Mega Man Zero (series)

The Mega Man Zero series made its debut in 2002 on the Gameboy Advance and takes place one-hundred years after Zero had sealed himself after the Elf Wars. In this time-period, both the "Maverick Wars" and "Elf Wars" have ended, but a new threat has arisen and threatens to destroy both human and Reploid kind. A young scientist named Ciel, leader of a "Resistance", is searching for the legendary Reploid Zero to help in the fight against the oppressive forces of Neo Arcadia. She comes across the ruins of the lab in which Zero was sealed and awakens him. Thus, Zero becomes a member of the Resistance and takes up his sword once again to fight against evil.

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

Capcom's timeline
This is Capcom's timeline, according to official sources.


 * 21XX: The Maverick Wars continue during the Mega Man X series.
 * Mega Man X6: Sigma is killed by X. An indefinite amount of time later (sometime in the early 22XX, after the Maverick Wars end?), and without the knowledge of X, Zero allows himself to be sealed in his ending of the game to be analyzed by scientists. The period of his sleep is planned to end 102 years later. It's believed his sleep is interrupted after a unknown time, because of the Elf Wars.


 * There is also an alternative timeline, but it is not considered canon: Zero and Sigma died in Mega Man X5, and Zero is found years later in the Mega Man Zero series. This was planned to be the official ending of the X series, but the story was changed by Capcom as Mega Man X6 (2001) was released before the first Mega Man Zero (2002).


 * 22XX: The Maverick Wars end almost a century after Zero's seal, thanks to the Mother Elf created after analysis of him.
 * Begin of Elf Wars.
 * The Mother Elf is cursed by Dr. Weil and becomes the Dark Elf.
 * Weil takes Zero's body, which he uses to create Omega.
 * Zero is given a new body (using his original mind) and fights against Omega with the help of X, defeating him by using a attack called "Final Strike".


 * The Elf Wars end after four years from its start. 90% of Reploids and 60% of humans from the world died in this war.
 * Dr. Weil is banished from Neo Arcadia and punished with eternal life.
 * Omega is banished to outer space.
 * After the Elf Wars, Zero seals himself again in a laboratory with no time period to be awaken. X tries to change Zero's mind, without success. Zero sleeps for 100 years, until he is found in the first game of the Mega Man Zero series.


 * 23XX time period.
 * Neo Arcadia is founded by X.
 * Note: Some sources says Neo Arcadia already existed before the end of the Elf Wars, and others says it was created after the Elf Wars. Its believed that, if Neo Arcadia was created later, it was under construction before or during the Elf Wars, or that it was already complete but X could not "inaugurate" it before because of the war. It may also be that it's just a refference to the local that would become Neo Arcadia in the future.


 * X disappears from Neo Arcadia. He uses his body to seal the Dark Elf. (It's unknown how much time passed between this and the Elf Wars, and why X had to seal the Dark Elf after so many years, as it's not likely the Dark Elf would be free during this time.)
 * Ciel creates Copy X.
 * Neo Arcadia falls in a energy crisis.
 * Innocent Reploids begins to be called Mavericks.
 * Ciel creates a Resistance against Neo Arcadia.


 * Mega Man Zero: Zero is found by Ciel in the remains of the laboratory he was sealed.
 * Unknown time: TK-31 accidently see confidential informations, and a week later is considered Maverick by the Eight Gentle Judges. He escapes from Neo Arcadia with HE-22, a member of the Resistance. TK-31 goes to Area 7 and takes one Baby Elf with him, and changes his name to Elpizo (Elpis in Japan).
 * The Resistance moves to a new base, as the previous was damaged by Neo Arcadia.
 * Mega Man Zero 2 events, one year after the first game.
 * Ciel starts research to create a new source of energy.
 * The Baby Elves are named by Alouette.
 * Elpizo destroy the body of the original X to release the Dark Elf. Elpizo is defeated by Zero, and is turned into a Cyber-elf.


 * Ciel completes the new source of energy, which she names "Ciel System".
 * Dr. Weil revives Copy X as "Copy X MK-II".
 * Omega's ark falls from space. Ciel and Zero go investigate it.
 * Dr. Weil brainwashes the Eight Gentle Judges, and calls them the "Weil Numbers".


 * Mega Man Zero 3 events, which happens two months after Mega Man Zero 2.
 * Omega is killed by Zero.
 * X looses the power to maintain his cyber elf form, and goes into a permanent "sleep".
 * Harpuia, Fefnir and Leviathan are supposedly branded traitors.
 * Dr. Weil becomes the leader of Neo Arcadia.
 * Dark Elf returns to be Mother Elf and disappears.
 * Mega Man Zero 4 events. Dr. Weil and Zero die.
 * Vile's Incident -Eden Dome it's sin and rebirth-. (It's stated by Capcom that the part the Four Guardians appear may not be canon.)
 * End of Zero series, begin of Mega Man ZX series.

Actual timeline
This is a more detailed timeline of the Zero series, with approximate dates.

23rd Century

 * ca. 2210s-2220s (Command Mission timeline)/ca. 2140s-2150s (Mega Man X6 timeline): The Maverick Wars continue.


 * Doctor Weil is born.


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


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


 * ca. 2210s-2230s (after CM): End of Maverick Wars.


 * ca. 2230s-2250s: Neo Arcadia is built as a major city-state sometime after the Maverick Wars as a place where humans, Reploids, and Cyber-elves can live in peace.


