"Halt!!" a Satella Police Wizard called out as it lead a charge of other official looking Wizards brandishing stun batons.

They warped in and stormed forward, becoming an oncoming deluge of a counter-attack. As Siren Splash began her assault, a barrier arose around WAZA, encompassing the building in hexagon patterned light. The Satella Police Wizards quickly surrounded her, but were quickly knocked aside and bubbled by Siren Splash's strength.

Inside WAZA, Dr. Goodall watched the feed with a tense expression. She whipped around and quickly made way for the main computer in the back. She continued her work on clearing the Noise from Lurerre, focusing intently as if the world around her had disappeared entirely.

Aaron did a double take as he watched the doctor walk away while the rest of WAZA was scrambling like a disturbed nest of ants.

He followed after her, leaning over conspiratorially and hissing, "Dr. Goodall, is this really the time to be working on that?"

"Now don't blurt this out, Aaron dear," she advised sweetly, keeping her eyes trained on the screen and hands on the keyboard, "But that's Triese that's attacking us."

"That's Tr-!" he sputtered, covered his mouth and quickly recovered, "Wait, do you think Lurerre can help us with this?"

Dr. Goodall furrowed her brow, "Not yet... Maybe at the right moment. We can't risk looking like a kidnapper and agitating her further. This is a delicate situation."

Aaron nodded and adjusted his cap, "Right. Ok then! I'll contact Geo and keep him updated. Let's hope he can get through to her."

"It's not him I'm worried about," she noted.

The entire building shook like someone had slammed a drum against the outside, making some lights flicker and causing everyone to pause and look at the monitors. The fight was not going in their favor.

Aaron pulled out his Hunter and called Geo, anxiously watching as the signal struggled to connect through the shielding, "Come on... Geo, wherever you are, please be okay."

Slipping right between the water notes, Geo dashed in, delivered his attack and leapt out of the way of the oncoming shielding notes. The slash revealed just a sliver of Triese's face underneath and Geo swore he could see the panic in her eyes.

Just a little bit more...!

He prepared hit next attack -- the only way forward was a relentless barrage! Stun Knuckle ought to stop all this-!

The deluge from Sticky Rain stopped him in his tracks while the force of the water held him in place. He cursed the fact he was countered so deftly. Was that Triese or Siren that was this good at fighting!? It was concerning that as the fight continued, Siren Splash was getting stronger. Whatever that meant, it wasn't good...!

When the attack ended, Geo and Omega-Xis were left way far back. Siren Splash was so far ahead that it'd be impossible to catch up now.

"Blast it! Geo! Get moving! She's gonna reach WAZA!!" Omega-Xis roared.

Worry gripped Geo and tightening by the second. He couldn't stop her from doing what she'd soon regret.

"Hate to do this but..." he muttered, pulling up an air display, "I'm going to make a call. WAZA needs to know what's heading for them."

An ever present low hum welcomed Reg with a familiarity so loud it was like he had never left. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, slowly making out the ceiling of his living room. It was never truly dark here, it was too dangerous for that.

Instead, the ten thousand square feet of building he called home was the safest place to be for miles. At least, that was the joke that people liked to tell.

He arose from laying down on the couch, feeling heavier than usual. His first step off led him to the middle of the greenhouse. Under the thick glass roof he could barely make out the stars shining above.

The walls of greenery underlit by floor lights offered a small, inaccurate glimpse of what nature was.

He knew better, he couldn't stay here hecouldntstayherehecouldntstayhere, no there were things to do and idle hands made for an inefficient life.

He stepped outside of the greenhouse, got his orders and got to work. His father he couldn't see his face had given him the job to study diligently and so he did. The words on the page filled his mind but the words themselves danced and morphed every time he glanced.

He gave his eyes a break. The monitor next to his desk offered a view of the outside.

Black. Sunless night and stars and pure, absolute black.

A darkness so raw the mind conjured images just to have something in the blanks.

