::cough:: Well, it's been a week or more maybe? Since I've been threatened
internet style to get moving, I decided to put this chapter up. ::heaves a
sigh:: I'm gonna get in so much trouble!
Anyway, here comes the thanks! Thanks most humbly goes to Hpsactor, who as I might point out, is indeed partially responsible for me being motivated enough to put this out at this time ::coughthreatcough:: j/k, and has a hand in a part of the next one as well [Thaaaaank youuuuu Tory!! See you on the flip side!], KatJen [Please don't let your head explode.. I would feel obligated to clean it up and pay for your hospital bills!], P:P [Make everyone fall in love with one girl? Alternate pairings? Ha! Never! ::sneaks away, glancing behind herself in paranoid manner], Rikkali [::blush:: You do me too much credit! Thank you very much! ::offers pocky:: Seems like the right thing to do!], Fortran-Hacker [Absolutely no problem! It seems as though all of the hard-core flamers have come back from summer vacation, and somebody's got to be out there to help you against the more evil ones!], The Dixie Artist [::blushes again:: You guys are too much! ::bows low:: I exist for your entertainment! Wouldn't we just LOVE to see that happen to a REAL LIFE HIEAD?! ::collapses in laughter::], Lalita [Thank you! Oh, and your stories are awesome! I can't wait to see what happens in yours as well. ^_^], Xaphrin [::laughs just because Xaphrin is laughing, and just can't stop... tried to get up and just falls down again laughing at maniacal laughter:: ::cough:: Sorry! That sort of thing cracks me up. Anyway, here's the next chapter.. now.. LET'S SEE YOURS! XAPH, KEEP WRITING, KUDASAI! DON'T YOU DARE STOP! SO MANY ARE WITH YOU!].
::pants, takes several breaths, and continues::
More thanks to Steve Jester [Hai, Azuma is definitely one piece of work. ::rubs hands together:: Let's see him get it next chapter!], Isaacy [::humongous grin:: Finally, right? Anyway, I guess I am evil ::laughs:: At LAST! SOMEONE FOUND OUT MY SECRET!], saiya-jin royalty (Aren) [You and me both! Thank you very much! ::puffs out chest:: And may Vegeta-er, Goku-san- er, Goha-er, the most awesome Saiya-jins be with you! ::laughs at corny joke:: Get it? Saiya? Saiyain?? Say-say I shut up, right?], Jinnai [Oh, that it were reality! ::tears:: Thank you very much! I *will* read Concern of a Friend because I said I would, I PROMISE! I have been such a lazy bum! Kick me or something!], Jo [Unexpected twist! ::spins around unexpectedly, then laughs nervously, getting up:: Ah! I knew what you mean! I really did! Ahah! :;runs away::], sole [::puts pink to corner of mouth in Dr. Evil fashion:: Curious are we? Well I'll try my best to make it worth your while, no da!], Tezza [::bursts out laughing, as usual:: I think I'm used to the winged monkey soldiers, now. ::wipes away tear:: You've got Duo one more of a lockdown than Hilde! I commend you! Thank you! ^_^ And here's bringing many more moments!].
::pants again, leaves to get water, and comes back::
And also thanks to Hawaii_gurl [AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I'M CONTINUING! I'M CONTINUING! AHHHHHHHHHH!], Hells-Angel [!!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!! ::grins and leans forward:: You really can't wait? I can! ::waits... and waits... grows bored and gets up:: Nevermind. ^_^], JC^ [::sticks out tongue and smiles:: Are you *really* JC, or are you Clay? Hunh hunh hunh!?!?!?], and last but not least, Hinel Patel [AHHHHHHH!!!! Thank you! I hurried, didn't I?!?!? AHHHH! Haha, just for you!]
Whew! That took a while! Anyway, I all owe you, so it's worth it! Thank you, and please keep reviewing! My work depends on you. ^_^
One last note. sometimes it seems as though when I upload stuff to fanfiction.net, the point where I try to put three periods indicating that a person has trailed off into thought turns out as one single dot instead. Just wanted to you know! On with the story!
