Author's Introduction Greetings, all! Welcome to my own spin-off of the Gold Digger comic book storyline. The chapters contained in this story were originally released all as separate stories, but they're actually all tied together, so I've chosen to send them up as chapters for the purposes of fanfiction.net. There are no less than four separate story arcs: Doubled Up, wherein Erwin "Pee Wee" Talon creates what he thinks is the ultimate foe to handle Britanny Diggers; GD Half, which sees Ryan Tabbot finding out that ancient Chinese springs can really ruin your day, and/or life; World Tour, where Gina and friends are searching out a major archaeological discovery at the same time that Ryan and some of their other friends are competing in a worldwide fighting contest; and Dogs of War, involving a businessman and the things he has found and reverse-engineered, copied, and duplicated from ancient burial grounds, in his quest for personal gain. All these stories are intertwined in many different ways, and as you read them, I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did when writing them. Even in the past week, as I prepared the stories for their re-release, I found myself thrilled with the way things turned out. Without any further ado, here we go! Erwin Talon stood, as he had for the past hour, staring at the figure in the biotank before him. He kept his arms folded in front of him and watched for any movement from the creature in the genesis tank. Suddenly, Jason Ionis was at his side. Erwin turned and said, "You're concerned by this, aren't you? Speak freely." "Aside from the apprehension one might get from being asked to assist in the development of what might eventually be his REPLACEMENT," Ionis said, looking at the genetic chamber as well, "I've used up a very expensive spell of regeneration on this creature for you, all so you can make it behave physically like its donor. With all due respect, for the amount of work that's been put into it, it'd better be worth it." Talon looked at his underling with a curious smile. "You know, those are the same thoughts I had when I brought you and Zelda in," he said. He turned back to the tank. "It will be," he added, in a firm tone, as if there was no question. "It will be more than adequate for the job." Just then, the moment he'd been waiting for came to pass--the being inside the tank opened its eyes, quickly and abruptly, and stared right at him. he realized. Pee Wee Talon climbed the one step that put him onto the same level with the biotank. Still, he had to look up--waayyyy up--to the creature's eyes. "Do you know me?" he said to the speaker pickup on the tank's console. The figure nodded a terrified response. "Good," he said with a smile. "You are mine; I own you. You belong to me, and you will do my bidding." Jason Low as Project HEARD presents GOLD DIGGER: Doubled Up {AUTHOR'S NOTES: First of all, I'd like to thank the people of the FPFC for their input on the last few stories I've done. Canis Claw, X, mdg, and all the others.. it's greatly appreciated. .. Next, I want to say a bit about this story. Without giving too much away to those of you who don't know what transpires below, I want to say I'm aware that part of this scenario has been brought up previously in the FPFC, and I'm aware that it's been said that this would never happen. But I did it anyway for two reasons. First of all, I think the way I wrote it, it just MIGHT be able to happen, and second of all, if fanfic isn't about what doesn't happen in the "real" GD universe, then what exactly IS it? :) } TWO DAYS LATER "Lord Talon," Daishi said, appearing suddenly in the hall. "Forgive my intrusion." "What is it, Daishi?" "Why bring the clone?" Daishi gestured to the creature, walking around the central room in an exploratory fashion, checking things out. "So early in its development, only 48 hours out of your creation tubes, it will be more of a hindrance than not." "No," Pee Wee said. "It's fully grown and developed, and aware of itself. Besides, one never knows when one might encounter enemies. Best to be prepared with all the tools at your disposal, rather than not." "I know that lesson well, Lord Talon, for I was the one who taught it to YOU," Daishi pointed out as they headed off to load up their transportation for the mission. A few thousand miles away and a few hours later, a car flew over the surface of Asia. Brianna Diggers was in the passenger seat--mostly; at the precise moment in question, she had her seat belt unbuckled and was turned around, draped over the back of the seat, trying to swipe her sister Britanny's tuna-salad sandwich. "Get away!" Brit protested from the back seat, batting away Brianna's hands. "Bad enough you wanted the front seat, cramming me in back here, now you want my FOOD TOO?" "Just half!" Brianna said. "That's all I ask! C'mon! PLEASE?" "Ow!" Gina said as Brianna bumped her. "Hey, I'm tryn'a DRIVE up here!" "Forget it!" Brit shot back at Bri', stuffing the entire sandwich into her mouth. "You..!" Brianna seethed. "Vere!" Brit said with her cheeks jammed full of sandwich. "Mow yu cam'f haf AMY of if!" "You'll pay for that," Brianna said, turning back around and dropping into the passenger seat just as Gina straightened out from the roll she was in. "What the heck are you doing, Gina?" "Trying to keep us from crashing!" Gina shot back. "You nearly knocked me out of the car back there!" "Well, blame Brit--" "Don't start, okay?" said Gina. "Just don't. It's hard enough finding this place as it is." "What is it again?" Brianna asked. "The REAL final resting place of Genghis Khan," Gina beamed. "He's not in his tomb, of course--that was just to throw people off. He was buried in a secret spot down beneath us somewhere, along with a bunch of his treasure, and *I* found it!" "When you say 'treasure', Gina, you mean.." "I mean lots and lots of stuff, Brit," Gina said with a grin, circling for a landing. "A VERY nice mountain of his gains." "We back?" Bri' said gleefully. "We're back," Gina nodded, grinning again as the car transited from Hover to Road mode. Bri' and Brit high-fived each other despite their earlier argument. Neither woman saw their sister's expression fall as she noticed another vehicle parked nearby. "Oh crap! That's Pee Wee's helicopter." "What could HE want here?" Brianna wondered. "DNA, probably.. if anything's left of good ol' Genghis, it'd be a pretty good trophy for Pee Wee's mantle. I just wanna know how he found out about this place and got here before we did." They climbed out of the Ginamobile. The entire area was quiet; there appeared to be nobody around for miles. No one was visible in the windows of the helicopter, either. "Where could he be?" Brianna thought out loud. "Probably already in there," Gina said, pointing to a depression nearby. "The tomb is through a series of caves down that way." "Well," Brit said, extracting herself from the car, stretching, and yawning, "You two go ahead; I'll hang around and see if Pee Wee or his goons show." "You sure?" Brianna asked. Britanny scoffed. "I can handle them. None of them come even CLOSE to matching me. I'll be OK. I'll catch up with you later." "Okay, if you insist," Gina said. "Stay in touch." "No sweat." Brit leaned on the car for a while, watching Bri' and Gina descend into the caves. Nothing was going on, and there appeared to be no one else around. Finally, she got up and started walking towards the helicopter. She cut the thought off as the side door hissed open, folding down to form steps, and disgorged the eight-year-old she'd been waiting for. He stepped a few paces from the machine and stood there, arms folded, smiling at her. "Aha, so you ARE here," Britanny said, smiling back. "Where're my favorite punching bags?" "Sent ahead long ago," Erwin told her, "into the tomb, to secure it before you and your sisters arrived." Cheetah made another scoffing sound. "Leaving you all alone, huh? Ya, right, like I believe THAT one." "You're correct," Pee Wee said, clasping his hands behind his back and pacing in a circle for a brief moment. "I'm not alone, and I don't intend to let you get anywhere NEAR me. I've.. 'cooked up' an opponent for you; one I think you'll find quite formidable." Britanny put her hands on her hips and shook her head at Pee Wee. "Oh, COME ON NOW, don't make me--" She trailed off as someone else exited the helicopter. The other person towered over Pee Wee by at least three or more feet, but that wasn't the thing that stopped Brit cold. Her opponent's tail and fur, and general appearance, was. Right down to the spotted hair tied back in a ponytail, it was as if Brit was looking into a mirror, except that her reflection looked extremely angry, was wearing a black and grey spandex bodysuit, and was cracking her knuckles. "..laugh?" she finally finished. "Well," Pee Wee said as Britanny stared slack-jawed at her double, "Time for me to go claim my victor's spoils now. TA!" "So why don't you have your armor with you today?" Gina asked as Brianna helped her down a short cliff in the tunnels, by lowering her down by one wrist. "Well, you'd mentioned caving before we left home, and I wasn't sure it would fit in the passages. Besides, I'm thinkin' of maybe developing a new one, and I wanna start fresh with new ideas, so I put it into storage." "I see you haven't changed," Gina said with a lopsided smile. They carried on down into the caverns another few hundred meters, and all light from the surface was gone. Gina turned on her flashlight, and Bri' reached to turn on her shoulder-mounted lamps--then remembered she wasn't wearing her armor, and instead dug for a light in her pack, enduring some ribbing from Gina. Gina looked up at the chasm they'd just traversed. "Jinkies.. that's farther up than I first thought. I wonder if the radios still work." She brought out the portable transceiver and turned it on, getting a chirp in response. "Brit? This is Gina. Are you there?" There was no response. "Brit?" Gina looked up the shaft again. "Britanny.." "You're not getting an answerback beep," Brianna pointed out. "Yer not reaching the surface." Gina looked disappointedly at the radio. "Oh." She looked up yet again. "Well, I guess she's all right." "Oh, don't sweat it," Brianna said, waving for Gina to follow her deeper into the tunnel. "She's probably up there sucking on one of her fruit-juice drinks right now, soaking up some sun!" The fight was on from the word 'go', as the cliche says; the version of Britanny that stepped off the helicopter (whom we will call Evil Brit, for the sake of differentiating her from her opponent) said nothing, but laid right into Britanny for all she was worth. Brit evaded the attacks for a few moments, then got into the rhythm of the fight. The initial shock of seeing herself there was gone, although fighting herself was still something to be overcome; but her instincts kicked in and let her defend herself against her opponent, no matter who she looked like. For a few minutes, it was dodge and retaliate, dodge and retaliate, while Evil Brit tried her best to land some blows. That she did, several times, but it wasn't anything Brit hadn't encountered before from Pee Wee's minions. "I thought you were supposed to be so much better than me!" Brit said. "I'm barely working up a SWEAT here!" Evil Brit said nothing, only smiling and swinging again. Brit dodged and spoke again. "See, what your problem is is this. Pee Wee CAN'T create another me. He can try, but you'll NEVER have my speed--woops!" Brit had tried to take her evil twin's legs out from under her, but the move was evaded easily. "Okay--well, I'll give you that, but you're not as strong as--" Brit was again cut off as she was hit with a thundering punch that sent her flying 35 feet through the air. "Oof!" she exclaimed as she landed on her behind in the foliage near the car. As she stood, her double was speeding towards her. "Well, you might be able to do that, but there's NO WAY you can harm--OW!" Brit looked down to see blood seeping from a long gash on her arm. She clamped her hand over it and looked up at the clone before her. "How the heck did you HURT me?!" she blurted out. "You're not made of silver--I'd FEEL that--and you're not a real were-cheetah--you CAN'T be, 'cause there's no way to clone us.. so, you must be magical, I guess?.." "How perceptive," Evil Brit finally said, in a voice identical to that of the real Britanny's, except with mocking undertones. "Lord Talon spared no expense in making me your perfect twin." "Well then, Pee Wee poured a whole bunch of money down the DRAIN," Brit said, adopting a fighting stance again, "'Cause that's where you're going too--right down the crapper!" Evil Brit grinned. "About time we got back to this." "Is it much farther?" Bri' wondered aloud, walking along a short incline in the tunnel. "Not far now," Gina confirmed. "My scans told me that it should be around this corner, then a right, then another right, then a left, and we should be in a big cavern then.. and from there, there's 3 or 4 smaller caves off to the sides that'll have all the good stuff in 'em." "So give me DETAILS, sis," Brianna said excitedly. "What're we gonna come away with here? Jewels? Gold? What?" Gina smiled. "Well.." "..well, well!" came a voice as they rounded the last corner. Gina looked up with surprise; she hadn't been expecting anyone else to be around, to say the least, but even as the images were registering on her mind, she knew they'd all been had. Zelda grinned as Gina saw her and Ionis and Daishi standing in the opening where the tunnel met the larger cavern. "Fancy meeting you here! Looks like you and Lord Talon want the same prize. Pity you can't have it!" "We'll have to see about that!" Brianna said, pulling out one of her guns. "I'll bet you're wondering where I came from," Evil Brit said to Brit as the latter was knocked a few dozen feet away by the former. "No, not really," Brit said, getting up from under the tree she'd knocked down by being flung into it. "But I get the feeling you're gonna tell me." "Sure, why not?" Evil Brit paused as Brit picked her up and suplexed her onto the ground. After the combatants righted themselves, Evil Brit carried on: "I'm a genetic recreation of you in all physical ways. I'm an identical copy of you, using your own DNA, stolen from your sister's lab, as a template." "Bull! Were-cheetahs can't be duplicated by genetic means," Cheetah said. "We found THAT out when the question of repopulating the were-cheetah race was brought up." She ducked a punch and threw one of her own, connecting and laying Evil Brit out on the ground. "There's something in the DNA of a lycanthrope that doesn't allow us to be copied." "Well, obviously I'm NOT a true were-creature," Evil Brit said, as if the thought itself was absurd. "All that which is part of your genetic makeup--as in your speed and strength--I have naturally, but Lord Talon had to rely on bestowing your healing abilities upon me magically." "How 'bout I test 'em out some more, then?" Brit said, grabbing her clone by the wrist and swinging her around in two complete circles for momentum, then releasing her into the grove of trees nearby. One or two trunks fell. Brit jogged into the forest to find her opponent lying amidst a pair of shattered trees. "Had enough?" "Grr!" Evil Brit lunged up, grabbed a broken piece of tree trunk, and hurled it at Britanny, who took it full-force and got thrown back a few dozen feet. "Say, just outta curiosity," Brit said while standing up, "You gotta name? I'd hate to not learn it before I wipe you out." "I need no name! I'll take yours when I'm done with you!" Britanny was distracted by that statement, thinking back to Brianna's first few hours of life. Because of that, she was off-guard when Evil Brit laid into her again, smacking her back and forth a few times before grabbing her by the tail and spinning her overhead a couple of times in retaliation, flinging her off towards the vehicles again. "You little turd!" Brit hollered, getting back up and charging at the clone. "You can PUNCH me, you can KICK me, you can even SLAP me, but you NEVER EVER EVER GRAB my TAIL and SWING ME AROUND BY--" BAM! Cheetah was nailed again by her evil twin. Brit was almost ready for it, though, and flipped in mid-air to land on her feet. "All right, that does it! What do you want on your tombstone, clone?!" "'Here Lies The One Who Bested Britanny Diggers'!" Evil Brit shot back, charging again as well. Britanny was starting to get tired of flying backwards through the air on the receiving end of her doppleganger's punches. This time was even more annoying, as she landed squarely on the back of the car, crushing it and knocking herself into a daze. She fell onto the ground behind the car, and the trunklid swung open, the latch destroyed. "How convenient," Evil Brit said, rushing in once again. "A handy little space to deposit your lifeless form after I finish with--" FWOOSH! There was a brilliant flash of light not unlike a camera flash, but lasting longer and seeming to be of a different wavelength. Evil Brit shielded her eyes and skidded to a stop-- --only to find herself, when she opened her eyes again, considerably shorter and lacking all of her werecat traits. In fact, she looked almost HUMAN.. "Well, whaddaya know," Brit said, smiling as she stood up from the back of the car. "It worked! Hah! (and it didn't get ME, either..)" "What the??" Evil Brit screeched. "How--" "You gave me the idea when you said that you had almost all of my abilities, some of them emulated by magic," Brit said. "You'd mentioned everything else, but not formchanging, and I remembered what my dad once said about shapechanging being a pretty draining spell." "But how did you--" Evil Brit began, looking up, waaaay up, at her former twin's smiling face. Brit held up what looked like a huge hand-held floodlight of the kind one might see on The X-Files. "Gina made this thing--supposedly as a practical JOKE--a while back, after she realized that I uncontrollably switch forms in some kinds of light. She keeps hiding it so I won't find it and smash it--and I remembered just now that this car is the only place I haven't searched lately." Brit tossed the device into the destroyed trunk of the car and took a step or two towards Evil Brit, who backed up an equal distance, holding up her hands. "Now, look.. let's just--" "I know for a fact that the last DNA sample of mine that Gina had stashed away was from before I learned to shift forms at will," Brit said. "So you're probably unable to switch back." The two of them had moved all the way from the car to the helicopter now; Evil Brit bumped up against the fuselage and fell to a sitting position, looking up with fear at her clone-donor, who looked as evil as Evil Brit herself had moments before. "Don't worry," Brit said flatly. "You'll probably involuntarily shift back in 24 hours." Britanny reached down and took hold of the neck of the black-and-grey form-fitting bodysuit her evil twin wore--the same kind of clothing that Zelda was usually garbed in. That is, it HAD been form-fitting, before Evil Brit's form had shrunk dramatically in size. Brit raised the clone high into the air, feet dangling more than a foot from the ground. "..if you last that long," Britanny finished. Gina and Brianna weren't faring all that well. In one corner, Zelda was assaulting them with her strength. From another direction, Daishi kept on rushing them as well. That kept the two sisters quite handily occupied, leaving no one to defend them against the rain of material Ionis was magically shaking loose from the ceiling above them. Gina's force field was holding up, but it wouldn't last forever. Just then, Britanny came into view from down the entry tunnel. She walked carefully and purposefully towards the battle scene. "CHEETS!" Brianna called out. "Little help.. here.. huh?" Brianna trailed off as Britanny fixed her with a stare, walking right past her and Gina, to stand near Pee Wee. "Cheetah, what the hell are you doing?!" Gina bellowed, not noticing that the attacks from the other three had stopped. "(And where'd you get that weird-looking bodysuit?)" "Heh," Pee Wee chuckled. "Allow me to introduce the newest fighter in my stable, Gold Digger. This isn't your sister; it's a clone of my own creation, based upon your sister's DNA string that the others liberated from your lab six months ago. Yes, Gina, we've been in your lab. MANY times, in fact. In any case, this clone has all the features that your sister has, and used them to keep your sister occupied.. delayed, while we took care of YOU down here." "She is no longer a threat," Evil Brit cut in. "I have.. subdued her." "WHAT??" Brianna and Gina stereoed. Pee Wee turned to Evil Brit. "Astounding--I was expecting you to only hold her off, not DEFEAT her! Excellent!" "She's finished, Lord Talon, although she put up a good fight," Evil Brit said in a monotone. "Unbelievable.. you did in 15 minutes what these three jokers have been unable to do for YEARS! Well done!" While Pee Wee was grinning at Evil Brit, he failed to notice the three others under his command casting nervous glances at one another. "And now for your encore," Pee Wee said with a gesture towards Brianna and Gina, "How about taking these two out as well?" Evil Brit gazed intently at the two Diggers sisters and stepped forward, cracking her knuckles. "Gladly." "Zoinks!" Gina blurted. "The force field's almost shot, Bri'! Think of something!" Brianna whispered to her sister: "Gina, wait--something's wrong; when she passed by us a minute ago, I got a whiff of *tuna salad*--" Brianna paused in midsentence as she heard someone else whispering--at a level only she could hear. "Don't think I can't hear you, Bri'--just play along, ok? As soon as I get out of the line of fire, go to TOWN on these guys, but leave Pee Wee for ME!" "Oh boy," Bri' whispered to Gina as Brit approached. "Get ready for a huge fight." "Tell me about it!" Gina said nervously. "No, I mean.. oh, you'll find out!" Just as she was about to pounce on her sisters, Brit whispered, "One.. two.. THREE!" Cheetah spun and rushed Pee Wee; he looked like he was scared out of his wits, and let out a high-pitched scream to confirm it. Zelda, Ionis, and Daishi looked up to see what they assumed was their colleague vectoring in on their boss. "Yipes!" Ionis said, and vanished in a flash. "Hey!" Zelda protested, even though Ionis had teleported out of earshot. "Aw, crap!" In another instant, she too was gone, running up into the tunnel. Only Daishi stayed, moving to intercept Britanny as she raced in on Pee Wee. She stopped, with Daishi between her and Talon. "Outta my way, pajama boy! This is between me and your prepubescent little boss!" "YOU?!" Erwin roared (as best an 8-year-old can). "How'd you defeat my--" "It was easy, pipsqueak!" Britanny shot back. "She might be my PHYSICAL clone, but she doesn't have any of my memories or experiences--in short, you created a HALF-ASSED COPY of a were-cheetah, and then taught it to fight like a HUMAN! She had NO idea how to use her body's natural skills to do me any serious harm." Brit took a step forward and started to say more, but just then, Daishi scooped up Pee Wee under one arm and disappeared into the tunnels. "HEY! I AIN'T DONE WITH HIM YET!" Britanny screamed with an upraised fist. "Brit, wait!" Britanny turned and regarded Brianna as she and Gina came up to her. "Tell me this isn't as weird as it sounds," Gina said. "Actually, it is," Britanny nodded. "I had a hard time believing it myself, and I was the one going THROUGH it all.." "Listen," Brianna cut in, "do you think it was such a smart idea to tell Pee Wee where he went wrong in making your clone? After all, now all he needs to do is--" "Nah. It won't make a difference. Even if the little runt lets her see the light of day ever again, she's gonna think twice before tanglin' with ME another time." Gina smiled and put a hand on each sister's shoulder. "Well, now that that's out of the way, might I point out that with Pee Wee and his underlings gone from here, we've got the whole place to ourselves, so let's go find all the goodies, okay?" "Okay!" Brit and Brianna smiled. Pee Wee and his subordinates got to the surface and saw the damage there--the destroyed landscape, the wrecked car, and the sobbing mass lying under the left side of the helicopter, clad in Britanny's clothes and tied at the ankles and wrists. As Pee Wee stood over her, Evil Brit looked up, teary-eyed, and saw her creator staring down at her with an expressionless face that smoothly went to a frown. She tried to blubber out an apology or an excuse, but could only manage incoherent sounds. As Zelda started the engines, Pee Wee turned to Daishi and, gesturing to the clone, said, "Untie her and put her on board." "At once, Lord Talon." Pee Wee sat in the left front seat of the helicopter furiously steaming away. If the machine had been able to take anger and frustration for its power rather than jet fuel, they could've gone around the world a dozen times without stopping, on his emotions alone. Someone tapped his shoulder. He looked up to see Zelda gesturing with her free hand towards the rear compartment, where the clone, still stuck in human form, had put on a headset and was looking at Pee Wee with a pleading expression. He put his own headset on as well and stared her down. "Pl-please, Lord T-talon, I be-beg you s-spare me!" she said, having regained just enough composure to form sentences. "I have learned a gr-great d-deal today.. I want to prove t-to you I can BE-BEAT her! Let me have my REVENGE!" Pee Wee continued to stare at his latest creation, his latest FAILURE, listening to the words that had just filtered through his earphones. They were sincere, as was the expression on the clone's face; she truly did want another crack at Britanny Diggers. Just before he turned back around, Pee Wee gave a silent nod. --END?-- THURSDAY EVENING, ATLANTA TIME A stealthy figure cut through the wilderness of China, trying to find a path that would lead to the desired location. It was slower going by foot, rather than by flying car, but it'd have to do. As usual, everyone had come up with the location of the site at the same time. One group had made it there very recently, put off an attempt to keep them from the site, and went away with whatever they could carry. Because of a damaged car, it wasn't as much as they'd liked. the figure smiled into the darkness. So there was still enough left to take back. It wouldn't be a TOTAL loss. It was already Friday morning in China, and the day was marching along steadily, so the stranger picked up the pace, keeping as quiet as possible, using all the skills available to pass through the area undetected. Nearby was supposed to be some sort of martial arts training facility, and although visiting it was a very tempting concept, there were duties to perform, and a mission to complete. Perhaps the thoughts of the training grounds were what caused the distraction, but in any case, the figure, while rushing through the wilderness around the training camp, failed to see the ponds. One slip on the sloping bank around one such pool, some flailing about, and without much fanfare, the stranger fell into the pool, with a head-crunching thud. Luckily, someone had heard the splash. An old man, a caretaker of sorts, hurried up to the edge of the pool and tch'ed. "Oh, no. Laulachuan. Very tragic for you. Very, VERY tragic." He turned to two assistants that had come up beside him. "Fetch the body. I get some water." When the old man had returned with a kettle, the unconscious form had been dragged from the spring with bamboo poles, and was lying on the ground. The old man carefully poured some water from the kettle on the visitor's features, and frowned when they remained out like a light. "Not good. Not good at all. Still, at least back to normal now. Bring inside." The two assistants picked up the body and carried it into the nearby huts. Some time later, just before the noon hour, the old man went into the hut to which the assistants had delivered the stranger. To the old guide's dismay, the visitor was gone without a trace. "Oh my," the old man said. "I not get a chance to explain.." Jason Low and Mario Di Giacomo present a Gold Digger fanfic GD 1/2 FRIDAY AFTERNOON ATLANTA The mall was crowded to capacity that afternoon; saying that the maximum occupancy load was being stretched wasn't an unfair thing. It was like that every Friday afternoon; the schools let out an hour early, workers took half a day off, and everyone else tried to beat the even MORE insane rushes that would come with the weekend. Ryan Tabbot was in the Wizard's Castle arcade in the mall, working out his frustrations on the Virtual Street Brawler 2 Super Plus Extra game. He'd demolished all opponents so far, but word had gotten out that he was on a tear, and nobody else wanted to play him as a result. He tried to play solo for a while, but he'd already bested every computer-generated player there was. Finally, he gave up and left the arcade, wandering through the mall. He was supposed to head to Gina's place later on, and he wanted to get her a gift. Not just any gift, though--something funny, something that would irritate her now but she'd be able to laugh about later. To that end, he stood at the mall directory in center court, scanning the map of the stores and trying to decide where to go to get Gina the ultimate gag gift. "INCOMING!!!" Ryan looked up an instant too slowly, as, moments later, he found himself sprawled in the fountain adjacent to the directory, drenched to the bone. The pre-pubescent skateboarder smoothly swerved in a wide circle and came back to the figure he'd unceremoniously knocked over. "Geez, I'm sorry!" the kid apologized profusely. "I didn't mean to, honest! I'm sorry, miss--" Ryan was trying to parse that last bit when the kid did a double-take and grew wide-eyed. "It's you!" Ryan made a questioning sound as he tried to get to his feet. The young man before him continued to point and stammer incoherently, eyes locked to a point a few inches below Ryan's chin. "Y.. you! You're.. you're HER!" the kid said in a voice one might reserve for a chance encounter with royalty, or perhaps celebrities. "What the hell are--" Ryan began, but cut himself off when his senses started reporting in and telling him that things weren't right. Voice was high on the list, but not as high as some of the other sensory inputs. Slowly, he looked down at himself.. and couldn't see anything past his chest, which was protruding out a lot farther than it had been moments ago. "AAK!" he blurted out, in a voice not his own. By now, every eye in the center court was on him, and if that wasn't bad enough, most of those eyes belonged to males under the age of 16, to whom the form Ryan now appeared as was a treasure to be sought after, a grail, an ultimate prize. Ryan saw it in their eyes and decided his course of action: To run like hell. He ran and ran, as fast as he could, ignoring as best he could the unfamiliar things he was feeling, and instead concentrating on staying ahead of the mob of young men that were chasing him. He couldn't run as fast as he wanted; his changed form was smaller than him (in some places.. and much, MUCH larger in others), and he had to hold his pants up with one hand. Still, he managed to gain some ground against his pursuers, hoping to find a place to lose them eventually. SEVERAL MINUTES LATER GINA DIGGERS' HOUSE/COMPLEX Gina, Brit, and Brianna were gathered in the garage, going over some of the things they'd hauled back from Genghis Khan's tomb earlier in the week. What they brought back wasn't an outstanding collection, but at least they'd managed to get some of it. "And we know where to find it if we wanna return," Brianna pointed out. Gina frowned. "Yeah, so long as Pee Wee doesn't get back there first and clean it out." Britanny smiled, poking through the spoils of victory. "Don't worry about Pee Wee. I think his hands're gonna be full for a while." Gina was saying more when the doorbell chime rang. Someone was pushing it repeatedly and frantically, the two tones blending in with one another as they echoed throughout the complex. "I'll get it," Gina said. "Probably just Ryan--he was gonna come over this afternoon, with some kind of surprise for me.." Gina took the lift upstairs and walked to the back door, which was the one whose bell was being rung and whose frame was being tested by the excited pounding upon it by someone's fist. "All right, all right!" Gina hollered as she reached the door. "ReLAX--" She stopped short as a dark-haired woman of about her own age burst through the door, panting and shouting. "Thank God! Gina, you've got to--" Gina's eyes narrowed as she recognized the woman. "What the hell do you think you're doing barging in here like this?!" she shouted. "Gina!" the woman said, falling out-of-balance onto the couch and looking back at the eldest Diggers sister with a panicked expression, "..it's ME!" "I know precisely who you are!" Gina shot back, rushing to the couch and tackling the person. "You cost me the AW Explorer of the Year award! Grr!" "AAK!" the other woman said as Gina fell upon her and the two rolled onto the floor. "It's not--I wasn't--I'm not--" "Save it!" Gina said, kneeling above her foe's supine form and grabbing the woman's shirt. "You've got some nerve coming in here, Laura--" As Gina felt the fabric of the clothing, she stopped shouting; then she leaned over and sniffed it. Her nose wasn't anywhere near as sensitive as Brit or Bri's, but she could still tell a few scents from a mile away.. "This is RYAN'S!" Gina roared, rearing back. "You little TRAM--" "I *AM* RYAN!" 'Laura' shrieked back. Brianna and Britanny had just stepped off the lift in time to hear that particular exposition, and the two of them just stood there looking at the other two lying and kneeling on the floor beside the upturned coffee table. "Um. Okaaaay.." Brianna said slowly. "I AM! Really!" Gina sat up, folding her arms across her chest. "And we're just supposed to believe you?!" 'Laura' looked desperate. "Here's proof," she said. "You've got a mole on your--" "STOP!" Gina said, clamping her hands to her ears, then looking at her sisters. "Okay, it's Ryan." Brit and Bri' were again looking at each other with surprised expressions. "Okaaaay.." they said together in stereo this time. Gina got to her feet and held out a hand to help 'Laura', or rather Ryan, up off the floor. "What happened?" "If I could TELL you," Ryan bit out, standing up straight, teetering a bit, and brushing him(her?)self off, "I would. I was in the mall, some kid booted me into the fountain, and here I am!" "You look almost exactly like Laura," Gina breathed. "I noticed!" Ryan snapped. "I just got chased by half the juvenile boys of Atlanta!" Gina smirked. "IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Ryan shrilled. He heard Brianna and Cheetah snickering behind his back, and spun around to confront them.. and nearly fell over. "Hey, easy, easy!" Gina said, catching him. "You're not used to having to balance all your, um, extra equipment. Take it one step at a time." "I don't WANT to take it one step at a time!" Ryan hissed. "I want you to change me back!" "Well, I don't know how you got changed, so I can't figure out how to counteract it," Gina said. She guided Ryan to the lift. "But I suppose I CAN scan you and see if I can't uncover some clues." The four of them got into the lift, and Gina regarded Ryan's form for a moment, and thought to say, "Um.. the scanner'll work better on a clean, dry body.. so maybe you could go take a shower while I calibrate it, ok?" Ryan made a face. "Great, that's all I needed, now you want me to shower in this body." "Do you want some help?" Gina grinned as the lift touched down. Ryan glared at Gina. On any other day, under any other circumstances, had Gina Diggers offered to hop into the shower with him, he'd've accepted the offer as soon as he stopped bouncing off the walls. Today, however.. "I'll have to manage," Ryan's female voice said icily. Gina laughed as she and her sisters went to the labs, directing Ryan to the guest suite's bathroom. He knew full well where it was, of course; he got into the room, threw the water taps wide open, and started to undress while the water temperature came up. For a long time, he stared at himself in the mirror. he repeated over and over in his mind, looking at the shapely figure staring out at him. He was alternately thinking and Finally, he climbed into the shower and got under the stream of water. Brit and Bri' could hear Ryan's hollers and triumphant yells across the complex. Gina picked up on it, seeing the two of them prick up their ears and turn to face the direction of the guest room. "Sounds like his voice, sis," Britanny said. "You may not need your scanner machine after all." "Well, I'll keep setting it up, just the same." "We'll go check him out," Brianna offered. Ryan, in his normal form, was just climbing out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist when Brit and Bri' arrived. "Feeling better?" Brit hazarded. "Like a million bucks!" Ryan said, He grinned. "Like a new man." "What caused you to change back?" "I don't know," he said jubilantly. "It just happened while I was in the shower. It doesn't matter, anyway - I'm me again and I intend to STAY that way!" Gina had strolled in the room just before the last exchange. She blinked, then saw the steam eclipsing the mirror, as well as the shower-stall doors. She began to snicker, then chuckle, then developed it into all-out laughing. "Care to share your pearl of wisdom?" Britanny said. "Oh, this is too good," Gina said, bending over, howling with laughter. "Let--let me guess," she said in between breaths. "You always take hot showers, right?" Ryan nodded. Gina reached over to the sink and started the water. "And the fountain, was it cold?" she asked, trying not to giggle. Ryan said, "Yeah.." Gina had let her hand sit under the water for a moment; once it was sufficiently cool, she flung the handful of water in Ryan's face. "BWAH!" Ryan said, and sputtered, but it was Brit and Bri' that were wide- eyed and dumbfounded, as they watched Ryan shift, as if he as morphing via computer imagery, back to the female form again. "What did you DO?!" Ryan screamed in his high-pitched voice. "Dad told me about this once," Gina said, bursting into laughter again. "It's a kind of a curse. Cold water changes him into his 'cursed' form--in Ryan's case, a near-clone of Laura--and, hot water'll change him back." "So what are you waiting for?!" Ryan railed. "Hot water! Now!" Gina turned on the other tap. "Oop," she grinned. "Looks like you ran the hot water tank dry with your shower. Gotta wait for it to build back up." Ryan growled at Gina. "This isn't one bit funny." "On the contrary," Gina said with a grin. "This is downright HILARIOUS!" "At my expense!" Ryan said, throwing his arms wide. "Um.. before you come out of the bathroom, despite the fact we're 63 feet belowground and in a secure facility, would you mind wearing that towel another way? Or better yet, some clothes?" Ryan looked down to see what Britanny was getting at. He'd forgotten about how his change affected him, and how his torso was exposed. "Eek!" "Well, you can't wear those clothes," Gina nodded at the pile on the floor. "We can't have you waddling around pulling your pants up every five seconds. So.." "..Gina?" Ryan said pleadingly. "I've seen that mischievous look before. Normally I like it, especially from you, but as of right now.." "Not another word," Gina grinned broadly. "Just come to my room." "No!" "Well, what are you going to do, stay wrapped up in that towel?" Gina shot back. "I'm GOING to get changed back!" Ryan said. "I'm sure as hell not going to wear THAT!" "Well, until at the very least we get some hot water back, or at the best case we figure out how to remove your curse, you're kinda stuck like that. And unless you wanna borrow some of Genn's stretchy stuff, this is gonna be it." After a long moment, Ryan snatched away the outfit Gina was holding out, and ducked into Gina's bathroom. "I hate you," his muffled, female voice came through the doorway. Gina grinned again. "Aak!" came the same voice a moment later. "Done?" Gina said. "Come on out." Ryan slowly moved his female form out of the bathroom and into Gina's room, glaring at her, arms folded under his oversized chest. "It's too tight!" Gina looked Ryan's female form up and down with the same mischievous grin she'd worn for several minutes. She'd gone to her closet and pulled out one of her adventuring outfits--the one that was cut VERY low, and was sadly too small for her now. But, Ryan's form appeared to be a bit smaller than Gina, she decided, and it fit Ryan like it was sprayed on. Gina feigned surprise. "It is? Oh, I'm sorry. It must be one of my smaller outfits. Well, in any case, you've already worked yourself into it, so let's get back to work." Ryan tried to walk, awkwardly reaching back and pulling at the material of the outfit. "It's giving me a wedgie," he said sourly. "Hmm. Well, Penny did it to me so many times that that's probably the outfit's natural tendency now. You'll get used to it." "I don't intend to be wearing it for much longer!" Ryan screeched. "True," Gina grinned as they walked out of her room. "You may need to strip for the bio-scanner to do a proper job." Ryan growled. "I mean, you're going to change me back!" Gina giggled, and Ryan added, "You're having far too much fun with this." "Aw, c'mon, Ryan," Gina said, turning around to face him while they walked on towards the labs. She gestured to his form. "If it'd happened to someone else, you'd be right beside me and my sisters, tearing the other person to shreds. Just take it like a man. Er, I mean, a woman," she smiled. "Damn, Gina, you're relentless," Ryan sulked. The two of them returned to the labs. Ryan blushed and shot evil looks at the other two Diggers sisters, who whistled and hooted when he came in the room. "Showin' off your figure, huh?" Brianna grinned. "Just like Gina." "Shut up," Ryan said. "Just.. shut up." "Okay, step into the chamber, Ryan," Gina said. "And stay still while you're in there, so it can do its job." "I want all the records of these scans once they're done with," he said, stalking over to the chamber and stepping in. "As a memento?" Gina grinned, but Ryan had already slammed the door shut. She knew full well that he was terrified by this incident, and wanted to prevent anyone from getting any information about his 'condition'. "Don't worry, Ryan, they'll be safe." She ran a scan and got the results printed out. Brianna came over. "Genn just got in. I asked him to get some hot water and bring it down here." "Aww," Gina said playfully. "I was hoping we'd have an hour or so to have some fun with Ryan." Genn arrived just as Ryan, still in female form of course, was stepping out of the booth. Genn gave a greeting to everyone, cutting himself off as he stared at the woman stepping down from the chamber. "Thanks, Genn," Gina said. She faced Ryan: "Here ya go. Strip." "Right HERE?" Ryan blurted out. Gina grinned. "Don't worry, we'll be gentle," she said. "Remember, it's not something all of us haven't seen before. Um.. I'll get your towel, though, for when you change." "Bring me my clothes!" Ryan shouted as Gina reached over for the towel. "My REAL ones!" Genn was surprised to see Gina take the glass of water and splash some of it in the young lady's face; he was even more surprised, though, to watch the young lady morph into the form of Ryan Tabbot. "Now stop that!" Ryan said. "Figure it out and fix me! (And I KNOW you don't have to splash me right in the FACE with a full cup of water every time!)" "Don't worry, Ryan. I got my scans done. Interesting.." "What? What?" "Hmm." Gina turned around and walked away, holding the report in one hand and the towel in the other. "Eep! Gimme that!" Ryan blurted out, lunging out for the departing towel and snagging it. He wrapped it around his waist. "Better wrap it a little higher, Ryan, in case you change back," Brianna grinned widely. "Next one to change me back gets pounded!" Ryan countered, not moving the towel an inch from where he'd covered himself up. "Someone go get me my clothes." "Um.." Genn said, coughing to get someone's attention. "Ryan's been cursed, Genn," Brit explained. "Cold water makes him female, hot changes him back." Genn nodded comprehension. "...Interesting." "It is NOT interesting!" Ryan shouted. He faced the three sisters as he continued: "It is also NOT exciting, good, fun, hilarious, or just desserts!" "I was kidding when I said that one," Brianna admitted. "I think.." Gina said, turning back around. "What? What is it?" Ryan said. "I'll go get you your clothes, Ryan," Genn said quietly. "Guest room?" "THANK you, Genn!" Ryan bit out, not taking his eyes off of Gina. Genn departed silently as Gina looked up. "I hate to admit it when I'm stumped, but I'm stumped." Ryan let out an argh and looked to the ceiling. "Let me finish," Gina said. "I need a scan of you as you are right now to compare to. Get back in the chamber." He did, and Gina ran another scan, then printed out in addition an older scan of Ryan, from several weeks previous. She spread all three pages out on the console and compared them. "Hmmm." Ryan walked over. "So what now?" The other two sisters joined Ryan and Gina at the console as Gina pointed out different data strings on the printouts. "I just had you give me a new scan of your normal form so I could see if you'd changed from your last scan, but you haven't. They're identical, except for the minute differences that come from you aging five weeks more. But this one.." "What ABOUT this one?!" Ryan seethed. "Out with it already!" "Well, if I scan Cheetah in her different forms, there're some common bits of data I get from all three," Gina explained. "Because it's the same body, when you get right down to it, but it's just in a different configuration." "Gina," Brit said slowly, "When have you ever scanned me in my feline form?" "Um," Gina said, not looking up, "You were asleep. Don't worry about it right now." She pointed to another piece of data. Britanny looked at Brianna, who shrugged. "I have no idea," Bri' said. "Anyway," Gina said, "I'd expected to see the same sort of things with you, Ryan. But other than the similar brain waves--coming from you having essentially the same mind in both forms--it's like your female form is an entirely different person." "Where does this get us, then??" Ryan wondered aloud. "What about Genn, sis?" Brit thought to ask. "Does he react the same way in the scanner?" "Actually, the scanner can't get a lock on Genn," Gina said matter-of-factly. "I've never been able to get a full scan of him." "Ahem!" Ryan forced out. "What can you do for ME?" "Nothing, for now," Gina said, standing up straight. "Except recommending you stay away from cool water." "Great. Just great!" "And.. um, I'd like to run some more tests on your female form.." Ryan looked at Gina and growled again. "You're just using that as an excuse to poke fun at me some more." "No, no.." Gina said, smiling slightly for a moment, then growing serious again. "I honestly want to examine you, see if there's something I can detect that might help us cure you." "Did your dad say how to cure the curse?" "In theory, in the same part of China, there's a cursed spring-of-drowned- man...dive into that and it should break the curse you have, which would appear to be spring-of-drowned-trampy-grave-robber-that-stole-the- Archaeology-Weekly-Explorer-Of-The-Year-Award-away-from-me." Ryan shook his head. "I am NOT going outside when I might change like that at the slightest splash of water! You'll have to cure me in here." "Glad to see you're not still bitter, Gina," Britanny said airily, looking away. "Okay," Gina said to Ryan. "We need to switch you back, then, so I can do those tests." She picked up the glass of now-cool water. "No! Wait!" Ryan said, backing away. "Please.. gimme a few minutes to rest. I.. it's.." "Changing back and forth is stressing him out, sis," Britanny said. "Let him take a break." Genn arrived with Ryan's clothes just then, and timidly offered them to him. "Thanks, Genn," Ryan said, going to the corner of the room to put the clothes on. Luckily, they'd dried themselves out since the fountain. Ryan started to walk out of the lab to head for the guest room. Gina ahemmed and smiled, holding up the adventuring outfit she'd given him. "You'll need this later," she smiled. Ryan fixed her with a vicious stare, then reached out and angrily swiped the skimpy clothing from her and stalked out the door without another word. The three sisters burst out laughing, doubling over and going until the tears almost began to flow; Genn nodded feebly and excused himself to go to the living room for some TV. After the girls calmed down, Genn's reaction registered on Brianna's mind. "Um, was I reading too much into that, or..?" Gina looked thoughtful as she realized what Bri' meant. "I hope so, for Genn's sake," Gina said. "Ryan's not too happy about this, and if he were to find out, he'd go ape." Ryan awoke with a gasp some time later. He shot bolt upright in the bed, pure fear gripping his entire being. He'd been dreaming, he realized; all this weirdness had just caused his imagination to run wild and present him with some very fearsome images in the dream state. He got up off the bed and went into the bathroom, turning on the water. He was about to reach under the stream of water to collect some of it with which he'd splash himself in the face, but remembered just in time. Instead, he shut the tap off and looked at his reflection in the mirror, staring at himself, wondering how it was possible that he could look so NORMAL now and, with only a drop of cold water, he could.. He shook his head to clear those thoughts from his mind, and left the guest quarters for the living room. There, he found the three sisters and Genn (who switched to female form just as Ryan arrived, he noticed). "Oh, good afternoon, Ryan," Gina said. "I didn't expect to see you here.. at least, not like that.." Ryan scowled at Gina's grin. "I have decided," he said, "..that you're going to have to cure me WITHOUT changing me back to that form." Gina's grin turned into a serious expression. "Ryan, I was just playing around with you before, but now I'm TELLING you--in order to counteract your curse, I need to examine your female form more closely. So, either you voluntarily change, or.." As Gina trailed off, Brianna added, "Ryan, she's telling the truth.. we need a synaptic wave pattern test, probably another bioscan, maybe a couple other things." Ryan sighed and relented, saying at last, "At least give me something more comfortable to wear. That other outfit's WAY too small!" Gina nodded, giving in. "Okay, okay," she said, then broke into a smile again. "Skirt, pants, or shorts?" Ryan glared at her and tried to ignore the smirks and giggles of the other three. "I wouldn't put up with this except that I'm totally at your mercy." Gina grinned as she stood up. "Shorts it is, then. I'll drop off your new outfit at the guest room in five minutes." Gina, five minutes later, walked up to the guest room door and knocked. "Ryan, here's the clothes." The door cracked open wide enough for a hand to reach out and take the bundle of clothing from Gina. "Thanks, babe," came a high-pitched response. Gina simply smiled and said nothing, although on the inside she was laughing uproariously at the way that statement had sounded. A moment later, the door opened all the way, and Ryan-female stepped out into the hall, frowning. "What's wrong now?" Gina wanted to know. "It STILL feels too tight," Ryan complained, walking along the corridor with an awkward pace. "Well, it's what I wore when I was your size, so it can't be too tight. You might just need to get used to it, that's all." "Oh, fine," Ryan groused. "But did you have to get a T-shirt with such a low neck on it?" Gina smiled innocently, patting Ryan on the back as they walked along. "You always loved the way that shirt looked on ME," she pointed out. Ryan and Gina re-entered the lab again to find the other two sisters and Genn--in masculine form--there. For once, none of them grinned or made wisecracks. "Hey, you actually look pretty good, Ryan," Brit said. "I know it's not what you wanna hear, but I'm sure guys would give you a good, long look now." Ryan murmured a thanks, looking away. "She's right," Genn piped up. "Uh-huh," Brianna said in all seriousness, then couldn't help herself, and broke into a grin again. "So good, in fact, that we can't call you Ryan any more when you're like that; it just wouldn't fit. Hmm.." Ryan paled. "Please, Brianna.." he pleaded in a worried tone. Brianna's face lit up. "That's it, of course," she grinned, wide-eyed. "From now on, when you look like that, you shall be known as.. 'Rhianna'." Ryan looked startled and aghast, sputtering. "But.. but--" Gina grabbed his arm. "Come on, Rhianna, let's get those tests over with." Two hours later, Gina put down the final printout. "Well, that pretty much settles it." "It does?" "It does, Rhianna," Gina nodded. "You are definitely cursed." "(I wish you wouldn't call me that,)" Rhianna said under her breath. "Probably the one Dad told me about," Gina plowed on, as if she didn't hear the comment. "Too bad the Mark 8's out of service--it was the last flight-capable car; the others are getting overhauled too. So we can't really make China all that easily." "Well then, it seems obvious to me," Rhianna said. "We get your dad to cure me! Where is he?" "Umm.. he's on a weekend workshop with the Mage Guild," Gina said. "He won't be back till Tuesday night. However.. there IS someone else around, that didn't go with him, that may be able to help.." "Who? Mesha? Tark?.." Gina's face wore a Grin as realization dawned on Rhianna. "Ohhhh, nooooo," she said in a tiny voice, "Anyone.. ANYONE.. but HIM.." Seance looked over Rhianna curiously, the sisters standing by. "Hmm." Rhianna looked up at Seance and glared at him. "You're loving this as much as THEY are." "I'm sorry?" Seance said, blinking and refocusing on Rhianna's face. "You want me to stay like this, so that you don't have any competition for Gina." Seance shook his head. "Furthest from my mind, actually." He tried to concentrate on scanning Rhianna, but his attention was distracted by the figure sitting off in the corner. For the first time in ages, at least in Seance's presence, Genn was in masculine form, his eyes locked firmly on Rhianna. Seance dragged himself back to the task at hand and looked Rhianna up and down once more, then stood up with a muted sigh. "Perhaps if I witnessed your transformation, I could understand more." Rhianna jumped up agitatedly. "GLADLY! Somebody get me some hot water." "I'll do it!" Genn blurted out, lunging to his feet. He tripped and just about fell flat on his face as he hurried for the door, running through it nearly out-of-control and disappearing down the hallway. Everyone stared at the door Genn had gone through, until he barged back through it a few seconds later with a glass of water, stomping his way rapidly up to Rhianna and handing it to her with a grin. "Here ya go." "Thanks, Genn," Rhianna said, standing up and preparing to splash herself. "Rhianna, wait," Gina said in a hurry, standing as well. "Aren't you forgetting something?" Rhianna turned and snapped at Gina, "WHAT?!" "Anything you wanna, um, DO first?" Gina asked with a nod. Rhianna scowled at Gina. "You're just trying to stall me until this water cools off!" she said and splashed the glass of warm water on herself. Britanny and Brianna both let out audible gasps. Brianna tried to cover her smile with a hand. Brit said, "Is that some of your stretchy stuff, sis?" Gina's eyes were as wide as they could go as she watched Rhianna shift to Ryan. "For Ryan's sake," Gina told her sister, "I sure hope so." Ryan let out a strangled "AWK!" as he reverted to his normal form and the clothes stretched, but nowhere near far enough; all the seams ripped almost completely along their lengths, leaving Ryan clothed, but barely. "I DID warn you, Ryan," Gina said, hands on her hips. She was trying to look upset, but the half-grin wasn't helping. "Now you owe me a new outfit!" "I--gk--hate you!" Ryan said, clawing at the neck of the T-shirt to try to stretch it far enough that he could breathe again. Brianna dashed off to get Ryan's clothes, which left Genn looking mightily disappointed as he returned to neutral form and sat down. "What did you see, Seance?" Gina asked after a moment. "Not much of anything. One moment, Rhianna, and without any sign of transition, Ryan." Gina shrugged. "Maybe another few transformations'll--" "NO!!" Ryan blurted out. "But Ryan," Genn piped up with a strange tone, "if Gina suggests it, she must think it's necessary.." Seance looked at Genn curiously, then said, "Actually, that's not the case. I would learn nothing more from continued transformations." As Ryan overexaggerated a sigh of relief, Seance continued to eye Genn, and suddenly got a puzzling flash in his mind, seeing himself feeling jealous towards a female-form Ryan.. Seance wondered. Suddenly, he realized Gina was talking to him. "Oh.. I beg your pardon?" "I said, did my dad ever tell you anything about this curse that might be useful to know?" Seance hmmmed for a moment, then spoke. "Yes, as a matter of fact.. it's a legendary story passed down to teach mages to think of the consequences of their actions. It always started out with a vivid description of the locale the curse was first spotted in." "So, what's your opinion, then?" "About curing Ryan? Going to that locale would certainly be our best course of action. Especially if, as you said, your father told you there was a possible cure there," Seance nodded. "But how will we get there if all the cars that can fly are shot?" Ryan wondered aloud. "I just now had an idea about that," answered Gina. Early the next morning found the six of them--the sisters, plus Seance, Genn, and, of course, Ryan--aboard a Learjet bound for China and being piloted by a familar face. "Getting into China is tough enough when you file a flight plan six months in advance, G," Ace called back to his passengers from the cockpit. "So I hope you know just how many favors I had to call in to get us there in just six hours! I sure hope whatever's there is gonna be worth your while." "It will be, Ace," Gina said, reaching into her backpack, which was on the floor. "But here, judge for yourself." Ace took a glance and saw Gina, in one deft move, pull a canteen from her pack and splash Ryan in the face with it. Ace looked forward again to scan his instruments, and when he heard a cry of protest, looked aft once more, just in time to catch the end of Ryan's transformation into Rhianna. Ace's eyebrows tried to hide up under his ballcap as the eyes beneath them widened. His jaw fell, too, and his mouth emitted, "DAMN!" Penny, in the copilot seat, frowned and scowled at her boyfriend. "KEVIN, FLY THE DAMN PLANE!" Rhianna, meanwhile, sputtered, partly at the abrupt change and partly at getting yet another face full of water. "Come ON, Gina!" she railed. "Stop that already!" Penny turned to face back into the passenger compartment. "Ryan.. what HAPPENED to you?" she asked with great curiosity. Rhianna began to speak, but Gina beat her to the punch. Gina recounted the entire story for Penny and Ace, giving them the details of every moment since Gina had opened the back door of the house on Friday afternoon. She included the history of the curse as they knew it, and Ace let out a low whistle. "Wow," Penny said with awe. Ace cracked a huge grin. "Gotta love that irony, Ryan.. cold water makin' you so HOT'n'all--OW!" Penny glared at Ace with an upraised hand and fire in her eyes. "You'll get ANOTHER one if you don't start behaving!" Ace smiled and turned his attention back to flying. "It was worth it, girl." Brianna cleared her throat and smiled. "Actually, guys, we gave her a more appropriate name; when she's in this form, we now call her.. Rhianna." Penny smirked and giggled, then apologized. "Oh, I'm sorry, Ry--I mean, Rhianna.. the mental picture I just got was SOOOOO funny.." Ace grinned again. "Ryan, buddy, I would NOT wanna be in your shoes right about now.." "DON'T SAY IT!" Rhianna snapped before anyone could make a joke. "Now, if I remember correctly, the site should be about thirty miles in.. THAT direction," Seance declared, pointing as they exited the airport terminal. "Are you going to 'gate' us there?" Brit wondered aloud. "No," Seance shook his head. "The high concentration of 'curse energy', if you will, is said to create a natural disruption or barrier against magic. My dimension-door cannot be opened there." "So you're saying we have to hike, huh?" Brianna asked. "Absolutely not!" Rhianna said from the doorway, where she was keeping herself partly hidden. "A, I will not go outside looking like this, and B, I am NOT gonna walk 30 miles like this either!" "I could carry you," Genn said eagerly, shifting to masculine form. "Well, I'm sorry, Rhianna," Gina said. "How was *I* to know that all the bathrooms in the airport'd be out of order? Don't sweat it--we'll find you some hot water somewhere; but for now, you're gonna have to bite the bullet and come outside with the rest of us." Slowly, tentatively, Rhianna stepped out onto the sidewalk. "There, see? Nothing BAD happened," Gina smiled, clapping a hand to her friend's shoulder. "Now, I guess we gotta figure out how to get to the site." "I think that's been taken care of," Brit nodded as a rusty old minivan rolled up and screeched to a stop. Painted on the side in big blocky English letters below some Chinese script, were the words "EGG SHEN SCENEICS TOUR". Penny rolled down the passenger window. "Anybody want a ride?" As the van pulled away from the airport, a lone figure paid close attention to it; he watched the vehicle as it drove onwards and ultimately faded into the Beijing traffic. The figure nodded to himself and set off in the same direction on foot. "So where to, mac?" the van driver hollered in English (of sorts) to his passengers. "I think he calls everybody 'mac'," Penny whispered to Gina. "He's got quite the accent, doesn't he?" Gina returned. "I don't like it," Ace whispered back with a frown. "Ahh, it just reminds you of a certain somebody," Penny said dismissively. In the meantime, Seance had leaned forward and given the driver directions that would take them to the site. "Ah," the driver said. "Sound like you wanna hit Jusenkyo." Everyone blinked and regarded the old man. "You know of it?" Seance asked. "Oh hell yeah!" Egg Shen nodded. "Big tourist trap. Lots wanna see oldest martial art training ground in land." "Training ground?" several people echoed. "Oh hell yeah," Egg Shen repeated. "Very prestigious. Also very dangerous too--Egg Shen have many, many sad story about visitors to Jusenkyo." "How so?" Gina asked. "Many dangers lie in woods around Jusenkyo. Best not to ask, even better not to find." "We'll keep that in mind," Gina nodded. "I see it in your eyes, you wonder how you and Egg Shen communicate so well." Gina looked at the others, then back at Egg Shen via the rear view mirror. "Um.." "Egg Shen speak good American.. watch wrestling off satellite dish brother- in-law get from Democratic Party." "That would explain it," Penny nodded slowly. "Anyway, Jusenkyo baad place if not know what doing. Watch you step." "We will, thank you," Gina said uncertainly again. "But I tell you many story," Egg Shen added brightly, starting into one right away. AN HOUR AND A HALF LATER The figure continued to follow from a distance. At present, he was crouched on a tree-branch about twenty feet off the ground and a hundred feet away from the bus. Daishi watched as the people stepped out of the van and headed off in the bush. After a moment, he turned and leapt to another tree, to follow them. While he jumped from tree to tree, his mind--usually well focused on the task at hand--was recounting the reasons he was here in a Chinese forest. He was there to prove his worth to Lord Talon, he told himself. The incompetent clone he'd tested the week previous not far from where Daishi was now standing was not so incompetent any more. After her failure, she'd returned to Talon's complex with the rest of them, then run off and secluded herself in a room for almost a day. When she emerged, she was back in the form she'd been given at her birth/creation, and she wore a look of determination that Daishi had rarely encountered before, except maybe on the face of the clone's donor. She announced her desire to practice and learn, and at first did it on her own; ultimately, though, she needed a partner. She tried Zelda, then, to everyone's disbelief, kicked her out, saying she wasn't a worthy opponent at all. She then bypassed Ionis completely (to his delight, so it seemed to Daishi) and came right after Daishi, catching him off guard--a first--and dragging him into the training area. She explained to him--just before trying to deck him--that he was the closest she was going to home to her clone-donor's skill and prowess, so she'd have to practice with him. And then, as mentioned, she attacked him without warning--or, at least, with only the warning mentioned above. For a while, he was able to fend her off and subdue her soundly, as she was trying to use her supposed were-cheetah skills, despite the fact she wasn't a were-cheetah. Most of her attacks failed to connect, and Daishi was able, as said, to win every time. However, she got better rather quickly, and in no time, he was being bodyslammed to the floor regularly. If that wasn't bad enough, she was even taking to TALKING like the clone-donor, which got on his nerves and riled him up, making his defeat at her hands so much more easier. In any case, she was improving steadily, and Daishi didn't need clairvoyance or any other such skill to realize that if the clone succeeded in her tasks, he and the others would be out on the street in no time. And so, Daishi found himself tracking the Diggers girls and their comrades through China, on his own, trying to see what they were up to and see if there was anything that would be worth taking back to Lord Talon, in the hopes of redeeming himself and proving his loyalty to his young master. "This last stop," Egg Shen said an hour and a half and several dozen stories after he'd picked up his passengers. He pulled to the side of the road and hit the brakes. "Jusenkyo is mile, maybe mile-anna-half that way." "Thank you very much, sir," Seance said. "I wait for you here if you want. Going back to town tonight, right?" "I sure HOPE so," Rhianna grumbled as she stepped out of the minivan. "Then I hang around, free no charge." Suddenly, Egg Shen grabbed hold of Rhianna's wrist. "Hey, I wanna talk to you." Rhianna was startled; she tried to wrench her arm free, but his grip was strong. Genn was thundering in to save Rhianna when the old man realized his error and released Rhianna, stepping back with his hands up. "Is okay, is okay! I just wanted to say what an honor it is to drive Miss Laura and her group around. Egg Shen's nephews LOVE your games, and want to be first in all China to see your movie next year." He smiled sheepishly. "And.. um, Egg Shen was wondering if Miss Laura would give nephews autograph." Rhianna's face was completely red; she looked as if she wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole. "....." "Oh, go ahead, 'Laura', we don't mind," Gina grinned. "Yeah, it's the least you can do for the poor ol' guy," Brianna added, "seeing as how he drove us all the way out here." Finally, Rhianna took the pen and paper being offered her, muttering "You guys just never quit, do you?" Another hour passed as the eight friends walked through the bush, heading in the direction the old man had indicated. Rhianna had to take a great deal of ribbing about the 'Laura' incident, which, as with everything else, she didn't find one bit funny at all. "Ah, yes," Seance said as they came upon the clearing which housed the site. "This is the place I've seen in my mind's eye." They looked around for a short while, listening to Seance as he explained more of the legend, remembering more and more of it as they went on. He talked of the hundreds of different pools before them, and how most if not all were cursed; and how curses were supposedly negated by finding a pool that was cursed with something similar to one's original form. "So all I gotta do to get cured is find a pool where a guy drowned?" Rhianna said enthusiastically. "Lead the way!" "Which one is it, then?" Penny wondered out loud, waving an arm at all the unmarked pools before them. "Ummm.." Suddenly, an elderly man walked up to the group from out of nowhere. "Did I hear tragic story unfolding here?" "Jinkies!" Gina said as the man startled everyone. "Who're you?" "I am Jusenkyo caretaker," the man bowed. "Who is cursed one?" "HIM!" "HER!" everyone said in a jumbled chorus, all fingers pointing to Rhianna. The caretaker squinted at Rhianna, then nodded with a look of realization. "Ah, I remember you. You wake up and leave before I can tell you about curse. Too bad. Also too bad spring of your cure all dried up." "WHAT?" shouted eight voices in unison, one noticeably more panicked and shriller than the rest. The caretaker nodded towards a muddy crater nearby. "Yes, yes; ponytailed girl and panda used up drowned-man spring two days ago. Very happy story." "Aren't there any others like it??!" Rhianna asked, peering into a nearby pool. The caretaker gasped. "Do not fall into second spring while in cursed form!" he hurried out, reaching over and yanking Rhianna back to safety. "Would be very, VERY tragic. You fall into that spring, for example," he said, nodding towards the one she'd been near, "you end up with only young-lady form and platypus form; your original form gone for good!" As Rhianna shivered to avoid freaking completely out, Seance knelt down beside the muddy crater, inspecting it. "Hmm. I MAY be able to synthesize a cure at home, if we can take a decent sample of this damp soil back with us." Gina offered her empty canteen to Seance. "How about this?" Seance smiled. "Thank you, Gina." He uncapped it and, holding it carefully, tried to scoop some soil into it. "Careful," the caretaker urged. He turned to face Rhianna again. "I wish you best of luck. I get you hot water if you like.." "Yes please! I like!" Rhianna blurted out. The caretaker bowed and walked away. "See?" Brianna said after a moment. "Everything's gonna work out. It's gonna be like a walk in the park." Britanny's head whipped around just seconds before something came lunging at them out of the underbrush. She skillfully evaded Daishi's attack, and he did a tuck-and-roll before standing up a short distance from the group. "Daishi!" Brianna said. "What the heck do YOU want here?" "Just his regular monthly pounding, sis," Brit said, cracking her knuckles and staring at Daishi. "I can see it in his eyes." "Hardly," the ninja intoned. "I do nothing without a reason. And neither do you, which is why I am here. Whatever prompted you to return to China so urgently and so near to the site of your last 'treasure hunt' must be of enough significance for me to, at the very least, report it to Lord Talon." "'TREASURE HUNT'??!" Gina shot back. "Y'know, Cheets, I think you nailed it," Ace said. "He just wants to be taken downtown, is all." The lot of them readied defensive stances as Daishi circled the group. "Last time we met," Britanny said, trying to lock Daishi's gaze, "you an' I didn't have time to do our usual dance. Ready now?" Daishi glanced at Brit briefly, then resumed watching the others and side- stepping in a circle around them. "Lord Talon would be pleased were I able to acquire and deliver to him whatever tangible object it is that you came to this place to find. Is it, perhaps.. THIS?" In a flash, Daishi reached out and snatched Gina's water bottle directly from Seance's hands. The young mage recoiled in shock, realizing he hadn't seen that coming at all. Seance reflected. "Hey!" Penny shouted. Gina supplied a "Zoinks!" as well. However, no one was as upset as Rhianna. Her expression turned very sour and her voice became a low growl. "You give that BACK!" she roared, running at Daishi with her wrists locked together and her left elbow high and in front of her, aimed at Daishi's throat. The ninja simply took one single step aside; Rhianna tried to adjust, but by then she was already stumbling, a look of complete surprise and astonishment on her face. She tumbled to the ground unceremoniously with a bewildered yelp. "Rhi'!" Gina hollered. Daishi turned to face his fallen almost-foe. "A fair attempt, miss. Your style is familiar, though--who did you study und--*" Daishi didn't get to finish his question, as a size-15 running shoe met the back of his head and sent him sprawling. The owner of that shoe dropped her foot and waited for Daishi to get up so she could kick him again. "Th--thanks, Cheetah!" Rhianna said. "You shoulda known better, Rhianna," Brit said, watching a dazed Daishi start to get up. "You won't be able to do those moves while you're like that.. now, look out!" WHOP! Brit nailed Daishi again, but this time he was half-ready for her, and he only staggered back a bit, still clutching the canteen. "Well executed," Daishi acknowledged, shaking his head to clear away the little birdies roaming around inside it. "Almost as good as your CLONE is becoming. Shouldn't be long now before she's ready for the rematch with you." "GRRR!" Brit said through gritted teeth, throwing a flurry of punches, of which less than half connected. "BRIT! Take it easy," Gina called out. "He only said that to tick you off!" "Umm.. it's working?" Genn observed. Rhianna continued to stand off to one side. It dawned on her that Daishi had naturally not recognized her in her present form, and perhaps that was a good thing. She stood there, watching Cheetah and Daishi go at it. Whatever he'd said about a clone had enraged Britanny to the point where she looked like she wouldn't be able to finish Daishi off without help. Rhianna got an idea just then, and changed her focus. Rather than watching Daishi, she turned her attention to Brit, studying her attacks as well as the way she moved.. "What's gonna happen if someone gets some of that on them?" Gina asked Seance, nodding to the canteen in Daishi's grip. Seance shrugged. "There didn't appear to be enough standing water in it to matter; I need to create some at home. However, assuming that there WAS.. if it contacted Rhianna, so long as we could apply it to her non-cursed form, our troubles would be over. As for Daishi, I believe it would have no effect, since he's already a man, and this is from the spring of drowned man. And Britanny.. well, let's just hope that doesn't come to pass." They all looked up as another battle cry was heard. All were surprised to see Rhianna back in the fray, screaming like a warrior and rushing Daishi. She was, at the precise moment in question, reaching up to the significantly larger ninja and clotheslining him, much as Cheetah often did as a trademark move. "Good shot, Rhi'!" Brit said as she went for Daishi again. "You got your skills back, I gather." "Thanks to you," Rhianna nodded. "Set him up for me?" "Gladly," Brit grinned. She picked Daishi up again, holding him up as if she intended to suplex him. Balancing him like that, she swiftly crouched down, one knee on the ground and one up as a sort of a step for the smaller Rhianna. "Go for it!" She did with a smile, running up, leaping first to Brit's knee and then clamping herself around Daishi's midsection, hauling him out of Cheetah's grip and bodyslamming him to the ground. He hit with a horrendous THUD, and the canteen rolled loose. Brit scooped it up and lobbed it to Gina, who played hot-potato with it, eep!ing a couple of times before lateralling it to Seance, who caught it and held it fast. Daishi got up. "Unnh.. at the hands of TWO women, yet.." He stood and looked around. "Very well. I know when to accept defeat, when to save honor, and--*" Brit gave him an uppercut, one that staggered him back a few steps. He rubbed his jaw and quickly fled without another speech, muttering, "Same damn thing the clone did when I tried that.." Ace looked up; everyone else followed his lead, to see the caretaker approaching with a kettle. "What timing," Ace said. "Hurry up and get changed, Ry.. Rhianna, so we can get back in the sky and get home." SUNDAY MORNING As the plane began its descent to Atlanta's airport, Ace's voice came back from the cockpit. "I've got good news and bad news, G.. The good news, we'll be landing any minute. The bad news.. it's raining." "Raining?" Ryan said defeatedly. "Buckets, pal," Ace said. "Cats and dogs out there. We're one of the last flights in the sky.. it's REALLY comin' down." "Ohhh.." Ryan moaned. "If you covered up with my jacket, you might stay dry," Brianna offered. "Or my force field," Gina provided. "No," Ryan said tiredly, in a tiny voice. "You"--he nodded to Brianna--"would get wet and catch a cold or something, and I'd feel guilty, and probably still end up getting wet myself, knowing my luck. And your"-this time, Gina--"force field can't narrow down enough to fit through the doorway of the plane, can it? So I'd get wet before turning it on anyway. So I.. I'd better just resign myself to.. getting changed again." "It's okay, Ryan; we're behind you all the way," Bri' said in a caring voice. "And if it makes you feel better, Ryan," offered Séance, "it should be the last time you have to put up with the change.. I should be able to create a cure by tonight, once we get back home." "I sure hope so," Ryan mumbled. As they entered the complex, Seance hurried to his room with the canteen in hand. Initially, he'd planned to ask for assistance in replicating the cursed/curing water, but he changed his mind and elected to 'go it alone', as they say. He arrived at this decision partly because of his inspection of the moist soil he'd collected, and partly because of the peculiar and bizarre visions he was still getting from Genn.. as if he, Seance, should feel upset at the existence of Ryan's female form. No, not upset.. jealousy? Seance admitted to himself, blushing as he spread out the still-moist dirt and determined what he'd need to make a liquid from it, that yes, he was jealous of Ryan, but because it seemed Ryan had a much greater chance of eventually winning Gina than Seance did. But Rhianna? Why would Seance be jealous of Rhianna? If anything, Rhianna's presence meant that Ryan wasn't around, and that was to Seance's benefit as far as Gina was concerned. He didn't think that way, because it would be cruel to Ryan, but that was one possible reason to be jealous of Rhianna. But no, Genn's daydreams not only specifically included Rhianna as opposed to Ryan, they seemed to be quite deliberately projected at Seance. It was a disconcerting feeling, he decided. At that moment, the effort of synthesizing the curing water demanded his full attention, and he shoved the other topic aside for the moment. "C'mon, we'll get you some hot water," Gina said, leading Rhianna inside from the garage. Gina took her to the guest room and turned on the hot water tap at the sink. "Go ahead," she said, gesturing. Rhianna stepped forward, stepping up to the sink. She looked up at the mirror and saw her face there. she said to herself, closing her eyes and sticking her hand under the running water. The transformation happened the same way it had every time before; first, a tingling sensation spread from around the point of contact with the water, and then, as if being a living participant in a really fast computer morphing, the change.. in this case, Rhianna felt herself become Ryan. He opened his eyes, hand still under the water, and was relieved to see his own reflection staring back at him. "Thank you," he said, looking at the ceiling. "Oh, come on," Gina grinned, punching him in the shoulder and leading him out of the bathroom. "You knew you'd be yourself again." When he didn't answer, she stopped, holding onto his elbow, and said, "..Didn't you?" He steered himself towards the bed, sitting on its edge and sighing. "No.. no, I didn't.." he said quietly. "I had nightmares, Gina.. and not just while I was asleep.. and you guys calling me that name didn't help.." Gina sat down beside Ryan and put her hand on his shoulder, wearing a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry," she said with sincerity, and for the first time in three days, it wasn't followed up with a wisecrack. "It really screwed up my mind, Gina.. I couldn't look at anyone the same any more.. my perspective on how I should behave around them was all messed up.. You know what I mean.." "I think I do," she said. "I saw you a couple of times when we went out; you looked at a pretty girl, then remembered you WERE one.." Ryan glared at Gina sharply for a second, then softened again. "Yes.. that was it." "Do you know what that proves?" Gina asked him. "No.." "That you're perfectly normal," she said warmly, smiling, squeezing his shoulder. "You might've looked like Rhianna, or even Laura, on the outside, but inside, you were still Ryan Tabbot, through and through." He finally allowed himself a smile. "I suppose you're right." "Of course I am. And as for the teasing.. I'm really sorry about that. Had I known it was bugging you that much, I would've put a stop to it." "Aah, it's okay," he said after a moment. "Like you said, if it'd been somebody else, I'd've been right there with you giving 'em hell." "Exactly," Gina said. She looked down beside the bed for a moment, coming up with an article of clothing--the adventure outfit she'd given to Ryan at first. She held it up with a grin. "One more time for laughs?" His expression darkened as he glared at her again. "Not on your life." "I'm kidding," she giggled. "Well, then, wanna keep it as a memento? Take it home.. if anyone asks what it's doing in your closet, you can say I left it there one day." At first he continued to scowl at her, but then, after a minute, he allowed himself a brief chuckle, then reached out and took the garment from her. "Heh. Sure.. and at the very least, I'll come out of it being able to say that last bit, about you.." "Oh you," she grinned, smiling and squeezing him again. "Now let's go to the lab and meet the others so Seance can give you the cure." "You'd NEVER keep me away," Ryan said, bounding to his feet. "Sure I could," Gina said. "A curtain of cold water in the doorway would do." "Doh!" Ryan said, then smiled. TWENTY MINUTES LATER Seance entered Gina's lab and set a glass of water down on the table. "...That's it?" Ryan said. "That's it," Seance nodded. "Your cure." "So how do I..?" "The same as you got cursed," Seance said. "Get yourself wet with it." Ryan reached over and took the glass tentatively, noting it was warm. He then rolled up the sleeve of his windbreaker and held out his arm. He poured the entire contents of the glass all over his arm, letting it run off onto the table; there was no visible change whatsoever. "So it's done?" Ryan said, first with hesitation, then excitement. "It's over?" Gina smiled. "Well, there's only one way to find out." "How's that?" Ryan began to ask, but cut himself off; he only had enough time to notice Gina pick up the pitcher, and Brianna produce a super-soaker gun, obviously a setup. Brit had a water balloon, and the others had various glasses, cups, mugs, and other containers of water, and all at once they splashed Ryan with huge grins on their faces. "Augh!" he sputtered from underneath the torrent of ice-cold water. When it was through, though, he looked at himself and was elated to see he was indeed still himself. "You did it!" Ryan exclaimed joyously. "Thank you!" "You're.. welcome," Seance said quietly, turning aside with a smile. "I'll be back in my room for a while." Genn got up. "I'll join you," he said quickly, shifting forms on the way. Brit looked up at the two departing friends. "Looks like things're getting back to normal," she said with a grin. "Thank you all VERY MUCH," Ryan reiterated. "I can't thank you enough." Gina grinned again. "Oh, I'll find some way for you to pay me back," she said mischievously. Ryan looked at her, then did a double-take and smiled back. "Some other time, babe.. I want to get home and catch up on all the stuff I've missed over the past couple days. See you tomorrow?" "Okay," Gina said with a smile. "Later!" Brianna giggled as Ryan got aboard the elevator and left: "He didn't even wanna dry off first.." "He probably wanted to get as far away from us as quickly as possible, sis," Brit said. "Were you three mean to him before?" Penny said accusingly to the Diggers sisters. "What? MEAN? No.." Gina said. "Good," Penny smiled. "I'd hate to have missed out on that." Genn sat on a stool against the wall, watching Seance write something carefully and slowly in a notebook. "What is that?" the Rakshasa said. "A journal," Seance said, not looking up. "Any time I use my skills, I try to log it in my journal as soon as possible, so I have a record of what I've done." Genn nodded. "That's a good idea," she said, adding after a moment, "Mind if I stay around for a while?" Seance paused for a moment before answering, thinking it over. "No, I don't suppose I mind," he finally said with a shrug. Suddenly, he was startled by a presence behind him. He turned to see Dr. Diggers standing there. "Ah! You're home early, sir." "Indeed," Theo said with a smile. "The workshop degenerated into the usual gossip session late this afternoon." He looked behind Seance. "Apprentice, why is there a beaker of boiling water on your desk?" "It's a potion, sir," Seance said, "not water." Theo lowered his glasses and looked at the beaker directly. "Are you sure? It has no magic whatsoever." Genn threw a sharp glance at Seance, and watched as the expression on his face grew to match the horror on hers. END 7:15AM Gina padded down the hallway and looked into the open door of Lab 3. Yep, Britanny was inside, in the dark.. but why? "Brit?" Gina called out, and Cheetah gave a startled gasp and shot upright, from where she'd been bent over a computer. She spun to face the doorway. "Oh! Hello, Gina," Britanny said with relief. "Sorry, you startled me." "What're you doing in here with the lights out?" Gina asked. "The..?" she said, looking around, then smiling. "Oh, I must've forgotten to turn them on, that's all. I was just lookin' around.." "Lights," Gina called, and the fluorescents winked on. She looked at the screen Britanny was standing before. "My tech folder?" she asked, pointing to the screen. "Aheh," Brit smiled. "I thought I'd take a peek at the Hurtbot schematics. Y'know, just to see how they tick." "Hurtbot schematics?" Gina echoed, and Brit nodded. Gina looked at her sister again. "You haven't shown this much interest in tech since college. Heck, since BEFORE college." "Just looking for something to read," Brit said. "I'm bored." Gina shrugged. "Guess you finally wore out your fashion catalogs, did you? Okay, they're under /etc/Bots/Hurtbots/." Britanny grinned. "Thanks, sis!" She bent over the computer again. Gina nodded. "No sweat. If you need help with it, let me know, okay?" "You betcha," Brit answered, typing away. "See you after breakfast." "Okay," Gina said. She turned and walked out of the lab. Britanny waited for her sister to be out of earshot, then she sat back down and pulled a Zip disk out of her pocket, sticking it in the machine. "Gullible little nerd," she muttered, eyeing the data scrolling up the screen. Project HEARD presents a "Doubled Up" fanfic SPLIT DECISION Daishi got to his feet as the clone rounded the corner. She continued past him with her usual purposeful stride, not paying him one bit of attention. "Where were you?" he asked, following her. "You said you--" "Busy," Dark Brit interrupted him flatly. She crossed the room and headed to the stairwell which was marked off-limits to all but Pee Wee himself. "You expressed a desire in training this morning," Daishi pressed on. "I changed my mind," she answered, climbing the stairs. "Found something a little sweeter to occupy myself with." "Perhaps you could have let me know, then," Daishi said with exasperation, pausing only slightly before following her up the forbidden flight of stairs. "I sat about idle the whole day for your benefit, and--" "And maybe you'd best learn to be disappointed. This is not going to be the LAST time you're stood up by a pretty girl." She smiled at her own joke. Daishi forced out a sigh. He nodded towards the disk she was clutching. "What's that?" "A cookie," she answered. Dark Brit burst out of a closet in a room. For all the world, it looked like a bedroom belonging to a little boy, and for the most part, that was the truth. Erwin "Pee Wee" Talon looked up from his computer screen with surprise, then jumped down off the chair, running over and stage-whispering, "I told you never to come up here!!" Dark Brit didn't answer Pee Wee; instead, she tossed the disk like a throwing star or a frisbee, and it sliced through the air before wedging in between two rows of keys on his computer keyboard. As the disk sat there, and Pee Wee stared at it, Daishi emerged from the closet. "Wow.. always wondered where those stairs led.." Pee Wee refocused himself on Dark Brit. "What's on the disk?" "Open it," was her answer, "and find out." Pee Wee extracted the disk from his keyboard and put it into the drive. After a moment, he was rewarded with a folder full of technical schematics and designs for Gina Diggers' "Hurt-bots". He looked over it for a moment. "Is this what I think it is?" he said. "If you think it's the Gold Digger's robots' designs, yes," Dark Brit returned. "Incredible! How did you get them?" "I walked in, the computer recognized my form as her and gave me free roam of the complex, I went to the labs, chatted with Gina for a moment, downloaded the data, and walked out." "Of course! You can enter the complex because its security system sees you as Cheetah," Pee Wee nodded, looking over the schematics. He gestured to Daishi. "I tried to get these jokers to use Ionis' magic to mask themselves as the three sisters once to do the same thing, but they're hopelessly incompetent." Daishi turned and faced back towards the stairs. "I did not appreciate seeing Brianna Diggers in the mirror," he muttered. If Pee Wee or Dark Brit heard it, they ignored it as they headed for the closet door. "Excellent work!" Pee Wee told the clone. "At least SOMEONE around here knows how to put their skills and attributes to good use!" "It was simpler than you'd think," Dark Brit said as they descended. "Not even Britanny's own sister knew I wasn't her." They reached the bottom of the stairs; while Daishi and Pee Wee came to a stop, Dark Brit kept on striding ahead, zeroing in on Zelda. She grabbed the bald woman's arm and hauled her to her feet. "I need a sparring partner. Let's go." Zelda let out an "ULP!" as she was dragged towards the gymnasium/practice center. Daishi watched her go without offering any help. He turned to face Pee Wee. "A moment of your time, Lord Talon?" Pee Wee looked up at the ninja and nodded, waving a hand. "Why do you let her run roughshod over you, and us, as it were? You have instilled in the rest of us a firm obedience to a set of rules of your own devising. Yet she not only breaks these rules, she grinds them to dust under her furred heel, with no repercussions." "Because she gives me RESULTS, Daishi. Positive ones. And when she DOES fail, she has the COURAGE to admit it, and the drive to want to improve her skills, to have another shot at getting it right. And not just to save her butt, either--because she wants to prove that she's not a failure." Partway through Pee Wee's answer, Ionis appeared in a flare of light. He smirked, listening to the conversation, and contributed: "Don't kid yourself, Pee Wee. Including today's 'success', she has failed you 50% of the time so far. That record's far worse than any of ours, or even all of them put together. She's simply far too EXPENSIVE for you to just write off, I'd imagine." Pee Wee's expression darkened as he glared up at Ionis "Just because SHE mouths off at me, doesn't give YOU the right to do the same, Ionis. You know I've punished you for less." "And yet you fail to punish her at all," Daishi pointed out. "Even though she continues to show flagrant disregard to your authority, while we steadfastly remain loyal." After a moment in which Ionis failed to speak, D darted out with a barely- seen, lightning-quick two-fingered jab to Ionis' side, just below his armpit. "OW!! ...Right! Loyal to the end!" Ionis blurted out. Before Pee Wee could answer, a thunderous CRASH was heard down the corridor. All three turned to look, and saw the gym doors fly open, disgorging a bruised and battered Zelda. She came cartwheeling out, and landed in a crumpled heap on the corridor floor. Dark Brit's voice filtered into the hallway from the open gym doors. "I USED UP THAT ONE! SEND DAISHI IN!" D turned to face Pee Wee again. "It appears to be my turn to help the clone 'improve her skills'. However, Lord Talon, I will leave you with this: If she is not a failure, and has nothing but loyalty to you in mind, then why did she bring you--a master geneticist--a disk full of nothing but robot design diagrams?" Daishi bowed and turned to leave, striding bravely to the gym doors as Zelda picked herself up and shuffled to the side, offering words of good-luck to him. Ionis smirked and looked to Pee Wee; the young man was blushing furiously over an enraged expression as he stared at Daishi's retreating form. Without another word, he turned & stomped angrily up the stairs. Daishi entered the silent, darkened gymnasium, and the door closed behind him, plunging the room into total darkness. He stood there for a moment, then called out. "I can hear you breathing, clone. In another moment I'll be able to tell which direction the sound is coming fr--" << Motley Crue "Dr. Feelgood" _Dr. Feelgood_ >> Suddenly, a guitar riff and drum beat drowned out Daishi's voice and the sound of Dark Brit's breathing. The music appeared to be coming from all corners of the room at once. Daishi turned around once or twice, trying to hear or see anything at all, when-- THWOK! Daishi got a foot to the chin just as the main part of the song started up. He staggered back and lashed out, but no one was there to collect the hit. Suddenly, he got smoked from the left. He turned and swung, but again, found nothing but air. And again he took a shot to the left, this time about his hip, designed to knock him down. He rolled with the blow and came up facing the same direction he was before the strike, then realized something and turned 180 degrees to expertly block Dark Brit's punches. He threw a punch of his own and felt it connect, hearing Dark Brit smack the floor a second later. He moved to a neutral stance instantly and said, "Are you all ri--" BOOM! His legs were taken out from under him by a sweep, at the same time as he took a size-15 foot into the abdomen. The two attacks combined to spin him over and upside-down, and he crashed to the ground in a heap. After a second, he propelled himself to his feet and launched a "chi" fireball (or whatever a "chi" attack is) into the darkness. It missed, but illuminated the area long enough for him to see Dark Brit racing at him, right arm outstretched and a big evil grin on her face, fangs out. Daishi tried to leap away, but got caught up in the clothesline anyway; he found himself hauled down and slammed to the floor, the wind knocked out of him. Still, he managed to use the momentum to flip back over & powerslam Dark Brit into the floor. As the bodies stopped falling, Daishi realized the music was over, leaving nothing but the hiss of the tape deck filling the air. He got up and hopped a few feet away from where he believed Dark Brit to be, and waited. After a moment, he heard the sounds of someone getting to their feet slowly. They walked a short distance, and there was a click; the hissing stopped. Then they walked another short distance, reached out, and turned a switch. The lights came on to show Dark Brit standing near the doorway, hand on the light switch as the room was illuminated. Her hair was askew and her fur was ruffled in a few places, and she crossed the room, expressionless as ever, heading back to face Daishi toe-to-toe. "Good fight." She bowed deeply and slowly. He bowed back, but kept his eyes on her in case she planned to try anything while his head was down. He noticed a portion of her hair on the back of her head was matted with bright crimson. "You bleed!" "Of course I bleed," she nodded, picking up a towel from the floor beside the tape deck and holding it against the wound. "I'm magical, not indestructible." "What I meant was you have a head wound. It should be looked aft--" Dark Brit scoffed. "You would worry about the welfare of your opponent? *I* wouldn't. Leave me now." After a long moment, Daishi nodded. "I will send Ionis in, then." "No. All of you stay away from me until further notice." Daishi eyed Dark Brit. "As you wish. ...If my opinion matters at all to you, let me say you're improving steadily." He left. Dark Brit sat down and toweled off the perspiration and blood. Her eyes focused on infinity, with her mind quickly following. she thought. she reminded herself of the first few words she'd heard, barely sixty seconds after being 'born'. She still had a powerful urge to finish off Britanny Diggers, if for no other reason than to pay the real were-cheetah back for humiliating her in front of Talon. But after that, THEN what? After she wiped out Britanny, what could she look forward to? A life of doing Pee Wee's dirty work, that's what---that is, if she survived the revenge that the mourning sisters Gina and Brianna would surely dole out. And that wouldn't be a particularly survivable event, it would be safe to say. She was confused and distressed by her masquerade exercise of that morning. She'd meant to get DNA samples and other genetic byproducts, but the suprise encounter with Gina had made her chicken out. she wondered. She didn't have any of her clone-donor's memories, so she didn't feel any kind of obligation to be kind to the Diggerses. "Hmm," she mumbled to herself after a moment. "Maybe that's the answer." The three goons of Pee Wee's squad looked up as Dark Brit stepped out of the gymnasium. She nodded to them, then said, "Where did Talon go?" "Up the stairs again," Daishi said with a gesture. She nodded and headed upstairs briskly once again. Zelda looked at the other two. "How come WE never thought of that?" "'Cause we'd get our asses handed to us if we tried it," Ionis said. "SHE, on the other hand, is his pet of the month." Pee Wee turned and stared at Dark Brit as she emerged from his closet again. He almost yelled at her, but judging by her expression, she was already in the frame of mind that yelling was intended to elicit, so he just listened to her. "I wish to apologize for the substandard results of my solo 'mission' today, Lord Talon. I HAD intended on getting you some information relevant to genetics, but I--there's no other way to explain this--I panicked, worried that Gina might see through my charade, if I asked for something of a higher technical nature than that." She nodded at the disk in Pee Wee's computer. Pee Wee nodded."Very well. At least you had the common sense to