GT: I'm loving this year so far for Megaman news!
Lan couldn't hold in his gasp of amazement as he looked out at the foliage around him…with bits of circuitry visible in parts of the greenery. It was as if machinery and plant life had merged into a single entity in the area. As he walked through it all, he came upon a pair of bikes, one red and one blue and both sported sidecars with a case inside of them. Lan paused in his walking when he came upon Vent, who looked to be around fourteen with short hair like when he saw him as a little kid. He looked around and sighed in relief. No weird purple NetNavis attacking. He walked up to Vent and paused.
"Whoa~" Lan awed, seeing a large, futuristic looking city in the distance with a massive tower resembling a flower with six massive white 'petals' extending outwards to the parts of the city while several other buildings sported what looked like holographic lilac or magenta lotus blossoms on top of them.
"Hey, Vent! You ready to move out?" a voice asked, making Lan jump and nearly fall off if he hadn't grabbed the broken base of a tree on the cliffside.
He turned and blinked a few times. The older man in his mid twenties that approached them had the same long hair the Vent he knew had outside of the front part of the hair being spikier and straight. He had a strange red upside-down triangle on his forehead that made Lan curious, thinking it was his NaviMark. He wore a red version of Vent's jacket with the gold swapped for white along with red armored shoes. …Yet, it was the eyes that really caught Lan's attention. They were a gentle shade of blue that seemed to be filled with a kindness he'd only seen in his mom and dad's eyes but also a deep well of regrets and determination that he'd sometimes catch in his dad's eyes. He blinked and, for a moment, he could've sworn he saw his dad in the man's place.
"Hey, Vent! Are you ready to move out?" the man asked, "Vent! Did you hear me?"
"..."
"Vent?" Lan pondered, looking at the fourteen-year-old to see him looking out at the city…or, rather…glaring at the flower-shaped building.
"You can see the Slither Inc. building from here. This country sure has grown and prospered thanks to them," the man noted as he walked over.
"Bigger's not always better. If their security force had come sooner ten years ago…" Vent squeezed a fist tightly, "My mom might still be alive."
Giro, for a moment, sported a sad frown before gently putting a hand on Vent's shoulder, "I'm sorry that you lost your mom in the Maverick raids. I understand how you feel, but don't let on about your feelings in town. We were experiencing an energy crisis and suffering from never-ending Maverick raids." he gestured to the tower, "But that company stepped up and fixed all of those problems. As far as the people are concerned, the president of the company, Serpent, is a genuine hero."
"Serpent? That…That really doesn't sound like a heroic name…" Lan muttered as the man turned to walked to the bikes.
"Anyway, we better get going. Our client is already on their way to the rendezvous point," the man informed before they began to walk towards them, Lan quickly following the older, yet younger, version of his NetNavi.
"Hey Boss, just who are those Guardians that we took the job request from? They haven't even told us what's in the package they want delivered so badly," Vent frowned, suspicion in his tone that surprised Lan.
"The Guardians are a defense force that banded together to fight the Mavericks. Right now, they're moving from place to place investigating the cause of Maverick outbreaks. As for the package, try not to ask too many questions. I'm sure it's very important and very dangerous. It's probably better we don't know," the man advised.
"Guardians? Isn't that what Ciel called our team?" Lan pondered before jumping as three plasma bullets hit the red bike, forcing all three to cover behind the blue one, "Holy…!"
"W-what's going on!?" Vent panicked as the man and Lan peeked out of the sides and their eyes widened, seeing a trio of the purple one-eyed 'NetNavis' approaching.
"Those are Galleon Mavericks! How did they get here!?" the man pondered before they fired several shots at the blue bike, causing it to start smoking and cracking the casing in the sidecar, "Ah! They must be after the package!"
Lan looked at it and narrowed his eyes. He leaned closer to one of the openings from the cracking of the case and his eyes widened.
"Model X…?" Lan pondered.
The Galleons fired at both bikes and the blue suddenly exploded, throwing Vent, Lan, and the package off the side of the cliff.
"Aaaah!"
"Vent!" the man shouted, reaching out…
*THUD!*
"Ow~" Lan groaned.
"Aw…" Vent whined, lowering his military horn, before Lan popped his head out from under the bundle of blankets while looking around rapidly, "Lan, what's wrong?"
"Vent…I…I had another weird dream. It was you, but you were with short hair and being all grumpy!"
"G-Grumpy?"
"Yeah! You looked so weird with the short hair and being all grumpy!" Lan replied.
'Grumpy?' Vent mentally repeated.