-------------------Towryk Eyes Pt. 5----------------------
The silence was killing him.
Azuma's teeth with so set that they were beginning to hurt. He'd do almost anything, ANYTHING to get someone to TALK. FIGHT. A note of encouragement maybe?
Yet there was nothing. All of the Repairers stood stiffly in their new respective positions, not a one daring to even peek at the others.
As Azuma had ordered, each Repairer was paired with the given pilot change: Wrecka to Clay's station, Tsukasa to Roose's station, Saki to Yamagi's station, Ikhny to Zero's station, and Kizna to Hiead's station. Anyone would guess that Kizna was the most pissed, but to be truthful, it was difficult to tell who exactly disliked their position worse.
"All right, Candidates," began Azuma calmly. "Prepare to fight in five, four, three, two, on -- "
"WAIT." It wasn't a request, but a statement. The Instructor flicked his eyes at Pro-Ing number 88 and set his jaw.
"Candidate, I did not leave room for any - comments."
"Instructor." Zero's tone of voice immediately caught Kizna's attention. She frowned. She had never heard him speak in such a low, dangerous tone. It was loaded with anger. ANGER. Out of all the times they had been together, the true 88 Repairer had never heard her partner's cords charged with anger rather than determination. This was most definitely not good. Anger meant that more than ever, his immediate target would be-
"Hiead," whisphered Ikhny.
"Shut up, Allecto," commanded Hiead, hearing the whisper. He was focused on the fight. He didn't need his own stupid Repairer distracting him when she wasn't even his current Repairer - the thought made him growl in his throat. It was all *his* fault. *ZERO'S*. He would never have to fight with a different Repairer if it hadn't been for HIM.
"I wasn't finished yet!" snapped Zero, making everyone jump. "Instructor, I want you to put us on Code Five."
Azuma's mouth dropped. Code Five was a no holds barred Pro Ing fight. That meant that the fight would go on until there was only one Candidate remaining conscious. A very, VERY bad idea.
"NO."
"Instructor," warned Zero.
"Zero--" Kizna snapped her mouth shut. She had forgotten already that Zero wasn't her Candidate this time. HIEAD was. She gritted her teeth and turned her attention back to Hiead's stats. A small part of her twitched when she realized that his coordination, tunes, and adaptability were nearly the same as Zero's. In fact, it would be safe to say - safe to say that Hiead and Zero were the exact same. A quick glance at the brain patterns, though, brought Kizna back to herself. Zero's and Hiead's brain patterns were most definitely opposite, but... there was no telling how angry Zero was beneath his mask. In a given situation, if Zero was angry.... his and Hiead's brain patterns could nearly be identical.. and she knew from experience that when Zero was angry, he didn't make very many good decisions.
Ever.
Azuma was painfully aware of that fact as well. He'd been with Zero long enough to know that an idiot on the warpath didn't make him any less of an idiot. If he refused to allow Code Five, Hiead and Zero would probably beat the ST out of each other anyway. He sighed heavily. /Why didn't I just blow up and ask for a recess instead of an isolated war? They're all going to kill each other./
"Instructor?" came Ikhny's calm voice. She managed to keep her eyes fixed on his annoyed look. "Why don't we just request an out of bounds fight? That way no one really gets hurt."
"That's not enough," snapped Hiead. "Requesting a--"
"Shup up, Hiead!" cut in Kizna. She glared at him through the small window. "This isn't the time or place to hold a fight."
The silver-haired boy jerked. He'd never had a Repairer, nevertheless his enemy's Repairer in control of his fate and fully prepared to make it a difficult one. He narrowed his eyes at her. "You think I can't beat your ridiculous ex-Candidate?"
"What do you mean 'EX?'" yelled Zero. "I told you, that is MY Repairer! That happens to mean NOT YOURS, IDIOT!"
Roose blinked and directed his words to Yamagi. "Were they married or something?" He cocked his head when the other pilot couldn't get any words through his hysterical laughter. "Yamagi?"
