Note: Anyhow, time to begin the Boss Rush! Rest assured, each Robot Master will get his time to shine, but I don't want to drag the scene out for too long, as there ARE eight of them. Plus, there's other stuff happening outside of Mega Man's knowledge.

An Amphibian Aggressor

"Loser?!" Wily fumed, not exactly appreciating Toad Man's comment.

"I have to make it look convincing," Cossack told the older man. "We DO want to keep the illusion up, after all."

Perhaps the Russian was right, but that didn't mean Wily had to like it. "Well…don't get too cocky!" he warned. "Bear in mind, your brat being here is me being accommodating, Cossack."

"Oh yes, kidnapping her from her home and keeping her in a cage." he looked over to a small screen in the larger computer's console. The image of a blonde girl sitting on a bed was shown to him. "How generous."

"She's alive, isn't she?" Wily remarked. "I could've just had Proto and the others leave her out there to freeze. If anything, you're indebted to me."

Cossack froze, torn between fear and rage. "I told you before, you can't intimidate me." the other scientist told Wily. "Everything save for her has been taken from me." he then turned to face the madman. "If anything, she's the one that's made all this possible. Because if not, either I would've taken you out, or you would've been forced to take me out."

Wily was confused, yet nonetheless, startled. "What do you mean?"

Cossack's nose wrinkled. Even if the man told him that such things weren't his business, it was clear that Wily had taken to spraying whole bottles of body spray as a good alternative to bathing. Perhaps he was just used to living with a bunch of robots that didn't possess that sense, but indeed it wouldn't have been hard to have a shower installed somewhere. Then again, Cossack wasn't in much better shape either. He had felt nothing short of filthy, both for the period he had been here, having been denied access to any means to clean himself, and for what he was currently being forced to do.

Even if it was his daughter's life on the line, Mega Man didn't deserve this.

"Hey, I'm asking you a question here!" Wily's voice brought the Russian back to reality. "What do you mean by what you just said? Was that a threat?" he questioned. "Because if it was, then you'd better watch the attitude!"

"It's not so much a threat as it is the truth," Cossack responded. "If I remember, I outright refused your offer to work together. After you abducted me, of course, it wasn't until you went after her that I agreed to play this game."

Wily was silent, but he was feeling his ego being wounded. Who did this guy think he was?! A world-renowned scientist? Pah! He doubted that Cossack even went to the prestigious International Robotics Institution. Hmph!

"If not for that, then either you would have to end me for refusing to cooperate, or I would have to try and get past you by any means necessary." Cossack continued. "But neither of those options would be in favor of anyone. And it's because of my Kalinka. So, in a way, you owe her."

Wily was stumped at first, trying to process what he had just heard. He wasn't mistaken; Cossack WAS threatening him! He dared?! "I have some of my top bots guarding her this very second! And if what you say about your brat is true, then she had better keep herself in line! And the same goes for you too!"

"They're some of the top bots NOW because you can't even get the most basic of personality traits programmed right." Cossack retorted. "All your machines know is how to blow up or smash things. They had no sense of strategy or deeper thinking. So if anything, I'm saving you a lot of trouble by extending my services to you." Wily was fuming, face turning red. "But I doubt you're interested in that." the larger monitor of the computer displayed the chamber where Mega Man and Toad Man were just moments away from engaging in battle. "The guest of honor is about to begin."

Mega Man

Toad Man's Chamber

Wasting no time, the amphibian-based Robot Master leaped forward, Mega Man sliding underneath him, preparing a plasma shot just for him. But when he turned to aim, the Blue Bomber saw Toad Man leap to the side at a surprising speed that caught him off guard. The sudden movement caused the shot to miss its target, forcing Mega Man to fire again. And again. And again. Toad Man's actions hadn't changed much. He still hoped around like a frog (or rather, toad), but the former sluggishness in them had vanished entirely.

Leaping up high, Toad Man put his legs to good use and hopped from corner to corner, shooting up to the ceiling and diving down at Mega Man with the intent to deliver a punch or kick. Rolling out of the way, Mega Man didn't get a moment to recover as he felt a force from behind sending him into the wall. Despite how hard the impact was, there seemed to be no give. This chamber was reinforced and secure. There was no way in or out save the platform used to enter here.

