Under the Sundowner Part 08
Under the Sundowner: Part 8
by Prowl-Ar Nightiger
Tye leaned back in his chair and waited for the group to start asking questions. He'd just finished filling them in on everything he knew about Prowler's condition and the events leading up to the coma.
"So who's in command of the Shadow Runners?" Duo asked.
"Ha ha." Tye laughed, "I guess Dawna is in overall command, but there's no real established command structure. We all have our talents and we do whatever needs to be done."
"What about your dad?" Alec asked.
Tye glared at Daniel, who only shrugged his shoulders and shook his head to indicate that he hadn't said anything. "What do you mean?"
"You told us about Prowler and Rusty, but you didn't say anything about your father. We know he was on the same mission from what we overheard when you were having that nightmare." Duo said.
"Oh." Tye said, as he looked away and stared at the wall.
"I'm sorry, I guess I shouldn't have asked." Alec said, biting his lip and looking at the floor.
"I-I've been lying to you." Tye said as he continued to stare at the wall.
"What?" Alec said, jerking his head up to stare at Tye.
"I've already told you everything I know about my father; or at least . . ."
"This might come as a surprise to the two of you," Daniel interrupted, "but Prowler is Tye's father."
"What!" Alec yelled, as he fell out of his chair.
"Hey, don't look at me like that. Just think about it for a moment and I'm sure you'll be able to make the connection the same as I did."
"So that's why when he ordered you to shift in the game, you obeyed him. If you'd refused he could have . . . oh shit." Duo said, as he suddenly curled up in his chair and started shaking. "I-I-I attacked him that first day."
"Master Tye, please, we've said and done things . . ." Alec began.
"Is it any wonder that he didn't tell us that he's a Lightstripe? Both of you get a hold of yourselves. Think about how you're acting. Tye isn't Lord Lightstripe, that would be his father, and he sure as hell isn't Lord Dacat so cut out the quivering and apologizing." Daniel said, as he stood up and headed for the kitchen.
"Thank you." Tye said.
Daniel waived it off as he entered the kitchen.
"So um, what now?" Alec asked, as he sat back down.
"First off, try to forget about everything that's just happened and remember that I'm still Tye. You know, the guy that's been living here with the three of you. As Daniel said I don't expect, or want, any to the special treatment crap that's been drilled into you since birth. There's nothing special about me that I deserve to be treated any different than anyone else."
"Yeah, but when you give an order we have to obey it. Just like Daniel did in the VR chamber." Duo said, as he stopped shaking.
"If I give an order, then there is a damned good reason for it."
The kitchen door opened and Daniel returned with four glasses of water. "I figured we could all use something to drink."
"Thanks." Tye said as he took a glass. "The event in the VR chamber was a special occasion. In the past we've had problems with the chamber malfunctioning. During those events a malicious string of code hijacked the system resetting the chamber to master level. The first time, Prowler was able to end the game by killing a member of his team. The second time, Dawna faced what would have been an undefeatable character, however she had gained abilities that allowed her to win. The last time it took four new members of the Shadow Runners and Prowler to stop the game. That time Trace and I was able to isolate the code and destroy it. At least, we thought we had."
"So you thought the infection had spread to our VR chamber?" Alec asked
"Yes, because the game we were playing changed. As it turns out a malicious code was behind it again. Mahan changed the game so that I could exit as quickly as possible."
"However you had no way of knowing that. So by ordering me to shift, you were trying to keep us all alive if the system was infected." Daniel said.
"Actually, if the system had been infected, Lord Wood's plant guardians would have hit us with poisonous pollen and we'd all be dead. Trust me, Master Level Virtual Reality is nothing to mess with. I thought I'd removed the setting from our chamber. However, after linking it to the one on the Shadow Runner it's possible that it could have upgraded automatically. Now, are there any more questions about Prowler or me? If not then I have another somewhat distasteful surprise."
"Let me guess, Dare has locked us out of the game because Mahan modified it for you?" Daniel asked, as he leaned back on the couch and put his feet up on the table.
Tye took a deep breath. "No, actually Dare is rather adamant that we continue playing the game, even though Mahan has taken over complete control."
