A/N: Alright, this is my second stab outside of my usual fandom, and my first Zoids fic. It is an New Century Zero fic, taking place after the Royal Cup. It focuses heavily on Drake, my OC. He's, in my opinion, one of the most entertaining characters I've written about.

There will be a Zoids index at the end of every chapter, fleshing out the Zoids.

Don't expect regular updates on this. I'll work on it when I can, but it's kinda like a pet project.

"Whoa."

"Yeah, I know!"

"I mean… whoa!"

This highly intellectual debate was coming out of the mouths of three different kids, no older then twelve. The reason why they were talking, and the reason drool was coming out of their mouths was right in front of them. It was, without a doubt, a Zoid. It was huge, at least thirty feet tall. Guns and lasers were coming out of almost all the joints, and the barrel of one was glinting inside it's mouth. With it's gigantic Tyrannosaurus-like frame and implements of destruction, it was easy to see why the Bloody Demon had captivated the attention of the twelve-year olds.

"Come on!" One, obviously bolder then the others, said. "Let's take it out for a joyride! I mean, honestly, who'd miss it?"

The other two stared at him like he'd grown a second head. "Gee, I wonder." Another kid said. This one was obviously the sarcastic one in the bunch, as he said "Who would miss the giant dino Zoid moving? Besides, how would we even get up there?"

It seemed that the others took that as a dare, as the bold one and the quiet one ran at the Zoid. Quickly, they started climbing up the metal with skills honed from years of tree climbing. They were making good headway too, until one of them misjudged the size of an armor plate. With a yell, the kid fell ten feet, landing solidly on his back. For a second, there was silence, broken by a whisper of "Owww.."

The quiet one and the sarcastic one looked over at their friend for a second, pondering if he was okay. The moment the pained whisper echoed through the air, they burst out into a fit of hysterical laughter. With tears in their eyes, they keeled over, giggling uncontrollably. Well, they did until the heavy treads of someone returning sobered them up.

The sounds, and the boots causing them, belonged to the reason why they were there in the first place. The man came into view moments later, and he stood out easily. Maybe it was the fact that he wore green, black and silver, while everyone thing else was tinted with red? Maybe it was the short brown hair, different from everyone else's long blonde or red? Or maybe, just maybe, it was the five-foot long Railgun he had slung across his shoulders. Yes, that was definitely it.

"Yo, Drake!" The quiet one yelled. "Good to see you! Where'd you get the Railgun? I mean, honestly, those things are pretty hard to find these days, and…" He was cut off when Drake raised his hand.

"Alright, who did it?" He asked, his tone dead serious. Immediately, all three kids started looking around in wide-eyed confusion, as if asking what he could possibly accusing them of. "Don't play dumb with me. Who…" Drake began, and gestured at his Bloody Demon. Sure enough, a panel where they had been climbing was crooked, pulled loose in either the frenzied climb or the panicked fall. "TOUCHED MY DEMON?!" he roared.

Immediately, the quiet one and the sarcastic one jumped back and pointed at their fallen comrade. "IT WAS HIM!" they screamed in creepy unison. The bold one looked up, preparing to deny everything, but quickly shut up as he found himself staring down the barrel of a Railgun. Meekly, the boy closed his mouth. After all, it wouldn't be the first time Drake went nuts on someone who touched his Zoid. After all, the Bloody Demon was his pride and joy, which he'd been building from scratch almost since he was born.

"Alright…" Drake's voice was, again, deceptively calm. "Now, you three have a choice. That choice is either to help me paint my Demon," he gestured at a stack of paint drums, all labeled green, a bunch of ladders, and some spray guns. "Or, you… EAT HOT LEAD!" Moments later, all the boys were dressed in attire to paint in, and had grabbed a mask and paint gun. "Good choice!" he said, back to his usual fun self. "While you do that, I'm going to go fix that unfortunate damage and install this baby where no one would expect it."

An hour later, all of the Bloody Demon's body save it's head was painted with an even forest green coat. After all, the boys knew that if they tried to hurry though it, Drake would just get them out in the middle of the night to finish their job. And when they bitched about sleep, Drake would only say something along the lines of it being just deserts for touching his precious. "All done Drake!" The bold one chirped. "We'll leave the head to you, okay?" Drake nodded as he finished securing the Railgun to it's hiding spot. "We'll just see you tomorrow, k?"

As he finished tightening the bolts, Drake shook his head. "Sorry, midget. I'm leaving tomorrow." As the kid's eyes lit up, Drake shook his head again, this time with a wry smile on his lips. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but I'm taking this baby with me."

"Damn." the kid muttered. "So, we'll just see you when you get back."

