Fan Fiction / Zoids Fan Fiction ❯ The Boundaries of Parents ❯ Hidden Enemies ( Chapter 7 )

Irvine left the base after the new security measures had been implemented. Thomas took the Dibison out on patrol. Zeke finally accompanied Van back to his quarters. The Liger was left under heavy guard at the base.

"Could Fiona's nightmare come true? How would we not know if a massive Zoids attack was coming?" Irvine was replaying what Van had told him as he walked through the local town. Markets had closed down a long time ago, and all that was left open was the bar.

Nobody really noticed him as he walked up to the bartender. He got a few stares from the women, but the guys didn't pay any attention. The bartender gave him his drink as Irvine stared at the different bottles in front of him. A young brunette bumped into him bringing him out of his thoughts.

"Sorry `bout that." She ran off as soon as she said it.

"Hey, it's OK, wait a sec!" He called out to her, and stopped when he recognized her.

"Angel." A voice said the exact name he was thinking.

"How do you know her?" Irvine turned to look at the bartender.

"I don't. But I know she's part of the group that saved this village."

"So I've heard. How did you come across them?"

The bartender served another customer before answering Irvine. "Actually, the two guys of the group were in here one night when some people were talking about the raids. They offered their services, and were hired by the council."

"What was Angel doing in here now?"

"Drinking." The bartender served more rounds, and didn't say anything else.

Over to his left, Irvine could hear an interesting conversation.

"How much is the reward?"
He didn't hear a response.

"What?" It was a hushed yell; obviously the two didn't want to draw too much attention to themselves.

"Keep your voice down, man. Nobody even has to pay me for this, I'd gladly do it for free."

"Yeah, but with the Guardian Force, we need money."

"What's going on around here?" Irvine began to worry, but remained calm as he downed another drink.

Another conversation came from the table behind him. Strangely, it was about the same topic. Some reward had been posted, but he didn't know who issued it or whom the reward was for.

He might look suspicious leaving the bar so soon after he got there, so he stuck around to see what else he could hear.

***

Thomas' attention was with the Ice Daggers. He had investigated them before, but the case was dropped when nothing could be proven.

The Dibison tried to stay hidden as it neared the mercenaries' headquarters. Beak whistled that it couldn't pick up anything on the radar. "I heard you, just keep it down!"

Thomas was worried about Fiona, but knew Van could take care of her. Beak whistled again and Thomas zoomed in on a figure walking in the dark. "Run the person through the database, Beak."

Different images came up beside the still shot of the person. Finally, Beak found a match and pulled up her profile.

"Jacquelyn. Wonder what she's up to?" Beak sounded an "I don't know" when Thomas shouted again, "It was a rhetorical question!"

Irvine's latest background check had shown that four Zoids had been registered to the lance. Thomas maneuvered the Dibison to get a side view of the building. He ordered Beak to use infrared to scan the building. Only three Zoids were showing up on screen. Thomas couldn't make out the blurry red images, but Beak did. It showed three completely different Zoids than what was originally registered to the Ice Daggers.

"What? Can that be right?" He'd actually have to see the Zoids registration numbers to know if they were legally obtained. Thomas wanted to tell Van what he saw, but he couldn't risk worrying Fiona anymore. He decided to retire to his quarters until he could think of what to do.

***

Van was talking to Zeke while they were walking back home. "I don't know what to do, buddy. Fiona's dream is bothering more than you can imagine. The Liger Zero could be the greatest Zoid that anyone on Zi has ever seen, so it makes sense that it's potential target. Fiona warned me not to let anybody take the Zoid, but what if I can't stop it?"

Zeke looked at Van and didn't even growl. It seemed as if he was thinking of what to do, also.

The captain chuckled softly, which made Zeke wonder what was funny. "I can't believe I'm laughing at a time like this, but I was just thinking about something. What if nothing happens at all? What if I caused the base to go under heavier security for nothing?" But Van's instincts were telling him different, "I doubt it. I sincerely doubt that we'll be able to run the tests without a problem."

The soldier that Van left to guard his family was still patrolling there faithfully. He looked exhausted, and was grateful when Van relieved him of his duties.

"Well, Zeke, we've been through a lot together. What are a few more battles going to do?" Zeke cooed gently and walked in behind Van.

"Zeke! I'm so glad to see you finally come home!" Fiona had dark circles under her eyes and hadn't changed clothes from the night before.

"I'm glad to see you, too, honey." Van looked at his wife petting Zeke.

"Oh, Van!" She hugged him tight and didn't let go for a long time. "I missed you, so much."

Van held her tight, and told her that he had guards patrolling outside. He wouldn't have left them alone at a time like this.

"I know. The soldier came in here every so often, asking if everything was okay. You must of scared him, Van."

He rubbed the back of his head with his hand, "Sometimes you have to make sure they know when you're ordering them around."

He looked down at the sofa and saw his son fast asleep. Zeke took his regular position right in front of him, watching the little boy as he slept.

"How's the Liger?"

"It's still there. Schubaltz and Herman decided to postpone the test while extra security measures were initiated. Thomas took up patrol around the base and I don't know where Irvine went."

Fiona sat down on the couch next to their son. Zeke curled up into ball on the floor. "They don't think I'm crazy?"

"Not at all," he held her hand, "they think they should take the advice of one of the senior members of the Guardian Force."

She smiled at him and he smiled back. He kissed her tenderly on the lips. She put her hand on his face and pulled away. "What are we going to do?"

"I told you, the Liger is under heavy guard. No one can get to it. I won't let them."

"Then why do I get the feeling it's still going to be taken?"

Van hated feeling like he couldn't do anything to protect his wife. "How about you get some rest? You've done all you can, and the rest of us have done all we can. Please, don't worry anymore."

"I wish it were they easy. I'm scared to even sleep, but I can't let Van know that. I don't want him to worry about me anymore."

"We both need the sleep. I'll put him to bed, and then I'll go to bed."

"No, I haven't been home when it's time for him to go to bed, so I'll do it tonight."

She gave him a weak smile and headed to their bedroom. Van picked up his son and Zeke followed him. He tucked his son into bed, and watched him for a moment. He was hoping that everything would be all right, for his sake.

"I know you'd do anything to protect him, just like I would. Zeke, if anything should happen…" Zeke shook his head, like he didn't want to hear what Van was about to say. Van understood that it wasn't an easy topic to talk about. He gave him a pat on the head and left him to be with his wife.