Here's Part Two. A new villain comes in. That's all I'm gonna tell you. ACSound ________________________________________________________________________________ The Wild Side of Feral, by Anubis Soundwave jaclark@colacoll.edu ________________________________________________________________________________ Ah, Part Two at last. Methinx. ================================================================================ Two weeks later. A family reunion is scheduled on the same day as Commander Feral's birthday, and Felina wants something special. "Come on, guys," she says. "I mean, he's a knucklehead, but he's also a dedicated officer. He deserves the best. Besides, my dad and some retired Enforcer's coming, so it's a family reunion and a gala event. I'm not asking you to do much, just two things: try to look your best, and PLEASE don't tell him. It's a surprise." "Okay, Felina; but only because we like you...we don't have to pretend to like him, do we?" jokes Mason. "You know the commander would see straight through you if you bothered to try that," she smirks back. "So when's this party startin'?" smiles Trooper Skatmandu, a lean, dark blue tom. "I can DJ it, no problem." "Well...just choose what you think's best." *Maybe it'll help him relax.* + + + + Oblivious to Felina's plot to give him a surprise gala, Feral glumly looks at the latest report. Surprisingly, there was little crime, just a few normal pickpockets and normal jewelry heists, no supercriminals determined to rule Megakat City or any other cities in the United Felyn Alliance. That left him time to think about things. About his family. His old mother would probably try to get him married, though he was already married to his work. His brother would ask about Felina. And Felina would talk more about him. They would just chat about what they were doing, and then fall silent. For an hour. Then they would leave. After all, that's what happened every year. Except that seven years ago, he started getting presents on his birthday. Nothing fancy, just a coffee mug or a new tie. Yet he never knew who gave him these little things; he just wanted to say thanks. But he notes that his birthday falls on the same day as the family reunion. Two days from now. A knock at the door interrupts his line of thought. "Come in," Feral says. A slender, businesslike tabby walks in. "Commander. I have great news!" "The Swat Kats won a dream home and moved to Kahiti, Miss Briggs?" Feral jokes. "No; my grandfather's coming to visit!" Callie Briggs is excited, but Feral isn't. "Commander?" "Yes, Miss Briggs?" "This isn't my mom's dad; this grandfather's exciting and fun! I used to see him all the time when I was little, but he moved, and I saw him less and less. "You're probably wondering why I'm telling you this. Well, I'm taking my grandfather to a small banquet two days from now. Grandpa will be with my grandma, his wife, and I thought that since your birthday's in two days, that you would like to get out some." The Deputy Mayor smiles. "No, thank you, Miss Briggs. I appreciate the intent, but I'd really be invading your privacy. And I have a reunion of my own," Feral says, gesturing at his family photo. "I understand." Callie walks to the door. "But who knows--we may bump into each other." Smiling, she leaves. *After all,* Feral thinks, "*it is my birthday...*" + + + Two days later. A kat in a trenchcoat looks at the clock tower at City Hall and his watch, then walks into Enforcer Headquarters. *Most of the Enforcers are on patrol, and Feral's probably watching Mayor Manx play golf. I almost feel sorry for him. *I don't even know why I do this anymore. Oh, well, I still respect him, even if he is an old, play-it-safe, jerkwipe. *I got him a wild tie this year. Maybe it'll loosen him up a little.* The kat chuckles silently at the thought. He places a small box at the foot of the door just as Feral is stepping out. Obviously, nearly tripping over the kat, Feral sees him. The kat tries to run, but the commander grabs his trenchcoat. "Just who are you, mister?" Feral asks. "You really wanna know, Commander?" Somehow the kat's voice sounds familiar, and other Enforcers start filing past them. They obviously stop to see the duo. Mason and Skatmandu, at the front of this line, are slack-jawed when Feral takes off the kat's hat. "Happy Birthday, Commander Feral," salutes Chance Furlong with a smirk. The Enforcer officers don't dare laugh, but they are too amused to just pretend the unthinkable didn't happen. They applaud Chance and Feral. And the commander can only remain stiff until Chance leaves. "Well, sir, open it! Please." Skatmandu loves birthdays, and he sees his commander's one getting off to a great start. "Yeah, come on, open it!" choruses the others. *Well, Ulyie,* the commander thinks, *no sense in breaking a habit. Besides, it's just a stupid present. And there's no way I'm gonna let an ex-Enforcer make me look bad.* And Feral unwraps the present. It's different this year. With the tie, which was royal blue with tropical flowers and dark green palm fronds, there's a watch. Lt. Wylde smiles as he walks past Feral, a smile that meant there was a plan cooking in his mind. + + + A few hours later, Felina and Feral are on their way to City Hall to meet the folks. Apparently, though, Feral's blindfold kept him from driving his own car. "Don't worry, uncle; you'll get to take off the blindfold when we get there." Felina smiles. *When unc sees the party I have planned...I can't wait to see his face!