Very nice, well written
Thanks. Commentry is much appreciated. Critisism less so but I prefer it to no comment at all. So long as it's real.(!)
'You lose more of your femininity every day Doroe. It's very appealing.' - SLEDGEHAMMER!
<<Wolf>> HAL remarked as I passed by the computer room. I stopped and considered. HAL was greeting me? That was unusual.
"Hi, HAL, what's up?"
<<I have the information you were looking for on the Ghost Sabre Blades. Would you like me to read it to you?>> I shrugged. "Better than printin' it out." I remarked.
<<Very well.>> the AI remarked calmly. <<The Ghost Sabre blades were manufactured by an unknown mage in Japan somewhere around the tenth century..>
"So they're..?"
<<About a thousand years old.> HAL commented, interrupting my interruption. <<May I continue?>>
"Yep."
<<Thank you. The blades are capable of determining guilt and will harm people to the extent of their crimes. Killing is possible but, under the rules of the New Heroes Union, ill advised. The blades are passed from master - or mistress - to student through the ages. The last wielder of the blades, Hirshima Ngaya, vanished after he was dishonoured by a Tsoo boss in the 1960's. He was defeated in battle and the underworld boss let him and his family live in exchange for a service that resulted in the theft of billions of yen. After this, he vanished although..>> I could swear HAL was smiling. That was impossible, wasn't it? <<Although there have been unconfirmed sightings of him around the world travelling with a small girl. Report ends.>>
I thought it over. "Thanks HAL."
((After that, it drifts into a different plot that I'm not running!))
'You lose more of your femininity every day Doroe. It's very appealing.' - SLEDGEHAMMER!
((This is one that was written on the New Heroes Union boards. Most of it's my own work but Cpt All your base and Fire Singer also contributed.))
((Wolf Blade is a 14 year old girl and has been enrolled by Fire in Croatoa uni's night-time academy. 11pm to 5AM Sunday to Thursday nights.))
Night school is just like school, only at night. Here in Paragon, that's from about 11 at night to 5 in the morning and it blows. Especially the uniform., I decided.
I picked at the red skirt I was wearing and cursed as the mark stubbornly refused to move. A lady looked at me in shock. Oh, like she hasn't heard a teenager use that word at that volume before? If it were up to me I wouldn't even be wearing this <edited for decency.>, loatheome, <edited again> piece of <ed... you get it, yeah?> skirt. My legs were bloody freezing! This thing get's caught in an updraft and it's hello, France for twenty paces! It's also impractical for sowrds as you can't do a decent sweep uppercut with your own fabric getting in the way! Who the <ed> designed these things and what were they on?
The school's in Croatoa and is attached to the uni so you see all sort of wierdies around, like the feline kid who insists on using two computers at once ((Wild Child goes to uni here)) or the guy in the joker mask with the crown on ((not one of mine!)) who insists on hanging around the campus. If he's a perv I'll do something to him that'll turn him from Joker to Harley Quinn, I promise you.
I also hate the rigmarole when I enter the school room. They take my blades off me! Then they put them behind the teachers desk and give me a pat down. So I'd brought an extra few blades the first night. Who wouldn't? My class consists of ingrates, inbreds, unluckys like me and... oh, at least one ghost. Forever there, in the back corner near the wall. Never does any homework but seems harmless. Unlike the guy next to me. Late teens, lank, floppy hair, pale eyes and pallid skin. First night we met he said he was gonna grow up to be an Arachnos goon. My reply of if that was the case I was gonna grow up to chop his head off and play with it like a soccerball until I punted it into the sea shut him up and he's not spoken to me since.
There are other classes overnight and we occasionally meet up with them in the break time. One kid's about my age and going to the acting classes. Dunno why he's not in the day group but, hey. Met him the one night when he was being bullied for lunch money - corny but true and who the <edit> carries lunch money when there's nowhere open here at night? - by a git in his mid twenties. I'll call it self defence. How was I to know he'd attack me if I said his mother must be delighted to have a eunuch in the family? The boy introduced himself at Jason Grant. Not bad.
