Zoids Original: Mirage Fox Story
Translated May ~ June 2013
(Originally posted to Phenotype's
Zoids Forum)
Contents: Part 1 | Part 2 | Bios | Footnotes
PART 1:[1] "Tis and Kai"
[1]
The battle between the Republic and Empire armies on the Central Continent of Planet Zoid still continued on ceaselessly.
And that battle was about to reach this small, quiet village in the north of the Central Continent--.
"Sorry about the wait. I've made some tasty stew."
Yard, a Zoid Mammoth pilot responsible for transporting goods for the Republic army, called out to the siblings.
"Wow, it smells great! Let's eat! Oh yeah, sir, tell us about Earth again!"
The girl who said this with sparkling eyes was Tis, who had been found by Yard in a snowy forest a few years ago, and since then had been brought up as if she were his actual child.
Tis' older brother, Kai, spoke after her.
"Haven't we heard that story heaps of times already? Long ago, in order to find a planet they could migrate to, the people of Earth got on board a spaceship called Zoic Noa and came to Planet Zoid - right, sir?"
"Indeed, and that's why the civilisation of the planet called Earth, our home world, has been inherited by Planet Zoid. The story also says that the genes of creatures that lived on Earth were inserted into the Zoids."
Yard loved these times, when the three of them would sit around the dining table while having silly conversations.
"When you're finished eating, you can come play with Foxy and Luxy."[2]
"Okay!"
Once the two of them finished their meal, they nimbly cleaned up the cutlery and ran off towards the hangar.
"Foxy! Luxy!"
As if they had been waiting for Tis and Kai to call, the two fox-type Zoids, Mirage Foxes, raised their heads.
Perhaps because they and the Zoids had spent their lives together ever since the two were young, they understood each other's feelings.
Watching the situation over the windowsill, Yard thought to himself.
"They really are mysterious kids. It's almost as if they're having a conversation with the Zoids. When I found them sleeping in the forest and brought them home with me, their eyes were dark and cold and they rarely spoke, but now they're making such happy faces."
Yard smiled like a father watching over his children.
And so, another peaceful day was about to end.
[3]
At that time, to the north, a force led by Byan, an ace pilot of the Empire army who piloted a Dimetrodon, was on standby amid the swirling[3] snow.
"There don't seem to be any signs of enemies in this area. We'll continue the advance."
Having confirmed that there were no life signs on the radar of the Dimetrodon, which was loaded with the latest electronic equipment, Byan gave the instruction to his subordinates.
"......!? Sir, looks like Foxy and Luxy sensed something!"
Tis, who had excellent hearing, picked up the sounds of moving Zoids from within the darkness of the forest that extended into the distance, and quickly estimated the number of enemy machines.
"It's... Empire army Zoids! ...5...10 machines! They're advancing towards the village!"
"Sir, leave it to us! We won't let them invade the village!"
"You can't! You don't have any combat experience. And moreover, 10 machines... There's no way you could win."
The moment Yard tried to grab her arm, Tis jumped back in an agile motion.
"Don't worry, you just stay here, sir! No matter what!"
Tis' face, which had been innocent until now, suddenly changed into a stern expression.
"Let's go, brother!" "Alright!"
The two quickly ran towards the hangar, and gallantly climbed into Foxy and Luxy.
When Tis put on her specially-shaped headset, Foxy's hearing synchronised with Tis' hearing.
"Wait! Tis, Kai!"
Yard yelled as he came out of the house, but Foxy and Luxy were already leaving the hangar. Yard's voice was drowned out by the sound of the snowstorm.
Yard got into his Zoid Mammoth and tried to chase after them, but the radar showed no signs of them, and his vision was obstructed by the snowstorm.
"Tis, Kai... Please come home safe."
"Here we go, Foxy - Wing Blades on!"
When Tis called out, the blades on Foxy's back deployed.
"Luxy, begin combat!"
Kai also called out, giving his decision of battle.
