#virus with a heart (zero.exe)

[sentient-rift]

If you don't know Zero from Megaman X?

"I've yet to actually meet him, but I do know of the Reploid version of Zero. Mainly because I was told about him from Storm Eagle and the Deep Log trio."

[sentient-rift]

"Wait!" Zero shouted, immediately giving chase the moment the female Navi took off.

Something seemed off about the other Navi. The strange data must be effecting her. This was only a theory, since this was the first time Zero has met this stranger, and for all he knew, she was always this aggressive... But that seemed unlikely. Whatever the case, he needed that data. It couldn't get in the wrong hands. Zero continued to pursue this stranger, growing more desperate the longer this chase proceeded.

"Please, miss! You must give me that data! It's dangerous!"

Starter for @formerchaoslord

The trickling of 'water' as a small stream of data swafted through a shallow river path in the undernet, or so that's how it seemed to act as Phoebe would wade ankle deep in the passing data, all discarded and of no use to its original owners... yet creating quite the artificial eco system that resembled a blue tinted pocket within the data junkyard around her. It was oddly serene compared to the rest of the area...

And one man's trash, was another Phoebe's treasure as she'd sift her sight through to find something of interest, occasionally bending to pick out little flecks of something that seemed to catch her eye. Most of the time her findings then finding itself being skimmed across the waters surface as she found it to be of little use.

Though... something a little more out of the ordinary began to twinkle through the rippling surface. An excited thumping in her chest began to flutter as she'd dip in again and grab the little holden nugget of data from its resting place with a satisfying 'plunk!'

"What on earth..." She'd mutter under her breath, holding it up to the light to get a better look. The more she examined, the more the hairs on the back of her neck seemed to prickle up. "Huh... this seems... very out of place." Phoebe would comment to herself with a furrowed brow as she'd stand up and start looking around for any more familliar to it.

[sentient-rift]

(For compliment meme) Zero, both you and your Reploid self have such luxurious hair ~💗

(Anonymously (or not) compliment my muse to see their reaction.)

"Thank you. Though I hear that the reploid version had a... Less scarier face then I do. I'm somewhat a little envious about that."

"Hey! What about my hair? I'm pretty much a blue Zero! Is my hair luxurious, too?"

[sentient-rift]

I hid myself while I tried to repair myself

"...Why do I have mixed feelings about this quote? Also, why do I feel like I just did something convoluted?"

"The reason is kind of meta, Zero. I'll explain it to you later."

[sentient-rift]

((If you find these asks annoying, I will gladly stop))

*flies in like a helicopter*

...Ray, I hope you realize that I am prepare to fight over...you know who...but we can do it silently. Like girls do.

Duo, you are a sweet, sweet, innocent boi. Just like me before I went onto the internet...*sighs in innocent nostalgia*

wait Zero's here too--ah shoot, I'm surrounded by people that are completly out of my league...

*flies out like a helicopter *

"Looks like you got yourself a rival, Ray."

"It would appear so..."

"Um... Thank you for the compliment. I try my best to be a good protector of the universe, after all. But... How did the internet effect your innocence...?"

"Trust me, big guy. If you want to stay a protector of the universe, don't ever try to find out. The internet can be a dark place. Still not as bad as Lan's pickup lines, though..."

"Oh. Teseo's back. You here to see Nana?"

"Yep! Got a special videogame date planned. Really hope she likes it."

"I bet she will. She is the Ultimate Gamer, after all. Good luck, Teseo."

As Teseo, goes his way, Zero shows up.

"Hey, guys. I heard my name mentioned here. Did someone call me?"

"Well, someone did mention you, but you just missed them. They might come back later, though."

(And don't worry. I don't find the asks annoying.)

[sentient-rift]

Attention Link Navi gang! Have any of you tried Beasting Out? What kind of form would you like/need in a hypothetical case?

"Good question. None of us tried to Beast Out, but I feel it would be cool if we could. Without the 'going berserk' side effect, of course. I think I'd go for a form similar to Megaman's Elec Beast. I feel that's what my form would look like is something like that. I guess that means I'm in favor of a Gregar form. I want to have increased speed that give Quickman a run for his money."

"Hey! Can I get in on this, too? I want a Falzar form with some awesome blue fire wings! That would be so sick! And I want my Buner Jet attack to cover me in the flames and give me a fire bird appearance!"

