...Sadness For Everyone

                            By:

                         Fox Cutter

08/23/98:

    Chapter 1

The summons that Dwight had promised to me a month plus a
week ago had finally come to past. I had received it as a
small message waiting for me as I got up that morning. He
wanted to see me immediately, before I did anything else.

So I had rushed to his office, even skipping breakfast with
Oria to meet him. In the end I don't think I should have
rushed, if I had taken a few minutes to think about it I
would have know what he wanted to see me for.

"Fox," He said, looking a bit haggered as I entered his
office. Most of his fur was rumpled down, sacks showing
under his eyes and he sat down at his desk.

"You wanted to see me?" I responded.

He nodded, leaning back a bit, folding his paws together in
front of his chest. "Yes, I have an assignment for you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really? What exactly do you want me to
do."

He smiled a bit. "I want you to go to the Mouse's world.
Your job is to verify that the unleashing of the plague
wasn't an accident. That it was a deliberate attack against
the people of the Multi-verse."

I blew through my teeth, rumors that such a mission was
being planed had been circulating thorough the Hall for the
past few weeks. Though none of them mention that the mission
was for me.

"Did sie tell you if it was an attack?" I asked, using the
accepted pronoun for a hermaphrodite, such as the Mouse was.

He nodded, "We eventually got hir to admit that it was an
intentional act. Sie didn't tell us who ordered or approved
it though."

"That most not have been easy," I commented, remembering
what I had been told about hir world. Cooperating with a
captor was considered one of hir peoples greatest sins. It
went against the basic tenets of there society.

Dwight gave me a smile that sent a chill down my spine, "It
wasn't. For now though we must send someone to confirm this,
if it was an attack steps must be taken."

I nodded slowly, I didn't like how he said that first part.
The implication was that they tortured hir, and that Dwight
enjoyed that fact. My once dismissed worries about him
suddenly came back to the surface.

He passed over a thin folder. "This has the language patch
for what sie was speaking to use with, as much information
as we could pry from hir, and the closest approximation of
the full verse number for the fold sie used."

I raised an eyebrow. "Closest? You don't have the actual
one?"

He shook his head. "No, sie used a complex magical spell to
open the fold. We had are best xenomages ripping it apart
for the last half a year. If it's not the fold itself it
should be on the same continent as the one sie used."

I rolled my eyes. "So i'm either surrounded by guards when I
arrive or have to walk and meet them half way."

He smiled again. "Yes."

"All right, I'll do this, but it will be at double my normal
hazard pay."

He nodded, then bent under his desk for a few seconds,
coming back with a small box, about a six inches square. "I
want you to take this as well," He said, setting it on the
desk in front of me.

I picked it up, fiddling with the top. "What is it?" I
asked.

"I want you to leave that if you can confirm that this was
an attack," he answered, "don't open it till then though."

I frowned. "Why, what exactly is in here?"

"It will ensure that they could not leave the world again,"
He answered with that same smile he used when talking about
the Mouse. "Not unless the Council lets them out."

I looked the box over, rolling it through my hands. The
implication was that it was some way to feedback all the
folds on the planet, keeping them from being opened. But a
device like that, be it magical or technological, is far
larger then just this box.

"All right," I answered him. "I'll see if I can stick it
some place out of the way then."

He nodded, "good, I would appreciate that. That is all, you
may go now." He turned around in his chair as he said then,
flipping through one of his file cabinets.

I took both the file and the box and went back home. I would
be a fool to try and tackle something like this alone.

* * *

Oria shook her head as I finished telling her what had
transpired. "This sounds ugly," she finally commented as she
sipped her tea.

I nodded, looking over the contents of the folder. I had
already loaded up the language patch, and had it set out for
her to use. She hadn't touched it though.

"You know that I can't come along," she finally said.

I frowned, this was unexpected. "Actually, no I didn't know
that."

She smiled. "Fox, there are not very many crossbred
pregnancies, even inside the Council worlds. The doctors
don't want me out running around trying to take care of the
problems in the multi-verse. Frankly I had to fight not to
be put in the hospital until I give birth."

I nodded, sighing softly, this was the first time I had
heard about that. It made perfect sense really, in the end I
agreed with them. It takes a lot of work to crossbred two
species, and I still thought it a long shot that she would
not miscarry.

It was not something I wanted to think about think about
though. "I agree then, I hate to say it but I don't want you
to get hurt or the children." Damn that sounded strange for
me to say, even stranger then having a daughter, I was going
to be real father.

"Maybe you should take Jadith along," she commented as she
finished her tea and set the cup aside. "I think she would
like an adventure."

I nodded. "I'll have to think about it... I never even
thought about not having you along."

She smiled. "I know Fox, but this is how it has to be."

I think I was about to say something truly world shattering
and romantic, but was brought short as the phone system let
out a shrill beep signaling there was a new message waiting.
Sadly, what ever it was that I was going to say was lost.

Grumbling to myself I walked over to the phone and punched
up the message. To my surprise it was just simple text. It
just read 'Someone wants to meet you at the bar in an hour.
Braden'.

"Braden," Oria said, looking over my shoulder. "Why does
that name sound familiar."

"He's the bar keep on Mydisia base." I answered.

She frowned, a lot of things had changed for her when she's
been on that rock. "Who would want to meet you there?" She
asked.

I thought that over myself. I don't know many people who
frequent the base, its not exactly a friendly place to
visit. Why someone would want to see me there was a mystery
to me.

Unless they wanted to talk to me about my just assigned
mission. The rumors about it would have reached Mydisia by
now. Even without knowing I had just been given it, I was
the perfect person to ask about it.

I could see from the look in Oria's eyes that she had
figured it out as well.

"Elena," we said, almost in unison.

* * *

The bar on Mydisia is just like any sleazy bar you find in
any sleazy part of space. No matter what world, what
universe, if there was a dark underbelly to it there was a
bar like Mydisia there.

The large room was mostly dark, light provided here and
there by candles and other assorted things. None of the
clientele who frequented the bar wanted to be seen, or seen
with each other.

This was the realm of the smugglers, assassins and black
markets. It offered total anonymity to anyone who entered
into the bar. This is where I bought the weapon systems for
_The Golden Phoenix_, this was even where the Mouse was
selling hir plague infested artifacts.

And where, in one dark back corner, a vampire sat, watching
me as I moved towards hir.

Even without being bale to see hir clearly I still knew who
it was. Sie didn't move at all, sie was perfectly still, not
even the twitching of an ear to prove that sie was more then
just a mannequin.

I moved accost the room, sliding into the empty side of the
booth sie was occupying. Sie moved then, lighting the candle
at the table with one quick move.

"Hello," she said, looking me over slowly. "I see that you
have recovered from your curse," hir eyes moved down to lock
on my fingers. "Mostly."

I nodded, flexing my claws out a bit. "It's still there,
just it's livable right now."

Sie nodded, "Clear eyes, interesting."

I chuckled. "Disconcerting."

That seemed to break the stillness about hir as sie smiled.
"Yes, I can see they would be. Almost like they could look
into a persons soul. Tell me Mr. Cutter, what do you see in
my soul?"

I titled my head a bit, looking at hir closely. Looking at
the scars on hir face, at the lump of flesh that was all
that remained of hir left ear. I could only think of once
answer.

"Life."

Sie seemed to be socked by this statement. I think sie was
expecting some kind of witty response, not something so
counter to hir basic nature.

"Your welcome," I said, as sie started to recover.

Sie gave me a hard look with hir eyes, the light from the
candle reflecting off of them. "I've heard talk," sie said,
"Talk of sending an envoy to my world."

I nodded, "Yes, that would be me."

That brought a simile to hir lips. "This is far more
fortunate that I had planed. You see, I am going with you."

Oh, that didn't sound good. "What makes you think I would
allow it," I responded.

Sie laughed. "Because you want to live long enough to find
out anything. You will need a guide if you want to survive
this trip. I feel it's time that I returned to my home, both
can be accomplished in one move."

"Do you think a guide is needed?" I asked, already believing
that it was myself.

"Yes," sie answered, "if you were to appear to any
Theriamorphs that saw you as you are would kill you on the
spot for the crime of being human. You would have to be made
to look like an Elf, and to hide your eyes as well."

I smiled. "Pointy ears we can do. I'll keep my eyes as they
are thank you so very much."

Sie sighed, "if you insist on such folly I can't do anything
to stop it. Be warned though that how people will react will
be unpredictable at best."

I nodded.

"Also, we will need to create an ear piece for Oriana. It
won't stand up to a close inspecting but it will suffice for
most things."

"Oria isn't coming on this trip."

"Oh?" sie asked, leaning forward. Sie twitched hir nose a
bit as sie took in a long smell of the air around me. "I
see, she is with a child."

Ah, the joys of an enhanced seance of smell. "Twins
actually."

Sie nodded. "Congratulations, but I do agree with not having
her along. I would prefer to have more people then just you
and I."

"Agreed," I answered, "I already have someone in mind to
ask, and she already has the pointed ears."

"There is one more thing," sie said, shifting a bit in the
seat.

"What?" I asked.

Sie reached up to touch the base of hir missing ear. "My ear
must be replaced."

I frowned. "Why?"

"Because our names are displayed on the left ear. To not
display a name is to not have a name, and to not have a name
is to be killed." Sie spoke the words softly, as if
explaining something extremely obvious to a small child.

"Your in luck then," I answered. "Jadith is a healer, she
should be able to repair it. If not there are other ways."

Sie smiled slowly. "Jadith is who you planed to ask for
help?"

I nodded.

"Then let us go and meet your healer." Sie said with a large
smile.

    Chapter 2

Elena wiped some blood from hir nose as we walked down the
hallway towards the room where Jadith was going to be meting
with us. Apparently the fold didn't abide by hir well, I
guess it's better then being dead, which is what would have
happened to a normal person.

But I guess being a vampire didn't qualify you as normal.

I had spent a few hours setting up a meting with Jadith
before we had returned to Prid. It was still light outside
and I didn't expect it would do Elena well to be exposed to
it.

When I had told hir this sie assured me that a little
sunlight was fine for hir. I just didn't want to take the
risk, the light of Prid's binary stars was a lot more then
sie was used to.

We entered a small room that was tucked into the corner
where two hallways meet. Maybe ten feet square it was just
made use of what would be empty space. The Marble Hall was
so large that a lot of small rooms like theses were needed.
From meetings with people or just a nap.

Jadith joined us a few minutes later, smiling a bit as she
saw me. "Fox, what brings you calling?" She asked.

I smiled back. "Dwight has given me a mission and I was
wondering if you would like to come along."

She shook her head with a slight sigh. "I would love to, but
I have meetings almost all day, every day, for the next
week. It was only luck that I could meet with you at all
today."

I frowned, running my hand over my chin. "I understand how
that can be, I've been there myself. Could you do a quick
favor for me then?" I waved a hand to Elena, "could you heal
hir ear?"

Jadith looked over the vixen as she took a step towards hir.
"I should be able to." She answered, then raised her hands
up to cup Elena's ears.

As soon as she touched she jumped back with a gasp, shaking
her hands like they've been burnt.

"Is there a problem?" Elena asked.

Jadith nodded. "You should be able to heal that yourself,"
she answered, flexing her hands slowly.

"Yes, I should." Elena explained, "but I can't. I am
prevented from healing it myself. My former master made sure
of that."

She nodded, moving back next to Elena. "I'm sorry for my
reaction. The touch of a living dead hurts a healer."

The vixen gave the elf a smile. "None needed. I have that
effect on people."

She nodded, reaching forward to take the stub of Elena's ear
again. I could see her winch as she made contact, but she
didn't show it in any other way. Slowly her fingers started
to glow, at the same time though it seemed like it was
fading out right were it should have been brightest.

I could see from the look on her face that this wasn't an
easy healing. She had a small trickle of blood slowing
rolling from the side of her eye, a second one following
from her nose.

This was normal for her, the blood on her face always came
when she healed someone. The fact that it seemed to be so
slow worried me though.

A minute had already past and Jadith was starting to show
some strain on her face. Finally she yanked her hands away,
leaving Elena with a new ear. Jadith wasn't so lucky, the
palms of her hands were bright red, a few blisters showing
around the edges.

"Are you ok?" I asked as I steeped over to her.

She nodded, sitting down in a chair. "Magical friction.
There was a lot of resistance to have your ear healed."

Elena twitched hir new ear a couple times, then reached up
to feel it. "Thank you, it's been far to long sense I could
show my name."

Jadith nodded to hir, trying to act like she knew what sie
was talking about. "So," She asked, looking to me. "What's
this assignment that Dwight is sending you on?"

"To confirm that the Plague was intentional." I answered.

She ahhed. "Why is she coming along?" She asked, motion to
Elena.

"Sie is coming because it's hir world. Sie's going to act as
a guide."

"I see," she said with a nod. "Then I think you should take
Ren along with you."

"Really?" I asked, "do you think he's up to it?"

She smiled. "Yes, he was first in our class. He also looks
up to you, so should haven't much trouble following your
orders."

I chuckled softly. "All right. Get him a Matrix chip as
well, we need to look like elves."

"What's a Matrix chip?" Elena asked, sitting down hirself.
Sie now had an ornate ear clip attached midway up hir left
ear. It had a couple hanging bits that swished though the
air as sie moved.

"A way to hide what someone looks like." I answered.

"An illusion?" Sie asked.

I nodded, "basically."

Sie shook hir head, crossing hir arms over hir chest. "It
won't do. People will see right though it. You have to have
something physical."

I turned to look at Jadith, "can we do that?"

She paused for a second before nodding. "Yes, there are ear
pieces that can be attached to a normal ear. It will hold
for a while and won't be able to be pulled off."

"Good, do you have enough time to set up an appointment for
me and Ren to get these done?" I asked.

"I could spare the time," she answered with a slight smile

I nodded. "Great, you go do that, then tell me where to go
and when."

"It won't be until at least tomorrow." She answered, "Though
I can try and set something up early in the morning."

"That will just fine. I'll meet Ren there then will team
back up with Elena." I turned to look at hir, "Does that
sound good."

Sie smiled. "It sounds very good. Shall we meet at the bar
on Mydisia?"

"Sure, I'll take you back," I answered.

Sie shook hir head, standing up and walking towards the
door. "I can find my own way back." Sie said with a smile
before slipping out into the hallway.

Jadith looked at me. "Sie's going to be a handful," she
commented with a smile.

I nodded. "Sie volunteered hirself once sie heard the
rumors."

"Is sie necessary?" She asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know. If sie is though, I'll be glad to
have hir along."

"Then I'll trust your judgment on this," she said.

"Glad to know someone does," I said with a slight chuckle.

"Oh," Jadith said as she stood up, "before I forget, I talk
to Naomi yesterday."

"What about?" I asked.

"The conversation had a tendency to swing around, but she
did mention that she's going to be having a brother and a
sister. Congratulations."

I blushed a bit, "thanks."

She patted me on the shoulder. "On both counts. She also
mention you got a second contract."

I smiled, still blushing "Yep, the buyer of the new ship
decided not to wait. As soon as we finish his first one we
have five more to construct for him."

"Five," She answered, "That's great."

There was something in her voice. "What's wrong?"

She sighed. "That accepting the contract is actually a
violation of Prid law."

I frowned. "What?" I said in a much stiffer tone of voice.
Jadith frowned as she heard it.

