Star Hopper Chapter 8
#8 of Star Hopper
Chapter 8 of my furry book Star Hopper! I've been writing this for the past two years off and on. Soon you'll be able to get it off of Lulu.com if you want for around 8 USD. Now I don't pretend to be an expert in editing and I've had to edit it myself so please look past the typos you find and enjoy the book, although if you're just starting I would recomend that you go and read from the beginning, if you don't you'll be compleatly confused.
8
Trent punched Ian again in the gut, Ian couldn't help it, he gagged and threw up.
"You think you're not the only one that will never forget that day?" Ian spat and stared directly into the eyes of Trent and saw a faint tear run down next to his scar, "I will never forget that day, the only day I killed an innocent."
Now the flood gates opened and Trent started beating into Ian like a maniac, "I will kill you, I will kill you, I WILL KILL YOU!" His mantra was the only thing heard other then the sound of punching and kicking.
The wolf in uniform stood by watching the sight and laughing at the expense of his target, but enough was enough, he called for one of his men to pull Trent from Ian, who now looked like he'd been t hell and back.
He turned to Trent, "Thank you for the information, your promotion will be put through. Now..."he turned to the fox in his arms, "let's get the princess home!"
Colleen didn't quite understand, "What are you talking about!" She squirmed around in his arms, they let her go. She fell to her paws and knees gasping, "You are Princess Colleen, Daughter of the King Raidon and his Queen, they've been eagerly awaiting you're arrival."
"What are you talking about? I heard that princess Colleen was killed."
The wolf reached down and helped her up, "Who told you?"
She shrugged "Well Ian, of course..."
Her voice trailed off as she glanced back at Ian who laid on the ground looking at her, his face held an I'm sorry look and Colleen knew it was true. He'd lied to her, she was Princess Colleen. Feelings began to well up inside and her paws began to clench in to balls,
"It seems you've lied to everyone," she couldn't look at him, "you...you really are a pirate. I know I tried to push you away sometimes but, I did like you, and this morning." Her head shook, "no."
The large wolf took her paw, "my name is Captain Daysus, I'll escort you to Ridlyyn." He turned and glared at the pathetic thing on the ground, "pick up this half-breed and throw him in to a cell on the ship."
Strong paws pulled him off the floor and pushed him in the direction of the door, "Captain, what about this one?" He was referring to Skye, "bring her too, she's an accomplice."
Ian coughed and spat out the blood that came up, "No! She has nothing to do with me, I just got here!" But the captain just laughed, "Does it look like I care? She's with you and that's all I need, get them out of here."
Outside dozens watched as they dragged two captives away, some though that the treatment was a little harsh, others though that he got what was coming to him. But one pair of eyes looked on in anger at the Captain and Trent. His mechanical blue eyes tracking their every move.
Daysus showed Colleen to his seat on the bridge, and looked her over. "Where did the red come from? Did he do that to you?"
"No," she replied shaking her head, "I know he didn't do this."
Daysus crossed his arms, "Don't worry about it though, we'll dye that right out to get you back to your former glory, and..." He leaned in closer, "what? Your pupils, their red too!" He got a little too close for Colleen and she backed into the chair, "yes, what of it."
Daysus's tail swished back and forth, could this really be their princess? There was only one way to tell, contact the king. He turned around, "Elidon, contact Ridlyyn and get the King on the line, tell him it's urgent."
"Yes sir."
Elidon moved over to a control panel and manipulated some buttons, the large window to space went black and a large grand room came into view with the king sitting in his chair checking some documents.
"King," a disembodied voice said, "you have a message."
He looked up from the document reader, "what is it."
"It's urgent."
Captain Daysus spoke, "King, I have great news."
The king leaned forward out of his chair leaning towards the news, "what is it?"
He stepped away from the chair putting Colleen in full view, "right here."
The king almost fell out of his chair when he saw his daughter, "Co...Colleen you're alive."
