Timeless - Part 2
Author - Modad
Rating - T
Email - mfiske6@yahoo.com
Warnings: Violence
Disclaimer: SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron," its characters and concepts are copyright to Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc and are used without permission.

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Jake sat in the Hanger, staring at the wall. He had been that way for nearly a week, unmoving, and most likely unmovable. He hadn't eaten since Monday, and it was now Saturday. He had once during the week left the Hangar to watch the news and found that the media was still in a lot of confusion regarding the past incidents of the last couple of days. He found that questions were beginning to arise over T-Bone's death, ones that Commander Feral was having obvious difficulty answering. Jake himself didn't really remember what had happened; his mind went blank when he saw his partner shot into that building with a missile then exploding into a fiery horrific death.

The last thing he remembered after that was standing at Megakat Canyon in the middle of the desert, contemplating suicide. He cringed when he thought how close he had actually come to ending his own life. He then shrugged the thought away, thinking that it didn't matter if he lived or died. He had said it himself, never again, and he had no intention of altering from his statement.

After watching the news, he had once again retreated back into the hangar, staring at the wall, thinking. He thought of what he could have done differently and shook his head as he did. It should've been me who had taken that hit, he thought. Chance shoved me out of the way and took it for himself. He continued to think, and, after many hours passed, he had determined that he most likely would've done the same thing had the roles been reversed.

"God, Chance, how would you have handled this?" he asked out loud, his voice almost echoing in the huge underground facility. As expected, no reply came, and he stared at the wall even longer and decided that three days without word from the outside was long enough. He got up to turn on the radio. The first thing he heard was an Enforcer broadcast, and he turned it up.

"...confirmed, fugitive SWAT Kat known as Razor has been charged with the murder of the terrorist known as The Judge. All units be on the lookout for brown furred male, approximately five foot, ten inches in height...," the radio crackled.

Jake blinked as he listened to the broadcast, wondering if he was in fact hearing things. He listened more and found that what he was hearing was in fact true.

"Murder?" he voiced aloud. I beat the crud out of him pretty badly, enough to get an assault charge or two, but I didn't kill him, Razor thought. Then, he remembered the words that came out of Commander Feral's mouth.

"Razor, you're under arrest, charge is murder," she had said.

Jake replayed the scene in his mind again and couldn't remember when the kat had ever stopped screaming, a gruesome sign, but a sign nonetheless that the freak who called himself the Judge was still alive when he quite literally was ripping him apart.

He sighed and once again took to staring at the wall, not really caring. Sure, Felina knew who he was and where he lived. She knew everything, yet she had allowed him to go free. That won't last long, Jake thought as he continued to stare at the wall. She'll come to her senses and come after me; it's only a matter of time before she does. Jake leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. How long has it been since I last slept? he thought. At least a hundred hours, maybe more. Jake relaxed for the first time in days and allowed the memories to come back to him.

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"You know, I always wondered why Obi Wan Kenobi didn't just chop off Vader's head when he had the chance," Chance said, as he chomped down on a handful of popcorn. The movie theater was dark and jam packed with kats.

Jake sat next to him, wondering if he should actually reply or not. Jake gave in, and voiced his opinion.

"Because then Luke wouldn't be able to carry out his destiny and save the galaxy," Jake replied as he managed to sneak a hand into Chance's bucket of popcorn.

Chance gave Jake a dirty look at having some of his popcorn taken.

"Hey, get your own pal," Chance said as he took careful attention not to allow Jake another pass at his snacks.

Jake laughed at burly kat's defensive nature towards his 'snacks' and turned to face the movie. Star Wars Episode 2, Attack of the Clones. Both had their hesitations about the movie, but both decided that they might as well go and see it. They were still in the previews, both anxious for the movie to start. Finally, the previews ended and the familiar Star Wars theme blared on the surround sound. It was just at that moment that Jake heard his pager go off. Chance likewise heard it and rolled his eyes.

"I can't believe it - you know how long it took me to get tickets for this?" Chance asked incredulously.

