The Greenthorpe Saga [Archive] - JazzJackrabbit Community Forums

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 07:18 AM

Chapter 1: The watchman.

The once thriving village of Greenthorpe had fallen into despair long ago.
Abandoned factories surrounded it and now stood side by side as iron monuments to days long gone.
Reduced to a rustic village it lay on the edge of the Peddleburg region.
The families that had stayed behind after the depression some two hundred years ago led quiet lives, harvesting crops or taking care of their cattle.
None of them were alive during the days when the charitable Lawrence Greenthorpe still occupied the old mansion just outside of town.
He had always been a warm and kind man and even though none of the villagers had known him in live, they all had a deep respect for him.
The Peddleburg region would be nowhere today if not for the economic boost brought forth by him.
The luxuries in live might not have been as plentiful anymore but the villagers were content with what they had.
There was food on their tables every day and their children had the opportunity to get proper education and room enough to play.
Greenthorpe still had a very attractive town square in which the villagers took great pride.
During the days of warmth the fountain in the central would be turned on. It was a true sight to admire how the water would squirt feet into the air and gracefully trickled down into the round, marble basin below.
Many a romance had laid its foundation on the edge of this basin as the sun slowly set over the town hall with it´s tall bell tower, with 49 feet the highest structure in town.
The town hall had still kept it´s function even though the number of employees was now considerably less then in the days of yore.
Several little shops were located around the square and every morning the delightful buzz of everyday life could be heard as the baker displayed his fresh loaves of bread and the grocer sold fresh fruits and vegetables harvested before on the fields just outside of town.
The town only had a single tavern named ´Hare and there´ and was the center of social life. The place to be on birthdays, wedding parties and the like.
One such wedding celebration was taking place this very evening as two young lovers had vowed to spend their lives together.
The ´Hare and there´ was filled to the brim with rabbits dancing, eating, drinking and singing.
The tables that were pushed against the wall were filled with the most delicious and exotic treats to provide the guests with everything they desired.
In one corner sat four youngsters huddled close together wound up in what seemed a heated conversation.
"I tell you, there is nothing there." A slightly overweight, bespectacled youngster named Markie said quite steadfast.
The girl to his right Lara firmly shook her head.
"I can not believe how anyone can be so naive." She crossed her arms in her trademark fashion.
The boy to her right pulled her ponytails and Lara gave him an angry look.
Tim was slender and the tallest of the four of them. "Watch out of the bogeyman will get you." He laughed and he tried to make a scary face that was more funny than anything else.
He had been making fun of Lara ever since she brought up the 'Specter of Greenthorpe mansion.' A nonsensical tale spread from parent to child about the ghost of Louie Greenthorpe who ate everyone who dared to enter the mansion. Louie was the late son of Lawrence and Audrey Greenthorpe born to them after the completion of the mansion and their permanent settlement in town.
He gave them many happy years until a terrible tragedy befell them and took their only child away from them.
Audrey and Lawrence died shortly afterwards and with them did the flame that kept burned in the heart of the town.
Across from Lara sat her little sister who had been listening to what the others had been saying with big eyes.
She could keep her tears back no longer and cried out for her mother who came rushing at her straight away.
"Have you boys been telling her ghost stories again? Do not think I will not tell your mother this time." The pleading of the boys did not help and they were grounded for the next two week and were to come straight home after school.
In class they had been talking about the mansion and they got excited over the prospect to enter the scary house, as childeren do.
Two weeks later they were playing soccer in the field just outside of town next to the road that led to the mansion.
Markie got tired and took a rest underneath an apple tree looking at the mansion a short distance away.
Tim and he crossed eyes and with a boyish smirk they both got up and ran towards the mansion in silent agreement.

Tim stepped up to the front door after passing the old and creaky gate closely followed by Markie who started to question whether this was such a good idea after all.
He took the doorknob in his hand took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
"There is no such thing as ghosts." Tim whispered to himself.
"No, but if our mom's know we are here, they will kill us." Markie said and he knew he was right. His had told him not to go play near the house a hundred times and would be very upset.
He shuddered and left the thought for what it was as Tim pushed them door open and walked into the great hall ever so slowly, looking back at his friend over his shoulder one more time.
Fear in his eyes and excitement.
Tim gazed in awe at the many things that decorated this hall, paintings covered with the dust of ages. An old grandfather's clock, ticking away the seconds slowly, the once brown rug had now turned slightly yellow and a disgusting smell of urine filled his nose, a vase holding something that had once been flowers, was standing on a wooden table against the staircase that led to the first floor.
An ancient pirate treasure could not have pleased him as much as this old muck, he was in the house all the parents were afraid of. Him and Markie were heroes.
Markie covered up his mouth and nose with the sleeve of his shirt, against the smell but alas it did not have much effect.
A rat quickly made it's way out of the mansion, Markie and Tim got the eerie feeling that they should do the same as a gust of wind blew past them, but something kept them here.
They had come this far and they were not planning on letting the adventure and excitement end here, besides, ghost stories were for babies
A door creaked ahead of them and they quickly looked in the direction it was coming from, pale in the face, little drops of sweat found their way down the soft fur on their backs.
"What was that?' Whimpered Markie, grabbing Tim's wrist and squeezing it a little harder then he intended to.
'"Hey, that hurts." Tim said, getting his grip on reality back."It must have been another rat, look at this place, it looks like one huge rat cemetary."
To the sides of the halls lay small bones and carcasses, yet a path had been swept clean through the middle. As if someone or something still lived here.
"Boohoooo. I'm coming to get you Markie." Tim laughed as his friend stood cowering and looking at the door.
The door had opened just enough for them to have a peek into the next room.
A grand piano with a surprisingly neat stool in front of it stood in the far corner.
Their curiosity got the better of them and they moved closer to the door, inside of the room they could see several beautiful paintings.
There was even one of a royal figure they could recognize as the late king Sazz, Eva's father, above a fireplace that looked like it had not been used for quiet a while.
Tall curtains prevented too much light from falling into the room but a small ray of sunlight fell down on a shiny statue that looked as if it was made out of gold.
"Pirate treasure." Tim mumbled.
Markie, who had re found his courage, slowly pushed the creaking door open but he could feel Tim tugging at his arm.
"Maybe we should not go in there." Tim looked quite nervous to Markie's surprise.
The door was opened but not by Markie. Someone had pulled it open from the inside of the room and the young boys stood face to face with a tall and unhealthy looking rabbit who gave a dry cough as he noticed his two young guests. The two boys screamed at the top of their lungs as they peered into the hollows eyes and ran for it.
Tim almost stumbled over the smelly, yellow carpet as he made his way for the door. Markie jumped off of the marble stairs and rolled through the grass.
"It's alive!" Markie screamed and he cried as his little heart raced in his body.
The purple rabbit scratched his arm and looked after them as they stumbled out of the front gate.

The children arrived at an old tree near the peddleburg creek and sat down, out of breath, Markie a little more then the slender Tim.
Markie sat down on his knees next to the river and put his hands together to make a little cup, he took some of the clear water and rubbed it trough his furry face.
Both of the children did not speak a word to each other for another hour, the sky over their heads was getting darker but they felt safe here, so close to the village.
A woman came walking towards them and they straightened themselves out to look presentable.
In silent agreement they decided it was best if no one ever knew about their endevour. 'They would think we were crazy.' Markie thought to himself.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 08:32 AM

(Note: The chapter title has changed in the meantime.)

Chapter 1: The watchman.

Newcomers in town always drew much attention as Marjorie Simms found out while she walked through the square and sat down on the edge of the fountain.
Gossiping neighbors quickly turned their heads away when her eyes found them and pretended to be talking about anything but her.
Majo, as most people called her, was used to this coming from a small village herself. She was born in Orangelia a town to the west with a population of approximately a hundred and fifty inhabitants and started wandering the world at the age of nineteen. Her late father who was a traveling jeweler had left her with a smart sum of money to get her started.
After nineteen years in a quiet town she wanted to see everything there was to see on this world and as a child she had often dreamed of visiting the places her father spoke of.
Majo had spend three years in Earian, the largest city on Carrotus with a population of nine and a half million.
Thanks to her charming looks and her positive attitude in life she had managed to find a decent job as a typist for one of the richer people in town who had provided her with a fancy apartment in Gathorich, the oldest and most luxurious neighborhood in town.
Earian lay by the sea and many people came and went, she was an outgoing person that enjoyed meeting new people and she could listen for hours when someone new would come in to the tavern she visited frequently and told a fantastic tale of hare and beast; and far away lands.
After three years Majo found it was time to move on, she packed all of her belongings and quit her day job to travel, through the lands where she experienced the most fantastic things life had to offer.
Majo saw the sun rise over the mills of Pneum Arlik, bathed in the lake of Farodine which supposedly blessed anyone who entered it and was situated in the most beautiful green valley on the planet.
She toured through the mines of Aroroth and visited the underground castle which, as legend tells, had been home to a mythical creature named Bruhn.
Majo had been on her way to New Carrotus, the capital city and still had a long way to go when she crossed Greenthorpe, a village with a rich history and a majestic mansion long since abandoned that had sparked her interest. She stood up and bought a small bag of golden-colored Talsian pears before heading for it and see which parts of the legend were true.
According to an old hare she had met in a tavern outside of Orleton the village was haunted by a ghost from it's own past often seen through the cracked windows of the mansion.
Majo left the village and made her way down the sandy path when she saw two boys resting in the grass.
"Don't go any further." Markie jumped up and blocked her path.
Majo smiled and decided she'd play along with what was obvious a little game they were playing. "And why would I not continue brave sir?"
She saw the fear in his face and in the face of the child still sitting in the grass and wondered if something else was going on.
"Are you two alright?" Her question remained unanswered for a few moments while the boys wondered if they could trust her.
Tim got up and walked over to Markie. 'She's not from around here, maybe we can tell her.' He whispered in his friends ear.
Markie nodded as he looked over the girl in front of him "There's a ghost in there, miss. We just saw him." He shuddered again at the thought.
Majo smiled and sank through her knees a little to level herself with the faces of the boys. "Tell you what, why don't I go in there to tell him to leave the innocent boys alone from now on."
Tim and Markie looked at each other, there mothers had only told them he eats children so they both figured the young woman had nothing to fear. They nodded in agreement.

Majo walked trough the gate onto the path that led towards the mansion. The door stood open, as if the house was inviting her to come inside.
The gate creaked as she walked down the path. This might have scared the children leading them into believing the place was haunted.
She walked into the hallway and covered her nose with her sleeve, just as Markie had done before her.
Majo took a quick look around. The place was disgusting that was clear, a few dead rats here and there, but certainly no ghosts.
A sound in the room beyond drew her attention and she walked over into the drawing room, the windows let through little sunlight and darkness enveloped most of it.
Her imagination seemed to be running wild since it looked as if a person was sitting in the chair facing the windows.
"Hello, is someone there?" She asked against better judgment.
The person in the chair clutched the arm and leaned over the side to take a look at his visitor.
A tired man with deep, dark eyes stared at her for a moment and then sank back into the chair without speaking a word.
Majo´s heart positively raced in her troath over this other presence in the house and she ran back to the door leading outside, but as she reached it to take one last look she saw that the tired man was still sitting in his armchair facing the window. Piles of books surrounded him, coated in the dust of decades.
Majo slowly walked back. The man might be a traveler like her, he was pale and tired but there was no sign of him being either a ghost or monster.
"Are you alright, sir?" She asked cautiously and her hand touched the back of the chair.
As she gazed down at him another wave of dread ran through her body.
His shirt hang open, buttons ripped off rather violently. His skin as pale as a blanket of virgin snow and his eyes were blank, void of life.
"Sir?" She asked again but the man did not respond, he merely turned his empty eyes towards her and coughed.
Majo looked around the room and noticed one door that stood ajar giving her a look into the bathroom beyond. She ran in there, turned on a rusty old faucet and filled a cup that stood on a shelf underneath the bathroom mirror with water. She ran back to the man and offered him the drink. "Take this sir." He looked like he could use it.
But he held up his hand and politely refused. "Thank you miss, but I am not thirsty for water." His voice was so soft that she could hardly hear him.
He got up out of his chair with what seemed like the weight of the world on his broad shoulders trying to hold him down.
The tired man took a few paces towards her, like an infant who just learned how to walk and fell down on his knees.
"I think we need to see a doctor, sir. You are not well." But the man waved her comments away.
"I will be fine miss, I always am, please take a seat and let me prepare something to eat for you, I must..." He coughed again and sat down on the floor.
Majo walked over to him still holding the glass of water. "Why don't you wait here while I go and get a doctor."
"No!" The man screamed as he managed to get up on his feet again. Majo took a step back color flushed over his body as he screamed but left right away turning him into the weak man he was before.
"Trust me, this has happened before, I'll be fine." Majo took a seat and allowed him a moment to recover, he walked into another room and left her waiting in here.
She drew open the curtains and thousands of particles of dust danced in the sunlight. A frightened spider shot out from behind a vase covered in cobwebs.
Between the two windows hung an old family portrait that caught her attention. A friendly looking man and a beautiful young woman both had a hand on the shoulders of a young boy in the middle that resembled the pale man she had met minutes before. She rubbed the small golden plaque attached to the frame underneath the canvas clean of the filth that had gathered on it and read 'Greenthorpe family portrait. 1242.'
"That makes it over two hundred years old." She mumbled to herself as the sound of footsteps behind her revealed that the tired hare had returned.
To her surprise she noticed that the color had returned to his face and his fur was thicker and softer then it had been before.
He walked up straight and his eyes that had looked so hollow before were so warm and friendly now. "My name is Louie Greenthorpe." He said as he reached out his hand.
"I'm sorry if my appearance before has upset you."

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 08:34 AM

Chapter 1: The watchman.

"Hello there son." Theodore Crompton waved at his son and his friend Tim who he found sitting by the creek.
Theodore was a tall and muscular man. A large ax rested on his shoulder for he would go into the forest to cut some wood for the oncoming winter.
The winters were very cold up north and he wanted to start early to make sure his family would not grow cold. He walked over to Markie and gave him a pat on the head.
"Hey dad." His hands were a little shaky and he quickly looked away in the direction of the mansion. Tim did the same because he could not face Theodore and keep the secret.
"Is everything alright boys, you look a little bit shaken up." Markie and Tim both revealed the secret of the monster in the Greenthorpe mansion instantly, because keeping secrets is what children do best.
Theodore threw the ax on the floor and grabbed the boys by their hands. "Now what did your mother and I tell you about that house?"
Markie cried "There was a girl, she went in there alone and she still has not returned."
Theodore told the boys to go straight home. If they were to be obedient their punishment would be considerably lighter and the boys ran off.
He picked the ax up of the ground and headed for the mansion to locate the girl.

Majo was full of questions, but the first one she asked was "What just happened?"
The man in front of her fell silent for a while not sure whether to tell her the truth or a simple lie. He could tell this girl was different from the visitors he had received to his home in the past.
For one, she did not have a clue of what was going on. Something his previous guests were quite aware of.
He decided it was best to play stupid and raised his shoulders. "I dozed off for a moment there, I am quiet alright I assure you."
Majo was not satisfied by this answer and pointed at the painting. "Who is that?" Her questions were short just like her patience at this moment.
"If you are referring to the boy in the middle, he was my great grandfather Egedius Greenthorpe." His face did not show any emotion.
It had not shown any emotion since she had arrived here and she could not tell what he was thinking.
She came around to her final question, for the moment at least.
"Why is this place such a mess?" Louie turned around not to face her and answered. "My family abandoned this house a long time ago and moved to a... different place. I simply came back here to check on things."
He turned to face her again with those sad eyes of his. "I am planning on moving back in here."
His answers were as short as her questions, but something about him made her trust him. And she was satisfied for now.
Louie grabbed an old broom from a corner behind a beautiful, old piano and he started sweeping the floor while hanging his head in shame.
"It's alright." She said and she smiled as she put her paw on his. His flesh felt cold and damp. "You've not been here in a while, let me help you."
Majo walked out of the room in search of cleaning utensils and Louie continued his sweeping unaware of the presence of an unwelcome guest.
"What have you done with the girl?" Theodore Crompton had made it's way into the house and faced Louie holding his axe close to his body.
"She is alright, please do not come any closer." Louie spoke in a calm tone. "I have not harmed her, I have never fed off of an innocent..."
He knew in his heart that what he was about to say was not true.
Theodore payed no head to his warning and stepped forward, slightly raising his ax.
"I think it's time we ended the myth of the Greenthorpe monster once and for all." He raised his ax and wanted to hit Louie in the face with it.
But in the blink of an eye Louie had grabbed the shaft of the sharp weapon and pulled it out of Theodore's hands.
He threw it across the room, grabbed Theodore's neck and opened his mouth to bare a pair of fearsome canines. "No, please."
Theodore gasped for breath as Louie sank his teeth into the main arteries in his victim´s neck. Blood forcefully spurted out and Louie drank as much as he could while he dragged him out into a hallways and opened the door to the basement. He stashed Theodore's dead body into a chest that had been used to store coal in for the old boiler.
Louie wiped clean the blood from the corners of his mouth and the tears from his eyes over the horrible act he had just committed and made his way back to the drawing room just before Majo entered with a bucket full of water and a ragged piece of cloth. "Many hands make light work." She smiled at him and he stared back at her.
"We have to leave." He said and made no notion to wait around for her he grabbed a brown jacket and walked out.
As he was halfway down the path leading to the gate she caught up with him and tugged at his arm.
"But you've only just returned to the home of your ancestors. What makes you want to leave?"
"Fair lady..." He started and Majo giggled over the archaic use of words. "I can not explain it to you but I can not ask of you to remain a guest in my house any longer. Please allow me to provide you with other accommodations for the night." He asked her and he gave her a kind nod.
"Why esteemed gentleman." Majo smiled at her own accent and took hold of the arm he offered. "Where to?"
"There is an inn a couple of hours away from here called 'The Green dragon.' It's not much but it should provide a safe haven for a short while." And off they went.

As they followed the flow of Peddleburg creek the evening set in and the chill wind in the air gave Majo goosebums.
Louie took his jacket off and put it around her shoulders, she gave him a smile but his eyes were focused on something in the far distance.
"I'm afraid we have some unpleasent company, but don't be afraid." Majo could see it too, a group of three or four men in the distance coming closer with seemingly unfriendly intentions.
She hid behind Louie as one of them with a toad-like appearance pulled a small blade out from behind his back and pointed it at Louie's adam's apple.
"Your money or your life, sir." He croacked. His long, slimey tongue hang from his mouth as he made a little bow.
"And they say chivalry is dead." Louie hissed and he kicked the toad hard in the crotch. The blade fell down to the ground before the toad did and his three accomplices jumped forward.
He took one out with a hard knock to the side of his face and kicked another in the teeth. The third hesitated to attack, but made up his mind rather quickly when Louie bared his sharp fangs and ran.
"Please, no, no." The toad on the ground cried out, but Louie grabbed a shivering Majo's hand and walked away.
After they had left their assailants behind them Majo pushed his hand away, as if she had regained her own voice and rational thoughts.
"You! You are a vampire." She finally said and the thought seemed even stranger out loud. "And to think I trusted you, you filthy beast." She took a few steps back towards a small ridge near the water.
"Wait, be careful." Louie took a step towards her to prevent her from falling off but it was in vain and she fell backwards and hit her head on a rock.

Majo woke up the next morning with the smell of fresh bread that was standing in a little basket on her night stand in the small room.
She eagerly grabbed it and feasted on the small meal. Her head hurt a little and she felt a bump on the back of her head.
'The vampire.' The thought of him shot through her mind and her fingers moved down to her neck. 'No puncture wounds, good.' She thought.
She took a few more bites of another lump of bread when Louie walked in to the room. She pulled up her sheets over her exposed chest and fell silent.
He had saved her twice and had not bitten her. And he seemed to be far from the persons she heard about in the ghosts stories. The night roamers feasting on innocent people to still their own aching hunger.
Louie sat down on the bed near her legs and looked at the ground. "I know what you must think of me, but I can assure you, it was never my intention to cause you harm."
He got up and walked back to the door. "If you need anything, just ring that bell over your nightstand and I'll be here in no time."
Louie left her to get a few more hours of sleep and sat down at the bar and several thoughts ran through his mind.
"How is the girl?" The proprietor of 'The green dragon' asked him as he washed several glasses clean of the stains people had left on them last night.
It was crowded when they arrived and the owner's wife had tended to Majo at ones and given her the largest room in the inn, right behind the bar.
"She will live, thank you for your concern." The innkeeper nodded and returned to his dishes.
Louie rubbed through his face and looked at the door to Majo's room. 'Don't worry Tobias. I have not forgotten.'

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 08:35 AM

That's that.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 09:23 AM

woah. 3 posts of story. My chapter feels insignificant >:-(.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 09:25 AM

Hehe, and to think i deleted a lot because i didn't want to make it to long.
It would've been longer and im not to happy about the scene with Theodore, i shouldn't have said that i would post this tonight to give myself some more time, but alas.

Coppertop

Jul 10, 2004, 10:14 AM

Hmm, reminds me of Tobias' old thread.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 10:33 AM

Glad to see you guys like the story :)

Looking forward to read the next post.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 10:35 AM

And you said nobody was interested.

cooba

Jul 10, 2004, 11:01 AM

[Cooba: Your story chapter was edited out. You can still edit it by using the edit button on this post. Please contact Slayo to know what improvements you may make, since this post of yours is completely inconsistent with the general storyline. -FQuist]

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 11:02 AM

Well since no order was established, I'm go write a chapter later on and it doesn't matter, becuase no sequence is establish as of yet >D.

EDIT: Buh, we're all going to need to agree to a plot as well.

acid

Jul 10, 2004, 12:34 PM

This seems like it'll be a cool idea. I'll try writing chapter 4.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 12:35 PM

I call Chapter 5. Risp gets 6th, because he said so. Isn't that right risp?

"Yes"

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 12:57 PM

Well 7th is done and a bit short, and I can't do battles, so sue me :P.

acid

Jul 10, 2004, 01:02 PM

So, wait. Who's going to do chapter 3?

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 01:09 PM

kaz is 3rd

I clam this pag.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 01:17 PM

I claim the page then.

>|. Love the consistency between us. Okay, I'll just edit a bit and post.

Chapter <S>3</S> 2: Divine Bloody Retribution.

They deserved it.
A group of Carrotus' militia deserved it. No, all of them deserved, it. They weren't an army, not enough to be called Marines. They were just raiders and treasure hunters, and of course, many profits going to the government. That was okay, the money they used went to go feed people. No, it also went to weapons to destroy people. Money might have been what it was all about to group Beta4.

--- (Before the corruption)

The mission was simple. I would be the distraction above dropping small bombs to get their attention, and more importantly the turrets' attention. He had a shield and probably was the hardest to hit in the air. Why not be the bait as well as having 2/5 of the payment (twice as much) as anybody else for it?
James was the ruthless one of the group. Everybody wanted him in the group since he would have to do the dirty work that nobody else wanted. A perfect soldier for this mission and for anything that you might have called an army. He was to back up the safe-cracker should anybody notice the treasury had been breached. Usually peopole would become a great person through hard work, but I didn't know James wasn't one of those people. The brown, tall, rabbit towered over other people like they were insects. Maybe it was just becuase of his tallness that it seemed like that. 1/5 of the payment for him.
Eleanor was a pro. at what she did, stealing. A lot of flirting on the simulations had gotten her very close to James' heart, and wallet. She wasn't told what was in the safe, but just to grab anything that looked valuable. That is to say money, credit cards, gems, and data. The briefing emphasized on the importance of data for espionage. Strange how they weren't even informed who they were stealing from. She was a medium sized white rabbit with blond flowing hair. Despite the regulations for keeping it in a bun, she preferred the relaxed look. Maybe she didn't have a care in the world becuase of all missions and looting she have done. 1/5 for her.
Boz was just a technician. He wasn't into this army stuff at all but needed this money. Simple job for him. Cut the power, keep it cut, cut the security systems after the power was cut, keep those cut. This guy could have been a hacker, he looked weak and had darkly green fur. He was weak though and would probably be punched out by somebody like James before executing the TERM command if he wasn't on our side. 1/5 for him.

A 5/5 team.

-- (Before the killing)
High above, the first bomb hadn't been dropped and it was very silent. I tried to see who we were fighting, but most of them were wearing helmets and gas-masks for paranoia. Maybe they expected a wipeout of gas. There, that spot didn't have anybody patrolling it, I armed and threw a bomb at the space. The silence broke and sirens rang. I noted the three rabbits running but keeping their heads low. Boz was the one who strayed into the control room which he would probably gas, kind of ironic.
"And here come the first wave of turrets," I muttered to myself as I tried to gain altittude and dropped a lot of bombs Boz had given me. Mostly they'd just to cover the base in smoke since they detonated before hitting the ground and add for some fun confusion. No killing this mission, I wanted it that way.
The familiar scream of heat seeking missles came to mind and I set my small blaster onto flares. No aim required, just fire past them at the base. Their fault for using heat-seekers.
When the first seeker hit the ground a scream penetrated the sounds of firing and a 'CEASE FIRE, swit...' was issued. I dropped more bombs so they wouldn't know where they were fighting. The fools probably didn't notice the robbery.
'Takin' the fire, kaz?' the headset voice of James taunted me. I guess he was the only one with freetime right now while Elly cracked the safe.
"Yeah, how're Elly and Boz?" I asked and dropped more bombs and a few flares even though the seekers had stopped... the seekers had stopped, what were they doing? James didn't answer back. I was sure he was alright, but he seemed pretty sure of himself before. Relaxing, lowering altitude, putting up my blue shield below me. That was my mistake.
'A'ite, Elly an' me got the goods!!' James said over the intercom, they were probably already almost out and taking the same route out. It didn't matter, nobody would see them anyways, but the crescent shield I used stuck out like a neon sign.
"THERE!!". ClOSE RANGE!! I cursed at myself for going so low and put up the crescent in the direction of fire to avoid blaster fire from there... there weren't any from that direction. I dropped flares as well, slow heat seekers? Oh, the power must have been down. Alright, back to the group in the north.
Nobody figured out that the base ran on a small nuclear reactor, the radiation wasn't a problem becuase of the nature of the atmosphere and some other things, but things could still go wrong, like the safeties being removed by the security system. I cursed at myself for forgetting it. The reactors exploded, the main power had been cut from them, but they hadn't been shut off. Stupid Boz. The north one blew up as I flew past it and I saw myself signing up for this mission and saw several people asking me to not go. Then I saw the ATV we were camping in before I crashed into it. At least I'd die with the rogues, they must have
been rebels of some kind... they would all die. Why did it have to end like that? Now that I thought of it, I remember seeing the Carrotus signature on the cannons... were we fighting the good guys? Were they the baddies? And then I thought of nothing more for a while.