"And there was this cliffside we were on and it was amazing! It was like the plants were all made from machines or it was machines that were made to look like plants a-and there was this huge city!" Lan spread his arms out as wide as he could, excitement in his voice at the memory of his dream, "It looked so awesome, Vent! Like a bunch of giant flowers were growing out of the tops of buildings like it was a city of plants!"
'He must have seen Cinq Ville,' Vent thought, 'Short hair…Cinq Vill…cliffside…'grumpy'...Oh shit.' his eyes widened, unseen by Lan as he scurried over to his desk and started to scribble what he saw as best he could.
"A-And then there was this guy with you!" Lan went on, "He…" he paused in his drawing, "He kinda felt like Papa."
"..."
"I didn't know his name because you called him 'Boss,'" Lan went on, "He…He felt a lot like Papa…"
"...Giro."
"Huh?" Lan looked at the screen to see Vent had a bit of a fond, yet somber, expression.
"Remember, I was a courier. I wasn't programmed for it and was taught by a great guy named Giro," Vent explained, Model Z floating out of his pocket, "Zero was his Biometal before he gave him to me."
"Huh?"
Vent looked down, a solemn look on his face, "Giro…gave his life up for mine." Lan's eyes widened, "It was an attack and I had recently got Model X. I thought I could help, but…All I did was end up causing Giro to lose his life."
[He…was weak in body at the end, but not in spirit. We were MegaMerged and if he dropped it, he would be gone. But…Giro wanted Vent to live and asked me to stay with him] Zero explained [He's missed, but he'll never be forgotten by Vent or I]
"Vent…Zero…" Lan whispered, "I'm sorry. I…"
"It's not your fault, Lan," Vent assured, reaching a hand out to put on the screen, Lan putting a finger on it to try to mimic it being held in Vent's palm, "You had a pretty interesting dream."
"It…It felt more like a memory," Lan replied, not seeing Vent flinch as he looked down at his drawings and started getting back to drawing the city he saw in his dream.
[So…Why are you drawing the city in your dream?] Fafnir asked.
"Huh? Oh! It looked so cool and there's this contest about drawing a city for the Network," Lan explained, "I wasn't gonna enter, but after seeing that flower city…"
'Okay…I think I made that 'river' flow this time,' Vent thought, a drop of sweat going down the back of his head, 'Cyber City's gonna become Cinq Ville 2.0 if Lan wins…'
"Ciel!"
"Hm?" Ciel looked up from putting on her shoes to see Alouette running up, "Oh! Hi, sis! All ready for school?"
Alouette giggled as she gave her a hug, "Uh-huh! Um…" she poked her pointer fingers together, "S-Sis…?"
"What is it, Alouette?"
"C-Can I have a NetNavi? Please~?" Alouette asked, looking at her with big puppy dog eyes.
"Well, you are reaching the age that you're going to need one for school," Ciel replied, "Mmm…Give me a few days and I'll see what I can come up with. Anything you want in particular?"
"Uhn!" Alouette held up the drawing she showed Oda, "See?"
Ciel giggled, "Someone like Zero, eh?"
"Uhn!" Alouette nodded, stars in her eyes.
"Okay, okay…I'll see what I can do," Ciel promised.
"Yay~!" Alouette cheered, hugging her again and nuzzling into her, "I love you, big sis!"
"Okay, okay," Ciel giggled, returning the hug, "Okay, let's get you to school, alright?"
"Okay~!" Alouette cheered as she went off to grab her backpack.
'Oh that girl…' Ciel thought in amusement and fondness before her PeT buzzed, 'An EMail?' she pulled it out and looked at it, '?! He's back…Well…I wonder how they'll handle meeting him…'
"So any plans this afternoon?" Yai asked as the final bell rang.
"Oh! Um, well…" Maylu began.
"I asked Maylu and Lan to help me with this NetNavi I'm making for my little sister," Ciel explained.
"Really?" Yai asked.
"Yes. I want her to have one that can protect her in case of emergencies, so I'm having it go up against Vent and Ashe. If they can tie with at least one of them, then I'll believe they're able to protect her," Ciel replied.
"Really?" Dex asked.
"Yes, but…I don't want to overwhelm them, so it's why I'm asking for just Lan and Maylu to help today. If things go well today, I'll bring them over to the treehouse tomorrow," Ciel assured.
"Heh. Hope your sis's future Navi can handle Gutsman and me then!" Dex beamed.
"Gutsman been training, guts!" Gutsman declared, banging a fist on his chest.
"How's your punches?" Ashe asked.
