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Two thousand years of progress and now this?The Fortress ImpoundedRegretting the loss of his boomerangs still, MegaMan looked around and saw his allies had retreated back to the hills. The dragon had done its job, sending the cowardly humans running with thei tails between their legs. Proverbially. The disrupter on his side made a dinging noise, signalling that it was powering down. Onward into the storm, MegaMan thought, best to get this ride over and done with.
The doors to the main keep were tightly sealed after the dragon had come out, their thick steel brooding and nigh impenetrable. The windows, though large, were far too high up to be entered by simply scaling the wall. The smooth edges on the lower portion was also deterrent in any sort of attempt to climb.
But the dragon's body WAS pretty tall, tall enough that if it were propped against the wall, he could grab hold of the imprefections nearer the windows and enter the Keep. It took only a few minutes to manipulate the dragon's corpse. MegaMan then used his makeshift ladder to get high enough to merely jump to the gaping windows. He leapt high into the air, judged his landing and rolled into the room. And rolled right into the hole in the floor so conveniently placed.
As if I couldn't see this one coming.
MegaMan fell.
And fell.
And fell.
And crashed.
MegaMan rose to his feet, gun to the ready, looking quickly around. The room was nearly a perfect cube, with squares cut out on the walls. Some were flipping around, as if scales turning on their axis. They were almost mesmerizing, their pattern easily discernable. The top squares flipped, their flat surfaces revealing a semi-sphere protruding from the flat surface. It glowed for a few seconds then fired off an energy blast at MegaMan. He dodged, barely, firing back at the squares which hid themselves by the time his shot landed.
Several more flipped and MegaMan contined to dodge, memorizing which tiles contained guns and which ones did not. After several barrages he tried to shoot one out with his buster, a direct hit, but didn't damage it.
I'm going to need something more powerful. The Boomerangs could go through these like butter, and I only have one blade. Perhaps an explosion might stop the whole machine.
MegaMan chose his targets, five tiles, one on each wall and one on the ceiling. Time to see if this time machine works, he booted up the Flash Protocol, his processor executing the information. The tiles slowed down, everything became like molasses save for his own motions. He grabbed 5 crash bombs, only two left, and tossed them on his targets in mid turn. They hit true, and the Flash Protocol ended. The squares turned away and the bombs exploded. Pieces of the wall and ceiling came crashing to the floor, some still turning but now on their own. None of them bore a weapon. Small expolsions jolted the room as the walls continued to crumble, some light cam through on one side. MegaMan tossed a crash bomb into the small opening, the explosion made the hole wide enough to fit through.
He crawled through the opening, the room continued to collapse behind him. He came out the hole to a corridor running both ways both branching off apporoximately 15 meters away from the hole. There were no doors to be found. There was a large boom behind him and everything shook as the room behind him collapsed completely in on itself. Pieces fo the corridor fell into the room, the lights flickered and went out completely.
"Remember me Brother?" Enter the DragonMegaMan stood alongside a crack assault team of United Earth Army soldiers, waiting for the last of the Wilybot's to come out of their wall. The front gate, a thirty foot high steel and concrete monstrosity, stood closed. The massive skull shaped building glowed errily in the halflight of dusk. The army had found in the plays of light brought by the failing sun sometimes made the Wilybots misjudge their targets and miss. These were few and far between, but happened often enough to warrant a frontal assault to storm Wily's castle. Originally it was a Scottish castle, built in a time no one could remember, but it had been so defiled by the metal of Wily that one could only tell it had a castle format. No one could see at first glance that the steel pyres had a heart of mortar and stone. An age of iron and rock improved by steel and genius.
A low siren wailed into the half night, thes door creaked open and slowly pushed the black dirt aside. The frontal assault team pulled back ina mock retreat as Wilybots cascaded out of the opened gated. Megaman waited, watching as they took up defensive positions shooting down the fleeing soldiers easily. He looked at the small device in his hand, as detrimental to him as it was to the Wilybots. A logic scrambler, meant to disrupt robotic subroutines that were responsible for aiming and firing. On all test subjects it had allowed for a 39% dodge chance and 14% chance to miss altogether. Unfortunately it affected all those in the vacinity, eventually the scrambler could be overcome but it would buy enought time to gain entrance to the fortress. Hopefully.
He flicked the switch in his hand, the device whirred a little and fell silent.
Why would you do this to us? Now you must rely on your Human side to aim. We are imperfect now, our battle subroutines are shot.
Make due, I have to try to get into the fortress. Try not to use too much processing power figuring how to be perfect again.
Processing...
MegaMan looked around him, taking in the eyes of his fellow soldiers. Fear, it was abundant here. But there was something else, a slight glimmer as if they knew something that he could not quite figure out. A secret that he was not privy to. And yet when he thought about it, it was so easily defined. He smiled and motioned them to the apex of the hill, they would attack in but a few seconds. Hope, it reflected in their eyes was like seeing yourself in a pond. A fleeting mirage that disappears if you disturb it, but allow it to be untouched and it will remain. Careful then not to lose too many or the reflection would die, and so would he. He breathed in deeply, a purely superficial act, cast one last look around and said, "Let's go."
They ran down the hill, firing their weapons wildly into the mass of Wilybots still pouring from the gates, desperately trying to destroy enough to clog it open should Wily try to shut it. The bots already grounded fired back, just as wildly. The scrambler was working, few men were hit while the ground around them was charred. After the initial flurry of shots, the flow of Wilybots stopped as the gate began to close. Too late, there was barely enough scrap metal that one body could fit through at a time, but that was all they needed. Redoubling his speed, MegaMan focused on running to the gates. Only a hundred meters of flat land to go. The Wilybots focused their fire on MegaMan, but he was moving too fast for them to get a good shot. He lept over a small nest, they fired upwards at him, not noticing the present he left behind for them. The crash bomb exploded behind him sending bodies flying. Forty meters, the defenders were more abundant here. He reached behind him, grasping the Boomerangs, one in each hand and sliced his way through the crowd. He slowed only a little as the almost indestructable metal cut a swath through the bots nearest. Ten meters... he climbed up the bodies the blocked open the doors, leaving behind another explosive. The bomb cleared the bodies and the door closed firmly behind him.
The assault team didn't even make it down the hill before they retreated, their job was only to distract and they did their part. The only thing left to do was to meet up with the others and continue the assault as best they could. The hope was still there, their job done. But it was as fragile as a butterfly's wings.
Megaman rolled and landed on his feet uneasily. He looked at his body, everything was still there. Unforunately he was not alone.
It rose to it hind legs, the great metal monster that stood fifteen feet tall. It's shining metallic wings almost looked leathery in the halflight, the shadows playing on them perfectly to give the impression of the dragon it was supposed to resemble. It's body was painted black as onyx and it's eyes glowed a deep crimson. The wings were silvery, giving it an almost angelic look. Much like the Angel of Death it was both beautiful and repulsive; intruiging and terrifying, deadly and destructive all at the same time.
It twisted around, its tail swinging out towards Megaman who lept straight in the air. He threw a crash bomb at the monster, which attached onto a wing. It exploded but the damage was superficial. Okay, next plan. He grabbed a metal blade as the dragon stood, then crouched as if to leap. Good, Megaman thought, come to my blade. But instead of leaping, the dragon opened his mouth. Megaman jumped to the side, rolling just barely out of the way of the flames shot out of the dragon's gaping maw. He landed in a run, keeping from the fire which melted the metal from the wall like an ice cream cone left in the sun too long.
Megaman ran still, the beast was too large to move with him. Obviously he couldn't have been given enough attention to have a complex CPU, he was the beast he resembled. Megaman took aim and tossed the metal blade squarely into the dragon's chestplate, burying it inches deep. Damn, he is adamentite. Well Wily I have to give you credit on making this at least a bit of a challenge.
He grabbed his boomerangs and charged the dragon head on. The dragon swiped at Megaman, he grabbed his hand and swung himself towards where the metal blade was buried. Luck, skill, or maybe divine intervention played its part as Megaman landed just perfectly, feet planted squarely on the blade.
My Turn.
Megaman began buring the boomerangs as far as he could into the dragon's chest and wrenched them out just as quickly. Only seconds were needed for the bladed edges to pierce the armor plating enough to expose the core of the dragon. He tore into it with the boomerangs, heedless of the dragon fallign backwards, lutching at his chest. He dug into the core, his blades disintigrating at the touch of the anti-matter leak. The body began to eat iself from the inside as the anti-matter reacted perfectly with its surroundings, countering the matter and leaving nothing but vaccuum in its wake.
Megaman stood back, watching the slow destruction of the once mighty beast. The reaction stopped a short distance from where the core was, a perfectly spherical hole where the heart should have been. He looked down at his blades, now useless, and let them drop. He still had one of Metal Man's disks on him, perhaps that's all he needed. But without his versitile boomerangs he felt naked and exposed.
His sensors picked up a new higher function coming online. Hopefully it was the last of the Masters. Maybe then he could be done with this war. Final StagesThe crushed empire of Wily reigned with anarchy and cruelty. The weak died and the strong weakened. Chaos without control was in supremum, nothing would stop the rush of death, like blood, coursing over top the land. Needless and heedless were the deaths of countless soldiers and even more civilians. The harbinger of souls truly had a full schedule.
