Hey, this is the first episode of Megaman X: Poles Apart. Do you have deja vu yet? For those of you new to the series, I hope you enjoy yourself. For those of you that aren't new to the series... I'd suggest you read on regardless. Although most of the plot/dialogue remains intact to the original, things aren't quite the same.

---

"For millions of years, mankind lived just like animals. Then something happened which unleashed the power of our imagination. We learned to talk."
- Stephen Hawking, "The Division Bell" by Pink Floyd.

X looked out the sliding glass window across the room. The lights of the city nightscape slowly passed by, creating a sea of yellow stars below to match the white ones above. He was leaning forward, his hands lightly clasped around a small glass of red wine. X breathed in the scent of bread and alcohol from the spread at the table. There was light conversation going on all around him, but he couldn't be bothered to listen. He didn't know or want to know any of these people.

His gaze turned upwards, slightly arching his head to watch the light of the room dance across the diamonds in the chandelier. Live string music was playing an instrumental piece that X didn't recognize, although it sounded like a softer version of Vivaldi's Winter. X looked at the paintings hanging on the pristine white walls, their reflections clear in the marble floor. The red velvet carpet ran under the long table which divided the ballroom.

The University didn't spare any expense for Dr. Caine's memorial. The funeral had occured two weeks ago, but the Dean wished to do something more. X was here only because he was invited; he had to admit that he didn't really fit in with the crowd. Dr. Caine's colleagues had gathered in their finest dress to discuss his work and life. His friends had gathered with their bowties to share fond memories of growing old together. And his subjects?

"You gonna finish your drink?"

The low and light-hearted voice stirred X from his thoughts and he looked up. Apparently there was at least one person at the party that X knew. And he must have just arrived.

"Surprised to see you here, Zero. You missed the speech," X said without batting an eye.

"Thank God for that," Zero mumbled to himself. He sat down on the edge of the table near X, straightened his red bowtie for his black tuxedo, and poured himself a glass of white wine. He took a sniff and sipped at it a bit. "It was his last gift to us before the war ended."

"It's hard to remember life without tastebuds," X said with a slight grin. "I'll never take the taste of food for granted, that's for sure."

"Give it a century."

The response chilled X, but Zero's mood still seemed chipper. Maybe he was just joking. X stood up and made his way towards the balcony. Zero followed from behind. X unclasped the latch and opened in the sliding glass door. Stepping out onto the balcony, X realized that the grey concrete out here better matched his thoughts than the brightly lit gold and white room inside. The soft string music followed them out, mingling with the electrical hum of the city. X could make out a few smooth diode-like buildings far below; this party was being held pretty high up. He estimated that they were at least 500 metres off the ground. The orange lights far below lit up the streets of Cluster One. The light from below barely made it's way up the buildings, turning the bright finish of coloured steels into a myriad of pale dark colours. The slow grinding beneath his feet reminded X that the whole floor was turning.

"Days don't get much darker than this," Zero said with a sigh. He seemed disappointed with the view. "So now what?"

"I don't know. I guess it doesn't matter much anymore. Ever since the Maverick Hunters disbanded five years ago, it's been hard to find things to do. What have you been doing these past few years?" X asked without even making eye contact.

"Traveling, mostly," Zero wasn't going to give more than that. "So what's with the hair anyway?"

X brought his left hand up to his black ponytail. It was hardly the length of his friend's old hairstyle, but it was starting to get there.

"Why did you cut yours?" X responded with another question. Zero just shrugged.

"Didn't feel right anymore."

Zero sounded like he wasn't the only one lost and bored of it. At least X knew where he came from; Zero didn't even have that. Zero disappeared soon after the war, wanting to find out more about his past. X was surprised to see him back in town and at the funeral a few weeks ago.

'I wonder where he was... and why he decided to come back,' X mused silently.

In the end, all X knew about Zero was that he could be trusted. That didn't mean either one forgot Sigma's words. The silence settled in despite the soft music coming from inside. Zero seemed to be thinking about Sigma's last message as well and stretched with a loud yawn.

"It's pretty late and I need a recharge. I'm running on empty. Guess I'll see you later X."

