Storm Chronicles, Chapter 1: Return to Familiarity

The sound of sweat dripping and hitting the floor was audible in the Highguard gym, Takeshi’s arms shook with effort as he lowered himself slowly on the chin up bar, as his arms reached full extension he heaved up again to bring his head above the bar in slow, steady motions. His face was contorted in concentration as sweat beaded on his brow and the back of his neck before dropping to the floor. The pilot could admit to himself to, that he was able to smell the stink that came from him, his work out had lasted a little longer than initially planned. This wasn’t really a problem of course, as he found the activity centring and allowed him to think over the events of his most recent battle against the Freelancer he now knew as Drifter and the Rayse Wolf Zoid. It wasn’t the first time he’d taken on the wolf and he doubted it’d be the last, as team Captain he had to lead by example and that meant battling the toughest opponents, even losing was acceptable so long as he gave his best in the fight. With a loud exhale Takeshi let go of the bar and dropped down onto his feet, picking up his towel and wiping the sweat from his face.

He left the gym at a leisurely stroll, taking in the familiar walls and hallways with a sigh of contentment, it just felt so good to finally be home. He paused briefly as he passed a framed picture on the wall, it was an old team photo from a beach party Miyo had orchestrated many years prior. The old pilot smiled as he ran a hand across the glass face of the picture. They were all there, grins spread across their faces and ready to take on the world, Mei was curled in the crook of a very young looking Takeshi’s arm, with Miyo and Blaze either side. Kellian and Clarence, Edward and Ronin, they were all there, before the horrors of the Rift War had destroyed them, before the ZBC had ripped their family apart. As the thought crossed Takeshi’s mind a wave of sadness fell over him like a dark cloud. With one last glance he continued on his way, stopping in his room to grab a change of clothes he headed for the team showers.


Once fully showered and clean again, with a much less offensive odour the rejuvenated Takeshi headed for the hangar to check on Thunder, the Liger had been through one hell of a fight and needed some TLC before they went into action again. He smiled again as he remembered the battle, it had been such a rush, to recapture that feeling of total exhilaration that only combat could give. It continually played over and over in his head, the lead up to that final blow and that brief moment when he’d thought that they’d taken each other out, only to be blindsided by the final blow, he’d dropped his guard but Drifter was also clearly the superior pilot, Takeshi promised himself that next time he would be ready for his opponent, next time they met the judge would sing a different song.

As he reached the Hangar he came to sit on the Liger Zero’s forepaw, leaning his back against the large leg of the Zoid. The position would look uncomfortable to the average observer, but the steel of the Zoid didn’t bother Takeshi, he was right at home simply leaning against his partner with a contented sigh, “Next time buddy, I’m not as good as Blaze was yet, but next time, I’ll take you all the way.” A low growl of approval echoed around the hangar, and Takeshi closed his eyes, he’d not realised how much he had missed post battle revelry with his Zoid, he glanced over to where the Lightning Saix stood.

The Lightning Saix; Flash, had been destroyed beyond repair in a battle with some bandits years ago, but now here he stood as good as new. It had been the Organoid Lightning’s parting gift to Takeshi. After Takeshi had moved back to the Kimari ranch, Lightning had risen one day and without a word, launched himself into the broken form of the Saix, and within moments had completely restored it, then he had spoken to Takeshi, “Our journey together must end for now, you will find me again when you are ready to fight again.” The Organoid had not waited for a response before leaving, the stunned Takeshi had simply watched him leave, and it hadn’t been a sad parting of course, Takeshi knew he’d find his friend again one day but he had to prove himself worthy of Lightning’s trust again and the Organoid had left him the means to do so.

The Highguardian sighed at the memory before looking to each of his Zoids, “Do you think I should go looking for him yet?” There was no need to mention names, Thunder knew what his partner meant. Takeshi, you know as well as I that that’d be no use, he will find you, when he’s good and ready. The pilot nodded at the Liger’s wisdom, Lightning would only be found if he wanted to be found, and Takeshi had no doubt the Organoid knew exactly what was happening and where Takeshi was. His reverie was broken as the comm-unit in his pocket buzzed to life and demanded the Captain’s attention. It was the head of staff he had hired; Eric, “Yes Eric?” He asked as the device reached his ear.

“Sorry to bother you sir, there’s a man here to see you, camera crew as well, they want to do a post battle interview.” Takeshi sighed and stood up, he still hadn’t managed to get Eric to stop calling him sir. The pilot stretched out his back as he stood, looking to his Zoids, he favoured each with a paternal smile.

“Wish me luck boys.” He said before walking back into the base. He was followed out by encouraging growls.