A resounding "shhhh" erupted from the nearby occupants and Chance merely sneered at them. Jake looked at his pager and sighed.

"It's Callie - looks like we got another 'situation'," Jake said as he started to get up.

Chance got up too, still carrying his 2 gallon container of popcorn.

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Jake awoke abruptly and found himself in the corner of the hangar. He looked at the nearby chrono and blinked as he looked again. He had been asleep for nearly 14 hours. He quickly stood up and stretched, feeling the blood rush through his body. He looked back towards the computer control area and saw a picture of both him and Chance there, on Anakata Island those many years ago. He saw Chance in that picture, smiling, seemingly having what was quite possibly one of the best times in his life. He looked at the picture for a few minutes and changed his posture as he did, standing up straight.

"Chance wouldn't give up," Jake said defiantly. He then looked at his locker with the capital letter R scratched onto it. He walked up to it and opened it up, to see his spare uniform and glovatrix both inside. He grabbed the glovatrix and closed the locker. He then approached his nearby work table and opened a drawer and reached in, removing a number of mini-missiles. He then loaded the glovatrix and put the extras in his pockets.

He then walked over to a nearby storage locker and removed a pair of army boots and pants, putting them on. He then withdrew one of his favorite black tank tops and quickly changed into it. He then put on the glovatrix and headed up for the body shop above.

"Razor needs a break; Jake Clawson is gonna have to handle this one," he said as he selected a salvaged dirt bike that lay against the far wall of the garage. He kicked the kick start and revved the engine a couple times before heading out of the salvage yard and back into Ultrakat City.

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She had hated issuing the order, but she had no choice. She had already broken the law by allowing a murderer to go free. She had even yelled at him to do so; her morals had overtaken her sense of duty for just that brief moment. Now, she sat at her desk, the desk her Uncle had once served in. She sat there, looking at the ring, the engraved "together forever" still shining brightly.

"Why'd you have to die, Chance..." she thought out loud just as a sharp knocking on her door separated her from her thoughts. "Enter!" she bellowed as she slid the ring into a compartment in her desk. The door opened, and Mayor Calico Briggs entered her office. Felina quickly stood up, giving the ruling body of the city her full attention.

"Your honor, please, what can I do for you?" she asked, offering the Mayor a sear.

Callie smiled and sat down.

"Please, Commander, at ease," Callie said in her usual casual manner.

Felina took her own seat at the opposite end of the desk, facing the Mayor with her full attention.

"As you know, some unfortunate things have been occurring this past week," Callie began, trying not to stray from the point. Felina tensed up as Callie prepared to speak again. "I was wondering if perhaps you needed some time off."

Felina leaned back in her leather bound chair and placed her arms on the desk, wondering how she should reply. She chose her answer and voiced it to the Mayor.

"Mayor Briggs..." she began.

"Please, Felina, it's me Callie," Briggs said with a comforting voice.

Felina stared at her, those glasses of hers still on her face. The same face she had seen so long ago when Dr. Viper had turned the city into a living mutation. Callie, now older, still seemed unchanged. Felina finally felt herself relaxing as she began her reply.

"Callie, I'm alright. I don't need a vacation, not yet anyways, not until the investigation is finished," she answered.

Callie gave her a look, a look that said she was expecting that. Then, Briggs sighed and spoke again.

"Do you really think he's dead, Commander?" Callie asked, her true concern finally showing.

Felina took her time to respond, deciding that the truth was the best right now.

"Yes, we've found the remains and..." she stopped as the feelings inside her couldn't be contained any longer. She burst out crying, head on the desk, the tears streaming down her face.

Callie got out of her chair and moved to her side, trying to comfort her as best as she could.

"He's gone, and after all I did to him, I never even got to tell him how sorry I was..." Felina cried as Callie did her best to try and calm her down.

"I'm sure that he knew," Callie whispered. She then hugged Felina, trying her best to help her however she could.

Felina returned the hug, feeling somewhat better as she wiped the tears out of her eyes.

