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Rockman X3 (ロックマンX3) is a manga by Yoshihiro Iwamoto based on the game of same name. It was originally serialized in Comic BomBom from March 1996 to August 1997 in 16 chapters, along with two additional "Zero" chapters serving as a prologue to the Rockman X4 manga. It was later compiled in four volumes between 1996-1997 and in two volumes in 2005.

Story[]

The story continues from the Rockman X2 manga.

Malfunction[]

RX3Doppler

Dr. Doppler, the creator of Dopple Town. His smile hides devious intentions.

Malfunction (故障 Koshō) is the first chapter from the manga, originally published on March 1996.

It is a bright and sunny day in Dopple Town, with humans and Reploids walking around in the utopian town built by the benevolent Reploid scientist Dr. Doppler. X is at the town with Doppler's subordinate Mac as well as Dr. Cain. While X is happy at achieving such a utopia, Mac jokingly points out that X looks a little bored. Dr. Doppler soon arrives and greets his old friend Dr. Cain, the first time the two are meeting in a while. Cain compliments Doppler on his achievement, and Doppler in turn says that he is indebted to Cain for making the dream possible. Doppler then shows off his huge Mechaniloid creation Maoh the Giant, which is to serve as the town's guardian deity. Cain collaborated on the project.

X jokingly says a goddess statue would be a better fit as a guardian deity. Doppler then gets serious and points out to X that his buster is not for decoration and he has had to use it to slay Mavericks to achieve the peace they have now. Doppler expresses his philosophy that sometimes rotten things must be done for peace to prevail. On the drive back to Maverick Hunter HQ, Cain explains how he and Doppler became close after he gave the latter his own private laboratory. Cain says Doppler is a good man at heart.

Meanwhile in his office, Dr. Doppler muses to Mac about how humans, Reploids and all living things have more understanding they need to acquire. Doppler then sternly remarks about how certain savages are getting in the way of that...

At the Hunter Base, Mac arrives and knocks out X with a surprise attack, then proceeds to take control of the base with an army of Reploids and capture Dr. Cain. Mac says he is doing so on the orders of Doppler. After getting wind of the situation, Zero arrives on the scene with his vice commander Blast Hornet along with his 0th Shinobi Unit to recapture the Base and rescue the people inside it. Zero unleashes a massive explosion with his Earth Gaizer attack, allowing his Hunters to infiltrate the base while Zero also personally goes in to rescue X.

A mysterious yellow Reploid appears on the scene and overhears Hornet saying he wished he had power like Zero. The Reploid offers to give Hornet such power if he submits to Doppler. Hornet refuses, saying he is not so eager for more power as to entrust his body to a devil like Doppler. The Reploid draws a saber and quickly incapacitates Hornet, intending to deliver him to Doppler.

Inside the base, Zero discovers X ensnared in a ceiling contraption with Mac watching over it. Mac reveals he has an explosive device that will cause the contraption to explode and kill X. Zero goads Mac to do so, saying that he won't hesitate to kill Mac to save X. Mac calls his bluff and presses the trigger, but it doesn't work as Zero draws his saber and slices Mac and the detonator so fast that the latter has a time-delayed death, with Mac and the detonator not splitting apart until seconds afterward. X is released from the contraption and saved.

Maoh the Giant then goes on a rampage at the Hunter Base, but Zero and X manage to overcome it after Cain reveals the weak point: the Mechaniloid's left eye. Zero fires two buster shots and a beam slash at the left eye to break the armor, then X unleashes a powerful Charge Shot directly at it, destroying Maoh and ending the threat. In tears, Dr. Cain wonders why Doppler has betrayed them.

Snowman[]

Snowman (雪だるま Yukidaruma) is the second chapter from the manga, originally published on April 1996.

The town of Raaga, the base of a large skiing range, is being threatened by the rampaging Blizzard Buffalo. He is a Maverick with cryokinesis who has constructed a giant snow tower in the center of the town, enlarging it each day.

X is battling Buffalo, who chastises him for interfering with his "art" and expresses the view that the frozen world he has created is more beautiful than humanity itself. X angrily berates Buffalo for being willing to kill humans to build such art and tries to fire a Buster shot at him, but Buffalo blocks it and swats X away, encasing him in ice to stop him. Just as Buffalo is about to ram into X for a killing blow, a young human boy jumps in front of Buffalo to stop him.

