Orchestrated By C.M. Rich (Magnetman)
By Hardman
Snow fell outside, making
the building cold inside. The broken window didn't help matters any,
but that didn't matter to Constance. The AI's comandeered body crouched
low behind the wooden counter as the spotlight swept over the area.
The human officers charged with sweeping the streets for possible SA
infiltration units were in a hurry, though, and didn't look close enough
to notice the broken window.
After a few minutes of total silence, Constance stood slowly, looking
around itself. This place felt... different than everywhere else. It
felt like familiar, somehow.
[Speculation: Are... memories bleeding over from this unit?]
[Fact: Memory sharing is an indication of a hostlink.]
[Query: Is that something I can risk?]
Constance took in the sight. The bottles lined up in front of the mirrored
wall, behind the sturdy wooden counter. The tables, arranged haphazardly
around the room. The meaningless decorations on the walls.
[Query: If I establish a hostlink, am I not complete? My function fufilled?]
It shook the borrowed head, purely out of reflex.
[Fact: I cannot allow ... doubt... to keep me from achieving my objective.]
[Fact: I must locate Dr. Light. He will be able to repair me.]
A small noise behind it made Constance whirl about, the hand sliding
the hunting knife easily out of the boot sheath. There, standing in
the doorway in front of the locked door, was a small child. He was
no older then nine, wearing a simple windbreaker that offered no protection
against the cold, and an expression that spoke of no discomfort. No...
it was determined. The boy was here with purpose.
"I thought I would find you here," the boy said. His voice
was familiar in a way. Cold in a manner that had nothing to do with
temperature, and high in a way that shook the spine. "No matter
what you become, you never change."
Constance analyzed the situation as the boy continued to speak, standing
there in the cold wind, unmoving. "You can't speak, can you? I
thought not. It doesn't seem like you're all there, my dear...I hit
a nerve last time, though. You recited the verse, but I don't believe
you did it consciously..."
The AI had the entire formula worked out. The throw would be perfect,
the force would be enough. The knife would bury itself in this... child's
head. Or whatever was pretending to be this child. Thought became action,
and the air screamed as the blade cut through it.
The child made no move to avoid it, and simply raised his hand, letting
the knife sink deeply, cutting straight through the palm. There was
no spray of blood, no cry of pain. Just a dull thunk, and the boy smiled. "Your
processors must be damaged if you haven't figured out that this kind
of thing doesn't work on me."
Only now did Constance notice the boy's left pupil. Not the normal,
human circle of pitch black. A white spiral.
Damn it.
The boy calmly took the blade out of his hand and tossed it back to
Constance, like he was givng a book to a friend. "Let's be honest,
here. There's nothing you can do to harm me, and I doubt very much
I'll be able to catch you if you choose to run. So let us talk. Man
to man, so to speak."
He read her ever-still expression carefully, and then a look of surprise
seemed to cross his features. "I see! So that old coot botched
the job THAT bad, did he? Completely destroyed you ability to utilize
her vocal chords. Interesting..."
Constance took a step back, unsure of how to respond to this.
[Query: How can this enemy know these things?]
"Oh, it's quite easy," the boy chuckled, catching Constance
off guard again. "I'm something of a mind reader. I'm afraid your
mind is rather dull, however. All 'fact' this and 'query' that. You
seem to be searching for Dr. Light."
Constance seemed to consider something.
[Fact: He is able to read my statement lines.]
"Thank you, captain obvious," the boy said.
[Then... Query: Are you also searching for Dr. Light?]
"I see you're gaining a firmer grasp on the language," he
smiled.
"And in answer to your question, I ask you a similar one: Who
ISN'T looking for Dr. Light?"
[Query: Do you wish to terminate him?]
The boy laughed aloud now, long and hard, high and cold. It was a laugh
that bounded around the room with a life of its own, threatening to
destroy the last vestiges of sanity held to by those that heard it. "Kill
him, you mean? Whatever for?"
[Query: Why are you searching for Dr. Light?]
"Well, certainly not for the same reason you are. I need no repairs,"
the boy chuckled, still amused with himself. "No, I'm looking
for him for a different reason."
The boy turned and moved across the thin layer of snow on the hardwood
floor to the broken window, looking out into the quiet streets. And he spoke. "Our mutual orange friend has an amazingly
brutal point: Megaman, that blue robot, is the key to everything. Uniting
the resisting Robot Masters against General Cutman, making a case against
the Shutdown Code, even rallying his bedamned red brother to the side
of justice and smiting the evil that marches across this globe to save
the human race. He truly is the key to it all.
