van and mercenary chapter 20, a zoid fanfic, in which the century's Van meets Bit Cloud and others

Very clever fanfic. It makes it so that characters from two eras which are hundreds of years apart end up meeting. The main Zoid in here, called The War Wolf, is very believable. Tim Seltzer, seltzer@seltzerbooks.com

Sakura's Disclaimer: This goes for all chapters,so I don't have to write this dislaimer again...I don't own Zoids and don't get paid for writing this.Thank you.

Sakura,Sombra,Bit and I had been on our way to the next of the three Neo Imperial bases when I started becoming ill,and badly so.I was quickly taken to the hospital...where Ryota awaited me.

Soon afterward I found myself in a strange world,a world comprised of mine and Ryota's dreams combined.There,Ryota had intended to go through my mind until he found the source of my Ancient Zoidian powers.

Fortunately though,Sakura came to my rescue as usual,managing herself into this dreamworld.But it was really Sakura's Mother who saved us,as she defeated Ryota once and for all.I only wish she could have stayed for Sakura...

Chapter 20

"Stuck"

Sakura yelled in rage as she lashed out at several Neo Imperial Rev Raptors.I just did what I did best in such a situation and held on for dear life as I sat in the back seat of the War Wolf...

I closed my eyes,hoping for it all to be over soon as I heard Sakura laugh in the front seat.

She yelled at them.I sighed and just continued hanging on.If I had the Shield Liger right now,I'd be out there fighting,but nooooooo,I have to be stuck in the War Wolf with Sakura of all people piloting!I mean,no offense to Sakura,she's a great pilot.But she just takes too many risks...and makes too many spin-type moves and stuff...it kinda makes me sick at times.

A few Rev Raptors came at us from in front and Sakura made a quick,reverse leap that made me feel like my stomach was coming into my throat.She landed the War Wolf on a high stone and smirked.

With that,two panels lifted on either side of the War Wolf to reveal the Wild Weasel Units,which Sakura immediately deployed and fired,wiping out the frontal-attacking Rev Raptors with ease.

"Is this the best they've got?I almost wish Raven would show up to actually put up a fight."

It was then that the War Wolf suddenly took a hard hit to the side,a flash of red metal moving by at immense speed.

She looked to the side,seeing the Geno Breaker standing there.Sakura smirked as Raven did the same,looking to her on the comlink.

He told her slyly as he made another rush,Sakura barely evading and pulling the Wild Weasel Units back in,glaring at Raven.

She chuckled,going in at him from behind as the War Wolf's claws glew bright with golden Laser Energy.

She yelled,bringing the War Wolf's glowing hot paw down hard and fast,connecting with the Geno Breaker's back before Raven could react.He let out a yell of surprise and anger in his cockpit and said to Sakura,

With that,he writhed the Geno Breaker hard to the side,swinging the War Wolf off and into the sand.I felt like I was gonna throw up for sure now,but Sakura managed her Zoid back to it's feet and glared,going in at Raven again.

She yelled,faking the left and bum rushing Raven from the right,knocking the Geno Breaker back several feet.The red Zoid moved back forward quickly though,making a slash at the War Wolf's cockpit.Sakura yelped and pulled back just in time to evade.

"Sakura,we've got the base destroyed!Let's move outta here before they send reinforcements!"

Bit started to argue,as he too had made a communication link to the War Wolf.Sakura was determined though.

With that,she quickly terminated both links and made a jump back from the Geno Breaker just in time to evade another hit.As you can probably guess,I wanted to agree with Sombra and Bit,but it was pretty hard as I was rather disoriented.

Sakura leapt forward again,digging the War Wolf's claws in and clinging to the Geno Breaker tight.It writhed and struggled,but Skura was'nt letting go,digging her Zoid's claws in even deeper.

She yelled,Raven then smirking as Sakura had made one mistake...she had latched onto the Geno Breaker's front,where Raven could just point the Charged Particle Cannon down and fire,which he immediately started to charge up to do once he thought about it.

Sakura muttered with a sweatdrop and let go quickly,leaping away and getting clear of Raven's fire just in time.But she had forgotten about the Geno Breaker's tail,Raven having anticipated Sakura's move and bringing that tail around full force,knocking the War Wolf down so hard it left a trench in the sand where it slid for a good 100 feet.

Sakura groaned and opened her aqua eyes after the hit,blowing a strand of blonde hair out of them.

"Oh yeah,I'm fine after getting tossed halfway across the planet in a Zoid...sure,I'm peachy..."

Sakura huffed slightly,Raven coming in at us again.Sakura yelped and worked at her controls,seeing the War wolf was system frozen.

