Manehattan's Lone Guardian

by Curtis Wildcat

From Omega to Alpha

It hasn't been my day. Or week, or month. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that it hasn't been my year, either, but for now I'll settle with the former.

My vision is completely white. No readouts or the like. Just a very stark brightness that at the same time wasn't bright. When it first began I'd been subjected to a blazing incineration, but that had lasted less than a second. Now I can't move or feel much or anything, though obviously I can think. I wouldn't be dictating this in my mind otherwise.

A little over a year ago, I was one of the Guardians of Master X. We protected humanity from those of our kind who would do them harm, and "retired" those who would object to our master's will. There were four of us: Hidden Phantom, espionage specialist and serious ninja; Sage Harpuia, the aerial commander and pretty boy; Fighting Fefnir, the land-based commander and fighting nerd...

And I, Fairy Leviathan, the naval commander and... someone who's not that different from Fefnir, if I'm being honest.

Then things went south quickly. A Resistance cell under the command of that teenage genius Ciel succeeded in waking up the legendary Zero. From there it was just one thing after another: multiple operations against the Resistance failing, us Guardians getting defeated one after another, Zero's assault on Master X's headquarters that ended in both Phantom and X's deaths, later getting brainwashed into fighting Zero when I should have been chasing the one responsible, me and Fefnir getting embarrassed in a short brawl against Omega and left to go without maintenance, Dr. Weil using a fake X to take command of Neo Arcadia and play us all for fools...

It's enough to make a reploid want to retire, and I don't mean that in the darker sense of the word.

There... I'm finally getting diagnostics in my vision. Everything's trying to reboot itself at once, though a handful of my systems are clearly in the red and are refusing to start up. I'll have to be mindful of those once I get going again, but I don't think it'll be too debilitating.

The last thing I remember was charging in alongside Fefnir and Harpuia to yank Zero away from Omega's final explosion. It was a stupid and moronic move, and I realize that now: wherever it was that the Resistance found him, everything that he's been through since his emergence shows that he's a survivor. If none of that could keep him down permanently, being in close proximity to a Reploid's dying blast wouldn't do the job either.

A fall from orbit... maybe. That's up in the air, and there's no way of knowing whether that will do the trick until it actually happens.

I didn't stop to think about what I was doing. I know that sometimes I chastise the others for doing the same thing, and it irks me a little knowing that I indulged in that same idiocy. Maybe it had something to do with the final order we were given to stop Omega, I don't know. ...Or maybe I just wanted to do something right for once?

I've been musing on Neo Arcadia's battles against the Resistance. We were justified in defending the populace from their attacks, since lives were always going to be in jeopardy... but after seeing Master X, the real X, speak to us and tell us to help Zero destroy Omega, I came to realize that we weren't entirely blameless either. We should have known better than to believe the words of a copy over the original. What exactly had we been doing these past years, persecuting our fellow Reploids on the possibility of being Mavericks without solving the root problem of the energy crisis? No wonder those in the Resistance rebelled.

Though credit where credit was due: whoever it was that created him did a spectacular job. The copy looked and sounded exactly like X did before his disappearance, even if he lacked some of his capabilities. Ciel's work, maybe? It wouldn't surprise me if it were. And if the report I read about her so-called 'Ciel System' is true...?

None of that's helping me right now, though. The light's finally faded, and I'm flat on my back staring up at a clear blue sky. That by itself concerns me, since I'm sure there was a ramshackle roof over our heads. I'm not detecting Fefnir or Harpuia anywhere. For that matter, based on what I can tell from my current position there isn't any wreckage to be seen. We were clearly in a set of old ruins, so how did I get out here? Just how far was I launched, and why am I not in pieces from the impact?

The last of my systems have finished rebooting, allowing me to finally sit up. Looks like I'm on a rooftop somewhere with all of my battle damage, which is a bit worrying. Now that Dr. Weil's in control of Neo Arcadia, being in the middle of the city isn't a good idea. Finding cover and getting out of here before his forces find me is a prudent move. After that, I can find out where the other Guardians disappeared to, hopefully get repaired, and help plan what comes next.

Would the Resistance even be willing to take us in, or would we have to form our own faction...? Part of me wishes it was the latter; while it was nice to team up with Zero, the thought of playing with him again still makes me eager for a rematch, miserable win-loss record notwithstanding.

On the plus side I still have the Frost Javelin with me, so at least I'm armed. I can fight barehanded if I absolutely had to, but I feel much better with a weapon by my side. And just my hands and feet won't be enough against armies of Pantheons and any other forces that Dr. Weil wants to create.

I look around a bit to get my bearings---

---...

"What," I utter softly, the first word I'd spoken aloud since I woke up.

Straight across a street from me on a five-story building is a large billboard. What it's advertising isn't important to me right now, but who's working with it is.

Ponies. Honest-to-goodness small horses. Not Reploids or mechaniloids built to resemble them, but flesh-and-blood beings. You would be hard-pressed to find survivors in today's world, if any still existed at all: the Maverick and Elf Wars did a serious number on the planet as a whole, hence why Neo Arcadia's the last bastion of humanity. I'm looking at two of them just putting up a new advertisement like it was completely normal, their motions thoroughly natural as if they'd done this a million times.

Their color schemes are completely off. One's coat, mane and tail are in multiple shades of orange, and the other is decked out in green and yellow. I... I don't even know how to describe this! This doesn't make sense at all!

