Chapter 7: Talk in the Park
Rokku suddenly awoke in a cold sweat. He was breathing heavily, and his eyes weren't hiding the fear found. After a few moments of heavy breaths, he slowly eased up and looked around his surroundings. His pajama shirt, specifically up to his collar bone and neck, was drenched with sweat, the comforters were almost sticking to his hands, and most of all, the night had not yet concluded. It was a little after 4 AM...
...A mere few hours after he defeated Wingwave.
...Correction: After he, Model M, and Aimer beat him.
Rokku frowned as he looked over at his desk where his laptop was. Normally, Model M would be over there, being "offline" so to speak. But following the conflict with the bat-themed pseudoroid, Rokku had given Model M to Aimer to check him for damages. With all that's happened yesterday, both Model M and Rokku had taken a beating from a variety of opposition. They were hurt but ultimately fine when it came to Alphonse...but Wingwave was a different story.
As his thoughts wondered, Rokku stared at his desk for a little while longer before he laid back down in his bed and turned to face the wall...
...Trying to fall back asleep.
Hours later, Rokku invited Aimer with him to Dirige's Utopian Pizzeria. The Akihiros ordered from here often. Although all of them loved pizza, Rokku loved pizza the most and that was no secret.
Sitting in a booth, the two teens shared a 16-inch large pepperoni pizza which Rokku paid for. They talked for quite some time, not eating the pizza very much. Model M, however, was in Aimer's lab with Model Gu.
"...So, the Commander is going to come to the island really soon." Aimer continues with cheer in her voice. "He's expecting to meet you and get your full support. Don't worry, I didn't give away your name, just "Mega Man". If you wanna tell him your "secret identity" when you meet him, that's all on you~"
Rokku took a sip out of his orange soda via straw. The two of them had soda, but Aimer opted for strawberry flavor...though she was secretly wishing she got grape instead.
"...Uh... Yeah." Rokku told her...in a half-awake tone.
Aimer was quick to notice. In fact, she's noticed this odd behavior for a minute now. "...Okay. What's wrong?"
Rokku blinked. "Huh?"
"You've been acting like this since we sat down," Aimer stated with puffy cheeks and a stern look. "What's the matter?"
Rokku sat there for a moment, stirring the ice in his cup with his straw before signing. "I... Didn't get much sleep last night. Which really messed me up because my Dad woke me up early. I had forgotten that I asked Dad to train me, so I've been a little out of it, haha..."
He refused to speak of how he maaay have punched his father harder than either of them expected... Not that Joseph seemed to mind.
"Ohhh... That makes sense." Aimer smiled reassuringly. "Explains why you look kind of a mess, though~"
"Whaddya mean?" Rokku asked worryingly, almost sounding offended.
"Rokku, you've got bags under your eyes and your hair is messy. Messier than usual, might I add~" Aimer teased.
Rokku looked especially offended now. "Hey! My hair is just fine, thank you very much! I worked hard to make it look way past cool!"
Aimer giggled. At least he was as expressive as usual, she thought to herself. "Sooo... Your hair doesn't look like that normally?"
"Okay, change the subject please! Thank you!" Rokku then stuffed his face with a pizza slice as he comically glares at the pink haired prodigy. He would neither confirm nor deny these accusations.
"Alright, alright~ Tell me about your ship then."
Rokku's face morphed into surprise...as his mouth was full of pizza.
Aimer, however, gave him another stern look. "I'm not letting you weasel out of this one. I asked you about this twice yesterday and you responded with the same thing."
In a voice mocking Rokku's, Aimer repeated what exactly he told her: "It's a long story. I'll tell you about it some time."
"I don't wanna hear you tell me that five more times, so let's hear it. What's with the airship and why were you coming to the Quarry?" Aimer almost sounded like she was ruthlessly interrogating him... And admittedly, it frightened the poor boy.
Swallowing his pizza and cleaning his mouth with a napkin as she spoke, Rokku sighed in defeat.
"Okay, alright..." he then cleared his throat. "That airship, the DVN-005 EVA, belonged to my Grandpa. He built her himself and traveled all over the world. My parents found it a while back and learned that he left it for me to have."
He then looked away from Aimer with a surprisingly annoyed expression. "The day after my birthday, we spoke with the guy fixing it up. His name is Sprocket. Turns out it's not going to fly without the correct power source. And we have no idea what it really is aside from being some special crystal."
