DR: As it's Christmas Eve, here's my present for all you lucky people.

Zeke: Wait, isn't this the chapter when we see Leena's new zoid?

DR: Correct. I know everyone's been waiting with baited breath...

O'Neill: Cool!

Chapter 49: Zoids Reborn

As they had for the last couple of days, the Blitz Team joined Christian at his home for breakfast. His table was laid with plenty of good, honestly cooked food. Eggs, bacon, toast… everything anyone could possible want was there. And none of it had that greasy taste that came from fast food places. This may have been a traditional, non-weight watching breakfast, but it was certainly better for you than the stuff turned out by company run kitchens.

As the Blitz approached the outdoor table, they saw they were not the only guests. The distinctive hair colours showed that Van, Raven, Fiona and Resse already sat there. Van stood up to greet them.

"Great start to the day, don't you think?" He grinned. Bit couldn't help but grin along with him.

"Yea. And you clearly went to an effort too!" Van had not only donned his new uniform, but he had combed his hair back and shaved. The top half of his uniform fitted him snugly, and it was clear to all why Fiona had fallen for him. The muscles in his arms and torso stood out proudly, and his heroic pose worked far more effectively now than it had before with Fiona. With only one exception, everyone who saw it was impressed.

"Van, knock it off." Raven called across the table. As the Blitz turned to regard him, they saw that he too had received a new set of clothes. The effect was uncanny. Although they had all seen and talked to him before, now he was wearing that dark purple and grey uniform, with its harsh lines and metallic shoulder pads, he seemed much more distant and cold. In contrast Resse's bodysuit had not a single hard edge anywhere on it. Like Fiona's clothing it started high on her neck and encased her entire body in a skin hugging dark blue coating.

"Now that Van's finished showing off, can we eat?" The young female voice, filled with discipline, cut across the low chuckles that Ravens comment had started. The Blitz refocused on the young woman sitting on Ravens free side. At once they all knew to take this one seriously. Her Imperial uniform seemed to have been moulded to fit her, and her raven-coloured hair was pulled back in a tight and severe hairstyle. Her sea-green eyes swept over each and every one of them coolly and without hurry.

Stoller was startled when their eyes met. She paused for a fraction of a second, her eyes widening slightly, before carrying on with her sweep. Stoller felt unsettled somehow. During that brief contact, he had felt something in his chest pulse. This woman clearly had skill and discipline, two traits that he had always admired. He felt a sudden yeaning to understand this person better, something new to him since he had always made a point of standing back and watching from a distance.

"Members of the Blitz Team, meet Captain Cassandra Cortez, the youngest ever Captain in the Imperial Army of Guylos." Christian introduced her, a smile on his face. He had seen her pause on Stoller. "Cassie, may I introduce the Blitz Team members. Steve Toros, Leon Toros, Sarah Obscura, Vega Obscura, Bit Cloud, Leena Toros, Naomi Fluegel, Brad Hunter, Jamie Hemeros, Pierce, and Stigma Stoller." He gestured to each member in turn.

"Delighted." Cassandra said formally, keeping control of her voice but found her eyes flicking back to Stoller. There was something about him that intrigued her. In some respects he resembled the Raven of old, hanging back from the others with that stern expression… She was interrupted by the arrival of the food.

For the next hour the gathered pilots ate and talked, the discussion centred on the growing zoids below. Part way though two men joined the gathering. Christian greeted each one with a handshake and back slapping hug, before introducing them to the Blitz.

"These two are the remaining members of my team; Carlos Duran, and Terry Marx."

Carlos was tall and very broad shouldered, seeming to be an almost solid block of flesh. His black hair bristled up from the top of his head, and his arms were those of a serious weight lifter. The thick bushy beard on his chin matched the hair that almost covered his arms, and his chequered shirt was worn open collared. Terry was almost the exact opposite, tall and slender, his pale brown hair curling down to his thin shoulders. They were both dressed in rough clothing that had seen a lot of use, and their boots were scuffed and marked.

As they sat down to eat as well, Bit turned to them both. "So can I ask, where have you two been? We've haven't seen any sign of you before." Pierce and Jamie looked at each other, recalling some of the photos in the mansion. One in particular stood out: Christian, flanked by Susan and Samantha, with these men on one side seemingly trying to climb over each other to get in the shot, while the other side had a small, compact woman sitting with her feet up, smiling shyly.

"Well, we were out in the plain." Carlos's voice was a deep baritone, to match his darker skin and solid build. "Got me a nice little plantation of pines out there. I was making a nice little profit thank you very much." He threw a mock glare at Christian, who simply shrugged.

