Hey, ev'rybody! I hope you enjoyed that last story. This one is the continuing story. Quick review first. At the end of the last story, "Lakes of Fire", T-Bone and Razor brought a new Kat on the team, a Scottish Dark Ages time traveler named Katarina. Katarina was a Dark Age queen of the city Oriana 800 years ago. The city was destroyed 100 years after her time, which was not mentioned in the previous story. And there's a long lost secret between T-Bone and Katarina that will be revealed. And now, the story. Enjoy! The Fire Skull Attacks By Kari Gilmore Email: karigilmore@hotmail.com Chapter 1: Underneath Jake and Chance's Garage in the Swat Kats' hangar, Katarina was tossing and turning on her cot. In her dream, she was standing inside a heavy fog. She spun around every time she heard the slightest noise. "What a nightmare," she said to herself. "Nightmares are not meant for you, my Queen," a figure said. Katarina turned her head to see faded figure. "Sir Whitetail? What the hell are you doing here?" "We are in need of your services, Queen Katarina. The Fire Skull attacks us!" Sir Whitetail said to Katarina. "Fire Skull? I'm sorry, Sir Whitetail. I'm not going back to my old life." She started to walk away from the figure. "You are turning your back on your own kingdom!" Whitetail called to her. "It's not my kingdom anymore!" "Have you avenged your father's death? Have you avenged Victoria's?" Katarina stopped. She lowered her eyes and turned them away from him. She was silent until she spoke. "I can't avenge Victoria. Her murderer is immortal, as is the Fire Skull. I'm sorry, but I can't help." "We have found the weakness of the Fire Skull, Katarina. But we will need the help of you and your friends," Whitetail said to her. Katarina turned her back to face him. "Why us?" she asked. "Your friends have helped Queen Callista a few years ago to defeat the Pastmaster. And you have defeated many others. You must help us. Otherwise, history will be changed. Our future rests in your paws." Those last words echoed in Katarina's mind. She shot up from her bed and gasped. She panted. Her lightly gray fur was wet from sweating. She rubbed her fingers through her long black hair. "I need time to think about this," she whispered to herself. The next morning, Katarina came out from the hanger and joined Jake and Chance for some milk at the kitchen table. She was wearing a white short-sleeve shirt tucked into her blue jeans, a black belt, and her hair in a ponytail. "Morning, Kat," they both said. "Hey, boys. What a dream I had!" Kat sighed, taking a sip of her milk. "Oh? What happened?" Chance asked. "A knight from the Dark Ages came to me. He said my old kingdom was under attack by an old enemy of mine. He said we were the only ones who could stop him." "You're right. What a dream!" Jake said. "But I've got this feeling that... That it wasn't a dream. That it was like a warning about what was gonna happen. He said history would change if we don't help." "And you kind of changed history already by coming here," Chance said. "No. No, I was supposed to come here. I came here because I found out I'm from this century, this generation. I came back so that I may find my family. So far, nothing," Kat said, taking another sip of milk. "Tough break. Now, about this dream, how are you going to respond to it?" Jake asked. Kat was silent for a minute. Then she slammed her paw on the table. "I'm going back! I'm going back and help destroy the Fire Skull! Besides, maybe I could find some evidence where the King stole me from." "How are you gonna do that?" Chance asked. Kat reached into her pocket and pulled out a talisman with a picture of a bird on it. "With this. This is how I time travel. Speak the incantation, and it can take you forwards or backwards through time. We call it the Phoenix Gate because every time you use it, you disappear in a ball of fire," Kat said, showing it to the boys. "Wow!" the boys both said. "You guys better stay here. My enemy is way too powerful for you guys," Kat said. "Katarina, we fought the Daughter of Satan last week and bigger things. I think we can handle whatever