-- (After the killing)

I remember, no, I was seeing James passing me by, followed by Eleanor and then Boz. Boz looked happy but dissapointed that he had such an effect on the base, Eleanor looked happy for doing such a good job on the looting, I could see a large diamond pin in her hair now. James was happy. Why was he happy? WHY WERE THEY ALL HAPPY? WHERE WAS I IN THIS PICTURE?!?! I tried to move and couldn't get up. A small unarmed bomb rolled out from the bag I carried and cracked a twig. James twisted backwards and found me in a might as well be dead perception. My left wing was snapped but I still held a gun in the right.
"Hey, he did survive, James!" Boz was the first to say anything. Did they all think otherwise? Hah... they thought I was dead.
"'e didn't, 'e's dead, 'e was bait and died." James coldly replied. I tried to scream, say I was still alive to the moron. Why did he want me dead?!
"James, what'll we do?" Eleanor spoke, I called her many bad things at this time. HOW COULD SHE ASK THAT?! At the same time I choked. They wouldn't kill me, but they would leave me out here? James approached me and crouched down, his blaster ready to shoot a fatal shot. ... It dawned on me that I was the only one that didn't want to kill... and then...
"We'll h've his pay, darlin'." James turned to look at Boz to make sure there were no objections. Killing me for my pay to split among themselves... no..
"You can't do that!! I need the money too but it isn't worth killing for." Boz shouted at him and pulled out his own blaster ready to fight him. Stupid hypocrite... Nobody noticed myself raising my wing and gun, maybe it was fate that it was set on RF's. It was either me or them... right? James turned his head, not noticing the gun at point-blank in time
"We don-" BANG. I wasn't dead, dead people don't kill. James would kill if he still had a head.
Eleanor screamed at the headless bloody james, the fur coat turning reddish brown now. Boz aimed. How could he say that it wasn't worth killing for when he killed the families that were probably on that base? BANG and I shot again. They hadn't bothered to help me. Boz flew back like a ragdoll into a tree and blood seeped out of him. Eleanor screamed some more. She shouldn't live either. Her bag laid on the ground and she ran for it. How could she not think to help? How could she wonder if one's life or money mattered most?! I emptied out several RF rounds and saw the bloody mess I was in. I was the lone survivor. I was the most honorable one. It was clear now who the real enemy was. Carrotus, Carrotus and all of its' corruption.

It's money grabbing from the dead. We need a new military school for the children? Okay, let's go kill those families regardless of race and take theirs. It hurt on the inside to think of it. I would kill them, the bastards (Derby if you edit this come up with a more deserving word :|).

-- (After all the corruption, all the killing)

How ironic. I finished setting the bomb that was even made for Boz except with more blow-power. It wasn't hard to get in, the guards were cheap and untrained. I'd blow up this old fossil fuel supply that the military depended on. I'd blow it up, and every residence would follow the leader. They all deserved to die for their impurities, they who would run over the wounded on the road instead of helping. They who valued their own lives over others. The damned war loving children who would shoot their mom in the crazed patriotism of it all if they suspected she was not with them. They'll all die.
Three minutes. I was gone in one. Hahahahaha... rabbits, so similar to the humans grandmother always told him myths about; they never cared and they should suffer for it. I was only helping karma along.

--

It's short, sue me :P.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 01:33 PM

what made you think you weren't 3rd? I mean, you were the only person with a chapter ready.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 01:37 PM

OH nevermind, I see now. Wishing all of us had a consistency though >|.

(Buh, Slayo's long chapter, and well written, sort of pwns mine X_X, so I will post more and pretend like I did it when this posts says it was posted)
--

It didn't matter, all these people he had killed over the last period. People that deserved to die. Bounty hunters for one. It was always intentional. One time it wasn't, a pink female rabbit with quite a few tricks, but no skill came after him. She fell too easy and looked dead. I just walked away, it wasn't my fault. The wench shot at me several times with seekers and I a flare back at her. Her fault. Not mine. Weren't you in that position a while ago?
Not my problem.
"Another," this was my fourteenth... "vodka!!"
"Don't overdo it, son." the bar-tender replied. I looked hard at him and wondered if I could... no. I was mad at somebody else. My head hurt too much to even pull the trigger. He was just concerned afterall. All I could remember right now was the taste of the vodka and what happened.

-- (earlier at afternoon)

I had gone more.. large scale on Carrotus. They expected military base bombings now. The 6th bomb was defused, somehow. I flew away too fast to check who did it or how in the world it was done. I think I actually made a popular topic of myself in the government. Hah, it didn't matter what they thought.
I moved on to what tools they used of those I hated. I hated weapons. You use weapons all the time... That didn't matter though. I'd posion this weapon factory. The type of posion was called "cherry blossoms". It turned eyes that sort of pink color after driving the user insane with a flood of memories becuase of a chemical reaction. Maybe it was the red color of the gas, or the fact that it was once used in a place with so many cherry blossoms and people seemed to scream about them the most. It didn't matter.
The ventilation was all from one large generator. Stupid move from the corporation. Maybe they never had to worry about it. It was a large typical rectangular factory, and they looked like they needed to save money on architecture. The windows let in little light and probably fit the grim surroundings. Smoke stacks towered on the roof of the building. They weren't very active right now, maybe they weren't smoke stacks. I'd stop the smoke, stop the evil, and there would be less weapons for a while. I'd stop all of them.
The poison was in a bomb that looked just like a regular metal barrel. It fit in perfectly with all the other supplies they kept in barrels near the back. Those were chained down though becuase the ventilation system sucked in a lot of air. It was perfect for intoxication. The intake machine or main vent was surrounded by a 20-feet high metal mesh fence with barbed wire eight feet and above.
I looked at the fence. Oh, it's gas, it'll flood in. I started to push it so it'd be in vacuum distance. Bah, the casing was too heavy. I shoved it, it didn't budge. Stupid Kaz, always so weak when it came to brute force. Backing up, I rammed it onto its side and rolled it. It got a bit easier since the wind started to blow my way. No wait, that was the vent sucking in the air!! I kneeled over as the gusts pulled off a few feathers and twisted the timer to 30 seconds and side-stomped on it. The barrel rolled and gained momentum (16), hit the fence which was too cheap to serve a purpose. Suddenly another wind twisted it around so it would emit the gas at me. Hahaha, I didn't deserve this divine retribution(3)... the small outlet on the top flipped open. It-... it wouldn't hit me. I know so. (0) The red gas, it reminded me of a smoke bomb from childhood. We had fun that day, so many fireworks. ARG. That gas, it came out three feet from me, but I scurried away and Cherry Blossoms was sucked into the vents. Mission accomplished.

-- (a bit after)

The smoke stacks on the top sighed barely pink, but eventually faded to their very light grey. It was past the ten minute life-time of the posion. By now it was too dispersed to have an effect. Should I go in? I walked to the front door and laughed as it seemed it wasn't made for tall people.
"HELP ME! OH PLEASE HELP ME!!! PLEASE!!! PATRICK? ARE YOU THERE?!!" some old bat was pleading. She was reliving something. Curiousity got the better of me and I unjammed the door. Why was it jammed?
She immediately clung to me! Her eyes were so pink, almost red. "You have to save my child!!" she screamed in my face. An innocent... was she innocent? "Why aren't you listening?! YOU HAVE TO SAVE THEM!!" she banshee'd some more. Her grip was so hard on my shoulders. It hurt now. It hurt to stare at her face, the way she clung to me like I was her savior. "I can-" her dead dropped before I could tell her I couldn't save her children. Congratulations, this is what happens. BAH. It didn't matter, it didn't matter at all. Why should it? Why should I stop the solution to the violence? She would have stood up for them anyways!!

-- (orig. time)

The 18th vodka. It still wouldn't go away. She's just with them. It's for the greater purpose. Everything was a swirl though, my thoughts, my vision, my destination, I was drunk. Things would flash red or blue occasionally. No wait... that's familiar.

I don't remember much else except for running out the back, and the bar tender yelling at me for not paying. Yay for me, I bought a small aircraft earlier today. It was squarish. The 'frisbee' model is made for overall speed, small guns, two small missles, but not exactly evasive, but the thinness made it hard to hit. Why did they call it that model when it was squarish? "Destination?" the screen displayed. "Anywher-bt-her," I barely mumbled and tied all the words together. I was going to have one hell of a hangover. It either lifted off to somewhere, or I fell asleep and felt light. Maybe it was both.

--

I need to get a job... it's too bright to be morning...
It was too true, I was running out of money from weapons, food, this ship. The only money I had left was in a bag that had grown considerably light. No credit cards, bank accounts, I withdrew from them all so I couldn't be as well tracked.
Am I dreaming? "Arrgh." Yesterday still pained me. I was awake, the sun was bright as thermite, and there was a large bag of money on the floor that accompanied my own. reimbursment it read. SH- This meant three things; Somebody broke in, somebody could have killed me and taken my money, and somebody had just hired me.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 01:41 PM

He let that guy breed again.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 01:53 PM

Before i read Kaz's chapter i want to say the following. What the heck is chapter 2 all about? I mean, seriously. Hidden treasure?

I'll read your chapter tonight Kaz, i already know it's good though since you wrote it.

Risp_old

Jul 10, 2004, 02:18 PM

Cooba just thinks there is some treasure hidden in this 'sir' person's nose.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 05:24 PM

Somebody had better post another chapter, especially since we don't really have a limit right now as it's all non-sequential.

Tubz

Jul 10, 2004, 05:52 PM

Hey, this sounds cool. I have written a story in ages! I'd like to try. The only two requests I have, is that I get to always be a face (good guy). And my weapon is one of the following: Sniper, Rocket Sniper, some sort of sword.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 05:55 PM

Sure tub, did you read the first two chapters though?
Be honest about it. You could go for a katana, not a rocket launcher though, it just doesnt fit in the story really well.
And don't write in slang, but in proper English please, at least try to do the best you can.

If the chapter is not good enough, we will delete it.
Write an introduction chapter for your character and post it when these the following 2 or 3 writers have posted theirs, it's nice that you want to join. Feel free to start writing. Good luck

Tubz

Jul 10, 2004, 05:58 PM

We will delete it, haha, ok. I don't use slang man, my grammar is grat on here, I could care less in chat though.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 06:00 PM

He don't feel offended, we delete all crappy threads, im not just saying it because it's you. Just trying to state some rules here. Have fun writing and reading. (If you read that is)

Tubz

Jul 10, 2004, 06:09 PM

Dude, I got this man, don't worry. Of course I have to read the story to actuallly have a clue what's going on. I don't feel offended, you might enjoy my first and only work, if youwere to read it. A lot did, a few didn't. I got ya on the rule, I'll read the whole story thus far, and then try to make a good next Chapter, but first an intro to myself. And It's too late now anyway (10:09 PM), I'll go and weite something tommorow or monday, SlaYer.

The SlaYeR

Jul 10, 2004, 06:13 PM

Alright, introduction chapter first. And don't worry dude, i've got faith in you.
(The introduction chapter should be completly about YOUR character, please do not include anyone else that is writing yet, if you want to add someone of who'm you are sure that they wont write, then please be my guest.)

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 06:25 PM

Edit : Sorry, broke the rules.

Ducky

Jul 10, 2004, 06:37 PM

So....can I write too?
And when I do, my first chapter is entirely an introduction of my character? Completely unrelated to everything else? And I do whatever?

Risp_old

Jul 10, 2004, 06:41 PM

Almost done with my chapter.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 06:47 PM

So....can I write too?
And when I do, my first chapter is entirely an introduction of my character? Completely unrelated to everything else? And I do whatever?

You had better >O!!

It could be completely unrelated, mine is sort of 'quite a while back' so I don't interefere with the plot and atmosphere.

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 06:50 PM

Mine broke a rule posted 2 minutes before I finished. That has reduced my initiative to participate to 0.

acid

Jul 10, 2004, 07:02 PM

Well, I'll let someone else take chapter 4, since I have absolutely nothing done on my chapter at all.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 07:25 PM

:|. Maybe they should join in later on Slayo?

Strato

Jul 10, 2004, 07:32 PM

This didn't go well.

Risp_old

Jul 10, 2004, 07:32 PM

Well, I am almost done. However, I will need to go to bed pretty soon, so I will only be able to post it tomorrow. So... if that is inconvienent you could just skip me this one time around.

Kaz

Jul 10, 2004, 07:51 PM

I think the non-skip system is too much for now. If anybody has anything, go for it now.

cooba

Jul 11, 2004, 01:22 AM

I just see that crap I posted was deleted successfully. GL.

cooba

Jul 11, 2004, 01:32 AM

Also, I think I will keep myself from posting another chapters because I DON'T WANT MY SISTER TO REPLACE IT WITH POINTLESS SUX WHILE I'M NOT IN ROOM. My apologies to all who saw her horrid writings.

LittleFreak

Jul 11, 2004, 04:23 AM

I hate storys without humour. LAUGHING IS IMPORTANT FOR LIFE!

Risp_old

Jul 11, 2004, 05:44 AM

Done with the chapter.

Chapter 3: The Mad Technomancer

In a small house, somewhere in a city on Diamondous, a robot was coming together. A arm was attached, and wired in. The head was opened, and a final chip- the AI chip- was inserted. Jargon Random leaned back, and admired his new work. While he could just assemble robots with the magic of his order, those he makes with his own hands always turned out better. He said, in a tired yet excited voice, "Could you pass me the screwdriver, R-0B/y?"
After getting the tool from his robotic assistant (R-0B/y, Robbie for short), he screwed the final screw into place, and stepped back to grab his autocaster. He twiddled with the autocaster for a moment, setting its cubes into the right position, before he held it out at arms length. With a spark of electricity from his jump-start spell, the robot switched on and got to attention. Jargon, nearly falling asleep on the spot for having stayed up for three nights straight without any sleep to finish this new robot, told it to go to the storage room and turn itself off, so he could inspect it in the morning. Just pausing to look outside at the gloomy midnight sky, Jargon went to his bedroom...

That next morning, Jargon didn't have time to inspect his new creation. There was a knock on the door. He, still in bed, got up and went out to get it, wondering on the way why he doesn't delegate such tasks to his robots. On the way, he paused for a moment to look at his reflection. Not at all presentable. However, with a reputation like his, people didn't expect anything else. Jargon sighed, and then answered the door. He recognized the person there- John Radin, a friend from his order, the person who gave him R-0B/y. Jargon was about to ask what was all the trouble, but he was cut off.
"Quick, you need to go. Why aren't you ready?"
"Err... what?"
"Haven't you heard? We need to escape! The city is being invaded, and pretty soon they will have taken the space ports. Get your stuff quickly, we don't have time to wait. We will go to... say, Carratous till this blows over."
Jargon darted inside, and grabbed his autocaster. Realizing he would not be able to take much, he sadly scrapped his robots with his autocaster. After hearing some gunfire somewhere in the distance, he worked even more quickly, stuffing some food into a bag and then running outside. John ran up to him, and they set off.

There would be opposition, but that wouldn't stop Jargon, that wouldn't stop the Mad Technomancer.

EDIT: forgot the chapter title

The SlaYeR

Jul 11, 2004, 05:46 AM

Yes Ducky, the first chapter is just an introduction for your character.
And to everyone else, just post whenever your done and we'll continue in that order. Who says there can't be humor in the stories? I didn't, i just said this should not be a comedy.

The SlaYeR

Jul 11, 2004, 06:04 AM

Go ahead and forget about that last rule Stratn.
I ment that if you write about something who wants to write and has not been introduced yet you might mess up that persons own chapter, but you should talk about that with the person, go ahead.

Nice chapter Risp, good work and i like the fact that you sort of added a new species. The robot.
And we could do something with the rebbelion on Diamondus later on in the story.

acid

Jul 11, 2004, 06:58 AM

Okay, finished my chapter.

Chapter 4:

Tony Waterback was considered one of the best pilots in the galaxy. The gray-furred jackrabbit from Technoir had won the Carrotan space race 5 years in a row, and was going to enter the sixth. He had built his own ship: a compact 1-man flyer with 2 large boosters, and 2 wings that curved up and around the top, each wing carrying a small pulse cannon in case of emergencies. This was an emergency.

He had been practicing by the old Sluggion asteroid belt when an old Shellian defense system had booted itself up and opened fire on his ship, at the same time calling for help. The asteroid-mounted turrets had been easy to deal with; their armor had been shredded by space dust and the only weapon they used was an outdated laser battery. However, the Shellian fighters that responded to the distress call were much more dangerous. They had piloting skill that rivaled Tony’s own, and ships designed for combat as well as fancy flying. Tony’s pulse cannons weren’t even getting past the shields on the fighters, and turning tail and running seemed to be the only option. Tony gunned the gyro thrusters, spinning his ship around in a perfect 180-degree turn before rocketing away from the Shellian fighters.

Luckily for Tony, the Shellians only carried clumsy radar-guided missiles and plasma cannons, which he could easily dodge. The only problem was that the Shellians would not give up chase. Tony led them all the way around Pezrock, Medivo, and even Chrysilis, and they never faltered in their chase. Apparently he had to find a friendly system that would destroy his assailants. Carrotus seemed like a good option, so he started heading towards there.

However, Tony’s luck ran out when he reached the Carrotan Asteroid Belt. The asteroids were thickly clumped, and Tony was having a hard time maneuvering around all of them. He started concentrating more on the asteroids than the Shellians fire, which proved to be a mistake. After swerving around a particularly large asteroid, Tony found himself flying head-on towards a shellian missile. He tried to turn his ship, but it was too late. The missile struck his left wing, completely obliterating it and leaving the stump smoking. The ship could still fly forward, but due to its lack of left wing, it could not turn to the right. Tony struggled to pilot it out of the asteroid field, and somehow managed to succeed. His ship shot away from the last of the asteroids, the Shellians in hot pursuit.
Carrotus loomed ahead. The Shellians took this opportunity to break off before Carrotus’s defense fleet saw them, leaving Tony’s smoldering ship streaking towards Carrotus.

Landing without a left wing hadn’t seemed to hard to Tony at first. He had forgotten about air resistance, though, and his ship persisted in turning to the right, throwing the landing angle off completely. Tony was coming down in a large empty field and had plenty of room to land, but it would be tricky with one of his wings gone. Tony tried adjusting the landing angle, but overcompensated and ended up hitting the ground side-on, smashing the right wing like aluminum foil and sending the main part of the ship to a spinning, flipping finale before finally stopping upside-down. “Dangit, I spent a million credits building this thing!” thought Tony. “At least the ten thousand spent on this grav-chair were worth it. That was one heck of a ride!” Indeed, Tony’s grav-chair was the only reason he was still alive: the anti-gravity stabilizers had kept him in suspension so that he wouldn’t receive any shock from the crash.

Tony picked his way out of the wreckage and inspected the damage. The cockpit had survived mostly, with the exception of the nose, which was bent nearly 90 degrees to the left. The body was dented in several places, and opening the service hatch confirmed that the fusion generator used to power the ship had been smashed like a soda can. About 100 yards away, Tony could see the sun reflect off what used to be his right wing.

“(-),” swore Tony. He seemed to be alone in the field, but as he looked around, he saw a building some ways away. Perhaps someone there could help him get back home…

Risp_old

Jul 11, 2004, 08:50 AM

Well, considering I haven't got around to saying that Jargon isn't a rabbit, I guess I have added two new species. Ah well. I think I will add my profile for him to the everyone's characters thread pretty soon.

NinJazz

Jul 11, 2004, 08:51 AM

To all guys who are died in these chapters:
Rest In Pieces!

Risp_old

Jul 11, 2004, 08:51 AM

...

Cobra

Jul 11, 2004, 09:30 AM

*tugs on pant leg*
can I join please sir can I join?

The SlaYeR

Jul 11, 2004, 10:37 AM

By all means mine dear ;-;

Kaz

Jul 11, 2004, 11:41 AM

Yay continuation >O!!!

Risp_old

Jul 11, 2004, 02:26 PM

Whoosh. I have another chapter done.

Kaz

Jul 11, 2004, 07:18 PM

;|. *ELBOWS*

4I Falcon

Jul 11, 2004, 07:34 PM

I should ask if I can add something to this sometime. Or something.

Of course, there's E:JF and SoT to restart writing. Nrf.

Ducky

Jul 11, 2004, 07:59 PM

I wrote.
I'm not going as Ducky, because it seems to be a more.. non-screenname thingy, if you know what I mean. So I just picked a random name.

Chapter Five
Some time ago...
The Civil War on Diamondus had been going on for almost two years. It was February now, the worst season on Diamondus at any time, but with the war confining everyone, the streets were filthy, dirty water running down them in rivers, and the blue circles under everyone's eyes were deeper. Rabbits everywhere kept their blasters well greased, their blades sharp, because there was no telling which side your neighbor had turned to. Species could not be a determining point, for it was well known that foxes, rabbits, and turtles alike could be seen sharing drinks in the grubby taverns. Clans, too, kept to themselves, meeting in secret, but even still, several mutilated bodies bearing matching cerulean armbands had lain in the rain and grime on the main street for two days before a Patrol carried them off. Inflation had skyrocketed, and tiny children could be seen begging in the alleys, bony paws outstretched.

Rain was pouring straight down upon Verity's hunchéd shoulders, soaking the brown paper bag with her precious groceries. Her black tipped, grey lop ears pinned back against the downpoar, she ducked into the cover of an overhanging doorway. Fumbling for keys in her pocket, she slipped into the dusty gloom of the apartment building. From her fifth floor window, she could see most of the city to the south and west. A plume of smoke, rising from somewhere in the buildings, blended with the leaden clouds. Too warm for snow, as always on Diamondus, but too cold to ever get the suggy chill out of her bones. Verity booted up her computer, stuffing packages from her bag into the cupboards. She peeled off several layers of colorless, sodden garments, shivering slightly as the drafty air touched her wet fur. Verity tied her dark auburn, waist length hair out of her pale green eyes, shaking rainwater out of it. Her body was skinny and unhealthily bony as she pulled on a dry shirt of neatly patched linen and traded her dripping shoes for knee high black boots. She reapplied the black eyemakeup that blended into her grey fur, and, after briefly checking for an update on her computer, she scrambled into more layers and prepared to leave.
For a moment she paused, looking out the west window. The sun was setting, and the clouds were bloodied by it's last rays.
Verity turned and walked out her door. The rabbit's heavy boots were noisy in the vacant apartment- many of her neighbors had been elderly, and had traveled to other planets seeking peace when the war broke out. Although Verity felt her 28 years weighed heavier on her than they should, she had stayed behind when requested, working as a hacker. She was sometimes needed for her skills at combat, though, as was everyone, and she bore scars of more than one skirmish that she would like to forget. At times it seemed hard to even remember why the war had begun. At times Verity was on the verge of tears as she remembered her childhood on this planet, and even more so when she recalled her peaceful life on Medivo. Though it rained there nearly constantly, the rain was warm and sweet, and the moss grew heavily on the ruins. Diamondus, though, had once been beautiful too- that was why Verity had chosen it, although it was not until the war that she had moved into the city.
Verity walked the cracked pavement to a small tavern, stepping around puddles and the ocasional blowing newspaper. Over the door, a battered wooden sign from which the weather had long since worn the name swung creakily. Searching again in her knapsack to find another key, she plunged it into the lock, opening the door into a dimly lit room crowded with chairs and round tables.
"Eddie?" Verity tugged off her cloak, already soaked from the short walk, and hung it by the door.
From a back room a dusty red rabbit emerged, peering over round lenses.
"Ah, Verity." He smiled, a scar scribbled in white through his fur.
"I've been working on the new code. It seems to be going well. You made excellent progress on the Uniform Amplification Locators, also."
Verity cast the older rabbit a wan smile, tying, as she did so, a short white apron over her garments.
"Try and look innocent tonight. You never know who might come in." She began to start a fire in the brick fireplace in the left wall.

Carrot ale gurgled into a green glass. "Get you another drink, Nick?" Verity's tray was perched precariously between shoulder and chin as she wiped a table down, smiling at a friend. "How're you doing, Riff?" She attempted an awkward hug and spilled a bit of sherry onto her tailtip. Grinning wryly, she topped off someone's glass while he dug in his pocket for more change.
"Another round, gentlemen?" She paused to laugh at a joke a tawny-furred cat was telling in the back corner, and eyed a cloaked visitor at the bar, who's tiger striped tail was twitching off the edge of the barstool. Verity made her way back behind the bar.
"Can I get you a drink, stranger?" While she tried to welcome people, there was no being too careful, and Verity did not like unfamiliar faces.
Green eyes peered out from behind the hood, inspecting Verity's features.
"Are you the bartender?"
"That I am. You look chilled to the bone. Nasty weather out there, among other things. How about a mulled wine?"
The creature sighed, relaxed slightly.
"That sounds nice."
Verity poured the liquid from it's copper tin into a glass mug, watching it bubble softly. She poured herself a Lemoncello and sipped it as she wiped down the bar absently. In the back room she could faintly hear Eddie clicking away at his keyboards. Her silver RF blaster was under the counter, her javelin leaning against the wall, and she didn't feel safe. As the only bartender, she knew half the people in the bar as regulars and had seen most of the faces before, always responded to their winks with a smile and a wave, would not hesitate to plant a kiss on a cheek before wishing one of them a safe trip back to their flat. She knew any of them would try and protect her, and she knew Eddie, not to mention the rest of her friends, would do twice what they were capable of for her. She did not feel safe.
She drank the last of her Lemoncello.
She wondered when she would feel safe again.

It was late in the afternoon the next day when she roused herself from her sleep, having gotten home from the bar at 6 AM. Verity clutched her cloak around her as she wandered from the tangle of blankets on her couch. She knelt on the floor, looking out of her window as she did so often, leaning against the chair back. She traced a scar on her arm, thought about the poison she kept in her medicine cabinet.
She thought about the poison every day.
Her computer beeped, drawing her attention.

Verity stood up. She would make one more person laugh tonight at her bar.
She would give at least one more day to her cause.
She would not give up yet.
Though she wanted to.

*pagegloomp*

defalcon

Jul 12, 2004, 02:10 AM

This is very intriguing. Nice chapters so far, guys. :)
Mind if I might join in? Write a character-intro chapter first, right?

The SlaYeR

Jul 12, 2004, 05:23 AM

Be my guest Def, and yes. Character intro fisrt.
And Ducky, awesome chapter. I already love your character.
Awesome story so far. (Or should i say, stories.)

Doubble Dutch

Jul 12, 2004, 07:19 AM

Ooooh, writing!
Chapter 6

So hungry There was food, where? Ahead, smallish. Kill. Feed. Tier dashed through the undergrowth, his agility unbecoming of his decayed flesh. Food, small. KILL! The turtle grabbed the rat and downed it in two bites, feeling its warmth, its life seeping into him. For a second The Hunger was sated and Tier reflected on what he was doing. Hunting. To feed. Just like so many nights before. Don't loose scent. Food closer now. Tier dashed ahead, preparing to cut his prey off. It was small and would be dispatched easily.

Move in. Go for the neck...Larger prey! Stalk! Tier obediently followed the insticts of The Hunger, for Tier was a Zombie. Not the shuffeling moaning forms so often imagineg to rise from the grave, but an Arcainia Zombie, an undead predator whose sole existence was devoted to tracking and killing prey. Agile and violent Tier was a victim of his undead insticts, feeding of the living flesh to prevent his own from rotting. Now there was prey large enough to stop the hunger for a week, maybe longer. He didn't care. He couldn't. His mind buried under The Hunger only knew that soon his body would no longer be a festering corpse, at least for a few days.

Big, slow. Climb above and behind. Tier glanced down at his victim, a blue rabbit, with a gun. Unfortunate that an innocent would die, but The Hunger... The gun would be no problem, he was immortal, invincible to anything that couldn't reduce him to ashes, but an arm would be a long time in regrowing. Attack lower, aim for the side of the neck...

The cool night air was disrupted briefly by a growl, gunfire and the sounds of feeding. It would be several hours before Tier would wake to bemoan his fate.

Risp_old

Jul 12, 2004, 07:35 AM

I hope you will actually be able to post more than one chapter. It was so stupid when you posted once in the Tales of the Tavern and never again.

