Jason quietly crept through the hanger, trying his best to remain silent. Fortunately, so far, everything had gone well. He'd managed to get in here without making any noise and, as far as he could tell, without being discovered.
He was surprised that the bay was so lightly guarded. A force of Zoids this large was far too valuable to be so poorly protected. On the other hand, it was possible that nobody would want to take one. After all, they were being given the ultimate power and the greatest honour; to pilot a Zoid. Why risk it all by betraying the very people who gave you that power, especially with the consequences…
Which was why he was doing it now.
When he'd seen Levisha again, that was when he released that this deal might not be all that he'd thought it would be. It wasn't just the fact that he'd had a one-night stand with one of his commanding officers. No, it was the fact that she was one of the people in charge that worried him. There was something… something not right about her, something strangely disquieting. It wasn't the coloured hair, the red eyes or the tattoo, no. It had been something else that he hadn't been able to put his finger on.
Whatever it was, however, it worried him and he didn't like it. And he had decided that he didn't want to be a part of any group who would put someone like her in charge. So he was leaving.
At the same time, however, he'd had a taste of the power that came with piloting a Zoid. It was a power that he wasn't willing to give up easily. Thus he was taking a lot more of a risk, and was stealing one of their machines. He felt that it was worth it for two reasons. The first was to take one of these powerful machines out of the hands of these people. It would be only a minor loss for them, but it was something. The second was purely selfish. He'd tasted the power, and was going to be dammed if he was giving it up.
"Jase? Is that you?"
He froze in his tracks. There was someone else here, he thought. How did they find me? I was being as quiet and silent as possible. He glanced around, trying to find the speaker.
"What are you doing here so late?" Jake asked as he stepped around from behind a Zoid's leg.
"Nothing. Walking. Thinking. Clearing my head. That kinda stuff." He hastily replied, trying to remain quiet. "What are you doing?"
"The same." He began. "And thinking about how lucky you are, man."
"Me? Lucky? How?"
"Think about it." Jake continued. "Aw come on, man. Your girlfriend is our instructor and the second in command of this little joint. That's gotta be good for your career prospects."
"She's not my girlfriend." Jason hissed.
"Oh, right. I get you." Jake replied, nodding. "She's not your girlfriend. I understand perfectly."
"What?" Jason was trying to figure him out. "No, I mean it. There's nothing going on between us. She's not my girlfriend. It was a one-off thing. It's nothing. There never was anything."
"Uh-huh." Jake nodded. "Sure it is."
"Damnit." Jason snarled.
"Look buddy, I get what you're trying to say." Jake continued. "And I understand completely." He elbowed Jason in the guns. "So how's she shag?"
Jason looked around. "She's coming!" He hissed.
"What? Where?" He began.
I'm sorry, man. Jason grabbed Jake, and bashed his head against a Zoid's leg. There was a thump, then Jake slumped to the ground. Looking around, Jason wondered if anyone had heard him. I can't risk hanging around any longer, he thought. I've got to go now.
He glanced up at the Zoid behind him. It was an Iguan, a relatively common Zoid, used as a basic infantry unit by the Drakken Empire's troops. While it wasn't the most powerful Zoid around, it would have to do. As he clambered up the access ladder, he remembered some of the shapes he'd half glimpsed through a part-open hanger door. He didn't want to think about what else they had here.
He leaped into the Iguan's cockpit, activating its systems. As soon as the Zoid had powered up, he looked around, trying to find a way out. From his initial examination, the doors into the warehouse appeared to be firmly secured shut. And short of blasting a hole in the wall, he couldn't think of any other way out.
"Well, they're going to find out sooner or later." He muttered to himself. The Iguan marched towards the doors, then swung around, smashing one of its armoured feet into the secured doors. They shattered, crashing outwards under the force of the blow.
Not looking back, he opened up the Zoid's throttle. The Iguan sprinted out of the warehouse, running off into the night.
oOoOo
Reunion
oOoOo
"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Jason snapped.
"Me?" Altheia shouted back. "What were you doing?"
"I had the situation perfectly under control!" He continued. I was all set to get into their base before you showed up and ruined everything!"
"I ruined everything?" She yelled back. "I was about to get in there too, before you showed up and made a mess of it."
"I was trying to stop you from making a bit mistake!" He yelled out. "You couldn't have handled it!"
"What?" She glared at him. "What do you mean by that?"
"Just what it sounded like. You're not cut out for this sort of thing."
"Will you stop treating me like I'm a child!" She shouted. "You know I can look after myself!"
"Quiet, you two!" The guard commander shouted. "And keep moving!"
The pair of them were being marched, hands tied behind their backs, through what Althiea figured had been an administrative or office area, but was now just a run-down mess of cracked tiles and peeling paint. She found it hard to believe that a group like the Red Claw would be working out of such a shabby, decrepit building. At the same time, she realized that it would make for an excellent place to hide. Who'd think to look in here? It was just like every other abandoned factory in this part of the city, and there were a lot of those.
They were lead into an office, where a woman was waiting. She was tall, with long black and red hair and, to Althiea's surprise, red eyes. Glancing at Jason, she saw him look away from the woman for a moment, as if he didn't want her to see his face. I wonder why, she thought, it's not like we're going to get much of a choice here.
