TiberianSun
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It's been three months since the end of the last zoid fight, where Bit Cloud beat Vega Obscura in the final round of the final tournament. Since then, Bit and Brad Hunter of the Blitz Team went their separate ways on vacation while Leena Tauros stayed with her father and Jamie on the HoverCargo. Though neither absent warrior said they'd be back, it was assumed the two would return to take part in the Class S tournament. But now, there's less than a day until registration and neither has shown...
Chapter One: Alone
It was late, and Leena Tauros was supposed to be asleep by now. But she couldn't stop thinking about everything that was currently stressing her out: Bit and Brad still being gone when there was only six hours and fourteen minutes until registration, the possibility that the Blitz Team may not be able to compete in the Class S tournaments when they'd worked so hard to get there, and the fact that she and Jamie had pulled a fast one on Doc by slipping a sleeping pill into his drink at dinner. He was so worried about the team's future prospects that he hadn't slept in days. It was unhealthy behavior, therefore Leena and Jamie both agreed that it would be better to have him mad at them than sick.
So now Doc was in a drug-induced sleep, Jamie in a plain old exhaustion sleep, and Leena wide awake, kneeling on her bed and staring out the window at a moonlit landscape that was covered with shadows. She battled with a nauseous feeling her stomach that told her neither guy was coming back. No, they were going to come back. No matter what. They knew how much Doc, Jamie, and Leena needed them. The five of them had been through so much together. They wouldn't just blow it now, would they?
Leena started thinking rather negatively. Maybe they'd teamed up with someone else. She suddenly got a mental image of Brad's Shadow Fox and Bit's Liger Zero running alongside someone else's zoid. Battling with someone else. Maybe Leena hadn't been good enough. A mental picture of Bit with some pretty girl made her insides flame with anger. And she remembered that Brad, being Brad, had been quite attracted to Naomi, Leon's partner. Maybe Leon would come back to the Blitz Team if Brad joined Naomi. But Leena honestly couldn't see herself fighting Bit or Brad. She wouldn't be able to bring herself to do it. She just felt too strongly towards them.
Suddenly, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She looked out the window, hope blooming inside her. Nothing. What could she be thinking? This wishful crap was getting to her head.
No...something was out there! For sure this time! It was a zoid! It was...Brad's old Command Wolf?! What in the...?
Leena didn't wait for an explanation. The zoid was headed straight for their HoverCargo and didn't seem to be changing course. She leapt up, darted out of her room, and bolted towards the control room. Once there, she realized there was an incoming transmission. Jamming the button, she yelped "Hello? Hello?!"
"Leena?"
"Brad!!! Brad, is that you?!!"
"Yeah, it's me. Don't yell so loud, my ears are ringing."
"I can't believe you're back! Geez, you're late!" Leena was grinning ear to ear, though Brad couldn't see it. She didn't have the visual monitor on at the time, as she was too excited to even think of it. "Why are you in the Wolf? Where's the Fox?"
Brad's voice darkened. "It got busted up good. I got in a fight with some random zoid and the pilot must have been angry when he fought me because he blasted me good. The Fox's armor was torn off and circuits blew. It wasn't possible to pilot it anymore. So I hunted down some guy with a Command Wolf. It looks just like my old one, doesn't it?"
Leena nodded, remembered Brad couldn't see her, and answered in the affirmative. "Yeah. You want me to open the hangar door for you?"
"Yes, that would be nice."
She pushed the button and then ran down to meet her teammate. The Wolf ran in, stopped, and then Brad jumped out. "Hi!!" Leena cried, dashing down the stairs and giving him a hug.
"Hey." Brad looked around. "Where's Bit? Am I not good enough for him anymore?"
"No...he hasn't shown up yet." Leena's mood sank and she shook her head, letting go of Brad. "I should have expected this. I mean, Bit's a real drifter. He wouldn't just stick with us..."
The mercenary shook his head. "No way. Bit's coming back. Trust me."
Leena sighed. "I hope you're right."
Chapter Two: The Zoid Trials
Following Doc's joyful 'welcome back' to Brad the next morning, the HoverCargo started towards the zoid trial grounds. Leena was moping around, now fully convinced that Bit wasn't coming back. No one's attempts to comfort her could get through, so they finally just gave up.
When they arrived at the zoid trials, Leena and Brad brought out the Gunsniper and Command Wolf. "Dad, I don't really feel up for this," the former said half-heartedly.
"Don't tell me that! Bit's absence will NOT affect your performance, young lady!" Doc snapped. "You get out there and get a good score!"
