Fan Fiction / Zoids Fan Fiction ❯ The Boundaries of Parents ❯ Time to Plan ( Chapter 4 )

Nights were absolutely beautiful on Zi. The two moons rose triumphantly and replaced the blazing sun. Angel was deep in thought, staring at her surroundings in the moon's light. Jaq walked up and stood beside her.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Making sure my plan is full proof."

"Do you always think about work?"

She looked over at her associate, "What do you think about at night?"

Jaq didn't want to reply. Angel knew the answer anyway. "Jacquelyn, do you ever regret running away?"

She seemed amused at the question. "I wouldn't call it running away. I'd call it, searching for an adventure. I couldn't exactly find that in a military family, now could I?"

"I wouldn't know."

"Besides, running away means someone is chasing after you. I haven't had that problem." She smiled, but the rest of her face didn't express the emotion.

"Is this a party I'm unaware of?" Nick interrupted the girls.

"Well, it was." Jaq looked at him with a grin.

"If I'm not wanted, I guess me and the Zaber Fang will just get going."

"Hey, let's not be so hasty. You know everybody loves the Zaber Fang." Angel was never without a comeback.

Nick looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Very funny. I want to hear this brilliant plan of yours. I'd hate to risk destroying the precious Zaber Fang that everybody loves so much."

"I thought you wanted to leave the Zoids out of it?" Jaq looked confused.

"I'd like to make sure we don't get into a battle with the Guardian Force, but the Zoids do play a small role in this plan."

"You mean you were going to reveal your dazzling strategy to everyone else but me?" Angel couldn't tell if Spence was kidding or serious. He had always been a hard person to read.

She shook her head at him just in case he was serious. "Honest, these two were just trying to pry the information out of me, but I didn't give in."

"Tell you what, you tell us your plan, and I'll tell what I heard in the village today."

Spence got everyone's attention quickly with that statement. Angel looked alarmed and led everybody in the building. "Let's talk, then."

The lounge area seemed to be the most heavily used. There were rooms upstairs, but looking at the organization and neatness, it was apparent that the group didn't make it up there too often. Mercenaries move from village to village in search of more battles and money. Since the Guardian Force had been incepted, the Ice Daggers had to watch their backs and be smart to stay in business.

Angel claimed the couch first. "I'm listening."

Spence sat in the chair in front of her, while Nick took a place beside him. Jaq could be heard rummaging around in the kitchen.

"I was taking a walk in the village, when the guy that hired us informed me of something very interesting. After we took out those bandits, someone from the GF came and arrested them. He also decided to strike up a conversation about the group that was responsible for taking out the crooks."

Nick was about to say something when Angel signaled to him to calm down. "What did the guy say? Who was he talking to?"

"He was talking to the Lightning Saix pilot. The villager didn't say much, except he had heard what we did for the previous town and was satisfied with the results. I guess Irvine didn't press the issue too much."

"Do you think this means anything?" Jaq came back from the kitchen with a cup of coffee.

Angel's mind was thinking about all the different possibilities. The rest of the team looked at her intently.

"Would you stop staring? It's giving me a complex."

Jaq looked at Nick, who looked at Spence. Spence finally spoke up, "They might suspect something, but they can't prove anything. It means we have to get the Liger and get out of here, before they can prove something."

"So, how are we going to get the Liger? If they know it's us, then we'll be hunted down. Then, we could never use the thing we worked so hard to steal!" Nick didn't think highly of being in prison the rest of his life.

"The key to any successful mission is the element of surprise." Angel was ready to reveal her plan.

"But we can't have surprise if they're getting suspicious now." Jaq drank down her coffee like water.

"We have to keep them preoccupied with something else." She got up and went upstairs to her room. Within a minute, she was back down with a picture in her hand.

"I took this when Spence and I were on recon. I haven't shown any of you this picture yet, but you'll see that he is the key part of our plan."

Angel let the picture fall down to the table. Each member of the team looked at the photo, then at Angel. Each one had a look of disbelief on their faces.

"If the Guardian Force is snooping around, then we'll have to move up the time table."

"What does he have to do with this?" Jaq pointed to the picture.

