#wdbg

Geo stepped forward.  “What is it, Sili?”

She yanked free the scalpel and spun around, saying, “As I suspected: the theft was premeditated!  This Hertz was working under contract!”

Gently pushing aside the scalpel, Geo said, “Great.  Were you able to see who it was that wanted that data?”

“See?  No.” Sili turned and set aside her tool, then made her way over to one of the many consoles lining the wall.  “The Hertz remotely uploaded the data to his client--they never met in person.  However, the contact information, the mannerisms, it all lines up with a certain someone I recall seeing in the Level Black registry…”

Geo winced.  “The Level...Sili, that’s above our clearance!  You shouldn’t be poking around in there!”

“Eh, what’s the big deal?” Mega asked.  “How are we gonna do our job if we don’t know who the bad guys are?”

“I’m with Mega,” Bonnie said.  “If Sili knows who we’re after, that’ll make this a whole lot easier.”

Geo sighed.  “Man...I just hope the Chief doesn’t find out…”

“What was that?”

Geo shuddered.  Spinning around, he saw a new Wizard entering the lab: he had a tall, cylindrical white body with tube-like arms, his face chiseled into a permanently stern expression. Saluting, Geo said, “O-Oh, Oxygen, sir! We were just, um…”

The Wizard chuckled.  “At ease, Captain.  I’m not going to rat you out to the Chief.  Let’s see what Silicon’s found.”

Geo let out a long breath.  Bonnie laughed, saying, “Had us scared for a minute there, Gen!  Is Chief getting impatient?”

Oxygen approached Sili, answering, “He is a bit anxious, Carbon.  Only to be expected, considering data was stolen from the Satellite Server on his watch.  The quicker we resolve this, the better, so I can overlook Silicon’s...overzealousness just this once.”

Nitro chuckled.  “You said something similar the last time, sir.”

Oxygen hummed quietly.  Sili slapped the console then, shouting, “Yes!  There’s a 99% probability that this is our culprit!”

Geo looked up.  Displayed on-screen was an image of a boy about his age with a spiky cloud of black hair, wearing a black jacket with shoulder pads over an orange t-shirt.  A veritable wall of text scrolled next to the photo, but at the very top was a name: “Kazuma Hikari”.  Oxygen somehow looked even more grim at the sight.

“...I see,” the commanding Wizard said.  “I should’ve guessed it was him.”

“Hikari…” Geo muttered.

Sulphur raised an eyebrow.  “Sound familiar?”

“Oh, well...I remember learning about some highly skilled scientists with that name around 200 years ago.  But that probably has nothing to do with this.”

Oxygen shook his head.  “No, it does.”

“Sir?”

Facing the team, Oxygen said, “Since you’ll most likely be the ones going after him, I’ll go ahead and authorize you to know this now.  Kazuma Hikari is descended from the same Hikari family that was essential in forming net society circa 200x...but unlike his ancestors, who used their gifts to benefit society, Kazuma is one of the most dangerous hackers WAZA has ever had to deal with.”

Geo’s brows came together.  “Then...he’s trying to destroy the very thing his family worked so hard to build?”

“Yeesh,” Mega said, “talk about teenage rebellion…”

“Kazuma has yet to put forth any sort of mission statement, and his actions are rather erratic,” Oxygen said.  “We cannot be entirely certain of his intentions.  Whatever the case, he has eluded us at every turn, all the while gathering stores of sensitive data and probing for any weakness he can find in our security.  He’s planning something...something big.  If he’s going after the Satellite Server now, then the time he puts that plan into action could very well be fast approaching.”

Geo nodded.  “I see. Do we have any leads on his whereabouts?”

“Haha...always eager.  We don’t have much to go on, but once I inform Chief Steorra I’m sure he’ll get our analysts right on it.  For the time being, you should all get some rest and await further orders.  You’ll need to be in top form to have even a chance of catching this one.”

Oxygen left the lab.  Sili began shutting down her console, pausing to say, “Oh, I didn’t ask what we should do with this Hertz…”

“Just delete him,” Sulphur said, stalking towards the exit.  “Not like he can do us any good now.”

Bonnie rubbed the back of her neck.  “Mmmm...sounds a little harsh, though…”

“I’m sure Chief Steorra will mention it in his orders,” Nitro said.  “Until then, there’s no harm in keeping him here.”

Sulphur was gone without another word.  Geo said, “Well, you heard Oxygen.  I’ll see you guys later.  Thanks again for all the great work today!”

“Sure thing, Captain!” Bonnie said.  “Hey, Mega, want to go a few rounds?”

“Any time!” Mega said.  “You were gonna hang out for a bit anyway, weren’t you kid?”

Geo chuckled.  “Yeah. Go have some fun.”

