Book I: It's Been Four Years

Chapter 0: A Small Chance

Today is the day when everything changes – the day when the age of 220X takes a turn for the better.

That was what Kelvin Stelar thought when he and his crew had boarded Peace, the world-renowned space station. Unlike most space stations, Peace was able to endure high frequencies of Electromagnetic Waves, or EM Waves.

This was very convenient, as he and his crew were attempting to communicate with Planet FM, a planet far away from Earth. This planet was surrounded with more than twice the amount of EM Waves than on Earth. It was believed that Planet FM housed thousands of EM extraterrestrials, and so Kelvin intended to form a Brother Band, an enhanced way of communication by forming an alliance, with them via his satellite.

Forming a Brother Band with Planet FM would ensure plenty of possibilities for Earth's development. Though they have come a long way from relying solely on the simple Internet, they can still improve their usage of EM technology in everyday lives.

Unfortunately, they weren't so lucky.

Kelvin gritted his teeth as the computers short-circuited and blew up in his face. Only few of his fellow astronauts remained alive from the assault, and they were all surrounded in flames. The flames trickled in their faces, as if death was laughing in their faces

"Those FM-ian bastards!" an astronaut growled. "I can't believe them!"

"We offer a Brother Band, and they start attacking us," another astronaut said. "Do they even know how many people they've killed?"

"Guys, this isn't the time to freak out!" said Kelvin. "We have to formulate a plan and get out of here!"

"Get out? There is no way out! Face it, Kelvin! We're done!" Phil exclaimed.

Kelvin sighed. He'd realized this as well.

After the assault on Peace, the FM-ian, King Cepheus, kept the entire crew under his captivity. The humans were all held under trial and once the hearing had met its inevitable end, Kelvin and the rest of astronauts were sentenced to death. They were all sent to different jail cells in Peace, which Cepheus also took control of.

Kelvin didn't see Phil, Alan, or any other of his peers ever again.

"Why the long face?"

Kelvin looked up at his "jail keeper". He was a blue wolf like hound. He had sharp fangs and blood red eyes, and was in blue clad armour. EM energy flowed constantly around him, forming green spikes and claws.

"Besides the fact that I've been sentenced to death by a group of aliens?" said Kelvin.

The blue hound laughed. "Point taken," he said. "Pardon me, stupid question."

Kelvin sighed. "It's not that I'm going to die that burns me. It's just that I'm not going to see my family again…my wife, my son…"

"Your family?" Kelvin nodded.

The blue alien smiled. "Human, I understand completely," he said. "I've been through…similar losses…"

Kelvin raised an eyebrow. "Really…? I-I'm sorry."

"Naw, don't worry 'bout it. It was nothing I could've done anyway," the blue hound said. "My name's Omega-Xis, by the way."

"Kelvin," said Kelvin, smiling. "Kelvin Stelar."

Kelvin didn't know how long he was in King Cepheus' grip. It could have been weeks, and it could have been months. It could have even been a few years. But before he knew it, he befriended Omega-Xis. Unlike the other jail keepers, Omega-Xis was, in a (very) small way, kind and understanding, despite his blatant sarcasm from time to time.

The two conversed about a lot of things, from Kelvin's family to Omega-Xis' background. However, a topic that Omega-Xis mainly talked about was the FM-ians and their major weapon. Throughout it all, Omega-Xis spoke with an apparent grudge against Cepheus and the rest of the FM-ians.

"The Andromeda Key…it's the one thing that the FM-ians need in order to use their massive destructive weapon: the Andromeda," Omega-Xis told Kelvin.

"The same weapon that attacked here on Peace?"

Omega-Xis nodded. "The very same."

"What do you plan to do?" asked Kelvin.

Omega-Xis smirked. "I plan to steal it. That way, they won't ever be able to use their ultimate weapon again."

And that's exactly what Omega-Xis did a few days later.

"Damn it all!" King Cepheus bellowed in the intercom. "Find that Omega-Xis and bring him to my lair dead or alive!" From the tone of his voice, the FM-ians could tell that Cepheus preferred "dead" rather than "alive".

Alarms blared throughout all of Peace, and FM-ians stormed around the space station, looking for the fugitive. Kelvin groaned. "Omega-Xis, you idiot!" he muttered under his breath. "Did you really have to do this?"

"Who you callin' an idiot?" a sharp voice hissed from behind Kelvin.