I know logic when I see it. I'm a Reploid, a machine; our 'brains', if you want to call them that, were designed in such a way that we have the ability to think exactly like humans do. Thing is, I have to keep forcing overrides upon my internal processes just so I can look at this. Because to reiterate: multi-colored ponies putting up an advertisement. There's nothing 'logical' about this.

They haven't seen me yet, and I think I shall keep it that way for now. I scramble over to what is most likely an air conditioning unit (odd design, though) and dive behind it. I take a quick look to see if the two of them spotted me before ducking back. Alright, Leviathan. I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of this. Maybe I somehow got concussed when I landed? Or... I've heard humans talk before about family members having 'dying dreams', where their brains get entirely screwy shortly before they pass on. Maybe Omega's explosion really did grievously injure me, and I'm just being overly delusional before my power source dies? Because unless you're telling me that the entire population of Neo Arcadia got swapped for equines all at once...

Wait a moment.

Chiding myself for not being more attentive, I look down at the rooftop and give it a quick scan. My readings show that this roof is a mix of both steel and completely natural wood with gravel on top, and I don't need Harpuia's sensor suite to tell me that it's a serious red flag. Where does one find wood that isn't artificial in this day and age? For that matter, why would anyone in Neo Arcadia live in a building that incorporates wood into its construction when metal provides significantly more security?

Another red flag: I just noticed the manufacturer's name stamped on the air conditioner. "Meringue" isn't the name of a corporation I'm familiar with, and the speed lined lemon pie-slice logo provides additional proof. I'm an ice wielder who loves to swim in what little spare time I have, so I made it a point to familiarize myself with every manufacturer of cooling systems in the city, be they civilian or military. I like to think I would have noticed a new company being formed by now.

Between those and the apparently sapient equines, it's clear that I'm far from Neo Arcadia. And if this is still Earth that I'm on, I'll eat the fins off my helmet.

I turn over to rest the back of my head against the air conditioner, palming my temple. Injured, far from home, thoroughly unfamiliar territory, and its a tossup as to whether I can get repaired or not with what will probably end up being lackluster tech. And that's without getting into the fact that they're not likely to have E-crystals here, which means I'm on borrowed time anyway...

Master X help me, I've fallen victim to one of the oldest cliches in fiction.

Author's Note:

Figured it was time I hopped aboard the It's-Been-Done train with one of my favorite characters in the Mega Man Zero series (and one of my top ten favorites from the entire franchise), Fairy Leviathan. My M.O. when it comes to crossovers is to try and stay as true to the source material as possible unless it generates a laugh, so I'm going to try not to deviate from her established character too much. I'll be filling in the blanks on any aspects of her personality that were never established, however, and you'd be surprised just how much that leaves available.

As to when in the FiM timeline the story takes place, that should become evident within the next few chapters, provided that my drive to write this lasts long enough.

The fate of the Guardians following the end of Zero 3 is not concrete. One source said that they were too busy to meet with Zero during the events of 4; another said that they were killed trying to shield him from Omega's death throes; and more recently a third claimed that they survived, but were believed to be dead by Neo Arcadia's populace at large. Obviously for the sake of the story's continuity, I'll be going with the second of those.

I probably could have picked a better name than "Meringue" as a stand-in for "Trane", but just going with "Mane" made it sound too bland in my mind.

Comments

[Uzume Tennouboshi]

Okay, this stars my favorite Reploid. And not a Displaced human, but the original Fairy Leviathan.

Instant follow.

[Starlight Nova]

What's Rockman X DiVE?

[Uzume Tennouboshi]

10943259
A mobile game.

[Ri2]

...Okay, you've caught my interest.

[Fox Jones]

Well, I am impressed! Giving this one a follow!

[Dark Feather]

That ending!!!

Have a like and shelfplase sir.

[Fox Jones]

10943184
Ikr?
I just get sick of looking for crossovers, that may have some of my favourite characters in media, only to find a displaced story instead! I mean, just give me the real deal, not some rando, pretending to be the most important thing on the planet, ammiright?

[Curtis Wildcat]

10953695
Sounds about right. It's one thing seeing how an average human with some newfound power would handle Equestria, but it's quite another seeing how the actual source of that power would adjust.

I mean, whatever works for people. It's just that the latter is a bit more entertaining for me.

[Omegaweapon1000]

The last thing I remember was charging in alongside Fefnir and Harpuia to yank Zero away from Omega's final explosion. It was a stupid and moronic move, and I realize that now: wherever it was that the Resistance found him, everything that he's been through since his emergence shows that he's a survivor. If none of that could keep him down permanently, being in close proximity to a Reploid's dying blast wouldn't do the job either.

A fall from orbit... maybe. That's up in the air, and there's no way of knowing whether that will do the trick until it actually happens.

I see what you did there...

[Teraunce]

Master X help me, I've fallen victim to one of the oldest cliches in fiction.

Well that a giggle out of me and this just got faved.

[tsaukpaetra]

Location confirmed, sending supplies!

[Admiral Q Ponyform]

At least she kniws the trope

[Poparakelis]

Thought it would be a displaced human fic, Apparently I was wrong

[Curtis Wildcat]

11670236
I stated as much at the end of the story description.

[Direct Access]

11670236
Thank goodness you're wrong.