"I still think I should be out there with the reporters." Wily said. The two doctors stood at the front door as the crowd gathered outside the window. Roll gave a thumbs up after finishing Dr. Light's tie, and hesitantly stared at Wily before disappearing into the kitchen.

"We've been over this Albert. We want to calm the public down from what has happened, and they'll want answers. It's better if I tell the story without the whole 'alien robot temple' bit. And it's better if they don't know the existence of our robots yet, as we haven't done the proper procedures to see if they're truly okay."

"I told you they're okay! I looked over their procedures myself while you were busy tending to your golden children! I should at least get a say in it, since I helped save the world!" Wily grumbled.

"It's a no Albert. Let me calm the public, and then we'll talk about your involvement." Light finished before opening the door. Groups of humans and robots filled the front yard, flashing lights blinding both of them. Human reporters were asking questions so fast, neither doctor caught the full sentences. The robot reporters moved to the back to avoid hurting the other reporters. As Doctor Wily moved to the side, Doctor raised his hand for the yelling crowd to quieten.

"Doctor Light, do you have any theories on what could've possibly happened to cause the global blackout?" The first reporter asked.

"I have many theories over what happened, but it seems like the most logical explanation is that it was a powerful electromagnetic pulse." Dr. Light answered truthfully, and another reporter squirmed to the front with a camera.

"What could've possibly produced an EMP that powerful? Are you suggesting it could be natural?" They asked.

"I highly doubt that it's natural. A natural EMP wouldn't just wipe all world tech out at once."

"Doctor Light, are you aware about the lives that have been hurt by the resulting explosions of your robot models? Many of the robots that were made in your name and distributed around the world were partly responsible for some fatalities. Do you have any comments to say to them?" A reporter shouted in the back.

Dr. Light hesitated before continuing. Wily raised a brow and moved for the cameras to get a shot of him. "I am truly sorry for everyone out there recovering from the blackout, and I offer my deepest condolences. No one should have to suffer like this. Rest assured, I will make sure to offer any help to those in need in any way I can."

"Do you intend to make new robot masters to replace the ones that have been affected?" The reporter interrupted.

"I..." Dr. Light had faltered at the sentence. The halt gave the crowd fuel to continue and inched closer to the doctors.

"Are you going to continue with your old models despite previous evidence of corruption to their programming?" They persisted.

"Dr. Light, there have been rumors that you and Dr. Wily have been working on new projects together. Is there any truth to these rumors?" The first reporter moved to the mic too close to Dr. Light's face.

"Do you expect the public to feel safe with the current situations?!"

"Is Doctor Wily reformed or was he part of this?"

"What are your plans to help this?!"

Dr. Light fell to silence as the crowd of reporters grew wilder and throwing questions at a rapid pace. His eyes could only watch the crowd and admit he was losing control of the situation. Dr. Wily finally pushed himself in front of Doctor Light and waved his hands maniacally, which thankfully grabbed the crowd's attention.

"Listen, Thomas and I have suffered from this as much as all of you. We are working our hardest to make this right, so stop bothering us so we can get back to work. Thank you kindly for the questions. Good day." Without another word, Wily pushed Light through the door and locked it. The news reporters knocked on the door relentlessly, and Wily walked through the kitchen to the lab. Once they were out of earshot did Wily pull at his hair.

"You shouldn't have done that Albert! Those were live broadcasts, so everyone around the world saw you do that!" Light said.

"I expected a thank you, but no. Criticize my actions back there since you were handling it so well. I saw that Thomas, and so did the entire world. You froze! You stood there and let those leeches feed off you and pound you to the dirt! It was because of me that I saved whatever ounce of dignity you had left back there." Dr. Wily snapped back.

Dr. Light was silence by Dr. Wily's comeback and slumped in the chair. "I suppose. I didn't expect the questions to go that far. To go so personal too."

"You were never good with controlling the crowds anyway. And besides, isn't it best we get to our own business instead of pandering to those leeches outside?" Wily smiled grabbing large blueprints from the computer. He spread the paper throughout the table, revealing scribbles and diagrams of a massive robot. The scaling made the robot several times larger than a house, the lists of materials required were on a separate paper that extended from the blue print. The top of the blue print had the big project spelled in bold letters. Light sat straight looking through the details.