"I would choose the Falzar form as well. An increased wingspan and increased power over wind sounds favorable."

"I don't really want to look scary, blip. But I did always want to fly. So I think I would pick a Falzar form. Preferably a form that's not so scary, blip. And I want to have the an ultra Hydro Cannon as an attack."

"If I had the ability to Beast Out, I want to have a Falzar form that gives me cosmic wings and have a ring of stars orbiting me."

"I feel a Gregar form is more my style. I want to have two spacecraft shaped lasers at each side and rocket fists."

"I would like a Gregar form that further emphasize the Kamaitachi inspiration of my design. I'd like to be able to create slashes that are so powerful, they create razor sharp tornadoes."

"If I had a Beast Out form, I'd like to have black armor, large bat wings, and claws. I'd call the form 'Absolute Zero.' Does that sound dumb?"

[sentient-rift]

Continued from here.

"Megaman... We seem to have some familiar guests visiting us."

"Megaman. Hikari."

"Chaud? Protoman? And... Is that...?"

"Deputy Planetman, at your service!"

"Deputy...? You mean you work for the Net Police now?"

"Correct, sir... Um, have we met?"

"Don't mind him. After his deletion, we found his leftover data, and he had no memory of his past. Having nowhere to go, he became my Link Navi and is now a member of the Net Police."

"Lost his memory... So he's just like me..."

"Anyway, we're here about the Dimensional Rift. We talked to Rift before seeing you, so we pretty much know the situation. With that said, we must officially monitor the activity here in order to make sure it doesn't cause any damage to our world or the cyber world."

"But unofficially, we're gonna join you in helping you guys fix dimensions. Looks like we're partners again, Megaman."

(Eugene Chaud, Protoman.EXE, and Planetman.EXE have joined the party!)

[sentient-rift]

Who here is the best at:

Hide and seek

Tag

Running race

"I'd say Elise for hide and seek since she's so good at using Invisible Chips and has some ninja skills."

"I try my best... Speaking of which, Roll is incredible at teleporting. I'm sure she's the best at tag."

"I actually played tag with Megaman before our battle in the Eagle Tournament. Took him a bit to actually catch me."

"And Emerl copied the skills of the 'Fastest Thing Alive.' I'm sure he's got the running race down."

"Does it really count when my super speed comes from someone else?"

[sentient-rift]

Dear all redeemed navies, what caused you to change your ways?

Being beaten by rockman.exe?

The humiliation of losing to a kid?

A change of heart?

Also, bit sensitive, but Lan, why don't you have trust issues about adults since Hinoken tricked you and it inadvertently lead to rockman.exe's death?

"For me, it started when Megaman saved my life. I had no reason to hold on to that hatred for all humans any longer. I wish to atone for my misdeeds so I can one day return to Dr. Cossack. I hope he'll forgive me..."

"Well, I lost my memory data, so I don't remember the time I was enemies with Megaman. But I think my past self might have been lonely and had no friends. Now I have a bunch of them, so even if I do get my memories back, I'm still gonna be on Megaman's side."

"I think you know my story. I used to be a virus, and Megaman gave me a chance and a new life as a Navi. I'm in his debt, and he's a true friend."

"Even though I'm a Duo of a different dimension who sees things differently, there was a time I was almost as extreme as the Duo of this dimension. But the Megaman of my dimension showed me the beauty of life and the good that's in the world. That's when I realized instead of focusing on destroying all that is evil, I must focus on protecting all that is good."

"And even though I wasn't exactly evil, I was a troublemaker who didn't care what I set on fire. After the Eagle Tournament, Atsuki eventually got locked up for all the damage we've done. It gave us time to think, as well as time to listen to wise people. Then one day we discovered that Mr. Match also turned over a new leaf, and he offered to teach us how to use our fire to help people rather than hurt them. And so, we became his students, and we joined Megaman to make up for all the trouble we caused him."

"Speaking of Mr. Match, I should have trust issues, especially at that guy, shouldn't I? Maybe Hub's nature to give people the benefit of the doubt rubbed off on me. I just... Really want to see the good in people. I know they can change if they really want to, and I witnessed many evil people have a chance of heart, including Match. I'll be more careful with trusting people, but I won't let it stop me from showing mercy."

