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Counter Earth Chronicles

Chapter 47: The News No One Wanted To Hear

Day 130 continued

The the informal get-together lasted just shy of 9 PM when everyone decided to call it a night. I hugged the trio and Lea as they were departing and decided to visit them in the coming days.

"I want you to stop by tomorrow for a follow up." The lioness said as she left.

The knights broke off their mysterious informal meeting as well and departed one by one.

"Sir Ram!" I said running after the beastial scientist and warrior.

"What is it boy?" He turned to me as Lord Tiger and Lady Vermin re-entered the castle.

"I just wanted to say- to say thank you." I said as I hugged him. I was surprised that the evil being had the ability to unkill.

"Yes, yes boy." The ram warrior said to me quietly.

"So how long have you had that ability?" I asked him point blank.

"You mean to resurrect the deceased?"

"Yes, that."

"For a while boy, but only in certain situations." The evil beastial said to me.

"What situations are those?" I asked the ram.

"When I am able to successfully pull a subject back from the other-side." The ram said cryptically as he departed.

(Well that was a non-answer answer.)

"Ready to leave pet?" Lady Ursa asked placing her paw on my shoulder.

"Yes mistress. It looked like you and the other knights were having a very intense meeting over there. What was it about?"

"Knight stuff." My lady bear responded.

"You mean about your meeting with the other knights today from Worlds Two, Three, Four and Five?"

"That and a few other things pet." My mistress said as we walked back to her lair.

Apparently she did not want to give out too much information or maybe she was afraid that whatever she and the other knights were planning might be revealed prematurely.

As we were preparing for bed, I decided to ask a follow up question to make sure she was indeed all right.

"Mistress?"

"Yes pet?"

"How are you feeling this evening? I mean did the events of the day leave you overstressed?" I asked my fierce ursine warrior.

"Only your accident. The rest of the day was not stressful." She said to me.

"Well that is a good thing, because I was afraid that I would have to shut you down for the night otherwise if you were unable to sleep." I giggled.

I would later decide to do that that night anyway- just to make sure. Man, I love wearing her tail.

"On the contrary pet, I think that it is my turn to shut YOU down for the night."

With that my she beast removed our clothing and laid me down on her bed. She then massaged my stiff neck, shoulders, back, arms and posterior all the way down to my feet. I hadn't had a massage that deep and that probing for quite some time. It completely relaxed me. So much so I feel asleep during her administrations. I assume not long after that she laid right on top of me in a very gentle loving embrace- her breasts on my back and her groin right on my backside. It reminded me of how Cody Spencer felt within his wolf-pile.

It was around the middle of the night when I stirred. My bear had started snoring softly and rolled over releasing me from her embrace. Groggily I got up and decided to scooch back into our traditional sleeping position. As I was about to, I thought about what my parents and sister had told me about someone or something away and apart from the High Evolutionary studying my warrior bear. I decided to check it out for myself.

Quietly I picked up her communicator from the night stand and moved to the base of the bed where I gently shined the light on the soles of her paws.

(OMG!)

I noticed the markings instantly. The markings looked like some type of barcode- solid lines, followed by thin lines next to some weird numbers.

(This couldn't be? Could it?)

I then moved to my beloved she beast's arms. I gently raised her right arm while she slept looking at her pit. Then looked at the left armpit. To my shock she had the same markings! It looked like someone or somebody had cataloged her. My parents and sister were right. Unbelievable!

Gently I returned the communicator back to the night stand and returned to her side, but not before kissing her on the snout. As I went back to sleep, I wondered who or what was studying my lady bear. Another more disturbing thought crossed my mind- was she aware that she was being studied?! I had planned to ask her, but the events of the day would delay that.

Day 131

The morning seemed like it would start just like any average morning. My mistress' communicator would sound off, she would answer it and receive her assignments for the day. She would awaken me to receive her 'Essence of Winter'. Then we would exercise, shower and eat breakfast before she would head out the door.

This morning the routine did start with the communicator, but that is where it also ended. My she beast's communicator sounded off at 6 AM, she answered it expecting to receive her orders for the day. It was an order- but it did not have her instructions.

It was Lord Tiger calling. An emergency meeting was taking place in the knights' secret meeting room. She was needed now.

"What's going on mistress?" I asked as she jumped off the bed and went into the closet to put on a uniform.

"Lord Tiger is having an emergency meeting." She said to me.

"It sounds heavy. I am coming too." I said climbing out of the bed.

"No pet you are not, it is a private meeting- knight business." She said to me.

"Is this about the Animalitia?"

My warrior bear was silent.

"So that was what your meeting was about with the other knights yesterday evening. Something big is going down this morning isn't it?"