"Thank, you Callie," she said, and then sat back at her desk. Callie stayed with her a little while longer as she wondered what would happen now.

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The rev of the dirt bike's engine thundered against the tall buildings as he shot down Main Street, seeing the construction crews doing their best to repair the damage that he been caused. Jake continued, heading for the area in which he had lost Chance. That look on his face was still embedded in Jake's brain, like it was a plate riveted to his skull. He couldn't shake the image, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to.

"Think happy thoughts..." Jake said to himself as he continued, deeper into the massive metropolis.

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The Turbokat rocketed through the sky, heading into Megakat City. T-Bone was still pretty cheezed off at having to miss his movie, but kept it to himself as he continued on course for City Hall. The giant clock tower building gleamed in the sunlight, and T-Bone spotted the threat that they had been called to take care of. Dark Kat's Fear Ship was hovering above the building near the roof, like a boat would be moored at a dock.

"I think I found our emergency," Razor said as he looked forward out the canopy. T-Bone grunted his reply and wondered what it was that the giant purple behemoth could be doing.

"Lets pay Dark Krud a little visit, shall we?" T-Bone asked in mock conversation as he brought the Turbokat on an intercept course. Razor grinned as he armed his weapons systems.

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Jake smiled as the memories came back to him, happy to have something else inhabiting his thoughts. He replayed the scene back in his brain, the Turbokat landing on the roof of City Hall; and, once again, the two protectors of Megakat City entered the building without hesitation, ready to tackle whatever threat it was that Dark Kat had in store for them.

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Wow, T-Bone thought as he ran through the corridors of City Hall, gradually heading up back towards the roof. They had managed to enter the building and ran into about a dozen of Dark Kat's ninjas. The fight hadn't lasted long, and they had managed to get past them with relative ease. What came after was the hard part.

"You are one crazy psycho, Dark Krud!" T-Bone had shouted at the kat, taking aim with his glovatrix. Dark Kat was standing on the far side of Mayor Manx's enormous office, with an oversized bomb. That wasn't the only thing, he had Callie and Manx tied up to it.

"You're too late, SWAT Kats," Dark Kat had taunted in his same redundant fashion. Both of the SWAT Kats had decided not to waste any more time and jumped into action. T-Bone went after Dark Kat as Razor rushed to the bomb, fighting off numerous creeplings as he did. T-Bone tackled the large purple kat with extreme speed, making him drop the detonator.

"You fools!" Dark Kat shouted as he struggled with T-bone. "You'll blow us all up!"

"I thought you said you anticipated everything, Dark Creep!" T-Bone replied as he ducked a wild punch from the purple behemoth. He then returned with one of his own, using his hand with the glovatrix to pummel Dark Kat's face in with one punch. The evil, sadistic kat staggered momentarily and fell to the floor.

"Hey, I think I felt the building shake," Razor said over his shoulder. He was kneeling beside the bomb, examining the wiring when T-Bone approached him.

"How bad is it?" T-Bone asked as he began to untie the Mayor and Deputy Mayor. Callie struggled as he did so, and T-Bone decided she would tell him when she was free from the bomb. T-Bone activated the buzz-saw blade on his glovatrix and cut the rope holding the two hostages together.

A loud click could be heard as Callie and Manx were released. She then quickly removed the gag and shouted out a warning.

"Dark Kat said this thing would blow if we were untied!" she said, eyeing the bomb.

Razor gave T-Bone a look, and all the big kat could reply was one simple word.

"Oops..."

"Great, so much for disarming it," Razor said as he stepped back from the bomb. A crimson red digital timer was counting down from ten. T-Bone then came up with an idea, a crazy idea, but an idea nevertheless.

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Jake's thoughts were interrupted as his engine stopped and his forward motion ground to a halt. He then realized that it was him who had in fact stopped the two-wheeled vehicle and was now dismounting from it. He withdrew a flashlight from his pocket and crossed into the debris that was encompassed by yellow police tape. The words, "POLICE LINE - DO NOT CROSS," shone brightly in the flashlight's glare.