"Really? Why does he care?" Duo asked, as he leaned forward and took his glass of water from the tray on the table.
Tye bit his lip and prepared for the worst. "Because when I opened up a link to the Shadow Runner's VR computer I didn't check the game's settings. Every game has settings for privacy ranging from 'open' to 'user only'. The game we've been playing is on the open setting. That means that anyone can play the game."
"That isn't so bad." Duo said, as he took a sip of water.
"It also means that our play sessions are recorded and can be viewed by anyone and everyone on the Shadow Runner."
Daniel's glass shattered as it hit the floor, Duo choked, and Alec sat with his mouth hanging open.
"Everything?" Alec asked, as he stared at Tye.
"It seems we've become the most popular form of entertainment aboard the ship. We're even more watched than Ice and Dare."
"Everything?" Duo echoed.
"Dare even wants to publish and sell the recordings, but luckily Ice convinced him that wouldn't be a good idea until things on Shendria are settled." Tye continued.
"EVERYTHING!" Daniel yelled, as his claws sunk into the couch arm.
"Everything up until I forced everyone to shift. At that point the recording has been edited. In the new version I end up shifting after we were attacked by the plants."
"Everything." The three whispered.
At that point Tye realized that they hadn't been worried about the part of the recordings where they had shifted. He just sat there, several times he was about to say something but found he couldn't. He was caught between the need to reassure them and the overwhelming need to laugh. "Right, I'm just going to go upstairs and get a drink. When you three have decided whether or not you ever want to go near the VR chamber again, come and get me. Oh, and I'd suggest that you review all your personal VR files. Even though most of the Shadow Runners have seen the game files it doesn't necessarily mean that your private actions were open. Check with Mahan, and I'd also recommend that if the files are open that you change them to user access only." Tye said, as he stood up and headed for the lift.
Alec and Duo looked at each other for a second before they realized that Daniel had already vaulted over the back of the couch and was running for the VR chamber. Duo was out of his chair first but as the lift doors closed Tye could see that Alec had already passed him.
* * *
Tye looked around the cave. He couldn't believe that the group had decided to continue playing the game, but here they were. Daniel was propped up against the back wall sharpening his short sword. Alec had pulled his hat down over his eyes and Tye could tell that he had fallen asleep. Duo was still prying at the boulder that covered the exit, even though they had tried everything they could think of to escape. Tye shook his head and went back to doodling in the soft earth covering the cave floor.
"Hya!" Duo yelled, as he slammed the end of his staff against the boulder. The cave shook and bits of stone fell from the roof.
"Would you stop that!" Alec yelled, as the shower of dirt woke him. "You're going to grt us buried alive."
"I think I moved it a little that time." Duo said, as he prepared to hit the stone again.
Suddenly the boulder rolled to one side and several brown balls rolled into the room. They exploded filling the confined space with a green powder.
"Not again." Daniel said, as he watched the others topple over. The mist drifted back and he tried to hold his breath. The last thing he saw, before passing out, was the plant guards shuffling into the cave and starting to bind the others.
Tye was jolted awake at the foul smell that seemed to fill his head and was leaking into his lungs. He sneezed and toppled backward only to discover that he had been place on the bank of a large stream. He crawled out of the water to the sound of a deep rumbling laugh.
"Mahan, I swear I'm going to delete you the next chance I get." Tye whispered, as he looked up to find Lord Wood sitting on the ground and leaning back against a rock wall. On his right side the stream poured down the cliff face in a cascading waterfall before curving around behind the group. On his left the remains of a rock fall littered the hillside. At least it seemed to be a rock fall.
"She's hot." Duo said, as he stared at the pile of rubble.
"Sure, if you're into that whole earth goddess sort of thing." Alec said, as he pointed toward the waterfall. "Now she's hot."
"Yeah, like a geyser when angry and a block of ice the rest of the time." Daniel replied.
"What are you three talking about?" Tye asked, as he stared at the rocks and then at the waterfall. After several seconds he realized that they were elementals like Lord Wood.
"Now that you mortals have revived, let me introduce Mother Earth and Princess Water."