No, he had to focus on his studies his-

The books, the tablets, the pens, the tools all gone. He had fallen through the window into the dark and as he spun to get his bearings, all that there was that surrounded him was the night.

His EVA suit had already began to feel the chill of the sunless sky, but there was a heading for home, and all Reg had to do was follow.

Cometman couldn't hide his disappointment. His face immediately fell upon hearing that Rockman hadn't recalled that incident. He quickly tried to recover his previous more pleasant expression, he wouldn't wanna be rude or something.

"Well that's just it," he grumbled, holding his chin, "Everyone has been calling me a Navi. Ellen, Reg, Eni, even One and Silver. But-" he gently tapped his fist to his lips, "Okay, how do Navi's normally get made and activated? Cause whatever was normal for other Navis probably didn't happen to me. To me, one day I was just. Here. I was apparently just a video game character before all this and then I was just, this?

"Is that-" he grasped the air like he was searching for words floating right before him, "Weird? Is it weird that I think that it's weird?"

Was there something wrong with me?

Those were the words he wanted to say, but couldn't voice them. He knew the words, he knew what they all meant, but to say them aloud was to admit they were real.

And on top of it all, he couldn't ask Rockman that.

Triese's sorrowful rage struck a chord and for a brief moment, Geo hesitated. It was only a second but that was all it took for Siren Splash's attack to hit its mark.

Trapped in another bubble, he and Omega-Xis were flung and bounced down the wave road until it popped on its own, sending him sliding on the road prone.

"Gah-!" Geo coughed, quickly struggling to right himself, "Sorry-! I-!"

"Oi! Don't you start Geo!" Omega-Xis interrupted swiftly, "She's getting in your head, just focus on how happy Triese'll be when you get her out of this mess!!"

His partner was right, so much so that it almost seemed obvious in retrospect. With his mind unclouded, he affirmed with a short rallying cry and loaded his next Battle Card.

"Black Ink!!" he yelled as a black missile shot out of his buster, landing in front of Siren Splash's path with a burst of heavy dark clouds.

It formed a dense fog, instantly turning the area around Siren Splash into a false night. Silence fell in the darkness. Then a blur of light silhouetted a humanoid figure that burst from the ink with a sword made of lightning aiming straight for Siren Splash's helmet.

Geo leapt back to dodge the wall of bubbles, hearing the The Snowball thundering towards him, but not Triese's hesitations. The giant ball of snow burst through the bubbles, ending up large enough to obscure where Siren Splash was, which meant she also couldn't see Mega Man was well. Geo estimated how long it would take for the attack to reach him, preparing his counter, waiting for the last moment to activate it.

The Snowball slammed into a cloud of leaves and appearing right next to Siren Splash was Mega Man, sword in hand, slashing down and just barely missing her. In that moment as he finally got in close, time seemed to slow as he recognized the face of that girl who was opening her heart up just minutes before this.

He couldn't follow up with another attack. He took too long and landed out of his Fox-Fu awkwardly.

"Triese..." he squeaked, then emboldened himself, "When this is all done, I promise I'll make it up to you!! Just hang in there!"

With a swift raise of a foot, he activated his next attack, "Flicker Kick!!" and began rapid fire kicking, launching electric laced projectiles with every strike, peppering Siren Splash with bright, flashing bursts of electricity.

The Jet Attack that Geo summoned launched him, closing the gap between him and Triese in almost an instant-

The Ice Grenade exploded throwing Geo's trajectory off course and leaving him sliding across the ice. He stumbled until he reached its edge where the road finally had friction. He straightened back up into a fighting stance, farther than he wanted to be, but close enough to land some sure hits.

He pulled up a card and winced, hesitating for a moment as he prepared to use it.

"I'm sorry Triese, this is gonna hurt," he warned shakily, then followed up boldly, "Siren Splash! Stop this! Give back my friend!" activating the card and running at her with a rapid fire buster.

Behind Siren Splash, a Stealth Laser was summoned silently and fired upon her all without Siren taking notice of it at all.

