Chap 7
I got up and helped morrow stand up shortly after stretching myself out. "where you live morrow?"
"I got my own house in the city. But thanks for caring." He smiled and walked past me.
"what do you mean, 'thanks for caring'? I just saved your ass! I want to make sure you make it home ok! Gezzus."
"your like a chick, Xero. If it is all that important you can hold my hand all the way home if you like?"
"your such an ass. Where did your AC go anyway?"
"its in the garage. Somewhere in here." he waved his hand above his head in a circle. "they picked me up when I was driving home."
"well, you want me to drive you home?"
"no thanks, I don't think they will try anything two days in a row, hehe." He kinda gave a sickened laugh under his breath and turned again to walk away.
"well, later then. Hope you make it back alright."
He threw one hand above his head to show that he heard me and continued down the catwalk.
"well, he's a friendly one ain't he?" the repair manager spoke up.
"yea, he tries." I gave a short laugh that more resembled a snort. "so, you think you could have this thing repaired by noon tomorrow?"
"wha-?!" he looked up and down Revolution quickly. "well, if I started on it now I might be able to. yea I'll get going as soon as I'm done with this one." He motioned his clipboard toward the lightweight AC that was in front of him. The cockpit hatch was open and had a multitude of wires running from inside the cockpit to the back of the computer console that the veteran mechanic was working on now.
"how much longer do you think it will be?"
he looked up at me with a sideways glance that said: 'are you trying to push me?'
"I'm not trying to rush or annoy or anything but I just have an appointment here tomorrow at noon and I am pretty sure I am going to need my AC repaired."
"I'll get to it alright?" he continued back to his computer.
"alright thanks. I owe you one."
"yea I know."
I turned to leave, and walked back past Revolution in the other direction. I approached the elevator and stepped inside after the hissing of the doors.
"what level please?' the smooth computer voice said as I stepped to the back and leaned against the back wall.
"ground floor please." I crossed my arms, leaned back against the back wall of the circular elevator, relaxed my head and closed my eyes. I wonder what happened to dash?
"ground floor." The voice said as the doors hissed open.
I stepped out and into the hallway. I followed the hallway and ended up in the front office that I had registered to become a raven only days before. I walked through the office and out into the parking lot. I proceeded to my truck and started it up. I let it sit and idle for a few minutes before I switched it over to drive and left the garage.
Again I wasn't in any real hurry to get home so I took it slow. I made it home in about thirty minutes and parked in the driveway. I got out of the truck, locked and closed the door, and headed inside.
It was pushing three AM and I was thirsty. So I walked into the kitchen and saw Blaze sitting at the table, asleep. I guess she tried to wait up for me. I laughed a bit at her attempts and set my keys on the table then walked over to pick her up and carry her to bed.
"no wait, morrow. Xero. they aren't." she was talking in her sleep.
"well blaze, that's the first time you have made a peep when you were sleeping." I put one arm under her knees and the other behind her neck and picked her up. "c'mon now, its time for bed." I began walking her up the stairs when she shifted and put her arms around my neck.
"oh, hi Xero. I see you made it back alright." She woke up this time.
"I thought you said you sleep like a rock?"
"I also said 'ussually' didn't I?"
I chuckled a bit, "that you did. So, how long have you been up waiting?"
"well, what time is it now?"
"its about three o'clock now." I had stopped at the top of the stairs.
She gave a deep yawn, "well, then I guess I have been waiting for about five hours then."
"what?! You've been up for five hours waiting for me?"
"what's wrong with that?"
"well, I would've thought you to be long asleep by now. That's all."
"well, I might fall asleep in your arms if you choose to stand here forever."
I woke up and noticed that I was still carrying her. "would you like be to put you down?"
She let out another small yawn then looked up at me into my eyes. "well, I'm awake now. And do you think I would like you to put me down?"
I looked back into her eyes and returned the stare. Though it was relaxing to just stand there and look into her blue-green eyes, I was finding it difficult to continue the stare while she was staring at me. I had never stared at a woman when she was looking back before. "well, I ask questions for a reason. And your not tired huh? Well in that case." I started walking again and passed up my room to go check and see if angel was awake. "nope, still sleeping."
"what? What are you checking on angel for?"
"just to see if she was still awake."
"why?"
"well, we don't need her walking in do we?" I looked back at blaze after this statement to see her face in half shock, and what looked like half excitement.
"now when you say 'walking in'." she managed to say as we stepped into my bedroom.
"well, you sit here and think about that, okay?" I sat her on the edge of my bed.
"what are you doing?" she leaned over in a way that her weight was on one thigh and she had her arm down on that side to reinforce her position.
"me? I'm not doing anything." I stepped into the bathroom and turned the shower on.
"your taking a shower??" I could hear the disappointment in her voice.
"yes, I'm taking a shower." I closed the glass bathroom door and stripped.
"what if I get any bad ideas?" she said in the sexiest voice she could muster. Almost gave me a hard-on hearing it.
"well, one: I doubt that will happen. And two: if it does happen, then I would just have to role with it." I stuck my hand in the shower to test the temperature. Then I stepped in. I let the water run down over my face and body. I was terribly dirty from all the sweat that had been running through my hair and down my body, and that isn't the most pleasurable feeling when you have a skin tight jumpsuit on.
"you doubt it huh. well, I may have to prove you wrong." Blaze stood from the bed and began walking around the room, looking at little things, just basically scoping things out.