come clean about it. I won't punish you for it. You can leave now." Dark Brit opened her mouth. She was about to say, "But I'm not finished." However, she knew that if she did, she most certainly would be finished; Pee Wee might be willing to take some mouth from her, but not all the time. "Yes, Lord Talon," she said dejectedly, turning to leave. "One more thing." Dark Brit turned back. "Yes?" "If you EVER go out on your own again without my expressed approval, I'll make you wish you'd never thought to do so. Or maybe I'll re-engineer you so that you never will think those kinds of thoughts again. Clear?" , she thought. She spoke aloud in a flat tone. "Pee Wee, round up your lackeys, and be downstairs in five minutes. I have an announcement to make." FIVE MINUTES LATER Pee Wee, Daishi, Zelda, and Ionis stood around in the central area of the former's stronghold, looking at one another. "What's this about, P--Lord Talon?" Ionis wanted to know. "She wanted us here, Jason," Pee Wee said coldly. "I know as much as you do." Just then, Dark Brit entered the room carrying a packsack of sorts. She set it down at her feet, and regarded the foursome. "What's this all about, clone?" Pee Wee snapped. "First of all," she said, "my name is not 'clone'. It is also not 'her' or 'she', nor is it 'Dark Brit' as you have taken to calling me. I have NO ties to her except that we look similar. My name is Sheva. That is what you will call me from now on." "Sheva?" Pee Wee said, screwing up his face in confusion. "Why?" "It matters not to you," Sheva said. She looked them each in the eye and then said, "I am tired of working with rejects and losers. Effective immediately, I'm off on my own, to pursue my OWN interests." Everyone was stunned by this, but Pee Wee was the first to recover. He walked forward. At first he was going to tell her to put the pack away and get her ass back in the training room for more practice, but he found himself extending a hand. "Very well, then. I wish you luck. At least we'll still be on the same side--" Suddenly, Sheva looked sharply down at him and glared, hands on her hips. She bent over and picked up the pack, keeping her eyes on Pee Wee the whole time. "I am only on Sheva's side," she said. "Woe be all who get in my way." Sheva turned and walked away. Pee Wee was about to call out, but just then, lightning and thunder boomed through the stronghold, signalling another late afternoon thunderstorm. Gina watched the rain pour out of the sky. From the kitchen window, she could barely see the garage, it was raining so hard. "So you were not here this morning?" Seance was saying to Britanny. "Not when Gina says I was," Brit shook her head. "That's my time to run. Remember, Gina?" She nodded. "Yeah, but you DID come in! You said you were bored and wanted to read the hurtbot specs!" "What??" Brit blurted out. "Girl, I'd be bored BY reading the hurtbot specs, not the other way around." "But if that wasn't you, then who.. ohhhhh, nooooo.." "What?" Cheetah said. "Oh boy," Gina said. "I think Pee Wee just got my robot designs.." Cheetah was about to answer when the doorbell and the sound of frantic hammering echoed through the house, even eclipsing the sound of the rain. Gina stood up straight. "I'll get it." She hurried to the back door to answer it, and was greeted by a bewildering sight. Standing there, dripping wet from the thunderstorm going on outside, was Rhianna, with a furious expression on her face and Ryan's clothes hanging off her like a soaked tent. "Where.. *IS*.. he?!" Rhianna seethed through clenched teeth. Gina simply turned and called out, "SEANCE! It's for you!" --end-- GD HALF: DIVIDED LOYALTIES (volume four of the "Doubled Up/GD Half" universe) Story by Jason Low (Peebo) Proofreading, Inspirational Contributions, Test Audience - mdg/Illy THE DIGGERS COMPLEX Rhianna shoved her way past Gina, tracking water through the house, and barged into the kitchen. She saw Seance there, sitting beside Britanny at the table, and looking entirely surprised to see Rhianna--but not as surprised as he was a few seconds later when Rhianna crossed the room in three strides, grabbed Seance by the collar of his magesuit, and hauled him off his seat and into the air. "You promised you'd cured me!" she roared at him. Brit gasped and shot out of her chair, and Gina arrived in the room at the same time, calling out Rhianna's name. "Stop it!" Gina pleaded. "Calm down!" Rhianna had Seance up off the ground, feet dangling, and her other fist was cocked, ready to throw a punch. She growled, "I can kick yer ass just as bad as Ryan can," and eyed Seance for a moment. "Well, aren't you gonna say anything?!" He remained silent, watching her to see what she'd do. "Bah," she said, releasing him to the floor and lowering her fist. "Get outta my sight." He rubbed at his neck with a hand as he spoke quietly, in an apologetic tone. "I.. I will retire to my room, to work out some calculations.." "Yeah, you do that," Rhi' muttered as Seance departed, edging past Gina. Rhi' sat down in the seat she'd made him vacate, and put her head in her hands, water dribbling from all over her onto the table, chair, and floor. "Rhianna.." Cheetah said simultaneously with Gina. Rhianna brought her head sharply up to look at Gina, and snapped, "Look, it's supposed to rain all day, and if we have to go somewhere, I'm soaking wet like this.. so, as much as I'd hoped to never have to say this again, can.... can you lend me some clothes, please?" Gina, after a moment, smiled warmly. "Sure. C'mon, follow me." "I'm really sorry you're back to this again," Gina said. "I know you thought it was over. We all did." "Aaah, it's not your fault," Rhi' dismissed, hands clasped behind her head. "Seance should've said that it might not work. And I should've KNOWN he couldn't pull it off." "Rhianna!!" Gina said scoldingly. "He tried really hard!" "SUUURE he did. He wants you all to himself, 'cause he knows you won't want me if I'm female half the rest of my life!" "That's not true, you know!" Gina said, hands on her hips as they entered Gina's room and closed the door. "Don't you know what's going on between him and Genn?" "No, but what does THAT have to d--" "Genn was, for a while, sending false fantasies to Seance via his 'see daydreams' ability. In them, Genn'd be with you, in the hopes of making Seance jealous of you. And despite all that, Seance STILL vowed to help you." She pushed a bundle of clothes into Rhianna's arms. Rhianna looked astonished. "N.. no, I didn't know that.." "Well, *I* noticed it... ...There was something else I noticed, too.." "Which was?" Gina paused before answering. "You referred to Ryan in the third person a while back there." Rhi' made a face. "Mental slipup. Nothing more, nothing less. I didn't mean to." "Didn't you?" Gina said, then fished, "..Or are you trying to separate your two forms into two distinct personalit--" Rhianna spun to face Gina and shouted, "Gina, PLEASE!" "Okay, okay, it was just a thought! Sorry." Rhianna, still clutching the bundle of clothes to her chest, motioned for Gina to turn around. Gina shrugged and shook her head, even as she turned around. "It's not something I haven't SEEN before, Rhianna.." "Oh, PLEASE don't start with me! You KNOW I hate dressing up in this stuff!" Gina folded her arms as she heard the bathroom door close. "I'm goin' EASY on you!" she retorted. "Maybe next time, I'll lock you in a room with nothing but my shortest, tightest dress, and we'll SEE how you like it!" There was no answer, and after a moment, Gina said softly, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that." "It's okay," came Rhianna's voice from the bathroom as she opened the door. "We're both stressed. I understand." "Can I bring up something ELSE I noticed?" Gina asked. Rhi walked out into the bedroom, dressed in a pair of somewhat tight jeans, and a pink sports bra under a buttoned-up white shirt. "Hmm?" Gina looked Rhi' up and down. "You haven't asked to be changed BACK yet," she observed. Rhianna sighed and tossed her hands in the air. "What's the USE? Either we'll need to go outside before it stops raining.. or there'll be some conveniently unfortunate accident with some cold water while we're in here." Gina nodded. "Sorry, Rhi. I know it must be hard." She looked at Rhianna again, putting her chin in her hand and eyeing her friend's outfit. "Mind if I make one minor adjustment?" Rhianna looked down at herself. "Hmm? Everything feels okay.." "I'm sure it does," Gina said, unbuttoning the shirt, "but it looks too plain." She finished unbuttoning the shirt, then tied it in a knot just above the midriff. "There." Rhianna hmm'ed, looking at the alteration. "Okay, I guess." "Face it, you look way cuter like that." Rhianna smiled wryly. "Believe it or not, I'm not gunning for any specific look." As the two ladies entered the hall, Gina smiled. "I just had an idea about how to possibly cure you." Rhianna's expression just beamed after that, with a wide grin of surprise and excitement on her face. "Really?? How?" "Give me a few hours to do the math," Gina urged. "We'll talk about it tomorrow." THE NEXT MORNING Rhianna stared at the machine. "You mean.. this thing?" she asked Gina. "This 'thing' is what un-cursed me and Brit," Gina pointed out, indicating the chamber and its associated equipment. "And it's what's going to un-curse you." "How?" Rhianna wanted to know. "Same way as back then," Gina said, ushering Rhianna into the room. "I'll just 'trick' the curse away from you and that'll be that." "But.. what about.." Rhianna said, indicating her present appearance. "Oh, that'll be gone too," Gina said. "It's part of the curse. As the curse leaves you, so will that form, and you'll be back to yourself again." "Are you SURE?.." Rhianna said hesitantly. Gina smiled and looked into her friend's eyes. "It'll work," she assured her. Rhianna nodded and stepped hesitantly towards the device. The next thing that registered was Gina hovering over the infirmary bed. Her expression was apologetic. "I'm SO sorry," she said. "He--er--you were right." "What do you m--" Rhianna said, hearing her voice and going pale. "Ohhh, noooooo," she said tinily, reaching up to regard her hands. "You didn't cure me.." "uhhhmmm.." Gina said even more quietly, looking away. "..i *did*..." Rhianna first looked at Gina, then shot bolt upright in the bed, panicked. "What??! Are you saying I'm STUCK LIKE THIS?! I want to be ME again!!" A voice came from the doorway, a voice Rhianna recognized, but never, EVER expected to hear.. at least, not while she was around. "Actually," the voice said in a flat, even tone, "You ARE you." Rhianna paled and gasped as Ryan stepped into view. He nodded at her. "And now.. we're two separate people." Rhianna looked completely floored. How could this be? Gina had promised that she'd cure Rhianna, not clone her and have the clone take her real body. Or wait.. maybe SHE was the clone, and it was the REAL her.. er, rather, Ryan--that was facing her. How could that be, though? She had all the memories, wouldn't the clone know it was a clone? "B.. but.." she managed to stammer out. A hand rested on her shoulder, and she looked up sharply at Gina. "Rhianna, I didn't know it would do this," Gina apologized. "You got your own form back, but in the process, the biomass was charged with your cursed form's properties.. and.. well, it basically became a complete copy of y--" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!" Rhianna screamed, holding her hands to her head and shaking it violently. She leapt out of the bed and shot deadly looks at herself--Ryan, rather--and Gina. "I will NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THIS!" "Rhianna!" Gina called out, but the smaller woman, tears streaming from her face, was already out the door of medlab and heading for the complex's exit. Rhianna ran and ran, ignoring the sounds from behind her as she bolted out the door of the house, then down the street, and then whereever her feet took her. She fled in a random direction, not thinking about where she was going, just thinking about what had happened to her--what GINA had DONE to her, more precisely--and what she could do to correct it. she realized with despair. She finally had to stop and rest in an alley near the mall, and it was there that she fell to her knees and cried. She bawled her heart out, purging it all, and yet still feeling empty inside after it was all over. Nothing she could do would make her feel better--it was as if a part of her had been ripped out and torn to shreds before her very eyes. She looked up and saw a familiar silhouette approaching, resolving into a familiar form. She looked up at the face. "Go AWAY!" she shrieked. "I ain't got NOTHING to say, to you OR your sister!" The figure's shadow fell over Rhianna, and the latter's eyes were in and out of the sunlight as the tail's shadow flicked back and forth, matching the motions of the real thing. "I am not who you think. And you and I do indeed have a lot to talk about, in actual fact," came the even tones of the other person's voice. "L--like what?" Rhianna stammered. The figure grinned broadly. "A partnership, for starters.." Gina sat in the living room, being comforted by Ryan, whose shoulder she presently had her face buried in. "She'll be back, babe," Ryan said quietly. "Trust me. It was just talk." "How can you be so sure?" "That's me inside her, remember? I can't stay mad at someone as cute as you for every long. Gina managed a faint smile. "Thanks, but.. look at it from HER point of view. To her, our attempt to get rid of the curse FAILED. She's stuck like that forever, and YOU have her rightful body. Face it--I let her down big-time, and I wouldn't blame her for hating me for all that." "Well," Ryan smiled back, "Let's just say I have a good idea how she'd react, right?" Gina looked up at him. "Well, then,.. WOULD you hate me for screwing up like that?" Ryan reluctantly nodded after a moment. "For a while, probably. But like I said, Gina, I can't stay angry at you. You're a true friend.. you stuck with me through this whole mess, and that means a lot." Gina smiled and squeezed Ryan's bicep. "So you'd eventually forgive me?" Ryan smiled back. "Well, like I said, I'd be pretty P.O.ed for a while, but I wouldn't be plotting to kill you or anything like THAT, that's for sure.." "Wh--who are you, then?" Rhianna's eyes narrowed. "The clone." "I am a number of things," the figure said with a grin. "You may call me Sheva." Rhianna stood up defiantly and said, "What do you want from me?" "For now," Sheva smiled, "Just an alert ear and an open mind. I feel we could make an outstanding team, you and I." Rhi' snorted. "You don't even know who I am, let alone--" Sheva interrupted Rhianna: "Of course I do, ... Ryan." Rhianna blinked. "You did--" Smiling, Sheva said, "Because I've been watching you for some time--ever since you returned to Jusenkyo to try to cure yourself. Did you know I've been in the Diggers' complex unchallenged FOUR times since that fateful day?" Rhianna gasped. "You HAVE??" she said, thinking back to all the things that'd been said over the past few weeks, things that needed to be kept secret.. "Yes, and I know all about your"--Sheva looked Rhianna up and down with a grin--"Your situation. I followed you today--I even know of the most recent developments that created two of you. One you, one as you were always meant to be. It's exciting being a twin, isn't it? The possibilities for fun are SOOOO endless.." She shook her head briefly and smiled, then looked Rhianna straight in the eye. "In any case, I also think some colleagues of mine can rebuild your DNA so you're you again." Rhianna tried to mask her excitement. "And what do you want in return?" she asked. "Just a few favors; nothing more." "Such as?" Sheva smiled. "To begin with, getting me into the secure areas of the complex. The places even Britanny can't go." "What??" "Oh come on, you've been Gina's boyfriend for years. Surely she's given you her codes, or used them in your presence." Rhianna nodded slightly, but amended, "But they're coded to only a select few voices." Sheva contorted her face into a falsely bright grin, gave a facetious giggle, a bubbled away just like Britanny for a few sentences. "Oh," Rhianna nodded, taken aback by the similarities. She paused, then looked at the ground and said, "But.. but this is Gina you're talking about betraying.." Sheva tapped her temple, speaking flatly. "I got no part of Ditzanny up here--only a version of her body--so the whole 'You're hurting your friends' tactic is useless against me. And even though you're exactly the opposite--one of Gina's friends with an all-new body--keep in mind that she's got Ryan back now, so she has nothing to gain any more by curing you. You're EXCESS to them, Rhianna. They won't care about you.." Rhianna's expression set itself firmly as Sheva trailed off. "What do you need me to do?" she finally said. THAT EVENING Gina and Ryan, who just got home themselves, looked up as Britanny and Brianna came in, shrugging their jackets off. Bri' caught Gina's glance and shook her head. None of them had had any luck in finding Rhianna. "Don't worry, she's gotta be out there somewhere," Brit told her sister. "We'll find her yet." "Yeah, unless she kills herself first!" Gina blurted out. "Hey, hey!" Ryan said soothingly, taking Gina up in an embrace. "I'd NEVER do that. I promise you, I'm not that kind of guy." She looked at him again. "But are you that kind of GIRL? What if you were stuck as Rhianna for the rest of your life? 'Cause that's what's going on with her right now." "Gina, I'm tellin' ya, I'd be FREAKING OUT, but just for a while. Then.. I'd come to grips with the situation and adapt to it. It's what I do, you KNOW that--and it's what Rhianna's doing." "In any case," Brit piped up, "It's getting too dark and stormy to keep looking tonight. We'll start fresh in the morning." "Okay," Gina nodded, still being hugged by Ryan, while she looked out the window at the darkness and the rain. "I just hope she's okay. There're way too many bad apples and crazies in this town at night." THE SAME TIME ABANDONED WAREHOUSE ON J STREET "Here we are," Sheva said in the darkness as the two of them walked into the building. "Sorry, I know it's SOOO cliche, but hey, you go with what works. Besides, I plan to have all 180,000 square feet of floor space--ninety thousand on two floors--filled up with my soon-to-be-amassed riches, anyway." She grinned and led Rhianna onwards, after turning on one bank of fluorescent overheads, above an area that looked like it was partitioned off as living quarters. "What are we doing here?" Rhianna said, looking around, hearing the echoes coming back to her. "What're we doing here?" Sheva asked, as if it was an asburd thing to ask. "Why, we're going to rest, for now. You've had such a rough day." She reached out and massaged Rhi's back for a second while saying that in mocking tones. "And we've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow. We've got to get some exercise, then you'll spar with me so I can practice. Next we'll go get you some new clothes, so you can dump that trashy stuff of Gina's. After THAT, we go to the complex, get in, get our stuff, and go, and then we're done." "You make it sound so easy," Rhianna muttered humorlessly. "It will be," Sheva said. "Very simple, very straightforward. You hardly have to do anything except stand there, too.. I'll do all the hard work." She threw a sleeping bag at Rhianna, who caught it, noticing tags still on it from a nearby outdoor outfitters' superstore. "Find a spot and get some sleep," Sheva said flatly. "As I said, we've a big day tomorrow." Three hours later found Sheva in a comfortable foldaway couch-bed, snoring up a storm, and Rhianna lying in the sleeping bag, wide awake, staring at the ceiling of the warehouse, but not really seeing it, as her thoughts were focused elsewhere. she wondered. she thought, looking over at the clone. Rhianna rolled back over again and nearly squashed her chest painfully beneath her in the process. she railed silently. she told herself after a moment, Rhianna wore a firmly-set expression as she lay there in the dark and stared at the inside of the room. THE NEXT MORNING Brit and Brianna stood by the door. "You sure you're staying?" Bri' asked Gina. The eldest Diggers sister nodded feebly. "Yeah.. in case Rhianna returns on her own, someone should be here." "Okay," Bri' said. "Well, Genn and Seance left a few minutes ago, and of course, we're leaving now. Don't worry, we'll find them." Gina nodded again as Ryan came up behind her and hugged her. "Hang in there, sis," Brit said, closing the door behind them. "We'll come back at lunchtime to see if there's any news." Sheva and Rhianna stood before the doors to the mall. Sheva nodded towards the doors. "In you go." Rhianna turned to face Sheva. "But.. I don't have any money." "So?" Sheva blurted out. "Just take it!" "Take it??" Rhi' shot back with surprise. "You didn't lose your roguish, theiving nature when you became Rhianna, did you? Just go in there, try some stuff on, find something you look good in, and walk out with it." Rhianna frowned. "I don't KNOW what I look good in. I've only been a woman for a couple of weeks off and on, yaknow!" Sheva grinned back, "Well, consider this a test of sorts, then. Yer gonna have to learn to live like one anyway, so better start in on it early." Rhianna looked shocked. "..I thought you said your friends would change me back!" Sheva faltered; Rhianna almost had her on that one. "Ahh, they will, but it'll take some time." She gave Rhianna a gentle shove towards the mall doors. "Anyway, get in there.." Sheva waited for an hour outside the mall. She spent most of her time loitering around the entrance she'd sent Rhianna in through, and during that time, while most people paid her no attention, a few who thought she was the real Britanny Diggers tried to strike up conversation. None of them were close friends of Brit, so Sheva was able to pass herself off long enough for them to grow tired of the conversation and head off. Finally, a nervous-looking Rhianna darted out of the mall after looking up and down the sidewalk first. She crossed the street and joined up with Sheva. "Well done," she said, appraising Rhianna's form. Rhi' had changed out of her earlier clothes into a pair of comfortably baggy khaki shorts, held up with a brown leather belt. A plain white sleeveless top covered her torso, though it defined her chest fairly well. Over that, she had a light brown leather jacket, and on her feet, a pair of black-and-white runners. "Not bad," Sheva acknowledged. "You still dress like Ryan would, but that's understandable, this time. We'll sort you out yet." "We shouldn't have to," Rhianna grumbled as they walked on. "You said your friends would cure me!" "And they will, in time," Sheva nodded. "You might have to prove your loyalty to them first, which we'll test next, with a little trip to the complex." Gina looked up to see Brit entering through the front door. "Hi!" she said. "You're back early.. and where's Bri'?.." Gina trailed off as Rhianna, looking edgy and hesitant, came in behind Brit. "Rhi'!" Gina said, leaping to her feet and hugging Rhianna, who urked and hugged her back after a moment. "I'm so glad you're okay!" "Umm," Rhi' said uncertainly. "Yeah.." "Rhianna here was at the mall," Britanny said. "Brianna stayed to browse for a while." "That would explain the new clothes you've both got," Gina said, looking at Rhi' for a bit. "You sure scared me, you know." "Sorry," Rhianna mumbled, averting her eyes. Ryan came around the corner just then and saw his clone/other self standing there blushing. "Hello," he said evenly. "Hi," came the muted answer after a moment. "...If it means anything, I'm glad to see you're okay too." "Uh-huh." "Rhi'.. are you.. y'know.. okay?" Gina asked shyly. Rhianna forced herself to nod, despite her feelings, but it was Brit that spoke. "She needs some time, sis. I'll take her downstairs and help her deal with things." Gina looked slightly hurt that, by Brit's implication, Rhianna didn't want to talk it over with Gina. "Okay," she said with a bit of a frown. "Let me know if you need me.. either of you.." "We will," Brit said, guiding Rhianna to the elevator. Sheva grinned at Rhianna as they were safely hidden away in the elevator. "Well done, so far. Next stop, the secure bays." "You should know," Rhi' said firmly and quietly, continuing to stare at the elevator doors, "that I'm not liking this one bit." "You don't have to, sweetie," Sheva said, ruffling Rhianna's hair. Her voice turned acidic. "You just have to go along with the plan. There's no turning back now. If you blow it, we're BOTH through. Keep in mind, you're expendable to her." The elevator stopped and let the two women off. Instead of going to Brit's room, or a guest room, or any place else where they might talk, they headed straight for the secure areas at the back of the complex. Rhianna told Sheva the passwords, who used them, and was accepted due to her voice sounding exactly like Britanny's. The door rolled upwards and allowed them to enter the area of the armory. "You get the armory open," Sheva said. "I need to go open the door between here and the garage so we can get a car." "A car?" Rhi' echoed with surprise, but Sheva was already walking away. Rhianna turned and fiddled with the entry door to Gina's armory and storage room. After a moment, it slid open, revealing lots of tech-toys and gadgets, as well as a healthy supply of junk. "Oh, good, you got it open," Sheva said, nonchalantly strolling into the room, picking up an armful of tech-traps, and walking out. Rhianna just stared after her. Sheva came back in a moment later, grabbed Gina's backup Gina-Line gun, a few guns and rifles, and looked at Rhi' on the way out again. "Well, are you gonna just stand there, or are you gonna help me move this junk?" After a pause, during which time Sheva departed again, Rhianna finally said, "Oh, I supPOSE," and grabbed some stuff to take to the car. They took everything they could fit in the car. When everywhere except the two front seats were filled up, they went to the other labs to get the smaller things, like disks full of data, DNA samples, and so on. The intercom beeped, and Rhianna yelped in terror, jumping up so quickly she bonked her head on the inside of the roof of the car. She unfolded herself from the vehicle and watched Sheva walk over and talk on the device. "Hello?" she said politely in her Britanny voice. "Sis,.. if you're done with Rhianna.. can you send her down to my room so I can talk to her, please?" "Um, sure," Sheva said, turning to regard Rhianna, then waving her towards the door. "We were just finishing up here." "Thanks a bunch." "You too," Sheva said, waiting for the connection to close before adding, "..Twit." Rhianna walked towards the door, getting told by Sheva on the way that she'd better not tell Gina anything. Rhi' nodded feebly, wondering what else she could possibly discuss. Gina looked up as the door opened and let Rhianna in. "Hi," she said. "Sit down." Rhianna did, on the bed, beside Gina. "I'm.. REALLY sorry for what happened, Rhi'," Gina found herself saying. Rhianna didn't answer, staring at the floor, hands clasped between her knees. Gina went on: "I wasn't trying to trick the curse away from you, I was just trying to get rid of it.. so I didn't think it'd do what it did to the biomass.. er, to YOU.." "I won't blame you for hating me," Gina whispered, bowing her head. "What I did was--" "Necessary," Rhianna finished. "Huh?" Gina looked over at Rhianna. "You had to do it. Otherwise I.. Ryan.. would still be like this." She indicated herself. "And I guess I can't really hate you, on account of that." Gina smiled after a long moment. "Thanks, Rhianna," she said quietly. "That means a lot to me." "After all.. you've got Ryan back, you're happy.. I should be happy for you.." Gina blinked. "What do you mean by that?" "Well, you've got Ryan back.. you won't need me anymore.." A gasping sound came from Gina. "Don't SAY that!" She put a hand on Rhi's shoulder. "Why would I ever be like that??" "You mean.." Rhianna said, needing time to find her voice again. "..you don't?" "Of course not! Honestly, I don't know how you could think a thing like that. You're still my FRIEND, Rhianna, even with Ryan here. And there's got to be a way we can worth things out for you, to make the best of the situation. I PROMISE it." The phone rang just then. Gina looked at it and hmmed. "It's a vid call. I'll have to take it in the lab." Rhianna nodded. "I'll come with you." The two of them left Gina's room and went down the hall to Lab 3. On the big screen on the wall was Pee Wee Talon. Rhianna stared, and so did Gina, to a lesser extent. "How interesting," she said evenly. "What do YOU want, Pee Wee?" Talon winced at the name. "I call with some news you might want to know." "Oh, really? Since when have you ever shared information?" "I have reason to believe you may be in danger. SERIOUS danger." "You DO realize that applies every time we meet, too, right?" Gina deadpanned. Pee Wee ignored that. "We appear to have a mutual enemy now." "Oh, we do, do we?" "You'll remember the.. clone.. I took to China with me a few weeks back?" Gina nodded slowly. "Yeah.." she said leadingly. Rhianna saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see Sheva just down the hallway, motioning for Rhi' to come to her. Rhianna did, stepping out of range of the vidphone's camera and audio pickups. "They're talking about you, I think," Rhianna hissed. "Of course they are," Sheva nodded, whispering matter-of-factly. "Which means we need to get finished here and scram. Quickly." Rhianna nodded. She was about to say something more when Gina stepped out into the hall, calling for her. "Rhianna?" There was something in Gina's voice that didn't sound right, and Rhi' turned slowly and nervously; her eyes involuntarily widened when she saw that Gina had a shock-rod in her hand and activated. "Gina?" Rhi' said questioningly and hesitantly. "Rhianna, maybe you should come over this way," Gina said evenly, holding out her free hand and motioning for Rhi' to come closer. "Wh--what's going on?" Rhianna said, trying to act sincere. Gina looked around Rhianna. "And you, 'Brit'.. maybe you'd better just stay right there for a minute, until I can figure something out." Sheva looked astonished. "Sis? What are you talking about? You feeling okay?" "Don't EVEN," Gina warned her. She took a step forward. "Why don't you start by telling me what we all had for supper last night." Sheva looked pained. "Come ON, Gina, it's ME--" "You were there, 'Cheetah'," Gina said. "Or were you? Come on, just answer me. Even just what *I* had." Sighing, Sheva said. "Oh, for the love of--Gina, you had your favorite. The triple tuna melt. Will you shut that stupid thing down now?" Gina gritted her teeth. "Way wrong answer," she growled. "I was too upset over Rhianna's absence to eat a bite last night, ..'Sheva'!" Sheva was about to protest some more, but hesitated, for two reasons. One, she didn't have an excuse for why she got the test of Gina's wrong, and two, at that moment, voices were heard from the elevator room. "Sis? You down here? No luck this morning, but we'll try again after lunch. Anyway, we brought some subs--" Brianna rounded the corner to come up behind Sheva and Rhianna, freezing as she saw Gina further down the hallway with a shock-rod armed and ready to be used. Cheetah--the real one--bumped into Brianna as the latter stopped. "Ow! Hey, what're you blockin' the hall for--" Britanny stopped herself short as she came eye to eye with Sheva, no more than ten feet away. For what seemed like an hour, everyone stared at one another; then, finally, Sheva ducked and bolted around a surprised Brianna and Cheetah, shouting, "RUN, RHIANNA!" To everyone's surprise (including Rhianna's, it bears mentioning), Rhi' lunged forward as well, running under Gina's shock rod and into the lab, where she could use the back door to get to the garage. The three sisters ran after Sheva and Rhianna, all converging in the garage just in time to see the Mark Eight, with Rhianna at the wheel and Sheva half-in/half-out of the passenger side screaming "GO GO GO!", squeal up the ramp and out onto the streets above. Everyone stood there for a moment, staring at the closing ramp. As it sealed shut again, Gina was the first to speak, or rather, scream. "AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" she hollered, throwing the shock-rod to the ground, where it fizzed and shut itself off. She shook her head violently, then tried to pull her hair out. "Sis? SIS!" Britanny said, rushing to Gina's side and grabbing her wrists. "Calm down or you'll hurt yourself!" "I FELL FOR IT! I fell for it ALL!" Gina railed. "It was all LIES!" "Gina!" Brit pleaded. "Relax!" "All that talk, it was nothing more than talk," Gina moaned. "And she was helping that CLONE all the time--" She cut herself off, going pale and turning to Brianna. "What all's missing??" Brianna's expression went to one of worry as well. "Oh boy.. let me check." She went to a wall console and typed for a moment, then faced Gina again. "They all but cleaned out your armory. And.. they were in the genetics lab, too." "Of course," Gina said tiredly, as if it wasn't a surprise. "And the car, too." "Yeah," Bri' said. "That too. But.." She drummed in a command on the wall console, and a map of part of the city sprang to life, scrolling as a bright green dot stayed centered on the screen. "Yes!" Brianna grinned. "The NoJack system's in business." The car stopped, predictably, in an industrial district at the edge of town. Gina and her sisters watched the display for a few moments before speaking. "There they are," Gina finally said in a flat tone. "J Street." "So it would seem," Brianna acknowledged with a nod. "Where are you going?" Ryan asked as Gina stood up. Gina pointed to the map. "There," she said plainly. "To sort this out." "What?" Britanny said, caught off guard. She scrambled to her feet and moved to intercept her sister. "Not alone, you're not." "Well, I FIGURED that," she said. "Saddle up and let's go." "Hang on, hang on.. let's not go off half-cocked here," Ryan said. Gina fixed him with a glare that surprised him. "Ryan," she bit out quietly after a moment, "Not only did I just let my own worst ENEMY'S enemy into my HOUSE and give her free ROAM of it, but someone I considered my FRIEND turned out to be working AGAINST me and was actually in league with Sheva instead!" She turned away, and Ryan kept silent; he didn't need any more words to get the implication Gina was making. Rhianna was him inside, of course, and Gina was explicitly stating that whatever Rhianna did, Ryan could be held accountable for, or at the very least, be expected to repeat himself. "I agree with Gina," Brianna piped up. "We need to take the fight to them, not to let them sneak up on our place again. If we go there, we have the element of surprise. Doubly so, since they won't expect us to come after them so quickly." "Settled, then," Gina said firmly, as if she wouldn't take any other input. "Who all's going, then?" In the end, the three sisters plus Ryan and Seance included themselves in the group. (Seance didn't want to go, as he'd failed to figure out why his cure didn't work for Rhianna. However, Gina insisted, saying his presence might be needed--both to defend the group, and to get Rhianna to open up and explain why she did what she did.) Brianna drove one car, with Brit riding shotgun and Gina cooped up in the back seat; Ryan drove the other car, with Seance his passenger. It didn't take long to go from the complex to the abandoned warehouse on J Street. As they arrived, the groups rolled their cars to a stop and stayed out of sight for a moment. "Looks okay to me," Brianna said after a minute of studying the building using some modified binoculars. "No traps on the doors on this side, at least." "Good," Gina said. They got out of the cars and headed to the door set in the near wall. All at once, after Seance had cast a 'soundless' spell on the door, they entered the building without making a single noise. It was a nice tactic, well-planned and executed, but outside influences fouled it up. Namely, Sheva, who was standing fifteen feet inside the door, and brought the lights up just as everyone made it inside. "Welcome to our home," she intoned. "Allow us to.. greet you properly." At least one person wasn't interested in that; Britanny lunged in and started off the attack straight away. Sheva dove out of harm's way, and behind her, Rhianna suddenly became visible. "Rhi--" Gina said, cutting herself off. "Rhianna!" she tried again. "Don't bother!" Rhianna snapped, even as Brit and Sheva got to their feet and carried on with their fight. Rhianna moved a little so Gina could still see her. "Don't even start!" Ryan, Seance, and Brianna pushed past Gina to go to Cheetah's aid; Gina stepped aside, then looked at Rhianna again. "But.. all I want to know.. is why?" "WHY?!" Rhianna blurted out. Gina threw her arms wide apart, then let them fall to her sides. "Why all this? After all that's gone on, after all we did for y--" "WHAT YOU DID FOR ME?!" she screamed. She pointed to herself. "**THIS** IS WHAT YOU DID FOR ME! I CAN NEVER BE MYSELF AGAIN BECAUSE OF THIS! I AM GOING TO BE SOMEONE ELSE FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE! AND I HAVE **YOU** TO THANK FOR IT! AND I'M SUPPOSED TO BE **GRATEFUL** FOR THAT?!" To say that Gina looked pained and upset would be a huge understatement. "Rhi', I'm SORRY!" she hollered back. "I didn't KNOW that would happen! I wanted to DIE when I realized you'd been created! But I DON'T hate you, and I DON'T not care about you just because I've--WE'VE--got Ryan back! I'll be honest--I don't know of a way to give you what you want, but I DO think we can make the best of what we have! WE CAN MAKE THIS WORK, Rhianna!" "We can??" Rhi' said with genuine surprise. Meanwhile, Brit, Ryan, Seance, and Brianna were in a free-for-all with Sheva, who was completely pissed that her 'partner' was not wading in to help. The lot of them were all ganging up on Sheva, and although she was healing just as well as ever, she could tell that she'd be finished in a few moments if she didn't up the ante. "Rrr!" she growled, throwing Ryan off of her with one arm, propelling herself to her feet with another, and then kicking Brianna out of the way with a foot. "Damn you all! You're not going to ruin this!" She paused to block an attack by Brit, sending the latter flying once again, then ran a few steps to the back of the stolen Mark 8 and pulled out a weapon. "Look out!" Ryan announced as Sheva hauled out one of Gina's shotguns. The four of them spread out and formed a semi-circle around Sheva, trying to figure out how to rush and disarm her without getting shot themselves. "Maybe an indirect attack is best!" Sheva snapped, holding the gun by the slide and racking it. She then brought the gun up to her shoulder. Gina was about to say more to Rhianna when she heard everyone gasp and Ryan say "GINA, LOOK OUT!". She looked up to see her "Boomstick" being pointed at her from 35 feet away. "ZOINKS!" she said, but by that time, Sheva had already fired. Click bzzt. Everyone stood in shock for a moment as nothing happened; then, at the same time, Gina, Brit, and Brianna realized what'd happened and breathed sighs of relief, each whispering to themselves, "Whew. Smart trigger." Sheva looked at the gun, saw that it had a full chamber, and said, "What the hell?" Then she aimed at Gina and pulled the trigger a few more times. Seance, too, wasn't aware of the smart-trigger function in the sisters' weaponry, though, and neither was Ryan.. which meant, in turn, Rhianna wasn't aware of it either. Gina caught a glimpse of Rhianna entering her field of vision from the left, hearing her say "NO!", and realizing something. Gina barely had time to say "RHI', NO!" before a shot rang out, and a bright flash erupted from the barrel of Sheva's shotgun. As Rhianna moved to put herself in front of Gina, the smart trigger's sight had suddenly been filled with a pattern that was not in its database, and it obediently allowed the round to be discharged. "RHI'!!" several people shouted at once, as she took the shot full-force in the torso and went down hard. Sheva lowered the rifle a little to look at Rhianna's crumpled form. "You traitorous bitch!" she exclaimed, and opened the gun to reload, but suddenly, everything appeared to be moving sharply to the right, and she was reeling from a thunderous blow. She was thrown against, then through, the adjacent brick wall, going into the next section of the warehouse on the front of a freight train known as the Cheetah Express. "If she dies, I swear, you'll be NEXT!" Cheetah promised her evil twin. Gina scrambled to Rhi's side even as Brit was attacking Sheva. "Rhianna.." Rhianna managed a moan and a choking cough, then opened her eyes and, after a moment, sought out and found Gina's face. "Dammit, Rhi', I was never in any danger," Gina shook her head. "Didn't.. know that.." Rhianna answered. "You hang on!" Gina told her. "We'll get you patched up real quick." Rhianna coughed again and shook her head feebly. "Maybe better.. this way, won't.. be two me's.. runnin' 'round.." "Don't SAY a thing like that! C'mon!" Gina looked up. "SEANCE!" Seance was still standing there in shock, staring at the scene. He rushed over, as did Ryan, even as Brianna was leaping through the hole in the wall after Brit and Sheva. Brit was cleaning up the floor with Sheva. This time, there was no time for the clone to retaliate; the punches, kicks, and slams were coming just too fast and furious for her to defend against. She saw Brianna rushing in and said, "Oh, no you don't!" She leapt out of reach of Brit, and faced off against the two sisters. "I won't give you the satisfaction." "Dream on!" Brianna said, pulling out her GyroJet. "You're goin' DOWN!" "Ah-ah-ah," Sheva countered, pulling out a device and pushing on a button atop it. "Look around you!" Sheva dashed off, spouting the usual "next time" garbage a villain feels the need to spout. Brit was about to give chase when Brianna glanced about the room and gasped, grabbing Brit's arm. "Oh my god, Cheets.." In the darkness, spaced about every thirty feet or so along every wall, stretching as far as they could see, including into the other rooms, were the red blinking lights of Brianna's patented Peemax explosives. "Plus,.." Rhianna went on, "I stole from you.. be.. trayed you...." "That doesn't MATTER! You were confused!.... it's understandable...." Rhianna shook her head again, with even less energy than the last time. "Sorry, babe.. gghhhkkkk... Make sure.. Ruh.. Ryan.. takes good care'a y.." Rhianna slumped in Gina's arms, and the latter let out a cry. "Back!" Seance said, and Ryan collected Gina up and moved her aside, kneeling with her as Seance crouched over Rhianna and muttered a few words, holding his hands up in a gesture. A shimmering glow faded into view around the body. "She's stabilized, for now," Seance said, standing. "We need a better place to work on her." "Take us home," Gina said, breaking free of Ryan's grip and rushing to Seance's side. "Right into the infirmary!" Seance nodded. Ryan was about to join the threesome when Brianna poked her head back in through the hole in the wall. "RY! Come on!" "Rhianna's hurt!" Gina hollered. "We're taking her home!" "We need Ryan's help!" came the response. "To disarm all this stuff!" "Go!" Gina told Ryan. "Go already!" Ryan looked at Gina, Seance, and Rhianna. "Good luck," he said, laying a hand on Gina's shoulder briefly before running towards Brianna. "Do a good job, guys!" Brianna said with heartfelt emotion as Seance powered up his spell. "We'll be back once we get the bombs turned off!" Gina nodded, knowing the others wanted to be there as much as she did, but if a warehouse, even an abandoned one, blew up, with as much Peemax as she saw in the room, lots of people would surely die in areas adjacent to the blast. The teleporting effect took over and sent them back to the complex. THE NEXT MORNING "..That's an interesting idea," Gina said. "Do you think it'll work?" "It'll have to," Ryan answered. "I may need your help on the government paperwork, of course, but yeah. I don't see how she has any other options, so this is her only choice." After a pause, the just-returning-to-consciousness Rhianna heard Gina say, "Something I just realized... if SHE was willing to throw herself in front of a gun for me, that means.. that YOU.. ALSO.." Rhianna couldn't hear Ryan nod, but he did, just before acknowledging: "In a heartbeat, Gina. I'd NEVER let you come to harm." "Thank you.." Gina said softly, and they hugged. Rhianna moaned as she tried to sit up in the infirmary bed; pain shot through her neck, back, and generally all other places, and she let out a little yelp and laid back down. "Rhi'!" Gina blurted out, turning to face the figure in the bed. "How do you feel?" "Like Jackie must've in some of his outtakes," she managed weakly with a smile. "But I think I'll live." Ryan smiled a little too. "Yes, you most certainly will," Gina nodded. "It was a pretty good wound, but we got it in time." Rhianna kept smiling. "Thanks for that. I MUCH prefer living to dying." Gina and Ryan looked at each other with indecipherable looks, then regarded Rhianna again. "Even if it means living as you are now?" Rhianna winced after she instinctively shrugged. "I guess I'll just have to accept who I am now," she said, looking at herself. "Like I said, I'd rather be living like this than be cold and dead." Ryan cleared his throat and said softly and evenly, "Then we have a deal for you." Rhianna nodded. "You're gonna turn me in?" "Huh??" "I heard," Rhianna said. "I've got no other choice, you said.. I figured you were gonna hand me over to the police for what I did." Gina shook her head. "Not quite. Ryan has.. a proposition." Rhianna turned her head to look at her former self, who immediately shoved his hands in his pockets and looked red-faced at the floor, avoiding her gaze. "I, uh.... ah, hell, you're me inside, Rhi'.. you KNOW I've always wondered what it'd be like to have a sister.." Rhianna gaped. She stared first at Ryan, who was still blushing and shrugging, and then she turned her attention to Gina again. "I can get Dad's friends to do up the papers so it'll be like you've always been Rhianna Tabbot, Ryan's twin sister... that is, if you WANT to.." Rhianna was taken aback for a moment still, but then found her voice again. "Yeh--yes! Yes, it sounds great!" She smiled, then said, "I never expected this... THANK you!" Ryan, upon seeing Rhianna's reaction, smiled with relief. "But you're NOT getting my room!" he grinned. Rhianna grinned back at him. "Maybe we'll fight for it, 'dear brother'.. I DO have all your skills, after all." Rhianna urked and winced a little as Gina leaned over and hugged her. "You can't imagine how happy this makes me," came Gina's muffled voice. Rhi' reached up and hugged Gina back, then adjusted to collect Ryan into the embrace as he leaned over the bed too. "Oh, I think I have a clue," she said. EPILOGUE ATLANTA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURES LEVEL Sheva stood there waiting her turn at the counter, which seemed like it'd never come. It was taking at least five minutes for every customer to be served, and then everyone would inch two paces forward, and then it started all over again. she told herself. She looked at the card in her hand and smiled; there were lots of other cards just like it in her newly 'acquired' wallet. It was incredible that Cheetah hadn't noticed it was missing yet. she said, She grinned, entertaining the thought of getting back at them by bankrupting them instead of using physical means. Finally! It was her turn at the counter now and she stepped up, setting her bags down and asking to purchase a ticket. The attendant started setting it up, and then said, "Anything else today, Miss Diggers?" "No, not at all, that's fine," she smiled sweetly. "All right, one moment please." The attendant swiped the card and waited for the credit-card terminal to report back. She frowned. "Is there something wrong?" Sheva asked politely. "Let me try again," the attendant said, doing just that. She frowned again as the terminal apparently said the same thing. "Miss Diggers, I'm terribly sorry, but your card's been reported stolen by your bank." "Eheh.. yes, that was me, I lost my purse, but I found it again. It's all right now." The attendant shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry, Miss Diggers, but I have to follow Vista's policies to the letter." She opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of scissors. "NO!" Sheva screamed, but it was already too late.. END GOLD DIGGER: DOUBLE FEATURE a story in the Doubled Up/GD Half series by Jason Low consultation: Mario Di Giacomo ONE SUNDAY AFTERNOON/EVENING ATLANTA, GEORGIA The stereo blasting from the back yard gave Ryan and Rhianna an idea of where to head when they arrived at the Diggers' place. They walked to the yard and found Brit, Stripe, Gina, and Brianna there. "Hi guys!" Rhianna said, waving and smiling. Ryan offered a wave and said, "Hey!" "Hi!" Gina said joyously. "Thanks for coming over." Rhianna went to chat with Stripe and the other sisters while Ryan and Gina talked. "No sweat," Ryan said to Gina. "We weren't doing anything anyway. Just kidding, babe.. we'd never turn down an invitation to come over and have some fun." Gina was eyeing Rhianna, talking and laughing with Brit, Stripe, and Brianna. Gina nodded towards Rhi' and quietly said to Ryan, "How on EARTH did you persuade her to wear THAT?" Ryan looked over at Rhi' and the summer dress she had on. "I had nothing to do with it," he grinned. "She just picked it out of her rapidly-filling closet." "How's she faring?" "Oh, fine, just fine.." "Having any problems.. y'know.. adjusting to who she is?" Ryan blushed. "Not apart from that, um, incident last week.." Gina reddened a little too. "Well, you live, you learn." They rejoined the group, their previous topic of conversation best left alone, and the lot of them sat down with drinks, a couple of conversations going on still, everyone having a good time. Eventually, they returned to being a single group, as things usually went. "So," Brianna said, "What have you all been up to lately?" Cheetah just grinned. Stripe subsequently blushed fiercely. "Well, I KNOW what YOU two've been up to," Bri' grinned. "I meant the others." Gina hmmed. "I should get on the museum's case and book an appraisal appointment this week so we can unload that stuff we got at Genghis Khan's tomb." "Goodie!" Cheetah enthused. "I got some bills that DESPERATELY need to be paid off!" Ryan contributed, "The two of us have just been trying to settle our living arrangements." Stripe looked up. "Oh? There are troubles?" Rhianna cracked a huge grin as she spoke. "Not really," she said. "Ryan's just not used to having a girl STILL THERE in the morning when he wakes up." Ryan sprayed cola all over the lawn in reaction to that, though everyone evaded it. Gina went beet red, and everyone else erupted in laughter. "That's not true!!" Ryan snapped. "I'm just.. not used to having to share everything with someone." "Don't lie, dear brother," Rhianna said. "Don't forget who on this patio shares your thought processes." She smiled, then added, "Seriously, guys.. it's just a matter of settling in. I'm a girl, so I have different routines than Ry does, that's all." "Well," Gina said, in all seriousness, "Just keep in mind, we're all here--for both of you--if you need anything." The others all nodded. "Thanks, guys," Ryan said. "We really appreciate it." Brianna smiled. "No sweat. You know we all stick together." "Oh! That reminds me," Rhianna piped up. "Everyone free Wednesday night?" That brought a jumbled chorus of "huh?"s from the half-dozen. Gina said, "I.. suppose, why?" "Well, Laura's movie premiere is that night.." "Yeah," Britanny said. "Can you BELIEVE the craziness involved in that? Who in their right mind would line up for 4 days to get a movie ticket?" "Tell me about it," Rhianna nodded, taking a sip of her drink. "I gave up after a day and a half." She looked up to see everyone staring at her. "What??" she said. "Don't tell me you guys don't wanna go see it." Gina and Brianna and Brit looked at one another, then back at her. "Well, *NO*.." they chorused. "Actually," Ryan said quietly, "it kinda piqued my interest.." "Not even for the purpose of pulling an MST3K on it?" Rhianna smiled. Gina looked thoughtful for a moment, with a hint of a smile. "Tell me more," she said. "Yeah," Brianna contributed, "Such as, how will we not get thrown out, for starters?" "Well, do you really think they'll kick out the star of the show?" Again, everyone looked at Rhianna as if she'd lost her mind. Stripe said, "Ryan, does her drink contain something perhaps more potent than what the rest of us have?" Rhianna stood up and gestured to herself. "Imagine, if you will.. me, with my hair tied up in a braid (someone will have to help me with that), those dopey little glasses.." She adopted a fairly bad accent. "..and probably formal wear, it wouldn't do to be in costume at the premiere.." Brianna sported a huge grin. "Sis, she's right, y'know.." Gina's grin eclipsed Brianna's. "Do we dare?" she said. Rhianna sat back down and resumed her normal voice. "Do you mean, do we dare get back at her for stealing the AW Explorer of the Year award out from under you?" Stripe spoke up. "I was under the impression that the theaters are under strict security for this presentation." Rhianna nodded. "They are. They've got all sorts of weird rules about EVERYTHING. And Little Miss Laura, so I've heard, will be making surprise inspections of some theaters during her movie's run, to make sure all her rules're being followed." Brianna laughed, getting Rhianna's point. "I'm glad we got you back on our side, Rhi', 'cause this is truly an evil act." Rhianna grinned again. "Isn't it, though?" "Speaking of evil acts," Ryan spoke up, "Anyone heard from Sheva lately?" "Nope," Brit said, stretching, "but I understand she tried to use one of the credit cards she stole from me." "Really?" Rhianna asked. Cheetah nodded. "She was at the airport at the time, so maybe she'll be out of my fur for a good while now." MEANWHILE ABANDONED WAREHOUSE ON J STREET The building was much like it had been several weeks before, only emptier. Now, all that was left was a couple of blankets on the floor, a pair of upturned crates, some rocks surrounding a pile of wood that was aflame, and one disgruntled quasi-werecheetah sitting on one of the crates. Sheva dug around in the tin of Spaghetti-O's with her hand, working on her supper. This and the other tin of Spaghetti-O's on the grate over the fire were her last bits of food, much as the worn-out jumpsuit she had on was her last threads of clothing. Things were not going well for her, and she knew it, but she knew not how to stop her downward spiral. One of her ears swivelled around and she froze, listening to the noise. It resolved itself into a pair of rats who scrambled up towards the low fireplace and tried to get at the second can of food. "GIT!" Sheva screamed, throwing the tin she was holding in her hand before she realized her mistake. The half-full tin struck the floor near the rats and sprayed Spaghetti-O's all over the floor, The two rats scattered for a moment, then returned just as quickly to claim the spilled food. "Dammit!" she scowled at the rats. "I'll bet Britanny never had to put up with the likes of you." She plucked the other tin off the fire and let it cool beside her on the crate, eyeing the rats eating her upturned supper. "Well, if I'm feeding three now, I guess I'd better go nab some groceries tomorrow," she murmured to herself. "Somehow." She thought about that one for a moment. she silently railed. That gave her pause. She sat up and looked into the fire for a long moment, as if weighing her options. TWO DAYS LATER THE DIGGERS COMPLEX "Again." "Britanny Diggers." "Again." "..Britanny Diggers." "Again." Brit forced out a sigh and snapped, "Britanny Diggers!" Gina leaned towards her microphone. "Don't let stress into your voice, it's tainting the recording. Now, go again." "I don't WANNA go again!" Brit said, tearing off her headphones and tossing them on a bench. "Britanny, there're sight differences in your and her voices; they're about the only way we can tell you apart, save from you holding up a sign." Brit was about to protest more, when Brianna opened the door from the hall. "Oh, there you are!" she said gleefully. "I have someone you guys should meet." Brianna turned around and led someone in through the door. It was Rhianna, all made up to look like Laura, and in one of Gina's formal gowns. Rhi' struck a pose or two and smiled. "Well?" she said. "Zoinks!" Gina blurted out, then grinned. "You look so real I want to throttle you." "Great," Cheetah muttered. "Just what we need, another pair of twins around here." Rhianna strutted over to Britanny and adopted the Laura-accent again. "You're just cranky 'cause I get asked for my autograph and you don't." "I am not! (And I do too get asked for my autograph, plenty of times!)" Cheets shot back. "You look GREAT, Rhi'," Gina said. "Well, inasmuch as you look like Laura.. oh, hell, you know what I mean." "Indeed, thank you, Gina," Rhi' said, still with the Laura accent. "I'm going to have some fun with this, I think." "Well, Rhi'.. we should get you out of that outfit so it stays clean for tomorrow night," Brianna prompted. "Awww," she said, then waved a jaunty wave and a smile. "Later, you two!" "Later, guys," Brianna said, looking at her watch. "Shouldn't you be on the road by now, by the way?" "Zoinks!" Gina said, looking at her own watch. "That's right, the museum! C'mon, Brit, if we hurry we might make it before they close the doors." Brianna called after her sisters, "Have fun, guys! Bring me back some moolah!" Sheva rummaged around in a dumpster, trying to find something she could sell, or, eat. She tried to do it as silently as possible--she was on her fourth dumpster already, having already been chased out of the first two by bottle-pickers who picked fights with her for moving in on their territory. She found nothing useful in the fourth dumpster and reached up to climb out of it when she heard something that was familiar to her. Her ears perked up, and she peeked over the edge of the bin. Soon enough, going past the alley on the surface street outside, went a Ginamobile, the top down, revealing Gina and Britanny inside, both of them dressed up and looking like they were eager to get whereever they were headed. Sheva climbed out and followed the car at a distance, stopping when the girls parked and climbed out with a pair of crates and a sack. Britanny declined the use of a hand truck and carried each crate, one in each hand, out of the car and into the museum. The girls hadn't been in the museum for 90 seconds before Sheva was in the car, looking to see if there was anything she could steal. But they'd been too thorough, having taken everything with them inside. Dejectedly, she got out of the car, and managed to get hidden, into the shadows again, just as the girls came out of the museum. Gina shouted "Woohoo! Payday!" as she walked to the car. "Remember, a third of this goes to me for my credit cards," Britanny reminded her. "I got some Final Notices waiting for me." "Yeah, yeah.. and a third goes to Bri', too, I won't forget. Lighten up, Brit! And don't worry about your cards. There'll be plenty left over after." From the alleyway, Sheva said to herself, "More money than you could ever possibly know what to do with.. that's more my speed." WEDNESDAY NIGHT, 6:45PM ENROUTE TO THE MEGAPLEX Gina paid for a limousine to take them to the premeiere, which made sense, as it wouldn't do for them to just walk up, or show up in one of the Ginamobiles. Besides, she figured, it was worth the expense. She and Ryan and Rhianna--or, rather, "Laura", sat on one side of the passenger compartment, and Britanny, Stripe, and Brianna took up the other side. Everyone was decked out in their best formal wear, contrasting their real reason for going to the movie in the first place. "There're some last-minute things we should go through," Rhianna said. "First of all, for the duration of the night, don't forget, I'm Laura." "Gotcha, Laura," Gina said. "But.. I just thought of something. You and me, out in public together? And not at each other's throats?" Rhianna smiled. "Well, I just invited you to the showing of my movie, and you graciously accepted, in the hopes that one day we might bury the hatchet." Gina hmmmed for a moment, then said, "Okay, I guess I can live with that. Anything else?" Rhianna looked up as they turned the corner and rolled to a stop in front of the megaplex cinemas. "Just follow my lead." Inside the theater office, it was pandemonium. The theater manager had a radio headset pressed against her ear, trying to keep track of everything that was going on in the lobby, while at the same time looking outside to see if the lines that stretched onto the street and around the corner were showing signs of dwindling. Sure, it was great for business, but they could have showings back-to-back on all twenty screens until five a.m. and still have 500 people waiting in line, she surmised. She glanced out the window again and gasped, dropping the radio. "Oh, hell.. she's *here*," she whispered. Her assistant manager, standing in the office doorway and looking out into the lobby, keeping watch over the ticket sales area, said "Huh. Who is?" "SHE is!!" the manager blurted out in a panic, turning and grabbing him, turning him to face her. "Go put the promotional crap up! Get a couple of ushers stationed at the doors of 8! And for pete's sake, tell Mike to cut down the trailers to under 5!" She pushed past her assistant manager, now suitably panicked himself, and hurried out of the office towards the theater's front doors, nabbing an employee on the way. Rhianna stepped out of the car as the driver opened the door. She stood up and looked around with, at first, a kind of a severe look, one she figured Laura would adopt when entering a new location. Then, as fans started to realize who was there and began hollering and cheering, she grew a wide smile and waved cheerfully at them. Suddenly a woman in her thirties in a theater uniform was in front of her. "Good evening!" the woman said brightly. "Amber Graham, I'm the manager. Forgive us, we weren't aware you were on your way." Rhianna took an inconspicuous deep breath as the rest got out of the car, and then adopted her fake accent. She thought, and said, "That's quite all right, I didn't announce it. We're just here to see the film, and ensure that the experience my fans are expecting is what's happening here." Graham smiled and laughed politely but nervously. "I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself immensely here. We've pulled out all the stops to run your show." She gestured to the employee she'd dragged outside with her, a thick, beefy usher. "Bruno would be more than happy to take you to your seats." Rhianna quickly leaned over and latched onto Ryan's arm, surprising the latter, who to his credit played along for the moment. "Actually, I'm fine, myself, but if he'd care to see one of my friends in, that's quite all right." The group entered, Bruno pairing up with Gina, who looked a little surprised but also played along. Ryan whispered to Rhianna, "You could've given me a little warning, you know." Rhianna hissed back, "Well, excuuse me for not wanting to cling to another guy's arm quite yet, okay?" "I understand, but I think you're going to have to explain it to Gina, why she had to give me up to you." Rhianna nodded, whispering, "I'll make it up to her. Just.. please, this once." Ryan nodded back and led her in the direction the theater manager was taking them. "Thanks," Rhi' said. "You're a true pal." Then she raised her voice to be heard by the manager, adopting the accent again. "I've been writing autographs all day and I'm frankly not interested in writing any more. I was hoping you'd be able to accommodate me by providing a two-row buffer zone of empty seats between us and the fans." Graham gulped as inconspicuously as possible. "Sure, no problem," she said aloud. She swatted at a passing employee and relayed the instructions to her, and she hurried to carry out the boss's orders. "Thank you, I appreciate it," Rhianna said. A few moments later, they were seated in the center rear of Cinema 8, with, as promised, no one else in the last three rows of the center section. The manager hung around to make sure she'd done everything she could for them; Rhi' figured if she asked for pillows for everyone, Graham wouldn't've hesitated a bit, just reached out and smacked an employee to go find some pillows. A half-dozen snack-bar employees came in and distributed drinks and snacks to everyone. "Would you like me to move up the start time?" Graham asked. Rhianna was carefully inserting the drink into the cupholder on her armrest. "Well, now, that would be unfair to the fans who haven't yet arrived, wouldn't it? Seven will be just fine." Graham blushed embarrassedly. "Yes.. of course. Forgive me, it was stupid to suggest--" "Amber, was it?" Rhi' said, looking up. "Relax. You're doing a wonderful job." She smiled. "And now, if it's all right, we'd like to remain undisturbed for the duration." "Oh! Yes, absolutely!" Graham said, urging her employees to get moving. "Refills, of course, are on the house, just talk to any of my staff. If there's anything else, please send for me." Rhianna smiled and nodded, and Graham and her staff left just in time to not hear the rest of Rhianna's "entourage" snigger and chuckle. Rhianna whispered to them, "Well, do I pull off a convincing uppity Brit?" "You're doing an unbelievable job, 'Laura'," Gina grinned. "Keep it up." In the fullness of time, the lights dimmed and the film began to roll. The trailers, though nobody in Rhianna's group was timing them (though they would have been if they were there for the reason they'd provided), weighed in at five minutes exactly, and then it was time for the movie itself. The assistant manager continued to oversee the pandemonium in the lobby as his watch read 7:05:05. he thought to himself. The staff were doing an incredible job, coping with a rush the likes of which the theater had never seen before. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something pull to a stop outside. He turned to look and saw a limo parked there. It was white, not black, as the other one had been, but the same person was stepping out of it that had gotten Amber so freaked twenty minutes earlier. He snatched up a radio. "Uhh.. Amber, you might want to hit the lobby doors, there's something going on here." "I'm busy with VIPs!" she hissed back. "Whatever it is, deal with it!" He shrugged and headed for the main doors, stopping the group of people who disembarked from the second limo. "Hold on a second," he said. Laura looked down at him and said stuffily, "It's all right. We're here for a random inspection of the facilities to make sure our guidelines are being followed to the letter. We're going to watch the film tonight." He scoffed at her. "Yeah, lady. Sure." Taken aback, Laura blinked at him and said, "I beg your pardon?" "Nice try, but Laura's already -here-," he told her, standing in her path. Nearby, Bruno picked up on his boss' situation and walked over. "That's not possible," Laura protested. "*I'M* Laura." "Yeah, whatever. Hope you didn't blow too much renting that limo, lady. You wanna see this cheap flick, you're gonna have to buy a ticket." He pointed out the doors and down the sidewalk. "End of the line's that way. Seeya in about three days." Laura was sputtering by now. "But--you're--oooh!" She glared at him again and said, "I don't think you really understand who I am." "Well, I know who ya ain't, and ya ain't Laura, 'cause Laura is sitting inside right now. Now, I give you about ten seconds before Bruno here starts putting you back in your limo through the sunroof." Back in cinema number eight, where the Laura who the assistant manager figured filled out a dress better anyway was, the film was well underway and everyone was enjoying it. Some for different reasons than others, though; upon the first apperance of the celluloid Laura, while the fans in the theater were cheering and hooting, Brianna leaned over and said to Gina, "Shouldn't there be a subtitle there that says 'IQ=36 PSI'?" Gina exploded with laughter briefly, stifling it as quickly as she could. The others smiled and giggled. Ryan saw his chance to get one in a few moments later. On screen, Laura said, "I'm only here at this ancient burial site for one reason." Ryan added in the same tone, "To find all the stuff Gina Diggers figured wasn't worth the hassle when she was here four years ago." Again, Gina smirked and tried not to laugh too loud, though hers was the loudest of all the six of them. Even Stripe seemed to be enjoying himself, despite the fact he'd initially come along just to be with his wife. The mood shifted a little when a character employing Laura commented on how little equipment she carried with her. "Well, of course," she said flatly. "I wouldn't want to be known as the Inspector Gadget of the exploring community." "Aw! BOO!" Gina protested, before anyone could shush her. Luckily, not many people in the audience turned to glare at her. "It's ok, it's ok," Rhianna told her friend. "We'll get her back for that." Brianna grinned and hummed a little bit of the Inspector Gadget theme, changing the words a little. "Da-da-da-da-da, it's Gi-na Dig-gers.." "Oh shut up, you," Gina snapped. It carried on like this for some time, the friends settling eventually into a good rhythm, feeding off one another's jokes. Gina got back into the mood and even let rip with a few of her own. Cheetah stood up, surprising Stripe. "What's wrong?" he said, edging his knees back to let her past. She held her drink upside down and shook it. "Need more snacks," she said. "Back in a bit." "Okay," he smiled. "Don't be too long, you know how I hate to be apart from you." "Oh, you're just saying that," she bantered back at him with a smile of her own. She headed out the doors and, finding no staff nearby, went over to the snack-counter lineup and stood there. she sighed. "Oh, that HAS to be a double," Gina was protesting. "I know for a FACT she can't fly an ultralight." "Easy, easy," Ryan calmed her. "Suspension of disbelief, suspension of disbelief.." "I AM taking it easy," she told him. "You wanna talk about suspension of disbelief, think about this. After crawling around in that mountain cave system for 3 days, and still looking like THAT.. she's either taped up or full of helium." Ryan just about choked on his drink again. "Hey! Be nice now." Then, to himself, he added, "Even though she deserves it.." Stripe looked up as Britanny finally came back some time later. "Where have you been?" "I told you, getting some food," she said, giving him the popcorn and sitting down with the new drink and the little package of chocolate-chip cookies. "It's just busy out there. Nevermind, what'd I miss?" "Well, they're just about to wrap things up," he said. "Aw, maaaan.." She looked up and saw Laura on the screen, holding a rather large gem high in the air. In a special-effects filled sequence, she used the power of the gem to free an island of people from mind-control slavery. "My, doesn't THAT look familiar," Gina said bluntly. Brit put a hand on Stripe's arm as he growled quietly. A few moments later, as things were winding down, Laura's on-again-off-again partner-slash-competitor arrived and tried to bargain with Laura to see if the two of them could work out a deal. Sixty-forty, she promised Laura, on the proceeds from selling the gem. Everyone in the audience could see the stun-gun the blonde-haired villain was holding behind her back, and Gina could barely stand watching as Laura first reached out as if to shake her opponent's hand, then instead lunged into a spin-kick, sending the villain tumbling down a flight of stairs. Laura's last line was, "I don't make deals with gold diggers, thank you." It was all Ryan could do to prevent Gina from leaping on top of the seats and running for the screen to tear it to shreds. "Look at them! They're all APPLAUDING!" she protested to Ryan and Rhianna. "Yeah, but not for what you think," Ryan pointed out. "They just saw a movie they liked, Gina," Rhianna said. "Nothing more. It's not against you. Relax." Gina plopped back down in her seat, arms folded, grumbling. "Oh, c'mon sis.. apart from that bit, didn't you have fun here tonight?" Brianna asked. Gina waited a moment to answer, then softened a fair bit. "Well, yeah.. I guess I did.. thanks, Rh--Laura, I enjoyed this tonight." "Anytime," Rhianna said, still using Laura's accent. "I enjoyed the hell out of it, myself." She smiled. "I think we all did," Brit said. "So.. how do we get out of here now without being mobbed?" "Not a problem," the manager said, suddenly there beside them. She gestured to a fire exit nearby and led them to it. "By the way," she said to Rhianna as they walked, "just for future reference, I believe someone may have gotten wind of your plan to inspect theaters, and is trying to use it to get in to see the movie for free. We had to turn back a group like that tonight. Wouldn't take no for an answer, but we put them in their place eventually." Gina looked over at Rhianna, who paled with a look of shock on her face for a minute. Rhi' recovered and said to Graham, "Thank you very much. It's unfortunate that some of my fans feel the need to stoop to such tactics." "I trust you had a good night, and I was thrilled to have you here," Graham said. "We did, it was a very enjoyable experience. You're all to be commended." Graham held the door open for Rhianna and the others, and then headed back inside. The door had barely clicked shut before the side alley exploded into gales of laughter. "Oh my.. what were the odds.." Gina said, doubled over. "Low enough that I never expected it," Rhianna laughed. "Oh boy, I hope this place doesn't go out of business because of that." "Guys, let's get off the street before someone sees us," Brianna suggested, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes. "There's the limo over there." They all dashed for it and got in without being seen, making a clean getaway. THURSDAY MORNING, 8:45AM Officer Bob Loblaw walked up the sidewalk with his partner, Officer Caitlyn Scott, trying to get up the courage they'd need in a few seconds. Normally, as officers of the city police, they'd be able to handle anything that came their way, but this was different. "Damn, I can't believe we're doing this," Loblaw shook his head. "I've never known her to break the law.. I see her in my supermarket every time I go grocery shopping." "I know," Scott told her partner. "Maybe people change. I just hope we have enough backup to take her down." He nodded. "You and me both." They were at the door, and he reached out and knocked sharply a half-dozen times, noting Cait's hand moving slowly to her holster, just in case. Bob realized he was holding his breath and let it out just in time to see the door open with their quarry behind it. He saw his partner pull her gun, and heard the other half-dozen uniformed officers and twenty-odd SWAT team members surrounding the house draw back the bolts on their weapons with a clatter. "Britanny Elin Diggers?" he said to the person at the door. "I have a warrant for your arrest." TO BE CONTINUED Project HEARD presents a Doubled Up story TWIN TERROR by Jason Low consultation: Mario Di Giacomo THURSDAY AFTERNOON FULTON COUNTY JAIL Gina and Brianna crowded into the cubicle and picked up the phone receiver, cradling it between them. After a moment, a figure was ushered into the room on the other side of the Lexan and sat down. Her cuffs were taken off, and she lifted up the other receiver. Gina and Brianna stared at Britanny for a moment. The bright orange jumpsuit hung off her human-form body very unflatteringly. Her expression was somewhat less than pleasant, and she ran her free hand through her unruly hair. "Sis.." Gina said. "Before you ask, I had to switch," she explained. "For starters, my coat would've gotten ruined had I let it touch the slime in here, and second of all, they don't have anything nearly big enough for a seven foot, 300 pound woman with a tail, and they wouldn't let me keep my own clothes." "How're you doing?" Gina asked. Brianna supplied, "Everything ok?" Britanny scoffed. "No, everything's NOT okay! One, I'm being held on charges of armed robbery. Two, I'm being forced to suffer the WORST indignities in here!" Gina and Brianna eyed the guards around them and Brit. "...um?" Gina said. Brit picked at the jumpsuit. "This thing smells old and moldy!" Gina sighed. "That's my sister. Don't worry, Cheets, we're handling it." "Yeah, right. Some way of handling it. 'Bail denied'." The other two sisters looked genuinely surprised. "What??" "That crummy lawyer! He entered a plea of not guilty, but did he stop there? NOOOOOO, he had to go and tell them what I told him, that it was my evil clone that must've robbed the armored car! Imagine how the judge reacted to THAT." "Probably didn't score too many points," Brianna observed. Cheetah half-laughed humorlessly and made a gesture to indicate to Brianna who was on what side of the glass. "Heeeeyyy.." Brianna said in a dawning tone. "I know.. we could get Pee Wee to vouch for Sheva's existence!" Gina shook her head. "What would make him want to help us out?" "She's right, Bri'," Brit said. "I'm sure he and his cronies would just as soon see me sit and rot here in jail than out where I could get at them." "Wait a minute, Brit.. when is this supposed to have happened again?" Brit looked at Gina. "Last night." "While you were in the theater with us," Gina nodded. "There's your alib--" "While I was standing in the snack bar line for 35 minutes," Brit said flatly. "While I was away from you and where nobody who knows me saw me." "...oh." "Yuh-huh." "Well, you didn't do it, did you?" Brianna asked, and was met with a vicious glare. "Okay! Okay, just asking," Bri' said defensively. "Then all we gotta do is find Sheva," Gina said. "We'll find her and bring her in. Then they'll HAVE to let you go." "Yeah, or, they could arrest us both until they know what to do with us.. my luck, I'd probably share a cell with her, too." "Don't worry, Cheets.. we'll get her," Gina promised. Brit sighed. "I sure hope so. They say they've even got footage of me--of HER--doing it." Brianna put her hand to the glass. "Hang in there, sis.. we'll get to the bottom of this." Britanny mirrored the effect, and Gina did the same too with Brit's other hand. "I know you will." Gina held onto the phone a moment longer. "Do you want us to bring you anything next time?" "Yeah. That faker's head on a pike." Brianna and Gina left the jail office without saying much. Both had been planning on bringing Cheetah home with them, and with those hopes dashed, were just as sore about coming away from the jail empty-handed as they would've been on any mission. Gina looked across and up at Brianna's dark expression. "You're taking this pretty hard, aincha?" she said softly to her baby sister. "Don't worry, we'll get her out of there. I promi--" "How??" Brianna shot back. "How we gonna do this? It'd be JUST GREAT if we could turn on our Magic Clone Tracker and find Sheva just like that! But we don't have such a thing." She got to the passenger door of the car, opened it, threw herself into the passenger seat, and slammed the door. Gina shook her head sadly too, obviously feeling some of the same hopelessness. She got into the car and drove off slowly towards home. Meanwhile, watching from a dark alley a block or two down the way, Sheva grinned. She'd seen the two leave without their sister in tow, and saw their expressions as they went away down the street slowly. she said, rubbing her hands together. She chuckled a moment longer, and then a shadow fell over her. She spun and saw a person standing there, and in her usual tactful fashion, shouted, "Who the hell are you?" What was different about this was that Sheva promptly fell asleep right there. The figure who owned the shadow took a step forward and grinned down at Sheva's unconscious form. "At last," the figure said. "I'll bet you didn't expect to see me again this soon, did you? Well, I promised you I'd be back. And this time, there're no friends or family to help you out. So let us both go and get me the revenge I truly deserve for all the wrongs you've perpetrated upon me in the past." A puff of smoke filled the alley, and then the figure and Sheva were gone. FRIDAY MORNING Gina, after waking up and having a shower, went to the kitchen to find Brianna, Ryan, and Rhianna there. The latter two waved hello while the former was on the phone. "Well, I'm sure she appreciates the thought; thanks," Bri' was saying. She glanced up as Gina sat down, then said, "Thanks. I really mean that. We'll keep you posted." "That was Penny and Ace," Brianna said to Gina, Ryan, and Rhianna, turning back to face them as she hung up. "They just heard about it on the morning news, wanted to know if there was anything they could do." "Speaking of news," Ryan said, "We checked out that old warehouse last night and found that it's been used to live in recently. We stayed out front of it all night, but there were no signs of activity." "I wonder where she went, then?" Gina said. "Well, I can't say where SHE'S gone, but where I'M heading is the shower," Rhianna said, getting up. "I need to be clean again." "I need to be asleep again," Ryan added. "I had the early morning watch." "The guest room's free, Ryan," Gina called to him as he departed. He nodded and waved thanks as he vanished out the doorway. "So where's everyone else?" Gina asked Brianna. "Genn and Seance took Stripe to the jail," she said. "Oh.. when are we gonna go down?" Brianna shrugged. "Brianna.." "I know, I'm taking it pretty hard, you said that already. YOU should be too, you know. Your sister was charged with armed robbery. That's a pretty big deal, Gina, especially when it's four million bucks' worth. MOST people don't just come into that kinda money every day." Gina blinked. "Bri'.. that's it!" "That's what?" "Do you remember where I put the handbag I was using Tuesday?" "Um.. if you did like you usually do, you left it in the car." "C'mon then, to the garage!" Gina leapt up and dashed off, and Brianna got to her feet and walked after her. Bri' caught up to her in the garage, where Gina had dumped the contents of the purse onto the hood of the car and was sifting through them. "A-HA!!" she shouted triumphantly a moment later and held up a crumpled sheet of paper. "One receipt from the museum!" She grinned. "Why would she bother going and knocking over an armored car when she just got, the day before, a third of 17 million dollars??" "Well, Idunno," Brianna said. "That's hardly convincing evidence.." "About as convincing as videotape is when there's an evil twin of you running around," Gina countered. "For now, it's all we have to work with, at least until we find out where the hell Sheva got to." "UNNnnnhh...." Sheva was saying at that particular moment, awakening from a magically-induced slumber. She looked around as she came out of her daze and saw, through the dim light from several dusty windows, a dilapidated room, as if the place she was in had been long abandoned. There were a couple of strange items on pedestals, and a chair facing her, about three feet away, as well as a sturdy-looking combination table/workbench. "Wh.. where.. am I?" she wondered aloud. A disembodied voice answered a moment later: "Why, you're in hell, dear." She watched as the chair before her was enveloped in a puff of smoke, and suddenly, a female SOMETHING was sitting there across from her, clad in a green dress, covered in black and white fur, and sporting a hint of a smile. "Who the hell are you?" Sheva snapped back. She tried to stand, but found that her legs were bound to the legs of the chair, and her wrists not only to the back of the chair, but to one another as well, and for some reason, even with her strength, she couldn't break them. She growled at the woman before her. Tanya laughed and smiled at Sheva. "'Who am I'? That's a good one." Her voice grew cold for a moment. "It's me, Tanya. What, don't you recognize me now that I'm not five inches tall--as your father made me--any more?" "Answer my question, you vile-smelling bit--" Tanya's expression darkened and she frowned. "HEY! No nasty words from you." She waved a hand and a dark grey mist faded into view around the lower half of Sheva's face. The smoke gag did an excellent job of muting her. Sheva's eyes were pure fire as she tried to scream at Tanya and failed. "My my my, you've grown an attitude since the wedding. Could it be that you and Stripe are not finding married life as joyful as you thought? Maybe I should've let nature take its course." She noticed the quizzical look on Sheva's face and hmmed for a second, chin in hand. "You look like you need to ask something. If you promise to be good, I'll remove the gag. ..I suppose the punishment I've got lined up is more than enough." "I must be growing a heart or something," Tanya muttered as she gestured and dissipated the smoke gag. Sheva coughed as the smoke evaporated from around her mouth. She glared across at Tanya and said, "What in the hell are you talking about?" Tanya blinked and looked at her again with an expression that implied she was offended. "Are you INSANE? I'm talking about my revenge. I'm talking about you ruining everything. You took away everything that was rightfully mine. My prince.. my PLACE.. and now, even my people. At first, I was just going to erase any thoughts you had for Stripe, any desires you felt for him, out of your mind, but now, now that you're playing this game, playing dumb, pretending you don't know what's going on.. I think a little bit more payback is in order." "You think I'm Britanny, don't you?" Sheva said. "I'm not. Look, I hardly even know Stripe, let alone you. So why don't you just give up with the threats and untie--" "Threats??" Tanya recoiled. "Oh, they're not threats, Britanny. They're promises. You want proof? Here's a little something I'd planned for you." Again she waved her hand and grinned. "Now, every time you think of Stripe, you will feel intense, excruciating pain." Sheva screwed up her face in confusion. "I don't give a damn about StriiiIIIIIIAAAAGGGHHHHH!!" She writhed in place, straining against the bonds as she suddenly got the mother of all migraines. Tanya laughed and tsk-tsk-tsk'ed. "Tell someone not to do something, and what's the first thing they do?" She grew serious and added, "This is only the beginning, Britanny. It will get much, much worse; you're going to hurt as much as you've hurt me. That I vow." Sheva, out of breath and panting, trying to control her thoughts to prevent more pain, bit out, "I already TOLD you, I'm not Britanny, and I don't CARE abouAAAAAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!!!" "You can tell yourself that all you want," Tanya said in a no-nonsense tone, turning away to fiddle with something in a small pot on her workbench. "But we both know the truth. And we'll stay here until the second half of your statement comes true." As she worked, Tanya smiled and spoke aloud. "Stripe looked SOOOO good at the wedding, I MUST say.. I'm sure you two must've had a WONderful night after everyone was gone." She smiled, added a little bit of fluid to the mix on her workbench, and tried to think of something else to make Brit think of Stripe, and therefore cause her more pain. "Ah yes, and the honeymoon.. I can only dream of how you must've felt, wrapped up in his arms, just you.. and him.. Well, all that'll change. Next time he sees you, you will harbor no feelings for him whatsoever, and you'll tell him that to his face.. and guess who'll be there to pick up the pieces. We'll go back to Aebra, and you'll remain here, all alone." FULTON COUNTY JAIL Brit sat on the cot in the cell, knees tucked up close to her chin and hands clasped together around her lower legs, staring at a point on the cot just beyond her feet. Stripe had his 10-minute visit with her half an hour ago, and it was like a cruel tease. They'd barely been able to get in their hellos and find out how eachother was doing before the guards told Brit her time was up. At the last second, he blurted out that he was going to do everything he could to sort things out, which he didn't need to say--she knew everyone was trying their hardest to help her, but barring an appearance by Sheva, it seemed pretty solid that Brit was going to spend a good deal of time in jail. she thought, possibly imagining that she could telepathically deliver the sentiments to her husband of a few short weeks. she promised herself. She paused for a moment, then said to herself, A chill ran down her spine just then as she envisioned Sheva being caught and admitting that Britanny didn't rob the armored car.. but insisting that SHE was Britanny, and that the person in custody already was Sheva. Brit put her head into her hands and sighed heavily. After a moment, she thought, Britanny looked up at the door. She closed her eyes and shook her head sadly. <...but then, I'd be a criminal for real..> She let her head fall back against the wall and sighed again. LATE FRIDAY EVENING TANYA'S HIDEAWAY Tanya casually sauntered back into the room, sitting in the chair that faced Sheva's. "Well, well," Tanya said. "Looks like you've learned that the pain stops when you stop thinking about.. him." Sheva winced and looked up. She looked wrecked, red-eyed, and on the ragged edge. Her breaths came unevenly as she stared down Tanya. "Or maybe you're just developing an immunity to it," Tanya shrugged, as if she didn't care. She adopted a false sympathetic tone. "You look rather exhausted from your ordeal. I'm sure you must want to rest by now, but you and I both know the pain is making that impossible. So.. are you ready to give in?" Sheva trembled before answering. She didn't know who this Tanya person was or what she wanted from her, but she wasn't about to break. "Go.. to.. hell," she said through clenched teeth. Tanya just smiled and nodded. She gestured, but not at Sheva; instead, at a point above Sheva's head. Sheva felt a stinging sensation on the top of her head and flinched. She barely had time to wonder what was going on when it happened again, only it hurt a little more. She looked at Tanya, who was smiling at her, and then it struck again. "Ow!" Sheva said. "What the hell is that?!" Tanya answered, "Why, it's powdered silver suspended in alcohol, dear Britanny. I'll bet it stings something fierce, huh?" "AAH!" Sheva shouted as it dripped upon her again. "What's it doing?!" Tanya said nonchalantly, "Oh, probably burning through your scalp and eating into your very soul. You know how you react to silver, Britanny." She adopted a harsher tone again. "I told you it would get worse." "I'm not Britanny!" Sheva shot back, just before screaming again as yet another drop of silver-laden alcohol landed on her head. Tanya frowned. "Look, cut the crap, Brit. That was a LITTLE innovative the first dozen or so times, but now it's getting to be pathetic." She had to pause while Sheva screamed again, even louder than the last time. "This is going to keep up now, until you BEG me to remove Stryyp'Gia from your heart and your mind. And then, once that's all over, we're going to go back to Atlanta, and you're going to tell him just how you feel--or don't--about him." Tanya got up from her chair and turned away to examine something elsewhere in her workroom as the screams filled it. "It IS going to come to pass, Britanny. There's no escape this time. Don't let yourself get hurt TOO badly by the silver. Give up when you've had enough. Don't try to be brave." SATURDAY MORNING THE DIGGERS' COMPLEX The TV was hardly ever on at this hour in the Diggers household, at least, not in recent memory. However, in recent memory, Brianna and Brit had gone on their weekly endurance runs on Saturday mornings. Without Brit around, Brianna didn't feel much like running, so she slouched on the sofa and watched cartoons all morning. The plan to give Brit an alibi with the museum receipts didn't work out. Of the 5.6 million dollars she'd received on Tuesday, she'd spent 3.8 million by Wednesday evening, either paying off bills or buying new things, and it was conceivable, the police said, that she couldn't bear to have had all that money and then have it vanish right away, so she needed to get some more. For that reason, and because Brianna was moping around, Gina was extremely upset by Saturday. Sheva was nowhere to be found, as if she'd vanished off the face of the earth, and things were looking more and more hopeless, even though her parents were now hard at work as well to find a way to clear their daughter's name. "There's no news," Gina told them as they arrived Saturday morning. "Nothing's happened, except Cheets's had to stay in that cell for another 24 hours." She looked at her father. "Dad.. is.. there a way maybe that your friends in the government could do something...?" "Not in a matter such as this," he said quietly with a shake of his head. "A crime has been committed, Gina, in which your sister seems to be the only suspect anyone can find. Now, you and I both know that's not the case, but if I were to use my connections, especially to get my own daughter out of a criminal charge, things would turn very, very bad." "Well, can't you tell where Sheva has gone?" Julia thought to ask. "I'm no bloodhound, dear," Theo returned. "Teacher, isn't the Council supposed to keep track of all those endowed with magical ability?" Seance piped up. "Some of Britanny's abilities were mimicked in Sheva using magic. Perhaps--" Seance trailed off as Theo shook his head. "Only if they've been made aware of the person," Theo explained. "And no such declaration has been made about her. Rest assured, though, I'll do that as soon as possible. For now, though, we're going to have to find her without their help." Everyone looked up as Brianna came into the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water and sat down in a chair without saying a word. Theo queried, "Where was Sheva's last known location?" "Well," Ryan supplied, "I remember Cheetah saying something during the barbecue last weekend about Sheva using one of her stolen credit cards at the airport." Everyone nodded in agreement, as that was the last mention of Sheva they all remembered. "Hmm. We know she didn't leave then, for she was in town on Wednesday night to commit the actual robbery," Theo mused. "Well, where ever she is, whatever she's doing, I hope she's having the time of her life," Brianna snapped, "while my sister is rotting in the jail cell that should be hers." Tanya awoke and got up, magically getting herself ready to take on the day. she sighed contentedly. She teleported herself into the other room, and arrived right in the middle of a horrendous scream. She winced, remembering that she'd erected magical soundproofing between her sleeping quarters and the workroom so she could get some sleep. She waited for Sheva to calm down, then sat down without a word and studied Sheva intently. Sobbing in between the frenzied screams, Sheva was a complete and total wreck. Every time a droplet struck her head, she would holler in pain and writhe in her bindings, all but breaking her own arms and legs to get free. Burns on her face and the back of her head led Tanya to believe that she'd been moving around in some instances when the silver hit; either that, or she willingly took hits to other parts of her head to relieve the burning on the top of her scalp. After watching her for a minute or two--fifteen or twenty drops' worth--Tanya sat up straight and said sharply, "Britanny, look at me." Sheva, to her credit, looked up. Her lips were trembling, her nose running, and her tears free-flowing, but she managed to keep it down to a whimper, at least until the next droplet of silver hit. "It's obvious you're suffering," Tanya said in a blunt tone. "You're in an unbelievable amount of pain. -It's time to end it, Britanny-.. I promise, I'll put a stop to it right now. I'll make it all go away, right now, and all you need to do, is give me your full co-operation. Okay?" Sheva screamed, then sniffled and nodded a teary response, whimpering out an 'mm-hmm' as well. Tanya nodded and flicked at the air with her hand. The pot of silver disappeared, just as it was about to release another droplet. Sheva was all-out crying now; she shook her head vigorously to try to shake the pain away, but it was still there, even with the agitant gone. Tanya sat and watched her prisoner for a moment. "Forgive the delay, Brit," she said quietly after a bit, getting back to the task at hand. "I just never thought I'd hear you say you surrender." Sheva bawled out, "I give up.." and broke back down again. "You win" was discernible in between sobs as well. "Uh-huh," Tanya said, standing up and putting a hand on Sheva's shoulder in a consoling fashion. "Relax, Brit.. it'll be okay." Tanya raised her left hand up and back, collecting a spell in its palm while she massaged Sheva's shoulder with her right hand. "Don't worry, Brit," she said in reassuring tones. "It'll all be over in a second." Tanya said to herself. Aloud, she added, "This won't be painful at all. You'll simply care no more for Str--" Tanya cut herself off as Sheva was sobbing something. Tanya listened and heard: "s'right.. i quit.. i'll never be more than a parody of brit'ny digg'rs.." "Wha?" Tanya said, even as the person before her was saying something about never being able to be her own person, always a surrogate. Sheva, still crying, looked up at Tanya through teary eyes, and said, "I am yours to command.. master.." Tanya screwed up her face in confusion. "HUH?" "I'll do your bidding.. just please, make it stop hurting.." Tanya grew concerned, this time sincerely. "Britanny? Britanny.. you're no good to me if you're completely out of it. C'mon now.." Sheva looked Tanya in the eye again. "I told you," she said in between sobs, "that I'm not Britanny." "You're NOT??" Tanya said. "You REALLY aren't Britanny Diggers? Then who the hell are you?" "I am.. I.. WAS.. her worst enemy. Now.. I.. I'm nothing." Sheva hung her head. Tanya powered down the spell and stood before Sheva. "Well, actually, I'M her worst enemy, so you'd have to be her second-worst enemy.. what I meant was, what's your NAME?" Sheva shook her head. "I only have--HAD--a name when I was a free person.. when I was.. when I AM.. someone else's property, I have no name." "What?? Look, you're not my property. I didn't bring you here to enslave you. I thought you were--" "If you must know, my name was Sheva." "Sheva, this was just a huge mistake," Tanya said. It was the closest she'd come to apologizing. "I wouldn't've touched you if I'd known you weren't her." She waved her hand and produced a tube of silver ointment, which she handed to Sheva, after removing the latter's binds. "Wh.. what do I do with this?" "Are you serious?" "I.. i'm not a real werecat.. i.." Tanya hmmed. "You coulda fooled me. Hell, you DID fool me. Silver burns you, Sheva. Right through to your soul. Rub some of that wherever you have a wound, and it'll get better." "So.. what happens n.. now?" Sheva asked hesitantly and timidly while she tended to her injuries. Tanya was looking out the far window, facing away from Sheva, but watched the woman behind her putting ointment on her wounds, and commented to herself how much she looked exactly like Britanny. Then, it dawned on her, and she grinned. "There still may be a way we can make this work to our advantage," she said to Sheva, catching her eye in the mirror. "I'll presume you have a desire to get Britanny for something or other?" "Y...yes..." Tanya's grin got wider. "Goooooooood." Sheva walked along the sidewalk in the neighborhood of the Diggers complex. She was still trembling, but at least it wasn't from pain any more. She was about to enter the Diggers' house once again, pretending to be Britanny, with a mission to seek out Stripe. It had been Tanya's plan, the ex-priestess said, to tear any feelings Brit had for Stripe right out of her, and then send her back to Stripe to break his heart and spirit, telling him she didn't care for him any more. Tanya saw now, she said, that Sheva was an opportunity to make the plan even better. As originally set up, Tanya wouldn't have the satisfaction of seeing Britanny go through some more agony after dumping Stripe, for she truly would not care for him one single bit after Tanya had finished working her magic on the werecheetah. Now, this way, she told Sheva, she could have all of that, plus, if Britanny ever got free again, Tanya could enjoy knowing the agony Brit would go through. Having said that, Sheva walked up the sidewalk towards the house, shaking slightly because of her ordeal and the acting she was about to have to do. Pretending to be Britanny was one thing.. pretending to be Britanny telling her husband of a couple of months she was through with him was another game entirely. That, and Sheva had never had any relationship of any kind with anyone, so she wasn't entirely sure how she was going to go about it. To her slight surprise, the security system let her into the house unchallenged. she said. Finding nobody else on the main floor, she took the elevator directly upstairs. Stripe stood in the living room of the upstairs apartment, neatening it up. He'd already vacuumed, picked up the magazines and books lying about and arranged them neatly on the coffee table, hung up the jackets--one of his, one of Brit's--draped over the back of one couch, and now he was trying to arrange the pillows the same way Britanny always seemed to do that looked so casual and out-of-the-magazine perfect. The elevator dinged and he looked up, then blinked. "Oh, my.." he said in a whisper. Sheva nodded, trying to play the part as best as she could. Her expression was blank and her tone neutral, but flat, as she said, "We need to talk." "Okay," Stripe nodded. He regarded her, her eyes welling up with tears, and he looked fairly concerned too. "Is.. is there something wrong?" "I can't do this any more," Sheva said. "It's not working." "What isn't?" Stripe said nervously. "Us," Sheva barked back angrily. "We're not working out at all." She drew on the advice Tanya had given her. "You probably think I love you, don't you? Truth is, I want some of that power of yours so bad I can TASTE it. I'm only in it for the prestige of being the prince's wife, and that's not happening. So it's time we end this." Stripe, in response, looked as if he'd been stabbed with an icicle through the heart. It wasn't hard to tell his expression was very pale, even under his fur, and he stared at Sheva for a moment, jaw agape, voice trembling. "Uhhhhhhmm.." he said hesitantly to her. "Don't even start," she snapped, holding up a hand. "Nothing you can say is gonna make this any better.. we're through. I don't love you, and you can't give me what I want. You need to go home." "But.." "No buts, dammit," Sheva said. She began to circle him at a distance of a few feet. "You must've KNOWN from how hard I fought to get and keep you how much this meant to me, and still, you didn't even clue in and give me what I wanted. It was still all 'I love you Britanny this' and 'I'll never let you down Britanny that'. Well, you let me down. If you loved me, you'd've made things happen for me." "I.. I DO love you.. i.." Stripe said. Sheva hmph'ed. "Well, I sure as hell don't love you." "i... see...." Stripe said tinily after a long, long moment, his shoulders sagging and his head drooping. Sheva stepped aside, leaving room between her and the elevator door for Stripe to pass by. "And I never want to see you again." Sheva heard a door open, and words that riveted her to the floor. "Somehow, I don't think that'll be a problem." She turned her head slowly, eyes involuntarily widening as she saw Britanny coming out of the bedroom. Sheva looked back and forth frantically between the couple as they stepped in close, surrounding her. She wore a frightened look, while Brit looked rather perturbed, cracking her knuckles for effect; Stripe's reaction had gone from one of false shock and horror to one of sadness, concern, and possibly even pity. "Britanny was released half an hour ago, Sheva," Stripe said softly. "The theater manager came back from her vacation and heard about Brit's arrest, and called police to confirm she was there all night. It's ov--" Sheva grabbed her head and screamed, just as Brit growled at her. Sheva dove for the couch and lay face-down on it, screaming her head off, hands clamped tightly over her ears. "What a pathetic--" Brit began, but Stripe held up a hand and then crouched beside Sheva's head. He pulled a box of tissues off the coffee table and put it on the floor in front of him, and pulled half-a-dozen tissues out and set them on the couch by Sheva's face. "Aw, dammit, stop crying," Brit complained, her hard attitude failing and quickly becoming one much like Stripe's. She stood behind the couch and leaned on its back, looking down at the wailing clone of herself. "I FAILED AGAIN," Sheva bawled. "I'm WORSE THAN USELESS.." Brit looked at Stripe as he looked up at her. "What, you want me to console her or something?" "Britanny.. dear.. There's obviously something more than a simple failure going on here. At least give her the benefit of the doubt." Sheva picked her head up quickly, most of the crying reduced to the occasional choked sob and quite a bit of sniffling. "You.. you've gotta help me," she pleaded, looking back and forth between the two of them. "Keep that .. that monster Tanya fr..from hurting me a..ag..again.." Brit and Stripe both blinked. "Who??" they stereoed. Tanya watched intently her scrying glass as it was focused on the front door of the Diggers house. she thought to herself. The door hadn't opened yet, though, which was registering somewhere in the back of Tanya's mind as a Bad Thing. Had something gone wrong? <..Perhaps he just isn't home right now. That's a possibility. Blast! I should've told her to give me some kind of signal if things didn't go as planned.