Fire Fox- Well, it's almost time for final to begin. Stupid finals. No more goofing off for a bit...but also no more blind dates *thinks of past blind dates and hides under blanket*.
Shadow- V.V
Fire Fox- You said it.
Disclaimer- I received an e-mail from Tomy, despite the language barrier they are decoding my message and having their lawyers discuss the terms...they will e-mail me at the end of this week.
THE FIRE FOX FETCHINGLY PRESENTS:
All Things Yesterday Left Behind
Chapter Four- Illusions of Reality
the things of the earth exist only a little,
and that true reality is only in dreams.
Ryss walked past the many corridors of the cave, knowing exactly where she needed to be. A person could get loss for eternity in this maze of doors. Some lead too nowhere but death...a sudden cliff or slope that would quickly end any unwanted eyes, or more precisely any unwanted mouths, from ever seeing the light of day again. Fortunately for her and Specula, she knew all the corridors and passages by heart now.
Finally she rounded the corner and began another maze through the stalagmites that had formed along the bottom of the cave. Some of the stalagmites where dyed a light pink, a few of the aforementioned cliffs where located right above this field. On the far east end of this so called field was a small passage almost invisible.
The passage was by no means roomy. She had grown use to hearing Specula's sides scrap through some of the narrower places. She finally arrived at the light at the end of the tunnel.
"You are late," a voice stated.
"It took longer than I had expected to find the cave itself in the dessert. The land shifts so much."
"Very well, I hope this won't be a recurrence," the voice ordered rather than asked.
"Of course not my queen."
"I will let it slide this time, because I had some unexpected business."
"Really?" Ryss asked curiously. What unexpected business could she possibly have...in a place like this one's relatives or friends just didn't pop in for a spot of tea.
A boy emerged from the shadows of a rather large crystal and an organoid followed three steps behind. He smiled at Ryss. He was about five foot eleven with white hair. His right eye was green and the left blue. Ryss's eyes widened with surprise and shock at the sight of the boy, but than slitted with distrust when the organoid followed. The organoid could have been Shadow's double except it had bright green eyes and was the color of pure light.
"You see another card has found its way into the deck, the Jack of Spades."
Ryss fought three reactions at the knowledge: wanting to roll her eyes at the Queens' obsession with cards, wanting to know exactly who the Jack of Spades was, and resentment at having another comrade.
'Well, whoever he is he must be important for her to assign him a powerful card like the Jack of Spades,' Ryss thought as she eyed her competition. She herself was only the 'Ten of Hearts'. The 'Queen of Diamonds' had her ways that even Ryss wasn't privy to.
"And your report?" droned the Queen of Diamond impatiently.
"All is going ahead of schedule. The Republic found the zoid and has almost finished excavating it."
"And the device?" the Queen asked wanting the real news.
"Specula planted it in the zoid's core where no one, not even Dr. D himself, would be able to find it. And no one saw a thing."
"Good. And from what Jack was telling me, the girl should be quite useful in finding the Ace of Spades," the Queen said with a smirk as her fingers played with a trinket on the chain around her neck.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Van was in the toughest battle he had been in for a while. Dr. D hadn't mentioned the fact that the girl was crazy or could actually pilot a zoid VERY competently. Of course it didn't help to have an organoid torn between taking orders from him and Fiona, Fiona yelling at him not to hurt the pilot, Thomas also yelling, and Dr. D just repeating how interesting it all was.
All that he was able to gather from Thomas and the old man was that Thomas was showing her the fundamentals of the Great Saber. When she had spotted the Blade Liger coming at them from the west, started mumbling something, and attacked the Blade Liger. Of course, he had been distracted with trying to stay alive when they were explaining it.
Van barely managed to dodge another blow. He managed a counter attack that created some distant between the two of them. While he wasn't allowed to use his weapons or seriously try to hurt her, she had no reservations about using her weapons or hurting them.
Van watched half amazed as she used the flying capabilities of the Great Saber to spin around in the air gaining momentum: she was turning his own attack against him.
"VAN!!" Fiona screamed. "Watch out!"
But it was too late as the Great Saber's paw came crashing into the Liger's head.
"I thought you said you had taught her hardly anything, Thomas!" Van yelled as soon as the Blade Liger quit sliding from the impact of the hit.
"Well, I had. I mean, I had just finished showing her how to start the Zoid," Thomas replied from the Dibison now only a few miles away.
"Beeep."
"Shut up Beek."
"What?" Van asked not understanding Beek.
"Nothing...just watch out!"
Van cursed his stupidity at being distracted again as the girl rammed into him, 'Only rookies get distracted on the battle field. And whatever...whoever she is, she is no rookie.'
"You will not hurt me anymore," the girl said. She had opened the communication lines. Van was taken back by her voice. It reminded him of winter. "Where you happy? But you know, happiness is only the intermission of pain and that intermission is over."
The Great Saber launched itself at Van. She was starting to attack too wildly now. Not the mechanical way she had earlier.
