OUTCASTS

The cougar and the serval were able to find the location without much trouble. They settled in, watching the dusty old house from a distance. Rocar's orders were very specific. Just watch, unless the place became Simian city. Neither one of the fur bearers knew the place, the house or its content. That did not matter. They settled in for what they hoped would be a long and uneventful shift.

Vladimir helped Aurora finish brushing herself. While the Male Skiltaire applied the gentle brush, he broke the hard news from Rocar. While she appeared reserved on the outside, Vladimir watched in the mirror from behind as her eyes fill with fear. Vladimir hugged Aurora gently.

Don't worry. Between Shomron and Shalimar, I think we finally have both the intellectual and tactical advantage, love.

I hope so. Aurora sent. I feel that things may get worse. We should be prepared. More of our people may need help if the Military begins open reprisals. We need to be ready to handle larger numbers of refuges.

Vlad nodded. We have a general meeting tonite. I'll bring it up.

"Vladya?" Asked Aurora out loud and intimately.

"Yes, Auchi?"

"Do you think we have a real chance. For the Stars, I mean?" Aurora asked.

"Well, let's see." Vlad began. "In the last two days, we've gained proof that there is a place we might get to, from the only one of us who could have been sure." Vlad recounted. "We also have a Star ship design, where before, we had only a hope. I'd say our chances have improved by about five times. Not bad at all for two days. If we keep it up, in a week or so, It'll only be unlikely, as opposed to impossible. I think we're doing all right."

Aurora reached over and behind her head, and hugged Vladimir's neck gently. "Please bring that up tonite, too."

"I will."

Come along Love Vladimir sent Shomron needs us both in the command center. He sends that he has a surprise for us, and a favour to ask of you.

The pair of Skiltaire embraced once more, and with a happy chirp, headed for the command center.

Shomron led Crystal into the room carefully, and helped her to sit comfortably. He took his seat beside her and waited. He could hear Shalimar and Shazi coming down the other corridor, the Mustelid doctor protesting every step of the way. He fell silent only when Shomron heard Shalimar threaten to carry the otter bodily if needs must. Shazi walked into the command center under his own energy, helped every other step or so by a firm but gentle nose push into his back from Shalimar.

"Now." He barked, annoyed "What's all this stuff and nonsense about having a patient in here and--" Shazi's rant stopped short as he saw Crystal sitting there. Her outer dressing was torn, and speckled with blood. "--And what the duce is she doing in here?" Shazi asked shortly as he pointed a short claw toward the cheetah girl.

"She's the patient. Right Crystal? Shomron asked for Shazi's benefit.

Crystal answered by getting up and letting her ears guide her to the spot where Shazi stood. She stopped and knelt, almost as if she could see. She reached out and took hold of Shazi's paws.

"I apologize for being a problem patent, Doctor." The cheetah's words came on a rich and throaty purr!

Across the table, Shomron smiled as Shazi's hard heart turned to oatmeal. Shomron knew the sensation, all too well!

"Well I suppose under these conditions." He began.

"Oh Thank you, Shazi!" She cut him off adding an impulsive nuzzle!

A Chirp escaped him. He couldn't help it, nor did he want to at that moment!

"Now I have seen too much." A familiar voice interrupted.

Shazi looked over at the Skiltaire couple, not in the least ashamed. "Oh, Hello Vladimir." The otter cooed.

"But." Crystal interrupted "Vladimir is right here. Two Vladimirs?. Isn't that confusing?"

"More than you know." Aurora's mate said laconically.

"I'll explain later, Crystal. For now, we have to concentrate." Shomron explained patiently.

Crystal nodded. "What are you going to do?" She asked.

"When there is complex healing to be done." Aurora explained "We pool our energies, so that no one of us risks hurting themselves in the process."

"Sensible." Crystal observed. "Can you really restore my sight between you?"

"Your damage was mostly flash burns." Shazi spoke up. "If we can regenerate your retina just a little, you should see just fine. Anything special done to your eyes as a construct?" The otter asked.

"I have -had- superior vision. Better than most, but nothing anyone else might not get from nature." Crystal explained.

"Fine." Shazi exclaimed. "Now since Aurora has the strongest healing gift, she will act as the conduit. If she tires, or begins to feel ill, Shomron will be next. Understand?" he asked the group. Everyone nodded, and then Shazi turned to Crystal.

"In order for the healing gift to work best, we require physical contact to transfer the energy. We will have to touch you. On the head, and around the eyes. Will this bother you?" Shazi asked.

"You save my life, and want to heal my sight?" Crystal exclaimed "Any of you can touch me any way you want, anytime. Satisfied?" Crystal purred.

"All right."Shazi explained. "You'll feel the touch, and then in all likelihood, you may feel a bit warm. You may also become a little light headed. Your instincts might tell you that it feels like you're bleeding, but it's only the increased blood flow. Since this is a very complex area, you may become faint. Do you understand?" Shazi asked.

"Yes, Perfectly. I trust you all. Go ahead." Crystal told the group.

"First we have to remove. What's left of the bandages. Anyway, and the pads over your eyes. Shomron, dim the lights please."

Shomron reached over and swept a paw over a sensor globe. As he held it there, the lights diminished to a fraction of their intensity. Shomron found himself looking at her again as the lights faded. He hoped the Lights and her hopes were not doing the same thing. He straightened up, to take paws again in the circle with Krista. Shamir stood on his other side, closing the circle. Shomron noticed the young Lion's rich purr intensify as the cheetah touched a paw to his wide shoulder.

Shazi took a small pair of scissors from the pocket of his smock. With a quick snip, he finished the job that Cystal's claws had nearly finished.

"Aww." Quipped Shomron "That was one of my best dressings!"

Shomron saw Crystal smile in the low light!

Shazi coughed rudely, and continued to unwrap the inner layer of bandages. Two large pads of gauze covered most of her face above her smallish muzzle. Shazi undid the loop of tape around her head, and peeled it back slowly as it came to the pads over her eyes.

"All right, Crystal. I need you to reach up and hold those pads in place for a moment." Shazi instructed.

The female cheetah did as she was told.

Shazi balled up the tape and stuck it in the larger pocket of his smock. He reached up and put his own short digits on the gauze pads. "All right, take your paws down."

As Crystal relaxed, Shazi spoke to the group. "What you are about to see is not as bad as in might first appear." Shazi pre-warned them, and with a simple motion took the pads away.

Across the table, Shomron felt instantaneous regret.

"Crystal? How does that feel?" Shazi inquired.

"Strange." the Air is cool on my skin. I must be missing some fur."

"Yes. Shazi admitted "You were in no mood to let us do our best work, my stubborn girl." Shazi scolded lightly. "We removed a bit more here and there, to make the major part of the burn easier to heal. Scans show it will re-grow about ninety percent. The decanting staff did an exceptional job with you." Shazi observed.

Across the table, as his heart bled, Shomron could not help but agree.

"Oh, Love."Shomron said. "I'm so very sorry."

"Now, now." She replied. "It was an act of war. Now that we've made our peace, Let's hear no more of that." Crystal said without rancor, her voice full of warmth and caring.

Shomron wanted to cry.

"Now, Slowly open your eyes. Slits first, and then very slowly all the way open." Shazi told her.

With her head level, Crystal obeyed. Her eyes became slightly visible behind the de-fured pink lids.

"What do you see?" Shazi asked.

"A distant, light. Blurry. Like looking down a tunnel."

"All right. Slowly now. All the way open, and we'll have a look." Shazi told her.

"I hope I can have a look." Crystal said lightly.

They came open easily.

Shomron gasped softly. Crystal's injured eyes a hypnotic silver-gray. The most penetrating he had ever seen.

"That bad?" Asked Crystal softly.

"No. No. Not at all. They're as gorgeous as their owner." Shomron replied.

Shazi stepped in clinically, reaching for his penlight. "Now how?" The otter healer asked.

"Well, I can see vague shapes, but no depth. It's as if you were all behind frosted glass." She answered.

"Follow the light source as best you can." Shazi said as he moved the small light from side to side. Cystal's eyes responded smoothly as Shazi switched the motion to up and down.

Shomron could count the number of times he had ever seen Shazi smile on a single paw. Now, after fifteen years, he would need the other paw too.

"Good!" Shazi pronounced. "No muscle damage, and the orbits and anatomy appear undamaged." he elaborated. "You seem to have suffered a shock to the optic nerve, together with some flash damage to the retina. Should be much easier than I thought, If the eyeballs interiors are undamaged."