"Oh, a lot better!" Gutsman replied excitedly, "Having a boxing coach helping me understand it has helped a lot, guts!"
"Can't wait to see," Vent chuckled.
"Best hurry. My bus home will be at the bus stop in a few minutes," Ciel noted, quickly closing her backpack and zipping it up, before, a few minutes later, the three were on the street on skates (Lan and Ciel) or a scooter (Maylu).
"Nice lie," Lan noted.
"Oh, I'm not lying about Alouette's surprise," Ciel replied, "I hope you don't mind that he'll be based off you, Zero."
[Mmm…So long as it's not like Copy X, I'll be fine]
"Copy X?" Lan repeated.
"Big mistake," Ciel sighed, "Very big mistake."
[Don't ask] all the Biometals but A pleaded.
"Don't worry. He'll be more of a puppy," Ciel assured.
"Puppy she says…" Vent sighed, "It's not going to be like O…"
[DO NOT SAY HIS NAME!] the Biometals minus A and X snapped.
"So it starts with an 'O?'" Lan asked, "So the last one's called Mo…"
[NOOOOOO!-!-!]
"...What is with them?" Maylu asked.
"Some bad trauma involving the Biometal in question," Ciel replied, "We try to not bring up the name of that one."
"That explains so much…and so little," Maylu sighed.
"Cheer up, you two," Ciel noted, "We have Synchro Tests today and an agent that's been in Ameropa for the last few weeks has come back!"
"Huh? Another agent? Can they go FullSynchro like us?" Lan asked.
"Of course!" Ciel replied, "You'll be doing simulations with him when we arrive."
"Can we get a name?" Lan asked.
"Of course. His name is Chaud," Ciel replied, making Ashe and Vent swiftly turn their heads to look at her as best they could from their PeTs.
'So we're meeting them sooner than before…' Vent pondered.
'Should we be on the lookout for hypnosis sooner?' Ashe asked.
'I've been looking out for signs of anything being different,' Vent replied.
"Side-effects outside of the damage feedback?" Ciel asked, exiting the metroline with the two.
"Yeah," Lan replied, "The day we first used FullSynchro, I had this weird dream of a little kid Vent and someone that looked like my mom but with the metal things on Vent's ears in a destroyed amusement park and…well…" he grimaced as he trailed off, not wanting to remember the senses from that dream.
"I had one where Ashe was talking to a piano key like it was me and she was sad that we hadn't talked in over fifteen years," Maylu added, Lan moving closer to her and putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"Hmm…You sure you're not just having dreams?"
"These were way too vivid to be normal," Lan argued, shaking his head.
"I see," Ciel nodded, discreetly looking at their PeTs, "...Have there been any other moments?"
"Yes," both replied.
"Alright. I'll get started on some theories, but you two are having something I have not seen in other FullSynchro users," Ciel spoke as they arrived at the base and entered it through the secret entrance.
"I'm still getting used to this," Maylu sighed.
"It's still pretty awesome how secret agent this is," Lan grinned.
"We still haven't met anyone else that's part of this outside of Ciel and the trio," Ashe noted.
"I assure you, you will get to know everyone that can currently use FullSynchro that's a member of our division of the CID," Ciel assured, "You're going to be meeting another one today, after all." she paused as they passed a sliding door by a long stretch of a one-sided window, "Oh! They're here and doing the Virus Simulator!"
"Huh?" the two pondered.
They looked at the window to see a holographic display like Yai's in the treehouse. In it, they were witnessing a massive swarm of viruses. Fish ones with arm-like fins that were shooting tridents from their mouths, Mettaur, Handy, cartoon-looking birds, armored orbs with eyes and a nose-like tank cannon, and even sleek paper-plane shaped viruses with eyes…all in a myriad of colors. One moment, they were there…the next, all of them were sliced to ribbons and deleted.
=Clear Time: 2.57 Seconds. Busting Rank: S= a soft female voice informed.
"Perfected Level 30 again?" Ciel pondered with a sigh, "He must be getting bored again…"
"Level 30?"
"It's currently the highest level for the simulation," Ciel replied, "And now I'm going to have to add another level because he's going to complain about it being boring now that he perfected it."
The two raised their brows before the metal door slid open. Stepping out of it was a boy around their age, maybe a year at best older than Maylu. He wore a pair of baggy camo pants with black and white shoes. He sported a black long-sleeved shirt underneath a red sleeveless jacket. Yet the most defining trait that drew the attention of the two was his hair. It was layered with white on the top and black on the bottom.
"...Is that a hat?" Lan asked.