Takeshi stood outside the door into the main reception area of Highguard base, he knew the interviewers were inside. The pilot rolled his shoulders and closed his eyes drawing in deep, centring breaths, drawing on his public persona once more, he had to make the conference good, and it’d be his first of the season. With one last steadying breath, his face lit up in his best cocky grin and he pushed the doors open, walking into the room like he owned the place, which technically he did.

The Highguardian took the room in at a glance, the receptionist at the desk was a plain looking woman he’d hired earlier in the week, her mousey brown hair hung in ringlets, the majority of which was pulled back in a bun with long sticks pinned through it to hold the hair in place, if he remembered rightly her name was Loren. Seated in the waiting chairs were a small camera crew in their casual attire of t-shirts and shorts, but the man that dominated the room was the reporter who’d be running the interview. He was fairly tall though not so tall as Takeshi, with slick black hair that tapered back from a rather dramatic widow’s peak. His face was handsome in a way though the effect was ruined by his rather sharply angled hawk-shaped nose, and he was dressed in a smart suit that was clearly custom tailored for the occasion.

The reporter looked to Takeshi with a smile that would have impressed a crocodile with its insincerity, Takeshi inwardly shuddered at the creepy vibe the man gave off in waves. “Ah mister Kimari, so glad to finally meet you, I’m Derek and I’ll be the correspondent tasked with all post-match interviews with team Highguard, I know you were technically a Freelancer at the time of your battle with Drifter but I’m sure we can look past it for now, so where should my crew set up?” The man’s voice dripped with confidence, and there was an oily quality to it that screamed danger. Takeshi could almost feel Thunder preparing to force his way into the room to protect his partner. The Captain sent soothing thoughts through their mental link, it wouldn’t do to have his own Zoid destroy the base, not after he’d just had it re-built.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Takeshi forced himself to say in his most charming manner, “Of course if you’ll all follow me we can use the press room.” He turned on his heel and led the small group out in the direction of the press room, offering a quick thank you to Loren as he went through the door, girl deserved a bonus for having to deal with this creep, Takeshi thought.

It didn’t take long to reach the Press Room, its design was simple, at one end in front of a wall hanging of the Highguard logo there was a bench with four chairs behind that faced a collection of chairs, its purpose was simple, a place to host press conferences in peace. The camera crew were quick about their job and had everything ready in the space of a few minutes, Takeshi took the time to settle his nerves and took a seat behind the bench, re-acquainting himself with the situation of giving an interview, and Derek sat beside him only leaving a small space between them. The other man turned to Takeshi to begin the interview once the lead cameraman had given the okay signal with his thumb and forefinger.

“Hello Sports fans and welcome to another edition of Zoidscentre, proudly sponsored by the ZBC and Saixerade, energy drink of champions.” Takeshi had to admit he was impressed the oily presenter was able to say the opening spiel with a straight face and a completely serious tone. “I’m your host Derek Johnson, and today I’m joined by Highguard team Captain, Takeshi Kimari, the Blue Bolt himself, let me just say it is an honour to be here in Highguard base and talking to you, do you mind if I call you Takeshi?” The man continued.

Takeshi forced a smile and spoke in his best voice, “Of course Derek.”

“So Takeshi fresh off your first battle in the new league, I must say you knew how to kick things off with a bang, taking on Drifter and the Rayse Wolf, and might I say the battle was so close, you’ve got to feel a little cheated?” and there it was, the trap Takeshi knew would be there, it seemed the man was not as skilled at his job as Takeshi had first assumed, he’d sprung his trap far too soon and hadn’t tried to lull the pilot into a false sense of security.

“No, I don’t feel cheated, Drifter was a tough opponent, always has been.” Takeshi kept his voice level and looked into the camera lens, “The battle had the right result, I fought hard but in the end he was the better pilot on the day, I’m thankful to have been a part of it and Thunder is eager for a rematch down the track, some of your viewers might be too young to remember, but many years ago we had a battle and that defeat was a lot more one-sided, so I’m proud of my partner, we gave a good account of ourselves and even Drifter felt he earned his victory that day.” The note of finality in his voice left no doubt that Takeshi was onto Derek’s game and would not be a pawn in some media drama.

“Of course, now then how do you feel going into your next scheduled match against Valkyrie of team Fury?” The reporter continued unphased, “Do you not think you need a break between battles?” Takeshi pursed his lips as if in deep thought.

“I’ve been out of the game for a while so I’m enjoying being active again, so I’ll try to maintain a full fight schedule for now. Besides the team has taken on a few rookies and I think it’s important for me as an older pilot as well as team Captain to lead by example.” The pilot thought for another moment before adding, “Beyond that Valkyrie is one of the few veterans of the League I’ve never fought before so I’m looking forward to the experience, and Thunder is eager to see more action to.”