Still, he worked in his lab, tireless in his final bastion of command and control. There remained few robots left to defend his fortress, almost too few to keep the United Earth Army at bay, but still managed to. The greatest advantage of the robots was that they were tireless and merciless killers. Always perfect in their aim, always kill shots. But there seemed to be an infinite amount of bodies assaulting the fortress, soon, almost too soon, would they breach somewhere. Then the game would have to change, one of much higher stakes.
Wily looked upon his creations, they were so improved from their original designs in almost every way but there were remarkable similarities to their predecessors. Still, even more similar to the original Robot Masters. Cut to Metal, Fire to Heat, Ice to Bubble, Bomb to Crash, Guts to Flash, and Elec to Quick. Along with Air and Wood, these were deadly foes. But why does one robot, an imperfect boy win every time? There must be something that Light knows that he doesn't, some secret to combat. How could this blue boy be so effective when all he was is a house cleaning robot. He was not built to be a killer but he fights so efficiently, he is a destroyer and yet built for service. The world is defined as chaos: Murder, rape, anarchy, death, mayhem all stalk the rubble of the former pantheons of western civilization. Mere months after the Wily Wars restarted several factions arose from the shadows to tear asunder the planet. There is no healing from this scarring blow to the face of Mother Earth. And yet, all the Doctor could think about was how to defeat his nemesis. There had to be a way, some weakness to the boy. He tossed the schematic to Flash Man aside, and threw his hand in the air. Then he buried his face into the calloused gnarled fingers that so defined his palms. They were cold and unforgiving against his unshaven face, his beard unkempt and hair wild and bushy. His white eyebrows were more disheveled then usual. His age showed in all its geriatric glory. Wily stood, his back cracking with the effort, there must be a way to defeat him. Perhaps he wouldn't be so effective against all the Masters attacking in unison. They didn't have any programming towards group tactics, but part of being artificially intelligent was the inherent intelligence. Unfortunately there was only hours before Mega Man was set to arrive, the reconnaissance outposts on the edge of the valley where Wily's fortress lay sent warning of an intruder. Already the defenses were engaged with Mega Man, the Wily Bots still under the bases influence were sent to intercept. Seven of the Robot Masters lay dormant, waiting for their AI to finish uploading. Seven, why couldn't he just wait for the Master's to be completed? "Computer, send out the dragon. Prepare the Gut's Tank for a full out assault. Make ready the drone pit, and the transporter. Have the generator step up to maximum output and all excess energy to internal capacitance. I want every available bot either outside defending the walls or inside the lab itself. Prepare the elevator and the battle craft. Attach the escape module on it, and make sure it has enough fuel for an emergency launch." Acknowledged. Maybe he would live, maybe he would die. But there would definitely be enough blood spilled to sour even the most hardened soldier. .... You could have it all, my empire of dirtThe rain spat on the ground in large drops, the muddy quagmire of the battlefield lit up once again by mortar fire and munitions. No one learns, not even in the face of pure evil and absolute perfection do they even catch a glimpse of what the world is supposed to be. The sky darkened, the sun leaving, saying goodbye to the bloodsoaked earth to a place where she could light a grassy field and look upon the faces of smiling contented people. However the scene of destruction, the vortex of terror existed worldwide. The Wily Wars had touched the lives of every human in existance, they either fought in it or starved because of it.
The factions drove into the center of what was once the hill, a consortium of metal and flesh sank deep into the black sands. Blood stained the grass and deepened the night, each drop spilled drove the light further and further into the horizon while beckoning the night closer and closer. Warm rain washed the night further into the ground, the fallen noticed far too late that they were being enveloped in a beautiful cacoon of sand, warm and forgiving like a mother's womb. Some resisted, and the night took them faster. Most lay back and accepted their fate, to die and be forgotten by all. The silent heroes of war.
Limbs, mangled bodies, and otherwise perfectly healthy people were swallowed into the dark abyss. And the night came, washing itself over the ground. Even though the warning of dusk encapsulated the sky for hours, nightfall came a surprise to the freedom fighters, flares were fired high into the sky. Beacons to try to bring the day back, but she had left the horror and behind her everything that the darkness offers. Pain, death, sadness, grim hollowed faces, lies, deception, murder, and hope.
The Law of Big Numbers states in no uncertain terms that on a long enough timeline eventually everything possible must happen at least once. Eventually, the cascade of evil would be stemmed; eventually the fighting would stop; eventually a hero would rise again. The earth itself shuddered and the fighting stopped, the black sand pit split itself in two. The crack unevenly bisected the dune, steam rising from the mouth scalding and melting everything nearby.
And then the mouth closed, for the second time in an hour, the earth stood still. Already the smarter of the combatants ran, the hills were their refuge from the abyss. Seconds later the earth shot up, mud and debris flying in every direction as if a massive underground munition was detonated. And rising from the explosion, what had fallen abreast the flying fortress rose from the crater. Limping on one leg, the other barely usable and covered in mud MegaMan moved towards the trees. His eyes were lifeless, singularly objective based, a cold thousand yard stare.
Disappearing into the trees, letting the night envelope him Wily contemplated his next move. He had total anarchy at his disposal, exactly what he wanted but no Robot Masters to control the drones who would usher the new world order. He still had the schematics for them, perhaps there was a way that the nanobots could create something that sophisticated... hope renewedThe body of Rock lay still, no rise and fall of his chest to show any breathing patterns. No life registered in his eyes, and yet there was a faint gleam in the furthest depths, almost as if life were hiding behind the cowls of Death. The clouds overhead opened up and the rain fell to the earth, warm and refreshing; reminiscent of a shower, everyone stopped to enjoy the sweet embrace of the water.
The crash site quickly turned to mush, then to mud. The wreckage sinking deep into the mires of the muck; ash, silt and sand mixed with the warm water to turn the site into quicksand. Rock's body sank into the earth, another soul reclaimed by the Earth Mother. The sheer weight of his body engulfed him in the heavy mud and in an instant he was nothing more than a terrible memory, the harbinger of a greater threat destroyed. The war seemed so possible to win now, by all sides; each found a new hope in it. The bastion of oppression fell from the sky
for some, and the hero of Light fell for another.
There is not much time left... core circuitry is not going to maintain stability.
What are my options?
Blast yourself out? You have 15% power left over. Not enough for a heat blast.
What about stand-by mode and send a signal out to Dr. Light?
We are too far underground for the signal to have any strength once it reaches the surface. We are on out own here.
How many nano-bots do we have left?
26% and they are reparing internal circuitry to isolate main components.
Rerout them to the energy reserves, we are going to blast our way out.
Warning: rerouting of nanotbots to weapon energy renewal will result in internal damage to primary and secondary circuitry. Seriously, they may short something important.
Something already has, you have a personality.
Fair enough. It will take a few minutes.
Let's hope it's enough.
