L & L: Season 3: Episode 14

[Megawoman.EXE]

Episode 13: Exodus Part 2 (Edit: 01/22/2015)
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Dark Megaman watched as the camo-armored female navi jumped over Swallowman and rapidly lunged toward him. Interesting, he thought, She’s very aggressive. He leaned sideways to dodge a punch aimed at his face, grabbing her arm as it went past in an attempt to push her aside. Maybe we could make use of h… “Ghuh!” He’d felt her arm twist in his grip, but wasn’t quick enough to react before Lyne curled around to ram a knee into his back. Distance. Need distance.

DMM used the momentum from the hit to his back to help him dash forward several paces before turning around with his blaster active, firing directly back where he expected Lyne to be. She had been there, following him, but kicked sideways when Dark Megaman turned, and his shot went through empty air. “Damn!” he cursed, continuing his turn to fire at where Lyne was now. She kicked at the ground to make another sudden change in direction, now dashing directly at him again. He fired, and Lyne ducked, but hissed as the shot grazed the top of her helmet. “Damn!” he cursed again when Lyne finished her lunge right in front of him, then found himself hurled backward when a fist landed directly in his gut. A moment later, he found himself looking up from the ground at Lyne, who had one foot on his blaster arm, and another on his chest.

“Call off this attack,” she said with a fierce look in her eyes.

“… Shouldn’t that be followed by, ‘And I’ll let you go.’ or something like that?” Lyne’s eyes narrowed and she shifted her weight slightly onto the foot on his chest. When the thrusters on her foot activated, it felt like he’d been punched in the chest again, though less powerfully than before. “Urgh. Lady… did I do something to offend you personally?”
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Swallowman hit the ground at a shallow angle, scraping it with his chest and quickly shoving out with his hands to keep his face from striking the ground as well. He got his feet under him and slid to an awkward halt. “Okay,” he said as he regained his balance. “That was very annoying.”

“I give it a ten out of ten,” Soma said from behind him. Swallowman whirled around to attack, but saw that Soma wasn’t looking at him.

“You’d never make an Olympic judge. She didn’t stick the landing, didn’t have enough height, and only made one flip,” Geist replied.

“Oh come on. Gymnasts work on those jumps for months and will psyche themselves up for, like, half-a-minute before jumping. She did that on the fly on a moving pommel.”

“That doesn’t excuse you to pad the score. Six.”

“What!? No! It’s not like she fell.” He turned to look back at Swallowman, who’d slid past him when he tried to stop. “What do you think? Six or ten?”

Swallowman was quiet for a moment, his mouth slightly open. He glanced over at Lyne charging at Dark Megaman, then back at Soma/Geist. “I’m going to kill you,” he said. He didn’t sound angry, and his expression hadn’t changed. He blinked and narrowed his eyes after hearing his own voice. All at once, his voice thundered with rage. “Die!”

Soma stepped to the right as Swallowman began to charge, then feinted left as the flyer turned to follow. He swiped as his opponent passed, but missed.

“You need to lead the enemy’s movement,” Geist offered.

“Would you believe the sun was in my eyes?” Soma asked. The comment was flippant, but Soma’s voice was tense as he followed Swallowman’s movement.

“Yes. Absolutely.”

Swallowman made another streaking charge, weaving through the air to confuse Soma’s dodge. He turned away from the attack and curved off to the side, hurling a bird-shaped projectile at Soma when he stopped. “No need for sarcasm Geist,” Soma grunted as he blocked the projectile with his gauntlets.

“What sarcasm? Say birdy! There was sun behind you, right!? That’s why he missed!”

“Don’t take me lightly!” Swallowman shouted and charged again. Rather than turning sideways, he dipped low aiming for Soma’s legs, then suddenly angled up, kicking at his target. Soma was making a downward swipe and wasn’t able to change its angle fast enough to deal with the bird navi’s trajectory change. The cross fuser stumbled back as the darkloid’s foot hit his shoulder.

“Damn flyer,” Soma cursed as Swallowman flew up.

“Ha, ha, ha! I’m going to cut you down human, one piece at a time!” Swallowman hurled one, and then another projectile at Soma. The cross fuser swiped down the first, then rolled away from the other. “Run human!” the Darkloid screeched as he dove. Soma kicked away from his rolling dodge to avoid this attack. Swallowman was turning back at the end of this charge when he felt himself being yanked back by the ankle.

“Swallow Return Strike!” Soma called as he reeled the flyer in with his whip. Once his target was back to him, low to the ground, Soma struck down with his free hand, driving his claws into Swallowman’s back. He lifted the Darkloid up and grasped the back of his head. “Did you think claws were my only weapon?”
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“Damn, where has that navi gone to?” Blizzardman asked as Cosmoman scanned the alleyway before them.

“I don’t see him. Keep your guard up,” the larger navi replied. “Fast enough to already be out of sight. He’ll probably ambush us and run again.”

“Maybe we should power up,” Blizzardman suggested. “Make him regret it.”

Cosmoman glanced down at him. “That sounds fine. You go first. I’ll cover you.” He held his weapon at ready and focused down the alley.

“Thank you. Dark Chip, activate!” Blizzardman called out. The ice navi was surrounded in a hazy, dark purple aura. There seemed to be three glowing eyes over his head. “Ah, good,” he said in satisfaction.

“Don’t think so.” Blizzardman jumped as an arm came from the shadows next to him and struck the energy above his head. Cosmoman turned to see the disguised Bass standing there, drawing the Dark Chip’s energy in. He was about to attack, but stopped himself and laughed lightly.

“He stole the Dark Chip?” Blizzardman asked incredulously. Bass still had his arm out, eyes narrowed and glowing redly as the purple aura covered and faded into him. “Heh… ah, hah, hah! He stole the Dark Chip! What a fool!”

Both Darkloids backed away on either side of Bass, waiting for the chip to take effect. He might attack them at first, but eventually, he would be taken over by it like all navis. It was only a matter of time.

“Well, that was disappointing,” Bass said with a sigh. He put his arms over his head and made a couple of side stretches, then adjusted his gi slightly and tugged the belt tighter. He turned his head, first to Cosmoman, then back to Blizzardman. “What are you staring at?”

“Don’t you feel… more evil?” Blizzardman asked uncertainly.

“Why? The chip? A little dark energy and a navi soul so corrupted that it’s a mass of anger and malice. Once you crush the dark soul and absorb the energy, it’s no problem.” Blizzardman blinked at him as Bass looked past him at the activity in the distance. “I think your boss needs help.”

“Wh-”

“Snowball inbound!” Bass yelled. He stepped forward and punted the ice navi away. He kept going when the kick was finished, running back out into the open.

“Get back here you punk!” Cosmoman shouted when he snapped back to his senses, following his target out.
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“Stop. The. Attack,” Lyne said to the navi under her foot. She punctuated her words with short bursts from her boot thrusters.

Okay, something cracked that time. Dark Megaman thought. He brought back a foot and twisted. Lyne tried putting her weight down as he twisted under her, but lost the pressure on his blaster arm. “Enough!” He shouted, driving his blaster into the leg she’d had on his chest and firing.

Lyne stepped back with a hiss, then made a sweeping low kick, which the other navi jumped back from. They regained their footing and stood off, facing each other.

The Darkloid spat a bit of data out. “You’re tough, I admit.” He wiped at the corner of his mouth with his off hand. “But you don’t look like you’re having any fun.”

“It hasn’t been my best day. If you call it off, I might smile.” Lyne tightened her fist as she said this.

“Why do you keep singing the same tune?”

“Because you are their leader. I want to leave, and you’re in the way.”

“Deal with it,” he responded with a smile.

“Snowball inbound!” Both Darkloid and half navi turned to see Blizzardman hurtling toward them. Lyne took two steps back, then kicked the ice navi, sending him into Dark Megaman.

“Oof!” Her target was driven back as he halted Blizzardman’s flight. “Ugh. That’s no way to treat my allies!” Dark Megaman shouted as he kicked his ally back at her.

Lyne stepped to the side and glanced back. “Soma! You’re up!” she called out, directing Blizzardman to the cross fuser.
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Swallowman strained against Soma’s claws. “That was an anime quote,” Geist said.

“Hmm? You mean the attack?” Soma said, attempting innocence. “Nnnnooooooooo,” he drew out his denial.

“*Sigh* Whatever. So, what are you going to do with the Darkloid?”

“I came here seeking answers, and I will get them,” he growled. He pulled Swallowman’s head back. “So, Darkloid…” Soma took a breath. “Six or-”

“Soma! You’re up!”

All three of them said, “What?” as Soma looked to see a ball flying at him. He held up Swallowman to block the projectile. Soma grunted as Blizzardman hit, driving Swallowman back past his elbow and leaving the ice navi on his claws. The bird navi made no more noise as he pixilated away.

“Ugh… Did you see the snow cone man?” Blizzardman asked in a sing song.

“Is our whole hand stuck in there?” Geist asked.