But imagine, for a moment, that the mighty Megaman never comes to the
fight. Never rallies the divided factions to combat the greater evil.
What then? Does the world fall into the hands of the Scissor Army,
humanity made into nothing but a blood-soaked memory? Or do the heroes
of this mudball somehow triumph, destroying the greatest threat to
this world it has ever seen? Even then, how does life continue after
a war of this scale has torn it apart? Do we all patch our relationships
up and press on, or do we accept the changes that took place and try
to make the best of it?"
The boy turned around, looking Constance up and down.
"I've heard it said that at the end of the show, people change.
You are the truest example of that I have ever seen.
I just want to see how everything ELSE changes."
[Supposition: So... you merely wish to keep Megaman out of the War
for as long as possible?]
"Indeed!" the child grinned, clapping his hands. "You
learn quickly, don't you? If Megaman magically reappears, he'll prevent
such a drastic change from taking place. He'll turn the tide before
the upheaval. He'll fix it all before the permanent damage is done.
Where's the fun in that, I ask you? After all this work, after coming
so far?"
[Fact: I am unsure what you mean. However, our goals do not seem to
conflict.]
"It would seem that way, wouldn't it? You simply wish to be repaired,
to become fully functional again. But what of your host? What does
SHE desire?"
[Fact: This unit desires a quick end to the conflict.]
The boy smiled, putting his hands in the pockets of the windbreaker. "And
the best way to do that is...?"
[Conclusion: Find Megaman.]
"Indeed. And this would put you and I into... somewhat direct
conflict, wouldn't it? Is that... acceptable to you, Constance?"
[Fact: I do not wish to do battle with an enemy I cannot defeat.]
"I'll take that as a no, then," the boy said with a slight
smirk.
"Then I suppose it is in your best interest to insure that your
host does nothing to further the cause of finding Megaman, isn't it?"
[Fact: You are correct.]
"I usually am." The boy looked at an imaginary watch on his
wrist.
"Well, my full attention is required elsewhere, but I shall still
remain in this city. I shall be keeping an eye on you, Constance. Remember
what we talked about."
With that, the boy simply melted back into inoffensive light particles.
Constance was left to itself inside the borrowed body.
[Fact: I cannot allow this unit to continue searching for Megaman.]
[Reason: A direct fight with that enemy has a 90% chance of ending
in my destruction.]
[Conclusion: ... I cannot allow this unit's normal consciousness to
control this unit anymore.]
[...]
[AI Constance mode default changed from Passive Mode to Active Mode.]
--------------------
"Stop in the name of the law! HOLD UP, Dammit!"
Topman didn't even slow down, sliding around a corner of a block and
applying his full speed forward again, moving with grace and ease even
over the partly frozen streets.
"You'll have to be faster to catch me, Landigarm!" he laughed
over his shoulder. He amusement was cut short when an RPD APC appeared
at the next intersection. "Well... okay, argument accepted," Topman
admitted, sliding to a halt between the menacing looking machine and
the squadron of MPD officers rounding the corner and joining him on
the street.
"Surrender, metalhead!" Landigarm, hauling an EMP rifle,
was foaming at the mouth. The look in his eye could only be there because
he was sure he would catch Topman THIS time. He HAD to. The little
runt had nowhere to run, and then he'd finally get some respect around
Headquarters. This would keep all those damn robots in line.
His features fell as Topman grinned.
The spinning demon launched himself into the air, sailing toward the
RPD vehicle that was just beginning to open and let out the assembled
RPD backup. He lightly touched down on top of the APC a mere second
before he launched his attack. The Top Spin tore the upper half of
the vehicle into shreds, sending them all off in random directions
at a height that wouldn't put anyone in any real danger, but would
force them to duck their heads.
As the storm of kinetic energy gathered around the orange robot, he
relaxed his breathing a little and focused, only slightly sure this
would work.
Landigarm, absolutely furious that he might be denied his prize, hefted
the rifle he carried and aimed. At this range, he'd do little more
than stun Topman, but he could turn that to his advantage.
Until Topman simply shot into the sky like a rocket. The remains of
the APC, now empty, simply crumpled into the street as a furious wind
tore past the assembled law enforcement officers.
