Chapter 5: We See Things
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Jaime frantically pushed a few buttons on the console and brought up a communication link with the judge.
"Judge, I'm requesting an immediate cancellation of the battle!" said Jamie. On the battlefield, both teams were confused.
"What? Jamie, what are you doing?!" shouted Bit.
"Yeah, Jamie, what gives?" asked Leena. Both pilots seemed a little mad at the request.
"There are unauthorized zoids on the battlefield," said Jamie, a little more calmly than before.
"I don't see anything," said Bit.
"Use your heat scanners." The team did so and looked around with their scanners. On the hill to their right, they saw them. A group of stealth zoids was sitting on a sand dune up the hill.
"I see them," said Leena. "It looks like a few Helcats and some Rev Raptors."
"Deliberating…deliberating…" said the judge.
"What's going on here?" asked one of the other team members.
"Will you be quiet, Toru, I'm trying to listen to what they're saying!" shouted another of the Hero team members.
"Now, now, boys, calm down," said a female voice. "Let's just wait and see what happens." The stealth zoids soon rose and began running down the hill.
"Uh…Judge, please announce your decision," said Jamie.
"Unauthorized zoids on the battlefield. This battle has been cancelled, I repeat, this battle has been cancelled." The capsule soon closed and lifted back off into the sky.
"I guess we should take care of these zoids," said Bit.
"Do you think it's the Backdraft?" asked Leena.
"It might be," answered Brad.
"Well then, let's go!" shouted Bit as he charged the oncoming enemy. Brad and Leena followed. The battle had begun.
******
"Nooo!" whined Tori as he hit his head on the table and then lied there. "That wasn't supposed to happen." His father just smirked and laughed quietly.
"Well, it seems that you won't be getting a new jeep now, doesn't it," he said humorously. Tori turned and glared at his father.
"Don't expect any phone calls for a few more years," he said coldly. His father simply smiled and turned back to the screen.
"This will be interesting," he said.
"Who is that? The Backdraft is gone, so who could be after them?" asked Tori as he lifted his head up off the table and sat up.
"I'm not sure." They both just watched the screen as the battle started to take place.
******
There were 34 zoids in all. 17 Rev Raptors and 17 Helcats. The Blitz team, still using their heat sensors, charged right into the middle of the herd of zoids. The Hero team stood by and watched. Their team consisted of a red and yellow Lightning Saix, a blue and silver Spino Sappa, and a deep green Dark Spiner.
"Hey Tai, is your heat scanner working?" asked the pilot of the Spino Sappa.
"Not yet, but I'm trying," responded the Dark Spiner's pilot. "What about you, Ayame?"
"It's still broken because someone fried the circuits in my zoid," said the pilot of the Lightning Saix. She directed her glare towards the Spinno Sappa.
"It's not my fault," he defended.
"Toru, it's always your fault," responded Tai from his Dark Spiner.
"So…should we help them?" asked Ayame.
"Yeah, let's go," responded Tai. "No one interrupts our battles." The three zoids took off to join the fray between the Blitz team and the unknown zoid group.
"These pilots are tougher than most, even with these zoids," said Brad.
"I know; I've only taken down two so far," said Leena. They continued battling.
"Strike Laser Claw!" yelled Bit as the Liger Zero sliced through one of the Helcats. He continued dodging as bullets rained down on his zoid. Only a few made their mark. "Come on! We shouldn't be having this much trouble with these zoids," said Bit after being hit with a few more bullets.
"I know, but they seem to be more skilled than most of the zoids we've fought," retorted Leena.
"I guess that means they aren't from the Backdraft group," informed Brad. A com-link soon popped up on all of their screens to reveal Jamie.
"You guys, these zoids are different from the other one's you've fought. They have reinforced armor and more weapons on them. Not to mention the blades of those Rev Raptors are electrically charged. They can cut through even the hardest of metal. Be careful!"
