Mega Man 1. Mother Elf, Disappeared?

Capcom holds the copyright for any Zero, 1, 2, and 3 that appear in this fic. The only characters belonging to me are Iris and Aniyu Canina.

Super Elf 

?--

"Ciel? Where was Mother Elf last sighted," Zero asked through the two-way intercom in his helmet. Ciel relayed the coordinates to the red Reploid as he checked his Holo-map at his wrist. The coordinates were right, but no sign of Mother Elf.

"She must be there, Zero. The scanner can't be malfunctioning," Ciel said as she busily typed at her keyboard, looking for the problem. After a few minutes, she discovered nothing wrong with the scanner. "There. She's definitely in that temple, Zero. We don't want those awful robots to attack her," she said, remembering these strange robots that appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Though each were different from size, weapons, attack methods, armor and agility, they all shared two vital characteristics; to attack anything in their path, and a rather eerie red eye in the center of the head… Ciel simply shivered just thinking about one.

Zero continued to walk around the room he wandered into and took a look around. As he looked, a flash of red light appeared from the corner. The sound of robotic movement was heard and he suspected the cause. "Reaverbot…" He drew his saber and pointed it at the alleged 'Reaverbot,' ready for combat. Suddenly, behind the first red eye, several more came from behind it. "Damn…" He started charging his Z-Buster as he stepped back, away from the hoard of Reaverbots entering the light. "Come on…" The Reaverbots barreled at him and started spinning with blades coming from their legs. He jumped over two of them, fired a fully charged shot at the second two, destroying them. He landed, turned around to face the two he jumped over and fired an even larger blast at them. As the third set of two dashed at him, he slashed upward, slicing them in half. From the slash came an energy wave that sliced the last two.

After dispatching the 8 blade Reaverbots, Zero looked in the corner and saw a flickering light. "Mother Elf," he concluded and started walking towards the light. The closer he got, he started hearing the elf calling to him weakly.

"Zee-eee-e-rrr-ooo…" It sounded like her program was being corrupted, making it more difficult to speak.

"Zero? Did you find Mother Elf," Ciel asked him, curiously.

"Yeah, but I think she's damaged," he stated as he looked at the dimming elf in the corner. "Come on. We can have Ciel fix you up, and you can be off again, minding your own business," he persuaded as he stepped slowly to the elf.

"You don't think Weil's curse is returning, do you?"

"I highly doubt that." He watched as she began to drop several sparkles onto the floor, causing something to create in the center of the spot she made. "Mother Elf? What's the matter," he asked as her light flickered on and off more violently. The elf began to shrink as another elf seemed to be created underneath it.

Zero could swear that with her last breaths, she looked to Zero and gave him one final call. "Zeeerrrooo…" With that the mother of all Cyber Elves disappeared into thin air, leaving a little brightly shining little Cyber Elf. The tiny Elf looked up at Zero with large, curious eyes.

"A… Baby Elf?"

"What was that, Zero," the scientist asked through the intercom.

"I think… Mother Elf… gave birth? To a Baby Elf," Zero responded, not sure as to what happened.

"Baby Elf? Crea and Prea had similar readings to Mother Elf. If you found a Baby Elf, I should have a weaker reading of Mother Elf, but she's nowhere on the monitor."

"That's because she… disappeared. Mother Elf's no longer here, just this little cat-like Elf."

"But I only have your coordinates on the monitor; no Mother Elf readings, no Baby Elf readings, and no Reaverbot readings. Not picking up Pantheons either…" Ciel had to admit, this was a tough situation. Zero said he found, what he thinks is, a Baby Elf, which usually had a weaker energy level as Mother Elf. However, she doesn't read anything besides Zero. As far as she knows, he's the only one there. "Zero? Bring the Elf back. We'll run a scan on her. But I don't think she's a Baby Elf."

"Rodger. I'm bringing the little Elf back to the base now," he said as he knelt beside the Elf. He looked at it, it looked at him. It smiled cutely at Zero and cocked its head to the right in curious fashion. "Hmm hmm," Zero chuckled a bit. He had to admit: it was adorable. "Here, kitty kitty," he called as he made a motion with his hand. "Here, kitty," he said with a little more feeling in his voice. That made the Elf's tail swish left to right as it trotted to Zero quickly and leaping into his arms with a soft 'mew.' "Mission complete, transfer me back," he said as he stood in the center of the room. In a flash of light, Zero was transported back to the Resistance base.

Resistance base--

Zero was transferred into the command room and was greeted by Ciel. "Welcome back Zero. Where's that little Elf you said Mother Elf 'gave birth' to," she asked, looking into his eyes. _"Every time I look into his eyes, I feel like I'm in a world of happiness,"_ she thought, fighting to hide the daydreaming, schoolgirl grin and blush on her face.

"It's somewhere," he replied and looked around himself, thinking she's still clinging to him. A small, timid 'mew' came from behind him and he reached behind his back. "Ah! There it is," he said as he pulled it from behind him and showed it to Ciel. It quickly ran up his arm and clung to his shoulder, peering over it to Ciel, quaking with fear. "Heh… I think it's scared."

Ciel looked to the Elf looking over Zero's shoulder then looked back to Zero with a confused look. "Why are you calling the Elf 'it?'"

Zero shrugged. "I'm no Elf expert. The way I see it, she's an Animal. Most Animal Elves are male. But given that Gibber, Atti and Maya are female, that throws my theory off and I can't make a decision. I don't want to offend the Elf by assuming its female."

Ciel raised an eyebrow. "Why would it be offended if you called it a girl?"

"Well, you'd hate it if I called you a male, now would you," he responded with a smirk and a chuckle.

"I guess you're right," she conceded with a nod. "Well, let's get that Elf scanned," Ciel suggested and lead Zero to Cerveau's lab where the Elf scanner had been installed recently. _"I'm glad he's picked up a sense of humor somewhere. I liked him when he was completely serious, but I think I like him more with a sense of humor,"_ she thought with a little blush on her face.

They entered Cerveau's lab and looked around the walls to see constant flashes of light with a shadow being cast. "Whoever it is, I don't have time!"

"Yes, please exit the lab. We're working on Zero's new weapon and cannot be disturbed," Doigt said after Cerveau.

"Cerveau? Can I use the Elf scanner," Ciel asked through the sparks of the suturing tool.

The device stopped and Cerveau lifted his protective mask and looked to Ciel and Zero standing at the door. "Oh, I thought it was another soldier. You won't believe how many soldiers came by, disturbing me and Doigt," he said with a slight smirk. "The Elf scanner is through that door," he explained, pointing to a closed door leading to an annex room. "Use it to your heat's content, but please don't disturb us. This is very important; this weapon is going to be more useful and more powerful than the Recoil Rod." With that, he lowered the protective mask over his face and continued working on the new weapon.

Ciel, Zero and the little Elf walked through the door into the room with the scanner. The scientist looked back at Zero and the cat-like elf following him and gestured to the machine. "Since the elf seems to only like you, you'll have to put her in, Zero." Zero shrugged, lightly grabbed the Elf and carried it past Ciel to the machine. He gently placed the green cat in the center of the device and pressed a green button. A red line ran up and down the Elf's small form as the screen read 'READING.' After a few seconds, it gave out the Elf's information: a name, the ability, the number of crystals needed to make it grow; but what came out was a mess of numbers, letters and symbols. "1-r!5? Is that it's name," Ciel asked with a strange look on her face.

Zero stepped forward and looked at the name for himself. It was indeed 1-r!5. "What the?" He looked to the left of it and it had a female symbol next to it. "Well, that's pretty clear. Looks like 1-r!5 is a girl's name," he chuckled with a shrug.

