Ultra-niftular Copper, and it's tensing up,

buh buh baa!

Actually, no, I didn't come from Carrotous,

I came from earth, but I lived on Carrotous

almost all my life so it's virtually the same.

Um, kay my profile is still kind of under construction I'll do my best.



I am a light blue rabbit with light purple hair that goes to about my shoulder blades, and long bangs to about where ears would be on a human that get in my eyes a lot.I wear a sort of dusty greenish wraparound skirt to my feet, and a white shirt thats kind of plain. I have gold colored sandals that come up around my ankles, like those roman type ones?

Then there is a cape sort of thing that attaches to my wrists with bracelet things. I can't really explain it..

I have a small crossbow with blue feathered arrows, and a blaster.

I'm a quiet sort of rabbit, who is very sensitive. I don't like seeing anyone else hurt at all..but I'm mostly friendly.



Okay. Thank you

Aw, lookit that. I've rwitten rabbit so much in the past I wrote it here. I'm not a rabbit, sorry, I am a sqirrel. But everything else is the same :P

Sorry about that. Please, continue, its very cool

3rd page! An' nobody claimed it! Well, I do!

Bah, who cares 'bout claiming pages. Thanks, Phoebe, I'll get ya in soon as I can. . .



Chapter Twelve-continued



"Alpha!" Shinyso exclaimed. "Never heard of 'em. Is he a Carrotan?" "She. SAM doesn't know, she says that she came from Medivo but wasn't a citizen. I don't know where she came from." Emerald shrugged resignedly. "Well, it I know Copper than we're going to meet this Alpha, like it or not."

And Emerald was right. Copper had full intents to find Alpha, because she suspected that this was the one Shinyso had sensed. The Assassin shuddered and took off. . .



Alpha checked the readings on the small vessel she had stolen. The Silken Swift was just that; speedy and smooth.

Getting off of Carrotus had been easy. Alpha had waited until the Shellian "guards" had been changing, when there was a lot of chaos. Then she had simply slipped through the patrols while they were getting into position and she was home free.

The "escape" had been fueled by her temper, and now she was cooling down. What was she doing? One little messenger-type ship against a huge Star Destroyer? () Perhaps it would be better if she just went back to Medivo, pay her rent and start roaming again.

Then all thoughts of leaving left HER as the Conquerer shuddered and moved slightly. The gargantuan laser cannons receded and, if possible, even bigger torpedoes mounted and aimed straight for the planet! Although Alpha hadn't been there long, her initial impression of Carrotus had been of friendliness and happiness. She did not want her benefactors killed by the scum of the galaxies!

Silken Swift wheeled about, and shot for the Star Destroyer. Alpha could barely belive it as she neared the vessel: the lower bay, which had opened for the troops to leave, was still open! Quick as light, she directed the small ship into the yawning bay.

Now she was confronted by a maze of passage tubes and walkways. Skilfully weaving through the labyrinth, she was enveloped by a large tube, which she followed. An airlock followed that, and closed behind her automatically. Air flowed in, and gravity returned.



"Lord Kroys, the Carrotan defense system has been destroyed. With your permission, we will obliterate the planet." Kroys shook his head pityingly. "Destroy it, Commander, and we will have no trophy. Surround the planet in a pattern of troops, and be certain that none leave the planet. I trust that no one escaped during the blast?" The turtle bowed. "My Lord, the sensors detected a lone messenger leaving the planet. It was small enough to have been a large probe, but we lost track of it five minutes ago."

Kroys pondered the news. Finally he spoke. "One vessel cannot hurt us, Commander. But two can. Be sure that nothing else leaves the planet OR this ship unauthorized." The officer bowed again. "Yes, Milord."



I can't write anymore right now, but there'll be more tomorrow!



(Um, Phoebe, d'you mind being found as a slave in the mines? I mean, a newish one? Thanks.)

Awwww! Lookit thaaaat. Mean ol' CT

This page is RIGHTLY mine, so Narf to you all.

Yay, a chapter! Do continue, again..

`DUcky

Thank you, Coppertop, thats fine The slave thing, I mean, thats okay. Thanks again.