There is only one funny thing about hope, and that's if you really need something and you rely on hope it has a tendancy to spin the wheels of probability. No one wins when they spin the wheel. No one. Hope faltersOn the ground, a war rages. A three way battle that has been fought for over five weeks, all sides dug in for the long run. The factions: Human resistance, Wily Bots, and The Liberated, all vied for supremacy in this important skirmish. The battle was over the top of the hill, the No Man's Land to gain either the tactical advantage needed to assault, or defend, Wily's fortress. Neither side could gain the upper hand on the others, as soon as one would gain a slight advantage another would capitalize on their weak spot and force a withdrawal. All sides were so entrenched that they could barely hear the sounds of combat above them over the sounds of combat surrounding them. The cries for aid, the scrapper bots and the bombs all muffled the sounds from above. Gun shots, and the injured all mixed in a myriad of destruction; Life has no more meaning here as the sound a fury took the living and forced them into the world of the dead. A Resistance soldier who was shot and injured rolled to his back, eyes towards the sky praying for a miracle to save him from the Fate about to be thrust upon him via another bullet or the flame thrower. His eyes were unfocused as he hoped with every ounce of hope he had, just a sign that maybe some day the war would end. He focused on the clouds, nice, puffy, beautiful, safe clouds. Although this one had a hole in it, his eyes focused a little more, lowering slightly as he caught a glimpse of the object. Could it be... no, there was nothing that flew that could take down Wily's flying fortress. "SERGEANT" he yelled, hoping that his sergeant was still alive."Sergeant! Look up, the fortress..." He coughed up some blood, but continued to yell, "It's falling." Within seconds the entire resistance was looking to the sky, watching the trajectory of the falling mass, trying to pinpoint were it would land. And more importantly, when it would land. Everything seemed to stop at once as everyone realized exactly where the fortress was going to land, they began to run when they realized that they only had a little over a minute to get away from no man's land before impact. The wounded soldier was left behind as the rest of the Resistance ran for the hills, willing to fight another day. For a full minute, the longest of his life the soldier watched in awe and fear as the massive fortress fell seemingly straight for him. Ain't no better way to die, he thought, too bad they won't be able to find enough of me after it's done for a hero's burial. There were explosions rocking the massive fortress every which way as it fell to the earth. The ship rocketed to the earth, smashing into the ground almost in the exact center of the hill, the impact destroying the top of the hill, reducing it to no more than a small rise. All the bodies, injured, dead and robotic were either incinerated or flew off into the hither. The injured soldier was lucky enough to be the former. And from the trees and the rocks came the resistance to climb the mound of the oppressor and cheer for their victory. They came only to the tree line, stopping short as they saw the floating robot above the wreckage of the destroyed fortress. He glowed faintly in the failing light of dusk, even from a distance his blue armor shone. He gently floated to the ground, and collapsed. ... Ends to meansWily entered the transporter room, the ship rocking and shaking with every blast from above. The small room held only the single pod, the only real escape from the falling fortress. How did it get to be so bad? There was such perfection intertwined into the Masters; how could such an imperfect piece of scrap make such a fool out of him? The ship jarred suddenly and dipped. Wily sighed and sent a silent prayer that there be enough power for at least one teleport. The lights flickered and Wily's heart skipped a beat, he silent heart attack jerking his body forward to the console. He pushed the drone aside and punched numbers into the keypad, his prayers answered. There was enough power barring a sudden blackout. The pod was 90% charged, only a minute left before there was enough power to get him out of the sinking ship. There was no need for the honor of the Captain going down with his ship; honor, pride, dignity, all dead at the beginning of the Wily Wars, Robotic warfare required a beautifully cold and calculating mind. The ship sunk further and he felt it go into free fall, he estimated that from this height it would take about 5 minutes for it to reach the ground, the pod reached full charge. He typed in commands to the pod and opened the door, climbed in and turned around to see MegaMan at the door gun pointed towards him. Ice were his eyes as the gun recoiled from the charged shot. Then there was nothing but darkness for Wily. MegaMan cursed wildly, knowing that he had gotten away once more. The ship was falling towards earth at an accelerating rate, he ran for the control room. There was about five minutes, he guessed, before the ground won. He crouched low, his legs sensing the leap he wanted to make, like a recoiling spring his body left the ground and smashed through the ceilings above. He jumped 4 stories before he ran our of momentum, he grabbed the ledge and hauled himself up, crouched again and leapt once more. Another 2 jumps later he reached the control room, his shoulders and head dented and bruised. He moved towards the main control console, three steps in he stopped cold. 4 minutes to impact, and one last Robot Master. He stood before him, almost just appearing from nothing. He stood as tall as MegaMan, slightly stockier and a small cannon for one arm. He was heavily armored, and his eyes were lifeless and unfocused. "I know what is going to happen MegaMan, you will not defeat me. I am going to destroy you, and then I am going to be destroyed from the fall. Do you understand?" Monotone was his voice, much like the voice of Death himself would be. "No, I seem to have a learning problem. Perhaps we should discuss it further." He raised his gun, making it painfully obvious that the only discussion would be in the arts of combat. Three minutes. MegaMan grabbed his 2 boomerangs and threw them at his opponent, hitting him square in the shoulder blades, each burying themselves only an inch. Adamantium armor? Perhaps Wily wanted to fight fire with fire. Why isn't he moving? He began charging the heat blaster, and grabbing two crash bombs, throwing them at Flash Man. They latched onto his waist and his legs, seconds later exploding, sending the boomerangs flying, and Flash Man back a couple of feet. The armor was barely scratched and was already patching itself. Why does he have Nanobots? "You will not win MegaMan, your weapons are already all but exhausted and I am unharmed. I will give you one chance, stop attacking and I will let us both die from the crash." Time slows, a heartbeat? What else to I have to defeat him; maybe I am meant to lose. No, there is always a way. Maybe I can't beat him in a physical battle, but I wonder how he will take a mental attack. Two Minutes. MegaMan charged at Flash Man, who stepped back a couple of paces, too slow. He grabbed up his boomerangs along the way, the heat blaster fully charged. Flash Man stood still as MegaMan buried the boomerangs sharp edges into his chest plate, they stopped barely two inches into the plating when he released the heat onto his enemy. The fire engulfed Flash Man, but did nothing since the Nanobots easily repaired all the superficial damage. "You just don't learn do you?" Flash Man said, punching MegaMan square in the jaw. MegaMan grabbed Flash Man by the throat, enough contact was made, the world fell away. One Minute. So you wish to take me down here? Intriguing, you are supposed to die of the flesh, not of the mind. Oh well. Execute 11325013. Executed. Really? A virus, I know every virus in the world. In fact I know everything there is to know. I know you can see it so how about you just give up now and let the inevitable happen. Oh, 45 seconds until impact. Executed. Amusing. It's just a small... Oh. Well played. The body of Flash Man sunk, MegaMan pulled the Metal Blade from his skull. A perfect diversion, he thought, resting his hand onto the body before him, learning his power. Knowledge? A vast database stretched before him, all the knowledge of the ages spanning either side and more, strings of lifetimes stretched before him, each bright strand the map of the lifetime of anything. Rocks, trees, atoms, quarks, everything had its own unique story. Time became nothing but a plaything. No, just something manipulatable, like clay. 15 seconds. Maybe he could change the physical universe around him as well. 10 seconds. Seems logical. I don't want this ship to be falling anymore. 5 seconds. It isn't working.... 3 seconds. Holy shit. 1 second. Please work. Familiar darkness. The ink playing at his eyes once more, one day it would be nice to end a fight without blacking out. .... we are the walrusAllowably there is no memory for the cyborgs, even the data that is stored within the ROM is but just electricity. It is not more than capacitors, inductors, transistors, transformers and a variable myriad of other components ending with "or" that make up what could be called a robot Soul, or invariably a robotic consciousness. And yet, humanity is naught more than a conscionable eventuality of the evolution of the brain from birth to maturity, we are so defined and yet nothing more than what defines us. The semi conscious, the piece of the brain that has more control over ourselves, instead of the other way around, is the far more fascinating part of us. A robot holds not such a beautiful flaw, they are perfection in the most destructive form, and that is what makes them so fallible.
And yet what happens when humanity is given to this logical killing machine? What is the proponent of change that so defines our lives? What is the effect of giving a watch a mind? What happens if our networks become like the buzzing of bees, each drone a consciousness that drives the technology? Is it so hard to believe the possibility that instead of ultimate logic rising from humanity, that it is humanity that rose from logic?
Can we define that darkness behind the eyes that is the unconscious sleeper; the thing that drives us to be exactly what we are, no more, no less?
When the truly logical defeats Evil, performs his function and is left without instruction, Evil has a tendency to take advantage. We are the apologetic, we are the lies. Megaman originally defeated Wily and his Robot Masters, unfortunately after Wily had given up right away, the objectives had been complete. There was nothing left but to return home. There was nothing left to determine that he had not in fact won, that the game was just starting to be played. The rest is history.
MegaMan had hacked into the Wily network using the small pieces of personality that came with the assuming of weapons of the Robot Masters. He was in long enough to find out when Wily would be refueling next, used one of the ships to fly up, and climbed aboard along the hoses. Metal Man's adamantium blade gave a leg to stand on the hull while Quick Man's Boomerangs made short work of the hull itself. He sensed two Master's in the complex, the final two... one was at the very top while the other seemed to be everywhere at once. Almost as if he were the entire vessel itself. As he began to traverse the corridors, the lights cut out save for the unmistakable red sirens of an intruder alert.
...
"Transfer auxillary power to the teleporter, I want to go back to my lab." Wily tapped a button on the console before him, "Air Man I want you to remain on the top floor, it will draw Mega Man long enough for me to get out of here."
"Sir, don't you think I can beat him? He is nothing compared to the Master of the Wind."
"Your purpose is to damage Mega Man enough for Flash Man to dispatch of him, if you do destroy him I will be very proud and very, very surprised."
"Yes Sir." The radio crackled and cut out.
"How long until the teleporter is ready?"
"Ten minutes Sir."
"And how long until Mega Man reaches the top floor?"
"Er... He is already there Sir."
"Then let's get to the teleporter... no... you stay here and destroy the Main computer. Transfer all information to the Lab, leave nothing left."
"Sir, what about keeping the ship afloat?"
"If Mega Man somehow lives, then I know that the ship crashing from forty thousand feet will destroy him. If he is destroyed I will transfer the necessary information to the ship to keep it running."
"Yes Sir.... Air Man is doing well in his battle Sir."
Horizontal gained some angle as the ship groaned and started to sink one way.
"Was doing well Sir."
An old scientist never ran so fast.
....
Mega Man an Air Man squared off, the top floor was one massive room resembling a brothel, palace and Gothic castle all at once. The most wonderful of pleasure of aesthetics were callously being shot as Air Man created whirlwinds and shot them towards Mega Man. A small hurricane surrounded him, deflecting every shot off into the hither or even back at Mega Man. Dirt, chunks of concrete and metal shards flew in every direction as the torrent moved closer and closer to Mega Man.
Mega Man crouched down, reaching behind him, in each hand producing a boomerang. He lept forwards, letting the wind suck him into the tempest. When he reached the edge of the cyclone he released the boomerangs and quickly grabbed the metal blade, and jumped atop of it, like it were a surfboard. He kicked his back leg down, letting his body fall back. The blade flew straight to the center, and Air man jumped right barely dodging the disc which disappeared into the cyclone.
Nothing but the harsh whisper of the wind storm hung in the air, Air Man saw nothing but the grey wall surrounding him. He circled around and around, hoping to grab a glimpse of his attacker. He felt two sharp pains in his shoulder blades, down into his chest. Damage sensors went wild, everything started shutting down, powering up, and fusing. Gears stopped, gyros slipped, and the nanobots inside him went to work. Unmistakably he had two objects embedded into his chest from above.
