What happened with Zero in between his unveiling in Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters and his fight with Sigma in the Megaman X4 flashback scene?

That place where they found him in X4 was the ruins of Wily's lab, right? Was that the first time Zero had been activated? I doubt it, because he seems to have flashbacks of the distant past. So, when was he originally activiated, what did he do, and how did he wind up where the Maverick Hunters found him?

Also, I think that in X5, Alia said that X and Zero's capsules were both found together, in the same place. What's that about?

Some time after X woke up and started the Reploid race, a hunter unit either awoke, or found a very recently awakened Zero who killed them all. Eventually Sigma went off to fight the Maverick and we know the results of that battle.

And no, I don't believe the capsules were found next to each other, would you mind finding the quote?

He's not reciting a quote. In the battle against Ultimate Sigma in X5, the room contains a blue capsule and a red capsule. Above the blue one is a sort of blueprint silhouette of X, and above the red one is a sort of blueprint silhouette of Zero. I personally think that the final set of areas in X5 are the buried ruins of a Wily base. Possibly even the ruins of a Skull Fortress.

Anyways, back on track.

We do know that Sigma went after Zero because Zero wiped out not only the Maverick Hunter known as Gamma/Garma, but his entire unit. That would've prompted them to send their strongest.

I'm not sure if where Zero was found by Sigma's unit is where he awakened or if he wandered in there after killing Gamma's unit, but I think that he wandered it. It almost seemed as if Sigma's unit had been searching for him... they'd found what was left of Gamma's unit, possibly a single dying survivor they couldn't save, and began hunting for "that red maverick."

Edited by RisingDragon on August 28, 2006 at 16:57:15.

The final stages of X5 seemed more like a distortion than an actual location. I mean, there's no reason that X and Zero would be sealed in the same place, considering that they were designed to destroy each other, and that their creators hated each other.

Sigma could've taken the capsule from where Cain originally found X and transported it. Seeing how he was created by Cain, he'd have an inkling to where it'd be. I'm sure that if I were X or Zero, I'd be a bit disturbed at seeing that room. Though if anything, that place would be a likely area as to where Zero awakened from after the Cataclysm.

And X wasn't designed to destroy Zero... but we definitely know the vice versa holds true. Zero was designed for the express purpose of disposing of X.

And if you think about it, if its a buried base, whose to say the Zero Virus couldn't have affected it to make it seem so warped? Though I admit its layout was quite different from a Skull Fortress. The only clues in it are the introduction, similar to a Robot Master level, the Black Devil, and Wily's symbol in the Zero/X battle room.

Edited by RisingDragon on August 28, 2006 at 16:57:57.

Ah. Haven't played that game in a while, didn't remember that debriefing. Maybe Zero arrived to destroy X way back when, but was buried before he could complete his objective, only to get freed after X was awakened by Dr. Cain?

Or maybe they were both buried in the same general area? I mean the place could be less specific than we've been thinking.

True. If its the same city as LightLabs was, it'd be easy to assume that a Skull Fortress was nearby. Or if Zero was going after X's deactivated self, but was stopped by the Cataclysm or whatever, he'd be near LightLabs.

This is good feedback, everybody. It's all starting to make a lot of sense (which is rare for MMX!). Thanks for the quote Doc. I meant to say it was in MMX6. Even though they were both originally discovered in the same forbidden area doesn't mean they were in the same room. Sigma probably is the one who brought X & Zero's capsules together in that room.

But now, if it's true that Zero had recently awoken when Gamma's unit encountered him, then why was he asleep in the first place. He was obviously up and running during the Cataclysm so how did he wind up in stasis again? Could it be that he shut himself down, as he was trapped in a wrecked building at some point? Like maybe he was coming after X, but then Dr. Light self-destructed his lab, trapping both X and Zero in the same general area? I'm just using my imagination here. That seems to coincide with the beginning sequence of the first MMX.

I'd like to hear everybody else' theories if you have one. And I have to ask a stupid question. What is the Cataclysm? I discerned that it's an event that took place between MM and MMX but what is everyone's idea of what exactly happened? Sorry for being so long-winded as usual.

No one is sure what the Cataclysm is... only that it decimated the world's population, but not on the same scale of destruction as the Elf Wars. Theories range from a final Robot War with Wily, to Zero doing all of it himself. Almost everyone thinks that during the Cataclysm, Mega Man, Proto Man, Bass, Rush, Treble, Roll, and all of them were wiped out by Zero. But Capcom hasn't made any official word about it, shrouding all of it in mystery and leaving it up for debate.

Either that or that they DID explain it, and cut it from the North American version. Yo, HighMax! What does MegaZine have to say about that?

