GT: I loved the English Dub's marathon livestream on CAPCOM's Twitch. I got to see all the episodes I didn't get to see as a little kid, mostly for the fact that they were sometimes one and done broadcasts and I could never find the DVDs.
"Vent…"
"What is it, Lan?" Vent asked.
"Why did you make me buy so many cases of bottled water?!" Lan complained, pulling a small wheelbarrow with several cases of water on it to their house.
"We had enough cash from the Virus Busting and the pay we get for being agents that I felt it was time to teach you to be ready for certain situations," Vent replied.
"I really wanted to use it to get some new BattleChips from that shop Higsby opened," Lan pouted.
"While I'm glad you're not holding a grudge, this is more important. We can gather our own for free with a bit of effort and travel on the Network," Vent replied, "But water is really important to have, more than anything else. You can survive without food for a few days, but water is something vital."
"Yeah…But why our money for BattleChips~?"
[Lan, this is more important than BattleChips] X spoke.
"Mmm…"
[We can call Ciel and ask if she has a mission after] Zero offered.
"Yes!" Lan cheered as he picked up the pace.
[Vent, what are you planning?] X asked, isolating his voice to his partner.
'I want him to have a bit more time without being parched. Around this time, we had to deal with Maddy and him forcing Tory to use Iceman to freeze the Waterworks,' Vent explained, 'We know what to do for this situation, but…what will the differences be this time?'
[I'm unsure, Vent…but we'll overcome it like we always do] X assured.
"No new missions…" Lan grumbled as he skated away from school the next day, "Lousy stinkin'..."
"Why am I not surprised Chaud and Protoman took them all?" Vent pondered.
[You really lit a fire in them with that curbstomp when you combined with Papa and Zero, Vent] Leviathan giggled as Lan spotted Dex up ahead.
"Hey, Dex!" Lan greeted, skating up to be beside him, "You up for a NetBattle?"
"Anytime, anyplace," Dex grinned before Maylu came up by them on her scooter, "Hey, you wanna come watch us NetBattle, Maylu?"
"Sorry, guys, it's my piano lessons day," Maylu apologized.
"I'd love ta join in, but Model A loves listening when Maylu's practicing," Ashe grinned before blowing a kiss at Vent, "Kick ass and take names, Vent~"
"Language!] Maylu and X scolded.
"See ya, May…" Lan began before a boy ran past Lan, knocking him over, "UGH!"
"Gomen!" the boy apologized in his running.
"Ow…Anyone get the number of that car that hit me…?" Lan groaned before his hand felt something, making him look to see a card of sorts, "Ah!" he held it up, "Hey! You forgot something!"
"What's with that kid?" Dex asked as he helped up Lan.
"He's from the class next to ours," Maylu noted, "Tory Froid, I think is his name."
"Froid, huh? I delivered programs from SciLab to his father I believe," Vent recalled, "He works in the WaterWorks, which is where all the water in Den Tech comes from."
"Really?" Lan asked, "What's the Network there like?"
"It may have changed since the last time I saw that place, but I remember it felt a bit like a water park," Vent replied.
"So what'd he drop?" Ashe asked.
"It looks like a key card to the WaterWorks," Lan replied after looking it over.
"We'd better take this to the WaterWorks later," Vent advised.
Tory panted as he slowed to a stop at a three-way intersection. A black car with tinted windows drove up to him and opened the passenger door. Tory grimaced with a small glare as Maddy smirked at him.
"...What's the matter, kid? You've got quite the scary look on you," Maddy noted in amusement.
"..." Tory slowly got into the passenger seat and Maddy drove off with him.
"...Hey, Vent…"
"What's up, Lan?" Vent asked, looking up from some information documents he had downloaded to better map out the Network and out the screen of the PeT to the bathtub Lan was in, looking up at the ceiling.
"Is there…something wrong with me?"
"What do you mean, Lan?" Vent pondered, concern in his tone.
"Lately…I…" Lan took in a breath of air and exhaled it, "Whenever I'm around Maylu, I feel weird. L-Like something's wrong with my stomach."
Vent blinked a few times, "Well, Lan…is it a bad feeling in your stomach?"
"No. It…It just feels weird, like something's in it moving around."
Vent nodded, "And what else happens? Do you feel warm when she's close? Or like you don't want her that close?"
"Huh? Um…it…it feels nice when she's close…"
"..." Vent chuckled, "Lan, I think you're developing a crush."
"A…A crush?! Like how Dex acts weird around her?" Lan asked.
"Lan, the important thing about this is that you just keep being yourself. Girls like it when you are just being yourself," Vent advised, "Though I have to ask…what brought this on? How long have you been feeling like this?"
"It…well…I've been feeling like this since a few parkour lessons ago," Lan replied, "Remember when Maylu slipped?"
"I do," Vent replied, managing to hide the wince as a scream echoed in his head as pain lanced through his stomach.
[FLASHBACK]
"Okay! You've been doing great, Lan!" Ashe beamed, the screen she was jacked into showing her on the Network as she waved a hand, displaying a map of the part of Den Tech they were in, "You're ready to take on this route with Maylu!"
"Alright!" Lan cheered.
"It feels good getting back to the harder stuff," Maylu noted, "Why can't you apply this kind of effort to your homework, Lan?"
"It's too boring," Lan grumbled.
"Boring or not, you just have to get it over with so you don't have to go into a panic doing it at the last minute," Vent scolded, "Why do you think I asked Mama to install that lock on the computer that won't turn off until you do your assignments?"
Maylu giggled as Lan fumed.
[Pick on the boy's habits later; talk about their route first] Zero scolded.
"Right, right, right. Okay, this is the last day that parts of the route will be available because of construction companies coming to start tearing stuff down," Ashe explained, showing a news article, "Apparently, it's for an amusement park to be opened later this year."
"A-Amusement park?" Vent repeated.
"Huh?! They're tearing everything down? Even the park near here?" Lan asked.
"No. It seems they're gonna incorporate it into the amusement park," Ashe replied, looking at the article.
"So nothing's gonna get wrecked at the park?" Maylu asked.