Mother Earth was composed of stones. She had voluptuous boulder breasts and hips. Precious gems and metals seemed to flow from the huge rock that formed her head creating a glittering avalanche of hair.
Princess Water, seemed to be thin and dressed in a cloak composed of mist. As the water flowed her overall appearance changed yet she retained the flowing physique of an exotic dancer.
"It is because of my guests that you are still alive. If I had my way you would now be providing nourishment for my forest." Lord Wood said, as he stood and walked away.
"Oh don't mind him, his bark is worse then his bite." Mother Earth said. Her voice was a deep tenor and echoed as though they were in a large cave or cathedral.
"Really Mother, that's an old joke, even for you." Princess Water said, in a silky and seductive soprano voice. "He wouldn't have been so upset if you hadn't threatened to summon Master Fire."
"I couldn't very well let him kill the chosen ones, now could I?"
"Excuse me, what do you mean chosen ones?" Daniel asked, as he tentatively raised his hand. He felt like he was back in school.
"Oh, are you four still here? You can go now, Lord Wood will not bother you again." Princess Water said, as she waved her hand. The group was immediately drenched as a shower of water flew through the air.
"That's it, let's go." Tye said, as he headed toward a path that led in the opposite direction from the one Lord Wood had taken.
"But it might be important to-" Duo trailed off, as he realized that the water and rocks had returned to their natural form. "I guess not."
"You know, I enjoy water; but being nearly drowned twice in one morning is just too much."
"Oh look on the bright side, we could have been forced to listen to more of Mother Earth's puns." Daniel said, as he pulled off his T-shirt and wrung it out.
"So do you think we'll catch up with Dare in the next town?" Alec asked.
"Oh, did I forget to mention that? We've passed Dare. He's the reason we were kicked out of the last town."
"You're kidding. You mean we've got to fight our way back there?"
"That's right, and this time we're not going to be taking a shortcut through the woods." Tye said, as they exited the forest and found themselves at the gates to a town.
"At least we didn't have to fight any battles to get back on the road. Now how about we see what information and equipment we can find here before we start hunting once more?" Duo said, as they walked through the gates.
* * *
"Damn it!" Alec yelled, as he slammed his fist down on the booth's table.
Their booth was in a building that had probably been a shabby fast food joint before the cataclysm. Now, it was the town's finest bar and diner and it aspired to being shabby.
"Calm down, you're upsetting the other patrons." Tye said as he nodded to a couple of old ladies in homespun dresses. "The last thing we need is getting thrown out of town right now."
"We've been here for the last three days. Duo's taken a job as a cook and Daniel's helping clean up a building to be used as a school. I don't see how that's helping us find Dare."
"By helping the town's people as we go along we'll be repairing our reputations. The more good deeds we do the better our chances of getting reliable information as to Dare's location. Rather than yelling at me, you could go out and see if there's anything you can do to make people happy around here." Tye said, as he leaned back and closed his eyes.
"And what are you doing?" Alec asked, as he stared at Tye.
"Waiting for opportunity to come knocking. You'd be surprised at what I've learned so far, just sitting here pretending to sleep." Tye whispered.
Alec shook his head and stood to leave just as four people walked in the door. He quickly sat back down. "What does it mean when a lynx, a wolf, a coyote, and a rabbit walk into a diner?"
"I haven't heard that one before. What does it mean?"
"It isn't a joke, they just walked in."
"Trouble, that's what it means." Tye said, as he sat up and looked at the group.
"They're coming over here!"
"Yeah, I can see that." Tye said, as the lynx sat on the bench beside him.
"Move over so the rest of us can sit down." The coyote said, as he slid in next to Alec. He then began pushing him against the wall so the wolf could squeeze in next to them.
The rabbit grabbed a chair and sat it down at the end of the table. He sat down and rested his chin on the chair back.
"Well, looky what the cat dragged in." The lynx said, as she stared at Alec.
"Indeed, you're looking extra mangy today." Tye said, as he looked back at her. "Alec, let me introduce Seeker, the Accordia Defense League's second most irritating member."
"Second?" Seeker asked, as she punched Tye in the arm.
