"She didn't mention them...?" Rock questioned, genuinely surprised. "I mean, I dunno what they've been up to since we went on our whole overseas trip, but it was still pretty suspicious that they were on the island at the same time as us." She crossed her arms, looking away from the PET; it felt bad to be having a normal conversation with Dr. Wily again, but there was really no avoiding it. "They were makin'... robots or something, right? So what the hell would these data-absorbers have to do with that?" Lan narrowed her eyes, dots connecting chaotically in her mind. "Maybe they're trying to hide something," she speculated. "It'd make sense why they'd want the vaults back if they messed up, right? Maybe they got... like, loose, or something." "If what your contacts say about the vaults is the truth, then that very well could be the case," Dr. Wily surmised. "Technology firms often have some very interesting things to hide. If anything, it would be wise to track this vault down... if only so we can pry for info on how to end this little problem of yours." Lan grumbled, narrowing her eyes. "Okay? Whatever. Where is it, then?" she barked. "If we deal with it, then will you stop calling me?" Choosing to ignore Lan's threat, Wily instead explained the mission. "The company they're suing is a gambling corporation. Their largest casino just so happens to be in downtown Den City," he said. "So it doesn't surprise me that one of those vaults could've crawled all the way there. I'd start by investigating that business. I'm certain they won't even care if you loiter around the premises, given our gambling laws. Ha, ha." Lan immediately blanched. "C-casino... company?" she muttered, bad memories already bubbling up in her mind. Rock, similarly, was looking quite displeased. "Ew... ew... ugh."

Of course they had a wall up they had something to hide now. But did they always come off that way? Was it not just the detached professionalism? “I…” There really wasn’t anything else Aon could think to say other than to acquiesce. “Yes…And you’ve been very patient with me so far so I’ve just got to keep…trusting that.” Their gaze fell to Roll fidgeting with the gaudy imitation beverage before she could even mention it. “Yeah…Yeah I think I would appreciate that. One of those…” It certainly wasn’t something they would normally be caught dead with, but they would be remiss to pass on the olive branch at this point. That, and it was something to keep them from running as much of a risk of getting ready to pry their own fingers off “And you’re right. I don’t know much about any of you at all.” They thought back to the vision bursts, how they could do nothing but quietly observe with no context or personal connections to what they were witnessing. “What we saw at the end back there, at the arena…I couldn’t connect to any of it. Ellen’s memory was the only one that was obvious by lack of presence alone.”

Now that she was seated and paying less attention to keeping the mug from spilling, Meiru noticed the burn wound. At first, the only thing that occurred to her was that it was an odd place for such a mark. “Aw, okay,” said Roll. “Well, if you insist!” Meiru didn’t mind either way; she had her tea, and she wasn’t particularly hungry. She took a sip, looked up to watch Netto introduce himself. He seemed completely normal now, neither unaware of his own injuries or— —Oh. That burn was in the spot she’d ripped the Link from. “I’m… Meiru,” she began. It was hard for her to tell whether she ought to be apologizing for the burn or not. Whether Netto even remembered where it’d come from. She found herself thinking aloud more than anything. “I… really don’t know the first thing about you, do I? In my world, you’re, well, one of my best friends.” “Netto means a lot to her. He and Rockman inspired us to fight!” Roll added. (An embarrassed cough rose from the PET on Meiru’s wrist.) It was the truth. Meiru didn’t deny it. “I… guess that’s what’s made things so awkward. I feel like I oughta be able to talk to you, but…” She shook her head. “Which is ridiculous. I’m probably just as different from your version of me as you are to my version of you. If I even exist at all.”