Practice Battle: Ronin vs Lex [Highguard]

The arena was abuzz with activity, another Highguardian training bout was about to take place, this time between a pair of the Guard’s veterans, newly returned to the sport. Takeshi had sold tickets selectively for this event, most of the crowd were representatives of one brand or another. The two big ticket names were Phoenix Apparel and Stormsworder Brewery. Both had been previous sponsors of Highguard and the team was desperate to win them back over, as such Takeshi prayed his team mates were up to their former level of skill, they’d have to be in order to get this right.

He’d engaged the Arena’s more high tech functions for this event, the field was capable of transforming itself like a solid hologram, to replicate other types of battlefields, for this event he’d changed the field to that of an ancient forest, and tree trunks were thicker than an Elephander was round. Unbeknownst to the pilots though there were also stasis mines hidden around the field, to tread on one would cause a temporary system freeze giving their opponent the upper hand. Takeshi lit up the microphone.

“This arena is a designated Zoids battlefield, the following will be a practice battle between pilots Constantinus Lex and Ronin Sanders of Team Highguard.” The crowd began to cheer and whistle.

“Ready?”

“FIGHT!”

Starting stats
0AP
0 Skill Points

Mental Ability: 2
Reflexes: 2
- Double Attack
Proficiency: 0

All My other stats, I swear I'll get the code to make it pretty eventually don't judge me I'll edit it in if I need to but I just wanted to get this posted.







-----------------------
Ronin sat in his cockpit looking around. There was far more noise than he expected for a practice match, apparently, they had invited guests to watch their training. Ronin was first a bit taken off by this, but when the crowd started cheering the feelings of resentment faded away. Memories of his past battles filled his mind. It’s been so long since he was cheered for during his fights. For so long battles were death games over survival. Making it a sport, being cheered for, that was something Ronin missed. He gripped his controls and glared towards Lex. The order echoed through the trees, the battle begun.

Ronin jumped off the ground, the wind from her wings threw the fallen undergrowth in all directions. Leaves and twigs launches in a cloud of dust. The bird flew into the trees performing evasive maneuvers in the process. She found a sturdy branch and dug her talons into its bark. Ronin flipped a switch and the bird extended her wings, touching as many branches and leaves as she could. They had been fighting in a virtual battlefield, today it was designed to be a massive forest. Where the crowd saw a lush green grove Ronin saw a pile of firewood.

Light began to emanate from the bird. Ronin could hear the crackle of the leaves around him as her plasma shield singed the “living” branches. These trees provided cover to all who are beneath them, and Ronin simply couldn’t have that. Seeing as the trees were virtual Ronin had no remorse for the impending inferno. The Striker now glowed red hot, protected from damage while simultaneously burning anything that got too close.

Ronin aimed from his branch during the second half of his activation step. The bird’s beak opened and the cannon heated up, the cockpit became just as intense. When the system was ready and the shields went up Ronin pulled his trigger. From the beak of his Zoid his liquid flame cannons fired. The molten plasma projected threw the branches, the wood incinerated in the process. Whatever portion of the attack that wasn’t absorbed by the brush flew towards his target. Smoke now blocked Ronin’s line of sight. He had to get a better line of sight, too many flammable objects blocked his view.

Ronin realizing he was in one place for too long dashed upwards. The heat of his shields burned right through the brush of the trees. Like a hot knife through butter the pilot soared out of the trees into the sky above. The blue sky calmed him, but the sound of the crowd still drove him to continue. He felt abnormally aggressive, fighting had become so different since the war. This was the first time he had a chance to fight for sport in over 5 years. Images of the murdered citizens flashed through his mind. The bandits pillaging his small town, the buildings burning. The pain. The screams.

His bird gave out a cry, “Oh shit.” Ronin leveled out his bird and begun to circle. He questioned where his focus went, his body kind of went on its own for a minute. He regained his composure and stalked his pray. Once he made visual he circled once, careful not to be hit himself while he lined up his shot. Another flash, a child crushed under the foot of a Liger. Ronin screamed inside his Zoid. The trigger was pulled and a second tap was done in his furry. And just like that the emotion simmered. “What?” Ronin vocalized.

A pair of his Burning Missiles came from his Zoid, the attack was meant to be carefully aimed. This was important, the missiles had no heat seeking capabilities. Ronin knew this yet he was out of practice, not to mention this weird flash back. Would he be able to hit his mark as he had in the past? He didn’t have time to wait it out and see. What’s the worst thing that could happen, they hit the trees? Ronin was completely okay with that scenario. The more fire down there the better.