The train pulled in at Croatoa and I got off for the short walk to school through Salamanca. Dodged a few pumpkins, made soup of a few others and approached school. There were shrines there to missing children. Those who'd chosen to leave and those who'd had the decision taken for them. Old places kept by those who refused to believe their lost ones weren't coming back. Hoping for a miracle. I spared a second to wonder if there was someone thought that about me but let it drop. Not their kid anymore, whoever they are. There seemed to be a new one. A new picture attached to the pole of mourning. I clocked it. Didn't know him. I entered the campus and made it to the allocated room as rollcall was being taken. Wolf Singer? The teacher asked.
I opened the door. "Here!"
Fire Singer
You know its quite unusual for one of are students of that age to bring quite so many weapons into the class room The tutor looked at Fire over her glasses and gave her a look that spoke volumes of what she thought of Fires Parenting. Though parenting was the wrong word as Fire was not actually Wolfs parent but kind of her adopted guardian. By kind of she meant that Wolf had actually adopted her and Fire was just happy to have some company on her jobs.
Well she is a registered hero its sort of her job to carry them Fire was not entirely sure how to respond to this civilian, as she did not seem to grasp the basic belief that some heroes carry sharp implements just Wolf more then some.
Well its not acceptable and she is often late, setting a bad example for the rest of the class Fire lent back in her chair at this, she was still in her armour and it was covered in bullet marks and blood splatters.
So anything positive to say about her Fire managed to have the tone in her voice that spoke of a threat but still managed to sound like an innocent question. The teacher pushed her glasses further up her nose and looked straight at Fire.
Shes a fast learner and gets one well with one of the students. The others seem scared of her. She picked up her cup of coffee and sat back before taking a long sip.
Youre not her mother, are you? Fire looked at her for a moment, then nodded slowly to this.
Legal guardian? Fire continued to look at her, then shook her head.
I see The tutor leant forwards and put her coffee down.
I am not going to argue over the legality of all this then. You did the right thing bringing her to this school. She gain an education and maybe a proper job. She smiled to Fire
No offence meant, its just this city has enough Heroes and it will give her a proper choice for the rest of her life more doors open to her you could say. Fire nodded very slowly to this. She wanted the best for Wolf and a life of fighting crime was not the safest of jobs.
Look all I am saying is that maybe she needs a prod in the right direction from her guardian
The meeting went on for several minutes more and at the end Fire stood up and held out a hand.
I cant make Wolf change her mind. If I can get her to think about other careers then I will you just make sure shes equipped encase she does, ok? The tutor nodded to this and shook Fires hand and lead Fire out of the class room.
Wolf Blade
Not a school night so what am I doing back up in the frozen north at half an hour to midnight? Truth be told, I was kinda having a look around. It's queer to say it, given that there's ghosts, goblins, witches, [censored] and other <edited> wierd things around here, but I had the feeling that something was still missing. Hiding almost. It was buggin' me.
The lecture after parents' night had been kind of how I'd expected it. Stop scaring the potential psychpaths, stop taking so many weapons into the classroom and here's a knife you can hide in your shoe. I knew my teach wanted me out of the hero biz and I couldn't really blame her for that. But I also knew that, whatever dream jobs she'd wanted during her life, she'd ended up as a teacher because she was good at it and because life had funnelled her that way. Same with me. Maybe it'd lead elsewhere later but, for now, it had led here. To the north side of Salamanca and halfway along. a lengthy wall around a green field between two buildings.
It wouldn't have taken my notice except I noted people walking along that side and... kinda 'bending out' towards the middle of the road before returning to the pavement next to the opposite house. I'd crossed to it and could feel the fear factor building. The area itself was repelling people. They may not even know it. But my life has been about fighting fear. Swallowing it down and <edited> it out to clear it. It only had pull if you let it and I wasn't one to do that.