"well I wouldn't be surprised, but I didn't really figure you as that kind of girl?"
"what do you mean 'that kind of girl'? I'm not a whore or anything. I have never slept with anybody before."
"nobody, ever?" I didn't really believe it but I had little choice really. "but I bet you had plenty of offers huh?"
she started laughing, "I have had more offers and advances on me than I can count." She stopped looking around and sat back onto the edge of the bed, then lay back onto the pillows.
"that's what I thought. Well its not hard to believe that you have had a lot of them, I mean, well, ya-know."
"I know what?" now she was trying.
"nevermind. Anyway, the hard thing to believe is that you've never been laid. I just can't see it not happening."
"whys that?" still trying.
"well, ok, I'm gonna put this in laymens terms. Your drop dead gorgeous. Understand? you are a bombshell. I cant see you being in your twenties already and not been laid yet! I mean, most girls that are as hot as you have lost their virginity by the age of fifteen! And here you are, twenty- three right."
"twenty-four."
".yea, and still being a virgin. I don't mean to be mean or anything, and this is going to sound mean as hell, but I didn't think that you were still a virgin. I mean, I doubt angel is."
"really?"
"don't tell angel I said that, she'd kill me. Your not mad are you?" I turned off the shower, grabbed a towel and stepped out.
"no I'm not mad. I'm a little surprised but still, you are the one that didn't want to leave me passed out in the nest the other day."
"well, you didn't see what I saw, or hear what I heard. I wasn't gonna leave you there, you defiantly wouldn't have been walking straight the next day."
"huh."
I wrapped the towel around my waist and opened the bathroom door. "I haven't just blown all my chances have I?" I asked with a grin.
She got out of the bed and stood in front of me. She started looking up and down me, apparently sizing me up. "no, I think you've still got a pretty fair chance." She grinned then lay back down on the bed.
"good, I feel relieved." I walked over to my dresser and grabbed a pair of boxers and some sleep-pants from the top drawer. I looked over at blaze who was laying down on her back with her eyes closed. I thought it safe so I dropped the towel and got one leg into the shorts.
"oh, that's nice." I looked up and blaze was sitting straight up on the bed.
"what are you doing! I am changing here! You are supposed to be lying down with your eyes closed!"
"well, I heard clothing it the floor and I couldn't resist." I stood up and just dropped the boxers.
"alright, so what now?"
"well, its only fair."
"what's only fair?" I got this feeling in my stomach that was half dread and half excitement.
She grabbed the bottom of her shirt and began pulling up.
"HEY NOW!!" I jumped over and pulled her shirt back down. "none of that now."
"what? Well I thought I fair that I saw you nude."
"OH MY GOD!!! Now your thinking like a child!" I was laughing so hard I had completely forgotten that I was standing nude in front of this beautiful woman, who was (so it seemed) willing, on my bed.
"ok, fine!" she crossed her arms and turned her head away.
"hey, I wasn't trying to sound mean. I'm sorry if that's how it came out but I thought that was funny."
"well, I'm sorry if it came out in a funny way. It wasn't meant to." She relaxed her arms and turned to look at me again. Somehow she was able to keep her eyes level with mine. I know for a fact that if the situation were reversed I would be getting slapped so bad right now.
"can I get dressed now?"
"oh, sure, go right ahead." She never took her eyes off of me though.
So I bent back down and picked up my shorts, put them on then did the same with my sleep-pants. "now I feel so boring."
She laughed as she fell back onto the bed and I walked around to get in.
"so what happened with morrow?" she asked as I pulled the blankets up to my chest and laid my head back on the pillows.
"I broke him out and I brought him back to the garage. He decided he wanted to walk home so off he went." I thought for a moment. "oh, dash decided to swing by and save my ass in the middle of my half-baked mission."
"oh he did, did he?"
we laid there in silence for about five more minutes.
"I wonder why I never asked you if I could stay with you before?"
"you probably thought I would take it the wrong way." I was drifting in and out of sleep. My eyes wanted to close really bad but I was trying to stay awake as long as possible.
"no its not that, I mean, I never even really thought about it. I always knew you had a big house and room to spare, and we've always been good friends."
"eh. your too nice. You wouldn't have wanted to impose or anything. And you probably thought about it but don't remember. Everybody forgets stuff."
"yea, maybe your right." Blaze rolled over to face me. Not that she was looking at me, she had her eyes closed.
"you better get to bed before you fall asleep."
"alright, alright." she didn't move.
"you gonna go?"
"uh huh."
I closed my eyes to blink and fell asleep.
I felt sunlight on my face and sat up in bed, blinking my eyes to adjust to the bright light. I looked to my right and sure enough, there was blaze, sleeping on top of the blankets. She was curled up into a ball cause she was cold I guess.
"I guess you forgot to go to your own bed huh?" I got up and closed the blinds on the window to lower the light in the room. Then I got up out of bed and walked over to the side that blaze was asleep on and pulled the blankets down from underneath her and slid her underneath the covers. I left blaze in my room and closed the door to my room on the way out. I walked downstairs and into the kitchen for some coffee and checked the clock on my way in. "11:00 o'clock, man. I have to be at the nest in an hour. I have to try to work out a schedule and not take any missions too late at night. If anybody I know gets arrested at night again they can wait damnit." I laughed as I took some coffee crème out of the fridge. "at least I don't have to make the coffee, I guess blaze set it all up for me last night when she was waiting."