Thank you copper for restoring my dignity =D, I'll never rant at you and your stupid story again =D.

Ag, no, everyone replied before me.

Very nifty, Copper.

Thanks, Phoebe. I'll get you in.





Silent as a shadow, the battle station Conquerer turned and headed away from the surrounded Carrotus. It slid away towards the stars, driving towards an out-of-the-way planet called Firen, which hosted the numerous slave mines. They would stop for an hour at the half-way point to recieve Devan's shipments and the news from Medivo, then continue on.

All this Alpha figured out from tapping into the transmissions made from different parts of the ship. She also found out other things. As she had suspected, Kroys was behind the attack on her shuttle, as with the blasting of Carrotus. But other things she didn't understand. Who, for instance, was the "traitor"? And they had mentioned others, such as the "mercenary", the "bird", the "dragon-lover", and the three "magic-users". Occasionally a name was mentioned, such as "Claw", "Coppertop", and "Ducky". She had never heard of the last, and the first mention she could remember of the other two was from a tavern.



The two drunk cats were leaning up against the wall, discussing something in low tones. Alpha leaned closer, trying to catch a bit of their conversation, suspecting, unlike most, that the two weren't drunk but very sober. "-of course, the 'Empire' is keeping it very quiet," the darker cat was saying, and Alpha eagerly strained her ears. "Yes, well, you'd expect them to, wouldn't you," his friend replied. "Being beaten by two mercenaries is very humiliating- what did you say their names were?" "Ghaf said they were called Coppertop and Claw." "Coppertop! and Claw? Teamed up, those two would be unbeatable!" The dark cat glanced furtively around and hushed his companion. "Quiet! Anyway, they had outside help, a bunch of rabbits and slaves, Ghaf said. He couldn't figure out how they'd gotten inside such a well armed and guarded ship like the Deep Spacer.. Anyway, how would you know?" The grey cat half-smiled. "'Cause I insulted Coppertop once, and I had the luck to see Claw fight," he said, almost being sarcastic. The dark cat looked surprised. "Then you're lucky, Rroyvan. They say not many live to see the dawn after insulting Coppertop." The grey cat indicated a long, wicked-looking scar along his side and back. "I very nearly didn't, Zanzibar. But this is not the place for telling tales. Sometimes it seems the very walls have ears. . . if you want to hear it, you'd have to get to the War Tavern." The darker cat nodded and glanced over at Alpha, who quickly tuned out. . .



Alpha shook the memory away. Forgotten until now, it had given her a very valuable bit of information. . .

Unknown to the red rabbit, another was headed for Firen too. However, it was not willingly.



The prisoner opened her eyes. Pain shot through her body, but she ignored it, being busy trying to remember who and where she was. Images flashed by, something about blaster fire, and another type of fire. . . in the tops of trees? Yes, that was it, the treetops were on fire and she couldn't escape. Falling. . . she had fallen out of a tree. . . she managed to catch herself. . .

Unseen by the concentrating prisoner, a smirking guard strolled up. Thrusting a stick through the bars of her cage, he prodded her until she stirred. "So yer awake, are yer? Well I'm afraid yer goin' to be moved, bush tail!"

The words barely made sense. Bush tail? Where had she heard that before? As an insult?. . .

She was roughly dragged through the now unlocked door, and propelled towards a larger cage, which already held another. The memories came flooding back faster. . . Shouting, from others like her, encouraging her to make the leap to safety, across a large space. . . fear, uncertainty. . . a frantic scamper across the protruding limb. . . falling, again, but this time there was no recovery. . . turtles?

The prisoner hadn't realized she had stopped until the guard whacked her with his rod. "Git movin', yeh mangy tree hopper! Who d'yer think yeh are?" More memories. . . she remembered it all! She turned her attention to the guard. "I tol' yer already, git movin' or yer goin' to regret it! I musta been mad, taking this job. Both you an' I'm goin' to regret this choice o' yers if-" the squirrel -squirrel!- drew herself up defiantly. For the first time, she spoke. "Aye, you're goin' to regret this. You're goin' to regret that you ever messed with Phoebe!"