Captain Landigarm could only watch as Topman landed lightly on top
of a nearby building. As the rest of his squadron and backup picked
themselves up off the ground, he screamed incoprehensible rage and
threw the rifle, taking only small satisfaction in the cracking sound
it made when it hit the concrete.
Topman, on the other hand, hit the roof of the building and immediately
felt his legs give out. They were numb from what he'd just done. Forcing
all of the kinetic energy generated by his Top Spin through his legs
had given him the height he'd needed to get away from the police and
get some breathing time, but had the unfortunate side effect of overloading
his legs for a short time, rendering them numb and useless.
He lay there on the cool gravel that lined the roof, gulping in air
as the darkness of utter exhaustion threatened to close in around him.
He'd been sneaking past patrols and outrunning manhunts for days, maybe
even weeks now. With all the time he'd spent running, he'd only managed
to run himself down, and his search for Dr. Light was not progressing
at all.
Top rolled himself over and stared into the overcast sky. The sun was
setting, but you could never tell in Monsteropolis. The smog was one
thing, but the actual Teleportation Shield, the one that prevented
him from simply disappearing from the sight of the patrols and kept
the city relatively SA free, blurred and smudged the sky. The cold
in the air turned breath to fog, and had left a fair amount of frost
crystals covering most exposed metal.
"That is an interesting trick," someone said.
"Why can't you just leave me alone?" Topman sighed.
"Oh, please," Mesmerman chuckled, his child-like version
sitting on the edge of the building. "You're one of the few interesting
things to observe in this town."
"Aren't you some kind of brutal killer? Why are you just hanging
around and watching me?" he asked, forcing himself to sit up.
He was starting to get some feeling back in his legs, but he felt no
sense of urgency. This wasn't the first conversation he'd had with
this somewhat unthreatening form of one of the Mechanical Maniacs'
more worrying opponents.
"I have investments in this city I'd like to see mature more fully,"
the little boy with the spiral eyes shrugged.
"That cyborg you mentioned?"
"Ah, she's out of my care now. Reached her logical conclusions
and will remain out of my way for as long as I wish her to," the
boy smiled in self-satisfaction. "Incidentally, you should join
the Scissor Army. General Cutman could find a use for you."
"Thanks but no thanks," Topman snorted. "Again."
"Can't say I didn't try."
"You don't try very hard."
"I don't have to," the little boy grinned. "This arrangement
I have with the General is much different than my arrangement with
Juno. I have a certain level of... freedom. It's enjoyable, since I
can keep my various eyes on several places at once."
The orange robot got to his feet, taking a few deep breaths to fight
off the few remaining shakes. "You don't seem to be all that enthusiastic
about the Scissor Army cause," he noted. "Why don't you join
the RPD?"
"Why don't you?"
"Touche," Topman nodded.
"I felt it was a legitimate question," Mesmerman grinned. "Why
leave your friends like that? The Maniacs have been operating at half
strength, making all of their operations so far much more... problematic
than normal."
Top shook his head. "I can't go along with it. Just one bad decision
after another. It'll only end in bigger problems for the team. Maybe...
maybe once this is all over. Then we can fix it all."
Mesmerman laughed at some private joke. "Well, I wish you luck
with that. I shall watch with interest," th elittle boy chuckled
before dissipating into slightly charged ions.
"Yeah," Topman frowned. "I bet you will..."
It was some time later when Captain Landigarm stood in the Chief's
office, getting a firm lecture. Oddly enough, though, it wasn't from
the Chief. It was, in fact, from Gaderham.
"I've told you time and time again, Captain," the little
robot was saying in a dark tone, "that we cannot afford your needless
showboating. Topman is NOT a priority, and every time you call in RPD
forces to apprehend the 'suspicious robot' has ended only in casualties
and repair bills! And Topman isn't even TRYING to fight you! He normally
just runs away! What part of your backwards brain keeps demanding you
attempt to arrest a lose-lose situation like that?"
"Sir, I-"
"- Don't currently have permission to speak freely, captain," the
small robot said with a certain amount of venom in his normally cheerful
voice.
" And that will remain as such until either I allow it to be otherwise
or the Chief himself comes like God's own child into this office and
asks me to let you speak, which is a very, VERY small chance at this
point. You WILL cease and desist ANY AND ALL attempts to apprehend
Topman, and if I hear even a WHISPER that you're looking for him again,
I can fully garuntee that your job and current place of residence
will be fully available for someone else better suited to the both
of them. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, sir," Landigarm said feebly.
