-Rebirth of the Guardians – the long awaited sequel to chapter – 9
Chapter 10 – the base gone
Well I need someone to review and say what they like and don't like in order for me to change that. So someone say something already!
-Begin-
Tom ran constantly in order to make almost the entire distance to the base in one day. His super enhancements from sitting in the stasis pod for eons allowed him to do this with relative ease. Still however, he was human and thus could not make it the entire way in the first day; however he found himself a little island in a small stream where he most likely would not get trampled by the advancing army in his sleep, set up a fire to cook some of his food he had brought.
Later on in the night a small patrol of Zenebas scouts, with reports of smoke and by assumption fire, showed up on the stream bank. They saw the fire was a controlled one, but they also saw that a person was present. The person warranted its own investigation.
"Sir." One of the eight men assigned to the mission said to the leader. "How should we approach him?"
The leader, a somewhat short but muscular looking man with simple brown hair named Denis looked at the man for a while longer. "He seems unarmed. But still that doesn't make him not dangerous." He chewed his lip. Screw this up, HQ may never hear about it anyway. But screw this up and have his men die was guilt he wanted to avoid. "The way I look at it we've got three options. The first is to be friendly and approach him with fair warning. This is the most likely one to succeed but if it fails it could kill each last one of us. The second is to take him by surprise, if he's armed with a knife it's most likely we all will live but a few will get injured. If he has a gun I think a couple of us may die. If he's un-armed we still may loose something if we don't aim to kill. Which we aren't planning to do correct?" Denis looked at his small squad. None were real killers; they would kill in self defense or under orders but none liked it. "Good. I still don't like that option. Our third has us start out with using Celia (Celia being a beautiful blonde and the groups only female) to seduce the man. From there we follow either the friendly plan or the aggressive one to deal with him."
"Are we sure it's a man or a lesbian woman." Celia said without flinching.
"No."
"Then screw plan c."
"Fair enough, anyone else agree?" He looked as much as he and the other guys would like to see Celia half naked, or even in a wet shirt they really knew that the plan had one fatal flaw that could get her killed which was worse than her wrath. Which she would have none of because she was so damn flirtatious. So the group agreed. "All right then, plan A or plan B."
"I vote for plan A because any and all plan B's tend to fail." Said the first man who spoke. Celia and Denis sighed; the man had his odd moments. But the general group assent, save for the action hungry two of the bunch, was for plan A, if for different reasons.
"Ok, plan A it is then." Denis said. "Now we holster our arms and get up and shout our greetings." Doing just that Denis shouted a, "Hello there!" to the man he did not know was actually a guardian force member in civilian clothing.
On the island Tom heard paused for a moment in his eating of a fish he had caught evaluated his choices and turned around to roughly where the voice had come from. "Hi." He said loudly back. Tom squinted but the fire made it hard to see past where the light cast its glow. "I can't quite see you mysterious person could you come here?"
"Why not." Denis shouted back. Then, in a much quieter tone of voice to his squad Denis said, "Well this works, the guy asked us to come over."
Tom thumbed his gun under his cloak. Even if it was a bunch of Zenebas foot soldiers he doubted he would shoot, but if they knew he was the ghost fox then they all would die. They came into sight and Tom could quickly tell they were harmless lackeys. "Hello there, what are you people doing here. I thought the Zenebas army must have thrown its entire national populace into this invasion, is it true can they spare you people to do this?" Tom said with a light chuckle in his voice and a hand still close to his gun.
"Are you mocking us?" Denis asked somewhat angry.
"Heavens no." Tom replied, "I was just saying it's such a massive invasion force that I'm surprised they can spare anyone to do anything."
"Well the total size of the Zenebas army is well over 15 million people as of my last known check of that particular statistic. So with an invasion force of 50,000 Zoids we can spare eight people to check for forest fires."
Tom looked at his campfire. Then he looked up to see a long smoke trail. Shit, stealthy I am not any longer he thought. "Oh my is it that obvious."
"Guy saw it from half a mile away."
"Well I planned to put it out in about an hour, right before I went to sleep."
"Alright, then we'll leave you soon enough. But I must ask."
Tom braced for that very likely question that he knew was coming.
"What are you doing out here during a massive war operation like this."
