It had taken Bass only a short time to extract what he wanted from the lab's computers and destroy the place. As good of a programmer as Dr. Cain was, building laboratories was not his strong suit. The giant computer lab was satisfactorily destroyed, and Bass left the removal of the machine to the state of Oregon and their robots. Only taking the time to clean himself up, Bass' next stop was the hospital.
Mega Man, Roll, and Crystal Bot were in the hospital room with Dr. Light, all three looking various degrees of worried. Rock was holding up fairly well, and he and the doctor were discussing something in low tones. Roll was turning up the temperature on the electric blanket, and Crystal Bot was sitting away from the bed, looking very anxious. She looked up as her boss entered.
" - You're hurt! - " Crystal Bot sent him a transmission so that she wouldn't disturb anyone.
" - I'm fine. Here, take this. - " Bass pulled out an UltraStore disc. " - This is what Cain had on his computers. You go ahead back to the labs and work on it. I know you hate it here. Why are you still here anyway? Roll's watching the doctor. - "
A grateful tech-bot accepted the disc. " - Thanks. Well, I didn't want to leave Roll here. She's so strong! She's way better at pretending that bad stuff doesn't scare her. And I was worried when I found Bruce was all smashed up here. I just went back to the lab for a minute, but when I came back Bruce was in pieces. I think it was just a nurse who got scared of him, 'cause he can sneak up on people, but I figured it would be better if someone with a gun was here too. Bruce is okay though, and I'll repair him when I get back. - "
" - ...I don't think you can have guns in the hospital. They make us get our internal busters deactivated. - "
" - Yeah well, I care more about protecting them than I do the rules. But now that you and Rock are here... - " Crystal Bot edged toward the door.
Bass nodded. " - Go on, get out of here. - "
" - Oh hey, you send me a systems error report, okay? I want to have an automated machine ready to get you repaired. - "
" - Yeah, yeah. - "
As much as Sonata's cowardice annoyed him, Bass couldn't blame her. If it wasn't so important to Dr. Light, he wouldn't be so sure about staying either. But finally showing what her boss considered manners, Crystal Bot went over to Dr. Light, daring to hold his hand.
"Um, I have to go to the lab now, but...sarang-heh, Light harahbohjee." Crystal Bot said, fearfully trying her best not to glitch.
Dr. Light smiled peacably, understanding in his aged eyes. "Na-nun Sonata-do sarang-hehyo."
Very awkwardly, Crystal Bot gave his hand a gentle squeeze and pulled away, a little too quickly for manners. Hurrying out of the room, she went outside before teleporting. Dr. Light wasn't upset, though. He merely turned to Bass and beckoned him to approach and sit down.
"So Dr. Cain is dealt with?"
Bass was a little surprised he knew, but he guessed that talking about an outside circumstance was better than talking about the present one. "Yeah, he should know better by now. He tried to fill a room with instant death spikes."
Dr. Light laughed, and even Roll managed a smile at that.
"He really did?" the doctor asked with great humor. "How far did he get?"
"A little more than four-fifths up the wall."
That was even more hilarious to Dr. Light. "Ha, well, he's certainly got delicate hands then...haha...I can't believe him. Anyone with any level of electronics knowledge should know better than that."
"But what happened back here?" Bass asked.
"Surprisingly little." Rock answered optimistically. "Team 5 took care of the rebelling robots and the mechaniloids, and the military's didn't even reach Monstropolis before the hacking wave was deactivated. The best part is, no humans got hurt. Dr. Cain just wanted to scare everyone...I think. Well, besides steal some money and wire it to an account out of the country."
"What a jerk." Roll shook her head. "He has to bother everyone just because he doesn't like robots."
Mega Man looked up at the dark robot sitting on the other side of Dr. Light, his eyes both questioning and doubtful. " - Hey Bass...did you talk to Proto Man? - "
" - Ugh, yes. - " Bass answered with a slight frown, trying not to attract the attention of Dr. Light, who was speaking out loud with Roll.
" - There's...there's really no point in keeping the doctor here, is there? - "
Bass shook his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. Rock sighed and bowed his head. Both of them knew that they were going to have to get Dr. Light back to the lab, but it was going to be difficult to tell him not to wait any longer for Blues. So they let Roll do it, stepping outside to get a wheelchair.
"Excuse me, Mega Man." a nurse approached them. "There's a robot here who would like to see Dr. Light, and I wanted to get your approval first. He says his name is Break Man."
"Who?" Bass sneered.
But Rock's face immediately brightened, and he instantly answered. "Oh, yes! Please send him up!"
As Mega Man asked another nurse to get her staff ready so that Dr. Light could leave soon, the first returned from an elevator, pointing a robot that Bass didn't recognise in their direction. The robot looked half Japanese and half English, with red armor and longish brown hair, every bit as wavy as Mega Man's. The stranger had rather delicate and yet sharp features, and his moody expression didn't fit well with his large, very innocent and unassuming hazel eyes. Overall he had the appearance of an uncertain fifteen-year-old.
Seeing Bass staring at him, the other robot winced, looking nervously to the side. "I'm still a fugitive, Bass. I couldn't exactly come in here with my helmet and scarf."
The dark robot started, surprised, and looking for a moment that he almost approved of Blues. But then he just laughed.
"Ha, you look like a bigger dweeb than Rock."
"Says the guy with fins on his helmet."
"I'm aerodynamic. What's your excuse?"
Proto Man was liking this less and less. Not that Bass bothered him much, as he knew how that robot was, but simply being in public without his helmet made him nervous. He felt almost naked. And he did have a very "cute" appearance, which he didn't like in the least. Apparently his nervous mood made him even cuter, as a large number of people in the hospital kept calling him "sweetheart". He promised himself he'd get his helmet back on as soon as possible when this was over.
He was actually a bit surprised that Mega Man recognised him without his helmet, even though they did share some facial features. "Pro - um, Break Man, I'm so glad you came!"
Proto Man smiled a bit awkwardly. He always liked it when his brother was happy, and Mega certainly looked grateful to see his brother.
"Um, before anything, I want to speak with Dr. Light."
Rock nodded. "Of course! He's over here."