"I only found out about it yesterday, when I mentioned it to
Stew." She said, sounding almost like it was meant in her
own defense, "I double checked what he told me and he was
right. There are laws regarding ship building on Prid."

I shook my head. "I didn't know, what exactly are they?"

She sighed, "You can only build ships for you, or at most
two for other people at any one time. If you want to build
five more you can't do it as an individual. You have to be a
licensed ship yard."

"Oh shit." I muttered.

She patted my shoulder "It's not as bad as all that. The law
has provision for just this type of situation. We can get
you all the proper permits and licenses in a couple weeks.
You just have to delay beginning any more construction until
then."

"How much will it cost?" I asked, slipping my fingers under
my glasses to rub accost my eyes and the bridge of my nose.

She smiled. "Not as much as you think. There is a lot of
work to do to get it set up, but once it's done, it's done.
I've already gotten most of the forms prepared for you. I
bring them over tonight."

I raised an eyebrow. "You?"

She nodded. "I decided to accept Naomi's request to move in.
I may not be there as much as I wanted, but I'll be there
nights. That's when the doctors are most worried about her
anyway."

I gave her a quick hug. "Thanks!" I said with a smile.

She laughed, pushing back. "Your welcome." She said, then
check her watch. "If you'll excuse me though I have to get
to a meeting. I'll see you tonight," and with that she was
out the door.

I smiled, leaving the room as well, trying to think of a
name for my soon to be ship yards.

* * *

08/24/98:

"Your a bit late," Elena commented as Ren and I sat down at
hir both. Sir had just finished a drink, setting it on the
table to look at us. A pack was sitting on the table next to
her.

"Sorry, I didn't know how long it would take to make the
ears." I said, setting my own backpack down and pushing my
hair back so sie could see. Ren had showed up at my door
early in the morning, the whole appointment to get the ears
made took almost a dozen hours. First with the casting,
molding and other things. They had actually been glued to
are skin in such a way that it would be a month before they
could come off.

Sie reached over the table and squeezed the tip with a bit
of force, then frowned slightly. "As long as no one actually
feels them you'll do fine." She looked back at me. "Though I
would still prefer that you change the color of your eyes."

I shrugged. "I'm sorry, I don't have anything to actually do
that."

Sie nodded, then looked to Ren. "So you must be who Jadith
sent to help Fox."

He nodded, smiling a bit. "Yes."

Sie looked him up and down. "You'll do." Sie said, sliding
out of the booth. "Come along. I think we should leave now."

We both left the booth after hir, walking accost the bar. I
slid my backpack over my shoulder as we did so. Ren only had
came with the clothing on his back, refusing to take
anything else along.

"Are the pair of you armed?" Elena asked as we left the
room.

I nodded, "A bit more the necessary myself, but Oriana
insisted I take more then a single gun."

Sie looked me up and down. "Two still seems minimal."

I grinned. "Three actually, I have some extra rounds in my
backpack." I said, "also a few other toys."

Sie frowned, deep enough this time that it pulled at the
scar that ran down her muzzle. "I see, how about you?" Sie
directed the question to Ren.

He nodded. "I have weapons."

Sie let out a snort. "I can't see where," sie came to a stop
at the end of the hallway. "Here is the fold."

I smiled. "So I feel," I said, taking a step forward.
Pulling out my controller I punched in the number Dwight had
given me, hoping that it would land us close to where we
needed to go. As I hit the open button the fold exploding
around us, sending a blast wave of hot air into our faces
before pulling back, starting to suck the air in.

"Did you open a fold into space?" Ren asked, blocking his
face with an arm, he had to raise his voice from the low
howling that the suction was causing.

I shook my head. Reaching out to fell it. "No," I said as
the fold start to swell outwards in small surges, almost as
if it was trying to reach us. "There world has a deep fold
on it." I said, looking down at the portal controller.

"It must be on Crete," Elena said, hir eyes focused on the
red center of the portal as it twisted and boiled, the winds
whipping at hir fur and the dangling parts of her ear clip.

There was a sudden blast of thunder and wind that threw us
all to the ground. The portal doubled in size, lightning
trailing around it's edges now, skittering along the floor
and walls, almost like it was seeking us out.

"Hell's hungry!" Elena cried, moving away from the portal. A
look of fear showing over hir face.

The damn thing did look like some sort of giant mouth. I
jabbed the close button on the controller, but to no avail.
The deep fold was putting to much force into it for the
control to be of use.

Reaching out with my mind I tried to get a feel for it. As a
natural I wasn't very strong, but I've always been told I
had amazing control. I was hoping I could control this mess.
Reaching out with my hand I closed me eyes. I could feel the
source of the fold, I could almost see how the power was
being feed into it. Reaching out with my mind I tried to
synch that close.

The portal suddenly vanished, snapping back as a massive
headache in the front of my skull. It felt like I had been
hit just above the eyes, I fell back onto my hands, shaking
my head.

"That was ugly," Ren observed.

"That would be why the spell was so complex," I muttered,
trying to sort out the feelings I had gotten from the fold.

"It's a festering wound on our world," Elena said, standing
up and looking to were the portal had been.

I stood up myself, my headache starting to just side away as
fast as it had come. "I think I can get around it." I said.
"Not to the fold Dwight had given us, but it won't be the
deep fold either."

Elena nodded. "Good, I would not like to go where the fold
leads."

I frowned a bit, reaching forward carefully and open the
fold myself. I directed it more then normal as it opened,
working it around the problem fold. "Ok," I said. "You two
go first. I can't let this go by itself without it drifting
back."

"Are you sure?" Ren asked.

"Yes." I answered, "Just go, I'll be right behind."

Ren nodded as Elena stepped through. He followed hir a few
seconds later. Then I moved closer to the portal, crouching
down a bit and leaping through just as I let go of my
control for it.

It snapped closed almost on my feet as I came out of it. I
was prevent from smacking my face on a large rock wall that
had appeared in front of my by the grace of someone grabbing
my pack and pulling me to the ground.

Shaking my head, I stood up, looking at my companions. There
faces were only partially light in the twilight around us.

"That was easy," I commented, rubbing my shoulder where I
had jarred it when landing.

Elena frowned, adjusting hir pack a bit. "Not as easy as I
would have hoped. There are guards coming."

Before I could say anything more the guards had arrived.

    Chapter 3

"How dare they," Elena growled, pacing along the length of
the small cell where we now at. It was the same thing sie
had been doing for the past hour, sense the guards put us
there.

"Relax," Ren said, laying back on the one bed in room.
"We'll get out of here soon enough."

Sie snorted. "Being out is not the problem, the fact that
they would imprison one of my race at all."

I shook my head, returning my attention to what I was doing,
feeling over the lock on the cell door. The door was made of
up simple iron bars and I could easily reach thorough it to
the lock on the other side.

Our capture had gone pretty quickly. We had been escorted to
the local castle, which wasn't that large of a place,
searched, then throw into the cell. They even took my guns
away, knowing exactly what they were. As much as it seemed
to look like it, this was not a medieval world, as the
single light bulb that tried to light the cell attested to.

In the morning we were to be taken to see the Captain of the
Guards, or something close to that. He was to decide what
exactly to do with us.

"So," Ren said, sitting up on the cot. "What's the plan?"

The question was directed at me, which was great except that
I didn't have one. Shaking my head I took two steps back
from the door and give the lock my best kick. It shook for a
second but nothing else.

"I have no idea." I said, shaking my head again. "Though I
really need to learn how to pick a lock."

"You don't know?" Ren asked, sounding astonished.

I shrugged. "Just didn't get around to it. I never was
actually trained in anything, I just sort of did it."

He rolled his eyes, brushing some of his white-blond hair
from his face. "It was part of my training, maybe I can get
the door."

"With what?" Elena asked, stopping in hir tracks and turning
to face him. "You didn't even have a weapon on you." Sie
glared at him, hir arms crossed against hir chest.

He gave hir a long slow smile. "Oh really? I'm always
armed."

"Then show me," Sie challenged.

He laughed, "Very well, I will." Then lifted his right hand,
he held it in front of himself, almost even with his left
shoulder, his palm facing on. Then he pulled his arm accost
his body in once fast move, keeping his hand perfectly level
in front of him.

At the end of this move he was holding a grayish-white
sword, the blade was glimmering slightly in the harsh white
from the light above us.

"Whow," I commented, pushing my glasses back up on my nose.

"You like it?" He asked, handing the sword over to me. It
was amazing lightly, maybe only a dozen pounds. The balance
on it was exactly perfect and the hilt was made to fit a
human hand. From the shape of it, I gathered it would fit
Ren so well he wouldn't know he was holding it.

Elena reached out for the sword. "May I see that?" sie
asked.

I shrugged, handing it to hir.

Taking it from me sie moved it slowly through the air,
whisking it around in front of hirself. Finally sie brought
the hilt up to hir nose and smelled it.

"It's made of your bone." Sie commented, offering it back to
him.

He happily took it back, smiling widely. "Exactly, I have a
perverted healing power. I can control my own bones, to an
extent." As he spoke the sword seemed to melt back into his
hand.

"I can extrude bone structures from my palms, swords,
daggers and other such things." He said, dusting his hands
off once the sword had vanished. "It does drain me a bit,
and I do lose bone mass doing it. Though I do have a
reserve, it's why my lower arms are so bulky."

As he said this he rolled up his shirt sleeve, showing us
that his arm did look larger then normal. "Once I'm out of
the reserves I start lose strength in my bones. If I lose a
large amount I can break something just by tapping it
wrong."

"Interesting," was my comment.

He smiled. "Useful, it means I can carry a number of tools
with me. I just have to know them completely so I can copy
them, for example." He spread his fingers, four small little
pieces of bone were held in his palm. "A lock pick set."

I laughed. "Well then, get us out of here," I said,
motioning to the door.

"Yes sir," he said. Still smiling, he walked over to the
door, sticking his arms out through the bars. Closing his
eyes he stayed there a minute, every now and then moving his
hand one way or another.

After another minute he gave a slight chuckle and for a few
seconds both hands were moving. Then, with a soft snap, the
door swung out a few inches.

Ren leaned back, stretching his arms. "Sorry it took so
long, had to get a feel for the lock first."

"It's perfectly fine," I said, "you've learned the skills
quite well."

He smiled, standing up and dusting off his pants. "It's a
required skill for being a Hunter, maybe you should take the
class."

"I just might," I said, swinging the door open the rest of
the way and stepping out into the hall. It was lined with
cells down it's length, but ours was the only one with a
light on inside. The only other light was at the guards
station at the end of the hallway.

Elena walked up behind Ren as he stood in the door way. "I'm
impressed," sie commented, "I've never seen a blind lock
picked that fast."

He smiled. "Yes, some times I amaze myself, but not often."

"He's modest," I mumbled to myself as I started down the
hallway. Elena let out a snicker as sie followed me, hir
stronger hearing easily picking it up when Ren never even
knew I had spoken.

As I reached the end of the hallway I slowed down, stopping
just before the corner. Moving slowly I took a quick look at
the guard station.

"How many do you see?" Elena asked.

"One," I answered. He was sitting with his back to use,
working on something at the table he was sitting at. I
wasn't quite sure what, I didn't have that good of a view.
In the corner I could see mine and Elena's packs, as well as
our assorted weapons. On the far side of the room was
another locked door.

"Just the one," Ren asked, moving up next to me.

I nodded, pulling my head back. "He's all alone."

"Good," Ren said, then stepped past me and into the light. I
swore, trying to grab him, but he was already standing
behind the guard. In a quick move his hands were around the
guards neck.

"Hi," Ren said with a smile. "Listen, we were wondering if
you would be so kind to escort us out of the city?" As he
spoke I walked over to my pack. I could see that Ren had a
small dagger in his hand and was pressing it against the
guards throat.

"If not," he continued, "it's not that big of a problem.
We'll just leave you here." He pressed the dagger a bit
tighter against his neck. "I'm sure you can guess the rest."

The guard said a swear that didn't translate into anything
in english. "I'll lead you out of the city you heartless
swine," he finally said, twisting his head to spit on Ren's
shoe.

Ren laughed, "Come now, if you help us you'll be just fine.
We did force you after all. No tricks though," He pressed
harder again. "I would not like that."

"Trying to put fear of god in him?" I asked, as I re-holster
my two guns. I had already put my pack back on.

He smiled. "Oh no, the fear of me is far more powerful right
now."

I sighed, stepped aside as Elena re-equipped hirself as
well. "Fine then, just don't kill him, please. We're not
here for that."

He shrugged, pulling the guard to his feet. "Currently,
that's not my decision, now is it?" the last part was
directed to the guard.

The guard snorted.

Ren walked him over to the door leading outside. "Open it
please."

The guard compiled, quickly unlocking the door for us. Ren
pushed him forward again. "Now take us to the closest
unguarded exit to this city if you could."

He nodded and started to walk down the hallway. Elena and I
followed a few feet back.

"Was it the best idea to bring him?" Elena whispered, "he
seems to be a bit over zealous."

I returned hir whisper. "Would you rather be back in the
cell," Sie frowned at that. "Ok, don't answer that. The
point is we're out, and as long as he doesn't kill the man
I'll be happy."

"Not much of a fan of death?" Sie asked with a slight upturn
of hir lips. I wasn't sure if it was a twitch or a smile.

"No," I responded, turning a corner. "Frankly I don't like
killing anyone. It's almost always unnecessary."

Sie laughed softly, "for you. For me though..." sie didn't
answer, sie just smiled at me wide enough that I could see
hir elongated canines.

We turned a second corner and was suddenly outside in a
small courtyard. There were a few other exits and one door
in the far wall. The whole place was illuminated by a series
of lights around the buildings that made of the edges of it.

"That door leads to the castle orchard." The guard said, "On
the far side you will find a second door that leads out of
the city, both will be unlocked, but once you leave the door
will not open for you again."

Ren smiled, and then shoved him back towards one of the
other entrances into the small courtyard. "Thank you, your
help has been greatly appreciated."

He spat on the ground as he rubbed his neck. "You are a
coward, the only weapon you know how to wield is fear."

My companion turned around to face him. "Is that so?"

"If you had any honor you would have fought me in battle,
not attack me from behind."

A look of hanger crossed his face, his clenched his fist
slightly. "Very well then." He snapped his head around.
"Elena, could you let this man borrow your sword?"

Sie frowned, but did draw hir sword, handing it over to the
guard.

"So, you finally wish to fight me?" He said, holding the
sword by his side. "With what, your hands?"

Ren laughed, and did a quick series of complex hand gestures
the resulted with him holding a large sword, bigger then the
one he had shown us in the cell. All in all the display of
his was more distracting to him then to the Guard.

The elf laughed. "A magiced sword? Is that suppose to
impress me?"

Ren fell back into a fighting stance. "Fight," He snapped
out.

"Willingly!" The guard said, his sword up and slashing
towards Ren's head. Ren had already moved, ducking to one
side and blocking the blade.

Spinning around he broke away from the guard and brought his
sword down for an attack on the lower body. The guard easily
countered, swinging his sword down and back up, sending
Ren's blade up and over his shoulder.

Stepping back Ren narrowly avoided a quick cut at his arm,
once again attacking with his sword, this time higher up,
aiming for the shoulder. The guard's sword meet his in the
air, but Ren twisted this time, sending his sword across the
guards, slicing through the air towards his head.

The guard's reflexes saved him, causing him to drop and roll
back over the stone work that covered the ground. He
returned to his feet in a second though, his sword moving to
block Ren's newest attack.

