ZERO NETWORK TRANSMISSION
Rockman Zero/Rockman Battle Network
Chapter 12: The Zero Conspiracy
Authored By The Several
Author's Notes: Haven't done this in a while, so I'll go ahead and answer some reviewer questions. Keep in mind, you can ask any questions or make any recommendations you'd like, but I'll only answer without giving too many spoilers away.
Kestre Wynde: "Though from what I remember of the .EXE series, isn't Meiru pretty attached to Roll? And she knows about the connection between Netto and Rockman, so it feels a little odd that she'd call it childish."
A: About it going off-canon… well, I guess you can say it is. Sort of. In this story's world, PETs are very popular, but adults don't really use them as much as children do. A lot of adults might still have PETs, but it's mostly like a PDA for work for them at that age. As for the connection between the Battle Network timeline and this timeline, I'd rather keep it as vague as possible. Try not to think about it, your head will explode from all the crossover madness.
Kestre Wynde: "Is Ciel actually capable of fixing Zero's memories? In the games, she's a child prodigy scientist or something, but I can't remember if you've carried that over into this."
A: Specified by the creators – Takuya Aizu (producer) and Azuma Honda (graphic designer and concept artist) – themselves in an interview in Mega Man Zero Official Complete Works, Ciel created Copy-X when she was ONLY NINE YEARS OLD. That's just freaking amazing to say the least, but she was a genetically-modified child and a genius. I'm not saying Ciel in this story is a modified child or anything, but she IS a genius and the plot logic is basically the same. I am taking some plot points from the Zero series, specifically, the part that made the most irony. If you understood what I meant, then it's a heads-up for what's coming. Other than that, I'm afraid I can't say any more.
MrChoco: "What if the copy chip that Ciel was working on became something like the copy shot for Zero, or it just strengthened his Z knuckle?"
A: Actually, Ciel's invention is basically a portable version of the Z-Knuckle: a chip that can copy an ability his opponents have already used. Though Z-Knuckle can copy an opponent's move, the CopyChip can keep it in the battlechip itself for later use. Its purpose was supposed to be more evident earlier in the story, but will not be revealed until later due to story and timeline changes.
Specter Von Baren: "Hhm... Genblem seems a little out of character, he seemed to me, to only listen to Craft... I think he worked for Craft long before Weil…"
A: Thanks for reminding me, actually. The Einherjar in the story are all based on their personalities as outlined in the original story and official descriptions (with a few changes). Simply, that means that Genblem loyalty lies within Craft, not Weil. You haven't seen the last of Heat Genblem, that's for sure… but will it be as a foe or an ally?
Well, this section's getting out of hand. I'll try to answer some more in the next chapter. Let's get this story started.
"Order. Order. The trial shall now commence."
"May the defendant, Doctor Cerveau, scientist of SCILab Technologies, rise for the hearing?"
"Rise, you now stand in front of the country's Net Military Generals, leaders of this country's Net Council."
"You, Cerveau, are the prime suspect for not only doing illegal research on an extremely forbidden subject material – the Zero Nightmare Virus – but also for recreating the virus theory and putting its resurrected consciousness on the body of a Personal Terminal Netnavi."
"…"
"Nothing to say, Cerveau? You have not only nearly endangered the lives of many citizens and the digital information that we all require to live in this technological world, but to disguise the virus as your daughter's plaything?"
"What do you plead?"
"…Not guilty."
"Ah. Finally, he speaks."
"Doctor Cerveau, we fully acknowledge your skills in the field of netnavi technical research… but this?"
"We may consider the avoidance of damage to the commonplace as a minor incident due to your highly-regarded skills, but to endanger your own child, Cerveau… is something that cannot be forgiven by any rights."
"… …Fools."
"What, Doctor?"
"You still have the nerve to not let your tongue be still?"
"You are all blind," Cerveau spoke under his breath. "Everything was a mistake… All of this, everything you've worked for… this will all be completely destroyed! Haven't any of you learned ANYTHING during that incident?"
"We have. That is the very reason we are cutting the problem at the roots before it takes place. No such incident will occur ever again."
"Keheheh. Besides… Cerveau," a familiar heaving cackle said, "is it not YOU that should have learned something?"
"Y-You!" Cerveau gasped angrily as he looked up to the monitor where the voice originated from. "...Weil," Cerveau said menacingly, though defeated. "Yes… I know."