Soma shook his hand to remove the smaller navi. “Looks like it. *Sigh* I think I’m done now.” He pressed Blizzardman to the ground, spread his feet to steady himself, drove his other hand into the Darkloid’s back, and then spread them apart, ripping the ice navi in half. With his hands now free, Soma looked around. The lesser Darkloids were all gone. Lyne’s attitude seemed to be that she wanted to deal with her opponent on her own and he knew Treno and NK wouldn’t want interference, so he made his way to Bass.
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Lyne waited for Dark Megaman to make his move. The Darkloid kept his distance, waiting for her to make one too. “So,” he said, “do you have anything new to say?” Lyne didn’t reply. “A deal to make? A request? A joke?”

“You know my request”

“Boring.” He smiled. “You look tired.”

“And you…” Lyne paused. The Darkloid’s condition actually seemed to be improved somewhat. I thought he was injured. Is he healing?

“I…? I’m just fine,” he said after a moment’s silence. He thought for a moment, then grinned. “See, it isn’t so easy to defeat me. I share a special link with another navi.” Lyne shifted slightly, but didn’t say anything. “As long as he exists, his anger, his hatred, and even his operator’s emotions will sustain me. My frame can be destroyed 10 times over and I can still reform. You can hurt me, yes. You have hurt me. But you can’t defeat me.”

Lyne relaxed her fists, then opened her hands. She let her tension drain out before she stepped forward. Her target fired as she approached. She blocked the shot with her forearm rather than dodging, then swatted Dark Megaman’s buster aside and struck him on the chest. He tried to roll with the attack, but she pressed forward, keeping her palm on his chest.

What style of fighting is this? the Darkloid pondered. “Stop that!” He struck her arm to knock her hand away. She let that hand fall away and grabbed his face with the other. “Mmph! Bkk!” He kicked forward and Lyne let go. “Back off!” Lyne circled him, keeping a loose stance. She’s not hitting hard. Those little jets weren’t firing when she did those attacks. “What are you doing?”

“Okay,” she said to herself. She curled in her thumb and two fingers, keeping her index and middle finger straight out

“Okay?” Dark Megaman was feeling very agitated now. Dodging attacks, being struck, striking back: those were things he understood. These attacks didn’t seem like attacks. “What’s okay!?”

“I can free him,” she whispered quietly. As she concentrated, a bright spark appeared between her extended fingers. It was small and needle-thin but she smiled in satisfaction. The Darkloid had enough at that point and opened fire. Lyne dashed sideways, using the thrusters again to avoid the attacks, then dashed forward. Her opponent tried to keep up, but she managed to get behind him. She placed one hand on the back of his head and jabbed his neck. She hopped back a short distance as he swung back at her, then started making her evasive advance again.

“Stop that!” he yelled as she made contact again. The strike was lower this time and the Darkloid stumbled slightly as he turned and retreated from her.

Lyne held back a moment, observing him. “Not yet.” Dark Megaman opened his mouth, but quickly closed it as Lyne charged straight at him. He fired. She dropped and slid, feet first, into his legs.

“*Uuff!*” he exhaled as he landed face-first. He tried to push himself back up, then found his face pushed hard into the ground. He felt several more jabs from his neck to his shoulder blades, then a pause. He heard Lyne exhale and then felt her let go and move away. He didn’t move immediately, slowly turning his head to the side to see where Lyne was. When he saw her feet, he tried to quickly get up and level his buster at her, but couldn’t manage to move that fast. “What did you do to me?”

“I didn’t want you feeding off my brothers anymore.” Lyne released her style change, taking on her usual navi appearance. “I sealed up the connection you had. You can feel that, right?”

“Megawoman!” Dark Megaman got to his feet. “I wasn’t expecting this.” He paused a moment. “You haven’t defeated me though. I’m a Darkloid. I’ll still reform, even if you could destroy me.”

“You sound so certain. If you really want to test that,” she called out her Angel Sword, “I’ll oblige.”
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Cosmoman continued to pursue Bass. “Show yourself you coward!” He looked from shadow to shadow, frustrated that his enemy wouldn’t fight head on. He’d only taken minor damage from a swipe and a few Oni Fangs, but his pride stung.

Bass found himself enjoying this style of fighting for the moment. Usually, he would go head-on against any opponent, but there was something natural in his current disguise to attack from shadows, and the anger it was inciting in Cosmoman was satisfying. The disguise is starting to make a real identity for me, he thought. I could use this more often to do things, keep ‘Bass’ for some tasks, and use this for ones I don’t want ‘Bass’ attached to. Needs a name. Shadowman? No, that’s taken. Shade…? There’s one of those too. Darkman? No. I’ll need to search through directories for a good name. Maybe tweak the outfit.

“Damn,” Cosmoman growled. Bass turned his attention to where the Darkloid was looking and saw that Soma was heading their way. “Swallowman and Blizzardman both gone? It’s time to finish this. Cosmo Buster!” Three orbs appeared around him, each with a ring around it. He fired them toward Soma, one after the other, and Bass felt the ground tremble as they crashed like meteorites, blasting debris and dust with each impact. Soma dodged as well as he could, but Bass saw him grit his teeth as fragments caught him. “Cosmo Ring!”

“Mami! Deception Chain!”

“There!” Cosmoman quickly turned to hurl his ring weapon where he heard Bass shout from. He saw his target had mostly emerged from the shadows and was holding one end of a long chain. The chain had a claw at the end, and Bass had sent it out in a straight line to pierce Cosmoman, rather than snare him. “Heh,” he breathed out as he stepped to the side and grabbed the chain passing by him. His hand clenched on nothing. He paused in surprise, made a short “Hah!” as his attack struck, then froze when he felt a grip on his ankle. He glanced down to see the shadow of the insubstantial chain connecting with him, its clawed end holding on. The claw appeared to have a trio of eyes that were looking up at him.

“I hope that attack was worth it spaceman,” Bass taunted as he recovered and yanked his arm back. The shadow of the chain came up from the ground as Bass drew it taut, and it dragged in Cosmoman’s leg by the ankle.

“Cosmo-”

*Crack!* Cosmoman didn’t finish calling or making his attempted attack. He was now distracted by something grabbing his other ankle. “Is this Cosmo Return Strike?” Geist asked.

“Aaagh!” the Darkloid exclaimed when Soma pulled on the leg he’d caught on his whip. He grunted as he crashed to the ground.

“No, that’s stupid,” Soma answered Geist. He was panting heavily, having rushed up to help out. “It’s Cosmo Splitter.”

Cosmoman glared up at the cross fuser, then grinned when he saw a purple navi approaching. Dark Megaman, he thought. Even odds again.

“Cosmoman!” the sinister copy of Megaman called out to his ally. Soma glanced back and readied a clawed hand to defend himself. Cosmoman heard Bass cuss behind him and quick footsteps as he hurried to deal with the new threat. Dark Megaman stopped, opened a Network Portal, and said, “You’re in charge!” before escaping through it.

There was a moment of silence.

Cosmoman looked back a Bass, who calmly walked up to him. There were footsteps on his other side, he sighed and looked back, but saw purple again instead of the white trench coat he was expecting.

“You’re in charge?” Lyne asked him as she crouched down next to him. “So, are we done here?”

Cosmoman logged out before she could finish the question.

“Aw,” Bass complained. “I didn’t get to try the other end of the chain.” Lyne looked at him as she stood up. Bass’s hand had a heavy, reinforced grip attached to the chain, and it reminded Lyne of the reinforced knuckles of her new style change.

“Mommy?” Geist questioned. “Why were you calling for your mommy?

“What?... No, Mami.” Bass answered when he figured out what Geist meant. “That was the identity of the Dark Soul in the Dark Chip I absorbed.”

“What!?” Lyne exclaimed. “Why would you?... That’s dangerous! Don’t you know what Dark Chips do to navis?”

“Yes. The Dark Soul in the chip binds to the navi’s own soul, filling it with rage and malice, while the dark energy corrupts the navi’s system. But I have the master dark energy, and I was able to catch the Soul and direct it into a weapon.” He recalled the chain, shrinking it down to until it looked like a small purple and black flame with three eyes. “I think I’ll keep it.”

“Uh, problem,” Soma said with an edge of panic. “I don’t see Treno anywhere.”
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Treno/NK and Kaori had been taking turns attacking and retreating from each other. Treno’s face was bruised, and both Darkloid and cross fuser showed damage on their armor, as well as determination in their eyes.

“You haven’t spoken for a while,” Kaori commented as she parried a swing from NeoKnight’s Fusion Sword. As she turned the blade, she put her weight on it and swung her leg up, using the sword like a vault to kick at her opponent.

Treno let go of the sword with one of his hands to push up on her kick before it could hit his head. He tried to grab it, but she jerked it away, rolling over his sword and onto the ground, then back to her feet. “You hadn’t either. I hope you’re not bored?”

Kaori grinned. “You also haven’t used any chips with the Fusion Sword.” She let the comment hang in the air, and Treno didn’t respond. “You’re so reliant on those, aren’t you? Well, perhaps it’s time for me to use a chip of my own?”

“Kaori, don’t,” NeoKnight said. “You’re hurting yourself more by using those Dark Chips.”

