Chapter 5: Present
21:21 PM (Japan Time), Saturday June the 7th…
"… I detected their signature, sir…"
"Good. They must be about to arrive…"
"They must have confidence in their skills…"
"Clearly. Don't take them lightly. That's an order…"
Present was waiting on the rooftop of a three-story building.
He had the device set up before him.
He was talking with his Navi.
"Do not become fixated with win or loss. That's not the goal…"
"I am aware, sir. Data collection…"
"Exactly…"
He noticed something and looked up.
A figure was flying across the air.
It was gripping a rope from a drone.
It was wearing a black raincoat.
"I see. Mingles with the darkness…"
He wasn't too surprised.
The figure let go of the rope and landed on the rooftop.
The drone turned its tail and headed away.
The figure stood up and remained still.
Present readied his PET.
"You came. Omega of the Subspace…"
"I don't run from challenges… Plug In!"
The challenger aimed the arms forward.
The beam aimed at the device.
The figure glowed beneath the raincoat.
A Navi entered the device.
Omega was about one meter and eighty tall.
A blue inverted triangle was set on the center of his helmet's forehead.
The jewel glowed and emitted a cross-shaped light.
His irises were blue and serious.
Long blond hair reached all the way to the floor.
He had a red vest over his mainly black body.
His forearms and boots were red.
Two golden circlets were set around his forearms and on his boots.
"Where is my opponent?"
"Here. Plug In! Axe Man, Transmission!"
Axe Man was almost two meters tall.
His azure eyes were hidden behind the visor of the armor.
He had azure armor with bronze diamond patterns over his body.
His arms had sparkling ivory patterns spinning around their surface.
His legs used the same patterns as decoration.
He used tall boots.
He carried a large axe on his right hand.
His axe emitted an unsettling sparkle of cleanness to it.
He had an octahedron shield in his left hand.
It was adorned with the golden word "Rama".
"I see. That streak of beheaded Viruses was caused by you…"
"A little decoration to motivate you…"
"Fine. Less words. Get down to business…"
Omega jumped towards Axe Man, yielding an emerald saber.
He brought his shield forward.
The saber was stopped by it.
"What!"
Axe Man brought the axe down almost 180º and made a deep cut on him.
That strike cut his Navi flesh before kicking him away with the right foot.
Omega landed on the ground with a thud and groaned.
He found Axe Man's axe, suspended inches away from his neck's flesh.
His tall shadow was looming over him.
But Omega was faster and drew a gun.
He shot a plasma shot and Axe Man had to tilt his body to dodge it.
Omega rolled across the ground and stood up.
His wound began to heal.
"Is very agile despite the looks… Must be careful here…"
Axe Man ran for him again.
"Double Missiles!"
Omega formed two missiles at his flanks, and they hit the foe.
He calmly jumped across the air while he swung his axe in a 180º arch.
Omega brought up his forearms and used a barrier to block the axe.
He jumped over it and kicked Axe Man in the face.
He landed behind him and charged energy on both firsts.
"Eat these!"
He delivered two attacks to Axe Man from behind.
He caused some deformations on his stainless armor.
The foe quickly turned around.
Omega ducked and skidded across the opening on his legs.
He appeared behind him and hit his helmet.
"How's this?"
He caused a persistent echoing song.
Axe Man grumbled and snapped his left hand's fingers.
Small axes formed around him, drawing a circle.
"Go!"
They flew forward in a sequence.
Omega rushed forward and dodged to the sides, predicting them.
"Halberd!"
Axe Man's weapon became a halberd, and he thrust it forward.
Omega quickly drew his blade and cut off the weapon portion of it.
"What!"
He then swung it diagonally to slice the shield.
He chained in several saber attacks.
He jumped upwards with the blade in tow.
He reached the chest emblem area.
He used both hands to plunge the weapon there.
Axe Man groaned and collapsed into his knees.
"The end!"
However, a barrier formed before Axe Man and blocked the attack.
Axe Man stood up and regenerated the weapon.
He spun it and stabbed the ground with it.
Long, thin blades emerged from it in a sequence.
Omega jumped and dodged them with smart steps.
He shot at them to melt them.
Axe Man recovered and formed spears around him.
They flew for Omega in a sequence, too.
He warped and appeared behind him, swinging the axe.
Omega perceived it and used jets on his soils to fly away.
He turned in mid-flight and shot more plasma shots.
Axe Man spun the axe upon his hands to deflect them.
The foe tried to forestall Omega again, but Omega predicted his moves.
Axe Man's swing fell short of the target.
Present was inspecting the surroundings.
"… Enough. We must pull out. Neo Gospel might ambush us…"
"But…!"
"Plug Out!"
He retrieved Axe Man and jumped backwards.
He landed on the fire stairs and jumped again to land atop the bike's seat.
He turned it on and fled from the area.
Omega returned to his "Copy Roid", shook his head and rubbed his chest.
"This man might be more dangerous than the others…!"
22:04 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Yes. Hasn't had any symptoms since then… Why?"
