A/N - The rewrite is here! The reason for this story being rewritten is my writing style changed, and my original idea died out. Thus, a rewrite was born. I'll leave the older version posted, but I wanted to try something new and more… not-childish (I was 13 when I first started writing the original, a little older when I finally published).
But I'm older now so my style changed, as you will see if you read my Bionicle series (you don't have to if you don't want to). I hope you enjoy this new version!
I'm also helping to co-write another story! The author is amazing, talented, and imaginative. I however won't post their name unless they are okay with it.
Now, onto the story!
Disclaimer. I don't own Superior Defender Gundam Force. I only own my OC.
-z-
She watched from the deck as the smaller, green coloured figures below her marched into formations. She could see the three squad leaders below shouting orders at the soldiers, as well as yelling at each other. To her, however, this was normal.
"Ma'am?" A voice asked.
Turning, red eyes narrowed at the green soldier who had come up to her position. "What is it, Zako?"
The Zako soldier shifted, looking up at her with a single pink optic. "The Commander says it's time for you to depart."
She nodded. "Very well. Inform my uncles that I have left." She glanced down at the three squad leaders, watching as the blue one and the slimmer maroon one grappled with each other. The bulkier of the three just stared, along with several Zakos. "When they are done bickering, that is."
The Zako saluted, and as he raced off she turned to face the horizon, and the tree-like shape in the distance. Walking to the edge, she looked over the side of the massive ship, staring down at the cracked, purple-lava covered ground.
Then, she jumped.
There was no panic, and she fell like a black and red streak for a few moments. Then, reaching a certain height from the ground, she channeled her dark Mana into the thrusters on her feet. They powered on, and jets of purple energy blasted out with a faint roar. Now, instead of falling, her black form was soaring through the tainted sky, a red cape billowing behind her.
After several minutes of flying, a great canyon loomed before her, and in the center was an enormous dead tree. A castle was built around the trunk, and on its roots was a town, both decaying. The air was dotted with clouds of BaguBagu, and gigantic red horns were jutting out from the ground around the tree, some going through buildings. She landed on one of the castle's balconies, where a floating mass of green energy with ghostly yellow eyes, with a faint purple outline of armour underneath the green, was waiting.
"My friend." She greeted quietly upon landing, eyeing a small group of nearby brown knight-like robots with yellow visors instead of a face. Thankfully, they were distracted by something. Even if they were no threat, it was best not to take chances.
The ghoul bobbed in greeting, also eyeing the group. "Knight." He knew better than to say her name in the open.
"How goes the preparations?" She asked, as the two made their way into the castle.
"They are coming along as planned."
"And Tallgeese?"
The ghoul chuckled, "He does not suspect a thing, believing that I am nothing more than a simple servant."
They quieted down when they passed a squad of the brown robots, who chanted "Pawn," over and over. They only stopped to bow at 'Knight', before continuing onwards.
"So how goes the hunt for the Spirit Egg?" She inquired after the squad had vanished around a corner. "Sazabi is getting impatient."
"We have found no trace of it as of yet," The 'servant' answered, "but we did get a surprise in the village outskirts."
"Oh?" She asked, raising a brow.
Before the ghoul could answer, a pair of double doors opened. A knight in dusty grey armour with a flowing purple cape stood in the opening.
"Ah… the Commander said that you would soon arrive my dear." The knight said with a small bow.
"Tallgeese." She greeted back, entering the chambers behind him. "Your servant was informing me about a surprise in the village outskirts."
"Indeed. Do not worry though," he smirked rather darkly, stopping next to a large mirror, "they will not stand up against my army."
She only hummed in answer, glancing at the image in the mirror. "I do hope you understand that these four have been the reason we have been unable to invade Neotopia."
Tallgeese nodded. "I know indeed. But I have a plan to capture them."
"You do, do you?" She asked.
The knight smirked. "Watch."
-z-
"Pawn! Pawn! Pawn!"
"What was that!" The young human boy asked, looking around warily.
