Beyond the Battlefield

Believing In One's Heart

            Leena and Jamie peak around a corner in the Hovercargo, watching as a doctor comes out of one of the rooms and walks over to Toros and Mr. Umi.

            "What do you think he's saying?" Jamie asks.

            "I don't know. I wish I could read lips."

            "Who needs to know how to read lips when you can just look at the expressions on their faces." The doctor soon shakes hands with Toros and starts to walk away with Mr. Umi. Toros opens the door the doctor had just came out of, taking a quick look in and then heading towards the two."

            "OH man. Dad's coming this way. We better get back."

            "Bit, you need to eat something. You haven't eaten for the past three days," Brad comments as he shows Bit a plate of food as Bit sits on the couches in the common room.

            "I'm not hungry." He pushes away the plate and looks away from the members of the Flugel team.

            "Come on. You used to get hungry 30 minutes after eating your last meal all the time."

            "I said I'm not hungry. How could I be when I can't stop worrying about Ami. No one wants to tell me what's going on with her. She could be in a coma or dead for all I know."

            "We know how much you care about Ami Bit, but you also have to think about yourself. Do you really think she would really want to see you like this?" Naomi says as she tries to make him understand. Before anyone else can say a word, Jamie and Leena come running in.

            "Hey everyone. Doc is coming back from talking with the doctor."

            "Did you hear anything?" Bits asks, seeming hopefully.

            "We were too far away to hear anything, but we were able to tell some things from their faces and it doesn't look good," Leena comments.

            "Bit?" Everyone looks towards the doorway to see Toros enter the room. It all turns silent until Bit speaks up.

            "Yeah Doc?"

            "How are you feeling?" he asks, making his way to the center of the room.

            "I'm fine. What about Ami though?"

            "Maybe you should all sit down." All the pilots follow his recommendation and sit.

            "So what's going on Dad?" Leena asks.

            "The doctor said that there's nothing wrong with her internal organs and at this stage nothing should happen. But there have been no signs that she has even woken up yet. She received head trauma, multiple fractures and bruising. There was nothing life threatening though since it seems that Rapidfire had taken most of the hit for Ami," the Doc says resting his head on his intertwined hands.

            "But if that's it, she should be fine shouldn't she?" Leon asks.

            "Unfortunately no Leon. IT seems that Ami has hurt her right shoulder and arm quite badly. The doctor isn't sure if she will regain full use of it, which means…"

            "That she won't be able to be a Zoid warrior anymore," Jamie finishes off.

            "It's not fair. Why couldn't I have been the one hurt? I did it have to be Ami? I should've done something," Bit says, punching his fist into the couch.

            "There was nothing you could've done Bit. Fujimori knew Ami was more of a threat, so he thought that betaking her down for good, he would win," Brad says.

            "But now, she may never even be able to fight," he responds, almost in a whisper.

            "You should never listen to what doctors say. I've learned in the past the hard way," says a familiar female voice. They all look towards the doorway and see a bandaged Ami leaning against the doorframe.

            "Ami? What are you doing up? You should be in bed resting," Bit says getting up from his seat and heading towards her.

            "A warrior never rests, especially when there are battles to win." She tries to take a step away from the wall, only to fall to the ground on her knees.

            "Ami, you gotta be more careful." He kneels down next to her and looks at her face to face.

            "I said I'm fine. As for you Bit, you don't look so well."

            "I'm much better than you are." He starts to help her out as Brad comes over to help as well.

            "How long have I been out?" She asks, making her way to the couch.

            "Five days," Jamie responds.

            "That long. Wow," she says, her voice empty.

            "We really should get you back to bed," Naomi suggests.

            "I wanna see Rapidfire." The request was sudden and surprised everyone in the room.

            "No you don't. And you're in no condition to go out," Toros says, trying to be stern.

            "I said I want to go see Rapidfire. Now take me to her or else I'm going on my own," she commands, looking at the doc straight in the eye.

            "Are you sure about this Fire Cat? You really should be resting." Mr. Umi leads the group towards the bay.