This time the guard returned it with his foot, pulling Ren's
legs out from under him with one foot while he spun around
with the other.

Ren hit the ground with his free hand, using it to push him
to the side, avoiding the guards attack, then sprung to his
feet. Moving sideways slowly the pair sized each other up,
each one taking a few quick breaths.

Ren moved first, moving his arms one way then just a quickly
spinning around, trying to take the guard by surprise. The
guard saw what he was doing and had his blade at the ready,
easily blocking Ren's advance.

Backing off with his sword Ren slashed down one way then
spun the sword around, slashing upwards. The guard hadn't
expected this and received a small slice along his upper
arm. It wasn't deep, but it was first blood.

"Give up," Ren asked, backing up a pace.

The guard smirked, moving sideways on the balls of his feet.
"No," he said leaping to the side and slashing with his
sword. Ren blocked, forcing his sword up and causing the
pair to spin before breaking away from each other.

Ren increased his attack, slashing five times quickly,
barely leaving enough time for the guard to block. Each blow
forcing the man to take a step back, closer and closer to
where Elena and I stood..

I saw an opening to end this without more blood shed.
Pulling one of my guns out I spun it in my hand and stepped
behind the guard. Before he even knew I was there I slammed
the butt of the gun right into the base of his skull.

The elf froze for a few seconds before slowly toppling over
to the side.

Ren was august, holding his sword prone in the air and
staring at me, his jaw agape. "What the hell did you do?"

I shrugged, putting the guy away. "I knocked him out."

"I had him finished, in two more moves I would have had him
pinned and he would have had to admit defeat." He was
started to bellow, pulling his sword back into his body.

Elena growled as sie picked up hir sword. "Then what, honor,
glory or would you prefer death? Do you think nobody heard
your fight, people will be coming to investigate soon. We
must leave if we have any hope of living."

Ren started to say something but I was right there between
them. "Listen, we don't have time for you two to fight.
Right now we have to get the hell out of here before we're
captured again. Can we at least do that first?"

He nodded. "Yes," he answered, his voice carrying his anger
with one word as well as it did with many.

Elena snorted, but didn't say anything else.

Neither one of them said anything else until we were well
away from the city.

    Chapter 4

08/25/98:

"We can stop here," Elena said after a few hours of walking.
A false dawn was just starting to show over the horizon,
brightening the sky.

I nodded, sitting down in the clearing where we had stopped.
Panting softly I slid my pack off my shoulders. "How long do
you think it will be until we find more civilization?"

Sie sighed, setting hir own pack down. "There's a small
'morph city about two days further walk from here."

"Are you sure?" Ren asked, laying down in the grass.

"Yes," sie answered, "my Master used to live close to here.
I spent many years in this area, I know where everything is.
Once we reach the city you can hitch a ride. It will take
about three days before you can reach the Senate."

I noticed that sie hadn't included hirself in the travel
plans. "Not coming along?"

Sie smiled. "I'll be along, just not where most people can
see me. I find keeping a low profile is beneficial when I
must feed."

I nodded, adjusting my pack a bit so I could use it as a
pillow. Elena had pulled out and well worn sleeping bag. The
kind that completely envelops the person sleeping inside of
it. The padding of it looked bulky and hard in places.

Sie saw that I was looking as sie opened up all the way.
"The bag is filled with my native soil." Sie explained.
"It's the only way I can sleep."

I shrugged. "Not a problem with me. I understand how things
like that are."

"So," Ren said, sitting up. "You say your Master used to be
around here. Interesting choice of words, how exactly was he
your master?"

Sie glared at him. "It was Stefan who first Embraced me as a
vampire. He destroyed my ear to insure my separation for my
people and made me server him for over three fourths of a
century. It was by giving myself to another that I gained
the power to free myself from his control."

"Sounds like the it was a nasty breakup," Ren commented,
laying back down on the grass.

Sie snorted, slipping into hir bag. "We have a longer
distance to walk tomorrow night. At dusk I will hunt you
both some food. Now we must sleep, so I suggest you don't
speak to me until nightfall." The comment was aim directly
for Ren.

He just smiled and closed his eyes, falling asleep in
seconds.

Elena shook hir head. "Arrogant child," sie muttered,
closing hir bag up and over hir head.

I blew air through my teeth, looking up at the starts above
us. It wasn't that full of a sky, though nothing like Prid's
half void of a view, but still relatively empty. Even with
that it was still a pretty sky to fall asleep under.

As I began to drift off I started to track some of the
stars, finding a few familiar constellations. First the big
dipper, then up to the little dipper and the north star.

Finally exactly what I was seeing registered. Sitting up
with a snap I pulled myself to my feet, looking closer at
the stars above me. If I was right, if I wasn't seeing
things, this meant I was on another Earth. The thought just
blew my mind away, this was just so bizarre.

I sat back down, looking over to where Elena was sleeping
soundly. Tomorrow I would ask hir, I had to know if I was
right or just seeing things.

* * *

It was night again, and we were once more back to our feet,
walking through the forest in the direction Elena had told
us to go. Above us, still familiar stars shown, brighter now
then they were in the morning.

"See something?" Elena asked, drifting back to talk to me,
leaving Ren in the lead.

I nodded. "Yes, I know the stars."

Sie twitched hir ears forward a bit. "In what way?"

"They appear to be the same as back home." I answered, "what
is the name of this world?"

"This is Earth."

I shook my head. "A Earth, this is a different one from
mine. All we have are humans there."

"This world used to have many humans," Elena responded,
"they made us, then Ruhk remade them."

I raised an eyebrow. "Remade in what way?"

Sie smiled. "As dragons, it was Ruhk's punishment to them
for having enslaved us."

I ahhed.

"I am one of the few of my race of have ever seen a real
human. Most of my people think of them as self centered
uncaring louts."

I smirked. "Like Ren?" I asked

Sie let out a short laugh, "Yes, your protege does has a
real humility problem."

"He is *not* my protege, thank you so very much."

Elena smiled and shook hir head.

Ren started to drift back towards us. Elena and I had
apparent separated a bit from him while we had talked.

"Elena," He said as he came up next to us. "You said this
was your ex-boyfriends territory, what did he look like?"

Sie snarled at Ren, stopping in hir tracks and jabbing at
his chest with one finger. I could see sie had the claw on
hir fingertip unsheathed. "Get this straight idiot," sie
yelled at him, "he was *never* my 'boyfriend'. If you talk
like that again I'll show you the true nature of our
relationship, the hard way. Do. You. Understand?" Sie
punctuated each word by stabbing hir finger into his chest
with growing strength.

He nodded slowly. "Fine, whatever you say. But what exactly
did he _look_ like?"

"A pile of ash," sie answered him with a smirk, crossing hir
arms over hir chest.

He laughed. "Funny that, I thought he might be the satyr
that has been shadowing us for the past ten minutes."

Sie shook hir head. "Couldn't be. I gave him a lethal suntan
over two-hundred years ago."

"Well," He said with a smile, "he's about ten feet to the
left and seven in front of us, and moves like you, almost
noiselessly. Why don't you go and ask him yourself?"

Elena let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine, whatever makes you
happy!" Sie then pushed past him and started walking in the
direction he had give hir.

I started to follow hir, but I stopped in my tracks when I
noticed that all the normal background animal noises that
had been filling the forest had gone silent. The whole place
was dead quite.

I was reaching for one of my guns when I heard Elena yell.
Taking two steps back sie spun around to face me. "I don't
believe it..." sie whispered, hir face looking pail through
hir fur.

Pulling the gun out I thumbed the safety off and loading a
round into the chamber. Finally Elena seemed to compose
hirself enough to react. Sie bolted past me in a dead run,
moving faster that I thought possible. "Run!" Sie yelled as
sie went pasted us.

I swore to myself, running after hir, gun still in hand.
Looking back over my shoulder I saw that Ren didn't look
very concerned, he was following us and a slower pace.

There came a loud crash from the woods in front of me,
followed by a long wailing scream by Elena. I caught up with
hir quickly, skidding to a halt by hir side.

Sie was curled up in a tight ball on the ground, hir paws
clutching at hir head, hir claws digging into her fur. Sie
had stopped hir wail, only because sie had started vomiting
up a thick black mess that looked like clotted blood.

I bent down, holstering my gun. "Can you keep going, or
should I carry you?"

Elena just ignored me, muttering, "must resist, I'm strong,"
over and over again, saying it as if it were a mantra. Sie
was starting to shake as well, bad enough that it almost on
the verge of being convulsions.

"Ren!" I called, lifting my head to look for him.

He was already there, standing just behind me. "Our guest
hasn't moved yet." He said, "He's still exactly were we left
him." He paused for a few second. "Though I think he might
have started to move. He's so quiet I can't be sure."

Elena let out another low wail, this time from deep within
her body and filled with far more pain then before. I stood
up, looking the way we had come. I took my gun back out,
pulling the second one out as well, preparing it for use. I
offered it Ren but he shook his head, quickly forming a
sword from his hands.

"I don't like this Ren," I commented, "so keep your head up,
I think we're about to meet someone we won't like."

Below me Elena let out one last gasp and fell still, just
laying on the soft ground. I crouched down a bit, felling
her shoulder. It was colder then it should have been, even
for hir. "Elena?" I spoke.

Sie didn't respond.

I let a out a low growl. "Ren, I want you to take point,
tell me if our guest get closer. I'm going to carry Elena."
I put away the second gun, then heaved Elena up into a
fireman's carry over my shoulder.

Ren turned to watch behind us as I got Elena posited right
on my shoulder. In the distance I could hear what sounded
like hoof beats along the forest floor, and it was getting
louder.

I started running deeper into the forest, Ren was right with
me, only a few paces behind. The sound of the hove beats was
fading until it just cut off. That didn't sit well with me,
so I pushed for more speed.

"I think he's moving," Ren said, easily keeping up with me,
"but not on the ground."

Suddenly I felt a hand grasp my left arm, just above my
elbow. It was almost as cold as ice, pulling me to a sharp
stop and seeming to chill my arm right to the bone.

"I believe that's my property you're carrying," the owner of
the hand said as he came into focus. It was a satyr, but
with the actual head of a goat. He wasn't very tall, well
under five feet at least. He looked up at me with his
goatish face, smiling just slightly. "Please be so kind to
put hir on the ground."

He let of my arm, allowing me to step back and slide Elena
on to the forest floor. Even as I did so I keep the gun at
ready, pointing towards him. I was silently praying that I
wouldn't have to use it, and if I did, that my recent
training with Kalie had stuck.

"So," he said, still look at me, "would you be so kind as to
tell me who you are?" As he spoke I could feel his eyes
drilling into my, almost trying to pull me into them.

I fought it, looking back at him with my own, clear eyes and
smiling slightly. "Sie's helping us take care of some
business here."

"And who might you be?" Ren asked from my side. "Hir ex?"

The satyr whipped his goat-like to stare at Ren. "That is
not the world I'd choose. Sie ran away, and I'm here to
re-claim what is mine."

Ren smiled. "That's all well and good, though I think sie
might have something to say about it."

"And we may have to back up hir choice," I commented.

He looked between the two of us, some anger started to build
behind his eyes.

"By the way," Ren said with a smirk, "Aren't you suppose to
be dead?"

He ignored Ren, turning to face me again. "Please, tell me
your name again."

I frowned, but did answer him. "My name is Fox, my companion
here is Ren. What would your name be?" I asked in return. I
know Elena had mentioned it the night before but I just
couldn't remember it.

The goat-man smiled. "You may call me Master."

Oh dear, that carried implications I didn't like.

Beside me Ren snorted. "Master? That's a laugh. Are you
trying to scare us or something, because frankly it's just
not working."

The satyr walked over to Ren. "I do not like your attitude,"
he said, his voice losing all of it's emotion. "You must be
severely punished!" He then smiled, showing many
needle-sharp teeth.

Ren smirked. "I see, is that suppose to impress me?"

He lunged forward, grabbed Ren's shoulders and forcing him
down to one knee. His mouth going to his neck, biting it
hard, blood starting to flow from around the sides of his
mouth.

Ren and I both reacted instantly. I had my second gun out,
one being aimed at the vampire's head, the other at his
heart. Ren had a pair of short daggers crossed over and
pressed against the satyr's neck.

"Let him go before I do some damage," I said with more
confidence then I felt.

He ignored me, gulping and slurping at the blood flowing
from Ren's neck. Brushing off the threat of the gun and
blade both.

I did what I felt I had to, I took three quick shots at his
head. Two actually connected, throwing his head back with a
splatter of blood. It didn't last long though, all the
damage it caused seemed to start healing itself immediately.

Ren took my shot as his own opportunity to attack him. Using
the daggers to slice as the satyr's wrists, cutting deep
enough to losing his grip his shoulder. Once lose enough Ren
kicked him in the gut, sending him falling over onto his
back.

As he fell I ran over to Ren, returning the fired gun to
it's holster. Once he was free I pulled him away from the
fallen vampire.

Stefan, his name coming back to me in a rush, didn't stay on
the ground very long. In only a second he was back up on his
hooves, no sign of any damage. "Nice try," He said, licking
the blood from his face.

Ren smiled, grabbing the wound on his neck. Though now his
smile seemed to be forced.

"It got Ren free, that was the point." I answered, keeping
the gun still on my hand trained on him, with my other hand
I started to slide off my pack.

He laughed. "I'll come back for you two later," He said as
he bent down, starting to pick up Elena's body.

Sie suddenly snapped awake, lunging forward and ripping at
Stefan's throat with hir teeth.

He let out a gurgling scream, shoving her away. "I'll get
you for that, you ungrateful bitch!" He yelled to hir.

As he yelled I reached into my pack, trying to find
something to use on him. All I could find was my canteen,
suddenly an idea came to me. "Catch!" I yelled as I threw it
towards him.

Stefan reacted, catching it in midair and glaring at me.
"Just what is this?" He asked with a sneer.

I smiled. "Holy water," I answered, shooting it. The metal
exploded in his hand, water blasting out in all directions,
most of it though landing on his chest and face, soaking
into his fur.

He screamed at me, then his body suddenly imploded into a
thick cloud of vile smelling smoke, which streamed away for
us at a great speed.

Ren laughed, watching all this. "That was easy," He said,
before falling to the grass, finally showing some pain.

I moved over to where Elena had landed. "Are you ok?" I
asked hir.

Sie sat up, moving slowly, hir strength drained. Sie wiped
away some of the water that hand landed on hir face and
laughed softly. "The priest who blessed this water lied to
you."

I smiled. "No priest at all, it's just tap water. How are
you fealing?"

Sie laughed again. "I'll be fine," sie said, answering my
question, "as soon as I feed."

I frowned, "How much do you need?" I asked, reaching for my
sleeve.

Sie shook hir head. "More then either of you could spare."

I sighed. "All right, will Ren be ok? I mean did he do more
then just drink from him?" As I asked this Ren moved over to
sit next to us.

Elena reached out to him, wiping some blood from his wound
and licking it from hir fingers. "He'll be okay."

Ren let out a sigh of relief.

"Good," I said, pulling a first aid-kit from my pack. "I'll
get him patched up. Do you think it would be safe to camp
here or should we move on and let you catch up after you
hunt?"

Sie shook hir head. "We had best stay together."

I nodded. "We will then." I looked at Ren, he had lost a
little less then a pint of blood, so I gave him a pill that
would help his body produce more, at a faster rate then
normal. He took it happily, understand what it was for.

