Chapter 30:
The Fall of the Raiders

	Three uneasy days later, the word came in - the line was broken. 
Skorara was exposed to an attack. Almost immediately, everybody that was 
going suited up with Xuon's amps, Pack weapons, and the will to win, and 
piled onto transports. This was the final battle. They all knew it. One side 
would win that day. Only one last thing had to be taken care of.
	"You take care of yourself out there," Samantha told Tobias. "I want 
you to be in perfect health when you get back."
	He smiled. "I will. I promise you." He gave her a kiss.
	"Wait, before you go, I have a good luck charm for you." She handed 
him a simple sting necklace. On the very end of it was the promise ring he 
gave her. "I want you to keep this with you when you fight Isthus. I'm 
giving it to you as a sign of my promise to you. I promise that I will be 
waiting here for you when you return."
	He took it and took her hands. "I promise that I will come back 
alive." She smiled and gave him a kiss.
	"Go get 'em, Lone Wolf."
	He smiled, tipped his railgun to her and headed into the Elite Guard 
transport.

****************************************************************************

	The Skoraran streets were empty. All civilians had been evacuated once 
the initial Pack blitzing had begun. Now all that were left were a few 
scattered patrols and a large number of troops that had been stationed to 
protect the capital. When the dust cloud that the transports kicked up 
appeared on the horizon, every soldier, police officer, and able person took 
up weapons and readied for a fight. Then the first, long blue beam struck a 
small building, causing it to explode, they started their return fire. The 
battle had begun.

	The first four transports skidded to a halt, their sides and backs 
opening up to allow Viper Sting members to pour out and return fire. The 
skilled band of rebels were quickly able to take cover and start removing 
enemy troops. D and Mink kept them organized, using a pair of headset 
communication devices and some crudely designed hand signals to organize 
movements. When the final fifth transport, holding the Elite Guard and, more 
importantly, Tobias rolled up, they moved into position to provide enough 
cover fire to make their arrival as safe as possible.

	The first thing that happened when the doors to that transport opened 
was for a second blue beam to fly out and strike a small group of soldiers. 
The ground exploded, sending bodies flying into the air. Then came the hail 
of gunfire - Crash and Psycho, Hack and Wrench, and Bomber taking up the 
front - as the Elite Guard marched forward. And right behind them, rail gun 
in arm, was Tobias. He pointed the gun at the horde of troops that they 
faced. "Attack!" he howled. Everybody started to move forward for the kill.

	But it wasn't exactly what they had planned for. There were far more 
Raiders than they had anticipated and they were forced to hold their 
position. "We can't get anywhere near them," Tobias shouted into his 
microphone. "Where the hell are all these Raiders coming from?"
	"They must have seen this coming," D responded, his voice crackling 
with the static in the headset. "And I've seen no civilians."
	"There are hundreds of buildings here. We've taking out at least a 
couple of thousand troops, perhaps even ten thousand. There can't be that 
many."
	"We can hold our own," Mink said. "But it'd be impossible for us to 
reach the capital building. Isthus and whatever governmental bodies they 
have in there could get away."
	"Shit!" Tobias aimed his railgun and fired again. More bodies kissed 
the sky. "We have to get in there, now!"
	"We can't do it!" Mink responded. "We don't have enough men yet."
	"What do you mean 'yet'?" A sudden howl went up from the other end of 
the city. "What the hell is that?"
	"That, my friend," D responded. "Is the cavalry." Behind the Raider 
forces, there was movement. Tobias couldn't tell how many different uniforms 
he saw. Twenty, maybe thirty different bands of rebels approached the 
battlefield. Another cry went up as they rushed to engage the Raider troops. 
The stunned Raiders turned half their forces to defend from the second wave.
	"Tobias," Mink called. "There's your window of opportunity. You know 
where the capital building is. Go and defeat this menace."
	"Gotcha my friend. You guys had better not get killed while I'm 
working."
	"We won't," D said. "We've got our amps and we've got our wits. We'll 
all be here when you return. You just keep your ass alive. We all want some 
of that wedding cake after this is done. Good luck."
	"Thank you. I will see you when this is all over. Lone Wolf, out." He 
turned to Crash and the other and nodded. "Let's move!" He plugged the gold 
chip, fully modified with the amp attachment, and plugged it into his 
headset. "Amplify!" His body began to molt, "shedding" away, revealing the 
armor and rail gun amplifications that came naturally to his person. With 
that, the six got up and moved right into the capital building.