Colleen herself stared back at the eyes that cried for her, the face was vaguely familiar, almost like someone you saw as a small child then saw them again when you were older. His sobs could be heard throughout the bridge. He shot some questions at her, "Is it really you? What happened? Why do you look like that?" They overwhelmed her brain, the questions made her search throughout her brain trying to find all of the answers to the questions the King put forth. Her search brought some memories to the light, they played like movies in her head. Colleen watched as she saw herself as a pup laughing, and then another with her sitting in the very chair the King in front of her was sitting in. Another came, it showed herself seeking refuge in powerful arms, the arms of a king. Tears started to form in her eyes as she was blasted back into reality. Her muzzle tried to speak words, only one came out, "dad."
Daysus broke the reunion, "Sir, I'm setting a course for Ridlyyn. I'll be there in two days."
He smiled with tears in his eyes, "I'm looking forward to seeing you in person my daughter."
The screen vanished and was replaced with a view of the upper atmosphere of Veare, Colleen stared out at the stars, thinking about Ian. She will not forgot him but part of her wanted to, he'd lied to her about who she actually was. But his image stuck in her brain like a virus. She could see his dark fur, warm eyes, and his smile. Her head shook when she thought about what she did with him this very morning, "stop thinking about him" she thought, "he's a pirate."
Ian sat huddled in the corner of his cell, his arms wrapped around his bent legs. His now mangled hair hanging down over his glazed eyes that stared blankly at the drab grey wall. Caked onto his fur was the dry blood from the beatings that was now almost a blackish color. Throughout his body muscles ached in agony and every once in a while he would cough and blood would come up. Across the hall in an identical cell lay Skye ferociously trying to get his attention, her constant banging and yelling didn't even register to Ian, he was completely and utterly in a trance.
"Ian!" His paw barely moved, "Ian, what the hell are you doing! Do you realize they're going to kill you!" She paused for a second, " And...probably me too."
She went silent for a few seconds thinking over what she just said, she turned her back to the wall and slammed against it. Then she slowly slid down it to a sitting position similar to Ian, tears quietly rolled down her cheeks, the fur getting darker as the tears washed down her face. The sobs touched Ian's ears, and like a key it unlocked Ian from his trance.
"You're not going to die Skye, I'll make sure of that."
She looked up from her paws to see Ian looking at her, the sight of him was ghastly. Dried blood littered his face and his fur lay in a mangled mess, his ears lay down in a submissive position.
Skye smiled at the fox but it was quickly recessed.
"Ian, who was this girl you and Trent were talking about?"
A minute of silence lay over the two cells before Ian spoke,
"That girl, I killed her. I knew she wasn't a threat to me, although she shot a warning shot I turned and killed her. It didn't even register to me, I saw her fall in a splatter of blood. Before the compound blew I picked her up and ran her to safety. I got to the outer perimeter of the base and set her down to try to revive her. Although she was already dead, but...I left her there without a burial."
"Hey you two!" A voice called from down the hall, "shut the fuck up!"
Ian went back to his shell and Skye thought about the story.
"At least you tried to save her; that was the right thing to do."
The words touched Ian's ears as he thought it over, maybe she was right, maybe he did do the right thing. But the image of her falling backwards from his own shot stuck in his head, and then suddenly like an explosion all the images of the people he'd killed rushed through his head. His paws grabbed his head and squeezed, their eyes all stared at him, oxygen rushed in and out. His eyelids shut tight trying to push the images out and he covered his ears with his paws to keep their screams out, but it was coming from inside. Ian couldn't stand it his pupils shot back and forth nervously. And suddenly a image of Colleen appeared in front of him. He dove for her but it vanished and he slammed on the cold floor.
"YAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The scream reached through the bowls of the ship, the guards turned around from their card game and rushed to the cell to find their prisoner hitting his head against the steel wall. A blood splatter started to form around the area.
"Get in there and stop him!"
The guards unlocked the door and grabbed the fox, the pinned him on the ground. Blood gushed from a wound on his forehead, "Get the sedative!" One of the guards ran back down the hall and returned with a needle that looked similar to a gun.