The two machines headed towards the Empire army force like a lightning flash, tinged with pale light in the dark night.
"This is the first machine of the advance guard! Major Byan, two enemy machines have suddenly appeared. We engaged them, but our first, second and third machines are already half wrecked and cannot fight! The enemy machines are heading your way."
"What...!? Nothing's showing up on my radar!"
"They suddenly appeared from inside the snowstorm! The enemies are using a high-penetration Laser Vulcan and a cutting weapon."
"Hmmm... This is Byan; Buster Head unit, attack towards 12 o'clock at maximum speed!"
The Empire army's Buster Heads launched a fierce attack towards Foxy, which moved around as it pleased through the intense snowstorm.
"It's... so fast! Our bullets won't hit it! It's showing a speed close to 300km/h."
"Impossible! Even the Shield Liger, the Republic's fastest, can only reach 250km/h!"
"This is an unidentified machine!"
"Brother, I can hear them... diagonally ahead and to the left!"
"Got it."
Tis advised him of the enemies' locations through their sounds, and Kai's Luxy accurately pierced the enemies with its Laser Vulcan.
Tis' Foxy also approached the enemies with ever-changing appearance, and cut them up precisely with its Wing Blades.
Sensing a crisis, Byan went further into ambush preparations.
"...The enemies are approaching at high speed! In that case, I'll launch an attack personally."
Byan gave a weak smile.
"Heheheh, my radar is a high-efficiency all-weather model. Since you've come in close, I've caught your signal."
Byan's Dimetrodon, which specialised in electronic warfare, fired a guided missile.
It looked like it had definitely hit the signal on the radar, but that signal was still being displayed to the right of the missile impact point.
"Wh-what!? That should have been locked on...!?"
Having avoided the Dimetrodon's missile attack, Foxy and Luxy commenced their own cooperative attack, communicating with high-frequency contact calls. Because of it, Byan's force's formation collapsed in an instant.
"Nggh...!"
Byan put his left hand to his mouth and thought, then gave an order.
"All machines, retreat! I'm changing our mission from the current one! Bringing back data of combat with the unknown Zoids is our highest priority."
Byan's force retreated, having been toyed with by Foxy and Luxy, Zoids they had never seen before.
"Looks like they've left already. We're safe now."
When they confirmed that the enemy machines were retreating, the siblings showed their still-innocent smiles.
Yard learned from a transmission from the Republic that a mid-sized force of the Empire army had invaded the area, then retreated after only two hours.
"What are you saying? Those kids drove away the Empire army...? How could those kids have such power..."
[6]
The night ended, the fierce snowstorm completely settled, and a quiet morning came, just as usual.
"It's like them repelling the Empire army was a lie. How could such combat instincts be hidden in those kids, playing so innocently...
Who on earth are those kids?"
"Sir! Come here, let's play together!"
The siblings called, and while Yard still held some simple doubts, he tried not to think about them too much. He felt that if he thought about them, he would lose those children.
"For now, I shall treasure this warm life with those two as if they were my own children."
PART 2:[4] "Resistance on the Snow"
[1]
...5 years ago, as Yard was returning from delivering food supplies to a Republic army transfer station, he was suddenly engulfed in a thick fog inside a forest, his radar stopped working, and he lost sight of even his own location.
Within that white darkness, he spotted something shining faintly. When he moved closer, what stood there were two stooping Zoids he had never seen before.
They were combat Zoids that had already been given weaponry, but they had no fuselage marks.
He slightly regretted having approached carelessly, but for some reason he didn't feel he would be attacked.
Before long, the two machines moved towards him, and just as if they were bowing, slowly lowered their heads and opened their cockpits.
Inside them were children... a girl and a boy were sleeping in the two machines. They were Tis and Kai, and this was his meeting with Foxy and Luxy.
For a soldier, it would be natural to report this to one's force, but Yard didn't feel like reporting this incident.
He had a hunch that if he reported it, these children would be caught up in the fires of war.