Crystal smiled. So did Shomron.

"Aurora. I think we can begin, if you are ready." Shazi looked across at the Skiltaire.

Aurora nodded. She hopped up on the table, and walked forward, to stand next to Shazi. "You may have to set my paws in the right spots, Shazi. I'm not quite sure where that would be."

As Shazi took hold of Aurora's forepaws, Crystal smiled warmly, and dipped her head a bit. It was as much a gesture of trust as it was one of comfort for Aurora. Shazi placed Aurora's paws with the same exactitude that he would any other instruments. He stood back a moment, to consider, and then reached in again, correcting the position of the left forepaw by the slightest fraction.

"That should be as close as possible. You have a unique cranial development, and I don't have an echo scanner here." Shazi told both of them "But given the resonance and thickness of the skull plates, I'd say that's close enough."

"Would it be any more comfortable for your reach if I held you in my arms, or in my lap?" Crystal asked.

Aurora chirped warmly, thinking what a difference two days had made, and then, she stepped lightly into Crystal's lap! The female Skiltaire noticed Crystal now purred deeply. The she cheetah gently wrapped her lanky limbs around Aurora, So that the Mustelid could sit on her forearm.

"Chirrr!" That's much better!" Aurora said. "Raise me just a fraction, please, Crystal." Aurora asked.

Crystal complied, seemingly without effort, in spite of the fact that Aurora weighed as much as the cheetah herself. "That's fine." Aurora told her. "Just relax, and try to calm your mind a bit." Aurora advised.

"Sorry. Just nerves. Non optic ones!" Crystal joked.

Shomron had participated in healing circles since he was a kit, but inwardly, he always worried when the process began. For Aurora, as for all Gifted fur bearers, it began with intense concentration that seemed to lapse almost into coma for the healer.

Yet, Aurora's eyes were open, locked in a deep stare into Crystal's gaze. Shomron knew the first step was finding a harmonic of the energy between healer and healed. The process deepened in the span of a few heartbeats as the healer became a crucible for the focus of the combined energy of both. What returned to Crystal via Aurora was an intense wave of metabolic energy, comprised of the sum of both of their life forces.

Shomron saw Crystal's breathing change, her full chest heaving slightly as the energy wave accelerated all of her bodily processes, including her own natural healing mechanisms!

Crystal's body stiffened for a moment and then became subtle again, as Aurora's pulse wave swept thru her higher brain centers! Crystal let out a soft mew and her arms went limp. Aurora was prepared, dropping back to her hind legs in Crystal's lap, while the Skiltaire's touch never broke nor slackened.

Aurora's antennae uncurled slowly, as her concentration peaked. Shazi watched from close quarters, becoming more concerned for the Skiltaire as Aurora poured her energy into the healing. She began to tremble slightly. Shazi reached over and with a firm grip, gently broke the Skiltaire's touch to the unconscious cheetah. Slowly, he backed her away, and the tremors subsided.

"That's enough, Aurora. No sense my having two patents unconscious instead of one. Let Shomron take over."

Aurora nodded, and sat back in one of the chairs, looking dazed and tired. "You can't imagine--the power of her mind." Aurora warned weakly. "Or what they did to create it. She's a natural empath. Her mind absorbs psionic energy and amplifies it. She's a living consentrator. Be careful you don't go too deep." She whispered.

Shomron nodded, not at all cheered by Aurora's warning. He reached forward, and Shazi placed the male cheetah's paws where Aurora's had been. Shomron too settled into a light trace-like gaze. Those around the table saw Shomron's body and backfur raise slightly, the outward signs of profound concentration. He held his touch a bit longer than one minute, and then took his paws from Crystal's head. Shamir saw them fall leaden to Shomron's sides. The male cheetah sank gratefully back into his chair.

"The structures seemed normal, from what I could feel of them." Shomron told the doctor. "She must have latent healing ability. The amount of energy flowing from her brain to her eyeballs could probably light this room. We just poured oil onto a bonfire. If it didn't burn out her eyes all together, she should be able to see."

Shazi nodded "We won't know until she's rested." Shazi observed.

"Aurora's energy went thru her higher centers." Shomron told him. "I"d give almost anything to be sharing the dreams she must be having now."

Aurora's tired eyes rolled open slowly. She shook her head. "No." She said, a tone of gentle sympathy in her voice. "You wouldn't."

"I think I should put all three of you to bed." Shazi said with concern.

Shomron waved him away. "I'll be all right. Crystal and Aurora need it more. There's a meeting tonite." Shomron told the otter.

"I could order you to bed." Shazi threatened.

"Look, After the meeting tonite, I'll want to sleep for about the next year or so, All right? It's just an hour and fifteen minutes." Shomron conceded.

"Well, All right, then." Shazi shifted his gaze to Vladimir. "You may have to pick our stubborn leader up with a pair of tongs before the meeting ends. Watch him. I know when I'm licked."

Vladimir smiled, and nodded.

Shazi looked to the two big cats. Shalimar and Shamir managed to scoop up Crystal's solid but limp form, and carry it down the corridor toward the hospital itself. Shazi did the same for Aurora, leaving Vladimir and Shomron alone.

"You know, I'm beginning to think I might be approaching middle age." Shomron said wryly.

"Keep the oldest wine in the darkest cellar." Vladimir shot back.

"I may need a glass or two of it to finish this evening." Shomron observed. As the elder cheetah rose from his chair, Vladimir could see his uncharacteristic stiffness of movement.

Vladimir jumped up onto the table, and motioned for Shomron to turn around. As soon as he turned, Vladimir set both his forepaws to a gentle neck and back massage!

"PURRRRRRRRRR." Said the elder cat from his throat. He sank lower, extending the Skiltaire's reach. "Keep that up, and you'll have to go find those tongs."

Nachtoter was the cat Rocar sent when he needed it done well and quickly. No job was small or minimal to the mountainous black panther. Such was the black cats respect for the white lion. According to the book, Nachtoter could have turned the supply detail over to anyone in the compound. All of them were warriors, light years past the brutish Simians in their understanding of both duty and one another.

But ducking work, even if his station would let him was not in the black cat. If Rocar had asked him specifically to bring their gear home, than something important was happening, and it had to be done right and now, because they might not get a second chance.

The second in command had taken no chances. Each of the six heavy grav-tracs that made up their convoy had a driver and armed escort in the front, and four warriors each in the covered beds. He glanced at Rocar's list of gear, and did some quick tail counting. The requisition form was as thick as his massive black paw, and had enough heavy and light weapons on it to re-equip the whole command three times over. As the Grav-trac hummed swiftly out of the compound, along the deserted road into the City, the panther's alert mind overflowed. The Simians would be better off if they surrendered!

As the convoy entered the flattened Nexis, Nachtoter saw the damage that had been done close up. He had just gotten his first glimpse of the former Internal Security warehouse, when the group was challenged by a Simian roadblock. The Grav-trac slowed to a cushioned stop, and a large Simian with ornate armor and a defiant swagger came out of the guardhouse toward them.

Nachtoter noticed Kumira slide the safety off on his magnetic stunner. The Panther knew the bobcat's temper.

Easy, My friend. Let's not damage them unless we need to. Nachtoter sent.

"Papers!" The Simian growled with an undisguised contempt.

The panther turned his huge head casually, so that his station pips sparkled on his collar. Nachtoter had three body sizes on the sentry. The cat could hear the Simian gasp, and almost smell his bladder drain!

"Watch how you address your betters, Centurion!" Nachtoter growled in return as he held out his orders and authority. It was not lost on the pompous Simian that the same huge paw that held the paperwork flexed easily to show off the panther's four inch claws, a soft white against his inky fur. That same slightly upturned paw could have opened the Simian throat to the light of day.

Nachtoter locked eyes with the Simian in a momentary test of will. The Simian eyes were hollow with primordial fear. Nachtoter curled his lips slightly. The Simian practically ran to the pivot end of the roadblock arm!

After he counted the last of the six grav tracs thru the roadblock, Kumira slipped his safety back again.

"You should have done him. For insubordination." Kumira offered.

"Too much paperwork, and besides, you know I never waste a kill. Simians don't digest well."

Kumira smiled, and began cleaning his own claws.

Nachtoter watched carefully as the group drove past what was left of the Internal security warehouse. A cordon of troops and trucks obscured his vision, but he could make out excavation crews, hard at work, digging for something in the twisted heaps of fallen rubble. He made a mental note to tell Rocar.