"Nope," Ashe confirmed before both pre-teens sighed in relief, "...I'll ask about that later. For now…" she waved a hand and a red line appeared on the digital map of the area, "This is your route. Your ending point is a few streets down from a nice cafe you can have breakfast at as we can go over things you did while on the course. Vent and I will follow you kids on the ground via Gow, ok?"
"Okay!" both replied as Gow gave a bark.
A few minutes later, the two were laughing as they ran along a rooftop, Maylu in the lead. She jumped and made it across the gap to the next rooftop, doing a roll before resuming her run with Lan coming up behind her. A window above a door into the abandoned structure was the right size for them to jump through, Lan quickly taking the lead as they made their way down the stairs and out the third floor window onto the two-story building's narrow rooftop. Maylu smirked as she picked up the pace and jumped at the chimney of the roof, using it as a wall to jump over Lan and take the lead again. As they reached the end of the roof, the park and its trees began to come into view. Maylu reached the end of the roof only for her foot to catch a raised broken piece of the roof tiles. Her eyes widened as she ended up falling instead of jumping.
"KYAAAA!"
"MAYLU!" Lan shouted, looking at the area in his run before jumping off.
Lan grabbed onto Maylu, keeping her close. He managed to land against the tree across them, bending his legs, before he started using the tree and the side of the building to land on the ground, the two tumbling a bit on the landing. For a few moments, neither moved from the spot on the ground, keeping their eyes closed as they slowly registered what happened. Gow barked frantically as he ran over, skidding to a halt and whimpering.
"Are you two okay?!" Ashe asked in a panic, "Do we need an ambulance? I-I'm gonna call an ambulance! You two stay here until it comes! I…"
"Ashe…Ashe…Roll!" Vent called out, "I think it's just shock."
"How do you know?! You're not a doctor!"
"W…We're okay," Maylu assured, the two slowly sitting up, "I…I got my foot caught on a piece of the rooftop."
"Glad I was able to help you," Lan spoke, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"Will you please stop moving until I can get an ambulance here?!" Ashe demanded.
"Roll, we're alright," Maylu sighed.
"Is she always like this when something like that happens?" Lan asked.
"Like you wouldn't believe," Maylu sighed.
"Can you blame me?!"
"She's going to be like this for a few hours," Maylu shook her head before hugging him.
"H-Huh?" Lan blinked a few times.
"Thanks for saving me, Lan," Maylu thanked, "Though…I think we're done with our parkour for the day."
"For ever is what you mean!"
"She'll calm down later," Maylu assured, ending the hug before looking around, "It's been a while since I last came here."
"Same," Lan nodded, "You think the playground's still there?"
"Maybe. Do you want to look?"
"Ah! What are you two doing?! Where are you going?! Get back here! N-No service?! Gah! Why can't I call an ambulance?!"
"Gow, keep up with them. I'll try to calm Roll down."
Gow barked as he followed after the two as they walked into the park. As they walked, Maylu rested her head on Lan's shoulder. He looked at her and opened his mouth.
"I'm alright. You just have a comfy shoulder," Maylu assured, causing him to blush.
[END]
"You were crazy jumping like that."
"I knew I could do it after looking at what was on the way down," Lan replied, "It was simple angles and physics. Why does Ashe even freak out like that when she falls, anyway? She did that last year when we went to that amusement park for a field trip."
Vent hid the grimace, "It's…personal for her." a hand rubbed his stomach, 'For me as well…' "When she feels ready, I'm sure she'll tell Maylu."
"I hope so," Lan noted.
"So…what was it at that time that you felt…different?"
"Oh! Well…it…it was when she thanked me," Lan replied, "I mean…I've been hugged by her before, but…but it felt…weird. Like there was…more…than normal to it. Maybe it was the location o-or something, but…" he put a hand to his chest, feeling his heart beating faster, "...but lately, my heart feels like it wants to come out of my chest when she gets close enough to me…"
"It's a pretty important place, that park…" Vent noted.
"Of course it is! It's when Maylu and I first met as little kids!"
[Really?] Phantom asked.
"Yeah. We were…um…three if I remember right. She was getting bullied by this kid a year older than us, so I threw a bucket at his head. He ran off, crying for his mommy, and I promised to protect her from anymore bullies," Lan explained, "We spent a few hours playing together in that playground and at the end, we decided to make a lucky charm there."
[A lucky charm?] Harpuia repeated.
"Uh-huh. We wrote our names in the inside of that concrete bubble," Lan replied, "It's our lucky charm, a physical promise that we'll always be together."
[That sounds precious] X noted.
[Good thing Leviathan isn't here. She'd be cooing] Fafnir chuckled.
"Ugh…Yeah, no…" Lan shuddered as he turned the faucet on to rinse his hair…only for no water to come out, "Huh?"
'And so, it begins…' Vent thought.
"Oh no…Did the bill not get paid?" Maylu pondered, looking at the faucet in the kitchen in concern.
"Guess we'll be going to the WaterWorks tomorrow after classes," Ashe noted.
[Guess it was a good idea we've been stockpiling water, huh?] Model A asked.
"Great idea," Maylu noted as she walked over to the door to the basement, "...I really hope they don't break the lucky charm…"
"When they build that amusement park, right?"
"Yeah. It's important," Maylu replied, "It's the physical evidence of mine and Lan's promise to one another. I hope we can go there when it opens so we can check on if it's still there…"
"Just don't get on a roller coaster."
"Roll, seriously, what's wrong with roller coasters?" Maylu demanded, stopping from opening the door to look at the television screen.
"They're evil and dangerous!"
"So's being an agent of the CID, but I don't see you overreacting to that."
"That's different!"
"It's more dangerous than a roller coaster! The attack at our school and the aquarium?" Maylu pointed out.
[We also stopped the World Three from causing a fire with the oven the day you met Vent] Model A added.
"You're not helping, Model A!"
"..." Maylu frowned, "I'm not hungry anymore."
"Maylu?"
"I'm glad I took a bath before the water shut off," Maylu noted as she made her way to the stairs, "Good night, sis."
"Ah…M-Maylu?" Ashe gawked as Maylu went upstairs, "...Dammit."
"Morning, Mom!" Lan greeted in the morning.
"Oh...Lan...Morning!" Haruka greeted.
"What's wrong? Not feeling well?" Lan asked in concern.