He crossed it with ease and shined the light on the ground, looking for anything at all. He saw broken chairs, pipes, and other items that could be found within a large office building. He examined further, looking for anything at all. A hair, a piece of clothing, even a stain would be useful.

"Hey, you there!" a voice called from behind him.

Jake froze as he heard the sound of a gun being cocked. He slowly turned and saw an Enforcer looking right at him, weapon raised. Jake was still somewhat in the shadows and hoped that the Enforcer couldn't see him all that well, as Jake couldn't see him all that well either.

"Alright, hands up, you've entered a restricted area," the Enforcer said, gesturing with his weapon. Jake did so, raising his hands up into the air. At the same time he aimed his glovatrix at the nearest lamppost, and fired a grappling cable.

"Hey!" the Enforcer shouted again and actually opened fire at Jake as he ascended up into the air and swung around to the other side of the block. The sound of sirens filled his ears, and he realized that that Enforcer had probably called for backup.

"Looks like I walk from here," he muttered to himself as he ducked into a nearby alleyway and out of sight, just in time as an Enforcer cruiser shot by.

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"Hang on!" T-Bone shouted at he lifted the bomb, with Razor's help, and leapt out the window with it, dropping towards the street far below.

"Six seconds, better do it now," Razor warned as he fired a grappling cable back at City Hall. T-Bone quickly unclipped his harness to his jetpack backpack and attached it to the falling bomb. He then activated the jetpack and turned the afterburners to maximum.

"Bomb's away!" T-Bone said as he grabbed onto Razor and swung back up to a ledge on the side of the massive clock tower building. The thrusters on the jetpack ignited and brought the bomb out of its rapid descent and shot it in the opposite direction, back up into the sky.

"Okay, it should blow up in 3...2..." Razor began, but was interrupted as the sky lit up in flame, and the device detonated. "...1, okay, I was one second off, sue me."

T-Bone laughed at that and climbed back into City Hall through an open window.

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Jake had wandered the streets on foot for hours now, being careful not to be seen. He had taken a street parallel to Main and was heading roughly in a direction back to the Salvage Yard. He then stopped and wondered what he would do there. Just gonna stare at the wall again for a week? he thought, then shook his head.

"I need to talk to someone," he said aloud. But who? He thought again. He couldn't talk to Chance for obvious reasons. Felina was tracking him down like a fugitive, and Callie was still oblivious to their secret. Jake then almost laughed at the idea.

"Some secret - now that Chance is dead it'll all come out now. It's only a matter of time," he said to no one in particular. Then, an idea came to mind. It was a crazy idea, but the more Jake thought about it, the more logical it seemed. He then reversed direction and headed for a nearby suburb.

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The SWAT Kats had made their way back to the Mayor's office and found that Dark Kat was gone. Then, without stopping to talk to Callie, they made their way back to the roof and jumped back into the Turbokat.

"I got 'im - he's heading east," Razor said as he examined his radar scopes.

T-Bone nodded and engaged the VTOL engines and shot up into the air, and engaged the primary thrusters, sending them rocketing forward.

"Alright buddy, take 'im down!" T-Bone said as he brought the Turbokat within firing range.

Razor flipped down his targeting visor and waited for the crosshairs to line up with his target. They glowed red as he locked on and flipped the safety off his control stick.

"Matchead missiles away!" Razor said as he pressed the firing stud and released two of the bulky missiles from the bombay. Once they were released, they shot forward at their target, having their tips ignite in flame as they armed.

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Jake entered the upper-class neighborhood, careful not to be seen. A particular house caught his attention and confirmed his thoughts when he saw the name on the mailbox. This is the one, he thought as he walked up the driveway, then up the few steps that led to the front door. He thought about knocking and realized that it might not be appropriate. Instead, he walked to the side of the house, hopped over the fence and made his way to the backyard. He was in luck as he saw the kat there, sitting in a lawn chair, looking up at the stars.

Jake approached, but before he could say anything, the kat in the lawn chair spoke first.