The SlaYeR

Jul 12, 2004, 07:39 AM

Nice chapter double dutch, i like your character.
Interesting.

Btw, if this works out nicely, we could make this some sort of series.
Write more stories togheter.
I think it's getting along rather nicely so far.

Strato

Jul 12, 2004, 07:48 AM

Oh man, now a zombie. This will make my character very interesting.

The SlaYeR

Jul 12, 2004, 07:52 AM

Same here Stratn, im not the only undead anymore. :D
I like what inpact this story has on the WT.

Strato

Jul 12, 2004, 07:54 AM

Indeed. People I havn't seen for months. People I haven't seen ever like def.

Alister

Jul 12, 2004, 11:18 AM

Chapter 7

Tom shifted in his chair. His cushion had "gone missing" long ago, and he wasn't going to bring another one to work in case that one "went missing" too. It's not that he didn't appreciate that there were people in the building with a greater need than his own. It's just that he suspected Gary Parker had taken the cushion home with him. With his inheritance, Parker was quite rich. Especially for a councillor. Especially in Greenthorpe. Industrial decline had reduced Greenthorpe to a shadow of its former self, and anyone living on more than a subsistence wage considered themselves lucky.
Thomas Bradhurst was a slightly short, orange rabbit, with a single lop-ear. He wore glasses with circular lenses and a thin, silvery frame. They covered a pair of dull blue eyes. He owned two suits, one of which he would wear to work as the other one was cleaned. They were both grey, and both shabby. He had one red tie, one green tie, and a black bow-tie for special occasions. Today he was wearing his green tie. He wore the red tie when he was doing the town's accounts, when he was afraid the ink would splash.
Tom looked at the letter again. It was too good to be true. At the same time, it worried him. How would people react?
"Dr. Bradhurst," it began. They'd certainly done their research. Most people didn't know he'd been awarded a doctorate. Clearly, they were eager. And it was a very good offer for the town. But what would people think of it? Most of them would be glad. The Greenthorpe mansion should have been pulled down years ago. And yet, it stood as a monument to the town's great past. Would people be willing to trade that for the town's great future? Timothy took his glasses off and mopped his brow. He'd run it by Gary Parker. Parker was almost always against him - if he agreed it was a good idea, there'd be no problem convincing the citizens.
"Parker!" he called out. Parker probably wasn't doing anything. The only time Parker could be expected to do any actual work was at the annual fête, when he would run himself ragged at the behest of his grandmother, who ran the show.
"Parker!" he called out again. A moment later, a door down the hall slammed shut. Not long after that, Parker stuck his head round Tom's door.
"Yes, Bradhurst?" sighed Parker.
"I want your opinion on a deal I have on the table. A company from Earian want to set up a new factory here. New jobs for everyone. New people in the empty houses. And... more money to pay councillors."
"You know you've got my attention."
"There is a catch. They want to take over the old Tambleside complex. And they also want access to the river."
"So the Greenthorpe mansion would have to go?"
"Yes."
"And they'd cover the cost of pulling it down?"
"I would have thought so."
"Right. So what's the problem?"
"Never mind. There is no problem."
"I'm a busy man, Bradhurst," said Parker, as he left. Tom snorted, then sat back, satisfied. There was only one thing left to be done. He headed down to the council library.

The "library" was a small, cramped room in the cellar. Any floor space not occupied by bookshelves or filing cabinets was knee-high in old paperwork. A single drawer in one of the cabinets was used to store all the town's maps. The cabinet was at the opposite end of the room from the door, and Tom had to clamber over the mounds of yellowing paper to reach it. Bracing himself against some nearby shelves, he tugged at the drawer. All the most commonly used documents were in drawers that wouldn't stay shut. Anybody looking for maps usually went to the school, so more specialised cartography was kept in the stiffest drawer. He eventually got it open. He reached in and pulled out a property map of the town.
No, nobody owned the Tambleside complex. No, nobody owned that section of the river. In between lay the grounds of the Greenthorpe mansion. They were shaded in, and there was a property code. He put the map back in the drawer. Hopefully it was a mistake. The tax records would show it. He clambered back to the other side of the room and opened another drawer. After a moment of searching, he found the tax records for the street.

Susan and Tom had lived in the village for almost three years. They had been married for eight. She was taller than he was, with ginger patches over her normally white fur. She had just started cooking dinner when Tom burst through the door.
"You're home early!" she exclaimed. Then she saw the look on his face.
"You are staying, dear?" she continued.
"Could you saddle my horse? I'll be packing."
"Where are you going?"
"Number 12, Ditchfield Street, Orleton. I have a very big purchase to make."
"There's an extra horse free if you need it."
"Not that kind of purchase. Here, take this."
"A letter?"
"It's to the leader of the council."
"Oh. Tom, no. I can't take your place again. Not after last time."
"You're the only one I trust with the job, Susan. You know that."
"There are plenty of people who are more than capable of sitting on the council. Your uncle, for instance. Surely you can trust him?"
"Uncle Martin would make a good councillor. Until he started demanding that the school teaches about the ways of vampires."
"Tom, I've been talking to the people in the village. Everyone here thinks there's a vampire."
"So? However ingrained the superstition is, it's still ridiculous."
"But some of them say they've seen it. In the old mansion."
"The Greenthorpe mansion? What a coincidence. It looks like I'm about to destroy the myth once and for all."

An hour later, Tom was riding towards the north east. He had changed into his travelling clothes, the only other clothing he owned. He'd be riding through the night. Better riding than setting up camp, he thought. When he was a child, his father had told him tales about the monsters that haunted the night. He knew it was irrational, but he was still scared of the dark. But as long as he rode, he was comfortable that he couldn't be caught by anything unsavoury.
Things had been so much simpler when he was a child. Then his uncle had agreed to send him to university on condition that he studied vampires. At the end of his first year he secretly switched subjects, and earned himself a doctorate in engineering. He had faked a diploma to show to his uncle and his parents. They had been so proud. He was still plagued by the guilt of knowing that he'd cheated his uncle. On top of that, his father had found out. They hadn't spoken since.

Alister

Jul 12, 2004, 11:18 AM

(continued)

It was just past noon the next day when he arrived in Orleton. By one o'clock he'd found the offices at number 12, Ditchfield Street, and by two o'clock he was talking to Ranford Smith, Senior, one half of the Cholmondely & Smith legal team.
"I'm afraid," said Mr. Smith sympathetically, "that we are in no position to sell you the Greenthorpe mansion. Our position as trustee is clearly made out in Mr. Greenthorpe's will."
"Well, how long can you keep paying taxes?"
"The Greenthorpe fortune was considerable. The interest alone almost pays the tax. But don't despair. If you really are determined, there's one thing you may want to try."
"Yes?"
"We take care of the Greenthorpe fortune on condition that no heir can be found."
"Are you telling me there's an heir?"
"No. If we knew there an heir, he'd be in control of the estate, and you would not be talking to me now. There is, however, a possibility of there being an heir. But you'd have to go to the Carrotus Central Records Office."
"I assume that's in New Carrotus?"
"Yes. There are daily flights from Prestbury, if that's any help."
"It is, thanks. I guess I'll be going home, then."
"Good luck." With that, Tom left. Mr. Smith waited until he could see, through his office window, that Tom was outside. He picked up the phone and dialled Jack Cholmondely's number.
"Jack? Yes. I've just had a young man in here asking about the Greenthorpe estate."
"Did you tell him about the heir clause?"
"Of course I did. We are legally obliged to."
"Of course."
"He's heading back to Greenthorpe now. Just so you know."
"Yes, just so I know. Thank you, Ranford." He put down the phone. Jack's associates would take care of Mr. Bradhurst. The Greenthorpe estate was too profitable to lose.

Susan entered the council chamber. Everyone turned when they heard the door open, then stared as she walked down the central aisle to the leader's desk.
"Not again," said Parker, without any attempt to keep his voice down. Susan reached the leader's desk and handed him the letter. He smiled as he took it. Susan remembered that most of the people in the chamber did like her. But she could tell Parker's eyes were boring into the back of her head.
"Welcome back to the council, Mrs. Bradhurst..." said the leader, and he smiled again, "Susan."
"Thank you," she replied, and turned around. Parker quickly looked away. She walked over to her husband's place and sat down.
"The first order of business," said the leader, "is the Tambleside proposal. Would Gary Parker take the floor?"
"Thank you," said Parker, standing. There was a quick glance at Susan, then he focused on his notes. He continued, "I have been in communication with a prominent Earian company concerning a plan to redevelop the Tambleside complex."
"Oh, really?" interrupted Susan. "Would this have anything to do with the deal my husband is currently working on? The one that would require the demolition of the Greenthorpe mansion?"
"I don't know what your husband has told you, but I've been working on this for a while now. Yes, the Greenthorpe mansion would need to be demolished."
"You didn't even know about it until yesterday, Parker. I'm here because my husband is negotiating the purchase of the mansion."
"The building is dangerous. We have every right to pull it down without any negotiation."
"But the land would still belong to the Greenthorpe estate."

Night was falling. The creeping darkness urged Tom onwards. To his right was a forest, already shrouded in darkness. He would need to switch his torch on soon. He slowed down so that he could access his saddlebag. For a moment, he thought he heard hoofbeats. Then there was silence. He reached into the saddlebag and took out his torch. He switched it on and shone it over the road ahead and behind, then over fields to his left. Nothing. He turned to the forest, but the density of the trees reduced the torchlight to nothing after a few metres. He strapped the torch to his saddle and rode on.
An hour later he was riding through the forest, pitch blackness on either side. He shivered. He tried to tell himself that there was nothing in the woods that would leap out at him. All the same, he rode as fast as he could. But there was something up ahead. As he drew closer, he could see a crude fence across the path. He slowed down. That hadn't been there last night. Had he taken a wrong turning? He reached the fence and got off his horse. Something hit him in the ribs and before he could react he was face down on the road. He looked up and saw three tough-looking rabbits, all dark red. They were dressed all in denim, apart from their leather hoods. They looked ridiculous, but they didn't look like the kind of people who took constructive criticism kindly. Tom tried to get up, but the largest one promptly sat on him.
"Well, what do we have here? A puny rabbit travelling alone at night? Don't you know how dangerous the woods can be?" asked another one. He was missing a large patch of fur on one side of his face. Tom turned his head. His horse had bolted.
"Get off him!" shouted the rabbit. His large companion started to get up, but before he was standing Tom had lept up and floored him with a blow to the back of his head. The other two rabbits shouted and leapt at him, but he dodged out of the way. The only way he could escape was by heading into the forest, but the trees and the scrub were too thick. There was no obvious point of entry. He leapt over the makeshift fence and ran up the road. By the thumping behind him he could tell that all three were in pursuit. The road ahead was long and straight. There was nothing but forest as far as the eye could see. With nothing but moonlight, the furthest the eye could see was not very far. He pressed on. Then he saw it: a small opening between the trees and the ground. A burrow? He dove in. It wasn't a burrow, but it led to a narrow path through the forest. The larger rabbit would be unable to fit through the gap, so he'd only have to deal with two of them. He was starting to panic. He hadn't run this fast for a long time, and he didn't know how long he could hold out. He had no idea where this path was taking him. It started to slope downwards, and he found himself struggling to stay upright. There was a thick root sticking up out of the ground. He tripped. He felt himself rolling down the path, the forest turning in every direction around him. Then there was a searing pain in his head and he lost consciousness.

4I Falcon

Jul 12, 2004, 12:36 PM

Note to self: MUST READ STORY before adding to it.

It looks enormous. Anyone copying this into some sort of .doc or other file, or should/can I?

Strato

Jul 12, 2004, 12:42 PM

I thought slayo was. Anyway, I'm almost (re) done with my story segment.

acid

Jul 12, 2004, 02:22 PM

@4I Falcon: I am, sort of, but you can, too if you want to. My .doc file is mainly for my own use, anyways.

Strato

Jul 12, 2004, 02:27 PM

Chapter 8 :

"This was purely a violation of the Masquerade. If people like you keep running around showing your fangs, next time we'll be a little more...persistent with our demands. Now I know all about your, procedures and what not when dealing with these criminals, and frankly, I care about you and your protocol. Now I asked you kindly to enforce these laws, and until each of these rogue factions are eliminated, don't you think for a second that I won't make a house call on you. Now get out of my sight."
The nosferatu looked pleading, and even scared. But in silent agreement, they turned and slinked hastily out the door. The office was dimly lit, and the wooden door with the peeling letters "Office of A. Garand" was open with a trembling figure in it. A woman, by the age of twenty-two I'd assume, tall, in a purple dress. She was contemplating what she had seen, I suppose. New to the business. Heh, I remember the first time.
"Come in, Miss...?" I asked while extending a hand.
"Muh..muh muh ms." She stuttered.
"Tea?" I offered her. She took a sip, flashed a smile, and said "Thanks."

After we had both taken a seat, and gotten comfortable I asked her. "You seemed scared by the Nosferatu. Are you new to our industry?"
She looked a bit unsettled and mumbled "Yes."
"Aha, I figured. As you saw of me, they're nothing to fear. All you need to do is put them in their place. Vampires, Werewolves, Humans, they're all alike. If you show weakness, they'll exploit you. As a bit of advice, you must remember; as a denizen of this planet, it is your duty to send the impure of the dead, and the evil, to suffer eternal punishment."
She smiled again, and said "Amen." She laughed lightly and began to loosen up. "They all said that you were one of the best in our field. I guess now I know they were right."I grew uneasy. I knew that when she said they, that she was a messenger. And that always meant I was gonna be shipped right into the hands of disaster.
"Which brings me to my next point." She continued. "The division has been losing members left and right on the front lines. As such, you've been pulled out of management, and are now being re-assigned as a full fledged...hunter."
There it was. The kiss of death. She seemed to be cheery about it towards the start, as if I'd be happy to spill blood again. But she quickly lost her demeanor and actually turned away towards the end when she saw the look on my face.
"I...I'm sorry this is happening to you, but as you well know, our agency has fallen on hard times."
For the first time she looked straight into me. I lurched instinctively. Her eyes were blood red, a sign of a
"Vampire." She nodded and spoke with a heavy tone, "I'm actually not new to this agency. I'm Senior Officer Jaffa. On duty, a nosferatu got the best of our squad, and...well...I...it...I'm sorry, but I must be leaving now." she rushed. "Your first order of business is all listed in this package. God speed my friend." She rushed out the door.
"Wait!" I yelled after her. But it was too late, she had left and didn't think once of turning back. I suppose she was truly a creature of the night now. I walked back into my dimly lit office and sat down on the chair. It creaked as I leaned back a little while attempting to open the grubby package she handed me.

I spilled its contents on the desk. Several photos, video cassette, a letter, but the thing which truly caught my eye was a new clip of silver bullets. That told me what I would be facing. Vampires. The pictures included floor plans of the installation, pictures of the house from various angles, and even photos of the old owners, looking happy. I placed the cassette into a piece of junk I call a TV. Through the fuzzy black and white image I was able to discern that it was a news clip of some sort.
"What mysteries are contained in this old house? Well this reporter is brave enough to find out." A cocky old rabbit with slicked back grey hair and a trenchcoat was standing outside of the gates of a manor. It was night out, and lightly raining.
"My brave crew is going into the ol' Greenthorpe mansion, to find out if it really is haunted, and to quell these rumors once and for all, live, at channel Eight news." The camera man followed the host up the garden and through the path leading up to the front door of the manor.
"Huh...puh..why must this hill be so steep?" the camera man muttered. As they made it to the large wooden door, the host drew an axe and hacked his way through the barricade.
"Now we're inside the abandoned mansion, and no signs of life anywhere." the host said. The camera quickly turned and zoomed in on some decaying rat bodies. "Uhh, Mr. Berkly...." he uttered. "What is i...what...the..." the host replied. "They're dead. Dead rats. They...uhh...must be trying to live off of each other! That's it. Now, let's come over here." he beckoned while waving towards a dark corridor.
"This must be the den." he said emerging from the passage into an unlit room. He shined a flashlight across the room. Several beautiful paintings were hung on the walls, deteriorating furniture that had not been used for decades, some unlit candles, and a great brick fireplace.
"The previous owners of this manor, Lawrence and the fair Audry Greenthorpe, were rich people and the original founders of this town." he said while shining his flashlight across the room.
"This must have been where they spent their days in peace." the host continued.

As they came back into the lobby, the host turned to the camera. "Now I'd like to point out our good friends, the local marines."
The camera panned to reveal the armed squad that was following the host. "Now onto the next room." The host pushed open a door into what supposedly looked like a kitchen.
"Here we are at the...oh...my...god" In the room, a dark figure was clutching a rat. It winced at the light.
"CUT THE TRANSMISSION! CUT IT NOW!" The host screamed.
"We're offline." his camera man replied. "Good. Now shoot it." The host bellowed menacingly.
The marines opened fire on the figure, watching it be filled with holes. It immediately went limp.
"Haha, what a little son of guh...hur...uhbuh..." one of the marines started, but was interrupted by his chest being punctured by a steak knife. The camera followed as blood ran out of the guy’s mouth and eyes, all the while being lowered gently to the ground. It panned up to stare directly into the vampire's face, his eyes blank with no pupils or semblance of life. The camera was knocked over and fell to the ground. The audio was knocked offline, but the horror that followed was easy to determine. For about ten seconds there was nothing but blood running across the hard wood floor and seeping into the cracks, and eventually it was filming nothing until it ran out of video. At least I had assumed that. I ejected the film and began to read the letter that came with it.

Dear Alexander Garand,

It is my displeasure to ruin your business with this information, but in case our messenger, the lovely Mistress Jaffa didn't inform you, you have been re-administered to be a hunter. I apologize about this, but you are one of the most battle hardened veterans our development has under its belt, so it was only a matter of time before you'd have to fight again. Now to business. If you haven’t watched the tape, do so now. This cassette was footage from a film taken from the internet. The website that was hosting it was only linked to as a homepage by a new user on a message board, going by the name of Xavier. As is the nature of the internet, the footage was quickly spread throughout the internet, and outlived it's bandwidth in 2 hours. The film circulated for at least 48 hours, so countless people have seen it. We're under a full blown investigation, but are coming up empty handed. Be that as it may, this is not your case. You're being assigned to seek out and eliminate this unclassified vampire.

I do hope this won't have any adverse affects on our friendship.

Signed Walter

P.S: The arms department says that have a special order for you laid out somewhere in Prestbury. It was apparently a retirement gift, but during the re-org it was lost.

I sighed. It looks like I wasn't going to be able to worm my way out of this one. Not that I would have. That would be cowardice.

Strato

Jul 12, 2004, 02:28 PM

With a yawn, I reached down to pull open one of my desk's drawers. Inside was my old side arm, "Jacob". Completely unusable by a normal person, at 23 pounds and nearly a foot in length. Yes, Jacob had slain many of my adversaries before, and it shall come to my aid again. I loaded up the fresh new case of Silver bullets and cocked the gun out of safety. It was gonna be a bumpy ride from this point on, but it'd give me a chance to get out of the office. I quickly gathered my things, threw on a black coat, my glasses, and headed out the door. With one last look at the hole I had been calling home for that last 2 years I walked down the creaky old staircase and out into the cloak of night.

It was a full moon out, and even a novice Hunter wouldn't make such a mistake of traveling. It was even complete with a thunder storm. I didn't care anymore. I walked down the gloomy, dimly lit streets of Down Town Hopteego towards the nearest bus stop. Most people gave me side ways glances as I passed through small crowds of people. I suppose it's to be expected. It's not everyday you see a Four foot Five rabbit. I took off my glasses and wiped them with the corner of my shirt. As I re adjusted them, I continued to walk through the town. Even Hopteego was showing the signs of war. Beggars as young as ten, people crowding around small fires, all of these things dotted the landscape. It seemed that the only profession that a person could live off of was a Death match player or military. Even such great families like the Earlongs and the Jackrabbits feel the impact of the wars. But with Eva's and Jazz's marriage they promised a golden age, and look where we are now. Carrotus is not in good times.

I finally came to the information desk at the bus stop. I went up to the counter and a rather sad looking orange rabbit was sitting there, reading the news paper. I leaned up against the desk and cleared my voice. He jumped and dropped the paper.
"E Evening Sir. What can I do for you?" He said with a shifty look.
"Hey, can I get a map of Greenthorpe and the wilderness between here and there. Also, bus schedules would be nice." I asked politely.
"Certainly sir." He quaked with timidness as he handed me the papers. "But no buses have run to Greenthorpe in ages. We can take you as far as Prestbury, but then you'll have to hoof it. Here are your maps sir." He continued.
"Thank you." I replied.

I checked the schedule. The next bus was to leave in about ten minutes. While I waited I decided I should clean myself up a bit. I looked into a mirror put up on the bus station and combed my blond hair up and re adjusted my glasses. I tucked my shirt into my dress pants and bent over to tie my shoes. After I felt sufficiently groomed I sat down next to an unconscious homeless rabbit and waited. When the bus finally I arrived, I climbed aboard, and deposited four gold coins. It would be a day’s ride to Prestbury, so I got comfortable and sleep came quickly.

"Status report!" A voice screamed in my ear. I leaped awake and looked around panicking. I nearly drew my gun out on a loaded bus, but quickly regained my senses. We were still traveling, and it was about two A.M. Outside the thunder storm grew and it was tormenting rain. It had been long since I used my transceiver, and I had nearly forgotten about it.
"All clear, no engaments yet. No targets seen." I mumbled irritated. I readjusted my seat a little, read the maps and committed them to memory, and dozed off.

The train came to a halt at Prestbury. After a long day's travel I thanked the driver and left him another two coins. At least Prestbury was faring better than most other towns of Carrotus, and at least it wasn't raining tonight. I continued to walk through the desolate streets of a war torn city, until I came to the office doors of the Prestbury branch of my organization, Schism. Inside there was an old purple rabbit wearing a hat, furiously working at the computer. I took one step inside and he immediately spoke.
"Hello Mr. Garand. We've got your package right there. And you appear to have forgotten that we enlist psychics."
"Uhh...uh thanks." I stuttered while picking up the parcel.
"A heavy crossbow with 10 bolts. Complete with a wince for pulling the string back. Though I doubt you'll need it much. Good luck." He continued without looking up from his monitor while filing papers with his mind. I opened the package and sure enough, I had a 20 pound cross bow in my lap. I attached the shoulder strap, and looped it around my body. I thanked the receptionist and hurried out the door.

I left the building and walked to the edge of town. A small house lying on the mouth of the wilderness separating Prestbury and Greenthorpe. I walked through the grass and leaped over a rotting wooden fence and into the dark forested area. I instantly felt apprehension. There were dark beings in this forest, I could practically feel them. Ghouls, and werewolves were in control of this wilderness, but it was the shortest route to Greenthorpe. I pulled out Jacob, and walked forward. My feelings were confirmed as I heard the familiar howling of wolves in the distance. Taking caution in every step, I readied my gun and inched my way through the forest. I came to a river and suddenly, I heard a twig snap. Before I knew it, the wolves had me surrounded. Hideous creatures with dog like faces but a humanoid body. Their skin was black and as hard as leather, but their minds were entirely feral.
"Back off. All of you freaks. These bullets are not meant for you." I hissed through my teeth. I aimed my handgun at one of them. It froze, in place and cocked its face at me. With a single pull of the trigger, a loud bang echoed through the forest. The wolf’s headless body sprayed black blood like a fountain as it fell limp on the ground. The others crawled up to their dead comrade and sniffed his body. I took the oppurtunity to rush ahead and put as much distance between me and them. I raced through the trees, panting, and hoping that they wouldn't catch up to me. Nobody can outrun a werewolves in full stride.

"Report." a voice over the comscever demanded.
"I'm being. Engaged. By hostile. Werewolves. Trying. To. Escape." I huffed.
"Do you require assistance?" The voice asked.
"Not yet." I gasped. I could hear the pads on their feet bounding across the forest in pursuit. Suddenly, I was flying. With a painful crack I came crashing down to the earth, lying in a pool of mud. I quickly turned over, my body exhausted. I aimed my gun up.

KRSplat

Jul 12, 2004, 03:57 PM

I'll probably join in this. Expect my first chapter anywhere from half an hour from now to two weeks.

The SlaYeR

Jul 13, 2004, 02:22 AM

Great chapters TB and Inf.
These tie in well with my chapter, thus already creating some sort of a plot.
I would love to see where this leads.

(Would anyone object to me introducing another rule. No killing of the characters of other people that are activly writing.)

acid

Jul 13, 2004, 06:42 AM

That rule sounds like a good idea to make this fair, but I think it would be better as "No killing of another author's character without their consent beforehand." That way, we can have the characters die in another chapter, but the author still has control over whether it does or doesn't happen.

Kaz

Jul 13, 2004, 10:32 AM

If you're going to do that, it's best to leave it at a branch cliffhanger. (IE let the author continue the cliffhanger of whether s/he dies)

I'll post a chapter that puts my character up to date in a bit. I need to read it over though and make sure it's fluid, containing enough details, and understandable. That and I want to see if I can extend it any longer becuase every else has uberlong chapters >O.

Strato

Jul 13, 2004, 02:30 PM

I appear to have had a portion of my reply removed. I will attempt to repair. Stupid first paragraph. Oh, I'm only semi vital I'll just no get posted! ^_^.

KRSplat

Jul 13, 2004, 05:31 PM

Done.

EDIT: I was done, then I realized NO. I'm not finished yet.

Kaz

Jul 13, 2004, 10:13 PM

Stuff.

Strato

Jul 13, 2004, 10:29 PM

I thought slayo would get the first chapter of round 2.

Kaz

Jul 13, 2004, 10:49 PM

I felt incomplete and this was collecting too much dust as a sticky ;P.

The SlaYeR

Jul 14, 2004, 03:48 AM

Can't you just follow the rules and wait till the next round?
Darn, this might mess things up.
Ok people the second round has not started yet, Kaz added to his story, instead of editing his chapter he decided to post a new one, please don't follow up on him and just wait untill everyone has taken his turn, or if everyone already has then wait untill i am home on friday and till i can start writing again.

Kaz, it'd be nice if you just edited your first chapter, i would write the first chapter of the new round and everyone would write ONE introduction chapter. Please edit, thanks.

VelKa

Jul 14, 2004, 07:01 AM

Can I join plz ;D

Err, yeah. I need to talk to Slay about this because I've been away from the computer for some time and haven't been able to catch up on anything. Sorry. If all goes well I might post a small chapter.

Ducky

Jul 14, 2004, 08:09 AM

Do we have to go in order after round 2 starts? Like, I was chapter five, will I me all multiples of five after? 10, 15, etc? Or can we just write our chapter when we get to it?

Kaz

Jul 14, 2004, 09:15 AM

:|, how about a bit more strict rules. A grid showing the exact order would be nice, and yes, I would follow those rules. I guess I felt justification as it didn't hurt anything (had to edit a bit to keep it isolated but tie in vague references for future use) and if anything it'd seem to help.

The SlaYeR

Jul 15, 2004, 06:28 AM

We will continue in the order of which we have written the chapters.
Not everyone is done yet, so we can not make an order yet. But everyone that has already posted in this round (The introduction chapters) can't write anymore.

Wait, let me put that nicer.
Please do not write another chapter if you have already written.
Contact me trough pm or on mIRC Velkie.

