AVATAR: Hunt for the Courier

by Dearing

Sequel to Last of the Black Core. As Summer's End approches, Alistair and co. must warn the USAC before the Führer fires the COMET System again. But with a new face hunting Avatar's Courier...will they make it in time? Gundam inspired alt. history fic. Now cancelled, but a summery of the ending has been uploaded.

5. I Don't Need Eyes To See

It's here!

Finally! Sorry it took so long. I had numerous blocks of all kinds, from Simple Writer's Block to real life taking up most of my time. If you've e-mailed me between uploads, I haven't been ignoring you, I'm just really, really busy!
I'm sorry if there's a lot of grammer and spelling errors, but I really wanted to get this uploaded, and I'm not feeling my best if I'm honest with myself. I'll come back and spell check it when I'm feeling up to it.

Before I let you read on, I'd just like to thank Tellemicus Sundance for his help overcoming my writer's block. I'd also like to thank him again as well as NullChronicler for thier ideas for Toph's character. Thanks a lot guys, really apriciate it.

One last note: The voice of Toph (in her new form) will be provided in your heads by Liz Sroka (Tali'Zorah nar Rayya-Mass Effect).

Enjoy!

---

004

I DON'T NEED EYES TO SEE

"And you're sure it's him?"

"Facial recognition confirms it Doctor Wode," Rustin pushed his large glasses up his nose nervously as he glanced back at the large screen before him, "He and his companions rode into the city an hour ago on RTVs. They appear to looking for supplies,"

"I see," Wode steeped his fingers as he took in the image; his small dark eyes darting between the three faces, two male and one female, "Interesting that he hasn't brought his machine with him. He's not as stupid as General Zhao's reports would have had you believe,"

"Do you think he will find us sir?"

"I certainty hope so," the scientist blinked at his superior in surprise, "You need to see the big picture Nicholas. Even without the Avatar, it's Courier is a formidable and skilled pilot, I have no doubt of that. He will provide an excellent challenge for the Polaris Project,"

"But we only have the reports of a discredited and deceased General…" Rustin winced at the dark look Wode sent his way, "That is to say…I'm concerned for the well-being of the project sir. We only have Zhao's word on the capabilities of this pilot. What if he doesn't live up to your expectations, or worse…what if he destroys the project?"

"Then we keep working Nicholas," Wode grinned darkly, "We keep upgrading and refining…until not even the Führer himself could stop my greatest machine,"

---

"Thirty-nine Dollars…" Sokka scratched his chin thoughtfully as he stared at the desired object through the large shop window, "Kinda pricy…but look at the stitching, and that fancy emblem on the front…"

"It's a rucksack Sokka," Katara sighed wearily, as she ran a hand across her hair, "You've been trying to decide whether to buy it or not for fifteen minutes now…"
"Shh, don't rush me," his sister gave him an indignant look as Sokka waved her off, "Now, we have the money…but is it really worth it…?"

"Ugh," Katara ran a hand over her face as she shook her head in disbelief, "Just…make up your mind okay? I'm going to find Alistair,"

"Sure, sure," her brother nodded, not taking his eyes off the bag, "Go find Al. He's probably still ogling the Rangers we passed on the way in…OW!!!"
"Alistair doesn't ogle," Katara scowled darkly as she smacked Sokka round the back of the head…straight into the window, "He's just never seen a Ranger from the U.S.A.C. before now," she cast a sombre gaze towards the main gates of the city, several blocks down the street, "Considering how closely tied the United States and Canada were to the Black Core and Project A.V.A.T.A.R., it's not surprising he'd be…surprised…"

---

Set upon large three pronged feet on either side of the Gates to Toronto, they could not have been more then eighteen metres tall apiece, their armour cast in various shades of royal blue.

What intrigued Alistair however was how…primitive…the mechs appeared compared to the machines used by G.U.N. and the New Soviet Union.

Every limb had been reinforced with massive armoured plates, held to the frame by large bolts the size of his fist, large triangular protrusions from the lower legs and forearms protecting the knee and elbow joints respectfully

Their chests surprisingly didn't appear to contain the cockpits either, rather the control centre had been placed in a large detachable pod on the Ranger's back, giving the machine an almost humpback look, acting not only as counterbalance, but also as an escape module, the ion thrusters mounted on the pod's sides clearly not powerful enough to lift the entire Ranger off the ground.

Even the head seemed vaguely off-putting; a large cylinder, the size of it's forearm with a rounded 'front', mounted on it's side around a third of the way along, causing the trio of eyes that formed it's cameras to stick out slightly from the rest of the body.

All in all, it wasn't exactly the most…handsome of machines.

"USCR-307 Roosevelt," Aang glanced back at his friend as Katara came up beside him, a sad smile playing across her features, "They only began phasing out the Lincoln five years ago, but it's the first Ranger built by the U.S.A.C. to use a biped frame. All units before it used tank trends as a base in an attempt to bring their speed up to pare with G.U.N.'s own Rangers. The Roosevelt might be slower then the Fortitude, but it's a lot more heavily armoured, and considering the design of that rifle it's carrying is an exact duplicate of the one I use, it's safe to say it's equal in firepower,"

"You seem to know a lot about these machines,"

Katara shrugged, "They've saved my village on more then a few occasions during the phasing in period, but the only thing they've really got going for them is the strength of their armour. Of the three Main power blocs, the U.S.A.C. is the least developed in terms of Ranger technology. They've just spent more time on other technologies like the Umbrella generators then they have on combat modules. The only reason G.U.N. hasn't completely rolled over the armed forces is because their primary Rangers focus on speed, but have the same basic armament as the Roosevelt. It's basically have two people of the same strength pushing against each other,"

"But it doesn't make any sense," Alistair frowned as he leaned up against the side of a nearby building, "The Americans were a crucial part of the Black Core, we even had our main headquarters in Washington DC. I just can't believe that in a hundred years…that is the best they could come up with!"

"Well, the U.S.A.C. has developed useful technology in other departments," Katara smirked, "You just have to look up to see that,"

Alistair returned the gesture as he followed her gaze to the glowing dome above their heads that enveloped the city of Toronto, the pearl white skyscrapers that now made up the reconstructed metropolis reminding the officer vaguely of Moscow and parts of New York.

"Well…as nice as it is that the government cares about the safety of it's citizens, I don't think these machines were exactly what I had in mind," Aang sighed as he turned his gaze back to the Roosevelts, "If what you say is true, then we're going to need a greater number Roosevelts then G.U.N. has Fortitudes if we want to push through to Berlin…and that's if we're lucky and their Mecha Suits, Ex-Suits and DNIDAMs are elsewhere at the time,"

"So…what are you going to do?"

"What Bumi suggested for now; lie low, and try and find a way back round to Washington without alerting any G.U.N. forces that are probably being brought in to New York as we speak," Alistair sighed as Sokka came up beside them, grinning broadly as he caressed the newly acquired rucksack on his back, "Maybe we can find a way to upgrade the Rangers with Black Core technology from the Avat. Come on, it's getting late, we should probably find somewhere to stay for the night,"

---

Across the land, in the State of California, the Shadow waited.

Hidden amid the leafy foliage of the roadside forest, the Exo-suit's pilot watched the displays before his eyes; a smirk crossing his pale face as a single green dot on the green grid rapidly approached his position.

"Too easy,"

Had anyone been there to watch this deserted stretch of road, they might have noticed the slight shimmer in the air as the Exo-suit stepped out into the road, it's Mirage System cloaking it from view, straight into the path of the oncoming truck.

The oncoming armoured truck.

It never stood a chance.

Crashing into the suit a seventy miles an hour, the entire front of the chassis crumpled as it's rear end rose up into the air, the driver knocked out instantly as his head smashed into the airbag.

"Tsk tsk," the pilot sighed as the truck settled back onto the road with a pathetic moan, "Talk about a breach of road safety regulations,"

As he had done a dozen times before since arriving in the States, the pilot casually made his way round to the back of the truck, the heavy metal doors pulled away like they were made of plywood.

"I guess you guys don't get a lot of Exo-Suits in your heists along these empty roads," the pilot smirked as he took in the semi-conscious guards that lay strewn within the hold, "Makes no difference to me, I don't want much," with little effort, he pulled the door off one of the many safes that lines the innards of the truck, pulling out two blocks of notes from with it's confines, one of ten dollar bills, the other of twenties, "Mind if I borrow these? You'll probably get them back in a month or so,"

The guards only groaned in response.

---

"Did you make the call?"

"Don't I always?" Kiew sighed as she watched the onyx form of a Shadow Exo-Suit shimmer into view amid the trees, "The ambulance will be here in around half an hour from San Francisco," she cast a wry smile as the Shadow's chest opened up with a hiss, "You might want to make the next few though. I think emergency services might be getting suspicious…and I can only chance my voice so many times,"

"Don't worry, we won't have to do many more of these heists," Zuko shrugged nonchalantly as he stepped out of the suit and plucked the wads of paper money from his machine's open hands, "Besides, we don't exactly steal the entire cache," he tossed the twenties into his comrade's hands, "Just what we need, when we need it,"

"You call five hundred dollars in twenties and tens what we need?" The former Captain scowled as Kiew gave him an exasperated look, "I'm just worried, that's all. You're Uncle's starting to get suspicious too. This money's can't all have come from simple busking…and you're real lousy on the Tuba anyway,"

"I never liked that accursed instrument," Sozin's scowl deepened, "Regardless, as long as Uncle is only starting to get suspicious, and as long as certain," he shot his companion a pointed look, "people keep their traps shut, we should be okay. Besides it took most of the money we'd originally saved up to get to California, five hundred will keep us going for a while until we can find a lead on the Avatar,"

Kiew merely sighed as she watched her friend slowly take apart the Shadow, before moving to give him a hand.

"Whatever you say Syaoran…and I know how to keep my mouth shut!"

---

"Checkmate…again. Oh dear," the elderly man smiled pleasantly as he made his final move, "I'm so sorry,"

Alistair's shoulders slumped in defeat as he knocked his king over for the fifth time. Every move, every strategy, everything he knew about the game of kings was not up to par with the gentleman in the pristine white suit sitting across the board from him. This man was a master, no doubt about that.

"Damn…five victories straight," Sokka tutted quiet as he looked at the clock between them, the officer resting his head on his fist in disbelief, "and it only took him eight minutes and thirty two seconds. For shame Al," he shook his head, "for shame…OWW!!!"

"Guess I'm a better pilot then I am a chess player," Alistair smirked good naturedly as Katara slapped her brother round the back of the head irritably, "Think of Blighty he said," he sighed as he picked up Bumi's white knight, one of the few pieces left on the board amid a sea of marble, "Well, I've thought about that lump of rock all night…" he held up the piece to the light, "And as far as I can tell, this is still a well crafted, if simplistic, white knight," he smiled at his opponent across the table, "At least you didn't have to use a beer cap this time,"

The old man chuckled, "Yes, such a shame about my own missing white knight. Lost it years ago. But you…a pilot eh?" he leaned forward slightly, his lavender eyes shining with intrigue, "I don't get many of them sitting across my board. Most of them are more interested in the Robot Rumble…"

"Robot Rumble?" Sokka's ears seemed to perk up as he rubbed the back of his head painfully, "Like…Mech brawls? I thought they were banned in Canada…"

"They are…officially," the elderly Gentleman smiled pleasantly, "But The Mayor of Toronto is more…lenient to the sport…if you could call it that. That said, it's still held beneath a large warehouse on the southern side of the city. Must have taken a pretty long time to dig out. They hold fights between Rangers and Mecha Suits every night. If you hurry, you might catch tonight's matches,"

"Wait…" Katara cast her brother a wary glance as his eyes lit up, a gleeful smile gracing his lips, "You're not really thinking of going to one of these things are you?"

"Giant mechs brawling it out to see who alone will stand victorious?" Sokka bounced up and down on the balls of his feet like a child at Christmas, "Come on, how many times do we get the chance to see something like that?"

