Lay Of The Last Minstrel: Canto Fifth

[Orange]

-

Chapter 14: In which the story starts in earnest.

-


Now, noble Dame, perchance you ask
How these two hostile armies met?
Deeming it were no easy task
To keep the truce which here was set;
Where martial spirits, all on fire,
Breathed only blood and mortal ire.
By mutual inroads, mutual blows,
By habit, and by nation, foes



Before going down the rope, Timbre was sent back to the Gustav to get some 'exploring essentials' as Babe called it. Two flashlights, some heavy-duty wire cutters, a small coil of heavy rope, some emergency flares, a canteen of water, and Fiver's zoid gear, in case of emergency.

With supplies in hand, they set off down the hole, entering a large space. It looked a lot like a cave, really, but caves did not generally have pipes running through them. Like the base, the whole place was dirty and dusty.

“Wow. This must be a shelter cave.” Babe said, shining the flashlight about.

“What?”

“During the Dust, people had to live underground. This base was built before the Dust, probably to protect this cave system. They probably used it for storage. But it also made a perfect place to take cover during the dust. Yeah, see?” Babe said, pointing at a corridor that lead away from the main area, “That's not natural. Probably leads to dormitories and living spaces, or something.”

Babe, being Babe, dragged a thoroughly disinterested Timbre down the corridor. It was wide, and had remnants of paneling and light systems running along it. The doors had been made of wood, and had rotted mostly away, or fallen in. Most of the rooms (at this point, large and empty) were empty, save a few large, immovable objects that held little interest. Mostly old, broken wall computers, or large tables.

At the end of the hall, the underground world expanded into another massive cave, this one far larger then the first. This one had some natural light coming in from the outside, from rusted-open zoid lift openings. By far, the most dominating structures in the cave were the four GZ racks (Babe explained that large zoids like the Gojulas needed special scaffolding structures when stabled). Below these were what had probably been zoid stables at one point, but most had 'ceiling' structures installed, and a rough fourth wall. All of it was in some state of collapse, by both time, and what looked like intentional vandalism.

“This must have been the housing. Can you just imagine having to live down here? Cripes, that's a depressing life.” Babe muttered, shining his flashlight into one of the structures. “Having to stay in the same place, same house, same damn cave for your entire life? Insane.”

“How did they grow food, though? They certainly couldn't have stored enough to last them for years.” Timbre asked.

“Hydroponics. They pretty much lived off soy.” An unfamiliar voice said from behind them. “Those facilities are in the next cave.”

Timbre and Babe turned quickly, startled by the voice (and very helpful explanation), to find a girl standing behind them. Hardly warranting the term 'woman', the girl looked to be only 16 or so. She was wearing a dusty coverall that at one point was probably orange. Her dark blonde hair was pulled back into a pony-tail, with a few stray strands framing her heart-shaped face. Details were hard to pick out, seeing as she was being lit indirectly by the flashlights, and her own source of light, a pocket mounted lamplight set on low.

“Higgidy whoah!” Babe explained, still startled.

“Hello. Why are you in my dig site?” The girl asked.

Timbre glared at Babe, as if saying 'this was YOUR idea'. Babe laughed nervously, and looked back at the girl.

“Sorry, we were driving past, and saw the base. Wanted to do some urban exploration, see.”

“How did you get past Url?” The girl asked, not in a particularly demanding fashion, but you could tell that she was not particularly happy with the current situation.

“Url?”

“The Gunbluster.”

“Oh! Devastator. He's a cool zoid, isn't he? We just asked nicely.” Babe explained, shuffling a booted foot in the dust.

“Do you have a barber named Sven?”

“Wha?”

“Never mind.” She sighed. “Well, it's certainly not my place to kick you out. Hell, come on in if you want. Would you like a drink?” She said, waving them over towards one of the less collapsed houses.

