Pointy Muses Fic 12 - End of the Road

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Pointy Muses Fic

Chapter Twelve - End of the Road

By Rick R.

*****

On a Sunday morning, the area around the Broken Chairs base was usually very quiet. The run down industrial district that their base was located in didn't have that much in the way of population, and as a result there were very few people and almost no traffic around. Save for a couple of other teams who had bought cheap reconditioned factories as bases, the team had no real neighbors. In fact, they were about the only inhabitants on their street.

The calm and serenity of the morning was suddenly and rudely shattered by a loud explosion that echoed across the Chairs' base. A second later there was a cacophony of screeches and cries as a flock of birds took off in a confused mass from the vacant lot behind the base, desperate to get away from whatever it was that had interrupted their rest.

"What the hell was that?" Rose shouted as she stormed into the kitchen. She was somewhere between frightened and angry, having apparently been caught by surprise by the sudden interruption. A loose-fitting shirt and a pair of baggy pants that seemed to be only held up by her hand clutching at the waist gave the obvious impression that she'd been rudely awakened.

"Don't look at me!" Neil called back. "I haven't touched the microwave, honest!" He held his hands in the air in a gesture of mock surrender.

"Neil!" She snapped. "What the hell-" A second retort, sounding like a small explosion cut her off. "That came from out the back."

"The back?" He asked. "But there's nothing there but weeds, rusting junk and a few nice stagnant ponds. Anyone trying to sneak in there would be either very brave or very stupid."

"Well don't just stand there!" She snapped. "I want to see what this is?"

"You gonna put your pants on fi-"

"Shut up, Neil." She finished as she hitched her pants up. "I'm not in the mood." She stalked out of the kitchen, heading into the Hanger. "Hey Tasch, you down there?"

"Yeah?" Tasch called out as she stuck her head out form under the Redler. "What's up?"

"Didn't you hear the noise?" She asked.

"I was workin'" She called back. "I could barely hear nothin'."

There was a pause. "What the hell are you doing fixing Zoids on a Sunday morning?"

"I weren't doing anything else." She finished.

"Right." Rose stormed down the stairs, Neil right behind her. "Come on, I want to see what's going on here."

They stepped out of the hanger and into the ugly, barren concrete courtyard that surrounded the building. It was unadorned, save for the old weed growing up between cracks in the ground and a few rust patches. When they'd bought the base, there had been talk of doing up the courtyard or completely renovating it or just finding some way to improve it. Then reality had set in as they'd gotten to see just how awful it was and all thoughts of beautification had vanished.

Another blast filled the air as soon as they were outside. "Whatever it is-" Neil shouted. "It’s coming from around the corner there."

"Well don't just stand there." Rose snapped as she strode off, an angry look on her face. "What ever it is..."

The three of them rounded the corner, all with no idea what to expect. What they found was Stephen, a shotgun in his hand, standing by a low wall that overlooked the overgrown vacant lot behind the base. Balanced on the wall was an eclectic collection of objects; several of the nonfunctional computer monitors that they had found in the back rooms of the base, along with other bits of hardware; an old telephone; a number of bottles; a battered phone book that had been propped up and several pieces of rusted junk that looked like they had been rescued from the back lot.

"What the hell are you doing?" Rose shouted as Stephen leveled the shotgun at the wall.

"What am I doing?" He asked. "What I'm doing is finding a constructive outlet for my anger." he replied, the fired, The shotgun barked, followed by a loud crashing as one of the monitors flew off the wall, vanishing behind it with a crash.

"God damn it!" Rose continued, her hands over her ears. "What the hell is this, blowing all this crap up?"

"Rose, you may not have noticed, but I am, by nature, a very angry man."

"Really?" Neil quipped, sticking a finger in his ear. "I'd never have guessed."

"Right now, I am quite incredibly angry." He continued. "I'm angry about the NUBG. I'm angry about the fact that we can't do anything about them. I'm angry about the fact that the PKB and ZBC can't seem to do anything about them. I'm angry about the fact that we've got to spend what should be our rookie year, the most important year of our careers, looking over out shoulders in case somebody attacks us or tries to drag us into an illegal battle. And I'm angry about the fact that nobody seems to damn well care what we're going through."

"Fine then!" Rose snapped. "But can you at least warn us before you start shooting?"

"Sorry. But I figured if I'd asked, you'd have said no anyway, and I'd be angrier still." He turned back to the wall.

“Well heck, y’all can’t argue with that logic.” Tasch commented. “And ‘sides, it ain’t like we’re usin’ this stuff for anything.”

“What?” Rose turned to her. “You mean that it’s all okay for him to go around shotgunning things?”

“Only stuff we ain’t usin’.” She explained. “Otherwise, it’d be a waste.”

“She’s got you there.” Neil spoke up.

“Fine then. But I don’t see what this is meant to achieve.” Rose muttered.

“Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.” Stephen continued. “It’s a great way to work through your anger. I always feel better after a few rounds of shotgunning.”

“Well it’s not like I have a gun of my own.” Rose replied. “And I’ve never even fired one in my life.”

“Well then.” Stephen began. He put the Shotgun down, and instead picked up a pistol that was on a nearby chair, along with several boxes of ammo. “Try this.” He handed her the gun.

“What?”

“Give it a go.” He began. “Don’t worry, its not loaded. If you feel comfortable holding it, then maybe we can work up to a practice shot.”

“Well, I guess…” She took the gun in her hands, then almost dropped it. It was a lot heavier then she expected. She’d seen people in movies running around with a pistol in each hand firing away like mad, but all of a sudden she had to wonder just how ‘cinematic’ that was. “This thing weighs a ton.”

“Well, like you said. You’ve never used one before, so you’re not ready for the bulk of it.” He explained. “And a lot of people tend to underestimate how much a gun weighs, and how much even the lightest pistol can kick when fired.”

She held it up in both hands, then pointed it at the wall. “Yeah, I can imagine. It looks easy but isn’t.” She squinted as she pointed the pistol. “But if I hold it like this…” She looked down at a battered monitor on the wall. “I think I could give it a try.”

Stephen walked up behind her. “Sure thing. I’ll help ya out here.” He held his hand over hers, then took the gun. “Now, put the stock squarely up against your shoulder, and don't put your finger on the trigger until you are absolutely ready to kill something. One shell for now. We’ll work your way up to more.”

“Am I the only one here who finds this to be rather disturbing?” Neil asked.

“Yes.” Tasch replied.

“I can’t ague with that.” He shrugged.

“Right, here we go…” Stephen handed the gun back to Rose, then resumed his place behind her, gently supporting her hands. “Just take your time, Rose. No need to rush. Whenever you’re ready.”

“Sure…” She tried to line up the monitor, but found that her hands were shaking, causing the gun to sway. “You sure it’ll be okay?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve been doing this for years. I know what to do.”

“I’m going to be sick.” Neil added. “See ya guys in a bit. I’ll be in the bathroom trying to recover from all the gun love.” He turned around and walked off.

“Hey… umm…” Tasch looked around, then shrugged and followed after him.

Rose ignored him, instead focusing on the monitor. “It’s amazing. I’ve been shooting at enemy Zoids for ages… but never something like this.”

“It’s a world of difference, trust me.” He continued. “So, think you’re ready?”

“I guess so.” She replied confidently.

“Good. Go for it then.”

Rose squeezed the trigger and fired, then staggered back as the gun discharged. The massive kick from the gun slammed her back, and she almost stumbled, bumping back into Stephen. For a moment, there was silence, then a muffled thump as the damaged monitor fell backwards off the wall. “Did I get him?” She asked.

“You clipped it, but that did the trick.” Stephen replied.

“That… that felt surprisingly good, actually.” She commented.

“So, ready to give it another try.”

Rose turned around, and smiled. “Yeah, why not?” She asked. “I needed to blow off some steam myself… and this sounded like as good a way as any.”

*****

Gregor Berkut sat patiently at his booth in the bar, quietly sipping his beer as he waited for his contact to arrive. He’d been told that there was somebody who wanted to see him with some degree of urgency, presumably for information. This annoyed him to no end; of late, it seemed like everyone was coming to him for info on the NUBG.

He didn’t like it much. He and his associates had never been open about what they had done. He didn’t want to either; besides the fact that it would make them targets for the NUBG, there was the simple fact that what they had done was out and out illegal. Walking around the city in Zoids was one thing, but forming an armed vigilante group was right out. The fact that they had several times actively engaged NUBG pilots in battle was more so.

So when somebody suddenly started asking for info on the NUBG, he found it irritating to say the least. In fact, he became downright suspicious. He had to wonder if somebody in the NUBG wasn’t looking for some revenge, and using the current situation as an excuse to have a go at him.

Well, I’m prepared for anything they can throw at me, he thought. Some days, it pays to be prepared.

A woman sat down in the seat opposite him, lounging against the back wall in a rather casual manner. As he turned to her, he was immediately taken back by her appearance. Tall and heavily muscled, she had short-cropped black hair and violet eyes. Her mode of dress stood out as well; a sleeveless purple mini-top and matching from-fitting pants showed off a lot of her body and how well muscled it was.

“Hello Gregor.” She began, a grin spreading across her face. “How’s things going?”

“Jill Constantine.” He remarked. “I didn’t expect to see you back here.”

“I heard that things were getting fun again back in this big town, so I thought that I’d drop by.” She commented, seemingly looking away at a point to the left of his head. “Catch up on a few old friends and the like.”

“Well this is hardly the time and the place.” He commented. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m-“

“Expecting someone, I know.” She offered. “That was me. I just wanted to say hi and all.”

“I see. So is there a reason why you’re here?”

“I wanted to know how things were going.” She continued. “See how you and your manly militia were handling things here in the big smoke.”

Gregor snarled under his breath. “We disbanded years ago.” He patiently explained. “We haven’t been doing anything of late.”

“Well then…” She began. “You’re being a bit slack, 'aintcha? There’s NUBG about and there’s nobody doing a thing to stop ‘em. They’re being allowed to roam the streets after night and rough up small kiddies for ice cream money.”

