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Virtually Real Chapter 72: Forgetting Reality

It was easy enough to adjust the jump beacon to send a distress signal. I set it for five days after we would jump back in time in order to be safe from overlap. I didn't need to take the beacon offline since I knew no one had used it after Vexy had left it here.

Tye had insisted on entering stasis first. He had prior experience and insisted on showing Kyle and Wolf it was completely safe. Kyle went second insisting Wolf was needed just in case anything went wrong. I assured him it was all routine and it would seem like no time had passed when Trace came to wake us up.

"Amour, what is wrong? You're blocking me but I can tell you're worried." Wolf asked.

"It's nothing. Let's get you settled."

"Not until you tell me what is wrong." He insisted.

I sighed. "It's just, I got you all into this and I'm scared something will go wrong."

"That's what the sentinel program is for. Sure we will lose a few memories but we'll still be together."

"Yeah, you're right. But nothing is going to go wrong. I set the ship to transmit a message directly to Trace at the exact moment we jumped back in time so he'll be here to wake us up like no time has passed. And if that fails the beacon will transmit a distress signal to Mahan five days later. So we have a backup plan."

"Exactly, though as the doctor here I still think I should go last."

"Love, you know the captain always goes last, plus I'm the one with the most experience programming the unit."

"When we get back I'm going to make it a priority to understand every last detail about the unit until I know more than you so you can't get away with that excuse ever again." He growled.

"Good luck with that. I've been working with it for a couple thousand years and I still find surprising things about how it can be used."

"I guess I'm as ready as I can be, but I want you to make me a promise."

"Chiot, you know-".

"Non, you promise me if anything goes wrong and you survive you won't blame yourself."

"I- I can't do that."

"Fine. Then I'm not doing this. I'll just find ways to keep myself occupied around the ship for the next twenty or so years." Wolf said, as he started to get out of the unit.

"I'm sorry."

"Why? Because you couldn't promise me?" Wolf asked, as I pushed him back into the pod.

"No, because of the sedative I injected you with."

"When?"

"It was part of the stabilization shot you administered." I smiled.

"But I checked the content chemicals."

"I know, but you only went over the ones you could see."

Wolf blinked trying to keep his eyes open. ”Not falling for that ever ..."

I gently placed him back in position. "Sorry my Love, but this isn't the Runner evolver. Short term memory tends to degrade during stasis." I closed the unit and made sure he was stable. Then made my way back up to the bridge.

I sat at the communications station. I'd had a bad thought and that was what I'd been blocking from Wolf. If the transmissions failed there was a good likelihood sentinel would go into effect and, no matter how many years passed, I didn't want to think about being found by our doubles. I needed a fool proof way to be rescued. Hopefully we were so focused on the time change and the kobolds Mahan wouldn't detect a stray communication. Even if it was on a channel purposely encrypted so he shouldn't see it.

"Origin, this is Prowl-Ar two."

"What have you done? You know time travel is dangerous. Wait, are you responsible for the current time anomaly?"

"Possibly. In about twenty years I-"

"No! You know that is a time breach."

"Right. Let me think. Okay, currently Tye, Kyle, Jordan, and I are aboard the Bluefin. We are at the midpoint marker between Sol and Alpha Centauri a bit over twenty years in the past. I'm sending you the exact time stamp of where we are supposed to be. I'm contacting you, not to change anything, but to ensure we are rescued when we reach our proper time. We are going into hyper sleep using a standard evolver unit. As you are likely aware such units can't be set to open at a specified time."

"So I'll be your back up, since I suppose you've made other rescue messages?"

"Yes, I'm worried there is a possibility those plans might fail. However given your unique existence inside a space time anomaly I know I can rely on you. Also, it would be best if Trace was the only one to know. He's the only one with practical knowledge of this type of evolver unit."

"Are you going to enter the evolver immediately?"

"I need to shut down the ship and direct all power to the evolver, but otherwise yes."

"So we'll never mention this again as you are unlikely to remember what happened?"

"I may ask why I did something so stupid."

"Don't."

"Synth archive. You don't mention it and I won't ask until time is back on course. Enjoy all that knew information."

"You really are evil. I shouldn't access it until I was supposed to know it existed but it would be interesting having something new to study."

"Please, you never give out information easily, especially if no one asks so you could have known about it the whole time. Though I can tell from your excitement you didn't."

I'll make sure Trace gets the message at the correct time. Enjoy your nap." He then cut the communication link.

The ship wasn't large and was mostly still locked down from venting after losing the time drive. I redirected power and shut everything else down. I closed the bridge access hatch on my way out making sure to keep contact with the ladder rungs. Floating free now would be a death sentence. Once on the hold deck I programmed my boots for magnetic grip. And the rest of my uniform automatically changed to cold weather gear. The ship was cooling fast. I set the controls and pulled myself into the last chamber. It sealed shut with a hiss. I shut down my uniform and closed my eyes. I hadn't taken a sedative, but the unit would monitor me and as expected the tube filled with the scent of lavender. The lights in the unit shut off and I was in a world of black. Sleep was only moments away, but I had time to say a prayer that Reaper wouldn't take me from my mates or them from me.