"Ciel…" the boy began, giving her an annoyed look.
"I'm already planning on incorporating the data of the two WWW NetNavis our new agents have encountered," Ciel stated before smiling and looking at the two, "Speaking of…Chaud, these are Lan Hikari and Maylu Sakurai. Lan, Maylu, I'd like to introduce to you Eugene Chaud Blaze."
"Blaze? As in the Blaze family in charge of IPC?" Maylu asked, "The company that makes PeTs and several other pieces of tech?"
"Indeed," Chaud replied, "Seems one of you at least does your research."
"...Hey!" Lan frowned.
"How was Ameropa?" Ciel asked.
"We were able to catch the criminals and detain them," Chaud replied.
"And you deleted their NetNavis again when I ordered you to keep them alive, didn't you?" Ciel asked, putting her hands on her hips.
"Hmph. I don't get why you want them active. A good terrorist NetNavi is a deleted one."
"But they could provide vital data!" Ciel groaned, facepalming.
"Yeah! At least when Mega and I deal with them, we try to get info outta them!" Ashe argued.
[I'm strangely reminded of you, Zero] X noted.
[I did not have an eggshell on my head] Z argued.
"Something your NetNavi wants to say to me, Hikari?" Chaud asked, narrowing his eyes.
"?! You heard Model Z?" Lan asked.
"Model…You're the ones with the Biometals?" Chaud asked, raising a brow.
"I've told all the members of our division about them," Ciel explained, "And it's nice to know another member can hear them."
[Does it have to be the one with an eggshell on his head?] Model A whined.
"...Your hair does look like one," Ciel admitted, blushing while trying to avoid the annoyed look aimed at her by Chaud, "L-Look…" she cleared her throat, "Anyway, I'm glad you're here, Chaud. I'm hoping you can NetBattle Lan or Maylu and their NetNavis Vent and Ashe."
"Seriously?"
"Of course. They have a lot of potential," Ciel replied, "Hopefully, one of them can help with your boredom."
"I'll be the judge of that," Chaud replied, giving her a sharp look.
"This guy rubs me the wrong way," Lan whispered to Vent.
"Anyone who acts like they're cool rubs you the wrong way," Vent deadpanned.
"Just take it out of the network here, you two," Ciel ordered, "Not after the last time when you took on Skullman, Woodman, and Sharkman together."
"..." Chaud looked away, now looking awkward at that reminder, "I apologized, didn't I?"
*THWACK!*
"You eight wiped out several pieces of vital data I was examining!" Ciel snapped, glaring down at a downed Chaud with a broom in her hand.
[C-Ciel?!] Z gawked.
[Wow…I haven't seen someone go to town on someone else with a broom since those rookies poked Leviathan's buttons by accident] F noted.
[Those were good times…] L sighed in content.
"Can you teach me that?" Maylu asked, causing Lan to turn ghostly white in fear.
"We're meeting him a lot sooner than before," Ashe whispered as a red beam of light shot down from the 'sky' and formed into a NetNavi before the two.
The NetNavi looked to be around their age in a purple bodysuit with the exterior parts of it being pitch black. His upper body was covered in red armor with spiked shoulders while his lower legs were covered in red boots with white toes and a spike jutting out where the legs slid into their feet. His gloves were similar to his boots with the hands covered in a black material. His head was covered in a red helmet with a red horn on the front with a black visor resembling sunglasses. Emerging from the back of his head and reaching down at the same length as Vent's hair was white hair. The emblem on the NetNavi was a black and white symbol split down the middle in a lightning pattern.
"Atten-hut!" Vent declared, saluting.
"What the wha…?" Ashe raised a brow.
"At ease," the NetNavi replied, "You two are the new recruits…"
"Yes, sir," Vent replied, "I'm Vent, but I go by 'Megaman' when in battle."
"Ashe! But I'm 'Roll A' when I'm brawlin'!" Ashe grinned.
"It seems at least one of you is competent…" the NetNavi noted.
"Hey!" Ashe frowned as Vent kept her from trying to punch the red NetNavi.
"We've introduced ourselves, so may I know who you are?" Vent asked.
"Protoman."
"A pleasure," Vent nodded before producing a data file and tossed it to him, "Combat reports on the World Three NetNavis we've battled."
"Impressive. And you were originally a civilian NetNavi?" Protoman asked.
"Oh no. I was a courier for SciLab before becoming Lan's NetNavi," Vent casually replied, "Dr. Yuichiro Hikari was my maker."
"Yuichiro Hikari?" Protoman repeated, raising a brow in interest.