"It was New York," Aang's voice was deadly quiet, his face sombre as he examined his chess piece, "Around a week ago,"

"Yeah…" the smile faded slightly from the Australian's face, "But that's real life! This is just for fun…I mean no one's getting hurt in these things…" he turned to the elderly man, "Right?"

"Not that I've heard of," the gentleman shrugged, "Mind you, I'm just a player of the game of kings. I know it's a rough sport though…that's why it's officially banned within the Canadian states,"

"We shouldn't go Sokka," Katara frowned at her brother, "Alistair's right, New York was only a week ago, we should really…"

"No,"

"Alistair?"

"No, let's go," the officer smiled tiredly as he rose from his chair and pocketed the white knight, "Sokka's right. I might be…brutal entertainment, but at least it'll be staged, or at the very least safe,"

"So…we're going?" Sokka's eyes lit up again.

"Sure, why not?"
"YES!!!" the tanned man's jump for joy caused several patrons of the bar to regard him strongly, "YOU ARE THE BEST FRIEND A GUY COULD HAVE!!! LAST ONE THERE BUYS THE HOTDOGS!!!"

"That…ugh," Katara couldn't help but smirk as her brother tore out of the establishment in a series of twirls and joyful flourishes, "Does he even know where he's going?"

"Probably not," Alistair smirked, "Come on, we better go catch him before he gets in trouble," he turned back to his chess partner, "Thanks for the games Mr.…"

"Le Louch," the old man smiled, "The pleasure was all mine Sir. I hope we play again," he held out a hand to shake, "May fortune smile upon you my friend, forever eternal,"

As Aang returned the gesture and shook the wrinkled limb firmly, Katara couldn't help but frown again, an uneasy sense of familiarity overcoming her mind as she digested Le Louch's words.

---

To say the Arena was large was an understatement.

All around them, thousand upon thousands of men and women sat in the large metal-plated cavern across the massive stands that surrounded the ring in the centre; a massive raised block, 315 metres long by 225 metres wide, a thick dome of clear plexi-steel twenty metres away insuring none of the fighting machines fell into the crowd.

"Look at this place," Katara gazed round in awe as the three shifted along their seats, "It's huge! How'd they build this place without the authorities getting on their backs?"

"Maybe whoever built this place brought the Mayor out or something," Sokka shrugged as he took another bite out of his hot dog, "That Le Louch guy said the Mayor knows this place exists…maybe they didn't exactly need to be quiet with the administration on their side. Oh look there's our seats!!!"

"This just doesn't seem right though," Katara frowned as she slumped into the simple plastic chair as Alistair and Sokka took seats on either side, "I mean we go up against Rangers all the time. Watching people fight just for sport while people are dying across the Front Lines…it just doesn't seem right,"

"Ah, it's just a bit of fun," a new voice suddenly entered the conversation from their right, "It's like wrestling, only with more machinery and tonnage,"
"GAH!!!" Sokka scrambled out of his seat as he recognised the red coated blond haired individual he had sat next too, "It's you! That…that guy!"

"Nice you see you too," Jason Giddion smirked as he cleaned the lens of his sunglasses on the hem of his tunic, "Didn't think I had a big enough rep to warrant someone leaping up and pointing at me like a animal in a zoo though,"

"I…sorry," Sokka's shoulders slumped as threw himself back into the chair, "You just…startled me, that's all,"

"With good reason," Aang arched an eyebrow in the Glint's direction, "I thought you were escorting the New York refugees to Washington,"

"I was," Giddion scowled as he set his shades atop his blond hair, "But Boyd decided he wanted to take full credit for bringing about the evacuation of the city of New York. I wasn't getting paid anyway, so I left them near the state boarder and considered the contact completed,"

"So…what are you doing here?"

"Ah, I always come to Toronto after a contract goes awry," the Glint shrugged, "Good food, decent entertainment…It's also a good place to pick up new contracts and play a few rounds of Chess in the meantime,"

Katara smirked slightly, "And where does the Robot Rumble fit into all of this?"

Jason merely winked, "Good entertainment,"

"Shh! It's starting!"

As his comrades gave Sokka a variety of strange looks at his child-like excitement, the lights dimmed, a sudden hush overcoming the crowd as the giant screens above the dome, their connecting cameras focusing on a large booth set high up along the metallic walls.

Tall and muscular, the man that stood atop the balcony, his arms wide in welcome, appeared to be no stranger to violence. His onyx turtle-neck, dark blue jeans and knee length boots were tarnished with mud and soil, his tattered lab-coat was stained with oil and blood, it's edges frayed and burned. Long thin scars traced their way across his tanned face; one down the side of his cheek, another barely missing his eye, some more cleanly stitched up then others. His dark grey hair, kept short yet messy, looked like it had been butchered with a combat knife, his pale eyes were sharp and calculating, taking in the crowds below him with the air of a Roman Emperor looking down upon his subjects.

But what unnerved Alistair the most was the man's smile; a side-ways almost manic grin that looked as though someone had accidentally slashed a dagger across his chiselled jaw.

It only took one look for the Officer to know he would never like this man.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," his voice was smooth yet cold, with not a hint of warmth within his dark tones, "Friends and Comrades, loyal spectators, I welcome you to this week's Robot Rumble!" he waited with a patient smile as a small roar of approval erupted from the crowd, before continuing, "For those of you who are unaware, I am your Master of Ceremonies; Doctor Victor Wode at your service. The rules as you know are simple: One challenger, five rounds. The challenger looses, his opponent takes his place and moves on up. The first to be thrown out of the ring, loose his head, or is totally and utterly destroyed is eliminated. The victor after five rounds will go on to fight our Grand Champion! Tonight, we have an old fan favourite, back from the gutter and ready to reclaim his title. I give you Frank 'The Tank' Horrington, and his first opponent…Bulldog!"

As Wode's last words echoed across the cavernous arena, two sections of flooring on opposite sides of the ring parted with a metallic hiss and a blast of steam, the shadows of two mechanical behemoths slowly rising into sight amid the half-light, their pilot's standing proud on the edges of their access hatches. While one looked like a conventional Roosevelt Ranger design admittedly with added bulky armour and a red and black paintjob, the other seemed more like an awkward melding of an antique tank and a Fortitude's torso. Cast in armour of forest green with silver highlights contrasting heavily with hand painted hotrod flames across it's front, it appeared as though someone had hurriedly attached half of the enemy Ranger to an enlarged Tank bed with the same large bolts that seemed to hold the Roosevelts together, and then added several armour plates with the same method for good measure, the shoulders flared to replace the Fortitude's arm-shield. Only the head of the machine looked truly unique, set between a pair of harpoon cannons mounted on each shoulder. With a passing resemblance to the head of a bull, a single blue 'eye' sat with in a cross in the middle of it's flat face, framed by a pair of horns that curved down and forward to form vulcan cannons.

"USCR-305 Lincoln," Jason answered the officer's silent question, "The U.S.A.C.'s top Combat Ranger until the introduction of the Roosevelt. Looks like this one's had a few things added to it though…That goes for the Roosevelt too…"

It only took a second glance at both machines for Aang to realise what the Glint meant. The duel Harpoon cannons on the Lincoln appeared to have been hurriedly welded onto mounts that hadn't been designed for such a weapon, and the missile launchers mounted on both it's and the Roosevelt's fuselage seemed to have been crudely bolted on in an attempt to simply add more offensive weaponry at the last moment.

With that said, though both units were carrying what seemed to highly destructive launchers and rifles, the soldier in Alistair quickly realized that they were likely not the usual armour-piercing bullets or energy weaponry. When the lifts had finished raising the two Rangers up to the field, the Lincoln's muscular pilot quickly struck a heroic pose, a manic grin crossing his tanned bearded features

"Listen up, Bulldog!" The Tank's voice carried clear across the arena, the heavy tones of sarcasm and pride easily detectable by all within earshot, "You may have our best machine, but you're the worst pilot! I'm gonna smash that bucket of bolts all the way back to the stone age!"

The Roosevelt's pilot; a brutish man with a face that looked as though he had ran straight into a brick wall one time too many, curled his thick features into a scowl, before letting out a roar of anger that seemed to shake the very dome above his head. Without even waiting for the first bell, the bulky figure had ducked back into the cockpit, his large Roosevelt Ranger blasting a large barrage of missiles towards the Tank mere moments later. With a surprising amount of manoeuvrability for such an outclassed Ranger, the Tank ducked and wove across the arena, a majority of the laser guided projectiles missing their intended targets, sending a spray of dirt and debris up into the air from the ring's floor as the ones that he couldn't dodge merely bounced off the Lincoln's heavier armour.

For a moment, the Lincoln was hidden from view. It was this concealment that allowed the Tank to launch its own assault undisturbed.

With a high pitched bang a single high-speed harpoon shot out of the dust cloud, burying it's pointed tip deep into the Roosevelt's shoulder armour. Just as the Roosevelt started to react to the threat, the Tank emerged from the smoke and the Ranger's next move was now clearly obvious. Sparks flew from the cannons tips as the thick cables attached to the harpoons locked into place. With a mighty heave as the Ranger pulled back into reverse, the Lincoln pulled the Roosevelt awkwardly off its centre of balance, sending the machine careening as it attempted to stay upright.

With a second high pitched bang the Lincoln's second harpoon smashed into the Roosevelt's right shin, digging deep into the armour. Grabbing the cables, the Tank gave another mighty heave. Because its opponent was already off-balance, it proved to be somewhat easy to pull the large Ranger off its feet and sending it crashing to the ground on its side.

Releasing it's prey and reeling in the cables, the Tank rushed for its down opponent as the harpoons snapped back into place. As it neared the Roosevelt, a five meter sword blade snapped up into place from along it's left hand arm. Bringing the blade up into the air, the audience seemed to hold its breath as they watched it moved steadily closer. The whole time it was charging forward, the downed Roosevelt was futilely trying to rise to its feet again but with one leg out of commission, it was clear that it was at the disadvantageous here.

As the Lincoln bore down upon the Roosevelt, a sudden azure flare roared to life along sides of the Ranger's hump. Then a large portion of its back detached itself from the downed Ranger and rocketed clear across the arena with not a moment to spare. With a shriek of breaking metal The Tank's blade descended and sliced deeply into the mech's torso, ripping through the Ranger's armour as though it was made of tin foil as the broken machine collapsed into a heap before it's . Normally Alistair would've been worried, but he could see that the blade had been expertly aimed just below where the cockpit was located on the off chance that the Bulldog wouldn't eject.

"And there you have it!" Wode smirked from his booth, "Bulldog is down! Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the victor of Round one: Frank 'The Tank' Horrington!"

"Impressive, considering it's such an outdated machine," Alistair frowned as the remains of Bulldog's Ranger was dragged to the elevator by a team of engineers and fork lift trucks and taken down below, "He must've taken him a lot of work though judging by how fast it took him to take the Roosevelt down,"

"That's not the only thing he's been working on," Katara rolled her eyes as The Tank posed and flexed his muscles on the edge of his Lincoln's cockpit, "The guy's more brawn then brain. Anyone can see that. Why does he even need so much muscle anyway? I'm surprised he can even fit into the cockpit with those biceps. What do you think Sokka?"

"WHOO YEAH!!!" the two friends blinked in surprise as her brother suddenly jumped up from his seat, a mad glint in his eye, "THIS IS SO WORTH THE SIXTEEN BUCKS PER TICKET!!!"

Alistair smirked, "I think he's having fun,"

And so it continued for another three consecutive rounds. One after another, a Fortitude, Dovato and Endurance were each desecrated by the power that was the Tank's Lincoln and cast out of the ring with a a resounding crash and defending cheer from the surrounding audience.

And yet…it was all strangely monotonous.

It didn't take long to figure out the Tank's favourite attack strategy: First let the enemy make the first move, then disable the target with the harpoons while the pilot was disoriented before finishing the Ranger off with an up close and personal attack from his wrist mounted swords. He also seemed to rely heavily upon his Ranger's large size and distributed weight to keep him stable on the ground and he had rather impressive accuracy with his firearms when he actually bothered to use them. His greatest weakness however was speed, which was quickly exposed in the second round of the tournament when he fought against a Cleveland Ranger.