Timbre and Babe followed the girl in, where to their pleasant surprise, found quite a livable environment inside. An inflatable mattress had been set up in one corner, with a neat bedroll set up on it. A table covered with what can only be explained as well-organized junk, all in some process of being cleaned. A kitchen area was set well away from the junk table, complete with a small refrigerator, water cooler, dutch oven, and portable burner. Several various bottles of liquor were arranged neatly on top of the mini-fridge. The girl went to those, uncorking what looked to be a moderately expensive white rum.

“What's your poison, chums?” The girl asked amniably.

“Whoah, wait, how old are you?” Babe asked, a bit surprised. The girl looked far to young to be handling hard liquor.

“I'm 23. Yes, I know I look like i'm in primary school.” The girl explained.

In the better light, more characteristics of the girl were revealed. In particular, the finer details of her face. It was hardly a stunning beauty, with skin still plagued by the stray pimple and some chapping, as well as a hair-line scar running from her temple to her cheek. On her forehead, was a bright silver zoidscar, much like Timbre's, but instead of the twin center triangles, hers was a broad line running over her left eyebrow.

“Take a seat.” She said, motioning to one of the four folding camp chairs set up around the table. Babe and Timbre obliged.

“By the way, the name's Baeddan Conway. Sorry to hold off the introductions. This is Timbre.” Babe said, trying to be polite.

“Like in the book?” The girl asked.

“Yes, in fact.” Babe said with a smile. “Timbre, where's yer usual charm, boy?”

“Hello. I am pleased to meet you.” Timbre said in a level tone. “And I'll have water, please.”

“Bloody water, coming right up.” The girl replied, filling up a glass with water from the cooler. “What about you, Mister Baeddan?”

“I'll take a shot of that rum you have there, if you don t mind.” Babe replied. “And, please, call me Babe.”

“Gotcha, Babe-chap.” The girl poured a shot into a smaller glass, then pouring herself a double. She slid the shot to Babe, then saluted the table with her glass. “Cheers.” With hardly a glance, she downed the liquor like it was water.

Babe did the same, but made a bit of a grimace afterwards. “Woo, that's high proof stuff.”

“Proof nothing, chap. I have more with breakfast. This is bloody tea. Biscuts?” She said, pulling out a tin of cookies.

“Indeed.” Babe replied.

The girl took out three cookies, and slid the tin over to Babe. “My name's Adie Allie.” She said, pronouncing it 'Aydee- Aylee'. “Does the Timbre boy speak much beyond niceties?”

“Indeed.” Timbre said, then sipping his water. “I'm known to be quite the conversationalist when not a mile underground.”

“Hardly a mile, chap. There's only a few feet of dirt here and there.” Adie said with a bit of a grin. “Claustrophobia?”

“Not exactly. I just do not feel very comfortable underground.”

“That'll do it too.” Adie said, flopping into a chair, eating a cookie. “It's bloody good luck you chaps popped in, though.”

“Whyso?” Babe asked, taking a cookie from the tin.

“See, this is my dig site. I'm investigating some old tech, and the rest of my team went off a two weeks ago for supplies. They were supposed to be back four days ago, and i'm worried. I would have headed out in the jeep, but that's hardly sane.” She took a bite out of the cookie, then continued. “Where were you heading?”

“North to Todis.” Babe replied.

“Perfect. I can send off a message to my employers from there, maybe find out where my team is. That's where they were supposed to pick up our supplies. That is, if you don t mind giving me a lift.”

Babe grinned. “Well, let's see. I think there oughta be some sorta trade in this. Cant just go around giving free lists to everyone I stumble by. That's how I got stuck with this one.” Babe laughed, and gave Timbre a slap on the back. Timbre choked on a bit of water he was trying to swallow, and shot Babe a dirty look.

“Well, what can I do for you, sir Babe? I don t have much in the way of money or goods.”

“Well, I think we can all think of something.”