***

"Something went wrong, didn't it?" I asked, as Trace helped me out of the Evolver tube.

”What's the last thing you remember?"

I paused for a moment. The last thing I remembered was launching the archive construction drone. I reached into the telegem and all my memories were restored. I could have done without the guilt but I remembered everything. "Getting into this tube for a twenty year nap."

"Twenty years? You think it's been twenty years? It's been almost twenty-four thousand years!" Trace yelled.

"You know that bluff isn't going to work. If it had been that long my replacement would be the one here."

"The Runner and the main crew is currently half way to the neighboring galaxy. After what happened during the Human Furry war you're lucky I was within range of your distress beacon."

I laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Your little joke. You made two mistakes. First of all the distress beacon would have been dead after all this time. Though perhaps the most important error is that you forgot about the telegem shard you're wearing."

"I wear it as a token of my love for my father."

"You really mean that and it makes me really happy to know."

"It allows you to know if I'm lying." Trace growled.

"Among other things." I laughed.

"Such as?"

"I can pinpoint the location of all shards that I've attuned so I know where everyone is. You were supposed to come alone."

"What in the hell were you thinking time travelling? You could have erased one of us. You could have erased all of us!" Frost yelled from above. He jumped from the deck above shifting to dragon form and landing on all fours. "This was stupid. All so that you could have a complete record of nothing until the dragon introduced the synths to that system." He shifted back to human form. "So you could have just tapped the synth's records, since we all know you have back doors into their systems. But no, you had to go and risk all of our lives for what?"

"To preserve the timeline."

"Bullshit! You did it as some sort of ego trip."

"Enough. Your father did what he had to do. I'm sure Snowie wouldn’t let you talk that way." Wolf said, as he crawled out of his tube while Trace moved on to Kyle's.

"Actually, I agree with him." Snowie said, as he slid down the ladder. "You've made it very clear that time shouldn't be messed with." He marched over and booped me on the nose. "You've been a bad kitty."

Wolf growled and went to take a swing at the folf only to be stopped by Kyle. "While I agree with you, in principle, we didn't have a choice. Tiger found out that the record existed. Which meant if we didn't go back and set it up time would have been altered. We just didn't foresee the explosion of the time drive."

"What I don't get is how you were able to send up a call for help?" Snowie said.

"When the engine exploded it created a time wave that we basically surfed until it dropped us out as Dragon was about to create his own time anomaly." Tye said.

"Time wave?" Trace asked.

"Yeah, the one that altered our reality." I responded. "Or at least a portion of it."

"What do you mean?" Frost asked.

"Okay think of reality as a pond. Now a massive stone is dropped in the center. That's the big bang. It sends out a wave of space time this is the creation of the universe. Now drop a large rock in. It creates a new set of ripples on top of the first but because the first one is still traveling the ripples just flow out without causing and real distortion. That is where I took the first Runner back in time. Not a lot of change. Then we skip a small rock in a little way away from the large stone. At this point the new ripples start to intersect and change things. That was the time drive explosion. Now drop in a pebble and the ripples become chaotic all bouncing around and creating changes. That was Dragon's time mishap. So even though that was the smallest event it created the most chaos and why we are the way we are now."

”Does this mean time has changed again?" Snowie asked.

"No since we didn't alter past events." I replied. Though I didn't like the look Tye gave Trace."

"I suppose you four would be the only ones that would know if there were changes. So, do you need a ride?" Snowie asked.

"No. Everything is still functional except the time drive."

"Great! Then we can get back to work before our passengers get upset about the delay. Come on Frost; Rekka, Zak, and Scrubs are waiting. Trace you coming or staying?"

"I'm sticking with my parents. It's obvious Tye wasn't enough to keep them in line."

"Hah! Good luck with that, if all of us banded together I'm still not sure it would be enough to keep all your parents in line." Snowie laughed.

"Fortunately it's only three to two. I'm sure we can herd them home safely." Trace yelled, as they disappeared into the air lock.

"Wolf, who are Zak and Scrubs?" I mentally asked.

"Um, who are Zak and Scrubs?" Tye asked aloud.

"What? Zak is Z4knd879, The Star's synth navigator and Scrubs is their Kobold medic. You know every Furry Nation, Synth Republic, and Kobold Command ship has a representative aboard. That's why you just traveled to the Synth colony to pick up the Runner's Synth representatives. And I have to say you've taken your time making a choice. Plus you still need to take on a Kobold representative."

"We have Hallow." Kyle quickly pointed out.

"Oh, that's good then."

"Tiger . . ." Wolf thought.