"I detect evidence that we are being surrounded!" The light blue and white mecha - a Neotopian Gundam - reported.
The red and white Musha Gundam tensed up. "The enemy!"
"I don't see anybody-" The boy - Shute - began, when a barrage of arrows shot out from the thin air above the ledge over their heads.
"Quickly!" The Neotopian Gundam - Captain - ordered, grabbing Shute. "Scatter!"
The three Gundams ducked away, dodging the arrows as they struck the ground.
"Where are they?" Shute asked, looking at where the arrows had come from.
Captain's targeting scope slid down over his eye as he scanned the area. On that ledge he could see the outlines of little robots built like suits of armour, with yellow visors where their faces should be. They each held some kind of crossbow in hand, except for one with a decorative head-fin, who was holding a sword. The read-out indicated an energy field covering their bodies.
"Just as I suspected," Captain said, "they are equipped with some kind of cloaking device!"
"This can only be their doing!" The dark blue and white Knight Gundam realized, and shot an angry glare at Lacroa Castle's ruins.
-z-
Tallgeese, 'Knight', and the 'servant' watched the Gundam Force in the glass of the mirror.
"It would seem one of them is capable of detecting my Pawn Leo squad." The 'servant' remarked.
"Good," The dusky knight nodded. "Things have been dead here for so long, I'm grateful for the…entertainment."
"Be careful for what you ask Tallgeese," 'Knight' warned, "as it may be more than you bargained for."
"Even still," the dusky grey knight chuckled, pulling out a gold feather. "you know I have a certain… trick under my armour."
Her blood red eyes widened. "You plan on bringing it out?"
Tallgeese chuckled again, turning back to the mirror. "I will obtain the Spirit Egg by any means necessary." He answered.
Through the mirror the three could hear Shute cheer "That-a-way! The Gundam Force kicks evil robot booty once again!"
"The Gundam Force, eh?" The dusky knight had a sinister smile form as he watched the Gundams through the mirror. "What a coup to smash them once and for all."
'Knight' only watched the proceedings, and then turned when the last of the Pawn Leos were dispatched. "Are you going to follow them?" She asked.
Tallgeese nodded. "Indeed. You are welcome to come along, if you wish."
She thought about it for a long moment, before nodding. "That would be best."
The dusky knight made his way beck to the chamber's doorway. "Then please follow me, my dear."
-z-
She watched silently from behind a rock formation as the Gundam Force was surrounded by the Pawn Leo Force. Along with them she could also see three un-petrified Lacroix children - triplets by their identical looks - dressed as Pawn.
How curious, she mused, is this how they avoided petrification? Are there more like them? She hoped not. The last thing that they needed was a Lacroian Resistance at this stage.
A loud shout dragged her attention back to the Force, and despite her training she let out a snort at the young Neotopian's statement. Tallgeese's reaction made it worse.
"Tall-geese?" Shute commented, "That's a pretty funky name."
The dusky knight lost his composure. "What did you say, worm?!"
Shaking her head, 'Knight' stifled her amusement, settling back to watch as Tallgeese clashed with the Gundam Force.
Then, the dusky knight summoned his Dark Mana, a red octagon of evil magic, and summoned his secret weapon.
She tensed. Let us see how these 'heroes' fare against a Summoned Beast.
-z-
It was going well, with Tallgeese blowing back the Gundams with the power of the Griffen. However, she had not expected for one of the three children to declare the last thing anyone here would have suspected.
"We have the Spirit Egg."
As the others reacted to this news, 'Knight' mulled over this new information. So, if they are the ones who have been hiding the Egg, it brings into question why Tallgeese and my ally have been unable to find it. However, where were the children hiding for two years?
Her eyes drifted over to the massive, deep pit in the center of the cave, where not long earlier had two Pawn foolishly fallen in. The Dark Hole would be a likely place, she mused to herself, with its 'No Magic' rule, the Pawns would be unable to enter to find it. But, 'Knight' frowned, glancing to where she could see one of the triplets holding out a box with a blue glow inside, how were they able to leave it? The Hole is inescapable as far as legend goes. Were they able to find a path?