"Yes pet. As I said knight business."

"Well, I want to be there too." I protested. "I was present when you and Lady Vermin first confronted the group. Remember they threatened to kill me after I punched one of them in the groin. So I have a vested interest in this as much as you and Lady Vermin."

"Alright Alex. Get dressed. But I want you on your best behavior."

I nodded.

We both dressed and were outside her lair and in the knight's secret meeting room in under ten minutes. The other senior knights were there as well.

"What is he doing here?" Sir Ram asked. "This is a private meeting!"

"I asked if I could attend Sir Ram because I was present that afternoon in the bank and your emergency meeting that followed." I said gesturing to the female warriors who were now taking their seats.

"Very well." The ram warrior said.

I sat down as Lord Tiger entered the room.

"Alex you are joining us this morning?" The tiger warrior said directing his attention to me.

"Please let me stay Commander. I was present when the Animalita made their debut. I also helped Lady Vermin and Lady Ursa fight the group."

"Very well." The tiger warrior said pressing a button on the wall.

Instantly a holo image appeared on the wood table of a city block containing a bunch of buildings that looked like really run down.

I turned my head sideways trying to figure out what was going on.

Lady Vermin decided to clarify.

"Little Alex in light of the ongoing threat the knights of the five cities decided to pool resources in order to hunt down the Animalitia."

"Yesterday I attended a meeting with my counter-parts in Worlds Two, Three, Four and Five to share information and intelligence." Lady Ursa said to me.

"Yesterday evening we learned Sir Wolf had detected the Animalitia's whereabouts and was planning a raid to take the mercenaries by force if need be." Sir Ram said to me.

"Which brings us to this morning. The raid is about to take place- now." Lord Tiger said bringing me up to date as he stared at the image.

"Lala are you there?"

"Yes. Commander."

It was the female bison Sorren and I had encountered at Sevren Castle in World Three during the Mike Anger case.

"What is your status?"

"I am running surveillance for the mission. Sir Wolf triangulated the mercenaries to this location near the basement of World Three. Our forces are about to raid what we believe is this group's hideout."

Lala was transmitting what her binocular-like device was seeing from a rooftop a quarter mile away.

"I wish you and the 'wolf pack' good hunting." Sir Ram said to the bison warrior.

"Thank you Sir Ram. It took a lot of work to get to this point. I just hope we are right."

Just then Sir Wolf jumped onto the communication.

"Point one to point two."

"I am here sir."

"Lala any movement?" The commander of the knights from World Three asked.

"No Sir. Nothing."

"Hmm...." The wolf warrior said.

"Sir Wolf be careful." Lord Tiger said to his counter-part.

"I always am. 'Wolf-pack!' Let's move." The wolf warrior said as he ordered his knights to surround and enter the white dilapidated four story building.

Lord Tiger, Sir Ram, Lady Vermin, Lady Ursa and myself watched the video that Lala was sending to us as the Knights of Castle Sevren entered the building. Some from the top floor, others from front, side and rear doors and other entered the building from windows on the upper floors. Once inside, Sir Wolf and his knights went room to room in the building; they were confident that this was the Animalitia's hideout and that they were going to capture the wanted mercenaries that morning.

"Point two to point one. What is your status?"

"This is definitely the place Lala there is a lot of high tech gear I can't even begin to figure out." Sir Wolf said to the bison warrior.

"What about the targets?" Lady Vermin asked.

_"Negative." _

"Point three to point one."

"Go ahead Looper." Sir Wolf said.

"I found something."

"Is it them?" The middle-aged wolf asked.

"No Commander. It is a note I believe written by one of them. It says welcome to your doom."

"Damn! Everyone abort! Abort!" Sir Wolf growled.

Just as the last of the knights had entered the building a series of loud sonic blasts filled the morning air. Everyone covered their ears at the very loud and crippling blasts. We were all glad when they finally stopped.

Apparently the sonic blasts were aimed at the building which buckled causing the suspected hideout to crumble on the knights like it had been detonated during a demolition! The sound was unmistakeable.

(Oh No!)

The senior knights of Wundagore and myself were horrified by what we had just witnessed.

"Sir Wolf! Sir Wolf! Biff?, Lupe? Looper? Pika? Anyone?" Lala shouted.

There was no response from any of the knights that had entered that building including Sir Wolf.

Just then we heard the sound of laser fire and a blood curdling scream from Lala as she fell to the ground.

"Lala! Is everything ok?" Lord Tiger asked. There was no response.

"Lala are you there?"

There was a pregnant pause as Lala's binoculars were picked up from where they had fallen. They zoomed in on the remains of the Animalitia's hideout and then panned left to focus on another individual- who wasn't a bison. It was a gorilla.