it is you're talking about," Chance said to her. Kat sighed, "All right. Get your G-suits and glovatrixes in a bag. You may need them later." Jake nodded and headed down into the hangar. He returned a minute later with a backpack on his back. "All right. You guys ready?" Kat asked Chance and Jake. "Let's do it!" they replied. "OK, then hang on!" She took out the Phoenix Gate and spoke in Latin. Then, fire surrounded them. In a flash, they disappeared. Chapter 2: Scotland, 1195. Chance, Jake, and Kat appeared in a Scottish field. When the fire that surrounded them disappeared, they looked around. "Ah, home sweet home. And yet, what's so sweet about it?" Kat asked herself as she inhaled the air. "Where are we?" Chance asked. "You mean when, Chance. This is Oriana, Scotland in 1195. Exactly 100 years before it was destroyed. Well, let's go, boys," Kat said, walking away. "Hey, wait up! You ain't the one carrying the luggage!" Jake said as he followed Kat and Chance. As they reached the top of a hill, they saw a stone castle at the bottom. "And there it is, boys: Oriana Castle," Kat said. "Cool. You think they're gonna let you inside that castle in those clothes? I mean, that's not the way a Queen walks around," Jake said, looking at Kat's clothes. "Hmm, good point. But what about *you* two? I don't think mechanics overalls go with the dress code in *this* kingdom," Kat said, looking at Jake and Chance's clothes. "Touché. Let's just worry about getting inside, OK?" Chance asked. Kat chuckled. Then she perked up her ears. She extended her claws and slowly walked away from Jake and Chance. "What the hell is she doing?" Chance asked. "I don't know. Trimming the bushes?" Jake joked. Kat walked to some bushed and grabbed something. Then she pulled it out and threw it to the ground. It was a knight in battle armor. He removed his helmet and showed his face. He was young and his fur was bluish-gray. "Sir Whitetail?" "Queen Katarina?" She helped him back to his feet. "Welcome home, my Queen," Sir Whitetail said, bowing to Kat. Unlike Kat, he did not have a Scottish accent. It was Mid-American. "Thank you, Sir Whitetail. It's all right, boys! It's just one of my knights!" Kat called to Jake and Chance. Jake and Chance appeared and stood next to her. "Friends of yours, my Queen?" Sir Whitetail asked. "Yes. Sir Whitetail, these are my friends Chance and Jacob. Boys, this is Sir Whitetail, one of my most trusted and strongest knights. He is often referred to as 'Buster' because he usually busts others into walls," Kat introduced. "Welcome to Oriana, friends. Come with me and refresh yourselves at the castle," Sir Whitetail said, leading them to the castle. "So long as you don't serve pepper stew for supper," Chance said. "No, we don't. But I have a friend in another kingdom who serves it," Kat said. "Uh, no thanks, Kat," Chance and Jake both said. When the drawbridge to the castle lowered, they saw people walking around. "Citizens of Oriana!" Sir Whitetail shouted. All the citizens looked up to see Sir Whitetail accompanied by three strangely dressed kats. "I bring good news to our fair kingdom! Katarina, our beloved queen, has returned!" The citizens cheered when they saw Katarina step forward. After the cheers, the citizens bowed to her. "Good citizens, what say you to this? I have returned only for a short time! I will stay long enough to defeat the Fire Skull and save my kingdom! And before I leave again, you shall have a new ruler!" Kat said to her kingdom. The kingdom cheered again. She raised her paw to silence them. "Until I decide who will take my place to the throne, carry on." Then the citizens continued their businesses. "It appears your return has brought much joy to the kingdom, my Queen," Sir Whitetail said. "Aye. But it'll only be for a little while. C'mon, boys. We'll go to my room and freshen up," Kat said, walking through the crowd. Jake and Chance followed behind. Later, they were in one of the rooms in the castle. Kat was in front of a mirror, combing her hair. Jake and Chance were trying on some of the clothes in the closet. "Men clothes in a woman's closet. You have