Fan Fiction / Zoids Fan Fiction ❯ After the Royal Cup ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

The Deadly Nightshade/The unbelievable secret! Ready, fight!

Disclaimer: "Zoids", "New Century Zero", "Chaotic Century", The Blitz Team, the Backdraft Group, and all other related characters/mechas, plus any other trademarked thing I mention in this story, such as songs, are not my property. The pilot of the Shield Liger, as well as the Z.A.I.P, as well as any other original characters are my property.


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"I'm gonna strangle you Bit," Leena yelled as she chased her blond haired teammate through the hover cargo's halls.

"Only if you catch him before I do," Justin replied as he quickly became neck and neck with Leena.

It was the usual day with the Blitz Team, Bit had, like usual, taken something from Leena and Justin without asking, and now they were out to hurt him.

"Somebody help me," Bit screamed as he tried to escape what would most likely be a painful death.

"You knew very well that those were MY cookies Bit," Leena roared.

"And I was saving those nachos you green eyes glutton! If I've told you once I've told you a hundred times, ask first," Justin yelled.

"Wait Justin, hold on," Leena told him, "Bit probably has the entire hover cargo mapped out, we actually need a strategy to get him this time."

"Sounds unusual for an impulsive person, but okay. You chase Bit back here, I'll set up an ambush," Justin told her.

"Sounds good to me," Leena snickered.

"The sooner we get to Romeo City, the better," Justin said to himself.


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Bit breathed heavily, leaning against a wall. Somehow he had managed to escape Leena, and Justin had disappeared somewhere, so it gave him a chance to breathe.

"I gotta watch it," Bit said to himself, "with Justin and Leena around, I could get killed."

As Bit stepped away from the wall, checking around the corner, he suddenly felt something grab him from behind.

"Gotcha!"

Bit screamed as he suddenly felt himself being pulled toward the ceiling by two strong arms, letting his legs dangle in the air.

"I got him Leena," Justin yelled.

Leena walked around the corner, and saw that Justin had somehow suspended himself from the ceiling, and had his arms wrapped around Bit, practically pulling him to the ceiling.

"Justin, how did you do that," Leena asked him.

"Special magnets on my boots and belt. Each is capable of holding two hundred pounds, so it's easy to hold myself and Bit up here," Justin told her and dropped Bit, right on his butt.

"We've got you now Bit," Leena told him as she cracked his knuckles.

"Hey, Justin did worse than I did. Last night he took three of your chocolate covered donuts," Bit stated, hoping it would make her forget about him.

Justin pushed his hands against the ceiling, and thrust himself downward, breaking the magnetic connection with his belt, leaving him hanging from the ceiling by his boots.

"I asked first, Bit. Besides, I let her have half a dozen peanut butter cups in exchange. You on the other hand, just stole, from the both of us," Justin told him.

Justin bent himself upward, grasping the magnets attached to his boots, and pulling them loose, hanging form the magnets, and then dropping to the ground, making a two point landing.

"And now Bit, you will pay," Leena told him, she grasped him by his shirt and pulled her fist back, ready to pound him into the ground.

Unfortunately, before he could, Dr. Toros' voice came over the speaker system.

"Okay everybody, we've finally arrived at Romeo City," he announced.

"Crap, looks like I'll have to pound you later Bit," Leena said as she let him go.

"Don't let us forget," Justin added.


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"Allright Liger, back it up onto the ramp," Justin said as he tried to move the Shield Liger in reverser, but he kept meeting with resistance.

Liger: No, I don't want strangers examining me. Let me repair myself!

"Liger, you can't always repair all of your systems by yourself, you need a skilled mechanic from time to time, and this is one of those times," Justin explained.

Liger: My systems are running at optimum efficiency, that's good enough for me.

"Shield," Justin began, definitely mad, "now listen to me. I want you, to get on that ramp, and get a proper maintenance checkup. After that, these guys are going to install some special order upgrade parts that we need. Now are we gonna do this the easy way? Or do we have to do it the hard way," Justin asked as he tried to reason with the Liger.

Liger: ...I hate it when you do that. Fine, have it your way.

Despite the way he felt, the Liger stepped back, and onto the ramp. The magnetic locks engaged, securing him to it. The ramp began to move back, taking the Liger halfway through a white arch.

"Okay, you can get out of the Zoid now," one of the technicians announced.

The canopy opened, and Justin was lowered down on the cable, letting him off at the floor.

"So when would be a good time to come back for the Zoids," Brad asked as he watched the mechanics start work on the Shadow Fox.

"About two hours," another mechanic told them.

"Allright, Liger, I'll see you in two hours, don't worry I'll be back," Justin announced, "hey guys, two things. If the wiring of the Zoids looks a little off, leave it that way. And two, after your done with Liger, could you install those special order parts," Justin asked.

"Sure, but it'll cost extra," the mechanic told him.

"No big deal, no skin off my nose, I can afford it," Justin told him.

"So, where to now," Dr. Toros asked.

"I'm gonna see if I can find another trailed for Gus' and then I might just look around," Justin told him.

"I'm going to the weapon shop and pick up ammo for the Gun Sniper," Leena told them.

"I think I'll check out the game center and see if there's any challengers," Bit added.

"Fine, we've all got our plans, I say we meet back here in two hours," Dr. Toros told them.

"Sounds good to me," Brad told them.