"Well, at least your trees will still be there when you return to them." Terry's voice was higher pitched, and he had tendency to drawl. "My poor crops will be all flattened and stamped out, or blown all over the landscape when this cities guns start firing."

"Take out your anger on the Cybrids then. That's what those old tin cans are for." Both men were silenced at the mention of their old foes, Terry playing with the ring on his finger with a far away look in his eyes.

A while later Christian looked at his watch. "My, it's almost time." He said standing up. "Lets all head down to the hanger. Naomi's Gunsniper should be done almost anytime." Naomi gripped Brad's hand tighter than she needed as she stood up, nerves running though her gut…

X-X-X-X-X-X

Christian led the gathered pilots into the house, where they all took a lift down to the reserved hanger bay below. It was echoingly empty, without a sign of a single zoid. Bit looked around in amazement.

"Isn't this where your zoids are kept?"

Christian nodded. "Generally they will remain here, but they can leave at anytime and go where they will. I think I can guess where they are though." He turned to Susan. "You go ahead. I need to unlock the vault." As he walked towards the back wall, Terry Marx went with him. Faintly Bit heard him ask Terry if he recalled the start up procedure. He turned to Samantha, the closest member of the old team.

"I thought all of you had a zoid…"

Sam shook her head. "Five of us do. Terry's HERC was the only one to survive the battle in anything approaching good condition. We decided as a whole to keep it on as a reminder of who we once were."

Leon was doing some mental arithmetic and looked puzzled. "I only count five of you. There's a sixth member to your team?"

Sam nodded. "Yes, Alice is currently out looking for signs of the Cybrids."

The Blitz entered the bay where the growing zoids were. So intent on the glowing zoid pools at the far end were they it was not until they had reached the centre of the chamber that they noticed that the bay already had occupants. Four great and majestic zoids stood there along each side of the bay.

Mnementh they had already seen, but standing close to the massive dragon was a zoid that none of them had witnessed before. Steve recalled seeing a zoid once before that had a similar basic shape, the Orudios. This zoid had four thin legs supporting a rounded body, with a thick neck at the front and a tail made up of what appeared to be hundreds of individual strands. Atop the stout neck was a long rounded head, with a long mane that ran from the back of the head down the neck, also composed of hundreds of metal strands like the tail. Unlike the Orudios however this zoid did not have wings sprouting from its back. Instead there was a long, tapered horn protruding straight out from the zoids forehead. The entire body was mainly silvery-white, with the underlying parts a pale grey. The mane, eyes and tail were pure silver, and the central horn a pale gold. A sleek twin cannon mounting was situated mid-back, with smaller guns attached to each side of the main turret.

On the other side of the bay from Mnementh was one that was so solidly built it made the Elephander look anorexic in comparison. Standing on four massively thick legs, the huge body was easily big enough to contain the Berserker Fury with room to spare. The head reminded Bit of Harry's modified Dark Horn; only this thing looked even more armoured. Above both eyes a long curved horn reached high, while where the array of spines that would be on a Dark Horns head there was a solid frill that looked like pure armour. As the massive head swung round to inspect them, Bit noticed that the frill completely hid the zoids body. The cheek spars held a serious looking machine gun each, and tucked tight to the zoids body were two massive versions of the Vulcan Cannons. The zoids body was predominantly a dark green, with a paler belly and the covered sections a dark grey. The orange eyes gleamed as they peered out form underneath heavy brows and those huge horns.

Just beyond that zoid a darker mass signalled the presence of the Black Panther zoid that had led them though the mists. It was only the gleaming golden eyes that showed the position of the zoid, as the rest of its jet-black body faded into the shadows.

One and all the Blitz team came to a sudden halt, their eyes wide as they stared at the two new zoids before them. As Susan walked towards the silvery zoid, it neighed and stepped forwards, the metal hooves clicking against the floor. The zoid lowered its long head down to nuzzle Susan with incredible delicacy.

"Eros, old friend…" She whispered to the unicorn zoid. Naomi had never seen such a delicacy to a zoids movement before. It was as if someone had encased a living horse with a skin-tight metal effect bodysuit.

On the other side Carlos's face split into a huge grin as he bellowed out to the huge zoid. "Hey Thunder, how you been old-timer?"

The Zoid in question roared back, before taking a step forwards. The massive tree trunk like legs sent tremors running though the floor that rode up Steve's spine and rattled an old tooth filling. "That zoid must weigh over two hundred tons!" He cried out.