"Albert, you finished it!" He exclaimed.

"Why of course I did! Nothing will stop such a great mind from perfecting his plans! Even if I'm not getting the credit." Wily said, with a hint of sarcasm in the last part.

"GAMMA. The biggest project we'll have ever created. Hopefully we can gather all the parts and a powerful enough source for it." Light smiled.

"What is it even for? You gave me the blueprints to work out the finer details, but never bothered to tell me what it does." Wily asked.

"Project GAMMA is meant to be a protector of the people. With its size and sturdy body, GAMMA would be withstand natural catastrophes that even robot masters have trouble working under. Think of it Albert. Volcanoes, landslides, tsunamis, and even hurricanes. Not only would GAMMA be able to resist these calamities, he could help anyone in need under these crises. He could become the greatest peacekeeper to humanity and robots." Light said.

"A mega robot intended to withstand anything. Impressive feat Thomas." Wily hummed.

"It will take a while to get the proper materials, but I believe it will be worth it in the end. GAMMA will be all worth it." Light said. He started to go through the computers, contacting any companies willing to lend a hand.

"I sure hope so Thomas. What will happen to the others?" Wily shrugged and began to look through the blueprints.

"I believe mayor Leo will be joining us tomorrow to give our boys their jobs. I'm excited yet sad to see them leave the house so early. I hope they're accepted despite what happened." Light said.

"We built them strong. They'll handle it." Wily responded with confidence.

"Of course, but we have to acknowledge that this is different than the last times. Our lives are under unusual circumstances, and we'll all need to help each other through this. That is how we'll change the bond between humans and robots." Light said and opened his tool box.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rock peeked through the windows of Light Labs as the news cars grew closer. He had counted up to five before Roll called for his attention. The two were tidying up as much of the lab as possible, polishing every dusty counter and cleaning the rooms until there was nothing left to fix. The noises from the crowd grew louder at the front door, and Roll finished sweeping the floor. The mumbling of Doctor Wily and Light came from the kitchen, which Rock had no doubt they were arguing about how to deal with the press.

"Hey Rock, are you okay?" Roll asked.

"Yeah I guess. I just feel different." Rock murmured.

"Different how?" Roll put the broom down and the two sat down on the couch.

"The city is still being repaired even after I saved the world. Wily's robots are still running around. Doctor Light and Wily are arguing again. And now the news is going to want to know what happened. It just feels so...dark." Rock said. Roll smiled and gently hugged him.

"You did save the world Rock, and you saved many more people from being hurt. And you saved me. Don't stress yourself over what happened, because you did the best you could!" She reassured.

"But have you noticed the Wi-lights being weird?" Rock asked.

"They did get repaired only days ago." Roll suggested.

"But they seem so off. Ever since they were taken by Ra Moon, they haven't been the same after we repaired them. Snake tried to bite me this morning." Rock whispered in a volume only his sister could pick up.

"They were kidnapped Rock, you saw them while you fighting to save the world. Maybe they're just in shock." Roll whispered back.

Rock would have taken it into consideration if he didn't witness their change in behavior himself. Some of them remained the same like Magnetman and Hardman, but the others grew more obvious over time. While Needleman remained sassy to his brothers, there were times where his aggressive personality turned worse, such as throwing his needles in Rock's direction when he opened his door. Another time is when he insulted Doctor Light and left before anything else was said. Rock had wondered if this was always Needleman or if he had changed for the worse.

Sparkman, who Rock normally saw as a cheerful fellow had another side to his personality he never saw before. When Spark absorbed and manipulated a certain amount of electricity, his once happy personality would turn erratic and crazy. Rock could recall Spark giggling like a mad child when he short circuited some transformer boxes, and gradually turned upset when everyone avoided him until he ran out of energy. Dr. Wily reassured that it was a temporary issue, but the event still startled Rock nonetheless.

Geminiman seemed to have developed a narcissistic behavior towards himself, which only turned worse when he started cloning himself more. He would horde the mirrors and say the same compliments over and over again, but always to himself. He hardly acknowledged anyone anymore, except he seemed to be terrified of Snakeman's presence for some reason. Rock knew how much Gemini liked his looks, but not to this degree.