A streamlined quadruped of fourteen metres in height, it's light blue frame had an almost canine appearance, clearly sacrificing armour for speed. You only had to look at the head to see that every step had been taken to insure the machine was as light as possible; a simple sphere set between the forelegs flanked by Vulcan cannons, it's blue hued camera set into a Cross shape Indent to allow easy movement. Mounted atop it's back however was the Ranger's main weaponry; a twin 360mm Smoothbore cannon and with combination harpoon cables mounted underneath a defensive dish, set between the winged appendages that seemed to house the ion thrusters.

"Hm, A USRC-306," Jason scratched his cheek with bemusement, "Unusual to see one of them here…"

"Because it needs a wide open space for maximum potential right?" Alistair glanced at the Glint for confirmation, "This Arena's really too small for a design like that to excel…"

Unfortunately, the officer was quickly proven wrong

The pilot, clearly accustomed to fighting in an enclosed space, leapt high into the air at the sound of the bell, The Tank's first harpoon missing a leg by inches as it rolled clear of the Cleveland's Smoothbore assault.

After a full fifteen minutes of dodging and weaving from both fighters, the dramatic end for the penultimate round came when the Cleveland's pilot made the mistake of getting too close to the Lincoln. The Cleveland had been driven into a corner by the Tank and was once again attempting to use its limited flight capabilities to launch it over the approaching Tank. However, the pilot had clearly misjudged just how close the Tank had been, which was how the antique Ranger had been able to cripple two of its stabilizer legs and thus won the match.

"And there you have it!" Wode rose his arms to the crowd as a cheer rose up, "Ladies and gentlemen the Cleveland is down! Frank 'The Tank' Horrington moves on to the final round!"

"Well, there's two hours of my life I want back," Katara smirked wryly as she watched her brother bounce up and down in elation for The Tank's penultimate victory, "You think he'll be able to make it past this Grand Champion?"

"I think it's going to be a tough fight," Alistair muttered as the remains of the Cleveland were removed from the stage, "Horrington's clearly made the most out of the Lincoln. This Champion better be as good as they're making him out to be, otherwise he's going to have a tough time clinging on to his title,"

"What makes you think it's a guy?"

Aang blinked at Jason in surprise, "What makes you think it's not?"

The Glint merely smiled as the lights dimmed to a single spot light.

"Wait and see,"

"And now, Ladies and Gentlemen," Wode smirked as the Ring's Elevator hatch opened for a final time, "The moment you've all been waiting for. I give our final fight of the night: Frank 'The Tank' Horrington, Verses Natalya Polaris, and her Mecha Suit: Bandit!"

And as the mech rose to the Ring, Alistair felt his blood run cold.

It could not have been much taller then fifteen feet, yet it was clear the machine was built to last.

There were no rivets along it's body, no elongated or bull like head upon it's shoulders. Instead it's bulky emerald frame was rounded and perfectly welded into place, almost reminding the officer of his own Avatar…or the Rangers of G.U.N.

The frame itself seemed to be built with defence in mind; a large heavy build, it's ion thruster assembly clearly designed for short bursts of speed and not prolonged bouts of flight

Each foot had two toes, each hand held three claw like appendages with a strange hole in the palm within. It's weapons system seemed to pertain to a single pile driver mounted to the side of each arm.

But it was the head of this unusual machine that made Alistair grip the armrests of his chair so tightly his knuckles turned white.

Rather, it was the lack of a head.

In it's place, set between the heavily armoured shoulders deep into the Mecha Suit's chest, was a large sphere, perhaps big enough to hold a small child, the orb dotted by various large circular cameras in various shades of orange.

"D…DNI…"

"You see to too right?" the officer turned to Katara carefully as her voice came out in a terrified whisper, "It can't be real Katara, it can't. It can't be a Zero Generation Direct Neurological Interface…can it?"

"No…no it's too big to be a Zero Generation. It's just the sphere…," she shook her head as though to clear it, "Yes, it has to be a coincidence. Look, there's the pilot,"

In his state of unease, Alistair had been completely focused on the machine itself. It wasn't until his friend pointed to the spot, just above the Ranger's sphere, did his eyes widen in surprise.

She couldn't have been much taller then four feet, her body, clothed in a simple loose white long sleeved shirt, blue jeans, black gloves and sneakers, was small and almost child-like. Yet she held herself with dignity and pride, like a General overseeing a victorious battlefield.

Her face was pale and thin, her hair jet black cut into a simple short style, leaving a few bangs to fall across her forehead.

But her eyes…

They seemed almost…blank, orbs of pale blue staring vacantly ahead.

"She can't really be blind can she?" Katara glanced between Aang and the ring inquisitively, "I mean it's just part of her act right? You can't fight what you can't see…"

"What about Artirius?"

"Alistair, Artirius isn't blind. He can probably see everything we can through that blindfold of his," Katara frowned, "She can't be blind…it's just not possible…What do you think Sokka?"

"I think…" her brother grinned maniacally, "SHE'S GOING DOWN!!!"

On the Ring above them, The Tank frowned across the arena towards his opponent, folding his muscular arms across his massive chest.

"This is your champion?" he scowled, "This is the one you cheer for in my absence? The Tank is not impressed,"

"You sound scared Frank," Alistair blinked in surprise as a distinctly Russian accent met his ears from Natalya's mouth as she smirked devilishly, "You going to back out? What's the matter? Afraid of a little blind girl?"

"The Tank fears no one!" the brutish man grunted, his moustache bristling, "You're going down pipsqueak! The Tank's gonna steamroll ya!"

"Bring it!"

As the bell rung, the pilots scrambled for their machines; The Tank falling back into his chair as Natalya jumped down into an open hatch on the Bandit's back.

For a moment, silence reigned, the surrounding the combatants watching in anticipation as both machines began to hum with energy.

"Who do you think's going to make the first move?" Katara's voice was hushed and quiet.

Jason smirked, "I think I have a fair idea,"

After a full minute of silence, the Lincoln swung into action, it's harpoons bursting across the arena in a blast of steam.

The Bandit didn't move. The crowd just watched with baited breath as the harpoons sliced across the Arena towards the Mecha Suit, straight and true.

And if Alistair had blinked, he would have sworn he would have missed it.

With lightning speed, a single clawed hand of the Bandit lurched out to pluck the harpoons from the air, pulling the cables taunt and yanking the surprised Tank and his Lincoln forward by his own attack.

In a state of panic, the Lincoln's treads spun up a curtain of smoke as it's pilot through the Ranger into reverse, a piercing squeal of rubber against concrete causing all within the arena to clutch at their ears as the Bandit held fast.

With a mighty heave, the entire mech was pulled clear off the floor of the ring, the rig tipping up and forwards as the Bandit forward into the fray.

There was a screech of breaking metal, a blood red beam arcing clear across the Lincoln's near vertical base from between the Bandit's claws as the bulk of the mech jumped clear over it's upturned enemy with surprising ease, pulling the Lincoln's torso free by it's harpoon cannons as it passed by.

As the torso crashed to the ground by the Bandit's feet,

the base of The Tank's precious machine erupted into a fiery blast that shook the very foundations of the arena, shrapnel and mortar blowing out in all direction, the innards of the plexi-steel dome battered and scraped from within as it seemed to barely contain the explosion.

For a moment, there was silence, before the crowd erupted into deafening applause and cheers, chanting the Bandit's name over and over as the Mecha Suit held up a vicarious arm to it's spectators.

"The bell has tolled! The Lincoln is in ruins! The Tank lies defeated!" Wode grinned madly as his voice was barely heard over the delighted cheers sent up from his audience, "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you our undefeated Champion: Natalya Polaris and The Bandit!"

"That was amazing!" Alistair stared in surprise at the Ring as Sokka bawled in despair into his hands, "I've never seen a Mecha Suit move so smoothly…"

"I have," Katara shifted uneasily as the officer and the Glint turned to regard her curiously, "It was back in Africa, when I went to New Gibraltar to find medicine after the fiasco at Atlantic Base. The machines were…smaller, but the movements were just as fast, just as fluidic,"

"G.U.N. Mecha Suits?" Jason frowned as he turned to regard the Bandit again, "I was aware they'd advanced quite a bit in that field, but to develop such a sensitive Neurological Interface…"

"That's just it, it wasn't a Mecha Suit," she shivered slightly as her hands clenched into fists in her lap, "It was…a human being…drugged up and plugged into a suit of armour with no hope of escape. Artirius called it a Direct Neurological Interfaced Defence and Assault Mecha," she raised her eyes to meet her friend's, "Alistair…they were second generation DNIs: The DNIDAMs,"

"DNI? So I was right," the officer frowned as the cheering began to subside, "But we saw a pilot jump in…none of this makes sense. Why build a DNI that can leave it's frame?"

"Ah, that's the thing," Jason smirked, "You have to remember the DNI project is put foreword to try and advance the Neurological Interface to the point where no limb movement is necessary. If this girl really is a DNI…perhaps she is merely a generation closer to that goal,"

Katara regarded her friend carefully, "And how do you know so much,"

"I'm a Glint," he shrugged nonchalantly, "It's part of the job to be nosey,"

"And so, The Tank lies defeated once again," Wode's voice cut off the conversation as he leaned against his balcony's rail, "And our Champion stands undefeated before you. But do you, my fine audience, think you can do better? Do you have the skills to pilot a Ranger to victory against our Grand Champion? Then ladies and gentlemen, for one million dollars, stand up! Stand up, choose your weapon and step into our ring!"

A deathly silence overcame the Arena, the Doctor watching all below him with feigned bemusement as the spectators glanced nervously at one another.

Clearly none of them wanted to end up like the poor muscle man that was currently crawling out of the wreckage of his once fine machine.

"Will no one face her?" Wode cocked an eyebrow in mild amusement, "Will no one step into the ring and test their mettle against the might of the Bandit?"

"I will!"

All eyes turned in surprise to the lone voice as Alistair stood up, a determined smile etched into his face.

"I'll face your Champion," he turned with a sly smile towards Jason, "But I'm going to need a Ranger,"

---

"Have I mentioned this is a really bad idea?"

"Yes. Several times," Alistair shifted uncomfortably within the tight confines of the Red Devil's cockpit, "How can you breath in here? And why do you have so many switches?"

"Don't touch those!" Jason's voice clearly betrayed his irritation over the Ranger's intercom, "Look kid, I spent five years adjusting this unit until I was satisfied with it! I swear if you weren't the Courier of the Avatar, I wouldn't let you anywhere near my baby,"

"And the twenty-five thousand dollars you get if I win isn't anywhere on your incentive list,"

A brief pause followed.

"Whatever. Alright buddy, this is how it's gonna work. You've got yourself a basic Fortitude cockpit here. Just ignore the panel above you and you'll probably get through this in one piece. You're load out is a Soviet laser rifle and twin chain lined gatling guns mounted on your shoulders, one thousand rounds for each of the guns. Push the button on your right hand control stick to switch between them,"

Aang blinked at the speaker, "That's all I get?"

"That's all I'm trusting you with," The officer could hear the smirk in the Glint's voice, "Devil's got a few more tricks up her sleeve, but most of them aren't exactly…legitimate. Besides, The Bandit looks like she likes to get up close and personal. You're best bet is to keep as far away from it as possible,"

"Right. Wish me luck," the officer sighed as he settled back into the Devil's cockpit chair, his grey eyes taking the ring before him as engineers cleared the last of The Tank's Lincoln from between him and the Bandit.

"So, you're going to fight me in that piece of trash?" Aang frowned slightly at the arrogant tone of Natalya Polaris as she replaced Giddion after a moment of silence, "And I thought Frankie was pathetic,"

"You seem pretty confident," Alistair smiled slightly, even though he knew his opponent couldn't see his face, "I might surprise you…that is, if we fight at all,"

"And why wouldn't we Soldier Boy?"

