Sorry about the long wait. I just have been really busy. Also, a quick shout out to TurbokatDragon239 for this story's first review!

Chapter 3: A Talk With Stoller

Bit was stunned. He had never expected Leena to follow him, but more importantly he was not expecting to have to explain why he had come to talk to Stoller. Bit was trying to think of a way out of this when Leena's face appeared on the Liger's screen in front of him.

"Bit, you better tell me what you're up to right now or else!" Bit didn't know how to respond. However, he knew he couldn't reveal the actual reason of why he had come to see Stoller, so he came up with the best lie he could.

"I came to see Stoller just to catch up with him. I heard he had gone legit, so I wanted to see if that was true."

"I don't believe that, Bit! I'm going to give you till the count of three to tell me the real reason you came here! 1, 2, 3…"

"To the Gunsniper and pilot, stand down immediately or you will be fired upon!"

'That's Stoller's voice!' Bit thought. Bit and Liger looked behind them to see all of the Whale King's guns trained on Leena's zoid. Bit then turned Liger back around to face Leena, who was now beginning to back her Gunsniper away in fear, which shocked Bit because of Leena's fiery personality. Bit, now assuming his usual cocky persona, asked Leena confidently,

"What're you going to do now, Leena? Do you still want to find out why I'm here?"

"BIT! I'll find out what you're up to eventually! I'll be waiting for you back at the base!"

Bit then gulped as he realized that he would have to return to the Blitz Team's base sooner or later, and now that he had gotten Leena very angry, he knew there would be hell to pay when he returned. Both Bit and Stoller looked on as Leena turned her zoid around and headed back in the direction of the base. As Bit watched the Gunsniper become fainter in the distance until he couldn't see it anymore, he let out a huge sigh of relief. If Stoller hadn't bailed him out, who knows what would have happened to him and the Liger! Bit turned Liger around, and then Stoller appeared on the screen in front of him.

"Bit Cloud, is everything all right?" Stoller asked in his usual laid back voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for bailing me out there."

"It wasn't a problem, but I must ask. Why was she after you?"

"She wants to find out why I'm here to talk to you. I didn't want to say anything because she's my teammate and she can be a hothead when she wants to be."

"I see. Well, come inside and we can discuss what it is that you need."

"All right, I'll see you when I get in."

With that, Stoller disappeared from the screen, and Bit walked Liger up onto the ramp, the Whale King's mouth lifting the Liger up into its hangar. Bit then took one final look at the bracelet in his gloved hand, hoping that Stoller had some answers for him about this mysterious woman.

'I hope that Stoller knows who she is. With my luck, though, I'll end up having to go to Harry or the Zoids Battle Commission for help. I think that Stoller should know at least something about who she is or where she went!'

Bit jumped down from the Liger's cockpit, then saw Sanders, who was Stoller's assistant, come up to him.

"You are Bit Cloud, correct?"

"Yeah, I'm here to see Stoller."

"Very well, the Captain is expecting you. Right this way."

Bit then followed Sanders through the Whale King's maze of corridors, wondering how Sanders knew his way through here.

'This reminds me of the Blitz Team's base, though I have to admit it's smaller.' Bit thought.

"If I may ask, why have you come all the way out here to see the Captain? Is there something you need to ask him?"

Bit had not expected Sanders to ask him why he was here, but he felt that he couldn't tell anyone until he found out where she was. So Bit told Sanders the same thing he told Leena.

"I'm here just to catch up with him. We haven't spoken since our last battle, so I just wanted to catch up."

"I see."

Sanders had a hard time believing that Bit was here just to "catch up", as he had put it, but he decided to keep quiet about his suspicions for now. Sanders and Bit came to a stop in front of a door, which most likely led to the main room. The door then opened automatically, with Sanders and Bit going through the entrance. Bit then looked around in awe at the gigantic room. The walls were white with a purple tint. There were fourteen control panels, seven on each side, with one of Stoller's subordinates manning each one. Bit then looked straight ahead and saw Stoller, who was staring at the vast desert before him through the Whale King's giant window. Sanders then spoke up,

"Captain, Bit Cloud is here to see you, sir."

Stoller then turned around, assuming his usual laid back essence.

"Thank you, Sanders. You may leave."

"Yes sir!" Sanders said, walking back out through the same door.

"Well, Bit Cloud, what have you come to discuss?"

Bit then opened up his gloved hand, revealing the bracelet to Stoller.

"Do you know who this belongs to?"

Stoller, though not showing it on the outside, was surprised that Bit had something like that.

"Let me have a closer examination."

Bit then handed it over to Stoller, who took a close look at it.

"I've never seen anything quite like this before. Where did you get it?"

"I didn't buy it. The same woman who helped to steal my Liger forgot about it and left it on a table after I finished talking with her. After our battle, I couldn't find out where she went, though I know that she's a part of the Backdraft, so I came here hoping that you knew something about her."

"I see. Well, I have seen this woman before, though neither she nor Altile ever told me her name. However, she did tell me once that there was something dear to her that she always kept close by. Maybe this is what she always kept with her."

Stoller then handed the bracelet back to Bit, who carefully placed it back in his pocket.

"Stoller, can I ask you a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Could you fly me to the nearest city? I have a better chance of finding her there."

"Yes, I was intending to fly there to refuel the Whale King."

Stoller then instructed one of his subordinates,

"Set course for the nearest city!"

"Yes sir!"

The Whale King then closed its mouth, slowly beginning to rise into the sky. Stoller, wondering why Bit had gone to such great lengths to find out who this woman was, asked Bit,

"What do you intend to do with that bracelet if and when you find her?"

"I intend to give this back to her and ask for her name. If you remember, I asked for your name when we had that tie. I always try to get the names of my friends and rivals."

"Well, that's very honorable of you. We should be arriving at the nearest city in five to ten minutes."

"Thanks, Stoller. I really owe you one for this."

"It's no trouble at all. I just hope that we can find her."

"You mean, you'll actually search with me?"

"Yes, the Whale King needs a few hours to be refueled and restocked. I'll have Sanders and the rest of my men search around the city, if you like."

"Thanks again, Stoller. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome. With all seventeen of us searching different areas of the city, we should find her in hardly any time at all if she is there."

Bit just nodded as he and Stoller waited for the Whale King to arrive at the city. Sanders then re-entered the room, giving Bit and Stoller the update on their approach to the city.

"Captain, we're beginning our landing now."

"Good. Listen, Sanders, I want you and the rest of the men to ask around the city to see if anyone has seen or heard of a woman with green hair and green eyes. She shouldn't be hard to find."

"Yes sir. If I may ask, Captain, why are we trying to find this woman?"

"Bit Cloud has something that he needs to give back to her. I'll tell you more after we land."

"Yes sir!" As the Whale King touched down, Bit, Stoller, Sanders and the rest of Stoller's men exited the Whale King in order to begin their search. Little did they know, however, that there was another Whale King, commanded by Altile, approaching the city from a different direction, with the same intentions as Bit and Stoller, but Altile is looking for Pierce for entirely different reasons.