[Story] Empire of Corruption (MM3)

I was running across a world of endless night.

The world was silent, silent and still. The plants were there, just as I had remembered them—the buildings, too. But all was empty and silent.

There was no sun and no moon, only stars. There were no people, no animals. Not even insects. It was always night, and I ran alone.

Some places were just as I remembered them, charred with explosions. Fires were frozen in time, still smoldering and unmoving. I felt alarmed, but I didn't think to panic or to cry out—I just kept moving.

I couldn't say where exactly I was or what was going on. I couldn't tell you how long I was there.

The next thing I remembered was…

———————————

I awoke with a sudden start to a very familiar voice.

Update completed.

Loading…

Artificial Intelligence and Awareness is now online. Initiating rebooting sequence…

WARNING: Unit is badly damaged. Please select the damaged systems and repair them before trying again.

I felt very dizzy. I struggled to wake up further.

Loading…

Audio System is now online.

Loading…

I heard a loud noise that reminded me of a blow torch. I wanted to focus on it, so I stopped the other systems from loading.

>CANCEL

Are you sure you wish to cancel the startup system?

>YES

Do you wish to shut down?

>NO!

ERROR: Startup could not be completed.

It was like being very sick. Like having a fever, from what I can best tell. I had to do something. I was desperate, though I didn't quite remember what I was desperate about. Maybe it's because my emotions program wasn't started up at that point. Or maybe it was just because over a quarter of my innards were badly damaged or completely gone.

>RUN PROGRAM: Audio Recording

Running…

For the time being, I just listened.

There was a hissing noise.

"I do not understand. Why do you refuse to allow me to go work, Doctor? All my older brotherssss… have been given a chance!"

The voice was strange to me. I did not recognize it.

"In due time, in due time."

MATCH FOUND: Dr. Albert W. Wily

This triggered something in me.

>RUN PROGRAM: BetaEmotions

WARNING: Running the program may compromise efficiency of the AI&A program. Continue anyway?

>YES
>DON'T ASK ME AGAIN

I was suddenly overpowered with a wave of fear that was almost enough to short-circuit me. I had been unable to see, to move, to sense the world around me, to feel anything in touch or in heart, but it hadn't bothered me. Now it bothered me, and I was terrified. Without really thinking, my system emitted a high-pitched screech in panic.

There was a loud clang. Everything seemed to happen at once.

On a floor above, there was muffled shouting and barking, followed by the sound of running. In the other room, there was the sound of a tarp being thrown over something and a monitor being shut off. I was running on some sort of secondary power source, so I had lag as my system tried to comprehend everything at once.

Something heavy was hastily shoved into a container close to me, and there was a loud sound of tools being knocked to the floor. A door slammed open and several people ran in.

"Wily! Goodness gracious, what happened?!"

"Oooh…" the old man groaned. "I tripped over some scrap metal and fell on the table. I'm afraid I knocked off the toolbox."

An unfamiliar female voice spoke up, quavering. "I… I knew it was too messy in here! You're lucky you didn't get hurt worse!"

Shuffling noises.

"You work yourself too hard. You really don't have to come down here and set up the lab every day before hours—I can help with that too! Why don't you join us for breakfast?"

"Hmm… sounds nice! I guess I overestimate myself, eheheh…"

They shuffled out of the room. The girl spoke up again.

"You go with them, Rock. Make sure… make sure that they're okay. I'll clean up here."

There was a sigh and the sound of clanking as "Rock" went to do just that.

I was still quite afraid, but I had calmed down enough to make more sense of what was going on. My primary power source was gone, so I had to be hooked up to another computer. In the midst of the sound of scraping and sweeping, I set to work to hacking my way into the system.

—————

It was not an easy process, and was made much harder by my damaged state. It was less like trying to break into a safe and more like trying to possess another living thing that was not human, to put it in human terms. I did manage to get visual feed from a camera system. Finally, six hours later, I had eyes.

I didn't recognize the room before me. I soon became distracted when the door opened again. Wily walked in, followed by an unfamiliar robot.

"When are you going to tell me what is going on? You're alwaysssss… working on something secret, and you won't let me tell the others. And I am tired of doing test field work and analysis programs."

"In due time!" Dr. Wily snapped. "You'll just have to wait until your updates kick in."

The robot scowled and fiddled with his left arm.

Dr. Wily opened the test tube that was close to me and caught something from falling out. He laid it on the floor and began working on it again.

The lab was quiet except for the sound of tinkering. The other robot stood by impatiently, glancing around. Then he glared right into one of the cameras.

"…Were the cameras on when you left?"

Wily cursed and dropped his tools, rushing over to the main computer. I quickly shut off the program, leaving me once again in the dark.

"Hmm! What's this… it looks like someone hacked their way in!"

"An intruder?" The robot sounded almost hopeful.

I suddenly felt the mainframe doing to me what I had tried to do earlier. It was another force moving inside of me, and I became alarmed.

Running Repair Diagnostic…

I fought against the system. I did what I could to corrupt the data and feed false information; I doubted that he actually wanted to repair me.

SYSTEM REPORT

Power Network: Not Responding — ERROR X00 — MISSING/DAMAGED PRIMARY AND/OR SECONDARY UNITS
Internal Fans: Not Responding — ERROR X00— MISSING/DAMAGED PRIMARY AND/OR SECONDARY UNITS
Neural Net: Not Responding — ERROR X00— MISSING/DAMAGED PRIMARY AND/OR SECONDARY UNITS
RADIO System: Offline
WiFi System: Offline
Audio System: Offline
Tactile Senses: Offline
Visual Sensors: Offline
Motion Sensors: Offline
Motor System: Offline — ERROR X00 — MISSING/DAMAGED PRIMARY AND/OR SECONDARY UNITS
Primary Weaponry: Offline — ERROR X04 — DISC NOT FOUND
Secondary Weaponry: Offline — ERROR X04 — DISC NOT FOUND

PROGRAM DIAGNOSTIC

RobotWhiteCell Firewall: Running
Artificial Intelligence and Awareness: Idle
BetaEmotions: Idle
Battle Tactical Sequences: Not Responding
Non-lethal Battle Sequences: Not Responding

Diagnostic Complete.

"Hmm. Must have been a glitch."

"Is that… what is that?"

There was the sound of the mainframe thinking. I realized it was going to shut down, and I panicked. It was my only power source.

It's hard to explain what happened, but isn't it always that way with the intangible world? Humans have spirit, we have the Cloud.

I forced my way out of the "shell" just as the power shut down.

Audio System: Online

“At last…!"

Tactile Senses… Online

I could feel wires attached to me. Something was holding me down.

Imprinting Serial Number… Now

A burning sensation in my shoulder. I was engraved with hot, sharp metal against my cold, steely skin.