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"Boy, how hard is it to find a part shop that sells Gustav trailers? I've found shops that sell replacement Zoid parts, weapons that could make Leena scream with excitement, and enough big shiny things that could make Dr. Toros keel over from over excitement. But not a single place that sells trailers for a Gustav. What a predicament," Justin said to himself as he walked through the streets of Romeo City.

"Maybe I should head over to the arcade, I might as well kill some time," he said to himself and walked to where the arcade was located.


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The arcade was pretty much full with people, some watching the battles on the viewing screens, while others were waiting their turns in the simulator. Justin looked around, looking over the high scores, and watching the battles going on.

"Hmmm, that guy with the red Command Wolf seems like a tough fighter, I wonder who he is," Justin said to himself. He checked the score readout and saw who the player was, at least his gaming name that is.

"Deadly Nightshade, weird name, but a good fighter. After he's done I think I'll take a turn," Justin said to himself.

A minute later, the battle was over, Deadly Nightshade had won with a very high score. As soon as the opponent stepped out, Justin took a turn in the simulator booth. Not feeling very creative, Justin just entered his real name to serve as his game name.

"Hey Deadly Nightshade, you feel like taking me on," Justin asked.

"A novice like you? Sure, why not, I could use a good laugh," he replied.

"Oh you're gonna regret that," Justin told him.

Justin went to the options part of the game and began to select his Command Wolf design. He picked a Command Wolf with white armor, a cage over the canopy, two, eight shot boxes on the sides of the muzzle, and a large missile box mounted on its back, as well as additional armor on the legs.

"This oughtta do just fine," Justin said to himself as he saved the changes.

Deadly Nightshade's Zoid didn't look very spectacular at all; it was just the basic Command Wolf with red armor instead of white.

"You must have something up your sleeve, just going into battle with a regular Command Wolf," Justin stated.

"Not really, I just know that it's all I need, especially against you," he replied.

"Enough talk, let the battle begin."



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The two Command Wolves stood at opposite ends of a large, rocky, barren battleground. The two stared each other down, neither one of them wanting to make the first move.

"Scared to go first," Justin asked.

"Hardly, I'm just waiting for you to make the first move," Deadly Nightshade responded cooly.

"Well, looks like I might not have a choice," Justin said to himself.

The high powered Command Wolf that Justin chose, roared loudly as it charged at the red Command Wolf. The red Command Wolf simply just held its ground, not reacting to the oncoming attack.

'Oh yeah, definitely some kind of trick up his sleeve,' Justin thought.

Just as he got into striking range, the red Command Wolf jumped to the side, avoiding the charge, and opening fire with his twin cannons. The high powered Command Wolf made a sharp right turn, and fired one of the missiles from his back mounted arsenal.

The red Command Wolf easily avoided the missile, while the pilot chuckled.

"You need to aim better, I could've avoided that if I suffered a command system freeze," Deadly Nightshade stated.

A loud explosion was heard, and before he knew it, fifty large, black, jagged harpoons came flying down, smashing into the ground around the red Command Wolf, one nearly ripping right through the neck.

"You're a tricky bastard."

"And don't you forget it," Justin replied and charged right at it.

The red Command Wolf turned and ran off, with Justin in hot pursuit, firing his eight barreled gun boxes at him. The red Command Wolf leapt from side to side, avoiding the shots like it was no challenge at all.

"This ass is getting on my nerves," Justin said to himself.

Another missile launched, making a sharp turn upward, followed by a second missile, going ahead of the red Command Wolf. Both missiles exploded, sending a hail of black harpoons down upon the opponent. The red Command Wolf simply bobbed and weaved, avoiding the downpour of weapons.

"I think I see why the guy chose a regular Command Wolf, without the extra weapons, he can use it to its full ability, avoiding my fire. He had it planned out from the very beginning. And I fell for it," Justin said to himself.

"How clever, my other opponents never figure that out," Deadly Nightshade stated.

"I'll show you a thing or two," Justin replied.

Justin launched another five missiles, zooming past the red Command Wolf, going into the sky and exploding. The entire area was bombarded by a massive barrage of harpoons, causing more than enough near misses, but not a single hit to the red Command Wolf.

"You're pathetic."

"Shut up!"

The high powered Command Wolf growled and charged at the red Command Wolf, bearing it teeth, and lowering its head, preparing to ram it.

"I didn't give you enough credit. You're crazier than I thought."

The red Command Wolf leapt to the side, avoiding the charge completely. An object was launched form the side of the missile box, exploding in the red Command Wolf's face, blinding the pilot with the bright light.

The high powered Command Wolf lowered its head, and charged forward again, this time catching the red Command Wolf, and lifted its head, flipping it onto its side.

"Never saw that one coming did you," Justin asked.

The high powered Command Wolf stepped onto the red Command Wolf's neck, pressing down hard.

No, but then again, you didn't see THIS coming."

The back mounted gun rotated approximately forty-five degrees, and fired several shots, hitting the high powered Command Wolf and throwing it off balance.

"It appears the tables have turned."

The red Command Wolf stood back up, and stepped on the opponent's neck, holding it down on the ground.

"Don't count your victories before they're won," Justin replied angrily.


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The two opponents traded blows and attacks continually, each doing a good amount of damage, but never being able to gain the upper hand. The bout continued for a long time, reaching the half hour mark before either opponent knew it.

Justin was becoming annoyed by this, Deadly Nightshade was definitely a fierce warrior, there was no doubt that he had spent a good amount of time on the simulator, or maybe in a real Command Wolf.

Justin checked his systems; he had suffered major damage, and was down to little more than ten percent power.

