Items to collect[edit]
Power Form. Pull on 30 things with the Chain Rod in one mission (You have to actually yank on them and make them move) to get it. This Form greatly increases Zero's attack power, but makes him move slower, and he can only perform the third, finisher slash of his triple-slash combo. While several enemies disappear if Phoenix Magnion is defeated first, you can still get this Form by simply pulling the first large block you find back and forth.As a general rule, ignore all the Cyber Elves and concentrate on clearing the mission with a high score. You can come back later and collect every Cyber-Elf without pressure, as well as upgrade the level of some weapons by using them.
Elves to obtain (8):
Cyber-Elf Menite
Cyber-Elf Beeshot- Cyber-Elf Bomserow
- Cyber-Elf Ashiro
Cyber-Elf Yeppie- Cyber-Elf Stickah
- Cyber-Elf Kereff
- Cyber-Elf Putick
Other items:
Hidden Sub Tank #1- EX Skill:
Laser Shot (A or S-Rank only)
Mission requirements[edit]
- Mission Notes: Rescue 5 soldiers (4 pts each, -4 for each lost)
- Clear Time Limit: 4:00
- Enemies Killed: 37
EX Skill walkthrough[edit]
In this mission, Zero must rescue Elpizo's comrades from harm. Scout soldiers headed for the Dysis ruins in the forest and never returned. Elpizo doesn't have any troops on hand to rescue them, so Zero must act fast to save them.
Upon reaching the Forest of Dysis, Zero will encounter one of Elpizo's soldiers standing watch, but he's trembling in fear. He tells Zero Elpizo sent them to investigate something called a Baby Elf, but they ran into the Neo Arcadian army. He pleads Zero to rescue them, since they've gotten trapped in the ruins, then retreats.
In order to rescue the other Reploids, you must make use of a portable Trans Server as you find them. You'll be penalized at the end of this mission for failing to save any soldiers in the ruins, as they will lose their lives.
It is useful to have the 
Flame Chip in this mission, because it will allow to move more easily by removing the foliage of the trees and because some enemies can only be destroyed using this element.
Forest of Dysis[edit]
The path to the ruins is heavily guarded, so it can become a pain to avoid damage. If you have the Fire Chip, you can burn the foliage in this level to reveal hidden objects.
As you move begin taking the path, Molegule, the first enemy you'll run into will make a surprise entrance from underground. After it pokes its head up from the ground, it fires drill shots from its nose. Destroy it before it gets the chance to attack. Keep a close eye out, because many more lurk in hiding everywhere, and if you miss them, they can actually tunnel right up to you!
Right afterward, you'll run into the next pesky enemy here, Saranet. They are perhaps the most irritating enemy in this area, because they move erratically and then make a bee-line to attack you when you get near them. A well-timed Z-Saber strike will dispatch them as they come, but they often appear in big numbers.
Past another Molegule is yet another very annoying enemy, Poplan. It will try to bite you when you get near it, and if it does, it's a struggle to get free until it launches you away, dealing harsh damage. Even worse, it's invincible to anything but Fire-element attacks, so save your breath and ignore them if you don't have the Fire Chip. There's also no Cyber-Elf to earn for wasting any.
Beyond these nasty enemies are groups of three Saranets flying around souped-up purples version of them, Bombnets. The Saranets will fly in to attack as you approach, but the Bombnets have an even more sinister attack; they drop their abdomens as bombs that make big explosions, then flee afterward. Try hitting them with Buster shots to blow them up and the Saranets as well.