Buffalo stops and hesitates, then clutches his head in agony. X breaks free of the ice and prepares to blast Buffalo, but the boy stops him and leads X away. The boy's name is Toshihiko, and he takes X to the skiing range to show the beautiful snowmen that Buffalo built for him when Buffalo was still a normal, kind Reploid. This led to the friendship between Toshihiko and Buffalo.

Elsewhere, Buffalo wanders through a nearby forest and grimaces due to the pain his horns are causing him. He sees a nearby snowman he once built and destroys it because of his addled mind. In Raaga, the situation has taken a turn for the worst as the entire city is now covered in ice. When X and Toshihiko stumble across the destroyed snowman in the forest, X comes to the conclusion that Buffalo has become a different person and he has no choice but to fight him now.

At Raaga's Dome of Emergency Evacuation, X engages Buffalo in battle and thus successfully gives the fleeing humans the chance to escape. Buffalo smashes X repeatedly against the wall and keeps hitting the wall even after dropping X due to his crazed mind. X hesitates in blasting Buffalo because he knows it will hurt Toshihiko for Buffalo to die. Eventually, X grapples Buffalo and bodyslams him to the ground, destroying his horns.

Buffalo comes back to his senses as it is revealed his horns are what caused him to go Maverick. Buffalo realizes the horror of what he has done and asks X to kill him so he can atone for his sins through death. X readies his Buster on Buffalo but fires the wall next to him at the last moment and blows a hole open in the dome, being unable to bring himself to kill Buffalo.

X looks outside the dome and is pleasantly surprised when he sees that Toshihiko has built snowmen for Buffalo to see. Buffalo is also appreciative, and he reconciles with Toshihiko. He takes X's words to heart, that Reploids and humans can understand one another.

Cocoon[]

Cocoon ( Mayu) is the third chapter from the manga, originally published on May 1996.

At the Maverick Hunter base, a gaggle of journalists run to Dr. Cain to question him about Dr. Doppler's betrayal of humanity. The journalists question why he gave Doppler his own private research laboratory and ask him what other connections he has to him. When one of the reporters accidentally bumps into "Cain" who then falls down, they realize it is actually a human mannequin and the real Cain has managed to elude them.

Elsewhere, X, Zero and Dr. Cain are traveling in a tank to a nearby tunnel that is a major mining spot due to the large amount of Energy Crystals located there. In the tunnel, Dr. Doppler messages his minion Tunnel Rhino to warn him of the impending arrival of the Hunters and Cain, and orders him to eliminate them. After disconnecting the transmission, Doppler mocks Rhino as just being another pawn under his control. Doppler's head is revealed to be an incubation tank, separated from the rest of his body with wires connecting his head to a strange contraption. Doppler's body itself is undergoing some apparent changes in the tank.

X, Zero and Cain arrive at the tunnel. Cain uses his radar device to determine there is enough energy in the tunnel to supply a metropolis with a year's worth of power. Zero surmises that Doppler is located somewhere in the tunnel, as Doppler is the kind of person who would use the tunnel's vast energy supply for nefarious purposes. Suddenly, Tunnel Rhino smashes down from the roof of the tunnel and swears that he will not allow them to reach Doppler: inadvertently confirming that Doppler is in the tunnel, to X's amusement. Rhino angrily strikes X, who is then thrown onto Cain. Zero and X engage Rhino in battle and quickly incapacitate him with two simultaneous kicks to his head.

Then, Rhino's body is wrapped up by wires into a cocoon high above them. Doppler appears and refers to it as evolution at work, while also revealing he has acquired a new battle body. Cain tries to reason with his old friend about how humans and Reploids can coexist, but Doppler is dismissive and refers to such thinking as preposterous while also declaring his intention to wipe out humanity. Doppler flees the scene, flying away using his feet's jet boosters and promising Cain they will meet again.

Rhino breaks out of his cocoon, which gave him a massive powerup. It also affected his mental capacity, as X realizes he is being controlled by Doppler. Rhino fights X and Zero, giving them immense trouble with his Tornado Fang attack and even successfully repelling Zero's Earth Crush technique. Zero then goes on the defensive, slicing up Rhino's Tornado Fang drills before they can reach him and goading Rhino into charging at him. Zero throws his saber at Rhino mid-charge, tripping Rhino and causing him to fall into a hole where X is hiding. This allows X to blast Rhino with a Charge Shot at point-blank range, propelling him all the way to the ceiling and successfully knocking him out.

