Eleven hours. A new zoid designed, built and perfected in eleven hours. How did I do it? Caffeine. Well, a diluted, solid form of it, but sugar pills are sugar pills. Onto the zoid.

We had found a Rev Raptor in literally twenty minutes. The guy was meaning to buy one of those Ligers anyway. It was new, great condition, hardly used, every used car pitch on the market. By the time we drove it back on the trailer we'd finished the blueprints. After we'd completely taken the thing apart Psy and myself had an argument over the shielding system. But we resolved and built the thing.

I wish some one would see it for the first time so I could just copy down that situation, but alas, I have to describe it myself. It's a skeleton. Happy?

I simply applied the Geno Reaper concept to a Rev Raptor. Strip it down, back it up with technology, make it look like bone, rinse, lather, redesign cockpit. I can honestly say I wish we had a better zoid to work with.

The spinal column/stubby tail is the same as on its older sibling. The skull is identical to a Geno's except a tad more streamlined. Gaping eyeholes, hatch hidden on the back of the skull, cameras instead of visual contact. I'm honestly not very impressed with my work for the first time. So we made a death-figure Rev Raptor. Why. It was expensive to modify, no major concept changes, it doesn't even have giant guns on it.

…then Rax saw it. He walked into the Hanger as I was on break. When I came back he was hugging the leg bone crying. The guy grew up in a Raptor, what's the big deal? I admit I cried when I saw Psy, but that's different, I'm a jackass who denies every flaw I have.

You know, I'll give you every missed detail on our new zoid when the time arises, here are larger fish tales to tell.

…the ZBC has sent me footage of the Liger Zero X. It is a major threat to the planet, and they're sending info about it to every source they can. I just wish they hadn't sent it while I was playing jump the canyon with Psy.

"…look at how it moves…"

We were watching footage of the black liger run around in the desert testing its new armor.

"It's a good design…moves like the Shadow Fox."

The speaker next to the screen cleared its throat.

"More like the Shadow Fox moves like a zoid Eve made."

He always sticks up for his boss. We were hunched over the edge of the canyon, motionless while watching he video, we'd gotten the footage during our jumps, and this was top priority.

"You see that?"

I hit the pause button and rewound it a few seconds.

"It nearly spun out…"

This state of the art Ultimate X clone, had problems on sharp turns.

"…it's the armor they made…should've stuck with the red one."

So the Backdraft made or found the red Liger Zero X, and made a black armor with lightning abilities to match their fleet. But it was holding their zoid back, like a tight sweater on a cheerleader.

"Does the standard Zero have that problem?"

"Pfft…Toros is a hack, those armors he made are just big guns and boosters."

"But the zoid works pretty well with them, most zoids can't work with a CAS."

"It's a smart zoid. But it still jerks around a bit."

"Probably the pilot…"

"Possibly."

We then watched the top-secret zoid shoot a bolt of lightning out of its paw at a rock.

"…they just modified the Strike Laser Claw…"

"...taking away its best close range ability."

Right as I opened my mouth two hidden blades deployed on the Liger's back.

"…and back comes the close range…"

Psy grunted through the speakers.

"That thing's a loaded pocket knife…"

I looked down at my shoe, which now had a small metal clip on the rim. The utility knife Max gave me for my birthday, the pocket knife crack made me remember it.

"Well, it's just another X in its Red Armor…"

The little black cat on the screen then ran away from the hidden camera, and disappeared into a cloaked hanger.

"Any ideas on who gets to pilot that thing?"

I shrugged, tapping my foot against Psy's floor.

"Stroller left a while back, he was the best. That one aerial chick wouldn't handle that thing. The Fumas don't do Ligers."

"How do you know?"

"…I met one waiting in line at the movies, good guys."

"Well, who the hell is in that monster?"

I tapped another screen and it went o a web window. I tapped my way through a few pilot archives.

"….what if they enter that thing in the ZBC? Like with the Fury?"

