DR: Today we have the Clouds enjoying each other (smirk), and we see some old... friends, once more. The Champs!

Van: No!

Mal: What!

O'Neill: Oh man...

DR: Come on, he's not as bad as he was before...

Chapter 20: Vacation and Old Foes

Bit yawned widely as he woke up the next day. Looking at the clock across the room, he saw that he still had a little time before he needed to get up. Grinning, he allowed his gaze to drop down to rest on the sleeping face of Leena besides him. As ever, her red hair formed a crimson halo about her head, and her face was that of an angel. Bit still had trouble realising that he was married to this beautiful woman. Oh he knew her flaws better than anyone… he had often been the one on the receiving end. Yet somehow they fitted together perfectly now.

A sigh escaped her lips as she began to awaken. Bit dropped his head to kiss her, holding his lips on hers until he could feel her respond properly. One of her hands snaked up his arm to rest on his shoulder. Slowly he pulled back to look her in the eye. As he looked once more into her violet eyes, he once again thanked what ever gods there were that he had earned this woman.

'Morning sleeping beauty."

Leena smiled in reply. She slowly raised her left leg, allowing her thigh to rub against his right leg as she did so. A mischievous look entered her eyes, one that both of them were well acquainted with.

"Leena, for a woman who doesn't want kids, you sure are keen on the means of getting them."

"Oh, I don't hear you complaining…" she began, but Bit cut her off when he rolled on top of her. Gasping in pleasure, she encircled his shoulders with her arms while spreading her legs wider. In the raising light of a new day they came together again, their bodies joined. As she felt him move within her, Leena wondered for a brief moment how she had ever lived without this.

Or how she had ever thought poorly of Bit, as her gaze rested on his flushed face above her own. Bit's emerald green eyes were wide with passion, but shining through was the love he felt for her. She reached up with one hand to slide her fingers into his hair, luxuriating in the soft locks. 'Better our kids get his than my dads…'

Bit grinned wider as he felt her loop her leg around him, a sure sign that she was enjoying herself, and nearing release. Their combined breathing began to run ragged, as with a rush they both reached seventh heaven together. Leena's jaw hung open as bliss exploded within her, driving all breath and voice from her.

Bit allowed himself to slowly come down to rest on her, feeling her soft, undeniably feminine body underneath his. He had often in the past, before they were married, wondered and dreamed about what it would feel like to feel a woman's naked body beneath his. The reality of it blew all his fantasies clear out of the water.

For a long moment they both laid there, content in each others arms. No words were exchanged between them both as they looked into each others eyes, because no words were needed. But then the demands of their bodies began to return.

Bit sighed. "Leena, sorry but I need the little mans room…"

"I thought you already used it." She teased, and both of them laughed together. After a minute she slapped him playfully on the shoulder. "Go ahead, and take a shower while you're at it. No need to remind everyone else about the wonderful fun we have together."

Bit chuckled as he levered himself upright. "Most of them have no right to complain…" he smirked, but he quickly snagged a towel and slipped out of their cabin.

Leena sighed happily as she allowed herself to fall back onto the bunk. Bit was right, she mused as she hugged the sheets to herself.

She allowed her thoughts to drift, wondering about kids. There was no denying it, she wanted them at some point. The trouble was when. Naomi had clearly shown the hassle that having kids while being a zoid pilot was. But Leena didn't know anything else. Besides, it was something that she had always wanted.

She sighed again as her thoughts wandered. While Naomi had pulled out for the later stages of her pregnancy, the rest of the team had been forced to work that little bit harder in the battles. There had been a couple of bouts where Naomi's skills would have been greatly appreciated. Leena didn't even what to think about how the team would struggle if she pulled out.

'It's more a case of not having my lovely zoid than me…' But despite that she felt no ill will. It was natural that things would be looked at that way when you were dealing with zoids as powerful and picky about their pilots as Ultimate X zoids. Then a stray thought crossed her mind, causing her to frown. 'I wonder if they would allow another pilot if we asked them to…' Bit's return from the shower interrupted her thoughts.

"Showers free." He told her, grasping the towel round his still damp form. "Grab it while you can. I know you like some privacy when you…" he trailed off, still uncomfortable at mentioning her lingering injuries. Leena understood fully. She herself didn't like to bring them up.

"Sure, thanks." She kissed him on the cheek as she shrugged into her dressing gown. Quietly padding down the corridor, she felt grateful again to the techs who had refurbished the Hover Cargo. All the corridors now had a strip of carpet down the centre, warm against her bare feet. She had not liked walking about barefoot when they were plain metal.

She found herself pausing outside first Brad and Naomi's, then Leon and Sarah's cabins as she walked past. Faintly she heard Naomi talking to her child, while there were gasps of pleasure coming from Sarah. Leena flushed pink and quickened her pace. 'Sarah sure knows how to raise the rafters, not to mention passions!'