-

[Orange]

Chapter 15: A Means To An End

-

``I swore to bury his Mighty Book,
That never mortal might therein look;
And never to tell where it was hid,
Save at his Chief of Branksome's need:
And when that need was past and o'er,
Again the volume to restore.
I buried him on St. Michael's night,
When the bell toll'd one, and the moon was bright,
And I dug his chamber among the dead,
When the floor of the chancel was stained red,
That his patron's cross might over him wave,
And scare the fiends from the Wizard's grave.

After a day of exploring the old base to his heart's content, Babe finally satisfied his curiosity about the underground. Adie was only too happy to give Babe the tour, pleased to have someone who appreciated her work. Timbre followed along too, mostly to make sure Babe did not get in trouble (and mostly to stay amused himself. He did not want to sit alone with the zoids, no matter how interesting Fiver and Vector might be).

Babe picked up a souvenir on his explorations, a ring of some sort. He had been shuffling in some unexplored containers, and to his surprise, he found a cache of someone's personal belongings. The person long dead, and Babe wanting some sort of loot from his explorations, settled for the large ring he found. It was large and gaudy, a heavy silver affair, with a large cut stone in the center, probably sapphire of some sort. Babe liked it, tossed it to Timbre to hold on to.

With the ruins explored and Adie packed (she put her liquor and some clothes in a duffle), they exited the underground through the Gunbluster guarded hole. Adie paused to have a quick private conversation with Url the Devastator, and then the trio left for the Gustav.

With Adie introduced to Fiver, and both the zoid loaded up, they set off for Todis, a three day journey from the base. There was a closer town to the south, but it was small and rather inconvenient to get to, being located at the start of the Europa Badlands (a very rocky and rough area), and hardly worth the time saved by distance.

Timbre became a bit more sociable once out from the underground, and was soon chatting it up with Adie, mostly about her work in the underground. While Timbre had no interest in the physical area of the base, the history and old technology fascinated him.

“So they actually had ways to go into space?” Timbre asked.

“Indeed. They had to modify some sort of battery cell to hold enough energy to keep the zoid working once it was past the terminal extent of Zi's power fields. See, as a zoid goes further from Zi's core, it looses energy at an exponential rate. That's why most air zoid have so little stamina, and tend to fly low. Take a Storm Sworder. It can easily break out of Zi's gravity, but the energy it bleeds in the attempt will leave it dead in space. Not a very pleasant thought.”

“What about chemical fueled engines?” Babe asked, keeping an ear in the conversation as he drove.

“That's the tricky part. Rockets are very prone to exploding, which is why they make such lovely booms.”

Timbre leaned back in his seat, fiddling with an unlit cigarette. Babe absolutely forbid smoking in the cockpit, and Timbre had to wait for the infrequent bathroom break stops to get his tobacco fix. “So, why were you at the abandoned base in the first place?”

“It's called Branksome Air Field. Or was before the Dust. It seems to have been a bloody large storage and repair facility for the Republican forces. I think that part of the space program was based there. During the Dust, people used it as a shelter, and most of the useful research was destroyed, but we still find useful bits and pieces.”

“So, why are you studying it? Are you trying to send zoids into space?” Timbre asked, a bit confused. He could think of no logical reason for zoid to go into space, except for the obvious gee-whiz factor.

“I don't really get into the 'why' for my work. I'm done as I'm told, and the fact that it incorporates my natural love for digging up junk and exploring old buildings just makes it all that more enjoyable.” Adie then took a sip from her flask, filled with the same potent alcohol she had offered the other day. “That, and I don't have to be stone sober to do it all. Well, when I'm in a new area that likely to fall on me, then I stay off the sauce for a wee bit, but when I'm cleaning, I can be just past drunk and still be effective.” Adie said with a grin, saluting nobody in particular with her flask.

“So, you drink a lot?” Timbre asked.