"Because I actually just want to talk, and this seemed to be the fastest way to get your attention," he tightened his grip on the control sticks, his mind ever aware he only had so long before the bell struck, "I'll admit, I am impressed. I've never seen a Mecha Suit move quite so fast. A couple of people came close though…they came from G.U.N. though,"

He paused for a moment, a grim smile quietly making it's way onto his face as his ears met static.

He had her attention.

"Your machine's design is awfully familiar too. That sphere you call a head reminds me of something I saw on the Atlantic floor,"

Another tense pause followed, only broken by the ringing of the bell.

"I guess I'll be blunt. You're movements are too fluidic and human to be imitated by even the most advanced Neurological Interface. The only way you could achieve such movements is if your brain was directly tied into the suit's systems. That leaves me with one conclusion: You're a DNI, a Direct Neurological Interface,"

"LIAR!!!"

A beam of red lanced out from the emitter between the Bandit's right hand claw, missing the Red Devil's shoulder by inches as it's temporary pilot neatly dodged the blast, the green Mecha Suit launching into a series of follow-up of savage jabs and kicks, each blow dodged or deflected by the crimson Ranger.

"I'm not one of them!" all arrogance had departed from Natalya's voice, anger and hatred having quickly taken it's place, "I have a mind! A brain! I'm not some drone in G.U.N.'s army!"

"With every move your just hammering my point home," the officer scowled as a claw narrowly missed the Devil's head, "I won't deny it, you're not like any DNI I've seen before. I've never seen one actually get out of it's shell before now. And you're certainty not a mindless drone. But that doesn't stop the facts from being clear: You're brain is linked to your machine, that makes you a DNI, whether you like it or not!"

"STOP TALKING!!!"

The next few moments blurred before Aang's eyes.

Within the span of a second the Bandit suddenly leapt back from it's assault with a grace that didn't quite suit it's bulky frame, leaping back clear across the width of the Arena before jumping clear into the air, it's large feet sending cracks along the dome form force of impact as they smashed into it's side, launching the mech towards it's intended target.

There was nowhere to run, Alistair very much doubted even a well placed burst from the laser rifle or gatling guns would deter the oncoming Mecha Suit.

Then, something clicked, his trigger finger on the right hand control stick giving way slightly.

The secondary fire switch had been pulled.

"Uh-oh,"

Time seemed to slow. All Alistair could see was the Bandit as it sped towards him, claws outstretched as a high pitched whine began to grow in his ears.

"ALISTAIR! RELEASE THE TRIGGER!!!"
"Huh?" Jason's panicked voice broke through the officer's mind, "What was that?"

"THE TRIGGER! LET GO OF THE DAMN TRIGGER BEFORE YOU BLOW YOUR OWN ARM OFF!!!"

He didn't need telling twice.

As another click signified the trigger's release, the entire suit lurched back as the Red Devil pulled back it's fist, throwing all it's weight behind a single punch as the Bandit bore down upon it.

It was only then that Alistair noticed the light.

With a startled cry, the officer shielded his eyes as blinding blue light engulfed his camera, the form the Bandit temporarily lost in the brightness.

As his eyes adjusted to the luminosity, his grey orbs widened at what he saw.

A fist slammed deep into the Bandit's chest, ribbons of azure energy billowed out from the device mounted to the attached arm, pushing against the Mecha Suit's armour, the heavy metal plates splitting and cracking as though made of glass.

"Č-Čort…"

With no word or warning, the entire suit was flung clear across the arena as the last of the light dissipated, it's limbs flying everywhere as it crashed into the edge of the ring before smashing into the side of the dome with a sickening crack, coming to rest with a pathetic groan at it's base in a crumpled heap.

For a moment, no one moved, no one made a sound, even Alistair, frozen in Red Devil's Chair, could hardly breath at the sight of what he had done.

As the crowd suddenly cheered however, he quickly willed his body back into motion.

Popping the Ranger's hatch as his audience roared in either approval or anger, the officer sprinted for all his might to where the Bandit lay dead, engineers already swarming across it's frame like ants by the time he arrived.

"Is she okay?" Aang clutched at his chest as Wode came over from his inspection, "I…I didn't mean to…that is I didn't….is Natalya okay?"

"She'll be fine," the smile that graced the Doctor's features seemed tight and forced, "I must admit, I'm…impressed that you managed to defeat the Bandit so quickly. As the Bandit's backer, I would have obviously preferred a victory in her favour, but I suppose I'll have to concede. Here you go," he pushed as check into the surprised officer's hand, "One million dollars, as agreed. Don't spend it all at once. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to…tend…to my pilot,"

Alistair didn't reply. He just nodded as Wode turned away, his hand clenching tightly around the check as he watched the Doctor return to the crash.

---

"DID YOU SEE THAT!? OH TELL ME YOU SAW THAT!!!"
Sokka was practically dancing from foot to foot as the group made it's way out of the Arena into the night air, "Oh, you were all like WHOOSH! And she was all like DIE! DIE! And then she went all AGH! AGH! And…"

"We get it Sokka," Katara scowled at her brother as she shoved her hands into her pockets, "We were all there, we all saw it," she threw a distrusting look the Glint's way, "What I want to know is why you have a Particle Accelerator attached to your Ranger, or how you even got your hands on one in the first place?"

Aang glanced at his friend in puzzlement, "Particle Accelerator?"

"It's a weapon Alistair. Very powerful, very dangerous," the Australian sighed as Giddion remained mute, "It's built like an ion thruster, but it's designed to act like a pile-driver; that is to say it's supposed to give your punch a little bit extra. When fired, it forces ion particles into a small chamber; the longer you charge it, the more particles enter the chamber. When you released the trigger, all that energy got released at once. It's like having an ion thruster fired in your face, at ten times the strength," she threw another dirty look towards the Glint, "There's a reason they're outlawed across the planet,"

"And why is that?"

"Because when G.U.N. first tested their prototype, not only did it blow a hole clear through it's target, it also caused a power surge that took out the Endurance's arm and detonated it's nuclear reactor," Jason shrugged nonchalantly, "G.U.N. ceased development, and neither the U.S.A.C. or the New Soviet Union have ever bothered to steal the plans and take it for themselves. They all thought it was too dangerous to pursue, the Glints thought otherwise,"

"It's an illegal weapon Giddion!" Katara scowled, "outlawed across all three nations!"

"But the Glints aren't affiliated to any one nation," he held up a contradictory finger, "If we wanted to follow the rules, we'd be enlisted soldiers, not mercs for hire. Besides," he sent an unimpressed look Alistair's way, "I told you not to touch anything I didn't mention,"

"It…was an accident," the officer scowled, "I didn't mean to…"

"Yeah well, what's done is done," Jason shrugged again, "You didn't mean to do it, and Wode said everything was fine anyway…you know…apart from the fact you just trashed his champion. Now, about that twenty five thousand you promised…"

Katara looked nonplussed, "You're still thinking about that?"

"Hey, I didn't get paid for the last contract remember? And a Glint's got to make a living right?"

"Maybe," Alistair smirked, "But the way I see it, I dodged a few blows, and I didn't even fire a single shot from the laser rifle or gatling guns. If I wanted to do that much, you'd be getting a hundred dollar bill tops,"

"Are you saying you're going back on our contract?" Jason's smile became slightly tight, "You know what happens if you do that Buddy…"

"No no, I'm not that stupid," the officer smiled warmly, "I just…want you to feel like you deserve it that's all. There's no such thing as easy money after all,"
The Glint paused mid-step, a small war being fought behind his eyes.

"That's true I guess…" he looked up, "I prefer to feel like I've done a job that fit's the paycheck you know? So what do you want? Extra ammo? Spare rifle? Another ally for a while maybe?"

"Nothing so destructive," Aang smiled slightly, "Actually, what I want is information. By tomorrow night, I'd like to know everything you can tell me about one Natalya Polaris,"

---

"And where have you two been?" Iroh smirked as he opened his sleepy eyes to the sound of footsteps and stretched against the tree he had been snoozing against, "Not up to anything…illicit I hope?"

The smirk quickly disappeared as his nephew strode by towards the tent the three of them shared, dumping a large bag before his Uncle, various simple foods spilling out before the surprised old man as he sat up straight.

"Where did you get all this?" he eyed a nervous Kiew as she approached with a smaller bag, "And don't tell me it fell off a truck again. The tent I can understand, but it looks like an entire rack from a grocery store in here,"

The girl shifted uneasily under the securitizing gaze, her grey eyes remaining firmly on her shoes.

"We…erm…"

"Who cares where we got it from?" Zuko scowled darkly as he reappeared from the tent, "What matters is we found food, and we got it all legally…"

"Well…we got the food legally,"

"…I don't really see why you have to give it the third degree,"

Iroh frowned slightly as he picked up an apple from the bag.

"What are you getting so upset about?" he cocked an eyebrow as he took a bite, "To be honest, I'm glad the two of you are working together, and if the amount of supplies is anything to go by, it's nice to see you've learned there is simple honour in hard work…"

"Hardly," Zuko grunted as he slumped onto the ground before the tent, "There is no honour for me without the Avatar,"

"You're still determined to find the Courier?" his Uncle sighed as Kiew joined him by the bag, "Zuko…Even if you did find the Courier and the Avatar and somehow managed to capture him with only that Shadow Exo-Suit to protect you, do you honestly believe it would solve all our problems?"

"If it won't, then there hope at all," the former Captain smirked grimly as he flopped back into the dirt, "Perhaps it would be better if I just ended it right now…"

"Don't say things like that!" Iroh felt his eyebrows rise in surprise as Kiew finally spoke up, her steel coloured orbs narrowed to slits as she glared at his Nephew darkly, "Syaoran…Don't you even think about going down that road. My father once told me, 'When things are truly grim, sometimes the only person that can give you hope is yourself. That is the meaning of inner strength',"

The scarred man frowned at her quietly, before turning onto his side.

"Why do you call me that? You know my real name,"

"Because I don't like your real name," she smiled sadly, "It just sounds…too hurtful,"

---

"Ugh, intelligence gathering," Jason scowled darkly as he slumped against the counter of the Avat's kitchen area, "Do you know how much of a pain it is to search the grid for information in twenty-four hours…or how expensive?"

"Judging from the amount of whining we've endured since we picked you up, I can safely say we have a pretty good idea," Katara smirked as she sat down atop the small table that sat in the area's centre, Aang choosing to sit in one of the few chairs within the cramped quarters as Sokka slurped a cool drink contentedly from his position against the wall beside the door, "So what did you find out?"

"Honestly? Not a lot," The Glint sighed as he tossed a clipboard onto the table before Aang, "Natalya Polaris: real name Natalya Volenski. Born in Saint Petersburg January 3rd, 2030 AD. Was a perfectly healthy baby girl aside from one small genetic defect; she was born blind. Her parents, Mikhail and Rowena Volenski, barely managed to pay the hospital bills. After that, she just disappears for fourteen years,"

"Disappeared?" the officer blinked at the data before him, "But we saw her in the Arena! Where'd she go?"

"That's the thing. I couldn't find anything. She just vanished from the face of the Earth, only turned up again three years ago. Her parents on the other hand…" he chucked another clipboard onto the table with a grin, "Now there's an interesting story. Up until 2031, the Volenski's were poor…dirt poor. One bedroom flat in Saint Petersburg slum district. Nice enough folks apparently, but they could barely keep up the rent. That all changed however in 2031, when somehow these two managed to scrounge enough money to get transport across sea and land from their hometown to…Luxemburg!"

Alistair frowned as the Glint grinned triumphantly.

"Is…that supposed to mean something?"

Giddion's shoulders slumped as Sokka's hand hit his forehead with a loud slap.

"How long have you been amongst the living?"

