MM Reawakened: Prologue Ch. 2

Prologue Ch. 2: The Secret Project; Dr. Light's Last Hope

Six months have passed since that incident and nothing has been the same for Dr. Light. The aftermath of the incident that occurred six months ago has affected him physically and emotionally. All he thought about was what happened and the moment when I died burned a permanent picture in his mind… something, which for some odd reason he can't let go.

"Why Robert? Why did you go and do something so… careless? Was what you told me… to be true? Damn!"

My grandfather then slammed his fists to the table in a complete outburst. It was heard throughout most of the floor as the other scientists wondered what it was but didn't pay any mind to it. After the outburst was over, he then realized that Dr. Wily has his prized robots known as the Robot Master Series.

I should have realized this but I knew eventually that something like this would occur. With Dr. Wily in possession of my prized robots, he would have the entire world under his control. What should I do?

All my grandfather did was look up at the ceiling pondering what to do until he had some kind of idea. Taking out a sheet of paper and a pen, he began writing some stuff. As he wrote, a lot of different things came flowing through his mind and he was quick to pinpoint what is needed. Hours passed as he was still writing preparing something of great importance. The other scientists who were nearby began to worry but Dr. Light paid no mind as he continued to put focus on something big.

If I am to stop Dr. Wily and the robots he have stolen from me, I need to develop a robot that would surpass all my earlier works. For this, the robot should be different than the others. I know I did something like this before but… it didn't turn out as well as I hoped because of interference done by Dr. Wily. Wait a minute…

My grandfather looked around and found blueprints to the prototype he and Wily had once developed. Looking through the blueprints, he knew what needed to be done. Taking a good look between the blueprints of the robot prototype as well as the current plans… he had an idea in mind but he knew the risks involved.

What if I were to take the idea behind the prototype and combine it with my ideas… is it possible? It… it might work but I'm going to need a lot more than my intellect to build it. If I am to stop Wily then I must do something… right here, right now.

Dr. Wily took the piece of paper along with the prototype blueprints back to his house, which was far from the city of New Light. Arriving at his house with his work in tow, he went to the basement of his home and began working on something of great importance. The only thing that was on his mind was to begin work on a new kind of robot; a robot that possessed three different characteristics; compassion, self-determination and a human's will.

Through many sleepless nights, he had come up with many different designs for this new prototype though none of them were successful until something caught his eye. Dr. Light saw a picture on the wall, which immediately reminded him of me; a drawing of a super warrior robot that I saw on TV when I was a child. Knowing this, it gave him the inspiration needed to design his new robot. Every second that he spent was used to design and develop the perfect robot… a robot that would contain everything that he had envisioned not to mention the power needed to stop Dr. Wily's plans.

* * *

After about a week filled with sleepless nights and workful days, his work had finally paid off. It happened when Dr. Light had called together his assistants in an emergency meeting. What would take place afterwards was simply just fate determining its course.

"I've called all of you here because… for the past few days I've been hard at work designing blueprints for a new project. Six months ago… I had lost someone very dear to me. Dr. Wily had come and stole my prized robots, the Robot Master series. My grandson tried to stop them but he ended up paying for it… with his life."

The assistants began having mixed feelings with regards to the situation that was currently at hand. However, one of them had a sense of curiosity and asked Dr. Light something.

"Um, Dr. Light… I hate to be the bearer of worry but I have a question?"

"Yes? Wait do I know you somewhere? Why are you part of this meeting?"

"I apologize, my name is Higsby Yamitaro. This is my first day and all but… you have called us all here for a meeting. Have you been quite busy with something?"

"Uh… yes I have. If you can just take a look at this, I have been hard at work designing blueprints for a new robot. It is based off the DLN Robot Master series that I had recently completed months ago."

"Interesting… it seems the designs share similarities to the Robot Master series. I spoke with one of your assistants before the meeting and have already gotten a good idea of what they are."

"Yep. Even as we speak, Dr. Wily has my hard work in his possession and plans to use them for world conquest. What I have planned is basically… something that could stop him. He has taken away almost everything I cared for… first my robots and then my grandson. We begin my project first thing tomorrow morning. I require all the assistance needed for this. Dismissed."