At that point, he raised his head, looking straight at his face with a glare. "And that's exactly why I did what I did… to prevent it from coming to you."
"…That certainly is a shame, Cerveau."
"What you have confirmed right now… is now your own confession."
"Your sentence will be rendered immediately."
"As of right now, you are hereby relieved of your position at SCILab Technologies. A future trial will determine the fate of your creations."
"Keheheh… Goodbye… my poor poor doctor… You are…"
…GUILTY.
'Ciel… My dear Ciel,' Cerveau said, his head bowed down in shame. 'Forgive me…'
[Opening Memory Data Recognition and Extraction Program]
[Subject Matter Identified. Codename: ZERO. EXE]
[Opening Digital Thought Interface]
[Scanning…]
[Completed. Checking Digital Brainwave Via Normal Space Transition]
[Extracting All Known Files Matching to 'X']
[Extracting Process Completed. Converting to Normal Space Data…]
[Convert Extraction In Progress. Please Wait…]
[Convert Extraction Completed]
[X COPY. EXE Completed. Transfer Completed. Full Extraction Completed]
[EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED whydidyouletmedieZero? EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED EXTRACTIONCOMPLETED]
[EXTRACTIONdieCOMPLETED]
"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" Zero wailed as he woke up in a cold sweat once again, his first dream in the long while.
Zero looked around, waiting for the PET's screen to clarify his view. He was still in Ciel's room, though its owner was elsewhere, unknown to him.
Zero wiped his arm across his forehead. Something resembling sweat came off but disappeared in the instant – the second time it had ever happened. 'What a nightmare… It felt like it was completely real…'
Before Zero knew it, he suddenly fell to his knees, keeling over as his nerves twitched, grasping at his core as to where the human heart would be. 'Damn… Ever since I heard about X – about this person I supposedly killed – I can't stop thinking about it… But now, it feels like I can't even remember that conversation in the first place!'
Suddenly, he heard the sound of running water dying outside, the tightening of a faucet echoing. Zero regained his composure, as a door opened with a strong set of steam and the sound of a sigh of relief by a girl's voice was heard coming from the other side, coming inside towards the room.
"C-Ciel?" Zero twitched, blushing.
"A-A…A-AAAH!" Ciel screamed as she covered herself, coming out of the bath. "Wh… I thought you were asleep!"
"W-Well, I was… I… I didn't see anything," Zero said, looking away.
"You perv! I can't believe you turned on the PET by yourself," Ciel pouted, rather miffed as she changed into her normal clothes. "I don't even know how you did that! Didn't you shut the PET down?"
"Oh, I…" Zero scratched his head. "I… I woke up because of a dream."
"A dream?" Ciel said, strangely surprised. Coming over to Zero's location, she picked up the PET with a sigh of sudden relief. "Oh, it's because the extraction was done…"
"Extraction?" Zero muttered, as if something in his memory was trying to tell him something important.
"Ah-Ah, no. No, it's nothing," Ciel waved nervously. "W-Well, no sensing wasting a good day. And dad didn't come home this morning either…"
"Well, then our obvious choice is to go to SCILab ourselves and meet him there," Zero nodded, though still suspicious that Ciel had suddenly changed the topic. "Shall we?"
"Y-Yeah…"
SCILab Technologies. A collection of the greatest minds in the country, all under one roof in order to pursue a single and continuing goal: to make lives easier, better. SciLab's inventions have given birth to some of the greatest inventions in the world, all so easily overlooked with today's smorgasbord of technological varieties.
Out of all these, three of the most common were also the most known of SciLab's creations. The Cyberworld, PETs, and Netnavis.
The Cyberworld had many nicknames – cyberspace, digital space, Internet, etc. – but needed no introduction, as it was the basis for everyday life. From news, to homework, to phone calls, to instant messages, to entertainment – the Cyberworld was the very root of lives, the source of everyone's information.
PETs – Personal Terminals – were our hub to this information. Though most adults had only preferred the use of the PETs basic interface as a source of work-related information hub, the children were a little more… creative, so to speak.
Netnavis. Started by one of SciLab's greatest scientists, 'Project MegaMan' was the beginning of the creation of the very first netnavi in the world. One can read articles of its source everywhere, but with technology ever advancing, nobody seemed to care about the origins from the past. Only the future mattered.