Zero hopped up on the guard rail, crouching and leaning forward; the leather of his dark red shoes shone in the moonlight. X widened his eyes, but not from surprise.

"Zero, don't you ever exit normally?" X sighed.

"What kind of mysterious hero would I be if I did that?" Zero winked at X.

"Come to think of it, I've never seen you use the stairs," X chuckled under his breath. Zero made eye contact with him and the light-hearted mood suddenly died.

"I just have one question," Zero said, the casual humour drained from his voice. "Is it just us left?"

X broke eye contact and looked away. He heard the wind quickly envelop Zero as he disappeared down into the darkness. Was there anyone else left? Zero had disappeared after the war and was probably going to leave again. Everyone else X knew had died against Sigma's forces. Now Dr. Caine was also gone... X had no one left. He had nothing left except a few unanswered questions. They too were also dead, impossible to answer.

A high-pitched female voice called out to him from behind, interrupting his thoughts. The voice sounded almost cheerful; X wondered how happy she would sound when not at a funeral service. X turned around from the rail to face her.

"I'm so glad you came! It's you isn't it?" The short girl exclaimed. "No one here really knows you do they? Don't worry, secret's safe with me!"

Her one-sided conversation continued as X stood there puzzled. She was wearing a black evening gown. Nothing fancy but it suited her incredibly white skin. Her light reddish brown hair was tied up and curled slightly where it had sprung loose. Her face was cute with a nose that vaguely reminded X of a badger. She barely looked over fifteen; her small frame probably meant she was older than she looked. He could see that she normally wore glasses, given the indents on her nose.

Even after his cursory analysis she continued talking; she was certainly excited about something. X decided to run her through an online database to determine her identity. He couldn't shake the nagging suspicion that he knew her from somewhere.

Perception Report: 158.496 cm Sonic Report: 51.82 kg Analyzing Face Graph.... Connecting to Wireless Network.... Loading Identity Search....

Within a nanosecond, X had compared her face to all known matches from the University. Although he didn't know her personally, she was a famous alumnus that graduated a few years ago.

Suddenly the girl started to walk towards X, her heels clicking against the balcony floor. He instinctively backed up against the rail; he had to admit that he wasn't paying attention. Normally he could analyze both audio and visual, but he was distracted tonight. She kept walking up to him until she was a mere 1.385 x 10E-1 meters away from his face. X arched an eyebrow at the intrusion into his personal space.

"I've seen photos of Megaman... you know you look exactly like him, if he was a few years older of course."

"I get that a lot," X responded with sarcasm. He was starting to wonder just what she was up to and how she knew his true identity. The lady didn't seem done and she picked up his arm. Maybe she wanted to dance? She let his arm drop back down to his side and giggled.

"This is really amazing! I saw the specs, but to see it so close! I never would have imagined...."

"Imagined what?" X was confused. Still, as strange as she was, X didn't find her presence uncomfortable. Despite the excitement surrounding his existence a decade ago, no roboticists ever approached him in this crazy manner. She started to poke his arm.

"This is amazing; it really does feel like skin. And your hair grows too?"

"Um... very well, thank you."

"Dr. Caine always spoke highly of you; was he able to continue the work?"

"A few minor upgrades like taste, although the functioning for it was already in place. He simply finished what was already started." X nodded. "Although he couldn't duplicate the free will I had. Not reliably anyway. Out of the near million of reploids produced over the past decade, not many had it. Of course, most of the models weren't even designed for it. Not that it matters anymore."

"Out of all the machines left from Dr. Caine's work, you're probably one of the few remaining. It's too bad they stopped working on it; they don't make reploid-level machinery anymore. Something about Dr. Light's work being too complicated to duplicate accurately without risk. It's been summed up to mere miracle that you and the few like you ever did exist."

"You paid attention in history class, I see," X replied with continued disinterest. He wasn't really in the mood to discuss the past.

"It's more than that...." Her voice trailed off and she looked down from him. "I'm sorry; I'm not really a roboticist... I guess I got carried away."

She stood there without moving. He could hear her breathing. Although he didn't really know her, she was still standing so close... it was almost painful. Maybe he should try to cheer her up.

"It's okay, don't worry about it," he said. "You're the first person to recognize me as not human. It's not an easy thing to do."