"Around eight months," Aang gave the blond an irritated look, "I've been kind of busy to look up places of geographical interest…"

"Not geographical, political," Katara grimaced, "Ever since the Day of Blood, Luxemburg has been G.U.N.'s primary developer of military technology, like a state wide factory. Everything from simple pistols and rifles to full fledged Rangers and battleship cannons is developed there, and it's all managed by a central lab they call Lodonia…"

"Which is where our lovely couple ended up; in the town of Bissen, five miles from Lodonia," Jason continued, "Now here's the kicker. For the next fourteen years, life seems to get better and better for the Volenski family; a bigger house here, new car there, but the thing is for all this time, Mr. Mikhail is a postal worker, while his beloved Rowena works as a low level Nurse. And yet the zeros just keep getting added to the end of their accounts,"

Alistair frowned, "I thought G.U.N. didn't use currency,"

"Common misconception," Giddion waved the comment off, "In day to day life, even a upstanding Nationalist has to earn a living. You want to develop something that will benefit the Nation however, and the Führer will give you as much money and supplies as needed, and they send you to Lodonia for processing. Moving on, The Volenskis continued to live like this for twelve years, until 2043, whereupon they changed their family name to Polaris and moved to Toronto. Three months later, in the August of that year, the Arena fights started up,"

"So…the Volenskis, or Polaris', or whoever are behind the Arena fights?" Sokka frowned as he downed the last of his drink, "You sure you've been following the right people?"

"If you'll let me finish, it was around this time that Natalya suddenly reappeared," Jason drummed his fingers against the side of the counter irritably, "According to their new history, the ridiculously wealthy Polaris family had originated down south, but had come up to Toronto for the sake of their daughter, who has been an apparently a remarkably sickly child from birth. Apparently they'd been informed Canada had a better medical facilities then the rest of the nation, and Toronto in particular was recommended by their daughter's personal physician: Doctor Victor Wode,"

"Wode?" Alistair's eyes widened, "The master of ceremonies for the Arena?"

"The same," Giddion smirked as yet another clipboard of data was thrown the officer's way, "Victor Wode…Real name unknown…is actually a predominant G.U.N. scientist, originally attached the DNI Project on Atlantic Base, before taking it over fully when things went sour down there. His research continued at Lodonia, where he developed the Second Generation DNIs, the DNIDAMs. He's also the brains behind the latest updates to the Neurological Interface, but their currently so expensive to create that only one finished model is actually in use, and that's because it's user willingly underwent cybernetic implantation. They're currently trying to figure out a cheaper way to mass produce them…and trying to find more willing pilots. It's Wode, not the Polaris Family, that runs the Arena. He pulls the strings, he sets up the fights…and he gets his backing from the Führer himself,"

A tense pause followed the announcement, the three comrades sharing uneasy glances as the Glint case a grim look across the room.

"Are you saying," Aang spoke slowly and carefully, "That the Arena and it's fights…are actually funded by the German Unified Nation?"

"It's my guess that Wode is actually using the Arena fights to test and refine the DNI Project," Giddion frowned as he folded his arms across his chest, "Most likely he moved his operation here to get a fresh perspective on battle techniques outside of G.U.N. territory without throwing his prototype directly onto the front lines. Besides, where better to hide an operation then right under your enemy's nose?"

"The man's got a point," Sokka shrugged as he tossed his empty plastic cup across the room into the nearby sink, "So what are we going to do now? Go to the Mayor?"

"No. If we do that there's a good chance Wode might catch wind of it and make a run for the boarder," the officer shook his head, "Besides, that Chess player back in the pub said the Mayor was more lenient towards this robot rumbles then other Canadian cities. He might actually be in Wode and G.U.N.'s pocket for all we know,"

"So what are you going to do with this information?" Jason leant back against the counter as he studied the three before him, "Just storm into the arena and demand Wode's surrender?"

"No, not Wode," Aang smiled casually, "Tell me, while you were out collecting data, did you happen upon where the Polaris family lives?"

---

"This is a bad idea,"

"We know,"

"I'm pretty sure I've said this is a bad idea,

"We know,"

"Have I mentioned how bad I think this idea is?"

"Sokka shut up! You're going to get us caught!"

"Are they always like this?" Jason glanced back at the bickering siblings with a smirk, "How do you put up with it?"

"You get used to it after a while," Aang sighed as Katara smacked her brother round the back of the head, before turning his attention to the buildings ahead, "This the place?"

The Glint merely grinned, "What gave it away?"

Situated near the edges of the large metal wall that surrounded the city and basked in the soft light of the protective energy dome above, a surprisingly large estate, surrounded itself by a large wall of white brick, sat amidst the more modest houses that made up the outskirts of the city away from the towering sky scrapers near the centre.

From their position on the maintenance gangway that ran the length of Toronto's defensive wall, the officer could clearly see a lot of effort had been put into the complex's construction. The gardens, which took up almost two thirds of the enclosed land was comprised of everything from flowerbeds of every colour to tall shady trees that clustered together to form small forests that shrouded the surrounding walls, all neatly divided by winding paths that congregated together at the gardens centre at a large water fountain; a grand structure of marble depicting a pair of winged angels standing before each other, clothed in billowing robes, holding a large golden bowl from which crystal clear water gushed out in graceful arcs into the pool at their sandaled feet.

And then there was the house itself.

Standing out starkly against the more modern abodes that surrounded it, the manor gave off a distinctly 18th century feel; a large three story building comprised of a large main rectangular block with two connecting towers on either side. The large windows were framed with magnificent arches and pillars, the flattened roofs framed by stone railings, with a large pair of dramatic set of stairs curving up to meet the main door at the mansion's front.

"They've certainty done well for themselves haven't they?" Alistair smirked slightly as he lent against the gangway's railing, "Surly the massive estate look is a bit dated now though isn't it? I thought rich people lived in penthouses these days,"

"Only in the U.S.A.C.," Katara came up beside him with a sigh as the officer fished a pair of travel sized binoculars from one of his tunic's pocket, "You only have so much space within the domes. You can't expand out, you have to go up. Estates are still common across the G.U.N. though. You'd think someone would have noticed the similarities…where are you going?"

"I saw something down there," Aang smiled as he pocked the binoculars and headed for the ladder that led to the ground, "I'll be back soon,"

"Going where?" the Australian looked on in bewilderment as her friend began the long climb down, "What did you see? Hey!"

---

The walls of the estate seemed to be far larger up close; a barricade of white, the smooth from afar now looking decidedly less so with the intricate patterns created by brick and cement.

All the better for climbing over of course.

Harsh yet fond memories of Academy training courses ran through the officers mind as he gingerly traced his fingers across narrow cracks and odd angles that had arisen from the three years it had been since the wall had been constructed, searching for his first foothold.

Memories of teamwork as he carefully tested his weight against one such outcrop and hoisted himself up onto the wall, of days spent in all manner of places from air conditioned halls to thrashing rain soaked fields. Comrades like Kuzon and York by his side, smiling bravely in defiance of their drill sergeant as they ran the course together, their future commander Leonard Gyatso watched, clearly impressed, from the sidelines.

It was still hard to imagine that memories were all that remained of many of his friends and comrades from back then.

After a mere five minutes of testing and scaling, his hand finally grasped the top of the wall, his grey orbs cautiously peering over and into the garden below.

"Gone. Damn, too slow,"

With only a rustle of leaves, the officer gently vaulted over the wall into the nearest tree, before landing on the soft grass below on one knee with the barest of thumps.

"Where did she go?" his voice was quiet as he slowly stood up, wary of the quiet garden before him, "Back to the house?" he frowned as he pushed the cap of his hat back to survey the area, "Come to think of it, considering their so rich, you'd think they'd have better security…"

He drifted off sharply as something hard pressed into the small of his back, followed swiftly by the similar click of a pistols hammer being pulled.

"Maybe we can defend ourselves Soldier Boy, you ever think of that?"

Alistair smiled slightly at the familiar Russian accent, before inclining his head slightly to take a closer look at his capture.

Natalya Polaris seemed even younger up close then she had down from across the Arena's Ring, her four foot body standing almost two feet below his own five eleven frame. Yet she held her firearm firmly with both white gloved hands, her pale blue eyes staring stonily at his back, hazed and unfocused.

Her hair seemed to have been lengthened somehow, now elegantly flowing down to her shoulders as a shiny wave of black, framing her pale face beautifully and contrasting nicely with the floor length pure white dress and sky blue jacket that ended halfway down her back, completely covering her neck and arms.

"Turn around slowly,"

"Alright," the officer obeyed the order, his face becoming solemn as he eyed the semi-automatic pistol clenched in her hands, "Nice weapon,"

"Walther P77," Natalya seemed to smirk at his chest, "One of the most powerful pistols around. A real hit with the Nationalists. But I'm sure a Solider Boy like you would already know that. But that's not important right now," the smirk was quickly replaced by a scowl as she raised her eyes slightly, now gazing at a spot just below his chin, "How did you find me?"

"Google,"

"Idiot!" he grunted slightly as the barrel of the pistol was rammed painfully into his gut, "Do you always think yourself so funny in the face of death?"

"Not always," the officer grimaced slightly as he rubbed his stomach gingerly, "But does it really matter how I found you? All I wanted to do is talk…and apologise,"

"Apologise?"

"Well…yeah," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "The Red Devil isn't my usual Ranger, so I didn't know it's usual pilot had mounted a particle accelerator to the arm,"

"So you always break into a person's house just to apologise?"

"Only when I'm not sure how a person's family would react to me knocking on the front door,"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying I know your real name is Natalya Volenski," Aang watched as her small form went rigid, "You were born in Saint Petersburg, January 3rd, 2030 AD, after which you just disappeared until 2043, when your parents moved here and the Robot Rumble fights began,"

The pistol was shaking slightly in her hands, but she still held it firm.

"You have to leave,"

"Excuse me?"

"You have to go, now!" she poked him hard with the pistol, "And don't come back, you hear me? Don't dig any deeper otherwise…otherwise he'll have you killed,"

"Who?"

"Natalya?" the pair looked up as a new voice came across the garden from the house, "Natalya are you out there?"

"Mother…alright Solider Boy listen up," Aang winced as the pistol was raised to a point just above his chin, "Either you get lost right now, or I blow your head off and silence you that way. Now get lost,"

"Fine," Alistair scowled, but didn't want to argue with the threat of death in his face, "I'll leave then…" he grinned slightly, "See you in a minute,"

As he disappeared into the shadows of the night, the officer couldn't help but smirk as Natalya froze at his parting words.

---

"So…A Bandit was heavily damaged eh?" Mikhail Polaris tried to smile shakily in the face of Nicholas Rustin's scowling features, "Well…I'm sure there's not much that could have been done…"

"The opponents Ranger was equipped with a Particle Accelerator," the scientist's scowl darkened, "If your daughter hadn't gotten so riled up she would have noticed this. As you can imagine, Doctor Wode is…displeased with the outcome,"

"Yes…yes I can,"

Polaris leaned back in his study's leather chair, his fingers steeped as he gazed at his employer's assistant across the large oak desk between them.

To see Victor Wode 'displeased' made even the strongest soldiers under his jurisdiction quake in fear.

Yes, it was often said there was something…demonic about him when he was…displeased.

"According to the logs recorded by the Bandit's Black Box, the Courier seemed to be partially aware of what we have created, and taunted your daughter with the information," Rustin pushed his large glasses up his nose irritably, "It is not our place to insure your daughter's cooperation Mr. Volenski, that is your job. If we have to curb your daughter's tendencies ourselves it could jeopardise the final outcome of Doctor Wode's project,"

"Yes I know," an involuntary shiver ran down the father's spine, "I will see to it that Natalya is properly disciplined. I'm sure she will not be so easily distracted next time,"

"If there is a next time…"

The assistant's words hung coldly in the silence that followed, his meaning clear. Only when a servant's knock came against the fine wooden door did Mikhail gratefully break the silence.

"Y…Yes?"

"Mr. Polaris, excuse me," a maid hesitantly peeped the door, her eyes cast to the ground, "Forgive the intrusion, but there is a party of four here to see. They don't have an appointment,"

"Oh," the elder man frowned, "Well, why haven't you sent them away?"

"Because the leader of the party is the Courier of the Avatar…sir,"

---

To say the atmosphere at the table was frosty was like saying the North Pole was mildly cold.