All of the lab assistants left the room except for one who was still studying the blueprints of my grandpa's new project. Dr. Light sat down holding a cup of freshly brewed coffee as he saw Higsby studying the plans.

"Um… excuse me, Higsby but I feel as if you have an unnerving curiosity toward my blueprints. Is there something that interests you regarding them?"

"Yes, of course. You see; I recently graduated from New Light University in the study of physics and science. Looking through your work, it turns out you are developing something much more… complex than your Robot Master series that you developed six months ago."

"I'm already aware of the Robot Master series that I had once developed. There's a reason why I'm developing this robot… you see, before the Robot Master series I took part in another project."

"Another project? What was it called Dr. Light?"

"That project was referred to as… Project Blues. One year ago, Dr. Wily and I were working on a prototype humanoid robot. I wanted to make it as close to human as possible but… there were a few problems. At first we thought it was the robot's guidance system that was the problem which basically explained how Wily thought I had something to do with it."

"Then if it wasn't the guidance system that was responsible Dr. Light, what was it?"

"The night after trying to find out what happened, Dr. Wily stole the blueprints that I asked him to scrap. He blamed me for causing the guidance system that malfunctioned. I didn't realize it then but somehow, I became responsible for how Wily is right now."

"Don't blame yourself, Dr. Light. What Dr. Wily would do afterwards is inhuman or in a sense that I put more appropriate… villainous."

"I appreciate your kind words but may I please continue?"

"Oh, my apologies Doctor… please continue."

"The next day as I was looking through the schematics along with documents relating to Blues, I discovered that Dr. Wily… was right. It wasn't the guidance system that was responsible; it was due to an imbalance in his energy core. Because of that flaw, it created a result that not even I was aware of… an ability to think for himself… it was unheard of in any machine. After running many different tests that took many days to see if the design that we created would be used for later robots, I discovered the flaw and tried my best to fix it. But as a result of the independence he gained, he refused. Knowing that I was going to fix the flaw that was in him, he ran away."

"Whatever happened to him? Do you know where he is right now?"

"I'm afraid not… I don't know where he is at the moment. I thought that his core reached a point where it would destroy him… he's one of a kind but I never thought that a flaw in his system would cause him to gain this kind of independence... I'm such a fool. If only I listened to my grandson in the first place…"

"Dr. Light, don't blame yourself. Your grandson did his part in trying to save your robots. He knew how hard you worked on them and tried his best to prevent Wily from taking them."

"I should have listened to his words… because of that, I not only lost my robots but my grandson as well. Anyway, with this new robot it will bring the world a sense… of hope. We begin the project first thing tomorrow and I require all the assistance possible to do so. You are dismissed Higsby."

With the words still fresh in his mind, Higsby got up and left the meeting room knowing full certain of what he should be doing. With that out of the way, Dr. Light was now by himself sipping on coffee and looking at a picture of his family when they were in happier times. The picture showed myself, along with my father and Dr. Light enjoying a peaceful day at New Light Park. Seeing that picture brought tears in my grandfather's eyes but it also gave him the determination to go through with the project. What he didn't know was that the project he would go through would give me another chance at life.

The next day followed as Dr. Light along with his many lab assistants including Higsby began work on a new project that would be known as… Project Next-Generation or NG for short. After one final observation of the blueprints, the project had begun. With no time to waste, they knew that the situation would be dire but in this case, every second can't be wasted.

"Our first step is to develop the hardware or in a more simpler case, the physical body. As you can see here, the hardware of this robot is a bit different for in this case the robot we are developing here is suited not just for regular duties but for battle as well."

"For battle? Dr. Light, are you saying that you have gathered all of us here to develop a new type of battle robot?"

"That is what I'm saying Higsby… or do you not wish to get involved in this project? I can prep up your termination papers if that is—"

"No, I want to get involved. I share your pain about losing someone dear and I feel as if that something should be done… especially against the likes of Dr. Wily."

"Very good. Now then, let us begin. Every second we waste would have Wily spend it on using my robots to attack the world. Let us begin immediately."

Dr. Light began having his lab assistants develop the hardware which consisted first of the robotic skeleton which would comprise of several parts. It was a long and difficult task in developing this new robot though this would prove to be even more challenging than the development of the Robot Master series. Minutes became hours… and then hours became days as the project continued onward with little success.

"What is our status with the project Higsby? Any progress?"