"How's that?" Toad Man gloated, chuckling with a few "ribbits" inserting themselves here and there as he talked. "Dr. Cossack's stay over in Asia's inspired him to give me the knowledge and techniques of Kung-Fu!" he proclaimed with pride. "Frog and Toad style specifically."

"Of course." Mega Man responded. So far, he was putting up a better fight than "Kung-Fu Cut Man" did against Roll. However, the time machine incident was one that he would care not to repeat.

"You don't sound impressed." The Robot Master said. "You still think I'm a joke, don't you?"

Mega Man was confused. "I didn't say any-"

"Don't play dumb! You think I look like some goofy doofus! Everybody does!" Toad Man shouted. "Even Heat Man looks better, and he looks like a pack of chewing gum!" before Mega Man could comment on the odd comparison, the amphibian-based robot jumped back to the opposite end of the room. "Well, pretty soon, no one's going to be laughing!" he then shot out a familiar-looking device that very much resembled a grenade. "In fact, the only thing you're going to do is melt!"

Dr. Cossack

Observation Room

"Well, it's about time!" Wily remarked, having been quite pleased with what he had seen from Toad Man. Still, all he had been doing was jumping around and avoiding Mega Man's shots. "It was beginning to get boring!"

"You're just anxious to see what I've done to enhance him," Cossack said matter-of-factly.

"Of course! That's what you're here for!" Wily answered, looking at the screen that displayed what was taking place below. "Yeah, get wrecked, blue boy!"

Cossack also observed this; the grenade had exploded, a thick cloud filling the room. I hope you can use the small amount of help I can give you. Cossack thought. I can do no more than this.

Mega Man

Toad Man's Chamber

Even if it wasn't something he had seen often, the Blue Bomber knew what the thick, dangerous cloud meant and what it would bring. The dense vapor rose to the top of the room, covering it and making it appear like a storm was brewing above both robots. And for Mega Man, one was.

The poisonous moisture came raining down, hitting both robots, though only one of them was being affected. "How's that feel, blue boy?" Toad Man mockingly asked, Mega Man busy shielding himself from the incoming toxic droplets. "Like my new brand of acid rain? It's gotten an upgrade in chemicals meant to melt even the toughest metal." he then gestured to his stout form. "Course, if you've got a special protective coating like me, it's no problem!"

Even if his sensory input had been calibrated to experience a lesser degree of pain than a human, that didn't mean he was completely numb. Quite the contrary, he "felt", but in so much as that pain was akin to having the air knocked out of you or scraping your knee. How else would he have been able to crash through walls and fall from great heights without being in pure agony? But even with that, the blue robot was aware that pain meant his body had or was taking damage. And judging by the continuous burning the drops of acid rain were producing, the process would be slow and painful, even for a robot.

"Yes!" Toad Man cheered, croaking with joy. "At last! With Mega Man's defeat, I'll get the respect I deserve!" he hopped up and down, completely unaware or uncaring that another robot was trying to keep his face from being melted off. "No more stupid rain dance jokes, no more having to deal with Snake Man's stupid pranks," he went on and on, Mega Man seizing his chance.

Still shielding his face, the Blue Bomber dashed forward and tried to slide without touching the ground entirely. Toad Man felt a sharp tug on his arm, Mega Man having flipped him over on his back. Acting quickly, Mega touched Toad Man's chest, and his copy ability began to go to work. It analyzed the weapon that it had just read and transferred to him, but upon viewing the powers he was given, Mega Man was surprised by what he saw.

Ok, Rain Flush? Huh. You'd think it'd be Acid Rain. Mega Man thought. But this other function… might be my only chance!

Aiming his buster up high, a grenade-like explosive shot up from the cannon, but instead of another thick, dark cloud, a thick, white cloud appeared and surrounded Mega Man. The white vapor rose, moisture soon coming down. But unlike before, these droplets didn't feel like a slow burn through his armor. Quite the opposite: they left a chilled, soothing feeling as if it were a summer rain.

