I NEED TO DO MY HOMEWORK, AND THIS FANFIC IS BLOCKING ME FROM WORK!

Okay-Fine! You win. I will write this, and then beat the stuffing out of my homework!

The idea was inspired from watching 'The Code' with my little sister.

What was the Dark Ace thinking while watching the Storm Hawks perform?

I do not own Storm Hawks! Warning for innuendos (if they slip in).

On with the Story!

"This is a comfortable box with a fine view of the arena. Just come out when I have won the Phoenix Crystal to collect it." Harrier was being a complete douche- ahem, gentleman.

Dark Ace inclined his head. Being the protector of Master Cyclonis had included etiquette lessons, so he made sure to have a stiff, "Thank you, I will be most relaxed watching the children compete against your caliber."

Harrier missed the clothed barb. Dark Ace grinned as the door shut. Oh yes, etiquette was such a fine tool.

"I will enjoy watching the Storm Hawks put such a smack down on your team."

The Challenged commenced with the art of Sky Writing. Dark Ace frankly didn't care for such. It was boring. The dodging and weaving of battle suited him much better. The grace and control and just then decisions that decided if you survived….

Predictably, the Rex Guardian created their insignia. Dark Ace munched on provided flame-corn. How…unoriginal. He was almost tempted to call it lame.

Then the blonde Storm Hawk went up. He displayed all the skills that Dark Ace found favorable- he even turned graffiti into art. Dark Ace waited for him to be awarded the full ten points for his skill.

The container of flame-corn crushed under his grip.

Negative fifty-two points? Where the judges blind? The Storm Hawk had succeeded! They were going to go on about how he had defaced their symbol? If Finn had defaced a Cyclonia symbol, Master Cyclonis would have snapped a picture of it and awarded them two points!

Well, she would, if they weren't at war. Composing himself, Dark Ace reminded himself that he was after the Phoenix Crystal for Master Cyclonis. She had wanted to look into the bond that kept a Phoenix and its Crystal together. She was researching something….something she thought was important.

He hoped to bring the Crystal back to her. It would be a nice gift after his vacation.

After the Sky Writing event was building the Sky Rides.

Dark Ace snorted. Why didn't they just say Skimmers like the rest of society? Oh yeah, because they were stuck up snobs.

Dark Ace slurked some yorka juice down. He glanced away as the Rex Guardian snapped his fingers, and began to run down in his mind how to form a working skeleton from already formed parts. He got to step three, making sure that the parts would actually fit, and from there check the suspension, when the sound of a revving motor caught his attention.

He heard the Merb say something about a sonic scrambler. Well, that was fast. He glanced over the design. It was unusual, but it was useful. The Merb had gone steps beyond just making a Skimmer. He had made his own style.

Dark Ace reflected on how long the years and battles were for him to settle on a Skimmer that would fly and support his taste in fighting.

He was pulled out of his musings to hear Aerrow yell and objection, saying something about behaving like that wouldn't help them fight off Cyclonians. Dark Ace checked the score board. People were booing. What had he missed?

Ah, the Storm Hawks were disqualified for not washing…their…hands.

Dark Ace felt a slow curl of anger coil in his gut. He signaled the Cyclonian commander to begin preparations for the invasion. Once they had confirmed the affirmative, he turned back to the fight. He restrained himself from getting self-absorbed in a rant and agreeing with Aerrow. None of this was useful in the real world. Well, the skills were, but the niceties were done away with.

Up next was the girl. She had actually changed into the Rex Guardian outfit. Dark Ace would have wondered why, but after the judge's way of (biased) nitpicking, he mentally congratulated her on adapting her skills to the game.

He watched as she moved through the Sky Fu. Master Cyclonis would want to hear about this. The girl showed great skill and promise, just as he once had.

Then she pointed to the other girl after the fight, and Dark Ace had to restrain himself from applauding as whatever the girl said got the Rex Guardian disqualified.

Then there was the Sky Duel. The last match, and then he went out to collect the crystal, tell Harrier that his Terra was about to be conquered, and leave. No doubt the Storm Hawks would try to stop him, but Harrier would stop them and try to honorably settle things his way. Dark Ace would escape and disable the only Sky Knight Squadron to defend the Terra. Harrier was too prideful to let the Storm Hawks help.

Dark Ace trained his gaze upward. The Cloud Candy was pink. He personally preferred the blue kind, but traitors in first class boxes shouldn't be choosy.

He watched with pride as Aerrow trounced Harrier. The boy had learned to disrespect the rules and win at all costs from him. The boy was also a quick study. He didn't release his Move, and he also didn't let Harrier smack into the ground.

So he had his own Code. Dark Ace suspected that any other rider would have expected Harrier to have his own parachute, and let the arrogant man hit the ground. Hopefully break something too.

Then Harrier started in on Aerrow. The crowd booed again, and Harrier started to shout about the deal. Dark Ace sighed, and stood up, uncrossing his legs and striding over to his Skimmer.

Time to make his entrance.

He wasn't certain why he blurted out about the Cyclonians coming, or why he had punched Harrier. He should have just taken the Phoenix Crystal, and walked away. Now he was without his Skimmer and having to rendezvous with the Cyclonian fleet.

He didn't even have a present for Master Cyclonis, not that she was expecting one. But knowing himself, he would blab about it too to her in private. She would knock him about after wringing every last drop of information about him.

But she was gentle when she knocked him about. He saw how she dropped the others. He? He flipped and landed on his feet, and she didn't repeat the punishment.

Dark Ace sighed, and prepared for battle.

He wanted to bring home some sort of present for Master Cyclonis. After all, he had watched the Storm Hawks and gained valuable insight as to how their team worked. Dark Ace paused. Slowly, a dark smile spread over his face. He had no idea how useful the information would be, but it was the first detailed report they had on the Storm Hawks.

Now, to lead the battle on Terra Rex.

~fin

A/N: I had so much homework to do, and now I have so little time to do it….sigh. Well, at least now I can focus on it!