“Oh yes. My dad was a stylish drunk, you see. Socialite, president of the bar clubs, wonderful pool shark... He's the one that got me into exploring. He'd take me and my brother on camping trips with his drinking buddies and their kids, and we'd have a hell of a time with it. Our favorite place was right outside this ancient zoidian ruin, it had a dead Gorem in it. That thing made the best playground ever. I started hanging out with the local college archaeologists, and tagged along on their trips to dig sites, and became quite the right-hand girl. I graduated from the department with honors, and was thinking about going back for my masters when I got hired on for these space-digs. It's quite a lark, and fun to boot. But now with the rest of my team missing, there's been hardly anything to do except hold down the fort.”

And so the conversation continued for quite some time, running along the same vein of mindless discussion. Babe asked about the Gunbluster, Adie explained that Url was quite old, and had been set to guard the fort before the Dust. He shut down for the actual period of the dust, but when he woke, he was broken. Having been commanded to guard the fort, Url just kept awake, serving as a sentry of sorts, for no real reason. Zoids do not need reason, just a job. Something to make them want to exist. And so, Url guarded the fort. As far as Adie knew, her group were the only people he had seen in decades. There was no evidence of other people.

They stopped for lunch, where Timbre happily smoked and prepared some 'dinner sandwiches', the style of sandwich served in the diner, that were big, thick, and full of yum. They were simple to make, but Adie commented that they were one of the best she had eaten. Timbre just put it down to flattery and decent ingredients, along with a few 'secret spices' (it was amazing how much a pinch of nutmeg with the mustard fooled people into thinking something was special). Adie and Babe's sandwitches were filled with formerly-frozen pork chops, sliced down and sauteed with onions. Timbre's vegetarian version was made of grilled pepper slices and bread stuffing, along with the normal fixin's of lettuce, tomato, onions, mustard, and cheese.

After another few hours and a small dinner, they bedded down for the night, with Adie taking the back cab bed, Babe catching his snooze in Fiver's cockpit, and Timbre up in the front seat. A bit uncomfortable, but Vector's cockpit was hardly good sleeping material. He got major back-aches from even piloting the cramped zoid for more then a few hours. He suspected anyone taller then six feet would have that issue (it's worth mentioning that since he was found on the beach, Timbre had shot up from 5'9 to about 6'3, a feat his co-workers at the diner attributed to the excellent rabbit-food). However much Timbre enjoyed piloting, he was loathe to do it for more then a few hours at a time.

The night passed peacefully (nobody snored), and it was off bright and early the next day.

-

[Orange]

Chapter 16: Loss

-

The iron band, the iron clasp,
Resisted long the elfin grasp:
For when the first he had undone
It closed as he the next begun.
Those iron chlsps, that iron band,
Would not yield to unchristen'd hand

-

Kafele Sef was not a happy dude. First off, his contact was late. Second, his prisoners were being very annoying. Third, he was very annoyed at his Zoid.

Four members of the Branksome dig team were seated in a line in front of Sef's Glow Fox, handcuffed and tied. Sef was seated in the open cockpit, listening to some music, and ignoring the grumblings of the prisoners. It was the same gamut of empty threats, whining promises, and what-have-you.

Sef did not particularly enjoy capture missions. But times were tough, and he needed the cash. His friends needed the cash. So, off Sef went to kidnap some damn archaeologists or some crap. So, there he sat, waiting for his late contacts. All he wanted was to take his cash and leave.

Fortunately, he did not have much longer to wait. A van rumbled up to his position, and two men came out.

“Took you long enough.” Sef grumbled, hopping down from his zoid.

“Apologies.” the one man said, bowing slightly. He then looked over the prisoners. His courteous mood dissipating, he glanced back at Sef. “There are only four here.”

“So? My orders were to attack their Gustav, and get whoever was in it. I was never told about a specific number of prisoners.”

“This is unacceptable. We need the fifth.” The man replied.

“Hey, I did what I was paid to do. Now give me my cash.”

The man grumbled, and turned to consult with his partner. After a moment, he looked back at Sef. “This presents complications. We will pay you four parts of the agreed on amount.”

“Twenty percent cut because you guys are idiots? I don't think so.”