Tapping the door first, Leena waited until she was sure that no-one was in, before slipping through. Bolting the door behind her, she sighed as she stepped towards the shower. Her gown was quickly hung up on a peg set in the wall for that purpose, and for second she looked at herself in the full length mirror by the cubicle. While she had lost a lot of her vanity after her terrible injuries, she still liked to know that she could stack up against any other woman on the planet.

Her eyes drifted to her right thigh, the lasting region of those wounds. She hadn't changed the gel coating in a few days, and now the pale blue patch was cracking. Hardening her resolve, Leena slowly broke the seal.

When she set eyes on her old wounds, she couldn't help but gasp. The ragged tear on the inside of her thigh was gone, not a trace of it remained. As for the main wound on the outside, only a long thin whitish line running down her thigh remained. In wonder she gently ran her finger down the line, feeling the shallow trough that it marked. Considering that the wound had gone all the way through her leg, it was amazing how little remained.

She smiled in glee as she remembered the instructions she had received when she had been handed the tube of healing gel. Once the skin had closed up there was no need to apply it again. Her mood dropped for a second as she realised that she was going to carry this scar for the rest of her life, but then she shrugged, remembering how it had been when she had first got the wound.

Stepping into the shower, she turned the water on gently. As she had thought, the water came through still warm from Bit's earlier shower. As she stood beneath the streaming water for a second, allowing it to caress her skin, Leena thought again about it. 'No, considering that I could have completely lost my leg, not to mention my life, one scar is not so much to pay.'

x x x x x x

Several hours later the Hover Cargo moved away from the battle site, pacing the Whale King that belonged to the other team. Bit's blood was still afire from the battle. Everyone could see it in the way he sat, his eye's dancing.

Vega could understand Bit's excitement. This battle had been the closest yet. While the other teams had experience, the Blitz had up till now been something of an unknown. But the others were starting to find ways to counter them. Today the battle had been intense, and for a while it had hung in the balance. Both teams had torn into each other with a vengeance, neither side quitting. But in the end the combined power of their Ultimate X zoids had pulled them through.

True most of the zoids were going to need a lot of repairs. The Iguanosaur had a bad limp and its main turret was frozen in place, while three of Liger Zero's Schneider laser blades were broken. The Fury had a dislocated jaw, while the Blade Liger, Shadow Fox and Snipe Master were all frozen up. The Elephander had still been standing, though its weapons had been shot off.

But all that was put out of mind by the Blitz, as they followed the 'Chaos' team towards a costal village, where according to the Chaos Team's leader one could find the best white sandy beach, and eat the best barbequed food on Zi.

After a half hour the transports arrived, dominating the landscape and dwarfing the small fishing village. Despite the noise of arrival and the bulk of the team's transports, the locals were more than happy to receive them. They had heard the distant sounds of battle, and it turned out that the Chaos team often came round. Even now a month after the events of the Great Siege as it was known the Blitz was still treated like heroes.

While Steve remained sat at the table within the beachside restaurant with the older members of the Chaos team, the rest of the Blitz were out on the pure sands, basking in the sun. While being zoid pilots allowed plenty of free time, there was nothing like having a true day out.

Vega, like the others, sat on a towel while eating his barbequed fish and chicken with his fingers. As he ate, he looked around at the others. Closest to him were Leon and Sarah, feeding each other bits of food. Vega, along with everyone else, had been stunned when Sarah had emerged wearing a very respectable one piece bathing suit, blue naturally. It fitted her tall, slim form perfectly, though there was a slight bugle above her hips. Vega hadn't even known that she had that!

Pierce and Jamie, along with Bit and Leena, were currently playing a game of beach volleyball with four members of the Chaos team. Pierce as usual had that ultra thin transparent shirt on over her swimsuit, and he could see how Jamie kept glancing at her when he could. Leena's right thigh was blaringly pale, but then that was to be expected. And to be honest her skin had always been quite pale anyway.

Slightly further back Brad was laying on his back, soaking up the sun, while watching Naomi play with their daughter, her own dark red bikini matching her hair. Little Janet appeared to having the time of her life. Stroller was a bit further a field, and like Brad was simply soaking up the sun. 'He needs it.' Vega smirked.

Even the liger Angel was out in the sun, lying flopped down on some sun warmed stones near Steve. The sunlight caused her tawny fur to almost glow in the light. She was spark out after having stuffed herself on the scraps of fish and chicken that the chefs had brought out for her. Considering the amount of meat that had been prepared for the two teams there had been quite a bit left over.

As his gaze wandered about, he noticed a pair of shadows approaching the beach on the water. He frowned as he saw the water part to reveal the backs of two yellow War Sharks, which both slowed up before gently sliding their heads onto the sandy beach a short way down.