"I'm Jace, former slave of the Terran Confederation." The coyote said, as he offered his hand to Alec.
"Uh, nice to meet you."
"Don't mind him, he's still working on his people skills. Basically, he's rude to all humans, until he gets to know you, and then he's only a bit less rude. My name is Nature, and I'm ... I was, Seeker and Tye's teammate in the ADL." The wolf said.
"I'm Spike." The rabbit said, as he extended his hand.
"I thought I recognized you. You were only a year above me at the academy. I'm not likely to forget the sports star, Butterscotch Briarspike." Alec said, as he vigorously shook Spike's hand.
Everyone at the table went deathly silent, Spike yanked his hand back, and pulled up his personal menu. "Mahan, edit that last statement so that my complete name isn't mentioned." Spike said, as he looked at the screen. "Please." He whined.
"Mahan, make the change." Tye said, as he accessed his own menu.
The bartender walked over to the group. "I'm sorry but I can't do that." He said.
"Mahan, check Spike's file."
"Checking." Mahan said, as he wiped his greasy hands on his apron.
"As you can see Spike has requested that his name not be made public. Dad agreed to that, therefore Spike has the right to request the edit."
"Fine, the file has been edited. You have until I get back to the bar, to get into position, to continue the conversation from the point at which Alec and Spike were shaking hands." He said, as he started back to the bar. Spike reached out and Alec took his hand.
"Sorry about that, it's just that I didn't expect to meet a celebrity in a dive like this." Alec said, as the game restarted.
Everyone just sat looking at Alec and Spike for several seconds.
"So Seeker, what brings you to our secluded diner?" Tye asked, breaking the silence.
"Oh, we just thought we'd size up the competition."
"You what?"
"We're entering the game as well. But instead of a rescue team we're bounty hunters pretending to be a rescue party." Seeker said as she smiled.
"You're evil, you know that; don't you?" Tye said, as he narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah, what to make something of it kid?"
"Kid? I may have been born after you were, but since you spent more time in hyper sleep than I did, technically I've aged more then you have."
"That just means that I'm older, smarter, and better looking than you are. Not to mention the fact that I've got your team beat when it comes to elemental powers." Seeker said as she held up her hands. A fireball formed and hovered over one and a snowball slowly revolved over the other. She clapped both hands together and the booth filled with steam, which was blown away by a sudden gust of wind.
"How can she get away with that?" Alec asked, as he stared at Seeker.
"She chose to enter the game with no elemental alignment. Her abilities are a unique trait of the Snarion Trickster Clan. The rest of us have chosen elements from the expanded options list. I chose wood as my element." Nature said, as he placed his hands on the table. "See I can control anything made of-"
"Wood, right?" Tye asked, as he started laughing. "But metal and plastic with a faux wood covering doesn't count."
"Do you really think it's a good idea to be telling our competition about our abilities?" Jace asked, as he started to push Nature out of the booth.
"Probably not." Seeker said, as she stood up. "We'll be seeing you later."
"Yeah, when we find Dare and beat the game." Spike said, as they headed out the door.
"I hate to tell you this, but Spike has never lost a game, ever." Alec said, as the door swung shut.
"Then we've got a problem. You see, I've never lost a VR game and Dare's never lost a race. For us to win we've got to get to catch up with Dare and get him back to the ship. They've got to capture him and that means they'll have to fight him. As for Dare's goal only Ice knows what that is."
"So we've got a chance to catch him?" Duo asked, as he sat at the table. "I was in the next booth listening in."
"I knew having a shifter in the group would come in handy." Tye said, as he stood up. "I think it is time we find Daniel and move onto the next town."
"Yeah, but which way should we go? We haven't gotten any clues while we've been here?"
"I know but-" Tye was cut off, as piece of paper was placed between them on the table.
The ferret that had dropped the note exited as quietly as he had entered.
"Let me guess, another rival." Duo said, as Tye picked up the note.
"We go west." Tye said, as he put the note down so that the others could see that the only thing on the paper was a large "W".
"That's it? Who was that, and how do you know he's on our side?"