If you choose to press on before conquering the Power Room, you'll bump into perhaps the most dangerous enemies in the forest, Pantheon Hammers. These are newly-develop Pantheon models with sturdier, bulkier armor, chain-loaded flail hammers attached to their arms, and bulletproof shields to block plasma rounds, rendering your Buster Shot Gun ineffective. The Pantheon Hammers are wise enough to stay on the defensive when faced with a close range direct assault. It's when you're at a distance and less likely to hit them with gunfire that they turn to offense. Their flails are chain-loaded, doubling as both hand-to-hand combat weapons and range weapons, either swung from afar to keep you from advancing deeper into enemy territory, or slammed into you with a forceful punch as they dash forward to build up the striking power of their attacks. However, if you trick the Pantheon Hammers into launching their flails, they have to lower their defenses, and those clumsy weapons take precious seconds to reel back in- enough time that you can jump over the incoming flail and chop your way through them before they can react to your incoming onslaught. You can also sink the sharpened tip of the Chain Rod into their shields, then, with an aggressive yank, rip the shields out of their clutches and leave them unguarded. Unfortunately, the controls to execute this strategy are slightly spastic, which makes stripping the shields away a pain. Don't rely on removing the shields too heavily, as it wastes time when it fails to work.
Some Pantheon Hammers can make use of the terrain they're positioned on more effectively. While some are sadistically confined to ledges, others have enough space that they can move far more freely. There, they can exploit some agility, leaping out of the way when you try a blitz tactic, then come crashing back down into you with all their body weight. The Pantheon Hammers, being fairly new models, can't be replaced so easily. If you demolish the factory that produces them, Neo Arcadia won't be able to send out any more to the Forest of Dysis to protect it from intruders because the shortage of new Pantheons will force them to conserve the remaining models for more important matters. Since they aren't permanent enemies here, there's no Cyber-Elf to earn from destroying them. If there was, it would repeat the infamous mistake of the last game, making it impossible to obtain the Elves with the removal of the enemies that were needed to spawn them unless you played through the game again.
Crossing the chasms[edit]
Eventually, you'll reach a place where there are surveillance drones hovering in the air. They aren't combat-capable, so don't worry about them attacking you. However, directly ahead are two giant chasms you can't simply jump over through your own power- you'd fall short of the other side and fall to your death. Instead, you must get a little creative to surpass this obstacle. The Chain Rod's got a razor-sharp tip, right? A tip that's capable of sinking into the metal plating of these drones far enough that it can get stuck inside! When it's attached to the drones, you can use the flexible chain links of the weapon like a rope swing! But like any rope swing, it takes some momentum to get it going. Make a careful dash jump off the cliff, just far enough over that you can react to a mistake, grab the cliff side and jump back up the rocky wall if you don't get the Chain Rod latched into the surveillance drone on the first time. Try to launch the Chain Rod right after you leap off the cliff and are in line with the side of the drone. If done right, the rod will stick into the side. Then, you can swing back and forth on the rod to gain momentum, and launch over to the small ledge on the right of the first chasm. Follow the exact same method to cross over to the cliff side beyond the second chasm. If you succeeded, you'll be able to wall-jump the rest of the way up and reach the top, where solid ground awaits.
You'll be right next to the plateau that houses the entrance to the ruins, where moving platforms that follow a fixed line of movement will take you to the top. However, if Neo Arcadia's Mechaniloid factory is still operational, a few Pantheon Hammers will be waiting for you to impede your ascent. Take them out if they're present- if you don't, they can block you from going any further with their bothersome flails. When the area's all clear, wall-jump over to the first moving platform and ride it up until you get off. Then, wall-jump to the second platform. Again, you might find a lone Pantheon Hammer protecting the entrance to the Dysis ruins, depending on mission order, but you're finally at the heart of the problem in the forest- the location of the missing Reploid soldiers.
Ruins of Dysis[edit]
As you take your first steps inside these ruins, you'll see they've got their fair share of enemies, too. An old type of enemy Mechaniloid from the first game, Securipider, appears several times in the hallways ahead. They have the same web-snare attacks and bullet shots you've seen before, so avoid them like you did the first time. Those webs will pin you to the ground, forcing you to mash your D-pad to break loose before those spiders aim their gunfire directly in-line with you and take cheap shots.