Brad, who could perform well in any situation, did well (better than before anyway) coming in at 7th place. Leena, whose mind was clearly on another planet, placed 18th and infuriated Doc. But she was beyond caring. Instead, she hung around, listening to Brad babble on about the zoid warriors in the top spots.
"Shaun Richards, Talon Asuntés, and Julia Taylor..." he read. "They're occupying the top spots. And, from my understanding, they're all on the same team - the Shadow Team."
Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat. Because the next board update left him amazed and overjoyed at the same time. Because...
1.Julia Taylor: 1:08:29
2.Bit Cloud: 1:08:30
"Good god, Leena, look!" he yelped, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around. She looked up at the board wearily, then let out a startled scream. She then proceeded to look around wildly, as though she might be able to see him. Then she started to run off. Brad, unwilling to follow her off to who-knew-where, yelped "Leena, wait a minute, I - !"
"Bit!! BIT!!" she yelled, running past people and underneath zoids. "BIIIIT!!!"
Suddenly...a familiar flash of blonde. That same ****y grin. It had to be him...the red-and-white jacket! Standing next to the Liger Zero! Yes! Yes! It was him! It was...
"Bit!!"
He turned around. "...Leena...?" Blink blink. "Leena!"
She leapt into his arms, hugging him fiercely. "Where have you been?! You had us worried sick! What are you doing here? Are you still a member of our team? Please say yes! Don't you dare tell me you're with some prettyyoungthingthatcanbarelypilotazoid!"
"What?" Bit looked down at the top of her head in confusion. She pulled back and looked embarrassed. "I've been on vacation, like I said I would be. I'm sorry I worried you. I'm here for the zoid trials. Of course I'm still a member of your team. And I didn't quite catch the last part."
"Ah, good." Suddenly, Brad appeared from behind a zoid.
"Leena! What the...! Bit! Woah, you ARE here?!"
The two exchanged a friendly (and quick) handshake. Then they began chatting about their adventures over the past few months. Leena couldn't take her eyes off Bit. His hair was a tint larger, his skin a tad tanner, but otherwise he still looked the same. Brad looked exactly the same as well. Guess guys weren't much for fashion trends.
Bit got in the Liger and went over to Doc, who had his second freak-out session of the day. The whole team was talking when suddenly, someone said, "The Blitz Team, I presume?"
Everyone turned around. A woman stood there, with long brown hair and icy blue eyes. She wore a long black coat, jeans, and a white top. Her hair was French-braided in a messy-on-purpose sort of way.
Chapter One: Alone
It was late, and Leena Tauros was supposed to be asleep by now. But she couldn't stop thinking about everything that was currently stressing her out: Bit and Brad still being gone when there was only six hours and fourteen minutes until registration, the possibility that the Blitz Team may not be able to compete in the Class S tournaments when they'd worked so hard to get there, and the fact that she and Jamie had pulled a fast one on Doc by slipping a sleeping pill into his drink at dinner. He was so worried about the team's future prospects that he hadn't slept in days. It was unhealthy behavior, therefore Leena and Jamie both agreed that it would be better to have him mad at them than sick.
So now Doc was in a drug-induced sleep, Jamie in a plain old exhaustion sleep, and Leena wide awake, kneeling on her bed and staring out the window at a moonlit landscape that was covered with shadows. She battled with a nauseous feeling her stomach that told her neither guy was coming back. No, they were going to come back. No matter what. They knew how much Doc, Jamie, and Leena needed them. The five of them had been through so much together. They wouldn't just blow it now, would they?
Leena started thinking rather negatively. Maybe they'd teamed up with someone else. She suddenly got a mental image of Brad's Shadow Fox and Bit's Liger Zero running alongside someone else's zoid. Battling with someone else. Maybe Leena hadn't been good enough. A mental picture of Bit with some pretty girl made her insides flame with anger. And she remembered that Brad, being Brad, had been quite attracted to Naomi, Leon's partner. Maybe Leon would come back to the Blitz Team if Brad joined Naomi. But Leena honestly couldn't see herself fighting Bit or Brad. She wouldn't be able to bring herself to do it. She just felt too strongly towards them.
Suddenly, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She looked out the window, hope blooming inside her. Nothing. What could she be thinking? This wishful crap was getting to her head.
No...something was out there! For sure this time! It was a zoid! It was...Brad's old Command Wolf?! What in the...?
Leena didn't wait for an explanation. The zoid was headed straight for their HoverCargo and didn't seem to be changing course. She leapt up, darted out of her room, and bolted towards the control room. Once there, she realized there was an incoming transmission. Jamming the button, she yelped "Hello? Hello?!"
