A New Daw

Chapter 3: Future Tense

"It seems my destiny is battle. My future is no different then my past..."

Slamming the head of his heavy shovel into the ground, the large Reploid looked up at the low sun, rubbing his neck. Lost in his own thoughts, he started when he heard a voice behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw his supervisor yelling at him; a thin, small Reploid with a big hat and an even bigger attitude. Growling, he picked up his shovel to get back to work.

"Why should I?" he grumbled to himself before he stopped to think that over. He was easily the biggest Reploid on the worksite; as a heavy construction model built bigger then a truck, he was the one that the workers called when they needed a crane or bulldozer. There was no one else on the site with nearly the power of him, of that he was certain. Why should he work? He would just take what he needed! And now, that bossy supervisor was coming to yell at him again"

"Hey, buddy? Did you hear me? We need that rock face-!"

Spinning with speed that even surprised himself, the construction Reploid slammed his shovel directly into the stomach of the supervisor. Flying backwards a few paces, the other Reploid slammed into a wall, slumping to the ground. Looking down at the shovel gripped lightly in his hands, the large Reploid smiled, liking how that felt. Tipping his head back he laughed, his new rebellious spirit glowing warm in his breast.

"Hahaha! No one can stop me, now!"

Stepping out of the tent, the man with the yellow scarf threw up a hand to stop the blowing dust from covering his eyes. Wishing for his helmet, he searched
around, trying to find the source of the disturbance. It was easy enough to find; a hulking construction machine was going wild, cleaving into trucks with a massive shovel and batting away anyone who tried to stop him. He could hear cries of 'Maverick!' echoing from all over the camp. Pushing through the throng fleeing from the Maverick was a bit difficult. Creatures of all sizes were running as one large mass; small ones filled the holes under the bigger ones. A look at his face was enough for most to move out of way.

Coming around a corner between two heavily mangled trucks, he was suddenly in the clear, facing the berserk machine directly. Still a little weak and unsure of the changes to his body, the man set off, shield held in a loose grip, pistol humming as it gathered power.

Catching sight of him, the massive machine laughed. "So, you think you can stop me, you little punk? You're no Hunter; I'll crush you, and then be off before they get here!"

Popping off a twisting green charged shot from behind his shield, the other man rushed to the left behind a low line of rocks. The yellow scarved man dived to the side, the massive shovel throwing his attack back in retaliation.

Pausing behind a twisted steel girder, the man mentally ran over the area, plotting out his attack angles. The battle was taking place in a hollow of sorts. The Maverick had surrounded itself with destroyed vehicles and rubble. If he could get up one those "walls" he might be able to attack from head level, hitting the Maverick directly.

Hearing the wail of the shovel coming out his way, he dived forward as the tool sliced through the mess of girders. Rolling up from his dive, shield up protectively, the man smiled as he saw the digging tool was stuck. Charging another blast from his pistol, he rushed forward, a plan coming to mind. Slapping aside a kicked rock with his shield, he launched a twisting blast of green energy at the face of the hulking Maverick. It roared in pain as the shot struck home. Angry and hurt, it tore the shovel out of the ground, swinging it at the thing that had hurt it so.

Rolling around the digging tool, dirt still clinging to it, the pistol wielder fired off a line of small shots. One sailed wide, flying off into the summer sky, but the other two traced across the Maverick's face. Taking the shots, the Maverick slashed at the annoying fighter with its shovel. As the man leapt over the tool, a giant fist shot forward, punching him into a nearby truck bed.

The man groaned as he shook his head, pulling himself from now dented truck bed. He looked up to see a shovelhead diving at him like a giant spear. Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself to his feet, knowing he was not going to be able to move fast enough to get away this time. Bringing his shield up, he dived forward, low and along the ground. He felt a sudden pressure from behind his legs, shooting him forward under the attack.

Gasping in surprise, he rolled up over his shoulder and fired unsteadily at the Maverick. The pistol rounds all hit around the Maverick's face and shoulders, enough hits to cause it to growl in pain. Realizing the Maverick was stuck again, this time in the truck he had been thrown into, the smaller man charged another shot as he ran off to the side behind a pile of concrete. He fired off a blast and ducked behind his cover. The resulting howl of pain told him that his shot had hit true.

Pushing black hair from his eyes, then man with the yellow scarf checked over his feet. Though he had Dash Jets from before, they had never reacted so quickly or powerfully. He was worried that he had somehow blown them when he had activated them. Putting down his pistol, he ran his fingers over his new legs, surprised that the Dash Ports felt all right. Doing a quick diagnostic check with his main computer systems, he noted that they all checked out there, too. Amazed at the technology level in this place he was in, he quickly shook it off to think about later. He had a battle to win, first.

Picking up his pistol, he charged another blast, and then dashed out to the side as a giant boulder slammed into his hiding position. Noting the ease he was having getting used to his new Jets, he fired off his next blast. The green wave slashed across the Maverick's cheek, the melted metal giving way and tearing a large gouge out. Watching as the thing howled, he knew that he would have to end this quickly.

Dashing forward, he fired up at the livid Maverick, scoring hit after hit. He was forced to change his attack angle as the shovel rocketed out of the sky, clawing huge chunks out of the ground as it slammed down all around him. Dashing and rolling in between each thunderous strike, the pistol wielder kept up his barrage; charging medium strength shots when he could, laying about with the smaller rapid-fire ones when he had no time.

Seeing that the Maverick slowing, he charged one final destructive blast. Pausing, he took a moment to get careful aim, and then released the trigger. He cursed as nothing happened. Diving out of the way of a stomp from the other machines heavy feet, he looked over the pistol, trying to figure out what had happened to it. Seeing a thin wisp of white smoke coming from the barrel, he groaned, knowing what had happened. He had blown out the capacitor on the energy cell; unless he could get it replaced, it would be shooting no more. And that was not going to happen during this fight.

Turning back to the Maverick, he was surprised to see that it was not attacking him. The Maverick was staring down at something else in front of it. Suddenly, a silver flash of light shot out from the back of the machine's head, and it slumped to the ground on its knees. Seeing the telltale signs of an impending explosion, the man crouched low behind his shield as the Maverick's system went critical and exploded. Feeling shrapnel and waves of energy bounce off his shield, he looked up when the explosion had subsided. There was a huge smoking hole in the ground, but the Maverick was nowhere to be found.

"Not bad, kid. What's your name?"

Hearing a low, feminine voice behind him, he turned to see someone standing on a pile of nearby concrete, silhouette eclipsed by the sun.

"I..." His memory hiccupped as it struggled to come up with a response. A wisp of a memory came to mind, of a younger woman with blonde hair and green eyes looking up at him. Where are we going today, brother?

Shaking his head, he relaxed his stance and smiled up at the woman.

"Call me Blues."

Good call, Rift! Changed.

Questions, Comments, Concerns?