"If you need any blood to tide you over I could provide you
some." I said.

"No!" Elena cried, "I've lost enough Life that I'm not sure
I could stop myself."

"I understand," I said, putting the first aid kit away.
"We'll divert in any way you need so you can hunt, but we
have to start moving."

Sie nodded, standing up slowly. I then helped Ren to his
feet. He winched a bit as he moved his neck, showing less
pain then I imagined that he felt at the time.

And slowly we all moved forward.

    Chapter 5

"Here," Elena said as we entered into a clearing. "This is
perfect," sit continued, sliding hir pack off hir shoulders
and onto the ground.

Ren let out a short sign and leaned up against a tree, he
was still wobbly from the loss of blood, and the three hours
walk had drained him pretty badly.

I nodded, dropping my own pack and sitting down on it.
"We'll wait here then," I said, panting softly. We had all
been pushing ourselves too get as far away from Stefan as we
could.

Elena shook hir head, lowering hirself so sie was sitting on
her haunches. Rocking back and forth slowly, sie looked to
me in some kind of meditation.

A half a minute later a large elk stag walked into the
clearing. It didn't seem to notice anyone but Elena, walking
strait for hir and lowering it's head.

"That's it, come closer," Elena said, hir voice soft,
encouraging. A large smile was flickering accost hir lips.

The elk moved up until he was right next to Elena, his neck
almost pressing against hir muzzle. I chuckled softly at the
level of control sie had over this animal.

I could also see that the beast was starting to get aroused
by this. Elena saw me looking, turned to me and gave me a
smile. It was a wide, long smile, showing every single one
of hir teeth.

Turning around I heard a wet bellow from the Elk as he was
attacked. What followed was a series of sounds that sounding
almost like someone trying to eat jello with a straw, but
only far worse.

I tried blocking it out, covering my ears and humming to
myself, but no matter what I did it still worked it's way
inside my head. Eventually I gave in, stepping behind a tree
and losing what little I had in my stomach. I decided to
stay back there until sie was finished.

After what seemed like hours the sounds finally came to an
end. Spitting a couple times to clear the taste from my
mouth I look around the tree.

Elena was standing over the body of the gutted Elk, his
blood and, other bodily fluids, covered it's fur and the
ground it had died on. Elena was perfectly clean, the only
blood that showed was on hir muzzle, and sie was rapidly
licking that off.

"There's nothing like the taste of the Season." Sie said
once sie had seen me. This seemed like a strange comment,
but I felt it best not to pry into it any deeper.

"Felling better now?" I asked, noticing that Ren was still
against his tree. He was awake, but had his eyes closed to
what had happened in front of him.

Sie nodded, stretching out hir arms. "Oh yeah! He was good!"

I looked down at the mess in front of hir and smiled
slightly. "So I noticed," I shook my head, looking back to
hir. "We had better get moving, I still fell we're to close
to your former Master."

"Sure," sie said, slowly walking over to me, "but I should
have some of your Life, just to make sure."

I frowned at this.

"I won't need much," sie continued, "five or six teaspoons
will be enough."

Looking hir over I could see that sie was serious. I gulped
a bit, walking over to my pack. I did suspect that something
like this might happen sometime on the trip. Even though I
had offered hir some from me before, the thought still
scared me.

Sie was something of a friend though, and on this world I
would be lost without hir. I guess a little of my own blood
was the least that I could do. So, I pulled the first-aid
kit out of my pack and walked back over to hir.

Setting the kit down I rolled up my left sleeve, taking off
my watch that covered my wrist. "I hope you don't mind that
it's not from my neck." I said, my hand shaking.

Sie took my hand in hir paws, the tips of hir claws tickling
over the small hairs that covered my wrist. "It should be
fine. Don't be scared though, this won't last long."

Pressing one of hir claws down she drew it accost my wrist,
cutting into the skin, not deep, but enough to draw a stead
drip of blood.

Lifting my wrist to hir muzzle sie started to lap at the
blood. With a suddenly look of discus sie yanked hir head
back. Dropping my arm sie turned and vomited up a small
amount of blood, maybe a cups worth.

I jumped back, grasping my wrist to try and stay the flow of
blood. "Are you all right?" I asked, look at hir as sie
wiped her muzzle clean.

"You taste like the Dead!" Sie exclaimed looking back to me.

I frowned, "How could that be?" I asked as I felt a hand on
my wrist. Looking down I saw that Ren had come over, the
first-aid kit all ready open at his feet, and was cleaning
the cut.

"Unless you're one of the Risen, or a Mummy, I have no
clue!" Sie answered, hir ears twisting in a puzzled look.
"No," sie continued, "not like a Mummy, they're more stale
then anything else."

"Which doesn't explain why this has happened," I said with a
sign as Ren wrapped up my wrist. "Another mystery to talk to
Ken about. Right now my life seams to be to damn full of
them." I shook my head, looking back down to Ren as he
finished up his bandaging of my wrist.

"But you, you taste *dead*!" Elena said, trying to make me
understand the implications in this that sie saw but I
didn't.

I smiled. "Sense I'm alive, how exactly can I be dead?"

"I don't know," sie sighed, "You just taste Rotten, spoiled.
You don't smell that way though, which is even stranger."

I shrugged. "I don't know," I said, rubbing my wrist. "Maybe
Oria and Ken make some kind of spell to protect me against
you."

Sie shook hir head. "No, this was not magical, it was not
laid on your blood, it was in it, a part of it."

I sighed, putting my watch back on. "How about we just get
moving? I want to put in at least another five miles before
dawn. We can talk on the way."

Sie nodded, "Right, that will give me some more time to
think."

"Good," I said, returning my pack to it's norma place on my
shoulders. "Point us in the right direction."

* * *

08/27/98:

It was approaching dawn of the next day. We had covered a
lot of land as we walked, now only half a nights walk to the
'morph city.

Ren had recovered from the attack, even the bandage on his
neck was gone, replaced with a patch of fake skin. Still
though, it had shaken him up a bit, he had barely said a
word seance we all got up at night fall.

Elena had been just as silent about the taste of my blood.
Sie had only made a few comments about it not being normal,
but nothing more. For the most part we had been walking in
silence.

Finally, just as the stars were fading we entered into a
large clearing. Ren sighed, collapsing on the ground. "This
looks like a good place to stay the night."

Our guide looked around, twitching hir ears as sie did so.
"Yes, this should be fine." Sie answered him, dropping hir
back to the ground and sitting down next to it.

I plunked to the ground as well, digging through my pack for
some cooked rabbit from the night before (or that morning,
depending on your point of view). I handing a piece to Ren,
which he snatched from my hand without comment.

"Once we are at the city I will arrange for you to be given
a ride to the Senate. Once there you can ask them if they
did this or not." Elena said, hir focused on something out
in the woods, not us.

"Do you still believe your Government ordered this?" I
asked, wiping my face off with the back of one hand.

Sie nodded. "Yes, I believe so. I do not know if all of the
Senate ordered it or just a few members, but I am sure that
they did."

I sighed, felling Dwight's little package in my pack. "Do
you think they will admit to it if I just ask them?"

Sie shrugged. "I do not know. If it was the whole of the
Senate then they may. If it was a few members they may tell
you in private, or admit it in public. You will know once
you confront them about it, no sooner."

I nodded. "So the usual crap... frankly I'm starting to hate
all these surprises. I don't get paid enough to trouble
shoot like this."

Elena ignored me, raising one paw to call for my silence.
Hir ears were twitching a bit, searching out something in
the forest.

Sie motioned for me to come to hir as sie was moving
silently to one side of the clearing. I followed, trying to
be as quiet as I could. Once I was next to hir, sie pointed
into the woods.

I could just make out the form of a morph of some kind,
walking closer to use. It wasn't very fast though, it looked
like the person was limping with each step.

Elena pulled me back away into the clearing. "Sie is coming
directly for us." Sie said in a harsh whisper.

"Sie's not moving very fast," I commented.

"Yes, sie is old, and has been hurt. Sie posses no threat,"
Elena paused for a few seconds, "I suspect this might be a
trap."

I sat back, looking around the clearing. "I don't think it
so," I whispered back, "anyway, if it was a trap the extra
would have been squashed by now."

Sie tilted hir head, hir ears twitching as sie processed
that comment, then slowly sie smiled. In unison we both
turned to look at Ren.

He saw this and frowned. "What?" He asked.

"Don't worry," A new voice said, "I don't 'squash' people."

Turning around we all looked to the old feline morph that
was standing on the other side of the clearing. Sie had the
same, forced looking elegance that Elena and the Mouse had
possessed. It still showed even with hir age.

Sie smiled to us, taking a few more limping steps towards
us. "I do not intent to attack you, and this is not a trap."

Elena started to move a bit, hir muscles tensing as if sie
was getting read to pounce.

"No now," The feline said, smiling, "there is no need for
the little vampire to attack me. Yes I heard everything you
said as I was walking here. That is because I have been sent
to pass to you a message from my goddiss, Ruhk."

Elena drew in a sharp breath. I frowned, I was sure I knew
that name from somewhere else!

The feline shook hir head. "Sie is very anger that you left
hir. Sie had plans for you, you and Stefan. The suntan you
gave him was a problem, but we did return him to his unlife,
as you saw." Sie smiled, "though not entirely as you might
think."

Elena moved forward, starting a leap for the feline's
throat. Sie was stopped before sie could go more then a
foot, falling like sie had run into a wall. The feline
smiled, shaking hir head as well. "You shall stay put
child."

Sie then turned to look at Ren and I. "As for you humans,
Ruhk wants you working with hir. Sie feels your help would
benefit hir."

Ren snorted. "Frankly no, I have enough employers as it is."

Sie took two steps closer to him, smiling even wider. "Your
choice has already been made for you."

"Meaning?" He asked, crossing his arms.

Sie laughed, ignoring him, shifting my attention to me. "How
about you? Shall you come willingly or would more persuasion
be required."

I smiled. "I hate to tell you this, but I'm the good guy."

"Only in your mind," sie answered. "Ruhk knows what sie can
do to convince you. Sie's been to your mate's world, if sie
so wishes sie can return again. This time to kill her, not
just to play with her god."

"Bull," Elena said, I didn't know that the magic that had
frozen hir allowed hir to talk. "Sie is trapped on this
world, prevent from leaving by the power of Hell itself!"

The feline laughed again. "One day sie will be able to
leave, when sie does your mate will be hir first victim."
Sie told me with a smile.

I smiled to hir. "Hell is a powerful place, even your
perfected goddiss can't beat it back once it's hooks are in
you."

Sie shook hir head, stepping away from us. "You are all
hir's, you just don't know it yet." Sie said, then with a
boom sie was gone. Only leaving behind the smell of burning
flesh.

Elena growled, standing up, now free of the magic. Sie
looked up to the sky and screamed. "*I will _never_ be yours
again!*"

Ren shook his head. "I don't like this."

I sighed, "I don't think any of us do."

    Chapter 6

A hot blast of air in my face woke me with a start. Sitting
up, I fumbled for my glasses, blinking at the light around
me.

It was the middle of the day, noon from the looks of the
sun. Standing up I looked around the campsite, other then me
it was empty of all life. Elena's sleeping bag was bunched
up by the trees on one side, and in a pile a few feet from
where I stood was what looked like the shredded remains of
Ren's clothing. Mine and Elena's packs where gone as well.

There was no sign of any blood, and the ground hadn't been
kicked up anymore the it was last night. Never the less I
was alone.

Another blast of hot air rolled over me. It had a sweet
smell to it, and was almost familiar. On a hunch I started
walking in the direction it had come from, trying to keep in
a strait line from the clearing.

Every dozen steps another blast of air came, hotter then the
last one, the sweet smell fading away. The light was
starting to fade as well, becoming something like twilight,
even though the sun was still blazing in the sky.

I reached for my front holstered gun, only to find that it
wasn't there. Nor was the other two. In my sleep I had been
disarmed. Swearing to myself I unsheathed my claws, the only
weapons I had left.

After almost half an hour of walking, the darkness had
closed in around me. The sun still shown above like a
bizarre moon, but it cast no light onto the ground. I was
surrounded by a gloom that was made of almost pure darkness.

"Looking for someone?" A new voice asked from my left. I
turned slowly, the source of the voice stood out in the
darkness, simply for the sake of that sie was even darker.

Sie was a raccoon of Elena's species. Nude, hir fur covered
and matted in filth, the stench of which was so strong my
nose actually shut down. Sie opened hir muzzled in a smile,
showing me hir teeth, which were more like a series of razor
sharp fangs up and down the length.

This could only be one person. "Ruhk I presume?" I asked.

Sie laughed. "You presume correctly, I am your goddiss."

I snorted in response, "you are my nothing."

Shaking hir head sie took a few steps closer to me. "I am
your everything, you will be mine, either by your free will
or by force."

I slowly shook my head, not letting my eyes off of hir. "My
free will doesn't lead me to be evil."

"Evil is such a loaded word," Sie responded, touching the
side of my head with hir paw. I stepped away from hir, but
still the filth that covered hir was now in my hair.

"I do what is best for me." Sie continued, "The rest of the
multi-verse could go down in flames for all I care, as long
as I get what I want."

"I'm not much for enlightened self-interest either," I
responded, crossing my arms over my chest, my claws still
out.

Sie laughed, if sie noticed my claws sie paid them no mind.
"Oh, but there is so much potential behind those crystal
eyes. It would be such a pity to let it go to waste."

I shrugged. "To bad it will."

Sie paused, looking me over, hir ears twitching. "Do you
know we've meet before?"

I blinked, "What?" I asked, my astonishment echoing in my
voice.

Sie laughed again, much louder then before. Hir figure
started to change. Hir fur becoming clean and bright, hir
body assume the sex of a pure female while her proportions
shifted into something that would best be called a 'knock
out'. Her face change as well, reshaping itself under the
skin to become something I recognized.

"Dra..." I whispered, as I did indeed know her. From my
first adventure, the one I had flashed back to that day with
Sora. Where I had decided that I should try and do some good
with my ability as a Natural.

At the time I had landed in the middle of a civil war, First
being captured by once side, then the other. The first group
who had captured me, Dra was there leader, she had started
the war and had just let lose a plague to kill her enemies.

It was after my dressing down by the leader of the good guys
that I decided to try and do something. They had a counter
agent to the antidote, but not the cure itself. I stole it,
snuck back over to Dra's side, and used it to force her to
eject the antidote into the air over the battle field.

She had been arrested, and swore to me the vengeance of
Ruhk.

"Only in mind," she answered, "I took her body for my own
use. That little virus you stopped was my fifth attempt to
produce the Plague."

I nodded. "So you were the mouse as well?"

She laughed, slowly flowing back into hir normal self. "Oh
no. My guardians found my way out and blocked it quite well.
Eventually I will find a way around it, I always do."

I sighed, "More reason for me not to join you."

Sie snorted, suddenly right up against my face. "You don't
seem to understand. I'm not asking you to join me, I'm
giving you the chance to keep your self in the process."

I spat in hir eye. It was about all I could think of doing.

Sie stepped away from me, laughing even more. "You are such
a fool. I offer you power, power over everything you want.
Power the such that will let you go back to your world and
stay."

I gulped as sie said that, but shook my head.

"You can't say that you are not tempted." Sie said, grabbing
my collar of my shirt with one paw. "Think about all you can
have, all you can take!"

"No," trying to pull myself away.

Sie pulled down on my collar, yanking me closer. "One last
chance, join me as yourself, or as my slave."