With the threat over, Cain decides to have Rhino brought back to the Hunter Base so they can revert Doppler's brainwashing. Zero humorously decides to leave retrieving Rhino to Cain and walks out of the tunnel with X, much to Cain's chagrin.

Strength[]

Strength (強さ Tsuyosa) is the fourth chapter from the manga, originally published on June 1996.

Blast Hornet, the vice commander of Zero's squad who has been MIA since being captured by Dr. Doppler's henchman, gives Zero an electronic message. Hornet warns his former boss that he has become stronger, and challenges him to a dual at an abandoned armory. Zero destroys the message recorder in frustration.

Zero remembers the first time he met Blast Hornet three years ago at Pater Park. At the time, Hornet was the leader of a biker gang. Zero's patrol sector included the park, and he ordered Hornet and his men to disperse as they were blocking the road. Hornet challenged and tried to kill him with his Poison Stinger attack, but Zero effortlessly dodged it and backhanded Hornet into a nearby clock tower, defeating him with one blow and amazing Hornet and his men. Zero is nevertheless impressed by Hornet's gutsiness and offers him a spot in his 17th Elite Unit, which Hornet decided to accept.

Back in the present day, Zero enters the armory where Hornet is hiding out and encounters him. Hornet reveals the massive arsenal and powerful armor that he has acquired thanks to Doppler's upgrades. Zero is unmoved and says that Hornet was better the way he was before. Hornet unleashes a slew of energy blasts at Zero, but the massive recoil messes up his aim and all the shots miss Zero, who hasn't even moved. Zero then decides to remove the chips for his Zero Buster and Earth Crush attacks from the circuitry of his right forearm and also drops his saber, confidently saying he doesn't need them to beat Hornet.

Hornet is angered by Zero's mockery and fires another volley of shots, this time hitting Zero dead-on. However, Zero emerges from the smoke damaged but still alive and warns Hornet that misjudging battlefield situations will result in his death. Angered, Hornet grabs Zero's saber from the ground and attempts to attack Zero with it, but has serious trouble dealing with the weapon's massive energy output. He ultimately manages to strike Zero on the head, splitting his helmet in two and making him bleed but dealing no real damage to the red Hunter. And just like three years ago, Zero again strikes Hornet with a powerful punch, defeating him with one blow.

Hornet realizes that the power Doppler gave him was not true strength as it was bestowed in a disgraceful manner, which is strength completely different than Zero's power. Hornet repents and returns to Zero's side as his vice commander, and Zero is happy to accept his former subordinate back into his ranks. This interaction is witnessed, and an alarm blares throughout the armory with an intercom voice shouting to eliminate the traitor Blast Hornet for disobeying Doppler. Zero and Hornet are confronted by a horde of Doppler's Maverick minions. Zero and Hornet then charge at the Mavericks fearlessly.

Conscience[]

X3 Brainwashing Neon Tiger

Neon Tiger under the effects of Doppler's anti-human brainwashing, portraying humans as sadistic animal hunters

Conscience (良心 Ryōshin) is the fifth chapter from the manga, originally published on July 1996.

X and Zero are in a rainforest with an artificial weather system that reacts to changes in the Earth's environment by compensating accordingly, such as switching to sunny weather after the forest has gotten sufficient rainfall. The two of them are investigating a case of serial Reploid murders where the victims' bodies were ripped to shreds with a beam-like weapon and are waiting to rendezvous with Dyuuku, another Reploid on the case. X speculates the perpetrator is a Reploid who has been brainwashed by Doppler like the others.

X and Zero suddenly hear a scream nearby and they find Dyuuku's body after rushing in. His chest had been carved up, with three large claw marks on it. Suddenly, the killer Neon Tiger leaps into the air directly above them with his back to the Sun and prepares to attack with three small claw sabers drawn from his wrist gauntlet. Zero realizes that Tiger gets his strength from the Sun, and the latter proceeds to slash Zero and knock him down with amazing speed. He turns back to attack X, but then retreats after hearing a roar. Zero is still conscious but injured and is perplexed when a group of tigers appear before him.

With X in hot pursuit, Tiger flees through the forest. All the while Tiger hears a voice in his head, telling him how humans like to shoot and kill animals for sport and also reminding him that a human shot the female tiger he loved. The voice says he must kill all humans and their friends as they are his enemies. X catches up to Tiger and they fight evenly for a while, but Tiger eventually gains the upper hand after again utilizing the Sun's power and unleashes a fierce barrage, also inadvertently setting the forest on fire.

