Here we are at Chapter 26. Time for another zoid battle for Team Lockhart while they embark on their quest to uncover Nexus' plot. I do not own Zoids. They belong to their respective owners. I only own my OCs. Here's chapter 26. Enjoy.
Chapter 26: Stupid is Stupid
The members of Team Lockhart make their way through the desert wastes as they continue their journey to find out more about Hunter Krato, and of course, have more zoid battles. Their next destination would be a small city known as Cormun City.
"Are we there yet?" Grace asks.
"Almost Grace. Another hour and we'll reach the city. No word from the ZBC about our next zoid battle yet?" Sarah asks.
"Not yet, but I'm sure we'll find out when we reach Cormun City. I'm starting to lose my patience though," Grace notes.
The comms come on, "Well, our real target is Kuze Town, which is still a long distance away. Besides, they say it's the journey, not the destination, remember," Colt says over the comms.
"Keep talking like that, and your journey will be a short one, got it," Grace threatens him.
"Our mission," Sky reminds them.
"Yeah, we have to find out about Hunter Krato, right?" Rickie adds.
"Yeah... Sarah, do you really think this Hunter kid is being forced to fight for Nexus?" Grace asks.
"I don't know, honestly, but why else would he send that secret message to us? Besides, it did piece a few things together, especially that bit about a spy in the ZBC. If we can figure out who that is, it would go a long way in helping out our mission," Sarah says.
"Who do you think the spy is?" Rickie asks.
"I don't know, but if we don't find out soon, then we're in trouble," Sarah replies.
…
The team arrive at Cormun City at night, much to their relief. Before arriving, they covered up Geno Storm-Blade before they made their way into the local zoid institute so as to not draw too much attention to themselves. That will happen during the next battle. After settling everything at the zoid institute, the team decide to find a spot to eat. However...
"There you are, Team Lockhart. Finally decided to show up, did ya?" they her a male voice behind them and look back, seeing none other than Harry Champ with his two robots. "Surprised to see me are ya?"
Of course they know who he is, but...
"Who are you again?" Colt flatly says, trying to rattle him, and succeeding.
"How can you forget who I am?! I am Harry Champ, the man destined to be king!" Harry flips out.
"Really? First time I'm hearing about it," Grace adds to the fun.
"Not you too. Stop messing with me. We had a battle a couple of weeks ago, remember?!" Harry yells.
"Calm down, Harry. I think they're just trying to rile you up," Benjamin says.
"That's right. There's no need to act so immature," Sebastian adds.
"Sebastian, shut up!" Harry retorts.
"Alright, that's enough. It's been a while, Harry. What are you doing here?" Sarah asks.
Harry composes himself, sort of, "I'm here to challenge you guys to another zoid battle," he declares.
"Yeah right, no chance," Colt declines the challenge.
"What?! You afraid I'll win this time?" Harry retorts.
"We wouldn't get enough points by beating your team again. As fun as beating you sounds, we're on a tight schedule, and we do have a reputation to protect," Grace says.
"Oh, why you! What's it gonna take to get you to accept my challenge? Just name it," Harry says.
A sparkle is seen in Colt and Grace's eyes. Hook, line, and sinker.
"Well, there may be one thing you can do. We know you're rich, so tell us: do you have any Hover Cargos?" Colt asks.
Harry starts laughing, "Hahahaha, of course I do! In fact, I've got four of them!" Harry pats himself on the back.
"Really... Then, you wouldn't mind parting with one of those Hover Cargos, would ya?" Grace asks mischievously.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Harry asks.
"If you put up one of your Hover Cargos on the line, then we'll accept your challenge. That, and three times the prize money. We win, we get the cash and the cargo. You win, and we'll do whatever you say for a week with no complaints," Colt offers.
Harry stares at them, "If I were to win, would I get your zoids if I asked for them?" he asks.
"Of course. Like I said, no complaints," Colt says.
"Very well, then I accept your challenge. I've seen your zoids in action, so things won't end up like last time. Get ready to taste defeat," Harry says and saunters off with his robots in tow.
"I guess it's true what they say: Stupid is stupid. Ignorance, you can fix, but stupid is forever," Grace mutters.
"Hey, look on the bright side, we win this, and we get a brand new Hover Cargo," Colt says.
"Don't forget the money," Grace notes.
"Is he always like that?" Rickie asks.