> Tanya caught a glimpse of something in the reflections on her scrying glass just then and leapt up, turning around, just too late. A large hand reached out and grabbed hold of her. "ACK!" "As I've said before," Stryyp'Gia told his ex-priestess, "you disappoint me greatly, Tanya." Theo Diggers stepped out of the dimension door he'd created and closed it down. Between him and Stripe were Britanny and Sheva, as well as Brianna, sticking close to Sheva at all times, probably more to protect the rest of the group than the clone. Tanya growled to herself. They must have been able to divine her location by tracing back Sheva's teleportation to Atlanta. Tanya raised a hand and prepared a spell that would teleport her away from the mess, but Stripe moved one hand to grab her wrist and another to clamp over her mouth. "It's over," he told her flatly. "I've had my fill of you meddling in others' lives." Britanny was examining the chair and surrounding area where Sheva had been tied up previously. She wrinkled her nose at the stench in the air, then realized it was soul char. She whipped around and glared at Tanya, then glanced to Sheva with, to her own surprise, a sympathetic look. "I have her under my control now," Theo said to Stripe. "Her magic I can nullify; you may release her. I'll secure her and take her to the Mage Council at once. "With all due respect, Doctor," Stripe said through gritted teeth, struggling to hold down a wriggling Tanya who apparently knew what was coming next, "I've grown weary of this woman's tactics and antics. She will be returned to Aebra at the first opportunity, to answer to her crimes at a full trial there." Theo nodded after a moment. "I suppose that is indeed your right," he said. "It is," Stripe nodded, "Though I would not mind you immobilizing her for the time being until I can arrange for her deportation." "As you wish." Theo concentrated and a series of magical bonds encircled Tanya at her wrists and feet, and a soundless forcewall formed around her to prevent her from being able to cast any voiced spells. Britanny stepped up to Tanya, now completely immobile and only able to glare at her with utter contempt. "'Only interested in the power'?" Brit said. "How DARE you.. you tell Sheva to say that as if they were my words, when everybody knows they're yours. YOU'RE the one who is only in it for the power, Tanya. Since before I even showed UP, all you've wanted is to USE Stripe to improve your position. Well.. I hope you rot in some Aebran jail for the rest of your life." Britanny turned and walked to the other side of the room. Stripe glanced at Tanya once more and then followed his wife to comfort her. That left Theo to tend to maintaining the bindings, and Sheva to stare at Tanya's darting eyes. Those same eyes narrowed as they landed on Sheva, and Sheva knew exactly what Tanya would've said if she had been able to speak. Traitor, her eyes screamed at Sheva. Lousy, worthless traitor. Sheva knew that look well, having given it to Rhianna when the latter had briefly been on her side. Sheva looked away, feeling the tears coming again, and darted off for another room to be alone. No one chased after her, though Brit and Stripe did look up briefly, even adopting looks of sympathy again. SUNDAY MORNING THE DIGGERS MANSION FRONT LAWN "I appreciate your help," Britanny said. Her Imperial Majesty Princess Asrial of Salusia beamed a bright smile. "Aw, it's nothing," she said. "I owed you one for helping me out way back when. Consider this payback." "Oh, I do," Brit said with a smile, watching Tanya get ushered onto the spaceship, "in way more ways than you can imagine." "Well, she'll be back on her home world in about eight to ten days Earthian. I guarantee it." "Or our money back?" Brianna cracked a grin. "You bet, every last penny you've spent on me will be returned," Asrial countered. "Excellent.." Brianna said, then realized they hadn't spent a penny. "Hey!" she shouted facetiously. Asrial laughed. "It was good to see you again, Britanny." "You too, Asrial. We should make an effort to see each other more often." "Count on it." Sheva and Julia came out of the mansion as the rest watched Asrial's ship head up into the sky. "What were you doing?" Gina wanted to know. "Turning myself in," Sheva said quietly. All the others turned to face her. "Someone has to be held accountable for what I did.. and it makes sense that it be me.. I.. I don't know what to say, I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused. I sometimes wish I'd never been born." "Don't say that," Stripe contributed. "You've been misguided, that's all." "Yeah, all my LIFE," she countered. "From day one, I've been someone's tool. Either that or I've done nothing but make others' lives miserable. I don't deserve to be out in public. I should be kept where I can't hurt anyone else." "You know, you don't have to hurt yourself, either," Theo told her. "There is another option.." She shrugged as a patrol car pulled up. "I'm not sure I'm ready for that. I can't just quit cold turkey, you know. I've surely proven I can't fit in." "You've never proven that until you've tried it," Julia contributed. The two officers arrived at the gathering and looked around for someone to explain. "Me," Sheva said. "It's me. I robbed the armored car last Wednesday night. I'll even show you where the money is." The officers looked at one another. "Ma'am, I must caution you not to say anything more until you're read your rights," one spoke up. She nodded and went with them to the car as the other partner began reading her her rights. As she was about to be put in the car, she turned and said to the Diggerses and others gathered there, "Don't worry about me, this is for the best.. maybe I'll be able to think about things for a while and weigh my options.." Britanny, and all the others, could only nod. A civil conversation with Sheva was not somethign any of them had ever expected they'd be witness to. The cruiser pulled away, Sheva looking out the passenger side window at the family, wondering if she'd ever be a part of that kind of friendship with anyone. SEVERAL HOURS LATER DEEP SPACE BETWEEN EARTH AND AEBRA A castle-like ship plunged through the inky blackness, seemingly heading on a random course. No planet was along its current flight path for at least a light-month in either direction. Bits and pieces of the spires faded in and out of existence every now and then. Inside the ship, a figure turned to another and said, "Mother, a ship crosses our path." "When?" "Not long." "We should take precautions.." "I disagree, mother." "And why do you say that, son?" "Because there is a Kryn on board." Beneath her heavy cloak, the mother's face grew a smile. "Bring it to me," she finally said. -end?- Jason Low presents a Project HEARD story in the Doubled Up/GD Half universe THE CALM METRO STATE PRISON ATLANTA, GA Sheva sat on her cot in her cell, back against the wall, fully engrossed in a paperback book. The title, and the others she'd requested, drew amused reactions from her jailers. Since gaining book privileges a few weeks previous, she'd requested nothing but titles such as "How to Start a Conversation and Make Friends", "Living in the United States: How to Feel at Home, Make Friends and Enjoy Everyday Life", "The Art of Conversation: Magic Key to Personal and Social Popularity", or the one in her hands at the moment, "50 Secrets: How to Meet People and Make Friends". There was a huge stack of such books along one wall of the cell. She was reading the latter title, as mentioned, when a guard came to her cell door and rapped on one of the bars with her nightstick. "Get up," she told Sheva. "You got a visitor." Sheva not only didn't get up, she didn't even look up. "Yer puttin' me on," she murmured, still concentrating on the book. "Nobody ever visits me." "Hey! Get off your fuzzy butt and get over here!" the guard barked. Sheva sighed loudly, made a production out of putting the bookmark into her book and setting it aside, then slowly turned and sat up, getting to her feet and sauntering towards the bars, tail twitching as she went. "That's better," the guard nodded. As Sheva got to the door, she noticed the two hulking male guards that were standing further down the hallway on each side, carrying tasers. As usual. she wondered as she was led out of her cell and put in cuffs and irons. "Awright, walk," the first guard said, and Sheva began shuffling towards the visiting room. One taser-equipped guard walked ahead of Sheva, another behind her, the female guard at her side, holding onto the chains that linked her irons together. Ultimately, she was steered into the visiting room and a cubicle. She saw who was visiting her and rolled her eyes, looking to the ceiling as she was seated and uncuffed. After a moment, she picked up the phone and waited for the visitor to speak. "Hello," Britanny Diggers said eventually. "Hello," Sheva said evenly with a nod. "You're.. looking good." "Thank you." After a pause, Brit said, "..How're you doing?" Sheva stared at her mirror-image twin. "Britanny, I'm in -prison-." "Well, yeah, but.." "It's not a resort, Britanny. I'm not supposed to enjoy myself here." "I know that. You forget, I spent time here in your place." "Why are you here, Britanny?" Sheva said flatly. "I told you, to see how you're doing. They told us how you're behaving really well, and I figured you might--" "Might what? Might enjoy seeing a familiar face? You thought that having you pop by for a visit might do anything else but remind me that I have to spend the next three and a half years of my life.. ten times longer than I've been alive, might I point out.. on this side of this glass?" She tapped on the Lexan separating her from Brit. "Now I KNOW I deserve it, but I don't deserve to be reminded of it every three weeks." Britanny frowned. "I'm not trying to remind you of it. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." "WHY?" Sheva blurted out. "I mean, I know I'm new to this concept, and believe me, I've been trying to figure it out ever since I got here, but what is it that makes befriending me so appealing to you? I am your ENEMY, Britanny. I don't deserve your attention. Not in this way." Somewhere in the back of her mind, Sheva was aware that her current behavior largely contradicted what she was trying to do by sitting in her cell all day reading those books, but she was powerless to stop her anger. "Why do you have to be my enemy?" Brit asked. "Gina once had an arch-rival who's become one of her closest friends. *I* think you show promise, Sheva.. I don't see why you can't--" "Because it's ALL I'VE EVER KNOWN," she hollered into the phone. "Don't you GET IT? Talon CREATED me to be your FOE. I can't be trusted--I don't know HOW--to be anything BUT. When you accept that, and write me off, it'll be better for all of us." "So what will you do when your sentence is up?" Brit asked. "Go back to a life of crime again? Or will you realize that you don't NEED to do that? That you can change?" "Why are you doing this, Britanny?" Sheva interrupted yet again. "What do you think could possibly come out of this? What do you stand to gain from turning my pitiful, wretched existence around?" Brit hesitated for a long moment, then said: "A friend?" Sheva stared into Brit's eyes once again, then turned and called out to the guard, "Done here!" She hung up the handset and stood, holding out her wrists to be recuffed. She willingly returned to her cell, not looking back once at Britanny, even though she wanted to. TABBOT RESIDENCE "Like this." "This?" "No, watch." Rhianna watched; she adjusted her posture a little more and tried to make her stance match Ryan's. "That's better," he said. He stepped forward a half-pace, arms almost folded in front of himself, then spread them quickly. "Yah!" A ball of fire leapt from his hands and raced along the length of the backyard, dissipating before it got to the fence. Rhianna did the same. A smaller fireball raced from her hands in the same direction as Ryan's had gone, but hers failed to stop at the fence and instead exploded against it, burning through a section about three feet wide. "Oop!" she winced. "That's all right, that's all right," Ryan hurried to say. "Let's just hope Mr. Burney doesn't check his back yard before we get a chance to fix that hole in the fence." "I shouldn't have to relearn it anyway," Rhi' frowned. "I knew this when I was you.." "Uh-huh.. but that's a different body now, Rhi'," Ryan said. "I guess it just answers differently. Anyway, the rest you'll be able to learn about with practice. Now we should get on with some sparring and such." "Fine by me," she said, turning to face her brother and grinning. "This time I pick the movie." "Ok, go." Rhianna launched herself into an attack that was based on the fight scene in a recent movie. Ryan was at first completely on the defensive, but as soon as he had her moves read, he was blocking them and giving out attacks of his own. All the while, both of them grinned and continued to talk. "Did you like the movie premiere?" Rhianna said, ducking a thrown punch. "Actually, yes, I.. ooh, good move!.. I had a lot of fun. The movie itself was kinda boring, but just being there and doing what we were doing was kinda fun." "Sure was.. I thought we were gonna get caught at the end, though." Ryan laughed and swung a fist at his sister's head, which she blocked easily with a forearm. "So did I," he admitted, "if you mean when the manager came out to tell you about the 'impostor' she turned away." "Yup! I hear that Laura's company tried to get the theater shut down, or at least the manager fired, but--oof!--not bad, Ry--but she was away on holidays at first, and then afterwards, when she got back and helped solve the whole Brit/Sheva thing, they kinda forgot about the whole bit about Laura. The theater chain was concentrating more on 'here's our hero manager'." Ryan helped Rhianna off the ground where she'd landed after he leg-swept her. "Yeah, Brit's kinda popular around here.. the manager must've gotten some decent respect for what she did." "And if she hadn't done that for Brit, Brit and Stripe might not've caught Sheva.. actually, Sheva might've tricked Stripe into believing she was Brit.." Ryan nodded. "And if they didn't stop Sheva, she wouldn't've told them about that Tanya girl.. and it woulda just snowballed from there. So all this is owed to you for dragging us to the movie." "Nah, it would've happened some other way.." "No it wouldn't, Rhi'. Trust me.. you and I have the same minds, we think alike. You know I'm right." "I just don't want all that credit." "Hey, take it when you can get it." Ryan went back inside the house, with Rhianna following. "Take what life gives you and go with it. You have to when things get weird." Rhianna laughed. "I'm living proof of that." Ryan grinned and said, "Yeah, I suppose you are. How're you doing in those respects, by the way? Any concerns?" Rhianna shrugged, leaning against the wall by the back door. "Nothing really.. I'm still getting used to some things, but you'll agree in a heartbeat that that's to be expected." "I understand completely," he smiled. "And--" "I know, as always.. if there's anything you can do, you'll be the second to know." She smiled back, rolling her eyes, and patted him on the shoulder as she went past. "I'm goin' to go have a shower before we head over to Gina's place." "Save enough water for me," Ryan called after her. THE DIGGERS COMPLEX "So she just got up and left.. didn't even have the decency to look at me!" Britanny seethed at Gina and Stripe. "(Ooh am I mad! Try'n help someone and this is what you get..)" "Perhaps she doesn't want help, dear," Stripe pointed out. "When she turned herself in, she seemed rather adamant about being held accountable for her crimes." "And maybe she's miffed that she got such a short sentence for being cooperative," Gina added. "Maybe she figures she deserved more." "Well, it doesn't matter.. if she's so set on gaining friends, she's got to learn that when someone goes and offers something like that, you don't just brush them off. I mean, I used to hate her, but now, after what she went through by Tanya's hand.. I feel sorry for her. I think she really does deserve a chance to turn her life around.." "You don't feel perhaps a kinship, do you?" Stripe hazarded. "Being that she is by all outward appearances a were-cheetah?" "....." Cheetah paused. "I'm not sure," she finally said, "but that thought had crossed my mind, I have to admit." "Speaking of thoughts crossing minds," Stripe said, and got up, heading to the trans-com. "Gina, do you mind if I make a call to Aebra? We should've heard by now what Tanya's sentence was." "Go right ahead," Gina nodded. "I think it's memory location 42." "Thanks." In a few moments, Primus' smiling face was on the screen. "Prince 'Gia!" Primus said with surprise. "What an unexpected joy it is to hear from you!" Stripe was caught off guard. After a moment, he said, "Primus, it's good to see you as well.. but did the high courts make a decision yet?" "Decision? The high courts??" Primus said, completely confused. "My prince, I have heard nothing of the high courts even convening." Stripe paled. Britanny came over, followed not long after by Gina. "Did not a ship arrive recently with ex-priestess Tanya aboard, with instructions that she was to be tried for her constant mischief and.. abuse of.. her..?" Stripe trailed off, seeing a bewildered Primus shaking his head. "No such ship has arrived on Aebra, my prince," he said. "We have not seen Tanya since your marriage." Stripe began to grit his teeth and felt rage building within him. "The ship left here weeks ago, Primus," he said. "It should have been there long ago. Do you have contact with Salusia?" "We should, yes; we regained membership in the Conglomerate after you put the Dynasty down." "It might benefit you to ask them to search," Stripe said urgently. "It was one of their ships that did the transport. We have a contact here on Earth within the Salusian imperial family; we'll try to get some information from her as well." "Very well," Primus nodded. "We will do as you request, my prince. And we wish you luck and hope the ship is merely late." "As do I," Stripe growled, "as do I." TO BE CONTINUED in THE STORM Jason Low (as Project HEARD) presents a Doubled Up/GD Half story THE STORM DEEP SPACE WEDNESDAY, EARTH (ATLANTA) TIME "That confirms it." Riel came across the deck to her son, where he was regarding a display in the nothingness before him. "There is us, mother, and there is Eriel and Arion.. and there is no more," Rioldo explained. "At least not in range." "Perhaps if your father hadn't been so complacent, so obtuse," she said, walking away again, "things might be different. No matter.. four of us is more than enough." "It will have to be," Rioldo said with a gesture to the display. "Apart from the four of us, I can find only those who would stand against us." Rioldo looked up to see Riel standing aside, looking pensive. "What is it, mother?" "I was thinking of our prisoner," she said with a faint smile, looking at the display of space before them. "Tell me, son, if our enemies had one of our kind imprisoned, if such a thing was possible.. would it alter your plans of attack?" "Not in the least, mother." She hmmm'ed. "Perhaps that's not the best analogy, but if you were to put yourself in their place.." Rioldo nodded after a moment. "It would certainly give me pause, yes." Riel turned and walked away with the smile still on her face. "Summon your cousins and proceed as planned." METRO STATE PRISON Sheva sat in her cell, as usual, on her cot in the corner of the room. She had a book in her hands, also as usual, and was reading it fairly studiously. It was harder to concentrate than usual, though, and not just because of Britanny's visit the previous day, though that was a contributing factor. A woman about three cells away had been given TV privileges three days before, and Sheva's hearing could pick up the sound of the stupid thing no matter how low it was set. Sheva muttered along with the TV: "If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost.. the Minnow would be lost.." When she realized she was singing along, she angrily flung her book aside, where it struck the toilet and fell in. She screamed out loud and threw herself flat on her bed, grumbling through gritted teeth, tail whipping angrily. She stared at the ceiling in fury, hearing a guard walk by to check out the nature of her enraged scream. The guard's footsteps faded away soon after, and all was mostly silent again. Sheva railed to herself. She wanted desperately to get out and DO something else, but that wasn't exactly an option. she thought. she told herself. Sheva slouched on the bed again and picked up another book to read until lights-out. She tried to concentrate entirely on her reading, trying to shut out the noise coming in from the other areas of the cell block, but the part that was bugging her the most was in her mind. If she despised Britanny's presence at the jail the day before so much, she wondered, why was there a part of her that hoped it'd happen again? THE DIGGERS COMPLEX Ryan and Rhianna stepped off the lift and searched for the sisters. They followed the sound of voices coming from the living room, and found Britanny and Gina, as well as Stripe, sitting there. All three looked upset, as they had the night before, when Ryan and Rhianna first visited, only to find out that the ship escorting Tanya to Aebra had gone missing. "No news, huh?" Rhi' said as the two came into the room and sat down. "Not really," Gina supplied. "Stripe got a hold of Asrial, but she hasn't heard anything from the ship either. Then again, she wasn't expecting to. They were only required to contact Aebra when they were ready to arrive there." "She's investigating," Stripe said, "but it will take time. She needs to contact her world, and find out if they know of the ship's whereabouts.. assuming they don't, they will then have to send out search parties." "That could take a while," Ryan observed. Stripe nodded in reply. "Do you think Tanya got free and hijacked it?" Rhianna asked. Gina shook her head. "That'd be hard.. she shouldn't be able to break free of Dad's magic that easily, and she couldn't even use her magic to help her, 'cause he nullified that, too." "She's gotten by without her magic before," Brit put forth. "She had Jazelle help her at the wedding." "Not voluntarily," Stripe thought to add. "She had previously implanted hypnotic suggestions in Jazelle.." "We know," Gina said. "I think Cheets' point is, she doesn't need her own magic to screw up people's lives." "Duly noted," Stripe returned. "In any case, she might have somehow freed herself and taken over the ship, yes, but.. not to sound full of myself.. but I think she'd've made that known to us by now. That she'd escaped our clutches once more, so to speak." "Yeah," Brit said. "You'd think she'd race right back here to Earth to gloat and go on about how she was in control again." Rioldo looked up as his mother returned to the command area of the vessel. "Where are we?" Riel asked bluntly. "Here," Rioldo said, willing a starmap into view and pointing to a location. "And Eriel and Arion are about to arrive." Riel studied the image for a moment. "Hold us here." "Here? Why?" "He is not on Aebra." "Then where?" "That I do not yet know. But I am sure we can find out from our prisoner." Rioldo smiled. "Willingly, or..?" "That, too, is yet to be seen." Just then, two people faded into view, both cloaked in shrouds that seemed not so much to be cut from cloth as to be formed from the fabric of the spacetime around them. The edges seemed to fade off into nothingness around the two people--one male, one female, both young adults--both with fiery red hair and eyes. "Aunt Riel, we have arrived," the man declared with a faint smile. "So you have," she said. "Would you care to visit our prisoner?" "Absolutely," the man's twin sister said with a nod. "Go right ahead, then." Eriel and her brother Arion turned to head to the prisoner's chamber, and Riel called out, "Don't break her, though.. we need her whole for what we're going to do at our destination." "Fear not, Aunt Riel," Arion responded. "We will be.. gentle." Eriel and Arion entered the dungeon block and saw its lone occupant energy-chained to a wall by her wrists and ankles. She looked up sharply at the sound of someone approaching, and leapt into motion, chains humming until she reached their limits, then they snapped her back like a leashed animal. She stood at the limit of her leg chains' reach, arms flailing wildly as she tried to reach the two, screaming something in Kryn. The two siblings stood and waited for Tanya to spend her anger, and when she became mostly still again, Arion spoke. "Greetings, Kryn. I am Arion and this is Eriel. We are your captors, you are our prisoner. You will readily dispense any information for which I ask, in a timely and co-operative manner. Is that clear?" "RRR!" she roared and reached for the pair. For some reason she couldn't complete any spells, but she could surely eventually disrupt the energy bolts holding her and-- WHACK! She recoiled as if struck full in the face by a fist; neither of the other two had moved, though Eriel sported a fairly prominent smile. "How your kind forgets so easily," Arion said condescendingly. "We are Dynasty. We control the foci of the universe. It would be easy for us to take from you what we want, using the foci, but it would be messy and not at all painless. And we need you clean, fit, and pain-free when we get to where we're heading." "Look, you uppity little humanoids, you have no idea who you're dealing with--" She cut herself off as a strange sensation bored into her. It was like someone was stepping inside her mind and browsing. It wasn't exactly painful--in some ways, it was, but in other ways, it was just an extremely uncomfortable situation. "Tanya'Ko, daughter of Lina'Ko and Rik'Ko, schooled in the so-called 'art' of magic, specializing in smoke.. former hopeful high priestess," Arion said. With a smile, he added, "We know how uneasy that made you.. and that was only your name and information. Imagine what getting what we WANT is going to feel like." "You will help us, Kryn," Eriel added. "There's no point in praying for your favorite hero to come to your rescue.. for we will take the battle to him." They turned away. "We'll leave you for now to think about your options. Fast and painless.. long, slow, and agonizing.. it will be your choice." THE NEXT DAY Gina answered the phone with a frenzied "Hello??" late that morning. "Right.. uh-huh.. I'll get him." She leaned out the kitchen doorway and hollered, "Stripe! Pick it up!" "Thank you!" his voice wafted down from the upstairs living room, where he and Britanny were sitting and talking. He reached over and pushed the connect button on the videophone. "Hello, Stryyp'Gia," Asrial said, not looking or sounding pleased. "I checked with Salusia.." "Yes?" Stripe said as Britanny sat down beside him. "The ship wasn't heard from by Salusia. None of our military or science ships have encountered them either. We're beginning to poll merchant vessels as they pass through Salusian territories, but nothing so far." "Aebra reports largely the same," Stripe nodded. "Forgive me.. I don't mean to impose, but would you be able to search for--" "Already underway," Asrial said with a nod. "Search vessels have already started out for the best routes between here and Aebra." "My thanks go out to you," Stripe smiled. "We owe you for this." "Actually," Asrial frowned, "I failed you. I promised your prisoner would get to your world in a timely fashion and I failed to deliver." "Don't be so hard on yourself," Stripe smiled back at her. "It was not your fault.. you did not send the vessel off course, and you did not cause them to go missing." "Of course.. you're right. Thank you. In any case, we're looking." "I do hope you find your ship and its crew safe and sound," Stripe told her in parting. She was in excruciating pain.. pain nearly defying description. Every square inch of her body screamed out, begging for the trauma to stop. The source of her torment was relentless, though, coming at her over and over and over again. Nothing she did made a difference; she was firmly held in place, and assaults on her person kept coming in non-stop. The pain was so intense that her senses began to shut down; first to go was her hearing, slowly being replaced by a ringing noise.. ..which grew louder and louder and sharply woke Sheva up as she realized it was within the jail itself. It was a bell clanging on a wall, and there were guards tromping around left and right. A glance at the clock she had been allowed told her it was just after 3AM. She sprang to her feet, instinctively ready for whatever was going on. Sounded like whatever was happening was big, although not much was going on in her field of view any more.. all the guards had run off to whereever they were headed, and she could only hear their shouts, and the occasional burst of.. gunfire? A different alarm filled the air a few moments later; a fire alarm, as smoke charged the corridor. The smoke spread rapidly from no visible source, and Sheva backed away from the cell door, coughing a little. She stood near her cot, noting that the smoke didn't penetrate into any cells and remained in the hallway. Defying physics, the smoke sucked back in on itself a moment later and left in its place two figures quite familiar to Sheva. Before she could react, a fireball flew from the hands of one of them and blew her cell door open. "Quickly!" he hissed. "We have very little time." "For what?!" she said back to Daishi incredulously. "Freeing you!" Ionis responded, continually looking over his shoulders at the rest of the cell block, making sure no guards were coming. "What? Freeing me?" she said, still with a tone of disbelief. "You can thank us later," Ionis said dryly. "Zelda can't hold them off forever, let's go!" "Right!" Sheva said. "Get moving!" The two men turned to flee, but then realized Sheva hadn't moved an inch. They turned back to face her quizzically. "What are you doing?" Daishi queried. "Another three years and three months," she answered firmly. "I have to stay." "Are you insane?" "Are YOU?" she shot back. "What made any of you think I'd want to side with you again in the first place? Besides, like I said, I've been judged, and I have to respect that judgement. And if I DID want to leave here, it wouldn't be with the likes of YOU." <'Cause I don't like you,> she didn't add, because if it sounded childish and silly in her head, she knew it would be that much more absurd out loud. "What are you saying?" Ionis said hurriedly, as the one alarm silenced again, leaving only the breakout alarm going. "Let me sound it out for you," Sheva said slowly and deliberately. "Pih--ss--OFF!" She pointed out the door of the cell. The two men looked at one another briefly, then back at Sheva, who was still pointing the way out as if she was directing a rowdy date to leave. Ionis opened his hands and his spellbook appeared before him. He and Daishi were enveloped in a cloud of smoke again, and then vanished. Sheva turned around and climbed into bed again, ready for more sleep. She had just barely drifted off when she heard tromping footfalls and cries of alarm right at her cell. She barely had enough time to regain consciousness and remember that the door had been blown away when she was hauled out of bed and slammed to the ground, wrists yanked behind her and cuffed.. Brit woke up at noon, having slept in for a change. She had been tired the past few days, having stayed up with Stripe to talk with him about the problem of Tanya's disappearance. He was considerably upset about the whole thing, and they'd stayed up and talked.. or otherwise comforted one another.. more than once. He wasn't in the apartment when she got up, so she went downstairs and looked around. The living room was empty, but there were voices in the kitchen. She found Gina and Stripe there. "Hi," she said, trying to sound cheerful and upbeat, but carrying a little hesitance in her voice as well. "..What's new?" "They found the ship," Gina explained. "Let me guess.. miss thang wasn't on board?" Stripe shook his head. "No," he said flatly. "Great, just great," Brit frowned, sitting at the table with them. "There's more," Gina said. "She didn't flee.. she was abducted." "What??" "The Salusian search parties found their crews just before the life support was completely run out," Stripe spoke up. He looked down at the table while resting his forehead on his interlocked fists. "The ship was tractored in by a much larger vessel that the crew didn't see coming.. they rightly assumed once they were boarded that they were being pirated. They expected to be taken aboard the larger ship and locked up.. but when they said as much to the so-called pirates, the response was.." Stripe fished for it in his mind for a moment, then looked up at Gina. She remembered it instantly: "'What, you expect me to FEED you or something? Let the void be your prison!'.. and then they were shoved back into their ship, just before the power was somehow sapped out of it.. and the bigger ship cast off, leaving the Salusians adrift." "...." "Uh-huh," Stripe nodded at his wife. "That was my reaction too." "Who would do such a thing?" Stripe got up and turned around, looking out the window, as if studying the exterior wall of the garage was suddenly high on his list of priorities. "Take a guess." Brit shrugged. "I.. don't have a clue," she said. "How would I know?" "The only group I can think of who could do such a thing.. sneak up on a Royal Salusian Space Marines probe ship--which is designed to listen to the universe--undetected.. board it while able to ignore the resistance of the highly trained space marine crew.. kidnap a person who was immobilized and secured aboard the ship.. and return to their own ship.. THEN draw all the power out of the probe ship.. and THEN have the gall, the.. the.. the total lack of respect for humanoid life, to have set a dead ship with four souls aboard adrift.. I.." It didn't take Brit long to catch on. "Are you serious?" she said. "I thought they were all gone after you sent them packing from Aebra." "Apparently I missed a few," Stripe deadpanned. Riel looked up as her son reentered the command space of their vessel. "She is being.. difficult, mother," Rioldo said. "She continues to behave as she did before, thinking her status and place means anything to us. She says she refuses to say a thing until we.. 'respect' her." "So simply pull what we want directly from her mind," Riel said matter- of-factly. "I'd much rather have her volunteer it, mother," Rioldo said. "That way we can be sure we've broken her and she will know that the twilight of her race is at hand. Perhaps if we assaulted her homeworld, she might be inclined to speak." "I disagree, son. If we had a larger force with which to attack Aebra, I would go along with that plan. However, the Aebrans and their allies have a solution which can render our attacks impotent, somehow. To further complicate things, they stand united, no longer fearful of rising up against us, due to the heroics of their prince, Stryyp'Gia. Find and destroy him, and their spirits will fall." "So, then, were do we find him?" "That's what the Kryn is supposed to be telling us," Riel reminded him. "However.. we CAN take an educated guess." "Oh?" "Where did the Kryn's ship come from? Very few of them actually live offworld.." "I'll check," Rioldo said and turned to a console. After a moment, he said, "Xol Beta starport, nine of their days ago." Riel sighed. "Yes, but where did it originate from? Check the starport's computers." "Of course." Rioldo worked the controls again, reading through the starport's computer records as if all their security meant nothing to him, which, of course, it did; after a moment, he said simply, "Earth." Then, after a moment.. "Earth.. I remember that name.." "It was the planet on which the beacon that granted us passage back to this universe was located," Riel reminded him. "In any case, it appears to be our destination. Send us there now." "At once, mother." He drummed away on the console, and momentarily, the castle shifted its position and began to speed off in the direction of Earth. "Excellent," Riel nodded. "With your permission, I will go now to see how Eriel and Arion are doing with the Kryn." "By all means." Arion looked up as Rioldo appeared in the room. Tanya was where she'd been all along, suspended up against a wall, yet now she was writhing in pain. The twins had been having their way with the Kryn prisoner, it seemed. "We have been providing.. 'encouragement' to her," Arion confirmed Rioldo's suspicions, "but she hasn't yet said anything. Nothing coherent, in any case." "Let me try," Rioldo said. Eriel stepped aside and Rioldo stepped forward. Tanya lifted her head. "Hello, Kryn," Rioldo said brightly. "I told you we'd get what we want. We're back on our way again, heading for Earth." All Tanya could muster was a half-moan/half-whimper. As her eyes widened, Rioldo picked up on this and smiled. "Aha." "What is on Earth?" Eriel asked. "That's for the Kryn to tell," Rioldo smiled again. "Uhnnn.. no.." Tanya moaned again. With lightning speed, Rioldo's left arm unravelled and wrapped around Tanya's neck like a paper streamer, gripping tightly. "Don't argue with us, Kryn," Rioldo cautioned. He tightened his grip a little and smiled as she moaned some more. Her hands feebly came up and tried to pull his ribbon-like appendage away from her throat. He released her and said, as he reformed his hand, "We are looking for your prince, Stryyp'Gia. We can find him without your cooperation, but as we said before, it will be more painful for you. If you DO help us, you have my word, you will be treated well while you are with us." All Tanya did was moan and mumble once more. "Eriel," Rioldo said, "Heal her enough so that she can understand us." Eriel did as asked, and Tanya seemed to breathe more regularly, and stopped whimpering. She looked up at the three of them. "Can you comprehend me now?" Rioldo asked. She had no strength to snap back or argue; she barely managed to nod. Rioldo repeated himself, restating his offer to her. She paused for a long moment, and he was about to give her some added persuasion when he detected a barely perceptible nod from the Kryn prisoner. "Gooood," he nodded. He turned to his cousins and started to talk with them. Tanya said to herself as she was able to mentally sort herself out. She listened to the three, who were talking as if she wasn't there. One of the males, the one who hadn't most recently attacked her, asked the others, "Should we relieve her of her magical energy? It would be more efficient than using up some of our OWN energy constantly to block her." Tanya inwardly panicked upon hearing Arion say that. Then Eriel looked over her shoulder at Tanya, who, outwardly, still looked like she was largely in a daze. Eriel grinned and turned back to face the others as they all walked out. Eriel said, "No.. let's let her think she has a chance against us. If she realizes the truth, that there's no hope, she has nothing left to lose, and she will be lost to us." FRIDAY NIGHT METRO STATE PRISON SOLITARY BLOCK At least the other cell had only one wall. In with the rest of the prison population, Sheva had one cement wall at her back, and two side walls consisting of bars, as well as the door made of bars up front. Here in this place, though, the place they called "solitary", she had four cement walls surrounding her and a solid, heavy metal door with a tiny slit in it.. and even that had a flap that the guards could close over it, plunging her into near-darkness. She hadn't been told why she was here, of course, but she could probably guess.. after a breakin/breakout attempt, her cell door was blown away, and she had the potential to have walked out. The fact that she didn't was apparently lost on them, but it was a moot point. No one would listen to her.. in fact, with the door of her new cell closed, it was likely no one could even hear her. She certainly couldn't hear anything from the outside.. it was only her agitated breathing.. her footsteps as she paced back and forth.. her grunts and groans as she grew more and more anxious and upset.. She angrily flung herself on the fold-down cot, which squeaked in protest, the sound bouncing off all the walls, floor, and ceiling, to come back and assault her sensitive ears some more. After that, it was silent for a few seconds, until she screamed in frustration. "RRRAAGH!" No one came this time to investigate her angry growl; she was completely alone. They hadn't even given her any of her books from her normal cell.. it was only herself and all the damned noise. She realized with a start that she was actually missing the 'human contact', or reasonable facsimile thereof, she had been able to get in her normal cell. She'd've even readily welcomed the TV woman's aggravating 70s and 80s show themes, if it meant she wouldn't have to be ALONE any more.. she decided, feeling very claustrophobic for a moment. A moment passed while she contemplated that thought, then she leapt up from the bed and started to kick it. The flimsy metal shelf flapped up on its hinge and smacked the wall, then came back down, spilling the bedding all over the place. She booted it again and caused a dent, and again and again, and finally, the chains that kept it level when it was folded down snapped, and the entire assembly fell onto the floor in a twisted wreck. As the debris started to settle, she looked at it and realized what she'd done, and angrily sat down on the floor, growling out a sound of frustration through gritted teeth, clamping her hands against her head as if she could pull the angry thoughts right out that way. That night, Britanny and Stripe were in solitude as well, together in their bedroom, holding one another and talking quietly. "Are you sure they're on their way here?" she asked him. "I can't be positive, but I think so," he responded. "It makes sense. They want Aebra, yes; but they know if they try to take it again, I'll just return and stop them. So they need to eliminate me first." "We'll never let 'em," Cheetah promised him. "You've got too many friends here--like Gina, and Penny, and all--with the power to back you up." He offered up to her a faint, apologetic smile. "Can we talk about something else, please? I'm not really in the mood to worry about this tonight." "Oh.. okay.." Brit looked a little embarrassed. "So.. what do you want to talk about?" "Well.." he said, trying to think of a topic, "in all the excitement, I forgot to ask.. your sister and the others left a day or two before all this happened.. where did they go?" "Hmm? Oh, Brianna you mean? She said she and Genn were going to Jade for a vacation.. Seance was going home and took them. I tried to get us in on the action, but they brushed me off." "That's all right," he said, hugging her and smiling. "I'm sure we can enjoy ourselves just as much here as we could on Jade." "Yeah, but I wanted you to see.." "Sssh," he said. "Another time." "Right," she acknowledged. They lay there in silence for a few moments. "What of Rhianna?" he asked her. "How is she faring?" "Better," Brit nodded. "Getting used to herself a lot more every day. I've been walking with her every day since Brianna went on vacation." "'Walking'?" Stripe inquired. Brit smiled. "Well, okay, running, but it's nowhere near the speed or distance I normally do." "You are a very special person, Britanny," Stripe smiled, giving her a quick kiss. "So are you," she said, returning the kiss and hugging him back. "Too special to let go of." Morning came once again, though Tanya wouldn't've known it in any case. In fact, she'd lost track of time completely; she'd seen nothing but the walls of the dungeonlike room she was in for the past several days. Not being a veteran of space travel, she wasn't sure how long it would take them to reach Earth; so it was a surprise when a Dynasty family member arrived and told her they were nearing the solar system. "You don't know me, do you?" Riel said, eyeing her captive. "I am the mother of the Dynasty of Stars. I am Riel." Tanya hung there chained to the wall and stared flatly at Riel. "We are several Earth days from Earth now, so we need to start getting serious," Riel went on. "You know where your Prince Stryyp'Gia is on this world, and I want to know." "I know where he is," Tanya nodded, using a weakened voice, "and I can tell you, if we can work out a deaHHUUURRRKK--" Tanya shivered for a moment, as if having an epileptic seizure; finally, she stopped, and Riel stated flatly, "No deals, Kryn." Riel turned around and headed a few steps away, saying, "A place called 'Atlanta', hmm? Shouldn't be too hard to find." She regarded Tanya, who was groaning and moaning, hanging by her wrists from the chains. "We told you it wouldn't be a pleasant experience, to have your thoughts violated like that," she shrugged, as if it meant nothing to her. "You can't say we didn't warn you." Riel paused as she was about to leave the room. She turned and regarded Tanya, still writhing and shaking her head as if she could shake something loose that was clinging to her. Riel smiled and walked away. Sheva knew it was another day because the slot in the door was opened and her lunch was passed through. <'Lunch' might be an insult to all the fine meals out there, though,> she said to herself, sitting on the floor with the plate of cold meat, gravy, and a half-slice of bread before her. At least in the general population, she'd been able to go eat a meal in another room other than her cell, with other people there. Even if she didn't associate with any of them, instead choosing to sit at the end of a table in a corner, she was in the company of others, something she was beginning to truly miss. She had no idea how long they intended to keep her there. She had nothing to do all day and all night except think of her situation and catch the occasional moment of sleep--although the latter was a rarity--and it was really starting to get to her. she wondered, poking idly at the meat with a finger, since they didn't send in a fork with it. It was, as mentioned, cold, and had lumpy cold gravy all over it, which was sick-looking. She couldn't stomach eating the slop. she wondered. She looked around at the four walls. She pushed the plate aside and sat down with her back to the wall. Once again, the group of friends met the morning by getting together and bringing each other up to date on things that'd transpired overnight. On this particular day, Asrial arrived in Atlanta and was welcomed by Stripe. She said to him, after the introductions, "So, ready to go?" "In just a moment," he began, but was drowned out by Britanny, who was hollering, "Wait, wait, wait! Go? Go WHERE?!" Stripe slowly turned to face Brit. "My dearest Britanny," he said, "If the Dynasty come here, they will surely attack the Earth. There is no doubt. Until they get what they want--surely to be me--they will let nothing stand in their way. So I must leave here and draw them a--" "Like hell you're leaving!" she declared, folding her arms and looking down at him sternly. Gina, Asrial, Ryan, and Rhianna stared at the two verbal combatants. "Britanny," Stripe said, "If they come to Earth, they will destroy it! They will do to your world what they did to mine, unless they can be drawn away by a more interesting target. And let's face it, I'm who they're coming for anyway.. so there's no sense in risking anyone else's life or property when I can lure them out into space again and meet them on my own terms." "Listen to me, Stryyp'Gia," Brit said in an I'm-warning-you voice. "You will not leave this planet, I promise that!" "Stripe, we can defend against them all TOGETHER," Gina cut in. "Yeah," Ryan added. We can take 'em on, no sweat!" "I guess you're outvoted," Brit said flatly, but with a faint smile. "You're staying, and we're all gonna gear up to put the Dynasty down." Tanya opened her eyes and saw Riel again entering the room and coming straight for her. She winced and prepared herself for the verbal or physical onslaught about to commence-- --and blinked with surprise when her energy bonds winked out of existence, allowing her to move freely and bring her arms below her neck for the first time in days. She looked up at the taller woman and gave her a look of surprise. "Your magic is still suppressed, of course," she said, "for now. I've decided maybe a deal is worth our while after all." "Oh really?" Tanya asked. "When we arrive at Earth, Stryyp'Gia will undoubtedly require us to take him by force. Having you alongside my son, niece, and nephew, fighting against him, he would surely give pause, and it could be what we need to capture him. Then we return to Aebra and reclaim the world. My family needs rebuilding, and the Kryn on Aebra will do just fine, I believe." Riel eyed Tanya, wondering if the furry female would agree to what would ultimately become the extinction, or transformation, of her race. "You're right," Tanya nodded. "It's perfect." "Good," Riel said. "Walk with me and I will take you to the others. We can discuss your role with them." Tanya fell into step behind Riel and smiled. she thought. Little did she know that Riel was thinking the very same thing. A FEW DAYS LATER Sheva woke up to see light streaming into the room from the slit in the door. Her head was pounding, her stomach felt like it was imploding, and everything seemed painful, including the harsh lights of the hallway as they lit up her face. "Unnnnhhh," she proclaimed and turned over, curling up in a semi-fetal position beside the wall. What's worse than all that, she was COLD. She opened her eyes and looked down at herself, slowly, as if even that was injurious. To her surprise, she noticed that her orange jumpsuit was now baggy upon her, and the two hands clenched tightly together near her chin were bald and humanlike. In fact, everything about her was humanlike, she realized, feeling her feet well inside the cuffs of the jumpsuit's legs. "Fine," she muttered, still partly asleep. "Jusss' fine." Apparently she didn't have enough strength left, after several days of not eating, to even maintain her hybrid form. Whatever. Like anyone cared anyway. She huddled up in the now-baggy jumpsuit, trying to stay as warm as she was used to. It was no use, and in a moment, even though it was a warm August morning outside the prison, she was shivering. She closed her eyes again and tried to will herself back to sleep. She did, ultimately, but awoke once more only a few minutes later, blinking and gasping with surprise at the dream she'd just had. In it, she was about to be swallowed up by a pit of some sort, right in the middle of a busy downtown street.. yet the hundreds of people on the sidewalk walking to and fro didn't even turn to look at her. Except one. One person, just before Sheva was about to go under for the last time, stood at the edge of the quicksand pit and crouched down, reaching out to Sheva's outstretched hand. She looked up at the person as they pulled her free with a warm smile on their face, but she couldn't see any of their features because they were silhouetted by the sun. She tried desperately to remember.. was that hand she grabbed onto covered with fur? The next afternoon, the people at Space Command in Colorado carried on with their normal day, with nothing out of the ordinary on the scopes. The radio and visual observatories around the world saw nothing as well. Besides the usual commercial and military flights, air traffic control globally was quiet. A plane flying out of Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta, though, reported a significant amount of turbulence passing through the 3000 foot level. No one else had reported it, and there was no reason for the turbulence to be there, but it was. While air traffic controllers at Hartsfield gave out warnings about the turbulence, the object creating it had already moved on, descended a thousand or so feet, and centered itself over one of Atlanta's tallest communications towers. A laser port opened up and aimed at the ground-based antenna. "Wait," Tanya told her new colleagues, holding up a hand. "Why broadcast from here, when we can go directly to him?" She gestured to the screen, indicating the general location of the Diggers' complex with her finger. Riel nodded and the castle moved in the direction of Beech Haven Road. Gina, Asrial, Ryan, Rhianna, Britanny, and Stripe were in the living room trying to finalize a plan to defend themselves against the Dynasty, when suddenly, the TV, the comm screen, and the intercom--along with every other communications device in the house--lit up with the face of Riel. "I figured as much," Stripe said through clenched teeth, looking at the image on the screen. "You did, did you?" Riel smiled back, startling Stripe, who wasn't aware it was a two way transmission. "Greetings, Kryn." "I've been expecting you," Stripe said. "We both know this is only about me, so let us get it over with." "Why so eager, Kryn? Perhaps you want us to leave this world before something here can be damaged? Is there something here you care that deeply for?" ".... Let's get on with it," he said, trying not to glance at Britanny. "Perhaps you think I'll bring you aboard my ship so that you could destroy it from the inside in an act of martyrdom?" Riel went on. "Would you still think that if there was also something HERE you cared for?" Without waiting for an answer, Riel had the field of vision expanded so that Tanya, unrestrained and grinning at the camera, was visible. "Well helloooo Stripe," Tanya sang out. "Surprised to see me? Of course you are.. well, we both know how you fared against the Dynasty last time.. so now, with me at their side, perhaps you should just give up?.. Or, on second thought, please DO put up a fight. I'll relish the moment when you come to me in defeat and beg me to put an end to it." "I'll never give in," Stripe seethed, facing Riel again to add, "You know that from last time. It will be no different this time." "Except that if you fight us--" A rumbling was heard outside, and Gina, Ryan, and Asrial went to look "--we will decimate a portion of this planet for every minute you fail to surrender. Starting right here." "ZOINKS!" Gina said as one of the spires on the bottom of the castle split and began charging with a blue-white energy. "Then I guess I'd best work fast!" Stripe said, quickly activating his teleport field. "OH NO YOU DON'T!" Brit shouted, lunging for Stripe. She tackled him and the two went flying in a heap right at Rhianna. Ultimately, all three vanished from sight. The three appeared in a dark section of the castle-ship, disentangling themselves and looking around as a pair of voices laughed at them from the darkness. "Well, brother, I do believe our guests have arrived," came a female voice. "You are correct," a male said. "Let's give them the welcome they deserve." WHOP! Rhianna reeled as if sucker-punched, and went down. Brit yelped, looking at her friend long enough to see that she would be OK, then peered around in the darkness. "I can't see anyone out there!" she told Stripe. "With good reason," came a voice just over her shoulder. She spun, but it was too late, and she had to take a step or three back to keep her balance after being hit in the face with a punch. Yet still, there was no one in front of her. Stripe used flame-raker to illuminate the area, and while it ate up the darkness, it didn't show off the attackers at all. He sensed a presence behind him just as he heard someone say, "Good guess, but wrong." He swung around, but no one was there yet again.. although some of the flames leapt from his arm to a point in midair. "What? Augh!" the male voice shouted out, as the flames seemed to dance around for a moment before spreading quickly. Soon after, a figure appeared, part of his clothing aflame, as he flailed and tried to put it out. "Brother!" shrieked a voice nearby. Brit and Rhianna turned towards it but still couldn't see anything. Rhianna was about to rush into the darkness towards the sound of the voice, when Britanny held a hand up to stop her. Brit's head swivelled slowly, as she apparently tracked something; her tail flicked a bit and then she pounced, a scream coming from an invisible object. She tackled and rolled along the floor with it. "Gotcha!" Brit yelled at the struggling, transparent mass below her. "Let me go!" the female screamed, becoming visible again. She looked horrified and bolted as soon as Brit shifted her weight, rushing to be with her brother, who was on the ground beside Stripe, cradling what looked to be a severely burnt arm. "Brother!" Eriel exclaimed, crouching beside him. She put up a hand and the three intruders were shoved backwards a half-dozen feet by a shockwave of some sort. Arion was rocking back and forth, sitting on the ground, wincing and holding his arm. "Eriel.." "Be quiet and heal!" she urged him. She stood, holding her arms facing palm-up and bent at the elbows. He levitated off the floor, remaining in the same seated position. Eriel turned her head and glared at the intruders. "You haven't seen the last of us! I promise you that!" "Yeah, yeah," Brit called out as the twins faded away. "That's what they all say!" Stripe extinguished flame-raker and got up off the floor, then went over and helped Cheetah up, then Rhianna. "Thank you both," he said. "Even though you shouldn't have come." "Hey, I didn't have a choice in the matter," said Rhianna, dusting herself off. She glanced at Brit for a second. "What--you think I'm gonna let him go anywhere without me from now on?" Brit retorted, pointing to Stripe. "Dig into your brother's memories and remember last time this happened." "Ladies, enough," Stripe said calmingly. "Rhianna.. I apologize. I hadn't planned on anyone coming with me. If you want, I can take you--" "No," Rhi' said. "No, I think we should stick together in case things get a little nastier here." "My point exactly," Brit nodded. "Very well," Stripe said. "Let's carry on then." "Where?" Stripe activated flame-raker again and waved his arm around, as if he was carrying a torch. He was able to illuminate an exit on the far wall. "There," he nodded. Four to five was yard hour at the prison, and even the women in solitary were eligible for it. Sheva had broken down and eaten her lunch finally, giving her a tiny amount of strength back. She was still stuck in human form, though, and she had no idea how long it'd last. Britanny had said when they first met that it took 24 hours, but it'd already been closer to 36. Sheva thought to herself, feeling rather conspicuous with her jumpsuit's legs and arms rolled up and the rest of it hanging off her like a tent. She knew everyone was looking at her, even though she kept her head down and her eyes glued to the pavement. The fresh air felt wonderful, though, and the food was at least agreeing with her and not threatening to come back up. she told herself when thinking of the aborted hunger strike she put herself on. After a while of walking through featureless, twisting corridors that almost seemed to reshape themselves on the fly, the threesome found themselves in a large room with dungeonlike qualities. "Doesn't that hurt?" Rhianna nodded at Stripe's still-burning arm. He shook his head dismissively. "It protects me." He swung his arm around and apparently saw something, for he headed off in that direction. "What's up?" Brit asked. "..." Stripe crouched and examined the floor and wall near him, then turned and looked up to Brit, saying "Don't you smell anything familiar?" Britanny sniffed for a second, appeared to be ready to deny it, then said, "WAAAAaitaminute.. Yeah, that's familiar.." "What is?" Rhianna asked. "Tanya was here," Brit explained, then looked to Stripe. "Right?" Stripe picked something up off the floor, stood, and showed it to the girls. "Right," he said, holding up the short dark hair. "You saw that from across the room?" Rhianna asked. "Actually, this whole area's covered with them, if you look closely." He held his flames near the floor for lighting. "It would be not beyond the realm of belief that she was attacked here.. probably repeatedly." "What a coincidence," boomed another voice. The three jumped and turned to find another person standing there before them. "It appears you will take a beating as well," Rioldo smiled. "We'll see about that," Stripe said, eyes narrowing. He brought up the intensity of flame-raker a bit and prepared some of his other artifact powers. Brit's eyes, instead of narrowing, widened. "Wait! I know this guy!" "You do??" Rhianna blurted out. "Watch him!" Brit said. "He's got--" It was too late; Rioldo lifted both his arms and pointed them at the trio, and they unravelled from his fingertips to his shoulders, sending streamers as thin as paper but nigh-infinitely stronger racing towards the trio. "Look out!" Brit exclaimed, just before she was all but mummified by Rioldo's appendages. His other arm-turned-streamers found Stripe and entrapped him. He started to struggle against it. "Nnnnf!! Ow! Be careful, he's really strong!" Brit warned. "I can tell!" Stripe said, still struggling. Rhianna stood there looking at the other two being squeezed by Rioldo's appendages. "What did you do to defeat him last time?" she called to Brit. "Um... nnngh!.. a beam saber!" "We don't HAVE a beam saber!" Rhianna shot back. "Sucks to be us!" Brit answered. Rhianna ran in and grabbed at the streamers wrapping around Britanny and tried to yank them free, but he was far stronger than her. She hopped back, just evading a snapping tendril as it lunged for her. "Keep clear of him!" Brit cautioned Rhi'. "He's way stronger than he looks, and he's really hard to hit!" "And he cuts something fierce!" Rhi' observed, looking at a paper-thin laceration on her arm. She touched it and winced, sucking in air. "OOOW! That STINGS! Okay, punk, you're goin' DOWN!" Sheva walked around for a bit, seeing the other women out jogging around the fenced perimeter or playing basketball on the pavement or doing other such things. None of it interested her, although the running would've been something to think about had she been in hybrid form. In any case, she plunked herself down on a vacant bench somewhat removed from most of the other inmates, and just sat there moping. she observed. Chin in her hands, she stared mostly at the ground, only looking up occasionally at some of the goings-on. she observed. Rioldo turned and glared at Rhianna. "Almost forgot you," he said, and his right leg came apart in the same streamerlike strands, enveloping her. "Augh!" she hollered, fighting to get free. "Hang on guys, I'm gonna try something!" Brit said. "Thanks for the warning," Rioldo chuckled, and steeled himself. "Ah, bite me!" Brit snapped back, then planted her feet firmly down and tried to run away from Rioldo. The streamer stretched, squeezing tighter against her, and she gasped for air; finally, it released and snapped back at Rioldo with force, then reached out towards Brit again. "How rude!" Rioldo said mockingly. "I knew what you were trying to do there.. trying to unravel me completely. It won't work!" "It was worth a.. ghrrk.. try!" Brit countered as she was entrapped again. "OW!" Rhianna said as she struggled and got cut for her efforts. "Rhianna, relax!" Stripe said. "Britanny, I have an idea!" "Good, tell her all about it so I can build a defense!" Rioldo laughed. "Just stay where you are, Britanny," Stripe said. "Don't fight, but keep him taut.. that's good.. that's good.." Stripe broke his hands free and aimed towards Rioldo. Before the latter re-ensnared Stripe's hands, Stripe got off a blast. It sought out the gaping hole in Rioldo's side, where his left arm would have been if it hadn't been unravelled and attacking Britanny. A tiny sphere zoomed into Rioldo's side. He looked down at himself nervously and started to let out a scream, then-- PWAAF!--the entire room was filled with what looked like confetti. It rained down like snow on the three, now freed, for several moments, and became several inches deep on the floor--heaviest where Rioldo had stood. He was nowhere to be found. Rhianna and Britanny seemed to realize why that was simultaneously. "Ohmygod," Rhi' said. "Is this.. HIM?" She held out her hands and collected the bits of confetti still falling from the air. "I believe so," Stripe nodded grimly. "I only wanted to subdue him." "What the hell did you DO?" Brit asked. "I launched a telekinetic sphere at him, aiming for the area that was opened up by his attack upon you. I believed it would disrupt his ability to form the paper-like appendages.. not destroy him." "Oh, wow," Rhianna said, sitting down and holding her hands against her temples. "Holy crap." "Will you be okay?" Stripe asked her with concern. "We just.. killed him.." she said. "Rhi', it was either him or us," Brit thought to say. "It was for our survival." Rhianna took Brit's proffered hand and got to her feet. "I.. I suppose you're right." "Besides, maybe he reforms like the T-1000, after a while." Rhianna looked back at the pile of debris as they left the room. "Maybe," she agreed with Brit finally. The three of them stepped cautiously down the hallway beyond the dungeon room they had fought Rioldo in. All of them knew that there were still enemies that hadn't shown their faces yet, and it was entirely possible that some of their previous foes would return to fight them again. "Be ready for anything," Stripe said quietly and slowly. The ladies nodded, fight-ready as they walked slowly behind him, scanning the darkness. After a short time, Rhianna said, "What do these Dynasty people want, anyway?" "My world," Stripe answered. "They have been exiled from our universe for eons, and need a planet to call their own now that they've returned." "And I suppose they didn't wanna be all friendly and ask nicely to share?" Stripe shook his head. "If only that were possible.. it might make things a lot better." "So what do they expect you to do, then?" Rhianna asked. "They want him to die," Tanya said as the trio got within earshot of her. "However, I've a proposition." "Oh really," Brit deadpanned, as the trio came to a stop. The four of them met in a bend in the hallway. "THIS should be good." Tanya acted as if Britanny wasn't even there. "Stryyp'Gia," she said bluntly. "They want our world. You know that. The reason they want you is so that you are the only one who can convince our people to go along with it. But I have a better idea." "I'm a little skeptical, Tanya," he said. "Listen to me. They gave me the opportunity to fight alongside them. They did so without taking away my powers.. a mistake. I've sized this woman up.. you and I together, we could BEAT her soundly. Then we could rule together, not only the Kryn, but all of the Dynasty as well!" "You truly ARE unhinged, y'know that?" Brit shot back. "Completely off the deep end." "You shut up!" Tanya said, pointing accusingly at Cheetah. "You don't factor into this one bit!" To Stripe, she added a last plea: "Just think of it, .. Prince 'Gia.. you would rid your world of the Dynasty's thirst for vengeance, and not only that, but it would serve as atonement for your failure to defend your people so long ago!" She glanced at Britanny and Rhianna for a moment, then back to Stripe. "And as ruler, you could do as you please.. and you would have an army of slaves in the surviving members of the Dynasty, who would answer your every beck and call!" "Tanya.." Stripe began. "Listen to yourself. It's plainly clear that you're trying to bargain for your safety. As much as I dislike you, you are Kryn, and you will not come to harm while I am able to fight, but your plan is unacceptable." She screamed in frustration. "Damn you!" she directed at both Stripe and Britanny. "I could--WE could overthrow her with little effort! She TRUSTS me!" "An honest oversight," came a voice from the darkness behind Tanya. She turned halfway around before the bolt of energy hit her and catapulted her over the trio, slamming her into the corridor wall. Riel stepped out of the shadows. "But I can.. 'correct' that." "Tany--" Stripe began, instinctively going to the aid of his fellow Kryn, but just as he crouched down, he remembered Riel behind him. He turned and put up a defense, but she'd already sent a lightning bolt his way. His defenses absorbed most of it, but shoved him back a few yards nonetheless and knocked him off his feet. "HEY!" Rhianna said, coming in quickly from an angle to land an elbow on Riel's midsection. "Get away from him!" Riel flinched only slightly from the attack, then looked down at Rhianna with contempt. After a moment in which she seemed to appraise Rhi', she said, "Go away, youngling. This is not your concern." "I just made it mine," Rhi' grinned. She cracked her knuckles and said, "Now, normally, I wouldn't hit a lady.. but since I am one.. what the hell!" Riel took the thunderous uppercut blow to the abdomen in stride and picked Rhianna up by the collar. "I said begone!" She released Rhianna, but instead of falling straight down to the floor, Rhi' flew away as if she'd been flung with great force down the hallway. She landed on her rear, did a pair of reverse somersaults, and came up into a crouch, looking at Riel fiercely. "Now you're just pissin' me off," she growled. "Careful," Brit told Stripe, covering him as he knelt down before Tanya. "It's probably a trick." "Britanny.." Stripe said, but turned back to concentrate on Tanya again. "Tanya.. are you all right? Can you hear me?" Lying supine on the corridor floor, the female Kryn blinked and groaned, then opened her eyes fully. "Whaaaa?" she managed. After a second, she became aware of the situation, mostly because she saw Rhianna sail overhead. Tanya sat upright and said, "You FOOLS! You've ruined everything! AGAIN! AAAARGH!" She cast a bolt of force that knocked Brit and Stripe both back away from her. She stood and then ducked as Rhianna ran past her, homing in on Riel again, but Tanya was still fiercely focused on Brit and Stripe. "I could've had it all!--But you.. you two had to.. augh!" BOOM! Tanya magically shook loose some of the tunnel from above Stripe and Brit. Britanny, being taller, tried to shield Stripe from the falling rock and stone, but he gently pushed her away and put up a protective barrier between them and the ceiling. "Tanya! Listen to me!" Stripe shouted, partly due to anger, partly to be heard over the sounds of the fighting. "Stop this at once! You--" "I'm through listening!" she hollered back at him. "I've had it with everyone ruining my plans at the eleventh hour! Now I'm going to rid myself of my grief and find another way to get to the top!" "Tanya, if you don't stop, you'll force me to take action!" Stripe warned her, some of his embedded artifacts beginning to glow faintly. "GOOD!" she screamed back. Rhianna rushed in at Riel and tried a flying kick. She seemed to glance off at the last second and was able to only score an indirect hit. "Damn, what's with you, lady?" Rhi' said as she dropped back to her feet. "C'mon, quit the crap and let's get fighting." "You annoy me, child," Riel said. "You are of only a month or two on this plane, yet you dare to trifle with me.. older than this planet itself. I was ten times your age when your kind was assembling itself into a primordial ooze." "Bah, enough talking!" Rhi' said and threw another punch. It failed to contact, as she was just then picked up once more by Riel. Rhi' was ready for that, though, and brought both her knees up as she was hauled off the floor. She kicked out with her feet and scored a double bullseye right on Riel's mouth. Rhianna dropped back to the floor and looked up to the bloodied face of her opponent. "C'mon, fight back. PLEASE." Riel raised a hand, but held it above her face, in line with her forehead. She drew it down slowly and as it passed her injuries, they simply vanished, as if she wiped them from her face. "Very well." Riel once again lifted her hand, but this time it was open, palm facing Rhianna. A tiny white sphere erupted from Riel's palm and struck Rhi', sending her flying once more. "Tired yet?" Riel asked. "Nah," Rhi' countered, coming at Riel again, "just bored." "I can tell," said Riel. "What is the term your kind uses? 'Bored almost stiff'?" Rhianna didn't know what the point of that statement was until she realized she was still running at Riel and hadn't caught her yet. She tried harder and couldn't move any faster than she was already going, yet it was only about one step every five seconds. "You wanted me to use my fists instead of my power? So be it." Riel calmly held out a clenched fist and Rhianna watched herself helplessly charge towards it at slow speed. She urged herself to stop, but the impulse was flowing down her brain stem like molasses. WOP! Rhianna returned to normal speed just as she struck Riel's fist at full force. Rhianna fell like a rock, and Riel picked her back up and flung her at Tanya, just to repay the betrayal of the latter. Rhianna twisted and turned in midair to try to lessen the blow; she ended up planting her feet in the dead center of Tanya's back and knocking her to the ground. "Wow! Good shot, Rhi'!" Brit exclaimed, looking at the prone ex-priestess before her. "Wish I could stay to admire it, but--yipes!!" Rhi' leapt to the side as a bolt of energy tore through the space she'd been occupying. Tanya got to her feet after catching her breath, and cast a spell towards Stripe. "RAAAGH!" "No!" he said, creating a shield before him. As the spell collided with the shield, the latter solidified, became sand, and fell to a pile on the floor. Stripe's eyes widened. he thought, looking at the pile of sand on the floor, "Stripe! It's time to get serious!" Britanny called out to him. "Use the crown thing like you used it against them last time!" Stripe's expression was firmly set. He remained in a defensive stance and shook his head. "Not against a fellow Kryn," he declared. "But it's TANYA!" Brit protested. For her efforts she got a forcebolt which sent her staggering back to the wall a few feet away. "Tanya, don't force my hand!" Stripe roared at her as she turned her assault back towards him. "Don't make me do what I'll regret!" "Yes, actually, I WANT you to do that!" she cackled. "PROVE to me that you can be as nasty as you perceive ME to be ! Prove to me.. that we're made for each other!" She wore a huge grin, watching him standing there, obviously fiercely fighting an internal battle. "Go ahead! Do it!" Rhianna turned and faced Riel once again. The mother of the Dynasty looked rather smug, and hadn't moved an inch from where she'd stood all along. Rhianna lunged for Riel, screaming all the way, and threw herself in a lightning-fast kick towards Riel's head, then changed course at the last moment and went for a punch in the gut, following through with a blistering series of hits. "Up! Up!" she cried, two high kicks cracking against Riel's chin. "Left! Right! Left! Tap! Tap!" Rhi' narrated, landing more blows. "Down and left! Taptaptap!" "Super.. triple.. COMBO!" she roared, twisting into a spin-kick as the final move of the combination, rocking Riel's world pretty badly. Rhianna stopped turning and saw Riel staggering before her, as if the older woman was stunned, unable to accept that she'd been soundly beaten by a puny human girl. Rhianna grinned. "Oh, I've been waiting to try this out for a good long time," she said, broadening her stance and raising her arms before her. "SUGOI!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms wide, and watching excitedly as a fireball leapt from her fingertips and streaked towards Riel. Helpless, the mother of the Dynasty took the fireball full force and fell, vanishing as she hit the floor. The ship immediately started to shake and make rumbling sounds. "Uh-ohhh," Brit said, looking around and upwards. She rushed over to Tanya, who was concentrating on attacking Stripe at the moment, and successfully grabbed the Kryn woman, one hand holding her wrists together and another hand clamped over her mouth. "Got her! Now get us outta here, Stripe!" "Uh, guys?" Rhianna said, walking over. "I hope we gotta plan here!" "Stop strugglin', you!" Brit urged Tanya. "Gather around!" Stripe said. "We've little time!" They did just that, and Stripe teleported them away, just as the ship began to first implode, then explode. In the exercise yard, the ship hadn't gained much attention for the first while. In fact, it wasn't noticed at all, until it started rumbling and making odd noises, and tipping back and forth across the sky, spouting black smoke from several places. Sheva had gotten up off the bench and was looking curiously up into the sky at this odd castle-shaped thing hanging there above her, as it wobbled about; others ran for cover, but she stood in the middle of the square, staring straight up at the disintegrating ship. "Oooo.. cool.." she muttered, watching a monstrous jagged piece split off of the wreckage and hurtle Earthwards. She watched the secondary piece with intensity, intending to track it until it hit the ground. She wouldn't have to move her eyes that much, as it was coming straight down.. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she registered that someone somewhere near her said "Hey! Look out!", but it wasn't her top priority just then. At the last moment, she realized this was to be the end, and rather than fret, she wondered what it would be like. She didn't get to find out; at the last possible instant, another inmate hurled herself at Sheva, and knocked both of them out of the way. The shard of the Dynasty ship rammed into the ground pointy end first, making a hole fifteen or twenty feet deep, right where Sheva had been standing. Gina, Ryan, and Asrial all gasped as the ship hovering over Atlanta exploded. They stood in stunned silence, watching the debris rain down on the city. Just then, a light-gate of sorts formed before them, and out dove four individuals. As they recovered, one was heard to say, "Awright, Stripe!" "You're all right!" Gina gushed, rushing over to hug Britanny. "Yeah, we cleaned their clocks!" Rhianna said triumphantly, raising a fist in the air. "Woohoo!" "You did good, did you?" Ryan said to his sister, giving her a light, playful punch on the arm. "You'd'a been proud, Ry," she beamed. "Super triple combination kick!" His expression fell. "What?? You got to do that before *I* did? Aw, maaaan.." She laughed. "Plenty of other chances, brother o'mine. You'll get your turn." "Speaking of which," Stripe said, "I think I'd better oversee Tanya's return to Aebra myself this time around." "Not without me, you won't," Britanny said, still with death grips on Tanya's wrists and mouth. "Never again." "If I'm still welcome," Asrial piped up, "I'd like to personally offer my own ship and myself as pilot. As you Earthians say, do it yourself if you want to be sure it's done right." "Well, that's mostly it," Gina grinned. Rhianna, on the outer edge of the group, turned away when nobody was looking and investigated the source of the pain in her left side. She wasn't surprised when it showed up as a gash beneath her T-shirt. She was puzzled by the fact that her left hand felt like it was tingling. She looked at it, then got an idea and tentatively pressed it up against her side. Things felt weird for a moment, then normal; and when Rhianna pulled her hand away, the only indication there'd been a wound there was the jagged, red-stained hole ripped into the T-shirt. Rhianna looked around nervously; no one else had seen what she'd done, but Ryan caught her eye again. "Hey, you comin'? Gina's gonna order pizza and we'll all have a slice or three before Stripe takes Brit and Tanya back to Aebra." "Uhm, .. sure," Rhi' said, regaining her composure and walking towards the house. Sheva sat at the table in the dinner hall, staring at her empty food tray. She'd taken her allotted meal and inhaled it, and now had nothing to do for the next twenty minutes. One thing she could be happy about was the fact she'd been finally returned to the general population and got her old cell back, including its amenities and the openness of it compared to solitary. That and her books. She thought of how close she'd come to death, and realized it wasn't what she wanted after all. She had a burning desire to see her prison term through, if for no other reason than to prove she could take it. Sheva's still-human-form body jumped slightly as a tray was put down across from hers, and someone sat down at the bench on the other side. It was the woman who'd pulled her to safety that afternoon in the yard. "H.. hello," Sheva stuttered out. The person across from her smiled. "Hey," she nodded. She lifted up her heavily laden down tray and tipped it slightly, allowing some of it to land on Sheva's. "You looked like you were still hungry." Sheva eyed the food briefly. "I am," she admitted just before diving into it. There was silence for a long moment, and she looked up to regard the woman, watching her with a bemused expression. "Er.. thank you.." "No sweat," the woman said with a nod and another smile. She paused to let Sheva stuff her face, then said, "Girl, I don't know what that was all about out there today, but you could've gotten yourself killed." Sheva hunched down. "So? What difference would that make.." The woman across the table grew quiet, saying in a near-whisper, "Listen to me. Have you really thought this over? Is that really how you'd want this to end? You'd wanna spend your last days in this hell? How about your family? Don't you ever wanna see them again?" Sheva let out one humorless 'hah'. "I don't got a family," she said, shovelling some more mashed potatoes into her face. "What about your friends, then?" Sheva just shook her head, and the woman scoffed. "Oh, c'mon now. You can't tell me you don't have any friends." "It's a long story." The woman grinned and laughed. "I'm here for the next three, maybe two- anna-half on good behavior. I got the time." Sheva eyed her dinner companion. "You first," she said evenly. "Fair enough," said the woman. "What do you want to know?" "Do YOU have any family?" The other inmate beamed. "Two beautiful boys. Seven and three." "Why are you here?" It took her some time to answer: "...Officially? 