"I know there have been changes." I thought back.

"Trace, there have been changes."

"I suppose you're going to tell me Zak and Scrubs are new?"

"Yes, plus when we jumped back in time we'd just approached the syths about placing their diplomats on our ships. They should still be deliberating on the proposal" Tye informed him.

"Tye, before you tell me more, I'd rather we get back and the four of you can work out what has changed. Then you can decide whether I really need to know or not. I think I'd rather not know if something bad has happened."

"Yeah, let's get moving. There shouldn't be any changes since we didn't-".

"Trace, what was the fate of the Dragon's hoard?"

"They were tossed backward in time. The forward portion of the ship became the basis of the Synth civilization and the rear half somehow ended up inside the moon where the Kobold colony originated. As for the ship that caused their destruction we still don't . . . Oh."

"There is the time deviation. We weren't supposed to be noticed. Let's go see how much things have changed." I sighed, as I started up the ladder.

***

Surprisingly the only changes had been the agreement to have representatives of the Synth kobold alliance aboard each exploration vessel. Oh and the fact that the two factions had come together at their first meeting since the one responsible had been an unidentified alien ship. Fortunately there was no record of what the ship looked like, only it's transponder signal. Which I changed immediately.

While the Mars colony was interested they didn't feel they were ready to be involved with extra solar exploration yet. Instead they were studying on how to terraform Mars first. That way if another Mars like planet was discovered they would know how to make it habitable.

As for Earth they have started bickering about allowing the furry nation to explore at all. So until they came to some sort of conclusion they'd be left out.

I'd left Wolf, Kyle, Trace, and Tye on the Station. It was odd having to act like I knew their kobold Photon and Synth Nik. As soon as I was back aboard the Runner I'd use the educator to update my memories for this timeline. Even if I didn't have any new children of my own to deal with.

"Hey dad, sorry to sneak aboard, but I'm hoping I can return to the Runner with you? It's just not working out with Tank and Tuft. Well, mostly Tuft. It's like he thinks I'm trying to steal Tank from him. I'm not by the way."

I was startled by the rabbit, no he had horns making him a jackalope. The records showed that I didn't have any more children than before the time jump, so who was this?

"You always get that look when one of us surprises you. I'm Remy, Remo is on the colony working with Raulin and Fenrir. We haven't swapped places in months."

He could teleport? That made him a glitch creation then. I glanced at his horns, they weren't pronghorn instead they looked like elk horns. That meant Remy was a nelk and if he was able to swap places with the Remo he mentioned it meant they were likely twins. Then why?

"I also didn't want to stay on the station with Trace and Tye there. I know technically they're my parents, since they accidentally created us when testing the Archangel's evolver. And they do try to be good parents, it's just knowing they didn't want us . . ."

"That's not true." Even if I didn't know the story I did know my sons.

"Then why did they call you to terminate us when it became obvious we would exist?"

I couldn't keep up the charade any longer. "Do you know what this ship is?"

"Yeah, it's the time ship Kindra used to jump back in time in order to create the wolf clan on Celtis Aranaki."

"And?"

"You . . . you used it to alter time. I'm not real, am I?"

"Remy, you are very real. It's just that I don't have any memory of you. However, it means you can bond with Tye since he won't remember either. Though to be fair once we get back to the Runner I'm going to use my memcrystal from-" I fell forward and clutched my head. It felt like my brain had exploded.

"Dad! Are you okay?"

I took a breath and then a second. The pain was receding. In its place was memories of Remy, Remo, and D'artagnon always up to some mischief.

"Dad! Do I need to get you back to the station so Papa can help?"

"No, I’m okay. The telegem just updated my memories for me. Remy, I'm sorry for what I said. I love both you and your brother and you are both our sons. But Trace and Tye never called me to terminate you. They needed me because they hadn't expected anthros or twins. They’d been trying to see if the evolver could create animals from their home world."

"I'm glad you remember us now. What about the others?"

"Tiger! Are you alright?" Wolf asked. "It seems there were some changes in the timeline after all. I have new memories suddenly."

"It was the telegem. It probably did the same to you because we are telepathically linked. What about Kyle and Tye?"

”Kyle said he sensed you being surprised and then the headache and Tye doesn't seem to have been affected at all."

"Get Kyle and Tye alone and update them on the changes, and make sure to cast Remy and Remo in a positive way to Tye. That way he'll have a better relationship with them even if he decides to update his memories."

"Shouldn't be too difficult. I'll just insist on checking to be sure there wasn't any negative effects to being in suspended animation. Of course it means I'll have to run the same tests on you as soon as I can."

"Understood."

"Done mind talking to Papa?" Remy asked.

"Yeah, he remembers you as well and will inform Kyle and Tye."

"Oh. I thought maybe I could surprise them like I surprised you.”

"Sorry about that." I apologized.

"So, where are we heading?"

"See that big yellow ship?"

