Redemption Squad, Level 1: Game Changer

FROM: The Journal of Counselor Gordon Freeman- Entry #1</u>


“Are we alone in the universe?”

That was the question that inspired me to be a scientist. I was always curious about the unknown depths of space, and wondered if there was more to it than just planets and stars. That’s why I enrolled in MIT and eventually joined the research group known as Black Mesa. They too wanted to stretch the possibilities of transporting men through time and space, for the ultimate answer to the ultimate question: “Are we alone?”

Well, several years and one hellish interplanetary war later, it’s safe to say that we have gotten our answer.

We were all such naive fools, to think that we could understand and control technology far ahead of its time. But lack of understanding always was the first step toward war, isn’t it? That, and a lust for control. Both sides of the battlefield sought control- there was us, the human race; and on the other side, The Combine. They are as alien and primitive in nature as classic horror stories would have you believe, except they were also able to harness their own unique technology. What began as an innocent glimpse into their world escalated into a frenzy of death and destruction. In the end, we humans lost the war.
Yes, you heard me right. We’ve lost.

I cannot tell you how long it has been since my last day on Earth. I can’t count the days, weeks, years, or perhaps even decades. Time moves far too slow out here, in outer space. Indeed, that is where I and the few lucky survivors of The Combine are now- in space. Having lost all of our resources in the war, the remaining members of Black Mesa, myself included, had no choice but to join forces with our long-time rivals, Aperture Science.

Aperture had one last trick up its sleeve, as though they knew the tide would turn in The Combine’s favor: they developed a ship that would send us survivors into the depths of space, hoping that we could find a new planet and start over, leaving The Combine and its filth far behind.

Well, as I’ve said, much time has passed, and what started as a small space shuttle escalated into an entire space colony. With the combined efforts of alien races we’ve befriended over time, we have created Pandora- a free-roaming colony of countless homeless creatures, including us once proud humans. We were united by a common goal: to seek a new home and begin again.

I’m writing all of this down, in the event that something were to happen to me and my closest allies, so that someone could understand where we came from. Knowing where our journey began and where it will take us is, I hope, the first step toward a peaceful future.

“Are we alone?” No. Not even close.

The real big question now is: How can we, who have doomed our own planet, ever hope to redeem ourselves?

.

THE REDEMPTION SQUAD
Snodin


Level 1:
GAME CHANGER



Mega City- The Outskirts

Sometime in the year 20XX…


Doctor Albert Wily had better days.

This was the umpteenth time he had challenged his long-time foe, Mega Man, to a battle within his massive skull decorated castle. It was the dead of night, the stars were all out, but there was no tranquility within the castle walls.

With a well-aimed weapon launch, the small blue robot hero struck down Wily’s latest death machine, sending it crashing onto the floor. Upon impact, the mad doctor with the wily grey hair and mustache came popping out of his glass orb and landed on his rear, smoke rising from his whiskers. But just when things couldn’t look any worse for him, he realized that he had landed right in front of his sworn enemy, staring down the barrel of the robot’s Mega Buster.

The robot, with the appearance of a twelve-year-old boy dressed in blue and cyan armor, stared back at the mad doctor with cold blue eyes. He was almost scowling, but hesitated to make any sudden moves, giving the old man a chance to do his routine begging of mercy.

“Please!” yipped the old man as he quickly hunched down on hands and knees in fear. As he pleaded, his thick German accent betrayed his otherwise clear English dialogue: “Aw please, have mercy Mega Man! I’ve learned my lesson, I’ll never vage var on mankind again, I svear!”

The boy gave him a small smile. “Don’t you ever get tired of saying that, doc?”

Wily sneered at him. “Meh. No, not really.”

“Well then, you’re going to jail.”

“Don’t you ever get tired auf saying zat?”

The robot smiled wider, almost playfully. “Heh, nope. Not really.”

As Mega Man was helping his enemy onto his feet to bind his hands with wire, another figure was inching his way into the battle room. He was crawling on his belly like a snake, scraping his partially missing torso across the floor as though he had lost all function of his legs. This was a robot that Mega Man had taught a lesson to earlier that night, but instead of accepting defeat, the robot swore revenge- swift and painful revenge.

Though the screeching of his belly was hard to muffle, his targets were preoccupied with their banter: “Zat does it. Next time, I’ll make twelve Robot Masters! Three Devils! More spiky rooms!!”