'Involuntary manslaughter'. The real story? I chased a monster that was trying to prey on little boys like mine.. but I guess I didn't hit my brakes quite soon enough." She paused again, then sighed. "How about you?" "I.. robbed an armored car," Sheva said, lowering her eyes to the table. The woman let out a low whistle. "Did your partners turn on you or something?" "I told you.. I have no friends, no partners. I was.. I am.. all alone." Sheva's dinner companion blinked and sized Sheva up. "You? Alone, took out an armored car? C'mon now." For the first time in a long time, Sheva allowed herself a little smile. "Maybe later I'll show you." "I can't believe that you don't have any friends, though. You're a cute little kid.. surely you must've turned someone's head your way." Sheva shook her head no. "You mean there's NOBODY out there who cares about you?" Sheva went distant momentarily as she thought briefly of Britanny, and the woman grinned. "Aha." "Huh?" "I see it. The hope that someday you'll be able to see that person again." The woman grinned. Just then, a guard blew a whistle and called for everyone to return to cells. The woman stood, and Sheva watched her for a moment before standing up herself. Sheva turned and waited for a gap in the line so she could put her tray away, when she heard "Hey, girlfriend!" She realized it was directed at her, and turned to see her dinner partner five feet away. "Sheva," she corrected her. The woman grinned. "Angie," she said. "Keep that hope, Sheva.. it's what we survive on in here. You got phone privileges?" Sheva nodded slightly. "Phone your friend. Tell them you can't wait to see them again. It'll do wonders for both of you, trust me. My kids send me videotapes.. of them, and of old sitcoms.. it's what keeps me going." "O.. okay," Sheva stammered. "And how 'bout sitting with me for breakfast tomorrow?" Sheva nodded a little and tried to smile. "Sure," she said. Angie waved and blended into the lineup. After a moment, Sheva did too, a renewed sense of purpose filling her up. THE NEXT MORNING Gina reached over for the phone as it rang, but stopped with her hand resting on the handset.. it'd stopped before she could pick it up. She went back to her reading, getting two more pages of Popular Science done before it rang again. She picked up and said "Hel--" but heard a click even before she had spoken half of the word. She looked at the display of the phone; the caller-ID said it was a blocked number. She shrugged and once again went back to her reading. Fully 30 minutes later, it rang yet again. She lunged for the receiver and snatched it up. "Hello?" she said quickly. "Uh? uh--uhm.. hmm.." came the voice of the person on the other end. Gina was a little bewildered at first. "..Brit?" she said. "Uhm.. n.. no," the nervous voice continued. "I--I--actually, I was.. uhm, I was looking for her.." Gina paused for a moment before she realized who was calling her. "Sheva??" "Uh.. uh-huh," came the voice, a little tinier now. "She and Stripe have gone to Aebra," Gina explained. "They won't be back for a couple weeks, although I'll be talking to them tomorrow night when they get there if you want me to relay--" "N..no, it's okay," Sheva said, seemingly growing at least part of a backbone all of a sudden. "I just wanted to call and say.. well.. to say thank you to her.. and I hope to see her again soon.." Gina sat in stunned silence for a few moments. Then, quietly and with sincerity, she said, "I'm sure you're more than welcome, Sheva.. And I'll pass on your message to Brit as soon as I can." "Thank you, Gina," Sheva's voice came across the line with a heartfelt tone. "Thank you very much." "You're welcome," Gina responded bewilderedly. "Think nothing of it." "I can't," Sheva told her audience of one. "There's no way I can just toss this aside." "I think I understand," said Gina. After a long pause, Sheva answered quietly, "Then perhaps I owe you as much as I do her." THE NEXT DAY "Hey! Cat girl! Mail call!" Sheva lifted her head from the cot. At first, she didn't think the inmate delivering the mail meant her, but she looked up and saw that the woman was standing at the bars, holding an envelope up to them. Sheva leapt to her feet and scrambled over to the door, taking the envelope as the woman pulling mail duty moved on. As if she'd received a letter from Santa himself, Sheva excitedly hurried over to her cot and sat down, tail flicking a little, studying the envelope all the time. It was plain white, with her name in block letters on the front. No return address, no other identifying marks. she pondered, turning it over and tearing it open with a claw. One slip of paper fell out, nothing more. She picked it up and read: Well, Sheva, you had your chance, and you blew it. Too bad.. there was a lot we could've done together. Never mind the fact that you could've been back doing what you do best.. never mind that you could have had access to whatever you need to do whatever you want.. There's a lot about yourself that only I can supply to you.. For example.. you know a great deal about my work. Ionis, Zelda, and Daishi, I took from being nobodies and boosted them, augmented them, and re-engineered them into the people they are today. What makes you think you're any different? -E. It took a moment for the implication to sink in, but when it did, Sheva gasped and dropped the note and the envelope. she wondered. She looked up at herself in the small bathroom mirror hung above her cell's toilet. TO BE CONTINUED Jason Low with great contributions by Mario Di Giacomo presents Doubled Up: Lost & Found FRIDAY, 13 AUGUST 0815 Angie jumped a little as Sheva got to the table, letting her tray fall to the tabletop, and letting herself slump onto the bench. Instead of beginning to eat breakfast, she put her head in her hands and shook it halfheartedly. Angie watched with surprise for a few moments, then said: "I think I'm gonna change your nickname to 'frustration'." "Aarh," came Sheva's response. "What's eating you?" Angie asked. "You've been acting crazy all week." Sheva tilted her head up; her hands slid down her face from her forehead to her mouth and covered it, muffling her reply: "Well.." "Hey, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong," Angie pointed out. "It's kind of a long story," Sheva explained. Angie smiled her usual smile and said, "Like I told you before, I'm not going anywhere." Sheva paused for a moment, then nodded slightly. "All right, then.. how much do you know about genetics?" Angie hmm'ed. "Not a lot," she said. "I was never a science major." "I am who I am today," Sheva went on, "because of a little kid who's a wizard at it. But I need to find out what he did to make me.. happen.." "How do you mean?" "Well, you're from around here, aren't you?" Angie nodded. "Yup.. Beautiful downtown Gwinnett County." "So you must've heard of the Diggerses, then." Angie's face adopted a look of triumph as she snapped her fingers. "THAT'S who you look like! THANK you." She smiled again. Sheva allowed a tiny hint of a smile, then went back to her story. "Well, Pee Wee made me like her.. Britanny Diggers, in all ways physical.. in order to fight her. He tried to make me her equal in every way, so that I'd be able to fight her, to keep her occupied, so to speak, while he and his three goons went off and dealt with Britanny's sister Gina and her friends. Gina's an adventurer, ya'know.. she goes after whatever finds she can think of, and usually succeeds, no matter who tries to get in her way.. myself included.." "Okaaay.." Sheva shook her head, pausing to catch her breath. "Anyway, the first time we met, I surprised Brit, and had the upper hand.. for about thirty seconds." She closed her eyes and relived it as she told Angie the story. "Not only did she defeat me, but she was able to pass herself off as me and go find Pee Wee and stop him from bugging Gina. She got back at him for his getting back at her through me." Sheva looked up and opened her eyes. "You still following?" Angie simply nodded once slowly, unable to do more. "Anyway, she and I clashed several more times after that, and it always ended in my failure, with her mopping the floor with me.." For a long time, Sheva said nothing. Angie opened her mouth to speak, but Sheva carried on again just then. "Anyway, originally, I believed, because it's what I was told, that I was simply created as a clone in all ways physical, generated from some tissue samples from Britanny. But now.... I'm not so sure." "Why's that?... Dare I ask." "'Cause Pee Wee sent me a letter last week. He's got these three other mercenary goons, like I was saying. He enhanced them genetically from three nobodies he plucked off the street, into his enforcer type bad guys. You understand what I'm saying?" Angie nodded again. "Well," Sheva concluded, "....he implied.. that the same might apply to me." Angie let out a low whistle. You mean you think you were.. someone else.. before you became.. Britanny's clone?" Sheva nodded. "That's the basic idea." "Wow. Against your will, he did this?" Sheva shrugged. "Well, that's just it, I don't know; I don't have any memories of anything other than being me." "Wow," Angie reiterated. "That sounds like it should violate some kind of international law or convention or something to me." "Yeah, well.. in here, I got no way of finding out. And it's gonna kill me to wait three whole years before I can get to the truth." Angie hmmm'ed. "You say this is a kid that was behind all this?" "Yeah." So he has, I presume, a computer hooked up to the net?" "Are you kidding? He practically IS the net." Angie smiled again, but this time, rather than the warm friendly smile she normally wore, it was a scheming, devilish one. "I have an idea," she said. Britanny poked her head into Gina's room. "Are you still here? Oh good, you are," she said. "Zoinks!" Gina blurted out, caught in the middle of getting dressed. "You should've knocked first!" Brit just grinned. "Gee, that sounds familiar." "Ha ha, touche." She wriggled into her jeans and stood up. "Oh! Did you want to come with us today? It should be really fun!" "Not on your life," Britanny shook her head with a smile. "Mall of Georgia opens today and I intend to be at the front doors when they cut the ribbon!" She giggled with excitement, then held out her hand and added, "And I need the Mark 8, 'cause it's got the most trunk space." Gina froze and stared at Brit. "Uh... *I* need the Mark 8, 'cause it has the most trunk space." "Well, we can't BOTH have it.." "C'mon, Cheets," Gina protested. "You can get your stuff delivered!" "Oh, I suppose," Brit frowned. "That takes half the fun outta it, though." "Here, take the Mark 4," Gina said, scooping a set of keys off her dresser and tossing them to Brit. "It should be able to carry your most important purchases with you, if you really feel the need to.." "I guess that'll have to work," Brit said. "Now you're gonna make me decide what's my most important purchases, though." Gina chuckled. "I'm sure you'll manage." Just then, the doorbell rang. Gina looked up. "Oh, that's probably Ryan," she said. "Mind letting him in while I get finished in here?" "Sure," Britanny said, heading for the door. "I gotta get ready to go anyway. Thanks, sis." "No sweat." Gina watched the door close, then swapped the T-shirt she had on for a different one, checking her appearance in the mirror. She repeated the process, then did it yet one more time, ending up with the shirt she originally had on, just as the door opened and Ryan walked in. "Hi!" she said brightly. "Looks like it's just gonna be you and me today. Brit wants to go shopping, big surprise there." Ryan laughed a little as he gave Gina a hug in greeting. "I kinda figured that.. they say that place is the biggest mall in the South. She'll live there for a couple days, I bet." "I know!" Gina said. "What about your sister? Does she wanna come?" "Nah," he said, shaking his head. "She's as preoccupied as Brit is. All this past week, she's been gettin' up at 5:30, goin' downstairs to the practice room, and warning me that if I disturb her, I won't live long enough to regret it." "Well, what do you think she's doing?" "If you ask me, she seems upset with the way she fought during their battle with the Dynasty. I think she's trying to practice extra hard to make up for it." The subject of Gina and Ryan's conversation stood in her downstairs mini-gymnasium that very moment, moving back and forth, swinging her arms this way and that, and twisting and turning every so often. She looked like she was performing a cross between several kinds of martial arts and a Klingon ritual of some sort. Rhi' continued to perform the moves with practiced skill, a skill which wasn't her own to begin with. As she shadow-boxed of sorts, her mind drifted back to the fight between her and Riel aboard the Dynasty's vessel, although she wasn't seeing it from her point of view, that of the attacker; these were, she realized, purely defensive moves. She pulled up to a stop just as she made a sharp jutting motion with the open palm of her hand; she somehow knew that had anyone been rushing her, there was a negative field there that would send them hurtling away from her with as much force as she'd been approaching with. This carried on for a while as she practiced and experimented, until she decided to test out her strength on a pair of cinderblocks stacked in a corner. She reached up, then bent over and punched through them.. or tried to; something happened--perhaps she forgot to use her newfound powers, perhaps something else, but the cinderblocks were not the items to shatter into a million pieces. Rhianna fell back onto her behind, gripping her wrist with her good hand, rolling around in a near-fetal position, trying hard not to scream. After the initial shot of pain had subsided, she rolled to a sitting position and sat there, right hand cradling the broken and battered left. She watched her hand hang limply there for a moment, and then, eventually, released her other hand's grip; she flexed her left hand open and closed slowly a couple of times, then rotated it at the wrist as well. "Good as new," she muttered. "Two lessons: Learn your strength and skills, and get used to 'em." Luckily for Sheva and Angie, exercise hour that day was right after breakfast, so they were able to enact Angie's plan straight away. They went to the prison library together and headed straight for one of the computers, Angie in the lead. "So what are you doing?" Sheva said as she sat down beside Angie. "I'm going to send my son an e-mail," she said. She looked at the clock. "In fact, knowing him," she added with a wry smile, "he's already awake and online, probably. Never could peel him away to the breakfast table." "Oh," Sheva nodded. After a moment, she thought to ask, "What did you do before you came here?" "You mean for a living?" Angie said as she logged in. "Actually, I taught grade eleven at Gwinnett. I'm surprised you didn't know that; it was in all the papers when I went to trial." "You forget, I probably didn't even exist when you were going to trial," Sheva added quietly. Angie's face reddened a little. "Right," she said a moment later. "I forgot.. I'm sorry." She typed for a moment, then added, "I suppose that means I needn't bother asking you what you did before you came here, then." She opened a Composition window and started to type. "Gabe--my son--is a real whiz at computers," Angie went on as she typed. "He'll be able to get the information we need easily." "You've seen him do this kind of thing before?" Sheva inquired. "Oh yeah," Angie said dismissively. "He makes a game out of it. He's not like those kids you see in the movies; he never does any damage, so I just turn a blind eye to it. He's promised me he won't get himself into trouble." "You think he can do it?" Sheva asked. "We'll find out soon enough," came the response, followed by, "Now give me his full name and the location of his computer. Gabe will figure out the rest." Sheva did, and Angie sent off the mail. The two sat back in their chairs, and Sheva looked at Angie. "What now?" she asked. Angie smiled up at her friend. "Now we wait." "For how long?" "Well, it's not going to be instantaneous," Angie responded. "I know you're anxious to find out, but it's possibly going to take a day, a week, or longer. And there's nothing further we can do from here." Angie looked up at the clock again. "For now, since there's still 45 minutes left in exercise hour, why don't we go outside and get some air?" "Okay," Sheva nodded. "We gotta get off the computer anyway," Angie said, standing up and motioning for Sheva to follow. "I'm sure Big Bertha is lying in wait somewhere, waiting for one to be free.. she gets.. well, 'nasty', if she can't log onto her MUCK at least once a day." As Angie led her outside, Sheva tried not to stare at all the other inmates in the library, wondering who Big Bertha was. Angie kept up her pace once they were allowed outside into the yard; in fact, she quickened it somewhat, apparently going for a jog around the perimeter of the fenced-in yard. Sheva picked up her speed and joined her friend. "So," Angie said, "What's your plans once you get out?" "Huh?" Sheva replied. A second later, she added, "I.. hadn't thought of that." "Oh, come on," Angie grinned. "EVERYONE dreams about what they're gonna do when they get out. My kids and I have this ice cream place we go to every weekend, when we go to their grandparents' place. Actually, that's who's taking care of them now, their grandparents, until I get out. Then, I'm gonna go up to their place and grab onto my kids and hold them tight.. but first, on the way up there.. well, let's just say the ice cream man in Buford is gonna make a lotta money off me that day." "I honestly don't have a clue what I'll do," Sheva said. "Really?" Angie replied. "Yeah. Really. When I turned myself in to come in here, it was because I knew that I'd done something wrong and I had to pay for it. Now that I AM in here, I decided that I have to live through it and prove to everybody that I can take what they're dishing out. And that's as far ahead as I ever planned." "Sheva, you gotta think a little harder than that. The first thing you're gonna do is go see that friend of yours, right?" "I... suppose.." Sheva said with uncertainty. "And you and your friend are gonna hang around together for a good long while. Trust me, it's what friends do when one of 'em gets out." "Have you been through the system before?" Sheva asked. Angie shook her head. "Nope," she said, "but I've seen enough kids in my classes go through this." She changed the subject pointedly. "And just think of how fit we'll both be if we jog a little each day. Burn off all those extra calories we're putting on by eating that prison sludge." Sheva shrugged. "I'm not even workin' hard yet." "Hmm? I'm running my feet off over here. Why doncha go ahead and pick up the pace to what's normal for you, and I'll catch up." Sheva chuckled and said "Okay, see you in a second." She dug in and poured on the speed. A gust of wind buffetted Angie, and about a second and a half later, Sheva came up behind her and resumed Angie's jogging speed. "Hi! Miss me?" Angie stopped right in her tracks, staring at Sheva. A few people out in the yard looked up as well, but then looked away, two people jogging being an uninteresting sight. Had anyone else seen Sheva's speed, though.. Sheva turned around and stepped backwards, continuing in the direction they had been heading, a smile on her face. "Did you just do what I think you did?" Angie asked incredulously. "What do you think I did?" Sheva said, still smiling. Angie started jogging again, and when she caught up with Sheva, the latter turned around and faced forward again as they continued. "How fast can you run, anyway?" Angie asked. Sheva shrugged. "Well, I've never really clocked myself, but if I'm supposed to be a clone of Britanny, she can supposedly do 750 miles an hour for 15 seconds." "Wow. I bet you create a sonic boom going that fast." Sheva smiled again and tensed up as if to take off again. "I could find out, if you want.." "No thanks," Angie laughed. After a couple of moments, she said to Sheva quietly, "It's good to see you smiling and making jokes. I think this is the first time I've seen it from you." Sheva, after another long pause, said, "Yeah.. me too." "It's a good feeling, isn't it?" "Sure is." Ryan closed up the trunk of the Mark 8. "Well, that's the last of it." "Okay," Gina said. "Let me talk to Brit just one second more." She turned and headed to the lounge area. "Last chance, Brit!" "No thanks," Britanny smiled. "It'd seem too much like I was crowding in on a date or something." "Suit yourself, sis," Gina said, turning around. "We're outta here; see ya." "Enjoy yourselves," Cheetah responded. As Gina walked past one of the labs, the computer chirped. She glanced at it and blinked. "Well, I'll be damned." She raised her voice. "Brit, you got an email! Seeya!" A few minutes later, as the Mark 8 was heading up the ramp, Britanny, all dressed up and ready to head out, came through the lab on her way to the garage, giggling about keeping up her record of opening every serious mall in the state. She paused to check the email, which came with anonymous headers: Britanny-- I need your help. Meet me at the food court at the new mall ASAP. "Huh," she said to herself. "Wonder who that could be. Well, at least it's on my way." She skipped out towards the garage. Rhianna took her practice outside. Standing in the back yard, she stood before the old tire swing that'd hung there for years. In fact, she could remember playing on it all the time when she was a little kid. As her thoughts went back to that, she saw a youthful Ryan in her mind's eye playing on the swing, and squeezed her eyes shut, frowning. she told herself, and put both hands on the swing, facing directly towards it. She shoved the swing away from her, then spread her feet apart, steeling herself, and held one hand palm-open and away from her at the end of her outstretched arm, and gripped that wrist with the other hand. Setting a determined look, she gave her hand a little shove as the swing came back down, and the tire abruptly reversed course, continuing on an upward arc as if it'd bounced off of something. she thought. "EEK!" She flattened herself to the ground as the swing came back at her again. It swung right through the space she'd been standing in and continued on a pendulum-like course. After she got up and stopped the swing again, she stood in front of it as before, but instead of starting it in motion as a normal person would, she set up as she'd set up before to repel it, and again shoved towards the tire with her hand. Without making contact with her, the tire leapt into motion, arcing directly away from her as if she'd flung it with all her might. Catching it this time, she realized she had a power to manipulate kinetic energy, sort of. She could cause something to move, or to move in an entirely different direction. She thought of how Riel had used that power against her in their fight. Rhi' said to herself. She held onto the swing and then let go, and nothing happened. Rhianna frowned and tried again, this time imagining the swing flying away from her, as if her mental image was crucial to it. It apparently wasn't, as it again didn't work. "Damn you!" she muttered and kicked the swing. It spun around a few times, and she hopped on one foot, yelping in pain, as she'd broken a toe. She sat down on the grass and pulled off her shoe and sock, then grabbed onto her foot and felt it healing. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god for the healing powers that came with the other ones--" A sudden chill ran over her, as if she'd committed a grievous error; she looked up nervously and saw Stripe ten feet away, at the rear corner of the house, staring at her. Britanny sprinted into the mall and took in the sights. The stores and the sizes were almost overwhelming. "Oh boy I'm gonna be here for a WEEK!" she squealed with joy. Then she remembered her phantom e-mail message. she said. Five minutes later, Brit stood there in the food court, arms on her hips, looking around. "C'mon, Rhi', you're cutting into our shopping time.." she muttered. "Ahem," came a voice. Brit spun around, and there was no one there. "No, down here," the voice continued. Brit looked down to see a young boy, black hair and brown eyes, looking up at her. "Hi there, little guy," she said, putting a hand on his head and ruffling his hair while she looked up and around at the people again. "Are you lost?" "No," he responded, wearing a half-serious, half-indifferent expression. "Mrs. Diggers, I'm the one who called you here." "You are??" she said. "Oh, I get it now." She opened her purse and pulled out a photo of herself and a pen. "Who shall I make it out to?" "You still misunderstand me," he said. "I need your help." "I can only think of one thing that a kid would need help with in a mall, and I don't buy for underage kids," Brit frowned. "I'm doing something for a friend of my mother's," the boy finally clarified, "and I think I will need you to watch out for me." "Huh?" "I need to get into Erwin Talon's computer system.. naturally, I can't do that at home, because he could trace my IP and find me right away.." "Okaaaay," Brit nodded slowly. "So I came here, because the new Ginko's here in the mall has a pay-as- you-play wide-area-networked service, so even if he does find out what domain I'm coming from, the address won't show the store, just Ginko's nameserver entry, and he'll have to check which store it is by brute force." "I'll take your word for it.." "But he might just get lucky and latch onto a packet that has an ID that could identify this store as the originator. So in case he sends his lackeys after whoever's attacking his system, I need someone who can take care of them while I work. I used a search engine to find people who have gone up against him in the past, and found the newsgroup alt.fan.britanny-diggers." "Okay, kid, you lost me there," she said. "Just tell me you need me to watch for Pee Wee's goons while you do your hacking thing." "In so many words, yes." "Ok, let's go find Ginko's then, 'cause I need to get some shopping done." "I already know where it is; I checked the map on the website. It's in U384 in the east wing." "All righty, let's go." She took the kid by the hand and walked eastward, although he pulled his hand away almost instantly. Sheva sat in her cell and read, feeling somewhat content and able to relax a little. However, she'd read all of her books at least twice, and hadn't had the presence of mind to get any new ones from the library, so she was without any worthwhile reading material. She set the book aside and sat there, simply thinking. she acknowledged, trying to shut out the noise from the rest of the cellblock. She ignored her rhyme and carried on: she reminded herself, she suddenly realized. She looked down at herself. she thought. That random thought got her off on a tangent. she said to herself. Her mind drifted back to the brief period of time when Rhianna sided with her against the Diggerses. Ignoring the fact for the moment that she'd led Rhianna along at a time when Rhi' was most vulnerable, traumatized as she was, Sheva remembered how Rhianna had betrayed Gina so nastily, and how Gina had forgiven her friend instantly. It gave her a bit of hope. Rhianna stood there in shock for a moment. Stripe remained standing where he'd been when he was noticed. Finally, seven words barely escaped Rhianna's lips in a whisper: "H--how long have you been standing there?" "Long enough," he said. When that produced a scowl from her, he hastily amended, "Only a couple of minutes. I've been trying to find out if anyone knows where Britanny got to." He nodded towards Rhianna and the backyard and said, ""What is all this? What are you doing?" Rhi' took a single step forward and shrugged. "I noticed it just after I finished off Riel, on the ship." Stripe stepped towards Rhianna and took one of her hands in his to look at it. "Interesting," he mumbled. "What happened?" she asked. "Did I take all of her power or something? Did I--" FWSH! A brilliant flash erupted between them and both were propelled backwards a half-dozen feet. Both yelped out in surprise, and both landed in the grass about twelve feet apart. Stripe was the first to his feet. "Are you all right?" "Y..yeah," Rhi' answered, getting up. "You?" "Nothing permanent," he said, rotating his wrist experimentally. "By any chance was that your telekinetic ability?" Rhi' hazarded. Stripe nodded, and she said, also with a nod, "I think my power deals with repelling kinetic energy. It must've backfired or something." "That would make sense, with what she put up against us," Stripe observed. "That's not all; I can also heal stuff with a touch.. as you saw when you walked in." "I did indeed. Does that work only upon you or can you help others?" "I.. haven't said anything to anyone," she said quietly, looking away. "I didn't want to yet." "There's no harm in telling, you know. It's not like they'll brand you an outcast and throw you out. After all, look at me.. they're used to it from me.." Rhi' shook her head. "It's not just that. I still wake up about every other morning and have to remind myself I'm not Ryan any more. And.. and I'm having a hard enough time dealing with that.. so bringing this on is the last thing I need." "If you tell them, they can help you deal with it, Rhian--" Again she shook her head. "Stripe, we've been good buddies for a while now.. I respect your intelligence and logical thinking.. but I just can't tell anybody right now." "I understand," he said with a nod of his own. "However. You will want to be careful, for there are probably some around you who already know. And not your friends or family, either.. but others. Don't be surprised if they contact you soon. Do not be afraid, either.. but be wary. What they will propose to involve you in will open your eyes much wider than they are now." He turned to leave. "I must go now." "What? Wait a minute.. what do you mean, 'others'? Who?" As he disappeared around the corner of the house, she heard him say, "And you have my word I won't tell anyone." "Stripe! Get back here! Who's coming after me?!" she called after him. Just then, she heard the sound of someone clearing his throat behind her, and she turned.. Britanny turned around and made sure Gabe was still beside her. "This is it." "Yes, it is," he said, walking into the store. She followed, saying "Where do you need to be?" He pointed to a computer in the back row and headed that way. Brit stood beside him as he sat down. "Excellent," he said. "Zip drive, laser printer, T1.. everything I need." "All right, so you're doing this, and I'm supposed to be watching for Daishi and the rest, right?" "Exactly." "Okay," Brit said. "I'll be over here." She pointed to the door, but the young lad didn't look up, engrossed in the computer already. "Mm-hmm," was all he emitted. Brit went to the front of the store and stood there, scanning the crowds. It didn't take long for her eyes to wander, though; across the corridor, there was a huge sign in the front window of a shop, reading "OPENING DAY ONLY! 55% OFF EVERYTHING IN THE STORE". She averted her eyes quickly, and when she turned away from the one sign, she saw another: "ONE DAY ONLY - BUY 3 PAIRS OF LADIES' REEBOP CROSS-TRAINERS, GET 1 FREE". Brit whimpered. Her wandering eyes found a third sign: "ALL YOU CAN CARRY FOR $500! DETAILS INSIDE". "Ohhh maaaan..." she moaned. Gina and Ryan sat by a pond in a clearing, in the forest north of the city. The Ginamobile was parked nearby, windows down and tunes wafting out into the clearing. The two of them sat there listening to the music and watching the world go by. "Hasn't this been a wild month or so?" Ryan asked. "Yeah," Gina nodded. "The Dynasty coming back for Stripe.. Sheva apparently changing her attitude.." "Rhianna being born.." Ryan supplied, and Gina nodded again in return. "Tanya," Gina simply said. "It's sure been hectic," Ryan acknowledged. "And we haven't had a chance to talk about it since then, 'cause it's been so busy," Gina said. "Maybe we need to catch up." "Fair enough," said Ryan. "How's Rhi' coming?" Gina asked. "Not bad, not bad," Ryan told her. "She.. and I tell you this 'cause I know you won't blab it to anyone else.. she admits to having nightmares every now and then, but they're a lot less than before." "That's good to hear." "Uh-huh.. but don't talk to her about it, 'kay?" "Okay. Why?" "She's getting tired of me asking how she's doing.. she outright said the other day she wants me to stop treating her like a copy of me trying to learn to be Rhianna, and treat her like Rhianna. In other words, act from now on as though she was always the way she is now.. meaning to treat her as Rhianna, plain and simple." "Sounds like a reasonable request," Gina said. "She wants to get on with her life instead of still being stuck at the point of transition." "Pretty much so, I think." "I can live with that." "Good." Ryan sat there for a minute, then: "Heard anything from Brianna yet?" "Nope.. but dad says mom was going there for a tournament this week, so she'll find out why nobody's contacted us yet. I'm sure if it was anything earth-shattering, mom would've gotten hold of dad right away." "Yeah.. plus, they've got some good people there if anything did crop up," Ryan acknowledged. Gina gasped facetiously and squeezed Ryan's arm. "Ryan Tabbot! Did I just hear a complimentary remark about Seance out of you?" Ryan chuckled. "Sure, I guess, if you wanna look at it that way. I guess I do owe him a bunch for all his help back when Rhianna and I were having our troubles." "He does try, you know." "I know, I know." "Anyway, yeah, he and the rest of 'em are more than capable of solving any problems they come up with, I'm sure. Besides, it's a vacation.. maybe they've extended their stay and're just not answering their phones, so to speak." "True.." Gina laughed a little. "You realize that leaves just us now, right?" "Hmm?" "Well, Bri', Genn, and Seance are on vacation, and my mom has technically joined 'em.. Brit and Stripe took some time off when they went to Aebra with Tanya.. so, other than my dad, it's you, me, and Rhianna that haven't had a vacation yet this year." Ryan smiled. "Well, I can't promise anything to your dad, but you have my word that you and I will yet get some time to ourselves.. and a little more than an afternoon like this, too." Gina thanked him with a squeeze and a smile. "I wish more people would've come today," she then said. "Like Rhi', for example. Sitting alone at home.. she must be bored to tears." "Who are you??" Rhianna said with surprise. The figure smiled. "Let's just say a friend of a friend," he answered her. "I'm part of an organization that deals with interesting people such as yourself. Let's just say I'll have a.. vested interest in your progress." "How do you mean? I don't have the slightest idea what you're--" He shook his head and smiled. "I've been watching you for longer than Stryyp'Gia was," he said. "Much longer." He adopted an apologetic expression for a moment. "In fact, in retrospect, we probably should've made this first contact long ago.. perhaps even at the time of your inception. ..However, the past is past, and this is where we're at now." "Wait a minute!" Rhianna snarled. "Are you saying you've been WATCHING me?" He laughed a little. "You have nothing to fear, Rhianna. My agency keeps tabs on many different people.. and entities.. especially those with special abilities such as yours. Stryyp'Gia included; he's progressing quite well. He'll be a good one for you to learn from." "So what is it you want again?" Rhianna asked. "Nothing at the moment," he replied, "but to tell you that I am here, and that there are people that are aware of your situation." Rhi' frowned. "Gee, that makes me feel a lot better," she deadpanned. "So what do YOU get out of this, then?" The reply was a single word: "Knowledge." The figure pulled a card out of his suit and extended it towards Rhianna. "It's my job to help you deal. If at ANY time, you find yourself in over your head, in any way, shape, or form, call me. Even if it's only a simple question, day or night, don't hesitate. Call and I'll be there." Rhianna looked down at the card: All it had was an 800 number on it. "So what do I call you when I cal--" She looked up again as she realized something had changed; the man was nowhere to be found now. She looked about, but the yard was empty. On the other side of the card, she found only one letter: M. Stripe was still nowhere to be found, of course, and Rhianna didn't feel much like practicing any more, what with the parade of people coming through the yard. She went inside and phoned Gina's place, only to get the machine. she realized. She shrugged to herself. She grabbed her stuff and headed out the door. Sheva sat at the mess hall table with Angie, working at her lunch halfheartedly. Angie, to her credit, hadn't spoken yet, and the two managed to get some food inside themselves. That was interrupted when Sheva said abruptly, "Can I ask you a question?" "Hm?" "If I came up to you, looking like I do now, and said I was your long-lost sister or daughter or whatever, how would you react?" "Wellll.." Angie said after a long moment. "Assuming," Sheva added, "that you had a long-lost sister or daughter or whatever." "Of course," Angie nodded. "You're worried about what to say if you DO end up having a family, right?" "Uh-huh." "I can see where you're coming from. Probably at first, I'd react like I reacted when you first changed your appearance in my presence." "Brit calls that 'formshifting'." "Who?" "Britanny. My.. friend." "Well, anyway, that was a pretty decent shock to me," Angie responded. "So you think I shouldn't?" "No.. actually.. I think you should. First of all, if it does turn out to be true, you'll be giving somebody, some family, peace of mind, knowing that you're safe, and that you haven't been left.. in some shallow, unmarked grave.. out in the cold woods.. by some rotten, uncaring bastard of a monster.." After a moment, Angie blinked and seemed to come back to earth. "Forgive me.. I'm sorry. Second of all, it'll give YOU peace. For six days now, I've seen you tearing yourself to pieces.. and it hurts me, too. You're a friend of mine now, and it doesn't do anyone any good to see their friends so upset all the time." "So you think that's what it's all about, huh? Friendship and finding inner peace?" "Well, it may not be ALL of it, but it's sure a big ol' part of it. But I want you to remember one thing. No matter what the outcome of this is"--Angie put a hand on Sheva's forearm--"Even if you DO turn out to be a clone, created in an instant.. you're still a fully-grown, fully competent, very decent person. Especially in my book." Sheva thanked Angie, but Angie wasn't done: "And one more thing: I don't imagine you've been exposed to it.. or if you aren't a clone, I presume you don't remember it, but here in America, we have a wonderful thing by the name of the civil system. Which means you could sue the SNOT out of this Pee Wee kid AND his parents, for what he did to you, provided you were someone else. And he'd probably go to jail for a good long time, too.. 'cause that's gotta be some kind of human rights violation. Regardless of whether or not it's true, though, you should be mad as hell at him." "Oh, I am," Sheva answered glumly, slouching down and putting her chin on her interlocked hands. "I just don't have the energy any more to be angry." Sheva felt it necessary to continue, apparently: "I've been nothing but angry all my life so far. I've been a nasty, bad person for months now.. and I'm tired of it." "I'm glad to hear it," Angie said quietly. "It's healthy to get that out of your system, but it's much more healthy to maintain a more positive outlook on life." Sheva nodded a little and then looked at Angie. "Are you counselling me like you did your kids in school?" Angie laughed. "Don't worry, there won't be a quiz later." Sheva sighed and looked at the clock. "How much longer're they gonna take?" Britanny stood fast at the entrance of Ginko's and checked her watch. "I wonder what's keeping him?" she muttered. She turned and headed back into the store, keeping an eye on the people around her while she sought out Gabe. She found him still seated at the same computer, the printer's output tray holding a thick stack of paper. "Almost done," he announced when she approached him. "'Kay. I'll just grab this so nobody else can make off with it," Brit said, pulling the paper out of the printer. "Good idea." Brit kept to herself, looking idly at the printouts. Her eyes widened and disinterest turned to attentiveness as she flipped through the first few pages. "Werecheetah DNA?? Is this about me? Who IS your mom, anyway?!> "Not about you," Gabe said, shaking his head no. "I was given a different name to look for. My mother is a.. 'guest' at Metro State Prison south of the city." "This is about Sheva?? Why didn't you say so?" "You didn't ask," Gabe responded. "So what are you looking for, then? This is a LOTTA info," Brit said, flipping through the stack. "All I was told to do was get anything relating to Sheva and deliver it to my mother. Apparently there are some questions Sheva needs answered." "I wonder what that is," Brit murmured, looking through the pages. As she scanned them, pieces started to fall into place. "..Listen, I've got a little bit of a background in biology. Maybe I should take a look at these." "Suit yourself," Gabe said. "I'm done." He printed out another few sheets and shut off the computer. "Just so long as they find their way to my mother." "Hey--if you can count on me enough to watch guard for you while you do this, you can count on me to do the right thing here, too." "Good point." Britanny said to herself as the kid gathered up his belongings. Brit looked over the pages again. "I'm through," Gabe said as he handed the last few sheets to Brit, then stood up. "YIPPEE!" Brit cheered. "Now to hit the rest of the stores!" "Do whatever you want," he declared. "Malls bore me. I'm goin' home." "Hmph. Fair enough," Brit said and turned away. She turned back as Gabe made a few umm'ing and er'ing noises. "In retrospect," he said, with an embarrassed look on his face, "you, uh, you could make it out to 'Gabe' if you want.." After a moment, Britanny caught on and smiled, hunting for a photo and a pen again. Gina sighed, and Ryan took a sidelong glance at her. He put down his drink and sandwich and said, "What's up?" "Oh.. nothing.." "Ah, no, no, no.. you're not gonna do that to me.. You'll say 'oh, nothing' and I'll let it go and you'll be all upset at me. So talk." Gina laughed humorlessly. "I just realized I haven't DONE anything.. you know what I mean.. since Genghis Khan's tomb. I haven't noticed because the haul from that find was so good.. but now I think I'm starting to get restless. I wanna DO something.. and I wanna do it without Pee Wee or Laura or anyone else beating me to it.. y'know what I mean?" "I sure do," Ryan admitted. "Don't sweat it. You'll get back into a good rythym again. I promise." Gina looked at him. "You're making a lot of promises today, mister." He grinned. "Does it help if I say 'trust me'?" She laughed out loud. "No," she said, "but the thought is appreciated." Brit pulled to a stop in the driveway and got out of the car, surprised somewhat to see Rhianna there, sitting on the porch. "Hi," she said, getting the papers out of the car. "What's up?" "I.." Rhi' began, not sure what to do. She'd made it all the way over to the house before realizing she had no idea how she wanted to proceed once she got there. "Bored?" Brit grinned. "I know, everyone's out doing their own thing today. C'mon in." "Uh.. yeah, bored," Rhi' said, figuring it was as good as anything. She followed Brit into the house; the latter put her stuff down and took the stack of papers into the living room, flipping on the TV for some background noise while she looked over the pages. "What's that?" Rhianna said, flopping down into a chair. "Something I picked up while I was out," Britanny said. "It's a long story." "Hmm." Rhianna leaned over and grabbed the remote, flipping through channels aimlessly. Brit pored over the documents, mumbling and muttering. Every now and then she'd explain a little to Rhianna. "It's info from Pee Wee's labs," she said. "Someone got them for a friend of mine, who's apparently looking for something in them." "What?" "I'll tell you when I find it." "No offense, but why are you looking through it and not Gina, for example?" "It deals with biology and chemistry, sort of, and I have a bit of knowledge in that field, seeing as how I have a degree in marine biology," Brit told Rhianna. "So I figured I'd take a stab at it." "Uh-huh.. good luck with it, then." "Thanks." The two sat in silence for a moment or three, the only sounds being the television and the pages being turned. Then, Rhianna added, "Is it about Sheva?" "Yeah," Brit nodded. She rested the pages on her lap for a minute and looked up. "This is all about her origins, so I'm presuming something's come up where she's trying to find out more about herself." "Like what?" "Well, seeing's how this all has to do with the way she emulates my abilities and stuff, I think it's probably dealing with her makeup, so to speak. How she's put together.. she's probably trying to learn how to use all of her skills, or something like that." "Oh," Rhianna said. "Well, I guess that's good." "I guess," Brit agreed. Rhianna sat down beside Brit and looked over her shoulder. "Don't forget, I'm no slouch in the brains department myself.. anything I can do to help?" "Hmm.. Well, it's kind of confusing, the way it's all laid out, but sure, a second pair of eyes never hurt." The two of them regarded the pages, flipping back and forth. Rhianna eventually said: "Uh.. Brit, are you sure this is about her abilities?" "Hm? Whaddaya mean?" "Well, lookit here.. this info here is about her abilities, yeah, how 'subject Ionis' added some kind of spell to allow her to heal quickly. But this other information talks about her physical construction, so to speak, and who and where it came from. See, right here on page.. well, this page back here." Rhianna flipped a few back. "You are the base, of course, and he added some to the mix.. presumably to make up for the magical parts of you that don't transfer over in DNA, like your strength and so on.. from Daishi and Zelda.. hmm, without their knowledge, it seems, that's interesting.. and that's it." "Really?" "Hey, I wouldn't lie. 'Donor' is even bolded.. What's that mean?" "Beats the hell outta me, I didn't get the stuff off the computer, some kid did." "Some kid?" "Son of a friend of Sheva's. Like I said, long story." "Okay.. well, anyway.." Rhi's eyes scanned the pages some more. "Oh wow.." Brit said in a hushed tone. "Huh?" "I just had a thought," Brit said. "Ever since she got to jail, Sheva has been trying to find out what makes her tick; why she got so independent from Pee Wee and all that.." "Yeah?" "Well, what if she got to wondering about this--Daishi and the others stick with Pee Wee because he took them from being losers with no point to their lives, and enhanced them, and made them somebodies, so that they owed him for making their lives mean something?" "And?" "AND.. she's never felt like she owed Pee Wee anything. She's said that before to me. And his goal wasn't to enhance her, or to make her life better.. he wanted someone to occupy and distratct me, someone who would be able to deal with me better than his other goons could. His other goons were just his bodyguards, people whose jobs were to keep him safe.. but she wasn't going to keep him safe.. in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she was going to be a throwaway, or maybe a punching bag for the goons once she had stopped me that one time. Something must've happened to get him to change his mind." "But anyway," Rhi' prodded. "But anyway," Brit went on, "I think Sheva is wondering whether or not she was created specifically to fight me, or if she was 'enhanced' into a version of me from someone else's base DNA." "What you mean is, whether she's a clone or a real person?" "I guess you could say that, yeah. Damn. Too bad Gabe didn't get anyone else's records to compare from." "'Gabe'?" "The kid who did this.. the kid of a friend of Sheva's, so I gather. Anyway, if you're right.. let's go!" "Go?" "To the jail.. she's a pretty unstable person, it would probably relieve her to find this out." "All right, then," Rhi' said, getting up along with Brit. It was about a ten-minute drive from the complex to Metro State Prison. For the first couple of minutes, Rhianna said virtually nothing, and just sat in the passenger seat, holding the envelope with the papers inside. Finally, she got up the nerve to ask Britanny, "Can I ask you something kinda personal and totally off the topic?" "O....kay," Brit said. "Cheets.. when you.. or rather, when Stripe first came back to you after getting those powers from the artifacts, what was your reaction? How did you deal with it?" "Uhmm.." Britanny answered, unsure of where the question came from or was heading. "Sorry," Rhianna said quietly. "Never mind." "No, no, it's okay," Brit said. "You just caught me off guard there. Hmm, how did I react. Well, at the time, I was happy enough that he was alive, you'll remember." "No, I don't.. I didn't go with you guys to Aebra.. er, I mean, Ryan didn'.. aw, you know what I mean." "It's okay.. I do," Brit smiled. "He got pretty seriously injured on Aebra. I was happy enough to get him back, I didn't bother asking about the artifacts." "But you didn't see him as a fr.. as an outcast or anything, did you?" "What? No, of course not," Brit said with surprise. "..Do you?" "No!" Rhianna answered, horrified. "No.. I'm sorry.. I didn't mean it like that.." "What DID you mean, then?" "Well.." "You want to know if the powers granted him by his artifacts gained him any unwanted attention, is that it?" "Sort of," Rhianna admitted. "Well, we all knew right away, 'cause Archon--his little girlfriend up there on Aebra--told us she had to seal the artifacts inside him, or something like that. So the edge was taken off the surprise when I saw him." "I see." "Now, AFTER the wedding, that was another story.. he insists he was visited by someone while he was alone, but *I* didn't see anybody.. and I was there immediately after he says this guy was there." "You don't believe him?" "Well, I wouldn't say THAT.. but I don't exactly have any proof." "Sometimes things happen without proof," Rhianna observed. "Or reason." "True, I guess." After a moment, Brit added, "So why WERE you asking about Stripe's artifacts?" "Oh.. no reason," Rhianna said. "Just making conversation." Brit shrugged. "Whatever.. we're here now." She pulled into the visitor parking at the prison. Sheva jumped to her feet when the guard said she had a visitor. She gladly got cuffed up and shuffled along towards the visiting room. She sat down before Britanny and Rhianna, almost forgetting to get her wrists uncuffed so she could use the phone. She picked up the handset and said nothing, simply staring at her mirror image. Sheva wondered while she waited. She didn't even think to ask why Britanny was the one bringing her the information. She simply assumed that that was her reason for showing up. She watched as Brit took a stack of pages from an envelope in Rhianna's hands, and folded it open to a single page, then pressed it up against the glass. Nervously, Sheva read it. When she'd read the three lines of donor information, she breathed out a heavy sigh of relief, then laid her head on the tabletop. "Sheva?" Britanny said, looking down at her identical twin. "Are you okay?" "Thank you," came her voice quietly through the handset. "You're welcome," Britanny said after a moment. "Is it the outcome you wanted?" Sheva had to think about that one. She raised her head and looked at Brit. "I think so," she said finally. "I'm glad," Britanny said, with Rhianna nodding beside her. "I really am." "Can I have it?" "The info?" Brit said. "I guess so.. if they'll let me.." Sheva called over a guard and explained, and he nodded; a moment later, someone came and took the envelope from Brit, and not long after that, it was on Sheva's side of the glass, and Sheva started to open and read it. "Thanks," Sheva said, rocking Brit's world with a genuine smile. "You're welcome," Brit repeated. "You wanna talk for a while? Is there anything we can do for you?" "No.. I think I know exactly what I need to do now," Sheva said. "And I should go do it while there's still time." "Sheva.." "Don't worry, it's nothing BAD," Sheva told Brit with a smile. "In fact, you'd probably be proud of me. I'll send you a copy when it's done.. watch your mail." "Ohhhkaaaaay," Brit said. "Trust me." Sheva shifted her gaze to Rhianna. "I'm glad to see you're okay," she said. Brit turned to Rhianna and relayed what Sheva said. Rhianna took the handset and said, "You too, Sheva. I'm glad things are working out." "Me too," Sheva answered. "For what it's worth.. I thought about you earlier today." "You did?" Rhi' said with surprise. "Yeah. It's a long story. I'll explain some other time.. both of you are welcome to visit me anytime they let you." "We will, Sheva," Rhianna nodded. Sheva got up and was led away again, and the two ladies headed back to the Mark 4. "What do you think she's got planned?" Rhianna said when Brit explained what Sheva had said. "I have no idea," Brit said. "I guess I'll just have to watch the mail like she said." "Guess so," Rhianna acknowledged. She put a hand over her stomach. "I just realized I haven't eaten all day. Mind stopping somewhere on the way back home?" Britanny suddenly sported a wide grin. "Mind a kind of a long side-trip?" "To where?" "There's a new mall in the northeast. After we eat, I think it's high time we got you some outfits that compliment you a little better than all these hand-me-down tracksuits you keep throwin' on." Rhianna groaned. "I guess this day had to come sooner or later, didn't it?" she said with a smile. "Oh, come on, you've been waiting for it," Brit said, elbowing her. "Admit it." "Let's just get it out of the way," Rhi' smiled. That night at supper, Sheva sat down with a beaming grin beside Angie. "Good news?" Angie said. "Yuh-huh," came the response. "I'm all me." "Congratulations!" Angie said, squeezing her friend's shoulders. "Let's celebrate with.. what is this.. unidentified meat in gravy, mashed potatoes, and grape Kool-Aid?" "Which one's the gravy?" Sheva asked. Angie laughed and lifted up her paper cup. "To you." "Thank you," Sheva said, picking up her cup and accepting the toast, then taking a drink. When she was done, she asked, "By the way, you have that video camera you use to send your kids video letters, right?" "Yesss.." Angie trailed off, wondering why Sheva was asking. "I want to send a video letter of my own, if I can," Sheva grinned. Monday afternoon, Ryan and Rhianna were at home, cleaning up the house, when the phone rang. Ryan picked it up and said hello, then winced and held it about a foot away from his head as sounds of laughing could be heard from the handset. "I think it's Brit," he said, holding the receiver like it was a live bomb and turned towards Rhianna. "I think she said she wants to talk to you." "Really? Okay.." Rhi' said and tentatively accepted the phone, holding it away from her head and saying "Hello?" Britanny was indeed on the other end, laughing her head off. "Rhi'! You GOTTA come see this!" "See what?" "Sheva's tape just came in the mail.. oh, this is priceless! C'mon over right now!" "Okay, okay!" Rhianna said. "We're on our way." "Get ready to bust a gut! We're all rolling around over here!" Ryan looked at Rhianna as she hung up the phone with a smirk. "What's up?" he said. "Something we did on Friday has borne its fruit," she said. "Brit wants us to see the result.. let's go." "Okaaaay," Ryan said slowly. "Lead on, dear sister." The two went over to the Diggers house and let themselves in, as the two sisters were literally doubled over laughing in the middle of the living room. Stripe was even chuckling a little to himself. "Rewind it," Gina told Stripe amid her laughter. He reached over and set the tape to start over from the beginning. Sheva appeared on the tape with a smile. "Greetings, Pee Wee," she said. "I hope this finds you well. Actually, I hope this finds you ill and left high and dry by your former employees. But anyway. Remember that note you sent me, about my origins? Well, I had someone check into that for me--don't bother trying to find out who, you'll never figure it out--and I uncovered the truth. I know allllll there is to know about me now, Pee Wee.. and I am going to use it to better myself and make you wish you'd never crossed me." "Oh, speaking of which," she said, still in a cordial tone, still with a grin, now holding up the inch-thick pile of printouts. "I don't know HOW this POSSIBLY could've come to be in my personal records on your computer, but if you EVER screw with me again, I might have to let loose this little tidbit.. the $49.95 you spent the day after you created me, on renewing your 'Barney International Fan Club' membership. Oops! Guess what, I think I accidentally made a second copy of this tape and sent it to someone else. Sorree!" Sheva turned away from the camera, and as it faded, she could be heard singing, "I hate you, you fear me, I will do it, be-lieve me.." The tape faded to black and then went to static, carrying on as now five people were rolling around on the floor of Gina's living room in hysterics. END Jason Low and Mario Di Giacomo present A Project HEARD "GD: Doubled Up" fanfic HOME RUN Gina plunked herself down in front of a computer and called up a file called 'odds-and-ends'. In it were ideas she had for various missions and adventures, places she might consider exploring, ideas she had for where treasure and scientific finds might lie, and so on. She was looking for something to occupy her time with, something that would break her out of her restless inactivity. She hadn't gone on a mission since she found Genghis Khan's tomb, months before, and it was getting to her. She flipped the TV on for some background noise while she tried to decide what item to pluck out of her list. Ryan was due to stop by in the afternoon the next day, and the two of them would head out on whatever she decided upon now. While she read her file, the news was on the TV. "It's 78 degrees downtown at 11:55, I'm Rocky Woods with Channel 55 News, 5 minutes sooner. Good morning. Ginko's of America has announced today that the problems plaguing its new Georgia store in Gwinnett County are NOT Y2K-related, as earlier thought. For almost a month now, the store's Internet connections have been down. Store and company officials are at a loss to explain why." The store owner was shown on the screen: "We've had the phone company out here. We've had the ISP out here, the hardware guys, the software guys, AND the power company. It's not Y2K, it's not a virus, and it's not a technical fault. I don't know, maybe we'll call in a psychic tomorrow. We just don't know where to go from here." A reporter came on the screen, standing before the bank of computers in Ginko's main customer area. "The computers behind me would normally be all tied up at this time of day with college students and other inquisitive minds surfing the web and sending and receiving email. But for the time being, until the mystery of the vanishing Internet connection is fixed, these screens will remain dark." Gina shook her head distractedly with a smile as the report finished. She worked on the file on her screen as the anchorman went to the next story. "In other news, Governor Flair met today with unspecified officials from the federal government. Details of the closed-door meeting were not available, although sources report that on the agenda was an emergency discussion about overcrowding in certain GDOC facilities here in the city--" Gina's TV automatically muted as a chime went off. "Lightgate activity in Ready Room," her computer voiced. She got up and headed back into the room between the garage and her armory, stopping in surprise to see her mother, Genn, Seance, and Bri' standing there. "You're home!" she enthused, running forward and offering hugs all around. She looked at Brianna as the latter hugged her a little stronger than expected, and she blinked. Brianna smiled warmly. "It's a long story," she said in anticipation of the question. She glanced at Genn, who looked away inconspicuously. Gina noticed movement behind Brianna and saw someone milling about, playing with controls on the walls and such. She was about to yell at him, but then she recognized him. "Raphiel??!" Everyone looked to see Gina regarding Raph, who looked up as if he was a puppy about to be hit with a newspaper, caught doing something bad. Then he noticed Gina and said, "Oh, hi, Gina. How did the wedding go?" "Buh--how--where?" Gina stammered. Brianna smiled. "That's another long story, but .. Raph is back, and he's gonna be staying with us." Then: "So what's been goin' on while we've been gone?" "Well.." Gina began. "Sheva's grown a personality and has started to get civil towards people.. Tanya came back.. again.. along with the Dynasty, but we repelled them.." Brianna burst out laughing. "Oh yeah, tell me another one." "Hey, if you want proof, go ask Stripe, Brit, or Rhianna. They were the ones who did the job." "By THEMSELVES?" Julia said. "Well, Stripe tried to teleport away to fight the Dynasty alone again, and Brit wouldn't have any of that, so she tried to tackle him, and knocked both of them into Rhianna.. and the 3 of 'em teleported together." Raph spoke up. "Teleporting? That sounds cool! Can we do it sometime? I'm gonna love being here!" "How about you guys?" Gina asked, nodding to Brianna. Everybody looked at one another and shrugged. "Oh, it was interesting," Brianna said. "I'll .. explain later." "It sounds like there's a LOT we have to 'talk about later'," Gina commented. "Yeaaaah.. that's a pretty safe bet." "Well, what do you say we all go out for dinner, then, after you guys get settled back in and rest up? My treat." "Sounds like a great idea!" Brianna said. "I haven't had a SuperSeafood Deep Pan Pizza in over a MONTH! I'm in!" "Ooooh! Seafood?" Raphiel asked. "I'll have to find out what your father's doing, but I think you can count us in too," Julia smiled. Gina laughed. "I think you'll fit in well, here, Raphiel." She turned to Genn and Seance. "How about you guys?" Genn shook his head. "Actually, I think I'm going to need a little extra time to rest. I'm feeling exceptionally.. tired out." Seance said quietly, "Not to be antisocial, Gina, but sounds like there'll be quite a crowd there. I don't want to add to the chaos. I'll pass for tonight and, um.. work on my studies." "Aw, c'mon, guys, you won't be adding to any chaos--" Brianna shushed Gina. "It's okay, sis. We've all been through a lot." "All right," Gina said, conceding the point. Sheva sat in her cell, back against the wall and knees drawn close to use as a prop for her book. The day's literary material consisted of North American Geographic magazines, a thick stack of them. She'd already worn out most of the other interesting books in the library. She felt no interest to plunge into the world of romance novels, nor any technical jargon, and she'd exhausted the library's books on friendship and self-help. She ultimately decided on some old NAG issues in the hopes she'd learn something about the world. One in particular caught her eye because it dealt with the animals of Africa. she told herself, perhaps in preparation for what she'd say to Angie if she was caught reading the book, Flipping through the book, she was enraptured by the images captured by half a dozen photographers who probably were just out to shoot an interesting few rolls of film for the magazine. To Sheva, even though she knew it was absurd to think that way, she almost felt like it was her home and history she was looking in upon. she reminded herself. She regarded the images and thought back to what of Britanny's past she did know. The last werecheetah.. what it must've been like for the clan to live there.. Sheva tried to put her own thoughts aside, about how she wished she could've been part of it, and instead thought of Britanny's family and what it must've been like. On one visit, Brit had told her all about what'd happened, including the traitorous were-wolves that did the were-cheetah clan in, and looking at the pictures, Sheva couldn't help but feel sorry for Brit. True, she was only a child when it happened, but still, she must've felt cheated out of an upbringing because of the were-wolf's meddling. With a start, Sheva said to herself: THAT NIGHT PIZZA BELL "Hey, Raph, are you going to eat?" "Hmm?" "Go ahead and take a slice," Brianna said, gesturing to the pizza in the middle of the table. "Dig in, buddy." "Oh! Okay," he said gleefully and reached out. "AndbecarefulitmightbeHOT," Brianna rushed to get out, but it was too late. Raphiel had grabbed a slice of pizza, and his eyes slightly bugged out as he held it in his hands. In an effort to keep his food from burning his hands, he quickly stuffed it in his mouth, but that too turned out to be an unwise choice. "Uh-oh," Brianna said as everyone else looked on. Raphiel was waving his hands in the air, partly to cool them down, and partly in the traditional 'what the heck do I do now?' gesture of someone who has eaten something way too hot. Everyone stared, and Brianna reached out and pushed a pitcher of water towards him. He grabbed it with both hands and tipped it to his mouth, chugging the whole thing in about 20 seconds. Someone passed another one to Brianna, but she kept it at her side; Raph didn't need it anyway. "Food here on Earth sure is hot!" he finally blurted out with a smile, and everyone else laughed. Brianna just shook her head, smiling; only Raph would still be in good spirits after such an event. "So how was the competition?" Theo asked Julia. "Oh, it was fabulous," she grinned. "I even got to get in a little duelling myself." "That's good to hear," Theo smiled. "Who won, mom?" Gina asked. "Oh, I'm sure none of you would know him; it was a young man by the name of Joe Dumar." "Passed the trophy on, hm?" Theo smiled. "I'm still an armsmaster," she playfully reminded him. "I wouldn't doubt that for an instant, dear." He asked Brianna, "And how was your month?" Brianna smiled and nodded towards Raphiel, who was now into more pizza, having learned how to properly handle it. "Well, as you can see, the general outcome was pretty good." "Well, surely you must've done more than that in a month," Theo smiled. Bri' looked at her mother for a moment, and Julia back at her. "Well," Brianna said, "Let's just say that I saw some of the finer parts of the Seer's Desert region, and.. I did a little bit of.. soul searching." Brianna nodded, as did Julia. Brianna smiled and said, "So, what have you guys been doing?" Gina shrugged. "Oh, not much other than what I mentioned earlier.. going through a LOT with Sheva.. and a bunch with Tanya, and the Dynasty.. actually, other than that, it's been kind of a quiet month." If anyone noticed Gina's frown as she finished off, they didn't bring it up. Brianna said, "What's this I heard from one of you, something about Sheva getting an attitude adjustment or something?" "Yeah, she's really showing some promise," Britanny said. "She's starting to act more civil, and learning to cooperate and get along.." "Maybe jail does that to you," Brianna shrugged. "Who knows?" Gina contributed. "Maybe she does have a future after all. It just goes to show that old wounds can heal.. right, Rhi'?" "WHAT?" Rhianna blurted out in a startled tone. Everyone looked up in surprise. "I just said that old wounds can heal in time," Gina said. "I don't know what you're talking about!" Rhi' said nervously. Gina was about to try again when Stripe spoke up. "I think what Gina was referring to was the fact that you were able to forgive her after the incident with yourself and Sheva." Rhianna's shoulders slumped as the words sank in. "Oh." "And that you could relate," Stripe added. "Yeah.. I'm sorry. Yeah." "Everything okay, Rhi'?" Brianna asked. Rhianna nodded. "Just a little on edge for some reason. Sorry." "Ooh!" Brit said to get the subject onto something else. "And we went to Aebra.." "How was that?" Julia asked. "WHEN was that?" Brianna wanted to know as well. "It was I can't remember HOW many wonderful days alone together right after we finished off the Dynasty this last time," Brit grinned, looking skyward, thinking back, and shutting her eyes. "Stripe took us to this place where his ancestors lived, according to legend, and we found an old village there in the woods! We actually lived in the trees!" As Britanny giggled, Raphiel said, "Wouldn't you fall out? It sounds really exciting, though. I hope I get to experience sleeping in the trees sometime." Gina laughed, as did a couple others. "Looks like you have a fan, Brit," Ryan chuckled. "Haha, yeah," she said. She turned around and held a hand high in the air. "OUTTA THE SEAFOOD SPECIAL HERE!" THE NEXT MORNING Rhianna walked down the side yard of the Diggers' house, knowing that Stripe occasionally practiced in the back yard. Before she got there, however, she heard voices, and pressed herself against the side of the house, straining to hear them while staying out of sight. ".. course.. help.. still owe.." That was Theo Diggers, she could tell. Who was he talking to, though? She peeked in that direction and could only see his back, not the person he was talking to. "..must .. close.. watch.. her.. much potential.." Rhianna froze, feeling her heart pound. It was that guy! The one who'd come to her right after Stripe said he would! And.. was he talking about her?? "I understand.." was the only sentence she heard in full from either man. Theo went on: ".. be sure.. cooperate?" ".. up to you.. means.. necessary.." Rhianna couldn't listen any more; she sprinted to the front porch and stood there, trembling too much to go inside. A moment or three later, Dr. Diggers came around the corner and approached the porch. "Oh, hello, Rhianna," he smiled. "How are you today?" "Okay," she said evenly, eyeing him. "You?" "All right," he nodded. "Busy with unexpected work, but I suppose it's to be expected." "Uh-huh." She couldn't contain it: "Who was that guy?" Theo froze for a nigh-imperceptible instant. "Which 'guy'?" he asked. "The one you were talking to in the back yard just a minute ago." "Hmm? Dear, I've spoken to no one besides you in the past half-hour. In the back yard just a few moments ago? I was admiring the girls' flowers. They're coming along quite nicely. I garden a tad myself.. had you ever thought of taking up the hobby?" She shook her head no. "Too bad. It's a relaxing pursuit. Were you coming or going?" "Huh? Oh.. coming." Theo opened the door. "Come on in, then. I was as well, to borrow the telephone before I have to run my errands today." Rhi' went in in front of him, and she stood in the living room. He passed by her and said, "I will go to the kitchen to do my business. I'm sure you know your way around." "Yup.. thanks.." she trailed off, and he walked away. Edgar and Louise Middleson stood at the front door of their modest Buford home. Louise called up the stairs, "Come on, boys! We're going to take you to the anime show!" "YAY!" came a toddler's squeal as Mikey Middleson raced to the stairs, waiting there obediently for his brother Gabe. Both of them hurried down the stairs to their waiting grandparents, who took them to the car and headed down the road towards the Gwinnett hotel where the anime con was being held. "That nice young girl Laura is supposed to be there," Louise told the kids as they were strapped into the car. "I hear she has a new video out, a cartoon called 'Laura and the Dragon from the Past'." "Feh," Gabe said. "I've seen better on the Internet." Louise just smiled and patted her grandson's cheek, then sat down in the front seat of the car. Britanny came upstairs and pushed through the door to the kitchen and saw her father there. "Hiya dad!" she said. He looked up with a start. "Hello," he said as she poured a glass of milk and downed it. "How are you today?" "Just peachy!" she said. "Supper last night was a real pick me up!" "I can imagine," he said distantly. "Well, I'm off." "Where're you going?" "I have to go to Metro State Prison, down south," he said. "I have some business there." "OOooh!" she said with a smile. "Tell you what--I'll drive you and I can visit my friend while you're doing your business! Okay?" "Oh, certainly.. that would simplify things.." he nodded. "Great!" she enthused. "I'll be right back! Meet you in the garage!" In the exercise yard of Metro State Prison, a basketball game was underway. It wasn't up to NCAA caliber, though; nor was it even a match between two squads of inmates. Instead, it was a simple one-on-one game of 21. One player was five-foot-six and 133 pounds, and the other, seven foot even and 299 pounds. The score was equally lopsided, but their moods were as jovial as ever. "This feels like recess," Angie said. "Well, what IS the difference between here and school?" "Well, at school, you get crappy food.. oh, wait.." Sheva giggled. "And there are bullies here.." "I'll sure give you that.." "And we come and go from here on buses, right?" "Right again," Angie said. "So just about the only differences are, schoolkids get to go home at night, and most schools don't lock their classroom doors when the students go inside from recess." "You should write a book or something." "Good idea! I think I will," Angie said. In the meantime, Sheva had scored seven times against Angie. Angie accepted the ball, put her hands on her hips, and hmmph'ed. "You know, if you were going to be sporting at all, you would turn into your human form and even out the playing field a little." Sheva frowned. "I don't like being puny. Plus, if I do that, I can't shift back for another 24 hours." "Well, it's hard to play you in a game of 21 when you've scored 11 by the time I get my first point." Sheva laughed. "All right, I'll make you a deal. I'll use my human form next time, for a price." "What kind of price?" Sheva opened her mouth to answer, when suddenly a whistle blew. They both looked up, and a guard waved at Sheva to come to him. "Guess I'll tell you later," Sheva grinned. She waved at Angie, who grinned and waved back, then resumed shooting baskets, even as Sheva was carted off by the guard. "What, did I forget to make my bed again?" Sheva quipped, faltering as she looked at the guard's sterner than usual look. "Whatcha doin'?" Gina asked as she walked into the kitchen. "Oh, making something to munch on," Brianna answered with a smile, turning to glance at Gina over her shoulder. Gina blinked. "Uhm, I meant to ask, Bri'.." "Hm?" Brianna said, turning around to face her sister once again with a smile. Gina false-started a couple of times, looking Bri' right in the eyes, and Brianna caught on after a moment, indicating her face. "Oh, you noticed? It's a new look, isn't it? What do you think?" "It's.. different," Gina said, as Brianna turned to face the counter once again. "Thanks," Brianna said happily. "I'm glad you like it." She worked on her meal for a minute, then said, "Care to join me?" "Sure," Gina smiled, sitting down at the table. "Need any help?" "Nah, it's almost done." "Okay." After a moment, Gina added, "Raphiel sure seems.. um, nice." Brianna laughed. "Go ahead and say it, sis.. he's a handful." "Bri'!" Gina hissed. "He's in the next room." Bri' turned and put the homemade subs on the table. "Uh-huh," she grinned. "But he doesn't understand. He'd just answer 'Cool! When do I get to be a handful again?!'" Gina smirked as Bri' sat down, taking a sub and tearing into it. "By the way, you're sneaky. VERY sneaky." "Huh?" Gina took the other sub. "Well, speaking of Raph, it's now obvious what your REAL reason for going to Jade was." "Oh," Brianna blushed and smiled at the same time. "For Raphiel, am I right?" Brianna nodded. "Like I said, sneaky girl." Finally Brianna said with a smile, "Ah, you caught me," and resumed eating. "So why did you not tell us that in the first place?" Gina pressed. "Uhhhmm," Brianna said, trying to think of a reason. "I.. wanted it to be a surprise," she said brightly. "I was there all that time wondering what the look on your face would be like when Raphiel showed up back here with me." "Did I meet your expectations?" Gina asked with a smile. "Yup," Brianna grinned. "Thanks." "Always," she responded. Brianna looked at her watch. "Eeek!" she squealed. "Is it already twelve-thirty?!" "Thirty-nine," Gina confirmed. "What?" "AWA! The anime con! I almost forgot!" "Oh.." "You coming? I need someone to help with my costume.." "I didn't know it was today," she apologized. "Ryan and I have something planned." "That's okay," Bri' said. She headed for the door. "Hey Raph! Wanna go somewhere with me?" Gina could tell by the joyous shouts that Raphiel indeed wanted to be with Bri'. Gina chuckled and went back to her sub. Britanny held the door open for her father as he walked through, mumbling a thank-you. She followed him in. "So Dad, how long are you planning to be?" After a long moment, he looked up. "Hm? Oh, I'm not certain. It could be an hour, or it could be more, or less.." "Tell you what, then--I'll go see my friend and meet you back at the car in an hour, okay?" "Uh-huh," Theo nodded distractedly and carried on towards his apparent destination. "Later then, dad!" Brit said as she angled off and went through the door to the visiting room. Theo nodded again and remained lost in thought as he walked. he told himself, and turned to speak to Britanny, realizing with a start that she wasn't there. Vaguely he remembered her bidding him farewell, and he retraced his steps to where he thought she'd ended up. Theo entered the visiting room and saw Britanny standing there arguing with a guard. "Whaddaya mean, she's not available?!" Theo cleared his throat. The guard and Brit looked across, and Britanny showed some relief at his reappearance. "Dad!" she said. "They won't let me see Sheva!" "Britanny, dear.. just come with me, please. I think I can explain." She walked to her father, sneering at the guard as she left the room. Theo led her further along the hallway and entered a different room, one Brit hadn't been in before. It was about the same size as the visiting room, yet there was no floor-to-ceiling sheet of Lexan, no cubicles, and no phones; instead, twelve or so folding chairs were off to one side, and a table with four people behind it was set up directly across the room. Brit recognized two of the people seated there--the state governor and the prison warden--and could only guess that the others were a court reporter and some kind of prison officer. She sat down in a chair beside her father, in the flock of folding chairs on the one side of the room. A judge was seated at another long table to their right, midway between them and the table of other people, and he faced a single chair that was by itself on the other side of the room. Brit realized there were around a dozen guards in the room; two at the door they'd come through, and two at another door on the opposite side of the room (to her left now), as well as several arrayed around the tables of people that sat there expressionlessly as if they hadn't noticed her and her father's entry into the room. Apparently, though, they did. The judge nodded and looked up to the guards at the far door. "You may bring in the subject now," he said. One guard opened the door and made a hand-motion; another uniformed figure stepped forward and literally handed Sheva to him. He accepted her and escorted her to the single chair, her restraints jangling for the duration of the 15-foot shuffle. She sat down and looked at Britanny with surprise, then turned and looked at the judge as he cleared his throat. "Thank you," he said when he had her attention. "Reporter, you may begin now," the judge said as the guard who'd led Sheva in remained standing beside her chair. "This parole hearing is now in session." Brit blurted out in her mind. She turned to look at her father, who kept looking straight ahead. She then faced Sheva, who was looking back at her with just as much surprise. Raphiel oof'ed as Brianna handed him a piece of heavy armor from the car. He cradled it in his arms as she took another piece out and put it on, over top of the purple and white spandex outfit she wore, giggling all the time. "Brianna, didn't you say you couldn't wear this out in public because of the attention it would get from the police?" Raphiel asked. "Yeah, but--thanks--" she said, grabbing the shoulder rig/torso piece from him and putting it on. "--being that we're at a con, nobody will give me a second glance.. so long as I keep my big guns hidden or looking like they're fakes.." "Is this safe, Brianna?" Raph asked. "Perfectly!" Brianna answered, closing the trunk and clanking her way towards the doors to the auditorium. "I'm ALWAYS careful!" She froze a second later. "Uhm.. you took the keys, right?" "What're keys?" he asked. Bri' clattered her way back to the car and peered in from the passenger side window at the steering column. "Awwww, maaaann.." "What's wrong?" Raphiel asked. "Ah, don't sweat it," Brianna said, pulling her helmeted head away from the window. "We'll deal with it after the con's over. C'mon!" She headed for the door again. As they got to the door, she had Raphiel hold it open so she could fit through with her armor on. She stopped, and Raphiel looked at her strangely, holding onto the door. "Just letting some people in first," she explained, as an elderly couple with two young children rounded the corner. "Thank you," the man said with a smile. "I wish there were more people like you around." Brianna smiled and nodded, letting the group go in just ahead of her. "So where do you guys want to go first?" Gabe and Mikey's grandfather asked them. "Mikey's gonna wanna see the Pokebeasts," Gabe said. "He really likes 'em." "Pita! Pita!" Mikey squealed in response. "Well, then, let's go find them," their grandmother said, and they all set off down an aisle in the crowded auditorium. "Gramma, can we go ahead?" Gabe said. "We won't get lost, I promise." "Well.... all right," she said. "But don't go too far." "YAY!" Mikey hollered and chased after the running Gabe. "And stay in sight!" their grandfather called after them. "Can you see them?" "No, not yet," Daishi told Zelda as the two of them stood inconspicuously on the second level of the auditorium. "But they should arrive soon--they left their house not long ago, if Ionis' information is correct." Ionis stepped up beside them, having finally navigated through the crowd. "Of course it is 'correct'." "Very well, have patience. Perhaps we should split up, though, so we can cover this crowd easier." Ionis turned sharply. "Anything which will get us out of here sooner. I've already had more than one person come up to me and say"--Ionis shuddered--"that my 'Ming' costume is just perfect." Stripe sat in the apartment living room, reading a book about his people, just to pass time. Some of the things he read were rather interesting, which is why he was marginally put off by hearing the elevator coming up the shaft. As the doors opened, he said without looking up, "I'm in the living room, Rhianna." Rhi' poked her head around the doorway tentatively, then stepped into the room. "How did you know it was me?" "Well, I know for a fact that Britanny has gone out with her father; Brianna has taken her new friend Raphiel to Anime Weekend Atlanta; Ryan and Gina are in her lab, working on a project; Seance has sequestered himself in his room to study; and Genn is playing a game on Gina's Dreamcast that will undoubtedly take him until nightfall to complete." He looked up and smiled. "Process of elimination." "All right, then.." Rhianna said, barely fighting off the urge to ask which game. After a moment, she added, "Can we talk?" "By all means, come in," Stripe said, putting aside the books and sitting up, gesturing to an empty chair. Rhi' entered the room and sat down. "What troubles you?" he finally asked after she didn't speak up. "Mostly the secrecy of.. it," she told him. "Well, you can tell people if you want," he said. "There's no reason for secrecy there. It just means you have to answer a lot of questions, probably." "So what do YOU think I should do?" "I.. think you should listen to your instincts, your 'gut feeling' as it were, and do what you think is right." Rhianna sighed and hung her head. "How come nobody'll give me a straight answer?" Stripe eyed her. "Who else have you told?" "Well, nobody.. but that guy I think you were warning me about? He showed up right after you left.." "So he DID meet up with you already," Stripe nodded. "Yeah, and he was talking to Dr. Diggers earlier.. what's with him?" "Dr. Diggers?" "No, that guy." Stripe hmmm'ed. "In his case, secrecy IS the best policy." "Man, this X-Files stuff is bugging me," Rhi' complained. "Rhianna, in your circle of friends, you can claim: A werecheetah, a man from another world"--Stripe arched an eyebrow and smiled--"a clone of two different people, and for that matter, you yourself.. a cursed form given life. You have nothing to fear from telling anyone anything." Rhianna smiled. "Thanks, Stripe." "Trust me," he said. "They will understand." "I don't understand. What's going on?" "Order," the judge barked at Sheva, rapping his gavel. When things had quieted down, he added, "The state has received a petition for the order of the prisoner's full release. The purpose of this hearing is to determine if the prisoner is worthy of such release." He looked at his notes. "Doctor Theodore Diggers?" Theo nodded and raised a hand slightly. "Dr. Diggers, this prisoner is to be released directly into your custody, is that correct?" Theo cleared his throat. "Well, partially. She'll be under the care of my family--at least one family member shall be with her at all times." "Fair enough." The judge turned to the officials to his right. "Are there any comments?" The fidgeting warden shot to his feet. "Doctor, I don't take kindly to people being released from my prison when they haven't even served a sixth of their sentence yet." "I can imagine," Theo said with a matter-of-fact tone. "I would think you'd keep them here to be rehabilitated." "Good, I see we're on the same wavelength. So what's different about this case?" Theo shrugged. "I'm sure I don't know, Warden; I was simply approached by your governor to be here and filled in only briefly at that." The warden looked at the governor, who nodded. "Well," the warden said, turning to face Theo again, "In my mind, a sentence is a sentence, and it should be carried out to its full length." "Thank you, Warden Myers," the judge said, speaking up. "Dr. Diggers, sir, do you have any past experience dealing with this subject?" "Virtually none, your honor; however, my daughter Britanny does." Brit looked away from Sheva, at her father. "Wha?" "Do you mind answering some questions for us, ma'am?" the judge asked. "I.. guess so," Britanny said uncertainly. Gabe and Mikey ran around through all the aisles and displays. Gabe, for one, had turned into a little boy again, racing around enjoying the convention. They were a little out of place amongst the towering twenty-five and thirty-five year old fans, but they were oblivious to it, going to all the brightly colored displays--for Mikey, anywhere a Pokebeast was, more often than not. Brianna stood in a quiet area near the main doors. She was fitting the last bits of her armor and having Raphiel apply stickers and other such things to help make it look like more of a costume. "Look, Raph, when I go on stage, I want you to tape me, okay?" "Tape you?" he said. "Yeah, with this." She held out a palmcorder. "When I get on stage, push the red button, then keep it pointed at me." "Okay," he said. "I can do that. I'm excited to be helping you!" "I'm glad you can help out, too, Raph," she smiled. Zelda, meanwhile, fumed in the middle of the crowd. She was tired of 30-year-old men coming up to her and asking her if she was going to be in the next Star Trek movie. Finally she edged over to Daishi and said, "Did you find them yet?" "No!" she heard a voice from beside her. "And they're the last I need for a complete set!" "HUH?" she said, turning to look at Daishi. Yet it was not Daishi; it was a man in a ninja outfit, or more precisely, a YOUNG man in a ninja outfit, but it was not her colleague. "BAH!" she growled and stalked off. "Hey, you're kinda cute.." he called after her. "Please state your full name," the judge told Brit. "Britanny Elin Diggers'Gia." "Have you had encounters with the subject before?" "Yes," she nodded. "And how long ago was the most recent contact you've had with her?" "About a month ago," Brit answered. "I gather you've been making visits to her in prison, then?" "Yes, sir." "Was that on a regular basis?" "A.. couple of times, here and there, actually." He ticked something off on his notepad. "Did you notice anything different in her behavior between your visits?" "Oh yeah, big time," Brit nodded. After a pause, the judge said, "Can you describe them for us?" "Well.. at first.. she was kinda upset with me, 'cause I was basically responsible for putting her in here in the first place. But lately, she's shown a lot of.. what I guess you'd call improvement. She's grown quite friendly, to me and to others, it seems.. she seems to be getting more out of life, if you ask me." "Do you think she would benefit from any further incarceration?" Brit said, "Well, no.. she was confused when she robbed that place.. she made a mistake. She's atoned for it; it's obvious she's changed her ways." "What I'm asking, ma'am, is would she be a hazard to reoffend?" Sheva looked up at Brit as the latter didn't answer right away; Brit was studying the judge, it seemed, and at last, said, "No." "Do you have anything further for us?" Brit paused, then said, "Yes, actually, I do." "Very well," the judge said. "Go on." "Sheva's had a rough life so far. She's been made to do some pretty bad things by her.. former employer, and.. that's why she committed the robbery, 'cause it's all she knew. She's had a big confidence problem for a while, related to that. But I've seen changes in her that tell me she really wants to be a part of society now. She really wants to make a difference. And I think if you let her, she'll prove me right." "Thank you very much," the judge said when it was apparent Brit was finished. He wrote in his notes for a moment, then faced towards Sheva, head still down in his writing, and said, "Miss Sheva, if you were to be released today, what would be the first thing you would do?" Sheva seemed caught off guard. "I.. I.. I don't know.." "I see here you have no family to return to. And that is likely why you're being delivered to the Diggers' custody, is that correct?" "I don't know why any of this is happening," she responded. The judge looked up, over the tops of his glasses at her. "Young lady, you are aware you're in a parole hearing, aren't you? That you will be potentially released today?" Sheva nodded. "You understand that in most normal cases, the parolee has to meet with a parole officer at regular intervals, and that the exception placed on you is a heretofore unheard-of instance in this judge's experience?" "All right," she said, nodding again. "The only condition you'll have upon your release is that you maintain direct and constant contact with at least one member of the Diggers family at all times. Should you be found in violation of this condition, you will be apprehended, and action taken ranging from deliverance back to the Diggerses up to and including possible re-institutionalization. Is that clear?" "Yes, sir.." Sheva said quietly. She flashed back to Pee Wee for some reason, and his instructions on what she would and would not do. For a fleeting moment, she thought of the possibility of telling the judge she'd do what she damn well pleased, but she realized that the judge was not working alone, was not Pee Wee Talon, and had a much more competent army of employees behind him that could reach out and grab her if she strayed from the path he laid out for her. "Now then, I still have some questions for you," the judge said. He looked down at his notes and back up. "Had you not thought of what you wanted to do with your life once you got out?" "Not really, no," Sheva said quietly. "Well.. I, uh...." "Go on," the judge said. She lowered her head and said embarassedly, in a tiny voice, "I.. thought maybe I'd go meet.. my friend's kids.. and buy them some.. some ice cream." The judge sat there in silence for a moment, then finally said, "Well, I suppose it's a start; even the small stuff counts. Anything else?" "N..no, I hadn't thought that far forward. I thought.. I was going to be here a lot longer." "Yes," he said, again making a mark on the pad before him; for all anyone else knew, he could've been having a fierce game of tic-tac-toe with himself. "As I'm sure we all did. Do you think you could find something productive to do with your life, with the Diggerses?" Sheva looked over to her left, to Brit and Theo; then back to the judge, remembering all the times she'd watched the Diggers family from afar, noting how they got along and had fun together. "I sure hope so," she said. "I'd like to see a written description of what you have in mind for yourself no later than next--" The judge cut himself off as the governor cleared his throat. "Whoa, your honor. That won't be necessary; there are no other conditions on her release. Her word will be enough; if you need something in writing, you can get it from my office." "Very well," the judge said after a long pause. He faced Sheva again. "I suppose you can ignore my last statement, young lady. And I have only one more question for you. Are you sorry for what you did?" This took Sheva by surprise. As she thought about it, she finally said, "Yes. Yes, sir, I am. If I could change it, I would." "Well, if I may make this one suggestion," the judge said, pointedly glancing at the governor, "I recommend you write letters of apology to the guards whose truck you robbed." She nodded. "I will." "And promise me I will never, ever see you in a court of law." "You have my word, sir." The judge sat up straight and made a couple more ticks on his paperwork, then signed it. "Full release for the prisoner is granted." He put down his pen and banged the gavel once. "Dr. Diggers, I'll have the baliff release her into your custody now." Theo stood, and Brit rose shortly thereafter. Sheva caught on and said, "What?" The judge, who by that point had already stood and turned away from the table that had been his bench, turned to face Sheva again and said, "I just set you free, young lady. In five minutes you'll walk out of here. I suggest you enjoy it." "But I want to talk to somebody first!" Sheva protested, even as the baliff removed her cuffs and irons. "Young lady, that's what we've been doing for the past half hour," the judge said. "You should count yourself lucky. VERY few people get a release as unconditional as yours. You've been given some special treatment. I expect you to make the best of it." "You don't understand!" Sheva said, first to the room, then looking at the baliff who was helping her up from the chair. "Good day, Dr. Diggers," the judge said as he strode from the room ahead of the governor, warden, and other staff. "Thank you for your assistance." "It's a costume, Raph," Brianna explained as they put the finishing touches on her armor. "I'm supposed to be dressed up like an anime character." "Oh," he nodded. Then: "A what?" "We got a lotta TV watching to do when we get home," she said. "(Especially since I plan to buy two hundred bucks' worth of videos today.)" She added, "I'm supposed to be a character from a movie. You do this, you dress up like this, at a convention like this, and people judge how good your costume is." "That sounds cool! Is yours good?" "Well, YEAH," Bri' countered. "Nobody'll have a better Sylia hardsuit in here, I'm sure. You know what you need to do now?" "Yup!" he nodded energetically. "Point this at you, press the red button." "Good!" She ruffled his hair with her gloved hand. "You learn fast." she giggled to herself. "I see them!" Ionis hissed, stepping up beside Zelda and Daishi, who had finally rejoined forces again. "Over near the stage!" "Then get them!" Daishi said. "Quickly, before anyone notices." Brianna waited impatiently for the chorus line of Pokebeasts and Pitachoos to get off the stage before she could do her solo bit. Finally, they were gone, and she could get out there and do her stuff. She walked onto the stage amidst a wave of cheers and hoots and hollers from the crowd, half of whom had camcorders, the other half still film. She waved and grinned, despite the fact that from the outside her helmet now looked fully opaque, even though from the inside it was operations normal. Raphiel stood in the center of the crowd, obediently running the video camera. He pointed it at Brianna, he pushed the red button, and he could hear the machine whirring, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what the white letters flashing "LENS COVER" on the eyepiece display meant. Still, it must've been unimportant for Bri' to skip it, and so he continued to track her along the stage. Brianna took the adulation from the crowds, waving frantically. Just as she was about to play with the armor a bit, the IFF pinged an 'uh-oh' tone and highlighted a person in the crowd. she murmured to herself. She watched her screen, eyeing the person who'd been 'painted', and blinked in surprise. She shifted her gaze a bit and noticed Daishi and Ionis close by, all three of them turning as she got locks on them. In amidst the crowd noise, she could barely hear small children screaming. It took another second to realize Zelda had a toddler under one arm, and Daishi was carrying a young child as well, both the kids wailing and screaming. Bri' wondered. She thought about it for a second, decided the kids were not just screaming because they were being removed from the con, and jumped up. At the height of her jump, she activated her thrusters and hovered two-thirds of the way to the ceiling. The crowd oooh'ed and aaah'ed as they watched Brianna, in what they thought was part of the show, turn on her loudspeaker and shout, "ZELDA! DAISHI! HOLD YOUR BUTTS RIGHT THERE!" Neither turned to look; in fact, they poured on the speed, wading through the crowds, heading for an exit. "HEY!" Bri' called out, jetting forward and giving chase. "I SAID STOP!" The crowd near the stage applauded and cheered, while at least one member pressed his way towards Brianna, so he could keep her videocamera pointed at her at all times, as ordered. Brianna fired a stunbolt towards Ionis. He ducked as it missed him, and it slammed into a Zelgadis and Lina Inverse pair that were standing nearby, sending them into a slumber. "Oops," Brianna muttered. Her eyes widened as Daishi spun, tucking the child under his arm, and launched a chi attack at her. She jetted aside, and the fireball-like missile rumbled past her and ate up a good portion of the ballroom ceiling. "Hey! I coulda got HURT by that!" she protested, firing the stunner again. As the crowd started to surge away from Daishi and the others, she also pulled two Peebos off the Velcro strip affixed to her belt. She flung the Peebos at Zelda and Ionis, and fired the stunbolt at Daishi. Again, she missed--or, rather, Ionis used his magic to create a shield which bounced the Peebos away from him and Zelda, and Daishi simply wasn't there by the time Brianna fired the stunner. Annapuma and Unipuma went down hard from the stunner, and the Peebos clattered to the floor, and bounced into another room with a banner over the doorway reading "LAURA CRAFT OAV SHOWING - 11:30 & 1:30". Brianna looked pained. "Oh, sh--" BOOOM! Smoke poured out of the room as well as a number of the 130 con-goers watching the film. Bri' winced. "Damn! This is not working." She looked down and saw the bad guys were gone, likely headed out of the exit they'd been making speed for when she first fired on them. She rocketed through the doors out into the parking lot, seeing Ionis, Zelda, Daishi, and the two screaming children at the opposite end of the lot. Raphiel burst out of the doors a moment later. "HOLD IT! DON'T MOVE!" Brianna yelled. Daishi looked up, shifting the kid's weight so he would be easier to carry. "Stay out of this, young Diggers!" he cautioned Brianna as Ionis spirited them away via a teleport spell. "This has nothing to do with you." Brianna was furious as she watched the five people vanish. "The hell it don't!" she muttered. Brit, Sheva, and Theo walked towards the car. Brit, trying to make small talk, said, "So, how does it feel?" "Awful," Sheva sulked. "I wanted to say goodbye to my friend." "We can come visit her right away, after you're settled down," Brit promised. "It's not the same," Sheva grumped. "I understand you're upset right now," Theo said, "but everything will turn out for the better." He was about to say more, but noticed that not only his daughter's ears, but those of Sheva's, picked up noticeably. "What is it?" he asked. "Aw, nuts," Brit said. "The carphone's ringing." She arrived at the car and opened the doors, then sat in her seat to answer the call. "Hello?" "Brit! Thank god it's you!" Brianna said excitedly. The scene from her inward-facing helmet camera showed her face as she touched down, with Raphiel rushing up beside her and asking questions, which she ignored as she spoke to Brit. "PLEASE tell me that while I've been gone, Pee Wee's goons took up babysitting." "What??" "That's what I feared," Bri' said agitatedly. "What are you talking about?" "I guess they just kidnapped a couple kids from the AWA con," she said. "An eight or nine year old and a toddler kid. Just picked 'em up inside and made off with 'em!" "Are you serious?!" Brit asked. "Would I be calling you about this if I thought it wasn't serious?" Bri' blurted out. "Okay, okay! Where did they go?" "How would I know? Ionis used his damn magic to take 'em away." "Dad's right beside me," Brit said. "Maybe he can locate them." "Oh! By the way, which set of keys do you have right now?" "For the cars? The masters," Brit said. "I couldn't find anything else, as usual." "Good! Hit the remote door release for the Mark 1, willya?" "Done." "Thanks! While you guys're doing that, I'm going to go see if they went to Pee Wee's playhouse like I think!" Bri' lifted off with the help of her thrusters, just as the call cut off. "Wait!" Britanny said to the dead phone. "If you're going there in your armor, who's driving the Mark 1?!" Raphiel sat in the driver's seat of the Mark 1, looking over the hundreds of controls before him. "Okay, Rey, this can't be hard," he murmured to himself. "Brianna said it was like riding a bike.. now, if you can figure out what riding a bike is like.. you've got it made." "Okay.. how did she do it earlier?" He tentatively reached out and pulled the selector down into Drive, and nothing happened. "Oh yeah, the key." He put the car back into Park, then turned the key, cranking the starter for a good 15 seconds--about 13.5 longer than needed, especially on one of Gina's cars. Once that was settled, he put it in Drive again and pushed down on the accelerator pedal. The fluorescent yellow New Beetle in the adjacent stall never had a chance; Raphiel drove completely over the car before he knew what'd happened. "Wow!" he said with elation. "These car things are as fast and as strong as Brianna and me!" Still with his foot to the floor, he fishtailed the car through the parking lot, bashing up against several others in the lot. With car alarms yelping in his wake, he got more or less aimed at the driveway and roared down it, out onto the street, making a hard right-hand turn (even though his left signal was on). Raph didn't strike another car all the way up to the interstate, although others did; behind him, people locked up their brakes to avoid smashing into him and/or vice versa, only to find themselves hit by other drivers who weren't paying as much attention. "WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, YOU MORON!" someone screamed. Raphiel looked in that direction and saw the man giving him a strange kind of wave. he thought. "Thank you!" he shouted joyfully, waving back frantically. Brit, who'd been standing up through the sunroof, slid back into the car, sitting down in the driver's seat angrily. "Looks like a buncha wrecks up ahead," she declared. "This is gonna take forever! Dammit!" "Britanny!" Theo said accusingly. "Well, I'm sorry, dad, but I'm p.. really angry! How many times do you hear of the people who're going to wreck the bad guys' plans getting stuck in traffic??" "Have patience, my daughter; we will get there." "I thought your cars could fly," Sheva said from the back seat. "Every one except this one and the Mark 6 and Mark 2," Brit grumbled. "Hmm." "My dad's right. Whatever it is, Brianna can take care of it until we get there. I'm just wondering what Pee Wee, or whoever, wants with a coupla kids. If he went to school, I might think maybe he got beat up on the playground or something, but.." Sheva asked, "Where did Brianna say she was coming from again?" "You mean where did they see Pee Wee's goons?" Brit asked. "Anime Weekend Atlanta.. it's an anime convention in town, up at the Gwinnett hotel." Sheva's eyes widened. "Holy shit," she whispered. "Sheva," Theo cautioned. "Please, no cursing. What's the matter?" "I think Angie's kids were going there with her parents today." "Angie?" Brit said. "My friend in the jail! And one of them helped me out with that, er, problem I had a while ago.. that involved Pee Wee." "You don't think that Pee Wee retaliated by taking.. uhm.." "Gabe.." Sheva supplied. "Gabe, and his brother, do you??" Brit finished. "Like you said, why else would he want a couple of kids?" Brit growled. She leaned out the driver's side window. "C'MON, HURRY UP!" A second or two later, she leaned back inside, swung the wheel to the right, and drove into the ditch. "Britanny!" Theo protested. "Sorry, Dad, now it's personal," she said. "I met that kid! Pee Wee's got no right to be messing with him.." Theo remained quiet for a moment while Brit bumped her way through the ditch, swerved to miss an approach, and got back on the shoulder of the road, doing 50 miles an hour and climbing. "At least remember to get us there in one piece," he urged. "Shush, dad, I'm drivin'," she answered. Brianna rocketed into position over the nondescript building she knew was Pee Wee's usual hideout for things going on in Georgia. From a height of about 2000 feet, she couldn't come up with any readings, so she had a choice to make. "Grrrrr," Brianna muttered to herself, putting her armor's flight pack into an automatic circling-pattern mode and getting ready to wait. Raphiel barrelled along I-85 at an 80 mile an hour clip, dodging in and out of traffic as it came up--driving exactly as he saw Brianna driving earlier. "The people here are so helpful!" he observed aloud. "Telling me where I need to go.. I am really going to like it here.." BREET! the dash chirped at him. He looked down at it, driving into the ditch slightly, then corrected as the sound stopped. BREET! He finally saw the flashing button that indicated the phone was ringing, and pushed it. Brianna's face appeared on the screen. "Hi, Brianna!" he grinned. "How are you?" "Raph! Where are you?" "In the car," he answered plainly. "I mean, where in the city are you? Look for an address and tell me." "Uhm.." Raph looked back and forth, then said, "I guess I'm at $1.09 per gallon street." As an afterthought, he added, "Near a gas station." If Brianna could've run a hand down her face, she would've. "Never mind that," she said. "Listen to me. Turn up the sound on the phone, and let me talk for a second." "Okay," he said, raising the volume control. "Computer," Brianna called out. "Computer on," the car answered. "Yes!" she said under her breath. "Raph, hold on tight here. Computer, get a fix on Brianna's location." "Locked." "Plot an air course to that location." "Plotted." "Engage flight mode and get there as fast as possible." "Confirmed." "Okay, Raph, hang on tight, and the car's gonna take over." "Okay, Brianna--whoa!" Raphiel said as the car lifted off the interstate, flipped its wheels down to form thrusters, and took to the skies. "This is so much better!" Raph said. "I'm not bumping into nearly as much stuff now! Thanks, Brianna!" "Yeah," Bri' grimaced. "We'll have to talk about that. Have you heard from Brit or Dad lately?" She hastily amended, "Since I talked to them with you beside me in the parking lot?" "No, not since then," he said. "Okay.. when you get here, we'll talk some more." "Okay! I look forward to it!" "And don't touch any of the controls--they'll work by themselves from now on." "All right," he nodded. Brianna disconnected the phone link and Raph sat there with his hands folded in his lap, watching the world whip by. "I'm REALLY gonna like driving," he grinned. "Grr!" Brit growled, weaving through traffic