Chapter 10: Motherly Instincts

Raiden's unconscious body was carried away on a stretcher by Guardians, who placed him inside a Sentry van. Rokku, unmerged, sat silently on a bench watching the man he just fought be taken into the van before it drove away. In his right hand was Model El, the Biometal Raiden was using to fight him with. He had already spoken with the Guardians and Sentry about what had happened while he was megamerged, but with them taking care of Raiden and taking witness accounts, if possible, Rokku would unmerge in secret and reappear to watch. But before he left the scene, he had taken Raiden's Biometal that fell from his person.

He honestly didn't know how to feel about this. He felt so much sitting on this bench silently. Confusion, anger, fear, and uncertainty were the feelings swirling his heart but his inability to do much after he defeated Raiden plagued him.

All of a sudden, he saw Aimer run over to him after exiting her motorcycle.

"There you are!" She called out as she ran to him. "I heard what happened. Are you okay? Is Raiden okay?"

"...I guess." Rokku answered honestly, still indecisive on how to feel regarding the situation. But he then shook his head to answer her question properly. "I-I mean... I'm fine. Raiden...is fine too. At least, that's what they told me. They're just going to check on him like with the others we saved..."

Aimer frowned. But before she could say anything, Rokku stood up and held out the Biometal he acquired in his right hand and Model M in his left hand.

"Here you go." Rokku said. "This is the Biometal Raiden had. You can do your thing. Model M and I took a beating so could you check on him too, please?"

"Uhhh... Sure." Aimer replied cautiously as she took the two Biometals. She almost had a 'no-duh' tone when she replied. Whether he had asked her or not, she was going to check on the two Biometals and heal them as she's done in the past. "What about you? Are you sure you're okay?"

Rokku frowned and threw his hands in his pockets. His nearly closed eyes stared at the ground as he let out a big sigh. "...I... I am... and I'm not... But I will be."

"...I'm sorry." Aimer apologized.

"It's not your fault, Aimer." Model M assured her. "If it's any consolation, we have another Biometal I know! Not to mention that Raiden was the last Mega Man Folly could get, at least according to what she said! Hopefully, this means we won't have to worry about another Berserk Mega Man. At least for now. Who knows what else she has up her sleeve?"

Rokku nodded in agreement with his Biometal ally's words. Folly wasn't done. She couldn't have been. Especially with the Trouble Trio and Gravers still around. She had something; they just didn't know what.

"I'm gonna head back home." Rokku said, pointing his thumb behind him to the direction of where his home was. "Rest up and stuff. Let my Mom and Dad know I'm okay."

"Alright." Aimer replied cautiously. "You want me to give you a ride or...?"

"Nah." Rokku was quick to respond. "I'll just take the train. It'll take me right to Luna Town."

"Okay, just... Take a Sub-Tank before you go. I have a filled-up container at my bike." Aimer told him.

Rokku agreed to do so. He's already had a container after fighting Keegan and Jack a few hours ago, but another one wouldn't hurt even if he thought they tasted funny. They won't make a person feel 100% better immediately, but they would make the healing process go by immensely faster and rejuvenate any lost stamina and the like. A Sub-Tank would certainly help heal the beating Rokku got from Raiden and especially his Thunder Beam attacks.

Just like the Fire Storm, the Thunder Beam really hurts.

But most of all, he decided to take the Sub-Tank because of Aimer. She almost sounded like she was pleading with him to take it... and that made Rokku feel a bit guilty. So he'd comply without protest.

After doing so, Rokku would follow through with his plans and take the train in Kairos City back to Luna Town. The train was one he hadn't used in a long time since he usually got to the city via a car driven by his parents, but it was an option. The train took the transporters from the station in Luna Town to the one in Kairos City and vice versa. It was as simple as that.

Although he could've asked Aimer for a ride back to his place, he wanted to leave Aimer to her work.

At least, that's what he told himself.

Biometal Model El, which contained the soul of Elec Man, was inside her 'Biometal Scanner'. Just like with Models Gu, Fi, and Ic, Aimer was checking the Biometal for any data regarding Folly and the Nocturne Empire. Just like with those Biometals, she's hasn't gotten any new data. She hated to admit it, but she was expecting that. Her focus now was fixing the Biometal. It was damaged from the fight with Rokku.