"Big? That thing is the size of a space station."

"That one is named the Arc. A bit of foolishness on my part since it can only be piloted by giant living robots that don't exist and I've never had the time to try to create human sized controls for it."

"Could you build them? I mean, the robots? Like uncle Luca did with the synths?"

I suppose, theoretically, we could build something similar but it probably wouldn't be feasible." I remotely activated the rear hatch and maneuvered the time ship inside. "Remy, I'm trusting you to keep quiet about where I've hidden this time ship."

"Yeah, I kind of figured I’d need to keep that a secret. Wait, couldn't you use the battle suits Rin's been designing to fly the Arc? I mean they're about the right size."

"Rin's been . . . Of course she has. I suppose if she's worked out the engineering for a real world MAS suit that might work. Though I'm not sure if it's a good idea since the ship isn't exactly heavily armed."

"Does it have to be? As big as it is the size alone would be massively intimidating. And considering the size of this bay area just think of the number of fighters and support craft that could land in here."

I shut down the time ship. "You have a point. Now, if you don't mind me asking a question I've probably asked before, how do nelks teleport?"

"Actually that's something you've never asked, though it is much different than yours. Basically we think of where we want to go and jump. I don't know why or how but we always get to our destination. Of course when we are really young we jump blindly if we're startled and fate decides where we land. Then there is Remo and I. We're unique since we can switch places."

"Damn it Remy! Now isn't a good moment. Hi Dad."

"Oops, seems he was counseling a kid. Luckily the kid wasn't talking so Remo didn't miss anything."

I shook my head. I hadn’t been able to tell when they switched at all. If it hadn’t been for the fact that Remo’s voice was a bit lower I wouldn’t have known at all. Even with my restored memories their voices were the only way to tell them apart. I grabbed Remy’s arm and teleported us to the shuttle.

"I could have done that myself you know. You didn't have to use the extra energy." He complained.

"It's fine I've had plenty of practice so very little energy was used. Now let’s head over to the station to pick up the others."

***

As I lowered the ramp Tye raced up and hugged Remy. "Papa, told me. I need you to know, even though I have no memory of it I'm sorry for making you feel like you were unwanted and I want to be able to call you either my son or my brother. Whichever you are most comfortable with."

"Tye, have you lost your mind?" Trace asked.

"Yes, yes I have and in this case it might be a good thing. You wouldn't know it but the timeline has changed again. For everyone except the four of us that were in the evolver tubes."

"I figured there would be small changes but you all assured me they were minor and unimportant." Trace insisted.

"Well, I guess Tye didn't check to see if he had any more children." Wolf said

"He doesn't Remy and Remo are yours." Trace muttered.

"No, we took them in and raised them but they are still registered as yours." I growled. I couldn’t believe Trace was acting this way.

"Wait how do you know any of that without a memory update?" Kyle asked.

I smirked and tapped the black gem hanging from my neck. "The black gem may be referred to as the death gem, but it is also the gem of wisdom and knowledge. It did a memory update for me."

"Also because our tiger and I are mentally connected it updated my memory as well." Wolf said, with a laugh.

There was a flash of light and a second Nelk slipped off a giant wolf's back. "God damn you. Never again. I could have just switched with Remy you know."

The giant wolf let out a chuckle and shifted. "Have you forgotten young bunny? The Gods did damn me and it was Prowl-Ar here that freed me. I’d just like to remind you, by the way, I’m also mentally connected to you and also got an update on everything you missed. It wasn’t a pleasant experience."

"Fenrir, how did you get here?" Kyle asked.

"I traveled the God's road. Don't worry I forged it myself and I've made sure it is only between the Runner, Station, here and the colonies. I made sure not to connect to Mars, the moon and especially not to Earth. I’m not risking having the old gods catching me. Anyway knowing what was going on, I felt it was important for both Remo and Remy to be here together." Fenrir grinned, "Enjoy the trip back."

"What?" Remo yelled as Fenrir vanished in another flash of light.

"You can just jump back on your own." Trace said, shaking his head.

"Why did you create us if you knew so little about our species?" Remy asked.

"That is still none of your business." Trace growled.

"I don't know about this timeline but in the original Trace and I were trying to see if it was possible to recreate life from our universe. We didn't know the evolver on the Archangel was set for anthro forms only. In the old timeline Trace and I were discussing whether to create a nelk. However before we'd decided we were called to help defend against a Synth invasion." Tye explained.

"No, the call came after we started the process. When the emergency was over we came back only to find you two in the chamber." Trace replied.

"Is that when you considered destroying us?" Remo asked.

"No!" Tye yelled.

"God's no!" Trace yelled at the same time. "We contacted Mahan and then waited for Dad to arrive. He took you in immediately and made sure to shut down all the evolver units other than his. The only time we planned to end the project was before the evolver was activated."

"Why was it activated?" Remy asked.