            "I'm sure Mr. Umi. I want to see her," Ami says, hobbling along with a crutch holding her up and Bit right next to her.

            "Alright." The group soon enters to see a piece of machinery that hardly resembles the great cat.

            "Rapidfire," Ami whispers, taking her steps slowly towards Rapidfire.

            "Once we took her off the field, we started immediate repairs on her. But she did sustain a lot of damage with that last barrage, so we're not sure how long the repairs will take. We are looking through at the stats and figures we have of it so that Rapidfire will be the exact same Zoid it was before."

            "But Rapidfire will never be the same. I'm so sorry for letting you down like that. If only I had been a better pilot and not so cocky, I would've known what was happening. It's all my fault." Ami rests her head on her companions foot and starts crying.

            In the hotel lounge, Bit goes over and sits down next Ami, putting a hand on her shoulder. She shrugs it off and attempts to move over, but Bit stops her. He tries talking, but she only whispers something and turns the other way. With a sad look on his face, Bit gets up and leaves, passing the others who have been watching him since the beginning.

            "I've never seen Bit or Ami so upset about losing a battle. Maybe we should have their heads checked again," Leena suggests as the rest of the group watches from afar.

            "Nothing's wrong with them physically. It's all mentally and spiritually."

            "What are you talking about Leon?" Jamie asks.

            "Because they lost the battle, the spirits have been broken and the beliefs have been ripped to shreds. They believe that a warrior and a Zoid have to be one and believe in each other to be a great team and it was that belief that made Bit become just a great fighter in such a short period of time and that made Ami to continue on a path that she was scared to go on after her brother died. Being beaten by robots which are against their beliefs gave them doubt that their beliefs are worth anything."

            "Will they return to battling though?" Naomi asks, curious about the two pilots.

            "Bit might. But as for Ami, who knows. She took most of the hits back there and she's probably questioning if retaking the path as a warrior was really worth it in the end."

            "I'll go talk to Bit and see if he's ok," Brad says as he walks in the direction Bit left in.

            "What do you want Brad?" Bit asks standing out on the rooftop.

            "WE saw what happened back there with Ami and wanted to make sure you were okay."

            "What do you think?"

            "I just think that you shouldn't be mad at her."

            "I'm not mad at her. I know she's been through a lot through her life. I don't know exactly though. All she told us was about how her brother died and never told us what happened between then and when she rejoined the commission. But I know that this whole lose has been a big hit for both of us. I'm having doubts that everything I believed between me and Liger isn't true."

            "You were just caught off guard with those new machines Bit. But like you always do, you'll get back into Liger and fight again and show them that you really are the best."

            Ami sits on another couch in a different part of the hotel, looking at the scenery before her. "At one point in my life, I was lost. It was after I was severely beaten after a battle. I wasn't sure what to do or what I believed in. But then I saw a battle that changed everything. That battle was Bit and Liger's first real battle. They were completely new at it, yet were able to fight with such a spirit between them, that it made me reconsider everything that I had ever believed in. I'm glad that Bit stole that Liger and fought with it and I'm glad I was injured so that I couldn't battle, cause if he didn't, I wouldn't be who I am now," Leon says, sitting down next to her.

            "I'm not mad at Bit. He's a really great guy."

            "I know you're not mad at him, but I do know that you have no idea what to believe in anymore." Ami looks over to the man and then back outside, taking a deep breath.

            "When I first started fighting, I believed that a Zoid and a warrior had to believe in each other. After Kikeru died, I wasn't sure if I could battle again. Then I came upon a village full of the nicest people I've ever met. They took me in and accepted me. Soon though, people figured out I was there and came after me. They would even use the villagers against me, forcing me to fight. And even though these other warriors came by so often and would stir up trouble, the people still cheered me on through every battle. And even though each time I went out to battle I was scared something would happen, Rapidfire always reassured me that it would be okay and that we would win. And every time we did. IT wasn't until one battle when Kikeru first called to me did I realize the bond between Rapidfire and I. During that battle, I knew that it was the bond that held us together that made us such a great team. We went through everything together. All those other pilots just used their Zoids like machines. Then I met Bit, who believed in the same ideals I had and I knew it was those beliefs that made us what we were. But after this past battle, I don't know what to think anymore. Rapidfire and I've been through so much suffering because of battling, even with our bond. I just don't think that I can believe in it anymore. And now that I might not even be able to battle. I feel like a piece of me has been ripped out." She puts her hand over her heart and clutches some of her shirt, closing her eyes as if her heart was actually being ripped out.