"Good day knights from let me see if I got this right- Worlds One, Two, Four, Five and the rest of you. We interrupt this broadcast to deliver you a very important message.... Was that raid for us? Gee you shouldn't have!" The gorilla said mockingly.

"We now return you to your regularly scheduled broadcast. Oh wait nope, nope we can't do that." The triceraton said.

(Apparently he was the one who had picked up Lala's binoculars).

"Why is that?" The gorilla asked.

"Oh, the Knights of Sevren fell into our trap." The dinosaur said panning back toward the remains of their so called headquarters and your surveillance technician is dead- killed her. Sorry about that."

The camera then panned back to Lala who was laying on the roof of the building she looked like the life had been blasted out of her.

(Lala!)

"She makes a lovely corpse don't you think?!" The gorilla asked mockingly.

Shortly after that last one liner someone terminated the broadcast or the binoculars because the image went dark.

(This can't be happening!)

"Commander, who knew this operation was taking place this morning?" The rat warrior asked.

"The four of us, Alex and the Knights of Sevren castle." The tiger warrior responded.

"Could it be another inside job?" Lady Ursa asked.

"I don't think so." I commented. "I don't think it is a spying matter but a technological manner."

"Elaborate boy." Sir Ram said.

"Each of our dealings with this group showed us that they are highly technologically sophisticated. Look at the sonic device they used on every beast at Pyramid Bank for example. I also suspect that the device they used to destroy their lair was also sound based. This is just a layman's observation but I noticed the knight core uses numbers and force to hunt their prey- technology not so much. That is where they have us." I said as the senior knights looked at me. "Who is not to say that they didn't have some type of warning system that informed them they were under attack? That same device allowed them to turn the tables on their attackers- ambushing them."

"So you believe the only way to put an end to this is to out tech them?" Sir Ram asked staring at me.

I nodded.

"Alex did you sense anything before the ambush?" The tiger warrior asked me.

"No Commander. Nothing at all. I don't think my clairvoyant abilities work over long distances. Just around me."

The tiger warrior was silent for a minute. "Ram, Ursa, Vermin head to World Three and assist our fellow knights take every junior knight you can spare. I want casualty reports as soon as possible. Dismissed."

"What about me Commander? I would like to help." I added.

"No. You are to stay here you are still recovering from your accident are you not?"

"Yes Commander." I admitted acknowledging his logic. "And you?"

"I have to inform the master and Sir Wolf's mate. They are not going to be happy about this."

Lady Ursa, Lady Vermin and Sir Ram immediately departed for World Three. They were joined by knights from the other cities who all converged on the site of the ambush.

After seeing those events unfold the day was ruined for me. I couldn't concentrate on my language studies with professor Love. I kept thinking about Lala and how she was used as target practice, I also thought about Sir Wolf and his 'wolf pack' and the fact that the mercenaries had started killing.

That afternoon....

In closing the beasts responsible for this ambush, this atrocity will rue the day of their creation!

The High Evolutionary said closing out his special broadcast. He was more than pissed about that morning's events in World Three.

"Now I need you to lie perfectly still." Lea said groping my ass as I lay face down.

"All right, but it is hard doing it on such a cold table." I said as the lioness continued feeling me up.

"Sorry Alex but I need to make sure you are fully healed." She said feeling me up again.

"But wasn't the complete skeletal, muscular and vascular scan you performed during the master's address complete enough?"

"No, sometimes some things are over looked. So I also prefer the personal touch as well."

Personal touch my ass. My dear friend and healer just wanted to touch my ass.

"Any news from World Three?" I asked the kinky lioness?

"None, only that Lala was killed." She said.

"As of this morning the Animalita have started killing anyone who gets in their way." I said to her. "They are getting more dangerous with each encounter.

"Agreed. They need to be stopped before it gets any worse. All done Alex."

"And?"

"You have made a complete recovery. No residual effects from your accident."

"Well that is good to know."

"I would say just be very careful if you resume sparing with Lady Ursa. You don't want to wind up in traction again."

"Thanks you sexy she beast." I said as I hugged her. She was wearing a grey shirt and blue jeans underneath her white lab coat that afternoon.

"Perhaps you should put back on your clothes before you do that."

"Uh yeah." I said.

(Since when did I start becoming comfortable while naked around her?)

I quickly redressed and prepared to head back to the lair to start my homework.

"Alex do you have a moment?"

"Sure Lea. What's up?"

"Could you to run an errand for me?"

"Sure."

"Could you give this to Mara? It is a report she had requested from me and I haven't been able to get it over to her- I have been literally buried with work today."