"Who are these two?" The woman asked in a stern voice.
"We found them poking around outside the factory." One of the guards replied. "We thought they was up to something so we hauled them in."
"Hmmm…" The woman eyed them. Altheia swallowed nervously, worrying about what she might be planning for them, while also trying to avoid her gaze. There was something about those eyes that she didn't like. She was quietly hoping that it wasn't their real colour. "They look like locals. But appearances can be deceiving."
Jason seemed almost relived or a moment, or at least he was until she walked over to him. "What were you two doing here?" She asked. "Why did you come to this place in particular?"
"I was just looking…" Althea stammered out. "I got lost. I didn't know there was anything here."
"A likely story." She began, then turned to Jason. "And you?"
"The same, really." He began. "I was wandering around and I got lost. You know, big city, all these ruined factories look the same…"
Her eyes narrowed. "What exactly were these two doing, sergeant?" She asked one of the guards.
"Arguing, sir, while trying to remain hidden. And doing a very bad job of it too." He replied.
"I see." She began, then turned back to Jason and Althiea. "Care to explain what this was about?"
"Nothing." Jason replied. "A simple misunderstanding."
"I see." She began. "You are two of the worst liars I've come across in a long time, and that is saying a lot around here." She turned to the guard commander. "Take them to a holding cell. We'll figure out what to do with them later."
"Yes, commander." He replied. "Come on, you two!" The guards prodded them in the back with their rifles, forcing them out the door. They were lead into a hanger, where a number of Zoids were waiting. A Geruder and Merder were currently undergoing repairs, presumably the same ones that they'd fought a few days ago.
The guards marched them down a flight of stairs and into another hallway. After a short walk, the guards stopped by a door, and opened it. Inside was a disused storeroom, now stripped bare of anything useful. "In you go." The guard snarled, then pushed Althiea through the door. She stumbled, but managed to stay upright. Jason entered after her, then the commander slammed the door shut.
"Now you two stay here until we fetch you. 'course, its not like you can go anywhere else." They heard him and the others leave, then there was nothing.
"Well that went better then I'd expected." Jason muttered.
"That's better then you expected?" Althiea asked. "What were you expecting?"
"That they shoot us now and get it over with."
"Oh…" She swallowed, looking paler then normal. "Would they really do that?"
"These are the same guys who blew up your home town." Jason replied. "Figure it out."
"Right." Altheia nodded, then looked around. She could see no way out of here, save for the door they came in through and a singe small window that was barred and way too small for either of them anyway. "So, what should we do from here?" She asked.
"Well, I figure that when they get back, they'll ask us some more questions about what we're doing here." Jason began as he started fidgeting with his ropes. Whoever had tied them had done a good job, he grudgingly admitted. "Then they'll likely shoot us."
"You're optimistic."
"I'm realistic." He replied. "Although, we likely could plea-bargain if we admitted that we know Floyd. Form what he said, the Red Claw are after him."
"You're not going to sell him out!" She shouted.
"No, but I can bluff and buy us some time." Jason replied, grunting as he fought with the rope. "And that's better then nothing… unless you can think of a way out of here."
"Well, I've got a start…" Althiea replied as she put her hands on his.
"Wha?" He turned around to see her standing behind him, her hands freed. "How did you…"
"I'm good with knots." She admitted. "Now hold still while I untie these."
"Um, thanks." He muttered.
"It's okay." She shrugged. "Now let's figure out how to get out of here."
oOoOo
"Where in the heck has Floyd gotten too?" Leanne asked as she paced around the hanger. "He was supposed to be here hours ago…"
"I dunno." Rayvenne replied with a shrug. "Floyd's weird. Who knows what that guy's up to."
"And that's coming from the girl who pretends she's a guy." Leanne added.
"Aw, come on it's fun." Rayvenne replied. "Besides, when everybody's looking for the lone masked Sinker pilot, they'll pay no attention to little old me.
Leanne considered the way that Rayvene dressed, and tried to wonder how that worked. "Hey, it looks like he got part way through some repairs and then took off." She began, indicating to the Gunsniper and Iguan, both of which had several panels removed. "Why in the heck would he do that?"
"Maybe he got distracted by something shiny." She replied. "Maybe he went off to take a crap. Who knows."
"And where the heck are Ali and Jason?" Leanne continued. "They just wandered off."
"Well, Jason… he's probably just gone off to do whatever it is that he does when he wanders off." Rayvenne began.
"Well that makes sense… I think." Leanne shook her head. "Wait a second…"
"Hello, ladies!" A voice called out from above. The pair of them looked up to see a figure lurking on a railing overlooking their Zoids.
"What the?" Leanne called out.
"Who's that?" Rayvenne added.
"Yeah!" Leanne shouted as she pulled a large pistol out form her holster. "Okay, you come down from there with yer hands up or else I'll…"
"Whoah, okay!" The figure replied, hands in the air. "I'm coming down" He gingerly walked across the beam, then climbed down a ladder and approached them. They could see that he was wearing a black bodysuit with a mask that covered his face.
"So who are ya?" Leanne asked, pointing the gun at his head.
He grabbed the mask and pulled it off, revealing Floyd's face underneath. He was grinning broadly. "What, no welcome home kiss?"