"Yes," Vent replied, "I'm rather happy being Lan's NetNavi over the last few months."
"...You've really let them go?" Protoman asked.
"The agents we've been dealing with seem to have an Auto Jack Out to prevent Deletion," Vent explained.
"Tch. That will make our job harder then," Protoman noted, scowling.
"Eh, no sweat! We're pretty strong so we'll just keep workin' hard and clobber 'em!" Ashe grinned.
"What was that?!" the trio looked up at Lan's shout.
"You heard me. You fancy yourselves as being able to hold a license? I think not," Chaud scoffed, a cold look in his eyes as he looked down upon Lan.
"Hah?!"
"Chaud, come on now! These two and their NetNavis have been a great help!" Ciel argued.
"It's obvious to me they'll end up as liabilities," Chaud stated, "What if they were put into a situation where the only choice is to Delete the enemy only to give them a chance to undo it on their own?"
[That sounds like an oddly specific situation] Model A noted.
"It is a scenario we run through," Ciel noted, "You two were meant to do that next week but that will have to be delayed." she shook her head, "Getting off track. Chaud, seriously. You're not the one who decides who is and who isn't good for our division. I'm the leader of this division."
"Yes, but I can't help but find your choices this time as severely lacking."
"Oh that is it!" Lan snapped, "Think what you like! Imma bustin' ya down to first grade right now!" he picked up his PeT, "Vent, let's get ready to NetBattle this eggshell head!"
"Why am I not surprised it led to this…?" Vent sighed.
"HOLD IT!" Ciel snapped, slamming a red button and Ashe, Vent, and the Biometals yelped as they and Protoman were ejected from the Network, "No one NetBattles in the Guardian Network! Not after the last time Protoman, Sharkman, Skullman, and Woodman went all out in it!"
"...Is the Network in the arcade separate from the Network here?" Lan asked.
"Of course it is. I'm not an idiot to put the important Network on the same Network as the place we're in," Ciel replied, "The actual server is in…"
"That's all I need to know! Let's go, Chaud! Time to see who's top dog!" Lan declared, walking towards the secret exit to the abandoned arcade.
"Heh…We'll see, all right…" Chaud noted as he walked after him, the lights shadowing his eyes as a sharp look appeared in them, "...just how little you understand the vast gulf between our skill levels."
"Lan…" Maylu began.
"Maylu, don't bother. Lan's gone into a stubborn state," Vent advised with a sigh, "He'll do this regardless of what someone says."
"And given how Chaud's posturin', he's all for beating up Lan and Vent," Ashe frowned, "Don't you dare lose to these guys, boys!"
"No way we're losing!" Lan declared.
"Maylu, you mind staying behind? We can discuss important things while they're being idiots," Ciel sighed.
"Um…Sure?" Maylu replied.
"No holding back, Vent," Lan ordered as he pulled out the cable of his PeT and plugged it into an arcade cabinet as Chaud put his into a machine on the upper level, the nearby screens lighting up to show the Network.
"For the record, I'm against fighting our allies most of the time," Vent admitted before, in a flash of light, Megaman Model X used his buster to block the glowing red blade wielded by Protoman, "So sorry if I'm not up for fighting today!"
"I will show no leniency despite your own hesitation. This is a battle to the finish," Protoman stated.
"Seriously?!" Vent asked before Protoman vanished.
"Ah! What kinda speed is that?!"
"Protoman is rated at a CyberSpeed of over Mach 5," Chaud explained, "From the very beginning you've been…" he paused as his eyes widened as Protoman's sword was parried…by Megaman Model HX's swords while the oldest of them had his eyes closed, "What?"
"Mach 5, huh? You're slower than the foes I've battled," Megaman stated calmly, opening one eye to giving him a calculative look.
'What kind of reflexes does this civilian NetNavi have?' Protoman pondered in surprise.
The two moved back from one another before quickly turning their heads to the distance. Before either NetOp could ask, a scream came from the direction as a swarm of Viruses appeared, chasing a NetNavi in a white bodysuit with red rings acting as armor for his torso, lower arms, and lower legs.
"H-HELP! Please! Someone! Save me!" the NetNavi panicked before a burst of heat went by Protoman and Megaman FX had leapt between the NetNavi and the Viruses and began to unleash a barrage of fiery plasma bullets that forced them away from them.
"Are you okay?" Megaman asked.
"I-I think so," the NetNavi gulped before yelping as Protoman appeared before him.
"Based on your design…You're a World Three Recon NetNavi," Protoman noted.