something to tell us, Katarina?" Chance asked, eyeing Kat. "It's not what you think, Chance. My lady-in-waiting is preparing my room so I have to stay in the late King's room for the night. I'm gonna have a hell of a time cleaning that closet out," Kat said, putting her hair back in a ponytail. Jake looked at the pile of clothes that he and Chance had made. Then he stuffed his and Chance's overalls inside his backpack. "I don't think you'll have any problem now, Kat. Chance and I pretty much took care of that," he smiled. Kat looked, and chuckled. "Indeed, you did." Jake put on a red and gold shirt and brown pantaloons. Then he put on black boots. "What do you think?" he asked Kat. "You almost look like a commoner," Kat said. Chance had on a blue and white shirt and white pantaloons. Then he put on some brown boots. "You look about the same, Chance," Kat said before Chance could ask a question. "By the way, Kat. You never told us about this Fire Skull character. Mind telling us about him?" Chance asked, sitting on the bed next to Jake. "Not at all. The Fire Skull is really a mask that has a mind of it's own. When it sees a victim, he hypnotizes them to put the mask on his head. Once he has a body, he destroys everything... Including the kat I thought was my father, the King," Kat explained. Jake and Chanced looked at each other. "He was the one who put the evil spell on me. It took me a matter of years, but I defeated it. The only things of the spell left are a short temper and the glowing red eyes. I never had time to avenge the King," Kat continued. "Is there anyway to beat him?" Jake asked. "We haven't found a way yet, but every opponent, no matter how powerful, has a weakness. We just haven't found it yet." By the time she finished her story, she had gotten into green and white dress. Jake whistled. "Why, thank you, Jake. And I should thank this dress for not suffocating me. It's tight!" "Why are you in that thing anyway, Kat?" Chance asked. "My kingdom hardly recognized me in my jeans. They're more used to me being in a dress. Now, you boys hungry? They're holding a feast to welcome me home for awhile." "Sure, what the hell? We missed breakfast," Jake said as they followed Kat out of the room. From outside the King's old bedroom, there was a hawk, starring at the window. He spread his wings and flew away. He landed on a stranger's shoulder. "What have you seen?" the stranger asked. The hawk screeched. "The Queen has returned? Excellent. Now I can do to her what I did to her father." The hawk screeched again. "She has friends with her, does she? The more, the merrier. I am growing tired of this old body anyway. Perhaps I could use one of them. They are no match for the Fire Skull." Chapter 3: After the feast, Kat lead Chance and Jake back to the King's room. When they opened the door, they found a woman folding clothes on the bed. "Tsidii? What are you doing here?" Kat asked the woman. The woman replied in Swahili. "What did she say?" Chance asked. "She said came in here to take the clothes to the wash. She also wanted to see if I was really home to stay," Kat translated. She spoke to Tsidii in Swahili. Tsidii returned the reply. Kat nodded. Tsidii took the pile of clothes and left. "What did you tell her?" Jake asked Kat, watching Tsidii walk down the hall. "I told her I was staying long enough to destroy the Fire Skull. Then she reminded me that I still need to find someone to take my place," Kat replied. "That language she spoke: it was Swahili. Scotland doesn't speak it, does it?" Jake asked. "No. Just 1/4 of my kingdom speaks it. They came from a slave drive to be free. I let them stay. Tsidii is my lady-in-waiting. She taught me the language." Chance took off his boots and threw them into a corner. One of the boots knocked a large stone brick out of place. There, he saw something. He went over to the corner and knelt down. He removed the large stone brick. Inside, he found a space with a narrow box. "Hey, Jake, Kat! Look what I found," Chance said, pulling out the box. Jake and Kat came over to him as he opened the box. Inside were a sword, a whip, four Japanese