at a high rate of speed, redlining the motor more often than not. Theo sat there white-knuckled, as calmly as he could, trying desperately not to stomp on a nonexistent brake pedal every few seconds. Sheva sat in the back of the car, bracing herself against Britanny's sudden course changes and just watching the events unfold. "Damn Pee Wee," Brit muttered as she swerved around a Ryder van. "No right takin' little kids and gettin' them involved.." "Britanny!" Theo said again. After a moment, he said, "What exactly is the situation with these children again?" Sheva spoke up. "Britanny helped the older one find out something for me.." Brit cut in with, "Sheva wanted to know if she was just a clone of me, or if she was someone else who'd been made to look like me through Pee Wee's genetic programming." "Aha," Theo said. "And I presume you acquired this information through questionable channels?" "Wellllll.. he pulled it off of Pee Wee's computer," Brit nodded. Theo nodded. "I can see why young Talon is upset. Though, as you said, there's no excuse for traumatizing young children." After a moment, he added, "Do you think perhaps we should involve the police?" while reaching for the phone. "No!" Brit said sharply. A moment later, blushing, she said. "Um, what I meant, Dad, is that Pee Wee could easily have Ionis magically hide the kids until the cops are convinced he has nothing to do with their disappearance.. and then we'd really be screwed." "I trust your judgement, dear," he acknowledged. "But we need to come up with a plan here," Brit said. She swerved again and checked the rearview mirror to see when it was safe to pull back in. As she had throughout the entire drive, she did a bit of a double-take seeing Sheva sitting there in the back seat. Just then, gears started turning in her head, and she said, "Hey, Sheva, lean over." "Whuh?" "Lean to one side for a sec." As asked, Sheva leaned to her left. Brit nodded. "I thought so. See that outfit of mine that I left on the back window ledge?" Sheva sat up and turned around. "Yeah.." she said. "Duck down and put it on." "What?" "Trust me, I've got an idea here." To her father, Brit said, "Dad, can you please phone Brianna so I can get her on screen and talk to her?" Daishi carried both youths, one under each arm, and opened a door to a dark room. He placed both of them into the room as gently as possible, then without a word backed out and closed the door again, plunging them into darkness. Mikey started to cry, and Gabe sought him out in the dark to comfort him. "It'll be okay, Mikey," he said. "Everything will be fine." "You hope," came another voice. Gabe looked around, but the room was in total darkness. Not for long, however; a couple of lights snapped on. One illuminated the kids, and another showed them their captor. "I know who you are," Gabe said to Pee Wee. "Good," Pee Wee said bluntly. "You sure knew who I was when you were traipsing through my computers without permission." "You don't scare me," Gabe pushed on. "And your bad guys don't either." "That's too bad, 'cause I'm gonna hold on to you until I get what I want." "I'm not gonna do anything for you!" Gabe said adamantly. "Oh, don't worry.. it's not you that has to do anything.. it's your mother and her new little friend. They're the ones that owe me something." Pee Wee pointed up above the boys, where a video camera was angled down. "And as long as you're on the screen, I'm sure they'll do whatever it takes to keep you there. So do be good, boys, and maybe in a bit, I'll bring in a TV and let you watch something. Who knows how long this could last." Pee Wee got up and found the door, which Daishi opened from the other side long enough to let his master out. As the door closed again, Mikey resumed his crying, and Gabe pulled him close. "Hang on, bro. Someone will come for us, I'm sure of it." Gina and Ryan were in the downstairs labs, though they were not, at present, doing any type of work. That was about to change, when Gina said, "Well, I hate to put an end to a good thing, 'cept when it's for another good thing--we should get back to work." "Okay, I guess," Ryan said with a smile, not entirely pleased about it. He got up and followed her into the lab, where she stood looking at the main screen with a screwed-up expression. "What the heck're they doing way out there?" she asked. "Who?" Ryan said. "Dad and Brit are on the 985 right now, heading north, doing about ninety miles an hour," Gina said, gesturing to the blip on the screen. "Hmm.. and they didn't phone in?" "Well, you've been here with me.." "Okay, okay. Think something's up?" "Well, let me just see.." Gina leaned over and typed on the keyboard. "..where Bri' and Raph are." She looked up as the display shifted and frowned again. "And they, it seems, are doing about one hundred and change in the air, heading almost due north." "So what's up there?" Ryan nodded towards the top of the map. "Oh boy.. you know what IS up there?" "Since I just asked you, no.." "One of Pee Wee Talon's hideouts.." "So what you're saying is there's probably something going on," Ryan said as Gina turned and grabbed her jacket and hat. "I'd put money on it," she said. "C'mon!" "Let's take the truck," he said, pulling out his keys. He started it up remotely and headed for it while Gina dashed upstairs to tell Stripe where she was heading. She found him and Rhianna talking in the kitchen, saying something about Stripe helping Rhianna to mention something when Rhianna was ready. Gina didn't pay any attention to it as she blurted out in a panic where she and Ryan were going and why. "We'll come," Rhianna said. Stripe nodded and stood up. The phone rang, and Britanny answered it by tapping the activate button with her tail, still needing both hands to drive. "Yeah?" "Brit!" Gina said. "What's going on?" "Brianna says that Pee Wee's goons kidnapped Gabe and Mikey--the kids of one of Sheva's friends--from the anime con, and we're all headed for his hidden complex in the hills in case that's where they took 'em." "Why didn't you call us?" Gina wanted to know. "I didn't think of it at the time," Brit said. "I'm sorry." Gina was about to answer when she noticed something odd behind Brit. "What is going on in the back seat there? Or do I wanna know?" Gina asked. Just then, Sheva found the neckhole of the shirt and pulled her head up through it, tugging its tight fabric down overtop of her form. "SHEVA??" Gina blurted out. "Dear, we have to go; we're nearing our destination," Theo said. "We'll explain later." "Are you ready yet?" Brit asked Sheva. Sheva bent over. "Just--nnf--about.. gotta put the shoes on." "C'mon, we're the same size, it's not that bad!" Brit protested. "Not used to stuff being this tight," Sheva said, pulling at the jeans a little. "Okay, then," Brit said. "Dad, what I suggest is that you meet up with Bri' and Raph as soon as we get there, and draw the goons away so Sheva and I can do our thing." "Understood, dear," Theo said. "But it entails getting there in one piece." "Dad! I'm doing FINE. Trust me!" They skidded to a stop on the sideroad just as Brianna touched down and lifted her visor. "Great! You're here," she said, then raised the arm of her suit and tapped on it with the other hand. "Hang on, let me bring the other one in by remote." Brit, Theo, and Sheva watched as a speck in the sky became another Ginamobile, flying in from the south; Brianna piloted it expertly, transiting to Road Mode only a half-foot off the ground and driving it right to their position. "There!" Brianna smiled. "All safe and sound." Raph climbed out grinning, and Theo looked slightly miffed. He turned to face Brianna and she smiled and gave a little nervous nod. "Hi, Dr. Diggers!" Raphiel shouted. "Hi, Britanny! Hi.. er.. Britanny!" He blinked a couple of times. "Wait a minute, I'm confused. I see two Britannys here!" Brit smiled and stepped forward. "I'm the real me, Raph. This is a friend of mine named Sheva. But you've got the idea." "I do? Good," he said. "Will someone be able to tell me?" "Don't worry, Raph," Bri' said. "It's all part of a plan. You just c'mon with me and Dad, and Brit and Sheva will take care of the rest." "Okay," he said with excitement. "I hope we get to have some fun!" "Ahhhhh," Ionis said contentedly, leaning back and putting his feet up on the table. "Miller Time." "You said it," Zelda agreed, sprawled along a bench in another part of the room. "Sure feels nice.." Ionis was about to speak when Zelda added hastily, "Don't even THINK of it." He instead turned his attention towards the door, where Daishi stood, as alert as ever, almost as if he was seeing and hearing things the others couldn't. "For pete's sake, will you sit down or something?" Ionis snapped. "You're making me all tense." "There will be time to relax when all our enemies are subdued," Daishi said. "That time is not now." "Whatever," Zelda said, picking up her head to look at him, then resting it again, looking up at the ceiling with her hands interlocked behind her neck. "Do not mock me, Zelda. Constant vigilance is required.." "Feh!" "Especially for the attack which is about to commence!" Daishi said sharply, dropping a smoke bomb which enveloped him long enough for him to vanish. The other two sat up. "HUH?!" Brianna, Raphiel, and Theo approached the mouth of a cave set into the hills off to one side of the road. Sheva had assured them that the cave was the way into the stronghold--at least, the primary entrance--and the one Pee Wee's cronies would be expecting an attack from. Brianna wondered if Sheva could be trusted; Brit must've read the look of concern on her sister's face, for she vouched for the clone's loyalty right away. Brianna trusted her sister, so she decided to trust Sheva, and led her father and Raphiel towards the cave. "So, Raphiel," Theodore said quietly, in an effort to make some small talk while they moved, "how did you like driving?" "It was FUN!" Raph answered excitedly as he remembered his trip through the city. "I hope I get to practice a lot in the future!" "Yes, well, perhaps you and Brianna can be in the same class," Theo said loud enough for her to hear. She laughed a little nervously. "Oh, that would be really cool!" Raph said. "Do you need practice too, Brianna?" "Let's talk about it later," Brianna said, As she finished the sentence, a cloud of smoke erupted about ten feet in front of her, and she was never happier to see Daishi show up. "Oooh! Stand back, this one's mine!" she grinned, facing off against the ninja. She dug in and said to him, "If you know my history, Daishi, you know that I see you both as a pretty good competitor and a punching bag for me to play with. What'll it be today?" "We have never fought, young Brianna," Daishi said dismissively. "I have told you already this is not your battle. Now I will tell you you won't get past me." She grinned again. "Maybe I won't need to. Oh, and to make this fair.." She flipped up her visor, reached up with one hand to touch a control on the other forearm, and a quiet whirring noise stopped, several lights and indicators on her open visor going dark. "There. Now it's just gonna be a skill contest. Bring it on!" Daishi made no moves, standing still; a second or three later, Ionis and Zelda magically appeared on each side of him, each pairing off with another member of the Diggers' group. "NOW it is fair," Daishi said, his eyes showing hints of a smile. Theo stepped forward and faced Ionis. Zelda eyed Raphiel and said, "Guess that makes you MY dancing partner, little man." "I hate to tell you this," Raphiel said, "But I don't think they intend for us to dance at all.." Angie dumped her dinner tray into the trash can and returned it to the stack, then got in line to go back to her cell. She was worried and upset at not having seen Sheva all day. She would've asked a guard what happened to the werecheetah, but not only would the guards not know, they probably wouldn't give two hoots either. Angie's head was on a swivel as she scanned the crowds for her friend. It didn't take long to see that there were no seven foot tall people elsewhere in the dining hall. She frowned as she went back to her cell for lockdown. At that precise moment, Sheva was indeed in the dark, but it was because she was leading Britanny through Pee Wee's subterranean complex, taking shortcuts to get to where the kids could conceivably be held. They cut through a kind of a storeroom to get from one hallway to another at one point. Brit was a little creeped out by all the junk towering over them in the darkness, but Sheva seemed sure it was all safe to pass by. She followed behind Brit just the same, making sure nobody was waiting in the shadows to slip in unnoticed behind them. At one point, Britanny had the sensation of being alone, and twisted around to see Sheva crouched down at one pile of junk, muttering "Well, I'll be damned." The clone grabbed a sack from the pile and picked something up, placing it into the sack. "Sheva!" Brit hissed. "We don't got time to play yard-sale! Especially not at the rate you go through the stuff.. I'll have to teach you how to shop--" Brit shook her head. "Just c'mon, we're in a hurry!" "I'm coming, I'm coming!" Sheva said, picking up the duffel and jogging to catch up with Brit. "FINALLY," Ryan said under his breath as they arrived at the head of the traffic jam. A state trooper signalled for him to roll down his window, and he did. "Evening, folks. Sorry for the delays," the trooper said. "As you can see, we've got a pretty bad pileup here. Some nut in a fast car tore through here without any regard for anyone else's safety and caused all this." "That's terrible," Ryan said. "Any way I can get around it?" The trooper stepped back and sized up Ryan's four-by-four, then leaned down again. "I suppose I can let you go through the ditch, so long as you stay to the far side and don't run over any of my evidence. See the tow truck in the ditch? Stay to the right of him." "Thank you, officer," Ryan said. "Have a nice day," the officer said, nodding and standing up as Ryan put it in gear and drove towards the far side of the ditch. Brianna shook her head and blinked a few times, picking herself up off the ground. "Ooh--that STUNG!" She looked up at Daishi. "That's correct," he said. "And I have not yet, as you would put it, 'put my back into it'. So I recommend you give up now while you can." "Oh, don't worry, pal, I'm just gettin' warmed up too," she muttered. She threw an easily-dodged kick at Daishi, who grabbed her ankle and flipped her, landing her on her back and winding her again. "Whew!" she breathed when she could again. "Aw, hell, who'm I kidding? Brit's the one who can fight like that. I fight like this!" She slapped her visor down and powered the suit up as she stood. Theo and Ionis stood about twenty feet apart, slowly sidestepping to try to get an angle on each other. Both men had their hands up in a posture that would give them defense and offense simultaneously. "I can sense it in you, young man," Theo said. "A strange type of power. --" Theo cut himself off and put up a shield as Ionis threw a fireball. It dispersed and Theo continued talking. "Why are you masking yourself? Holding things in reserve for a final attack? I'm an archmage, son. Do you really think you could defeat me and still hold back?" Ionis wondered, throwing another attack at the old man, again easily defended. Theo looked at Ionis slightly askance after defending himself one more time. he wondered. Like the duel between Ionis and Dr. Diggers, the third contest was all Zelda, but she wasn't landing any punches either. Raphiel would simply run a little as she began to throw them, serving only to enrage her. "Dammit!" she said as he ducked under another spin kick. "You're as fast as Britanny!" "I know! I'm a werecheetah, just like her," he said. "How come you don't fight back?" Zelda wondered out loud. "Because I don't know how," Raphiel answered plainly and honestly. "Oooh!" he said, standing up straight. "Would you be able to help me learn?" Zelda just stared at him. she wondered. She smirked. "Okaaaaay," she said, pulling back a fist and aiming for the smiling, eager figure before her. "This is what you call a knuckle sandwich.." "RAPH DUCK!" he suddenly heard Brianna shouting. He turned to remind Brianna that his last name was Rey, not Duck, when he saw Daishi hurtling towards him through the air. he flattened himself to the ground and let Daishi's tumbling form pass over top of him. Zelda swung forward with all her might just as the werecheetah hit the deck, and Daishi's eyes bulged out just before Zelda's fist connected. Both of them went down in a dazed heap. Raph looked down at the semiconscious Zelda disappointedly. "Aw.. she was going to teach me about fighting," he said. Ionis saw that he was the last man standing out of his group and decided retreat was in order. He started to gate away but found himself being pulled back to the area and rooted to the spot. "No, I don't think so," Dr. Diggers was saying. "You'll be fine staying right there." "Yeah," Brianna said. "We're delaying you guys out here for a reason, y'know." Pee Wee Talon stepped off the stairs into his compound and smiled, folding his arms. "I THOUGHT I heard something going on down here," he said. The figure he was talking to turned and then froze upon seeing him standing there in the light spilling down from the stairs. Her tail even stopped flicking back and forth. "Of course, I was expecting you anyway," he said. "I knew your sister had seen my underlings when they removed the little troublemaker and his brother from the hotel. So I knew it was only a matter of time before you got here. I can only presume it's your sister that Daishi and the others are engaged with outside, but they'll be done with her in a--" He cut himself off as something caught the light and reflected it to him. He cocked his head a little and squinted, then blinked in suprise at the zippered-up duffel bag of his that was in Britanny's hand. "You're stealing? From ME?" he said incredulously. "My, my, my," he smiled again. "I was under the impression you Diggerses NEVER stole. You disappoint me, Britanny." Britanny cleared her throat and said from behind Talon, "Actually, Pee Wee, *I* am right here." He gasped and found himself being lifted high into the air from behind. The figure at the other end of the hall flicked on the lights, and he saw another Britanny--obviously Sheva--walking towards him with a smirk on her face. He looked over his shoulder and saw the exact same expression on Brit. "Ah.. er.." he said, trembling. Then a slight 'whsss' sound could be heard. "AW YUCK! GROSS!" Britanny hollered in protest a split-second later, holding him out at arms' length and dancing about. "And I'm holding on to him, too! EWWW!" "Don't let go of him, Brit! We still need him to tell us where the kids are," Sheva said. "I won't, but--" she shivered. "ICK! Oooooh! Now I know why they call you Pee Wee! (You'll hear from my dry cleaners'!)" Sheva reached out and poked Pee Wee in the sternum as she spoke, in loud, overenunciated tones. "You have taken a couple of things that belong to a friend of mine. A couple of things she holds very dear and close. Now, I may have only learned the meaning of those words a few weeks ago, but I DO understand them and I CAN appreciate them. And I know what it would do to my friend if she found out what you'd done. Now, if you make the FIRST person to EVER befriend me CRY, I'm gonna get more than just a little mad. Which I am now, by the way, in case you missed it. And you KNOW I don't have morals quite as high as Brit's, here, 'cause you never gave them to me. So you know I don't have any qualms with smackin' you around, even if you ARE a little pipsqueak with glasses. So you tell me where Gabe and Mikey are right now, or this might get rough." Brit could feel the trembling and shivering rising in Pee Wee and said to Sheva, "Hang on now.. there's no need to get nasty--we can do this another way.." Pee Wee looked back and forth between the two werecheetahs, wondering what his fate would be. Brianna, Theo, and Raphiel looked up as Ryan's Humvee finally pulled up to the side of the road behind the Ginamobiles. The four in the truck came piling out and ran across the road towards the others. "Hi, Gina! Hi, everybody!" Raph said happily, standing up. "Guess what! I learned to ride a bike today! AND how to make a knuckle sandwich!" "Um.... that's great, Raph," she said. "What ELSE is going on here?" "Your sister and her friend have gone inside to take care of Master Talon and retrieve the youngsters he kidnapped from the convention," Theo told his daughter and her friends. "Yeah, Brit just phoned me," Brianna nodded. "They should be out any minute now." "Excellent," Theo said. "And now, I do think it's time to inform the police." "I'm on it," Brianna said, turning around again. "These guys, if they're involved, will find a way to weasel out of it, I'm sure," Ryan gestured to Daishi and Zelda unconscious before him. "They always do." Theo was about to answer when he noticed Stripe's gaze towards the cave mouth and the subsequent smile on his face. Theo and the others turned to see Brit and Sheva emerging, one carrying a duffel bag, the other the two kids on her shoulders. Everyone there (except Pee Wee's goons, of course) cheered and applauded as Britanny set the kids down carefully. "Way to go, sis!" Brianna said as she came over. She crouched before the kids and said, "Hi, guys. I've already called your grandparents, and they're on their way to pick you up, okay?" The two kids nodded happily. "Where's Pee Wee?" Gina wanted to know. "Oh, we left him inside with some entertainment," Brit grinned. "By the way, Brianna, if you make it back to the con, I'll give you some money to buy the kids a DVD to replace the one we used in there." "Sure," Brianna said. "Which one?" Erwin Talon squirmed as much as he could, but he couldn't get loose from the bindings that held him to the chair. He couldn't even turn his head away from the television he was parked in front of. "Pita! Pita! CHOO!" came from the speakers as he trembled there. After the closing theme, as it had once already, the DVD player blinked "AUTO REPLAY", starting the 30-minute program over again. "NO! NO! NOOOOO!!" he wailed. "I have a couple of things to say," Sheva announced. She walked over to Gina and opened the duffel bag. "Gina, I need to apologize to you. I.. stole this from you a while back, and must've forgot it when I left Pee Wee's place. I happened across it when we were heading through there just now, and I need to give it back to you." She pulled out a small gold statuette and handed it over to Gina, who seemed a little more excited then she should be. "zoinks" Gina whispered. "Gina?" Theo and a couple of others asked. Both Ryan and Rhianna gasped. "Is that what I think it is?" they both stereoed. Gina nodded. "I've been collecting pieces of a puzzle of sorts for about two years," she explained to everyone. "Kinda like a scavenger hunt.. every piece of treasure unlocks another part of the puzzle. When I got this piece ten months ago, I had only three others to get before I would solve the riddle. In the interim.. I've found the other three.. but I lost this one." "So what you're saying, is.." Brit trailed off. "Which means," Gina said, barely able to contain her excitement, "This is gonna lead me right to a never-before-seen ancient Egyptian tomb!" "Excellent!" "Right on!" "Very good," Stripe added his congratulations to the disjointed chorus. "Well done, Gina," Theo said. "And well done, Sheva." Sheva looked up as Theo spoke, and walked over to him. "And Dr. Diggers, sir, the other thing I need to say is this: Thank you, and I have something to ask of you as well. I know I owe you already one pretty huge one, but I was wondering if I could be indebted to you just a little more." "As in?" Theo asked. "I don't imagine you can do for someone else what you did for me, can you?" He thought for a brief moment, then shook his head slightly. "Unfortunately, I doubt it; your case was fairly special." "I understand," she nodded. "It's okay. In that case, however, I wonder if you can help me with something I heard about called a 'supervised day pass'.." EPILOGUE THE NEXT AFTERNOON Al's 51 Flavors on Route 20 was a brightly lit, clean, and pleasant place to be. Al had flavors of ice cream there that very few people had ever heard of. The fact that it was the best ice cream in the area meant that he could move it all, even the obscure-sounding varieties. The place was always jam-packed, with take-out and dine-in lineups stretching for hundreds of yards outside the doors. Still, the Diggerses and their friends--including the elder Middlesons and their grandkids--were able to find several booths and tables off in a corner that they could take over for a few hours. The lot of them were laughing and having a good time, getting to know one another and enjoying themselves immensely. They were also waiting for Theodore Diggers and Sheva to return, as they'd stepped out about an hour before, saying they'd be back. Stripe cleared his throat and spoke to the Diggerses and Ryan. "Now that all the commotion is over and done with, and while we're still waiting for Dr. Diggers and Sheva to return, I do believe Rhianna has something she wants to say." Rhianna looked up in surprise and found everyone watching her. She said, "Uhm.. er, well.." She gulped a little and went on, "I feel bad for not having been able to help out in the whole rescue effort, so.. everything here today is on me, okay?" "Hey, thanks Rhi'!" Gina smiled, patting her on the back. "Much appreciated." "Just for that," Brit joked, "I'm goin' back for thirds." "You already did that two helpings ago," Brianna grinned. "So did you!" Brit countered. "AND Raph." "Mmff?" Raphiel said, his mouth full. Stripe glanced at Rhianna with a questioning look as the latter looked up at him. She could only offer a nearly imperceptible shrug. "Hey, here's Dad now," Brit said, looking out the window. Everyone sat up and watched the doors. Theo came through and made it through the crowd of other customers, with Sheva beside him. "Hey, guys," Brianna said, leaning over to the kids, and speaking to both them and their grandparents as well, "We got a little surprise for you.." Theo smiled and simply stood aside, as did Sheva, allowing Angie and her guard escort to be seen. The kids gasped, as did their grandparents. "MOM!" Gabe yelled and leapt off the seat, running and hugging his mother as tightly as he could. Mikey followed along immediately after. She crouched down and hugged them back as well, tears coming to her eyes. "Hi, guys," she said with a trembling voice. "I hear you had some excitement yesterday!" She looked up at Sheva long enough to smile and say, "Thank you," then returned to her kids. Then Angie's parents were beside her and wanted in on the family embrace as well, and Theo put a hand on Sheva's shoulder. "Come over here," he suggested, edging past the guard, who was allowing his prisoner a little room and leeway. "Let them have their moment." "Yeah, come sit down," Brit said to Sheva. "I got something I want you to try out." Sheva sat down across from Brit, Theo beside her, and momentarily, the Middlesons went back to their booth as well. Brit tapped on the table with her knuckles, and then raised her hand. "OK, ice-cream slingin' guy, hit it!" Sheva stared at the dish that was placed before her, a little stick with a card on it sticking out of the serving. The card identified the flavor, as was Al's habit. Sheva then looked up at Brit with one eyebrow raised. "Tuna Sundae?" she said quizzically. THE END Jason Low and Mario Di Giacomo present Gold Digger: Doubled Up ECHOES OF A SMILE Early October was fairly comfortable in Atlanta, a fact that made outdoor barbecues, long walks, and other such pursuits enjoyable. The summer was officially over, and most families were back at their usual off-season routines. This was also true for the Tabbot siblings, who, after a strange week in which they'd helped thwart a kidnapping and seen a former prison inmate released into their friends' custody, were back at the usual late-morning sparring session. "Not bad," Ryan told Rhianna, "Though it was a little on the weak side. Step into it more." Rhianna offered little more than a grunt and a nod before dodging his attack. "Ugh," he said, stumbling to one side after being deflected. "Heh, you had me there.. should've followed thru." Rhi' gritted her teeth and hopped back, evading another attack. She then offered a jab towards Ryan's midsection, which he easily avoided. "So," he said as they continued, "Is this the routine you're going to use at Gladiatorz 2000?" "I'm not going," she mumbled. "What? Why not? Look, I wouldn't even have to square off against you if that's it. We'd be in two different classes." "It's not that," Rhianna added, frowning. "Is it how you're doing, then?" Ryan hazarded. "You gotta open 'er up a little and start getting serious with me." "I.. I can't." "Don't worry, I can take it," he grinned. She shook her head a little. "C'mon, EVERYONE who is ANYONE is gonna be at the competition. You HAVE to come." "No, I don't." "Why not?" "'Cause I'll hurt somebody," she said quietly. He laughed a little. "Rhi', gettin' hurt is the name of the game. It comes with the territory." "Not like I mean." "C'mon, don't go soft on me," he laughed, giving her a tap to one shoulder, which she recovered from neatly. "C'mon now. Let's get it on." "Fine," Rhianna said, dropping her arms to her sides and taking a step back. "You want to know? You REALLY want to know why I can't 'open 'er up' like you want me to?" "Well, yeah.." Ryan trailed off, standing up straight. "Go ahead. Attack me." Ryan eyed her. "With you just standing there like that?" "With me just standing here like this," she said flatly. Ryan thought about it for a moment, and decided she knew what she was doing. "Okay," he said, and ran at her. The next thing he knew, he had a memory of flying backwards through the air, and was up against the wall of the house, twenty-five feet away from Rhianna, her right hand outstretched towards him. "What the..?" he said, getting to his feet. She lowered her hand and walked towards him with an expressionless face. "What did you do?" he asked. he wanted to add but didn't. "I repelled you," she said plainly. "I held up my hand, called upon a.. power I acquired recently, and all your kinetic energy was amplified and reversed." "How??" "Remember the fight with the Dynasty?" Ryan nodded. "I killed Riel with that kick. Somehow, I beat the mother of the Dynasty myself, unaided.. and ever since, I've found myself with her powers." "Are you serious?" "Do you need more proof? Here." In a flash, she jabbed out with her left fist and slammed it into his ribcage on the right side. "OW!" he gasped, buckling; he hadn't been ready for it, and he twisted as the pain shot all over his right side and he crumpled. However, she reached out and supported him before he could hit the ground; then, her left hand moved from supporting under his armpit to the point where she'd hit him. Instead of a fist, though, it was an open palm, and she held it gently in contact with his ribcage. Ryan stared as the pain started to subside with a tingling sensation; in a few seconds, there was nothing out of the ordinary there, and she pulled her hands away and stepped back again. "W--wow," he began. He lifted up his shirt to prove to himself that there wasn't even a bruise visible, then he looked at her again. "So now you see why I can't take part in the contest," she said quietly. I don't see why not," he said. "Just don't do that stuff." "It's not something conscious," she shook her head. "Not all the time." She shrugged. "I mean, I can use it, just like this"--she lifted a hand, aimed at the tire swing in the back yard, and it started to move--"but also, if I'm not careful, if I'm not thinking about it every second, I can accidentally put it to use and cause some serious damage. That punch I just gave you? That was just an ordinary smack in the ribs, nothing more, not augmented in any way. If I put my power behind it? You'd be a mess.. something I'm not sure I could fix." "So it's a control problem?" "No!" Rhi' snapped at Ryan. "It's NOT a 'control problem'! It's a 'whole new philosophy' problem.. I have to rethink how much.. if at ALL.. I involve myself in fighting from now on." "You can't just quit outright," Ryan said. "You'll go--" "So what CAN I do, then? Keep on as if nothing's wrong, and enter Gladiatorz, and accidentally collapse a guy's lungs and turn the rest of his organs into a mush?? I couldn't live with that." "Then don't," he said. "Look, I agree, entering G2K would be a bad idea. But you CAN get over this, this problem. You just need some help." She shook her head vigorously. "NO, no, no, no, no," she said. "I am NOT telling anyone about this. Too many know already." "Who knows?" "Stripe.. and you now.. and.." "And?" "And some guy that Stripe and Dr. Diggers apparently know who just seems to pop in out of nowhere all the time," Rhi' added. "Said he was watching me for a long time." "Some guy is watching you?" Ryan said, standing upright. She gently pushed him back to a leaning position against the wall, as he was before. "Down, boy. Keep in mind I was once you--I can take care of myself. Besides, he's some kind of spook." "As in?" "A government guy.. I don't know what part, but he gave me a card with only his phone number on it, and said if I ever needed him, to give him a call, and he'd be here for me." "Well, don't you think you need him now, if you're having trouble controlling your, um, powers?" "Ryan, I don't KNOW anything about this guy," Rhianna bit out. "What if he decides the solution is to take me away and lock me in a room and analyze me for the rest of my life?" "I always knew reading those stories when I was a kid would screw me up," Ryan muttered under his breath. "What was that?!" Rhianna raged, putting her face right in front of his. "Nothing," he said, turning away. "Just.. nothing." "I'm NOT SCREWED UP!" she snapped back at him. "Rhianna, listen to me," Ryan said, gripping her shoulders and facing her. "Whether you're screwed up or not, now that I know what your secret is, I can tell you've been obsessing over it for over a month now. You HAVE to get on with your life! I can understand that you're scared of what might happen, but worrying about it won't solve anything! Dammit, you're me inside, how come you don't know this?" She wrenched away from him. "Ryan, I am NOT you inside," she said quietly, frowning. "Not any more. People.. change." "What're you saying?" he asked. "....That I need some time to myself," she said, turning away. He watched her stride angrily out of the back yard towards the side path. "Where are you going?" he called after her. "Out!" was the clipped response. For the rest of the morning, Rhianna wandered the city, snarling to herself. she thought. She thought about that for a few seconds and then shook her head vigorously. she asked herself, She looked down and realized that she was playing a fierce battle against a computer generated opponent on Virtual Brawler 3, in the arcade in the mall. Rhianna swore under her breath and stalked out of the arcade. The kid who'd been watching her stared with eyes wide at the 23rd-level game she'd walked away from, and he jumped for the controls. She didn't even notice, though, with the thoughts on her mind. she declared silently. Gina sat in the lab, staring at the items on the bench before her. It looked almost as if the statuette Sheva had returned to her was presiding over a meeting of eight oddly-shaped artifacts. Despite the artifacts' unique designs, they all had one thing in common, though--a single seal or marking about an inch across, depicting a crescent superimposed over a hollow circle superimposed over a solid circle. "I wonder.." Gina murmured, and took an item that looked like an oversized teacup and placed it on top of a small object that looked like two four-sided pyramids joined at the base, with the tops lopped off. Getting no results, she reversed the order, trying to make the pyramid-shaped object fit inside the bowl of the cup, again in vain. She continued with this behavior as the elevator rose into the ceiling, then returned moments later with Ryan aboard. "Hey, babe," was his usual greeting. "Uh-huh," she murmured, trying to make the star-shaped artifact mesh with a thing that looked to be a cube with several prongs coming out of one end. She gave up on that and tried to get the cube to work with the cup, resting the cup face-down on top of the prongs. "Um," Ryan said, watching Gina's curious behavior. "Oh! Good, you're here," she said, as if she hadn't greeted him already. "You're just in time to help me out with this!" "Uhh, sure," Ryan said distantly. "I can do that.. but actually I was wondering if you'd seen Rhianna today." "No, actually, I haven't seen her for a couple of days," Gina admitted. "Back when Brit forced her to go along shopping for clothes." She grinned. "Don't worry, I don't think they're still there." Ryan nodded distractedly. "Oh, okay, thanks." "So, do you wanna know what I've got so far out of this?" "Oh, sure, of course," Ryan said. "NOTHING!" Gina complained, tossing the two artifacts in her hands onto the lab bench. "Not a single stinkin' clue. As a matter of fact, I've been sitting here staring at it all for over three hours now, and I have no idea what order these things go in, or if I'm supposed to put them together like Tinkertoys, or what. Can YOU see any pattern here?" Ryan looked it over. "Ummm.. No, not really," he admitted. "Hmm." Gina put her chin in her hand and eyed the bench full of objects again. "Well, looks like we got some work ahead of us. If you want, I'll grab some lunch for us while you give this a shot." "Okay," Ryan said, sitting down and looking at the items laid out before him. Julia Diggers hummed happily as she went about her daily tasks. With Theo out of the house for a while, she was finally able to get some cleaning done, without bothering him or having him underfoot. she said, collecting several magazines from the chairs and sofas in the sitting room and putting them on the coffee table there. She couldn't really blame Sheva, though, she realized; it wasn't as if the quasi-werecat had had an upbringing of any kind, let alone good or bad. Julia was surprised when Theo had brought the young girl home, almost as surprised as a similar night 22 years previous.. She shook her head and continued cleaning. She headed to the front door, intending to sweep off the steps, when she caught a glimpse of someone storming up the driveway. It was Rhianna Tabbot, she realized. Julia opened the door as Rhi' stepped off the driveway onto the front walk. Rhianna looked up in surprise and stopped. "Oh.." "I'm sorry," Julia said. "Didn't mean to startle you." "That's.. that's okay," Rhianna said. "Is Dr. Diggers here?" "Actually, he went out this morning to meet someone," Julia smiled. "Did he say when he'd be back?" "I can't see him being much longer, dear," Julia said. "Why don't you go inside and wait?" "Thank you, I think I will," Rhianna said, heading to the front door. Rhi' sat down in the sitting room, looking around. It'd been a long time since she'd been in the mansion--in fact, she reminded herself, SHE hadn't been in the mansion at all, it had been Ryan--but things were still as she remembered them. The arrangement of couches and chairs by the bay window at the front of the house, adjacent to the open front foyer; a long hallway also open to the sitting room, along which several rooms branched off, and several expensive-looking paintings hung. The stairs to the second floor went straight up from the foyer, and off to one side was a door that led to the dining room. Behind the stairs was another hallway that led eastward, towards the kitchen and den. Rhianna picked up a magazine and glanced at its cover: Archaeology Weekly, July 1995, with Brit and Gina on the cover. She'd read it cover to cover already a few times at home, so she set it aside and found beneath it an older-looking periodical by the name of "Popular Sorcery". She flipped through it, but it was even more boring than reading a book she'd already memorized. Third down in the pile was Sword & Staff, a magazine dedicated to the skill of such kinds of combat. She hurried through it as well, and didn't even look at the last book, Better Homes & Gardens. She propelled herself to her feet, walking over to the hallway where she studied a painting for a while. It was something she'd never seen before, by someone she'd never heard of (actually, it was one of Brod's masterpieces that Julia had brought back from Jade, depicting moonrise as seen from the top of the Magic Observatory). Rhi' turned away and sat back down in the chair heavily. She sat and fumed there for a good while, not saying a word, only nodding politely when Julia came back through the door and reassured her it wouldn't be much longer. She folded her arms in front of her and continued to wait. Gina pulled the statuette out of a sensor pod and turned it over in her hands while she waited for the data to come back. "Find anything?" "Huh?" Ryan said, as if he hadn't been listening. "Oh.." He checked the screens before him. "Nope, nothing out of the ordinary." "You sure don't seem to have your heart set on this puzzle," Gina observed. Ryan badly wanted to jump up and affirm to Gina that she was right, and that his distraction stemmed from Rhianna's revelation that morning; however, he'd gotten the message when Rhi' had said she hadn't told nor intended to tell anyone else. "Nah, I'm fine," he said to Gina dismissively. "S'okay." "You sure?" she asked. "I'm all right," he said a little more forcefully, but still with a friendly, throwaway tone. "Don't worry 'bout me." "All right," she shrugged, getting back to business. "What about the little artifact, number 2? Should we maybe check it out the same way?" "What for?" he wondered aloud. "It, and all the others, show up as being 'inconclusive' in almost every way. Most of 'em report high lead contents. That's it." Gina sat down heavily with a sigh as Ryan stood up. He put a hand on her shoulder as he walked by. "Don't push yourself," he told her. "You'll get your form back soon." "Bah," she grumbled. She sat there, chin in one hand and the fork from her lunch in the other. Idly, she tapped it against her water glass, then Ryan's. The two glasses, filled to different levels, made different sounds, and she rattled the fork back and forth between them for a moment. She drummed a bit of the "George of the Jungle" theme, then got bored of that, and instead of hitting her glass again after Ryan's, reached out and gave the nearest artifact--the one that looked for all the world like a bar of soap--a tap with the fork. She jumped when it chimed like the finest crystal. It didn't look hollow, and she KNEW it wasn't hollow, for it weighed a couple pounds when she picked it up. Yet as she tapped it again with the fork, it was as if it was designed for no other reason than to emit a melodious ringing sound. She tried a few others and got similar sounds of higher and lower pitch out of all of them. "Hey, Ryan?" she called out. "I think I'm onto something here.." "You take care, okay?" said Angie. "You too!" Sheva said into the phone cheerily. "It was great to hear from you. Keep happy!" "I will if you will," Angie answered, and the two said their goodbyes and hung up. Sheva hummed a little tune as she headed out of the dining room and went to clean up the workshop for Julia, as requested. Sheva was in a pretty good mood, partially because she was able to talk to Angie for almost a full 15 minutes. Angie was doing well, and was profusely grateful to Sheva and all the others for saving Gabe and Mikey from Erwin Talon's clutches. Sheva told her it was nothing, drawing on a cliche she'd heard Brit using, and Angie had said it wasn't. Going out of the dining room and heading to the workshop necessitated a trip through the sitting room. Sheva jumped a little as Rhianna, sitting in a chair, spun around at the sound of her entry. "Oh! Good afternoon, Rhi'," Sheva grinned. "What's happening?" "Don't you 'good afternoon' me," Rhianna snapped, stunning Sheva and stopping her in her tracks. "Huh?" Sheva said. "What's wrong?" "What's wrong? Everything's wrong. EveryONE's wrong. Ryan's wrong. Dr. Diggers is wrong. His friend 'Casper the Friendly Spook' is wrong." "Is there something I can do?" "Oh yeah, like you helped me last time? I dunno what game you're playing.. Every time you help me, I come out worse than I started," Rhianna bit out. "Now, hold on a second," Sheva protested. "I.. that was different." "Yeah, we all change, don't we?" Rhianna sneered. "You're a mirror image of who you used to be.. turned a hundred and eighty degrees. Forgive and forget, huh?" She didn't pause as Sheva nodded. "Well, why don't we skip 'forgive' and go right to 'forget'." Sheva looked upset. "But I'm trying.." she said with a frown. "Well, sometimes, if at first you don't succeed," Rhianna said, "Give up! No sense pissing everyone else off." Rhianna looked around while Sheva tried to come up with a response. "So, you playing daughter for the Diggerses here?" Rhi' said. "Pretending you're Brit, trying to be like her?" Sheva's fur actually stood on edge, and her tail started to wag. "Grr.." "Yup," Rhianna said, "I see you got some of her old stuff on.. you'll be in her shadow, y'know, always getting hand-me-downs from the REAL werecheetah." "You take that back!" Sheva blurted out, balling up her fists. "Oh, EXCELLENT grade three comeback! Very fitting!" Sheva leapt at Rhianna and tackled her, knocking Rhianna and the chair over, and sending both of them tumbling end-for-end. The chair bounced up against an end table that held a potted plant, tipping it and sending the plant crashing to the floor. Sheva was remotely aware of the rug they were rolling around on, because Julia had made a point of mentioning it was some kind of really old thing. It didn't mean much to Sheva, but it was something Julia really liked, so she tried to roll Rhianna off of it, causing them to knock over another table, then tip over a floor lamp, which landed across the glass coffee table, shattering it. Sheva's anger had dissipated somewhat; she sensed that something was wrong with Rhianna and tried to pin her down, until she could convince her to calm down. Once she got her pinned, though, Rhianna looked at Sheva with a fierce expression and gritted teeth, and bellowed, "GIDDOFFA ME!" Sheva was startled to find herself flying away from Rhianna in a flash, even though Rhi' hadn't made any moves at all. She remembered the front window of the sitting room a fraction of a second before she went right through it. When she landed, she was winded, and lay there for a split second in the flower bed; she got up and shook the glass out of her coat, looking up and growling at Rhianna. Sheva leapt through the shattered window at her opponent, who made a gesture again and, without touching her, sent her flying off to the left, crashing into a cabinet, which toppled down over her and splintered into a dozen pieces, spilling the china inside. Sheva unburied herself and snarled at Rhianna, who stood there looking like she was ready for anything. Sheva extended her claws a bit and threw herself upon Rhianna, the two of them rolling around on the floor yet again, smashing into a couple of endtables and such. Sheva felt herself being hoisted in the air again and figured it was somehow once again Rhianna's doing, but then she realized she felt a hand clamped around the fur on the back of her neck. The hand slammed her onto one end of the only remaining upright couch as its owner hollered, "You! Sit there!" Sheva recognized Julia's voice, and watched the pain contort across the latter's face as she stood back up again. "Rhianna, honey," Julia said pleasantly, "DO be a dear and pick your butt up off the floor and deposit it on the other end of that couch, 'cause if you make me do it right now, with my back, I might get a little cranky. And you DON'T want me to get cranky." Rhi' obediently sat on the couch, as far away from Sheva as possible. "Now," Julia said, again calm almost to the point of being frightening. "You two supposed 'ladies' are going to march yourselves right into the kitchen and work out your differences PEACEFULLY while I clean up this mess. When I get done and come into the kitchen, I'd better see two friends there. Understood? Get moving." Julia turned and started to pick up the mess, saying under her breath, "As bad as Gina and Britanny used to be.." The two opponents looked at one another and then got up slowly and went to the kitchen. Sheva had a fleeting urge to let the door swing back in Rhi's face, but curbed it and held the door open instead. Both of them leaned against counters on opposite sides of the room, facing one another from about fifteen paces apart. Sheva had her arms folded and was trying to keep the tip of her tail from twitching, and Rhianna stood there with her arms behind her, hands curled around the edge of the countertop, staring Sheva down. "That hurt, you know," Sheva said quietly. "And I don't mean the fight. Surely you know how hard I'm trying to be a better person." "I know.." Rhi' said, studying the floor. "I was just pissed at waiting for Dr. Diggers. You were the first target I saw." She put her hands behind her neck for a moment, then let them slide around and rub her face briefly before she folded her arms, gripping the opposite bicep with each. "Sorry," Rhi' finally said quietly. "Me too," Sheva answered back. "But next time you have a rough day, please don't take it out on me." "No, really.. I didn't mean what I said. You're doing an excellent job of.. trying to fit in." She winced and said, "What I mean is, I just have a lot of stress right now and.. as much as I hate to admit it.. I'm not dealing." She continued to try to make the act of healing herself as inconspicuous as possible. Sheva apparently didn't notice it. She added after a long moment, "From what I was hearing a few minutes ago, we probably have some issues to discuss." "Don't say 'we' when you mean me," Rhianna said. "I was the one doing all the instigating." "If you knew what I was thinking at that point," Sheva responded quietly, head bowed, "you might not say that." Rhi' looked at her. "For a while, I resented you and envied you at the same time," Sheva said in a voice barely above a whisper. "What?? Why?" "Because you have friends and family who care," Sheva explained. "In a way, you have everything I want. Even after you betrayed Gina by siding with me and doing all those bad things I made you do, she was still willing to take you back as a friend, in an instant. You had lots of people around you who.. who loved you, who gave a damn about you. At that point I didn't even have anybody--I'd left Pee Wee, who saw me as nothing more than a tool to be used against Gina and her friends. So you can imagine.. when I saw you doing the same things I was doing, alongside me, and getting the exact opposite treatment.." Rhianna nodded. "I think I know how you felt about Pee Wee, and about being a clone, and being somewhat less than wanted.. and.." Sheva blinked. "What're you talking about? You're wanted. They said exactly that." "Only after the fact," Rhianna snorted. "Lemme put you in my shoes back then. I was Ryan Tabbot, had everything going for me, making my living off a fun hobby--archaeology and treasure hunting. I got Gina Diggers as a girlfriend. Everything is just rolling along perfectly.. and then I get cursed with this." She gestured to herself. "You know," Sheva said, "it's not a visually displeasing form to get cursed with.." Rhianna smiled. "I kept hearing that too, but keep in mind, at that point, I was more used to dating people who looked like this. And as Ryan, I was pretty macho.. really interested in the guy-stuff, to put it one way. So.. it was more than a little upsetting to not only be like this in the first place, but also to be told that it was all cured, and find out that wasn't the case.. twice. I slept like this a couple times when it was still part of the curse, when me and Ryan were the same person.. and I would wake up screaming out of a nightmare where I found I would be stuck like this." She looked down at herself and sighed. "And one day, I guess I just never woke up." Sheva tried to interject, but Rhi' steamed on ahead: "Gina should'a known that, you know? She used the exact same machine that ultimately created Brianna.. it should've been obvious to her that I would result from a similar experiment." She looked up at Sheva with a faint smile. "You were about to ask if I still thought I was living a nightmare, weren't you? Well, for the first few weeks, it was really hard for me to cope. I was still Ryan mostly, dealing with the fact there was another him out there, and he was going to be Rhianna from then on. Did you ever have that feeling, that you would miss out on stuff that Brit was doing, that you should've been doing?" Sheva shook her head no at first, then changed her mind and nodded. "Yeah," she admitted. "The couple of times I posed as Brit to get into the complex, for a fleeting moment, I contemplated just keeping up the charade as long as I could.. but I could never get up the nerve to." She looked up. "You feel cheated out of your existence, do you?" "Used to," Rhianna said. "These days I'm feeling a lot better about myself.. especially since I decided to see myself as having been 'born' Rhianna that day in the bio-chamber. I can look into a mirror now, and see the girl standing there before me, and accept that she's Rhianna Tabbot.. it's slow going, but I'm getting better every day." "And yet you've got stress you can't deal with." Rhi' nodded. "It's unrelated. Don't worry about it. I'll be OK." "You sure? Angie told me that talking about things can--" "Thanks, but.. it's something I have to work out by myself." "Well, if there's anything *I* can do to help.." She shrugged and let herself trail off. "I appreciate it," Rhianna nodded gratefully. She thought for a moment and said, "Y'know, if we think about it, we've probably got a lot in common. Maybe we should try'n work together to better ourselves. Deal?" Sheva watched Rhianna stand up straight and walk halfway across the kitchen, extending a hand. Sheva answered by taking several steps forward herself and grasping Rhi's hand in her own. "Deal," she smiled. "Good thing, too," Rhianna said, cracking a smile of her own, "or else Julia would've left us in here for a lot longer than it takes to clean up the mess we made." Sheva looked around as if to ensure they were alone, then asided to Rhianna, "Are all mothers like that?" Rhianna simply laughed. Ryan stood and stared at the proceedings going on in the lab. Gina had arranged the eight artifacts in a row, with the statue at one end of the line. "Here we go," she said in a hushed tone. "Is the camera rolling?" Ryan looked over his shoulder at the Hi-8 on the tripod, and the red light beside the lens. "Yup," he said. "Okay then," she nodded, and tapped each of the artifacts with a tiny mallet she'd dug up from a board game in her closet. She watched the lot carefully, though nothing reacted when she played them upwards in a rising scale one octave long. The statue, however, gave a dull THUNK when she struck it. It was what one would expect a solid statuette to sound like, though for that reason it surprised Gina. "Hmm," she said, pushing it slightly aside and focusing on the other items. "Let's try that again." She tried the first few notes of Beethoven's Fifth, the beginning of the Blue Danube Waltz, and some others. "Rats," she muttered. "What?" Ryan asked. "Only one octave's worth.. can't do the Close Encounters theme." After a moment, Ryan suggested, "Maybe you haven't found them all.. maybe there's more." Gina picked one up, pointing to the seal on the bottom. "Nope, I got them all, trust me. Every one of them had this seal on it, and the instructions on where to find them were simple once I knew what to look for. They're all here." Ryan took the artifact and studied the seal for a moment, then handed it back. "Okay, it's your sanity," he said. "Aaah, we'll see who's laughing when I uncover the treasure," Gina said confidently, standing over the cluster of artifacts again, holding the mallet ready to strike them again. "My name in the paper again!" "I can see it now," Ryan smirked. "Gina Diggers, ancient Egyptian xylophonist." He headed for the elevator and added, "I'll be back later. I'm gonna check back home and see if Rhi' went back there." "Yeah, ok," she waved, tapping on the teacup-shaped object to hear its perfect F. "Talk to you later?" "Sure," he said. "Have fun." Julia collected some varnished kindling in her arms like she was carrying the wood to the fireplace. Wincing again, she carefully stood up straight and headed for the door to dump the stuff outside to be put in the trash. she told herself. With a knee, she worked the handle and opened the front door. She was about to heave the garbage off to one side when she noticed a figure standing there. They wore a flowing robe of what appeared to be Arabic design, and held a simple-looking staff upon which they leaned. Julia gasped in mid-throw and contorted to keep the lumber from flying everywhere, when the figure dropped to one knee on the cement landing. "Mistress Julia. I have found you at last. Please give this unworthy wretch the honor of becoming your student." Julia blinked and let the wood fall, sucking in her breath and wincing as it all landed on her foot. TO BE CONTINUED in "GD World Tour: A Touch Of Class" Jason Low and Mario Di Giacomo present Gold Digger: Doubled Up/World Tour Prologue: "A Touch of Class" Theodore Diggers sat down at the breakfast table and set down his meal. "Good morning," he said to Julia. "Mm-hmm," she nodded. She gripped her teacup with both hands and stared into it, as she had for quite a while. Theo stared at his love for a moment, wanting to help, but lacking the words. Finally, all he could say was, "I understand you had a visitor yesterday." "Sheva tell you?" Julia asked, releasing one hand's grip on the cup so she could lift it to her mouth and take a sip. Theo nodded. "I asked her how your day went. She told me you, to put it her way, had to break up a silly fight she got into, answered the door, and after a bit, went into your workshop." Julia took a breath, and another sip of tea. "That's right." "Would you prefer we don't talk about it?" She sighed and put down the cup. "No, I wouldn't.. it's just that I don't know where to begin." "Twain suggested the best place to start was the beginning. How about the identity of the visitor?" "She was an Amazon," Julia explained. "Her name is Sikarra, and she came here for me." "Oh? For what reason?" "Mistress Julia," the figure had said while genuflecting on the porch the day previous. "I have found you at last. Please give this unworthy wretch the honor of being your student." Julia dropped the broken chair in surprise, and yelped as it landed on her foot. She hopped about for a moment, then gripped the doorframe and winced, muttering some words under her breath. "Are you all right, Mi--" the woman began. "Yes, yes, I'm fine," Julia said dismissively. "Who did you say you were again?" "I am called Sikarra," the young lady said with a bow of her head. "Of the Astar tribe." "Of course," Julia nodded, regarding the young girl--barely fifteen, if that--standing on her porch. "And you're here to ask me to..?" "Teach," Sikarra said, looking up at Julia eagerly. "Teach me all you know. Make your skill my skill." Julia blinked. "I'm not the one you--" "I beg to differ," Sikarra said. "You are the Armsmaster." "I'm flattered," Julia said. "But I'm--" "Lady," the woman crouched before her said, in an almost awed voice, as opposed to how a New Yorker might say the same word, "I have come of age. It is time for my training.. surely you remember how it is?" Julia nodded. "Mother Brigand told me to come to you. She said there was no better teacher from which I could learn. I must admit hesitance in coming here, to Earth; if I were to go back without your lessons.." "I understand," Julia nodded slowly. Sikarra brightened. "Then you will train me?" "I didn't say that," Julia cautioned the young woman. "I have to think about this for a time; there are things I haven't tol--" She cut herself off and just shook her head. "There are things, Sikarra. I need twenty-four hours before I give you a decision." Sikarra nodded, then started to sit in a crosslegged position on the porch. "I will wait here." "Ah.." Julia began to protest. She knew she couldn't take the girl in for the night, partly because she wasn't prepared to and partly because it would be seen as a sign that she'd made up her mind already. She entertained the thought of giving the girl a few bucks to go spend the night in a hotel, but realized instantly that that would be a mistake. Instead, she suggested, "There are some very sheltering woods behind the house. Perhaps you would be more comfortable back there?" Sikarra looked up and nodded, getting back up to her feet. "Of course," she nodded. "I will return in twenty-four hours." She stepped off the porch and walked around the corner of the house, heading towards the forest at the periphery of the grounds. "I see," Theo said after a moment. "I don't think you do," Julia answered. Theo faced his wife. "Dear, you and the others confided to me all that you experienced and encountered on Jade, and I'm aware you don't want to reveal it to anyone else quite yet. I understand that such an offer as Sikarra has proposed to you must be difficult to decide upon." "I'm just not sure," she shook her head. "I can't be certain that I'm able to make a difference any more." "Don't question that," Theo said with some urgency behind it. "You most certainly make a difference. However, you have to accept that you can't control their lives forever, and that they might not turn out exactly as you had hoped." "Don't.. please.." Julia shook her head. "I'm not beneath admitting I failed." "Julia.." "I just have to tell Sikarra she's got the wrong person." "That's not the truth, and you know it." "Oh?" she smiled bitterly, "it seems obvious to me..." Theo sighed and looked at Julia. "You're the best at what you do, my love," he said. "That's evident in the fact that your mother chose to send a warrior to you to learn your skills. You must stop beating yourself up over what happened to Garfield." "What happened is after ten years of hard work, my star student threw it all away and let me down!" She pushed her chair back and stood up. "Julia!" "I'm okay," she said quietly, heading for the door. "I just need time to think." "..All right," Theo said, obviously unhappy. Julia headed directly to her workshop, as she'd done the night before. Lost in thought, she stood in her sanctum, staring at the objects and artifacts of her time as Armsmaster of Jade, and thinking about the pupils she'd schooled over the years. She stood there, leaning against one wall, and frowned. She turned to look out the window. "Hi, babe," Ryan said. "Hi, Ryan," Gina responded, walking back into the trophy room after letting Ryan in the front door. "C'mon down." "Any luck with the statue yet?" She sighed. "No, not really.. I've been playing tunes with them and haven't had anything happen at all." "Okay, let's go see if there's anything we can do," he said, following her to the elevator. They took it downstairs and returned to the lab, where all the artifacts remained laid out as Ryan had remembered them. "If you start up that BINGING again," Brit hollered from the gym at the other end of the level, "I am going to come out there and give you SUCH a--" "Okay! Okay!" Gina yelled back. "Computer! Soundproofing on!" As it beeped, she muttered, "No respect for the super-scientists around here." She turned and regarded the artifacts, as if to get back to work. "I have tried just about every tune I could think of," she said, then smiled. "Got any requests?" Ryan picked up an artifact and looked at it, turning it over and over in his hands. "Hmm," he answered, then added, "Nothing off the top of my head, no. Know any ancient Egyptian music?" "Tried that," Gina admitted. "Tried everything I know." Ryan looked surprised suddenly and picked up a second artifact and looked at its base as well, then put the first one down and took a third. "Did you try this?" he asked. "Huh?" Gina walked over to him to find him pointing at the seal. "What do you mean?" "Look CAREFULLY," he smiled, holding two of the artifacts out to her. She peered and couldn't see anything, and was about to say as much when something caught her eye. She reached to the bench, got her glasses, and put them on, then looked again. "Jinkies," she murmured. "How did I miss that.." "Well, it's hard to see," Ryan admitted to her. "But you see it, right?" "The rings?" she hazarded a guess, staring at the very thin, almost invisible circles around the seal. The artifact in Ryan's left hand had one ring; the other two. He nodded. "What if that means.." "The order they're to be struck in," she finished his thought for him. "Good eye, Ry!" She put the two down in order and picked up another one to look for its rings. "I think these TWO go next, together," Ryan said. "Three rings apiece." Gina looked at the objects and blinked. "Chords," she said excitedly. "Why didn't *I* think of that?" In a few moments, they had all eight artifacts laid out in the proper order, with the exception of the statue itself. As expected, its seal had no rings around it at all (and Gina had already proven that it didn't chime like the others when she struck it). "All right," Gina said, "Here goes nothing.." "Don't worry, babe, I got my fingers crossed," Ryan said. Gina took the two mallets in her hands and started striking the objects. She kept a steady pace, having practiced the motions in her mind a few dozen times, and watched the statue as she moved along. As she finished, Ryan observed, "Not a bad melod--" "SSH!" she hissed, holding up one hand facing him and pointing the other to the statue. It was emitting a low tone, like someone was rubbing their finger around the rim of a wineglass. Then, in a voice which rose out of nowhere, said five words clearly, and faded back into nothingness, the statue spoke. "What did it say? What did it say?" Ryan asked Gina, who knew ancient Egyptian languages much better than he did. "Only one sentence," Gina said. "'Deliver me to Amenhotep III'." Julia sat in her workshop, going through her memories. Every object she laid her eyes upon opened another door into her past, reminding her of some situation or event. She went to replace an album on a shelf and disturbed the other contents, causing a twig to tumble to the floor. She bent over and picked it up, and as she did, her mind drifted backwards through time. It was ten years in her past, and she was in the Dragon Wood, not far from Brod's observatory. She was on her way there to spend her one day on Earth, in a few days' time. She'd made a slight detour in her trek from Naga in the north this time around, visiting an old friend along the Dragon Coast, and had left the Coast for the Magic Observatory, walking contentedly through the Dragon Wood. It was midday; she would arrive at the Observatory late at night, and spend a night waiting. Then, at dawn, she would go and "meditate", so she told Brod.. though Theo's spell would soon thereafter send her home for a precious 18 hours.. She was startled from her daydream by a figure leaping from the trees above into her path, about ten feet ahead. He landed on his feet, facing her with a smile. "Oh, it's you," she smiled. "What brings you here?" "I can't lie," Gar said, walking towards his teacher. "I've been following you since you left your home. Tracking you." "You have?" she said, one eyebrow rising. "I'm impressed." "Please, Julia, don't," the werecat said with a smile. "Don't what?" "Pretend that you didn't know I was there." "Honestly, I didn't," Julia smiled. "You've learned well. Perhaps my work is done with you." "Oh, far from it. There's still so much you can teach me." He reached into a fold of his outfit and extracted an object. "I thought I would give you something before you go on your spiritual hiatus." "A green stick?" she said, taking it from him. He took it back briefly. "I was listening to your lessons, Lady Diggers: look beyond the obvious answer and find the true meaning." He took it in both hands and bent it. "An UNBREAKABLE stick. A symbol of our friendship, and my promise to you.. that you need never worry about my word. I shall keep it as sturdy as this stick is today." The years had withered the small branch, and it was no longer green and springy, but Julia had kept it as a reminder of what Gar had said to her that day. She'd even used parts of his words to her in talking to other students, and had given them other unbreakable sticks, but she never let the original out of her possession. She placed it back on the shelf and walked to the window, realizing she'd come to a decision, and wondering when Sikarra would come out of the woods and return to hear it. On her fourth lap around the neighborhood during her usual morning run, Britanny Diggers caught something unusual in her peripheral vision. On the fifth lap, she watched for it, and figured out what it was; on the sixth, about forty seconds after she'd first glimpsed Sheva out on the grounds of the mansion, she came to a stop beside her twin. "Hiya!" Brit said. "What's up?" Sheva loooked surprised. "Oh!" she said. "I, uh.." She tried to offer up a smile. "I just had to get outside for a bit. I was getting.. oh, I don't know." Britanny smiled. "I think it's called 'cabin fever.' What've you been doing with yourself?" "Well, mostly, helping your mom with the chores, until she asked me to stop.." Britanny raised an eyebrow and adopted a bemused look. "Asked you to stop? Wow.. what did YOU do?" "From what she said, I wasn't leaving her enough to do," Sheva explained. "Wow. Wish I could've heard those words said to me at least once." Brit grinned. "So what else have you been doing?" "Not much of anything.. reading a few books and watching some TV.." "You mean you haven't been out at ALL?" Britanny said incredulously. Sheva shrugged. "I dunno what there is to do.." "Well, first thing we're gonna do"--Brit reached out and grabbed Sheva's wrist--"is from now on, you and I are going to run together in the mornings. So let's get movin'!" Sheva began to protest, but she could tell there was no arguing with the werecat, so she just fell into step beside her. "I can't believe you haven't been out yet," Brit muttered. "Think of all the SALES you've missed!" Sheva wasn't surprised by her ability to keep up with Brit; it felt like second nature to be running as fast as she was, and she concentrated on answering Brit instead. "This may come as a shock to you," she said with a wry smile, "but I'm not quite as devoted to shopping as you are." Britanny just laughed. "Well, we can correct that easily. We'll spend this morning getting you acclimated to the mall!" "I'm not sure that's necessary--" "Sure it is! It'll be fun!" Brit pulled ahead a few lengths and Sheva hurried to catch up. Sikarra sat on an overturned tree, lost in thought. Her nervous sketchings, surrounding her feet, belied her apparent calm. she said to herself. she berated herself. she added dejectedly, She looked down at the newest sketch, scratched idly by her staff. One stick figure, carrying a wand, being chased from her village by other stick-figured tribesfolk. She sighed and stood up, erasing the art in the dirt with her sandal. She stepped into a dance of kicks and punches, launching attacks at the air all around her, demolishing a series of phantom opponents. With a deft movement, she kicked her staff into the air, grasping it firmly, adding it's solid strikes to the mix with practicised ease. A slender tree root interrupted the pattern, causing her to stumble slightly. As her body fit itself into the pattern, she recalled the words of her elder sister. "You are the best of us", Kala had said sternly, as the mage prepared the gate to the earth realm, "But you can be better. Go to Earth and learn under the greatest teacher of them all." Kala had smiled then, a rare occurrence, "Come back soon and thrill us all with your skill and expertise. Remember, wherever your travels take you, that you are a daughter of the Astar, and forever will be." The gate opened, and Kala turned away, eyes shining. Sika had thought then, as the magicks wrapped her in their tender embrace, Stopping her reverie, Sika sighed deeply. Gina rushed around excitedly. "I knew it! I knew this would get us somewhere! Amenhotep's tomb is EASY!" She faced Ryan. "Do you need to pack anything or should we go right now?" Ryan's expression fell. "Gina.. babe.. aren't you gonna be there to cheer me on at Gladiatorz?" "Huh? Of course! Right after this.." "But I gotta stay in training for it.. I can't go anywhere, not right now." "Oh," Gina said dejectedly. "But this is.." Ryan finished her sentence after a moment's pause. "Important," he nodded. "I know. It's the first thing you've done in a long time. And you DO need it, and who am I to stop you?" "You don't mind?" "I'd mind if you didn't go," he nodded, grinning. "There'll be lots of tournaments where you can cheer me on from the sidelines. I'll just have to tape my world premiere contest if you're not back by then." "Deal. Thanks, Ryan; any other situation, you KNOW I would be right there." "Oh! I know who you COULD take," he said suddenly. "Rhianna's pulled out of the G2K tournament. You could take her along to stave off the boredom. She'd probably be interested in this whole thing.. I know I would be if I could go." "Okay," Gina smiled, giving him a hug. "Thanks twice, then." "Tiring you out yet?" Brit asked. "Nope," Sheva said plainly. "Not in the least." "Good! We're doing about 200 now. Well done!" "How can you tell?" "I count houses. On this street, I can pass five in a second." "That's a neat idea.. something I never thought of, that's for sure." "Uh-huh.. stick with me, and you'll go far. And fast." As Brit was laughing at her own joke, Sheva said, "All right then.. suppose I DO stick with you and DO want to learn a bunch of stuff." "Oh really?" Brit smiled. "I will take you on, grasshopper. Let's stop here for a break." She aimed for a 7-Eleven up the block. The two of them pulled to a stop beside the store. Brit turned to Sheva and said, "Okay, shift into human form. We're outta my neighborhood and they might not be ready to see a were-cheetah all the way out here." "B.. but--" Sheva protested as Brit changed forms. Brit looked up at Sheva. "C'mon now, before someone flips out." "Oh, all right," Sheva said with disappointment, and turned herself into a human girl. The two of them went into the store, and Brit bought a quart of milk for each of them. "So what does interest you?" Brit asked her clone. "What are you planning on doing with your life now?" "I don't know," Sheva shrugged, drinking the milk. "Stay outta trouble, I guess." Brit said, "Well, there's more to life than just stayin' out of trouble, you know." "You're gonna take me shopping now, aren't you?" Sheva deadpanned. Britanny laughed. "Am I that easy to see through? C'mon, let's go." She walked around the corner of the store, shifted to hybrid form, and pointed herself in the direction of the mall. "Um.." Sheva said tinily. Brit looked behind her. "Well, come on, change back and let's get movin'," she said. "No, you forgot," Sheva said, looking at the ground. "I, uh.." Brit finally clued in. "OH," she said. "I'm sorry. I completely forgot, you're right. It's easy to shift at will.. do it with me." She assumed human form and stepped beside Sheva. "I can't," Sheva said in a frustrated voice. "I can't DO it. I've tried before! Hard!" "That's exactly it," Brit smiled. "You know that little reserve you draw on to run fast or lift something heavy or things like that?" "Yeah.." "The problem you're having, and the problem I was having when I was in your position, is that that little 'extra' pushes your excitement level a little too high. You're actually trying too hard. Relax and clear everything out of your mind, and only concentrate on shifting back to hybrid." Sheva closed her eyes and tried to do what Brit was saying, but it wasn't working; she was getting angry at herself. Sheva told herself, and blinked as she felt different. She opened her eyes to see a smiling Britanny there looking at her, in hybrid form.. and the same height as her. Sheva looked down at herself and gasped quietly. "I did it?" she said. "'Course you did," Brit grinned, putting a hand on her twin's shoulder. "Tolja." "How?" Sheva wanted to know. "I'll explain it to you like my friend explained it to me," Brit said as they sprinted off towards the mall. "You know that little rush you feel after you change forms?" "Yeah.." "It's adrenaline. Your body is just responding to a pretty big shock to your system--the formshifting--and that's how it deals with it. Too much, actually.. your body gets too 'excited' to be able to shift forms again unless you let the adrenaline wear down, which takes about a day. If you just concentrate hard and try to force a change through, it doesn't work, 'cause you're still tensed up. What you need to do is calm yourself and relax, and then it'll happen, just in the space of a breath. Pretty neat, huh?" "You're tellin' me," she said. "Thank you very much." "Ah, it's nothin'.. wait till I show you how to adjust hairstyles.. that is, if you can even do that, I'm not even sure how you mimic my formshifting, since you're not a real werecreature.. ah, here we are!" They stood before the Lenox Mall, three stories of glass, metal, and brick, and Sheva looked at Brit with concern. The older werecat's eyes had glazed over, as if she was in a trance. "Brit?" Sheva asked. "Mama's home," Brit said to the building with a huge grin. She shoved open the doors and rushed inside. Two hours later, they emerged. "I can't believe you just spent two thousand dollars on clothes for me," Sheva said. Brit grinned. "Actually, it was $2451.97, but who's counting? Just be sure to be home when they deliver it all.. you might get a lecture. I always did when I had 'such frivolous things' delivered. 'Frivolous'," she repeated, as if it was hard to believe. "I mean, you gotta have something to wear, right? Stuff that you can be seen in public in." Sheva nodded. "Is that why you buy so many clothes? To show them off when you go out on an adventure?" Britanny smiled. "It's not the main reason, but it sure helps. I enjoy seeing the sights as much as the next girl, but my real main reason has something to do with Gina. I guess I have a fear that if I don't go, something'll happen and there'll be nobody there to protect her." "Are you serious?" Brit smiled. "Well, it doesn't ALWAYS happen, but it is a concern sometimes. "See, you've always gotta keep your eyes open when you're goin' on some kind of an adventure with Gina. 'Cause she'll get tunnel vision watching for whatever her prize is, and miss all the stuff she's getting herself into. Hell, I remember one time, she unfolded this map of the place we were in, and started to read it as she walked away. She stepped right ON a trap--the only thing that saved her from getting squished was her force-field, which burned out right after that. THEN the floor caved in beneath her, and I had to run up and save her butt. And what does she say? 'You're giving me a wedgie'." Sheva giggled, then said, "I understand that Gina has an ongoing situation with that sort of thing?" "Well, it's kinda in a cease fire right now, but yeah. Let me give you a word of advice: Never, ever come up on Gina unannounced if Penny is supposed to be in the area." "I'll.. try to remember that." "Anyway, like I was saying," Brit continued, "Gina gets pretty centered on what she's looking for, so you have to be her eyes, ears, and nose, to watch out for her. Besides, she relies on her toys way too much--half of which never work. Sometimes, I come home feeling like I've run a hundred marathons." "Would even that tire you.. er, us.. out?" Sheva wondered. "Only a little," Brit said. She smiled as she got an idea, and offered, "Hey, I'll race you back to our neighborhood." "Race?" "Yeah, it's a kind of a contest? See who finishes first?" Brit smiled. "Come on now," Sheva said. "I've got no chance of beating you." "Not if you keep an attitude like that," Britanny countered. "C'mon, you used to be so 'I will triumph over you' and all that.. if you're supposed to be a clone of me, girl, this should be a dead even matchup. So whaddaya say we go?" After a moment, Sheva smiled. "All right, then," she said. "Okay! Ready.." Cheetah got down like a sprinter, tail wagging in the air behind her. "Set.. GO!" The two of them were off like the rockets they were, and the race was on. As expected, they were both even for the first while, but Brit had the advantage of having her workout clothes on, and started to pull away. Sheva thought to herself. She found a little reserve and pushed a little harder. BOOM! She was startled by the noise, until she realized the two of them had just punctured the sound barrier. Hopefully they weren't going to get into trouble for that. At that speed, it didn't take long before the two of them were nearing the goal, which was the street which the roads to the complex and mansion intersected. Sheva noticed in her peripheral vision that Brit was almost neck-and-neck with her, only a half-foot behind and gaining. Sheva didn't want to lose, but she wasn't able to find anything more inside her. Suddenly she sensed something beside her that would've made a high-pitched sound (unable to hear it because of her speed) and Brit fell far behind. Sheva forced herself to come to a halt and looked around to see Brit in a crumpled heap on the road. "Brit!" she called out, running back. "Are you okay?" Britanny untangled herself and sat on the curb heavily, pulling off her left shoe and throwing it on the ground. "Dammit!" Sheva pulled up to a stop. "Are you okay?" "I musta stepped on a pebble," Brit grumbled. "There's another fine pair of shoes ruined." Sheva looked at the shoe in the gutter, with the sole completely shredded. "Wow.." "Oooooh, I hate road rash," Brit said, bending over to take off the other shoe. She picked up its decimated mate and stood, walking up to Sheva. "I'll be fine.. but you failed to notice something. You beat me. You won, Sheva." "Only 'cause you almost killed yourself," Sheva said. "Any other time, I never would've had a chance." Brit's expression went flat as well as her voice. "Sheva, I'm gonna say this right now: You have a confidence problem. And you need to get over it. You need to get to the point where you can look in a mirror and be satisfied--no, and be HAPPY--with what you see there. Stop trying to paint yourself as a failure. You were able to overcome Pee Wee's hold on you, and I think that's the best success anyone could ever ask for, to get away from that little rodent. Okay?" "I.. guess," Sheva said timidly. "That's not the kind of answer I'm lookin' to hear." "Okay," Sheva nodded. "I hear you." "That's better," Brit said with a smile. "Now.. you gonna come over to the house, have some lunch?" "No, I think maybe I should get back to the mansion. Your parents are probably wondering where I got to." "All right, but the offer's still open if you change your mind, and remember.. you have something to show off to them." Sheva stared blankly for a moment, then smiled and nodded. "Right, my formshifting. Thanks a bunch." "No problem," Brit said. "Let me walk you back to the mansion grounds so you're not violating your parole." "Okay," Sheva said. "Thanks again." As Sheva arrived at the house, Julia, wearing a rather strange, almost medieval outfit, was opening the door and looking around. "Oh," the elder Diggers said. "There you are. Where have you been?" "I met up with Britanny and she took me around town for a bit," Sheva began to explain. "Oh," Julia said with slight surprise. "What did you do?" "We ran around a bit.. did some, um, shopping.. Oh! And this.." Sheva demonstrated her newfound ability to formshift at will. "That's very good, Sheva!" Julia smiled. "You're learning very fast." Sheva had to allow herself a smile. "Britanny's a good teacher." The pseudo-werecat didn't notice Julia's slight pause, mostly because Julia recovered as soon as she could. "So, what do you plan to do for the rest of the day?" "Well.." Sheva began. "With your permission, I'd like to try to fix some of the damage." She nodded towards the sitting room, behind the brand-new pane of glass. Julia blinked. "By all means, dear, go right ahead." "Thanks," Sheva said, turning to head inside. "I must say.. and this is a compliment, dear.. you're behaving very nicely since you left the prison." Sheva nodded, after a pause. "Uh-huh," she said. "All I can say is what a friend of Gina's once said to her: people change." Again Julia had her train of thought derailed. After a long moment, she finally said, "Of course, Sheva; that's precisely what I meant. You are very much a pleasure to have around." "Thanks again, Mrs. Diggers," she smiled, disappearing inside and leaving Julia alone with her rejuvenated thoughts. HALF AN HOUR LATER Gina bounded into the upstairs living room. "Brit, I'm so happy, this is turning out to be a GREAT day!.." She looked around and realized she was alone. "Brit? Stripe?" she said. "You around--" The bedroom door opened slightly and out came Britanny's head, wearing an angry look and a disheveled mop of hair. "What.. is.. it?" Brit bit out. Gina gasped and put a hand over her mouth. "Oh I'm so sorry!" she said. "Um... I WAS going to invite you to come to Egypt with me.. I cracked the riddle.. and Rhi', Bri', Raph, and I are going to go and see what's at the spot the statue told us to head to." "Told you?.." Brit said, then added, "Well, actually, I'm a little busy here. Stripe and I promised the whole weekend to ourselves. Love to come along, but there's nothin' that'd change it. You could tell me that place was nothing but wall-to-wall, golden chests full of tuna, and still, not gonna budge." "That's a pretty bold statement," Gina observed. "Yup," Brit said, implying that Gina should leave. Before the elder sister could react, though, Brit added, "But I know who you COULD take.." "Who?" Sikarra trudged out of the woods, carefully building an air of upbeat confidence, with limited success. She slowed slightly as she came into sight of the house, anxiety fighting for a place on her features. Finally, she straightened, features firm. Taking a deep breath, she trudged to the stoop she had kneeled before, one day previous. In her fifteen years, she had faced bandits and beasts, but nothing had scared her more than climbing those few steps and facing the painted wooden door. Five eternal seconds later, the door swung open, revealing Mistress Julia in a leather-skin outfit, complete with gauntlets and boots, bearing a sword at her side. "Come inside, Sikarra, and follow me," Julia said in a businesslike tone of voice. Sikarra tried not to scream and jump for joy in the foyer. "Yes, Mistress," she said mutely, falling into step behind the woman. They wound their way through the halls of the mansion until Julia came to a door and pulled it open, implying Sikarra should enter first. She did, and found herself in a large room, with some devices like springboards and box horses pushed up against the far wall. It was a combat center of average size, though to fit in a house like this it was a very impressive site indeed. She heard the door close and turned to see Julia enter. Julia said, "First, I must gauge your skills. Some sparring, I think. We'll start out easy.. at first." "All right," Sikarra nodded eagerly. Julia smiled to herself, remembering a day long ago when she had stood in a similar room. She surmised she could tell Sikarra that the sky was orange and the grass blue, and the girl would readily accept it as fact. She could sense the girl's fear, excitement, and anticipation. Julia set aside her sword and collected up a mitt, slipping it onto her hand. "First, I want to see what your reflexes are like." Sheva stood in front of the mirror in the guest bathroom, watching her face closely as she spoke. "Hi there," she greeted herself, smiling at the end, then immediately frowning and muttering. She set herself again and said "Well, hel-lo there," and smiled boldly, but it evaporated again. A moment later, out of the blue, she perkily told her reflection: "Hiya! Let's go shopping!" She watched her expression for a moment, then turned away. "Bah." A knock sounded on the door. "Sheva, Gina's here to see you." "Thank you, I'll be right out," she answered as politely as she could muster. It was still a chore to be courteous and friendly to people, but she was doing her best. Theo was in the room with Gina when Sheva came out. "Hello, Gina," Sheva said. "Hi, Sheva," Gina smiled. "Doing anything this weekend?" Sheva looked at Theo before answering. "As far as I'm concerned, your weekends are your own. So long as you don't run afoul of the judge or any laws, you'll have no objections from me." "I guess that's a no," Sheva turned and told Gina. "How would you like to go on a little bit of an adventure trip with us?" "Who's 'us'?" Sheva wanted to know. "Me, Rhianna, Raph, and Brianna so far. I thought you might wanna see what that statue that you returned to me does." "Okay, what does it do?" "Ah-ah-ah," Gina said. "Jinkies, you're just like Brit.. if you wanna know, you gotta come with us." "Well, since you put it that way, count me in." "Good! Go pack up some stuff and let's get moving." Half an hour later, Gina was saying essentially the same thing to someone else. "BRIANNA!" she hollered down the corridor. "Hurry up already! We still gotta go pick up Rhi' and hit customs!" "I'm coming!" Bri's voice carried down the corridor. "Keep your two- sizes-too-small shorts on!" Gina growled and Sheva tried not to laugh. Gina turned to Sheva and said, "While we're waiting, you go upstairs and get Brit's passport from her. And remember, to anybody official on this trip, you'll have to be Brit." "Okay," Sheva nodded, and boarded the elevator. In her room, Brianna opened up the backpack and said, "Awright you guys, in you go!" Each of the bit-bombs called out as it made its way into the pack. "Peebo!" "Peebo!" came another's voice as it rolled in. "Choo!" "HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT!" Brianna said, looking in after the third one. "Just kidding!" its muffled voice came from the bottom of the pack. "That's better," she murmured, standing up and letting the rest load themselves in the pack. Julia played the same trick on Sikarra that she'd done to Britanny only a few short months ago; she goaded Sikarra into hitting harder and faster, and then dropped the mitt. Sikarra belted Julia right in the face, not nearly as hard a blow as her daughter had thrown, certainly nothing like some of the harder punches Julia had received in the past, but a good solid punch neverless. Sikarra stopped, shock mixing with pleasure at her feat. her eyes widened as a new thought occured to her. Julia's grin belayed those fears soon enough. "Well done, although your wrist was a bit off, and you need to be looser in the shoulders." The session continued, and Julia continued to give Sikarra some pointers, generally the same things she'd said to most of her students, adapted to Sikarra's levels of ability and experience. Moving along, the two began some sparring, at first only with their fists. Soon, Julia insisted that Sikarra take up her staff again. Reluctantly the girl did, defending herself against Julia's expert blows. At one point, Julia snatched the weapon from Sikarra's grip in mid-strike. "Turnabout is fair play, my dear. Now you must defend against *me*." Julia continued to test her student, gauging the attacks that she'd be able to withstand. The young Amazon had potential, but it needed direction. She also had a streak of cunning, managing not only to defend herself, but also get off a couple of punches, attacks that Julia wasn't even expecting. She leaned back to evade them, felt her balance slip out from under her, and, arms pinwheeling, tried to regain her center. However, Sika pressed the advance and, as Julia twisted away, something let go in her lumbar region, causing her to involuntarily gasp and spasm, falling to the floor. Sikarra stood over her with a victorious smile. Julia's only response was to stretch out her leg painfully, and sweep the girl's legs from beneath her, sending her tumbling as well. Both of them lay there catching their breath for a moment. Julia spoke first, and when she did, it was in halting sentences. "Consider that.. another lesson," she began. "If you've won.. don't stop to enjoy the view.. get out of harm's way." Sikarra sat up. "I am sorry," she said. "No! Don't.. ow.. don't be," Julia said, also getting to a sitting position. "You did very well today." "I did?" "Don't ask me," Julia smiled. "You should know. Yes, you did well." "Then does that mean.." Julia nodded and said, "Today was an excellent start. We'll get into the serious stuff tomorrow." Sikarra gulped. "Th-thank you, Mistress." "You can stay in a guest room if you like." "The woods are sufficient," Sikarra said, standing up. Julia supported herself with her arms out behind her. "They might be, but it's a lot nicer indoors. The room is there if you want it." Sikarra was about to politely refuse again when she realized this might very well be another test. "Very well, I accept," she replied, bowing slightly. "Good. Once I get up off the floor, I'll go set up the room for you." Sikarra looked at her new teacher and host. "Are you all right?" "Oh, yeah," Julia said, trying to bend forward. "I just--ow!" "Let me help!" Sikarra said, rushing to Julia's side. "Have I injured you." "This? Naah," Julia said, seeing the fear in the girl's eyes. Accepting the helping hand she gingerly rose to her feet. "My back has been bothering me for some time now. It only gets annoying when I stress it out." "Will you still be able to train me?" "This is only a minor annoyance, my dear," Julia said, standing straight. "Nothing I can't handle." "If you are certain.. We can postpone my training if you are not.." Sikarra said. Julia laughed. "You're not getting out of it that easily. Tomorrow morning at sunrise, back in this room. Until then, you're free to do as you wish." "So who wants to go with whom?" Gina asked. Brianna caught the set of keys Gina tossed at her, looked at them, and grinned. "Since you gave me the two-seater, why don't you let me and Sheva take it, and you and Rhi' and Raph can go in the other car." "Okay," Gina shrugged. "Raph, you're with me. Let's go." "Why'd you do that?" Sheva whispered as Gina and Raphiel headed to the car. Brianna grinned. "Gina needs to learn what Raph is like." At the same time, in the mythical Eden, a creature paced back and forth agitatedly as another approached. Thabian knew better than to state the obvious--"You seem troubled"--to his wife; she would surely snap at him and very likely worse. Instead, he settled for moving along right to "May I make a suggestion?" Jetta turned and glared at him for a moment, then said, "I'm listening." "I'll presume that the problem is the same as usual?" Thabian began. "I'm going out of my mind, love," she said with desperation, nodding. "I can watch Pojo and Alera for a time if you wish. You could go out.. perhaps visit with Britanny?" Jetta pondered that for a moment. "You don't mind?" she asked. "Well, if you were to abandon us for a week or more, it might be a problem," he smiled. "But I can understand completely if you would lke to get away for a few days. I don't mind at all." "It sounds like a very good idea," Jetta said, grinning. "I'll give you one last chance to back out." "I won't take it," Thabian told her. "You deserve a break from your routine. I love you too much to let you go insane." Jetta laughed and embraced her husband. AN HOUR LATER OVER THE ATLANTIC OCEAN Gina regarded the massive expanse of water all around them. "Hey, Rhi', you can fly the car just as well as Ryan could, right?" "Hm? Yeah, I can, Gina. Why?" "Good. When I get tired, we're gonna swap over, 'cause this is gonna be a long flight." "No prob," Rhianna said. "Just let me know when." "That reminds me," Raphiel said from the back seat, "is it going to be winter soon?" "Uh.. yeah," Gina answered. "Couple of months off. Why?" "Well, Brianna said that's when I could drive again!" Gina shot a look at Rhianna, who was looking back with just as confused a look on her own face. Gina said, "She did?" "I don't remember her exact words, but she did say she'd let me drive again when something froze over, so I figured that must be in winter." Gina snerked and tried not to laugh; Rhianna put her head between her knees to hold her own laughter in. "Right?" Raph added. "Uhm, you may want to ask her about that," Gina said with a big grin. "So," Rhianna said, sitting up straight again and smiling, "Are you excited about being on your first adventure, Raph?" "Yes! Very!" he said. After a moment he added, "I'm not exactly sure of everything that's going on, but I'm liking it anyway!" Rhi' faced Gina and said, "Mind if I field this one? I want to be sure I'm still up on my ancient Egyptian." "Be my guest," Gina answered. "I gotta talk on the radio for a minute." Rhianna turned around and explained the history of Amenhotep. "Well, Amenhotep was a pharaoh in Egypt around 3400 years ago. During his time of reign, Egypt grew fairly strong in terms of economy and diplomatic relations, though they didn't do much on the battlefield at all at the same time. The neat part, though, is a statue that's part of what used to be his temple. A long time ago, there was an earthquake, and the statue from that day on, when the sun first hit it, made a sound supposedly like the twanging of a harp string. Until, of course, someone decided to 'fix' the damage caused in the earthquake, and they did.. but from that day until the present, the statue never made another sound, day, night, or otherwise. And the temple that goes with the statues was destroyed in later times, and the tomb beneath lost to the ages." She turned back to Gina. "That has something to do with it, right?" "I think that has everything to do with it," Gina said confidently. "Why else would they seal up the tomb? I mean, think about it--if you were an ancient Egyptian, and you had this statue which made noise every time the sun rose, you'd figure it was a sign from the gods, right? Wouldn't it seem odd, then, that they'd stop the statue from making noise, and destroy the temple that led to the tomb?" Rhianna hmmm'ed. "Yeah, you got a point there." Raph leaned forward and contributed, "Maybe they didn't want anybody in there.." Gina nodded slowly. "Yeah, Raph, that's what I meant. But the question is.. WHY? What's that that people're not supposed to see?" "I don't know," Raph shrugged. "I've never been there." Rhianna giggled, and Gina turned around briefly. "Did Brianna put you up to this?" Brianna, meanwhile, along with Sheva, were in the other car, flying formation. "So, Sheva," Bri' said, "How