Ciel shook her head with a slight smile and stepped beside the red armored Reploid. "Well, maybe we can make out what the ability is." With that she looked below the name and found nothing but random numbers, lower and capital letters in a random order, and more symbols. Ciel stared blankly at the illegible computer lingo and straightened out a bit. "Uh… perhaps we can see what type it is, at least," she said and looked to the left of the description and saw a combination of the Nurse, Hacker and Animal symbols: a pink heart with a green circle in the center and a green outline, a blue 'T' shaped box within the circle and two little squares on either side of the heart. "This… can't be…"

Zero scratched his head and looked at the symbol. "So… This is saying that this Elf is of all three types of Cyber Elves?" Ciel only responded with a shrug. Zero looked beneath that and looked at the number of crystals needed and simply blinked. "It says 6.777998 crystals and then it has several other marks. What do you think this means, Ciel," he asked and held his arm out for the Elf to climb up. Without hesitation, she nimbly ran up his arm and perched on his shoulder.

"I have no idea… All we know is she's female, that she's, possibly, all three types, and that she came from the Mother Elf… And I call myself an expert on Cyber Elves…"

"Ciel, don't be like that. The machine must have a bug in it or something," Zero said as he pat her shoulder. "You can't possibly look at an Elf and guess what it does. Like a penguin, for example-"

"-A penguin might enhance speed when underwater, since they swim incredibly fast."

Zero blinked and straightened his back out. "Makes sense… but what about a… kangaroo?"

"A kangaroo might give you the ability to jump higher. Or maybe even boost strength."

The Reploid looked at the scientist and twitched an eye. "Alright… platypus! What would a platypus elf do," he asked, sounding confident as if he'd prove his point to the scientist.

Ciel couldn't think of anything a platypus would do if it were an Elf. _"Platypus… egg-laying, duckbilled mammal with webbed feet and poisonous claws…"_ After a few moments of thinking, she sighed and looked to Zero with a look of graceful defeat. "Okay, so I can't guess what every Elf can do without a machine." She placed her arms behind her back. Zero did nothing but smile. The elf looked to Ciel and scuttled behind Zero's shoulder and peaked over to see the scientist. "But… a cat should enhance your movement; more graceful, more agile, and more fluid. If not that, as a Satellite Elf, they could roll along the ground and bowl down enemies." She looked up and thought for a second before coming up with an idea to see just what this Elf does. "Take her on a mission or two as a Satellite Elf! If that doesn't work, feed her until she matures and try it again until something happens."

"Great idea, Ciel. By then, something will have to happen. No doubt about it." Zero smiled at Ciel and stepped closer to her. "You're such a smart girl, Ciel. You're the brain of the Resistance and I'm simply the brawn. You can't win with one or the other. Reminds me of my partnership with X." He stopped within an inch of Ciel and gently lifter her face to meet his. "We're also the best partners."

Ciel blushed brightly as she felt Zero lifting her chin up. "Z… Zero…" She felt him move closer to her and wrap his other arm around her waist and bring her face closer to his. "I… I don't think-" He cut her off by shushing her. He took his helmet off after moving his hand from under her chin, showing off his spiky golden hair. Ciel felt herself trembling in his grasp as he opened his mouth slightly and inched closer to hers. Her face began to heat up as she did the same as him and moved closer to him, closing her eyes slightly…

"Ciel? Ciel?" Ciel opened her eyes to see Zero holding her chin up so she was facing him. "Are you okay?" She blinked a few times and looked into his blue eyes.

"Y-yes," she responded, looking slightly confused. _"Was that just a daydream,"_ she thought and looked up at his helmeted head. _"Yeah… just a daydream…" _She turned away from Zero and held her blushing face as her eyes widened. Zero only looked at her with a very confused expression. _"Oh, why couldn't it be real,"_ she thought as more blush spread across her face.

"Are you feeling okay, Ciel? You're scaring me."

"Yes, I'm fine Zero," she responded, still not facing him. "I'm just a little… uh… um…" Her broad smile broadened further as her face became beet red. _"Why can't I get that image out of my head? Wait… Why would I want to,"_ she thought as a small girlish giggle escaped her.

Zero stood at the door, looking at Ciel who is acting rather odd. "Are you sure you're okay? You're not acting like yourself."

"Yes! Yes! I'm fine, Zero! I j-just need some me time to myself is all."

He shrugged and attempted to leave the scanner room with the strange Cyber Elf, leaving the oddly behaving Ciel alone. "I can walk you back to your room if you like," he suggested, opening the door.

"N-no. No thanks, Zero. I'll see you again later," she answered, still not facing Zero. _"I have to stop blushing!"_ Zero stepped out of the room with the Elf following close behind. As soon as the door was shut, Ciel sighed loudly and held her hands close to her breast. "Zero…"

Neo Arcadian Base--

Harpuia sat in his room at his computer, playing a boring game of solitaire. Meanwhile, Fefnir marched around behind him, bored out of his small mind. Leviathan was also bored, lying on Harpuia's bed. "Sage? What's there to do today," Fairy asked, flatly and for the hundredth time.

"For the hundredth time, Fairy, I don't know. If you stop asking, I'll let you play Hard Hat 2," he responded and continued playing solitaire.

"Oh, that game is so boring now," she shouted and rolled onto her stomach with her face on the pillow. "I've beaten Baseball Man so many times, the game's lost all meaning," she continued in a muffled voice.

"You've only beaten Baseball Man, Fairly Stupid! Try beating Samurai Man, Wire Man and all the other bosses," Fefnir barked at Fairy and turned to face her. "After beating the game seven times, it loses all meaning."

"Oh? How many times have you beaten Sonic Zone," she asked, sitting up, facing Fefnir.

"… I hate that dumb game!"

"AHA! You hate it because you can't beat it! That's something I've beaten more times than I can count! And being a Reploid, I can count pretty high!"

"So? I can count high too!"

"Eleventy-six is not a number…"

"Aw, shut up!"

Harpuia's eye twitched. _"With nothing to do, they're at each others throats over the most trivial things,"_ he thought and finished his game. He got up from his computer chair and glared at both childish Reploids. "If you have nothing to do, why don't the two of you spar," he suggested.

Both Generals looked to Harpuia, to themselves, back to Harpuia and to themselves again. "YOU'RE MINE," they yelled in unison and dashed out of the room.

With a sigh, Harpuia shut off his computer and decided to fly around for a bit. "They're both so childish! It makes me sick!" He just about started his jet boosters and growled to himself, "Damn you, Phantom." The General of wind and thunder took off with a loud boom. "If you were still here, I'd have less to baby-sit!" He flew around the desert, thinking about the departed General of the dark with a sense of malice. "He didn't need to sacrifice himself… though it was noble…" He sighed and thrust forward even faster. "I shouldn't be speaking of him like this. It's showing disrespect…" He continued his flight until sunset before deciding to return to the base. "I hope Leviathan and Fefnir haven't demolished the training room…"

Sage opened the door to the training facility to see several training droids either engulf in flames or skewered with icicles. Leviathan dashed passed Sage and was followed by a huge wave of fire. Fefnir was heard laughing like a maniac as he chased her with flames spouting from his flamethrower arm. Harpuia couldn't help but chuckle a bit. _"It's pretty funny once you think about it. How childish they are."_

The two Guardians stopped in their tracks and saw Harpuia watching them with a slight smirk visible on his face. "Hey, hey Sage! Care to join us," Fefnir laughed and gestured to Leviathan. He mouthed the words 'double team' as he continued his gesture.

"Yeah! A free-for-all is just what we need," Fairy suggested and did the same as Fefnir, pointing to him mouthing 'double team.'

"No thanks. I'm not in the mood to fight right now. You two knock each others teeth out; I'll be in the command room checking up on things. Later." With that, Harpuia left, closing the door behind him and leaving the two Guardians alone to do battle. They looked to each other and carried on from where they left off.

