Chapter 13: The Red Striker
Rain began to pour over the battlefield at Downtown Kairos City. The uncanny purple fires that had plagued many mechaniloids slowly died out over time and many Gravers had surrendered to Sentry. Whether or not they put up a fight didn't matter. They were all taken in the end. In addition to the Guardians' newest Mega Man, the arrival of an unknown yet vicious individual put a massive dent in the Graver's forces. They had failed.
And Folly did not care one single bit about the useless cannon fodder.
She watched from the rooftop, having witnessed the black berserker that had torn through Graver's forces and just beaten the Mega Man that had beaten the Gravers, her brainwashed Mega Men, and that unusual Pseudoroid.
There was also the arrival of the red Mega Man, but although that individual was worthy of her attention, her primary focus and ire was towards the boy that defeated the blue hero.
She watched as Sentry and the Guardians surrounded the collapsed hero and the one who bested him vanish from the scene.
From behind, the newly proclaimed "Trouble Trio" observed their mistress with noticeable uncertainty. She hadn't said a word since that boy, Nero, arrived. They didn't know if she knew him or the Biometal, but what concerned them most was her eerie silence. None of them dared to speak out though or they'd risk her unleashing whatever she had bottled up on them.
After minutes of uncomfortable silence, Folly spoke,
"Let's go."
Sempronio's single glowing eye pulsed upon hearing her speak.
"Mistress?"
The Jester slowly turned to face her underlings, a cold, empty look in her eyes that contrasted the unusual, twisted smile on her face. The Trouble Trio straightened up immediately, prepared for whatever she would say or do.
"We are done here." Folly stated, walking towards and past them before snapping her fingers and summoning a portal right behind the trio. "The script has been altered once again... This time for the worse. But we can make it work. We must accommodate for its change, post haste before anymore unwelcomed surprises show up unannounced..."
She walked right past the underlings, entering the portal without waiting for them to speak. Without delay, the Trouble Trio followed right behind the jester.
Rokku awoke with a startled gasp. He found himself in the infirmary, lying on a bed beneath bed sheets.
"Oh!"
The brunet's eyes immediately darted to his left side to see another person in the room with him. A redhead and red-eyed Guardian nurse, dressed in the typical Guardian uniform but wearing a long brown coat and nurse hat. She was holding a small damp white towel, raising it away from Rokku.
"W-Where am I...?"
"Easy there..." The nurse whispered. "Don't panic. You're at the infirmary, Mr. Akihiro."
Rokku blinked at her. He thought about her words.
He was at an infirmary... A Guardian medic was tending to him...
...That's right. He's here because of that fight.
"...Oh." Rokku sighed.
"You took a beating there, but it's nothing some rest in bed and a Sub-Tank can't fix." The medic stood up. "Until you're told otherwise, you should stay in here for now. I'll be right back with a Sub-Tank for you."
She left the towel on the bed beside him and left without another word, leaving the silent boy to ponder further about the events that led up to this point...
Once the medic left the room, she immediately encountered Sentry's Commander waiting outside the door.
"How is he?" Markos asked her, placing his hands behind his back before facing the shorter woman.
"So far, he seems pretty alright based on my observations... But I'm going to get him a Sub-Tank for him to ingest before I make any final conclusions. Regardless, I think he needs some time to rest before he does anything else."
Markos sighed. "Of course. Thank you."
The medic returned the nod and walked away to get the Sub-Tank. Markos folded his arms, groaning as his brow twitched.
"How am I supposed to tell Cass about this...?" Markos thought.
Just from the lounge area of the Guardian Outpost, Aimer was there. She sat on a chair, holding her hands, and leaving them dangling towards the ground between her legs. Her hat covered her face completely as she stared at the floor, trembling as she overheard the conversation between the medic and her commander.
"I was afraid of this happening..." She thought to herself.
All she could see was her hands trembling with the rest of her body, on the verge of tears. Her friend was beaten badly by some crazy guy with an even crazier Biometal for a partner. And the worst part? This guy had zero affiliation with Graver or Folly. At least, according to Nero's words. An unknown Chosen One with frightening power was on the island with plans to do who knows what.