            "I can't tell you what to believe in anymore Ami. You need to figure that out. But what I can tell you is that if you really work at it, your arm will heal itself back to the way it is. The only thing you should really worry about is whether or not you want to continue on the path you're on now."

            "Leon, please don't tell anyone I told you any of this. Not even Bit knows about that part of my past," she asks, looking into the older man's face.

            "I promise, but only if you get back to your room and sleep. You have a busy day tomorrow."

            "Well Blitz Team, I hope that wherever you go, you'll be safe," Mr. Umi says, contacting the team through the vidlink.

            "What are you talking about? We aren't leaving yet," Jamie says.

            "But Fire Cat has just asked us if Rapidfire was completely fixed and is getting ready to go off."

            "Keep her there. We'll be down in a few," Bit says as he gets up and runs towards the bay.

            "Ami. Where do you think you're going?" Bit asks as he sees Rapidfire leaving the building.

            "Bit. I'm … I'm going away for a while." She turns Rapidfire around so her head is facing towards the exit.
            "But why? You're not even fully healed yet. If you had gotten into a battle, you would've lost in a few seconds."

            "I wouldn't get into a battle. And I need to get away from all of this for a while, so I was thinking about going back to an old home."

            "YOU don't have to go through this alone Ami. We all know that this is hard for you. It's hard for me too. All I'm asking is that you at least let me help you out," he says, trying to plead with her in order to keep her from leaving.

            "And we'll come too. We are a team after all," Jamie says joining in on the conversation.

            "We'll also understand if you don't want us around every now and then,"  Leena comments.

            "Just give us a few hours to get everything ready and then we can be on our way," Toros says.

            "I'm sorry. I can't wait that long." She starts taking a few steps out before Bit starts talking again.

            "But Rapidfire isn't completely repaired yet."

            "I have money. I'll buy some parts and rent some space and fix her myself. I don't anyone else handling her. Let's go Rapidfire." Rapidfire starts on her way, but suddenly stops. Ami messes around with the controls and tries to get her moving again without any success. "Rapidfire, I want to get out of here. Let's just go. I command you as your pilot. Rapidfire, why?" she asks, resting her head on the board as she starts to breakdown.

            "Guys, better get everything ready. We're leaving," Bit says, heading towards Liger.

            "It's been great meeting such a great team. And I'm sorry about everything that has happened."

            "It's alright. Everything happens for a reason. This was meant to happen," Toros says, biding the man farewell as everyone gets ready to leave.

            "Thank you for everything Mr. Umi. Especially for helping with our Zoids."

            "It was no problem Bit. I just hope that everything will go back to normal.

            "We hope so too," Leena answers.

            "And I guess this is goodbye once again," Bit says, looking at their other friends.

            "But knowing how things happen, we will cross paths again."     Leon looks over at Ami, standing in the back and petting Rapidfire's leg. She turns her head slowly and stares into his eyes for a second before returning to her friend. "She's going to need time guys, so make sure you give it to her. A lot of old wounds have reopened and she may not be able to pull herself back to the person she once was without help," Leon says, putting his hand on Bit's shoulder.

            "Don't worry. We won't," Bit says, trying to smile.

            "Take care guys," Leena says as the four head onto the Hovercargo. Bit stops before entering though and looks at Ami trying to get onto Rapidfire with a weak leg and a bandaged arm.

            "Ami, what am I supposed to do?"

Man it's been a long time, but I've finally updated. I hope you guys enjoy these two chapter. More are soon to come once I get my life figured out.

-Chibi Reli