I will post a grid if everyone is finished with his/her chapter.
So far, Ax, Cobra and Velkasha still have to post a chapter.
And i guess we can continue this afterwards. Thanks for your patience and Kazooie, thanks for editing.
I guess you could post it if is of importance to your character, since you only posted a small chapter, i think the rest of us are pretty much finished.
Kaz, make sure not to call it chapter nine because that could get confusing, just call it 'A continuation of my previous chapter.' Thanks for helping out.

Coppertop

Jul 16, 2004, 08:55 AM

Hm ... I'll probably post one tomorrow.

Kaz

Jul 16, 2004, 09:03 AM

Yay VELK >O. You are going to hells for the star of david though.

The SlaYeR

Jul 16, 2004, 09:12 AM

Velk isn't going to hell, she's going to story heaven.
People, i am really enjoying what i have read so far. Keep up the good work.

Cobra

Jul 16, 2004, 02:19 PM

Chapter 11.

It was time for a new era of her life to begin, she could tell. The waters in front of her showed no changes in her reflection other than the wounds time was slowly carving into her, but she could feel it lurking somewhere between her shoulder blades. A lazy finger was pulled through the water enough to distort the transparent reflection, and then an angry fist shattered it.
Of course things would change one a final peace and solace was found. The cycles of life would not stop for a mere mortal no matter how much pleading was done. Good would be overcome by evilness, but the darkness would too pass like the darkness of the night. They had taught her of balance well.
For it was at a school of balance that she was staying, if it could be called a school. The word monastery fit it better, or at least the practice of stoicism made it feel like a place of monks. Life was lived to the fullest through the simplest of things deep within the ancient hallways buried deep within Chrystalis. How ironic that a people of humility and modesty chose the most shimmering of planets as their home.
It was a fitting place to live, and if fate would let it, she would have happily called it a fitting place to die. But amongst her brothers and sisters (as they called all of the participants) there were whispers and divinations of a change in the life of them all, and that soon enough more than half would be gone. Not that she really believed the divinations, it was a hazy practice started by rabbits who enjoyed staring into the swirling waters of the river instead of staring at runes of virtue. Few accepted them as true, and they most often were incorrect.
But even the unreliability of the waters could not calm the gut feeling she had. So she rose from the glittering shore and started down the smooth hallway, occasionally lit by faint murmurs of candles that cast gold explosions through the crystal. Past the rooms of pale sunless plants, past the greenhouse filled with pale sprouts that would soon wither if not harvested soon, the path took her.
How long had she been down here? Long enough to shackle the emotions that once ravaged her long ago. Now she even had control over her subconscious and didn’t even dream. Or so it had been up till a week ago, then strange dreams started plaguing her mind. One of the brothers had suggested she spend some time at the waters to see if they could lend any help, so all her time had been spent roaming the banks of the rivers. But this had only further cemented her disbelief in the aquatic divination. It was a diversion though, and a pretty one at that.
All of her siblings of the order had already gone into the bed rooms, simple rooms of golden crystal pocked by rectangles carved into it, each box big enough to hold just one rabbit of average size. It was a coffin-like bedroom for a corpse-like person. Indeed, that was what they all were. Void of feelings and expressions, each with a blank look upon their sleeping faces.
They had been so kind to take her in all those ages ago. Every night when she would wake up writhing and clawing at her own skin one of her siblings would be there for her. They would read the runes to her, and she would drift off peacefully into the numbness of sleep. Once the dreams stopped coming to her, they moved her to the chamber with her other siblings.
At first it was difficult to adjust to the lightless halls and nearly-mirror like crystals. But over time her eyes grew to be permanently dilated and capable of seeing through the haze of reflections and shadows. The sprouts they grew and the water they drank had nearly magical properties, encouraging the body’s natural adaptation to lightlessness.
So into her box she slid, on her back with the ceiling barely skimming her nose. The founding siblings said that peace of mind could be found when the body was at peace, so the sleep chambers were made as small as possible to restrict movement. She used to wake up with bruises on her forehead and knees every morning, but over time the calm of the school smothered the desires to lash out in her sleep.
There was to be no trust in emotions, they said. Emotions could be the cause of childhood trauma, hormonal fluxes, or even possible head injuries. They caused people to war, rabbits to rage, and the problems of the world. It was encouraged that they tell themselves this every night before sleep; supposedly it influenced the subconscious to slumber. But it seemed to make the whole brain sleep; it was as if thoughts were a sin of the utmost evil. Before coming, she had never though herself to be capable of actually thinking nothing for long periods of time, but now it was all she could do. Time didn’t exist; there was no hurry, no change in life aside from the waters. And even the swirls of minerals in the water seemed to be curling and fading in the same patterns.
The sudden thought of those hypnotic waves seemed to overload her brain and sleep suddenly stole her clarity of thoughts away. It had been so long since she had actually been able to control her thoughts, it was a shame.

Sleep’s hold on her was weaker this night it seemed. Ever since the dreams had started, her sleep had been weaker. She was afraid to go to her siblings with her problem though, out of fear of being told of her emotional weakness. That fear had been installed in her subconsciously, and she knew it plagued all her siblings as well. They were supposed to be in control of themselves.
So when she suddenly jolted out of a nightmare and her skull made a dull thud against the ceiling, she didn’t cry out. She had been dreaming about the waters. They had pulled her in and brought her to a place where there was wind, oh how she had loved the wind. Dancing in the wind were the same shimmering crystal swirls as there were in the water. The crystals seemed to slink together in lines, and it seemed like she was in a mass of shimmering snakes. It was so beautiful, even for someone in the heart of Chrysalis. For the first time since her early weeks there, she cried.
It was if finally all the cosmic dice had rolled her a reason to burst out with emotions. How long had she been there without an emotion on her face? How long had it been since she had smiled? Surely there was nobility in the suppression of everything pleasurable, but what was wrong with smiling just this once?
So she tried. In this barely-awake stage, she dove into her memories. Something happy was needed. But everything seemed to just be flashes, just flickers that died too fast. There were some people laughing. A little bunny with her short hair pulled up into little spiky pigtails. Was that her? The coloring seemed right. But that couldn’t be her, she didn’t remember it.
And then her body convulsed with sobbing. She threw herself out of her box and hit the floor, hitting her left arm against the ceiling with a pain that tore up into her shoulder. Her haggard, lung-searing breaths she tried to still while wide-eyed she tore her eyes across the room looking for anyone awake, but they were all asleep.
She needed to go someplace where no one would see her. She pulled her robes closer, in hopes of keeping the sound of the fabric to a minimal. She skittered into the hall, the slight click of her nails ringing in her ears and tearing at her nerves. Down the hall, maybe into the room filled with the plants? No, that was too close, they might hear her. The water called to her.
Although the stoic in her told her to go back to bed and to spend more ages in a conscious coma, the child she had awakened chose to ignore the mist in her mind. She could always justify it by claiming she had to divan something. So it was to the waters she went, and she didn’t just go to the pretty golden bowls set by the river that were used to divan. She pulled off her robes, crumpled them up and put them behind the bowl. Even though they all slept at the same time, she was afraid of being caught.
How long did she stand up by the water? She knew she had to go in, or perhaps she’d never have this day again. Perhaps time was pulling at her again. So she threw judgment to the wind and did not just step in, but she threw herself in.
The sudden ability to breath was stolen away and she floundered in the purple stream. She was able to gasp for air just before the seemingly peaceful water’s undertow caught her and pulled her under and away from the shore. Her eyes were opened in the water, and she felt strangely calm aside from the burning in her lungs. The minerals in the water were swirling around almost just like her dream. Except now the minerals didn’t look so beautiful, in fact they looked quite powdery. She reached out a paw into one of the strands of powder, and all of the clumps clung to her fur and…was it burning? Was not her fur withering and the skin beneath it blistering and turning white?
This perplexed her greatly, and as she was wondering why the previously glittery waters were now wild and silt-filled, the waters brought her up. But they brought her up to a roof of sorts with no air. Her paws grasped at it in hopes of finding air, but she was only driven against it more, her head knocking against it. But the force of the water kept pulling her to the right, and the roof ended. She gasped for breath in a room she had never seen before.

Cobra

Jul 16, 2004, 02:23 PM

Part II.

About three of her siblings were in an unpolished room, the floor dusted with a slightly greenish powder. More of the powder was in ugly molding barrels around the room. They had been pouring the barrels into the water, but stopped when she appeared.
She raised her hand up to show the leprous hand with fear in her eyes, but no help was offered. “Brothers, what is this?” she cried, with too much emotion. She pulled herself towards the shore, but once her good paw touched the shore encrusted with the powder, it started burning even more than before. The skin wasn’t just blistering and turning white; it was bubbling and melting into a bloody valley. She had to let go, it hurt too much. Into the water she went again, the coolness offering some comfort but the now-paste still etching into her.
Arms wearing special gloves pulled her up. Her feet were dragged a bit against the powder, setting the nerves aflame and she screamed. They kept dragging her, into a room where there was no powder, just large vials of an amber-hued liquid. One of her siblings grabbed one of the vials from off the wall and proceeded to envelope her with the surprisingly thick liquid that smelled of vinegar. The bubbling stopped and the pain faded to a dull ache.
The brothers started arguing. She couldn’t hear too much through her water (and goo) filled ears, but she heard something about “can’t let this out” and “end this”, which are never good things to hear. Her eyes darted around the room, and rested upon one of the labels. Beneath the mold and dank mildew that streaked the tattered paper label it said “Jade Dawn” She had a feeling that she should know what this was.
OH! It had come back to her. Something about a war. Her sister had been a scientist, and they were studying a new form of chemical warfare. Jade Dawn was the code name for a poison powder that could be put into enemy camps water systems and placate them without any permanent damage. However, the shelf life was very low, and it was found that within two months of production the powder would lose its simple knockout affect and cause brain damage to anyone exposed to it. When mixed with water, the effects were doubled. It was quickly banned from all war zones and production was stopped in favor of making some other kind of poison. Something pink, she had forgotten what it was.
…They were poisoning them? Suddenly it made sense how life had been a blur, how they could all sleep without dreams. Also, it explained why no one left. A sudden wave of betrayal swept over her. They weren’t really trying to help her, they were trying to turn her and every other rabbit there into a robot.
They pulled her up and threw some robes about her, then marched her out of the room on bleeding paws, her fur dripping amber fluid as she went. They went through another room filled with barrels, and into a corridor of doors. For a moment they let go of her, each to fish into his pocket, most likely for a key.
Fate smiled on her. She jerked backwards and ran with the fear of an animal. Back through the room of amber. Back through the room of powder. Into the water she dove, trying to fight against the current. But it was stronger than her, and just pulled her through more tunnels. Her mind reeled from this information, she had to get out, she had to get everyone out.
Wait. The river pulled her into a familiar room, the room where this had all started. The waters ebbed, and she was able to heave her waterlogged self onto the smooth ground. She wanted to lie there, but she knew she had to tell the others. So she pulled herself up and set towards the door, her diaphragm aching, eyes watering, and breaths coming out shallow and rapid. The wet robes dragged, her feet bled, and she wanted to just give up. But she had to go on. No longer was this a haven to flee to, but an enemy to hide from. Into the room where they all slept. She started grabbing robes and pulling the sleeping people to the floor.
“Beloved siblings, I have discovered a grave secret. Our brothers have been lying to us; the crystals we divan from are not a gift from the divine but Jade Dawn, a poison that dulls our senses and weakens our brains. Before I came here and started consuming this venomous water, I knew what this did. Siblings, I am not lying! Please, hear me out.” She pleaded, but they just stared back emotionlessly. “Sister, you need to sleep. You are getting emotional. Your dreams give you false emotions.” One of her sisters said, crawling back into her bedbox. The others wordlessly agreed and also went to bed.
She screamed. All logic left her, and she stood alone on the floor, with blood streaming from her wounds and the sensitive flesh of her ears. Nothing could be gained from it, but too much was happening. Too many emotions were flooding. Images were coming back. It was as if now she knew what the poison was; now she could fight it.
She ran. She had to get out. Maybe if she saw the outside world, she could help them. But how did she leave? She had to get down here somehow. But that was so long ago, so many ages ago that she had been trying to forget. It was in her mind somewhere, and in these halls somewhere. She’d start by going to the bedchamber of the new recruits.
So she thudded along the hallways, occasionally skidding due to the water left by her robes. The room was hard to find, she walked by it twice. Once inside, she found that there were no new recruits. Odd, she could have sworn that there were more…
But then the siblings from the room with the barrels stepped out at her. They were wearing protective suits, and holding little grenade-like white balls with a five-pointed green flower on it, the symbol of Jade Dawn.
She knew it was coming but her reflexes were too numb to do anything other than blindly try to charge past them. One of the grenades exploded, white powder filling the room. She closed her eyes and raised her arms expecting sudden pain, but none hit her. She thanked whoever was watching over her, and kept running, hearing them shouting behind her but not stopping to listen. She wasn’t that stupid.
There was an odd room in front of her. It was very small, only big enough to hold about six rabbits, with an odd lever of sorts. It struck her as familiar, but it took her a while to realize that it was an elevator. Sudden strength was given to her as she dove into it and pulled the lever. The chains pulling it screeched and made her already bleeding ears ring. She couldn’t handle it, she fell to her knees and put her aching hands to her aching ears.
It was almost slow motion as she painfully raised her eyes to see them bearing down the hall upon her, but the lift was almost half up. It was gaining momentum, thankfully, and she would soon be hidden from them by the ceiling. But fate would not be so kind to her as to let her escape, one of them threw a Jade bomb into the elevator with her just before the ceiling closed her off.
She panicked. The room was now completely closed off. She tried to force it down the space between the lift and the wall but it wouldn’t fit. Her eyes filled with tears as she pulled it into her hands to try to disarm it but it was a solid piece of work that would not open to her. Fearful eyes tore over the elevator looking for a place to hide, but nowhere was there any escape. Maybe she could get off the elevator before it exploded? It was going very fast…
A sudden cloud of white blocked her vision with a click as the bomb went off. Her fingers were singed from the explosion, and otherwise she felt fine, for a moment. But the protective endorphins wore off all to soon, and her previously fine feeling eyes felt like someone was putting burning needles deep into them.
Animal like screams escaped her lips as she fell over and tore at her eyes, trying to either stop the pain or remove them altogether. She felt the elevator stop moving, and she rolled out of the elevator, onto her back.
Through the static-like stars filling her eyes, she saw something she hadn’t seen in years. The stars. The sky was a deep royal blue filled with diamonds so fantastic. She hadn’t seen them in so many years. Tears started mixing with the blood and the poison in her eyes and she felt sobs rising in her soul. She extended her arms to feel the ground, a rocky composition of crystals and sand, but something she hadn’t felt in years. She closed her eyes for a moment to breath in the dry air when she felt the wind. The glorious wind, pulling at her fur and caressing her lips.
It was so beautiful. It was so alive. It suddenly made everything she had gone through worth it. She was alive, she was a part of this beauty now.
She tried to open her eyes, to see her beautiful sky one more time.. It didn’t work, so she raised her fingers to rub them but stopped and recoiled with a cry when she felt the open sores on her eyes. Her lids were not down. She had opened them. She couldn’t see.
And on that deserted stretch of land, beside a broken down elevator, she curled up and wept like a child, her soft cries carried off in the beloved wind.

Tik

Jul 16, 2004, 10:24 PM

Very interesting so far. I can't imagine what a tangled web these will weave once the characters begin to intertwine. I want to write a chapter, but I don't know. There are already 11 different people writing, that will be tough to keep up with.

As I've read through the chapters I've been making a general synopsis of characters and events for easier reference farther down the line. If anyone cares to see it, perhaps I'll post it once I'm done. I have a number of chapters yet to read, though.

Edit: Inspiration sporatically hit me.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 12: A Suprise Visit

"Pardon me, but I think your ship is on fire."

A slender, golden-furred rabbit paused in her exchange amongst friends and turned to address the interruption. With a wry smirk she replied, "Is this how you usually start conversations?" The black rabbit before her disguised a smile as his indigo eyes glistened for a moment. And for a moment hers paused to study his face. Was that recognition?

"Your ship - out in the parking garage. License TOL42?", he responded, taking a moment to glance and admire her friends. He sensed they'd had a little more than a few drinks this evening. The girl's stare turned from buzz-induced amusement into slightly more sober concern. Perfect.

With one of her eyebrows raised she quietly replied, "That's mine. It's.. on fire?", as if he hadn't just said it was. The black rabbit nodded in a melodramatically rueful way. The girl looked despairingly at the ceiling and swore. "My father will be so angry!" The black rabbit hid a grin, grabbed her hand, and began to drag her through the small circles of people out of the door into the breezy night air.

"We were coming in when we discovered the problem. You must have left your lights on and caused an electrical fire, but there are already some out there putting it out." The girl didn't say anything back. She looked dazed and was walking rather clumsily. Peering back, the black rabbit spotted her friends back in the same place. He imagined they shrugged and ordered another round of drinks. Some friends. He was doing her a favour, really. Yes.

Half way to the parking garage he stopped walking and tried to catch his breath. "What are doing?" demanded the girl, "Why have we stopped?" She wasn't quite sober enough to realize standing here while her ship was allegedly on fire was not a good choice for priorities.

After a short moment the interrupter looked up at the girl and grinned playfully. "It's been quite a number of years, Naomi, but I never envisioned you ever letting me hold your hand again." Sobriety suddenly flooded in and Naomi came to her senses.

"Icarus? Icarus, you fool!" she cried out and pushed him back. "What are you doing here? My father told you never to come near me again!" She seemed perplexed and apprehensive, but underneath Icarus sensed something of the old days, when they had often snuck out of their houses to sit with each other under the stars, before Icarus was falsely accused of killing his own family. Despite the charges proving false, Naomi's father never trusted Icarus again.

"Oh, there it is again! You see, my lovely Naomi, it is always about your father, isn't it? Your father's ship being ruined, your father believing murderous conspiracies, your father doing whatever. It's how you have always been. When will you grow out of that and come with me?" By now Icarus had moved in a little closer and was staring at her pleadingly. She loosened up from the shock. He hadn't tracked down this girl only for her to reject him.

Naomi sighed and looked towards the sky. "You don't understand," she said, "it -is- all about my father when it comes to you. He doesn't trust you, Icarus. And frankly I don't even know who you are anymore. I thought when you left for Diamondus all those years ago that I'd never see you again. I've been so worried with the news from there, though. What have you been doing?"

"I've been helping in the relief effort, unofficially. I help find people who want to escape on a private flight, then me and a buddy of mine transfer them to where they want to go for quite a substantial fee. I've gotten quite rich. Our latest drop-off was to Carrotus, and I had to come see you again. I had to see if you would go with me."

Naomi bit her lip. "Go with you? Where? You know I can't just suddenly run off, especially with you..."

"And why is that, Naomi? Oh, that's right! Because of your father. There it is again. You are responsible for yourself now, so come with me! We need to take one trip back to Diamondus to find anyone else who wants to leave, and then I am going to find a small town in Carrotus where I can settle down again and find real work. I don't even need to make a living with all of the money I've earned, Naomi, I just want a normal life." Icarus reached down and found her hand again. "Please, come with me."

Naomi was lost in a sea of doubt and confusion. This had all come upon her so suddenly, but she did have a desire to run off. The chain of her father had gotten too bothersome to ignore long ago, she wanted to break free. Moreover, she knew this is exactly the way he had wanted her to feel. He knew she would give in to him, and she knew this was her time to go. After a moment she sighed again and said, "Alright, I'll go."

"Great, because I didn't have a ship.."

Strato

Jul 17, 2004, 07:49 AM

I suppose this literally will be written by all of us.

Coppertop

Jul 17, 2004, 11:34 AM

Indeed. Well, I said I would and I did. Small, but oh well.

Chapter 13: The First Survivor

The flames burned, so bright, so deadly. They consumed his home, his family, and his innermost being.
Jesse Aimon watched the blaze dispassionately, not wondering if anyone but him had escaped. He knew they hadn't. He was the mistake. He should not have lived.
"Jesse? Oh, Jesse," the usually amiable Miss Savon cried out, rushing towards him across the flame-lit lawn. She had been their neighbor for three years. She was also a spy.
Jesse said nothing, and her false joy at his escape faltered. He privately admitted that she was a very good actress; her feigned horror was very realistic.
"However did you escape," she said with a trace of disapproval, ostensibly directed at the firestorm that had been Jesse's life. The quiet 17-year old gave her a hollow look, and she fell silent for a moment.
It had most likely been her who had lit the fire.
Now she shook her head. "I always told your father that his contrary ideas would get him into trouble," she said. "And now look. Come, Jesse, you can stay with me."
And be murdered in his bed. Jesse's previously directionless anger crystallized. He shook his head firmly and pulled away violently when Miss Savon tried to take his arm. He remained where he was despite her coercions.
She left eventually, but Jesse stood and watched until the fire burned itself out and all that was left was a charred husk, devoid of all life, scattered around with glowing embers.

When dawn came the tall, lanky, white furred teenager turned his back on the destruction and walked away wordlessly. The neighbors watched him go, but no one tried to persuade him otherwise. None of them wanted to end up like the Aimons, which they knew they would if they interfered. As long as they stayed uninvolved, they reasoned, the war could not possibly touch their small town. They would remain unaffected.
None of them wanted to admit that the war had already reached them. The Aimons were only the first casualties, and Jesse the first survivor.

Strato

Jul 17, 2004, 11:50 AM

13, ok this is getting out of hand.

Coppertop

Jul 17, 2004, 11:53 AM

Can't help it if this thread is popular =P So long as we keep track of it there should be no problem.

Strato

Jul 17, 2004, 11:55 AM

But I don't have much of a way to communicate with about half of the people here, making inter character action a pain.

Risp_old

Jul 17, 2004, 11:56 AM

Almost all of the people introduced recently have no reason whatsoever to interact with everyone else. So I feel that only a few people will be advancing the plot, the others will just be slowing it down. A lot.

Kaz

Jul 17, 2004, 04:37 PM

This true ;|, I thought maybe a channel on IRC would help this, for the realtime discussion of where this is going, however some people never show their faces in IRC nor their e-mail. This will indeed be a tangled web, how many here would go to quakenet and have a channel branched off, and somewhat isolated from, #jj2 for the discussions?

(I love your chapter Unnun ;-; )

Tik

Jul 17, 2004, 10:47 PM

Just because you don't see how characters might interact with the overall thing does not mean the author doesn't have plans for them down the road. A channel on irc would be nice, but discussing plot can sometimes ruin the fun of having a lot of people writing the story.

Kaz

Jul 17, 2004, 11:11 PM

Hmm, well will we all meet gradually or quickly? I'd prefer we all grouped slowly, then then formed larger groups, and then possibly a large group, instead of quick meetings. Mostly becuase this will allow breaking off into other groups for different interactions and different plots that fit in with the beginning.

Then again, Slayo's the ring leader, why should I pretend I know what I'm doing ;O?

Violet CLM

Jul 18, 2004, 12:51 AM

As this actually seems like it might work out, I am beginning to think about doing something. Is the topic closed?

Doubble Dutch

Jul 18, 2004, 05:11 AM

Hmm, well will we all meet gradually or quickly? I'd prefer we all grouped slowly, then then formed larger groups, and then possibly a large group, instead of quick meetings. Mostly becuase this will allow breaking off into other groups for different interactions and different plots that fit in with the beginning

Well, my chapter really has no defined time or place so Tier could meet with anyone anytime.

Risp_old

Jul 18, 2004, 06:14 AM

Hmm, well will we all meet gradually or quickly? I'd prefer we all grouped slowly, then then formed larger groups, and then possibly a large group, instead of quick meetings. Mostly becuase this will allow breaking off into other groups for different interactions and different plots that fit in with the beginning.
At this rate, if we meet 'slowly' it will take months.

Kaz

Jul 18, 2004, 04:42 PM

At this rate, if we meet 'slowly' it will take months.

Rather months than days ;|, but point taken.

The SlaYeR

Jul 18, 2004, 05:49 PM

Hi, there are a few things i would like to give my reaction on.

To the people that say that there are to many people writing, this is non-sense.
You could expect people to write if you read the title, and why should we all talk to eachother about the plot, the idea behind all of this is to be surprised, that is what makes it fun and interesting. Someone will write something and you will have to continue on it, and so on and so on.

Alright, that is settled.
To all of you who do want to keep in contact with eachother, i would advice to make some sort of e-mailing list, a list for all of the people that participate in the writing to contact eachother and send e-mails that concern all of us.

The third thing i wanted to say may be the most important thing.
I was planning on doing a small bit of editing (Not much, i would not want to ruin this) and perhaps publish this. If that's ok with all of you, but we'll discuss that later on.

About the meeting of the characters, i think we should all slowly meet, one by one, take some time to get a story going, then meet, just take your time, and remember people, put as much detail in the story as possible, bring it to life, your character and Carrotus, and every creek, town, city or insect.
I enjoyed the chapters i have read a lot, but found some of them to be a bit on the short site, i hope that all of you will take some time to write longer chapters in the future, please do not take this as an insult, like i've said. I liked what i read.

Spaztic, feel free to post the synopsisy (or sises or whatever)
They just might come in handy.

If everyone is done posting their introduction chapters then i shall continue writing on the first chapter of the next round, expect it anywhere from within three days untill a week.
Please don't whine if it takes a long time, im just not a person that writes small chapters, and i hope that all of you will follow this example

Risp_old

Jul 18, 2004, 06:06 PM

Well, at least the next round of chapters will be coming soon. I better finish that modification to my next chapter I'm doing...

The SlaYeR

Jul 18, 2004, 06:21 PM

Your next chapter?
Ok, incase other people make the same mistake.
DO NOT start on your next chapters, not now. Since this could totally mess up the storyline, every little thing we will type in oue next chapters could involve the timeline and storyline, it would not be a smart move, just wait untill the person before you has finished his chapter, do not start working on one of your own. Because that would not work out. Thanks, bye.

Violet CLM

Jul 18, 2004, 06:30 PM

As this actually seems like it might work out, I am beginning to think about doing something. Is the topic closed?
...

Risp_old

Jul 18, 2004, 06:33 PM

Err...
1. I am the third person. I don't need to worry about getting my actions messed up by others, since you are on Carratous (unless you plan on blowing up Diamondous or something) and I saw Kaz's chapter before he took it back down.
2. I already planned this one ahead. The only person this will really have an effect on I have already consulted via AIM, and got some plans worked out.
3. I already said I had it ready. Ages ago. In this thread.

Kaz

Jul 18, 2004, 08:58 PM

Buh, Slayo says to go post Unknown, and if he doesn't say so, he will >O.

Doubble Dutch

Jul 19, 2004, 03:45 AM

I don't see why latecoming introductory chapters can't be posted amid the storyline development.

Tik

Jul 19, 2004, 11:44 AM

Because it will be annoying to have to twist around the storyline to fit in newly introduced characters after something has already been established.

There was another thing I noticed that might be a problem - some people are writing their chapters from different perspectives. Most of us have been using 3rd person, but a few people (Like Kaz, I believe), have been using 1st person. I personally think it's best if we all stay in the same perspective to avoid confusion, but then again mixing perspectives might be interesting.

Strato

Jul 19, 2004, 12:00 PM

I think the confusion would only lie in the Publishing.