Surprised, Kelvin spun around, only to find Omega-Xis hiding in the corner of the cell. "Mega!" Kelvin gasped. "You've got to be kidding me…! What are you doing?"

"Before I get outta this hell hole, I just wanted to thank you," Omega-Xis said. "I haven't known you for that long, but you've been the closest thing I had to a friend for the longest time, and I'll never forget…or, er, whatever. Thanks." The alien obviously struggled at being friendly.

"Why are you doing this, Mega?" Kelvin asked. "Why do all this and take the risk?"

Omega-Xis' expression darkened. "All I've ever wanted…was revenge. Revenge on the FM-ians, for what they did that day…"

"What did he do…?"

"They…" Omega-Xis shook his head. "You don't need to know! Besides, I'm out of time! I gotta go! See ya-"

"WAIT!" Kelvin stopped the alien. "Wait."

"What?"

"You said…you're gonna get out of here. How exactly…?"

Omega-Xis shrugged. "Well, I'm an EM Being. I could just teleport via EM Wave Roads, after all."

"EM Being…EM Being…" Kelvin muttered to himself, confusing Omega-Xis greatly. "You could change anything into EM Waves if you applied large amounts of Z Waves, right?"

"Hmm…yeah, I would suppose so. I've never done it before, but it could be… WAIT, HOLD ON!" Omega-Xis growled, glaring at Kelvin. The blue alien, knowing how Kelvin operates, knew exactly where he was going with this. "A-are you saying…?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying, Omega-Xis," Kelvin said. "I've been meaning to ask you for a while, but ever since you've stolen the Andromeda Key, I haven't gotten the chance. I want you to change me and my friends – or my friends that are alive – into EM Beings. That way, we could all escape and get back to Earth."

"ARE YOU INSANE?"

"Believe me when I say this Mega: I'm quite sane."

"But…but," stammered Omega-Xis. "There's a slight chance that I might mess up your entire system, not to mention the fact that Z Waves are, gee I don't know, extremely hazardous to humans like yourself?"

"I understand the risks."

"You might not even find your way back to Earth! You'd be wandering in empty space for the rest of your life!"

Kelvin only blinked, simply nodding.

"Kelvin, there's no way in hell I'll be the cause of your death!"

"I'm going to die anyway if I stay here! Keep in mind that I'm still on death row!"

"Kelvi –"

"I'M DOING THIS FOR MY FAMILY, OKAY?" shouted Kelvin, startling Omega-Xis. He sighed. "I just want to, no, have to see them again. I know I may not be able to. I know that I may even die. But, I have to take this chance; for my wife and my son. Please, Mega. I'm begging you."

"You're family…" murmured Omega-Xis. "You…you'd go that far for them, eh?"

"I'd go to the deepest depths of hell and back for them," said Kelvin.

Silence fell between the two, besides the loud continuous sirens and alarms. After a while, Omega-Xis nodded.

"Fine, have it your way," said Omega-Xis. "I'll do it. I still think you're stupid, but I'll do it."

"Thank you, Omega-Xis." He closed his eyes and smiled.

And everything flashed before him: his past life, his home, his wife, and his son.

Hope…Geo…

…

Don't worry, you two. I will be back, and know that I will always be watching over you.

That was when everything went black.

A/N: You may have noticed that this was the original prologue. However, as I have said before, it was a writing mistake that I put this part of the story as the prologue. But putting Chapter 0 after Chapter 5, I hope, will make the whole story more engaging in terms of the story progression.

Also, since I've written this before, it didn't take long to edit it, letting me upload 2 chapters in 1 update. Now THAT is a record for me.

Now…reviews!

Ultimate Black Ace: Thanks for your feedback. The "mind reading" factor that I've added was used by a lot of other fanfiction writers in the Megaman Starforce fanon. Though I try my best to stay as original as possible as a writer, I found this "addition" very interesting, and it would be very useful in this story. In the game, whenever Geo talks to Omega-Xis in front of other people, it is as if he was talking to himself, and for this story, I personally find that it may not work as well. And as for the whole "Battle Card" thing, I made it so that not all Battle Cards are compatible for all EM Wave Forms, and so enemies would mostly only be limited to their original moves from the games. I know I'm greatly contradicting canon when I say that.

AeolusShadowX: Thanks for your feedback! I'm glad that you like my adaption of the Battle System. It was difficult for me to write it, yet keeping it dramatic and original as possible. And yeah, I'm looking forward to another update for HotW!

Until next time!