Tiger goes in for a killing blow on X but is foiled when the forest's automatic weather system blots out the Sun and starts pouring rain to account for the forest fire Tiger set earlier. Tiger's beam claws stop working and the wet forest hurts his mobility, so he unleashes his Ray Splasher to try and defeat X. It is futile as X withstands the blows while mortally wounding Tiger with a Charge Shot, all the while lamenting Tiger's stupidity.

Zero reappears, carrying a female tiger with a pack of tigers following behind him. Zero explains to X that the tigers lead him to a cave where the injured female tiger was hiding; she had been wounded by a human hunter who shot her and is Tiger's girlfriend. Zero nursed her wounds and brought her back to see Tiger. While it initially appears that the blast X inflicted on him was fatal, Tiger wakes up and recovers after sunlight reaches him again. Though Doppler's brainwashing affected Tiger's mind it was unable to halt his backup system. Tiger and his girlfriend embrace each other lovingly and the tigers cheer.

Peace[]

Peace (平和 Heiwa) is the sixth chapter from the manga, originally published on August 1996.

At the Maverick Hunter Base, Dr. Cain begins a cranium analysis on Blizzard Buffalo, Tunnel Rhino, Blast Hornet and Neon Tiger to discover why they went out of control as X and Zero watch from the control room. X expresses some reservation over the fact that one misstep in the procedure could make the four Reploids lose their memories, but Zero firmly tells him to have faith in Cain's abilities. During the operation, a worm-like machine jumps from them to the Reploid scientists, causing them to go berserk and try to kill Cain. Zero and X jump down from the control room, and the former manages to kill the corrupted Reploid scientists and save Cain, but X also gets infected with a worm creature.

X is able to resist the control thanks to his willpower and strong, anti-Maverick ideology. Zero then suspects there are outsiders causing trouble and blasts a hole to the outside of the Hunter Base. Zero is shocked to discover a massive fire has enveloped the outside of the base. The conflagration was the doing of Bit and Byte, Doppler's two higest-ranking, strongest minions. They introduce themselves as the Nightmare Police, while Zero mocks their moniker as being akin to a silly stage name. Zero engages the duo in combat, while Zero puts X in an operating table to cure him of the worm corruption in his body. Zero engages the duo in combat, but Byte's ferocious strength and Bit's amazing speed give them the upper hand over Zero. Suddenly, Buffalo, Rhino, Hornet and Tiger appear on the scene to help Zero defeat the Nightmare Police, having been successfully repaired by Cain.

Meanwhile, the effects of the parasitic worm on X are revealed: it caused him to go into a dreamlike state where there is a utopia without war and suffering. X converses with a group of human children and expresses happiness that the peace will last. However, a mysterious woman comes to X and leads him away and suddenly the utopia is transformed into a ravaged, war-torn state with destroyed buildings and the remains of Reploids. The woman explains to X that he has killed too many people with his Buster and as such is too guilty to be allowed entry to paradise, with his deeds only being sufficient to earn him the eternal company of the devil. The woman assumes an angelic form and explains that she will always be with X even if he were to become a devil himself. X realizes this is an illusion meant to mentally weaken him and rejects the woman's words.

The woman compliments X's intuition, explaining the purpose of the worm was to test his abilities. X blasts the woman, who then takes on the form of his old nemesis Sigma, revealing he is the mastermind. Back in the real world, Bit and Byte have fought Zero and his four Reploid comrades to exhaustion and still have the upper hand. X then fires a giant Charge Shot out of the Hunter Base, destroying it and coming to the rescue. He fires another blast at the Nightmare Police, and it results in Bit's shield and left arm being destroyed. Realizing that there is a very real possibility of being defeated, the Nightmare Police decide to retreat back to Dr. Doppler.

At the end, a shadowed figure who is revealed to be the Hunters' old nemesis Vile sits on a ledge near the Hunter Base. He vows that he will wake up the Maverick inside of X.

Sniper[]

Crush Crawfish X3 manga

Crush Crawfish torturing X.

Crawfish terrorizes hostages X3 manga

Crawfish terrorizes his hostages.

Sniper (狙撃者 Sogekisha) is the seventh chapter from the manga, originally published on September 1996.

Crush Crawfish was classified as a "trump card" Reploid who was meant to be used during Sigma's previous rebellion, but he was deemed too dangerous to utilize due to his imperfect thought patterns, and was scheduled to be dismantled by the military as a result. En route, he escaped from his containment unit and sliced the entire escort ship in half.