Drake looked up as he slid the Railgun into position. "Sorry, kid. I'm, well, I'm not coming back." The kids blanched in shock, and Drake continued. "I've been in this backwater town all my life. I mean, sure, I go a few miles out to scavenge Zoid parts sometimes, but I've never truly been out of here. It's time for me to go, and now that the Demon's done, I can do it in style."

The kid gaped, but the sarcastic one spoke up, sounding oddly serious. "But how will you go? I mean, the Demon's vicious competitor, but it's not exactly fast. You won't have any tools to use to fix it when it gets damaged. Besides, what'll happen to your salvage business? That's how we made most of our cash!"

The Demon pilot grinned. "Alright, here're the answers: remember my Gustav? It's a custom job, with plenty of space to store the demon underneath the shell along with a good kitchen and workshop. I'll live in there until I get to a good place to lay down roots again. Plus, the Gustav gets awesome satellite reception, so I'll always get good TV!" His smile grew a bit as he continued. "I'll be able to fix the demon there, and I'm bringing all my tools with me. As for the salvage business…" Drake tossed a key down to the quiet one, who stared at it with an open mouth. "Take good care of it."

As Drake climbed down from his perch in the Demon's cockpit, the quiet one spoke up again with deadly seriousness. "You're not going to get rid of us that easy." When Drake turned a questioning look on him, he continued with "We might be twelve, but in five years, we'll be seventeen, just the same as you are now. We don't want to stay here forever either. We'll meet, on a battlefield, and you'll be the hardened veteran, while we'll be the awesome rookies. We'll be rivals!"

The other two kids looked at each other, and nodded. "Yeah! Rivals!"

Drake's smile grew more. "I'm looking forward to it."

The sunrise came quickly, and Drake was gone with the darkness. The Gustav chugged merrily, as if it was happy to be moving at last as well. Even the ferocious mouth of the Blood Demon seemed to be grinning as they left the sleepy little town Drake had grown up in. "So guys!" he said, talking to his Zoids. "We're going to the ZBC Headquarters! Time to get registered!"

"Alright," the lady in the official ZBC uniform said. "Just sign here, fill in your team name here, initial here, here and here, and we'll issue you your Zoid Gear in the next few minutes." Drake nodded, and signed, initialed, signed, and input his team name. "Ok, just go pull your Zoid into the area labeled B, and our Inspector will come out with your Zoid Gear. He'll also inspect your Zoid and make sure it's battle ready. If it proves to be so, he'll issue a ZBC ID chip for it."

Drake nodded and walked out of the ZBC lobby. Honestly, for an appointment that took five minutes, why was he required to present himself two hours ahead of time?! Those were his sentiments as he piloted the Bloody Demon into the aforementioned area. The grunts and grinding of the gears seemed to agree with him, with a even a small roar as he ranted on about the annoying lady with her two kids who came to try and find Brad Hunter's autograph. The two kids were even younger and brattier then the three back home!

He had been ranting for so long that he only vaguely realized when someone came towards his mighty dinosaur, and it didn't actually occur to him that it might be for him until the man knocked on Demon's leg. With a push of another button, Drake's chair slid down on a motorized system and stopped right at the in it's right leg. "Inspector, I presume." Drake said as he exited his Zoid.

"That I am, that I am." The man said, his full and jovial voice at odds with his rail-thin physique. "Now, I'll just need some more information. You are…"

"Drake. Drake Osominus."

"Alright, Mr. Osominus. And how long have you been owned this fine specimen of a Bloody Demon?"

"I've been reassembling it since I turned eight, so about… twelve years now. "

The man took it in stride, as if nothing could surprise him. Honestly, nothing probably could. He had been doing this inspecting job for a long tine, after all. "Alright, Mr. Osominus, if there're any secret weapons you've installed in this, I'm going to need you to tell me about them. They won't go on the battle roster until they've actually been used, but they will be filed with your dossier."

Drake nodded, and began explaining. At the end, the Inspector's eyes were wide to say the least. "That IS inventive. I never would have thought of that. Now, I'll just go through a quick inspection, charting down any changes you've made from the original. Afterwards, I'll give you the Zoid ID chip, and you'll have to implant it before you have any battles."

Drake nodded, and rubbed his hands together eagerly. This would be the perfect time to show off his demon's extensive armaments, and tell them to someone who would understand them. After all, while the kids back home said Ooooh and Aaaah with the best of them, they didn't truly understand what it was. "Alright. Let's get started!"

An hour later, the inspector was walking out of the Bloody Demon with stars in his eyes. "So… many… weapons!" he gasped out. Shaking his head, he cleared his mind as he read back from his clipboard. "Alright, so here's a brief rundown. You've got shield generators in conjunction with micro missiles in the head, a laser cannon in every joint on this thing, a tail cannon, shrapnel grenade launchers in the toes, a hidden Railgun, two anti-air missile launchers equipped to fire sixteen per shot in the shoulders, an accelerated double-shot armor piercing launcher on each arm, hidden laser blades in one hand, fingers converted into vulcans in the other hand and a charged-particle cannon in the mouth?"