Violet CLM

Jul 19, 2004, 12:31 PM

ShaH-li Felenzo Orbonzen threw open the double doors to the saloon impressively. Each door swung wildly out from the entrance, turning upon their hinges and smashing into their respective walls. The doors quickly rebounded, removing the unwelcome source of light by once more blocking the doorway, but by that time ShaH-li was already inside and surveying her surroundings.
The room, with the doors closed, was very dark; lit only by sputtering candles placed randomly on this or that table, and a hole in the ceiling which, around noon, served as a spotlight for the stage beneath. The stage was currently empty - its daily employees either resting, fired or dead - lending no musical backdrop to the animal mutterings escaping from dim conversation between the remaining patrons. A mouse skittered past, and ShaH-li this time resisted the ancient instinct to pounce upon it, rending the fragile creature from limb to limb and proudly carrying its bloody remains back to... where?
ShaH-li had no home to bring dead mice back to. Her earliest memory was of being found in the back alleys behind a sushi restaurant by a gang of armadillos, none of which saw anything better to do with their time than beat up a poor defenseless little kitty. ShaH-li had cowered at their dark, imposing faces, scuttling backwards down the alley until she crashed into a trash can and knew she was trapped. The eyes of the armadillos burned wickedly as their leader bent down to grab her by the neck.
Something awoke in ShaH-li just then - a long forgotten feeling, previously dwarfed by generations of civilization and evolution, but now brought back to the top by the sheer urgency of the situation. Snarling, ShaH-li lashed out with one paw, her un-kept claws leaving deep gashes in the armadillo's arm. It jumped backwards in pain, cursing, colliding with two others of its gang as it did so.
"You shouldn't have done that, kitty-kitty," said one of the armadillos, hefting a crowbar and bouncing it carelessly in one of his hands. "We don't take kindly to resistance, you see."
ShaH-li saw, but ShaH-li didn't care. When the gang began approaching, previously concealed weapons on display, ShaH-li exploded into a flying ball of tooth, fur, and claw, lashing at their legs, jumping onto their shoulders, viciously biting their hands, causing them to drop their weapons in agony. The slow, lumbering creatures had no idea what to do against an animal that fought back, and as such posed little threat to the hissing, spitting flying projectile of war which kept them on their toes and covered in bleeding gashes. When at last ShaH-li leaped backwards onto the trash can which had previously seemed to trap her, tail bristling, all four paws holding confidently onto its metal sides, the armadillos were all either unconscious or fled, caring little for their fallen comrades when compared to the value of their own pathetic lives.
Purring, ShaH-li began to lick herself, smoothing down her rigid fur and bristling tail, slowly returning to rational thought as she did so. The Kittie-Katts had been civilized for decades before ShaH-li had even been born, and here she was, in the aftermath of a purely primal display of ancient emotions and battle tactics. A name flicked through her mind at that moment - Anzlay - but ShaH-li had no idea of who it was or what it might have meant.
It was in this contented, blood spattered state that the police found her, investigating the screams they had heard a moment earlier. ShaH-li wanted to protest, but the battle fires had died down within her, and she was forced to sit there as they snapped handcuffs on her and led her to the station.
The chief there did not know what to do with her, that much was plain. They had been looking, apparently, for that gang of armadillos for months, but there was no room in the already dangerous city for a feline vigilante, especially one who could not keep her own wits about her in a battle. At the same time, the armadillos were all wanted criminals, and ShaH-li had not actually broken any law. (Besides, the Kittie-Katt's sensitive nose detected fear in the body of the police chief, as if thinking she would not take kindly to being put in jail.)
To make matters worse, ShaH-li had no memories of friends or family, so she could not simply be sent back to those who already knew her. The resident psychoanalyst had been unable to find anything in the mind of the Kittie-Katt, and had been forced to give her back to the police chief without any results at all.
Eventually, they decided that if they could not handle the problem, they would just let someone else handle it. ShaH-li was placed on the first flight to Oakloma, Carrotus, where her situation would not exactly be improved, but at least the police would not have to deal with her anymore.

ShaH-li's first thought in Oakloma was to bring this primal talent to use and get a job as a fighter. Unfortunately, Oakloma was more civilized than the city she had come from, and offered no such employment besides boxers and wrestlers, neither of which were expected to launch at their opponent, latch onto an arm or leg, and cut the offending body part into pieces. She had no other special skills, so mid-afternoon found her sitting dejectedly on the sidewalk, with a small cardboard box before her that she had found in a trash can.
"Fresh Fish", read the letters on the box, mocking her. She could turn it around to face the other way, so she would not have to see the scathing advertisement, but what good would that do? Passersby would not have fresh fish randomly flopping around in their pockets to give to her, and even if they did, fresh fish would hardly get her a warm place to stay for the night. The box remained as it was.
ShaH-li had sat there for an hour, staring mournfully at the animals who walked or flew past, ignoring her completely, before one of them stopped and greeted her with a slightly urgent sounding "Hey".

Violet CLM

Jul 19, 2004, 12:32 PM

She looked up from her contemplation of the empty box to observe this new arrival. He was a tall brown weasel, looking mid-twenties, a black jacket hanging loosely from his shoulders. He wore long, leather pants, covered in strange patches and symbols which ShaH-li had no way of recognizing. Despite his youthful face, the weasel could not have lived an inactive life, as his face bore both a scar and an eye-patch, indicating recent physical combat. Something inside ShaH-li growled silently as his one blue eye met her own two, golden and curious.
"Who are you?" she asked, glancing meaningfully down at the box in front of her. It was a hint he ignored, making no move to produce money of any kind.
"Not now," he responded, sending a quick, furtive look behind his shoulder. "Look, I read the ship's records. You're a fighter, right? Some sort of pre-civilized wildcat?"
"I guess so," said ShaH-li, mulling the word over in her mind. Wildcat. That sounded nice enough.
"Meet me at the Hog's Belly saloon in an hour and a half. I've got a proposition for you."
"What's in it for me?" she asked, one more glancing meaningfully at the box. This time he noticed, as he produced a large golden coin from a pocket and dropped it into the old container of fresh fish. "There's more where that came from," he said, turning to leave. "Hog's Belly. Hour and a half."
Now it was an hour and a half later, and she was in the Hog's Belly saloon, staring almost mournfully after the mouse, which had disappeared down into its hole. Jerking awake once more, she looked across the tables of the saloon in search of the tall brown weasel which had brought her to this place. Nocturnal vision sprang into use almost automatically, and ShaH-li quickly spotted him at a table far off, in a dark corner of the room. The Kittie-Katt gracefully moved forwards, flowing in and out between tables until she reached the one occupied by the weasel, sitting down in the chair opposite. He did not seem surprised to see her there.
"You look different," he said, and she smiled. Her first step had been to get food, of course, but after learning how much the single coin was worth, and seeing herself in a mirror, ShaH-li decided she needed a makeover. Her claws were polished, her fur expertly smoothed down, her whiskers sharpened, and she had traded in her old threadbare shirt and pants for an un-constricting leotard, with small pockets fastened to each arm. ShaH-li had been surprised by how much her inner thoughts had rebelled at putting on even the leotard, arguing strongly that cats should not wear clothes, but civilized thinking won out in the end, and she became acceptably dressed. Now, of course, she was broke again, and was determined to remain on the good side of the weasel, as he was the one with the money.
"Thank you."
"Forget it; it was a statement. Do you need a drink, or can we get down to business?"
"I'm good."
"All right. My name," he said, leaning in closer after quickly checking for listeners, "is Andrew Ricarden. Does that mean anything to you?"
ShaH-li shook her head, and Andrew continued. "The Ricardens are an old, rich family, originating even before the Earlongs. My ancestors were some of the most powerful creatures on the planet, Ms... do you have a name?"
"ShaH-li. ShaH-li Felenzo Orbonzen."
"Great. My ancestors were some of the most powerful creatures on the planet, Ms. Orbonzen. My grandfather founded the Five Mile Diamondus Mine, if you've heard of that. My father, on a visit, allegedly started the Diamondus Revolution. Now here I am, on the top of the greatest discovery of the century."
Despite herself, ShaH-li was interested. "The greatest...?"
"Drink this," said Andrew, handing her a glass half full of purple liquid. Surprised, ShaH-li accepted the glass and sipped, not knowing what to expect.
From the few small drops which had passed into her mouth, ShaH-li instantly felt a delightful, warming sensation begin to spread itself through her body, the feelings of pleasure created only matched by the strength it made her feel. ShaH-li arched her back and purred, managing to set the glass back on the table instead of dropping it. The experience wore off quickly, and ShaH-li's golden eyes went side as she reached for the glass once more, only to have it be pulled firmly away by Andrew.
"Greatest enough for you?" he asked, once she had calmed down enough to listen to him.
"Incredible..." she breathed, licking her lips in search of any remaining droplet of the purple liquid. "What was that?"
"Fuel," responded Andrew, again looking around nervously. "Pure, unadulterated, 100% Dreempipes fuel. In addition to tasting wonderful, it runs machines, and increases the size and strength of exposed animals to incredible levels. Have you ever heard of the planet Jungrock?"
She shook her head, but the weasel continued anyway. "A while ago, a quantity of Dreempipes fuel was pumped into the planet surface. In the space of a few years, the inhabitants of the planet grew to at least three times their original size, strength and speed. Nobody has ever capitalized on this miracle drink, and while looking through old records, I have recently discovered that the Ricarden family - including me - owns the entire planet of Dreempipes, including the almost limitless fuel reserves."
ShaH-li's ears perked up instantly. "Where do I come into this?"
"Ms. Orbonzen, in the dangerous galaxy we live in today, a man such as myself ends up having many enemies. Until such time as I can be positive of my safety, and the Dreempipes fuel is established on the open market, I will need a bodyguard. Do you understand?"
A strange motherly instinct rose up inside of the intent Kittie-Katt, and she resisted the urge to wash Andrew protectively behind the ears. Instead, she grasped his outstretched paw in her own, making sure not to extend her claws, saying, "Of course. And... call me ShaH-li."

Kaz

Jul 19, 2004, 11:26 PM

I haven't written in a long time, so I'm not sure which perspective will fit most ;P, so if it varies, that's why.

EDIT: So how many enviorments do we have now :|?

The SlaYeR

Jul 20, 2004, 06:52 AM

Read what is written so far and you'll know.
Spaztic's reason for why no one should post a late chapter are correct, it's going to be annoying having to re-write or change certain things for one or two people.

Further more, I don't think having different perspectives is going to be a big problem when this thing will be published.

Oh, and just don't write a chapter before someone is done again please.
It could mess things up, i for one will mention Diamondus (it will be on the news in my chapter, OMG SPOILER.)

Later. (Still writing btw.)

VelKa

Jul 20, 2004, 07:11 AM

I really need to talk with Slay about this.

For one thing, I am writing higher-priority stuff of my own (for personal enjoyment and Creative Writing/CW). Another thing is that I probably won't have much opportunity to follow the storyline after the semester starts. I won't be around to see the updates with eleven units' worth of courses. And having another bloody English class will make me sick of reading/writing after a while, I would imagine. ;-) Furthermore, if you're seriously considering publishing this, I am definitely backing out. I'd rather use my character (Celestyne) and talents for something else instead...

Sorry about the inconvenience, but I have my limits.

Violet CLM

Jul 20, 2004, 10:31 AM

I don't see how this could be possibly published when it's full of words like "Carrotus" and "Earlong".

KRSplat

Jul 20, 2004, 02:00 PM

With copyright permission from Epic, of course.

... which means no.

Tik

Jul 20, 2004, 02:04 PM

You change a few names around and everyone is happy.

Violet CLM

Jul 20, 2004, 04:31 PM

...except the readers, because the story has way too many characters for them, and it takes so long to get any obvious plot.

The SlaYeR

Jul 23, 2004, 03:17 AM

I was kind of hoping that all of you would be intelligent enough to find out that a few names would be changed.
And that's ok Velk, if you don't want to write then don't.
I'll just ask someone to delete your chapter and everything is ok.
All of you that want to whine about there being to much characters and stuff, please stop writing and let the people that are serious about this continue.
We have enough things to worry about as it is (The quality of the chapters we write ourselves that is.)

Spaztic how is ritopia coming along?

Risp_old

Jul 23, 2004, 05:46 AM

What about if anyone interacts with Velk? Then wouldn't it mess up if you removed her?

acid

Jul 23, 2004, 07:07 AM

I would think that it would be too early for much to be messed up if Velk was removed.

KRSplat

Jul 23, 2004, 03:01 PM

I was kind of hoping that all of you would be intelligent enough to find out that a few names would be changed.
don't tell anyone. :P

I think if someone wants to quit their character can die. Then the auther doesn't have to write anymore, and it wouldn't mess up the interactions that have already happened, because dying would be a part of the plot. It would seem stupid if a character died before the plot got going, though.

VelKa

Jul 23, 2004, 03:04 PM

Yeah... I'm really sorry Slay. ;( I would have wanted to, but I just don't have much time anymore.. go ahead and delete my chapter, heh.

Kaz

Jul 23, 2004, 09:10 PM

Or I could kill off Velk. =D =D =D

Doubble Dutch

Jul 24, 2004, 02:41 AM

I think if someone wants to quit their character can die.

Or the character could be absorbed by another writer; make a brief cameo and then leave the story forever or be written for by many writers to help along the plot in general.

Coppertop

Jul 24, 2004, 09:18 AM

Hm, but the rest of us have our own chars to worry about ... plus VelK may want to use the char somewhere else.

Kaz

Jul 25, 2004, 03:28 AM

We could always have the mysterious fell-off-a-cliff death with no dead body technique.

Oh, and 5th page is mine (I haven't lost it at all >D).

Risp_old

Jul 25, 2004, 05:15 AM

Introducing a character, showing the world from their point of view like they are a main character, and then killing them would seem strange.

VelKa

Jul 25, 2004, 08:11 AM

I find it slightly rude that you're talking about killing my character... she's mine to use and destroy, not yours. I've used her elsewhere, in my other stories; she's the only furry character that I have, and I don't like the idea of you just killing her off because it seems convenient. Just delete my chapter. What's so hard about that? I haven't influenced the plot anyway.

Edit: I removed my chapter. Now there's no reason to kill off my character.

Kaz

Jul 25, 2004, 02:15 PM

Forgot that we had to ask you first. Sorry.

(somebody did get Velk's chapter into a word document right?)

4I Falcon

Jul 25, 2004, 05:41 PM

I really should read this whole thing sometime. Maybe then I'll be inspired to write something.

I want to, really. I just don't have any material. That material that I have, I'm trying to wedge into SoY and E:JF.

...um. ^^;

Coppertop

Jul 26, 2004, 09:23 AM

SoY? =P

Cobra

Jul 26, 2004, 11:02 PM

Maybe if anyone should die (this will probably be brought up later, so I'm bringing it up now) the author should write the character's death, from their own eyes. It will end when the character dies.

or no. just throwing this out here :D

Doubble Dutch

Jul 27, 2004, 02:12 AM

Or they could split their chapter off into a new story.

4I Falcon

Jul 27, 2004, 11:07 AM

SoY? =P

Oh, you're funny. Just because you're comatose in SoY doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

Er, I mean...

...um...

...dangit.

Kaz

Jul 30, 2004, 07:10 AM

Within this hiatus, these to-be-accomplishments have changed from reasonable to ephemeral, so I think...

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 02:10 AM

Here it is, chapter 14, i had no time to check if there were any grammar or spelling errors, i hope there aren't to many in here and i hope you like it, i tried to tie in my chapter with Toxicbunny's chapter. I think that went rather well.
Have fun reading.

Chapter 14: In the beginning...

"..Governor Pneumeth of the To'Adin provence on Diamondus has adviced it's citizens to stay indoors during the evening, as the situation on Diamondus grows worse. Many people have lost their lives since the civil war started three months ago, and..."
The newsreader held her hand against her earpiece. "Oh my god." She softly said.

"Turn up the volume Jake." A man in the back of 'The green dragon.' the oldest, and cheapest inn of Peddleburg yelled at Jake Marshall, the old owner, a man with deep eyes, that looked like he had missplaced his razor blade a very long time ago, and did not bother to buy a new one. He reached for the remote control under the bar, and was able to turn up the volume before the newsreader could continue, she took a deep breath, nervously took the papers lying on the table in front of her and placed them a little to the left, for no reason, just to give her hands something to do before looking into the camera. "My apologies for the interuption, we just received the news that the southern army has moved on to the city of Depada. General Necra has started an attack on the north, word has received us that this attack is fully supported by the government of the south, we now go live to our reporter in Nari, several miles to the west of Depada. iCeD, are you there?"

A young, white furred lynx appeared on the screen, the people in the bar were very silent, including Louie and Majo, who were sitting in two small wooden chairs at a table in the back, Louie had ordered a glass of water, not to cause to much suspisioun, Majo had told the barkeeper that they had been walking here all the way from Greenthorpe, which was a 30 mile walk, and the weather was very warm for the time of the year. It would be strange if he was not thirsty, he took advantage of the situation, all of the people in the bar were staring at the screen, so he quickly emptied his glass in the vase the stood on the middle of the table, the flower in it looked like it could use it more then him. Majo whispered "I'm scared."
She wanted to be comforted. Louie just looked at the tv, it seemed that they were having some problems with the audio, which is understandable, this was live broadcasting from only a few miles from the warzone, the young reported stood in front of a big building, he looked into the camera without any sign of fear on his face, the grip on his microphone was firm and steady, he was waiting for the audioproblem to be fixed, while a few headlines were rolling trough the bottem of the screen.
" Situation on Diamondus has escalated, attack on Depada. Gary Parker running candidate for the governership of Peddleburg. Earian Thunder wins the Carrotus Cup. "
An old and grumpy fox came back from the toilet. "Darn it, how long does it take those idiots to fix an audioproblem. Change the channel."
"Easy Ted, have a beer on me." Jake yelled back.
Ted Harrison had a few relatives living in Nari, the old and grumpy man accepted the beer with a little, fake smile and sat down on his seat, taking a small pack holding about 4 cigarettes out of his wife's bag and lit one up. Jake had a strict policy about people not being allowed to smoke in his bar, but when Ted looked at him he nodded in agreement, he decided to make a small exceptation, just for today.

"Thanks Jenny, i'm here." The young man said, the audio problem had been fixed.
"Hello iCeD, has the president of the Northern front given an official reaction yet?" The lovely newsreader asked him.
iCeD shook his head. "No, the president is currently in a meeting with several ministers of his council, but the minister of the media has informed us that he will give a speach to the people of the north tonight.
He has moved out of Depada as soon as the news reach him, word is that he has moved to Nincada, where the spaceport is located, he might leave for Carrotus later today."
"And king Jazz, has he given a reaction yet?"
"He has not, he will give his reaction soon however.We do not have a lot of information yet, it is told that there were a lot of northern troops stationed in Kathmana, which is the closest military base from here, the troops have been mobilized and will arrive here in a matter of hours. We will be leaving for Nincada soon, the station has called us back."
"Thank you iCeD... Are you ok?." Jenny asked worried.
iCeD nodded. "I'll be home tonight. Goodbye Jenny."

The people in the bar started talking, within a breath, the silence was broken, everybody talked to someone.
Majo put her hand on Louie's, she shivered at the touch of the coldness of his skin, he enjoyed the warm flesh covering his hand, he could not hide that he was slightly worried, concerned for the wellbeing of the people on Diamondus. He looked at her, she was close to crying, everyone in the bar but him looked moved, sad and angry.
Their hands were entagled, became one. "Calm down, let me get you another drink." He said calmly, he did an incredible good job at hiding his feelings was the first thing that came to Majo's mind.
Louie got up and walked to the bar, a little kid, not really knowing what went on looked at him and smiled.
He smiled back, which gave the little girl the scare of her life, his fangs were unnaturally large, a sign of his hunger. He quickly walked over to the bar.
"I'd like a glass of the strongest ale you have... and a water please." He looked around, seeing if noone noticed him, the only two people looking at him were the little girl and Majo.
"Here you go buddy, it's on me. I can see that your girlfriend over there is in quiet a shock." The friendly, old bartender said.
"Thanks sir, that is very generous of you." Louie said just as he felt a terrible sharp pain in his stumach. His body shook and his pupils slowly faded.
"Are you ok buddy?" Jake asked him worried.
"Yes, i have to go... to the toilet.
Jake pointed at a small door in the back, decorated with a flower and the word 'men' in fancy letters underneath it.
Louie stumbled to the door, pushed it open with his shoulder and fell into the toilet.
It was a small but clean place, with three Shakelsbee urinoirs and three small fountains shaped like a turtles shell, for washing your paws.
He looked around, he had a highly evolved scent and could smell a prey from miles away, he noticed a very thin rat crawling in trough a hole in the far corner underneath one of the small fountains.
Louie got up and immidatly fell on the floor again, he reached out his hand for the rat and tightly squized his paw around it, he could feel the rat's small rib cage cracking in his hand, put it to his mouth and let his life's juices flow down his troath. His pupils became clear again, and his canine teeth returned to their normal size.
He got up and threw the rats corpse out of the small window above the urinoir in the middle of the room, turned to his left, he washed the disgusting scent of the rats fur off of his hands, looked up, looking into the mirror, seeing nothing but the wall behind him.
He leaned over the fountain for a moment and then decided it was time to return, he would be ok for another three hours now, the meal was only a small one, but sufficient for the time being

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 02:11 AM

King Jazz walked trough the great halls of Simic Palace, followed by ten guards and Yorek Stork, his minister of foreign affairs and Nick Hill, minister of warfare.
Dozens of reporters and cameramen were waiting in the conferece room for the king to arrive and answer the questions they had to ask.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the king." One of the royal guards shouted trough the room as king Jazz walked in.
Everyone in the room stood up, as Jazz Jackrabbit walked over the red carpet and set down in front of them, behind a large oak table, covered by a white cloth and three microphones, one for him, and one for Yorek Stork to his left, and Nick Hill to his right.
"Please, be seated." King Jazz said as he sank back into his chair. "You there, you look important with those glasses, first question."
The small turtle got up, he stared at the king behind his big glasses with sharp eyes. "Gene Berry, Turtle Gazet, are there any plans to send Carrotian forces to Diamondus, sir?"
"We have no intentions of becoming involved in the war mister Berry. You there, next question."
"Nina Bradey. The daily carrot, are there any plans on giving refugee to the citizens of Diamondus, sir?"
"We have offered the citizens of cities in the north refugee on Medieval, our first moon. refugee camps will be set up there, we will also set up a camp in the peddleburg woods, a refugee camp to the north of New Carrotus and to the north of Oakloma. You there..."

Louie took a golden coin out of his bag and gave it to Jake. "This should take care of the costs."
Jake's mouth fell open, he was stunned. A man payed for two drinks with a golden coin. He then walked over to Majo. "We have to leave, i need a proper meal before i go to sleep."
He wrapped his hand around hers and they walked out into the night togheter.

"Where should we go?" Majo asked Louie.
"I have an idea, we should go back to Greenthorpe, my house is big enough to hold at least a hundred refugees." Louie said.
"That is very noble of you Louie, but don't the people over there know you, from what i've heard of those childeren i saw, the people in Greenthorpe are very suspisious.".
Louie reached for his pocket and retrieved the big bag full of coins.
"Here, you take this, when we reach Greenthorpe, i want you to go to the city council and buy my mansion, this should be more then enough." He said confident. "Let's rest here, you must be tired, it has been a long day. Majo lay down next to the river, louie took of his shirt, folded it up and placed it under her head. "There you go, sleep well."
She kissed the cold flesh of his cheek. "You too." She said.

Majo soon fell asleep, the stars filled up the sky, they looked like small white pinpricks in the big blanket that covered the planet.
Louie made sure she slept, he was in need of blood, but he could not leave her here, something might happend. He felt a need to protect her, so he decided to eat some of the smaller creatures he could find around here. A bird chirpped on a branch behind him, he pretended like he did not pay attention to the bird, but in a flash he turned around and jumped for the branch, wrapping his index finger and thumbs around its little neck, snapping it in a quick movement, he gulped down it's life juices, enough for another 3 hours, he stared around, ever so patiently, he stood in the field, just looking for twenty minutes untill he discovered his prey, the ultimate prey, a true feast for a vampire.
A wild boar, slowly moved his fat legs trough the muddy forest trail, carefully Louie waited behind a bush untill it came close enough.
"Just a few more steps, come on." He jumped on the back of the boar, that started squeeling loudly. "Shut up you foolish creation, your life ends here."
Louie had lost it, his eyes hollow and empty, he made a few growling sounds and bit, his fangs sinking into the boards flesh, as a needle sinking into the skin, he started drinking, and he kept on drinking untill he was satisfied, he then walked back to Majo and fall asleep next to her.

Majo woke up the next morning, the rays of sunlight falling on her face, Louie was still sleeping, she looked at him, he had changed a great deal.
His flesh felt warmer, his fur was soft, it was so nice to touch, she let her hand slide over his strong chest, she gave him a soft kiss in the neck. Majo knew she should not be doing this, but he was irresistable as he lay there, she didn't know why, but he seemed more attractive then ever before.
Majo walked over to the creek and took off her clothes, a small, black shirt and her tank top, she lay down in the creek, the feeling of the water flowing over her naked body felt lovely.
"We should leave in a moment, we have a great deal to take care off and i need a newspaper." Louie said.
"What the.." Majo crossed her arms to cover up her breast. "Couldn't you at least give me a warning."
"Your reaction would have been the same wouldn't it?" He said "But i'll avert my eyes now." He said as her turned around.
Majo got out of the water and shook the drops out of her fur, before getting back into her clothes.

They arrived in Greenthorpe a few hours later, Louie bought a newspaper at the stand, he fit in better now, without the scars and the paleness.
He bought a newspaper by a stand, the war had started, fights were going on in and around Depada, the first large transportationships had been send to Diamondus to pick up the refugees, but the news of the war did not shock Louie as much as the other news he read. They were going to tear down his mansion to make room for a factory.
He dropped the newspaper to the floor, for Majo to pick it up and read the article.
"They can't do this." She said shocked. "That isn't fair, what about the refugees, those poor people. And you, it's the place you grew up in, you've spend your life in their."
Louie had mixed feelings about this, it was his house, and he had spend ages in there, that is why he hated it, and he wanted it to be pulled down, but on the other hand, there were people who needed it.
The second reason was more important to him, the refugees needed all the room they could get.
"Let's pay mister Bradhust a visit, shall we?" He said.