Ronin realized his head was out of place though. He could feel his focus fading in and out thinking of past battles. The pilot did not anticipate flashbacks, he needed to make sure he maintained control. This wasn’t a thug he was dealing with. This was a trained professional and Ronin had to be tactical. After all Lex was a captain for a short time. Ronin had to be smart.

He took a deep breath and pulled back on his controls. His bird flew upwards. The clouds came into view and Ronin passed through them. He wanted to go as high as possible. He had never used a virtual reality before, he wanted to see just how far it went. Swirling right through the clouds the bird broke past the clouds. Then things started getting dark. The blue sky turned into a matrix of lines and code. It was oddly beautiful, gravity stopped for just a second. “Woah” Ronin gave out a laugh

From here Ronin turned the nose of his bird downwards. Brigid’s wings folded in and her beak pointed towards the ground like an arrow. Blue returned into his view and the code disappeared. The clouds came back into view. Fire surrounded the striker as he pierced through the atmosphere like a peregrine falcon snatching its prey. Ronin felt the G forces push back on him his head grew light. The bird gave another scream and Ronin pulled back.

The bird flipped head upwards talons out. Wings extended he had sight of his target. With a careful aim, he fell right towards his opponent trying to dig deep into his opponent. He hoped his super heated shields burned the body of this Zoid as the talons sunk in. That was the goal. Quickly not allowing his focus to waiver Ronin began the slaughter. At close Range the Zoid fired from her beaks. The heat of the attack was felt in the cockpit as the Liquid flame cannons contacted what was underneath. Ronin’s eyes watered the cock pit grew so hot. Good think the striker can’t over heat, but what about Ronin?

But Ronin wasn’t done. The pilot flipped a couple more switches. “PROXIMITY WARNING” Popped up on the screen. Ronin overrode the warning and fired it anyway. A burning missile ejected from the pod. The explosion engulfed the Zoid and hopefully his target. The noise knocked Ronin’s head back, not too mention the heat. He blacked out for just a moment the shock was that intense.

Once he had regained his consciousness he was disoriented. He flew up, he needed to get somewhere safe to regain his focus. He evaded as he flew into the branches not knowing what dangers he may or may not have to face. He landed on a branch and scanned the area and his Zoid. Could his Zoid even continue? He did just blow himself up after all.  Ronin wondered why he was so aggressive in this match. It was his first match in years, where did this anger come from? Sure, it was savage and powerful but he also knew this approach was risky. Would the risks pay off, would it be successful? Here, in the safety of his base would be the place to take these risks, but he would have to reflect on this later. The results of his status report appeared on his screen.



Word Count 1251/1251






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1A) Swoops off the ground into the large branches and lands. (Dodge)
1B) Activate Supper Heated Plasma Shield, wings extended touching as many branches as possible. (Reduces all damage by 25%, deals 2 heat damage to any Zoids passing too close.
Lasts 2 full rounds, can be used once per battle)

2A) Fire liquid flame cannon towards enemy through the tree branches, with the intentions to hit the body a limb and the branches themselves (30DP to up to 3 areas of armor with a hit (excluding head), 10 heat damage)
2B) Fly through the branches into the sky above the branches. Circles target (Dodge)

3A) Double Attack, Burning Missiles towards enemy. Non-heat seeking missiles, Circled above target to aim. Yes I know the branches are in the way. I am okay with this. (40DP, 4 heat damage per missile) [Explosive]
3B) Fly high into the clouds out of view until the simulation won’t allow me to go any higher, break the fourth wall, enter the matrix. (Dodge)

4A) Now swoop down like a peregrine falcon towards my target. Crash through branches at my enemy. (Dodge)
4B) Literally attempt to land onto enemy, sinking in talons, and fire the liquid flame cannon at anything beneath the neck I can hit. (30DP to up to 3 areas of armor with a hit (excluding head), 10 heat damage)

5A) Continue the slaughter with a burning missile. Still as close as before, so what if I explode too I’m on it. Maybe it’ll make up for the lack of heat seeking (40DP, 4 heat damage per missile) [Explosive]
5B) Unhinge my talons and fly into the branches and land and see my victory before me (Dodge)

GL 2
0 AP
7 Skill Points

Mental Ability: 2
Reflexes: 2
Known Reflexes:
-Double Attack
-Sprint
-Quicker than the Eye
Proficiency: 3
-Rifles: 0
-Cannons: 0
-Machine Guns: 0
-Melee: 3/Lvl. 2 [+10DP]

ZABER FANG

Spoiler:

-------------------------

Constantinus Lex was adapting well to the new procedures at the refurbished Highguard base.  He'd fallen back into his old routine quickly, back into the calming monotony of everyday life.  He found peace in paperwork.  It was his meditation free from the chaos of the outside world.  He didn't interact much with his fellow pilots, not out of disdain or anything like that, but because he simply lost himself in the minutia of everyday life.  Lex was, if nothing else, the very model of a pencil-pushing bureaucrat.