stars, a boomerang, and two daggers. On each weapon, there was a silver star. "The Star Weapons!" Kat exclaimed. "Star Weapons? What are they?" "The weapons of the Ancient Warriors. If they didn't have their armor when they needed it, they would call a Weapon's name and the armor would appear. But, unfortunately, they don't work anymore," Kat said, picking up the stars. "What are their names?" Jake asked. "The Fire Sword, the Thunder Whip, the Ice Stars, the Earth Boomerang, and the Wind Daggers. We've been looking for these for years." "Hey! Look what else there is," Jake said, reaching into the hole. He pulled out a dusty old book. "It looks like a spell book," Chance said as Jake was dusting it off. Jake opened the book and flipped through the pages. "It's the King's spell book. He also kept it as a diary," Kat said, taking the book from Jake. "Katarina, it's not nice to read other people's diaries," Chance joked. "Tough. This might tell me who he stole me from. I might find out who my parents are." She flipped through the pages until she found her name. "Here we are: 'April 24, 1171. Dear Diary, a terrible thing has befallen on a family of a futuristic city called MegaKat City in the year 1971. I had no choice but to steal their 3-month-old daughter for my own. The child's name is Katarina Furlong'-- What?" Kat stopped. "Furlong?" Chance and Jake both asked. "I'm Chance's sister?" Kat asked herself. "No, she can't be. I had a little sister at that time, but then she died. I had another sister years after that, then she died. It can be another Furlong Family," Chance said. Kat read on. "'I had little choice. I am sure my life will be short since but son was killed in battle. I needed an heir to my throne. So that none would know what happened to their daughter, I placed a spell on the family that was Katarina's. The spell had them believe that their daughter was dead. Her parents' names are Michael and Mary Ann and her brother's name is Chance.'" Chance's mouth dropped. "Those are my parents' names. I can't believe it. My first little sister was alive all this time," he managed to say from the shock. Kat closed the diary and looked at Chance. "We've found out so much in so little time. I can't believe it myself, Chance," she said, putting her paw on Chance's shoulder. Then the door opened. They saw Tsidii standing there. She spoke in Swahili. Kat stood up and came to her. "'I see you have found out the truth'?! You mean, you've known about this?!" Tsidii starred at her. Kat spoke in Swahili, repeating her question. Tsidii nodded. Kat's eyes started glowing red. She spoke Swahili again. They continued communicating in Swahili while Jake and Chance tried to understand what they were saying. Kat slammed Tsidii against the wall. Tsidii calmly spoke in Swahili. Kat's eyes stopped glowing and turned her head. "Fatshe leso lea halalela," Tsidii said. Kat nodded and released her from her grip. With that, Tsidii left. "What does that mean?" Chance asked. "'This land of our ancestors is holy.' She's known about this since the King brought me here. He made her swear she'd never tell me. If she ever did tell me, the King would drain her of her life's fluid. He had the power to do that in that book," Kat said, sitting on the bed. Jake looked at the book that was lying on the floor. He picked it up and flipped through the pages. He closed the book again. "What should we do with this, Kat?" he asked. "Get rid of it. It means nothing to me now. Let's get some sleep. We can look for the Fire Skull in the morning." Jake watched as Kat and Chance walked out of the room. He placed the book and the Star Weapons inside his backpack. He thought they might need them later. Then he picked up the bag and followed them. Chapter 4: While Kat and Chance slept, Jake looked through the book that belonged to the late King. "The Star Weapons failed to work on any of my soldiers. The prophecy said that Katarina was the only one who could awaken the power in the weapons. But, alas, she could not. Only if her true family lost their blood on the weapons would the weapons awake. Sadly, I am not hers," he read