Resistance base--

Zero walked into his room with the Elf at his side. "Well, little mystery Elf. This is my room," he explained to her. "Feel free to use the bed however you may please, and the nightstand for… uh… nothing but that lamp… And… That's basically the room. Not much here." The Elf fluttered to his bed and sat on his pillow. With a yawn, she curled herself in a little ball and fell asleep. Zero turned to see her snoozing peacefully. He smirked and sat beside the cat-like Elf and gently rubbed her fur back. A purr escaped her as his hands made contact with her. _"She seems like a normal housecat. It's hard to believe she's a Cyber Elf,"_ he thought and continued to pet the said Elf.

She continued to purr louder and louder. _"Seems she really likes me."_ She opened her eyes and looked up at Zero innocently. They looked into each other's eyes as her tail swished back and forth slowly. She made a cute little mew sound as she stretched her back and strode onto his lap. She stepped in a circle, digging her claws into his knee trying to make her seat comfortable. Used to constant stabs from Leviathan, Fefnir's trouncing and Harpuia's slashes, this merely tickled him. When she finally curled into a ball and slept on his lap, Zero resumed petting her. "Let's see what we can name you… You're going to need a name, since we can't call you 1-r!5, now can we?" She continued to purr as his hand glided down her back. A light knocking came to his door, and he didn't want to make the cat move. "Door's open, Alouette."

The door opened and the little Reploid girl walked in with a cute face. "How did you know it was me, Zero?"

"You're the only one that knocks so meekly," he chuckled and looked to the girl.

"Ciel told me you found a Cyber Elf on you mission to the old ruins," she asked as she approached Zero. He nodded and gestured to the green cat on his lap. "Oh, a kitty! It's so cute," she squealed and dropped her doll on the floor. Alouette gasped and quickly picked the doll up. "I'm sorry, little guy."

The red Reploid couldn't help but laugh. "Alouette, you're cute yourself. That little guy means a lot to you doesn't it?" She blushed, held it closer and nodded. "But isn't he falling apart?"

"Yes… I've had him since I came to the resistance. I've held onto him since Ciel gave him to me." She held it even closer. At this point, the head had folded over her arms and Zero saw the stuffing falling out of the missing eye.

"Weren't you going to ask Ciel to fix him up?" The Elf perked her head up and looked at Alouette. Their eyes met and she yawned before laying her head down on Zero's leg.

"Does she have a name, Zero," she asked, pointing to the cat. Zero shrugged and pet her some more. "Doesn't that Elf scanner tell you the name?"

"Yeah, but this time, it came out jumbled. It read 1-r!5. Perhaps you can think up a name; you're creative," he answered and pointed to a picture she drew with crayon. It was a picture of Zero, Ciel and herself standing side-by-side in front of a building labeled 'resistance.' "Besides, you named Crea and Prea. Those were great names."

Alouette thought for a few seconds. _"1-r!5… Hmm…"_ "Iris! We'll call her Iris! 1 looks like an 'I', the r is obviously an 'R', the explanation point also looks like an 'I' and the 5 slightly resembles an 'S'. I-R-I-S; Iris." Zero's eyes widened at the little Reploid girl. She started to cry and looked down. "You don't like it, do you?..."

"No, I like it Alouette. Now that you mention it, 1-r!5 _looks_ like Iris in a sense," he corrected and smiled at her. "You're so advanced for your age. Just wait a few more years, and you'll be on par with Ciel in intelligence!" Alouette looked up to Zero again and smiled.

"Can I play with Iris, Zero?"

The Elf, now Iris, perked up her head again and looked over to Alouette. With a mew, she leaped off Zero's lap and walked to her, tail swishing playfully. "I guess that's a yes. Have fun, okay. But be careful, Alouette; those claws are sharp." He stood up, dusted himself off and stepped out for a bit. "I'm just going to see if anyone wants to spar. I'm bored."

Alouette nodded and started playing with Iris as he stepped out. "Iris is a good name, isn't it Iris," she asked the green cat dangled her small hand over the cat's head.. Iris simply mewed as she rolled onto her back and batted at Alouette's hand happily. "You like that name? Iris?" Again, Iris mewed. "I thought you would…"

Though Zero paid it no mind, he couldn't help but wonder. Why did his head hurt slightly when he heard the name Iris? Does the name Iris mean anything to him? Perhaps something from his past? Usually, these head throbbing pains bring something back into his forgotten memories. Like the other day when he performed a new attack: prepared to slash the saber normally, the weapon became a flaming wave of energy rather than the normal attack. Afterwards, his head hurt like no one's business as he heard the word 'Shoenzan' over and over again. Perhaps Shoenzan was the name of the attack and that attack was learned over a century ago. Just like his old techniques, the name Iris must be important to him… but how? He continued walking to the training hall, hoping that new Reploid would be there training already…

**End of Chapter I**

**Mother Elf, Disappeared?**

**Worenx Co. Corner**

_Worenx:_ Wow! So much better than Chachi ever did!

_Chcahi:_ Liar!

_Aya:_ Chachi! We're on Review Duty! No interrupting in the Worenx Company Corner! _Drags Chachi away, violently_

_Shade:_ Yeah. And I thought I'd incorporate a whole new character in this version.

_Worenx:_ Who? WHO?

_Shade: _You'll see. Oh, you'll see soon enough.

_Worenx:_ NOOOOOOO! I wanna know now! NOW!

_Shade:_ That may have worked on Chachi, but it don't work on me. _Smirks devilishly_

_Worenx:_ Damn… Oh well… Keep this going. And work on that Outlaw Star one, would ya? And a Breath of Fire while you're at it.

_Shade:_ … Slave driver…


	2. Two Years Later…

Capcom holds the copyright for any Zero, 1, 2, and 3 that appear in this fic. The only characters belonging to me are Iris and Aniyu Canina.

Super Elf 

_Worenx Note(WN): Thanks to Rioni for pointing this out. This story does, in fact, take place after Z3. However, as you can see, the Guardians are not stripped of their authority in this story, but were in Z3 by Weil. For the record, I have never played Z4, so I have no clue what happens to the Guardians after that. But as of now, I will say Weil was defeated and the Guardians are now in control again. I know about the Z-Knuckle(or something or other; thanks to the website Rockman Perfect Memories) and I will involve that in this. Got that? Guardians are in control of Neo Arcadia because of Weil's defeat._

Resistance base--

Zero and Iris transferred back from his long, grueling mission with nothing to show but 25,000 glimmering crystals, a broken Chain Rod, and a grin saying 'I am dead.' Ciel rushed up to him calling for him. "Zero! Zero," she called, waving her arms at him.

Iris cocked her head at Ciel and mewed sweetly. "Hey Ciel," he answered in his standard monotonous voice, still smiling though. He showed her the busted Chain Rod and sighed heavily. "Boy, is Cerveau gonna be ticked."

"I'm sure he'll fix it for you like always," the blonde scientist assured her favorite red Reploid. "Iris do anything interesting today," she asked, still baffled by Iris's power.

Zero responded simply with a shake of his head. "She didn't do anything apparent, that's for sure." He reached over and rubbed the hovering cat's fur, making her purr. "I _did_ feel a bit stronger and slightly faster, but only while I was in danger," Zero mentioned and stopped rubbing Iris. The Elf cocked her head and flew to Zero and nuzzled his neck. "But she kept me company between Reaverbot attacks."

As they started walking to Cerveau's lab, a perturbed expression crossed her face. "Are the Reaverbots becoming more powerful? I noticed the energy readings are slowly increasing over time…" Ciel visibly shivered. "At this rate, they'll be as powerful as Omega X in Seraph form in a matter of weeks…" Just that thought was enough to make her pale.