"No, it's just...The water's off still. I'm really glad you bought all that water, otherwise we wouldn't have breakfast…" Haruka noted.
"Aw what? Still no water?" Lan asked in concern.
"That's not good," Vent noted before the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it," Haruka spoke, answering the door, "Oh! Good morning, Maylu."
"Good morning, Mrs. Hikari," Maylu greeted, "I was coming over to check on if you had running water."
"Sadly, no. …Wait, are you having issues with water as well?"
"Yeah," Maylu replied, "I lost water last night before I could make dinner."
"Oh dear. Well, come in then. With the water Lan stockpiled over the last few weeks, we have enough to make a few meals," Haruka offered, letting Maylu come in.
"Hi, Maylu," Lan waved, "You didn't have water, either?"
"No. I can't even wash my face before school…" Maylu grimaced as, in the Network, Vent and Ashe entered the house network.
"Morning, Roll," Vent greeted before seeing Ashe rubbing her arm with a pensive look on her face, "...Roll?" he walked over to her, "What's going on?"
"...I think I goofed up last night and Maylu doesn't want to talk to me…" Ashe whispered.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Vent asked, quickly wiping some of her tears that were forming.
"I…I don't want her going near any amusement park because they have roller coasters, b-but I don't want to tell her why!" Ashe replied, not seeing Vent tense, "I…I can't have the last time repeat. Never again."
"..." Vent rubbed the back of his head, "I…Yeah. It…It was pretty bad…"
"...I…I never did fully apologize, did I?" Ashe asked.
"Hm?"
"F…For using RollArrow on you," Ashe explained.
{That explains why Vent has that reaction…} Phantom thought.
"It…It's fine, Roll."
"No, no it wasn't. I overreacted and didn't try to listen to you for weeks!" Ashe shook her head, rubbing the back of her head in exasperation, "I was a real bitch and…" she looked up at him, remorse in her eyes, "I'm really stubborn and I should have listened and not just…"
"Roll, enough," Vent spoke, putting his hands on her shoulders, "What happened is in the past. What matters is what comes next." he nudged her head up to look him in the eyes, "If we dwell on the past too much, we'll end up consumed by it." his eyes softened, "Don't beat yourself up over it, alright? Ciel's gathering everything she can on Regal, so there's a chance we won't have a replay of that incident. We're also stronger than we were in our original lives as Megaman and Roll."
"...I…I don't want to have it ever happen," Ashe sniffled, Vent holding her close as she muffledly cried into his chest.
'That day…' Vent thought, an ache going through his heart, 'I won't let it repeat…for all our sakes.'
"Yikes…even the pond's empty!" Lan whispered with wide eyes as he saw the pond at the school was without any water at all, "...What if there's no water at school?"
"Oh no! I hope not!" Maylu gasped.
"Guys!" the two looked to see Ciel coming over on her scooter.
"Ciel!" Lan spoke up, "No water at your place?"
"No. Alouette was really upset because we were planning to have her favorite oatmeal this morning," Ciel sighed, "Dad thinks that this is a World Three plot. Chaud's been deployed to check the WaterWorks."
"Oh come on," Lan frowned, "He'll just delete the World Three agent if it is them and we won't get anything out of it."
"Oh no he won't," Ciel frowned, "I have him on probation. One more deleted World Three NetNavi without prior approval or valid reasoning outside of 'They were World Three' and he'll be stuck on desk duty for the rest of the year."
Lan nodded, "He's a downright jerk."
"How's Roze?"
"Alouette absolutely loves him," Ciel giggled, "He's been a good NetNavi for her and has been giving Dad and I as much details as he can about the World Three."
"What do you need us to do?"
"We'll check everywhere to see how bad the damage is," Ciel ordered, earning nods from the two.
"Hey, guys!" Yai greeted as she spotted the trio enter.
"Yai, is everything alright with your water?" Lan asked as Yai and Dex ran over.
"It's all shut off at our place," Yai replied.
"Yeah, same here," Dex grimaced.
"Don't tell anyone but...A kid from Class B is missing!" Yai added.
"Huh? Someone's missing?" Lan asked.
"It could be they're just sick today," Ciel noted before the bell rang.
"It may be or it may not. I'm just telling you what I've heard," Yai shrugged as they all got to their seats and Ms. Mari walked into the room.
"I'd like to begin homeroo…" Ms. Mari began.
"Ms. Mari! We don't got no water at my house!" Dex called before more students began to complain.
"Mmm…" Ms. Mari frowned before whistling loudly, making everyone stop, "Now be quiet, we're going to talk about that in homeroom." once a few moments passed, she spoke again, "...Now, Class, you all know that the town water has stopped. Right now, we're unsure why it's stopped or when it will be fixed, so…" she sighed, "The school has decided that classes will be canceled until the water comes back."
'That's new,' Vent and Ashe thought.
"Well, that makes things easier," Ciel whispered as students began to get up.
"Wait! Don't walk around too much, you'll get thirsty!" Ms. Mari warned.
"So what now?" Dex asked.
"If things are like this at our school, I need to go pick up my little sister," Ciel spoke, "She's going to be upset by this change in her schedule."
"Hmm…Hey, why don't you let me help?" Yai offered.
"Huh?"
"Yummy~!" Alouette cheered, drinking a cup of water in Yai's clubhouse.
"So this is your little sister, huh?" Maylu pondered, "She's really cute."
"That she is. You remember what to say, Alouette?" Ciel asked as she accepted the empty cup.
"Thank you, Ms. Yai!" Alouette thanked before holding up her plush and spoke in a tough (for the child) voice, "Meow. Thanks for all the yummy water! We were parched, meow!"
"Oh that's adorable," Yai noted with a smirk.
"Big Sis made him for me!" Alouette beamed.
{My god…She's acting just like she did when she actually was that age} Zero thought, a drop of digital sweat going down the back of his form.
"You're awesome, Yai!" Dex cheered.
"Well, what can I say? My family always makes sure to have enough water stocked up to last for an entire year," Yai shrugged.
"It's nice ta meetcha, Alouette! I'm Ashe!" Ashe grinned, 'Ugh…The one thing I hate about being a NetNavi and not human anymore…limited interactions with kids to be a good role model for them.'