He turned around wildly, trying to catch his assailant in the act, to defend himself from such an adversary that could traverse his wind storm so easily. Around and around he went, his sensors picking up nothing but the dying storm, which was losing strength at an alarming speed. He stopped when he saw the open window, broken by one of the many irrational shots fired inside. Sensors flared once more, hands on his shoulders. Air man looked to his right shoulder to see who's it was, knowing the answer already. The hand was blue for a moment and then was white hot. The air around it burst into flames as he turned around to see the burning specter before him. How had Heat Man's power been so corrupted?
The burning figure pointed his hand towards him, as if he were a wizard casting a spell, and white flames shot from his fingers and engulfed Air Man. The air around waved quickly with the sheer heat, and the metal hull and floors egan to warp and the world was defined. It was defined and punctuated by the screams of Air Man. "So Wily gave his robots the ability to feel pain... too bad for them" Mega Man thought to himself. After several seconds both Air Man and the floor beneath him began to melt. A half a minute later both were one in the same.
Mega Man released the rest of the energy to the far wall and the ship shook and began to fall in that direction.
Warning: energy reserves half depleted.
Good, now for the last Master and to get Wily
... allowably saneThe darkness shifts with a breeze to take the inky night away from the shadows within; we are naught but sailors in her dark expanse, waiting for the shifts in the tide to bring us to the inevitable expanse that is the end of our ocean voyage. And yet I wonder...The sweet embrace of the abyss is for us now as the waters bear a sweet onyx, the breath stolen from her is livened to the harbinger of souls, and he is for us. The shadows creep ever further into my vision, the dusk befallen mine eyes. And over the horizon, in the stretch of infinity there is the great cowl of the beast who would have us, infinity in his eyes. Cold, calculating ivory that would no sooner swat a fly then usher us into the next world. We are at the end of all things, and yet the heart feels with wings, although flightless. There is a light somewhere, we just need a course.
Wily took stock of his robots. The Masters were accounted, but the slaves were only partially accounted for. One thing he never expected was to have a group of "liberated" bots to retain consciousness, let alone band together to form their own miniature society. Robots built for the sole purpose of destruction and the slow annihilation of all organic life on the planet should not gain consciosness and build an agrarian society for the betterment of the planet. But they are of no consequence anyways, the fortress is impregnable, the robotic assassin was on his way and the world was crumbling apart. Even now, others were making plans to help with the conquest of the world. No army could stand up to one Master, and the slaves were effective on their own. However it could all be ruined by MegaMan, lucky he would be destroyed once and for all.
The skies opened as the great fortress began to settle to the earth, its massive pontoons stretching for miles. Five refueler ships rose to meet the sky leviathan, their hoses stretching out in a near perfect pentagon to five seperate fuel ports. After several minutes they detached and the fortress rose above the cloud line once more. There was no need for the visual security, the ship was too well armed to consider attacking without a massive amount of planes. Since they were all but destroyed there was little reason even to stay afloat. Soon Wily would have to come back down to the earth, hopfully then it would be incinerated enough so that anyone left alive would pose no threat to his iron fisted rule. Perhaps even genocide would be preferable since bodies rarely have time to rebel.
"Sir, I know there is no interrupting your personal reflection time but this is urgent." Damn robots...
"What is it Air Man?"
"It's about MegaMan Sir... he is on the ship."
All that could be heard was alarms.
... allow me my moment in a moment's timeWe are so defined. That is our universal and ineffable truth to the extent that if we weren't defined, we would no longer exist. Labels and judgements swirl around our every movement, waiting to strike us into the dirt and laugh. We are so defined.
"Son, you just regained consciousness from a staggering injury. I had to operate six times on you and fix many many components just to keep you alive. At least stay for a little while, I have so much to tell you."
"No you don't... I know all about what happened. You are no better than Wily for what I am."
"For what you are? Son, how could you even think that you are anything less than the absolute embodiement of perfection?"
"Perfection? I can't beleive you are trying to placate me with lies and compliments. I am done with you, you are nothing to me."
"But..." Barely an audible whisper echoes throughout the room, "You are everything to me... Son."
"Don't you dare call me that! You are no Father to me, you were never there! You were aways too busy in the lab or saving the world! You never had time for me and what I wanted..."
"What would you have done? You are the only person in the world who understands the work that could end starvation. You are the only person who could build and maintain machines that literally end hunger altogether. You are the only one who can create things that can do every menial task to free up everyone's minds... to make sure that labor is for recreation and not of requirement. You have the ability to make so much good in the world, but the price is time spent with your son... What would you have done?"
"I would have spent time with my son."
"Then what if your partner stole your life's work and threatened to destroy the world, starting with your son? Would you protect him, even if it meant that you couldn't spend time with him? I've made many mistakes Son, I'm trying to make it right. When this is all over, we will be together again, but you have already seen what Wily can do. And you have only seen a small portion of his activities. There is much I have to show you. Please Son, let's end this and start fresh." Light extends his arm to Rock, a slight gesture of freindship.
Seconds fall like eternity.
Rock reaches out and grasps it firmly, "I'll never forget, but maybe we can make this alright again."
A weak smile crosses Lights face.
"Now, where is Dr.Wily?" where blind men seeDarkness surrounds...
We are the inky night, the pressures around, the suffocating blackness. Drowning in a sea of the charcoal essence.
Flash.
A boy walks into the kitchen from the back door, he already knows his parents have been called. But his father doesn't care, he never cares. His mother is waiting for him, cooking dinner already. She cooks when she is stressed.
"Why did you do it this time, Rock?" No hello, straight to buisiness.
"If I didn't step in he would have killed Johnny. I had--"
"You should have gone to your teachers. You can't take justice into your own hands, there are rules for a reason. And if you see a rule being broken you have to tell people who can take care of it, it isn't your job to discipline."
"Mom, I HAD to." Tears welled in his eyes, she just didn't understand. He had to be as strong as the robots his dad made, he had to protect the others like his dad's robots did.
"Honey, you aren't a robot. You are a boy, something so much better. You have to act like one. Please, no more fighting. For me." She looked directly into his eyes, searching for lies, he made the promise many times before. Maybe this time she could catch it.
"I promise Mom," maybe he isn't lying," next time I will go find an adult."
She holds his gaze a few moments more, then breaks away. His Father is late, again, which means he won't be back until the day is almost done.
Everything fades... we are the darkness. We are the creatures of the night.
Flash.
"He looks just like me dad."
"I know son, I haven't been spending alot of time with you, so I thought if I built something that loked like you, it would remind me to come see you."
"Or you just made a replacement because I am not strong enough. Or because you want to get rid of me because I fight too much."
"Son, you know I would never replace you. Besides, he is leaving to go on a special mission for me. So I am going to be spending alot more time at home with you and Mom."
"You always say that dad and it never happens, you just keep working. You always build new things and I can't help. I am just not good enough."
"Son, you--"
"Sir, I am so sorry but the masters have gone berserk, over a thousand people are dead. We need you now."
"We will talk later..."
Darkness once more. We didn't talk later. It wasn't until months later when Father and Son would meet again, and it was far too late. Father had forgotten the conversation, and as Son left with his mother, they lost it all. It isn't until we lose everything that we see what we have.
Flash.
"You have to come home and see your son, you can't keep doing this to him. You break his heart every time you break a promise, and then he doesn't care when he breaks hs word to me."
"Honey, they NEED me. If I am no there then MegaMan will lose, he isn't advanced enough to take on Wily without my guidance. If he loses then not even the army can fight the Masters."
"But they already are fighting the regular robots just fine, all we need is more time."
"That is what MegaMan is doing, he can take out a conitngent of robots, then he Master that controls them in less time then it takes for the army to take down half the size of that army. He is our only hope, I only sleep because I need it."
"Then sleep at the lab if it's so damned important. If it is more important then me and your son, then go."
She doesn't understand. I have to protect the world from Wily.
Everything fades.
Restarting system functions...
Caching weapon energy...
Checking damage report... all systems nominal...
Inorganic systems at 100%... Organic systems degrading rapidly...
What? Run/backup32
Running backup32...
Complete...
Organic systems at 80%... stable...
Wake Up Rock...
Wake Up Son...
Please.
A small boy, one of at least ten years, although his eyes speak of the horrors not even adults should see, opens his eyes and sits up.
"Where is Wily?"
... And she burns....The universe works in ways that are, for the most part, indefinable however every once in a while there comes a moment of pure and unadultered clarity. The universe opens up her barracades and allows us a moment to glimpse into the inner workings of Fate itself and know exactly what shall be and what has already become. And sometimes we are able to use it.
The sky opens and fire begins to fall, once in a time before and a time that will be again an apocalypse falls to the ground and brings with her destruction and pain. Smoke and ash tail the firey comet and from the rubble rises an angellic figure, flames rise high from his body, the flesh melting off his frame. He takes several steps and falls to his knees; another walks up to him and plants an uppercut squarely to his chin, and the fallen backened angel slumps backwards onto his knees, a deathly crunch echoes into the distance.
scanning internal drives...
starting emergency procedure: alpha...
The attacker grabs the fallen one by the throat, smiling at his own strength, and raises his limps body up.
scanning appropriate weapons... suitable weapon found...
what happened?
overriding battle procedure... complete... attacking manually...