As for Snakeman, he seemed to turn more predatory in his actions, which reminded Rock of the biting incident the occurring morning. In every situation he walked into, Snake was either sneaking around scaring the bolts of everyone around him or randomly chasing them for his own amusement. Rock found it disturbing how the reptilian robot would stare at him for hours on end, only to laugh and leave the room. No matter what Roll said, this was not the Snakeman he chatted with on Astil's rooftop and told him to run from a threat. Snakeman would never chase him down like prey for amusement. Snake would never mentally torture him or his brothers like this. None of them would act like this.

These weren't the half-brothers he knew.

"I'm sure Snake has a good reason for what he did. Why don't you go talk with them while I prepare the doctors?" Roll said. Rock chuckled and climbed the stairs, his approach to the Wi-light's door growing more hesitant with each step.

"You can feel it don't you?" Suddenly he was alerted to a hiss on the ceiling and Snake was latched on the wall.

"Snake?" Rock asked.

"I've been feeling it for days now, ever since we were reactivated. At first, I thought it was a malfunction in our systems and Dr. Wily fixed it, but I still feel different. Everything is not the way it should be. My brothers are not themselves, but they are not aware of the changes that are happening around us. Ever since that alien computer hijacked my brain I can do things I have not been able to before. I can hear a voice I am unfamiliar with. Snakes that are nonmechanical seem to listen to me. And it seems I have developed a desire to hurt and hunt anyone around me, much like that bite wound on your arm." Snake looked to the ground, his red eyes shaking in a manner that showed he was scared. But what he was scared of Rock couldn't tell. His speech was all over the place and too cryptic to make sense.

The reptilian robot crawled down on the wall inches from the robot boy's face. Rock backed against the wall in instinct, but relaxed as Snake gazed at the puncture mark on his arm. He presented a weird vial and rubbed it over the puncture area.

"That will prevent any contamination to your systems until it gets patched up." Snake said.

"Um, thank you Snakeman. I don't know what to say." Rock muttered.

"I am not me. Watch your back, or else fangs won't be the worse you'll face." Suddenly, Snake's voice dropped and his slipped back into his room, the clicking of the door lock filling Rock's ears. He was left speechless by the mixed message his brother left from his departure. He felt there was something different with his brothers, but Snake's statement made it clear that he had the same feeling. He says no one else knows what is going on, but Rock couldn't help being skeptical. Regardless if Snake felt different, it would be impossible for him to control living snakes or hear voices. Perhaps this was one of his half-brother's attempts to scare him with another mind game? Whatever the reason, Rock opened the door to his plopped and slowly drifted to sleep to clear his thoughts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first thing that welcomed Shadow was a blaring noise and a blinding light. He staggered back hitting against another object that screeched horrific noises. A pungent odor choked him of clean air and he coughed wildly in desperate attempt to clear his voice. He whirled around to make sense of the overwhelming environment. The origin of the high pitched noises and lights appeared to be oddly shaped boxes with clear openings, revealing humans at the front. He heard of these from Ra Moon. Cars were what they were called. One thing for sure, he hated the loud noise.

Ignoring the shouting of multiple humans, he ran as fast as he could. He passed every still car that blared past him, and dodged the sudden turns of cars almost colliding into him. Lights in brilliant colors filled the tall buildings. Shadow couldn't recognize where he was, for this was not the city he saw back at the forest. He slowed his running and came to a stop in a opening in the street. A metal box dangled above his head flashing red, yellow, and green lights. Cars at all corners stopped, some humans blaring horns while others watched with mouths agape. Pedestrians filled the sidewalks and watched Shadow in awe.

"What is that? Is that a robot master?" Another human asked.

"It couldn't be. It's probably some nerd in a costume." Someone in the crowd dismissed the question, resuming to record the situation.

"Hey, get out of the road! Some of us have places to be!" One of the humans in the car shouted.

"Just order the robot off the road!"

