Mega Man Zero (series)

The Mega Man Zero series made its debut in 2002 on the Gameboy Advance and takes place in the mid-24th century, one-hundred years after Zero had himself sealed in order to "cleanse" his body. In this time-period, both the "Reploid Wars" and "Elf Wars" have ended, but a new threat has arisen and threatens to destroy both human and Reploid kind. A young scientist named Ciel, a member of the "Resistance" (later called the Guardians), accidentally comes across the ruins of the lab in which Zero was sealed and awakens him. Thus, Zero becomes a member of the Resistance and takes up his sword once again to fight for the forces of justice...

The following is a time-line of events that precede, include, and directly follow the Mega Man Zero series:

23rd Century



 * ca. 2210s-2220s: The Maverick Wars continue.


 * ca. 2230s:


 * Doctor Weil is born.


 * Fefnir, Harpuia, Leviathan, and Phantom are created (the Guardians).


 * Cyber Elf technology is invented.  Cyber Elves are pure energy with artificial intelligence.  They were invented for the sole purpose of ending the Maverick Wars.  Their creators designed them to amplify the power of Reploids and to combat the effect of the Maverick Virus.  Key in this development was the creation of the Mother Elf, which Mega Man X used in order to permanently destroy the effects of the Maverick Virus and thus end the Maverick Wars.


 * ca. 2240s-2250s: Neo Arcadia is built as a major city-state at the end of the Maverick Wars as a place where humans, Reploids, and Cyber Elves can live in peace.




 * ca. 2260s: The Mother Elf is stolen by Dr. Weil, who turns it into the Dark Elf and instigates the Elf Wars. This four-year period is so violent that it destroys 90% of the planet's Reploids and kills 60% of the planet's humans.  During this time Zero's original body is destroyed (though not completely) and his "soul" (Reploid DNA and AI) is transfered into a "copy" body while Dr. Weil uses his "remains" (the original body) to construct Omega.  The Dark Elf and its baby elves attempt to control the Reploids, so X and Zero fight against them and, in the end, go up against the powerful Omega, defeating it with the Final Strike attack.  Dr. Weil is punished and banished (Weil is given regenerative armor before his exile so that he will survive and "suffer" psychologically and his crimes are downloaded into it as data so that he won't forget them) as is Omega and Zero seals himself for a period of 102 years (according to Mega Man X5 it was to "cleanse" his Reploid body).

24th Century

 * ca. 2350s:


 * X seals the Dark Elf after having fought in the Elf Wars a century ago (he seals the Dark Elf at Yggdrasil using his own body as a seal).


 * Ceil is born (14 years prior to Mega Man Zero).


 * Copy X is built (8 years prior to Mega Man Zero).


 * ca. 2360s:


 * (Mega Man Zero): While Ceil and her companions are fleeing the Neo Arcadian forces they come accross the ruins of an ancient laboratory where a Reploid named Zero is sealed up, having been in stasis for just over 100 years.  The world that Zero is brought into is one drastically different to the one from a century earlier- Reploids and humans are both living under constant oppression at the hands of a maniacal ruler who can call them "Maverick" at a whim...But who is this ruler?  Is it...Mega Man X?  Zero fights X's forces, led by the four Guardians- Fefnir, Harpuia, Leviathan, and Phantom and then learns the truth from Ceil: X is not the real X, but rather is a "copy."  Copy X was created when the real X went missing some time ago.  Zero goes to confront and defeat Copy X and, upon doing so, is almost destroyed by the large explosion that results.  Then, the real X appears in the form of a Cyber Elf and tells Zero that he must continue the fight and protect the peace as he rests for a while.


 * (Mega Man Zero 2): One year has passed since Zero defeated Copy X and ever since then he has been wandering around in the desert in disrepair, fighting off wave after wave of Pantheons (X-like Mavericks). In Neo Arcadia, the remaining three Guardians (Phantom having been destroyed trying to prevent Zero's assault on Area X) have assumed control in the place of Copy X, unbeknownst to the humans who had revered Copy X (whom they thought to be the "real Mega Man X") as a savior.  Ciel tries to solve the Energy Crisis that seems to have started much of the problems of the 24th century, but a Reploid named Elpizo believes her efforts to be futile and makes an assault on Neo Arcadia from which he is the only returning survivor.  After that, Elpizo returns and believes that the only thing that will stop the madness is the Dark Elf, the very thing that started the Elf Wars in the first place.  Using some of its unsealed power, Elpizo breaks into the temple at Yggdrasil, destroys the real X's body and unseals the Dark Elf.  However, Zero comes to the rescue, stopping Elpizo from unleashing the Dark Elf's power on the world and defeats him once and for all.  Elpizo appologizes for everything that he's done and the Dark Elf turns him into a Cyber Elf (saving him).  Elpizo then tells Zero that the Dark Elf isn't evil and then he leaves.  X appears (in his Cyber Elf form) and tells Zero about the true nature of the Dark  Elf, who was created to be a savior for Reploids and Humans during the Maverick Wars but was manipulated by a man named Dr. Weil.  After this the Dark Elf leaves and a voice calls for Omega to come into action...