"Pretty much. Come on, let's go get something to eat and start planning out our strategy," Sarah says and the team head to find some food.
…
The next day, the team re at their Gustavs when they receive a notification from the ZBC, authorizing the battle with the Champ team and the stipulations.
"So, we're all set now?" Grace asks.
"Yes. The battle mode is set to 0-9-9-2, which means it'll be a three-on-three match with no restrictions on weapons. Sky, you don't mind sitting this one out, do you?" Sarah asks.
"It's fine," Sky replies.
"Yeah, we're all good. He took your place in the last battle, so it's only fair that we even it up. Besides, this will be the perfect opportunity for the Geno Storm-Blade to make its glorious debut. Everyone watching this battle will flip out when they see it. This is gonna be sick!" Rickie cheers.
"So, what are the Champ team using this time? The same zoids as before?" Grace asks.
"Nope. This time, they're using a trio of Iron Kong PKs. Different from their usual ones. Let's see... The Iron Kong PKs have high defense and physical strength, and they're loaded with a variety of ranged weapons, so they can fight pretty much at any range. However, their one fatal flaw is that they're slow in terms of speed and mobility. Which means that Geno and Colt's Bravejaguar can run circles around them. Grace, you'll have to figure a way through their defenses if you try to get close," Sarah explains.
"Huh, is that all? Well then, I'll figure something out," Grace replies.
"Alright then, team, let's go win this one," Sarah says.
"Yeah!" the group, except for Sky, pump their fists into the air.
…
At another town, zoid warriors convene at a local hangout for zoid warriors, getting their drinks and preparing to watch the next string of battles. At one table, Naomi Fluegel and Leon Toros wait for the battles to begin.
"So, I hear that the Champ Team and the Lockhart Team are going at it again. Guess Harry couldn't resist trying to avenge his previous loss to them," Leon notes.
"Didn't he do the same thing with the Blitz Team?" Naomi asks.
"Yeah, and he lost every fight," Leon notes.
"So, you guys are here too, huh?" they hear and look over to see Jack Cisco and the Lightning Team join them. "You interested in that fight as well?"
"Guess you heard. I wonder if Sarah is going to be in this fight. I was wondering why she wasn't in the last one," Naomi says.
One of the screens comes on for that specific fight, and the second it does, all their expressions go off the wire.
"What in the world is that?!" Chris yells.
"Is that... the Geno Ritter?" Leon mutters, still in shock.
…
"What the Hell are you doing? What kind of zoid is that?!" Harry yells out from his zoid's cockpit.
The two teams are already out by the canyon where the next battle is supposed to take place, and already Harry is flipping out at the new Geno Storm-Blade.
"Surprised? My Geno Ritter got an upgrade. Say hello to the new Geno Storm-Blade," Sarah says, her partner roaring with her.
…
"I guess that would explain why the kid wasn't in the last battle," Jack mutters.
"I've never seen a zoid like that before," Kelly notes.
All the other zoid warriors in the room quickly turn their attention to that one battle, all muttering their own forms of shock and awe.
"Well, let's see what this new Geno can do," Leon mutters as he watches the battle with interest.
…
The judge enters the battlefield and prepares the match, "Scanning... Scanning... This area is now a battlefield. All unauthorized personal must vacate the area immediately. The Champ Team vs the Lockhart Team. Battle mode 0-9-9-2. Area scanned. Battlefield set up. Ready... Fight!" the judge sounds off and the gong is rung.
Immediately, the Geno Storm-Blade flies across the sand thanks to its thrusters being greater in number and power. Its four sub-arms come out and fire their laser cannons at the Champ Team, hitting the ground around them and stirring up sand and dust to block their vision. When the dust settles, the Champ Team sees the Lockhart Team already entering the nearby cannon, giving them the slip.
"Arrgh! After them! If they go into the canyon, they can't move around as much!" Harry says and the three of them give chase.
They enter the canyon, finding no sign of the opposing team. The canyon is wide, with rocks of various sizes all around them. As they move through, more blasts kick up the sand in front of them. When that settles, they find the Geno Storm-Blade standing in the middle of the canyon path, almost challenging them to come at it all together.
"There's the leader, but where are the other two?" Benjamin asks.
"They must be hiding somewhere, hoping we'll take the bait and attack the leader, and then they'll come out an ambush us. It's so obvious," Sebastian adds.
"Haha, I won't be done in so easily. This won't be like last time," Harry mutters.