Yep that was it. That damn question that always put the hero at risk of being discovered. Thank god Tom's little island was by no means anywhere near a civilization with detailed records about every little thing. "Well local rumor has it that the base of the Ghost fox was nearby."
"It does now does it?"
"Hey you should know better than me. News reports about Zenebas intelligence say that you guys had discerned his location by whatever technology you got yourselves."
"That is true, and from what I know this is fairly close."
"Oh well then good."
"Where do you come from?"
"Three days east." Tom answered like a natural. Even though he came from one day north west. "The town of Obona. It's a moderate village. And it's hell to get here in any time at all." Tom knew this from various maps he had. There was a swamp on the way over from that town, and the same one from the town he had come from. His pants had enough mud to attest to that story. Tom's note of the leader's eyes darting to his pants confirmed this.
"Well now you are adventurous aren't you?" Denis said calmly. He was from that town as well and he didn't know this man, true it was a decent sized town but he knew enough people to test his knowledge.
"My parents say I get it from my grandfather, the old col. 'stonewall' Jackson." Tom laughed, he had been to that town ages ago when he was still ageless. He knew it inside out, and had even had an adopted grandfather, it was this 'stonewall'
"Ah so you knew stonewall too?" Denis asked, if this guy knew the same stonewall then he really was from Obona.
"You knew him?" Tom asked genuinely surprised, now he wouldn't be able to make up as much.
"Yea, not so much personally, but more like I knew of him."
"Ah." Never mind, he could make up more than he thought. "Yea, he died while I was still young but I know him a bit."
"Oh, how old are you?"
Tom looked at Denis square in the eye, "18."
"Oh I see, you don't have a lot of memories of you're grandfather do you?"
"No not really." Tom sighed and lied. He had plenty, but still apart from the ages everything was the truth. Tom had known the old man for three years before he died. Which was the same number of years that age gave him to know 'stonewall' Jackson.
"Ah, I am sorry for you're loss."
"Thanks." Tom mused as he looked at the sky with a hint of sadness in his eyes.
"Well I guess we'll be leaving now. Sorry to trouble you." Denis said with a small bow. The rest of the guys left too, Celia being last and she un-buttoned a few buttons on her shirt before going.
Tom sighed. That guy had really pulled out an old series of things that would make him break into tears. Everyone who he had outlived over his life. That was the one thing above even his accidental genocide of the zoidian people, that could make this 10,000 year old general of war and elite soldier still cry after all these years. And that night he lay silently cursing the memories he had and listing everyone he knew he had outlived. Starting with his extensive earth family and ending with a few people who may be alive somehow and Tom was just un-able to accept being dead.
The next day Tom woke up bright and early with no physical or mental hint of how he had felt the previous night. He simply was ready to get to that base quickly and get this all done.
Quickly packing up and picking a traveling food out of his rations pack he ran off faster than any normal human would be able to. Unfortunately this human outpacing patrolling Zoids would be something that would draw great attention.
When Tom arrived at the base about three hours after dawn he saw that the base was ripped to shreds. There were craters and explosion marks everywhere. Damaged Zoids strewed the ground for a large area around the base, some friendly more of others not so. "NO YOU IDIOTS!!!" He shouted in rage. I doubted that they would outright listen to me, but I thought they would listen to the voice of reason once the enemy arrived. He gripped his hand tight in a fist. And then cried, adding countless names to the list. All those soldiers who had died because he had been unable to stop the war.
After standing still for a couple of minutes he walked calmly in to the place where the extra belt would be. On his way to the base's basement he saw several dead bodies and plenty of dried blood. While avoiding the dead Tom walked forward without paying them more than the occasional glance.
Finally he arrived in the basement and found his safe, somehow un-opened, and still on one piece. Opening it up he took out the belt and began the lengthy process of trying to fine tune it to his equipment instead of that of it's previous human owner, or if possible, in addition to that.
Finally right before he was done he heard an explosion. "Enemies? Shit and I'm not done either." Tom swore more as he quickly and quietly ran up to the first floor to see a small force bombarding the base with a girl tied up at their front. She looked familiar. Tom squinted at her; upon closer observation he realized it was Jaina. "Jaina?" He breathed. "She was alive."
