Man, I was really pushed for time. I've had two weeks to work on my major update, and when do I start it? On the last three days. Then I find out that my friend wants me over for Thursday, so I was gone all day, and Friday was out of the question, since they were coming over to my house. That left Wednesday, which I didn't have either. Our friend Lisa was over and we spent the whole afternoon swimming, watching the Matrix and talking. Now when did I write this, you may ask. Well, during the late hours at night and the wee hours of the morning. I'm pathetic, ne?
Disclaimer: I don't own Zoids, but I do own the characters of this story.
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The ZBC headquarters was packed full of zoid warriors, all of which followed the ZBC. They were conversing about the recent news and most were talking about the war that they wouldn't be able to escape. They all had their reasons for being there and each one was willing to go forth to the battlefield in order to fight for the ZBC. They weren't about to give up something they had waited so long for. Suddenly, the metal doors opened, causing a loud clash to be heard. The room fell silent as the new leader of the ZBC walked in. All eyes were on the nineteen year old. He was so young to have such a responsibility placed on his shoulders. He wasn't quite ready, but there was no choice. He was the son of the ZBC leader, and it was only right that he took his father's place. He approached a stage with a podium on it. He cleared his throat and then spoke into the microphone.
"Fellow zoid warriors, thank you for coming. We have some important things to discuss. I, Rainer Toru, son of Roan Toru, will now be heading the ZBC. If there are any objections, then please speak now." No one said anything. "Don't be afraid to tell me. I know that because I'm only nineteen that many of you are probably skeptical about the upcoming future of the Zoid Battle Commission, but I assure you, it will be no different from how my father ran it." There was still silence. "Since no one wants to speak up, I'll just continue. We've been discussing what to do about this situation, and we've come up with one conclusion. We will be going to war against the Dark Blazers." It was still silent. "If anyone disagrees with the decision, then please speak now, or I will continue." Still no one spoke. "Is anyone alive out there?" he asked, which earned him a few snickers. Rainer just smiled. "It seems you are. Anyway, I called you all here today to announce that we will be needing soldiers to fight for us. We will use the next week to test your abilities and put you in ranks. You will be divided among these ranks, but rest assured; teams will stay together. Do you agree with this idea?" They all nodded. Rainer had to admit that it was quite an interesting thing to see every head nod at once. He smiled to himself. "Well then, let's get this started. I'm going to break you into groups. I was looking over the roster for teams and found out that we have a pretty even amount of teams, so the teams on the roster over there will go with Captain Gordon to our training base in Jostan City. The rest of you will remain here with me and train at the training ground here. Now, go look at the rosters, find your places and in about half an hour, we'll get started. That's all." Rainer stepped down from the podium as the teams began looking at the two huge rosters that hung on the walls. Rainer left through the metal doors and started walking down the halls. Captain Gordon approached him and was soon walking beside him.
"Rainer, I mean sir, I mean General Toru, I…"
"Please, Gordon, just call me Rainer, or Sir Rainer. Whatever you prefer."
"Sir Rainer, why did you fix the rosters?"
"What do you mean?"
"You purposely placed certain people in your group. Why is that?"
"Because I want to keep an eye on some of them, that's all. You remember our latest project, right? The one that dad was so hooked on finishing?"
"Yeah, I remember it, but what does that have to do with anything?"
"I'm going to finish it for him."
"What? But sir…"
"Please don't argue. I know it'll take some work and it's not one of the most reliable experiments, but just think about what we could accomplish if it actually works. Don't you want to see it? Don't you even care?"
"Of course I do, but it's still very experimental. You don't even know if it'll work, or what kind of side effects might occur. Are you willing to risk the lives of those warriors in order to test your machine?"
"I never said I'd test it on them. Once it's finished, I'll test it on myself."
"What? That's insane! Sir, what if you die? Then who will lead the ZBC?"
"You, of course."
"Me?"
"Yes. You'd make a great leader, Captain. If anything happens to me, you will take over."
"I understand sir, but don't let anything happen to you. The loss of your father was hard enough. We don't need to lose you as well."
"Nothing will happen. I may not look it, but I'm a genius when it comes to science. Have a little faith, will ya?"
"If you say so, sir."
"Alright, now lets go get prepared. I want you to take your group soon, all right? And remember to keep track of all of the data and then send it back to me. I need those reports to be accurate."