"Go fuck yourself," I answered back.

Sie laughed, yanking back on my collar, ripping my shirt
open down most of it's length. "Right answer," Sie said with
a smile. Hir other paw was quickly on my chest, grabbing my
pendant.

Holding it up so I could see, sie then ripped it off the
cord that it hung from. Sie stepped away from me as I felt
the familiar burning of my skin as I changed from into a
Rhea.

I looked up at hir from all fours, crouching down to attack
hir. Sie just smiled, crushing the pendant in one paw,
destroying it, and trapping me forever as a normal lioness.

With a roar I leaped on hir. Sie caught me in midair, hir
arms wrapping tightly around me in a massive bear hug.
Laughing in my face sie dug hir claws into my flesh.

Seating heat ripped through my body, causing my to roar in
pain. A roar which slowly faded into a scream as my body was
reformed, with the force and pain of every bone in my body
being broken.

Finally sie dropped me to the ground. I landed on my hands
and knees. They had changed though, no longer hands by paws,
thick golden fur covering them and up my arms.

A quick examination of myself proved what I had suddenly
come to expect. I had been remade as a hermaphrodite
lioness, one of Elena's species, a Theriamorph.

Ruhk stood over my, laughing once more. "You see child your
are now mine, and you shall serve me as a slave." With that
sie faded away into the darkness, hir laughed remaining
behind for a few seconds, echoing through the starless
night.

I gulped at the air for a few seconds, the unholy darkness
fading away, leaving the midnight sky above me, the stars
shining down to Earth.

Unsteadily I rose to my knees, swearing to who ever would
listen. I didn't know if I had my powers as a Natural still,
but I had to get back to the fold. Though I had to fine
Elena and Ren first, they were in more danger now then I
was.

"What do we have here?" A familiar voice asked from behind
me.

I snapped my head around, shifting my weight to face Stefan.
The satyr smiled as he saw me, his body reacting with lust.
"If it's not Elena's friend," he said with a sneer. "Ruhk
did a good job remaking you."

I snorted, trying to stand up. He was suddenly there though,
pinning my arms to my side. Nose to nose with me, "No my
dear, your not going anywhere, your mine." And in a flash he
was on me, his teeth sinking into my throat as he drank of
my blood.

I screamed, trying to fight, but there was no hope, I
couldn't get out of his grip. He was Ruhk's servant, and I
was to become his slave.

I let out one last wailing scream as everything faded into
darkness.

It seemed to last for an entirely as I waited for whatever
was to come next. It was a lie to say that I wasn't
frightened, but yet there was still a cold clam that had
settled over me.

"Fox?" I heard, almost faintly in the darkness. At the same
time I felt my should being rocked.

Slowly feeling started to come over my body, a prickling
feeling not unlike you get when your leg goes to sleep.
Finally I cracked open an eyelid to see who was talking to
me.

It was Ren, he was sitting above me, a concerned look on his
face.

I scrambled away, instead sitting up. One handing going into
my shirt, searching for my pendant while the other went to
my face. I still had the pendant and I was still very much
human.

"Are you all right? You were screaming in your sleep."

I sighed, reaching for my glasses. "I had a nightmare of
sorts."

He nodded, walking over to me. Then reaching out he touched
the side of my head. His had came away covered in a thin
film of slime. "Was this part of it?"

I reached up to touch my hair. There was a thick grease like
spot, matting my hair down. It was right where Ruhk had
touched me in the dream. "Make that a warning... and maybe a
promise." I picked up a handful of dirt, working it into my
hair, then pulling it out. Most of the filth came with it,
the rest clung to my hair with the remaining dirt.

"We should get off this world as fast as we can." I said,
wiping my hand clean on the ground. "We're targets of a very
evil goddiss who want us on hir side."

Ren nodded.

I stood up, looking around the camp. "Where's Elena?" I
asked.

"Sie left," Ren said with a slight curl of his lip. "Sie
took all hir things as well. Sie has abandoned us."

I nodded, putting my hands in my pockets. "Sie must have
decided to let us go onto the city ourselves."

He shook his head. "Fox, your to damn trusting. Get a clue,
sie LEFT us here alone. We're in the middle of a forest on
some other world days away from any fold. Do you think you
could get us back home? I doubt it, this was exactly what
sie meant to do from the start!"

"I'm don't believe so."

Ren glared at me, fuming a bit.

"Excuse me," A new voice asked. I turned to look at the
source, it was a wolf Theriamorph, a torch held high over
hir head. "We heard screaming, is everything all right?"

"Yes," I answered, looking behind hir. I could see a few
other 'morph about ten feet away, each one holding a torch.
"One of us just had a bad dream, that's all." I looked to
Ren as I said this.

The wolf nodded. "I didn't know Elf's could have dreams."

The fake ears were doing there job, that's good. "Now you
know."

Sie nodded. "So I do..." Sie paused, then turned back to hir
fellows. The conversed for a few seconds before sie turned
back around. "We are on are way to the City for the Early
Harvest Festival. You are invited if you would like to come
along. It's only a few hours walk."

I smiled, this was perfect. It was also explain why Elena
had run off as well, so as not to be seen by these people.
"It is are destination for tonight, and we would welcome the
company on the way. We are not to familiar with this area of
the world and feared we might become lost."

Sie smiled. "You are far enough off the road to already be
lost. Gather your things and come along, the Festival starts
at midnight."

I nodded, grabbing my things. Then Ren and I followed hir
and hir group onto the city.

    Chapter 7

"What brings you to the City?" The wolf, hir name was Sarah,
asked. Sie was the leader of this little group of farmers.
There had been introductions all around, but I had forget
the names of the others already.

"We are traveling to see the Senate." I answered, shifting
the position of my pack as we walked. This was the first
real conversation we had gotten into for the past few hours.
I think they were some what scared of Ren and I because we
appeared to me elves.

"It's quite a distance from here if you plan to walk." Sie
commented, "it may be wiser to take the train, but I do not
presume to tell you how to travel. Though would it be
permissible to ask why you are seeing them?

I shrugged, making a mental note about the train. "We have
some business with them dealing with some trade they have
been doing."

Sie nodded, crossing hir arms behind hir back. The others
behind us were carrying all the torches, so our hands were
free.

Silence descended once more as we started up a small hill.
Farms lined each side of the road, each of the fields filled
with long waving stocks of grain.

Every now and then I would see a light in the distance, some
times flame, other times electrical. Once I even saw a sort
of tractor by the side of the field. From what I had seen I
would say this world was on the same technological level as
Earth was thirty years before. Just that it seemed to be
isolated to different areas, some had more, others had less.
Off hand I was say it was some kind of culture thing.

Once we stepped over the crest of the hill, our destination
was spread out below us. It wasn't a very large city, maybe
three miles accost in sort of a circle. The center of which
looked to be a wide open park, now filled with large tents.

Most of the streets were dark. The main one's that lead from
the edge of the city to the center were light though, mostly
by touches. A few electrical lights glowed in places, but
they could be counted on one hand.

"Nice city," Ren commented as we had all stopped to look.

Sarah nodded, "Yes, the lighting by touches is traditional
for the Festival. Usually it's much brighter."

"Of course," I said with a smile, "I think that would make
sense."

Sie waved a hand at all of us as sie started walking again,
this time at a brisk pace. "Come now, that's been enough
gawking. We're going to be late for the Start of the
Festival if we wait much longer."

We started walking again, matching hir pace. Ren keeping
right by my side. "I hope they don't expect us to take part
in this." He whispered to me, loud enough that I'm sure it
was meant for Sarah to hear.

I shrugged. "I don't mind if they ask us to do something," I
answered, keep my voice to the same volume he had used.

He rolled his eyes and keep walking, fixing his eyes
forward. The man was really started to get on my nerves. His
attitude seemed to be getting worse every time he opened his
mouth. I think that if he didn't shape up it would someday
cost him his life.

Maybe Jadith could work it out of him over time. It really
wasn't my concern after this little trip was over. During it
though, if he got out of line any worse then he already
have, I would make sure he knew it.

As we started to enter the city, I noticed there were
various peddlers along the street. This far from the center
of the city they were pretty thin, but I could see more
gathering farther down the road.

Sarah drifter back, taking a torch from one of the others.
"If you like, I will show you a place you can stay at until
you can continue on. It will give you a place to go if you
don't wish to be involved in the festival." Sie smiled at
Ren as sie said this, making sure he knew sie had gotten his
message.

Ren just snorted, returning hir smiled with one of his own.

"That would be a good idea," I said, "we could drop our
stuff off there before we go into the Festival." I said this
with a smirk directed to Ren. He just acted like he didn't
notice.

Sie smiled again, turning off down one of the dark side
streets. "Follow me, I know a place you can stay without
much difficulty."

We both followed hir as sie lead us through the side
streets. We moved generally towards the center of the town,
but never really getting into the crowds of people. Finally
we came to a large stone building, about three stories tall,
one of the biggest in the city.

"This is the Temple of Khur for the area. If it doesn't
bother you to stay in hir place of worship that is." Sie
said, pushing open the door.

"Not at all," I answered, following hir inside. The building
was dark, with the exception of one light glowing in the
back, beside what looked like an alter in the dim light.

Sarah put out hir touch, resting it just outside the door,
then started walking towards the light area of the room.
Half way there a Lynx Theriamorph came out from the back.
Sie was dressed casually, but from Sarah's reaction to
seeing hir I could guess sie was the local equivalent of a
priest.

"Welcome my guests," the Feline said, meeting us half way,
hir arms spread open in a greeting. "What can I do for you
on this night of merriment?"

"My friend and I were hoping to have a place to sleep for
the night," I said, stepping closer.

Sie nodded, looking over Ren and myself. "We don't usual
have Elves visit us in this part of the world, so I have no
rooms that are fit for your tastes."

I chuckled. "They are not as high as you have been told. We
will be happy with any room you could provide us with as
long as it has beds."

Letting out a nervous sigh, sie smiled. "Very well, I have a
room you can take then. Come with me and I'll lead you to
it."

"Thank you," I said, then turned to Sarah. "Thank you for
bringing us hear as well, your kindness is appreciated."

Sie blushed deeply in hir ears, bowing hir head a bit. "My
pleasure."

I returned hir bow before turing back to the priest. "Lead
on my friend."

We were taking up a pair of stairs onto the third floor,
then lead into a large room that took up most of the forward
part of the floor. It had half a dozen beds along the wall,
the end of each one projecting into the room. The front
facing wall was made up of almost one large window mounted
in the stone work, with just a few brick pillars separating
them into pains.

"I think this is a little much for just the two of us." I
commented.

Sie shook hir head. "Oh no, this is the normal room where I
put our guests, your more then welcome to use it for as long
as you stay in the city."

I nodded. "Thank you again, this is more then generous."

Sie smiled, walking back towards the door. "My pleasure."

Once the door was closed the only light in the room was
coming from the windows. We had a good view of the festival
from this far distance. Raised above the rest of the city
like we were we could look down on most of the festivities.

I dropped my pack onto the floor, walking over to the window
and looking out onto the people below.

Ren walked over to one of the beds in the room, laying down
on it and looking up at the ceiling. "So, are you planing to
go out and join the crowd?" He asked.

I shrugged, turning away from the window. "You never know, I
just might. It's either that or wait for morning."

He propped his head up on one hand and looked at me. "Did
you noticed they seem to be afraid of us?" He commented with
a slight smile.

I nodded, "And you love it don't you?"

He chuckles. "Of course, though you seem to be annoyed by
it."

I shook my head. "Not really annoyed, but it does concern
me. Freighted people some times attack, not as often as they
cower, but it still happens."

Ren shook his head in disappointment.

"Don't get me wrong," I continued, "I know that being feared
can be a boon. Here and now it makes it far less likely
anyone will find we're not what we appear."

He smiled. "What a nice recovery, it almost makes up for the
first commented." He sat up on the edge of the bed, leaning
forward, his arms resting on his legs. "So, tell me, what
was your nightmare about?"

I shook my head. "Do you really want to know?"

"Of course," He said with some eagerness in his voice, which
was reflected by the smile on his face.

"There isn't much I can say... I had an encounter with Ruhk.
Sie seems to have decided we are to be hir newest servants.
Apparently sie can't get out into the multi-verse anymore."

He rose his eyebrows at that, losing some of his smile.
"Anymore? You mean sie's gotten out before?"

I chuckled. "Didn't you pay attention? When the envoy said
Ruhk had been to Oria's world, that was the literal truth. I
remember Oria had mentioned it some time back, I just never
really placed it until last night. I've also meet hir
before, many years ago."

Ren frowned. "Sie is trapped though, sie can't go back out
into the multi-verse, right?" He sounded slightly worried as
he ask the question.

"I would hope so for right now, but in the end I wouldn't
put any money on it." I answered as truthfully as I could.
"Sie told me that sie was currently trapped, but that sie
would get around it. I'm not sure if I believe that or not,
I think it would be safe not to."

Fireworks exploded outside of the window, showering the room
in light, casting shadows into all four corners. I turned
back around to look out into the city. Music was starting to
grow from the crowed in the city center. "The festival's
started," I commented dryly.

"So it has," Ren said, suddenly right next to me. We both
pulled back a bit as another burst of fireworks light the
sky above us.

He grimaced, rubbing the side of his neck where he had been
attacked at.

"How is that healing?" I asked, grateful that the
conversation about Ruhk had ended.

"I checked when I woke up. It's healing nicely, though it's
going to leave an ugly scar."

I smirked, knowing what to say to cheer him up. "You did get
it in battle. So you can at least brag around it."

He laughed softly. "There is that..." He said, trailed off a
bit on the last syllable.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

He sighed, looking out at the festival below us, leaning
forward, once hand resting on the glass. "I think he did
something strange when he drank from me. I'm not sure... but
I think he let me feel how he felt as he was drinking.
Amplifying what I was feeling at the same time."

I frowned.

"It's been burned into my mind. Every time I think about
what happened I get those feelings again." He shivered
slightly. I'm sure that if he had fur there would have been
a viable ripple up the length of his spine.

"Once we get back home, you might want to find some way to
get them blocked out." I commented, "It's not a nice thing
to do, it leaves a hole in your mind, but if it's the only
way to deal with it you might just have to go for it." I
sighed. "I can recommend someone if you feel you need it."

He nodded, not saying anything else. Just staring out the
window at the people below, his eyes though a bit unfocused.
I guess he was contemplating what had happened so far.

I left him there, walking to one of the beds and sitting
down. So far this had been a long trip, and it felt like a
running battle from the word go. It had only been less then
a handful of days but we've keep running into opposition.

I stretched out slowly, working up from my toes to my
fingers. It was a technique that Oria had tough me a few
days ago, and it worked well to relax all the mussels as you
stretched. I hoped that sense we only had a few more days of
travel before we reached the Senate, maybe less if we took
the train, that we wouldn't be attacked any more.

Another set of fireworks exploded outside, casting Ren's
shadow out accost the floor. He still hadn't moved from
where I left him. I wondered if he could fall asleep
standing up, and if he had actually done it.

Then, proving me wrong, he steeped back, tiling his head
upwards to look at the sky. He looked back down at the
festival then back up once more.

"See anything interesting?" I asked.

He waved a hand at me to tell me to be quite, moving to once
side and looking up higher.

With a sudden yell he dove against he stone floor, pressing
himself below the windows. As he did a blur of motion moved
in front of the building, and with a suddenly blast of fire
and noise the glass of the windows exploded inwards.