After you get to the lower-left corner of this first hallway and go through a shutter, you'll face a guardian-like sub-boss loaded waiting to punish you for intruding these ruins- the monolithic Pinofeel.
Sub boss: Pinofeel[edit]
Pinofeel, a truly gargantuan Mechaniloid, is a very nasty sub-boss. Although it lacks extreme firepower, it's packing the one thing all Mega Men fear- spikes. At the start of the fight, its lower jaw slides wide open, which is covered with spikes, serving as its teeth. As always, spikes spell instant doom if you touch them, so you're basically trapped on the ledge off to the right. However, Pinofeel is directly built into the ruins as a defense mechanism and cannot move on its own, leaving it a sitting duck.
Pinofeel will always use two attacks. The first of these is a rebounding laser shot from its energy-focusing eye when it turns purple, which rattles around the room erratically. Pay attention to where it goes as best you can. Although it doesn't look threatening, if it hits you, you'll be sorry.
The second attack is a bouncing energy ball spit from Pinofeel's mouth that leaps over the spikes. The energy ball can be cancelled out if you pelt it with several bullets, land a Charged Shot on it, or cut it down with the Z-Saber before it reaches Zero. After one round of attacks, compartments in its ears will open up and empty out several gallons of water from a built-in storage tank, enough to flood the room. In water, Zero has some more mobility, but Pinofeel's attacks are also propelled faster, using the water to build up speed. The water will recede shortly after it fills the room, but Pinofeel will still alternate between dry and wet terrain, so long as it remains fully active.
The only way to hurt Pinofeel is by hitting its huge, cycloptic eye whenever it's open. The eye is directly connected to its central power core, but every energy shot that strikes the lens of the eye will disrupt its energy feedback and overload it, until it finally takes too much of a strain from the repeated attacks and breaks. Ice attacks have the best effect, followed by Thunder, Fire, and non-element in effectiveness. Ice not only disrupts the inner core, but cools down the machine so badly, it prevents the core from functioning properly, which forces it to work even harder to stay online.
While you can shoot Buster shots into Pinofeel's eye very easily, you can get daring and yank on its upper lip (the short platform below the eye) with the Chain Rod and pull it out, so you can jump over, briefly stand on it and deliver several Z-Saber strikes onto the eye before the lip retracts. This is very risky, because you not only put yourself at point blank range to Pinofeel's attacks, but with the lip extended out, the eye beams can bounce off another platform in a confined space, gain twice as much momentum, and become even harder to predict. Worse, if the lip retracts too far in, you could fall down onto the spike pits- which means curtains for you. If you choose this attack method, leap back over to platform by the shutter door before it's too late to get to safety.
After Pinofeel has taken all the beating it can suffer, the central power core will suffer a meltdown and explode, destroying the machine from the inside out, taking out the eye and the spiked jaw, leaving it a hollow, harmless shell.
Once Pinofeel is vanquished, you'll get 
Cyber-Elf Putick inside, the rare Animal Elf.
There is a secret here if you want to explore it. Jump over to what's left of Pinofeel and wall-slide down its side. You'll find a hidden compartment inside with Energy Crystals. They were being used to power the Mechaniloid, but what use are they now? Take them! There's also a Z-Panel, which gets you an extra life, but there are spikes in between this free man to worry about. Apparently, Neo Arcadia was aware someone might be daring enough to raid Pinofeel for its energy supply, so they ensured they'd pay for it if they tried to snatch the precious energy inside.
Rescuing soldier n.1[edit]
After getting past Pinofeel, you'll enter the most dangerous area of the Dysis ruins- the part with the lethal booby-traps, much akin to all ruins with something precious hidden inside that's being protected from tomb raiders. There are multiple spike pits across the stretch ahead, and, if you didn't disable the Power Room, Pantheon Guardians in between. There are also large blocks in the way, but these are actually helpful! You can move them if you tug on them with the Chain Rod. If you pull them out from their perches onto the spikes, they can serve as helpful platforms to get across unscathed. The first of these should be pulled back and forth for a little bit so that the Power Form can be unlocked after the mission. About twenty-six will do, if you pull every other block in the room once and haven't pulled anything else in the stage.