Her analysis was cut short when she heard more shouting. Turning her head, she watched as the Winged Knight plummeted into the Hole. Silent, she watched as a Pawn stole the box from the triplet during the commotion, bringing it to Tallgeese.
Then came the twister.
She yelped despite herself, inwardly cursing for not seeing this coming and grabbing onto the rock face for dear life. The enchanted wind whipped around her, pulling on her dark form with the force of a hurricane. Then, eyes going wide, she felt the rock vanish from her grip. Scrap!
She yelled as the wind ripped her around, and faster than she could adjust she felt her magic be stripped away. The Hole!
Before the top of the Hole vanished from sight and left her in blackness, she managed to shout one thing at the now-panicked dusky Knight.
"You moron!"
-z-
When she came too, all 'Knight' could see was brown, barren cavern walls with tall pillars made of large boulders. Biting back a curse, she turned to survey her surroundings.
Okay, she thought to herself, trying to analyze the situation, I'm stuck in what most likely - no, is - a part of the Dark Hole. Not much is known about it, other than the 'No Magic' rule and the fact that it's supposedly bottomless. I can rule out the bottomless part, which is obviously a piece of false information as I'm standing on solid ground. There's either a spell or a mineral here that's creating the anti-magic field, so I won't be able to fly out.
Looking up, she scowled. Even if I could still use my magic, I'm too far down that I won't be able to fly even halfway up before I hit my height limit. Glancing at some of the pillars, she took in all the nooks and crevices on them. I could climb one of those, but who knows if it will reach the top? Probably not, as then others could have escaped the Hole the same way as well.
Seeing how open it was, she knew that she needed to disguise herself quickly before she was spotted. Thanking her ally for teaching her this non-magic trick, she focused on her form, willing it to change. She could feel her body shifting, and when she opened her eyes she looked at her now lighter coloured arm. Not the best disguise, but hopefully one that won't raise any questions.
Looking around again, she quickly remembered what she had been thinking of on the surface. If those triplets have been using the Hole to hide, then most likely they know of a way out. If I could find them, I could follow them out. Trying to confront them would be no good. They have a foolish bravery to them, and would sooner insult me then tell me what I want to know. Following them out silently would be the best course of action.
With that plan made, she kept her eye out for the three, keeping to the shadows to avoid any unnecessary detection. However, she had no luck in finding the children. Hidden in the shadow of a pillar, she scowled. These children either are adept at hiding in this place, have not been using the Hole to hide, or are already up top. In any case, I've been going in circles for who knows how long! I need to find a way out NOW!
It was then that she heard a commotion nearby. Ghosting over to another pillar, she spied the Knight Gundam Zero and the Neotopian boy Shute being chased by… a giant Bagubagu?!
I thought those things were destroyed in the Lacroan Takeover! 'Knight' thought with disbelief. And how did one end up down here?!
Shaking her head, she watched as the boy jumped away from the mechanical insect's lunge, landing on a pillar. The Bagubagu began to slice into the rock as the boy desperately tried to climb higher to safety. It was not long before the boy had run out of pillar, leaving him open to the bug.
Or, he would have been, if not for his Knight Gundam companion. "Have at thee, insect!" Zero called out, and jumped at the Bagubagu.
As the knight and bug struggled against one another, she spotted something buried in the sand nearby. Is that a-?
A nearby shout drew her attention, and she watched as Zero was swatted away from the Bagubagu by it's massive claw. As the bug turned to deal with the young human, 'Knight' found herself quickly making a decision. It's either this or being stuck here chasing circles, and I have zero desire to remain here.
Leaping out from behind the pillar, she snagged the device from the sand and raced towards the massive bug, feeling the device ignite in her grip. Here goes-!
-z-
Shute felt panic take hold in his chest. His green eyes were wide, locked onto the single pink optic of the massive bug slowly closing in for the kill. But just as the insect raised a massive claw to bring it down…
"Get away!"
