Read This and then This to get caught up.
The Lead Boat On The Yalu River, Late Evening
"Never married?!?!" Angus asked, "He was such a ladies man back during the Brigade days."
Darien shrugged, "I've seen him dance with Miss Katt a couple of times at a few balls, but for the most part, Fuzz just hangs in the back, guarding the refreshments."
"Someone broke his heart," Angus guessed "I'm sure, in time, we'll learn more. Unfortunately, these things have a habit of turning up sooner or later. Like Sideman being married to six and a half women."
Darien's eyes widened, "He was married to half a woman?!?!"
"Aye, from the waist down"
Darien wasn't sure if he wanted to learn more, and was relieved when Kim Chang walked over to them with food.
"It is not much," Kim said, handing bowls to the two, "just rice. But it is good."
"Thanks, Kim" Darien said, "Have you seen Fuzz?"
"He has....how did he put it? Wolfed Out?"
Darien nodded
"He then jumped onto the shore and went into the forest." Kim looked at the bowl of rice, "Perhaps to find some meat to go with the rice."
"Wish he was here, now." Darien said, "Biggles is a nice guy, great to get along with. This Smith fellow.....too damned uppity."
"He is not happy with you being here," Kim said "he would prefer the Americans to stay out of it. He feels that you are too brash in how you do things. He feels that you would do more harm than good."
"Do ye believe that, lad?" Angus asked
Kim shook his head, "I have seen what Lieng has done. The deaths. Whatever help you can provide to stop this mad man would be welcomed, no matter how brash."
Angus smiled, "Well, it's not like we have weapons of mass destruction."
"I was working on something.." Darien began
"Shut up and eat yer rice, Darien."
"What? It's just that...."
"Eat"
The Forest Nearby
The Fuzzwolf sniffed the air, seeing if any humans were about. He was glad to have some time alone to reflect on what had transpired.
"Hotspur's a friend," he whispered to himself "He's in trouble. This is a dangerous area. The British and God knows who else are turning the situation into one large powder keg. Anything else? Oh yea.....I'm supposed to be resting in San Francisco, Lunar's orders. Heh, good thing I only listen to Katt, or I'd be dead from boredom. Can only beat Paladin at chess so many times."
Fuzz sniffed the air, again.Then chuckled.
"Now I know why they call you Soft Paw," he said, turning to look at the female werewolf walking into the clearing "You don't make a sound."
The female didn't respond. Fuzz noticed that she held her hand behind her back. Fuzz's eyes narrowed at her.
"What are you up to?" he asked
Her response was a jump in the air, she spun around and threw a silver dagger at Fuzz. Fuzz quickly dodged the dagger, which hit a tree behind him.
"THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Fuzz snarled
"Nothing will stand in the way of my Master's plan." Soft Paw replied
"Master??!? What does your tribe have to say of this?"
"My tribe is made up of old fools. Some of us are looking for a new future. One our Master can provide us. And you, Fenris' Bane, stand in the way of that."
The two werewolves took battle positions as they faced each other.
"I will kill you." she said
Fuzz gave a grin, "We have a saying in Steelhead City. 'You feelin' froggy? Jump'."
And with that, she lunged towards Fuzz, fangs bared
The Dungeon In Fusang Castle
Purdie looked outside his cell to see if any guards were nearby, then walked over to the cot.
"Ok, Koen" Purdie told Koen, who was still paralyzed "this isn't going to hurt."
With the first two fingers on each hand, Purdie poked Koen in different areas of his chest. Koen was able to move, as he rolled off the cot, grasping his chest.
"OW" Koen said, "You said it wouldn't hurt."
"I'm sorry, Koen." Purdie replied, as he sat down on the cot, "I lied."
Koen got up and looked at the Time Lord. Purdie was having trouble breathing. Koen's keen hearing could hear one of Purdie's hearts beating eratic. Koen sat down next to him, very concerned.
"Are you ok, sir?" Koen asked
Purdie looked at Koen and managed a smile, "I'll be ok. We just need to get out of here."
"I heard everything after that guy paralyzed me." Koen said, looking around the cell "Who was that guy? He never said his name, did he?"
Purdie shook his head, "No, but it's evident that Lieng is not the one who's running the show here. This guy......whoever he is, is the mastermind."
Koen looked at Purdie, "And the cowboy werewolf that was mentioned. That was Sheriff Ortega, right?"
Purdie nodded, "They mentioned his tribal name. 'Fenris' Bane'."
"Tribal name....didn't know that. Course I always thought werewolves travel in packs, not tribes."
"The Lycans are more civilized than the stories give them credit for. The werewolves, werecats, wererats, werebears.....few others I can't remember them all.....anyway, they live in tribes. Much like the tribes of Natives you find north of Steelhead. There's a chief, there're scouts, warriors, and a shaman."