in the diary. Blood of her true family? He must mean if Chance bleeds on one of the weapons, the power will take place. He *is* Kat's brother, after all, Jake thought to himself. "Jacob, she told you to get rid of that thing," a voice said behind him. Jake turned his head, and saw Chance standing there. "I just thought we might find something if we looked through the King's diary," Jake said, marking his place in the book with his paw. "Oh? Find anything?" Before Jake could answer, they heard a faint hawk screech. Katarina shot up in her bed. "What the hell was that?" she asked. "Relax, Sis. It's just a hawk," Chance said, looking outside a window. Jake joined him. "Yeah. A hawk leading an army of harpies!" Jake said, backing away from the window. They all hit the floor when the stone window was busted. Stones flew to the other side of the room. The hawk rested on Kat's bed. Kat gasped, "That's the Fire Skull's hawk!" "And here is the Fire Skull," a figure said. Jake, Chance, and Kat scrambled to their feet to meet the figure. They saw his face. His head was nothing but a skull. On top of the skull was fire. "Dr. Fire Skull, I presume?" Chance joked in an English accent. "Chance, this is no time for comedy," Jake whispered. "Welcome home, Queen Katarina. I have missed you," the Fire Skull growled. "Too bad I don't return that feeling, Skull," Kat hissed. Jake handed her the spell book from behind his back. Kat opened it and spoke in Latin. Fire Skull was blown back out of the window. Kat peered out the window. "Cool. I'm glad Jake kept this," she said, flipping through the pages. Then something grabbed onto her shoulder. Kat looked up and screamed. One of the harpies lifted her into the air, making her drop the book. "Katarina!" Jake and Chance both shouted. "Let go, you ugly son of a bitch!" Kat growled. Jake reached into his backpack and pulled out one of the Japanese stars. He threw it at the harpy's leg. It bounced back to him and got stuck in his shoulder. He pulled it out. The harpy then flew away, carrying Kat with it. "Boys! Help!" they heard her scream. The other harpies and the Fire Skull followed the one harpy. "Try to save the Queen in time, Kats!" Fire Skull laughed. Jake and Chance watch them fly away. "C'mon! We gotta save her!" Chance said, reaching into Jake's backpack. Then he drew his paw back. "Ow! Why the hell are these things in here?" he asked, taking out one of the stars. "Well, you never know when you might need it, Chance. Hey, you're bleeding on the star!" Jake said. "Yeah, so?" "So, Chance, I read in the diary that the Star Weapons will regain their power when the Queen's true family lost blood on one of the Weapons. The Weapons should work again!" Jake explained. "Oh, yeah? Well, let's test it," Chance said, taking out the Fire Sword. He took it out of its case and raised it over his head. "Fire Sword!" Then a thunderbolt struck the sword. It traveled through the sword and through Chance. Chance swung the sword and received his G-suit. "Hey! This works pretty good," he said, looking at the sword. He put it back in its case and put it on his belt. "I'll say, T-Bone. Let's see what this one does," Jake said, taking out the Thunder Whip. He unwrapped and cracked it. "Thunder Whip!" A spark passed when the whip cracked. There was a flash of lighting and Jake received his G-suit. "OK, Razor. Grab the backpack and let's kick some tail!" They ran downstairs and found Sir Whitetail and Tsidii with four horses. "Need a lift?" Sir Whitetail asked. "They're not the TurboKat, but they'll have to do," T-Bone sighed, mounting onto the horse. Razor reached into his backpack and pulled out the boomerang. He handed it to Sir Whitetail. "You may need that, Whitetail," he said. "Thank you, Jacob," Sir Whitetail said. "Call me Razor and call him T-Bone." He looked at Tsidii. She already had a sword. No point in giving her the daggers. "As I said five minutes ago, let's kick some tail!" T-Bone said as the horse started galloping. The other horses followed. Now they were on their way to find Kat. Chapter 5: The Swat Kats, Sir Whitetail, and Tsidii continued riding