"I wouldn't doubt that he's in just as much trouble. Guess I'll have to make my final strike a good one," Justin said to himself.

Using the last of what remained of his strength, Justin charged, anticipating the counter move of the red Command Wolf, and meeting it head on, in a dog against dog move, trying to wrestle it to the ground.

"Time for my trump card," Justin said to himself, he pressed the firing button one final time, and launched his last missile

The missile soared into the air, and exploded, raining down harpoons everywhere. The high powered Command Wolf held down the red Command Wolf, not giving it a chance to escape. The harpoons surrounded the two Command Wolves, as well as totally destroyed both of them in the same move, "GAME OVER" flashing on the screens.

"What a challenge," Justin said to himself as he exited the game booth.

Deadly Nightshade also stepped out of his booth. The guy was about average height, dark black hair going down to his neck, dark Violet eyes, and semi pale skin.

He wore black boots and gloves, a dark purple body suit that covered everything below his neck. He wore a black leather vest; several belt straps on his legs and arms, and on his right cheek, was a red and black tattoo of a dragon coiled around a sword, with two triangular wings in the background, and a thick black boarder surrounding it.

"I must admit, nobody has ever thought of using that move against me before. Sacrificing yourself to insure that you defeat your opponent. A kamikaze move if I've ever seen one," he stated.

"Sometimes there's no other way out. My name's Justin Thompson, who're you," he asked.

"My name is Nightshade, hence the game name. Did you say you're Justin Thompson? The same Justin Thompson of the Blitz Team," he asked.

"The one and only. Why," Justin asked.

"Is it true that you defeated the feared Crimson Team only a couple of days ago," Nightshade asked.

"Yeah, and what a smackdown. Now if you don't mind me asking, what's with the name, and why do you have a Guylos symbol tattoo," Justin asked.

"I prefer Nightshade to my real name, which is, by the way, none of your business. And as for the tattoo, my great grandfather was a warrior in the Guylos army, they say I look a lot like him," Nightshade explained.

"Well, good to know ya, you handled that Command Wolf extremely well," Justin stated as he extended his hand.

"You did rather well yourself, I don't quite remember seeing a Command Wolf piloted quite the way you did," Nightshade told him as he returned the gesture.

"Well I would've done better, I've only had limited experience with a Command Wolf, if I was able to pilot a Shield Liger, the fight would've been much different," Justin told him.

"I know, I've seen how you pilot a Shield Liger in battle, very impressive, especially how you took down a Gojulas, with super cannons no less," Nightshade told him.

"Well Liger and I do what we can," Justin told him, soon interrupted by a beeping coming form his right arm.

Liger: Justin I need help, these people have forced me to deploy my missile batteries, and now they've removed them entirely!

"Okay Liger hold on. Sorry pal but I gotta go, no rest for the owner of a Z.A.I.P system," Justin told him and turned to leave the arcade.

"You have no idea how right you are," Nightshade said to himself.


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Liger was roaring loudly, trying with all of his might to break the magnetic hold that held his feet to the floor, as he tried to escape.

"I've never seen a Zoid act like this before, it must be berserk or something," one of the mechanics stated.

"Nah, I've heard it has a Z.A.I.P installed, that's all. I guess it isn't a people person type of Zoid," another mechanic replied.

"Tell me about it, getting those missiles boxes deployed was murder, it wouldn't respond at all. And the language, who knew a Zoid could curse," another mechanic replied.

"I just got a notice that something's wrong. What's going on here," Justin asked as he walked back into the mechanic's workshop.

"I'll tell you what's going on here. Your Zoid is berserk, he's acting crazy and won't behave," one of the mechanics told him.

"He always acts like that around strangers, he's never liked unfamiliar mechanics. It's nothing personal, he just doesn't like you," Justin told them.

Liger: I don't want them touching me! Tell them to keep their greasy, oily hands to themselves!

"Liger, just behave yourself, this is for the team, remember that," Justin told him, "I guess you're installing the upgrade parts now. How did the maintenance go," he asked.

"It went allright, the only real problem was this thing's attitude. Now we're trying to install those parts, and we get nothing but trouble from this looney Liger," the mechanic explained.

"Liger, do you think you could behave yourself for a while? Just long enough to let these guys finish their job," Justin asked.

Liger: Only if you're here to oversee the entire operation, and make sure they act professional.

"Liger, sometimes you're a baby. Go on guys, he'll behave now," Justin told them.

"Finally," one of the mechanics sighed in relief.


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"Boy, being able to find weapons that can mount onto a Gun Sniper is tough. I could've gotten that rail gun, but since I don't do much sniping, it wouldn't do much good," Leena said to herself as she stepped out of one of the weapon shops of the city.

"So, am I correct to assume that you pilot a Gun Sniper?"

Leena jumped and turned around, facing a man with black hair and Violet eyes, several feet away from her.

"Don't sneak up on me like that, you could've given me a heart attack," Leena yelled.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare a pretty girl like you," he told her, making her blush, "so, do you pilot a Gun Sniper? Or maybe something else with real firepower," he asked.

"A Gun Sniper, I wanted to get a Gunbluster, but they were too expensive," Leena told him.

"What a shame, a redhead like you deserves something powerful, not an everyday, run of the mill Gun Sniper," he told her.

"Well maybe after a few more battles I'll finally be able to afford something a little more powerful," she told him.

"True, very true," he told her as he stepped to the side and pushed something down to the ground.

"Is that a hover board? I've always wanted one of those," Leena told him.

"Really? Well, follow me, I'll show you where you can get one for a very good price," he told her and picked up his hover board.

