AN- Hello, ShadowRebirth37 here! This was the first fic I ever wrote, but not my first posted. This one is very, very different from my other fics. First off, it will be a continuing fic. Second, this one is AU and takes place before Chaotic Century. I will also be introducing my OC in later chapters. This fic pretty much stands alone from my other fics; meaning it really won't tie into them. The only connection it will have to my other fics is that my OC will appear in my parody fic, Adventures of the GenoFury Team. Please keep an open mind with this fic; I wrote it before I learned how Raven and Shadow met. Basically, this is my story of how Raven and Shadow met and tells of Shadow's past during Zoidian times. The first paragraph is an intro of sorts, explaining how Raven got out in the desert.
Disclaimer: Nope, Zoids ain't mine. I only own this fic, my OCs, the story line, and a few Zoids kits in my room!:P
.:Shadow in the Smoke:.
The Rev Raptor shook violently as another shot blazed into it. "It can't take much more of this! I need to get out of here!" Raven yelled as yet another warning light blinking across the controls. He had been on a training mission when his little group had been ambushed by a Republican squadron. Their Rev Raptors and Molgas were no match for the Command Wolves and Infantry Godos that the Republican troops were piloting, and the squad leader had a Shield Liger. Already, half of his group had been taken down, and he knew he wasn't going to last much longer. The small Zoids was riddled with bullet holes, and the Core had taken serious damage. Roaring, the Shield Liger set up its shield as one of Raven comrades took aim and fired. The shot ricocheted off the shield, and tore through the Rev Raptor's leg. "Ah!" Raven shouted, warning lights and sirens going off. "If I'm going down, you're coming with me!" he snarled. Amazingly, he managed to stabilize the falling Zoid just long enough to get a shot at the Liger as its shield fell. Wailing in pain, the great blue Zoid collapsed to the ground in a smoking heap. The victory was short-lived, however. A Command Wolf crept ever closer to his failing Zoid, preparing to strike. Another warning sounded, this time the hydraulics in the leg failed, causing it to seize-up. "No!' he yelled, pulling hard on the controls, trying to keep the Zoid up. The little Zoids staggered, turning franticly as it tried to get its leg to move. Suddenly, Raven saw the Command Wolf crouched down… and watched in horror as it sprung. Snarling, the large canine slashed at his Zoid, its claws slicing through the Rev Raptor's chest armor. The Raptor wailed in pain, electricity arching over its body. Raven screamed as the cockpit exploded, spraying him with hot sparks. Whining loudly, the Raptor collapsed on its belly, unable to keep fighting. Raven, barely conscious, watched as the Command Wolf turned away from his downed Zoid. He tried to sit up, but something heavy had pinned him in down. Sparks still dripped from torn wires, filling the cockpit with smoke. Whimpers from his dying Zoid added to the wailing of countless alarms. He tried once again to sit up, but it was too much. Groaning, he lost consciousness.
Shadow was sleeping soundly in an ancient ruin, dreaming of his past- before the Death Saurer destroyed the world as he knew it. He had been a wild-born, hatched into a Stark of seven members. He had been the only survivor of his mother's clutch, due to a raid on the nest. His egg had been left behind, for he was born in a smaller, discolored egg. Only four hatchlings were born in the entire Stark- He, Copper, another black, and a small light-blue female. Copper had been his friend since birth; always looking out for him. The other black was separated from the Stark on a hunt; they never did find him. That left him, Copper, and the female as the only younglings. The small blue female had been born early, the result of a crack in her egg caused during the raid. She had been even smaller than he, and was very frail. He and Copper watched out for her, and always let her eat first. Together, he and his friends grew up and left the Stark to start a new life, as all young Organoids do.
They played and lived happily, always looking for something to get into. That is, until the Death Saurer. A young Zoidian named Alloy, whom Copper had rescued him from drowning, had tamed him. The young female was also tamed by a young Zoidian girl named Ibeyla, and was since named Obscura for her ability to turn invisible. He even crossed paths with his lost clutch-brother, the black. He had been tamed by a young boy named Talon, and was now called Obsidian, for he looked like he was covered in fluted pieces of black, volcanic glass. Shadow, on the other hand, stayed feral.