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 02:11 AM

"Mister Parker, there are two people over here that are looking for Thomas Bradhurst." Gary Parker's secretary said trough the telephone.
"Yes sir, i will tell him that, yes sir." She put the telephone down. "Mister Parker will be here in a few minutes, please have a seat over there."
Majo thanked her, and she and Louie sat down. The secretary looked up from her paperwork and smiled and Louie, who just looked back at her.
He then looked at the photographs on the wall, who were probably of the people that worked on this floor, the picture of Thomas Bradhurst hang next to Gary Parker's Photograph.
He was a young man, wearing and old and shabbey green tie, and looking as if he wanted to be everywhere as long as he didn't have to be here, at the office.
Majo was reading a magazine, and Louie was still looking at the picture, as if he had a precognition that he was going to need to remember what Thomas looked like later on.
"Hello madam, i am Gary Parker." Gary said as he reached for Majo's hand.
"Hello sir." She said. "I was wondering if you could tell me where i could find mister Bradhurst, i wanted to talk to him about the Greenthorpe mansion."
"Well, well." He said and he gave her a cheezy grin. "That place is quiet populair lately. I am afraid mister Bradhurst has left for Orleton the other day, but perhaps i could be off assistance."
"No." Louie said immidiatly. "Thanks for your time."
Majo was puzzeled. "But why not? He could..." But Louie had entered the elevator. Majo said goodbye to Gary Parker and entered the elevator just in time before the doors closed, her skirt almost got stuck between the sliding doors.
"I know what you want to ask, i sense something about that guy, he's very untrustworthy. Something tells me we'll be better off discussing this with mister Bradhurst."
"Whatever you want dear." She said.
They exited the elevator and were heading for the big rolling doors to exit the building, when two buff looking man in black suits approached them.
The slightly taller one put his hand on Louie's shoulder and slowly but firmly acommpanied him to a door to left side of the hallway.
"Hey, where are you taking me?" Louie looked over his shoulder, he could see that the other man had a gun pointed at Majo, hidden under his coat.
There were several people waiting in the lines in this hall, most of them came here to extend their passport, or their identity card.
Louie became angry when he saw that Majo was in danger. "My dad told me that i shouldn't go with strangers." He told the tall and buff man, before he gave him a headstomp against his nose.
The guy started cursing as blood ran down his nose, over his lips. Louie could not resist and licked up a small trail that ran down his chin, his hand went for the gun, he grasped it firmly and shot the other buff rabbit trough the head. Majo screamed as she saw a part of the man's brains and his right ear burst out of his skull and land a bit further away over the body of the people waiting in line.
The people started screaming in terror and ran out of the city hall, some tripping over eachother in their haste and panic.
"Shut up and come over here Majo." Louie said wrapping one of his strong arms around the living buff guys neck, as he held the gun to his head.
"Now, you tell me what you and your partner wanted of us, or i'll make sure that something happends to you that is far worse then what happend to your partner."
"Please, don't, i have my orders." Louie tightened his grip on the guy's neck, and he moved the gun from the side of the guys head down to his balls.
"Now, wouldn't it be painful and messy if i pulled the trigger?" He whispered in the guys ear.
"Parker, Parker told me i couldn't let you go, he says he recognized you, please don't shoot them off."
Louie got up and put the gun in the back of his pants. "Why should i, you told me everything i needed to know, i guess i'll just go shoot mister Parker instead."
The alarm went off, Louie looked at the back wall and saw that one of the employee's had pushed the alarm button, Louie grabbed Majo by the hand and the quickly ran out of the building.
"There, over there, by the pub." Several horses were standing in front of the pub, tied to the strong, wooden fence.
They both took one to their liking and left for Orleton.

Gary Parker picked up the phone in his office and dialed the number of the Cholmondely & Smith legal team.
"Jack? Gary here, i think we have a problem." Gary said seriously, while he took a bottle of gin out of the little refridgerator under his bureau.
He screwed the cap off with one hand, took a shot glass and poured himself a drink.
"Don't worry Gary, i send three men after mister Bradhurst, he should not be a problem for long."
"It's not him i am worried about Jack, it's Lawrence Greenthorpe's son. He was just here with a young girl."
It was quiet on the other end of the phone, Gary used this silence to take a big gulp from his gin.
"I'm sure that someone will take care of him soon enough my friend." Little did Jack Cholmondely know that he was speaking the truth, the hunters were looking for Louie already.
"...My men for instance, i'll make sure they go after him when they are done with mister Bradhurst.
"Thanks Jack, i knew i could count on you."
"Anytime pal, still up for that golfing match on Sunday? Jack asked him and he laughed.
"Oh absolutly, you are going down pal."
"Haha, goodbye Gary." Jack said and he hang up the phone.
Gary looked out of his window, over the town, with the mansion in the background, he hated that building with a passion, the sooner he got rid of it, the better.

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 02:12 AM

The night was falling as Louie and Majo rode onwards to Orleton, a large forest lay to their right, darkness fell over the tree's, and the full moon made them cast eery shadows on the ground.
"We have to enter the forest here, stay close to me ok?" Louie said. "The forest can be dangerous... especially now that it is full moon." Louie shivered, the thought of meeting a werewolve scared the hell out of him. They rode on for quiet a while, the hoofbeats of their horses in the soft, muddy trail where the only sounds they heard.
"Look over there, fire pixies." Majo said, she was amazed by the beauty mother nature had to offer.
The pixies were flying round the tree's, legend says that they guard the tree's from danger, sad enough, only a few are left, way back when people did not have electricity, they were caught, to bring light in the mines and homes. But they are growing larger in numbers again, it's the first time in ages that pixies are seen in this forest.
Louie rode on, their horses were fast and strong, they rode on untill Louie noticed something in the distance, a badly contstructed, crude fence.
This was a rather strange place to build a fence, the middle of the forest. Louie stopped his horse and Majo quickly followed the example, she knew he had better nightvision then him, or most other living rabbits for that reason. Creatures of the night are known to have highly evolved sight.
"There's a fence over there, stay behind me." They walked closer, and could hear a few rabbits talk.
"Get off him!" One of them shouted. It was clear that there was a fight going on, he could see one of them breaking away from the group, he dove into a small opening that led to a trail, that was a bit easyer to reach from here, two of the rabbits followed the one that got away.
"Come on, we have to help that man." Louie said as he fought his way trough the bushes, he quickly ran after them.
The rabbit that was escaping tripped over a thick root sticking out of the ground, and lost consiousness when his head smacked against the ground.
The two others approached him, one of them pulled his dagger and wanted to plant it in the guys chest, but before he got the oppertunity to do so, Louie had reached him and grabbed him by the wrist.
"Two against one isn't really fair is it?" He said, he squeezed a little harder and the guy dropped it's dagger in front of his feet, just a few inches away from the feet of Thomas Bradhurst.
"Hey Majo, look who we found." He said. The guy that had standing behind the man with the dagger punched Louie in the stumach, he loosened his grip on the rabbits wrist.
Both of them wanted to punch Louie again, but he grabbed one of the rabbits by the neck and threw him against a tree with all his power, he could hear his skull breaking open as he flung against the tree, head first. The other rabbit took a step back. "Holy ... What the hell are you man."
Louie quickly took two steps towards the rabbit and took him by the neck, he uncovered his fangs and spoke gently. "Does this ring a bell?"
"Don't kill me, please, don't." The rabbit cried out.
"I don't think i will, i have a great idea though, we could play a game, how does that sound."
"I want my mother." The rabbit cried.
"I ask you a question, and every time you give me a wrong answer, or if your making me wait, i'll break one of your fingers."
The rabbit tried to get away, but quickly stopped moving when Louie wrapped two fingers around his index finger. "Let's start with this one. Are you ready?"
The rabbit nodded, covering in fear, his eyes were opened wide, he took another quick glance at his partner in crime and figured he would best be honest to this man, because he was the kind of person that ment it. Majo ripped a small piece of cloth off of Louie's shirt and walked over to Thomas Bradhurst, who had an ugly cut on his forehead, where he hit the ground.
She sat down next to him and cleaned it, gently, she didn't like to see Louie like this, but she knew it was necessary, they needed the information.
"And remember, if your honest and you don't make any attempt to harm me, or my friend, you'll be ok. Who send you here?"
The rabbit mumbled "How do you know i?" Louie broke his index finger, the rabbit screamed harder then anyone at the city hall did before, no, he even screamed harder then all of them combined. He grabbed the rabbits middle finger. "Let's try it again, shall we? Who send you here."
"Please, i can't tell you, if i tell you that, they'll k..."
"Bye, bye, middle finger." Louie said as he broke the rabbits middle finger, tears ran down the fur on the rabbits cheeks.
"Please, have mercy." The rabbit said.
"I don't have mercy for people like you, you wanted to kill an innocent man like mister Bradhurst, and for what? A few golden coins?"
"I didn't kill him." he said, followed by a scream, there went his ring finger.
"See, i do not have alot of patience, i just asked you two questions, and you failed to answer them both." He said as he broke his pinky.
He now wrapped two fingers around the rabbits thumb.
"You felt a lot of pain didn't you?" Louie said.
"Yes, yes." The rabbit said, he felt like vomiting, but he was to afraid of dying, the pain was to much, he should vomit, so he could die.
"Who send you here?" Louie asked for the third time, and some made the rabbit realize that he was not going to ask him again.
"I'd rather have you kill me then them, just get it over with." The rabbit cried.
"I didn't want this to happend." Louie said, and with an awful sound and a terrible scream, that made Majo feel like she had to vomit, Louie broke the rabbit's thumb.
The rabbit sank to his knees and fell down on the ground, he died of the pain, it became to much for him.
Louie looked down the trail, the other rabbit had ran off, with one of the horses, just as he expected.

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 02:14 AM

"Let's get going, we could drive on to Prestbury, and find a room over there, it's a wellfaring and peaceful town, i'm sure we could rest there for a while, this guy looks like he needs it." Majo suggested.
Louie nodded. "Good idea, good idea." He said while he picked up Thomas's glasses that he had lost as he rolled down the steep hill, luckily they were not broken during the fall.
They climbed up on their horses and started riding, it would take them at least a day to arrive in Prestbury, and it's been a heck of a day, but sleeping over here seemed to dangerous after that little incident.
They longed for a bed, a warm fireplace, and some peace.

Far away from there, the last normal flight from Nincada to Oakloma had just arrived, iCeD got out of the plane, his cameraman followed him quietly into the limo.
The star reporter of the Carrotus daily news channel, CDNC for short was used to this life of luxury.
His driver offered him a cigar as he got in, he lived his life in luxury but within he had stayed the same man he was before, he talked to his drivers and the rest of his staff about their childeren, their personal lives, football, his limo drove towards New Carrotian, where his lovely wife Jenny was waiting for him.
It had been only hours ago that he was close to the warzone, the suffering, the terror, but here he was, safe and sound, everyone on Carrotus was... for now.
The only traveling that went on between Carrotus and Diamondus from now on were the ships full of refugees, the first of them were already leaving Diamondus, but lots of them would soon follow.

I hope you guys liked it, i started it the other night, and i felt so inspired that i just continued it right away. It has taken quiet a while for me to finally post a chapter again, but i had some personal problems i had to take care of first.
I hope you understand.
Kaz, your turn :)

Risp_old

Jul 31, 2004, 05:31 AM

\o/

Doubble Dutch

Jul 31, 2004, 06:11 AM

Whew! That was a long one! Much plot development. Nice to see someone writing again.

Strato

Jul 31, 2004, 06:57 AM

pawnage

acid

Jul 31, 2004, 08:57 AM

Wow, excellent chapter! You really are a great writer, SlaYo.

Violet CLM

Jul 31, 2004, 10:51 AM

Interesting. The only complaint I have is that the rabbits in the Jazz Jackrabbit universe have only four fingers.

The SlaYeR

Jul 31, 2004, 11:16 AM

Let's just say that there are different species.
I liked that scene so i'm not going to edit it.

But thanks for pointing it out mate, i'll try to keep that in mind in the future.

And thanks guys, its always nice to hear that your work is appriciated.

Doubble Dutch

Aug 1, 2004, 04:22 AM

Interesting. The only complaint I have is that the rabbits in the Jazz Jackrabbit universe have only four fingers.

Hey, some people are born with six fingers, in the JJ2 universe such incidents occur as well.

Strato

Aug 1, 2004, 08:12 AM

I took a shower this morning, and inspiration came cascading down as tiny pellets of water. Too bad you aren't online so I can't talk to you about it Slayo.

The SlaYeR

Aug 1, 2004, 08:17 AM

Send me an e-mail, ill read it tommorow or the day after and i'll get back to you as soon as possible.

Strato

Aug 1, 2004, 08:18 AM

K. Byu.

The SlaYeR

Aug 5, 2004, 03:06 AM

50 pages in word so far, unedited, hurry Kaz!!!

acid

Aug 5, 2004, 07:08 AM

Hey SlaYo, check your PMs. I sent you a message, I'm not sure if you got it yet.

Kaz

Aug 6, 2004, 03:06 AM

Shup, I''m working on it, and it should be done in about 12 hours.

The SlaYeR

Aug 6, 2004, 04:36 AM

I love you guys.

I dont want to complain, but it's going to take ages b4 publication, still no worries. Take your time (HURRY HURRY!!)

Risp_old

Aug 6, 2004, 04:46 AM

Heh. Finally noticed?

The SlaYeR

Aug 6, 2004, 05:29 AM

A while ago actually, i know, but it'll be worth it.

Kaz

Aug 6, 2004, 09:41 AM

This was still for the greater good. This, my journey, was still for the greater good of the universe. Everything would be better off without such minds that stray from what god had intended. They defied death and raped worlds without a second thought. I must help balance the cycle.
Those thoughts ran through my head, a logical step from a stable base into a bloody spiral of vengence. Regrets? I questioned myself, none I responded. It was safe to open this door and see those who got here before me and invited me to take my journey one step ahead.
The door flew inwards without me touching it and a maroon, scaly, and unmeticulous turtle-paw grabbed out at my neck and pulled me in. "What the hell were you waiting for?" he scolded me. The turtle had his other arm 'mummified' and dressed like the invisible man, except without the invisibility. I stared at his right arm which looked like it had been stuck in an oven. Curiousity overcame me and "What happened to yo-" "Why don't you get creative and think of the worst things that could happen?" he immediately turned and started to walk down the corridor.
This was headquarters. I have no clue how long it was occupied, or what it used to be, but it was located somewhere down an alley in the ghetto part of town. The place where the street-lights glowed orange becuase the bulb was cheaper. Of course, the white lights have a history of being stolen and resold to the company that made them.
The inside of headquarters kept the queerness of the outside in the lighting. The same dark tangerine spread throughout the hallways, too far spread out that you only knew where you were going in the darkness because it seemed like a willow wisp was guiding you. The walls were made of wood, so this place was ancient. I could imagine it being a office of some kind, and for a small fracton of a second a party that would be held here. But the lights dimmed the idea of bright colors ever existing here.
I kept walking, only catching a glimpse of the burnt-turtle's coat every five steps. The doors we passed by on the sides were probably locked and I wondered what they'd keep in there, and what they would hide from me when I resided in one of these rooms. We stopped at the end of the dim corridor. This last room, this must have been where they kept their leader, who I would have taken down without thought several years ago. "Come in" muffled from the inside, a raspy voice. Age had taken it's toll on him already and it would have been an easy task... that several years ago.
This room showed more age than anything else I had seen. It even seemed like dust made up the wood, and some of this guy. This guy resembled a rabbit in some aspects, but I wasn't sure. If he was, that would explain the long ears missing that looked like they were cut off and the other one ripped. Maybe he was deaf. The same dust that blanketed the tables and shelves blanketed this guy as well. I wondered how much of his time he spent in here and noticed a box that seemed new marked with a cockroach symbol and a joker's hat. I tried to remember that the joker hat meant when it was on shipping boxes. He noticed my attention on the package and explained "That there is an insanity inducer, I like to think of it as a catalyst of what's to come."
"How do you believe that's what's at the end?" I already asked halfway once he said catalyst.
"I'm deaf in my left ear, you'll have to speak up." I wasn't sure if he ignored me becuase it was a question that was 'obviously beyond my grasp' or he really was deaf. I didn't ask again and waited for him to answer. He reached under his desk and pulled out what looked like an ant-farm, except with cockroaches, and a special breed that had what seemed like large fangs. "These are a special Muckamo breed of venom-scythes. They work like ants would, except they're much more territorial." he pulled out another farm with browner... hah, roaches. "These two colonies are different, though they probably act and work the same." He cracked open the door of the case and slid in long tweezers to grab one. It was about 5 centimeters long. I watched it, it seemed really active now just to break free. Maybe it knew what would happen in a minute. The boss closed the case almost showing a hint of fear. "Are they pois-" "These beasts," he already started lecturing again, "are very poisonus, and would probably have outlived rabbits." He opened the blackers' case. All of them simultaneously stopped, waving their antennae in the air sensing something. Then he dropped the single browner one in. It seemed to fall in slow motion, and then once it hit the ground. It only took three seconds. 1...2...3 and all the blacker ones scurried over to the browner one. It was defeneless and had landed on its back. I watched as the blacker ones rushed, hellbent on eliminating the intruder. "These things..." one bit into the browner one and it stopped squirming, "would outlive us," a second one bit and they started to tear at the shell, "except..." he reached into the box with the joker hat on it and pulled out a black spray can. It didn't have any labels on it. They would have grown resistant already to a pesticide. I thought it over and wondered if he was stupid and deaf. The black ones were almost finished until he cracked open the door on the top again of the glass death-farm. They all paused and stood still again. He sprayed it towards the left of the container. Agh! It smelled, but I couldn't exactly tell of what. So he had an air sanitizer as a roach killer? "They identify eachother by smell, and like people, they prosecute anybody different." I watched as what could be the two colonies paused, like they were still thinking. Maybe they were shocked to find the enemy so close. That was it, one on the left side moved only a centimeter before there on the right side rushed to mutilate it, and then four on the left side to fightg back.
They were even sides, both of them fought and it seemed to be only a mass of black legs and bodies and fangs. I looked closer to see that the majority were already dead, in ten seconds?! Only about five were fighting now. Two versus three, and I don't think they knew which side had started it either. The three ganged up on one and it was gone, simple as that, but two of them seemed to die in the process. The last one, the last one of the three I saw sunk it's fangs deep into the other last survivor's head. At least it looked like a head. I waited to see it remove itself and claim victory as the survivor and the winner of the war. "They're all dead..." I realized and thought outloud. It dawned on me there was no winner, the last one had died of war despite no enemy. "They're all doomed to fight eachother and die, but at least this way, we're stopping them before they consume everything. Haha, we're just accelerating the inevitable." Boss grabbed my attention by chuckling. "This is how they got rid of their pest problem," he put the spray back in the box, "and this is how we will get rid of ours."
---
Burnt turtle? It turned out he was a hacker of some sort, but was caught one day and... as the famous saying goes "if you play with fire, you're going to get burned." So now he taught other people how to do his bidding. Boss explained to me that there were two gangs after eachother in Diamondus that just needed to sparked against eachother, and the organizations that secretly back them up to do their dirty work, would also have sparked. With those organizations would come the governments, and you'd have a whole civil war. Strike one person in these long hierarchies, and blame it on the other. "Which are these gangs?" I wanted to verify for myself. It was a large jump to go from eliminating cockroaches to populations, but he was right. Stop them now, kill the pests. My faith in him was shaken again when he responded "Speak up, boy! I'm deaf in my right ear." instead of giving me a straight answer.
That one person we needed to strike turned out to be ten, and the blame involved planting jade dawn as the poison used. Burnt already hacked the order logs to falsify a large order of the stuff, but it actually wouldn't be compiled. We needed to physically steal the JD. "Which organization did you put the order into?" I asked. Boss didn't tell me, maybe he knew. "It doesn't matter." he scolded back again. I hated that "screw everybody" tone. It would hit the underground that such a large order of JD went through, even though it didn't, but everybody claimed they knew who it was going to.
---

I scolded myself for not asking for Burnt's name at the beginning. It felt like he'd be ****ed if I asked him now and I'd never get rid of the reputation of an idiot. Just wait until somebody else says it. I said to myself earlier, too bad it was just the two of us to retrieve the Jade Dawn and then the two of us to dump it into a water supply.
I asked earlier "And that'll provoke the gang against another?"
"No, you're going to dump it into one of the organization's gang members."
"But they're allies."
"They'll bite The Big Guys' necks once you do this, alliances will be broken and new ones will be formed. This will shatter any permanent alliance that have standed so far and could stand afterwards," he responded. Boss must have thought me as naive as I found this rather twisted, but fitting.
---

Kaz

Aug 6, 2004, 09:43 AM

"Get up already." Burnt punched me in on my shoulder. We had already landed, oh well, I was glad to get off this piece of ship that was made to fit two. Burnt must have counted at one and a half.
"Shouldn't we be at an airport of some kind?" I looked around. The place was barren, save for the sparse vegetation and sand. Burnt punched my shoulder again for asking a stupid question. Oh right, we'd have to register this flight at that airport, and nonetheless go through a gate-check to see that we weren't criminals. And anyway, we were suppposed to meet a contact.
"See the ba-" Burnt asked and self-censored himself.
"No," I continued eyeing the horizon searching for somebody. Then I saw a small vehicle... it must have been a lift, and at the very least wasn't a patrol officer. We could at least get the info from there. "Over there," I nudged burnt. Then nudged harder when he didn't seem to notice. "Over there," I repeated and pointed towards the rectangular vehicle. We started walking.
---
Crystallis looks a lot shorter to the eye than it feels to the foot. "Hey!!" Burnt shouted now that we were in distance. I looked closer, it looked like another rabbit, he was all black, maybe dyed that way. "Black?" Burnt boomed out again. It almost sounded like a name. "What's that right next to him?" I asked low enough so 'Black' wouldn't hear me. Two barrels with what was probably a five-pointed flower on it, a bit green. "Looks like a trashbag except with fur," Burnt replied. I squinted and saw it bled. Did you torture the rabbit for that? I wanted to shout at him. Then I realized it probably wasn't him that did it.
We got there finnally. "We'll be taking these now." Burnt said, I kept silent as I didn't know what formalities I'd miss.
"Did you bring the goods?" Black asked us once we got up there.
"Yeah," Burnt replied and reached into his pocket for a diskette. I thought of all the dirty things that he would accept as payment. "Where'd you get all of this stuff?" I blurted out as the landscape was barren and there wasn't exactly a shop.
"Somewhere around here there's a monastery," Black replied, and with that last word the trashbag of fur struggled with its burns and writhed.
"$@(# IT'S STILL ALIVE!!" Black jumped away from it. Whatever it was... it was deemed dead soon as Black reached for his gun. As soon as he drew it out of it's sling, Burnt seemed to step towards him and with one swift movement stab below his ribcage to pierce upwards into his heart. I didn't even see him take out his knife... "Do you always go for the heart?" I asked. It would have been nice if he went for the shoulder of the gun, then I could ask if he always went for the shoulder. No response. I was certain that murder would be the most compassionate thing I'd ever see Burnt do. He found pity for the trashbag and somewhere I did too, but didn't act as fast.
"Grab a barrel." Burnt instructed. The merciful one I saw a while ago was gone. "What about the..." I looked closely and made a lucky guess, "girl?" Burnt had already gotten one barrel on his shoulder. "If she lives, she can use the cart to go somewhere," he replied. Not our problem... but something inside of me told me she wouldn't live if we left her out here. I looked closer. She had twisted over in the sands with all those cuts, it must have hurt. I looked even closer at her face and realized what how damaged the eyes were. Whatever caused this bleeding I now saw was soothed by a goo of amber color. "Yeesh.." I looked at them. It's okay, she can't tell I'm staring. and I moved her arm to cover her eyes with the Advil-like glue. She moved back.
"Where the hell do you think we'd take her? Back to headquarters to live out her life alone there?" Burnt had come back and noticed my fascination at this blind one.
She turned to face Burnt and moved her mouth without any words coming out. I wondered how badly she bled and burned. Burnt sighed a bit angrily and asked "Where?"
"Pn um click" she rasped.
"Forget it." I said, it didn't matter and she was taking up time. I think I saw tears, it might have just been the amber.
"I need to go to Pneum Arklik..." she sobbed and coughed. Finally an answer.
"That's out of our way by a longshot." Burnt responded. She seemed to sob even more and faced Burnt. Even without a complete face, she still gave the look of sorrow perfectly.
"We're wasting time," I told them all, "Let's just ride this with the barrels and drop her off somewhere." I indicated the vehicle which still had enough gas and space to carry us all to the ship. It's going to be cramped. Don't tell that to the big guy... She seemed to stop sobbing as much though and clung to me. Why me? Burnt's right next to you, why the heck are you clinging onto me? I dragged her over and sat her in the back. It was still gruesome to look at, but the trash goes in the back, with the jade dawn. "'Key's already here." I projected to Burnt. He was searching the dead guy and found a wallet. "Thanks" he seemed to say with a hand gesture and got into the driver's seat. "What happened to the third guy?" Garbage asked. Neither responded.
---
It felt like she knew what we were packing into the cargo area of the back of the ship. We were packing her with the cargo, I figured it wouldn't matter and she wouldn't mind as all she could see was darkness anyway. I thought so anyways, it seemed like she saw some things blind people don't see, and she cringed when she felt the barrel of poison. It was safely sealed, Burnt made sure. We'd be screwed too if it leaked.
---
"She has to get off here." I said, looking at the meters.
"Not here..." there was compassionate Burnt again for a second.
"Yes here, here or else we'll run out of gas and fail boss." Those words, fail and boss, seemed to make him cringe. He had forgotten of how we couldn't bring her home with us like a lost puppy and ask the boss if "Can we keep him?"
"Which planet is this anyway?" I asked.
"Dunno, we'll just drop her off in a rural area, a city will probably rape her."
Stupid sickos...
"Hey... isn't this the base for one of the corporations?" I asked. It probably wasn't, I didn't know how to even recognize ones nonetheless which ones they were.
"Yeah..."
"Boss wasn't specific on.." Burnt already shifted the ship and gravity was felt all throughout. At the very least, this ship had the technology to not burn up in atmosphere as the ship was guided into a freefall.
This planet was small, and looked grey instead of blue from above. #@(*#$ There's the ground already!! I cursed outloud.
"Stop whining." and Burnt seemed to be able to pull up from a dive. "Eesh.." I said. We could have crashed, but didn't... but we could have. "There, a landing pa-" "I already see it," he interrupted. The landing pad was suprising on the ground right next a parkling lot. We had landed somewhere in the city. Hotels, technology, a good neighboorhood with it's bad counterpart and the low-lives that we targetted.
"Unpacking time?" I asked. I wondered how she was doing.
---
When she came out, she was silent. She must have been thinking to herself a lot. Blindness must have been new to her. "We're here." I greeted her.
"Pne-"
"No, but you can probably ask somebody else to get there." She reached out to cling to me but I reacted and jumped back. Burnt came up behind me and handed her the pilfered wallet, free of ID to trace back to Black.
"Leave and ask somebody where a hotel is." Burnt coldly said to her. He had that sort of commanding voice that says "Go away or I'll shoot you," in the background. She immediately got up and tried to follow the concrete that would lead her to the sidewalk. She'll be fine... somebody will take care of her. I lied to myself.
"Do you know what happens when this mixes with water?" Burnt pointed near the back where the Jade Dawn was. How would he know?
"That." and Burnt indicated over to the bleeding trashbag that had been eaten alive but survived to feel the pain. Her head seemed to sink a bit lower as she kept walking away. She heard him, I knew it.
---
"Why are we getting in here?" I stared at the door that seemed to be the janitor's.
"Water supply." he replied. It all dawned on me, this was where one of the gangs inhabitated. I noticed the grafitti, and the brand name of a "Prochoice." Oh wait, I remember seeing that name in the order hackings. So they were the subordinates.
"Go ahead and open it," Burnt told me. I looked at it and reached for my ID card. I had cut a slit in it so it could go past the latch and open it. The door slid open as soon as I swiped the knob. "Cheap security" I said and noticed a large water pipe on the side. The one next to it was probably for sewage. The small tank must have been for derbis filterage. I opened it first to see that it was surprisingly clean. "What are you doing?" I asked Burnt, he was staring at a panel on the wall. He pointed at it, one which said 'lockdown test' and another that said 'fire simulation'. I started dumping the heavy barrel into the tank, and the second one right after it, they weren't that heavy afterall. But I still had to lean back and make sure not to splash it.
"Lockdown, sprinklers..." Burnt muttered to himself, "and we should start running." He flickered the switches.
"What?" It started to sprinkle...