I jumped behind the bed, pressing myself low as the glass
landed above and around me. So much for no more fights.

    Chapter 8

08/28/98:

"What caused that?" I asked, looking up over the side of the
bed once the blast had finished.

Ren waved his hand at me. "Stay down!" He yelled, a blast of
flame flooding into the room through the open windows. Two
more followed it in quick succession before Ren finally
yelled again.

"Dragons," he said, pulling himself to his feet as I did the
same, "Five, maybe six, I didn't seem then long enough to
tell."

"How large?" I asked, pulling off my shirt and shaking free
any glass that had landed on it.

"Size of a horse," he answered, leaning out the window. "A
large horse, like a clydesdale."

The door into the room was slammed open, the priest running
inside, hir fur standing up on end. Sie looked from the
window to us, then up at the scorch marks that covered the
ceiling.

"What happened?" sie asked, running towards Ren.

He gave hir a quick run down as I went over to them,
grabbing my pack on the way.

"Did you see their colors?" Sie asked, looking up in the
sky, searching for the attackers.

He nodded, "One was red and black, that I'm sure of. I think
the rest were green."

The priest growled softly as I handed Ren a pair of
binoculars. He snatched them from my fingers, searching the
sky for any signs of more attacks.

"There coming back, there are six, the one red dragon and
five greens." Ren said, handing the binoculars back to me.

The priest grabbed them instead, looking to the same spot
that Ren had been. I chanced a look down, to where the
festive was being held. There was a large swath of
destruction right through the middle of the park. A few
fires here and there, only a handful of people were trying
to stop them though, the rest were too panicked.

"Kra'tel," The priest said, shoving the binoculars back into
my hands. Sie didn't say it like a swear, more like sie was
spitting out a name that left a bitter taste in hir mouth.

"That's who is attacking us?" Ren asked, taking the
binoculars again and checking the dragons position.

Sie nodded. "A dragon who gave himself to Ruhk, but I was
told that 'Kharen had killed him half a century ago."

"Obviously he didn't," Ren muttered, shoving the binoculars
back into my hands. "Who are the others?"

Sie sighed. "He has the power to kill dragon's minds, to set
free there souls from the body without killing it. He
controls them."

I shoved the binoculars back into my pack, then grabbing
both guns I made sure they were ready for use. I returned
one the the rear holster, holding the other on in my hand.
Beside me Ren already was already holding a sword. "So
basically there mindless?" I asked, making sure I understood
what I had been told.

Sie nodded.

"All right," Ren said, a touch of excitement in his voice as
he stepped out onto the windowsill. "Lets bring them down!"

"Keep the red one alive," I said, moving closer to him,
"just keep it from flying."

He nodded, and with a smile slipped out the window onto the
small overhang below. He started to run along the two foot
wide strip of roof, when he reached the edge he jumped into
the air, coming down on the roof of the building next to the
Temple that was a story lower to the ground.

I shrugged, and with gun in hand followed him out the
window. As I fell to the second roof I could see the
dragons, each one growing larger as they moved down towards
the festival.

Ren moved onto another roof, heading off to one side where a
pair of green dragons were diving towards a large crowd of
people. The other three greens had split up, one was coming
towards me, the other two had vanished behind buildings. The
red was skimming over top of the crowd, moving in a lazy
circle

Coming up to the edge of the roof I looked around. There
were a few others I could jump too easily, but I didn't want
to stay in the air any longer then I had too. The dragon
that was coming for me was moving fast, I didn't have much
more time to delay.

With a loud yell I jumped down onto the panicked crowed
below me, just seconds before the dragon flew overhead. I
landed on a dozen people, most of the falling under my
weight. I scrambled off of them, looking around for the
dragon.

It was making a tight turn at the end of the street and
heading back towards me. I started running into the crowd,
pushing my way through them, trying to find a clear spot
before the dragon flamed me and everyone else.

At last I made it to a small clearing just outside one of
the tents. Most of the people had cleared out of this area,
with the rest suddenly scattering as they saw what was
following me.

As soon as I was clear of the 'morphs, I spun around, gun
held tightly in both hands. The dragon was maybe twenty feet
away, and moving faster then I could blink. Without thinking
I fired off two shots before I ducked under it's body as it
past through where I had just been.

It crashed into the tent behind me, pulling it up from the
mountings and sending it rolling through the grass. Pulling
myself to my feet I could see that I had hit it once along
its neck, and once just under the muzzle. The thing was
dead.

I spun around, searching the sky for any other dragons. One
was coming down one of the streets, screaming in pain and
blowing goats of flame at the crowd below. A few seconds
later it crashed into the side of a building. Ren must have
gotten it.

A long animal like scream came from behind me. I twisted
around, just in time to duck as a new green dragon flew past
me, trying to grab me in it's well toothed jaw.

I pulled myself back up just as soon as it had past over me.
It had come to a landing a hundred feet away and was slowly
turing around. It was looking at me as it turned, it's empty
eyes almost glowing in the torchlight.

Letting off a couple shots towards it I ducked behind the
trunk of a large tree that one tent had been around. A blast
of flame quickly followed, blowing around the trunk. It
nearly cooked me just from the heat, but I was lucky enough
not to get burt.

Once the fire was down I spun around the tree, gun held at
ready, and came face to muzzle with the dragon. It jumped
back on instinct, never expecting it's pray to have survived
a blast of it's fire.

It would have been impossible to miss him at this range, I
quickly put one shot between it's eyes, spinning back around
to look for any more as I heard it thump to the ground.

I saw Ren on the other side of the park area, looking around
just as I had. I started running towards him my gun still
held at the ready. Ren noticed me as I came up to him, his
blood covered sword held at ready for any more attacks.

"How many did you kill?" He asked, returning to his search
of the sky.

"Two," I answered. Doing the same, I could see no movement
in the sky, even the Red seemed to be gone.

"Same here," He commented. "Which leaves one green and the
leader of this little attack."

I lowered my eyes back to the buildings, searching down the
streets, looking for any signs of the dragons.

"Notice they seem to be getting smarter." he said, craning
his head back to look upwards.

"Nope, not really."

Ren chuckled, "They are Fox... this Red is controlling them,
the more we kill the more attention it can pay to the
others. Right now it only has one extra set of eyes and
ears. We have it's total and undivided attention."

"Brilliant observation," I commented, squinting a bit at
what looked like a moving shadow on top of a roof just a
short distance away from us.

"Thank you," He answered. I could hear the smirk in his
voice.

Still though, I was more interested in the moving shadows. I
walked over to a burning display of some sort. Grabbing
something large enough that was burning, I flung it at the
shadow.

The last green was there, edging closer to where we were. As
the light came on it, the beast screamed, jumping off the
building and flying towards us.

Ren moved first, in a flash of his sword he was suddenly on
it, chopping at it's neck. It fell to the ground with a
crash, it's head almost completely severed from it's neck.

"One left," He said, looking back up at the sky for any
movement.

The red was already above us, bearing down, flaming blasting
from it's mouth towards us. We each dove to one side as it
skimmed over our heads. Rolling back to my feet I fired
three shots at it while it pulled into the air. It seemed to
winch, twisting it wing and making a forced bank and one
hit.

Righting itself it turned back around, coming towards is
once more. Holding my gun as steadily as I could I let loose
the last three rounds in the clip at it. Once done I dropped
it, reaching around for the second gun and jumping to the
side as it came past again, but with no flame this time.

Ren jumped towards it, his sword cutting into the muscle and
flesh of the wing. The sword edge bounced off the bone of
the wing, but came back down on the wing membrane, ripping a
wide gash into it all the way down it's length.

The wing collapsed, sending the dragon hurtling into the
earth. It crashed head first, skidding and rolling before
coming to a stop on it's back.

We ran up to it, I was on one side, my gun pointed at it's
head. Ren was on the other, his sword on his throat.

The dragon looked between us and laughed. "Ruhk has always
underestimated you humans," it said with a sneer. I heard a
small gasp come from some of the crowd that had gathered
around us.

Ren smiled. "Thanks for the compliment."

It snorted, glaring at Ren. "You will be hir servant,
reaching out and causing destruction in the multi-verse." It
looked to me, "sie want's you to serve in hir bed."

I shook my head slowly. "Sorry, I'm already taken."

It smiled to us, letting out a slow chuckle. Which faded
away as his body fell into itself, crumbling into dust.

Pulling my gun back I kicked one pile of the ash like dust.
"Think it's dead?" I asked.

A long scream in the distance answered the question for us.
Lumbering down the street, maybe only twenty feet in the
air, was another dragon, but this one was huge! The size of
an elephant and grotesquely out of proportion with the
others I had seen so far tonight. It seemed to be struggling
to just keep in the air, but I doubted it's small legs could
hold up it's weight.

"No," Ren said, "and frankly I'm not sure that dragon should
be able to live at all."

I nodded, at the speed it was moving it would be on us in
only a minute, and I doubted I could get in range to use my
gun before I was toast.

"Do you have a plan this time?" Ren asked.

I paused, looking back behind us, the temple was on the
other side of the park. Inside of it was my pack, right
where I had left it in the room.

"Yes," I said, and started running through the park. Shoving
past the people that had come to watch the fight I worked my
way to the temple. Some where along the line my gun was
knocked from my hand. I swore when it happened, but I didn't
have time to stop and look for it.

Down into the street I went, slamming open the temple doors.
The priest was inside, praying the alter that was in the end
of the room.

"Keep running!" I yelled to Ren as I dashed through the
building, past the priest and up the stairs to the room we
had been staying in.

Skidding to my knees by my pack I dug through it, quickly I
found was I was looking for. A syringe of sorts, about an
inch thick and six long.

Climbing up back into the broken windows I looked down the
street. The massive dragon was almost past me already. I
stepped onto the roof, running down the short ledge and
jumping.

I landing on the things back, right between the wings. It
roared as I pulled myself to the base of it's neck, bucking,
trying to get me off.

Gripping the syringe hard I heard a crushing sound as the
inside casing broke open, releasing the chemical that was
healed inside of it to mix with the rest of the chemicals
that filled the syringe.

Stabbing it into the beasts neck I smashed the plunger down,
forcing almost all of it into it's neck. Counting to myself
I let myself slid back over it, falling of it's tail and
crashing to the street below.

Ren was suddenly right next to me helping me to my feet.
"What did you do?" He asked.

I looked over my shoulder, the dragon was some how making a
tight turn off the buildings and was coming back towards us.

Taking a few steps back I keep counted down to myself.
Finally I grabbed Ren and started to run towards the dragon,
moving under it's body before it could react. Once under it
I threw Ren to the ground, following after him.

The dragon pulled away, trying to turn around again. Closing
my eyes I ducked my head as my countdown reached zero. There
came a wet explosion from behind us, followed by a loud and
thick crash of something massive falling to the ground.

Ren and I both sat up, looking behind us. Most of the
dragon's neck was gone, as well as some of it's shoulders.

"What the hell did you do?"

I shrugged, shaking my head to clear the ringing in my ears.
"Gibbed him."

"But how?" Ren asked, rising to his feet.

I stood as well, surveying the damage. "Some G-137."

"Which is?" He asked.

"I'll tell you later." I responded, street lights suddenly
coming to life down the length of the road. I could see
maybe a hundred Theriamorphs moving towards us. One was
leading them, with enough force in hir walk I knew we were
in trouble.

Sie stepped around the bits of the dragon, walking right to
Ren and I. Stopping in front of us sie looked back and forth
between us.

In one quick move sie grabbed Ren's head and yanked him
down. A dagger suddenly in hir paw sie yanked on the tip of
his fake ear and sliced the end of it off.

Looking at it in disgust sie threw it to the ground. "You
are humans." Sie said, spitting at our feet.

I nodded. "Yes, we are."

"Restrain them!" Sie called, a pair of large bears were
suddenly upon us, holding our hands behind our backs.

"You will both be taken to the Senate, they will rule on how
to deal with you." With that sie turned on hir heel and
marched off into the crowed.

I sighed softly, relaxing into the bear's grasp. At least we
were going in to the right place.

    Chapter 9

08/30/98:

Ren and I sat in isolation, inside of a small cell near the
Senate building in the capital of Elena's country. It was a
very modern cell, with lights, bunks, and a working bathroom
off to one side. Frankly, it was pretty much like any other
jail cell I've seen.

The lights were off, to go with the rest of the lights in
the building. It was early morning, dawn just breaking above
the horizon, the light filling the cell from the small
window in the wall.

We had arrived in the city only a few hours ago, having been
put on the first train. Once we had been put in the cell we
were informed that the Senate would be seeing us first thing
in the morning. About two more hours away.

So we waited in silence. They had taken my last gun from me,
the one I had on my ankle. A cliche, I know, but Oria was
very clear that I would wear it at all times while on this
trip.

Ren had a pair of steal bands around his hands, covering his
palms. His suggested it when they asked him for his weapons.
It took a day or so to get them made up. Shackles aren't
something Theriamorphs have in there culture, so they had to
be made from scratch. For a rush job they did pretty good,
but I think Ren could get out of them in a few seconds if he
wanted too.

"So," Ren asked, finally breaking the silence, "what is
G-137 anyway?"

I chuckled, I had been waiting for him to ask the question
for a while. "I chemically separated binary explosive
compound."

He nodded. "You demonstrated the last part nicely, but what
exactly does 'chemically separated' mean?"

"One of the chemicals is held in sate inside another," I
explained, "separating the two and keeping them from
exploding. The proper electrical charge cause the holding
chemical to break down and, well, boom."

He chuckled. "Nice toy."

I nodded. "It's my key. I've used it to open some large
doors before. It can also be used like a grenade."

Leaning forward he smiled. "Which would be what you did to
the dragon, how exactly is that done?"

"Well, it's held in a syringe, or something close to it, it
really makes no difference. The thing is, there are two
tubes inside of it. In the gap between them is another
chemical. When it's mixed with the others it causes a timed
breakdown of the holding chemical. You apply enough pressure
to the casing and the inside tube will break before the
outside, releasing the chemical in the mix."

He laughed. "Which explains why you where counting to
yourself... that's slick, that's just really impressive all
over. I can see why you use it as a key."

I nodded. "Yep, and for other things, there's actually a
shaping compound to go over it to control the direction of
the blast."

"What amazing toys you have Fox." Ren said, leaning back
against the wall, his hands behind his head.

"Agreed," Elena commented.

I twisting my head around, looking for hir. Sie wasn't even
hiding, standing right out in the open on the other side of
the cell door.

"Aren't you afraid you'll get caught?" I asked, walking over
to hir.

Sie snorted. "In this abomination! I can't even believe that
my people would ever make something like this place!"

I shrugged. "It makes sense, they do at times have to
detainee members of other species. They would need a prison
for that."

Sie nodded. "I understand the logic, I just can _not_
understand how my people could allow this!"

I shrugged again. "To that I can't offer comment."

Sie sighed. "Very well, do you want out?"

I paused, looking to Ren. He shook his head. "Nope," I said,
turning back to Elena. "We're going to be taken before the
Senate as soon as they start there day. It will give me a
chance to address them without trying to request an
audience."

Sie let out a rolling laugh. "Do you always look on the
bright side of your problems?"

I smiled back to hir. "I have to, it's the only thing that
keeps me from going insane and killing everyone around me."

Sie smirked. "I see, well then I think I had better give you
this." Sie said, one of my pistols suddenly in hir paw.