throughout the night looking for Kat. Razor fought to stay awake, but eventually fell off the horse. T-Bone dismounted from his horse and rushed to his side. "Razor, are you OK?" he asked. "I don't know. I just felt weak all of a sudden," Razor replied, rubbing his forehead. T-Bone looked at his shoulder. He was bleeding there, and it looked infected. Tsidii spoke in Swahili. "What did you say, Tsidii?" T-Bone asked. "She said part of that is harpy blood. Did you notice Razor harming a harpy?" Sir Whitetail asked. "Well, no. I was more concerned about Katarina. I thought Razor could take care of himself." Tsidii spoke again. "'Well, now he is infected with the blood of the harpy,'" Sir Whitetail translated. "Is it poisonous?" Tsidii replied in Swahili. "'Not if we can find the Fire Skull in time.'" "What happens if we don't?" Razor asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Tsidii replied. "'Then, it will be too late for you, Razor.'" Razor then nodded off. "How much time does he have left?" T-Bone asked. Tsidii took some mud and placed it over Razor's chest. She spoke again. "'There is his heart. When the poison gets there...'" "We don't have much time left. Sir Whitetail, lie him down on his horse. Make sure you keep a hold on the reins. Let's go," T-Bone said, mounting onto his horse. Sir Whitetail laid Razor on his horse and grabbed onto the reins. They then continue to search for the Fire Skull. A few minutes later, Sir Whitetail looked up and saw the harpies. "There they are!" he pointed. "I'm warning you! Let me go!" they heard Kat scream. "Hang on, Your Majesty!" Sir Whitetail called, throwing the boomerang at the harpy that had Kat. The boomerang hit the harpy's foot, releasing Kat. "I got her!" T-Bone said, getting right under her. He caught her in his arms. "Nice catch, Big Brother," Kat said, hugging his neck. "Thanks, Sis," T-Bone said. He set her back on the ground. "My Queen, are you all right?" Sir Whitetail asked. "I am now, thanks to you. Nice throw," Kat said, tossing him the boomerang. Then she caught her eye on Razor. She rushed over to him. "What happened to him?" she asked. "He hurt a harpy and some of it's blood got into him," T-Bone replied, dismounting from his horse. "And now he's poisoned. The only cure is a bite from the silver apple that grows in the Fire Skull's castle. No one has ever gotten to it alive." "Maybe not just *anyone*, Katarina. It's time you became a Swat Kat," T-Bone said, handing her a glovatrix. "But I don't have a G-suit yet, T-Bone." "Hmm. Razor and I changed when we used the Star Weapons, so..." T-Bone said, reaching into Razor's backpack and pulling out the Japanese stars. He handed them to Kat. "But they don't work anymore." "They do now. Go ahead." "OK, if you say so. Ice Stars!" She threw the stars toward the sky. A thunderbolt struck the stars. Then they returned to her. The power of the thunderbolt surged through her body. She turned around and received a Swat Kat G-suit. T-Bone and Sir Whitetail both had their eyes wide open. Kat's G-suit was similar to T-Bone and Razor's. She wore a tight skirt that was covering her pants. She wore cowboy boots that were up to her knees. Her long black hair was still in a ponytail. "Well, I think I look pretty damn good in this thing," Kat said, looking at herself. "OK, now that we got her the G-suit, what are we gonna call her?" T-Bone asked himself. Kat extended her claws and clawed a nearby tree. She lightly pushed it with her finger and it fell over. Sir Whitetail and Tsidii gulped. "My thoughts exactly, guys. Claws like those can make anybody quiver," T-Bone said. "Quiver, huh? I like that. From now on, call me Quiver," Kat said, looking at her powerful claws. Then they heard a scream. It was Razor. T-Bone and Quiver rushed over to him. They saw the poison had moved closer to his heart. "T-Bone, we can't waste another second. If we want to save Razor, we need to get him that apple now!" Quiver said. "Roger that, Quiver. Let's get going before the trail gets any colder," T-Bone said, mounting back onto his horse. Quiver climbed up behind him. And they continued the