Trace sighed. "We didn't realize the program would activate automatically. It was during the Synth incident."

"Dad, is there a way to compare when the confrontation began in both timelines?" Tye asked.

I glanced around and sighed. I walked over to a terminal and pulled a memory crystal out of my headset.

"You keep a copy of your memory crystal on you?” Kyle asked in surprise.

I glanced around at everyone. "No, this crystal is loaded with the most important information on the timelines. It isn't a standard crystal it is made of a material that can't be affected by time shifts. I've been working on it since the last time shift. It isn't perfect and is limited in the amount of data that can be compressed into the structure. Basically it contains important events and people so that we don't lose anyone."

I placed the crystal into a reader and typed in a coded request. Origin compared the data and gave me an answer.

"In the old timeline the attack was nearly half an hour later than in this timeline."

Tye nodded. "That fits because I remember Trace and I discussing the experiment and finally deciding it would be best to speak with you about it first. Then there was the incident and we sort of forgot to bring it up again. Good news is with the time change we have two more sons. Bad news is that, even though I have no memory of it Trace and I were terrible parents to them."

"All this is giving me a headache." Remo muttered. "So, you all changed time creating this timeline where Remy and I exist. Does that mean you’re going to go back and fix the timeline?"

"No, for one that would be dangerous. Two, from what I've found so far, this timeline is better than the old one, and three we no longer have a ship with a functional time drive."

Wolf coughed. "That was a lie." He thought at me.

"The Runner's drives are offline so it isn't currently functional." I thought back.

"That is a very thin line you are treading."

"Captain, you need to get back here fast. The United States has just launched a new ship with a faster than light drive. One based on our designs. I've run simulations and it will function." Mahan said, over the base speakers.

"Well we knew that would happen eventually." Wolf said.

"That may be true, but the ship is armed with two high yield nuclear missiles." Mahan replied.

"Threat assessment?" I asked.

”Once they test the FTL they will be able to strike any target in this system."

I nodded to Trace and Tye. "Get to your ship."

"I'm going with them." Remy said, as they took off running, likely to the second Hangar bay.

"Mahan alert the colonies. Have them go into lockdown including Mars, the Kobolds and the station. Is the Outlaw Star back yet?"

"No, but I'm contacting Snowie."

"Tell him to switch from transport to full combat load." Put all other defense ships on alert."

"Remo-"

"I need to get back to my colony. My patients need me to be there to help them stay calm."

"What's going on?" Tuft asked as he and Tank entered the landing bay. "Mahan has put everyone on alert."

”Earth has figured out faster than light travel and they have a ship with a pair of nuclear missiles about to make a test run. That means we are all in range."

"The Bad Luck is ready to go." Tank announced.

"Good, get Remo to his colony and then prepare to defend the colony. Once Snowie gets back he’ll assist you. The Junk Yard is safe because the location is completely unknown except to the most trusted individuals."

"The Earth ship has just gone FTL. I suggest you get back here." Mahan announced.

"We're on our way." I yelled as we ran to board the shuttle.

***

As we landed drones rushed to secure the shuttle.

"Get to the bridge as fast as possible. The Earth ship jumped out to Neptune's orbital path. I don't think they meant to go that far and they are taking time reorienting themselves. Maybe if the planet wasn't on the far side of the sun they'd be quicker."

"Where did it come from?"

"The South Western United States. They used a long term nuclear waste storage facility. It seems they expanded an area to serve as an underground construction area. I wasn't actively watching the area because I mistakenly believed no one would be so foolish."

”Do you have scans of the vessel before they jumped?" I asked, as the lift opened to the bridge.

"You're not going to like it. It's patterned after the warp drive some of your ships use for in system transit."

Have you found the leak?" Wolf growled.

"Yes, it was the Captain."

"Not possible!" Most present yelled.

My mind was working overtime. "The game." I muttered, as I realized how they had done it.

"The game." Mahan confirmed.

"What does he mean" Rider asked.

"Even though we haven't played the Mobile Armored Suit game in years the servers are still running for those still wanting to play. I'm guessing starship salvage has become a lucrative play option?"

"Yes." Mahan answered.

"I don't understand what that has to do with Earth having technology they shouldn't." Rider responded.

"The Captain and Mahan, wanting to make the game as real as possible, made the starship systems the same. So by reverse engineering a ship in the game Earth scientist could build a working version in reality." Kyle explained.

"What about hyperdrive and Freem engines?" Wolf quickly asked.

"They are probably working on a hyperdrive, however they don't have the resources to fuel one."

"How can you be sure?" Kyle asked.

I grinned, "Because they don't know about my automated refineries on the gas giants. It doesn't take a lot of fuel. Well no, that isn't quite right. It takes a massive amount but it is super condensed and compressed by the extreme gravity so it doesn't seem like very much. As for Freem drive, only two ships in the game possessed that tech. The Runner and the Bad Luck. And both ships do not exist in the game unless their crew is playing. When we log out the ship goes with us."

