Rebellious

Chapter Twenty-Five – The Stop

The predicted time to arrive at the village was an underestimate. They arrived four days after their prediction due to the complex appeal of the terrain surrounding the village. Sapphire was able to pull through for them to which gained a large portion of trust from her team. Mai approved of the new founded trust between the human beings and so her tail has been swishing side to side happily. She acts more of a dog than she does of a mechanism that was created from Zoid Eve.

The village looked abandoned on first sighting. The wind blew passed and shifted the dust from the ground. The shutters were closed and so were the doors. The buildings looked like they were coated in the sand's dust. But they also looked as if they had been taken care of for quite a large portion of time because not one piece of wood looked rotten from age. If the village wasn't abandoned, where were the people? Could they be hiding away out of fear? Or could it be another reason? Or could it really be that the village really was abandoned?

Van was the first to leave his zoid. He jumped down from the cockpit and put his hands on his hips as he looked around curiously. He raised an eyebrow in confusion at his find...the place looked deserted. He turned to look at Irvine and Moonbay who walked over to join him in his confusion. All three of them looked out to the building structures in order to observe any signs of life before them. But the indication of movement or any signs of life present came down to zero.

"Where is everybody?" Van asked, bringing out his arms to prove that nobody was around.

"Could have evacuated the village due to the war... and by the looks of it, they left not so long ago." Irvine turned to the two with seriousness. "If the villagers got out not so long ago, then this village must be on the destruction list. This means, we need to clear out as soon as possible too."

"Come on Irvine, you can't be serious. We just got here and we need to stock up some supplies. We're nearly out of all of it. We can't survive in the desert much longer without some food and water." Moonbay reminded them.

"Then what do you suggest Moonbay? If there are no villagers here then how are we supposed to get supplies?" Irvine informed her.

"What's going on guys? How come we're not finding some place to stay?" Fiona came over and asked with wonder. Zeke was with her, but no sign of Mai or Sapphire yet to come and join the rest of them in their confusion.

They informed Fiona on what was going on and she looked at them in one of those expressions that have complete and total dread. Without the notice of the four and the organoid Zeke, Sapphire walked over to a gap in between two buildings behind some crates. Mai was following in her steed in her own protectiveness. Sapphire's midnight blue eyes landed on some small brown eyes belonging to a little boy. His hair was red and was wild upon his head. Other than the fact his hair was scruffy, he was a really tidy boy. Surprisingly, the boy ran into her arms in a deep embrace and she returned it in that instance.

"It's been a long time, Sapphire!" The boy told her as he parted. "Hey, Mai...!" He said petting the gold organoid's snout. "Been taking care of her have you?" Mai nodded eagerly in response. His response was a smile and his attention was soon on Sapphire again. "You and those people you're traveling with, you all look hungry. I'm sure Old Lady Ophelia would be of assistance."

"I'm sure she would be, Daisuke." Sapphire replied. She stood and outstretched her slightly tanned hand out to him and he accepted by taking hold of her hand with his deeply tanned hand.

Sapphire walked over to the others with the boy still holding onto her hand. He looked around eight at maximum estimation and he appeared to be of the mature nature as when everyone saw him with Sapphire, he wasn't frightened and he approached like a defendant adult male of the village would. Suspicious and eager to either help or get rid of the intruders. The others looked at him with slight surprise at seeing him and his expression.

"I found him hiding over behind those crates." Sapphire said pointing to the crates behind. She was quick to make up a story to hide the true knowledge she's got kept away from their ears. "I convinced him to come out and he's willing to help us. But there's a condition. He'll help us if we're not Imperial or Republican soldiers, or helping with any of them."

That was the downfall to their help that they needed. They were helping the Republicans against the Empire, and if this village is out of bounds for both of them, then the boy's looks of being ready to throw them out the village, seems ready to come true. They exchanged looks to each other in thought of what to do and Sapphire knew of their strategy.

"I'm only traveling with them until I decide to take my departure from the group. You see, we only need food, water and a place to stay for the night, then we'll be out of you and the village's way and we won't mention this place to either army. These four and the silver organoid are helpers of the Republicans and they're going to meet up with another Republican Soldier. But they won't speak of this place. So please can you help us stack up?"

Daisuke looked to Sapphire in the eyes as she was bent down to his level. He was in thought for a while before he came to a decision. "Old Lady Ophelia is the one you need to speak to about your situation. You'll need to speak with her because I can't give you any permission to assist you in supplies and a place to stay." He spoke out loud to give the others the knowledge of what to do.

The others were pleased with the information told, but there was the chance that this Old Lady Ophelia would deny them the help that they request, and so they weren't as pleased, because of that one chance of help denial.

"Where can we find her?" Van asked and Daisuke pointed to the large building that stood right down the street to where they stood. They looked back to the boy but he was no longer by Sapphire's side. They shrugged it off and headed down to the building that stood with the looks of authority residing within its structure.

"So that is him I presume, Nia?" Fiend asked her without emotions taking over his lack of interest.

They were on a hill watching out over the desert from where they watched over a traveler with a black organoid. Nia looked down at him and the interest in her eyes was as dull as mud covering the ground. Fiend saw the lack of interest in her and smirked. He had known that she wasn't really interested in the boy himself but in this girl called Sapphire he had not too long ago heard about. He grew interested in this maiden and he felt the need to see her personally. Nia, he couldn't give a care in the world for her, she was a pawn in his plans and he knew that with her, he could gain access to things that would keep his plans in motion.

"Yes, that's Raven and his organoid, Shadow." She confirmed. "It doesn't appear to be that he's caught up with her yet!" She sighed in irritation and turned her back to the fourteen year old male below. She hugged her knees and concentrated her gaze upon the ground in disappointment. I was looking forward to seeing her as well!