"I was wondering when you would show up," the kat said as he stood up.

Jake made no reply and stood still as the kat approached him. He noticed that he was indeed aging, his hair gone completely gray and his stature slightly bent forward. However, the aging kat was nearly 7 feet tall, and still managed to give an intimidating aura about him.

"I need your help," Jake said plainly, waiting to hear what the kat's response would be. To Jake's surprise he laughed and walked away, heading back to the lawn chair he had been sitting in.

"I never thought I'd live to hear that," the aging kat said as he gestured for Jake to sit down. Jake did so, grabbing another lawn chair and sitting opposite of the kat.

"I don't really have anyone else to talk to. First, I should really let you know who I am..." Jake began, but the kat interrupted him.

"I know who you are; I've known for years," the kat replied. Jake blinked at this.

"You have?" he asked incredulously.

"I've had a lot of free time since I retired, and I needed a hobby," the kat responded. "If you're wondering why I never told anyone or released your secret, it was because...it seemed unnecessary; we've already made our peace, and I figured after all that you had done, it was the least I could do," the kat said, answering Jake's thoughts.

"Well, then you know why I'm here then."

"Yes, I do," the kat said, his tone growing more serious. "I suppose that I could tell you that I'm sorry to hear what's happened, but that wouldn't serve much purpose, now would it?"

Jake nodded in reply as the kat continued.

"And, to answer what you must be thinking - no, I don't think you murdered anyone," the kat said as he once again looked up at the stars.

Jake thought about that for a moment before he made his reply.

"How can you be so sure?"

"I know that you didn't because you can't. It's not something that either you or him was capable of. In all the years you have never killed anyone in cold blood, never, and I'm not so sure that you even killed anyone at all."

Jake nodded. Sure, they had slain their fair share of monsters, creatures, demons, etc..., but never a kat of flesh and blood.

"But, now, I suppose that you came here to talk, is that it?" the kat asked.

"Yes, I needed someone to confide in, and, as strange as it sounds, I chose you," Jake replied.

The kat laughed, and leaned forward, looking Jake right in the eye.

"I do find it strange myself, Clawson, that you would have picked me of all kats, but I suppose the circumstances didn't leave you many options."

"No, Feral, they didn't, that's why I need your help."

Feral sat back in his chair, waiting for what the SWAT Kat had in mind.

"I didn't kill that kat, that I'm sure of, but right now I have no evidence to prove my innocence."

"I believe you; it's all too perfect, that's why I'm wondering why my niece was so quick to judge," Feral said as he scratched his chin in thought. "I think you were set up."

Jake nodded as the thought had crossed his mind.

"I've thought the same thing, but it's all too perfect, and would have to be incredibly elaborate," Jake said, thinking aloud.

"I'll look into this further, but, right now, you had better get going," Feral said, gesturing to the sun beginning to rise over the horizon.

Jake got up and gave one last look at the former Commander of the Enforcers.

"Thanks, Feral, I owe you," Jake said, then turned back and leapt over the fence. Feral watched him leave and made his way back indoors.

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Dark Kat watched helplessly as the blips on his radar continued onward, nearing their inevitable destination. He braced himself against his command chair, just in time as the two missiles impacted his Fear Ship. He was knocked to the deck and jostled around as his aircraft skewed off to the side.

"Nooo!" Dark Kat shouted as a support beam was knocked loose and fell on top of him. He was crushed against the deck by its weight, pinned and unable to move. "My Creeplings!" he called, and the pink gremlin-like creatures that always accompanied him did their best to try and lift the beam off of their master.

"No! I won't let it end like this!" Dark Kat shouted, his voice full of rage and wrath. He could already feel his bones being crushed, and he was already becoming short of breath. "Not this way; I won't go down without a fight!"

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Jake shook his head at that particular memory as he made his way down the street and away from the former Commander's residence. For some reason, Dark Kat had left an open radio frequency on what would have been his last attempt to cause mayhem and destruction. Jake sighed and decided to remember, even though he knew what came next wasn't all too pleasant.