Zero placed his hand on her shoulder and gave her a look of reassurance. "I doubt that's possible, Ciel," he said turning her face to meet his gaze. "But they _are_ getting steadily more powerful each time I face them…" Now, Zero's the one with the unnerved face. Iris began to nuzzle up to his cheek, purring loudly. Both Ciel and Zero allowed themselves each a laugh. "She's always there to help somehow," the red Reploid laughed as he and Ciel neared the development lab.

They stood in front of Cerveau's lab and Ciel cleared her throat. "Well, Zero… Uh… good luck in there." Zero sighed, looked to her and nodded. As the door opened he stuck out his chest and marched in. "There marches a brave soul," she joked as the door shut.

"Hello? Cerveau," Zero called out as he looked around the lab, slightly nervously. After calling several more times, the red Reploid concluded that Cerveau wasn't available. "Oh darn," he said with a slight smile, "Looks like I'll to come back in a week or two." With that he looked to Iris and smiled a little more and turned around to leave.

"Zero? Is that you," a stern voice called from the back. Zero's smile dissolved into a defeated expression. "What do you need?"

Zero turned to see Cerveau, absently repairing a resistance soldier's gun without having to watch what he's doing. "Hey, Cerveau. How's it going," he asked, slightly gloomy. _"Wonderful. Now I'll have to show him the busted weapons…"_ He looked to Iris, who looked back with large, innocent cat eyes, and sighed. _"Wish me luck…"_

Cerveau finished working on the gun and turned to set it on a table and to get another gun. "Not so good. I've been repairing guns all day for the soldiers. How was your mission in those ancient ruins," he asked, not turning back to look to Zero.

"Uneventful. More Reaverbots to fight. And they seem to be getting smarter and more powerful," he commented and produced the broken Chain Rod from behind his back. "Look what one of the larger ones did…"

Cerveau lifted up part of his visor to examine the weapon he had fashioned for Zero from the Triple Rod. He was surprised it took so long since the last repair to break again. "Goodness. What was that Reaverbot like," he asked, concerned. If these bots were getting stronger, he figured it may be advantageous for Zero's weapons to be upgraded. Zero described the massive Reaverbot to Cerveau as he scribbled down something on a pad of paper. The robot had large, crab-like claws, a heavily armored torso, tank-like legs and a large head with three cannons and the traditional Reaverbot Eye. He also went into detail about the Reaverbot's fighting style, it's speed, the weakness and intelligence level. "Hmmm… Seems to me your weapons need a severe upgrade," the weapons expert commented.

"Yeah, I kind of figured that." Zero handed over the rod and turned to leave, but Cerveau's hand stopped him.

"I'll upgrade them, but it'll require 5,000 Crystals for each weapon. 20,000 for your Rod weapon, Shield Boomerang, Z-Buster and Z-Saber. Your Z-Knuckle still works, right?"

Zero held up his hand and activated the Z-Knuckle function. "Yeah. It works just fine."

Cerveau nodded with a slight smirk. "You're going to have to use that more often. If these Reaverbots have any useful weapons, take them and use them as much as possible." He reached into his lab coat and pulled out a bracer-like device with a green and a red button in the center and placed it around the Z-Knuckle arm. "Once you obtain a weapon, you can chose to download its data by pressing the green button, and upload it to any object in your hand with the red. If you have a saber weapon downloaded, you can grab onto a pole and transform it into the saber. I call it the Weapon Bracer. Use it to download four different weapons."

Zero looked at this bracer and smiled. He grabbed a Resistance gun and downloaded the data by pressing the green button. "So, I can grab anything and make it into a Resistance gun," he asked as he grabbed a discarded metal pole. After pressing the red button, the pole flashed and became an exact duplicate of the gun. "Cool…"

"However, once you upload a weapon, the data for the weapon will disappear. You will need to continue downloading weapons until your weapons are upgraded," Cerveau warned. "Now go so I can finish the Resistance's weapon repairs and get started on yours." He collected the 20,000 crystals and the weapons from Zero. But before Zero handed over the Z-Saber, he downloaded its data for later. "Ah, taking proper precautions, I see?" Zero responded with a nod, turned and headed out.

"Thanks Cerveau. Tell me when those weapons are finished ASAP."

Ciel leaned against the wall across from the lab when Zero stepped out. She immediately walked over to him with a hopeful smile. "How'd it go in there, Zero," she asked in a sweet voice, expecting the worst.

"Better than expected," he said, showing off the Weapon Bracer. "With this, I can snag a weapon from an enemy, download the data for it and upload it into a random object. Once it's finished uploading, the object takes the shape of the weapon," Zero explained.

Ciel gasped and looked at the black band on his wrist. "Zero, that's great! But wouldn't your other weapons suffice," she asked, slightly confused.

With a nod, Zero held out the remaining 5,000 Crystals. "Had to use 20,000 to upgrade all of them to handle these Reaverbots." Ciel looked at his palm and made a sour face. "It's worth it, Ciel…"

"I know, but why so much? Isn't he aware that there is an energy shortage?"

"More so than the rest of us. My weapons are too advanced to upgrade cheaply." He closed his hand on the crystals and put them in a compartment on his leg, just below the gun holster. He turned and started towards his room, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go feed Iris these 5,000 Crystals."

Ciel immediately stood up and run to Zero. "_All_ 5,000," she exclaimed when she made it beside him. The red Reploid looked beside him to Ciel. "How many Crystals have you _already_ fed her?"

Stopping to tabulate a ballpark guess, Zero looking to the ceiling and saw Iris's green light flicker. Finally, he turned to Ciel and shrugged. "I'm guessing on the side of thousands?"

"Approximately 795000 Crystals," Ciel shouted, matter-of-factly. "You're wasting crystals on an Elf that just won't mature!" She pointed to the hovering Iris for emphasis. She looked to Iris with slight annoyance. "That Elf hasn't changed one bit since you found her two years ago! I think it's time you give up! She is not going to mature!"

Iris lowered her head and flew behind Zero. Peering over his red shoulder to Ciel and hissed. "Ciel? It doesn't matter to me if Iris matures, but I promised her I would always feed her. For the past year-and-a-half, I've been feeding her solo," he fought back, without a hint of frustration. "I'm sorry for wasting energy, but a promise is a promise, Ciel."

Ciel looked away and huffed loudly, a rare act of childishness from her. "Fine. Do what you like. See if I care…" With that, she walked of towards her lab. Zero stood in the hall and stared at Ciel's door with surprised eyes. He then sighed and started for his room with Iris not far from him, waiting to be fed.

Neo Arcadian Base--

Harpuia walked into the production lab, being lead by Fefnir wearing a broad grin. "Fefnir, what are you leading me to this time," he asked grumpily, having seen this before. "You had better not be leading me to another one of your practical jokes."

"Aw, relax, Harpy-Boy. I'm not gonna play a joke on you," the large red Guardian chuckled, grin broadening.

With a sigh, Harpuia place his hand on his forhead and sighed. "Last time you said that, it took me weeks to get that red gel-like substance out of my hair…" This caused Fefnir to laughed loudly. "It was not funny. My jade hair was orange for another week after the gel subsided…" Fef laughed even harder this time. "Of course, Leviathan's hair was bright pink after your mishap on her… I'll admit, you _almost_ got me laughing there, but we're going to need to fix your personality chip if you don't shape up."

Fefnir laughed loudly and shook his head. "Come on now, Harpy-Boy. Those were just pointless pranks that meant no harm." Sages's humorless face meant one of two things: his disgust for his fellow General's nickname for him, or the face that Fefnir had made a bad joke at the wrong time. This time, it was both. "Alright, alright. Party pooper… I was just tryin' to-"

"Just show me what you wanted me to see," the green Guardian yelled, losing his resolve. Fefnir looked to him blankly and continued leading him. He constantly muttered other stuff about how dull and boring Sage was. "You just keep going, don't you?"