Entering the Guardian Outpost was a tall individual with a big red coat and black fur trim at the bottom of said coat. Aimer heard the footsteps get closer and closer to her until a shadow was cast right over her.
"There you are."
Aimer quickly looked up to see the man that looked like he was about 18 years old staring down at her. With that big red coat and his short neck-length white hair, he easily stood out. She had just met him today, having arrived just as he had defended her friend from further damage against his opponent. Her Commander had mentioned that a new Mega Man would be arriving on the island to help. Vaude was that Mega Man.
But she wasn't expecting another Mega Man to arrive and attack Rokku either.
Vaude pointed his thumb behind him, towards the entrance. "Mind if we take this outside?"
Aimer just stared. The tears that were forming were wiped away by her arm. She nodded and followed him right outside of the outpost.
"Your great Commander gave me the 411 on everything they've gathered so far." Vaude spoke. He was leaning against the side of the building, arms folded as he looked down at the shorter, younger girl. "And now that kid with Model B complicates things a little."
Aimer looked away from him, staring at the ground. Graver and Folly were bad enough, but not only did they have ANY idea what the Nocturne Empire was, but now they had another variable that they ALSO knew nothing about. Knowing so little...it infuriated her.
But she would let out a small, "A little, yeah..."
"I wouldn't worry about your friend." Vaude suddenly says, causing Aimer to immediately look at him. "From what I hear, he's a newbie. Probably just faced his first major defeat. He's gonna get better, for sure."
Aimer frowned and her brows furrowed. "How do you know that?"
Vaude smirked a bit at her tone. Sure, it was inappropriate given the circumstances, but he just couldn't help it. "Well, if he's a Chosen One, then he's not gonna give up just because he lost a battle. My Biometal sure thinks the kid has what it takes anyway."
He then unfolded his arms and placed his hands on his hips. The smirk on his face persisted throughout. "So, let's have the kid sleep it off for a little bit. He'll probably be back in the game soon enough."
Aimer still frowned at this guy. He was older, yet she didn't care much for his devil-may-care attitude. She had to ask her commander more about this guy because he slightly annoyed her.
Still, if this new guy had faith in Rokku, then she should too and then some. Model M could be healed easily, and she's already taken him to her mobile lab via the portable transerver for emergency quick travel. When Rokku recovers, he'll need his Biometal partner by his side fully recovered as well. But that lingering pain in her heart remained and wouldn't go away...
"...Okay. Why does your Biometal feel confident?" Aimer asks.
As if on cue, the man in red's Biometal appeared from his coat pocket, floating beside his ally. Aimer noted the Biometal's...unique look. It had black shades on over his 'eyes', matching what Vaude looked like when he was megamerged earlier.
"Because the Biometal your friend has is my little brother." Model PM stated matter-of-factly.
Aimer's eyes widened a bit. The Biometal's serious voice caught her off guard, but the true sticking point was the revelation of Model M having a sibling Biometal.
"...What?"
"My brother is a persistent fighter with a strong sense of justice." Model PM continued. "Because of that alone, I have to believe in my brother's decision to have that boy inherit his power."
Aimer looked away again. Model PM's words caused Aimer to recall Model M's words the day he had met Rokku. That boy's selflessness was Model M's reason for sharing his power with Rokku, and with that power, he saved her from the Trouble Trio that day.
"In any case..." Vaude began, snapping Aimer out of her thoughts. "I need you to tell me something."
Aimer blinked. "...What is it?"
"Your commander told me that they were given a special message by a girl named Merrie Jane." Vaude explained. "I heard she once spoke with Rokku specifically, but given his current situation, I can't exactly talk to him, now can I? So that just leaves you."
"Me?" Aimer pointed at herself.
"You're the next best person, aren'tcha?" Vaude asked. "Markos told me her whereabouts are unknown, but he did mention that those Graver punks had a very recent hideout somewhere by the mountains."
"So... What does that have to do with me...?" Aimer asked.
"I need some extra intel. So tell me something: Is Merrie Jane reliable?"