Three months later, he terrorized the world famous shipyard Ganda with his large scale battleship until X arrived and confronted him. The Reploid research team Dr. Cain sent to the area had been annihilated by Crawfish and the Maverick stated he wanted to add human sacrifices to the pile. Crawfish nearly overwhelms X in battle with his powerful claws and underwater agility, seriously injuring him. With quick ingenuity, X utilized the propulsion system of his downed Ride Armor to increase his speed and catch Crawfish off guard, allowing him to land a near fatal Buster shot to his back. The shot blasts open the circuity at the back of Crawfish's head.

Shaken by this turn of events, Crawfish ordered his battleship to begin heavy fire on the populated city by the shipyard and takes a group of civilians hostage in the process. Confident that X will not fire on him with his human shields, he deployed the Maverick forces under his control to attack the Maverick Hunter. X, evading the rampaging Mavericks, made his way to the top of a control tower on the edge of the mainland. Out of Crawfish's line of sight, he took him down with a concentrated, laser-like Buster shot through the head just before the crazed Reploid was about to use his scissor blades on his captives. Before his body tumbled lifelessly into the sea, Crawfish was impressed with X's judgement, realizing he had not run away but rather had chosen a place to safely snipe the Maverick in his blind spot.

Big Bang[]

Big Bang (ビッグ・バン Biggu Ban) is the eighth chapter from the manga, originally published on October 1996.

Dr. Doppler is meeting with Volt Catfish and showcasing one of his Worms to him. Doppler tells Catfish that if he uses the worm, he can became a worldwide star with the world as his stage and all of humanity as his audience. Catfish is intrigued. Doppler tells him that the power plants across the world will serve as his stage.

At the Dosu Power Plant, the human workers there notice a strange object in the sky, then they are suddenly surrounded by large falling rods that form a fence around them. One of the human tries to move a rod out of the way, only to be electrified to death. Catfish then lands in the front of the humans on his makeshift stage, calling himself the "Smile of Superconductivity" and telling jokes to try and entertain the humans. Catfish then unleashes a massive electrical blast using the energy from Dosu Power Plant, killing the humans and forming a giant crater in the ground.

Catfish goes on a rampage, stealing energy from power plants across the city and rendering them useless. Doppler's spies used the chaos as an opportunity to start destroying the city, damaging numerous civilian infrastructure. Catfish is at his seventh target, the Fuirido Power Plant, when he is confronted by X and Zero. Catfish laments about fighting an old friend like X. Catfish proves stronger and easily incapacitates both X and Zero with electricity attacks, and then leaves the two to visit the world-leading power plant of Harian.

Dr. Cain decides to give X a rubber-coated suit as a defense mechanism against Catfish, but points out the drawback that X can't use any Special Weapons and must rely on his Buster alone. As Cain was only able to build one suit, he decides to have Zero rescue any people taken hostage by Catfish while X is tasked with defeating Catfish.

X ventures out in a Ride Armor and eventually reaches Harian Power Plant, shocked to see that Catfish has redesigned the plant into a Christmas tree. Catfish is terrorizing the humans there, when X blasts him with a rocket and jumps out of the Ride Armor to fight him personally. Catfish blasts X, causing him to fall inside the power plant while X blasts a circle pattern on the platform Catfish was standing, causing him to fall inside as well. They continue to fight inside the power plant, and X's rubber-coated suit proves effective as Catfish's electricity isn't as serious as it was before.

Catfish eventually gains the upper hand after unleashing his metal "skull slapstick" weapon in melee combat against X, but tires himself out and decides to recharge using Harian's energy. He does so and encases himself in a protective electric barrier. He then blasts X with a powerful electrical blast, which hurts X due to the rubber suit getting tears in it from Catfish's slapstick weapon. X decides to destroy the suit altogether so that he can use Special Weapons. He fires a barrage of Tornado Fang drills, which are redirected toward the ceiling and start to absorb the electricity from Harian, just as X planned. This prevents Catfish from using his electric barrier he was using before. X unleashes a powerful Charge Shot that knocks out both Catfish and destroys the plant's generator.

The blast resulted in the Worm that corrupted Catfish to be destroyed. Free from Doppler's brainwashing and realizing the gravity of his crimes, Catfish decides to sacrifice his body to restore the electricity that he had stolen from the cities' humans. X sheds tears at his old friend's death, but smiles over the fact Catfish was restored to his old self before death and that he atoned.