“Great to hear Takeshi,” Derek responded with enthusiasm that never reached his eyes, “So tell us where do you think this new, re-invented team Highguard is going?” Takeshi had been waiting for the question, he knew that the reformed team would be mentioned eventually.

“Well Derek, straight to the top I’d hope, back to where my predecessors fought so hard to put us.”

Takeshi had begun to sweat, small rivulets running down the nape of his neck, under the glare of the camera lens and the continuing barrage of questions as Derek tried to get the Captain to break or say something incriminating. He hoped the worried wasn’t showing on his face as he did his best to smile and answer each question tactfully. Then it hit, the one question he’d been hoping to avoid, “How do you expect this team to go as far as the old Guard with less than half of the talent you once had?” The colour drained from Takeshi’s face as the full implication of what was being said hit him in the face like a slap. The sting of the words tore at his already fragile state of anxiety, there was after all, some truth to the question. Takeshi would back his team and his choice of pilots but the fact remained that the team was missing two of its biggest powerhouses in Blaze and Miyo.

The pilot pushed back the haze of doubt before it had a chance to take root, all in the space of a couple breaths, Takeshi drew himself up to answer the pointed question, gracing the audience with a broad smile, “This team is solid, I have high hopes for all of them, just give them time and I dare say they’ll surprise you.” The Captain’s words seemed to give him strength as he spoke, feeling the confidence return to him like the warmth that spread through a person’s limbs when sitting around a fire. This appeared to end the interview as Derek twisted in his seat to look directly into the Camera lens.

“Well folks, that about wraps it up for us here at Zoidscentre, I’m your host Derek Johnson, thankyou Mister Kimari for your time, and as always folks thank you for watching.” The oily host gave an over-exaggerated wink to the camera before the lead operator made the cut signal. “Alright boys pack it up, we’ve got places to be.” Derek turned back to Takeshi extending his hand for a shake, “Thank you for your time Captain, I’ll be seeing you after your next battle.” With that the reporter turned on his heel and left, trailing his camera crew in his wake. Takeshi slumped into his chair with a sigh after the men had left, running a hand down his now haggard face in a show of exhaustion. The Captain didn’t even notice his chief of staff enter the room, Eric to his credit did his best to announce himself as he entered, knocking on the doorframe.

“That probably could have gone better.” The older man stated matter of factly as he entered the room and took a seat. He extended his feet to rest on another chair as he looked the younger man up and down, “You look like hell Takeshi, are you even sleeping?” He asked, a note of paternal concern in his voice, it might have been almost touching had he not added, “I don’t get paid if you kick the bucket.” This drew a snort from Takeshi as he sat up in his chair again, working the heel of his palms into his eyes to try and bring himself back to wakeful alertness. The pilot gave up on it and settled for simply looking at his Chief-of-Staff.

“It could have gone better yes, but at least he wasn’t able to bait me like he wanted, and thank you for the concern, I’m fine just a little under the weather,” Takeshi gave Eric a sly grin, “You’ll still get paid at the end of the week. The two chuckled quietly, for all they hadn’t known each other long, they’d come to respect and even like each other in that time, in part due to Takeshi’s charismatic propensity for making friends easily, but also due to the undeniable compatibility of the two, they shared a lot in common from their love of Zoids to their affinity for business, it hadn’t just been Takeshi who’d rebuilt the base and brought Highguard back from the brink. They’d spent hours together as they planned and co-ordinated not just the building effort but also the Incorporation of Highguard. The Captain hadn’t told the team that he’d had to turn Highguard into a Corporation in order to sell shares and raise the extra funds to rebuild everything as it was.

Even so, he was thankful the majority had come from him, as he now owned the majority shares, some seventy five percent, in Highguard stocks, for now at least the team was very much within his control, and so long as they performed he would continue buying shares until he owned the full one hundred percent and could make Highguard a private organisation again. The pilot shook himself out of his reverie as he became more acutely aware of the silence within the room, “Were you after anything in particular Eric?” Takeshi asked once he had his bearings again.

“Not really, just wanted to inform you the practice track is ready if you want to take a run at it.” The older man said with a knowing smile, the smile broadened as he watched the pilot light up. For all his years Takeshi was still a child at heart when it came to piloting his Zoids, and the thought of putting his Saix through its paces again was a good one. Since getting Flash back he hadn’t really had a chance to pilot the Lightning Saix in any real sense. He pushed to his feet and stretched out his back in an exaggerated motion, allowing his spine to crack and pop with relief.

“I reckon I just might go and check that out.” He said as he slipped back into his leather team jacket, shrugging his shoulders to ensure it sat right, “Don’t wait up, I might be a few hours.” He said with a mischievous grin, knowing full well he’d be in his cockpit all night if he could.

Was a fun read. Hope to see the rest of the chapters show up here eventually

36 RPC to the Highguardian Captain.