“Yep, you keep lining ‘em doc and I’ll keep knockin’ ‘em down.”
“Keep mocking me, Mega Man! I’ll be back vith a vengeance so foul, you will not...”

Click, went the dark figure’s arm blaster.

The small blue robot heard it and quickly darted his head around in curiosity. “…Huh. I thought I heard something.”

“Tsk,” scoffed the mystery killer. He had only one shot at this little blue pest, and he wasn’t about to let his enemy catch him in the act. He froze in place and waited for The Blue Bomber to lose interest in the sound of his blaster.

But just as the little robot resumed arresting Doctor Wily, a new development came about: Mega Man had walked right in front of Wily, putting both of them in the vengeful robot’s firing range.

Suddenly, the dark robot’s inner programming read the life forms of both Mega Man and Wily, Mega Man’s form glowing green, Wily’s red. An alarm went off in his head: INAPPROPRIATE TARGET! INAPPOROPRIATE TARGET! INAPPOROPRIATE TARGET!

“Gah,” he winced; his master’s presence was messing with his primary objective! He squinted his eyes as his body pained, yet his blaster remained locked onto Mega Man.

INAPPROPRIATE TARGET! ABORT! INAPPROPRIATE TARGET! ABORT!

“No… This is my one chance… I can’t miss… Not now… Not… now…”

His prey was walking away with his master in tow; time was running out for the assassin. Then suddenly, he caught a glimpse of something in the corner of his right eye: a generator fused to the far right wall. That’s when he realized that the fight was taken to the lowest of levels in the building. They were sitting right on top of the castle’s electrical systems! At last, an appropriate target.

Mega Man heard another clicking noise, followed by the familiar sound of an engine revving. He blinked and darted his gaze again, more alert than before. With a gasp, he laid eyes on the robot in the shadows, aiming its blaster at the generator.

“…Is that…?” Before he could finish his question, the looming figure fired his charged shot.

The blue robot only had time to take a glance at the beam of light that went flying across the room, headed straight for the generator. Before he could let out a gasp, it was too late. The generator exploded, causing a chain reaction that would rock the castle off its hinges.

.

BOO-OO-OO-OO-OO-OO-OOM!!!

...
...

His eyes fluttered open, only to find he was lodged underneath a massive pile of rubble. It was moments like these that made him glad that he was a robot; otherwise he would have surely been dead. Still, his human data forced him to feel pain, especially in his stomach, as his midsection took the brunt of the blast.

Oh, that’s right- there was a blast! He remembered now. With little strength that he had, he pushed away the boulders pinning him down with his borrowed robot master power. Piece by piece, he tossed the boulders like they were pebbles, until he was at last free.

Feeling the fatigue kick in once again, the little blue robot crawled on his knees before finding his feet. Gingerly he lifted himself up from the rubble; he was dirtied and his armor was cracked in some places, but he endured far worse in the past. But no sooner did he free himself, a strong sense of dread filled his core.

The castle was in ruins. Half of it in fact was leveled and broken to billions of pieces. Only the skull on the front of the fortress made it clear that this place belonged to Doctor Wily.

“Wily,” he muttered in horror.

He was in the blast too, Rock remembered. And so was his faithful robotic dog, Rush. Surely they were buried deep within the clutter of rock and steel. He quickly darted around, pained but determined.

“RUSH! …Rush, here boy!! …Rush, where are you??”

A whimper was heard nearby.

Recognizing the sound, Rock struggled to run toward its source. Sure enough, his red steely companion was found in his own pile of rocks- at least, his front half was, the lower half was sticking out like a sore thumb from the rubble, diagonally in direction. The canine’s tail and back legs were swaying wildly while his buried mouth kept on whimpering.

“Rush,” he huffed. “Hang on, boy! I’ve got you.” He shoveled the debris aside until the dog was able to squirm free of his bind. Like a true dog, he shook as much dust from his body as he could.

“Good boy, Rush,” whispered the boy as he patted the would-be canine’s head. “Now hurry, we’ve got to find Doctor Wily! See if you can trace his scent.”

Bark-bark!

Rush dipped his face toward the earth and began to sniff around for traces of body heat. He trekked through the rubble while his partner paused every other second to observe the one half of the skull castle that was, miraculously, still standing. Then at last, the red dog stopped and pointed forward like a purebred hunting dog, toward the bottom slope of a hill of rubble.

Rock looked ahead, and stopped to make a small gasp as his crystal blue eyes widened. There, lying on his stomach in soft earth was his old nemesis, now unconscious and bloodied.