"Those look familiar…" Vega heard Bit's voice behind him, and he turned to see him and Leena standing there, their eyes locked on the zoids with a frown. Vega turned his head back to see two people climb out of the zoids. One was clearly male and wore a horrid green shirt with red patches, while the female wore a conservative one-piece yellow bathing suit and a broad hat. Behind him Leena gasped.

"I know that shirt anywhere! It's Harry and Mary Champ!" Her raised voice drew the attention of all the Blitz team, with the exception of Stroller who was too far away to hear her. Not that he would have cared had he heard her.

Slowly the Champs walked over, till they stood across from Bit and Leena. Vega could feel the tension in the air, sat between the two pairs as he was. Harry Champ had a pained look on his face, while Mary looked apprehensive. There was still bad blood between Harry and the Clouds.

"Bit, Leena, nice to see you again." Mary began, clearly trying to put on a brave face. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, you know, a little day out. Nothing much." Bit deadpanned. "Plus the good food."

"Yes, the locals here do know how to cook their fish." Harry commented.

"Yes they do."

For a moment there was an awkward silence between them, Vega turning his head back and forth. The sound of an approaching Whale King broke the pause.

"Ah, there they are." Mary said as she looked over her shoulder. "Come on Harry, we've got to go. Don't want to miss your return to zoid battling."

"You serious?" Bit asked his eyes wide. "You're returning to zoid battling?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. We decided that it would be the best thing for me."

"Well, good luck." Leena said quietly. At last his eyes went to her face. For a moment he stood like that, before he inclined his head and turned away.

"Thanks." Mary said relief in her voice.

x x x x x x

As they waited for the judge to arrive from orbit a couple of hours later, Harry tried to pull himself together. Despite everything that had happened since that night, it still hurt to see Leena. He had seen the pain and fear in her eyes, and it caused him terrible heartache. He knew now that he had been deluded, crazy, out of his mind. But he still felt responsible. 'I should have controlled myself…'

"Harry, it's not your fault." Mary called from her own zoid. Harry looked up at the face of his sister, at her concerned face. Ever since that night she had practically taken over his care, almost waiting on him hand and foot. She had moved in with him, organising his whole life.

Surprisingly enough, she had not dominated him, nor had she imposed her will on him. These last few months had shown a completely different side to his sister that he had never seen. He still had trouble understanding why she helped him, since her had hurt her as badly as he had hurt Leena, perhaps worse since she was his sister. She always said that it was because of that bond that she helped him. What kind of sister would she be if she abandoned her little brother when he needed her?

"You're going to have to move on at some point." Mary continued to speak to him, not condescending as she might have, but gently.

"I'm trying Sis, but it's hard."

"Nothing easy is worth having Harry. Just remember I'll be here for you."

A smile formed on his lips. "You're the best sis." Mary just smiled as with a roar the Judge arrived.

While the Judge capsule retracted from its impact crater, Harry looked across the broken ground to where their opponents were. He watched as the three Stealth Viper heads wavered, waiting. Today was the first outing of the new 'Champs' team. With Mary in prime control of the team, it was unlikely that things would go badly wrong.

"The surrounding thirty mile radius is now a designated Zoid battlefield. Only competitors and support personal are allowed entry. Danger!" The Judge began, and Harry felt his blood begin to quicken. The old adrenaline rush was back.

"The Champs Team Vs the Vipers Team, Battle mode 0982. Ready…"

Suddenly a blindingly bright beam of light stabbed across the plain to strike the judge square on. Even as Harry threw up his arm to cover his eyes, he felt a cold hunk of ice settle in his gut. He knew what that was…

"What the hell was that?" Mary screeched. For a second Harry was too stunned to reply. He had never heard his prim and proper older sister swear before.

"That was a charged particle cannon." He told her, a shiver running up his spine as he recalled his all too near brush with such weapons. He looked across at the smoking crater that used to be the judge… and the long scar in the ground behind it.

"Now that he's out of the way…" A cold, cruel voice came over the comm. system. Harry snapped his eyes to the right, from were the particle beam had come from. Standing on the lip of a ridge was a zoid, too far away for him to identify at this range. Toggling the zoom, his Iron Kong flashed up an image of the zoid. When he saw it Harry felt his blood run cold.

"Wha… what is that?" Mary asked, fear running rampant in her voice.

The Genosaurer standing there was jet black, the underlying sections a deep brooding red. The eyes burned with bale fire. The forehead weapons had been radically altered. Instead of the long laser barrels there were four blade like objects, forming a cross that projected from the zoids forehead. The claws on the zoids forelimbs and feet looked much sharper than normal, and someone had decided to add splashes of red paint around the jaws, giving the impression that the zoid had only just made akill.

As six Rev Raptors stepped up to flank the dread zoid that voice came across the net again. "This battle has now been taken over by the Backdraft Group!" The Genosaurer roared in counterpoint, the sound curdling Harry's guts.

DR: Back with a bang! Things have really hit the fan now...

O'Neill: Ya think?