"Nah, Nah." Drake said, shaking his head. "Those charged-particle cannon is too hard to charge without a good source of power. I converted it into a Buster Cannon until I get one."

The inspector shook his head again, this time in disbelief. "Is there a specific reason you packed enough firepower in here to start a war, or is it just because you like to make things explode?" Drake gave him a look that could only be interpreted as 'Duh!' The man sighed. 'Another explosion fanatic. Honestly, sometimes I wonder why I have this job. I mean, last night, my wife asks me how my day goes. I can't say 'Gee honey, I just saw a man our son's age go off with a permit to use enough weapons to level a city!' What a conversation.!' The inspector shook his head again, and handed over the Zoid ID chip.

"Alright, here's the class briefing." He started. "All teams are divided up into several classes. The lowest is D, and the highest is S. Everyone starts off as a D. In order to advance a class, there are two ways. In the first, you win a number of battles or defeat one foe that's a higher rank then you. If you beat someone of a higher rank, you instantly get promoted to that class. The only exception is the transition from A to S class. To make that move, you have to either get the personal stamp of the ZBC or win the Royal Cup. No other ways. Even beating an S-classer will only get you bumped up to A. Understood?"

Drake nodded, and ran back to his Demon. Perfect! He had his info, he had his Zoid Gear, he had everything he needed. Now… to battle!

Sadly for Drake, battle found him much quicker then he wanted it to. Actually, battle hit him square on the head, and made him stagger backwards, seeing stars. As he sat on the ground, rubbing his head, he heard another voice, one that sounded far more mechanical then the usual voice. "Oh my, I am so sorry! It was my mistake after all, not checking if there was anyone in my path when I turned that corner." As Drake's vision cleared, he discovered the reason the voice sounded so… robotic. It was, after all, coming from a robot.

"Sebastian, did you find the owner?" A whining voice from behind the Demon sounded. "Come on, I want to get this baby home with me!" The robot straightened, and seemed to grow more formal.

"Excuse me, sir." The robot, or Sebastian as his owner had called him, said. "Would you happen to be the owner of this fine Zoid?" Drake, now confirming that he did not have a concussion and that this actually was a robot talking to him, could only nod. "Excellent!" Sebastian continued, once again in that excessively formal voice. "My master, the world-renowned Zoid battler, Harry Champ, son of the famous Champ Corporation head Bernard Champ, has expressed interest in your Zoid. He wishes to purchase it. All you really need to do is name your price and the money shall be yours." After his speech had concluded, Sebastian slumped a bit, and turned around to look behind the Demon. "Harry!" he yelled. "I can't believe you made me say that!"

Drake got up, slowly dusting himself off. He looked around the Bloody Demon's legs and was treated to perhaps the oddest looking man he'd ever seen. The man's hair was slicked back, somehow leaving an odd mix between a crew cut and a style often used to imitate horns. His bright yellow jacket was glaring, and clashed with everything else he wore. He looked up as Drake approached, and without bothering the slightest with courtesy, said "So, how much is it? I'm a very wealthy man, and would pay any price you'd name."

Somehow, Drake didn't think that this boy was used to not getting what he wanted. 'But, well, there's a first time for everything.' He thought. "Sorry, but the Bloody Demon's not for sale."

Yep, this kid was definitely not used to the word No. "Don't be unreasonable." Harry said, somehow making it sound like he was reprimanding a small child. "With the money I'm offering you, you can just go buy another Zoid!"

Drake slowly shook his head. "Sorry, but I've worked too long, too hard on this Demon not to use it in competition."

A light seemed to go on inside Harry's brain. "You say that you're a Zoid Battler?" Drake nodded hesitantly, and Harry grinned. Contrary to popular belief, he did actually have a brain underneath all that hair. 'If he's a Zoid Battler here, then he's registering a new Zoid. This seems to be his only one, so he probably hasn't had a battle yet.' "I'm challenging you to a Zoid Battle! When I win, I get to take this Zoid off your hands!"

Drake looked at him as if he were insane. "And what would I get if I win?"

"Why, simply being on the field with Harry Champ, the crown prince of B-class, should be enough!"

As he opened his mouth to tell Harry where exactly he could go stick his offer, some of the inspectors words came to mind. In order to get up in classes, he would either have to beat a certain number of people, or beat one person in a higher class. If he beat this guy, he'd rocket straight up to B! "Deal!" he said.

Hours later, Drake was gearing up for his first Zoid battle. Across the sandy plain stood Harry in his Zoid. Quickly, Drake inspected the Dark Horn that the eccentric pilot had probably spent fortunes on. It was sleek and scratch free, signifying that Harry probably spent, or made others spend, hours buffing and painting it daily. But it was an impressive piece of machinery, none the less. It had many guns bristling, and seemed to be much more reinforced then regular Dark Horns.

