CHAPTER 2

Gambit's Rage

The Stealth Dragon descended into the tunnel beneath the mountain, lights flickering on to illuminate its way. Gambit looked around anxiously as he waited to see something other than two metal walls on either side. The mountain face slid back into position and closed completely behind them with a loud thud. Up ahead, the Stealth Dragon emerged from the tunnel and into a massive hangar below the surface. Zoids of all kinds sat while mechanics worked on them, equipping weapons and fixing armor. "Welcome to the Resistance kid" Crow said. Further along, Gambit gazed out the cockpit of the Stealth Dragon, seeing a line of Zoid parts moving along a giant revolving belt.

"What's that?" Gambit asked.

"The assembly line," Crow answered, "we moved a large Zoid factory down here so we could make our own Zoids. We need every advantage we can get against the Spawn." Gambit understood, continuing to look around. He saw a group of kids wielding rifles and aiming at targets. "We're preparing for the next generation of Resistance since it doesn't look like the fighting will stop anytime soon" Crow said, noticing Gambit's curiosity. The Stealth Dragon landed on a special flight pad just for it, led in by a soldier holding special lights and opened its cockpit. Crow and Gambit climbed out, met by Drake and Predator on the ground. A man with blue, spiky hair and matching blue eyes approached them.

"Vengeance," the man said, "good to see you return safely."

"This is Victor, leader of our Special Forces unit," Crow said, "and Victor, this is Gambit. I rescued him and Predator over there from a Spawn search party." The man named Victor saluted the young man, Gambit confusingly saluting back. More men and a single woman approached Gambit's rescuer from behind. "Ah," Crow said, "this is Juliet, Commander of our Air Force and Scar, leader of Scouting Operations. Over there is Gabriel, Commander of the Blitzkrieg Squad and Ace, Captain of our ground forces." Gambit nervously shook each person's hand and did his best to smile and be pleasant.

"So, Predator huh?" Victor asked, approaching the maroon organoid. His efforts were met by a deep growl and a chomp to the hand. Victor quickly pulled back as Predator ducked behind his new partner. Gambit turned and pet the organoid between its nose horn and forehead, Predator nearly started purring in delight. "Okay, doesn't like strangers," Victor said, holding out his hand in pain, "that's alright."

"Drake doesn't like guns and Predator doesn't like strangers," Crow said, "I guess organoids are just picky. Hey Gambit, how about I have Victor here show you to a room?"

"Then what?" Gambit asked.

"Then, you relax for a while" Crow answered.

"I don't want to relax, I want to help" Gambit said.

"You mean you want to help fight the Spawn?" Crow asked. Gambit just nodded and stared at the ground quietly. "You know, a Death Wraith killed my father and destroyed my home," Crow said, "is that what happened to you, but with the Spawn?" Another quiet nod gave him the answer. "Okay, follow me then."


A couple of minutes later the man, the boy and their organoids walked down a long hall, surrounded by glass cases holding fresh-from-the-factory Zoids. Gambit carefully looked every Zoid over, going down the line until he found one he liked. "What's this?" he asked. Crow looked at the Zoid Gambit was asking about. It was lion-like in shape, with light blue armor, razor sharp fangs and a pair of Hi-Intensity Beam Cannons on its back, as well as a few other concealed weapons.

"Ah, the Shield Liger DSC-J, also known as the Leomaster," Crow said, "this Zoid has a short history so far. The war against the Spawn and the Death Wraiths forced us to up the ante, we needed serious firepower and defense to stand up to Genosaurers and the like. Working with one of the most balanced Zoids we had, we improve all of the Shield Liger's capabilities. The Leomaster has an Anti-CPG Shield, capable of taking a full force Super Charged Particle Gun without damaging the Zoid and improved armor to boot. The final touch were the twin Hi-Intensity Beam Cannons, strong enough to defeat a Gojulas in a few shots and cause massive damage to even the strongest armor. These Zoids are the perfect anti-Chaos Saurer weapon, but they are also very expensive. As a matter of fact, we only have five here at this base."

"You mean that there are other bases?" Gambit asked.

"Yes, to have all our forces in one area is a major security risk," Crow said, "but this is the main command base." Gambit nodded and continued looking around. He saw Heldigunners, Rev Raptors, Molgas, Command Wolves and Godos, but none really caught his interest. The next Zoid he came across did however. "The Gun Sniper," Crow said, "a raptor-type Zoid with a fair amount of both long and medium range weaponry. Of course, each of ours are equipped with the Wild Weasel Unit for added firepower, which disables the tail-mounted 144mm sniper rifle but adds dual AZ144mm and AZ188mm cannons. Beyond that, the Zoid is also equipped with dual wrist-mounted 20mm gatling guns and a pair of boosters that double as 8-shot Mortar Pods."

