Welcome to Mega Man Heroes, everyone! I'm glad to finally get this chapter out! As it is the sequel to "Mega Man and Bass: Frenemy Mine", It is helpful if you read it first. That said, some spoilers for it lie in this story, so be aware of that. Enjoy!
Chapter 1: An Evening Stroll
It was a quiet night, all things considered, in the city that Mega Man called home. Little did the Blue Bomber know, there nestled inside it elements that were not so fond of his own existence...
Inside the tower, on the top floor, a deal was being made between two men that would, if upheld, seal the heroic robot's fate.
"So, this is what you're offering?"
"Yes." The man holding out the offer stared down his debtor with increasing interest. "No alterations. I need to know how Light does it. I will replicate it!"
The debtor's bushy eyebrows furrowed. "You do realize that Mega Man is the best thing that's ever happened to this city, and this world as a whole, right?"
There was a distasteful tone in the voice of the creditor. "That's going to change. Once I get my top scientists on it, I'm going to be known as the best thing that's ever happened to this world. Soon, compared to Novak, the Light and Wily names will be footnotes in the pages of history!"
Wily rolled his eyes. Luckily for him, Novak was in a good mood considering he was on the cusp of revolutionizing the world.
"The equipment will be shipped to us tomorrow, correct?"
"Indeed. I need him in pieces as soon as possible."
"As we agreed," Wily agreed, shaking the man's hand. For his part, he couldn't believe how smoothly things were going. Not even a single word had been mentioned about the stigma attached to the Wily name.
As he turned to walk out the door, Novak had to ruin it.
"Hey! Don't you guys have a flying saucer that you usually call?"
Barely managing not to make an unkind gesture at the man, he merely said, "Mine's at the shop..."
The next evening...
Rock, the son and creation of the well-renowned robotics researcher, Dr. Thomas Light, was enjoying a rare night on the town. His sister, Roll, was enjoying the time off from her cleaning duties as well.
"The city looks so pretty at night!" Roll exclaimed, her artificial blonde ponytail flopping in response to her jaunty steps.
Rock, on the other hand was used to his mat of bluish-black helmet hair. It not only saved him the trouble of styling it, by himself, or via Roll, but reminded him constantly of the other purpose he served besides serving as Dr. Light's assistant.
The duo passed by the red and gray heroic robot, Proto Man at one point, waving at him from below.
"Patrolling the city as usual?" Roll called up to the rooftop Rock's prototype was standing on.
Instead of saying anything, he just smiled and saluted.
"Do you think that Wily's still licking his wounds after..." Rock called up, trailing off to purposefully leave out well-known and ill-remembered events.
"Yeah, but it's only a matter of time, right?Better enjoy 'everlasting peace' while it lasts."
"Why can't it last forever...?" Roll pouted, holding her brother close.
Proto Man shrugged. "Maybe one day, there'll be a prison cell that can hold Wily forever."
"Or maybe, Dr. Wily could turn over a new leaf and become a good guy!"
Proto Man gave Rock a look that was laced with pity for Roll (and by extension, Dr. Light) in particular. He truly believed that the mad scientist was irredeemable at this point. He needed the death penalty in his eyes, end of story.
Personally, he wasn't sure which side of that debate he was on. He did not like Dr. Wily, sure, but he couldn't bring himself to be okay with the killing of another human being, no matter how vile they were.
He did know one thing, however.
"I'll stop him, whatever he's planning..."
"I know, Rock," Proto Man responded. "I know."
Exhausted from their walk, they were finally headed back home. Unfortunately for them, Dr. Light stopped them at the door, looking grim.
"What's happened?" Rock asked automatically. He knew that look.
"Dr. Wily. He says he's waiting for you at the pier."
"Really?" Rock felt sluggish. It was too late at night for all of that. "Can't it wait until tomorrow? It's not like he has anything better to do..."
Light shook his head. "Unfortunately, he's threatened to blow up the city unless you show up. I'm really sorry, Rock."
Without another word, he headed to the lab and hit a button on his wrist communicator, becoming the legendary fighting robot known as Mega Man.
He didn't waste a second putting the coordinates he was quickly given to use as he teleported to the pier.
Once there, all he found was the chirping of various creatures as well as abandoned boats coloring the otherwise empty area.
After quite some time of fruitless searching, Mega Man radioed Dr. Light.
"This is Mega Man. There's nothing here."
Silence met him on the other end.
That wasn't good.
A dread crept in, making its home inside the bowels of his circuitry. He rushed home, temporarily forgetting that he could have simply teleported home.