"We will, but man, who would do something like this?" asked Bit. "And what do they want us for?" Bit was too busy with one of the Helcats that he didn't notice that a Rev Raptor was coming up behind him. Leena had just finished off one of the Helcats. The enemy zoids had given up on their stealth shields, since they weren't helping at all. Leena turned around and looked towards Bit. She saw the Rev Raptor standing behind him, ready to bring down one of its mighty blades on him.
"Bit! Behind you!" she shouted.
"What?" Bit seemed confused. He turned to look just as the blade was descending upon him. Suddenly, the Rev Raptor was bombarded with bullets, stopping its swing. Bit turned and looked in the direction where the bullets had come from. He saw a Dark Spiner standing there, its guns poised. He continued shooting at the Rev Raptor.
"Wow. I thought it would have gone down by now. What a stubborn zoid," said Tai.
"Hey, thanks," said Bit.
"No problem. We're always willing to help." The Rev Raptor soon went down for good. The rest of the Hero team began to attack as well, taking on a few more of the zoids.
Meanwhile, in the Hover Cargo, Jamie was trying to monitor everything with the help of Doc and Hikari, who wasn't helping as much as she would have liked to. She was looking around the battlefield, as if there was something missing. 'Something still doesn't feel right,' she thought to herself. There was a feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something told her that the worst was yet to come. That's when she saw it. On the top of the sand hill stood a dragon like zoid. It looked a lot like a Genosaurer, but it had longer and more deadly claws on both its feet and hands. On the shoulders were machine guns. It had a spiked tail, each spike being razor sharp. Its head was a lot like a Genosaurer's, but the teeth were longer and sharper. Its eyes were a glowing red color. On its back was what made it look like a dragon. There was a pair of wings. The whole zoid was jet black, except for the silver claws, spikes, and teeth. The eyes were glowing brightly. 'Oh gods, what is that?' thought Hikari. 'Why do I feel like…I've seen it before…what is it?' Suddenly, it felt as if her whole body was pulsing, and the scene before her eyes vanished into one of a burning lab…the same place from her dream. Outside of the glass windows stood that zoid. The zoid roared loudly and then walked away, leaving the burning building behind it. A single name formed on her lips, escaping from her mind.
"Kaijin," she said in a scared voice.
"Hikari?" asked Jamie, snapping her out of her daze. The scene of the battlefield soon returned and she found herself in the Hover Cargo. "Is something wrong?"
"Kaijin!" she shouted, running to the window. 'That zoid…it's Kaijin! It has to be, but…how did I know? I can't remember…' Hikari's head began to hurt and she fell to her knees against the window.
"Hikari, are you all right?" asked Doc.
"Daijoubu, demo…Kaijin…korede…doushite?" I'm fine, but…Kaijin…here…why? She seemed to be speaking in fragments of sentences, due to the pain in her head.
"What is this 'Kaijin'?" asked Jamie.
"Ryuujin…zoid…" Dragon…zoid… Hikari stood up and pointed out the window towards the black dragon. Both Doc and Jamie looked on in shock. Jamie quickly ran to the controls and got on the com-link.
"Guys, be careful! There's a black zoid standing on that hill over there!"
Outside on the battlefield, things were going pretty well. There weren't many more enemies to deal with. Most had been taken out by now. Jamie's message came through loud and clear.
"Where? What hill?" asked Bit. He looked around and soon found what Jamie had been talking about. The dragon like zoid roared loudly and then jumped down the hill, sliding the rest of the way, and landing in front of them just as the last enemy zoid fell to the desert sands.
"What is that?" asked Brad.
"Kaijin…" said Hikari over their com-links.
"Kaijin?" asked Bit. He looked the zoid up and down. He knew it already. This wouldn't be easy.
******
Tori nearly spit out his coffee when he saw the black dragon zoid. Even though the judge was gone, the carrier in space was filming the battle. That, and the ZBC had cameras in random places to keep tabs on the battlefields in case the judges were taken out.
"No way!" he said as he stood up and slammed his hands on the table. "Where did that come from?"