do you like the outside so far?" "Well, your parents have been teaching me a lot whenever they can," she began, then caught herself. "Um, by 'your parents', I meant--" "I know what you meant," Brianna smiled. "I see them as my parents too." "Why?" Sheva inquired. "Well, you see, it's kind of like this. You and me and Rhianna are all three clones, but.. different. I'm sure you know that, but you are simply a clone in physical terms with no memories but your own. And Rhi' and I, well, we're different, in that we keep our donors' memories and get a different physical form. For example, I remember growing up with Mom and Dad, both as Gina, and as Brit. They're like vague dreams, of course, but they are there. And Rhianna, she has Ryan's memories, and some of his thoughts and mannerisms too, but the rest is all her own. As for me.. Gina DID create me, so TECHNICALLY, she's my mother.. but I'm.. I just can't think of things that way. Through Gina and Brit's memories, I'm Julia and Theodore Diggers' daughter. And in the past three years, I've grown up as Gina and Brit's sister.. so it's only natural for me to call their parents my parents." "I see," Sheva said. "Well, anyway, did Gina go over any ground rules with you about the trip?" "Well, she did say if we come across any authorities I'm to act like your sister." "Oh! I forgot about that, that's right.. you don't have any ID of your own, do you? Maybe we can rectify that when we get home." "No, I have Britanny's passport for right now." "Good, that's a good plan," Brianna nodded. She grinned and added, "Well, Brit's usual objective on these trips is to basically act as a bodyguard. Now I know you're filling in for Brit on such short notice, so I'll make sure we don't burden you with too much responsibility--" "No, no, please; don't go easy on me. I want to prove to you that I can do this." Bri' looked at Sheva for a minute, then shrugged and looked ahead again. "Okay, then.. well, of course, everybody is going to be looking out for themselves and everybody else, but Brit's usual job description involves taking care of any dangerous stuff that gets in our way. You think you can do that?" "I know I can," Sheva stressed. "Well, good," Brianna smiled. "We'll put you to the test soon enough." She looked over at Sheva. "So you got some of Brit's old secondhand stuff, huh? That's pretty cool.." Sheva looked down at the faded T-shirt which read "YES THEY'RE REAL" upon it. "Oh yeah?" she said to Bri'. "Rhianna didn't really think so." "What? Why?" "Well, she said.. I was trying to pretend to be someone I'm not." She looked down. "And I guess this trip proves the point.. with me pretending to be Brit and all." Brianna said, "Hey, you're not pretending to be her.. we want you to be Sheva, not Brit. We want you to be YOURSELF. It's just that this close to your release, we just can't get you any real identification of your own. It's only for this short bit of time until we get your papers sorted out that you have to take Brit's identity. And you don't have to act like her or anything.. you just have to use her name a couple of times.. that's all." "And why would Rhianna say a thing like that anyway?" Bri' blurted out after a moment. "Well, actually.. it's 'cause we were fighting at the time." "When was this?" "This was.. the other day.. everything's okay now, though." "Well, that's good to hear, I think.. what was it about?" "Rhi' was up at the mansion all angry and I was just a convenient target.." After a moment, she added, "I think I might've said too much already." Brianna paused a moment. "I understand," she finally said. "You don't have to tell me anything. But I'm glad to hear it's all better." Sheva nodded. "We've still got an hour to go. If you wanted to grab a nap or something, now's the time to do it." "Right." Sheva reclined the seat. It was early in the evening by the time the two cars got through customs and were on site. There was still light in the sky, though it was fading fast. The group started walking around the two statues, and Gina mentioned that the one on the right was the statue in question. The statue sat on a tall square base. "Help me up?" she asked Sheva. Sheva picked her up and put her on the top of the base, beside the foot of the statue. "Thanks," Gina smiled, and went to work. "So, this thing is supposed to make a noise?" Sheva said, wandering backwards to get a better look at the statue. "When the sun hits it?" "I guess so," Gina nodded, facing the statue and running a tricorder-like device over it. "At least that's what the legend said." "How does it do that?" "Well, it's been silent for about 1800 years," Gina said. "I don't think there's anyone around we can ask." Sheva's expression fell. "Sorry," she murmured and walked back towards the cars. Gina turned around. "Wait! Wait, Sheva, I wasn't trying to be mean.. I'm just trying to concentrate on stuff up here." "Okay, I understand," Sheva said quietly. Brianna leaned over from the car and said quietly to Sheva, "Yeah, supposedly it makes a sound like a harpstring, when sunlight first hits it." "Well, can we shine a light on it, maybe?" Sheva wondered aloud. "Hmm, that's a good question." Brianna leaned into the car and retrieved a dash-mounted spotlight, turning it on and shining it onto the statue--and Gina. "Brianna!!" Gina complained, turning and squinting. "Just checking out a theory," Bri' said. She said to Sheva, "As you can tell, the only thing that made any noise there was Gina." "Don't think I didn't hear that!" came an angry voice from the area of the statue. Brianna grinned and said playfully, "Yeah, well, when you're going to come down here and do something about it, lemme know." She handed the light to Raphiel, who flicked it on and started to make shadow puppets on the side of the car with it. Brianna turned to Sheva again and added, "If I remember the story right, it didn't start making the noises until after an earthquake. And after the statue was 'fixed', it stopped again." "So," Rhianna said, "What you're saying is, we have to find a way to simulate an earthquake?" Brianna looked up and hmm'ed. "Not necessarily," she said. "I think we need to un-fix it. Gina?" "Yes??" "Geez, relax.. do you have any conventional archaeological tools up there with you?" "Yeah, a couple.." "Then take 'em out and chip away at the section on this side, about four feet up from where you are right now." "Huh? Okay, I guess.." Gina moved around to the other side and did as instructed. The statue started to crack, and before she could react, a whole section crumbled away. "BRIANNA! NOW look what you made me do!" "Exactly," Bri' said, pointing in the fading light. "Take a look at it now." Gina did, and realized there was a hole in the side of the statue now. She pulled the smaller statuette out of her pack and compared it to the hole. "Jinkies," she said. "Looks like it'll fit.." "So put it in there already!" someone said. She pushed the statuette into the hole made in the side of the larger figure, and it stuck there, after making a sound like a cinderblock rubbing against another. Nothing happened. "Hmmm," Rhianna observed. "Well, that was spectacular," Gina commented. "There's gotta be something we're missing," Brianna said. "If I may," Sheva said quietly, trailing off as people turned to look at her. "What? Do you have an idea, Shev? Let's hear it," Gina said. Sheva looked around for a moment and said, "Brianna said it earlier.. what we're missing is a sunrise." "Hey, she's got a point there," Gina said. "I think you're right, Bri'.. AND you, Sheva." "Does that mean what I think it means?" Rhianna asked. "Yup," Gina nodded. "Camping time." Brianna turned to Raphiel. "You and Rhianna can sleep inside the cars; the rest of us have our camping gear with us." "I'll get them," Sheva offered. "Where are they?" "In the trunk of our car," Brianna said, helping her sister down from the statue. "We'll help you unpack 'em in a minute." They parked the two cars in a V-shape in front of the statue and put the three tents in the triangular space created in the middle. Everyone said their goodnights and bundled themselves up to go to sleep. Sheva woke up several hours later and just lay there in Brit's tent, listening to the sounds of the night and thinking. she wondered. she added a moment later. She fought a battle with herself for a while, then realized something. A moment later, she heard a light tone as if someone had struck a guitar string with a mallet. Right after that, a muffled yelp, a thud, and then silence. She scrambled out of the sleeping bag and tent and looked around, noting that one tent was missing, and there was a large hole in the ground there. She sprinted over and bent down, as others were getting up and showing themselves. Sheva looked into the trench. "Are you all right?" "Y--yeah," Gina said, sitting up and climbing out of the wreckage of her tent. "Just winded for a sec, that's all." "What's down there?" Sheva asked as others joined her at the lip of the hole in the ground. Gina got to her knees and rooted around for her pack, finding it and flipping on a light. "Looks like the temple entrance, or something," she said, looking around. "Large room. A few statues of Amenhotep. Lots of glyphs, writing, and pictorials on the wa--" "Are you okay?" Sheva asked, leaning down further to see if she could see where Gina had wandered to. "Gina?" "Sis?" Brianna said, peeking down into the hole as well. "Jinkies.." Gina's voice could be heard whispering from deep within the dark cavern. "What's happening?" Raphiel said, appearing beside Brianna. Gina stared at the images she'd illuminated with her lamp. They were very familiar images, not because she'd seen them before, but rather the things they portrayed. In person. The one group, she realized, were Amonians, the race she and Ryan had learned about so long ago, when she'd first met him.. but the others.. the ones fighting the Amonians.. "Gina!" Brianna shouted. "Bri'," Gina said with an astonished tone, "There.. there are Beta symbols down here.." TO BE CONTINUED Mario Di Giacomo and Jason Low present Gold Digger World Tour: A Single Step Sikarra stood as steady as the post on which she perched, staff held low on one side but ready to be brought into play. She watched her opponent's perfect balance, noting how she was able to keep herself faced in Sikarra's direction, her weapon also at the ready. Julia smiled and gestured to Sikarra with her free hand. "Advance, if you think you can." Sika nodded slightly and looked down. Both her feet were crowded together on the top of a pole driven into the ground until only about ten feet showed above the surface. There were similar posts surrounding her in on all sides for about thirty feet, each a different height. She leaned out and leapt for one that was eight feet in front of her and to her left, and a foot or so higher. "Don't use your staff to balance," Julia called out. "You might need it for combat right away." Sika frowned, but acknowledging Julia nonetheless, concentrated on regaining her balance on her new perch. Finally succeeding, she turned to face Julia and saw that the armsmaster was three posts nearer than she'd been a moment before. "Don't worry, it takes plenty of practice," Julia said with a smile. "Especially when you're trying to keep the weapon usable. Try here." she suggested, tapping a pole with her sword. Sikarra pursed her lips and took the leap, and made it to the target with nary a stumble. "Good!" Julia said. She grinned and said, "Now for a little follow the leader." Sika stared in disbelief as Julia flipped herself backwards, landing smoothly on a post directly behind her about ten feet away. She turned around and started hopping from post to post, as if merely taking a stroll ten or fifteen feet above the ground. "Keep up the pace, girl!" Julia called out. "You should be almost stepping on my heels!" Sika shook her head, took a deep breath and jumped forward, landing with both feet together. She looked at the next post, the one Julia had flipped onto, and jumped to it as well, again landing safely. She paused, seeking out her next target. Julia slowed, watching her young student. After a moment, she said, "Focus a few steps ahead, Sikarra--walk normally, not like you're playing hopscotch." "I will fall," Sika shook her head. "I'm certain of it." "No, you won't," Julia said. "Come here, beside me, and face the direction I'm facing." She did, taking an erratic route. As she oriented herself, she saw that the posts before her and Julia were in a straight line, bounding the edge of the course. "When you cross a creek back home," Julia said, "Do you leap from rock to rock, judging each step perfectly?" "No," Sika had to admit. "You just walk, stepping from stone to stone, right?" Sika nodded. "Because it's only water, and it's only a few inches deep. This is the same, only the rocks are a bit taller. Don't spend all day thinking about it, just DO it. Here, now, with me. Ready?" After a pause, Sika nodded. "Ready." "GO!" Julia lunged forward, and Sika followed suit. "Again! Step!" Julia barked, moving to the third post. Sikarra wavered, but soon found herself able to keep up. "Good! Step!" Julia said, keeping it up until the two of them had covered about twenty posts' distance. Then Julia stopped calling out steps, lunged forward a couple paces on her own, and leapt in front of Sikarra. Sika let out a yelp of protest but kept on going. She heard Julia unsheathing her sword, and looked up to face her as the armsmaster swung in her direction. She brought up her staff and blocked, then stepped back a few posts to give herself some room. Julia kept up the pace, advancing and attacking, and Sikarra kept moving back, on the defensive. To her left, Sika spied a series of posts that, if taken, would allow her to reach a post a few yards away, one nearly twenty feet off the ground. It would only take a moment, and height was always an advantage in a duel. She fought off Julia, looking for her chance, then turned and raced up the poles, following them like stairs. Once she reached the summit, she turned and saw Julia there, below her, head level with Sika's knees. The latter smiled and looked down at her teacher. Julia, in response, swung out at Sika's ankles with her blade. Sika leapt up in surprise, but as she returned again on her perch, she realized it was slightly lopsided, and found herself thrown to one side, landing on the top two rungs of the "staircase", still facing Julia and ready for the next attack. Julia didn't press, so Sika took the offensive, turning her staff and jabbing it towards Julia's shoulder. Julia evaded, but the momentum spun her around, forcing her to take a step to another post, putting her further away and facing the wrong direction. She laughed, sheathing her sword, and turned around, smiling at Sika. "Well done," she said. "Very few learn as quickly, and hardly ANYONE has ever noticed the 'high ground' their first time out." "Thank you, teacher," Sikarra smiled eagerly, hopping across the intervening distance and landing beside Julia, on one foot. Julia smiled and nodded. "NOW I'm impressed." Raphiel watched over Rhianna's shoulder as the latter made attempts to decipher the hieroglyphs and pictorials on the walls of the chamber. "What's it say?" he asked. "Well, not every row of hieroglyphics corresponds to a sentence, like in stories," she explained, tracing a finger along some of the etchings and paintings on the wall in front of them. "This stuff reads more like a comic book than a novel." "But there are no word balloons.." Raphiel pointed out. Rhi' smiled. "That's the unfortunate part," she told him, and pointed to a line of images. "This line here, for example, depicts a bunch of people meeting up with another one, who is, if you believe the pictures, a lot bigger and stronger than them. They greeted him"--she moved on to the next image--"and gave him lots of gifts and stuff, but it looks like he attacked them and enslaved them anyway. The next picture, down here, shows many unhappy people working on things.. building things.. with the shadowy figure watching over them." "What were they making?" "I'm not sure yet. Whatever it was, it looks like a lot of people were sacrificed in the process. Over here you see a lot of people lying down, which I think means they're dead, and off to the other side, there's another person being lifted into the air by a ray of light coming from the shadow guy's hands." "He could do that?" "Hard to tell. For all we know he could've been picking them up with a rope thrown over a beam, some of these kinds of things tend to be embellished a bit." Raphiel turned and looked at one beside him. "Like this one?" Rhianna looked to where he was pointing. "Hm?" "This one.. nobody would wear a bracelet that big, would they?" Rhianna's eyes widened as she saw what he was indicating: A human figure with a circle around each wrist, about three feet in diameter; and another picture adjacent which showed the circles in motion around their circumference, and only the outline of the person's body--and even that was broken in some places. Rhianna thought. "Uh, something like that," she said. "Guys!" Brianna called out, coming over to them. "You should see all the goodies that're hiding in here." She held up a few samples she'd brought back with her. "Cool, huh?" Rhianna smiled. "I gather there's lots of secret compartments and passages all over the place, is there?" Before Bri' could answer, the threesome heard a scraping sound and a thud. They all headed towards it, and found Sheva in the process of pushing a refrigerator-sized block of stone off of herself. "Are you okay??" Brianna asked. Sheva sat up. "Yeah, I think so.. Guess I overestimated how much oomph I needed behind that tug." "What happened?" Raphiel wanted to know. "I saw a seam around that block," she said, gesturing to the stone she had just extricated herself out from under. "I gave it a pull to see if it would move, and the stupid thing fell out of the wall onto me." "Well, what's behind it?" Brianna asked, moving closer. "I didn't have time to look," Sheva answered, getting up with the help of Brianna's proffered hand, "but I figure it's another room." "Woah.." Brianna whispered. Sheva stepped forward and said, "What is--" The two looked in on a smallish room, about eight feet by twelve feet, with all sorts of altars and treasures throughout. Everything was gold-trimmed, and the sarcophagus directly across from the doorway seemed to be made from solid gold. The four stepped into the room when suddenly, Brianna shot out an arm to freeze everyone in their tracks. "Ssh!" she hissed. "What?" Rhianna asked. Brianna had been about to explain that she'd heard someone drop down into the main tomb, but just then, she heard a voice: "Guys? Are you down here still?" "It's just Gina," Brianna said with a sigh of relief. "I'll go get her," Sheva announced, stepping past the others, back into the main room. "We'll be right here," Brianna said, turning to look at the contents of the room. Sheva walked out to the main room and found Gina there, wandering around with a light. She shone the light at Sheva, who shielded her eyes, and then Gina breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, THERE you are." "We're all back here," Sheva said, turning around to go back to the tomb itself. "Okay," Gina nodded, following the pseudo-werecat. "I finally managed to get hold of Penny.. she and Ace and Charlie will be here tomorrow. Oh, by the way, that reminds me--Charlie will probably think you're Brit, so be sure to set her straight so there's no confusion." "Gotcha," Sheva said. "Boy, are you ever dirty," Gina observed, catching up. Sheva just grumbled and explained about the block falling on top of her. "Well, are you okay?" Gina asked, looking Sheva over with the flashlight beam. "Yeah.. for now.." "Well then, it's all just part of the job," Gina smiled. She rounded the corner and gasped, stopping in her tracks as the open door to the tomb room came into view. "You FOUND IT?" she blurted out. "How did you find it?" "I just had a block fall on me, I already told you," Sheva said as Gina rushed past her and entered the smaller room. The other three looked up as Gina burst upon the scene. Brianna and Raphiel were checking out the room's walls' pictorials, while Rhianna remained crouched at the sarcophagus, only her head above the eyes visible from behind an altar right in front of the sarcophagus. "Gina.. come here and help me with this," Rhi' suggested. She waved Gina towards her, and the eldest Diggers sister slowly walked that way, giving a low whistle, eyes running up and down the golden coffin. "There's an inscription of some sort down here," Rhi' said, gesturing to the sarcophagus' raised-relief legs. Gina crouched down beside her friend, beginning to translate almost immediately. "Here lies Amenhotep III.. we remember our beloved king and honor him by sending with him, to the great beyond, the icon with which he lit our darkest hour." "Huh. So now we're talking about the Matrix?" Brianna quipped. "What is the Matrix?" Sheva wanted to know. "No, that's something else entirely," Rhianna smiled. "You guys are confusing," Sheva shook her head. Rhi' smiled again, filled Gina in on what she and Raph had uncovered in the other room, and then gestured back to the sarcophagus. "Shall we open it?" "You betcha," Gina nodded. "Brianna?" Brianna already had the videocamera up to her face. "I'm all over it," she assured them. "Go right ahead." The light from Brianna's camera cast sharp shadows as Gina and Rhianna pulled at one edge of the lid. "Nnnngh.. give us.. a hand here," Gina grunted. Raphiel and Sheva both hurried to help, and with the four of them pulling, the entire lid came off the coffin with ease. They set it off to one side and looked within. "Wow, old guy," Rhi' observed. "Uh huh," Gina said, looking at the mummy all wrapped up inside the sarcophagus. "He's not going to come out after us, is he?" Sheva said worriedly. Everyone turned to regard Sheva. "Uh, Shev," Brianna said with a smile, "you been watching a lot of horror movies lately?" The faux-werecheetah shrugged. "I thought they all did that." Gina crouched down again with a smile and examined the object Amenhotep had been entombed with, quietly singing, "Scooby Scooby Doo, where are you, we got some work to do now.." "Oh hush," Brianna laughed, then added, "Gonna dub over that part of the tape.." "Don't worry about it," Rhianna whispered to Sheva. "A little pessimism is a good thing sometimes. Besides, every now and then I get the same feeling you just did." "Wow," Raphiel said. "That's really really black." "Gina," Brianna said, looking around the camera, "What.. the heck.. IS that?" "I'm not sure, sis," Gina said. "I'm trying to figure it out now." Rhianna, Sheva, and Raphiel edged in for a closer look. They saw, at the bottom of the sarcophagus in front of the mummy's feet, a flat black object, about a foot tall and four inches wide and two thick, standing upright. It had beveled edges and a pointed peak. "I think he was supposed to take that with him," Raphiel said. "Jinkies.. it's covered with symbols," Gina observed. "So it is," Rhianna nodded. "Go ahead and work your magic on it." "This is a little harder," Gina pointed out. "All these symbols around the edges, they don't make sense. There's no pattern to them, and none of them are repeated.." "Work from the inside out?" Rhi' hazarded. "I guess," Gina shrugged, looking at the inscription in the center of the front of the obelisk. Sheva and Raphiel walked over beside Brianna, who'd set the camera on a rock ledge pointing at her sister, then turned to investigate the treasures and such that filled the room. "You guys got bored?" Bri' said with a smile. "Don't worry, they'll have it figured out in no time. There's 'lulls' like this on every trip." "What's with all this stuff just lying around?" Sheva asked, sweeping a hand around to indicate the gold and jewelry lying on various pedestals and ledges throughout the chamber. "It's like the movies, it's all just there for the taking." Bri' smiled. "Actually, you're not that far off, but instead of being here for OUR taking, it was intended for Amenhotep to have stuff he could take along with him to the next plane." "Why bother? Didn't they know he couldn't take it with him?" "Exactly. Different culture, different beliefs," Brianna told Sheva. "Are we going to take it with US?" Raphiel asked. "That's a good question," Bri' nodded. "If it turns out it's pivotal to understanding the mystery surrounding the Betans' involvement? Almost definitely. If not, but Gina thinks they're still up for grabs, then yeah, we might take it. But if it would serve no point other than grave-robbing, then no, the treasure'll stay here." "Guys? Are you listening?" Gina said a little louder. The threesome turned and headed over to where Gina and Rhianna crouched before the obelisk. "What is it?" Bri' asked, putting the camera up to her eye again. "It's weird," Gina said. "Out of all the symbols you see here, only two of them, right in the middle, make any sense: 'omega core'." "Omega core?" Sheva echoed. "Omega core," Rhianna and Gina stereoed. "That's.. really weird," said Brianna. "Yeah.." Rhianna nodded. "I agree," Gina said. "Something just doesn't add up here. Let's find a way to secure the site, and we'll go into town and check into a hotel to wait until Penny gets here." "Hotel?! A shower! Weee!" Brianna enthused. "Why're you so excited?" Sheva asked. "I'M the one who truly needs it." "Okay, guys," Gina said, standing up with a smile, "let's just get everything sealed up and secure so we can go." Jetta looked at herself to confirm she was in human form, then knocked on the front door of the Diggers home. At least she thought it was the Diggers home; the place had another level on it, but it was in the same spot she'd been to several months before during the wedding celebration. Seance opened the door and regarded Jetta. "Oh, hello," he said after a moment. "I remember you now, from the wedding. You are Jetta, correct?" She smiled and nodded. "Is Britanny here?" "Yes, yes," Seance said, moving aside to let Jetta in. "She and Stripe built a new apartment upstairs.. that's most likely where you'll find them." "Thank you, Seance," she said, finally remembering the young man's name. "I can manage from here." "Very well," he nodded, and returned to the living room to his studies. Jetta went upstairs and found herself in an empty living room. She was about to call out to ask if anyone was home, when she heard Britanny's voice behind a closed door. "Faster! Go faster!" Jetta's eyes widened and she adopted a look of surprise. Telling herself she needed to be sure she hadn't misheard that, she stepped closer to the door and listened carefully. "Quick! Quickquickquick! Up! Up! Now left! No, your other left! Farther! Farther! In! Now! In! All the way! Use the club! OH YEAH!" Jetta didn't know whether to run, or sit on the couch and pretend she didn't hear any of it, or go on in. In the end, after a period of contemplation, she reached out and knocked. "Yeah? It's open!" Brit's voice filtered through the door. Jetta blinked. she said to herself. She opened the door and saw Brit standing behind Stripe, who was sitting on a chair at a desk. He was typing hurriedly on a computer, shutting off whatever program he was using, but Jetta caught a glimpse of a young female human on the screen, being directed about some kind of subterranean maze. <..computer games?> Jetta finished to herself as Brit and Stripe looked up. "Jetta?" Britanny said. She grinned and faced her friend. "It IS you! How are you?" Jetta noted with a smile that Britanny shifted to human form as she came over and greeted her. "Oh, faring well, can't really comp--" She sighed and looked down at Brit. "I can't lie, Britanny. I'm having a hard time of it as of late. I needed a break, and thought I might come visit. If you don't mind, of course." Stripe smiled and turned off the monitor, standing up to be with his wife as she said, "Of course, Jetta! You're always welcome here. You don't need to make excuses to show up, either." "Thank you," Jetta smiled. "So how have you been?" Brit led her guest out to the living room and offered her a chair, sitting down herself in the other. Stripe headed for the kitchen. "Not bad, not bad at all," Brit said with a smile. "We've kept, uh.. busy." Jetta's smile became a ferocious grin. "Say no more," she said. "I understand fully." "How about you, Jetta?" Stripe said, returning with some drinks. "What have you been doing?" "The same as usual," she answered, taking the drink and thanking with a nod. "I stay at home and tend to the little ones, while Thabian goes out and finds our food, ensures our shelter stays in place, and so on.. All the things *I* should be doing as leader." "You've got an important role to play too," Brit pointed out. Jetta chuckled. "Repopulating the clan? I wish I had the same optimism as you, Britanny. It'll take nothing short of a miracle--and by that, I mean my brother sorting out and destroying the curse--for the werewolf clan to survive." She took a sip of the drink, then added, "Funny, isn't it.. I never saw the parallel before, but you and I are in much the same boat, I suppose; both of us are being counted on to bring our respective race back from the brink of extinction. I do think you have a better chance." Brit and Stripe looked at each other for a moment in silence, then Brit faced Jetta again and said, "Jetta.." "I'm sorry," the werewolf said after a moment, her head hung low. "It was unkind of me to say that. Forgive me." "Of course," Britanny said with an air of confusion. "But if you need to talk--" "Where is everyone else, before I forget again?" Jetta said brightly suddenly, picking her head up and looking around. "The last time I was here, this place was filled with a dull roaring sound from all the activity within. (Granted, you were getting married the next day..)" "Well, my sisters went out on an adventure with their friends--" "And left you behind?" Jetta smiled. "By their choice or yours?" "Ours, actually," Brit said, leaning into Stripe. "We wanted some time together." "Without the, as you put it, dull roar," Stripe said with a smile. "I can sympathize," Jetta snickered. "And some of the others are practicing for some kind of contest coming up this weekend. Sounds like a brawlfest to me," Cheetah said. "Oh? How so?" Jetta queried. "Some kinda travelling road show," Brit shrugged. "It's a fighting contest that's roaming across the country picking up contestants for some kind of big tournament-type competition in a few weeks." "And you say your friends are in this?" Jetta asked. "Some of them, yeah." "Sounds interesting." Britanny shrugged again. "More or less it's just keeping everyone away from each other while they practice." Sika wore a questioning look as she met Julia in the gym for the morning workout. Her confusion stemmed from the fact her teacher wasn't dressed in her usual fighting/training outfit. In actual fact, Mistress Julia was in what Sika had heard referred to as "normal clothes", though she wondered why a warrior like the great Armsmaster of Jade would want to wear such clothing which covered everything up and had so much material to bind and restrict range of motion.. "Good morning," Julia said, walking up to Sika with her arms folded and a smile on her face. "Today we're going to find out if you've truly learned anything from me, or if you've just become accustomed to my methods and patterns." Julia turned towards a door and called, "You can come in now, Ryan." Sika watched a rather well-built young man step through the doorway with a grin on his face, cracking his knuckles and walking to the center of the room to join them. "Ready when you are, Mrs. D." At first, Sika resented the thought of fighting a man, but she decided that Teacher must know best. (Truth be told, Ryan Tabbot wasn't exactly excited about facing off against a teenaged girl either, but Julia assured him it'd be a fair fight.) Julia perched on a set of stacked benches as Ryan dodged the first of Sika's advances. The Amazon girl had started off quickly, using her staff to deliver some shots around Ryan's head. He ducked and lunged forward, jabbing at her side, and she artfully evaded him, twisting out of the way and stepping to her left. Ryan tucked into a forward somersault roll as Sikarra stepped counter- clockwise, trying to poke him in the side of the head and neck with her staff like it was a pool cue. Two thirds of the way through his roll, while he lay supine on the floor, he flipped himself over, so that when he returned to a standing position, he was facing the way he came. "Mrs. D.," Ryan said with a grin, "Does she KNOW she's allowed to hit me?" "Don't be cocky, Ryan," Julia said. "She has a lot more skill than she's letting on." "So do I," he smiled. "If you're done talking, we have a match to complete," Sika pointed out. "Hmm?" Ryan said. WHACK! Ryan had turned directly into the path of the staff, which was moving upwards rapidly and perpendicular to his chin. It was exactly as Sika had planned, and she grinned and followed his falling body as he went to the mat. As Sika was about to hold him down, to ensure his shoulders stayed flat for the requisite three seconds, he kicked his legs up off the floor and caught her around the midsection, using her momentum to send her cartwheeling past. Ryan rolled back slightly, then flipped into a crouching position, spinning halfway around yet again, to find Sika already facing him. He stood up and ran forward, aiming to give his opponent a taste of the Elbow, but she had other plans. Ryan found a staff suddenly in the crook of his arm, and with a flick of its users' wrist, Ryan's interlocked hands were pulled apart, rendering the Elbow little more than a joint on his body. He was stunned by the disruption of his trademark move, leaving him wide open for a spin-kick to the back of the head, which sent him sprawling. "What was that about letting me know when it was okay to hit?" Sika said sweetly, standing over Ryan. "Not bad, not bad at all," he said, getting back to his feet. "But I'm just gettin' warmed up." The two warriors faced off anew, essentially starting the second round. Ryan tossed out a couple of test punches, which Sikarra blocked easily. In return, she swung her staff overhand like an ax, aiming for a collarbone shot. Ryan deflected it with his wrists, then grabbed the wooden weapon and tried to wrench it from Sika's hands. She had learned from Julia's oft-repeated practice of snatching the weapon away, though, and gripped it tightly, refusing to let go. Ryan ooops'ed as Sika flew overhead. She twisted and turned in midair, finally managing to land in a tripod position, ultimately losing her grip on the staff, sending it clattering off away from her. She spun to face Ryan and growled a little, baring her teeth. She rushed him, and he readied himself to catch and tackle her, but she leapt into the air about ten feet away, bringing up a leg as if to perform a flying-leap kick. He ducked, and she reached down and snagged him in a headlock, hauling him backwards to slam him to the mat. Sikarra landed on her feet, turned, and put a foot on one of his shoulders; it wouldn't've mattered, since he was winded. Still, he managed to reach up with a hand and yank on her ankle, sending her shrieking to the mat. Julia stepped up and applauded. "Nicely done," she said. "Both of you did exceptionally well. I'm rather impressed." Ryan caught his breath, thanked Julia, and got up, bending over to offer Sika his hand. At first she drew away, but after a moment, she reconsidered and let him help her to her feet. Ryan bowed to her, then said to Julia, "I really appreciate the chance to do this.. it's like an extra practice for Gladiatorz." "Gladiatorz? What is this?" Sika said inquisitively. "You don't know? It's a fighting tournament that's coming to town as of tomorrow," Ryan said enthusiastically. "Competitors travel with it and go through eliminations until the finals, which'll be held in some really exotic locales all over the place, televised worldwide for everyone to see just who the best on the planet is." "Really.." Sika mused. "Yeah," Ryan added. "Registrations are open at the mall tonight until midnight.. then they close.." "Thanks SO much for coming, Ryan," Julia said, escorting him to the door. She added softly, "Don't put any more thoughts in her head, ok?" "But.." Ryan protested. Julia pushed him out the door and closed it, sighing. Morning in Egypt found the group of adventurers in the dining hall of the hotel, awaiting the rest of their party, who were flying in from the States. "Cigarette smokers are real bastards, don't you think?" Sheva muttered, shifting in her seat a little. "Shush.. that's not how Brit talks," Gina pointed out quietly. "Well, I bet Brit didn't get stuck in the smoking section this morning either," Sheva complained. "I need another shower to get this smoky smell outta my coat." She was interrupted by the breakfast being served just then. Despite the fact they were in a far-off land, they were staying in an American-style hotel, so they ate American-style food. Gina and Rhianna both had eggs--Gina's sunny-side-up, Rhi's scrambled--bacon, toast, and juice; Brianna had some waffles she'd had made specially with some salmon she'd brought along shaved into the batter; Raphiel was content with blueberry pancakes; and Sheva sat before a plate of toast and a glass of milk. As they got into their meals, Gina unfolded a piece of paper and laid it out between her and Rhianna. "So, anyone got any theories as to these symbols?" Gina asked. Rhianna leaned over: the paper had a sketch of the face of the Omega Core on it, complete with all the engravings and symbols over the body of the artifact. "Not sure," she said after she'd swallowed her mouthful of food. "Could it be a map?" "I suppose," Gina shrugged. "It makes sense.. if this is the core, there should be some other parts that hook up to it.. and we'd need to know where to find the rest of them. But if this is a map, it's going to take a lot of headwork to figure it out." "Uh-huh," Brianna said. Sheva nibbled on her toast and continued to sniff at the plate to her left. "Uhmm.." she finally said, "Brianna.. may I try a bite?" "What?" Bri' smiled. "Geez, you ARE just like Brit.." "Oh, c'mon, Bri', give her a piece of one.." "Oh all right, Gina, relax," Brianna said, cutting a waffle in half and pushing one piece onto Sheva's plate. "I was just joking with her." "If this ISN'T the map, we'll have to look for it again," Rhianna pointed out. "And then we have another mystery, as to what this is." "Yup," Brianna nodded. "Maybe Penny will have some light she can shed on this when she gets here." "Idunno, sis," Gina said. "This is so unlike anything we saw at Civ-Alpha.. we haven't even found a Beta tool here." "Maybe this IS a Beta tool," Rhianna said, tapping the sketch of the Omega Core. "Mmmm," Sheva said, enjoying the waffle. "Great, another seafood lover in the house," Brianna grinned with little humor behind it. "It's possible," Gina said to Rhianna, "but if so, wouldn't you think it would at least look like something we've seen so far?" "Good point," Rhi' nodded. "Too bad ol' Amenhotep didn't leave any missives in his tomb for us to glean hints from," Brianna said. "That would make our job a lot eas--" Bri' looked down at her plate as her fork clinked against it. One of her eyebrows rose. "I could've SWORN I had at least two more waffles left," she said slowly, eyeing Sheva. "I only had that first half and then one more half! I swear!" Sheva said, holding up her hands. "Well, that means there still should'a been one and a half left.." Brianna trailed off, before looking over towards Raphiel. She remembered that his plate had been empty a long time before, yet he was still chewing. He swallowed and said with a smile, "I'm full! Do we go back to the site now?" Everyone else smirked and sniggered as Brianna stared at him; then, Gina looked up as three shadows fell over the table. Penny Pincer and her bodyguard Charlotte, along with Penny's pilot, partner, and significant other Kevin "Ace" Koss stood beside the table. "Hi guys!" Penny said brightly. "What's so funny?" "Hi, Penny," Gina waved with a smile. "Just a little dispute over breakfast, I think." "Waitaminute," Penny said, looking around the table. "How did you get here faster than us, Brit? I just SAW you in Atlanta." "I'm not Brit," Sheva answered plainly. "This is Sheva," Gina explained. "Sheva, meet Penny Pincer, Charlotte, and Ace." Brianna smirked as she ordered another helping of breakfast. "You're gonna have to wear a nametag, I think." Sheva feh'ed and offered up a smile a moment or two later. Ace pushed another table up against the Diggers' so the newcomers could join them. "And you must be Raphiel," Penny said as she sat down. "Hello there!" "Hi!" Raphiel greeted her warmly with a wave and a grin. "I'm, uh.. I'm.." As he eyed Charlotte, who was sitting down beside Penny and eyeing Raph warily, he said, "I'm.. not so full any more, for some reason." "RAPH!" Brianna scolded. "Penny?" Charlie chirped nervously. Gina cleared her throat. "I'm sure Raphiel didn't mean any harm.. he's rather new to all this, you know." "True enough," Penny said. "You okay, Charlie?" "I think so, ..I guess.." she said. "Hey, Ace," Rhianna greeted the pilot as he sat down beside her. "'Sup, Rhi'," he said. "Hey, how come you're not at home with your bro'? Gladiatorz starts today, y'know!" "Uh.... yeah," Rhianna said, playing with her food for a moment. "I didn't get into fighting shape in time." "Are you kidding??" Ace said. "You look great!" Rhianna smiled. "Thanks very much, but I had some other reasons too. Besides, I wanted to join Gina.. this is one wild find." "Ahem, yes, thank you Rhi'," Gina said, taking the opportunity to reclaim the conversation. "Take a look at this." She spread the paper sketch of the Omega Core on the table. Penny leaned over and studied the sketch for a few moments. "I've seen some of this before," she drew out slowly. "You have??" Gina blurted out. "I don't remember exactly WHERE, but.. this part that looks like a smiley face.." Penny pointed to a corner of the sketch, then looked up. "Where is this from, Gina?" "Show her the video, sis," Gina replied. Brianna pulled out her videocamera and flipped open the LCD screen, then pointed it at Penny. Penny watched as Bri' played back a section of the tape, showing her panning across rows of hieroglyphics interspersed with wall-paintings of Beta creatures. Penny whistled. Charlie, looking over Penny's shoulder, said, "Those.. are Beta phantoms.." "They sure are," Gina said. "And from the looks of those symbols, it looks like they were faced with a pretty big fight." "Take me there, Gina," Penny said. "Show me what I want to see." Jetta sat with her hands in her lap as Britanny drove her through suburban Atlanta. Driving around in an automobile wasn't exactly the way Jetta had planned to spend her 'vacation', but she decided that being a polite guest was more important. "This is, I have to say, a very .. unique vehicle, Britanny," Jetta said, looking around the interior of the car, and out the windshield at the black-spotted yellow paint job. "Isn't it KYUUTE?" Brit gushed. "Gina finally broke down and built me one of my own. (Guess she got tired of me borrowing her cars.)" "It's very interesting," Jetta nodded. "And it has ooodles of trunk space for days like this!" Brit added. Jetta grinned. "Aha. So the TRUTH comes out! I should've known you were planning something like this." "Oh, just humor me! You'll never know if you like something until you try it." "Mmm-hmmm," Jetta nodded with a smile. "And did you listen to your parents when they fed you that line along with your broccoli when you were just a kitten?" "What's not to like about shopping?" Brit asked. "Tell you what. Next time, YOU get to choose what we do, okay?" "Fair enough. I wonder how you'll like going on the hunt." "Ha ha," Brit responded. They pulled into the parking lot and got out, heading into the mall. For a moment, they stood inside the doors while Jetta took it all in. Brit looked over and smiled and said, "How do you like it so far?" "Claustrophobic," Jetta said slightly sourly. "Really? Why?" Jetta frowned, her eyes narrowing. "The noise.. the crowd.. the SCENTS.. (Why must the humans bathe in so-called 'fragrances'?) ..It's been a long time since I've been around so many people at once." She reached out and took Brit's elbow briefly, jostling her. "Don't you feel that? Don't you want to shift to your quadruped form and run with the pack right about now?" Britanny looked at Jetta for a moment. "Er.. not as strongly as you just did, I think. But I think I know what you mean." She studied Jetta for a minute, then said, "Are you going to be okay?" Jetta took a deep breath, then closed her eyes, and said, "I suppose I'll manage." "Good!" Brit latched onto her friend's arm and hauled her into motion. "Then let's get movin'!" Brit asked as she dragged Jetta towards the first store, "So, how long were you planning on staying?" "Well, I haven't set a hard and fast schedule, to tell you the truth; but Thabian said not to let days turn into weeks, if you know what I mean." "That's cool.. gives us a bunch of time," Brit said. She looked at the store they were entering and squealed a little. "Ooo! The new shipment is in!" "Lucky us," Jetta deadpanned. "So, what size are you?" Brit asked Jetta, turning to look at her. Jetta stared at the younger werecreature for a moment, then said flatly, "Large. Alpha wolf." "Oh, of course.. I don't suppose you've ever had reason to get measured," Brit said with dawning realization. "That's easy enough to take care of." She looked at Jetta appraisingly for a moment and leaned towards a nearby rack. "Let's try this first." Jetta eyed the outfit being held towards her. "Go ahead, try it on," Brit prompted. "You can change in one of those rooms over there--" "I know that," Jetta snapped, snatching the outfit away. "I didn't just fall out of the trees, you know." She stalked off to a change room and closed the door. Brit walked around the displays and racks, peeking at various outfits and picking up several for herself to try on later. She had five different ensembles chosen when she heard Jetta clearing her throat behind her. Brit turned and saw the werewolf standing there awkwardly in front of the changing room door, holding her hands clasped in front of her. She had on the antique beige-colored dress, translucent chiffon, that Brit had chosen for her, with a V-shaped neckline accented in gold stitching. Beautiful hand-painted designs in earthen tones decorated the flowing sheath of the dress, relying on the light fabric and the voluminous length of the skirt to make it flow elegantly to her knees. "Well?" Jetta asked, as if tired. "Hmmm," Brit said, walking up. She held chin in hand as she walked around her friend in a full circle, then took her by the arm and propelled her in line with a mirror. "What do YOU think?" Jetta shrugged, watching her figure in the mirror. "Doesn't do much for me at all," she said. "It's too constricting in the chest.. (Not to mention how tight it would get if I changed to my hybrid form..) and too drafty down below my knees.." She faced Brit. "I haven't worn this sort of thing since the clan lived in the keep, in Scotland, years ago." "Mmm-hmm," Brit nodded. "No offense, but it shows. You'll get used to it pretty quickly, I'm sure." Jetta laughed abruptly and said, "Dear girl, if you think I am going to consent to this for one instant longer than is necessary, you are--" Jetta stopped herself just then, thinking about the situation. she thought. "Jetta? What do you mean?" Brit was saying in a serious, questioning tone. "If it's really that uncomfortable, we can--" "...No," Jetta said, offering up a smile. "I changed my mind, actually. I came here for a change of pace, and if this"--she plucked at the hem of the skirt, pulling it away from her and letting it float back to its resting position--"isn't a change of pace, I don't know what is." Brit slapped her friend on the back. "There you go! I knew as soon as you saw yourself in it, you'd change your mind. Rhianna was the same way." "Who?" Jetta asked. Brit laughed as she realized her slipup. "I think you have a lot to catch up on," she told Jetta. Sika pushed open the kitchen door to find Julia in the room beyond, cutting up some vegetables. "Mistress Julia, is my training done for the day?" Sikarra asked. "Yes, it is," Julia said, turning to look over her shoulder. "Supper will be ready in about two hours." "Very well; until then," Sika exhaled, "I would like to, ah, explore the forest beyond your home." Julia blinked, "All right. It is quite a beautiful place, I don't blame you for wanting to see more of it. Remember, however, that if you come across a fence, don't go over it. It marks the boundary of our land. Since you don't technically have any legal status here on Earth, there could be problems. Okay?" "As you wish, Mistress," Sika said, "I shall stay within your territory." "Um, right. Have fun." Sika nodded and headed out the back door of the mansion. She walked calmly to the edge of the woods, then, after looking back at the house for several long moments, bolted for the street. Ryan stood in his back yard, practicing kicks and punches against an imaginary opponent, hearing the roar of the crowds and the astonished call of the play-by-play announcer in his head. He laid a devastating kick on the tire swing, catching it on it's return. He paused, hearing two feet gently touch down behind him. As Ryan whirled around, he saw Sikarra standing before him. He visibly relaxed, and smiled. "Oh, hi," he said. "Looking for a rematch?" "No," she said with a faint smile, "Although you are worthy of one." "Then what?" Ryan began, brow furrowed in thought. A realization dawned on him. "Um, I don't think.." "Perhaps," she said, shaking her head. "However, I wish for you to take me to this 'mall', so that I may register for the Gladiatorz tournament." Back at the tomb, a shaft of light sprang to life, growing ever wider as the stone slab Sheva had put into place to secure the site was removed. Gina looked down into the hole, her hair hanging below her, glasses nearly falling off. "Looks okay," she said. Tossing a rope pack into the hole, she smoothly rappelled to the floor of the tomb below. She drew her GyroJet and covered the others as they came down in succession: Penny, with Charlotte wafting down beside her on the gentle air currents stirred up by the reopening of the tomb; Ace, Rhianna, Brianna, Raphiel, and Sheva followed, in order. By the time Sheva's feet touched the ground, Penny was already marveling at the Beta-laden hieroglyphs throughout the main chamber. Brianna with Raph in tow, passed her by, heading back to the tomb room. Rhi and Sheva glanced at each other, and followed. The others remained in the main portion of the site. "So who's this guy?" Penny pointed, indicating the shadowy figure. "Not sure," Gina said. "Could be an alien slave driver for all we know. Or a Saurian." "But.." Penny shook her head. "Befadoc was supposed to be the LAST Saurian. And he was in his sarcophagus a LONG time before this site was even constructed." "Well, whoever it was, it looks like he was forcing these people to build Beta tools and test them on themselves. See?" "Eeep!" Penny said, following Gina's pointing finger to the picture of the hapless Phantom Ring test subject. "What were they doing?" "Well, best as we can tell, the shadowy guy was preparing to do battle with the Betans. But before he could get fully prepared, Amenhotep found out and found a way to bring the Betans here, siding with them, and kicking Mr. Shadow's heinie right outta Dodge." "Quite a find, Gina, quite a find," Penny said. "Figuring out what happened here is gonna really expand our knowledge of the Betans." "Yeah, and you haven't even seen the good stuff yet," Gina smiled, taking hold of Penny's elbow. "C'mere." She led Penny back to the tomb room. Brianna, along with Sheva and Raph, were cataloguing all the treasures displayed in the room. Rhianna was examining something at the base of a golden sarcophagus. Penny walked around, ooh'ing and aah'ing at the various treasures laid out. "I'm sure your pocketbook likes this room most of all," she quipped to Gina. "Can I get some help here?" Rhianna interjected. Penny, Ace and Gina came to her aid, helping her gently lift the Omega Core from its resting place, laying it down on a plinth in the center of the room. Penny proceeded to walk around it, running her hands along the indentations around the artifact's edges. "I STILL say I know these symbols from somewhere," she said. "I'm just not sure where." "Yeah, me too. I don't know what it is," Gina said. " but, like I said, the only symbols I could decipher was the stuff right in the middle.." Penny nodded. "'Omega Core'," she agreed. "I see what you mean.. the rest of this stuff doesn't have any repeating pattern or anything. The $64,000 question, then, is what does this mean?" "Is it duplicated anywhere else?" Rhianna asked. "On the back, on the walls of the room, on the sarcophagus.." Everyone looked around for a moment. "Doesn't seem to be," Gina said. "These here are unique to this piece only." She tapped the Core. Penny leaned over the Core and studied it, saying, "So, Gina, how did you come to find this place, anyway? It took me weeks to uncover Civ-Alpha." She smiled. "Have you been hiding this all that time?" "No, not really," Gina responded, leaning on a pillar. "Actually, you remember that collection of little odds-and-ends I had? You called it my 'yard sale' stuff?.." "Yeah.." "All those items together kinda made a verbal map, telling me where I had to come." "Neat concept," Penny observed. "A verbal map? Never mind that.. how could that mismatched bunch of objects work together as a set?" Gina grinned. "Actually, it was interesting. They were musical, they played tones when you hit 'em. And when you did 'em in the right order, they made the statue speak." "Really? You had about ten objects there.. must've been hell trying to figure out which one went when." "There were eight," Gina clarified, "and Ryan has to take the credit for the actual task of figuring out their order. He's the one who found a series of ridges around the seal on every--" "Huh?" Penny interrupted. "What did you say?" "I admit it," Gina nodded. "Ryan was--" "No, after that. Ridges. That's it!" "It is?" Gina said as Penny stood up straight and snapped her fingers. "Have you got that sketching?" Penny asked. Gina presented it and Penny unfolded it, looked at it, then turned it over and looked at it backwards, holding it up to the light. "Yes!" "What are you getting at, Penny?" Rhianna asked. "I KNEW I'd seen this before!" she said triumphantly, pointing to the symbols in one corner of the sketching, then the same symbols on the Core itself. "I have this piece at home, from Civ-Alpha, that has ridges that are the reverse image of the grooves on the Core. At least, this corner of it. It never did anything; it was just an inert, dead artifact to me. So I put it off to one side and forgot about it." "Do you know where you put it?" Gina asked. In response to Gina's question, Penny turned to Ace. "If I tell you where it is, can you go get it and bring it back here?" He grinned. "That's my job," he told her. "How soon will you be back, tomorrow?" Penny asked. "You kiddin'?" Ace said with the grin still on his face. "Seeya in 18 hours, max." With that, and a quick kiss from his significant other, he turned and headed for the exit. "While he's gone, why don't we work on trying to figure out what the core is and what it does?" Gina suggested. "Yeah," Rhianna nodded. "I'm all for it," Penny chimed in. "Then let's get busy," Gina declared. Cheetah carried on through the mall, already having exhausted the options at her favorite haunts. They moved on to other major stores in the mall, and Brit felt almost proud that Jetta was sticking with it, even smiling and laughing now and then in response to a joke or comment. "I must admit, Britanny," Jetta said at one point, "you do seem to have a knack for seeking out the so-called 'trendy' clothes and best bargains. Perhaps that's it: you still have the tracking and hunting skills that I do, except yours have been tuned to cotton and wool instead." Brit laughed, and Jetta continued, "But I still think I'm not cut out to wear those.. what did you call them?" "Spandex." "Ah yes, spandex suits," Jetta nodded, putting her hands on her sides, over her ribcage. "Far too clingy." Brit smiled, and said, "Well, that's sorta the point, but to each their own." She then added, "So.. are you enjoying yourself?" Jetta pondered the question for a moment and said, "You know what? I do believe I am. It almost feels like I've stepped into someone else's life for a day. A very refreshing change from the usual," She briefly adopted a tone that Brit figured was meant to mimic Thabian. "'You are our leader and our savior..' It gets a little much sometimes, Britanny. And it's interesting how a simple thing like wandering through a shopping mall can be so relaxing." "Yeah, it's a great way to unwind," Brit acknowledged. "Especially for someone who's been wound up so tightly for years.." Jetta let the comment pass and instead said with a smile, "It's a tragedy you can't bottle and market this, Britanny. You'd make a fortune." She was about to add more when she spotted a table set up in front of a display partition in the middle of the mall corridor. "What is that?" she asked quizzically. "They don't seem to be selling anything.." "Just fame," Brit said. "That's the Gladiatorz crew, trying to sign up a few more people for the contests." "And you said you're not interested in that?" Brit shrugged. "I'd rather spend the time with Stripe this month. We might go see a couple of the matches, but what with the house all quiet and empty, it's a prime chance to not get interrupted, if you know what I mean." "Say no more," Jetta grinned. "I can't count the number of times little Pojo has toddled in, and asked 'Mommy okay? Daddy okay?'. It does tend to be a show-stopper." Brit burst out laughing as Jetta looked over at the Gladiatorz table again. "With the penchant for violent entertainment your part of the world seems to embrace, I would've thought there'd've been a long lineup to participate." "Oh, there was, earlier on," Brit nodded. "Registrations have been open for weeks now--they close tonight and the contest starts tomorrow here in town." Brit caught a glimpse of something shiny out of the corner of her peripheral vision and turned that way. "OOooooooh!" she squealed, pointing. "A new shoe store! Time for a little exploring!" Brit hurried into the store, and Jetta continued to regard the registration station. Finally, she set a determined look on her face and walked towards the display. Jetta told herself, waiting in line behind the man guiding a young girl, possibly a sister, through the registration process. "This is a rather long document," the girl observed. "I know," the red-haired man said dismissively. "It's just disclaimers and stuff. Don't worry about it...on the other hand, before you sign, though, you *should* think about one thing. This contest will be running for the next six weeks, all over the world. They pick up all the things like airfare and accommodations, but the rest is up to you. And the time when you're not fighting is yours to do with as you wish, within reason, meaning most of us can go home and visit in between matches; but for you, it's probably going to mean being separated from your family for another month and a half." The girl shrugged. "Should I come home with the Master's training within me, I have done as expected. Should I also bring back a victory from a tournament here, I have excelled." The man shrugged as well. "Whatever," he acknowledged. He pointed to a spot on the form. "Sign here.. it says you read and understood the terms on the other 296 pages." She did, and they moved aside to have the application processed. Jetta stepped up to the front. "Signing up?" the muscular woman behind the desk asked. Jetta nodded. The woman slapped a huge binder full of paper to the table in front of Jetta. "Read it and sign, then take it to your left." Jetta opened it and began to read. <'I, the undersigned, do not hold Gladiatorz responsible for any cuts, bruises, broken bones, charred flesh, frozen souls..'> She flipped through the pages before her, at first slowly, then at a quicker pace, jumping several dozen pages at a time, until she got to the last page. <'..or any other physical, psychic, spiritual or temporal injury incurred during the competition.'> "Why must these people overcomplicate things so?" she murmured, finding, below the mammoth disclaimer, spaces in which to write her name, residence, marital status, next of kin, last rites preferences, and so on. Still, she picked up a pen and began to fill out the information on the last page, when she heard a hesitant voice behind her. "Jetta?" it said. "What are you doing?" Jetta looked over her shoulder at a stunned-looking Britanny (with another three boxes of purchases, Jetta didn't fail to notice). "I'm signing up," she said plainly to Brit, turning back towards the form. "But you're.." Brit began, then realized the man to their left had turned to face them in reaction to Brit's voice. "Oh, hi Ryan," Brit said. "Oh. Um.... Hi, Brit," Ryan said to her, looking a little uneasy. Brit eyed Ryan for a moment. "What are YOU up to?" she asked warily. "I KNOW you already signed up on the first day. (Having camped out the night before, might I add.)" "Welllll.." he said, then finally stepped aside and introduced the girl standing beside him finishing up the application. "This is Sikarra. She's been visiting your mother.. getting training.. we just signed her up." "Oh!" Brit said. "I'm surprised you convinced Mom to go along with it. Usually she forbids her students from focusing on anything BUT her training. Why, she even gave me a hard time about my.. stereo.. once.." Brit trailed off as she regarded Ryan's troubled look. "You didn't even TELL her, did you?" Brit finally said. "It wasn't my call!" Ryan protested, gesturing to Sika. "She asked me to bring her here!" "Mom's gonna blow a gasket when she finds out," Brit murmured. "It's not too late for you to join up too, Britanny," Jetta said, closing her binder and handing it over to the registration staff. "If you're travelling the globe, at least you won't have to face your mother's wrath." Brit sighed and rolled her eyes. Another sunrise in central Egypt found Gina and friends returning to the site for another day of searching. "I hope today doesn't zero out like yesterday," Rhianna muttered. "Yeah," Gina said. "We tried everything from gamma rays to glam rock, and we still don't know what the Core is. "Kevin should be back this morning some time," Penny said. "Let's see what happens then, once he brings the piece I had at home." "What do you want me to do?" Sheva asked. "Well, we need to rig something up to hoist stuff back out of the tomb chamber," Gina said. "You're probably the strongest of us all, you get to pull the rope." "Gee, thanks," Sheva said with a lopsided smile. Four hours later, Ace's newest Osprey touched down in the open area beyond the cars. "Hi!" Penny said, running to the plane. "Did you bring it? Did you bring it?" "Whoa! Relax," Ace said. "It's back here." He produced the grey-and- blue-colored artifact and Penny rushed off with it, towards the others, clustered around the cars. "Yeah, I had a decent flight," Ace mumbled to himself with a slight smile, as he walked over. "Oh, you missed me? I'm touched, girl. No, no, I'll tell you about my new contract later, go on and play with your toys." "I got it! I got it!" Penny said, and Gina brought the Omega Core out and laid it on the hood of the car. The others all gathered around as Penny approached. "So just line up the ridges and the grooves, and.." Gina said. "I'm on it, I'm on it," Penny answered, aligning the artifacts. As she pressed down, the two joined with an audible 'click', and then, to everyone's surprise, the seam between them faded away. "It won't come apart," Penny said. "Fused permanently," Gina nodded. "Interest--" "Ssh!" Bri' and Sheva said. Sheva added, "What's that?" Everyone looked at the artifact and the Omega Core, now blended together as one; the artifact a rib curving out from the Core's spine. A faint, very-low-pitched hum was starting up. In one of the blank areas of the Core, above the lettering but still between the symbols along its edges, a white square of light faded into existence, visible even in the harsh midmorning sun. Then it went out. "That was unexpect--" Gina began again, but cut herself off when the light reappeared, then, after five or more seconds, winked out again. "Is it flashing?" Rhianna asked. "Seems to be," Gina nodded. "Very, very slowly, though." "So what do we do now?" said Sheva. "Idunno about the rest of you, but I'm hungry," Rhi' put forth. "Yeah!" Bri' said. "I could go for a bit of brunch." "Me too!" Raphiel said brightly. Brianna looked at him and started to say something, but decided against it, simply smiling instead. "So how about we go back to the city and get something to eat?" Penny offered. "We can think about this thing over brunch, and come back and try again this afternoon." "Deal," Gina smiled, heading for the driver's seat. "So where was Ace going?" Gina asked a few moments later, as they were driving back to Luxor. Penny said, "He got a job.. the people with the Gladiatorz contest had their charter airline pull out at the last minute, so they started looking through the yellow pages for any in-town air services, and who's at the top of the page?" Gina grinned as she turned the car towards the city. "I never thought of that. Smart boy." "Tell me about--" "Gina! Do that again," Sheva called out from the back seat. "Do what again?" "Turn the car." "But Luxor is this way--" "This thing just started flashing faster, and it got a little higher in pitch." "It did??" Gina looked over her shoulder at Sheva, who was turned around looking in the cargo space in the back. "GINA!" Penny said. Gina turned around and "ZOINKS!"ed as she nearly drove into the side of the other car. Brianna's eyes were as big as dinner plates as she stared out the driver's window, and a moment later, she was on the radio. "Sis! What the HELL are you doing in there?!" "I think we got this thing figured out," Gina said, watching in the mirror as Sheva lugged the Core into the back seat with her and Raphiel. The light on the face of the Core was indeed blinking faster, though not by much, and as Gina turned back on course, she could see it slow to its previous rate once again. "Yeah?" Brianna said. "Yeah," Gina answered. "After lunch, we're gonna go on a little bit of a drive." TO BE CONTINUED Project HEARD presents Gold Digger World Tour: The Sky's The Limit 7:04:55PM TURNER FIELD, ATLANTA, GEORGIA A capacity crowd murmured in the darkness, sitting in the confines of the large sports stadium. They could see some muted lights in the center of the field, near where second base would normally be, but the rest of the arena was dark enough to obliterate any meaningful action. Five seconds later, a pounding drum beat and synthesized music erupted from the stadium's sound system, followed almost immediately by the voice of an announcer. "ATLANTA! ARE YOU READY FOR G2K?!" << 2Unlimited "Get Ready for This" >> Lasers and lights flared to life, aimed at the center of the field, where a stage was visible with about 20 people standing on it. One had a microphone in his hand and walked along the front edge, waving his free arm in the typical 'whoop it up' gesture, trying to incite the crowd even more. "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, WELCOME to the inaugural event of the Gladiatorz 2000 SUPer specTACular!" he shouted, emphasizing syllables here and there seemingly at random. Ryan watched the announcer detachedly; the male Tabbot sibling was more interested in the 91,000 screaming spectators, who he hoped would be cheering HIM on in the ensuing matches just as they were screaming frantically for a mere announcer now. Ryan observed, watching as the out-of-towners were introduced one at a time. "And hailing from right here in Atlanta, your very own Ryan Tabbot!" Ryan folded his arms and gave his hair a toss back, looking fiercely at the Steadicam that was suddenly directed at him. He stared the camera down for a second, then winked. As the cameraman moved to the next contestant already being announced by the emcee, Ryan thought, TIBET HILTON HOTEL Gina frowned. "Fancy meeting you here." Laura looked up as if she hadn't realized that Gina was beside her. "Oh, hello, Gold Digger," she said with a very practiced smile. She nodded at Sheva. "You too, Britanny." Sheva was caught off guard. "Huh? Oh.. I'm not--OW!" Sheva yelped as Gina stomped on her foot. Sheva added: "I mean, I'm not surprised to see you here." Laura grinned. "Some of us have REAL archaeological missions to go on." She nodded at Raph and Charlie. "Instead of travelling circuses." Gina said with some mild agitation: "You checking in or out, Laura?" "Oh, out.." Laura smiled. "I've something important to get to back home in a tremendous hurry." She flipped a stone in the air and caught it. "And if you're looking for the Philosopher Stone, you may as well head back too. Ta, Diggers!" "Well, SHE gets on my nerves," Sheva muttered as Laura walked out of the hotel lobby. "Don't worry about it, Brit," Gina said, eyes all but boring holes into Laura's back. "She's gone now." Sheva looked at Gina curiously. Gina waited until Laura was completely out the doors of the hotel, then said, "Sorry, Sheva. I just had to wait until she was definitely out of earshot. Who knows how she'd react if she knew about you. She might even try to blackmail us." Penny whew'ed as Bri' and Rhi' returned from taking their belongings upstairs. "You just missed Laura." "We know," Rhianna said. "Bri' spotted her in time to keep me from getting off the elevator. I'm not too thrilled about meeting her face-to-face, either." "What's she up to?" Brianna asked. "Heading home," Gina said. "Just grave-robbed some poor shmuck out of a false Philosopher stone." Charlie looked at Gina and the others and asked, "How do you know it's false?" Rhianna spoke up. "'Cause I've been looking for the real one for years. The one that made it to Tibet was bogus, brought here in 1610 by a Scotsman coming through from Japan for some reason." "So where's the original?" Penny wanted to know. "I hate to be a party pooper, but aren't we getting a little off track here?" Sheva asked. "Sheva's right. Let's go get something to eat and then try to figure out where part 3 of our little puzzle is." Ryan, Sika, and Jetta were seated comfortably in a holding area waiting for their matches. Each had many thoughts on their minds, of the upcoming contests, of home, of things to keep their minds off other things, and so on. Ryan noticed Sikarra was staring at the television perched in one corner of the room. On it, the announcers/hypemen were discussing the Gladiatorz competition and explaining to the home viewers how it all came together, in the usual pre-match banter format. "Don't worry about the TV presence," Ryan tried to reassure Sikarra. "You only have to focus on your fight.. let them worry about their own thing." "All right," she nodded, then, after a pause, said, "What is this 'TV'?" Jetta grinned from her position on a couch across the room. Ryan tried to explain, feeling he was fighting a losing battle, and was saved a few moments later by the arrival of another competitor, a young Japanese woman with long, straight hair. "I remember you," Ryan said by way of greeting, standing up. "Your name is Ichi, isn't it?" "Ichikun Ichinohei," the woman nodded and smiled. "I remember you too, Mr. Tabbot. How have you been?" "Oh, not too bad," he said. "Mostly just been training for this and going on trips with my girl and her friends." "Sounds like quite a life you're leading," Ichi said with a wry smile. "My name is Jetta," the human-form werewolf said, standing up and nodding her head politely. "And this is Sikarra." "A pleasure," Ichi bowed. "Are we all in the same class?" "There's only one class," Ryan clarified, eyes on the television screen now. "We're all on one garden-variety tournament ladder. Winner advances to the next round, loser.. well, loses. So I guess the answer to your question is 'yes'." "Where are the other competitors?" she wondered aloud. "There are three other rooms like this one," Jetta explained. "Everyone tended to gravitate to their own small groups." "I see. May I join yours, then?" "Sure!" Ryan said. "Welcome." "Thank you," Ichi nodded and sat down. "What is your specialty?" Sikarra queried. "I'm a ninja.. I practice the art of stealth and precision attacks. You?" Sikarra was about to respond when the overhead speaker crackled to life. "Attention competitors," a voice rang out, "the preliminaries begin now. In the Red ring, Tabbot & Smith. In the Blue ring, Stone & Ken. In the Yellow ring, Rich & Ellis." Ryan got up. "Well, I guess that's me. Wish me luck, ladies.." "You've got it," Jetta said. "Good luck," Sikarra contributed. Ichi nodded to him. "Be victorious," she suggested. Ryan winked and departed for the ring, and the other three turned their attention to the television. Ichi gestured to the platter on the low coffee-table between them and the TV, laden with bread, sliced meats, cheeses, and fruit and vegetable slices. "I must say this is one of the best catered and furnished events I've been to lately." Jetta nodded, popping a grape into her mouth. "Ryan found out the company is covering most of the expenses after all. Even if you lose your first match, you'll stay on as a spectator for free for the duration." "Neat," Ichi said in response. Sika stared at the screen as the camera soared in towards the ring, providing a dynamic view of Ryan and Monty squaring off and waiting for the bell. She decided on her own a few moments later that Ryan hadn't actually been shrunk and magically transported inside the curious black box she was facing, and that it was somehow showing her what was happening in another location, in the fighting ring outside, perhaps like a scrying glass. "I think they are ready to start," she finally declared, prompting the other two to turn their attention to the television screen. The referee, as if on a cue from Sikarra, suddenly called out. "Round one. FIGHT!" TIBET "What's it doing now, sis?" Gina asked across the radio link. Brianna looked down at the device resting in her lap. "Still blinkin' at me like I tried to explain quantum temporal differentials to it. In other words, no change." "Okay. I guess we should--" "Wait! Wait.." Brianna said, turning to Rhianna in the driver's seat. "Rhi', turn around and go back, um, 'bout 600 feet." "What's up?" Gina asked. "Got something?" "Could be. I think it.. okay! Rhianna, slow here.. aaaand.. STOP!" The cars slowed to a hover. "Got it!" Brianna called out. "The light's solid now, Gina. This HAS to be the place!" "But there's nothing around for miles," she said as she looked around. "We're a half a mile above the tallest peak, and it's six miles away." "This thing has been pretty ignorant of altitude the whole way, Gina," Penny contributed. "Maybe we should head straight down and see what we come up with." Gina shrugged. "All right, I'll buy that. You go first, Rhianna." Rhianna answered in the affirmative and the first Ginamobile began to descend. Gina followed, watching Rhianna dropping through the open, hollow peak of a mountain, the shaft entrance virtually invisible until the car was passing through it. "Feels like we're entering a volcano," Sheva said. "We just might be," Gina nodded. "But hopefully this high up, it's gonna be extinct." In the other car, Charlotte shivered and said, "It looks cold out there.." "It is.. jinkies, from the desert to the mountains in 6 hours.." Brianna mused. "Quite a change.. good thing we packed our usual batch of stuff." The cars kept descending until they touched down on a rock ledge deep inside the mountain. About a hundred feet to a side, the ledge spanned most of the entire cavernous width of the mountain. Below the ledge was only a narrowing crevice, and other than straight up, the only other exit was a cavelike opening off to one side. Gina looked at the cave mouth. "Well, once more into the breach." Little did she know Ryan was saying the exact same thing at that very moment, as he squared off against Monty for his preliminary contest. Ryan reminded himself, as if winning the bout wasn't critical. Every successful blow would count towards the point total, and the number of points each contestant amassed would determine their position on the tournament ladder. "You have to be here to believe this kind of thing, Jake," the play-by-play man said to his color commentator partner. "The energy is so intense in the air." "That's right, Rock. There are few rules in Gladiatorz, and here they are coming up on your screen now. No hitting below the belt, no ranged or projectile weapons allowed. That's it. Everything else is fair game." "Yes, and to win, you have to keep your opponent down for a five-count OR get him--" "Or her, Rock." "--or her to be the first to leave the ring." "That's what makes it so intense, Rock. Anything can, and likely will, happen. Take the fight just underway as an example. It might appear grossly mismatched to the folks at home, and even more so to the people in the first half-dozen rows, but appearances can be very deceiving. Smith's a HUGE guy, but Tabbot is very, VERY skilled." "Is he ever, Jake, as we watch him hit the canvas to avoid Monty's thunderous hand-clapping gesture. He's up and cuts deep into Monty's side with a spin-kick, but the big guy doesn't even wince! He grabs Ryan's leg and.. OOH, that's gonna hurt!" "And this is only for points, Rock, so submission holds like that aren't going to be of any use to Monty." "No, but Ryan might need to consult a physio team when this is done. And like you said a minute or so ago, there's no such thing as submissions in Gladiatorz. You're either down or you're out." "How true. Who do you favor in this match, then?" "To be honest, this is still way too early to tell, as Ryan staggers Monty with a double-tap punch to the torso. As of this moment, it's still either man's match." Ryan pounded away at Monty and got pounded upon as well. The big man was surprisingly agile and unbelievably powerful. While he was very skilled at fighting, he seemed to be holding a lot back as well, as if he was saving something in reserves, either for an emergency, or for the 'real' bouts later on. That didn't mean Ryan had an easy time of it, though. Monty was on his case from the word 'go'. Monty's strength was his advantage on Ryan, who was thrown this way and that. He managed to keep himself inside the ring, barely, and did all he could to lay even a finger on Monty. Actually, laying a finger on the big man was the easy part. Getting him to react to it was the problem. Ryan thought of using his chi against the man, but had heard that it was ineffective, and decided to store it up in case he needed it in a later contest. In the end, twenty-seven minutes after the opening bell, Ryan rolled to his left to evade a vicious flying leap when he should have rolled right, and he inadvertently rolled himself right off the canvas and onto the cement floor of the stadium. As he realized his blunder, the bell rang, and the judge declared the match over. The points were nearly even, with Ryan down by a mere fourteen on Monty. Ryan was walking back towards the backstage area when someone cleared their throat behind him. He turned to see his opponent grinning and coming his way. "Well done," Monty rumbled at Ryan. "Hope I don't go up against the likes of you when the real fun starts--yer a force to be reckoned with, boy. See ya 'round!" "Yeah.." Ryan said, watching Monty pass by him and go backstage. Ryan thought. Gina and the others hiked along in the cave, following it as it wound through the mountain. Gina and Brianna had their eyes fixed on the darkened walls and ceilings, guns drawn. "Will you two relax?" Penny asked. "It was just a bat." "Raphiel was PETTING it!" Brianna protested. "It was nice," Raph observed. "And fuzzy." "It was a BAT!" Brianna shot back. Penny sighed and changed the subject. "Are you sure we're on the right track?" Gina looked at the partially-assembled Omega Core resting in Sheva's hands beside her. "Well, the light's still steady, and if my eyes aren't deceiving me, the square's getting narrower as we move forward. So, to answer your question, yes." "If you say so.." Penny answered. Charlie and Raphiel were walking together near the rear of the group. Brianna decided to try to make up for her snappish tone and said, "So, are you two having fun?" Raphiel nodded and smiled. "Yes, I am, thank you." Charlotte, after a long pause, simply nodded. "You okay, Charlie?" Brianna asked. "This reminds me of the cave into Civ-Alpha.. so cold & creepy.." "You're probably just reminded of it 'cause of all our talking about it," Penny said dismissively. "Don't worry." "O.. okay.." "Is it me or is this tunnel ascending?" Rhianna said, looking back the way they came. "Yeah, I noticed that too," Sheva put forth. Gina looked back at Brianna. "Sis, you got that handheld altimeter of yours?" Brianna lifted up the device in question and shook it. "Yeah, but it's only reading intermittently. It says we're 4500 feet higher than the peak of this mountain.. then it drops a quarter-mile ten steps later.. then it's back again. I don't know if we can trust it." Gina faced the rest of the group and asked, "So, do we keep moving, or turn back?" Everyone looked at one another for a long moment. Sheva spoke up: "The square of light has lost about half its width since we started walking. I think that means we're going the right way." "I'm with Sheva," Rhianna said after a short pause. "Let's go on." "Me too," Brianna contributed. "We didn't come all this way to turn back when a piece of gear malfunctioned.. it's never stopped us before," Penny said. Raphiel looked at the others. "If you're all in favor, I can't really argue, right?" Charlotte, beside him, simply nodded. Gina nodded as well. "All right then, onward and upward." She turned and continued up the trail. Ryan looked up as the ladies came back into the room. "Hi," he said. "How did your matches go?" "Well," Jetta smiled. "The poor lad never knew what hit him." "Satisfactory," Sikarra nodded. "I attained victory in 44 moves." Ryan chuckled. "You make it sound like a chess match." "It IS a chess match," Sika said. "One must think several moves ahead of one's opponent, and a proper strategy early on will seal the victory later." She smiled. "It's not all that kicking and jabbing that you seem so fond of." Ryan shook his head with a smile, then wound the top off a Powerade. "Whatever," he said. "Anyway, who was your opponent?" Sikarra sat down and made an uncertain sound. "I am not sure.. I believe he was called Gar.. Garflord?" "I saw the name in the program," Jetta said. "Galford, I think." PFFFT! Powerade sprayed across the room. "GALFORD?! What did he look like?!" Ryan blurted out. "Hard to tell," Sika shrugged. "He was garbed in an outfit that covered all but his hands and eyes.." "And you beat him.." Ryan breathed. "I wonder why he's gone back to his old name. Anyway, I gotta see if I can score myself a match with him!" Ryan got up and opened the door to go to the officials' room, but on the other side of the door was a surprised man who'd been about to open it himself. He regained his composure and stepped inside the room with three sheets of paper. "Group C, your rankings have been determined." He handed out a sheet of paper to each person in the room. "This is how you'll start out tomorrow night in Denver. You now have 90 minutes to get your affairs in order and get to the airport for the charter flight." He turned around and left. Ryan looked over his page and frowned. "Aw nuts, I drew that Mikeson guy. Hey, Sikarra.. you don't look all that happy. Who'd YOU get?" Sikarra shook her head. "It is not that. I just realized I must tell Mistress Julia of this." "Uh, yeah, she didn't take it too well in the first place, did she.." "Will you come help me tell her?" Sikarra asked both Jetta and Ryan. "Uhh, sure.." Ryan said uneasily. Jetta nodded. "We'll both come. You've nothing to fear. Besides, she let you come to the preliminaries. I'm sure everything will be okay." Jetta wished she could take those words back a few minutes later as she stood in the hallway of the mansion, just outside the gym. She could hear quite clearly as Julia chewed out Ryan and Sikarra thoroughly. Jetta mused, listening to Julia go on about commitments and obligations and so on, and how the two hopeful combatants had to weigh their options carefully. Jetta looked down at the spandex Brit made her wear to the contest prelims. Jetta heard the elder Diggers relent. "I guess there's no sense in holding you back. Besides, it'll be good practice for Sika.. a way to keep her skills up." Jetta hmm'ed to herself and made a decision. She walked down the hall and knocked on the door at the end on the right. "Yes?" came a voice from within. As she opened the door, Jetta found Doctor Theodore Diggers sitting there in his den in an easy chair, doing some reading. He looked over the top of his glasses as she entered. "I was wondering if you could help me communicate with my husband," Jetta said. "I need to tell him where I'm going to be for the next few days." "Feels like we've been walkin' for hours," Sheva complained. Gina looked at her watch. "Only a couple, actually." "Well, I hope we're near the end, is all." "I can feel a wind.." Charlotte said, wings flexing slightly. Brianna looked around. "Must be some kind of passage to the outside." "Well, the little square of light's a little line of light now," Gina declared, looking at the artifact. "We've gotta be close." As if on cue, they entered a large room at the terminus of the tunnel. Lights were shone and scans were taken, but it was found to ultimately be completely bare. Rhianna's heart sank as they searched the room. "You don't suppose someone else already found it, do you?" Penny sighed. "Gawd, I hope not." Off to one side Raphiel stood, trying not to get in the way of the others. He looked up out of boredom and then pointed: "Hey, what if they hid it up there?" Everyone looked up to see a natural chimney in the domed roof, eighty feet off the floor. Through it, they could see blue sky and white cloud. "Good eye, Raph!" Gina said. She shrugged off her pack, pulled out the Gina-Line gun, and fired a shot into the opening. "Charlie, fly up there and make sure that's secure," Penny said. "Okay.." Charlie's wings spread and she took to the air. After a few moments, she had the line tied off tightly, and the others began to ascend. "That's a pretty good wind," Brianna said, standing atop the peak with Gina, waiting for the others to climb the rope. "Chilly too," Gina nodded, removing her fedora, stowing it, and pulling the hood of her jacket up. "Be thankful it isn't worse, this high up." "You said it," Brianna nodded, then went to help Penny and then Rhianna through the hole in the rock. One by one, the entire group emerged, and Gina retrieved her line gun. "Wow, look at that," Rhianna said, pointing behind them. They all turned and saw a squat structure a few dozen feet away. It had a roof and four walls, though the walls were open at the corners, as in not joined. They passed through one of the unjoined corners and blinked suprisedly as the wind and blowing snow ceased. Even with the gaps in the walls, they were sheltered fairly decently. The howling of the wind could still be heard, but it was nothing compared to being caught out in it. As Charlotte edged her wings inside the small building, the others were already looking at a raised stone block in the center of the building, about the size of a dinner table. In its center was a piece that looked much like the one Penny had applied to the Omega Core, only reversed. "Look at what it's resting on.." Rhianna pointed out. "It's got some writing and symbols on it.." Gina and Penny leaned in close to look at the block's inscriptions. "Definitely Betan," Penny said. "Brianna?" Gina asked, not looking up while running her hand over the inscription. Brianna stepped forward with the camcorder already running. "Got it." Gina bent over and started to translate the text. "From the top of the world, to the deepest of deep, What you will find will be yours to keep." "Whaddaya suppose that means?" Rhianna wondered aloud. "Means Amenhotep's OURS!" Brianna grinned, offering a high-five to Rhianna. "You got it to rhyme again?" Penny asked. "Wait! All of you wait," Gina said. "There's more." "The answer remains for you to choose: The Omega Key-- if it you will use. And if you decide to open the gate, Remember your choice and--ggkk." "What?" Penny asked. "What is it?" Brianna and Rhianna stereoed. Sheva looked over at the text Gina had her hand on. "Why'd you stop?" Gina traced the last line with her finger as she read it aloud. "And accept your fate." "Jinkies.." Brianna breathed, looking out from behind the camera. "Yup," Rhianna said. "That about says it all." Raphiel looked at the others. "That sounds pretty nasty.." "I don't think it was a threat," Gina said. "More like a disclaimer.. you know.. 'If you get both legs broken, don't come running to me'." Raphiel looked confused. "How would you do that?" Gina grinned. "Exactly. Shev, c'mere with that." Sheva carried the Omega Key over. Gina picked up the piece on the stone surface and held it up; it was a perfect fit for the opposite side as Penny's piece, and in a moment, it became part of the Omega Key, much as Penny's piece had, fusing together. The sliver of light above the new part went out and another light began slowly blinking elsewhere on the Key. "So what do we do?" Rhianna said after a pause. "Follow THAT one now?" "Well.." Gina looked at her watch. "Zoinks! Is it really already Friday back home?" "Hey, yeah," Penny said. "Gladiatorz starts tonight, doesn't it?" "Yeah, at seven pm Mountain, which is 7:45am here," Brianna pointed out. Gina headed back towards the chimney hole. "Let's get to the hotel and get some sleep so we can catch it on the dish!" "Yeah! Sounds like a plan," Rhianna said, following. Sunrise arrived and found the entire group crowded into Gina's room, eating a large room service breakfast and facing the television. On it, at considerable expense to Gina's room bill, was the Gladiatorz feed. Ryan's match was just getting underway as the group was sprawling out on chairs, the bed, and the floor. Penny looked at Ryan's opponent. "Say.. Isn't that that ex-boxer guy?" "Yeah, he was the one who quit and became a pretty good wrestler," Brianna said. "He's gonna be tough to beat." "Idunno, sis.." Gina smiled. "My Ryan looks pretty confident there." "'Your' Ryan?" Penny asked with an upraised eyebrow. Rhianna took another glance at the TV, at Ryan beginning his fight, and sighed, closing her eyes. Charlotte, next to her, looked concerned. "Rhianna? Is something wrong?" "Nah, not really. Just wishing I'd stayed in the tournament." Ryan would have known what Rhianna meant. He shared her emotions--or rather, she shared his--about getting the chance to fight Mikeson, and Ryan was eager nearly to the bursting point to get it on. Because of this, he was mildly irritated at the man's insistence on hopping around and throwing punches like a boxer would. Ryan dodged and ducked and hopped out of the way, and Mikeson didn't open himself up to any kind of attack at all. "You gonna quit dancin' and throw somethin' before the night's out, Ty?" Ryan finally asked. Mikeson grinned. "Sure thing, boy!" He grabbed Ryan around the waist and tossed him into the air. "GACK!" Ryan blurted out, flying through the air with arms flailing. He was sailing towards the fourth row, but at the very last second, was able to get his toes hooked around the top rope of the ring. Using every ounce of energy he could spare, he maintained his grip on the rope, let it stretch, and then snap back to rebound him back into the ring. "HEY NO FAIR!" Gina roared at the TV. "EVERYTHING's fair, Gina," Rhianna said. "No rules. At least Ry caught himself before he went right out." Gina sat back down and grumbled. "Nice try," Ryan said, somersaulting to a stop, hollering at Mikeson over the roaring crowd. "Ready to get serious, and YIKES!" Ty clapped his massive hands together hard in the space where Ryan's head would've been had he not ducked. Ryan looked up from the mat, with an expression of realization on his face, of how close he came to getting his bell seriously rung. Ryan said to himself. He swept the cocky Mikeson's legs out from under him, then got up and flipped him over to try to put him in a submission type hold. With Mikeson hollering, the referee leaned into Ryan and shouted in his ear, "No submissions, contestant! Your opponent must touch the mat for a 5-count or leave the ring!" Ryan grinned. "I know. Just layin' some ground rules on him." He let Ty loose and they squared off again. Ryan listened to the crowd while he stared Mikeson down. Finally, he said, "Awright, no more cheap shots. Let's do this RIGHT and the way it was MEANT to be." Ty smiled and took a huge swing. The TV screen flipped and switched to another camera view, and the announcer said, "Meanwhile, let's find out what's happening in the red ring!" "WHAT?! Hey, bring Ryan back!" Gina protested. "Gina, there's just too many fights to televise each of them completely. They warned us of this.." Rhianna explained. Gina grumbled again, sitting down hard on the bed. She muttered, "..ripoff.. pay-per-view.. money back.." Sheva pointed at the TV. "Hey, that's that kid Julia's been teaching." Everyone looked to see Sikarra on screen. "She's fighting MONTY?? How lopsided is THAT?!" Brianna observed. Sheva shrugged. "Eh, don't write her off--I saw some of her sparring with Julia. Wait and see." Sikarra leapt onto a turnbuckle to avoid Monty's massive club-like swing. He tried to throw a punch to quickly send her out of the ring, but she instead leapt straight up, letting the massive fist pass through empty air before her, then landed on the turnbuckle again and ran across the top rope to the other corner of the ring. The 'oohs' and 'aahs' disturbed her slightly, reminding her that not too far in her past, she never would have had the agility or dexterity to do such a move. She wished everyone could hear Mistress Julia telling her in her head, 'Just think of it as running a straight line on the ground. Don't visualize the posts. Ignore everything except your goal.' Sika side-flipped and somersaulted, landing in the center of the ring just as the large man turned to face her. She was facing away, though, and as she spun around, she thought to include a high pivot kick in her turn. She felt it connect and by the time she was facing him, he was falling to the mat. She dove to cover him for the count, but he arched his back and flipped to his feet, knocking her aside and sending her to the canvas with a chop to the back of the head. The crowd noise mixed with the ringing in her ears as she lay there stunned, face-down, trying to remember who she was and where she was and what she was doing. Everything came back to her as she felt Monty's hand grasp her shoulder to flip her over for the pin. She reached up with both hands and grabbed his wrist, locking eyes with his own. She smiled and YANKED his hand off her shoulder and pulled him flat on the canvas, then used his and her momentum together to flip him over. Straddling his neck, she kept grinning at him until the referee had finished his count. Ryan was distracted by the sudden spike in the manic applause in the stadium. This gave Mikeson the opening he'd been waiting for, and Ryan staggered back as he was left-ed and right-ed over and over, ultimately bouncing off the ropes. "Assume the position, boy!" Ty shouted triumphantly at his dazed opponent. Ryan growled and stood up as straight as he could manage, coming clear of the ropes. "I.. ain't.. your BOY, ..boy," he said, gathering up enough energy for a roundhouse spin-kick followed by a double-swat to the head that completely flattened the wrestler. In the stands, a young, but attractive, red-haired girl leaned over to a black-haired young man beside her and said, "Did you SEE that, bro?" The man nodded and checked the program. "'Tabbot', huh.. let's remember that name." "Thank you all for coming tonight and we hope you enjoyed the show!" the announcer called out over the PA system and the TV audio feed. "Don't forget to call your cable company to arrange for tomorrow night's standing room only, pay-per-view show live from the Dead Sea! Have a safe trip home!" Ryan waited outside the ladies' locker room as things were winding down. Finally, the three women he was waiting for emerged together. "Congratulations," he said, trying to smile, getting slowly to his feet, feeling all the spots which he knew would be black and blue by sunrise. "I hear you all won your fights." Ryan nodded at the Japanese girl. "'Specially you, Ichi. Good to see Laura get a good smack or three. Didn't even know she was signed up." "Thank you, Ryan. She wasn't that hard after I got over her inane chatter." Ryan nodded. "But you know what this means, right?" He tapped the page in his hand, with Saturday's schedule printed upon it. Ichi nodded back. "Yes, I face you tomorrow night. Don't worry.. I'm sure the best ninja will win." She grinned. Sikarra turned to Jetta. "So who did you face, Jetta? I was.. um.. too excited over my victory to look at the other standings." Jetta shrugged a little. "Some gutter-mouthed child by the name of Lydia. She put up a decent challenge, but she seemed scared out of her wits. I can't help but think she knows I'm not human.. and I'm almost wondering if SHE isn't either." Jetta shrugged once more and grinned, baring her teeth. "Ah well. Puts me in prime position to take on Ryan's friend tomorrow." Ryan stammered and gaped, looking again at the schedule in his hand, as if he hadn't noticed what Jetta was implying. "My.. Daishi? You drew Daishi? Aw maaaan! What'd they do, pick names out of a HAT or what??" "I am scheduled to do combat with someone called 'Kenterminator'," Sika contributed. "Yikes!" Ichi exclaimed. "Are YOU gonna have your work cut out for you. I guess Ken was Lendo's 'last minute substitution'. I wonder if they know he's a cyborg.." Ryan forced the anger in him to subside, then said, "Anyone else hungry? Let's go get some food before everything closes up. We gotta long plane ride in the morning and then a busy night." The ladies nodded and made agreeing noises and followed him to the exit. "All right," Gina said as she shut the television off. "Let's get some more sleep, then we'll get moving on this next site." "Did you figure out where we need to head?" Sheva asked, nodding at the Omega Key. "Yeah, me and Rhi' got it, I think. Next stop: the West Pacific." TO BE CONTINUED Project HEARD presents Gold Digger World Tour: Down and Dirty MARIANAS TRENCH "Are we still on course, Gina?" Penny asked over the radio link. "Yup!" Gina nodded in response, checking her mini-sub's instruments. "Just two more miles to go." "Is what we're lookin' for right there, or are we going to have to go huntin' for it?" "Hard to tell at this stage," Sheva piped up, "but if last time's any indication, I'm betting we'll still have a ways to go." "You just keep your eyes on that and holler if anything changes," Brianna suggested, and Sheva nodded. "How's Raph doing?" Brianna asked Penny. "Just fine.. he'n'Charlie have been playing games all this time." "Oh?" "So this is how you play doctor," Raph was suddenly heard in the background. Penny looked frantically over her shoulder and sighed to see Raphiel and Charlotte dismantling the first-aid kit, taking the items out and dressing imagined injuries on each other. Penny looked back at the camera and said to Brianna, "This is sooo much fun." Brianna tried hard not to laugh. "Anything on the scope?" Gina asked. "All clear," spake Rhianna. "Just us'n the fish." Gina nodded. "Good." Penny blinked. "What--you don't actually think someone's following us, do you?" "We've had too easy a ride so far. Just playin' it safe." "Well, for what it's worth, my sonar's clean too," Penny shrugged. "Sounds good. Race ya to the bottom!" Gina said, her sub's screws and thrusters spooling up to propel the ship downwards. "Wait--Gina--" Penny protested, but it was apparent there was no stopping the Gold Digger. Penny put her sub into motion and gave chase. As the subs headed off, the figure that had been swimming along in their wake paused, then continued after them. THE DEAD SEA Jetta frowned as she trudged through the mud on the shoreline, searching the heavily populated beach and waterfront. Finally she spotted her quarry and waved and called out. "Ryan! There you are!" Ryan Tabbot looked up and regarded Jetta from across the beach, then waved back at her and resumed floating in the water. She grumbled and waded down towards him, feeling the extremely salty water swirling around her bare legs. She wore a pair of short pants in the hot summer weather, trying one of the outfits Britanny had suggested to her. It hung a little loose on her human-form frame, but it wasn't her highest concern at the moment. Jetta stood in the thigh-deep water beside Ryan in moments, watching him float peacefully. "Hey Jetta, how's it goin'?" he said. Jetta frowned at him. "Don't you know the contest starts in 4 hours?" "Yup. That's why I got 3 hours and 45 minutes left here." "Well, aren't you going to practice?" she asked, folding her arms in front of her. "Nah. I mean, no offense to her, but against Itchy Koo? C'mon." "You'd change your tune, I'm sure, if you'd looked at the tape of her fight." Without an answer from him, she continued on. "Anyway, if not for yourself, why not practice for your young charge? She is a little concerned." Ryan chuckled. "She tell you that? She's just lookin' for an excuse to whip my butt again. She'll do just fine. And I'm gonna stay.. right.. here. You could too, if you want." Jetta growled and bit out, "I.. have.. a mate." "Hey! I didn't mean anything like that.." Ryan backpedaled, holding his hands up in a peacemaking gesture. "This is just pretty relaxing. Can't beat being surrounded by all this water." Rhi' looked up from the scope to see Sheva looking nervously at the water outside. Rhianna watched the faux-werecat for a moment, then said, "Everything OK, Shev?" Sheva looked at the porthole, almost but not quite daring to tap it with a finger. "This thing's strong enough to handle these pressures, is it?" Gina smiled, concentrating on her instruments. "Don't worry, it's strong enough to handle twice this much pressure." "Okay. I'm sorry.. it's just.. all that water out there.. brrr." Rhi' nodded. "I know what you mean.. it gives me a little chill still too." Brianna and Gina stereoed, "Really?" Rhianna leaned her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. "Every time I get even the slightest splash of water on me, I flash back to it.. until I remember I don't hafta worry 'bout that any more." Gina's expression fell. "Now yer makin' me feel bad, for being so reckless about it all those times." "Ah, don't worry about it," Rhianna said, forcing a grin and giving Gina a light punch in the shoulder. "It all worked out in the end, right?" Gina smiled. "If you say so." "Hey guys, distance to target?" Penny interrupted over the radio. Rhi' bent over her console again and suggested, "Start braking now. About 2000 feet remaining." Everyone looked out for signs of life through the portholes as Rhi' called out the last few feet. "250.. 