Author's Note:

So, is everyone wondering where I disappeared to? Well, I was busy taking an intensive course in Japanese. I know I pissed a lot of you off, but I did tell you I'd pick it up again in September. I had a few deaths in the family, as well as a month-long loss of internet connection ( I moved into a different apartment, and the ADSL has a long waiting list ).

In any case, here's the latest one. I know most of you are wondering what's happening with Roll, well I would like to look into Roll's origin first. This chapter only begins it, as well as a series of flashbacks which detail the early years of Megaman's legacy.

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"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles." - Sun-tzu

Red Seven Military Installation
Navajo Reserve, Nevada
June 3rd, 2030
Original Megaman Timeline

   "These are the six targets, gentlemen," General Light walked down the aisle, briefing a number of operatives in black uniforms. "They are in key economical yet nearly unpopulated areas all over the United States. We'll need to take care of this situation with extreme care and security. We must ensure that the noticeability of troop movements from any foreign satellites is kept to a minimal. We don't want to be alerting any of the other countries to our anti-terrorist mission, so we are going to handle this quietly and with only a few operatives at the most. We are having too many problems with Eastern Europe to afford any publicity about disruptions in our own country. I don't think I need to tell all of you, that with the US on the brink of war, the last thing we need is any public attention to disruptions in our homeland."

   The overhead projector flickered in the dim lighting of the drab grey room. The group was inside an unused briefing room in one of the barracks on the back outskirts of the rest of the Red Seven installation. It's age definitely showed in the cobwebs which hung in the corners, and the cracked paint along the edges of the floor.

   "I don't have to tell you that any information cannot go outside this base. Not even if questioned by direct superiors from another installation. Speak of this to no one unless I allow it," Terrence looked up and down through the group. His brother, Thomas, was against the far wall looking rather distraught. Terrence hadn't even seen his brother since the argument in the theatre and didn't want anything to do with him or his project. Unfortunately, his side of the debate was proven correct. Terrence knew he pushed issues if he thought he was right, but this was one case he wished he weren't. Now they had to deal with a renegade terrorist who might just provoke war across the globe with his newly acquired robot weapons.

   'Great, I've got to clean up the mess my own brother makes,' Terrence was much more than disgruntled. In the course of one week, a threat set itself up to destroy his country, and he wasn't sure if anything the military did would be able to stop it. These robotic targets definitely went outside of the experience of any troops on the planet.

   "The first target we'll be taking care of will be a demolitions base located at S4. The superiors have been apprised of the situation and have given permission to use whatever force necessary to secure this extremely volatile situation. If this target remains in control for too long, our country and others could be in serious trouble." Terrence pointed to the projector, showing a collection of overhead satellite photos. The clear sky showed masses of dodecahedron pillar designs stained a tart orange colour.

   "Our second target is a construction site in New Orleans. That is the most populated area of all the targets and so the situation must be neutralized quickly before the public eye takes notice." Terrence changed the photos again to show a small construction site with loaders running on an electric grid iron to transport heavy materials.

   "The third is the largest cargo hold at the Kennedy Airport. Although it is away from a populous, they may be planning to affect any flights and causing quite a stir. The fourth is the PG&E Diablo Canyon Nuclear plant at San Luis Obispo, California. There are a lot of volatile and insecure elements located there. So far we have the area secured, so it isn't as high as a priority as the first three," Terrence switched the photos to security images of the interior. A long shaft extending upwards through the canyon would be the only way to the reactor. The photos contained imagery quite disturbing, as the shaft had been mostly destroyed to leave almost no way to the top.

   "After that, the last two targets should be fairly simple to take care of. We have a situation at Alert Bay in Northern Canada. We have been asked by their government to take care of the situation before it becomes extreme, but our own needs come first. The last target will be at a metallurgical plant in Michigan, we are uncertain why this target was chosen. Perhaps it is to find more materials to create a more permanent defense. In any case, nothing can be exported from the plant as long as the shield is up, and it hasn't gone down yet."

   The operatives shifted uncomfortably. Terrence knew that this would be the first time they were ordered to destroy non-lifeform targets. His operatives were probably wondering just how to handle such targets.

   'It may make it easier on the conscience, but how do you predict an enemy who isn't human?' Terrence thought glumly. He wished there was an easier way to handle this. Sending humans against robots would not only be dangerous, but would involve a high number of fatalities. Still, there was no choice in the matter. Richard Wily had to be stopped at all costs. His robots had been missing for a month, and now they had made an appearance. All six targets were acquired simultaneously overnight a mere day ago. With a month outside of military surveillance, no one had any idea how difficult the mission would be against Wily and his potential armada of thoughtless machines. They only knew that there had been nearly 600 casualties when all the targets were acquired, and the ones with military presence didn't have enough defence to stop it. He shut off the projector and looked again sternly at his team.