"No,come on buddy,don't black out now!War Wolf,come on!We've been through too much pal,we can't end it here!Come on,War Wolf!"

I muttered,swallowing hard.I then shook my head,knowing I had to get myself together as I took a deep breath,closing my eyes in concentration.The crystal around my neck starting to glow.

I tried to block the verbal argument out of my mind,continuing to concentrate.If I did it before,I could do it again.

The Geno Breaker pilot just laughed,not paying any mind to the War Wolf pilot's remark as he raised the Zoid's massive foot,about to bring it down.I started to sweat with concentration.

I finally yelled,the crystal's glow suddenly becoming blinding as the War Wolf did the sme,the light's force knocking Raven back.He growled and shielded his eyes.

He seethed through clenched teeth as I felt a warm,soft feeling overtake me and I soon found myself inside the War Wolf's Zoid Core,the glow outside the War Wolf fading to reveal the now standing Celeste Wolf,it's black,blue and white armor shining in the sun as prismatic,raingbow light reflected off the crystalline claws,weapons and fangs.

Needless to say,the Celeste Wolf and I both agreed to that,the Geno Breaker making a run at us.The Celeste Wolf then suddenly disappeared,Raven letting out a surprised yelp just before his Zoid took a hit from behind,falling forward into the sand.He thought though and quickly kicked both his Zoid's feet back,knoacking the Celeste Wolf down,but not out.

Sakura brought the Zoid up again,glaring at Raven and preparing to make an attack,just before the Geno Breaker went into a sudden leap,firing off it's charged particle cannon from above.The Celeste Wolf reacted quickly though,leaping back,to the side,to and fro to evade the fire.

Sakura growled,her anger rising as well as my will to defeat Raven.The Celeste Wolf then gave a sudden howl,extending the crystalline blades all the way forward and making a run,Sakura blinking her aqua eyes in surprise as she had'nt commanded her Zoid to do this.

She asked in alarm,then receiving my reply over the speakers from the Zoid Core,

Sakura blinked and sort of nodded,Raven's Geno Breaker landing now.As you can imagine,he did'nt like the sight too much as he watches the Celeste Wolf close in on him,crystalline blades glowing with a primatic,rainbow light.Sakura watched a few messages of this new condition appear on her status screen,smirking as the Celeste Wolf close in at unavoidable speed.

Raven tried to evade the attack,turning to the left and making a jump,but the Celeste Wolf caught him on the flyby,hitting him hard and sending armor pieces flying.

Raven grunted as his Zoid hit the sand again,system frozen now as the Celeste Wolf turned,making another charge.The Geno Breaker pilot became frightened for once in his life,covering his head in a futile attempt to protect himself.The Celeste Wolf was almost on him when suddenly...the Geno Breaker disappeared!

That's when there we suddenly heard deep but female laughter over the comlink,a familiar woman clad in black appearing on the holoscreen in the cockpit.

"So,you're trying to kill me off and defeat the Neo Empire all by yourselves,are you?A noble thing to do,I have to admit,but...can you do it?"

Malice started laughing again,my stomach turning some at the sickening sound as Sakura seethed,

"YOU won?!HA!!That's a good one!Van and the Celeste Wolf were so totally about to turn Raven and the Geno Breaker into shrapnel!!!"

"Hm,then you're not as smart as I thought,mercenary.Raven was just a decoy and defense.I got what I wanted."

"What?What're you going on about?!Where are you,Malice!Come out and face me,coward!"

"It will take more than your brute force to defeat me...but if you wish to try,you know where I am.Come,I dare you.I will show you my true power."

And with that,Malice terminated the link,Sakura growling in frustration,then letting out a huff and leaning back.

"Sakura,no offense,but you seriously need to do something about that profanity habit..."

"You're right,I'll work on that...for now,let's get outta here and meet back up with Sombra and Bit."

I nodded from inside the Zoid Core,leaning back and relaxing as Sakura made her way to meet up with the others.

"So,she teleported Raven out,told you she got what she wanted,and...that was it?"

Bit asked some time later as he,Sakura and Sombra stood in the Zoid hangars now,next to the Celeste Wolf,Liger Zero and Shadow Fox.

Bit and Sombra agreed to thi without hesitation,Sakura looking up to the Celeste Wolf and petting it.

But nothing happened,Sakura furrowing her brow as she suddenly got a bad feeling.

The three standing next to the Zoid all sweatdropped at my words,Sakura becoming genuinely worried now.

"Well then,maybe we should just wait a while and try to figure something out,try to let it run it's course,I guess..."

"let it run it's course?!But what if I end up stuck in here forever?!I'll be a Zoid for the rest of my life!!"