The central state military depot was beyond the blast zone, a huge dome, set deeply into the ground. It hummed with traffic in a constant flow. The convoy joined the ant like line of vehicles going in toward one side of the dome. Another Simian, with thankfully less arrogance, trudged up and down the ever moving swarm, perfunctorily checking papers. The job was both thankless and useless, as anyone without them could never have gained access to the great hive.

In due course, the convoy was tagged, and then directed up a series of ramps that served to bring some manner of order to the confusion. At the top of the last ramp, a squad of heavily armed Simians separated, allowing only the lead truck to pass before closing the living gate across the ramp, barring any other vehicle.

Kumira knew where to drive, even without the sharp, shouted orders of the depot master. He had been here twice a month for the entire term of his service, and the bobcat took it personally when some Simian with a clipboard implied he did not know where he was going, or had been a thousand times before. The irked bobcat idled the truck, and dismounted with Nachtoter. As the Simian with the clipboard marched up, he caught sight of the station pips that both cats wore. The insignia was in all the training books, but he'd never seen them attached to a live body. He saluted, his eyes still set on the pips.

"What's the matter, never seen an officer before? EYES FRONT!" Kumira snapped, in his best commanding tone.

The Simian snapped to so hard that the clipboard in his hands fell to the floor!

Nachtoter smiled toothily at the sight of the trained Simian! Without a word, he held out the thick stack of forms. "Here." the panther growled. "Play with these instead. We know what we came after. No, don't bother helping, just hold that pose. We'll just get our gear, and be on our way. Right?"

"Yes. Sir!!" The quartermaster snapped, his limited brain on full automatic.

"Good little flat face. Don't move now!" Kumira said. Then he turned to his fellow cat. "You have to encourage the mentally challenged, you know?" the bobcat asked slyly.

Nachtoter nearly fell over laughing as Kumira walked to and thru the living wall of Simians and waved the other five grav-tracs up the ramp.

She returned to consciousness slowly, like bubbles rising in a glass of spring water. As soon as she realized she was awake, she was fully awake, her every nerve tingling, and her body tense with anticipation. She wanted to see, but all she could see was blackness. Crystal's forepaws urgently found her eyes, and disappointment replaced hope as she felt the tube like blindfold across her eyes!

Her paws began to lift it away, but she felt a pair of otterish paws stop her quickly. "Leave it there. Leave it there." Shazi's voice told her. "You want to get photon shock?" The docotter asked.

Crystal's paws dropped, and her voiced reply was husky with disappointment. "Yes!" she pouted. "I want to see!"

"Oh, you will. For about two seconds, if you do it the wrong way." Shazi explained what Crystal herself all ready knew, but didn't want to admit.

"I shouldn't tell you this." Shazi began."Because officially, you're still a security risk. But. It's been several days since your "accedent Your retinas may be healed. They may not. But either way, they haven't had the work or energy of light across them since the flash overloaded them. Flood them with light now, and you may just as well stand in front of another grenade." Shazi finished.

Crystal knew he was right. She still pouted. "When?" she asked. "I have a lot of Simians to de fur!"

"If your going to take that attitude, I'm sorry I did anything." Shazi told her frankly.

"What?" Why? You don't like them as much as I used to like them. Don't be a hypocrite." Crystal snapped.

"True. In spades." Shazi retorted. "But that's not the way we work around here."

"Why not. They deserve it."

"Maybe. I agree with you." Shazi responded. "But the cheetah you've fallen in love with."

"Does it show that much?" Crystal asked, softening considerably.

"My dear." Shazi told her gently. "You may be able to light rooms with that super brain of yours."Shazi told her "But I'd have to be blindfolded and in the dark not to see how you two affect each other."

Crystal sighed happily. "I was beginning to think there was something else wrong with me." Crystal observed. "He never let on at all."

"That's our cheetah." Shazi replied. "You see, Crystal. As I started to say, he fell in love long ago. With an idea. Non violence." Shazi informed her.

"Oh." Crystal said. "Is that why he works in the hospital?"

"That's why he works. Period." Shazi told her, not wanting to say too much of the wrong thing. "He detests violence. That's why he saved your life."

"What do you mean?"

"Our operational orders usually state that those guarding targets of a resistance raid are." Shazi paused, searching for the appropriate word.

"Expendable enemy personal?" Crystal filled in the cold military term.

"Yes. In plain terms. He saved you because you are a fur bearer. If you had been Simian." Shazi paused. There was no need to say more.

"Not because I'm female and a cheetah?" She asked.

"He would have saved you if you were an asexual lemming." Shazi laid it out straight. "He violates what he believes in most, only because he knows its the only way to defend those who can't defend themselves."

"That's the pain I feel from him!" Crystal said.

"Yes." Shazi said. "And until that pain, and this insanity ends, you might just as well try falling in love with a rock."

"You disapprove?" Crystal asked pointedly.

"None of my business." Shazi said. "But Shom--Vladimir is just in no condition to feel anything. Except determination to his cause." Shazi went on. "I just don't want to see one or both of you hurt. There's enough of that rubbish going on up there, and it can only get worse."

"You're sweet, Shazi." Crystal offered. Then her voice dropped to a purring whisper. "But I promise not to tell anyone!" she said, a smile in her voice and on her muzzle.

Shazi whistled and walked away. Crystal could see him blush, blindfold not withstanding!

The meeting hall was packed so tight that they leaned on one another, the chairs and benches having been sacrificed so that more could pack into the room. Aurora and Vladimir took their customary seats on the small stage, behind the still vacant rostrum. The assembly stirred slightly as the opposite side of the stage was filled and overfilled by a tremendous white lion. His identity was known to all but the youngest of the sleeping kits and cubs!

Shomron came thru the curtains behind the rostrum and stood still, visibly steadying himself on the lectern.

"Gentlebeings, and fellow fur bearers. Members of the Movement, and Friends." Shomron began. "These past days have been filled with tragedy, tumult, heartache and hope. Hope most of all, for our future." He went on, his body and voice gaining the strength of conviction. "There is much to do this nite, My Friends. So let us hear and feel the first of our reports. Aurora."

Shomron stepped back and away, picking up the stool upon which she sat, and moving it toward the rostrum. Aurora sat up and began to speak and send to a room heavy with anxious silence.

Kumira looked on with satisfaction as the last of the tracs were swiftly loaded by its crew of strapping raccoons. Nachtoter had chosen them well. Champion scroungers, bright, cunning and strong. They were the perfect antyhsis of the dull Simians. Each of the Grav tracs stood nearby, now loaded to nearly twice their specification weights with supplies. The list had been both extensive and bulky, but the raccoons juggling cases twice their own weights made it look not only easy, but like an almost obscene amount of fun!

They retrac'ed with their prizes, and sent a ready signal to Kumira. Engines hummed and crackled with full charges, and the heavy laden convoy floated right past the still ramrod straight Simian quartermaster, down the ramps and out into the sunset!

It had been the hardest days work that the construction chief had done in ten years of duty, but as Slasher surveyed the finished cache, hidden from all but psionic seeing, he was immensely proud of his battalion. There was enough of everything and some of nearly everything hidden away, so that no simple Simian would ever find it, even if they could.

Whatever Rocar had decided to do, the hidden supplies would take care of them all, and many more.

"So." Aurora summarized "Our hopes for the future are brighter than they were, altho much remains to do." The female Skiltaire concluded, and paused, waiting for the inevitable questions that she knew would come. Her wait was by no means a long one.

"That's easy for you to say." Said a large bearish type who rose as he spoke. "I live just outside what's left of the Nexis." He exclaimed. "Now, there are Simians everywhere at all hours of the day." The bear paused as the gathering around him buzzed agreement. "Now they are openly bullying and even more of a problem. You gave them the perfect excuse. Now. What will you do about it?" He asked, sounding confrontational.

Shomron rose from his seat behind Aurora and stepped forward. "We can't control what they do. We never have. But the movement is ready to offer protection to anyone who comes to us, as always. For now, it's the best we can do."

"What are you going to do long-term?" The bear asked. "You and I both know that we can't hide all the fur bearers in these tunnels. And the more we hide, the worse our chances of being found out become."

"That's exactly why we have moved ahead in our new direction. We know we have a problem. Better to deal with it when its a seed, rather than a tree." Shomron explained.

"Well, I think we've already branched into trouble." The bear grumbled.

"All Right." Shomron challenged him directly. "This is a free forum. Let's hear your plan. I'm willing to listen. If you have a better idea, we'll follow it."

"Have you thought of talking to them, instead of blowing things up?" The Bear asked.