"Interesting. And the tribal names?"
"When a lycan is accepted into the tribe, after the rites of passage, there's a ceremony. The shaman of the tribe using the mystic mumbo jumbo jiggery diggery powers that he's born with, communicates with the spirits of the Great Chiefs Of The Past, and gives the lycan their tribal name. Fuzz was given Fenris' Bane as a tribal name."
"Bane......means curse. And Fenris......."
"During the ending days of the rule of Asgard, Fenris was a great wolf that devoured Odin, and in turn was killed by Odin's son Víðarr. I recall both Piotr and Ilyana were not happy with that tribal name. If there is a reason for that name, it hasn't surfaced yet. At any rate, we need to find Fuzz, and then find Colonel O'Toole."
Koen helped Purdie up, "You have a plan on getting out of here?"
"Oh yes." Purdie said, putting his hand in his pocket, "Guess what I have?"
Koen shrugged.
"Pockets. Great big pockets." Purdie pulled out a device and pushed a button on the device. He looked at Koen and smiled, "Bigger on the inside."
Koen suddenly heard the familiar sound of the TARDIS, and smiled as the familiar sight of the console room materialized around them.
"We teleported to the TARDIS?" Koen asked
Purdie shook his head as he walked over to the console, "It's a remote control device. I brought the TARDIS to us. The chameleon circuit has the exterior looking like the cell we're in. We'll be gone before they notice."
Outside the TARDIS
The two guards looked at where the cell was, or rather where it was supposed to be.
"What......is that?" one guard asked
"I do not know." the other replied, "But it is a very bright pink color."
The two then heard a strange sound and watched as the bright pink object disappeared, revealing an empty cell.
"It ate the two prisoners." The second guard noted
The first guard nodded.
The Forest Near The Yalu River
The lifeless body of the Chinese werewolf known as Soft Paw lay at Fuzz's feet. Fuzz bowed his head, unsure on whether to ask Lycoan to grant her passage into the Great Beyond, or to not hold her tribe responsible for her foolish actions. He looked up to see a wolf, an actual wolf not a lycan, walk from the darkness of the forest.
*I am Fenris' Bane of the Tribe of Gaia* Fuzz said in Wolf Speak
The wolf bowed her head, *Greetings. We have been told that you had arrived in these lands. Why?*
*One who is of the humans I have been sworn to protect has been taken here against his free will. I am here to bring him out of harms way* Fuzz looked at Soft Paw's lifeless body *I have since found things that have angered me*
*Oh yes. The Pact has been broken. Great dangers await you, Fenris' Bane.*
Fuzz walked towards the wolf and looked down at her, *Please tell me more*
The Lead Boat
"It's been over two hours," Nayland Smith said, looking at his pocket watch, "how do we know he hasn't been captured?"
"If he was," Darien said, "I'd feel sorry for his captors. For a werewolf, he can be a real horse's ass, sometimes."
"That is not funny" Smith said to Biggles, Angus, Feng, and Kim who were all chuckling, "These Americans have no idea how dangerous the situation is."
There was a thud behind Smith. He turned to find Fuzz standing directly behind him, looking down at him.
"Actually," the werewolf said, "the situation is far worse than you think you know."
He walked over to Kim, then looked back at Smith.
"And you were right. There is a puppet master behind all this."
He turned back towards Kim and dropped the silver dagger at Kim's feet.
"Tell me." Fuzz continued, "Are you here to save the innocents from a madman?"
Kim Chang looked at the dagger, then looked up at Fuzz, "Yes."
Fuzz smiled, having sensed Kim was telling the truth, then bowed to Kim, "Forgive me for doubting you. The she wolf you introduced to me......wasn't."
"I am sorry, Ortega." Kim said, bowing to the Fuzzwolf, "I was not aware of her true intentions."
"Well," Biggles said, smiling, "at any rate, it's good to have you back, old boy."
Fuzz looked at Smith, motioning towards Biggles, "He always this chipper?"
"You get used to it." Smith replied. "I would appreciate it, however, that if you are to help us, that you quit disappearing. This is a troubling situation, and we've gone past the frying pan and have been sitting in the fire for some time, now......"
Fuzz quickly turned his head towards the northeast. He growled, then leapt off the boat onto the shore and ran off into the woods on that side of the river.
"How does he keep his job as sheriff?" Smith asked, exasperated
Darien shrugged, "Miss Katt likes him."
Biggles looked at the area where Fuzz disappeared, "I'm more concerned about the scent he sniffed out."
"Aye," Angus added, "we best be prepared for anything."
To Be Continued
No comments:
Post a Comment