'Hard to believe the leader of the Guardians was…no…no, I can believe it,' Vent thought, shaking his head.
"Still…This is troubling," Dex frowned, "Shouldn't the WaterWorks have something for emergencies like this?"
"They should," Yai noted, "Glyde, can you go check on the situation there?"
"But of course, Lady Yai," Glyde complied as he left.
"Huh? Check on the…but the security system would…" Ciel began.
"Glyde has a Level Seven Security License," Yai assured.
"Lady Yai, I have reached the Network for the WaterWorks," Glyde informed, "I will now be attempting to access the firewall. One moment, please."
"That is one efficient NetNavi," Ciel noted, blinking a few times in surprise.
"Is this illegal?" Maylu asked quietly to Ciel.
"Mmm…It's not, really. So long as she doesn't interfere with the systems, it's not a felony to look around," Ciel noted softly.
"We've got an emergency!" Glyde informed, "Lady Yai, the entire WaterWorks Network is covered in ice!"
"Ice?" Lan pondered.
"That explains it!" Ciel gasped, "If the systems are frozen, then it means that nothing's operating in there…" her eyes widened, "Including the filtration systems!"
"That's bad, isn't it?" Alouette asked, looking up at Ciel.
"Very bad, Alouette. It's what makes the water safe to drink," Roze spoke from her PeT that was peeking out of her cat plush.
"Glyde, please get out of there," Ciel warned, "This is…" everyone jumped when the screen flickered and disconnected.
"Glyde…Glyde?" Yai asked in worry.
"What happened to Glyde?" Dex asked.
"I hope he's okay," Maylu noted in concern.
"Mmm…" Yai frowned before walking to her recliner and sat in it, "Everyone, sit on the couch!"
"Huh?"
"Best do what she says," Vent advised.
"Ohh~I have a good feeling about this!" Ashe grinned in excitement as everyone sat down on the couch with Alouette sitting in Ciel's lap and Maylu in Lan's, much to both their embarrassment.
As if on cue, seatbelts appeared and held them in place. Yai's recliner rose up and folded out before shooting down into a tunnel that was exposed by the changing recliner. The others all yelped, aside from a cheering Ashe, Model A, and Model F, as the couch shot down into the floor into its own tunnel. Inside of a large tunnel, a yellow limousine rose up from the floor, a Maid dressed as a driver at the wheel. The back opened up, revealing empty slots in the car. Above, a panel opened and Yai was lowered down in her recliner-now shaped to look like a car seat-and settled into one slot. With the others, the couch stopped its descent before moving quickly several meters to the left and shot back up into another tunnel. The underside of the car moved and the couch rose up into the other slot in the back. Everything in the car sealed up.
"To the WaterWorks, Deloris!" Yai ordered.
"Roger," the maid replied, pulling her left hand's racing glove tight.
"What in the world…?" Ciel whispered in shock.
"Never underestimate the rich!" Ashe laughed, "Let's go again after we save Glyde!"
[Can we not and say we did?] Zero and Leviathan demanded.
With that, the maid pushed a red button on the dashboard. A metal panel rose up behind the vehicle…as rocket engines roared to life. Everyone held on tight from the G Forces as the limo raced down the tunnel. Outside, a cluster of trees connected to a roar parted, allowing a tunnel to rise up from the ground. The limo shot out of it, cutting off the rockets, and zipped down the road.
'This almost felt like some paths back in my old time!' Ciel thought.
"Wee~!" Alouette cheered.
"Is it over?" Roze whimpered.
"Not yet," Vent noted.
"Oh Asimov, why~?"
"Okay…What are we doing?" Dex asked.
"Going to rescue Glyde of course!" Yai replied.
"That's honestly for the best," Vent noted.
"Right. I have a friend there that can help us out," Ciel noted.
'A 'friend,' right…' Lan mentally scoffed as Vent frowned.
"Lan, Maylu, can you two send Vent and Ashe into the network once we arrive? I'd like Gutsman to stay here with us just in case," Ciel spoke.
"Gutsman gonna be the best 'in case' guy, guts!" Gutsman declared, thumping his chest.
"Huh? Why?"
"I feel there may be trouble and I'd like to have someone with us as an emergency," Ciel replied.
"Huh? What about Roze?" Lan asked.
"I'm in a SubPeT right now. I don't have approval for anything heavy duty like Virus Busting yet," Roze explained.
"Sis won't let me have a normal one," Alouette pouted.
"Because I know you'd go straight for one of those underground fight clubs," Ciel replied, a deadpan expression on her face.
"Le gasp! Lies and stinks!" Alouette comically gasped and denied.
"She gave me a map to them all…"
"Roze~!" Alouette whined.
"Have you been able to find it, Maddy?" Wily asked.
"Yeah. It…Wow, it was really ingrained into the systems," Maddy replied, "What kind of program is this?"
"It is the Water Elemental Code," Wily explained, "The very embodiment of all programs that are related to water itself. Send it immediately. If you want to continue spreading chaos, you may do so! And if Megaman and Roll A arrive…delete them if you can."
"Of course, Lord Wily!" Maddy smirked before blowing a kiss, "Delete~"
"Ah…This was quite fun. Eh, kiddo~?" Maddy smirked as she looked at the pensive Tory, squeezing his hands into fists in his lap, "Thanks to you, we're one step closer to our goals in World Three!"
"Noisy…" Alouette mumbled, covering her ears to try to block out the people all screaming and shouting over one another to try to get their complaints about the missing water out to the people at the desks, 'I miss being able to turn off my hearing…'
"Go, go, go," Ciel whispered as the group quickly made their way to an elevator and closed it.
"Seriously, Ciel? More civilians?" Chaud questioned, making everyone jump and look at him reclining against the other end of the elevator.
"Oh great…you," Yai scowled.
"You know Egghead here?" Ashe asked.
"Our companies are rivals," Yai replied, keeping a glare aimed at the ambivalent Chaud, "Lot of years between us."
"Too many with how frivolous your family is with their earnings," Chaud scoffed.
"Mmm…!" Yai fumed.
"Chaud, really," Ciel sighed, pulling the boy to the side and whispered quickly, "They are unaware of our job, Chaud. Don't you dare blow our covers."