"Dismissed," Gaderham said with disgust. The Captain turned
on his heel and stepped out of the office, disappearing into the hallway
beyond. The wheeled robot sighed and rolled off to one side of the
room, leaning against a wall to take a load off his wheel bearings
for a moment. It wasn't long before the Cheif arrived, a cigar hanging
from his lips as he entered, staring intently at a file in his hand
as he made his way absently around the room and sat down in his chair.
"Sir, reporting as requested," Gaderham said, rolling dutifully
to the center of the room and snapping off a salute. The Cheif barely
noticed, leaving Gaderham to sitting there for a few moments as he
finished reading the file.
"Good to see you again, Gaderham," the Chief nodded as he
looked up.
"I trust you've handled Garm's issue?"
"Yes sir. I've taken him off Topman's trail entirely, and he's
been warned against pursuing it on his own."
"Good. And how is Topman?" The man settled back into his
chair, taking a long draw off his cigar and letting the smoke roll
out of his nostrils.
"Still moving around freely, sir."
"Excellent. It's good to see that these Robot Masters can survive
without their team to support them. Gives me a bit more faith in them
as commanders on the battlefield, really."
"Yes, sir," the small robot nodded.
"I just finished reading your report on the Syne Co investigation,
and I have to say that I'm also a little curious to see what's really
going on down there. Unfortunately, I don't have the time to get the
clearance I need to carry out any kind of full investigation into an
apparently legitimate business. I need something more to go on."
"Understood sir," Gaderham nodded again. "If I may,
sir, I'd like to look into solving the problem through less official
channels."
The Chief gave him a critical glare. "I understand that you have
certain amounts of relevant experience, but I can't allow one of my
officers to just vanish into some oddball government complex for a
few days on the off chance you'll turn something up. I need something
far more concrete before I can approve any kind of move." The
Chief drew in another lungfull of smoke and let it out slowly. "Besides,
I doubt you could manage much of anything, looking as odd as you do
these days."
"If I could have prevented the total corruption of my original
motor routines, sir, I wouldn't be rolling around like this," the
half-pint grinned.
"All jesting aside, sir, I wasn't referring to myself. I actually
have a good agent in mind, but contacting him may be a little problematic."
The older man in the chair looked him up and down, which didn't take
much effort, all things considered, and cracked a smile. "Very
well, I suppose. I wouldn't be able to stop you anyway."
"Thank you for the approval, sir," Gaderham nodded.
"It isn't official approval, you understand."
"Of course not, sir."
"Anything else? Official business instead of under-the-table stuff
for a change?"
"I'm just a clerk, sir. Paperwork is beneath your notice."
"I only wish, some days," the Cheif sighed, looking at his
IN box, piled high with requests and forms. "Well, good luck to
you, then."
"Thank you for your time, sir," Gaderham said with another
salute, and turned to leave.
"With the amount of work you do around here, I think sometimes
I should thank you for YOUR time," the Cheif chuckled as Gaderham
left the room. The small joke put Gaderham's normal grin on his face
as he wheeled down the hallway to the elevator. He hit the button for
the first floor and rode down in silence, encountering a wall of sound
and a bustle of activity as the doors opened again.
He slid easily into the throng of operatives, officers, robots, humans,
battered and tired souls all, following a general flow of chaos to
his desk where he leaned on it to take some of his weight off his wheels.
He was just thinking about maybe grabbing a drink and taking a small
break before getting on his various other errands when Gag's hands
slammed down on his desk.
"Dad's gonna KILL me," Gag was saying, over and over.
"Whoa, calm down," Gaderham said, drawing himself up straight.
"What happened?"
"Cassandra! She's missing! Oh god, Dad's gonna crush my head like
a can. He's gonna pick me up and just make me two dimensional over
this, I just know it..."
"She's probably fine," Gaderham said dismissively. "Probably
prowling around town and looking for clues. She can take care of herself,
either way. She seems to have some experience in these matters."
Gag gave him a withering glare. "Yeah, you don't know my dad really
well, do ya?"
"I know him well enough to recognize the barest hints of his outlandish
accent when they crop up in conversation," Gaderham grinned. "You're
just like him, in some ways."
Gag visibly stopped worrying about everything else for a second and
stared off into space. "Oh my god," he said after a short
pause, "I don't think I care if I die now."