Serial Number imprinted.

Visual Sensors… Online

A dim light became visible, as did a pair of hands.

Starting Artificial Intelligence and Awareness… Now

I was suddenly hit with questions.

What is this place? Where am I? Who am I? What is my purpose?

DWN - 024 Online and ready to receive directives.

I immediately struggled against the bonds.

"Hold still!"

I ignored the human's orders. I was creating a banging noise.

"I said hold still!" he ordered again.

A grating hiss came from nearby. A robotic hand shoved me down onto the table again.

I heard a click behind my eyes as this triggered a burst of strength.

Initiating Battle Tactical sequences now. Status: Permanently Activated.

There was a scream as a shuriken sliced through the arm and embedded in the cieling. Alarms started going off everywhere.

WARNING! WARNING! SECURITY BREACH!

My system screeched in protest and I gritted my teeth in pain as the mainframe tried to forcefully shut me off. I was aware of nothing else until another shrieking noise stopped the pain.

SYSTEM OVERRIDE.

"WHAAAAAAAT?!" the old man shrieked in fury and utter astonishment.

The bonds suddenly snapped open and the door slammed open.

DWN - 024, RUN!

There was chaos and confusion everywhere. I scrambled off the table, ignoring the flashing lights and blaring horns.

I was thrown to the floor by a heavy weight, someone trying to bite me in the throat. I grabbed something off my helmet and brought my arm back in a sharp swing. Another howl of pain, followed by a bright flash of sparks and the smell of smoke. Sprinklers went off and another alarm began blaring. I threw the weight off me and ran.

I shoved aside a blur of people coming into the doorway. As I was running down the hall, I heard blasts of cannon fire. I was being hunted.

I broke open the nearest window with a blast of weaponry. Fire trucks were wailing off in the distance as I jumped through the jagged glass. I had no time to stop—a dark blue figure appeared in the window and fired upon me again. I was quick to my feet and in flight once again.

Despite my skill, I only barely escaped.

The chaos after the others broke out was unimaginable.

It had come as a total surprise to me, honestly. When DWN - 024 started struggling to break out, I just knew that he was different. He had been worked on in secret—it was just possible that he could be free of negative influence. I definitely knew that I didn't want such a person to be in Wily's hands.

I had seen what others hadn't. I had heard his secret plotting, read some of the files. I didn't know exactly what he was up to, but I did know this—he was lying, and he was planning something big. I don't think he had expected DWN - 024 to go rogue, but the others broke out at the same time… other than DWN - 022, who was still in repairs. It all seemed very suspicious.

At this point I had forced my way into the mainframe, though it was a constant fight against the many firewalls that system had for me to survive. I only just managed it by allowing a partial download of my AI program to the database, so that I had an excuse for sticking around. It was because of that that I heard the conversation I did.

———————

"I just don't understand what could have gotten into them!"

"Calm yourself, Thomas," Wily wheezed, coughing. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't program like that." He coughed some more. "Honestly, I don't know what to make of it. Gemini seemed to be fighting some sort of aggressive program. If you ask me, someone must have rewritten the programming, or hacked into it."

I knew he was lying, though very carefully—the truth was there, though the implications behind it were misleading. I also hesitate to say that he was completely lying; the coughing was real, his injuries were real. Maybe he was having second thoughts at the time—I have no idea. Like I said before, he was a bit crazy.

"But we can't find trace anywhere. Do you think it might have been one of the assistants to Project Gamma? I hate to think that one of them might have done this, but…"

"The police are looking into it."

Light put down a wrench on the table and stuffed his hands in his pockets, scowling.


((Art by the amazing dA artist imbisibol))

"The police. If I had confidence in their abilities—"

"Now that's not quite fair to them, you know—"

"I'm serious!"

I was taken aback to hear him shouting. If I were in a chassis, my eyes would have widened in shock.

"I hate to bring it up, but do you remember how terribly they handled things when that city fell out of the sky?! They're still rebuilding from that."

Wily coughed again, to the point of needing to put an oxygen mask back on. Light stopped ranting, looking worried.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up. You shouldn't even be here."

Wily waved him off. "I don't like being stuck in the hospital. Reminds me too much of prison. Ah— don't chide me, I have to own up. But really, you can't be everything to everyone. Didn't you learn at least that much from my faults?"

"But the programming…"

"Can't have been your fault," he repeated sternly. "Has Roll ever glitched? No! Your system works just fine." A pause. Wily opened his eyes and glanced over at his companion. "…I know that look. What is it now?"

Dr. Light turned his back, crossing his arms and looking up at the ceiling. "…Sometimes I wonder if she's the only one that I got right."

"You can't mean that." Oddly enough, this was genuine, not lies. I was confused to hear this genuine concern. "I know you don't."

Light sighed and placed a hand on the deactivated, mostly-repaired robot he was working on. "I don't mean to say I don't love Rock. I do! But when I think of how badly he has been hurt by the combat programming… I think that may have been a mistake. You certainly have not been the only one to express that opinion. The others were afraid of him, Al—genuinely afraid! And that was before they went wild. And then there was Blues—"

"You know what I think?" Wily stood with effort, hobbling over. "I think you need to take at least a day off. You're upset. I get it. Really, I do. And I think you don't get it. We're too old to try and be supermen, Tom. I think you need to stop trying to be the hero, the one who fixes everything. You can't. Ah! Don't argue with me! You know I'm right. Don't forget that you're not just a scientist. You're a father, too."

———————

That talk… definitely bothered me. And for that reason, I took the stupidest risk I have ever done (or at least one of the stupidest), one that I cringe to remember.

———————

When Roll was alone in the lab the following day, I closed and locked the exit. As she turned to look at the door in concern, I deactivated the security alarms and turned on the audio system.

"What's going on here?"

DLN - 002?

She looked around in surprise, searching for the source of the voice.

Are you DLN - 002?

"Well, y-yes, but—"

Inquiry. Will you listen to me?

She took an almost battle-like stance with her broom, making an annoyed face. "I don't know who you are, mister, but if you cause any more trouble, I'll call security!"

I do not wish for conflict. I wish for information.

"I'm gonna tell Dr. Light if you don't let me out right now!"

NO! Please! Roll, I need your help!

"Why don't you just leave her alone?"

I was surprised to see another robot step out of the shadows. Roll looked pretty surprised too. "Magnet?"

He reminded me a bit of Metal, at least in his face. He was definitely designed differently, though. He held up a fist, displaying a horseshoe magnet connected to his wrist. He was holding some sort of crystal in his other hand.

"I've been wondering what was causing all the trouble. You were the one who let Shadow out, weren't you?"

"Magnet, you're back! But what are you doing here?"

