Building Zoids in a World of Titans

The morning air carried dust and the murmur of a small crowd. Alex stood beside the Lanstag, watching people settle onto makeshift benches and rocky outcrops like they'd come for a festival. Someone had set up a food cart. An actual food cart. The smell of roasted nuts drifted across the field.

Three days ago, this had been a private matter. A core, a pilot, a test of will. Simple. Contained.

Then Borin mentioned it to Maren. Maren mentioned it to the forge team. The forge team mentioned it to the tavern. And now half of Veridia had turned out to watch him either prove himself or get torn apart by his own machine.

Alex scanned the crowd. Rhian sat between her parents on a flat rock, her legs swinging. She waved. He didn't wave back. He was too busy noticing the hand-painted sign near the food cart that read "ALEX VS. LIGER— ODDS 3 TO 1."

Kitty.

Elara approached with her hands clasped behind her back, wearing the expression of someone thoroughly pleased with herself.

"This is the first time I've seen two Zoids fight," she said, surveying the field with genuine delight. "Wouldn't it be a shame not to let people witness this moment?"

Alex stared at her.

"You did this on purpose."

"I have no idea what you mean." Her smile widened. "I simply approved a public safety perimeter and let the guild know there would be a demonstration. What people do with their free time is their own business."

"You put up the sign."

"I most certainly did not. That was entrepreneurial initiative. I respect it."

Rhian bounded over, followed by the rest of Celestia. Fia clapped Alex on the shoulder hard enough to stagger him.

"You've got this, Alex. I believe in you."

Seraphine tilted her head, her violet eyes glinting. "Fia's been telling everyone you'll win. She's placed quite a few bets on your behalf."

Fia's golden cheeks darkened. "That's not— I was showing confidence in a fellow warrior."

"You bet your month's wages," Lyra said flatly.

"It's called investment."

Alex looked from Fia to the crowd to the Liger Zero sitting silent at the far end of the field, its white-and-silver frame catching the light. Borin and his team were running final diagnostics, their tools clicking against the armor plating.

He sighed.

"If I die, I'm haunting all of you."

"Noted," Elara said. "Now go make it worth the admission price."

"There was no admission price!"

"And yet people paid it anyway. Remarkable, really."

Borin and Ziya approached, their faces set in matching expressions of controlled worry. Borin carried a diagnostic tablet. Ziya carried nothing, which was worse. She was holding something back.

"Everything's ready," Borin said. His voice was steady, but his eyes weren't. "Core housing is sealed. Neural bridge is stable. Power output is nominal across all systems." He paused. "Alex. This is your last chance to back out. We can shut it down. Lock the core in the vault. No one would blame you."

Alex looked at the Liger Zero. Its frame sat motionless, but he could feel the thing inside it. Waiting.

"I'm not backing out," he said. "I have to do this."

Ziya stepped forward. Her jaw was tight. "Alex, I—" She stopped. Started again. "Come back in one piece. That's not a request."

"I know."

She held his gaze for a moment longer, then nodded once and stepped back.

Alex climbed the Lanstag's leg, pulled himself into the cockpit, and sealed the canopy. The VR display flickered to life, painting the world in clean lines and data. He gripped the controls. The Z-Bracer hummed against his forearm.

The Lanstag's core engaged. The machine rose, its golden antlers catching the light, and let out a roar that shook the ground.

"HONNN-BRRRR-ZZZZT!"

Borin's voice crackled through the comms. "Alex. Are you ready?"

"I'm ready."

A pause. Then Borin's voice, quieter. "Good luck."

The Liger Zero's core activated.

The sound that came from it was not mechanical. It was organic, deep, and vast, rolling across the field like thunder given teeth.

"RROOOO-AAARRR-GHRRR!"

The crowd went silent. Several people stepped back. The Liger Zero's optics blazed to life, burning orange against the white cowl. Its head swept left, then right. Its claws extended, gouged the earth. Its tail lashed. The machine flexed its legs, testing the frame, feeling the power coursing through its new body for the first time.

Then its head snapped toward the Lanstag.

The Liger Zero dropped low, its spine curving, its mane vents flaring with crackling blue light. Every line of its body said the same thing. Prey.

Alex's hands tightened on the controls. The Lanstag's instincts surged, feeding him data, feeding him want. The Zoid wanted to charge. Wanted to meet the threat head-on. He could feel the machine's eagerness like a second heartbeat.

The Lanstag shifted its weight, antlers lowering, and answered the Liger's challenge with a sound that was half bellow, half declaration.

"HONNN-BRRRR-ZZZZT!"

The two machines faced each other across the field. The air between them felt thin. Charged. Like the moment before lightning finds the ground.

Nobody in the crowd moved.

Nobody breathed.

The Liger Zero's lips peeled back, revealing golden fangs that hummed with gathered energy.

"VUMMM-vummm-vummm..."

The sound was low. Patient. Certain.

Alex exhaled slowly. His focus narrowed to a single point. The data faded. The crowd faded. There was only the machine beneath him and the machine across from him.

The standoff held.

Then the Liger Zero moved.

The Liger Zero lunged. Not at full speed—a probing strike, claws raking across the Lanstag's shoulder. The impact shuddered through the cockpit, but the armor held. Barely.

Alex pivoted, driving the Lanstag's antlers upward in a sharp arc. The Liger twisted mid-stride, its body flowing like water, and the horns scraped across its flank without purchase. The Zoid landed light on its feet, already circling.

"SZRIIING-CLACK!"

The sound of its claws retracting and extending again. Testing. Learning.

Alex kept the Lanstag's profile narrow, antlers forward. The Liger feinted left, then darted right, snapping at the Lanstag's foreleg. Alex sidestepped, but not fast enough—golden fangs grazed the joint housing, sending sparks skittering across the dirt.

The crowd gasped. Rhian's voice cut through the comms, tight with fear. "Alex!"

He didn't answer. His eyes tracked the Liger's movement patterns. The Zoid was fast—faster than the Arosaurer, faster than anything he'd piloted against. But it was also new. Every few steps, its weight shifted a fraction too far. Its tail overcorrected. The core was learning the frame in real time, and that meant its reactions were a half-beat behind its instincts.

The Liger charged again, closing the distance in three explosive strides. Alex braced, meeting the impact head-on. Antlers caught the Liger's chest plate with a grinding shriek. The two machines locked, straining against each other, hooves churning the earth.

"VUMMM-vummm—"

The Liger's growl deepened, its mane vents flaring brighter. Alex felt the Lanstag's frame protest, hydraulics screaming. He couldn't hold this.

He disengaged, throwing the Lanstag backward. The Liger stumbled forward, off-balance for just a moment. Alex pressed the advantage, driving the Rolling Spike Shields into a spin that forced the Liger to leap clear.

Both machines separated, circling again. The Liger's optics burned brighter now. Not just testing anymore. Interested.

Alex's hands were steady on the controls. His heart wasn't.

The Liger Zero crouched lower, its tail sweeping the ground behind it. The hum from its core shifted, climbing in pitch.

"VUMMM-vummm-vummm..."

It was going to use something. Not a feint this time.

Alex adjusted his grip and waited.

Advance chapters on my p@tR$0n/Najicablitz.

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