Ni-hao! This is part 2 of "Fateful Day," part of the Arcana Saga.
Summary: The SWAT Kats get a big surprise in the form of Lokii, and Callie. Dr.
Sinian shows off the Arcana spell books and tells the history of the
books. And, why is Jake so uneasy with his father in town?
Author's note: I feel really good about this particular piece. Words seemed to
flow better, and this is my first fic of not actually writing something down on
paper first. . .
As always, send any comments, or questions to AkaneKitty@aol.com
Enjoy!
AkaneKitty
********
The Arcana Saga: Fateful Day
Part 2
"It sure is quiet up here," Razor thinks aloud, taking his eyes off his weapons
gauge for a minute. "I think our resident villains are taking a katnap."
T-Bone and Razor were taking a quick spin around the city in the TurboKat. Just
as they thought, the city was eerily quiet. No Enforcer radio traffic
or any alarms. What was going on around here?
"Roger that," T-Bone says, scanning the horizon. "What did Feral do, anyways? Do
a warning growl?"
"I doubt it," Razor laughs, taking notice of a lone Enforcer helicopter that
showed up in the area. "I don't think Feral's been here at all."
"Ha! As much of an idiot Feral is, I doubt he would leave the city in the hands
of Steele."
"True. But, is there any other explanation?"
T-Bone shrugs. "Not that I can think of."
Out the corner of his eye, Razor noticed a warning light go off on the console
next to him. Right away, Razor knew what it was. "Umm, T-Bone, did
you plug in that wire I was telling you about?"
"What wire?"
"Never mind," Razor sighs. "Just take her down. That wire is a part of my radar
system."
*************
"Hi, Abi! Sorry I'm late," Callie says, stepping into the museum's huge lecture
hall.
"Not a problem. I was just finishing up a tour myself," Abi says, noticing the
entourage behind Callie. "Am I going to have to start another tour?"
"Oh, no. It's just some new faces around City Hall." Callie steps aside to push
Anshi forward. "This is Anshi, my new assistant."
"How do you do, Sinian-san." Anshi slightly bows.
"San? Are you by chance Western?" Abi questions.
"Hai. I am," Anshi replies.
"You know Westerners, Abi?" Callie turns her attention back to her.
"Not katizens, per se. But, I know some of the culture," Abi says. "It depends
on its class system a lot."
"Yes. I should know, since I am the Emperor's daughter," Callie sighs. "Anshi
only calls me Briggs-sama."
"High respect." Abi nods. "Well, if you are Governor Briggs' daughter, it's
merited. . .By the way, who is the lady in the red suit next to the suit of
armor?"
"Oh," Callie glances behind her, "That's Kandi, the mayor's new girlfriend."
"She's what?"
"It's a long story. I'll tell you about on the way to the exhibit."
***********
"You were talking about *that* wire?" T-Bone glances at Razor, who was on top of
the TurboKat's wing. "I thought you meant on the truck that came in the other
night."
T-Bone found a clearing in the thick of a grove of trees that bordered MegaKat
City Park. Since they didn't see anyone around, it was easy.
"Guess I should have specified," Razor murmurs, screwing in the last bolt on the
black plate that covers the radar system's inner working. "But, it's not a
problem."
"Why don't you specify the next time?"
"*Didn't I just say that?*" Razor thinks, hopping down off the wing.
"Would it have hurt us?" T-Bone asks.
"Nah. I would have just switched to good old eyesight." Razor places a paw on
T-Bone's shoulder. "But, that's why we have warning lights to alert us."
"Hey! Are you guys all right?"
T-Bone and Razor turn toward the voice, which was coming from the female figure
that came out the grove of trees.
"Lieutenant?" T-Bone asks.
"Hi, guys! Long time no see." Felina comes fully into view. "I saw you land from
the park and thought you may be in some trouble."
"Where were you?" T-Bone asks.
"At the park, eating lunch," Felina replies. "Any problems?"
"Nope," Razor says. "Just a loose wire. . . Say, did you grow your hair out?"
"Yes, I did." Felina runs her paw through her hair, now midways down her back.
"So, what's up?"
"You tell us," T-Bone says. "We were wondering why it was so quiet."
"And, why we haven't seen your uncle around," Razor adds.
"Uncle?" Felina chuckles a bit. "Well, he's been streamlining the Enforcers.
Adding new troops, especially of the female persuasion."
"Why is that important?" Razor asks.
Felina smiles. "You'll see."
"*Two little kittens, who've lost their mittens. Have the squires come out to
play?*"
Startled, everyone goes toward their weapons. Felina draws her gun. "Who said
that?"
A swirl of confetti reveals the shape of a joker. Female to be exact.
"Who are you?" Razor aims his glovatrix.
"At last we've meet, squires to the Queen." Floating in midair, Lokii smiles at
the SWAT Kats. "I am Lokii, spirit of mischief."
"I would put your modern weapons away, if I were you," Lokii continues.
"They won't even scratch me."
Reluctantly, Felina and the SWAT Kats put their weapons down.