There was a flash of light, and the Bagubagu's left claw was sliced clean off. Feeling shock flood his system, Shute looked around wildly for the source of the Bagubagu's pain. A flash of white caught his attention, and the boy's jaw dropped in shock when he saw who his saviour was.
A feminine shaped mecha stood bravely on another pillar, holding up a sword of light in hand. Armour as white as snow gleamed in the cavern's gold light, criss-crossed with deep red and dark blue stripes. Light violet eyes glared down at the bug, who was screeching and flailing in pain.
"Wh-Who are you?" Shute called out, trying to get his breath back now that he wasn't going to be petrified.
His saviour did not reply. Instead, she leapt at the Bagubagu, and in two clean strokes, cleaved off the other claw before stabbing it in it's single optic. The Bagubagu hit the ground with a solid crash, deactivated.
"Whoa…" the boy gaped in shock, before shaking his head to clear his thoughts. Climbing down, he made his way over, only to turn and run when he saw a familiar form laying nearby. "ZERO!"
The Knight Gundam groaned at the yell, weakly rolling himself over. "Ow…"
Shute slowed to a stop, crouching next to his friend, who was trying to sit up. "Take it easy! You got hit pretty hard back there."
"He's right." A female voice said.
The two Force members looked up as the red and blue striped white femme approached them, deactivated sabre in hand. Now that his life wasn't in peril Shute could make out more detail of her form.
Her helmet was almost wolf-like in shape, though the 'ears' were lower down, more on the sides of her head than the top. A ponytail of blue and silver wires rested on the back, and was held together by four evenly spaced metal rings down its below shoulder length. Her face had a mouth guard similar to Captain's, yet it lacked the red chin and the slits lit up a violet colour. Her form was slim, not as bulky as the other mecha the boy had met. Plates, like a metallic skirt sat around her waist, and she had no visible soul stone or v-fin. She was a mecha, but not a Gundam.
Zero's face was frozen in shock, only to shake it off when she held out a hand to him. The knight took the femme's hand, allowing himself to be pulled to his feet. She then handed the Knight Gundam the beam sabre.
"I believe that this belongs to you." She said.
Zero took the deactivated sabre, tucking it away. "Uh… thank you, m'lady."
The femme nodded to him, before turning to Shute. "Are you alright?"
The boy nodded. "Yeah, I think so." He then asked "Who are you, by the way?"
The femme froze for a moment, before saying, "Storm. My name is Storm."
-z-
She watched silently as Shute and Zero conversed. She was hoping that they bought her story of having been trapped in the Hole since the Lacroan Invasion. She was counting on this deception to be able to escape.
"Hey, Storm!"
She looked up at the sound of her false name, watching as Shute waved her over. She raised a brow, but walked over. "Yes?"
Zero spoke up then. "M'lady, since it is obvious that you have been trapped here for some time, Shute and myself shall take you to the surface where you shall be safe."
'Storm' could only nod silently, playing the role of civilian. The two males began to converse again - most likely discussing their next move - leaving her to look around. As she did, she noticed something glinting in the sand underneath the fallen Bagubagu. Checking to see that Shute and Zero were still occupied, she snuck closer. Crouching down, she brushed away the sand - and froze.
"Not possible…" She muttered, picking up the oval shaped object. It resembled the Spirit Egg, but it was gold instead of blue.
"M'lady!" She jumped at the sound of Zero's voice.
"Coming!" She called back, tucking the object away in her sub-spacial storage pocket. Standing up, she joined the two males, and together they left the area.
-z-
"Those triplets are around here, somewhere, I know it." Shute told her and Zero as they walked back to where the Bagubagu first appeared.
"Coah...Doah…Noah…" The boy called out, before grinning. "Hello-ah? Hey…you guys!" He groaned. Cupping his hand over his mouth, he shouted, "Hey! I've got Zero here! That's right! We're ready to get your Spirit Egg back! So c'mon! C'mon out!"