Sorry, nothing about the rest of you guys, but there'll be more to write, there always is!

Indeed! A very spiffy chappie CT

Again, very niftular indeed.

Why can't I get into any other forum?

Sorry 'bout that, guys, but I haven't been able to get on in like, three days. And Kaz, what's that got to do with the story?





Chapter Thirteen -The Shipmines of Firen



"Phoebe?" The guard laughed. "Who the heck is tha'?" Phoebe narrowed her eyes in fury and fairly bristled. "Who do you think, bowl-brain?" She spat the last word out as though it was something foul. The indignant, then furious, Shellion turned on her and brought his stick -no, it wasn't just a stick, it was a whippy willow branch, with all the twigs trimmed off and a dull but gleaming metal spike driven through the end- down across her back, leaving a streak of blood on her shining blue fur. Instinctively, she flicked her tail up, deflecting the branch away. The guard growled something unintelligible, and, jerking viciously at the ropes that bound her already throbbing paws, dragged her over to the cage. Thrusting her through the small opening, the door swung shut with a final clang. Phoebe's back felt like she was lying on spikes.

Slowly she sat up and looked around. Her companion was a grim looking cat, with jet-black fur and surprisingly light blue eyes with brilliant green slitted pupils. He was huge compared to her, and her first impression of him was razor-sharp retractable claws and teeth.

He looked up, and she saw the spark of fury that blazed in his eyes. When he saw her tightly bound paws, he moved over and extended the claws on one paw.

"Hold still for minute, Phoebe," he said, or, more accurately, growled, and she tried not to flinch. She felt a slight jerk, and then the rope dropped off, neatly severed in half. Feeling exploded into her paws, sending needles of agony jabbing at her. She gasped, and tears sprang to her eyes. The pain ebbed away, and she blinked the tears away. Her benefactor was still watching her, with a bit of concern.

"How- how did you know my name?" she managed, and the cat smiled faintly.

"I hear you say to guard, before you got shoved in," he told her, and she looked surprised. But she had another question.

"Who are you?" The black cat glanced away, towards another row of cages. She almost began to think that he had forgotten her question, until finally he answered with a hissed word in an unknown language, and then in his broken Basic, the language she was using.

"My name is- Zanzibar," he sighed. "Zanzibar Sia."



Copper manevuered the Assassin deftly between the guards, heading unerringly towards the huge Star Destroyer. Claw, being her preferred gunner, kept a sharp eye out for trouble. Ducky manned the navigator.

"Ducky, how long until we reach where you say this Alpha is?" Ducky glanced up. "Um, Copper, we have a bit of a problem. Alpha's ship. . . it's inside the Conquerer!"



Alpha paced the tiny cockpit agitatedly. Five steps either way, she had a notion that if she looked down she would see a trail worn into the floor. Five steps across. . . five steps back. . . Wearily, she watched the scanners.

Finally she slumped down dispiritedly into the seat, and fell asleep.

Twelve hours later, she was woken by the bleep of a warning, far off in the Star Destroyer. Straining her ears, she listened intently.

"All pilots in your fighters, we are coming up on Firen!" the comm blared, and Alpha jerked upright in her seat.



"Copper, there's a planet ahead," Blacksheep called, and Copper accordingly veered. Blacksheep had changed positions with Ducky a few hours ago at the nav console, and was diligently doing her job.

"What's it called, Blackie?" Copper inquired, and Blacksheep dutifully read off the name.

"Firen. We'll have to check in at the Firenzev Customs if you wanna land in Flarex." Copper looked stumped.

"Flarex?"

"That's the name of the capital, and only, city on Firen," Blacksheep explained, and Copper nodded. Then she looked over at her gunner.

"Claw? Claw!" The mercenary started.

"What?" Copper looked concerned.

"Where were you? You looked like you were in a coma or something," she said, but all Claw did was shrug. Blacksheep interrupted her. "Copper, we're comin' in at the Ryjev Desert."



