Back to The Fight...
" ... Are you a hero?"
He grabbed his CCM and without a second thought pressed the 'yes' button.
" I didn't think you will hold it. I had my doubts to be honest."
Hiro: " I have things that are definitely more important to me than being trapped within the memory of the World Savers capturing me. I can't let it hold me back from remembering my dear friends and family, or fighting for them again."
He said rising two confident glimmering eyes.
" It's just like you."
Hiro: " but why you..."
" It's not the right time now."
The shadow cut him off sharply.
" I will tell you briefly about the case. There is a virus spreading within LBX players that can rendre their LBXs more powerful. The one behind this virus is currently manipulating the players through hypnosis. One of them is now on the roof top of the building. The question you've just answered had given you access to a great power. Your LBX is able to stand against LBXs infected by the virus, as well as the power to build up its own personality. You have to go and face that player. You have to stop him before it's too late."
Hiro: " but I can't..."
Hiro tried to interject but the shadow wouldn't hear of it.
" The electrical pulses I send you didn't only excite your memory muscles. They helped your whole mind. You should be able to move again."
The blunette pulled the cover and slowly moved his legs down before he was on his feet, slightly stunned.
" I did something else with those pulses as well, look forward to the special feature."
Hiro: " wait, what?"
" Goodbye, Nii-san. Till we meet the next time..."
And the shadow disappeared before Hiro could ask more. He stared at the monitor which went back to normal.
Achilles D9: " shall we go, Hiro?"
Hiro pouted before yanking the wire and running out the room...
Jin: " and that's how, you got the vaccine program."
Hiro nodded. He told them everything while on their way to Tiny Orbit.
Ran: " it's similar to what happened to me as well."
Kirito: " it's the same for all of us."
Zenon: " so, what about those kids? Why we let them go?"
Jin: " we can't bring the boy with us, he needs to stay in the hospital, especially seeing his health deteriorated due to him leaving his bed while he shouldn't. And the girl had her parents all worried so we had to bring her back home, or else..."
Kirito: " if we take her with us to Tiny Orbit, we may be framed for kidnapping."
Twilight : " ok guys, anyone here beside me and Eva wondering about the shadow?"
At her pointing that out, Kirito looked up to the so he could see the blunette at the back.
Hiro: " there is no doubt about it. It's him."
Evangeline : "... Mizel..."
She whispered with uncertainty.
Ran: " I thought he was destroyed?!"
Hiro: " his body, yes. His mind, I hardly doubt so."
Fenrir: " if that means something. Then it means he knows about what's happening."
Kirito nodded.
Kirito: " but at least, he confirmed the thing about the hypnosis."
Ran: " what?"
Jin: " we've been fighting off those infected LBXs for a while now, but it just recently happened that the players are involved."
Fenrire: " but as soon as we defeat them. They faint and then wake up with hazy memories."
Kirito: " we pushed away the idea of hypnosis because it sounded far fetched, seeing none of their CCMs or LBXs have the required technology to do so. But now that he had confirmed it..."
Evangeline: " we will try to figure out something in Tiny Orbit, we're almost there anyway."
She pointed out as the car got closer to the huge tall building...
Kazu: " finally! What took you so long?!"
Was his first words as they all set foot into the base.
Kirito: " we had to drop one of the kids in front of her house."
Ami: " eh! Why are Ran and Hiro with you?"
Ran: " because we are apparently all on the same boat."
She pointed at her Minerva.
Minerva: " it's been a while, everyone!"
Kazu: " eh!"
Pandora: " I see. So the ones who took care of the three detected LBXs in the hospital are you."
Hiro: " Ran-san and Minerva took down two of them though."
Achilles Deed: " and Hiro, are you alright? You shouldn't have left the hospital."
Achilles D9: " don't worry about him. He is fine and more than ready to be back to battle."
Hiro: " everyone, it was rude of you to keep quiet the whole time! Though I understand the reason behind it, you could at least introduce me once again to LBX."
Ran: " and we're so sorry for that."
Ran's eyes wondered away from the brown ones.
Ami: " wait, does this mean, Hiro regained his memories?"
Kirito : " yep."
Kazu: " how?"
Kirito: " long story, but we're not sure yet of the identity of the one who helped him."
Jin, Ran and Hiro looked at Kirito but decided not to speak. If he didn't want to tell them about that very person's identity, then he should have a reason. Eva on the other hand seemed relieved and gave the male a thankful smile.
Takuya walked in no sooner than they had finished their small talk.
Takuya: " everyone, I'm sorry to gather you all in here in such an hour. Hiro, I've heard the news. Nothing would make me more happier than seeing you back to your old self."
Hiro rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish smile.
Takuya: " so you both took care of the infected LBXs at the hospital. You have my thanks. But I think you need to catch up on some things, right?"
Ran: " yeah, like how can Minerva talk and move?"
Rina: " it was basically because of an upgrade in her AI. Think of it like if placing an AI of a developed android into an LBX."