"As you wish, sir. Good luck."
"Thanks." Rainer watched as the captain turned around and walked down the hallway, back towards the room filled with zoid warriors. Rainer kept walking and went into his new office. It was actually his dad's old one. He sighed as he sat down in the huge rolling chair.
"I never thought I'd end up here, at least not until I was older. Dad…why did you have to leave? I'm not sure if I can do this on my own." He picked up a clipboard that had his roster on it. The list of the teams and their members were written on the sheets of paper. He flipped through them and then smiled at one team in particular. The members on it were three people he knew quite well. Risai, Taban, and Miharu. He smiled at the three names and then set the board down. He leaned back in his chair and decided to rest for the half an hour. The next week was going to be long and hard.
******
"It looks like we're staying here," said Taban. Risai smiled. Having Rainer there was going to make things a whole lot easier.
"Risai, why are you so happy?" asked Miharu. Risai dropped her smile and turned her head to the side.
"What do you mean? I'm just glad that our team gets to stick together. I don't know what I'd do without you guys. I'd be so lonely."
"I'm sure you would," said Taban.
"And what does that mean?" asked Risai angrily.
"You'd probably find someone to talk to. You're good at that. However, it's still a good thing that we get to stay together. Miharu and I need to protect these people from you."
"What's that mean?!"
"It's simple. You're annoying." He had said it so simply that it caused something to snap in the fifteen year old. She tried to punch him, but Miharu got behind her and held her back.
"Let me go! Just wait till I get my hands on you, Taban! You're gonna wish you were never born!" Taban just watched with amusement. 'She's so easy to get to,' he thought to himself. Eventually, Risai calmed down. They had been messing around for nearly a half an hour now. The whole room was silent as they waited for their leader to return. However, captain Gordon was the only one who came into the room. He got up to the podium and cleared his throat.
"I'm Captain Gordon of the ZBC. Sir Rainer has asked that you please separate into your groups. Those of you who are going to Jostan, please follow me. The transporter is waiting. The rest of you should wait here until Sir Rainer returns. That is all." He stepped down and began to head out the door. The warriors followed him. Soon enough, half the room was empty. The minutes began to tick by slowly, and Rainer wasn't showing up.
******
"Sir! Are you in there? Open up! Sir!" One of the workers at the headquarters was knocking on the door to Rainer's office. However, there was no response. "Sir!!" he shouted again. Still nothing. He opened the door slowly. It didn't feel right to go in without permission, but the nineteen year old wasn't answering the door. When he went in, he nearly face faulted. Their new leader was sleeping in his chair when there were things that needed to be done.
"Sir!!" he shouted, causing Rainer to spring awake and fall out of his chair. He tried to stand up, but hit his head on the desk. He eventually got up, rubbing the back of his head and giving the man an annoyed glare.
"What? You didn't have to yell like that."
"Sir, it's already been an hour."
"What?! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Rainer quickly ran for the door, nearly knocking the man over. Rainer sprinted down the hallway until he reached the huge metal doors. He threw them open forcefully, which made an incredibly loud bang. All eyes were on Rainer as he ran to the podium, panting. He took in a deep breath and then let it out.
"Sorry I'm late. We will now begin the trials. Please follow me." The warriors all began to follow Rainer through another pair of double doors. They walked quietly, following their new leader through the twisting hallways. They then came to another pair of double doors, which slid open when Rainer approached. He walked in and then let the warriors in. All of them were in shock. The room they were now standing in was huge. It was like an arena. There were different machines set up and tons of obstacles that were most likely used to test the skills of a warrior.
"This is where you will be tested," said Rainer, facing the impressed and shocked warriors. He smiled at their stunned faces. It was all very entertaining to him. "All right then. If you guys will follow me, I'll lead you to the zoids you will be using." They walked into another area, which was like a hanger. There were hundreds of zoids in it. Rainer turned to them and motioned towards the zoids.
"These are the zoids you will use. We will test as many of you as we can at a time. Now, let's get started. Let the trials begin!"
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Short, I know, but that's why there's two^.^ That's right, two chapters, cause I feel bad about not updating for six months, so I'm making up for it. I promise I'll stop neglecting these fics, alright? I just got caught up in my Inuyasha fanfiction, but I'll do more for my other fics now, alright?
Audi^.^