I think I saw it mentioned in one of the official works, actually. Not sure what, though.

perhaps there are 2 Zero's like in MMZ3, Zero and Omega.

The one we know is a copy made on the order of Sigma after his fight with the original one, and the original was defeated, closed up and isolated, until the events of MMZ3 where he awakened. (actaully before them but that's too complicated for me to tell right now,)

Wily wanted to destroy the world after his death and Zero was made during the events in MM2 PF. after some years he wanted to give Zero a personality but due to the WilyVirus he lost some of it. when Sigma got the virus and went Maverick, he also downloaded the personality in a seprate file, together with the plans.

this is just a fictional story, THIS IS NOT REAL.

i think that the history of Zero is one big PLOTHOLE.

Here you go, fresh off the press!

"The Cataclysm
What was it? What is Inafune hiding?

MZ: Mr. Inafune, or should we call you...

KI: No, I prefer Split Mushroom now... [laughs]

MZ: Here we go again... [laughs] No, really, can we just have ONE normal interview, Mr. Mushroom? [laughs]

KI: SPLIT Mushroom to you!

MZ: Whatever. Now, what is the Cataclysm that occurred in the X series before X1?

KI: Before X1... That was in MegaMan X0, right? [laughs]

MZ: What do you mean?

KI: Our prelude that we cut from North America. When you get to play as Sigma and fight Zero.

MZ: ... ... ... Cataclysm?

KI: Oh yeah, that... heck, even I don't know.

MZ: WHAT!?

KI: Wait, I do know... but I can't tell North Americans.

MZ: ... (psst! Hey you! Yeah, you, JapanMan! Get over here...)

KI: JapanMan? Where!?!? *pulls out stuffed Ronald McDonald*

MZ: We didn't need to see that...

JM: Wheopsdihgosfhgjadbaslhdpahfnakhshg? (Well, Mr. Split Mushroom, what the
________is the Cataclysm?
noun
KI: Ahsgishgsjdmnvavibgauhg!jksznfiRonnieshfkjahioaehgoi1!! (I'm not telling anybody! Only Ronnie will know!)

MZ: That's it. We're out of here for today. So, as for what the cataclysm is, we'll have to take Ronnie hostage to get Inafune to open up. We'll get back with that scoop later."

-MegaZine, masters of the "not true but could be"

Edited by HighMaxOmega on September 2, 2006 at 10:42:03.

In Zero's flashback from X4 when Wily refers to his "nemesis" whose rivalry gives him motivation in life; why does everyone say he's talking about Megaman? He could have been talking about Dr. Light. Zero did have blood on his hands. I'm sure the reploids have blood, but did the robots from Classic Megaman's era bleed?

I think my idea of Zero going to kill everyone in Light Labs and the whole area being wrecked (or self destructed) in the process is feasible. If Zero was wrecking havok on the area, and then Dr. Light (or the military?) took drastic measures to stop him with a huge bomb or something then that could explain why X wasn't found until the next century, and why Zero was lying dormant in a nearby place for all those years. The place would've been in ruins.

Okay, thanks for everyone's contributions. This has been an interesting thread for me. There aren't many known facts about this topic so feel free to post your own ideas. Later, I may reveal a theory of mine that is so controversial it will shock, offend, and anger the world.

X was never actually meant to awaken in 20XX.

Actually, to add a small issue with your theory, Androcles, if this was true, how did doctor light program the capsules and scatter them.

That's easy.

Gnomes.

The Capsule Gnomes did it.

For profit.

He was meant to awaken 30 years after he was first put into the capsule, but he was only discovered in the ruins of Dr. Light's Labs 100 years later by Dr. Cain. It details Dr. Cain's whole process of digging in the ruins of the now "forbidden area" in the instruction booklet (Dr. Cain's Journal). Interestingly, the area was so demolished that he didn't even realize he was standing on top of Dr. Light's lab at first. Something pretty dang catastrophic must have taken place there.




How would he have done it anyway? It's always seemed pretty freaking impossible to me! In the first game it was believable but after a while I just disregarded the upgrade capsules as part of the "gameplay" but not part of the story. Still, you make a good point and this is what I wanted. If you can find any other flaws in my theories, please do let me know.




Ha! I think I really can accept this explanation! It seems more likely than an old man like Dr. Light hiking across the globe and hiding a couple dozen capsules all over the place. But that's just my opinion.

Edited by Androcles on September 5, 2006 at 20:56:23.

One word: Auto.

Cause Auto got sick of Light's crap.

Also, about the capsules, whose to say that Rock, Roll, and Auto didn't place them around the world?

But I'm sure the Capsule Gnomes helped them!