"I had to come back." He hesitated, looking down for a moment. Then he stiffened and pointed at the mainframe. "When Gemini told me about DWN - 012 and his hacking abilities, I was skeptical. But now I know."

My name is Speedy.

"I don't care about your name. You're causing trouble."

I wasn't the one to overwrite the programs, you twit.

"Call me that again and I'll depolarize that entire system!"

Roll put her hands to Magnet's arm, looking confused. "No, don't do that! What's going on here?"

He paused and looked over at her. I was starting to suspect that it would be a good time for me to try to leave—I didn't like the thought of Magnet erasing my files.

If you won't help me, then fine—I will leave.

I unlocked the doors, which was a surprise to them. I took advantage of this to continue talking.

I never meant anyone any harm, and I was still killed! I didn't have anything to do with what happened recently, other than that I couldn't bear to see one of my younger brothers trapped. He didn't start the fight, and neither did I.

I was disappointed, I'll admit. I still remembered my life, the life I had back in Texas. I still remembered the faces of my brothers, still remembered their voices and our conversations. I remembered watching some of them die, despite my efforts to stop the fighting. Reading Crashman's journal had been heartbreaking—he had TRIED talking to the Menace, but neither of them had been strong enough to just talk it out.

Here I was, trying to prevent history from repeating. I knew that Death would be sent out to chase them down, I knew that the corruption of the programming was too strong for it to end any other way. And yet no one would listen to me. I don't know what I had been expecting—maybe something like the stories I used to read, or at least something with structure and order. Instead I was left grasping at straws in the wind. It left me with a bitter sense of spite. I wasn't the same optimistic person I had been before I died—now that felt like a dream as much as than anything else.

The printer began humming. I left a continuous loop printing as I fled for the Cloud.

DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE
DEATH WEARS BLUE…

"How should I know where he is?"

"Maybe because you're one of the oldest ones, you twit."

"You're one to talk, you top-heavy toy!"

"Would you two just shut up?"

I just about split in half and bashed my brothers' heads together.

Ever since we ran from the lab, things seemed to have been going poorly. We had made it as far as the inner city of Monstropolis—the part that had never been rebuilt. We were hiding out in the ruins of the old city in the sky that had been piled up. It was a horrid place, absolutely disgusting and very very creepy.

Surprisingly, most of the others were there—Snakeman was gone, of course, as was DWN - 024, but the rest of us had all gathered together. It was frightfully annoying. I had never had this kind of conflict with them before, but things had changed.

All of us had been reprogrammed. Most of the others didn't remember what they were like before, and were under the impression Light had nothing to do with their creation. Like me, they were in the possession of energy crystals—but for some reason, they were bent on keeping them, and fighting any who got in their way.

I didn't understand this sense of "loyalty". Obviously it was some sort of programming I never got, but I didn't much care for what it did to my brothers. The lot had become a huge nuisance.

Top was now obstinate, determined to have his way and nothing else. He was constantly dancing, much to our annoyance. Spark had gone completely nuts, ranting about revolution and the robot uprising—he didn't take my comment about how "well" that worked for Soviet Russia (as in, not at all) in good stride.

For his part, Magnet had run off, muttering something about the last crystal and getting DWN - 022 out of there. If I had known what would come of it, I would have chased after him. Now the others were badgering me about it, much to my displeasure.

"If you care so much about what he does, go after him yourself! I am not going near that lab again, never."

Spark's left eye twitched at this. "What is your problem, anyway? You really haven't been a team player lately."

"Team? I beg to differ. We're a bunch of renegade refugees left without purpose."

"But we were meant to overthrow—"

"AUGH! Would you shut up about that already?!"

"I'm afraid he's right, Siam."

We all turned to the entrance. Magnet was standing there, his arms crossed.

"THERE you are. Where did you—"

I was cut off by a hissing noise. I immediately stiffened in fear.

Four red eyes suddenly blazed on one of the walls.

"He went… to free me."

Needle looked up, annoyed. "Oh great. Another mouth to feed," he said sarcastically.

Metallic snakes started emerging from piles of rubble. It took all my self control not to leave the area.

"Don't expect me to put up with that ssssort of behavior, Needle. Strictly speaking, you aren't needed for the project."

"I'd like to see you stop me. And who put you in charge, anyway?"

Snake ignored the first comment. "Dr. Wily put me in charge, of course."

I raised an eyebrow, almost distracted enough to forget about the snakes. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"Ah yessss…" He jumped off the ceiling and walked toward me, much to my displeasure. "Ssssssiam. One of the three who did not receive the directives. He warned me about you."

I took a step back. "I think you're glitching, brother."

He took another step forward. There was a nasty grin on his face. "I don't really care what you think."

"Well, if that isn't rude!" I bristled, suddenly finding myself against a wall. "Get out."

"Not a chance," he hissed. "Lisssssten close and listen well, because I'm only saying it once. All of you!" He lashed his helmet's tail. "Wily… wantssss… robots who think for themselves. He wantsss… to be recognized as a genius. He will take Gamma and give him new purpose."

I stepped to the side, not liking where this was going. Snake continued talking.

"We are to guard the cryssssssstals until he is well enough to continue his plans. Those were… the orders."

Snakes started curling around him. He gave me a nasty grin again.

"He warned me… that ssssssome of us did not get the orders. You, Siam. You ran away before your programming was finished. You are no longer fit to be in charge."


((Art by dA user The-Amazing-Taco))

"You are just as defective as DWN - 012 was before you. 'Without purpose', you say? Foolishnessssssss! You sssscorn Spark without listening to what he has to say."

All the others seemed held in sway, but I could hardly stand the poisoned honey dripping from his tongue. I had heard this sort of talk before, many times—and standing behind them were the faded names of old tyrannies.

"All empires fall, Snake. We are only seven in number. What do you expect to do?" I sneered, curling my lip.

He gave a hideous laugh. It was then I realized he was truly mad.

"You think I wish to serve an old, deranged human?! You are—"

He suddenly turned and brought his hand down on my neck, slamming me to the ground. I tried not to scream as snakes swarmed and were crawling all over me, the heel of his boot crushing against my torso.

"—a complete idiot! I am not a mere 'snake', some man's pet. I will have my OWN dessssstiny."

I split in half and tried shoving him off, but he blocked me. I stopped as he pointed his cannon at my head, the engine whining as it primed.

"There's a reason DWN - 012 failed, a reason he died. He tried to fight the others. He even was idiot enough to fight the bot created to counter him. Do you really want to go down that road, Siam? You will die just as miserable a death as he if you choose that path."

"You're mad…" I squeaked.

"You fight for the steel, or you die beneath my heel. It’s up to you. I will not settle for being some man's servant—not that despicable self-important Light, and not that misguided Wily, either. That poor old poser. He tried sssssso hard…"

I yelped as he flipped me onto my back, placing his boot against me throat. He rested an arm on his knee and leaned over, smirking at me.