"Everything. Allow me to explain." Angel motioned for the rest to sit down.

"First, we have to get the Liger away from the all security measures. If Van and the rest of his soldiers feel threatened, they'll move the Liger. We can take the Zoid during transportation."

"I see. That's where he comes in; he'll be the reason they feel threatened." Nick liked what he heard so far.

"Who'll take care of him?" Spence was following the plan, too.

"Kidnapping has never been my style, but this new Zoid will be worth the trouble." She smiled down at the picture of the blonde-headed, green-eyed baby boy.

"Who'll pilot the Liger?" That was the only thing on Jaq's mind.

"We need fast Zoids, and we'll only need three. Spence will go with one of us, and he can pilot the Liger out. We should be able to strike halfway between transportation. Their best bet will be the Red River Base."

"Wait, they'll still know it's us by the Zoids."

Angel shook her head at Nick. "Not with the new ones."

"What new ones?" Jaq nearly dropped her coffee cup.

"It's late for a delivery, but with the last real paycheck we got, it should be no problem. The guy said he'd be here around midnight to drop off the new Zoids, and then he'll pick up the old ones."

"You did use the same guy we use all the time, right?" Spence didn't want anything going wrong now.

"Of course. I hope you like the new Zoids." She had a sly grin on her face as she looked at the rest of her team. "I'll keep my end of the plan by striking tomorrow night. I've noticed their organoid has been staying put at the base, so sneaking into the house shouldn't be a problem. I'll take something with me to pacify the kid. I should be in and out within five minutes. We should prepare the new Zoids tonight to make sure everything runs smoothly for when we attack."

"Speaking of the new weapons, I hear somebody now." Spence got up and looked out the window. A Gustav was carrying three Zoids behind it. He spotted one Command Wolf, one Shield Liger, and one Storm Sworder.

"I don't believe it. How did he get his hands on these kind of Zoids?" Spence was still staring out of the window while the rest of the group went outside.

Jaq opened the back cargo door to the hangar. All four lance mates jumped into their Zoids to move them outside. After Angel moved her Helcat, she talked to the transporter, asking him if all the modifications had been met.

"Have I ever let you down before?" He watched the new Zoids move off and the old ones being loaded.

"If we weren't paying you so much, I'd say we owe you."

"Just doing my job, ma'am."

The Zoids took everyone's breath away. Nick immediately took to the Command Wolf. He was pleasantly surprised by the upgraded engine. Jaq looked over the Shield Liger thoroughly. She tried out the shield and noticed the energy was running higher than normal.

"I must say, when you order Zoids, you know exactly what you're doing!" Jaq looked over at Angel and the Storm Sworder. "You two look like a match made in heaven."

Angel beamed with pride at her new Zoid. "All three Zoids are white to match the new Liger. It will look less conspicuous that way. It'll also help once we paint the Ice Dagger symbol on them. We'll worry about that after we have the Liger Zero."

Spence was making inspections on everyone's new Zoid. "What makes you think I can pilot the new Liger?"

The brunette shrugged, "You're first Zoid was a Shield Liger, before you created the Ice Daggers. When a pilot becomes so attached to a Zoid, that relationship never really goes away."

He was shocked that she remembered the story he told her when they first joined forces. "There's a difference between my Shield Liger and this new one the Guardian Force has created."

"True, but the spirit of the Liger is still there. You'd be able to recognize that better than any one of us."

Piloting Zoids is a difficult task, but if you find a way to connect to the Zoid and stick with it during the rough times, then it makes for an amazing partner.

"I'd like to be prepared for anything, Angel. Tell me, what if kidnapping Van's son doesn't work? What if it just makes him and his friends come after us? I'd rather be the hunter, not the prey." Nick was making a convincing point.

"Jaq is our sabotage expert. You and her can make a good reason for the GF to move that Liger. That will be our contingency plan. Van is a real family man, if his family is threatened, he'll have all the reason in the world to move them. Wherever they go, Thomas and Irvine go, followed by the Liger. We'll get it, one way or another." Angel's eyes seemed to trial off and wander some place else entirely. This would be the most difficult mission she took, and the most satisfying.