Resistance Base--

Zero sat on his bed, watching as Iris ate the Crystals in sets of four or sixteen. He continued to wonder the mystery behind Iris. If she came from Mother Elf, wouldn't that make her a Baby Elf? If the sensors don't indicate it, most likely it isn't. But why did the scanner give out scrambled data? So many questions came up, but once one is answered, several more spring up in its place. He sighed and fell back onto his pillow. Suddenly, a loud booming knock came to his door. Zero closed his eyes and got comfortable. "Come in."

The door opened and a tigress-like Reploid walked in with lithe strides. Her tail swished seductively behind her perfect posterior as she leaned on her staff, watching Zero and lightly purred. "Sleepy, are we," she asked, sexily.

Zero recognized the voice and, without looking up, knew who it was. "Hey Katt," he said, eyes still closed.

Katt puffed out her cheeks and glared at Zero with her glowing emerald green eyes. "You're no fun! You didn't even look at me," the tigress complained.

With a sigh, Zero acknowledged her need for attention, sat up and looked her up and down. "Okay. I looked. Now what?"

She stamped her foot impatiently and glared more frustrated at him, "Well? How do I look?"

"Uh… Sexy," he asked, not sure what she wanted today. Katt smiled brightly, and blushed a bit. She had on her low cut blue and red torso armor with the spiked shoulders, a spiked black collar(which is odd considering she's a cat), spiked bracers on her wrists with gloves and boots of the same coloration of the torso guard. She seemed to favor no armor from the waist down to her knees, which made Zero think… "What your point Katt?…"

"Nothing," she said with a shrug and a slight hip thrust to the left, "I'm just bored and want you to compliment me." Zero nodded, almost understanding his tiger-Reploid friend. Suddenly, she tapped her staff on the ground repeatedly and loudly, making the red Reploid and Iris jump. "But you promised me a sparring match in the Training room!"

Zero shrugged at her and lied down again. "Sorry. Got no weapons…"

"Oh bull. Catch," she said and tossed him her staff. Thinking quickly, he reached out with his Z-Knuckle arm and caught the weapon. "I heard you and Cerveau," she said and gestured to her twitching tiger ears, "I know you can download weapon data and upload it into inanimate objects and obtain the weapon. Press that green button on your bracer," she commanded and crossed her arms over her modest chest. With a growl, Zero did as he was told and downloaded the K-Staff data into his bracer and tossed it back to her. She caught it and used it as a cane. "Now let's go to the training room and spar." With that, she turned around and swaggered her hips out the door and headed towards the training room.

Zero looked to Iris and sighed deeply. "That girl has more stamina than any other Reploid I know…" He got up and walked out the door after Katt and Iris followed closely behind. "This 'sparring' match will take a while…"

Neo Arcadian Base--

"Fefnir! For the last time, will you forget about this and show me what you want to show me," Sage yelled as Fefnir pounded at a vending machine.

"No way! I put 100 Zenny in this thing," he shouted back and continued pounding on the malfunctioning machine. "I! Want! My! M&M's," the red Guardian hollered between pounds.

Harpuia sighed and shook his head. "It is only a pack of candy… It is not of national importance… What _is_ of importance, not national but important, is showing me what you want to show me!" He leaned against another vending machine and glared at Fefnir with his piercing gaze.

He clenched his fists and grit his teeth at the machine. The reinforced glass window was cleaned so perfectly, Fefnir was looking back at his own distorted features. "Maverick machine," he yelled and armed his flamethrower and aimed it at the vending machine. "I shall retire you!"

"Now, Fefnir. It's not worth it…"

Sage's words couldn't have come later. Fefnir already pulled the trigger and the vending machine was pummeled with weak fireballs. After ten or so, the machine blew up, sending snacks flying every which way. Bags of pretzels, potato chips, and a few candy bars nailed Sage on the head, on his leg and on his chest. Fefnir smiled happily as he grabbed a bag of Peanut M&M's and showed it to Sage. "Victory!"

Sage sighed again and slapped his forehead. "Now that you have gotten your candy, can you please show me what you want to show me? I've more important-" He was cut off by Fefnir yelling that the M&M's had melted and the bag was now just a warm chocolate milkshake with nuts floating. "No kidding, Fef. You only shot fireballs at the machine…"

"Well, I ain't eating this," he declared and threw the bag casually behind him.

"Fefnir, did you get Sage yet," Leviathan asked as she walked into the mess hall, only to get a bag of melted M&M's splattered onto her face. The chocolate covered her face and peanuts were all over as well. She wiped off the chocolate from in front of her angry eyes and licked the stuff around her lips. "Fefnir…"

"I didn't do it," the General of the Jin-en protested and threw up his hands, accidentally tossing the chips from the bag behind him.

As the two Generals bickered, Sage growled and slapped his forehead for the umpteenth time and grumbled something to himself.

Resistance Base--

Zero's K-Staff copy was just as strong as the original. He was amazed how Cerveau managed to duplicate the downloaded weapon so perfectly. Besides the coloration, it was near impossible to tell which was which. Strength, swing speed and handling capability is replicated 100 accurately.

After a parry from Zero's staff to Katt's, she performed a perfect back flip and landed on her feet a few feet from her partner. "You handle a staff pretty well, Zero," she commented and purred at him, playfully. Zero looked to the staff copy in his hand and looked back to Katt. "But I'm a master with the way of the staff!" She leaped forward with a battle cry made beautiful only through her voice.

Zero parried her overhead strike by holding the staff horizontally. Using this moment of recovery, he reared back and dove forward, staff still against staff and forced Katt down. Her back was slammed against the ground as her staff slipped from her grasp. To signify his defeat over her, he pressed the staff against her throat. "Game," he called out.

Still on the ground, she opened her eyes slowly. Her emerald green eyes shone with desire as she looked into Zero's cold blue eyes. She was silent. Stunned. Surprised… In love… She felt so weak; all she could do was gaze back into his eyes. So cold, yet warm. Her mouth was frozen and her artificial heart pounded inside her chest. Her thoughts raced. She imagined Zero leaning a bit further to plant a kiss on her awaiting lips that were dry with anticipation. Katt felt herself tremble beneath his strength. No Reploid had ever made her feel this way…

Zero looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. "Do you give up or not," he asked, staff still on her throat. She still couldn't say anything. She only nodded with her blank face. After that, Zero stood up and cast his copy Staff aside. "That was fun, wasn't it Katt," he asked as he held his hand out for her to take. She was still in a trance; her emeralds looked right at Zero. "Are you alright," he asked, noticing her odd behavior, "Perhaps I hit you harder than I thought."

She snapped out of it with a gasp and quickly took his hand. As he helped her up, she decided quickly to tell him this revelation. She suddenly realized she loved the Reploid that rescued her from Neo Arcadia almost two-and-a-half-years ago. Since that fateful day, Katt had _some_ strange feeling about him. Now, she understood what that was. "Zero, I have something to tell you," she said and leaned forward. Zero looked into her eyes and nodded. "I love you."

Katt had joked around a lot around Zero. Always swaying her hips when he followed, giving him seductive looks, purring whenever he was around. He couldn't take this seriously because of her jovial attitude, so he cracked a smile. "Heh. That's a good one, Katt," he said with a smile. Katt was about to protest when Zero turned to leave the room. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't find the words. "See ya around, Katt. This was fun," he said as he left the room with a wave.