"Floyd!" Leanne shouted. "What in the heck did you think you were doing? I coulda shot you!"
"Yeah, I know." Floyd replied. "But I figured that walking in the front door and saying hi wouldn't have been anywhere near as fun. Besides which, things are a bit busy outside."
"Where have you been?" Rayvenne asked. "We got back here to find that you'd sodded off and left everything in a bit of a mess."
"Sorry about that." Floyd replied. "I got back here with my parts order and began working on our Zoids. It was thereabouts that I noted that Althiea hadn't arrived back yet. I said to myself. 'I wonder where she could have gotten to. She's a smart girl, she wouldn't have just wandered off or anything like that.' So, putting my work aside, I made a quick change into something more comfortable and set out for a little rooftop action. I found myself at the Defense Forces' headquarters, which I figured would be a good place to start. Unfortunately, before I was able to begin my line of inquiry to our colleague's whereabouts, I found that they had just dispatched a flying squad to deal with a group of miscreants. So I hotfooted my way back here."
There was a long pause.
"What?" Leanne asked.
"A squad?" Rayvenne asked, having apparently caught more of that. "Like, a squad of Zoids?"
"Correct, my dear." Floyd replied. "A Gator and a troupe of Molgas."
"I wonder who they're after?" Leanne asked.
"Well…" Floyd began, but was cut off by a noise from outside.
"This is the Freedom Defense Forces." A voice called out. "Step out of the building with your hands in the air!"
"…actually, I think it may be us." Floyd finished.
"What? What have we done?" Leanne asked.
"I don't think it's what we've done in so far as it's who we are." Floyd explained. "I suspect somebody who has it in for us, or more likely, me specifically, has decided that the easiest way to get their hands on me is to simply use the defense forces to do their dirty work for them and bring me in to the big house. Once there, they can simply have me released into the protective custody of such unsavory individuals."
"What?" Leanne asked again.
"We've been set up." Rayvenne explained.
"Oh…" Leanne continued. "So what are we gonna do about it?" It sounds like they have us surrounded." A searchlight shone through a window, as if to prove her point.
"Well, I'm part way through repairs on your Zoids." He explained. "With a little bit of time, and some help, I'm sure I could get them fixed."
"Sure thing." Rayvenne replied. "You point us in the right direction and we can do the rest."
"And then…" Floyd began.
"Then we bust our way out and try to find Jase and Ali." Leanne finished. "And if those guys don't like it, well, that's their own faults."
Floyd grinned. "A true woman after my own heart. So, ladies, if you want to get to work…"
oOoOo
Levisha sat down behind her desk inside the Red Claw's base. As second in command of the group, and their chief tactical officer, she had demanded, and received, an office and equipment from which she could coordinate and plan the Claw's activities. It also gave her the privacy to engage in other work as the situation demanded.
She switched her computer on and began to go over the latest round of reports of the units status. Something about one of the two captives was bothering her, but she wasn't sure what it was. She could have sworn that she'd seen one of them before, but she had no idea where. And in her line of work, there was no such thing as an unimportant matter, so she couldn't dismiss it.
A disc on the desktop caught her attention. It was a second copy of the battleROM data she'd made for Jager, with the footage from their last few battles. She remembered it because of that bizarre incident with Jenice's Liger and that girl at Sun Hill…
Wait a moment, she thought. She put the disk in the computer and loaded up the battle data from the Liger. Skipping ahead to index 7070, she stopped it at the point where the Liger had apparently frozen. On the screen, she could see the village, and the scared young woman that the Liger had refused to plow under.
She zoomed in on the woman. Black hair that she had tied back, pale skin… it couldn't be. She Zoomed in again. The image was blurry, but the face appeared to be the same as the woman the guards had captured earlier.
"Who are you?" She asked herself. She had been trying to figure out the cause of the Liger's malfunction since the battle. Now, she thought, I may be one step closer. And I may be able to gain an advantage out of this.
She closed down the files and stormed out of the office. Grabbing a pair of guards, she proceeded down to the prisoner block, intent on collecting the woman. There was no way she was going to let this opportunity slip through her fingers. If she was the cause of the Liger's malfunction, then the possibilities were incredible. Certainly it would be to her advantage to find out just what she had done.
One of the guards opened the cell, revealing the two prisoners inside. Neither of them had their hands tied any more, but she wasn't surprised. If this woman was capable of stopping Jenice's Liger, then she could be capable of anything. "You." She indicated to the woman. "Out, now."
"Me?" She asked.
"Just wait a minute!" The man shouted. "What do you want with her? You're not taking her anywhere!"
"Quiet." She said, as one of the guards leveled their gun at him.
"What's this about?" She asked.
"You'll find out." Levisha snarled. "Now move, if you know what's good for him."
The woman reluctantly left the room, the guards slamming the door shut behind her. Without adding anything, Levisha marched her up the stairs and into the main hanger. They continued, passing through a pair of huge double doors into a second hanger, one reserved for the Red Claw's elite.
"Who is this and what is she doing here?" Levisha heard Jenice behind her.
"Watch her." Levisha replied, then turned. She'd been hoping to pull this off with as little fuss as possible, and, preferably, without involving Jenice. Not only would it simplify matters, but it would also prove to be quite useful if Jenice didn't know about her yet.