"You said you had to deal with them every hour of the day. I put it to you. Are they the talking kind?" Shomron asked.

The bear shook his head. "No" he said simply. "They only speak with violence."

"Exactly." Shomron replied. "You all know me. I was Maruda's student. I worship peace. But when they start to hurt us. Even kill us." Shomron paused, and swallowed hard, remembering Maruda. "I don't find a lot to talk about."

The silent bear sat down once more.

Aurora leaned forward again. "Any further comments or questions?"

The room was still oppressive in its silence. "If not, I have an announcement for you all. Two, In fact."

The small stage suddenly became much smaller as Shamir stepped out from the right side, and Shalimar came on-stage from the left. The silence dissolved, It was as if Aurora had run a natural charge of current thru the assembly!

field-begin'>ADVANCE R 13.50 A young clouded leopard jumped to his feet. "Traitor! Along with the accusation, something else flew toward Shalimar from the rear of the packed crowd as they growled as one angry mass!

"KILL HIM!" a voice from the rear roared.

Shamir stepped forward, stopping the thrown book in mid flight, just before it would have smashed into the rostrum. "WHO SAID THAT?? YOU'LL KILL ME FIRST!" The Young Lion Roared back at the unseen voice. The junior cat leapt from the stage down into the packed crowd, spitting them with his sheer size, and startling them with his anger. COME. KILL ME. IF YOU WANT BLOOD,drink mine!"He snarled, his rage passing, but his anger still high.

"He killed your Mother!" another voice Shouted.

"No!" Shamir growled. "The Simians did that. I used to blame him, too. I was wrong."

The startling admission seemed to defuse some of the group's anger. Most of them fell silent, but behind the stillness was a hard edge of tension.

"Don't you see?" Shamir asked. "That's why we're supposed to be different from the Simians up there." Shamir now spoke quietly, softly but with determination in his words. "We're supposed to be advanced beings. Yet, if blood is what you want." Shamir paused, he pivoted his body in a great sweeping arc, so he could face the stage. A single swipe of his forepaw shattered the glass front of the rostrum into thick, heavy pieces. One of these leapt upward, point first, and flew toward Shamir's muzzle.

Someone screamed.

The fragment stopped, hanging in space, its jagged point resting exactly on the thin fur between the younger lion's eyes, held by his own telekinesis.

"Well?" He growled. "Blood or compassion? You choose. I can't live without one, and I choose not to live without the other. CHOOSE!" He roared.

The angry crowd was paralyzed. There was not a sound. The air in the room seemed to solidify. From the back, the mob parted again, and a young skunk stepped forward to face him. She reached up on pawtips, wrapping her small hands around the shard that was as thick as her hands themselves. She pulled it down and away carefully, out of his field. She let it drop harmlessly to the ground, where it shattered in pieces. She stepped forward and hugged him.

On the stage, Aurora could breathe again.

"And the children will show you the way." Shomron whispered gently.

The dramatic moment ended a tumultuous day. As the meeting broke up, Aurora hugged the breath from Shamir. Both he and Shalimar walked the exhausted Skiltaire into an empty sleeping room. Cuddled together, the Mustelid and the brace of white lions found blissful slumber.

Rocar sat in his headquarters shelter, taking routine reports from the sentries around the parameter of the compound. Outside, he could hear the well ordered chaos that went along with alert status. He was taking no chances with the command he cared for. The way to serve them best was to prepare for the worst. Rocar dared not speak it. but that was what he expected, and sooner than later, knowing the general staff.

The warrior had no training in political matters. But he lived without the illusion that his elite training might have lent him. The Simians were slowly becoming drunk on power and force. For now, he was content to be the showpiece of that power, for as long as he could play ornament, the longer he could hold to his code. But he also knew that that same code might compel him and his command to fight, not for the Simians, but against them, for the protection of his people.

He grew restive at length, with Nachtoter away, he decided to walk the compound and see to any needs of his command. The edge of heat was off of the sun now, and the rising nite breeze was mixed with the shadow filled light that was the end of the day. The gentle wind carried the scents from cookfires in the pits at the far end of the compound.

The stillness was broken, and the pleasant scents forgotten as a familiar call rent the darkening air.

"Centurion Mariva, Post Number two!" The chief of the watch called out loud.

Rocar loped easily across the compound, toward the south wall. Without braking his stride, he bounded up the steep stairs and into the guard post.

The fisher snapped to attention, but the formality of rank and protocol was otherwise left behind.

"Report, Mariva." Rocar said simply.

The dark furred warrior held his compound longbow more like a staff, and used it to gesture, directing the lion's gaze. "Some sort of altercation beyond the compound sir." The fisher told him.

From the height of the watchtower, Rocar could see a large group of Simians coming down the broad avenue just outside the compound's main gate. They moved slowly, in a large group. In the center of the thick and moving circle, Rocar noticed the flash of a ringed tail as the coon bolted, trying to escape the ring of Simians. The ringtail had no chance, as a dozen Simian arms pulled him back, seeming to close more tightly around the fur bearer.

"You want me to try a warning shot, Sir? They're well within my point blank range." Mariva offered.

Rocar knew Mariva's skill. He had seen the Fisher put a shaft thru a coin at three hundred stadia.

"Not yet. Cover me. I'm taking a detail."

Rocar turned and sprang from the tower to the ground, ignoring the slower stairs. He folded into another spring, and in a moment stood before the compound gate. There was a detail of two badgers and four wolverines waiting for him. They fell in on him as the gate opened, and Rocar sprinted down the avenue. His sprint became a solid, pounding run when the send of a single word touched his mind. It was deathly weak and awful in its fear.

Help!

Rocar never slowed, instead, he used the explosive momentum and strength of his mammoth body to best advantage. He ran right thru them, cleaving the knot of a dozen Simians neatly in two. They peeled away, falling to both sides, as swiftly as any sword might have separated them. Rocar's tail slap felled the last of them with a solid blow. At the center of the scene, as he swept by, he could see the fallen body of a limp raccoon. With his claws biting into the soft pavement of the avenue, Rocar had both traction and superb control. If he had been given a choice of battle ground, this one could find few better! He halted, a great volume of air still moving around him. Yet, he was never still. He dig in with his forepaws, while his body continued to move, adding a sideways twist to his overall motion. The result was a perfect hairpin turn, done while vertically standing on his forepaws! He continued the arc of his movement, and by the time the rush of air around him was still, he stood facing the litter of Simian bodies, predatory anger boiling in his wild eyes!

He Roared. A deep, feral blast from deep within a body that was also a great, muscular bellows, and could produce both sound and volume in prodigious quantity. The Simians around the edges of the street had begun to rise, and the blast of sound drove them to the pavement again, cowering with fear!

"EXPLAIN YOURSELVES! NOW!! Rocar shouted.

Rocar waited in the silence that followed, and could smell both fear and urine from the Simians. The lion stepped closer to the unmoving ringtail. Never taking his gaze from the Simian trash that littered the pavement, he nudged the Raccoon with a paw. The victim moaned pitifully.

"So brave." Rocar snarled. "When you are many, and your victim is only one. I am only one. Come. Ply your tactics on this lone cat. If you dare." Rocar's tone was visceral in its disdain.

"Not so brave now. You filthy brigands. Perhaps I should just take to throat crushing, and see how that affects your spines. If you have one to divide between you." He growled, low so his voice rumbled with the certainty of the doom behind his words.

Some of the Simians around the edges of the fallen group skittered away, screeching in stark terror.

Rocar knew they would not get far. He watched and waited while half of the diminished group regained their footing. Rocar made certain to place himself squarely between Simians and victim.

"Move Away, Cat. This is none of your affair." One of the tall, flat faces spoke up in an intimidating tone.

Rocar made no move, standing his ground as if a great statue. "The Peace and the Law are the concern of all." Rocar answered without fear or rancor.

"What's your cause for this ringtail thief? He is no feline, and no kin of yours. Let us have him, and you can keep his tail to remember him by." The Simian offered.

"Ah, but you are mistaking." Rocar told the Simian. "He is my kinsman. And if it pleases you, or even if not, I shall keep the whole of him, as one."

The Simian gave the lion a long, suspicious stare. "This? --" He asked with gesture of disbelief toward the battered raccoon "--Is kin to the like of you? How so?" The Simian demanded.

"He is a free Citizen." Rocar answered. "And I, a warrior." This bonds us."

"Your "free kinsman" wears the mask of a bandit, and is a Thief." The Simian accused. "Do you stand with criminals. Or as one?"

