A/N: Thanks to Slim Gohan for credit in her 08th Team Fic: 08th MS Team: Return to the battlefield. You should read it. It's good.
BTW: The title plays into the chapter, trust me.

Chapter Seven: Gundam Roll

"Hey! What's that?" Michel pointed to a flashing dot on the Hovertruck's radar. "Is it the enemy?"

"You know it," Eledore said seriously. "Hey, Commander," he said over the com. system, "I think I see something!"

"I saw it first," Michel muttered, just loud enough for Shiro to hear.

Thank you, Mr. Perfect, thought Eledore darkly. "It's Zeon, alright," Shiro said, and everyone paid a little more attention after that. "But it's not something I'VE seen before. Karen?"

"It looks like a water-usable Mobile Suit, but it's on land," she said. "In other words, I have no idea. Erica?"

"Not a clue. All I really know are Zakus and space-capable Suits. Big help on land, huh?" She grinned.

"Really. Anyone else?" Shiro asked, casting around desperately. But the answer was obviously a collective 'no'. "Ok, then, I guess we have to investigate." At these words, the Mobile Suit they were speaking of appeared in front of them...followed by what seemed like a whole army of others like it.

"What IS that thing?" Karen asked. It was big, and blue-green, and seemed so familiar...but only Sanders placed it.

"The ace! The ace Zeon pilot!!! It's HIS Suit!!" he cried. Inside his Gundam, Shiro's eyes widened in shock and fear.

"The...the one who...who..." Shiro stammered. Kelawney, in the Gundam with him, gave him an odd look. I promise I'll explain later, Erica thought. MUCH later.

"Well then, Mr. Mobile Suit, let's have a battle!" Lorian's voice was clear. Aina, known to no one but herself, nodded. Only then did each member of either team realize that there was one Zeon Suit for every one Federation Gundam/fighter/Hovertruck. (A/N: I think these are classified as 'mecha', but I don't know if they use that term here or not.)

Shots were fired; Aina's fighter went down right from the start. She gave a cry, and Shiro's gaze flicked toward her for a few seconds, but he quickly turned to watch the battle again. Lorian seemed to be a bit better of a pilot, and avoided most shots aimed at her; getting in shots of her own was a different matter.

Karen, caught off guard by the enemy approaching from behind, cursed as she ran out of ammo. Spinning, she drew her beam weapon, and commenced in slicing her opponent to pieces.

The Hovertruck, three people inside (Michel, Eledore, and Qess), wasn't fairing too well. Michel got in one shot for every five from the enemy got in. Kiki, watching from the surrounding foliage, couldn't do much; as a result she was a nervous wreck.

Sanders, possibly the best pilot on the team, was getting angrier by the minute. Not only didn't they know what the HECK these thing were, this was technically the 'third mission', and the last thing he needed was for his rep to come back again.

The final opponent faced off with Erica. The girl in the enemy cockpit knew somehow who the Feddie (spelling?) pilot was, although she didn't know how. And she suspected that this Phoenixbird knew who she was, as well.

"Shall we commence?" she asked, her voice lower than usual. Erica recognized it, all the same.

"Of course-Zandra Sakhalin," she replied coolly.

"Now, now, Phoenixbird, don't make accusations without proof. Or didn't they teach you that in Feddie school??" Zandra sneered, drawing her beam weapon. Erica did the same.

"I suspect Ginias has already found you, old friend," Erica said, struggling to control her voice as she watched one of the Zeon triumph over Karen. Her friends would NOT die in this.

"He has. I suspect your fool cousin has found YOU in all this mess," Zandra retorted. Erica's eyes narrowed, and she raised her weapon. Beam-swords clashed with an electrical ring as the two one-time friends fought each other.

Sanders, having defeated his opponent, watched in horror as first Karen, then Shiro and Lorian get taken down. Richard, in the Gundam with him, moved back a bit, not liking the look in the older man's eyes. Soon the Hovertruck, too, was defeated. Only the girl Phoenixbird was left, fighting the one Suit with everything she had in her.

"You will NOT kill my friends!!!" Sanders yelled, throwing himself into fighting the remaining Zeon. Michel, Eledore, and Kelawney, having left the Hovertruck and Gundam, respectively, watched in awe.

Soon it was one apiece, Erica against Zandra, and Sanders against another Zeon pilot. Aina, hand held to a bleeding cut on her forehead, recognized something about the way these Suits fought. She gasped in horror as she realized both what and who it was.

Running between Sanders and his opponent, she cried, "Stop it! Stop this please!" The pilot of the Zeon Suit looked down at her, laughing softly.

"So, Aina, we meet again. And yet I thought you'd died in that explosion. But then I never could underestimate you, sis. Never could. Neither could Zandra, who's fighting your friend the Phoenixbird right now. Did you know I was the one who shot you down, Aina? Did you know that I know how you feel about shooting the enemy? DID you, Aina? I think you did, and I-"

"Don't listen to him! Aina!" The voice was Shiro's. (A/N: Have I said that before?? Oh, well.) Aina saw him climb from his Gundam, limping slightly. "He's just trying to mess with you! Don't listen to him!" Aina nodded, tears in her eyes. She'd thought Shiro had been killed.