Obviously now she wasn't going to get that chance now. Instead, she was going to have to make do. "I apologise, commander. I didn't know where you were and, as such, didn't have the chance to run this by you before-"
"That's nice." Jencie replied, cutting her off. "But you're not answering my question."
"We found this woman snooping around our base." She continued. "I was going to just dismiss her and have her dealt with, but then I recognized her."
"Do tell."
"You remember what happened in Sun Hill, where your liger froze up?"
"Yes." Jenice's eyes narrowed. "It refused to plow under one girl who wandered into its way."
"I believe she this is that woman." Levisha explained. "I have bought her in here to see if I can confirm that fact."
"If that's the case…" Jenice began. "If she was able to somehow command my Zoid… then the implications…"
"I know." Levisha quietly added. "That's why I took the liberty of bringing her here."
Jenice stole a glance at the scared looking woman. "The possibilities… if what I suspect is true, then she's… she could be our most powerful weapon yet. More so then any Zoid."
"Indeed. But we'll have to prove it."
Jenice turned around. "McNeil! Get over here!" She shouted out.
Levisha stood aside as Harry and Malcolm approached. She didn't like these two, but at least did her best to hide it under a mask of indifference. They were smart enough to keep away from her, and were certainly useful enough for her not to bother doing anything about them.
"Yes, commander?" Harry began.
"I am to assume by your presence here that you two have not had any luck in apprehending that Blackstar?"
"No, commander." Harry admitted. "She's, uh, she's being rather elusive at the moment. And save for trying to break into their base here, I doubt we're gonna get a shot at it."
"She." Jenice began. "So you do know something about her."
"Yeah-" Malcolm began, but Harry cut him off.
"Well, we have heard of a woman walking around town half dressed and actin' like she owns the joint, so we assumed that she was the Blackstar. It all added up to me."
"Never mind." Jencie continued. "I may be onto something that I don't want to loose here, and I feel that we may need some extra insurance." She continued. "I want you two to take one of the Tanks and leave the city."
"Commander?"
"You are to wait at grid E-266 until further notice. I may require you two to enact Contingency Plan Scorch."
"But commander-" Malcolm began.
"Do it!" She shouted. "Your bungling matters with the Blackstar has left us in a precarious situation. I'm not willing to take any further risks."
"Yes, commander." Harry began. "Come, Mal. Let us depart."
The pair of them walked off, leaving Jenice with Levisha. "Right." Jenice began. "Lets see what our girl can do."
A guard dragged the woman in front of her Liger. Levisha and Jenice stood behind her, looking over her shoulders at the fearsome red and white Zoid. "What... what do you want?" She stammered out.
"Simple." Jenice replied. "You know what you did back in Sun Hill." She glanced up at the Liger. "Do it again."
oOoOo
When the door had opened with Levisha Standing on the other side, Jason realized that the game was up. She must have recongised him and decided to do something about him, he thought. Jason had figured that whatever the penalty was for stealing a Zoid and deserting the organisation was, it would be painful and eventually fatal, and he didn't want to be a part of it.
Then she'd taken Altheia and left. At first, he had decided that she had recongised him, and had taken Althiea away before she dealt with him. He'd desperately tried to formulate an escape plan, only to come up short. His best-case scenario involved rushing her and hoping he didn't catch too many bullets. Not good.
After a few minutes of expecting the worst, he wondered when she was coming back. Then, after a few more, he realised that she wasn't coming back. She had taken Althiea, but not him. Which meant that, for some reason, Ali was more valuable as a prisoner then he was. Which meant that she didn't recognize him.
At first, he was relieved, as it meant that they saw him as jut being an intruder and not a traitor, thus the punishment was likely to be less severe or, at least, less painful. And then he realised that not only had Levisha failed to recognize him as a former member of the Red Claw, she didn't remember him from that night they'd spent together beforehand. Which meant that, all of a sudden, he was feeling insulted. He'd suddenly become less concerned for his own well-being, and more upset about his hurt pride.
So now he wanted to get out of this cell and give her a piece of his mind.
They hadn't bothered with binding his hands again after they'd taken Ali. Maybe they'd figured that he was harmless, he thought. Or maybe they just didn't notice him, he bitterly added. Looking around the cell, he couldn't see anything that he could immediately use beyond bare concrete walls and a small window that he just couldn't reach and was too small to get out of anyway. From his guess, the place had originally been used as a store room. The Red Claw didn't so much plan to use it as a cell as they found a themselves suddenly in need of a place to put prisoners, and found that this place would do.
The good news for him was that it wasn't as secure as it could have been. He couldn't see any cameras or other security equipment, and it didn't look like they'd built any into the walls. So his only obstacle was a big, locked, inwards opening metal door. Crap.
He studied the door, giving it a few experimental taps. Seemed to be solid enough, he thought. Certainly good enough to keep him inside. He couldn't see any way that he could break it open. Looking down its edge, he could see the lock. No mechanisms or anything on this side, he noted. Great.
He turned back to the window. Even it fit didn't have any bars on the outside, it would probably have been too small for him to get too. And even then, he needed to get through the glass on the other side. Still, it was a start.