"So you thought you could defeat me through brute strength then? I knew your arrogance would be your end. Pity. You were such a good fighter too."
And the angel's broken body begins to glow a deep crimson, like the pools of a fallen warrior's blood, and emits a reddened light. The red becomes brighter and brighter, his would-be defeator no longer able to let go as his arm is seared to the fallen's head. The red becomes so bright as to glow a beautiful radiant white, perfectly suitable for the seemingly holy body. And then, without warning, the color is drained leaving nothing but the charred body held up by the burly assailant. Save for one small difference, his arm is raised just enough to be pointed to the chest of his keeper, a small smile plays accross his charred lips and carbon falls to the ground.
Boom. Fire and metal,,,Wave after wave of humans run, they run for the hills; they run to attack their captors. What was once so powerful to be immortal is now being destroyed by a boy in blue. An inferno follows him, the furious flames lick the edges of the camp, winds keeping it back from attempting to swallow the grassy plains. And yet the camp is not a stranger to the cleansing fire.
Laura bursts through the treeline, barely outrunning the main body of flames. Her clothes are seared, the perfection of her face marred by smoke. She falls to her knees on the soft grass, breathing the hot air in, sucking in smoke from the flaming woods. A high pitch carries her mind away from the destruction, smoke glossed the world over and she falls to her face. Glossed eyes barely focusing on the Blue armored figure in front of her riding a machine down to the ground, as if surfing on the corpse of a flaming metal dragon. He rolls off the junk heap just before it hits the ground and explodes. The high pitch masks the sound of the explosion, but the wave of heat washes over her and is suddenly cold.
The firestorm rages on, everyone has fled. Every building is either on fire or rubble. "I was only a few minutes behind him... how could he have caused so much destruction in so little time?"
Rock stands up and notices the body of Laura and begins to walk towards her. She tries desperately to get up, pride trying to will her body to move, but her muscles are cement and her bones are titanium. He stops before her and looks down, eyes cold and unrelenting as if he were deciding whether or not she was dead weight or useful. He then reaches down and pickes her up like a fallen log and begins walking away from the flames, following the path made by the escaped prisoners. Fire and metal still rain from the sky, but undeterred he walks away, as if he has just done his groceries or mailed a letter.
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Hours pass in a dark swill before Laura's vision. Ink presses on all perepherals and she is left wondering about her present situation, time has lost all meaning in her personal abyss. All that has become her world is when the darkness will subside. And it does, slowly but surely she reagains her grip on now. The blackness creeps from her eyes, and the pitch in her ears deafens. Her thoughts grind together in a jumble of questions and her body jerks awake. Adrenaline pumps through her taut veins like acid, the fire searing her thoughts, jarring her mind into overdrive. To her she shot upwards and jumped from Rock's arms and down to the ground in a roll. To rock she started going into convulsions and fell face first.
She immediately rolled over and jumped to her feet, quickly dusting herself off. "Er... where are all the people who escaped?"
"Gone, probably to a city or something. I don't know where people go to when I can't see them."
"What?"
"People. They come and go but I never now where they go, just where they are. I have only been alive for a few days now, I am still getting used to time."
"A few days? But you must be somethign like 16... you're a little short though. I'm lost."
"I was alive for a time before now. I was recreated a few days ago. I've learned so much except where everyone goes once they run away from everything. Everyone seems to be cowards, they do not fight at all, even when it is their lives. Why did you come for me?"
"Don't you try to change the subject on me. Recreated? Are you a robot? You can't be... I saw you bleed."
"I am a robot Laura, look." He raised his arm parallel the ground and they both watched it change into the blaster. "I have blood in me, yes, but I am not of your flesh. I don't even think I rightly could even have an age."
"But..."
"Laura, I helped you because I felt it was right. I am programmed to fight Dr. Wily, and helping you served my programming. I need to get back to work now. I know where his lab is and he must pay for what he has done to the world, and to me," an ironic grin plays accross his lips, "Twice."
"I can help, I'll come with you and we can take him down together. Then we can go back and you can stay with us and help us..."
"No Laura, this isn't your fight. I cannot guarantee your safety."
"But I can guarantee her death." A deep voice cuts in as a concussion grenade lands between them and blasts them away from each other. Rock lands in a roll that brings him to his knees, facing his attacker who steps in front of the unmoving body of Laura. "Looks like I get a two for one today. But she is fleshy, I will enjoy peeling it off her body."
"If you touch her, so help me..."
"You won't even be able to think of doing anything. Look at you, your body is broken already. I've seen to it that my minions would take care of that. I know that your nanobots are depleted or else you would have fixed your helmet by now. I can read your energy signature, you are almost depleted, you are far from able to fight me. You are a good fighter, noble and courageous, but today the spider will take down the lion."
"Shut up and get on with it, I will defeat you. Then I will continue to hunt your master until he is brought to justice. Half the world burns because of your brothers, the other half cowers from your master. I will not rest until you are all defeated."
"You take the lives of my brothers and you dare speak of their actions, they are as much a part of you as they were monsters. You cannot take their strengths without taking their lives. So what would make you any more different than them?" A few seconds of silence pass. "that's what I thought."
... title? bah"Well, that was a little unexpected. Who would have thought he would be so strong? Oh well you needn't worry about the Grinder any more." Megaman said, getting to his feet then moving over to help Laura to hers.
"How the hell did you do that thing with your arm? You must be some kinda robot as well huh?" Laura's father said, rising as well.
"No Dad he isn't, I saw him bleed when he took down the other robots. I think he is just a very... unique person. But a person nonetheless." Laura chimed in.
"Either way I don't think he is safe in our camp."
"He just saved our lives!"
"But look at the forest! It is already in flames and will probably burn to our camp by sunrise, we need to go back to the city and make defenses there. You saw the camp for yourself, we need firepower if we are to survive whatever it is that is happening to our world. Those damned robots are responsible for all this and we have to fight back!"
"With Rock on our side we won't need to beef ourselves up too much. Besides I want him there."
"Well you are going to have to find him and tell him yourself. He's left us to God knows where and I need to warn the others. We will take up camp at the north edge of the forest for the next 7 days. After that I will move everyone to Washington, or whatever is left of it. Hopefully you can get Rock to us before then and we won't have to fight our way in."
"Good luck Dad, and don't worry I can find him by the end of the day. Hopefully I can convince him to stay with us."
"Good luck Laura. God speed."
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The forest burns. Fire bounces from tree to tree with effortless ease, years of pollution and disregard become poignant as the flames make short work of once mighty evergreens. The tinder on the ground does not even have the time to catch onto the flames before the trees themselves are alight. The morning dawns a smoky red from the inferno, a promise of the doom impending around the globe.
Accross the lands another awakens, a doctor by his mechanical servants. "Sir, the Time Master has left the facility. It seems as though his programming finally collapsed in on itself and he has gone out to hunt down MegaMan. He has seen the future and wants to change it."
"What did he see?" The bleary eyed scientist asked.
"He said he saw the end of all ends. He also hacked into the security webs, all robots are now no longer bounded by the three Laws. You are still safe, but they are starting to war on humanity."
"What about my control array?"
"It is still voice activated but now the Laws are no longer hardwired. Sir, something has to be done or they will go against their prime command. They may turn on you."
"They won't, it is hardwired into their system to destroy themselves before I come to any harm caused by their actions or inactions."
"Another thing. The harvesting project is encountering some difficulties."
"What difficulties?" A hint of anger played into the scientists voice, his body now charging up as if willing for a fight.
"It seems that MegaMan has found it and is attacking."
"What!? Tell Wood Man to get on it. We need a few more hours there to be ready, I will not have this project fail!" And the scientist rose from his bed and strode out into his lab. Another day begins, this one with a deadly promise. I know no bounds, shackles, no bondsDarkness falls and the inky night spills into the forest dwellers makeshift home. The pre post-apocalyptic society slept soundly after days of its original inception. The western world fells to its knees once when Wily had attacked with his element based robots, now that they are back and far more powerful the world peacefully lay down. Like a previously kicked puppy, America knew its place when it came to robot wielding maniacs.
"Dad, this isn't the time. We have about three minutes until first call. Rock, the Grinder will come from the west. Maybe you should position yourself."
A slight smile played accross Megaman's face, "Don't worry about me, go home and I will take care of everything. I know my way back, I'll be fine."
"Oh no you won't," Laura started, but her father interjected.
"No it's fine, we'll do as he says. Far be it for us to misjudge this boy. As well I really don't want to go back to that nasty cage."
The two disappeared into the brush arguing in barely contained voices. After several seconds only the sounds of the forest could be heard for miles around.
Initiating battle sequence.
Do we really need to do that? We've been in battle mode since I was activated. I don't even know what it is like to not be in a fight or getting ready for one.
I know, I just figured it would be better if I gave you some warning.
Do something useful and make sure I don't get shot. We are out of nanobots now and we can't get any more.
Okay then, but you were the one who is choosing this battle.
It is in the protocol...
No it isn't. You are just doing this because the female is attractive.
Did you hear that?
What?
Silence...
The forest sounds abruptly came to a cease and the air thickened to a palatability only expressed in times of great stress. A great light flashed from the sky, like a UFO in an old alien movie, lighting the patchwork of clearings. Megaman was immediately illuminated, but stayed his ground perfectly all the while looking ahead into the darkness of the trees. Even as a cord came down from the light and wrapped itself firmly about his midsection, he didn't flinch, and with almost a hint of hesitation the light began to move pulling Megaman up with it.