"I…"
"I have a collapsible broom in my satchel."
"...Fine."
"Okay! We're done chatting!" Ciel beamed as she walked over to the others, "So, you know about the frozen Network, Chaud?"
"Protoman's been searching for the cause," Chaud replied, "Don't get in our way."
"Like we'd do that," Lan scowled as he glared at Chaud, "Remind me who beat who when we first NetBattled, huh?"
"Lan, not the time," Vent scolded as Chaud narrowed his eyes.
"You just got lucky, Hikari," Chaud stated.
"LAN!" Vent barked before Lan could speak, "It's not worth it right now. We need to find Glyde and defrost the Network when we defrost the filter program first."
"But he…" Lan began before sighing, "Oh fine…"
The elevator went off and the doors opened…before everyone but Chaud jumped on seeing a large, four-legged robot before them.
"Relax," Chaud spoke as he walked up to the robot and put a hand on its arm, "These robots are shut down because the Network is down."
"Seriously?" Lan asked.
"Ciel, I'm moving on. There are a few places I haven't searched yet," Chaud replied as he walked off.
"Send a message with anything you find," Ciel replied, waving him off.
"...He's a big stinky fart," Alouette stated, pouting.
"...Ciel, I just love your little sister," Yai grinned, earning a smile and giggle from her fellow blond.
"What a lousy robot pulling a fast one on us like that," Dex scowled as he bonked the robot upside the head…before it powered on.
"DEX!" everyone screamed as Lan picked up Alouette and they started running…with Dex stuck on the robot's back.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, sorry, sorry~!" Dex screamed before blinking a few times, spotting a control panel on its back, "Oh…!"
"Dead end!" Maylu yelped, seeing a sealed door ahead.
[Really wish I was out there. That door's so flimsy!] Model F complained.
[It's stopped] Model Z spoke up, making Lan, Ciel, and Maylu skid to a halt.
"Ah! What are you…?" Yai began as she noticed they stopped before pausing, seeing the robot had stopped.
"Sorry, guys!" Dex apologized, his PeT plugged into the robot's back, "I fixed it!"
"Gutsman the best!" Gutsman cheered.
"Phew…Keep him in there, Dex," Ciel ordered, "And stay on its back. Gutsman, try to look for anything that may be important in there, ok?"
"You got it!" Dex gave a thumbs up.
"Phew…" Lan sighed in relief before spotting a port on the card scanner by the door, "Oh! Let's get going, Maylu!"
"Right!" Maylu nodded.
"Jack in, Vent/Ashe! Power up!"
"Wow! I haven't seen a place this frozen in years!" Ashe noted, whistling in surprise.
[I'm getting Chronoforce vibes here, Ashe…] Model A noted.
"Same here, Model A. Now let's go rescue Glyde and collect some sweet, sweet booty from the Viruses here!" Ashe grinned, 'And the Data on Coloredman and Iceman…!'
[Uh, guys…?] Model A gulped, floating before a large chunk of ice [I found Glyde…]
The two NetNavis turned and Ashe gasped, covering her mouth in shock. Glyde was stuck in the ice, frozen in a pose of an arm reaching out towards whoever froze him. Ashe grabbed Model A and, in a flash of light, was replaced with a woman in armor resembling Model FX's with the horns pointing backwards.
"Stand back," Roll A ordered as she reeled her fist back, the blaster firmly in hand as she charged it up.
With a roar, she swung her fist and shattered the ice. Glyde gasped out before Vent caught him.
"Easy there, Glyde," Vent softly spoke.
"M-Master Vent…" Glyde groaned before seeing Roll A, "...Miss Roll?"
"Yep. This form's called Atlas," Roll A introduced as she shifted to her normal armored state, "What happened, Glyde?"
"I…I was looking for the cause and…and I saw a NetNavi. I intended to approach with stealth, but…" Glyde grimaced, "Master Vent, it's Coloredman. He and another NetNavi are in here." he eyes widened, "Look out!"
Vent and Roll A grabbed Glyde before jumping out of the way of a stream of snow. They landed and Vent donned Model X. They looked to see a small NetNavi, possibly the size of Alouette even. He had a permanent blush on his cheeks and wore a dark-green parka as a bodysuit and armor with a tassel on the top. His boots and gloves were brown and resembled snow gloves and show shoes while he had a burst of snow shaped like a star as an emblem on his chest. He narrowed his brown eyes at the trio.
"I know you," Vent noted, "You're Dr. Froid's NetNavi, right? Iceman."
"Mmm…How do you know that?"
"I did a delivery to the WaterWorks when I was a courier for SciLab. You were visiting Dr. Froid to make snowmen in the Network for all the workers if I remember that day right," Megaman noted, 'Thank god for backup memory data on my past in this timeline…'
"He's pretty adorable," Roll A noted.
"Shut up!" Iceman fumed.
"Glyde, log out now," Megaman ordered, "You're still injured and you need to run a warming program."
"U-Understood," Glyde nodded, "Stay safe…"
"We'll do our best," Roll A promised as Glyde logged out, letting the two face Iceman, "So…any chance you'll stop this?"
"Shut up!" Iceman repeated before slamming the palm of his hand on the ground.
Spikes of ice came at them, quickly encircling the duo. As ice engulfed them, flashes of light went off and the ice shattered from R-Atlas and Megaman FX's punches. The two slammed both their weapons on the ground, unleashing a blast of heat that melted the ice and snow around them before switching to Roll A and Megaman X. A scream from above made Roll A look up in time to see Iceman jumping at her, a Sword replacing his right hand.
"Whoa now!" Roll A exclaimed, barely catching the sword before throwing the small NetNavi into a pillar of ice and throwing him for a loop, "I'm as much of an ice person as the next, but you do not get to jab me with a sword!" she hugged Megaman's arm, "That's my Hubby's job with his private sword."
"Roll…" Megaman groaned.
"Oh Megaman~!"
"?!" Megaman spun around to see Coloredman smirking at them.
"I know you're a deliveryman and all that, so I have a delivery for you!" Coloredman smiled as he gestured to the side…where a screen popped up showing Maddy holding a knife to a frightened Tory's neck.