The boy feared the worst as he ran to old man’s side. “Wily,” he gasped as he gently turned the man over onto his back.

A small trickle of blood oozed from the left corner of mad scientist’s mouth. He was dirtied and bruised; there was no telling just how much damage had been done, but at first glance his status certainly looked bleak.

“Doctor? …Doctor Wily, wake up. P-please, wake up!”

The boy shook the old man’s arm as panic rushed through his battered circuits. There was no immediate response, which coaxed the boy to open the hatch on the dark blue casing of his left arm.

Inside was a small communicator; he patched into his home base and panted, “Dad! …Dad, can you hear me? …It’s me, I’m at the castle- well, I’m outside the castle actually.” Funny, he really would have still been in the castle had it not been leveled halfway. “But you’ve gotta send the medic team, quick! …No-no-no-no, I’m fine. It’s Wily. He’s hurt, really bad…”

As the panicked humanoid robot was talking into his arm, the mustached scientist’s eyes began to force themselves open. His breath was wheezed, and his body could barely move at first. But he at least had the strength to move his neck, and when he lifted his head, he let out a weak gasp of horror.

Rock saw the look of sheer terror in the old man’s eyes: someone was right behind him, staring straight at the doc like a hawk to an injured mouse. It could only be one figure to strike such fear in Wily, and as Rock turned around to face his adversary, his suspicions were confirmed:  “Bass.”

Not looking much better than the small blue robot, the towering black and purple-tinted one with golden arched hood flaps stood strongly on his legs despite the gaping hole in his center. Blue electric currents spewed from his wounds, and yet the looming beast remained cool and collected. His human-like teeth gnashed and his eyed narrowed darkly. He came to finish what he started.

With newfound strength, Mega Man jumped in front of his fallen foe, aiming his Mega Buster at the looming brute. “Stay back!” he yelled defiantly, despite still trembling from fatigue.

“Tch,” smirked the dark colored brute. “Now ain’t this a pretty picture?”

Ignoring his taunt, the boy spoke out angrily. “How could you, Bass?? How could you do this to your own father?”

“My father…. My FATHER??” he roared. In his ire, his lower body shifted, causing him to steady himself before he could continue ranting. “Ha! Some ‘father’ he is. All my life I was loyal to him- I followed his orders, I saved him time and again, and how does he repay me? By building a new robot! A bigger, ‘badder’ version of me, right under my nose. How’s that for gratitude, hm?”

“You’re jealous of Zero, is that it?”

“That’s part of it… I figured I can have one last go at you so I could prove that I’m the better robot once and for all. But of course, you had to ruin it. Just like you ruin everything…” He dared to take a step forward.

“I’m warning you, Bass!” shouted the boy with a shaky Mega Buster. “One more move, and I shoot!”

“He’s your sworn enemy, and you have the gall to take his side? You’d risk your circuits for a maniac like Wily?”

“It doesn’t matter. He’s still human, and I’ve sworn to protect all humans.”

Rush snarled up at the purple brute as if to indicate that he agreed with his companion.

“You’re breaking my heart, kid.” Bass slowly took another step, forcing his adversary to make his move.

“Don’t…!” The boy had no choice now; he had to follow through with his warning.

Click. …Click, click, click.

Oh dear, it seemed that in the aftermath of the blast, he had run out of energy to produce ammo for his hand/gun. Further evidence was shown in that the only light coming from the yellow bar of his Mega Buster was on the very last bar.

“Ha! HA-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” burst the maniacal robot. His laugher went through both Mega Man and Wily, who was now trying to crawl away but lacked the strength to get far. “Aww,” cooed the brute sarcastically. “What’s the matter, Mega? Not enough juice to save your friend after all? Well, tough luck kid!”

Bass was just about to throw down his arm, when Rush leapt forward and seized the brute’s arm before it could land a blow. With jaws of solid steel, the dog latched onto the killer robot like glue.

For a short time, the two robots were locked in combat, until a terrible tiger roar preceded a bigger, purple and gold robot beast that lunged itself at Rush. It threw the red dog to the ground and pinned him; the beast was twice Rush’s size and wolf-like in its face. It let out another roar as it pinned down the dog with its giant front paws.

“Good boy, Treble!” cheered Bass. He then turned back to the small hero with a grisly grin. “Looks like it’s just you and me, kid. And I know I got some juice left.”

-FOOM!-

The green electro-plasmic blast threw Mega Man at least ten feet away, before he slammed into a wall of rock.