Remain[]

Toxic Seahorse

The death of Toxic Seahorse, reuniting him with his late girlfriend.

"It was then when X remembered that Seahorse had called these ruins a holy ground, that he was already dead... But he had no way of knowing what those words really meant. The dam regained its original function, and the ruins went into a quiet sleep. And nobody knew that a Repliroid was standing gently in the arms of a metal liquid..."
―Narrator

Remain (遺跡 Iseki) is the ninth chapter from the manga, originally published on November 1996.

The Monarch Dam is one of the largest in the world, but for some reason has stopped dispensing water, which has caused humans in nearby towns to be cut off from the water supply with some of them even losing their lives. X and Zero go to investigate, and venture out to dam and blast a hole through it to check out the problem. Strangely, they discover an entire town has been drowned inside of it while still being well-preserved. Suddenly, Zero and X are ambushed by a Maverick named Toxic Seahorse who is revealed to be the culprit behind the drowning. Seahorse poetically proclaims that the town he drowned is "holy ground", upon which X and Zero should stay away, since it is his "sanctuary". He also ominously says that he is "already dead".

They do battle across the town, and eventually come out victorious, forcing Seahorse to flee. When X and Zero follow him, they see he has escaped to the top of a tree, and is quietly hugging the corpse of a frozen, female Reploid who appeared to have been his girlfriend. Seahorse is also about to liquefy his programming, which would kill him. X wants to stop him and take him into custody, but Zero convinces him not to, saying they have finished their task of defeating Seahorse and fixing the dam he ruined. Seahorse then perishes, together in death with his beloved.

Vengeance[]

Vengeance (復讐 Fukushuu) is the tenth chapter from the manga, originally published on December 1996.

In a mysterious location, a picture of X is smashed by an angry Reploid. The Reploid then stands over heaps of smashed pictures of X, all the while vowing to kill him. Some time later, the Aircraft Carrier Big Beetle is wreaking havoc over a city with bombs and other destructive devices.

X wakes up restrained inside the carrier, realizing he fell unconscious after getting sucked into a black hole with Zero. To his shock, the late Boomer Kuwanger reveals himself. Kuwanger was killed in battle by X during Sigma's first revolt, but the former was resurrected by his vengeful brother Gravity Beetle, the operator of the Big Beetle. X recognizes Beetle as a former comrade of his from the 17th Unit, and is surprised to learn he was Kuwanger's brother. Zero is also present, with his helmet removed and wires in the back of his cybernetic brain that are connected to Kuwanger's circuitry.

Beetle releases X from his restraints and dares him to use his Buster on him, but warns X of the consequences. If Beetle dies, the bomb inside his horn will activate and Kuwanger's consciousness will transfer into Zero's body, with Zero's body eventually morphing into a duplicate of Kuwanger's. If X refuses to kill Beetle, then the latter will simply have the Big Beetle continue the wanton destruction of the city.

X dashes to Zero to separate him from Kuwanger, but is foiled by a Boomerang Cutter thrown by Kuwanger. Beetle then fires multiple Gravity Well shots at X, wounding him. X eventually outsmarts Beetle when he catches a Gravity Well with his right arm then slams it into Kuwanger, utterly destroying the resurrected Reploid's body. However, the Gravity Well on X's arm starts getting bigger and he has to fling it away.

The Gravity Well then takes the shape of Kuwanger's face, and increases more in size, threatening to destroy a large portion of the city. X fuses his Buster with the circuity of the Big Beetle carrier and fires a large Charge Shot, destroying the enormous Gravity Well in one fell swoop. Beetle then remembers how Dr. Doppler corrupted his emotions with the Worm Virus, and fed him sinister ideology about how Reploids don't need hearts.

The battle ends, with the Big Beetle in the ocean and Gravity Beetle, Zero and X standing on the cliff behind it. Zero charges a Buster Shot to destroy Beetle, but is convinced not to by X and releases the blast into the air at the last second. Zero feels his newfound sentimentality is due to X's influence rubbing off on him. They both walk away to return to the Hunter Base and repair X's right arm.

Funeral[]

Funeral (葬儀 Sougi) is the eleventh chapter from the manga, originally published on January 1997.

Bit and Byte defeat X and Zero.

Comrade[]

Comrade (同士 Doushi) is the twelfth chapter from the manga, originally published on February 1997.