"That was M. J. Hazard, Dare's best friend. My guess is, Dare is getting bored of us sitting around and he wants to see more action so he sent M. J. to get us moving."
"Yeah, in the wrong direction." Alec said, as they stood up and headed for the door.
"Not this time, hold the paper up to the light and you'll see that it was made in Nervran which is west of here. Even if it is a trick, we should be able to figure out where they bought the paper. Paper, after all, in this world is a rare item. That tells me that someone has figured out how to make paper in Nervran."
"Great, the next thing you'll have us doing is making paper." Duo said, as he took off his apron and the walked out the door into the bright afternoon sun.
"That, or delivering it to neighboring towns." Tye said, and both Duo and Alec groaned.
* * *
Tye walked down the dimly lit corridor toward the Shadow Runner's infirmary. He looked at his watch, it was still the middle of the night galactic standard time but he didn't want to be late. The door slid open and Tye wasn't surprised to see Dawna asleep in a chair next to Prowler's medical chamber. He walked up to the tube and looked in. His father looked the same as the last time he had been here.
Suddenly Prowler rolled his head as if popping his neck and opened his eyes. He blinked several times in the thick gel that surrounded his body biting down on his air tube in frustration. Everything was a complete blur but he could tell that someone on the outside was looking into the tank. He motioned with his head toward the release controls.
Tye rolled his eyes and reached toward the touch pad that would cycle the tube open. A large golden furred hand engulfed his wrist less than half an inch from the button.
"Don't you dare, he's going to stay in there until he has completed his full regeneration cycle."
Tye turned and looked up at Dawna's massive anthro-sabertooth form. He smiled and flexed his hand extending a claw that hit the release button.
"What!" Dawna yelled, as the gel began to empty from the tank. She loosened her grip only slightly but it was enough for Tye to slip free.
He rolled across the medical bay landing in a combat crouch ready for Dawna to attack.
Dawna laughed. "Oh come on, do you really think you could take me?"
"No need for long speeches, I know your entire history and training and yes if I had too I could take you. Believe it or not I've had more combat experience, than you have now, when I was still a kid."
"There's only one thing keeping me from coming over there and kicking your tail. That's the fact that your father wouldn't be very happy with me if I did. And right now, that is the last thing he needs."
"Hi-yah!" Prowler yelled, as he tackled Dawna from behind. "You'll pay for what you did to me! Tye, hand me your knife!"
Dawna started giggling and it rapidly turned into full laughter. "Oh give me a break, you can't even get your lines right. Trust me, you just can't pull off the psychotic amnesiac like a professional. Now get off, you're getting medical gel all matted up in my fur."
"What is all the noise in here?" Rusty asked, as he opened the door to the medical bay. "Never mind, I don't even want to know. Oh, and get some clothes on, there are children present." Rusty closed the door and started to walk away shaking his head. "Come on Trace, let's-" Rusty noticed the sound of a door opening and when he turned around he caught a glimpse of the end of Trace's tail as the infirmary door closed. "Kids." He muttered, as he continued to the lift.
Trace stood with his hands on his hips and glared at Prowler. "As I remember, someone promised Tye and I that he wouldn't go and get himself into stupid, dangerous, and deadly situations without taking one of us along for the ride."
"I-I-I ... " Prowler stuttered, as the blood drained from his face. The events of his capture by the Kriosh came flooding back.
Dawna quickly pulled him into a hug and both Tye and Trace dashed forward adding their arms and bodies as well.
Prowler started sobbing. "I-I killed them. I killed all of them."
"It's all right, you did what you had to do. If you hadn't many more innocent people would have been tortured and killed." Dawna said, as she stood up lifting the entire group.
"But, I enjoyed it. The smell and the taste!" Prowler started to heave.
Dawna quickly sat him on one of the beds as Trace grabbed a basin.
"Mahan, lock down the infirmary. Command authorization V.R.B. virtual reality born" Tye yelled, as Prowler filled the basin with bile and a small amount of medical gel.
"Dad listen, you were protecting yourself and Rusty. In situations like that your instincts take over and the tiger is in full control. The important thing is, you were able to regain control." Trace said, as he looked directly into Tye's eyes and nodded.