Perhaps it was this reason that he was so surprised when Takeshi presented the idea of establishing these practice matches between the team's pilots. These training sessions were initially designed to reorient the out-of-practice warriors to the regulations of a traditional ZBC-style battle. That he and Ronin simply needed to stretch their legs, shake the dust off and get back into the swing of things.. to return to standard operating procedure.

Lex was actually excited as he climbed into the cockpit of his trusty Zaber Fang.  He was happy to have a nice, casual match with a teammate.  It was, after all, an excellent idea for a team-building exercise.  A relaxed, simple affair between two allies.  Lex smiled as he rode onto the pneumatic lift and his zoid was raised towards the ceiling.  He heard them before he saw them, the waves of cheering spectators filling the sides of the state-of-the-art arena.. and his heart leapt into his throat. "Oh my.  That's.. certainly a lot of people to disappoint." He spotted his teammate, no.. opponent, across the battlefield and turned his great mechanical beast towards the phoenix and started to speak before the arena's speakers exploded to life.  

“Ready?”

"Not particularly," Lex mumbled. The fire hadn't even started and he was already sweating. He gripped his controls with white knuckles and spoke through gritted teeth. "But if you insist, I suppose..."  

“FIGHT!”

Lex barely had time to register that the fight had started before the Burning Striker across the battlefield had taken flight, soaring into the thick canopy above. "FINE! If that's how it is!" The visibility wasn't great, but he'd fought in.. wait, no he hadn't.  These were undoubtedly the biggest, fullest trees he'd ever seen in his long life. He felt a twinge of regret as he primed the Zaber's back-mounted missile systems and fired into the thick brush. Trees like these hadn't existed on the surface of Zi in a many years, and these digital approximations wouldn't be around for much longer either. The missile collided with the thick trunk of the massive tree with a dull thud and a harsh crack.

Takeshi had certainly outdone himself in designing this arena.  The bark, branches, even the sound of the cracking wood were identical to those of the outside world.  Well, the leaves could use some work, but those were all shrivelling up and burning anyway.  Wait, what? Lex's sense of wonder faded as more pressing matters presented themselves.. namely the spreading wildfire overhead. The Striker danced among the flames, its blazing silhouette indicating that it had likely activated its shield.. drat.  There wasn't much that the Zaber could do at this range, so Lex did what he could.. he darted into the smoke. If the canopy and smoke were dense enough to obscure his vision, hopefully they'd have the same effect on anyone flying through them.

The Zaber Fang was nowhere near as fast as the fire-bird overhead, but it tried its best to evade the creature's gout of sweeping flame as he serpentined between the crackling trunks the of the virtual trees. Ronin was flying erratically as if distracted by something far away.  Perhaps the heat was getting to him.. or perhaps there was something wrong.  Lex was worried for the younger pilot.  Worried, but not insomuch as to stop running.  After all, the kid was still trying to make Zaber-kebabs. "Hey Sanders, are you alright? " Lex shouted into his comms with a twinge of anxiety in his voice.

No response.  Hopefully the aerial pilot was simply distracted with his impromtu arson, not having a mental break.  Though, those could easily be the same thing. But this battle would be ending soon enough, Lex surmised.  He had a plan.. he just had to make sure that Ronin stayed within range. And hope the smoke would just keep getting thicker.

But for his plan to succeed, Lex would need some height. But he'd also need Ronin's undivided attention (which seemed unlikely at that moment).  Perhaps if he.. screw it.  He primed yet another rocket and launched it in the general direction of the younger pilot.  Maybe he'd see it and decide to close in.  Or.. maybe he was so distracted that the missile might even hit!  Nah, that would be asking for too much.  