Model Gu was easily the worst looking Biometal damage wise, but Model El might've been second best. Sure, Rokku did beat Raiden to unconsciousness, but based on what she's gathered from the Guardians, Sentries, and obviously Model M given his key role in it all, the damage on Model El didn't match up. If anything, the Biometal should've looked about the same as Models Ic and Fi when Rokku had beaten Jack and Keegan respectively.

She had immediately theorized that Model El was just like Model Gu; going through a long duration of not getting healed up, but she didn't believe that was the case given how fresh Model El's damage was. She also theorized that Folly might've damaged it while implementing the mind control program into the Biometal... But she had no proof to believe that was accurate.

Aimer wouldn't dwell on it though. She could theorize all she wanted, but she'd just have to wait until Model El woke up after she finished healing his body.

In the meantime, Aimer, while looking into the data she's acquired from Models Gu, Fi, Ic, and El on her computer, spoke to Model M whom she had fixed immediately upon returning to her mobile lab.

"Hey, Model M?" Aimer began. The blue Biometal sat on the desk beside her, resting his body against a stack of books she had. The book on top of the stack was what she had taken from Rokku at the pizzeria this morning. She wanted that book to be in plain view. "I'm not gonna sugarcoat it. I'm worried about Rokku."

"What makes you say that?" Model M asked. Not so much because he had no idea why she would feel this way but to hear her concerns more clearly.

"Obviously, you two have been doing a lot of fighting." She explained as she typed away on her keyboard, occasionally moving her right hand to the mouse to click and move the cursor around. "Alphonse, Wingwave, Keegan, Jack, Raiden, not to mention those Gravers and that Mettaur guy. And I have a feeling it's not going to let up..."

She frowned as her brows furrowed at the screen. "I spoke with my Commander earlier today and he and more Sentries are coming to the island first thing tomorrow. But I'm still worried."

She stopped typing for a moment and turned on her swivel chair to face the Biometal. "I mean... I'm not crazy, am I?"

"Of course not!" Model M was quick to reply. "It's normal to think that way. I said this earlier, but I did this sort of thing centuries ago. It wasn't fun. But I think this is different than what I had to deal with frequently back then."

Model M shifted his body a bit, almost as if readjusting his position against the books he was leaning on. "I think Rokku and I agree on the idea of wanting to protect people. He's pretty passionate about it which I know that you know. But he is new."

"...Right." Aimer agreed. They were both new at this. Aimer worked for a peacekeeping force, sure, but she was never involved in... battles like this. Her focus was always at researching, even if it meant by herself. She had her custom-made Buster-Pistol on hand in case she got into trouble, but she rarely had to use it during her escapades. Not until recently.

"I know megamerging with a Chosen One gives them a lot of knowledge, but it doesn't exactly give them experience." Model M explained. "As much as I hate to say it, Rokku has the potential to be a pretty good fighter. I've seen him do some clever things without my advice, even if one of those clever ideas he tried against Raiden didn't exactly work the way he wanted..."

He thought about the tire incident. Rokku wasn't pleased to know his idea didn't work. Model M knew it wasn't because Raiden just blew up the tire, but it just made Rokku's lightning phobia worse. Still, despite the phobia, Rokku managed to fight effectively enough.

"And I can't help but notice that he is getting...a little sloppy." Model M continued. "It's something I hope we can work on, especially since he doesn't know a lot about me which I'm ashamed to admit, but... I don't think it's just his lack of fighting experience and I think you know it."

Aimer frowned as he said that. But Model M kept talking.

"When we left into the city, he asked me about why you were asking about if we were okay." He continued. "I let him know that he wasn't being honest about his feelings but all he said was that he was tired."

"Well..." Aimer thought about earlier at the pizzeria when Rokku was rather out of character. "He did mention something like that when we ate pizza earlier..."

But she frowned as she looked at her legs, holding her hands together in front as she pondered her next words. "...Still though. The fighting probably isn't going to get any easier. And some training would definitely help but I just want to do more than just research. It's my passion but... I wanna be out there like I was when we tackled Wingwave. I wanna be useful to both Rokku and you, Model M."

Model M couldn't say anything to that. He wanted to say some encouraging words, but he felt the words he intended to say wouldn't help her feelings, given that she pointed out what she wanted to do.

"Fortunately, I have a project that I've been working on before I met you guys." She then turned back to her computer with a eager smile on her face. "I'm actually hoping you can help me with it, Model M."

"Oh? How can I help?" He asked.