"Almost four, actually." Samantha corrected him smoothly. "Most of that is his hyper-dense armour. He's the only zoid that can with stand a charged particle cannon attack head on and survive." Smiling sweetly at the Blitz in their shock, she walked over to the dark shadowy mass that was almost hidden by the huge zoid.

Van looked at the team's expressions, and couldn't help but laugh. "Trust me, the first time I saw them, I was just as amazed." His laughter brought the Blitz back to the here and now, and they all moved up to the pools. All three had a strong glow coming from within, and off to the side the grey egg that encased Naomi's Gunsniper was showing sighs of dissipating back into swirling mists.

…Heads up. The evolution is complete… Mnementh's mental statement caused a hush to fall over the bay as the ovoid broke down completely into a swirling cloud. Slowly the mists thinned as they slowed down, until at last the final shred faded away. With a flash the organoid left the zoid and landed beside it, its shoulders slumped in an air of exhaustion.

Naomi however didn't notice the organoids condition, so ardently did she take in her old zoids new look. It maintained the raptor styling of the old Gunsniper, but everything looked sleeker, more streamlined. The neck and torso resembled the neck of a Genosaurer, without the outer layers of armour. The armour plating over the limbs was smoother, more form fitted. The back mounted boosters and mortar rocket pods had not only been shifted down and back to ride over the hips, but they also looked more compact. The claws on the feet and hands were now curved, sharp blades, razor thin on the leading edge. It retained the wrist guns that Naomi had fitted to her Gunsniper, while the tail seemed longer and thinner. The muzzle of the sniper rifle protruding out the end. The head however had the most change. Instead of the one-piece canopy in a boxy head, the zoid before them had a much smoother head, with an armoured canopy like the Liger Zero and most other advanced zoids than ran the entire length of the head. The 'rabbit ears' of the Gunsniper were gone, and instead the new zoid had a single, centrally mount crest that swept back from its head. The zoid was almost uniformly crimson, while the pivot points, weapons and claws were all a matt black.

"Congratulations Naomi Fluegel." Christian said as he stepped up besides them. "You're now the proud owner of a Snipe Master."

Steve sucked in his breath. A Snipe Master! He had a model of one of those, and had drooled at the thought of getting a real one. Their sniping power was unmatched, capable of shooting further and with greater accuracy that the Gunsniper! They were also a bit tougher and more agile, allowing them to get into position faster, and survive for longer if the position was compromised.

Naomi too had heard of them, but had never seen one. Everyone who ever used sniping as their main tactic dreamed of owning one of the ultra rare Snipe Masters. Their rifle was almost fifty percent more powerful than that on a Gunsnipers, and their targeting system was one of the best around. It was even rumoured that the targeting system was so good that one could hit a teacup dead centre at five miles. No wonder the zoid was known as a Snipe Master.

Brad looped am arm round her shoulders. "You deserve it…" He whispered to her. Christian wheeled over a set of stairs.

"Why don't you get in and see how it fits? Mnementh, could you…" He didn't need to continue, as the Snipe Master bowed down, bringing its head close to the ground. The canopy opened up, yawning up like some second jaw. Naomi was so stunned that Brad had to get her started up the stairs into the zoid. Quickly she regained her pose and settled down in the cockpit, instantly feeling at home. As the canopy closed around her she fed her zoid gear into the appropriate slot, crossing her fingers as she did so. The zoid almost instantly recognised the gear, and the controls came alive under her fingers. Everything was arranged in a fashion that was just like the old Gunsniper, but smoother, easier to reach. Naomi felt her blood quicken as she gripped the sticks again, gently experimenting with their response. The new zoid was much faster and more responsive than the Gunsniper had been, and she had to react quickly least she made a fool of herself. Sighing happily, she brought the head back down again so that she could climb out.

"It's wonderful…" She cried as the canopy hinged open again. Brad's smile of pride almost split his head in two. Naomi was about to speak again, but a sudden hiss from one of the side pools cut her off. All eyes turned toward the pool, where steam could be seen rising from the surface and the rumble of pumps began. A second later the pumps on the pool at the other end of the line started up.

"Damn, they're earlier than I expected." Christian commented as they all watched the level of zoid within the pools drop rapidly. Turning to speak to Mnementh, Christian held his tongue as both the Liger Zero and Berserk Fury came bounding into the chamber. 'You knew?'

…Of course… Mnementh's reply was distinctly smug.