The Zaber wasn't terribly agile, but perhaps it could avoid some of these incoming missiles if he.. was it getting hot in here?  Oh right, forest fire.  Lex stepped into a newly formed clearing, flipped some switches, and started to vent some of the zoid's built-up heat. He examined his systems, and stared blankly at a small, blinking light. He'd forgotten to switch his radio on this whole time.  But that wasn't the only light of importance. He saw the brief shape of the flaming bird break the simulated cloud line.. was this room always that tall?  The thing flew higher and higher, glimmering like the north star. He'd only have a split second to do this, and he needed to be steady.. It was time for a quick-draw.

The tri-barreled shock cannon was a really interesting weapon for a creature like the Zaber Fang. It was powerful, probably the strongest single shot that Lex had access to at the moment, but it was incredibly inaccurate while the zoid was in motion.  The veteran pilot oftentimes would simply ignore the clunky, inelegant weapon during most of his battles.. but this was a unique situation.  He watched as the fire phoenix reversed its arc, the shining star in the sky.. and transformed into a wrathful meteor.

Today, he could sit down and wait.  His target was coming to him. A hundred meters. Seventy meters. Forty. Ten.  NOW! The Zaber's tri-barreled shock cannon roared to life, firing a super-heated explosive bolt faster than the human eye could see.  It fired at the speed of thought.  The speed of reflexes honed in the battlefield in a lifetime of war. The weapon fired slug after slug, explosion after explosion as both the Zaber and Striker were bathed in a white-hot nova. Only one zoid would be standing once the smoke cleared and, regardless of the victor, it had been a good fight.

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1A: Fire Missile  (Capable of hitting air and land targets; only one missile can fire at a time, 50DP per missile)[Explosive]
1B: Run coward! (Dodge)

2A: Serpentine!  Serpentine! (Dodge)
2B: Pot shot. (Capable of hitting air and land targets; only one missile can fire at a time, 50DP per missile) [Explosive]

3A: Into the smoke and cinders.  Run, run, run. (Dodge)
3B: Take a breather and run some diagnostics. (Vent Heat -5)

4A: Quicker than the Eye (-2 Reflex Points)
4B: Shock Cannon (Inaccurate while moving, 70DP) [Explosive]  

5A: Shock Cannon (Inaccurate while moving, 70DP) [Explosive]
5B: Stand back and admire the results of his actions. (Vent Heat -5)

Takeshi leaned his forearms on the console as he watched the fight begin, this was after all his best chance to assess his veteran pilots. As much as he was hoping to secure some sponsorships from the exhibition, his main priority was seeing just how rusty his pilots were. His eyes widened as the battle began, the choice of field had clearly been a mistake, and too much greenery mixed with a flying pilot that was clearly some variation on a Pyromaniac did not fill Takeshi with joy.

The pilots wasted no time in deploying their strategies, the Phoenix took off and cloaked itself in a burning shield, Takeshi had begun to sweat from the radiating heat, he looked nervously over to where the honoured guests stood, and knowing full well how stuffy a tuxedo already was. The Zaber Fang on the other hand wasted no time in firing its missile, the heat of the Phoenix and its somewhat glide like flight made it an easy target and the projectile slammed home in a blazing crash. (38 DP to Burning Striker’s body thanks to the reduction of the Plasma Shield) The shot left a smoking trail but thankfully for Ronin the heat shield had burned up part of the missile before it struck, reducing the impact.

It didn’t take long for the foes to run into each other again, each lining the other up and letting fly. A second missile slammed into the Phoenix’s chest while it spewed flame onto the opposing Zaber, Takeshi’s heart leapt into his throat as the trees began to burn, the flames spreading across the field in a wild rage. (38DP to Striker’s body, 14 armour remaining)(30DP to Zaber Fang’s body and right foreleg, 70 armour and 10 armour remaining respectively. +12 Heat Index, 10 for cannon and 2 for proximity to heat shield.) The heat was intense and buffeted the viewers with its titanic waves, sweat spilled down Takeshi’s neck in the small Judge’s box, at the flick of a switch the icy air conditioner units flooded the guests room to save them from the worst of it, Takeshi was not so lucky and simply had to deal.

Following this display the battle turned into a running game of hide and seek as the Zaber ran into the billowing smoke haze, venting its internal heat to try and save the pilot from the worst of the heat’s effects. (-5 Heat Index.) The Phoenix fired two missiles to try and flush the larger Tiger out but the explosives impacted on the ground increasing the roaring wild fire of the arena but not affecting the opponent.

When the Zaber re-appeared the battle was over, the cannons lined up the vulnerable Phoenix and let fly. (53DP to Striker’s body, 0 armour remaining.) Takeshi’s hand flew to the microphone and his voice screamed across the field, “Battle over, Ronin is unable to battle, Constantinus Lex wins.” The polite claps of the crowd sounded across the battlefield. Without continuing further the Captain slammed on the ceiling fire deterrent sprays, and water began to fall onto the battlefield, steam rising with a loud hiss.