As she watched his retreating form, she felt something on her face; a warm sensation gliding down her cheek. She reached up and touched it only to feel wetness. "Tears," she thought out loud. Katt was crying. "He took it as a joke…" More tears streamed from her eyes as more thoughts bombarded her simple mind, threatening to drive her insane. "Am I joking? It's getting so bad, _I_ can't even tell if I'm joking," the tigress-Reploid lamented as she dropped to her knees. "Maybe if I catch some Z's, I'll forget about this. I don't like this feeling…" With an audible sigh, she took her staff, stood up and swayed her hips as she made for the door. "…Well, I _do_ seem to act very seductive around him… Maybe I… nah, it'll blow over." She left the training room and headed down the hall to her room.

Once again, Zero dropped on his bed and tried to sleep some more. He looked over to Iris who picked up where she left off on eating the crystals. She was cute, even if Zero tried to ignore it. Her cute face with her white, furry muzzle, her cute button nose, the way her tail swishes when she plays with a ball of yarn. Though she was a Cyber Elf, she was the same size as a housecat. _"Wait a minute… She was never this big… Is she maturing,"_ Zero thought as he watched Iris. _"Is she growing because of the Crystals?"_ He sat up and watched her bat around the remaining 4 Crystals. She turned on her back with the glowing shards in her paws as she continued to play with them. Soon, she got tired and ate each Crystal one at a time…

The moment she swallowed the last remaining Crystal and licked her chops with a purr, a strange sensation befell her. Her body began to glow more and more brightly and begin to hover. "I-Iris," Zero called as he stood up and approached the glowing mass of Cyber Elf. The mass continued to brighten and the light blinded Zero. "Iris!" The glow slowly subsided as the mass began to grow in size and drop back to the ground. He looked down at it as a young woman began to appear from the light. He noticed a pair of green cat ears and a long, green cat tail that matched her flowing green hair. "W-what the?..."

She fidgeted a bit and started to pick herself up, a little shakily. The woman got to her knees and progressed slowly to her feet. When she finally stood straight up, Zero couldn't take his eyes away. She was gorgeous; a perfectly proportioned, perfect female body. Her skin was a bit darkly toned; she had a curvy figure, and a very lovely, beautiful face. Purple streaks traveled down her eye to under her chin. Very slowly, her eyes opened. They were a dazzling forest green, and they were aimed at Zero. She wobbled a bit as she tried to speak. "Z… Zero…"

"How do you know me," he asked the well built cat-girl and stepped back.

She only smiled weakly and stepped closer, clumsily, purring "Zero…" She passed out after two steps.

With his quick reflexes, he managed to catch her before she hit the ground. "Okay, if she is who I think she is… this is _very_ odd," he commented and draped her over his shoulder and made for the Infirmary wing. He would have a lot of trouble explaining to the Reploids he bumped into what happened, and why a naked girl is over his shoulders.

**End of Chapter II**

**Two Years Later…**

**Worenx Co. Corner**

_Worenx_: You added Katt into this?

_Shade_: Yes. Problem?

_Worenx_: Problem? Of course not! Is that the surprise you mentioned before?

_Shade_: Most of it.

_Worenx_: WHAT'S THE REST?

_Shade_: …Okay, you're getting a little too into this. I think it's time for a nap.

_Worenx_: Yes… Naps are good… Nighty-night… _starts snoring and passes out on Shade's typewriter_

_Shade_: Argh…


	3. Cat Tricks

Capcom holds the copyright for any Zero, 1, 2, and 3 that appear in this fic. The only characters belonging to me are Iris and Aniyu Canina.

Super Elf 

Speeding through the halls of the resistance base, Zero was careful not to collide with other Reploids or Ciel. Though the naked girl over his shoulder was unconscious, she continuously murmured his name in a soft, loving voice filled with admiration. Again and again, he'd raise an eyebrow and wonder if they had crossed paths in the past. _"My mind is a little hazy about my past, so that could be a possibility,"_ he thought as he continued to rush down the corridors. _"But, what about Iris? What happened to her?…"_ He glanced at the girl again. Green hair similar to Iris's fur, cat-like ears and a tail… _"Maybe this… this girl is Iris…"_ His main concern was getting her to the medical wing. Her identity can wait until she's well.

Nearly twenty minutes after carrying the mysterious cat-woman to the medical wing, Zero awaited near the door for any information. The Elves in charge told him not to worry, but it was still plaguing him. How _does_ she know his name? _What_ happened with Iris? And _why_ does the name Iris sound so familiar? All this buzzed around his head like angry Melnets ready to strike at any moment of weakness. It was just maddening.

"Zero, what's the matter?" a young voice called to him. He opened his eyes and looked down to see Alouette, peering up at him with her large blue eyes. "Some of the Reploids were saying you were in a hurry and had a naked girl in your arms." She held her hands behind her back and leaned closer to Zero with a curious look.

Zero scratched his head nervously and was about to speak, but someone else decided to arrive. "Zero, what's this I'm hearing about you carrying a naked girl around the base," the blonde scientist asked and gave him an accusing glance. Then she noticed something was missing. "Hey, where's Iris?"

"_I_ don't even know," he began, "I fed her those Crystals and she looked like she was going to mature, when some strange girl appeared in the exact spot Iris was." Ciel looked as if she didn't believe him and crossed her arms. "It's the truth, Ciel. I wouldn't lie."

Alouette looked to Zero, then to Ciel. "That's right, Ciel. Zero doesn't lie. He's such a great person; why would he need to lie?" She smiled widely and hugged her stuffed animal tightly. Of course, Ciel was unable to disbelieve the young 'roid and smiled at her. Alouette smiled wider. Zero allowed himself a small smile.

"But Zero, what you're saying is a little hard to believe," the scientist said and shrugged. "What, Iris matured into a young woman?"

Zero had never considered that. The girl had the same color hair as Iris, same eyes, and same feline characteristics. Though it _did _sound odd, Zero couldn't rule that out. "I'm no expert on Elves, Ciel. But that's what I like to think happened."

Ciel placed her chin in her palms and made a low hum. If what Zero said was true and what she thought was sound, they weren't dealing with a run-of-the-mill Cyber Elf. "Where is she now? I have a few things to ask her." Zero gestured to the door before them. "Okay then. Let's pay our little friend a visit."

"She's not so little anymore," Zero added in. "Besides, we have to wait for the Elves to finish up in there. You know how they hate to be rushed." Ciel sighed and took a seat next to Zero, with Alouette close behind and sitting in the next available seat.

Alouette looked to her feet as she swayed her legs back and forth on the chair. "What's she look like, Zero?" she asked curiously.

"Tall, green hair, tanned skin, cat tail and ears, and the darkest green eyes you can imagine," he began. "She has these purple streaks under her eyes. That's about all I can say about her."

Ciel gave him a sideways look. "I heard she was very attractive too." Zero coughed and blushed a bit, making Alouette giggle. "Is that true too, Zero?" she asked, smirking playfully at him.

He shuffled a bit against the door. "Well… A little…"

Ciel laughed a bit. "Gawking at a program, eh Zero?"

Zero tilted his helmet down over his face a bit, partially to hide the blush. "N-no. It was just an observation."

Alouette laughed again. "Ze-ro is blu-shin'! Ze-ro is blu-shin!" she teased in a childish sing-song tone.

Zero was about to protest when the door opened, and caused him to fall backward into the room. Winky, Grandie and Martina fluttered into the room with a few other Nurse Elves and smiled at Ceil and Alouette, and at the grounded Zero. "The Elf is fine," they chimed in unison.

"Elf?" Zero and Ciel exclaimed at the same time. "How do you know she's an Elf?"

"Our scanners, silly," Winky stated, smiling happily.

"They never lie," Grandie added in, also wearing a similar smile.

"They say 'Elf', so she's an Elf," Martina finished.