“Oh, darling,” Kaori sneered spitefully. “You do care. Well, maybe for you.” She held her arms up over her head and stretched casually. She held her hands apart and called the chip out between them. “I don’t know why you even bothered. This fight has been between me and your master for some time, so be silent you slave!” she cried out as the chip activated and its corrupt energy flowed over her.
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“This is ridiculous!” Bass growled. “Darkloids are strong for navis, but they’ve been taken down time and time again. Why am I having so much trouble?”

“You had to fight two of them,” Lyne said.

“And that should be no trouble. I fought them. We all did. But we got caught when we should have gotten through, I was knocked down by nobodies, and I didn’t even see where Treno went to.”

“It’s not all about you,” Geist spoke sharply. “We were all fighting them. None of us realized they’d moved out of sight.”

“How often do you work with others?” Soma asked.

Bass stopped. He’d been moving around the area, sniffing for a trail with the others following him. “That’s a point. I’ve been distracted by what others are doing. I am more used to being alone and doing things on my own.”

“It’s going to take some adj-”

“Get out of here and back to the plane,” Bass cut him off suddenly. “I’ll finish the search.”

“Connor!” Lyne exclaimed. “Just because he points out that you-”

“Lyne stop! There’s not much time, and the blood is making it harder to track.” Bass closed his eyes and took a quick breath. “Please help Soma get back to the plane and tend to him.”

Lyne looked over Soma for a moment, then went up and pulled the trench coat to the side. “Oh,” she muttered.

Soma looked at his side. The coat had irregular holes in it, and there were multiple fragments stuck in the armor underneath. “When Cosmoman made those craters… I didn’t think the fragments hit that hard.”

“Keep near Lyne when you get out,” Bass said. “The fragments won’t exist in the outside world without one of us, and your injuries will bleed freely when they vanish. Lyne, be ready to cover them up before you drop the zone around you.”

Lyne looked at him for a moment. “Conn… *sigh* Be careful,” she said, then lead Soma away.

When the other two were a ways off, Bass pulled the wrapping off his head and rubbed at his nose, sniffing and snorting to try and clear his senses. Once he was satisfied, he started his tracking again. Taking too long. This is taking too damn long! He picked up his pace when he was satisfied he was on the right track. You’d better not be far off, he thought as he recalled his helmet and commanded his outfit to go back to its cloak appearance.
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“Shadowflame Strike!” Treno leapt away as Kaori charged in. Her tonfas were charged with corrupt energy that spread out to cover her fists and forearms with a black fire. With her greater mobility, she was able to close in faster than Treno could retreat. He parried once, and again as Kaori pressed her attack. The flame splashed out as their weapons collided.

It’s cold! the cross fuser thought as the flame licked lightly against his arms and chest. He winced away as it neared his face. The moment’s panic left Kaori an opening, and she connected with the side of his chest. Treno rolled with the hit, and swung the Fusion Sword in a counter, which Kaori backflipped away from.

You’re in trouble.

Treno’s breath hissed in pain as he felt the burning cold. He glanced down to see the flickering of the black fire, quickly fading out and leaving a patch of armor pitted and smoldering.

“NeoKnight? Are you still in there?” Kaori called out. Treno looked up at her. The Darkloid shut off the flames and put her tonfas away, then cocked her head to the side, resting a hand on her hip. “You can fight better than this. Why don’t you come out and play?”

Treno was panting lightly and rested a hand against the burn. “We can help you,” he said. His voice was raspy, and weaker than he was expecting. “We don’t have to keep fighting.”

Kaori smiled slightly. “No, we don’t have to keep fighting. You could help, yes.” Treno blinked in surprise. “Help me strengthen my place with the Darkloids. Join me NeoKnight. Bring Treno with you if you want. We can work together again.”

“Kaori, we can’t…” NeoKnight protested.

“Certainly we can.” She grinned. “There’s even more joy in battle now than I ever remember having before. You’ll love it!”

“You’ve lost the honor of it. Your joy is in causing pain!” Treno said, his last words coming out as a croak, and he had a fit of coughing.

“Ah, I suppose I was wrong,” Kaori said with disdain on her face. “Human weakness will hold you back. Leave him NeoKnight. Come with me. Come with me now and embrace the power we offer.” There was no answer. Treno stopped coughing and took a steadying breath before gripping the sword with both hands again. “You’re still fighting then? You’ll lose this fight. I’ll destroy you NeoKnight, bathe in your scattered data. You’ll be deleted, and your pet human will die.”

She’s right you know.

“No,” Treno said. “We’ll bring you home.”

“Treno… walk away,” NeoKnight said.

“NK, we-”

“Not happening!” Kaori shouted. She reached behind herself and drew a handful of darts, immediately throwing them, one after the other. “Join! Or! Die!”

Treno side-stepped, turning his side to his opponent to reduce the area she had to hit and using the flat of the sword to shield as much as he could. He heard two pings of blocked darts, then gasped as an electric shock pierced his thigh.

“Fall!” Kaori shouted savagely. She ran in, slipping by as Treno tried to bring up the sword, and kicking his uninjured leg out from under him. As he fell, she quickly turned and punched at head. He was able to bring his arm up to block, but the force sent him tumbling to the ground.

“Treno…” NeoKnight said in a strained voice.

“How hurt are we?” Treno asked. He rolled out of the way as Kaori leapt in to stomp on him.

“Please…”

“So pathetic!” Kaori shouted. “Where’s your strength!? I thought you were worthy! Are you truly nothing!?”

“Give me strength,” NeoKnight whispered.

“NK?” Treno asked. Suddenly, he felt a surge of strength that seemed to emanate from the Fusion Sword. With it was a burning sensation, like from the Shadowflame, but not painful. The strength quickly suffused his whole body, and when Kaori made another downward kick, he was able to push himself not just out of the way, but back to his feet.

“Oh? You’re not done?” Kaori asked. She grinned and drew her tonfas again. “Good. You’re still dead.”

“Not happening. I can… I… uh…?” Treno’s vision suddenly blurred. He still felt strength in his body, and his arms brought the sword up in front of him. He hadn’t consciously moved the sword. What? he thought, unable to speak, as his vision blacked out.

“Just playing? If you’re bluffing, you won’t live to regret it.” She lunged in low, holding one tonfa up to block his downward strike as she jabbed the other at his gut. He brought a knee up as she recovered, glancing against her cheek.

“Not bluffing!” NeoKnight roared. “You will not harm him!”

“Good. Hope keeps you going. Keep fighting!” She lunged high this time, again blocking with one tonfa and preparing to strike with the other. She quickly stopped and backpedaled when the defending tonfa cracked to NK’s sword swing.

“The fighting ends!” NeoKnight closed his eyes and shuttered. A second later, his eyes flared open and he bared his teeth. “Nightmare Crissaegrim!”

The Fusion Sword was shrouded in flickering, dark energy. As it moved through the air, it left behind shadowy afterimages. NeoKnight stalked forward, and Kaori was frozen by an overwhelming dread. “New?” When NK swung again, she tried to duck under it. It was too late. The sword struck her arm just below the shoulder, clove through and into the side of her chest, the same spot she’d struck earlier on Treno. Her eyes widened in shock as each afterimage suddenly came to life, arcing around NeoKnight to converge on the sword. Slashed by a score of shadowy blades, Kaori fell.

“NeoKnight!” Bass shouted from the distance. The navi didn’t even react to the voice. He placed his foot down on Kaori and pulled the sword free. Then, gripping the blade, he drove it down through her. “Stop! What are you doing?!” He did not release the blade, though Bass gripped him by the arm and tried to pull him away. “NK! NK, snap out of it! Listen to me!” NeoKnight glanced back at Bass, a feral energy burning in his eyes. Bass stopped shaking him, let go, and backed away. “Hey, you need to calm down.” He glanced down at Kaori, who’s form was scattering away to pixels. “The… your fight’s over. Stop.”

NeoKnight clenched his hands around the grip of the Fusion Sword until his arms trembled. He closed his eyes and ground his teeth together. “I won’t,” he muttered between the clenched teeth. He turned away from Bass, straining as if it was difficult to do. “No. I… I won’t.” He opened his eyes partway, looking down at the sword, which was now driven only into empty ground. “Nooooo!” He screamed, then, with all the strength he had, he pressed against the blade and kicked it, snapping it in two. Malicious laughter still echoed in his mind.

The silence stretched for several minutes. Finally, Bass spoke again. “NeoKnight? Can you hear me?”

He didn’t answer immediately. After a moment, he turned to face the half navi, silently holding out the half of the sword he was still holding. Still silent, he let go. “Take it,” he whispered.

Bass slowly walked up to him. “You broke it. Why?”

“So I couldn’t… use it,” he replied haltingly. His fingers twitched.

Bass reached down and grabbed the hilt. NeoKnight backed away from him. “I’m not going to attack you.”

“I know.”

