Disclaimer: This was implied in the Apology, but it wasn't explicitly stated, so I'm doing it now: All of the characters, situations, dialogue, and just about everything else here belongs to Capcom. I'm just paraphrasing.
Prologue
The world had been in decline.
For almost three thousand years now, the oceans had almost completely covered the surface of the world. Only a few islands remained; the remnants of humanity were forced to eke out a meager existence, living however they could.
But now, civilization was on the rise again. In fact, in many aspects, it was barely distinguishible from that of the twentieth century. Only two forms of technology were bizzarely different: flight, and energy.
Flight, of course, had always been a dream of humankind. Now, flight was so easy and inexpensive that privately-owned aircraft were almost as common as privately-owned cars; neither was the shape or size of these airships limited by aerodynamics; an aircraft could be a large, fast, red bird; or it could be a small, yellow boat-like aircraft; or it could even be an enormous, bulky, green airship that resembled a fish.
Energy, on the other hand, had a wholely unrecognizable source. Quantum refractors were now used to power everything from pocket computers to the gigantic engines that drove an airship. They were so common that smaller versions of these refractors, called zeta-energies (or "zennies"), were used as currency.
Still, the refractors had to come from somewhere. There were plenty to be found in the ancient ruins left by a civilization older than the high waters themselves; but obtaining them was another matter. Ferocious mechanical monsters called Reaverbots prowled the ruins, spelling doom for the unwary adventurer -- or, as someone had once quipped, "They bereave your friends and family."
This was why the collection of these refractors was left solely to an elite force of people called Diggers. It was they who went through the process of braving the Reaverbots, and even destroying the smaller ones, all for the purpose of providing energy, and life, to the rest of the world. Diggers ranged from ordinary people who hunted in old caves, to brave adventurers who wouldn't hesitate to engage a Reaverbot in hand-to-hand combat if they thought it would mean gaining Refractors or Zennies. Those Diggers who could afford it wore robotic suits of armor, and stood much greater chance against the Reaverbots.
Unfortunately, not all Diggers were this noble-minded about their work; some of them were in the job entirely for personal profit at all costs. Some of these were frankly piratical in their endeavors.
But now, rumors began to spread of a hidden treaure called the Mother Lode. Most of them said it was an enormous refractor; all of them said that if one were to find it, humanity need never fear of running out of energy. Now, the focus of Diggers' efforts was more on finding the Mother Lode than on providing general power for humanity. They traveled from one island to another in their airships, ever hoping that they would find what they sought just over the horizon...
But who could say what truly motivated the Diggers?
The giant, green, bulky airship looked like a fish. On the front was emblazoned an emblem that looked like a robotic skull. On the side, in black letters, was printed the name, Gesselschaft. Inside it was a family of air pirates.
If it were possible for someone from the twentieth century to be magically transported to see the interior, they would be struck by the decor. It was uniformly green: the walls were green, the floors were gray-green, even the plumbing had a shade remarkably close to that of olives. Except behind the door with the name Tron printed on the middle, which had a pink color scheme; or behind the door that said Teisel on a brass plaque above it, which was in golden and brown shades; and behind the door with Bon scrawled on the front, which -- er, let's just leave it at not being green.
This theoretical visitor would also be struck by the majority of the crew, which consisted of forty identical small robots: not because of the skill with which they were made, or the fact that they managed to mimic human behavior precisely (true, the behavior exhibited was that of preschoolers, but even so), but because they resembled Lego people more than anything else. They were called Servbots.
The interloper would be distracted at that point, because an announcement was now being made from the bridge over the ship's PA system.
It was being made by a tall man in a green suit of Digger armor. His hair was white and spiked in a bizzare manner, and he wore red eyepieces that made him look vaguely robotic. To his left stood his sister, who wore something more conventional: a pink dress, and a small blue jacket. To their right was an enigma: they referred to him as their baby brother, but he appeared to be entirely robotic.
The man said, "Testing! One-two-three! Testing!" A Servbot gestured to him and he said, "All right, listen up! Drop everything and give me your undivided attention!"
All over the ship, Servbots stopped what they were doing -- fortunately, it wasn't when they were busy with something delicate and dangerous -- and listened to the announcement. "In about an hour, we will be arriving at our destination, Kattelox Island! Double check your equipment readings and make sure everything's in working order! I want another flawless operation, same as the last one!" The man grinned. "I swear, that treasure will be ours ... or my name's not Teisel Bonne! Let's DO IT!!"
The Airship Gesellschaft flew on towards its destination.