Rocar growled at the accusation, and the group of Simians took a full pace backward. "If he is a thief, summon the law, and prove him so, and they will pass judgment. You have no right of law in this place. Here, I am the law." Rocar informed them. "And you violate that law, and the rights of my kinsman. You all are as guilty as he might be." The imposing Lion told the Simians.

Rocar saw the flash of a blade in his peripheral vision. It came with a Simian cry of attack, which filled the air with a high scream! But above that shill sound, rose another, surmounting the cry of sudden attack!

It was a swift, swooping sound, made as the arrow created a vacuum around itself, crashing thru it as it flew to its target! Before Rocar could lash out with his drawn back forepaw at the ax wielding Simian, the arrow pierced the thin metal on the blade, and pinned the ax head to the wall above the Simian's head!

The Simian ax wielder's body was left open and extended, as if frozen in mid chop. The merest tap of the Lion's paw buckled him like a broken china doll, leaving the ax without an owner stuck to the side of the building!

Before any of the other Simians could move, yet another sound joined the sudden melee of noise. Rocar knew this sound, and delighted in it. The sound of sonic lances charging! The Simians on the outer tier of the circle seemed to know the sound as well, for as they turned toward it, they issued a sound that only the Simian could. Some tried to run, but the phalanx of wolverines posted across the width of the avenue stopped them at spear point!

The Simians had struck first, or tried. They failed, and Rocar might have exacted an awful price from the mob. Instead, while his detail was busy running off the Simian rabble, Rocar turned to the raccoon who lay in a motionless ball on the ground. The lion turned him over gently, using his telekinetic gift. The huge paw that had broken the ax wielder now moved gently over the helpless form. Rocar could heal the bruising, and the cuts, but the compound fractures he could feel would need more skill than combat healing could provide. As he completed his first healing pass, he was joined by a familiar figure with a compound longbow.

Rocar smiled at Mariva as the fisher knelt, and took over the task of healing. "Nice Shot. Thank you so much!" Rocar told him.

"Anytime, Sir. But I was aiming for the ax handle. Son of a Simian cow moved on me. This ringtail is in a bad way. They did him real good, Rocar." Mariva told his friend.

"Get him to the medics. I want to look around." Rocar replied.

Mariva shouldered his bow, scooped up the raccoon gently, and ran double time toward the compound.

Once they were safely inside, Rocar turned, and looked just over his head. He rose on his hind legs, and gently pulled Mariva's arrow from the wall of the building. The battle ax, now with an odd notch in the blade, fell harmlessly to the pavement in front of the lion. Rocar held the arrow in his teeth gently, and with respect as he floated the ax beside him as well, holding it with his mind. Then, he too, turned and loped toward the compound.

Crystal heard a familiar set of paws pad into the room, along with a much heavier someone else.

"How are you feeling, Crystal? Shomron asked.

"Just fine Vladimir. I want to get these off so much."

"I know. Shazi sent to me. We'll do that later. There's someone here who wanted to meet you."

"Hello There. And welcome. Vladimir here has sent a lot about you to me. You may know me. My Name is Shalimar."

Crystal sat bolt upright. "Khai Koda Shalimar?" She said, all the surprise that would have filled her eyes flowed instead into her voice. "The Shalimar? Or another namesake?" Crystal asked.

"There's only one of me. and to hear some tell it, even that's to many." The elder voice spoke with a hint of humor.

Crystal could not have been more shocked, or impressed, and all that could have shown in her eyes now showed in her smooth voice.

"My grandmother used to tell me stories about you." Crystal told him.

"Well. I do come in handy for scaring kits and cubs once in a while! At least I've been of some use in this life."

Crystal heard the sound of a paw slapping playfully on fur. "Don't mind him, Crystal." Shomron spoke gently. "He's greater and grander than he'll ever know, He just doesn't see it just now."

"What was it like? Crystal asked.

"Excuse me?" Shalimar asked.

"Travel. Up there. and walking on another world." Crystal asked, the dream and the wish alive in her voice.

"Oh. Hard work, and lots of it." Shalimar reflected. "Glad I was so young. Could never manage it now."

"Furballs!" Shomron exclaimed.

Crystal laughed!

"We better let you get some rest. Shazi says that we'll try out your eyes tomorrow." Shomron told Crystal.

"I can't wait, Vladimir!" Crystal exclaimed. "I want to see the cat behind the voice." She said.

Shalimar looked at Shomron strangely, hearing the wrong name, but right type. Shomron shrugged. "We'll be going now. Hope to see you tomorrow. Literally." Shomron said.

The entire room filled with Crystal's purr, as the cheetah and lion padded out after dimming the lights.

Vladimir? Shalimar sent. If you're Skiltaire, I'm a yak! The lion kidded.

Long Story Shomron sent in return. Tell you in the morning. Shazi wants me in bed, too.

Oh. You corrupted him. Good for you!

This time, It was Shomron who laughed!

Takagi worked in the light of his own natural current as the evening deepened, his own light a gentle glow against the darkness. Every minute or two, the elder Skiltaire's active mind left the printed matter that he sent to crystal. Takagi felt for anyone who wasn't supposed to be there, and with his modest home far distant from the City, no one ever was. Until now.

"Humm. Fur-Bearers. And gifted ones. At the edge of the woods?" He remarked absently. He put up the encyclopedia volume and sprang lightly from his favorite chair into his cluttered living room. He moved the stacked volumes again and opened the door to the nite air. The aged Skiltaire antennae sent him a tingle at once. He looked toward the edge of the tree line that bordered his land, sending in that direction at the same time.

If you get too cold, come in for tea. I'll be up all nite. Again.

Behind the huge boulder that entwined with a mass of tree roots, the brace of lions saw the light from inside the house fade as the door closed again, and the glow move away again, under the door. Komara saw the shocked look on his companion's muzzle in thru the nite's darkness.

"How could he have known?" Miriko asked his senior officer.

Komara smiled lightly. "You owe me two rations. I told you. You can never surprise a Skiltaire."

"Then what are we doing here?" Miriko asked.

"Sightseeing, my anxious young cubcat." Komara replied simply.

"Oh." The younger lion whispered. His youthful gaze returned to the rustic frame house, and never wandered from it, even as moonrise shed a strong and pale light over the woods and the hilltop.

Nachtoter floated the lead Grav trac into a sweeping turn onto the broad avenue that led directly to the compound. The six vehicles of the convoy floated about twice their own length onto the street when the panther's neckfur stood up! The avenue itself was deadly still, yet the pavement was littered with all manner of debris! Instantly, Nachtoter's send put the convoy on alert. He could recognize some things, shredded clothing, and odd mix of footwear, all Simian in their tasteless style. Here and there on the pavement and the buildings on both sides, the grav trac lights showed light blood spots. The sight and the scent brought out Nachtoter's claws. Whatever had happened, it was within the hour, and whatever the reason, some Simians came up missing large tufts of fur among other things. As the spotlight swung from side to side, the Panther's trained eyes caught a familiar glint among the scattered litter.

It's shaft lay fractured and broken nearby, but the tip of the sonic lance was intact, alto its charge had long since dissipated. That in itself was odd, but the fact that the tip of the lance pierced an empty Simian army helmet made Nachtoter worry. He held onto the odd prize as he remounted the lead grav-trac and opened it's throttle all the way! The six vehicles charged toward the compound, its crew ready for combat.

"Shomron?" Came the whisper-send.

Instantly and instinctually, the cheetah snapped to full alertness. "What?" He asked.

It was the margay with the jeweled collar. "I have something on the net that you'll want to hear, Sir."

Shomron rose at once, taking almost no time to put on his pouch and belt, which lay ready on his bedside table.

"Is Vladimir awake?"

"He never went to sleep, Sir. He sent me to get you." The Margay replied.

As the pair of cats walked into the command center, one of the bench-chairs turned. "Morning! Sleep well?" Vladimir asked.

Shomron nodded. Inwardly, he was grateful. "Yes. All two and a half hours worth. What's up this early?"

Vladimir spoke no explanation, but waved a paw over the control sphere. The lights in the room dimmed, and a holographic window opened in space before the table. It began with images of Simian troops and workers digging in the rubble of the leveled Internal Security warehouse.

"We got this half an hour ago, from the recon falcons." Vladimir filled in.

Shomron smiled. Hamikaro was as good as his word.

The hologram was sharp and detailed enough to show a crew of six Simians using a block and tackle to haul a large block of something from a carefully excavated underground vault.