"Not much sir. We have been able to develop around 50% of the robot's hardware. The other half is becoming a bit of a problem and we may need some additional assistance."

"I see… not to worry, Higsby. I believe it is fair that I should get involved with the project. Once the hardware is developed, we will move on to the second phase, which will be the artificial intelligence or AI for short. Be sure that this is notified among all the assistants here at the Labs."

"Um, there's just one problem… you see though we have been able to complete 50% of the robot's hardware, half of the assistants at the Labs just called it quits. They say that a project like this is just too much for them to handle. Luckily, myself along with a few dedicated assistants have continued onward with the hardware and we are in need of your assistance."

"Then there is no time to waste… Higsby, gather whatever help you can and follow me. We must complete this project immediately."

Without wasting any time, Dr. Light and Higsby returned to one of the labs where the project would continue only this time, they only had a limited number of assistants to work with. With every second that passed, they all worked as hard as they could in completing the first portion of the project. As time went forward development of the hardware continued but at a much quicker pace than before. A few hours had passed and the hardware was finally completed which made Dr. Light very pleased. He took a good look at it and knew that he along with his assistants were able to succeed.

"With the hardware or physical body completed, we now move on to the second part and that is the AI or artificial intelligence."

"How can it be done? Dr. Light, prepping the artificial intelligence for this robot will take a lot of time because of various factors."

"What would you prefer then? You do realize that the development of an AI is a complicated task that a person of my caliber would require."

"In case you haven't noticed, you aren't the only person that studies Artificial Intelligence… I've studied it as well and by seeing these blueprints, we'll need to develop an AI that shares similar characteristics to the robot that we're designing. In this case, we need to develop the AI that contains a certain personality and if I know you better than anyone else, I'd say you want the personality of someone you cherish very greatly."

"You seem to have a knack for understanding people don't you Higsby? You are right… the AI I wanted to incorporate into this robot contains the personality of someone I lost… my grandson Robert."

"Your grandson? I see… do we have anything that can help incorporate his personality into the robot… it can be anything though."

"Hmmm… I think I have something that could help us. It's this disk I've brought which contains some moments of my grandson's life when he was still alive. I don't know if it'll be enough but I'm only just going to pray and hope that it works."

"Don't be getting mellow doctor… let's give it a shot. Who knows… maybe you might make the impossible possible. Just have faith and go for it."

"You're right. Let's do it… you seem to know a lot about robotics and such. What inspired you to go into this field?"

"Very simple Dr. Light… I'm a big fan of Japanese animation especially when it had to do with robots. I thought for certain that if I can make robots based on what I saw, I would change the world… in a positive way."

"Well, I believe today will be the day that the impossible will be made possible. Come, we must hurry."

Dr. Light and Higsby quickly went to one of the laboratories and began to incorporate what was inside the disk that Dr. Light had carried with him. What happened next was something nobody believed… all the data, which were memories of Robert in peaceful times, were quickly transferred into the new robot. All that remained was to wonder and see if the robot would adapt to the data attained. The two of them didn't say a thing as they wonder if it would come to life. Seconds became minutes as the two scientists waited to see if any results would come in but so far… nothing.

"Strange… I thought the data would have the robot adapt to it. Are we missing anything?"

"I don't know. I've checked through everything carefully and yet… where did I go wrong?"

"Don't blame yourself Dr. Light… everyone makes mistakes sometimes. If it at first you don't succeed, then try again right? Dr. Light?"

"I spent months on this robot… why? Where did I go wrong? Tell me Robert… what did I do? What did I do to deserve this? I didn't mean any harm… I wanted my new creations to be recognized so I can help people. Why? Was I doomed to suffer because of my actions… just like your father did?"

All Dr. Light can do was be on the floor shedding tears realizing that no matter what he did, it was all for naught. He realized that his actions caused the tragedies that came forth… his Nobel Prize winning robots stolen by Dr. Wily and my life all taken in a flash. It hurt my grandfather severely because he had felt a loss years ago when my father died in an experiment that went horribly wrong. Higsby did as much as possible to console him but the pain of losing what was important to him was too great to bear. Where it became a moment of pain and loss would soon be something much more… unbeknownst to the both of them, the robot started showing signs of movement. When Higsby got a good look at the sensor, it started showing life signs meaning that something unexpected has occurred.