"Where are we headed?" Zanzibar Sia asked Phoebe. (If you haven't figured it out, yes, Zanzibar Sia is the dark cat Alpha saw at the tavern.) Phoebe racked her mind for a while. In the short time she'd known Zanzibar, she'd found out an awful lot of things about him. His brother was a grey cat with "bronze eyes" named Rroyvan, his love, who Devan had had killed for attacking several of his commanders, was named Vorsyelvo, who had striking orange-striped white fur and glorious golden eyes and who had captured Zanzibar's heart. He had earned his scar on his side, which was a swath of white fur, the color of his whiskers, from a furious battle with a "Firen-mountain Fader", a rarely seen being from the Smoljer Mountains in, of course, Firen. In fact, the thought reminded her.

"We are going to Firen, I think," she said, and was startled by a half-hiss, half-yowl from the cat. When she asked what was wrong, he replied with "I am Firenzev."



Enter a new warrior! I hope I don't have to kill Zanzibar off. . .



_________________

Read my story in War Tavern! I renamed it: Conquerer!



Whatever.



I can do all things through Christ whom strengthens me. -Phillipians 4:13



"So what?" -Coppertop



"When Life hands you lemons, make lemonade."

Ahh, story good for the soul...

I think that was the longest post I've ever made.

The climax is coming =P!



YaY! Another chapter to eat read!

Ah, sorry, I was gone. For a few days. Wonderous, CT. SOB.

`Ducky

Oh nice, CopperTop..thats very nifty, I like the way you put me in. Um, since, like I said, I'm still working on a good profile, is it okay if I mention a thing to put in?

Sorry

Continue

100th Post!!!

Don't mind at all, Phoebe! On the JMMB (sob) Ninja was constantly making "updates" on his profile, like being able to fly, being telepathetic, being perfect in math. . . feel free, so long as it isn't too extravagant. . .



Chapter Thirteen, cont'd



Copper was puzzled. How could Alpha get IN the Star Destroyer? She didn't understand until Blacksheep finally turned the nav over to Kaz. The first thing the bird did was to try to contact Alpha with his nav com.

"Assassin to unknown, come in," he called, and was rewarded by static. Then a pre-recorded voice came on.

[b]"Please give the 'password', Assassin, before proceeding."[b/] Shinyso looked up from outside and mouthed "Diamondus forever, no more." Ducky looked stricken, but Kaz calmly repeated Shinyso's words.

"Diamondus forever, no more." The voice did not come back on. Instead, a youngish rabbit flickered up onto the view-screen. Her voice didn't have the echo that the recorded one did. In fact, she sounded quite normal.

"Silken Swift to Assassin, over," she said, and Copper nodded in approval. Kaz got right to the point.

"Are you Alpha?" The red rabbit stiffened, then cocked her head to one side.

"Yes. Who are you?" Claw glanced over at Copper, who shrugged and answered for Kaz.

"I am the pilot, Coppertop, this is my gunner Claw, and Kaz is the navigator. I assume you know where you are headed, Silken Swift?" The rabbit looked stunned for a moment, then regained her dignity.

"I do, Assassin. Thank you for your concern on my behalf. Prepare to make a pit-stop. . ."



Short, but it'll do for now. Seeya, guys!

Spiffy as usual, Copper, and it just keeps

getting better (a little better, all the time)

Bah, thanks Copper, now you got that song stuck in my head!

Now you've gone and gotten me all nostalgic. SOB, the Jmmb, *cries* those were the good ol' days..*sniffles*

Sigh. But, anyway, fabulous, CT, plEASE, continue. Wot Kovey said.. :P Bah, lookit me, I can't even think up something to say.

OKay, I'm gonna stop complaining now. Ignore this useless post

`Ducky

Pizzie adds his dramatic prescence.

:P

Ok, ok, I get it, its just a me thing..

`Ducky

Splendid, for lack of a better word, I wish I could write as good as you

Oh, and the small change...I usually wear glasses. They are small and have gold frame, and the fall of quite a bit. I'm quite blurry without them.

I probably won't put anything in here. Maybe when I get my profile all sorted out I can put it in that topic thing.