Going to the room, Proto Man entered alone, coming face to face with his creator for the first time in years. Roll immediately brightened to see him, saying "thank you" with her eyes. But she too left the loner robot, leaving him there with his creator. Now that he standing before his father, words left him. Since this trip wasn't something Proto Man hadn't anticipated, he realized he didn't know what he could say. And Dr. Light looked more terrible than Proto Man had ever seen him before, and it shocked him how painful it was. He was more frightened than he had been in years, though he did a marvelous job of not showing it.
"Hello, Father."
"Blues...I'm so happy to see you." Tears welled up in the doctor's eyes. "Please come sit down."
It was a little shocking to Proto Man to see how eager his creator was to see him. And he had gone that far, so he might as well listen. Proto Man sat there stiffly, not sure what was expected of him. Dr. Light reached out a weak hand, and Blues took it, scared that he might hurt his dad's fragile fingers. There was silence, but Dr. Light knew what he had to do.
"Please listen," Dr. Light began. "There's something I should have you for a very long time now. That is, I'm so sorry...everything about your creation should have been different. I can't make any excuses, but I will say that in those days I didn't have a lot of authority over my own work. My government funding...ah, you won't want to hear about that. There's...been a lot of misunderstanding between us, and all I can ask is that you please forgive me for my part in it."
Thoughts and memories came to Proto Man, all of them rushing at once to be seen and heard. Most of them were thoughts about his own creation and running away, but also seeing interactions between Rock and Dr. Light on the news or hearing transmissions between the two. Dr. Light had always had a better relationship with his second son. Then the one solitary conversation about his power core error came to mind. His own actions came to mind, and at once he saw a hypocrisy that he had to confess. Once all of these memories quickly played themselves out, Proto Man knew where he had erred. He knew what to say.
Proto Man steeled himself, then spoke.
"Only...only if you can forgive me as well. I should...I should have...I spent all this time running away...when I should have been understanding. I always tried to be understanding of others and to only think the truth of everyone...but I never did that for you. I was afraid..." Proto Man immediately stopped. He didn't want to admit all the horrible things he had thought about his creator. He couldn't. Instead he bowed his head. "I'm sorry..."
"I'm sorry too...I love you, son, just as you are."
Proto Man couldn't admit this outloud, but he knew that he had always wanted his creator to say it. He smiled a genuine smile, almost glitching.
"Thank you..."
-t-
Outside the door, Bass grumpily leaned against the wall as Mega Man and Roll talked.
"I can't believe it!" Roll exclaimed happily. "Bass, what did you say to him to get him to come?"
The dark robot shrugged. "I have no idea. When I left he was dead set against it."
"He was always like that." Mega Man said sadly. "I once tried to talk to him about it, but he...well, he didn't take it so well. Erm, Roll, are you okay? You seem a little distracted."
"Oh, yes." Roll said, frowning a bit. "It's just that I think I glitched or something earlier today...according to my internal timer, there was a period of about fifteen minutes where I wasn't activated. I keep trying to figure out what happened, but I just don't know."
"Was that before or after Crystal Bot found Bruce broken?" Mega Man asked with concern. "You should have mentioned this earlier."
"Dr. Light seemed no different after it happened, so I think it was just a glitch on my part." Roll added. "I haven't had a defrag in a while, you know. I should really talk to Auto."
At that point the door opened, and Proto Man seemed even cuter than before, and even sadder.
"Hey you guys," he said painfully. "Let's get Dr. Light back now...I don't think we have a lot of time."
-t-
Back at Light Laboratories, Auto and Crystal Bot were going over Dr. Cain's computer viruses, as well as setting up automated machines for their respective heros. Those heros had come back from the hospital some time ago, but neither Mega Man or Bass had seemed eager about getting fixed, even though the blue bomber's buster arm was jammed, and Bass was still limping. Auto gasped to see the long missing brother there, especially helmetless, but as Blues was just as distracted as the others, Auto decided he would try and talk to him later. Now Mega Man, Proto Man, Bass, and Roll were all in the lowest level of the lab with Dr. Light. It was almost midnight, and none of the four robots had been seen in at least two hours.
"I hope...I really hope Blues lets us fix him!" Auto exclaimed.
"He won't." Crystal Bot pouted and scowled. "He's a emo whiny-butt and I don't like him."
"Don't say that. After all, he's here now isn't he? Maybe he'll change his mind."
Crystal Bot looked down at the floor a moment. "Maybe...I hope so. Hey Auto, why do you guys work with these open automated machines? The enclosed ones Wily had were better."
"That's because Dr. Light was more concerned with quality." Auto proudly held his fist over his "heart", proud of his creator. "He likes to work on all of his machines himself. It's the personal touch that makes his robots better!"
The girl-bot giggled. "You're a nerdy."
"More nerdy than you?" Auto accused teasingly.
And she had to giggle again at that. Looking once more at the automated machine, she noted that it was ready to go, and started pulling out the box that held Bruce's pieces.
"Wow, that looks tricky." Auto commented, looking over her shoulder.
"Nah, not so much." The shiny-bot looked up to see her boss speedily walking down the hall. "Oh hey, Forte-kun, if you're ready - "
"Leave me alone." he hissed as he hastily walked away.
Stunned, Crystal Bot looked up at Auto. She could see in his eyes first shock, then dimmness. Auto gazed down at her, and it wasn't until that moment that Crystal Bot understood.
Dr. Thomas Light was dead.
Crystal immediately went to follow Bass, and she found him as he entered Dr. Light's "library" again, where most of the doctor's blueprints and legal documentation were kept. The girl-bot never was sneaky, and as she opened the door, Bass noticed her immediately.
"Go away!" he snapped. He used anger to try and keep himself under control, but from his shaking it was obvious that the control wouldn't last long.
But Crystal Bot didn't leave, pausing for a moment to look at him with sadness. "Forte-kun, everybody knows that Dr. Light was your friend. You don't have to pretend that it doesn't hurt."
The dark robot's lips twitched, and for a moment it looked like he couldn't speak. Finally he answered with a gruff voice, "Erm, thanks. Now, just...just leave me alone for a while..."
"Okay." the girl-bot nodded.
