AN- Hello, ShadowRebirth37 here!! So, last chapter was a bit of a roller coaster wasn't it? XP Poor little Specky though!! Zeke's about to rip out her throat and no one's around to help her!! And Moonbay!! She just made the biggest screw-up of her life and told Raven she was with the Guardian Force!! Now Raven's panicked, and Raven tends to lash out when he's scared!! A lot of things are going to happen in here, including something you would never expect!! I'm sorry for the major lapse in updates for this fic, but my family life has gone down the tube and my life's gone to hell. I'm trying to write and update best I can, so please bear with me. Anyway, here is chapter 10- Lives in the Balance!! (ohh… that screams bad things, doesn't it?! XP)

.:Chapter 10- Lives in the Balance:.

Raven staggered to his feet, breathing heavily. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it sooner. Moonbay wasn't just affiliated with the Guardian Force; she was one of Van's closest friends! 'Why in Eve's name didn't I recognize her earlier?!' he shouted in his head, 'I let myself slip in front of Van's friend and told her everything! They'll come after me next, and then I'll never be able to rescue Reese!' he cursed himself mentally, taking a step back. Shadow was on his feet and looking at him, growling quietly, as if confused on what to do.

Moonbay got to her feet, shaking slightly. Raven could tell she was terrified of him, and he hoped he could use that to his advantage. 'Since she's so scared of me, if I run, she won't follow me…' he thought, taking another step back. He knew staying here, even though she hadn't shown any signs of betraying him, was out of the question. For all he knew, she could have been taking him right to the Guardian Force.

Raven backed away and turned, running into the shallow canyon as fast as his wounded body would allow. He heard both Moonbay and Shadow call after him, but he couldn't go back there. There was just too much risk, and it went against every instinct in his body. He made his way into the canyon, losing sight of Moonbay's Gustav around a bend in the snaking canyon. He knew running was worsening the numerous wounds he had sustained, but he was too frightened by that knowledge to stop so near the transporter. He knew Shadow wasn't following him for some reason, which deeply confused him, but he didn't dwell on those thoughts as he tried to get away. He knew he could have easily killed Moonbay with the knife in his pocket, but he wasn't the person Prozen raised anymore, he wasn't a murderer anymore.

'This can't be happening…' Raven thought over and over in his head as he tried to escape, '… I basically allowed myself to be… be 'captured' by one of Van and the Guardian Force's closest allies!! I might as well have brought Shadow and myself to the Guardian Force's doorstep! I'm so badly wounded that if Moonbay calls in my position, there'd be nothing I could do to defend myself or get away… the best hope I have for getting away and rescuing Reese is to hide and hope I don't get tracked down…' he thought, working his way deeper and deeper into the dark canyon. He didn't know where he was going, where he was or even how far Moonbay had taken him from his downed Zoid, but he didn't care; he just wanted to get as far away from the Transporter as he could before exhaustion caught up with him.

After about half an hour he had made a little over a mile, and he couldn't go any farther. He had made it out of the canyon, and was now on the edge of the deep cut in the land, nearly thirty feet between him and the rugged, rocky canyon floor. Raven was breathing heavily, struggling to catch his breath. He had reopened his wounded side, and dark blood was dripping down his body to the pale sands at his feet. He was still frail from his wounds, and the blood loss was further weakening him.

Raven forced himself to get up onto a rock, away from the clinging sands, which he knew would infect his open wounds. He sighed in relief, glad to get a few minutes to relax. He was exhausted, his whole body aching and burning from running when he shouldn't have even been walking. Shadow still had yet to appear, which really concerned him. He knew Moonbay couldn't have caught, or wanted to catch, the black Organoid, but he couldn't help but worry about his partner.

Realizing that he was breathing heavily and that his heart was beating oddly and much too quickly, Raven forced himself to calm down. He took several deep breaths, though was mindful of his wounded and now bleeding side. The cooling night air was hard on his still-healing lungs, burning his throat as he breathed it in, but soon he grew accustomed to it and was unaware of the uncomfortable sensation. After several minutes his breathing had evened, and the pain in his lungs from running had all but faded away. His heart beat, however, was still quick and unnatural, beating in an unrhythmic way that was concerning to the ebony-haired pilot.

