AN- Hello, ShadowRebirth37 here!! Do you guys really think this fic is as good as you say? I thought of it as just a light-hearted side project, but apparently it's turned into more than that. Lol. I think I figured out why I am able to really describe things in my fics. My old Power of the Pen teacher said I have something that I think is called 'absorption', which enables me to vividly visualize my writing and write it in better. It's a rare trait that is highly desirable for writers, artists, moviemakers and cartoonists. So I guess that means my dream job of being an author/artist might be within reach, do you agree? XD Lol. Anyway, I think I may put a slight bit of Irvine/Moonbay, but not a full-blown pairing. Without further a due, here's chapter 3- Early Morning!!
.:Chapter 3- Early Morning:.
Moonbay stretched and opened her eyes, blinking as she adjusted to the light of the morning sun. Although the sun was still hidden behind the mountains, the sky was bright and the moons had all but disappeared. She rolled over sleepily in her sleeping bag, and was surprised to see the fire still smoldering. She looked at it curiously, wondering why it had burned for so long, when she realized one of the extra logs was missing and noticed the deep footprints near it.
'Shadow must have noticed it was getting low and added a log… smart Organoid…' Moonbay thought, looking over at Shadow. The dark Organoid was still sleeping, curled up like a cat beside Raven. Moonbay realized that Shadow was no longer underneath the blanket, and that the second blanket was covering Raven, along with the first.
'Wow… I never knew Shadow was so caring and giving…' Moonbay thought as she looked at the sleeping Organoid. As if responding to her thoughts, Shadow yawned and lifted his head, blinking his bright sky-blue eyes sleepily.
"Good morning…" Moonbay yawned, sitting up and stretching her arms. Shadow yawned and growled in reply, before lowering his head back down to the mat that he was still lying on. Raven was still unconscious, and hadn't moved at all through the night.
"I better go ahead and make breakfast, huh?" Moonbay said, looking at Shadow. The dark Organoid grunted in approval, but didn't lift his head. Moonbay smiled slightly and stood up, brushing herself off and folding her sleeping bag up. Picking up the large sleeping bag, she walked over to her Gustav, caring the rolled-up bag to the cockpit. She tossed it into the cockpit as she climbed in; searching for the pot she always carried.
"Where the heck did that thing go?" Moonbay muttered to herself, rummaging through the compartments of her Gustav. After hunting for nearly ten minutes, she gave up and stormed out of the cockpit, fuming about the object's disappearance. Moonbay stomped over to where her sleeping bag had been and sat down, staring into the fire. That's when she saw the dark shape near the fire. She recognized the shape of the pot sitting next to the fire, her metal cooking rack already over the fire. She was about to ask how it had gotten there, when she noticed Shadow warming himself up next to the fire.
"Did you get out the pot and cooking rack, Shadow?" Moonbay asked, looking at the Organoid strangely. Shadow looked over at her and blinked, nodding his head.
/Yes… I thought you would need it…/ Shadow said, looking back at the fire. Moonbay followed his gaze, staring into the fire as she tossed on an extra piece of wood.
"Thanks…" Moonbay thanked him, "… you're much more helpful than Zeke ever was…" she added, wording her sentence carefully. Shadow lifted his head and stared at her when she mentioned Zeke, but this time there was no sign of aggression.
/Well… I've learned how to take care of things over the years… from tending Raven's wounds to finding water and food in the desert. How else do you think Raven survived all those years in the desert? He would have died if I hadn't taken care of him…/ Shadow answered, staring into the fire once more, /… when Van blew up the Geno Saurer, not only did he burn Raven's hand, he knocked him unconscious for nearly a week. When I finally was able to wake him up, he didn't even recognize me. He didn't run away or shoo me off, he just let me follow him and lead him to water and shelter. I hope that doesn't happen again…/
"I doubt it will, Shadow…" Moonbay replied, "… I'm sure he'll be perfectly fine when he wakes up."
/I hope so… he must if we're going to get Re-/ Shadow stopped, as if he didn't want her to know something. Moonbay looked at him strangely, but didn't press the matter, knowing it was unwise to get on an Organoid's bad side, especially Shadow's.