OOC:
Okay guys very impressed, unfortunately stock Zoid fights will rarely last beyond one round. So I’ll split this into two parts, one for each of you.

Ronin:
First of all mate, well done, you thought things through and fought well. Your word count was good and I liked how it was written. A few things to be mindful of however are your spelling, often times in your posts you’ll perhaps use the wrong variation on a word. Example being in the recruitment RP your use of women instead of woman. I know how easy it is to get excited over a post but once it’s finished, take a moment to relax, calm your mind and go over it like an editor.

Lex:
Okay bro, I liked your post, you write in a similar style to myself so it makes it very easy for me to bounce off you and build on the story. One thing for you to watch is being reactionary to your opponent when going second in a battle post, it’s frowned upon and smacks of gaming the system. I’ve been super lenient on both of you for this one but an official battle won’t be. I find it helps to not read the opponent’s post before doing mine, if I go second I tend to only read my opponent’s post AFTER I’ve posted.

Cheers guys, really well done both of you.

Ronin rubbed sweat off his brow, the heat of his Zoid was leaving him feeling a bit worn out. Ronin stood atop of a platform positioned to give Ronin full access to the body of his Zoid. With a wrench in his hand Ronin sought out to repair the damages to his Zoid. Being raised in a repair shop Ronin was well trained in repairing Zoids of varying types and size. Of course, the Zoid he knew best was his Burning Striker. Despite the available pit crew Ronin insisted he be the one to fix Brigid. He got the bird into this mess so it was up to him to get her fixed up. Of course, though the pit crew would help if they saw Ronin was getting too exhausted.

Ronin worked on repairing the body of his Zoid as he reflected on his loss against his team mate. He knew exactly where it all went wrong. Apart from having no aftermarket parts the pilot was very unfocussed. It all came down to those visions he kept having. Flashbacks of pain and suffering filled the mind of the pilot as he tried to execute his attacks. Does Ronin have more scars then he realizes? Maybe Ronin would need to speak with a therapist or something because he can’t keep up Zoid battling if he had to reexperience those flash backs every time. Sure, he saw some pretty messed up things during the war but was it really that bad. Ronin supposed his memories were a little blurred when he tried to think about it.

Did Ronin have PTSD? It was possible but Ronin thought it to be unlikely. He read up on symptoms and they just didn’t all match up. Though he was painfully aware he had to have some sort of damage. Potentially some repressed memories, images that were too much for the pilot to handle at the time. That seemed far more likely to Ronin. Ronin tightened the bolt securing the panel. Now he needed to move onto the next.

“I need a Striker panel left body size 3 please.” Ronin called down to the crew beneath him. One of the staff members nodded and called out on his radio. The part was being delivered from storage but it would be a few minutes before the part would be ready for Ronin to equip. Ronin sat down and sighed. Ronin knew how uncomfortable repairs could be for a Zoid so he always made sure to put his Zoid in sleep mode. Even so he knew the bird could still hear selective outside stimuli. “Brigid I’m sorry I let you get this bad. I was being extra risky and I’m sorry.” Ronin heard a small noise from his semi-conscious Zoid.  “I just gotta get out of this life or death mindset you know. Then I’ll be able to fight for sport again.”

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Word Count: 484/1735

The final moments of the battle had been intense, a literal firestorm punctuated by the ringing shots of the felinoid's shock cannons. It was a memory that Lex would not soon forget.  The vision of a burning forest was shocking enough, but the aftermath was arguably worse. The beautiful vista created by the Arena's hologram projectors had been reduced to charred remains. Blackened logs and wisps of ephemeral smoke were all that was left in the battle's wake, an image both shocking and tragic. But where pilot had felt remorse, zoid embraced its wild nature. The cool rain of the sprinklers fell atop the still-molten (but rapidly cooling) Zaber Fang as it stood triumphant over its foe. Its limbs were held in place, either by hardened steel or residual system-freeze, but it stood nonetheless. Lex remembered sitting inside of the sealed cockpit, mechanics swarming around the badly burned Zaber Fang and peeling away pieces of melted armor to get to the badly damaged frame.