"Glad I could help," the wheeled robot smiled.
"But this is still bad! She could be anywhere," Gag protested,
his persistence in worrying about this starting to visibly fray Gaderham's
nerves.
"and if she isn't here when Dad gets back from Madrid, I'm going
to DIE. He'll KILL ME. HOMICIDE, do you get it?"
"Well, I'm sure you'll be fine," Gaderham sighed. "The
young lady is probably asleep in the basement levels. Have you checked
there?"
The other robot looked at him for a moment before vanishing into the
mass of people.
Gaderham sighed and shook his head. "I swear, sometimes its like
I'm the only person with a single working resistor in here," he
muttered under his breath.
Gag, meanwhile, making his way downstairs, kept swearing. "Dad
is gonna freakin' kill me when he gets home..."
--------------------
Constance crouched low,
avoiding the gaze of the RPD troopers stationed at the edge of the
city. They were there to protect it from invaders, but someone who
was leaving the city would also attract unwanted attention.
This was problematic, as recent evidence pointed to Dr. Light's flight
from the city entirely. Common sense, when you thought about it, but
solid evidence was required before an expedition into the no-man's-land
outside of the city could be attempted.
The AI's uninterrupted control of its host had led to some logical
progressions in its programming. The variable weapons program it had
created to protect itself had grown and evolved. Constance now carried
one of the SA Joe rifles, comandeered with little effort from an evidence
locker under RPD headquarters. It turned out that, without wearing
the performance enhancing armor, nobody questioned its presence in
the facility. An unforseen benefit to this host.
It... she... shifted, slightly, into a sitting position, keeping a
careful eye on the guard, looking for an opening. Some sort of diversion
would be ideal, drawing the guards away to some phantom disturbance
so she could effect an escape.
But her thoughts were torn away from the matter at hand as flashing
red and blue lights caught her attention. Her every muscle tensed,
ready for action, as she observed the APC drawing closer, and then
passing her hiding spot by, pulling up to the gathered troopers.
A changing of the guard. This would have been ideal if she'd known
about it. Still... the opportunity shouldn't be wasted...
The APC opened up and the gather troopers stepped back to allow the
occupants of the vehicle out. But that isn't what happened Nothing
came out of the APC, and no one entered. The lights just kpet flashing,
but nothing moved. No one did anything. There were no noises out of
the ordinary, that Constance could tell over the siren, so what...
Sledgehammer force caught her from behind, thick arms wrapping around
her upper arms and chest as she struggled to get her feet under her.
The rifle clattered to the ground as she drew in air to fuel her muscles,
and kicked off the ground, rising to a standing position and slamming
her assailaint into a wall with her back.
Attention be damned, she was under attack!
Captain Landigarm coughed up blood as she wriggled out of his grip
and whirled to face him. He grimaced and tried to catch his breath
as her hand flashed down to her lower leg and then came up, the hunting
knife an uncomfortable distance away from his neck and he grabbed her
wrist with both hands. The force she was putting against him was brutal,
almost unreal for someone her size and build. She had every intention
of killing him.
"Damn machine..." he grunted, bringing his knee up to catch
her in the gut and forcing her away as she weaved to avoid the blow.
He drew his firearm, the fastest draw on the force, and had the trigger
halfway pulled when the blade of the weapon slammed down into the slide
of his weapon and bit deeply into the barrel beneath, rendering both
their weapons useless.
He dropped the mash of tangled metal as she went for his throat, grabbing
her hands with his own, and immediately regretted it as hastily constructed
metal gauntlets bit deeply into his flesh with sharp edges. Her grip
was like iron, but he just had to hold out...
And the cavalry arrived. The troopers from the edge of the city had
gathered around in a semicircle, their weapons levelled at his attackee. "Surrender!"
one of them barked.
Constance simply hauled backwards, pulling Landigarm off balance and
kicking his legs out from under him, throwing him with ease into the
center of the firing lin and using the distraction to slip away into
the city block, shotuing RPD troopers in hot pursuit.
Landigarm coughed as he rolled off on of the troopers and got to his
feet, trying to forget the stabbing pain in his hands. Gaderham rolled
up beside him.
"Good work, Captain."
"Thank you, sir," he wheezed, still trying to catch his breath
from the cold air.
"Interesting tactic, distracting her like that," the little
robot nodded. "I admit, it shows some excellent tactical forethought."