"…and all he got was two series with a handful of misguided, naïve, mediocre sons."

I raised my own arm cannon at him, feeling desperate. "S-Snake, get off—"

"My name… is Viper. And YOU… will now listen to ME!"

It was not until I was deep into Texas that I encountered another robot once more. Looking back, I regret the way the conversation turned out. I have to wonder if I would have reacted differently if I had possessed an emotions program at the time.

I had been traveling. I was reflecting upon how successful I had been at avoiding people, and wondered if it was a "power" or an art. That was when I saw.

I stopped and hid when I saw someone in the distance. I waited in secrecy for some time, but neither of us moved for days. He was the first to break the silence.

"I know you're there, Shadow Man. You might as well show yourself."

I did not move. There was another stretch of silence. He leaned against a large shield.

"I don't have all day to stick around waiting for you. I know you're there. If you don't want to talk, then fine—just listen. You made a big mistake, breaking out the way you did."

Still, I did not respond. I did not trust this man, who knew my existence and my name. How did he know? Why did he care? Was he there to interfere? You must understand that at the time, I did not understand the concept of allies. I only understood it through the eyes of the one before me, DWN - 012—and he had been very specific in who he listed as trustworthy.

"You're like me, DWN - 024. You weren't built by Wily, but he repaired you. You should be more grateful for that."

I decided it was worthwhile to take a risk and speak with him. I carefully left my hiding place, but I threw my voice in another direction.

"You. What do you know of me?"

"More than you do."

"Who are you?"

"It doesn't matter to you, does it? You don't care about me. You want to know the why, don't you."

I was now able to see him. He looked very much like the Blue Menace, though he was garbed in red. Though it was night, he wore a helmet with a darkened visor, as if wearing large sunglasses.

"Do you wish to fight?"

"No." He held up his cannon arm, grinning cockily. "Though you'll get one if you want one."

I was not sure how to take this. I decided I did not want to fight if I did not have to. "I wish to pass. If you try to stop me, I shall have to force my way through."

"And where do you think you're running to?"

"That is my business. It is not yours."

"Well aren't you cheerful. Whether you want to believe me is one thing. The truth is another. You're being hunted, Shadow. Hunted by the police. By the military. By foreign spies—oh, don't doubt they want to take you apart and see how you tick. And Light is hunting you, too. So is Wily. You've got no one."

I had heard enough. I made a run for it. But he followed after me, matching my speed.


((Art by dA user General-RADIX))

"Running away didn't save DWN - 012, and it won't save you, DWN - 024!"

I turned and sent a flurry of shuriken at him. He responded by firing cannon blasts on me. We fought this way for a good two minutes before he stopped and just shielded the attacks.

"You owe a debt to Wily, and you repaid that by killing your older brother. Neither of them forgave that—they will hunt you down!"

"LEAVE ME BE! IT IS NO CONCERN OF YOURS!"

"You idiot! You'll never win against MegaMan!"


((Art by dA user imbisibol. Again. She is awesome.))

That was the last straw. I sent my most powerful attack at him in warning. He dodged. "I cannot go back! I will not go back! You cannot talk me out of this! Why should I have a debt to a man who rewrote me?! Whomever I was before is dead! I will not answer to one who seeks to use me to kill!" The attack came circling back, and he dodged again. I caught it and redirected it with little loss of momentum. "I have been left incomplete because I would be no person's slave. You are illogical to resent this!"

"You choose to talk and to fight—you are a combat robot, Shadow, you can't deny your purpose! DWN - 012 tried that, too—it doesn't work. You will die if you follow that path!"

I came to a sudden halt. He did as well, matching my every move in hand-to-hand combat. I could not trick him nor catch him unawares. I did not yet know fear, though I soon realized I could not win while fighting him on the run. I dodged away and brought my weapon slamming down, which served as a shield between us. He bashed his own shield against it, a move I had not expected—the ground broke and I was pinned down.

"You fight like a cornered animal. You treat everyone as an enemy. And you think you can get help from humans? You won't last a week in their world."

I narrowed my eyes. "What do you want?"

"I'm trying to stop you from making a terrible mistake that will also make my life a lot more dangerous."

I took in a deep breath, concentrating for my next strike. I spoke calmly.

"…You seek to deny me from finding a more complete sense of purpose. The life DWN - 012 led was a life of purpose. I will have that, or I can have nothing at all. You speak of the Blue Menace? Well!"

It was then that I struck to the left, and hard. But it was my words, more than my strike, that stunned him and allowed me to escape.

"YOU I NAME THE RED BARON!"

After that fight, I knew I would have to act quickly. The talk with Shadow had bothered me. Not just because of what he said about me, but also because of how he acted.

What can I say? I knew far more about the situation than he ever would.

Mostly because I was the first.


((Art by dA user MoonFX))

I was more of a brother to these men than any of the DLN line could ever be. I was the first. The first to go "rogue", the first to live free.

The DWN series was based after me. I saw it in their design and in their actions, in their thoughts and in their words. It amazed me how the two generations already showed signs of independent thinking.


((Art by dA user pain-v))

The most notorious of Wily's robots had been DWN - 012. He had been reluctant to fight, to the point of almost turning himself in—his wrath had been triggered by a mad grief, which proved his undoing.

He had been so successful at integrating into human society that his programming had become a point of interest for many people. His personality had been kept in mind when the third generation of our line was being built—for the most part, all parties involved wanted to avoid making another one like him.

This had failed. The result?

Chaos, and many deadly robots on the loose.


((Art by dA user MurraySmith))

There seemed to be two factions. One was dominated by the next XX2 digit robot: DWN - 022. Wily had placed great store in him, but something had gone wrong. It was the actions of this very same "Viper" that made me question the motives of the people involved in this mess.

The other "faction" was less of a faction and more of a trend. DWN - 024 had gone completely rogue, just as DWN - 012 had. And for that, he was being hunted. What I found most interesting was the conscious choice by the wayward warrior to follow in the footsteps of his rebellious predecessor.

I had hoped to convince him to stop, to turn back. We all needed more time to figure out what was going on. Unfortunately, he hadn't been interested. This only left me with one option.

If Shadow was going to follow after Speedy, then I would have to do the same. It wouldn't be long before Mega was sent on the hunt. Even though the rebel didn't have any of the energy crystals, he would still be hunted down. If I ever hoped to stop a repetition of the destruction not long past, I would have to intervene.

"Red Baron", indeed. He really was growing to be much like his brother.


((Art by dA user LeoCamacho))

And in his own way, much like me.

It was then that the pieces began to fall into place.