Bass stood still for a moment, then circled around to the half of the blade still in the ground. He pressed his hands against the sides and moved it back and forth until it was loosened enough for him to pull it free. He watched NK the whole time. He drew off his cloak and wrapped the two halves of the blade in it. “NK? We need to go.” The navi didn’t reply. “Treno needs to go.” NK was still silent for a moment. Then, without looking at Bass, he walked away to the exit they had been making toward. Bass followed.

“Wait, we’re here,” Bass called out. NeoKnight stopped walking and turned around. He hadn’t been fully aware of his surroundings or of how much time had passed, but saw that they were at their target. He walked up to it.

“Jack out,” NK said tiredly. Rather than going through the jack out point himself, his appearance dropped from the cross fusion one back to his normal appearance.

“Hey, go on. We need to get moving.”

“I’m not going.”

Bass blinked at him. “Don’t joke. This isn’t the time f-”

“It’s not talking to me anymore,” NeoKnight said, averting his eyes. “I can feel it though. And dark energy. Yours. It’s urging me.” Bass was silent. “Stronger with the sword. It’s tainted. But still…” He glanced over at Bass. “It’s stronger near you. I’ll end up attacking you. For the energy, I…” His voice rasped harshly as he stopped, and he turned away again. “Go.”

Bass stood uncertainly for a moment. He lifted his free hand and brought out a small amount of dark energy. NK’s head turned quickly, and he looked back at Bass with a wild expression. Bass quickly drew the energy back in. The navi and the half navi looked at each other for a moment more, and then Bass, without another word, left his friend behind.
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*THUMP! THUMP!*

Lyne and Soma looked at each other when they heard the banging on the airplane door. “Don’t look at me,” Soma said. “You told me to stay put.” He was bandaged around the leg and abdomen. Some blood had soaked through, but Lyne had managed to get it under control.

Lyne nodded and walked over to the door. Once she was alert again, she was able to sense Bass on the other side, so the moment’s worry she’d just had was already gone. When she opened the door and saw Bass carrying the unconscious Treno, the worry came back. “What hap-”

“Excuse me,” Bass said brusquely, moving past Lyne and putting Treno down. “Get him strapped in please. Make sure you’re both secure. I’m taking off.” He quickly left the cabin and went to the cockpit.

Lyne started strapping Treno in when she saw the charring on his clothes and burned skin under that. “Connor, he’s hurt!”

“I know!” The aircraft was starting to whine as it came to life. “I’ll get us up fast. Tend to him then.”

“Brightland would be a good place,” Soma offered. “It’s close, friendly, and it has hospitals.”

“Right.” Bass didn’t say any more. Lyne finished with Treno, then secured herself. As much as Bass was rushing the startup, she hoped he didn’t forget something important. After they’d taken off and were well in the air, she felt some relief.

Treno was starting to move around before they were able to get out of their seats. “Treno?” she called out. “If you can hear me, stay put. We’ll be at cruising altitude soon.” The older man groaned, but didn’t say anything.
__________________________

“You can get up now,” Bass said over the speakers. After all the excitement and tension, he was starting to feel tired as he calmed down. He set the autopilot, double and triple checked that it was set correctly, then sat back and relaxed. After 15 minutes or so, he heard footsteps.

“Connor?” Lyne said. “Are you alright?”

Bass sighed. “Yeah. Recovering.” He turned his head slightly, but didn’t look back. “Treno, how bad is it?”

“It hurts,” he replied.

“Just remember that numbness would be worse,” Bass said after a moment. “Hopefully, that’s just a second degree.”

“NK’s not in his PET.”

Silence hung over the cockpit for a moment. Bass turned in his seat and looked back at them. “How much do you know about Nightmare?”

“That’s what NK was called before. Before he was with me.”

“I knew him then, you know,” Bass said. “He was violent. Destructive.” Bass paused. “Dark too. Wily’s doing, once he had me. Infused Nightmare with dark energy. I think… Nightmare became similar to a dark soul. He became NeoKnight with your father’s help, but Nightmare is still there.”

“You’re sure?” Treno asked. He moved to the co-pilot seat and lowered himself into it.

“Nightmare Crissaegrim. I’ve seen that attack before, when he was Nightmare. He used it on Kaori.” He paused, looked at both of them, then looked out at the sky in front of them. “He deleted her.”

“No,” Lyne whispered. She’d been expecting it, but was hoping it wouldn’t be true.

“I got the feeling that Nightmare was actually talking to him from within. Trying to get him to attack me. He said that something is wrong with the sword, that it’s tainted and was making it harder to resist. He broke it.”

“I saw that,” Treno said. “You put it in the PET?”

“Yeah. Even without it… My dark energy was keeping Nightmare strong. NK probably would have attacked me if he’d stayed nearby. He has to deal with that virus, or dark soul, or whatever Nightmare is now.”

“On his own?” Treno sounded hurt.

“On his own. He’ll get through this Treno. Just know, you’ll be there with him. You, your father, everything you’ve done to get him where he is, that will get him though this.”

Treno was silent for a moment, thinking. Then he smiled and gave Bass a nod. “So, we’re going to Brightland?”

“We’ve got about an hour. Sit back and relax.”
_____________________________________
Author’s Note:
This chapter has to have been the most annoying of the current arc and series. It was rewritten more times then I dare to count. The prior chapter and this one was part of an RP I did with Treno; NK, Leina, Kaori, Soma, and Geist’s creator. As time progressed he said I could do with the characters as I pleased so that they would make sense to the fict and not throw anyone off. At this point he would’ve been able to launch a side story so the fans could see what happens to NK while he has left our main characters and storyline. Never know he may or may not. Regardless it had to be reworked several times to get it to feel right. There was once a section where we had our quartet stay at an old abandoned Wily Base to pass the time while they figured a way out of the country but Editor and I dropped the idea ‘cause it took too long and we decided to get them out of Dark Nation as quickly as possible.

Whew that was a long explanation…I hope you enjoyed the read and we’ll try to get the next one out to you as soon as we can.

See you next time for: ~Lan and Lyne Season 3~ Episode 14: It runs in the Family
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Excellent chapter. I'm glad you've resumed updating.
_________________

"But... the future refused to change."
"If all else, my glass aint half full.. it's infuriating that someone else drank half of it."

[Megawoman.EXE]

Episode 14: It runs in the Family

~14 March 20XX ~ Mouguroi Temple~ Ryoichi’s Room~

In the back of the room, a rice paper door silently slid open. The man opening it observed that Ryoichi sat meditating on a mat, facing away from him. There was a small, artificial waterfall in front of him; the trickle of water it made pattered on leaves and tapped against the rocky bottom of the display. The sounds were light, meant to give the listener the sensation of nature without being loud enough to disturb a meditative state. It would still be loud enough to mask whatever sounds the man might make. He walked carefully in, making sure that his soft, grey suit did not swish against itself as he moved up behind the unmoving head of the house.

“You neglected your odor neutralizer,” Ryoichi observed mildly. The servant, hired in part for his training as a ninja, felt a wave of shame at this.

“Excuse me,” he said to his employer. “I will correct that right away. I have your mail.” He placed the few envelopes onto the table next to Ryoichi and waited for anything he might need.

Ryoichi half opened his eyes and looked sideways at the envelopes. “The phone bill and the utility bill can go to the accountant.” The servant noted an undertone of annoyance and understood he was being given an order to bring such things to the accountant in the future. “Hand me the large, brown envelope.” He noted the heaviness of the thick paper as he grasped it and sighed as he read the address:

~Mouguroi Temple~
~25346 Shannon Ave.~
~Heavens City, CA 74943~

“I don’t need this now,” he said under his breath, feeling a tightness of worry in his chest. He broke the seal on the envelope and withdrew the heavy, textured, and expensive paper of the unfolded letter inside, taking a moment to admire the artistry of the formal calligraphy before he began to read:

Dear Ryoichi Mougroi; Head of Japanese Clan Mougroi,

It has been brought to our attention that you have been holding back on the updated truce we have been setting up since the return of Atlantis. The Squeshsque have not been our enemy for over 75 years; only their banished have been a problem. It has been reported that there are no more rogues from that clan in your country of charge. Strider will be returning soon to check up on the situation to make sure you are holding things up to standard and that you are making preparations for updating your truce with the Squeshsque clan there. We look forward to a good report from Strider. If not, we will strip you of your title, privileges and place your wife in charge of the clan there. We want no problems like we have had in the past.

Signed,
Tomofumi Mougroi; Clan Mougroi Alpha

A mark glowed on Ryoichi’s forehead as frustration churned within him. “Damn you, brother,” he seethed, crumpling up the letter and tossing it behind him. “I might have to move sooner then planned. With the truce, there will be no more hunts. My wife will see to that… and make me do mantras all day. I’ll have to prove to them that the Squeshsque are a danger and have to be dealt with. If that Cossack whelp… RUAHHHHH!” As he howled, he kicked the table away.

The servant stepped away from him. “I was told that is Lady Serene’s favorite table. From your father?”