I ate my cinamin roll and drank my coffee then wrote a note to the girls about where I would be when they woke up and headed out the door with the note on the table. I got in the truck and made my way to the garage. I got to the garage in about forty-five minutes and parked the truck in the lot and headed for the nest. I stepped in the office door and waved to the receptionist as I walked past, through the back door, past the shop, onto the elevator.
"what level please?"
"the Nest." I took up my normal position of leaning against the back wall of the elevator as I felt being smashed as the elevator began to speed upwards.
"the nest. Second to the right." The voice cooed as I walked out of the elevator.
I opened the door to the nest and stepped inside. I looked around and wasn't surprised when I didn't see a whole lot of activity. The nest was just a lounge for ravens waiting for new missions and repairs anyway. I took a few steps in and began scanning for my query. From my right side I heard someone call:
"Xero! Over here!"
I looked over and there he was waving me down. I walked over to sit with him.
"your late."
I looked at the clock, "by three minutes. No big deal."
"yea whatever. So, I noticed that you had a bit of a late mission last night."
"yea, I had some business to take care of. So anyway, is there a name that I could call you by or something? I don't really like 'the mechanic' as the thing to call you by."
"understandable. well I can understand, takes a while to say don't it?" he laughed a bit then held out his hand. "name is matthew, call me Matt or matthew, whichever you prefer."
I took his hand for a shake, "name is Xero. Nice to meet you Matt." I laughed as well.
But he raised an eyebrow, "cant give me a name? I was generous enough to share mine, a rarity these days."
"Well Matt, if I had a name to give you I would, but being as I don't I'm afraid Xero is all you get to work with. It don't take long to say though, right?"
"yea I guess your right. And since I'm not going to make you go into a history lesson as to why you can't give lets get down to business, shall we?"
"lets." He stood and I followed. He walked out of the nest and back to the elevator.
"what level please?"
"AC garage."
"so, what exactly are you going to do to my AC?"
"well first I would like to know your AC's name?"
"its called Revolution."
"nice name, I am assuming you named it so because of your 'revolution' from MT to AC correct?"
"that's right."
"nice, very nice. So, that one is yours over there, right?" he pointed over towards Rev, which was standing 6 stalls over.
"that's her. I planned on making a few modifications myself but I guess they got put on hold for now. I have been a little busy, with missions and stuff. Now you're here to pick her up."
"I can leave her here if you like?"
"no no no, it don't bother me. I can make my own mods after you're done with her."
"very well then. Here, take this and drive your truck to that location." He turned around and handed me a pad of paper when we got to revolution. I looked over the paper and read over the directions to what I guessed was his garage.
"and what of my AC? Don't you need that?"
"I will take rev there myself." He seemed to answer my mental question instantaneously, "I will need to become accustomed to the AC which I will be working on for the next three days."
"three days?! That's all it takes? I thought it would be like 2 weeks or so?"
"no no, after many years of doing this I have learned what should be done first and what to do second. What the problem is with most of these modifiers, is that they get the AC, strip it down to the frame, then modify anything and everything they can, then they build it again from scratch."
"and you know better?" I said, shifting my weight.
"yes. Now, if you would be so kind. I believe we should get going." He turned around and climbed up the AC's core and opened the hatch.
"hey! How did you get that open?! Its got a thumb print and password locking system on it!"
he just turned to me and laughed as he jumped down into the cockpit sphere. A few moments later I heard the generator whine to life and begin pumping energy to every square inch of the mechanical beast. The head turned to look at me and I heard a male, almost mechanized voice, "Xero, tell my wife that we are having spaghetti for dinner."
"spaghetti for dinner?" I was slightly confused, "alright, whatever." I turned again as he stepped out of the stall and walked for the door, I did the same.
I walked out of the garage and continued my way until I reached the parking lot. I got into my truck and checked the directions for the first step in getting to his place. An hour and three stops for help later I finally reached a large house that had a large warehouse behind it. "well, I guess this is it. not quite what I was expecting but o-well." I parked the car and stepped out, locking the doors as I headed for the door.
I stepped up and faced the front door. I raised my hand and gripped the dragon shaped knocker on the higher part of the door. I lifted and dropped the knocker three times and then waited. I rarely knocked more than three times anywhere.
After about fifteen seconds the door opened and an attractive woman stepped into the doorway. She was just as tall as I, she had brown hair, brown eyes, and she was wearing a dark dress that stretched to the floor. "so, I assume that you are Xero?"
"that I am. Am I expected?"
"you are. Did matthew care to tell you what we will be having for dinner?"
"huh? He said you were having spaghetti."
"very well. Come in, come in. please make yourself at home until my dear husband gets home."
I stepped through the door. "thank you."
"would you like anything to eat or drink?"
"well I am a bit thirsty if it isn't too much trouble." I stepped past her and she followed as she closed the door behind me.
"none at all, follow me to the kitchen." She stepped away toward what I guessed was where the kitchen was.
"alright then." And I followed her off.
We walked through two more rooms before coming into the kitchen. "and what can I get you Xero? Water, apple juice, milk, lemonade?" she motioned with her hand for me to sit at one of the barstools next to the counter.
"oh, um apple juice would be nice, thanks." I stepped over and took a seat.
She opened the fridge and pulled out the pitcher of juice, then pulled out a cup from the cupboard and poured me a cup which she placed on the counter in front of me. "don't worry, Xero. He knows what he's doing. You'll get her back in one piece."