Bass turned away, walking towards the back of the room, going around the desk to where the window was. Crystal Bot started to back away from the door and close it, but she didn't like seeing Bass so upset. It was scary that someone as strong as him could be that way. Treble had approached, however, and he whined a little bit.
"Oh, hey Trebby," the tech-bot beckoned to him. "You go in there with Forte-kun and keep him company, okay?"
The wolf nodded, and Crystal Bot closed the door behind him. But then Crystal realized that this left her alone, and for the first time in her life she felt afraid of the dark. A little mad at Bass for telling her to go away, she glitched and went back to the lab, turning on all the lights. But Auto was gone, and left with no other option, Crystal Bot hid under a table. The first of her three minds was the one in charge of her external senses, and also most of her emotions. So gearing up some data she wanted to study in her second and third minds, she shut down her first and entered sleep mode, setting an internal timer to wake herself up when it was day again.
Bass didn't feel like looking out of the window. Instead he pushed the chair behind the desk aside and sat there, where no one would see him if they opened the door. He drooped almost hopelessly down. He didn't know what to think or feel anymore. His whole motivation for the past few months was gone, and it surprised him how much it pained him to lose someone. This had never happened to him before. And Dr. Light had meant a lot to him, more than he thought anyone could. Bass didn't believe that robots truly had families, but all the same, Dr. Light had been like a father, though before he had really gotten to know the doctor Bass didn't have any clue what that meant.
Treble slowly poked his nose around the desk. Bass looked over at him and tried to smile a little. Treble wagged his tail, then carefully settled down next to his master, who lifted an arm and gently rubbed between his dog's ears.
"Hey Treble..." A bitter laugh escaped the dark robot's lips. "You remember when we met Light?"
It was the dumbest thing ever. Some years ago, he had been on a mission from Wily to get inside Dr. Light's lab, right after he had first been created. Remembering how he had purposely let Shade Man injure him so that he could be repaired, Bass cringed. He had tricked Mega Man into thinking he was an ally in need, and the clueless bomber had sent him directly to the labs. He reaccessed the memory.
"I was careless..." the dark robot said painfully.
Mega Man looked very concerned as he saw Bass kneeling on the floor, his armor dented and his joints sparking dangerously.
"I feel so stupid to have been defeated so easily...maybe I should give up and leave Wily to you..."
"No!" Mega Man immediately objected. "We are a team! Dr. Light will be glad to fix you up."
"Thanks. I'm glad I have a friend like you..."
Bass gagged thinking about saying that to Mega Man, wondering how in the world the bomber could have been fooled.
"You must be Bass." Dr. Light cheerfully greeted him after he teleported to Light Laboratories. "How wonderful to meet you! I'm Doctor Thomas Light. What seems to be the problem?"
"I don't think it's too serious..." Bass answered. "Just some joint damage, and my power core doesn't feel right."
"Alright, get on this table here and I'll have a look." Dr. Light directed his new "friend" to one of the tables that went under an automated machine. "Hm...this looks fairly extensive...I'm afraid I'll have to shut you down for a time, but it doesn't look too bad."
"That's alright." The dark robot answered. "Will my dog be okay too?"
"Oh this fellow?" Dr. Light addressed the dog, who was cheerfully sniffing the doctor and barking peppily. "He's limping a bit, but if he's this active, I'm sure he'll be just fine. What's his name?"
"That's Treble."
"Treble? What a wonderful name." Dr. Light pet the wolf, who sat and wagged his tail. "Alright then, just let me get my tools together, and I'll have you both ship-shape in no time at all! You can go ahead and power down."
As the doctor turned away to get some things, the seemingly friendly Treble turned to his master and viciously grinned, showing his gleaming teeth. But before he shut down, Bass took a look at a large computer monitor on the far wall.
"Hey Doc, what's that on that monitor?"
"Oh, those are the new upgrades I built for Mega Man and Rush. They're something brand new I've only just completed. I'm rather proud of them."
Bass grinned. This mission was going to be a lot easier than he thought.
The memory went dark for just a moment, representing when Bass had shut himself down. Bass remembered thinking that Dr. Light was an idiot for trusting him, and remembering that only made him cringe more. But nonetheless, he allowed his memory to continue to when he awoke.
The first thing Bass saw when he woke was the ever happy face of Dr. Light. "And how are you feeling?"
"Better...in fact, a lot better! I think I work better now than when I was created." Bass wasn't lying. The doctor had done a great job working on him, and he was starting to think that Dr. Light might be a better scientist than Dr. Wily gave him credit for. "Oh hey, where's Treble?"
"Right down here." Dr. Light indicated the floor beside the table. "He was finished first and he's been waiting."
The doctor turned away to a computer for a moment as Bass got up from the table and gave his systems a quick check. The doctor hadn't shut down his weapons, and apparently he didn't notice that the robot he'd been working on didn't have the three laws installed. Bass wondered what sort of idiot wouldn't check first.
"Y'know Light, you're nice." Bass equipped his buster. "Way too nice. You never know if someday you'll get taken advantage of."
"Well, I like to think that -" Dr. Light stopped short as he turned around, getting a glimpse of Bass aiming his buster straight at him. His eyes widened in shock, and he backed away. "What? What are you doing?"
"Teaching you a lesson." Bass' fangs hung from his mouth in a violent grin. "Don't just trust any hunk of metal that says he's a friend."
The first shots barely missed Dr. Light as they hit his computer, causing it to explode with a flash of yellow sparks. Smoke poured out from the large crater left in the huge machine, and the doctor ran towards his emergency comm station, hoping to contact Mega Man. However, Treble had anticipated this. He jumped in front of Dr. Light, growling and hissing with vicious intent.
"Alright, got the upgrades...y'know Treb, I think this place could use some redecoration. Let's fix it up for the good doctor here. After all, he did help us out."
Treble barked, only too happy to follow those orders. Immediately he clawed the emergency comm station, and Bass went to work on the rest of the computer stations lined up along the walls. Dr. Light tried to make a run for it, only to have a purple buster shot fly upwards and bring some of the ceiling down on him, knocking him out.
Bass immediately stopped watching the memory. "Ugh...that memory sucks. You know...Treble...I bet we could have just asked him for the upgrades and he would've given them to us without a second thought."