Only children took advantage of these 'PET assistants', as most children had what is called a 'personality coding' on their netnavis from their creation. It allowed the netnavi to grow and act like the person who owned it, becoming like a reflection of the child's inner self… and their friend.
To many, it seemed like a good foundation for children to grow and learn… but it also seemed like a childish notion to many adults, and most people chose to have the 'basic netnavi' feature – netnavis with no personality – as they had grown older. They talked, reminded the netop of their appointments, and that was it.
Obviously, such netnavis rarely made good netbattlers.
"Come to think of it," Ciel said aloud as she stood outside SciLab's doors, "my first netnavi was the basic model."
"You mean… a netnavi before me, right?" Zero interrupted, curious about her sudden thoughts. "Well, that's good."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Nah. It's nothing."
"…Tell me."
"No."
"Tell me or I'll shake you up and down."
"Okay, okay," Zero gave up. "I just thought… It'd be hard to give up your old netnavi if you felt a personal connection to it. With the 'personality coding,' it's hard not to get attached to the netnavi that feels so much more like… yourself, I guess. Like a friend."
Ciel nodded, though she had never thought about it that way.
She had chosen the 'basic' from the very beginning… or rather, she had wanted to see it that way. It was actually her father that chose to give her the 'basic' netnavi from her childhood. Her father never wanted her to connect to a netnavi, even in the beginning. Maybe to prepare her for something – someone else.
Her heart hurt, beating as if it was about to explode from inside her. How far had her father planned to give her Zero?
"Hey, Ciel," Zero suddenly said from inside her purse. "That thing – the so-called first netnavi – 'Project MegaMan' was started here, right?"
"Y-Yeah, that's right," Ciel shook. "Though SCILab Technologies has a branch on different countries around the world now, this was SciLab's second building… and the location where the first netnavi was ever made."
"Second building, huh?" Zero said with some thought. "Where was the first site?"
"I dunno," Ciel shrugged, waving her hands. "They taught this stuff in class… but only barely. People don't seem to be so interested in history anymore, now that they're concentrating on the future."
"One should learn from the past… to create a better future," Zero said with crossed arms. "Somebody… said that to me… a long time ago."
"Really? Who?"
"I… don't know," Zero said, dismissing the question. "So the first netnavi was made here. Do you know its name?"
"No. I think they had a monopoly on the information in SCILab," Ciel explained. "To prevent scientific secrets from leaking out, I assume. I just guessed his name was 'Mega Man' or 'Mega Man. EXE' for that matter. It made sense, considering the name of the project."
"I… guess," Zero agreed, though with some reluctance. Just before, the words he said. To create a better future. It reminded him of something, just a bit. Something he knew he should never forget. But nothing.
As he pondered quietly inside her PET, Ciel had already made her way into SciLab's doors, going straight through the reception desk and up the escalator as to where his father's office was located.
Just then, a voice from behind her suddenly spoke out. "Hey, you! Where do you think you're going?" Ciel looked around to see a uniformed woman with an arm raised towards her, coming from the reception desk.
"Oh, sorry," Ciel bowed. "I'm Ciel. My father works on an upper floor, and I'm just here to visit him. Doctor Cerveau is his name."
"Doctor Cerveau?" the receptionist said with a slight shock. "Her daughter, right? Di… Didn't you know?"
"K-Know what?"
"Doctor Cerveau's been arrested by the Net Military, something about an illegal project. He was proclaimed guilty just this morning… and all his work in this building has been confiscated for evidence. The items in his office must be being taken care of by now."
"W-What! D-Dad's… DAD!" Ciel screeched, running towards the exit with abandon. Her heart was in shock, and her thoughts were jumbled. "Oh-no, oh-no, oh-no, ohno-ohno-ohno-OH NO!"
"Ciel! Ciel! Calm down! CIEL!" Zero said in a useless effort to stop her. Ciel hadn't even thought to use the public transports or even the crosswalks, running past traffic that had abruptly stopped as she dashed across, nearly running her over if it wasn't for the automatic safety emergency-brakes. With recklessness and confusion, she ran as fast as she could to where her father had been taken, as fast and as far as her little legs could possibly take her.