I put my hand on the wall and moved along it, fighting the fear that was growing. Following it along to get to the heart of it. There was magic here. I could feel it. I knew from my travels that long lasting/permanent magic needed something to perpetuate it. An Icon or an I-Ching to focus and that was almost always close to the centre. Heartbeat getting faster. Closer to the centre of fear. My hand felt nothing under it. I could see, but not feel, the wall now. A perception filter? I drew one of my swords, stepped a few feet back the way I'd come, and ran the blade along the wall. I think I got lucky. I felt the fear drop away. I must have cut it. It was still there but lesser. And the scratch mark wasn't showing. Perception filter. Something big was hiding here. I prepared to strike again.
And that was when I heard a voice from the other side of the road calling me. "Wolf?" Jason asked, "Whatcha doing?"
I looked over at him and felt the fear lessen further. "Oh, I replied, putting the sword away, "just sharpening my blade!" I looked at him. Co-incidence he showed up now or..? "What you doing up so late?"
He looked back at me. "Solar Urticaria" He replied. Sounded alien to me. Or Italian. "Can't go out in the day. Fortunately Croatoa lives at night. Want a coffee or summat?"
I'm ashamed to say I went with him.
((Solar Urticaria exists. http://allergies.about.com/od/urtica...rurticaria.htm ))
Next sxhool night.
Some how it can almost be guaranteed that, when I try to be a good girl, my life goes [censored] up. Latest example. I'm heading to school at night, growling at people wolf whistling at me in my uniform and thinking that I'm growling a lot recently and mostly at paedos, when my communicator goes off. Great. A code 40. Local net alerting nearest hero to an emergency. I pulled up the details and asked HAL to vocalise. He's useful for that. I heaved the pack off my back and looked for somewhere to change as he relayed that Tuatha were holding people in Salamanca.
Which is how I ended up in the principles office some 45 minutes later explaining why I was late. She asked me if I thought continually being Tardy was acceptible behaviour. I didn't know what tardy was but I was guessing it had something to do with lateness. Or British Science Fiction. I responded that no, it wasn't but leaving those people in the hands of the Tuatha was even more unacceptable, wasn't it? She nodded at this but argued that I could have left it to another hero. I could have argued this all night but time in English was passing and we were off the picture books now. I had a pretty good grasp of the letters and didn't want to lose it now I had it so I agreed and said I'd do that next time if I knew there was another hero who could get there fast enough to stop people from dying. She sighed and allowed me to leave for class.
A few hours later came lunch and the sort of mass produced <edited> that's the second most hated thing about this country after President Pinhead. Normally Jason joined me for this spectacle as I reminisced on the lasagnes, Paellas, Hosins and everything else I could cook far better than a microwave. But not tonight. I looked around. He wasn't even in the room. Might be sick. I figured I'd call him on his phone - he'd given me the number - only to be told he wasn't in the local area. I shrugged. He'd probably gone on holidays, I thought. I'd see him in a week or so and smack him for not telling me.
Of course I actually saw him way before then. Home time, in fact. On a poster in the missing children shrine. He'd not made it home from that coffee he'd had with me.
Seemed I wasn't going home tonight. Time to hunt.
Later
Seems I shoulda known. I'd checked around for leads on Jason and the other missing kids and found summat was rotten in Ghost Central. Couldn't get many on the street to talk, of course, but the alley dwellers? They were a different matter. They were rarely seen and never acknowledged but they're the eyes an' ears of a community.. They look on as the world goes by and all of them - and I mean ALL of them - pointed me towards the place he'd met me the night before last. Idiot that I am. They'd often seen panicked kids being taken in there by people at night when no-one was watching. It was just the fear of the place that kept people away. No-one of importance saw, no-one knew and, more to the point, no-one listened. The homeless had their kids too. And they were vanishing, same as the rest. Jason wasn't a street kid. He would have been safe. if some idiot hadn't put a sword through the Fear symbol and broken it's power. My fault. My job to clear it up.