Aimer folded her arms in return and pondered. "Hgnnn... She was a troublemaker in the not-so-distant past... But everything she's told us has been 100% right so far..."
"And there goes my answer. Sounds like I need to be a little cautious then." Vaude leaned forward off the wall and approached her. "You guys managed to capture a lot of the Gravers, but Vulcan wasn't found. Since that Nero kid went on a rampage earlier, we're considering the possibility that either Vulcan bit the dust or he and whatever's left of his lame crew made a run for it back at their hideout. Even if they aren't there, they had to have been frantic enough to leave some clues for us."
"That makes... some sort of sense, yeah." Aimer agreed, rubbing her chin with her hand.
Vaude chuckled before grabbing Model PM. "Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you see it, we're picking up a signal from a building by the mountains. I'm going to investigate this place for myself. We got some Guardians staking it out just for me, so I better get going now."
"W-Wait..." Aimer held out her hand. "Are you going alone?"
Vaude shrugged. "Pretty much, yeah. Gotta see if they got anything we can use against that jester girl and her affiliates."
He walks over to a Guardian issued motorcycle that he was going to use for his trip, hopping on it with his hands on the handles.
"I don't know about that jester, but I know Graver. They aren't complete pushovers. But given what's happened so far on this simple island? Nuh-uh, they're getting help from someone much more powerful. It was enough to attract Nero and his crazy Biometal, that's for sure."
The man in red then turned his head at Aimer and grinned. "Besides, the kid is resting up and, as far as I'm concerned, the other Mega Men that he's saved aren't in fighting condition either, so I'm all you guys got."
With that, Vaude hopped onto the bike and began turning it on. One more time, he'd turn his head back at her.
"Keep your spirits high." Revving the bike twice, he started driving off, leaving Aimer alone outside the Guardian outpost.
Aimer would in turn cough a bit as dust picked up when he drove off.
Yeah, she was a little annoyed by this guy... However, an experienced Mega Man would certainly give them the edge they needed.
But she wouldn't stand here doing nothing. She had a role to handle too...
Up on a hill were a couple of Guardians lying flat on the grass armed with Buster-rifles. One of them were using binoculars while the other held the rifle firmly. Ahead of them was what appeared to be a 2-story tall building by the tall mountains and nearby forest.
The Guardians were informed that this building was once a store selling various gear for mountain travel. But the business ended up closing this store and relocating elsewhere in Kairos City, leaving this building abandoned for nearly three years.
"Yo."
The megamerged Vaude walked up on the two Guardians, the one with binoculars being particularly jumpy about the red clad Mega Man walking in on them.
"Y-Yeesh! Couldn't you have given us a heads up?" The Guardian whimpered.
"Quit whining." The armed Guardian scolded, rolling his eyes.
Vaude got on one knee and looked at the two Guardians. "Alright, what's up so far?"
"Not much of anything..." The Guardian with the binoculars shrugged. "This is definitely the place though, but no one's come in or out of it. Our nearby lookouts haven't even heard anything from in there. The signal's still up."
"Well, it was worth asking." Vaude patted the jumpy Guardian's back. "I heard that our enemy has a portal maker. With that kind of transportation, you can be pretty quick and quiet."
"True. But the portals do emit some sort of light source." The binocular Guardian added.
"You already told me you haven't heard anything." Vaude retorted. "And the portals make a noise when they materialize. So, have you seen any light activity from here?"
The Guardian shook his head, albeit reluctantly and with a grumble.
Vaude sighed and rose to his feet. "I'm going in. Link up your comms with me, then tell the others in the surrounding area to stand by. Keep low and keep an eye out in case some bonehead arrives on foot or on wheels. Even though we're linking up, I want you all to be silent unless something major happens. We all need to be ready for anything."
"We got it." The armed Guardian nodded. "You be careful now."
Vaude hopped off the cliff and slid down the hill, making his way to the building up ahead.
He observed the building up close, noting the many boarded up windows and even the front door. However, the only thing that wasn't boarded up was the garage door...or lack thereof. He did witness tire tracks on the grass leaving the garage, but they stop at a certain point. Vaude surmised that the jester materialized the portals at that specific spot which is how the Gravers attacked the city in the first place.