Mega Man frantically scurried back home, his guidance systems keeping him from smashing into buildings and houses along the way.
Rushing in, he collided with Roll. After helping her and himself up, he found Proto Man in his face.
"Have a nice jog, Rock? Where have you been?! Why didn't you just teleport here?!"
Roll took her older brother by the arm. "Why are you being so mean, Blues? He's just as upset as we are! He cares about him too..."
Proto Man gritted his teeth at the mere mention of Dr. Light. "Only he knows enough about me to repair me... Aside from that snake Wily..."
As if on cue, a certain Wily scampered downstairs, heavy footfalls stressing the floors. Of course, being a cyborg, he couldn't help it.
"Mega Man," The teenage boy known as Joshua Wily said, clearly panicked. "Wily left a message when he took Dr. Light."
Proto Man glared at Joshua, but he didn't pay any attention.
Trying to ignore the uncomfortable feelings that lay unresolved even to this day, he forced himself and the rest of the group back on track. "Hurry up! Let's see it!"
After running up and back downstairs at superhuman speed, he unfolded the laptop in his hand and played the message recorded on it.
Hello, fools! Like my little misdirection there? All I needed was to send out an old robot for the briefest of times and you rushed toward it like moths to a flame! Ah, the joys of teleportation!
Anyway, as always, get by my Robot Masters and I'll fight you, blah, blah, blah. I've got something special for you, though. Let's just say that I've made friends with someone who wants Mega Man in pieces just as much as I do!
The mad laughter of the evil doctor cracked through the recording.
Oh, and by the way, Joshua, you're disowned. I know you've deserted me to work for that blithering idiot. You're a disgrace to evil itself. You can grovel before me with all the rest of the peons who refuse to accept my genius!
Another mad laugh echoed from the computer before it ended. Joshua quietly closed the laptop and put it on the floor. He closed his eyes and balled up his fists.
"You're family to us," Roll reminded him, putting her hand on his shoulder.
After getting arrested as well as hospitalized for the damage he'd caused to himself and others in Mega Man's last adventure, he wound up being placed by the courts under a type of probation that involved being compelled to work under Dr. Light. To his own surprise, Joshua actually started to like it. Rock and Roll bore no ill will toward him after they let him explain himself. Dr. Light even improved his cybernetic body.
Proto Man was the lone exception. "Speak for yourself," he mumbled under his breath.
Mega Man didn't bother responding to that. He walked up behind the teenager. "Please help us, Joshua."
The boy stopped trembling, and looked back at him. There was a sadness in his eyes, but he did smile. "Of course. Come on. Follow me to the lab."
Sure enough, by the time they got to the lab, distress beacons were going out everywhere. Pulling up the monitor, the group bore witness to four of Mega Man's past foes wreaking havoc all over the city. From Top Man using his Top Spin to smash into buildings, to Slash Man using his claws to cut through the cages at the local zoo and setting the animals free. That wasn't even the strangest part about all of it...
"Why is there only four of them?" Joshua asked, scratching his head. Aren't there usually eight of them?"
"Yes," The Blue Bomber replied. He then frowned as something occurred to him. "The only times I've ever seen Wily send out less than eight robots is when he had something more complicated planned for his fortresses or something..."
Proto Man's visor glowed eerily in the light of the monitor. "Whatever. Doesn't change the outcome. He's still going down, no matter what he's planning!"
"I would be careful, Proto Man! Somehow, I get the feeling that there's far more here than meets the eye..."
"Since when does a Wily care about anyone's safety?" Proto Man's remark didn't go unheard by Joshua, and frankly, that seemed to be what the red robot wanted.
"Stop it, Blues!" Roll admonished. "He's on our side!"
Proto Man scoffed. "For how long? Until he turns around and feeds information about us to Dr. Wily?!"
"He just disowned me! What would I possibly gain from doing that?"
"I don't know... Probably to score some brownie points with him, you know, to get back on his good side?"
"Why can't you just accept that someone with the last name 'Wily' doesn't have to be evil?"
The red warrior gritted his teeth, simply saying, "It's unnatural."
"Guys..."
"How do you know anything about being natural?! You're a robot. An unfeeling, cold, automoton!" Surprisingly considering that he was a cyborg, there were tears in Joshua's eyes.
"GUYS!" Roll screened at the top of her voice.
The two fell silent to look at her, only to realize in the process that Mega Man had taken off in the teleporter.
Proto Man face-palmed. "Not this again..."