"No..." Geo faltered weakly, lowering his buster in disbelief.

Not only was Omega-Xis right that it was this mystery FM-ian Siren, but she was clearly in complete control of Triese. She was unreachable like this. His hesitation left him completely unprepared for Siren Splash's attack and he was hopelessly bubbled by it.

"Geo!!" Omega-Xis barked, slashing at the inside of the bubble, tearing it open with one claw attack.

"Right!" he bounced back, righting himself and tossing a hand out, "Shuriken!!"

A spinning blade whirled out of the arc from Mega Man's arm, swooping low and then angled up, aiming to head Siren Splash off and prevent her escape. He readied a Jet Attack and began pursuing after her, holding off on activating it until she attempted to dodge his first attack.

---

The visor indicated a line of hazardous space just before Siren Splash.

A twinge of excitement arose from Siren as Mega Man very clearly became aggressive, "Trust me, little doll, we've got this."

Words alone would likely not be fast enough in this fight so Siren nestled into the nice little space she had carved out in Triese's heart ready to steer her precious little catch whenever the poor little thing inevitably faltered. Triese's body no longer belonged just to her now.

That Mega Man looked shocked and a bit hurt at the blubbering Triese was making so Siren knew she as going to have to swoop in and salvage this whole thing. Subtle changes to the visor display made Mega Man more shadowed, obscured his eyes and expression, and projected a menacing aura looming over him.

The dialogue he was spewing was a bit harder to tweak, but she made due. Triese heard through the shells a low drone with a slight robotic compression to the sound each time Mega Man or that partner of his spoke.

"Triese!" she heard, "We don't have to fight. Just turn yourself in and you'll be safe. I'm Mega Man, I'm with the Satella Police. I'll need to bring you in to the station so we can talk."

"There's a way out of this, Triese," Siren advised gently, "Their databases are located in the same place as the monitoring equipment. Destroy them both and we can be free. Remember, you don't have to beat him, just survive long enough til we get to Mt. Belenus. Don't worry, I'll be right here with you, my doll."

---

"Geo I don't think she's listening," Omega-Xis grumbled.

"Should I apologize harder? I thought I was pretty clear..." Geo worried, holding his fists in close.

"It's not that... I think... If I had to guess," Omega-Xis contemplated, "This might be Siren's doing. I don't know much about her, never met her, but long ago Ophiuca and Gemini kicked an FM-ian named Siren out of Cepheus's court cause she was 'too good' at manipulating. So if we're dealing with a master manipulator, it's gotta be her."

Geo recalled the cutthroat world of Planet FM with its many power hungry advisors and their eyes on Cepheus's throne. For this Siren to be such a danger to Ophiuca's and Gemini's plans that they would agree to get rid of her? That must've meant she was downright terrible.

"The only way your words are gonna reach her is if Siren's grip is loosened," Omega-Xis shot a glance at Geo, "Forcefully."

Geo slowly recoiled, knowing what his partner meant but dreading the actions needed to do it.

"Triese if you can hear me..." he raised his buster, charging it, "You have to fight back against the Wave Change! You're being manipulated! Please...!"

He couldn't bear to fire, not until he knew for certain that it was absolutely necessary.

Siren giggled deep and melodically, "Perhaps there is something we can do..."

---

"It's not gonna be that big of a problem, Geo," Omega-Xis grumbled over Geo's shoulder.

"Well, I know, but," Geo sighed, arms full of fresh snacks from the local konbini, "It's gonna be awkward if I hand her a tuna fish sandwich and she doesn't eat fish and gets sad about it cause she likes fish that are alive, you know?"

"Things eat tuna! Ocean things! Probably some big thing like a shark!" Omega-Xis countered.

"No Triese likes fish and probably small and cute fish, right?" he wondered, trying to recall all the chatroom messages he had back read, "Girls like small and cute things, right?"

"Girls like many things, Geo," Omega-Xis warned with a far off stare.

Geo wasn't sure what his partner was thinking about in particular, but he nodded to himself in agreement. Girls did like many things.