"That's better." Lokii moves into a sitting position, crossing her legs.
"What do you want?" T-Bone demands.
"An answer to a question." Lokii narrows her eyes.
"Which is?" Felina asks.
"This isn't for you, Lady Feral, it is for them." Lokii points towards the SWAT
Kats. Her smile growing bigger, she asks, "So, how do you feel?"
"How do we feel?" Razor asks.
"Yes, how do you feel about not being needed?" Lokii draws her Tarot cards out
and begins to shuffle them.
"Huh?" T-Bone is confused.
"The city has gone about its business without you. The Queen hasn't thought
about you in this relative peace. Do you feel lonely without her Call?"
The SWAT Kats say nothing. Lokii laughs, feeling their discomfort. "You don't
know that you are being used. You're just a tool to spur on someone the Queen
thinks about. A tool that acts as safety net."
"Why are you telling us this?" Razor asks the spirit, enraged.
"Just to give you something to think about when the Queen Calls you again. You
are not her Knight. You're not squires to the Queen at all. You are just the
Knight's squires." Lokii extracts a card from her Tarot deck. "And now, here's
my prediction of your fate!"
Lokii hurls the Tarot card toward the SWAT Kats. The SWAT Kats barely duck out
of the way of the card, which imbeds itself in the side of the TurboKat.
"Until next time, squires of the Knight!" Lokii laughs, disappearing in a whirl
of confetti.
"What was that all about?" Felina wonders aloud after a while. She turns towards
the SWAT Kats. "Are you guys OK?"
"We're fine," Razor grunts, trying to remove the Tarot Card out the side of the
TurboKat. After a while, the card finally comes out, leaving a groove behind.
"What is that?" T-Bone looks over Razor's shoulder.
"Looks like a Tarot card," Razor answers. "But, no picture."
As if the card heard Razor, a picture magically forms on the front of the card.
" 'The Tower' ?"
"What does it mean?" T-Bone asks Razor.
"Don't know," Razor replies. "Lokii mentioned it has something about our fate."
"Fate?" T-Bone asks. "As in destiny?"
"I suppose." Razor doesn't take his eye off the Tarot.
"I bet Dr. Sinian can tell us about this." Felina turns to them. "Can you guys
give me a ride to the museum?"
*************
"I was looking for something new to add to the Dark Ages exhibit," Abi was
saying to Callie, who was scribbling down notes. "That's when I happened upon
the Arcana spell books."
"The Arcana spell books?" Callie asks. "Is it like the Pastmaster's book?"
"Ironically, no." Abi stops before the closed Dark Ages exhibit. "These spell
books deal with the Tarot and love spells."
"Really?" Callie was interested.
"The Arcana spell books are composed of two volumes. One deals with the Major
Arcana of the Tarot, the other with the Minor Arcana."
"The Major Arcana spells deal with fate. If it was meant to be, it should
happen," Abi continues. "The Minor Arcana, on the other hand, is a little bit
more openhanded."
"Do the spells work?" Callie asks.
"Not to my knowledge." Abi shrugs. "But, nobody has tried them in hundreds of
years."
"Oh! Why don't I try them now?" Kandi speaks up. "It would be nice to snag
Feral."
"Why are you so stuck up on getting Feral, anyways? You already have the mayor!"
Callie whirls around towards the burgundy-haired she-kat.
"Why are you so touchy? Do you have priority on him or something?" Kandi
countered, staring into Callie's eyes. "You seem to have your claws into
every kat in town."
"Excuse me?"
"I'm sorry. Did I hit a nerve?" Kandi laughs.
"Why you -!"
"Uh. . .We can go into the exhibit to see the spell books if you like." Abi
pushes open the double doors to the exhibit, hoping to diffuse the situation.
The Dark Ages exhibit was dark and cold, just the way Abi wanted it to be. Abi
led the group between the cases of old books and rusted swords. Standing before
the newly designed case for the Arcana spell books, was a long, black-haired
kat, wearing a uniform of some sort.
"Oh, sir! This exhibit is closed," Abi calls towards the kat.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know you had closed this exhibit, Dr. Sinian." The kat
slowly turns around.
"Feral?" Callie gasps.
"That's the Commander?" Kandi smiles, pleasantly surprised. "He's cuter than I
expected."
Feral smiles a bit, narrowing his eyes slightly at the red-suited she-kat.
"Thank you."
"Where have you been?" Callie gets over her shock of seeing Feral with long
hair. "It was like you disappeared off the planet."
"And, yet you didn't called? Thanks for worrying about me." Feral tucks a stray
hair back into the rest of his hair. "But, for you're information, I was
streamlining my Enforcers. This peace, I hope, is a by-product of that."
"Me, too," Callie says quietly.
"So, what about you? I see you gained a new assistant and the mayor's new
girlfriend," Feral says, looking over to Anshi. "Hello, Anshi."
"Hello, oniisama." Anshi smiles.
"Oniisama!" Callie turns to look at her assistant.