Treble whined, agreeing. He leaned his chin on Bass' leg, just as depressed as his master.
"Dr. Light didn't deserve what we did to him...even after that...what we did..." Bass continued, his voice beginning to crack. "Treble...we...we should have stayed with him then. We should have forgotten about Wily and just joined the Lights...things would've been better that way...it's just not fair." The dark robot's voice weakened even further. "There were only a few months...that's how long...it's not fair...if that computer mind storage doesn't work I don't know what I'll do..."
Unable to hold himself together anymore, Bass started glitching. This was too much for him to take. But for now he was alone, and no matter what Crystal Bot said, he was glad to be alone. He didn't want anyone to see him this emotional. So for the time being he would glitch as long as he wanted.
For his father's sake.
-t-
Proto Man had an easier time avoiding others. Creeping silently to the third floor, he went up to the lounge and opened the glass doors to the balcony. That was where his helmet and scarf were hidden, and he was eager to get them back on. But he paused a moment, looking back into the dark interior of the lab. He sighed.
It was never his intent to be there for Dr. Light's death, but in the end he had remained. After being gone so long, how could he leave his creator's side? It mystified him that he was able to stay. But now Dr. Light was gone. There was no reason be in the lab anymore, and the thing he wanted most at that moment was to be gone.
Proto Man gazed up at the stars, losing himself for a moment in his sadness. There was more than one reason he had stayed away all of his life. He was weak, and he knew it: far too weak to face the loss of someone. Having a long distance between himself and everyone else wasn't a merely physical thing either; he kept his emotions distant as well, and was now dealing with the consequences of that choice. Proto Man couldn't glitch. He wasn't able to express his pain. Instead it hid inside himself, left there with his other wounds as a new and more bitter hurt than anything he had previously known. And it didn't go away for the wishing.
The red and grey robot sighed, accessing a memory.
The robot jumped up with a start, wondering where he was. He stared at the surroundings with a mixture of fear and wonder: it was a giant computer lab, filled from floor to ceiling with massive computers with large monitors and multifarious switches and buttons. Caught up in the sight of it all, it took the robot a moment to see that he was strapped to some sort of table, and long mechanical arms were in the ceiling above him.
"Hello! Is anyone out there?"
No one answered.
Accessing his memory core, the robot discovered his identity - "Proto Man: Blues."
"Hello? Can someone come get me off of this table?"
Again, there was no one.
Wondering why he was there by himself, Proto Man tried to pull against his bindings. They were tight metal clasps, and as much as he strugged he wasn't sure he could get them off. But he noticed that the one on his right hand wasn't completely in place. Proto Man carefully twisted his fingers around, trying to get it to withdraw. Once he succeeded with that, it only took a moment for him to reach over and press the appropriate button.
Once free, the red and grey robot was completely clueless of what to do next. A little too scared to try and figure out what the computers were meant for, Proto Man decided to leave the lab. He didn't like it. Reaching for and opening the door, he wandered down the long and dark halls, calling out for someone. But no one answered. Eventually Proto Man gave it up.
Finding a window, the curious robot peered outside, where he could see stars shining brightly above a rolling surburbia. He decided that since it was nighttime maybe no one was there, or maybe they were all asleep. It sure looked like no one was awake out there. But once Proto Man started gazing out of the window, he began to hear a voice, and it didn't sound like a nice one.
Turning left and going further down the hall, the robot shyly crept over to the one door that light came out from under.
"Yes...yes, I know where my funding comes from!" a first voice began, sounding old and a little cracked. "That doesn't give you the right to order such things!"
"I agree with the doctor." a second voice chimed in, this one more calm and dignified. "Without his AI Proto Man is no more useful to us than any other weapon. We don't need more 'Sniper Joes', Mr. Briggs."
They were talking about him? Proto Man nervously stepped back, wondering if he would get in trouble if he kept listening. But curiousity got the best of him, and he noticed that the door hadn't been closed completely. He reached out and gently pushed it further open, allowing him a little more view of the speakers. Inside he saw a man, someone who had tired eyes and hair that was almost completely white, from his bushy locks all the way down to his beard. Whoever he was, he was rubbing his eyes, sitting at a large table covered in blueprints and data, the end of which extended beyond where Proto Man could see. Presummably that was where the other people were as well.
"All the same," a gruff voice that Blues guessed to be Mr. Briggs said. "It's been weeks already, and you still haven't given us any decent demonstration of this new AI you keep going on about."
"His power core isn't ready-" the older man that Proto Man could see spoke up next, so the robot guessed that this person was the doctor.
"Yes, yes, I know, you tell us all the time." Briggs went on. "I want to see this Proto Man. If he's going to be the new fighter unit in our army I want to know that he's up for the job."
"I didn't build him for violence!" the doctor protested. "There's a very large difference between peacekeeping missions and all out war. I absolutely refuse to allow my experiment to be a war machine! He is meant to help humanity, not destroy it!"
"Please calm down, doctor. We know how you feel." The voice that wasn't Briggs or the doctor spoke up next. "I think the thought of Proto Man's involvement with the military may be a bit premature, but I too wish to see a demonstration. Even if his power core isn't completely right, you can always fix that later."
"Mr. Davis, Blues is more than a machine." the doctor said with a clear voice. "He has feelings, to some extent, and he has an understanding of the things around him. I do not wish him to wake and realize how incomplete he is. It would only hurt him."
"This is not just your project, Dr. Light." Mr. Davis sternly contradicted. "Not only is the government - and our taxpayers, mind you - paying your wages, but if this thing is supposed to protect the world, then you alone don't get to decide what happens to him. Now take us to this Proto Man and activate him."
Proto Man backed away from the door. He wasn't supposed to be activated yet? Worried he would get in trouble, Blues briefly considered going back to his room. But that idea was quickly discarded. Of all things, he did not want to get back onto the table. But there was no other way he could trick the men into thinking he hadn't heard their conversation, so he just pushed open the door and entered.
All three men stared at him in shock. One of the men the robot hadn't been able to see before had jet black hair and a very neatly trimmed goatee, and the other was a dark tanned man, with closely cut brown hair and a clean shaven face.