Ryoichi clenched his hands and glared at the table. Then he closed his eyes, relaxed his hands, and let out a slow breath. The servant quietly watched him pick the table back up and put it back in its place, noting that the mark on his head didn’t dull its glow. “If my nephew hadn’t killed the last rogue, I would be able to prove how careless those beasts are.” A growl rumbled in his throat as he paced back and forth. “And my relic room protector is sick. I’m going to have to call the ninjas in to protect that room. I need my control over the boy protected until I need him. And I know how to control him if he doesn’t comply with my wishes.”

“The relics can do that?”

Ryoichi glanced at the servant. “No. The Randamu girl.” He was given a nod of understanding. “Find Don. I need to speak with him.”

“Yes Lord Ryoichi.” The ninja quickly left to seek his leader out.

Ryoichi waited, twitching his long ears anxiously for a few moments before a young boy, looking no more than 13 years old, entered his room. He was much more casually dressed than the servant was, in a turtleneck vest that matched the dark blue of his hair, long, light blue sleeves showed from the open shoulders, and both his pants and tennis shoes were black. If it weren’t for the bowie knife at his waist, he could be overlooked as a middle school student (though Ryoichi couldn’t think of a local school that had a yin-yang emblem on the upper left of the uniform’s vest.) “Ah… Don, it’s good to see you lad.” Ryoichi smiled as he greeted the young ninja.

Don bowed his head a little to pay respect to his employer. “And it’s good to see you too Lord Ryoichi. I’m hoping that this will be brief. I have posts to check.”

“Of course,” he said, gesturing to a mat in front of him. Don took a seat on it before Ryoichi spoke again. “Ahem… as you know your clan master has fallen ill, leaving a vulnerability to my relic room. I need other ninja of your clan to fill in on his job until he is better.”

Don’s face twitched slightly at this. “None of the other ninja are qualified to do his job. You hired our clan to watch over your younger clan members, not your personal trinkets.” He stood up to leave and tensed when Ryoichi grabbed him by the wrist.

“I’ll make it worth your while. I’ll pay your clan double what you’re getting now if you can do this for me. And Master Ito said that you’d be the one most qualified out of all the ninja he has taught.”

Don shook his wrist free. “I’m sorry Lord Ryoichi, but I don’t do hokey spells or magic. I provide a guardian service. I will set up physical security rotations, but that’s all,” he said, getting ready to leave again.

Ryoichi got up and followed after him. “That’s fine; in fact, splendid! I even have a few of the young ones that can join in on the clan’s activities. That should free up a few of your ninja,” he said, idly looking over one of his clawed hands.

Don stopped and considered for only a moment before nodding. “That would. I would like the list of the eligible so I can cover your relic room better by the end of the day.”

“Granted. I will have the list to you by the end of the day. Some of them have to be reevaluated, but that shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”

Don nodded as one of his clan members passed by in the hall. “Cho!” he called, making the ninja stop and then come up to him. “As you know Master Ito is sick. I need you to stand guard over the relic room.”

“Yes, Don-sama,” he replied as he snapped to attention for his younger leader. “Can you watch over Chiyn-kun for me while I take this duty?”

“Chiyn will be fine,” Ryoichi interjected. “He’s of age to not be in need of a guardian. I made doubly sure of that,” Cho’s eyes glanced to the Mougroi, then back to his clan leader. He seemed to hold his breath for a moment before stammering a reply.

“Y-yes sir. I’ll report to the relic room right away.”

“Oh, and Cho; don’t let anyone in except me and Don. Is that understood?” This time, Cho kept his eyes on his leader, but did stand at a tense attention as Ryoichi continued. “Protect that room with your life.”

“Yes s-sir.”

“Your master has chosen well to have you be their leader in Strider’s absence,” Ryoichi spoke as they watched Cho leave. “You are a fine leader for one so young. Unfortunately, our clan doesn’t work that way,” he finished with a sigh.

“Thank you Lord Ryoichi. Am I dismissed to attend to my other duties?” Don asked, slightly bowing his head.

“Yes, you may check your posts. In fact… it’s inspection day, so I will join you.” He let Don walk ahead and followed him out.

A shadow detached itself from the darker part of the room and reached for the crumpled paper with a clawed hand. A silence fell over the room as the figure smoothed out the paper; even the false waterfall made no noise. As the figure looked the paper over, it stood so still that an observer, if there had been one, might have thought the room was somehow empty again. Finished reading, the shadow shook its head before leaving the room through another exit.
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~Famous’s Apartment ~ Bass’s Room~ Evening~

Bass climbed up the stairs after attempting to eat a microwave meal. After throwing out the soaked box he’d tried to boil, and cleaning up the exploded remains of the second attempt, he managed to successfully heat one up (after calling Lyne on the phone for advice. Her tip on wearing rubber gloves helped out a lot. Cutting the seal to vent steam helped even more.) He stretched when he got to the top of his stairs. “Man what a day,” he moaned.

He and Lyne had hung out earlier at the park after she’d finished more tests on her Combit Style at NSHQ. He was sure they were satisfied that the Style Change itself worked well. He believed that what concerned them was the shift in personality she took whenever she used it. While Lyne didn’t have the perception errors from Combit’s memories anymore, Combit Style seemed to have a hard-wired attitude. “I should talk to her about that. Or her father. Yeah, him first.”

He quickly changed into his night clothes and crawled into bed. It was quiet without Famous there; he was still working late, going over the day’s findings. He lay still for a moment, then started slightly when Gospel leapt onto his bed. He bit me! the wolf thought to him.

“I thought you’d be used to that by now,” Bass replied. He could see that Gospel’s ear had a notch in it. “And was it because you were chasing him?”

Gospel couldn’t frown, but he’d developed a talent for giving the impression he was making an expression. It’s supposed to be play, Master. Mami keeps going too far though.

“*sigh* If you’d stop carrying him around in your jaws when you catch him, maybe he would stop thinking of biting as a way to play.” Gospel glared at him petulantly. “I’m sure Gateman would appreciate that as well. And Punk and Kendoman, if they would ever come back.”

The Dark Soul that Bass had adopted over a month ago now had been terrorizing Famous’s navis and causing general havoc in his cousin’s home network. Mami seemed satisfied enough to stay in that network at least, especially with Gospel there to keep him company. They’d developed a sort of puppy/older dog relationship.

Fine, Gospel thought to him and sulked back into the network. Bass sighed and closed his eyes again.

“Rrrraawrr! Raa , raa!” Bass’s eyes snapped back open. He looked over at the screen to see that a call popup window was there.

“Mami, you can’t eat that. Stop biting the window.” The Dark Soul growled. “Mami! No biting!” Mami stopped growling and let go, looking out at Bass with three wide eyes. “Don’t even try that with me. Lyne might melt to puppy dog eyes, but I learned to ignore that from Gospel long ago.” The Dark Soul whined, made a childishly small roar, and dashed off.

“Please read the directions on those meals before you cook them,” Famous said as soon as Bass answered the call.

“I’ve read them before,” Bass protested. “10 minutes at high power. It’s simple.”

Famous sighed. “It’s not the same directions for each meal. And that doesn’t explain why you boiled one?”

“It was that one from the U.S., New England Boiled Dinner… Wait, why do you know I did that?”

“Gateman’s here. With a new bite mark.”

“Didn’t hear him leave. I’ve talked to Gospel about the way they play. We’ll try to break that habit.”

Famous was quiet for a moment, and Bass got the impression that his cousin didn’t quite believe him. “Please don’t break anything else tonight,” he sighed, rubbing his eyes, then signed off.

Bass frowned at the computer screen. After a quiet moment, he called out to Gospel. “Check the MercJobs + board. I need something to break.”

Heh, heh. It’s almost like he wanted to get you out of the house, the wolf thought to him.

“He’d probably prefer I get Mami out… I guess I could take him for a walk.”

That sounds great. I’ll leave you to it, so I can take a nap for once. With that, Gospel left to check the board.

Bass sighed. “Damn relation. Why did you have to goad me like that? I could have used the sleep.” He set the monitor to follow Mami’s activity. The Dark Soul was bounding around the internal network, scattering a stack of reports here, tearing apart a navi frame there (these were both self-repairing decoys), and then stopping at Gospel’s log out point for almost 30 seconds before darting off again. Bass lay back down on his bed again, occasionally chuckling while he watched Mami go.

Quite suddenly, his vision got cloudy as a wave of exhaustion came over him. He thought there were sparkles as well, but he wasn’t sure. “What’s going on? I felt so a_ *yawn* awake.” He brought his hand up to rub his eyes, and lost consciousness as soon as he closed them.
________________________
~Mougroi Temple ~ Relic Room~

“You missed,” a female voice quietly chastised.

“Yes Cameo. Thank you,” another female voice replied, also quietly. She observed the ninja who was guarding the room, but he didn’t indicate that he’d noticed anything when the small ball she’d shot into the room hit the relic it held. The vapor from it dissipated quickly.

“That’s going to affect the relic barer too Shina.”

“I know, and I offer him my humble apologies. Quiet now. I need to get a better shot.” She side-stepped along the beam in the rafters and loaded another ball into her sling shot. This time, Shina was able to hit the guard on the shoulder. He jerked, quickly turned to look behind him, stumbled, and looked up. He blacked out while he was looking up and fell back. The smoke from the launched ball clung to the ninja as he fell, and vanished shortly afterward. “See? Easy.”