*bows* Thanks, guys, but "no matter how good (or bad) you are, there'll always be somebody better (or worse) than you. . ."



What song, Kove?



Maybe the guards took 'em off or somethin', I'll give you them when you get your weapons back, Phoebe.



"Pit-stop? Why?" Kaz demanded, and Alpha looked almost frantic.

"We're stopping just outside of Firen's atmosphere, for a load of slaves. If you don't wanna join the ranks, stay out of sight!" Kaz hurridly typed in the new coordinates, and Alpha signed out.



"Firenzev? Whazzat?" Zanzibar looked up, startled.

"It means I am Firen, from planet ahead," he said, and Phoebe nodded. "And what are you, Phoebe?" he asked, and she blinked. "I-I'm not sure," she said, startled. "I must have- heard it once or twice, but I don't remember it. Isn't that funny? I don't even know the name of my home. . ." Zanzibar hissed something, cutting her off. A sneering tortise walked by, armed with a hooked prod. When he was out of earshot, she glanced over at Zanzibar. He was gazing after the turtle, his startling eyes narrowed and filled with fury.

"One day he not wake up, by the Ryjev," he growled, and she felt a chill.

Time to change the subject, she decided, and hastily did so.

"Y'know, Zanzibar, you speak pretty good Basic for somebody who just learned bits and snatches. But you're still missin' something. . ."



The Conquerer ground to a halt, and a large freighter appeared infront of them, having just aborted hyperspace. It glided slowly into a yawning hangar, and the door shut just after it. The engines flared up on the gigantic Star Destroyer, and it resumed course to Firen, just below.



Ducky was struck by the gorgeous planet below. A small sphere, it had one polar cap on the northern end, and a humoungous desert sprawled over half of the planet. Mountains with their peaks shrouded in mist ringed it, and the large mountain range eventually gave way to rainforest. One giant ocean lay against the rainforest, the mountains being the only barrier keeping the sea from flooding the desert beyond. Nestled on a cluster of islands a few leagues from the forests was a sprawling city of bridges and tunnels, powered completely by solar. The peaceful, remote place had an air of innocence about it, as well as one of raw, untouched wild beauty.

Funny how such a beautiful planet can harbor such evil, Ducky mused. Then the Assassin swerved, and star-spangled space met her eyes.



Sorry I coan't write more, guys, I gotta go. . .

Spiffomatic!

Indeed, most Groovular.

`Duck

Um, I need more (like, one) joiners before I continue! Specifications: Please be rabbit sized, have a profile ready, and be ready to play a serious part. Thanks!

I'll join



fur: black fur and gold armbands. and black hair, a long scar across my face from my battle with vulcan.



eyes: red, they glow slightly in the dark.



clothing: army fatigues and grey cloak.



weapons: golden sword with a black leather hilt and a white glowing opal on the pommel. also an uzi.



personality: cocky and self-assured, protective of my friend and twin sister, Alpha. Loyal. Would rather die than give in to an enemy.



skills: fighting, martial arts, climbing and spying

Awesome, you're just what I need! Thanks



Chapter Thirteen- cont'd



Phoebe grasped frantically at the bars of her cage as the entire Shellion freighter rocked wildly. Zanzibar, across from her, seemed to be having no trouble keeping his balance. She envied him, briefly.

The freighter settled down, and she relaxed. Zanzibar looked half asleep, and although his striking eyes were mere slits, she knew he was very alert. But not enough. . .

They were caught unaware as a sickeningly sweet scented gas began filling the room. Zanzibar was the first to realize what was happening; with a strangled yowl he flattened himself on the floor, with one paw over his mouth and nose and the other pulling a dizzy, drowsy Phoebe down. The last she saw before she spiralled down into darkness was Zanzibar's dark form on the ground, lying very, very still. . .



"Silken Swift to Assassin, do you read, over," Alpha called. There occured a mad dash for the com. Copper won.

"Roger, this is Assassin to Silken Swift, I read you. Over."

"Copper! Uh. . . 'kay. Can you get into the Conquerer? Over."

"Roger. We did it once, can do again. Over."

"Good. How close are you? Over."

