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Author's Note
Mega Man Star Force: Zero - Promise
Bud was really stressed. He couldn't get what happened two weeks ago out of his mind. The Luna he saw then wasn't the Luna he had known since first grade. He was worried that this whole thing with Xerox and the Four Guardians would slowly destroy her mentally. Not to mention the promise he made to Geo before he disappeared.
Bud was walking out of the school when he saw Luna sitting on a bench by herself. He took a deep breath and was about to walk over to her, but stopped when he saw Pat Springs walk over to her. She got up, hugged Pat, and they walked off together. Bud was shocked. He knew that Pat was Gemini Spark, but he didn't know why Luna was going with him. He was curious, but he didn't want to ruin his friendship with Luna anymore than he had.
Zack walked out at that moment and stood next to Bud, who was still looking at Luna and Pat walk off. He was getting worried about their friendship, which was beginning to fall apart. He didn't know what was going on, but he wanted to get to the bottom of this now, after all, their friendship was at stake.
“Hey Bud,” that caught Bud's attention and he looked over at Zack, “Can we talk for a while?”
“Oh, sure Zack,” Bud said with a smile. They walked to Zack's house and talked in his room, where Bud told Zack everything. After Bud was done, all Zack could do for a second was sit there in shock.
“So, Prez is Zero,” he said to himself trying to make sense of it in his head.
“Yep. How does it feel knowing that your heroin is the Prez?” Bud asked looking up at Zack.
“It's a shock, but it makes sense when I think about it. What I don't understand is why your so upset about it.”
Bud got up and looked at Bud sort of angry, “And you're not?!” he asked.
“Hey, hey, don't get me wrong, I am worried about Prez just as much as you Bud,” Bud calmed down when he heard that and sat down again, “But I also respect the Prez's decision. If she wants to help then I don't see the problem.”
“I know that she wants to help,” Bud said clenching his fist in frustration.
“So why don't you let her?”
“I promised, okay?” Bud looked back at Zack, who was surprised to hear that. Sensing Zack's confusion, Bud decided to explain, “It was four years ago, the afternoon before Geo left. He called me and told me to meet him in the park next to the Big Wave shop...”
Geo was sitting on a bench next to Big Wave. He looked to his right and saw Bud walking over to him.
“Hey Geo!” Bud called out happily.
“Hey Bud, how are you?” Geo asked as Bud sat next to him.
“Except for the fact that I'm hungry, I'm great. What about you Geo?”
Geo leaned back on the bench and looked up, “Bud, this last incident opened my eyes to just how dangerous my life is. First I was trapped in a piece of the colony that my dad worked on, after that I was trapped in the bottom of the sea, and finally this latest one, drifting in outer space. Let's face it Bud, if the pattern keeps up, then next time I might not come back.”
“What are you saying Geo? Are you giving up being Mega Man?” Bud asked sort of worried.
“Are you kidding me? Mega Man is an important part of me now, I couldn't give that up even if I wanted to,” Geo got up and walked forward a bit, “Actually it's the opposite. Did I ever tell you guys why I became Mega Man?”
“Not really. I always assumed it was just something you decided to do for the world.”
“Well, that's not entirely true. You see, there was someone else that I wanted to protect, someone precious to me. Even though I became Mega Man before I really got to know that person, I only dedicated myself to becoming Mega Man for that person.”
“Who is that person?” Bud was really confused, but he almost knew what Geo was talking about, “Is it...?”
“Yeah Bud, it's Luna. I became Mega Man to protect Luna,” Geo turned around to face Bud, “But this last incident showed me that Mega Man can't just be her hero; I have to protect everyone,” Geo looked down, “We spoke yesterday, and she told me that she was worried that the next time I left to fight, I might not come back, and she's right. That's why I need you to promise me something.”
That shocked Bud, “Me? What's up?”
“You're the closest person to her who can Wave Change, so I need you to protect her in my stead, should anything happen to me. Can you do that for me?”
Bud wasn't too sure he was the person that Geo should ask for this. There was Sonia, Ace, even Solo, so many people who have been fighting way longer than him. Yet Geo asked him, which showed how much Geo actually trusted him. So Bud got up, looked at Taurus in his Hunter VG who nodded, and then looked at Geo, “I promise Geo, I won't let anything happen to Prez. I'll guard her with my life if I have to,” he stated with a look of determination in his eyes.
Geo looked at Bud and smiled, “Thanks, man.”
Sadly, that night Geo got the call that sent him up to Planet FM, and was never heard from again.
“And that's why I can't let Prez fight this battle, I promised Geo that I would protect her,” Bud said looking down.
It was then that Zack finally understood Bud better. It wasn't that he didn't believe in Geo, or that he got over his disappearance easily. He was trying to be the strong one in the group. Truth was he probably wanted to cry just as much as everyone else.
“Why don't you tell Prez about this?” Zack asked, but then remembered something, “Wait, no good. Even now that's still Prez, and she hasn't changed that much.”
“You see my dilemma?” Bud sighed in frustration, “Why does she have to be so stubborn? She doesn't understand how dangerous this is.”
Zack thought about that for a second, “I'm not too sure that we should make that assumption,” Zack said. Bud looked at him confused, “Think about it from her point of view: the boy she loved is gone right after she finally got the courage to tell him, for the next few years she did nothing except cry and wait for him, then four years after Geo is gone, an EM wave named Xerox appears to her and gives her the same power that Geo had, and now she gets the chance to do the same thing that Geo did. She knows how dangerous it is, but maybe she needs the rush right now. She could even be venting her frustrations through her fights.”
Bud thought about that, and realized that was exactly what she was doing. She might as well said it herself at Cyber City that day, when she said that she didn't want to be safe. Realizing that partially only made Bud worry even more though, “So what should I do? I'm still worried about her.”
Zack got up and walked over to Bud, “I think you need to talk to her and figure that out together.”
Bud thought about that, and then nodded, “You're right Zack, we have to figure this out. But how do we do that? She refuses to even talk to me right now.”
“Just leave that to me,” Zack said straightening his glasses, a familiar twinkle in his eyes. That scared Bud a bit, knowing full well that he was about to get caught up in one of Zack Temple's famous, and wacky plans.
End of Chapter 1