"Doctor… Dr. Light, come quick. You got to see this. The robot… it's coming to life!"

Dr. Light looked up and saw the life readings occur and looked at the robot starting to function. The both of them saw it move its fingers trying to gain life as they then looked at the computer seeing the programming kick in as its functions began to take effect.

"Look… optic sensors operational, AI at 100%, body sensors nominal, pulse power normal, core at stable… Dr. Light… we did it. It's a miracle."

"Yes, we did… Robert, even in death… is your will giving this robot life? Maybe there is hope after all…"

The data continued its analyzation while the robot went from going through simple functions to more complicated ones. It wasn't long before the robot's eyes opened as it took a look around and it then saw Higsby and Dr. Light. It then turned to look around and saw the rest of his body, which led him to wonder one simple thing.

"Where… where… where am I? What is this place?"

Looking around, the robot tried to get a firm grasp of the situation but as he tried to move, he ended up losing his balance and almost falling to the floor if it wasn't for Higsby who caught him at the last minute.

"It's okay… I got ya. Almost there… there ya go. Uh, this is tough to explain and all but… my name is Higsby Yamitaro but everyone calls me Higsby. That right there is Dr. Thomas Light, a well-known scientist… he created you. Do you have a name?"

"A name… I… my name… my… my name… I… I…"

All the robot can do was scream as he tried to get a grip on reality, which caused him to hold his head with both of his hands. It was trying to find out what was going on but something in its programming was causing it to interfere causing the robot to go a bit haywire.

"This isn't good… it seems something is interfering with the robot's AI. What's happening? Dr. Light what's going on?"

"I… I have no idea… something is causing the robot's AI to malfunction. I don't know what's the cause."

"Did you make any errors when you implemented the AI into the robot?"

"No of course not. I thought that by implementing memories of my grandson into the AI, it would recognize who he was."

"Well whatever it is, if we don't keep it under control this could bring some serious problems."

"I understand. Activate emergency shutdown… now!"

Dr. Light was able to press a button, which caused the robot to go silent, and then shutdown. Normally, robots would have an automatic shutdown mode when it reaches the point that it would go haywire but in the case of a robot like this, it had a manual shutdown that would occur when automatic shutdown wouldn't be possible. With the robot taken offline manually, Higsby and Dr. Light try to figure out what went wrong.

"I don't get it… I thought that by incorporating images of my grandson into the robot's AI should contribute something but… did I mess up?"

"Don't blame yourself Dr. Light… besides, it isn't your fault that something like this would happen. Maybe something went wrong with the robot's AI or something."

"The AI isn't the cause… something or somewhat is preventing the robot from functioning properly. What is it? I just… I just don't get it."

"I think I know… I think that the data involving your grandson is causing the AI to react very wildly and I feel as if that isn't enough, it's causing a backlash which is somehow rejecting it."

"Is Robert trying to tell me something? I don't know. I just really don't know what to do. Give me a sign Robert… why? Why are you doing this?"

Higsby took a look at the data again and tried to make some adjustments by having the AI interact with the data. It only took him a few minutes but hopefully this time the robot would be able to function efficiently.

"Alright… let's see that this time it works. If it doesn't then we'll have to go back to the drawing board."

Higsby pressed a button, which allowed the robot to reactivate, and now with a more adaptable AI started to boot up and go online. Once it reactivated itself, its eyes opened and took a good look around. He took a look at Wily and Higsby but instead of freaking out like before, he was filled with curiosity.

"Where… where… am I? What is… is this place?"

"Like before… we need to take some precaution Higsby."

"I got this so no worries… hello there. My name is Higsby… Higsby Yamitaro but my friends call me Higsby. This person right here is Dr. Thomas Light… he's a scientist. He created you and gave you life… like all his other robots. So tell me… what's your name?"

"My… my name? I… I… my name is… I… I have… I have no name. Forgive me… but I wasn't implemented with a name. Could you give me one?'

"Doctor… this robot doesn't have a name. I think we forgot to give him one. Any ideas?"