"Leena?"
"Brad!!! Brad, is that you?!!"
"Yeah, it's me. Don't yell so loud, my ears are ringing."
"I can't believe you're back! Geez, you're late!" Leena was grinning ear to ear, though Brad couldn't see it. She didn't have the visual monitor on at the time, as she was too excited to even think of it. "Why are you in the Wolf? Where's the Fox?"
Brad's voice darkened. "It got busted up good. I got in a fight with some random zoid and the pilot must have been angry when he fought me because he blasted me good. The Fox's armor was torn off and circuits blew. It wasn't possible to pilot it anymore. So I hunted down some guy with a Command Wolf. It looks just like my old one, doesn't it?"
Leena nodded, remembered Brad couldn't see her, and answered in the affirmative. "Yeah. You want me to open the hangar door for you?"
"Yes, that would be nice."
She pushed the button and then ran down to meet her teammate. The Wolf ran in, stopped, and then Brad jumped out. "Hi!!" Leena cried, dashing down the stairs and giving him a hug.
"Hey." Brad looked around. "Where's Bit? Am I not good enough for him anymore?"
"No...he hasn't shown up yet." Leena's mood sank and she shook her head, letting go of Brad. "I should have expected this. I mean, Bit's a real drifter. He wouldn't just stick with us..."
The mercenary shook his head. "No way. Bit's coming back. Trust me."
Leena sighed. "I hope you're right."
Chapter Two: The Zoid Trials
Following Doc's joyful 'welcome back' to Brad the next morning, the HoverCargo started towards the zoid trial grounds. Leena was moping around, now fully convinced that Bit wasn't coming back. No one's attempts to comfort her could get through, so they finally just gave up.
When they arrived at the zoid trials, Leena and Brad brought out the Gunsniper and Command Wolf. "Dad, I don't really feel up for this," the former said half-heartedly.
"Don't tell me that! Bit's absence will NOT affect your performance, young lady!" Doc snapped. "You get out there and get a good score!"
Brad, who could perform well in any situation, did well (better than before anyway) coming in at 7th place. Leena, whose mind was clearly on another planet, placed 18th and infuriated Doc. But she was beyond caring. Instead, she hung around, listening to Brad babble on about the zoid warriors in the top spots.
"Shaun Richards, Talon Asuntés, and Julia Taylor..." he read. "They're occupying the top spots. And, from my understanding, they're all on the same team - the Shadow Team."
Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat. Because the next board update left him amazed and overjoyed at the same time. Because...
1.Julia Taylor: 1:08:29
2.Bit Cloud: 1:08:30
"Good god, Leena, look!" he yelped, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around. She looked up at the board wearily, then let out a startled scream. She then proceeded to look around wildly, as though she might be able to see him. Then she started to run off. Brad, unwilling to follow her off to who-knew-where, yelped "Leena, wait a minute, I - !"
"Bit!! BIT!!" she yelled, running past people and underneath zoids. "BIIIIT!!!"
Suddenly...a familiar flash of blonde. That same ****y grin. It had to be him...the red-and-white jacket! Standing next to the Liger Zero! Yes! Yes! It was him! It was...
"Bit!!"
He turned around. "...Leena...?" Blink blink. "Leena!"
She leapt into his arms, hugging him fiercely. "Where have you been?! You had us worried sick! What are you doing here? Are you still a member of our team? Please say yes! Don't you dare tell me you're with some prettyyoungthingthatcanbarelypilotazoid!"
"What?" Bit looked down at the top of her head in confusion. She pulled back and looked embarrassed. "I've been on vacation, like I said I would be. I'm sorry I worried you. I'm here for the zoid trials. Of course I'm still a member of your team. And I didn't quite catch the last part."
"Ah, good." Suddenly, Brad appeared from behind a zoid.
"Leena! What the...! Bit! Woah, you ARE here?!"
The two exchanged a friendly (and quick) handshake. Then they began chatting about their adventures over the past few months. Leena couldn't take her eyes off Bit. His hair was a tint larger, his skin a tad tanner, but otherwise he still looked the same. Brad looked exactly the same as well. Guess guys weren't much for fashion trends.
Bit got in the Liger and went over to Doc, who had his second freak-out session of the day. The whole team was talking when suddenly, someone said, "The Blitz Team, I presume?"
Everyone turned around. A woman stood there, with long brown hair and icy blue eyes. She wore a long black coat, jeans, and a white top. Her hair was French-braided in a messy-on-purpose sort of way.