"That's a very INTERESTING proposition," inserted Clay. A thoughtful look crossed his face as a million different strategies and plot patterns ran through his brain. "A love triangle? No, no, no... not Hiead certainly..."
"I don't WANT your Repairer, moron!"
"Then stop acting like it!"
"Yamagi, you're still laughing?"
"Muh - muh -- muh - muhmuhmuhmarriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiIIIIAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"
"Zero and Kizna perhaps.. very interesting indeed! Was this whole excerised merely for the flushing out of pairs?" Blush. "Wow. I wonder which pairs..."
"HIEAD, IKHNY WAS PROPOSING AN OUT OF BOUNDS FIGHT," exploded the cat-eared girl finally. "THAT *MEANS*, IDIOTS, THAT YOU CAN KNOCK THE BLOODY HECK OUT OF EACH OTHER UNTIL ONE OR THE OTHER GETS KNOCKED OUT OF BOUNDS!!!"
"But I-HUNH?!" Zero stopped in the middle and gaped. Everyone just kind of stared at him through their vid-links.
"Zero, are you okay?" said Kizna and Ikhny simultaneously. Kizna blushed and waved nervously to Ikhny. "Sorry! Almost forgot!" /This is gonna be hard.../
Zero was silent a few seconds before answering. "We aren't married."
A sweatdrop cloud swept through the Pro-Ing room. Hiead groaned.
"Zero, you are such a MORON!!"
"Why?! I was just telling the truth!!" retorted Zero plainly.
Yamagi wiped a few tears from his eyes. "You are so five minutes ago, Zero. You have any idea how long ago Roose said that?"
"Well whoever said it is sure gonna get it!" responded Candidate 88 annoyedly. He stepped menacingly toward the three companion pilots, all of whom were backing away and spluttering numerous apologies.
/Annoyed... he's just annoyed!/ Kizna's smile broke through. /Not ANGRY anymore.. we really might get through this okay.../
Zero glared at the three. "Who said that--"
*THONK*
Pro-Ing 88 fell flat on it's face. To the sound of maniacal laughter, the shocked boy sprung back on his feet. "HIEAD?!"
The silver-haired boy stopped laughing. "You had your back turned against your Number One enemy. You're stupider than you look."
"Instructor," said Tsukasa quickly. She ignored his annoyed look. "Wouldn't it be a good idea to start the fight?"
"It would be a good idea to start the fight," rushed Azuma belatedly. "Ready Candidates?" One 'yes,' two begging eyes and two angry glares signalled to Azuma that he shouldn't have asked. "Okay. Ready.... fight!!!"
Zero and Hiead all but ignored everyone they assumed weaker by flinging themselves at each other with whole-hearted zeal. Kizna and Ikhny quickly found themselves chest deep [I have no idea why I picked that analogy, no da!] in a mental assault of thousands of new bits and pieces of information. The differences and similarities between them were staggering. Kizna found herself witnessing attacks that exactly resembled Zero's, but in response to different attacks. Ikhny saw the same. All the same attacks to different stimuli.
The Instructor was suddenly struck with the weight of all that he had don- haha, silly me! CORRECTION: With one tenth of what he had done, considering that he had convinced himself that within a breadth of death he was going to stick to his plan. He looked at Pro-Ings 88 and 89, then at Ikhny and Kizna. He blinked. /I put the top competing Candidates with the top Repairer of the other./ Blink. /Whoa./
The other candidates and repairers found themselves simply gaping. Somehow.. somehow the four had completely forgotten their situation and imbedded themselves in the fight. Was it just their eyes or.. had Hiead and Zero.. gotten faster??
"Unbelievable," said Saki, mostly to herself. She had merely glanced at Yamagi's stats before focusing back on the fight. They were DEFINITELY more important at the moment.
Wrecka, on the other hand, was looking with apparent interest [pardon the phrase] at Clay's stats. /So this is what Saki had to deal with.../ With a huge grin she pushed one button.