Seated at the large oak table within the Polaris' grand dining room, Alistair, Katara, Sokka and Jason sat uncomfortably rigid along one side in their plush crimson chairs, while Natalya, Mrs. Polaris, and a man that had introduced himself as Nicholas Rustin (A friend of the family) sat along the other, with Mr. Polaris taking the larger chair at the table's head.

"Of all the crazy…stupid…crazy things you've ever done Alistair," Katara muttered frantically under her breath as she stirred her soup vigorously, "Waltzing into the middle of an enemy compound and telling them who you are just tops the list. I'd expect this kind of thing from Sokka but you…!?"

"Says the girl who waltzed into New Gibraltar without realising she had a price on her head,"

She tried scowl darkly at her friend as the officer smirked devilishly, before allowing a guilty grin to spread across her face.

Across the table, Natalya made a funny retching noise that sounded like she was going to be sick.

"Natalya dear, are you all right?"

"Yes Mother," Mrs. Polaris' daughter smiled sweetly as she set her spoon back into her empty bowl, "That last mouthful just went down the wrong tube. I'm fine…really,"

Her mother didn't seem convinced, but after a quick glance Rustin's way, decided not to push.

"So, Lt. Aang," Mr. Polaris smiled from his seat at the head of the table towards the officer as the main course was served, "I am truly honoured that you would visit our family during these perilous times, although to be honest, I am…unsure as to why you singled us out,"

"From what I gather, you're one of the more influential families of Toronto," Alistair smiled good naturedly as he waved his thanks to the servant serving the meals, "With the fall of New York, it's more important then ever that we ensure unification. I have no doubt the city's fall has shaken up the Mayors and Governors of other metropolis and states. As such, I was hoping you would help me reassure Toronto's leader that if we remain together, the U.S.A.C.'s victory could be guaranteed by Summer's End,"

"Summer's End you say?" Polaris froze momentarily as he digested the officer's words, the silence only filled with the contented munching of Sokka as he nosily devoured his steak, Giddion and Katara watching with a mixture of bemusement and disgust, "So short a time frame. Do you honestly believe victory can be assured so quickly?"

"As long as there are no unforeseen complications," Aang cocked an eyebrow as he watched a maid appear at Natalya's side to cut her steak for her, "Like the DNIs for example,"

Silence suddenly overcame the table. Even Rustin, with a forkful of food in his mouth, paused to cast a cautious eye up the table towards the head of the family.

"D…N…I…?" Mikhail frowned uneasily as he resumed eating, "I'm afraid I'm not familiar with that term,"

"It's a form of Mecha Suit used by G.U.N.," the pleasant smile never left the officer's face, "I'm surprised you haven't heard of the real…ugh!"

Looks of bemusement crossed many faces as Aang suddenly doubled over in pain, clutching his shin, save for Natalya who whistled innocently as she stabbed her fork into her plate until she hit steak.

A quick look under the table cloth by Aang caused the officer to shift with mild irritation as he found the offending weapon; a small formal shoe that looked as though it had been made for a child.

"Suffice to say, they're not pleasant to deal with," he rubbed his shin sorely as he scowled darkly at the smirking girl across from him, "They are the most hardened, aggressive, soulless units in G.U.N.'s arm…"

He managed to stifle the painful grunt this time, his hand clenching tight against his leg as a second hit it's mark; bouncing off the bottom of the table to impact hard with the poor officer's groin.

"…ed Forces," after a brief pause, he managed to finish his sentence, his back straight, face passive, albeit pained.

He didn't say a word for the rest of the meal.

---

"Well, that went better then I expected," Sokka smiled good naturedly as they walked through the Main Gate of the estate and hour later, "We just waltzed into the middle of a hidden G.U.N. outpost, and all we have to show for it is full stomachs at the fact Al isn't going to have kids any time soon!" he smirked at Aang, "Man, your sacrifice was not in vain,"

"Oh shut up," the officer scowled as he tried to walk with as much dignity as possible, "I have to admit though, the girl's got aim,"

"You sure you're alright?" Katara came up beside him as he lent up against a lamppost, "How hard did she hit you any way?"

"Pretty hard," Alistair grimaced tightly, before giving his friend a painful smile, "You lot head back to the Avat. Go give Jason his paycheck. Go on, go,"

"Are you su…"

"Give the man his privacy Agura," Giddion pushed her roughly by the shoulders and steered her down the street, "Come on, let's do what the nice guy says and give the Glint his cash…"

The officer smirked as he watched the mercenary push his protesting friend down the street, Sokka nonchalantly walking beside them, until they were out of sight, lost in the darkness beyond the streetlight's glow.

Only when he was sure that they were out of earshot did he stand up straight.

"Were you planning on following us all the way home, or is there an ambush halfway up the street?"

For a moment, there was silence, the sound of faraway cars being the only noise.

Then, Natalya Polaris stepped out into the lamplight, her blind eyes scowling darkly at the officer's chest, her onyx hair blowing softly in the wind.

"How did you know it was me?"

"Honestly, I didn't," Aang smirked, "But seeing as I saw you watching us from the doorway as we left, I had a hunch,"

The girl scowled again as she folded her arms across her small chest, but didn't seem to want to pursue the matter.

"Listen…I'm sorry I hit you…you know…where it hurts," she looked off to one side uncomfortably, "Believe it or not, I wasn't actually aiming for it. I just wanted you to shut up,"

"I know. Sorry if I upset you," Alistair frowned, "I guess I just…got caught up in the moment…"

"So we screwed up. Happens to the best of us," Natalya smiled wryly, "But…that stuff you said earlier, back in the arena…I think we need to talk about it,"

"Alright," Alistair shrugged, "What do you want to talk about specifically?"

"Atlantic Base…," he flinched at the calm yet sharp tone of her voice, "I heard it was destroyed a while back. Some kind of disturbance on the ocean floor. I'm guessing that was you no?"

The officer flexed his hands uneasily, memories of nightmares filled with glowing Avatars and terrible destruction entering his mind as he looked away from his companion.

"I thought so," Natalya smirked slightly as she began to walk down the street, "From what I heard it was pretty grisly down there by the end. It was probably a good thing. You destroyed it…And all the DNI Zero Gens with it,"

"You knew what was going on down there? Aang blinked in surprise as he caught up with her.

"Knew? I was a part of it," the smirk disappeared from her face as they continued to walk aimlessly down the street, "I don't know if you came across this in your research, but DNIs have only been around for fifteen years or so. I'm sixteen, so what does that tell you?"

The officer didn't reply. He already knew that little tibit of information, courtesy of one then Major Artirius Meridiano:

"Around fifteen years ago though, one of our scientists decided to try and recreate the interface by trying to find a way to decrease the length of time it took to properly analyze the brain,"

"For the first five years, Doctor Wode left me at Lodonia until the first initial prototypes were completed," Natalya's voice ripped the officer out of his thoughts as she broke the quiet, "When I was six however, all chaos broke loose in that that infernal air bubble under the sea, and Wode's superior was killed before he could begin proper experimentation,"
"You were only six?"

"It didn't matter to them," the small girl scowled darkly as they turned into a nearby park, "They'd already proven a Ranger could be controlled without a full body. Now they needed to find a way to control one with one, but without moving a single limb. I was brought by Wode from my parents because G.U.N. felt a younger body might accept the implants they would give me more easily then a full grown adult. I was supposed to be the a First Generation DNI. But the chief scientist got impatient, and decided to use a batch of prisoners put aside for the Second Generations instead. That decision cost him his life, and almost ended the DNI project,"

"They ordered another two hundred prisoners of war from the camps this time, but not before developing a mind altering drug, named cortrozine. This specialised medication was designed to make the DNI completely submissive, and thus less likely to realise what they were about to become.

Unfortunately, what they hadn't counted on was that one of the subjects…had a cold,"

"Fortunately…or perhaps unfortunately…Wode was at the Lodonia Labs at the time, as was I. He managed to convince the Science division to make him the head of the DNI Project. Once he'd gathered a new team together, they began their work on me,"

"So," the officer frowned as his companion slumped onto a bench near the path, "You are a DNI,"

Natalya flinched as he sat down beside him, only to smirk dryly as she set her hands behind her head.

"I guess I am," she swung her short legs above the dirt as she turned her blind eyes to the skies above, "But I'm the only one of my kind, and the only one ever to be upgraded. I'm not a bloody bucket of organs like the Zero Gens, neither am I a drugged up battery like the First Generations were meant to be or the Second Generation DNIDAMs are. When they first began, I was a Second Generation to begin with. Now I'm a Third. Whenever they find new ways to improve the system, they add it to me first. Just last week they added a new implant frame…"

"Implant frame?" Aang frowned as she froze mid-swing, "That doesn't sound healthy,"

"It…it isn't," her hands came down to her lap, her small form becoming hunched as she seemed to stare down at them, "The implant frame is what connects me to the Bandit. It's basically like a Neurological Interface, but attached to my body," her hands trembled as she moved to remove her lace white gloves, "With it, I can control Mecha Suits like the Bandit with far more skill then any other pilot alive. Unfortunately…" the garment was pulled clear, "there are some…side effects,"

Alistair felt his face pale at what he saw.

Cruelly grafted onto bone pale skin, steel grey machinery wound it's way down Natalya's arm to her hand and up her fingers, the skin still red and sore where intricate wires and plates had been fused to the tiny limb. Then there was the hand itself; little more then muscle encased in steel, Aang couldn't help but stare at the hole that looked as though it had been burned completely through with a precision laser, no bigger then the size of his thumb nail.

"This is…" the officer carefully took her small hand in his larger one, his fingers carefully running over the join between flesh and machine along the arm, "How could they do this to a human being?"

"It's not so bad, once you get used to it," Polaris flinched as he pressed slightly as the nodes along her arm, "It won't hurt to badly after a month or so. Of course…it's stunted my growth somewhat, even though I'll need a new frame in four years time. I can't feel anything; heat, cold, wind or rain. Everything I eat tastes metallic and dry. I haven't even experienced the joys of puberty…though that might actually be a plus more then anything. In fact, the only real up-side to this rig is the fact if helps me to see,"

"See?"

"This exterior node," releasing her hand from his grip, she pulled back her hair to reveal a solid lump of black machinery just behind her ear, "there's another one on the other side. Usually they connect me to the Bandit's camera array, but when I'm on my own, the send out pulses of sound every two seconds. It's a form of Echolocation, like sonar. These hair extensions block it a bit, but my Mother doesn't like looking at them. I can still see you though, just not the way you see me. It's made my hearing kinda sensitive though,"

"Is it worth it though?" she inclined her head towards him with surprise, "I mean if it's stunted your growth, destroyed most of your senses. Is seeing in echoes really a good trade-off,"

"You make it sound like I have a choice in the matter…"

"There's always a choice," the officer grasped her exposed hand tightly, "You might not have been able to do much when you were six, but that was ten years ago. You know this is wrong, and the disadvantages outweigh anything you get out of it. They've turned you into a component of a war machine. That's not right no matter which way you look at it,"

"You're right," the girl frowned down at the hand, "Utterly and totally. But the fact of the matter is, you don't run from G.U.N.. If you try, they will hunt you down and turn you into one of those damned DNIDAMs,"

"You could come with us," Aang set his free hand upon her shoulder, "Katara, Sokka and me…We've been on the run from G.U.N. for almost eight months. We can protect you from Wode, from G.U.N.…"

"I wish I could believe you…I really do," Natalya's bit her lower lip slightly, "But it's just not possible to run from them. Loyalty is the only way to survive within this Nation…"

It was then that Alistair heard the click of a safety catch being disengaged, the barrel of a pistol pressed hard into his back.

"And loyalty…" Wode grinned as he stepped out of the shadows, "Is greatly rewarded,"

The officer stared at the DNI before him, disappointment filling his mind more then anger.

The blind girl stared up at him with blank blue eyes, guilt and sorrow clenching at her heart.

The trigger was pulled, and the world went dark.

---

"He's sure taking his time,"

"You worry too much. Al's an Ex-RAF Officer. What could happen?"

Katara scowled at her brother as he casually sipped at his juice box, before turning to Jason as he worked on his personal terminal at the Kitchen's table.