With X and Zero imprisoned, Bit makes an announcement in Doppler Town saying they will be killed by a drill, and a Maverick outbreak happens in the town. Marty appears in the Maverick Hunter's base and Cain asks her to take four chips to X, freeing him.

Hatred[]

Hatred (憎悪 Zouo) is the thirteenth chapter from the manga, originally published on March 1997.

After X defeats Bit and Byte, Dr. Doppler merges them into Godkarmachine O Inary, but X defeats their combined form and Dr. Doppler without effort.

Wrath[]

Wrath (激怒 Gekido) is the fourteenth chapter from the manga, originally published on April 1997.

Dr. Cain tries to repair Dr. Doppler while X protects them from Doppler's army. As Sigma starts to regain control over Doppler, Doppler decides to destroy himself to prevent going out of control and harming his friend Cain. X enters Sigma's fortress.

Oni[]

Oni ( "Demon") is the fifteenth chapter from the manga, originally published on May 1997.

X fights against Vile in Sigma's fortress.

Shine[]

Shine (輝き Kagayaki) is the final chapter from the manga. It was originally published on June 1997.

X fights against Sigma in his most powerful body, and is nearly destroyed, but his body regenerates and his armor becomes shiny, defeating Sigma. X disappears after the battle. Dr. Cain starts repairing Zero.

Rockman X Zero[]

Rockman X Zero (ロックマンX ZERO) is a two chapter story between the Rockman X3 and Rockman X4 manga with Zero as the main character. The two chapters were included with the Rockman X3 compilations.

Mars[]

The Red Fighting God

The Red Fighting God, Zero, strikes down the wicked Mavericks.

Mars (赤き闘神 Akaki Toushin) is the first chapter, originally published on July 1997. The Japanese title literally means "Red Fighting God", referring to the god of war named after the red planet, and to Zero, the red Maverick Hunter who has amazing power and is considered one of the strongest Hunters.

Zero has a nightmare where he imagines himself fighting Sigma, and then witnesses Sigma's face slowly transform into Zero's, shocking him. He then awakens from this nightmare after two months of being asleep, his repairs finally being completed by Dr. Cain in the laboratory. Cain informs Zero that X is still missing months after he defeated Sigma and the tower exploded. Zero and Cain both talk it over and reason that X is probably fine and will return sooner or later. Suddenly, Cain gets an urgent call in his laboratory notifying him of 37 Mavericks running roughshod in a nearby area. Zero decides to go there himself and fight the rampaging Mavericks.

After arriving at the scene, Zero manages to destroy 36 of the Mavericks by himself. The last one is the strongest, and he attempts to convert his arm into the Zero Buster cannon but there is a malfunction and it fails, his arm remaining the same. Before the Maverick can harm Zero, it is attacked by Colonel of the Repliforce military, who strikes it with his beam saber and has his squad of Reploid soldiers finish the job by blasting the Maverick to smithereens. Zero and Colonel are old friends, and the Colonel welcomes Zero back to his position, as he had been asleep for two months. Zero is surprised Colonel came with his army and thanks him for the rescue, but Colonel refuses to tell him why he arrived on the scene, and says that it is a military secret. Colonel then slyly insults Zero by telling him that the security situation in the area cannot be left to an incapable person, so Colonel and his soldiers would be taking command of the scene. He also tells Zero that the day will come when they fight together, and flashes a grin.

After leaving the area in Repliforce's hands, Zero returns to Dr. Cain's laboratory. He tinkers with his right arm, intent on fixing the Zero Buster so that it will not malfunction on him again during a mission, but his efforts are to no avail. Zero fondly remembers X and his fighting spirit while conversing with Dr. Cain, who tells him that he will only make his Buster more useless with his efforts. Suddenly, Blast Hornet appears on the screen, and informs Cain and Zero that a series of volcanic islands have appeared out of the sea suddenly. Zero states his intention to investigate it.

Ikaros[]

RX3ColonelMilitarySquads

Colonel and his Repliforce soldiers go to aid Zero

RX3 Zero blasts hole

Zero blasts a hole in the AX-10 artificial sun

RX3ColonelThanksZero

Colonel thanks Zero for his help

Ikaros (イカロス Ikarosu) is the second chapter, originally published on August 1997. The title of this chapter is a reference to Icarus, the son of Daedalus who escaped from Crete using artificial wings and then flew so close to the sun that the heat melted his wings and made him fall into the sea. In this chapter, X also gets close to a sun, albeit an artificial one, and manages to destroy it and come out alive.

