ONE

NEW SEED

Review Corner: Yowzah, the great randomcat23 reviewed this story! Thank you very much randomcat, I really appreciate the interest. I hope I don't disappoint you along the road. There are not a lot of things going on in this chapter too, but I have to set up the background before I shell out the good stuffs. So please bear with me. Next chapter should start kicking ass.

New Helic City,
Helic Republic, Delpoi Continent,
Planet Zi,
August 3, ZAC 2120

"I have to go now, Father."

Saskia never wanted to go. For the past 3 years, watching the sky from the cemetery, leaning against her father's gravestone, had been her daily pastime. The rear part of the simple granite headstone had been partially sanded off, a testament of how often Saskia's back and shoulder chaffed against it. To its left and right lied hundreds of similar headstones in perfect box pattern. The monotone but serene atmosphere that was her home would soon be her past, and it brought more sorrow to her wounded heart.

Three years ago Saskia's father took part in a border skirmish against the Guardian Force. A Helic convoy was besieged by overwhelming Guardian Force zoids. Saskia's father led a squadron to break through the siege, and he tore the Guardian Force formation wide enough and long enough for the Helic convoy to escape. But when the Pteras squadron retreated, somebody sniped her father. His Pteras plummeted to the ground at near supersonic speed. No one could have survived that kind of crash.

Saskia didn't understand it. Why would the Guardian Force turn to Helic Republic? Her father used to read her bedtime stories about the Guardian Force beating the evil ancient Zoidian that wanted to destroy humanity, and about a Guardian Force pilot by the name of Van Flyheight that destroyed the nigh indestructible Death Saurer. It was an epic adventure told from generations to generations about a fellowship of true heroes. That was the Guardian Force that she always knew, and that was the Guardian Force that she always believed in…

… until it took her father away from her.

"I will not go far, Father. I'm just around the corner, with the Helic military. Don't worry about me. I'll be in good hands. Remember Captain Diavel, your friend and your wingman? He's Major Diavel now, and he's the Commanding Officer of the Air Division of Helic Military. He will keep an eye for me, like he kept an eye for you."

Saskia felt that her monologue was a bit superfluous. Her father was aware of her long-life affinity to the sky, and he knew that one day Saskia would end up in the same department as he was. Saskia never wanted to be anything else than a zoid pilot, and he knew her father was proud of her, although he never encouraged her to take his path. Being a military pilot was not something any father would want his daughter to be. But in Saskia's case, it was inevitable.

That fact made her even brokenhearted. She always imagined how proud her father could have been, watching her soaring in a Salamander, leading a pack of Raynos or Storm Sworder or Pteras to defend Helic Republic from its enemies, be it Guylos or Zenebas Empire, or even some terrorists that just wanted to see Helic Republic fall. It wouldn't happen now. Nobody would stand wait and greet her on the ground as she dismounted her Salamander. Everything would just be her imagination.

"I won't be here every day. The first year in the military will be harsh. I will have to spend days and nights in the camp. But don't worry, nothing can break me. I will be a pilot, just like you were. I will miss you, Father. Maybe I can visit you in weekends, but obviously not during workdays. I know you will miss me. So here, I will give you something to remember me by."

Saskia pulled out a Salamander model from her duffle bag. It was the same model that her father gave her 10 years ago, the same model that got destroyed by the bullies but she diligently put back together days and nights. It was covered with glue squeeze-out and duct tape. It was ugly, but it was intact.

"I don't need this anymore," Saskia put the model on the grave. "I will get my own Salamander. When I get one, I will bring it here and introduce it to you. I know you'll like it, Father, just like you liked your Pteras. It will take me high in the sky, so I can be close to you… you know, in spirit. And maybe, just maybe, I can avenge you. I'll find the one that shot you and I will kill him with my Salamander. It may take 5 or 10 years, but be patient and have faith in me."

Saskia fought back tears when she kissed her father's headstone. "Goodbye, Father. Love you always."

The Helic military headquarters was a white-walled behemoth. The main rotunda - the impromptu recruiting station – was hundreds of feet tall. All eight walls were draped in banners of all the fighting units in the Helic military, an elegant but conceited display of the strength of the armed power of the Republic. Corner-to-corner, it was so wide that it could nest all but the largest zoid inside. Legend had it said that the greatest zoid of all time, Helic's King Gojulas, was commissioned in this room before being sent off to battle the Guylos Empire.