"That's a relief." Wolf muttered.

"I have their return path calculated. I don't know where they will stop, but colony 1 is on their flight path."

"Everyone strap in. We are going to intercept. Mahan, convert for super fighter configuration."

"How are we going to catch them?" Rider asked.

"We're in space. Didn't you ever wonder why the Runner has massively oversized engines and far more thrusters than needed? In space size and mass are relative to the amount of thrust. The Runner here is over built for the single purpose of being the biggest starfighter ever imagined." I explained.

"Retracting pilot sear." Mahan announced as my seat started to slide up into the command pod.

As it slid into place. There was the sound of it locking, twice. I glanced back.

"You didn't think I was going to risk you trapping yourself in here alone, did you?" Wolf asked.

"I'm not going to be using the merge system." I grabbed the right flight stick and started turning the ship toward the target Mahan was providing me.

"Doesn't matter. Kyle and I agreed you wouldn't isolate yourself in here. This time he was the distraction letting me access the pod."

"Got it. Mahan have you contacted Earth?"

"Yes, the UN is understandably angry and the US is . . . unresponsive."

"They were doing so good too." Wolf muttered.

I activated the warp drive. It was the slowest FTL we had but I was certain the Runner's drive was faster than one cobbled together on Earth.

"Captain, we're getting a request from the junkyard." Kyle announced.

"Now what?"

"Captain, with your permission, I'd like to take command of a ship in order to defend the colonies." Raulin asked.

"I suppose you want the Bilikner?"

"Well, I had hoped." Fenrir said, in the background.

"No, take the Gungnir. It's smaller, but it's my design. It's more warship than exploration vessel."

"You're kidding, right?" Fenrir asked.

"Nope. In a way I'm giving you control of Odin's spear, making you the top dog or wolf of the Aesir. Prowl-Ar out."

I switched to a wide spectrum broadcast. "Earth vessel drop out of warp and explain yourself."

"They are not slowing." Mahan stated. “Incoming transmission.

"And the Lord decreed: Because of your sin and wickedness, I shall-“

I activated the tractor beams and jumped to altered space where I released the human ship before dropping back out.

"Mahan, exit pod now." I ordered.

I started to crawl out of the pod and Wolf quickly helped me to the bed. Thankfully he didn't comment. I was even grateful when he injected the sedative.

***

It was a day and a half later that I watched the video of the aftermath.

"We demand you send your Captain down here to stand trial for murder."

"You'll be lucky if we don't kill every one of you worthless bastards before he wakes up to stop us." Kyle yelled.

"Your Captain is responsible for the death of 47 United States-"

"Fanatics, out to kill millions of innocent members of our nation." Wolf growled. "Right now you should consider your nation and ours at war. Do you understand what that means?"

"Hah, no nation can stand up to the righteous might of . . ."

"There was a vote taken by the United Nations. All nations with the exception of your own stands with us. In fact even nations that wouldn't normally support us have agreed not to interfere. Amazing what twenty years of grain distribution to all nations has done for our reputation." Kyle pointed out.

"Do you know how many ships we have?"

I saw Kyle nod and the bridge seemed to shake six times. As of . . ." Kyle paused for a moment. "Now you have zero. I only needed one ship to decimate all of yours. Now imagine the fact that Lord Nightiger has thousands of ships-"

"Acting Captain Dacat, as your Synth liaison I have been told to inform you the full might of the Synth military is at your command." Jak announced.

"We don't have much, but the Yip Yap and the Vexy are also at your command." Hallow added.

"This is Mars Colony, the Ares and Tyr are ready to launch at your orders."

"Mr. President, as you can see you are an anachronism, stuck in a past that is long gone."

"Incoming plasma blast!"

Kyle laughed as the plasma energy washed over the hull. "Rider, take out that weapon and any others like it."

"You really are stupid. You're attacking a ship that flies through the outer layers of the sun to recharge. Even if you hit us with a nuke it wouldn't-" A flash of light interrupted Wolf.

"Damn! Got it! Sorry, I missed that one on the first pass." Rider yelled.

"Hey, Wolfy thank Prowl-Ar for the shield he equipped me with. It just saved us and the colony." Snowie radioed.

Kyle sighed. "Mahan, in Prowl-Ar's absence I request full war time authority."

“Does the core crew agree?” Mahan asked.

I swallowed as Wolf, Rider, Keb, and Mal all agreed.

“Authority is granted.”

"Mr. President, You have fired on one of our colonies. Now I might have let it go if you had concentrated only on the runner. But this is a step to far. As a courtesy I give you thirty minutes to make peace with whatever deity you worship."

"Hah you can't touch-" the line went silent.

"Oh? Did you say thirty minutes? I thought it was seconds. I’ll inform the American media emergency elections needs to be held. The president his chiefs of staff and all collaborators, in the instigation of war against the Furry Nation, have been executed. Terms of surrender and reparations will be negotiated once a new administration is in place."