"?!" Roll A and Megaman tensed.
"Keep fighting and the kid gets it," Maddy threatened.
"Gh…" Roll A grit her teeth.
"Iceman, if you'd please cool our guests?" Coloredman snickered.
Iceman grimaced before seeing Megaman's face. He gave him an assuring smile, assuring silently he didn't blame Iceman for any of this. Iceman frowned sadly before firing a blast of frozen winds at the two, encasing them in the ice. Maddy smirked as she moved her knife away from the startled Tory.
"Gh…This is bad. I can't send Vent any BattleChips," Lan frowned.
"Neither can I with Roll," Maylu noted in worry before Lan yelped.
"Guys!" Lan exclaimed before the others peeked to see the Biometals minus Model X and A on the screen.
[That idiot forced us back in here before they got frozen!] Zero ranted.
"They're frozen?" Lan asked.
"How?"
[The World Three agent threatened to kill a hostage] Phantom replied [It was Tory Froid, the boy that was missing from school today]
"What?!" Yai gasped.
"Oh man…Not cool!" Dex frowned.
"Mmm…" Alouette whimpered, 'Vent…'
Ciel's PeT rang and she answered, "Chaud?"
"I've found Dr. Froid. He was tied up and locked in a broom closet," Chaud explained.
Ciel nodded, "Chaud, we have a hostage situation. Dr. Froid's son, Tory, is held captive by World Three. They used him to make Vent and Ashe stop fighting and they're currently frozen in the WaterWorks Network. You need to detain the World Three NetNavi. Do not Delete."
"Fine," Chaud huffed.
"So what do we do now?" Dex asked.
"...These robots are meant to be security, right?" Lan asked.
"Yeah," Ciel replied.
"So that means it has to have access to everything down here to deal with intruders, right?"
"...Oh!" Ciel realized.
Alouette giggled as she smiled up at Lan, "Piggyback on the robot?"
"Well, you and Yai probably could," Lan replied.
"Is that a jab about my height?" Yai frowned.
"No, no," Lan quickly replied, holding his hands up and sweating a bit.
"Chaud, is Dr. Froid still with you?" Ciel asked.
"I'm here," an older man's voice replied.
"Sir, where are the emergency manual overrides for the filter system?" Ciel asked.
"...Ah! I nearly forgot about that," Dr. Froid gasped, "If you're still near the elevators, you need to go to the right hallway from the point of view you have of getting off. They're down that hall behind the sixth door on your right. With the robot, you don't need to worry about the access card to get in."
"Card?" Lan repeated as he pulled the one Tory had dropped out, "...Sir, Tory dropped one of those yesterday."
"Ah! That's the spare of mine that they took," Dr. Froid realized, "Who are you?"
"Lan Hikari, sir," Lan replied.
"Alright. That card gives you a higher access than even the robots," Dr. Froid explained, "My son and this World Three agent that kidnapped him are likely in the one place that only that card can grant access to; the main computer room of the entire WaterWorks…and where the WaterCode is."
"Oh shoot," Ciel whispered as her, Lan, and Maylu's eyes widened.
"Right. We'll use the robot to get into the filtration systems to turn on the manual override to get them working again. Once we're in there, Dex will meet you and Chaud with the access card for the main computer room so you can save Tory and get that World Three agent."
"Are you giving me orders, Hikari?" Chaud demanded.
"You got a better idea, Mr. Eggshell?" Lan snarked.
"No fighting!" Ciel ordered, "Chaud, that idea is honestly better than what I was thinking and just keeping the robot with us."
"We can meet you at the filtration room and I can override the commands in the robot to listen to my orders," Dr. Froid informed, "You'll have another person on-hand to turn on the systems. And doing so should cause the filtration program to thaw out and thaw the rest of the network."
"That's good to hear," Maylu noted, 'Hang on, Roll…'
"How do you like that, Megaman, Roll?" Maddy laughed as she held up the knife…and bent it, revealing it to be rubber, "A rubber knife and you give in so fast!"
[This…This is bad…] X noted.
[Why that no-good…] A growled.
'Just wait until they're distracted, Model A,' Roll A thought.
'Lan…Be careful…' Megaman thought.
"Well done, kid! We'll both be worshiped for this!"
'Poor Tory…' Megaman thought, 'X, do you think we can use the MegaBuster to heat the ice and melt it?'
[Possibly…] X replied [We'll need them distracted first, though…]
Alarms began to go off and Tory gasped, "No! The water tanks! If they overflow…"
"This seems to be the end for the WaterWorks!" Maddy laughed as Iceman grit his teeth.
"I won't allow it!" Tory snapped, "Iceman! Iceman, put a stop to the system immediately!"
"Did you forget that I have your Papa? If you don't obey me, then…"
Ashe let out a muffled shout at that before a flash of light went off…revealing Iceman in the ice, now in the hole left in the shape of Roll A.
"Hah?!" Coloredman yelped.
"Sh-She just turned into me!" Iceman gasped as R-Iceman grinned.
"A-Trans! Bifrost!" R-Iceman declared before a flash of light went off and Bifrost roared while shattered the ice 'he' had been trapped in before flashing back into Roll A.
"Gah! I forgot about that power!" Maddy gasped.
"Tory, relax! The Officials have already gotten your Papa out!" Roll A smirked.
"WHAT?!" Maddy shrieked.
"You're serious?"
"Sure am!" Roll A grinned, keeping her lie going, "We got sent in after we found him tied up."
"Ugh! You lousy…" Maddy growled before Iceman blew a blast of freezing winds at Coloreman, forcing him to dodge.
"Vent, hang in there, I…" Roll A began.
[Ignore us. Focus on helping Iceman] X informed [That is what Vent says.]
"...If you're sure," Roll A replied after a moment before turning to shoot the ball away from Iceman before it could hit the smaller NetNavi, "Ready to take down this clown, Iceman?"
"Uh-huh," Iceman nodded.
"I'm not staying here a minute longer! See ya, kid!" Maddy called.
"Gh!" Tory grit his teeth.
"You can deal with that later, Tory," Roll A advised, "You operate Iceman and I'll help as much as I can!"
"R-Right," Tory replied, "Let's go, Iceman!"