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"Alright!" T-Bone cheered as Razor's two missiles connected cleanly with the Fear Ship, and they could both see that the damage had been done.

"He's dropping in altitude - must've hit him harder than I thought," Razor remarked as he watched the custom jet start to plummet back towards the city far below. Razor was about to suggest that he engage the magnetic lock up, when the craft engaged its afterburners and reversed direction, heading back towards the heart of the city.

"Great, what'd you think he's up to now?" T-Bone asked as he angled the jet around to pursue.

The Fear Ship was using its downward momentum to help propel it forward, and was already approaching the sound barrier.

"Uh uh, I think I know what he's doing," Razor began as he pointed. "He's gonna crash into Enforcer Headquarters!"

"Again with HQ - that's a little bit narrow minded for a supposed criminal mastermind," T-Bone commented as he gave chase, closing the distance between the two aircraft.

Razor was already taking aim, arming the high explosives so as there wouldn't be anything large falling from the sky to hurt any innocent civilians.

"Missiles locked," Razor began, but was slammed into the side of the cockpit as T-Bone veered sharply to the right to avoid the incoming rear-fired missiles of the Fear Ship.

"Crud!" T-Bone shouted as he swung the jet into a loop and managed to miss all but one of the deadly projectiles. The lights and instruments in the cockpit all dimmed as the Turbokat was hit by one of the missiles.

Razor quickly ran a diagnostic program that he had designed specifically for such an occasion. He groaned as he read the readout.

"How bad is it?" T-Bone asked, glancing over his shoulder, careful not to let his guard down.

"We took a heavy hit - landing gear is fried and so are my targeting scopes and my weapons," Razor said as he removed the plating on his console, desperate to try and get it working again.

"We don't have time - Dark Kat's gonna hit HQ in just a couple seconds if we don't hurry!" T-Bone warned as Enforcer HQ grew larger in the canopy.

Razor sighed as the only option that was available came to mind.

"You know what we have to do," Razor said as he armed all the missiles on the Turbokat. He couldn't fire them, but they could still blow up.

T-Bone sighed heavily and knew that it wasn't worth arguing. He kicked in the afterburners and overshot the Fear Ship, taking position right in front of it.

"Eject in 3...2...1..." Razor counted down as he yanked on a release lever near his seat.

T-Bone did the same, sending both kats rocketing out of the cockpit on their custom "Ejektor" seats.

Both of the masked vigilantes watched as the Turbokat veered upward and collided with the descending Fear Ship, instantly lighting the sky in flames, completely destroying the two craft. And, just in time as debris rained over the fortunate Enforcer Headquarters.

T-Bone was about to give his usual sentiments at having lost the Turbokat when the wake of the explosion caught his Ejektor seat and sent both of them tumbling out of the sky. Razor watched as the windows of HQ and the surrounding buildings shattered at the blast.

Maybe I shouldn't have armed *every* missile, he thought as he began to plummet back towards the ground.

"Breaking thrusters malfunctioning!" T-Bone said with just the slightest hint of alarm in his voice. Razor too was having a difficult time trying to stabilize his descent, and found that his breaking thrusters were also malfunctioning. At the very last moment, the two kats managed to regain control, firing the breaking thrusters and shooting forward, just inches from the Main Street.

"Heh, that wasn't so...ah!" Razor started and cut himself off as both the kats had neglected to remember that they weren't all that far away from HQ when they both hit the thrusters.

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Jake physically winced at that memory and remembered how painful that had been. Just glad someone was there to help us, he thought as he continued to walk, now heading back into the heart of the city. One thing was for sure, if he was going to do anything he'd need to get the Turbokat back.

He had left it on Main Street when he had run, and he had neglected to return for it. Most likely it was at the Enforcer impound, Jake thought.

"The least I can do is get the Turbokat back," Jake thought as he began the trek to Enforcer Headquarters, staying in the shadows of the newly begun day.