   "What will be making our operation very difficult will be the apparent installation of a TP-Shield at each location. This means we will be incapable of teleportation to any direct co-ordinates at our targets which lie within the field. Instead, we must infiltrate from the outside and take down any resistance and robot masters we encounter. We believe that the robot masters will be guarding the shield generator. If we manage to take out the TP-shields, it will be easier to reclaim each territory."

   Terrence saw his men shift again uneasily. He knew they didn't like the sound of moving in on foot. That meant that a lot of traps may have been set up, meaning the loss of life would be nearly impossible to avoid.

   "Alright, we have a job to do, so let's get to it--"

   "Hold on a second," Dr. Light spoke up for the first time since the briefing started. Terrence gave his brother a cold look. With all that has happened, Terrence wasn't looking forward to another 'brilliant' plan from Thomas.

   "Do you have something to add to my statement?" asked Terrence coldly. His brother better make this one right quick. He had a job to do.

   "I have another way to handle this problem," said Dr. Light simply. Thomas stood up from the wall and proceeded into a speech of his own.

   ***

   The desk was at the end of the hall of the small building. A private was behind the desk, making certain no one interrupted the briefing. The private kept looking onward at the wall near the door, at attention for the past hour. That was when he felt the tug at his pant leg. A bit startled, the private looked down to see a young blonde-haired girl wearing a red dress. He couldn't help but smile at her unsurprising appearance.

   "Well, hello little girl!"

   "Don't be a silly Jimmy," said Evelyn. She knew James always tried to bug her when he was bored.

   "Am I supposed to know you?" He asked in a mocking tone. Evelyn gave him a stern look.

   "I'm Evelyn, don't you remember me!?" she asked, concerned. James laughed at the comment.

   "Yeah, of course I do honey," he replied with a smile. "How could I forget a cute face like that?"

   Evelyn giggled and looked down the hallway before looking back at James.

   "Is my daddy here? I finished lunch, but he still hasn't come back," she said.

   "Ah, don't worry about it. Your dad's meeting is just running a little late. Why don't you take a seat at the end of the hall and wait for him?" suggested James.

   Evelyn nodded and skipped down the hallway. She took a seat down on the bench next to the other kid. She turned to look at her bench companion. He had a white shirt on with short blue hair. Evelyn then realized she recognized the person sitting next to her.

   "Rock!" she blurted excitedly. Rock turned his head and faced her.

   "Hello Evelyn," said Rock with a cool tone. He was as calm and as emotionless as the first time she saw him back at the theatre.

   "Rock, how have you been? I would come to see you, but my daddy doesn't like me being with you. I...um, don't think he likes you very much," Evelyn said a bit sadly.

   "I have been functioning within normal parameters since my latest software installation," replied the android.

   "What does that mean?" asked the little girl. She always found his big words confusing.

   "I am now capable of new techniques starting as of May 15th, 2030," Rock stated simply. Evelyn wasn't certain how to respond to that, so she decided to blink.

   "Um...what can you do now?" asked Evelyn. She was afraid she wouldn't like the answer, a nagging feeling bugging her in the back of her head.

   "I am capable of multiple target acquisition, sniper, emergency energy distribution, auxiliary control, and plasma protocol assimilation," replied Rock.

   "Can you put that in little kid words?" she asked.

   "Statistically, I am now capable of neutralizing threats exceeding one-hundred-forty-three troops, five standard armored tanks, or one complete MIGG automatic security system. All statistics equipped with latest armament protocol."

   "It's hard to understand...could you 'nutilize' us?" asked Evelyn, a bit concerned about the word.

   "In all probability, I could neutralize the current Red Seven base within one hour, minimal energy constriction."

   "What does 'nutralize' mean?" asked Evelyn, a bit worried now.

   "MDK: Murder, Death, Kill," replied Rock simply. Evelyn's eyes widened in shock. Rock had been turned into some sort of war machine that had enough power to destroy her home. She would have screamed if her Daddy hadn't screamed first from behind the door to the briefing room.

   "YOU DID WHAT!?" her Daddy's voice came loudly behind the door, she could tell that he was angry. He was even more angry then the time she left her bike in the driveway. Someone was going to be grounded really fast. The door slammed open against the bench and her Daddy stormed out. He turned back and she saw her uncle Tommy come out as well.