"So it's you! Ginias!" Sanders yelled, instinct taking over as he rammed Ginias with his beam-sword. The sword ran the Suit through, and it exploded.

"No! Ginias!" Aina cried as she was thrown backwards. Erica's attention shifted for a split second, but it was long enough that Zandra could slam into her, knocking the suit backwards into a roll. Erica screamed as she was tossed around inside the Gundam. When it finally stopped, she could do nothing but sit and make sure she was alive.

"I think I'll leave you now," Zandra said, and did so. Aina, blinking, suddenly snapped out of it and ran to Shiro.

"Are you alright?" they asked at the same time, embracing each other. The others, excepting Erica, all did their best to somehow 'meet in the middle,' although some nearly didn't make it. It was Kiki who remembered the 'Gundam Roll,' as it was to be called.

"OH!" she cried, and the others soon caught on. Kiki, Qess, Aina, and Sanders hurried over to Erica's Gundam. Somehow they popped open the cockpit. Erica was sitting there, wide-eyed, breathing hard. She blinked a couple times, them looked up at them. Aina offered her hand.

"I...I...I never want to do that again," Erica said evenly. She took Aina's hand and climbed out, her eyes instantly going to the cut on Aina's head. Don't say it, the woman thought. There's your proof, Shiro.

Proof? Erica thought-asked. Then it hit her. Oh. Proof that I'm still in here somewhere. Gotcha. She grinned. Inside, however, she was shaking. How in the world... she thought to herself, making sure no one heard her.

"And they're all alive..." Sanders muttered under his breath. "I guess I'm not a jinx anymore after all."
************

Erica, carrying a plate of food, sank down between Qess and Karen some time later. "Ow," she complained as her bruised elbow collided with the ground.

"I don't know WHAT you're complaining about," Sanders said jokingly. "I didn't get hurt at all."

"Lucky you," Qess, Karen, and Erica muttered darkly, all at the same time. Kiki grinned.

"It makes me wonder how we did it," Lorian said quietly. Shiro had to agree with that.

"It's no big help that we're stuck here for a while, either," was Michel's remark. Pessimist, Erica thought for all to hear. And proud, came the reply, making all present laugh.

"Hahaha-stop-ha-it-haha..." Eledore laugh-groaned, clutching his stomach. "Have some consideration here! I'm hurt!"

"So do we all," Richard said. He blushed at the strange looks he was given. "I mean, so ARE we all. Is that right?" He directed this last comment at Erica. She nodded, and twirled her hands around each other, the group's new sign for the 'Gundam Roll'. Even Shiro laughed this time, and he'd been distant for the past three hours.

Erica looked around at everyone; no one but Sanders was without injury. Lucky dog, Karen thought.

So're you, fire-head, Erica thought back. YOU didn't commence in trying to beat the world record for 'most somersaults in a Mobile Suit.' Karen chuckled at this.

Point taken. I take it you won't be good company tomorrow morning?

Am I good company ANY morning?

Memories were what were running through Shiro's mind. One in particular kept replaying itself...most likely because it was funny.

Eledore, comedian that he was, had tried to run from Karen's putting some stinging thing on one of his scratches. Upon her doing it, he asked, "Can I say 'ow'?"

"Not if you don't want me to do it again," Karen had said with an evil grin, making all present break out in laughter, hurt or not.

Shiro himself, aside from being a black-an-blue mess like everyone else, had a sprained (and nearly broken) ankle. In a way it was HIS fault they were stuck where they were. His and the Gundams'. THEY needed fixed, and, according to the 'maintenance crew' of the 08th Team (consisting of Karen, Michel, Erica, and Sanders) it would take a while. Hopefully longer than Shiro did.

She left us. She had the perfect opportunity to take us out, and she left us, Shiro thought to himself in wonder.
************

"Erica? Erica? It's time to wake up." The voice woke her, but she chose to keep her eyes shut. At least sunlight didn't leak through the sides of a tent.

"She's not up yet? Man, you'd think she'd be first one up, the way yesterday went." THAT voice Erica knew, and didn't want to hear. Eledore.

"Shows what you know, mister smarty-suit." Erica almost laughed out loud at the fact that Karen had used her nickname for Eledore.

"Are you awake yet?" Lorian's voice, the voice from before, asked. Erica opened her eyes. Her whole body felt like one big bruise.

"It's not a question of 'am I?'; it's a question of 'do I want to be?'" she said, then groaned. Even TALKING hurt.

"They thought it'd be safest if I woke you up. I'm small enough that you won't throw things at me. I think."

"You wouldn't be so brave if you were in my shoes, kid," Erica retorted, slowly getting up off her sleeping bag. "Now OUT! Before I DO throw something!" Lorian took the hint, and left. Quicker than she thought she could, Erica dressed and went out to have breakfast.

"Which looks suspiciously like dinner," Kelawney remarked as they ate.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

This was one of the more dramatic chapters. It actually takes place in the daylight, believe it or not. Any comments?? I myself thoroughly enjoyed writing this chapter (I am CELEBRATING over here!!) and I know Slim Gohan has been waiting for some of this stuff to happen...sort of. (There's your Ginias for you, SG!!) ~Darkness Master

PS-How many chapters will there be total?? I have no idea.