"-if the Instructor is, indeed, seeking to end this experiment in pairs, then-AHHHHHHHHHH!"
Saki's attention automatically snapped to Clay. "What the heck is wrong with you?"
"I-I-I-I-I-I-I--"
"OUT WITH IT, FORTRAN!!!!"
"I-I s-seem to h-have di-di-dif-fficul-l-lty-y-y m-m-mov-v-vi-i-i-ing-g-g-g- g," grated Clay. His true Repairer had difficulty deciding whether she should turn to Wrecka and scold her or laugh. She chose to do both.
"Wrecka! What a time to use the immobilization ability!" Giggle. Snicker.
Ikhny was on the verge of being overwhelmed. Zero's speed was growing exponentially within seconds, and his total stamina with it. She could nearly hear the wear and tear of the Pro-Ing suits. If things kept up this way the suits would be ripped apart, and who knows what would happen to the Pilots themselves.. she was drawn from her thoughts by a sudden jump in the system. She glanced at the window to the left. Zero's brainwaves were fluctuating wildly. Her eyes widened. /No... wait a minute... The last time that happened... With HIEAD../
Hiead had a similar jump in brain waves. There was no questioning it. Kizna knew that it would happen within minutes. She frantically tried to control it on her end. "Hiead! Don't you DARE! This is NOT THE TIME!! CONTROL IT, YOU IDIOT!!"
"SHUT UP!!" yelled Hiead, neutralizing a blow by his opponent. He could feel his control slipping. /NO! You are in CONTROL!!!/
/~As if, idiot.~/
"Instructor!" said Kizna. "CALL IT OFF!"
"CANDIDATES, THE FIGHT IS CANCELLED!!" yelled Instructor. He watched helplessly as the control boards of Ikhny and Kizna went red. At that moment, Rill walked in with a peeved look on her face.
"Hijikata, GIS has docked with--" She stopped short and glared at the various looks of horror and laughter on the Repariers' faces. She glared at Azuma. "I thought you said this wasn't until later! What are you--"
Clay fought as hard as he could to move. "N-N-N-Not-t-t-t f-f-f-f- faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaair-r-r!!" Wrecka shook her head and put her finger over the button she pushed the first time.
"Okay Clay, remobilizing!" She pressed it.
"Whoa!" Clay Cliff Fortran struggled to regain his balance as one of his previous attempts to struggle carried over and he began to fall toward Roose, who was, incidentally, still in the pathway of Zero and Hiead, who had incidentally stumbled close to the darkness of the sheer out of bounds drop.
Can anybody see where this is going?
Yamagi certainly could, and he was not very happy. "Yo, Clay! Roose! Look out!"
"Oh no!" cried Ikhny. "EX reaction--"
"EX reaction in five--" said Kizna.
Saki blinked. "Clay! Look out for Roose!"
"Four--"
"Roose, look out for Clay!"
"Three--"
Clay bit his tongue as he slammed face first into Roose.
"Two--"
Roose inevitably tipped forward and slammed into Zero and Hiead.
"One--"
"AHHH! What the--"
Zero and Hiead ran into each other, the force carrying them over the edge of the out of bounds zone.
"REACTION!!!!"
The combined yells of Zero and Hiead were drowned out as their EX reactions produced a blinding white light that enveloped all of the Pro Ings and the whole of the deck. The Pro Ings were knocked over by the force of the blow, and the Repairers were knocked to the ground. Rill and Azuma were knocked off the steps and rammed into each other, landing into the deck as everything went black.
Well. I've been told that I'm evil. ::shakes desperately:: Am I?? Am I?? Bwahaha! You shall not TRULY know until the next chapter! Which, if I am galled enough, will be put up tomorrow night/the following afternoon! Bwahaha! Life is, indeed, good.