Now, hours later, he sat in the hangar of the Highguard base and watched his people work. Lex didn't repair his own zoid.  He didn't feel the closeness to this machine like everyone else seemed to, his Zaber Fang was a weapon.  It had been built for war, designed to kill other men, but it was unnecessary in the modern age, an age without strife. The swords of the previous era had become plowshares for the current, a symbol of war turned into a tool for peace. Lex was never quite sure of the corner that he'd turned in his life, going from soldier to athlete, and was sure that the beast felt the same way. Neither had a name for the other, a pilot and a zoid paired together through convenience and trained to battle without attachment. The bond between the two was immaterial, as they certainly weren't each other's first partners. Perhaps it was this closeness, or lack thereof, that drew Lex away from his fellow pilots and his team.. bonds that he feared could be severed again at any moment.

But that won't stop him from trying. He saw his erstwhile opponent atop his zoid, a ronin atop a noble steed. Ironically, this Ronin was a loyal warrior, dedicated to his team and to his beloved captain. Lex wondered if the boy had ever though of the irony of his name, though that was immaterial at the moment. Walking towards the younger pilot and his Burning Striker, Lex shouted to his distracted comrade. "Hey Sanders! Do you have a moment to talk about what happened in there?"

Standing at the foot of the sleeping zoid, the veteran shouted up to his fellow Highguardian. "You were acting, or rather flying, pretty erratically for a while in there.  I don't mean to pry, but I was just worried that something had gone wrong." He wasn't good with people, or at least not with trying to empathize.  But he'd seen something up there that he hadn't seen in years, that shell-shocked mentality seen amongst those that had seen prolonged combat experience, for those that had seen high-stress situations and come out the other side. "What I guess I'm trying to say is that if you ever need to talk about what happened, my door is always open."

He didn't know what the young man had been through, and it wasn't his place to dredge up the past.. but for the sake of the team, he needed to make himself available. He was, after all, the oldest pilot on the team and felt a sense of responsibility towards everyone he worked alongside.  Maybe it was some sense of paternalism for his younger comrades, or maybe it was a hangover from serving in a military command capacity for so long.  Either way, these were his people.  His brothers-in-arms.. and Lex would be damned if he ever let anything else happen to his team again.

-- -- -- -- --

Ronin smiled at his opponent, or should he now say teammate, as he walked up and spoke to Ronin. Ronin figured he had a moment to chat, that panel wouldn’t be ready for installment for a few minutes after all. Lex asked Ronin a question he had been asking himself for the last hour or so. Was he alright? In general, he was doing great. He was finally part of a team again and the war was over. After five long years Ronin had finally been reunited with the people he cared about and could once again follow his dreams.

It’s the memories of what happened during those five years that was causing Ronin distress. Masami was completely cut off from the rest of the world during the war. Forgotten along with the unregulated territories. With no protection, Ronin was his home town’s only line of defense. Being the soul protector of a town harassed by bandits and criminals, it’s no wonder Ronin is a little damaged. He just never thought it would affect his piloting skills.

“I appreciate the offer Lex.” Ronin said as he climbed the ladder back down to the ground level. His shoes squeaked as rubber and metal made contact.  “To be honest I was going through something. I experienced a lot during the war and not all of it was pretty.” He reached the ground and walked over to Lex. He lowered his tone so that the other workers wouldn’t listen in. “I am starting to think some of that war fucked me up a bit more than I thought.”

He paused for a moment. This was the first time he vocalized it out loud. It felt both good but a little discomforting. As though by speaking it aloud it was suddenly real. Ronin looked up at Lex at a loss for what he should do.  In a soft voice, Ronin asked Lex a question. “Lex you’re a soldier, right? Have you ever seen anything so bad out there that whenever you pilot you can’t help but remember it? How do you make the flashbacks stop? How do you live with it all?” Ronin kind of dumped it all out there at once telling a little bit more then he meant to. But it was the truth and maybe someone like Lex would know a thing of two that could help him.

Word Count: 397/2132

"Well.." Lex spoke slowly and softly, taking Ronin's hint that obviously this was a private moment. He didn't like to bring up the war, honestly. He still carried himself like a soldier, even hinted at his past, but the war itself was a rough patch for Constantinus Lex. He wasn't proud of any of the things he'd seen or done, nor did he learn until afterwards the extent of his government's crimes.. of his Emperor's madness. "Yes, I was a soldier.. I was a soldier for a long, long time. And combat out there is always different from combat in the ZBC. It's dirty, it's messy, and it is something that changes you."