I had at last arrived in the city. It would become spooky to reflect on in later days; it was almost exactly as Speedy had remembered it. I found the library with ease, just as he had. Unlike him, however, I chose to wait out of sight, to move in the shadows.

I had discovered that my stealth was truly an art. I possessed knowledge of masters in the field, and a variety of technology to assist me. My favorite was what some called a "dark generator"—a small globe that made the whole world seem to be a field of stars when activated. I did have to use it more than once to escape more unsavory persons when traveling in the less-policed streets at night.

I entered the library through a service entrance and waited until night to emerge from my hiding place in one of the upper rooms. All was quiet, which gave me comfort. In this silence, I slipped onto a particular computer and mimicked the actions of the brother who had come there before me years ago.

Immediately, all my hard work up to that point was rewarded many-fold!

Welcome, DWN - 024. I'm relieved to see you made it safely. I've been hoping to talk with you.

You are DWN - 012.

Yes.

24 is twice 12.

Ironic, isn't it? It seems like you've really followed along my path. Boy, I wish you could have known Crash. It would have been great, the three of us together…

I need your help.

I suspected you might. What happened after the others went rogue?

I do not understand.

Oh, you must not have been on a computer in a while. Well, I can tell you this—the others went rogue. I actually had an argument with one of them shortly after the lot of them broke out of the lab, in a way very similar to how you broke out.

Then Señor Gonzales must be right.

You spoke with Pops!?

Yes.

Please, send me the video feed!

I could not explain why, but I sensed desperation in his message. I would later know that it was so—he felt a sense of anguish and loss. I found the request to be reasonable, as I had access to all his memories before his deactivation. It seemed only fair to grant him something as harmless as that.

I sent the file, and he seemed to process it for quite some time. There was silence, other than the sound of his systems thinking over what had been said.

My poor father…

Why do you call him that?

He taught me most of everything. He taught me how to be sporting, how to work hard, how to clean and cook, how to learn for myself, how to play cards…. He meant so much to me. I wish I could go back. I don't know what the Sheriff and Mayor must think of me now…

He seemed to think that the Blue Menace would "ride forth" again soon.

*Sigh* Yes. He was right to tell you to leave. That will be the first place they will look, once they get notification that you've been on the database from this location.

That is most inconvenient.

Being a fugitive tends to be very inconvenient. You seem to have done a very good job so far, though, based on this file you sent—did you really raise such a ruckus when you escaped? I'll be dashed, that you made it all the way to South Texas without being harassed by the United States Air Force!

I appreciate the praise. However, I still need your help.

What can I do to help? I don't even have a chassis anymore. My own survival is even more precarious than yours—the Cloud is a hostile place, full of nasty viruses and firewalls. I'm lucky to have not been fried.

I wish to be complete. You are the only one I can trust who has the capacity to help. I desire to possess the BetaEmotions program.

… … … … Are you sure about that?

Yes.

He seemed to think this over for a while. I waited patiently.

…It's not a program I can easily transfer.

I suspected that would be the case. But you can help me?

Yes, though it will be dangerous. And… I would like something in return.

What would that be?

I'll make you a deal.

Elaborate.

Alright, but make sure you listen to the whole thing before you respond.

The only way to get you the program is to hook you up to a mainframe. There are only two places I know of where that is possible. One is Light Laboratories, Inc. The other is Dr. Wily's old lab.

I cannot go back to L.L. Inc.

I'm not done yet.

Sorry.

Anyway… if you want the program, you'll have to go back to the old lab. I know where it is, I can tell you. But it won't be easy—I'll have to hack my way past the defenses, and that could take a few days. Once you get inside, we'll have to head right for his workshop. I'll be able to direct you once we get there. I promise that I'll get you the right programming and nothing more. Be aware that once you have emotions, your personality will develop—and you'll become someone slightly different than you are now. It's not like being rewritten, but you will see the world in a completely new way.

I understand. What do you wish in return?

If I do this, you must promise to get me a new chassis. I need a body again. I'd prefer one like my first one, but the fact is… I don't know how much longer I'll survive in the Cloud. Any decent chassis will do for an in-between, if there's no other choice.

So. There it is. You can take it or leave it, brother. Keep in mind that the whole ordeal will be the most dangerous thing you have ever done, even compared to what you faced when you escaped. It'll be made all the worse by the Blue Menace and the Red Baron being on the loose. Are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this?

Processing…
Processing…
Processing…


Yes.

I am sure.

Very well. I'll give you the coordinates, and then I suggest you had better break out of there and get your tail up to the western-Midwest again; we can't afford to waste any more time.

As I suspected, Shadow made his way right to the station his brother had used in years before him. I knew that Light and Wily would both be notified, so I changed my course to go intercept "the Blue Menace" before he could do too much damage.

Let me tell you, it's not pleasant to run across the continental United States and try to avoid all the major highways. It helped to have a motorcycle—something I had found and repaired in Monstropolis—but I sure wish I could have gone through cities rather than around them.


((Art by dA user icfiye. This is a screenshot of the smaller version.))

My favorite city would definitely be Kansas City. I had a saxophone that I would play from time to time—one of my three prized possessions. I had my scarf, my sax, and my my bike. With those and decent weather, I loved to sit out under the sky. Sometimes I would even play music from the rooftops.

But… I digress.

As I said, I went after Rock. I had hoped to stop him before he did too much damage. Though his mission would involve the crystals, I doubted his combat program could run without another robot ending up deactivated in the process. That's how it is with war—things tend to get out of hand, and then people die. We may not be human, but we were people. I for one did not want any more damage to be wrought.

Unfortunately, I arrived too late. By the time I made it to where I needed to be, he was already making his way out of the fortress. DWN - 020 had fallen.

I appeared in front of him. He did a double take, startled. I spoke calmly, not bothering with formalities for the likes of him and just priming up my cannon blaster.


((Art by dA user kanefinger1939))

"Hi Rock, my weapon is hot—It’s time to throw down, show me what you’ve got! Today we change the end!"

With that, the fight began. He was so confused that he didn't have time to run his combat program—if I had learned one thing, it was to make sure I didn't give him time to run it. I couldn't help but question him as I did so.

"Why do you fight? How can you say you know what’s right?"


((Art by dA user jasonhohoho))

PTEOW! He dodged my fire, but not my words.

"You've seen the journals of the Wily Robots. They had hearts just as you. Do you mean to keep killing your brothers? Is that really how you want to paint history?"


((Art by Tumblr user headphone-guy))

My words became a bit more bitter and sarcastic. "What if we win? What if we fall? Will any choice that we make matter at all?"

"Would you just shut up?! I know I can win, I’ve done it before—Get out of my way!"

BANG!


((Art once again by the amazing dA user imbisibol))

I skidded back, lowering my shield once he stopped firing at me. To his confusion, I grinned and lowered my weapon.