Quite a scary concept, Vaude had to admit. Teleportation technology was obviously all the rage but someone with the tech to make perfect portals to appear from one place to another as if you're walking through an open door made teleportation that much of a joke. After all, he didn't recall any instances in recent time where vehicles could be teleported around.
Upon entering the dark building via garage, Vaude looked to his right and flicked a switch. The building remained dark. No lights turned on.
Busted switch.
"This smells like a trap..." Vaude thought to himself (and his Biometal companion).
Despite this, Vaude would carefully trek into the dark building, armed with his shield and arm cannon; the Proto Shield and Proto-Buster respectively. Trap or not, Vaude knew of the risks entering here alone. But at this point, this was better than doing nothing.
Given his perks as a Mega Man, he could see a little bit in the dark. Sure, he wasn't a Mega Man who had abilities specialized for the darkness, but he could still see something instead of utter nothingness. It's with this standard ability of a Mega Man that Vaude was able to spot a table next to some busted up large crates.
Off to the side were some broken down Hallow Jacks that Vaude could faintly see. He's studied up on these foot soldiers. Just from their looks alone told Vaude that these weren't like the Galleons he's used to seeing. Far more expressive looking, and that's just from his view of them sitting. Still, even though they were, for all intense and purposes, "dead", they still had their default jack-o-lantern-esque grimace.
No points for guessing where the "Jack" comes from in their name.
Although, he could've sworn his reports mentioned the Hallow Jacks having a scarecrow-like design... These looked like jesters themselves...
Regardless, Vaude examined the table up ahead. Alone on the table was a tablet device. He picks it up and looks all around it for anything of note. But once he turned it back around to face him, the tablet screen turned on, forcing the man to wince from the bright light of the screen.
He knew for a fact he didn't press a single button on this thing yet.
However, the light on the screen would quickly turn black; almost as if it switched to a "dark mode" theme. But what caught Vaude's eye was something materializing on the screen. Almost like a glitch, something slowly but surely materialized. A logo or a symbol, notably with a stylish design of a jester's hat.
Vaude squinted at this.
"G-G-GreeEEeEeeeeEeEeeEEeEeeetings!"
A voice came from the tablet, at first being distorted before quickly normalizing itself.
"Congra-a-atulations on finding this v-very obvious-to-find tablet~" The voice continued, with minor stuttering being heard. "You were very foolish to come here but thankfully, I'm in quite a good mood despite current events!"
"You must be Folly." Vaude smirked. "Unless you're some underling of hers-"
"Oh yes, I should've said this from the get-go, but don't be a moron and try talking to me~ This is a pre-recorded message, okay~?"
Vaude frowned. Walked right into that one...
"Anyway, if you're hearing this message, then you're an unlucky or lucky sap who came here due to the signal I triggered~" The voice continued. "But fret not~ This can either be a great opportunity or your worst day ever. If you wish to meet me, then you'll have to survive a little trial of mine~ Good luuuuck~"
Before Vaude could process what he just went through, the tablet in his hand suddenly short circuits. Vaude retracts his hand, letting the tablet drop back on the table, but he noticed a claw-like nail had impaled itself through the tablet and with it on the table, it looked as if the claw was pointing directly at him.
He quickly looked up to see a Hallow Jack standing across the table. It was frozen still, as it had been the one responsible for the claw projectile. Its eyes were glowing much like a jack-o-lantern, but the glow inside its head wasn't golden. It was an eerie pinkish color. Vaude's eyes would pace around, and he'd notice the other Hallow Jacks that he thought were broken on the ground would slowly rise.
Not like the walking dead, however. No, these Jacks rose as if they were puppets being forced to rise by their strings; strings which Vaude could not see. Their movements were very puppet-like too, slowly inching their way towards Vaude with zombie-like speed. They began quietly cackling with their permanent grimaces.
Vaude had his shield ready for anything.
"Well, how about that...?" Vaude smirked.