"wha-? Oh, I'm not worried about that at all." I gave a fake laugh as I picked up the cup and took a drink. "thanks. So, does he upgrade a lot of ACs for ravens?"
"no problem. I used to get really mad when matt would offer to upgrade ravens ACs for them. He used to do it for every raven that ever pulled off a skilled shot or anything." She laughed as I took another drink. "then he stopped giving out upgrades to everyone for some reason and only picked the ones that he owed something to or had truly proven themselves a very skilled pilot." She sat down across from me. "a lot of the ravens he would bring home when he first started were usually very rude and basically just wanted their upgrades and then we never saw them again. Sadly they would usually get hot headed and go off on impossible missions and get themselves killed. I guess that was why I didn't like it very much. But now that he carefully chooses the ones to upgrade he brings home very nice and polite ravens that make this a lot easier." She laughed again. "so, to answer your question: he used to upgrade a lot but has cut down a lot. He only does like one every month or two."
"ah." I finished my drink and stood to put the cup somewhere. "in the sink?" I asked, pointing to the cup.
"yes, if you would. Thank you."
"no problem." I put the cup in the sink and walked back over to sit down again. But just as I sat down I felt the counter and the chair start to vibrate. "you feel that?" I asked, getting a little worried. I looked back at her. She was sitting on the chair with her arm resting on the table and her head resting in that arms palm.
She had a perfectly normal look on her face. "he's home." Was all she said as she pointed to a door to my right. I guessed this was the back door as it was on the opposite side as the front door.
I walked over to the door and pulled it open in time to see a large blue plasma stream heading towards me. The blue blossom slowly shrunk and disappeared completely as it came into full view. Sure enough it was Revolution. The blue flower was gone and instead now I could see two distinct plasma jets coming out of the bottom of the core as Rev closed in. it got about one-hundred fifty yards away and the jets turned off and rev flew through the air before stomping onto the ground hard with both feet, making two long craters as she slid towards the house.
She finally stopped as she came to be about fifty yards away. I heard a voice come from within her. "follow me to the garage." It was Matt as expected. He turned and started walking rev towards the large warehouse behind his house.
I ran from the house to the garage, excited to hear about what e was planning to do to her. I opened the front man-door and stepped inside. It was dark as night when I opened the door but as soon as I stepped in, hundreds of pole lights lit themselves.
Immediatly after a large hanger door on the opposite side of the garage opened up and rev walked in and up to a stall that met with the catwalk that was suspended a few yards above my head. I looked up and matt climbed out of Revolution's cockpit and walked down the catwalk to an open platform at the end of the catwalk. He leaned over and pushed a few buttons on the side. The platform jolted then began moving downwards. Upon reaching the ground floor he walked over toward me with my flight suit on. Sharing a flight suit is like sharing a tooth brush.
"my flight suit! I need to wear that! That's nasty man."
He looked at his arm and surveyed himself. "oh, well, sorry. I'll give you a new one when I'm done with Revolution."
"about that, what do you plan to do?" I walked the last few feet to meet him.
"well, it is a well designed AC, I'll give you that. But."
"there it is. 'but' what?"
"it is a bit slow. Ok, really slow. The reaction time is a bit slow. The cockpit system could use some work as well. It needs a better generator, radiator, F.C.S., and there are just some modifications I could do. I don't want to sound like an ass or anything but I could build you a completely new AC that would be a hell-of-a-lot more efficient than Revolution."
"well I don't mean to sound like an ass as well but I'm afraid that I like Revolution the way she is. But there are a few suggestions I could make for the upgrades, as well as a few questions."
"ok, shoot."
"well, first for the questions. How do you plan to make it faster? I have the best boosters you can buy on it already."
"well, heh, I have my own boosters that I can put on her. As well as a new generator and some modifications to the overboost."
"ok, sounds good. How do you plan to modify the cockpit system?"
"well, I can give it a much more organic sounding voice. As well as modifying the CAR systems for a better response and reaction time." He looked back at Revolution for a sec. "oh! I can do some stuff to your weapons as well."
"what can you do to weapons?"
"sadly if I do what I have planned then it would make your weapons weigh a lot more. Which would mean you would have to get rid of your weapon clips. They are really dead weight anyway."
"well, I guess but what about my standard weapon clip?"
"the one on the back of your waist? That one should be able to stay. I have never had any real problems with that one. And besides, as it is mounted onto the legs from the factory I think that the weight of that clip is included in the main weight of the legs anyway so it doesn't add anything."
"oh, well ok. Go ahead. But you never answered my question, what can you do to the weapons?"
"oh, well, I was planning on customizing one of your shotguns and your machine gun. What I can do it get them to do a little more damage and speed up the fire rate."
"eh, whatever. Go ahead and do what you can with the weapons. I'll take what you give me."
"alright. Well, I guess I should get to work on them right away then huh?"
"if you feel the need."
"you can go ahead and head home. It should be done in about five days."
"alright, c'ya later!" I waved as I walked toward the door. I saw matt turn back towards Revolution and look up at her as I closed the door behind me.
*Authors note* I am just going to skip the few days that he would be upgrading the AC and go right to the day when he gets it back. I didn't have anything planned for those few days anyway. So don't be PMing me because it seems like you missed a chapter when the net one comes out. And I would like to thank everybody for reading and reviewing.