“Puh,” spurted Bass. “So much for the World’s Greatest Robot… Now then, where was I?” His eyes scanned the ground for his target, who was crawling away with shortness of breath and dragging his shattered left leg. It didn’t take much effort for Bass to catch up to Wily, who began to beg pitifully for his life.

“P-please, Bass! I… I vaus clearly a fool to have ignored you! I could build you better weapons… More firepower…”

“Pathetic, doc.”

“You… You can’t kill me, Bass! Robots cannot kill humans, it’s not in zere programming!”

“Hm. You’re right. I can’t kill you… at least, not directly.” He aimed his gun/arm at the ground beneath Wily; one blast from it, and the cave-in would do the rest.

“Please!” spouted Wily with hands clasped in prayer. “I beg you, I’ll do any-sink! Any-sink!!”

“I only want one thing from you, Wily.” The brute’s gun warmed up until a small green spark was visible in its barrel…

“NO!” screamed the flash of blue that collided with Bass’s gun. On impact, Mega Man’s body threw the gun off balance, causing the blast to shoot far out of range rather straight downward.

Despite clearly being out-muscled, the Blue Bomber clutched onto his enemy’s gun like he was made of glue, disallowing the brute to move it anywhere near his primary target.

The two robots were now at a stalemate, pushing and shoving each other like dueling stags. With each struggle, Mega Man’s feet were carving tracks in the dirt, yet he remained determined with teeth clenching almost to the breaking point.

“I…. I won’t…. let you….. k-kill him….!”

Those small yet heartfelt words reached the mad doctor’s ears, and despite his cruel nature, his eyes softened- possibly for the first time ever.

“Then,” grunted Bass as he shoved his gun into Mega Man’s chest; “I’ll take you with him!” The gun charged up again, this time at full capacity.

The Blue Bomber was surely doomed now. He closed his eyes tightly.

But then, a familiar whistle shot through the air: -La-Do-Re… Do-Mi…-

Treble still had Rush pinned, when a flash of bright red grazed his back. Alarmed, the beast let go of its prey and snarled in fury. Another flash of red followed, then another, in zig-zag formation. This left Treble stunned and frozen in place, or so it seemed. In actuality, the beast was being cut to ribbons at lightning-fast speed. He crumbled to the floor, piece by piece. Even Rush was awed by this surprise.

“Treble!!” howled Bass in horror. Enraged, he pushed back Mega Man and started firing aimlessly in the air, hoping to catch the red and grey speedster.

It was only when the big brute’s blaster was in range of the little blue robot again that the figure made a complete stop, causing his large white shield to block the oncoming blast.

Recognizing the hero as a grey robot donning red armor and a long yellow scarf, Mega Man cheered, “Blues!”

Blues, or Proto Man as he preferred to me called, stood straight and tall before his younger counterpart. “Sorry I’m late little brother,” he apologized with barely a hint of emotion in his voice.

“Not you too,” growled Bass, whose body was now trembling. “Why must you always show up at the last possible minute?”

Blues braced his shield for another attack, making sure his little brother was behind him, while Bass used the last of his strength for one final assault. This time, he was going to level two foes…

FLASH!

Fearing the worst, Mega Man closed his eyes tightly. In doing so, he missed the small beam of light that fell down on Bass like a bolt of lightning, straight down the middle. When he opened his eyes again, he saw that the big black and gold brute was frozen in time, his mouth gaped open and his eyes bulged in shock.

A few seconds later, a crack opened from his top of his head to his pelvis- a perfect split. The small blue robot watched in stunned silence as his enemy fell in opposite directions, one left and one right. As the halves fell away from each other, the culprit behind the lightning-fast slice was revealed right behind where Bass once stood: a robot with one knee on the ground and his head down.

He was mostly red, even redder than Blues, lined in black and a form far more streamlined than the other robots present. In his left hand, a teal laser-sword, the object responsible for Bass’ fall. Behind his head were two golden-yellow threads, almost like hairs. When he lifted his head, he stared back at Blues and Rock with soft teal eyes.

“Zero…” muttered Mega Man. He was in utter shock; never before did this “perfect” creation of Wily’s even so much as lift a finger to help him, and now he had just saved the Blue Bomber’s life. “…Why?”

The red and black robot spoke in a deep yet surprisingly gentle voice: “I had my reasons…”

That’s when the little blue robot remembered, “Wily!”