Rokku closed his eyes, looking more sorrowful. "...I wish I could ask him myself. But he's gone. And that ship and his diary are the only clues I've got..."
"...I'm sorry." She apologized. She remembered he mentioning his deceased Grandpa, but she could hear his voice crack when he said 'he's gone'. It was a feeling she could empathize with.
"It's okay." Rokku straightened his face and looked at her. Not quite smiling but not on the verge of tears either. "Straight to the point, I was going to the Quarry to see if I can find that power source and get EVA back in the skies... Admittedly, since there was a Biometal and Pseudoroid found there, I'm thinking I might be able to find something there..."
Aimer thought about Rokku's words. "...About that power source... What do you know about it?"
"Not a lot." Rokku slumped his shoulders. "Something about crystals and Cyber-Elves... Even when I keep re-reading it, I hardly make sense of it... Sprocket told me and my family that he sent the info we gave him to some Guardian who may get back to us when they find something, but who knows when that'll be. This power source seems to be a mystery..."
"Well... Do you have his diary here by chance?" Aimer asked.
Rokku raised a curious brow at first, internally considering the options he had regarding her question. After a bit of contemplating, Rokku took off the backpack he often wore and placed it on the seat next to him. Digging inside, he brought out the old diary. The most eye-catching quality of the diary were the numerous sticky note bookmarks folded on the corners of various pages found sticking out. Blue, orange, red, and other varying colors, these vibrant origami bookmarks caught Aimer's attention.
The young boy held the book in front of him, looking at it as he thought about his words. "...I've been looking into this since I got it. It's risky having this in my bag but... I figured I'd keep it close to me so I can keep reading it even when I'm not at home..."
"Hm." Aimer nodded. "...Do you think I could... You know, look at it myself?"
Rokku quickly looked at her. Without words, Aimer already knew what he was thinking and what he could say. So, she decided to...hopefully calm whatever suspicions or concerns he may or may not have. "U-Uhh, I just wanna read the stuff about that power source and only that stuff! I don't want to look at his other things!"
But Aimer quickly calmed herself with a heavy sigh. "...However. I'll totally understand if you don't want me to. The decision is yours and I'll respect it no matter what. It's...your Grandfather's diary after all. I would want you to be cautious-"
"Okay." Rokku said suddenly, catching Aimer caught off guard.
"...Say what?"
"...As long as you're only looking at the stuff about this weird crystal, I'll...trust you." Rokku smiled nervously. He held the book across the table, expecting Aimer to grab it. She was hesitant to do so at first, as she was thinking about how...he was willing to allow her, a girl he knew for barely a week, to check the contents of his late Grandfather's diary entries.
But she eventually made the decision to take it. Once she did, Rokku continued. "I got those origami bookmarks for pages that talk about the power source. Thankfully, Grandpa only talked about that stuff in specific entries, so you don't need to read through other unrelated entries for talks about it... Believe me. My parents and I were really looking through it all... Mostly me though."
Aimer looked at the diary in her hands. She felt a new weight of responsibility fall on her shoulders just holding a personal book that meant so much to a friend of hers. "...Alright. I can't promise anything other than the fact that I'll do my best to find even the smallest detail that could help in the long run!"
Rokku smiled. "Thanks Aimer."
"Just know that I...We...have a bit on our plate as is, so if I DO find something, it won't be until things simmer down with the invaders." Aimer told him.
"I understand. Just...be careful with it, okay?" Rokku practically pleaded.
"I won't let you down, Rokku." Aimer nodded with a determined and assuring smile.
The two resumed eating their meal and continued conversing, talking about each other, the current events, whatever made them feel...normal. But the conversations ceased when Rokku got a message on his phone. Even if his new ear plates were capable of communication, phones weren't obsolete. He pulled his phone out of his shorts' pocket and discovered a message that had a green background and white text.
"Huh... Looks like I got my first Guardian Request." Rokku said aloud. All Guardians in the area got the message as it was a request by a citizen. These requests could be as simple as helping the requester with homework, finding a specific flower, or delivering special and personal messages to another. They can also be somewhat advanced in terms of difficulty. The request Rokku saw was requesting the Mega Man to meet them in Iota Park.