Shadow noticed several humans in dark uniforms among the crowd rapidly approaching. He saw weapons dangling from their wrists and following his instinct took a stance. The humans made a motion with their hands and came within several feet of him.

"It definitely looks like a robot. Maybe it is one of the robot masters." The first officer said softly.

"I know robot masters are still new around the world, but I have never seen one like this. It seems so...weird." The second cop murmured. He was more nervous compared to his companion, who was more casual in body language.

"Someone must have left their model unintended. Let's just ask its designation number and we'll go from there." The first officer approached Shadow normally, but the ninja couldn't see what his hand was holding. He felt uneasy acknowledging he was being cornered by several officers and other humans now. "State your designated function. Who do you belong to?"

Shadow blinked in shock and his eyes instantly narrowed, his hands balling into fists. His red eyes flared to the astonishment of the pedestrians who began to back away. Three more officers walked around him, spitting random thoughts about his appearance that felt sickening. He looked to the first officer, who kept an impatient look, and decided to refuse to answer to such disrespect. Turning his attention away from the officer, he gazed at a colorful building displaying a boy in blue armor. He quickly recognized the boy as Megaman being squished and tossed playfully by seven more robots. They were all smiling and laughing, the camera's focus fading to a pink haired reporter.

This is Plum, reporting live at the residence of the father of robotics of Doctor Thomas Light. Earlier today, several reporters have asked the great roboticist questions regarding the sudden global blackout that had claimed many lives over the course of the weeks. And while some answers have remained unclear, Doctor Light promises to help the world in any way he can, just like the wonderful Megaman did to protect us in the past.

"Hey! Don't ignore the question! Who is in charge of your function?" The officer repeated with more aggression, earning a disrespectful glare from the ninja.

"Where does Megaman live?" He asked in a monotone manner. He took one step, and the surrounding officers made nervous glances, some slowly reaching for stun weaponry.

"W-We don't have time for this." The first officer's voice wavered, slowly coming to a realization that Shadow refused to answer his demands.

"Tell me where Megaman lives, and I will leave you to whatever your purpose is." He repeated in the same tone as before.

"Sir, what is this!? Could this model be a rogue? It is just like the robot masters that went rampant months ago." The second officer shouted, barely managing to conceal his fear.

"Stand down, or we'll be forced to shut you down!" The officers commanded. Shadow was annoyed by the human's aggression behavior. He hasn't done anything in this encounter to warrant this behavior. He acknowledged the dents some cars had in his attempt to avoid being crushed, but he saw it as the humans' faults for now slowly down in time. There was no way they knew of Ra Moon's plans to destroy this planet. He had been in suspended hibernation with it for thousands of years. If this truly was the normal behavior for the top species of this planet, he felt thoroughly disgusted. Why Megaman wanted to protect this disrespectful species was beyond his understanding.

 He heard a muffled shout before something roughly gripped his shoulder. His skin felt on fire and he whipped his head towards the officer attempting to force him down. The officer's eyes went wide at the ninja's blazing eyes and sharp teeth that he didn't get to move from the hook colliding with his jaw. The surrounding crowd and officers shouted in horror as the punched human screamed in pain against the pavement, blood and broken teeth dripping from the face. 

Shadow didn't have time to register the other cops aiming their weapons before he fled into the alleys. He squeezed into a opening through the building, tripping over junk and trash cans. He turned around once to see the officers giving chase but smirked as he got farther away, eventually disappearing over a roof from a propped container.

He looked at every corner of the roof in case of potential threats and escape routes. Once he felt safe did he slump over and exhale sharply. His heart pounded against his chest. Droplets of rain tapped his armor and helmet, slowly forming a gentle downpour over the city. The dust that long since clung to his body washed away, revealing a beautiful dark blue reminiscent of a pure night sky.

"Don't show them fear. Remember your training." Shadow mumbled to himself. Easing his shaking, he looked to the pouring city. As the cops disappeared into the crowds again, he looked at the freeze frame of Megaman and the seven robots. In the background of the frame and reporters was a white and blue building, guarded by trees and mountains in the back.

With his quest fresh in his mind, he leapt across the roofs to begin his search of Megaman. He needed to find this boy. And once he did, he was going to kill him for bringing death upon all of them.