"Helkat…" Raven cursed under his breath, lightly grabbing at his chest, able to feel his irregular heartbeat through his battle suit. He knew that was a very concerning sign, and that he needed to get help soon. '… why now does my condition decide to deteriorate?!' he thought in frustration, 'Why now?! I'm going to die out here without even getting a chance to rescue Reese…'

Raven shook those thoughts from his head, looking up at the darkening evening sky. The first stars were just starting to appear in the sky, which was painted with rustic and bright hues as the sun set below the horizon. Great streaks of colors and hues were spread across the horizon, though the sky farthest from the setting sun was beginning to fade to black as darkness descended on the desert.

Once again the stars seemed to hold a hypnotic power over the young raven-haired pilot, and soon he was staring at them with an almost longing gaze. The stars had always had a calming effect on the Zoids pilot, and this time was no exception. As time passed, exactly how much was lost to Raven, more and more stars appeared in the darkening sky, and further eased his tensions as they cast their soothing trance over him, making him all but forget that he was lost in the desert with no way to rescue Reese.

The air began to cool as the heat of the sun faded away with its light, though Raven paid it little mind. He barely noticed as the normally still arid air began to stir, moved by cool breezes as the sands slowly cooled. The cooler temperatures were a welcome relief to the relentless heat of the desert days, but again that realization was lost on Raven, as his gaze was held fast to the twinkling stars above in the heavens. But as time started to pass, his mind began to wander back to the events of the previous hour.

'… Helkat… why the Helkat didn't I recognize her or her Zoid sooner?!' Raven cursed in his mind, unable to understand why he hadn't noticed sooner. "I'm slipping… there's no way I can save Reese in my condition…" he said sadly under his breath, pulling his knees up to his chest. "… why did this happen? Why did this happen to us? I've t-tried to turn my life around, but then t-this happens!" he spoke to no one, his voice stuttering from the pain from his wounds.

A cold wind blew across the desert, making the ebony-haired pilot shiver. He had never been fond of the cold, and in his condition, it could be downright dangerous or… fatal… to him. Raven glanced down at his side, and saw the dark liquid that was blood seeping through his wrappings and down his side, and he knew that he should at least try to stop the bleeding. Before he could so much as breathe, there was a low growl from behind him, making him freeze…

Raven slowly turned, and found himself staring into two icy, glowing emerald eyes…

Shadow grew distressed when he saw Raven run, knowing his raven-haired partner was startled and confused. He spread his wings to go after Raven, but Moonbay stopped him. Shadow looked at the female in confusion, but Moonbay just shook her head at the ebony Organoid.

"Shadow, just let him go…" Moonbay told him calmly, "… Raven will come back; he won't leave you here…" she tried to reassure the Organoid. Shadow growled quietly and slumped visibly, and Moonbay sighed quietly. "Shadow… Raven will be fine. If I know him well enough then I know that he's not gonna let anything happen to him. And there's probably nothing in this desert that's going to hurt him anyway, so don't worry about him…"

/But Raven is my partner, I must go after him…/ Shadow argued, spreading his wings again to go after his partner.

"Shadow, look at me, let Raven be on his own for a little bit. He needs time to think. I'm pretty sure he's scared and confused; just give him a little time to get his thoughts straight, alright?" Moonbay told the Organoid sternly, and Shadow finally relented. Moonbay did have a good point, and the Organoid could sense his partner's mental turmoil over the news he had just received.

Shadow sighed and curled up on Raven's sleeping bag, where he had been just a little bit before. He laid his head on the pilot's pillow and closed his eyes, trying to not worry about his master too much. He knew Raven well enough to know he could take care of himself, but being his partner meant he couldn't help but worry about him.

'I can understand why he ran… he basically told his deepest, darkest secret to her… only to discover she is one of Van's closest friends and is affiliated with his 'enemies', the Guardian Force…' Shadow thought, sighing outwardly and opening his glowing sapphire eyes slightly, '… I just hope he comes to his senses soon and realizes that Moonbay meant him no harm… I knew before he did, and I did not react to her being with the Guardian Force, so he shouldn't as well… but I know his fears and apprehension of the Guardian Force and Van are well-founded, and I know they will be difficult to disprove…' he mused in his mind.