I'm sure there are only seven capsules.

And when these seven capsules are brought together, it can summon THE ETERNAL ROBOT DRAGON FROM THAT ONE MEGAMAN GAME to grant one wish.

That's using your noggin'! I never thought of that possibility before! It totally makes sense, but I still like my theory because it explains what happened with Zero all those years. If X was buried out in the boondocks or timbuktu, and Zero came after him, then how did Zero wind up buried nearby? I guess there could have been an earthquake! But maybe that's too much of a coincidence. I don't know.

Another possibility is that Wily buried Zero in the area so that he'd be there when X woke up. But it seems like it would've been easier if they just killed X while he was sleep. I even came up with an explanation for the blood on Zero's hands. It was probably just Gamma's blood. But it would be wild if he had killed Dr. Light! That would make him the first Maverick. Or would it?

I'm pretty sure he was the first maverick anyway.

How about this: Wily sealed Zero away because Zero was too wild and unpredictable to control.

Maybe Wily sealed Zero away for a reason similar to the reason Light sealed X away... while Light needed time for testing for Mega Man X's reploid programming integrity, perhaps Wily needed time for the Maverick Virus to fully integrate into Zero's systems.

As for X and Zero being in the same room together when they were discovered, maybe X and Zero fought, in Light's lab. If Zero had destroyed Mega Man, Protoman, Bass etc, who else could defend the lab? Zero was built for mass destruction, and since he was created and therefore takes orders from Wily, what better place to start then at Light's Lab, where he can defeat his long time rival and his creations?

As a last resort, Light activates X to fight against the seemingly impossible to defeat Zero. The battle ends in a draw, they destroy each other, and most of the lab. If you've played Maverick Hunter X, you'll notice how Light's lab seems almost completely out of power, and everything is so dark.

Afterwards, with all of his lifetime creations destroyed, Light decides to move on to the world's "one true hope", X, and starts rebuilding him after the fight. And, as for the unconscious Zero, Light made a capsule for him too, and sealed him in it. Light then takes this time to remove Zero's control chip, to avoid his activation. Because the battle was so intense, Zero lost many of his upgrades (in PB2, you see his shadow with his Z-Saber and the upgraded armor we are all familiar with.) And so, Light built a more "simpler" less threatening form, that has only a standard Buster and weaker armor.(the Zero of X1)

It would have taken too long for Light to rebuild X and a "complete" Zero, since his aging would soon get the best of him. After rebuliding a "rough" Zero, he spends the last of his days, working on X. Time goes on and soon, the good doctor passes away, leaving away his final creation with messages inside Capsules that also contain upgrades, which were somehow, transported to various locations on the globe (God knows how many).

In 21XX, X is activated, and many Reploids were created from his plans, including Sigma. Around this time, perhaps Cain had sent Gamma's Unit on a mission to Dr. Light's Lab, in hopes of finding more work to follow, and perhaps find out more about X. They continue to dig inside Light's Lab and then, they discover Zero, and awaken him, using his control chip they found stored in the lab, near Zero's capsule I suppose. Since there was no warning message on Zero's capsule, since Light could not get enough information on him, Gamma's Unit goes ahead and activates him, unknown to the risks. Zero destroys that whole Unit, and makes for some factory (the one in the X4 flashback) for whatever reason and Sigma is dispatched to take care of him. X was left unaware.

We all know what happens after that. With Reploid's production in full swing, it was easy to reprogram Zero to be good. The Virus was rid in him when Sigma destroyed his crystal gem thing, whatever it is, and Sigma inheirited the Virus' legacy, which took a little bit more time to infect him than any of us thought(this gives sense to how Zero and Sigma end up in the same Unit in MHX for a time). X and Zero easily became friends because after the battle from 100 years ago, their memories were wipped clean, and Light didn't speak a word of Zero to X, while he was being built(In MHX, Dr. Light has plenty of converations with X in his "smaller" stages). And yet, a part of Zero still can sense X' true potential, because he had fought him once before.

That may also explain why Light was able to get upgrades for Zero in X5. Because he had an idea of what his program was like. Course, though some claim that the Capsules are recorded messages for X, in X5, Light seems to have a very high knowledge of what's going on in 21XX. He knows of Alia, he's having conversations with Zero and he even builds him some secret armor!

Capsules.....message recordings, or has Light somehow managed to seal his spirit within them? At the end of X5, in X's ending, we see Light walking around outside a capsule quite comfortably in a spirit form, who even repairs X.

Here's what I'd like to know, what exactly is Light suppose to be in the X series!? Genius of the past or a supernatural being?



Edited by Arkane on September 6, 2006 at 18:34:39.