Jaina was a mess. Her uniform was ripped all over and she and her uniform were covered in blood. Her hair went every which way. And she was dirty all over. Her eyes carried the look of someone not totally in their head.
Jaina had never deployed and by some fluke had survived. However she was reduced to a babbling psycho. When Zenebas had arrived at the base she came charging out with a rock and tried to attack them. But they had caught her in an instant and tied her up. They were going to kill her but at the behest of their commander not to kill the insane and rather bring her back for potential information. But the soldiers had received positive orders to burn down the base at their discretion and so they did. Tom had arrived just in time for them to throw the incendiary weapons. And the other shots had been more fuel for the fire, oil and gasoline.
When the base began to burn Jaina began to struggle and managed to break her bonds and run inside of the building. When she escaped the commander said he had wanted her alive but not that much and they let her go.
Tom could survive the smoke of a fire for much longer than the average person. He just had to avoid the actual flames. But when he saw Jaina running towards him he had to wonder what she was thinking. Tom saw her and got himself in a position to catch her and cover her mouth and nose to keep her alive. Then he did just that. Jaina struggled for a bit, as Tom expected. But when she saw who had her with a kind smile on his face for once her reaction was one she did not expect. She exploded. With a scream that could easily equal that of any horror movie she reached up to Tom's throat and tried to strangle him.
Tom almost felt offended by her horrible attempt to kill him at first. Then he was offended by her cliché scream. And lastly after a full minute he was offended by the fact that she had her hands around his throat and was actually trying to kill him. Brilliant Sherlock. Kokuhso chimed in his head. Tom mentally snarled at him and snarled at Jaina at the same time. Both were pissing him off.
With an angry smack he knocked her away from him towards a particularly hot looking fire. She fell far short. Tom growled she was never going to provide a side of her for him to like was she? Well she was going to get a very angry side of him. She leapt at Tom who easily deflected her towards fire again. Somehow she landed short even though Tom was really trying to burn her. "Why are you attacking me you dumb bitch." Tom spat out.
"You are the bad one." She said with a whine. "She told me that you would destroy it all. You had abandoned us, I think she was right."
"Who's she?" Tom asked curious about the she more than the circumstances.
"She is the lead advisor for the Zenebas emperor. She came to this base because it was the ghost fox's base. We held out for two days against the assault, us and about 50 other Zoids. They didn't know our numbers until after we were beat she said. Since they knew it was the ghost fox base they thought you were here. I was the sole survivor. I crashed in a swamp and then ran back here." Her appearance waist down suggested that. Her clothes were very muddy and there was some swamp goo visible on her. "I fought for a day. Eventually I was the last one left. Everyone died around me. There was lot's of blood." Again she had blood all over her. Tom was annoyed by all the dumb details, but mentally he paid his respects for the dead. "When the lady came she said her name was Chezneckia." Tom noted that, it was by no means a common name. "She whispered to me, and then put white flames around my head. Then I saw the truth." A white glow surrounded Jaina. Tom stepped back and produced a large gatling gun with a white flash. "You are evil. You plan to rule the world with your superior earth technology. You are the one I must kill!" Jaina rose up into the air.
Tom grumbled then talked to kokuhso, a friend of yours did this. Who?
Shit it was Yosei.
Who?
My worst foe alive, and even worse dead.
Ah, explains the using a former ally to kill me thing.
Well you won't need me to kill this bitch, that gun should do.
WHAT!
You need to show me your natural skills anyway.
In his own portion of his mind Tom grumbled as Jaina began her ephemeral attack. A she floated she began with white dragons seeming to be made of plasma forming on her arms. Tom began with a bombard of laser fire. With his gun sounding more like a jackhammer than anything else hundreds of lasers impacted against her plasma looking ephemeral shield.
Outside gunshots could be heard, as well as Jaina's earlier scream too. But as the gunshots bounced off the shield and out of the building into the poor saps outside the thought that someone may have been alive in the house when they set it on fire changed into a mad murder was in the house. So they tried to make him dust. And the ones to get the results of the barrage from Zoids and armed soldiers were Tom and Jaina.