“They’re not a direct threat, Jill.” He answered. “They’ve been focused on one single team and that’s it. Apart from that, they’re harmless. And it’s likely that they will get over it sooner or later when the battles become unprofitable.”

“Really?” She asked. “I guess we have different standards.”

“Jill, this isn’t like it was a few years ago.” He explained. “Things are different now. It’s not like they’re running amok and wantonly attacking any ZBC team they come across. They’re no longer a threat.”

“Yeah… but they’re still around, ain’t they?” She finished, then grinned. “Well, I guess I had better be going. See ya round.”

She stood and waked off, leaving Gregor sitting in his booth alone. He watched her go, wanting to make sure that she had left the bar before he did anything. Then, as soon as he was sure that he was, he pulled out his phone. Some people would need to know about this.

*****

"I suppose I should be happy that they’re at least doing it outside." Neil commented as he sat on the couch. A loud shot rang out as if to emphasise his statement. "You know, going outside and getting some fresh air and all that."

"Huh?" Tasch asked as she looked up from her computer.

"You know, the way that they’re shotgunning things in the back garden." He continued. "I mean, am I the only one here who finds it a little... Disturbing even?"

"Not really." Tasch commented as she looked over the e-mail she had been writing. "I mean, they like doing it and I ain't got no problems with it."

"You don't?"

"Naw." She explained. "'cause they ain't pointing those things at me an' they ain't pointin' em at other people or animals or anything, so nobody really gets hurt unless you count computer monitors." She offered. "So that's okay with me."

"Doesn't it seem to be a little..." He shrugged. "Excessive or violent to you?"

"Well It would be." She continued. "But then, its sorta like what we do, for a living, really. We shoot at stuff all the time."

"Huh." He commented. "I guess you could put it like that."

"So it ain't that different, really. It’s just like practicin', I guess." She finished.

"I suppose so." Neil looked out the window.

Tasch went back to her e-mail, looking over it before she continued writing again. Anyways, Stephen has been out shooting crap in the garden, which he says 'makes him feel better'. She wrote. I wouldn't know 'cause I've never used a shotgun, or any other type of gun for that matter. Or at least any other gun that ain't bolted on a Zoid.

Anyways, this week is the quater finals round. I'm really excited about it, 'cause its a lot better then I thought we'd actually do, what with us being a team of all rookies and stuff. If we get through to the finals that'd be really neat, but I think that I'm gonna be happy if we just get this far. I'd send ya an invite to the finals if we get there, but since you travel so much I don't know if you'd would be able to come, and it'd probably just be a problem if you were in the middle of travelling and you had to reschedule everything around a match that we may or may not even get to.

Anyways, Siske, I hope that-

She was interrupted by a beep indicating an incoming e-mail. Checking her system, she could see that it was from the Battle Commission. "Battle details, huh?" She began to herself.

"What's up?" Neil asked.

"We got the details of our next battle." She replied. "The one for the quater finals round."

"Really?" Neil asked. "Who's it up against?"

"I'm just checkin' that now." Tasch opened up the message. "Hey... it's them guys."

"Say what?" Neil asked, then looked over the message. "Ah hell." He muttered. "Well, is a good thing that Stephen's busy working through his anger right now."

"Yeah." Tasch nodded. "Because most of that stuff was just cluttering up the base... and htis way we're finding a use for it rather then just throwing it out."

Neil smiled. "You find the bright side of most everything. So who wants to tell him?"

*****

Miles blinked awake, glancing at the clock by his bed. It was somewhere approaching eleven, which was the sort of time he actually liked on a Sunday morning. In fact, this was his idea of the perfect Sunday morning... lying back in bed till eleven, then not going anywhere for a while after that. He rolled over, noting that Crystal was still lying next to him in the bed, and was apparently just as naked as she had been last night. Yeah, this is the perfect Sunday morning, he thought.

When he'd rebuilt the Firestorm team, he'd been looking for a pair of skilled and experienced warriors to replace the ones that he'd lost when the team broke up. Crystal had demonstrated that she had both of those things, but had been, well, a little more blatant then that when it came to reasons why she should be on the team. He didn't really care; she'd proven her worth to the team more then a few times and had clearly been a part of their success this season.

The fact that she was sleeping with him was really just a bonus to his mind. He knew that it was really just about sex and not too much else, and, more to the point, the feeling was mutual. He was aware that Crystal had been spending all her time hitting on Drake when she thought that he wasn't looking. Frankly, he didn't mind if they were screwing on the side; as long as she kept holding up her place in the tem - and in his bed - he really didn't mind. He figured that she'd only gone to bed with him in the first place because he was the team's leader anyway. But then, to his mind, being leader entitled you to a certain amount of privilege.

He considered slipping his hand between the sheets to see if she was awake, but a knock on the door interrupted him. What the hell? He thought to himself. Who'd be stupid enough to interrupt me on a Sunday morning? He grabbed a pair of boxers and a shirt and clambered out of the bed. "Just a second." he snapped as he walked over to the door.

He opened the door just a cack and peered out. "Eliot?" He began, the anger clearly colouring his voice. "What the hell is this all about?"

"Well, we just got our notification about the next battle." He began.

"So?" Miles snapped. "That's a week from now. And even if it is the quater finals, it can wait."

"Yeah, but..." Eliot continued, clearly sounding a little apprehensive. "Its just that I thought that you’d want to see it, given who we're up against."

"What?" He asked.

Eliot nervously handed him a few rolled up sheets. "I printed it off, but I thought you'd want to see it immediately."

"Right..." he took the sheets then slammed the door shut. ”Stupid little... why did he think that it was so damned important?" He read over the details of the match; location, time and place all seemed normal to him. Maybe he got excited because the quarters is where we got to last year. Or maybe he was trying some lame plan to cop an eyeful of Crys. Then he saw the details of the opponent team.

"Hey babe." Crystal began, clearly having only just woken up. "Why are you out of bed already?"

"Shut up, Crys." He replied. "And get dressed. We need to start planning."

"Wha?" She asked. "But babe, it’s Sunday morning. I was hoping we'd.." She trailed off with a pout.

"Later. Right now I have bigger concerns." He stepped out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Passing by Eliot who was still standing in the doorway, he walked into the main living area, and then outside to their back porch. Drake was sitting at the outside table, reading the newspaper. Like Crystal, he'd been hired for his skills and experience, as well as skills he pressed outside the battlefield. Unlike crystal, who's skills were largely limited to a good pair, however, Drake's were useful to the team as a whole. And he would need them right now.

"Morning Miles." He began as he looked up. "Great morning, isn't it?"

"That can wait." Miles replied. "They gave us the details of our quarter finals match."

Drake put down his paper. "Already?"

Miles nodded. "That's why I've gone straight to you, buddy." He continued. "You've got the most experience of all of us. I need you to figure out our strategy."

"Now?" He asked. "I suppose so... but it’s a little odd for you to be wanting to start planning this early."

"I want to." He replied as he handed Drake the sheets.

"I see." He commented as he read over the details. "This is a very, very good idea. We should start work immediately."

*****

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The Liger Zero X roared in pain as a half dozen red beams tore into its body, slagging the armour on its neck and foreleg, leaving massive gaping wounds that billowed out black smoke. Before it could react, a further four beams sliced through the already damaged armour and continued through the structure, torching the fragile systems inside the Zoid's body. The Zoid collapsed back on its side, clearly out of action.

"Thank god for that." Elisa Claybourne muttered to herself as she wiped her brow. The baking hot temperature inside the cockpit dropped a bit as the Brastle Tiger's heat sinks opened up, trying to vent away some of the massive amounts of heat the Zoid's weapons had built up in the last volley. "Any longer I'd have been cooked along with him. Still... there's another one around..."

She scanned around for any signs of her second opponent, but wasn't having much luck. The mess of concrete and rubble made the battlefield rather cluttered, and the amount of steam pouring off the Brastle Tiger's vents didn't help any. Checking her scope, all she could see was static. So he's still out there, and probably looking to avenge his buddy, she thought. So where is he?

A burst of cannon fire answered her question for her. A stream of autocannon fire tore across the landscape, smashing through a ruined wall before slamming into the Brastle Tiger's shoulder. Not bothering to look where it was coming from, Elisa opened up the throttle, the massive Zoid jerking into life and leaping out of the way of the enemy fire. The Brastle Tiger broke into a run, its heavy feet crashing down on the ground as it sped away from its attacker.

So he has to be nearby... she thought as she glanced around. There he is! A bulky, lime-green shape loomed behind a partially destroyed warehouse, smoke rising from the two cannons mounted on its shoulders. The Dark Spiner turned back towards her, trying to keep its cannons aimed at its fast-moving opponent. Don't want to give him that chance again... The Brastle tiger was well armoured, but at the same time her battle with the Zero X had left her a little short.

A flick of a switch ion the console saw one of the tiger's side panel's flip out, a small weapon protruding from underneath it. The thermic lance lashed out, a red beam slicing across the landscape and into the Spiner's leg. The enemy Zoid let out a loud warble as it stumbled while turning to keep a bead on her. That's it... she thought as she checked the master control panel. System's almost cooled enough... I can try another big burst and knock him out, but it will be tricky.

A beeping red light on the console suddenly grabbed her attention. "Ah hell, not now!" She snapped, then keyed her mike. "Pause program, master override Clayborne ZBC-Alpha 077." Within seconds of her speaking, the view on the screen froze. "Damnit. I was close."

Elise opened up the simulator pod, then stepped out of it. Almost immediately, she saw the cause of the interruption; Ron McGonagle, one of her fellow ZBC officials, was standing nearby. "Getting a little practice in?" He asked as he looked over her silver, red and blue bodysuit. "That's hardly office wear."

"Very funny." She commented as she grabbed a towel and a water bottle from a nearby rack. "I was doing some quality testing on the simulators, that's all. They handle the Brastle Tiger surprisingly well."

"So I can see." Ron added as she wiped her forehead.