"Sure, no problem. I can drop that off on my way home." I said taking a pad the she beast gave me.

So it was with great hesitation that I stayed in the science wing of Castle Wundagore looking for the goat lady. Sir Ram's main squeeze. I was apprehensive as I searched for her.

The first time we met she had experimented on me. The experience was very positive- for her. So much so that she wanted to do it again and again and again. In fact last night Sir Ram told me that I was her favorite test subject. So there was no telling what she would do to me the next time I encountered her. That was why I was apprehensive running Lea's errand.

I found the goat lady in a lab off of Room M. I pressed the chime on the door.

"Yes come in." Mara said.

"Hi, how is Castle Wundagore's preeminent testing and development tester on this awful day?"

"Hi little human." She said. "Still feeling pretty awful."

"Have you heard anything?"

"Only that the bison girl was killed."

"Yes. I was with Sir Ram, Lord Tiger, Lady Vermin and Lady Ursa watching her surveillance feed when she was ambushed."

"The others are combing through the remains of the mercenaries' hideout. So far they haven't found anything- remains, survivors or explosive devices as well. I am at a loss as to how that group imploded that building."

"Actually I have a theory. I think it was a modified sonic weapon just like the one the group used to rob the Pyramid Bank ten days ago. Some how the group found out about the raid and ambushed Sir Wolf and his forces."

"That is a interesting theory boy- how did they know?" Mara asked me. "Another spy?"

"Actually, I think that group is much more technologically sophisticated than we think. It is through their technology that they have been able to stay ahead of the High Evolutionary's forces at every turn. I told Sir Ram and the others that the key to defeating them- will be to out tech them and that needs to happen soon because the group has become a whole new level of dangerous." I said as I handed her the pad Lea gave me to give to her.

"Speaking of tech little human Rammy and I have been working on a little side project together for the last few days." The wicked goat lady said rising from the table she had been sitting at in the lab. "This way."

Mara had me follow her across the room to a elevated circular platform. On that platform was something covered in a sheet.

"What is that?" I asked.

"Rammy and my side project." She said removing the cover.

Underneath it was a hover car. A very distinctive looking blue coupe. The vehicle was unlike any car that I had ever seen on Gaia or Counter Earth. It seated two and had a dome that encased the so called cockpit from the rear of the vehicle at the roofline to just shy of its nose.

"A blue coupe?"

"No little human. What you are looking at is a weapon that is masquerading as a blue coupe."

I stared at the goat lady.

"Lady Vermin and Lady Ursa's initial encounter with the Animalita they were at a distinct disadvantage. The afternoon they encountered the mercenaries they were off duty and without their weapons. In fact they didn't even have their hover bikes."

"I know I was there Mara." I said to the goat lady.

"That started Rammy and me thinking. We realized although the knights' hover bikes do contain a certain amount of weaponry, there are times when those bikes aren't enough and are ineffective against larger targets- superior targets. When those times happen we need something that can hit much much harder. That is this prototype you see here."

"This cute blue coupe?"

Mara picked up a pad from a nearby bench and walked next to the vehicle pressing a button on the pad as she did.

"No, this blue coupe."

Just below where the passenger door and driver door would be on either side of the vehicle large cylindrical tubes extended from it making a whirring noise as they did.

"These are the weapons tubules of the vehicle or side-pods. They hold 50 caliber machine guns, grenades, laser system, missile delivery tubes, tractor hooks, tracer-trackers and smoke screen system. Deployment payloads are stored in the rear and are delivered as needed."

"WOW...." I remember saying as my jaw dropped.

"Mara continued. There is a hologram projector that extends from the rear roof that can disguise the vehicle for covert missions and then there is the probe which also launches from the rear of the vehicle. It is self propelled and equipped with recording tools for long range surveillance."

"Mara, that is incredible!" I said as she launched the probe- it looked like a dark grey small planet the size of a helmet, with a ring around its center. The probe moved toward me and recorded my image as a I watched what looked to be an hourglass shaped device extend from the rear roof of the vehicle.

Mara transferred the scanned image from the probe to the hologram projector which then projected it onto its self and the car turning it into a duplicate of me!

(No way!)

"Rammy and I thought the use of machine guns, grenades and missiles were archaic in this day and age but we decided to load the coupe with as much weaponry as we could think of- modern and not so modern, anything that would give us an advantage. Obviously this is just a prototype and there is still more room for improvement."

"That thing is incredible! This just might be the edge the knights need." I said. The goat lady started to smile after I complemented her on her latest project.

"Rammy and I have been meaning to test it. But have been very busy as of late as everyone else has been in the castle for obvious reasons." Mara said to me.

"So when do WE get to test it?" I asked the wicked goat lady point blank.