[sentient-rift]

Something appeared before everyone. It looked like a portal of some kind.

"Wha... What is that!?" Starman panicked.

"Everyone, prepare yourselves!" said Zero, as he got his Z-Saber ready, "Something's comming through, and it's big!"

From the portal came a colossal being Megaman was all too familiar with.

"Duo!" he said, aiming his Mega Buster at the giant, "Have you come to destroy the Earth again?!"

"Fear not, Megaman," the giant said in a calm tone, "I am not the Duo of this dimension. I am from a dimension where I protect the Earth. In fact, in my dimension, you and I are allies."

Megaman slowly lowered his buster cannon.

"Allies...?" he repeated.

"Yes," Duo answered, "But I was sent here to lend you my assistance. I don't fully understand why I must be here, but I know it's right for me to help you. I just hope you'll let me."

Bass stepped forward, looking up to the giant program.

"We're happy to have you, Duo. Welcome to the team."

(Duo has joined the party!)

[sentient-rift]

NO, THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!! THERE'S NO REASON TO GO ON!! WHAT... WHAT AM I FIGHTING FORRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

"...Why do I feel sad all of a sudden?"

[sentient-rift]

"So... Are you two ready for this?"

"No..."

"No..."

"Me neither... But this has to be done."

The three Navi's nodded in unison. The trio then made their way to Starman.

"Hey, guys... Is something wrong?"

Megaman, Bass, and Zero stood silently for awhile until Zero finally spoke up.

"Starman... There's something we have to tell you. It's... About your past..."

Zero and Megaman both shared their parts about Starman's past, such as how he used to work for WWW and spread the Zero Virus through a fake vaccine. They even told him about his more malicious personality before losing his memories. Starman didn't speak a word until they finished.

"I... I see... Well, then... If you'll excuse me. There's something I gotta do."

Starman walked away after that. Bass was about to go after him, only for Zero to stop him.

"It's best we give him some time alone to reflect."

Reluctantly, Bass agreed and stood down. He, Zero, or Megaman had any idea where Starman would go or what he would do...

[sentient-rift]

"Alright. I made contact with him. He should be arriving soon."

"Good. Thank you, Zero."

"So, uh... What's this 'Megaman' like?"

"He's a good person. You'll like him."

As if on cue, a familiar blue navi enters the scene.

"Hey, everyone! Good to see you again!"

"Megaman... It's been awhile. I have to ask..."

"Don't worry! Zero already filled me in. And thankfully, we already have a solution!"

"We have a special Copy Bot that will allow you to enter the real world. It'll nerf your abilities a bit, but you can use it anytime."

"Believe it or not, the nerfing is good news. If I'm to atone, I'll need restraints. Don't want to be reckless..."

"You've really grown, Bass. If you don't mind, I'd like to help you on your journey to atonement."

(Megaman has joined the party!)

[sentient-rift]

IMMA FIREIN' MAH LAZER!!

"So am I!"

"Me, too!"

"You two have fun with that. I'll stick with my laser sword, thank you very much."

[sentient-rift]

"Hey, buddy! Why the long face?"

Bass let out a sigh before he answered.

"I saw some Navis who needed help... But they ran from me before giving me a chance."

"Hey... Don't let it get you down. They may not know you're a good person, but I do."

"I appreciate that, StarMan... But I fear it'll make it harder for me to atone if no one will let me..."

"Atoning is never easy, Bass. In fact, the road to being a hero is usually the harder choice than being a villain."

The mysterious voice took both Bass and StarMan by surprise. They turned around to see a familiar face... While at the same time being a face they haven't seen in awhile.

"Hey... Haven't I... Seen you somewhere before?"

"Y-you're..."

"Yes... I am Zero. If you'll let me, I would like to help you on your road to atonement."

Zero.EXE has joined the party!

[sentient-rift]

250

Send me a number 1-500 and my muse will anonymously talk about yours.

"There's something I like about that swordsman Reploid. He looks like both a leader and a warrior. Perhaps he and I could spar some time.

"...Funny. I'm sure this is the first time I met him, yet in a strange way, I feel like I've seen him before... Like we were... Friends in the past. Maybe in a different universe we were friends? I'm still trying to understand all of this Multiverse stuff...

"Either way, I have confidence that he and I will get along."