trail. Chapter 6: Finally, they found the Fire Skull's castle. It was the exact opposite of Oriana: it was dark. "Damn, who was the previous owner: Count Dracula?" T-Bone asked, dismounting from the horse. He helped Quiver down. "No shit. A castle like this can give anybody nightmares," Quiver said. Tsidii spoke. "Tsidii said we don't have time to discuss nightmares. The poison is nearing Razor's heart," Quiver translated. "Well, how are we gonna get inside?" T-Bone asked, looking at the drawbridge. "Allow me," Sir Whitetail said, throwing his boomerang at the drawbridge. The boomerang went straight through the drawbridge and then it fell over. Sir Whitetail then caught the boomerang as it returned to him. "I think you're getting the hang of it, Whitetail," T-Bone said, walking into the castle with Quiver and Tsidii behind. Whitetail followed. The first thing that came to Quiver's eyes was a silver apple tree in the middle of the courtyard. "Over there!" she pointed. "Razor is as good as cured," Whitetail said, walking toward the tree. Then a wall of fire stepped in front of him. The Fire Skull stepped out of the flames. "You mean as good as dead!" Fire Skull laughed. "Blasted!" Quiver said. "You want the silver apples? Blow out the candles!" Fire Skull said, shooting fire at the tree. The leaves caught on fire. "No!" T-Bone cried. Whitetail threw his boomerang at the tree. The boomerang knocked an apple out. "Good work, Sir Whitetail. Now let's get it!" Quiver said, heading toward the tree. The Fire Skull smacked her over against the wall. She swayed when she got back to her feet. "Good thing I had a helmet this time," she said to herself. Whitetail growled. "You harmed my Queen. You shall pay for that! Earth Boomerang!" Whitetail threw the boomerang into the air. A thunderbolt struck it and it returned to Whitetail. The power surged through his body. He turned around and received a Swat Kat G-suit. It looked like the other Swat Kats' G-suits. "Sir Whitetail!" Quiver shouted. Whitetail turned his head to see Quiver and the Fire Skull. The Fire Skull threw fireballs at her. "Protect the Queen!" Whitetail shouted, throwing the boomerang at the Fire Skull's head. It knocked him to the ground. Whitetail picked him up and punched him in the face. The punch threw the Fire Skull right through the stone wall. "Whoa, rock hard! I think we should call you Boulder," Quiver said, patting Whitetail's back. "Boulder? I like that," Whitetail said. Then they heard a scream. "Razor!" Quiver gasped. "The apple!" Boulder exclaimed. They both raced toward the silver apple only to be blocked by the Fire Skull again. "Going somewhere, Swat Kats?" he asked the two. Quiver looked over his shoulder to see Tsidii grab the apple while the Fire Skull's back was turned. "Yeah, away from you!" Quiver said as she and Boulder ran past him. "Blasted alley kats," the Fire Skull growled. Quiver called Tsidii in Swahili. Tsidii tossed her the silver apple. "T-Bone, catch!" Quiver called, tossing T-Bone the apple. T-Bone caught it and ran over to Razor. The poison was racing toward his heart. T-Bone cut off a piece of the apple and put it in Razor's mouth. Razor chewed and swallowed. "I hope we're not too late," he said to himself. "T-Bone, toss me the spell book!" he heard Quiver call. T-Bone reached into Razor's backpack and pulled out the spell book. He tossed it to Quiver. Quiver caught it and flipped through the pages. She spoke in Latin. The Fire Skull crashed back into the stone wall. "I think he's starting to tire," Quiver said. "Good. In a few more hours, he'll barely be able to throw a fireball at us. So, where's his weak spot?" T-Bone asked. "We've discover that his body is mortal. Destroy that, and you can smash his head," Quiver said. "All right, I love smashing some skulls. Let's kick some tail!" T-Bone took out his sword and ran toward the Fire Skull. He ran the sword through his body. They body fell to the ground. T-Bone took the mask off the body's head and looked at it. "Alas, poor Fire Skull. I didn't know him well. Any last words before I pound you to kitty litter?" T-Bone asked the mask, raising