He turned and saw that Wily was now lying completely on his back, exhausted and helpless. The Blue Bomber rushed to his side, while Rush and Proto Man watched from a distance.

Ever so gently, Rock took Wily’s left hand into his, and even re-digitalized his Mega Buster back to a human hand so that he could clasp onto Wily’s broken hand all the more.

“Come on doc,” whispered the boy. “You gotta hang in there. My dad’s on his way- he’ll take you back home and he’ll fix you up, just like he fixes me.”

The mad doctor’s eyes fluttered weakly. “Ugh… M… Mega…?”

“Yes?”

Wily’s voice was growing all the fainter as he struggled to breathe. “…Your… name… Vat… is your r-real name? …I re-m-membered it vunce, but….”

“Doc. Don’t talk, just breathe. You hear me?”

“Tell me… uh… t-tell me your name… boy…”

Not sure of what else to do, the blue-armored boy replied softly, “Rock. My name is Rock.”

The mad doctor’s head turned ever so slightly to get a better look at the robot kneeling over him, though his vision was now blurred. “Ro-ck… Heh… Zat Thomas, vith his silly puns….” With his next breath, Wily started to cough; he shook as he did so.

“Please doc,” frowned the boy, “save your strength. My dad won’t be long, I promise.”

Wily knew better than Mega Man; whatever he had to say to the Blue Bomber, now was the time. “…I… I vas such a pain, vasn’t I? …Eh? …Hee-hee…. Heh… A real nuisance, yes?” He was practically smiling while he asked this.

The little blue robot cracked a small smile of hope. “…Yeah, but that’s okay. You’re only human, after all.”

“Heh… heh… It vaus a fun game vee played… you and I… vaus it not?”

“...I guess so. But I always won.”

“Puh… Zat you did…” Then came another cough, one that would shake his lungs to the core. Still, there was one more thing to say before he could rest: “…You… Alvays…. Vere ze better robot, Rock… All…vays…. ugh….”

“….Wily? …….Wily? …..Wily!!” He started shaking the doctor’s body in hope of reviving him, but this time there would be no response.

The mustached one’s eyes were closed almost completely, save for a small hint of white as they rolled back. His bloodied mouth stayed slightly gaped as his final breath proved too much to bear. His head slumped to its left side, yet his signature mustache remained intact- the one piece of him that never faltered, not even now.

Rock’s blue eyes dilated as his body began to tremble once again- this time not out of fatigue, but of sheer grief and despair. “…..wily…..” He hung his head down in sorrow, while his helmet mysteriously vanished into thin air, releasing his feathered brunette hair under the moonlight.

It finally happened. After so many years of battling and upgrading, small victory after small victory, the Blue Bomber was rid of the mad Doctor Wily once and for all. …And it broke his heart.

For a brief moment, Mega Man felt nothing more than the wind in his hair. His body felt numb, almost lifeless, until a gentle hand was placed on his shoulder. “Rock,” stirred a soft elderly voice.

The boy looked upward and saw that the hand belonged to his creator Doctor Light, who arrived on a large motor vehicle along with Eddy, Auto, and even his sister Roll. All were carrying energy tanks and first aid kits, but were all too late.

To Rock, it wasn’t certain just how long Doctor Light and company had been there; minutes, perhaps. So stuck in his state of grief was he, that times seemed to slow down to a crawl. But as the warmth of his father’s hands reached his inner circuits, a new sense of strength overwhelmed him. Tears made of pure water filled his crystal blue eyes.

“Father,” said the boy in little more than a faint whisper. While still very weak, the boy struggled to get back on his feet to meet his creator face to face. The tears were now flowing from his eyes in threads. With a tremble in his voice he lamented, “Father, I tried to save him. Really, I tried.”

“Shh, shh.” The good doctor planted his fingers on the boy’s lips before both hands clasped the boy’s cheeks, as though they needed the extra support. “I know, son. I know.”

Light opened his arms and embraced his war-weary son, who was all too eager to rest himself on the good doctor’s chest. He began to stroke the robot boy’s soft brown hair in comfort. “Aww, my dear boy…”

The boy sniffled and whimpered. “I didn’t want it to end like this…”

“No one wanted it to end like this, son. ...But Albert, poor Albert, he was just beyond saving.”

Nearby, Proto Man uttered, “He sealed his own fate,” while gently stroking Rush’s head while the dog looked on with a sorrowful frown.