"…it'd be odd…I mean, why not just use it as a weapon?"

"…so they will eventually take on every good pilot on the planet? Take out their zoids, maybe 'accidentally' kill a pilot in a head shot?"

"…Sherlock Brand's on the trail…"

I found what I was looking for on a Royal Cup Gallery.

"…remember that prodigy they had in the fury? Real young kid?"

"Yeah, they're probably paying the kid in trading cards."

"…Vega…he took on the Blitz Team and nearly won…"

And he just got a shiny new zoid…

"Of course! The fans loved the kid, even though they hate the Backdraft."

"I hear he's a nice kid. Just a pawn of a criminal organization."

"…you start reading the dictionary again?"

"Indeed, my metallic feline replica."

After that we jogged back to the Killer Whale. Get this, it cloaks. I pulled back a lever and Psy flew onto the top of a canyon. We walked up to the center of the plateau, ran to the side, walked forward and disappeared into thin air. Sure it was decorated like a casino, but you had to love the privacy.

I let my zoid park itself, beats the valet Sue wanted to hire, and jumped out as he crouched down into sleep mode. I landed on my feet and jogged into the elevator. I entered our suite through the kitchen, getting myself a plate of fruit and bread rolls, and eventually navigated our mansion in the sky to my room. I hate this.

…I'm a blue collar. Always have been. Give me all the rich stuff you can, I'm not budging. Neither is my team. We'd be fine without the whole Zoid Eve stuff, maybe even without Guy as a sponsor. Speaking of Guy, he just left his current wife, two days later he's engaged to a retired female zoids pilot. Or pilotress. Gotta love big words. We just got us a whole new contract.

As I munched my fruit and carbs on my futon, watching a sitcom on my screen on the wall, I looked out my wall/huge ass window to see a zoid battle going on at the bottom of our canyon platform. I reached down, grabbed the edges of my bed and spun it around like a chair somehow so I could watch from the front row. I'm a zoids addict, no casino house will change that.

…first team…a bunch of Command Wolves. Next team…Cannon Tortoise, a blue Raynos, Dibison, Shield Liger with guns strapped on…Team Barrage!

The team that forfeited in the first battle with the Reaper. I watched the Judge call it, and then watched the four Wolves fall down in a line. Battle over. I didn't realize my mouth was open. It was the gun-toting Shield Liger. Six shots, bam, instant win. And I thought we were good. I remembered talking to him after our match, he was a mercenary hired o a lousy team. As Barrage left to their transport I hit the intercom button.

"Psy?"

"Yep?"

"…tell Eve I need a favor…"

"…the mercenary on Barrage needs a Blade Liger, got it."

He clicked out. Great minds think alike. So do foolish ones.

…why was I helping out that guy? Well, if he had a nicer zoid he'd win a bit more individual points, and maybe get hired to a better team. But why? I don't know. I'm not the charity type. I'm not greedy, I just don't pass out gifts. But for whatever reason, I just gave a guy a chance at the big time. I just shook it off and flipped my futon back to face the media screen.

The sitcom ended and gave way to a cartoon. It was composed of a historically accurate but toned down telling of Zoidian history. Basically, the Death Saurer doing its thing. This perception though, was exaggerated, big head, too short a tail. I'd seen hundreds of pictures of it. Heck, our Whale was decorated with Zoidian art, our guest room was a shrine to the thing. But I'd kill for a photo of it.

I even took out some paper and an ink projector and started drawing a little sketch of it. I'm not the best artist, it looked more like a cartoon rendering. As I gave it tiny devil horns and a pitchfork the intercom beeped.

"Yeah?"

"…Chase…eh...we have a problem…"

I sat up quickly.

"…the Juggernaut just popped into a cocoon. It's evolving."

"WHAT!"

"Same here. Eve didn't mention this. Dude, it may have done it on its own."

"…mother of…"

"…Eve better have a clue what it's turning ino."