He leaped up to grab a hold of one of the bars, and just fell short. Landing in a crouch, he tried again. Nothing, damn it. Still it was a start. He backed off a bit, then ran at the windows, taking a running jump, his hands outstretched. This time, they reached the bars and grabbed hold, followed by the rest of his body thumping into the wall, Jason barely turning his face away before it met the wall head-on.
Ouch, he thought. Well, he'd grabbed the bars. Now what, he wondered. Giving himself a second, he pulled himself up, bringing his face level with the window. From here, it was even less encouraging. The window seemed to be even smaller then he'd thought, and there was a lot less room through the bars. Furthermore, the window was so grimy that he could barely make out anything beyond it. For all he knew, he could be looking out onto the exercise yard. Yeah, that'd go well for an escape.
He gave one of the bars an experimental tug. To his surprise, it moved a small amount. Trying it again, he persuaded it to move some more. Hmm... an idea began to form in his head. It was desperate, and probably a little stupid, but it was better then nothing.
He began to pull on the bar, trying to wrench it free from the wall. He suspected that the original installation of these bars hadn't taken into account people hanging off them, and the years hadn't been kind to the brickwork around them. Furthermore, he could see that the bar was somewhat rusted at its top. Heck, if he knew Freedom, the builders probably used the cheapest mortar they could find.
He shifted his other hand onto the bar and pulled on it again, putting all of his weight onto it. It moved some more, but still not enough. Straining, he pressed his feet up against the wall, and pushed away with his legs, pulling on the bar as hard as he could. Then, soundlessly, the bar came free. Jason, caught by surprise, was sent flying backwards, the bar coming out of his hands. He crashed to the floor, falling flat on his back, the bar clanging to the ground nearby.
He froze, listening for any signs of movement outside. Had someone heard him? Were they coming to see what was happening? Was there someone outside right now? For desperate minutes he listened, but heard nothing. So nobody had heard him. Good. Time to get on with his escape plan.
He picked himself up and grabbed the bar. It had snapped off at the top, leaving a thin edge at the top... perfect for wedging into something, he thought. He walked over to the door, and stuck the top of the broken bar into the side of the door, between the lock and the wall. Wedging it into place, he pulled on the bar, trying to use it to lever the door open.
Nothing happened. The bar stuck fast, and the door remained where it was. Stopping for a breath, Jason tried it again. The bar shifted a bit, but the door remained firmly in place. Open, damn it, open, he thought as he paused, then grabbed the bar again. He pulled on it, putting all his weight behind it.
The bar suddenly shifted, its rusted end breaking off inside the gap. Jason fell over, the now broken bar in his hand. Great, he thought. There goes that plan. He picked himself up and examined the bar. The rusted end had broken off, leaving it with a wide stub end, that was far to broad for him to wedge into the door. The rusted end had broken loose, and had apparently stuck fast.
Maybe if he could get that free... He tried tapping on the broken end with the bar, trying to force it loose. Instead, it just drove it in further. Maybe I could use it as a wedge, then... he tried to recall his woodworking classes where he vaguely recalled something similar to this... something about wedging things into thing s to split them. Well, it was a start.
He swung the bar, smashing it into the end of the broken wedge. No effect. Feeling frustrated, he swung it again, this time narrowly missing and hitting the brickwork on the wall. "Damn you!": He shouted, swinging again and again, more to vent his frustrations then trying to force the door open. He repeatedly smashed the bar into the wall and door, denting both of them and shattering the rusted wedge. Spent, he stopped for breath, trying to figure what he was going to do next.
"What's going on in there?" A voice called out from outside. Great, his hard work had attracted a guard.
"Nothing."
"Yeah, right. You're making too much noise for that." He heard a jangling of keys, then the sound of the lock opening. Quickly devising a plan, he flattened himself to the wall by the door.
The guard stepped in, his gun pointed into the room. Seeing an opportunity, Jason swung at him with the bar, striking his weapon hand. The guard dropped the gun, shouting out in a mixture of pain and surprise. Before he could do or say anything else, Jason struck again, hitting him in the face. There was a sickening crack, probably his nose shattering, before he collapsed to the floor.
New plan, he thought as he dragged the guard inside the cell.
oOoOo
Althiea looked up at the red and white Liger. "Well?" Jenice, the woman in the uniform who was standing behind her began. "Go on."
"I'm sorry..." She began. "What am I supposed to be doing?"
"What you did back in Sun Hill." Jenice angrily replied. "You stopped my Liger. It didn't respond to the controls at all. And the only thing that was around, the only thing that was different to any other time I had piloted it was that you were there, standing in its path."
She remembered that moment. The Liger had come barreling down the street, seemingly headed straight for her. Then it had stopped, just glaring at her and roaring. She hadn't thought too much about it at the time, simply because she was too scared. But then, at the same time she recalled feeling something... odd. It was as if she had sensed something strange, something unusual about the Zoid, but she couldn't say what it was.
She stared straight at it, trying to work out what exactly it was that had happened back then. Her memories of that day were rather confused and unclear, especially with regards to the liger. She remembered being fascinated by it; it was a Zoid that she didn't recognize, and it was far larger and more powerful then any she'd seen before. Only that Darkhorn had come close and, like the Liger, she'd felt something... different about it.
"I..." She began. "I don't know what I did." She nervously explained. "I don't remember... I didn't do anything. I was just... looking at it."