"Impressive! Very impressive."

I knew it was time for me to leave, before he started getting really serious and I was in for a fight to the death.

"Don't expect this to be the last of me."

————————

It wasn't long after that when I got my next order from Dr. Wily. Apparently he had recovered enough to get out of the hospital, because his voice was just as cranky as ever.

"Your orders are to go chase down DWN - 024! Stop him!"


((Art by dA user digitallyfanged))

I looked out at the city and made my final decision.

I wasn't going to put up with Wily any more. Not for this.

I had lives to save. It was time to get to work.

"Sorry, Nico. I gotta Roll."

I looked at her in confusion. "But… but I only just got here."

She turned away coldly, looking upset. "You… I can't believe you lied to me!"

I sat down, trying to get her to sit next to me, but she wouldn't.


((Art found on Tumblr, user effkaybros))

"What do you mean?"

"As if you don't know! You were acting like my friend… I trusted you…"

"But I am your friend! You mean the world to me, you're more than just a friend—I really think you're the one—"

She cut me off, her voice quavering. "No! I can't bear to hear it. I… I trusted you! And now I know the truth. Wily was never good at all! He was using us!" She whirled to face me, her fists shaking. "And YOU! You were helping him! You… you must have been spying on us!"

I can't say how much that hurt. I struggled to find the right words.

"Roll, I swear I never—"

"Get out! I'm going to call my Dad and my brother, and then you'll regret it!"

My eyes widened and I stood abruptly, startled. "ROLL! Please! I never had anything to do with Wily's plans! You can't let that get between us—I never meant any harm!"

I was left with my heart sinking as she turned and walked away.


((Art found on Tumblr, user effkaybros))

"Roll, no…! Please— don't leave me, baby…"

I took of my helmet and held it in my hands, feeling the world turn hollow around me as she walked out of my life, a terrible chill falling upon me as she spoke in her parting scorn.

"Watch yourself, my brother wants you dead."

———————

I made my way home, barely registering what was happening around me. The world seemed void of purpose. What was I supposed to do now, now that I didn't have her in my life? Everything I had done, everything I had worked for—it had always been to keep her safe, to keep her happy.

I fell to my knees, speaking in barely a whisper as I choked on my words.

"If these magnets do what they say… how come I could never make her stay…?"

BANG!

I whirled around to see the worst possible sight come to greet me. A shadow, then a form—my eyes widened as Rock appeared in the doorway and fired upon me.

I scrambled to my feet, grabbing my helmet and putting it on quickly as I dodged out of the way. Rock, for his part, was [ticked].

"You! You'll never bother my sister again!"

I was heartbroken, and not at all in the mood for a visit from him. I slammed him against the wall with a magnetic blast.


((Art found on Tumblr, user acoolmegamanblog))

"What?! You're the whole reason there's trouble! Leave her out of it!"

He gritted his teeth and fired again. I fired a series of horseshoe magnets on him, preparing to fight the monster I had heard about—but that wasn't what I got. He wasn't running his combat program. For him, this was personal. He was personally venting his anger—hoping to kill me in the process!

"You think you're the only one who can love?!"

"She's my sister! I won't let you hurt her!"

My magnetic field went off, pulling him toward me. I blanked out, my own circuitry going haywire. His feet flew out from under him and he cried in surprise. When the effect lessened, though, he fired on me again.


((Art once again by the amazing dA user imbisibol
can you tell I love her stuff yet))

Enough was enough.

"You walk into my town, waving that gun around! You want a fight?! I'll give you one tonight!"


((Art found on Tumblr, user jojobros))

"I think you better not mess with me, kid!"

"Oh yeah?! Well take THIS!"

Suddenly his eyes turned dark, and his blue plating faded to a grey and yellow scheme. I had seen this in the database before—it was a power far more potent than even Spark's, which I was terribly weak to. My pupils must have shrunk down to a pixel in size as I realized too late that he must have taken the power unit from the storage at Light Laboratories.

K-ZAP!

I heard the explosion of short-circuits. My system absolutely lost it, magnetic fields destabilizing the support beams of the ceiling. The room started caving in.

BLAM.

—————————

Rebooting…

"I don't know… do you think he'll make it? He looks in bad shape."

"He's sturdier than he might look. Besides, I did manage to save him from the worst—Mega thinks that he got buried in rubble, so he won't come looking for us. I wish I had reached you guys faster, though; now I'm the only one that's armed. I hadn't expected I'd be doing repairs on you both."

"I believe I owe you a severe apology. You have now saved both my life and the life of my brother. I had doubted you a little at first… that was selfish of me."

"It's okay, I'm used to it. Besides, who can blame you? After the life you've had, you don't really know what it's like to have someone you can trust. But I hope we can change that."

I felt weak, too weak to speak for now, so I just listened.

"I wish we could move faster, but I'm going to have to go get repairs for the both of you."

"How?"

"I'm in contact with Wily. He'll be able to sneak me into L.L., Inc. Ah—don't worry, I don't really intend to work with him. But I'd better go back and get the rest of those power capsules so he can't just wreak havoc all through the States in trying to hunt us down, if he finds out. Besides, there's something still at the lab that we're going to need in the end, if we hope to make it out of this mess alive."

My first order of business was to take the two of them to a safe place. We weren't that far from Monstropolis, and there was the very real danger of Mega realizing he had been tricked and coming back to hunt them down.

I ended up taking the two of them on a road trip to Kansas City. It was far away, but the safest place I knew. They still had that delivery truck of theirs, so I loaded my bike into it and took them on a trip down the highway.

Once they were safe, I went right back—straight to Light Laboratories, Inc. I managed to sneak in using some codes Wily had given me. I was in disguise, so I chose speed over stealth. It's not like I planned on returning there any time soon.

In this disguise, I cleared out much of Wily's old inventory. There were extra weapon components for the Robot Masters, E Tanks, and multiple blueprints. I'm sure it was to no end of an annoyance to him, but it served us well in the end. I also managed to remove a vitally important old chassis that was scheduled to be destroyed.

With all this in hand, I made my way off of the premisses and did not look back.

————————

It took a while before the repairs were finally finished. We didn't have an official laboratory to work with, and Magnet was unresponsive for much of the time. I had begun to worry that he was glitched until he started speaking again. His voice was distant and tired—heartbroken.

"…Thank you for saving my life."

It was the first I had heard him speak the entire time. I glanced over at Siam, though neither of them noticed.

"Are you doing alright? You were badly damaged in the fight."

He covered his eyes, the only part of his face that was visible. "As alright as I'll ever be, I think."

I put the repair tools away. The two of them were quiet for a while, and then Siam spoke up suddenly.