"I want this Zoid" Gambit said, nearly drooling as he said it. Crow nodded and motioned for the boy to follow him.


An hour later the Gun Sniper sat in the middle of an enormous white room with padded walls and a single window with double-paned bullet proof glass. "All the appropriate equipment has been installed to monitor the Gun Sniper's condition during the battle," Crow's voice said over an intercom, "begin whenever you're ready." A pair of tiger type Zoids called Zaber Fangs roared a challenge at the Sniper while Predator waited behind it. The Zaber Fangs were standard, equipped with dual 30mm cannons, various 20mm cannons, a Triple-Barreled Impact Cannon and a 3-shot rocket launcher as well.

"Predator!" Gambit yelled. The maroon organoid bellowed into the air with its metallic voice and boosted up, turning to a bolt of maroon energy and melding with the Gun Sniper. The Zoid reacted by roaring wildly as its paint job turned to maroon. Gambit smiled pleasantly at the change.

"Look at that!" Crow yelled to Victor, who was standing right next to him. "The Gun Sniper's performance was boosted up by 80 percentin all areas upon the merger with Predator!"

"How much does Drake boost them up by?" Victor asked.

"Only 50 percent," Crow answered, "that's one tough organoid!"

The Gun Sniper sprang forward in a blur of maroon light as Gambit activated its boosters. The Zaber Fangs had to jump out of the way to avoid the oncoming Zoid as the Gun Sniper nearly collided with them. The first one hissed and slashed at the Gun Sniper with its hardened alloy claws. Inside the cockpit, all Gambit could see were the faces of the children that had come, armed with weapons and killed his parents ten years ago. Their disfigured, almost zombified faces laughed mockingly at his pitiful attempts to catch them. The boy gritted his teeth together and tapped the button on top of the main control stick. The Wild Weasel Unit came to life, firing all its weapons at once. The shots slammed into the first Zaber Fang, blowing four craters in its armor. The tiger type Zoid collapsed in a heap on the ground as Gambit turned to face the remaining one.

"What's happening?" Crow asked, looking at the computer. "Gambit's conditions are way off the charts, and the Gun Sniper's are reacting in unison!"

Gambit yelled a battle cry as the Gun Sniper swiped viciously at the remaining Zaber Fang. The opposing Zoid ducked under the ferocious attack just in time and began backing away, hissing defensively. The Gun Sniper returned with a powerful roar, causing the Zaber to cower down and whimper as it closed in. The raptor-like Zoid pounced on its prey, landing on the Zaber Fang's back and tearing away ravenously at the Zoid's armor and weapons. The Gun Sniper didn't stop until the Zaber's entire body was ripped in half, parts of it hanging from the Zoid's mouth. Gambit panted as he calmed down, his vision returning to normal.

Predator rocketed out of the Sniper and the cockpit opened. Gambit jumped out, his heart still pumping a tremendous amount of blood throughout his body. Crow ran out to meet him. "Amazing!" the man yelled. "We've never had a new pilot pass this training course as quickly as you, you've set a new record!"

"Records don't matter to me," Gambit said, "thanks to you I finally have a chance to avenge my parents. That's all I care about." The boy, joined immediately by his organoid, walked shyly out of the room and toward Victor. "Show me to my room."


That night Gambit had the best sleep he'd ever had. He slept so soundly he snored, a bad habit he had kicked to the curb when the Spawn began chasing him. The boy awoke in the morning to the sound of an alarm going off. He heard voices run by his room and down toward the Zoid hangars nearby and quickly got to his feet. Predator opened a single eye and yawned, slowly getting to his feet as well.

"All personnel, we're now going to code red, I repeat, the Spawn are within three miles of the base and closing," a voice said over the megaphone and added "please remain calm." Gambit rolled his eyes and hurried into the Zoid hangar holding his new Gun Sniper. He hopped in the cockpit just in time to see Crow's Stealth Dragon soar by. The Sniper roared into action and sprang after the draconic Zoid.

"Alright soldiers," Crow said to everyone following him, "prepare to launch at my command." The man stared down at his command screen seriously as it came to life with data transmitted from the command center. A large group of Zoids, led by a familiar Psychosaurer, approached at high speeds, hoping to catch the Resistance off guard. "Craven! Launch damn it, launch!" The mountain side slid open, the Stealth Dragon leading the Gun Sniper and other Zoids out to face the oncoming threat. The other Zoids included Iron Kongs, Shield Ligers and Zaber Fangs. Crow's Zoid boosted into the air, stretching out its wings and charging the Death Wraith and his mutant Genosaurer.