The knowledge that the Guardians had a Mega Man wasn't exactly a secret to the public on Selena Island. The only "secret" was the identity of said Mega Man, which was Rokku himself, obviously. In other words, this request was directed at Rokku specifically.
"And I'm gonna need Model M for this one." Rokku looked at Aimer who's face morphed into surprise...as her mouth was full of pizza.
After taking a quick trick to Aimer's mobile lab in the woods, Rokku, megamerged with Model M, bursts out of her doors and rushes to Iota Park via a Portable Transerver. As a member of Sentry, Aimer herself had a portable Transerver and gave it to Rokku to use to arrive at a nearby Transerver station in Uptown where Iota Park would be found. She would remain in her lab and continue her research following their hangout at Dirige's while Rokku proceeded with the Guardian Request, having accepted it after he megamerged.
Within Kairos City itself, there were three significant sectors: Downtown, Uptown, and City Hall. Downtown was more of a commercial and residential district, Uptown was where numerous facilities and schools were found, and City Hall was where the police station, banks, the Mayor's building, and other important political locales were found.
Iota Park was technically in Uptown but was also very close to Downtown's area. Rokku himself normally would find himself in Uptown or Downtown, rarely going to City Hall... But City Hall is where he met Folly and her pet, Inverse. He also knew that Uptown was where his Dad often did his laborer jobs at as construction for new buildings were found there. Rokku didn't exactly know what the city was building over in Uptown...despite Joseph telling Rokku a few times when he did ask.
Coming out of a Transerver station in Uptown, Rokku ran to Iota Park. He had some curious or even frightened looks by the people, but he simply smiled and waved, hoping not to cause too much of a scene. Then again, he had to recall that people have considered him a Maverick due to his look; a recollection that hurt him so.
Once in Iota Park, he traversed through the path that led to the silver statues found in the area. Iota Park was quite varied with hills, staircases, and decorations that made it feel that each sector of Iota Park was a totally different location entirely. The current sector he was at had an oriental setting and these statues were designed after the Chinese Dragons with their talons firmly on top of orbs. Rokku himself had no idea why the place was designed with so much cultural variety, but the young teenager wasn't complaining. He thought they were "neat".
"The request said to meet them by the dragon statues..." Rokku recounted aloud before placing his hands on his hips. He stood there for some time, observing his surroundings...before giving out a dejected sigh. "...And I don't see aaanyone around."
"Oh! Sorry!"
A familiar voice made Rokku turn around. From the other side of the statue came an equally familiar girl who was waiting for the arrival of Rokku, the Mega Man. Seems the two were waiting on opposite sides of the statue. Regardless, Rokku's eyes widened when he saw the girl.
"Wait, you're that Merrie Jane girl...!" Rokku pointed at her.
The girl, Merrie Jane, bowed politely. Her outfit already made her look formal and professional despite her appearing...not that much older than him. Maybe a year or two than him, but no more than that. "That's right. I apologize for calling you out here like this. I just had no other ideas on how to meet you personally after I ran away yesterday."
"...Oh! Um... It's okay. I don't blame you for what happened." Rokku admitted sheepishly. He hadn't seen her since she ran away yesterday. He...admittedly hadn't thought about her either, but given all that he's dealt with in a single day, he was unable to remember every detail. And those sentiments were shared by Model M... but he'd keep silent for the time being.
"I thank you for understanding." Merrie smiled and held her hands together. "I don't like Mavericks, but I feel I have to make tough decisions in order to do the right thing. With that said? I should get to why I called you here, Mega Man... Actually, "Mega Man" is a common name, isn't it? Do you have some special name I can call you?"
Rokku tapped his chin, giving some thought to her question. "Huh. That's a pret-ty good question. Mega Man is a common name for Biometal users. Though, I haven't come up with a special name for me yet..." The idea of giving his hero persona a unique name was something he thought up a few times, mostly during the night he became a Mega Man and after the Inverse fight at the bank, but he never seriously delved into it.
One name he thought about was "Mega Man Kai", but Rokku didn't think it sounded right for him...
Despite Rokku's inner thoughts leaving him...stationary in front of Merrie Jane, the young lady proceeded to talk again.
"Errr... O-Okay, we'll just stick with "Mega Man" for now." She began, snapping Rokku out of his thoughts. "I should really get to why I called you here while I still have time."