"And she is in _loooove_ with Zero," all the Elves said together, as if it was rehearsed. Zero blushed, Ciel had a blank expression and Alouette giggled cutely. "The only thing she's been saying is 'Zero,'" one of the other ones said. "It's so cute! She wants to see you, Zero."

--Medical (Nurse) Wing--

They all got up and made their way through the Med wing with the Elves as their guides. They finally got to a room at the end of the hall, which is where the mysterious Elf was resting. Zero pushed open the door and saw her sitting on the bed. She immediately saw him and smiled widely at him. "Zero!" she shouted as she dove from her place and wrapped her arms and legs around him, her gown nearly falling off. Ciel and Alouette walked in and saw this. The scientist covered the young 'roid's eyes.

A few minutes later, the green-haired Elf calmed down and calmly sat on the bed, tail swishing back and forth. "So, let me get this straight," Zero began, "This Elf is Iris's matured stage?" Martina nodded with a smile. It was unbelievable. That an Elf can mature into something the size of a human. "You're not pulling my leg?" She shook her head. He took a seat next to the large Elf, now identified as Iris.

"Zero, Zero!" Iris shouted again and hugged his waist. With a purr, she nuzzled up to him. "Zeeeeroooo."

Ciel watched with a slight air of jealousy and Alouette was too busy playing tag with the smaller Elves to notice. "Well, since she's going to be in a human state, she's going to need clothes," Ciel stated and closed her eyes. Her eyebrows were arched into a rather angry look, which Zero noticed almost immediately. "Come on, Zero. Let's take her to my room to get changed." Without waiting for a response, she turned and left the room, expecting Zero was following.

Not wanting to make Ciel upset, Zero got up from the bed and reached for Iris' hand. She smiled cattily and giggled as blush creped onto her face. "Zero!" she chirped and took his hand. He then proceeded to follow Ciel. Alouette was happily playing with the Elves, so she waved at Zero, saying that she'll see him later.

In Ciel's room, Zero stood with his back to the girls and sighed in boredom. "Are you girls done?" he asked.

Iris, wearing only a pair of panties and her T-shirt covering only her head, leaped in front of Zero and looked to him through the hole for her head. "Zeeee-roooo!" she said in a spooky, yet still playful, tone and moving her hands in a ghostly way. Zero looked down slightly in his typical act of bashfulness only to see the Elf's perfect breasts and trim waist.

"Erm, Ciel?" he began, looking up to the ceiling, "She isn't quite dressed yet." He was hit in the head by a clump of clothing. "Uh…"

Ciel stomped over to him with a scowl and tossed another clump of socks in his face. "Zero, I'm trying the best I can to dress her, but she's hyper! I can't get her to sit still!" She stamped her foot on the floor with irritation. "She thinks I'm playing some game with her!" The scientist caught Zero by the collar and shook him about, "She _your_ Elf! Do _something_! Something other than complain about how she's dressed or lack of it!"

"Alright, alright; I'll try." He turned to Iris, who was currently jumping on the bed in just underwear and a T-shirt, and cleared his throat. The Elf looked to him and, moments later, hit her head on the ceiling and fell on her butt. "Iris, are you alright?" he asked.

She blushed a little and smiled cattily. "Zero," she answered. She spotted her tail and grabbed it with both hands. She then hugged it tightly, absently pressing it between her breasts in a rather suggestive manner.

Zero coughed and looked away. "Well, at least you're okay." He looked over his shoulder and noticed her tail had returned to its regular position. "Iris? Could you possibly stand still so Ciel can dress you? Please?" She cocked her head at him. "You can't go around naked, you know." Iris nodded happily and hopped off the bed, then proceeded to stand in front of Ciel's mirror.

Both Ciel and Zero were speechless. "All we had to do was ask her to hold still?" She stood aghast at Iris's still form. With a frustrated growl, she kicked another pile of discarded clothing at an adjacent wall, and caused it to rebound off it and hit Zero again.

"You did that on purpose didn't you?" he asked with a sideways glance.

"Nope; Just a happy coincidence," the scientist grumbled and started to dress Iris.

After about fifteen minutes, Ciel had Iris dressed and decent. She lent Iris her Resistance uniform and a few other civilian outfits. The uniform fit Iris almost perfectly, if it wasn't for her more pronounced measurements. The black under suit was tight around her broad hips, stretching the material a bit. As for the actual uniform, a few buttons at the top had to remain unbuttoned, or it would constrict against her chest. Her green hair was also in a similar fashion to Ciel. "There; that should so it," the scientist said as she cut a hole for the tail.

The Elf stood in front of the mirror, smiling broadly. "Looking good," Zero commented with a smirk.

Iris blushed and stood with her arms behind her. "Zero…" she said bashfully.

Ciel crossed her arms and sighed. "It seems she can only say your name, Zero," she assumed.

Iris looked to Ciel and cocked her head again. "Zero?"

The red 'roid scratched his head and sweatdropped. "Well, maybe the Elves in the Hacker wing can figure out why," he suggested. Iris looked to him briefly before nuzzling into his chest.

"You're right, Zero," Ciel said and turned away from them in thought. "She isn't going to be easy to understand if all she can say is-"

"Uh, Ciel?" Zero interrupted. She turned to see what was up and her eyes widened.

Zero was hunched over with Iris on his back. While he wore a bored expression, Iris had a very bright and cheerful smile on. "Zero!" she said as she made a peace symbol with her hands. Zero sighed.

Ciel growled and pointed to the floor. "Iris, get off of him and stop acting like a child!" she called angrily. Iris' ears drooped as she slowly climbed off Zero. "And maybe while we're in the Hacker wing, they can find a way to alter your personality!"

Her cat ears perked straight up, her eyes widened and began to water, her tail slipped between her legs and her knees buckled. "Z-Zero?" She reached up and pressed her ears against her head, "Zero! Zeroooo!" she cried aloud and shook about.

"Then grow up!"

Iris sniffled and hid behind Zero. "C'mon, Ciel, aren't you being a little harsh?" Ciel shrugged and placed her hands in her pocket. "I'm sure if we teach her, she won't act like this," Zero suggested.

The scientist nodded again and sighed. "Iris, I'm sorry I snapped like that." Iris looked to her from behind Zero and nodded sheepishly. "Now, let's just go to the Hacker wing." Zero and Iris both nodded, and the trio was en route to the room where Totten and the other Hackers work.

--Hacker Room--

"Sorry, Ciel. It just can't be done," the main Hacker, Totten, clarified. "We may be able to hack into computer or Reploids, but another Elf?"

Ciel sighed again and took a seat beside Zero. "So, you're telling me that you can't hack into Iris' databank and explain why she can only say 'Zero?'" she asked.

Totten crossed her arms and shook her head. "What's the big deal? You just need to teach her how to speak."

"That's what I said," Zero responded. "And maybe she's saying my name because I was the only one feeding her these last two years." Totten shrugged.

"Well, I don't know if I have enough time to teach her how to speak," Ciel said with an air of uncertainty. "Maybe you and Zero can teach her," she suggested to Totten.

Again, the Elf shrugged. "I don't have much on my schedule now. Besides, Dable and Byse can cover for me should something come up." She looked to Iris and smiled at her. The cat-like Elf smiled back in a cute catty way. "I'd love to. Besides, it might give me more opportunities to study her a bit. This humanoid transformation is very… intriguing."

Zero nodded. "Yeah, that's true. I'll help whenever I can."

"Well, you'll have to do that alone for today. Some very important research needs to get done, and I'm the only one that can do it."

Ciel nodded. "Okay. Too bad you can't hack into her memory banks and give her the ability to speak," she lamented with a slight laugh. "Well, we should leave you alone to get your research done then." They all stood up and walked passed Totten as she buzzed back into the far end of the room.