"Good evening." Proto Man said only politely. "My name is Blues, the prototype sentient robot created by Dr. Thomas Light. How can I help you?"
The goateed man laughed, revealing himself as Mr. Briggs. "Wow, that's a good trick, Light. So you've got some sort of remote control on this guy, right?"
"Erm, no I don't..."
Proto Man looked at the older man curiously. So this was his creator? The robot was a little worried.
"Dr. Light?" Blues asked nervously. "You're...you're not making me leave with these men, are you?"
"No." Dr. Light confirmed, standing from his chair and facing the other humans. "Absolutely not. Now I'm afraid it's getting late, gentlemen, so why don't you come back some other time."
Davis stood up as well, walking over to Dr. Light with irritation. Blues didn't like the look, so he determinedly stepped between Davis and the doctor, causing Briggs to laugh with amusement.
"I like this guy." Briggs mentioned, still grinning. "Maybe you guys were right; he's sure got gumption."
Davis rolled his eyes, then focused directly at the doctor. "Dr. Light, you can't keep him forever. Simply put, he's not your property. Let's go, Harry."
Proto Man didn't like being treated like that. He turned to his creator, hoping the doctor would say something to defend his creation before the two men left. But there was nothing. Blues could see the fear in Dr. Light's eyes as he watched the federal agents go; there wasn't much of it, but it was there. Proto Man was disappointed.
But before the agents had gone, Blues noticed that his vision was going, and it was difficult to move. He tried his hardest, but despite his efforts, something big was coming towards him, and it hit him in the face. It took him a moment to realize that this was the floor.
"I told you he's not ready!" Dr. Light insisted from somewhere out of Proto Man's sight.
"Don't put me on the table...I don't want to be strapped down again...please..." Proto Man barely managed to say in a whisper. "Please..."
Everything went black. When his vision returned, the next time he was activated, Proto Man realized that he was back in the same room, strapped to that stupid table. Only this time Dr. Light was there, and he smiled at Blues. But Blues did not smile back.
Proto Man remembered that time with a solemn face. He had been so immature then. But he did find out later on why he had activated when no one was there: apparently there was a power surge, and this automatically jump-started his system. That glitch was repaired. And unfortunately, that was not the last he saw of Harry Briggs and Renold Davis. Briggs was at the lab often, and it seemed like everything Proto Man ever did amused him. Briggs would always watch him practice his buster shots, saying he was almost as good as a human. It annoyed Blues to no end to have to put up with how Briggs always treated him like a child, always laughing at him and acting as if he wasn't intelligent enough to understand anything a twelve year old couldn't.
But Davis was worse. He didn't seem to acknowledge Proto Man's personhood at all. Almost never did he speak to Blues other than to give him an order, most of which the robot would refuse to obey unless Dr. Light confirmed it (which happened far more often than Proto Man approved of). Proto Man's only way of rebelling was to whistle his favorite tunes whenever Davis was nearby. This too amused Briggs to no end.
"He's a rebellious one, Blues is." Briggs said. "Not even a teenager yet."
At this memory, Proto Man stopped. That quote had taken place on the very last day of his stay with Dr. Light, those many years ago. He hadn't thought about that day in a long time, but for some reason he went on, dryly wondering to himself if this made him a masochist.
Proto Man was not happy. He had spent the whole day being tested by Davis, and he was tired of it. He didn't like the agent, as for the umpteenth time the agent had refused to let him go outside, as a "danger to society". Even after offering to have his buster deactivated, Proto Man's request was still refused. But Dr. Light was nicer, and Blues decided he was going to convince his creator to let him out, though on the inside he didn't think it was possible. The agents always got what they wanted. He had never been allowed outside the lab before, so why today? But Proto Man had nothing better to do, so he tried to whistle away his boredom as he walked down the corridors. He wished for the millionth time that he had another robot to be friends with.
As Proto Man neared his creator's office, he heard a phone call. He thought that might be interesting, so instead of knocking on the door, he decided to hack into the phone line and hear the call for himself.
Dr. Light answered. "Hello?"
"Hello yourself, Thomas. How've you been?"
"Dr. Albert Wily! It's been too long, good friend! You have no clue how relieved I am to hear your voice."
Proto Man wasn't sure he liked the doctor on the other end of the line. His laugh sounded...crazy. "You're the one with the government grants for your work, and you're complaining to me about things? I think I can outdo you in that respect at least."
"It's just that my robot...I don't like how the government is treating him...he's not simply a possession, he's a person!"
Blues had heard his creator's comments in his support, but they only made him bitter. If some of those words actually meant Dr. Light would stand up for him to the federal agents, then things might have been different.
"Eh, still going on about that sentient AI thing? Don't you have some sort of confidentiality agreement going on?"
"Well yes, but if another scientist is working on my project, I think he should have a right to know."
"Oh, something you want to tell me?"
"Yes. I want you to come join me and help me work on Proto Man. I've think I finally have a way to fix his power core once and for all, but it's really a job for more than one mind. You were the only one who understood anything about robotics, and I think it would be tantamount to a crime to exclude you. Please Albert, these feds about to drive me out of my mind with their ignorant questioning, and I need an intellectual equal here before I lose it completely. Oh! I'm sorry, that is if you can be spared from your own work."
The side of Proto Man's mouth went up as he remembered that part. He had later learned that Wily's projects were all financial failures, and he was unable to get funding to continue.
"Hm...you know what? I think I can do that."
"Really?"
"Definitely. I have some contractual obligations to a few companies though, so I can't just pack up and leave right away."
Blues thought about this. Another doctor? Was he going to have to listen to this one as well? He was liking this conversation less and less.
"Whenever you can. This project is really turning out to be more than I had planned. Poor Proto Man...everything about his activation has gone wrong. I thought I would have a little time to explain more things about life to him before these ridiculous government people showed up. He's not doing well, and nothing I say to them will get them to understand. Anyone with sense can see that Proto Man is unhappy! I made a mistake...I never should have made him a fighter..."
"Don't be ridiculous. That's how you got your funding."
"There's more than one use for a robot, Albert." Dr. Light sighed deeply. "But now it's starting to look like Proto Man is a failure...if I could have done everything different Blues would have understood the reason he was created...but now it looks like he'll have to be reprogrammed."
