Shadowwolf: Thanks to all readers and reviewers!!
Coffee Luv ~ *joins in with bowing to the Brad plushie* Okay…we need lives…Glad you liked it. ^.^
Saku ~ Glad you like the whole Fluffy Bunnies thing. Heehee…I think it's fitting that such a person should be on such a team, don't you? Well, sorry to say that the Vesta thing won't be getting any better… *duct tapes mouth shut before too much is revealed*
darkleena ~ Only more chapters can save you?! MUST WRITE MORE! *begins to scribble on paper* Thanks for reviewing!
The Masked Instigator ~ I'm glad you like it! I really appreciate your reviews! Here's number three!
Shadowwolf: Guess what?! I can't do simple addition! In the last chapter I said Joon was 20, but she's really only 19…
Bit: HA-HA!
Shadowwolf: *hits Bit with a stick* Anyway…yes. Just so you know, even though I don't think it's that relevant. *shrugs* The same statement applying to the disclaimer from chapter one, from chapter two, applies to this chapter. I hope that made sense to you! It made perfect sense to me! Enough chatting, on to the chapter!
BEFORE THE BLITZ
Better Luck Next Time
I sat in my Rev Raptor on the battlefield, standing on Vesta's left side and Denki's right. They both seemed perfectly calm, the complete opposite of me at the moment. Of course, they had large, powerful Zoids that would be useful against the two Dark Horns and single Iron Kong in front of us.
This was apparently the infamous Champ Team, owned and operated by the wealthy Harry Champ. I was impressed with the weapons and quality of his Zoids, but I knew I'd be spending my money on something better. Like a König Wolf…I looked over at Vesta's Zoid and smiled. The Wolf clawed the ground and growled at the Dark Horn across from it, while the Dark Horn shook its head from side to side. The Judge started setting up the battle, and my butterflies came back.
I looked over to the left and saw Joon's Command Wolf in the distance. She had said she was going to hang around and watch this battle, and it looked like she kept her word. This made me feel a little better, especially remembering what she told me before…
"Don't worry, Brad, you can't do anything wrong here. The Fluffy Bunnies Team is zero and six, they won't do bodily harm to you after another loss," she chuckled. "But a victory, aided by you, would really start your career off on a good foot. So give it your best, but don't worry. I know you'll do great…"
Nice, comforting, inspiring words to hear from my role model. But they didn't stop all of my nerves from acting up. I looked down and held the charm around my neck.
"Battlefield set up. The Fluffy Bunnies Team versus the Champ Team. Battle mode 0982. Ready…fight!" the Judge called and Vesta and Denki charged forward. I grabbed the controls and charged after them.
"Okay, Brad, no offense, but you don't stand a chance against the Iron Kong, so why don't you and Vesta take on a Dark Horn together?" Denki asked over the comm. link as we ran. Another comm. link opened to reveal our opponent.
"Hello, Fluffy Bunnies!" he said and immediately broke into hysterical laughter. When he caught himself he continued. "My name's Harry Champ, and I'm a man destined to be king! Your record is about to get even worse, and your reputation lowered further!"
"Really? At least we aren't wearing pink boas," Vesta spat. Harry blinked, and then looked down at his jacket.
"Pink boas? Hey! This is a designer jacket, I'll have you know!"
Vesta coughed and laughed. Harry looked flustered and terminated the link. "Okay, Denk, I'll go with Brad, but I want a piece of Harry too. Save some for me," she said, pulling her Zoid over closer to mine while Denki's Blade Liger pulled ahead. "Okay, Brad, just do what I say and this guy'll go down in no time."
"All right, Ves," I replied and waited for her to give me instructions. We continued on in silence until we almost met up with the Dark Horn.
"Okay, I'm going to tackle him and wrestle with him a bit. Then I'll jump off and I want you to come in and finish him off, while I go and start on the other Dark Horn. We can repeat the process with that one. Got it?"
"I got it!" I shouted excitedly as I took mental note of the plan. Vesta nodded and moved ahead to meet with the opposing Zoid. Her König Wolf leapt into the air, more like a fox than a wolf, and came down on the Dark Horn's back. The Dark Horn collapsed under the pressure and Vesta began to tear at the Zoid's underside. The Dark Horn couldn't defend itself very well, and Vesta soon jumped off to let me in.
"Go for it!"
I nodded and my Rev Raptor moved forward with a hiss. Before the Dark Horn could push itself up, I jumped on it and dug my Zoids claws into the weak area prepared by Vesta. My Zoid growled and the enemy sort of groaned, then pushed up and sent me to the ground. I tried twice to get my Zoid up before it actually did, only to have the Dark Horn plow into it from the side.