She shook her head and sighed. Ron, who had never been a Zoid pilot, wouldn't understand why she booked regular simulator sessions. While she hadn't been in active competition for years, she liked to keep in practice. And since she couldn't exactly step out of the office to go for a run in her Zoid, the simulators would have to do. The fact that she had, of late, taken to simulating NUBG opponents was just a bonus. "So what's up, Ron?"

"The PKB wanted to speak to you about last week's operation." He began. "Apparently they wanted to discuss a few matters."

"Again?" She replied. "I thought I'd been over all of this before with them."

"Well, they weren't satisfied with the results."

"Great." She shook her head. "So they're still convinced that the leak is coming from the ZBC?"

"It would seem that way." Ron commented. "They figure that it's someone from here that's been feeding the NUBG details, and that the relative failure of the operation was entirely because of that. They site other incidents as their 'proof', most notably the attack on the Urban Arena."

"I suppose so." Elisa replied. "How is that investigation going?"

"Not well." Ron shook his head. "But they're pretty sure that it was someone inside the project." He added, almost defensively.

Which would mean one of my own staff, she mentally added. "And what about Schnauzer and Patterson. Did we get anywhere with them?" Two of the Black Hands had been suspended from completion after being positively identified by both the Zoid pilots they'd fought and recovered footage, and were likely to face lifetime bans if their involvement with the NUBG could be proven. Their third member, Kuro Onishi, appeared to not be involved in any way; in fact, he'd sent a resignation from the team to the ZBC while its other two members were still in the battle.

"Not really." He replied. "Patterson is saying that Schnauzer was behind everything and that he was coerced into joining in, while Schnauzer refuses to name his sources."

She couldn't be sure, but he seemed almost relieved at the prospect. "Hey came to see you on the same day as I gave the Broken Chairs and Firestorm their briefing, if I recall." She'd never really liked McGonnagle, and not just because of the fact that he wasn't a Zoid pilot. He always seemed like some sort of an arrogant know-it-all, who acted like his word was law, despite his relatively low rank in the ZBC hierarchy. She'd always suspected that he'd only gotten his job because he knew the right people. Of course, to say as such would be indicative of petty unprofessional jealousy.

He shrugged. "Schnauzer was being his usual, demanding self. He wanted me to change a ruling in his favour."

"And Mychelle?" She asked. The capture of an NUBG pilot had been the only positive outcome of the failed operation.

"Not talking." he replied. "She's acting like a prisoner of war, you know. Name, rank and serial number, but that's it."

"I see." She commented. "I suppose that we can only keep up the investigation and wait for our mole to make a mistake." She finished.

"I suppose so." Ron finished. "Shame that. It’d be good if we could do something about the NUBG. But I guess, for now, we have to live with them."

"I suppose so." She shrugged. "Tell the PKB I'll be ten minutes. That should be enough to get presentable."

*****

Nadia sat on the couch in her team’s base, her notepad propped up on her knees. She was supposed to be working on plot ideas and monster stats for the game now that she had more of an idea of what the players (and their characters) were capable of, but it wasn’t going well. Instead she’d just ended up scribbling all sorts of garbage all over the pad while drinking all the pop.

“Ah well.” She began as she drew another bunch of stick figures on the sheet which vaguely resembled the player characters. Vaguely was the keyword, as she had no idea what Jake’s character looked like. But then, she had very little idea about Jake either. As far as she could tell, he made cameo appearances between cigarette breaks.

“Maybe I should just work on the page instead.” She commented to herself. Neil, Laura and Akira had all sent in character bios and stats, complete with stolen artwork to use as illustrations. I should start setting them up, she figured. It’d be better then doing more pointless monster stats. Maybe they can just fight the Short Bus Orcs again.

The phone next to the couch rang, monetarily starling her. Dropping the notepad, she grabbed the phone form its cradle. “Iron Giants team, Nadia here.” She began in a cheery voice.

“Nadia?” The voice on the other end of the line began. “Can I speak to Jeroen, please?”

“Uh… right.” She began. “Who should I say it is?”

There was a pause, as if the man on the other end didn’t really want to answer her. “Tell him it’s Gregor.”

“Gregor, right.” She commented. She immediately figured him to be Gregor Berkut, the leader of the Golden Eagles. Their two teams had clashed a number of times in the past, with a virtually equal win-loss ratio. She’d been surprised when the Eagles had been beaten by Neil’s team; it was quite an achievement for a supposed rookie team. Still, it was unusual for Gregor to call directly. The teams had almost no interaction outside the ZBC. “Just a minute.”

She put her hand over the receiver. “Hey Jeroen! There’s a call for ya!” She yelled out. “Some guy called Gregor; I think it’s the Golden Eagles guy.”

Jeroen Nacht, the leader of the Iron Giants, entered a minute later. A huge, heavily built man, he dwarfed Nadia. “Sure.” He muttered as he took the phone.

“No probs.” She replied, then picked up her note pad. “Anytime.”

“Gregor, it’s me.” He began. “What’s up?” He wandered around the room as he listened, Nadia watching him. “What was that? She’s back?”

This sounded interesting. Nadia pretended to hide behind her notepad as she listened in. “I mean, did she actually say anything or just, well, you know…” He paused. “I see.” There was another long pause, followed by Jeroen checking his watch. “Well, I suppose so. Give me about half an hour then.”

He hung up the phone and handed it back to Nadia. “I’m going out for about an hour or so. You’re in charge until I get back.”

"Well sure." She muttered. "Something up?"

"Nothing at all." He replied as he picked up his coat. She found that odd, as it was rather warm outside. "I'll just be a while, that's all."

"Right." She finished as he left. "That made no sense at all." Nadia mulled over things for a few minutes. "Still, being in charge does give me an excuse to hog system resources, so that's not too bad."

*****

"You know." Tasch commented as the Chairs walked towards the main arena. "This place is always big to me. No mater how many times I come here, it always seems huge."

"That's probably because it is huge." Rose replied.

"Yeah, that would be it." She finished. "But... gee, it’s really big, ain't it? We ain’t got nothing like tis back home."

"Where do you guys have your Zoid battles then?" Stephen asked.

"In arenas, yeah, but they're smaller and they're recessed into the ground rather then sticking out of it."

"There ya go." Neil finished as they walked into the arena. After passing through the security check, the team descended into the depths of the arena towards the team preparation areas. Today the place was seemingly crawling with technicians as the teams were going over everything they needed for the battles, making sure that nothing went wrong. At this stage of the competition, there were no second chances. Teams that lost today would not be progressing any further this year, so for many there was a need to get everything right.

"Hey Neil!" A voice called out as they walked towards their hanger. Turning around, he could see Nadia sticking her head out of a nearby doorway. "Good to see ya."

"You too." he replied, breaking away from the rest ofr the team. "Um, I guess I should say good luck and all that for today."

"Uh, thanks." He replied with a nervous grin. "And you too. I mean, we're not fighting each other this round-" (Something that he was privately thankful for at least every fifteen minutes) "-but all the best and stuff."

"Thanks Neil." She finished with a smile. "And regardless of what happens, we've got another game this Tuesday if you’re cool with that."

"Sure thing." He nodded, then scurried back to the team. "See ya!" He caught up with them as they were heading to the hanger.

"Who was that, Neil?" Rose needled.

"One of the Iron Giants, actually." He replied, a smug tone in his voice.

"You actually know one of them?" She sounded more then a little incredulous.

"Oh sure." He continued. "Some days it pays to have geek hobbies like mine."

"Did they offer any tips?" She narrowed her eyes. "I mean, they are one of the most insanely successful teams ever."

"Yeah. Stand away from the Elephander." He finished.

"Very useful." They rounded a corner heading towards their hanger, which for some reason of random allocation was at the far end of the stadium. The door was secured with a swipe card and key combination, just to prevent anyone from entering the hanger without the permission of the team using it. While the ZBC was a rather honest competition, there was still the temptation to some to do whatever it took to get ahead.

As Stephen keyed in the combination, he was interrupted by a nearby cough. As one, the team turned to see Miles standing nearby, a smug grin on his face. Eliot and Crystal were standing behind him, the latter beaming smugly, while the former was looking at Miles as if he was waiting for instructions. "Well hey there, Chesterton." Miles began. "Funny seeing you here."

"And why wouldn't I be?" He replied slowly.

"Well, you know... the odds of you making it this far were rather remote." He continued. "What with you all being amateurs and that."

Stephen noted the use of 'amateur' instead of 'rookie' and tried not to rise to it. "Well, maybe we’re just better then our experience would indicate." He continued. "And it’s not unknown for rookies to reach the quarter finals. And who knows... there’s one ZBC champion who won the title in her rookie year."

"Yeah, but it’s never happened in the team competition." Miles continued. "So I guess that puts you at pretty long odds."

"Is there a reason for this, or do you jut like hearing your own voice?" Neil asked.

"If it was, then he could just make a tape of himself and play it back." Tasch commented. "That way he wouldn't have to keep talkin' all the time."

"Nice call." Neil finished, and smiled. "So what is it then?"

"Well, you know." Miles continued, apparently not taken back. "I just came here to see how you guys were doing and all. I mean, you guys are the miracle team, the ones who have beaten it all... so far."

"Well, I see no reason for us to stop." Rose added. "I mean, even you would have to admit that we've done well so far."

"Well, yeah..." He replied. "Especially with the little... problem you guys have had this year. I guess I could say that you guys have been really, really lucky." He smiled. "But luck isn't everything."

"Yeah." Rose replied. "There's also talent, skill, experience, planning, coordination, teamwork..."

"And we've done an awful lot in those areas." Stephen replied. "In fact, I'd say that our planning and tactics have pulled us through more often then any other single attribute."

"And that’s pretty good, given that we didn’t know each other much beforehand." Tasch added. "In fact, its better then a lotta more experienced teams in some ways. Well, at least in that we've managed to beat them, I suppose."

"Like what was that one team, we fought?" Neil commented. "Oh yeah, the Firestorm team. We beat them pretty handily."

"Yeah... well." Miles replied, suddenly a lot less smug.