"Get that in 'em!"
Ian struggled against the three guards trying to get back to his wall but he felt a pinch in his neck and soon darkness started to descend upon his eyes. Within seconds the crazed half-breed lay sleeping soundly on the ground under the powerful wolves.
"What was that all about?" One said getting off of him, "I don't know" the other said nudging him with his foot, "and I don't really want to."
One knelt down next Ian and forced one of his eyelids open and looked at his eyes, " What should we do with him, I mean, should we take him to sick bay or just leave him here?"
What seemed to be the leader of the group though about it, "You know, I think we should just bring the doc down here. It wouldn't be much for him to do."
All of them agreed on that solution and one went to call upon the doctor on duty. While he was gone the others began to take notice of Skye in the next cell,
"My my my, Did you notice how beautiful our little prisoner is over here?"
Skye backtracked to the back wall of her cell. Her ears and tail flattened down.
"Don't you get near me! I haven't done anything!"
One of the guards took the key and opened the door, Skye sunk down into the ground. The wolf's teeth flashed in the dim light.
"Oh, you don't have to cower." He moved closer to her and placed his paw on her head. Skye growled at the touch, "OH!" He looked back at his buddies, "She's feisty." The guard grabbed Skye's muzzle and forced her to stand, her eyes had a little anger but were mostly filled with fear. He touched his nose to hers, "I like a little challenge." He forced her against the back wall and got even closer, his paws started to reach around and he leaned in and kissed her. The guard placed his paw behind her head and forced her to kiss back.
"Oh wow, you're a good kisser!"
Skye growled and smacked the wolf right in the face, "What? I gave you a complement!" He smiled a sly smile. "Well, I got my fill. But I'll be back."
Right as he said that the other guard came back with the doctor, his stature gave him away as a fox. In one paw carried as small data port and in the other a small cylindrical tool, the two looked strangely at the other guards who had switched cells and were not watching prisoner number one.
"Just checking up on the other prisoners, they have to be kept in check you know."
A quick show of his teeth scared Skye, but they left slamming the cell door as they went. The doctor ducked into the cell following the others. He knelt next to Ian and opened his eyelids, using the small cylindrical tool he had he placed it on Ian's eye ball. One of the guards stuck his tongue out in disgust.
"Why would you need to do that?"
A little buzz sound echoed through the cell, "It's a brain scan, and the eye is the easiest way to access the brain, no bone."
He took the tool from his eye and plugged it into the data port. After a couple seconds a virtual brain appeared on the screen, the doc examined it.
"Is he mad or something? Or does he have a disease?"
The doctor used his finger to search the virtual brain on the screen. He sighed, "It's interesting."
The guards were drawn in, their interest peaked, "what's interesting?"
He showed them, "See right here?"
They looked, "What do you see?"
All studied the image for a second, "Uhh, nothing?"
The doc jumped the gun, "exactly, nothing. Usually with this behavior you would see a dark spot around this area of the brain because of, as you said before, madness or disease. But, he shows no signs of either. He should be perfectly fine."
The doctor went on to patch up the head wound that Ian had, "So what your saying is that, he is perfectly fine, nothing wrong with him?"
The doctor got up from the bandage and packed his things, "That's my professional prognosis, but just between you and me I think it's deeper. I think it has to do with this."
He pointed at one of the guards chests, where the heart was. He batted the paw away,
"Oh come on, that's impossible."
The doctor threw up his paws, "Hey, you wanted my opinion and that's what I gave you. But what does it matter anyway. He's going to die."
The guards finally smiled, "Yeah, then we'd be rid of him." One of them spit on his face, the rest followed in his action. Without even putting him on the bed, they slammed the door.
Skye watched them leave, tears rolling down her fur, she'd heard the diagnosis, "What's wrong with you?"