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

24th Century

 * ca. 2320s:


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


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


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


 * ca. 2330s:


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


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


 * (Mega Man Zero 3): During the two months after Elpizo's defeat, an unofficial truce was made between the Resistance and Neo Arcadia. Ciel has solved the energy crisis, developing what she called the Ciel System, and sending its plans to Neo Arcadia's ruling body. Meanwhile, a spaceship crashes and emits energy similar to that of the Dark Elf which prompts Zero to go and investigate. At the spaceship, Zero encountered a huge Reploid named Omega that not even Fefnir and Leviathan can take down. While Zero halts his investigation to deal with Omega, a new Copy X assumes command of Neo Arcadia and Dr. Weil introduces himself (he seems to be back from his exile), Copy X admitting him in as his advisor. Copy X and Weil challenge Zero and the Resistance as to which group will capture the Dark Elf first, thus ending the truce. Weil and Copy X then launch a missile at a densely-populated area that humans live in so Omega can capture the Dark Elf. Zero then had to counter a severe offensive against the resistance after Ciel refused to give her Ciel System to Neo Arcadia. Zero goes to battle and defeat Copy X once more, but Dr. Weil betrays Copy X and detonates a bomb held within his body that goes off when he tries to access his Seraph form. Weil assumes control of Neo Arcadia and uses Omega and the Dark Elf to seize control of the Reploids. Zero manages to defeat Omega's Dark Elf-enhanced form, defeating him twice, but out of Omega's remains emerges a Reploid that looks exactly like Zero. Weil then informs Zero that he is merely a copy and that Omega occupies his true, original form, which Zero barely defeats. Then, before Omega is rejoined with the Dark Elf, the Guardians come and do further damage to him. X reappears and tells Zero that what Weil says is true: they battled Omega in the past and sealed him long ago. Zero decides that he must finish Omega off, regardless of whether or not he occupies his original body. Omega explodes, knocking Zero "unconscious," and he sees visions of X. X tells him that he is out of energy and can no longer remain in the human world. X is confident that Zero will carry on the battle to protect peace and fades away. X is then believed to have "retired into cyber space." The Guardians also die in the explosion. The Dark Elf brings Zero's unconscious body back to the Resistance HQ and, with Weil's curse broken, the Dark Elf becomes the Mother Elf once again and flies away...


 * (Mega Man Zero 4): Not long after Zero's battle with Omega, humans begin to leave Neo Arcadia, which is under the dictatorship of Dr. Weil. Humans who oppose Weil's rule are labeled as Human Mavericks and quickly dealt with, so a caravan departs under the guidance of a journalist named Neige. The caravan is attacked by Variants (of the Neo Arcadian Foot Soldiers) and Ciel and the Resistance come across them along with Zero. The caravan explains that they are heading to Area Zero, the last known inhabitable area outside of Neo Arcadia (Area Zero is the remains of the Eurasia Space Colony that fell to Earth in Mega Man X5, in this case leaving behind a climate control center that made a region of vegetation). Soon after this, Zero learns of a plot from Craft, Weil's second-in-command, to destroy Area Zero. Known as Operation Ragnarok, Weil was going to destroy all inhabitable areas, especially Area Zero, and force humans to come back and live under his rule. Thus, Zero sets out to defeat his Maverick leaders. In reality, the Maverick attacks were only a distraction to occupy Zero so Weil can finish his most powerful weapon, the space station Ragnarok, which can easily destroy Area Zero with its laser. Yet, Craft rebels against Weil (he is in love with Neige) and instead fires the cannon upon Neo Arcadia! Zero puts an end to Craft and the Resistance is dispatched to rescue the survivors. Weil then teleports directly into the sattelite to manually crash it into Area Zero, but Zero teleports back in and makes his way to Weil. Weil reveals to Zero that he is indeed human, although Zero doesn't understand how he could have lived for well over a century. Weil reveals that over a century ago the humans who exiled him gave him a regenerative suit so that he would live through his exile and not die or get sick. Therefore, he tells Zero that he will not be able to destroy him. Moreover, should he ever manage to kill or even just harm him he will be considered a "Maverick." In the end, Zero decides that he doesn't care about justice or being called a Maverick, he only cares about protecting the ones he cares for. Weil fuses with the Ragnarok core, then with the entire Ragnarok itself, to battle Zero. However, Zero destroys Weil and Ragnarok, destroying the satellite before it reaches the atmosphere. On Earth, Ciel, the Resistance, and the survivors see the explosion and realize that Zero did not escape. Ciel promises to make the world a peaceful place for humans and Reploids but deep inside she believes that Zero is still alive somewhere. The last scene is somewhere in the desert, where a crater shows the charred remains of Ragnarok and Zero's broken helmet...




 * ca. 2340: After the fighting of what can be termed as the Second Maverick War comes to an end, Ciel and her research team begin doing research in an area known as the Outlands- a generally uninhabitable area outside of Neo Arcadia. The team comes across the remains of Dr. Weil's core from when he had merged with Ragnarok a decade earlier, and when the team comes into contact with it they begin to experience severe migraines. This core, which Ciel calls the W Core, begins to turn members of Ciel's team maverick, mainly a Reploid named Serpent. Serpent ends up destroying the research team and Dr. Ciel (though in Vent's storyline in Mega Man ZX, Prairie mentions a possibility that Ciel escaped, but she could have died of "old age", as the ZX series happens several years after the Zero series), so Alouette, a young Reploid raised by Ciel, assumes command of the Resistance (who later become the Guardians).


 * ca. 2341-2390: In order to ensure that the violence of the First Maverick War, the Elf Wars, and the Second Maverick Wars do not recur, a truce between humans and Reploids is agreed upon. Furthermore, Reploids agree to have lifespans and humans begin to have mechanical parts integrated into their bodies. In essence, the difference between "man and machine" become negligible as humanoids emerge. The ones who do not choose to follow this truce are branded Mavericks. Also during this period nations emerge, such as Innerpeace.