LAST EDIT 3.9.2017

Radiant Falcon Fan Works #9

Mega Man: Eternity Cross


Soundtest 01: Rock Opening 1 - ELECTRICAL COMMUNICATION ~ROCKMAN 8 OPENING~ - GANASIA

Frame: the Himalayas; 20XX; 6:30 GMT(1)

Morning shone over the Himalayas. The interesting thing about this rather tall range of mountains was its temporal configuration. There are all sorts of places with temporal configurations – hotspots, if you will - all over the world, much like tectonic plates. They're what the Time Masters, the protectors of time itself, refer to as Chronoscopic Framework Malfunction Locations.. These things are what mess up non-Time Master temporal equipment all the time. Even the Time Skimmer was not safe from this. This is one reason why it was supposed to be destroyed. The other reason was known only to the Time Masters themselves and Rock Light, alias Mega Man, whose last known location was somewhere on the archipelago of Japan.

The Time Masters used to have a base deep in the mountains, and a field agent was dispatched to remove all traces of the former base. That field agent wasn't particularly well known within the organization; a lackey of lackeys. Still, he had a job to do, so he might as well do it.

As he prepared to set a time-distortion field, which would make time stand still for everyone but him in the area, he noticed something strange... someone beat him to the base. Then he heard it, the humming of a Cypher plasma-sword. That was a telltale sign that its wielder, a Strider, was in the vicinity and about to strike. Still, what kind of Strider wanted to kill a Time Master, he thought, Possibly a rogue one, because-

He didn't get a chance to think any further, as something hard hit him on the head.

-=STAGE 01=-
INTRO STAGE
=ready=

soundtest 02: outside time - kamikirimushi ~art of fighting team~ (The King of Fighters '96)

Frame: Time Master Base, Antarctica; Outside Time

The frozen continent of Antarctica had been colonized somewhat in 20XX due to the advent of robotics, but no one was in a hurry to actually live there. Which made it perfect for the Time Masters to set up a base there, in a place no one would get to in a few hundred years or so. The base itself was fairly advanced, as really, it would need to be, what with this being the future and all. Quincy "Quint" Sairasu personally chose the place just to keep an eye on his so-called 'twin', Mega Man. To the untrained eye, you'd think they were in fact twins; both Rock and Quint had the same height and similar hair style and length. But Rock's hair was solid brown, and Quint had white streaks in his. Mega Man's armor was traditionally blue, while Quint's was green. In short, they were very different.

Quint himself was sipping a mug of coffee(2) in the Control Room. As an android, Quint technically didn't need the coffee's caffeine content, but it was better than the standard energy pellets and at any rate it was his custom this early in the morning. Besides, this was Antarctica, a frozen wasteland if there ever was one, so the heat from the drink helped get rid of the chill, lest his internal workings freeze. Anyway, the Control Room was the main hub of all things the Time Masters had to deal with, from the War Against Destiny(3) to the Wily Wars to the Elf Wars and beyond. Right now, the screen in which the feed from all the different Chronoscopic Frames would be displayed was blank, possibly because there wasn't a whole lot going on.

Then the door to the Control Room slid open. Quint turned around and said "What's up?" to which the door-opener (another lackey) said "We've got trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

"We just lost the signal from Tibet in 20XX, sir."

Quint was afraid of that. Putting a guy so high up the mountain wasn't a smart idea to begin with(4). Then he heard a ring-a-ling from the monitors. "Patch it through." he ordered the lackey.

"On it, sir."

The screens were activated, and a communication feed was displayed through the far left monitor. "Time Masters... hah!" a man on the other side scoffed. This man was wearing a grey jumpsuit with a loose white utility belt. He had slicked back hair, and also a white muffler. "You lot need to get better equipped."

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Quint. Can I help you?"

"I care not for your name, Time Master. Know that time is no longer on your side!"

"Who are you, a Strider?"

The guy on the other end simply laughed, then explained "As if they could compare! I am stronger than each and every one of them! I am Hien!(5)" The communication feed blacked out just then. Quint, who wasn't the leader of the Time Masters but was rather the equivalent of a Lieutenant, said "You'd best call General(6)."

"Roger!"

soundtest 03: Utopian Frame 20XX - flying power disc ~beach court~ (Windjammers)

Frame: Taiyo High School(7) Campus, Japan; 20XX; 15:35 GMT

Rock Light, the famous android also known as Mega Man, does not attend school, however he knows someone who does. That someone was Syakuei(8) Yoshiyama, son of Yuichiro(9) Yoshiyama, an AI researcher and creator of the Network Navigator(10). Syakuei, one of the two C-Life hybrids in the world and better known by his alter-ego Pulseman, was a Second Year student (a tenth grader, to put that in American terms), and just so happened to be Rock's best friend. As the bell rang to signal the end of the school day, an android wearing a yellow tank top and black shorts(11) met up with a young man with black hair with a red cowlick sticking out, and who wore a shirt bearing the logo of the Mark of the Millennium tournaments(12), a tan jacket with red trim, grey pants, and a red watch. These two were, obviously, Rock and Syakuei.