That was Yard's intuition, having seen this thing called war for a long time.
Yard decided at that moment. He would think of these children as a blessing from the gods, and would bring them up as his own....
A fortnight had passed since then[5] when late one night, a sleeping Tis jumped to her feet.
"Brother, enemies are coming again! And it seems like this time, there's more than before!"
"Got it, Tis!"
Kai pressed the button on the alarm device. A siren sounded out for the first time in the small village.
"What is it?"
Yard rushed in, confused.
"Sir, the Empire army is coming.... Get everyone in the village to evacuate!"
Kai stared at Yard with serious eyes.
"...Okay, understood!"
Answering loudly, Yard rushed out of the room.
Suddenly, they heard something roar from the silent forest, and at the same time, a pale flash came in from outside the window and the noise of a huge explosion roared.
It was an invasion by Byan's force, which had added a Sabretiger force under his command.
"Last time I got beaten, but that's not about to happen this time. I'll make you pay back what you owe me. Sabre team, commence the attack, and bring out those fox cubs!"
Byan ordered in a high-strung voice.
The pair climbed into the Foxes amidst a storm of approaching bombardment, and prepared to intercept them.
"I wonder if the villagers managed to evacuate safely?"
"I'm sure they're fine, I spotted the Zoid Mammoth running in the direction of the village."
"Beyond this is our village, we won't let you get past us!"
The pair stepped forward while quickly taking evasive actions.
They were uneasy under the desperate circumstances, but then a Command Wolf appeared from the side like a gust of wind, and sank its teeth into the back of a Sabretiger's neck.
Sparks scattered from the Sabretiger's neck.
"A-are those the Republic army's Trap Commandos...!?"
[3]
"We spotted the flames of war, so we hurried over to join in. I don't know the reason, but you people have the Empire army for an enemy just like us. We shall assist you!"
It was the Trap Commandos, with the Command Wolf piloted by their leader Zappa[6] at the head.
"Damn, we've got interference! No matter, crush them all at once!"
Along with Byan's command, the 2-Barrelled Beam Guns equipped on the backs of the Sabretigers fired.
One of the Trap Commandos was destroyed by the beams.
Despite moving at a speed and distance where beams wouldn't usually hit it, it was shot 5 or 6 times.
"The enemy machines are being supported by the Dimetrodon's firing control. Be careful!"
Zappa shouted.
The firepower of Byan's force with a Sabretiger force added was tremendous, and the power of both sides competed.
At that time, as the ebb and flow of attack and defence continued, a transmission came in from Yard.
"I've evacuated the people of the village safely. Tis, Kai, you okay?"
Spotting the Zoid Mammoth charging in from the direction of the village, Tis shouted as though scolding Yard.
"Sir, why did you come back!?"
"Could I abandon my own precious children - both of you, dodge left and right, open up the middle."
Foxy and Luxy quickly jumped left and right.
At that instant, the flash of a beam ran straight between the two machines and hit a Sabretiger in front of them.
Yard volunteered himself to protect the siblings and Foxes.
However, after those few seconds, there was the sound of an explosion behind them.
It was the sound of the Dimetrodon's latest weapon, a new model of guided missile, impacting against the Zoid Mammoth from above.
"It's simple to hit a slow-witted Mammoth that walks in a straight line."
Byan muttered with a self-satisfied smile.
The Zoid Mammoth was destroyed, but Yard narrowly succeeded in escaping.
"...How dare you hurt him!"
Tis glared at the Dimetrodon with sharp eyes and spread out the Wing Blades.
The Wing Blades shone while producing a beautiful note.
The sound of the super-high-frequency vibrations resounded in Tis' ears.
She accelerated in an instant, and drew near to Byan.
"Next is those blasted fox cubs! Sabre force, I'm leaving the Trap Commandos to you!"
[5]
Byan aimed calmly, suppressing his feelings of anger, and accurately poured down Linear Laser Gun shots on Tis' Foxy as it plunged in headlong.
