I do not own Zone of the Enders or Second Runner. Both are owned by Konami.

Zone of the Enders Side Story, Chapter One ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------

The LEV thrust behind a rock with volleys of lasers following it. Ayame quickly loaded another clip into her chain gun, and wiped the sweat from her forehead. The Raptors would close quickly, and she had to think of someway to take them down. A few laser blasts hit the ground next to her. She spun the LEV around and opened fire on a Spider that crawled over the rock. Its shield didn't even stop the 25mm bullets from piercing the robots shell and filling it with holes. As she was distracted with the Spider, two Raptors took this as a chance to attack. She fired upon the approaching frames, tearing one to shreds in seconds. The second Raptor thrust right past her, turned around and sliced off one of the arms. She turned as quickly as she could and thrust towards the rock. She fired as she went, taking down the Raptor before it could attack. She began to survey her surroundings. The remains of the Raptor stumbled backwards and over a cliff. The drop was at least three hundred meters, so she had no chance of going down it. All around her, rocks were scattered over this area of Mars. Only this one was large enough to take cover behind properly. The enemy's Orbital Frame wasn't on her radar anymore. As she peeked out from behind the rock, she found nothing but the remains of the battle between the 1st LEV Assault team and the enemies Raptors and Spiders. She turned around to check the other side, and almost immediately opened fire on the Orbital Frame that snuck up on her. It was as black as night, with a long almost flowing cape. It held a large energy sword, instead of it being attached to the arm. It also had a small energy gun in its other hand. Her bullets didn't even get to its armor, for its shield was enough to block it. It raised the sword, and brought it down on Ayame, killing her.

Ayame awoke in a cold sweat. Ever since Ryu had barley saved her, she would have this dream night after night. She pushed the covers off of her and looked at the clock. It was about four in the morning. She sat up in bed and looked around at the familiar surroundings. Her blankets had a flower patter on them, and they were pushed off the bed. There was a small window on the otherwise white blank wall. On another sat a small stand and her TV, which was muted and turned on to an old movie. On the last wall was her dresser, an old present from her family on Earth. She pulled off her clothes from last night, soaked from sweat, and threw them into a basket. She stepped into the bathroom and began to brush her teeth. She quickly finished and ran her fingers through her short red hair. She stepped into the shower, thinking about the dream and what really happened. The only difference was the end. When the strange Orbital Frame attacked, another one blocked his sword. This one was almost the same as the other, yet it was all white, as if to signify a defender of the innocent. The black Frame, its attack parried, switched to a flight mode and took off. The white Frame was aptly named Bengosha. The two Frames were twins, like Jehuty and Anubis, yet weren't as important. She stepped out of the shower and went to her dresser. She put on a tight tank top and jeans. She only wore tight clothing so she didn't have to worry about it getting in her way when she piloted. Ayame walked down the hall and into Ryu's room. He was sound asleep, and the room barley had anything in it. His father was with the unit she was in, all under the Space Force. These two met only by coincidence. The kid was trying to save his father with the Frame he found. His father gave his life to protect his comrades. The same family saved her twice in a row, one sacrificed himself and the other protected her. Ayame walked down the hall and into the kitchen. She brewed some coffee and walked through the other doorway and into the living room. It was small and quaint, with only a small couch and a computer at a desk. This computer is how she received her orders from the Space Force. She quickly booted it up and logged in. She flicked some of her red hair out of her face, and opened up her orders for the day. At first she figured it was a joke, but she noticed who it was from, Elena.

She was to kill Ryu.

She entered his room, with her pistol drawn. She knew this was wrong, for Ryu was only a kid. He had saved her life. Elena only wanted the kid killed because he had stolen the Bengosha. She pulled the hammer back on the pistol. Ryu stirred, and rolled away from her. If she went through with this, she would have to live with this decision forever. But if she didn't kill Ryu and return the Bengosha, Elena would send the Space Force after her. "I'm sorry Ryu." she whispered, as she pulled the trigger. A gunshot reverberated throughout the building, and a piercing scream was heard.

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I love cliffhangers, don't you? So did she shoot Ryu, or someone else? Will this mystery Orbital Frame be defeated by the Bengosha? These will be answered later, but for now honor me by reviewing! See you next chapter!