   "I've spent the last month programming Rock to handle this situation. He should be part of your team, if you send one in," Dr. Light repeated his statement calmly. Evelyn noticed that her father had the look of the devil in his eyes.

   "Are you telling me I have another war happy machine to worry about now! What the hell possessed you to do that?" her Dad yelled, looking like he was ready to kill his brother. Suddenly, Uncle Tommy's face became one of complete rage and he grabbed her Daddy by the collar, looking ready to tear his head off with a simple glance.

   "Listen to me! If you send those men in there, they will DIE. You understand? Rock could destroy the entire state of Nevada before you could stop him," Dr. Light snarled. "and there are six more just like him underneath Wily's control! Your operatives will be fucking dead before they load their weapons!"

   Evelyn had never seen Uncle Tommy this mad before. Neither had her Dad apparently, because he was startled that his brother was capable of such anger. Nevertheless, her Uncle Tommy continued chewing out her Dad.

   "If Dr. Wily gives the order, he will wipe out nearly half of the country! If he chooses choice targets, he could kill over 200 million people before we stop him! This country would be dead, ...is that smart?" asked Dr. Light, suddenly calm. Evelyn didn't understand what was going on, but she didn't want the country to die. This whole thing was starting to scare her and she jumped off the bench to run away. She hugged James at the end of the hall and started crying. James tried to calm her down, but it was too late, she was already babbling about the neutralization of everyone she knew, her entire family. Dr. Light let his brother go and shook his head. Terrence didn't know what to say, so he just stood there in shock. It made sense to send in Rock, he was already scared to death about sending people to die. He had never had to give that kind of order before; it was ordering a sort of execution. Now he had a way out, and maybe his brother was right. In any case, this was an issue he wasn't willing to push.

   ***

   "Alright, Rock, can you hear us?" asked Dr. Light. His brother Terrence and a number of other representatives were waiting behind the glass for the last systems check. His creation, Rock, was standing in the center of the gymnasium. The entire room was completely empty and re-inforced with concrete. It was really more of a basement bunker. Even the musty dark smell, which Dr. Light had tried to get rid of for the last week, was still in the air. He had spent the last few weeks in this room re-programming Rock. It had hurt Dr. Light so much that a trusted colleague and one of his friends would take the other six robot masters. He couldn't even imagine what would possess Richard to betray him like that. He had worked in tears, frustrated that now he would have to reprogram Rock. He had to find some way to fix the situation before it got worse. He knew that Richard would have to reprogram the six robot masters in order for them to actually be any sort of weapon of destruction, so Dr. Light had to find a way to turn one robot master into something powerful enough to handle another six like him. He spent weeks analyzing the systems, working with little food or sleep since it started, but it was finally all finished. Rock had become something else. He was no longer the peaceful robot that he used to be. Dr. Light had ruined his programming by turning him into a killing machine hellbent on the completion of any programmed orders.

   "Dr. Light, ...um, are you still with us?" asked one of the representatives. Dr. Light shook himself out of it and looked back out the window at what he had created.

   "Um...yeah, Rock?" asked Dr. Light again.

   "Affirmative, Doctor," answered the blue robot. Rock was endorned in blue plated armour, which Dr. Light had specifically designed by a team, using specifics from the Red Seven Archives.

   "Alright. Well, ...begin Program Blue Bomber," whispered Dr. Light.

   Immediately, Rock's right hand dismantled itself and retracted within the arm plating. A small charge lit up the chamber of the weapon which had been created there and Rock held this new cannon by his side.

   "Gentlemen," Dr. Light began. "Rock is equipped with an ablative titanium ceramic plating, making him impervious to bullets and most explosions. Only fourteen kilotonnes of physical pressure or fifteen gigawatts of electricity are enough to possibly penetrate the personel hull shielding to affect any of his internal systems."

   The representatives looked impressed, Terrence just shrugged. Dr. Light knew that his brother didn't really understand the figures, so he whispered to Terrence on the sidelines that the amount of shielding on Rock's person was enough for the three full-armoured tanks at the R7 Installation. He noted that his brother's eyebrows immediately went up with the rest of the representatives'.

   "Rock," Dr. Light spoke into the microphone. "Could you please demonstrate your arm cannon. Begin Blue Bomber test procedure."

   Small helicopter drones flew in from compartments which were hidden overhead in the concrete. Rock immediately went into action, showing the drones no mercy at all. Of course the concept of it was silly since Dr. Light had never programmed him to show mercy.