"I don't believe it," said his father, standing as well. A lot of the people in the cafeteria area were staring at them now, but they didn't care.
"That's…Kaijin! How did that thing get there?!" shouted Tori.
"I…don't know…"
"Dad!" Tori shouted, turning to his father. "What are we going to do? That thing will kill them!" Tori's father looked around the room and then locked eyes with one of the workers at the building.
"You there!" he shouted, catching the man's attention. "Get the first and second units out to the battlefield where the Blitz team and the Hero team are battling. Get rid of that black zoid." The man nodded and quickly ran out of the room.
"I never thought I'd see that thing again," said Tori with amazement in his voice. "What an awesome zoid. It's practically invincible. No wonder it was given the name Kaijin."
"You do remember what was said about that zoid, don't you?"
"I would never forget. Remember, I helped research it."
"Yes you did. You were a talented kid. Whatever happened?"
"Yeah…hey, dad! This isn't the time to be making fun of me! We kind of have a problem on our hands right now."
"I'm aware of that. I hope they can hold out long enough."
******
"Hikari, can you tell me anything about this zoid? Anything I can understand?" asked Jamie. Hikari sadly shook her head. 'I could say so much, but you wouldn't understand me…oh gods, why did it have to show up now? And why can't I speak that language anymore? What's wrong with me?' She reached up to her neck and gripped her dog tags, one with her name and the other with a serial number. 'There's something I'm supposed to remember about this…about that zoid…I don't understand…why can't I remember it? This is horrible…I…I'm afraid. What is this pain I feel? Something horrible is about to happen…I know it.'
On the battlefield, the Blitz team and the Hero team were standing around, staring at the dark zoid.
"Who are you?" asked Bit, after opening a com-link with the zoid's cockpit. It was pitch black so he couldn't see the pilot.
"Yami…call me…Yami."
"What do you want?" asked Leena
"My business isn't with you. It's with Akari."
"Who's Akari?" asked Bit, obviously not getting what the man meant.
"That's none of your concern, however…since you're here, I might as well get rid of you. Your teams may prove to be a threat later on." The Kaijin roared and then charged at them, going at speeds that they didn't think were possible for such a zoid. It was incredibly graceful as it moved towards them. It slashed out with its claws, but they all managed to dodge the attack.
"What is that thing? Its speed is incredible!" exclaimed Bit.
"No kidding. I could barely see it," agreed Leena. The Kaijin roared loudly and then let loose a barrage of missiles right at Leena. She tried dodging but most of them hit their target. After the attack was over, Leena pushed the Gun Sniper up, but stood frozen to the spot when she saw a huge rocket like bullet heading towards her.
"Leena!" yelled Jamie.
"Get out of the way!" yelled Brad. But there wasn't time. Suddenly, something pushed her out of the way. It was the Liger Zero. The bullet hit, causing the cockpit top to be blown off and sending its pilot flying. Bit hit the ground hard. He lied there for a moment as the dust from the sand cleared. He coughed once before attempting to move.
"Man, that hurts," he said to himself as he slowly pushed himself back up. His head was pounding and his leg hurt. He sat on the sand and looked around. The black zoid was approaching him. There was nothing Bit could really do right now. Suddenly, a few shots rang out. Bit looked over and found the members of the Hero team. They were bombarding the Kaijin with hundreds of bullets. Brad soon joined in with his Shadow Fox. The Kaijin, however, got off one shot, sending it right at Bit. However, the Dark Spiner wasn't far off and quickly got in front of the bullet, taking the hit. The Kaijin roared loudly, but soon saw an army of zoids in the distance. The Kaijin turned tail and ran, not wanting to get involved with the authorities right now. Everyone watched as the Kaijin left, even though he had had the upper hand over the battle.
"How strange…" said Bit. The cockpit to the Gun Sniper opened and Leena jumped out. She quickly made her way over to the fallen ultimate X pilot.
"Bit, are you alright?" she asked.
"I think so. How about you?" he asked as he smiled up at her.