"Right now with everything going on?" She countered.

"Why not now? There are rebels running around trying to over throw the High Evolutionary, mercenary groups are ambushing knights and possibly supplying said rebels. If there was ever a need for this type of tech it is right now. Besides I am your favorite test subject am I not?"

Mara was dumbfounded. What I had just said to her was totally out of character. Since when does Alex Winter terrified refugee volunteer to be a test subject?

"Who are you and what have you done with my Alex Winter?" The wicked goat lady asked me.

"I am the same Alex Winter, Mara you have come to know. It is just that I have started to see things more clearly as a result of recent events." I said walking to the driver side of the vehicle. "Um, I think you better drive. Where I came from the vehicles on my world were land based."

"I see. You wouldn't have the foggiest idea how to drive this thing." Mara said pressing a few buttons on her pad. As she did the side pods retracted back into the vehicle, the probe returned back to its rear as did the halo projector, the vehicle's dome opened as did the skylight above Mara's lab.

I walked around to the passenger side of the blue coupe. I noticed that the vehicle didn't have any doors to open. The only way to enter it was the dome. I jumped right in as did Mara.

The interior was even more impressive then the exterior. I just stared and stared.

"What do you think of the seats?" Mara asked.

"Quite comfortable."

"They are designed to accommodate and seat beastials of different sizes and shapes and those with or without tails."

"Nice. Now what is all of this?" I asked gesturing to the dashboard of the vehicle and its three monitors that were placed in a 'T' formation on the center stack.

"That is the information center. The upper right monitor displays the vehicle's status at all times. If there is a problem with any of its systems it will be displayed there. The upper left monitor is the camera from the probe. It is also the vehicle's communicator. If we contact anyone or anyone contacts us they will be displayed there."

"What about the bottom monitor?"

"That displays weapons and vehicle systems. Vehicle modes and weapons are selected from this touch screen. Which reminds me, you need to be authorized."

The goat lady placed her right paw just above the center stack of monitors onto the dashboard.

Recognized pilot Mara Goat Testing and Development.

An computerized voice said.

"Your turn test subject." She sneered at me.

I placed my left hand on the dashboard just as she had done.

Recognized copilot Alex Winter house-pet

(OH GEEZ!)

After our authorization the vehicle powered on and fastened our seat-belts in an X formation across our torsos.

Mara touched the center screen and selected hover-mode. The four wheels folded on the prototype at 45 degree angles and a rear spoiler extended from the rear of the vehicle.

"Ready for a test drive test subject?" Mara grinned.

"Yeah. But what is a hydrofoil-mode?" I said looking at the configuration menu she had on the center screen.

"That is a vehicular mode for traveling on water."

"You mean this vehicle has land, air and sea configurations?"

"Yes."

"Mara that is incredible." I said as we hovered out of the lab's open skylight into the sky.

Within minutes we had departed the castle and had joined the aerial traffic in World One that summer afternoon.

"I apologize for the uneven ride test subject, this is after all the initial cruise."

The ride wasn't bad and the commanding view out of the front and sides of the vehicle was amazing.

"So what is the vehicle's power source?" I asked looking at the status monitor of the prototype. All systems reported normal.

"The vehicle has two power systems. It is solar powered like the rest of the vehicles on Counter Earth it collects and stores solar energy which it converts to electricity to power. If that system fails it reverts to the redundant power system."

"What is that?"

"Water."

"This vehicle runs on solar energy and water?"

"Umm hmm." The goat lady said smiling at me.

(Technologically advanced society, I get it.)

"Mara this vehicle is incredible- beyond incredible. I can't believe you and Sir Ram conceived, developed and built this! Amazing!"

"Thank you for the compliment little human we are quite the pair aren't we?" Mara said as she put the blue coupe through its paces- we weaved in and out of the traffic, accelerating, decelerating and dodging.

"Maneuverability looks good." I said. "What's next?"

"Weapons check." Mara said playing with a thumb pad on one of the spokes of the steering column.

As she did cross-hairs appeared on the windshield. She then moved her right paw to the weapons console just below the main view screen in the center stack- three black buttons and three toggle switches.

"Uh what is that?" I asked.

"The weapons console. The three buttons on the left open the slide-pods on the vehicle. The top one opens up the left, the middle button the one on the right and the bottom button opens both at the same time."

"Nice and the three toggle switches?"

"The left switch is the fire button. I also have one on the steering column here next to the thumb pad. The middle switch is a quick key it stores the selected weapon for reuse and the right toggle switch is for the copilot."

"Now lets blow some stuff up." Mara said as she centered the cross hairs on a grey sedan in front of us."