"Freeze and augment. Go for detail." Shomron said. Vlad's paws were already in motion, as was one section of the image. The heavy block leapt out of the hologram, becoming a separate image beside the first. It rotated in space, as a shape, and then took on texture and form. When the close up image of the block was finished, it froze, standing still in space.

"Identify?" Asked Vladimir behind him.

The computer complied, the first hologram shifting, and flashing thru hundreds, and then thousands of similar shape that it knew about. After a few moments, the search halted, and one of the shapes leap out, to stand in holo-space next to the augmented image. Slowly, they crossed, until there was not one wit of difference between them. The computer reported the match, and also produced the type and class of the object.

"Storage container. Type four?" Shomron said, confused.

"What is Internal Security doing storing isotopes?" Vladimir wondered."The Military would never even let them out of the cask."

"Isotopes. Or something else that needs class four shielding." Shomron ventured. "Show this to Shalimar in the morning."

"Right." Vlad answered.

"Khai Sharda should be able to help too." It's his field.

"Good Idea. Why don't you go back to bed? You need it, and we'll need you rested for later on. Vlad told him.

Shomron smiled. If anything else comes in, wake me.

Will do. you need your rest, too. The Skiltaire answered.

I'll need you fresh in the morning too. Shomron said. Post Dasher in here and get some sleep. That's an Order!

Vladimir nodded gratefully and sent to the margay.

Nachtoter only half relaxed as he saw the compound and its intact parameter fence rise before him. He sent ahead of him, but also spoke as the Lead grav-trac stopped in front of the outer pickets.

"Bonfire." he roar-growled at the sentry.

They stood aside smartly and the heavily armed wolves waved the convoy into the compound with some urgency.

The lead vehicle never slowed as Nachtoter dismounted and ate ground in an all out run for the command bunker, the broken lance and speared helmet still in his paws.

Rocar was waiting for him at the bottom of the steps. They had been warriors and more most of their lives, but the panther had never seen the huge lion look as he looked in the dim light. For the first time in his collective memory, his commandant and friend was worried.

"Reporting Supply convoy safely returned. Sir. All correct, and in good order. Now, what happened?" Nachtoter asked.

Rocar saluted, and then stepped forward, adding a soft nuzzle! "I see you found a souvenir." Rocar said dryly. "Glad you're home safe."

In the next few seconds, Rocar sent his second in command the memory and sensations of the night's unexpected encounter.

Nachtoter's broad muzzle narrowed, his eyes smoldering with anger after the send.

"They attacked your person?" Nachtoter hissed, disbelieving of the Simian gaul.

"Yes, and parts of it might be somewhat altered if it had not been for Mariva." Rocar told him calmly.

"The detail ran them off. But that's not what bothers me." Rocar told Nachtoter. "They ran right into the arms of a Simian army security patrol, and the Simians let them go. One of the wolverines dodged a bullet, and defended with his lance." Rocar paused, nodding at the broken remnant that Nachtoter held. "And you saw the result. No casualties, except for the raccoon who seemed to be the object of the night's exercise."

"Dead?"

"No. Comatose in the aid bunker. and under double guard." Rocar told his number two. "Take a look at this." Rocar added. The arrow notched battle ax floated over from the table, and hovered in front of Nachtoter. The Panther needed only a cursory glance.

"Simian Military Issue. And to new to be surplus." Nachtoter judged, knowing that Rocar already knew.

"Exactly." Rocar said gravely.

Nachtoter's sharp mind quickly evaluated the possibilities. Now he understood why his Commandant was worried.

"Slasher is not back yet." Rocar said. "I don't expect any more trouble, but why don't you get him an escort on the way in. If the local Simian commander wants to have a show of force, let's oblige him."

"Already Done, Sir. One of the Raccoons in my squad knows most of the ringtails hereabouts. Why don't I see if she recognizes our unfortunate guest?" Nachtoter suggested.

"Fine Idea." Rocar said. "He had nothing on him at all." Rocar said. There was a long pause. "Nachtoter?"

"Yes, My Friend?"

"Issue side arms to every one. Tell them to travel and work in teams of two to three."

"Yesir."

"Glad you're home, Big Black. I was worried for you."

Nachtoter smiled. Hard white fangs seemed to glow from the black muzzle. Thank you, Rocar, but save your worry for the Simians. If they start anything, I'll finish them. Purrrrrsonally." The panther's rich voice vibrated with a sound of predatory steel.

She rose with a start from the soundest sleep she had known since her kithood. Crystal's eyes could not tell the difference between night and noon, but the stillness her ears brought to her was familiar after many nites free of her constant headache. It was very early in the pre-dawn morning. She had known no daylight since the blast, but her ears let her listen to the machines around about her, From the pattern of sound, she guessed that breakfast and her first real chance to see again was still at least two hours into her future.

She fumed and fussed. Her unstrapped paws were free to beat the pillow in impatient frustration. Then a thought sparked her nimble brain. The room would still set for deep night lighting, with only small lights to dimly allumnate passageways and fixtures. For her purpose, to be in any more darkness, they would have to double wrap her eyes. But it was not wrapping that moved her paws to tear frantically at the fasteners that held her dressing in place.

Shomron had slept more nights on the simple camp bed than even he could remember, but for the first time in may nights, his mind raced far ahead of even his speed gifted body. He rolled, and turned, practically thrashing in an unfocused, ceaseless motion as his mind remained awake.

At last, he bolted from the bed, snarling at himself for his own lack of peace. Staying in his quarters would grant him no rest, so he decided to walk, as far as the tunnels would take him, or until sleep over ran him. He padded quietly out of his quarters, and nodded at the pair of monolithic guards around his door. A quick send-search told him that no one except the night watch was within his range. His rooms were separated by a fair distance from the command center, and he decided to check in there before leaving. It would be easier than having the guards send-search for him if he was needed. He took up an easy jog, sliding dead silent down the empty corridor.

Shomron found the margay in the command chair, watching the spheres that were the controls for the command computer as was his watch. Hello, Dasher. Shomron sent softly.

The margay turned the heavy chair in surprise.Hello, Boss. You need in here?

No. You're doing great. Keep at it. I'm going for a little run. Shomron replied in thought.

Dasher smiled. His leader's idea of a little run would let him cover half of the continent before sunrise, if he wanted to. All Right. Bring me a souvenir if you can. Dasher thought with humor.

Shomron smiled. It was a standing joke between the pair of cats, knowing that Shomron could almost outrun the trade caravans that floated from city to city.

He turned and loped away, feeling a sudden urge to unreel the tension that seemed to fester in his massive upper legs. He was still the fastest biped on K'al'i'tai, even with his advancing years. Now, instinct and the need for the release combined to let him become only a blur to normal vision.

The dressing peeled away, seeming to unravel from her head. She felt the still slightly cold room air on her ears. The layers of bandage came away with ease, relieving the slight pressure to her temples. As she let the last of her outer dressing fall away, she paused, in her total darkness, to listen for pawfalls, or any other sound she could not place. The room was silent, save for the hum of the filtration system.

She held back her paws as they moved toward the thin strip of tape that held the thick pads over her eyes. She knew that Shazi would be beside himself with anger when he found out. But he wasn't the one shut off from the world, and whatever it could mean to her now. She paused, and in a fine whisper as soft as the darkness was deep, she spoke and thought a name.

"Vladimir." She whispered and thought, as she cut and peeled away the tape and the pads.

He pivoted on strong paws hardened by all his years of running. His first memorable though as a kit had been How fast? He had outrun the tunnel lights, leaving them a pleasant glow behind him, just within his sight. this dark place was an old friend, for his squad had been conscripted out of camp, and had cut this section with young and willing paws, proud to wear the new uniforms and gold station pips of a sub-lancer. As he paused, his memory let him hear again the sounds of chisel and hammer, mingled with the now distant rumble of explosive. They had worked for almost half a year, singing and living as only the young could live.

Now, his memory spot was dark, but the remembered echo of blasting became a newer and more stark memory. The echo of the blast seemed to tear at his mind, and the guilt he still carried inside began to peck and shred him like a caged hawk. He exhaled heavily, shaking all conscious thought from his mind. At that moment, his own muzzle moved in synchronization with a familiar voice and the name it spoke into his innermost mind.

"Vladimir."

The name was not his own, but the voice and the mind that spoke it was by now as familiar as the true owner of the name.

Instinct was his explosive ally, now in that dark place of youth. It threw him around in that dark space so hard that he nearly hit the wall he had helped to cut. There was no urgency with the name, or the thought, no discomfort or distress, just a thought, as simple, it seemed as any thought could be.