Dr. Cossack

Observation Room

"What is this?!" Wily exclaimed, clearly not happy with what he was seeing.

Cossack sighed. "You told me to upgrade your machines, as well as MINE." the younger scientist told Wily. "I remember your very words."

What Wily had said wasn't as eloquent as the Russian made it sound. The German man had outright bellowed that his credentials and programming skills were just as valid as Cossack's, even if Cossack never even insulted or even mentioned such things. He had just told Wily that his programming was elementary. And because of its simplicity, it was little wonder that Mega Man and Light's other creations bested him so many times.

"Well, what is that?" Wily asked Cossack.

"I originally constructed Toad Man for agricultural purposes." The Russian told the older scientist. "This is just a demonstration of his original function."

"So…that's it? He just makes rain?" Wily wasn't exactly impressed.

"Cleansing rain," Cossack said. "It negates the effects of the acid rain." Wily was about to protest that Cossack had intentionally given Mega Man an advantage, but Cossack continued. "This is a challenge, after all. I must provide everyone a fighting chance."

WIly was silent for a moment before huffing, crossing his arms over his pink shirt with a red tie. "Well…it had better not be too easy!" he warned Cossack. "I want Mega Man turned into bite-sized blue pieces of scrap!"

"Yes, yes, I'm more than aware." the Russian sighed, rolling his green eyes. But, unfortunately, this is all I can do for you. So he thought as he continued to watch Mega and Toad Man. There's something else, but I'll wait until you achieve victory.

It was odd that he could think such a thing, yet Cossack knew well that, upgrades or not, the Blue Bomber had proven time and time again that he always found a way. Cossack just hoped that, perhaps, by some act of mercy fate had decided to give him, that someone, somewhere, would find a way to save his Kalinka.

Roll

Far East Russian Tundra

Roll stood in front of the gaping mouth of the large tunnel before her. The blue bird-bot perched himself on her shoulder and Eddie in her arms. "And…what's this place?"

"I'm not too sure," Beat confessed. "It looks like a mine of some sort."

"Gold mine?" Eddie asked, blue eyes wide at the possibility of finding the rare mineral inside.

"Maybe," Beat answered. "Given the history of places like this, there had to be something of value in here at one point." And though it isn't gold, there IS something of value in there. Someone.

"Beat?" Roll's voice brought the bird-bot from his musings.

"It's nothing," he said. "Look, can we just get inside? I've got a job to do."

"Ok, ok! Don't have a fit!" Roll told him, entering the mine with Eddie in hand. The more miniature green robot shivered due to being enveloped in complete darkness, yet when his optics adjusted, his fear vanished. "So, seeing as we've got names out of the way, mind telling me why you're here?"

The bird-bot averted his gaze for a moment. "Well…I'm not supposed to tell you," he said. "Or rather, there are certain things I'm programmed NOT to tell you unless it's an emergency."

"Well, doesn't this count as an emergency?" the blonde asked. "I mean, if you're this desperate, then it must be important."

Beat pondered what she had just said, trying to see how he could perhaps wind his way around his programming. Could he do it? After all, if this didn't qualify as an emergency, then what did? Thankfully, to his relief, he found that what he wanted to say would be allowed. But only because there was no other choice.

"I'm looking for someone."

Mega Man

Cossack Citadel

Toad Man's Chamber

The acid rain continued to pour down, Toad Man's supply of grenades seeming to have no end. But Mega Man felt his power supply steadily becoming more and more depleted. "You know," the Blue Bomber said, the cloud of clean vapor canceling out the acid rain once again. "This is starting to become a bit repetitive, don't you think?"

The room was kept from flooding by a plethora of drains placed in the room's corners, so Mega Man counted that as something in his favor. Still, it didn't help him in how to best Toad Man.

"Yeah, it is getting a little boring." Toad Man admitted. "So hurry up, and melt already!"

"Ironically enough, I'll have to give you a rain check on that." Mega Man chuckled. Though perhaps his attention should've been more on trying to find a way to beat this froggy menace and get on with the challenge! The clock was still ticking after all.