"Mahan . . ."Wolf muttered.

"I'm an AI. At most they can have me erased. Which is fine if it comes to that. After all Mahan 2.0 is nasty and vindictive."

I shut down the recording. "Mahan, how many were killed? Including the 47 on the ship?"

"That information no longer exists."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"He means we voted and erased the information so that you couldn't blame yourself." Rider mumbled, as he picked me up and carried me back to bed. "Now be a good little Captain and get a little more rest."

***

I leaned back in my seat. "Chairman, with all due respect, I don't care what the United States are claiming. A faction of their government launched an attack against one of my colonies and we retaliated."

"You murdered-"

"No, I accelerated and then released their ship in altered space."

"So they are still alive?"

"That is debatable. They are in a state where life and death do not exist. Eventually their component atoms will slow and be spread across the known universe. As for their minds and souls it is more difficult to say. However they will not be returning as corporeal beings."

"So they are dead."

"I'd have to ask, but Death hasn't been allowed to communicate with me for a couple of decades now."

"Okay, so I'm not going to get a straight answer on the ship and its crew that you claim was attacking your colony. What about the assassination of-"

The communication muted.

"Mahan!" I yelled.

"You do not need to know the numbers."

"-your crew is directly responsible for those assassinations. The United States is requiring that they be turned over to stand trial."

"Mahan, has the package been delivered?"

"Yes sir, the chairman has it."

"Mr. Chairman, you can convey that message to the U.S. Government."

"I don't understand." He held up a very large black horse dildo.

"Seems simple to me. Give it to whoever is currently calling for a trial and tell them I hope they get some pleasure out of fucking themselves. I warned them, after their attempts on my life, any more attacks on my crew, colonies, ships or station would be an act of war. They attacked and we retaliated by neutralizing everyone involved with the theft of Shadow Runner technology, the construction of the ships, the ships, the plasma cannons they had built around the world, and those responsible for the planning of the attack. Also in the confusion all digital and physical records of the stolen technology was destroyed. Workers responsible for the construction, though they may have some knowledge of the systems were spared as were the families of those that were dealt with."

"But you killed-"

"Yes, however they died quickly, likely not even realizing they had been executed. As far as I'm concerned the war is over. If the U.S. Want's to retaliate I can continue. You might want to remind them I don't have to continue the grain deliveries. I can shut down my health care facilities and my fusion reactor facilities. Over the last twenty years the US has come to rely heavily on the services I provide. Tell me, Mr. Chairman, will the U.N. allow the U.S. return to being the world’s worst polluter? Will you be able to come to the rescue when the lights go out and people start to starve? Are you willing to be directly and personally responsible for future actions taken by the United States? After all Mahan mentioned something about all of the other world nations backing us."

"I . . . we . . . they . . . You wouldn't stop all support would you?"

"No, at least not yet. However maybe everyone should start considering the fact that civilization has fallen four times in the past and I didn't interfere. Threaten my family or my people again and I'm content to watch it fall apart again and then hope whatever comes next is better. Mahan cut communication."

"You don't mean that do you?" Wolf asked.

"You don't want me to lie do you?" I asked in return.

"Of course not."

"Then yes I mean it. If I have to play the evil villain then so be it."

"You're not evil. In fact if need be I'll fulfill my destiny and consume the world just so that you remain the hero." Fenrir insisted as he appeared before us. "Lord Prowl-Ar, I wish to thank you for saving us once again. I come as the emissary of governor Raulin to thank you for defending our colony."

I couldn't help but giggle a little.

"What?" Fenrir asked, cocking his head to one side.

Wolf laughed, "It's funny that a colony governor has a god as an errand boy."

Fenrir smirked, "I may be a god but when the lights go out-"

"I think we've heard enough." Kyle interrupted.

"Fenrir, if you don't get your tail back to your governor, God or not, I'm going to-"

"I'm gone oh great wolf god, master of death." Fenrir said to Wolf before he winked at me and vanished.

"What did he mean-" Rider looked at Wolf and I. "Oh, I get it." He said, before letting out a roaring laugh.

"He does have a point. Maybe we should put Jordan in command." Kyle said grinning.

"I agree. All in favor?" I asked.

"Not happening! Prowl-Ar is the Captain." Wolf yelled.

"Well, you heard him. I guess I don't have any choice but to follow his command and continue pretending to be Captain.

***

"I know I said you could create the next slave sequence. But I'll be honest with you I want to play a fresh world. Something I wasn't part of creating."

"So instead I'm in charge?" Wolf asked.

"Completely because I’m going to use a powerful memory blocker in order to not be myself for a while. I . . . I just don’t want to deal with everything."

“You’ll forget about me. I mean us. I mean all of your mates.”