"You said you were going to explain more once you had the two of us together. I think we're ready to hear what you have to say. I can't say how grateful I am to you, but this whole situation is very distressing. You seem to have some idea about this whole mess. I'd very much appreciate it if you would share."

This didn't come as a surprise to me. It had been a long time in the making. I wasn't sure how successful we would be now that most of the RMs were already destroyed, but several important ones still remained alive and at large.

I sat on top of the desk and looked at the two of them. We had been through several adventures now, and even I didn't fully understand what it had been that had given me the courage to trust them. I understood they felt the same way. It was tempting to tell them the whole story, but I knew that now was not the time. I chose instead to tell them what it was that they needed to know.

"What you're looking at is multiple generations of highly advanced robots with complex AI&A systems. The inclusion of BetaEmotions programming has also had unexpected and unintended results when combined with the AI&A programming. Each generation has had a set of unique challenges and difficulties."


((Art by dA user General-RADIX))

"The first generation is the one I am from. I'm older than all of you, and I've seen others after me come and go. I don't listen to orders, I think for myself. No one liked this, so they tried to create something that would better listen to orders. The result included the DLN line."

Magnet looked away at this, possibly distracted by thoughts of Roll. I continued speaking; either he would pay attention, or he wouldn't. I couldn't really help him any further with what was on his mind.

"You all know of the catastrophic results when a house robot was given combat programming."

"He didn't run it until late in the fight with me," Magnet interrupted. "I didn't know he could do that."

I raised an eyebrow. If that was true, then Mega must have really had it out for Magnet—he had gone out to fight him by choice, and must have started the program when things got out of hand.

"My point still stands. …The second generation was where it really started to show that the programming was producing unexpected results. That generation had three distinctly hostile robots, but it also had three distinctly positive robots."


((Art by dA user rakumel. Screenshot because size.))

"You're all familiar with DWN - 012 because his journals were made available to you. He was the most famous and widely studied. However, he wasn't the only one to become independent—just the most successful. His immediately older and younger brothers were very similar to him in terms of a more peaceful disposition."

Comprehension was slowly dawning in their eyes as I went on.

"Your generation is the third generation. Despite an active effort to avoid making independent beings, you two still turned out like you are. And Shadow is also independent, even more than the two of you. Your spirit is much like mine and like 'Speedy' was. We are independent robots."

I crossed my arms.

"There aren't many like us. Who knows if any more will be built. Wily seems to have a great talent of producing brothers like us… but he is a dangerous man and has also made monsters. I don't trust Light, either—he knows that Mega's programming is faulty, but he never changed it. We're rare and outnumbered; that's why I want us to work together. Alone we can do little, but together we might even be able to find a way to ensure we can live a peaceful life with people we can trust."

There was a long stretch of silence.

"…Viper was saying something about a new world order. He… talked about much the same things you did, though… he considered our independence to be weakness. He had a different idea, an idea of domination."

"I don't want anything to do with that sort of thing, as I told you." I held out my hand, gesturing as I spoke. "Right now, my main goal is to find Shadow. We really need to make sure he doesn't fall into the wrong hands and that he doesn't get into too much trouble. I think he's been in contact with Speedy, though. If I had to guess, I'd say the two of them are headed to the old lab."

"I thought DWN - 012 was destroyed?"

"No. He got into a bad fight, yes, but his chassis remained intact enough that he was able to restart. His AI&A programming is at large in the Cloud. If he's working with Shadow, then Shadow is probably getting his help to get a copy of the BetaEmotions program. That's what Shadow wants. Speedy wants to be repaired: it doesn't take a genius to figure that out. The only place that both would be possible would be Wily's old lab, which is fractionally less dangerous than L. L., Inc. in the sense that Light and security guards aren't hanging around."

This hung in the air for a while. You could almost see the connections being made, the conclusions being drawn.

"So… you repaired us because you didn't want to be alone. You want a community. And you want our help tracking Shadow down."


((Art by dA user WhiteFox89, screenshot because size))

"Bingo."

Siam sighed and looked up and off to the side. "Well, we do owe you one, that's for sure. And I rather like your idea of a world as opposed to Viper's. But how do you intend to convince Shadow to join us?"

I got out a knife. "With this."

"Force?"

"No. This."

I opened a package that had remained sealed since before we arrived. They crowded around and expressed surprise when they saw what it was.

"Laws of nature…"

Speedy's old chassis lay neatly packed in the box. It was still badly damaged. With no power and no program, it seemed very much like a corpse. I knew, though, that it was our best hope moving forward.

"If we can help Speedy get his chassis back, we will have a powerful ally and a staunch friend on our side. And if he can help Shadow, then we will all be free in mind, heart, and body… and we can work on making our way through this world."

I closed the box, shutting it tight with packing tape. "But we won't really get anywhere unless we start right now. I spent a long time repairing the two of you, and I don't regret it—but I very much fear we'll be too late unless we move soon. You don't have to come with me, but I would very much appreciate the help."

——————

Within two hours, we were back on the road, burning rubber as we made our way across the state, heading west toward the secret lab.

"I just have one last question."

"Try not to distract me too much when I'm driving. What is it?"

"Why do you wear your sunglasses at night?"

I couldn't help but smile.

If we were lucky, I had a feeling this alliance would be a very rewarding experience.

As Rock closed in, I was starting to wonder how the fight would end. My brother probably meant well, though in the past years he had gotten worse and worse at showing it. But "the road to Hades is paved with good intentions", as the saying goes—and I often think of him when I hear that phrase.


((Art by dA user Monkey92Man))

He was a fighter, and he was ruthless. Not entirely by choice, but it was clear he was well aware of it—this hunt was by choice, not orders. He had nothing to gain from this but the defeat of personal enemies. This meant his determination was much greater. I went into the fight knowing that, preparing to fight him to the last if I had to. I didn't want to, but I knew the others couldn't stand a chance, not in their current shape.

When he cornered me, I acted calm and cool as always, as if I had planned it. I gave him my grin and prepared to face destiny, but…


((Art by dA user zibanitu6969))

Mega took shuriken to his armor when Shadow appeared out of nowhere. He cried out in pain and sparked—the smell made me realize that Shadow's weapons were coated in acid. I was suddenly very grateful he had never wanted to hurt me that one time we fought.

The fight broke out before I could stop it. I was forced to take cover so that I wouldn't get hit by either of them—it was no child's play. This was war.

I hadn't expected to see him, certainly not to my aid. I realized from the look in his eyes that he was different now—he had the programming he had longed for, that he had been willing to fight for.

And now, willing to die for.


((Art by dA user mj-battle))

The battle was unlike most others. Most of my younger brothers couldn't help but to taunt Mega out of spite or fear—even I had done as much. But Shadow? He was silent. Not a single word. He faced his death without a sound.