"I'm fine, but it looks like we'll have to make a few repairs." "A few" was an understatement. They would have to make a ton of repairs. Bit slowly stood up, making sure not to hurt himself further. He looked up as the zoids from the Hero team approached him and Leena. The cockpit of the Dark Spiner opened and a young man jumped out. He landed a little off balance, but quickly corrected himself. He was cradling his right arm. He had auburn colored hair that was spiked and slightly messy. His eyes were a faded green color, but seemed to be smiling anyway. His shirt was a grayish blue color and his vest was a dark tan color. His pants were brown, and his boots were black. He also wore a dark blue belt around his waist. His pants seemed kind of baggy, the ends being tucked into his boots. He wore a smile on his face as he approached them.
"Hey, you guys okay?" he asked.
"I think so," answered Bit. He looked over the pilot and saw a small stream of blood run down his arm. "What about you? You took that hit for me."
"I'm fine. Don't worry. I've had worse," he assured them. "Oh yeah, I forgot. My name's Tai, what's yours?"
"I'm Bit."
"Leena."
"Well, it's been nice working with you, but…let's not do this again."
"I'm with ya there," responded Bit.
"Tai!" shouted a female voice.
"Are you alright?" asked a male voice.
"I'm fine," he responded, looking over his shoulder at his teammates. Bit and Leena watched as two people ran up to him. The girl had dark lavender hair, pulled back into two long ponytails. Her eyes were a midnight blue color and full of fire right now. She wore a light blue top and a white over jacket that tied in the front around her waist. Her shorts were black and they fit tightly on her. Her black boots were to her ankles and had heels. Silver bracelets accompanied her outfit. The other man was a few inches taller than Tai, making him seem really tall, since Tai was Bit's height. The man wore a white T-shirt and a black over shirt. His pants were a dark gray color and baggy. He also wore a pair of boots, only his were brown. His hair was short and dark blue and his eyes were brown.
"What's the big idea, Tai? You had us worried!" shouted the girl.
"You really shouldn't take so many risks," added the guy.
"I know, I know, sorry, okay?" Tai looked to a confused Bit and Leena. "Sorry. Bit, Leena, these are my teammates, Ayame and Toru."
"Hello," said Ayame and Toru simultaneously.
"Hello," said Bit and Leena.
"What about your team?" asked Tai.
"Oh, that's Brad in the Shadow Fox, and Jamie, our strategist, is in the Hover Cargo, along with my dad," explained Leena.
"Bit! Leena!" shouted Hikari. They all turned and watched as the silver haired girl ran towards her friends. "Daijoubu?" Are you alright? she asked, the concern evident in her voice. Her expression told them what she was trying to ask.
"We're all fine, Hikari," responded Leena. "Thanks for the concern."
"Mondai nai." No problem.
"Whoa…what language is that?" asked Ayame.
"We don't know," answered Bit.
"Are you guys going to be able to get back to your base?" asked Leena.
"Don't worry, our strategist should be coming with our ride soon," said Toru. As if on cue, the wind shifted and they all looked up to see a Whale King. It landed not far from them and the mouth opened.
"I saw the whole thing; are you guys alright?" asked a young girl. She ran out of the zoid and up to her team. She seemed to be about 14 or 13 and had bright red hair that hung to her shoulders. Her eyes were a dark violet color, framed with a pair of glasses. She wore a white tank top and a blue jean jacket. Her skirt was also made of denim. Her tennis shoes were black and white. She was quite a bit shorter than her older teammates.
"Hello, Kyouri," said Tai. He then sighed. "It looks like I'll have to do more introductions. Bit, Leena, this is Kyouri." They all just nodded.
"It's time to go," announced Toru.
"Yeah, okay," sighed Tai. "Well, I'll see you guys around sometime."
"You can count on it," responded Bit. They waved as the Hero team loaded their zoids into the Whale King and took off, leaving the Blitz team to think about what had just happened.
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That's all for now^.^