Kaz

Aug 6, 2004, 09:44 AM

"RUN!" and he bolted off as I noticed the tank was becoming active. !@#$ and I rushed to close it. I looked above to check, 2 sprinklers. They'd keep using the water until they came upon the contaminated, and by the time all of that was used, everybody in there would be dead or wish for it.
I bolted in after Burnt, noted that our ship had that logo of "Prochoice" all this time and got in. He already had it marcoed to take off at the press of a button. We left the Janitor door open... this was a sloppy job. Then I heard the blood curdling scream... and then another. I saw a pair of eyes look from behind in the building... two eyes saw us, that was perfect. Those two eyes needed to survive, and our plan would succeed. This would be seen to them as a way to wipe out the dirty tracks of the organization, alliances would be broken...
We flew away back to headquarters, I wondered what she thought of all of this. That bleeding one.
---
"So it starts..." Boss smiled as he watched web-news-lines start their conspiracies, governments declaring war against the terrorists that had declared war against them in the same exact words with the same exact perspective. "Disgusting pests..." Boss muttered to himself again.
===

It's a bit weak in the end, but most of my writing is ;|

Cobra

Aug 6, 2004, 10:32 AM

*clings to nun* Good. I know it's hard to write under pressure, you don't have to be so hard on yourself.

Kaz

Aug 6, 2004, 11:40 AM

*clings to nun* Good. I know it's hard to write under pressure, you don't have to be so hard on yourself.
<strike>
But it prevents other people from doing it |D</strike>

Risp_old

Aug 6, 2004, 02:21 PM

All these three-posters make my chapters feel tiny and insignificant D=

Chapter 16- Not the most ideal means of escape

Jargon and John raced throught the streets of the city, past panicking bystanders.
Jargon's raccoon tail streaked out from behind him as he dodged around corners and ran across streets. His muddish red coloring would have blended into the bricks of the buildings, had they been made from terrestrial mud. Instead, they were made on Diamondous, and thus were a unnatural shade of blue. His clothes made soft clinking noises as he ran, from their partially metal construct. Looking back at John, his white-on-black eyes noted that the more mentally-stable Technomancer had not fallen behind. John was wearing, instead of Jargon's causual- if unusual- clothes, the traditional robes of a Technomancer- fancy, but still quite functional. However, it would still slow down even a fast rabbit such as John.

Jargon rounded another corner, only a few minutes from the spaceport. Stopping to catch his breath, Jargon chanced to look at a side alley. Two soldiers of the rebellion stepped out from the alley, wearing black masks to hide their identities. They both held up their guns, and started to fire. Jargon and John both jumped in opposite directions, and both took out their autocasters. After a glance at each other, they both started to twiddle them with speed born from urgency. John finished first; with a small bang the gun of one of the soldiers flew apart before the soldier's startled eyes. Jargon then finished his spell; the parts of them gun re-assembled themselves into a bomb. In a blast, that soldier died.
The other soldier ran forward, to John. Jargon glanced towards the dead soldier's corpse, and then darted towards it. John tried to run backwards as he prepared a spell, but dropped his autocaster as the other soldier wacked him in the head with his rifle. The soldier stood over his target, and aimed his rifle at John's head. Then there was a bang, and the soldier relaxed and fell over. John saw, somewhat lightheadedly, Jargon standing behind him, reloading the handgun he found on the corpse of the first soldier. After being helped up, John continued on with Jargon.

Since John was still somewhat dizzy after the fight, they walked the rest of the way. Within minutes, they had found the space port. A twenty-foot tall and rather boxy structure, the space port had the capabilites to hold around 30 shuttles, and that's all. This was not a very rich area of Diamondous, and the space port reflected this.
Rushing inside, they found the place rather empty, with only a few small shuttles occupying the open, girder-crisscrossed building. Lining the walls, deserted stores offered a silent testimony to the optimism of the entrepreneur. John walked past the door to a bathroom with the words 'out of order' written on it in several languages, some of which were even long-dead when they were printed. In the corner, a few dirty boxes were piled up, possibly upside down. However, the floor was full of footprints. It looked like everyone who had the sense to go here had left on the shuttles out hours ago, and had left in a hurry. Going up to the center, Jargon was suprised to find the space port's owner was still there. Jargon, glancing to John, who was currently sitting down on a bench next to one of the few shuttles left, cleared his throat. "When is the next shuttle flight out here?"
The port's owner looked up at him, and replied, "The last one left an hour ago. Been really busy lately, and all the flights are booked."
"WHAT?" Jargon exclaimed, "They've all left?"
The owner, unphased, replied "I am afraid so, sir. Will you please wait a day till one is scheduled to get back?"
"You aren't up to date, are you?" Jargon growled, flustered.
"What do you mean, sir?"
"The city is being invaded! Revolutionary soldiers flood the street! We don't have another day till this place is taken!"
"I am sure if that was the case I would have heard about it."
"But why do you think all the flights are booked?"
Jargon sighed, and said, "I shouldn't waste time with this idiot."
He walked down to the exit, when he noticed that John was motioning to him. He walked over to John, and John pointed to the small private shuttle which was next to his bench, and looked to be deserted. "You have the honors. I still feel a bit too woozy to do it."
Jargon nodded, then waved in the direction of the shuttle. The waving wasn't strictly necessary, but the shuttle's door opened. They walked in, and turned it on. The port master ran up, but he was too late.

The shuttle streaked off, into more trouble then it's two passengers could anticipate...

acid

Aug 6, 2004, 04:02 PM

Very cool chapters, Kaz and Risp. However, Kaz, I just want to make sure you had Velk's permission to use her character/continue that plotline. I'm sort of a nitpicker like that.

My chapter should be up within a few days to a week, on account of the fact that I haven't written anything on it once again.

Risp_old

Aug 6, 2004, 05:02 PM

That wasn't Velk.

Kaz

Aug 7, 2004, 02:48 AM

The SlaYeR

Aug 7, 2004, 09:53 AM

Good chapters guys, i like how they tie in with other peoples chapters, keep up the good work.

Dear Cobs, i will meet you at the mills in my next chapter, i hope you understand i couldnt write you in yet, i didnt want to make everyone meet eachother to fast :(. Love <3

acid

Aug 7, 2004, 03:07 PM

That wasn't Velk.

*_* <s>Your character was in there too, the one who died.</s>

Oh, right, that was Cobra. Sorry, please excuse my stupidity.

Tik

Aug 7, 2004, 07:47 PM

I love how things are begining to intertwine, this is already becoming very interesting (albeit sometimes hard to keep up with).

The synopses of events and characters I mentioned are in the Details thread, check them for reference. I think it would be nice if each person could supply a very short summary of their chapter for future reference as well when they post, so that there isn't as much confusion. Slayo will have to give me his word on that though.

Also, as Slayo begins some editting and whatnot, I'll be making Ritopia and posting the story in a more organized format for everyone to see. Keep up the good writing.

Page 6 claimed in the name of reg ;)

The SlaYeR

Aug 8, 2004, 03:33 AM

You have mine word friends ;)

Btw Spaztic, correct me if i am wrong, but will you start ritopia AFTER the story is done? (Since you mentioned the editing, which will take place after we finished.)

Tik

Aug 8, 2004, 07:56 AM

Hmm, I dunno then. I had thought the editting was going to take place as the story was made, like a few chapters behind. I'll have to think about it more..

The SlaYeR

Aug 9, 2004, 12:18 AM

I could do that as well, i'll let you know.

acid

Aug 9, 2004, 12:28 PM

Tony climbed back into the cockpit of his ship to retrieve a few things he’d need. He opened a small emergency hold, which would normally be in the floor, but in these circumstances it happened to be in the ceiling. A small pistol, several days’ rations and a folded tent fell out onto his head. After a few more curses, Tony gathered his equipment and set off towards the building.
As he got closer, Tony began to see that this building was a mansion. “Well, there certainly seems like there’d be lots of room in there,” remarked Tony, “I can see it’s a bit run down, though. Probably nobody lives there anymore. Dang!” Indeed, the wood looked slightly unstable, and the iron fence surrounding the place had rusted over. Beggars can’t be choosers, however, and Tony stayed on a beeline towards the mansion.
When Tony got to the front of the mansion, he had a chance to survey the surroundings. A sign told Tony in fancy letters that this mansion was the Greenthorpe Mansion. There was a lake next to the mansion, and it looked like a nice place to swim if he had to stay here for a while. A small path led away from the mansion, and Tony could see a small village not far away.
“Going to the town would be a good idea,” thought Tony. He took a few steps towards the inviting village, but his curiosity got the better of him. “…But I want to see what this mansion is like, first.” He pushed on the rusted gate, and it fell over with a soft clang. Tony blinked and stood there for a few seconds, before shrugging and walking up the path to the Greenthorpe estate. The door was open when he got there, and Tony could peer in to see a hallway that had maybe once been neat and tidy, but now had broken furniture strewn across it. The pictures on the wall were crooked, with a few that had fallen on the floor, and a vase had smashed, spreading a strange brown ooze across the floor. Tony walked into the mansion, carefully avoiding the splintered chairs and brown goo, and entered a room at random. Almost immediately, he realized why random is not good. A knife was stuck in the blood-covered floor, and a few rabbits lay obviously dead. Tony carefully backed out of the room, shutting the door as he went. He would have bolted, but a strange morbid curiosity made him decide to explore a little more, possibly to see what could have committed such a crime. He ducked through a living room filled with cobwebs and entered a storage room of sorts. He noticed a large wooden case in the corner, whose doors were opened slightly, as if a weight were pushing at them from inside. Tony walked up to the case, and opened the doors. A dead body fell on him with an unceremonious flop. That was all the encouragement Tony needed, and he sprinted out of the mansion, screaming.
A ways away from the mansion, Tony stopped to catch his breath. He knew it would be stupid to go into the forest, and far worse to go back to the mansion. That left only the village as an option of where to go, so he started along the path to the village, eating one of the tasteless but life-giving rations he had brought with him.
Once he arrived at Greenthorpe Village, Tony immediately scoped out a tavern. Hoping he’d find someone who could tell him how to get off the planet, or at least room and board, Tony walked under a sign explaining this inn was called “The Crooked Carrot” and through the door. None of the patrons lifted their eyes from their drinks or card games as Tony walked in and seated himself at the bar. The barkeeper, a young rabbit girl, looked up at Tony and put on a fake smile, saying, “What can I get for you?”
“Just a glass of water, thanks,” replied Tony. He had never had the stomach for anything stronger than milk. As the barkeeper was getting his drink, Tony scanned the bar. It seemed respectable; there were few if any stains and the patrons were sipping their drinks in silence. Tony made a mental note to remember this place; it was a nice break from bars like the infamous War Tavern where the patrons would begin a huge brawl at the drop of a hat.
The barkeeper returned and placed Tony’s water in front of him. Tony pulled out a small machine and pressed a few buttons, which made the machine pop out 10 small bronze coins. These he gave to the barkeeper. It was important to have an ITCM (Intergalactic Trade Credit Machine) when you traveled as much as Tony. The device had a value of money stored on it, and could replicate just about any currency used within known space.
After drinking half of his water, Tony asked the rabbit behind the counter, “Do you know if there are any spaceports near here?”
The barkeeper thought about this for a moment, before responding, “Well, there’s one in Oakloma, but that’s a ways away. You could get there by catching a plane in Prestbury.”
“Ok, where’s Prestbury?”
“Follow the road out of Greenthorpe towards the mansion, but when the road branches follow the road into the forest instead. There should be a branch a few miles in, take that path and it should take you to Prestbury. I wouldn’t suggest leaving tonight, though, the forest can be dangerous at night.”
“Oh, I can take care of myself,” said Tony, standing up. “Thank you for your help, here’s a tip.” Tony pressed a few more buttons on his ITCM, giving the barkeeper 5 more coins. “Goodbye.”
“I can take care of myself... God, what was I thinking?!” Tony was walking through the forest, and the sun had completely left the sky. To make matters worse, it was overcast, blocking any light from the moon or stars. Tony fumbled around in the dark, wishing he had had the sense to bring a light source. A while later, Tony’s foot collided with something, sending him facedown into the dirt. He got up, muttering, “Who the heck puts a flippin’ wall in a forest?!” He carefully checked his location, noting the position of the wall and the broken foliage around him. He began his trek again, only to trip over an inconveniently placed tree root and fall into a burrow-like hole. He tumbled head-over-heels, downward further and further into the hole, until he bowled into a group of rabbits. As he looked up into the faces of the rabbits, he noted that leaving at night definitely wasn’t one of his brightest moves.

Sorry about the short chapters, I'm not very good at writing big chapters.

Edit: Hallway now isn't neat and tidy.

The SlaYeR

Aug 10, 2004, 03:22 AM

It is a nice chapter though.
Btw, the hallway wasnt neat and tidy, the fight between Louie and the other guy took place there.

For the rest, its ok though, just to make sure, we are the rabbits right, Majo, Thomas and me?

Friendly note to everyone: Please dont start the war on Carrotus for another two rounds yet, i have a few things i want to do b4 the war starts, thanks in advance. (Plus it'll stretch the stories length.)

acid

Aug 10, 2004, 07:50 AM

Ok, I'll edit the part about the hallway. You are correct that the rabbits are Louie, Majo and Thomas.

Strato

Aug 10, 2004, 08:03 AM

Can't wait til my turn.

The SlaYeR

Aug 13, 2004, 01:06 AM

Can someone contact Ducky trough aim or whatever? It's her turn, and this isn't getting anywhere if all of the writers are absent the entire time.
I have her on my list but she''s on at ridiculous times (normal for her but i have to get up every morning at 6:30)

Thanks in advance.

4I Falcon

Aug 13, 2004, 05:41 PM

Well, if it is indeed going by turns, I shouldn't need to worry about... unintentionally slacking off here.

Ferp.

The SlaYeR

Aug 30, 2004, 04:57 AM

We decided that soemone else should put Ducky into their chapter, preferably the next person in line, but anyone else would do i guess.
Shame the last few messages couldn't be restored.

Ducky

Sep 1, 2004, 02:32 PM

Oh dear.

Hi, everyone. My formal apology is in order. I'm really sorry to have backed you all up(tho I didn't know that the JCF went down). I had uber-ISP problems which resulted in my service being terminated for this past month and I had no other access.

I'm very sorry both for this and slacking the whole mod thing.
Anyway, I don't suppose people can fill me in? If not, I am jobless at the moment and therefore have the entire week to do nothing but read everything if necessary. (There was just...rather a lot. So.)

Thanks all. Sorry Slay. <3

Doubble Dutch

Sep 2, 2004, 05:48 AM

Ducky no read stuff. Ducky write next chapter. Do soon, we need it for happy making.

The SlaYeR

Sep 3, 2004, 05:14 AM

You should really read everything, that way you keep up with the story and you are involved. I myself have started the editing and translation process (since i will try to find a publisher in my country, for obvious reasons) so far i have edited my own beginning up to the part where the boys flee the mansion, and it has grown from 1.070 (something) characters to 2.400 characters, i think this progress is quiet good. I have used a lot more detail since for me it's a little easyer to write in Dutch. Don't worry Ducky just don't keep us waiting for another month, i will need more then enough time to get everything up to now edited and stuff (The story so far could be about 100 to 200% bigger if i keep this up) i have though up several things to expand this story but make it logical, for instance i have included a small bit about how the characters of Lawrence and Audry Greenthorpe came to die and i think it looks absolutly fantastic.

(And DD, not reading stuff is pretty dumb, she would need to to see where everything is going, the smallest detail could make a lot of difference)

Tik

Sep 3, 2004, 10:19 AM

If you haven't already begun writing, Ducky, I was interested in our characters crossing paths (if you've been keeping up with the story, it's logical). If you think that could work out, try to contact me on AIM (spazticjj2) or some other medium (IRC maybe, or even PMs) so that we can discuss the details. But if not then you can write whatever you like and I will think of something else =P

Slayo, remember not to do way too much to the story - part of the charm of the idea is that there are a large group of us doing this and our writing styles will make things more interesting. So, make it coherent but don't overly edit it (unless it needs it desperately).

The SlaYeR

Sep 3, 2004, 11:30 AM

Alright, if you don't mind having a story that moves way to quickly then ill try not to do to much editing. Charm doesn't sell but i'll try to edit as little as i can, im not holding back on editing my own chapter, the problem would be this.

My chapter - 40 pages
Yours - 5 pages

If you are ok with this then i'm ok with it, maybe you are not and you would like to try a little harder and make your own chapters bigger.

If im going to bring this to a publisher and have a book with several huge chapters mixed in with tons of chapters that don't even fill a page i think he will not take me serious and he'll wish me a lot of luck trying to find another publisher.
Good luck on that.

Risp_old

Sep 3, 2004, 12:39 PM

It's your own problem for thinking that you can actually take a story made by a dozen people and turn it into a professional work.

Alister

Sep 3, 2004, 01:46 PM

You said you were making sweeping editorial changes in Dutch. That's not really fair - not all of us can read Dutch, so we can't have any idea whether or not we approve of the changes.

Oh, and "Charm doesn't sell"? Yes it does. There's quite a large market for charming books. And, let's face it, if this thing ever does get published, the gimmicky way it was written will play a significant role.

Ducky

Sep 3, 2004, 02:00 PM

Okay. I've read through all the chapters(and also the summaries were outrageously helpful) and I'm half done with mine. I've done all my personal stuff that I need to, and now I'm going to start interacting, I guess.
So Spaztic, talk to me on AIM. My screenname is lullabyinCminor and I have you added, but I haven't seen you on for the past few days. When are you usually on?
I will hopefully have this done for you by Monday.

Strato

Sep 3, 2004, 03:31 PM

As long as I can see the changes made and approve them, then I'm set. Sadly, such an undertaking is already very hard, and sending a book to everyone to read of stuff they already wrote would take a long long time.

The SlaYeR

Sep 4, 2004, 07:36 AM

First of all, im sorry for that last reply, i was in a xionesque mood.

Risp im putting a lot of effort in this, if all you can do is be so negative then i would like it very much if you left.

TB, im sorry for not putting what i said into better words, i am writing this in Dutch because i am going to publish it in Dutch, but after i am done writing every chapter for myself i will translate it and send it to the respected writer and see if he/she approves of it, if he/she does, i will ask Spaztic to put it on the Ritopia site that will hopefully soon be online for our group of writers to read.

Stratn, thanks for your trust, ill show you the edited chapter when im done.

All of you that are not serious about this, leave. I know it's harsh but it's already a hard project to get realized and we need people that are dedicated and support this for 100%, and i get the feeling that some of you aren't all that dedicated, if you are then please continue to write, if you are not, then stop writing and leave.

On a sidenote, i have edited my chapter and turned 3 pages into 6 pages, and i must say, i am very proud of it so far. Again, sorry for my previous reply and have fun writing.

The SlaYeR

Sep 4, 2004, 07:37 AM

The reason it is in Dutch is because my Dutch is far much better then my English, and i think it's only logical that im going to try and find a publisher here unless you all want to chip in and fly me over to the states.

Risp_old

Sep 4, 2004, 10:43 AM

Oh, I still care to write. I just doubt that this is a good way to make a published story.

Violet CLM

Sep 4, 2004, 11:35 AM

I should probably leave, in that case. I would be interested in finding out what would happen to my characters, but I have little or no belief that this will get published. Besides, the very fact that you are taking stories made in the Jazz Jackrabbit universe, removing all references, and translating them into another language without (unless I missed something) getting our permission kind of annoys me. A group effort should be a group effort, not something in which you make all the decisions and kick out anyone who disagrees.
Good luck to anyone who chooses to stay with this project, though. You obviously have more trust in it than I do.

The SlaYeR

Sep 4, 2004, 05:41 PM

I think you mised somthing, rad my reply again

Risp_old

Sep 4, 2004, 05:43 PM

...

Violet CLM

Sep 4, 2004, 10:16 PM

All of you that are not serious about this, leave. I know it's harsh but it's already a hard project to get realized and we need people that are dedicated and support this for 100%, and i get the feeling that some of you aren't all that dedicated, if you are then please continue to write, if you are not, then stop writing and leave.
What is there to miss? I am in no way dedicated to this project, I do not think it will get published, and if you're going to get rid of anything which gives the chapters a setting, it's not really a Jazz 2 Story, is it? Whether or not I missed something, I do not like what you are doing here, and if I stay around, it will only lead to arguments.

KRSplat

Sep 6, 2004, 07:54 AM

If you're serious about publishing, I better delete my crap because I'm going to screw up your chances of making money. And it would be kinda hard to convince someone that you wrote a serious story about a bunch of humanoid rabbits. But good luck.

Monolith

Sep 6, 2004, 11:03 AM

Maybe a second project should be started just like this one, except without the intention of publishing it.

Anyway, I look forward to seeing the story continue.

Risp_old

Sep 6, 2004, 01:05 PM

I agree.

acid

Sep 6, 2004, 03:28 PM

Monolith has a very good idea. The idea of this story is good, however bringing the publishing / translation / copyright issues in here makes it a lot more difficult and a lot less interesting for many of us.

As for the published story, I think I'll drop out as well. I'm not interested in getting published yet, and if I did try to get published, it would be my own work rather than a collaboration. I'm going to leave my chapters up here, but don't include them in the published work.

Strato

Sep 6, 2004, 06:47 PM

I think that we should do the inverse of monon's idea, where we save this thread, but start a different one intent for being published. This one is already started, and if 90% of the writer's drop out then it's not going to fly.

Tik

Sep 6, 2004, 08:40 PM

The SlaYeR

Sep 7, 2004, 06:04 AM

I much as I hate to say that this story shouldn't be the one to be seriously editted and reformatted for publishing, it does seem like a good idea to start a new thread where it is clear the intent is to publish. However, I plan on writing anyway.

Ducky, I have been idling on AIM on invisible lately, but I've added you and will be usually viewable, so I'll try to talk.

Ah, thanks. You and me were the ones that were especially interested in getting this published, i worked a few days on publishing so far. No big deal but i could have saved myself a lot of time. Lets just forget about the whole publishing this thing deal and if there are any serious people that would like to work on a project like that then let me know and don´t enter if your not commited to doing a thing like that, also i think we should only do it with no more then 4 or 5 people to save us a whole bunch of time arguing. And i look forward to seeing the next chapter in this story in about 6 months Ducky, carry on then.

Tik

Sep 7, 2004, 02:32 PM

Okay, sounds good. Are you still planning on writing for this story Slayo? And will the new stuff be on the JCF or what? And what of Ritopia?

The SlaYeR

Sep 8, 2004, 03:23 AM

Edited for dramatic effect

Tik

Sep 8, 2004, 06:20 PM

By 'the new stuff' I meant the new story that will be planned on getting published - I didn't know if you wanted it on the JCF or not - but just getting finished literature from each participating author and only puting it on Ritopia would work well.

The original plan for Ritopia was going to have any good writing by anyone "worthy" - so I personally don't see a problem with the story we're writing now being on there, too, along with any other writing that is in good condition. It -would- have to be editted before it made it to Ritopia, though, because I had planned on rigorous quality control.

By the way, me and Ducky have finally discussed what's going to happen, and she said her chapter should be on the way soon. So.. patience =P.

Ducky

Sep 8, 2004, 08:04 PM

Okay, don't ***** at me please. I'm not having a good life here. I love you Slay, but I can't deal with everything all at once. I said I'm sorry.

Chapter Next: In Which Not Very Much Happens and The Chapter is Very Short.

Eddie shuffled out into the tavern as Verity was locking the door. It was 3 AM, but most rabbits slept during the day now. It seemed safer.
"Verity," he said, easing onto a barstool, "I've been in contact with a team of...shall we say, renegades, for about a month or so. They're a posse of Eddies-of-all-trades, but they need someone who's forte is really computers. I haven't mentioned your name to them, but I thought you might be interested. You're good with a gun, you're unstoppable with machines, and you can mix a **** good drink. Also, your cooking isn't half bad either," he said as an afterthought.
"That's why I work here, Eddie," said Verity wearily. "How deep in are they?"
"You're going to have to get down and dirty, I think, darling."
Verity stared out the grimy window.
"I'll have to close the tavern?" she said.
"Unless you want the commute. They're out of Carrotus."
Verity anxiously brushed a paw over her face, angered and guilty at her emotions. She wanted to leave this war behind. She wanted nothing more than for it to end. But she couldn't leave it. She was fighting it.
"I'll look them up tonight. Leave me a name?"
Eddie nodded and slid off his stool, but the gentle tapping on the tavern door made them both stiffen. Verity's lop ears pricked as much as they could.
"Get behind the bar," she hissed at Eddie. She approached the door, cautiously peering through the peephole.
"Raphael!" She swung the door open, flinging her arms around a tall yellow cat whose bushy tail dripped muddy water. Verity pressed her lips to his, kissing him closely. "Darling, where have you been? I've been so worried. I thought for sure you would come in last night, and then you didn't come in tonight either. I was so afraid--"
Eddie straightened up from behind the counter.
"Good to see you, Raphael," he said courteously. Raphael didn't repsond to him.
"What's the matter?" Verity anxiously brushed his long hair aside to look into his yellow eyes.
Raphael smiled wryly at Verity and returned her kiss for a long moment. He held her hands tightly, then touched her cheek. "Verity, I hope you know that I'm doing this for the best. I love you, sweetheart. I'm only trying to end this war, the same as you are."
Verity stared at him. "What- wait, what are you-" she backed away a step.
From behind the cat's frame stepped three creatures, two of them blue-scaled lizards and the third a rabbit upon whose coat the grime hid any trace of what was once white fur. All three of them held fusion lasers in their claws.
Verity pressed her paws to her mouth, uncomprehending, but the lizards stalked past her and aimed their weapons behind her neat bar. She didn't have time to turn around before the scream of the lasers rammed into Eddie's body. He was dead before he slammed into the rack of glasses behind the bar and fell to the ground in a shower of broken glass. The smell of burning flesh filled Verity's nostrils as Raphael strode by her, needlessly placing his finger on Eddie's melted carotid.
"We've been looking for him for quite a while," said the white rabbit, "but it looks like we won't have to worry about him getting into our things anymore. Nosy varmint, he was." he glanced carelessly at Verity.
"He did a lot of damage. I'd hate to think what any students of his could do. And you know, I don't really want to have to deal with anyone trying to get revenge on him, either, so let's just finish the job now, shall we?" Verity heard the smash of computer monitors in the back room as the white rabbit levelled his weapon with her eyes.
"You won't do any more damage either, will you? Oh no. I think I'm going to damage you now."
"Jonathan! I told you not to touch--" Verity's and the white rabbit's heads both turned to see Raphael leaping toward them. The white rabbit swung his laser into Verity's face. She crashed into a table and slid to the ground, blood trickling from the gash over her broken cheekbone. Slipping in and out of consciousness, the last thing she saw was the white rabbit turning to aim his beam at Raphael's unprotected body. The laser blasted a hole right through his chest.

1 Month Later
Verity folded a red coat on top of her laptop for more padding and zipped the bag closed. The scars on her cheeks were nearly healed now, the white traced through the grey. She pulled her two bags onto her shoulders and tucked her RF blaster into her belt. Her room was empty and the taffeta curtains on the windows hung despondently.
The door clicked shut behind her and she turned and walked down the empty hallway. The key she sealed in an envelope and left in the mailbox- if she ever came back, it would probably still be there.
Verity set her feet for the ports. If she was going to Carrotus, she needed a ship. And to get a ship...