With a grinding of gears both side pools opened, steam billowing out of the new openings. For a moment nothing happened, then a Ligers roar resounded from within the left one, echoed a second later by a bellow that was dead match for the Fury. Both zoids outside the pools roared in reply, before stepping forward to meet their new siblings as they stepped out of the pools. The four zoids stood, nose to nose, allowing everyone to take in the new zoids. They were almost exact duplicates of the originals, right down to the new weapon configurations. The only difference was in the eyes. The new Ligers eyes shone a brilliant deep crimson, while the new Fury's eye were a cold blue.

"Why on Zi are the new Ligers eyes darker?" Bit asked in confusion, puzzlement clear on his face. While the Liger Zero also had red eyes, they were a more orangey red.

"Because that was the colour Zeke's eyes were!" Van answered before taking a step forward. "Hey Zeke!" He bellowed. The new Liger Zero snapped its head round to look at him, before roaring in reply and bounding over. Now that Bit had heard both, the new Ligers roars sounded off compared to the originals. To Van though the sound was one he had not heard in centuries. The new Ligers roars were an almost exactly like the roars Zeke had made, only deeper and with much more power.

#Van! Fiona!# The new Zeke roared as the huge zoid slid to a stop before them both. Gently the zoid nuzzled them both as they clung to its nose.

"It's great to have you back Zeke!" Van said with tears in his eyes. Fiona didn't say anything. She had had a connection with the organoid that had been even deeper than Van's. When Zeke had permanently bonded with the Blade Liger to form the Liger Zero, that bond had been seriously weakened. But now that bond was back and as strong as ever!

Meanwhile the two Fury's stared at each other in silence, while Raven and Vega stepped forward together. Both zoids turned to regard them both before bowing down, the blue-eyed Fury gently nudging Raven, just like Shadow had done in the past.

#Raven?# It rumbled, a note of hope in its 'voice'. Raven slowly raised his hand before lowering it onto the nose of the zoid.

"Hey Shadow…" He whispered almost to himself, looking though moistened eyes into one of those blue triangles.

Vega meanwhile was staring into the red eye of the other Fury. "You okay with this Fury?"

#Yes, I am. He is Shadow now, and I am the Fury. Not Berserk Fury, just Fury# The zoids rumbled growls filled Vega's heart with warmth.

While all this had been going on Christian had slipped off to one side and had rescanned the contents of the central pool. He nodded to himself before closing down the display. "Leena, your new zoid should be done in a couple of minutes. So everyone just sit tight."

Slowly the pilots dispersed. While Bit and Leena joined Van and Fiona in looking over Zeke, Sarah with Leon in tow went over to join Vega. Steve, Jamie and Pierce went to join Naomi and Brad by her new Snipe Master, leaving Stoller with Cassandra. The two of them glanced at each other, nodded, before they faced the still motionless central pool. After a few minutes of this, Stoller began to get cold feet.

"So, I hear you're the pilot of the Elephander." She stated, not taking her eyes from the zoid pool.

Stoller nodded as he also stared at the pool. "That's right. I was the lead pilot in its resurrection."

"Good zoid, solid, if a little slow and unwieldy. You must be a good pilot if you can handle something like that effectively."

Stoller shrugged. "I can hold my own." He glanced at the young woman besides him, taking in her sharp profile. "So what zoid do you pilot? Red Horn? Zaber Fang?"

"Ha! Nothing that weak." She turned her head to stare back at him, challenge in her eyes. "No, I pilot a custom Genosaurer."

Stoller was rocked back on his heels by the claim. "That's… impressive."

One raven-black eyebrow rose sharply. "Did you mean to say ludicrous? You think that simply because I'm a woman, I can't handle the raw power that a Genosaurer produces?"

"No, not at all."

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't lie to me buster. It's written all over your face."

Stoller frowned back. How dare this upstart claim to be able to read him that well! Okay she was right, he didn't believe her claim. Genosaurers were rare zoids anyway, but a custom one…

"Is arrogance part of the Imperial Officer Training scheme, or is this a natural trait of yours?" He had thought that her eyes couldn't get any narrower. He was wrong. Nor had he realised how cold her voice could get.

"Listen you…"

Over by Shadow, Resse sighed. "Cassie's getting into another fight."

Raven glanced over at the arguing pair, a slight smile on his lips. "Cassie's a big girl. She can handle herself."

"I wonder where she got her arrogance from…" Christian commented playfully as he stepped up besides them. Raven scowled at him, knowing the answer himself.

The argument between the two had gone beyond being civil and had now reached insults. "Well, if you want to talk about pervious experience, why don't we start with your past, in the Backdraft? A criminal organisation, without honour…"

"At least I learned what real honour is about, not been fed on the stylised version they force down your throat at some privileged academy!"