"I'll give YOU a rain check!" Toad Man huffed. Once the clouds of clean rain faded away, the amphibian-based Robot Master began to, to his opponent's surprise, gyrate his hips and swing back and forth. Was this what Toad Man meant by "rain dance"? "With the execution of this secret technique, I shall stir the chemicals inside my filters and launch an even more powerful toxic rain than before!" the robot declared, all the while continuing to "dance."

Perhaps, Mega thought. It'd be risky…but maybe it's time to fight fire with fire! So to speak.

Though he didn't start showing any moves (Toad Man looking as if he were performing the Macarena at this point), Mega Man began revving the engine in his buster, spinning the numerous explosives of chemicals inside. Toad Man "danced" and Mega Man was quite literally making a potentially dangerous cocktail. Finally, the robotic amphibian stopped moving, stopping in a dynamic pose.

"And now…" Toad Man croaked. "Time to make you wish you brought a titanium umbrella!"

"And it's time for me to make a frog croak!" Mega Man countered.

"Frog? I'm a toad!"

Both of them shot a grenade-like explosive into the air, both going off at the same time. The reaction was something neither of them was prepared for.

The chemical reaction from both containers of acid rain meeting caused a large, fiery explosion. Both Mega and Toad Man were blasted back by the sheer force of the blast. This caused a single container of clean rain to eject from the Blue Bomber's blaster, the pin coming off and surrounding him in thick, white mist. Toad Man was not so fortunate, as while he was given the same ability to create another type of rain, he didn't get the time to spit one of those devices out. Mega Man couldn't see through the thick mist, but his audio receptors heard what sounded like several explosions happening all at once. A hazy silhouette of the amphibian-based Robot Master appeared despite the thickness of the vapor, Toad Man's limbs looking like they were being blown right off his body!

Eventually, the vapor from the container that fell out of Mega's buster floated up to the ceiling and cleansed the entire room, both acid and clean rain running down the drains. When everything had cleared up, Mega Man saw Toad Man lying in charred pieces on the floor, sizzling from being recently put out.

Before the Blue Bomber could say anything, he heard a low hum from behind him. He looked to see that the platform had activated, allowing him to presumably leave. Mega Man looked back at Toad Man's burnt limbs, then to the platform, ultimately deciding to step on and warp out of the room.

Dr. Cossack

Observation Room

"Interesting," Cossack observed, Wily going on a mad rant behind him.

"Blast that blue pest!" Wily bellowed, pulling at the sides of his head. It wasn't as if he had any hair on top, so he was only left with so few options. He then turned to Cossack. "You said that you would make my robots better than they were!"

"Correction. I said that I would upgrade your robots, along with those that were mine and Light's-"

"Where they came from doesn't matter! What matters is that they serve me now!" Wily interrupted. "Besides, neither Light's nor your robots were good for anything before they came into my hands." he then cleared his throat. "But back to the subject at hand, just how did Mega Man manage to beat that useless frog-bot of yours?!"

"I thought you said it didn't matter where they came from. They might as well be yours, right?" Cossack asked. Wily was furious but knew he'd make even more of an ass of himself if he said anything. "Anyway, if you must know, Toad Man's acid rain is just one-half of his ability Rain Flush. Or rather, it wasn't present at all before you added it in place of the harmless vapor he was meant to produce."

Wily scoffed. "I actually made his ability useful. If anything, all you did was just give those seven some minor tweaks."

"And forced me to construct another." the Russian added. "Against my will."

"I say that it's your best work yet," Wily said. "And what I say is what really matters, right?"

Cossack's expression didn't change. While the man was infuriating, Wily had to admit that he could pull off one hell of a poker face. "The secondary function of the Rain Flush contains a chemical compound that is deadly to metal. And when Mega Man copied Toad Man's weapon, the chemical compound he had was the opposite. As in, two acids meet at the same time, and an explosive reaction happens."

Wily took a moment to process this. "You know what happens if I find out you gave Mega Man any sort of edge, right?"

The middle-aged scientist froze. He wouldn't dare show he was afraid of his kidnapper, but Cossack sensed that Wily knew this already. "I must give him a fair chance, Wily," Cossack responded. "And, unlike you, I see a challenge as something that's possible to win."