"You do realize that I know of the truth you try to remain hidden in your mind's deepest corner." He told her smugly. She looked at him shocked and bewildered. "You're interest isn't in the boy." He chuckled as he turned to sit facing his zoid. "Your true nature... You can't hide it from me, Nia. How are you going to get her to give it back to you as well?"

She hugged her knees tighter and concentrated on the ground again. Her brown eyes were deepened in sadness. "I don't know!" She replied truthfully after there was a large moment of silence that had begun to become uncomfortable. Another large moment of silence drove through the atmosphere again and Fiend seemed to be in deep thought.

"Going on how she explained the female, she might be too much of a fighter to return your feelings. Give up on her, there are plenty of others!" He told her with a smug smirk on his features.

"I can't! She has to be the one! There are no others that I could accept. None are fighters, none control their own destinies, and none of them walk their own paths. Sapphire's different! She has to have it her way or no way at all... It's got to be her!"

"I get it, you're obsessed!" He told her to finally get her stopped instead of started on the subject. "I'll help you, but in return you must give me something in return."

"What?" She asked as she looked over at him in curiosity. The corners of his mouth curled into a smirk and his eighteen year old features were still hidden underneath his clack he covered himself in. He leaned over to her and whispered into her ear. She was shocked to find out what he wanted but she nodded her head to acknowledge she knew of what he was talking about. She would swallow down the emotions at the back of her throat due to her nerves and would grow nervous and slightly scared due to his request in return for what she wanted.

The moon was already settled into the dark abyss of the sky. Its glow warmed the heavens but it partially warmed the earth as its light reached the surface to display the passage ahead. Rain Shower had been traveling at night times as she and her organoid, Taki, would ever sleep in the day and in order to catch up with her travels, she would do it all at night to make up time. Taki was the turquoise organoid who would always whine about traveling at night, but Rain would have none of it. Right now the organoid swan underneath the surface of the sand to keep up with the fast Brave Jaguar zoid that belonged to her owner.

Rain directed her purple zoid inside a nearby cave and Taki almost overspent her underground traveling and followed on after the zoid. She dug a hole in the surface and climbed out to be within the cave's protection from any weathering that might happen during the rest of the night. Rain had begun a fire in the center of the room. Her zoid was already hidden at the back of the cave and her body hidden deep underneath her blankets to keep warm. The atmosphere was dreadfully cold at night and the days were boiling hot that could cause anyone to crumble within a few hours.

Taki made her way over and laid herself around her owner and rubbed her snout against the silver haired maiden's cheek. She leaned against the blue eyed organoid and her shivering body began to rest at ease from the warmth of the fire and the blanket. The position she was in as she laid on the organoid began to heat up and Taki rested her head against her owner's knees as the rest of her curled around the human. Rain wasn't asleep as her breathing wasn't quite in the steady rhythm of sleep just yet. The cold hand of a human touched the top of the organoids head and she nearly jerked at the cold touch, until it began to heat up from the fire.

"Taki, we'll reach her before it's too late. I know we will!" She told the organoid to fill up the hope that remained in the pair of them. "We're partners after all! We're like sisters and our bonds are too strong to break. We'll come together like old times, teach some traitor a lesson and get back to our lives. We'll find her. We better; otherwise it'll be too late to do anything!" Rain was trying so hard to keep the hope she has. It was her only form of will to continue on further in her travels. It was all she had to look to just to continue going forward. She hates giving up and her hope is the last defense she has to not go back on her way of a soldier.

Taki gave a gentle growl, one that held understanding, hope, and the acknowledgment of her owner's thoughts and feelings. The two could understand each other well and they would encourage each other in order to keep their burning hope to drive forward. All they've got to live for is their hope; their hope keeps them alive and this is what acts as their life force. The pair doesn't know how to give up without having all forms of hope driven from them. Rain stroked Taki's head and slowly fell into a slumber deep enough to last large lengths of time. Taki was the same as the touch of her human partner calmed her and slowly relaxed and eased her into a dream.

Raven sat on his blanket underneath the cold moon's trials on the desert. The safety of anyone wasn't issued to the moon tonight. It was unforgiving and hardly led the path through the deep darkness that surrounds the current surroundings of his location. Shadow kept his distance from his master in knowing of his attitude towards comforts he doesn't welcome. He's gotten worse since the human female hadn't been found. The days had passed so quickly and his temper had gotten shorter. He lashed out at the enemies and allies that came across his path. He's been blind by his rage.

Shadow gazed to the sky. His hopes weren't faded but they were close to becoming gone in the depths of hopelessness. There was something in the atmosphere that caused him to wonder why everything was becoming different from planned. The Imperial Army's plans have gone the opposite way according to the plans and everything has changed since the time of the supervision of the girl Raven had been entrusted to by Prozen.

The moon looked unforgiving as its pale light was white instead of its light neon blue glow. There was that hinge of red indicating that there was something dangerous coming later on in the future. The moon was to be looked out for every night. It has the plans of when the danger would be coming and the red hinge, distorted into the white glow, was the indication of danger. Shadow frowned and growled as if warning the moon to take away the danger that threatened all who could see the faded red colour within its plain unforgiving glow.

When Shadow turned back to ensure his master's safety, he found that his master was lying underneath the blankets that kept the warmth in and the cold out. He jumped down from the zoid, walked near enough to his master and curled up on the floor. He kept himself alert and stayed awake. His blue eyes watched everything that would move. All his senses, mainly his visual and his hearing, were completely alert and were ready to spring into action if anything were to come whilst his master slept.