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"When this is all over I'm never gonna work on a Shield Liger again," one of the mechanics complained as he operated a rivet gun, making the final attachments.

"Aw shut up and stop complaining, out of all the Zoids with a Z.A.I.P unit installed, this is the only one that ever hated mechanics," another mechanic replied.

"Yeah I'm sorry about that, he doesn't like strangers. Sometimes after he gets to know you he'll warm up to you," Justin explained.

"I don't care, I'm swearing off Shield Liger units from now on, somebody else can handle them."

Liger: Would you PLEASE tell that mechanic to SHUT UP!

"Down boy, they're almost done," Justin explained.

Liger: They don't have to complain, they're paid to work on Zoids, not complain.

"Okay, that does it, we're done, the parts are installed and the maintenance is done, so move this thing out of here and let us get to work on the others," one of the mechanics stated.

"Okay guys, I paid up front," Justin told them as he stepped forward, "well Liger, how do you like your new parts?"

Standing almost proudly, was the Shield Liger, with MK-II super cannon upgrades, mounted on its sides.

Liger: They...feel better than the thruster units. They feel kind of heavy, but I can handle them.

"Well that's good. Come on, let's get back to the others," Justin told him.

The canopy opened and the cable lowered, letting Justin ride up to the cockpit.

Liger: Did you get another trailer for Gus'?

"No, none of the shops had any in stop, I'll have to special order one," Justin told him.

Liger: Too bad. Oh well, back to the others?

"Yeah, I wanna make sure my food is safe from Bit. I still have a beating to give him when we're done here," Justin told him.

Liger: Are you ever going to give him a rest?

"If he ever stops stealing my food. Now let's move it so these guys can get back to work," Justin stated.

The magnetic clamps disengaged, allowing the Liger to take off, roaring happily to be out and about once again.


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Bit, Brad, Justin, and Jamie had regrouped at the hover cargo once they were done in town, and had picked up their Zoids. There were no serious problems, which everybody was glad about.

Dr. Toros was currently busy in his room, putting together his latest buy, a Gojulas the Ogre model. He was finishing up the main body, when he suddenly noticed something out of the ordinary. It was relatively quiet, normally Leena, and possibly Justin, would be arguing with Bit about taking their food. But there was nothing. Something definitely had to be up.

"Something isn't right here, has anybody seen Leena anywhere," Dr. Toros asked as he stepped into the command room of the hover cargo.

"Haven't seen her since we split up doc. Thought she came back early to take a nap," Brad told him.

"I don't think so doc. But I'll go check if you want me to," Justin told him.

As Justin was about to leave, the view screen came to life, a very familiar face appeared. It was Nightshade.

"Attention, Justin, of the Blitz Team. I have something you want. Or should I say, somebody, that you want."

Nightshade stepped to the side, revealing Leena, tied up and restrained in a chair, a gag tied over her mouth. Despite this, one could tell that she was scared, which wasn't common for Leena.

"Nightshade let her go you piece of shit or else," Justin ordered.

"Now, now, if you want this beautiful, wild redhead back, then you'll do as I say. Come to the north side of Romeo City in one hour. Come to the old warehouse, it'll be the only one that's condemned. Come alone, and no funny stuff, it would be a shame, if I had to hurt this beautiful woman," Nightshade told him and the screen went blank.

"That guy's gonna pay for this," Justin said, fuming and turning red in the face from anger.

"Who's this Nightshade character," Dr. Toros asked.

"I have no idea, I met him at the game center in a battle, he's very skilled with a Command Wolf. I swear, if he hurts Leena, he's going to pay for it," Justin said as he pulled out his pistol and ejected the clip.

He carefully examined his ammo, just the chamber of the gun. With a look of satisfaction on his face, he reloaded the clip, and holstered the gun again.

"Armor piercing rounds, those should do, just in case," he said and ran out of the command room.

"Hold it Justin, I'm coming with you," Bit told him.

"Oh no you don't blondie, he said, "come alone" and if he sees you with me, he may kill Leena, if you want to be helpful, dig up some information on this guy that I can use. Who he is, what Zoid he pilots, what team he's with, how he fights, stuff like that," Justin told him.

"Justin, be careful," Dr. Toros told him.

"Don't worry Dr. Toros, I'll bring Leena back, alive. But if something goes wrong, take care of Liger and Gus' for me," Justin told him and turned to leave, again.


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"You know, Leena, it's a shame really. I really have nothing against you, its Justin, who I want," Nightshade told her as he paced back and forth across the floor of the old building, toying with a sharp knife.

Leena mumbled, trying to say something, but with the gag, it came out garbled and incoherent.

"Sorry, I can't hear you, please speak up and speak clearer," he said sarcastically, "hmmm, fifteen minutes left. I certainly hope that Justin will get here soon, I don't want to hurt you, unless it's absolutely necessary," Nightshade told her as he ran his gloved hands across the faces of the blade.


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Leena got nervous as the time continued to pass. Every minute that Justin didn't show, was another minute that brought her close to possible death.

'What's taking Justin so long? Is he lost? I hope he finds his way here soon. I don't wanna die; at least not now, I'm still a teenager. Justin, please help me,' Leena thought as he head drooped.

"Five minutes to go. I might just have to introduce you to my friend, Mr. Knife," Nightshade told her.

A loud, mechanical stomping sound was suddenly heard, coming closer with every second, until it stopped, just outside of the building.

"Well, it might look like you've just been saved."