Zero, who was now Wily’s only living creation, walked to Proto Man’s side to pay quiet respects to his creator, his… “…Father.”

The grey robot barely heard this whisper coming from the taller, more formidable robot. But just when he thought he heard Zero’s voice, the yellow-maned robot vanished without a trace.

Rock whimpered a bit more as his grief started to hurt more than the physical damage. He hugged his creator tightly, though not too tight. “…What do I do now, Father? …Wily is gone. Bass is gone… I have no one left to fight.”

Doctor Light pulled Rock away from him just so he could look him in the eyes. “Fighting was never our intention, my dear boy. Your brother Blues is right, Albert brought this on himself. We will give him the proper burial; but for now… for now, the fight is over. It’s all over… Let’s go home and rest.”

Rock rested his right cheek on his father’s chest and breathed a heavy sigh. Being in that moment with his father, both of them holding and comforting each other, he should have felt at peace.

But that one fearful question started to swirl around in his mind, chipping away at his already vulnerable core. It was a question that would terrify him more than any creation of Doctor Wily’s:

What do I do now? What does a fighting robot do, when he has no one left to fight…?

.

A storm was blowing in that night. The stars were swallowed up by black clouds, turning the night ever darker and more foreboding than before. The group surrounding the lifeless body of Doctor Wily didn’t immediately disperse, despite the howling winds and distant thunder. Proto Man and Auto were the ones who carried the body away, while the others shivered in the wind.

What none of them knew was that they were being watched; in the far distance, hovering in the cloudy sky and covered by darkness was a small circular machine with a neon orange iris. When lightning flashed, its body was briefly revealed to be ivory white. It looked like a floating eyeball, but was in fact mechanical.

It was a scout of some sort, and its one ominous eye was focused on Mega Man. It would linger there until its target finally left the scene. And then, just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished into thin air.
…
…

Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months. Time slowed down for the little blue robot, who was now back in his original state as an assistant for his creator. No longer needing his blue armor, Rock was now sporting human clothes- tee shirts and shorts, like a real human boy would- only occasionally shifting his arm’s form into that of a tool for his everyday chores.

These were meant to be happy days for Rock and his family, as they have finally achieved the peace they had spent years fighting for. Only now, it felt surreal; especially for Rock, who struggled to remember the last time he had mowed the front lawn, or cleaned the dishes, or even took out the trash. Life was perfect… too perfect.

.

Fall blew in with the wind. No one wanted to tell Rock that something special was being done in his and Doctor Light’s honor, for (somewhat) putting an end to the terror of Doctor Wily. Of course, Doctor Light had to be told; otherwise he would have stayed home during the night in question.

But when that night came, he only told his children to dress up in their best for a night on the town. Rock put on a black suit and blue tie, while Roll put on her favorite blue and white-lined dress.

Thomas himself put on a black suit and red tie, while Auto the family helper bot escorted them in their small car.

The location: a grand opera house in the center of Mega City, where officials all over the world as well as the press and some guest celebrities were waiting to greet their heroes. Imagine Rock and Roll’s surprise when their car stopped in front of the theatre, camera lights flashing and people screaming for joy.

Inside the theatre, a massive banner draped across the top of the stage, with the words “THANK YOU, MEGA MAN” written in bold dark blue. On the stage itself was a podium at the center between two long tables, where Doctor Light, his family, and all of his Robot Masters were designated to sit while selected officials would take their turns to monologue about Rock’s past adventures, almost like an episode of “This Is Your Life” for the Blue Bomber.

All the while, Rock was more than grateful, albeit a bit shy. He barely said a word, but the beaming smile on his face said it all.

“And now,” said the city’s mayor, “I would like to ask someone very special up to the podium, someone whom we all owe our lives to; the man who brought us our salvation: Doctor Thomas Light!”

With a booming applause- from the audience, as well as the robots onstage- Dr. Light humbly rose from his seat and took center stage. He gently tugged at the collar of his suit before clearing his voice.

“…Thank you, all of you. I am both proud and immensely humble by this special occasion you’ve all worked so hard to make possible. As much as I would like to take all of the credit, I really shouldn’t. You see, I may have created Mega Man, but I wouldn’t have done so if Rock had not volunteered to fight in the first place.

"Becoming a warrior for peace was his decision, and his alone. I was, in fact, very reluctant to let him go out there head first into danger, but he had shown such incredible bravery and compassion for his fellow robots. It does my heart good to see that his sacrifices had not gone unnoticed. So, if it’s alright by all of you, I would like to give all of the credit to where it’s due: to my son and the true man of the hour, Rock.”