I got up and helped morrow stand up shortly after stretching myself out. "where you live morrow?"
"I got my own house in the city. But thanks for caring." He smiled and walked past me.
"what do you mean, 'thanks for caring'? I just saved your ass! I want to make sure you make it home ok! Gezzus."
"your like a chick, Xero. If it is all that important you can hold my hand all the way home if you like?"
"your such an ass. Where did your AC go anyway?"
"its in the garage. Somewhere in here." he waved his hand above his head in a circle. "they picked me up when I was driving home."
"well, you want me to drive you home?"
"no thanks, I don't think they will try anything two days in a row, hehe." He kinda gave a sickened laugh under his breath and turned again to walk away.
"well, later then. Hope you make it back alright."
He threw one hand above his head to show that he heard me and continued down the catwalk.
"well, he's a friendly one ain't he?" the repair manager spoke up.
"yea, he tries." I gave a short laugh that more resembled a snort. "so, you think you could have this thing repaired by noon tomorrow?"
"wha-?!" he looked up and down Revolution quickly. "well, if I started on it now I might be able to. yea I'll get going as soon as I'm done with this one." He motioned his clipboard toward the lightweight AC that was in front of him. The cockpit hatch was open and had a multitude of wires running from inside the cockpit to the back of the computer console that the veteran mechanic was working on now.
"how much longer do you think it will be?"
he looked up at me with a sideways glance that said: 'are you trying to push me?'
"I'm not trying to rush or annoy or anything but I just have an appointment here tomorrow at noon and I am pretty sure I am going to need my AC repaired."
"I'll get to it alright?" he continued back to his computer.
"alright thanks. I owe you one."
"yea I know."
I turned to leave, and walked back past Revolution in the other direction. I approached the elevator and stepped inside after the hissing of the doors.
"what level please?' the smooth computer voice said as I stepped to the back and leaned against the back wall.
"ground floor please." I crossed my arms, leaned back against the back wall of the circular elevator, relaxed my head and closed my eyes. I wonder what happened to dash?
"ground floor." The voice said as the doors hissed open.
I stepped out and into the hallway. I followed the hallway and ended up in the front office that I had registered to become a raven only days before. I walked through the office and out into the parking lot. I proceeded to my truck and started it up. I let it sit and idle for a few minutes before I switched it over to drive and left the garage.
Again I wasn't in any real hurry to get home so I took it slow. I made it home in about thirty minutes and parked in the driveway. I got out of the truck, locked and closed the door, and headed inside.
It was pushing three AM and I was thirsty. So I walked into the kitchen and saw Blaze sitting at the table, asleep. I guess she tried to wait up for me. I laughed a bit at her attempts and set my keys on the table then walked over to pick her up and carry her to bed.
"no wait, morrow. Xero. they aren't." she was talking in her sleep.
"well blaze, that's the first time you have made a peep when you were sleeping." I put one arm under her knees and the other behind her neck and picked her up. "c'mon now, its time for bed." I began walking her up the stairs when she shifted and put her arms around my neck.
"oh, hi Xero. I see you made it back alright." She woke up this time.
"I thought you said you sleep like a rock?"
"I also said 'ussually' didn't I?"
I chuckled a bit, "that you did. So, how long have you been up waiting?"
"well, what time is it now?"
"its about three o'clock now." I had stopped at the top of the stairs.
She gave a deep yawn, "well, then I guess I have been waiting for about five hours then."
"what?! You've been up for five hours waiting for me?"
"what's wrong with that?"
"well, I would've thought you to be long asleep by now. That's all."
"well, I might fall asleep in your arms if you choose to stand here forever."
I woke up and noticed that I was still carrying her. "would you like be to put you down?"
She let out another small yawn then looked up at me into my eyes. "well, I'm awake now. And do you think I would like you to put me down?"
I looked back into her eyes and returned the stare. Though it was relaxing to just stand there and look into her blue-green eyes, I was finding it difficult to continue the stare while she was staring at me. I had never stared at a woman when she was looking back before. "well, I ask questions for a reason. And your not tired huh? Well in that case." I started walking again and passed up my room to go check and see if angel was awake. "nope, still sleeping."
"what? What are you checking on angel for?"
"just to see if she was still awake."
"why?"
"well, we don't need her walking in do we?" I looked back at blaze after this statement to see her face in half shock, and what looked like half excitement.
"now when you say 'walking in'." she managed to say as we stepped into my bedroom.
"well, you sit here and think about that, okay?" I sat her on the edge of my bed.
"what are you doing?" she leaned over in a way that her weight was on one thigh and she had her arm down on that side to reinforce her position.
"me? I'm not doing anything." I stepped into the bathroom and turned the shower on.
"your taking a shower??" I could hear the disappointment in her voice.
"yes, I'm taking a shower." I closed the glass bathroom door and stripped.
"what if I get any bad ideas?" she said in the sexiest voice she could muster. Almost gave me a hard-on hearing it.
"well, one: I doubt that will happen. And two: if it does happen, then I would just have to role with it." I stuck my hand in the shower to test the temperature. Then I stepped in. I let the water run down over my face and body. I was terribly dirty from all the sweat that had been running through my hair and down my body, and that isn't the most pleasurable feeling when you have a skin tight jumpsuit on.
"you doubt it huh. well, I may have to prove you wrong." Blaze stood from the bed and began walking around the room, looking at little things, just basically scoping things out.