Colleen found herself in luxury, gold and silver almost everywhere you look. It was almost too much. The Apex had landed not too long ago and for the past three hours she sat in the company of her mother and father who asked her questions about her adventure. She was surprised by her mother not to be that excited, unlike her father who literally fell to his knees and kissed her feet. Their conversation with her went over her time with the infamous pirate, and as she was telling the tales of her daring escapes. She herself began to realize that he'd protected her, almost at every turn.
"No" she had said to herself, "he still lied to you and almost ruined your life!"
The bed before her, pink and laden with gold strands stood like a monster compared to what she'd been used to for the past couple of days. Colleen sat with a sigh and looked at her arms, a dark red still ran through her orange and white fur ending at her wrists.
"Is it still there?"
She took a finger and bit into it with her fangs, her eyes winced in pain. But blood didn't flow from the deep bite, nothing did. She wrapped her other fingers around that one and sighed a deep breath. Suddenly the door slammed open and a servant, a fox with a white suit, walked in. His almost perfect posture made Colleen wonder if he was a robot or not.
"The king has commanded that your fur be dyed to regain your former glory, princess!"
His light and bright voice surprised Colleen even more, "Uh, will you be doing it?"
"Of course not princess, I'm a male I couldn't possibly. But they'll be doing it."
From the door behind him two female fox servants stepped in, in their paws was the fur dye.
"If you'll step into the bathroom and remove your clothes please."
One of them said taking a step in that direction. Colleen did as she was told still clutching her finger in her paw. Inside the bathroom with the door locked, Colleen took off her clothes which she was still wearing from her time with the pirate. One of the vixens took her clothes and placed them in a chute where they dropped to the garbage incinerator, while the other filled the bathtub with clear water. The two of them motioned Colleen to get in to the water. Again she followed without complaint and they began the process of dyeing the red fur back to white.
"Uh, why do you have to do this? I could have done it myself."
The two servants continued with their work, "Queens orders my lady."
"But the other servant said that the king demanded it."
One of them began to brush in the dye in her arm, "the king said that it has to be dyed but the queen said for it to be done by us."
Colleen though it weird, she was perfectly capable of doing this herself. But nevertheless she withstood it, following their directions.
"Lift your arm."
She did so,
"Lift your leg."
She did that.
Colleens eyes closed, might as well just enjoy the bath, she could feel the dirt and grime lifting off of her and her fur started to gain it's luscious shine once again.
"Ow!"
What felt like a needle poked her in the side.
"Sorry, my lady. I need to clip my claws."
Colleen understood completely, and she thought about that herself studying her own claws.
A knock on the door made her jump almost out of the water, "What was that?"
One vixen answered reveling another servant with her arms filled with a neatly folded towel and behind her another one carrying a completely white dress on a hanger. She stood to get a better look at it.
"Colleen sit down! We're almost done!"
They pulled her down and she reluctantly went down, but she was true to her word about five mintues later and with a final rinse they were done and with a quick dry with the towels the servants helped her dawn the beautiful dress which took more time than the bath it's self. With the other two gone, the original moved Colleen into mirrors view and she was stunned.
Before her stood the most beautiful vixen she'd ever laid her red eyes on.
"Oh."
Her orange arms shined like the sun and her chest tuft was like a cloud. Around her wrists were pure pearl bracelets, it was the perfect contrast to the black that started at her fingertips and continued until her forearm.
"One more thing princess."
One of the vixens carried a small silver box, she presented the insides to Colleen, who didn't quite get it.
"What are they?"
Inside the box lay two clear concave pieces of what she thought were plastic. The vixen not holding the box placed one on her finger, they were about as big as the tip of a small finger. She stood in front of Colleen. "Now this is going to go directly into your eye, so don't move."
With her thumb and index finger the fox widened Colleen's eye and placed the contact in, quickly she did the other one.
The alien substance stung her eyes and she rubbed them, "Ow, what are these supposed to do!"
They turned her toward the mirror again, "take a look." Colleen slowly opened her eyes and staring back at her was a pair of silver eyes. The two servants took a knee and bowed,
"Welcome back, Princess Colleen."