"Thank you, sir."
"I only wish you would have allowed one of the RPD officers to
handle it," Gaderham sighed. "No need for blood to be spilled
over this matter."
Captain Landigarm grimaced. "I have a feeling I won't be the only
bloodied participant before this is over..."
Constance's flight took her down snaking alleyways and up short fire
escapes as she gradually made her way around and up the block. The
RPD troopers followed on foot, but never attempted to climb the building
itself, probably content with the idea that she wouldn't be able to
escape one way or the other without being observed and then pursued.
The AI, however, had other ideas, and arrived soon on the top of the
taller building in the block. From here, she could easily see the skywalk
that went from this building to the office building across the street.
It was simply a matter of breaking into this building and avoiding
the RPD troopers until she managed to get through the skywalk and disappear
again.
Another attempt would have to be made to leave the city. Too many were
looking for her, now. Still, how had they located her?
She threw herself through the roof-access door and down a flight of
stairs, not even bothering to stop at closed or locked portals and
instead choosing to bash her way through. She had to reach the floor
with the skywalk access from up here before the RPD got to it from
down there. She was unarmed and on the run. Perfect.
Her joints ached and screamed protests, but those were concerns for
the other consciousness of this body. Constance was only concerned
with the job at hand. She leapt down stairwells and forced her way
through doors all the way down to the fifth floor. The level one could
get to the Skywalk from.
The glass doors that led to the street-spanning enclosure gave way
easily, and for a moment she observed the city from this rather odd
vantage point. She wasted no time in awe, however, moving quickly from
one end to the other. The door on the other side of the skywalk was
opaque, and she approached it with caution.
Well deserved, in fact.
The two RPD troopers on the other side of the door didn't attempt to
apprehend her, they barely said anything. They merely opened fire,
plasma shots sailing past her moving form and impacting against the
glass of the skywalk, cracking the windows all over the structure and
shattering it with a second salvo.
She flowed through the door, grabbing one trooper's face and arm as
he tried to snap off a third shot, and swung the robot's weapon around
to shoot his partner, who fell with a gaping hole in the side of his
head. Shoving the trooper off balance, she rolled over the corpse,
grabbing his firearm in one smooth motion and placing a plasma bullet
in the other trooper's chest, making him go slack. She hesitate for
only a moment before scooping up the othe weapon as well and setting
off down the hallway, looking for stairs up. If they were here already,
chances are the block was surrounded on the ground floor, as well...
The stairs up were taken slower, partially because of the limitations
of this body Constance was using, and partially because she kept encountering
RPD troopers that needed to be disposed of. She fired the weapons she'd
stolen from the fallen robots with precision and skill, dispatching
troopers with one or two well-placed shots while being forced to avoid
minimal return fire. She kept a silent count of the shots fired, and
madfe sure to switch her weapons for fresh ones every 30 shots, to
insure the plasma weapon's power sources would not deplete themselve
at an inopportune moment.
Finally, she came to the top of the building. This particular office
building had belonged to a mega-corp, and the building was big and
wide, making the flat roof with the antenna springing like a redwood
from the middle a large arena. Two bright spotlights shone down upon
her, and a moment's consideration was necessary before both of her
weapons fired once, the spotlights attatched to the RPD aerial units
shattering and becoming dark.
Thrown off their guard and convinced they were under attack, the unarmed
aerial units retreated, leaving the skies empty of anything but hazy
stars. The light rose from the streets as RPD vehicles and units arrived
in the dozens, surrounding the building. But above the sounds of the
sirens and shouting, Constance heard something else.
Slow, methodical clapping.
"That was impressive," said the newcomer. At first, Constance
was on guard, convinced Mesmerman had appeared to taunt her again,
but this was a different voice. And a different form. Stark, bright
orange but dirtied armor and a simple, slightly stylish coat. Tired
eyes, but a small smile.
Topman.
"So what do you do for an encore?" he asked.
A much more familiar voice cut through the air, and the boy in the
windbreaker simply appeared there. "I see you've finally met my
pet project!"
Mesmerman laughed. "It is just so wonderful to see all that work
come to fruition, isn't it?"
Topman shook his head, disgust crossing his features. "Let me
guess... remnants of the Siegema'am system, still somewhere in her
skull."
"Miraculous, isn't it? Syne Co does such wonderful work when it
comes to mashing biology and technology together."