“If he was more experienced…” Cameo replied, letting Shina decide what would happen if the ninja guard was more experienced.

Shina leapt down into the room, and her breath huffed out as she landed. “I wouldn’t have tried this with Master Ito. Strider’s not here. As for the rest? Even Don doesn’t practice mystic arts.” She brushed a loose lock of hair, silver instead of the common Mougroi purple, away from her eyes and tucked it behind an elongated ear. Said ear hadn’t grown to the length Ryoichi’s had, but that was usually the case with females of the clan. Her silver-furred tail wagged happily as she approached the necklace.

“Your tail’s hitting me,” Cameo complained from the PET at her side.

“Don’t exaggerate. I’m not wagging that hard.” She picked up the necklace, letting it droop from her fingers. “Father is wrong for holding you captive,” she spoke gently to the necklace.

“He can’t hear you through the necklace. You euthanized him anyway.”

“I did not!”

“Quiet!” Cameo hissed.

Shina’s face had reddened. “I didn’t mean to hit it with the gas. And he’s not dead. Just asleep.”

“That’s what I said.”

“No Cameo,” Shina sighed. “Those scary stories about wolves being ‘put to sleep’ means they don’t wake up ever again.” She started fiddling with the necklace.

“Oooohhhh. I never could figure out why you and the other kids acted so scared by those tales. Um… Didn’t Master Ito put a protection spell on that?”

“I know what grandpa wished for him,” Shina said to herself. “And father is disobeying it and letting his mark get the better of him.” Shina sighed, then tried to yank it apart. “Grnnn… I also want to know why he’s been hiding him from the family.”

“But with the relic on he’s not a threat to us or the clan. Can’t you leave it be?” Cameo asked as Shina kept pulling on the necklace’s chain.

“No. Father is planning on using him as a weapon against the clan. I’ve got to prevent that from happening. Mmmmnnn… Break… NOW!”

“You know that won’t work if it has a seal on it, even if the one who sealed it is sick.”

“I shouldn’t have had my father buy you. Stop nagging at me in the middle of something important.” She shook the necklace in front of the PET. “I’m holding onto the necklace now and I’m not getting hurt, okay?”

“That’s ‘cause you have gloves on.”

Shina let out a light sigh of exasperation and took the PET from her side so she could look her navi in the eyes. She felt the usual twinge of annoyance at Cameo’s design; while the green marks streaking down her cheeks like scratch marks were cool, the armor covered only her chest and waist like a two-piece bathing suit. Dad, why on Earth did you think this would be a good design for my navi? I really need to see if I can get that changed somehow. “Do you have to back-talk to everything? They’re only a precaution. Look.” She put both PET and necklace down, took off the gloves, and picked the necklace back up, twirling it around on her finger. “See?”

“Yeah, now why don’t you get this over with?”

She let the necklace slide up her finger and continued twirling it on a claw. “Oh fine.” She considered for a moment. “Well… pulling it won’t work. Magic is definitely out of the question since this is linked directly to him. It might even be linked to the Randamu angel as well.” She stopped the twirling by catching it with her other hand, then brought it up to her eye level, stretching it between the claws of her hands to examine it. She was quite surprised when one of her claws severed the necklace. She looked through the empty space between her hands for a moment after the relic fell to the floor.

“Huh. It actually broke,” Cameo said in surprise.

“Now why didn’t I think of that before? Father must’ve had this done so it would be easier for him to break it.” She laughed lightly. “Let’s see him try to control him now.” She was about to step on the pendant of the necklace when her ears twitched at some noise down the hall. “Oh, Father.”

“He said he was going to do inspections today. Don’t leave me here!” Cameo hissed in a panicked whisper as Shina started moving away.

“Hush! I got you.” She snatched the PET up and scrambled into the rafters. She paused and looked into her equipment bag, muttering, “Neutralizer. Where is it? There!” She pulled out two powder-blue balls, throwing one down into the room, and smashing the other one on the rafters themselves She stood still for a couple of seconds as the mist quickly expanded, filling the room below and covering her as well. Satisfied that her scent would be masked, she made her escape.
___________________________________

“You definitely run a tight knit crew,” Ryoichi commented as he rounded the corner to the relic room.

“We have to be Lord Ryoichi. This is our duty and-” Don replied, but didn’t finish his thought. When the mouguroi leader stopped in front of him, Don could see the tension in his stance. The ninja swiftly drew out his bowie knife and leapt in front of his employer. “Wait,” he said quietly then sped down the hall to where his guard was lying on the floor. When he reached the doorway, he looked through it and backed away so quickly, anyone inside would have needed special training to know he’d even been in view. He turned to motion Ryoichi up, but he was already there. The ninja frowned at his instruction being ignored. “Empty.”

Scowling, Ryoichi stepped around Don and into the room. He stopped, looked around, and furrowed his brow in confusion. He sniffed slightly, then crouched and inhaled deeply.

Don looked up from the unconscious guard that he’d been checking the vitals of. “What do you smell?”

“Nothing. There’s no scent at all.” He snarled and then moved forward on hands and feet with his face low to the floor. “Odor neutralizer. Must have filled the whole room.” He was moving to the necklace, but stopped and picked up a little piece of glass from the floor. “Modified smoke ball. The kind you and the other ninja have.” He glared over his shoulder at Don.

Don looked up again from the guard and met Ryoichi’s glare. “Yes, your family issues those to us for dealing with the Squeshsque… and other clans as well.”

Ryoichi turned his head away with another snarl. He threw the glass aside and finished moving to the necklace, snatching it up impatiently. Pieces of it slid from the severed chain as he lifted it and he tried to catch them in the air. “No! Damn it, no!”

“Sir?” Satisfied that his guard was not in real danger, he walked up to his employer. “It wasn’t stolen?”

“If only…”

“But wouldn’t that be worse? You can just repair it.”

“Useless!” Ryoichi shouted, throwing the ruined relic at Don. The ninja, already on edge, slashed at the necklace, knocking it out of the air, then held the long knife in front of himself defensively. The mouguroi stood still, his gaze smoldering with anger. Many frozen seconds passed with Ryoichi’s hard breaths the only sound. “It isn’t just a necklace. It’s my ti-… protection… for my nephew. As you said, you don’t use spells, but you should understand that a spell can’t just be glued back together.”

Don waited for two breath’s time before he lowered his weapon. He put the long knife away, then bowed before his employer. “Of course, Lord Ryoichi. Please excuse my ignorance.” He couldn’t see the mouguroi’s face, but could tell from the slight relaxing of his stance that the ninja’s attempt to placate the lord had worked.

“Yes, I couldn’t expect you to understand the severity of this.” He sighed. “I need as many ninja as you can get to keep this room safe. Go. Send someone to retrieve Cho. I’ll be here.” Don nodded and left him behind. With his anger subsiding, the demon lord felt deflated.

Why? he thought to himself. Did the council do this? If so, how’d they find out about Connor being alive? He went back to his hands and feet and slowly picked up the pieces of the ruined necklace. This is only a set back. I’ll just have to mold the boy to my way of thinking, and this is the perfect time to do so. He looked out the window, noting the full moon was almost out. “I’ll be there with the dawn, waiting.”
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“Will you please stop badgering me?” Shina hissed.

“I’m not badgering you,” Cameo argued. “I’m just saying you were acting stupidly and asking how you could be so careless.”

“That’s badgering!” Shina exclaimed and winced at her own volume. She glanced around the corner but didn’t see the infirmary doors open. “Just be quiet for now. I need father to go before I go in.”

“Right. Fine. Okay… Can I make a suggestion?”

Shina sighed. “What?”

“Well, the thing is, I’m a navi, right?”

“Yes, obviously.”

“So, I can log in to things, right?”

Shina was gritting her teeth in frustration. “Cameo, for crying out loud, what is your suggestion?”

“I can log in and, like, listen in? To your father? Secretly?”

The mouguroi girl was quiet for a few seconds. “Just… let me know when he’s leaving.” She logged her navi in and hid her face in her hands. If she ever has an idea before me again, I’m running away from home and spending the rest of my life hiding in the mountains.

Shina waited several minutes during which she decided it was fine that she hadn’t thought of sending Cameo in to spy. The whole family was really still learning about navis after all, and there weren’t that many rooms that had access, father’s room wasn’t even upgraded, everything she’d learned had been mysticism and personal spy work and I swear to God that navi had better not ever have an idea first again! “Shina!”

“I don’t want to live in the mountains!” Shina said, close to tears.

“Wh- what? Uh, your father’s about to leave.”

“Oh.” The mouguroi gulped in a few breaths, blowing them out more quietly each time as she calmed herself. “Okay. Did father say anything important?”

“Um, he and Don were going over that list of clan kids who’ll help the ninja. He asked Don to go with him somewhere. A business trip?”

“Is he going?”

