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Another Jazz 2 fan

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Joined: Mar 2001

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May 8, 2002, 11:48 AM
Another Jazz 2 fan is offline
Sorry to keep you all waiting so long. Here's the next part.

The Life of Jason Jackrabbit
---Part Three

The rabbits let out a cheer as Jason and Alex reenter the tavern.

“I’ll take the usual,” Jason casually tells the bartender.

“Diamondus Porter,” requests Alex.

“One Muckamock Ale, one Diamondus Porter, coming right up!” The bartender hands them their drinks.

They sit down at a table, drinking and conversing. After a while, the rabbits of the tavern are annoyed.

“What about the story?” they ask.

Jason responds, “Sorry, I was comparing my recollection of events with my brother’s. I will now continue.” He stands up to resume his story.

“Well, when the lizard came we were all very startled. Had we been found already? Were we about to lose our newfound freedom so soon? Not even a chance that we might enjoy our freedom? Would WE be sent to work at Scraparap?

“Then we realized he was alone. We took out our guns. ‘Don’t move, lizard!’ we shouted. He put his hands up and responded, ‘What are you doing?’ I yelled back, “I’ll tell you what we’re doing, lizard scum. We aint goin’ back, and neither you nor any of your friends can make us. We outnumber you.’

“He wore the face of puzzlement. ‘What are you talking about? Why have you come here?’ I responded, ‘Listen up, reptile! If you want to live, you will tell us everything you know. What are Devan’s plans?’

“The lizard did not understand. I was getting angry. ‘Are you lizards really THAT stupid? MUST I SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU? You all really were eager to side with the enemy, some friends you lizards were. Abusing our trust and making us slaves! Cowards! Now tell us about Devan. You know, Devan Shell, your boss!’

“He still didn’t follow. ‘They sided with the turles? What happened?’

“I had to tell him about the turtle invasion, the rabbit enslavement, and the lizards joining Devan. ‘You are THAT oblivious?’ I asked, a little annoyed.

“‘I am an old hermit, I keep to myself in these caves,’ he replied. He seemed to be telling the truth. We lowered our guns. ‘I can’t tell you why the other lizards joined the turtles, but I might be able to help you out.’

“‘And what might you do for us?’ asked Jazz, the sole rabbit that still had his gun drawn. Having fought many lizards, and never knowing them when they were friendly, he still did not trust him.” Jason pauses to take a drink.

“The lizard replied to the point, disregarding Jazz’s threatening. ‘I am a lizard, right? I might not know what Devan is doing, but I can find out for you. I will pass for one of them.’

“‘You would spy for us? Why would you do that? You wouldn’t betray your kind for a bunch of rabbits, would you? As soon as you’re out of this cave you’ll report us and we’ll be executed or re-enslaved, coward that you are. I know you lizards too well.’ Jazz challenged.

“‘You forget. I was not brainwashed by Devan. I may be a lizard, but I am not one of them. I have hated Devan Shell my whole life, and it is dire news indeed that he has taken over our planet. I am as angry as you all are that the lizards surrendered to him so easily. I want payback, so I will help you any way I can. I am no warrior, but I am the only one who can spy for you, so you had better trust me.’

“Jazz was satisfied. He settled down, but still glared suspiciously at the lizard. Everyone was relieved. We now had a small rebellion in motion. We never thought that we could do much about our predicament. We thought we would have to remain in hiding. Now we understood that we would have to fight! And we would do just that, we would fight Devan and his minions, we would chase him away from our little planet, we would reunite all of the enslaved rabbits!” Jason takes a swig of ale.

“We sent the lizard, his name was Buptup, to spy for us. We set about making the cave more habitable . We planted the carrots, we concealed the entrance, and we generally made the place more comfortable. Alex and I set out to explore the cavern. As we went, my brother drew a map of the place. The cavern was immense; after a while we went back to the other rabbits.

“Anyway, the next day we all said farewell to Jazz. He would love to stay and help the rebellion, but he said he had important work to do, such as defeating Devan and rescuing Eva. He took his gun and promised us that he would do as much damage as he could. We wished him luck. He left us some TNT that he said we needed more than he did, and we stowed it away for future use.” Jason takes another swig of his ale.

“So Jazz went on his way; our rescuer, my cousin. We understood that he could not stay with us forever.

“A few young rabbits were allotted guns to defend themselves, and sent out to scavenge for food. My brother and I continued our exploration of the cave, and then joined them. It would take awhile before we could live off of the garden we had planted. Until then we had to leave the cave every day, armed with our guns, to scavenge for the colony. It was dangerous, but necessary. We were lucky, and were never caught.

“On our explorations, Alex and I found a fresh water spring deep in the cave. Every rabbit rejoiced. We could use it for drinking water, and we could water the garden. Best of all, we could bathe. In went brown rabbits, covered in mud caked on during years of slavery. Out came barely recognizable clean rabbits, with shiny coats of various colors. We were starting to enjoy our freedom. Hidden in the caves, we began to prosper once again.” Jason pauses and has some ale. No rabbit dares interrupt him.

“Finally the time came to choose a leader. The leader of the old colony was on Scraparap. We needed a new governing system. We called all the adult leaders together. My brother and I were now among their numbers, having grown up while in slavery.

“Anyway, we decided that the elders would serve as judges. They were the wisest rabbits there, and they were unbiased. They came to be known as the Council of Elders, or just The Council, as many rabbits called them.

“Second, we needed a chief. Someone who was strong, intelligent, responsible, diplomatic, and capable of leading warriors into battle. We held a vote. I was shocked at the results. I, one of the younger adults, had been chosen. They said that it was because I still had my youth, and they were impressed with how I handled the lizard. They were confident that I could lead the colony to victory. I was sworn in, and all the rabbits swore their allegiance to me.” Jason sips his ale. All the rabbits are in awe.

“Finally, we needed rules. We decided that all rabbits would submit proposals for rules they felt were necessary. Every month the colony would meet and the proposals would be discussed and voted on. Then I would put the rules into effect. Everyone liked the new system, and it worked well.” Jason finishes his ale.

Jason looks up at the windows, and notices light filtering through the blinds. “Oh, I’m sorry. Once again I’ve kept you all night. I will continue tomorrow!”

TO BE CONTINUED
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Proud to be an old-timer! Rarely active, but Jazz Jackrabbit will always be in my heart.

Check out my War Tavern story, The Life of Jason Jackrabbit! [UPDATE - yeah, it died in 2002, but it was fun!]
Current Projects: Devan's Secret Weapon - yes, I still intend to release this some day. Got a lot of really great stuff done, it's going to be awesome!