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T-Bone was slow to open his eyes, and the first thing he realized was that he had a killer headache. He groaned as he turned his head to see Razor next to him, just beginning to move as well. He then looked up in the sky and realized that they hadn't been out for long. Dark Kat's craft was still in a million pieces, a lot of them still falling back to the earth.

"Uh uh, we gotta get out of here fast!" Razor warned as he remembered just exactly where it was that they had landed.

T-Bone started to get up, but clutched his leg, and found that he couldn't move it.

"Crud, I think I busted my leg," T-Bone grumbled as he struggled to get up off the ground.

Razor was quick to his feet and quickly examined his partner.

"Yeah, it's broken," Razor said as he tried to help T-Bone off the ground. They had to get out of there fast before Feral had them arrested. Hopefully, the explosion gave a good enough distraction, Razor hoped as he helped a now limping T-Bone walk down the sidewalk.

They stopped as they watched an Enforcer Cruiser pull up beside them and both of them tensed, preparing to do whatever they'd have to do. The door opened, and the driver beckoned to them from the inside.

"Get in," a female voice said, and both kats shrugged and got in, just in time as a group of Enforcers rounded the corner, searching for the pilots of the Turbokat. T-Bone craned his neck to the side, slightly cramped in the front seat that was designed for no more than two kats.

"Lieutenant Feral?" he asked incredulously. Razor just noticed who it was and gave a sigh of relief.

"Who were you expecting? Mayor Manx?" she asked as she drove them away to safety.

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And, that's how it all began, he thought. Jake grinned at the memory as he approached Enforcer Headquarters, sneaking among the shadows. It wasn't really the best time to raid a facility like this, especially in broad daylight.

"And, especially as Jake Clawson," he thought aloud as he walked around the building on the sidewalks, avoiding as many pedestrians as possible.

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Felina concentrated on her driving, being as discreet as possible, avoiding the public eye as best as she could. She didn't need to have to deal with reports about a certain female Enforcer giving aid to one of Feral's most wanted.

"Glad you were around, Lieutenant," T-Bone said as he winced in pain at his obviously broken appendage.

"No problem, after all, I couldn't let you guys get caught. I still owe you, remember?" she said as she took an intersection that would lead to the outskirts of the city.

"Yeah, I suppose not," Razor said, as he wondered where they should go exactly. Megakat Memorial wasn't an option, not unless they managed to get a change of clothes. Then, there was another problem; Felina was with them, and Razor couldn't have her drop them off short of the salvage yard, not without further injuring T-Bone's leg further.

Then, to both SWAT Kat's surprise, Felina took an offramp from the main freeway and was headed straight for the yard, seemingly knowing which way to go. Felina noticed their curious looks and gave a short laugh.

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," she said as she continued on her way. Both Razor and T-Bone gave each other their own form of a questioning glance as the Lieutenant made her way to the place they called home.

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Jake actually laughed at that memory, remembering the look on his partner's face the moment that Felina had revealed that she knew about their secret identities and their history in the Enforcers. She had said that she wanted to prevent her uncle from finding out who they were, so she investigated, and, after much effort, found out who they were and destroyed all her methods and any evidence that she had uncovered along the way.

"Just to keep us safe," Jake thought aloud to himself as he crawled in the ventilation system of Enforcer Headquarters. With much effort he had scaled the side of Enforcer Headquarters, climbing along in the vertical trenches that supposedly gave the building more aesthetic value. They had served a more useful purpose for the ex-enforcer, providing both a direct path to the roof and a means of hiding from the occasional kat that happened to look up. He had successfully reached the roof and had cut into an air duct using the cutting torch on his glovatrix.

"And now, here I am, crawling through this system like a rat in a maze," Jake thought, taking in the brief irony as he had once done such an experiment during his grade school years. He then listened as the outside muffled noises grew increasingly more noticeable, pausing to take into account what it could mean.

"Well, either I'm above the interior hangar or the appointed protectors of Ultrakat City are having a party again," Jake thought as he pressed his ear to the side of the duct and heard the familiar sound of jet engines and machinery running.