The young boy sitting by the podium gasped and blinked in surprise, while his sisters and brothers applauded. Roll, sitting next to him, even gave him a sharp elbow to the side, encouraging him to stand up. As soon as he did, the room erupted in applause as humans and robots alike stood for ovation. The blue-eyed, dark-haired boy was stunned; Oh no, he thought! I didn’t even fix my hair… Well, truth be told, his hair was “un-fixable,” but still! He let out a big, loud gulp as he nervously walked to the podium.

He took one deep breath, and the room fell dead silent. Now the pressure was really on. “….uh….. I….” he stammered. Seeing that his creator wasn’t far, he gained a bit more confidence.

“S-sorry everyone, I didn’t prepare a speech.” At this, the audience chuckled softly, making him crack a smile. “But I do want to thank you all, for doing this for me… for all of us, really. Especially my dad- err, doctor… creator?”

“It’s alright son,” murmured Dr. Light gently.

Rock nodded. “Y-yes, I guess you can call him my dad. He made me who I am, and… I know I’m just a robot, but I know how big a deal it is to even be alive. I owe him everything.”
“Aww,” cooed some in the audience.

“Um,” gulped the boy, “if it’s alright with everyone, I’d like to say a few things about another man, whom I owe a lot to. …I’m talking about Doctor Wily.”

Suddenly, a chill filled the room as everyone fell silent again, only this time it was an uncomfortable silence. Some murmured to themselves in dark, unfriendly tones, as though Rock had somehow pressed the “You’ve Gone Too Far” button.

But the boy stood his ground and bravely spoke up. “Now, I know what some of you might be thinking; you’re thinking, ‘Oh no, not that guy.’ Yes, that guy. I mean, let’s face it: yes, he was a crazy old man with delusions of grandeur, and yes he tried to take over the world more than once. He even had the nerve to turn some of my brothers and sisters against me over the years. Am I angry about that? Of course I am! …But I also forgive him.

“…I forgive him, because without his crazy schemes, I wouldn’t be where I am today- I wouldn’t be right here, accepting all this love and appreciation from all of you. I would never have known just how strong I would become, or what lengths I would go to achieve world peace… I wouldn’t be who I am today without Doctor Wily.

“So hate him all you want, but I personally have to thank the guy, for giving me the chance to prove myself…. And, on that note, I would like to ask for a moment of silence in his honor.”

Rock bowed his head in prayer, as did Doctor Light and the rest of his family.
While not everyone in the audience bowed their heads, they were at least courteous enough to stay quiet for a minute.

That included the young man in the far back, wearing a dark trench coat, a yellow scarf tucked around his neck, and shades that concealed most of his face. He too bowed his head in respectful prayer.

Just as Rock was about to finish his prayer, a bright light came over him. This wasn’t just one of those theatre spotlights, though; this was more like a glow straight from heaven. It gave everyone pause; some in the audience gasped in fear. Was this some kind of attack from a vengeful Wily bot, they wondered?

Rock shielded his eyes, as the light was strongest on him. What he didn’t realize, was that something was actually cutting through the fabric of space between the stage and the floor.

“What is that??” gasped Guts Man as he rose to his feet.

Squinting his eyes, Time Man took a deep look at the tear. “It looks like… some kind of rift in the time-space continuum.”

“Translation?” requested his twin brother Oil Man.

Time Man frantically replied, “A portal! It looks like a portal!”

And indeed, that is exactly what it was. What started as a small tear became an oval-shaped white-hot hole in the air. The robots all gathered together with arms raised in combat, including Mega Man himself who digitally switched out his black suit and tie for his signature blue armor. He moved in front of his father in hopes of shielding him from whatever was about to emerge from the white hole.

The shoe of a tall human stepped forward from the vortex, followed by the rest of the woman dressed in a long white coat and black pants. Her coat had bright orange stripes along the shoulder pads, collar and zipper, with a strange symbol over her heart of what appeared to be an eye lens with the lines moving diagonally.

The woman himself was tall and thin, almond-skinned, with small dark eyes and raven hair that curled along her neckline. In the center of her bangs were thin grey lines, a sign of her age despite the lack of wrinkles in her face.

She took one look at Mega Man and gave him an unexpected smile. “Don’t be alarmed,” she said in a deep but gentle voice. “I come in peace.”

“Who are you?” asked the cautious blue robot.