"What Miles means," Crystal added, stepping past him. "Is that today only the best ands fairest will win, and there's no place for losers." She continued. She smiled smugly, sticking her ample (and clearly cosmetically enhanced) chest out. The effect was somewhat ruined by the fact that both Rose and Tasch were somewhat noticeably taller then her.

"...but not those who artificially, uh, augment themselves?" Neil finished, all but giggling to himself. "This is all about natural talent, not about, uh, inflated capabilities. You gotta go with what nature gives you and-"

"Okay Neil." Rose elbowed him. "We get the point."

"So are you guys going to keep lingering like a bad smell or are you going to get to it?" Stephen asked. "I, for one, have work to get to. If you want to stand around in the hall, fine." He swiped the card and re-entered his security code. "Coming guys?"

"Sure thing." Neil finished. "I think I'm going to be sick if I stand here any longer. Probably silicone poisoning."

"But they don't use silicone anymore in br-" Tasch began.

"Yeah, I know." He finished, cutting her off. "But work with me." He stepped inside, Tasch following him.

Rose glanced at Miles. "Well, you know, guys." She finished. "I’d like to think that it hadn't been all bad so far. I mean, the NUBG had to be good for some extra experience. You should try it some time."

"Wait a second. Rose." Another voice butted in. She turned to see Drake standing om the other side of the hallway to the rest of the team.

"What do you want?" She asked, her eyes narrowing.

"I just wanted to wish you all the best for the battle." He replied a sincere tone in his voice. The filthy look Crystal was giving him seemed to reinforce this fact.

"Uh, thanks." She replied, a little surprised. "Yeah." She slipped inside, and closed the door behind her.

*****

“Welcome back folks to the ZBC arena.” Henry J. Urgleflogger enthusiastically called out. “For those of you just joining us, I’m Henry J Urgleflogger and I’m here today, as always, with Jim Beef.”

“Thank you Henry.” Jim replied as he looked over the arena from the reinforced fortified commentator’s booth. “And it has been a fantastic day here at the arena. We’ve just had a great match between the Red Knights and the Blue Destiny. Both teams did really well, and I think that both sides must be happy about the battle, regardless of the outcome.”

“Still, you’ve got to admit that it’s always better to be on the winning team.” Henry continued. “And I know where I’d rather be.”

“At any rate,” Jim continued, cutting off his announce partner. “Our next battle promises to be a truly stellar one, and is easily one of the most anticipated battles of this season. Two of the best teams that I’ve seen in years will be facing off for a place in the semi-finals round. For these two, everything is on the line here today.”

“I’ll say. At this end of the season, the competition always gets very fierce. And these are two teams that we’ve seen to have a somewhat strong rivalry.” Henry continued.

“I’ll say that much, Henry.” Jim replied. “If I’m right - and I usually am - then we could be seeing a classic battle here today.”

The doors at one end of the stadium opened up, a quartet of Zoids walking put onto the arena floor. Three of the four Zoids were bipedal in shape, while the fourth was quadrupedal. “Entering first we have the new and improved Firestorm team, one of this season’s greatest success stories.” Henry began.

“You could say that.” Jim continued. “The Firestorm team made it to the quarter finals last year before suffering a devastating, one-sided defeat at the hands of the Iron Giants. In the aftermath of that battle, two of the team members unexpectedly quit which seemed to have finished them off for sure. However, they’ve come back this season, stronger then ever before.”

“They’ve certainly been one of the teams to beat this year.” Henry continued. “While their near perfect win rate would be enough for most people, they’ve managed to go one better. During the course of the year, they’ve managed to get through just about every battle without loosing more then a single Zoid, if even that.”

“To date, the Firestorm team have only been defeated once this year.” Jim added. “And that was a close run thing.”

“What surprises me is that while the Firestorm team have done so well, the former members of the team haven’t been so flash hot. You have to wonder if they’d have been better off staying where they were.”

Jim watched as the team spread out, the Death Raser in the middle, with the Arosaurer and Parablade on either side of it. The Koenig Wolf, however, remained behind it for the moment. “But then,” Jim added, “you have to wonder how well the Firestorm team would have done without its reinvigorated line-up.”

The doors at the other end of the stadium opened up, allowing the second team to enter the arena. “And here’s there opponents, this year’s so-called dream team, the Broken Chairs.” Jim continued. “If ever there was a definition of the ZBC success story, then this is it.”

“Well, it’s not over yet, Jim.” Henry offered. “True success is going from rookie to champion in one year. Only one person has ever done it, and never a whole team.”

“Well, if any team was to be the ones to do it, then it would be this team.” Jim continued. “A quartet of rank rookies who had never been in a real Zoid battle before, all young and enthusiastic warriors finding their way. Together, they have formed one of the most successful rookie teams in the history of the ZBC. In their whole season, they have not suffered a single defeat, despite several close calls.”

“And let’s not forget several run-ins with a certain other, illegal Zoid battle organisation.” Henry added.

“It’s a tribute to their skill and determination that not only have they managed to face off against those criminals on several occasions, but that thy have managed to triumph over them in ach case.” Jim continued. “But I think that it’s more fitting to focus on their successes on the field in the real world of Zoids battles. In each and every one of their battles they have been successful. No matter what the challenge they have faced, they have managed to overcome it.”

“And yet, the closest they’ve ever come to loosing was against the Firestorm team.” Henry added. “We know that the Firestormers were smarting over their close loss to the chairs early in the season. It’d be interesting to see how this battle plays out.”

“As I said, I think that this one will be a true classic, one for the history books, Henry.” Jim finished. “Folks, trust me when I say that you do not want to miss this one.”

The ZBC monitor drone flew over the arena, taking its place in the centre of the field between the two teams, ready to give the signal to begin.

*****

[Deadborder]

Miles Slate sat in the cockpit of his Death Raser, glaring at the team at the far end of the arena. All his planning, all he had done, all the work he had put into rebuilding his team had all come down to this one moment. While he knew that it was far from the end of the season, he also knew that this one battle would be probably the most important. They didn’t just need to defeat this team to continue into the semis. They needed to defeat this team for his pride.

To say that their defeat at the hands of the Broken Chairs had upset him would be an understatement. It wasn’t just that he had lost; no, it was that his team had been defeated by a bunch of rank amateurs, people who he should have been able to easily sweep aside. The Firestorm Team, his team, should have easily dispatched them and effortlessly advanced into the next round.

As it stood, their loss had set them back quite a way. They’d only made it this far on competition points, and only then because they’d managed to win every battle since by a fair margin. A single defeat, or a narrow victory, would have been enough to ruin everything. And while they’d made it, it was nowhere near as comfortable as he’d wanted.

The simple fact was that miles hated to loose. To him, the victory was always the thing, regardless of what he had to do to get it. He had to win, had to prove his own superiority and what he was capable of. To him, anyone who said that winning wasn’t everything was a looser or a quitter who just made excuses. To him, second place was a mark of shame, not an achievement.

To this end, he’d done everything he could legally do to further his own team’s chances during the season. Hiring Drake had been his first move, securing his team a skilled free agent who had done so much for them so far. But it wasn’t enough. He had to have the win for himself.

That’s what annoyed him the most about his team’s one defeat. If he’d been the last one standing, then it would have been more tolerable. But to sit by and watch as the team went down, his own Zoid already disabled was too much for him.

But this time would be different. This time he was ready for everything they could throw at him. “Okay guys.” He began over the team’s channel as he watched the drone take up position. “You know the plan. Let’s go.”

*****

“You know what?” Tasch began as she waited for the battle to start. “When I got here, I had no idea that I’d be here.”

“Say what?” Neil asked.

“This place.” She explained. “It ain’t been anything like what I expected it to be.”

“How so?” He continued.

“I didn’t know what I was gonna do or what would happen.” She explained. “Heck, I’d just been travelin’ and then I decided that I was gonna give the Zoid warrior thing a try. So I saved up and trained real hard and, well, this is where I ended up.” She nodded to herself. “I didn’t figure I’d be in a team or that I’d do so well.”

“But you have.” Rose commented. “It’s been a strange season.”

“Yeah. I never expected that I’d end up fighting the NUBG.” Tasch continued. “But then, if I’d expected it, then I wouldn’t have ended up fighting ‘em because I’d be expecting ’em and I’d avoid them.”

“That… that makes a bizarre amount of sense.” Neil commented. “I’ll admit that I had no real plans either. I was gonna drop in and see what happened and, if I ended up with more victories then losses in my first year, I’d count myself lucky. Or I would have latched onto a team and seen where things went from there.”

“That’s a very ambitious plan.” Rose quipped.

“It’s a realistic one.” He admitted. “I mean, I didn’t have a famous older sister or anything.”

“Yeah… it’s a lot of pressure, having famous siblings.” Rose admitted. “I’d been planning to look for a team from day one. I… I knew that I couldn’t do anywhere near as well as Violet had in my first year, so I figured that I’d be a bit more realistic and try it as a team.”

"Well, you've done pretty good so far." Neil added. "A lot better then I have, in many ways."

"Thanks." She smiled. "You've been pretty decent so far yourself."

"I try." He replied.

"Yeah..." Tasch spoke up. "All up, y'all have been pretty cool. An' sure as heck yer the best buhcha pilots I've ever hung around with an' the best team I've ever been in. Well, okay, so I ain't been in any others, but if I had, I’m sure you’d be the best."

"Now that’s a compliment." Neil smirked. "Or something."

"Yeah..." Tasch finished. "Just a shame it had to be such a bright, clear day today. I was going it'd be a little nicer."

"I hate to break this up, guys." Stephen interrupted. "But the battle is about to begin. And as nice as it is to reminisce..."

"We can do it after we've kicked their arses." Rose finished. "Lets go."

*****

“The Broken Chairs versus the Firestorm Team.” The electronic voice of the judge drone began as it hovered over the middle of the arena. “Both teams confirmed. Arena confirmed. Contestants ready… fight!”

Both teams leaped into action the instant the fight began. Tasch's Redler was the first to respond, taking to the air as the other Zoids took off form their mark. Neil and Rose followed behind her, while Stephen's Iron Kong stood its ground. The Members of the Firestorm team similarly broke into an open run, scattering as they headed downfield towards their opponents.