I took it, removing the clip, it had a few rounds in it
still. I paused, thinking it over, finally I shook my head,
handing it back. "No, I don't think being armed will help my
case any."

Sie frowned, taking it from me. "Is there anything I can get
you?"

"Do you happen to have my pack?"

Sie presented it to me on the other side of the cell door. I
grinned, digging inside of it. I came back up with the box
Dwight had given me.

"What's that?" Elena asked, my pack vanishing just as quick
as it had came.

"Something to keep your people from using the folds." I
answered, running my fingers over the smooth sides.

"Seems a bit small to block folds," Ren commented from
behind my shoulder.

I nodded. "I noticed that right off myself. It might run the
feedback to the deep fold in some fashion. Taping into that
might be easier then forcing them to feedback on
themselves."

Elena smiled, "I will not pretend to understand how it
works. Use it if you must though, I have to leave now, a
guard is approaching, I don't wish to be here when sie
arrives."

"Very well," I said, but before I had even finished sie was
gone.

"Sie moves quickly," Ren commented as I walked over to the
window, the rising sun giving me adequate light to look over
the box.

"And silently, that's why sie's so popular as a free-lance
assassin." I commented, running my fingers over the gray
plastic, trying to find some a control of some sort.

He chuckled. "Good for hir. I'm always happy when people
find there niche in life."

I rolled my eyes, finding a catch on one side of the box.
There was a slight hum and one side sprung open. Looking
inside I trying to make out what I was seeing, but most of
it was blocked by packing.

Working my fingers around the edge I slowly lifted it from
the box, looking at it in the growing light. "There's a
note," Ren said, picking a small piece of paper out from the
bottom of the box. "It says, 'it's coded to work only for
you'."

I nodded, there was a control panel on one side with a few
buttons on it. I was starting to get worried, this looked
more like a bomb then any kind of a block for a fold.

Flipping it over I checked the base. Writing on it, in very
tiny print was the words 'level 27'.

"Oh shit," I whispered, setting the device back into the
box, replacing the packing as I did so.

"What is it?" Ren asked.

I shook my head, closing the box, feeling it latch again.
"Elena," I whispered, walking towards the cell door.

"Yes?" Sie asked, suddenly right in front of me.

I shoved hir the box, "Take this and guard it. Do not let it
leave your person."

Sie took it from me, a confused look on hir face. "Are you
all right Fox. You're as pail as the dead."

I shook my head. "No, now go, get away from here, and stay
out of trouble."

Sie frowned, looking down at the box, but was quickly gone.

"What the hell was that?" Ren asked.

I walked over to the bunk, sitting down on it. "A level
twenty-seven bomb."

He looked confused, "I know the level numbers, but nothing
over 25."

"Right," I answered, "that's because the higher one's get
more and more deadlier. Twenty-seven is a genetically
engineered virus specific to one base DNA profile. It's a
genocide bomb, it seeks out a species and kills every
member."

"By the dozen gods," he whispered, "how the hell did you
even get that thing?"

"Dwight gave it to me," I answered him.

He jumped back like he had been slapped in the face.
"Dwight! You have got to be wrong."

I shook my head, "He gave it to me. Made it clear that it
was meant to keep them out of the multi-verse, unless the
Council let them."

He shook his head in disbelief. "No, he couldn't know about
something like this."

I frowned, "Haven't you listened to him lately? Listened to
what he's been talking about. The plague has always been his
focus, he's very cold about, there's anger under the surface
that he's hiding."

"Why you then?" He asked, moving forward. "Why would he ever
ask you to do this if he did know about it."

"My daughter is the soul survivor of one of the the worlds,
also it's future salvation. I think he believed I would be
willing to take revenge like this."

He shook his head again. "No, there is no way he can't know
about this."

I snorted, "Of course he can. First off the Council is the
only place in the multi-verse that uses that level system.
The Mouse was held in the Hall's prison, no one outside of
it would have access. As well as the fact that the
technology to make such a virus is controlled by the
Council, and the creating of such can only be ordered by one
of the three first level members."

He stared at me in disbelief. "I still don't believe it's
Dwight."

I shook my head. "By that as it may, I was once accused of
committing genocide, there's no way in hell I'll do it now.
Right now I need to come up with a better way to deal with
this people, some kind of deal. You have a worse of a
problem then I do though."

He raised his eyebrows, "that would be?"

"Dwight ordered me to do this. I maybe free-lance but the
new Organization isn't. You might find yourself up for trial
if you don't force me to activate that."

He shook his head. "You have to be joking. There's no way I
can do that!"

"They could. The orders were given to me, and there for
apply to you. Your basically declaring it an illegal order,
I don't know what the repercussions of that will be, but it
might not be pretty."

"No no no no no," he said, waving his hands in front of me.
"This is just some bad dream. Dwight did not order you to
kill a species, he's the Council Head, he couldn't get in if
he was already planing on using it."

I nodded, stopping his hands. "Exactly, which means either
he's being played for a fool, and I think he's far to smart
then that, or he some how got around the screenings."

"No Fox," he said, stepping away from me. "This is insane.
The Council Head is not corrupt, nor is the system by which
he was appointed. Someone has to be setting him up, and they
know you'll go along with it!"

"I don't know what it really is," I answered, "but I've
dealt with Dwight before, he has an anger about him
involving the Plague. Maybe this is some kind of setup, I
don't know, but I will find out. For right now though we
have an hour and a half before we make a case to the Senate
for there responsibility for what has happened. What is in
the box will not be a part of it, and I will not never use
it or anything like it. What I need is a better way to
convince them that we are taking there actions very
seriously."

Ren nodded, leaning back against a wall. Slowly a small
smile crept over his lips. "How about a bigger bomb?"

    Chapter 10

The Senate chambers were silent as Ren and I were lead
inside. It was a large room, almost pit like in it's
construction. The members of the Senate lined a two tear row
of seats all the way around the room. A large podium was at
very center, behind which sat an elder looking otter, who
had an annoyed grimace on hir muzzle.

Once at the center of the room, the two bears who had been
holding our hands let go, stepping back to block the doorway
out.

"We have an interesting situation on our paws." The otter
said, standing up, hir eyes drifting over the other members
in the room. "The discovery of two humans in this world.
Disguised as elves, they were moving deeper into our lands,
until they were revealed by an attacking dragon two days
ago."

Ren spoke up, "Which we happened to have stopped, along with
a few others, as they where attacking the population of the
city." He said it more like a boast then a statement of
fact.

The otter nodded. "True, but the attack was aimed directly
against you. Sent by Ruhk no the less."

There came a collective gasp from around the room.

I shrugged. "I'm sorry about that, but sie has taken an
unhealthy interest in the pair of us."

"Unhealthy for who?!" A voice called from one side of the
room.

"Me, Ren here, you, and everyone who gets in hir way while
sie tries to recruit us." I answered.

A smiles as creeping accost the otters face. "So your
running from hir, not serving hir. Is that what your
saying?"

"Yes!" Ren said.

"Not that I would expect any of you to believe it." I
answered for myself. "Sie is, if your pardon the language, a
utter bitch. Sie made a point of showing me exactly what sie
was planing to do to me, to scare me I think."

The otter shook hir head. "What should we do with them?" Sie
asked the Senate.

I stepped forward, "Excuse me," I searched for the correct
version of the world, "I'm not sure of your proper title,
but I believe we are entitled to say something in our
defense."

"Lady Chairman will do," sie answered, "or Speaker and you
may say your piece."

I sighed softly, looking around the room at all present. "To
be blunt, Ren and I were sent here."

There was a pause, no one in the room was saying a word, all
were looking at the otter.

"Who sent you, and why?" Sie asked me.

"I was sent by the Head of the Council of the multi-verse."
A few people in the room jumped, "As for the why, that's
simple. Ruhk has wormed hir way inside of it through
assorted means."

This finally brought an outburst from some of the crowd,
mostly some hushed conversation, though a few people stood
up and started yelling to each other.

The otter looked around the Senate, and with a slice of hir
paw, brought them all to silence. "I know of the
multi-verse, we have been able to step through the binds of
these worlds for many years. I have heard of your Council
before through are trades, but nothing of Ruhk."

I smiled. "When was the last time you sent anyone out into
the multi-verse?"

"About nine months," a lynx said, standing up and presenting
hirself to us. "Our trader never returned, and hir guards
came back dead. We have stopped all trading until we can
find a new location to conduct our business."

"Right, I know about the dead part, I was there. I was
trying to capture them."

This brought a loud outburst of yells through out the room.

The Speaker stood strait and let out a shrill whistle with
hir fingers. "Sit back down, all of you. They would not know
our feelings on capturing our people."

Everyone sat down, but many a hushed conversation continued.

"Why," sie asked, "did you feel it necessary to capture
hir?"

"Tell me," I said, ignoring the question for now, instead
turning in a slow circe to look at everyone. "Who hear
selected and provided the artifacts for trade?"

A large boar stood up, crossing hir arms over hir chest. "I
made those selections."

"Do your remember a sealed artifact, set to trade about a
month before we captured the Mouse?"

Sie snorted. "Yes, that was only thing that was sealed."

I smiled. "And why in the world would you ever send a sealed
artifact for trade? Shouldn't you always open it up first."

Sie slowly smiled. "It was my call."

I shook my head. "I doubt it," I turned back to the otter.
"you see, inside that artifact was a virus. Created by Ruhk,
and made to kill everyone it infected, no matter the
species. The death tool was almost eleven-billion people
before it had run it's course."

The was a stunned silence in the room. Quick it was broken
by the otter glaring at the boar. "Did you know about this
before you sent that artifact?"

Sie smiled even wider. "Yes, of course. Ruhk wishes to have
the multi-verse, and I will do all that I can to aid my
mistress."

"Would someone please get hir the hell out of the room?" Ren
asked, glaring up at hir.

The otter nodded, an angry look on hir face, but sie was
holding back more. A pair of bears had already arrived next
to the boar. They quickly restrained hir paws and escorted
hir out of the room. Just outside of the door sie was meet
by another bear, this one bigger in the others. I could see
a glint of steal in hir paw before the door closed.

'That's right,' I though to myself, 'they don't imprison
there own kind.' Expecting that sie wouldn't live out the
day, or if sie did it would be without hir ear, and there
for, hir name.

"Is this mass murder the extent of Ruhk's influence?" The
otter asked, drawing my attention back to the matter at
hand.

I sighed. "In the dream where sie attacked me, sie implied
that it was. In the past sie has been able to posses the
bodies of willing victims inside the multi-verse, but sie
also implied that that rout has been closed off to hir."

"I do not trust anything about hir that can not be proven,"
The otter said.

I nodded, "a very good choice."

"We will reinforce hir prison, to prevent hir from extending
hir corruption any more then it already has."

I nodded again. "Very good, but there is more."

Sie raised hir ears. "More in what way?"

I sighed, licking my lips. "You must understand Lady
Chairman, this is not an action that can be taken lightly.
Whoever was directly responsible for the Plague, the fact
remains that it came from this world, and the people of this
world must be held accountable."

"How?" Sie asked with a slight growl.

I shrugged. "There are two ways. The first being is that we
block your folds, force them to feedback on themselves, they
could never be opened, you would never be able to leave your
world again."

Sie thought about this for a few seconds, a frown spreading
accost hir muzzle, it faded away right before sie answered.
"That would not be a large loss, but we are not the only
one's in the world. They may also understand how to open the
folds."

I nodded. "I know, there is a second option though. We
invert all the know folds, forcing them all to one location.
In this matter you would be allowed to trade, but with the
Council as mediator, following it's rules and guide lines on
what things you can trade and with who."

"And if we refuse either of theses options?" Someone from
the back asked.

I sighed. "The same as if you find a way into the
multi-verse through either type of the blocks. You would be
subjected to what is referred to as a level fifty bomb."

"What does that mean?" The otter asked, a new frown playing
accost hir muzzle.

"Simply put, it's a super-nova bomb. We drop it in your sun
and three days later your picking your solar system up quark
by quark. Quite a nasty end as you might imagine."

Sie looked down at me, then back up and over the rest of the
room. "Are these terms negotiable?" Sie finally asked.

I nodded. "All of them are. You will have to send a
representative to Prid though. Sie will handle all of the
negotiations directly with the Council."

Sie nodded, sitting down in hir chair. "We will need to
discuss this. You will be escorted to a room, where you will
await our answer."

"Thank you," I said as I felt a large paw decent on my
shoulder.

Ren and I were escorted into a small windowless room. I
dropped down into a chair as the door outside locked.

"A type fifty bomb," Ren said with a laugh. "Great bluff!"

I gave him a weary smile. "Never said I was bluffing."

He smiled, sitting down himself, playing a bit at the bands.
"If you say so, though frankly I can't see how a bomb like
that could work."

I shrugged. "I can't either, but you never know."

He nodded, leaning back in the chair. "So, how long do you
think we'll have to wait."

"I don't know," I answered. "A few minutes, a few hours,
even a few days. It depends on how things go."

He snorted. "I hate being out of the loop. It makes me feel
like I've lost control of things."

"Were you ever in control?" I questioned.

He smiled.

"Do you think they'll go for it then?" Ren asked.

I nodded. "In some fashion, at least they will come up with
a decent agreement. I just wanted to get the floor open and
try to settle this in some decent way."

"Better then the alternative." He commented, rubbing the
side of his neck. The wounds had healed, leaving a pair of
nasty scars. I figured he would have the removed once we got
home, or not, knowing Ren he might just flaunt then.

I shrugged. "Life is always better then death."

He chuckled. "If you say so Fox, myself, I'm going to try
and get some sleep. It's been a long trip and I'm really
getting exhausted."

I smiled, waving my hand at him. "Go right ahead, I'll wake
you when something interesting happens."

He nodded, leaning to his side in the chair and drifting
right into sleep.

It was five hours before anything interesting happened. Ren
was already awake, and we were playing chess. I had made
some quick pieces from the things in the room, and had been
playing steadily for the last hour. I was still winning, but
Ren was picking up the game quickly and I'm sure would start
beating me in a game or two more.

That was interrupted though when the door into the room
opened and the otter stepped inside. "Greetings," sie said
as the door closed behind hir.

I nodded to hir, making a quick move that but Ren into
check. "Have you come to some sort of an agreement with the
Senate as to what action to take?"

Sie nodded slowly. "Yes, it's not a unanimous decision, but
we do have a plan as to what to do."

"What would that be?" Ren asked, moving his king in the only
direction he could.

"You are to be taken to the science building accost town,
the fold we use for trading is there. You are to leave as
soon as you are ready." Sie answered.

"Right," I said, moving my queen. "Check mate," I told Ren,
then turned my full attention to the otter. "Are you sending
someone with us?"

Sie nodded. "I will be coming along to represent my people.
Neither of the options you gave us were optimal, and we
decided that it would be beneficial to us if I was there to
negotiate directly."

I grinned. "A very good decision. I guess we can leave at
anytime, though I do want my gun back that you confiscated."

Sie nodded again. "It will be waiting for us at the
destination, as will be your pack." Sie said, turning to
open the door.

I chuckled. "Where did you find that at?" I asked.

"I was just told we had it."

I shook my head, still grinning. "Right then, lead on then."

We followed hir out of the building, into a car, and accost
the town. We then were escorted into a large lab type room
under the building. I was given my pack and gun back, and
Ren had the bands taken off his palms.