Achilles D9: " that's what happened to us?"
Rina: " that's how far we know."
Takuya: " currently we have a lot of attacks caused by people running some sort of virus on their LBXs which would make them undefeatable."
Hiro: " unlimited HP. Unlimited EXP. High control performance. It sounds just like a cheat code in a video game!"
He was pissed off at the idea of such thing.
Takuya: " exactly. But rather than achieving victory with it, it brings the destruction of the world."
Hiro: " Takuya-san, apparently the people were manipulated through some kind of hypnosis."
Takuya: " but, there is no way to do such thing through CCMs and LBXs?"
Evangeline: " no, there is a way. I've been rewatching some of the records of our fights lately and I realized something in common."
She went to a panel an pulled up a photo on the main screen. Everyone walked closer to the screen.
Zenon: " right. The spark send by the CCM."
Evangeline : " I thought it was impossible but..."
Her eyes met with the blunette's, making him blink in confusion.
Evangeline : " Hiro, after I heard of your situation, it's the only thing I can think of."
Rina: " I see, they're sending some sort of electrical signal through the CCM. It can't be difficult if you do the needed calculations to do so."
Hiro: " now that you mentioned it, it really sounds like how I regained my memories. It won't be hard as long as they keep the device on them."
Takuya: " right, the CCM won't leave their hands as long as they battle. So it can work."
He turned to face them.
Takuya : " alright, listen carefully everyone. Unlike all disasters that we had faced, this particular one is more dangerous than the others. The one who is fighting us does not, and I mean it, care if people die. Their attacks had been aiming at places full of people so far."
Jin: " trying to dispose of what they think unneeded."
Zenon: " how can they identify something as needed or not? That doesn't have a sense."
Kazu: " when did the ones who aim to control the world considered sense."
He shrugged with a snort.
Rina: " anyway, for the meantime, we only have seven people capable of standing against those infected LBXs."
Takuya: " Kirito and Eva are actually working on some kind of vaccine that anyone can use based on the program send to all of you. So we can find a way to stop the attacks completely. While at that, we still need someone to keep them under control."
He looked at both Ran and Hiro.
Takuya: " Ran, I know that you quit LBX for a while. And Hiro, what you had been through once was really horrible. I can understand if you back from this fight."
Ran and Hiro looked at each other and giggled, much to his surprise.
Achilles D9: " Takuya-san, us being able to move and talk is a proof of their will to fight."
Minerva: " this choice that they made was the very factor that would decide whether they gain this power or not."
Hiro: " with this sorted out, I think you can understand what we're going to do."
Takuya: " very well then. Kirito, please give them the application."
Kirito : " alright, hold your CCMs."
He said with a lazy voice. They did, and soon they received a file from Kirito.
Kirito : " this application will allow you to find out if there were any infected LBXs nearby. It only shows the LBXs that are going berserk. The reality is we couldn't find a way to track down the virus when it's in its early stages, before it takes over the LBXs. We're only able to track down ones that had been already infected."
Hiro: " alright."
Ran: " understood."
Takuya: " one more thing, keep the fact about talking LBXs and their powers a secret."
Hiro: " why?"
Rina: " it can cause major panic. Remember Mizel's incident."
Minerva: " right..."
She backed.
Minerva : " I don't want them to think I'm him."
Hiro: " anyway. Is this case only in Japan?"
Everyone looked down at that.
Takuya: " we're not sure. For a few days now, we had been unable to contact anyone outside of Japan."
Rina: " there is no way to find out if it's the same at other countries or not."
Takuya: " but since transport is working as usual, maybe it still isn't developed that much in the world like in here."
Ran: " if a whole rampaging happen, the world will be in danger."
Hiro: " nee-chan..."
Takuya: " we're still working on how to get the communication back. For now, you can go. You have to rest."
Kirito: " I will drive all of you home. Takuya-san, I'm borrowing your van again."...
Ran: " alright then, see you later."
She was the last one to get off since her house was a little bit far. As soon as she walked through the door, she was tackled into a hug.
Arata: " where were you? I was worried! Why didn't you pick up your phone?"
Ran: " ops, I think I was really busy so I didn't notice it."
Daimon: " Ran, is everything alright at the hospital?"
Ran: " don't worry, there were merely few injured people. Nothing serious to worry about. We-"
She refrained herself from speaking anymore details.
Arata: " thank God. When gramps told me you still didn't come back home I panicked and started looking for you everywhere!"
Ran: " sorry about that. But I'm tired so I'm heading to my room. See you in the morning."
She stormed off to her room and closed the door behind her before letting out a sigh.
Ran: " that was close. I almost told them about Minerva."
Minerva chucked as she flew out of her pocket.
Minerva: " you get very excited and want to speak a lot when thinking about LBXs."
Ran: " can you blame me for being an LBX freak."
Minerva: " of course no."
Ran looked at Minerva for a while before a soft smile crossed her face.