"well I wouldn't be surprised, but I didn't really figure you as that kind of girl?"
"what do you mean 'that kind of girl'? I'm not a whore or anything. I have never slept with anybody before."
"nobody, ever?" I didn't really believe it but I had little choice really. "but I bet you had plenty of offers huh?"
she started laughing, "I have had more offers and advances on me than I can count." She stopped looking around and sat back onto the edge of the bed, then lay back onto the pillows.
"that's what I thought. Well its not hard to believe that you have had a lot of them, I mean, well, ya-know."
"I know what?" now she was trying.
"nevermind. Anyway, the hard thing to believe is that you've never been laid. I just can't see it not happening."
"whys that?" still trying.
"well, ok, I'm gonna put this in laymens terms. Your drop dead gorgeous. Understand? you are a bombshell. I cant see you being in your twenties already and not been laid yet! I mean, most girls that are as hot as you have lost their virginity by the age of fifteen! And here you are, twenty- three right."
"twenty-four."
".yea, and still being a virgin. I don't mean to be mean or anything, and this is going to sound mean as hell, but I didn't think that you were still a virgin. I mean, I doubt angel is."
"really?"
"don't tell angel I said that, she'd kill me. Your not mad are you?" I turned off the shower, grabbed a towel and stepped out.
"no I'm not mad. I'm a little surprised but still, you are the one that didn't want to leave me passed out in the nest the other day."
"well, you didn't see what I saw, or hear what I heard. I wasn't gonna leave you there, you defiantly wouldn't have been walking straight the next day."
"huh."
I wrapped the towel around my waist and opened the bathroom door. "I haven't just blown all my chances have I?" I asked with a grin.
She got out of the bed and stood in front of me. She started looking up and down me, apparently sizing me up. "no, I think you've still got a pretty fair chance." She grinned then lay back down on the bed.
"good, I feel relieved." I walked over to my dresser and grabbed a pair of boxers and some sleep-pants from the top drawer. I looked over at blaze who was laying down on her back with her eyes closed. I thought it safe so I dropped the towel and got one leg into the shorts.
"oh, that's nice." I looked up and blaze was sitting straight up on the bed.
"what are you doing! I am changing here! You are supposed to be lying down with your eyes closed!"
"well, I heard clothing it the floor and I couldn't resist." I stood up and just dropped the boxers.
"alright, so what now?"
"well, its only fair."
"what's only fair?" I got this feeling in my stomach that was half dread and half excitement.
She grabbed the bottom of her shirt and began pulling up.
"HEY NOW!!" I jumped over and pulled her shirt back down. "none of that now."
"what? Well I thought I fair that I saw you nude."
"OH MY GOD!!! Now your thinking like a child!" I was laughing so hard I had completely forgotten that I was standing nude in front of this beautiful woman, who was (so it seemed) willing, on my bed.
"ok, fine!" she crossed her arms and turned her head away.
"hey, I wasn't trying to sound mean. I'm sorry if that's how it came out but I thought that was funny."
"well, I'm sorry if it came out in a funny way. It wasn't meant to." She relaxed her arms and turned to look at me again. Somehow she was able to keep her eyes level with mine. I know for a fact that if the situation were reversed I would be getting slapped so bad right now.
"can I get dressed now?"
"oh, sure, go right ahead." She never took her eyes off of me though.
So I bent back down and picked up my shorts, put them on then did the same with my sleep-pants. "now I feel so boring."
She laughed as she fell back onto the bed and I walked around to get in.
"so what happened with morrow?" she asked as I pulled the blankets up to my chest and laid my head back on the pillows.
"I broke him out and I brought him back to the garage. He decided he wanted to walk home so off he went." I thought for a moment. "oh, dash decided to swing by and save my ass in the middle of my half-baked mission."
"oh he did, did he?"
we laid there in silence for about five more minutes.
"I wonder why I never asked you if I could stay with you before?"
"you probably thought I would take it the wrong way." I was drifting in and out of sleep. My eyes wanted to close really bad but I was trying to stay awake as long as possible.
"no its not that, I mean, I never even really thought about it. I always knew you had a big house and room to spare, and we've always been good friends."
"eh. your too nice. You wouldn't have wanted to impose or anything. And you probably thought about it but don't remember. Everybody forgets stuff."
"yea, maybe your right." Blaze rolled over to face me. Not that she was looking at me, she had her eyes closed.
"you better get to bed before you fall asleep."
"alright, alright." she didn't move.
"you gonna go?"
"uh huh."
I closed my eyes to blink and fell asleep.
I felt sunlight on my face and sat up in bed, blinking my eyes to adjust to the bright light. I looked to my right and sure enough, there was blaze, sleeping on top of the blankets. She was curled up into a ball cause she was cold I guess.
"I guess you forgot to go to your own bed huh?" I got up and closed the blinds on the window to lower the light in the room. Then I got up out of bed and walked over to the side that blaze was asleep on and pulled the blankets down from underneath her and slid her underneath the covers. I left blaze in my room and closed the door to my room on the way out. I walked downstairs and into the kitchen for some coffee and checked the clock on my way in. "11:00 o'clock, man. I have to be at the nest in an hour. I have to try to work out a schedule and not take any missions too late at night. If anybody I know gets arrested at night again they can wait damnit." I laughed as I took some coffee crème out of the fridge. "at least I don't have to make the coffee, I guess blaze set it all up for me last night when she was waiting."