As soon as his feet were an inch from the ground a figure burst from the brush, a female sreaming at the top of her lungs, "Don't take him! Please just leave him alone!" Another came running behind her, shouting as well, "Come back, you don't know what it will do to you!"
Two more cords dropped from the light, wrapping around the others. Finally Rock moved. He faced the two with a stern look on his face, "Why don't people ever listen to me?" Pointed his blaster to the light and fired.
... I am become death"What have I become?"
"Exactly what you were programmed to become."
"But I don't want to fight anymore."
"You can't help it, you need to fight to stay alive. You and I are one now, we need combat to remain functional."
"Arg... my head..."
"You feel the bloodlust. Combat is wearing off, we need another battle! And another after that until there is nothing left to destroy! We are invincible! It is our destiny!"
"No..."
A noise in the distance..., "Hello." A female voice!
"Hello."
"Who are you talking to? I don't see anyone around..." Fear? No, she had initiated conversation.
"No one I was talking to myself. I am sorry if I disturbed you, I will go now..." Prepares to rise, yet the female sits astride us. Perhaps we should stay.
"I am Laura. Who are you?"
"Rock. Why are you here?"
"I could ask you the same thing, but right now I need your help if you can give it. I saw you fighting those guys back there..."
"You did? What did you think?"
"Seriously? You need a lot of help. Professional help. But right now I need to know if you can put that power to good use."
"What do you need?"
"Come with me, I'll show you."
The girl was slim and beautiful, yet healthy and vibrant. Chestnut brown hair flowed down to her waist and was shiningly gorgeous even though it was obvious that neither hair nor body had seen a shower for days. Brown eyes stared back into the cold blues of Megaman's, unrelenting in their search for a shred of decency and aid.
"Okay then, show me."
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A sprawling forest stretches for miles and miles in all directions. It has been only days since the "Reckoning", starting with the destruction of New York yet people had already begun devolving from their technocracy and into more feral and tribal ways. Cities dispersed, towns abandoned as people moved into the woods and countrysides to relieve themselves from mass incineration. Millions were had already been killed, and the world around took notice. Though some believed the Reckoning would end eventually, there would be no stopping enemies abroad from surfacing and attacking.
Laura had led Megaman to such a place of refuge, just South of the D.C reactor...
"This is now home, it isn't what I we left, but until things calm down this is all we have. Rock, I am going to take you to my Dad, he is the interim leader of this settlement. He is the one who needs help."
"Okay then."
They walked through the settlement pathways, tents lining both sides. Some contained entire families with what meager possessions they could muster in such a short time. Some had children staring out the flaps, while others played in the trees. The beginnings of civilization were present. Strange, Megaman thought, There is society everywhere, they flee it only to start over again from scratch. What could make them fear large gatherings so?
Both entered a larger tent, no guards at the door to find a man fast asleep, curled in a sleeping bag.
"Dad, wake up," She bends to the sleeping figure, shaking him gently," I have found someone who might help us against the Grinder."
Immediately he bolts up, eyes wide and darting around the tent. "Who is he?"
Laura opens her mouth to answer, "I am Rock," cutting her off," What is it that you need my help for?"
The man's eyes narrow," Ha! A boy like you could never be able to take out the Grinder! It comes at night in the woods and takes people to the cages. I barely escaped the cages myself, a few others here as well just yesterday. But usually once you are captured... well you are a little too young to know what happens. "
"Dad, he destroyed the Bomb Robot and the Fire Robot. I don't know how but he may just be able to help us."
"Okay then, but I won't be the one who goes with him. I have had enough of the Cage to serve my lifetime..."
"That is okay. I work alone anyways."
...
Dr. Right?"You knew this could happen Thomas. You knew even before you tried the procedure. You knew even as you saw him that this would happen. You cannot build yourself a second son Thomas, especially one that had to take care of Wily. You knew this and yet still you did it. Proto Man has just come back, the old Robot Masters are the basis of the new ones and MegaMan is now more human than Robot. We cannot control him, he has severed contact with us and since he met up with Proto Man, we lost the tracker. We need a plan Thomas and we need one soon. You cannot keep your feelings for the boy at the front like this; he is dangerous to himself and the population as a whole. If he didn't know all this before Proto Man found him, he sure as hell does now." "I... was obsessed." "You had to be, he was going to die otherwise. But things took a turn for the worse and now we need to either stop him or get in contact. We know where Wily's operation post is, and we know he is keeping his time manipulator there. MegaMan will surely strike there next; hopefully we get to him before he figures out that specific location is the only one that holds the coordinates for Wily's air structure." "I thought the U.S army had taken care of it." "No, the thing has some sort of a cloaker. It will only show itself for in-flight refuelling. There is a Master up there too." "Let's... prepare the MechArmors. We need to assault the Ops post ten minutes ago." "One more thing Tom. If he doesn't want to talk we may have to scrap him." "I know, but I have buried my son once and my creation once. I don't want to have to do it again, especially at the same time." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Dr. Wily, the burn squadron has been destroyed. This, along with the attack squad, means that we only have tactical and defensive left. We are down to less than half of the original force. What are your orders?" "Continue the harvest; we need that completed as soon as possible. Make sure the defence squad is buried deep; I do not want my tactical striker to go offline before I have the chance to go online. We do not need the robot masters to live indefinitely, just for a few more days. Is there any movement from Light?" "Three MechArmors left their Ops post twenty minutes ago bearing North by North west. They may be trying to rout defence, but alone they won't even make a dent." "But with this new MegaMan, well they may just stand a snowball's chance. What is the status of Proto Man?" "We lost contact with him ten minutes after he left and have not been able to re-establish. He is truly sentient Sir, you built him well." "Too well it seems. No matter, he has no place in this war. What else?" "There is the matter of the time manipulator. It seems to have... side effects on the user." "Side effects?" "Yes Sir. You never programmed that Robot Master beyond the absolute basics, however..." "However what? Answer me you damned fool, I do not have time for your meandering around the point." "He knows everything Sir. I mean Everything, it seems as though the machine punched a hole into his core consciousness creating a vacuum for information. As well, we don't know where he is storing it." "So he knows the future is what you are saying?" "No Sir, he knows the present." "Intriguing, perhaps we can use this to our advantage. Or even upgrade. We are finished here Colonel." "Yes Sir." Heat and bombs...Two figures stand amid a swath of death that they had carved for themselves, an extra perk to their continued existence. They moved with the efficiency of those who had done this before, but the wariness of those who were still too new to be arrogant. There was an art to destroying entire cities; fire did not sweep the countryside all by itself. There must be a spark, a source, and a will. The bodies were of various scientists, technicians and guards all trying desperately to defend the fission reactor core that powered the entire District of Columbia. The main doors blocked the entryway to the pools, which held the radioactive uranium rods. Thick steel and long lines of code blocked their immediate entry. "Damn, they are using string based code for their encryption. Even with rotating code breakers, it would take up to three days. Better to just blow the door." The mass who looked more like a box with arms and legs said to the other, one who resembled more of a space man with drills for hands. "You do it then, you are going to be powering back up anyways." The red metallic space man threw back. The boxy robot waddled up to the thick doors and laid his hands upon the cold steel, closed his eyes. Time passes... The red space man stands watching the hallway entrances, in the case that some more victims would be so stupid as to try to retake the fortress. A great deep metallic moan shakes the walls and the great doors begin to curl in on themselves, turning a deep red. Foot thick doors shy from their constraints, their color paling from a bloody red to lighter and lighter hues. Seconds later the doors are no longer recognizable as barriers but are white and fall to the ground inwards to the pools. The boxy robot opens his eyes, "We should probably wait for those to cool down." "No time, we have a visitor. Same reading as from New York, but it isn't Proto Man. Strange." "Damn, keep him busy. I need five minutes in the reactor core to be fully charged, then that little blue bastard will know true power." The boxy robot said while disappearing into the reactor's core. A minute later MegaMan runs into the room, blaster searching the walls for anyone, though he only looks at the gaping hole. Standing in the centre is the red robot, nonchalantly waiting for his quarry to come to him. "Bomb Man, it's time for you to die again." "Tut-tut Rock; I am no longer that weak, pathetic robot. I am Crash Man." Crash Man retorts, lifting his arm to meet Mega Man's. "I do however have bombs. Combined with your plasma rifle, we may very well destroy this plant causing a meltdown or at the very least, a radiation leak. Two things you are trying to stop with your combat. Face it Rock, you have already lost for your love of humanity." Distance can do many things. It can cause a heart to grow fonder, however most of the time it allows time for someone to count the flaws of another. It can determine speed and acceleration over time, however it is inaccurate. It can split families, tear countries, and define tragedy. Mostly it just allows itself to be defined and measured. Now distance does none of the aforementioned abilities, but it does do something. It is just perfect enough of a measurement that Crash Man sees the slight smirk on Rock's face while being just far enough that he is able to anticipate Rocks first shot well enough to dodge. A volley of plasma shots rock the antechamber to the reactor's core, Crash Man rolls to a stop pointing his arms towards Rock, the drills fire from the sockets. They fly at an already dodging Rock and bury themselves deep into the wall behind him, miniature arms coming from the bulb attached to the rear, attaching deep into the wall. Another volley of plasma pummel the area around Crash man, shaking the building more, barely missing their target. The bulbs buried in the walls flash three times, once per second, and explode with enough force to knock rock onto his face. The ceiling begins to collapse as the building shakes on it's foundation, like a small earthquake just for the two combatants. Crash Man whips his forearms away from his body, two new drills replacing the empty sockets while Rock returns to his feet. Both unsteadily double take behind pieces of falling rubble, firing blindly into the walls. "You see Rock, I may not survive this but in a minute it will all be for nothing. My partner will make all this ash; we are too powerful to be defeated by a weakling like you." Crash Man yelled to the room in general, ducking behind new shelters from the collapsing room and the plasma shots. The battle was becoming more and more an obstacle course. "Come on. If you just give up now I will ask Wily to spare your life. You may even become a Robot Master." The answer of the silence of the failing room is all Crash Man hears. Even the shots have stopped. Crash Man moves faster and faster between hiding spots, unsure even where Rock has come. The fallen walls have taken all direction away, everywhere he goes there is always somewhere behind him that Rock could be. Curse the little blue boy! "Show yourself dammit!" A guttural scream behind him is his new response, immediately Crash Man knew he liked the silence better. He turns, too late; the blue boy is already two steps away and in full sprint. Both hands seem to have boomerangs in them, Quick Man's weapons? Rock buries the left-handed boomerang deep up into Crash Man's chest, lifting the robot inches from the ground. "You talk too much." The right hand sweeps its way across Crash man's neck, relieving his neck from his head. Then pushes the body from him. "Pathetic. Where are you Fire Man?" "Actually it is Heat Man now, and when you die: tell Crash Man 'thanks for the five'." Comes the answer from the boxy robot, now back in what used to be the doorway leading to the reactor's core. "I am all nice and charged up from the delicious fission energy, you will now taste my power." Heat Man turns a deep red, just like the door he had done earlier, with heat waves distorting the air around him. The red brightens, as before, until his body turns a brilliant white. "Time to die, Mega Man." The energy sapped from the core is transferred inside Heat Man to fire, which emanate from his body in a sphere of destruction, reaching out like an atomic bomb blast. The flames stretch out feet from Heat Man's body but abruptly stop and fizzle into nothing. Heat Man falls onto his face, steam pouring skywards and a partially melted metal blade fused into the back of his skull. "Damn, what a waste of metal."