Ran: " I'm sorry for keeping you away for this long. But now it's different. We're going all out at bad guys again!"
Minerva: " alright!"
And they pumped fists...
Gouda: " so Hiro regained his memories?"
The blond nodded without looking away of the screen of the computer he was working on.
Sendou: " death, reversed, rebirth. Predictable."
Gouda: " could you talk without your cards?"
Sendou: " can you stop throwing comments at people?"
Kirito: " could you not call me if you're going to fight?!"
Both silenced themselves when he snapped.
Twilight : " well done making them shut up."
Gouda: " alright, back to the main question. How are you doing with the vaccine thing?"
Kirito : " nothing new. The program is very complicated I can hardly get to copy some of it. I only need some kind of program that would block off the virus. But it's hard. The virus breaks through every firewall, every defense the LBX and CCM have."
Sendou: " then why does they need to send it to each other? If it can really break through, wouldn't it be easier to send it to everyone at once?"
Eva narrowed her eyes. That was true. Why should it be send from one player to another instead of spreading it secretly if it can break through the security?
Evangeline: " the only possible answer is that it can't. It can't actually break through the security. "
Kirito: " But that makes no sense, if it can't break through the firewalls, then how can they take over LBXs?"
He placed his hand on his chin.
Kirito: " I need to think over it again..."
His eyes reverted back at the blonde next to him and he ended the call with Sendou and Gouda, much to their surprise.
Kirito: " you're not yourself anymore since... you heard what happened with Hiro."
Evangeline flicked her eyes back at him and then down at the ground.
Kirito: " relax, if you don't want to talk about it then as you like. But in case you needed to let out a few things..."
She sighed as she slumped down on a chair.
Evangeline : " I... Don't know... It's just, part of me is really happy he survived. The other part is... Dreading what he may do. "
Twilight flew to her side and rested on her shoulder, gently stroking her hair. Evangeline was thankful for her support.
Kirito: " I understand it may be confusing for you."
Evangeline : " and not just that..."
Her eyes squinted as she thought back to the last incidents, at the kid they left behind in the hospital.
Evangeline : " this Leviathan guy is getting on my nerves what's with him using children to fulfill his goals and not caring about their wellbeing. I can't just... Bear watching without being able to contribute much."
She heaved a deep sigh, but actually found that a weight was lifted off her shoulders as she spoke of all of that.
Evangeline : " thank you Kirito, speaking of it does really help."
Kirito held up his hands and shrugged it off.
Kirito: " I didn't do anything for you to thank me. Plus, it will bothersome to have you work with an absent mind."
Her lips pulled into a smile at him.
Evangeline : " alright then, back to work."...
Haruka: " I see. That's why I couldn't contact Mirai, even before she came to visit."
Hiro: " Mom..."
The woman looked down at him, half expecting what he was going to tell her.
Hiro: " I can't stand sitting still while there are people in danger out there. Once more, I want to fight for you and Mirai, mom."
Haruka sighed as his brown eyes pierced through hers.
Haruka: " even if I will refuse, it won't stop you."
She smiled.
Haruka: " very well Hiro. Protect those dear to you."
Hiro smiled widely at that.
Haruka: " but, remember, don't make them sad again."
His smiled softened hearing those words. He wouldn't want to put his friends and family through the same sadness again.
Hiro: " alright mom, I will make sure to make it home, no matter what."...
She woke up early and made her way to the kitchen, preparing breakfast for all of them.
Arata: " Ran-nee..."
Ran: " good morning. I will be preparing breakfast so take a-"
Arata: " you have a talking LBX don't you?"
Her hands stopped immediately and looked back at him, mouth slightly dropped.
Ran: " how did you know?"
Arata: " my room is next to yours. You spent the whole night talking to her about karate and martial arts that I couldn't sleep at all last night."
He pointed out at the bags under his eyes. Minerva flew out of Ran's pocket and bowed.
Minerva: " sorry for the bother."
Arata's eyes marveled at the flying robot.
Arata: " it's really like Jin-san's and the others! How did you get it?"
Ran: " even if you ask me, I don't quite understand what happened."
She said with a sweat drop, lacing down the plates and cups on the table.
Arata: " so... the one who fought back in the hospital yesterday, it was you?"
Ran: " both me and Hiro."
Arata: " Hiro-san as well!"
Ran: " he got back his memories and was off to the fight. Like some kind of a protagonist."
He chortled slightly.
Arata: " it does sound like something Hiro-san will do. So Hiro-san as well got a talking LBX, huh?"
Minerva: " right."
Arata: " I envy you guys."
Ran's CCM suddenly started vibrating just as she was about to sit down. She took it out only to find it was Kirito's app.
Minerva: " infected LBXs near by!"
Ran: " seems the breakfast will have to wait. I'm off!"
She yelled while grabbing a piece of toast and running out. Arata sighed watching her form disappear behind the door.
Arata: " I just... Hope I can fight with them..."
He said taking out his Achilles Deed...