Once you reach the end of this hallway, you'll find the first stranded Reploid soldier. Speak to each one you find to save them. This one warns you about the many traps in the ruins. It's fantastic to know you've found a fellow comrade at last, but the others are still in great peril.
Rescuing soldier n.2[edit]
The second soldier is found right after the first, stuck in the far lower corner of the hallway. He's worried about the others as he escapes.
Rescuing soldier n.3[edit]
The third soldier is one of two that aren't in plain sight. Yes, that's right- you can't just run blindly through the ruins, or you'll miss the hidden details. As you wall-jump up the corridor above, stop on the ledge and look to the right. There's a block like the ones you saw earlier. Pull it from the wall with the Chain Rod to open a blocked passageway. You'll find the third soldier inside, who went too far and got stuck.
A fearsome trap[edit]
Just like when you entered this room, this upper corridor has more spike pits (and Pantheon Guardians under normal conditions), and blocks to cross them. When you get to the end of the hall, you'll be forced to go up. However, the most lethal trap of all is above: a crushing wall lined with spikes! You can wind up touching the spikes or get flattened by messing up here, so be drastically careful with your timing. Wall-jump up the first block to the right as the wall rises (don't overshoot the jumps, or else) and dash across in a heartbeat before it drops down, and hug the left wall of the second block with small jumps to avoid dropping off or going too high and striking the spikes. Then, climb up again as the wall rises and try to cross over the third block and dash to safety on the ledge beyond it, as the third block has spikes on its underside.
You can also try to perform a shortcut over from the ledge below the spiked block and wall-jump to the higher ledge above, but again, the spikes on the third block are in the way if you decide to try this. However this can be skipped completely! Use the Chain Rod to yank the box onto the spikes after dispatching the Pantheon Guardian. You will notice two of the aforementioned ledges, one with spikes over head and one jutting out to the right of it. Simply jump onto the box yanked on the spikes and leap up to the ledge on the right, wall jump if you must. Congratulations, you've completely avoided the infuriating wall jump section of this trap!
If you make it across this nerve-racking part of the trap, then you have something to be proud of. The good news is, the hard part is finally over. The bad news is, you're still not out of harm's way. The spiked wall is still around, and you need to make well-timed jumps to the following sections of the room, which may be under watch by Pantheon Guardians.
Rescuing soldier n.4[edit]
After heading a little ways through this dangerous stretch, you'll find the fourth stranded soldier. He gives his thanks and escapes. Beware speaking to him, as the spiked wall doesn't halt while you talk, so pay attention to your timing regardless.
You'll be able to obtain a Life Energy Capsule if you need it, and then continue to the end of this danger zone with caution.
Rescuing soldier n.5[edit]
After jumping over a moveable block, you'll find the shutter to the boss, but don't accidentally go through it: right below is an obscured passageway. Pull the block you passed down here with the Chain Rod, and drop onto it. There is a pit of spikes below, but the last Reploid soldier is at the other end. He up gave hope of being rescued, but is pleased to see you. With him rescued, that's all five! Make your way back to the shutter and confront the boss.
Boss: Hyleg Ourobockle[edit]
You'll discover yet another Reploid soldier, and he's just broken a strange Cyber-Elf out of a vault in the ruins, evidenced by the shattered container. However, he's done it in full view of the Mutos Reploid protecting the area, Hyleg Ourobockle. Hyleg threatens the Reploid to give the Cyber-Elf back, and he might be spared. However, Zero isn't going to let the Reploid come to harm, and tells him to run. Unfortunately, Hyleg is aggravated by his sudden arrival and tells him this is a restricted area, forbidden from even Neo Arcadians, and he refuses to let Zero get away alive...
