"I have no idea what it is," Marino then explained as she carefully picked the object up. "Kinda reminds me of one of those Guardians of Neo Arcadia, you know?"
"Who?" Minas inquired as she looked closer at the object. It was a pretty mystifying thing for her, however old she was, discovering new things were never boring.
"You wouldn't know, would you?" Marino questioned in return, sounding as if she had made some mistake. "See, about twenty-seven years ago there was this place called Neo Arcadia. It was led by Mega Man X (you remember him, don't you?) and four of his clone-ish children, dubbed the Four Guardians. Each of the Guardians had their own army in Neo Arcadia, and were each attune to a certain element- which kinda dictated where their armies were located. I only visited once or twice before hell broke loose and everyone in Neo Arcadia evacuated; I was caught by one of the Guardians before, Phantom I think his name was, it was truly an experience. A real... invigorating experience."
Minas looked at Marino and gave her a rather inquisitive, and accusatory, eyebrow raise.
"I'll tell you about it later." Marino informed her friend with a light blush. Minas's expression did not change.
"Can I see her?" Thetis requested, holding his hands for the Biometal, out in expectancy for Marino's compliance.
"Sure." she agreed with a shrug. Thetis carefully took Model L from Marino and looked at the Biometal closer.
"You talked to me earlier," he said to it, "Why?"
"No one was talking to you Thetis." Minas told him, both her and Marino giving him an odd look. But Thetis was ignoring them.
'It's 'cuz I like you.' Model L claimed, letting out a sound like a pretty little giggle. 'You see, we Biometals can scan folks to determine if we can MegaMerge with them.'
"What's a MegaMerge?" Thetis then asked.
'Oh! It's this really great thing where I get to give you a special kind of armor based on what I used to look like!'
"Does it hurt?" Thetis then inquired, earning Marino and Minas the right to give each other a worried glance. Who was he talking to?
"Thetis..." Minas then spoke up, causing Thetis to break his concentration with Model L to turn to his sister, "How about we show the Professor this..."
"Biometal." Thetis finished for her. "Model L is a Biometal."
"Right." Minas agreed, sounding rather unsure. "Let's go show the professor the Biometal."
Thetis nodded, clutching Model L tight and letting out a bright smile. "Sure!" he agreed. "Let's go!" And with that, he was out the door before Marino and Minas could wonder what had gotten into him.
. . .
"Biometal?" the Professor questioned, scratching his head in wonder. Thetis had been the one to explain Model L to him, but it was Minas's worried expression that informed the Professor that she feared her brother was broken. "I have honestly never heard of such a thing before. Can I take a closer look?"
"Sure!" Thetis enthused as he tried to hand Model L over to his creator. The Professor withdrew a screwdriver from behind him, while he used his other hand to hold Model L. Just barely connecting the screwdriver with the Biometal created a spark between them.
'Ow!' Model L remarked, 'That smarts...'
"Don't hurt her!" Thetis quickly declared, snatching the Biometal back from the Professor. The Reploid looked at Thetis quizzically, Minas also gave a small look of confusion.
"How did you know that it hurt her?" the Professor asked Thetis, starting to grow more confused as the case went on.
"She said 'ow'!" Thetis told him defensively. "Didn't you hear her?!"
The Reploids shook their heads. They hadn't heard the Biometal say anything, so why was it that Thetis did?
'They can't hear me because they're not Biomatches.' Model L just now told Thetis, much to his dismay.
"You can't hear her because you're not Biomatches..." Thetis repeated to the Professor and Minas quietly.
"I wonder if Master Albert has any idea on this matter..." the Professor wondered to himself. "Perhaps some of that data he gave me was flawed after all..."
"I'm not flawed!" Thetis exclaimed in horror. "I'm not going crazy! I'm not... I'm not Maverick!!"
At this idea, everyone went silent. Thetis was getting frustrated, confused, and even more upset that the Professor and Minas didn't seem to believe him. Holding Model L tight and close to his artificial heart, Thetis spun on his heel and ran out of the room.
"Thetis...!" Minas tried to call out, but she was stopped by the Professor who only shook his head.
. . .
Meanwhile, Marino busied herself by sneaking into a research lab within Inner Kirjath Arba. There had to be something about the Biometal here that she could report back. Her hacking skills were a bit rusty, apparently. She nearly sent off a security alarm twice in the twenty minutes she had been here so far, and that was twice too many in her book. Eventually, Marino found the information she needed and downloaded it quickly so she could report back to Thetis and Minas.
Taking on one of her better disguises, Marino blended in with the crowd in town as she made her way to the transerver. Life in Inner Kirjath Arba didn't seem as lifeless as she remembered the insides of Neo Arcadia. Shop keepers with open displays shouted out their recent sale offers, bakers had some very delicious samples to give out to the masses, children played on the street with no regard for safety, among other things. Even taking into consideration the fall of Slither Inc three years ago, Inner Kirjath Arba was still a thriving place where everyone felt safe.
Marino smiled to herself from the pure energy around her as she entered the coordinates into the transerver. A bright flash of light and she was back in Giga City.
If Neo Arcadia's citizen activity could have made it seem dead, and Inner Kirjath Arba's making it almost overwhelming, then Giga City would have been placed somewhere in middle- sliding closer to Neo Arcadia. Being housed only by Reploids didn't create a need for bakers, or the tantalizing tastes and smells that came with them. Sure, some Reploids like the aesthetic, but those Reploids were severely outnumbered by those who did not. Not all Reploids had jobs around here either, again, because no one quite found the need. Sure some citizens were chosen to check on the maintenance needed to keep the city floating, but other than that? Nothing. A lot of Reploids were like the Professor- scientists, artists, and whoever else the humans didn't want.
Although Marino was a Reploid, she found them incredibly boring.
Taking a good portion of her time walking back to the Professor lab, Marino happened to spot Thetis running toward the boardwalk without anyone behind him. Confused at first, the thief decided to follow him. Thetis ran to through the boardwalk without looking behind him, finally stopping when he reached the edge of where the simulated ocean met the sand. It was his first impulse to through the Biometal into that water, but it was the feeling of Marino following from behind him that stopped him.
"Do you think I'm Maverick too?" Thetis spat at her, much to her surprise. She thought that he hadn't noticed her coming up from behind. Regardless, at his idea Marino couldn't help but snort.
"If you're Maverick then I'm human." she retorted with a confident smile. "Hey kid, you'll never guess what I found out about your new friend."
Thetis glanced behind him, using the sleeve of his sweatshirt to quickly wipe his nose. "What?" he quickly questioned.
"I'll tell you," Marino playfully informed him, "If you answer one simple question for me."
Curious now, Thetis turned all the way around to look at Marino.
"Pop quiz," she then offered, "What was the name of X Fraction Number Three, and what army did she control in which city?"
'Oh! Oh, I know!' Model L immediately piped up, 'That's an easy one! It's me! Oh, wait, no- it's my old personality, Fairy Leviathan! I... she was the leader of the Meikai Army in Neo Arcadia!'
"Fairy Leviathan...?" Thetis repeated slowly, "Meikai Army of... Neo Arcadia...?"
Marino's smile only grew wider. "We have a winner." she confidently smiled at him.