Saskia felt small to step into the same room as the legendary 'King of Zoids', but at the same time proud to be considered worthy of joining the military where The King once ruled. The line to the recruiting table was quite long, monopolized by teens like herself. Everybody seemed to be lost in their own thoughts, and for a moment Saskia wondered if anybody knew about the legend. But nobody seemed to care.

The line moved excruciatingly slowly but finally Saskia arrived at the recruiting table. The officer was grumpy, and understandably so when he had to deal with fresh recruits all day. He looked at Saskia from head to toe, measuring her up and down, probably wondering why a clueless teen like her would want to join the military. Or maybe pity, considering what was waiting for her during the boot camp.

"Name?" he gruffed unenthusiastically.

"Leewenhoek, Sir," Saskia replied while handing out her paperwork. "Saskia van Leewenhoek."

"Leewenhoek?" his head snapped and his eyes bugged out. "You're not related to that…"

"My father, Sir," she interjected. "He was my father."

His attitude quickly changed. He looked at her like a father looking at his own daughter. "Captain Leewenhoek was a great soldier of the Republic. Too bad the Guardian Bastards got him while he's retreating. Coward pieces of crap! So…" he slammed a stamp on Saskia's paperwork. "You're here for revenge, huh, lass?"

"In due time, Sir," Saskia tried not to attract unwanted attention on her first day. "One day at a time."

"Great! Don't take too long. Somebody has to teach those pompous scoundrels a lesson! Alright, lass, Air Division is across the room under Air Division banners. Somebody will get you. Good luck, kid."

"Thank you, Sir." She picked up her stamped paperwork and walked across the large room. Drill instructors had started yelling insults and insensitive slurs at the new recruits, even though they were still in the main rotunda. Teenagers with panic stares ran across the room like chickens with their heads cut off. Some big kids almost ran over her, but luckily she saw them coming and performed an 'evasive maneuver' just in time to avoid being knocked down by the Gojulas-esque boys.

There were television screens showing a blonde man with a sharp pair of eyes talking to the new recruits. Of course it was a recorded message – or propaganda to be exact – but the image still gave Saskia the creeps. The man's blue eyes pierced right through hers, straight into the back of her mind, as if he was grabbing her brain for attention with his stare.

"… the time has never been more critical," the man rumbled with his deep, low voice. "Listen to me, General Krauser, as I am talking to you, bright young warriors of Helic Republic. When I was appointed General of The Army of Helic Republic five years ago, I submitted a proposal to the President and the Senate to increase the welfare of soldiers of The Republic. In it I proposed to increase the benefits of soldiers and zoid pilots several orders in magnitude. The reason was because soldiers and zoid pilots were the first line of defense against the enemies of the Republic like the Guylos and Zenebas Empires. Military personnel deserve better benefits than accountants, doctors, engineers, even the President and the Senate members, because the rise and fall of the Republic lies on the shoulders of military personnel.

"However, my proposal received strong opposition from the Guardian Force who thought that they were the only ones that deserve so much reward for their achievements. These elitists took credit of everything, from the peace treaty between Helic Republic and Guylos Empire, the destruction of the Death Saurer, and the world peace afterward. They have overstayed their welcome for far too long, and it is time to end their reign as a fighting unit.

"So join me, young Helic warriors! Join me in fighting the Guardian Force and restore sanity to our beloved Zi! We cannot let the Guardian Force decide our future. The future of Helic Republic lies in the hands of bright young warriors like you, not the Guardian Force! Join Helic Military and the finest Zoids in our world as we dive into the heart of the Guardian Force and…"

"Air Division recruits!" somebody boomed by the door before Saskia had a chance to see the end of the recorded message. She didn't even have time to think about it. She scurried over the screaming officer with several dozen teens in a hurried line.

"Look at you, you worthless runts! You've been sucking The Republic's titties for far too long you can't even draw a straight line!" the officer – obviously the drill instructor for the Air Division – didn't waste time to bark insults at the new recruits. "You have one minute to stuff your crap in Barrack A-5. Barrack A-5! You hear me, maggots?"

"Yes Sir!" the new recruits shouted.

"One minute! If you're not here in one minute, I will grind your asses so hard you'll cry home to your mommies! Move, you disgusting heaps of lard! Move move move!"

Saskia wished she looked for Barrack A-5 instead of watching General Krauser's propaganda. But then how was she supposed to know that Barrack A-5 was for Air Division recruits? And even if she did, there was no way she could store her belongings and go back to face the drill instructor in one minute. It was a ridiculous demand, and she was 'doomed', no matter what she did.

Thus began the long days of pain.