"A what?" Megaman asked, looking over his shoulder at them.
"They're NetNavis that World Three uses, modifying them with camouflage programming to hide and gather intelligence," Chaud replied.
"P-Please! You have to help me!" the NetNavi pleaded, tears welling in his eyes, "I…I was a regular NetNavi once…I even had a NetOp who I always tried my best to work with, but…but they abandoned me one day…leaving me to wander the Cybernet, alone, scared, and lost…until I was scooped up by World Three!"
"These Viruses seem to be focused on you…" Megaman noted, "Are you…trying to run away from World Three."
"Yes! I…"
"Hmph. I've heard more than enough of this drivel," Protoman stated, "You're Deleted."
"Wait! N-n-n-no!" the NetNavi panicked.
"Protoman, wait! We could help this poor NetNavi! Find him a new NetOp a…" Megaman began before, in an instant, Protoman was standing over the now derezzing NetNavi, "?!"
"No!" Lan gasped as the NetNavi was fully Deleted before they could react.
"...How could you?" Megaman asked, flashing back to Vent in his shock, "Why…Why would you do that?" he clenched a fist, "He was no fighter…he wasn't a threat…" he grit his teeth, "He even begged for his life." his emblem began to glow along with his eyes as Lan's hair started to float, "What possible reason was there…"
"...to commit such cold-blooded murder?" Lan finished.
"The best reason: he was World Three," Protoman replied before holding up a small chip, "This is his memory chip. The only thing of value."
"Value? Why you…" Vent growled before he glared harshly at Protoman as NetOp and NetNavi spoke in unison, "SO THAT'S HOW YOU OPERATE?! YOU AND US ALLIES?!-! NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS!-!"
"...!" a small light shined in Protoman's visitor, "Synchronization Level: 92 percent. FullSynchro achieved through anger…"
"...Such a gross emotion," Chaud noted with a sigh of disappointment, "How inept. You're an utter failure."
"The only one I see as a failure…are you two," Vent growled, "...X…Zero…"
[These two actually did something I haven't felt in a long while: they've made me mad] X growled.
[We're with you, Vent, Lan] Zero spoke, a hardened determination in his voice.
'Huh…A-Are we…?'
'Yeah, Lan…' Vent smirked before pulling them out, "Model X! Model Z!" he swung his arms out and crossed them before him, "Let's Rock On! Double MegaMerge!"
[Biolink Established. MEGA System Online]
The appearance of a pillar of light that engulfed Vent deleted all the viruses closest to him. Within, Vent held the Biometals out to his sides as armor began to form over his body from the data pouring from the two. The pillar pulsed before shooting outwards, engulfing everything and deleting all the viruses. Within the light, a figure appeared. White armor covered his upper legs and pelvic area with red armored combat boots with black soles. Red armor covered his wrists and the backs of his lower arms with a gold piece over the back of his hands, a gem connecting the pieces. The wind fluttered his red shirt-sleeved jacket. His head was covered in a black helmet detailed in red armored plating to resemble horns with two white 'fins' on the sides of his head. A green crystal 'arrow' pointing downwards rested in the center of the helmet and wanted to wrap around over the top of it. A data pattern appeared in the gem as he opened his eyes. Red lines shone on his bodysuit as eight 'wings' of golden hair shot out from under his helmet before settling into Vent's familiar hairstyle. The green gem and his eyes shined bright as the light finally died down, revealing a white and black handle and guard with a gun trigger on the handle. A green arrow-shaped plasma sword emerged from it as he looked up at Protoman, who stepped back and looked closely at his chest, showing the Hikari logo combined with a red 'Z' and a blue 'X.'
"Vent?" Lan asked in awe, 'Whoa…Is…Is this how combining X and Z feels? It…It's amazing!'
"Yeah. …Lan, in this armor, I'm the Utlimate Megaman. Megaman Model ZX, the protector of all," Vent replied.
'Just transforming into this form deleted all the viruses in the area,' Protoman thought, raising a brow in surprise, 'Interesting…'
"What is this form?" Chaud pondered.
"Didn't I just say it? I am the Megaman that will protect everyone I can," Megaman ZX replied, "Megaman Model ZX. However…I'm also a deliveryman."
"A deliveryman?" Protoman repeated, readying his sword.
"Ah…" Megaman ZX nodded before glaring at Protoman, "And you for you two? That delivery…is defeat!"
Protoman vanished from sight. Chaud tensed as Protoman's sword was blocked by Megaman ZX's sword, the flat of it easily blocking the backstab Protoman was going for. Yet, despite the struggling Protoman was doing to push through, Megaman ZX didn't even budge.
