Well after that disastrous conclusion we find Lan in his room, morose over Megaman's loss. But there's little time for him to mope since he gets a call from Baryl telling him that he should see the sea if he's down. He says to meet him at the harbor near SciLab. Since when did SciLab have a harbor?
The harbor is accessed via SciLab's campus, through an exit that was previous cordoned off. There's a giant cruise ship docked there, and Baryl's standing at the edge of the dock, looking out at the ocean. He talks about how the sea's so big it makes one's problems look small before telling Lan that he has another Navi that he can use for the next mission. His apparent callous sets Lan off, prompting Baryl to dish out a Get A Hold Of Yourself Man smack. He says that Nebula is causing people to suffer even worse than he is, but that he has the power to ease that pain. He heads back to Mission Control saying that Lan's free to leave the team if he wishes, but if he decides on staying on he'll still have the Navi ready for him. Once he's gone Lan imagines Megaman telling him to stay strong, and resolves to use Baryl's new Navi to save him. That was a refreshingly brief bout of angst, even if it does kinda make his character look a bit pancake-shaped.
Before we head back to SciLab, there're two more Dark Chips to snag, right here in the harbor. The first one, Dark Meteor F, is sold by a young woman for 3000z. The second one is in the possession of an Indian woman who acts as the second quiz-giver.
- Q1: In boxing, attacks like a Champy EX's are called what? (a one-two punch)
- Q2: The total attack of Champy EX's right and left punches is...? (60)
- Q3: What is the opposite of sweet? (spicy) (Author's note: wut? Shouldn't it be one of the other two options: sour or bitter?)
- Q4: The vending machine outside SciLab only sells what? (energy drinks)
- Q5: ...La la la la! How many times did I just say “la”? (4)
- Q6: In which area do Handi appear? (SciLab 2)
- Q7: What question is this? (#7)
- Q8: You can jack in to which outside of SciLab? (the right one)
- Q9: What does the sculpture portray? (a battle chip)
- Q10: Influenza is caused by what? (a virus)
And we're given Dark Lance W. We now have over half the Dark Chips in the game.
There's also a boy who challenges Lan to an online game of Hide & Seek, and says that the first place his Navi will be hiding in is somewhere in ACDC Area. We don't have a Navi at the moment, but I'll still take him up on the challenge.
So let's fix that. Heading to Mission Control and telling Baryl that he's decided to stick around prompts Baryl to send Lan the new Navi, which turns out to be Colonel himself. Lan thanks him for believing in him, and Baryl gives him a new mission, to check out the next area to be liberated, End Area 2, part of the Net that corresponds to End City. Simple enough. We can finally jack in to a control panel on the side of the room to access SciLab's homepage, which in turn connects to SciLab 2.
Now that we have Colonel his image data for the Party Battle System is unavailable, but Shadowman's has been added to make up for that. His support ability has him damage and confuse enemies when Colonel (or Megaman) is low on HP. He happens to have a combo attack with Colonel called Engetsu Sappou (something like “Crescent Kill”) where Colonel surrounds all enemies with Rock Cubes that turn into Shadowman who who proceeds to slash all surrounding foes.
Something to keep in mind is that not only is Colonel not affected by the Navi Customizer, but he can't even pick up Mystery Data containing HP Memories, and we can't buy any either. If he ever says “I don't need this data” in response to examining one, it means that we'll to come by later once we get Megaman back to pick it up.
Before I forget I should tackle the Hide & Seek subquest. The kid's Navi is (badly) disguised as a Program in ACDC Area 3. Then he hides in the chip sculpture at SciLab, before hiding in Drill Computer 3 (Easter egg: you can see Dark standing on top of the mine). Finally, he hides in the Furnace Computer, and then you have to find his operator on Oran Isle. The prize is an Anti-Damage *.
Returning to the plot, in order to get to End Area we're going to take the scenic route now that we can access SciLab 3 and 4. Just like with Knightman, Shadowman's Alpha copy is parked outside the exit to SciLab 3. Then his Beta form is found at a dead end towards the back of Oran Area 1's lower level. As in the past, his chip has him throw three shurikens at enemies.
