The Russian girl sighed as she watched the battle from the sides. As usual, her coworker was stealing all the experience for himself. She didn't bother introducing herself to the opposing group, seeing how she wouldn't be battling them anyway. At least, that's what she thought a moment ago.

She heard the sound of footsteps from below the stairs. Tying her scarf to the railings, she went over the edge and slid down. Turning around, she went face to face with a strangely familiar girl. With an eyebrow raised, she addressed her. "Are you... Evangeline Mech?"

"Twilight." A purple LBX hopped on to her shoulder before hopping to a diorama she didn't see before.

The Russian narrowed her eyes at this. "So you're one of Detector's slaves too?" The collar on her neck was all the answer she needed. "That must suck. Oh well."

Her LBX joined the other in the arena. "Let's show her what we've got, Drezion!"

~~~~~

"Honestly, how long does it have to take before this thing moves?!" Ran was getting impatient, and perhaps a little bit claustrophobic.

"Jessica and the others should have contacted us by now." Jin added.

Ban stared at the time on his CCM. Eventually he decided to try and contact the other group, but to no avail.

"Nope, it won't connect."

"Something might've happened to Hiro and the others." They turned to Jin anxiously at his statement before eyeing the brunette's CCM again.

Suddenly, the lights went back on and they were on their way. When they got to the top, only ten minutes were left on the clock. Upon exiting the elevator, the sound of battling was apparent to them.

Taking a peek over the railings, Ban's eyes widened. "Jin! There she is!"

He joined his side immediately and his eyes narrowed. "She's a slave player..."

Ran blinked. "But who's she battling?"

"Attack Function, Blizzard Slash."

They heard an LBX broke over and the collar unbuckled itself. Before Eva could hit the floor, she was caught by an unfamiliar girl. She seemed confused for a minute before her eyes landed on them. Smiling, she waved at them before pointing at a ladder.

They nodded at her before proceeding up. At the top of the stairs, they found a D-Egg's dome and a boy passed out beside it. Ban kneeled down to check on him. "Keita?"

Jin's eyes landed on the collar. "Morigami Keita was made into a slave player?"

The brunette turned to the dome. "But if he's out here, then what about...?"

"Hey, Artemis kids." A new voice joined them from behind. The girl from earlier was helping a half-conscious Eva walk over to them.

Jin ran over and took her place, leading Eva to sit against the rails beside Keita. He turned back to the other girl. "Thank you."

She shrugged. "It's nothing. I just happened to be bored at the moment, so I took care of her for you."

"Right, and... who are you?" Ran asked.

"Name's Niara Levanov. I'm Omega Dain's first test player." She said proudly.

Ban's eyes widened. "Omega Dain's?"

"Yeah. And I saw a weird thing with red lights over that way when I first got here." She pointed towards another set of stairs. "I'm assuming that's what you're after?"

The brunette took out his CCM and pointed it at the direction she showed. Sure enough, the bars went up. "So the commanding computer is up there." Then, the sound of gunshots was heard.

"Something's up there." Jin took a step forward, but changed his mind when he glanced at the blonde, who had just begun to get up. "Eva!"

She winced, the surprise and aching blending in her head. She sat up and blinked at the one helping her. "Jin...? When did you..." Her gaze went to her surroundings. "Wait, where are we?"

"Britannia Clock Tower, where the commanding computer is."

"Commanding...?" Her eyes widened at what that meant. "I was a slave player?!"

"Believe it or not, we weren't the ones to save you." Ban cut in, smiling slightly.

At her confused expression, the black haired girl behind them mocked a bow. "Niara Levanov, at your service."

She smiled at that. "Thank you, Niara."

Only a moment later, the dome beside them dissipated, revealing their friends. Ran smiled at them. "Hiro, Yuuya, Jessica!"

Hiro returned it. "Everyone!"

Ban sighed in relief. "I'm glad you're all safe!" His gaze turned to the blonde boy across them. "Kazama Kirito, why are you here?" The blonde only smirked in return.

Niara rolled her eyes at this. "You've been stalking them this long, and you didn't tell them anything?"

His expression immediately fell and was replaced by an irritated one. "No one asked for your opinion." Eva glanced back and forth between the two. They seemed interesting.

Yuuya and Hiro ran for the stairs, heading for the commanding computer, but some kind of dragon-like machine got in their way. They assumed it to be Detector's, but Kirito recognizing it gave them a few doubts as well.

"Killer Droid"

That's what he called it. Niara didn't seem to like it either. Ban told Yuuya and Hiro to take care of the computer, and asked Jessica to look after Keita and Eva. He, Jin and Ran took out their LBXs and the dragon flew up, creating its own dome to trap them in.

"Why did Dr. Mummy send Killer Droid here?" Kirito clicked his tongue and headed for the elevator. Niara glanced at Eva and they exchanged smiles before she headed out. She didn't really understand why, but she really wanted to meet her again.