I ate my cinamin roll and drank my coffee then wrote a note to the girls about where I would be when they woke up and headed out the door with the note on the table. I got in the truck and made my way to the garage. I got to the garage in about forty-five minutes and parked the truck in the lot and headed for the nest. I stepped in the office door and waved to the receptionist as I walked past, through the back door, past the shop, onto the elevator.
"what level please?"
"the Nest." I took up my normal position of leaning against the back wall of the elevator as I felt being smashed as the elevator began to speed upwards.
"the nest. Second to the right." The voice cooed as I walked out of the elevator.
I opened the door to the nest and stepped inside. I looked around and wasn't surprised when I didn't see a whole lot of activity. The nest was just a lounge for ravens waiting for new missions and repairs anyway. I took a few steps in and began scanning for my query. From my right side I heard someone call:
"Xero! Over here!"
I looked over and there he was waving me down. I walked over to sit with him.
"your late."
I looked at the clock, "by three minutes. No big deal."
"yea whatever. So, I noticed that you had a bit of a late mission last night."
"yea, I had some business to take care of. So anyway, is there a name that I could call you by or something? I don't really like 'the mechanic' as the thing to call you by."
"understandable. well I can understand, takes a while to say don't it?" he laughed a bit then held out his hand. "name is matthew, call me Matt or matthew, whichever you prefer."
I took his hand for a shake, "name is Xero. Nice to meet you Matt." I laughed as well.
But he raised an eyebrow, "cant give me a name? I was generous enough to share mine, a rarity these days."
"Well Matt, if I had a name to give you I would, but being as I don't I'm afraid Xero is all you get to work with. It don't take long to say though, right?"
"yea I guess your right. And since I'm not going to make you go into a history lesson as to why you can't give lets get down to business, shall we?"
"lets." He stood and I followed. He walked out of the nest and back to the elevator.
"what level please?"
"AC garage."
"so, what exactly are you going to do to my AC?"
"well first I would like to know your AC's name?"
"its called Revolution."
"nice name, I am assuming you named it so because of your 'revolution' from MT to AC correct?"
"that's right."
"nice, very nice. So, that one is yours over there, right?" he pointed over towards Rev, which was standing 6 stalls over.
"that's her. I planned on making a few modifications myself but I guess they got put on hold for now. I have been a little busy, with missions and stuff. Now you're here to pick her up."
"I can leave her here if you like?"
"no no no, it don't bother me. I can make my own mods after you're done with her."
"very well then. Here, take this and drive your truck to that location." He turned around and handed me a pad of paper when we got to revolution. I looked over the paper and read over the directions to what I guessed was his garage.
"and what of my AC? Don't you need that?"
"I will take rev there myself." He seemed to answer my mental question instantaneously, "I will need to become accustomed to the AC which I will be working on for the next three days."
"three days?! That's all it takes? I thought it would be like 2 weeks or so?"
"no no, after many years of doing this I have learned what should be done first and what to do second. What the problem is with most of these modifiers, is that they get the AC, strip it down to the frame, then modify anything and everything they can, then they build it again from scratch."
"and you know better?" I said, shifting my weight.
"yes. Now, if you would be so kind. I believe we should get going." He turned around and climbed up the AC's core and opened the hatch.
"hey! How did you get that open?! Its got a thumb print and password locking system on it!"
he just turned to me and laughed as he jumped down into the cockpit sphere. A few moments later I heard the generator whine to life and begin pumping energy to every square inch of the mechanical beast. The head turned to look at me and I heard a male, almost mechanized voice, "Xero, tell my wife that we are having spaghetti for dinner."
"spaghetti for dinner?" I was slightly confused, "alright, whatever." I turned again as he stepped out of the stall and walked for the door, I did the same.
I walked out of the garage and continued my way until I reached the parking lot. I got into my truck and checked the directions for the first step in getting to his place. An hour and three stops for help later I finally reached a large house that had a large warehouse behind it. "well, I guess this is it. not quite what I was expecting but o-well." I parked the car and stepped out, locking the doors as I headed for the door.
I stepped up and faced the front door. I raised my hand and gripped the dragon shaped knocker on the higher part of the door. I lifted and dropped the knocker three times and then waited. I rarely knocked more than three times anywhere.
After about fifteen seconds the door opened and an attractive woman stepped into the doorway. She was just as tall as I, she had brown hair, brown eyes, and she was wearing a dark dress that stretched to the floor. "so, I assume that you are Xero?"
"that I am. Am I expected?"
"you are. Did matthew care to tell you what we will be having for dinner?"
"huh? He said you were having spaghetti."
"very well. Come in, come in. please make yourself at home until my dear husband gets home."
I stepped through the door. "thank you."
"would you like anything to eat or drink?"
"well I am a bit thirsty if it isn't too much trouble." I stepped past her and she followed as she closed the door behind me.
"none at all, follow me to the kitchen." She stepped away toward what I guessed was where the kitchen was.
"alright then." And I followed her off.
We walked through two more rooms before coming into the kitchen. "and what can I get you Xero? Water, apple juice, milk, lemonade?" she motioned with her hand for me to sit at one of the barstools next to the counter.
"oh, um apple juice would be nice, thanks." I stepped over and took a seat.
She opened the fridge and pulled out the pitcher of juice, then pulled out a cup from the cupboard and poured me a cup which she placed on the counter in front of me. "don't worry, Xero. He knows what he's doing. You'll get her back in one piece."