She kept attacking like a person possessed by inner demons only she could see. Like she wasn't really fighting a battle here, but long ago. Van suddenly felt sorry her. She was lost.
"Zeke, there is only one way to end this." Van said determined as he lowered his blades ready for an attack.
"Van?" Fiona questioned softly.
"Honestly, there is no other way. Don't you see? She isn't fighting us or here. She is fighting in another time and place. She is lost in time."
"I know," Fiona said sadly and prayed silently for the girl.
Van watched with regret as his blades sliced through the other zoid. Suddenly Zeke shot at the Great Saber and landed a few miles away.
"What was that?" asked Fiona dazed.
"I have no idea," Van said.
"Miss Fiona...Van, you are alive!" Thomas shouted running up in the Dibison.
"The calvary has arrived," Van sniggered. "What's the deal with this girl anyway, Thomas?"
"I don't know," Thomas said thoughtfully as he, Van, and Fiona followed Zeke's path only to find Zeke staring at the unconscious girl.
"Does she even have a name?" asked Van as he did notice what looked like a bruise forming around her left eye.
"I've never asked," Thomas blushed as he checked the girl's pulse. Suddenly he turned the palest shade of white.
"What's wrong?" Fiona asked.
"I just realized something...." Thomas stammered. "That Great Sabre was my brother's new zoid."
As if on cue, the girl started blinking. She turned and looked Van squarely in the face.
"Who are you?" she asked confused.
"I'm Van Freiheit and that is my Blade Liger," he said nodding towards the Liger, which looked like it had seen better days.
"Really?" she replied astonished. "You know, you should keep your...what did you call it...a Liger...in better condition."
Van just stared at her. And he continued to stare dumbfounded.
"What?"
Thomas grunted trying to repress laughter. The girl quickly turned as if she hadn't even noticed him before.
"I know you!" she exclaimed.
Thomas nodded and grinned at Van.
"You are Beek's man-servant...Tommy," she replied very proud of herself. "But when did you get here?"
Van did not even try to repress his laughter as Thomas's or Tommy's face fell.
"What?" she asked.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Shadow watched Raven pace to and fro from atop of the GenoBreaker. Raven was really worried about Ryss. She had just disappeared for five days now. She had never been gone this long before, and Raven was getting worried. Though Raven would rather die than admit it, especially to himself.
Shadow just watched Raven pace out his feelings from above. He let out a snort in disgust. He seemed to always get stuck with the emotional basket cases. The GenoBreaker shifted under Shadow in agreement.
Though, Shadow told the GenoBreaker, he was worried about the blue haired girl and her organoid too. But added, with what might be considered the equivalent of a wiry chuckle, for different reasons was he, Shadow, worried. She was up to something...something bad...and concerning that power he had felt...Shadow knew it with all of his little organoidy circuits. The GenoBreaker rumbled in amusement at his small friend.
Shadow looked up at the sun burning jealously in the sky. But jealous of what? What did she mean when she said that? The tip of his tail twitched. He knew the first time he chose to fuse with Raven that her memories would be destroyed. That had been the rule with all the organoids...your first fuse with a person MUST be with your master or the memories would be lost or transferred to the wrong person.
But he had no choice to fuse with Raven the first time...it had been either that or let him die with the zoid, and Raven was his master. She would understand; she always did or at least pretend to. But that didn't answer Raven's question. Shadow did know where she was, Raven never asked him.
Shadow figured some of her memories must have transferred to Raven, because Raven would wake up at nights with a cold sweat or mumble in his sleep. When the blue haired one questioned him in the morning, he would say they were only dreams and had nothing to do with his past. She never seemed to believe him, but that wasn't the point. While he may not be able to transfer her memories back to her, Shadow still had his own memories and some of hers.
Shadow suddenly tensed up, he could feel another organoid using its powers...all the organoids could sense when another used its powers. It was only the silver organoid...Shadow growled in contempt. 'Why should HE get to spend time with her when I, her organoid, haven't seen her for centuries?'
Shadow woke up on the ground with Raven looking at him with a strange expression on his face. Shadow could tell that Ryss's words were playing through his mind, 'There is no telling what goes on inside that organoid's mind...it is just that of all the organoids, your Shadow is the one that was…umm how shall I say…not assembled right.'
Shadow wanted to tell Raven everything. He wanted to tell Raven that he had sensed Specula near an Empiral base, another organoid was there too, that its energy was almost a copy of his own, a powerful zoid was being resurrected, and answer all questions, but he couldn't. She deserved that much and Raven never asked. If only he would.
Raven sighed sadly, erased all signs that the camp had ever existed and climbed into the GenoBreaker.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Fire Fox- okay, everything has been set up and the game has begun. Where does Ryss's place her alliances, what about Shadow, what is going on? All will be answered in the next chapter.^_^
The quote under the title is from Charles Baudelaire. That's all I know.^^;;
Please reveiw^-^
I love Raven. See ya .