She did want to start earlier...but her question about his hero name seemed to have taken priority for a moment. But her supposed agency did not go unnoticed by the modern Blue Bomber. "Speaking of which... When you were attacked by those scarecrow lookin' bots and I saved ya, you knew them by their names: Hallow Jacks. How do you know about that?"
"Oh that, I heard one of those Gravers talk about them. That's all... I've never seen any mechaniloids like these though. They aren't exactly like the Galleons, that's for sure." Merrie explained, her lips quivering as she recalled the Mavericks. "But the Gravers are who I'm most familiar with."
Rokku raised a brow with his hands on his hips. "Oh yeah?"
Merrie nodded and continued. "The truth is, I work for a fashion company. Maybe you've heard of it? Seduzione Industries~?"
"...Hmm. Nope. Can't say I have." Rokku replied flatly, causing Merrie to slouch in disbelief.
"Aww... A-Anyway, before I started working for the company, they were harassed by the Gravers. I don't know the exact details, but it was something the company wanted to keep secret as best as they can..."
"But... You're telling me." Rokku replied, raising a curious brow.
"Fact is, I sure hadn't heard of them when I signed up for my job." Merrie continued with a frown. "When these guys resurfaced, I heard about what they did to the company, so I decided to do some digging around to try and stop them. It wasn't easy, and my investigations led me here on this island. The Gravers are in cahoots with someone else, but I just don't know who..."
Rokku didn't know much, but thanks to Aimer's research he knew that these Hallow Jacks were associated with some empire and that they were somehow connected to the Graver group, the Raiders Rokku had the unpleasant time dealing with yesterday. But he'd keep that to himself. Both he and Model M had agreed to not to reveal too much before arriving to the rendezvous point. Thanks to Merrie, it seems to confirm that the Nocturne Empire and Gravers are cooperating.
"That attack yesterday was just the beginning, I feel." Merrie said.
The young boy looked at her, brows furrowed. "Why do you say that...?"
"Well... I've been investigating, as you know..." Merrie started, looking nervous. "I... managed to sneak into a hideout that they were once in. It was in the port town... Warehouse 64. I overheard some grunts talking about a future invasion that's going to be even bigger than the last one. I know for sure that they moved out of that warehouse and found a new hideout somewhere at shore... In the forest mountain region."
Rokku gave her words some thought. The Warehouse she's talking about was close to Luna Town, where he lives... But this other hideout that these Gravers supposedly moved in sounds like they're at the rocky shores. A place where no one should be swimming around at or bringing their boats at due to the rough terrain and rough waters.
In all his life on this island, Rokku hadn't been to every single place here and he's never been in the regions Merrie's talking about... But perhaps that's gonna change today.
But there's a thought that's been nagging at the back of his head since he met her again here. "I gotta ask... Why are you investigating these super dangerous guys? You work for a fashion company...and you don't look that much older than me..."
However, Merrie answered that with question with a question of her own, and her voice took a slightly offended tone but still maintaining the serious tone she's kept when relaying her intel. "...Why are you fighting? You don't look that much older than me either."
Rokku bit his lip. He somewhat regret asking her that, feeling a bit flustered...and somewhat intimidated given her tone of voice. But he quickly washed away the feelings of mild embarrassment and answered hers...but not with another question. "...My home is under attack by these...invaders. I wanna do what I can to protect the island and the people on it. If these invaders are gonna stick around and do bad things to people, then I don't need a reason to do the right thing and stop them."
The modern Blue Bomber folded his arms. "...So, what about you?"
Merrie stared at him for a while...but she soon smiled, content with his answer. "...At first? I was just doing this for the company's sake. But... my investigations made me realize that I can do more than just keep my company safe from some militant gang. I could potentially do the right thing and keep as many people safe as I can."
She then placed her hand on her chest with a sorrowful tone and frown. "It's just... I'm not a superpowered person. This is all I feel I can do." But she then smiled once again. "...So that's why I'm relying on you, Mega Man! I think you can stop these invaders, for sure!"
Rokku nodded and smiled sheepishly. "I-I'll do my best... S-Since you're doing your best, after all. Thanks for all that you've told me. I'll make sure to, uh, tell the proper authorities so we can get a move on with our problem."
"You're welcome! Any time!" Merrie bowed professionally and turned to leave.