   "Rock is equipped with a personal arm cannon which has the destructive force of twenty gigawatts of plasma-induced electricity. That is enough power to destroy another robot master with one shot, provided that Richard Wily hasn't refitted them. He is capable of all of the procedures demonstrated at the theatre from a month previous, including incredible strength and a geometrically perfect balanced structure. Rock will never be off balance, and will take no damage from any amount of falling, even when considering his weight. At terminal velocity, his boots have a layer of fibre glass polymer soaking all indirect damage. A high pressure press also intakes an amount of 200 PSI, allowing him to jump nearly twice his own height. I have also linked Rock to direct datastreams on basic commando techniques and an advanced tutorial on how to recognize espionage. He also emulates human intelligence, using a series of algorithms developped originally by Richard S. Wallace and his Alicebot project."

   Rock was picking the drones off like flies, barely even moving. Whenever a drone made a dive for him, he would simply jump out of the way, reacting within milliseconds of the actual collision. The demonstration was fairly impressive, reaching a height of awe when Rock managed to flip and dodge four drone swoops at once, having them collide into a large mess where Rock used to be standing. The last drones fell to the ground in a satisfying metal crunch.

   "Very impressive, Dr. Light," said one of the representatives. Terrence nodded slowly and walked out of the room. Before Thomas could stop his brother from leaving, the representatives began asking questions. Thomas looked at the door closing behind Terrence, wondering where his brother was going.

   "Where were you able to find the materials for such magnificent enhancements?"

   Dr. Light replied slowly, "Well, I had a team of specialists sent over from a bit higher up, and they provided me with certain services and technologies which I needed."

   "Does Rock have compatible systems to interface with standard PCs?"

   "Yes, he is operating on the latest Linux core from Corel, making him compatible with all available operating systems on file. He is also capable of assimilating data core streams from the other Robot Masters. There is a separate auxiliary core for that, in case weapons modules are put into effect. I'm still not sure how to make that system stable yet though, so it will be involved in short-term usage only."

   The questions continued. Dr. Light answered a variety of questions, ranging from how the weapons modules would function in different tactical situations, to Rock's lac of personality sub-routines. Dr. Light had to make it absolutely clear that Rock had only preliminary logical sub-routines and no real personality. The representatives seemed a bit too enthusiastic about Project: Blue Bomber to really pay attention to the small details though. About an hour passed before all the representatives had finished detailing their own notes from Dr. Light in order to provide an accurate report to their superiours whom in turn would give Dr. Light's project a green light. Once the last one had left, Dr. Light sat down on the stool in front of the microphone. He sighed, putting his elbows on the counter, burying his head in his hands. The demonstration was a success. The first silence of the day was enough to finally get Dr. Light's thought process in motion. He had done what he had thought would be impossible in such a short, unscheduled time span. But he had done it. In a few mere hours, Rock would be on a helicopter to his first target.

   'Where he will eliminate all possible threats he's been programmed for,' Dr. Light couldn't help the thought. He had started this whole project nearly a decade ago in order to help mankind with problems that couldn't be solved with human force. He used the knowledge of an entire lifetime in order to do it. To create the perfect machine that would handle any problem which could arise. He was so foolish, thinking that the military would fund a non-lethal machine of such magnitude. He never thought his machines would ever have to...do this. And to have Richard start the whole cascade reaction to enslave these robot masters to know only death; Dr. Light banged his hands against the counter. Richard had been a trusted friend for not just years, but decades; through research and development they had stuck together, and Dr. Light was closer to Richard than he ever was to his own brother. He rubbed his beard, wondering what would become of Rock's program stability after killing a human target. He was certain that the order to kill Richard Wily would come to pass, and Rock would be used to carry it out. His life's creation was about to kill his best friend in the whole world.

   "Rock, do you feel as bad as I do?" asked Dr. Light, not really expecting a decent response.

   Rock peered at him quizzically, "I do not feel anything as I have not received the proper sub-routines in order to emulate such human emotion."

   "Right...Damnit, this whole situation is getting out of my hands," murmured Dr. Light.

   "I do not believe this situation was ever in your hands, since it lacks any formal physical substance." answered Rock. Dr. Light smiled at the simple naievity at such an innuendo. Dr. Light opened the door and walked in to sit down beside Rock. Rock had long since powered down all of his systems and was awaiting further instructions.

   "I don't think Terrence is too pleased with this being out of his hands as well," Dr. Light stated the obvious.

   "General Terrence certainly did not seem pleased. In all probability, he will take over the project and direct the orders during the mission."

   "I can't believe how Evelyn took it. She was so upset over what I had done to you," said Dr. Light. He couldn't help the tears in his eyes. As if everything wasn't bad enough, his own creation which she used to find delightful was now beginning to terrify her. She probably wouldn't sleep very well for a long time after this.