"How was school, Sya-kun(13)?", Rock asked his friend, to which said friend responded "Rock, you and I both know that you're American(14), not Japanese."

"But this is Japan."

A conversation ensued, during which time it transpired that Syakuei hadn't quite kept up with math(15). "You really need to pull it together, Sya-kun."

"Yeah, I know. I've been trying to cover with As in my other classes. Math never was my best subject, you know."

"You should get tutoring done or something, Sya-kun."

Which is what Rock was going to say, if his aural unit didn't start ringing. "You've reached Rock Light. How may I help you?" Rock questioned."uh huh... we're on our way."

"Was that Dr. Light?"

"No, it was Kula. Trouble at the lab."

Rock then teleported out of campus, leaving Syakuei to wonder, "Who's Kula?"

One catchphrase and a short transforming sequence later, Syakuei was clad in orange-and-white armor, a black bodysuit, white gloves and boots, and a helmet with a white spike extending outwards, complete with a translucent orange visor over his eyes. This was the electrical warrior Pulseman, and as soon as he appeared, he was gone.

Frame: Light Labs, Japan; ten seconds later

Dr. Thomas Light, the foremost scientist in the advancement of robotics, had two properties. One was a house in America where he lived, the other was a laboratory where his creations lived. The problem with having so many robots, each fulfilling a different task (or to put it another way, their elements) was that one of them was bound to blow up thanks to another. Fortunately, this wasn't the case with Dr. Light, as a lot of his robots actually live elsewhere. Kula Light(16), also called Ice Man, and Hakan Light(17), otherwise known as Oil Man, were two exceptions. They were doing guard duty, protecting Dr. Light's best-kept robotic secrets from those who would use them against him. Next thing they knew, both Ice Man and Oil Man were on the floor, being stood over by a red heavy-armored android with spikes all over his armor. This was one of Dr. Wily's robots,Punk.

"I expected more from you two. Prepare to..."

That was all he could get out before an energy shot hit Punk square in the chest, staggering him for a few seconds, followed by a wisecrack remark. That remark was "Oh, it's just Punk. Didn't I kill you once?" and it was said by none other than Mega Man, getting here in time as usual. Pulseman arrived behind him, and asked "You know this joker?"

"He's one of four androids Wily created just to kill me."

"Well, ain't that just peachy. I can see he failed."

Punk, obviously nonplussed by Pulseman's words, asked "I didn't know Mega Man had to call in for backup. What do they call you; 'Battle Kid'(18)?"

"Pulseman, actually. I control electrical pulses." and to prove it, he stuck his hand outward, firing a bolt of electrical energy at Punk. Punk, who was not necessarily built for evasion, took it like a man. "Hmph, not bad for a sidekick. However, I don't have time to play with you two. I already got what I came for.", he boasted. "So long, suckers!" With that, Punk teleported away, leaving the non-humans behind.

soundtest 04: mystery and intrigue - android (Epic Pinball ~ shareware)

Frame: Light Labs, Japan; one minute later

"Can you believe the nerve of that guy? He called me a sidekick!" Pulseman, who by this time had his helmet off revealing his natural black hair with a single long red cowlick, was irate at Punk, obviously. "Well considering you and I are a team, it's kinda unavoidable. I'm more worried about what Punk took." Mega Man also had his helmet off, and was searching through Dr. Light's data files for anything out of the ordinary. "Ah, here we go."

"What, did he take something important?"

"I'm still looking, but so far no."

Rock and Syakuei were puzzled at this development. And then, Syakuei remembered a weapon his father was working on for a private military contractor before he was born. "wave cannons(19)..."

"come again?"

"Rock, see if there's anything in that file about a wave cannon."

"On it." It took him ten seconds to find the information. "Ah, the Yoshiyama Wave Cannon. I'm assuming that's your father in the picture?"

On the screen, there was a picture of a group of scientists and military engineers. Among the eggheads and hard hats was a man who couldn't have been older than twenty-five in the center holding a strange shoulder-mounted beam gun, whose hair was black and red. "That's dear old dad, alright."

"Why would Doctor Light have a picture of- ah, that's why."

"what?"

"This document's time-stamp is about fifteen years old, which would account for Mr. Yoshiyama's age, but more relevantly, that was back when the Sniper Joes were first being manufactured."

"I can't see what that has to do with my dad's Wave Cannon."

"I'm getting there. The original schematics for Sniper Joes called for a shoulder mounted weapon before the arm cannon was introduced(20), and I'm guessing this was the weapon they had in mind."

"Okay, so?"

"So let's say Wily is after the wave cannon and has the materials to build one. What then, Syakuei?"