"He's the Courier of the Avatar, at the top of G.U.N.'s Most Wanted and we left him not three blocks from an enemy stronghold because the girl he's trying to save has impeccable aim!" She clenched her fists tightly as she sunk into one of the chairs, "I didn't like the way that Rustin guy was looking at him…"

"You worry too much," The Australian waved her comments off as he slurped down the last of his drink, "Come on, do you honestly believe Wode or his cronies are going to jump Al in the middle of Toronto?"

"Depends if you believe the message I just got over the Glint's Network,"
"Hm?" Katara glanced at the blond across the table, "What do you mean?"

"See for yourself," Giddion smirked grimly as he slid the palm sized terminal across the surface, "It makes for interesting reading, that's for sure,"

---

"Wake him,"

A short sharp slap echoed around him as the large hand met it's mark against Alistair's face, the officer groaning groggily as he tried to focus his blurred vision.

The first thing he realised was he couldn't move; strapped to a large circular metal slab suspended above the floor at a diagonal angle, his arms held wide.

Then there was his surroundings.

Stretching out before him, five identical Bandits sat quietly within their maintenance bays, a sixth currently surrounded by scaffolding and cranes, it's metal armour cracked and cratered.

Mobile terminals dotted the cavernous warehouse, their connecting power lines scattered across the concrete floor like vines as various technicians and engineers, decked out in uniforms of G.U.N., worked on their machines.

"Enjoying the view?"

The officer scowled as he turned his gaze to the grinning Doctor Victor Wode below him as Rustin returned to his side.

"Not particularly," Aang smirked grimly, "I always thought Heaven would be a lot less metallic,"

"Well well, aren't we cute?" the Doctor's grin never faded, "You didn't honestly think I would kill the Courier of the Avatar did you? No, your much more useful to the Führer alive,"

The officer scowled again as he shifted uncomfortably in his shackles, only to turn his grey eyes towards the last member of the trio that stood before him.

Her head cast low, her small frame clothed in the uniform of a G.U.N. Lieutenant and her hair returned to it's usual shortness, Natalya Polaris seemed to stare stonily at the ground before her, her blind eyes narrowed to anguished slits.

"Quite a setup you have here," he turned his gaze back to the Doctor, "Do you have others like Natalya or do you just like building Bandits?"

"Oh, there's only one Natalya my friend," Polaris shivered as Wode hugged her to his side, "But Arena matches can be destructive, as you proved yourself the other day, so it's always good to have a few spares standing by,"

"That's kind of putting all your eggs in one basket isn't it? Having only one pilot?"

"True, but that's sort of why you're here," Wode smirked as he moved up before his captured foe, their faces barely a hair's breadth apart, "You see, I'm in need of a new test subject. Poor little Natalya," he sent a mock sympathetic look the blind girl's way as he lowered his voice to a whisper, "A lifetime of augments and implants has brittled her bones and softened her muscles. In fact, I do believe she might die the next time we replace her exo-frame in four years time. But you…you're the Courier of the Avatar. Over a Hundred years old, and not a wrinkle, liver spot or grey hair in sight! That makes you unique, strong,"

"Or a Cryo-Sleeper,"

"Maybe," the scientist shrugged, "but regardless, you will provide me with a great many years of experimentation. Of course we'll have to drug you up with cortrozine initially, but give it time, maybe a few years, and you might just be as loyal as little Natalya,"

"It doesn't matter what you do to me," the officer scowled as the Doctor stepped away, "As long as Avatar is out there, G.U.N. will fall. My friends will find another pilot, I'm expendable,"

"Ah, Mr. Courier. You forget I'm a fairly clever man," Wode smirked as he gave a pitying glance over his shoulder, "And once Doctor Rustin has insured you're…cooperation, You're going to tell me everything you can about that pretty black Ranger of yours,"

Alistair gritted his teeth angrily as the Doctor strode off, Rustin slowly moving in as he raised a Hypoinjector up to eye level, inspecting the blood red liquid within it's clear container.

"Just hold still Mr. Aang," the assistant smirked as he approached, "This will only sting for a moment. After that, everything will seem…simply wonderful,"

Then…the left arm restraint released their grip.

For a moment, Rustin stared at the cuff in total bewilderment, until Alistair's fist connected with his face.

As blood spurted from the staggered scientist's nose, the right arm and both foot clamps opened with a metallic clack, the officer falling perfectly onto his feet as Doctor Wode spun round at his assistant's cry.

"POLARIS!!!"

Standing at a console connected to the restraint table, Natalya smirked as she let go of the combat knife currently embedded between buttons and switches, her blind eyes flashing dangerously at her fuming superior.

"Poor eyesight, superior hearing," the diminutive soldier smiled grimly, "You of all people should have remembered that Wode,"
"You little…" the Doctor bared his teeth angrily, "I created you! I made you what you are!"

"Well guess what? I don't like what I am! I don't like what I've become! In fact, I'd rather be blind or dead then serve you and your great German Unified Nation for a another moment,"

A deadly silence passed over the Hanger. No one moved, no one even breathed.

Finally, Wode smiled dangerously.

"So be it, girl. KILL POLARIS! BUT I WANT THE COURIER ALIVE!!!"

His far more loyal subordinates didn't need telling twice.

Bullets cracked through the air and pinged off the concrete floor as Alistair pulled Natalya back behind his former restraints, the connecting console exploding with a spectacular plume of smoke as he pulled her protectively to his chest.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Polaris squirmed in his embrace as more bullets ricocheted off the metal slab, "Get off me! I can look after my self!"

"I know," Aang smirked as he pulled his comrade's Walther P77 from her holster, "British chivalry, you understand,"

"Whatever," the blind girl scowled as a single shot met it's mark in an engineer's forehead, a second embedding itself into another assailant's shoulder, "Can you get me to one of the Bandits? I take it you'll be faster, seeing as you're legs are longer,"

"You have a particular favourite?"

Natalya shrugged indifferently as she moved to Alistair's back, her legs locking around his waist, "Just don't go for the broken one!"

The officer merely nodded, checking how many bullets remained in his clip, before leaping out into they fray.

"YOU FOOLS!!!" Wode's voice screamed over the gunfire as another two Nationalists fell to Alistair's aim, "DON'T LET THEM GET TO THE BANDITS!!!"

Another console exploded from a shower of gun fire as Alistair and his companion ducked behind it, the smoke billowing from their make-shift barrier, giving them ample time to run across the hanger towards where the Bandits stood.

"Are you sure this a good idea?" Aang winced as another bullet cracked past his ear, another pinging off a Bandit's leg as he hastily scurried up the boarding ladder to where the open hatch lay waiting.

"Just shut up and get in,"

"But is there even enough…Agh!" any protests on Alistair's part were abruptly cut off as Natalya roughly pushed him through the open hatch, landing perfectly on her feet as he crashed into a pathetic heap on the floor of the cockpit, "…Ow…"

"Stop complaining," the Russian scowled as she removed her boot and fumbled with the buttons and belt of her tunic, "Trust me, that was nothing compared to what I'm about to go through,"

"What do you me…"

His voice died as the coat fell away.

If her hand had been bad, the rest of her body was so much worse.

Ugly metal plates had been fused directly onto her chest and shoulders, long metallic pipes melded into the length of her arms, supported by harsh joints at her elbows and wrists. Running the length of her spine, a thick dark grey array of sockets seemed to be the key to her direct contact with the bandit, wires worming their way under her skin and around her stomach like sickly grey veins.

And her feet…they were nothing more then rounded metal encased stumps, flattened off to allow to more larger sockets to be placed there.

"What…what did they do to you?"

Natalya merely scowled as thin black wires snaked their way from the walls of the sphere amber coloured sphere to connect with her back with a series of hisses, large blocky nodes extending to encase her hands and feet and raise her to the centre of the cockpit as a large headset that encased all but her mouth lowered from the ceiling and clicked into place.

"Whatever they wanted to,"

---

For a mere moment, it had been quiet within Toronto's industrial district. No cars drove by on it's many interconnecting roads, security guards continued their patrol on the other side of the complex, not even a cat that was feasting on a worker's half eaten sandwich from the trash made a sound as it gnawed contentedly on it's tuna on rye.

Then, Warehouse West Six exploded.

With ribbons of red energy slicing through the frail framework and corrugated metal walls, screams of pain and fear stained the night as men and women dressed in uniforms of G.U.N. scattered and fled the plumes of oranges, yellows and reds that erupted from the structure.

Then, the catalyst of the chaos emerged.

Like a lost soul stepping out of the depths of Hell, the sixteen foot Bandit lumbered clear of the fiery remains of it's former home, the flames licking harmlessly at it's emerald armour as beams of crimson energy fire lanced out from between it's clawed hands.

As his machine continued to tear through other nearby warehouses, Victor Wode strode purposefully out of the wreckage of his former base of operations, his lab coat tarnished with soot and grim, his scarred face hardened and set.

"It appears I'm having a run of bad luck in all things related to that damned Courier," the Doctor scowled darkly as Rustin emerged from the heavy smoke, coughing madly, "Nicholas, have my Ranger prepared and deploy what the Fortitudes that little bitch hasn't destroyed to slow her down,"

"Is…is that wise sir?" his assistant wheezed, clutching his chest, "Surely the Fortitudes alone could…"

"This isn't about what the Fortitudes can and can't do," Wode gritted his teeth angrily as he strode towards a nearby hanger, "This…is personal,"

---

"Čort! They're sending out the Fortitudes!"

"Fortitudes?" Alistair bit his tongue hard as the first volley of weapons fire impacted against the Bandit's side, his fingers trying desperately to cling to the smooth surface of the sphere, "In the middle of a U.S. city?"

"They don't look like regular G.U.N. Rangers you idiot," Natalya bared her teeth angrily as she dodged the second volley and returned fire, "Wode's far to clever to miss that,"

Flying clear of the smouldering ruins of the hangers she had destroyed, Natalya watched as her new targets ran towards her with lolloping steps, their elongated heads combined with the large pods on their backs creating a somewhat comical effect.

"They've disguised the damn things as Roosevelts. To the naked eye they look the same as the U.S. models, although you'll probably never see one move so fast again," she grinned as one machine got to close, ripping through it's cylindrical head with the Bandit's razor sharp claws and smashing the remaining body into the tarmac, "They fall just as easy though…grab onto something!"

"Onto what!?" The Officer could only cry out in surprise as the Bandit leapt clear across a junction to avoid a trio of missiles sent it's way. Crashing into another warehouse upon landing but still making it's way out towards the wall, "I really wish I could see what was going on here!"

"If I open the hatch the fail-safes will activate and the Mech will shut down!" Another red beam of energy lanced out from the Bandit's hands, taking out two Fortitudes with one blast, "If we can just reach the main wall and find the Tradesmen's Entrance we can get you out of here,"

"And what about you?" Aang braced himself against Natalya's foot nodes, "You're not actually thinking of going back are you?"

"I don't have a choice," the soldier scowled as she darted and wove through the fragile buildings as her enemies tore right through them, "I will be punished for this betrayal, but Wode won't let me go, not yet. I have nowhere else to go, no purpose beyond the one I already I have…"

"You could come with us…"

"It's not that simple!" she spat, "I told you, you don't run from G.U.N.! You can't escape them! They will hunt you down until your captured or dead…"

"But we may be lenient to those that return willingly,"

Caught off guard by the voice over the comm. Systems, Natalya gasped as something struck the Bandit's arm, wrapping itself around the limb and holding fast.

"D…Doctor Wode…"

Stepping out of the shadows, Polaris gritted her teeth angrily as Victor Wode's Custom Fortitude stepped out of the shadows.