Next Chapter: I meant it when I said I'm glad I'm not Azuma. Here you really get to find out why. After the combined reactions of Zero and Hiead, things are a little bit different. What the heck is going on here?! I didn't know that an EX could make.. could make THAT happen! Azuma, but some clothes on! Why don't you clothes fit you any--- oh...... OHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyway, here comes the thanks! Thanks most humbly goes to Hpsactor, who as I might point out, is indeed partially responsible for me being motivated enough to put this out at this time ::coughthreatcough:: j/k, and has a hand in a part of the next one as well [Thaaaaank youuuuu Tory!! See you on the flip side!], KatJen [Please don't let your head explode.. I would feel obligated to clean it up and pay for your hospital bills!], P:P [Make everyone fall in love with one girl? Alternate pairings? Ha! Never! ::sneaks away, glancing behind herself in paranoid manner], Rikkali [::blush:: You do me too much credit! Thank you very much! ::offers pocky:: Seems like the right thing to do!], Fortran-Hacker [Absolutely no problem! It seems as though all of the hard-core flamers have come back from summer vacation, and somebody's got to be out there to help you against the more evil ones!], The Dixie Artist [::blushes again:: You guys are too much! ::bows low:: I exist for your entertainment! Wouldn't we just LOVE to see that happen to a REAL LIFE HIEAD?! ::collapses in laughter::], Lalita [Thank you! Oh, and your stories are awesome! I can't wait to see what happens in yours as well. ^_^], Xaphrin [::laughs just because Xaphrin is laughing, and just can't stop... tried to get up and just falls down again laughing at maniacal laughter:: ::cough:: Sorry! That sort of thing cracks me up. Anyway, here's the next chapter.. now.. LET'S SEE YOURS! XAPH, KEEP WRITING, KUDASAI! DON'T YOU DARE STOP! SO MANY ARE WITH YOU!].
::pants, takes several breaths, and continues::
More thanks to Steve Jester [Hai, Azuma is definitely one piece of work. ::rubs hands together:: Let's see him get it next chapter!], Isaacy [::humongous grin:: Finally, right? Anyway, I guess I am evil ::laughs:: At LAST! SOMEONE FOUND OUT MY SECRET!], saiya-jin royalty (Aren) [You and me both! Thank you very much! ::puffs out chest:: And may Vegeta-er, Goku-san- er, Goha-er, the most awesome Saiya-jins be with you! ::laughs at corny joke:: Get it? Saiya? Saiyain?? Say-say I shut up, right?], Jinnai [Oh, that it were reality! ::tears:: Thank you very much! I *will* read Concern of a Friend because I said I would, I PROMISE! I have been such a lazy bum! Kick me or something!], Jo [Unexpected twist! ::spins around unexpectedly, then laughs nervously, getting up:: Ah! I knew what you mean! I really did! Ahah! :;runs away::], sole [::puts pink to corner of mouth in Dr. Evil fashion:: Curious are we? Well I'll try my best to make it worth your while, no da!], Tezza [::bursts out laughing, as usual:: I think I'm used to the winged monkey soldiers, now. ::wipes away tear:: You've got Duo one more of a lockdown than Hilde! I commend you! Thank you! ^_^ And here's bringing many more moments!].
::pants again, leaves to get water, and comes back::
And also thanks to Hawaii_gurl [AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I'M CONTINUING! I'M CONTINUING! AHHHHHHHHHH!], Hells-Angel [!!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!! ::grins and leans forward:: You really can't wait? I can! ::waits... and waits... grows bored and gets up:: Nevermind. ^_^], JC^ [::sticks out tongue and smiles:: Are you *really* JC, or are you Clay? Hunh hunh hunh!?!?!?], and last but not least, Hinel Patel [AHHHHHHH!!!! Thank you! I hurried, didn't I?!?!? AHHHH! Haha, just for you!]
Whew! That took a while! Anyway, I all owe you, so it's worth it! Thank you, and please keep reviewing! My work depends on you. ^_^
One last note. sometimes it seems as though when I upload stuff to fanfiction.net, the point where I try to put three periods indicating that a person has trailed off into thought turns out as one single dot instead. Just wanted to you know! On with the story!
