The sun shone over the the opposite horizon, blinding the Zair. Shadows that had once been lengthening were beginning to shrink. The shadow that had loomed over the newly-repaired mechanism was fading away as the first sun rose slowly into the sky. 17 hour days and 26 hour nights were the mainstay on this planet. It took quite a getting use to from Earth's 24 hours, but the pay here was better, as was the competition. The missions aside, the battles were much more intense here than back on Earth.
Sliding over and behind a huge standing rock, one of the trip wires he set set off the silent alarm. 323 meters to the southwest stood his opponent, a massive concrete wall with teeth on legs. Slower moving than even the pilot in the early morning, the hulking beast made no attempts at stealth as it creeped over the rubble, its tank-like treads hovering above the ground. The mech was a massive piece of metal it looked like battle-scared and armed to the teeth. In fact, the Zair's pilot wouldn't be surprised if it did have teeth...
Armed without a blade, in its place wore a shield about half the mech's height. It was casually at its side, almost touching the ground, scraping dirt every once in a while. It stopped as the Zair returned behind its outpost, each pilot checking for signs of the enemy.
245 meters away, the Zair took its chance. This would have to be a hit and run, as one solid blow from either of the shoulder mounted cannons would easily destroy half, if not all, of the lighter monstrosity. With a flick of a switch, the overboosts were activated as the Zair stepped into the sunlight.
Firing two shots, it flew southeast as a singular mortar hit its former hiding place. The rock structure collapsed immedaitley, making the Zair thankful for its decision to move. In changed vectors in order to get behind the tank, having difficulty keeping the agile Zair in front of it.
Seven blips later, the targeting system acquired the maximum number of locks. The Zair waited before the next rock column passed before launching the sinister salvo once again. The tank - aptly named "Golem" - was still trying to turn to face its enemy.
The missiles neared 30 meters as Golem turned to face them. The Zair had escaped once again down a cliff wall - and out of radar - as the pilot focused his own on his warheads. 10 meters...
Golem's right arm sprung into action, the chain gun finally ready to release its fury. The clicking of the small bullets as they escaped the barrel was heard even by the Zair; countermeasures fired lasers, detonating the missiles before they got too close.
42 missiles launched, 37 bullet cases on the ground, five lasers had discharged.
Zair dropped the missile pack, easily 150 kilograms - when empty. It flexed it shoulder, getting a feel for the lightened load. He just realized that his targeting system registered no successful attacks, though no more of his missiles were in the air. A warning buzz emitted in the cockpit as the pilot instinctively activated the overboost, and with good timing. Just as they kicked in and sent him away once more, a trio of mortars danced upont the spot where he had just been sulking.
Not only did his missiles utterly fail the Zair, but his opponent found him without the aid of radar.
This was going to be quite the battle.
It rose again to an altitude level with the waiting Golem, facing it directly as the chain gun rapped off in small bursts. Zair moved left to dodge and got pelted, and switched directions into the path of the bullets. It kept moving this way, on hopes that the bullets would again shoot off to its left as it moved right, but it still only was showered by the pellets.
The overheated alarm light flicked on without a sound as the pilot again activated the overboosts. It would circle around the Golem once more on hopes of catching a breath, using his opponent's atrocious agility against it. As they boost kicked in and the Zair circled the enemy, it was pelted in the front by the chain gun as the temperature kept rising. How could it be that the Golem was turning at the speed at which the Zair itself circled?...
The answer became obviously painful as it reached its destination and stopped, hoping that the bullet hits were a freak accident as its energy reservers were nearing their critical point - he couldn't have gone further if he wanted to. A massive object struck the left arm, blowing it to bits as the red flames blended with the red paint, sending the Zair onto its back and a good distance as well, dangerously near the cliffside complete with a 300 meter drop.
The overheat alarm was ringing - the radiator has having a hard time cooling the generator as it struggled to restore power at its heightened temperature. Zair had the sense to roll over to the right as yet another mortar whizzed past; if it had connected, not only would the match be over, but so would his life. He had a notion to stay still as two more mortars flew by on either side of him. All fire stopped as the Golem began to surch forward, thinking his prey ripe for harvesting.
Zair got up on its feet as it stood still and avoided a barrage of bullets from the Golem's right arm. Any rifle attacks would be futile - the shield was raised and would absorb most if not all of the energy rifle. The gatling cannon would prove equally as useless - it was hanging on by a thread of stell. The Zair hopped into the air to avoid yet another mortar that was aimed at its legs. As it hit the ground, the force of impact tore loose the hanging weapon as it hit the dirt with a dull thud.
And so there stood the Zair, looking as if it had been put into a blender, with one arm, no back weapons and only a rifle left for a weapon. Arcoss it stood the Golem, in nearly pristine condition, save for a few scuffs on its shield. Zair had only one option left... The weapon it housed within its core. Zair feigned a shift right behind another towering rock column before it stopped in half-step, the second moment actually stepping behind the newly destroyed rocks that had had their first meeting with a mortar.
The Zair would have to be within a few meters of the Golem for the weapon to have any effect at all. The only way this could be accomplished would be a head on rush without regard to anything but the need to get near the seemingly invincible beast.
It activated the overboosts once more as it rushed forth, and veered to the right and left at odd and random intervals - something that the Golem's pilot could not predict nor could even the Zair's pilot know what he was doing. He allowed his knees to hit the controls as he prepared the neccessary measures for the ace up his sleeve.
Indeed, bullets few passed as they missed their mark and flew off into the distance, as mortars hit the ground behind or in front of the speedy red mech. At nearly ten meters, the energy reseviors automatically shut off to save energy for a final flight and fire - the Zair hopped into the sky, its feet hanging at the level of the Golem's head. It came down upon it and jammed the tip of its rifle inbetween the enemy's core and the left arm - and fired.
The explosion that followed knocked away the red metal as the red flames rose around it. It once again lay lying on its back, awiting the opponent's approach. It would be able to use the weapon once more...
Golem angirly up to its victim, frustrated at a flawless victory that had splipped through its hands. The chaingun on it right arm hung in midair above the Zair, whose pilot was already initailizing the sequence for its now-not-so-secret weapon. The core opened up as metal parts moved and reorganized, white light spilling forth as the beak-like chest opened what looked like a mouth; it would have to be one more draw...
The Golem's right arm sunk into the light, firing off rounds and rounds of ammunition into the exposed core. The light disappeared for a moment, before it again shone again, temporarily blinding the Golem's pilot.
The viewers safe in their houses could not believe that what would happen next; they were expecting the same outcome as the Zair's last match on earth.
The light was cut off again, if only for a brief moment, to be replaced by the blinding flash of an explosion - the weapon had malfunctioned with the added stress of the damage and along with its previous usage, and it backfired, literally, straight into the ground and straight through the Zair. The Golem merely stood as bits of red shrapnel hit its own metal body, the explosion causing not one bit of harm to it.
The Golem came out victorious from these preliminary rounds; the Zair knocked out of the tournament.