Nightshade pulled out a small remote, and pressed a button. The doors opened, to reveal a Gun Sniper with some heavy modifications, crouched, and aiming all for the frontal guns at the building. The canopy opened, and Justin hopped out, landing on the ground.

"Nightshade, I'm here, set Leena free, now," Justin ordered as he stormed into the warehouse.

"If I were you, I wouldn't be making any demands, it could be fatal," Nightshade exclaimed as he held the knife to Leena's throat, absolutely terrifying her.

"Allright, let's make a compromise. I'll remain here as your prisoner, if you let Leena go," he told him.

"That's what I planned form the beginning, come forward and I'll let her go," Nightshade told him.

Without hesitation, Justin stepped forward, but only half way up to the two.

"Not another step until you let her go. Once Leena gets past this point, you'll get me," Justin explained.

"Fair enough," Nightshade told him.

He removed the gag from Leena's mouth, allowing her to breathe easier. He then cut the ropes he tied Leena up with, letting her go.

"Go on, leave. And don't try anything funny, I can hit at object at fifty feet," Nightshade told her.

Leena broke into a running pace, going right up to Justin and hugging him tightly.

"Justin, thank you, thank you for rescuing me," Leena told him as she shook in fear.

"Leena," he whispered, "I have a plan. Once you get outside, get into your Gun Sniper, and run like hell back to the transport, don't worry about me," he told her.

"But I can't leave you here, you could die," Leena protested.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine, now go, I don't trust this guy," Justin told her.

Reluctantly, Leena began walking past Justin, making her way to the exit of the warehouse. And as she got closer to the exit, Justin got closer to Nightshade, his hand ready to reach for his gun at a second's notice.

Leena was just several feet away from the exit, when Nightshade raised his knife, pulling it back into the throwing position, aiming right for her back. Justin reacted with a hard blow to his face, knocking him off balance.

"Leena get out of here now," Justin ordered as Nightshade wrestled him to the ground.

"But what about you," Leena asked.

"I said get the hell OUT of here," Justin ordered.

Leena had no choice but to leave, when Justin used that tone, as he had once before, it left no room for argument or discussion. She turned, and ran out of the warehouse, hopping into the Gun Sniper, and getting out of there as fast as she could. She knew very well that if she retaliated, she risked hurting Justin, not just Nightshade.

"I'm gonna enjoy killing you," Nightshade stated as he tried to wrestle the knife from Justin, and impale him with it.

"Not today psycho," Justin stated.

Using his great physical strength, Justin delivered a massive punch to Nightshade's face, sending him onto his back. He grabbed his gun, aiming right for Nightshade, and fired. The bullet hit the knife instead, and sent it flying across the floor, as well as all but destroying the blade.

"Kidnap Leena will you? You'll pay for that," Justin told him and aimed right for his face.

Nightshade kicked the gun from his hand, causing it to land right next to the knife. He followed through with a kick to Justin's legs, knocking them out from under him, causing him to fall to the ground with a large thud.

"You're going to pay for what you did," Nightshade told him as he drew his fist back.

"What'd I..." Justin was unable to finish, Nightshade's punch knocked him out cold.

"You're tough, but not tough enough. If you fight like you pilot a Command Wolf, then you're dead where you stand," Nightshade told him.


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"I can't believe it, I can't believe I actually left Justin back there with that psycho," Leena said to herself.

She suddenly came to a decision, she maneuvered the controls to turn around, but the Gun Sniper wouldn't reply, it kept going forward.

"What the hell is wrong with this thing," Leena demanded to know.

A computer image of Justin appeared on the screen, for a minute she thought that he was safe, but she then realized that it was just a hologram.

"Sorry Leena, I hotwired your Gun Sniper, nothing permanent, just to make sure you didn't turn back and try to rescue me. The Gun Sniper will take you back to the hover cargo, and secure to the magnetic loading bay, so you won't be able to come back and try anything foolish. I don't want to see you getting hurt, trying to save me; I'm not worth it. Justin out"

"Justin you stupid idiot," Leena said to herself, having no choice but to ride the Gun Sniper back to the others.


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"Ohh, what in God's name hit me," just asked as he tried to rub his aching head, but he found that he couldn't. His legs, as well as arms, were chained to a wal, restraining him.

"I see that you're finally awake, I didn't think you'd be out for very long, considering that was one of my lighter punches," Nightshade stated as he stepped into the light.

"Nightshade, what's the big idea," Justin demanded as he tried to break loose, which only proved to be futile.

"The big idea, my acquaintance," Nightshade began, "is revenge. Pure, simple, revenge."

"Revenge, for what? For taking you down earlier today in the arcade," Justin asked.

"No, but thank you for adding that to my list. What I really want revenge on you for, is for what you did to my sister," Nightshade told him.

"Sister? You have a sister? God, I pity her," Justin told him.

Justin quickly found a sharply cleated boot pressed against his chest.

"Do the names, Bloodlust, or Crimson Team refresh your memory," he asked.

"Huh," Justin asked, he thought back to the other day, remembering Bloodlust's appearance, and then Nightshade's, "I thought you looked familiar."

"Bloodlust is my younger sister. Do you know what you put her through? Destroying her Genobreaker, getting her, and her team arrested like common criminals," Nightshade screamed.

"She started it, she fired a charged particle cannon during the battle, and obliterated the Judge, she tried to kill me, and she tried to kill Leena as well," Justin protested, earning him a punch to the gut.

"Shut up, I don't care to hear your side of the story," Nightshade told him.