"MARA! YOU AREN'T GOING TO FIRE ON INNOCENT MOTORISTS ARE YOU?!"

"You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs! So long nuisances you were in my way anyway!" The wicked goat lady sneered as she pressed one button to open both side-pods and another to fire.

"MARA!" I shrieked.

Nothing happened.

*ERROR! ERROR! NO WEAPON SELECTED!*

Appeared on the system status monitor.

(Phew!)

"You really thought I was going fire on that vehicle full of innocents didn't you?" The goat lady said grinning at me. "Really Alex? Really?"

"Well the thought did occur to me."

"Remember, I said the weapons payload is on demand. Nothing selected, no big boom boom." She teased. "It was designed that way to avoid accidents."

She continued to conduct weapons lock with the crosshairs and thumb-pad while I combed through the weapons menu. I noticed that all the selectable weapons were 'greyed out' save for laser system. Mara told me that she hadn't planned on taking the vehicle out for a drive today so she didn't load anything on to it.

After 'mock attacking' innocent motorists, Mara landed the prototype on a nearby lake to test the hydrofoil mode. Which was quite similar to the hover mode only large ski-like pontoons deployed from under the vehicle to help it float on top of the water.

"That system checks out too. One more thing to check out."

"What's that?"

"The copilot's toys. Press the third toggle switch on the weapons console."

I did as she requested. The glove box opened and a monitor and key board extended out from it.

"What no virtual keyboard?"

"Sometime the old methods are the best she said to me. That keyboard and monitor provides access to the vehicle's systems for overrides. It also controls the hologram projector and the probe like this."

**SQUEE!!!!**

I was starting to love this vehicle very very very much.

Mara showed me how to override the weapons system from the copilot position if the weapons console became damaged, how to use the hologram projector and how to deploy the probe. Man and I thought the pilot of the vehicle was the only one who could have fun!

The goat lady watched me as I deployed the probe from the rear of the vehicle and played with its camera rotating it zooming in and zooming out on the vehicles flying around us and over us. The contents of the probe's camera were displayed on my monitor and the upper left monitor of the center stack.

"I think I got a good grip on this and the probe. You and Sir Ram out have done yourselves this time. By the way what about armaments? You know if you get into a firefight?"

"Well about that- the prototype is too small and too light to have armor, or a hardened shell. We decided to install a deflector system that will deflect any weapons that are fired at it. So in a firefight lasers, bullets and the like should bounce off of the exterior eliminating the need for reinforced glass, paneling and siding." The goat lady said as I noticed something quite interesting on the probe's camera.

"No friggin way!"

"What is it?"

"I saw something suspicious." I said to Mara as I rechecked the camera.

"What sort of suspicious?"

"Like Ricky Raccoon and Chester Conner- two members of the Animaliata flying overhead in a brown sedan!"

"Of all the places they could possibly be! What are they doing here in World One?" The goat lady asked.

"Perhaps looking for a new hideout after destroying the old one! What should we do?"

"Call it in and follow them!" Mara said slyly.

I quickly recalled the probe. Once it was safely stored, Mara retracted the pontoons and we took off after the sedan.

"Sanda!" I said to the caracal who appeared on the upper left monitor.

"Alex Winter! What can I do for you this afternoon?"

"I am with Mara product testing on the west side. We just spotted the Animalitia, well two of them." I said to watch-supervisor.

"Good eye mate! You two stay put and don't engage them! They are extremely dangerous- remember they killed today." Sanda warned us. "I will send someone out right away."

"Umm hmm right away." Mara said. "With most of our knights in World Three, I wonder who that we be?"

"Mara, don't do anything reckless!" Sanda said.

"We won't. I am going to just aid you in your search. If this works no one will be in danger."

"Mara don't you da--!"

The goat lady ended the communication before the watch-supervisor could say anything else. She immediately followed the brown sedan in and out of traffic trying to catch up to it.

From what I could tell there were only two individuals in the vehicle. Chester Conner was driving and Ricky Raccoon. The one that I had punched in his crotch during the bank robbery was in the passenger seat.

Mara finally caught up to the brown vehicle. When she did, she deployed the left side-pod on the prototype, then went to the weapons directory on the main monitor where she selected tracer-tracker. She then moved the crosshair to the sedan's trunk and pressed the fire button on the weapon's console.

**CHINK!!!**

A magnetic tracer was deployed from the side-pod and landed perfectly on the vehicle's trunk. The Animalitia was on the grid and trackable!

"Mara let's very carefully get out of here and leave this to the professionals." I warned.

"Ah but test subject, I thought you would be in favor of butchering villains. Especially the murderous type!" She said as we made a right turn between two buildings. "For what it is worth, it looks like the targeting system and the deployment system successfully passed their first test."