"Knowing whom we're dealing with, I thought that it might be the case…"
"Fair, Charles. You can't take anything for granted…"
"Sorry for worrying you, Martin, but…"
"It's alright. We must assume that such things might happen…"
A young man was talking with Charles over the PET.
He was sorting files in a desk within an office space.
He was about Charles' age.
He could be a few centimeters shorter than him.
He had brown irises.
His hair was red and unkempt.
He wore a dark yellow hoodie and jeans with two belts.
He used white sneakers for footing.
"But it's more likely that she's not interested in him anymore…"
"Hopefully!"
"Don't worry, Martin! The Sheriff will send them home!"
"Good point, Lander. We needn't be so defeatist…"
This Navi was about the same height as Davis.
He wore a Mexican-style hat over his brown helmet.
It had random blue and black patches scattered around it.
His irises were brown.
His main body was navy blue.
He had an open black vest over the torso.
He exhibited a Sheriff's star on the right side of his torso.
His shoulders had brass plating over them.
The arms and the elbows were brown, too.
His forearms were green.
They had two orange circling bands on them.
His wrists had metallic bracelets on them.
He had a black leather belt with two Colt revolvers on it.
He had jeans over his brown legs.
The black boots had dust patterns over them.
"A blistering barnacle ate a blistering Barna-Cle!"
"Not bad. Patent it…"
"But I agree with Omega that that Axe Man IS dangerous…"
"I know. Looks like he might disobey and run loose, even…"
"Maybe they'll reprogram him into something more docile…"
"As if it was a dog!"
"It's Regal. What did you expect?"
"Good point…"
There was a knock on the partition.
"Excuse me…"
Misaki became visible.
"An urgent mission. Please come to the briefing ASAP…"
"Alright. Are you coming here, too, Charles?"
"Sure… See you right away…"
"It must be major business…"
22:22 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Are you kidding me!? This whole pillar is a nuke!?"
"Yes. The MOS have been studying it nonstop…"
"And that is their conclusion. Dr. Hikari himself told us…"
"I don't question their accuracy. It's just that…"
"The scale is off proportions, right?"
Davis, Lander, Prism Man and Blues stood in a foyer.
They looked at a central pillar stretching beyond sight.
Lander was baffled.
"Search Man will disable it. We act as bodyguards…"
"Because we foresee interference in the form of Viruses…"
"Or Laser Man…"
"Or the Rama Navis that have been fought insofar…"
"OK. Leave the chaff to me! Tar and feathers!"
"I calculate 45 seconds to disable it…" Search Man announced.
"Understood. Send us a signal when you're ready to begin…"
"Roger…"
"I'll be counting on you…" Raika told them.
"Yes. Let's do this!" Enzan confirmed.
"I checked my systems. They're all functional…" Prism Man reported.
"I'm reaching the position. 5 seconds…"
"This is Meijin. I have secured 18 emergency escape routes…"
"Understood!"
"Starting!"
"Warning. Unauthorized access. Warning. Deploy defense system…"
An alarm blared out.
Countless Viruses formed there.
They were accompanied by carbon silhouettes imitating Needle Man.
"Careful. Spark Man might be here…" Prism Man warned.
"Affirmative!"
"Bullet Rain!"
"Sonic Boom!"
"Eat these!"
"Justice Vulcan!"
Lander drew his Colts and aimed them skywards.
He shot then in succession.
The bullets multiplied and became a rain that hit the foes.
Blues swung the Neo Variable Sword to take out more foes.
Prism Man jumped sideways and fired his cannons.
Davis formed a golden Super Vulcan and shot more enemies.
"30 seconds…" Search Man reported.
"Come, Billy!"
A horse ran in, running over Mettols and other small Viruses.
He jumped atop it and formed two machineguns.
He galloped across the foyer, shooting at the foes.
"15 seconds…"
"Prism!"
"Barriers!"
Prism Man used the prism to multiply his attacks.
They rained down across the area, taking out a bunch of foes.
"5 seconds… 4… 3… 2… 1…"
A hum echoed and the enemies vanished.
"I have taken control of it… It's indeed a "Black Bomb"…"
"Does he mean to wipe out Cyber Tokyo or what?"
"Possible. Or maybe it was meant to be a deterrent…"
"To blackmail the nation? What a weasel…" Meijin hissed.
"We should remove it and quarantine it…"
"We're on it. We only need 5 seconds to transfer it…"
"Don't lower the guard. More might come!" Blues warned.
"Roger!"
"Transferring!"
The pillar glowed and detached from the ground.
It headed for a "portal" higher into the air.
"Sending it to a special quarantine bay. 10 layers!"
"Excellent. At the worst, it'll only take it out and nothing else…"
"But let's not be confident. There could be more of them…"
"That weasel is perfectly capable of it, true…"
The pillar vanished and the group sighed in relief.
"We'll conduct a more detailed investigation as well…"
"Yes. We must figure when and how this made it here…"
"And locate other similar WMDs, too…"
"Before a tragedy ensues…"
23:03 PM (Japan Time)…
"… I apologize. I was careless, sir…"
"Matters not. Rather, it works in our favor…"
"To seed terror and fear in them, sir?"