Rokku was about to do the same, but he had just one more question to ask... "Oh yeah. By the way. Have you heard of this girl named Folly?"
Merrie stopped in her tracks and turned around with a curious look. "Folly?"
"She's this Jester-looking Mega Man." Rokku explained. "She can make a buncha weird portals."
"Hmm... I've heard rumors about her..." Merrie said with an intense thinking face. She rested her right elbow in the palm of her left hand, using her right hand to grasp her chin. "The Jester gal who robbed a bank apparently? Outside of that, I don't know anything... But I did notice those giant portals in the sky yesterday, dropping off those Hallow Jacks into the city. If she can make portals like you say, then she's probably involved too."
"...Yup. That's what I'm thinking." Rokku frowned, he then turned around and waved her goodbye. "Thanks again. I'm off!"
Merrie waves to him as he runs off before she turns and runs off in the other direction herself.
Rokku made his way back to Aimer's mobile lab in the woods. Though he had her portable Transerver, it didn't mean he could teleport anywhere he wanted. He needed a Transerver station or at least a Warp Point... And Aimer's lab had neither of those things, so he had to huff it.
Upon arriving to her trailer, Rokku and Model M relayed everything Merrie Jane told them to Aimer, including the fact that Rokku and M met her yesterday during the fight and the young lady's motivations for investigating the Graver group. Rokku had demerged and had Model M floating by him.
Aimer, in her lab coat and sitting on her chair, placed her hands into a coat pocket with a surprisingly exasperated sigh. "...I'm not gonna lie, I'm shocked."
"About the Gravers having a hideout in my port town and now in the rocky shores?" Rokku asked.
"No, about this Merrie Jane girl!" Aimer retorted. She had a noticeably agitated look as she continued. "Unless there's some OTHER Merrie Jane that works for that specific company, I'm just shocked that she was as helpful as you guys say."
"I'm sorry but... Did you know her, Aimer?" Model M asked.
"Sorta. I more know her for her reputation, but I haven't met the girl in person..." Aimer replied. "She works for Seduzione Industries, right? Their HQ is on an island called Vortum. I heard that she was a troublemaker, even when working for Seduzione Industries...but she's been squeaky clean for a while."
"You think she might be suspicious, then?" Model M asked once more.
Rokku had his arms folded. "Iunno... She seemed really scared of Mavericks yesterday and she admitted it herself earlier."
"The fear of Mavericks part is true." Aimer confirmed. "That's probably part of why she cleaned up her act, especially with the Gravers back and they're clearly cooperating with said Mavericks."
"...So, what? We just throw away everything she's told us?" Rokku asked with concern.
Aimer waved to him with a cheery smile. "Oh goodness no!" She turned on her chair to face the computer and started typing away on the keyboard. "Everything she's told you has been pretty accurate with my own research. But still, we're going to take her words with a pinch of salt here."
"Whaddya mean?" Rokku asked.
"I mean, we're going to verify her claims." Aimer stated. "We have two points of interest: Warehouse 64 and some hideout in the rocky shores. If what you've told me about the latter is true, then not a whole lot of the folk on the island is going to be around there, making it a pretty good hideout for any good villain."
Aimer finished typing and turned to her friends with an eager smile. "I just sent my commander the intel you guys just told me and my plan of action~ We're going to have some Guardians scout ahead at both locations and when we get the go-ahead, we're gonna go infiltrating. I'll be with a team from Sentry, investigating Warehouse 64 to see if the Graver group has left anything behind for us to use, while you guys go with a Sentry team to those rocky shores and take out any Gravers there."
"Cool!" Rokku grinned eagerly. "I like it! We're gonna get THEM this time! Do you think Alphonse can help me out?"
Aimer sadly shook her head. "Sorry, pal, but Alphonse is still healing up. But don't worry! Like I said, you'll have your own team helping you. Mega Man or not, help is help!"
"She's right!" Model M agreed. "I'd sure like to have Guts Man's help again after all this time, but it's better if his partner rests up so they can help us at their best!"
Rokku nodded with a smile. "Alright. Then we've got ourselves a plan."
The young boy held out his hand and Aimer placed her hand on top of his with Model M on top of Aimer's hand. The two teens soon raised their hands in the air while Model M floated to the air, and all three shouted:
"Let's do it!"