Proto Man backed away. He didn't want to listen anymore, and he started running. Before he knew it, he was in a back room of the lab, somewhere he had never gone before. The place was filled with machines he didn't understand, but he didn't care to investigate them. Instead he dropped to his knees, huddling and glitching on the floor. He was a failure to his father.
"YOU'RE A FAILURE TO ME TOO!" Proto Man shouted at the top of his lungs. "YOU'RE THE ONE THAT SHOULD BE REPROGRAMMED!"
His voice echoed in the large room, and Blues settled down, ashamed. He knew it was wrong to feel that way about his creator, but wasn't it just as wrong for Dr. Light? Turning to his left he noticed that several humanoid mechaniloids, none of them bothered by the noisy intruder, were all weaving and sewing some sort of long, colorful materials. He knew what it was. The doctor was working on his new poly-aluminoid fibers, an experiment in creating cloth out of demi-metal fibers that would be stronger than normal clothing and yet still feel normal. Blues bitterly thought that this project was working out for Light Laboratories a lot better than he was.
He noticed that one thin mechaniloid was compiling several colorful sample cloths from the other non-thinking robots, and Blues looked down at his own colors: brick red and dull grey. Frowning with hatred at his boring design, he snatched a bright, golden yellow scarf from the mechaniloid, who didn't seem to notice. And as he wrapped it around his neck, Blues decided that he was going to run away. He didn't want to stay with someone who wouldn't defend him or wanted to reprogram him. He was going to live without rules and do what he liked as far away from the lab as he could. He was going to explore the whole world.
But as Blues walked back to his room, trying to look normal as he went to go get his shield and helmet, a thought occured to him. Dr. Light was his family, and in fact the only family he had. Despite himself, he felt guilty for wanting to leave Dr. Light. But he pushed that feeling aside, thinking that maybe Dr. Light had programmed him to feel that way just so his prize robot would do what he said. Then the thought of his troublesome power core came to mind. He knew it didn't work right, and he was risking a lot by leaving the only person that could fix him.
I don't care! I'm never going to let anyone hurt me like this again...
Proto Man couldn't go along any further. He stopped the data stream where it was.
...That memory...really sucks...
He went over to the edge of the balcony, retrieving his helmet and scarf. As much as that memory pained him, the knowledge of what Dr. Light had done next hurt worse. That poly-aluminoid fiber had become a complete success, and it paid for a lot of Dr. Light's further efforts into robotics, freeing him from most of his federal funding, and his only grants became ones from scientific corporations. Not only that, but because his next robots weren't designed for combat, the federals had a lot less legal reasoning to be involved. Proto Man knew that if he had stayed, he would have been freed. He had never told anyone, but for several years he had been bitterly jealous of his younger brother, especially when he became the blue bomber.
But at the same time, he hadn't regretted leaving. He had always known Dr. Light cared about him, and over the years he had started believing that the only reason Dr. Light had managed to stand up to the feds for the combat-enabled Mega Man was what he had learned from the pain of losing his first creation.
Proto Man sighed. He had told himself that only to excuse himself from his actions. Tonight he learned how much he had hurt his father by leaving. He fingered his scarf, still strong and untorn after all his adventures (though still streaked with ash from Dr. Cain's lab explosion). He had stolen it in his immature rebellion, but there were times when he thought it might be better to get rid of it.
He never would though. It was from his father.
Sighing again, he replaced the scarf on his neck, and pulled his helmet down over his head, once again returning to the comfort of anonymity. Seeing Dr. Light again had been the right thing to do. He had let himself believe too many lies just for the sake of letting himself abandon his family. He learned that when he had heard that fateful conversation the day he ran away, Dr. Light had simply meant he'd be turned into a lab-bot instead of a fighter-bot, and his personality AI would have remained the same.
"You're a person, Blues. I couldn't change who you are any more than I could change another human."
To finally understand his creator and then lose him was too much for Proto Man to bear. But the normal grieving of robots, glitching, was impossible. He was skilled at hiding his emotions, too skilled. The pain stuck within him, joining his other miseries that he knew would remain there for the rest of his existence. But thankfully, that would not be a long time. In a month's time he would be gone, dead from his malfunctioning power core, and the pain with him.
As Proto Man went to shut the door to the balcony before he left, he noticed that there was someone inside the lounge. Instead of shutting the door, he silently walked into the shadows of the darkened room and watched. There, sitting alone on a couch, was Roll. She was crying. It wasn't merely the normal glitching of a robot, but almost real, human crying, though without tears.
His sister. Proto Man watched her, a deep sadness coming over him. The poor girl-bot had been closer to Dr. Light than anyone else. He turned away to leave, until he remembered Bass' accusation, and he knew that if he left now, it would only mean that Bass had had a point when he called him selfish. But Proto Man didn't know what to do. His social skills were lacking at best. All the same, he knew leaving would be wrong.
Uncertainly, Proto Man walked over to the couch, sitting down next to Roll. He reached for her hand.
"Roll...I'm here..."
The miserable girl looked at him, and even through her grief Blues could see that she was grateful. Throwing her arms around his neck, she started crying full force, and Proto Man held her, if a bit awkwardly. But he didn't mind. He would be there for her as long as she needed.
-t-
The computers were humming, and everything seemed to be going right. Mega Man and Auto quickly flipped switches and pushed buttons. But finally the proper lights were flashing, and the a cheery noise sounded from a speaker.
"It's done." Auto said with confidence. "Dr. Light's mind is safe now."
"Then it's just thirty more years..." the blue bomber smiled back. "And then we'll see him again!"
"I think Roll took it pretty hard." Auto mentioned. "And Bass too. But they know about this."
As the two of them left the second chamber of the secret lab, Mega Man answered, "It won't be the same though...having him here was wonderful, especially working with him. It'll be a different existence as a hologram. Imagine being stuck in a holographic projector like that...it's almost like being in the robot museum. But don't tell Bass I said that." he added quickly.
Auto nodded, himself sighing. "I think we all expected him to live forever. I wish there was some way he could have been made into a robot. That would have solved a lot."
