FS- *Says in a quick breath* I-own-Zoids! *Guys in
white suits spring out of nowhere and put her in a straitjacket.* Ahh! I own it,
I tell you! Muwhaha! Remember kids, don't mess with disclaimers, or you'll get
put in a mental institution. ^_^
The Explanation
"Talk." Leena demanded, shoving a glass of water in front of Vega. "Thank you." He said before taking a swig. "Okay. I'll start eight years ago." The Blitz Team glanced at each other before leaning forward.
"I think you all know how I was a Backdraft pilot? The only reason I stayed with them was because they had the Fury. Plus, Sarah was my guardian. Anyway, when I was five, I got a message from the Berserk Fury. Apparently, I was his chosen one, the only one who could bring out his full potential. He and I contacted each other regularly, waiting for the day when he was found." Jamie was furiously copying this down, for reasons unknown. Vega glanced at him before continuing.
"Anyway, I always thought I was an orphan. I had never known who my parents were; for all intents and purposes Sarah was my family. I worked for the Backdraft since I was two, and I was their best pilot. I think you noticed that Liger Zero didn't utterly destroy the Fury, as most zoids would have done. Do you know why?" he asked. They looked at each other and shrugged.
"Because he and Liger have been best friends for over three hundred years. They were part of a small group of zoids that were all alive, that thought, that breathed, that felt pain and anger and sadness, in short, were like humans. There were only three zoids in the group, the rest were a organoid and two……… well, I'll tell you later."
"The three were the Berserk Fury, the Liger Zero, and Shadowrage, the Death Wolf. Berserk Fury and Liger Zero you already know. Shadowrage is that golden-eyed wolf zoid that the Berserk Fury killed." Jamie asked an actual intelligent question. "Why did the Fury kill Shadowrage if they were best friends?" Vega sighed heavily.
"Fury wasn't the one who killed him, or all those other zoids. It was an organic virus. I knew about it, because Fury's mind voice was a lot nicer before. I couldn't do anything about the virus, because the Backdraft made it on purpose. They knew the real Fury wouldn't do any of the atrocities they had planned, so they……… um, replaced him."
"The only reason I didn't pack up and leave was because Fury could contact me from time to time, although it nearly killed him fighting the virus for so long." Vega's expression grew wistful. "He used to tell me the most wonderful stories about life on Zi in the days of the Guardian Force. Well, he didn't contact me for a couple months, and I got worried."
"Finally, just when I was about insane with agonizing, he contacted me. The virus had been torturing him, in a sense. Anyway, he told me that some friends of his were going to try and liberate us. And they did, but at the cost of the life of Shadowrage."
I staggered across the desert, heat waves rising up and slapping me in the face. My boots weren't enough, but Liger was too drained to have us merge with him, and Shadow was exhausted, panting heavily as his metal feet dug into the sand. {God, the ZBC seems to be turning into the Backdraft all over again.} *Tell me about it.* Shadow agreed. Liger didn't say anything, just kept plodding along relentlessly. We turned our faces to the setting sun and trudged along to the west.
A black crumpled hulk rose out of the gray-brown desert. We stood still before running over to Shadowrage. He lifted his had and gasped, :Astarael…………: his tongue lolling helplessly. I turned her over and flinched; the eyes that had once held so much life were now dulled. "Raven………" I cradled her to my chest and snapped, {Shadow! Can you merge with Shadowrage long enough for us to get to the Blitz Team base?} He nodded before arcing upward. Shadowrage stood up, even though the gaping hole through his body was sparking and fizzing. *Raven?!* Shadow was worried. *The damages too severe, I can only keep him moving for about a half-hour.* {Good enough.} I broke into a jerky, trembling run, the one where you think you can't go another step, but you find the will to put one foot in front of the other
"What do you know about the original race of Zi?" Vega asked. "The zoidans?" Doc asked. Vega nodded an affirmative. "Um………" Doc ruminated. "You're hopeless." Jamie sighed. The Blitz Team nodded agreement.
"There were two races of zoidians. The first was powerful, but fairly common. Most of them were exterminated by the Deathsaurer. There was a second race, but they were deadly, rare, and primitive." Vega's jaw tightened at the word 'primitive'. "How do you figure that?"
Jamie glanced at him. "They lived in clans, with a leader. The leader could be either a man or a woman. The second race was called the Wild, with the clans called after animals. They had a special bond with the zoids and organoids. Not much is known about them except these last few facts. They had a guardian spirit, which could easily destroy the legendary Death Stinger. They also went insane in battle, and wouldn't recognize their own side. In this state, they'd destroy anything."
Vega nodded. "Good. You know something about the Wild. Anyway, I know about the Liger and the power of it. The Liger Zero consists of three parts. There is the actual Liger Zero, the zoid. The black dinosaur you saw is Shadow, an organoid. The young man is a Wild zoidian. There are only three zoidians left."
"When these three merge, they become unstoppable. The Death Wolf is also three parts. The zoid, Shadowrage, is powerful by itself, but much better with the other two. The organoid is dead, his name was Blind Seer. He was the only wolf-type. The young woman is also a Wild zoidian."
The Blitz Team glanced at each other before walking to the Doc's office, while Vega waited in the conference room. "Doc? How does he know all this?" Doc shook his head. "We'll have to ask him." They went back into the room.
Leena sat forward. "Vega, how do you know all this?" Vega glanced up at her and smiled. "You'll find out." He stood up and exited, leaving to sit by the Fury, which was out on a cliff.
"Fury?" he whispered. The deep bass voice of the Fury resounded in his mind. Yeah? "Did I do okay?" A rare wisp of the Fury's emotion filtered through his carefully neutral expression. (A/N: Can zoids have expressions?) This time it was affection for his Chosen, guilt for destroying Shadowrage, and the thinnest bit of rage at Drakan. Vega knew that the small amount of rage was, as the earth people would say, 'only the tip of the iceberg.'
You did very well Chosen. Not many I know could stand up to that kind of questioning, except for your mother or father. Vega smiled to himself, Fury almost never praised anyone, and even a small compliment was extraordinary. "Fury? Look at the sunset." The Berserk Fury obligingly turned his head to the west. It's beautiful isn't it? The red reminds me of Leena's hair. Vega shuddered as he remembered the psycho teen who had so mercilessly interrogated him.
Fury's tail curled around, drawing Vega closer to his side. See the stars Chosen? The young pilot nodded. Your father loves to watch the stars, even though he can't explain it. They hold memories for him, I guess. "Really?" Fury snorted mentally. Come on, would I lie to you? Vega smirked. Sometimes the Fury reminded him of a teenager in a zoid's body, even though he was centuries old.
The Blitz Team gawked at the tender moment between a boy and his zoid. "But but I thought the Fury was evil and merciless!" Jamie spluttered. Doc, showing for (a rare moment) some intellect, replied, "That wasn't the Fury, that was the virus, remember? Jamie nodded assent.
A plume of dust rose on the horizon. Vega called "Fury!" The Fury dipped a claw down, grabbing Vega and holding him gently in his claws and streaking to the horizon. The Blitz Team followed, careening wildly over the desert.
TBC
FS- Okay! I have a VERY IMPORTANT question to ask my readers! What organoid do you think should be merged with the Berserk Fury?
Gandalf- Readers………… YOU……… SHALL………… REVIEW! *Strikes staff down on review button*