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The area was teaming with Rogues.

Perfect for Talon and Tyrant to blend in! Duh.. Even the Republic had a hard time determining of the lovely green hull was friend, enemy, or kill on sight. So far, that pause had nearly cost him his zoid, but hey! He was out and about and on leave and cleared all the paperwork for taking the Tyrant out of the base on non-military issued orders.

It was nice. Or was if a silly little MRZ hadn't stashed away in his cockpit and decided to press every single button on the console ( thank goodness Moe didn't press the buttons in order to initiate combat sequence) with glee. It was cute in a really, really annoying way. It caused a minor system to overheat ...air conditioning.

"Moe!! I'll burn you alive when we get back to base..." He could have continued on, but seriously, there was this rather nifty encamptment not too far off, looked to be a lot of Rogues and Unaligned folk. Lively too... And there seemed to be a vacant spot near this rather colorfully tagged Liger.

Talon raised an eyebrow at the rather interesting siding design, and shrugged it off. Probably got in a fight with a paint can on purpose to make something like that. Ah well..that was art.

The servo motors of the Rev Raptor slowed down to a dull hum as the bipedal Zoid stopped in its tracks. They sounded up again as the Raptor widened its stance, lowered its canopy and let its two occupants hop out. One with a gasp of relief that the outside was sort of cooler than the inside. The other with a mechanical bark and hoot. The squishy one dug back in the canopy for his bag of vital stuff, which included a .35 calibur hand gun and ammunition in case he needed to be persuasive. The canopy of the Zoid shut with loud hiss and the Raptor stood up again, settling itself into a more comfortable position of standby.

Talon looked up at his proud machine and patted its large talon, "Just sit tight and cool yourself off. Good job thwarting Moe... " At that moment the pilot looked down at his side for the little dino like dog that he had grown really attached to. Moe was gone! "Damnit to Hel! MOE!" For an MRZ that's soul purpose was to keep its companion stress free, it sure caused a lot of stress.

That said, Moe was charging at the pilot perched on the feet of the Liger barking happily. It wanted to greet this person that looked like that cranky boy that Talon bickered with all the time. Roughly translated the hoots and honks and barks the MRZ was emitting was " OMG! Squishy thing! HI squishy thing! Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi! Hiiii! " Because it was so heavy and the size of a healthy domestic Ram, it had this slight trouble with stopping.

Following the bouncing monster thing was Talon, "Look out! " he called, having just located the direction the rogue MRZ ran. What a way to meet people....Sigh.

It was a bit odd to be attacked for snuggles by a mechanical creature. Some could call it frightening, if it was done in a sudden and unexpected manner. Moe just wanted affection. Talon was just grateful that a gun hadn't been pulled on his little annoying snug-able MRZ.

Moe barked and leaned into this person trying to get a good look at the face. Since it was difficult to nuzzle something in an upright position, reclining or prone figures were seen to be the best for the job. Hence the run and tackle. It was forgotten that squishies were rather squishy and prone to bleeding and brusing. Moe didn't understand why he was being shoved off, but he obeyed when he heard his master calling after him in that always wonderful 'look out'.

Talon skidded on his heels to a halt, and then blinked as he saw his little MRZ give a bark of ' hi thar master! Look what I found! Its squishy! Can I keep it?' A few blinks and Talon turned his gaze to the human that had been glomped--for lack of better words. Talon's head tilted to the side in vague recognition, but then vanished at the less than formal greeting. 'Dude' and 'aye' were the keywords. Guy wasn't gonna kill either of them. Good.

"Moe...Down...Sit...stay...no running off and tackling little old ladies with sub-machine guns. "

The mini machine sat on its bum with a thum, staring up at the Liger and then at the Liger's squishy with a tilt of the head. The Thump continued...it was trying to wag its tail with minor success. Yay! Master was talking to it!

With that chaos out of the way, Talon gave the rather badgered man a crooked and apologetic smile, "Sorry about that. Moe just runs off and has to tackle anyone that looks like a friendly. I'll pay for any damages the monster might have caused. " A stern glare was given to the Zoid thumping its tail and looking completely innocent. Talon sighed. Darn thing always won these things.

That was hard to believe, what Talon just heard. But He wouldn't say anything other than a nod and a sigh of relief that he wouldn't be signing over his next pay-check due to some stupid action he didn't cause.

"I'll take your word for it. "

Moe's tail stopped thumping for a moment as he tilted his head to the side and blinked up at the large Liger, and gave a hoot of an apology. Might as well. Squishy man probably would demand it sooner or later. Then the steady thump of the stub trying to wag started up again.

The bag was pulled over a shoulder and a hand was thrust into a jean pocket. Talon saw no need to be at arms with this guy... Seemed like a decent fellow...for a rogue that is. Talon caught the glance towards his Zoid, and an eyebrow rose in mild curiosity to the reason why. "I'm passing through to a town several miles east of here on a day trip. Moe managed to overheat my Raptor's climate control system. I'm stuck until it cools down, or I find someone that'll sell me about ten gallons of coolant fluid. " He figured being as honest as possible , "Water would do just fine though." he snickered, "I'm guessing coolant is cheaper though. "

Something was bugging Talon about this man. Looked familiar. Then again, he had a horrible memory for faces and names. The questions about the age of his mechanical companion was slightly off putting. "We recently got acquainted, if that is what you're referring to. " Nope...Not going to say that the Tyrant was specially built just for him. Could give away more than what was needed, and in this place, that was stupid and a rookie move.