	The capital building was in disarray. Whatever paper pushers were left 
were running through the large entryway, trying to find the nearest 
emergency transport to flee. Soldiers were on the move too, trying to keep 
everyone calm and trying to figure a way to save themselves as well. They 
didn't hesitate to start wasting everyone. The surprise was on their side; 
not a single shot was fired against them that wasn't off by a mile. They 
slowly trudged through the piles of bodies for the two huge doors ahead of 
them. On occasion, a soldier would appear from some hidden nook and start to 
fire on them. They were usually quickly wasted with a single shot.

	Suddenly, Bomber fell to his knees. "Not now," Wrench moaned. "Don't 
phase on us, Bomber. Not now."
	"I can feel something," he groaned, holding his head. "He's here."
	"Who's here?" Tobias asked.
	"It's...it's 'J'. He's still alive." They all looked at each other. "I 
can feel him around here."
	"Wrench, Psycho, stay here with Bomber," Tobias said. "Hack, Crash, 
we'll keep moving. You guys catch up with us if Bomber gets any better." The 
now unit of three started to move.
	"Pathetic human," a vile voice called out from the rafters.
	"That voice," Tobias said.
	"Bomber's right," Hack said.
	"He's here."
	From the rafters dropped the sleek, deadly jaguar. "We meet again, 
Lone Wolf," he said, staring straight at Tobias. "You did well the first 
time we fought. I never expected someone as weak as you to do so well. You 
got lucky."
	Tobias frowned. "You're still alive. I thought you died when we 
leveled the base."
	"I'm cybernetic. You should have known that. Just blowing me up isn't 
enough. You have to make sure I'm dead." He pointed straight at him. "I want 
your blood, Tobias. Lord Isthus has given me that chance. You, me, right 
here. We fight."
	"Don't listen to him," Crash said. "Just waste him."
	Tobias shook his head. "No Crash. This needs to be done." He took the 
railgun off his back. "Hold this."
	Crash looked at it and nodded. "You know what you're doing." He took 
the pack. "Now, kick his ass."
	Tobias smiled. "Don't worry Crash." He got into a stance. "I will."

	The first thing 'J' did was charge Tobias. Remembering what had 
happened on the hill so many months ago, he launched a jab at his stomach. 
Tobias quickly blocked it and sent a barrage of punches to the jaguar's jaw. 
They both danced back a little. 'J' hissed at him and raked his claws across 
the human's chest. With only a slight flinch, Tobias put his foot into 'J's 
stomach and flipped the other one in an arch. The second foot followed in a 
similar motion as soon as the first one connected with 'J's jaw. Both feet 
met in the air, came back around, and were sent into 'J's chest. He went 
flying, landing sprawled across the floor.
	"Had enough," Tobias taunted.
	"There is no reward for failure but death," 'J' howled as he struggled 
to his feet. "You'll have to kill me if you want me to surrender!"
	"Your choice. Bring it on." 'J' let out a final howl and, with 
whatever strength he had left, charged blindly at Tobias. With his claws 
extended, he raised his hands into the air to bring them down upon his head. 
Tobias reacted quickly, starting forward in a quick sprint.
	"You die now!" 'J' screamed as they closed in on each other. He 
started to bring his claws down, but stopped as soon as they intercepted 
each other. Tobias had thrown a punch to 'J's chest. The addition of the 
armor plating on his fist made his entire arm a sharp spike which had gone 
straight through. The jaguar stood there, stunned and dying.
	"It didn't have to be this way," Tobias said. "Forgive me." He lifted 
the jaguar's body into the air and slammed it into the ground behind him. He 
pulled his fist from the chest and looked into 'J's eyes. "Goodbye. Enjoy 
your next life." With that, he tightened his elbow and dropped it onto the 
jaguar's skull. It was crushed with the power from the blow. He slowly got 
up and looked at the body. It was over. The traitor to the Pack, once 
believed to have fallen with the base where Lone Wolf started his legend, 
was dead.