"Yes they did. So what is next?" I asked.

"Further testing obviously. I need to make sure that Rammy and I got all the glitches out and accounted for as many unwanted variables and situations as possible." She said as we darted around the another building and headed south back toward Castle Wundagore.

That was around the time I started trembling.

"What is with you?" The goat lady asked.

"MARA! DANGER!" I screamed.

She looked at me confused and then at the sky ahead of us as a brown sedan came out of no where right at us on a collision course.

"IT IS THEM!"

"That is about to be in the past tense!" She floored it and charged at the vehicle who dodged at the last minute spinning them out in our wake.

Chester Conner recovered and started the pursuit. Those two flew after us as fast as their hover car could go. Mara for her part was no race driver but did the best should could to try to elude our pursuers weaving in and out of the traffic.

Just then a call came in over the prototype's communication system.

"Thank goodness Sanda! Where are you guys?!" I screamed.

But the image on the upper left monitor was not that of a caracal but of a raccoon. Ricky Raccoon.

"Oh I remember you! Hey were you trying to track us? You shouldn't have!"

"How did you contact us?" Mara asked. "No one should have this frequency!"

"You should really keep up with the times. By the way little human I still owe you a paddling for that punch to my crotch!" The raccoon said baring his teeth ending the communication.

Chester Conner tried ramming the prototype only to bounce off the rear of the vehicle nearly hitting another building.

"That is a cute blue coupe you two have there." Ricky said contacting us once again. "Interesting defense mechanisms too. What other options do you have?!"

"This!" Mara said as she re-opened the left side-pod on the vehicle. She then went to the weapon's menu and selected laser system and got ready to fire.

(Oh this is going to be good!)

She paused.

"What's wrong?"

"I realized we can't fire behind us!"

"Mara!"

The raccoon who was still on our view screen grinned and ended the communication.

He then stuck what looked like a large riffle out of the passenger window of the brown sedan and fired.

We were expecting some type of laser fire from the raccoon's weapon which didn't happen. Instead a large ball of flame deployed hitting the back of the prototype like it had come from Sorren himself.

**BWOOSH!!**

"He has a flame thrower?!" Mara said. "Why you naughty naughty boy!"

Account for she didn't. No sooner had Ricky attacked us, the system status screen started flashing red.

**Deflector System Failure** **Deflector System Failure** **Deflector System Failure**

"I take it that you didn't account for being attacked by a flame thrower." I said solemnly.

"Negative." Mara said as she desperately tried to elude Chester and Ricky.

But the raccoon was not done. He switched weapons to some type of laser cannon and continued firing.

**WHUP!** **WHUP!** **WHUP!**

Each blast shook the prototype violently. For those of us in the cockpit it felt like we were being spanked with a very very large paddle.

Without the defector system the prototype was taking heavy damage in its rear. I watched as the system status screen lit up with system failure after system failure.

Mara was trying her best to avoid the blasts but Ricky's weapon had some type of target lock and was hitting us with 100% accuracy. We had been out-teched.

**ZAP!** **ZAP!** **ZAP!**

I quickly combed through the weapons system looking for anything that could attack a vehicle pursing us from behind. As I did I noticed all of the weapons in the menu were greyed out and unavailable- Mara had not loaded them in the vehicle for our initial test. Save for the laser system.

Without the ability to attack our attackers it was only a matter of time before the raccoon destroyed us. After having that disturbing thought I pulled out the copilot monitor and keyboard.

It was then the laser cannon hit the prototype again causing a small explosion at the vehicle's rear and destroying another vital system on the prototype.

**Maneuverability System Failure** **Maneuverability System Failure**

"I can't steer!" The goat lady announced. As we were shot by another laser blast which caused a second explosion that sent us fish-tailing and then another shot this one destroying the left rear tire.

**Hover System Failure** **Hover System Failure** **Hover System Failure**

**WHUP!** **WHUP!** **WHUP!**

More laser blasts and another explosion as our prototype fell from the sky wrecking on a nearby roof of a building. The landing was hard. Very hard and it hurt very much.

"Mara! Mara!" The goat lady was slummed over the steering column as Chester and Ricky moved in for the kill.

I quickly pressed the toggle switch on the weapons console to fire at our would be executioners.

_**Weapons System Failure** **Weapons System Failure** _

(But of course every other system had failed. Oh no!)

The raccoon fired another volley of blasts shattering the dome of the prototype and sent glass flying everywhere. I grabbed Mara and ducked the blasts which left deep burn marks in the head-rests of our seats. If they had struck us the goat lady and myself would have been killed. I had a feeling the next round of shots would destroy the vehicle and us with it. This looked like the end.