"We'll see about that," Sarah says back.
The Geno Storm-Blade fires off its four laser cannons again at them, this time dealing direct hits to all of them. Luckily, the Iron Kong PKs have great defensive capabilities, so the attack doesn't do much, but it's enough to shake them all up. The Geno Storm-Blade then charges forth, intent on facing them all three-on-one. The three zoids fire off their missile launchers together, but the Geno Storm-Blade flies right through them with ease. When it gets close, it zips to the side and slashes clean through the left arm of Benjamin's zoid, forcing it to fall to the ground.
"It cut through with one stroke. What kind of blades are those?" Benjamin mutters in shock.
"Why you!" Harry yells as he turns around and fires off the laser guns on his zoid's right arm.
Benjamin tires to get up, only for something to suddenly clamp down on his zoid's left leg. He looks down, seeing the head of the Spinosapper peeking out of the ground, its jaws locked in tight on its leg.
"Gotcha!" Grace yells and pulls him in, forcing the Iron Kong PK halfway into a sandy burial.
"Ah! I can't move! I can't get out!" Benjamin cries.
"Don't worry, Benjamin. I'll save you-," Sebastian begins before he's hit from behind by a blast of energy and looks back to see the Bravejaguar appear.
"Never take your eyes off an opponent. You're dealing with me today, tin man," Colt says.
Sebastian turns back and fires off a laser cannon, but the Bravejaguar is too fast and evades it easily. He runs around his opponent, making hit-and-run attacks with his claws and his tail blade each team he comes by, slowly chipping away at the Iron Kong PKs armor.
"I can't seem to get a bead on him!" Sebastian yells.
Meanwhile, Harry fires off more missiles at Sarah's zoid, but none of them hit their target. The Geno Storm-Blade comes in close and the Iron Kong PK prepares to throw a punch at its target, but as soon as it gets close and he throws that punch, the Geno Strom-Blade jumps over the Iron Kong PK, kicking it in its head and jumping off of it as the other zoid falls to the ground.
"My zoid is a lot faster now than it used to be, Harry. You thought our last battle was bad? You haven't seen nothing yet," Sarah notes.
"I won't lose to you a second time!" Harry yells as his zoid gets back on its feet.
Back with the others, Benjamin sees the Spinosapper break through the surface in front of him.
"Sorry, Benjamin, but you gotta go down," Grace says.
Benjamin yells and tries to fire off his laser cannon, but the Spinosapper slices it off with one of its chainsaws. It then turns its attention to the main body and shreds it to pieces with its chainsaws, causing Benjamin's systems to freeze up.
"Are you kidding me?!" Benjamin yells.
"Nope, this is the real deal, baby," Grace replies with a wink.
Sebastian continues to fire off his weapons at Colt, but his zoid flies through the shots. However, each time he gets close, the Iron Kong PK keeps him back with its large arms. With his zoid's low armor, the Bravejaguar wouldn't last long against a few well-placed hits from that beast.
"Well, he's certainly learned from our last battle. Then again, it wouldn't be fun if this battle were easy," Colt mutters.
"Hey Colt, need a hand?" he hears over the comms and looks to see Grace's Spinosapper fire off its missiles launchers from behind the Iron Kong PK, dealing a direct hit to its rear and doing some serious damage.
"Arrgh!" Sebastian curses as his zoid falls to the ground, but is still active.
"Thanks Grace. My turn," Colt says and charges at his downed opponent. His zoid starts glowing. "Strike Laser Claw!" he yells and deals the final blow, causing Sebastian's system to freeze up.
"Not again!" Sebastian yells.
"That makes two. Now all that's left is Sarah and Harry. Let's go!" Colt says, and Grace follows him.
Back with Sarah, her zoid slices off the laser cannon of Harry's zoid, followed by taking out the laser guns on its right arm, leaving his missile launcher as his remaining ranged weapon, and that is out of ammo. The two warriors stand apart from one another, a little showdown before the final move is made.
"It's over Harry. Your zoid can't fight much longer, mine doesn't have a scratch, your teammates are down, and mine are still around. Surrender now and I'll accept," Sarah asks.
"I'll never surrender!" Harry shouts and charges at her.
Sarah sighs, "I figured you'd say that. Oh well," she mutters and charges forth to meet him.