Tom started coughing. Even with 10,000 years of letting his body become better and more able to minimize the oxygen necessary, running around with a heavy laser gun with while trying to counter it's pretty impressive recoil dodging laser fire and being in a burning building Tom's lungs were really running low on oxygen. Oxygen shield, and deflect the zoid shots now kokuhso! Tom thought angrily as he put away his big laser and switched to a one handed big caliber Tommy gun version and blasted it.
You're doing fine.
FINE, do you call doing jack shit to your enemy while you're dying from smoke fucking fine!!!
Point taken. I'll deflect the zoid bullets, and let you breathe. But you still have to kill the bitch.
Deal. Tom was thought exasperated. One question. He thought after an explosive he had in his belt space exploded in Jaina's face and Jaina was ok. How the hell do we deal with her invincible seeming shield?
Um I think we have to let up enough to let her attack us.
WHAT!?!
Well it's just that the spell that Yosei used on her simulates a Kami possession. Or for basic magic abilities to be placed in a regular person, however you wish to see it. However while the spell give the user some skill in magic from the caster and spell both there are areas, much like when possessed by a lesser Kami, that are only learnable by experience. One is the transition from offense to defense. She can make a nearly impregnable defense to you, but her offense will at best have a minute shield for defense. One that you could penetrate with almost any gun.
So I have to let her beat me up correct?
Try to beat you up.
Ah. Tom produced a rocket launcher with a very, very dangerous looking rocket on it. Will this tear her flesh to bits?
I would assume so.
Good I want her dead after this. I never liked her anyway.
Fine then do it.
And with that prompt from kokuhso Tom did just do it. He made his Tommy gun disappear in a flash of white. But kept running circles around Jaina. For a moment Jaina's shield remained up. Then it went down. Tom didn't attack though. The transition to full offense hadn't been made. But Tom did stop moving. "Bring it." He said motioning his left hand in the infamous hand motion. His right hand had the rocket launcher facing away from her. After what seemed like a long time with zoid shells going through the room every so often Jaina began to grin. Tom pouted, her being happy in this situation was bad for him. Then he felt the slightest touch on his gun in an instant Tom was three feet further around his circle to jaina's left and had left the rocket launcher behind in the mouth of the dragon. Was that one of those more advanced maneuvers that come only with experience? Tom asked with a mix of sarcasm and rage in his mind.
A little experience by the spell caster. Kokuhso replied calmly. This doesn't change our strategy much; you just have to make less predictable movements.
I'll try. Tom mentally grumbled again. This was getting annoying. He really wanted to kill her now. Tom didn't take out any weapons; he simply made the rocket launcher return in a white flash. Then he moved around the whole room at a rate un-believable. He was still visible but whenever Jaina tried to attack he wasn't there. Several times twin long white dragons struck out from her arms but they never hit Tom. Then he was above her a sword in his hand. "DIE BITCH!" He shouted, it was just enough warning, half a shield went up, and then was promptly sliced, but the shield deflected the sword attack so that it just scratched her. After Tom hit the ground he kicked Jaina with his legs high up in the air several times. Then she fell down.
After a moment Tom noted the zoid barrage had stopped. When did it stop? Tom asked the much more aware kokuhso.
When I began to deflect every shot heading towards you back towards where it came from.
Tom put his face in his hand and sighed for a moment then he looked at Jaina. The cut he had made was not very deep, but ran long. All the way from the middle of her right shoulder blade to her foot. It also cut the right side of her clothes clean off from about four inches away from her shoulder in a straight line. Tom noted this with some satisfaction, and some level of personal elation, but he simply put first things first, she had to die. Producing a normal gun he pointed it at her, "Prepare to die." He shot her twice. Once in the leg, once somewhere non-descript in the chest. After a moment of twitching Tom kicked her into the fire. "Burn." After a moment of awkward reflection Tom noted, "The first time I actually got her into the fire." He said this without hate regret or any emotions period. Am I that heartless a human being? Willing and able to burn my comrade that easily. Tom thought for some time, and then he got a conclusion. I am. I was a war lord and I always will be to some extent. Tom looked back at the girl behind him. Just more some times than others.
And then Tom began the lone sad trek home.
-End-
Yea pretty violent there… Maybe I should give this an M rating. Hopefully this is the most violent though. But knowing me and my violent tendencies (looks at other fanfics, sees people dying by the thousands, if not millions and many in rather violent ways) probably not.