The tech-bot walked forward a bit before noticing that Mega Man wasn't walking beside him anymore. Turning back, he saw the blue bomber looking happily down at his youngest brother, Mega Man X.
"Look at him, Auto." Rock happily said. "Right now he's meeting Dr. Light for the first time. He'll be learning about the world and ethics...I can't wait to meet him!"
"I'm going to call to make arrangements for the burial." Auto mentioned. "Are you coming?"
"No," Mega Man answered. "I think I'll stay here for a while."
And as Auto left, Mega Man slumped, thankful that Auto was taking care of most of the funeral concerns. He couldn't bear to see the once lively and brilliant Dr. Light as nothing more than a body. Yet even so, it was hard for him to grieve for his creator, as he felt like he'd been grieving for the past half year already. Faintly he smiled, thinking of the very first time he had met Dr. Light.
His eyes opened.
The lab was bright, and a huge window to the left revealed the rolling green suburbs on the edge of Monstropolis. On the far wall head there were computers, and to the right was the door. The robot was held by leather straps to a table, which was angled at about 45 degrees.
"Hello?"
"Hello there." A gentle voice spoke as a man with white hair and a long white beard walked up from behind the table. "Do you know who I am?"
The robot smiled. "Yeah! You're my creator, Dr. Light!"
The doctor reached over and started pulling the straps off of his creation's limbs. "Good. Now tell me about yourself."
"I'm Rock!" the robot answered joyfully. "And I'm your lab assistant!"
"Very good, Rock." The straps were undone, and Rock stood to his feet in front of his creator. "Now come with me. I want to show you something."
When Rock had been strapped to the table, he had been facing away from the rest of the lab, so he hadn't been able to see the seven other tables, all at a flat angle facing the ceiling. On each of them were several different robots, in various stages of completion. Dr. Light walked his creation by all of them and told him their names.
"This is Elec Man, and here we have Cut Man, who will be our gardener. Then there is Bomb Man and this large fellow next to him is Guts Man. They're going to work together in a mine a few miles away from here. And we also have Ice Man, and Fire Man. Last, and absolutely not least, we have here one more..."
The scientist directed his blue creation towards the last table which held a blonde girl in a red dress. Rock noticed that she seemed to be closer to completion than the others.
"Now Rock, tell me about this robot."
"This is Roll and she's my sister!" he exclaimed. "She's gonna clean the house and be my friend!"
"Very good." The doctor smiled approvingly. "Now tell me what you're going to be doing."
"I'm going to be helping you finish all of these robots and help you with your experiments."
"Good! Now let me show you how to use these computers..."
Dr. Light showed him the functions of the AI development program, and he could tell that Rock was enjoying this. He couldn't stop smiling at this creation, and his robot was happy to be there and work on all of his companions. But when the perspective of the memory went back to Dr. Light, Mega Man could see that somehow Dr. Light looked a little sad.
"Are you okay, Doctor? Your eyes are leaking a little."
"Oh...I'm fine, Rock." The doctor tried to pretend he hadn't been tearing up. "That reminds me...there's something I want you to do when the others are ready to be activated."
"Okay. What is it?"
"I want you to make them feel welcome, and be their friend. Let this be a happy home."
"I'll do my best!"
Mega Man thought that the memory would cheer him up, but instead it only depressed him further. He leaned against Mega Man X's capsule and glitched, sobbing. But he fought his sadness with the thought of X. Once his ethics testing was complete, Mega Man X would be activated, and they would have to give him a nice welcome. He was part of the family, after all.
Rock put his hand over the capsule, as if waving hi. "See you soon, little brother."
-t-
As the first beams of light shone in through the window of the lab, Crystal Bot awoke from sleep mode. Blinking her eyes and staring out from under the table, she noted with relief that the large empty lab did seem a bit less scary in the morning. Hearing a low snort, she looked down to see Treble resting beside her, nuzzling her side with his nose.
"Heehee, I'm up, Trebby. Aw, you're such a good doggie." Crystal petted him. "The best ever."
After she spoke, Bass appeared, getting down on his knees to get where his tech-bot could see him. The girl-bot noticed that her boss looked at lot more solemn, but no longer upset but instead very serious. Crystal Bot was glad, because Bass being sad frightened her. She could also see that he was in better condition; he must have used the automated machine she had set up for him.
"We're going to be staying here a while." Bass spoke in a strange, calm tone. "There's a lot that needs to be done with the funeral and everything. Are you going to be able to handle that?"
The girl-bot nodded, hugging Treble a little tighter. "Yeah, I'll be okay."
"Good." Bass' more serious tone faltered slightly as he saw her sadness. "Hey, I made a bunch of calls already. Jewel Man's on his way over."
Crystal Bot smiled appreciatively. She knew her boss could barely stand Jewel Man. "Thanks. Yay, Obba is coming!"
"Guh," the dark robot cringed. "You know you're using the wrong word there, right?"
"What?"
"Oppa means 'brother'. Ahbohjee is 'father'. Stop trying to learn korean from those stupid kdramas and just download the language already."
Crystal Bot wrinkled her nose. "Aw, how long were you gonna let me keep saying it like that?"
"I thought you'd figure it out for yourself. Guess I was wrong. Now get out from under there." Bass ordered. "You're not a six year old."
"Yeah, I've only been around for three and a half."
"Ugh, you know what I meant." Bass rolled his eyes.
\\\\\\\\
Author's notes:
- Um...yep...I meant to make Crystal Bot do that error on purpose...hee hee...I totally knew that Oppa was brother and not father...lol, ha ha...yeah... Anyway, I promise the rest of the korean in the chapter is right...that I learned straight from Koreans and my dictionary, not kdramas... *blushes*
- Come on, only Queen Sunstar guessed the significance of Epic Man and Demi? Lol. I didn't think it was that hard. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to enjoy y'all being surprised when I finally do reveal it. And no, Sunstar, you're not quite right, but thanks for trying!
- In Proto Man's flashback, Wily was calling Dr. Light so he could borrow money. He's such a mooch. :D
- Yes, all of the robots that have normal faces have the facial features of one ethnicity or another. Naturally, robots like Needle Man or Guts Man don't, as they don't really have enough face for that. Mega Man, Proto Man, and Roll are all mixed between northern European and Japanese. Bass, on the other hand, is Austrian. At the time of his creation Wily wanted a younger version of himself, and as he is Austrian and Swedish, that's how Bass ended up. Notedly, Bass is a lot better looking than Wily, as the mad scientist thinks he was handsome when he was young.