“He wants to watch-”

“Shh!” Shina stepped back and concentrated on being unnoticeable. She watched her father come around the corner and walk past her, maintaining her calm and matching her breathing to his as he went by. She didn’t start breathing normally again until he was out of sight entirely and another half-minute beyond that.

“-over Cho.”

“Uhhn… what?” This was the part Shina hated; coming out of the hidden state felt totally unnatural for a mouguroi. It dulled senses and left her feeling like the world wasn’t real anymore. It took practice and concentration to maintain awareness and remember what was going on while hidden.

“Don wants to watch over Cho. He’s not going with your father.” Cameo waited a few seconds for Shina to respond. “You asked if Don was going on your father’s trip.”

“Yes, thank you. I remember. Thank you.” She blinked a couple times and shook her head before stepping out and walking to the infirmary door.

Don glanced over to the door as Shina opened it. The physician on duty was on the far side of the room. It looked like he was working on an herbal concoction, which was probably to counteract the lotus sleeping dust she’d used on Cho. She glanced at the EKG monitor to make sure the sleeping ninja’s heart rate was normal and walked up to the young leader. “Don,” she spoke softly. “I can watch over Cho. My father is up to no good, I’m sure of it. Please join him, and activate you beacon as well.”

Don looked from her back down to Cho. “He was hit with a strong dose of sleeping powder.”

“He doesn’t seem to be in any danger. I can’t follow him myself. Not out of the temple.”

The ninja leader met her eyes. “I sent him to guard your father’s relics, and he was immediately attacked. He shouldn’t have been alone for that task.”

“You weren’t hired by guilt, Don, so stop letting it tell you what to do. Please, I need you to keep an eye on father.”

Don frowned slightly, then sighed, glancing to Cho and back to Shina. “Yes ma’am,” he agreed quietly as he got up and left the room.

The young mouguroi watched him leave, then whispered, “Sorry,” to Cho before getting up and walking over to the shogi screens that Master Ito’s bed was behind. She shivered at the sight of the incense sticks next to him. Therapeutic! Those are therapeutic, not for funeral rites! She looked away and recomposed herself. Why is my imagination carrying me away like this? It’s Cameo. She did this to me. She suggested I killed Connor, and now it feels like everyone around me is dying. I’ve got it. I can handle this. I’m good. She looked back and went to his bedside. “Master Ito, please wake up.”

“Mmmm… Why do you disturb my rest?” he muttered, opening one eye narrowly to look at her.

“RrrrRRR! You’re not a ghost! Just sleeping!” She reached into her vest and snatched out the letter she’d taken from her father’s meditation room earlier. “Please, I need you to see this.”

The older ninja master blinked his eyes sleepily as he turned to look at the paper in her hand. He chuckled slightly as he reached to take it from her. “Sorry child. I couldn’t resist toying with you a little when your imagination is getting away with you.” Shina blushed in embarrassment at his ability to read her state of mind. Ito began looking over the letter. “Lotus powder is strong. Please don’t hit so near to his face next time.”
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~15 March 20XX ~ Famous’s Apartment~

“Yes, he’s asleep,” Famous said to the vid window on his home computer.

“And what about when he wakes up?” Gateman replied. “Punk isn’t even here, and Kendoman swears that he has too much work to leave SciLab. I can’t deal with Mami on my own.”

“Kendoman’s lying-”

“I know.”

“And if Mami wakes up, Gospel will too.”

“Gospel was there last night!”

“Just get back here please. The network needs some cleanup.” Famous rubbed the bridge of his nose under his glasses as he mumbled, “…before Mami destroys it again.”

“Fine. I’ll be there shortly.”

Famous leaned back and closed his eyes, then noticed a burning smell. “Ah good! Breakfast!” He hopped up from his chair and went into the kitchen to plate up the toast. A few black crumbs fell to the floor as he nibbled on one piece on his way to Bass’s room. The half navi was still asleep on top of his covers. “Come on you lazy bum,” he called out as he put the plate on the study table. “Okay Connor, it’s almost 11. I know it’s Sunday, but…” He stopped as he was approaching Bass’s bed when he noticed his cousin’s appearance. He quickly moved up and grabbed Bass’s arm. “Wake up!” he exclaimed, shaking the teen. “Connor! Wake up!” He continued shaking Bass, letting go of his arm and grabbing his shoulders instead. He stopped suddenly at the sound of running water. He let go of Bass and turned around.

“Lotus sleeping dust is interesting stuff,” Ryoichi commented. He padded over to stand by Famous, not looking at the scientist, but instead observing the sleeping half navi. “Almost magical, the sleep it can induce. In fact, there must be a magic to it. My associate is rinsing it from my half of the young man’s necklace as we speak.”

“You’re not welcome here.” There was a tremor of suppressed anger in Famous’s voice.

Ryoichi ignored him. He shifted Bass slightly and felt under his shoulder. He then pulled out Bass’s necklace, a couple of pieces sliding off the severed chain. He collected those and handed it to Famous.

“What have you done?”

“I’ve come to visit my nephew. Obviously.”

“Why did you break this!?” Famous’s anger was much less suppressed now, although he had no intention of attacking the mouguroi.

“I did not break it, carrier.” He glared directly into Famous’s eyes. “One of my house guards was drugged, and my half of it was broken.”

“Your half?... I-”

“…was unaware. It wasn’t your place to know.”

“It’s clean now Lord Ryoichi,” Don said as he joined the two adults.

“Excellent.” The demon lord pulled out a small jar from his pocket. He uncorked it and removed a pinch of its contents, rubbing the substance between his fingers over Bass’s face. A powder drifted down over the half navi’s nose and mouth. After several seconds of this, Bass twitched and snorted, then licked his lips and nose and settled back down. Ryoichi corked the bottle, put it back in his pocket, and slapped Bass across the face.

The younger demon’s eyes flared open and his roar filled the room as he reflexively slashed out at his attacker. Ryoichi grabbed him by the wrist and Bass hissed, striking out at the demon lord with his free fist, which met empty air. After dodging, Ryoichi roughly pushed Bass away into the wall behind him. The younger demon’s breath huffed out, but he quickly recovered, crouching on his headboard and hissing again.

“Good morning,” Ryoichi said lightly. “Are you going to start thinking about your next move now, or continue these mindless attacks?” His ears twitched slightly as he spoke. He was feeling more amused than angry at the moment.

Bass glanced up from Ryoichi’s face to his ears when they twitched. “What are you?” he asked.

“I am many things. A man, a clan lord, a husband and father. I’m even an uncle, if you’d believe such a thing.” He grinned. “It’s a pleasure to see you again nephew.”

Bass’s ears twitched in surprise. They twitched again in surprise when he realized that his ears had twitched. He reached up to feel his ear, flinching as he nicked it with an extended claw. He retracted his claws and rubbed his ear, noting that it felt longer than the last time they’d grown out overnight. Why am I transforming!? Bass thought. He fumbled under his shirt, then grabbed the covers of his bed and threw them off. Where is it!?

“Your necklace isn’t there.” Bass looked up at him. “It’s being carried by…” Ryoichi trailed off and laughed. “By the carrier. Isn’t that appropriate?”

“Enough!” Famous yelled, surprising Bass again. He’d seen his cousin frustrated before, but not angry like this. His lengthened ears folded and he hunched his shoulders as Famous continued. “You shouldn’t be here. You have no right to-”

“I have every right!” This time, the demon lord met Famous’s eyes. “He is my nephew. MY blood! You cannot deny this, especially now. And you will not deny me.” Famous didn’t respond right away. He held Ryoichi’s glare for several silent moments. Finally, the scientist’s eyes turned aside and he stepped back.

“Uncle.” Bass said. The older demon maintained his glare on Famous a moment more before looking back at his nephew.

“Uncle Ryoichi,” he clarified.

“You’re a mouguroi, aren’t you?”

Ryoichi paused, not expecting Bass to know this. Famous took over the silence, asking, “How’d you know about that?” He sounded concerned.

“Dran told me. And father warned me. I’m not part of your war.” He leaned to the side and stretched a leg to the floor. His shoulders were still hunched tensely when he’d finished getting off the bed and stood before his uncle. “Leave me be.”

Aaaaahhh, Dran. Ryoichi hadn’t considered the vi-navi. And I wasn’t expecting his father to have mentioned anything. I wonder how much he really knows? He put on his best grin and approached Bass, stopping when the younger demon’s hair bristled. “What war boy? I wouldn’t dream of getting you involved in such a thing. But… it is time for you to learn something about the demon side of your family. Perhaps over breakfast? You must be hungry, being in the middle of your transformation.” He looked over at the plate that Famous had set down earlier. “But not that garbage. Summon that Randamu girl.” He waved a hand dismissively at Famous. “And take that trash away.”

Famous paused only a moment. I can’t let the situation get more tense, he thought to himself. He picked up the plate and walked out.

Bass glanced from Famous walking away to Don, who was standing by and observing, then back to Ryoichi. “This isn’t your home,” Bass growled. “You’re ordering him around like-”

“He’s a carrier,” the demon lord interrupted. “Little more than human. Far less than you and I.” He moved to Bass’s couch, kneeling in front of it rather than sitting on it. He picked up the remote to the TV and turned it on, flipping through the channels. “There we are. Samurai Blue has a good chance at winning the World Cup this year.”