"If you don't want to know the truth, then why're you holding me here," Justin asked.

"I said shut up," Nightshade ordered and punched Justin in the gut again, "I'm holding you here, for my own purposes. First I'm going to torture you, then I might kill you, for what you did to my little sister."

"I didn't get her arrested, she did that herself and the Zoid Battle Commission arrested her, blame them," Justin told him.

"Nice try, but I'm not believing that sack of bull. I know for a fact that you brought her down," Nightshade told him; he pulled back his fist, ready to punch him out.

Justin saw the punch coming, and moved his head to the side, avoiding the fist, which met with the wall. He brought his head back to hold Nightshade's arm there, but received a second fist to the face instead, once again knocking him out.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++


The second the Gun Sniper had docked in the hover cargo, Leena had gone to her room the lay down, and locked the door from the inside, making sure the others couldn't get in, she didn't feel like talking to anybody at the moment.

Other than a bedside light, the room was completely dark. Leena sat on her bed, her head in her hands. She couldn't help thinking back to what had happened earlier.

"I can't believe that happened. I've always been a tough girl, able to blast my way out of anything. But today, I was taken down by one guy, and not a single shot was fired, I've never been so scared of a single person before in my life. I felt absolutely helpless, and I needed Justin to rescue me. And now because of me, he's locked up, being held prisoner, and probably being tortured," Leena said to herself.

She had an overwhelming feeling of guilt, she knew that Justin wouldn't have been in this mess if she had just ignored that crazy guy and kept walking this wouldn't be happening. Instead, she'd be working with Justin to give Bit a beating.

"I've gotta do something, I have to save Justin back, safe and sound," she said to herself.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Liger stood atop the Gustav's trailer, gazing at the horizon. Justin had left a good while ago, and had yet to come back. Instead, the Gun Sniper had returned, and marched into the hover cargo. But so far, there was no sign of Justin. It would be getting dark within an hour, and it wasn't like Justin to be gone for so long.

Liger: Where could he possibly be? Did something happen to him?

"Liger, down here."

The Liger looked down, and saw Leena standing at her feet. Being careful not to hurt her, he crouched down, until he was at her level.

"Liger, would you let me in? I've gotta talk to you, it's about Justin," Leena stated.

The Liger opened his canopy, letting her into the cockpit.

"Hey Liger, can you still hear me," she asked.

Liger: Yes, very well. What do you have to tell me about Justin?

"Its sort of my fault that Justin hasn't come back, let me explain. Earlier in town today, I met some guy who acted nice, but he sure didn't act like it. He shanghaied me and took me to an old building to be used as bate to get Justin. I'm really sorry Liger, but I just couldn't fight back, and Justin traded his freedom for mine," Leena explained.

Liger: ...Do you remember the location?

"I think so, I remember it was in the north side of the city," Leena told him.

Liger: Then hold on!

The harness belts buckled up, securing Leena in. The Liger then leapt off the Gustav's trailer, and took of at full charge toward the city.

"Liger, what's going on," Leena asked.

Liger: Give me directions to the building.

"Hold it Liger, stop," Leena yelled. Surprisingly, the Liger obeyed her, "now, what're you planning on doing? Going in there, guns blazing, destroying everything that gets in your way?"

Liger: What would you suggest? The diplomatic approach?

"If I didn't know better I would say that you're sarcastic. And no, but going in and firing like a maniac won't work," Leena told him.

Liger: You do.

"The way I fight isn't the point here! You're forgetting, Justin has no protection! If you go in there firing everything you've got, you might hurt Justin by accident," Leena told him.

Liger: I...didn't take that option into account. I could've killed Justin, trying to save him.

"Don't take it hard Liger, it can happen to anybody, even you. I can't believe what I'm about to say. What we need, is a strategy," Leena told him.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++


Justin groaned as he regained consciousness. Everything was blurry at first, but he could tell that he was still being held prisoner in the warehouse. But this time, something was different; he could heel himself hanging by his arms from chains, obviously attached to a rafter or beam.

"Now what," he asked himself as he shook his head to clear out the cobwebs.

"I must say, you're stronger than I thought Justin, most people would still be unconscious around this time when I hit them," Nightshade said as he stepped into view.

"Guess I'm just lucky," Justin joked.

"Possibly, but whatever it is, your luck has just run out," Nightshade said as he aimed a pistol right for Justin's head, between his eyes.

"Wait a minute! Is that my gun," he asked.

"And what if it is," Nightshade asked.

"If so, those rounds are armor piercing, if you shot me with one of those, it'd be all over in a second. Now where would the fun in that be? I wouldn't have time to suffer; it would be over too quickly. A sick bastard like you wouldn't want that, would you? You'd want me to suffer miserably wouldn't you," Justin asked.

"You know, I never thought that you'd be right about something like that. Your death is gonna be painful, I'm gonna make you beg for a bullet in the head long before I'm done with you," Nightshade told him.

"We shall see about that Nightshade, we shall see," Justin told him.

"Now, what should I do first to make you suffer? Throw some hydrochloric acid onto you skin and let it eat away at your body? Maybe beat you with a whip, and let you bleed to death form the cuts. Maybe, I could sew your lips together with a dull, rusty needle, so you wouldn't be able to scream in pain from the torture. Or maybe, I should hang a dripping bucket of water next to you, so the dripping sound makes you feel like you're trying to hold back Niagara Falls," Nightshade told him, going over possible means of torture.

"Those are all sick," Justin told him.

"You're right, how about I drill you full of holes with a power drill," Nightshade asked.