They passed by the park outside Big Wave, but slowed down as they noticed Mr. Suther looking rather worried about something. Before even asking what was wrong, Omega-Xis held a claw up in front of Geo, stopping him.

"Geo, something's up," his partner cautioned, "I'm sensing... an FM-ian. Intentionally obscured trail. Whoever was here is trying their best not to be found."

"You're kidding," Geo worried, heart rate quickening, "We need to check on Triese!"

He ran as fast as he could to the top of Vista Point, huffing and puffing, nearly collapsing as he dropped all the snacks he was carrying once the truth was revealed to him. Triese was gone. And a new FM-ian was threatening the peace. He didn't like how that sounded.

"Mega-"

"It's Wave Changing time! Get to it Geo!" Omega-Xis barked.

"Right," he nodded, holding his Hunter-VG out and then up, "Transcode! Mega Man!" and in a beam like flash disappeared and jumped onto the Wave Road up above.

Up on the Wave Road Omega-Xis materialized next to the Wave Changed Geo to assist in looking around for anything Triese shaped. Luckily for them, it wasn't hard to spot the suspiciously blue thing in the distance and he dashed over to investigate.

"No doubt..." Omega-Xis muttered, "That hair and that water theme..."

"Triese!" Geo called out, "Are you okay!?" coming to a stop some distance away, just in case things were not okay. And in his experience... things probably weren't okay, but he had to hope.

What a good natured girl. If there was one flaw to this whole plan it would be that.

Siren kept her thoughts to herself on this matter, even if she longingly contemplated the Break Time Bomb. Those things probably had some sort of tracking program on them as they were high value items. Can't be having that. Oh well, c'est la vie.

As they popped back out onto the Wave Road Siren waited for the opportune moment. Right when Triese began to settle, curious about what could possibly be next, Siren made her move.

Ever so slightly she increased the tension, the anxiety. That little reptile part in the back of all human minds that squirmed and ran from danger. Fear of something far away as if a sniper was aimed a poised to fire at any moment at her position.

When Triese finally acknowledged the feeling, Siren was quick to swoop in and soothe, "You've noticed it, haven't you?" she directed Triese's attention far off into the horizon, "That."

She put a circle over the target -- the far off peak of Mt. Belenus.

"What you see there is where the headquarters of a pernicious organization lays, one that is hellbent on monitoring all EM Wave Change activity. They're watching us, Triese. Never taking their eyes off of us nor any of our fellow Wave Changing brethren," Siren intoned low and quietly, then sighed, "It's just a shame that no one has shown up who's brave enough to take them on. To free all of us. Maybe one day a hero will appear."

Silence, with a low growing anxiety emanating from that peak like it was a crack that broke the horizon. Like it shouldn't be there. Like with just a swipe of the hands it could be wiped off the face of the Earth if the hand was strong enough. And Triese... Siren Splash... was strong, wasn't she?

"We'll never lose anything ever again," Siren giggled.

Even though she knew she was the one pulling the strings, Siren was taken aback briefly by how easily Triese was falling deeper and deeper under her spell. This was going much more smoothly than she expected! How wonderful, maybe she should press her luck.

"Nice shot!" Siren cheered, "You cleared out the targets with ease! You're a natural!"

And she really did mean it. Triese was perfect. The delighted anticipation Siren was feeling was infectious.

"Now all you need to do is go inside the treasure room and pick out the cards that suit you best," she suggested.

In addition to the regular fair of cards that were frequently traded in, there was a selection of extremely rare exclusive cards that dealt massive damage. She would let Triese decide which ones she wanted to use as it was so much easier when the weapon chose the bullet themselves. She did however, point out the Ice Stage and Sticky Rain cards as they worked quite well with their Aqua abilities.

"Once we're done here, we should skedaddle," she mentioned, excited for the next phase.