"As close as we can get without collision, Swift. Why? Over."

"Um, hang on a sec. . ."

"Will do. Heh, you forgot the "over." Over."

"Ha ha. Very funny. There it is. . . 'kay. There's a large waste chute for scrap metal, etc. in the back. At 1300 hours there's a real heavy flow, and it dwindles to nothing at around 1340 hours. Then there's another at 5:00. If you can get in at, say, 1240 hours, just before the 1:00 flow, you should be able to escape with the 1700 dump if there's any problems. Over."

"Roger, Swift. Will do. Where to after that?" Copper was amused at Alpha's conversion between the 24 hour clock and the 12 one.

"Uh. I think. . . oh yeah, you'll find yourself at a crossroad. Take the one to the left, and if you're a bit late you'll have to wind your way through a bunch of wrecked cages. At exactly 1300- oh, blast, 1:00, the slave freighter leaves, so you might want to be a bit late. If it hasn't left, hover in the tunnel until it does. Then get in there and set down. There's a group of guards who are goin' down the middle corridor- they have the slaves. Follow them, free the slaves if you want, I wouldn't, or keep trailin' them until they get to a holding room. Actually, it's a prison. Mingle in with the slaves and stay there until you land, then get outa there as fast as you can! Get back to your ship and leave the Destroyer, and watch for the slaves' departure for the mines. Follow them, and radio me to tell me when. Leave the rest to me, just get the slaves, old and new, out of the mines. Don't be surprised if you see an explosion, heheh. Got it? Oops, almost forgot. . . Over."

"Roger. Over and out."



Devan Shell peeked around the corner, in at his "Boss". Kroys was sitting with his back to him, gazing out at the stars. He gave no indication that he knew Devan was there, except for his voice. . .

"Shell."

Devan slunk out.

"Yeah, sir, I mean, Milord?"

"How many?" Devan scratched his head, baffled.

"Huh?"

"H o w m a n y s l a v e s d i d y o u b r i n g m e ?" Kroys sarcastically drew the words out agonizingly slow.

"Uh, forty five, I think," the dimwitted Shellion said. Kroys turned his gaze to the ceiling.

"Devan. Shell."

"Y-yes, sir? Er, Milord?"

"Do. You. Seriously. Think. That. Forty. Five. Slaves. Is. Going. To. Make. A. Blasted. Hill. Of. Beans. Difference?!? How is forty-five squirrels, cats and the occasional rabbit going to replace the five hundred odd slaves that escaped with the mercenary?"

"Uh. . ."

"They aren't, that's what!" Kroys was seething.

"Er, um, uh, I-I- oops." Kroys turned, slowly, towards the door.

"Commander Flairang. Take this pitiful excuse for a worm to the warp that I have erected and send him through to Carrotus. Dismissed."

The intelligent Commander was a large (for a lizard) black lizard, the very one who had given Claw the tipoff without realizing it. The Commander obediently prodded the hapless Shellion out the door, and pushed him roughly through the warp.



Alpha got out of the sleek, small Swift and headed for where the slaves were. She planned to get to one of the control rooms, where she would then press the self-destruct. If it had one.

As she was heading down the corridor in the shadows, she saw a flicker of black. Could it be. . .? She shook her head. Her eyes were playing tricks on her.



Zanzibar was the first to awaken. Having fought the gasses as long as he could, both mentally and physically, he was exhausted.

He winced. A long, jagged slash ran the length of his leg, where he had been dragged out of the bashed in door of the cage. It had stopped bleeding by now, but it still hurt. Wearily he closed his eyes and slid back under the merciful darkness. . .

yay!

Heeheee, at last you continue, MOST spiffy, PLEASE continue I implore thee...

`Ducky

Okay, okay! Get up off your knees already!

j/k



Chapter Fourteen -Omega



Commander Flairang had to get a look at the slaves. That was the only reason the lizard gave the guards, and they knew better than to question the cold officer. Now he stood in the corridor, giving the reports a once-over. He glanced up, fixing his softly glowing eyes on the first guard he saw.