his fist near the mask's face. "T-Bone, don't make him say anything!" Quiver shouted. "Too late, Katarina!" the Fire Skull mask said. The mask's eyes started to glow. T-Bone was too late to look away. T-Bone lifted the mask over his head, about to put it on. "T-Bone, don't!" Quiver and Boulder shouted. Then, something struck T-Bone's paws. The strike made T-Bone drop the mask. When T-Bone regained his mind, he looked to see what struck him. It was a Japanese star. "I warned you not to make him speak," Quiver said, picking up the star that was by T-Bone's foot. "Thanks, Sis." T-Bone grabbed his sword and raised it over his head. He brought the sword down on the Fire Skull mask. It smashed to pieces. Tsidii came to him and Quiver. She spoke in Swahili. "She said now that the Fire Skull is destroyed, I should pick who should to take my throne," Quiver translated. She spoke to her in Swahili. Tsidii replied. Tsidii smiled. Then she walked away. "What did you say to her?" T-Bone asked. "The throne's hers." T-Bone starred at the pieces of the broken mask. Too bad Razor missed this. Damn it! T-Bone thought. "Razor! Is he OK?" Tsidii walked over to Razor and examined him. She spoke. T-Bone looked at Quiver and Boulder. Tsidii spoke. Quiver and Boulder both sighed. "He's gonna be all right, T-Bone. He just needs to catch up on his sleep," Quiver said. "Good. Let's get back to Oriana," T-Bone said, mounting onto a horse. The others followed him back to the castle. Chapter 7: The next night, there was a coronation. Katarina was dressed in her green and white dress and a gold crown on her head. She gave her address to the people. "My people, the Fire Skull is no more!" she said to her kingdom. The citizens cheered. "I promised before I left, you would have a new ruler. So, here is your new Queen, Tsidii!" The citizen cheered again. Tsidii stepped out before Katarina. She spoke to her in Swahili. Tsidii replied. "Fatshe leso lea halalela," Katarina said. Tsidii got down on her knees. Katarina took off her crown and placed it on her head. "I present to you Queen Tsidii!" The citizens bowed to their new queen. Chance and Sir Whitetail came to Katarina. "How does it feel not being the queen anymore, Kat?" Chance asked. "Really weird. I was a commoner, then a princess, then queen. Now, I'm a commoner again. It's just so weird," Kat replied. "Well, c'mon. Jake just woke up and we're gonna get ready to go back to the future. You should do the same." Later, Jake, Chance, and Kat were back in their regular clothes. They and Sir Whitetail were outside the castle. "Well, I guess we should give these back," Jake said, handing Sir Whitetail his backpack full of the Star Weapons. Whitetail gave them back. "They are yours. It was Chance's blood in which awaken their powers. It was a pleasure serving you, Katarina," Whitetail said. Chance cleared his throat. "You know, since he put on the G-suit, he's a Swat Kat. Sir Whitetail, would you like to return with us to the future?" he asked. "I suppose. Being a knight bores me. Besides, I would miss the Queen," Whitetail said. "I'm not your queen anymore. But I am your friend," Kat said, smiling. "Well, let's go, Kats. Time's a-wasting," Jake said. Kat reached into her pocket and pulled out the Phoenix Gate. She was about to say the incantation when something stopped her. "Kat? What's the matter?" Chance asked. "Oriana," Kat said, looking at the castle. "Are you sure you wanna leave? I'll understand if you don't," Chance said, putting his paw on her shoulder. Kat shook her head. "No. My home's with you now. I came back to find my family. Now that I've found it, I don't wanna leave it. Good bye, Oriana." She spoke in Latin and they disappeared in a wall of fire. Now the Swat Kats are four. But who knows when they might receive a new member? The Swat Kats will face many changes within the next few years. But whatever changes they face, they will face them together. THE END Well, story two is finally done. Took me two days to make this one. At least I didn't work on it all night. Well, how did you like it? Email me: karigilmore@hotmail.com. So long, Kat fans!