"Well then I suggest you try." Levisha, the red-eyed woman continued. "Something made it stop responding to the controls, and you're the most likely suspect. So I suggest that, for your sake, you do whatever it is that you did before."
"But..." She began, then looked Levisha in the eyes. She had guessed that the red eyes were likely contacts or some other form of cosmetic alteration, but at the same time, she still wasn't comfortable looking into them. There was something alien about her, just as much as the bright green eyes on that Blackstar woman. "I'll try." She turned back to the Liger, staring at it.
She concentrated on the Liger, trying to tune out everything else around her, as if she and it were the only things in the world. It's a machine she told herself. It's a Zoid like every other you've seen. It's no different to your Hammer Rock. It's no different to the Iguan. It's no different to anything else you've seen or fought.
So why does it scare me? What is it about this Zoid in particular? What is so different about it?
There was a low, guttural growl from the Liger. Looking at it, Ali could see that the Zoid hadn't moved, and nobody else was reacting. "What... what was that?" She asked.
"What was what?" Jencie replied.
"I think..." Levisha added. "I think that it may be working."
"Good." Jenice continued. "Keep going."
oOoOo
As if to make Jason's day, the soldier that he'd knocked out was a couple of sizes smaller then him. He'd originally planned to sneak out wearing the other guy's uniform, and then find Ali. Now he wasn't s sure.
Ah hell, it's my best shot. He thought to himself. Besides, Jenice's troops all wore cheap uniforms made in some sweatshop somewhere in Freedom. It would be easy to explain that he'd gotten one that was too small, or just cut badly.
A few minutes later, he emerged from the cell wearing the guard's uniform and carrying his gun. The Rifle was a model that he didn't recongise, bigger and bulkier then the ones used by most of the other Red Claw Soldiers and a little more difficulty to carry. On the other hand, it was also a larger caliber and, he suspected, far more powerful. That would be a definite advantage, he thought.
He cautiously advanced upstairs, returning to the main level that he and Ali had entered through. He'd been here before, he thought. Now all he needed to do was remember the layout. The question was, where had Levisha taken her, and why? He couldn't think of any reason why Levisha would be after her. Heck, he couldn't think of how Levisha would even know who Ali was.
So far, so good. He was walking through the base, trying his best to remain calm and act normal. This was harder then it had seemed; as someone who had actual Zoid piloting experience, he'd been booted straight to the top, becoming one of Jenice's elite pilots. He'd never served any time as a grunt, and thus had surprisingly little idea of what they did day to day.
"You there!" Somebody shouted. Even though Jason couldn't see the man, he had the distinct impression that he was shouting at him.
"Me?" He asked as he turned around. There was another soldier there, this one's uniform almost indistinguishable form his own. He had a holster on his chest, and a different rank insignia, and that's it. Crap, was he an officer, Jason wondered.
"Yeah, you." The possible officer snapped back. "What are you doing?"
"I'm, um…"
"Not much, I see." He replied. "Right, I got a job for ya. They need some more bodies over in Storeroom four."
"But-"
"No excuses!" He snapped. "So get over to store room four right now."
"Yes, sir," He replied, and marched off. As he went, a plan began to form. Why do they need more people over there, he asked himself. Maybe it's because Jenice is there. Maybe Levisha needs some people for some sort of operation… Crap, they've got Ali. She must have talked and revealed where Floyd and the others are or something. He began marching faster, weaving his way through the converted factory. If that was the case, then they were in serious trouble. He knew that Floyd and the others could never hope to stand up against the whole Red Claw force.
Whatever was going on, he needed to stop it.
He vaguely remembered where the storerooms were from his last time in the base. He'd been shown them so he knew where to go to get more ammo. He hadn't had much of an introduction to the way the base worked; as one of Jenice's Zoid pilots, he wasn't supposed to care about those sorts of small things.
He reached the store room, where men were busy loading crates onto a Tank Zoid's trailer. Looking around, he located somebody who seemed to be in charge. "Reporting for duty as ordered, sir." He began, hoping the other guy wouldn't ask him for a name or the like.
"Good." The man replied, not looking up from his clipboard. "Get loading."
"What?"
"You heard me. Start loading up that Zoid."
Great, he thought. They needed more hands to load stuff, not for any kind of operation. This was a dead end. Best he could do was start work, then try to slip away. "Yes, sir." He replied.
Moving over to the pile, he grabbed a crate and lifted it, surmised at how ludicrously heavy it was. Almost staggering under its weight, he staggered over to the tank and managed to get the box onto the trailer without dropping it. Looking around, he could see the supervisor had his eyes on him.
Great.
He returned to the pile, and grabbed another crate. As he staggered towards the Tank, he could hear someone calling out. "Rhodes! Rhodes!" Well, whatever it was, it wasn't his problem.
"Hey you! The voice shouted directly at him. He put down the box and turned to face the shouter, a large burly man in the same sort of uniform.
"Yeah?" He asked.
"Get over here!" He shouted.
Jason nervously approached. "What is it, sir?" He asked.
"You ain't Rhodes, are ya?" He asked as he put a meaty hand on Jason's shoulder. "Cause Rhodes was assigned to cover the prison block. And Rhodes is shorter then you. And Rhodes was found in a cell, bound and stripped of his uniform."
