Okay, right after posting that last part I decided I didn't like where it ended in terms of being interesting. So despite it being 5am, I went and finished up this part as well. Thus I fulfill my promise of occasionally uploading two parts, if they're both really short.
Warning: Prepare for fluffy goodness!
Part 2: Return
It was rapture.
The consciousness that referred to itself as Zero floated, unable to fully comprehend the place that X had referred to as Eden. It was impossible to describe using mere words and language, for it existed outside the realm of such worldly notions. Time flowed by, though the thing that was Zero had no recollection of it. Time was simply a force, something which existed only in reality as a means of separating one instant from the next. In Eden such distinctions were meaningless: what did it matter when something happened if you had all of eternity in which to experience it? Space, too, was a useless concept, as everything in Eden was simply a smaller part of a whole; it was sometimes difficult to discern where one "thing" ended and another began. In the end it didn't really matter, either.
The consciousness called Zero felt an immense feeling of completeness as everything around it was filled with a bright white light, radiating what could only be inadequately describe as a warm, loving feeling. Everything in this place seemed...right. As if everything was, and always would be, as it belonged.
Another soul approached him and instantly he recognized it; indeed, it seemed impossible that he had ever forgotten it. Joy and happiness exuded from this new soul as its light mingled with his, its feelings a mirror of his own. Together, they were completed in a way that no living being could ever hope to comprehend.
Who exactly this soul was, it was difficult say. It had taken many forms over the centuries. Though they did not always come together in their physical manifestations, both knew that the other would wait for them in the realm beyond that of reality. Any amount of time they spent apart was as nothing to the eternity they would have together within the boundaries of Eden.
Fully aware of who he was, and who he had been, the consciousness that had most recently been called Zero entwined with that of its mate, losing itself in a blissful happiness that it had not experienced in over two hundred years, but only now realized how badly it had longed for it.
Something tugged at him. He was unable to respond at first, having been so long since he'd had to discern himself from that of his partner. He couldn't have said exactly how long it had been, as time had quickly lost all meaning to him as he simply existed, entwined with his beloved in this paradise. After exerting a significant amount of effort, the soul that referred to itself as Zero pulled itself together long enough to form a thought, which it sent at the offending thing.
What do you want?
Another tug, harder this time. A feeling of urgency washed over him; he had finally returned to where he belonged, with his soul mate - he couldn't leave now. He thought as much to the thing that was pulling at him, embracing his partner again.
You are needed in the world of the living, the thing said to him. This time he recognized it; it was another soul, this one very familiar to him. It had most recently inhabited the body known as X.
I don't want to go, the thing that was Zero replied. My place is here now, with...
Go, my love, his partner thought to him, along with feelings of love and happiness. Our time apart is fleeting compared to the eternity that awaits. The world has need of you. Go to it. Protect the world you helped to create. Care for it as you care for me.
He thought about this for only a moment - or maybe it was an eternity; it was hard to tell in this place - before he felt another tug on his soul. This time he did not resist, allowing it to pull him away from his beloved. He felt as though he had been ripped in two, wounded and incomplete.
I will return, he said to her.
I know, she responded, her voice filled with happiness and devotion. I will be here. Now go, do your duty. Make me proud to call you mine, and know that my heart belongs to you, now and forever.
Those were the last thoughts he felt enter his consciousness before all of existence shattered around him.
The first thing he noticed was the colors. It had been a very long time since Zero had truly seen anything, and the sudden rush of reds, greens, and blues dazed him for a moment.
The second thing he noticed was that he was alive...sort of. He was once again a glowing red orb, floating in what he had come to know as Cyberspace. Having been removed from reality for so long, he floated around a bit to regain his familiarity with the concept of existing.
"It does take a little while to get used to it again," a voice he identified as X's admitted. He noticed the familiar blue glow beside him.
"I take it you've done this before," he said to his friend. X nodded. "Well, what am I doing here?"
"You're about to be reborn," X said, sounding satisfied with himself.
"Odd," Zero said, "I don't remember doing it this way before."
"Yes, well," X said, sounding slightly embarrassed, "things have gotten a little...strange in the real world. Things which should have remained buried and gone have returned, things which you were supposed to have dealt with. Luckily for us, a certain..." X paused as he searched for the right word, "...unique opportunity has presented itself."
"I'm not sure I like the sound of that," Zero said. "What exactly does this 'unique opportunity' entail?"
"I've found a way for you to return to the world of the living and retain your knowledge of self," X excitedly explained to his friend. "Basically, you'll remember everything that you know now, but you'll be alive again."
Zero was silent for a moment before responding. "X, I've discovered that I've been around for an awfully long time. However, you're the only one I've ever met that's thought he could cheat at reincarnation. And the scary thing is, I think you can probably do it."
X came as close to grinning as an orb of blue-white light could get. "Well, unlike some of us, I've spent my time in Eden learning a lot of things."