Taking shot after shot, Tis' Foxy lost its balance and collapsed due to the accumulating damage.
"D-don't, Tis! Calm down!"
"Ghh, brother...."
The Dimetrodon came nearer, and the barrels of its beam guns pointed at the unmoving Foxy.
"Ooh, now that I see it up close, it's a beautiful machine, suitable for my collection. Now where should I put holes in it to make it even prettier?"
As Kai went to help, a single Sabretiger blocked his path.
It was an ace pilot's machine with black shoulders.
It rapidly fired beams from its front. Kai's Luxy avoided them by sliding into them with a low posture, and at the same time jumped in one movement.
Its Laser Vulcan spun with a soft, continuous whirr, and arrows of light poured down from the skies and pierced the Sabretiger's body.
These were the acrobatics of the Mirage Fox, which had high jump power and could control its posture even in midair.
With that force, Kai and Luxy approached the Dimetrodon.
Kai determined his aim and pulled the trigger, but he was still some distance away, and the small-calibre Laser Vulcan with its short effective range could not give that much damage to the heavily armoured Dimetrodon.
"Insolent fox! I'll deal with you first!"
The Dimetrodon's missiles fired towards Luxy.
Luxy dodged them by a hair's breadth, but was sent flying sideways by the shockwave.
"Now, Tis! Go!"
Tis' Foxy approached the Dimetrodon. At that moment, the Wing Blades gave off a dazzling light and produced a beautiful note.
Foxy mustered its last power and sliced the heavily-armoured Dimetrodon in half with its Wing Blades at maximum output, finally destroying it.
[6]
"You two brave soldiers, we thank you!"
Zappa, leader of the Trap Commandos, bowed his head deeply, then led his team away.
The siblings climbed down from their Foxes and hurriedly ran over to where Yard was.
"...I'm okay now. I guess I was being reckless at my age.
But both of you are already fine adults."
"We're so glad you're safe... sir."
As the pair embraced Yard with relief, the brave expressions they had worn until recently disappeared, and they burst into tears like children.
Several days afterwards, the people of the village held a festival celebrating Tis and Kai's brave battle.
When everyone had fallen asleep, Tis and Kai got up stealthily, and each left a letter on the dining table.
They took a few photos out of the album in commemoration.
Closing the door to the house, the two loaded on their luggage, which they had gathered together in advance, and climbed into the Foxes.
"Have you turned on the switch for the silencing system?"
"...Yes, brother."
"Well then, stand up. If our transmissions get intercepted it'll be bad, so we'll cut off communications until the specified point. Keep up with me by eyesight."
"Understood..."
Tis' sobbing voice could be heard quietly.
"Don't cry. If we stay here, everyone in the village will be caught up in the fires of war. We mustn't stay here. You understand?"
"Yeah..."
Confirming Tis had answered in her almost vanishing voice, Kai cut off communications.
Tears were floating in Kai's eyes too.
Before the next morning came, the two white machines disappeared into the forest, illuminated by the slight glow of the crescent moon.
While half asleep, Yard suddenly felt something, opened his eyes and spoke.
"...Goodbye, Tis, Kai..."
Time flowed, and Yard passed away peacefully.
In a note he left in his last days, he wrote that "the two Mirage Foxes Tis and Kai drove were just like angels dancing in the sky".
It is reported that the Republic army later mass-produced the Shadow Fox based on the machines Foxy and Luxy.
MACHINE INTRODUCTION
Model name / Mirage Fox
A medium-scale, melee-type, high-manoeuvrability Zoid piloted by Tis.
It is equipped with Wing Blades as its main weapon, and spreading them like the wings of an angel, it leaps into enemy Zoids magnificently.
The edges of the Wing Blades, which vibrate at super-high frequency, give off a clear sound and light when their output is raised. They are able to cut through the armour and body of a standard medium-scale Zoid easily.
It has excellent acceleration, mobility, turning and jumping abilities, and as it is also equipped with a silencing system, optical camouflage and smoke dischargers that disrupt radar, it excels at secretive activities.