	Tobias blew the big doors off it's hinges with a blast of the rail gun. 
They fell forward with a satisfying thud. They stepped into the room, 
looking about. "It's an amphitheater," Hack said. "It's been used recently."
	Crash sniffed at the air. "There is one other here."
	"Very good," an old voice said. The room lit up, revealing the one who 
was speaking. He was an ancient looking lion. He wore robes that only led 
the three to assume that he was a member of some sort of high council. 
"Welcome to the Raider's meeting chambers. I mean you no harm."
	"Who are you?" Crash asked.
	"I am known as Rancourt," the lion said. "I am of the elder council 
and the father of Isthus."
	"Isthus," Tobias said. "Where is he?"
	"He is yet to arrive," Rancourt said. "He is not going to give up 
without a fight. You do know that."
	"We are aware. But why do you come to us like this?"
	"It's obvious. You've killed 'J'. You have defeated one of our 
greatest champions and have gained access to the High Council's chambers. 
You have defeated the entire Raider empire." He bows his head. "I am in no 
shape to fight. I will gladly surrender."
	Tobias smiled. "This better not be a joke."
	"It isn't. I can help you find the rest of my brother elders. We can 
help bring this war to an-" He suddenly jerked in pain.
	"Rancourt?"
	The elderly lion fell to his knees, revealing a large hand holding a 
smoking pistol. "You talk too much," Isthus' vile voice said. A foot 
appeared and kicked the elder to the ground at Tobias' feet. "Now shut up."
	Tobias knelt besides the lion. "You okay?"
	"No, I'm not okay." He sighed and rolled over. Blood was already 
starting to gush from his mouth. "The rest of the elders are at an 
encampment a few miles from here. Go find them."
	"I will."
	He coughed once. "Do me one favor."
	"Anything."
	"Isthus killed his own father. The hammer must fall." He coughed once. 
"Will you bring the hammer down?"
	He took the lion's hand. "I will. I promise."
	"Thank you. I go to my death knowing that my work will be done. 
Goodbye, Lone Wolf." The lion's grip was lost. His eyes rolled into the back 
of his head.

	Tobias slowly rose to his feet. "Disable," he said. The armor and 
amplifications disappeared. He took the railgun off his back and tossed it 
to Crash.
	"What are you doing?" Crash shouted. "Isthus will be able to kill 
you."
	Tobias ignored him and turned to Isthus. "Your own father," he said. 
"You killed your own father. You have no heart."
	"The old man was a thorn in my side. I was just fixing my problem."
	"I hate my father. But I don't hate him so much to have the balls...
the audacity...the pure evil to kill him."
	Isthus smirked. "What are you going to do about it?"
	Tobias brought his two fists straight out against him. "I'm keeping 
the promise I made to your father. I'm going to bring the hammer down." He 
shut his eyes. "I'm going to release the beast." With that, he threw his 
hands out. A pure, white light enveloped him. Everything started to shake. 
The stands in the amphitheater started to collapse.
	"The place is going to come down!" Hack said. He and Crash backed away 
into the door frame. 
	Suddenly, the white light disappeared in a display. Lone Wolf, the 
wolven warrior loved by the Pack, feared by the Raiders, landed gracefully 
on both feet. He looked Isthus dead in the eye. "Just surrender and it won't 
hurt at all," he said with a grin. "You're just in time to say your 
prayers."
	Isthus laughed. "Bring it on, pup."
	"Now it's time for the hammer to fall." With that, he dug the claws in 
his feet into the ground and launched himself at Isthus. The battle was on.