While Crystal Bot was based more or less on Roll when Crystal Man designed her (given as Crystal Man wasn't that artistically creative), Wily made her look more adult when he upgraded her, so now she appears to be just a white mutt. As for his other robots that have faces, like Top Man, they are all white mutts as well, except for Zero who is an even more idealistic Austrian, and much less Wily.
- Sarang-heh literally means "love", and in this context means "I love you" informally. Notedly, some people don't pronounce the first h, so if you say sarang-eh you'll still be understood. Harabohjee means "grandfather", and it can be used to refer to any elderly person, not just your own grandpa. Crystal Bot, however, does feel that Dr. Light sort of is her grandfather, so she means it that way. Na-nun Sonata-do sarang-hehyo means literally "I love Sonata too", as korean is one of those languages that sometimes says a person's name instead of "you". Na is the informal word for "I", nun being a topic particle you add to the subject of a sentence. -Do is a word you attach to nouns, and it means "too". -Yo is the verb ending you use when you want to be polite. Lol, I'm not writing a story, I'm just trying to practice my korean :D
====Dr. Thomas Light.
The world's number one authority on robotics.
"Hurry and rescue them, Megaman!"
Good point: Good faith
Bad point: Douchie
Like: Internet
Dislike: Violence
Japanese CD data:
Bad point: Naive
Like: Internet
Dislike: Violence
Yeah...no clue what they're trying to say with that bad point there...did the translators do that on purpose? I think I'll just ignore it. Okay, I'm gonna write Light's history, but before I do I want to point out that this is what I see in my head, not necessarily what Capcom may have in mind. Though I don't think they ever explained his origins, so it may not matter so much.
Dr. Thomas Light was born in Atlanta, Georgia as the only child of Phillip and Mary Light, a wealthy couple who own several hotels and golf courses in the southern city. Phil was a bit strict with his son, though not unkind, and from an early age made sure that his boy was responsible for cleaning up his room. Mary was very loving, and always taught her boy manners and stories of wisdom. They lived on the edge of the city, giving young Tom the ability to explore the nearby woods and learn about nature. However, his life was impacted mostly by the junkyard he stumbed upon one day, and he took to bringing things home to clean up and fix, getting him started in engineering.
Having always done well in school, Dr. Light was easily accepted to Monstropolis University when it came time for college, and he opted to pay for college out of his own money rather than accept a scholarship. This turned out to be fateful for him, as instead that scholarship went to someone else: Albert Wily. Light and Wily were taking most of the same classes, and they met very early on in their college years. Light was very thankful for this friendship, as no one else seemed to have any clue what he was talking about, even his very supportive parents. The two were often the bane of their teachers, and in their advanced mechanics class they ended up teaching it themselves because their teacher was sick of being corrected by them. Only when they both graduated and Tom was declared valedictorian did he notice Albert was jealous of him.
Light was always interested in Asian cultures, and for a time he studied their languages. Chinese he gave up on quickly (as it's pretty much the most difficult language on earth), and after trying korean for a while, he found his favorite one: japanese. This happened his final year of getting his doctorate, and it had more to do with a pretty Japanese girl than Dr. Light would have admitted at the time: Azuma Ayumu, a transfer student from Okinawa who was a sophmore. Previous to this, Tom had always had more interest in science than dating, but Ayumu was cute, polite, determined and clever, and he couldn't help but notice her. However, it took some nerve for the nerdy Light to ask her out, and in the end Albert and some other friends ended up having to trick them into their first date. The others claimed they were having a group study session, but then didn't show up, leaving Tom and Ayumu alone in the library together. However, their relationship still wasn't that serious at the time, much to the disappointment of their friends.
After his graduation, Tom stayed on at Monstropolis university to teach while Albert left and persued projects of his own. However, in his second year of teaching, tragedy struck. He noticed that Ayumu, now a senior, was putting less and less effort into her schoolwork. After a week of trying to get her to tell him what the trouble is, she admitted that she just found out that she had stage four cancer, and she's going back to Japan to be with her parents and siblings. As Ayumu tearfully tells him her regrets, Tom decided to marry her, and a few days later he asked and she accepted. After getting married in Monstropolis (with you know who as the best man), the two moved to Okinawa and spent a year and a half together before Ayumu died, happy and surrounded by those that love her. Dr. Light never married or dated again.
After spending another year trying to figure out what to do with himself, Dr. Light returned to engineering and started building mechaniloids, eventually earning the noble prize for his efforts. But the project he always had in mind was sentient machines, and Proto Man was one of his earliest projects, named "Blues" because of Ayumu's favorite type of music. Dr. Light wanted his first creation to keep peace, as the doctor had always hated war. However, due to Blues' premature activation and constant incompletion, the robot couldn't cope with his loneliness. And when Proto Man ran away, Dr. Light knew that the robot wouldn't live long without his power core being fixed, regretfully giving him up as lost.
Wily rejoined Dr. Light at this point, and the two of them worked together to produce the first six robot masters; Rock and Roll, whose minds were far more complex than those of the others, were primarily Dr. Light's work. These complexities caused the robots to act and think more like humans, but Wily only cared about intelligence for his own aims and didn't want to deal with human-like beings. That and he always found them annoying and weak. And you know how the story goes from there.
Dr. Light, especially in his final years, had a fear of losing his memories and knowledge to old age, so he was constantly strengthening his mind with projects and puzzles, which is why he was never senile, and why he remembered enough korean to answer Crystal Bot. Knowing that it would be hard for his robots to cope with his loss, and not wanting to let his vast learning be lost, he invented the mind storage machine, which he would use to teach his most powerful and intelligent robot, X, so that robot society would be able to integrate with humanity for the future.
- You might find this comforting to know (I sure did): the human mind, all other factors aside, is capable of existing, learning, and remembering for three million years. Senility only comes from not exercising your brain, and as you grow older, you should only be able to learn more and more.