She then turned her head to face him with that smile of hers. "I need to study you just a little bit more. It's going to be greater than the Wire chip I made~ Your data is going to be key to finishing up my project~!"

The following morning, Rokku wakes up in his bed. Once again, he's sweaty and sticky. Unlike before, he didn't wake up in the middle of the night. He woke up at a proper time of 8 AM. He knew he'd have to get his comforters and sheets clean from his sweat. Again. But for now, he'd take a quick shower.

After the shower, Rokku would put on his regular clothes minus his backpack and go to the kitchen. However, upon entering the kitchen, he was surprised to see his Mother sitting at the dining room table. She wore her regular clothes, but she had a coffee mug filled with, you guessed it, coffee. She was watching TV from the table...but also not really watching it. Her attention went to Rokku once she sensed the presence of another individual in the room.

"Uh, morning." Rokku greeted with an awkward wave when she turned to face him. "Where's Dad?"

"Working." Cassandra replied simply.

His father was a laborer at Uptown. He and the crew he was working with were constructing a new building. Rokku had no idea what it was either. But his attention was at his mother who was just sitting at the dining room table by herself. It was a pretty normal thing to witness at first glance, but Rokku felt something was off.

"Are you alright, Mom?" Rokku asked.

"Funny, that was what I was going to ask you." Cassandra countered. "Just replace 'Mom' with 'Rokku'."

The boy couldn't help but gulp. The tone she had was one he did not like. She wasn't even angry sounding, but her calmness yet stern tone made him quite uneasy.

Not to mention that she's not the only person to ask him this in the last 24 hours.

"I'm fine." Rokku answered quickly. "I mean, I didn't get much sleep last night, but I'm pretty alright."

Cassandra just stared at him with her mug in hand. Her stare and silence with the occassional blinking made Rokku sweat buckets as he stood there like a statue. He refused to say anything else as his mother stared at him. It was a simple stare, but behind that simplicity hid the feeling of a mother who wasn't convinced in the slightest by her son's apparent declaration of being 'fine'. And that feeling left Rokku frozen.

"...Rokku, I can sense when something's off in this household." Cassandra sternly stated. "Most of all, you're not the greatest liar in the world."

That factoid of hers stabbed Rokku in the gut. It left him more frightened than he already was. Now, his Mother would never raise her hand to him... But Cassandra didn't have to. With her son and even her husband, a mere glare makes the two of them crack or at the very least, fearful. Rokku was in the latter state.

Still, he had finally mustered up the courage to reply anyway, "I-I'm okay. But why are you sitting here by yourself?"

Cassandra, again, was unconvinced by Rokku's blatant lies. Despite that, she chose to answer her son's question.

"I'm worried about you." She admitted, holding her mug tighter. "When you came home last night, you barely spoke to us. I couldn't help but check on you sleeping three times. I just had to see if you were alright. Although you keep telling me you're okay, as a Mother, your Mother, I can't help but feel concerned. Especially when you're out actually fighting not just Mavericks but...Raiders too."

Rokku felt guilty. He rarely made his own mother worry and to hear her say these things pained him. "I'm sorry I worried you..."

As he let the guilt sink in, an idea came to his head. The idea came to him so thoroughly that he couldn't help but snap his fingers out of the blue.

"Hey, how about we hang out today~?" He asked her. "Just you and me~! A sunny day like this oughta make us feel better~"

Cassandra was skeptical but she couldn't help but smirk at her son's idea. "Hmhm~ It's sunny right now, but the weather says it'll be cloudy later on~"

Rokku then grinned big and wide. "All the more reason for us to hang out~"

His mother giggled. "Alright, I'll bite. What's your idea, kiddo~?"

Rokku had the idea to hang out with his mother in town. They'd simply walk around the place, conversing with one another. They would even visit some stores and walk by a nearby artificial lake to just observe. Their conversations mostly involved reminiscing about the past when they were younger.

Their memories around here were all pleasant, not a single sour spot to be found from their past... Well, aside from the fact that a little boy Rokku once cried rather loudly after once tripping and scrapping his knee on the pavement, leaving Joseph embarrassed and Cassandra wanting to hurry and treat his 'boo-boo'. The memory was pleasant for Cassandra since she got to help her son feel better but unpleasant for Rokku since he recalled how Joseph playfully taunted him about the incident with Cassandra often laughing with her husband. In hindsight, it was a minor wound that Rokku nowadays could treat himself easily. Not so much back then, but he was once a little kid like millions of others on this planet.