When the Death Saurer's rampage began, some tried to stop it- some like Alloy and Talon. Shadow didn't get involved; he knew that the Death Saurer couldn't be stopped. He watched in horror as Alloy's Bronze Fang was obliterated by spine-missiles, taking Copper with it. Talon's Shadow Panther was badly damaged, but he didn't know what happened to him. Shadow never learned Obscura's fate. Her partner Ibeyla's Spectral Tiger had been hit full on by a Charged Particle Beam, but somehow it managed to limp away. How that Zoid managed to survive that blast was beyond him. He had been lucky to survive himself; he had found that stasis pod purely by ch-
A loud explosion shook him from his dreams. His head snapped up, looking out of the cave's mouth. 'What was that?' Yawning lazily, he stretched and got to his feet. He walked out onto the cave's ledge, overlooking the ruins and plains.
Shadow looked out over the barren landscape, basking in the morning light. He fanned his wings, cleaving the crisp, dawn air. His black armor glistened in the warmth, giving him renewed energy. Retracting his wings, he roared loudly, his war cry echoing through the hallowed ruins. He smiled; this reminded him of the roaring contests he and Copper used to have. They would always compete with each other, trying to see who was better.
The thought of his friends brought up painful memories of that fateful day. The Death Saurer had been released, and it was destroying everything. Shadow had been drawn by all of the commotion, and was frozen with fear at the sight of the terrible Zoid. As he stood, unable to do anything, he watched his closest friends die right before his eyes. He had tried to suppress these memories, but they trickled back. A loud, whimpering cry escaped him; such was the memories' power over him.
Another distant explosion freed him from the memories' grasp. Squinting his eyes, he tried to see where it originated. Seeing nothing, he decided to investigate. Spreading his great wings, he allowed the warm desert winds lift him. Hearing more noises, he changed course, heading towards them. He flew for the better part of an hour, until he came upon a graveyard of Zoids.
'Must have been some fight…' Shadow thought, flying over the gored form of a Helkat. The dismembered bodies of some Zoids were unrecognizable, their limbs gone and metal innards exposed. A few still smoked, and some had small fires slowly eating away at the little armor that remained on their destroyed bodies. He discovered most were Imperial Zoids; Molgas, Helkats, Rev Raptors, a Pteras, ect. He could only find two downed Republican Zoids, a Command Wolf and a Shield Liger, and he concluded that Republic forces had been the aggressors in the fight. Most of the Zoids had bloodstains on the shards of their eyes, and some were missing their heads altogether, a strong indicator that there weren't many, if any survivors.
One Zoid in particular caught his attention- a lone Rev Raptor, collapsed on its belly. It still had electricity jumping across its body, and wisps of smoke rising from its chest. Curious, Shadow glided down and landed on the Raptor's snout. The cockpit cover was slightly ajar, and he peered in through the Zoid's green glass eyes. Blood flecked the inside surface, and he thought maybe the pilot was dead. Slight movements inside made him reconsider.
'Am I imagining things? Or did I just really see something move in there?' he thought, second-guessing what he saw. Another small movement inside convinced him that the pilot might be alive. Leaning down, he stuck his nose into the small gap between the cockpit cover and the Zoid's snout. He pushed up the cover; the damaged gears and motors squealing with protest. Finally, the jammed workings relented, lifting up the rest of the way.
Shadow pulled his head back as the cover moved up. Smoke leaked out; not a good sign. When the cover opened fully, he cautiously jumped down into the cockpit. The cover closed slightly behind him, shutting out the light of the sun. He squinted his eyes, but it was hard to see through the dark and smoke. Only a few flickering lights and some bursts of sparks illuminated the darkness, but it was just enough for Shadow to see. He could just make out the shape of a person, and he leaned down to get a closer look.