"You're right." Jason replied. Well, he was cornered now. Time for action. "I'm not." He elbowed the big man hard in the gut. The soldier doubled over and staggered back. Seeing an opportunity, Jason took his rifle off his back and slugged the man with the butt, then ran.
"Guh…" The man coughed out. "Get him!" He staggered to his feet then drew his own pistol. "Come back here, you pile of crap!"
"No!" The supervisor shouted. "Put that down!"
Jason didn't care what was going on. He did. However, know an opportunity when he saw one. He fired the rifle as he ran. Aiming more to keep everyone's heads down rather then shooting to kill. Or at least, that was the plan.
The Rifle's recoil staggered him, almost knocking him off his feet. The gun bucked, wildly spraying bullets seemingly everywhere at a ridiculous rate. There were metallic spanging noises as bullets seemingly ricocheted off everything around him. At least it seemed to have the desired effect of keeping everyone's heads down.
And then one of the crates on the back of the Tank exploded.
Crap! He swore. They had been loading ammo! And his rifle must have… he glanced back at the tank, then ran. Well, he wanted a distraction to help him get away. This was as good a one as any.
oOoOo
"Hydro-spanner?" Floyd asked, his head stuck inside the Gunsniper's leg.
"Um, what's that one?" Leanne replied.
"The funny looking dueberwhatsit with the thingamagigama on the end." Floyd replied.
"Ummm..." That could have described most of Floyd's Zoid repair tools. She picked one up from the rack, and handed it to him. "That it?"
"No, but it will do." He replied as he took it. He hit something inside the leg several times, then pulled his head out and closed the maintenance hatch. "Well, that should about finish it."
"Right." Leanne replied. She and Rayvenne had been helping Floyd with repairs on their Zoids, which seemed to mainly consist of the pair of them passing him various implements while he muttered odd mutterings. "So are we ready to go?"
"Sure thing, little lady." Floyd began, having adopted a broader version of her accent. "Ah reckon we can mosey on outa here at any time."
"What in the heck?" She replied, confused.
"So load up them wagons, partner, 'cause we're getting the hell outa Dodge."
"I think he means 'we're going'" Rayvenne replied as she walked past him. She'd gotten changed into her pilot suit, but hadn't put on the helmet or put the Bandanna over her face. "So get into your Zoid, already."
"Right." Leanne finished, unsure weather she'd missed something or not.
She climbed into the Gunsniper's cockpit and powered it up. All the systems showed up as green on her status board, so she had to assume that their repair work had been successful. She would admit that she didn't know much about Zoid mechanics, but she knew enough to have been of some help to Floyd. More so then Rayvenne was, she added. All she'd done was provide excuses.
Floyd had finished loading and securing the Iguan and Hammer Rock onto the back of his Zoid, and was powering up the Gustav. Behind her, she could see Rayvenne's Sinker rise about a meter off the ground. "Okay, those guys are still outside." She began. "What are we gonna do about them?"
"I figure we can smash our way out of here and try to explain things nicely." Floyd replied. "And when that doesn't work, we'll start shooting."
"I like that plan." Leanne commented, grinning.
"And what about Jase and Ali?" Rayvenne asked.
"Well, I figure we'll burn that bridge when we get to it." Floyd commented.
"This is your final warning!" The voice called out. "Come on out now and you won't get hurt!"
"See?" He finished. "Let's rock."
The Gustav crawled forwards through the converted warehouse, picking up speed as it went. It hit the front doors of the warehouse, smashing straight through them and sending debris flying. "Well that went… argh!" Floyd swerved the loaded Gustav to the right, veering out of the way of the Gator that had been waiting right outside the front of the warehouse.
"Hold it right there!" The Gator's pilot shouted. "Shut down your Zoid and step out of the cockpit!"
"Yeah, right." Leanne shouted as her Gunsniper sprinted out of the hanger. "You coming?"
The Sinker followed the pair of them out, and climbed, circling around the building. "Okay, apart form Mr Gator down there, we have three Molgas surrounding the building." She called out, trying her best to conceal her voice. As the Gustav and Gunsbiper sped away from the building, the Molgas moved to join their leader. "They're onto us… I think they're coming after you guys."
"Question is, where in the heck are we going?" Leanne asked.
"We're looking for Ali and Jason." Floyd replied. "So keep your eyes peeled, cats, for any sign of them."
"Hmmm..." Rayvenne looked around the city as she circled overhead. The dusk shadows began to lengthen across the bland, featureless grey landscape, obscuring details. "Nothing to see from up here. Its just all grey and…"
"Something up?" Leanne asked.
"Hold on a sec…" She began, slipping back into her normal voice for a second. "Something's happening."
From here, she could see the distant orange glow of a fire… and a big one at that. She could have sworn that it hadn't been there a second ago, so she figured it had to be some sort of explosion. Slipping back 'in character', she continued. "Looks like some sort of fire or explosion over in the industrial sector." She began.
"Well, cats, I think that's a great lace to start." Floyd replied. "So let's groove."
"What about the Defense force guys?" Leanne asked.
"Bring 'em along!" Floyd called back. "If I'm right, we're heading to the most happening joint in town. They'll love it."
oOoOo
Thorne strode angrily into the hanger where her Darkhorn was waiting. She'd sent her men out on information gathering missions across the city, hoping that they'd been able to find some clue to the whereabouts of the Red Claw's base of operations. So far, they'd found nothing.