"Trooper!" The unfortunate Shellion trotted obediently over to his superior.

"Yes, SIR!" Flairang's tail lashed. His hard gaze remained on the trooper, making him sweat.

"Where are these slaves being kept?" The slow turtle thought for a minute. Flairang scowled.

"Er, I think just off of the main cargo bay, SIR!" Flairang's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"And? What are you not telling me?" The guard shuffled his feet nervously and gulped.

"Uh, there's about forty of 'em, Lord Kroys isn't happy, and. . . they're being starved." The unfortunate's voice trailed off. Flairang's temper blazed up.

"Starved?"

"Yessir."

"What for?"

"Er, er, I dunno." A noncommital answer if he'd ever heard one.

"Do you not realize that Lord Kroys needs his slaves STRONG, not half dead from starvation? Who put you on this shift anyway?" The dimwitted Shellion pointed down the hall to a lavishly appointed office. Flairang sniffed condencedingly.

"When you are done this shift you are to go down to the barracks and tell Lt. Sirov that I sent you. You, I think, would do well in the soldier department."

"Yes, SIR!" Flairang turned and stalked down the hall.

As he passed the branching corridor that led to the emergency airlock, he thought he caught a flash of red.



Phoebe awoke to the rasping gasps of Zanzibar. He lay unconscious on the floor, his chest heaving as he fought for breath. One glance at his wound told her that it was serious and was bleeding again; in fact, his fur was a matted crimson. She moved over to him and began trying to staunch the blood flow.



Alpha stretched her neck, trying to glimpse that familiar black figure that she thought she had seen. When she was truly sure it was gone, she wearily turned to go down the corridor, when she saw another flash of black. Hopefully she followed it, wondering if this was the way to the control room. They passed a hall that seemed to be a dead end, then turned down one that wasn't. The flash of black disappeared then, and Alpha was alone.

Yet she had reached her goal. In the room ahead, scanners hummed, lights flashed and buttons begged to be pushed. She slipped in and tried to remember the way back.



"Assassin to Silken Swift, do you read, repeat, do you read," Shinyso said. Copper shook her head.

"Face it, Shinyso, Alpha's gone. We have three minutes before we have to leave." Shinyso glowered at her. She returned the look.

"Can you bring up the scan of the Conquerer?" Shinyso brightened.

"Done." The screen brightened as a diagram of the Star Destroyer's cargo/waste dump area flickered on. Copper traced a course.

"There. We have to thread our way through there. I'm not placing it on autopilot; as perfect a pilot that may be it's not prepared for stray junk. Kaz!" The bird poked his head around the corner.

"Yeah?"

"Any news from SAM?" The bird shook his head and Kovu looked annoyed. Grath smothered a laugh, unsuccessfully. Kaz looked unhappy.

"Plenty from Medivo though," he sighed, and Copper was on the alert.

"One of Kroys' destroyers is heading over there, the Hypernaught- no, that's his personal shuttle. It's the Terror." Copper winced and Claw (if he can, he has no pupils) rolled his eyes. Shinyso sighed.

"So Kroys is finally hooking Medi-"

"Warning! Warning! Approaching large vessel! Collision immediate! Warning! War-" Claw reached down and flipped a switch. The warning fell silent. He looked furious. Shinyso looked relieved.

The tunnel loomed ahead. Copper leaned forward and grasped the controls as they left the star-filled vastness of space.



Phoebe looked up as the door hissed open. A huge black lizard stood there. She was so worried that she didn't have time to be afraid.

"Don't be afraid. I'm not what I seem, squirrel," the lizard said as he stepped in and shut the door. Phoebe gazed up, perplexed. The lizard seemed to shed his skin, and what now stood before her was a tall black rabbit with gold armbands and black hair. He had a long scar across his face, and Phoebe didn't want to ask. Instead, she asked,

"Who are you? Can you help him?" The black rabbit nodded to the last.

"I can. You are. . .?" She blushed.

"Phoebe."

"Ah. I, to Kroys and his troops, am known as Commander Flairang, but to my friends I am known as Omega."



Okay, I got you in, Omega! I can't write more now, my hour's up.