Happiness filled Zero as he remembered his time spent in Eden with his love, most recently known as Iris, who was waiting for him to return. "You have your priorities, I have mine," he replied to X, unashamed.
X laughed - it had been a long time since he'd seen Zero so happy.
"Anyway, the opportunity won't last long, so let's get going." The blue orb flew off, leaving Zero to follow along behind. Although Zero had no idea what X had in store for him, his trust in his friend was as strong as ever as he followed after the little blue light without any further explanation.
X halted abruptly. "There," he said, pointing below them. An interesting scene was unfolding in the cave below, none of which Zero understood.
The bodies of several reploids were strewn about the cavern - they resembled the Pantheon soldiers that Zero was so familiar with from his time battling Neo Arcadia. Most of them were dead, the rest dying; some were in several pieces, blown apart by a variety of different weapons, while others were sliced cleanly in two.
At one end of the room marched a long line of the familiar looking blue drones. They were armed with an assortment of different weaponry, ranging from beam sabers and lances to plasma guns and some sort of grenade launcher. They marched forward slowly, firing their weapons at three figures on the far side of the room.
Two of the three still stood, one male with a female behind. The female's light pink coat was stained with blood, though it didn't look to be her own. Long blonde hair extended from beneath her squarish red cap, trailing down to the third figure resting in her lap.
The third figure was also female, dressed in a tan jacket and skin-tight blue pants, ripped and stained in several places. Held back in a ponytail by a red ribbon, her silver-white hair was mottled with dark red blood, indicating a head wound. Though she seemed barely able to remain conscious, she was still trying to get to her feet to continue fighting; she wasn't going to die lying down. She clutched a plasma gun of some sort in one hand, and a small metallic object in the other - Zero couldn't tell what it was from this distance.
The figure in front looked almost exactly as Zero remembered himself looking when he'd been alive. A long blonde ponytail extended from beneath a bright red helmet, which matched the red armor plating covering the warrior's body. His left hand held a gun which bore a striking resemblance to his old Z-Buster, while his right grasped the hilt of a beam sword. He was desperately trying to protect the two women behind him from the assaults of the machines bearing down on them, but it didn't look like he'd be able to last much longer.
"What am I supposed to be seeing, X?" Zero asked his friend. "I have no idea what's going on here or who any of these people are. Please, feel free to explain the situation."
"No time for that," X replied. "See that guy down there?" X's light motioned toward the figure that resembled Zero just as he failed to block a barrage of laser fire.
"The idiot who just got shot in the chest? What about him?" "He's carrying the thing that's going to let you be reborn into the world. Once he gets hit a few more times you'll see it. All you have to do is fly down and touch it."
"Then what?"
"You'll figure it out. Just trust me okay? Look, there it is!"
Zero watched as the warrior failed to deflect another round of plasma bullets, taking several direct hits. It was obvious he wouldn't be able to take many more before he completely collapsed from his injuries.
A burst of light suddenly engulfed the young man. After it subsided, Zero saw that the figure had undergone a drastic transformation. In place of the desperate red-armored fighter stood a young man, no more than twenty years old. Clutched in both of his hands were small pieces of metal similar to the one held by the injured woman. He slowly sank to his knees, his body covered in plasma burns. As he did the two pieces of metal slipped from his grasp, tumbling onto the floor where Zero could get a good look at them. Zero was shocked to discover that they bore loose resemblances to X and himself.
"X, what's going on? Why do those two pieces of metal look like..." Zero began, then X gave him a spiritual shove down to the cavern floor.
"It'll all make sense soon, just get down there!" He yelled after his friend.
As he drifted down to the ground, Zero's light-form was drawn to the piece of metal that looked so much like him. Before he knew what was happening he was being pulled in with such force that he found he was unable to escape. It felt like the small metal fragment was calling to him.
"X!" he yelled, a hint of desperation in his voice. "What the hell have you gotten me into this time?!"
"Good luck!" he heard X yell back as his cyber-elf form was sucked completely into the metal.
Author's Note
Oooo, cliffhanger.
I'm actually pretty horrible at writing trippy descriptive dialogue. I'm hoping Eden came out all right. Feel free to let me know what you think! :)
And if you're the kind of person who likes the action scenes better than the fluffy scenes, don't worry - there's plenty of that coming.
Canonical Notes
One thing that always bugged me about ZXA is that there's absolutely no mention of Prairie. I'm inclined to believe they killed her off somewhere between ZX and ZXA while the Guardian HQ was traipsing around the world destroying Model W's, but since they don't really say much one way or the other, I'm writing this story as though she's still alive, because I happen to like Prairie.
The Megaman series have always been vague on their dates, which can be very frustrating at times. For the sake of this story, I have assumed a period of about 200 years between MMZ4 and MMZX, with 4 years and 8 months between ZX and ZXA. All other chronological information will be revealed through the course of the plot.
I think that's all for now. Ciao!