The two sat in silence for a long few minutes, all but ignoring the damp chilly winds of the desert morning. The dew on the sand shimmered as the first rays of the sun broke over the crest of the mountains, turning the dull sand into splashes of silver, blue, violet and crimson as miniature rainbows reflected in the tiny droplets. The moons began to fade into the brightening sky, and only the brightest stars were still visible. A peaceful silence filled the dunes, the only noise coming from the gentle winds, the small fire, and the soft trickling of falling sand. It was very peaceful, and Moonbay wished it could stay like that forever, but she knew the unforgiving sun would soon make the sand unbearable to even look at, let alone stand or lay on.
A quiet growl from Shadow broke the silence, and Moonbay looked over at him. The black Organoid was looking over at Raven, a sad and worried expression on his face. Moonbay sighed and followed his gaze, feeling sorry for the wounded Organoid. Raven still hadn't so much as stirred, and that slightly worried Moonbay. She had done all she could to help him, and whether or not he survived rested solely on his will to live.
An eerie silence descended on the camp site, only adding to the depressed atmosphere. Moonbay sighed and looked down at the sand, listening to the distant sound of a lizard walking. Suddenly, she heard a quiet beep from within her Gustav's cockpit, and she jumped to her feet, happy for the distraction. She walked over to her Gustav and jumped in the cockpit, looking for the source of the noise. She looked around, and noticed the light near her control console was blinking red, indicating someone was trying to open a link with her Gustav. Curious, she pressed the button, and a link opened on the front screen.
"Moonbay? You're up this early?" came Irvine's voice as he appeared on the link. Moonbay sighed in relief, relieved it was only him.
"Yeah… is something wrong with that?" Moonbay said, smirking slightly.
"No… it's just that you usually sleep in 'til past noon!" Irvine laughed, causing Moonbay to laugh as well.
"Well, not today I didn't…" Moonbay said, yawning.
"How come? You're never up before the dew's off the sand…" Irvine asked, raising his eyebrow suspiciously.
"What? I can't get up without being questioned?" Moonbay smiled, laughing slightly.
"Well, I just thought it was weird that you were up so early." Irvine replied.
"By the way, why were you trying to reach me anyway? Is something wrong?" Moonbay said, a little worried about why he was trying to reach her so early in the morning.
"Well, I just wanted to let you know that there have been sightings of the Geno Breaker in your area, so keep an eye out, I don't want you getting killed." Irvine said, concern in his voice. Moonbay grew pale at the mention of the Geno Breaker, and debated whether or not she should tell Irvine about Raven and Shadow. 'No… if I tell him, it would put Raven and Shadow in danger…' Moonbay concluded, glancing out through the cockpit at Shadow, who was now standing.
"Okay, thanks for the heads-up, Irvine…" Moonbay said, nervousness showing in her voice. Irvine narrowed his eye at her suspiciously for a moment, as if he sensed she was hiding something.
"You're acting a little different, Moonbay, is something up?" he asked, narrowing his eye further.
"No, nothing's up, I'm just not used to being up so early, that's all." Moonbay replied, smiling nervously.
"Okay…" Irvine said slowly, which made Moonbay all the more nervous, "… well, I need to go get some coffee before gramps salts it all, I'll talk to you later, if you're still in range."
"Kay, talk to you later, Irvine." Moonbay answered, smiling.
"Stay safe." Irvine said, closing the link. Moonbay sighed in relief and leaned back, glad that he hadn't figured anything out. 'Man… if he would of figured something out I would have been in so much trouble and Raven and Shadow would have been in serious danger…' Moonbay thought, closing her eyes to rest for a moment.
Suddenly, Moonbay heard Shadow roar loudly, causing her to jump. She looked out through the orange cockpit glass and saw Shadow, roaring and fanning his ruby wings.