The Firestorm team had a similar idea, charging forwards towards their opponents. As one, however, the Zoids suddenly swapped course, all veering towards a single opponent at once. As one, the Firestorm Zoids opened fire with a volley of missiles and cannon fire, all directed at a single target.

"What in the heck!" Tasch shouted out as she twisted the controls around as the wave of enemy fire headed straight for her Zoid. The Redler tried to slew out of the way, but she was simply unprepared for the amount of fire that was directed at her. A volley of shots smashed into the Zoid, hammering into its flanks and wings, tearing through the armour and systems.

"I'm losin' it!" She called out as the Redler spun in the air, its flank and wing a mess of burning wreckage. The Zoid slammed hard into the ground on its belly, skidding along before coming to a halt on the far side of the arena. "Ah... heck."

"Tasch!" Neil called out. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." She replied. "But... but I'm outa action. Sorry about that guys."

"No need to apologise." Stephen added. "And don't worry. We'll get them for you." The remaining Members of the Chairs charged past their downed team-mate, heading straight for the enemy line.

Miles smiled, and then laughed to himself as he saw the Redler hit the ground, clearly out of action. Things had gone just as he'd hoped, which looked good for the rest of the team. Their plan was simple; knock the Redler out of action first. He'd figured on it after going over the Chairs' past battles. The Redler's pilot was the most unpredictable and dangerous one on their team, and had in past managed to pull off some seemingly insane moves to snatch a victory at the last moment. Added to the fact that the Firestorm team didn't normally have their own airborne Zoids, which made her more dangerous.

That she had been the one who had cost his team the victory against the Broken Chairs the first time round had only been more of an incentive.

"Right guys, let's take them down." He grinned. "Show these armatures what real pilots can do." The Death Raser roared as it charged forwards, the wings crackling as plasma energy played across them. Looking over the enemy team, Miles kept his sights on the Iron Kong that had caused him so much trouble in past. "And you, my friend, are all mine." He added to himself. It was getting good... he could almost taste the victory now.

Crystal's Arosaurer fired its boosters, springing downfield towards the enemy team, its jaws open in anticipation of tearing into one of them. Behind her, Drake's Koenig Wolf opened fire with its twin rifles, trying to keep the enemy team pinned down so that thy could close in. One of Firestorm’s few drawbacks was that their Zoids were orientated a bit more towards close combat; however, he'd figured a few ways around things.

The Iron Kong took a couple of rifle shots in the chest, but seemed to effortlessly shrug them off. The huge Zoid shifted, then turned and charged towards its attackers, the ground shaking under the impact of its massive fists and feet. The Hyperbeam cannon fired once, a single brilliant beam tearing across the battlefield and striking Crystal's Zoid dead in the chest. The force of the blast literally tossed the Arosaurer off its feet, slamming it back-first into the ground, a massive, smoking hole torn through it. The Zoid let out a weak gurgle as it lay there, clearly out of action.

"Crystal, you okay?" He called out.

"Of course I'm not okay!" She yelled back. "I'm out of action, Miles! I wanted to win this one!"

"Sit tight, sweet cakes." He replied. "Daddy will make it all better for ya." And it means that there will be one less of us to share the competition points, he mentally added. While Crystal being knocked out so early was detrimental to his plan, at the same time he could see that there was an upside to it. He smiled smugly, then opened fire with the Raser's chest cannons on the enemy Zoid.

The Iron Kong again seemed to ignore the hit, but not the source of the attack. The Zoid opened fire with the cluster of short-range missiles in its shoulder, sending them straight at his Zoid. He yanked the controls around, trying to twist out of the line of the enemy Zoid's fire. He was partially successful; several of the rockets streaked past him, while a couple more slammed into his side.

Miles was shaken inside the cockpit, but quickly recovered. Looking over the status board, he could see that the shots had damaged his armour, but hadn't penetrated it. Smiling to himself, he looked at the enemy Zoid. "So... is that the best you can do?" He asked his opponent. "Stupid amateur. I should show you how a real pro handles things!"

The Death Raser snarled as it once again charged forwards, lunging at its larger opponent.

*****

Rose twisted around the controls, the liger Zero twisting and weaving as a volley of missiles from the Koenig Wolf streaked towards her Zoid. The agile Liger leaped out of the way of the first two, but caught the other three square on in the shoulder. "Come on..." She began. "Don't quit on me allready. Its too early to be giving up." The Zoid stumbled for a moment, but managed to regain its footing before charging forwards again.

She would have readily admitted that she was thrown by the Firestorm Team's tactics. The four of them opening fire on Tasch was rather unexpected and., to her mind, a little unfair. But then, she also figured, there was nothing in the rules against it. What was it that dad said? She thought. There's no such thing as 'unfair'. It’s called 'using whatever advantage you can get.' And she could easily see what advantage the Firestorm team had gotten from their little surprise move. Knocking Tasch out straight away would be a big boost to them, she thought. Well, lets see if we can't tilt the odds a bit.

The Liger charged forwards, heading straight for the Enemy Koenig Wolf. The blue Zoid opened fire with its rifles, aiming to put her down as quickly as possible. Twisting the controls., rose managed to leap out of the path of the worst of it; a few of the shots grazed the armour, but that was the limit of the damage. Okay... let's take this guy out. Going straight after the Koenig Wolf was a calculated risk; she knew that Drake was easily the best pilot of the enemy team, and that his Zoid could almost match hers in close combat. At the same time, however, she knew that she was the one with the best shot at taking him down quickly.

Besides, she had her own personal reasons. "No date of mine is going to go around snogging another guy behind my back." She added, then launched to herself. It seemed petty, but at the same time, it was al the motivation she needed to take him down.

Her Zoid roared as she opened fire with the impact cannon on the rapidly closing opponent. One shot struck its shoulder, blasting into the armoured foreleg. It wasn’t enough to seriously effect the enemy Zoid, but at the same time it was enough to throw him of for a moment and give her the chance that she needed. Opening up the boosters, she charged forwards, bearing down on the enemy Zoid as it tried to recover from the shots. Rose squeezed the trigger again, another pair of blasts striking it as she closed in.

Let's finish this now! She said to herself as the Zero surged forwards, leaping at the Wolf, its claws glowing with built up energy, scything through the air at the enemy machine. Drake was ready for her, however, the Koenig Wolf ducking under her charge at the last possible moment. The Zero passed over the Zoid by centimetres, the claws only narrowly missing slicing into its armoured hide.

Rose came down on the far side of the Wolf, trying to recover as quickly as possible. Think quick! Don't make yourself a target! She opened fire on the enemy Zoid with her tail gun, a pair of shots striking into the Zoid's flank. As the Wolf yelped out in pain and surprise, she wheeled around the controls for another pass on the enemy Zoid.

Drake reacted faster then she'd expected, bringing his rifles to bear in her Zoid as it ran and opening fire. Several shots slammed into the Zero's side, knocking it off-balance and causing it to skid on the arena floor. As she tried to recover, the Koenig Wolf used the opportunity to charge forwards, heading straight for her Zoid with a feral snarl.

The Wolf lashed out with its own claws, slicing down at the Liger in an attempt to knock it out of action. Rose recovered at the last second, the Zero twisting away from the enemy machine's path. Instead, the claws came down and sliced through the Liger's shoulder armour, tearing through the panel covering the shoulder. The shredded armour crashed to the ground as she fought with the controls, trying to bring the Zoid around before Drake could strike again.

"Guys!" She called out over the communicator. "I've got the Wolf pinned down here. If you're going to try something, this is a great chance!"

The Koenig Wolf snarled and rushed forwards, moving in for the kill. She twisted way from it, then sliced at it again with the claws. This time, Rose was more successful. The Strike Laser Claws returned the injury her own Zoid had suffered, cleaving through the armour and the two empty missile bins on the Zoid's shoulder and tearing them apart. The Wolf let out a loud yowl of pain, staggering back as her Zoid advanced on it.

"Okay... now I've got you good." She began as she prepared to strike again. "This time-" She was cut off as a shot struck her Zoid from behind, causing it to stumble and sending her flying forwards in her seat. The harnesses grabbed her and slammed her back, shaken and bruised but not seriously harmed. "What the hell?"

Glancing around, she could see what had happened. The Parablade was charging towards her Zoid, honking loudly as it charged and prepared for another assault. Before it could fire, however, a volley of shots ripped into the ground around it as well as its legs and body. Changing course, the Parablade dashed away, Neil's Gunsniper chasing after it as it ran.

"Sorry about that!" Neil called out. "Slippery little beggar tried to get away from me. Won't happen again!"

Rose turned back to her primary target, only to be greeted by a pair of shots form the Wolf's cannons that slammed into her Liger's chest. Left off-balance buy the attack, she was completely unprepared for Drake's next move. The Koenig Wolf slammed into her Zoid, half pouncing and half crashing into it. The Koneig Wolf bore her machine down, smashing it into the ground, truing to pin it down with its claws. The Zoid snarled, its fangs cracking with electricity in preparation of finishing her off.

"No way!" She called back. The Liger rolled over, one of its legs coming up and smacking into the side of the Koenig Wolf's neck. The impact threw the enemy Zoid off, giving her a chance to act. The Zero swiped at the Wolf, the claws only narrowly missing the Zoid's leg, but causing it to step back, if only for a moment.

Seeing a chance, Rose drove the Liger forward, the Zoid snarling in anger at its attacker. It lunged froewards, snapping with its jaws at the enemy Zoid. The wolf narrowly twisted out of the way of her strike, then swiped at her Zoid. The blow strick the liger on the side of the neck, again knocking it off balance.

Rose fired the boosters again running out of the way of the enemy Zoid before it could strike again. She fired off the tail gun, but his time Drake was ready for it, the Wolf managing to evade the shots. Chasing after her Zoid, he opened fire agin with the twin rifles. The shots slammed into the back of the Liger, causing it to stumble and collapse onto the arna floor. Rose was again thrown forwards, momentarily stunned by the blow.