He tore back down the tunnel in a burst of speed so fluid that his memories were left wafting in the breeze of his slipstream. He had not gone far, but now the command center seemed to be on the back side of the moon.

There was no pain, but there had been none before. Her hide had healed long ago, as it had been engineered to do. Save for the lost fur, her skin seemed normal to her as she sat still in the thinning darkness of the room.

Thinning darkness? Her mind tripped over the thought and fell to the logical floor. How could she tell that the darkness was abating slowly?

She held them closed. Tightly at first, but then, as she relaxed her squint, there was no denying that beyond the natural darkness of her own lids, she could sense light!!

Fear suddenly snatched the ecstatic moment from her with cold talons, ripping it from her warm heart of hope. What if that was all the better she could see? What would become of her?

Her training and natural fortitude combined to slap her conscious mind, as hard and cold as the killing pawstrikes the Simians had taught her.

"C'mon. Calm down." She whispered to herself, almost dead quiet in the still room. "We've got to know."

She picked up one of the pillows she had bludgeoned only minutes before, and pressed its softness over her muzzle and eyes to insure total darkness, as Shazi's warning rang in her ears.

Slowly, naturally, she opened her eyes to slits pressed deep into the pillow.

Her paws and arms moved almost too slowly, bringing the pillow down, into her lap, and away from her muzzle. She could feel its edge pass lightly over her nose, as she drew it away, and looked at the world around her thru thin slots of vision!!

It was a battle to keep from crying, but her training took over her mind once more and seemed to use armored tracs to surpress her outburst. Her medical training spoke up too, ordering her to try to sense some sort of weak but fixed point of light to use as a reference. The room seemed covered in a fine mist, as if it was filled with the beginnings of a heavy fog. Lights, even the small ones, showed up as translucent orange pools, seemingly farther distant in the haze. She felt no discomfort, save a slight surge, that made her eyes blink for a moment. Crystal could feel them trying to re-focus, getting used to seeing again. She drew a deep breath and looked again.

He bolted back thru the lighted tunnels at speeds even he could scarcely believe, the overhead spheres seemed to blend into a single streak of light that raced along the roof of the tunnel in a vain attempt to match the cheetah.

In the command center Dasher felt someone coming, but so fast that the margay's thoughts had trouble locking on to the familiar mind. Then, Shomron was so close and moving so quickly that the draft he created scattered the papers on the con. Dasher saw Shomron sailed for the hospital, without word or thought. That was enough for the margay. He stumbled back to the console, nearly blown over by Shomron. Dasher's off balance paw mashed the alarm button, and hell was loosed in the underground complex!!

The sound was the one they had all trained for and dreaded. It's high penetrating whine had been calculated to disrupt the lower ranges of Simian ears, to give the resistance an extra ally in the few seconds they would need to prepare to repulse a Simian attack. Under the incessant sound, there was motion, Much of it automatic, and some of it edged with shock, but tempered with determination. Iron and steel bulkheads dropped from their hiding places throughout the underground, deviling every foot of outer tunnel into sealed sections, that could be gassed or flooded on remote command. In the fraction of a second that this took, tens of heavy blast doors were dragged shut and dogged by members of the resistance who knew they were sealing their own caskets. Yet they all closed and sealed as they had tens of times before. Almost before Shomron heard and understood the din, the complex command center had become the heart of an underground fortress.

The hospital had been cut into the densest of the natural bedrock of the planet. It was the deepest room and the best protected. When she heard the whine of the alarm, Crystal was too well trained to be surprised. Instead, she sprang to her feet, her eyes forgotten as instinct prepared her to kill.

Shomron's mind was so filled that it took the cold drilling of the alarm to clear his head. He never stopped, or slowed down, but tore thru the hospital, and down the long corridor.

The alarm jarred Shamir from his slumber. He looked at Shalimar as he rose, smoothly and swiftly and dashed from the room. His defense station was near the nursery, and he'd chosen his quarters for just this reason. He stopped before the sealed blast doors, sending to the lock. The door parted in the middle, letting the big lion slide into the roomful of still slumbering kits. The sound of the alarm was cut off as Shamir took his station just outside the door and to one side of it. As the door closed again, the room was peaceful and dark. He stood guard there, tail lashing, and waited, listening.

Shalimar had always been a light sleeper, and the sound of the alarm roused him easily. He glanced over his shoulder to see his son's hindquarters disappear around the corner of the corridor. The elder Lion thought quickly, and decided to get to the command center.

Dasher locked and loaded, leaving the flap up on his holster. The stunner on his hip vibrated and hummed in counterpoint to the shrill alarm as the weapon charged. Before half of it's cycle was finished, the multiple holographic displays in front of him jumped to life, as various sectors reported ready for combat. The hologram of the complex changed colour with each report, until the entire model glowed pine tree green.

Only then did the alarm die slowly, leaving a shattering silence it's wake. Hundreds of ears listened and hoped.

The alarm died just as Shomron reached the ward doorway. He turned to look at the sudden lack of noise, and felt a paw sweep along the fur of his cheek! Instinct took over as he caught hold of the paw on the downswing, and pulled hard!! He overstepped and struck down hard at the crumpled form at his feet. The only thing that saved Crystal from a snapped spine was that Shomron could see, and altho it tore his thigh muscles painfully, he altered the arc of his strike! He winced as his claws cut chips from the hard stone floor!

Crystal felt herself fall to the floor, and braced herself to die. Instead, Shomron scooped her up and with an angry snarl, heaved her back onto the bed!

It was while Crystal was airborne that Shomron took a look at her, and nearly fainted dead away!! She hit hard and bounced away from the bed, sailing halfway to the ceiling before Shomron could attempt a diving catch!! He had sprung halfway across the room before physics betrayed him. He was too late. The best he could do was to from a pad for her to land on. He braced himself, there was a heavy thud, and he saw black.

Shazi bolted around the corner, roused by the alarm and curious at the sounds of struggle he heard. The otter barked in shock as he saw the room cluttered with a large pile of cheetah!

"GUARDS!!"

Shalimar heard the shout just as he loped to the junction of the corridor. He never stopped, or slowed, merely shifting his weight into the turn. He wasn't exactly a guard, but it seemed like a good idea as he sprang toward and thru the large hospital, in the direction of the noise.

The softened jolt hammered Crystal with the hardest impact she had ever felt. Her brain hit the top of her skull, and her world tilted.

Dasher heard Shazi's cry in the command center, and touched a button. The Hospital section of the revolving hologram flared a soft red. Dasher could hear the clash of armored boots as three wolverines and a wolf rolled up the width of the corridor.

Shalimar had the watch beaten by a room and a half as he charged up the passageway. He saw Shazi standing in the far doorway. The corridor rang with the sounds of a loud burst of profanity, punctuated by the whistles and sounds of derision that only an otter could make! Shalimar felt cowed somehow as he slowed his gait, and padded quietly up to the scene.

Shazi darted into the room, standing over the two figures as they lay on the floor, a motionless pile of spots. The otter healer continued to turn the air crimson with curses as he stood over them, a seemingly fused mass of cat!

"Trouble in here?" Shalimar asked as he came around the corner.

"NOTHING A DOUBLE DOSE OF SALTPETER WOULDN'T CURE!!" Shazi shouted, finding a civil tongue to outlet his anger. " AND ANOTHER THING--. Shazi's tirade was brought to a halt as Crystal's head rolled limply to one side. "Help me, Now." Shazi ordered with an urgent quiet in his voice.

Shalimar obeyed, springing over to the otter's side as Shazi tried to lift the cheetah girl. Shalimar shifted his weight and stance, sitting back on his hind legs, and reaching down to put his forepaws under Shazi's. The elder Lion lifted the female cat as if she were glass, and pivoted gently, putting her on the bed. The mammoth Cat made a point of blocking the bedside as Shazi knelt to rouse Shomron.

Shazi's paws went to his belt, and his short claws drew out and snapped a small capsule. Shazi put the ampoule gently beneath Shomron's muzzle and held it there.

Shomron stirred almost at once. He shook the fumes and the impact from his head, having already decided to ignore his body's nagging. He coughed lightly and then rolled over. He slid out and stood gently, the only visible damage a sharp smear of dirt across his light colored vest.

"Anything Broken?" Shazi asked shortly.

"No. How's She?" Shomron asked.

Shazi nodded as he knelt to examine Crystal. "What in the name of Maruda happened in here?" Shazi questioned.

"I was out for a run. Couldn't sleep. I got a heavy flash. From her. I run back, hit this door and she took a swipe at me. I tossed her and she bounced."