The two of them went down the hall while Geo made for the elevator.  Taking it up a few dozen levels, he arrived on a floor that was wide-open, dotted with couches, tables, vending machines, and droves of exhausted researchers.  At the center of the floor was a fountain, where Geo found Zack sitting on the edge talking into his Hunter.

“I know it hasn’t stabilized yet, but we need more data!  Pedia has been specially outfitted with all the necessary protection.  He’s at no risk.”  Zack looked up as Geo approached.  “I have to go.  I’ll call you back once we’ve found something.”

“Working hard, I see,” Geo said.  “They’re at least paying you for this internship, right?”

Zack adjusted his glasses, momentarily revealing the bags under his eyes. “Due to recent regulations, they’re only able to offer college credit, but I can’t complain.  It’s a dream come true to be working with WAZA!”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“Before I forget: how’s that contraption of yours treating you?”

Geo pulled at his left sleeve, revealing what looked like a square wristwatch with his shooting star emblem over the face.  “Oh, the Noise Band?  I think it’s coming along, but I’ve got some more work to do before submitting an actual proposal.  I’ve been so focused on the combat functions, but I’ll need to iron out everything else if I want to make a commercial model.”

Zack nodded, trying his best to stifle a yawn.

“You look like you could use some rest, Zack.”

“Oh, no, I’ll be fine.  I won’t be able to rest until I have something to show for my work.”

“Alright...well, don’t push yourself too hard.  Remember we’ve got Prez’s party in a few days.”

Zack averted his gaze.  “R-Right…”

Geo’s band chimed.  Quickly navigating the Air Display, he said, “That’s my dad.  I’ll see you later, Zack.”

He doubled back towards the elevator.  The doors soon opened to reveal Kelvin Stelar, tugging at the collar of his WAZA uniform as he grumbled under his breath.

“Doing alright, dad?”

“Hey, Geo,” Kelvin said as he stepped off the elevator.  “Ugh, this fabric is still driving me crazy…”

“C’mon, dad, you’ve been a material being again for four years now!  You’ll have to adjust sooner or later.”

“Easy for you to say, kiddo!  When you’re made of waves for as long as I was, you get awfully used to it.”

The two of them went to the counter on the far side of the floor to order some food.  Once they were a few bites in, Kelvin said, “The higher-ups are awfully spooked about this server breach.  Just about every team has had to drop what they’re doing and work on reinforcing security.”

“Things should calm down soon enough,” Geo said.  “We just brought in the Hertz responsible--it shouldn’t be long before we get the stolen data back and things calm down again.”

Kelvin chewed his food.  “...What happened to the Hertz?”

Geo took a bite.  “...Don’t know.  I left before we got those orders.”

A long silence passed.

“They’ve sure been keeping you Commandos busy lately, haven’t they?” Kelvin said.

Geo didn’t say anything.  He just gave his father a wary look.

“Sorry.  I can’t help but worry about you, especially lately...”

“We’re just doing what’s necessary to keep the peace.”

“I don’t know about that…”  Kelvin poked at his plate.  “But, I know that’s what you believe.”

Geo looked back at his plate.

“Well if things do calm down, maybe we can finally take some time off.  I feel like I barely see your mother these days. Maybe you, me, her, and Mega can go on a camping trip some time soon?”

“I’m serious, I surrender!  You can take me in, just--”

Another roar silenced him, and then the Wizard pounced.  He soared through the air, heat shimmering from his foreclaws, and landed on the Hertz with the full force of his weight, pinning him to the road.  The Hertz cried out wordlessly.

“Target subdued!” came the yell from the copter.  “Repeat, Sulphur has captured the target!”

Lowering his snout towards the Hertz’s face, Sulphur let out a long, low growl.  “Stupid Hertz...you didn’t really think you could escape me, did you?  I should burn you to a crisp right now.”

“W-W-Wait!” the Hertz pleaded.  “The Satella Police want me alive, don’t they?  If you cook me, they’ll never find out where I sold the data!”

Sulphur snarled.  “I know that! Shut up now, before it slips my mind.”

“Sulphur.”

He looked up to see a white humanoid Wizard floating next to him.  Their design was largely simple, almost indistinguishable from a standard consumer model, but the badge on their chest clearly signified them as a member of the Satella Police.  They reached out to set a gentle hand on Sulphur’s shoulder, smiling warmly at him.

“It’s over now, okay?  Let’s take him in, and then we can all celebrate a job well done.”

Sulphur muttered something under his breath before saying, “You don’t have to baby me, Nitro.  I was just laying on some extra pressure is all.”

Nitro nodded, and then reached towards the Hertz.  “Mr. Hertz, you are under arrest for the theft and sale of confidential Satella Police data.”