The mother and son would end up at a nearby cafe. Cassandra and Joseph have often visited this cafe for years, though Rokku rarely came here. He wasn't much of a coffee drinker unless the coffee itself had a lot of coffee creamer inside... Though especially back then, he'd pour so much creamer inside the coffee that he was tasting far more creamer than the actual coffee itself.

The two sat outside the cafe shop with their respective coffee and their bagels. Cassandra had just plain black coffee while Rokku had a Cappuccino. He's never had Cappuccino, but his mother assured him he'd probably like it. Cassandra herself had coffee at home so she opted for basic black coffee this time. The two had bagel with the option to add cream cheese. While Cassandra was halfway done with her bagel, Rokku's bagel was already in his stomach.

"So you're telling me Dad really used to throw dirt in people's eye?" Rokku asked in a bit of disbelief.

"Well, your father was young." Cassandra explained, sounding a tad bit flustered to go over her husband's history. "When it came to surviving in the streets, he fought as fair as he could. He sure likes to call himself a "Street Fighter", but with how he fought, he was a lot more...honorable unless he ran out of options."

She then began to laugh. "Though that time she threw dirt in a man's eye, Joseph says he cried like a baby~ I'll admit that I don't know if he's telling the truth but it's a little funny nonetheless~"

Rokku laughed with his mother, albeit in a more nervous manner. His mother was a sweet and caring woman, but she had her vicious moments. She wasn't a Tae Kwan Do practitioner because of her fondness of the martial art. In actuality, she wished to learn to fight because Joseph was a fighter himself when they met in their younger days before Rokku came along. The fact that Cassandra finds the idea of a person whining because Joseph threw actual dirt in their eye left Rokku a tad uneasy.

Their laughter soon died down, but a calm yet unnerved smile formed on Cassandra's face. "...Rokku, are you scared when you fight the Mavericks?"

Rokku's smile quickly dropped after that question. It was a sudden question after the laughter they just had, but it was a question he couldn't avoid. She was expecting an answer from him and her awaiting stare was proof of that.

"...I am." Rokku admitted before shrugging. "I'm not afraid to say that. It's really scary to fight Mavericks, but I have people who are fighting with me, so I feel...less scared."

"Ah. Did you hear what you just said?" Cassandra asked in a bit of a 'gotcha' tone. "You said you were 'less scared'. That means you're still scared, right?"

"Of course." He admits again with little hesitation. "I had some close calls lately."

He refused to mention to his mother what specifically the close calls were, but he was thinking about his battles with Wingwave and Raiden respectively. The fact that both were electric based users and were the last people he fought before the day ended...sort of, as Wingwave was after midnight, were mere coincidences.

Cassandra took a sip of her coffee as her son spoke, but she was listening clear as day to his words. After the sip, she sat the mug down on the table and spoke again.

"...If I asked you to stop fighting, would you do it?"

Rokku was taken by surprise by her question. It was a heavy question to ask of him for a variety of reasons. But one reason that stuck in his mind was... Well, she was his mother. If she wanted him to do something to keep him safe, she'd simply tell him to stop...right? That was his mindset right now.

He hesitates to answer as his mind went to the reasons for her question, but he would eventually speak.

"With the power I have, it feels wrong if I give up." Rokku responds.

"That's a fair thing to think about," Cassandra states. "But I've heard about Biometals, you know. Biometals choose people to inherit their powers. Therefore, the Biometal you have could very well choose someone else to find in your stead."

Rokku frowned. What she said could very well be correct. Sure, he has more knowledge about Biometals than his own mother, but he didn't know everything. He was still relatively new to this. But given how he was chosen in the first place, her words might be rather accurate. This possibility and what Cassandra is proposing left Rokku a little unhappy though.

"E...Even so," Rokku stammered, looking at his near empty mug of coffee. The drink's reflection allowed Rokku to look at his saddened face. "Model M did choose me. He chose me for a reason. Giving up already feels bad enough but... I don't wanna disappoint Model M."

His words left Cassandra surprised.

"Disappoint...a Biometal?" She thought. It was unusual at first glance... but she also wasn't a Chosen One. Rokku claims to hear the Biometal while she nor Joseph can. In normal circumstances, she'd be more concerned if he took this too seriously, but she very well knew that people like her son existed, and an incident happened regarding Mega Men in another country.