"Sounds like you're out of practice."

Shomron looked up and smiled at Shalimar. "I haven't ever been good at catching girls. You know it." Shomron shot back. "In this case, I didn't miss by much. but oh, those few inches."

"Everything all right in here, Sir?" The armored wolf and the squat figure of a wolverine peeked in the door around Shalimar.

"Yes, pass the word. Secure from alert status. And tell Dasher I want to see him." Shomron ordered.

"Yessir!"

"Did you do this, too?" Shazi asked, indicating the gauze and bandages that lay strewn on the bed.

"Nope." Shomron replied. "My guess is that she did."

"Shazi nodded. "Damn stubborn feline female."

"Will she be all right?"

"Nothing broken. She's built tough, I'll say that for her." Shazi answered. "I hope her eyes are just as tough."

"Can you bring her around?"

"I'm not sure I should." Shazi countered. "Next time, a war may break out!" The Otter whistled with humor.

"Try. Please." Shomron entreated.

Shazi pause to consider, and after a long moment took another ampoule from his belt pouch.

He Cracked it, and turned to Shalimar "Turn down the lights. as low as you can."

Shalimar waved a paw and the room was suddenly candle lit.

Shazi wafted the ampoule under the she cheetah's muzzle. Crystal let out a short bark and snapped bolt upright in bed. She gave out a wheezing cough. And her eyes snapped open.

"Oh. That smells to bad for this to be a dream." She growled. "What happened. I remember the Alarm, and OH! Vladimir! IS HE HURT?"

"Calm down!" Shazi barked. "Your Cheetah is undamaged. Let's see if the same can be said for you."

"Well, You got your wish, darned stubborn Cat. No more bandages. Now. What do you see, for all this nonsense?" Shazi wanted to know.

"It's all foggy. I can see lights and shapes. With halos around them. And I can see colors." Crystal exclaimed quickly.

"Excellent." Shazi pronounced. "The healing has taken. Now it'll be up to nature to go the rest of the way."

"How long?" The question came from two cheetahs at once. Crystal smiled.

"That's something I can only guess." Shazi began. "Judging by the speed at which your body healed after we did all you'd let us do. I'd say a few hours. Provided there's no more of this kind of silliness." Shazi pronounced sternly to both cats.

Now, you get back to bed, darned stubborn female! Shazi said gruffly

"You wanted to see me?" A sheepish voice purred as Dasher looked it the door.

"Yes." said Shomron. "About that alarm."

Rocar watched with satisfaction as the last of the armored grav-tracs swung into it's place in the box formation. The gates of the compound opened smoothly and without a sound. When their Commandant and Friend looked back from his place on the leading trac, his send could be felt by all the crews, even thru the heavy plated armor.

This is a nite security sweep. Rocar commanded. No one will engage without my direct order. This City is under martial law, and I deem any assembly of three or more to be contrary to regulations. This shall include Simian military formations, unless they have orders from higher authority.

Sitting in his gunner's position, Nachtoter smiled at the irony. Any Simian with half a brain stem knew that there was only one Higher authority than the Praetor who was his Commandant. And It seemed unlikely to the giant panther that the pulverized remains of the High Council might re-animate before dawn!

Rocar dropper thru the fore hatch on the trac's sloping front deck, underneath her gun. Without a touch from any paw, the hatch closed and sealed. The night inside the compound was filled with the hum of induces charging, and then with silence as the battle group floated thru the front gate and out, onto the streets.

Dasher and Shomron walked together up the corridor to the command center. The margay looked at his commander in chief, and waited, expecting the worst.

Instead, Shomron smiled, and dropped a paw around Dasher! "Thank you, Dasher!"

"You're not mad?"

"A little sore,maybe." Shomron admitted "But not mad. You thought I was in trouble, and you backed me up. Unusual method, but you acted." Shomron told the smaller margay. "That's what an officer's station pips are supposed to mean. Descision and action."

"Yes. I'm sorry. I should have just followed you." Dasher reflected.

"You never quit your post." Shomron replied. "That's the kind of help this movement needs most." Shomron told his junior. "I'll put your papers thru. When the rest of the staff wakes up." The cheetah added, slyly.

"Papers?" Dasher asked, as Shomron's reference to pips and papers connected.

"Yes." Shomron answered. "Is there another way to become a Centurion?"

Dasher turned and padded slowly in the other direction, back toward the hospital.

"Where are you going?" Shomron called after him.

Sick Call, Sir. Centurion's shouldn't faint on duty! Dasher sent back, his head and heart giddy!

Shalimar padded out of the hospital room after tucking Crystal back into her bed. The Great Lion's ear tips were still warm from the hug that went with her gratitude. He passed Dasher, whose dazed smile made Shalimar smile too. Then the white cat sprinted ahead to catch up to Shomron.

The scientist fell in along side the reluctant soldier, still smiling. "You do have interesting evenings around here." Shalimar offered. "I never knew how boring quiet could be."

Shomron smiled, in spite of himself. "I wish I could remember what quiet was." The Cheetah lamented. "That alarm is. Effective."

Shalimar nodded. "If you don't mind, I'd like to liberate an interface somewhere close by. I still have work to do. For the right side, this time. and since I'm awake."

"Mind working in the command center for now?" Shomron asked. "I'll have an interface put into your rooms later today."

"Not a problem. I could use something to eat. It has been a while."

"Not to worry, I make the best warmed over battle rations in the whole Nexis. Or what's left of it." Shomron offered.

"Sounds wonderful." Shalimar replied as they walked along together. "Haven't eaten type six in so long, I've nearly remembered what it tastes like again."

It was near dawn in the command center as both cats ate quietly, contemplating the full day and nite just passing. The only visual clue to the passage of time was the room light which crept slowly toward the value of full daylight. The corridors outside the central room began to fill with staffers who were just beginning their day. Shalimar turned with ease to the main interface, and within moments, he was enmeshed in the electronic realm he had helped to create. Almost at once, it brought him distressing news.

Shomron. Shalimar thought-sent over his shoulder. I've found something I think you ought to see.

Shomron padded over and watched the dataflow thru the window. It was a feed from an interface of the Internal Security system. Shomron had seen the seals and the enciphered format of the data before. One of the countless scraps of information burst forth from the stream of data, to hover in space just in front of the open window As it left the dataflow, Shalimar's system stripped the encryption from the text, so the words wavered, and then could be seen in plain language.

Shomron studied it, a puzzled expression on his muzzle.

"An itinerary. For a State Funeral." Shomron observed. Then he looked at Shalimar oddly. "Yours."

Shalimar nodded casually, seemingly unconcerned. "But look at the seal and the date."

"The day after the fight at the observatory. But they still had you listed as missing."

"Normally, I would just say its the Simian tendency to planning and pomp." Shalimar said. "But take a look at the bottom of the memorandum."

At the bottom of the page was a scrawled note, typical of the scratches that were Simian cursive.

"Include those lost in Internal Security attack, by order of the Information Directorate." Shomron read. The scrawled addition bore the same date as the document above it.

"They planed it right from the beginning. We know that from Rocar, but here is the proof, done up with a ribbon and bow." Shomron said.

"Their little propaganda exercise is this very morning." Shalimar advised. "I think it would be wise to eavesdrop. It will be on all the State Nets, and it seems the populace is being ordered to watch in large public gatherings."

"That worries me. Three or more Simians in one spot these days is trouble." Shomron said.

"Especially if you're a Fur-Bearer." Shalimar added.

"Looks as if I'll have to get Aurora and Vladimir out of bed. again." Shomron sighed. "I may come back glowing neon."

Shalimar smiled. "I think it's wise. Do ground yourself."

"I'll hold an officers call for their little exercise. I think it's best if we were all together." Shomron told his friend.

"Fine Idea! I'm going to comb thru the Simian Military Network. It may take some time, but I may be able to find some interesting reading matter. I should be finished just in time to be late!" Shalimar added, with a touch of light black humor.

As Shomron walked down the corridor to Vladimir's office, somehow, he didn't think it was funny.

Shantal padded quickly into the shell of the charred building. She tried to compare where she was with where the lynx had told her to stand. The desolate landscape around about her was cast in strange and twisted shadows.

Justice. Sent an unseen but powerful presence that the vixen could feel.

Peace. the vixen thought broadly to the blackened mass of room.

Carefully, a cloaked figure stepped from amongst the shadows. Without word or gesture, he took Shantal by the paw and lead her to what seemed to be a blank wall.