Entering through the gate didn't seem like a good idea so I opted for the different approach. I pushed off the ground and immediately wished the backpack had room for my winged boots as I torpedoed into the branches of a tree. Bodily scratches healed up quickly but my jacket would need more repairs. It was rapidly becoming a <edited> patchwork job. I pushed myself slightly to the left, from the woody embrace, and made my way across the skies to the empty field. Now, if I were a hidden house, where would I be, I wondered? And, more important for landing, how tall would I be? Hmm. At least three storeys tall I thought as I smacked my head into a wall. Hurt like... well, like I'd smacked my head into a wall but it seemed it was quiet. I brought my feet down and started feeling to see if I could find something like a window. Sometimes they don't booby trap these things with tricks like electric bars. Sometimes they do. They had with this one.
Which is the reason I wear gloves with a rubber layer. I pulled it out and steped onto the windowsill. Now I was half in and half out of the invisibility field. I could see in on a dormitory. One from hell, it seemed. Six kids, chained to beds. The noise had woken them and at least one was looking in my direction. Not Jason. I can see <edited> on the sheets. Someone was gonna pay. I put my finger to my lips to indicate his silence. He took the hint and told the rest to quiet. Not the cavalry they wanted, I thought, but the only one that could slip through this half open window. The smell was extraordinary. Some of the <edited> had dried. How long had these kids been here? I crossed to the door and drew my blades. Someone was coming. I'd planned on using the teleport tags on the kids here. The mistake would be seen at the other end and even the zig infirmary had to be better than this. Seemed I wasn't going to get the chance. Non fatal attacks only, I reminded myself. I also considered I couldn't afford to lose this so I did something I'd told myself I'd never do, something almost an affront to honour. I took my comm out. And hit the emergency button. Then I kicked the door in the face of the first guy through the door. A tsoo. Probably had a lot of help.
Yep, I thought as the door exploded, a LOT of help.
cpt all your base
The Chaotic Good was asleep in his apartment with this Com Unit next to his ear. After missing the Lady Arete thing he was determind not to miss another Emergency.
The Com unit screamed the Member In Distress Signal. The huge purple bulk barked a swearword as he fell out of bed with a loud thud.
Clutching his head where he hit it off the side of the bed he dashed off to Croatoa, while waiting for the Train he called a friend who lived in Croatoa. Magical Darren met CG at the station and headed towards the area that the Call had been sent from.
Wolf Blade
Great. About five of them. Or more. I wasn't counting, I was slashing as much as I could to limited effect. They must have a healer working the crowd and he was in the coridoor. Smart guy. How long had I been fighting? Felt like twenty minutes but the others would be here before that, wouldn't they? It felt like I was being punched seven ways from Sunday and I was doing my best to concentrate on the fight. I put my swords straight into a gut and felt the chi boost increase my strength as he finally fell over. I took a chance and swung into one of my best attacks, a swing to the right, a swing to the left and a straight up. The hilt caught the inker under the chin and I heard his jaw break as his eyes went up in their sockets. He was out of it. Another slammer to my head and I was almost seeing stars.
Travelling master had taught me how to withstand pain and stunning blows by concentrating inside myself by various means during our travels, making use of my mutant fast healing ability to teach faster. The lash had been his favourite. It was pain I could cope with. Kinda like this now. The shurikens weren't nice either. My jacket was looking kind of like an impressionist painting now. I was gonna need a new one soon. I was going backwards, I noted, into the room. Great, let more of them in to hit me. As long as the sorcerer made an appearance I could deal... There he was. Stupid hat and Pyjamas. Nice. Were those bunny slippers or was I concussed? Never mind. I let them think they'd dropped me to one knee. I couldn't hit the medicine man from here but... I remembered a trick I'd seen in a film - the Punisher and I KNOW I shouldn't have watched it - and decided I was happy to have adjusted Fire's 'flick knife in the heel' plan. I dropped one blade and drew the knife from the shoe. I think it amused them. They certainly paused for a minute. Unlucky for the healer, I though as I fired the spring loaded blade at him. I think I hit him somewhere in the high chest but I was too busy diving for my dropped blade to look. <Edited> but I was gonna feel this in the morning. Where were the guys? Then I thought. Invisible house. Aw <edited>, I was gonna have to take this outside. And I wasn't wearing the wings. I felt one of them grab me as I dove through the window into the garden. Halfway out I remembered there was a bit of a drop here and tried slowing myself. Not easy with a 120lb guy hanging onto your slacks and I landed on him. I heard something crack. Me or him? I looked down and grimaced. Him. Still, the zig could probably save him. I slapped a tag on him and turned to see the front door was open. <Edited> me, that was a <Editing> lot of Eastern bastards...