Shadow was standing over Raven, growling deeply, and Moonbay knew something had to be wrong…
Irvine closed the link with Moonbay and jumped out of his Saix's cockpit, walking back into the hanger. He saw Thomas and Herman, helping the hanger personnel to patch up the damage on their Zoids. His Lightning Saix was already repaired, ready and waiting for any combat.
He saw Fiona and Zeke over by the Blade Liger, who were watching some personnel reattach the Attack Boosters. Irvine didn't bother saying hello or anything; he just kept walking, only nodding to Major Schubaltz, who waved to him first.
"Hey Irvine, you want some coffee?" Dr. D asked as he walked out from a corridor, holding a cup of coffee.
"No, I don't want any coffee, old man." Irvine replied, the thought of the salty coffee sickening him.
"Suit yourself…" Dr. D shrugged, walking past him and out into the hanger. Irvine walked into the kitchen, walking past O'Connell.
"Hey O'Connell, how long is Moonbay supposed to be gone?" he turned, shouting to the young lieutenant.
"Uhh… I think she said it would take a week, depending on the weather, how come?" O'Connell asked, looking at the mercenary strangely.
"Just curious… thanks." Irvine said, turning and continuing into the kitchen. He was worried about Moonbay, even though he knew she could take care of herself. He was worried that if she ran into Raven, he might try to steal that Zoid to replace his totaled Geno Breaker, but Moonbay wouldn't let him take that Zoid without a fight.
Irvine pushed away his thoughts and poured a cup of coffee, not adding anything. Sipping the black coffee, Irvine grabbed a newspaper and started back towards his quarters.
As he walked past Van's room, he noticed the door was open and looked in. He was surprised to find Van missing, even though he hadn't seen him around all morning. 'I bet Zeke pushed him out… again…' Irvine thought, turning and continuing back to his room.
It took him nearly half an hour to walk all the way to the other side of the base, and by the time he neared his room his coffee was all but gone. He rounded the corner, and was surprised to see Van sprawled out on the couch, snoring loudly.
"Looks like Zeke won…" Irvine muttered to himself, remembering how Zeke had been in Van's room the night before. Suddenly, Irvine had an idea, and he just couldn't resist messing with Van. Setting down his coffee down on the coffee table, Irvine smirked and rolled up the newspaper. Being very quiet, he walked over next to the couch, holding the rolled-up newspaper tight in his right hand.
"Hey Van!" Irvine shouted, causing Van to twitch. Van yawned loudly, blinking his eyes. Irvine smirked and raised the newspaper, like he was going to smack him. Van stared at him blankly, as if he didn't see the paper. As soon as Irvine raised the paper up higher, however, Van shrieked and jumped, tumbling off the couch, tying himself up in the blanket.
"Irvine!!" Van shouted, jumping to his feet, very angry. Irvine just laughed, only making Van angrier.
"What? You expect me to just let you sleep when you're all sprawled out on the couch?" Irvine said, still laughing.
"You're right… I probably would have done the same thing…" Van said, now laughing with Irvine.
"Yeah… oh, by the way, they're almost done with the Attack Boosters. You should probably take it out and test to see that it's working properly." Irvine said, remembering how the repairs on the Liger had been nearly completed.
"Okay, thanks Irvine." Van said, walking off towards his room. Irvine sighed and continued to his room, his thoughts once again centered on Moonbay. He couldn't help but worry about her, but he knew she could care for herself.
'Still… what if Raven finds her? He no doubt remembers how she stopped him from blowing Van sky-high…' Irvine thought, walking into his quarters and shutting the door. He sat down in a chair and opened the paper, glancing through the contents. The more he tried to focus on the articles, the more he found himself worrying about Moonbay.
'She'll be fine, in know… but why can't I stop thinking something bad is going to happen…?'
.:End of Chapter 3:.
AN- you guys asked for it, so I tried a little bit of Irvine/Moonbay. I think I did okay, because you all know how those two are in the show. They aren't all emotional with each other, so I tried to write it like in the show. Btw, I have added a few more ideas to my 'New Fic Ideas' section in my profile. Now I'm off to update The Pit. Please leave a nice review!! XD
Ibeyla ;)
