Fan Fiction / Zoids Fan Fiction / Cowboy Bebop Fan Fiction / Outlaw Star Fan Fiction / Tenchi Muyo Fan Fiction ❯ The Reaper ❯ Mayuka's First Battle, Layon Hears the Truth ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: You know it already. I do own Nate Sindel, the Death Raptor, the Baroness that spoke to Altile, the Blue Fury, the Zeros team, the Zarochi Flats, and the Stakara Desert.

In this chapter the Backdraft Organization finds their information leak, and you'll never guess who it is. The hospitalized Layon gets a visit from an old friend, Jamie's dad Oscar. Oscar explains to Layon about the letter, and Layon finally forgives Tauros. Yes, I'm calling Tauros from now on. Meanwhile a battle between the Blue Fury and all the Zoids a Whale King can hold ensues in Stakara Desert.

Chapter 4: Mayuka's First Battle, Layon Hears the Truth

** ** Zoid actions

The middle of the Stakara Desert, 12 noon

The black and red hover cargo stopped in the middle of nowhere; this was the Stakara Desert. Nate and Mayuka stood in the command deck of the cargo. Then it appeared in the horizon, the thing they had been waiting for. The black Whale King.

"I'm glad to see that you actually showed up. Now we can begin," Altile said as the massive Zoid landed and started to unload it's payload of smaller Zoids. There were Spino Sappers, Sinkers, Rev Raptors, Helcats, Dibison, and War Sharks.

"You should get going," Nate said giving Mayuka a reassuring kiss on the cheek.

"Right, but what if I'm in over my head?" she asked a little nervous.

"Then the Reaper is only a com-call away."

She smiled and left to board her Zoid. When she was inside Nate opened the catapult. She gave him the "all clear" signal, and the Blue Fury was shot out onto the ground. It skidded to a halt and roared in defiance at the 1000+ Zoids that it was facing.

The black judge capsule fell in the middle, kicking up a cloud of dust. It was raised out of the hole and opened.

"This is an unofficial battle between the Backdraft team and the Zeros team," the dark judge said, "The battle mode 0999. Readyyy…FIGHT!"

CLANG!

The Fury rushed forward and attacked the first sinker that came too near. Then another, and another. One Spino Sapper tried to attack from behind, but was ripped in two by the tail blade. A War Shark leapt from under the earth to attack from above, but was shredded by the blades on the Fury's horns. Four Dibison attacked at once, all Mayuka had to do was spin and she took them all out at the same time.

She was indeed a very competent Zoid warrior. Nate had to admit she might even be a match for him. He just smiled and watched her continue fighting. It was so graceful the way she did it, too.

Meanwhile at the ZBC hospital 1500 miles away

A tall man with spiked hair walked through the door and up to the reception desk.

"I called and asked to see Dr. Layon," he said to the nurse sitting there.

"Yes, of course," she replied in a chipper voice, "He's in room 7B on the ninth floor."

"Thank you, miss," he said and walked off towards the elevator.

Pressing the button for the ninth floor he waited and watched the numbers flash by. By the time he was there he was already tapping his foot. `Elevator music really gives me a headache,' he thought.

Walking down the corridor he saw several people in intensive care, some were hook up to plasma packs. The normal hospital setup. He just kept walking till he saw the right room.

"7B," he read on the plague over the door. Waking in he saw Layon strapped to the bed to keep from lashing out at people. "Hello Layon, it's been a long time."

"OSCAR," he yelled at the man, "Why are you here?!"

"To tell you something that will help ease the pain," Oscar said sitting down in the chair beside the bed. "Layon, Tauros didn't write that love letter."

"What?!"

"I wrote it for him. After you asked him to write it, he came to me and asked me to write. But I accidentally signed the letter Steve Tauros instead of your name."

"So it was you?" Layon asked calming down considerably.

"Yes, it was me."

"By accident?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you te-."

"I didn't tell you because you wouldn't listen to me, remember?"

Layon remembered that day when Oscar had tried to tell him about the letter. He just cursed his old friend and tried to shoot him down.

"I'm sorry, Oscar, I should have listened."

"S'okay. Now, are you ready to apologize to Tauros?"

Layon's face twisted a little bit.

"Think he'll accept?" Layon asked.

"If he doesn't Leena will make him."

"She is the very picture of her mother. Inside and out," Layon said closing his eyes and remembering the time Leena smiled at him, she truly was her mother's daughter. Just the thought of it made him go slightly red.

"So, ready to leave?"

"Yes, do you have any idea how horrible hospital noodles are?" he asked as Oscar undid the straps and got him a crutch.

"No, but I have a feeling you're gonna tell me," he answered and they laughed. They left the hospital after getting clearance from the top office.

Same time: Backdraft HQ

"Count, we have found the information leak," the messenger said over the radio.

"Good, who is it?" the dark voice asked.

"Dr. Layon, sir, he was overheard talking to himself in the his hospital room," the messenger replied.

"Take him out."

"Yes, sir."

Back at the Stakara Desert

The Blue Fury got blasted from below by a hidden War Shark. When it recovered a Dibison rammed straight into it's head. Mayuka managed to take out that Dibison, but two more rammed it on either side. Mayuka screamed in rage and pain, wishing they would give her enough time to charge her main weapon.

One of the Spino Sappers was about to let loose its chainsaw when something blasted it. Mayuka looked up and saw the Death Raptor running towards her. Behind it more than one hundred Zoids could be seen, taken out by a sonicboom. It stopped and stood over her, firing sonic blasts from its mouth in the form of roars. Whichever Zoid got hit by the roar just fell to the ground, command system frozen.

"You looked like you needed help," Nate said smiling at her.

"I had him right where I wanted him," she retorted.

"You know that line doesn't work. You needed help, just admit it."