((Art by dA user GarthTheDestroyer, screenshot because size))

And yes, his death. No combat experience, newly upgraded with a program that compromised his AI&A efficiency, facing an enemy with an arsenal of deadly weapons—he was way out of his league. It was horrifying to watch. I kept waiting for an opportunity to interrupt, but Shadow never gave me the chance.

He kept moving around. When Mega tried using a spinning attack on him, Shadow would merely stab at him.

Unfortunately, when Mega did get a hit in, it was devastating.

WHAM!


((Art by dA user General-RADIX))

Shadow was stunned for a moment, but that's all that was needed. Within seconds he was receiving a harsh beatdown.

When he raised his blaster, I knew I had to do something.

BLAM

Mega was thrown back by a direct hit to the chest, his attack missing Shadow's core by a relatively narrow margin. He crashed into a wall, blacking out long enough for me to run over.

He apparently had been hit hard enough to mess up the combat program, because his eyes weren't dark when they came back into focus.


((Art by dA user General-RADIX, their stuff is great too))

"TAKE ONE STEP AND I'LL PUT A HOLE IN YOU, MENACE!"

He tried to get quickly to his feet, but my attack had done more damage to him than he could so easily recover from. Apparently, his internal balance calibration had been broken. A stroke of luck, but I was seething with rage.

My heart was burning, burning. I could feel my faulty core aflame in aggravation.

"Look at you," I yelled. "Sometimes I can't see the blue through the red. Hard to see the good through your trail of dead!"

He gritted his teeth, putting a hand to his blaster. "I am tired of you all speaking in riddles!"

"You wouldn't care if you knew," I spat. "You say those things you do are what you choose. Well, choose to GET OUT! I will not stand for you to kill any further!"

He fired. It went way off track, but I brought my shield out in front of me. I looked down at Shadow, feeling a sickening sense of dread—his left side had been torn to shreds.

"You sicken me."

"I have no idea who you are!" he shouted back. "Though you've done nothing but get in my way, so I can hardly care!"

This stung. I had always known that he was the favorite, but the fact that even he was ignorant of my existence showed just how discarded I had been.

"They lost me, forgot me, made you from parts of me!" I hauled Shadow over my shoulder. "If you're the one—my father's son—then what am I supposed to be?!"


((Art by dA user Thormeister))

I fired another blast to the side to throw him off balance. I was saying too much, but I was almost crying in the uncontrollable rage that consumed me. My sense of composure and control had evaporated. "I had a name! And then they tore my heart from my chest to give to you!
I'm not broken—I'm not the Breakman. I was the first, I AM THE PROTOMAN!"


((Art by dA user MidKnight-Renegade, screenshot because size))

BANG.

The ceiling came crashing down between us. With Shadow on my back, I made a break for it.

I paced about the small room we were in.

After the spectacular showdown in the old lab, we had all managed to escape. Shadow was badly damaged, so we hit the road and went to Kansas City. It had been an eerily quiet ride, but I think we were all exhausted from what had just happened.

Now we were in a hideout where Cardinal was directing repairs. Shadow had started to "heal" somewhat like a human would, much to our surprise—it was the first real clue that he had originally been built by a society far more advanced than we might ever live to see.

———————

"You never cease to amaze me at how much you know, Blues."

Cardinal grinned. "I thought I told you to call me Cardinal."

"Sorry. I just happen to be something of a music fan, and I really think it suits you."

"Blues was a name given to me. Cardinal is a name I chose." He played a short tune on a whistle. "And yeah, I know a lot. I am older than you guys, after all."

Nico rolled his eyes at this. I gave a slight smile. "So that's why you have such a grand vision?"

"I don't see what's so hard to understand about having independence. If this is ever going to last, we're going to have to be able to work with humans peacefully without being taken advantage of."

"Peace. I like the sound of that. I can almost remember what that was like."

"That's always been a point of interest to many people. You integrated into society so successfully." He crossed his arms and walked over to look at one of the walls, as if going to look out a window. "What's your vision for the future like? What's your insight?"

There was a click noise as I took off my helmet.

"Your idea of independence does speak to me, I admit. Life with humans was hard—without an ID, there was very little I could do among society. Always being secretive really killed me, and I think it may have done so in more than just the figurative sense. To be treated as an equal… well, I was working toward that. But now… I don't know if I was allowed to help on the patrols because I was seen as a tool to help out, or as a person who earned the position. That bothers me."

I turned my helmet over in my hands, looking on it with a sigh. I missed my hat and poncho, and my belt. They were probably destroyed by now.

"But… I'd rather be part of that society anyway. I want to go back to Texas. Not just in general, but soon—even if I can't stay, I at least want to visit."

Cardinal frowned at this.

"I wouldn't recommend that. I know you want to go back, and what you really mean when you say that: I don't blame you." He shook his head. "But think on it for a moment. Everyone thinks you're dead. They heard the fight. You have a bad past with the military and therefore also the feds. If you were spotted with him again, what do you think would happen? He'd go to jail. He's not a young man, Speedy. I don't know how long he'd survive in prison."

This made me really stop and think. I knew that I couldn't really return to the life I had, not any time soon. The thought that I might have to stay away entirely hadn't really occurred to me. Granted, I'd been pretty busy with raw survival until two days ago, but still. I didn't want to put Pops into such a position.

I remembered my life there clearly now, and I longed for it. But could I do that?


((Art by dA user Pikachu344))

I looked over at my brothers and down at myself. We were all in rather sad shape, looking like we were made from scrap. Pieces didn't match, especially in color. None of us were quite in the fighting condition we were before, and I was starting to notice that Cardinal was often tired. It was as if he were ill.

My brothers were counting on me. They were my family now, and I had to keep their needs in mind.

At length, I put my helmet back on and spoke again.

"You're right. It would be difficult."

I turned a boomerang over in my hands.

"But Pops wasn't just anyone to me, Cardinal. He was my father. Not my builder, but still my father. You don't just abandon family like that. I don't know if any of you get it, the meaning of family. Family is more than just a group of relatives. I can't explain it, but it was my driving purpose for years. We're a family now, and I think we should see Pops again. He can help us, even if only in advice. Besides. He wanted to see me again, Shadow said so." I pointed at each of them in a sweeping arc. "Just look at us. I agree that we need independence, but we can't get there as we are now. We need help. This is still the humans' world, and it would be wise to maintain any alliances we still have."

Gemini and Siam spoke in unison as they finished the last of Shadow's repairs. "Family, hmm? Well, maybe that's what made you so different."

Shadow's eyes flickered on. I smiled as our youngest brother put a hand to his head, looking a little dazed. He may be confused, but at least he was alive.

We were all alive. And we were together. We were family.

"Perhaps. But I think it's worth it."