"Uh-uh!"
The three stopped. That sounded like one of the triplets.
"No thanks!" Another voice called out. Or was it the same kid?
"No way!" Called a third.
Shute and Zero looked around, trying to find the source of the triples' voices. They seemed to echo from everywhere. 'Storm' stood back, feigning confusion, but her violet eyes scanned the area.
Shute got angry. "Okay, that does it! You three show yourselves right now!"
"We don't want anything to do with him!" Came the angry response.
The boy blinked. "Huh?"
"We've been waiting all this time for a saviour to arrive." One triplet started.
"And when he finally does…" Continued another.
"He lets Tallgeese beat the stuffing out of him!" The third finished harshly.
"Some saviour!" One of the triplets scoffed. "He's an imposter! We don't wanna waste our time on him!"
With each statement, Zero lowered his eyes, until he was looking directly at his feet. 'Storm', playing the role of civilian, reached over, and gently placed a hand on Zero's shoulder. As she gave a small squeeze of comfort, she bit back a curse as she realized that the voices were echoing around the area. So much for finding them and their Egg. At least I now know that they have been using the Hole to hide.
Shute, however, grew furious. "Okay, I've heard enough!" He shouted fiercely, "He's no imposter! You call him that when you don't know the first thing about him or what he's done! I've fought a lot of battles with Zero, and I can tell you, as far as saviours go, he's the real deal!"
'Storm' watched as the boy continued to shout. But when he got no reply, the boy scowled. "…Aw, phooey."
Zero, however, seemed to feel much better after this. "Shute… Thank you."
"It's just the truth, that's all," Shute muttered, and clapped his hands together. "Well, okay! That's enough standing around here! Zero, you, Storm and I have got work to do! If we're gonna get the Spirit Egg back, and get you out of here safely Storm, we've gotta find the others! And if I know Captain," He looked up. "He'll be leading the others up and outta here! So that's what we'll do. We'll just head up towards the top!"
Zero, his resolved renewed, nodded. "Yes, there is sense in your plan!"
Shute grinned. "You bet there is!"
"Unfortunately," Zero went on to say, "I can neither fly nor use my magic in this place."
"Nor can I. How will we get up?" 'Storm' added, genuinely curious.
The boy pointed towards one of the taller pillars. "We'll go the old-fashioned way! By climbing out, one hand over the other!"
She and Zero looked up at Shute's intended starting point. They couldn't see the top…
"Well, let's get started!" Shute laughed, and ran for the pillar.
'Storm', however, just stared upwards. Can we really climb these pillars?
She yelped unintentionally as a hand appeared on her shoulder, only to quickly realize who it was. "Oh… it's you Zero."
"My apologies, m'lady, but you have no need to worry, Shute's plan cannot fail." Zero reassured.
She tried to look reassured. "I hope that you are right…"
-z-
"This isn't so bad…" 'Storm' heard Shute remark as the three of them climbed a massive pillar. "We'll be out of here in no time!"
Beneath the two of them, Zero commented, "I hope it is that easy. I hope Tallgeese and his minions are not at the entrance waiting for us…"
"There's only one way to find out!" Shute gritted, swinging his arm up, "Up we go!"
"And I hope you're both right!" 'Storm' added, grimacing as her foot slipped.
And high, high above them, they could just see the Hole's entrance.
Just barely.
-Zako-
A/N - So, the first chapter of this rewrite ends. If you have read the original version, you can instantly tell that I've changed a few things. I've decided to make this version a bit more serious.
As for my OC, I spent the last few years working on her character while doing my other rewrite. I am now satisfied with what I came up with, and I hope you enjoy my new series. I have also changed the series name from the rewrite, as I feel that this title is more appropriate for this rewrite (Even if it is only a small change).
I am however going to be more focused on my other series, and I also was accepted for a job this June. I do plan on working on this story, so I will update when I can.
Until next time!
Next Chapter - Not Everything Is As It Seems