"I've heard much worse. Some psycho use to tie his victims to a huge dartboard, and threw razor blades at them from twenty paces. Another, use to spend hours breaking his victim's bones, one bone at a time, starting with their fingers and toes, and working up to their head, which he used a sledgehammer on," Justin told him.

"Those dudes are sick, remind me to get their names later," Nightshade told him.

"I could tell you about some other psychos I've heard. But, it'll cost ya," Justin told him.

"What," Nightshade asked.

"Unchain my legs and I'll tell you," Justin told him.

"...I don't see the harm in it. It's not like you're any threat to me or anything," Nightshade told him, he pressed a button on his left wrist comm, and the shackles on Justin's legs let go.

"Now, tell me about these other psycho killers that you mentioned," Nightshade told him.

"Okay, but listen closely, because I'm only gonna say it once," Justin told him.

Nightshade moved in several feet, wanting to hear what Justin had to say. All the talk about manslaughter and murder intrigued him.

"Allright, what is it," he asked.

"THIS!"

Using his upper body strength, Justin pulled himself up with he chains, swung forward, and delivered a kick to Nightshade's face that sent him flying.

"You just wait until I get loose, I'm gonna tear you a new face hole," Justin told him as he struggled against his remaining restraints.

"Nice kick, but I doubt it. We'll see who gets who. But for now, I have other things to take care of. I'll see how you're doing, later," Nightshade told him as he picked himself up, and began to leave.

"Hey you coward, get back here," Justin ordered.

"I don't think so. Maybe in two days, when you're suffering from hunger and dehydration," Nightshade told him and continued to leave; now completely ignoring Justin.

"Very unusual, a guy like that, doing something like this, seems kind of oxymoronic, a contradiction in madness," Justin said to himself.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


"Woe Liger, this is the place, I think. Yeah it is, the Gun Sniper tracks are here," Leena stated as she eased the Liger into a quick stop.

Liger: It's about time, who knows what could be happening to Justin!

"No Liger, don't!"

The Liger pulled its front leg back, and brought it forward, shattering the front of the warehouse in a single strike.

Liger: That wood was very old, I could probably fit all the way in now.

"No Liger, it might not be safe, I'll go in first, I'm smaller and I'll have an easier time moving around," Leena stated.

Liger: Be cautious.

"Don't worry about me, he won't get the drop on me this time," Leena told him.

The Liger crouched down and opened its canopy, letting Leena leap out and land on the ground easily. Leena carefully walked into the building, keeping an eye out for Nightshade, just in case he was hiding somewhere.

"Justin, are you okay," Leena called out.

"Leena, what're you doing here," Justin asked.

Leena saw Justin hanging in the middle of the warehouse, still hanging from the chains, and still unable to break loose.

"I came to rescue you, it was the least I could do after you saved me all those other times," Leena said as she carefully walked over to him, "so where's pretty boy at?"

"He got a boot to the face and then left, said he was gonna leave me here a couple of days to dry out, then he'd be back. Is that really Liger out there, or did you steal a Saber Tiger from the Fuzzy Pandas," Justin asked.

"It's Liger allright, he insisted on coming to rescue you. How do I get these chains off," Leena asked.

"I dunno, but I've got an idea. My gun if sixty degrees to the right and ten feet away, get it. The rounds are armor piercing, they should be able to free me," Justin told her.

Leena walked over to the spot Justin had mentioned, and bent down to pick up his gun.

"Okay Leena, aim for where the chain connects to the shackles. And whatever you do, please don't hit me," Justin told her.

Leena took careful aim and moved in several feet. She readjusted the aim, so the sites were lined up with the first chain link on the right shackle, doing her best to keep a steady hand. She took a deep breath, and squeezed the trigger, praying that the shot would hit its mark.

The shot rang out loudly, followed by the sound of metal being torn to shreds. Leena looked, and saw that the shackles on Justin's right arm was completely destroyed, leaving only one arm stuck now.

"Nice shot Leena, thanks. Toss me the gun and I'll get this other one," Justin told her.

"Gladly, I don't wanna handle this thing anymore," Leena said as she tossed the gun underhanded to Justin, who easily caught it.

Justin pulled the chain tightly and aimed for the connecting link, he fired once, and freed himself from the shackle.

"Come on Justin let's beat it," Leena told him.

"Leena, wait. Thanks for coming to rescue me. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be hanging here for days," Justin told her.

"But Justin, I was responsible for you getting captured. If I didn't trust that guy, we wouldn't be here," Leena told him.

"Leena, it doesn't matter anymore, that guy could probably sell Gojulas cannons to a Demantis pilot. What matters is that we're both, still alive, and don't have any serious injuries. Now let's go home, and forget about today, okay," Justin asked.

"...Okay Justin," she told him.

"Good, let's get out of here," Justin told her, he dashed out of the warehouse with Leena close behind, "hey Liger, good to see ya! Glad you and Leena came to rescue me."

Liger: I'm glad to see you too. It's good to see that you're unharmed.

"Yeah, now let's go home pal, it's been a tough day," Justin told him.

The Liger crouched down, and the canopy opened. Leena climbed into the back seat, while Justin got into the front seat. The harness straps buckled, securing them in, and the Liger stood back up, roaring loudly.

"So that's where you guys ran off to."

The Liger turned around quickly, and came face to face with the Liger Zero and Shadow Fox.

"You okay Leena? Doc though something was wrong when you weren't replying to the comm, and when he checked you were gone. Then when we noticed that the Shield Liger was gone, we thought that you would show up here. And we were right," Bit told them.