~~~~~

They didn't stand a chance. Even with Elysion and Minerva's special modes, they were unable to defeat the foreign creature. While they battled, Jessica, Yuuya and Hiro helped Keita and Eva into the elevator. They urged the other three to get in and they headed down before the droid could follow them.

Cobra and Mongoose arrived in a car and they all left. Once they've driven far off from the tower, the shorter one of the two turned to them. "You sure got into some trouble there."

"Yes, I was worried about what would happen." Hiro replied.

Cobra turned to a certain brunette. "He's the slave player?"

"His name is Morigami Keita." Ban explained. "He's a friend."

"Let's bring him to the hospital for now." The man's eyes then narrowed at a certain blonde. "As for you," Eva flinched. "You have a lot of explaining to do."

She turned her gaze to her feet. "I wanted to buy some snacks since I know you guys would be coming. I was headed for the train station, but... Well, the next thing I knew, I was at the tower."

"So you were gassed like Kazu and Ami..." At Jin's conclusion, she nodded.

"Anyways," Ran called for their attention. "I wonder if that monster-like LBX belonged to Detector."

Jessica looked up. "Kazama Kirito called it a 'Killer Droid'."

Hiro's eyes narrowed at that. "He must know something."

"If he does, then it has to be linked to Omega Dain." Yuuya added.

Ban stared at the broken Elysion in his hand. "It was terrifying."

"But we proved that the special modes had an effect on it." Jin reminded him. "Elysion and Minerva, along with Perseus, have great potential against it."

"But can we win against it with just that?"

Eva blinked. "This kind of thing is exactly what you came here for, isn't it?" She smiled at their confused faces. "The professor wanted to enhance all of your LBXs so that it'll be better prepared for whatever Detector throws at you. No matter who or what the Killer Droid is affiliated with, in the end, it's just another obstacle you have to get over to reach the goal, right?"

They exchanged glances and nodded at each other. Jessica smiled. "I like you already, Eva. And at any rate, we have to repair your LBXs."

~~~~~

"Killer Droid." The professor examined its stats as soon as they arrived. "To think that a thing like this was developed..."

"Dad didn't know about it either?" Ban asked.

"No, this is my first time seeing it. Who made it, and for what purpose...?"

"It has to be Detector! Only they can make something like this!" Hiro cut in.

"Not necessarily." Eva replied. "With the technology we have nowadays, I think there are a lot of people in the world who could."

"And you'd know all about that, wouldn't you?" At Cobra's sneer, Mongoose jabbed his side. "Hey!"

The professor ignored their antics. "Did you happen to see the person operating it?"

"Nobody was there." His son replied.

"So in other words, it's remote controlled... or perhaps, it moves on its own."

"It targeted the LBXs as if it were a beast." Yuuya stated.

"Professor, is the Killer Droid an LBX?"

At Ran's question, he shook his head. "No, it's not an LBX."

"Its power, speed and strength..." Jin spoke up. "All of its stats certainly excel that of an LBX."

"It wasn't an enemy that we could beat fair and square." Ban muttered.

"There's nothing you can do about it, no matter how much you fret." The professor finally said. "Let's begin remodeling Elysion and the others."

"That's right! The Super LBX might be able to stand up against it, dad!"

He nodded. "We'll repair and modify Jin and the other's LBXs, as well. And Eva," The blonde straightened her position. "You should rest."

Her eyes widened. "But professor, I-"

"Despite not needing the same level of treatment Morigami Keita does, that doesn't mean you should look past your body's limits. And you've done a lot of work as of late, so you can use this time to relax and... catch up."

She understood that he meant more than that. After all, ever since they went their separate ways, she was always only thinking about him. Her face flushed, but she gave a nod. "If... If you say so."