cpt all your base
CG turned the corner and saw Wolfblade and what looked like a Tsoo Warrior fall.
"Aw, <Deleted!>. What are the <OH NOES!> Tsoo doin' here?" Thought CG aloud.
"No Idea buddy, never seen 'em round here before" said Magical Darren, his hands lighting on Fire.
Several Tsoo warriors charged from the front door at the house towards Wolf Blade.
"Come on, bes' give the wee Lass a hand or two!" rumbled CG pulling his Axe from under his cape.
Wolf Blade was fighting fiercely, her blades a blur, Tsoo were dropping around her but one managed to evade her attacks and was about to smash her to the back of her head when a small fireball smashed into his face. Blinded and in agony his hands went to his face, Wolf span and her swords dropped him. Another Tsoo tried to lunge at Wolf Blade when CG leapt at him, his axe coming down hard on his spine, almost breaking it. Wolf Blade turned and saw the huge purple man and looked for a moment like she would attack, after all he did have the same style of tatoo. Thankfully for him a Tsoo leaped onto his back and tried to stab him with a poisoned Dagger. CG easily grabbed the back on the mans neck and threw him to the ground. Wolf made sure he was no longer a threat, she grinned at the big man and the regrouped Tsoo charged.
It seemed that the Tsoo would never cease there attack, they seemed to keep coming. CG was doing his best to keep up with Wolf Blade while Magical Darren hovered above them throwing Fireballs and shouting what was coming at them.
One Tsoo managed to get past CGs defences and cut him across the chest. He growled with Rage and grabbed the Tsoo by his head and threw him at a Sorcerer who picked the wrong moment to teleport in.
CG sighed with relief, Tsoo lay around in various states of conciousness. They were duly tagged.
"Good fightin' there lass" said Chaotic Good wiping sweat from his brow "Damn Good fightin'"
Wolf Blade
I looked up as boss landed. I couldn't tell what she thought of how I looked, all scratched, torn, bloodied and bruised and tagging a lot of Tsoo. Wasn't that great at reading her face yet. Would have to sort that out later, I supposed. She landed and looked around before asking me an' CG what the situation was. I told her. Possibly hundreds of kids chained to beds, many Tsoo on the loose. I could swear her eyes darkened but that was maybe in response to the fireball she <edited> two new Tsoo with. I watched as CG and his mate smacked them silly and I made a plan. Me. I'm the sidekick telling the architect what to do? Oddness abound. CG and his mate should go through the downstairs door now we knew where it was and Fire and I should go through the upstairs. They listened! They actually listened! Fire flew me up to the window and in. It seemed I'd sprained an ankle and it hadn't healed itself yet. Give it a moment... Plus she could somehow see the window from outside.
Fires eyes contracted and anger crossed her face, letting go of me with one hand she swiped at the window. White hot flames coming off her finger burned straight though the reaming bars and swung me inside. She flew over me andstraight at the Tsoo coming though the door. I was kinda glad I wasn't them. This was gonna be messy. She slammed them back into the corridor and I heard several bones break as the impacted the wall opposite. I follwed as boss headed right and we came to a junction. Again, I was about to follow but I looked down the other way and... Yep. More Tsoo. How many of these bastards were there? At least now I had more Firepower on my side. Heh. I made a funny.