* + + + "You'll come? Really? Thanks, you're the best, guys." Mason hangs up, already dressed in semi-formal attire. In fact, except for the long black hair with a red streak down the center, he looked almost...respectable. "Yuck. Normal clothes. I hope 'Lina made the commander wear that tie." And Mason smirks to himself. "But I can't wait to see what he'll think of my two guests...an eye-popper, to say the least." Mason leaves. + + + + "Why do I have to go to this boring gala, Cal? The food's too rich for my blood, and I have to wear a tie." "Come on, Grandpa, I swear it'll be fun. A friend of mine swore it would be," says Callie as she and her grandfather walk out of her apartment. + + + "Why are the lights doused, dear?" asks a tabby's voice. "Don't worry, hon," answers her husband. Our daughter's planning a surprise for someone. And he'd BETTER appreciate it." + + + Outside City Hall, another kat in a trenchcoat smiles. Taking off his headphones, he says, "Oh, but everyone's in for a surprise..." + + + Inside the banquet hall, Feral finally gets to take off his blindfold. *A lotta good that does,* he thinks. *It's still dark.* Then the lights flick on. "Surprise!" calls everyone, including a smirking Mason Wylde and his two guests: Chance Furlong and Jake Clawson. Before Feral could demand to know why they were here, he recognizes the old kat with Deputy Mayor. "Admiral Briggs!" cries Feral. "Admiral Briggs?" spurts Commandant Feral, Felina's father. "Ulysses Feral! Happy Birthday to you," the cat smiles. But the Feral brothers aren't the only ones dumbfounded. Mason, Chance, Jake, and Skatmandu have their mouths just as agape. "This is my grandfather, Retired Admiral Leonard Briggs." "I know." And suddenly Feral wanted to leave. The old codger might embarrass him in front of his officers, to say the least. But they had already gone to the old guy, asking him a bunch of questions. "Wow! Miss Briggs, I never knew you had an Enforcer in the family! Hello, sir!" says Lt. Wylde. "Hello, young kat. I believe you're the one that gunned down Hard Drive and made Feral look smart for a change." At that everyone laughs, even Chance and Jake, in spite of themselves. After all, the kid reminded Chance of himself when he was that age. An hour later, some of the tension had eased, and even Commander Feral feels able to relax a bit, despite the calypso music blaring from the speakers, which he thinks is inappropriate. "Well, sir," Skatmandu says when Feral asks about it, "it matches your tie." And Chance adds, "See Felina convinced you to wear it." Feral looks down; sure enough, the blue tie is there, as tropical as a day at Faroe Lake Beach. Another thing he thinks is inappropriate. All the commander can do is slump down in his chair. Admiral Briggs sits down next to him. "What's wrong, birthday boy?" "I've had too many surprises in one day. I'm exhausted, sir," Feral answers. "Now where did I hear that one? I almost don't recognize it coming from you." All Feral can do is shake his head. "So, what do you think of the lieutenant?" asks Briggs. "You don't want me to answer that," says Feral. "I sure do. After all, he invited those officers you tossed out three years ago. And he defied your orders so he could bring in a criminal." "You asked for it, sir," Feral smiles. "Mason Wylde is an excellent pilot and a dedicated officer. Occasionally, he can even obey orders. But he's reckless, and bound to get himself killed." "Reminds me of a pilot I was cursed with commanding. Only Mason doesn't have five buddies." "Oh, I don't know; I think Trooper Skatmandu and Felina like to help." Feral gives his most sardonic grin. "Then again," he adds, "nothing else can happen tonight." Just then, the huge window breaks, and a tabby wearing a jetpack flies in. *Oh, no, not now...* "Enforcers! Stand ready!" Feral booms, returning to his role as commander. And his brother joins in. Thankfully, he had brought a communicator. "This is Commandant Feral," he says calmly. "There is a critical situation at Megakat City Hall. I need backup, and I need it pronto." As for Chance and Jake, they left when the glass broke. The terrorist introduces herself by shooting a dart through a peashooter, which hits Callie. "Call me WildKat." "I feel hot...what have you done to me?" asks Callie. "Since we obviously can't care for our environment in our present state, I'm here to bring us back to a state where we have to live by the law of the jungle. Only then can we protect our kingdom. "What you've just received, house kat, is a dose of diluted retro-mutagen. It won't kill you, but it will return you to the wild, where we all belong. Unfortunately, I wanted to test it on a worthy specimen first. Like you, Telemachus Feral," she says. "Why me?" asks the commandant. "And how do you know my name?" "Unfortunately, I'm out of the mutagen darts. I guess these poison ones will have to do." With that, WildKat takes out her poison darts--* And gets tackled by Razor. "Whoa! The Swat Kats for your birthday, too? Man, Mase? Did you plan this?" Skatmandu is excited. "Yeah, Skat; 'Happy Birthday, Commander! I got you a new supervillain today. She shoots poison and who knows what through a bamboo straw.' Cut me a break." "Callie? Hon? I didn't expect my night out to be THIS exciting." "Like I said, Grandpa," Callie smiles weakly, "Never a dull moment in Megakat City." Then she falls asleep. T - Bone and WildKat fight, but WildKat escapes him. Wylde tries to tackle her before she jets off, but ends up hanging on the windowsill to keep from falling 25 stories to his doom. She rockets away, screaming invectives. Feral and T - Bone pull him up. "Wild party, huh?" smiles Wylde, in spite of what just happened. Feral is mute. After the other Enforcers assess damages, Feral once again slumps in his chair. "You all right, sir?" asks Lt. Wylde. "No; and if I see one more surprise, I'm going to take a vacation." As if on cue, one more surprise comes. "Telly, Ulyie, Mom! Hi, Felina! I think my invitation got lost in the mail." The kat, taking off his trenchcoat, smiles. "Uh, Dad, uncle? Who is he?" asks Felina. And it's one question no one in the room either can answer or cares to answer. _______________________________________________________________ Okay; once again, it's feedback time! What do you think of this installment? Anubis Crasher Soundwave