125.. 75.. 50.. 40.. 30.. 20.. 15.. 10.. 5.. aaaaand.." *thump* "Bottom." "Wow.." Brianna breathed. "Six thousand and thirty-four fathoms." "Anyone see anything?" Gina asked, getting a chorus of no's for her effort. She smiled. "Not even Davy Jones' locker?" "Coast's clear, Gina," Penny said, then paused. "Hmm. Even the water, if you can believe that." "Oh really?" "Yeah, isn't that something." Sheva was still staring out the porthole. "Is it my imagination or is there a current here?" Gina nodded, checking her controls again. "Yeah, I'm having to keep the screws at one-quarter to keep us in place." "Huh," Penny contributed. "I'm doing the same and it's not having an effect." Gina looked down and blinked. "Hey, now we're drifting too. Take us up to one-half." "Spoolin' up now," Brianna called out instantly. "Already did that over here. It's not helping," Penny said, a trace of nervous tension in her voice. Gina, too, sounded worried. "Not for me either. Let's take it back up and see if we can get out of the current." "No dice, Gina. I can't break the pull here!" Penny called out. "This is looking bad.." Gina searched for a reason why she wasn't able to break free. "You gonna try the thrusters?" Brianna asked. "And leave them here? No way! Penny, we're right with ya." "This is getting out of control really fast!" Penny hollered. "Hang on, people!" Gina said in response. The entire group contributed to a series of disjointed shouts and 'whoa's as they were sucked into an undersea vortex. Jetta walked alongside the just-dried-off Ryan as he finally submitted to being escorted back to the hotel Carlton. "You do realize that if you and Ichikun don't take this seriously, you not only jeopardize your positions in the contest, but you also stand to strip yourself of a warrior's honor as well." Ryan blinked at Jetta. "Huh, whaddaya mean?" Jetta seethed and counted to ten. "You two may be friends of a sort, but you both must fight with the same intensity you would if you were fighting against a sworn enemy. Anything less tarnishes the spirit of these types of competitions." Ryan ahh'ed and smiled. "Spoken like someone who's been there." Jetta walked along quietly for a moment, then said in a voice barely above a whisper, "Has Britanny never spoken of my past? OUR past?" Ryan thought for a moment, realizing the conversation had grown serious and deserved serious contributions on his part. "No.. she's kept to herself usually about that." Jetta told herself. "After my father slaughtered the were-cheetah clan.. ..and my mother.. I made a challenge to him." "I challenged him to combat, as our ways permitted. He had murdered my mother, and it was my right to attempt to return the favor. At first, he balked, telling me to remember my place and saying I didn't understand, but I did, far too well." Jetta could hear Brendan's voice taunting her even now: "You are my blood, child, and you will remember your plac--" "I am NOT your blood!" she heard her younger self scream in her mind. "I can no longer call myself your daughter.. not after what you have done! Now fight me!" She blinked and remembered where she was, and said to Ryan, "I no longer saw my father before me.. but rather the monstrosity he had become. I played no favorites, and granted, your situation is nowhere near as dire as mine, but neither can you. Ichi, tonight, to you, must be no more than your opponent, much as my father was to me." Ryan nodded after a long moment. "I understand what you mean now. I'm sorry." Jetta simply said, "Now please, we must hurry so we can sign in on time." Ryan fell into step behind her. "Don't worry, I've been to these competitions before. They're not going to start without us; they'd for sure send someone out to find us and drag us back there first." Gina looked around as things became right-side up again. "Penny, are you out there?" "Yeah, we're fine," came a response several seconds later. "You?" "Now that everything's stopped tumbling like a clothes dryer, yeah. What happened?" "I THINK we went through a fissure in the floor of the trench. Except if that was the case, shouldn't we still be feelin' a current down here?" "Your guess is as good as mine," Gina told her friend. "Water's calm and clear, guys," Rhianna chimed in. "And we're both stable and still." "So what happened, then?" Penny said as her two passengers climbed forward. Raphiel suddenly pointed out the main viewport of Penny's sub. "Hey, maybe those people know!" Penny looked and gasped as two Atlanteans came into view, standing on a rock outcropping directly in front of the subs. A third swam from behind the craft to join his comrades on the ledge. Ichi nodded at Sikarra. "Now, tell me what you've learned." Sika umm'ed and said, "Kenterminator is a large man, so I should use his mass to my--" Ichi cut her off. "Kenterminator is a large CYBORG. Using his mass to your advantage is a good idea, if you can overcome his strength. But if you find he's not going to budge in one direction, don't keep trying, 'cause you're just going to pull something. He's the most vulnerable to this kind of attack when he's in motion himself. Get some distance between you two, and then try and use it when he's coming at you." Sikarra nodded as that sunk in. "Right." Ichi added, "Now he relies more on his brawn than any kind of fighting skill, so, tactically speaking, you have the advantage." Sika said confidently, "I am not worried." Ichi smirked, putting a hand on Sika's back. "That's the spirit. Probably the best thing to do right now is practice your own moves, if for no other reason than to get into the spirit, get your adrenaline pumping." Sikarra nodded and started going through the motions. "Tanis!" Gina said, recognizing the third person on the ledge. "Huh?" Rhianna asked. Gina looked around. "Where did I put that external speaker switch.. aha!" She flipped a toggle and spoke again. "Tanis! Is that you?" The figure nodded with a slight trace of a smile. "Hello, Gina Diggers. Welcome to the getaway," he could somehow be heard through the tons of water separating them. "The what?" Gina queried. "You have found the entrance to one of our.. what is the word you would use.. resorts?" "A resort??" Penny asked over the radio. "Are you saying there's a settlement here?" Gina queried. Tanis smiled and hopped up, floating in the water. "Follow me." He and his colleagues turned and swam down a short canyon. Gina looked across the void at Penny, then shrugged, engaging the drives and following the Atlantean. They went down a long canyon of sorts, twisting back and forth several times until no one--save the Atlanteans, presumably--had a clue what their bearing was without checking the instruments. Gina and her colleagues sat in silence, carefully following the men as they swam ahead of the two subs. Everyone was wondering what they would find at the canyon's terminus, and thoughts were running wildly through everyone's heads. Penny blinked, then opened a radio channel. "Gina.. is it my imagination, or is.." "Hmm?" Gina asked. She looked at her console and made a sound of surprise. "Huh.. the hull pressures.. are decreasing?" "That's what I show here too." "But we're going deeper," Rhianna thought to point out. "I'm guessing you've got to ask him," Sheva said, gesturing to Tanis. "Say," Gina said as she remembered their reason for being there, "What's the omega core doing?" "I think we're still on the right track, Gina," Sheva said. Gina just hmm'ed in response. Brianna suddenly gasped and pointed. "Look at THAT!" she said in awe. The others turned and stared at what she was pointing at: A brilliant, shining city, beyond some sort of undersea dome, straight ahead. ATLANTA Britanny pushed the doorbell of the mansion and waited. After a few moments, her mother Julia opened the door. "Hi, mom!" Brit smiled. "How you doing?" "Fine, dear, fine," Julia smiled back. "And you?" "Just great!" said Cheetah, bounding through the doorway as invited. "Is Dad home? I have a favor to ask.." "He's in the garden," Julia said. "Tending to his babies." "Thanks, mom," Brit said, heading for the back door. "I have something I want to do for Stripe, and I need Dad's help." "I'll walk with you," Julia offered. "I haven't enjoyed the garden enough lately." "Okay!" Britanny smiled, holding the back door open for her mother. She followed her out and sought out her father. DEAD SEA Again the music blared, and the lights flashed, and the crowd roared. Again competitors--though half as many as the last time--gathered to do battle. And again Ryan Tabbot was standing there wishing his girlfriend was in the crowd instead of off on an adventure. But it was her choice, and he respected it.. even if he didn't like it. He looked over, from the so-called "blue ring" he was to fight in, to see Jetta climbing into the "red ring" a few dozen meters away. Her opponent was already in the squared circle, and Ryan was doing his best to avoid looking at the man he knew as Daishi. he thought to himself. Ryan looked up as his opponent arrived. Clad entirely in black, in the outfit of a master ninja, Ichikun Ichinohei touched down on the mat on first one foot, then the other, having leapt from somewhere up above. Her eyes were the only part of her face visible, but Ryan could tell she was smiling behind her black half-mask. "Blue ring ready!" the official called to the judges' table. After a slight nod from the judges, he turned and faced the combatants. "Ready for Round One," he declared. "Begin!" Jetta was moving from the word 'go' as her own match got underway. The man signed up as Galford but known to young Tabbot as Daishi was quite a fighter. His attacks came fast, but hardly furious--instead they were meted out with careful planning and precision. Jetta cautioned herself in her mind. She shook her head and focused on her battle. She threw a punch at Daishi and he blocked it, trying to take her wrist in his hand and catapult her out of the ring. She reversed that and instead he was the one who flew through the air. He righted his course and dropped to the mat with ease, twisting and facing her on the way down. All the while, the crowd oooh'ed and aaah'ed. This was shaping up to be quite a fight, they could see. The concession booths may as well have closed down for the lack of business during the contest; no one dared leave their seats. The other matches, between Ryan and Ichi and Sika and Kenterminator, were not exactly going unnoticed, but the few groups of fans cheering them on were grossly outnumbered by the throngs focusing all their attention on the red ring. Jetta, for her part, was not entirely in the arena, although no judge would be able to fault or disqualify her for it. Part of her mind was drifting back nearly two decades, recalling the battle between herself and Brendan. Back then it had been a hundred or two werewolves watching in awe to see who would rule their clan; now it was a hundred thousand humans cheering and screaming, waiting to see who would entertain them the most. Jetta was barely aware of her analytical view of the proceedings. Most of her energies were still focused upon keeping Daishi from gaining the upper hand. OVER 6000 FATHOMS DOWN Gina and her friends walked along the wide pathway. They'd left their ships behind at a sort of an airlock and were being led towards the city by Tanis and his colleagues. "Jinkies," Gina said, looking around at the sights. "This is ...majestic," Penny breathed. "Very pretty," Charlotte agreed, Raphiel nodding with her. "I'm not surprised you all like it," Tanis smiled, walking along with them. "It was designed to be pleasing and comfortable." Brianna glanced over at Sheva, raising an eyebrow. Sheva, who was sniffing the air, looked back and shrugged. "Well, it sure looks like it," Gina smiled and nodded. "I hope we have enough time to enjoy it." "Oh? Are you working?" Tanis asked. "Iiiiin a way," Gina said. "But we can deal with that later. Let's see your place." Brianna sniffed, then looked at Sheva again questioningly. Then she looked at Raphiel, whose head was tilted up, his own nose seeking out the scent Brianna and Sheva had already picked up. "What's that?" Sheva finally asked. "Dunno," Brianna shrugged. "But it smells reeeeaaallly good." "Smells like the freezer at your house," Raphiel suggested. "Yeah!" Brianna said, snapping her fingers. "It's the delicious, tasty smell of.. can it beeeee?" She grinned. "Oh?" Tanis seemed surprised. "Can you smell that all the way from here?" "What is it?" Sheva and Brianna wanted to know. "A seafood dinery," Tanis said. "A lot of the deep sea mearine life here is very tasty." "OOOOOOH!" Brianna squealed. The others cringed slightly at the outburst. A few bystanders looked at the group. "We get to see it, right?" Raphiel asked eagerly. Tanis smiled. "If you wish, we can go there right now. Come this way, it's quicker." The group followed him, the feline-like among them excitedly. Tanis smiled as the group ooh'ed and aah'ed behind him. It wasn't often that visitors came to their domain, much less visitors that were as likable as Gina and her friends. Tyr would be pleased, he knew. As they walked along, they saw grand buildings and majestic spas. There was talk from the group of 'wishing the rest of 'em could see this', and so Tanis supplied, "I am all but certain any and all of your friends are welcome at any time, Gina." He smiled. Gina blushed and a couple of the others smiled slightly as she said, "I'm sorry, I didn't know you'd heard us.. we were just talking.. but if the offer DOES stand.." "Tyr would love to see you, I am certain, more often," Tanis nodded. "It's a date, then," Gina grinned and nodded in return. Rhianna pointed to a spire that was taller than all the rest. "What's that?" she asked. "Our main hall," Tanis explained. "In fact we will be going through it on our way to the dinery. I must stop there to have Tyr informed of your arrival." "It looks almost royal in stature," Penny observed. "Not really," Tanis smirked. "The great majority of it is what I think you might equate to a furnace room. Nothing extravagant at all. Come along, now." THE DEAD SEA Curiously enough, 'nothing extravagant at all' was how the color commentary team was describing the match between Kenterminator and Sikarra. Neither of them had made any great headway against the other, and the battle between Jetta and Daishi was captivating most everyone else. Very little running was done in the match. Most of the attacks and defenses were occuring from a position of standing, crouching, or leaping. For that reason alone, they should have been garnering a lot of the attention of the crowd. However, except for tiny pockets of adulation here and there, most of the stadium was focused on Jetta and Daishi. If Sikarra or Kenterminator were at all fazed by this, they didn't show it. Both of them fought, after their initial exploratory jabs and darts, as if this was the final match to decide it all. Sikarra landed blow after blow on the big man, never staggering him more than a half-step or so. Kenterminator rarely connected with his massive punches, yet when he did, it was all Sikarra could do to keep herself inside the ring and up on her feet. Their fight was into the fifteenth minute when Kenterminator apparently lost his patience and charged the woman in the opposite corner. She waited, and waited, and then dropped to her knees, spread wide apart, and reached up and grabbed his hand. Using his momentum, as she had been taught, she heaved the man, who was trying to stop himself, out and over the top rope, and in fact into the fourth row, where he landed quite heavily on a small group of visiting students from the University of Indiana. The buzzer sounded and a judge entered the ring to hold Sikarra's hand aloft. She raised her arms and grinned, and then realized someone was holding her other hand. She looked at it and noticed with horror that Kenterminator's hand, truncated at the wrist by a pair of metal discs, was still gripping her own. She squealed and let it fly in a random direction, then regained her composure and accepted the win. ATLANTA "Theodore? Are you out here?" Dr. Diggers looked up and back along the path towards the house. "In the woods, dear," he called out, and bent back to his task. Momentarily, Julia and Britanny came down the path and arrived at his side. He stood again, smiling, just before the werecheetah gushed "Hi Daddy!" and nearly crushed him in a smothering hug. "Urk," he managed, taking small, shallow breaths until his daughter released him. "What can I do for you?" "Do? For ME?" Brit said, pointing a finger at her breastbone. "Whenever you are so bubbly, you are looking for a favor, I seem to recall," he smiled wryly. Britanny smirked as she stepped back and clasped her hands together. "I just want to ask a tiny, tiny, tiny, itsy bitsy, wee litt--" She paused as Theo fixed her with a look. "Okay," she conceded. "I know you don't normally like to use magic for a favor for us, but hear me out." She explained to both her parents how she'd managed to acquire tickets to a series of soccer matches in the United Kingdom for the next week. "Now I don't need help for airfare or accommodation or anything--we've got all that--we just need something to hide Stripe's looks for a while." Theo thought about it for a moment. he said to himself. "Hmm.." he said, chin in hand, then looked up to her and smiled again. "I don't see a problem with that. Send him by sometime so we can work something out." Brit gushed, "Thank you daddy!" She lunged forward, and, before he could react, embraced him in yet another crushing hug. As consciousness threatened to leave him, he could hear her say, "I'll go tell him right now!" She released him and blurted out another thankyou and goodbye to both her parents, then skipped down the path towards the front of the house and the street. "You okay?" Julia asked bemusedly after a moment. Theo felt his sides and sighed, letting a small smile show. "It's a good thing I'm a mage," he said. ATLANTEAN RESORT The 'topsiders' followed their host, their heads as if on swivels. They continued to marvel at the small city they had found themselves within. "Jinkies," Gina exclaimed as they went inside the main tower. "Please wait here," Tanis said. "I must send a message to Princess Tyr'Shor'Aar. I will return shortly." The group waited patiently as Tanis stepped through an open doorway to the left. They talked quietly among themselves about the city, and about their situation. "The doohickey was still doing its thing when I left it in the sub," Sheva said, "so the next piece's gotta be around here somewhere." "Think they'd let us wander around later, Gina?" Penny asked. "Not sure," Gina said, turning it over in her head. "This might be some kind of holy site to them. Which could make it kind of difficult." "Penny," Charlotte said. "Yeah, it would.. even worse if the artifact is central to that," Penny agreed. "Penny?" Charlie asked, tugging on her arm. "Not now, Tweetie." "It's possible Tyr might give us a break if she knows it's us, though," Gina said. "Beyond that, it might get pretty difficult." "Penny..." "What is it, Charlie??" Penny seethed, spinning on her. "Isn't that the thingie you want over there?" Penny and Gina tracked along the direction Charlotte was pointing. Their gaze went through the doorway on the opposite side of the hall from the one Tanis went into. In that room they saw, in a translucent chamber, an onyx segment looking much like the other Omega segments, spinning along its vertical axis quite quickly. Jetta was aware the fight was into the second hour, but wasn't sure exactly how long had elapsed. She knew that neither she nor her opponent showed signs of tiring any time soon. She continued kicking and punching the man. He continued blocking and dodging, appearing entirely calm about the whole fight. This angered Jetta, but she tried not to let it get the better of her. She knew that it was vital she keep her emotions in control, so that they in turn would not control her actions. Then, at once, the proverbial dam burst. Instead of dodging and hopping about as he had been doing before, Daishi actually reached out and punched her right in the face. She reeled back as the crowd gasped. It hadn't been a light tap either, it genuinely pushed her backwards. She glanced up, glared slightly, growled, and then, unable to control herself, shifted into her hybrid form. A gasp rose from the crowd, and a murmur from the judges. Daishi, for his part, stepped back, and the smile behind his face mask was almost visible. "So, woman, you show your true form," he said quietly to her, under the murmurs and crowd noise. "Perhaps now this will get interesting." Jetta looked at him, then at the judges, who were busily conferring amongst themselves. She heard bits and pieces, consisting largely of "Can she DO that?" and "Let me consult my notes." As she wondered what her fate would be, if she had broken a rule, it dawned upon her that there WERE no rules in this competition. Just then the judges looked up and their spokesman said, "Continue!" "Incredible," Rhianna breathed. "It's actually part of this place." "Great, just great," Brianna mumbled. "Now what do we do?" "Let me think," Gina said, just before Tanis returned. "All done," he smiled. "Tyr insisted that we continue to the dinery and she will meet us there shortly." "All right," Gina said after a pause. "Lead the way." Sheva caught Brianna's eye and looked questioningly at her as the group started to move again. "They're really good friends, Tyr and Gina," Brianna said. "Gina'll talk to her about it and see if we can get permission to check it out." Ryan and Ichikun squared off as they had several times already. They were locked in combat, and each had scored evenly so far. Neither had gained the upper hand yet. Both of them circled, waiting for the other to begin the attack. They stared at one another, searching for an opening in the other's stance that would let them land a blow. Neither got any leeway from the other. "Come on, Ryan," Ichi said from behind her bandana-mask. She glanced to the crowd, then back to Ryan. "Look. They're not gonna let you leave here without a fight." Ryan chuckled a little and hunkered down, saying, "You asked for it." He squared himself off and stopped hopping about, then stared her right in the eyes. "You ready?" "Of course," she said with a smile, leaping into the air and doing a somersault towards him. He was ready, and hopped over her, then did a twisting forward flip to reorient himself to face her. She had done the same, and threw a kick to his chin, which he blocked with his forearms, then spun around with a kick towards her own shoulders. She ducked that, and the other leg, which was also kicking around, and then leapt to avoid his leg sweep. She blocked four rapid punches with her open palms, as if she was providing a sparring partner for him. She blocked four more punches aimed at her midsection, then took three hops backwards. "Not bad," she admitted, "Not bad at all." She launched into another attack, swinging at him left and right, backing him up to the edge of the ring. As he felt the ropes brush against his back, he glanced over his shoulder and saw the cement floor nine feet below. He ducked a stiff-armed clothesline blow and managed to snatch her around the waist, picking her up and striding in towards the center of the ring.. The dinery turned out to be the equivalent of a trendy cafe, with several tables, and a long bar/counter that ringed the serving station, inside of which was the kitchen itself. Everything was in full view of the diners, allowing them to see exactly what was being done with their meal. Some of the people at the table weren't exactly focusing on the kitchen, though. "Got a plan, Dr. Diggers?" Brianna hissed at Gina. "Give me some time to think about this," Gina urged her quietly, grinning, putting on a show for the Atlanteans. "Gina! Friends!" came a joyous cry. Tyr strolled in just then, a smile on her face, and stood by the table. "What a pleasant surprise." "How are you, Tyr?" Gina asked, still grinning away. "It's a surprise for us, too. We didn't expect to find anyone down here." "Forgive me for never mentioning it," Tyr explained while sitting down, "but it is a 'getaway' of sorts for our people. For this reason we like to keep it private." "I understand," Gina nodded. "And we can respect that." "I'd respect a tunafish right about now," Brianna said, glancing over to the cookery in the middle of the room. "Geez, Brianna, try not to drool so much," Gina said. "Eh, I know you want it just as bad," Brianna countered. Tyr laughed. "I gather we are all hungry," she said, and nodded her head towards a group of servers that were waiting. "Let us dine." Ryan stared up at a circle of white, wondering where he was and how he'd gotten into this position. White noise filled his ears, and he could feel thunder or something similar shaking him. He lifted his head and shook it, then looked around, still deafened. He was lying on canvas of some sort. Suddenly a familiar face.. a woman.. appeared, hovering over him, dressed all in black. Around her face was wrapped a black bandanna, which she stripped off momentarily. He still couldn't hear, but could read lips quite fine: Ryan? Did I kick you too hard? As he lay there, she stepped closer, her feet landing one between his legs and one to one side, about his ankles. Reality rushed back in at him and he remembered what was going on. He trapped her leg with his and executed a flip that caught her unawares. She arced silently (to him) up and over his body, the ropes, and the apron, landing just beyond the metal barricade that stood before the first row of seats. As Ryan dazedly got to his feet, his senses started reporting in again. First came a high-pitched whistling sound that soon resolved itself into a stadium-full of frenzied cheering. Balance and orientation came soon after, and touch not long after that. Even while he felt someone raising his arm as the victor, he could feel something warm and liquid on his face. He lifted his free hand and found that his jaw was swollen quite badly and was bleeding from somewhere within. The throbbing in his head would take six Advil to cut down to size. Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement, and turned to see Ichi getting to her feet. He remembered that she had planned an exit she was going to put to use regardless of whether she was winner or loser, and he watched as she pulled the bandanna back up over her face, then leapt straight up, catching the overhead framework of the spotlights/camera positions, and acrobatically disappearing from view. Had she smiled at him just before covering her face? he wondered. Ryan hurried to a TV monitor in the backstage area, after being bandaged up. There, he found that Jetta and Daishi fought tooth and nail, still, with the match well past the four-hour mark. A new shift of judges were just arriving, being briefed on the notations and scoring that had gone on so far by the outgoing shift. And still the match went on, neither fighter interested in giving any ground to the other. One of the off-going judges went directly to a telephone to see if this was any kind of record-breaking occurrence. The others simply went and got some sleep, fearing they'd be asked back to take another shift four hours later. And then, without any warning, it happened: Jetta, tired and distracted, found herself yanked to one side by Daishi, hard enough that she became disoriented. She struggled out of his grasp, but the momentum of her escape carried her in entirely the wrong direction, out and over the ropes, right in front of the judges' table. An awed hush fell over the stadium, the crowd not yet comprehending that the match was over. The judges looked at one another, then at Jetta, as if to ask if she'd really just been tricked into stumbling her way out of contention. She was just as astonished, but realized she had been defeated. The human had deliberately confused her, and she had taken the bait. As the judges declared Daishi the winner, he shouted out and held up a hand. The crowd quietened, but only a little, and watched as Daishi faced Jetta and bowed once deeply, then fixed his gaze on her. After a moment, she nodded back at him, understanding the gesture. The crowd erupted again and she turned to head backstage, to rest and to get something to eat. Gina and the others were sitting in the dinery, discussing what was new in their lives, what had happened since they last met, and so on. Upon the arrival of the meals, much fun was had poking fun at each other's choices of meals. It was some of the best-tasting seafood any of them had ever had. Brianna was nearly in tears, vowing to set aside a weekend each year in which she would come to visit, if Tyr would allow. Tyr, for her part, laughed and agreed that all of them were welcome at any time. After the meal, Penny coughed and ahemmed and looked at Gina. "Do you have to go to the ladies' room, partner?" Without a discernible pause, Gina got the message, and nodded. "Yes, actually. How about you, Brianna?" "Sure," Brianna nodded, also understanding. She turned to the others. "We'll be back in a few minutes." The trio followed Tyr's directions and entered the washroom. As they arrived inside, Penny turned and faced the Diggerses. "Okay, how are we going to do this?" "I don't know," Brianna said. "Offer to replace it with something else?" "What if it's special to them?" Gina protested. "Imagine if someone walked into a church back home and wanted to take the statue of the Virgin Mary.." "Gina, it's in the 'furnace room'," Penny countered. "It's not going to be something sacred, hiding out in the basement." "What are you talking about?" Tyr said from the doorway. All three ladies jumped and turned, startled. "Uhhhhh..." Brianna said. Gina stared for a moment, lost for words, and then said, "Welllll, Tyr, actually it's funny... there's this object we saw on the way here.. it's about this big.. and polished onyx.. and, well, it looks like it's part of some machin--" "Are you speaking of the whirlpool generator?" Tyr interrupted. "...Yeah, I guess," Gina admitted. "Are you saying you wish to take it from here?" Tyr questioned again. "Well, see, we think it's part of something we're searching for.. but.. we understand it's a part of this place--" Tyr smiled. "Gina. We would be in your DEBT if you could find a way to take it with you. It generates the whirlpool that brought you in here. It would be SUCH a better use of our resources if we didn't have to post sentries and watch for every little thing that gets siphoned into this place." Gina stared for a moment, blinking, and Brianna snickered. Penny nudged Gina and said "See?" "You were worried that it was somethign we considered dear and would want to keep, I gather?" Tyr asked Gina, who nodded. "Gina, my friend.. it is.. how do you put it? .. A thorn in our side. You would be heroes if you could find a way to remove it." "O--okay," Gina said, forcing a smile. "Deal." The group reassembled in the small room in the main hall moments later. Gina, Penny, and Brianna gathered around the chamber, along with Tyr and Tanis. Rhianna and Sheva stood in the back with Charlotte and Raphiel. "How did it get up there?" Brianna inquired. "No one knows," Tyr shrugged. "It has always been there, for as long as anyone who has visited this place can remember." Tanis supplied, "We have noticed that when an item enters the crevasse, disrupting the waterflow, this object spins less quickly, as if it was anti-physically connected to the waterflow." "Sounds reasonable to me," Gina mused, rubbing her chin with a gloved hand. "Is there a way to get inside that chamber? Drain the fluid out?" "It is double-walled," Tyr said. "The fluid actually runs between the inner and outer sphere. The area where the object is is empty." "We have tried," Tanis again spoke up, "and failed, to remove it. One of my strongest colleagues had both his arms broken trying to arrest its spinning." "I see," Gina said, still pondering. "Sounds Betan, all right," Penny nodded. "You say it slows down when something gets in the way of the waterflow, way back at the entrance?" Brianna clarified. "It does," Tanis nodded. Brianna said, "Then that seems to be the answer," and pulled out a control of some sort. "Sis?" Gina inquired. Brianna opened a gateway and out of it her armor fell to the floor. She began unpacking it and setting it out. "Brianna," Gina said warily, "You're not doing what I--" "I'll be okay," Brianna said. "This one has a force field." "Let me get this straight," Penny said incredulously. "You intend to support the weight of the entire ocean on your force field??" "Ah, it'll hold," Brianna said dismissively, while slapping armor on herself and clicking it closed. "I won't be taking the full load anyway." "I think we should have a sub up there just in case," Gina said. "The subs don't have force fields, sis," Brianna countered, still donning her gear. "Besides we need someone down here to pull the piece out of the suspension chamber. It might be difficult." "How do you mean?" Raphiel asked. Brianna's voice became filtered as she put her helmet on. "Who's to say that the water pressure is the only thing connecting this thing to its position in the chamber? We're talkin' Beta stuff here, right? It might have a huge mass in the Beta phase that needs to be dislodged too, like the Phantom Ring." "None of the other pieces have exhibited those tendencies so far--" Gina began to protest, but Sheva, who had been looking somewhat pensive all the while Brianna was talking, suddenly spoke up. "I'll do it." "Wha?" Penny, Rhianna, and Gina said at once. "I'll do it," Sheva said. "I'm the strongest here." "You don't understand," Gina explained, even as Raphiel helped fit Brianna's jetpack on her shoulders. "We're talking about the possibility of an incredible tonnage here, something neither you nor Brit can--" "You yourself just said that's unlikely," Sheva countered. "It still remains that I'm stronger than any of you, so I should be the one to go into the chamber and try to yank the li'l bugger outta there." "Attagirl," Brianna grinned, and looked at Tyr. "This way," Tyr said, turning to lead Brianna to a sealock. Gina turned to Sheva again and shrugged after a moment. "You sure about this?" "As sure as I've ever been about anything," Sheva nodded. "Show me how to get into the inner chamber, and I'll do the rest." SEALOCK B Tyr stood there watching Brianna perform her last checks. "Are you SURE about this?" she asked the armored girl. "I'll be okay, Tyr," Brianna grinned. "Gina worries way too much." "I can see why," Tyr observed. "This is very risky." "I take all the necessary precautions," Brianna said, fixing Tyr with a gaze, looking quite serious. "If it gets too hot, I'll back out." "... All right, Brianna," Tyr smiled. "I will trust you." "Thanks," Brianna said, smiled, slapped her faceshield shut, and then did a diver's tumble into the water. "She is asea," Tyr proclaimed, returning to the chamber. Gina pushed a button on her watch and spoke into it. "Brianna, do you copy?" "Rumble copies!" came Brianna's voice from the timepiece, and Gina rolled her eyes. "Are you in position?" Gina asked. "Just about," Brianna said. "Just gotta activate my field. T minus 15 seconds." "All right, when you do that, I'll let you know if anything changes here. How long will you be able to hold it?" "Long enough," Brianna said confidently. "Hang on.. ready.. ready.. mark." All of a sudden the object started slowing tremendously, to the point where it was moving only about one or two revolutions per minute. "That did it, Brianna! It's really slow right now. I'm sending Sheva in now." "Copy that. Rumble out." Gina urged Sheva into the chamber. Sheva nodded and got down on her hands and knees to fit through the opening Tanis had pointed out. She was somewhat surprised that someone of her size could fit through, but would later realize that her catlike attributes helped out quite a bit. "All right," Sheva said, her voice echoing oddly from within the glass chamber as she got to a semi-crouching position, directly beneath the object. "I'm in position." "Brianna?" Gina asked. "Any way you can slow that down a little more?" "I'm at max spread," Brianna declared, sounding strained. "It's all I can do to block off what water I can. You don't wanna KNOW what kind of PSI the field's reading is on it." Gina winced, then said, "Okay. Sheva? This is your show now. It's up to you." "I'll get it," Sheva said, and reached up to grab the object. << Bon Jovi "It's My Life" [Crush] >> "NNNNGH!" Sheva groaned as the object steadfastly refused to stop spinning. Her muscles and tendons strained as she braced herself against the object. "Don't hurt yourself!" Penny shouted. "If it gets to that, let it go!" "I can... UGGG... get it!" Sheva struggled to get out. She actually had to turn in place to keep her arms from being wrenched from their sockets, yet she didn't let go of the artifact one bit. "Do not be afraid to shatter the chamber, if it is possible," Tyr called out. "We have no use for it!" "..'Kay!" Sheva said through gritted teeth. She braced herself again but the item continued to spin lazily. Rhianna looked to Raph and Charlie. "You two stay here, okay?" "All right," Charlotte said, and Raphiel nodded. Rhianna also nodded, then strode ahead and nudged Gina aside lightly. "Let me through." "Wha?" Gina said. She blinked and did a double-take as Rhianna set herself up, legs slightly spread, and lifted her hands, one clasping the other's wrist, and the free hand pointing palm-out towards the sphere and the object within. "What are you doing..?" Penny wondered aloud. "SHEVA!" Rhianna called out. "Let go!" Sheva looked over and nodded with understanding and dropped to the floor of the chamber. Rhianna fixed the object with a stare and concentrated, and suddenly the outer sphere exploded in a shower of glass. The bluish liquid spilled all about the base of the pedestal, and the inner sphere crazed and cracked, then fell groundwards as well. Finally, the artifact itself wobbled, its spinning becoming more erratic, and ultimately, it clattered noisily to the bottom of the chamber, right at Sheva's feet. TEN MINUTES LATER SEALOCK B "You did it!" Raphiel gushed as Brianna pulled off her helmet. "Ah, I was only part of it," Brianna grinned. "Sheva did the real work." "Actually, Rhianna did," Sheva corrected. "What was that about?" Penny wanted to know, looking to Rhianna. "What did you do?" "Tell you guys later," Rhi' mumbled, keeping her gaze fixed to the floor. "Rhi'?" Gina said. "Thank you." She smiled. Tyr came in, having stayed behind briefly to monitor the remnants of the artifact room, ensuring there were no problems. "Thank you for getting rid of that thing. It was such a nuisance." "Oh, I think I can make use of it," Gina grinned. "Good for you," Tyr smiled. She faced Sheva. "By the way, Britanny, you're not your usual talkative self. Is something the matter?" "Nobody told you?" Brianna said with mild incredulosity. "This isn't Brit, this is her friend Sheva. Sheva, this is Tyr, leader of the city of Atlantis." "Hello," Sheva nodded with a faint smile, somewhat embarrassed. "I never would have believed the place exists." "I never would have believed one of Britanny's friends would be her exact twin in appearance," Tyr smiled. "You ok?" Brianna asked the blushing Sheva quietly. "Uh.. yeah," Sheva whispered back. "Just.. after all we've been through.. you guys call me 'friend'.." "Heeey," Brianna smiled. "Don't start with that now, okay?" Tyr was speaking with Gina. "How IS your sister then? When last we met, she was going to Aebra.." "Oh, she and Stripe're off doing their own thing, together, and loving it," Gina grinned. "MUuuUUuuUUUUFFFINNNNN!" Britanny was hollering at that very moment. She was standing at the top of the stairs leading into their apartment at the complex, shouting at the top of her lungs to be heard throughout the entire top level of the house. Stripe came out of the bedroom door immediately adjacent to the stairwell, eyes almost crossing from the sheer volume. "Hello, darling.." "THEEERE you are!" Brit gushed, hurrying over to embrace him, oblivious to the auditory assault she had made upon him. "I talked to Daddy!" "Urk! And?" he strugged to get out, controlling his breathing to take account for the crushing hug he was in. "He says he'll do it! We're supposed to go over tonight to have him take a look and see what he can do." "That's great news," Stripe grinned. "I can't wait." Gina and friends boarded the subs again, after bidding farewell to the Atlanteans, and watched as Sheva put the piece in place. "It almost looks like the skeleton of a globe," Sheva observed. "It's called an ancillary sphere," Penny said over the link. "True," Gina said. "Is it flashing?" "Yup," Sheva said. "Same as before." "Okay, well, let's get going then!" Brianna said, strapping into her seat. "What're you doing?" Sheva asked Brianna. Brianna tapped on the omega core a few more times. "Looking for an Easter egg." "What? ... It's nowhere near shaped like an egg. And Easter is still two months away, isn't it?" Brianna giggled. "Not that kind of Easter egg. See, programmers and other coders sometimes hide things in their works, specifically for their fans and users to find. They call them Easter eggs because it's hidden for you to find." "Oh," Sheva said, sounding like she partially got the idea. "Like this web site I visit regularly," Brianna said. "The guy put a hidden message to his fans on his latest update." "Why?" Brianna shrugged. "I guess he wanted to say something to them, but didn't want to be so open about it." "Did you find it?" "Yup," Brianna grinned. "Do you think you'll find an Easter egg in the omega core?" Brianna looked at it lopsidedly. "I don't know," she said, smiling slightly, "but I suppose there's no harm in trying, eh?" Ryan was hopping about, hooting and hollering as Jetta, Ichi, and Sikarra came into the room. "I! GET! TO! FIGHT! HIM!" Ryan was crowing. Ichi looked at him with a curious look, and Sikarra just stared. "Congratulations on your win," Jetta said, coming up to him. "Thanks!!" he exclaimed, looking at her with a joyous expression on his face. "Thanks to you too!" "What.. I didn't..." she blinked, and sighed. "What happened?" Sikarra asked her. "I thought I heard the cry of a child," Jetta said, letting Ryan go off on his pre-victory dance once again. "It sent me back to thoughts of my family, and what they're doing while their mother and wife is off traipsing about the globe enjoying herself." Sikarra laid a hand on the werewolf's arm. "They would be happy for you, I would hope; happy that you are enjoying yourself, knowing that everyone needs a break from the usual now and then, and that this will make you better in the long run." Jetta paused, then smiled. "I suppose you're right," she said. "It's time we go," Sika said to the other two ladies. "That is, if you're coming to the semifinals and finals with me and Ryan." Ichi nodded, and Jetta smiled. "Wouldn't miss it for the world." TO BE CONTINUED Project HEARD presents a Doubled Up/GD Half Story CRY HAVOC Stryyp'Gia, former crown prince of El Dorado, looked at the scene before him. All about him, a horde of humans were screaming, yelling, gesturing wildly, and generally raising quite a commotion. Everywhere he looked, save two places, people were getting quite unruly. One place was a few dozen feet in front of him. A cluster of men were locked in fierce combat, having battled tirelessly for over an hour already. The other place was beside him, where his lovely wife Britanny Diggers sat. Or, more often than not, stood, cheering and yelling and jumping up and down. The fact she was in human form did nothing to diminish Cheetah's enthusiasm or her volume. Still, she was all but drowned out by the other people around her. "GO SHEFFIELD! YAH! WOOOO!" she hollered, pumping a fist in the air. "Dear," Stripe smiled, having to shout to be heard, "They haven't a chance; Manchester's up three to nothing." Brit looked over to Stripe. He too was in a sort of a human form, but this was an illusion; he wore the guise of a six-six, three-hundred-pound man built like a tank. The blue-eyed, red-haired figure smiled as Britanny looked at him. "It's three-NIL, muffin!" she gushed, turning back to the pitch. "And there's still 11 minutes left, they could still pull it out! WHOOO!" Stripe chuckled and shook his head, watching the game. As a present, for no special occasion, Britanny had taken him halfway around the world to see the sights and enjoy one of Britanny's lesser known but still strong passions, soccer. Dr. Diggers had provided him with a disguise that would last 96 hours--long enough for them to be in and out of the country, provided Britanny didn't go overboard on her shopping spree the day after the match. The eleven minutes elapsed, and Sheffield only scored once, so the game ended with a final score of three to one. Stripe tried to console his wife as they left the stadium. "They played very well," he offered. "It was a hard fought loss." "Ehhh," she shrugged. "I wasn't really rooting for one or the other. I just happened to pick the underdog this time. But you're right, it was one heckuva match." She brightened up. "Wanna walk back to the hotel instead of a cab?" He smiled and squeezed her hand. "I'd love to, dear." Their route was anything but straight and direct; ultimately, two hours after leaving the stadium, they were strolling along the banks of the Thames, hand in hand, enjoying the crisp, clear, moonlit night. "This is a beautiful city," Stripe observed, smiling again. "Beautiful country, too." "Mmmhmm," Brit agreed, watching the picturescque nighttime scene. "Much less frantic than Atlanta, for example," he pointed out. "Muffin?" "Yes?" he asked. "Have you ever thought of where we might move if and when we leave the complex?" he wondered. He put up a smile and said, "Actually, I'd given it some thought.. perhaps minimal, but som--" He cut himself off as Britanny glanced across the shore. "What is it?" he asked. "Those voices," she said, nodding towards the sound of a couple who appeared to be fighting. "I think I recognize them." "In London?" Stripe queried, almost scoffing. "Britanny.." "C'mon," she said, pulling him towards the nearest crossover. He gave in, and in a few moments they were on the other bank of the river. "Now where were.. ah, this way," Cheetah said, again pulling at Stripe's hand. Even though she was smaller in human form, she was no weaker--at least as far as her convictions went--and Stripe found himself following her, feet hurrying to keep up. He heard the two long before he saw them: A pair, a man and a woman, huddled in a small thicket of trees along the bank. They were whimpering and worrying about whether or not they'd been followed. Britanny approached and blinked, surprised at the scene. "It IS you.." she breathed. "YAAHHH!" the two strangers yelped out. They scrambled backwards and together, and Britanny jumped back a pace or so as well, into the arms of Stripe. "I.. I know them," she said to him. "I'm SURE of it.." She turned to them. "You two know me, don't you? I'm Britanny Diggers. You two are wer--" "SSSHHH!!" the male hissed. "Do you want to give us away?!?!" "It's okay, it's okay!" Britanny tried to comfort them. "Look, I'm like you.. see?" She shifted into her hybrid form, but was totally unprepared for the response she got. "BRIDDIK!" the woman screamed in a tone of abject terror. "She's going to give us away!!" "S-s-stay calm!" the equally frightened man told the figure clinging to his arm. "Flee! Run!" The two got up and bolted. After they disappeared into the darkness, several loud splashes were heard, and then silence. Once again the sounds of the riverside park took over, but silence and tranquility were far from being one and the same this particular night. "..... What was THAT all about?" Stripe asked Britanny, coming up beside her after she'd taken a few steps towards the retreating werewolves. "I.. I don't know," she said worriedly, her tail flicking back and forth quickly. "I'm not sure at all." The morning sun woke Stripe up to find Britanny not in bed with him. He turned over and saw the drapery to the balcony fluttering. Britanny was outside in her nightgown, sitting on a chair, legs tucked up in front of her with her hands clasped around her shins. She looked out over the city pensively. "Love?" Stripe said quietly, sliding the glass door open. She looked up at him briefly, then back to the cityscape. "They're out there somewhere," she said quietly. "Scared for their lives. NOTHING'S supposed to scare their kind." She paused for a moment, letting her head sink until only her eyes were peeking over her knees. "Nothing." Stripe laid a hand on her shoulder gently. "Shall I tell the front desk we're not leaving today after all?" She looked up at him and nodded. "Britanny.. where are we going?" Brit looked over at him from the driver's seat of their rental car. "I'm not 100% sure," she said, returning her eyes to the road. "Somewhere in Ireland." "Ireland?" "Where the wolves are living right now," Brit said plainly. "I have to figure out what's going on." "All right," Stripe said. "When you tire of driving, let me know, and we will switch." "What could they be up against?" Brit blurted after a moment. "I don't know, dear," Stripe said, reaching over to massage the back of her neck. She mmm'ed and leaned into it, dividing her attention between Stripe and driving. "This worries me. I'm racking my brains but I don't know what would be enough to scare the wolves." A man stood in a picture window, watching the sea rise and fall before him. The midday sun reflected off the water and beat down upon the rocky shoreline, two hundred feet below his feet. He sipped from a glass of white wine that never left his right hand. He heard the door open behind him. "Sir." "Yes.." he said tiredly. "We have obtained another dozen scrolls. We are deciphering them now." "Very well," he nodded slightly. "Report back to me only if you have news... don't update me every thirty minutes with drivel." The man at the door lowered his head. "Yes, Mr. Morgan." "Leave me now." "Yes, sir." The door shut, and the man at the window sighed and drained the glass. "Everyone remain calm!" Thabian thundered over the noise filling the clearing--the crowd's murmuring and his child's crying. "Listen to me!" Despite his admonitions, the wolves continued talking excitedly among themselves. Many tended to others' injuries, Thabian noticed. He sighed and looked at Sander. "They're scared," Sander said. "We all are." "I know," Thabian said. He rocked Alera to try to quieten her. "We mustn't worry. We can't allow ourselves to be frightened." "You needn't put on the show for me," Sander said. "I know you are as worried as the rest." "More for Jetta," Thabian said. "I wish I knew where she was." "They won't go after her," Sander reassured his sister's mate. "They don't even know she's not with us." "I hope not," Thabian said. "I also hope that Briddik and Nadeen are all right. They didn't have to volunteer to stay out while we all came to Eden." "But they did," Sander said. "It is done. Let it happen and be ready to respond if necessary." Thabian nodded, cuddling his finally silent daughter. "Do you know where you are, or at least where you're heading?" Stripe asked. "Of course I do," Britanny nodded. "The wolves' den." "And where may that be?" "...I know it's in Ireland." Brit shrugged. "I'll know it when I see it." "That's quite a vague search area," Stripe observed. "It's only been a couple of years," she countered. "I can find it." "All right," Stripe said. A few hours passed, and they eventually found themselves at the end of a long dirt road. Stripe shut off the car and climbed out of the driver's seat, standing beside the open door. Momentarily Britanny followed suit from the passenger side. "Looks like this is as far as the car goes," Stripe said. "Uh-huh," Cheetah nodded. "Pull it over there and we'll cover it up with some branches and stuff." "Hmm?" Stripe said curiously. "We need to cover up the car so that nobody can see it." "All right," Stripe said in an 'if-you-say-so' tone. He got back in the car and maneuvered it out of sight while Britanny pulled some loose groundfall into position. "Looks good," Brit nodded approvingly. "What do you think?" "It looks like a car that had a tree fall on it," Stripe said. "Bah, it's concealed," Cheetah grinned. "Let's go." "Go?" "Hiking, sweetums," she said, gesturing in the direction away from the road. "Gotta be this way." "Are you sure?" he asked, even while he followed her. An hour or more passed as they traversed the woods. They were silent for the most part, until Stryyp'Gia broke the ice. "Darling?" "Yes, muffin?" Brit said. "Perhaps they didn't recognize you? Perhaps they thought you were whatever was after them?" Cheetah hmmmm'ed. "I'm pretty sure they knew me. I saw it in their eyes." "So who are they?" "They're werewolves, of course," Britanny explained. "Back when I was here with Gina.. we were here by accident... and I kind of snapped." Strypp'Gia nodded silently. "They had to subdue me," Brit went on. "I had a feral reaction. Those two were the ones who took me down... so they told me later. I got to know them pretty well later on.. they're the same age as Jetta and Thabian.. and they're husband and wife, and I owe them a bunch. They could have harmed me, but they chose to take me down without causing any injuries." "I see," Stripe nodded. "I ... seeing them like that is pretty scary," Brit said. "I have to figure out what's wrong and try to help them." "That is a noble quest, my love," Stripe said, massaging her neck with his one hand, taking her hand with his other. Britanny mm'ed and nodded, then stiffened slightly and sniffed the air. "Hm?" Stripe said. With her free hand, Brit gestured for Stripe to stop where he was. She looked around to ensure they were alone, and then shifted into her hybrid form. Again she sniffed, letting her enhanced senses do their job. "We're here," she finally intoned. Stripe looked around for a long moment. "Appears deserted," he said. Brit nodded grimly. "Yeah. Exactly." Back at the edge of the road, as the sun started to trek towards the horizon, two pairs of eyes set their gaze upon the vehicle's hiding place. Both creatures treaded silently towards the car, sniffing about, looking at the vehicle and the bent brush around it. Then they looked at one another, and without any noise at all, tracked cautiously down the footpath. A meadow on the outskirts of Cardiff is not the place one would expect to find a pair of wolves, but nonetheless, the creatures were bounding across the rolling plain as fast as their legs would take them. When they reached a small grove of trees, the lead wolf stopped, leaned against a tree, and shifted form into a hybrid wolf-human cross, panting. "I don't think.. we were followed," she managed to get out as her mate stopped and shifted, lying prone on the ground, exhausted as he was. "Good," he said, lying there, still except for the heaving of his chest as his lungs pumped air into him. "By the cheetah either," she added. "I know," he said. "What did she want?" she wondered aloud. "Is she in league with them?" Briddik's response was almost scolding. "Hardly. She's no longer a foe, and you know that." "But--" "It was a chance encounter, Nadeen. Nothing more." After they regained their wind, they set off again, moving more slowly this time and using as much cover as they could. The sprint across the open meadow had been daring and terrifying, and once was more than enough. Nadeen finally broke the silence some time later. "If she's not in league with them, then.. she doesn't know what danger she's in." Briddik nodded gravely. "I know." "And with us on the run as well.. we have no way of helping her." "I know that too." "So what do we do?" she asked. He looked at her for a long moment, then the path ahead of them. "The only thing we can," he told her. "Pray." Two-plus hours of searching had netted Brit and Stripe nothing. Their spirits were drooping when they met up from doing separate searches. "Did you find anything?" Stripe asked Cheetah. "No," she said quietly. "You?" "Nothing," he confirmed. "It's as if they picked up and left." "Well, that's not the case," she said, nearly snapping at him. "All the homes are still here with all their belongings still inside." "What do you want to do?" Stripe asked her quietly, putting a hand on her neck and massaging it. She sat, and he followed her. "I don't know," she sighed. "I just don't know." "Perhaps something required all their attention elsewhere," he suggested. "Maybe," she nodded, sounding more and more depressed by the moment. A gust of wind blew her hair into her face, and he reached up with a hand to brush it from her eyes. "Do not worry," he tried to soothe her. "We will figure it out eventu--" He was cut short as she suddenly sniffed the air, then stood up straight. He sat there for a surprised moment as she stood with her entire body stiff as a board, then suddenly darted off in a direction. He got up and followed her as best he could. She disappeared around a bend in the path, in an area where the woods grew thicker, and subsequently screamed. He poured on as much speed as he could muster, and hurried to her side. She turned and buried her face in his chest, and he reflexively embraced her, stroking her hair and hugging her close to him. He looked over her shoulder and sucked in his breath, seeing the cluster of half-a-dozen or so bodies crumpled on the ground. Morgan sat at his desk, perusing a stack of papers set perfectly square on the blotter. He read each page thoroughly, grunted an approval to himself, and turned it over and set it beside the stack, upside-down. The stack of read pages was equally meticulously organized as the unread pile. Then again, that was to be expected. Jacob Randall Morgan wasn't one to do anything half-assed, and everyone who had ever had contact with him knew that very well. Unfortunately, it seemed, they didn't know how to leave him alone, he reflected as a knock came upon his door. "What is it?" he bit out. One of his employees came into the office and stood by the door. "Sir, I hate to bother you, but--" "If you hated it, you wouldn't do it," Morgan interrupted. "Get it over with." "Sir, we're getting reports that there are.. 'visitors' in the Irish territory." "Oh?" Morgan said, looking back to his paperwork and continuing with it, as if this was unimportant. "What kind of guests?" "Unsure, sir. Just know that there are a couple of unidentified people there." "Then identify them. You know what you're doing." "Yes sir." The man turned to leave. "Kendall." "Sir?" Kendall turned, hand on the doorknob, to look at Morgan. "Do control your men this time. The visitors need to be terrorized, not killed." "Yes sir," Kendall said, leaving swiftly. Morgan waited until he was alone again, then swivelled his chair so that it faced the picture window once more. He looked over the water at the landmass on the horizon, and again sipped from his wine. In Eden, Thabian had managed to convene a sort of war council. The fact that he still cuddled a child in his arms detracted from it slightly, but nevertheless, they were there to discuss a plan of action. "We have to determine what we're up against and what we can do to counter it," he declared, looking around the group. Someone spoke up: "We don't know. It's nothing we've seen the likes of, ever." "Go ahead and make a guess," Thabian suggested to the group. "Some sort of werecreature we've never encountered before," came a voice. "Go on," he prodded. "What kind?" "Perhaps some wolves broke off from us before our time and crossed with some other creature, some--" "We are the only wolves," Thabian shook his head. "That much we know." "Perhaps a creature born of magic?" Sander put forth. "A new type of were." "You may have something," Thabian nodded. "It's certainly nothing I've ever seen before." "Whatever," someone said. "Why are they coming after US? Whatever did we do?" "Why did Brendan slaughter the cheetahs and betray his own kind?" Thabian asked rhetorically, then provided the answer. "Because he wanted to be on top. Whatever these creatures are want us out of the proverbial picture, at all costs. We have to prepare a defense, for it seems they are willing to finish us off one-by-one if they have to." "What happened here?" Stripe said as they looked over the bodies. "I don't know," Brit said, staring. "It looks like they were mauled.." "Or worse," Stripe said. "These appear to be bite marks." Brit leaned in and looked, then looked away and nodded. Stripe looked over to her. "Are you going to be all right?" "I... yeah.. I think so," she said quietly. "I just... something worries me about this whole thing." "I know," he said, trying to comfort her. "It is indeed a scary situation, but we're together. Nothing is going to happen to us. Even if the attackers return." (I'm sure that's what they thought too,) Britanny thought to herself, glancing at the bodies again. "Okay," she finally said to her husband. "There you go," he smiled, working at her tensed muscles with his hand again, drawing her close. After a few moments, they resumed their inspection of the area. The six corpses they found seemed to be the only evidence that anyone had been alive there. "I don't like this," Britanny said. "It'll be all right," Stripe reassured her. "No!" she hissed. "I think.." Her ears twitched. "What?" Stripe asked, standing up straight and looking around. "Oh god.." Stripe looked in the direction Brit was looking, and his fur all but stood on end as he spied movement in the forest around them. "Briddik," Nadeen hissed as she came to a sudden stop. "We've been spotted." "I know," he nodded, coming up beside her and putting an arm around her in a protective manner. "What are we going to do?" "Our very best," he murmured. "Landa and Zoe did their very best too," she said, "and look what it got them." "Be brave," Briddik said, even though his own voice was faltering. "The spirits will look after us." "We may be joining them soon," she whispered. Briddik said nothing, just watching the two pairs of eyes fixated on him and his wife. Soon, the gleaming white teeth were visible, and the predators began their low snarling growls. "I love you, mate," Nadeen said, crouching and shifting to quadraped form. Briddik crouched as well, and kissed the top of Nadeen's head, then smoothed out her fur. "I love you too," he whispered, and then shifted to his wolven form as well. The two wolves lunged at their predators, who also leapt forward simultaneously. In the waning sunlight, their black and dark brown bodies could be seen, their pointed ears folded back. The four creatures collided all at once, tangling in a mess of bodies, legs, and fangs. Soon, snarls and growls intermixed with yelps of pain, and ultimately, all was silent again, until the two Dobermans trotted off into the dusk. Britanny's ears folded back and she visibly trembled. "Stripe.." "Stay calm," Stripe said, eyeing the movement. "I won't let them get to you." She started to back up slowly as he did the same, standing in between her and the creatures in the forest. "I won't let anything happen to you," Stripe said quietly and evenly, backing them into a home carved from a tree. Brit was aware it was very uncharacteristic of her to be hiding, to not be on the offensive, but it was out of her control. She was absolutely terrified of whatever it was out there, and she didn't know why. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact they were likely the same creatures that had killed the wolves. She wasn't concerned with that at the moment. Her mind was solely on the issue of survival. Brit watched as Stripe created a transparent shield over the mouth of the treehouse. The creatures had entered the clearing now, and in the dying light, they could be seen to be quadraped in form. Their gazes were locked on the two hiding inside the tree, and their lips were drawn back in a snarl. "T-tell 'em we don't wanna fight! Tell 'em we--" "I don't think they would listen," Stripe said, eyeing the shield and the two animals approaching. "Th-they're weres, I know it," Brit said. Stripe remained silent. "Hey!" Brit called out. "We don't have any beefs with you! We're just--" She cut herself off as the animals--a pair of Dobermans, it was now apparent--lunged forward and jumped, colliding with the shield and rebounding to the ground. They got back to their feet and snarled at the pair. Brit's eyes were the size of saucers as she watched from behind Stripe. For his part, Stripe had only flinched a little when they bounced off the shield. "We mean you no harm!" Stripe bellowed at them. "We will leave if you promise--" It was Stripe's turn to cut himself short, as one of the dogs shifted and adopted a hybrid form much like Brit's or the wolves'. The humanoid canine pounded on the shield and snarled again. "Come out here and meet your fate!" the man shouted. "Join your friends in the great beyond!" "Zgg!" the one who stayed in quadraped form interrupted, looking up at him. "Nno!" "...." The man appeared to fight an internal battle for a moment, then shook his fist. "You're not safe anywhere," he growled. "You can't hide forever. And there are more of us than you know... and you'll never be certain where we are or who we are." Stripe had seen enough. "Flame raker," he murmured, and sent a burst of fire through the shield. The two canines dove to the side to avoid being singed, and the one in hybrid form yelled out in surprise. As the flames subsided, the dogs recovered and glared at Stripe. The one in hybrid glared a little longer, then turned and ran, switching to quadraped as he led his partner away into the forest. After a long moment, Britanny sighed raggedly, then wrapped herself around Stripe. "I wanna go home," she said. He patted her back gently. "All right.. let's go back to the car--" "To hell with the car," her muffled voice cut him off. "Forget everything. Just.. home." "Okay," he said soothingly, and in a moment, the two of them blinked out of sight courtesy of his teleportation skill. Morgan looked up as he was closing his briefcase. Kendall was poking his head through the doorway. "What is it?" he asked the lackey. "I have a status report, sir," Kendall said. "Make it quick," Morgan said, resting the case on the desk. Kendall hastened into the room and read from a sheet of paper. "Team 2 successfully expelled the 'visitors' from the Irish territory. Teams 3, 5, 6, and 7 are on downtime, and team 4 is undergoing in-the-field training. And team 8 is undergoing biogenetic bonding as we speak." "Team 1?" Morgan queried. "Obeying orders not to report in unless they find suitable fighters at the tournament," Kendall told his boss. "It ends this weekend, so I'd expect a response by Monday at the latest.." "Good," Morgan nodded. "Now go home. Relax for the weekend." "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir." As Kendall left, Morgan put down his overcoat and unlocked the bar again. He withdrew the wine and poured himself a glass, then locked everything up and faced the window, watching the view turn a brilliant reddish-orange as the sun set. "Excellent," he murmured, before draining the glass. -eof- Project HEARD presents Gold Digger World Tour: Sum Of All Parts Jetta was snoozing lightly on the airliner as it flew through the night. The hum of the engines and the air reprocessing equipment was alien to her, but she was able to put it aside after a while, at least partly. She was bone-tired, and this was the first time she'd let herself truly rest since the competition began. Yet still, the unfamiliar noises and the constant commotion around her was keeping her from her much-needed deep sleep. Oh, for the tranquility of the forest again... "Excuse me? Ma'am?" Jetta opened one eye. "Ma'am? I'm sorry." The flight attendant smiled apologetically, leaning over her. Jetta looked directly at the woman. "No, I do not want a pillow; no I do not want peanuts or 'head phones' or a menu. I do not want to make a call on the 'airphone' and I most certainly do not want to be wakened until the craft has parked at the gate." "I'm very sorry, ma'am. But I know you're traveling with the young lady beside you, and I was hoping you would accept this for her." Jetta glanced over; how about that--Sikarra had finally stopped bubbling and gushing and was now asleep, head lolled off to one side, up against the drawn windowshade. Jetta looked back over and saw in the flight attendant's hand, a single sheet of paper folded over, on the official letterhead of the competition. "Yes.. I'll take it," Jetta mumbled. She reached up and snatched it out of the attendant's hand. "Thank you." The attendant smiled sweetly and walked aft. Jetta paused a moment, then snuck a glance at the page. It was a briefly worded document addressed to Sikarra and cc'd to Ryan and Galford. The letter mentioned that Ryan and Galford's fight would go as planned, but Sikarra's opponent had suffered an injury during his last competition, and had to withdraw, meaning that Sikarra would have a 'bye'. Thusly, Sikarra would fight the winner of Ryan and Galford's match. Jetta gave a slight chuckle, then looked over to Sikarra and gently placed the letter on the younger woman's lap. "Good luck, child," Jetta murmured. "You will enjoy yourself, I'm sure." Jetta turned over again and tried to resume her broken sleep. Gina drove along through the night. The road was fairly quiet, the only lights cutting through the darkness being her car's and Penny's for the most part. Gina looked over at the passenger seat. Rhianna had awakened, and was staring out the passenger window into the dark. "Hey," Gina said quietly, nudging Rhi's leg. Rhianna startled slightly and then turned to look at Gina. "Hmm?" "What was the deal back at the resort?" Gina asked. "What'd you do?" "Nothin'," Rhianna mumbled. "No big deal." "You sure?" They drove on in silence for a few moments, until Rhianna finally answered. "I have a power," she whispered. "Something I got from Riel." "Riel?" "Of the Dynasty, formerly; before I beat her," Rhi' said. "Okay," Gina nodded. "Go on." "What's there to say? I seem to have picked up my TK skills by a huge amount. And I can heal things too." Rhi' paused there, then went on: "It's nothin', really." "Rhianna! It is NOT," Gina hissed. "You have something very special--" "I don't want to be special," Rhi' interrupted. "I don't want anyone to treat me different, I just want to live, okay?" "Okay," Gina conceded. "What's the matter, though? You seem really edgy about it." "I just don't..." Rhi' sighed. "I have ENOUGH about me that's unique, I don't need anything more." "I can understand your concern, but forgive me if I don't believe that that's the whole story yet." Rhianna took a good long look at Gina once more. "I... fine. I'm worried that whassisname is gonna come take me for tests or something." Gina looked confused. "Who?" Rhianna said, "The spook. The guy who's talked to Stripe before." "Rhi', Idunno what you're on about, but trust me, I'm not gonna let anyone get to ya. You're my friend. I'm watchin' out for ya." Gina smiled and nudged Rhianna's leg again. "OK?" "Yeah, okay," Rhianna finally smiled after a long pause. "Sure." Gina was about to say something more when she became aware of a tone filling the car. Then another, and actually several all at once. She briefly turned in her seat to see that Raphiel had taken the Omega Key out of the unconscious Sheva's lap, and was pressing on its various edges, where it was lighting up and making sounds. Rhianna looked back and smirked. Gina turned back to the road. "Raphiel?" she said slowly and carefully. He looked up. "Yes?" Gina spoke her next words specifically and deliberately. "Please.. stop.. playing.. the ancient.. Beta.. artifact." Rhi' turned around again and chuckled, jostling Gina's shoulder as the music abruptly stopped. THAT EVENING 6.59PM AEST The makeshift open-air stadium on the outskirts of Rockhampton reverberated with pounding music and flashing lights and the cheers of well over a hundred thousand people. The TV truck fed the scene from almost 75 different cameras into a combined feed that was broadcast on all the major sports networks around the globe. The MC's voice thundered over even the crowd noise as the mammoth speakers came to life. "Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls, children of all ages! Welcome to G2K!!" The frenzied crowd got even louder. "This is the final night of competition, this is the culmination of it all, this is," the MC said, parading back and forth within the ring, "the proverbial 'it'." He sauntered to the side of the ring that faced the entry ramp and leaned against the ropes. "And on such a special occasion, we have a special treat for you tonight, this, our last night for this year's event. Our special guest announcer and commentator tonight is a man of men, a former Gladiatorz champion, and a legend in our own time. Ladies and gentlemen! Please help me welcome none other than Saguaro Joe!!" If there had been a roof, it would have been blown off the place as the crowd simply went crazy, seeing the grizzled man appear at the end of the ramp and amble down it with a toothy grin, waving to each side as he went. His ratty old clothes both defied his position in the Gladiatorz organization, and defined his image--that of the common man, like he was actually at the same level as the crowd screaming his stage name. Saguaro Joe grabbed the ropes in his hands and vaulted himself into the ring, to even more cheers, and took up the mike. "Now this is special!" he shouted. The crowd continued its deafening roar, muted only slightly in the tunnels and backstage areas, where Ryan and Sikarra were heading for the staging site. "Must be nice," Ryan smiled at her as they walked along. "You get to rest in between." "No," she said with a gentle frown. "I'd much prefer to keep my pace up by going through a match instead." "Well, maybe Jetta'll spar with you," Ryan shrugged. "That is a good idea," Sikarra said. "I think I will oof!" Sikarra, looking at Ryan, had just run headlong into Galford as he met them at an intersecting tunnel. For his part, his hand flashed out and steadied the girl before she could topple. "Hey.." Ryan said, eyes narrowing. "I need her unharmed," Galford said simply. "For when I see her in the final match." "You're not gettin' past me, wiseguy," Ryan said. "Th-thank you, Galford," Sikarra said, standing up straight and brushing herself off. As Galford nodded at Sikarra, Ryan was scoffing. "Why'd you go back to that name anyway? Thought you were great death or something now." Galford looked his opponent in the eyes. "To use the name Dai Shi here would be to show disrespect for the officials and the other competitors. It is ... unwise to show arrogance to superiors." "Yeah, yeah. Never stopped you before, goon. All I'll be showin' ya is my soles as I stomp on your face." Galford turned and resumed his path. "We shall see," he intoned. NORTHWEST OF ADELAIDE THE SAME TIME Brianna blinked as the cars pulled to a stop. She scrambled for a radio mike. "We're goin' inna CAVE?" "I don't like it any more than you do, sis," Gina's voice filtered back. "But it's where the thing says to go." "Can I stay out here and watch the cars?" "No. Now let's get moving." The group assembled at the mouth of the most likely cavern. Gina addressed them all: "Okay, this may be tight or it may be like a walk in the mall. No telling until we get in there. Sheva, you take point with the device. Rhianna stick close. I'll be next with my GinaComp." She brandished the tablet-like computer. "Penny and Charlie flank Raph. And Bri?" "Yeah?" Brianna said. "You take up the rear." "Great, I'm the first one to get trampled when you all turn and run--" "Enough of that. I'm sure there're no ... brr... bats in here." The group turned and entered the caverns. Lights easily pierced the darkness, and although it was a typical cave, damp in places, craggy in others, there were no bats to be found. That didn't mean there wasn't something to agitate Gina, though. After a half an hour or so of walking, she heard a plinking noise from up ahead. "Will you stop that?" she called up towards Sheva. "Sorry," Sheva said. "I just noticed it does that. Wild, innit?" "Honestly, you and Raph, Idunno," Gina said, shaking her head. "It's a massively important device to unlock the mysteries of the universe and you're playing 'Mary Had A Little Lamb' on it." "Actually I can't," Sheva pointed out. "There's only one octave." "Whatever!" Gina said, throwing her hands in the air. "Please?" "Okay, okay," Sheva returned, rolling her eyes. With the match underway, Ryan was in his element again. He was trying to let his giddiness at being in a sanctioned fight with Daishi not get the better of him, and just focus on the fight at hand, but it was hard. Daishi threw a high kick and brough his foot down hard on the return, trying to catch Ryan twice--once up, once down. Ryan didn't fall for it, though--literally or figuratively--and while he was barely caught in the chin by the upwards kick, he managed to stagger backwards enough to miss the downwards chop. Still, it put him in no position for an offensive of his own, and so, Daishi got the first two points--one for the first shot, and one for getting the first shot. Ryan continued his taunting of his competitor throughout the match, trying to enrage Daishi, but it didn't work. Daishi remained as cold as ice, although his moves were fluid to near perfection. Each man was sent crashing to the mat several times, only to rebound for more. Ryan's skill and perseverence cancelled out Daishi's patience and discipline, and the match stayed fairly even for a long time. Daishi tried every martial art he knew, from Sitting Duck to Flaming Gopher Master, but even if he did land a blow, all it took was for Ryan to observe it once, and then he was able to counter it, and, more importantly, use it agaist Daishi. The match was just starting into its second hour when Daishi caught something out of the corner of his eye. He looked to Ryan, who was right in the path of whatever it was, and lowered his shoulder and bodily checked his opponent out of the way. Daishi dove for the mat and allowed a pair of people to sail overhead, filling the air with curses in their wake. Daishi turned over to watch them bound from the ring as quickly as they'd entered, and bolt into the crowd. The danger past, he turned back over and dashed to the stunned Ryan. Ryan was trying to sit up when Daishi reached him.. "Wh.. what the.." Ryan was stumbling. Daishi put a hand on his torso. "Just because I am your foe," the ninja said, "does not mean I would stand idly by." Then Daishi flipped to his feet, lifted Ryan up one-handed, and hurled him from the ring. Gina looked up as the group slowly came to a stop. "Hmm," Sheva said. "Hmm what?" Gina asked, coming forward and shining her light on the path ahead.. which she found to be blocked by a solid wall. "Hmm," she agreed. "Now what?" Charlotte asked. "Can we try to force our way through?" Rhianna suggested. "Nononono, wait," Gina said, holding a hand up for silence. She stepped even closer to the wall and shone her light on it, running her free hand along the illuminated region. "Whatcha got?" Brianna wanted to know, coming closer. "I think.." Gina said, still inspecting the wall. She put the light in her mouth and accepted the Omega Key from Sheva, then said, "A slot." "Looks like just a rounded wall to me," Rhianna observed. "Just watch," Gina said, smiling as best she could with a flashlight in her mouth. She lifted the artifact and pressed it against the wall she'd been touching. "Arise, Rodimus Prime," Gina grinned. Brianna chuckled and murmured, "You got the touch.." Gina tried to join in with Brianna: "You got the POW--" "This would be one of those times Britanny would call you two nerds," Sheva observed. The part of the key being pressed responded with a tone, but more importantly, the wall glowed a hazy electric blue for a moment. When the glow subsided, the wall was becoming transparent, and as it faded, the Omega Key fell free of the lock and landed on the ground, rolling musically away from the now-open door. "Jinkies," Gina breathed, impressed. "Looks like one of those wormholes," Penny declared. The cavern beyond the doorway was bathed in the same electric blue glow. "Go through?" Rhianna asked. "Any objections?" Gina said in response, waiting for a moment. When no one spoke, she continued: "Okay, then. On we go." Sheva bent over and took the key as she followed Gina. "C'mere you," she said to the artifact. "You might be useful later." The lights dimmed again one final time as Sikarra and Daishi squared off and waited for the bell to ring. But first, Saguaro Joe had some words. "All right, folks! This one's for all the marbles! We get a winner after tonight! Are you ready?!" The crowd screamed in response. "Good, 'cause I've just been handed the figures for tonight and with the 169,473 of you crazy folks jumping up and down and screaming, that puts us over the million mark for the whole tour! Way to go!" This served its intended purpose, firing the crowd up even more. "Anyway, it's time to rock, it's time to roll, it's time to put the pedal to the metal and see who's the last one standing! BANG BANG!" The two combatants tensed up and prepared to do battle. There were two people who weren't interested in waiting for the final results before departing. "How did we fail?!" the male said to his companion. "Did YOU expect the ninja to defend his enemy??" she snapped back at him. He didn't answer her, instead waiting for a moment, then saying, "We're far enough out of the city. We can change now." On the run, without missing a step, the two of them sprouted fur and tails and scampered away, continuing on their course. "We screwed up, brother. We failed." "Still," he said, "We have orders to get to a phone and call in as soon as we leave the tournament. And that is now." "All right, brother," she sighed, "but YOU get to talk to them." It took about a half-hour to walk the length of the wormhole. When they arrived, the group was in awe of the sight before them. "An underground city.." Brianna breathed. "Civ Omega," Gina proclaimed proudly. "Truly amazing." "It must be... twenty or thirty stories tall," Rhi' said, looking up. "I could fly it," Charlie offered. "No! .. I mean, no, tweets," Penny said. "That's quite all right." "Sensors are off the scopes," Gina observed, regarding her computer. "No location lock." "Sis, we might not even be on Earth any more," Brianna pointed out. "Right?" "All these columns appear sealed up," Rhianna said, walking up to one and tapping on it. "Solid." "Split up and try to find an opening somewhere," Gina said. "Meet back here in 60 minutes if you don't have any luck." The group nodded and affirmed, and turned to split up in search of a doorway. Ryan lay on the couch in the dressing room. His shoulder was taped up and his arm in a sling, an icepack draped over his collarbone and shoulder on the slung side. "Are you feeling any better?" Jetta asked him as she looked across the room from the video monitor. "Ahh, nothin' a half dozen aspirins won't dull down," Ryan groused. "Rotten cheap trick.." "He was protecting you," Jetta pointed out. "He shoulda given me a chance to recover before he started up again." Jetta shook her head and regarded the TV screen, where yet another replay of the incident was showing. She studied it intensely, as she had every time she saw it. Something about the two that interfered was bothering her. After seeing it again, she gave it some thought, and turned. "Will you survive, do you suppose?" "Huh?" Ryan said. "Yah, I'll be fine in a while." "Do you mind if I take my leave early then? I would have liked to have stayed to see the girl win, but I have something I need to follow up on." "She'd understand," Ryan nodded. "It's okay." "I'll excuse myself. Britanny gave me a device that she promises will take me home. Thank you, and her, for the hospitality, and for giving me a taste of human life." "No sweat, Jetta," Ryan said. She nodded at him once, and then turned and left the room. Daishi knew Sikarra had been taking tips from Ryan, and he recognized some of the werecheetah's moves as well. The tall, lithe girl, who couldn't have been more than sixteen, was a formidable fighter. He'd expected it from the research he'd done, watching the matches that led up to their meeting. She was only remotely aware of the announcer babbling, the crowd screaming, and the lights flashing. All she saw and heard was Daishi. She was acutely aware of his footfalls, and where he was likely to step next. She was aware of his breathing pattern and could time her shots to wind him. All in all, she had the upper hand, and everyone knew it. Gina was trying to use her scanner on the surrounding area, but it was like trying to nail jello to a tree, as Cheetah was fond of saying. There was only static when she expected to find radar returns. What was more, everything felt almost spongy and squishy. She called out into the area around her, "Anyone find anything?" Her question was met with several faint no's and an uh-uh, and some gentle plinking sounds. "... Raphiel??" "Sorry!" The music abruptly stopped. "I forgot." "Hey!" "Yeah, Sheva?" Brianna said. "I saw something blinking over here." "Where's 'here'?" "To the right of the entrance about fifty paces." "Your paces or our paces?" Penny asked. "Paces!" Sheva responded. "Keep calling out, we'll come to you," Rhianna suggested. They did, and were soon looking at an obsidian, featureless wall. "Um.." Brianna said. "No really! When he was playing that music," Sheva insisted. "Raphiel, do it again." "Like... this?" He pushed on the Omega Key, and a tone sounded. And nothing else happened. "...You sure you didn't just see a reflection?" Penny asked. "I mean, the light is coming from an unknown source here." "It BLINKED, I tell you--there!!" Sheva pointed as Raphiel hit another key and finally one panel lit up. "I think I got it!" Brianna said. "It wants us to play the Omega Key.. when you get the right notes, it opens the gates!" "I'm sorry, Raphiel," Gina said. "It appears you were right in toying with it after all." "How many permutations do you suppose there are of the seven notes we can play on this thing?" Penny wondered. "Five thousand and forty," Gina answered immediately. Penny hmph'ed. "Count me out on playing it, then." "I'll start," Raphiel offered. "Good, Raph. You know the musical scale? Start out with a regular scale and we'll work from there." "Okay!" he smiled, happy to be useful, and started plinking away. In the arena, the match continued on. Sika's upper hand had dwindled, and now the match was firmly even. Points were split nearly down the middle, with Sikarra still having a slim advantage. "But," Saguaro Joe felt it necessary to point out to the crowd and the TV and Internet audience, "Even a minor slip-up by either of the competitiors would turn the tide against them!" As if on cue, Sikarra's stance opened up ever so slightly. Daishi cashed in on it, and slid his foot in the way, flicking it to one side, knocking one of her feet out from under her and sending her toppling. After about an hour of trial-and-error, taking turns with the device, Gina and friends had determined that a white light would flash in one of seven positions if they had a correct note and position; otherwise, the lights would stay dark. Not that they appeared to be lights in any case; it was as if the black marble wall turned white in those seven places. Once they knew the position of some of the notes, it eliminated a number of possibilities, and made it easier to come to a conclusion. "There's only one left," Sheva said. "Go ahead," Gina nodded. "Everyone ready?" "Yeah," Penny said. "We're ready." Sheva looked around. "There're seven of us here. Wanna all do one?" "Good plan," Rhianna spoke up. Gina leaned in. "What's the first one?" "B." Gina hit the key they'd decided was a perfect B, and let someone else in. "Now a D," Sheva urged. They went through the sequence, adding A, G, C, E, and F in order. Before the F died off, large slabs of marble or whatever it was was sliding upwards. Sikarra was being thrown about the ring quite handily by Daishi. It wasn't that she wasn't trying, of course. As Saguaro Joe cited, "Once the tide is turned, it's like trying to hold back the ocean!" "You fought well, child," Daishi said, standing over her and reaching for her. "It was an honor, but now it must--!" He didn't stop because she kicked him, which she didn't, and would have been illegal if she had; instead, the ring was being torn apart beneath his feet. He grabbed the ropes, until they were ripped from his grasp. He looked back where the ring had been, and Sikarra had rolled away from him. Instead of her, he found a solid wall of rock. Momentarily, he found himself on a rising pillar of stone as well, and used all the balancing skills he had at his disposal to stay upright. The crowd, for their part, didn't know whether to run in terror or ooh and aah, unsure if it was part of the competition or not. Ultimately the rumbling and motion stopped, and Sikarra rolled onto her side and opened her eyes, then squeaked as she realized how close she'd come to falling. The platform she was on was only about six feet by twelve feet in area, and was hundreds of feet high--what the earthers would call about twenty or thirty stories. And there were dozens of similar platforms as if the site had been pierced through with all the slabs. The spectators looked to her like mere bugs! Sika saw movement nearby and looked over and down, to see Daishi 30 or so feet below her and just as far away laterally. "Yes! Finally!" Gina gushed with delight as huge stone slabs slid out of the way, revealing hundreds of rooms. Immediately visible in their general area were dozens of rooms with hundreds of Beta tools, both familiar and foreign. Gina and Brianna dashed forward to inspect things, and Penny followed, though at a more sdeate pace. Charlotte, for her part, was nervous, noting Penny's uneasiness. "Guys... take it easy, okay?" Rhianna asked. "We are!" Brianna said. "We're being VERY careful. We're on top of it all." Sika again forgot where she was and took a step backward by reflex, as she saw Daishi hop a few platforms to get closer to her. It was only when the back part of her foot met air that she remembered the situation, and eep!ed and returned to the center of her platform. The announcer's voice wafted up to them from far below, almost as if he was speaking in a normal conversational voice. "If you're still okay up there, the judges have decided that this doesn't count towards leaving the ring, seeing's how you are still within the forty-by-forty confines of the squared circle! "Go ahead and fight but try not to kill one another or yourselves. Continue!" Gina and Brianna were gathering up some of the more recognizable beta tools and giving them to Sheva to put in the carrying case they brought along. Gina would giggle madly, hand something to Brianna, who would squeal with delight and proclaim all the things she could do with that particular piece, and then hand it over to Sheva who would quietly put it in the case. The others were browsing about, basically looking but not touching, when Penny turned and glanced at the Diggerses, then screamed "NO! STOP!" and dove towards them. "Huh?" Gina said, freezing just before reaching for a new and unfamiliar bit of Beta tech sitting on a shelf before her. Penny burst in and shoved Gina aside. "You don't know what that stuff will do to you! Trust me! .. I remember it now!.." "Well why don'cha explain then?" Brianna asked. Penny nodded and gulped, taking a moment to collect her thoughts. "I remember now... from when I was absorbed that one time. Some of these things... if you touch them.." She stepped forward and picked up the piece Gina had been about to touch. Everyone gasped as black shadows started creeping up her arm. She quickly dropped the object before the shadows could engulf her, and the shadows receded to the point of barely covering her fingertips. She explained, while watching the shadows slowly diminish, "To use some of these, you simply have to be Betan... and if you aren't... it'll accommodate for you.." Everyone stepped a little farther from the Beta tools at that point. Brianna stepped outside of the hut to call up her armor and use its visor-comp to inspect the area. Gina looked to Penny worriedly. "Are you gonna be okay?" "Oh yeah," Penny said, almost dismissively. "Should dissipate given a little time, from what I remember." Suddenly there was a gasp from outside. It was very Brianna-like. Gina and the others hurried out to where Brianna was, to see her staring through her visor at the empty space around them, jaw hanging open, and trembling. "Oh my g... g-g-guys... we're.. um.. we're n-not alone..." In between her babbling and stammering she tried to describe to the others the scene she saw, with hundreds upon hundreds of Betans coming out of everywhere and converging on their position with what could only be considered curiosity. Daishi was doing his best to circle Sika, trying to get closer with every hop. Sikarra, though, was now in her element, remembering her training with Julia Diggers. Sikarra told herself. she repeated in her mind. The Betans stopped and watched from a slight distance. The group of friends continued to stare in horror at the empty space Brianna was pointing at. "Th-they're there, I tell you!" Brianna said. "Though they seem to be just standing there right now.." All at once, the Betans shimmered into sight, and began to communicate to the group's minds, using what Gina had termed 'rushspeak', with not so much speech, but rather entire thoughts appearing in their minds all at once. WE SEE YOU HAVE SOLVED THE FIRST PUZZLE. "First?" Gina spoke aloud. The Betans didn't answer her question and just pushed on: THAT WHICH YOU MAY TOUCH WITHOUT BECOMING US YOU MAY TAKE, ITS USE WILL NOT HARM YOUR ALPHA PHASE, BUT IN ORDER TO USE THE OTHER TOOLS YOU MUST REMAIN IN THE BETA PHASE. IT IS YOUR CHOICE. Sheva scoffed. "Pretty easy choice for me," she proclaimed. "What do you mean 'remain'?" Brianna wanted to know. The Betans looked at one another in an almost-human action. Then the rushspeak came again. WATCH AND SEE. Suddenly, the group of friends were hustled upwards at speeds they couldn't comprehend. They broke out into sunlight and were temporarily blinded, and when they got their sight back, they were in the Gladiatorz arena!... and it was the final match. At least, they presumed