The Jack across the table suddenly jumped towards Vaude... Or more like it hurled itself towards him almost as if someone had thrown it. But the Jack landed on the table and leaped towards Vaude again, claws outstretched. He used his shield to counter its attack, using his shield to bat it away, knocking the table over.
Vaude would then use his shield to block incoming claw projectiles from his right before shooting at the Jack on his left with a large blast. Afterwards, he'd back up and get his bearings as the Jacks in front of him slowly approached him, cackling more.
The Red Striker took notice of the one he shot at. Although damaged, it still waltzed towards him.
"He just tanked my Proto Strike..." Vaude thought out loud. "These guys are sturdier than I thought..."
"But I don't think it can take much more." Model PM noted.
"This is true." Vaude agreed.
As Vaude watched the three Jacks approach him, he could faintly hear metal footsteps behind him too. The man would swing his shield backwards, catching a would-be ambushing Jack in it's shield before he'd toss it with the three.
Four against one. Unless there were any more surprise Jacks in the room.
"Vaude?! Can you hear me?!" A Guardian called out via the Comm Link. "Is everything alright!?"
"Just fine. I can handle this. Keep an eye outside like I said!" Vaude shouted.
He'd start rushing towards the four, jumping in the air and kicking the Jack he threw in the face. Immediately, he bounced off of it and shot the one he had initially went at before. This time, his Proto Strike destroyed the Jack via explosion. One down, three more to go.
His brief victory could not be celebrated as one of them shot more claw projectiles at Vaude. He'd duck down, but suddenly the third Jack would let out a loud screech. Vaude was paralyzed by this scream. Before he knew it, he was suddenly lifted to the ground, dangling there like the puppets these Jacks were mimicking.
"W-What?!"
He had no idea what was holding him. Did the scream paralyze him much like Wingwave's paralyzing attack? But he didn't think about it for long as he felt that he could struggle. If he could struggle, then he could break free. The two Jacks still standing would laugh at Vaude's immobilized situation before they'd start scratching at his defenseless chest. The Jack Vaude had kicked down would slowly rise and inch its way towards its companions to join. Vaude would suddenly outstretch his hands and land on the floor, free from whatever immobilization trick they had implored.
"Their screams send out a frequency." Model PM noted. "Like a sound wave. Just don't be in its path and you'll be fine."
"Unless I'm at close range like that again..." Vaude retorted and kicked the one that screamed right in its face. He'd use his shield to block the strikes from the other two, but he'd push one of them off before jamming his Buster's barrel directly in the chest of the only standing Jack at this time. He'd release another big blast, though this one would destroy the Jack entirely.
It seemed point blank shots like that were still fair game.
With two remaining, he'd watch them. They both pointed their hands at him and shot more claw projectiles from their fingers. Vaude noted that these shots came from their index and middle fingers only before new ones would quickly materialize like magic. For as lethal as these claw projectiles were, the lethality of them meant nothing against Vaude's Proto Shield.
Raising his shield, the projectiles harmlessly bounced off it. He then raised his Proto-Buster and shot a devastating red shot at one of them, causing it to blow up and collapse. Before the last one could react, Vaude dashed forward, shield raised, and tackled the Jack before pointing his Buster at its head at point-blank range. The final Jack fell to the ground, headless and destroyed.
Vaude slowly lowered his Buster after that. He'd look at each of the mechanical corpses, cautiously wondering if they'd really come back up like the walking dead. But no, they were finished.
The Red Striker remained alert despite this. Suddenly, the room was filled with a dramatic but slow applause. Along with the clapping came the sounds of heels walking along the cold floor on the highest point of the mezzanine floor.
"Bravo~... Bravo~..." A girlish voice echoed as she stood behind the railings, looking down at the Red Striker who in turn stared up at her. It was the Jester. "You aren't the Mega Man I was hoping to see, but you put on quite a show all the same~ Well done, well done~"
Vaude smirked and his Buster-arm reverted to a normal arm as he placed his hand on his shoulder.
"You must be Folly," Vaude stated, raising his voice slightly so that she'd hear him. "The little Jester running around on the island."