The floor suddenly collapses and takes the form of a slithering Mechaniloid snake, and the boss fight begins.
Hyleg Ourobockle is a very simplistic boss with a set pattern, but it's easy to get confused by the slithering motions of Altoloid, Hyleg's Mechaniloid companion. He is a non-element boss, so all attacks will do equal, but limited damage. You can't stray off Altoloid during the fight, because there's nothing but instant death below it.
Hyleg will attempt three kinds of attacks first. If you're close to him, he will lash out with his arms. If you're about halfway from him, he will undulate his arms through Altoloid's midsegments and try to grab you and reap your HP. Rapidly press the control buttons if he does to break free. If you try to get to Altoloid's head or tail, or get far away, Hyleg will jump over to pounce on you.
After a series of attacks, Altoloid will suddenly stop moving. Hyleg will retract his limbs, briefly change into a more serpentine form, and slither over to one end of Altoloid in Zero's direction. Then, Altoloid will suddenly assume a diagonal stair-step formation, and Hyleg will jump to the top and drop a slinky-like device down to hit you, which you can destroy with strong Z-Saber strikes. However, there is also a special skill Altoloid will also unleash if you have A-Rank or above...
EX Skill: Joint Laser[edit]
At A-Rank and up, in stair-step position, Altoloid will join in with Hyleg's slinky attack and fire laser cannons from his midsegments that shoot piercing energy blasts. Altoloid is smart enough that it tries to attack you in the places where you stand. This may force you to dodge Hyleg's slinky device with a dash-jump instead of trying to destroy it to evade a dual attack.
After the slinky device falls off Altoloid, or it gets destroyed, Altoloid will reconfigure its eight pieces into a circular pattern. The pieces will reshape into four sections, each comprised of two pieces of Altoloid's body; two vertical segments, and two horizontal segments, with the head and tail attached to the horizontal segments. Hyleg will stand on Altoloid's head or tail, (whichever is at the top) while electric spheres pass through the six body joints and electrify them. You'll need to anticipate the timing of the attacks, especially on the segment by Hyleg; that's the one that activates first. The head and tail are safe, but Hyleg always stands on the one that ends up above. Perhaps a bit overconfident, he won't attack, so you can slash away at his HP. The segment he doesn't stand on below is also safe from the electric charges, but you can get hit by the energy spheres as they fly though the joints if you get trapped there.
After this attack, Altoloid assumes his original shape and Hyleg's pattern cycles through again. Memorize his attacks, and he should be easy to beat, even if you bypassed the Sub Tank. If you have the full saber combo you can ruthlessly exploit how little Hyleg moves around. There is plenty of time to get a full triple slash combo on him while he's trying to grab you through Altoloid (bait it, then dash jump in and give him his smacks). This will allow you to pile on damage much faster than with charged attacks. If you take every opportunity you get, you can even cut him down before Joint Laser starts happening.
Upon defeat, Hyleg, infuriated that the Baby Elf was stolen, wishes he could've had the chance to quietly destroy the soldier Zero rescued. The Baby Elf is too dangerous to wander around freely, and now that it is loose, chances are the easily frightened people will learn about it. Hissing angrily, the snake explodes with a spiteful death.
After you vanquish Hyleg Ourobockle, you will receive a Mission Report as always. Beating Hyleg Ourobockle at high ranks will reward you with the EX Skill 
Laser Shot. Activate it on the Sub Screen, and instead of a normal, non-element Charged Shot, Zero's Buster will hone its power to fire a sharpened, focused laser that can pierce through several enemies at once. It can even punch through protective shields to do damage! It more or less amounts to a glorified Charged Shot, though it's a nice skill to have in case you've got a stubborn foe acting like a stone wall, like those loathsome Pantheon Hammers.