"Exactly…"
"I take note, sir…"
Regal stood in the darkened observation deck of the Tokyo Sky Tree.
He was clasping his hands behind him.
A person kneeled behind him.
The person wore a black raincoat.
The head was lowered.
The voice was a whisper.
"And? Did you catch the tail of the salamander?"
"I have strong hints of it, but nothing conclusive…"
"It wasn't going to be easy. But it's not like it's a vital issue…"
He shrugged.
"It's more about sending a message to that witch…"
"Yes, sir. I am aware, sir…"
"Are you going to tame that stray sheep again?"
"It is being worked upon right now…"
"Excellent. That's the kind of efficiency that I want to see!"
"I always strive to be efficient…"
"Keep at it. This season will be critical…"
"I am very aware of it, sir…"
23:09 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Well, Kazuhira? How's it going, my gal?"
"Yes, milady. It's going smoothly. Only…"
"That pesky detective woman that's tracking you, right?"
"Correct…"
Prophetess was talking with someone inside of a karaoke box.
She had taken out her helmet.
She was in her mid-20s.
She had blue eyes.
Her long blond hair reached until half-way across the back.
She wore her rider's suit but kept the zip up.
She was drinking a glass with orange juice on it.
"But it's not like she can follow you inside of karaoke boxes…"
"She probably suspects that I meet someone here, but…"
"She has no way to prove it…"
Her interlocutor was a woman of the same age and height.
Her hair was tinted orange.
She had cold, blue eyes.
She also wore a rider's suit and boots.
"I make sure to store Witch's cache data in the secret server…"
"Perfect. Manfroy Malfroy can't expose you through that, either…"
"I think that he's in the room behind the screen…"
"Likely. But don't act. He's trying to lure you into a trap…"
"I am aware. I don't ask questions…"
"It's not like Regal needs to expose you. He's trying to outsmart me…"
"Yes. Hence why we can both afford to play the long game…"
"By the way. Did you investigate that gal?"
"Sure. Is part of a hoodlum gang in Saga City…"
"Saga? In Kyushu?"
"Yes, Ms. Anaya…"
"I have some old contacts there, too…"
She became amused.
She drank her glass of coke, too.
"I could introduce her to a club that an agent operates…"
"So that she becomes a trainer?"
"Yes. Not a Pokémon trainer, that is!"
She laughed.
"She will train a special type of animals, yes…"
"Naturally. I have experience in that, too…"
"By the way. You set your eyes on Anastasia?"
"It was Witch. But to be precise, it was an order from Manfroy…"
"Maybe he's wary of Navis with untapped potential…"
"Yes. Maybe it's a sign that he's becoming paranoid?"
"Not necessarily. It might be that he's over cautious…"
She tapped her left leg.
"The type that takes a bridge apart to check that it's solid…"
"I see. But it's not like I meant to act in that front…"
"If he wants data, collect it. But don't take it further…"
"I will remind Witch that she must follow orders…"
"Yes. We don't want another Axe Man…"
"Glad that Present had the cold blood to pull out there…"
"Yes. Else Mega-O would've turned that guy into canned food…"
She giggled at her own joke.
"By the way, Vermmy…"
"What is it?"
She sighed, as if too used to that nickname.
"What do you make of that handsome?"
"Charles Morgangantz? What about him?"
"Was curious…"
"Felt like the typical, cool college student type…"
She shrugged, uninterested.
"Didn't feel any special attraction for him…"
"I know, right? Despite his looks, he has no luck with women!"
"Excuse me, but I never cared for such things…"
She shook some of her hair.
"It's not like I'm a full lesbian, either. It's simply that…"
"I know, I know. You don't feel a need for such relationships…"
"I prefer being able to move on my own, unlimited…"
"Yes. That's the smart way. Or make use of the others…"
Anaya poured more Coke into the glass.
"Such as that Kataka Reiko gal…"
"Will it be that easy to control her, though?"
"A couple of hypnosis therapy sessions will suffice…"
"I see. Ready a program to turn her into a puppet…"
"Similar to what Regal is doing with his new toys…"
"Yes. I do agree that one needs insurance…"
She became annoyed for a moment.
"My lack of vision led to the loss of great talents…"
"Nobody is perfect, milady…"
"I know. Hence why I've learned from it…"
She grabbed the mike and turned it on.
"Listen to my world-shaking revolution!"
"Dear!"
Prophetess sighed and rolled her eyes, as if too used to it.
"Snake Eater!"
A song began to play.
"The snake that ate the snake because the snake ate the snake!"
"That's not the lyrics… It's closer to a riddle than a song…!"
"But the Bossy boss of bossing brought the bosses!"
She sighed and crossed her arms, resigned.
"Bring out the oracle Java power! The flash is dead! Welcome HTML4!"
"What innovative puns!" She sighed.
"Rock 'n roll! The rolling spring and the rocking summer!"
She played an air guitar.
"Patience…!"
"The past present future of the world!"