"Just to clarify, she's like a little sister to me," Feral explains. "Been like
that for a few years."
"Really."
"And, how did you know I'm the mayor's girlfriend?" Kandi asks.
"Oh, I have my sources," Feral says slowly. "That, and I figured the mayor would
be a cradle robber."
"Oh." Kandi blushes as Callie giggles.
"Dr. Sinian, this is a nice exhibit you've created." Feral turns his attention
towards Abi. "But, let's hope it doesn't cause any trouble like the last book."
"Why would a book like this cause any trouble?" Abi asks Feral.
"Love can be a dangerous thing." Feral stares off into some distant point.
"If there are spells for that very thing, then it must be very powerful."
*********
"The Arcana spell books!" Lokii exclaims from her hidden perch above the Dark
Ages exhibit. "I thought those books were lost years ago."
"Apparently not," Greymalkin says, his box in Lokii's lap. "Why is it so
important?"
"If we manage to get a hold of the Major Arcana spell book, we can speed up or
plan twice fold." Lokii smiles.
"Why not get the Minor Arcana spell book?" Greymalkin asks. "It would be easier
for us, yes?"
"True," Lokii replies. "But, in order for our plan to work, I want nothing to be
disputed. This relationship will happen because it was meant to be."
"So, let's steal the book now."
"Not yet."
"Why not?"
"Because I want the squires, Knight, and Queen to be in a certain position.
Like a chess board." Lokii smiles. "Come on. We have work to do."
********
"I'm surprised no one heard us land on the roof," T-Bone comments, walking down
the roof access stairs with Razor and Felina.
"Maybe it's a slow day around here," Felina replies, running ahead of them.
"Hey, wait!" Razor calls out to her, quickening his pace.
They were in the Renaissance wing of the museum. There were lots of artworks to
be seen here that Razor would have stopped for if he had the time.
Felina had already beaten them to the stairwell when T-Bone grabs Razor and
pulls him behind a column.
"Why'd you do that fo-?" Razor starts to say, but T-Bone puts a paw to his lips.
"Look over there in that room," T-Bone whispers, jerking his head in that
direction.
A shocked expression registers on Razor's face. "Dad?"
The dark-brown Commander was looking at some Siamese artworks, completely
oblivious to the fact that Felina ran by.
"What's he doing here?" T-Bone whispers to Razor.
"I don't know," Razor whispers nervously, but in heart, he thought he knew. "The
last time I talked to him he was way out west with his squad."
"Let's go. I don't want him to catch us here." Razor takes a quick peek at his
father and takes off for the stair well. T-Bone is forced to follow.
**********
"Uncle!"
Feral was just exiting the Dark Age exhibit with everyone else when Felina came
running up to him.
"What's wrong?" Feral asks, brushing a strand of hair away from her face.
"The SWAT Kats and I had a run in with a spirit," Felina breathes.
"The SWAT Kats?" Callie moves up to be beside Feral. "Where are they?"
"They were just behind me," Felina says, much to Feral's chagrin.
"What about this spirit you were talking about?" Abi asks.
"Oh, yeah!" Felina turns toward Abi. "Does Lokii ring a bell with you?"
"Lokii?" Abi thinks for a minute. "That's the female spirit of mischief,
MadKat's counterpart. But, that's supposed to be a legend!"
"Well, she's no legend. She's very real," Felina says. "She had some very
cryptic things to say to the SWAT Kats."
"Why them?" Feral asks.
"I don't know." Felina shrugs. "All she was talking about were Queens, Knights
and Squires."
"Sounds like MadKat's gibberish," Feral growls.
"And, hopefully, he won't be returning." Callie starts to walk toward the
general direction Felina came from. "If you'll excuse me. . ."
*************
"How was I supposed to know he was here? We don't have a telepathic link!"
Razor and T-Bone had stopped before the Prehistoric exhibit. No one was around,
so they could talk.
"I think the better question is why he is here." T-Bone crosses his arms. "Do
you have a clue?"
Razor turns away for a moment. "No idea. Maybe his assignment switched."
"Hey, guys! I heard you had a run in with a spirit."
Razor looks up. "Ms. Briggs?"
"Haven't seen you guys in awhile." Callie walks up to the SWAT Kats.
"Yeah. . ." Any enthusiasm T-Bone might have felt about seeing Callie again was
next to nothing.
Callie felt the cool response. "What's wrong?"
"We were just trying to figure out what's the meaning of this Tarot card," Razor
interjects, feeling that T-Bone would reiterate what the spirit told them.
"Tarot card? Let me see." Callie takes the card from Razor. " 'The Tower'?"
"Hmmm. . ." Callie concentrates. "If I recall correctly, it means a big shock.
Drastic change."
"You know the Tarot?" Razor asks.
"Well, my grandmother was into it. So, I kind of absorbed it," Callie says
slowly. "Drastic change. . ."
"As in what?" Razor prods.
"Maybe it's drastic change. . ." Callie grips the card tightly. ". . .For all of
us. . ."