Zero (Mega Man X)

"No, this isn't happening! There's no reason for me to go on! What am I fighting for?!"

- Zero, when Iris dies

Zero is one of the three main characters of the Mega Man X series, as well as the protagonist of the Mega Man Zero series. He also makes an appearance as Biometal Model Z in the Mega Man ZX series. A high ranking Maverick Hunter in the X series, and a legendary freedom fighter in the Zero series, he's a die hard warrior who doesn't hesitate to take action. However, behind his cold and emotionless attitude lies a wounded soul.

Backstory
After Dr. Wily created Bass in Megaman 7 who betrayed him in order to prove he was the strongest, Wily studied the bassnium and created Zero along with often dubbing him as his greatest masterpiece and regularly checked on him during his development. However, Zero contained a large flaw in his cognitive brain that made him violent and disobedient. Wily, not wanting to risk severe havoc, sealed Zero away in a capsule where he was later found by the Gamma unit approximately 100 years after the Classic Megaman series took place. Zero awoke as a Maverick and destroyed all the members. Sigma went to battle Zero and was almost defeated by him, but a glowing W symbol caused Zero immense pain and Sigma destroyed it by knocking Zero down unconscious while winning his very first showdown with him. Zero later joined the Maverick Hunters but Sigma unfortunately had picked up a virus from him which made him become evil and setting up the events of the Megaman X series.

Profile
Zero is a Reploid, which is a robot that is able to think and feel independently much like a human being. He is the last creation of Dr. Albert Wily, who made him to destroy Mega Man. Fearing that Zero would have disobeyed his wishes like his previous creation Bass, Dr. Wily infused Zero with the Wily Virus, which robs Reploids of their own independent thoughts, and makes them go on violent rampages. After Dr. Wily's death, his lab was abandoned and forgotten, but Zero was still on standby mode.

He was later discovered by a squad of Maverick Hunters under the command of the then-commander, Sigma. Sigma and Zero fought a violent battle, which resulted in Sigma taking heavy damage, and Zero being knocked unconscious. When Zero was repaired by the head of Reploid research, Dr. Cain, he no longer displayed violent tendencies and decided to become a Maverick Hunter, alongside Mega Man X, Sigma, and Vile.

Zero, unlike X, has no qualms about entering battle and eliminating enemies, and his track record of always completing a mission with an eliminated target made him one of the most respected and efficient Maverick Hunters, going so far as to gaining respect among his fellow hunters and his targets. Sigma had gone Maverick for reasons unknown, and Vile joined his rebellion with the intention of destroying X. After a fierce battle against Vile, Zero's body was damaged to the point where he was thought to be irreparable, and X would go on to defeat Vile and Sigma.

Zero's parts were found by Sigma's Maverick forces after his destruction, and were recovered by X who fought against them. Once Zero was reconstructed by Dr. Cain, he received an upgrade to his armor, as well as his trademark weapon, the Z-Saber. He would later take Sigma's previous position as the commander of the Maverick Hunters, as well as their most prominent Hunter.

When Repliforce, a special forces group dedicated to protecting humanity against Mavericks was labelled as Mavericks, Zero was forced to fight against Colonel, a high-ranking member of Repliforce, and the older brother of Zero's love interest, Iris. Iris pleaded on multiple occasions to both Zero and Colonel not to fight each other. Colonel refused because Repliforce did not believe in surrender, and would sooner face death than shame. Zero refused because he was duty-bound to eliminate all Maverick threats. Zero would eventually face off against Colonel and defeat him in battle. When Iris learned of this, she became overcome with grief and attempted to kill Zero in order to avenge her brother, causing the two of them to engage in a battle to the death. Zero defeated Iris, but was able to hear her final words, and she died in his arms. This incident has weighed heavily on Zero.

Zero claims to see X as his rival, but the reality is that he views X as a close friend, having saved X's life on multiple occasions, as well as telling him it's ridiculous to think that X will ever go Maverick. Zero also seems to balance out X's pacifist tendencies; whenever X questions why it's necessary for Reploids to fight, Zero always gives him a reason to carry on the fight, regardless of the circumstances. X also looks after Zero, and is helping Zero work through the pain he felt after the Repliforce incident.

While Zero may seem stoic, cold, and ruthless, he has a strong sense of justice, and sees all Mavericks as targets to be terminated before they are allowed to wreak havoc on innocents. He is loyal to the Maverick Hunters and is willing to fight against Mavericks no matter when or how they appear. The S-Class Hunter's rank is well-earned as his fighting skills are some of the most impressive among Reploids. Unlike X, Zero's power level has essentially stayed the same over the course of the X series timeline, but during the Eurasia Incident of X5, he had temporarily grown extremely powerful due to his exposure to the virus that stained Earth after the space colony's impact. Since X6 onward, his abilities have gone back to normal.

Project X Zone
X makes an appearance in Project X Zone. He is a playable character who is partnered up with Mega Man X.

Crosspedia Entry
A Special A class Hunter with exceptional combat capabilities and the leader of Special 0 Unit of Maverick Hunters. Always calm and collected, he carries out every mission given to him without hesitation. X is his junior as a Hunter and also his friend, and while Zero acts as something of a mentor to him, the two have often worked together to resolve Maverick incidents. However, when the Reploid militia group, the Repliforce, launched a coup d'etat, Zero ended up having to fight against Iris during his handling of the indecent. Although there had been a connection between the two of them, for the sake of his mission Zero ultimately cut her down. This tragedy has weighed heavily on Zero ever since.