'It's coming true! It's coming true!' Ciel sobbed. 'Everything I had predicted, everything I had thought and wished was wrong… Dad, please! Please tell me… Please tell me all of this was a lie!'
"-iel! Ciel! Stop it, Ciel! You'll hurt yourself!" Zero shouted as loud as the PET speakers could allow him. "Listen to me! Don't you think it's a little convenient that your dad is arrested and all his work confiscated right after we had fought an Einherjar and found a little bit about SCILab and my past? What if it was the Net Military that was behind this?"
Ciel stopped, catching her breath, but none of Zero's words made sense to her. "That might be true, but… Zero, the Einherjar were made in SCILab… where my father works. The same father who created you – Zero, the Nightmare Virus."
Zero was taken aback at how coldly Ciel had said his name and how true her arguments were. "Y-Yeah, but… still, the fact they were made in SCILab was information we got from that doctor lady. I-It could be false, and-"
"Zero… please," Ciel cried, lifting her PET, and holding it close to her chest. "I… I need you to close down for a while."
"CIE-"
With a silent flick, she turned off her PET and moved forward.
The Net Military Building. Located only several blocks from SCILab, the Net Military Building was one of many NMB locations around the country, servicing as the Net Military's towers to protect and defend the net in different parts of the nation. This was where the Net Military receives complaints, handles issues, and trains Net Military combatants and military netnavis for deleting viruses and stopping net crime and terrorism in general.
The Net Military's top brass, known as the Net Generals, are located at different Net Military Buildings around the world, though connected by a central hub display that connects them to each other during meetings and important discussions.
Only one of these Net Generals are actually currently residing near the area…
"General Blaze," a guard outside the door to the General's office said. "Your daughter here to see you."
"…Let her in."
The door opened as his daughter let herself in and closed the door behind her. "…Father."
"…What is it, Neige?"
"You were at the trial of that SciLab scientist, Doctor Cerveau, were you not?"
General Blaze's left eyebrow raised, somewhat surprised at his daughter's question. "Why… yes. Yes, of course. Such a strange thing to be asking me, Neige. He was found guilty this morning, but I am on my way to a second hearing just now to know the whereabouts of this so-called 'abomination' he made."
Neige looked away painfully, unaware of what it was that she wanted to say. "F-Father… What evidence did the Generals have to claim that this scientist did what he did?"
"Huh, you're surprising me more and more with every question. But to be honest, yes, your concern has merits. The Council has actually yet to provide proof for this facade, but one of the Generals seem to be completely convinced about this."
"Who, father?"
"General Weil of the Net Military R&D Division," General Blaze replied, looking at her daughter with a quiet stare. "He's your supervisor, is he not?"
Just then, a bleep on his PET suddenly alarmed him off his chair, setting him up straight as he looked upon it with a sigh. "Ah, it seems that the meeting has started earlier than I thought. The brass must want to be done with this immediately."
"F-Father!"
"I know, Neige," Blaze said, standing up to leave as he patted his daughter on the head. "I don't know who in the Council is doing this, but someone must want to bury this down. Badly. Heh, this isn't something I should be saying in front of my own daughter – especially with the man I'm accusing is her superior – but remember what I've taught you."
"Yes, father," Neige nodded obediently. "Obey your superiors willingly, unquestioningly. It is for the protection and the safety of the people."
"Quite right," General Blaze smirked, but with a sudden smile as he left the room. "Now forget all that and protect what you believe needs to be protected. That's what a friend of mine said a long time ago."
As General Blaze found himself in front of his monitor to meet the other Generals for Cerveau's trial, he was suddenly met with the sight of a familiar face on-screen in his monitor, overlooking the trial room. "Well well," he sighed, "what do we have here?"
"Cerveau, let's be reasonable," Weil grinned from his digital display above the trial courtroom. "You want this to end more so than I do. We used to be friends, didn't we?"
"We… were NEVER friends, Weil," Cerveau said menacingly, raising his cuffed arms towards the Net General with fury. "I know what you're planning and I won't have me or my daughter be any part of it!"
"Oh, doctor doctor," Weil sighed, sipping his coffee. "Don't be so… stupid. All of what you say are nothing but speculation and slander, slander that can land you in much bigger trouble than you think! C'mon, doctor…"
"…tell me what I want before you see the worst of it all."