Ten minutes further down the fight, I'd lost sight of boss but dound more trapped children than I could count. People trafficking, one said. To the factories out West. I'd heard of those places, places where Children worked in sweatshops for pennies and food whilst the bosses raked the cash in, hand over fist. Other kids they put to beg and Fagin on the street. Had I been born into that? Had I been one of them? No matter. I put my foot into the groin of a yellow ink man and whacked him on the back of the neck as he doubled. Wasn't going to waste him in front of already scared kids, was I? He hadn't gone limp before I hit him so he could easily have taken brain damage. Could. Not good enough but it'd do for now. I slapped a teleport badge on him and booted him in the stomach before he faded out. Move on. Free the kids later.
The next room had Jason in it. Naked apart from boxers. Someone had been having fun with a lash, I saw. He was tied to a pole and was on his knees. as the sun came in through the skylight high in the roof. Murky sun ,to be sure, but still enough to cause him pain so he was trying to... There was someone else in the room. Long black hair? Check. Goatee? Check. Kick [censored] tattoos all over his body? Check. Tsoo boss? Check.
"Two million to set up the organisation." He said quietly. "Three years of operation." He drew two swords. "Powerful magic enchantments." The swords swept with flame. Fire Dagger. Nice. "And a CHILD brings it down?" He laughed then stopped as I raised my own swords.
"Best laid plans of mice and men often get <Edited> up by Cats and women, <edited>-for-brains."
His teeth clenched. No, wait, I mean he clenched his teeth. How can teeth clench themselves? He seemed angry. "How does a CHILD possess the Ghost Sabres blades!??" He asked.
I shrugged. Didn't have a clue what he was on about but didn't need to let him know that. "Found 'em on E-Bay." He came at me. This guy was fast. Block, parry, strike. Keep the body moving. Never stand in one place for even a second and keep the fight from Jason without looking like I'm doing so and... oop, duck! A sword swished over my head and I struck for his gut with my blades, only to have him parry both blades with his one and attempt to disarm me of at least one of them. I twisted myself so I kept hold of them and grimaced as his other blade slipped into my leg. Grief, that was painful. The flame wasn't helping but it gave me a free shot with the hilt at his head so I took it, scoring a glancing blow that caused a shallow cut above his left eye. He struck at my stomach and seemed surprised the blade only made a light gash. There are advantages to being a Icon visitor. The Kevlar Tee-shirt design was one of them. I struck down, not at his abdomen but at his foot and scored a hit, taking off two of his toes as his blade cut a large slice into my arm. NOW I dropped the sword that hand was carrying. I focussed my healing ability but even that would take time to put back the chunk of flesh he'd taken then. Blood pumped, mine and his, all over the cold, polished floor. I swept low and he jumped the blade. I reversed it and caught his foot with my hand. He landed on his back but flipped up quickly. Glossy finish on the floor now. Slippery even. So I went for another trick I'd learnt on my travels. Even the most invulnerable of us has one weak point that can be hit by a fast opponent if they're fast enough. It's a finishing move to combat because only a very few will be able to stand after it's successfully applied. I charged at him. He stood ready to reply. And paused for a crucial split second as I dropped my remaining blade.
I dove for the slippery ground between his legs and slid under him as his blades swept down, just missing my feet. I twisted quickly as he turned and put my full power into a double kick to his knees. His kneecaps shattered and he dropped. Pretty good thing that it had worked as I was pretty out of it. Didn't have much left if it hadn't worked. But he'd dropped. And dropped his swords too. I wanted to kill him pretty much now. But I had to make allowances for the status I had now. Plus he looked a wimp now, screaming like that. So I put a blade in his side, cut up slightly through his tats and drew tha blade back. Not his turn to die today. But whatever he got from the tats wasn't gonna work now. They never did after being bladed. Then I smacked a Zig TP onto his forehead and set about freeing Jason as the crippled [censored] faded out, leaving just his toes. I called boss on the comm and asked her to clear up and free the kids here. I needed a lie-down. And probably some Tylonol. Medbay called. For Jason too. I held him close and took us both to the medical bay at base.