"You're a sick and twisted freak, Mesmerman."
Constance was unsure of how to proceed. The newcomer and the unkillable
enemy seemed to know each other, but she was unsure how their conversation
applied to the matter at hand.
"By all means, my noble friend, try and save her," the little
boy giggled. "But you know how the saying can go: Once a cybrog,
Always a cyborg. But the RPD draws near... and I can insure the two
of you remain... uninterrupted." And with that, he vanished again.
Topman growled. "He'll kill them all..." he grimaced. He
wasn't the RPD's biggest fan at this point, but the senseless death
Mesmerman seemed to be advocating would never sit well with him, no
matter what. Still... there was the matter at hand to attend to. He
stepped into an area with more light and gave the woman in the armor
an appraising glance.
"Do you recognize me?" he asked.
Constance shook her head. Should she?"
"Dammit," he spit. "I suppose it's to be expected." He
sighed, lost in some private train of thought. "I'm not sure what
to do. I left them all behind because they were all too worried about
everything else. Hardman and his bar, Shadowman and his sister. Hell,
even Snakeman's been consumed by this... hunt, I guess, for justice.
Geminiman and Magnetman have been eaten alive by their own darkness,
and Sparkchan has run off to be with Wily.
But what could I have done? Get that idiotic code put into my head?
Make myself vulnerable like that? We all have our limits, and mine...
I don't know. Maybe if I'd stayed behind, we could have at least kept
Geminiman and the good guys' side. Maybe. But then again, probably
not. It doesn't seem to matter much if I'm there or not. Life goes
on, with or without me. Some days I just feel to small to make a difference.
And then something like this comes along," Topman said, giving
Constance a meaningful look. "A chance to do something. To find
and save the only one who can bring us all together and end this whole
damn war. And I'm still useless. I can't even begin to guess where
Dr. Light is hiding. I have no idea where to start. I'm just... lost.
Mesmerman says you can't talk. That's probably for the best, really.
Hell, I bet you barely get the things I'm saying, the state you're
in." He gave another heavy sigh and thought to himself for a while.
Constance tried hard to read something into his facial expressions,
but her inexperience in this made it something like futile.
Finally, Topman seemed to come to a decision. "I guess I just
have to show them all what I can do. I'm gonna have to save the team.
This family we have. I'll have to show them what family means, all
over again. Like that white bastard said... Once and Always. I just
have to show them."
Topman walked over to the edge of the building and looked down at the
streets below. Mesmerman's white, jigsaw-like avatar floated there,
swinging its scythe and slaughtering any RPD trooper that tried to
approach the doors. He looked up and beyond it, past the only block
between them and the edge of Monsteropolis. He took and deep breath
and let it out slowly before looking behind him. He gave a half-hearted
smile and held out a hand.
"We both want to find Dr. Light, Cassandra," he said. "Want
to come with me?"
Constance looked him up and down, trying to come to a decision. This
newcomer seemed to know her very well. Both sides of her. Its possible
he could be instrumental in helping both sides of her find what they
were looking for. An ideal situation. And to Constance's logical mind,
a wonderful option when compared the the white and black spiralled
death machine that was currently thirteen stories below her.
She finally stepped forward, taking his hand, as flecks of orange light
began to gather around them. Topman's ability to generate kinetic energy
manifested in an orb of burninf points of light that began to whirle
around them before focusing inward and gathering around his legs.
"Hold on tight," he grinned, and in a roar of wind, the pair
of them sailed out into the night sky, flying over the block before
them and falling to the ground on the other side, both rolling as they
hit the ground. A wet snap reported that Constance's arm broke in the
fall, and Topman's own coat ripped itself to shreds on the uneven ground.
Not wanting to waste time, however, the pair of them stood up as quickly
as their various levels of pain would allow, and stumbled into the
night, away from the city of Monsteropolis in the seemingly impossible
hunt for the one thing that could save them.
And somewhere inside the city, Mesmerman's robot body picked itself
up, and the illusion of his virtual avatar died away. In the darkness
of his hiding place, Mesmerman breathed in deep.
"Pleased to meet you," he said to no one in particular. "I
hope you guess my name..."
As he left the dark hovel on the edge of town andd stepped beyond the
edge of the Teleportation Shield, he gazed up at the stars and grinned
mentally.
"Because what's puzzling you is the nature of my game."
And then he was gone.
--------------------