 * (Mega Man Zero 3): Two months after Elpizo's defeat a spaceship crashes and emits energy similar to that of the Dark Elf which prompts Zero to go and investigate. However, while Zero is out investigating Ciel and a couple resistance members are captured by a huge Reploid named Omega that not even Fefnir and Leviathan can take down.  While Zero halts his investigation to deal with Omega, a new Copy X assumes command of Neo Arcadia and Dr. Weil introduces himself (he seems to be back from his exile).  Weil launches a missile at a densely-populated area so Omega can capture the Dark Elf and Zero goes to battle and defeat Copy X, but Dr. Weil betrays Copy X and detonates a bomb held within his body that goes off when he tries to access his Seraph form.  Weil assumes control of Neo Arcadia and uses Omega and the Dark Elf to seize control of the Reploids.  Zero manages to defeat Omega's Dark Elf-enhanced form, defeating him twice, but out of Omega's remains emerges a Reploid that looks exactly like Zero.  Weil then informs Zero that he is merely a copy and that Omega occupies his true, original form.  X reappears and tells Zero that what Weil says is true: they battled Omega in the past and sealed him long ago.  Then, before Omega is rejoined with the Dark Elf, the Guardians come and do further damage to him.  Zero decides that he must finish him off, regardless of whether or not he occupies his original body.  Omega explodes, knocking Zero "unconscious," and he sees visions of X. X tells him that he is out of energy and can no longer remain in the human world.  X is confident that Zero will carry on the battle to protect peace and fades away.  X is then believed to have "retired into cyber space."  The Guardians also die in the explosion.  The Dark Elf brings Zero's unconscious body back to the Resistance HQ and, with Weil's curse broken, the Dark Elf becomes the Mother Elf once again and flies away...


 * (Mega Man Zero 4): Not long after Zero's battle with Omega, humans begin to leave Neo Arcadia, which is under the dictatorship of Dr. Weil. Humans who oppose Weil's rule are labeled as Human Mavericks, so a caravan departs under the guidance of a journalist named Neige.  The caravan is attacked by Variants (of the Neo Arcadian Foot Soldiers) and Ciel and the Resistance come accross them along with Zero.  The caravan explains that they are heading to Area Zero, the last known inhabitable area outside of Neo Arcadia (Area Zero is the remains of the Eurasia Space Colony that fell to Earth in Mega Man X5, in this case leaving behind a climate control center that made a region of vegetation).  Soon after this, Zero learns of a plot from Kraft, Weil's second-in-command, to destroy Area Zero.  Known as Operation Ragnarok, Weil was going to use an orbital sattelite to destroy all inhabitable areas and force humans to live under his rule.  Thus, Zero sets out to defeat his Maverick leaders.  Yet, these prove to merely be a distraction as Weil could simply use the sattelite's cannon to destroy Area Zero.  Yet, Kraft rebels against Weil (he is in love with Neige) and fires the cannon upon Neo Arcadia!  Zero puts an end to Kraft and the Resistance is dispatched to deal with the survivors.  Weil then teleports directly into the sattelite to manually crash it into Area Zero, but Zero teleports in an makes his way to Weil.  Weil reveals to Zero that he is indeed human, although Zero doesn't understand how he could have lived for well over a century.  Weil reveals that over a century ago the humans who exiled him gave him a regenerative suit so that he would live through his exile and not die or get sick.  Therefore, he tells Zero that he will not be able to destroy him.  Moreover, should he ever manage to kill him or harm him he will be considered a "Maverick."  In the end, Zero decides that he doesn't care about justice, he only cares about protecting the ones he loves.  Zero battles and takes down Weil, but Weil somehow merges himself with Ragnarok.  In the end, however, Zero destroy's Weil's core, causing a chain reaction that blasts the sattelite to flaming pieces.  On Earth, Ciel, the Resistance, and the survivors see the explosion and realize that Zero did not escape.  Ciel promises to make the world a peaceful place for humans and Reploids but deep inside she believes that Zero is still alive somewhere.  In the end, Zero's helmet is seen glistening in the sun in the desert...


 * ca. 2370: After the fighting of what can be termed as the Second Maverick War comes to an end, Ciel and her research team begin doing research in an area known as the Outlands- a generally uninhabitable area outside of Neo Arcadia. The team comes across the remains of Dr. Weil's core from when he had merged with Ragnarok a decade earlier, and when the team comes into contact with it they begin to experience severe migraines.  This core, which Ciel calls the W Core, begins to turn members of Ciel's team maverick, mainly a Reploid named Serpent.  Serpent ends up destroying the research team and Dr. Ciel, so Alouette, a young Reploid raised by Ciel, assumes command of the Resistance (who later become the Guardians).


 * ca. 2371-2400: In order to ensure that the violence of the First Maverick War, the Elf Wars, and the Second Maverick Wars do not recur, a truce between humans and Reploids is agreed upon. Furthermore, Reploids agree to have lifespans and humans begin to have mechanical parts integrated into their bodies.  In essence, the difference between "man and machine" become negligible as humanoids emerge.  The ones who do not choose to follow this truce are branded Mavericks.  Also during this period nations emerge, such as Innerpeace.