I'd be back later. I just needed to get that blood stopped.
Fire Singer
It took Fire a while to clean up, she had called in the PDD and they where already freeing the kids letting her have a poke around for any hidden Tsoo. It look like they had all fled, Fire watched several body bags go by some the size of men the others the size of children. After ensuring that the PDD had it under control she thanked CG and Darren for getting to Wolf so quickly and made her way back to the base.
It took a few minutes to get through the already growing throng of reporters but she eventually got back to the base and looked in on the medbay where a mess prevailed for now Well wolf was more a mess than her male friend and Fire was not going to let her get away with that. Or leave the medbay before the auto doc could work on her.
I dont think you could have made a bigger mess of your self if you tried Fire said while licking her thumb then rubbing the blood and dust of Wolfs face. Fire enjoyed looking after Wolf, it reminded her of looking after her younger sisters. Sometimes a bit too much with Wolf's stubbornness, She thought. Fire made sure that both her and the boy that she brought back received proper medical attention from the auto doc before handing Wolf a phone from the front desk and informed her that she should inform her friends parents that he is all right.
After a long phone call the boy was eventually teleported to croatoa general where his parents would meet him.
You can sleep at the base today Wolf you look tired Fire handed Wolf a glass of warm milk and sat her down.
You did very well today Wolf I would not be surprised if you where given a medal for your actions today. Tell me what happened though
"Basically," Wolf replied, trying not to scratch at the edges of the missing piece of her arm. "I went looking for Jason who'd gone missing. Found a hidden house and decided to recon. Pressed the red button when I got in. Lotta tsoo." She added slurrily, before lying down on the bed, the knock out drugs finally kicking in. "Cheater." Wolf murmured. Fire picked Wolf up in her arms and carried her to her room before lying her down in her bed. Fire smiled and patted wolf on the head.
Well done cub, you made me proud Fire left the room leaving Wolf to sleep.
I woke about 1930 that night and decided that warm milk did knock you out. Especially if it was drugged. I still had a few things to do so I swung myself out of the bed and fell over. Legs a bit like elastic, it seemed. The wedge that had been cut out of my arm was pretty much just a divot now amd I decided that, wise or not, I'd better be ready for school. First things first though and I asked HAL for any information he had on the 'Ghost Sabre' and his or her blades. Hal chirruped that he'd search his files and that, if I left the base, he couldn't be responsible for my medical welfare. I argued that he wasn't anyway and hit the streets to get a new jacket and go to Croatoa hospital.
Blue, I thought as I entered the medical centre. The jacket was like my old one but deep blue. It wasn't my best colour but... Two adults intercepted me. "Wolf?" They asked carefully. I checked them over. Blue eyes, pale skin, a look of cautious hope on their faces.
"Who's asking?" I replied. All of a sudden I was under hug attack. Ick. I couldn't breathe and my face was in a woman's cleavage. I could hear words echoing in my mufflered ears. "You daved him!" It said echoingly. "You brought him back!" Oh. Jason's parents. Ah nerts.
Aw [censored]. They were pulling out of the city. Wisconsin? What the <edited> is in Wisconsin? Relatives apparently. They'd made the decision last week and had been planning it for sometime in the future. Now they were off as soon as Jason was out of hospital. I couldn't say I blamed them. After all, it was safer there. I think.
Anyway, I made my way to school. Half the missing shrine posters were, heh, missing now. I changed in the unisex changing room - weren't these things illegal now - and mase my way to the classroom. I opened the door to applause and sighed before sitting myself down at my desk. I was here for learning, not applause. I didn't want or need applause.
'You lose more of your femininity every day Doroe. It's very appealing.' - SLEDGEHAMMER!