“Friend, let me finish. We will send a team to affirm that there is no fifth. When this is confirmed, you will receive the rest.”

“I'm not your friend. And if you had a team, why the hell did you need me to get them?”

The man looked levelly at Sef. “This is none of your concern. I suggest you go and wait in Todis. If you wish, you may eat and drink on our tab at the Salmon Row Inn.”

Sef snorted, looking back at the prisoners. Well, he was certainly in no mood to haul those guys around for a few more days. And he was anxoius to take the cash, even at a loss. He was sick of the whole thing, and wanted nothing more then to go home. That, and the promise of free food and booze smoothed the deal a bit. He hadn't had a decent cooked meal in days.

“Fine. Give me the money, and I will wait for you in Todis.”

-

In the green Gustav, Babe, Timbre, and Adie were in quite a jolly mood. It turned out that Babe and Adie shared a similar taste in music, and started an improptu sing-along. Timbre was more then happy to join them, having both memorized all of Babe's music selection, and was the owner of quite a fine voice. He really just enjoyed singing.

“Now if I ever needed inspiration, right about here’s where I lose my patience, now if I ever needed inspiration, right about here’s where I lose my patience, do it now, do it now...” Babe rumbled along, guiding the Gustav around a corner. He was slightly dismayed as he realized the valley they had been driving along was becoming far tighter and confining. Not a situation he liked to willingly put himself in, even though he was in no real danger. Still, old habits died hard in the old warrior.

“Don’t make you feel like, madder, madder, madder, this one day bam bam bam, bammer, bammer, bammer, don’t make you feel like, madder, madder, madder...” Timbre and Adie chimed in, picking up right along with the music, bobbing their heads along with the music. Their singing dissolved into laugher as Timbre looked over to Adie, watching her over-enthusiastic seat dancing. Timbre was quick to pick up on it, and the two were then bobbing in sync. The whole thing ended up in out-of-pace head banging, much to Babe's amusement.

“Yeeeaaaah! Rawk ooouuuttt!” Adie yelled, a bit loud for the confined space of the Gustav cockpit. Of course, she had a few shots in her, only adding to the silliness.

Timbre snorted, grinning over at Adie. For once, he was actually feeling some pangs of friendship, an odd feeling for someone usually so apathetic towards people in general. Adie's over-the-top behavior was not only amusing, but endearing. Timbre was quickly won over by her drunken ways.

“Hello, funny farm? I'd like to submit two members to club crazy.” Babe laughed, looking back at the two for a moment.

“Ha! I'm a long outstanding member of club crazy, thank you. I've got the member's jacket and everything.” Adie shot back, sticking out her tounge.

The jokes might have continued, if not for Fiver's warning bark. Babe broke from the jokes, and turned down the music, slowing the Gustav down. “What's up, Fiver?” Babe called out as he popped the Gustav's hatch.

Fiver rumbled, and lowered his head, letting Babe hop in and take a look at the sensors. He then looked over at Timbre, who was quick to follow. Before Timbre could even ask, Babe called out “Stealthed unit. Probably a Helcat. Which is more then a little unerving... Adie! Stay in the Gustav.”

Adie, who had just been stepping out, thought better of it, and jumped back into the Gustav's cockpit.

“What is the plan?” Timbre asked. As he said this, he took the opportunity to pull out his cigarettes.

“I guess you'll take the Gustav, and I'll keep up in Fiver, just in case. People don't usually run around in stealth if they don't mean business. Might be nothing., but... For Eve's sake, what is it with you and the smokes? We don't have time.”

“Call it habit.”

“Nasty-ass habit. Cut that crap out.”

“Yes, daaaaad.” Timbre snapped back, rolling his eyes. He slid the cigarette behind his ear, and started back for the Gustav.

Which was just in time, because the rumble of approaching zoids was quickly becoming audible.