"wha-? Oh, I'm not worried about that at all." I gave a fake laugh as I picked up the cup and took a drink. "thanks. So, does he upgrade a lot of ACs for ravens?"
"no problem. I used to get really mad when matt would offer to upgrade ravens ACs for them. He used to do it for every raven that ever pulled off a skilled shot or anything." She laughed as I took another drink. "then he stopped giving out upgrades to everyone for some reason and only picked the ones that he owed something to or had truly proven themselves a very skilled pilot." She sat down across from me. "a lot of the ravens he would bring home when he first started were usually very rude and basically just wanted their upgrades and then we never saw them again. Sadly they would usually get hot headed and go off on impossible missions and get themselves killed. I guess that was why I didn't like it very much. But now that he carefully chooses the ones to upgrade he brings home very nice and polite ravens that make this a lot easier." She laughed again. "so, to answer your question: he used to upgrade a lot but has cut down a lot. He only does like one every month or two."
"ah." I finished my drink and stood to put the cup somewhere. "in the sink?" I asked, pointing to the cup.
"yes, if you would. Thank you."
"no problem." I put the cup in the sink and walked back over to sit down again. But just as I sat down I felt the counter and the chair start to vibrate. "you feel that?" I asked, getting a little worried. I looked back at her. She was sitting on the chair with her arm resting on the table and her head resting in that arms palm.
She had a perfectly normal look on her face. "he's home." Was all she said as she pointed to a door to my right. I guessed this was the back door as it was on the opposite side as the front door.
I walked over to the door and pulled it open in time to see a large blue plasma stream heading towards me. The blue blossom slowly shrunk and disappeared completely as it came into full view. Sure enough it was Revolution. The blue flower was gone and instead now I could see two distinct plasma jets coming out of the bottom of the core as Rev closed in. it got about one-hundred fifty yards away and the jets turned off and rev flew through the air before stomping onto the ground hard with both feet, making two long craters as she slid towards the house.
She finally stopped as she came to be about fifty yards away. I heard a voice come from within her. "follow me to the garage." It was Matt as expected. He turned and started walking rev towards the large warehouse behind his house.
I ran from the house to the garage, excited to hear about what e was planning to do to her. I opened the front man-door and stepped inside. It was dark as night when I opened the door but as soon as I stepped in, hundreds of pole lights lit themselves.
Immediatly after a large hanger door on the opposite side of the garage opened up and rev walked in and up to a stall that met with the catwalk that was suspended a few yards above my head. I looked up and matt climbed out of Revolution's cockpit and walked down the catwalk to an open platform at the end of the catwalk. He leaned over and pushed a few buttons on the side. The platform jolted then began moving downwards. Upon reaching the ground floor he walked over toward me with my flight suit on. Sharing a flight suit is like sharing a tooth brush.
"my flight suit! I need to wear that! That's nasty man."
He looked at his arm and surveyed himself. "oh, well, sorry. I'll give you a new one when I'm done with Revolution."
"about that, what do you plan to do?" I walked the last few feet to meet him.
"well, it is a well designed AC, I'll give you that. But."
"there it is. 'but' what?"
"it is a bit slow. Ok, really slow. The reaction time is a bit slow. The cockpit system could use some work as well. It needs a better generator, radiator, F.C.S., and there are just some modifications I could do. I don't want to sound like an ass or anything but I could build you a completely new AC that would be a hell-of-a-lot more efficient than Revolution."
"well I don't mean to sound like an ass as well but I'm afraid that I like Revolution the way she is. But there are a few suggestions I could make for the upgrades, as well as a few questions."
"ok, shoot."
"well, first for the questions. How do you plan to make it faster? I have the best boosters you can buy on it already."
"well, heh, I have my own boosters that I can put on her. As well as a new generator and some modifications to the overboost."
"ok, sounds good. How do you plan to modify the cockpit system?"
"well, I can give it a much more organic sounding voice. As well as modifying the CAR systems for a better response and reaction time." He looked back at Revolution for a sec. "oh! I can do some stuff to your weapons as well."
"what can you do to weapons?"
"sadly if I do what I have planned then it would make your weapons weigh a lot more. Which would mean you would have to get rid of your weapon clips. They are really dead weight anyway."
"well, I guess but what about my standard weapon clip?"
"the one on the back of your waist? That one should be able to stay. I have never had any real problems with that one. And besides, as it is mounted onto the legs from the factory I think that the weight of that clip is included in the main weight of the legs anyway so it doesn't add anything."
"oh, well ok. Go ahead. But you never answered my question, what can you do to the weapons?"
"oh, well, I was planning on customizing one of your shotguns and your machine gun. What I can do it get them to do a little more damage and speed up the fire rate."
"eh, whatever. Go ahead and do what you can with the weapons. I'll take what you give me."
"alright. Well, I guess I should get to work on them right away then huh?"
"if you feel the need."
"you can go ahead and head home. It should be done in about five days."
"alright, c'ya later!" I waved as I walked toward the door. I saw matt turn back towards Revolution and look up at her as I closed the door behind me.
*Authors note* I am just going to skip the few days that he would be upgrading the AC and go right to the day when he gets it back. I didn't have anything planned for those few days anyway. So don't be PMing me because it seems like you missed a chapter when the net one comes out. And I would like to thank everybody for reading and reviewing.