The lady in white replied courteously, “My name is Alyx Vance; I come from another dimension. My people and I have been monitoring your every move for some time now, Rock. …Or would you prefer to be called Mega Man?”

“…Me?” blinked the robot. “Y-you’ve been watching me?”

“Another dimension?” peeped a curious Doctor Light.

“I realize that my timing is a bit… off,” said the stranger. “I apologize for that.”

“What do you want?” asked the blue robot, still shielding his father.

Ms. Vance patiently replied, “I am part of a vast, inter-planetary and inter-dimensional program. We monitor as many worlds as we can gain access to, and do our part in keeping the peace within those worlds. We are called ‘Project: Redemption,’ and I’ve been sent to recruit you.”

“…You, huh?....” Rock’s eyes widened in both shock and awe.

“No way!” shouted Cut Man, who along with Bomb Man, Ice Man and Guts Man jumped in front of their brother in hopes of shielding him from the intruder.

“You can’t have Mega Man, he belongs with us!”

“Yeah,” growled Guts Man. “Get your own robot servant!”

The strange woman couldn’t help but smile; despite being out of her element and immensely outnumbered, she remained cool and collected. “I assure you,” she said, “no harm will come to him. I’m only offering him this job as an opportunity to further challenge his abilities. What I mean is: I want to see if he’s willing to expand his sense of justice and peace to other worlds- worlds that need more heroes like him. There aren’t many out there as blessed as this one, you see.”

Just then, the one other human on stage walked around his robots and faced Ms. Vance head on. “Excuse me Madam,” said Doctor Light, “may I say something?”

“Yes, go right ahead.”

“Miss… Vance, is it?”

“You can call me Alyx, if you like.”

“Ms. Vance,” said the uneasy scientist, “my name is Doctor Thomas Light. I created Mega Man, so I feel I should have a say in all of this.”

“You can say whatever you wish, Doctor.”

“Well, uh… I don’t really know what your intentions are with Rock, but… well, he’s like a son to me. And more importantly, his mindset is that of a young boy. He’s only gotten his freedom from violence, and…”

The good doctor’s words began to trail off, as his emotions began to get the better of him. His old heart started to pound heavier than he could bear; he started to take deep breaths.

“Dad…” muttered a concerned Mega Man.

Alyx gave the good doctor a nod. “I understand your concern, Doctor. I only wanted to ask your son if he’s willing to join our group. There aren’t many of us right now, but we intend to make the universe a better place for all creatures. That is our ultimate goal.”

“And, for how long would he be away? That is, if he says yes.”

“If all goes well, he can visit his home world as much as he wants. He will get special treatment, considering his age and all of the achievements he’s already made. In fact, I would like to personally take him under my wing as his counselor.”

Guts Man growled again, and cupped his fist with his other hand. “Don’t listen to this crazy lady, Pops. She’s up to somethin’, I can feel it.”

Alyx then looked down at the little blue robot in question, who was still looking warily up at her. “You don’t have to give me an answer right this minute, Mega Man. I’ll understand if you need time to think about my offer…

"But just consider what could be achieved if you do decide to join us; you will not only represent the best of this world, but you’ll also bring peace and justice to all worlds of the known universe. That kind of greatness doesn’t come along to just anyone, mind you. But I will only ask you this once; after that, it’s entirely up to you.”

Rock blinked a few times as he thought deeply about this so-called job offer. He glanced up at his father, then his worried siblings, then back to Alyx before softly asking, “Can… Can I think about this?”

“Of course,” nodded the stranger. She then reached into her coat pocket and pulled out what appeared to be a calling card. She placed it in Mega Man’s gloved hand. “If at any time you decide to join us, just press the button on this card. We’ll contact you right away.”

Rock’s big crystal eyes gazed intently on the card with the eye lens logo on it. “I… I just need some time…. But thank you.”

“The honor is all mine, Mega Man.”

With that, Alyx gave the little robot a salute before stepping back into the white portal, closing it behind her. What was a hole in space was repaired in a flash, and it was as though the hole never existed at all.

The audience was stilled and silent, as were the robots and human on stage.

Mega Man was still staring at the small card, pondering… wondering… Was this destiny, perhaps? What exactly did Ms. Vance mean by “Project: Redemption?” Could this be what he needed, now that Wily was gone? So many questions, not enough answers.

The black, stylized iris in the card’s logo stared back at him, as if it were sentient, waiting for his response…

.

CONTINUED…