"General Weil, I hardly think those were manners befitting a member of the Net Council," General Blaze said as his digital display appeared four screens to Weil's left. "I may misunderstand this, but… was that a threat to our man on trial?"
"Keheheheh, General Blaze. Of course not," Weil snickered as he backed off of Cerveau's face and simply leaned back. "I didn't expect you so early, General Blaze. What would a has-been top netbattler as yourself be doing here so early? The trial doesn't start until later."
"Ah, my mistake. I must've set my timer wrong," Blaze said, looking at his PET. "People make mistakes, you know."
"Ah, of course."
"Oh, and General Weil," Blaze suddenly sneered, looking up to Weil's display with burning passionate eyes, "if you ever refer to me as a 'has-been' ever again… you'll know what it feels like to be a virus that has been taken care of by a Net Officer. Understand?"
"Fully, General," Weil shivered. "We both know our place, and I trust we'll both have this little conversation a secret. HOWEVER…"
Weil snapped his fingers, and the door behind Cerveau suddenly opened, revealing Ciel walking in with her PET in hand.
"…I suggest we get to the painful truth of the matter," Weil wickedly smiled.
"CIEL!" Cerveau gasped, but unable to run to his daughter as his legs were bound to the floor. "Wha—What are you doing here!"
"Father!" Ciel exclaimed, running towards him, only to be stopped by a barrier mid-way. "Father! Father!"
"A touching reunion to be sure," Weil mockingly cried, "and coincidentally – the evidence that I need to bring this entire thing to light."
"Child… did you bring your PET with you?"
Cerveau gasped, realizing what Weil had planned. "Weil, NOOOO! YOU MONSTER!"
"D-Dad?" Ciel stepped back, shocked as his father's sudden outrage.
"Now now, don't be afraid, Ciel. You must already know why your father is here: on trial for being a prime suspect of creating an illegal netnavi out of the remains of the taboo subject, Zero Virus."
"It is illegal for the Net Military to confiscate items of the accused's relatives, let alone arrest a child," Weil continued, "but know that I will retract any accusations against your father on one condition."
"WEIL, NOOO!"
"W-What is it?"
"That you hear me out. Simple as that," Weil smiled wickedly. "You're a smart child, I can see that clearly. Tell me, child… do you know the history of the Zero Calamity incident?"
"N-No…"
"Oh, silly me, of course not. That was maybe around the time you were born, and truths of the matter has been kept under wraps. The Net Military was completely overrun by the power of the Zero Virus – a virus that had the power to corrupt anything and everything it touched. The Military's weaponry – its tanks, submarines, missiles – grew out of control and nearly launched and destroyed our cities. Only with the Net Military's final stand… were we able to finally defeat the god-like power of the Zero Nightmare."
"W-Wow, it was that powerful?"
"Certainly, dear," Weil continued, a snicker unable to hide itself from his lips. "Many died because of that incident, families inside their homes burned alive by the Zero Virus' corruption over their appliances, causing them to haywire. Vehicles crashed as their systems were corrupted and the stoplights stopped working on the crossings… it was total chaos."
"N… No…"
"Yes, it was all indeed horrible, families losing their loved ones because of the virus' destructive corruption. People lost their friends, their children, their fathers, their mothers…" Weil then suddenly stopped, looking at Ciel with a piercingly evil gaze. "Tell me, child…"
"…where is your mother?"
Ciel dropped her PET, her pupils shrank as her eyes stared with shock and horror at the very thought of the being that lived inside it. Her heart stopped and she felt faint, but all the thoughts in the world couldn't stop her from feeling a crackling pain in her chest.
"That's right… child," Weil smiled, "it was the Zero Virus… that killed your mother."
To be continued…
NEXT CHAPTER: Cerveau, condemned… Zero, abandoned… Ciel, betrayed by the very being she had known to be her friend, leaves her netnavi in the mercy of the evil Weil, who unlocks the Keywords to the God of Destruction inside him. Who can possibly stop this spiral downward to darkness?
Author's Notes: Yeah, a new update, and kinda depressing too, but it'll all change soon.
Oh, and I forgot to say this in the previous chapter, but BIG THANKS to Kestre Wynde for his Chapter 10 review suggestion. If any of you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to give 'em and I'll try to answer as much of them in the next chapter as possible. Thanks again, and please keep reading and reviewing!