Lan and Maylu grunted as they pushed on a rusted wheel. In other parts of the filtration room, Dex grunted as he tried to turn another as Dr. Froid, an older man with silver hair, grunted as blood began to trickle down his palms from the effort of turning his and Chaud's wheel. He pulled out a handkerchief and wrapped it around his bleeding palm before resuming. Dex paused, panting for a few moments, before resuming.
"Ugh…" Maylu groaned, "These haven't been used in so long…"
"Come on, Maylu! If we don't do this then all the water…" Lan grimaced as he trailed off, looking at all the rust.
[Is that really all you've got?]
"Model F?" Lan looked at his PeT.
[Is that all your fighting spirit has to burn?!] Model F demanded [How you're a Chosen I'll never get with that weak spirit of yours!]
"Weak?! I'll show you!" Lan growled as he ran back to the wheel and started tugging on it, "I…won't…lose! Not when…everyone is…counting on us!"
[Show it then! Show me it!]
"Lan…" Maylu whispered.
Lan roared as he kept pushing at the wheel, not seeing the fiery aura starting to come off his body nor of how Model F was glowing with the same aura in his PeT. Lan grunted before yelping as the rusted wheel lost its binds and was moving with ease, making him fall onto his face and the aura to vanish.
"Ow…" Lan groaned before looking up at the wheel, "Ah! I…I did it!"
[Nice job, Lan] F complimented [I bet if I ever got to come out to Earth, we could probably MegaMerge]
"Huh? R-Really?!" Lan gawked.
[Lan, we Biometal are special. Far more special than people think] F replied [Naturally hearing our voices is a sign you are someone who has the potential to wear us. But I'm not sure how long you could use the power. We're not meant to be used by humans without special upgrades to their bodies while Pops and Axl's first times MegaMerging with Vent and Ashe downloaded upgrades to better handle the power]
"Whoa~" Lan awed as Dr. Froid, Dex, and Chaud ran over.
"Oh! You managed to get the last one working!" Dr. Froid gasped in surprise.
"There's more to a book than just its cover," Lan grinned, putting his hands behind his head.
'What was that?' Maylu pondered, looking at Lan with wide eyes.
Tory tensed as the door slid open, exposing a security robot. It didn't enter, but instead turned to the side to reveal Alouette and Yai on its back.
"Hi~!" Alouette waved before Ciel peeked in.
"Tory, right?" Ciel asked as Tory started to blush.
'Wh…Who is this…?' Tory thought, "Uh…y-yeah…" a scream from the computer made him turn back to it, "Iceman!"
"Ugh…I forgot he could multiply…" Roll A muttered under her breath as she caught Iceman, having been sent flying from the ball slamming into him, "You okay, Iceman?"
"Ugh…I…I'll be fine…" Iceman replied as Roll A quickly used her Recov Element to heal the Aqua Element NetNavi.
"Can't find the real me, can ya?" Coloredman laughed alongside his myriad of clones.
"...I don't need to find you…" Roll A replied as she had Iceman hold onto her by the back of her armor, "I only need two words to do that!"
"Oh? And those are…?" Coloredman asked.
"GIGA CRUSH!" Roll A roared.
With that, she unleashed her strongest attack. As the barrage went off, Coloredman screamed as his clones were ripped to shreds. Just before they could hit him, his body turned to shadows, letting the attack go through him.
"Phew…Good thing for that Shadow BattleChip I got out of that Chip Trader," Maddy noted.
"OH FUCK YOU, AVOIDANCE CHIPS!" Roll A snapped.
"Swear!" Iceman scolded.
"Seriously?" Roll A deadpanned.
[Behind you!] X shouted for Vent.
Roll A jumped, avoiding the giant ball rolling at them, "Oh, so you wanna have a ball, eh? Well, I've got the form for you! A-TRANS! Argoyle and Ugoyle!"
In a flash of light, Roll A was replaced with a robotic, humanoid, purple shiba with a white open muzzle, blue optics, and wheels replacing their feet and engine pipes acting as a tail. Iceman could help but awe before yelping as a transparent copy appeared beside Argoyle, spotting a closed mouth instead. Coloredman fired his ball once more at them, only for the two to do a backflip, sending the ball back with an aura coming off it. Coloreman yelped and screamed as he was slammed with the ball, knocking him away. The two zipped about, kicking the ball and making the aura grow stronger each time the hologram one kicked it. Finally, R-Argoyle did a flip and slammed her foot into the ball, letting out a shockwave before it slammed into Coloredman, creating an explosion. The smoke dissipated, revealing a groaning Coloredman struggling to stay standing. He prepared to attack when the area started to glow.
"H-Huh…?" Coloredman pondered before the ice melted away, "N-No way!"
"Whoo! Alright, guys!" R-Argoyle cheered as she changed back into Roll A.
"Looks like they did it," Ciel noted, seeing various systems restored back to optimal operations.
"Alright!" Tory, Yai, and Alouette cheered.
"N-No!" Coloredman panicked.
"Coloredman."
"Gh?!" Colorman squeaked as he saw Megaman stand beside Iceman and Roll A, "Hope you're ready."
"F-For what?"
"I have a delivery for you…or, rather, we have a delivery," Megaman stated as he and Roll A held up their blasters, fully charged.
"Your defeat!" Roll A declared as they fired.
"AH!" Coloreman screamed before he quickly logged out, letting the shots miss.
"Whoo! That was great!" Roll A cheered…before she and Vent dropped their transformations and hugged each other, shivering, "N-n-n-now for some hot ch-chocolate…pl-please?"
"I'm sorry," Iceman apologized, bowing to the two as, nearby, Protoman looked out at them.
"So…that's what she can do," Protoman noted, seeing a small sphere of data where Coloredman had been appear and get absorbed into Model A.
[Oh wow! Ashe, Maylu, Coloredman is pretty fast! His normal attack shoots his ball all over while his charged attack can summon allies that can use FireTower or AquaTower!] Model A awed, Maylu standing a bit away from the others to talk quietly with her NetNavi [Meanwhile, Iceman's one chill guy! We can make ice shards with the normal attack and his charged attack can let us use that frozen wind of his to freeze our opponents!]