(Wait, that gave me an idea.)

I went back to my monitor and keyboard. Some how the holo projection system was still operational!

Ricky and Chester appeared on the prototype's view-screen once again goading us.

"Aw you wrecked your cute blue coupe! Too bad!" Chester said to me.

"This is good bye human!" The raccoon said firing at us once again.

I ducked again as the blast hit the storage compartment between our seats and the hood of the vehicle. As I ducked, I pressed the return button on my keyboard. Thank goodness the holo projector was still on line.

****BA-BOOOOMMMM!!!!!****

A moderate red, black and orange gaseous cloud was projected around the remnants of the prototype making Chester and Ricky think we died in a huge explosion.

"Let's go!" The raccoon said to his human colleague. "Nothing more to see here." Chester nodded as the two ended the communication and then flew off. Which was just in the nick of time.

**Halo Projection System Failure** **Halo Projection System Failure**

"This ain't over raccoon." I grumbled as the two flew away.

Mara was knocked out by our impact on the roof, but otherwise ok. We spent a good twenty minutes brushing glass off of our bodies while waiting for help to arrive which turned out to be just one knight- a junior knight.

That evening in Mara's lab. Sir Ram gave Mara and I an earful.

"What were the two of you thinking engaging the Animalitia like that!" The ram said.

"Rammy we are ok." Mara said addressing the image of her lover on the view screen of the prototype. "We were testing the prototype and saw an opportunity to help."

"Your opportunity dear came close to costing you your life if not for Alex here." The ram said to the goat. "I would be devastated if I lost you. There has been too much death here today as it is."

"There is still the tracer- tracker we placed on their vehicle." I said as Mara shook her head.

"I checked just after we got back. It has been deactivated." The goat lady said.

(Damn, out-teched again)

"How is Sir Wolf and his forces?" I asked changing the conversation.

"Of the twenty knights that raided the Animalitia's hideout this morning, ten perished including Lala." The ram warrior said to us.

"And Sir Wolf?"

"He is alive, but badly injured." The ram said." After he realized the trap, he had his forces take cover under a staircase. That is what saved him and the rest of his wolf-pack."

"But still ten knights died in that raid. There were going to be a lot of memorials over the next few days." Mara said.

"Yes, we will find time to remember those warriors in the coming days. How did the prototype perform?" Sir Ram asked.

"It was fine until the deflector system failed." I commented looking at the prototype's remains on the circular pedestal. "That is when we ran into trouble."

"From what?" The ram warrior asked.

"Flame thrower."

"I didn't account for that! What of the prototype?"

"Destroyed Rammy."

(And nearly us along with it.)

"Don't worry about it. We will make another one and make it better. I am relieved that you are ok- both of you. We will talk when I get back." Sir Ram said ending the communication.

I took that to mean that we were both going to get an another earful I would get a third earful from my mistress when she found out. Perhaps I could spin it as I was helping Mara test some items- in this case a secret weapon.

"Well I guess I better start working on a second prototype." The goat lady said.

"Yeah about that- it is a awesome car, but you need to add a few things. Like making sure all the systems have redundancies especially the deflectors. It needs to be able to take heavy damage and to shake it off like it was nothing." I suggested. "Also make sure the vehicle can fire from behind! Oh and a flame thrower and any other wicked nasties you can think of would be nice as well." I said to the goat lady.

"I will keep that in mind." She said as I started leave the lab.

Just then there was a news bulletin on the hub that appeared on the upper left monitor of the prototype's center stack. Looking at the remnants of the vehicle, we were surprised the communications system had survived the wreck, unlike the rest of the prototype.

Mara and I approached the remains of the prototype and stared at the viewscreen again this time in disbelief.

(More bad news?)

It was indeed so. It was a special report from World Four by the kangaroo reporter that my mistress liked so much.

This just in! There has been an attack at the Space Museum in World Four a rebel group calling themselves Liberate Counter Earth Now activated some sort of sonic weapon on those attending the museum injuring fifty beastial visitors and killing thirty. The human visitors were not hurt. We received this message from the group:

"This is the first of many. Beastials are an offense to this planet and the common order. We are the new order! A order which plans to liberate all of Counter Earth from the beastial infestation. All beastials are to leave at once. Counter Earth belongs to humans and humans alone!"

To Be Continued.....

It has been a rotten day for the High Evolutionary's forces and looks to be the start of a bad week as well. So what could possibly happen next? Hmm....

Additional Credit:

The cover art this week is a picture from the 1980s Saturday morning cartoon Pole Position. It is pretty close to what I envisioned Sir Ram and Mara's prototype would have looked like (before it was destroyed).