SciLab 3 has a Bug Frag merchant:
- Auto Run – 8 frags
- Wind Racket B – 12 frags
- Millions – 22 frags
- Lava Seed P – 26 frags
- Float Shoes – 40 frags
- Poltergeist P – 60 frags
Beyond is SciLab 4, a circular area with one-way conveyors. The Dark Chip Dark Wide T can be bought from a Navi for 1000z. At the center of the area is a teleporter that leads to a computer space that connects to Oran Area 2. Up a ramp is the entrance to End Area, but the way is barred by a giant security door under SciLab's jurisdiction. Colonel suggests heading back to SciLab Area to find the key to unlock it.
…
We're in SciLab!
Well, for what's it's worth, the Navi with the SciLab Key item is in SciLab 4. But before he hands it over we have to, you guessed it, prove our strength via virus battle. I shouldn't think the co-leader of Team Colonel should have to prove a damn thing to SciLab since they know who he is and what's more he just helped free the area for them!
Well with the key we're able to access End Area, finally. End Area is the largest Net area in the game not counting the post-game, clocking in at five areas and two liberation missions. It has a main, raised pathway and an incredibly convoluted lower level. Like, worse than SciLab Area. Well, in this first area, the only one we can access at this point, there is a merchant:
- HP Memory – 6000z
- HP Memory – 10000z
- HP Memory – 14000z
- Vulcan 3 L – 5800z
- Mega Cannon G – 7600z
- Barrier 100 P – 8800z
- Wide Blade V – 10000z
- Jealousy J – 12000z
We're not actually given the option of buying HP Memories at this point since Colonel's with us.
The entrance to End Area 2, the liberation mission site, is initially unguarded, but Colonel proclaims that he senses something. A portal appears (think Laserman), and from it steps...Megaman, featuring a new red-eyed and most importantly eveel look. Megaman taunts Lan a bit about their old bond, and Colonel's ready to take him on now that he's a Nebula agent, but it really turns out that Megaman hasn't been corrupted so much as been taken over by the darkness inside of that Dark Chip that was put inside of him. Lame. Megaman's briefly incapacitated by his true self's Fighting from the Inside, but a trio of Heel Navis jack in to provide backup allowing him to escape.
If anything, these three Heel Navis stand even less of a chance against Colonel than Megaman did, but nine more jack in to form a battalion. Lan and Colonel decide to retreat in the face of their numbers. Bah, I still could've totally taken them!
Back with Baryl the two ponder what to do. Baryl decides to temporarily put the liberation mission on hold, his reasoning being that even if the whole team fought through the guard they'd be left in poor shape for the liberation mission. Without Megaman, the only sure-fire way to get through the mob with minimal risk would be to take them all out at once. Sounds like a job for a new teammate!
So Baryl puts Lan on another mission. A company with the wonderful name of Ubercorp is hosting a party tomorrow on the cruise ship docked at the harbor, the Queen Bohemia. They're auctioning off something called a booster system that can massively increase a program's power, and Nebula will likely have their sights set on it. Lan's task is to attend the party and stop Nebula from getting their hands on it. Only thing is, you need an invitation to attend, and only big-shot corporate officials and dignitaries are being invited. The meeting ends with Baryl asking Lan if he's capable of fighting Megaman, and after a moment of hesitation he says that if he's truly been taken over by darkness, yes, he is.
Lan quickly remembers that he does know royalty, so it's off to Oran Isle to talk to Pride, and she readily hands over her invitation upon hearing what it's for. Before we turn in, there's a new chip being sold from Higsby's display case: Django D for 7300z. The hero of Boktai has his own set of Mega chips in this game. The way they work is that the enemy is sealed in a coffin and roasting with sunlight while debris falls on the field. Like the Gun del Sol chips, the Django chips get more powerful if Megaman's jacked in from an outdoor location.
And that's it for today. Time to hit the hay.
Virus Listing
- Whirly
- Whirlies are crabs that do exactly as advertised: whirl in a boomerang pattern through the friendly area on miniature whirlpools.
- Met Fire
- Returning from Battle Network 2, these little wizards will hide behind an obstacle on their side of the field such as a boulder and rain meteors down on random panels on the friendly side of the field.
Soundtrack
- Shadow of Heart
(DS)
- The sadness theme, which only plays like two or three times in the whole game.
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