"Well, you guys are late, Nightshade is gone, and Leena's already rescued me. Now let's go home, and just forget all about this day," Justin told them.

"Wait a minute, that's it? No tracking down this piece of crap? No turning him in for what he did," Bit asked.

"He's probably long gone by now, besides, it isn't worth it, we wouldn't get any results," Justin told them.

"Could we please just drop this subject and get back to the hover cargo? I'm starving," Leena complained.

"Okay Leena, okay, let's move out," Justin ordered.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


"So Justin, who was that character anyway," Leena asked.

"His name is Nightshade, he's Bloodlust's big brother, and he used you to get at me because of what I did to her," Justin explained.

"You mean that crazy psycho is actually the brother of Bloodlust? That crazy psycho who tried to kill us a few days ago in our last battle," Leena asked, practically yelling.

"Yeah, it's more than a coincidence that they look so much alike. I'm gonna see what I can find out about him in the morning," Justin told her.

At the three Zoids walked back to the hover cargo, a whistling sound could be heard, followed by explosions going off all around them.

"What the hell," Justin screamed as he quickly regained his bearings and began to scan to surrounding area.

"Hello, Leena, Bit, Brad, and of course, Justin."

Everybody turned around, and saw a blood red Saber Tiger standing behind them. Everything on the body, except for the teeth, eyes, and paws were blood red, and a silver upgrade unit was mounted on its back, and a red and black Guylos insignia was on its right cheek.

"HOLY! A Great Saber," Justin screamed.

"So what's the big deal about a Great Saber," Bit asked.

"Have you ever fought a Great Saber before? They're flying cats! They can be up to five times more powerful than a Saber Tiger," Justin told him.

"True Justin, very true. Bit this is no ordinary Great Saber, this is MY Great Saber! Five times more powerful than any other Great Saber, twenty five times more powerful than a Saber Tiger," bloodlust stated.

"Big deal, that's not gonna stop me," Bit stated.

"Oh no you don't Bit! You and Brad get out of here, take Leena with you, this is my fight," Justin told them.

"No way Justin, we're not leaving you behind," Brad told him.

"Too bad, you should've taken his advice," Nightshade stated and opened fire with his mortar cannon.

The eight shots flew up, and came crashing down, impacting the Shadow Fox and taking it out.

"That was too simple, I hope the legendary Liger Zero, the Ultimate X, is a lot tougher," Nightshade stated.

"You're about to find out just how tough we are. Allright Liger, strike laser claw," Bit ordered.

The Liger roared and charged forward, its front claws glowing brightly. The Liger Zero leapt into the air, coming down quickly as it pulled its right claw back, and brought it forward...making contact with an energy shield, and throwing it back.

"That thing really has a lot of armaments that aren't standard on a Great Saber," Bit commented.

"My turn Bit, sit this one out," Justin told them as the Shield Liger stepped forward, roaring loudly.

The Great Saber roared just as loud as the Shield Liger, only longer, trying to intimidate them.

"Let's see how you like this," Justin stated.

A green cross hair appeared on the screen, it moved around, before locking onto the Great Saber. The super cannons charged, drawing in energy particles just like the hybrid cannons, and fired, causing a good amount of recoil to hit the Liger.

The shots soared at the Great Saber, but only made contact with the energy shield, not causing any damage at all.

"That thing is strong. Looks like we'll have to try something else. Okay Nightshade, prepare to feel the power of MY strike laser claw," Justin stated as the Liger began to power up its attack.

"Bit tried the same thing but he couldn't even scratch that thing," Leena told him.

"The Liger Zero's strike laser claw can't be enhanced by nuclear power, mine can," Justin told her.

The Liger roared and charged forward, leaping high into the air, and brining its left claw forward, impacting the energy shield. Sparks and energy flew everywhere as the Liger seemed to remain suspended in midair, continually pressing its claws against the shield.

This continued for several seconds, before an explosion between the shield and claw occurred, throwing the Liger back.

"You're all pathetic, at first I was going to destroy all of you for my sister's downfall, but I've changed my mind, you're not worth my time," Nightshade told them.

"We'll see about that," Justin stated, he charged his super cannons again and fired.

The Great Saber was unable to deploy its shield in the short amount of time before it was hit hard.

"How do ya like them apples," Justin asked.

"That was it? I was expecting more."

The Great Saber simply stepped out of the smoke, looking completely unharmed.

"I don't believe it, that thing stood up to THAT," Bit asked in surprise.

"And much, much more," Nightshade stated.

The Great Saber activated its energy shield once again and charged forward, while the Shield Liger did the same. The two Zoids met head on, the shields smashing into each other hard.

The Shield Liger was thrown back hard from the force of the impact, landing on its side and sliding along the ground.

"You're not worth my time, you're pathetic! I'll deal with you some other time," Nightshade told them.

The Great Saber roared and leapt high, flying away from the battle site.

"That dude was unbelievable," Bit stated.

"And somehow, I don't think that we've seen the last of him, or Bloodlust," Justin told them.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++


Justin: Liger's been acting very strange lately, he's become much fiercer in battle, and he acts aggressive even with me, I wonder what could be wrong with him. Now who's this girl? What? She's Harry Champ's sister? I can already tell this isn't good. WHAT!? She wants to buy Liger Zero AND my Shield Liger!? Oh this isn't going to be good. Next time on Zoids: New Century Zero, "Mary Champ returns/Liger's mystery solved! Ready, fight!"