The Hertz gulped.  “Yeah...well...I just...want...to say…”

Nitro stopped just short of touching him.

“...Suckers!”

A flood of Noise exploded out from the Hertz’s body.  Sulphur and Nitro were both washed away by it, slamming into a nearby building before finally finding their footing.  The Hertz, looking withered but still functioning, lay at the center of a large swath of corrupted Wave Road, and a swarm of viruses steadily spawned around him.

“Oh great!” Sulphur said.  “Now we’ve got to clean up this mess…”

Bucking forward, he shot a fireball from his mouth that incinerated a nearby Mettenna.  He ran headfirst into the swarm, tearing viruses apart with his claws and teeth, until a Skull Arrow took him by surprise and immobilized him.  Sulphur struggled to break free, but a Blue Shark rammed into him before he could.  Dazed and sprawled out on the Wave Road, there was nothing Sulphur could do as the shark came around for another attack.

“I gotcha!”

A massive form dropped down in front of Sulphur.  She was easily three times his height, rugged black armor scraping against itself as she swiped one enormous arm and crushed the virus into pixels. The swarm began to focus its attacks on her, but she barely noticed as she shrugged them all off.

“Come to show off, Bonnie?” Nitro asked as they darted to the large Wizard’s side.

She grinned.  “Well, it’s not like the rest of you are gonna just hand me a chance!”

As the three Wizards resumed combat with the viruses, the Hertz slowly dragged himself in the opposite direction.  “No way...am I getting caught...I have to...get back to…”

He stopped short as he realized someone was emerging from the darkness ahead, walking towards him with a steady, almost relaxed pace.  The shape was unmistakably human, sheathed in a dark jumpsuit and blue armor above that.  His greaves and right bracer were of a simple cylindrical design, accented with small rectangular fins, while his left bracer sported a glowing green box on the forearm and a rounded protrusion over the back of his hand.  Thin hexagonal plates of silver armor ran down his sides, and an angular sheet of blue armor emblazoned with a Satella Police badge ran down his torso.  Attached to the back of each shoulder was a large, flat sheet of metal carved into a wing-like shape, kept tucked tightly against his back.  His helmet, blue with a blocky white emblem on the forehead, was open at the back to allow up spikes of brown hair, with sharp fins on either side that joined with a silver band that ran over his chin.  Light reflected off of his pink visor, allowing a view of only one cold and focused eye.  The Hertz could feel every last one of his bytes freeze up.

“M...M...Mega Man!”

Geo stopped just a foot away, frowning down at him.  Without saying a word, he armed his buster, pointed, and shot a bolt of electricity that stunned the Hertz.  He then stepped over the convulsing program and waded into the fray.

“Glad you could make it, boss!” Bonnie said, hurling aside a Base Mortar. “Was startin’ to worry we’d have to bag him without you!”

Many of the viruses turned towards Geo now.  He transformed his buster into a large fan-like projection, and then held it to one side and leaned forward slightly.  “What do you think, Mega?  25% infusion?”

“Bah,” scoffed the Wizard’s voice, “you kidding?  15 will be more than enough for these chumps.”

Geo gave a quick nod.  Subtle red light shone over the fan as the viruses began to charge.  “Infusing Noise to 15% of threshold...Windy Attack!”

He swung the fan once through the air.  Instantly, a focused gale swept over the Wave Road, raking the virus swarm with tiny blades of Noise that diced every last one of them into scraps that scattered on the wind.

Bonnie whistled.  “Nice work, boss!  Here I thought we might be a while.”

Geo glanced back at the Hertz.  Nitro was already next to him--they set one hand on the small wave being, and a thick layer of ice slowly grew to entomb him.  “Target secured,” they said.  “I’ll notify the cleanup team, and then we can be on our way.”

Sulphur trudged across the road, grumbling, “I could’ve handled it.  I didn’t need all of you butting in like that.”

“Aw, can it,” Mega said.  “You woulda barbecued that guy if given half a chance, and then we’d be in a real bind! Even Sili can’t piece together ashes!”

Sulphur’s flames flashed blue.  “Buzz off, Mega!  Find somewhere to set up other than my tail!”

“That’s enough, guys,” Geo said.  “Save it for when we go after this Hertz’s buyer.”

His bracer chimed.  Geo raised it to chest level, and a small screen displaying the Satella Police emblem appeared.  “Captain Stelar, report.”

“Everything’s under control, Chief.  We’re returning to HQ now with the Hertz in tow.”

“Excellent.  I trust he’s still largely intact?”

“Yes sir.  He injured himself detonating a Noise bomb, but Nitrogen has him in stasis now.  I’m confident that Silicon will be able to extract the relevant data.”

“Very well.  I’ll inform her to be prepared for your arrival.  Notify me as soon as we have what we need.”

“Sir!”