"Thanks," she managed to say before blacking out.

Nate just smiled at the sleeping angel. But his gaze soon filled with the retreating Whale king. All the ground Zoids just fell to the ground. `Stupid drones,' he thought and then turned his attention back to the Whale King.

"Sorry," he told the Raptor, "but we need to keep him alive to see what he does." The Raptor let out another sound blast aimed at the flying Zoid. It hit the tail end and blew the rudder off. Nate just laughed "Acceptable, but I think more power could have been used."

"You and your `more power'," Mayuka said in her sleep.

Later that day: Tauros base

The neon winged Pteras swooped down over the Tauros base. Tauros went outside waved to Oscar and Layon as it landed. Oscar helped Layon out and handed him the crutch. Tauros smiled as he saw them and walked over to shake Layon's hand.

"Why do you want to do that?" Layon asked with a little anger in his voice.

"Because I didn't get to thank you after you saved Leena," Tauros said as Layon shook his hand.

"I didn't do it for you, I did it for her," he spat at Tauros.

"I understand Layon," he said still smiling, "Now if you would just apologize for calling my hover cargo as useless as a rusty, old drum barrel, I'll forgive you for unknowingly putting Leena in danger."

"Alright, I'm sorry for calling your little hover cargo as useless as a rusty, old drum barrel," Layon said and hearing just what he wanted to hear afterward.

"Good, and I for give you for putting my daughter in danger so many times."

The three of them got closer together and turned to head back to the hangar. Just as they turned around smiling, the flash of a camera went off. They all blinked and saw Leena with a camera.

"It's to replace…the one you lost," she said looking at the camera.

"Yeah, Layon you burned that picture at the Gentala Ruins," Oscar said smacking Layon in the back of the head.

"Uh…I…uh…I'm sorry," Layon said putting Oscar in a one arm headlock.

Same time: Zeros base

"I'm serious," Nate said looking at Mayuka, "You just kicked major ass today. You need a nickname."

"But what should it be?" she asked, she had wanted a nickname for so long. Besides the one she already had, Maya.

"How about Zero?"

"No, it has to have that certain something."

"Okay."

"Nate?"

"Yes?"

"Are you feeling alright?" she asked giving him that innocent, little schoolgirl look.

"I'm fine, why?"

"Because you've never acted like this for as long as I've known you."

"Did you like the old, unemotional me? The one who could only be happy if he was in a battle?"

"Well," she thought for a moment, "a little. But I like this you a lot better." She hugged him and laid her head on his chest; feeling his heart beat with hers.

"You know," he started, "you never answered my question."

"What was that?" she looked up at hi eyes.

"When your parents come, will you stay?"

"Of course I will. If they say that I'm going no matter what, I'll…I'll disown myself."

He was slightly taken aback. She had never spoken so forcefully about anything for as long as he had known her. He knew she was a princess, but why would she give that up. He was just speachless about it.

"Nate, are you listening to me?" she waved a hand in front of his face.

"Huh…yeah. What?"

"I just remembered, you owe me dinner," she gave him a quick punch to the left arm. She shook her hand to make the pain go away.

"If you were only left handed, I'd be the one rubbing my arm," he said with a laugh. He stopped laughing when she swooned slightly. `She must still be a little woozy from the battle,' he thought looking down at the top of her blue head. He brought her into the living room and put her on the couch. Then went back into the hangar.

Nate walked up to the Raptor and leaned against it. It growled and looked at him with a strange look. He looked up at the Zoid, which quickly looked forward again.

"You confused too?" he asked it. The Raptor just growled. "I know you can hear me, you've been listening the whole time."

It growled a few times.

"I get it, I know what you're talking about."

**Growls**

"How am I supposed to tell her that?"

**Growls**

"How would you know that?"

It turned to look at him growling.

"YOU WHAT?!" he asked looking at it. "You like the Blue Fury?"

**Growls**

"I never thought you had those kinds of emotions," he said jumping onto the Raptor's clawed foot. "Why didn't you tell me?"

**Growls**

"I suppose that is a good reason," he looked at the floor, "Guess what? Because the Blue Fury is based on your design, it must have the same system that gives you those feelings. And because I made it for Mayuka, it might have similar feelings, but doesn't want to expose them yet."

The Raptor gave him a surprised look, or as close as a robot can get to a surprised look.

"You're a different Ultimate X aren't you, a more advanced kind."

"A more advanced kind of what?" Mayuka asked from the door. She had a sheet around her to keep warm. The main hangar door was still open, and the night was getting colder.

"You know that the Death Raptor is an Ultimate X, right?"

"You told me about that, yeah, I remember."

"He's more advanced than any Zoid I've ever seen, and I'm only know realizing it."

"Why?" she asked hopping up to sit next to him.

"I think it's because he chose not to."

"It can choose?"

"He has emotions, but I'm going to tell you what he told me. Pilot/Zoid confidentiality."

"Okay, okay," she said then looked over her shoulder at the Blue Fury, it was watching them, "Guys and their secrets."

The Blue Fury looked at the Death Raptor. Both opened their cockpits and signaled their pilots to get in. They did and the Zoids took off out the open door for a run. Nate hit the button that closes the doors and initiates lockdown. The two Zoids turned east and headed towards town.

"Guess they heard I owe you dinner," Nate said laughing.

"Yeah," she said joining in the laughter.

TBC

Hope you guys like it. There's only gonna be a few more chapters, I'm not sure. One maybe two, that's the suspense. How will the Backdraft Group get rid of Layon? Does the Blue Fury have emotions like the Death Raptor? How does the Death Raptor have emotions? Will Mayuka get a nickname? Please review, and if you have any suggestions for Mayuka's nickname include them in your review. I also need to know how you like the Blue Fury. Thanks again.