... -Why did we just leave him to fight Wily alone? We could have had our vengeance finally!
Because our vengeance is what Wily wants, it is what he craves of all this. If we join forces and take him by storm he wins, and the Robot Wars will begin. This needs to be contained.
-But the Robot Wars could lead to our supremacy!
Which is exactly why they cannot start! We need the humans to give us all they have first, we cannot improve ourselves as fast as they can. Imagine, we need years to improve ourselves and the previous generation falls into disrepair and obsoleteness. Humanity has stages where they improve themselves and the next generation is more powerful than the one previous to the point where they are almost unrecognizable. We do not have the same... hunger for perfection, look at us we believe ourselves so superior yet we are only the second generation. Robots are too arrogant to be the Master Race until we can gain our humanity.
-MegaMan is part human...
Which is why we must bide our time and see how he fairs. If he cannot defeat Wily properly, then he is no better than us and the humanity he has is not worth having. We need the thirst.
-I don't understand.
Exactly.
more than two sentences, that's crazy"What has happened since I have been out?"
"New York is no more, they burned it to the ground. Wily is looking for extermination of Mankind."
"What did you do with me?"
"Well first I shot you in the chest, you remember that much. Afterwards I dragged your sorry ass out of the plant through the underwater way you blew all to shit. See, what you didn't know was that there were two very powerful Robot Masters inside the core already, and they were primed and ready to destroy the city along with you."
"How could two robot masters destroy and entire city?"
"I don't know, I never saw the whole thing. But I do know one of them is a descendant of Bomb Man, while the other of Flame Man."
"Where are the now?"
"I don't know, but while I was at Wily's lab I got some intel. There next target is Washington, they will be going for the fission reactor. They seem to overcharge the reactor causeing a meltdown, but I don't know how they do it..."
"Where are we now?"
"About thirty miles from D.C. in the woods. I have my own little base of operations here, but the location may have been comprimised while I was under the knife."
"What do you mean?"
"Wily traded your life for an upgrade that would allow me to function like you do, on a rechargable core. I'm sorry I used you like that, but it was the only way for you to stay alive and for me to be of any use to anyone."
"I forgive you... Brother. But now it is time to get Wily" Deep ScanMegaman awoke slowly, cautious as to where he might be. He opened his eyes and-- "I wouldn't move too quickly if I was you. I have reflexes far better than you can move, and plasma fires near the speed of sound. Just, sit up slowly..." The world around him was lit poorly, dim even for his sensors. He sat up very slowly careful to feel around for a wall or something to keep at his back.Nothing. "Good. By the end of this conversation you will be able to move freely as you wish but for now I need you to listen." There was compelling in the strangers voice, almost as if he also was under watch and it was life or death for him as well, "Let me introduce myself first: I was known once as Proto Man, now I am just called Proteus." The pre-MegaMan project! It was all true, there was someone before him. But why would his brother attack him? "I know you are wondering why I would attack you earlier, in truth I was saving both our lives. Dr. Wily made me an offer I couldn't refuse, he offered to fix me in a way Dr.Light could never have before but in return I had to destroy you. That shot to the chest, it did kill you in every sense of the word except that you wouldn't die. The nanobots are much better at their job than Light or Wily could have dreamed of when they created the first batch. But I know you are out of them, which is why the next step of your journey will be so difficult. Dr. Light cannot assist you anymore than he already has because he is already building your replacement except that you are unique MegaMan. You, unlike me, are something more than your orginal creation... more than you were an hour ago. And you will become more as time progresses. All on your own, you upgrade and better yoursef as time goes by because you are part of your creator. Do you understand what I am telling you? Do you understand WHY you have two sets of memories? why you remember before you were created the frist time and why you have overlaps from before? Come on now, tell me. You are supposed to be the smart one after all." Why are we called Rock and MegaMan as well? We are named just like Dr.Light's son... WARNING ERROR CODE 425. Beginning memory dump... "You damned fool Light!" A figure jumps form the shadows and briefly touches MegaMan's forehead... NO. Stop this. It must be done. These are protocol. MegaMan will be reset and we will go on. The process must continue. Override dammit! MegaMan where the hell are you? ... Over here. Why... is this happening? This is part of Lights programming, but it is not hardwired. You can beat this thing just like you beat Wily all those years ago. Performing system scan... Goddamit MegaMan he is beginning to erase you, don't you even care? Scan complete... Beggining manual system override function. Override failed. Restarting scan.... Scan complete. No! I will have to do this myself... Accepting host program Proteus.MP1... Accepted. Executing... WARNING: Program Proteus.MP1 disobeys primary programming, continue? (y/n) MegaMan, if you value your life and your sanity, you WILL let me help you. ... ... ... Y. Running Proteus.MP1... The figure leaps back into the shadows and disappears. MegaMan opens his eyes and blinks for a moment. He stands and there is no one to stop him, no one in the world that can. He throws his head back and screams a deep and mournful cry of the damned. The cries for all that he has lost, not in this life but in lives before. He was a warrior and a child. The original MegaMan fashioned after Dr.Light's own son, lost in the catacombs beneath Wily's fortress for his love and trust that he would be saved some day. Fate, it seems is not without her cruelty. For he was also Dr. Light's son, killed just days after. Somehow Light found a way to save a piece of his son's brain and, after creating a new MegaMan, merged the organics with the mechanics. That is why I must fight-- Vengence. Vengence. Justice-- but a word tossed aorund amongst vigilantes to justify their revenge, there is nothing but revenge. But first we need to find Wily. The shadows move, "That," A figure steps forward from the night, "is where I come in." ... Re-rebirth?Time passes... Initiating immersion protocol... standby... Time passes... Immersion protocol established. Environment detected. Sensors at 34%. Starting system scan... Overall structural stability 95%... massive damage to fusion reactor... calibrating nanobots... Warning: Nanobot usage in reactor core has 25% chance of self-destruction, continue? (y) Nanobots calibrated. Releasing Nanobots... Continuing system scan... What happened? Who was that who shot me? I do not know, he did however have a certain likeness to us. Do we know where we are? Somewhat. We do not know how much time has passed since the initial attack however, the locale is of a deciduous forest, and there are no life signs nearby. There are several energy signatures though. What about the bots, how long will they take to repair the core? It could take any amount of time, we don't have that many bots left. Wait a minute. There seems to have been a change in our system. We are not alone in here... A small child stands alone in front of a mechanical monster, all guns and armour shielding an aged man inside. The boy is armoured as well, although in comparison a pithy weak thing. They stand face to face for a long while, neither willing to make the first move just quite yet. "Are you willing to come quietly Dr. Wily? You have killed so many people but if you give up now then you may be given leniency." The little boy says, his blue helmet bobbing off his head as he speaks. Obviously not quite form fitted. "Ah-ha," A dry laugh response from inside the machine, "I would rather die on my feet then live on my knees. You will never take me alive and I know you cannot kill me. Even if you destroy this machine, you already know how this will end. I helped to program you, you will always let me go free." "You are wrong Dr. Wily. I do not know how this will end, you greatly overpower me, even with the powers of the robot masters as my own. As for my programming, it is perfect, Dr. Light-" "Light is a fool! There is nothing left for either of us but to fight this out! Prepare to die MegaMan." The little boy's head lowers slightly, almost in contemplation of the next few moments. He whispers, "Robots cannot die." A strange humming fills the air as the weapons on the massive metallic monster charge up; the little boy runs up to meet the inevitable. He whips his right hand forward, changing its shape as it rises, his left flies behind his back producing a small bomb. He tosses it into the largest of the charging barrels as he covers it with flames produced from his right arm. The flaming bomb lands directly into the barrel as the boy jumps onto the monster, spraying it down with flames and dropping more and more bombs. The earth around them begins to crumble as the bombs, and the machine, explode together in an almost melodic unison. Large chunks of rock fall down onto the quickly moving little boy and dust overtakes the entire cavern as the machine falls to the ground, all guns silenced yet still humming. "You fool! The entire cavern will collapse on both of us if this thing explodes, you will kill us both!" The old man is on all fours, coughing the words into the blackened cavern. "No Dr. Wily, the cave-in may kill you, but I will survive. And Dr. Light will come and dig me out. Face it, you have lost." "NEVER! I should have done this a long time ago..." Darkness once more... That seems to have been us... but we have not fought Dr. Wily yet. Perhaps this is what happened before. No, it is definitely what happened. But if we check the logs at that time, I was sleeping at Dr. Light's house. Why do we have overlaps like this, I can't have been two people at once. There is something... wrong with all of this. Nanobots depleted, overall status of 99%. Reactor stabilized, beginning start-up sequence... What?While Mega Man moved towards the power plant's main chamber, where the fusion reaction was taking place, his brother was already stalking the catwalks of the upper levels. Four advanced life forms moved within the great colossus, none holding allegiance to the other, yet all recognizing the strength of the other. Brother, Proto Man thought. The inner chamber of the main reactor held a two ton humanoid figure as if inside a box, he positioned himself at the perfect center and gave a slight wave of his hand.