"Ah hell..." She began as she tried to clear her head. "Come on... get up already." She pulled back on the control stick, but the Liger seemed to be rather slow and sluggish. "Not now... not..." Before the Zoid could respond, a massive force smashed into the back of it, sending it again smashing to the ground. Glancing over the monitors, she could see what it was; the Koneig Wolf had leaped on her and was again pinning her Zoid down.

There was an ear-shattering shriek of metal as the wolf dug its teeth into the Liger's neck, followed by a sudden loud crackle that filled the cockpit. Lights flickered and dimmed on the various displays as the Wolf pupped energy through its fangs into the Liger's systems, shorting them out in an effort to diable the Zoid. "No!" She shouted as she grabbed the control stick. "Come on... don't fail me now..." The Zero struggled to its feet for a moment, then collapsed, clearly out of action.

"Crap." She muttered, looking up at the Koenig Wolf. "Damn him."

*****

Drake looked down at the Liger Zero, wanting to make sure that the Zoid was completely out of action before he continued. He'd seen warriors 'play dead' before, and wasn't about to fall for it now, especially not at such a crucial juncture. The enemy machine certainly seemed to be out of action; it was flat on the ground, its legs sprawled out with smoke rising form a number of its vents where its systems had overheated and shut down from his attack.

"That seems to be it, then." He commented, at last satisfied that the enemy Zoid was out of action. That was a lot closer then I'd expected, he mentally added. She's clearly got a lot of talent and potential, and will be one to watch in future. But for now, I have other concerns.

He turned to look over the battlefield, analysing the situation. He could see that Miles' Death Raser was facing off with the enemy Iron Kong, the two Zoids engaging in a rather bizarre battle, pitting speed and manoeuvrability against sheer strength and endurance, one that neither pilot seemed to be winning. Obviously he'd have to do something about that if the Firestorm team wanted to win the battle.

Checking over his systems, he could see that he had expended all but one of his missile pods, and had already burned off nearly half the rifle ammo. While his Zoid's armour was badly damaged in places, none of its systems were damaged as yet. This meant that he would be in a prime position to influence the outcome of the battle.

The Wolf hopped away from the Liger, trotting over to get a clearer look at the Iron Kong. He again deployed the rifles and activated the seekers for the remaining missiles. At the moment, the enemy Zoid had its back to him, which made things just that extra bit easier. He dropped the targeting sights onto the massive Zoidm and lined up a shot on its thruster pack. If he could get this right, then he'd be able to take out one of its biggest single assets.

Before he could fire, however, there was a warning beep from his sensors. He glanced around, only to be thrown off as a series of loud explosions tore into his Zoid. Drake was slammed into the side of the cockpit as the Koneig Wolf was struck in the side and sent crashing to the ground, collapsing in a battered heap. Checking over his status board, he could see that the Zoid's neck had been torn into, while the exposed shoulder had been ripped apart.

"What the-" He began, but was cut off as more shots struck the Zoid, smashing into its damaged flank. Red lights came over the status board as system after system failed. The Zoid bucked for a moment under the force of the impact, then lay still, clearly out of action.

A moment later, a shadow passed over the cockpit as the enemy Gunsniper leaped over his Zoid. Seconds later, Eliot's Parablade ran after it, trying to catch the fleeing enemy Zoid. Drake smiled to himself as he realised what happened; the Gunsniper had taken him out, likely by simply unloading everything it had into him and point-blank range. "Huh." He said to himself. "Not bad work at all. Maybe I've underestimated him."

He sat back in the cockpit and stretched out. All he could do now was wait and watch.

*****

[Deadborder]

The Death Raser hissed, then lunged forwards, its wings crackling with blue energy as it charged. Stephen was ready for it, however, and twisted the Iron Kong out of its way as it charged. The Raser passed by him, its wings still slicing into the Zoid's body and scoring armour off the chest as it run. However, looking over the status board, Stephen could see that it was just a small gash, rather then the killing blow that the enemy pilot had wanted.

The Kong swung around, bringing down its massive fist on the enemy Zoid. The Raser was largely out of the way of the attack, but still was caught in the side of the rigid tail. The force of the blow caused the enemy Zoid to skid across the arena, its claws scratching on the concrete floor as its pilot fought the force of the blow. Seeing a chance, he wheeled around the Zoid, opening fire with the grenade launcher mounted on the Kong's forearm.

The four rocket-propelled grenades shot out, slamming into the enemy Zoid's flank at near point-blank range. The shots blasted into its armour, sending the Zoid skidding further away and sending chunks of debris flying. Despite this, it seemed to have escaped any serious harm from the attack.

"Not for too much longer, though." He muttered to himself. With a loud roar, the Kong charged forewords, swinging its fists down at the enemy Zoid. The Death Raser's pilot managed to collect himself at the last moment, however, the Zoid suddenly leaping away as the Kong swing downwards, its fists instead smashing into the concrete arena floor which cracked under the blow. The enemy Zoid, however, was already running away, tearing across the battlefield at speed.

Opening up the throttle, Stephen set after him, the Iron Kong barrelling along at full tilt in pursuit of its smaller opponent. However, it quickly became clear to him that he was not going to catch it; the enemy Zoid was nearly twice as fast as his was, and had a much higher acceleration. Not wanting to let it escape, however, he opened fire with the hyperbeam cannon at the fleeing Zoid.

The shot narrowly missed the Death Raser, which leaped away form the blast and instead headed for the wall. It then bounced back, landing solidly on the arena floor before charging back at his Zoid. The back mounted lasers and discharger fired, the shots scoring into the Iron Kong's bulky chest and burning away some of the armour. The blow didn't stop it, however, the two machines closing in on each other at speed.

Stephen returned fire with the pulse cannon, the shots bouncing off the Death Raser's sloped armour with seemingly no effect. The enemy Zoid replied by suddenly leaping into the air, then coming down at the Kong with its massive foreclaws extended. Stephen bought up the right forearm at the last possible moment, swinging it straight at the enemy Zoid's chest. There was a bone-jarring crunch as the fist struck the Death Raser, killing its momentum dead in the air and instead sending it reeling back.

The enemy pilot recovered, however, the Death Raser surging forwards at the Iron Kong to strike again. The Zoid slashed at his with its claws, raking them across the Iron Kong's chest. Before it could strike again, however, the Iron Kong's massive thrusters fired, the huge Zoid lifting into the air on a cloud of smoke and flames. The Kong's flight took it out of the way of the Death Raser, instead neatly putting it down on the other side of the field.

Stephen levelled his sights at the Death Raser, trying to get a clean shot at it as the Zoid charged towards him. However, before he could fire, the Zoid was ricked by a pair of hits to its flank. Glancing around, he could see the enemy Parablade dashing away, Neil's Gunsniper chasing after it. "Sorry about that!" Neil called out. "This guy is aobut as slippery as it comes."

The attack hadn't done any serious damage to the Iron Kong, but it had allowed the Death Raser a chance to close in on him. The enemy Zoid again swiped at him, its wing slicing into the Iron Kong's thick arm. Stephen pulled his Zoid out of the way, then swiped at the Death Raser, managing to club it in the side. The Raser staggered back, then found its footing, lashing out with the claws at his Zoid. He agin fired the boosters, leaping out of the Raser's path.

This is stupid, Stephn thought to himself. Neither of us can get a clear advantage up close. His ranged weapons can barely hurt me, and his armour's deflecting off my pulse cannon... and the hyperbeam cannon is too big to use in close combat.

The Iron Kong settled down, then opened fire with the Hyperbeam cannon on the enemy Zoid. The Raser narrowly dodged the shot, instead running at him for another charge. There's got to be someway to deal with this guy!

*****

Miles was thinking the same thing as he closed in on the Iron Kong. He'd been having very little luck in close combat, and he knew that the Electron Cannon wasn't going to stop the Kong on its own. With Drake down, however, he knew that his Zoid was the only one that stood a chance of taking it out. And even then, it was far from a sure thing. Unless...

There was one optipon, one that he'd rather not use simply becuse it would reduce his share of the points. However, at the moment, it seemed like he'd have to take that chance if he wanted the team to win this battle. And to his mind, he was willing to sacrifice a few points in the name of a win. While he'd have less personal glory now, he could bask in the long-term outcome.

"Eliot!" He called out. "I need you, now!"

"But the Gunsniper's still-" Eliot began.

"God damn it, just do it!" He shouted over the communicator.

"Sure... right away." Eliot replied, a nervous tone in his voice. "I'll be right with you!"

The Parablade fired off its two railguns at the Gunsniper, then honked loudly as it roared up and tossed its haid into the air. The Gunsnipoer's pilot twisted his Zoid around, narrowly dodging the two blasts, but was not ready for what came next. The Parablade's head blade scythed through the air, spinning at the enemy Zoid. The blade sliced through one of the Gundsniper's legs, shearing off a chunk of structure and knocking the Zoid on its back.

"Good work there, boy." He grinned. "Now let's go!"

The two Zoids broke into a run, heading towards the centre of the arena. The boosters on the Death Raser's back opened up and fired, propelling the Zoid into the air.In front of it, the Parablade also leaped up, its body seemingly exploding into peices in front of the larger Zoid. Sections of the Death Raser's body and structure slid back and re-arranged themselves as parts of the Parablade's body combined with it. The smaller Zoids' hind legs connected to the Death Raser's forearms, while its tail to the end of the Raser's tail. Finally, the Parablade's body and cockpit slid over the Death Raser's, covering it with a completely new head module, betraying its new form.

The Dekault Dragon bellowed as it completed its merger, then swooped down at the Iron Kong. In the cockpit, Miles grinned with anticipation, Eliot now seated behind him. "And now..." He began. "See the true power of the Firestorm team!"

The fuzed Zoid swooped down on the Iron Kong, opening fire with the combined weapons of the two Zoids. The shots tore into the enemy Zoid's armour, causing it to momentarily stager back. The Dragon rolled over, bellowing as it dived on the enemy Zoid, its clawed wings outstretched for the kill. It swooped down on the Kong, the other Zoid only just managing to move out of its way before it struck. Despite that, the blow struck home, ripping through the Kong's left shoulder and tearing it apart. The massive Zoid staggered, clearly damaged by the attack.