"You think us activating FullSynchro in anger is disgusting?" Megaman ZX asked, calmly looking over his shoulder to keep his glare on the red NetNavi before swiftly kicking at Protoman, forcing him to make a red and white oval shield form and take the blow only for it to shatter upon impact, "WRONG!-!-!"
"It's your own actions that ticked us off!" Lan added as ZX charged, swinging his sword and cleaving the shield with ease, "You two saw evil where it didn't exist! He was lost and alone, with no will to resist! He even admitted to fleeing from the World Three!"
"Couldn't you see any of that?! Didn't you feel the merest shred of compassion and decency?!" Megaman ZX demanded, his sword switching into a blaster that he used to fire several shots at Protoman from point-blank, forcing Chaud to insert an AreaSteal to dodge.
"NO!" Protoman snapped, Megaman ZX quickly spun around to parry the HeroSword in Protoman's hands, actually making him grit his teeth and shake a little, "Compassion? Mercy?!" a large gold gauntlet formed over his free arm and he used it to slug Megaman ZX away, "Those things are pointless!"
"All I believe in…all that counts…is power!"
"Total, absolute power!"
"...Absolute power?" Megaman ZX repeated, sounding eerily calm.
Lan grit his teeth as he held the side of his head. He blinked and saw the burning highway…the young man in blond hair wearing what looked like a broken version of Model ZX with a shattered purple visor replacing the helmet and the 14-year-old Vent in Model X both down and defeated. Standing over them was a massive man with the same white things on Vent's ears in an armored green business suit with bulky robotic hands and purple hair, a murderous gleeful expression on his face. The same expression was on a lanky teenager with long blue hair in purple reaper-like armor with a massive plasma scythe in hand standing by a hovering teenage girl with long green hair in white and pale-blue armor with an emotionless expression and sitting on a blue and gold staff like it was a witch's broom. He blinked again and saw the real/cyber world in his eyes.
'H-Huh? Another…?' Lan thought.
"ABSOLUTE POWER?!" Megaman ZX snapped, the ground breaking apart around him as his armor started to shine with his hair spread out to look as if he had six golden wings.
He vanished and a LifeAura formed on Protoman only for it to be useless against the saber of Megaman ZX, cleaving through and cutting off his arm. Protoman moved, vanishing from normal sight only for Megaman ZX to appear behind him, barely inches away. Protoman swung his arm only for Megaman ZX to grab it and tear the lower arm off completely.
"YOU'RE NOTHING MORE THAN A MAVERICK!" Megaman ZX bellowed, slamming a fist and cracking Protoman's visor, "You think absolute power is everything?! That kind of thinking is more in line with terrorists like the World Three!"
"I've had enough of you…" Chaud growled as he inserted a Recov120 into Protoman, fully healing his injuries, "Your ignorance is trying my patience!" Protoman took a step before freezing, "!"
"...The only ignorant one here is you," Megaman ZX coldly replied, his sword impaled through Protoman's gut while looking Protoman directly in the eyes behind his visor, pity in his eyes, "...I pity you."
"!? Y-You…"
"Your line of thinking…it's completely and utterly disgusting. How you fell into it I'll never understand," Megaman ZX spoke, "All I can do…is pity you and hope you can crawl out of that mental state of delusion." he switched the sword to its buster state and shot Protoman in the same spot, tearing through his body and forcing him to Log Out, letting Megaman ZX catch the dropped memory chip, "..." he held a hand up and gathered the deleted NetNavi's data, doing his best to make sure not a single piece was missing, "...Lan…Can we take this to Ciel?"
"Yeah," Lan replied, ignoring the trembling Chaud, hunched over on the railing while holding his gut as he glared at Lan in rage and disbelief, "Maybe she can help find him someone that won't abandon him."
"Okay…How are you feeling?" Ciel asked.
"I…I feel great! Thank you, miss! Thank you!" the repaired NetNavi thanked, tears in his eyes.
"That's good to hear!" Ciel giggled, "I'm really sorry for what happened to you. I'm grateful that Lan and Vent brought me your data so I could get you back together."
"Yeah! …They're…really kind, huh?" the NetNavi asked, looking out past her to Lan who was hissing as Maylu put some rubbing alcohol on one of his cuts.
"A compassionate soul gives way to powers far beyond any others could imagine," Ciel replied, "...Do you have a name?"
"Huh? A-A name? ….No. I…I don't. Before my NetOp abandoned me, he deleted my name."
"That's horrible!" Ashe gasped.