"But he won't, right?" Wily asked, even if it was little more than a thinly veiled threat.

"You never intend for Mega Man to succeed against whatever you send against him, do you?" the younger roboticist asked. He then turned to face Wily. "I made the challenge fair because, even if you take away my freedom and the freedom of my daughter, I STILL have my honor, Wily."

"Well, that honor isn't doing your brat any favors right now." the balding older man countered. "If he makes it here, and you don't put an end to him-"

"Yes, I understand." Cossack interrupted. "You've made it very clear."

Wily turned away, about to walk out of the room lit up only by the giant computer, but stopped before he could exit. "Don't think that the First Law will protect her," he told Cossack. "I've done my share of programming too, and far longer than you." he made sure to put that bit of information out there. "And, well, let's just say that there are a lot of technicalities that can be exploited."

The Russian scientist sighed. "So you have shown over these years."

"Exactly. So remember, one way or another, Mega Man is to be terminated by the end of this." he then went out the door, but not before peeking his head through the open space that the closing door still left. "It's either him or her. Pick one and pick carefully." with that, he left the younger scientist alone, shutting the door behind him.

Dr. Cossack rubbed his temple, still wishing that this was nothing more than some horrible nightmare. He would even take working with Wily over endangering his darling. But because of his foolishness, she was also dragged into this mess. He looked down at her image on the smaller screen, taking some small comfort that she was still here and alive. And maybe, perhaps in some way, someone would come to her rescue. He didn't matter; he just wanted his Kalinka to be safe.

Even if Cossack wasn't a particularly religious man, he said a silent prayer that, come what may to him, his daughter would at least get out of this.

Roll

Abandoned Mine

"So wait," Roll said, Beat having given her all the details. "Dr. Cossack has a kid?" Beat nodded, which meant moving his entire body. "He never mentioned that in his little broadcast."

"He wouldn't dare to," Beat told her. "Whatever Wily's told him, it most definitely has to do with her safety."

"So, Wily IS involved," Roll asked.

"Dr. Cossack didn't send those goons to the house. Those were definitely Wily's guys." the bird-bot told her.

"This is pretty big news," Roll said, beginning to try and tune her built-in communicator. "I've gotta tell Mega about this-"

"No!" Beat flew off her shoulder and flapped madly in front of her. "No, you cannot let anyone know I told you this!" the bird-bot protested. "This info can't leave this mine, do you hear?!"

"Ok, ok, I get it!" Roll shouted, shielding herself from Beat's wings. Then, seeing that he had gotten his point across, he went to perch back on her shoulder. "But why? What's the problem with telling Mega any of this? Wouldn't it put this whole thing to a stop?"

Beat looked down at the ground and then sighed. "Maybe it would, but…I can't risk it," he said. "I can't risk her safety." he then looked at Roll. "Even if any of Wily's…or, I guess the Doc's bots can't technically break the First Law, I don't doubt that Wily's found some sort of way."

"I know that all too well." The blonde DLN responded, being no stranger to Wily's robots causing destruction and mayhem.

True, she had never seen any of them "harm" a human persay. Kidnap? Yes. Threaten? Oh, most definitely. Hold hostage? That's par for the course! And this case had all three of those! But even if she hadn't seen any bots "break" the First Law, that only provided so much good news in this situation. And should she be seen, then none of the Laws would be of any good to her at all. But what was Roll worried about? She could take any one of those rusted tin cans at any time, any day! In fact, she-

Roll stopped when she felt something that felt very much like the cannon nozzle of a buster being pushed into the back of her head.

Looks like I don't have to worry about getting caught. Roll thought, blue eyes widening. Because I've just been found.

Note: Let me know if I'm wrong, but I want the three Laws of Robotics to have some weight in this series, even if it didn't really seem to matter in the cartoon. The writers probably didn't even know about the Three Laws of Robotics, the Robot Masters couldn't up and kill people because it was a 90s cartoon.

But yeah, I want to keep the overall spirit of the cartoon but have it able to get serious when it needs to.

Thank you all for reading! Please give your input and/or kudos if you enjoyed it, and please check out my other fics too! I hope to see you all again next time!