Miles grinned, then laughed to out loud. He didn't care any more about the points, or the fact that he'd be sharing them with Eliot. What mattered now was that he was winning, and that there was very little that his enemies could do about it.

*****

Stephen grimaced at the damage done to his Zoid as he checked over the displays. The left shoulder had been all but torn apart, nearly costing his Zoid the whole limb. The only consolidation he could see was that he'd already used the missiles in the launcher before it was destroyed, which made him feel a bit better. Propping the Iron Kong up on its good arm, he tried to follow the course of the enemy Zoid.

"Neil!" He called out over the communicator. "How are you doing over there?"

"Not too good." He replied. "My right leg's bunk, so I can barely move. And I don’t have a single weapon that I can readily use that will even scratch that thing. Yourself?"

"More or less the same." He grunted. "And that thing..."

"I see it." Neil commented. "Any ideas?"

The Dekault Dragon circled around, roaring loudly as it passed overhead. "That's going to be a real problem."

"You know." Neil began. "I should have expected them to so something like that. Makes ya wonder why they didn't."

"Who knows. But we'll figure that out later." He finished. "I'm going to try and bring it down to the level, see if we can even the odds a bit." The Dekault Dragon wheeled around, then began to again dive towards the Iron Kong, opening fire with its array of weapons. The railguns slammed into the Zoid's chest, ripping into the already damaged armour, while the other shots further scored the Zoid's body.

Stephen managed to bring the left arm up and opened fire with the pulse cannon, spraying shots at the Fuzor as it dived towards him. The rounds bounced harmlessly off its body, however, with no clear effect on the Zoid. Screeching loudly the dragon again rolled and dived at the Kong. With a flash of blue energy, its wings tore into the Zoid's body, raking across the its back. As the dragon pulled up, it ripped free one of the manoeuvre vanes from the Zoid's back.

The Iron Kong staggered, then began to topple backwards. Grabbing the controls, Stephen was able to prop the damaged Zoid up on its good arm before it fell, then actually steady it. Keeping his eyes on the enemy Zoid, he dropped his sights onto it. "Okay, you've had your chance." He snarled. "Now for some payback."

There was a sudden burst of flame as the two twin-stage missiles leaped from the Zoid's back, soaring into the air. The two missiles raced towards the retreating Zoid, rapidly closing in on it. The Dekault Dragon opened up its engines, trying to outrun the missiles, but it was clear that there would be no escape. Stephen watched in anticipation, knowing that it wouldn't be too long now.

Before the missiles could strike home, however, the Dekault dragon twisted and rolled over in the air, turning away from the missiles. Stephen realised what he was seeing; it was something that Tasch had done enough times to throw off enemy weapons. The two missiles soared past it, speding off into the distance. Then the pair of them shed their lower stages and broke off, coming back around after the dragon.

The Dekualt Dragon dived and accelerated, the missiles still managing to stay on its tail and beginning to close in. It wheeled around again as they closed in, managing to stay just out of the range of their proximity fuses, just avoiding setting them off. Then it suddenly broke and pulled straight up, heading into a straight vertical climb in front of the arena wall. The missiles, not able to respond fast enough, instead slammed straight into the wall, detonating in a brilliant explosion that sent shards of concrete raining down.

"Damn it!" Stephen yelled out. "Damn you both!" He opened fire with the Hyperbeam cannon, the only weapon he knew that was big enough to go through the enemy Zoid's sloped armour. The shot went wide, searing past the fleeing dragon. Regardless, he fired again, another shot then a third searing past the Dragon, he knew that it was fruitless; the cannon was too being and had too slow a rate of fire to track a fast-moving airborne Zoid. Yet, at the same time, he knew it was his only option.

"Face it, boy!" Miles called out. "There ain't nothing you can do to me! You're done for! So say your prayers, and kiss your big Monkey goodbye!" The Dekault Dragon roared as it wheeled around again, diving towards Stephen's damaged Zoid.

As it dived, however, the Zoid was unexpectedly hit in its damaged flank by a volley of shots. Innumerable beams struck the Dragon's body, most of them, deflecting away at odd angles or simply soaring straight past it. Some, however, seemed to have struck the sections of the Zoid that were already damaged, and, more to the point, had a noticeable effect. Looking around, Stephen could see what had happened; Neil's Gunsniper had oropped itself up on its bad foot, and was blazing away with its cannons on the dragon.

"Damn it!" Miles shouted out. "Don’t mess with me, you stupid little-" The Dragon wheeled around and opened fire on the Gunsniper, pummelling Neil's Zoid with the quintet of cannons mounted on its forelegs, chest and back. The Shots tore into his Zoid, blasting it off its feet and sending it crashing to the ground. Stephen didn't need to check to see if the Zoid was out of action; it was obviously disabled. Neil must have known what would happen when he opened fire on the Dragon - Miles would take him out with one volley.

And open himself up for a couter attack.

He opened fire on the Dragon as it banked around, its broadside exposed and almost lazily floating across his sights. The massive beam ripped into the Dekault Dragon's side, blasting its foreleg apart before gouging through its armour and tearing into the underside of its wing. The wing shattered into dozens of pieces as the Zoid let out an ear-shattering roar of pain, rolling over in the air.

Unbalanced and unable to fly, the massive machine smashed into the ground and bounced, shedding more parts as it fell. It then seemed to literally explode in the air, reassembling itself into its two component Zoids, wach of which skidded across the ground before coming to a halt. The Parablade was clearly out of action; its right leg was simply missing, while most of its body was a tangled mess of parts. As it woozily got to its feet, he could see that the Death Raser wasn't faring too much better. It had lost its right arm and wing, and its entire side had been gouged open.

"Give it up!" Stephen called out. "Your Zoid's in no shape to continue!"

"Wha..." The Death Raser shook is head, as if in reflection of its pilot's state. "No!" Miles shouted out. "I will not loose to you! Not now, not again, not ever!" The Zoid snarled, then screamed as it brake into a limping run, its legs clearly damaged by either the shot or the subsequent crash.

Stephen didn't say anything back, merely dropping the sights onto the advancing Zoid. The Hyperbeam cannon fired again, blasting into the charging Death Raser. The shot tore through its left wing simply blowing it off the Zoid's body. Despite this, the one-armed Zoid continued to advance, its pilot not wanting to admit defeat.

The Death Raser lunged at the Iron Kong, but its advance seemed to be little more then a slow motion parody of the ferocious Zoid that he'd fought earlier. The Kong, even damaged, was able to step out of its way, then swing back with its good arm and smash the Death Raser in the side. The blow rocked the enemy Zoid, sending it staggering across the field, only to have it shake itself off and come back.

"Its over, Miles." Stephen called out, the Iron Kong bringing down its fist on the back of the Zoid. The Death Raser staggered, its legs suddenly slipping. "Give it up. You can't win." The Kong struck again, the Death Raser falling further. One of its legs twisted, driving the Zoid down to its knees. "Admit it!" He bought down both fists, not caring about the warnings the systems were giving him about the left arm. They struck the enemy Zoid on the back of its neck, smashing it into the ground with enough force to crack the concrete underneath it. The Death Raser didn't move, instead just lying there.

"Damn you." Miles gasped. "Damn it."

"The battle is over!" The monitor drone called out. "The winners are the Broken Chairs!"

Stephen sat back in his cockpit and let out a deep breath. They had won. It was over. He was clam. Everything was good.

"Hey man." Neil spoke up over the communicator. "Sorry about getting trashed there."

"Don't worry about it." He replied. "And thanks for giving me a chance there."

"It was all i could do." Neil finished. "And I know that you'd figure what I was doing soon enough. Just can I ask one thing."

"Sure. Anything."

"...give me a warning before you go big crazy ape on us next time, okay?"

"Sure." He finished, then laughed to himself. "How are you to doing?"

"I'm fine." Tasch began. "Sorry I couldn't do too much else for y'all there."

"You did fine, really." Stephen replied, shaking his head. "We weren't ready for them, and there was nothing you could do."

"I guess." She finished. "On the other hand, I made 'em waste a heck of a lot of ammo, which is a pretty good accomplishment." Tasch nodded to herself. "Yeah, that's achieved something for us."

"You're weird you know that?" Rose spoke up. "But thanks for getting him for me, Neil."

"Eh... I just wished I'd gotten him a minute sooner." He casually replied.

"Don't apologise." She finished. "I should be for not getting him myself."

"Next time, huh?" Neil asked.

"Probably." She finished. "So, shall we call in the pickup crews? This looks like its a day."

"Yeah." Stephen nodded. "It is."

*****

[Deadborder]

Always one of the premier pubs for Zoid pilots, the Wild Elephander was packed to the gills following the days round of battle. There were those who had won, those who had lost and those who had not fought at all that day all packed in together, celebrating the day's events. It was a festive occasion; the tail end of the season where the teams that would be heading into the semis had been determined, and the end was in sight. Much speculation was already going onto who would go to the finals, and who would be the eventual winner.

Not everyone was celebrating, however. Miles Slat was anything but happy about the days' battle, especially after getting the final scorecard printed through. It had been one of Crystal's shots that had taken out the Redler, not one of his. So that meant that he’d only gotten a single kill all battle, and that one had to be shared with Eliot sine their Zoids were fused at the time. And since it was a Gunsniper and he'd been piloting a Dekault Dragon, it counted for virtually nothing in terms of real points.

"Great." He muttered. "We walk away empty handed again." He'd put so much into the team, only to see it all slip through his fingers at the last minute. That it had occurred at the quarterfinals only annoyed him more. It was the same point that he'd lost last year, when the Firestorm team had fallen apart on him.