Shadow turned and looked at Moonbay, making a soft, mournful whine to the Transporter. Moonbay walked over to the Organoid and crouched down beside him, scratching his reptilian crest, making the ebony Organoid purr loudly and close his eyes. "Don't worry Shadow, Raven will be fine…" she tried to reassure him, patting his muzzle to try and calm him.

/But in his condition… something could happen to him…/ Shadow protested, whining again. Moonbay sighed quietly, closing her eyes for a moment before opening them again.

"Shadow… just relax, okay? Raven will be alright… he'll come back…" Moonbay tried to reassure, patting the Organoid's thick neck lightly. Shadow couldn't help but purr loudly, closing his eyes and nosing the Transporter's shoulder gently. "Don't worry Shadow, nothing bad is gonna happen to Raven… he can hold his own, after all he had the courage to take on the Death Saurer… so I'm sure he'll be alright…" she said quietly to the Organoid, trying to calm him.

The ebony Organoid nodded slightly, sighing again as he lowered his head back to the pillow. /… I just feel unnerved by something… something isn't right…/ Shadow said after a moment of silence, /… I'm not sure what it is, but something… something evil is nearby… I can sense it…/ he trailed off. Moonbay blinked, unsure of what the Organoid could be talking about.

"Shadow, I think you're just nervous… so don't worry, Raven's gonna be just fine…" Moonbay attempted to soothe, "… I bet he's on his way back right now…" she tried to lift his spirits, but to no avail. Shadow didn't react any further, his eyes closed. Moonbay sighed quietly and got to her feet, walking over to her Zoid to get a flashlight. If Shadow wasn't going to calm down without Raven back at camp, then she'd bring Raven back. Even though she didn't really trust the dark pilot, she wasn't going to just let him get himself lost and possibly die. No one deserved that.

Moonbay climbed up into her Gustav's cockpit, the Zoid automatically opening the cockpit cover for her to enter. She immediately opened one of the many storage compartments, searching through the contents for a flashlight or anything she could use to light her way. She knew Raven could be in danger due to his wounds, and that he shouldn't be moving in his state. He could easily reopen his severe wounds and possibly bleed to death in a matter of hours. And Raven dying was the very last thing she wanted to deal with at the moment.

"Grr… where did I put that blasted thing?!" Moonbay cursed under her breath, rooting through her belongings. The cockpit was dimly lit, making the search for the flashlight that much more difficult. After several minutes, and half a dozen curses later, Moonbay managed to find a working flashlight. She checked the batteries and made sure it worked, and finding it did, jumped down out of the cockpit.

"Alright Shadow, I found a flashlight so we can go look for- Shadow?" Moonbay stopped midsentence and froze in her tracks, looking at the ebony Organoid oddly. Shadow was up on his feet, staring off in the direction Raven had taken. His body was tense and teeth bared in a silent snarl. His tail was twitching uneasily, similar to an agitated cat's tail would. "Shad-?"

/Do not make a sound… something is very wrong…/ Shadow cut her off, shooting her a worried glance. Moonbay blinked, but kept quiet, looking off in the direction that Shadow was.

'That's the direction Raven went off in… maybe something happened to him?!'

Zeke growled as he slowly strangled the sapphire female, feeling her struggles weakening. His victim's blood stained the metal floors, the crimson-tinged black liquid forming a thick oily pool on the clean floor. The sapphire Organoid was barely hanging on, her eyes mere golden slits against her blue coloration. She whined and whimpered pitifully, but Zeke hardly cared; to him, her cries of pain were music. He wasn't going to stop until he saw the sapphire female Organoid dead by his own claws.

Specula was only just barely alive, having lost a lot of 'blood' from her wounded neck. Her throat was clamped almost completely shut, making breathing difficult for her. She tried kicking at Zeke, but it was of little use. The silver male was just too strong for her in his infected state. She whined and tried to wriggle herself free, but she only managed to further tear her shredded throat. She growled weakly in pain, again trying to get the male off of her, but it was of no avail.