The Cyber Core featured a vault in the back with a Mr. Hertz floating in front of it, just as Siren suspected. With some quick thinking, the visor overlayed an image of a virus over that of the Hertz. They were far enough away that the naive human would not be able to tell the difference.

"Hmm, it seems we have company, doll~" Siren hummed a bit theatrically, "No worries. I'll overlay reticles to help you aim for their weak spot!"

Just as she said, crosshairs covered the vault on key weak points and one large crosshair over the Hertz virus.

Ah, there was a bit of righteousness to the human wasn't there...? She could work with this.

"Yes, we're fighting to protect you as well, because although together we are quite strong, life is... so fragile, isn't it?" she emphasized a feigned sadness (humans were always going on about their tiny, short lives), "But behind that door will be something that will make us stronger. Something that will keep us safe. Go ahead, take it down, I know you can do it."

What was that thing Triese was about to say? It seemed as though she had familiarity with Wave Battling but perhaps called it something differently? That's certainly what the thought process felt like. Didn't this human have a Navi of all things?

She dismissed this train of thought before it sprouted legs. Whatever was going on with WAZA didn't concern Siren -- it was all not going to be a problem soon with any luck anyways.

"You pick up on things quickly! Good~" Siren hummed, "Next I should warn you, not all viruses on the Wave Roads are peaceful. Don't worry, I'll be sure to indicate which ones are hostile and areas where they are going to attack. Ah, speaking of attacks..."

Her mood became slightly devious as she recalled a location with particularly good loot, "You'll need more than basic attacks to survive out here. It's a good thing I know of a place nearby that has some powerful ones hidden behind a large locked door. It'll be like... The final boss of the tutorial."

Siren indicated with a ping on the visor a small antenna off a colorful building nearby.

Big Wave was having some odd problems with their signage out front and Mr. Suther was busy scratching his head over it. The storage Cyber Core was completely open and unguarded at the moment.

The jubilation that Triese experienced threatened to overtake Siren before she quickly centered herself. This Wave Change was going to test her abilities to maintain a level head in the face of this human that was essentially a very excitable dog. But Siren was a master of her craft and smoothly giggled along with Triese's joy. She wouldn't be swept away by that human's feelings, but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't excited at all, after all, things were finally going her way.

"With my power you can do anything, my doll," Siren whispered about Triese's mind, "You can swim over the Roads with ease and attack foes with explosive water based attacks. You can also confuse opponents with sound based attacks if you're getting overwhelmed. With our combined strength, nothing will stand in our way!"

She eased her excitement and pondered, "Tell me, what do you know about fighting? Have you ever done anything like this? Ah, no matter, let me show you something."

Crosshairs appeared over the visor on seemingly arbitrary points in the area.

"Fire at these points with the bubble buster so we can gauge your skill," she suggested, holding off on sharing the thought that she was only setting this up to tell how much she'd have to do the fighting here.

Of the many crosshairs that were situated about, one was locked onto an electronic sign on a building. Put there by Siren just to see how much damage this Wave Change was capable of.

"Perfect~" Siren chirped with a high pitched note that flowed right into the overwhelming crescendo that descended upon Triese like a deluge.

A sensation of cold then numb overtook her, making her suddenly light as air yet surging with strength in every part of her body. Her movements were her own and when she finally opened her eyes the entire world around her was different.

She stood upon a central platform at the crossroads of two Wave Roads with yellow-orange paths stretching far in every direction, winding around and intersecting at right angles all over. Antennas on the ground spiraled light that fed into the roads like many upside-down waterfalls flowing into rivers.

The world glowed and pulsed softly in much more vibrant hues than Triese had seen with just her visualizer. In the distance Hertzes of all types traveled up and down the paths, occasionally avoiding viruses that trotted alongside them. It was full of colorful, quiet life.

"Well, my doll?" Siren's voice echoed deep in Triese's mind, "Is it everything you had ever imagined?"

Outside of the Wave Changed Triese, the roads did not appear quite as peaceful. Hertzes that came across any virus panicked and scattered while the viruses gave chase.