	Lone Wolf launched a volley of medium strength punches and kicks at 
Isthus. The lion only stood there, taking all the punishment, not responded. 
"What is he doing?" Crash asked Hack.
	"I don't know," Hack responded. "He's just standing there, doing 
absolutely nothing."
	Suddenly, Isthus made a fist and punched Lone Wolf. The wolf was 
caught off guard and went skidding across the floor. He quickly hopped back 
to his feet and launched an energy orb. Isthus took the full blast, a cloud 
of smoke rising from the explosion. The dust cleared and Isthus was still 
standing. His shirt was totally destroyed, revealing his chest and arms. His 
right arm, the one he had punched Lone Wolf with, had titanium plating and 
artificial strength enhancers grafted onto the skin. This covered his entire 
arm and invaded the first ten percent of his chest.
	"The hell is this?!" Lone Wolf demanded.
	"I knew this was coming," Isthus said. "So I had my boys make some 
modifications to me. Only they know the secret to defeating me."
	"Let me guess, you killed them."
	"No. They knew that I wanted the secret kept, so they willingly 
committed suicide."
	He smirked. "They did the honorable thing, despite serving a vile 
master."
	"You'll eat those words, boy. Now..." He motioned with the giant metal 
arm for Lone Wolf to approach. "Bring it on."
	Lone Wolf growled. "You die asshole!" He launched himself again. 
Isthus threw a punch. The wolf ducked it and landed an uppercut to his jaw. 
The lion staggered for a second, roared in anger, and swatted the poor wolf 
into the amphitheater remains. Lone Wolf crashed into it, sending debris 
into the air. He growled, a little winded, and launched himself at the lion. 
He managed to get in two more decent hits. Isthus ended it quickly by 
raising the fist into the air and slamming it onto Lone Wolf's back. The 
wolf collapsed at his feet, rolling onto his back.
	"How does it feel to be defeated," Isthus taunted. "Now you know how 
I feel when you kicked my ass twice. But there's one difference in this 
case. I'm not going to let you live." He raised the fist into the air again. 
"You die here!"
	"NO!" Crash shouted, taking a step forward.
	"I think not Isthus," Lone Wolf said. He put his hand on the headset 
attached to his head. "AMPLIFY!" he shouted.

****************************************************************************

	The fighting was still pretty heavy outside the capital building. The 
assistance of the other rebel groups had given the Viper Sting the chance to 
drastically lower the number of Raider troops to two thousand and to get 
them into a small corner of town. "Victory is ours!" D shouted at the 
remnants of the Raider unit. "Your deaths are now!"
	"We go down fighting then," one shouted back. They all raised their 
rifles.
	Suddenly, the ground started to shake for a second time. This time, 
however, it was a lot harsher than before. Everyone, rebel and Raider alike, 
had to fall to their knees to keep from falling over. "The hell is going 
on?!" Myst shouted. They all turned to the capital building just in time to 
see a column of light erupt from it.

****************************************************************************

	At the Pack/Raider border, the sudden light had drawn the attention of
everyone at the base. The troops abandoned their posts to got to the walls 
and guard towers to watch. Kaitlyn, Mallory, Terry, Samantha, Swift, Sven, 
and Larcris (who had arrived only minutes before), stepped outside the gates 
and watched. "What's that?"
	"Tobias," Kaitlyn said. "I'm sure of it."
	"But why is that light there?" Larcris asked. "I know that it appears 
when he transforms, but it was never that powerful."
	"I...I can feel him," Terry said. "Lone Wolf is already out."
	"I can feel it too," Swift said. "He's changing, becoming more 
powerful."
	Samantha held her hands to her mouth in a prayer. "Don't mess up, 
Tobias," she whispered.

****************************************************************************

	For miles around, the column of light could be seen. It attracted the 
attention of everyone, forcing them to stop whatever they were doing - 
fighting, playing, loving - and watch. A ghostly wolf suddenly appeared in 
the light. An audible howl was heard by all. The soldiers and rebels in 
Skorara had the best seats in the house. They were forced to cover their 
eyes as they watched in a frozen state of fear. Suddenly, the capital 
building exploded outward. Huge chunks of building flew a short distance 
before dissolving in mid air. They all got to their feet and watched, amazed, 
as they spotted seven figures in the remains of the building. Three were 
Bomber, Psycho, and Wrench, who were approaching Hack and Crash. One was 
Isthus, who was standing there, scared for his life. It took them a few 
seconds to realize who the last figure was.
	"Lone Wolf," Myst said, taking a step forward. "Xuon's amp. That's the 
only thing that could have done this to him."
	Mink stepped up next to D. "What's this mean?" D remained silent, 
watching the two. "D, what does this mean?!"
	"It means that this is it," he said. "The prophesy will either come 
true or we're all going to die."