'For Eve's sake…' Shadow cursed in his head, seeing the pilot. He was slumped over a large beam of metal, which had trapped him. Blood covered the beam, coming from a large gash on his arm. Even though he must have been down for over an hour, blood still flowed freely from the wound. Unbelievably, Shadow heard the young pilot inhale and saw him move his hand slightly. 'He's still alive, but just barely…' he shifted slightly, unsure of what to do. The pilot shifted again, and Shadow saw his eyes blink open slightly before closing again.
Shadow leaned closer, just inches away from the injured boy. Growling softly, he gently nosed the pilot's shoulder, trying to see if he was still conscious. When there was no reaction, he knew he was unconscious… or dead. Looking down, Shadow saw that the beam was crushing the boy. Using his arms and shoulder, Shadow lifted the heavy beam off of the pilot. He set it down carefully and turned back to the boy.
He was now leaning against the side of his seat; his safety harness still fastened. Shadow lightly pushed his snout against the boy's chest, careful not to hurt any broken ribs, and felt for a heartbeat. His pulse was very faint, and so was his breathing. This worried Shadow greatly, and he lifted his head to look at the safety harness. 'I need to get this off if I'm going to get him out of here…'
Everything was a blur as Raven slowly woke up. The bright light of the sun had awakened him as the cockpit canopy opened. 'Why is the canopy open? Is someone here?' he thought. 'It must be malfunctioning…' he concluded as he heard it close. A strange sound caught his attention. 'What was that?' he sensed something in the cockpit with him, and he feared it was a Republican soldier. 'Destroying my Zoid and nearly killing me just wasn't good enough, now they want to take me prisoner…' He took a deep breath and flexed his hand, trying to see if it still worked. It did, but he froze when he heard something shift. He opened his eyes slightly, but his vision was obscured by both pain and smoke.
He was still extremely weak, so he closed his eyes, trying to conserve precious energy. Something moved close to him, and he felt warm air on his face. He heard a low, metallic growl as he felt something press into his shoulder and move around. 'Okay, that's definitely not a person…' he thought, not knowing whether to be relieved or afraid.
The weight from the beam was crushing the very life out if him, and had pinned him down, making escape on his own impossible. Suddenly, he felt the weight lessen, as the beam was lifted off him. He heard it fall to the ground, and heard a quiet shuffling of metal as something approached him. Forcing his eyes open, he tried to see what was in the cockpit with him, but all he saw was a dragon-like, shadow in the smoke before he closed them. Suddenly, he felt something smooth press gently into his chest.
'This can't be good…' he thought, now sure it wasn't a person. He heard another metallic growl and felt more warm air as the thing lifted away and moved towards his arm. A sudden, loud snort and puff of hot air made him jump slightly as whatever-it-was gripped the shoulder strap of his harness. Growling loudly, something began tugging at the strap, almost like it was trying to get it off. 'What in the world?' Suddenly, the strap gave way with a tear, causing the rest of the harness to give.
He groaned as he slid out of the restraints. He was expecting to fall to the floor, but instead he fell against something smooth and warm. This puzzled him; nothing in the cockpit felt like that. Feeling dizzy, he knew he was going to pass-out. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his middle and lift him up into the air. He had no idea what was going on or what just wrapped around him, but the only thing he could think of that might feel similar to that was to be hanging from the jaws of an Organoid.
He didn't know just how right he was…
.:End of Chapter 1:.
AN- So, what do you think? I know, it's really different, but I think its okay. Please keep an open mind; this was my first fic and at the time I didn't know what I was doing or how Raven and Shadow met. This fic, like all my others, is based on a dream. This will be a sizable fic; at most maybe ten chapters. I hope you guys liked it; if I get good reviews I will continue. I need at least 2 reviews before I continue; they can be from the same person, but I would prefer two different people. As soon as I get reviews I will start one chapter 2, which should only take a day or two. Anyway, go forth and write me a nice, honest review. Oh, a little warning… all flamers will be fed to my Organoids!! None-flamers, don't worry, your safe.XP