There it was. Her catch had swam right into the rip tide and was being pulled out into the open ocean's loving embrace.

Siren's grin stretched across her face and the music grew in volume to such a point that it seemed to drown out the world around the little girl. Siren swayed down to Triese, holding her hands behind her as she floated right up to her.

"It's incredibly easy, my little doll~" she trilled, "All you have to do," she poked Triese's nose, "Is open your heart up to the possibilities! Open up, to me~"

The world swirled and wobbled, but Triese's feet were rooted in place. A strength seemed to rise in her body, urging her forward while her head swam about in a sea of clouds.

The music rose to a melodic cacophony, reaching towards an ever encroaching crescendo.

"Just take," she whispered, "my hand," and beckoned.

It was always easier when they decided for themselves that this is what they wanted all along. To tie the little strings on their wrists themselves. That way she won't question why they were there. She wanted this.

A sudden sour note played in the soundless music as one of Sirens' eyes twitched, but it recovered when she spun her back to Triese.

"That's too bad..." Siren sighed, tilting her head to the side, "It really isn't that scary. I had hoped you were going to be braver..."

She paused, slowly turning her head back over her shoulder, peering just beyond her shell right at Triese, and then forward once more.

"I suppose it's better to back out now rather than later," she slowly drifted away, "You have to be pretty brave to do what it takes to walk along the Wave Roads. To deal with viruses up close," pause, "To Wave Change."

The low melodic sound thrummed back and forth like the coming tide, slow and all encompassing. Each wave pulling her target in closer and closer. Could you blame Triese for being curious? She was such a good girl. And good girls listened.

Siren let out a spirited laugh and clapped her little hands, "I knew there's a reason why I liked you! You're so smart!! Always thinking, aren't you?"

She hummed as she floated around Triese, leaning about to inspect her closely, "I know these things because I've been following you since you hopped on that train leaving Echo Ridge, but I also know these things because we resonate. You can tell, can't you? It's something that can't be expressed with words."

That sound, deep and calming, was more apparent in that moment and all the while, Siren's eyes glittered.

"Power..." she sang, voice dripping with hunger like sickeningly sweet honey, "Is just what allows us to do whatever we want, doll. To break past the things that limit us. You want to see the Wave Roads up close, don't you?"

She unfurled her hand, reaching out with her tiny palm face up, "What do you say, Triese? Don't you want to see all the things the world has to offer?"

Something like music filled the air, whisper quiet but building, slowly. The tempo quickening. And a bass that rumbled deep in the chest.

"My, my!" a mysterious voice echoed around Triese from seemingly everywhere, "What a poor little thing!"

With a blue flash that made a sound like a water droplet, a strange creature appeared before Triese. It looked like an imp of sorts with a long fish tail sitting in a shell all made of a shifting ethereal matter. She floated up to the young girl, leaning over with her head propped up on her hands as Triese stared up into the Wave Road above.

"You're a charming little doll aren't ya?" she giggled sickeningly sweetly, "So excited over the most boring of things!"

To Triese's obvious confusion, the mysterious creature spun and pose, holding a little limb to her mouth, "I'd be careful, doll! No one else can hear me right now so let's keep things hush hush, shall we? I bet your little head's swarming with a~all sorts of questions, so let me tackle the most obvious ones first."

"Today is your lucky day~!" she bounced and spun, scattering ethereal wisps all about, "You get to meet me! Siren! I've been watching you for a bit as I was drawn in by the sad, lonely song in your heart," she wiped a non-existent tear, "And I just knew I had to help. For you see, I am a very special Wizard with a particular power. A power than can help you achieve all your dreams~"

Siren's words came out in a rapid fire rhythm, plowing right over any and all things Triese was trying to interject with. But now, Siren had settled down, leaning her head on her little limbs, peering over Triese like she was the most interesting specimen in the menagerie. Emanating from the strange Wizard was a quiet, yet lovely sound that Triese could feel more than she could hear, and all the while Siren peered onward with playful eyes.