"I can't figure out what's wrong with it," said the black-furred rabbit, rubbing sweat off his forehead. He straightened up from where he had been crouched in front of the ship's central intelligence unit. He squinted at his companion frustratedly.
"I asked the bartender to ask around the cafes, see if anyone's docking or coming in who can check it out. I know nothing about the computer systems in these machines... my father always had it fixed up for me before I headed out."
Icarus took the drink Naomi handed him. "How long do you think that will take?"
"I don't know," she said, "it was fine when I docked. And I hate to think of the price that some local bimbo is going to haggle us into, what with the wars here and all. I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary."
Icarus opened his mouth to speak, but-
"Excuse me."
The two companions looked around for the speaker. Verity's light green eyes stared levelly into Icarus's indigo ones, then Naomi's.
"I hear you're looking for a technician. The bartender was putting up a notice when I came in. He sent me out here." She glanced at the ship, then back at the two rabbits.
Icarus raised an eyebrow at Naomi.
"That was much quicker than I expected."
"See? You're such a man. Can never ask for help!" She smiled at Verity. "You're a lifesaver, if you can help us. The CIU is acting up and we don't have a clue...I'm not one for the mechanical side, but Icarus is, and for the life of us we don't know what's going on. Could you take a look at it and see if you can do anything for us?"
Verity shifted her bag, sizing up the two rabbits. "I can fix the computers. How about we head inside and talk about terms?"
Icarus and Naomi seated themselves opposite Verity, who declined a drink.
"So my situation is this. I'm headed to Carrotus- the sooner, the better, but I don't have a ship and almost less money then that. I'm looking to hitch a ride off this planet as far as I can get- I don't know where you're going, but I'll put in my time on your ship for a lift."
Icarus rested his elbows on the table. "Well, I did taxiing for a long time, but I'm quitting the biz. And since you're trying to barter your way on, I'd say...you're in luck. We're going to Carrotus and I want to be there in a few days, if I can. And since we can't move without a technician, I guess we're in luck too." He smiled warmly at Verity, a face she wanted to trust. Icarus extended his paw across the dirty counter.
"The name's Icarus. This is Naomi." The golden rabbit smiled at Verity as she shook their paws.
"I'm Verity. It's good to do business with you. Now.. I just have a few conditions." She looked levelly at them.
"I don't want to think about my past, much less talk about it. Two, I work alone and I have no friends or family, and if you ever come across someone who's looking for me, I'm much rather that you didn't know me. Okay?"
Icarus nodded. "Well, we only have one. We've got a few...stops to make, on the way there. Should only take us a couple days longer. Is that acceptable?"
Verity nodded. "I'm not in that big of a hurry. I haven't been out in the galaxy much for a few years anyway, what with the war and all."
"Indeed. It's been pretty confining, I know. Well- shall we?" Icarus nodded to the door.
"I'll put your bags in the cabin," said Naomi, sliding out from the bench.
At the ship, Verity switched on the main computers and peered into the screens. Naomi placed Verity's bags on one of the tiny bunks in the main cabin, then as an afterthought, tucked them into the tiny, 1 person room she had been residing in. She joined Icarus outside, jumping neatly down the ladder.
"So what do you think of our new associate?" she said, staring at the dully gleaming hull of the ship.
Icarus glanced at her, his hands in his pocket and shoulders hunched against the drizzling rain that was just starting from the drowsy clouds.
"She seems like she won't be any trouble. Just a war child trying to get out of here too."
"War child?" Naomi peered at Icarus. "She's older than us, you know."
"Well, she's just fixing the ship. I hope we can trust her. Maybe we can find something out about her just to check."
"You can ask around. But be careful. She's our ticket out of here. I don't want to offend her."
In the insulated cockpit, Verity glanced at the two young people standing outside before setting to work on the machines. She hoped that things would go smoothly. The kids seemed nice and innocent.
Verity tried to remember when she was innocent.
The screens flickered dazedly around her, then angrily as she began tapping into the systems, interpreting the garbled coding.

Sorry it's so insanely short. I hope next time to do better.

The SlaYeR

Sep 9, 2004, 06:08 AM

I'm sorry Ducky, i had no intention to rush you. I don't even have time to read the chapter, school is waiting. Ta ta.

acid

Sep 9, 2004, 03:09 PM

That chapter wasn't short, Ducky. My chapters are shorter than that, and your chapter is better written than mine are, anyways. I'd say you did a good job, especially if you were being rushed.

Doubble Dutch

Sep 10, 2004, 08:28 AM

Chapter After Next In which again not a lot happens, but there's a lot of talking.

He knew they were there, his condition allowed him to sense others without having to see them. They had been skulking around in the trees all morning, watching him. Nevermind, it was a sunny day and he'd deal with them when the need arose.
Tier lay in the sun listening to the sounds of the forest with his eyes closed. He didn't sleep, but this soon after feeding he could just lie back relax and almost forget his life. Almost.

"Okay you sick #$%@, get up!"
Blast. Just when he was enjoying it too. Tier resignedly stood up and looked at his aggressor. What surprised him was her youth; she couldn't be older than sixteen. But he knew the look in her eyes, he was going to be shot, it was just a matter of time.
The rabbit pointed the gun at his head; it was old fashioned, solid projectile, probably loaded with silver.
"That’s right you bloodsucking *******, how does it feel to know you're going to die? Did my brother get the chance to feel that way?"
Inwardly Tier groaned, this could get messy. Had the rabbit he'd killed last nigh been with others? Had they been tracking him?" He spoke softly and slowly. "Shooting me won't do you any good; we can sort this out if-"
"SHUT UP!" screamed the rabbit "I don't want to listen to your lies!"
Quickly Tier stepped forward and grabbed the girls arm. Several things happened at once. Tier heard a dull crack as the rabbit’s foot broke his shell near the waist, then a disorienting buzz as the top of his head was blown off. When he refocused his eyes he saw the rabbit staring at his regenerating head with an expression of disgust and shock. She let the gun fall noiselessly onto the grass.

Again Tier spoke slowly. "Now that we've demonstrated the uselessness of that course of action, could we please try a more peaceful solution?"
The rabbit recovered quickly. "So you're a zombie then, if you try anything, I'm not going down easy."
"Actually, would you mind leaving; I was rather enjoying the morning."
The rabbit backed off and stared at him in silence for a full minute. "That was impressive, can you grow back easily?"
"Regenerate? Sure, after any injury, always grows back a little more dead though."
There was another pause. "So guns, fire, vampires...?"
"No problem, in fact, I've killed a few vampires."
The rabbit looked thoughtful. "Okay then, you're coming with me to Greenthorpe."
"Excuse me, I'm coming with who to where, why?"
"A ******* vampire killed my brother in Greenthorpe a few days ago. You, Mr. Immortal are going to help me find them."
Tier thought it over. What was the worst that could happen? He'd get killed? "Sure." he said. "I haven't got anything better to do."
"One last thing" the rabbit said.
"No." said Tier authoritively “I'm not going to infect you, and there's no point in arguing the fact."

Tier walked confidently along the track. Years of roaming the forests had allowed him to move easily without even a hint of light. Beside him the rabbit (whose name apparently was Michelle) walked stiffly carrying the tiniest red torch, its light barely bright enough to see. She was gradually getting used to the rigor mortis, and the bite on her wrist was already regenerating. Things had progressed at a somewhat rapid pace that day. Tier was still unnerved about what he'd done. It wasn't that he had infected another, or even that Michelle had wanted to be infected, after all many people would want his regenerating capacity. What unnerved him was that she hadn't been uninformed and ignorant, indeed she'd questioned him thoroughly and still wanted to become infected. And she'd had such strong conviction too, something about her demeanor had made it somehow imminent that he infect her. That was worrying. He'd underestimated her before and got a broken shell and shot head as a result. Whoever this vampire was, he was in trouble.

Their visit to the town had been brief. Michelle had stolen some booze to disguise her odd way of walking and had barely stayed long enough for the funeral before setting out after her brother’s killer. That was lucky. The townsfolk seemed suspicious. They'd accepted Michelle's story that he was an offworld assassin, but he could still almost hear them whispering behind his back, pointing out the little oddities, his unblinking eyes, lack of breathing. It had been a relief to get away; he hadn't been in a town for too long. Michelle had an easier time, who could blame a grieving sister if she got tipsy? The fact that her draining body fluids made her weep helped. Apparently she believed in 'the Kennedy constant'; "Don't cry, get even." She even seemed to take the loss of sleep in her stride, using it to gain ground on her target.

Tier broke the silence. "So are we going walk all night like this or are you going to even attempt a conversation?"
"And break my concentration? Its hard enough to track in such a stiff body and what’s more its so smegging cold."
"You'll get used to it; at least your nose has stopped running."
Tier sighed, it was like talking to a brick wall, or maybe he'd simply forgotten how to make conversation. Having no one to talk to but yourself wasn't a worry, it was when you answered back that was. Still, he didn't blame her, from what little information he could obtain she'd worked with her brother and father on the remote transmitter stations before her brother moved off to Greenthorpe. That alone explained her silence, servicing the remote stations was a lonely and dangerous job. It also explained her deep affection toward her brother and her quick fighting reflexes. Tier had seen many remoter servicers and they had to survive a lot, bandits, wild animals, isolation, and if they got injured, well, very few broke a leg twice. She'd have to be feeling the first stirrings of The Hunger though. As they continued to track their folly Tier wondered how long such a stubborn mind would hold out.

scatman

Sep 10, 2004, 11:33 AM

L33t chapter, a lot of people come together in the story now...

~Alex

Kaz

Sep 10, 2004, 02:30 PM

Hm, forgot I have a lot to read, oh well, 7th page is mine >D.

Alister

Sep 10, 2004, 02:38 PM

Argh. So sudden. Kinda.
*works on chapter*

Alister

Sep 11, 2004, 01:56 AM

The sun would rise soon. Susan was curled up on the sofa, about half-way through her book. She'd been unable to sleep. She was worrying about Tom, who should have returned by now. She was worrying about the people in Depada, who she'd seen on the news. She was worrying about what had happened that day at the town hall. As hard as she tried, she couldn't concentrate on her book. The lamplight flickered on the aging oak-panelled walls. This had been a beatiful house, back in its day. She looked up at the circular stained-glass window. One of the small panes was missing. She walked over to the desk and removed a small tube of glue from the top drawer. She crossed to the window, and was about to pick a blue pane up off the floor, when there was a knock at the door. She tossed the tube of glue onto the sofa and headed for the hall. She opened the door as far as the chain would allow, and saw that it was the council leader.
"Hello, Mr. Dalton!" she exclaimed. She was about to comment on the pleasentness of his surprise visit, when she saw his expression. She removed the chain and opened the door. "What's wrong?"
"Hello, Mrs. Bradhurst. Is Tom back?"
"No, why?"
"I'm calling an extraordinary meeting of the council. You'll see why. Come as quickly as possible. You'll have to tell Tom about it when he gets back. See you there." With that, he left. Susan closed the door. This was a worrying development.

Tom was a notoriously bad riser. Barely conscious, he was unaware that anything was wrong. Without opening his eyes, he turned over in an attempt to find a comfortable position. Something was wrong. His bed felt different. Blearily, he opened his eyes. Above him were the beams and planks of an uncovered wooden ceiling. The morning sunshine blazed through a modest window to his left. A familiar looking grey buck and an unfamiliar female rabbit were looking down at him. The latter's hand passed his eyes and he could feel her mopping his forehead. It hurt. He tried to call out, but all he could manage was a brief guttural sound.
"Shhh," murmured the girl. Memories of the previous day's events started to return. He cleared his throat, and croakily asked what was going on.

Susan entered the council chamber by the rear door. The wall behind her curved around on either side until the two halves face each other, then a straight wall ran between them, forming a half-moon shape. Two long desks, one on either side, curved around with the wall. Like everything else in the town, they were showing their age. Between them and the wall councillors were standing in small groups, murmuring quietly to one another. In front of her lay the central aisle. Beyond the desks there were two steps down into a lowered area, at the end of which stood leader's desk, three steps up. On the wall behind hung the coat of arms of the town. It was a curious feature. It had been granted to the town in a previous age, by a king whose name nobody could remember. It was in recognition of the arduousness of being a frontier town. Right now, the town was about as far away from the frontier as you could get. Susan had pondered this the first time she had gone to see her husband speak. Now her attention was caught by something quite different. On the leader's desk, facing her and the councillors, was a monitor. The computer it was attached to was turned on, but the screen itself was turned off. Behind it sat Dalton, quietly observing the scene.
Susan walked over to two of her acquantances and asked what was going on. It appeared everyone had a theory about why the meeting had been called. Nobody knew anything conclusive. Finally, the last sleepy colleague entered the chamber. Dalton called for order, and they all took their seats.
"Ladies and gentlemen," began Dalton, "we have two serious problems on our hands. A few hours ago I was watching television. Not at home, but in a Channel Eight news van. I have a recording of what I saw." He stopped, and made sure he had their undivided attention. "I think you should all watch it." He switched on the monitor. The first frame was showing, an eager Channel 8 presenter in front of the Greenthorpe mansion. Dalton pressed play. The councillors watched intently: the rats, the paintings, the marines, the figure in the kitchen... A few of the councillors couldn't stand the sight of blood, and had to leave hurriedly. When they returned, the hall was silent. As they sat down, Dalton continued, "That's not the only problem. Most of you will know about the incident at the town hall yesterday. Some of you were there. A few of you will have recognised the gentleman involved."

"The name's Tony Waterbeck. I'm a pilot. I crash landed near Greenthorpe. I was trying to get back home to Technoir when I came across you lot in that forest." Tom had heard of Tony Waterbeck, of course. A sporting celebrity.
"So, how did you come to be chased by those thugs?" asked the girl, who had introduced herslef as Majo.
"I don't know. One minute I was riding along - " Tom stopped as the door opened and Louie walked in. There was something about him, something familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. "Uh. Hi."
"Good morning, Mr. Bradhurst," replied Louie. He drew a chair up to Tom's bed and sat down. "How's your head?"
"It's been better. But I'll live. Hey, did you ever go to Relwick University? It's just that you remind me of... of..." Tom trailed off.
"No. I never had the chance to go to university. Not that I never studied. I've... spent a lot of time in a library."
"I'm sorry. It doesn't matter. You must be Louie."
"Yes."
"Thanks for coming to my rescue last night."
"Well, I do have a vested interest in your safety."
"What's that, then?"
"You are Thomas Bradhurst. Councillor Thomas Bradhurst. You're in charge of property and planning in Greenthorpe."
"Yes. But you could buy property or get planning permission or whatever without me."
"I don't think many people in Greenthorpe would be willing to sell me anything. Besides which, I may already own the property in question." Louie stopped and looked at Tony. He'd already been told. "Mr. Bradhurst, I wonder if you know more than me about the property rights of the deceased. Or, rather, the undeceased."
"The undeceasad?" It clicked. A textbook from his first year at Relwick. How to Recognise the Undead.

Susan couldn't believe what she was hearing. When she first heard the rumours, she had thought she could believe in vampires. But now that she was actually being told that there was a vampire on the loose, it was too incredible.
"But we can't be sure the vampire in the video was Louie. We should be prepared for the possibity that there are two, maybe more." said Dalton. "Mr. Parker, you'd like to speak?"
"Yes sir, thank you. Our first action should be to demolish the Greenthorpe mansion. The vampire or vampires should have nowhere to hide or set up a base of operations."

Alister

Sep 11, 2004, 01:57 AM

Tom was silent. He'd been insisting that vampires didn't exist for years now. On the other hand, he'd also insisted that the tooth fairy existed. He prided himself in taking the unusual in his stride. He looked over at Tony. He probably already knew. It would explain why he had seemed a little distant.
"A vampire. So you want to know if you still own something you owned when you were alive?"
"It's not as simple as that. It's something I should have inherited, had I been alive."
"That's even more complic... You're... Are you Louie Greenthorpe?"
"That's very impressive, considering how old I was when I last had my picture taken."
"I think I have a vested interest in you now. The Greenthorpe mansion..."
"...Is exactly what I'm interested in."
"Oh, right. You'll be wanting it back. You must be pretty attached to it."
"It's not that," Louie started, then hesitated. The mansion had been his home for hundreds of years. He was sick of it, and yet at the same time he felt attached to it. "It's not for me. I want it to be a shelter for refugees."
"From Diamondus?" Majo nodded. Tom fell silent again. The mansion would house plenty of people. But what about the company that wanted the land? That deal meant everything for Greenthorpe. But then again, the shelter would mean everything for the refugees. "I'd have to check the law books. But I think you have a case."

"Mrs. Bradhurst? Will you make the decision in place of your husband?" Susan considered Dalton's request. She was only there as a stand-in, but Tom did need the site cleared.
"I think we can act without an absentee's consent in this case!" exclaimed Parker. "It's an emergency! We're not even changing the land ownership, we're just tearing down a building which we all recognize as dangerous!"
"We have to follow the proper procedure," Dalton replied. Parker scowled.
"It's okay. I'll decide. Yes, we should have it torn down." said Susan. She looked accross at Parker. There was a gleam in his eye. Perhaps it was because she didn't like him, but it looked malicious.
"Excellent," said the leader. "We'll need to call in the armed forces. They haven't been deployed to Diamondus yet, but we'll have to act quickly before they are."

Several hours later, Susan was back home and lying in bed. It had been a gruelling day, organising the demolition, and she hadn't slept since the previous night. Despite this, she'd been lying there for about an hour, wide awake. In the distance, she could hear hoofbeats approaching. Her ears pricked up, but the horse road on by, a few streets away. She turned over and tried to get comfortable for the umpteenth time. Several minutes passed with no sound but the ticking of the alarm clock. Then she heard the back door slam shut and her husband's voice call out. She leapt out of bed, threw on her dressing gown, and ran downstairs.
She stopped abruptly when she saw that they had company.

A while later Tom, Tony, Majo and a properly clothed Susan were sipping tea in the living room. Louie had declined the offer of a drink, but sat with them as Tom recounted the events of the last few days.
"...And it turns out that Louie here is none other than Louie Greenthorpe."
"Greenthorpe, as in the Greenthorpe Greenthorpes? Are you descended from...?" Susan began.
"I'm Louie Greenthorpe the first. Brought to you by the vonderful vorld of vampires," said Louie. Beneath her fur Susan's face went white.
"It's okay. He's more sanguine than sanguinary," said Tom. He laughed feebly.
"That was terrible, dear."
"It's better than the one about the waffles."
"Fine, fine. He's not 'sanguinary'. But someone else from the Greenthorpe mansion is."
"What?" chorused Louie and Tom.
"The night before last a TV crew and a bunch of marines went into the mansion. We saw the tape in the council. There was this dark figure. He - it - killed them. It killed them all."
"Oh no," said Louie, gravely. "I thought he was dead. It was self defence. He was trying to kill me. I left him for dead. That's why I wanted to get away from Greenthorpe." There was a pause.
"Who?" inquired Majo.
"Theodore Thatcher. He came in when you were unconscious." There was silence. After a while, Susan spoke.
"The council asked the Carrotus government for help. They said they'd deal with it, but we didn't think they took it seriously. So Councillor Cobley put the video up on the net."
"Anonymously?" guessed Tom. Susan nodded.
"It should get a response in a few days."
"But what kind of response? A few experts or a full-scale invasion? It would be nice if the town were left standing," said Tom.

The sun had set. Susan entered Tom's study with two mugs of tea.
"There you go. I thought you might like something to drink."
"Thanks," replied Tom.
"So, what are you looking for?"
"I need to find out what Louie's legal status is with regards to property law. We need to find out if he can get the mansion for the Diamondus refugees."
"The mansion? But..."
"What?" asked Tom. Susan told him about the council's decision. Tom sighed. Now he'd also have to go through the building safety laws in order to save it. This was going to be a long night.

Several days had passed since the television broadcast had gone online, and there was still no sign of any kind of special forces. The cold, lonely mansion loomed menacingly over the surrounding grounds. There had been no sign of the new inhabitant, but it had been a tense few days in the Bradhurst household. Tony had decided to stick around and salvage what he could from the wreckage of his ship.Tom had spent most of the time buried in tome upon tome of legal jargon. Susan was continuing to take care of his council duties, with nobody knowing that he had returned.
The vote passed: a town-sponsored symbolic funeral would be held for Theodore Thatcher, who had disappeared into the Greenthorpe mansion and, they thought, hadn't been seen since. Susan knew otherwise, but kept her mouth shut.
"The next item on the agenda," announced Dalton, "is the Peddleburg Forest refugee camp, as decreed by his royal highness King Jazz and passed by the Carrotus Assembly."
Susan's ears would have pricked up, had she not been excercising full self-control.
"I for one think the proposals are on too small a scale," said a short, dark green rabbit two places to the right of Susan. "The proposed camps will not offer enough space for the number of people likely to leave Diamondus, and a larger camp in the area would certainly be sustainable."
"But that is how the powers that be choose to allocate their funds, and it is beyond our power," said Dalton. "The debate should focus on the impact of the camp on our community, and what our actions should be."
"Mr. Chairman," began Susan. "Does the camp or any part of it lie within the boundaries of the Greenthorpe municipality?"
"I regret to say I do not know. They have provided a map of the proposed camp, if you would like to check."

"Where are we going?" asked Tony. He and Susan were strolling along one of the roads out of Greenthorpe.
"The forest. Take a look at these two maps."
"'Greenthorpe Municipal Service Map', and 'Carrotus Immigration Ministry Ordinance 27B/6 Appendix C: Map'. Very official."
"Look at the longitudes and latitudes."
"Ah, so this appendix corresponds to this part of the forest?"
"Yup."
"So we're going to look at it? Why?"
"Look at the Municipal Service map. There's a rectangle approximately where the toilet facilities are on the other map."
"Yeah, I see it. What's it for?"
"That's exactly what we're going to find out." They had passed the last house of the town, and were walking through the narrow strip of fields that lay between the town and the forest. Susan was enjoying the walk. It was nice to escape the daily council duties and get some fresh air. Tom spent most of his time cooped up in the office. It was no wonder he was so eager to go to Orleton. And now they were both stuck at a desk all day. They had to get out of Greenthorpe. When the current situation was wrapped up. But the news from Diamondus was getting worse every day. Would they ever leave?
Eventually the road veered away to the right. Row upon row of carrots lay before them.
"We'll have to cut across this field," said Susan. "Don't break any of the stalks, it'll attract carrot flies."
They made thier way carefully accross the field, and eventually came up to the forest. As they proceeded inwards, they found themsleves wading through the decomposing leaves. After a while, Susan stopped. "This should be it. Do you see anything?" Tony looked around at the trees which grew in every direction.
"Nope."
"There must be something. Come on, let's keep going." They had trudged a bit farther when Tony suddenly fell flat on his face.
"Are you okay?"
Tony got up, spitting out a few leaves. "Yeah. The leaves cushioned the fall, but my foot hurts from whatever I tripped over." Susan scrabbled about in the leaves and unearthed a slightly rotted wooden fence post, attached to thick wires which presumably led to more fence posts. Right enough, as Tony joined her in clearing the leaves, they came up with another fence post, and then another. On the wires between these two hung a metal sign. "Danger - Radioactivity."
"Y'know, I'm thinking..."
"That we should leave? Yeah."

Alister

Sep 11, 2004, 01:59 AM

"I should deal with him," exclaimed Louie. His expression was grim. "It's my fault he's there."
He edged round a mound of scrap metal to the sofa, where Tony was watching television. Several more days had passed, and Louie was getting restless.
"Departures from Diamondus are being plagued by delays. One of the biggest such delays is immigration screening. Officials are doing their best to make sure that nobody who views refugees as traitors are allowed aboard the ships to cause havoc. But many people are prepared to risk a dangerous journey if it means getting out of a dangerous city. Violence here has escalated over recent weeks, and people are beginning to question the decision to end commercial flights. Shona Corran, Blue Rock News, Felpana."
"Even with those delays, the refugees will be here before the mansion is safe," said Louie. "There's been no sign of any special government forces. You'd think with the peddleburg camp being set up so close, they'd at least be concerned." He gazed at the television. "Think of the media coverage, after all." He looked away as a picture of Gary Parker came up. If that guy became governor, there'd be hell to pay.
"Don't do anything rash," advised Tony. "Do you know what you're dealing with?"
"I'm dealing with a vampire."
"And that's your specialist subject."
"Yes. Yes, it is." He swept out of the room. In the hall, he met Susan.
"Is Tony still slouched in front of the TV?" she asked. Louie grunted an affirmative.
"Shouldn't you be doing something about this mess?" she asked Tony upon entering the room.
"I'm not moving until I get a geiger counter."
"There's one on this panel here," she replied, gesturing towards a carefully extracted portion of his ship.
"Yeah, that's how I know I'm safe here. And I'm not lugging that thing around."
"Neither of us were even affected. You're probably getting a lot more radiation from the TV."
"Right. What channel do you want to watch?"
"109," said Susan, and she sat down. "By the way, you're my cousin."
"What?"
"Everyone thinks Tom's away, and you've been seen coming and going. So you're my cousin, if anybody asks."
"Ah-hah," said Tony, grinning. A few minutes later, Tom came downstairs and joined them on the couch.
"I've done it," he said.
"What? How?" asked Susan.
"I think I managed to find the most obscure loophole ever. According to our treaty with Muckamo, land on either planet can be held by anyone who has occupation rights on either planet. This means that land on Carrotus can be held by anyone with any kind of Carrotus occupation rights. They can also own anything on the land. Now, under the local burial laws, people who have died are given limited occupation rights to their place of burial. The Muckamo treaty doesn't mention specific occupation rights, so it doesn't matter if they're limited or not. The treaty was signed before Louie died. Now, under the Death Certification Verification Act..."
"Stop, please stop," said Susan, despairingly. "We believe you."
"Right, right. Sorry. So do either of you know where Louie is?"

Gary put the phone down. So Thomas Bradhurst had returned, and there were people staying with him. Why would he be hiding?

Louie walked up to the mansion, cloaked in twilight. Being a vampire, his night vision was excellent, but there were still plenty of pitch-black shadows for an assailant to lurk in. He slid up to the door, raised his hand to the large brass doorknocker, and knocked it twice. He could hear the thumps echoing around the cavernous main hallway. He'd given up the element of surprise, but Theodore will have known he was coming. This way, he overstated his confidence. Not that he wasn't convinced this would be easy. Theodore must have had very little to eat in the last few days. Louie remembered that when he first awoke in his coffin, it had been days before he became reasonably adept at catching prey. And, by this time, the marines would be unpalatable. He clasped the doorhandle and pushed. There was no need to turn it. The lock had given way decades ago and lay in pieces under the cobwebs on the floor. The door swung wide open. Louie entered the hall, passing through the frame in which the inner doors had once stood. He took up position just inside, and called out Theodore's name. The only response was his own echo and the scurrying sound of a fleeing rat. Louie resisted the urge to hunt, and began to proceed slowly down the hallway. Theodore would probably be in the library, as it was the warmest room. Louie had wondered if the books helped to insulate it. He could do with some insulation himself. A light but cold breeze had followed him inside. Louie headed for the drawing room. From there, a spiral staircase led up to a room adjoining the library. It wasn't the most obvious route, and there were no hidden corners for anyone to lurk in. He was about to enter the drawing room when he heard a sound from a room across the hall. Coughing? No... wimpering. He changed course and cautiously entered the morning room. There, huddled in a wicker armchair, sat Theodore. His head was in his hands, and Louie could hear him sobbing. Louie relaxed, and Theodore used his opportunity to strike.

What can I say? I'm a sucker for cliffhangers.