The Ballad of Team Black Egg

Disclaimage- I do not own IGPX. It belongs to someone else who is not me. That person who is not me, owns IGPX unless of course more than one person owns it. In which case none of the owners I am.

Pops drooled over the test results pulled from the IGPX simulator. This new girl was definitely a rookie but she was a quality rookie. She could have definitely been the back-up for any respectable IG-1 team. This was definitely not what he had expected when he had called for a Defender. When Team Black Egg needs a new pilot, anyone showing up at all is better than expected.

"Kale Ricarro…" Pops thought to himself. He wasn't an expert on IGPX history, but Liz Ricarro was definitely a name any self-respecting pilot would recognize. The name Rocket T was even more famous. He had been a champion for years in a row and rumors had it he was trained by the original Rocket, Rocket G. The second Rocket had retired after many years of racing to become a manager of his own team, Team Rocket GTS. His team quickly worked their way to the top. The current Forward of this team, Vance Simstrum was said to be claiming the title of "Rocket" any year now. "Rocket V…" Pops thought, "This is getting out of hand…"

Kale exited the simulator and accepted a glass of water from Amelia. She walked over to Pops' desk were the aging man looked over the read-out.

"Did I make the team?"

"Well… this was mostly a formality. We would have accepted you if you were missing an arm and a leg, because you were the only offer we got… but if it really matters, yes, you made the team."

Pops thought about that for a second and continued, "But we'll have to check with Monica. Not that it's the best idea to be asking a pregnant woman for her opinion on her replacement… but we really do enjoy our formalities here."

"Momma Monica," Amelia added to show the nickname she had given to her team-captain was not the only one.

"So… your last Defender really did get pregnant? And you really are the father?" Kale inquired.

Pops nodded solemnly, "Looking back I realize it was a big mistake. We were in love and all, but our real desire was to bring our team back to its glory days. But what are you gonna do? We definitely weren't getting any younger."

Amelia giggled. Kale was glad to see that the girl was no longer acting awkwardly with her around. She was starting to feel like a member of the team.

"So… are you two the only members of Team Black Egg?" Kale asked.

"Well… yes, without Monica we are the only two. I try my best to act as Forward, team-captain and manager. We also have a mechanic, but he only shows up about once every two months."

"Mr. Hakioka is a bit lazy, but he's a good mechanic." Amelia added. Kale looked at the dilapidated mecha sitting in the next room and wondered how good this Mr. Hakioka could be.

Recognizing what Kale was thinking Pops popped in, "He really fixes them a lot. There's… just not a lot you can do for such old machines."

Kale nodded solemnly and tried to change the subject, "So… am I going to meet this Monica?"

"Of course," Pops said, "It's more a matter of when. Are you busy tonight?"

The house where Pops and Monica lived was definitely a lot nicer the Team Black Egg's headquarters. It was very suburban and almost had a surreal family atmosphere to it. It made Kale sigh and her mind filled with memories.

"I could get used to this…" Kale said absent-mindedly from a chair in the cozy sitting room.

"Momma Monica might not like that." Amelia told her from a nearby seat.

Kale was suddenly curious, "Where do you live Amelia? If you don't mind me asking."

Amelia seemed embarrassed that her new teammate would wonder about her, "Sometimes Momma Monica lets me stay here, but usually I sleep in the cockpit of my IG Machine."

"That doesn't sound very safe," Kale commented.

"Well… yes, I know our HQ doesn't have very good security… and it's not in the best neighborhood, but it really does feel safe… to me."

Before Kale could say anything about that an awkwardly plump red-headed woman was led into the room by Pops. The woman seemed to resent that her husband was leading her about and would have probably said something about it if it weren't for the fact that she was about to meet her replacement.

"This her?" The very obviously pregnant woman asked sourly.

"Yup," Pops beamed, "This is Kale Ricarro."

Kale stood and held out her hand, "Nice to meet you."

Monica reluctantly took the tomboyish girl's hand and shook it. "Don't get comfortable sweetheart," the woman ordered resentfully, "I plan to regain my place on Team Black Egg next season."

"Monica dear! You know very well you can't do that."

"Pfft," The confidant woman snarled, "By then you'll be begging me to come back to the team."

"I'm sorry, but if you've got a problem…"

"Alright, 'Spikes'. I got a problem."

"With what!" Kale demanded.

"How would you like it if I took away the only thing that mattered to you! How would you like that, huh, Spikes!"

"I could leave right now and forget about your team you know! How would you like that? I doubt you want your team to fail."

"It's alright with me. Go on get out of here!"

Suddenly, Pops let out a large laugh, "Wow, I'm glad you two are getting a long so well!"

Amelia stood up too, "You two act like you've known each other forever. This is wonderful."

Kale looked back at the Monica, ready for the pregnant woman to let out another stream of venomous language. She opened her mouth, but didn't say anything for a second. "Man I'm bushed… I hope everyone's hungry." She said finally.

Pops and Amelia both let out a cheery, "Yes ma'am!"

Kale got on her bike and looked back at the serene home and sighed again. These Black Egg people were crazy, but, just maybe she thought; they would help her finally meet her father. That was dream worth fighting for.

Next Time: Amelia