, engulfing all semblance of human emotion; and yet it still conveyed a sense of dismissing her, of looking at her not as a person, but as a thing just barely in his way. A thing he could easily step over and bypass, if he so wished, but wasn't worth the effort. A mocking glance that seemed to challenge her with its lack of interest: did Harp Note really mean to challenge this thing that had taken her friend's body? Did she really think she stood a chance?
"R-Rockman…" Harp Note was furious at herself at her own helplessness. Hadn't she promised Amachi-san that she would watch over Rockman, prevent him from being overtaken by Berserk? Hadn't she done all she could to try and keep him from falling into its clutches? Why couldn't she move?
The eye closed briefly in a slow blink, and in the one moment free of that oppressive feeling, she found her voice.
"Rockman…I trust you."
Her mouth went dry as he didn't respond. The head turned away, not looking back.
The sword was raised up.
0-0-End of Chapter 7 -0-0
Episode Preview: Harp Note: Rockman, wait! You can't do this! You promised not to let the OOPart take over!
Rockman(?): Child, stand back before you're hurt. This is something the boy has to learn-his rightful standing as a wielder of our power!
Harp Note: This isn't something he should be learning! Instead, isn't there something else-We didn't come to learn this from you! Next time, on Ryuusei no Rockman Tribe: Between Heaven and Earth! The Tale Engraved in the Lines!
The tale in the-that's not important right now! Rockman...Rockman!
[A/N]: i love buki. it's my favorite battle card, right up there with break saber, flicker kick, and all multiple hitting sword cards.
oorrrrgh i'm so glad i finally have this battle scene done do you realize how hyped i was when i finally finished it and could go back to actually just copying down prewritten material. never again will i leave something unwritten. HOOWARGH.
I PROMISE NEW AND ORIGINAL MATERIAL AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT FOR CONDOR COMES NEXT CHAPTER. IT PROBABLY WON'T TAKE ME ANOTHER YEAR TO FINISH IT THIS TIME.
maybe two years.
...
kIDDING. .. .