"I do… though it is something that this robot may not be able to appreciate. I am Thomas Light, a world-renowned scientist and your creator. Six months ago, I lost someone who was very important to me… my grandson who went by the name of Robert Light. His passing had affected me very greatly and it is because of his death, it has given me the inspiration needed in creating you. You are the first of a new generation of robots... a new kind where they can do things other robots neither can nor normally do. I created you with one goal in mind… to be able to bring back someone that I had treasured greatly. You are unique… you are one-of-a kind and very different in almost every way… it's real hard to say but, you remind me of him."

The robot took all the information real well but what happened next would prove to be something that not even Light or Higsby can handle. It was then that the robot began to act wildly holding onto its head with its hands as if something was interfering with the robot's AI system. All Higsby and Light could do was watch and check at its readings to see if something else would occur but in case something went wrong, they could try the emergency shutdown but they didn't need to.

"Uh… what's… what's happening to me? These… these visions… what are they? I… I… can't… control it…"

The robot tried to comprehend the situation it was in but it wouldn't be long before things stopped and then it began to express itself in a way no one saw coming.

"Okay, first off… where in the hell am I and why am I… what? What's happened to me!?"

"Oh my… this could be bad. What do we do Dr. Light?"

"It seems that the memories of Robert has somehow interacted with the AI… but not in a way I expected."

"What are you looking at? What the hell happened to me? I need answers and I need 'em now!"

Sometimes life can be cruel and at times life can decide to be good to you by means of good luck. But when life decides to put you in a situation where you don't even know what's going on, that's when you know… life kinds of screws you over. In case you haven't noticed, the robot that Dr. Light, Higsby and several other scientists have spent weeks building contains my memories. Basically, I've been passed on from one body to another but due to the fact that my old body is unable to be revived, I end up with the next best thing… a body made out of machinery.

It only took a few hours before I got the idea what really happened after my supposed "death". Wily succeeded in obtaining my grandfather's Nobel Prize winning DLN Robot Master series and my grandpa couldn't do a damn thing. I tried to stop them only to end up feeling the aftermath of a plasma shot, which pierced through my body taking my life in the process. My death caused my grandfather to go through a depression and that upset him very greatly. It wasn't until he saw an old drawing I did when I was a child that sort of inspired him to do something about it.

He gathered what he could and began on a secret project that would be able to counter against what Dr. Wily had attained. Of the 20 scientists that were behind it, only 2 remained, my grandpa and Higsby who had somehow been able to build the hardware and the AI for the new project. When I awoke, I didn't know what was happening due to the fact that memories were flooding into my programming and for some strange odd reason, it had affected my cerebral functioning causing that outburst to occur. It wasn't until I was reactivated that everything started to make sense but after what my grandpa had explained to me, I realized that I came back for a reason.

"And that's about it… it's been more than six months since you've "died" and I never thought you would come back."

"Coming back would mean that I would be reborn starting again from scratch as a baby… but this is what I refer to as being brought back to life. I'm going to have to get used to this."

"I can tell for a fact that you are quite a marvel with this robotic body. Dr. Light had spent weeks building you and there are so many things you need to know about your new body."

"Is there anything I need to know about this because for some strange reason, I feel like total crap."

"Well for one thing, I built you to be close as human which could explain why you had that outburst earlier… and you were right. I should have listened to you to begin with… if I knew how dangerous it was to reveal those robots, then you would have never gotten yourself involved."

"You should have listened to me… my guess you had your head in the clouds because of the Nobel Peace Prize you won months ago. No wonder you are such an airhead. By the way gramps, is there anything you need to tell me about this new body."

"Well what you are in right now is a body that is considered to be revolutionary for its time. You are the first of a new generation of robots that I spent toil and trouble building. Looking through the previous robot designs, I realized that if I were to stop Dr. Wily, I would need to build something that would be able to surpass all my other designs in every way. That's when this project came in… project Reawaken. This project is basically to build a new series of robots and you are one of the first."

"One of the first huh? Talk about being different… I'm so not going to get used to this stuff."

つづく

On the next Mega Man: Reawakened

After being reborn again, Robert begins to enjoy his second chance at life. However, the evil Dr. Wily plans to make his move in the hopes of world conquest. With everything set, he begins his onslaught and only one person can stand in his way. The battle to save the future of humanity is about to begin on the next exciting episode of Mega Man: Reawakened… A Hero Emerges; Enter Mega Man.

A hero isn't born, it is created.