****************************************************************************

	Isthus took a few steps back, scared half to death. Lone Wolf floated 
three feet above the ground before slowly landing on the ground again. But 
it wasn't Lone Wolf. He had changed drastically. His clothes were torn up, 
revealing the new details that lay beneath. Shiny plate armor ran up his 
left leg, encasing it in a skin tight shell. Such was the case with his 
right foot. His right arm was done up similar to Isthus, covered with plated 
armor, and no sign of any strength enhacers. The hands came to end in 
terrible, four inch claws, which reflected what little light was still 
coming off of him. The armor plating invaded his body, cutting up right to 
the center of his chest and ending there, trailing off to his side. A small 
portion of the right side of his face was plated. The plating did not cover 
his ear, nor did it his eye, which watched from the half of a hole that sat 
right on top of it. And fused into the center of his palm was the sapphire 
ring that Samantha had given him. He seemed to radiate energy.
	"What...what is this trick?!" Isthus demanded.
	"No trick," Lone Wolf said. "This is still me. But I'm now 
supercharged. You can call me Neo Lone Wolf. I'm the hammer that's going to 
fall on you."
	"I...I don't fear you! You still can't defeat me!"
	He smiled and motioned with his hand, mocking the bewildered lion. 
"Bring it on." Isthus, now fully enraged, let out a roar and charged.

	He threw a heavy punch at Lone Wolf's chest. The new wolf merely held 
his hand out and caught it. Isthus could only struggle with his grip. The 
wolf smiled, then frowned. He tightened his grip, grabbed the lion by the 
throat, and slammed him into the ground. He then put him back on his feet 
and sent him flying in one direction. After some tumbling, Isthus got back 
on his feet. "Why? Why this? I had you!"
	"Evil never wins," Lone Wolf said. 
	"I...I won't allow this!" He held his metal palm out. "DIE!" A huge 
white burst of energy fired off, flying at the wolf. He merely held up his 
own metal palm and waited. The energy hit a force field, deflecting to all 
points safe. "No...no, this isn't happening!"
	"It is Isthus." He suddenly sped forward, becoming nothing more than a 
blur. When he came back into focus, his sharp, four inch claws were dragged 
across Isthus' chest. The flesh bits were torn up and bloody. The metal 
parts were dented and scratched. The claws quickly turned to a fist, the 
back of which was brought across Isthus' face. The lion flew in that 
direction, crashing into a pile of rubble. He woozily got to his feet. Lone 
Wolf walked right up to him and started wailing on him, landing punch after 
punch after punch. He finally ended it with one swift crack to the jaw. 
Isthus landed on his back mere feet from Crash and the others, who were 
watching in awe.
	"No," he whispered.
	Lone Wolf appeared above him. "You will never win, Isthus. The 
prophesy has come true. You are defeated. Make your peace with the 
universe." He held his palm metal palm out. "You die now." The green 
energies he used to fight with started collecting in the sapphire, causing 
it to light up like the star on a christmas tree.
	"I am defeated here," Isthus muttered. "But that doesn't mean I will 
die." He flipped a panel open in his metal palm and pushed a button. "We 
will meet again, Lone Wolf." His body erupted in a pure red light. Lone Wolf 
danced back and covered his eyes so as not to be blinded. When the light 
died, there was nothing left of Isthus but his clothes and the one metal 
hand and wrist.
	"He...he committed suicide," Crash said.
	"It's over?" Psycho asked.
	D, Mink, and Myst approached the battlefield. "Neo!" Myst called. "You 
did it! The Raiders have fallen!"
	Lone Wolf looked at him. "I did, didn't I?" He took a deep breath. 
"Disable." The armor disappeared in the form of glowing white doves, 
revealing the original, the one and only Lone Wolf. He pulled the chip from 
his headset and put it into his belt pouch. His form dissolved back into 
Tobias. He looked at the clothes of Isthus, nudging one of the boots with 
his foot. "But is it?" He reached down and picked up the metal hand. "Our 
work here is done, guys. Let's go home." He smiled and started walking. As 
soon as he approached the rebel bands that had gathered, they all cleared a 
path and knelt. Not one head was raised towards him; everyone had theirs 
bowed. He looked at the metal hand again.
	"We will meet again," Isthus' words echoed in his head.
	"But how soon?" he asked the motionless gauntlet. He looked up at 
everyone and smiled. "So, are the other rebel heroes going to give me an 
escort back to Pack lands?"