Meanwhile down the hall, Major Karl Schubaltz was walking down the corridor, towards the source of the roaring he had heard earlier. He was tense and nervous, unknowing if Van and Fiona had managed to find and restrain Zeke. Unbeknownst to the Major, not only had they failed, but Zeke was loose and on a rampage through the base, and about to kill Specula…

Karl walked further down the winding corridors, towards the medical rooms where he figured the sound had originated. '… one of those roars sounded like Specula… but why would she be roaring? She's normally very quiet… so something very serious must have happened. And the other roar… oh dear Eve… I hope that wasn't Zeke… he could probably kill Specula or some other innocent bystander in his infected state…' Karl mused mentally in worry, unsure of what he was going to find. He turned the corner to the medical rooms and froze…

… for Zeke was just feet away, pinning Specula to the ground…

Major Schubaltz was frozen in horror, staring at the scene in absolute disbelief. He had never seen Zeke so ferocious and violent before, and the sight rooted him to the spot. He was completely taken aback, unsure of how to respond or react to the scene in front of him. His emerald eyes drifted down to Specula, soaked in her own blood beneath the hulking silver monster that was Zeke, or once was Zeke. Specula whined loudly in pain, rolling one of her piercing yellow eyes up at Karl, their gazes meeting for a split second.

/… help… please…/ the sapphire Organoid pleaded mentally, whimpering audibly as Zeke held her throat fast in his powerful jaws. Karl blinked and looked at the sapphire Organoid for a moment longer, not entirely sure of what to do, but after hearing another pained whine from Specula did he make his decision… and his move.

"Hey Zeke! Leave her alone!" Karl shouted suddenly, trying to distract the silver Organoid away from the wounded sapphire one. Zeke instantly released Specula's neck and spun around, snarling viciously and loudly at Karl, black oil-like liquid streaming down his jaws. Karl blinked and took a step back, unsure of what to do now that he had the silver Organoid's attention. The only weapon he had was his pistol, but there was little chance that that would inflict any significant damage on the irate Organoid.

Zeke roared and took a step towards Karl, licking his bloody lips and growling dangerously, lashing his tail back and forth like a predator cat. Karl took another few steps back, struggling to make up some sort of escape plan. He knew he stood no chance against the 'rabid' Organoid, and needed to get away before he ended up like his brother or O'Connell.

Before he could so much as blink, Zeke lunged, intending to kill the Major. Karl managed to get out of the way, the silver Organoid slamming into the wall he had been standing in front of with a sickeningly loud thump. Karl couldn't help but cringe, but the Organoid getting back to his feet commanded his attention. Zeke whipped around and roared loudly, tensing to lunge again. 'Oh no… he's going to attack again! I need to somehow knock him unconscious, trap him, something!!' Karl struggled to think, looking around for anything he could use.

Zeke snarled and sprung before Major Schubaltz could react, pinning him to the ground. Karl cried out in pain, the Organoid's talons sinking into his chest and stomach. He choked down another cry of pain, struggling to push the heavy silver Organoid off of him. Zeke roared loudly in his face, pinning the Major's arms to the ground with his clawed hands, ducking down in an attempt to get his jaws on Karl's throat.

Major Schubaltz twisted at the last moment, Zeke's jaws snapping shut a mere inch from his neck. Karl managed to wrench his arms free, grabbing hold of Zeke's jaws, forcing them shut. The silver Organoid snorted in annoyance, trying to shake his head free, but Karl refused to loosen his grip, knowing that if he did it'd be the death of him. Zeke snarled in frustration, trying to tug his jaws free of Karl's grip.

Karl was finding it harder and harder to keep his grip on the silver Organoid's jaws, the oily liquid covering Zeke's mouth making it difficult to grasp. The painful wounds the Organoid had inflicted were weakening him as well. His blood was mixing with Specula's on the floor, and the scent of the blood seemed to intensify the silver Organoid's frenzy.

In a last ditch effort to get free, Karl kicked upwards, managing to knock the silver Organoid off of him. Zeke staggered backwards a few feet, snarling in rage. Karl struggled to his feet, breathing heavily. He knew he only had a few seconds before he was attacked, so he immediately pulled out his 9mil pistol for defense. He cocked it, taking aim should Zeke make another go for him.

