Metalman felt his side slam against the tail of his brainwashed opponent. The green one, which he assumed was Snakeman from Megaman's information, retreated into the trees when he fired. He attempted to throw his metal blades toward Topman, but the robot spun so fast the blades were bouncing off his body. He didn't know how it was possible. Deep inside, he felt embarrassed that his ceratanium blades couldn't hit a spinning robot.
Meanwhile Bubbleman was having difficulty being a part of the battle. He had littered the entire area with acidic bubbles to ward them off, but it had failed to scare Snakeman, who was now hiding above him. In a swift motion, Bubble felt his head lifted off the ground and a sadistic smile grinning.
Metal heard his brother scream and desperately ran to the trees engulfing Bubble's body. He grabbed the legs and yanked hard, but Snakeman thrashed Bubble's torso like a dog. Finally, Bubble fell and hit the ground hard, his non weaponized arm torn off by the elbow. Snakeman snickered and retreated back into the trees.
"You're playing with us, aren't you?! Who do you think you are!?" Metal demanded.
"Metal, I'll be fine." Bubble said. Metal refused and chucked blades at every tree. Branches fell and the leaves were scattering as Snakeman leapt away. He sighed as the forest was silent, but realized the other opponent behind him.
He swung a left hook but Top caught it. The orange robot had him pinned to the ground and started to stomp on his head. By the fifth time, Metal started to hear ringing. He was sure Snakeman had joined in as he felt a separate pair of hands pulling his joints off. He heard Bubble screaming his name, and the world was blurring. A dull pain was near his left shoulder, then more ringing from another stomp. His mask flew off. The world had turned black.
Then it stopped. The weight was lifted off. The pain was still there but his head was clearing, the smell of his oil dripping on the ground. He reached for the oil and checked his systems. Nothing was ruptured aside from armor damage. This oil was not his. His core dropped.
"Bubbleman-! As he whipped around, an unexpected sight was found. Topman laid on the ground surrounded by oil. Acidic bubbles were dripping from his neck and arm, and his eyes were wide open. Bubbleman was not far away on the back of a furious Snakeman.
"Get away from him!" He screamed. Snake screamed as the acidic bubble lead grazed his arms. The tail of his helmet reached for the small brother, to no avail Bubble swerved back and forth, gripping the tip of the tail. Firing his weapon from his hands, the metallic tail quickly withered way until it was nothing but wires and circuits. Snake finally yanked Bubble off, and Metal covered the distance to smash the bottom of his head. After wobbling for a few steps, Snake finally collapsed on the ground and the acidic bubbles dissipated.
"Are you okay?" Metal asked.
"I should ask you that! You stopped moving, but they wouldn't stop hurting you! Why didn't you run like I told you to?! You just blindly threw your blades everywhere, but it wasn't doing anything and they were playing with me. Now we're both injured, far away from our brothers, and no way to get to them." Bubble huffed, kicking the dirt with his flipper feet.
"I can still carry you."
"No you can't. The snake guy ripped a chunk of your shoulder. I can see the oil dripping off." Bubble countered.
"I..." Metal fell silent, looking back to the unmoving bodies of the robot masters.
"I was created to be a weapon of Doctor Wily, and yet I'm still coddled like a baby by my own brothers. And yet I'm the one who saved your butt. You're welcome." Bubble grumbled. Metal looked at his brother's injuries, then his own before clicking his receptor to patch a link.
"What are you doing?" Bubble asked.
"I'm sending Enker a message that I'm heading back to the doctors for repairs. He'll need to gather the others and continue on without us." Metal said.
"But Metal, without your arms, you won't be able to defend yourself." Bubble said. He managed to see the smile on his brother's face without the smashed mask, and he was lifted onto his back. He shifted his position to avoid the sharp shoulder attachments, and Metal's gazed up at him.
"I need you to be my guard. If you see anyone approaching us, I need to protect the both of us until we reach the doctors. Can I trust you to do that?"
Bubble was flabbergasted by his brother, and his leader's request. As the question settled in, his eyes gleamed and prepared his buster. "Of course you can."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DOCTOR WILY, I AM SURPRISED YOU HAVE SURVIVED FOR SO LONG. Ra Moon said. The mad doctor cackled as a robot behind him revealed itself. The body was covered in thick black armor plates with gold markings, and the silver limbs peeking through the openings. Its head was a crown formation, and its pupils eyes glowed dimly in the barely illuminated hall.
"HAHAHA! You should be surprised, Ra Moon! While you have wasting your precious time planning to take over the world, I have gathered whatever materials I had with your technology and hid far past your reach. Even your little soldier here couldn't find me, giving me plenty of time to work on this. His name is Ra Thor, and your executioner." Wily sneered. Judging by the look Shadow was giving him, Rock stepped back as the sword gripped in the ninja's fingers grazed the floor.