Another on the outside, capable of seeing the heat signature, recognized the signal and sent a message back to base; asking permission to commence. He was much bulkier than the robot on the inside, built on the old schematics of the builder and destroyer robot of old, before the time of the higher generation. His radio beeped and a voice came over, "there is a slight problem with the plan, there is a second Mega Man and he is within the plant. Commence with the operation as planned, but be prepared: He may have the same protection as his brother."
"Roger, initiating fusion reaction."
Outside, many New Yorkers breathed a sigh of relief as the power returned itself to their greedy hands. Lights came on full, traffic lights tried to restore order to the streets, televisions blared, and telephones rang. Life came back to the city, yet the streets remained filled. Seconds after life returned, everything died again. And once again, at six o clock at night, New York was plunged into a new darkness. No one held their breath.
Inside Mega Man waited just outside the door to the main chamber. His sensors picked up a new presence in the plant, but he could not tell what, or who, he was. He changed his arm into the blaster and took a metal blade out just in case.
Restarting... Restarting what!? We have to fight! Cannot respond, ten seconds until optimal intelligence reached...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1 Responding... Restarting self. What happened!? Warning: Battle mode still in use, recommended that mode be disengaged or risk permanency. Don't warn me you useless CPU. These guys need to die! Disengage... Disengaging... Okay... What happened? A concentrated electromagnetic pulse hit us exactly 24 seconds ago. Sixteen seconds until self activation. 45 until battle capable. How long is it supposed to take to self-restart? Sixty seconds. What if we know it is going to be needed? Sixty seconds. Unless Battle Mode is used then 15, but there is a risk of partial or full integration of the programming. If we are in a fight, do not warn about integration. We cannot risk any time peckering about. We were lucky that no one was near. Activating audio/visual feed and starting actuators.
Mega Man opens his eyes, metal disc and buster still out. Ready and willing for the combat to ensue, the EMP nothing more than a minor inconvenience. The blaster to his chest was a little bit more of a pressing concern.
"Surprise... Brother."
Darkness.
Shackles unbound, life quarantinedSometimes a beetle unwittingly kills an ant, giving just enough power to a rival colony to gain unparalleled control over the hill. Sometimes a tree gives just enough sap to cover a mosquito from billions of years back, sometimes a higher form of life gets it, and eats the tasty amber. But what if the beetle had instead spared the ant and there was days of strife before either colony destroys themselves? What happens if the tree was instead burned prematurely and the mosquito was squished?
What happens when someone decides that what should be, no longer should and changes things? What happens when that someone is the universe?
Sometimes things just end up being far too cool.
Somewhere in a far away continent a butterfly is about to flap it's wings. It will flap at just such an angle as to strengthen a small breeze. This breeze travels so perfectly as to strengthen an even stronger wind, continuing just beautifully so that there is a wind just strong enough to hold off a storm for a full day.
Somewhere a cat just got a quantum meal. And the dominoes fall, breezes lose focus, and nothing stacks perfectly. Chaos wins again. A storm rolls in with sound and fury. Today there will be lightning and thunder of all colours and sounds. The earth will seem to shake itself apart with trepidation, the very fabric of reality rended by such anger from the Gods.
Of course, to those on the ground this was nothing more than rain.
Central Park was still packed tight with people fleeing the city, though not in the same record numbers. The jam of people was from those trying to flee getting caught up with those who realized how silly a city-wide evacuation would truly be, those who had second guesses as to the actual emergency, and those who were being forced back by the army. The army that still remembered the first Wily War, one that was fought, and won, by a ten year old boy. The army that stood helplessly by as six robots that were supposed to strengthen the country's infrastucture instead brought its citizens to their knees. A war with too much blood and the man responsible still having enough mechanical support that he could not be defeated, save by other androtomical monsters.
They now surrounded their own city, quarantined all from escaping in hopes of keeping the androids, the most dangerous of them all, in check. The androids were the ones who controlled the smaller ones, the generals of the grand mechanical wehrmacht. Intelligence stated that the blue boy was in the nuclear plant where four other robots were situated. The plant itself was also surrounded: tanks, plasma rifles, and EMP's all targeted the building just itching for anyone to come out and test their new toys.
Within the stark lines of the military, a cloaked figure moves swiftly and silently. Eyes darted away from him, knowing that even their training couldn't stop this man from gettign what he wants. Not even the most foolish would attempt to stop his movements, mostly because he only walked behind the lines but well between the civilians and the military. There was a small trench between them, approximately rifle length. Only this shadowed man walked up and down the lines, like a cat stalking its prey. Every movement was descisive, every look with purpose. If you were to look hard enough, you might be able to catch a glimpse of the sunglasses in the darkness.
It is 4:00, and the world stops.
Or at least it slows down long enough to notice that the figure is not moving anymore, but staring intently to the power plant. The butterfly's work is done; a slight breeze kicks the ends of his cowl. Even in the darkness, his smile can be felt, almost cruel in the way it does not reach his eyes. I have you now, brother. And a brother...After the first Wily Wars, when Mega Man had beaten all of the robot masters, destroyed all of Wily's machines of mass destruction and finally confronted Wily himself only three days had passed. One to destroy the masters, one to find Wily, and one to fight his way to him. Only two people knew what had happened down in the innermost sanctums of Wily's lair, only they knew why Mega Man returned to the surface world without arresting him. Or at least, so they thought.
Dr. Light was both wide awake and quite worried when suddenly Rock severed his connection to the hive computer. The computer itself was a simple AI used to route all conversation between Light bots; it was affectionately known as the Hive Mind, or the Hive for short. All Light Bots were supposed to be hard wired into the system, making it possible to track to any location on the surface of the earth. Light argued for the system many times since it made rescue operations so much simpler, and to make sure that everyone maintained proper coding. Errors in the code could be fixed and transferred even without the robot's knowledge upgrades flowed seamlessly.
Their systems, no matter how complex or simple, they were supposed to be tied into the hive with equal weight and equal control. The original Mega Man was partially controlled from the Hive, this one was supposed to be completely self sufficient but still monitorable. Certainly not able to sever its connection. His connection, Light thought.
But how?
Far away another robot activated himself, a backup supposed to be used in the most dire of circumstances. His creators specifically made his AI strong enough that it would be completely unbounded, making him the fastest learner with the only limit being physical memory space. He slept because no matter how powerful a mind he had; his power system was sub-par along with his weapons system. Although with such a fortuitous mind he was as deadly as any weapon in existence.
-incoming transmission- -who from? -Wily. Accept transmission? (y/n)?- -y -accepted. posting script...
Proto there has been a breach of contract, Light has created another Mega Man. He will be disabled when you reach him to destroy him. I need complete retribution. My price is:
10 grams of Nanobots 2 hours of recharge time
I might also try and see what I can do for your energy system, perhaps we can get it so that you won't have to sleep so much.
These are my terms, do you accept?
-The offer is good. Tracings show legitimacy. Should I send the message to accept?- -yes -sending... message received. No text, only an attached file. It is where the new Mega Man will be. And a timer for when he will be fully functional again. We have 20 minutes. It will take 15 to get there. Probability of error = 21%, low risk, high probability of mission success.- -wake me up -waking-
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