Model name / Mirage Fox
A Zoid piloted by Kai which uses shooting as its main weapon, contrasting with Tis' Foxy which specialises in melee.
It toys with enemy machines with its ever-changing appearance, using the weather and terrain, and fires into them with the Laser Vulcan mounted on its back.
It performs cooperative combat while communicating with Foxy using directed ultrasonic waves.
A Zoid based on the Zoid Mammoth - which specialised in shooting attacks and could also handle melee battle, using the beam gun on the tip of its trunk and its large tusks specialised for combat - that raised its mobility by converting it to small-scale. It captures enemy machines with its ear-shaped radar and fires beams at them. Its shooting abilities have high precision. Moreover, although it is a general purpose machine suited to transport and civil work, it is a powerful small-scale machine.
Its abilities have been increased by giving mobility-style customisation, for instance to the undercarriage and tail, to the all-purpose Dimetrodon, which does battle using electronic warfare such as reconnaissance, analysis and jamming.
It can be equipped with all kinds of missiles, and with its superior electronic warfare equipment and accurate sniping using its Guided Laser Guns, it is a newly produced machine whose total combat power has been increased remarkably compared to ordinary machines.
It also performs shooting control automatically for the ally machines around it, and has become a machine that is surely appropriate for a commander.
A melee-type Zoid of the Empire army possessing a heavily armoured head and the ability to rapidly start moving from a standstill[7].
Its simultaneous attack, combining a charging headbutt and the Laser Bazooka mounted on its head, displays tremendous force.
CHARACTER INTRODUCTION
Name / Tis (age 13)
She is the owner of a bright and active personality, but when in combat, she moves towards enemies with daring actions.
She skillfully evades enemy attacks using her excellent hearing and brings them into close combat, her strong point.
Name / Kai (age 15) [Ki]
Tis' older brother. A boy who is usually quiet, and although young, is well-advanced in ingenuity.
His strong point is shooting tactics, skillfully making use of the terrain with his precise judgements of the situation and calm but detailed thoughts.
Name / Yard Bans (age 56)
A reserve soldier who withdrew from the front line and now lives in a house-turned-supply base[8] on the village outskirts, in charge of supplying materials for the Republic. He is the owner of a gentle personality, and also acts as the foster father of Tis and Kai. Although it is called a supply base, his job is to deliver crops from the area to a transfer station within Republic territory, and until Tis and Kai came along, he and his Mammoth bore this mission alone. He often explains to the siblings in detail about the history of Earth and Planet Zoid.
Name / Byan Wilson (age 35)
A machine enthusiast possessing abundant funds and a high position within the Empire army, he is the best mechanic-soldier in the Empire army, and thinks there is nobody greater than himself when it comes to handling mecha. He is a machine maniac who captures and weaponises numerous Zoids, voluntarily heads to the battlefield working as a test pilot, and adds the wreckage of Republic army Zoids to his collection under the pretence of research. Making use of his position, he has a completely independent force[9], but he has achieved considerable results in battle so far and is renowned as an ace pilot.
FOOTNOTES
[1]: More literally, 'beginning part' and 'end part'.
[2]: I still refuse to call it 'Lukexy'. I'm also sticking with 'Kai' over 'Ki' for now.
[3]: The actual verb is 降りしきる ('pouring', as in rain), but that sounds weird for snow. 'Driving', perhaps?
[4]: Like in Part 1, this literally means "end part".
[5]: "Then" meaning Part 1, not section [1], in case you didn't realise.
[6]: Okay, by now I'm pretty sure that these 60s/70s music references are deliberate (see Invasion of the Dark Army for others).
[7]: A shorter translation of 瞬発力 might be nice.
[8]: The word used here (兼) actually means 'both at the same time', but I couldn't think of a fitting one-word equivalent.
[9]: I'm not entirely sure what this phrase ("完全な独立部隊だが") is saying.
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