She looked back up at him with that smile spreading across her face. She certainly seemed happier.

"It's weird; you're only one of two actual androids. Despite that, you're almost unknown," she giggled and then suddenly grew serious. "It's not right that no one in that room really knows you. I wouldn't have known either if Dr. Caine hadn't told me before he died."

X turned away at the thought. Being different from others didn't bother him so much. Having to hide it away as if it were a terrible secret still pissed him off sometimes. Still, it was better than the government-offered alternative. He exhaled and his breath turned to fog against the cold night air.

"Oh wow! You're breathing!" The girl said behind him. He turned back around.

"It's my secondary aircoolant system," X replied quietly.

"Is there anything else human about you? Do you have a heartbeat, for example?"

"Um sort of, it's from my micro-harmonic generator. Although it feels like a heartbeat, that's only a simulation. It actually pulses at 21nm in order to keep the system at maximum effic--Wait, didn't you study my specs?"

"Well, I didn't really understand them."

And with that, the girl hugged against his chest. She held her hands against his sides and put the side of her head up against him. He could feel her warmth and she giggled as the pulse vibrated against her cheek. When she finally stepped away, she noticed the look of sheer surprise on X's face.

"Did...was that uncomfortable?" She asked. She giggled again. "That's amazing! I've never met one with emotions before!"

Suddenly a look that could only be described as sheepishness came over her.

"Oh..." Her whole body relaxed back down from him. "I'm really sorry, that was rude of me. I shouldn't have done that."

"You've never met a machine with emotions before?"

"Yeah right!" She scoffed under her breath and whispered. "My family couldn't afford something like that."

The statement definitely drove a wedge between them and X turned away from her again.

"So I'm just another reploid to you, huh?" The thought just came out before X could reel it back in. It sounded so bitter.

The silence became uncomfortable. It was hard not to feel a very old anger rise up in his throat. It was rare that he let it out like that. 'You'd think Dr. Light would have put in an off switch for times like this.'

X turned to face her again. She looked miserable and when he looked at her, she took a step back as if X had hit her. X spoke softly.

"Look...I'm sorry. I've got a lot on my mind. I know you didn't mean to be rude."

This picked up her mood. Maybe a little too much.

'Uh oh,' X could feel something coming.

"You mean you blurted that out without thinking?" She said with a newfound excitedness in her voice.

"Yeah...well, it's just--"

"That's really amazing! I can't even imagine the code involved in letting that happen!"

'I get the feeling she's not leaving me alone,' X realized with his usual speed.

"I'm only running one data stream, and until you arrived I was focused on the service."

"Wouldn't that mean you're not at full power?"

"I can't do that. Otherwise... I think too much."

The lady gave him a strange look. One that X got from Zero a few days ago when he mentioned that. X remembered his forgotten drink and finished his glass of wine with one swoop. He put the glass on the rail and looked down at her again.

"How was that?" she asked.

"It isn't the best year."

"I take it that it's being converted to a plasma state?"

"Nice to have someone pay attention," replied X. He started for the door. "I'm going home now, goodbye."

X just wanted to leave her and the mess of the service behind. He was tired of thinking, tired of drinking, and tired of caring. It was time to go home and sleep.

"Hang on a sec!"

X turned one last time to face her. Even with his rudeness, her smile refused to fade.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning at the Physics lab. Until then!"

The lady followed him back inside and walked off to talk to others in the crowd. X pushed his own way through the people crowding near the elevator doors. A few people vainly tried to strike up a conversation with him. X ignored them and hit the button. He stepped inside without even looking back.

He just wanted this day to end.

***

The morning light shone through the large windows in X's livingroom. A small chirping noise woke him up. He shook off sleep and realized where he was. He was sitting on a light-grey couch facing the view of Cluster One. His apartment was nearly as high as the balcony from last night; it was the penthouse suite of this building. He looked down to see that his tuxedo was wrinkled. He looked over his shoulder at his open bedroom door. He didn't quite make it.

The chirping and singing resumed and X looked up. The entire east side of his apartment was just a series of windows and one of them was still open. A little bluebird sat on the open window as it hung out from the rest of the wall. It had to be a simulant of course. All the birds around the city were machines; they were built a few years ago to promote tourism.