"You calling me spoilt?" Stoller noted, with the tiny part of his brain that was not involved in the argument, that when she frowned like that she was actually quite attractive…

"Let me think… Yes! I expect you've never done a hard days work, and that go get your rank…"

He was saved from making a fatal accusation by the rumble of pumps. Leena's new zoid was ready. As the fluid level dropped in the tank, Leena found herself shaking. Bit, seeing this, put his arm round her.

"It's going to be all right," he whispered as the front of the tank opened up. She nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat.

At first all that could be seen was a shadow in the steam, then it shifted. The wavering image hardened as the zoid stepped out. The head came first, held high up on the long neck. A foreleg was next, the three toes adjusting to the change in the level. The barrel tips of a twin set of Vulcans preceded the shoulders. The body swelled out to the hips, with solid looking thighs. The tail seemed to go on for ages before it finally exited the steam, gently swishing from side to side as the zoid walked.

As the zoid stopped in the clear and stood in a relaxed pose, everyone took in every detail of the new beast. It was nothing like anything any of them had seen before. The total length looked double that of a Gordos, and it was at least a couple of meters taller. The hip joints were higher than the shoulders, the segmented tail starting just behind them. The neck was joined to the body a short distance ahead of the shoulders, and curved upwards in two segments with straight edges. The head had a long jaw and narrowed toward the tip, looking almost regal. The zoids back and belly were both covered in a single sweeping section of armour each, the upper one having a break in the middle for the main guns, a great turret mounting two huge six-barrelled Vulcans. Missile pods, almost minuscule when compared to that turret, rode just above the hips, while small domed twin turrets were situated above and behind the shoulders. Armour plating was wrapped completely around the neck, tail and lower leg segments, while half shells covered the upper forelegs, the thighs and lower neck. Some of the armour was recessed, creating sunken panels and ridges in what would be barren panels. All the armour plating was a pale blue colour, while the underlying parts were darker. The pivot caps, a standard size but seemingly much smaller on this zoid, were a richer blue in colour, and were sunken into the armour. Slung between the forelimbs, just below the neck, there was a twin set of cannons. The legs ended in dull golden paws, with individual toes – three of the front, four on the rear - that had pivoted within the paw as the zoid had walked. The orange eyes gleamed out from within the head.

"It's beautiful…" Leena whispered. The zoids head swung round to look at her, the main guns following the heads line of sight. Naomi gasped as she watched the hip and shoulder joints flex in a way that she had only seen before on the Liger Zero and Fury as the zoid turned to face Leena. The feet twisted on all three axes as each leg moved fluidly to reposition the huge zoid with ease. The mouth opened and the zoid utter a gentle moan before lowering its head down to Leena. She found the end of the snout barely a foot away from her. She looked into the zoids gleaming orange eyes. The jaw opened again, and the zoid uttered another of those moaning roars.

#Well Leena, are you not pleased to see me?# Leena's jaw dropped as she understood the zoid! The words didn't come from its mouth, but it seemed that as the she heard the zoids roar, the words where overlaid, much like a movie would be dubbed. The speech was deep but gentle, almost motherly. Bit grinned as he understood the words too, and he hugged her tighter.

"I think it likes you…" He teased. The huge zoid moved its head closer, until it was practically touching Leena. Slowly, she reached out a trembling hand to rest on the metal snout before her. As she felt the warm metal beneath her hand, the zoid crooned gently. A look of wondrous joy formed on her face, to match the look on her fathers. His eyes were almost as wide as saucers as he tried to take in every detail of this amazing zoid at once.

Slowly the others gathered round the new zoid, the Ligers and Fury's behind them. Fiona slowly turned to look at Christian. "Did you know that it would turn out like this?"

"No." He shook his head. "But I hoped. I had the vision, they created it." He left out the fact that Zoid Eve herself had been involved too, but Fiona knew. She was the closest to her of all the inhabitants of the city. A fine thread of mist coiled across her shoulders.

"Do not be concerned Fiona Aliysen Linnette Flyheight. The Iguanosaur is a non-violent zoid at heart, a gentle giant." The words were whispered into her ear before the misty thread slipped away, thinning almost to nothingness.

Zeke: Woah...

Carter: Holy Hannah!

Shadow: Oh my...

O'Neill: Sweet!

Irvine: Man...

DR: Thought that might impress you all. And if you wish to see the zoid's picture, go to my author's page and click the link near the bottom! Enjoy! And happy Xmas! A nice present would be a review (of both story and zoid!)