Timbre was just cracking open the cockpit of the Gustav, when the zoids came in view. And what a view it was. A Redhorn, and two Guysaks. Most unnervingly, the Redhorn was equipped with a large CP-07 Cannonry Unit. Fiver quickly hopped off the trailer, and dropped into a guard stance. As he did so, the Helcat that Fiver had detected materialized on the near crest of the tight valley.

The Redhorn rumbled to a stop a scant hundred yards from the Gustav. “Command Wolf and Gustav. You have a fugitive of ours. Hand Adie Allie over, and there will be a reward in it for you.”

Timbre had closed the canopy of the Gustav, and already buckled in to the pilot's seat when the announcement came. He looked back at Adie. “Is this true?”

Adie had gone pale, and shook her head. “Timbre, I swear on my liquor that I've never been incarcerated, or fled from anyone in my life.” She bit her lip, staring out at the Redhorn. “Oh eve... They must be why the rest of my team never came back.”

“Adie, what the hell is going on?” Babe chimed in over the comm.

“I don't know! I mean, I know our research was important, but not this...” She bit off a squeak as the Redhorn spoke again.

“I do not have time for this.” The Redhorn's speaker rumbled. “Hand over the girl now.” His cannon shifted into firing position, illustrating his point.

“I don't take kindly to threats, Redhorn dude.” Babe growled over his external speaker. “How about you take some time to explain what the hell is going on first?”

“I did mention something about not having time for this. I'm almost certain...” The Redhorn faded off as the sound of a cannon being fired filled the valley.

“RUN!” Babe shouted over the comm. “Piledrive 'em! Charge!” Fiver added his own howl of encouragement as he sprung to action. The shell from the CP-07 had exploded nearby, scarring Fiver with bits of shrapnel, but nothing encumbering. Probably intended as a warning shot, or to scare them. But the Redhorn would quickly find that Fiver and Babe did not respond well to scare tactics.

Fiver's Beam Gatling quickly spun up, and fired on the best target of opportunity, the nearest Guysak. The scorpion fell quickly, and was quickly buffeted away by the Gustav tearing through. Babe was quick to follow, jumping over the Redhorn, narrowly avoiding a high swipe from it's horn.

The Redhorn was slow to turn, but the remaining Guysak was quick to follow, skittering off to take chase. And as luck would have it, the pilot of the Guysak was fairly competent. Competent enough to score several shots against Fiver and the Gustav's backside, as well as hitting the inactive Vector, still riding along on the trailer.

“Plan, Babe?” Timbre asked over he comm. He tried to keep his voice calm, but his nerves showed though in the white knuckles that tightly gripped the Gustav controls.

“Run like hell! The valley should open up soon, we can out-run these bastAUGH!” Babe's speech was cut off by a loud, close explosion.

The Redhorn pilot was also competent, and quick to fire his CP-07. He also knew that the Gustav and Command Wolf could outrun his Redhorn, and that his only chance to acquire his prize would be to disable both. The Redhorn pilot was also quite a good gunner, like his Guysak partner.

Fiver was thrown forward from the explosion, slamming into the steep valley hillside. Armor and gears were ripped away, the Beam Gattling was ripped away, and Fiver screamed. The primal, base scream of a zoid in pain, a noise only heard in the times of greatest distress. It was not a noise Fiver made often.

“Babe!” Timbre yelled out, looking back at the Command Wolf.

“Keep going! I'll catch up!”

Timbre knew better then to disobey, and kept his hand and acceleration steady, doing all he could to keep himself under control.

The Redhorn and Guysak were quickly approaching, and then... Passed Fiver by completely. Intent on their prize, and considering the Command Wolf disabled, they ignored him. This was something that Babe did not take lightly.

“Come on Fiver! Get up!”

The Command Wolf was quick to obey, although unsteadily. Without Babe's urging, Fiver was off again, breaking into an ungainly limping gallop, trying to catch up to the Redhorn.

Adie watched as Fiver struggled to move. “Timbre! Switch with me, I can drive! You get Vector and help Babe.”

Timbre nodded. “Good idea. Babe, stop! I'll get Vector!” Timbre called out over the comm.