Ahh, story is good, and chappie is nifty.

Ditto

Ack, no, I can't. . . write any today. My parents are trying to drag me away from the computer as I speak I mean, type

Okay, where is everybody? I WILL write today, y'know.



Chapter Fourteen -cont'd



The steel tunnel that they had to navigate was not that difficult at first. It was a straight run, with hardly any turns. At least, for the first part. They sped forward, barely making the twisting turns that came up, and several of Copper's friends (I won't say names) just about fainted as they rounded yet another extremely sharp corner.

"Can't you slow down?" Blacksheep yelled, and Copper gave her an incredulous look and shook her head.

"Are you crazy? I don't fancy winding through junk, Blackie!"

An ominous rumble interrupted them. The vessel shook, and then righted itself. Copper looked faintly alarmed.

"Claw! Arm the ion cannons, we're a bit late and you'll have to shoot out any dangerous waste in our way!" Claw looked furious again; or maybe he'd never lost the look. His hands flew over the keys infront of him, and a distant click proved that the ions were out. Copper turned to Blackie.

"Black, go get Kovu. I need a fresh nav, Shinyso's been working since before we planned our course, and Kovu's-"

"The best one. I'm going, I'm go-" The hiss of the cockpit door cut Blackie off as she left.



Omega, aka Commander Flairang, had a problem. He had no way to get Zanzibar Sia to the medical without arousing suspicion, and it was very obvious that Zanzibar needed attention. There was nothing Phoebe and he could do, except. . .

"Phoebe, you'll have to stay here. Act scared, okay? I've got to get this cat help." Omega donned his disguise, and stepped out into the corridor. His once assured, cocky personality dissolved until once more he was the cold, commanding Flairang.

"You, guard, who brought in this batch of slaves?" The guard looked startled.

"Sir, I believe it was the last watch. They've gone to the soldier quarters."

"Who?" It was more of a statement.

"The shwartzenguards, sir. They were the only ones who could handle that black demon, er, the cat, sir." Flairang looked frustrated.

"They've beat him up pretty bad, trooper. He's in shock and bleeding badly, and Lord Kroys needs every slave."

"I'll get the medics, sir!"

"Good. You look like a sensible trooper, unlike the last oaf who was on watch. What's your name? The Emperor, Lord Kroys, needs good soldiers." Inwardly, Omega was almost furious every time he had to call the wizard "Lord" or "Emperor." Outwardly, he was every inch the loyal Commander.

"Syphar, sir." Flairang nodded.

"Good work, trooper Syphar." The smarter-than-most turtle headed obediently off to get the medics, who happened to be squirrels that Kroys had 'convinced' to serve him as medics. They were quite good.

Syphar returned with them shortly, and they went in to get Zanzibar. One of them, a pretty young one named Thye, returned to recruit several strong guards. Satisfied, Flairang left.



Phoebe's eyes widened with surprise as four squirrels entered. One left again, but the other three started trying to fix Zanzibar up. One of them, a pretty silvery one, turned to her.

"What's your name, youngster?" The squirrel had a low voice that was oddly reassuring.

"Phoebe, ma'am." The squirrel nodded.

"I am Shye. My companions are Phye, Chye and Thye. As you may have guessed, we are sisters. Who is our patient, Phoebe?" Phoebe hesitated, then obeyed.

"His name is Zanzibar Sia, ma'am. Is he okay?" The grey squirrel looked grave.

"No. The chemicals that Devan used to knock you out got into the wound, infecting it. It should have stopped bleeding by now, but. . ." Phoebe felt a rising fury inside of her. In the short time she'd known Zanzibar, she'd grown to think of the big cat as a friend. He was better company than the bedraggled, incoherant captives that huddled together silently.

By the Ryjev and all the Faders of Firen, she thought, using an vow she'd heard Zanzibar use before, if you die, my friend, I will not forget you nor forsake you and your cause.

Wooohooo!

Iiii'm the best naaaav

Ahem, nevermind, good chappie, Copper.

I must kill Kovu to become the best nav!



Great Chapter, another climax eh?