"Van,calm down!I'm sure it's not like that!We need to think straight about this!"

But the reply Sakura received from her Zoid was little more than a chuckle as it said to her in it's language of growls and wolf-sounds,

"All right,but...what's going on exactly?What is it exactly that's got Van stuck in the Zoid Core?"

"Okay,pal.I trust you.You never let me down before,so I've got no reason to believe you'll do it to me now."

The Celeste Wolf seemed to give a chuckle,but I tried to relax in amongst this anyway,realizing as Sakura had that the Celeste Wolf had'nt let us down before,and just because it was the Celeste Wolf rather than the War Wolf now did'nt mean it was gonna let us down now.Or at least,that's what I hoped.

Sombra and Bit looked to each other,neither of them having understood a word the Zoid had said,while Sakura and I had understood it as though it were plain English.The two started talking on the matter,trying to figure out exactly what was going on as Sakura opened a panel in the side of the Celeste Wolf,climbing in and moving to the Zoid Core,sitting down next to it.She gently placed her hand on the Zoid's 'heart' and said,

I could just barely make out where her hand touched the glowing,glass-like matter and pressed my own hand where hers was.

"No,Saku.Don't worry about me,you've had a tough time lately.You go get some rest.If the Celeste Wolf says this will be okay,then it'll be okay."

"I know,but...I just don't wanna leave you in a situation like this.I'll rest better if I'm here with you,so I know what's going on."

She told me,smiling slightly all though I could'nt see it.I smiled a little myself in understanding and nodded.

She said,climbing out and going to get her sleeping bag from the cockpit.She looked to Sombra and Bit along the way.

"Nah,I'll be okay.I've slept in much worse places,trust me.And besides,as long as I stay in the Celeste Wolf close to the Zoid Core,I should be pretty warm and there's a nice flat place where I can put my sleeping bag down."

"Well,I'm not leaving you here in this hangar all night anyway.I'll sleep close by in the Shadow Fox's cockpit."

"Yeah,Sis.I'm not leaving you here either.I'll snooze in the Liger so I can stick close."

Sakura smiled at both of them,having never thought she'd have friends like this that would stick so closely by her as she felt tears sting her aqua eyes,but did'nt show them.

Bit and Sombra nodded,Smiling to her as she started back to the Celeste Wolf,starting to climb into the opening that led to the Zoid Core.

She said,then climbing in and rolling out her sleeping bag,laying in it and snuggling under the covers.

She asked.I gave a slight nod,then forgetting she could'nt see it and mentally scolding myself again.

"Yeah,I'm okay,Sakura.It's actually pretty comfortable in here to tell the truth..."

I told her,smiling to myself as it was rather comfortable;really nice and warm,and this floating feeling made it all too much.Maybe this would'nt be so bad.The only problem I could thnk of was...I was starting to get kinda hungry.

She told me,then yawning and closing her eyes,falling asleep.I could'nt argue,stretching just slightly and shifting to get a little more comfortable before I too fell asleep...

I later found myself for one reason or another standing in the halls of a building,what looked like a Zoid Team's base I believed.I blinked in thought and took in my surroundings,my chocolate eyes scanning the area a little as I thought to myself,

"Where am I exactly?And what am I doing here?Am I...dreaming again?Or is this...another vision?"

It was at that moment I suddenly saw someone walk past me in the hallway.I at first could have sworn the person walking past me...WAS me!I blinked several times anime style and moved toward this person to get a better look.

I soon realized he was'nt me...but strangely enough,he was a she!A young girl probably around 15 years old with brunette hair cut exactly like mine.Well,amost exactly.Where I have one ponytail cut into my hair,she had two ponytails.She wore a camouflage jacket with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows,a grey shirt,jeans and a pair of combat boots,as well as a pair of dog tags around her neck.

She stopped and looked up at me,a pair of aqua eyes just like Sakura's meeting my own,chocolate eyes.

I said without really thinking.This girl blinked in confusion,raising an eyebrow and saying,

She said,this making me the confused one.I just sort of looked at 'Vanna' in thought,wondering what all this was about.

Then,suddenly,the surroundings changed,everything disappearing to complete and total darkness,making me gasp in surprise just before everything formed up again,this time into just plain desert and sky.

I told myself,then jumping as I suddenly heard the crunch and creaking of metal clashing together.I turned around quickly,seeing two Zoids battling.One of them appeared to be some sort of silver dragon-type I had never seen before,while the other Zoid was a...well,it was a pink Blade Liger.And no,I'm not stretching it,it was PINK.