My Raptor hissed again and jumped up quickly as the Dark Horn turned around for another attack. Before the pilot got a chance, Denki came to my aid and sliced the Dark Horn nearly in half with his blades. I was about to thank him when the Iron Kong, piloted by Harry, grabbed the Liger and threw it to the ground.
"Units 54360 and 54330 are disabled," the Judge updated. It was two on two now, and one of our good Zoids was gone.
I turned to see Vesta wrestling with the other Dark Horn, just before Harry picked up my Zoid. I fought the controls and tried to get free, but nothing worked, and all I could do was watch as the Iron Kong's grip tightened and squeezed the life out of my Zoid. I was dropped to the ground, and got shaken up by the impact, but immediately cursed and punched my control panel.
"Unit 00417 is disabled," the Judge updated again, and I opened my cockpit with some grumbling. I hopped down to the ground and watched as the Iron Kong approached Vesta.
Her König Wolf gave the finishing blow to the Dark Horn and turned just as the Kong's arm swept toward her. She didn't have time to evade and was launched into the air, landing with a crash on the ground a couple hundred feet away. It was enough.
"Units 54410 and 55120 are disabled…the battle is over! The battle is over! The winner is…the Champ Team!" the Judge announced before closing its capsule and launching back into the sky. Vesta climbed out of her Zoid and walked over to Denki as Harry lifted his canopy and shouted to us.
"Nice try! Maybe we'll fight again and I can win some more easy prize money for new jackets!" He laughed and closed the canopy, then turned and started to drag the two fallen Dark Horns off the field. Denki and Vesta came up to me and I swallowed hard.
"Brad, if you'd taken that Dark Horn out like I said, Denki wouldn't've had to save you! We were winning!" Vesta growled at me. Denki put a hand on her shoulder.
"Calm down, Ves, he tried. Besides, it was a tough battle, even for us! Come off it…"
Vesta growled and folded her arms across her chest. "Okay…but he isn't getting paid…"
"I don't expect to get paid…I didn't perform well at all…" I said somewhat defensively.
"At least the boy has sense," Vesta muttered and turned back to her Zoid. "Our next battle is really important, so let's try and get Jack or someone," she said to Denki before walking back to her König Wolf. I sighed.
"I'm sorry, Denki…"
"Don't be sorry, Brad. This was a tough first battle to fight. You did well," he said with a comforting smile. I forced a smile back to him.
"Thanks…"
"No problem…but…I think it would be best if you moved on to another team. Only because Vesta's right…we need an experienced mercenary for our next battle…it really isn't anything against you, Brad."
"Oh, yeah…I understand…that's fine…" I replied, feeling pretty low and useless, but trying my best not to show it. Denki smiled awkwardly as Joon's blue Command Wolf ran up and pulled to a stop next to us.
"Brad!" she called before jumping down from the cockpit and walking over. "Not bad for your first real team battle!"
"Thanks…" I said less than sincerely. Joon's smile faltered.
"Thanks for letting him fight for you, Denki."
"No problem at all. Well, I'm off to go fix our Zoids and get ready for our next battle. I'll see you around," Denki said with a step toward his Blade Liger.
"All right. Good luck next time," Joon said. Denki nodded and ran the rest of the way to his Zoid. Joon crouched down to my height. "Everything okay, Brad?"
"Yeah…" I sighed, avoiding eye contact with her. Joon frowned and patted my shoulder.
"It's okay, Brad. It really was a tough battle, they weren't just saying that. Those were three powerful Zoids to fight, especially in a Rev Raptor…"
I nodded.
"Oh, Brad. Don't be like that. Come on…I'll tell you what: I'll set you up with another team, and maybe you'll have a better time with them. Whaddya think?"
"I dunno…I mean…how could you even find a team to take me?"
"You didn't do that poorly, Brad. Besides, teams are usually eager to take on fresh mercenaries, because they could be the best new thing-"
"But I'm not," I interrupted. Joon sighed.
"You didn't let me finish. They could be the best new thing in hiding, just waiting to come out. There aren't very many mercenaries who start out with a bunch of wins, y'know."
"How many are there, then?"
"One or two. But what I'm getting at is this: if a team can make a good relationship with a new mercenary, they can usually count on that mercenary to come back for them at any time. That means that teams will want you, and if you can prove yourself, you'll find a team to fall back on if you need a job."
"So…if I can't prove myself…?" I raised an eyebrow and Joon growled in frustration.