-------------------Towryk Eyes Pt. 5----------------------
The silence was killing him.
Azuma's teeth with so set that they were beginning to hurt. He'd do almost anything, ANYTHING to get someone to TALK. FIGHT. A note of encouragement maybe?
Yet there was nothing. All of the Repairers stood stiffly in their new respective positions, not a one daring to even peek at the others.
As Azuma had ordered, each Repairer was paired with the given pilot change: Wrecka to Clay's station, Tsukasa to Roose's station, Saki to Yamagi's station, Ikhny to Zero's station, and Kizna to Hiead's station. Anyone would guess that Kizna was the most pissed, but to be truthful, it was difficult to tell who exactly disliked their position worse.
"All right, Candidates," began Azuma calmly. "Prepare to fight in five, four, three, two, on -- "
"WAIT." It wasn't a request, but a statement. The Instructor flicked his eyes at Pro-Ing number 88 and set his jaw.
"Candidate, I did not leave room for any - comments."
"Instructor." Zero's tone of voice immediately caught Kizna's attention. She frowned. She had never heard him speak in such a low, dangerous tone. It was loaded with anger. ANGER. Out of all the times they had been together, the true 88 Repairer had never heard her partner's cords charged with anger rather than determination. This was most definitely not good. Anger meant that more than ever, his immediate target would be-
"Hiead," whisphered Ikhny.
"Shut up, Allecto," commanded Hiead, hearing the whisper. He was focused on the fight. He didn't need his own stupid Repairer distracting him when she wasn't even his current Repairer - the thought made him growl in his throat. It was all *his* fault. *ZERO'S*. He would never have to fight with a different Repairer if it hadn't been for HIM.
"I wasn't finished yet!" snapped Zero, making everyone jump. "Instructor, I want you to put us on Code Five."
Azuma's mouth dropped. Code Five was a no holds barred Pro Ing fight. That meant that the fight would go on until there was only one Candidate remaining conscious. A very, VERY bad idea.
"NO."
"Instructor," warned Zero.
"Zero--" Kizna snapped her mouth shut. She had forgotten already that Zero wasn't her Candidate this time. HIEAD was. She gritted her teeth and turned her attention back to Hiead's stats. A small part of her twitched when she realized that his coordination, tunes, and adaptability were nearly the same as Zero's. In fact, it would be safe to say - safe to say that Hiead and Zero were the exact same. A quick glance at the brain patterns, though, brought Kizna back to herself. Zero's and Hiead's brain patterns were most definitely opposite, but... there was no telling how angry Zero was beneath his mask. In a given situation, if Zero was angry.... his and Hiead's brain patterns could nearly be identical.. and she knew from experience that when Zero was angry, he didn't make very many good decisions.
Ever.
Azuma was painfully aware of that fact as well. He'd been with Zero long enough to know that an idiot on the warpath didn't make him any less of an idiot. If he refused to allow Code Five, Hiead and Zero would probably beat the ST out of each other anyway. He sighed heavily. /Why didn't I just blow up and ask for a recess instead of an isolated war? They're all going to kill each other./
"Instructor?" came Ikhny's calm voice. She managed to keep her eyes fixed on his annoyed look. "Why don't we just request an out of bounds fight? That way no one really gets hurt."
"That's not enough," snapped Hiead. "Requesting a--"
"Shup up, Hiead!" cut in Kizna. She glared at him through the small window. "This isn't the time or place to hold a fight."
The silver-haired boy jerked. He'd never had a Repairer, nevertheless his enemy's Repairer in control of his fate and fully prepared to make it a difficult one. He narrowed his eyes at her. "You think I can't beat your ridiculous ex-Candidate?"
"What do you mean 'EX?'" yelled Zero. "I told you, that is MY Repairer! That happens to mean NOT YOURS, IDIOT!"
Roose blinked and directed his words to Yamagi. "Were they married or something?" He cocked his head when the other pilot couldn't get any words through his hysterical laughter. "Yamagi?"