As they walked down the halls, Ciel and Zero pointed to every little thing they could and tried to teach Iris how to pronounce it. But, with each object, the only answer she would give was 'Zero.' They pointed to a pole, "Zero!" They pointed to a passing 'roid, "Zero!" Door, "Zero!" They couldn't seem to get her to say anything else.

"Argh!" Ciel shouted and crabbed her hair and pulled a bit. "I've never had someone try my patience so much!" she lamented, "It's like I'm dealing with a huge bolder; can't be swayed to change it's direction unless you use dynamite!" With a sigh, she leaned against her door and rubbed her temples.

"Ciel? Are you feeling alright? You've been acting a little… grouchy," Zero commented as Iris danced around happily in the back. Ciel gave no answer; just another sigh. "Or is it _that_ time?"

"Do you keep tabs on my cycle or something?" she growled and leered at him. "No, I'm just agitated for some reason I don't know!" The frustrated girl turned and opened her door. "Look, I'm going to bed. I think I just need a good rest."

"Okay. I'll see you later, Ciel."

She heard their footsteps leave the hall and she growled again in anger. "Why am I so tense? I felt like biting someone's head off." Ciel rubbed her temples and walked to her bed. "Maybe a nap isn't asking too much," she commented before tossing herself on the bed. She was out even before she hit the pillow.

As they walked down the halls more, Zero continued to point to various objects. Still the same results as before. He sighed and pointed to the elevator. "Come on Iris. This is an elevator. Say it. El-e-va-tor," he said slowly.

The Elf smiled again with her cat-like grace and said, proudly, "Zero!" and tackled him.

"No! Elevator!"

"Zero! Zero! Zero," she repeated as she nuzzled his chest.

He scratched his head with a worrisome expression. "Come on, Iris…"

Suddenly, she heard a sound from behind. She instantly let go of Zero and caught a staff in mid-swing. Zero looked behind him and saw Iris holding the offending object, which he recognized as the K-Staff. He looked up the shaft of the weapon and saw a very shocked Katt. "Wow, Zero. This girl is good!" she commented.

"Yeah, she's mysterious in many ways," he commented with a shrug.

Katt withdrew her weapon and reached out to shake Iris' hand. "Nice to meet'cha. I'm Katt," she greeted. "What do you go by?"

Iris looked at Katt's hand questionably and cocked her head. Zero told her to take Katt's hand, so she did and shook hands. She smiled cutely at Katt. "Zero!"

Zero slapped his forehead. "Zero? You're named Zero too?"

"No, Katt. All she can say is Zero. Her name is Iris," he explained to the tigress 'roid. "I'm trying to teach her how to say other words, but nothing's working. She's still saying Zero, and she has been since earlier."

Katt stamped her staff on the ground and leaned against it in thought. "We could always try _my_ method," she suggested with a slight grin.

"I remember _your_ method for 'repairing' something. The toaster has never worked the same since your 'treatment'," Zero replied with a sigh.

"So I might've hit it too hard," she admitted. "But it still works."

Elsewhere, in the mess hall: "You want toast, techno-man!" the toaster screamed to a Reploid being strangled by its power cord as it stuffed toast in his mouth. "Then have all the toast in the world!" it hollered again, followed by maniacal laughter. A female 'roid stepped up with a cup of steaming hot coffee and a blank face. She decided not to get involved despite the victim's agonizing cries. "You want jam!" The captive Reploid shook his head. "Toast is no good without jam! Lots and lots of jam!" The toaster began to laugh again as it grabbed a large jar of jam with its power cord…

Zero nodded. "Right. That's why I have to threaten the toaster with my Recoil Rod to get toast…" Katt was speechless. "Well, why don't we just teach her ourselves?"

Katt smiled and nodded. "That can work too." She then picked up her staff and shouldered it, "But can't I smash something?" Zero's lack amuse was evident enough. His expression said it by itself; no smashing. She pouted and put her staff away. "We'll have it your way," Katt said with a smile.

The 'lesson' continued for an hour or so before Katt began pulling her hair and screaming. "I can't take it anymore! All she says is 'Zero!' 'Zero,' 'Zero,' 'Zero!' 'Zero' this! 'Zero' that! 'Zero' times 'Zero' is 'Zero!' _Anything_ times 'Zero' is 'Zero!'" Zero and Iris stood and gawked at the screaming tigress 'roid as she hammered her head into the wall repeatedly. She calmed after a few minutes and looked to him and the human-sized Elf. "I just remembered I have a previous engagement in the Training room," she said totally calmly and sprinted off down the hall. Iris giggled a bit and Zero sighed.

Zero trudged as Iris pranced around happily. He was determined to get her to say anything other than his name. It was cute for a while, but it quickly got annoying. "Iris," he called and got her attention. "What will it take you to say something other than 'Zero?'" he asked with a hint of frustration in his tone.

She looked to him cutely and caught him in a tight embrace. "Zero!" she giggled as she nuzzled his cheek.

With a sigh, he leaned against the wall. It was then an idea hit him. _"Iris seems to be very attached to me. Maybe I could use that to my advantage,"_ he schemed. He lightly pushed the Elf off him and she gave him a confused look. "Listen: If you can't say anything other than my name, I won't hug or nuzzle you or even play any games with you." He crossed his arms and looked away from her with a smirk.

She smirked as well and went to hug him. Again, he pushed her aside. She cocked her head a bit and went for another. Zero stepped away and looked to the ceiling. "Zero?" She tried to nuzzle him, but he pulled away. "Zero! Zero," she cried out and tugged his hair. With a quick turn of his head, his hair slipped away from her. She puffed her cheeks out like a small child and looked around. She pointed to the elevator and smiled. "El-e-va-tor," she declared, mimicking Zero.

Zero looked to her and smiled back. "See? Now was that so hard?"

"Nuh-uh," Iris answered and smiled cattily at her. "I coulda said that long time ago," she replied with a wink.

"What?" Zero exclaimed.

"It was fun see you make faces," she responded with a little giggle. Zero sighed and shook his head. "Now my turn!" Iris dove at him again and resumed nuzzling him lovingly, purring softly. "I say other thing; you hug, nuzzle and play!"

Again, the red 'roid sighed. "Well, I can't argue with that," he conceited. "Either way, don't play around like that again?" She nodded and nuzzled his face some more. It was getting fairly late, so Zero suggested they go back to his room for some rest. He didn't let on, but he was tremendously beat. All the tackling he took from Iris, an entire day of running all over the base, his sparring session with Katt and the mission he had to accomplish on top of that. He was glad the day was almost over.

Zero opened the door to his room and dove onto his bed, snoozing the minute he hit the mattress. Iris mewed sweetly at him and covered him with his blanket. "G'night, Zero," she purred and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "Tomorrow, we play fun game!" He groaned in his sleep, not because of what she said, but it was just a happy coincidence. The Super Elf giggled at his discomfort. "I hope we have fun." She smiled happily and laid down on the floor and curled up into a ball to catch some sleep herself.

**End of Chapter III:**

**Cat Tricks**

Worenx's Corner 

_Chachi_: NOOOOOOO! You've desecrated on my precious story!

_Shade_: ZzZzZzZ…

_Chachi_: WAKE UP SO I CAN PUNCH YOU!

_Shade_: Huh? Oh, sorry, I've been swamped with work. I apologize if this chapter seemed rushed. If you liked the ending, yay; _throws confetti;_ if not, say so in the review and I'll work on revising it;_ collapses on the desk;_ ZzZzZzZz

_Chachi_: …_cracks knuckles;_ Oh Aya! Dust off the 'Review Time with Chachi and Aya' banner! I've gotta exact revenge! MWAHAHAHA!

_Catra; smacks Chachi_: Keep it down, ya joke!


End file.

Mega Man, Humor, Romance