"Guilty~" Folly bowed before resting her arms on the railings with a smug smile plastered on her face. "I don't quite know who you are, but I know that Biometal of yours... Isn't that right, Proto Man~?"
His smirk twitched a bit. "So... You know. But I get the feeling my Biometal doesn't know you."
"You'd be right." Folly replied. "I know aaaall about him and his brothers, but he knows nothing about me, heh heh~"
"So... Tell me something," Vaude began. "You come in here like a spy villain holding all the cards. Mind telling me what you're up to or are you going to keep holding those cards?"
"I didn't come here just to tease and run off~" Folly smirked. "I wanted someone to come here. Technically, it didn't matter who, though I was expecting the Blue Bomber to show himself. I sure hope he hasn't thrown in the towel so soon~ I need my star actor to play his role~"
"I wouldn't worry about him." Vaude said and started casually walking around the room. "That Biometal of his chose him for a reason."
"We are in agreement there. I'm happy you think that~" Folly cooed. "In any case, I wanted someone to test out my new creations in a... controlled environment so to say."
"New creations?" Vaude parroted.
"Yes. You're new, but since you know who I am, I won't bore you on a recap. Short and to the point, the Hallow Jacks that have been running around are wonderful, but their strength was mostly in numbers..." Folly explained. "I needed something a liiiiittle stronger. So, I created a new variant, the Marionette Jacks. Having you here, Proto-Boy, was far more beneficial than I could have dreamed. I now know what I need to do to improve them~"
"Riiight." Vaude replied. "That's good and all, but you haven't quite told me what you're up to."
"My, am I boring you already? And here I thought I'd avoid that by not recapping the events. Oh well..." Folly shrugged and leaned away from the railings. "I'll admit, I'm not planning anything complex. I just wish to play~"
Vaude raised a brow, but he let her continue.
"Selena Island is a large toy bin and its inhabitants are my toys to play with." Folly continues, smiling ear-to-ear. "Think of it being like a chess master using his chess pieces but in a... Somewhat chaotic manner~"
"Uh-huh. And your boss?" Vaude pointed at her before dropping his hands.
She, however, placed her index fingers to her lips. "It's a secret~ Now isn't the time for the grand debut of my "boss"."
"Of course, it isn't." Vaude sarcastically replied with a small chuckle. But then he'd frown and stop walking around. "Then what about Graver?"
Folly stared at him coldly, smirking still. "What about them?"
"You know that I know everything my allies know." Vaude reminded her. "You had Graver working with you. For what, I don't know yet. But that's what I'm hoping you'll elaborate on because, shocker, none of the Gravers who have in custody aren't talking and the big cheese is off in the wild, nowhere to be found."
The Jester grabbed hold of the railings and leered down at him.
"The Gravers were nothing more than cannon fodder." Folly explained in a dark tone. "As long as they behaved as cannon fodder, they were useful to me. Whatever they were planning is irrelevant. As for the whereabouts of Vulcan... I don't know and I don't care... For now, that is."
"And Merrie Jane?" Vaude retorted. "Was she cannon fodder too?"
She smirked once more. "She played her role beautifully. She's done until I need her again~"
Then, she raised a brow. "Does that answer your question?"
Before Vaude could answer, he witnessed her jump from the balcony and land gracefully in front of him; albeit not directly in front of him as there was some distance between the two. Vaude remained cautious at the little girl.
"I had big plans here..." Folly confesses. "But unfortunately, I won't be able to do anything right now. I want my star actor to be in tip-top condition... So, for now, I'll wait until he recovers~"
"Ain't that sweet." Vaude laughed. "You two must've hit it off before I got here."
"Please, Proto-Boy~" Folly retorted with an adorable normal smile. "He holds a very important Biometal and I want him to use it properly~ That Biometal was a hero- a champion once upon a time. And the Biometal's partner is out of commission because of an outside force. Why take advantage of his situation when I am not the reason he's out?"
The Red Striker raised a brow. "...That Nero guy. You don't know him, do you? ...But if you know about my Biometal and the kid's Biometal, then you gotta know the Biometal Nero's holding."
Folly frowned. Her look quickly morphed in a way that gave even Vaude pause.