   "Do not concern about Evelyn. In all probability, Terrence will remove her presence permanently from the Red Seven installation after the negative reaction received today," Rock said such a devestating supposition in such a calm demeanor that it only served to bother Dr. Light about the whole proceedings even further.

   "...I'll probably never see her again. Terrence is ready to kill me over this...and he's right. I should have never tried playing God with machines. Now, a lot of people might die because of my own exuberance in tinkering with something I don't think I'll ever even understand," Dr. Light's voice trailed off, he was far too depressed to hold any real conversation. Rock held Dr. Light's face with his left hand and prompted the Doctor to look up at the standing robot master in surprise.

   "I am certain that with the proper personality sub-routine, I certainly would not disregard your action to create me. In all probability, I would be grateful for your actions."

   Dr. Light tried to smile, but he failed. He found it a bit comforting that his own creation liked him. At least someone did, but he wasn't sure he would be able to handle the responsibility of the next few days. Richard had promised war, and Dr. Light was going to give it to him with Rock.

   "Thomas, report to my office immediately," his brother's voice came over the intercom.

   ***

   "What the HELL made you think you'd get away with this one!" Terrence threw the papers onto his desk. His brother Thomas was sitting in the chair. The office was modest, with a picture of Evelyn and his wife and there was an american flag atop the left bookshelf. The only two things he cared about, which his brother was now threatening. The whole damn project should have been called off the day the draft came across the desk of some pathetic engineer who didn't care about the repercussions. Some little idiot gave the damn project a green light just because the idea of a sentient machine had the moron cumming in his pants.

   "You went over MY head to upgrade Rock into...whatever the hell he is now!?" Terrence was fuming mad. It wasn't just enough that his brother had to go and create one of the most dangerous things on the planet since the atomic bomb, but Thomas had went to Terrence's supervisors before even considering respecting the chain of command. The bastard had even brought in specialty teams and used resources, probably authourized by the Military General in the Whitehouse himself!

   "I did it because you wouldn't have given the project what it needed," said Thomas calmly.

   "What's that? A good swift kick in the ass? Because that's all it deserves!"

   "You agreed with my opinion that sending in your men would be suicide, so what are you so pissed off about?" asked Thomas. The scientist types just never get it.

   "I'm not mad that you happened to prove that if you can create a killing machine, then Dr. Wily probably has six more where that came from.... I'm mad because you went over MY head to prove your point!" yelled Terrence. "Where the hell do you get off deciding what happens on my base? What if you screwed up and Rock ended up being just as bad as Richard, huh?"

   "Well, it didn't happen."

   "That's not the fucking point! If you had screwed up, we'd all be dead right now! She..." Terrence rose his fist and broke the glass holding his little girl's picture. "would be dead right now! You stupid prick, you should have done this away from any sign of civilization! Why not...the fucking desert even!? Nothing but Montana psychos to kill out there; do us a fucking favour!"

   "I didn't have time to set up the equipment somewhere, and then we'd probably be dead anyway. Besides at least you've got a way out of this. If Rock dies, one problem goes away. If Rock wins, you can still terminate him and both problems go away. It's a win-win for you as far as I see it."

   Terrence's eyes narrowed at his brother's argument.

   'Alright, fine, you want to play it that way, Tom, bring it on.'

   "I completely agree," Terrence said slowly.

   Dr. Light looked up in surprise. Terrence just smiled, finally figuring out exactly how to handle this situation. He sat down calmly and put his palms together. He'd make sure that Thomas would never forget the next few days, even if Alzheimers came to haunt the idiot.

   "In a few hours, you will get the go ahead. The Blue Bomber will go through and he'll be transported to the first target. Dr. Wily's plans will fall around on his ears, and Rock will terminate Dr. Wily, ending that problem and then..."

   "And then what?" whispered Dr. Light. Terrence's face suddenly went calm, and Dr. Light couldn't help but shudder at he knew was coming next.

   "And then we will terminate Rock."

   ***

   Author's Comments:

   Well, hopefully I've got everyone's attention back. I am truly sorry for being absent so long and not warning everyone about it. Things aren't looking to good for Rock's future right now, but hey that's okay since this is a flashback. Next episode, we'll be going back to X and see how they handle Roll's problem. That should be wrapped up pretty quick. For those of you wondering what this has to do with Roll's origins...well, you'll see.

   See ya next week!

   [Small note: www.alicebot.org is a working human intelligence algorithm developped by Richard S. Wallace. Therefore, the intelligence behind Rock is already in development now. Just putting things in perspective! ^_^]

Michael Raymond Vendittelli (LimousineDriver)