This Ranger, cast in a dark mud brown across it's chest and head with a lighter earthy colour for it's limbs, wasn't a machine disguised as something it wasn't, yet neither was it exactly the same as a mech that had freshly come off the production line. The head most noticeably featured a second slit running from the base of it's now flattened face to the back of it's skull to allow a second camera to literally give the Ranger eyes in the back of it's head. The shoulder shield had also been replaced with a large cable and manipulator assembly attached directly, it's long wire and clamp now firmly wrapped around the Bandit's arm and holding it fast to the ground. The thruster assembly had been enlarged for greater manoeuvrability, the armour around the chest had been strengthened for more protection for the cockpit and as a primary weapon, the Fortitude had been equipped with a long cruciform sword, it's edges fitted with a high power chain-saw, currently whirring menacingly.

"I must admit Polaris, you have attributed highly to my success," Alistair could almost here the grin in Wode's voice as Natalya strained against his Ranger's grip, "Without you I would never have been able to perfect the Neurological Interfaces for the Havoc and Viper in time for Lady Azura's mission. You are still useful to me, and if you come back quietly, the Courier in hand, I will not punish you for this…misunderstanding,"

"He's a liar," Aang moved urgently round to Natalya's front to hold her metallic shoulders tight, "You know you can't trust him…"

"And why should you trust the Courier?" Wode's voice was almost mocking as Natalya turned her head away from the officer, conflicted, "A man you barely know, once more a traitor to the Nation,"

"But he's the man who made you like this," Alistair tried to smile comfortingly, even though he knew Polaris couldn't see it, "This is a man who has put you through more pain and suffering then anyone of any nation should be put through. I don't care what they say. Come with us, come with me,"

"You don't understand!" she shook her head violently, "I can't leave! I don't have a choice!"

"You always have a choice!" he squeezed her shoulders through their metallic plates, "You are a human being no matter how much of that humanity Wode has taken away. You can still think, you still know the difference between right and wrong. You are not a machine, you are Natalya Polaris, born Natalya Volenski January 3RD, 2030 AD. You are you, and no one can take that away from you,"

She didn't reply, her mind conflicted with too many thoughts and nightmares. A mental war being waged behind blind eyes and the helmet's visor.

It was only when a new voice spoke through her speakers did the war stop, her eyes widening as a familiar image appeared in atop her camera's vision.

"Tali,"

"Ma Ma?"

"Tali, my sweet little girl," Rowena Polaris smiled kindly, yet sadly, I'm so sorry for what we've done to you, your father and I. We never wanted to hurt you. We only wanted you to see the wonders of the world around you. Victor Wode misled us initially, and once we discovered his true motives…there was nothing we could do. I'm so sorry Tali…" tears leaked from the woman's eyes, yet the smile never left her face, " We both are. If we could take it all back we would, but we can't. it is as simple as that. We cannot run from G.U.N. but you…you might have a chance. With the Courier and the Avatar at your back, we both believe you could make it…"

"Ma Ma…"

"…Which is why we have transferred all our wealth to a series of accounts in your name where Wode and G.U.N. can't touch it. Consider it to be our apology to you, even though it will never be enough to atone for our sins,"

"Mother don't say that!" tears of Natalya's own were now flowing from her eyes and around the rim of her helmet, "You have nothing to atone for!"

"but Tali, my dear sweet Tali, you must promise me…" her mother continued on, as though her daughter's pleas were unheard, "When the war is over…promise me you'll have a long happy life. Free of strife and pain, so you might have fortune smile upon you, forever eternal,"

"But you can't run from G.U.N.!" Natalya shook her head violently again, "You told me yourself they'll find you in the end!"

"Yes, I did say that," her mother nodded sadly, "But only…for when you are alone. Before, I could not think of anyone would be able to stand up against G.U.N. and live, but this man, this Courier, this Alistair Aang…I believe he can do it. He can stand up to G.U.N.…and win. Which is why we sent the call to his friends across the Glint's channel,"

As if on cue, a single shell rocketed down from on high, expertly severing the cable, sending Wode's Fortitude crashing back into the warehouse behind it as the Bandit staggered to remain upright.

"What's going on?" Alistair glanced uncertainty at the ceiling as Natalya looked up, her eyes still wide, "More enemies?"

"No," the Russian frowned, "I think I'm seeing things but…I think it's a…flying truck,"

Aang merely smiled in relief.

"Don't worry, I get that a lot,"

As the silver form of the Avat descended down upon the battlefield, Katara and her Fortitude fired single shots from her rifle one after the other, her disguised targets quickly reduced to chaos as their heads, arms and legs were sliced cleanly from their frames via armour piercing shells.

"You little BITCH!!!" Wode's Ranger slowly rose out of the rubble, it's secondary eye focused on the Avat as it approached the Bandit, "You think this over?! You call in reinforcements and suddenly you have the upper hand?! You're playing the wrong game Polaris. I tried to be lieniet, but if this is how you repay my kindness…" the chainsaw roared to life, sparks flying clear across the night, "Well, lets just say if I made you what you are, I CAN TAKE YOU APART JUST AS EASILY!!!"

The Fortitude broke into a run, it's sword held high.

Natalya merely scowled, moving her Bandit into a defensive posture, ready to take the brunt of the attack…

Only for a block of darkest crimson to come between them.

"You damn Glint!" All dignity forgotten, Wode charged head on against the Red Devil, "Get out of my…"

He never finished his sentence.

With his sword held high and his defences non-existent, nothing could stop Giddion from planting the Devil's fist firmly into the Fortitude's chest as ribbons of blue energy billowed fourth out of the Particle Accelerator and across Wode's mud coloured frame.

With it's armour far thinner then that of the Bandit, one by one the custom Fortitude's limbs were ripped from their sockets and crushed to pieces in great spraying arcs, it's head literally exploding under the pressure before the remaining heavily armoured chest was blown clear from the Red Devil's grip, across the industrial sector into the Main Wall beyond.

"And that is why the Glints favour a weapon banned across all three nations," Jason was no doubt grinning within his cockpit as he turned towards the Bandit, "You two ready to get out of here? I think we've all outstayed our welcome here,"

"What do you say?" Aang turned to Natalya calmly, letting his hands drop to his side, "I won't force you to come if you don't want to but…"

"No…it's alright," with a click and a whirr, the helmet slowly retracted from the small girl's head and up into the wall of the sphere, the nodes encasing her hands and feet releasing their grip and following suite, "My mother…my parents…I always thought they were just blindly loyal to G.U.N. because the knew I could see with these implants. I've never known them to say anything bad about the Nation…until now," she looked up at the officer's face, missing his eyes by barely an inch, "I will go with you Soldier Boy, and I will fight for as long as you need me.

I just hope you've got enough room on that flying brick of yours for the Bandit,"

---

He'd come to a decision.

He'd packed all the essentials while ensuring there was enough left for the both of them. He'd set a heavy pack onto the Exo-Suit's back and had already mounted up, leaving his face exposed so none would run in fear of him.

But still as Zuko stood watching the tent silently a little ways off, a part of him wondered if a simple letter would convey all he wanted to say.

Too late to back out now though.

"And where are you going so early in the morning?"

The scarred man reacted quickly to the new voice, his arm mounted blaster out and armed as he spun round to face the voice's owner, only to blink in surprise as he met a fully clothed Kiew's eyes, a slightly smaller pack on her back.

"What are you doing here?"

"Hey, I asked first," she smiled gently at her playful banter.

The former Captain scowled darkly, before lowering the blaster.

"There's nothing to be gained from travelling together like this anymore," he turned towards the tent, "I need to find my own way…"

"And you really thought you could convey that in a letter?" Zuko turned back in surprise, to find his companion shaking her head sympathetically, "You couldn't even look your Uncle in the eye and telling him you were leaving him alone…"

"He has you…"

"But I'm not you Syaoran," she touched his arm gently, "He loves you like his own son, I can't replace that,"

"I have to do this," he scowled again as he turned back to the tent, "Uncle just doesn't understand me anymore,"

"Then I guess we better go,"

"We?" Zuko regarded Kiew quietly, "You're not coming,"

"If memory serves you promised my Mother you would keep me safe," she smiled knowingly as she hoisted her pack higher up on her back, "You're not going to be able to do a very good job if we're separated you know,"

"You're not coming," he tried to sound forceful, but his attempt was half hearted at best.

"Then I guess I'll just walk in the same direction as you for a while," Kiew continued to smile as she began to walk down the path into the forest, "Come on, you're wasting daylight,"

He knew her game. He knew she was trying to goad him into staying, to think better of his decision.

But he held fast.

"Just…don't get in my way,"

Kiew merely giggled as he came up beside her, the two of them walking off at a brisk pace until they were engulfed by the trees, neither of them aware of the aged eyes that watched them from the fold of the tent.

---

"Are you sure it's wise, letting them go off like that alone with Azura looking for him?"

Iroh smiled slightly as the Immortal Wanderer appeared beside his temporary home, hands folded before him.

"Zuko needs some time I think," the old man sighed wearily, "And I can't be forever at his side to tell him right from wrong.

No, I believe…this will be a good thing,"

---

Rowena Polaris stared straight ahead, Never flinching, never moving, not even as her husband's blood splashed across her face and stained her dress.

"Am I always surrounded by traitors and backstabbers?" Victor Wode sighed as Mikhail Polaris fell to his study's floor dead, the gaping wound in the side of his head oozing blood across the carpet, "Did I not come to your aid Rowena, in your time of need? Did I not feed you, cloth you, give you wealth beyond your wildest dreams? And yet, this is how you repay me?" he twirled his pistol around his trigger finger, "I must admit I'm disappointed…"

"You lied to us," the Doctor arched an eyebrow at the woman who still refused to meet her eyes, "From the very start. You told us you could help our daughter see…"

"And see she can,"

"But only within the confines of that Mecha Suit!" She threw a hateful gaze his way, "Only with those implants and nodes you grafted to her skin that has taken away her childhood, stunted her growth, and turned her into a part of some grotesque machine!"

"And look how much better off she was. How better off you were," Wode gave something akin to a sympathetic smile, "For fifteen years Natalya Polaris served G.U.N. loyally, and for fifteen years you and your husband lived in greater and greater comfort. What greater gift could a daughter give her parents then that?"

"You scum!" Rowena bared her teeth angrily, "I would have preferred to of lived in that cess pit with my blind daughter and loving husband if I knew what you were going to do to her!"

"A little late for sentiments like that isn't it?" the Doctor smirked as the woman seethed, "Well, I suppose it makes little difference. Once I'm finished here and repairs to my Fortitude are completed, Rustin and I are going out to do a little…hunting,"

"Bastard!"

"Careful Rowena," his pistol moved to her forehead as she made a move towards him, "Don't do anything foolish. You still might live through this if you keep your big trap shut,"

"Go ahead, kill me," Polaris smirked darkly, "It doesn't matter what you do to me now. Natalya is free, my husband is dead and our riches are beyond your grasp. I will go with my head held high and my conscious at least partially clear. I like all those before me, will MARCH EVER ONWARDS TOWARD TOMORROW!!!"

The look of surprise quickly degenerating into a look of disgust and rage that past across Wode's face was enough to satisfy her heart.

"You…your one of them!" he pulled the hammer back on the pistol with a shaking thumb, "You shouldn't have said that you little bitch! If you hadn't revealed that to me…YOU MIGHT HAVE LIVED!!!"

She didn't really feel the bullet as it passed through her neck, sending a spray of crimson sticky liquid across her husband's oak desk as she fell back from the blast. As her broken body fell onto the plush carpet, her mind seemed to travel back to the last moment she had ever truly been happy; the moment a smiling nurse handed her a tiny baby Natalya, her beloved Mikhail laughing as she burbled contentedly in her mother's arms.

As consciousness faded from her mind, she smiled weakly as Victor Wode stood over her, his face contorted with anger and disgust as he watched her die.

As one final insult towards the man she hated and loathed, her opened her closed fist for him to see, his eyes widening with his rage as she revealed to him the symbol of her Order, the reason for her death, knowing the embarrassment alone would torment the Doctor for a great while to come.

A small simply carved wooden chess piece: A white knight.

---

I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter. I might upload a few author notes later, but like I said, I'm not feeling so hot at the moment.

I hope I'll get the next chapter out soon, and I'll get round to PMing anyone who PMed me as soon as I can

Thanks for reading,

Dearing