"I don't know this Nero individual." Folly began, her voice getting cold. "But you're correct on your assumption. I am quite aware of his Biometal's identity. I wish I wasn't aware, but it can't be helped."
She tilted her head, still frowning. "Keep an eye out for him. He's an outsider and he's a threat to my grand play. If you don't get him, I most certainly will."
Suddenly, Folly would clap her hands together and smile brightly again. "So rest up~! I want my star actor to be A-OK when I resume the show~"
"Orrrr, I could apprehend you." Vaude grinned, aiming his Buster at her. "Cancel your show here and now. Leave off on a cliffhanger and end things in an anti-climactic manner."
"Cute~" Folly grinned. "But you should know that what you say is impossible. The most I can do is postpone the show, not end it abruptly~"
She then grinned devilishly. "However, you are the successor of Mega Man's brother. If you're anything like him, Proto-Boy, then you'll be stubborn."
"You act like you know me, but you don't." Model PM finally spoke. "A child like you has no business playing with people's lives like this."
"He speaks!" Folly teased. "But I've made my stance clear. The show must go on. I will not allow cancellation, not at this stage~"
She raises her left hand, and something materializes in it. A strange eerie pinkish glow that was pulsating violently like a beating heart. Before Vaude had a chance to question the object, she then raises her right hand and snaps her fingers. All of a sudden, a giant portal materializes right behind her, illuminating the dark building with that pink glow.
"!" Vaude didn't get any information on this. Her portals were two-times- No... THREE-TIMES bigger than his reports stated.
Suddenly, two giant mechanical hands peer out of the portal, each on the sides of Folly. They looked more like hand-like talons, but on its palms were holes and inside those holes were lights slowly growing within.
"Have a sneak peek at what I intend to unleash on the city." Folly maniacally grins. "Rest up now~!"
With her right hand still raised, she points her index and middle fingers at Vaude. The mechanical hands then shoot large beams of light straight at Vaude. He didn't even risk trying to tank those lasers with his Proto Shield and rolled away. The lasers hit the walls of the building they were in, causing structural damage to the entire building.
"Crap...!" Vaude growled under his breath. He looked at Folly who was simply waving to him as she stepped inside the large portal. She was walking backwards, making sure Vaude saw her face as she exited from the premises.
"The building will go down at this rate." Model PM stated. "Hate to say it, but we have to retreat without her."
"Don't remind me." Vaude told his partner, dodging more laser beams.
He made a mad dash to exit, leaving the same way he came in. Just as he left, the building came crumbling down as more lasers shot out from the building, destroying it all. Soon, the laser light show would end, making Vaude think the mechanical creature or whatever it was left in the portal which also vanished along with Folly.
"Vaude! Is everything alright?!" A Guardian asked via their Comm. Link.
He sighed and pressed his hand on his helmet's earpiece. "Fine. Just peachy. You probably saw it, but the building just went down."
"Yeah, what was that!?"
"I don't know...yet." Vaude told him and headed for the hills. "I'm heading to the Guardian Outpost. Fall back or stay behind to keep a look out. Either way, I got some details to report in."
"Yes sir!"
With that, the comm. link was severed and Vaude stormed off.
"Graver were used like chumps..." Vaude said aloud. "Puppets controlled by the Jester until she cut their strings..."
"When we went up against them last time, they were formidable." Model PM recalled. "But now... We need to find up who we're up against."
"Easier said than done, partner." Vaude reminded him. "But if that crazy girl is telling the truth about waiting on the kid to get better, then we have some time. We can use it to prepare for whatever she's got schemed; maybe even look for Vulcan and that Nero guy."
"...I don't trust that she's giving us a supposed 'break'." Model PM told him. "Let's assume she's being truthful. We have a lot to handle with a time frame we aren't aware of."
"Yeah, but we're here." Vaude smirked. "The old man called us here to help and that's what we're gonna do. Plus, we got a team of Mega Men who sound like they're ready to help out as well."
He grins wide, looking a little more determined.
"We may not know what the Jester's up to, but she doesn't know what we're up to either."