The volcanic islands that mysteriously arose from the sea have also captured the attention of the Repliforce, as several flying Mavericks appeared from the islands and started attacking cities. The Repliforce fought back, and the result was heavy casualties on both sides with the battle not yet being over. To make matters worse, Repliforce's heat sensors have detected an unknown energy source emanating from the main island which could be dangerous. Zero contacts the Colonel and asks to meet him for help dealing with the Maverick threat. During the meeting, Colonel agrees to give Zero a Repliforce task force to command so Zero can effectively attack the Mavericks.

Zero and the Repliforce squad launch an effective attack against the Mavericks using flying battle vehicles, destroying several. Colonel observes the battle in an underwater Repliforce submarine, satisfied with Zero's progress. He decides to head out and attack the forces on the ground and brings his Repliforce subordinates Frost Walrus, Slash Beast and Storm Owl to participate in the assault, along with some foot soldiers. Since the Mavericks are busy fighting Zero and his team in the air, Colonel is able to launch a devastating artillery attack against the enemies' factories on the island. He then leads his squad forward and destroy more enemies, while Walrus, Beast and Owl have their own squads and effectively take down some Mavericks as well. All the Mavericks in the local vicinity are destroyed on both air and the ground.

However, just as they believe that the battle has been won, the ground under them explodes with volcanic ash, with a large, spherical thermal device rising from the ground and into the sky. Zero recognizes it as the AX-10 artificial sun, a project to provide the Earth with more energy due to shortages that were negatively affecting the population. The project was eventually scrapped due to difficulties getting it to work properly. Zero horrifically realizes that if it is allowed to stay in the atmosphere, the entire Earth will be burned and completely destroyed. The artificial sun must be destroyed if the Earth is to be saved.

As Colonel starts giving orders to his squad who are wearing heat-resistant insulation suits, one of the soldiers starts to run off on his own. Colonel orders the soldier to stay put and wait for further instructions, but the soldier runs off anyway. When Colonel stabs the ground with lightning from his saber to stop the soldier, he is able to leap high and dodge it and continue onward. Colonel is amazed than an ordinary soldier could have the ability to perform such a jump that only skilled Maverick Hunters usually can. When he sees that the soldier is running toward the AX-10, Colonel wonders whether the soldier is trying to be the Icarus of today, and believes such bravery is admirable.

Meanwhile, Zero and his squad blast at the AX-10, but their attacks prove ineffective and Zero nevertheless decides to press forward still, ignoring the Colonel's frantic calls to return to the submarine. As Zero flies near the sun, he notices a Reploid standing in front of it, who is the same soldier who previously departed from Colonel's squad in order to try and destroy the AX-10 alone. Zero notices the soldier bears a striking similarity to X, and wonders whether it is really him. Not wanting X to fight the battle alone, Zero leaps from his aerial vehicle directly toward the sun, intent on landing a direct hit to it. Over the com device, Zero tells Colonel of his discovery, who in turn is baffled as he believes X died fighting Sigma. Zero tells the Colonel he saw him with his own eyes but obscured in insulation clothing, which causes the latter to realize that the brave, Icarus-like soldier who left to attack the AX-10 is X himself, disguised as a common soldier.

Zero proclaims that only X could challenge the artificial sun, as X himself is the "sun" that shines on the Earth. Zero lands a serious blow to the AX-10, piercing it with his arm and then launching a point-blank blast with his Zero Buster embedded inside which destroys his arm in the process and creates a hole right in the AX-10. As the explosion knocks Zero back and makes him fall toward the sea, Colonel has the submarine emerge from the water and personally catches Zero at the top of it to save him.

The soldier is able to use the hole Zero created to infiltrate the AX-10 and reach the main area. A Maverick tries to attack him but the soldier easily destroys it with one blast. After reaching the main area, he discovers the mechanical "heart" of the sun, and prepares to destroy it. He charges up his energy, destroying his insulation armor and revealing that he is indeed X after all, and destroys it with a powerful blast. The mission is over, and the threat has been ended.

Colonel thanks Zero for his cooperation and leaves to report the situation to his superiors, and the Maverick Hunters on the scene celebrate X's return. Zero thinks to himself that X is a modern-day Icarus, given that he just destroyed an artificial sun.

Elsewhere, in an undisclosed, dark location with foggy skies, a mysterious Reploid in a cloak sits idly in a tower. He ominously remarks that with the Repliforce and the Maverick Hunters, things are becoming more and more interesting, and then laughs maniacally.

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