X picked himself up off the couch and let the warmth from the sunlight spread over his body. His primary diagnostics ran a quick systems check before he stretched in order to test all physical components. X yawned and walked towards his bedroom.

The curtains were drawn in his room, allowing the sunlight to pour in on the white sheets of the double bed. The white walls reflected the stray light across the clean blue carpet and wood furniture. He had to admit that it was nicer than living in a military bunk or at Dr. Caine's laboratory. He had only been "sleeping" in the bed for a few weeks now since he had it installed. He remembered Zero visiting him when he first arrived back in town. The bed had earned him one of many strange looks. X didn't care because the bed felt right to him. Strangely, it was sometimes comforting to emulate human behavior.

X stripped the wrinkled cotton off his body, letting the tuxedo land in a heap on his bedroom floor. He walked into his bathroom and noticed the mess his hair made across his naked synthetic chest in the mirror. He tapped on the button near the sink, opening up the shower unit behind him. He stepped inside and the water turned on. X put an arm against the wall as he stood there. The water made his hair even heavier and it fell down across his face. He bent down to look at the floor. It was hard not to think of the memorial service. He regretted being such an ass to that strange woman; he was usually a lot more likeable.

"Well, you know what they say about first impressions," he mumbled to no one in particular. Was there a reason she wanted to see him again? He knew that the Physics lab had Dr. Caine's old setup. The University wanted to move all his equipment into storage and X volunteered to sort through it. How did she know about that?

X straightened up and stepped out of the shower unit, the water stopping automatically. The cool winter air rushed in from the livingroom to hit him. X stretched again, savouring the sensation, before standing straight against the back wall. The wall sank in a bit and the whirring noise from it drowned out the singing bluebird. X could feel the sonic vibration pass over his skin. Now that he was dry, it was time to get dressed.

He slipped into a pair of blue jeans from his dresser and grabbed a white dress shirt from his closet. He was just tying his hair back when he heard a knock at the door. Perplexed, X straightened out his clothes and walked out into the livingroom.

"Who the heck is that?" X wondered aloud.

He noticed the bird was happily prancing about on his black coffee table, as if looking for something to eat.

'Sorry buddy, no food here,' thought X. He looked up through the skylight which was his most of his ceiling. A few hovercrafts flew overhead, distracting X to look out the large windows on the eastern side of his penthouse apartment. X looked out upon the city, which was the same as last night, except now with a clear blue sky save a few small clouds which threatened to bring snow. X walked up to the window and looked down to the far street below. Tiny blurs were moving up and down the sidewalks. X realized that his optical systems needed to be realigned. Air traffic continued, dodging the glass tubes which connected the buildings in a honeycomb fashion. Suddenly, the knock came at the door again, and X remembered why he had come out to the livingroom in the first place.

"Oh right," X whispered and then said aloud, "Just a minute!"

X jumped up the few stairs leading from his livingroom to the kitchen, and walked past the kitchen counter to open the double doors in the entranceway. Zero was leaning against the doorframe, looking rather bored. He was wearing his suit from last night, just without the jacket and a slightly different red shirt. His dirty blonde hair was ruffled as usual.

"About time. Did I wake you up?" asked Zero.

"No, not really." replied X.

"Is that so? So now you're growing a beard now to go with that hair?"

"What the heck are you talking about?"

X brought up his hand and brushed it against his rough face. He had forgotten to shave.

"Why don't you finish up and I'll meet you downstairs," Zero grinned.

---

Author's Comment: Wow. I used to be a terrible writer. For those of you wondering, there have been a few changes from the original. For one, I briefly allude to the whole "rich owning the leftover reploids" and X's fate handed to him from the government. I also avoid the whole X is Rock, because that was never anything but a confusing mess that wasn't handled well. It's still in there, but it's much more subtle and won't come up for a few chapters. X now recognizes Anyi (and should damnit, she's supposed to be somewhat famous from the University he WORKS AT). I still refer to her as a stranger though, just to drive the point home that they've never met before. I also took out the whole Dr. Light / Dr. Caine reference since it didn't work and doesn't carry past the first chapter. Also, the fact that Zero was out of town was made more clear.

Post your comments!