“NO! Just keep going, kid! They'll kill you, trust me!” Babe yelled back. He grit his teeth, his mind tumbling over it's self. A pit of fear grew in his stomach, something he had not felt in a long, long time. In an instant, his decision had been made. Timbre would not run forever. damn the kid, he was brave. But not a fighter. The Redhorn would eat him for breakfast, no matter how good of a pilot Timbre had become.

Fiver whined, flashing a query across the HUD.

“Yeah, it is hard, buddy.” Babe mumbled, blinking back tears. “We'll be fine. Fine...”

Reaching down, Babe unlocked an out of the way switch guard, far down on the dash panel. At the same time, he both flipped the switch, and pressed down two buttons on his console. A warning beep sounded in the cockpit.

Through his leaking tears, and through his fear, Babe grinned. This was his moment. What it all boiled down to. Funny, he expected everything to end in a far less spectacular manner. He gave Fiver's console a friendly smack. “Come on, Fiver, let's win that five dubs from Coke.”

Fiver rumbled his agreement, his pace quickening. Inside of his mouth, an eerie light started to glow, a light that quickly grew in it's intensity. Along with the light, a mechanical whine screeched out from deep inside the Wolf, also growing in intesity.

“What's going on?!” Timbre demanded over the comm.

“Love you, Kid. See you on the flip side.” Babe said calmly, switching the comm off before he could hear Timbre's reply. Then looking down at the console, he grit his teeth, preparing for what was about to come.

“Fiver? Ragnarok Fang.”

Fiver slammed into the rear of the Redhorn, a crash who's impact was infinitely overpowered by the now deafening whine from the wolf. It was then that anyone watching the events would be blinded, as the light from Fiver's jaws suddenly exploded into.. silence. Deafening, overpowering silence, stillness as unnatural as it was terrifying. Never-ending moments of deafening silence and blinding light. All of which cascaded into an explosion, the likes of which rarely seen in even this world of war.

And with that, it was all over.

--

(It's not my fault if you cry)

[Vig]

NOOOOO! Fiver! I loved that zoid,,, I have alot of respect for babe now... when you say it's over do you mean end of the story or does timbre keep on goin with his adventure?.....
anyway I could imagine Fivers scream sounding exactly like the painful scream of irvines command wolf when raven got to it in his red sabre fang.

and yea interesting story,,, underground caving, I like the atmosphere and the alcoholic people it brings,,,, and yes ALCOHOL! it's great to see people in your story are human and getting drunk, I had a couple of overly strong home brews while I was readin and I know you don't mind BOF.
Also Good to see music,, Not something you see often in zoids and music+ alcohol Are a great mix, I liked that scene
One other fav part of this story was the mafia style sounding section... kidnapping, destroying and orders to kill ,, I loved that

[Deadborder]

NOOOOOOOO! VERY VERY NOOOOOOOOOOO!

Ahem.

That was a cool set of chapters there. Nice work on continuing to fill in the bibs and bobs of the background while continuing to develop the chracters and... and...

AUGH!

YOU KILLED FIVER! NOOOOOOOOOOO!

(sobs)

I want more!

Rick R.

[Orange]

Helooo, Babe's dead too, dude. Nice to see where your priorities are.

And there's more. Dun worry.

[Deadborder]

...well, yes, there is that too.

Oh, byt the way. You used Glow Fox. Now you must die a horrible, horrible, painful death.

But keep at it.

Rick R.

[Vig]

Ah yes ,, of course.. Babe is the hero behind the kamikaze after all

[Orange]

deadborder said:

...well, yes, there is that too.

Oh, byt the way. You used Glow Fox. Now you must die a horrible, horrible, painful death.

But keep at it.

Rick R.

Dont worry, it's not Sef's real zoid. Which is why he is pissed at it.

[Abaddon]

Looks like Fiver and Babe outdid Coke's Helcat rocket-eating feat with that Ragnorok Fang

Awesome!