It had been years since he'd fought in the wars for his homeland from Lex's perspective.  Centuries according to everyone else's. The war had been over for a long time, but it had left its marks on those that it had left behind, the victors and losers alike. The Emperor had scarred the lands with his horrible mechaniations, but even those had been long forgotten until the Deathsaurer's resurgence not too long ago. But that wasn't what this was all about. He was here to talk to a young man in need of reassurance, of a guiding hand. Too bad Lex was absolutely the last person that you'd want to give you either of those.

You see, Lex is bad at explaining things, especially touchy-feely things. Things that required human interaction and dealing with you know, emotions. He sighed before continuing his.. diatribe? Monologue? He saw the pain that the younger pilot was going through, and realized that he should maybe tone down the angst and warrior spirit. Take it easy on the poor kid. "But that's a good thing! If it didn't rattle you.  If it didn't effect you in some way, then I'd be worried about your health. Mentally, of course."

He gave a half-hearted chuckle and a forced, somewhat pained grimace, trying to lighten the mood. "Anyway, my people used to say something about battle. 'Wounds turn into scars, and scars fade away.' But kid, those wounds hurt. And they'll hurt for a while, but it will fade. Remember that the bad out there doesn't cancel out the good in the world. More importantly, it doesn't cancel out the good inside you."

"And if I'm not mistaken, you're a good person, Ronin Sanders. You'll get stronger because of your experiences. Then again, you're a young man now, no longer a child and that means that you're in a critical stage of your life. It's where you stop being who others tell that you are and become who you want to be." Wait. No. Lex, you just told him who he is. You can't just say that everything you've said so far is irrelevant! Also, aren't we supposed to be talking about flashbacks? Traumatic events? "But you're not there yet. More importantly, for my generation warfare was a crucible. It was where children went and came back as adults. Horribly, horribly traumatized adults. I'm not going to lie to you, Ronin. Not about that."

There's a reason that Lex was largely hated by those he had command over. Also, the reason why he never had a stable relationship or children. There were certainly worse candidates for a father figure out there, but not many. But since the collapse of the ZBC and Highguard, he'd realized where his mistakes had been. Where he'd failed, not only as a commander, but as a human being. He needed to get something right for once, he needed to at least try and help someone that was hurting. He needed to prevent someone from ending up like him.

"But we suffered through it together. It was a common bond that held us all together. After what we'd been through, we all carried the scars of war." He nodded towards the other zoids in the hangar, to the mechanics and the hangar workers, and in a greater sense to his teammates and fellow pilots. "You carry a burden with you, Ronin. The weight of experience can break a person, but it can also make them stronger if they don't carry it alone. Remember that you're a part of a team, part of a family. If the burden feels like too much, you've always got a support group."

-- -- -- -- --

Ronin avoided eye contact as Lex started to reply. The lack of eye contact was caused from a combined sense of awkwardness mixed with a desire to focus fully on Lex’s words. Ronin was correct, Lex was a veteran. In fact, Lex probably went through far more then Ronin had imagined. Despite the obvious draw backs in the man’s ability to be comforting and or emotional, Ronin knew he had asked the right man for advice. Lex had seen this before and had a very good grasp on the scars involved in war.

As Lex began his explanation Ronin thought about their battle. In the fight, just a few hours before this, Ronin chose to light the field a blaze. The symbolisms of forest fires filled the pilot’s mind as the former captain gave his words. Lex opened by explaining a crucial concept. That feeling pain over this was not weakness. Ronin was experiencing discomfort over these memories not because he was too weak to handle them, but because he was such a good person with such strong morals. Feeling pain about this was normal and to be expected.

Lex explained that a bit of bad does not cancel out the good in the world or in Ronin himself. The young pilot couldn’t agree more. Over time trees fall and old brush fills a forest’s floor. It is by fire that this old brush is cleansed. In Ronin’s case the fire was trauma. Seeing children crushed under the feet of a bandit’s Zoid. Travelling to neighboring cities, trying to find medications for someone’s sick family member, only to find that he was too late. Fighting criminals and accidently catching a home on fire while trying to overheat an enemy. In a forest fire, habitats are temporarily destroyed and one may feel fear or sadness. But this is necessary for a forest to grow stronger. The old is cleared away and lessons can be learned. Ash is left, and the land is damaged. It will take time but light seeds have been carried by the heat and scattered. Those seeds will grow and the ash becomes fertilizer for a larger healthier forest. The same held true for Ronin and his situation. Right now Ronin’s mind felt like an ash covered wasteland. The lessons learned from it served as seeds that would soon grow tall. Ronin just had to be patient and eventually a new forest would grow and Ronin would be reborn as a stronger man then before.