YOU ARE MAKING A GRAVE MISTAKE.
"The only mistake I ever made was awakening you! Ra Thor, destroy Ra Moon for what he did to me!" Dr. Wily ordered.
SERVANT, TAKE CARE OF THE ROBOT. Ra Moon said.
Shadow looked back at Rock and Ra Thor several times before leaving Rock against the wall. Rock regained his composure as the two engaged. Ra Moon fired laser projectiles throughout the room, Shadow weaving through each attack to return with a sword slash. Ra Thor leapt out of the way and blasted purple and yellow projectiles. Shadow dodged again by sliding away and hopping up a wall combining another slash attack. It seemed like no one was getting a hit, and yet Rock could tell this wasn't going to last long. He tried to move, but his shooting arm tingled from the strange poison of Shadow's blade, and the other arm was limp from Ra Moon pulling him around like a toy.
"Come on Ra Thor! Beat him to the ground! Blast him and that pathetic golf ball!" Wily cheered.
Rock had already read the tension in the room, and he wanted nothing more than to shut Wily up. The man seemed to cause a lot of problems in the short span he had been awake, and even the robot he built to "help" him seemed to spell trouble. Ra Thor had delivered a hard kick to the ninja's stomach, and he kneeled to the ground.
"Yes! Doctor Wily wins in the end! Now finish him Ra Thor!" Wily grinned. Rock caught something occurring behind the ninja's feet. The shadow behind him turned smoky as the arm slipped through as if plunging into water.
"Doctor Wily, move!" He yelled. Despite the warning, the arm slipped through the shadow and Shadow slipped through the attack. Before Rock knew it, the ninja had appeared behind the robot and threw him in the cluster of living wires. A blinding flash of light filled the room and the wires fell limp in the walls and floors, leaving nothing but a still Ra Thor.
"Ra Thor? Ra Thor, report!" Wily ordered. A chuckle rose from the black robot and the golden eyes glowed dangerously at the fragile human.
"For all of your intelligence Doctor Wily, you are the dumbest human I will have the pleasure of killing." Ra Thor said.
"Ra Thor, what are you doing? Stand down now, that's an order!!" Wily stuttered. As Ra Thor walked forward the doctor took two steps to the wall. Shadow was now back on his feet and stared at the spherical body of Ra Moon now longer illuminated by a light.
"What have you done?" Rock muttered.
"What he has done is give me a new body. Ra Thor may have been built by you, but you used my technology. My linked technology. You made Ra Thor as a part of me, and an extension of my very being." Ra Thor chuckled.
"Wily, you only made this worse!" Rock was starting to feel his shooting arm coming online.
"I was just trying to help!" Wily said. As Ra Thor came within feet of the doctor when Rock hopped in between, his buster ready to shoot.
"Megaman, I had given your brothers an offer and I'll only tell you this one time. If you join our side and stay within our boundaries, you and your brothers will be spared from the despair around you." Ra Thor's voice was low, and the glow was dim.
"I'm not joining your side Ra Moon!" Rock said. The glow returned in Ra Thor's eyes.
"Fine. If you will not join us, then you'll die. Servant, kill the child." Ra Thor commanded. Rock watched as Shadow froze, the blade in his hands dangling dangerously on the floor. Then to everyone's surprise, the ninja dropped the sword.
"No." He said.
"I gave you an order! Kill him!"
"No," Shadow repeated, "I am not killing him regardless of your command. You had agreed that I was to bring him to us for the plan, and he has come here on his own accord."
"Well I change my command. I want to you to kill him right now, or he'll interfere with our plans."
"I still refuse." Shadow said.
"Servant, if you continue to disobey orders, I will have no choice but end your life myself." Ra Thor's eyed glared dangerously at the ninja.
"So you'd kill the only one who's been following orders and protecting you for thousands of years, just because I refuse a simple request? Your creator would be disappointed, having built a weapon currently throwing a tantrum." Shadow sighed.
"YOU'D DARE TALK ABOUT ME AND YOUR MASTERS LIKE THIS?"
"I am merely stating the facts. You are a child."
"I am not a child! I am Ra Moon, and you will do what I say or it's your life next!" Ra Thor shrieked. The hand that was dangling Wily off the ground now pointed to the still unmoving Shadow. Realizing his chance, Rock activated one of the abilities gained from touching brainwashed brothers. The first one was Topman's weapon.
Rock felt his body go light and he dashed toward the two with surprising speed. He closed in on Shadow and spun into a kick to the stomach. The power of the kick thrust Shadow into a chamber wall and remained limp, and he turned his attention to the Ra Moon possessed Ra Thor.
"Round two Megaman?" He spat.
"Let's go Ra Thor." Rock said.