"This is the place," Jake said to himself, wishing that he had someone to talk to. He had grown so accustomed to having Chance nearby to either support or ridicule his ideas. As a matter of fact, Jake thought, I wouldn't mind a ridicule right about now.

He aimed his glovatrix at the duct again and selected his cutting torch, careful not to look directly into the flame as it sliced the
sheet metal, cutting through it like butter. As quietly as he could, although it seemed rather pointless, he carefully removed the square of metal and set it aside inside the vent. He then carefully peeked outside and saw that he was, in fact, above the aircraft storage hangar, and there was indeed a lot of work going on. After a few seconds of searching he found what he was looking for. The Turbokat lay in the far corner of the immense room and was seemingly undamaged. But, after another quick look, he discovered that much of the removable hull plating was off to the side and some of his custom made missiles were on a lab table nearby.

"Great, I can just imagine what they broke," Jake grumbled as he looked for the best way to get to his destination undetected. He searched around for another few minutes and found something that could be useful. A locker room was nearby and a change of attire might just do the trick, he thought.

He fired a grappling cable at a support beam on the opposite wall, made sure that the line was tight, and, as gracefully as he could, swung down from the vent on the ceiling and down to the floor far below. He was thankful that the place was as noisy as it was, giving him an advantage. He made his way between disassembled aircraft parts, ducking behind them whenever someone approached close to where he was. After much careful sneaking about, he made his way to the locker room.

"Well, the smell sure hasn't changed," Jake commented to himself as he sniffed the air about him. He approached the nearest locker and used the lock pick mechanism on his glovatrix to open it without making a scene. He dug around inside and found a pair of Enforcer issue technician coveralls, with the familiar logo on the shoulder. He quickly changed into it, finding that it was a few sizes too large for him, but nothing overly noticeable.

Then, acting as though he worked there, he strode out of the locker room, grabbing a pair of safety glasses as he did. Just what I need is to loose an eye, he thought. That would just top off my week.

He didn't go directly to his prized possession as that would have been slightly suspicious. Instead, he took a path that lead him around other resting craft, inspecting them as a tech inspector would do. He was careful not to look directly at any of the security cameras and avoided eye contact from the workers.

After what seemed like an eternity he made his way to the sleek black jet, walking around it, trying to look like he was admiring it, but in reality he was checking it for any damage. Good, he thought as he looked into an opened diagnostic port. They haven't taken anything important out yet.

As best as he could, Jake snuck into the cockpit and ever so carefully took a seat in the pilots seat. He flipped a switch and activated the electrical components and did a quick diagnostic. The Turbokat was flight worthy, missing a few panels but nothing he couldn't replace later. He took a quick look around the hangar and was amazed to see that no one had noticed him.

"Alright, here goes nothing," he said to himself as he began his preflight checks and powered up the engines. The three turbofans of the custom jet engines came to life, roaring over the noise in the hangar. Jake quickly closed the canopy of the cockpit, sealing himself in. Not wanting to go flying out of his seat, he buckled up his flight harness.

By now Enforcer troops were entering the room, all carrying weapons. The first line of them took up firing positions along a row of lab tables, firing their weapons at the Turbokat. Jake winced as the bullets and laser blasts pinged off the jet's fuselage, causing many dings and pings.

Jake switched the engines to VTOL mode and cranked the throttle, sending the jet upward off the floor, blowing over a nearby Enforcer. He held the control stick in his hands, trying to keep it steady. He looked around and saw that the main hangar doors were closed.

"Can't find a door - looks like I'll have to make one," he said to himself as he brought the auxiliary weapons panel online. The Enforcers were getting smarter, and a group of them was setting up an anti-aircraft gun. Jake quickly selected a normal missile, locked onto the nearest wall and fired. The missile deployed from the Turbokat, impacting cleanly with the wall and blowing an oversized hole in it. Jake then kicked in the afterburners, just in time as the anti-aircraft gun came to life, firing deadly red lasers in his direction. The Turbokat responded and rocketed forward, sending Jake out into the sky.

To be continued...