I stood back and watched as the two Zoids did battle,the Blade Liger taking a hard hit from the Dragon's tail and hitting the ground hard,the opponent advancing quickly.I was'nt sure why,but even though I did'nt know who the pilot of the pink Blade Liger was,I felt my heart start to race as fear stabbed into it like a sword.

I yelled,reaching out as though it might help,though I knew it would'nt.It was just reaction.

But then,out of seemingly nowhere,a black Command Wolf appeared.It leapt onto the Dragon Zoid's back and clamped onto the back of it's neck.

I called out,also by natural reaction.He apparently did'nt notice me though,continuing to wrestle with the Dragon Zoid as the Blade Liger slowly but surely stood,giving a mighty roar.It began to glow with a familiar,bright light.The same bright light that had enveloped the War Wolf when I transformed it into the Celeste Wolf!

I whispered to myself,the light brightening to the point of blinding me.I closed my eyes tight and shook my head,all noise around me dimming down from the battle sounds I was hearing before to the gentle hum of a Zoid Core.I opened my eyes again very slowly,realizing I was indeed back in the Celeste Wolf's Zoid Core.

I suddenly heard someone say from outside the Zoid Core,making me jump slightly with surprise.I then sighed.

She asked in concern.I looked to where her hand laid on the surface and replied,

I nodded a little out of habit,then shakin my head and scolding myself again.I REALLY had to stop nodding when no one could see it.

I said monotonely,leaning back a little.I looked around some and made sure I had enough room,then releasing my wings and wrapping myself in them,feeling I needed something soft right now,something touching me in this gravity-free environment other than my clothes.I felt ready to fall asleep again,but I was pondering on whether to do so or not.I figured I would'nt feel so hungry if I let myself fall asleep,but then again I might have another strange dream.

I muttered to myself,closing my eyes and sighing in thought,though not falling asleep.My stomach was growling too loudly to let me sleep anyway...

I said with a slight smile,yawning slightly and snuggling into my wings.They were so soft...

Then,that's when I suddenly felt an odd tingling all over my body.I blinked,it feeling kinda like when your foot falls asleep,but all over my body.It soon became painful though and I let out a groan,Sakura becoming worried and trying to see in as the light from the Core started to pulsate with the rhythm of a heartbeat,growing faster as my own heartbeat did.

She asked in worry and concern,but I was in too much pain to answer now,letting out a yell.

Sakura called,but still received no answer except for my pained sounds.She placed both her hands on the Zoid Core,as though trying to reach inside.

She told me,getting a sudden surprise as her hands started sinking into the Core,past the outer-surrounding.She yelped in surprise,but did'nt stop herself,letting her arms flow into it.

She prayed,as I had stopped making any sounds at all,apparently either dead or unconcious.

She yelled,continuing to push inward.She had her arms in up to her shoulders when she finally felt her hands brush against something soft and warm...feathers!She reached in a little further,finally finding my arm and gripping it tight,starting to pull me out.

She said as she pulled firmly,my body soon sliding out of the Core easily and onto the metal floor of the Celeste Wolf's Core Pit.Sakura sighed with relief when she saw me breathing and knelt down,sitting on her knees and pulling me to let my head rest in her lap.

She whispered soothingly,my heavy breathing calming a little as I laid there unconcious,Sakura gently stroking back my hair.

"Hey,was'nt that stripe on the left side of his face?And...was'nt it red before?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow,looking down at me and noticing it had changed,the stripe being on the right of my face now and a light blue instead of red.My clothes had also changed as well:Black clothes with the same blue-and-white galactic designs of the Celeste Wolf.My wings had changed some as well,being basically black with some white,blue and crystal-clear feathers.

"Yeah...he changed like this before,right?But...did'nt he like,go back to normal afterward?"

"Yeah,he did...but he's not changing back now,so...I think the reason he and the Celeste Wolf were combined for so long was to make this change permanent...or at least,I guess..."

It was at that moment I grunted softly,blinking a time or two slowly and looking up at Sakura.

I smiled as well,wishing I had the strength to hug her back as she embraced me warmly,being careful of my wings.She snuggled me close as Bit and Sombra looked to each other,both knowing what the other was thinking and nodding,quietly leaving without Sakura and I noticing.

"Well,you sounded like you were in pain and...I'm not sure how,but...I reached into the Zoid Core and pulled you out."

I said,then blushing when I realized what I had said.Sakura looked to me and just smiled.

I blinked in surprise,my blush then fading as she hugged me close again.I felt warm and comfortable again now.Even more comfortable than I had felt inside the Zoid Core.Sakura was so nice and war,and soft...

I yawned slightly and closed my eyes,whispering to her that I loved her again before drifting into sleep once more...

Van and the Mercenary by Sakura

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