it was, from the crowds. They saw no competitors, but all the eyes in the stadium were trained on the JumboTron. On it, television footage was being shown from high above, where Sikarra and Daishi were hopping about on tall stone slabs. The TV showed Sikarra landing strikes on Daishi and staggering him every so often. She did a daring move which elicited a gasp from the crowd, a flying spin kick from one platform to another which knocked Daishi back. Gina looked up to the heights, then back to the base of the spires, realizing where they'd come from, and then gasped. Rhianna had materialized half-in and half-out of one of the spires! Before Gina could react, they were pulled downwards at a dizzying rate, until they were back in Civ-Omega again. "We're.. phased," Brianna declared. "Yah," Gina said. "I noticed." IT IS HOW YOU MUST EXIST IN THIS PLACE, the Betans explained. "So we can't take any of the stuff that's like what she touched, right?" Rhianna asked, pointing to Penny. YOU MAY IF YOU WILL REMAIN HERE WITH US. "Can we take it if we find a way to carry it safely?" Brianna asked. "Um.. that's cheating?" Charlie put forth. Gina coughed to get everyone's attention, and spoke to the Betans. "There's way too much to carry out of here.. and we don't necessarily want to remove everything from this place. Can we return and visit, and inspect things on-site?" The Betans took several moments to answer, and when they did, they said: UNDERSTAND THIS IS OUR HOME AND SANCTUARY AND HAS BEEN UNDISTURBED FOR THOUSANDS OF YOUR YEARS WE ARE NOT ACCUSTOMED TO SHARING IT WITH OUTSIDERS ESPECIALLY ALPHANS BUT WE KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE DONE BEFORE AND WE KNOW THAT YOU ARE MOSTLY BENIGN WHEN IT COMES TO US MEANING THAT WE WILL NOT EVICT OR ENGULF YOU IF ALL YOU WANT TO DO IS STUDY AND LEARN HERE BUT ANY OUTSIDE INTERFERENCE WILL BE MET WITH APPROPRIATE RESPONSE. The group stood in silence for a moment. "Guess that's a yes," Rhianna shrugged. Gina stepped forward slightly and smiled diplomatically. "Thank--" Before she could get another word out, a swirling blackness overtook them all, and through it all, Brianna shouted out that everything was going to be okay. It was evident enough moments later, as they reappeared in the stadium again. No one noticed, for all eyes were still on the JumboTron, another collective gasp rising up from the crowd as a well-placed foot to the torso by Sika knocked Daishi off-balance and sent him over the edge. Sikarra quickly reached over the edge of the platform and locked wrists with Daishi, arresting his fall. He looked up at her as she shouted to be heard over the tumultuous roar and the cheers declaring her the victor. "Are you all right?" He nodded and let himself be hoisted up on the platform, where he stood up straight and bowed towards her. Gina and the others cheered for Sikarra too, until Gina spotted Ryan emerging from a tunnel access. He was covered in bandages, and Gina reacted to this, rushing to his side. "Oh no! Did they hurt you badly?" she said... then kneaded his skin. "Yay! We're in Alpha again!" "What?...." Ryan said, caught off guard. "Yeah... I mean no! No, I'm okay babe. Just a few scrapes and bruises. Nothin' a few days of lovin' won't cure." Rhianna guffawed. "I'd offer to fix you up in no time, but I see you already have plans." When Ryan looked at her quizzically, she said simply, "They know." Ryan ah'ed and looked up at the helicopter performing a sling rescue of Sikarra and Daishi from their competition grounds. "Looks like we have a winner," he said. "Yah. You go, girl!!" Gina shouted, pumping a fist in the air. "Us too," she grinned, nodding to the hard-sided case Sheva was carrying. "Oh?" Ryan said. "Good haul?" "More than a haul," Gina beamed. "Better than treasure... a knowledge base... a whole living cit--!" "Enough," Penny said with a smile. "At least for out in the open. Let's go meet the winner and celebrate." "And then find a way to travel how many hundred miles it is back to the cars," Sheva said, hefting the heavy case. SEVERAL DAYS LATER ATLANTA "Thank you all, for everything," Sikarra gushed. She beamed at the people collected around her to see her off. "Of course," Julia smiled back, resting a hand on the young lady's shoulder. "You've done superbly here." "Thank you, teacher." Sikarra smiled again, then said, "And you do not mind Raphiel returning with me?" "If he's okay with it, then we are," Gina said, as Brianna nodded. Raph nodded in return, grinning, as Sika said, "I will teach him as your mother has taught me. When I have succeeded with Raphiel, I will know I am ready to teach my clan, and others." Gina smirked. "Good luck, then." "Thank you," said Sikarra, then turned to Raphiel. "I am ready.." "Just a minute," Brianna said, and stepped forward. She gave Sika a polite little hug, then turned to Raphiel and drew him up into an embrace. "Be good, okay?" she told him. "Erk... I will, Brianna," he wheezed out. "I'll see you next time you visit." "Yeah," she said, releasing him after a moment. She stepped back, and Gina looked to the two travelers and nodded once, then pushed the button. Sika mouthed "goodbye" as the light-gate took hold over them, and then, she and Raph vanished. THAT EVENING THE TALON STRONGHOLD In his darkened living space Daishi sat, on the bed lotus-like. He sat staring across the room at an object, but it wasn't a normal focus. In fact, it was an item that Daishi hadn't possesed in years. It was a television/VCR set, and on it played the final matches of the Gladiatorz competition. Specifically, it played several minutes of Daishi's match with Ryan Tabbot, over and over and over again. Daishi wasn't studying Ryan's moves, however, as one might thing. Instead, he was watching the crowd for the two intruders who had leapt into the ring and tried to attack Tabbot. Over and over he watched them slide in between the ropes, flanking Ryan while his back was turned. He watched their moves, but was more interested in their faces and body language, committing them to memory should they ever cross paths with him again. he thought in the direction of the TV screen. TO BE CONTINUED in THE DOGS OF WAR Project HEARD presents a Doubled Up story DOGS OF WAR Britanny shut off the water and opened the door, wrapping herself in a towel as she did so. Trying to drip on the floor as little as possible, she got another towel out and dried her hair and fur, oddly silent, instead of her usual singing self. She toweled herself dry, still quite withdrawn and thoughtful, and chose her hair length for the day, then tied it up in a ponytail. She got dressed and walked around the apartment, still pensive and apparently not too happy about whatever she was thinking about. She stared out the window for a long moment, then frowned, and turned to face Stripe, who was still asleep in bed. She leaned over and kissed his cheek, then turned and went out the door. Five minutes later Britanny had managed to navigate her way into the lower levels of the complex, and Brianna's laboratory. She knocked, then knocked again, then POUNDED to be heard over the deafening music within. "Huh? Oh hi sis," Brianna said as she finally came to the door, turning off the noise and smiling. "What's up?" "How ya doin'?" Brit said, coming into the room. Brianna walked back to her workbench and sat down, soldering the last few connections on her project du jour. "Cool, cool. Just goin' over all the stuff we brought home," she grinned. "How 'bout you?" With a halfhearted smile, Britanny said, "Not too bad. We had a good trip too." Brianna looked up, then set the soldering iron down again and turned to face Brit, placing her hands in her lap. "Sis, don't take this the wrong way, but you are just plain ROTTEN at small talk when you're hiding whatever you wanna say. So, out with it." Britanny sat down on another stool and sighed. "Sorry, Brianna. It's just that I'm having a hard time coming to grips with this myself. And having to ask for the help I think I'm gonna need." Brianna leaned forward and put a hand on Brit's knee. "Brit. I'm your SISTER. You've been there for me so many times it's not funny. Tell me what you need, and I'm there." Britanny patted Brianna's hand and again smiled faintly. "Thank you, Brianna. But hold your decision till I tell you what all this involves. And why it's just gonna be you and me on this." Brianna sat up straight and regarded Brit. "Why just us?" "Because of our heritage," Brit responded. She paused for breath, and to collect her thoughts, and then launched into a description of what had happened in Europe. She told her sister of the were-dobermans, and the fate that had befallen the wolves. Gears seemed to turn in Brianna's head as she listened carefully and nodded seriously. "I understand," she finally said. "May I make a suggestion, though?" Brit nodded. "If you're gathering up all of us 'round here that have werecheetah DNA, then you've forgotten someone." TWENTY MINUTES LATER The backyard of the Diggers mansion was again a training ground, as it had been weeks before. This time, however, Julia Diggers was not working with a warrior of the barbarian clan. Instead, she was sparring with a seven foot tall furred feline humanoid, but not her adopted daughter. "That's it," Julia prompted Sheva. "Keep at it, wear me down." Sheva blew her hair out of her face, or tried to; the sweat soaking into her fur was matting everything down. "Yeah, right," she scoffed, looking at the hardly fazed Julia. Julia grinned. "Well, tell yourself you can, even if you can't. Consider it a goal to work up to." After a few more punches and blocks, Julia stepped back and stood up straight. "Good enough for today. You've improved quite a bit, but I have to keep reminding you about bringing your back foot up closer." "Sorry," Sheva said, adjusting her stance. Then she stood up as well, finally wiped the offending strands of hair from her face with a hand, and smiled faintly. "I did learn a lot on our trip, though." "I'm sure you--eh?.." Julia said, looking past Sheva. The faux-werecat turned to see a car pulling to a stop on the driveway. "Mom!" Brianna gushed as she burst from the driver's side, running past Sheva to sweep Julia up in her arms and hug her. "Oof! Hi," Julia laughed. "To what do we owe this visit?" Brianna looked over her shoulder at the car, watching as Brit walked slowly towards the group, in stark contrast to her normal bubbly, happy self. "Cheets'll tell yah, mom," Brianna said. "All right," Julia said, her curiosity obviously piqued. She greeted Britanny warmly and wrapped her in a hug. "Hi mom," Britanny said quietly, not lifting up her mother and twirling her around as was her usual habit. "Hello," Julia said, curiosity turning to worry. "How are you?" "Okay," Brit shrugged. "Got a favor to ask." "Out with it then," Julia said, forcing a faint smile. Brianna moved beside her sister to provide support, while Julia and Sheva turned their attention to Brit. "Well, it's like this," Britanny began. "When Stripe and I were in the UK, we happened across a couple of werewolves I remembered from way back.." Theo walked up just then, having come out of the house when he saw the car. He listened quietly as Britanny explained the situation. "Heck yeah, I'll help," Sheva nodded vigorously. "However I can." "We all will," Theo said, stepping closer to make his presence known. "In fact, if I may sugg--" Britanny turned to face him. "With all due respect, dad... no." Theo was, to say the least, taken aback. "But dear, I can check with some of my acquaintances and see if--" He stopped short as Cheetah frowned and fixed him with a stare. "Dad. Do whatever you want." She indicated herself, Sheva, and Brianna as continued to speak: "But WE are going to do this MY way, and that's FINAL." Theo paused briefly, then nodded. "Very well. But I want you to know you have our support. Anything you need, you will have. And be careful." "She will," Julia said. "They ALL will. Right?" Brianna spoke up, "Yeah, mom. We will." Julia turned to Sheva and regarded her, then said: "That goes for you too. Just because you're not my child doesn't mean you're not part of my family. Understand?" Sheva looked down at the woman whose hands were on her shoulders. She nodded and said, "Yes, Mrs. Diggers." Julia smiled and removed her hands from Sheva. "Good," she said. She then shook a finger. "This doesn't mean you're excused from any further training, though!" MONACO THE SAME TIME It was a cool evening in the villa overlooking the coast. J. Randall Morgan sat in his dining room, facing the water, yet not paying the view any attention whatsoever. In fact, he had his head down, looking over a stack of papers, signing some of them and setting some aside to be dealt with later. He went about his work with a practiced, methodical rhythm, as if his attention to detail was the most important thing in the world. There was a knock on the door, and then a voice as an aide stuck his head inside the room. "Sir, dinner is served." "On the table would be splendid," Morgan said, not looking up from his work. "And lower the blinds please." "Yes, sir." The aide moved into the room, transferred the dinner from the cart to the table, and then went to the window, unfurling the semi-transparent Mylar blinds along the bay windows. As the aide left, Morgan set down his pen and shifted slightly to start his supper. Lamb with four kinds of vegetables and a red wine was tonight's menu. He smiled and savored the wine a moment after washing down the first bite; it was a lovely old thing from 1765 that he'd found in a property he acquired in 2000. As he ate, he turned to the papers again and read up on another of his acquired properties. In a few short weeks, everything had exceeded his wildest expectations. No one could have asked for a better outcome. Morgan paused, then checked the stack of pages again. His neutral expression gradually decayed into a frown; then he looked through the papers one last time and picked up the telephone. It didn't even ring once. "Yes, sir?" "I have reports for teams 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 here," he said plainly. "Team 2 has yet to report in, sir," the aide on the line responded, knowing what Morgan meant. "They were last heard from on Saturday morning, 11:13 GMT." "Where?" "The Irish territory, sir. According to GPS, they were travelling roughly southwestwards at four miles per hour." "If they do not make contact by noon local, send teams 4 and 6 in, one to their last known location and another to their projected location as of that time. If I'm not mistaken, that should be eight miles from the coast." "I'd have to check with mission ops, sir, but it sounds about right to me." "Very well. Carry on." Morgan replaced the phone without waiting for an answer, and signed two more papers before tending to his dinner. JOHN F. KENNEDY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Galford watched the line with disinterest. An ordinary man, he told himself, would be irritated at the length of the delay. An ordinary man might even be uptight at having to stow his favored swords in baggage and claim them as historical artifacts. And an ordinary man might even be unable to comprehend why he found himself at this place, at this time. Galford, of course, once again calling himself Daishi now that he was done with the Gladiatorz tournament, was no ordinary man. Not that he would boast about it, at any rate. He understood the hassles, delays, and disruptions of the air service at present, and knew every bit of it was necessary. At last, he was at the counter, and the agent checked his ticket. "Ah, London," she said, smiling and trying to strike up idle chatter as she worked. "Business or pleasure?" "With luck," Daishi said evenly, "pleasurable business." The agent chuckled, having heard variations of the line countless times before. "Right. You're going to Gate 31, concourse A. Your flight takes off at 8:11, so you've got plenty of time remaining. Thanks for choosing Trans Global Airlines." Daishi nodded good day and took his boarding pass from her, turning to head for concourse A. I-85 "Where we heading?" Brianna asked Cheetah, who was sitting in the passenger seat. "Somewhere we can take off from," Brit answered plainly. "All right," Brianna said, and turned the car towards the usual secluded spot, where they could take to the skies without being noticed. Sheva leaned forward between the two seats. "You seem really withdrawn, Britanny." "You noticed?" Brit bit out, then softened. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap. I'm just concerned." "We all are, Brit," Brianna said. "You'd be insane not to." Britanny paused, then spoke. "I'm worried for what this means," she said. "These ... THINGS are ruthless. They did in the wolves without barely a fight. I think this is only going to get worse." "We're behind ya all the way," Sheva piped up. "If there's one thing I've learned from you all, it's that you're resourceful and stubborn. Er, in a good way." "Yeah," Brianna said. "Lead on, O fearless leader." Britanny smiled faintly. "Thanks," she said. "Can I gather we're heading towards the wolves' den?" Brianna said as she ascended through the clouds. "Yeah," Brit said. "It's the only lead I have right now." Brianna just nodded and pointed the flying car towards the east. Thabian found his mate sitting on a rock, chin resting on balled fists. She looked up sharply as he laid a hand on her shoulder. "Please don't," he asked of her, gently. "Don't what?" she said curtly, looking back over her clan, crowded into Eden. "Don't treat this as your fault. Don't blame yourself and don't consider this any failing on your part--" "On whose part then?" Jetta shot back. "If I hadn't left to go on some absurd jaunt, I would have been here--" "To get cut down or driven out with the rest of us," Thabian said, jostling Alera to calm her down. "There was nothing you could have done." Jetta quietened down, glaring at Thabian briefly before looking back over the clan again. She had a gaze and attitude Thabian knew well, a look that meant she knew he was right, and she hated it. "Forget the incident here for a moment," he said, rubbing her neck again with his free hand. "Did you enjoy yourself while you were away?" Reluctantly, Jetta murmured, "Yes." Thabian slid his hand from her neck to her waist as he crouched behind her. "Then that is all that matters," he whispered into her ear. Jetta tilted her head backwards, enjoying the contact. Still, she said, "Tell that to those who died." Thabian sighed and continued to hug her. "Would it help if I said I was relieved you weren't here to be slew along with them? For it was all I could do to save the ones I could bring here." Jetta thought to argue, then relented and said, "Are you serious?" "You know me, mate," Thabian said. "I wouldn't jest at a time like this, about an ordeal like this." "What can you tell me about what happened?" she said, finally turning to face him. "There were two of them," he said, hastily adding, "Please let me finish before you express outrage at the fact our clan was sent running by a single pair of attackers." He took a breath and jostled Alera again, wishing she would go to sleep. "They caught us entirely by surprise, and worked as a team, one always watching the other's back. They offered no explanation or motive; instead they just attacked without warning. They were relentless.. while we were able to inflict some injuries, it didn't even seen enough to distract them from their assault." "You basically gave them our den, mate," Jetta bit out. "Better the den than all the wolves within," Thabian said. "We've been uprooted before. We can stand it again." "I hope it doesn't come to that." Jetta stood up and put her hands on her hips, looking around the garden at the wolves. "Best to be prepared," Thabian said. "Speaking of which, I am pleased Sander's spell advised us of your presence in the den so that we could open the gate for you. I was worried for you." Jetta let him nuzzle into her for a moment, then said, "Did the spell identify only me, or any activity in the den?" "Any activity," he said, then regarded her. "What are you thinking?" "Take care of the children," she told him, turning to head for the group of werewolves milling about nearby. "I need to speak with Sander." Tuesday morning found Morgan wandering his garden, spending one weekday morning away from his work. He tended a few flower gardens, and stopped to enjoy several more. His favorites, the rare tulips his explorers found in the Andes of all places, lined the walk towards the entrance to the garden. It was down that path that two young charges and a servant were approaching. "Granpa!" the kids blurted, running up and hugging Morgan's legs. "Oh, my favorite grandchildren," he said, breaking into a smile and embracing each of them in turn. "How have you been?" "I got a car!" the boy gushed, holding up a scale model, and an expensive one at that, of a Formula 1 racer. "Excellent," Morgan grinned, patting the boy's head and regarding the toy. he thought to himself. He turned to his granddaughter. "What of you?" "I love my horsie, Granpa! I ride her every day," she told him. "That's very good," he smiled. "I'm sure you must be an expert by now." He looked up at the servant's hand, then his face, with a look of disapproval. "I'm sorry, sir," he was told. "I have information you requested." Morgan simply held out his hand and was presented with the folded sheet of paper. He let his grandchildren play at his feet while he read it over, then looked at the servant. "Did they explain?" he asked. "More visitors," came the answer. "Waiting for orders." Morgan handed the paper back. "Surveil and observe. Report if anything out of the ordinary occurs." "Yes, sir." The servant bowed and stepped aside, to wait for the children to be done with their visit. Brianna looked around the clearing. "Well, here we are," she declared, consulting the GPS receiver one last time. "This place looks neat," Sheva said. "People really live here?" Brit turned in a slow circle, frowning, with hands on her hips. "Until a short while ago." "Anything going on here, guys?" Brianna asked. "Not that I can tell," Brit said. "Though the scents crisscross the whole area repeatedly." "Wolves? Dobers?" "Yes," Cheetah said. "....Oookay," Sheva observed. "Be on guard for anything and everything," Brit said, obviously tense. "What do you expect to find?" Brianna asked. "I--" Brit began, but cut herself off shortly. "Huh?" Sheva said, just before she heard it too. She turned to face the same direction Cheetah was, looking towards the source of the sound. Britanny suddenly wore a look of rage. She turned towards the sound, her hair and fur all standing on end. "Grrrr!.." Brianna looked concerned. "Um... sis?" she said hesitantly. "If he's involved... ooooh! Oh come to mama you big.." Brit was murmuring. "Ur.... Shev, she doesn't normally go off the deep end like this," Bri said. "Be ready for--" "Sssh!" Britanny hissed. A moment passed, and then she lunged forward. A figure burst from the foliage, leaping high above the threesome, from roughly the point where Britanny was now passing through. Sheva and Brianna jumped back, trying to track the dark mass with their eyes while they prepared a defense each in their own way. The silhouetted figure was too quick and nimble for any of them; he landed behind Brianna and Sheva noiselessly. Bri and Sheva turned to regard him, while Britanny worked at getting herself disentangled from the bushes. Brianna suddenly had a gun drawn down on the man, from out of nowhere. "Daishi!" she exclaimed, her eyes narrowing. "What are you doing here?!" "There is no reason for attack," he said, evading the question as easily as he evaded Britanny. "I am not interested in doing battle." "Don't believe him!" the bushes said by proxy for Britanny, as she was still firmly entrapped. "He's just pullin' his ninja crap and givin' me time to get myself free--" Brianna and Sheva again watched dumbfoundedly, this time as Daishi walked silently to the bushes and took them in both hands. A couple of deft movements later, they parted, leaving Britanny free. She turned over, still lying in the brush, and looked at him with a combination of trepidation and contempt. She appeared as if she didn't know whether to kick him in the gut or wait for him to get out of the way so she could stand up before they resumed the fight. Instead, he held out a hand. When it wasn't accepted after a split second, he reached out and took hold of her wrist and hauled her to her feet. Britanny was surprised as Daishi released her and stepped back--and then bowed slightly. "To quarrel with you at present is not honorable," he said. "Ur...." Brianna said disbelievingly, looking back and forth between a confused Britanny and a stoic Daishi. "Get out of here," Sheva suggested, her own tail starting to flicker back and forth with anger. "You're nothing but a big pain in--" "She is the one I came to," Daishi cut her off, pointing at Britanny. "Not you." "So what do you WANT?" Brit snapped. "I'm BUSY here, if you didn't--" "I did notice," Daishi said, finishing her sentence. "Attempting to determine what it was that has caused you and yours so much turmoil." Brit just stared. Sheva still looked annoyed at his presence, and Bri was confused and wary. "Don't listen to him, Brit," the latter said. "He's the bad guy." "That is relative," Daishi addressed Brianna. "My intentions here do not involve you at all, in fact I did not anticipate you would be here. But now that you are, we should pool our resources to achieve our common goal." "I don't know, Brit," Brianna said simply. "What common goal are you talking about, you kung-fu klutz?" Sheva asked. He looked at her with disdain. "Dealing with the creatures that attacked her on her vacation and my opponent in the tournament," he responded. "I knew it!" Brit raged. "That runt's behind this, isn't he?!" Daishi turned back to Britanny. "Lord Talon does not have any inkling of this," he said. "Nor does he know where I have come. This goes beyond his inane quest to enhance himself." Daishi looked around the wolves' den. "What the creatures have done, whoever created them, is most dishonorable. After observing them it is my intention to find their weaknesses and do justice." "This is for the weres to handle--not you," Brit said after a pause. "They're werecreatures and they need to be dealt with BY werecr--" "As you wish," Daishi said, turning to go. "Do not interfere with my own quest, in that case." "Wait," Brianna suggested. Daishi stopped, and Brit looked at her sister incredulously. "If you're serious about this.. I mean, putting off our fight to work towards a common goal.. maybe we should listen to you." "We have no 'fight'," Daishi said, turning his head to throw the comment over his shoulder. "I simply do as I am told." "You mean you do as you're paid," Brit mumbled. Daishi looked at her, but held any comment in check. He addressed Brianna again: "We are not that different, and we are not on opposing 'sides' by nature, simply by chance. The smartest thing to do today would be to work together." Brianna turned to face her sister. "Whaddaya say, Brit?" Britanny just stared at him for a moment. In the intervening time, Sheva piped up, "I still think he's got something up, but I'll tell you this much, he's a man of his word, from my experiences." "Okay okay!" Cheetah said, agitatedly waving her hands in the air. "Fine! A truce! For now." Daishi bowed ever so slightly again. "If you wish to call it that." Sander hmm'ed. He cast about again, closing his eyes and waving his hands around smoothly and slowly. "What do you find?" Jetta asked with a hint of impatience. "They were there," he nodded. "Not long ago. And others are there now." "Like them?" "No," Sander responded after a moment's pause. "Three have werecreature properties and one is human." "May I see them?" Jetta queried. Obligingly, Sander waved his hand and a small image appeared before them. Jetta watched as several familiar forms came into view. "Britanny!" she exclaimed with relief. "Good. I'll welcome their assistance." Still she looked warily at Daishi's presence. "You're going back there??" Thabian said as he approached, having caught up. Alera was in his arms and Pojo in tow behind, holding his father's free hand. Jetta turned to regard Thabian with a look that could freeze fire. "It's my DUTY to protect the clan," she bit out. "The clan is HERE," Thabian said, nodding to their surroundings. "Not there." "'There' is our home!" she shot back. "I will not let it be overrun again. And as long as they"--she threw a hand towards the image of Britanny and the others searching the den--"are there I will provide them whatever help I can!" Thabian sighed exasperatedly and looked to Sander. "Sander..." "Brother-in-law, I tend to agree with her," Sander said plainly. "Send me there," Jetta declared. She told Thabian, "We'll talk when I call for you to bring the clan home." Ten minutes at a dead run south of Jetta's desired arrival point, two more werecreatures planned and plotted. "What do you figure?" Zag asked her partner. Zig stood up, having just changed from quadraped form after having scouted out the area. "Two cats, a third that looks like she's part cat. And one more human. The one cat is one we've seen before. The one you persuaded me not to finish last time. The one who was petrified of us. And she has a twin." "Twin?" Zag wondered aloud. "Our data specifies--" "I know what it specifies," Zig told her. "It's obviously wrong." "We need more detailed information on these two, then." "Or we could make it a moot point," Zig said. "We were told to surveil and observe, and report," Zag protested. "And what if we're attacked? We must react and respond." She sighed heavily. "That's why I wanted to stage this far away. That way we don't have a chance of being attacked." Zig just shook his head. "So what do you think?" she asked him. "Could be an interesting battle," Zig mused. "We haven't seen how she fights or if she fights at all. Then again she might collapse into a quivering heap like last time." "Very well. Now.. does this count as out of the ordinary?" "Well it WAS unexpected," Zig put forth. "Good point," Zag nodded. "Let us put in a report, then." "Got anything?" Brianna asked. Sheva stood up straight. "They've been here recently," she declared. "Can smell'em. At least two." "She's right," Britanny nodded. "But they're nowhere near here now." "I agree," Daishi rumbled. Brit looked at him briefly, but just sighed. "So, sis?" Brianna said. "Let's look around some," she suggested after a moment. "For what?" Sheva asked. "We've already searched almost everywhere." "Then all the places we didn't look yet," she answered plainly. "We--" "Ssh!" Sheva said. "Wha?" Brianna and Britanny stereoed. "I said SHUSH," Sheva said again. "I just heard something." The Diggers sisters' ears quivered slightly. "Where?" Brit asked. Sheva pointed to her left, and Daishi, all but forgotten, looked that way and then started into motion. "I will investigate," he simply said. "Wait--" Brianna started, but he was already gone. She sighed. "Don't just stand there!" Brit said, grabbing Sheva and Brianna's wrists and tugging them into motion, chasing after him. "What now?" Sheva said as they stopped in a clearing a moment later, with Daishi nowhere in sight. "Find hi--" Brit began, when suddenly all three of them heard a 'ssh' from above. They tracked the sound and found Daishi looking down on them from the boughs of a nearby tree. Daishi looked up and then leapt away, so fast that all they saw was the shivering branch. Moments later there was a rustling from the brush. "Come on!" Brit hissed and headed in that direction. Bri' and Sheva, of course, followed quickly. What they found upon catching up once again was Daishi facing off against a werecreature. However, she wasn't who the group had been looking for. "Wait!" Britanny exclaimed, dashing forward. "She's oka--" "I know," Daishi intoned. "Please advise her of that." Jetta looked across at the approaching werecat with relief. "Britanny!" she exclaimed, her fur going down and her ears coming back up. "Why are you here?" "Probably the same reason as you," Brit said, coming forward and taking the werewolf's hand in a handshake. "Something really bad happened here." "I know," Jetta snorted. "I heard all about it from my mate. Most of the clan is safely tucked away. Except for the ones still here," she added, sweeping her hand across the landscape. "Rest their souls." "What are we going to do?" Brianna asked. Jetta looked at her curiously. "'We' are going to find the attackers and make sure they never attack again," she said. She looked back to Cheetah. "They're with me," Brit said. "They're all with me." "All right," Jetta nodded, satisfied. She adopted a hopeful expression. "... Did you by chance see a pair of wolves?.." "Not for a long time and not near here," Brit said. She recounted her tale of having met the two werewolves in the UK. "Damn," Jetta spat. "I do hope they are all right." "If they are any bit as skilled as you, they will fight adequately," Daishi declared. Jetta looked at him with an odd expression. "Thank you," she said. "Okay, what now?" Sheva asked. Jetta looked among the group arrayed before her, then hmm'ed and surveyed the forest. "Follow me." "Where are we going?" Brianna wanted to know. "The safest place I know of right now in this forest," Jetta said. "My own den." Mission Ops was exactly as it sounded. Like a cross between the space shuttle control center and a television production room, the cavernous room was filled with control screens and projection displays of all shapes and sized. It was a pie-slice-shaped room, larger at its rear than its front, and sloped downwards as well. This allowed for dozens of console operators to be positioned looking at the same large displays along the front wall. One man wasn't looking at those large displays along the front wall. He was hunched over his console, alternating between typing furiously and pressing his headset to his ear. He occasionally nodded and spoke quietly into his microphone. At last, he nodded and threw a switch on his console, causing a red light to go out. He pushed another button and another red light lit up, as he scrolled back and read what he'd typed. "Mr. Morgan, we've just received a new report," said the voice on the intercom, crisply and perfectly reproduced as if the man was in Morgan's office directly. "Go ahead," Morgan said, putting down his pen and taking the advantage of the interruption to take a bite of his dinner. "Team 2 has been heard from, finally. They are at the perimeter of the Irish territory. There are visitors, some of them repeat guests." "I see," Morgan said, not sounding impressed. "They are waiting for orders," the aide added. "Expel the 'guests' and cleanse the area. If the team questions it or delays, send in teams 4 and 6 to complete the task." "Yes sir." Morgan shut off the intercom, then devoted his attention to his dinner. "Impressive," Sheva declared. "How do you domesticated types put it?" Jetta said wryly as she led people inside. "'It's home'." They were entering a complete, four-room house, carved from the trunk of a living tree. "Does it bother you to have killed the tree yet left it standing as if to mock its spirit?" Daishi wondered aloud. Jetta smiled. "The trees have been enchanted. They will live to a ripe old age while still providing us with shelter. No true harm has been done." "What does it mean?" Sheva asked, gesturing to a carving above the doorway. Jetta looked up and chuckled noiselessly. "'Persevere'," she said. "Thabian put it there to remind me that... well... let's just say I have had my share of apathetic moments." "What for?" "Perhaps another time," Jetta murmured. "Let's focus on a plan." "Okay," Britanny said, settling down on a bench. "What's the plan?" Brianna hmm'ed. "Lure 'em out and whup their butts and try not to get killed?" "Something like that," Jetta nodded. "They won't come here just 'cause we're here, will they?" Brit asked. "They obviously did before," Sheva announced. "Well, they probably think we're all gone, then," Brit said. "Never assume, Britanny," Jetta said warily. "If I may intrude," Daishi spoke up, standing. The others looked to him. "Yes?" Jetta said. "I know where they are. I could--" "You DO?!" Cheetah blurted out. "Since when?!" "Just prior to my happening across you," he said plainly. "I saw them making camp just south of this place." "Why didn't you S--" Brit began, but was cut off by Jetta. She focused on the ninja. "What are you proposing?" the werewolf asked. "I will reveal myself to them and lead them to a place of your choosing where you all may surround and entrap them." Jetta thought about it for a moment. "On one condition," she said. "Everything from here on in, goes by MY rules. You are in my domain here and will abide my word." "As you wish," Daishi said, bowing slightly. Jetta looked to Brianna and Sheva. "As leader of the werecheetah clan, it is Britanny's responsibility to keep you in line, but I know she won't need to." "We understand," Brianna nodded. "And my word for now is rest," Jetta said. "It is late and I am certain we are all tired. You're all welcome to use whatever surfaces you can find in here." Daishi remained standing and moved to the doorway. "I will take the first watch," he said, before turning to face outwards. THREE HOURS LATER "Damn," Zig frowned. "What is it?" Zag asked him. He handed her the binoculars. "The human is watching guard." "So?" she said. "We'll take him out first and then the--" "And have him raise the alarm?" Zig cut in. "I think not." "What do you propose then?" "He can't stand there forever," Zig declared. "When he goes to relieve himself, or falls asleep, then we go." Zag folded her hands and rested her chin on them dejectedly. "How exciting." 6:29 AM Morgan stretched and walked to the window, examining the grounds of the estate three floors below. The sun was rising beautifully, casting long shadows of the trees across the lush green lawn. He wasted no time in getting to work; he strode to the bedside telephone and pushed its single button. "Yes, sir?" the attendant answered. "Operations," Morgan proclaimed. Five seconds later he was patched through. "Report." "Nothing to report yet," the aide told him. "By GPS readings, they've stayed in the same position for the past seven hours and forty-one minutes." Decisively, Morgan said, "Send in teams 4 and 6 with the same orders. Also, instruct team 6 to... 'persuade' team 2 to return to duty. If they persist in dallying, team 6 is to bring team 2 home immediately. In any condition." "Yes, sir." If the aide questioned the drastic orders, he didn't show it. "Transfer me to carpentry." "Yes sir." There was a click and a pause, then an answer. "This is Morgan," Morgan declared. "I want a sign placed in the werecreature quarters immediately." "What shall it read, sir?" Morgan picked up the note he had scrawled overnight, when he had woken from a dream at one point. To call it a scrawl, though, was a detriment to scribblers everywhere. Even risen from the dead of night, Morgan's handwriting was precise, crisp, and neat. He spoke: "And _Iceron's_ spirit, ranging for revenge, with _J. Randall Morgan_ by his side come hot from hell, shall _all across this land_ with a monarch's voice, cry 'Havoc', and let slip the dogs of war." "I'm already working on it, sir," came the response. "Superb," Morgan said, replacing the receiver. He turned to watch the sunrise some more. TO BE CONTINUED Project HEARD presents Doubled Up: From Wolf to Sheep 06:40AM Britanny woke with a start. She rolled over and saw Brianna was sitting up and rubbing her eyes. "What time is it?" Brit asked. Brianna squinted at her watch. "A little after six," she said. "Anything going on?" "Not that I can tell," Brianna said, peering towards the doorway. She indicated the unmoving figure of Daishi with a wave. "He said he'd keep watch, even after I offered to take over." Britanny nodded. "Don't that beat all," she said, slowly sitting up. "Want me to rouse the others?" Brianna asked. "Nah, let'm sleep some more," Brit said. "Too early to be doing anything serious. Once I wake up, we can start planning." "Roger," Brianna said, and pulled a device out of her pocket. In a few seconds, she was playing Tetris on her PDA. A few moments passed and Brit suddenly said, "Sis?" "Yeh?" "Can we talk for a second?" Brianna glanced over, then hit pause and set the game down. "Sure," she said. "What's on your mind?" Brit appeared to search for the words. "Am I doing okay?" "Huh? Of course you are," Brianna said. "No, I mean it - is there anything I should - or shouldn't - be doing? Is it right for me to--" "Sis," Brianna interrupted. "You're doing fine. I honestly don't know what you're trying to say." Brit sighed and thought for a second or two before speaking again. "This is really important and I don't know if I'm up to the task." "Well, you brought us this far," Bri' pointed out. "Maybe this whole thing is wrong, though," Brit said. "Maybe I shouldn't have brought you all here at all." Before Brianna could answer, a voice came from the doorway to the main bedroom. "I beg to differ." Brit turned, as did Brianna, to see Jetta standing there, leaning against the doorway, a serious look on her face. She propelled herself to a standing position, then walked slowly towards Brit and Brianna. "Were it not for your interventions, the enemy could very well have ambushed me here," she told the cats. She sat crosslegged on the floor between the two ladies, and added, "Everyone has their part to play. You do all that you can, and it will suffice. Britanny. You've never been in a situation like this before, and it scares you. That's understandable. But I know you. I am confident in your abilities. Otherwise I wouldn't have let you stay here - I would have sent you home at the earliest opportunity." She looked to Brianna. "And you, Brianna, I'm sure you know this, as does your sister, but I'll say it anyway. The reason for your being here is much more than simply because your sister wanted your help. You're part werecreature, which makes this as much your battle as it is Britanny's and mine. It's the duty of all of us to do what we can to protect our clans - be they 3 people or 300." Brit nodded. "We hear you, Jetta," she said. "And we intend to do everything we can." "Good," Jetta nodded. "I will go wake your companion. What of the ninja?" "He's still watching," Brianna said. "Either something's caught his attention or he fell asleep standing up and eyes open." A half-mile away, in the underbrush, Zag was saying virtually the same thing. "Well," Zig told her, "we can't stay here forever. Maybe we should back off and come around from another angle." "Whatever we do, we need to do it soon," Zag complained. "My legs are falling asleep." "Must you complain about everything?" Zig groused. "Fine, stand up, but do so carefully so you're not spotted." The female weredoberman slid herself up the tree she was against until she was standing upright, neatly pressed against the trunk. "I don't think he saw me," she declared. "Good," said Zig. "But we need to decide. Do we stay here or go on to another location?" "Sssh," Zag hissed suddenly, turning her head to look around the tree, away from the village. "Hmm?" Zig said, just faintly detecting the footsteps himself. "Someone came around to our flank?" "Impossible," Zag whispered. "We've been watching. No one left the tree." In moments, a pair of weredobermans became visible through the underbrush, surprising Zig and Zag to no end. "Kellan! Brisey! What are you doing here?" Zig hissed. "What you're NOT doing," Brisey, the larger of the two males, said. "We're to attack and put down the interlopers, and return you to base for reconditioning promptly. So help us complete the task and we can all go home all the sooner." Zag blinked. "We can't," she said with disbelief. "They're waiting for us." "We must," Kellan told her, ignoring her explanation. "I will not go into a guaranteed losing situation," Zig said defiantly. "Then you will be dealt with," Kellan said. "Brisey. Secure them." Brisey stood up and cracked his knuckles. "At once," he agreed. "I don't see them any more," Brianna said, lowering her binoculars. "They retreated into the bush a minute or two ago." "I concur," Daishi said. "They have moved. Perhaps only to lure us out." "We'll take that chance," Jetta declared. "Are we all ready?" "Yeah," Britanny nodded. "As we'll ever be." "Let us go, then," Jetta said. "If they attack, scatter and meet up at the pre-arranged site. On three.." Three seconds later, the five of them darted out from the treehouse and hurried along through the forest. Their eyes were out for any signs of movement from the trees, but no one came to attack. "This I don't get," Sheva said. "I thought these guys were supposed to be chompin' at the bit to get at us." "Idunno, Shev," Brianna said. "I can't spot'em anywhere now." The group made it out of the clearing and deeper into the forest, where they stopped after they found cover. "What now?" Brit asked Jetta. "This is most unexpected," Jetta said. "To be honest, I wasn't at all confident we'd make it out unchallenged. Still, the solution is to defeat these creatures so the village is safe for my people again. Once they're safely back in place, we can then go after the person responsible for this." "So now we have to track them down when we don't know where they are," Brianna said. "Great." "I will locate them," Daishi said, leaping into the tree branches. "No, wait--" Brit said, but it was too late; the ninja was gone yet again. "Don't waste your breath," Sheva told Brit. "He wouldn't listen anyway." "Let him be," Jetta told the others. "Maybe he'll actually find them for us." Zig and Zag again found themselves on the run. "This is not good!" Zag snapped at her partner. "Did I say it was?!" Zig shot back. "Who would have expected this??" "Apparently we're not doing the kind of job our leader expected," Zag said. "We FAILED." "I disagree," Zig countered, "but whether or not we did is now a moot point. We're the hunted. Along with our former quarry." "I won't go back," Zag told him with an almost plaintive undertone. "You know if we go back we'll be thoroughly de- and re-programmed." "For once, I'm with you," Zig nodded, patting her shoulder. "I don't know if you're going to like my plan, though." "If it doesn't involve us being captured and tortured, I'm for it," she said. "Hmm," Zig mused. "Exactly my point." "Well, are you going to tell me or what?" Zig looked at his mate for a long moment before responding. Brianna came out of the treehouse with a couple of oranges and a jug of some kind of liquid. "This's what was left." Jetta looked over and nodded. "Juwan loved oranges," she said. "I don't know how she could keep them fresh so long, but those look good." Brianna passed them out, and they were sliced open and distributed amongst the four of them. Daishi was still nowhere to be found, having vanished over two hours before. "I give up," Brit said. "I have no idea where he is." "Don't worry 'bout him," Sheva said, chewing on a wedge of orange. "He c'n take care of himself. And even if he can't, no big loss." Britanny paused, looking around at the people before her. She then looked down at her feet and kicked in the dirt a little. "I dunno about that.." "Brit?!" Brianna blurted out. "What do you mean?" "Well, he's shown a lot of good towards us all'a'sudden," she murmured. "He could've just as easily never shown himself to us, and then we wouldn't be as far as we are now.." Jetta was the next to speak, as she put a hand on Cheetah's shoulder. "Well put, Britanny. Even I could learn a thing or two from you. There's a time for making enemies, and there's a time for making those enemies something els--" Everyone looked up as Daishi dropped from a nearby tree and into their midst. "They are coming," he said simply. "What??" Brit said, standing up quickly and shedding Jetta's hand. "Now," Daishi stressed. "From the east. Slowly and carefully." "Everyone find a house!" Jetta hissed, darting off to one side and vanishing into a tree-house. Sheva and Brianna hurried off as well. Brit looked at Daishi, who looked back at her and nodded, before leaping up into the forest canopy. Brit turned and fled to a nearby tree-house as well. Several tension-filled moments passed, and then they could hear footfalls through the forest. Another few moments passed and the footfalls stopped, and a male voice called out: "We intend no harm! We need to talk. There's been.. a development." Britanny looked across the clearing to Jetta, who fixed a firm expression on her face and shook her head. Likewise, Sheva and Brianna were regarding one another with incredulity. "We're coming forward!" the male shouted again. After a moment, from a bend up ahead in the path, two creatures became visible. Bipedal yet furry, they were in their hybrid form. Thin, pointed ears poked out from under a head of very short brown and black hair. Wiry yet muscular bodies propelled the two people forward, their hands held aloft in the universal gesture for surrender. Brit and Jetta stepped out of their hiding place after the two had passed, and suddenly they turned to face the two women. Brianna and Sheva came up from behind, and Daishi dropped down in between Jetta and Britanny. "We come in peace," the male said. "Yeah, yeah, we heard you the first time," Brianna said, suddenly sighting down the length of an M-41A pulse rifle. The female shivered and looked around at the people surrounding her. "W-we are in danger now too," she stammered. "We need your help." Britanny winced as she saw her friend tense up. Jetta surged forward and tried to grab the female by the throat. "How DARE you!" the alpha of the wolf clan thundered. "You.. you come here, and DO THIS--" She swept her free hand around the forest "--and...!" Brit stepped in and took hold of Jetta's choking hand. "Jetta... let's listen to them first. Okay?" Jetta turned and glared at the werecat. "You of all people should know how I feel--" "I do," Brit nodded evenly. "That's why I want you to back off." Slowly, Jetta allowed her hand to be moved away from the woman, who backed away, rubbing her throat. "Talk," Jetta bit out. The male stepped forward. "Yes, it is true we were sent here to capture or expel you. But a problem has cropped up." "Spit it out," Brit said, folding her arms in front of her. The female looked to Britanny. "We have been declared 'defective' because we didn't engage you quickly enough. Others have been sent to finish the job and retrieve us for reprogramming." Jetta looked up and about sharply. "There are more out there?" "At least another pair," the male said. "We managed to escape them, but for how long, we don't know." "What kind of offense are they likely to take?" Daishi interrogated the couple. "What are their weaknesses?" "They have none," the female said fearfully. "Unless you count an unrelenting attack." "I am not leaving here a second time, Britanny," Jetta said as Brit was about to say something. "This is where it ends." "We will help you," the male told them. "However we can." "Idunno," Brianna said, still holding her gun up, but not actually aiming at them at this point. "Consider this," Daishi said to the group. "Until a few short days ago, you never would have dreamed of collaborating with me." The others thought about that for a moment. "Okay," Britanny said, "but understand this: The first time you two cross us, you're gonna wish you'd stayed whereever you came from." The male nodded. "I understand, and you have nothing to fear." He gestured to his companion, who was still rubbing her neck. "I am Zig, and this is Zag." "Of course you are," Sheva said. "Funny, I was expecting Zeus and Apollo," Brianna quipped. "I am Jetta, leader of the werewolf clan. This is Britanny, leader of the werecheetahs." Jetta looked at the two dobers critically. "But I suppose you already know that." Zag shook her head. "No. We were only told to observe, and then, confront and expel. To us you are only intruders." Jetta glared at them for a moment and snapped, "This is my HOME. YOU are the intruders." "We know that now," Zag said. "We don't agree with the plans our master has put in place. We thought we would be defenders." "Not dominators," Zig added. "We have no intention of taking territory that has already been claimed. And we aren't interested in killing." Jetta simply snorted. "I swear to you, we were not part of this," Zag implored. "It is true we confronted the werecat, but we thought she was an interloper at the time. We would only fight back in self-defense. It is the others who would wantonly destroy anything in sight." "Pretty convenient to blame them when they're not around," Brianna observed. Zig turned to her. "It is the truth. That's why we're running now." Jetta hmm'ed. "How many are coming for us now?" "At least one pair," Zag offered. "More than likely more." "They would not tell us this if they planned on an ambush," Daishi spoke up. "He's right," Sheva said. "They're probably telling the truth." Jetta weighed her options. "Stick close to me," she told the two. "Always in my sight. If you stray, I promise, you'll regret it." "Are you sure this will work?" Jetta said. "Oh sure!" Brianna told her with a grin. "I saw it in a movie once." "If you say so," Jetta said warily. "Fer cryin' out loud, you're not seriously gonna do that, are you?" Brit blurted out. Brianna retorted, "I've always WANTED to!" Brit just shook her head. "You're nuts." "Thank yew!" "Ladies," Daishi said, "We must be quiet if we expect to lure them into any kind of trap." "He's right," Sheva said. "Let's get at 'er." And so, the five of them slid into hiding places in the woods. The two weredobers were left on the forest path, as part of the plan. They stood at the end of a long straight section, standing and waiting. "Are you sure they can be trusted?" Zag whispered to her mate. "Of course I'm not sure," he hissed back. "But what choice do we have?" As if on cue, two weredobers rounded the curve and stopped as they recognized their counterparts. "Stand right there," Brisey commanded. "We found them," Zag called out. "They're up this w.." She trailed off as two more weredobers followed Brisey and Kellan around the bend. "I said stand to," Brisey said sternly. "You cannot redeem yourselves at this point." "We weren't expecting more than them," Zag whispered to Zig. "I know," Zig responded. "Stay calm." By this time, Brisey, Kellan, and the others had advanced a third of the way up the path. The others, who neither Zig nor Zag knew, spread out as far as the path allowed and kept advancing as well. "We won't willingly come," Zig spoke up. "You'll have to come and get us." Brisey said, "We intend to," and then spoke up a little louder. "Seize them!" "Whaa?" Zag said, turning and spotting four more weredobers rapidly approaching her and Zig. She yelped, and hopped to one side, as Zig did likewise. All of a sudden, several logs swung sideways across the path like scythes, sweeping the two accompanying Brisey and Kellan off their feet and into the woods. The two pairs going after Zig and Zag split up, each pursuing one of the two, and suddenly the woods came alive with movement. Daishi dropped in - literally - on the pair that was chasing Zig. Jetta and Britanny went after Brisey and Kellan. Brianna stayed in the forest and sought out the two that got swept away, and Zag faced off against the final pair. For an instant, it seemed as if it would be a simple confrontation. However, once the weredobers regained their senses, they all pressed the attack. "Urgh!" Brisey said, taking a hard swipe across the face and chest from Jetta. "This one is tough!" "Keep on," Kellan urged. "Finish them as ordered, and then we can UNGH!" Britanny stood over the now fallen Kellan, fist balled up. "Take THAT, you big ol' bully!" "Don't let up, Britanny!" Jetta shouted, pressing the attack against her foe. Zig let Daishi face off with his pursuers, and headed to support Zag, who was being set upon by another pair. "Give them hell!" he exclaimed, and dove into the fray, snarling and flailing about. Zag only grunted acknowledgement, then waded into the jumble of arms and legs again. Brianna managed to lure her pair out of the woods, and even though they had taken direct hits from flying tree trunks, they were still ready to engage her in a fight. she said to herself, and put up her fists, hopping around like a boxer. Sheva glanced at Daishi, who was handily beating the two he was fighting. She sized up Brianna and Jetta, who were soundly taking care of Brisey and Kellan. However, Zig and Zag were taking a huge beating from their two attackers. And Brianna... "HAAALP!!" Brianna was hollering, being carried away by the pair of dobers. They'd already relieved her of her techno-gadgets, stomped underfoot and turned into splinters of plastic and metal. "NNNGH!" Zig grunted. The male holding onto him was trying to bend him over backwards in two, like trying to snap a pencil. Zag had the female of the pair trying to close her jaws on her throat, wrapped around her body to prevent her from struggling. "Shit," Sheva murmured. "What'm I gonna do??" Daishi, Britanny, and Jetta were still preoccupied with their own battles. Sheva watched as Brianna was carried further away, and the two weredobers grunted in pain and tried to wrestle with their own foes. "Oh for cryin' out.." Sheva finally said to herself, feeling dumb suddenly. "I can do both!" With that, she took off at speed and snatched Brianna away from the two who were running away with her. She deposited Brianna in a safe spot, then ran back towards the others. Zig blinked as the pressure was relieved from his spine. By the time he gained his bearings, a red and orange blur was plowing into the woman clinging to Zag. The woman rolled and tumbled, and the blur came to a stop, resolving back into Sheva. Zig delivered a kick to the man who'd been fighting with him, and he reeled back into Daishi, who'd dispatched his two foes. The ninja turned around and started in on his new quarry. Sheva and Zag went after the one who'd been trying to tear out Zag's vocal cords. In moments, she too, already dazed by Sheva's lightning-speed attack, was out of action. Jetta had Brisey and Kellan well in hand, so Britanny turned her attention to the two who'd been carrying Brianna away. They were already wounded from their meeting with the trees, so when the were-cheetah snarled at them, they promptly turned and ran off. Finally all that were left were Brisey and Kellan. They were injured and winded, and backed off from Jetta a little, trying to catch their breath. "This isn't over," Kellan snarled. "Don't think you've won." "Yeah, yeah, we've heard that before, wiseguy!" Brianna crowed. "Move it!" Jetta still faced off against the weredobers, as they slunk around gathering their wounded and fled. "Let them go," Daishi suggested. "We have sent their leader a message." Jetta growled a little and nodded reluctantly. "Thank you," Zig said to Sheva with surprise. She shrugged and nodded. "What are you going to do now?" "Leave," Zig said plainly. "We're not safe to be near," Zag agreed. Britanny looked at the two. "You can get help," she told them. "Spend some time with us. We know peop--" "No," Zig cut in. "We will be hunted now. We've caused enough trouble for you. Just forget about us--we will survive." Brianna opened her mouth to say something, but Zig stood up, pulling Zag to her feet, and bounded away into the woods. "Let them go," Jetta said, though no one had made a move to follow. "They'll have enough to worry about without us breathing down their necks." Britanny blinked. "Jetta, I'm impressed." "Don't be," the werewolf said dismissively. "After I return the clan here, I'll decide if I want to track the bastards down and make them lead me to their boss. Rest assured, someone is going to pay the price for what they have done to my people." "I know," Brit said. "In your place I'd do the same." Jetta nodded, then squared herself against her friend. "You should be proud of yourself, Britanny, and your sister and friend. You did well here. Each of you proved to be a true champion of your clan, and I'm honored that you stood by my side to help me." "No problem," Brit said, allowing herself a smile. "It was something we had to do. And frankly... (I don't believe I'm saying this...) We couldn't have done it without the help of.." She looked around. "Hey, where'd he go?" Brianna and Jetta turned to search the clearing as well. Naturally, Daishi was nowhere to be seen. "Huh. Don't that beat all," Brianna said. "You didn't expect him to stick around, did you?" Sheva countered. "She's right," Jetta said. "His job was done, his mission over. And if you'll excuse me, mine's not quite complete yet. I have to go summon my clan to return to their home." "We'll get out of your hair," Brit nodded. "Best of luck, Jetta." "And you," the wolf nodded, with a slight smile. "See you around." MONACO "Sir," came the voice from the doorway. "I'm afraid I have bad news." Morgan didn't turn from the window. "Go on." "Team 2 has gone AWOL, and the other teams are returning with 100 percent injuries. And the others have stayed in the Irish territory. I fear we've lost control of the region, sir." Morgan sighed. "Do you want the returning members deprogrammed or re-engineered, sir?" "No," Morgan said tiredly, jogging the wineglass back and forth so the liquid inside swirled about. "Perhaps it's time to review our plans and see if there's a better way." "Sir?" "Return the teams to base and put them off active duty. Let them rest until they are fully healed, and then put them in continued skill training. I'll have to take some time to think about things." "Yes, sir," the aide nodded, and hastily left the room. Morgan continued to swirl the wine, watching out over the sea, silently pondering. THE NEXT AFTERNOON "We're home!" Brianna called out triumphantly as she pushed the door open. Sheva and Britanny followed behind her. "About time!" Gina said, looking up and pausing her videogame. "Where've you all been, anyway?" "It's a long story, Gina," Sheva said. "Suffice it to say we did a good job--" "Nuh-uh!" Gina countered. "Every time I go somewhere, Brit makes me spill the beans before I even get my boots off! So park it, ladies, and give me the low- down on every last little detail." "All right, all right," Britanny said mutedly. "Siddown and I'll tell ya." Gina did, and Brit did; she explained everything that happened and their roles in relation to it all. At the end, an enraptured Gina let out a low whistle. "Jinkies," Gina said. "That's amazing. That's five different KINDS of amazing. Do you think you'll see them again?" "This guy sent four waves of dobermans against us," Brianna said. "Not including the first pair. He's not gonna stop now." "I agree," Brit nodded. "I want some help from you later, Gina. I wanna know where a guy could get the kind of know-how to do all this, and where he's most likely to be holed--" Britanny was interrupted by the phone ringing. Gina leaned over and picked it up, saying, "Diggers residence!" The others looked on as she gasped. "What? How long ago? Is she... okay, I'll be right there!" "What?" Brianna said. Gina turned to them with a worried look on her face. "Something's wrong with Rhianna," she said. "Keys! Where are your keys?!" Sheva held up her hand. "I got 'em!" she said. "I'm comin' with ya though." "We all are--" Britanny said, standing up. "No you're not!" Gina cut her off. "You two stay here and set up the medlab in case I need it! And prepare the hyperwave-transporter in case I have to bring her here quick!" With that, Gina and Sheva hurried out the door and sped off in the Mark 8. TO BE CONTINUED IN "FLIGHT FOR LIFE" Project HEARD presents Doubled Up: Flight for Life In the midafternoon sun, few shadows fell to any decent length. Still, a skilled person could use them to their advantage, and that's what Galford, a.k.a. Daishi, was doing. From tree to tree and ridge to overhang he darted, defeating the detection systems built into Lord Talon's lair's entryway. Entering the tunnel, he let himself relax ever-so-slightly. In retrospect, he'd curse himself for that, feeling like he was going soft. In actual fact, it was pointless to worry about, because his cover was long since blown. "Where were you?" Erwin Talon called out from the other end of the tunnel, hands on his hips. Daishi hesitated ever-so-slightly, almost imperceptibly, then continued on. "Personal business," he rumbled as he passed the child. Talon reached out and grabbed the ninja's forearm; only because Daishi let it happen, but the point was made. "I don't have time for personal quests." Daishi turned and stared down the younger man for a moment, then slid his arm effortlessly out of Pee Wee's grasp. "And I have no time for empty threats." Pee Wee blinked and sputtered as the ninja walked away from him. "Empty!.. I.. I'll show you! You'll regret this, Galford!" (I have my regrets,) Daishi said to himself as he continued down the corridor. (Chief among them is not seeing through your charade years ago.) Zag waited for her brother to catch up. When he did, he asked, "Why are we heading this way?" "Unfinished business," Zag said bluntly, continuing to walk along. "Unfin--" Zig blurted out. He started running after her again. "You can't be serious!" She whirled on him. "I am," she said. "Don't tell me you think our brothers and sisters deserve the treatment they're getting." "Of course not, but--" "Then let this end tonight," Zag said firmly. "We have the ability. I know we do. Jetta and Britanny were right. He has to be stopped." After a long moment, Zig said, "They really changed your mind about all this, didn't they?" Zag nodded. "Our destiny is our own," she declared. "Not his." Brianna and Britanny watched the car speed off with Gina and Sheva aboard. "What the hell's goin' on??" Brit asked. "You know what I do," Brianna said. "Which isn't much." "Are we gonna just let them run off like that?" "We have to," Brianna said, beckoning towards the elevator as she walked that way. "Gina's expecting us to set up the labs for her, so we better. She might be back at any moment." "What could be wrong, though?" Brit asked, squeezing into the elevator with Brianna. She put her hands behind her head and said, her voice softening, "Rhianna's origins are closest to yours. Did you have any, y'know.. problems?" Brianna frowned, her finger lingering on the door-close button after she pressed it. "No," she said. "Not that I know of. But she has that weird thing she got from the Dynasty." "I hope that's not what it is," Brit said. "Why's that?" Brit looked down at Brianna, pausing. Then said, "We've never figured out a way around the Dynasty yet. I don't think we're any closer now than we were before." In the car, Gina was talking on the phone while Sheva drove like a madwoman. "What's that.. uh-huh.. where is she now? Well, when did she leave? Okay. Okay.. Sheva and I are on the way now. I know, but we'll start from there. Maybe there's something we can do from there." As Gina hung up the phone, Sheva said, "So what's wrong?" Gina sighed. "I'm not sure," she said. "Ryan says she started acting weird, then ran out of the house. He's really too freaked to get a straight answer out of right now." "You seem pretty calm yourself," Sheva observed. "It's the shock," Gina said. "It hasn't set in yet." "I understand, I think." Sheva paused while she rounded a corner. "So what's your plan?" "I have to figure out what happened to her. That might provide a clue as to where she went." Gina sighed again. "Maybe she'll just come home on her own." Rhianna had been running for almost an hour. She had left the suburbs behind fifteen minutes ago, and dove headlong into the woods, trying to lose her pursuers. Still they dogged her, right behind her every time she checked over her shoulder. She tried to shove them away, but it only worked for a second or two, and then they were back again. "Get AWAY!" she insisted, flailing away at the things that were chasing her. The trees were her only witnesses. Her only choice, she realized, was to keep running. Zig and Zag had finally reached their destination. It'd taken a long time, and finding a weak spot to exploit had been stupefyingly hard, but they'd accomplished it. Their goal was in sight. The two, in their dog forms, looked at one another as they trotted up the winding streets towards their quarry. When they finally reached cover of darkness, they changed to their hybrid forms. Zig helped his sister over the stone wall, then took her hand and was hauled up and over himself. (Tonight, it ends,) Zig said to himself with a frown, looking up the hill towards the mansion at its peak. (You'll pay for what you've done.) Ryan paced in the driveway, murmuring worriedly, until he heard the unmistakable sound of Gina's car in the distance. As he rushed to the edge of the driveway, she was pulling in. "Gina! Thank God you're here," he said. "Listen, I know it's unusual for me, but I really need some help here." "I gathered that," Gina said, getting out and trying to comfort her friend. "Start from the beginning." "We were sparring," he said, as Sheva shut off the car and joined them. "Suddenly she really pushed me away hard--you know, with her skills. I told her to watch herself, but she said she wasn't trying to do anything.. Then, she wrecked the backyard fence just by walking near it... it was like there was some kind of force field out around her by fifteen feet. She kept ranting and freaking out, and then just ran off when I said we'd get her some help." "That's not good," Gina frowned. Sheva nodded, and added, "Do you know which way she went?" "Even better," Ryan said. He tapped his temple. "Don't forget; I have an inside track on what she's thinking. If I were in her place and needed time alone, I know exactly where I'd go." In Monaco, at the same time, Jacob Randall Morgan had just finished his evening meal, and was settling down to start in on a new book. As he began to read, he was distracted by the stack of reports on his fireside table. He slapped the book briskly closed and set it aside, steepling his fingers before him in a pose of consideration. Things weren't going exactly as planned. One of the teams had deserted him. The others, sent to retrieve them, failed at their mission. (What am I doing wrong?) Morgan wondered. (What can I do to solve this problem?) (Do I write off the deserters, or expend time and resources eliminating them?) (Maybe the whole program is a wash,) he thought. (Perhaps I should check the scrolls again and see if I..) Just then a red light started winking on the telephone. Morgan frowned at it, and then picked up the receiver and pressed the button. "What's the meaning of--" "Sir! Intruders!" interrupted the security chief on the other end. "The missing team, they've--" Morgan looked at the receiver as the line went dead. He hadn't heard that right. Had he? The lights suddenly went out in the room. Morgan moved to the window and saw that every light in the compound was extinguished. Peering into the darkness, he frowned. (Was that a--) "Granddad!" came a frightened voice from the doorway. "I'm scared!" "It's all right," Morgan said, opening his arms and gesturing for the boy to join him in the room. "There's nothing to fear." Just as the child reached Morgan's side, the windows imploded in a cacophony of crashing glass and reflected moonlight. Gina frowned as she glanced in the rear-view mirror. "Dammit," she cursed. "What?" Ryan said, turning halfway around in his seat, as did Sheva. "Don't look now, but guess who's behind us," Gina spat. She watched as a familiar Gulfstream business jet came up alongside to the left. Through the cockpit glass, she could see Zelda piloting, and Erwin 'Pee Wee' Talon pressed against the window, trying to look as smug as possible. "Well, well, what have we here?" he called out on GUARD, the international distress frequency. "If it isn't the Gold Digger, trying to sneak away to another site no doubt filled with treasu--" "Don't start, Pee Wee," Gina cautioned. "I'm not in the mood!" "Oh-ho," he sneered. "I must have hit a nerve. Did my guess come too close to the truth? Is--" "Go to hell, Talon!" Ryan shouted. "Mind your business, Tabbot!" Pee Wee shot back. "I've been beaten to the punch too many times by your squeeze of the month, and I don't--EEK!" This last outburst came as a result of Gina wrenching the wheel/yoke hard to the left, banking the flying car sharply into the G-4's path. Zelda had to perform some impressive maneuvers to keep the two crafts from merging into one and raining down over the ocean and North African coast. "You're insane, Diggers!" Pee Wee said, instructing Zelda to bank away and make some distance. "Don't think I'll just back off because--" "Pee Wee. You have TEN SECONDS to get and STAY out of my way before I start showing you what all I've added in the way of 'protection' to my cars!" Gina shouted. The aircraft continued to bank off, until it disappeared from sight. "Geez," Ryan sighed. "What a little runt." Both Ryan and Gina heard a growl from the back seat. Sheva sat there, folding her arms across her chest. "He'd better not have anything to do with this," she snarled. "Or I'll make him regret it for the few minutes he'll live after I find out!" THE SAHARA DESERT Rhianna huddled against the hot desert sand, shivering despite the blazing sun. She felt the sensations continue, as they had for days already, and tried to ignore them. It was no use; it was like trying to stop an avalanche. Everything was gathering, building speed and mass as it went on. The hallucinations had stopped, and she knew now what was going on. Her power was expanding, in what could only be considered a normal way. But the power was never designed for her, and it was clear that she wasn't going to be able to handle it for much longer. A sandstorm came up, sending the landscape around her into a frenzy. She looked up and realized she wasn't being touched, or buried. As she examined her immediate surroundings, she found a sphere of protection, as if she was repelling the sand from all around her. She could feel the pressure on all sides, and realized it was all her subconscious could do to keep it from closing in on her. It was her survival instinct that was keeping her kinetic powers from destroying her. (If my kinetic powers are doing this, I wonder what are my healing powers doing?) she asked herself silently. She couldn't detect anything happening on that front, and for a split second, wondered if she should give in to the kinetic energy, and just rely on her healing powers to get her out of the jam. (No,) she answered herself swiftly. (I have no guarantee of what will happen--in either case.) Presently, her watch beeped. She jumped and yelped, causing the adjacent sand dune--which had been created by the storm piling sand up against her shield--to shift and collapse. She looked to her watch as it broadcast Gina's voice. "Rhi'! Where are you?.." "Stay away, Gina!" she yelled into the timepiece. "It's not safe!" "What? What are you talking about?" Gina responded. "At least give me a chance to help you--" "You can't help me! Nobody can help me," Rhianna snapped. "I'm a threat--" "You're my FRIEND," Gina interrupted firmly. "Let me--" "I'm NOT your friend!" Rhianna hollered. "I'm NOBODY'S friend! I'm a creation, and a dangerous one. I'm a weapon!" "What??! Rhianna?! Rhian--" Rhianna tore the watch from her wrist and flung it as far away as she could. As it passed through her force field, it became crumpled like a tin can, wadding into an item not quite the size of a jelly bean. "S-stay away," Rhianna said to herself, frowning and huddling on the ground again. "I know you just tracked me with that signal. Just.. just stay away, for your own safety." The shifting sands started to give way to a more defined shape as Rhianna watched. She lifted her head and blinked as a palatial-like entryway came into view. (What the hell..?) All at once, the realization hit her; why this place had called out to her as the perfect place to go; why she felt a certain calm here; and what it all meant. This wasn't any fortress. It was.. it shouldn't be possible.. but it was an ancient, abandoned, Dynasty stronghold. She could tell it was deserted from just the sensations within her. Still, there had to be something inside that would help her with her problems. She couldn't have come all this way just for a place to die. Zag stopped short in the windowframe. There he was, cowering in the corner, but there was one problem. A young dark-haired boy was standing defiantly over the frail old man. He couldn't have been more than five years old. "N-no!" the boy cried, holding his arms wide as if to better protect his grandfather. "Don't hurt him!" Zag blinked and stared, speechless. She gaped and stammered, "I.." "D-don't hurt him," the child sobbed, standing his ground. "I-I know he's done bad things.. b-but he's still my granpa.." Zag frowned. She crossed the room in three steps and crouched before the child, reaching out to him with a furred hand. He flinched, but held steady, and let her touch his shoulder. "What is your name, child?" "M-michael," he said. "Michael.. my name is Zag," she said. "I won't hurt you or your granpa or anyone else. Not any more. I promise. But I want you to promise ME something in return." "Wh-what?" he said with a quivering lip. "Make sure your granpa, you, or nobody else ever does what your granpa has done. From now on, you keep him in line, and make sure he stays good, okay?" "O-okay," Michael nodded. Zag smiled as the old man nodded as well. "If you keep your promise," Zag said, reaching up to ruffle Michael's hair, "one day maybe we can be friends. One day." "I.. I'd like that," he said, calming down. He and his grandfather looked up sharply as another weredoberman reached the doorway. "It's okay, Zig," Zag said, with only her ears turning to face the door. "Mister Morgan and his young charge were just telling me about how his conglomerate is going to shift focus to more legal pursuits from this day forward. Right, Jacob?" J. Randall Morgan shivered and nodded, finally finding his voice. It was over. He knew if he didn't agree, even if they left today, they'd be back another day. Perhaps when Michael wasn't around to see it. "Y-yes," he said. "I swear." "Be sure you keep your word," Zag smiled devilishly, standing up. "We'll be checking in on you often. Just to make sure." She turned and bolted, and with Zig, darted from the mansion into the night. "Oh my God," Sheva pointed from between the seats. "Look at that!" "What?" the two front-seat passengers stereoed, looking in the direction Sheva was pointing. "There," she cried out, and then they saw it; looming in the near-darkness, a monolithic structure. It had odd markings all around its entranceway, but there was a problem. Gina set the car down, throwing caution to the wind; it would be hard to lift off again, with the sand partially covering the car, but that was the furthest thing from her mind at the moment. She ran for the entranceway, and stopped short, gasping, as the others caught up. "It's collapsed," Gina frowned, gesturing to the entry. It looked recent; the stone and rock was still settling, with some of the fine grain sand still running through the cracks and crevices. "She did this," Ryan suggested. "She doesn't want us to follow and used her power to block us." "What now?" Sheva asked. "We have to try to find another way in," Ryan said. "I'll bet that there's a back door somewhere around here." "I'll look this way," Sheva said, pointing to their right. "We'll stick together and come around the other way, and meet you halfway," Gina said a little quickly. Ryan looked at her curiously, then nodded to the faux-werecat. "Right," Sheva said, and was off. Ryan looked down at Gina. "What was that about?" he asked. Gina looked up at him with a worried look. "I don't want to be alone right now," she said, starting to lead him in the direction he'd indicated. "With my demons.." "Your demons?" he said, taken aback. "Whad'ya mean?" "It's clear," she frowned, folding her arms before her and frowning. "It's my fault..." "Your fault?" Ryan said. "If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I pushed her. I must have made her accelerate her powers or something." Gina blinked as Ryan hugged her, still walking along. She turned and reciprocated it upon him. "I don't know," she said. "I don't think you can push someone over the edge like that. Especially when it comes to these things. Like, Brit never went too far. She and I rough-housed all the time. Y'know?" "Yeah," Ryan said softly. "I know." He continued along with Gina, scanning the sands, and settling for holding onto her hand, which she allowed without a word. "Don't forget.. Rhianna came from me. We're cut from exactly the same cloth. And I want to make sure you know.. no matter how angry or upset I seemed.. I can't ever thank you enough for helping me. And I know Rhianna's going to feel the same way WHEN we find her. Everything is going to be okay." Gina paused for a moment, then squeezed Ryan's hand. She looked up at him and smiled, receiving the same in return. "I hope you're right about that." Rhianna walked along the corridors of the fortress slowly and carefully. Her path had to be calculated and thought-out; she realized this soon after entering, as everything she passed collapsed in on itself in a swift, soundless instant. (I'm way out of control,) she realized. Her hands were out to her sides, the power she contained within them just keeping the passageway open long enough for her to pass through it. She studied what she could of the complex, but it was all alien to her. (So quiet here.) She tried to detect any power or artifacts in the building, but it was as she'd expected; it was completely barren. (Maybe it IS a tomb.) "Rielda? Rioldo? Uriel?" she called out, pausing between each name. "Are any of you.. can you hear me?" After a long pause, she nervously tried, "Riel?" No one, not even the woman she'd eliminated to take her power, made their appearance. Rhianna continued on, distantly aware of how far beneath the surface she had to be. Tons and tons of rock and sand separated her from the outside world. (Maybe that's for the best,) she thought. (I'm not going to be able to hold this in forever.) She sat on the marble floor at one point, oblivious to the ceiling compressing itself that much farther down from its normal position. She sat and hugged her knees close to her chin and started to cry. "Why?" she eventually railed at the remaining walls about her. "What did I do to deserve all this?!" If there was an answer, it wasn't provided. She cried for a long time, but not just for herself; she cried for the people that were looking for her, even though it was such a futile act; she cried for the things she'd never gotten around to doing; she cried to express the abject fear in her for what she knew was to come in short order. "Give me your help," she demanded of the walls. "I may have stolen from you, but it wasn't on purpose! I'm one of YOU now.. you have to help me!" Sheva trudged across the dunes, searching for any signs of another entry into the fortress. (I know what she feels like. Well, sort of,) Sheva mused to herself. (I'm an only child in the biggest way, just like her. We both have special abilities and burdens to deal with, and have to balance it all with the pressures of everyday life.) Sheva closed her eyes and sighed. (And on the other hand, I'm nothing like her at all. Then again, we all should be able to say that, or the world would be a pretty boring place.) She blinked and peered into the distance, squinting so she could spot the small hole in the sand. It looked like a cave, or a half-buried mine shaft; regardless, it was probably a way into where Rhianna was hiding. Sheva pushed her way across the sand, hoping Rhianna was in there, and at the same time, trying to figure out what she'd say when they met up. To her surprise, as she entered the cave and let her eyes adjust, there stood her quarry, hands spread wide against the walls of the cavern, looking at her calmly. "Rhi'.." Sheva breathed. "Don't go, okay?" "I have no intention of moving," Rhianna said softly. "You know they're worried about you.. right?" Rhianna nodded at Sheva. "I know," she said, "but this is for the best. I have no control over myself any more.." Sheva blinked as she realized Rhianna was surrounded by an invisible sphere. As mentioned, it couldn't be seen, but its effects on the surroundings could: The walls of the cavern around Rhianna were all pressed outward as if by a force field. Beyond Rhianna was a solid wall of sand, and her hand pressure on the walls was keeping them from collapsing in on her. "There's no solution where we ALL come out of this alive," Rhianna said. She smiled weakly. "I don't believe that, and I know you don't either," Sheva said with growing firmness. "We all grow, and.. this is just the next stage for you. Everyone will be there to help you on the way." "There's no help for me," Rhianna insisted, still eerily calm. "I can feel it. This is happening way too fast for anyone to help. The only people who could help me are the Dynasty family members, and we both know where they are now." "Rhianna.. listen to me," Sheva said. "Think about Brianna. She went from a creation of pure evil into Gina and Britanny's most trusted companion.. their SISTER. You can have a success story as good as that one. All you have to do is come with me." "Sheva--" "And Gina really is shook up by what you said. And to tell you the truth, so am I. We all started out in some really strange situations, but we've all grown to be the best of friends. And nothing like THIS little situation will ever change any of that." "That might be true if I could go somewhere without causing damage to people or places," Rhianna said. "Who's to say you can't?" Sheva countered. "Let's find that out for sure, before we start writing anything off, okay?" "You're not listening to me," Rhianna told her. "Look at all this around me. You're in danger if I flinch even one bit." "So I'll back out, and you come with me slowly. Then we'll all go back to Gina's and check you out. See what we can tell. If anyone can figure it out, she can. Right?" "'We all'?" Rhianna said quizzically. "Me, Ryan, and Gina," Sheva explained softly. "They're outside looking for you." As an afterthought, she added, "The others wanted to come, but Gina figured she'd need someone to prep the lab in case she had to get you back there quickly. That should prove to you how important you are to her." Rhianna looked at Sheva for a long time. "Go on," she said, nodding towards the exit. "I'll follow only when you're outside and safe." "Okay," the faux-werecat said, backing up slowly. Zig hurried to catch up to his sister. "Zag!" he called, out of breath. "Don't ask," she said, frowning. She refused to look back at him. "I have to," he insisted. "Why did we stop?" She stopped and spun on him, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Did you not see the child?!" she snapped, ears folding back. "I couldn't do it. Not with him pleading with me." After a long moment, Zig nodded. "I understand," he said softly. "Besides, it would only add insult to injury, if you accomplished your task properly." "I did," Zig nodded again. "All the records and computer backups I could find were eliminated. Our brothers and sisters took their freedom with confused thankfulness. Iceron's work will never again be duplicated." "Good," Zag said, nodding. "That's all we needed. He was getting greedy. He needed to be reminded that he doesn't need might and muscle to make a dollar." "I suppose." "There's nothing wrong with him remaining a successful businessman," Zag said. "Maybe one day we can see him in a positive success story. Just not at the expense of slaughtering someone else or dominating over them." "And maybe in a few years you'll have a teenaged boy that will remember you and take your advice to heart, hm?" Zig said with a nudge. Zag smirked somewhat. "Perhaps," she admitted. "What now?" Zig asked. Zag thought for a moment. "I'd like to go to Ireland," she said. "Maybe we can start something GOOD there. And then, perhaps, Atlanta." Gina and Ryan blinked as Sheva emerged from the side of a dune nearby. "Hey!" she called across the sands, waving. "I found her! She's coming out." The two started to hurry across the dunes, until Sheva told them to keep their distance. Gina stopped and held Ryan back with an outstretched arm. "Tell her we're here to help!" the eldest Diggers sister said. "I did," Sheva told her. "I told her. She's agreed to let us take her home. We just have to keep our distance." Momentarily, after Sheva had put about fifty feet between her and the cavern opening, Rhianna appeared at the entrance, still keeping her hands against the walls. "Rhi'!" Gina said. "You.. you really are all here," Rhianna said with a faint smile. "Okay," Sheva said, turning around and holding out her hand, even though she was so far away. "Come on out now, we're going to figure it out. We'll get you home, and get this solved somehow." "Rh.. sis!" Ryan stammered at the woman in the mouth of the cave. "We can make it better. We all want to help you. We all care! Just come on down and let us find a way to help you." "Ryan.. Gina.. everyone.. I was wrong," Rhianna said. The dune behind her was trembling, as was she; swiftly, the top of the dune behind her began sinking quickly, as if the passageway she'd traveled down was collapsing in on itself. "I'm so sorry." "Rhianna!!" Gina yelled. "Gina.." Rhianna said with a teary-eyed smile, as the rumbling and trembling reached earthquake-like proportions; the dunes and the rock beneath her swirled and imploded in a fountain of dust. "I am.. I'm always.. your friend.." "RHIANNA!!" Gina screamed as the entire area became a massive sandstorm. Everything was shifting and shaking, and only Ryan and Gina were close enough to one another to see each other at that point. Sheva was eclipsed by the crushed rock and sand rushing in towards where the cavern was. The cavern and Rhianna were nowhere to be seen. Ryan bear-hugged his friend, unable to say a thing, partly because of the wind rushing past them, and partly because of the heart in his throat blocking everything else. The gravity well finally ceased after a few minutes; every grain of sand and most of the rock in the area was dragged in towards the area of the cavern, compressed into a giant chunk of glass and stone almost twenty feet across. There was nothing else to be seen, and nothing made a sound. Ryan dragged Gina to safety, and the two watched in abject horror as the glassy rock formed. Sheva managed to struggle her way to Gina and Ryan's feet soon after, bruised and wind-burnt, but otherwise okay. It was hard to tell if her red, watery eyes were from the sand, or crying, or a mixture of both. A WEEK LATER "I saw you all one more time, you know. At my funeral." The Garden of Eternal Peace Memorial Forest was the site of a quiet service on that late fall afternoon. A small group of people had gathered to bury a symbolic coffin--an empty one, save for memorabilia from the departed's short time with them. They couldn't hear or see the overseer among them, but she added her own commentary nonetheless. "I can't believe you all turned out for it! I didn't realize--until it was too late--just how many friends I truly had. I know now how close I was--how close we ALL were. You were right about me growing. I see that now. We ALL grew. Everyone grew in the short time I was with you--and I don't just mean physically." Gina Diggers and Ryan Tabbot arrived together, arm in arm, garbed in mourning black. Ryan did his best to console the young adventurer, but her glasses were pushed aside more often than not, to wipe away tears. She did take comfort in the presence at her side, though, it was clear to see. "Gina.. Ry.. you two are the BEST, you know that? And I can't wait for you to see what the future brings you. I promise it'll be a hell of a ride. And I'll do my best to keep an eye on you. I'm not going anywhere else." The two were met by Britanny and Stryyp'Gia, who talked warmly with them, faint smiles all around. Gina and Britanny hugged. Stripe and Ryan talked together for a few moments, turning to regard the freshly filled grave. "Stripe.. I can't ever thank you enough for the help and advice you gave me. Don't see what happened to me as a failure. There was never any stopping it.. not the way it turned out. Besides, it may have been a failure on one level, but on so many others.. well.. ..Anyway, keep at your studies in your skills. They'll come in handy in the years to come, on the job and off. I'll do my best from this end." "And Brit.. we didn't do much together, but what we DID do was the best. I was a better person because of that. Take good care of Stripe, now, 'cause he's going to have to return the favor in a year or so when you start out on your OWN little adventure." The two sisters became three, as Brianna approached. She looked out of place in the dark, plain dress, but the warm smile showed she was proud to be included. "Brianna.. Bri'.. I feel like you and I had a special closeness. You knew EXACTLY how I felt and what I was going through. You gave me comfort that no one else could. Thanks so much.. and don't be too scared of what lies ahead for you. Everyone'll be right behind you, as always.. maybe even a few you may never guess." The five people gathered turned to welcome one last person into their midst. A watcher may have mistaken her for Britanny, but the entity looking over the gathering knew who it was immediately. "Sheva.. my kin, my sister. I truly believe you and I were put there at the same time to work off one another's strengths and weaknesses, to be each other's balance. We were so much alike, in a lot of ways. But the best for you is yet to come." The scene changed; it wasn't much later, judging by the fact Sheva was still in her mute, dark dress. However, she was no longer at the cemetery. She was leaving a tunnel accessing a certain compound, carrying a small dark sack. A shadowy figure held the gates for her, and she smirked and nodded thanks to him; as she departed, the ninja watched her go, then looked at the corridor. For a fleeting moment, it seemed he would retreat back down it, but then, as if spontaneously, he strode proudly through the gate and batted at it with a hand as he passed through; it slammed shut, and he darted swiftly and silently into the darkness, in the opposite direction Sheva had gone. As the scene faded, watching Sheva leap from shadow to shadow, then finally start walking along the street once she was safely away from the compound, chuckling and laughing, the voice of the overseer drifted in one last time. "You kick some serious ass, girl! Never settle for anything less than your own damn terms. It suits you!" THE NEXT MORNING "Erwin? Erwin! Wake up! There's a delivery for you!" "Gnnh.." the young scientist grunted. He rolled out of bed and fumbled for his glasses. "Coming," he called out, grumbling under his breath that his mother should accept anything delivered to him and bow to his superior intellect and place in the world. Still clad in his pajamas, he signed for the envelope and took it back to his lab, managing to limit the small talk with his mother as he went. Back in the sanctity of his lab, he pulled the tear strip off the envelope, only to have an unlabeled DVD and a small plastic baggie fall to his desktop. He picked up the DVD by the center hole and studied it curiously. It looked fairly benign, so he put it in his computer and scanned it for viruses and trojans. Finding none, he played it. He blinked as a scene came online from his own lab--from the night before! It was clearly taken only a few hours previous, as the calendar he'd just flipped from October to November was in plain view. And the person on the video.. that blasted Diggers--no, it wasn't. It was-- "Listen carefully, you little runt," the recorded Sheva began. "My sentencing from the state ends today. That means all my friends are now under MY protection, and I don't need anyone to babysit me. If anything.. and I mean ANYTHING, happens to any one of them, you'd better hope your alibi is rock-solid.. that you can prove your innocence without a doubt. Because I can and WILL deal with the problem." Onscreen, Sheva put something into a small plastic bag, then smiled and waved. "Remember! I'm WATCHING you." Pee Wee's eyes fell to the desktop where the plastic bag from the envelope sat. He blinked in surprise to see that it contained a lock of sandy brown hair--his hair, looking still freshly cut. With a trembling hand, he reached back to the base of his neck and felt a spot where his neat trim had been disrupted. THE END AFTERWORD And, as they say, there you have it. So ends the Doubled Up/GD Half series. I hope it wasn't too melancholy an ending for you, but it's what came to mind. When I first wrote the two stories that became the core for this fanfic spin-off of GD, I never had any inkling I'd end up writing so much and for so long. Doubled Up was originally little more than a challenge to myself, a quick and dirty short story about what might happen if one of Gina's arch-rivals tried to come up with an opponent that would be able to face off against her bodyguard and little sister. And GD Half was just a fun premise, something dreamed up one night by me and Mario di Giacomo while contemplating crossover ideas. Both were meant to be one-offs, not the introduction to an alternate GD universe. But I wouldn't change a thing if I were given the chance to back up and start it over again. I had loads of fun doing this, and I'd like to think that people had fun reading it. Having said that, I think this is going to be my last GD-related fanfic for a while. You might ask why.. well, there are several reasons. Chief among them is I'm interested in sitting back and seeing what Fred has in store for the series now. It's getting pretty interesting lately, and to be honest, it's harder to write for now, with all the twists and turns. Other reasons include that I'm into a lot more anime and manga than I used to be. High on my list are Love Hina, Evangelion, Irresponsible Captain Tylor, You're Under Arrest, and Azumanga Daioh. Each of them either has or will have at least one fanfic written by me. Another thing I'm focusing more on these days is original fiction writing. As some of you may know, I have an all-original science fiction story that's currently about 65-75% complete. Called Fifthworld, it details the story of a technologically advanced young lady who arrives on present-day Earth, not from the future but the past, with a dire warning of things to come. Look for it on this site, and, with luck, as (at least) a webcomic by me and Richard "Lionheart" Sirois. I hope you all enjoyed my GD works, and don't count out seeing some more one day. But for now, I'm going to direct my energy at what's gelling for me. I couldn't have made it to this point without all of you.. the readers and fans, the artists, the critics, friends, family, and everyone else. Thank you all and may you all reach your goals--never settle for anything less! --j. Jason Low 27 December, 2003 04:45 MST