"...Roze."
"Hm?"
"I'd like to give you one then…and a home," Ciel replied, "Would you be willing to be upgraded and become my little sister's NetNavi?"
"I…I get to have a home again?" the NetNavi asked, tears welling in his eyes, "Y-Yes! Please! I'll do anything! Thank you, ma'am! Thank you so much!"
"It's not a problem, Roze," Ciel smiled, "Let's get started on those upgrades then, alright?"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Don't we need info from him first?" Lan asked.
"Oh! R-Right!" Roze sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "Um…Well…The biggest reason I left…was because of Lord Wily declaring the start of Operation Endgame."
"Operation Endgame?" Maylu repeated.
"He's creating a Virus. A powerful one that will be sent into space to broadcast a signal to self-destruct every single machine connected to the internet," Roze explained, making them tense, "That's what tipped me over the edge to run away from World Three. They're going to cause attacks to collect the Four Elemental Codes to make this Virus, but I don't know where any of them are, sadly. Well…aside from the FireCode. They managed to obtain that one. It was inside of the Hikari Family's oven Network…"
"Huh?!" Lan gawked.
"It's okay, Roze," Ciel assured, "That information alone is going to help in a massive way!"
"And tomorrow means you get to meet our friends, too," Lan grinned, "Hope you're ready for meeting them, Roze!"
"I-I'll try to be…" Roze replied, no one paying attention to the NetNavi couple sharing looks.
"Okay…This is bad. The LifeVirus…was a Virus that we beat back with Glyde, Gutsman, and Iceman while our NetOps had been fighting other viruses with Super Soakers in that Dimensional Core thing at the mall," Ashe recalled, wearing an orange semi-transparent nightgown that showed her navy blue panties through the material, as she and Vent were nestled into Lan's PC in a part where Maylu and Lan couldn't see or listen in on them since the human duo were spending the night together.
"But now it sounds like it won't be as easy as it was back then," Vent frowned, wearing light blue pajamas.
"Right," Ashe nodded before looking at the 'sky' and the artificial night sky she made for it in her bedroom, "...They were completely different from the two we knew. Or were they like that before we began to fully know them?"
"I just want to punch them again," Vent growled, clenching a fist, "They…They reminded me too much of Serpent and Prometheus…wanting nothing but power…" he grimaced, "And I think Lan saw my memory of the two and Pandora in my rage…"
"...Maybe we should tell them?" Ashe suggested.
"Tell them what?"
"That…we're reincarnations of two people who ended up with powers…" Ashe trailed off before facepalming, "Ugh…No, no…That'll lead to Maylu's 'dream' being asked and a whole can of worms and I'm terrified they'll think they're our replacement goldfish."
"...Perhaps, but…there are differences, too," Vent noted, "For one…they're becoming different to the ones we originally knew. I mean…I don't even know if Lan was like this before when it came to school."
"Didn't he make the wireless Jack-In device that led to the next generation of PeT?" Ashe asked.
"He did," Vent nodded, "A bit before the LifeVirus incident with the Dimensional Core in that mall." he chuckled, "I…may have suggested to Lan yesterday about the idea of having one in case of emergencies, like a hypothetical. You should've seen him, it looked like he had gears turning constantly."
"Oh, that would be perfect! You remember how often we had terrible situations in Virus Busting and fighting World Three and Gospel until the wireless PeTs were made?" Ashe recalled.
"Tell me about it. I had one too many close shaves with Deletion if Lan hadn't gotten there in time," Vent grimaced.
[Well…Now you have a combination of experience and all of us with you to stall until Lan and Maylu can get there] X noted.
[That's right!] Axl chirped [Remember when Maylu's PeT got all glitchy and we had to spend a few days in a SubPeT? The worst time was conking out when we were Buckfire and fighting in a Cage Pit Match against the former champ!]
"Almost resorted to using A-Trans and blowing my cover," Ashe recalled with a frown before shaking her head, "Though I'm getting the point, you guys. So long as we work together, we're gonna get past anything!"
"Right," Vent nodded.
"Hey, Hub?"
"Hm? What is it, Roll?" Vent asked before blushing as Ashe hugged him, "..." he chuckled as he returned the hug, 'I won't be an idiot this time, Roll…I promise.'
'Hub...I won't make the same mistakes as I did back then...especially after that day,' Ashe mentally vowed, a brief moment of anguish crossing his face.
GT: Hoo boy! Was thinking another story would be updated, but nope. Blame the livestream CAPCOM is doing, showcasing all the episodes of the NT Warrior anime.