"I'm glad you're alright, Roll," Maylu noted, seeing her NetNavi wearing a thick blanket and sitting on a couch in the PeT with a hot drink in hand.
"Th-Thanks…" Ashe nodded before looking down, "...Maylu…"
"Hm?"
"I'm sorry for last night," Roll apologized, "You just mean so much to me and I…I just don't want to see you getting hurt horribly or traumatized from a big fall…"
"..." Maylu sighed, "Roll, I'm sorry, too. You've always been there, looking out for me. I just…really want to try some things, you know? You used to tell me about these amazing stories of treasure hunts and stuff, and it makes me want to explore, too."
Ashe chuckled, rubbing the back of her head, "How about this, then? I'll try to not freak out as bad, but you gotta prove you won't be as reckless as Lan is."
"Deal," Maylu winked, both NetNavi and NetOp sporting relieved smiles as she walked back over.
"I…I'm really sorry," Tory apologized, bowing to the group outside the WaterWorks.
"Hey, you've got nothing to take fault for," Lan assured.
"That's right! It's the World Three's fault!" Maylu agreed.
"Just our luck that we couldn't catch them in time," Yai frowned.
"Still glad we were able to help!" Dex beamed.
Alouette yawned as she leaned against Ciel, "No being a dummy…" she held up her doll and it 'added,' "Meow. You are a good boy wanting to protect your Papa. You're not at fault here, so cheer up, meow."
"Uh…" Tory blinked a few times.
"It's almost time for bed for her," Ciel noted, a hand covering her smile, as she looked over at where Oda was talking to Dr. Froid, "Once our father is done getting statements, it's straight to bed with you, Alouette."
"Mmm..not sleepy…" Alouette mumbled before yawing again.
"Those yawns say otherwise," Ciel countered, picking her up.
"Mmm…" Alouette mumbled as she nuzzled into the older blond.
"That's just too cute," Yai whispered to herself.
"Sakurai."
"Hm?" Maylu looked to see Chaud approach.
"Your NetNavi has more to her than I presumed," Chaud noted.
"Oh! Um…Thanks," Maylu thanked, "I honestly forgot Roll could do that."
"I can understand why you seem to be a person of interest…Buckfire," Chaud stated, making Maylu tense.
"Buckfire? Ya mean 'Buckfire the Brave?'" Dex asked, "Da best NetNavi in those pit things I've heard on the BBS? I heard he vanished a year ago from the scene without explanation."
"Maylu?" Yai asked, her eyes wide in surprise.
"Ugh…How did you know?" Ashe groaned.
"Protman was about to intervene when you showed off your power to shapeshift," Chaud explained, "Those mechanical animal forms she used looked quite similar to how Buckfired looked from what limited footage that could be found of those underground NetBattles."
"Wow! Did not think you'd do that kinda stuff, Maylu," Yai noted as the redhead blushed.
"Hey, anytime you're up for facing a legend, I'm game!" Ashe grinned, "Just be ready for the loss you'll take!"
[Can we not today?] Model A whined [I wanna go home and sleep in a nice warm bed]
Maylu giggled, glad for Model A, "Okay, Model A. We'll get you home soon enough."
"Excuse me, kids," Oda spoke as he walked over with Dr. Froid, "Need to speak with these three…" he gestured to Lan, Chaud, and Maylu, "...real quick since their NetNavis were the ones involved in the fightin' here."
"We're good to head home, Tory," Dr. Froid spoke before nodding to Oda, who nodded in return.
"See you tomorrow at school, Tory," Yai spoke.
"Yeah! Let's hang out sometime, alright?" Dex grinned.
"...Y-Yeah!" Tory nodded, a relieved smile on his face as Oda led the three away from the others.
"You kids did good," Oda complimented, "Unfortunately, they stole the WaterData that was used here in the WaterWorks. We'll have to beef up security for the WoodData and ElecData."
"Sir…Where are these programs, anyway?" Vent asked.
"The WoodData is secured in Officials HQ as of last night," Oda explained, "The ElecData, however, is in a place where we can't move it without major consequence." he looked over at SciLab in the distance, "The Power Plant beneath SciLab."
"Wh-What?!" Lan and Maylu gasped.
"We're going to have to increase security detail in the Power Plant to prevent World Three from obtaining that data," Oda explained.
"Sir…is the ElecData doing something vital for the Power Plant?" Vent asked.
"It helps regulate the energy that is used and released," Oda explained, "Ciels is working on a program that can replace the ElecData so we can have it removed and relocated to prevent World Three from getting it."
"She's really smart," Maylu noted.
"That she is!" Oda beamed before frowning, "Still…anything I should be aware about?"
"Model A and I copied Coloredman's data today," Ashe explained, "We'll be able to provide more data on what techniques he's capable of in a few days."
Oda nodded, "Dismissed. I have your friends left to interview about this."
"We'll wait by Yai's limo," Lan replied as the two quickly left.
"I'm starting to really regret agreeing to do those underground fights," Maylu sighed.
"I sorta regret it, but it also got you and me to achieve FullSynchro," Ashe noted.
"Just be careful if you do end up fighting Protoman, Roll," Vent warned.
"Eh, if I fight him long enough, I'll be able to A-Trans into him, remember? Then he'll have to watch out for me!" Ashe assured with an excited grin.
"Really wish I could've done more," Lan frowned.
"Lan, you did more than enough," Maylu assured, "You got the last wheel turned in order to save the water that everyone needs in the city."
"I did, but still…" Lan frowned.
"Oh! Vent, Ashe, something weird happened when Lan did that," Maylu noted.
"Huh? Something weird?" Lan pondered.
"You were glowing! It was like you had this fire coming off you!" Maylu explained.
"...Model F?" Lan asked.
[Like I said, us Biometals are mysterious] Fafnir chuckled.
"Model F…a…are you resonating with Lan?" Vent asked.
[Maybe] Fafnir replied [Won't know until we figure out a way out of here and onto Earth to fully see]
GT: Hoo…This took me a bit to write. Several days at that. The original plan for the WaterWords was for Lan to have gone into MegaMerge with Model F already, but after a bit, I thought it'd be better to hold off on something like that until an event allows Model F to be out on Earth. Things would be a bit too easy for the cast if he could do it with just his PeT.