Still, the thought that Rokku would be disappointing anyone left Cassandra at a loss for words for a while. In fact, the two would remain in this awkward silence for a good minute or two.

That is, until Cassandra let out a big sigh to break the silence.

"...I would love nothing more than for you to stop fighting and stay with me and your father." Cassandra began. "But I'm so proud of you for being so brave..."

Rokku looked up at his mother, looking rather confused. He even witnessed her warm and gentle smile as she expressed her pride towards him, which was the primary source of his confusion.

"Brave...? Me...?" Rokku asked.

Cassandra sensed her son's puzzled behavior and decided to ease his mind. A giggle followed his question. "You just admitted to me that you were scared to fight and yet you still wish to fight~"

Rokku listened to his mother's words but shook his head as he looked down at his mug again. "I dunno if that makes me brave though. I just feel like I'd regret it if I didn't do anything when I can do something."

Another giggle came from her lips, earning Rokku's attention once again as he visibly raised one of his eyebrows while the other brow furrowed.

"That's exactly what makes you brave, Rokku~" Cassandra explained. "You're more like my father every day~"

"Huh?"

"With Great Power, right?"

Rokku was still confused, but he slowly pieced together what she was getting at. The night after his birthday, Rokku had tried to tell his mother one of his Grandfather's quotes to her... And just now, she began one of them. With that, Rokku gave a soft smile of his own and nodded.

He missed him very much. They both did. But Rokku himself wouldn't let his teachings leave his memory.

Especially with the great power he's sharing with his Biometal.

The mother and son leave the cafe and return to their home. They had walked from their home to the cafe in town and they would walk from the cafe to their home. They've lived here long enough where they felt comfortable walking to the epicenter of Luna Town from their house.

Upon returning, they were surprised to see a girl waiting outside their front door. Her identity wasn't immediately known to Cassandra, but Rokku knew her immediately.

"Aimer?"

Rokku ran up to her, leaving Cassandra taken aback from her son rushing forward. She even jogged to catch up with her son, deciding not to run like he was.

Aimer, with her bike on the side, was getting ready to knock on the door, but sharply turned to face Rokku upon hearing his voice. A look of relief fell over her face as she turned to face him completely.

"There you are!" She cried. "Thank goodness! I was just about to call you! I probably should've called you while I was on my way here, in hindsight..."

She then took notice to the taller woman and awkwardly chuckled as she waved a greeting to her. "Uh, hello, Mrs. Akihiro."

"Why hello there, Aimer." Cassandra greeted back with a grin.

"Sorry I couldn't attend dinner," Aimer apologized. The day Rokku became a Guardian, Aimer was asked by Cassandra to attend dinner afterwards. However... "I did say that I'd come if I wasn't busy but..."

"You were busy~" Cassandra calmly interrupted with another smile.

She knew that after her son's involvement with the initial Graver attack in the city, she had some work to do. Her son had given her the info and despite being slightly disappointed, she understood why Aimer couldn't come.

Rokku remembered that night too. During dinner, his parents started playfully bickering about Aimer for some reason or another. He paid them no mind since he was so out of the loop and just wanted to resume enjoying his dinner. But he thought Aimer being at his home would've been nice... And this was technically the second time she's been at his house. She had yet to actually be in it.

But for what purpose, Rokku had no idea yet.

Aimer, however, shook her head violently.

"Waitaminute!" She cried quickly, catching Rokku and Cassandra off guard. "As much as I'd love to talk with you more Mrs. Akihiro, I really need Rokku right now!"

"What's up?" Rokku asked, hands on his hips, but having a rather innocent and confused expression on his face.

"You're needed at the Guardian outpost!" Aimer shouted. "It's urgent! My Commander is there waiting on you!"

Rokku's and Cassandra's eyes widened at the news. Cassandra held her hand to her chest and stared at the ground before sighing.

"Alright... You be safe now, you hear?" Cassandra told her son.

Rokku frowned. Her Commander was on the island. It was about time he met this individual. But he was also concerned. Aimer was crazy urgent, and he had no idea why. But he soon nodded his head with a determined look.

Aimer would return the look and lead him to her bike so that the two could ride off. After revving her bike and driving away with Rokku right behind, Cassandra turned to watch them go farther and farther away.

A somber look fell on her face.