"But I-"
"You regained control on your own. That isn't an easy thing to do. Trust us we've been there. Trace went feral once and it took me nearly a year to bring him back."
"The best thing you can do right now is to surround yourself with the things that make you human." Trace said, as he raised a paw to forestall Dawna's protest. "In this case work is better than rest. If he's working he won't have as much time to dwell on what has happened."
"Actually, the best thing right now would be a nice long hot shower." Prowler said, as he slid off the bed and walked to a clothing generation closet. Seconds later he stepped back out wearing a pair of surgical scrubs. "Now, I'm heading for my quarters. You three can either follow me, or you can stay here and explain to Jen why the infirmary smells of wet cat hair."
Tye, Trace, and Dawna looked at each other before running out of the room and down the hall toward the lift. Prowler frowned as he followed them. He knew that Trace was probably right but something still tugged at the back of his mind. There was something he had to do but he couldn't remember, or maybe he didn't want to remember, what it was.
* * *
Duo stared across the table at Tye. "So what you're saying is that we won't be meeting with Lord Lightstripe."
"It's not like that. I told Prowler about you, and your request for help, but right now isn't the best time for him to meet with you." Tye replied.
"Did you tell him everything we told you about what has been happening?" Daniel asked, as he glared at Tye.
"No I didn't."
"I knew it! If he knew the truth he wouldn't just be sitting around."
"You're right, if I told him everything he would immediately insist on going to Shendria and doing something stupid. I've already told you what he's been through. What you don't know is that he went feral."
"What? That isn't possible. That illness is extremely rare, and I refuse to believe that a member of Clan Lightstripe-"
"It's true and he isn't the first. Trace, also went feral after we failed to stop a group of slavers. I can tell from your reactions that you've never had to personally deal with someone who has gone feral. Trust me, it is a very difficult thing. Take all the worst beliefs about shifters being dangerous savage killers with nearly human intelligence, and you'll only be touching the tip of what it really means." Tye yelled at the trio, as he slammed his glass down on the table. "Thank the Gods that Dad was able to control himself before he attacked any of the prisoners."
"Like he would ever do something like that." Alec said, while shaking his head.
"Oh he wouldn't would he?" Tye said, as he pulled off his shirt exposing his heavily scarred chest and back. When a shifter goes feral they are no longer the being they used to be. I used the evolver to erase the scars on my face. There isn't any scaring on my arms because I had to regenerate them on several separate occasions. I also had to replace my eyes. The first time I only had a standard cybernetic implant. When I lost my other eye I had to go without until I could get to the evolver. Trace nearly killed me on no less than six occasions. So don't try telling me that Prowler wouldn't attack anyone else. He was starved, and in that state everyone and everything would have looked like prey. So until we're sure he's out of danger of relapsing he isn't going to be going on any crazy missions." Tye said, as he put his shirt back on.
"Ouch." Daniel said, as he gestured to the barmaid for another round of drinks.
"You have no idea."
"So how did you cure Trace?" Alec asked, leaning forward on the table. "From what I've read there isn't a cure."
"It takes a shock greater than the one that forced the person to go feral to begin with. For Trace it was when he finally killed me."
"What!" Duo yelled, as Alec sat stunned and Daniel sprayed his drink out his nose.
"I captured him, brought him back to Hollow Base, transferred him into a VR chamber, and then let him kill a virtual copy. In a way, that was the real me, I set the chamber to master level and confronted him. After he'd killed me, the realization of what he had done was enough to bring him back, and nearly enough to kill him as well. After that he didn't shift for nearly two years just to make sure that he wouldn't revert when he took his tiger form."
"But think of all the lives that may be lost if we wait that long." Alec said, as he ran a rag across the table to keep Daniel's drink from dripping off the edge and onto his lap.
"I know that. All I'm asking for is a month. Dad has . . . resources that Trace didn't. So hopefully he'll be able to recover much quicker."
"And if he doesn't?" Duo asked.
"Then Trace and I will plan a raid on Shendria to end Lord Dacat's tyranny. Now lets go find Dare." Tye said, as he stood up and headed for the door of the Nervran pub.