A whistle in the air, followed by a crash, signified the arrival of the judge. Sure enough, the metallic white capsule opened up, revealing the imposing robot with its back to a giant monitor. "Attention! Attention!" It yelled, its voice being magnified by the capsule. "The surrounding thirty miles in now a designated Zoid Battlefield! Only Pilots and Personnel are allowed! Scanning… Scanning… Confirmed! This Battle is between the Champ Team and the Demolition Team! Battle Mode 0-52-1! Ready… FIGHT!" It crossed its arms, signaling the start of the match.

With a roar, Drake activated the Demon's primary offensive systems. The Dark Horn, sensing attacks, began an evasive pattern. It didn't start it a moment too soon, as Drake cut loose with the vulcans in one of the hands. The patter of machine gun bullets on the ground was music to Drake's ears, and he grinned with excitement and malice. Evidently, the Dark Horn didn't like the defensive, and charged into combat.

The viewers around Zi would later describe the battle as something special. Harry would launch ballistic missiles, only to be countered by the same from the Demon's shoulders. Bullets were avoided or absorbed, and lasers were met with others of their brethren.

The Bloody Demon bent down, putting its head level with the Dark Horn. At the same time, its mighty tail curled around, pointing its blaster at the foe. With a yell, Harry punched a button and a glowing shield sprang into existence. Not letting a little thing like a shield stop him, Drake roared out "BUSTER CANNON!"

The gigantic armor-piercing explosive-tipped bullet sprang from the gun in the Demon's mouth moving faster then mortal eyes could track it. With a crack, it impacted the shield surrounding the Dark Horn. There was a split second of silence was if the universe itself was holding its breath, which was interrupted by a might explosion as the ammo detonated.

When the smoke cleared, Harry's Dark Horn was smoking, but otherwise unscathed. Harry was panting inside his cockpit as he yelled "You bastard! The dent that thing made will take weeks to buff out!" Fueled by anger, the Gatling Gun on its back swiveled around, pointing straight at the Demon's head.

A barrage of bullets shot out, too fast for Drake to do anything but finish pressing a button he'd gone for when Harry's gun was moving. A shield of his own shot up around the cockpit, absorbing the crippling impact. As Harry was distracted, grenades began launching from the feet of the Demon. What Drake had not counted on, however, was auto-targeting system on the Dark Horn's Gatling. It spun much faster then Harry had made it move, locking on to the explosive projectiles. A quick spray detonated them, causing the shrapnel to fall harmlessly to the side.

Drake went for his next weapon, but his inexperience had led him to see what happened before arming himself with a backup plan. Harry capitalized on the split second pause, and sent the Dark Horn in for a devastating tackle. With a groan of metal, the Demon fell over onto its back. Drake groaned as he fell. It would take forever to get this thing to stand up on its own!

Miraculously, the command system didn't freeze. Harry stood over the fallen Demon, and slowly brought its primary weapon to bear. A video link popped up, and Harry's face appeared in Drake's cockpit. Sure enough, he was wearing a smug smile on his face as he said "So? Have you surrendered?"

Drake shook his head. "Not happening, dumbass." He grunted out. Slowly, his hand began inching towards a red button next to the radar on his control panel. Caught up in his gloating, Harry didn't even notice.

"Then prepare to fall, toppled by the man who is destined to be king!" Harry crowed.

"Oh, Harry?" Drake said, a new note in his voice. His hand had reached the button. "YOU CAN FUCKING DIE!" he screamed, and pressed it. There was a crash of breaking metal as one of the armor plates on the Demon's nose exploded. From the hole, Drake's Railgun extended, pointing directly at the central body of the Dark Horn. A bolt of blue plasma shot through the air, briefly stopping to rip through the Zoid. With a crash, the Dark Horn fell, it's command system frozen.

"This battle is over! Repeat: This battle is over!" The judge yelled. "The Champ Team is unable to battle! The winner is: The Demolition Team!"

"Sweet!" Drake yelled. "B-class!" As cries of victory filled the cockpit, even the Demon reared back and roared in primal dominance. And across Zi, everyone watched as a new battler was born. Some prepared to battle. Some prepared to run. And some others? Yes, the others opened their wallets. But that is a tale for another day.

Zoid Index:

1. The Bloody Demon. A Deathsaur type Zoid, lifted from Zoids Legacy for the GBA. It is naturally mounted with heavy weaponry, but Drake has pretty much added any part he could find.

2. Gustav. The basic trailer Zoid, found anywhere that Zoids are.

3. Dark Horn. Another dino based Zoid, also found many places. Harry's Dark Horn is heavily customized, and is one of his two Zoids of choice in the series along with the Iron Kong.