Ronin laughed as Lex explained how much Ronin had grown. Ronin agreed, the experience he had gone through helped shape him as a person. The immature boy who had once joined this Guard had died. Murdered by the cold heartlessness of loss and burned by the fiery traumas of war. Lex started to trail off though about Ronin being his own person and not listening to others, though this kind of seemed to go against everything Lex had been saying before. Ronin paid little mind to it though, the sentiment was there and made sense to Ronin.

Ronin smiled looking up at Lex for but a moment as he explained that Ronin was not alone. There were others who had gone through this war and we were all affected by it. For so long Ronin had to fight through it completely alone. Now though, Ronin found himself in the comfort of High Guard. A team full of people who were willing to help him. Ronin almost teared up hearing this but he managed to keep his cool. With the help of his team Ronin knew he would get over this. He would use the experience he had to help him and wouldn’t let the ashes hold him back.

“Thank you, Lex.” Ronin felt a lot at this moment, and words alone wouldn’t be able to properly convey how much this conversation meant to the pilot. “That means a lot thank you.” Ronin made eye contact for the first time in minutes. With half a smile, he tried to express feelings he could never put into words. Speaking the words aloud, he knew he would make the following statement true. “I will be okay. I know I will.” Even if he didn’t quite feel like it yet he knew in time a fresh green forest would be reborn from the ashes. Like a Phoenix Ronin would rise again stronger than ever. It would just take some time and training. And maybe Tak setting off a sprinkler system here and there to put out any remaining embers that threatened Ronin’s sanity. “And if you ever want to talk… or like... hangout or anything just let me know.”

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“I’ll keep that in mind.” Lex didn’t quite know how to react to the boy’s offer. Human interaction wasn’t something he was used to, let alone in a casual capacity. But regardless, it showed that maybe he helped. That he’d done something to justify coming back to Highguard in the first place. "That means a lot, really. Anyway, I'll talk to you later. I have some work to finish before it gets too late."

Lex turned and walked away from the encounter, having had his fill of human interaction for the day. But he thought that he'd done well. After all, Ronin had thanked him. His fellow pilot had appreciated his emotional support. It was a powerful moment for Constantinus Lex. He’d never been able to help his allies in this way before, never been there to comfort or provide any help beyond the military.  Maybe there was more to him than what his father had instilled in him.. just maybe he’d grown. Or maybe he was just as bad as he’d always been. After all, Lex had lied to his teammate. But he hadn’t done so without reason.

To the warrior culture of the Zenebean Empire, scars represented more than past battles. They represented pride, and moreover strength. A scar was a battle that you walked away from, but had left a mark. Of a worthy foe and how one grows beyond it. They were things that never faded, never dulled with time.  But that wasn’t what the boy needed to hear.

‘Wounds turn into scars, and scars make you stronger. ‘

It was a lesson that soldiers were taught from youth. From the moment that they could carry a weapon, they were encouraged to hurt others and, in turn, experience it themselves. It desensitized you to the horrors of war, to everyday life in a society focused around martial law and military propaganda.  It was a lesson that Lex’s father had been especially keen on instilling in his children, by force if need be.

But he had lied. For a brief moment, Lex was awash with shame. If his father could have seen him now, he’d have been disappointed. He was a disgrace to Zenebas’ cause, coddling the weak and needy in their time of distress. When they were at their lowest. But he had done so without prompting, helped without reservations.  Constantinus Lex wasn’t the same man that fought so long ago in a war that he didn’t believe in. He wasn’t the confused youth that hung on his father’s every word, but something better.  Someone that, in many ways, was stronger.

He had learned that scars don’t come just from survival, but the proof of life. There is a key difference between living and surviving, and that difference lies within the meaning one derives from the experience. They were, simply put, marks that showed one’s experience not simply martial prowess.  Everyone wore their experiences upon their skin and their hearts, from children to the grave. They showed that someone had lived a life worth living and had grown because of it. Those were the scars that made you stronger, and those were the scars that would never fade away.

-- -- -- -- -- --

Nice one you guys. Was really enjoyable to sit down and read through the entire thing.

Lex: 35 (30+5 bonus for the good read)

Ronin: 34 (29+5 bonus for the good read)

I really do love me some touching story and emotions alongside plot. So this was a good thing to see happening.

Note; RPC already added. Enjoy!

Edit; Thought Takeshi ONLY had judging in there! There was 3 RPC worth of non-judging, adding 2 to make it a number I like. (5)