The trip through the fold went without incident, I had Ren
take the otter to the Council Chambers while I made a quick
trip home before I went there myself.

    Chapter 11

I took the Fold directly to my house. Then walking quickly I
went to the kitchen, hoping to grab a bite to eat before I
went to address the Council about what had happened on the
Theriamorph's world. As well as Dwight actions regarding it.

I really wasn't sure if Dwight knew what he was giving me or
not, but I could not believe that he would play the fool so
easily. He was a intelligent man, he had to be in dealing
with the Council.

With a sigh, I slipped into the kitchen.

"Fox!" Oria said, her arms immediately wrapped around me. I
laughed, pulling her closer and kissing her soundly.

"How long have you been back?" She asked as we broke the
kiss.

"Minutes," I answered. "I want to get cleaned up and maybe
something to eat before I go see the Council."

She nodded, "I think I have something left over from last
night I can make into a sandwich for you."

I smiled, dropping my pack on a free chair. "That will be
great thanks. Anything interesting happen while I was gone?"

"Not really," she commented, pulling some food from the
refrigerator. "Naomi is doing well, the doctors thing she
will give birth in two months, give or take a week. It's
going to be a girl."

I chuckled, rubbing the base of my ear. "Good for her."

She nodded in agreement, setting the food out with some
bread. "She's starting to get excited by the prospect, she's
going to adjust well to being a mother."

I grinned. "So will you."

She swished her tail around her legs in a kind of a laugh.
"I hope I am. Also, Sora has gotten most of that data put
together for you, she's setup to show you at a moments
notice."

I smiled, looking around the room for the gunk that would
unglue my ears. I found it in a corner by the phones. "Good
to know, I'll get right on that once I get back from seeing
the Council."

"I also went after one of the items that Grasion left
behind," she continued, "a small power converter, it
couldn't have take more then two hours to get. I put it in
the book with the super conductor."

I chuckled. "That's good, I'm glad you didn't have much
trouble with it." I made a note to ask Rachel why we were
keeping the stuff we were going after. It would have made
more sense to give it to the Council so they could do what
ever they though was proper with it.

"I'll be right back," I said, picking up the small bottle.
"I need to take off these ears."

She smiled to me. "I should have your lunch made by then."

I smiled back, heading out of the kitchen to one of the
bathrooms. Putting some the gunk in the bottle on my ears, I
worked it in with my fingers, after a few seconds the fake
ears just fell off into the skin.

With a content sigh for having the silly things off finally
I washed the left over gunk off my ears and out of my hair.
Once I got a look at myself in the mirror though I decide at
least some cleaning was in order. Bending over the skin I
worked the water over my face, removing the dirt and grime
that had built up on the past week.

After drying off, I put my glasses back on, and started back
for the kitchen. Only to find myself nose to nose with a
familiar face.

We both jumped back away from other, Romana yelped sightly
and dropped her staff.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

She chuckled. "Running into you, I though that was obvious,"
was the answer she gave as she bent down to retrieve the
staff.

I nodded, "Right then, what brings you here? Visits from you
or Burke have never been social."

She nodded with a sigh. "I'm afraid this one isn't either.
You need to give the bomb to Oriana, tell her to hide it on
her world."

I frowned, "why?"

"I'm sorry," she said, her tail drooping a bit, "I don't
have the time to explain. Please, just have her do it, and
do it now."

I sighed, that didn't sound good. "Ok," I said, turing to go
to the kitchen, but spun back around as I though of
something, "Why are you telling me this and not Burke?"

Romana slowly shook her head, her ears falling as well. "My
brother will have nothing to do with you, or the rest of the
family. In fact, he has run off someplace, I think father is
the only one who knows where. I was sent to deal with you
until he either he comes back or we finish."

I shook my head, this was something to think about later. "I
would love to question you, but if this is as important as
you want me to believe I had better go tell Oria."

She seemed to suddenly notice that I was still there. "It
is, now go, tell her, you don't have much time." she said
with a wave of her paw, before vanishing.

I sighed, walking back into the kitchen. Oria meet me at the
door, handing me a plate with a thick sandwich made mostly
of meat on it. I smiled, taking the plate and kissing her on
the nose.

She sat down at the table, offering me a seat.

I shook my head, setting the plate down. "Oria, I need you
to do something, right now."

She gave me an lopsided smile. "Right now?"

"It's not like that," I said with a sigh as I dug into my
pack. Pulling out the box that held the bomb I set it in
front of her. "I need you take this to your world and hide
it. Hide it good, and keep it away from the Fold."

She frowned sharply, her ears dipping down low. "Why, what
is it?"

"You don't want to know," I said as I took a bite from my
sandwich. "Please just do it," I said, swallowing the food,
"I need to leave to see the Council as soon as I finish
eating."

She nodded, picking the box up as she stood. "Ok Fox, I know
exactly where I can put it, but I have to leave right now."

I smiled. "That will be perfect, I'll see you tonight."

Oria nodded, walking over and giving me a second deep kiss,
which I happily returned. I smiled as I watched her go, her
tail swishing slowly behind her. Damn, it felt good to be in
love!

Finishing up my meal I took the fold to the Marble Hall. As
I walked inside the entrance to the Council chambers I was
meet by the secretary. "Hello sir," she said, standing just
inside the door.

"Hello," I answered back. "The Council is more then likely
expecting me, could you please tell them that I'm here."

"Your name then Sir?" she asked.

"Cutter," I answered.

The young pantheress nodded, walking back behind the desk
and talking into her phone. I took a seat in the small
waiting room and flipped through the assorted literature. I
had no problem waiting for the Council to call me, I didn't
think it would take very long.

So I waited, and waited, and waited. Two hours later, once I
had been through every magazine and paper in the room,
twice, I finally approached the secretary again.

"Excuse me," I said.

She looked up, a slight frown showing on her muzzle for just
a second. "Yes sir, is there something I can help you with?"

"I was wondering if the Council wanted to see me, and about
how much longer I would have to wait."

She frowned, "Well sir," she started, but couldn't seem to
find any words to come after.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"Sir, I've been instructed not to let you see the Council,"
she answered.

"What?" I asked, glaring at her. She jumped back a bit,
shivering slightly. "Who instructed you?"

She gulped. "The Council Head sir, he told me himself, right
before you got here sir."

I closed my eyes, feeling a growl building in the back of my
throat. "Is the Council in session right now?"

"Yes sir," she said.

I nodded, looking back down at her. "Thank you," I said, and
pushed through the door into the Council members Offices. I
started down the main hall towards the door of the Council
chambers.

A pair of guards we're waiting at the door, the seemed to
take an interest in me. Stopping there own conversation and
stepping in front of the door.

"I'm sorry sir, we can not let you inside." The bigger of
the two said.

"On who's orders?" I snarled.

"The Council Head sir," the second guard answered.

I glared at the pair of them. "I am going inside to see
them, you understand that don't you?"

The second guard nodded. "Yes sir, but we still can not
allow you to enter."

I shook my head, then punched the second guard in the
muzzle. While he was reeling I shoved him into his partner,
sending them both sprawling to the floor.

Stepping over them I shoved open the door and walked onto
the Council floor.

The Council was in one of there 'conversations' one person
yelling to another, with someone else trying to yell louder.
All the while everyone else is trying to have a conversation
with the person sitting next to them, and trying to be heard
over the rest of the yelling, making it even louder.

I had the floor to myself, no one seemed to have even
noticed my entrance. Well, almost no one.

"What is the meaning of this!" Dwight bellowed down to me,
the suddenness of his comment hushing everyone else in the
room.

I glared back up at him. "Of this? I should ask you the same
question. Why was the secretary told to refuse me admittance
to the Council!"

Dwight stood, glaring back down at me. "I felt your presence
was unwarranted after the situation you put us in regarding
the Theriamorph's. The Council has never bargained on the
weight of threats. I do not see why you should be allowed
that right!"

"I did what I felt was necessary." I said, my voice almost a
yell. "I didn't think they would compile with me in any
other fashion."

He snorted, "You were sent on a fact finding mission," He
said, his own voice growing louder as he spoke, "with the
sole purpose of discovering if the release of the Plague was
intentional on there part. Instead I find that you have
ignored all I told you to do, and have forced them into a
trade agreement that we now must honor."

"Bull shit!" I yelled back, my temper flaring to it's
fullest, "I did what I had to I had to so this could end in
some kind of peaceful agreement!"

"Mister Cutter," one of the second level members said in a
calm voice, I just barely registered that he said anything
at all.

Dwight snorted, "I gave your a direct order which you failed
to carry out!"

I growled, "You Son of a Bitch!" I said, spitting the words
out at the top of my voice. "If I had what you ordered they
would all be *DEAD*!"

"Mister Cutter," The second level member again said, this
time yelling it just as loud as I was as he rose to his
feet.

"Yes?" I yelled back to him.

"You force your way in here," he said, his voice falling
back into a level tone, "assaulting our guards, during a
session that was closed to you. Then yelling incoherently at
the top of your lungs at the Council Head and you expect us
to listen to anything you have to say? You have nor the
right or the privilege. I have no recourse but to put a vote
in front of this Council to find you in contempt!"

"Oh shit," I whispered to myself, my anger felling away as I
realized what I had just done. This was not what I wanted to
happen here or now. I was support to present the Council
with what Dwight had done, not make a fool of myself.

There was silence in the room as every head turned to look
up at Dwight and Theo, the other seat for the first level
member was currently vacant.

Theo frowned, looking down at me. "I am forced to agree. Fox
your actions are uncalled for and unwarranted, no matter
what the argument is. I second the motion on the floor. A
show of hands for the vote for everyone for finding Mister
Cutter in contempt."

Every hand in the room shot up.

I sighed, shaking my head. I had really done it this time. I
felt a paw fall in each shoulder. Looking behind me I saw
the two guards who had been guarding the door.

"So recorded," Theo said, looking back down at me. "The
minimal penitently for a contempt charge is a fine of a
thousand credits. Adding to this is the charge of assault on
the guards to enter into the Council chambers. To this
charge you may entry a plea of your own."

I sighed, shaking my head. "I did attack them."

He nodded, "Do you wish for this Council to pass sentence on
this crime, or should this go to court?"

"Lets just get this over with," I said with a sigh, looking
down at the floor.

"Very well, sense you did no physical damage to either of
the guards you will be given the shortest sentence," he bent
forward to refer to something in front of him. "That is one
month in prison. Do you accept the verdict that I have given
you?"

"Yes, I do." I answered, putting my hands behind my back for
the guards to handcuff me, which they did almost instantly

Dwight stood, "then let the sentence commence immediately.
You will be placed in the security section of the prison for
you own safety." He was speaking very calmly, but I could
see anger behind his eyes.

I nodded. "Thank you for show of kindness." I said as the
guards turned me around and marched me off the floor and
into the Offices.

They escorted me to one of the back entrances to the Council
chambers. There we were meet with a pair of guards from the
prison. They escorted me into a bank of elevators and deeper
into the Hall. We took a long winding path to the prison,
going up a down a few times until we came to a side
entrance. My guess would be to avoid the certain media
attention something like this would almost instantly bring.

Still though, there was one photographer waiting by the
door. I smiled while she took my picture. I'm sure she was
going to get paid a fortune for it in the next few minutes.

Once inside I was finger printed, had my DNA sampled and my
retinas scanned. Then was given a full physical by the
prison doctors. Which caused a bit of a problem as I refused
to take off my pendant. It took a bit of time but someone
finally got my medical records and found that it required me
to wear it at all times.

After that I was given a new change of the usual grayish
white prison clothing and was escorted to a small room where
I was left.

Sitting in the one chair in the room I waited for something
to happen. Eventually the warden herself came in to talk to
me. As per Dwight's orders I was going to be put in the
security section, which gave me a few luxuries. Mostly I was
just going to be stuck inside the cell, only being let out
once a day for a shower, which would be private as well.

After that I was left alone again in the room. I sighed to
myself, rubbing the back of my neck as I waited for
something else to happen. I was now very glad I had Oria
hide the bomb. I would definitely need it later to prove
what Dwight had done.

Now though I was starting to wonder what other implications
that might have. Mostly I was thinking that if people found
out the new Council Head was corrupt, the result would be a
panic, I didn't think the Council could survive such a
revelation this short after the Hammerheads.

I needed to talk to Rachel, she would have a better feeling
about how this would go. But there was feeling in the pit of
my stomach that said it was going to be just as bad as I
thought, if not worse.

A few minutes later the door opened again, and Oria came
into the room. She frowned when she saw me. "They say on the
news that your going to be in jail for a month."

I nodded. "Yep, I put my foot in it this time."

She sighed, crossing her arms. "Have you even though about
what's going to happen?"

I shook my head. "No, not really."

"I'm glad I did then," she said, smiling slightly. "Think
about this, how well do you think Rhea will do inside a jail
cell."

I closed my eyes and swore to myself. She was right, I did
have to be Rhea in only a couple of weeks. I was quite sure
she would not like to be confined up in small cell.

Oria chuckled softly, "I've already talk to some people
about it, we might be able to arrange something. But you
more then likely going to have to stay Rhea longer then
normally."

I nodded, looking at her again "I can deal with that."

She smiled, then hugged me quickly. "I don't know why you
seem to be so calm about this. I saw the footage of you in
the Council chambers, you where screaming. What happened on
that trip, and why are you so calm about it now?"

I sighed, shaking my head. "I can't say, not right away at
least. Though I think this might serve me nicely."

She frowned. "How?"

I chuckled, petting her cheek with one finger. "Because
patients can be a weapon."

She rolled her eyes. "Assume I understood that. Right now
though I have to leave, you be careful ok. I don't know how
bad this place is, but I know Grasion is here, so watch out
for him."

I kissed her softly. "I will, and call Rachel, I need to
talk to her as soon as I can. Call Page as well, tell her I
want everything she can find on Dwight. Have her give it to
Rachel when she's done."

She nodded, kissing me back deeply before breaking away. She
was escorted out of the room a few seconds later. A minute
after that a guard entered the room.

"Come on, we have a cell for you in security wing." He said.

I nodded, standing up and following him as he escorted me
down the hallway.

"Have you been informed of the rules here?" He asked as we
were buzzed through a locked door.

"Yes," I answered.

"Good, I dislike having to rehash them." He looked down at
me, his seven foot high imposing. "We've been told that you
won't be much trouble for us."

I shrugged. "I hope not." I commented as we started down a
corridor lined with cells. Each one was a small room that
had a door looking out into the hallway. The door was the
only part of the cell made up of bars, the rest was just
metal and stone.

"I'm sorry about putting you in here," The guard said as he
ushered me inside one of the rooms. "There was a note on
your personal file, but it's the only cell we have free in
this section."

"What's wrong with it?" I asked as he closed and locked the
door.

The guard shook his head and walked away.

I sighed, sitting down on the single bunk in the room. On
the whole this had been a pretty nasty day. I didn't think
they was anyway it could get worse.

"Well now," a familiar voice said from outside, "fancy
meeting you in here."

I frowned, looking out the door of my cell, on the far side
of the hallway, leaning up against the bars of his door,
with a massive grin on his face. was Grasion.

With a groan I fell back onto the bunk and burying my head
under a pillow, it had just gotten worse.

-----

This story is (c) 1998 by Fox Cutter, hardcopy reprints
limited to one a person, all other rights reserved. This
story may not be distributed for a fee except by permission
of the author, and this copyright notice may not be removed.
Elena and hir world is (c) 1998 by Chris Bradford.