Bass wasn’t sure what to do. Is this the same conversation? he wondered. He looked at Don, but the younger teen didn’t react.

“You have a nice room. Will you join me over here?” He was pleased to see that his nephew was off-balance instead of on-edge, but the younger demon stayed where he was.

“Why does my relation have the necklace? Did you take it from me?” Bass’s ear twitched again, and he rubbed it in annoyance.

“Your necklace was part of a set my father made. If either of them was to break, the other would too.”

“You broke it!?”

Ryoichi frowned at his nephew. “It was annoying enough for the carrier to accuse me of that. I don’t need that from you too.” He waited for a moment, but Bass did nothing other than rub his ear again. “Apology too much to expect,” he muttered before continuing what he’d been about to say before. “I was guarding the other half, but someone managed to get to it and cut it.”

“Why would…” He growled slightly and scratched both his ears. “Why would someone do that?” He felt a fine fur on his ears. Itchy! And longer now? As he continued to rub his ears, Ryoichi got up and went over, pulling Bass’s hands away. “Leave me alone.”

“Stop. I’m here to help you.” He maintained his grip as the younger demon tried to pull away. “This happens to all mouguroi on the day of the full moon. Trust me, scratching doesn’t help when transforming.”

“Let go.”

“Are you going to keep scratching?”

“That’s up to me, not you!”

“Then it’s up to me to keep holding on.”

Bass bared his teeth at his uncle. I’m out of here, he thought as he turned his focus to his computer. After a couple seconds, he stopped trying to pull away and furrowed his brow in concentration, but didn’t feel the familiar rush of transitioning into the network. Did this happen before?

“Are you done then?” Bass didn’t answer. Ryoichi looked over at the computer, wondering what was holding his interest. He let go, and Bass’s hands dropped to his sides. He moved halfway to the couch, turning his attention to the TV. “Oh, good! They scored. And I missed it.” He looked back at Bass, but saw no reaction. He was turning his attention back to the TV when Bass suddenly clapped his hands to his ears and dropped to his knees, grimacing in discomfort. He moved back to his nephew, but quickly hopped back when the younger demon slashed at him with extended claws. “This again?”

“Go away,” Bass hissed out, backing away from his uncle.

“Connor.” Ryoichi received a hiss as a response, and Bass tensed to attack when Ryoichi took a step forward. He reached into his robe and drew out a bottle. “This is tiresome.” When Bass covered his nose, Ryoichi smiled. “Oh, you know what this does. Did you know it doesn’t need to be inhaled?” Bass moved back until he was touching the wall. Ryoichi shrugged and turned away. “Well, if you just want some space…” he trailed off, rubbing his chin. “I wonder though; would you refuse that Randamu’s help? What was… her name…?” He waved the bottle as he was talking, and Bass followed it with his eyes. Ryoichi looked over his shoulder. “Miss Lyne Hikari?” Bass stiffened and met Ryoichi’s gaze. After a moment, he dropped his hand and looked away. Ryoichi turned around and approached him again. “We have an understanding?” Bass’s eyes flicked to his uncle and away again before he closed them. Ryoichi sprayed a little of the mist. Bass flinched, then relaxed as he felt the liquid take effect.

“Randamu?” He growled as he felt the itch come back. Ryoichi swatted his hand away before he could scratch.

“You’re going to hurt yourself if you keep scratching. Withdraw your claws.” Bass looked at his hand. He hadn’t realized his claws were out again. “You’re not quite in control of those, are you?” Bass scowled, but retracted his claws without comment. “Randamu is the clan that Lyne is from. She’s the only living Randamu now. They’re supposed to take on curses and use them to their advantage, which makes them different from other angels. You don’t know what they’ll be capable of.” He quickly sprayed some of the mist at Bass again when the younger demon went to scratch again. “And you may be different too.”

Bass sneezed and rubbed his nose. He held up his hand when Ryoichi sprayed again. “Stop! I’m, ugh… not scratching.” He was starting to feel a spreading numbness. “How?”

“How?”

“You said I might…” He sat down on his bed. “Different.”

“Well, as far as the clan knows, you’re a Mougroi. But your father was a mere carrier, just like your lowly cousin Famous. All Cossacks are. Carriers can have all sorts of genetic surprises in their blood. Meaning…”

“What?” Bass snapped when Ryoichi paused for too long.

“Patience!” he barked, squirting him again. “That was for interrupting me.”

“I… didn’t…” He stopped and lay back. His head was starting to feel light. I wasn’t interrupting. Oh, this stuff is really strong.

His uncle smiled. “Let’s see now…” He paused again to see if Bass would give him another opportunity to spray him, but the younger demon stayed quiet. He shrugged and continued. “You father was a carrier. His blood would only reveal its secrets when bred with a pure bred demon. Why my sister chose to be part of that, I don’t know. But that’s beside the point.” He leaned forward. “I’m basically saying you’re half Mouguroi. You might have a bit more of a transformation to go.”

Bass looked at his uncle and tried raising his head. He couldn’t manage it and felt like his whole body collapsed, even though he was already lying down. “I hate you,” he groaned quietly.

“That doesn’t change the fact we’re family.” He smiled and sounded satisfied.

Lady Shina’s right, Don thought to himself, looking on with a neutral expression. Lord Ryoichi is up to something. But what does it have to do with this demon? He tensed slightly, preparing to go for his weapon when he noticed movement at the stairs, but relaxed when he saw that it was Famous returning.

The scientist cleared his throat, and Ryoichi glanced over at him. “She’s not feeling well,” he said. “But she did say she would come over anyway, as long as she got a ride.”

Ryoichi twitched his ears with delight. Not feeling well? he thought. I thought they might be bonded. She must be changing too. “That sounds delightful. I’ll have Don accompany you. We don’t need any of the Squeshsque rogues getting their filthy hands on her now, do we?” He looked sideways at the young ninja as he posed the question.

“No sir,” Don replied. He looked from Ryoichi to Famous and nodded slightly at him before walking over to join him. There aren’t any known rogues in Japan now. He’s trying to get rid of me. He walked past Famous, and turned to look at the scientist when he didn’t follow. He was looking at Ryoichi with obvious distrust. Don put his hand on Famous’s shoulder and motioned his head toward the stairs when the older man looked. We have to play along for now, he thought as he led Famous out.

“Squeshsque?” Bass croaked as his awareness caught up with the conversation. Saying the word brought up a hazy memory of the demon that attacked Lyne some time ago. “Lizard pansy,” he mumbled. He raised up his arm, pointing his fingers to the ceiling. A few small arcs of electricity crackled between his fingers.

Ah, yes. Lightning magic. There’s one of your secrets, Ryoichi thought to himself. “Yes, lizard pansies.” He quietly moved to the top of the stairs, listening as Don and Famous left. Satisfied, he went back over to Bass. The younger demon was staring at the electric arcs, which were starting to get brighter and louder. Ryoichi sniffed his nose at the sharp smell the sparks were making as they burned the air. “Connor!” he barked out to get his dazed attention. Bass rolled his head toward Ryoichi’s voice, and the sparks crackled out as his attention was diverted. “Our clan has protected angels from those pansies for centuries.” Bass blinked at him, but still seemed to be paying attention. “We were bound to protect them by the Anglos and Demos pact. Our clan is direct descendants of the Demos blood line. Thanks to our clan’s devotion, there are still many clans of angels out there today.”

Bass groaned and feebly rolled sideways. He grabbed at his shoulder and pulled at his shirt as he continued to squirm uncomfortably. Ryoichi leaned over and looked behind his nephew. He hooked his claws into the fabric of the shirt and tore it open. Wings, still growing, had sprouted from Bass’s back. “And here I was thinking that human furniture was uncomfortable to use with a tail,” the older demon commented wryly. Bass let his hand drop back onto the mattress and let out a long, relieved breath as his wings flexed freely. He closed his eyes and his breathing became deep and regular. “Magic. Flight. This is going to be quite an interesting surprise for the rest of the clan.” He picked some torn threads from his claws and glanced around the room, then pulled an ink pot and brush out of a pocket inside his robe. “Time to spread my hate.” The mark on his head glowed once more as he looked back down at Bass.

______________________________________________
Author’s Note:

Earlier in the season I gave you guys a little taste of Bass’s living family, but decided to expand on that. And even got a new Fan Request character in Don, and don’t worry Elementalman his navi is not too far behind. The fict will probably be in a slowdown period due to me and Editor doing testing. Expect chapters to come out in month to month and a half increments. There are a few new art pieces I’m trying to get out too inspired by the last chapter, (Mami is so adorable), so be on the lookout. Editor has no comments this month, but maybe after the arc.

See you next time for: ~Lan and Lyne Season 3~ Episode 15: Hidden Lies
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[Speedy]

Quite glad you gave me a headsup, as it seemed the forum hadn't given me one..

Good chapter, hope your testing won't take too long, haha.
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