Zeke roared in anger and suddenly lunged, charging Karl with his jaws open and claws spread. Karl took aim with his pistol, and fired the gun. Zeke suddenly froze, as if stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide and staring at him in shock. The Organoid's body remained frozen, as if time itself had stopped. Minutes seemed to pass, though it could have only been half a second. The Organoid began to fall, seemingly in slow motion. Zeke fell limp to the ground, sliding to the floor at Karl's feet, seemingly dead. Blood slowly oozed from a bullet wound to the Organoid's neck; Karl had scored a direct hit on the Organoid. Zeke's eyes were partly closed, dimmed, and his breathing was slow and quiet.

Karl took a step back, dropping his pistol to the floor, the weapon hitting the ground with a loud clunk. He was shaking, thinking he had killed Van's partner. He barely reacted when he heard someone running down the hallway towards him.

"Karl? What happen- holy Helkat!!" Herman cursed loudly, skidding to a stop beside the Major. He stared at the two bloodied Organoids in shock, completely stunned by the scene in front of him. He had been in the ICU watching the mortally wounded O'Connell when he had heard the gunshot and come running. He was stunned into silence, staring at Zeke's lifeless body at Karl's feet.

"Zeke… was killing her and I… tried to stop him…" Karl stuttered slightly, still in shock by the fact that he might have just killed Van's Organoid. The Major hardly registered his bleeding wounds, staring at the bloodied silver Organoid.

"Karl, it's alright, Zeke's still alive…" Herman said, crouched down beside the downed silver Organoid, "… but we need to get him to Dr. D and soon…" he added, getting back to his feet. Karl nodded slightly, but didn't add anything. Instead he walked past Zeke to the seemingly mortally wounded Specula. The sapphire Organoid was still bleeding heavily from her torn throat, her normally piercing golden eyes pale and dim. She hardly reacted to his presence, only whining softly to him as he crouched down to his level.

/… hurts…/ Specula whined mentally, squeezing her eyes shut. Karl bit his lip, knowing the Organoid would die unless something was done. He reached out and laid his hand on her muzzle, trying to keep her calm.

"I know…" he said quietly, looking at the severity of her wounds. Karl thought for a minute, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small fragment of Zoid Magnite. He opened the failing Organoid's jaws, putting the glowing mineral in her mouth. Specula instinctively chewed the Magnite, swallowing it after a moment. Her battered body glowed faint blue for a moment, her wounds sealing slightly, but not fully.

Specula's eyes opened, now glowing more brightly and holding more color. She rolled onto her stomach, lifting her head up to Karl's level. She growled quietly, before pushing herself up, standing uneasily on her feet. Karl stood as well, putting his hand on the wall to steady himself, his free hand covering his wounds. He hadn't realized how badly he was bleeding until now, seeing that his uniform was nearly fully soaked with blood. He coughed suddenly, spitting out blood. 'That's not a good sign…' he thought darkly, wiping the blood away from his mouth.

Herman walked over to him and put his hand on the Major's shoulder. "We need to get you to the medical bay, Karl…" he said, looking at his wounds. Karl nodded slightly, knowing he needed serious medical attention for his wounds. The silver Organoid's talons had torn into his chest and stomach, leaving deep wounds. He was losing a good deal of blood from them, and if he didn't get the bleeding to stop soon he'd likely pass out. But he wasn't concerned with that at the moment. He was concerned with the two Organoid, one of which had a torn open neck and the other with a bullet wound.

Karl just hoped Dr. D actually had an antidote, because without it Zeke would remain dangerous always…

.:End of Chapter 10:.

AN- wow… after a year I have FINALLY updated this fic! *dies* I'm so sorry for not updating sooner!! I've had computer troubles this past year, and in the making of this chapter I went through four computers. *dies* I lost the first version of this chapter when my second lappy died and I lost everything, and again during an error while I was transferring files to the laptop I got this Christmas to replace my aging one. But, by the grace of Eve I finally got it done!! ^^; So, whose stalking Raven?! What's to become of Zeke and Specula!? Will Karl be alright?! Who knows… you'll just have to wait for the next chapter! Thanks for reading and please leave a nice review!! :D

~Ibeyla ^^