"That's a very INTERESTING proposition," inserted Clay. A thoughtful look crossed his face as a million different strategies and plot patterns ran through his brain. "A love triangle? No, no, no... not Hiead certainly..."
"I don't WANT your Repairer, moron!"
"Then stop acting like it!"
"Yamagi, you're still laughing?"
"Muh - muh -- muh - muhmuhmuhmarriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiIIIIAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"
"Zero and Kizna perhaps.. very interesting indeed! Was this whole excerised merely for the flushing out of pairs?" Blush. "Wow. I wonder which pairs..."
"HIEAD, IKHNY WAS PROPOSING AN OUT OF BOUNDS FIGHT," exploded the cat-eared girl finally. "THAT *MEANS*, IDIOTS, THAT YOU CAN KNOCK THE BLOODY HECK OUT OF EACH OTHER UNTIL ONE OR THE OTHER GETS KNOCKED OUT OF BOUNDS!!!"
"But I-HUNH?!" Zero stopped in the middle and gaped. Everyone just kind of stared at him through their vid-links.
"Zero, are you okay?" said Kizna and Ikhny simultaneously. Kizna blushed and waved nervously to Ikhny. "Sorry! Almost forgot!" /This is gonna be hard.../
Zero was silent a few seconds before answering. "We aren't married."
A sweatdrop cloud swept through the Pro-Ing room. Hiead groaned.
"Zero, you are such a MORON!!"
"Why?! I was just telling the truth!!" retorted Zero plainly.
Yamagi wiped a few tears from his eyes. "You are so five minutes ago, Zero. You have any idea how long ago Roose said that?"
"Well whoever said it is sure gonna get it!" responded Candidate 88 annoyedly. He stepped menacingly toward the three companion pilots, all of whom were backing away and spluttering numerous apologies.
/Annoyed... he's just annoyed!/ Kizna's smile broke through. /Not ANGRY anymore.. we really might get through this okay.../
Zero glared at the three. "Who said that--"
*THONK*
Pro-Ing 88 fell flat on it's face. To the sound of maniacal laughter, the shocked boy sprung back on his feet. "HIEAD?!"
The silver-haired boy stopped laughing. "You had your back turned against your Number One enemy. You're stupider than you look."
"Instructor," said Tsukasa quickly. She ignored his annoyed look. "Wouldn't it be a good idea to start the fight?"
"It would be a good idea to start the fight," rushed Azuma belatedly. "Ready Candidates?" One 'yes,' two begging eyes and two angry glares signalled to Azuma that he shouldn't have asked. "Okay. Ready.... fight!!!"
Zero and Hiead all but ignored everyone they assumed weaker by flinging themselves at each other with whole-hearted zeal. Kizna and Ikhny quickly found themselves chest deep [I have no idea why I picked that analogy, no da!] in a mental assault of thousands of new bits and pieces of information. The differences and similarities between them were staggering. Kizna found herself witnessing attacks that exactly resembled Zero's, but in response to different attacks. Ikhny saw the same. All the same attacks to different stimuli.
The Instructor was suddenly struck with the weight of all that he had don- haha, silly me! CORRECTION: With one tenth of what he had done, considering that he had convinced himself that within a breadth of death he was going to stick to his plan. He looked at Pro-Ings 88 and 89, then at Ikhny and Kizna. He blinked. /I put the top competing Candidates with the top Repairer of the other./ Blink. /Whoa./
The other candidates and repairers found themselves simply gaping. Somehow.. somehow the four had completely forgotten their situation and imbedded themselves in the fight. Was it just their eyes or.. had Hiead and Zero.. gotten faster??
"Unbelievable," said Saki, mostly to herself. She had merely glanced at Yamagi's stats before focusing back on the fight. They were DEFINITELY more important at the moment.
Wrecka, on the other hand, was looking with apparent interest [pardon the phrase] at Clay's stats. /So this is what Saki had to deal with.../ With a huge grin she pushed one button.
"-if the Instructor is, indeed, seeking to end this experiment in pairs, then-AHHHHHHHHHH!"
