Carbon

MegaMan Volnutt, the most famous Carbon.

Carbon, known as Decoy (デコイ, Dekoi) in Japan, is how the System refers to the artificially created humans that live on Terra (Earth). They are also referred to as Betas by the Master of Elysium.

Characteristics

Carbons are essentially "artificial humans," and the question of what they are and what their purpose is a major theme to series' elements of mystery. Like normal humans, they are organic beings made of flesh, but are able to replace their regular body parts by mechanical implants, ranging from simple arm replacements to full-body overhauls. Despite this, Carbons are at least partially if not entirely robotic. Many Carbons have mechanical portions of their bodies, some as simple as replacement parts and "patches" while notable others like MegaMan, Teisel and Glyde have almost entirely mechanical looking bodies. Additionally, MegaMan can switch out his arms for different weapons. Curiously, it seems exceptionally rare for female Carbons to have any mechanical parts, suggesting that it may be considered unattractive. (Early character designs for Legends show a nurse with a buster-like syringe on her arm, which the developers deemed frightening.)

Aside from similar biological actions, Carbons also behave more or less like humans. They are prone to building up societies, and have distinct cultures and beliefs varying by location. Carbons seem more or less ignorant of the ancients who came before them, and in many cases revere them as myth. They also make use of technology left behind by the ancients.

Reinitialization

A recurring theme in the Legends series involves awakened ancients attempting to "reinitialize" Carbons, i.e. wipe them out en masse. When MegaMan Juno is awakened, he explains that it's his job to routinely reinitialize Kattelox Island to keep the Carbons living on it from overpopulating.

Because of how Carbons are treated by the ancients, it's speculated that Carbons were originally created as a means to see if the world would be habitable by humans again, following whatever disaster occurred thousands of years in the past. The games have yet to offer a complete explanation, however.

In-Series Speculation and Theories

As Legends is the farthest installment into the future of the series of Megaman, there are many connecting facts and ideas that have been introduced in re-releases and future installments about how Carbons have come to be. How Carbons are essentially a succeeding descendant of human, is greatly linked with the entire franchise's themes of robotics and transhumanism.

• In the Mega Man series from Archie Comics, the idea of humans and robots being integrated is mentioned in a conversation by the series' Dr. Light, who notes that it is "centuries away."
• In the re-release of Maverick Hunter X, Doctor Thomas Light's speech to mankind of the future made mention of his dream of where robots were capable of natural evolution akin to all living and organic beings, and how X, the world's first Reploid, was his instrumental hope for this dream to become reality.
• Far into 23XX, after the fall of Neo Arcadia, Zero's sacrifice, and the demise of Dr. Weil, humankind and Reploids go as far as to bridge the gap between them by granting humankind mechanical bodies and Reploids limited lifespans.

It is highly likely that Carbons are the result of Doctor Light's dream made reality.