She'd been on the verge of getting the information she needed yesterday, when she had caught those two low-life degenerates in the bar. She'd been on the verge of beating the information out of them when she'd been recalled back here due to Dr Glass's break-in. In the meantime, her two targets had gotten away and managed to elude her so far.
Damn it, she thought to herself. If Glass had been thirty seconds slower, or her men had done a better job of protecting her Zoid, then she could have found the Red Claw herself. No, instead they'd screwed things up, and now she had to deal with it. She'd already a discommendation for Lieutenant Sanders into her report, and would be following through with it regardless of what his men turned up.
If I'd had the freedom to conduct this investigation as I wanted, then we'd have caught them by now, she thought as she approached the Zoid. Her commander had turned down her suggestion to simply conduct a sweep through the city, using their Zoids. It's not like anything the Freedom Defense Forces had could stop her. No, instead they'd said ordered her to keep it low key, and to cooperate with the Freedom Defense Forces where possible. Even though they'd authorized her to conduct a search after the Defense Force commander turned her down, she still wasn't happy with the outcome.
Such typically weak thinking, she thought. How did he get to be a commander anyway? She knew that he was descended from a famous war hero, but that shouldn't have been the only reason why. Aside from that one thing, his background was no better then her own rather… tainted lineage. And his approach to dealing with outsiders was so weak, so compromising, so… accepting.
Her communicator beeped. "Yes?" She began.
"Captain, there's been an explosion in the west industrial district." Sergeant Jancz one of her men reported. "In a derelict factory block."
"That's not uncommon around here." She replied. "I'm surprised this whole city hasn't fallen down yet."
"Yes, captain." He replied. "However, it appears that the explosion was caused by the detonation of a stockpile of ammunition."
Now that was interesting. "Send me the coordinates. I'll investigate this matter myself." She climbed into the cockpit of her Zoid, and closed the canopy cover. The massive Zoid powered up, its displays flickering on as it activated. The cockpit went dark, and then was bathed in a green glow from the various displays and the external feeds.
Thorne closed her eyes and leaned back into the command couch for a moment. There, she thought. Contact. She could feel the power of the Zoid as her mind connected to its own, making it more of an extension of her body then a mere weapon system. Opening them, she sat upright, examining the displays. All systems ready.
She opened up the throttle, the huge Zoid stomping forwards as the warehouse doors opened. This time, she though, her prey would not escape.
oOoOo
"Go on…" Jenice continued, her hand on Althiea's shoulder. "Keep going. Show me what else you can do." She dug in her fingers as she looked up at the red and white Zoid.
"I-" Althiea began. "I don't know what I'm doing… I can't…"
"Then I suggest you learn." Jenice began. "Because how long you live depends entirely on what you can do for-"
Jenice was cut off by a loud explosion that seemed to rock the entire building on its foundations. All around the hanger, men scrambled for cover, presumably against a potential attack. The lights in the building flickered on and off for a moment, before coming back up. In the middle of all this, the Zoids, especially the liger, seemed to remain unaffected, as if they were unconcerned by what was going on.
"What's going on?" Jenice shouted, releasing her grip on Althiea's shoulder.
"Give me a second…" Levisha replied, putting on a communications headset. Turning her back for a moment, she began shouting orders.
"Bart!" Jenice yelled out.
An overweight, unkempt man in shorts and a too-small shirt lumbered towards her. "Commander?" He slurred out.
"What's the status on Drake and Gwen's Zoids?"
"They're more or less ready to go." He replied.
"Good. Any other lame ducks?"
"The Hellrunner from Bravo is needs a bit more work, but it's mostly fine, and the Geruder still has a few holes in its amour." He replied, almost casually, despite the goings on around him. "Other then that, we're more or less ready to go."
"Good." She replied. "Load up whatever you can on our Tanks, and be ready to get out of here as soon as possible."
"Commander." Levisha spoke up. "It appears that there was an explosion in store room four during the loading up of one of the Tanks. It's not entirely clear, but it seems there was some sort of a gun battle."
"Gun battle?" She asked. "With who?"
"Nobody's entirely sure." She replied. "It appears to have been with an infiltrator, disguised as one of our troops. He's managed to escape in the explosion."
"Any response from the Defense Forces?" Jenice asked.
"They seem to be otherwise occupied." Levisha stated. Something in her voice told Althiea that Levisha knew more about it then that, but she didn't want to say anything at the moment that might draw too much attention.
"Good." Jenice finished. "Move all our troops up to immediate standby to move out. If the fire spreads or the Defense Forces show up, then we go. Harry and Malcolm are already standing by if we need them."
"Yes commander." Levisha saluted, then left.
"What… what about me?" Althiea asked.
"Right now, we have more pressing concerns." Jenice replied. "You, my dear, are far more useful to me right here."
Altheia swallowed, then looked straight ahead at the Liger. "What… what is that thing?" She asked. She hoped that if she could learn something about it, then she might have some idea of what was going on.
"That?" Jenice replied, then looked up at the Zoid. "That is a legendary Zoid, one of tremendous power. That is the Trinity Liger."