Saki's attention automatically snapped to Clay. "What the heck is wrong with you?"
"I-I-I-I-I-I-I--"
"OUT WITH IT, FORTRAN!!!!"
"I-I s-seem to h-have di-di-dif-fficul-l-lty-y-y m-m-mov-v-vi-i-i-ing-g-g-g- g," grated Clay. His true Repairer had difficulty deciding whether she should turn to Wrecka and scold her or laugh. She chose to do both.
"Wrecka! What a time to use the immobilization ability!" Giggle. Snicker.
Ikhny was on the verge of being overwhelmed. Zero's speed was growing exponentially within seconds, and his total stamina with it. She could nearly hear the wear and tear of the Pro-Ing suits. If things kept up this way the suits would be ripped apart, and who knows what would happen to the Pilots themselves.. she was drawn from her thoughts by a sudden jump in the system. She glanced at the window to the left. Zero's brainwaves were fluctuating wildly. Her eyes widened. /No... wait a minute... The last time that happened... With HIEAD../
Hiead had a similar jump in brain waves. There was no questioning it. Kizna knew that it would happen within minutes. She frantically tried to control it on her end. "Hiead! Don't you DARE! This is NOT THE TIME!! CONTROL IT, YOU IDIOT!!"
"SHUT UP!!" yelled Hiead, neutralizing a blow by his opponent. He could feel his control slipping. /NO! You are in CONTROL!!!/
/~As if, idiot.~/
"Instructor!" said Kizna. "CALL IT OFF!"
"CANDIDATES, THE FIGHT IS CANCELLED!!" yelled Instructor. He watched helplessly as the control boards of Ikhny and Kizna went red. At that moment, Rill walked in with a peeved look on her face.
"Hijikata, GIS has docked with--" She stopped short and glared at the various looks of horror and laughter on the Repariers' faces. She glared at Azuma. "I thought you said this wasn't until later! What are you--"
Clay fought as hard as he could to move. "N-N-N-Not-t-t-t f-f-f-f- faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaair-r-r!!" Wrecka shook her head and put her finger over the button she pushed the first time.
"Okay Clay, remobilizing!" She pressed it.
"Whoa!" Clay Cliff Fortran struggled to regain his balance as one of his previous attempts to struggle carried over and he began to fall toward Roose, who was, incidentally, still in the pathway of Zero and Hiead, who had incidentally stumbled close to the darkness of the sheer out of bounds drop.
Can anybody see where this is going?
Yamagi certainly could, and he was not very happy. "Yo, Clay! Roose! Look out!"
"Oh no!" cried Ikhny. "EX reaction--"
"EX reaction in five--" said Kizna.
Saki blinked. "Clay! Look out for Roose!"
"Four--"
"Roose, look out for Clay!"
"Three--"
Clay bit his tongue as he slammed face first into Roose.
"Two--"
Roose inevitably tipped forward and slammed into Zero and Hiead.
"One--"
"AHHH! What the--"
Zero and Hiead ran into each other, the force carrying them over the edge of the out of bounds zone.
"REACTION!!!!"
The combined yells of Zero and Hiead were drowned out as their EX reactions produced a blinding white light that enveloped all of the Pro Ings and the whole of the deck. The Pro Ings were knocked over by the force of the blow, and the Repairers were knocked to the ground. Rill and Azuma were knocked off the steps and rammed into each other, landing into the deck as everything went black.
Well. I've been told that I'm evil. ::shakes desperately:: Am I?? Am I?? Bwahaha! You shall not TRULY know until the next chapter! Which, if I am galled enough, will be put up tomorrow night/the following afternoon! Bwahaha! Life is, indeed, good.
Next Chapter: I meant it when I said I'm glad I'm not Azuma. Here you really get to find out why. After the combined reactions of Zero and Hiead, things are a little bit different. What the heck is going on here?! I didn't know that an EX could make.. could make THAT happen! Azuma, but some clothes on! Why don't you clothes fit you any--- oh...... OHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!