Looking over the room, he could see Keiko talking with a few Members of some other group he didn't recognise. "Yeah, you would be, wouldn't you?" He muttered to himself, then took another sip of his drink. She'd been the one who had screwed up and ended up wrecking the battle for them. He'd have to go over the battle to figure out what went wrong this time, still. He'd wondered who was at fault... Crystal had been the first out, but then Drake had been blasted by that damned Gunsniper. ON the other hand, Drake had gotten the Liger...

He took another drink as he watched Crystal and Drake talking. He knew it couldn’t have been Eliot who failed. Eliot had been with him all throughout the battle, and had been a part of the fusion that had very nearly (And oh so nearly) taken the battle. So that couldn’t be it either. He took another drink. He’d have to think about this for a while.

Drake left Crystal, instead heading across the room to a different table, dropping out of Miles’s sight. Slipping through the crowds, he instead approached the table where the Members of the Broken Chairs were sitting, sharing stories with several other teams. Rather then ploughing into the conversation, he instead approached Rose.

“Excuse me.” He began quietly.

“What do you want?” She snapped back. It was clear that she’d already had a few to drink, which meant that she may not be a good time. But, at the same time, he felt that it needed saying,

He sighed, knowing how difficult this would be. “I was wondering if we could just have a small, private talk.” He explained. “Just fore a couple of minutes. I want to smooth out any, uh, difficulties there may be between us.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m in a good mood tonight, and I don’t want to spoil it. You’ve got three minutes, so make it good.” She turned back to the table. “Scuse me for a sec, guys.” She added as she stood and walked off to a different corner of the room.

Drake followed her, stopping then turning to her. “Wee haven’t spoken since our last night out together.” He began. “And I think I can understand why.”

“The fact that you and another guy were getting it on may have been it, yeah.” She replied. “Was So yeah, I figured there were things you weren’t telling me. So what was our relationship about then?” She asked. “Exploring your options? Sitting on the fence, maybe?”

He shook his head. “I will admit that I didn’t make my intentions that clear.” He explained. “My interest in you lay firmly in your skills as a warrior. I’d seen you in action and was very impressed. You reminded me a lot of your sister, as well as a few others. I was fascinated by this, and wanted to know more aobut you. In many ways, you reminded me of myself when I was younger. If there was any ambiguity to my actions, then I do apologise”

“Shoulda said that earlier, then.” She replied. “And the guy?”

“An ex lover of mine who had recently re-entered my life.” He admitted. “I don’t make my sexuality that public; It’s not that I’m ashamed or feel the need to hide it, but rather that I don’t think that its an issue either way.” He shrugged. “In fact, Crystal from my team has spent most of the season trying to hit onto me with no success.”

“At least I should be thankful that you’re not after me just for my body then.” She finished.

He nodded. “In fact, I must admit that I’ve never had much of a... relationship with women. I’ve never been at all interested as far back as I know.”

“So you and a girl… never?” He shoot his head. “I see.”

“That’s the truth of it.”

Rose nodded, then grabbed both sides of his face, planting her lips on his. She held him for a few long seconds, then let go and stepped back. “Well, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.” She finished and walked ff, leaving him standing there and flustered.

She took her seat, turning to Neil who was talking with Nadia from the Iron Giants. “So how’s it going, guys?”

“Great.” Nadia replied. “Saw the battle, by the way. Nice work there.”

“You too.” She replied. “You kinda demolished your opponents there.”

“We try.” Nadia finished with a smile.

“She’s just as scary off the battlefield, trust me.” Neil continued. “Put a pair of dice in this girl’s hands and she’s lethal.”

“I won’t pretend to know what you’re saying.” Rose replied and shook her head.

“Your loss.” Neil replied with a grin, knowing full well that Rose didn’t share his hobbies.

“So did you ever get your ZWO character reactivated?” Nadia asked him.

“Yeah.” He took a sip from his drink. “Turns out that Timmy the Terrible is even lower level then I reMembered. He’s just at twelve now and has Fiver, the clapped-out Wolf as a ride.”

“Well…” She slurped her drink loudly. “I’ve got Lizzy with MiniMooMoo-“

“MiniMooMoo?” He asked, incredulously.

“-A Cannonfort.”

“I approve lots.”

“Anyway, she’s just at level thirteen.” Nadia finished. “So if you want, we could go for a run through Tarantulon Caves. That’s some good drops and good XP.”

“Well sure.” Neil replied. “I’m sure Tasch won’t mind me stealing her laptop for the evening.”

“Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to come back to my place and we can do the run there.” She offered. “Networked computers and a top of the line connection. And lots of snacks.”

“I’m in.” He grinned. “Let me just say a quick bye to the guys…” He tuned back to the table. “Hey guys, me and Nadia are going back to her place to play computer games all night and OD on junk food. That cool?”

“…funny thing is, I believe you when you say that.” Rose replied.

“What?” He asked with a smirk. “What did you think we were going to do?”

She eyed Nadia – short, slim and with an attractive figure clad in a tight belly shirt and baggy jeans. “Knowing you? Just that.” She finished.

“Exactly.” He smiled as he left.

“So what about you?” Rose asked as she turned to Tasch. “You got any plans?”

“I was gonna compete in the rest of the season.” She replied.

“I meant for tonight.”

“Well...” Tasch began. “I was gonna have another drink and maybe talk to a few more people and do some other stuff, I guess.”

“Riiight.” She sighed, then took another sip from her drink. Everone seemed to be having a good time of it tonight; she could see Members of other teams milling around, talking and having fun. Akira in the Swordfighter machine, with other Members of his team taking bets; that guy from the Venom team chatting up other women; a few Members of the Black Warriors smoking and so on. In fact, the only other person who didn’t seem to be having a good time of it was Miles.

Serves him right too, she thought. The guy had been annoying, bordering on creepy. She had no idea what was with his little act prior to the battle, save for him wanting to throw them all off. It hadn’t worked, and they’d won. No wonder he was sulking now. It was just a pity that Drake had put her in such a bad mood…

“Hey there” Stephen interrupted her train of thought. “I was just going to the bar. Did you want anything?”

She looked at him for a second, as if she wanted to say something. And then, instead, she kissed him. It wasn’t like with Drake, where she was aiming to tease him, however. This time she meant it. After a moment, she stepped back.

“Uh, Rose?” He asked.

“You want to blow this joint?” She asked, a seductive tone in her voice. “Maybe head back home?”

He paused for a moment, clearly thinking abut it. “You sure?”

“Very.” She finished. “Let’s go.”

*****

Michel Heywood sat back in his favourite couch, a beer in his hand and a battle playing on the big screen. He would have easily admitted that this was his favourite way to spend an evening, watching the fruits of his labours paying off before him. And this battle was promising to be a good one. Because the ZBC had their big Quarterfinals weekend, he'd decided to field a big load of exciting-looking matches to provide some decent competition.

This one was probably the best of the night. He'd decided to get out the Blood Reapers, a team which he'd considered to be the best in the NUBG outside of Shane and Julian. He'd rested putting them up against that ZBC team simply because there was only two of them versus their four and, well, he knew they didn't play well with others. Their opponents were the Schwartzwulf, another team who he considered to be amongst their best. He'd considered making them the next team to try that little challenge, depending on how things went tonight.

To make things even more exciting, they weren't fighting in a standard NUBG arena. Instead, they were fighting in one of the NUBG's two 'special' battlefields. This one was an abandoned quarry outside of the city, one that was filled with scrap metal, junked machinery and in numerous hidden potholes and other hazards. Not only would the two teams be stalking each other in the darkness with a lot of sensor 'junk' to throw them off, but they'd also be fighting the hazards built into the arena.

He watched in anticipation as a Shadow Fox stalked forwards slowly approaching its unsuspecting target. This is it, he thought. This is where it gets good. This was the moment he lived for, the point of the kill.

Then, as if it was a personal insult to him, the screen suddenly flashed white then burst into nothing but static. He desperately hammered the remote built into the arm of his couch, trying to get the picture back, but to no avail. Everything he tried just gave him more static.

"Rachel!" He shouted out in a mixture of desperation and panic. "Rachel, get in here!"

"Yes, sir?" She replied as she entered, not a minute later. "What is it?"

"What do you bloody well thing it is?" He asked. "I've lost the bloody picture!"

"Just a second, sir." She stepped over to a control panel built into the wall and pressed a few buttons. "Its not the set, sir." She replied. "We've lost the feed from our remote monitor drone."

"What?" He replied. "Well... we’ve got others covering the battle! Use one of them!"

"Yes sir." Rache replied as she studied the small screen display. "That's odd."

"What's odd?"

"None of them are responding. We're getting nothing but static on from all three drones."

"You mean they’ve all gone offline?"

"Within a minute of each other, yes." She replied.

"Well... get another one out there!" He shouted. "I don't care what it takes. I'm not going to loose the NUBG battle of the year to a technical glitch."

"Yes, sir." She replied as she opened a link to their remote training centre, the closest NUBG faculty to the battlefield. Within moments she had activated a drone and dispatched it to the battlefield. "It’s on its way now, sir."

The main screen switched to a live feed from the drone, which at the moment was showing the terrain underneath it. It continued along its way for a quater of an hour, cruising to the battlefield before it reached it. The drone dropped down into the quarry, and immediately began to search for a target to track. The first thing it sighted was a Shadow Fox lying on the ground, a huge gash torn in its side and the CP-04 mounted in its top partially crushed. Nearby, a Sabre Tiger lay on the ground, two of its legs torn free from is body. Glancing further afield, Rachel could see a Blade liger partially concealed behind some rubble, its flanks a torn mess of metal.

"Is it over already?" He asked. "Its over and we missed it?"

"Sir?" She asked. "There's no signs of any active Zoids on the battlefield."

"What do you mean? Somebody had to win."

"No sir." She finished as the drone focused on a new target. It was an NUBG surveillance drone, the same type as had been monitoring the battle. Only it had been clearly blasted apart, and was now little more then a smoking wreck, just like the five Zoids on the battlefield. "Somebody took them all out."

*****

[Orange]

Sweeto! I already told you most of what I think, but for your ego, I will mush a bit here. Yew rock, you have nicely developed characters, and your storytelling style is quite strong. Yay you!