The two get close and the Iron Kong PK throws a left punch, but the Geno Storm-Blade spins in mid-air with its blades out, slicing off both the left arm and the left leg of Harry's zoid, causing it to fall into the sand while Sarah's zoid lands behind him. Harry's system freezes up and the bell goes out for the end of the match.
"Battle is over. Battle is over. The winner is... the Lockhart Team!" the judge announces.
"Another win for Team Lockhart," Colt says, dusting off his shoulders.
"Come to me, my prize money," Grace adds.
Sarah sighs in relief, "Well done, Geno. That was a great debut battle for you," she says, and her partner roars in agreement.
"Oh, I can't believe I lost again," Harry wines, only for Colt and Grace's zoids to stand in front of him.
"Hey Harry, don't forget our little bet. You owe us three times the prize money and a Hover Cargo," Grace says.
"NOOOO!" Harry cries with tears of defeat.
…
Back where the other warriors are, everyone is stunned by the triumphant display, especially with Sarah's new zoid.
"So, that's the power of Sarah's zoid. What was it called again? Geno Storm-Blade?" Naomi asks.
"Yeah, and I've got a feeling that it hasn't shown its full potential yet. Sarah and her teammates are growing stronger with each passing day. It won't be long before they make it to class A and get a chance to face us again," Leon notes.
"Well, I know I can't wait to face them again. We never did finish our fight during the battle royal. That thought alone has got me itching to battle them again," Jack adds.
"I guess we'll have to wait and see," Naomi says.
…
Later that day, Harry brings out a white and blue Hover Cargo from his personal Whale King, as per their deal. Team Lockhart already got their prize money, plus the extra bonus from Harry. Again.
"There, are you happy now. One Hover Cargo, per our agreement... But don't get cocky. I won't lose the next time we fight," Harry says.
"Right. And the next time we beat you guys again, you can pay us four times the prize money," Grace retorts, playing with her hair.
"Really?" Colt stares at her, eyebrow raised.
"What? A girl's gotta make a living," Grace innocently replies.
"You're merciless," Colt mutters.
The deal is set and Harry quickly makes his departure, swearing that he'll beat them next time. The team load up their zoids into the Hover Cargo and have Sky and Rickie check to make sure everything is set inside while the rest of the team sell their Gustavs for some extra cash. They really won't be needing them at this point. With all of that added to their prize money and getting a new ride for free, they made a good deal today. A job well done. The group check out the inside of the Hover Cargo, finding rooms for each of them, multiple bathrooms with showers, a living room, a recreational area, a kitchen, and the command center for their travels and zoid battles. They also made sure their zoids were set inside the hanger. Luckily, the Hover Cargo came equipped with a catapult for Sky's Pteramander and the rest of their zoids. That would help with getting him into the air whenever he battles. Since it would be getting dark soon, and the team had a long day, they decided to sleep in town for the night ad get an early start in the morning. Of course, there's one thing that hasn't changed.
"Good night Geno," Sarah mutters before falling asleep in Geno's cockpit like she usually does.
…
The next morning, they had plans to continue their journey to Kuze Town to look into Hunter Krato. However, it seems they aren't the only ones that have been keeping busy.
"...At this time, we have no information regarding the sudden night-time attacks by the group who call themselves 'Nexus', but already four zoid teams of the lower rankings have been attacked, and unfortunately... all members of each team have been declared deceased. What's more, we have another report that the same group attacked a small ZBC outpost in the southern edge of the continent, resulting in heavy losses. This Nexus released a statement, claiming responsibility for all of the attacks, and now people are on edge. The ZBC have not released a statement regarding these attacks, only that an investigation is underway," a female reporter explains.
The team are in the command center, watching the news feed on the main screen, shocked by what they have learned. The video shows the signs of attacks on the zoid teams and the outpost attack, seeing endless destruction before them, and white sheets over what they can assume are dead bodies of those that were attacked.
"Nexus has made the next move. What should we do?" Grace asks.
"Sarah?" Rickie asks.
Sarah clenches her fists, "We stay the course and head for Kuze Town. We find out more about Hunter Krato and Nexus... and then we take them down," Sarah declares.
And that's the chapter. Sarah and her team win another battle and get a new form of transportation, but their happy victory is short-lived when Nexus make their next move. It seems like the gloves are coming off now. Will Team Lockhart uncover the secrets of Hunter Krato and Nexus? Or will more lives be lost in the process? Until then, Please Read and Review.