Gambit closed his eyes and his world became red at the sight of the Spawn and their wretched Zoids. "Predator!" he yelled. The organoid melded with the Sniper as he boosted toward a group of Helcats. The cheetah-like Zoids opened fire with their numerous machine guns and beam cannons as the Gun Sniper closed in. The raptor type Zoid took a few hits but kept going, fueled by Gambit's rage. A Helcat activated its Stealth Shield in fear, but the Gun Sniper was already upon it. A few shots from the WWU blasted the light armor of the Helcat to nothing and Gambit's Zoid lunged forward, clawing viciously into the side of the Zoid. A Grappling Hook Arm caught the light framed raptor Zoid and began reeling it in, anti-Zoid weaponry chewing at its armor as it went. The Gun Sniper flailed and hissed defiantly as the Psychosaurer drew it ever closer, unaffected by the Zoid's thrashing and threats.

Seeing Crow coming, Craven boosted his Saurer backwards, dodging the oncoming Dragon and pulling the Sniper with it. A quick movement from Crow forced Craven to withdraw his attack on the Gun Sniper and focus on his main opponent. The Helcats from before swarmed the fallen Sniper, pinning it down with gunfire. A few lucky shots snapped one of the Zoid's arms off and constant fire began to ware down the Sniper's light armor. Gambit activated the Zoid's boosters, sliding along sideways on the ground, and slammed into a Helcat. The Gun Sniper used the Helcat as a ramp to get to its feet, crushing the cat-like Zoid under its weight.

The Psychosaurer roared and boosted up, dodging a swipe of the Stealth Dragon's tail. "Too slow village boy, always too slow!" Craven yelled. Crow punched the command screen of the Dragon and piloted it toward its opponent once more. Craven laughed as the Psychosaurer reached out and grabbed the head of the Stealth Dragon, using its momentum to throw it to the ground. Next, the Saurer began charging up its Max CPG, a cloud of charged particles forming.

Gambit's Gun Sniper used the 20mm gatling gun on its remaining arm to tear into a Helcat's chest as another prepared to pounce on him. The Gun Sniper turned to fire but the Helcat was too fast, knocking the raptor type Zoid over again. The two Zoids grappled on the ground for control momentarily until the Gun Sniper finally just kicked the Helcat away. Gambit gritted his teeth together again, rolling the Gun Sniper to its feet to face another advancing opponent, this one a Rev Raptor. The two raptor-types squared off before charging each other headlong.

The Stealth Dragon stretched out its wings and boosted out of the way just as a barrage of charged particle beams slammed into the ground where it had just been. Crow took a deep breath and the Dragon poured a stream of anti-Zoid bullets from its mouth mounted 40mm machine guns. The Psychosaurer covered its face with its arms and boosted right through the attack, catching the main body of the Stealth Dragon with its claws and roaring in its face. Crow's Zoid reacted by biting into the enemy Zoid's neck, trying desperately to behead it. Craven snickered and fired both Grappling Hook Arms, shooting the Stealth Dragon through the air and toward the face of the mountain.

The Rev Raptor stretched out its dual scythe cutters, threatening to cut the Gun Sniper in half as it charged. The Sniper maneuvered to the side just in time to avoid the attack and turned a tight radius, coming up behind its enemy. The Rev Raptor tried to turn but was met only by a barrage of anti-Zoid shots from the Gun Sniper's WWU. Gambit didn't celebrate the victory at all, immediately turning to face another opponent.

The Stealth Dragon clashed with the mountain, sending rubble and rocks flying in the air. The Psychosaurer relentlessly began reeling the Zoid in for another attack when it suddenly came to life, smashing one of the arms with its hardened alloy tail club. The attack forced the Saurer to let go with that arm and the Stealth Dragon easily wiggled out of the grasp of the other, but without the loss of a hunk of armor. The Dragon flew toward the main body of its arch-enemy and grabbed the Saurer with its Gripper Claws, picking it up as it went.

Gambit finished off the enemy Molga he'd just decapitated and looked around for a new opponent. All around him the Resistance had taken the upper hand, now outnumbering the Spawn two-to-one. He watched as Crow's Stealth Dragon drug the Psychosaurer along the mountain until the Zoid was simply torn from its grasp. The Saurer boosted to its feet and began fleeing. "Retreat! All forces retreat!" Craven ordered. The Spawn immediately obeyed, instantly turning and beginning to retreat as well. The Gun Sniper and its allies charged their fleeing opposition, taking out a few stragglers before returning to the base.

Gambit and Crow jumped out of their cockpits in unsion, meeting each other on the ground as Predator and Drake boosted out of the pilots' Zoids. "How did the Spawn know where your base was?" Gambit asked.

"They've known for a long time kid," Crow explained, "attacks like those are as common as the sun setting." Gambit took a deep breath and sighed, this wasn't going to be an easy rebellion.


A/N: Sorry about the wait for this chapter, I wanted to get it up sooner but was distracted by life's little obstacles. Hope everyone enjoyed it and didn't think Gambit was too uber. Please review!