Talon grinned and cast a bored look up at the art on the side of the Xyn, "Interesting paint job. How much did you pay for it? " Probably not a lot, mused Talon, but hey...he was just being polite and showing interest. The fact that the guy had a liger said something. Could be stolen, could be bought, or could just have been wild wandering about. Not his place to ask.

Oh. It would be an interesting story alright... Probably would result in some choice information being released to hungry ears, but hey...a couple of drinks could weasel anything out of a person.

A slight frown crossed Talons face for a moment or two. Seriously... If he was going to pay double top dollar, this stuff better be free of any defects or...eh....He'd politly remind the "merchant" he didn't like being toyed with. Hence, why he brought his side arm with him. After he thought, and noticed the characteristic grin of the rouge, Talon shrugged, "As long as I get what I want, and still have money to buy several round of drinks, I'm sure that an arraignment could be made. " He patted Moe on the head and the MRZ spluttered a pleased chirping purr. "Your warning is noted...though I was already aware of the supply and demand in the middle of the desert. Thanks for the reminder. "


As polite as he could, Talon kept a close eye on the rogue that seemed to be eying his ride. There were others too, but the others would probably be dealing with claws and possibly a couple of rounds of amunition if they tried anything. Tyrant didn't like anyone other than folks it really knew even touching it! Picky Zoid. "Yah. Probably should have rolled him in the dirt a couple of times, " The pilot shrugged and smirked, "Heh... proud Zoids have difficulty getting themselves dirty on purpose. And if they're willing to try, let them. Green Tyrant isn't one to let morons near him." As if on cue, the odd colored raptor let out a loud hiss and slammed his long toes into the ground as a warning to the greedy thieves. It then shook itself out from head to tail before returning to standby. Talon...ignored this. Happened all the time.

He was oogling the paint job, "Really? That explains the drips and slips. Not bad... Not bad. " Talon wasn't covering his tracks. He figured the guy to be rather young so to show talent at that age was pretty interesting....the Zoid back then probably hadn't been thrilled..or whomever the Liger had formerly belonged to.

If it was possible, Talon's mood skyrocketed at the mentioning of a watering hole. He followed the direction of the motion, pondered the location and the company for a moment and grinned, "Sounds reasonable enough. " Moe leaned into Talon to get his attention and chirped again. Without looking down the pilot patted the MRZ on the head, or protective plate thingy, "Don't bowl folks over, Moe. Stay close. " The little thing chirped happily and continued leaning into Talon, who sighed heavily at this act. Attention was now back onto the rogue. "If I'm drinking with you, then a name would help. "

Was Talon gonna lead the way into the heart of a rogue camp? Eff noo! Not stupid to do that. Besides, a guide is useful..even if rogues thought only of themselves, it was still a guide.

"I think ya can find what ya want here." Ryn grinned at Talon, a large and goofy smile that showed off a cracked and chipped tooth, and motioned towards a few of the people milling about. "If anything, if ya cant find it here, Im sure someone can point ya to another camp on yer route that does have it. Probably for a cheaper price too."

Fixing the worn jecket tied around his waist, he glanced back at the mentioning for a name. "My name? Ryn." The rogue spun around and started walking backwards with a friendly hand outstretched to the newcomer. "Ryn Gunnar. A humble rogue serving as your guide. And whom might I have the pleasure of walking with today, hm?"

Ryn had to admit, he was starting to like this guy even though he had just met him. Yet....there was something familiar about him. Not to mention his ZOID was eating at the back of his mind too...and Ryn didnt like the feeling one itty bitty bit! ........Maybe Old Man could take his mind off his worries and woes. And speaking of the Old Man... They soon stood infront of the large tent/bar. Grinning again at Talon, Ryn gripped and flung open the tent flap with a great deal of flourish.

"OI! Old Man! Where's mah drink ya owe me?!"

"Boy, I ain't owe you nothin'." The old man set down the mug and tossed the rag over his shoulder. He took a good long look at the 'kid' standing net to him. Awkward that someone would follow Ryn anywhere, this guy was new and the old man pitied him a little.

"An' I suppose yer either the designated pilot or the one 'ose footn' the bill?" He pointed to Talon with his rag still in hand. Such a usual rogue trick on new comers.

]size=9]Talon was about to answer 'yes' to the tender but when his own money was waved away, he was rather short for words. Instead, Talon answered the old man with a mumbled, 'Apparently not...huh... '

Returning the currency back to his pocket, Talon picked up the cool drink, sniffed it, and figured that poisoning the watering hole was the dumbest idea that crossed his mind for a while. He just gave one ear to the rogue prattling on about robbing the rich to feed his own ego or something like that. "Not really...they own deeds. Or they're off on a pleasure cruse with no idea what lurks beneath the sands... you just jam their Zoid, rewire a few things and they can be lost for days, Zoid intelligence level depending. " Talon spouted without really thinking.

Then he was spoken about and eyed Ryn suspiciously. "Internal climate control seems to be on the fritz. Fluid is low. Need to replace it. " He explained in simpler terms and terms the old man could probably understand. This jibberish Ryn was speaking wasn't making any sense. "Though... I'm more then happy to go to the supplier themselves and cut out the middle man...especially one that is over eager to help. And loud... "

Moe, despite what his human was saying, bumped into Ryn's leg demainding some form of attention. Pft...rogue, Imperial, Republic...they all were squishy and all made for good automated petting machines. It let out a hoot and a honk for added effect too!