Cyber-elves walkthrough[edit]
- Destroy four Molegules and you'll get Cyber-Elf Menite, which wipes out all normal enemies in an area.
- Destroy ten Saranet bees, and you'll appropriately get Cyber-Elf Beeshot.
- Destroy three Bombnets to get Cyber-Elf Bomserow.
- Right after the first Bombnet, jump onto the tree stump and look carefully to the left, or burn the canopy here. There's a hidden Cyber-Elf box with Cyber-Elf Ashiro inside, one of the four Cyber-Elves that can boost your rank to A.
- If you decide to head further down the uncovered platforms if you burned them, you'll wind up back at the start of the area, but find another Cyber Elf Box, this time with Cyber-Elf Yeppie inside, one of the four Cyber-Elves that adds four more bars of health to your HP.
- Destroying three Securipider will cause Cyber-Elf Stickah to appear.
- There is a small wall jutting out from above as you enter the Dysis ruins. Hook onto it with the Chain Rod, reel in the chain links a little to pull yourself up higher, and swing across to find a Cyber-Elf box with Cyber-Elf Kereff inside.
- Once Pinofeel is vanquished, you'll get Cyber-Elf Putick inside, the rare Animal Elf. Fittingly enough, it will negate the insidious instant-kill effect of spikes for good, but you'll still take hefty damage if you touch any spikes after its use.
Hidden Sub Tank n.1[edit]
Unlike the first game, not all the Sub Tanks come from Cyber-Elves; two are now hidden in different areas, and this is the first; you can tell the difference between a hidden and obtained Sub Tank by the different designs: Cyber-Elves follow a unique template built into their minds when they change into Sub Tanks. This one was made the old-fashioned way, using purely mechanical components.
As you head further to the left, stop again after you jump over to a ledge (It might have a Pantheon Guardian on it) and look to the right like you just did before. There's another block you can pull from the wall, and it will drop into a pit of spikes. Either swing over this pit with the Chain Rod, or perform a well-timed jump (ideally, dash jump off the side of the block, as it can be very awkward to catch the ceiling from on top of it), and you'll land on a platform with a double-edged item, a 
Sub Tank! This item will fill up with the energy stored in Life Energy Capsules you obtain at full health. It can hold and restore up to 32 bars of HP. That's roughly two bars of unimproved HP you can replenish at will! It's a vital asset for staying alive, but if you ever need it, though don't forget it's not going to help your rankings much if you take heaps of damage each mission and become totally dependent on the Sub Tanks to stay alive.
If you're trying to collect all the EX Skills, you don't want to suffer a lot of damage. You may choose to bypass this item until you get all said EX Skills, or ignore it completely for the duration of the game. However, you can always pick it up and keep it on reserve, or take it anyway if you're out for a 100% run. Similarly, if you're looking for the Ultimate Form, which requires you to collect and use up all Cyber-Elves, you'll soon get two Sub Tanks from using those Cyber-elves, meaning this one will be quite unnecessary, because when all is said and done, you'll have four Sub Tanks and four times the health bar you originally started with. Then again, nobody's going to chastise you for going after the spiffy upgrades.
X's Troubling News[edit]
With the boss fight over with, Zero will be standing on the lifeless remains of Altoloid over a pit of spikes, when he gets a surprising visit from the original X, still in the Cyber-Elf form he had in the first game. X's rest has been disturbed by the Baby Elves, because they are searching for their mother, suffering from the loneliness. Zero's doesn't quite understand X's reasons for mentioning this to him until X explains how far the Elves will go just to reunite with their mother. They could easily create chaos by messing with the minds of the humans. Their mother is the Dark Elf, a very powerful Cyber-Elf X had to seal away at the end of the Elf Wars. He says no more, and leaves. Zero himself then leaves as well.
After returning to the base, Elpizo commends Zero for a job well done and states the Resistance now has both Baby Elves that were under lock-and-key by Neo Arcadia. Alouette will later name them Crea and Prea.