"Well, I only know that the Wave cannon had charge and piercing capabilities, but it took time to build up and was therefore impractical for warfare, which is why the project was discontinued. But my dad said there were supposed to be more cannons in development with shorter charge time. I'm guessing Wily wants to upgrade the Robot Masters with wave cannons?"

"Sure seems like it. I'll contact my Robot Master informants(21), see what they know."

"Right, I've got some homework to do. I'll check back with you tomorrow."

-=EYECATCH=-

Rolling Cutter Notes

(1) For this story, Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT for short, is the real life way of simplifiying the time differences between countries, as GMT has no time differences. Most androids prefer a 24-hour GMT clock

(2) When asked about his coffee habits, Quint had said "It's something I picked up from a fellow time master."

(3) as in 19XX: The War Against Destiny. In this story, it refers to the big standoff between the Area 88 Earth Corps and terrorists led by Matic.

(4) You know, 'cause they'd fall. Or freeze, but we all know science doesn't apply to videogames.

(5) Strider Hien, from Strider 2, is Hiryu's main rival and, envious of his success, tried to kill him on multiple occasions, each time failing hard. You'll see more of him in future chapters.

(6) As in, General from the Repliforce. Yes, he died in Mega Man X4, but then again, so did the Maverick 8-bosses, with the possible exception of Magma Dragoon, who appears in X5 as well.

(7) Taiyo High School, obviously a reference to Rival Schools. Whether or not those other schools from RS, or in fact if this is the exact same Taiyo High School from the game will just have to wait.

(8) I'm making an asssumption, because the name Syakuei is stated in the Pulseman attract intro, but I'm not sure if this refers to Pulseman's real name, or the given name of his dad Dr. Yoshiyama, who in the game turns evil. Sound familiar?

(9) No, not the same Yuichiro from Battle Network. Remember, Battle Network is a separate timeline.

(10) In this timeline, a Network Navigator is a stand-alone AI, and not necessarily an internet avatar as it is in Battle Network.

(11) This is Rock's outfit from the beginning of Mega Man 4. As with the sister story Virtua Republic, I'll be using alternate and original outfits whenever I can.

(12) The Capcom Vs. SNK tournaments will be referenced a lot from here on in.

(13) In certain cases with Japanese characters, honorifics will be used; this particular honorific can mean a close friend or relative.

(14) This has not been confirmed with accuracy.

(15) I never was any good with math either.

(16) Robot Master Bio #001: Ice Man, aka Kula Light. Despite what the name may imply (and Capcom's official canon says), Ice Man is actually a young girl robot with a cold stare, a warm heart, and a piercing Ice Slasher weapon. Likes: Ice Cream; Dislikes: Hot sauce. Named for Kula Diamond of King of Fighters fame.

(17) Robot Master Bio #002: Oil Man, aka Hakan Light. Based around what Dr. Light's idea of a Afro-turkish oil wrestler is, which explains the blackface. His weapon is Oil Slider, which can be used as a stand-alone weapon or inconjuction with a fire weapon. Likes: pro wrestling; dislikes: voodoo. Named for Hakan of Super Street Fighter IV.

(18) If you pay attention to Did You Know Gaming, you'd know that Battle Kid was one of the working titles for Rockman. These days we know Battle Kid as a badass homebrew NES title in its own right.

(19) As in, the charged shot from R-Type, the game that invented the charge shot.

(20) I made this up :)

(21) Robot Master informants? You'll just have to read on to find out who Rock is talking about.

Character Spotlight

Syakuei Yoshiyama

"Pulseman, the Electrical Warrior"
THEME A "Electrace" - Stereo Protect (Pulseman)
THEME B "Electric Warrior" - Esaka Forever (The King of Fighters '97)

Syakuei Yoshiyama; a 16 year old student at Taiyo High School and a 1st generation cyber-animated life form (C-Life for short). His alter-ego, Pulseman, is equipped with a experimental hyper armor suit, allowing him to control electrical pulses. He has trained in Blanka-style Saikyo-ryuu, a martial art specializing in technical prowess (such as canceling a move to execute a different one) and speed over power. His movelist consists of the Pulse Slash and its Volt Arrow variant, which act as an electrically charged Tengu Blade, and can be canceled into Volteccer, a electrical roll that can ricochet off of walls and ceilings. Volt Tackle is that, except attacking horizontally and much more powerful, acting as a giga buster move. His suit can also learn new techniques as he defeats new opponents, but he does not have a dedicated Variable Weapons System.

MESSAGE FROM STRIDER HEADMASTER MIYAMOTO

My famed student Hiryu has taken on a pupil of his own, and has took her on a mission to Tibet, where a rogue Strider has escaped to. They will encounter a former enemy of his and a mysterious android claiming to be a member of the Time Masters there.

?: "...is that you?"

The mission in question is called "Tibet or Bust". Your mission is to view it when it is released. Good luck.

That's it for this chapter; see you in a bit. Remember, Protect the Fans. Stay Radiant.