"Stop putting yourself down and thinking you can't do it. Remember what you said? You promised me you wouldn't give up…"
I blinked and looked up at her. "I'm not giving up…"
"Then why are you being so hard on yourself? It looked like you were just having an off day, to me. That's to be expected, with the tension you're going through. The next battle will be better. I promise."
"Okay, Joon…" I said with a slight smile. "Thanks…"
"Don't mention it. Now, all we need to do is repair your Zoid and get you set up on a better team. Then all that's left is to make enough prize money for your own blue Command Wolf," she said with a smirk and a wink. I chuckled.
----
"Hello, Brad. My name is Bjorn Alt. This is my sister, Jennifer, and our friend David Barken. Welcome to the Bulls-Eye Team," a tall young woman with black hair and amber eyes said to me as we stood in their team's hangar.
"Thanks! It's nice to meet you, Bjorn, Jennifer, and David," I said and shook Bjorn's hand, then Jennifer's. Jennifer was the same size and build as her sister, with brown hair and the same amber eyes. I smiled and shook David's hand, next. He was taller than the sisters and had golden-blonde hair and warm brown eyes.
"Great to have you on our team, Brad," David said with a grin. Joon stepped forward and played with my hair.
"Thanks for taking him, you guys. He'll do well."
"You're very welcome, Joon," Jennifer said, "We've been looking for a young mercenary to help us out, since my Dibison's in the shop."
"I'm glad Brad's here to help you out. Well, I have to head out, and Brad needs to pick up his Zoid, but I wish you all the best of luck tomorrow."
"Thanks," all three of the pilots said at once. Joon nodded and started back to her Command Wolf. I waved to my newest employers and followed her.
"Thanks, Joon," I said as I caught up and walked at her side.
"You're welcome, Brad. I'm sorry I have to leave you, but I need to get myself a job," she said with a chuckle.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine on my own," I said proudly, but couldn't hold up the attitude and laughed.
We climbed into her Zoid and had a silent ride into the nearest town, where my Rev Raptor was being repaired. Joon and I entered the shop quietly and went up to the desk.
"Excuse me, Sir, is unit 50034 repaired yet?" I asked the middle aged man behind the counter. He looked down at a notepad and nodded.
"Yessir, that Rev Raptor was in bad shape, but it's all ready for ya. What will payment be?"
Joon stepped forward and sort of nudged me out of the way. "I'm paying. Brad, go ahead and get your Zoid," she said with a smile.
"Thanks, Joon." I felt bad that Joon had to pay for my Zoid's repairs. She had her own Zoid to worry about. It wasn't fair…I'd have to pay her back sometime. I sighed and walked through a door marked "Repairs" and found myself in a large hangar. My Rev Raptor was just to the right of the door and I walked over to it.
It looked brand new. A man in overalls approached me with a clipboard. "Are you the owner of this Zoid?"
"Yes."
"Has it been paid for?"
"It's being paid for now," I replied. This mechanic looked over to see the man from the desk open the door and hold up a piece of paper. He looked satisfied and gave me the clipboard.
"Sign here please." He pointed to a space at the bottom, which I signed without hesitation. "Thank you. Please exit through the door on your right."
I nodded and climbed into the cockpit, then pulled forward and walked down the length of the hangar. The collection of Zoids in this one hangar was amazing. A Warshark, two Command Wolves, three Helcats, a Dark Horn, a Shield Liger, a Saber Tiger, and two Gun Snipers were all lined up. I was amazed that they could repair all of them.
The door on my right, labeled "1C" opened and I moved my Zoid out. Joon and her blue Command Wolf were outside, waiting for me. I stopped my Zoid next to hers and jumped out, then ran up to her with a sad feeling starting to surface again.
"If you need any money or anything, just let me know, Brad. Don't be afraid to ask for stuff."
"Thanks, Joon. Hopefully I'll be earning my own, though. Then I won't have to bother you anymore," I said with a slight smile. Joon came forward on me with a tight hug.
"Aw, Brad, you never bother me. Just keep in touch and let me know how things go. I want to know how every battle goes."
"Okay, Joon," I sighed and she let go.
"Don't forget to have fun…you know where to reach me."
"Yup." I watched sadly as she climbed into her Zoid and shouted down to me before lowering the canopy.
"Bye, Brad! Love ya!"
"Bye, Joon! Love ya too!" I called back and waved as the Command Wolf came to life and stretched. It turned and howled at me before charging off. I looked up at my Rev Raptor and thought about how much I hated watching her leave…
Shadowwolf: Sorta long. ^_^;; I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! More to come soon!