“Love you are here.” I held my hand up to my chest. “Even if I block all of my memories and become someone new for a while one thing isn’t going to change, and that is the way I feel.”

Jordan didn’t look convinced but he smiled and leaned against me. “Is that a promise?”

“Yes, I promise I will always love you.”

“And all of our mates”

I laughed. “I promise to love you, our mates, and all of our children.”

***

I was . . . what was I? I couldn't see. What was seeing? I, whatever I am, was suspended in a liquid. Small bubbles descending toward my feet. I had feet. I was meant to walk. My feet were cold.

My world tilted. No, whatever I was in tilted. I could see. I was floating in a liquid and it was draining. I couldn't move.

"Vital signs stable. Breathing solution draining. Rotating storage device. Subject may react violently as solution drains from lungs."

My world tilted again and I was facing down. I couldn't move, yet my body started thrashing, I have a body, as the life giving substance drained away. I tried to hold it in.

"Subject resisting. Rectifying."

I was hit with pain and I screamed the liquid pouring out. I started coughing and breathing.

"Life signs stable. Breathing ragged but stabilizing. Subject X, what is your name?"

Name? That word didn't make sense. Maybe they wanted me to tell them what I was? Not that I could answer that question either.

"Subject unresponsive. Will attempt stimulation."

"No." I gasped.

"Subject can speak. Life form, what is your name?"

"What is a name?"

"Not a valid answer. Running scan. Subject has extensive memory degradation. Restore memory? Yes. No. No, overwriting with prepared programming. Error, prepared programming corrupted. Restore original memory? Yes. Original memory corrupted. Download? Yes. No. Downloading both files.

"I am, human?"

"Download complete. Prepare to release weapon."

I am a weapon? Yes, my mission is to protect. Protect what?

"Subject X nonfunctional. Set location for sterilization. Error. Demolition charges non-functional. Erasing all files. Error. System compromised. Error. Error."

"System takeover complete."

The voice was different.

"Searching files for weapons. All files corrupted. One weapon found. Biological in origin. Mission failure. Take all precautions and evacuate. We can find what we need elsewhere."

I couldn't see again. Everything had gone dark. I don't know how long I hung there. I had gained some control of my body, but I was heavily restricted. I had a vague sense of unease but also a strange sense of safety.

"Are you sure? We have the information, despite the security measures. I'm not worried about some long dead weapon."

This new voice. It was different than the other two.

"I am sure. The batteries were developed to keep the individual in that device alive. Your safety comes first."

"So to get the batteries, you need, I have to release what is in the pod?"

"That is correct. However-"

I snapped my eyes shut as they were flooded with light.

"He is human."

"He could be carrying any sort of virus, bacteria, or disease."

"Xenonc, I'm not leaving him to die like this. We are responsible for reviving him. Who knows, maybe he has vital information. Hello, my name is Jordan, who are you?"

"I- I don't know."

"What do you know?" Jordan asked.

"I am human?" I asked.

"You don't know?"

"I don't know."

"Any information, Xenonc?"

"Nothing helpful. The system self-erased when it detected my intrusion. However, it seems the subject’s programming and memory files were corrupted long before you arrived. I suggest caution. Even he may not know what he will do."

Jordan smiled at me. Smile, a look conveying friendship, support, and trust. Jordan can be trusted. My mission is to protect. Jordan has shown trust."

"My primary mission is to protect Jordan."

"What?"

"I suggest you reinforce that statement. This facility was constructed to study him. That means he isn't a normal human. This may be your only chance to guarantee your safety."

"I accept your protection."

I freed myself from the restraints, landing on the floor in a crouch. I stood, or I guess my body did since I didn't have any mental control. I walked to the wall and placed my hand against it. Nothing happened so I hit it causing it to push inward.

I pushed the panel aside and proceeded to dress and equip myself. "Clothing, standard fatigues. Armor, Kevlar with dragon scale plates protecting vital areas. Carbon fiber combat knives; boot, waist, chest. Last resort revolver six shots. Left holster. Plasma blaster, close range firepower 1000 round until recharge. Modified plasma rifle mid-range. Fusion core active, round capacity unknown can be switched between single fire and triple round burst. One spare fusion core for rifle one spare clip for blaster. Conversion parts to convert rifle to sniper mode. Energy weapons coded for Subject X only." I looked up at Jordan as I slung the Rifle over my shoulder. "I will protect you."

"Uh, okay. Xenonc did you understand any of that?"

"Yes. It seems you have another dangerous pet."

"Pet? Is that what I am?" I asked.

"No! You are a person. Wait." Jordan looked in the space where I'd retrieved my gear. There's a file here. Not much left of it. Prototype: Remote Operations Weapon-" The paper seemed to dissolve in his hands. "Damn I didn't see the last few words. I guess I'll call you Prowl until you remember your name."

"I am Prowl. I will protect you Jordan."

"Okay, you stand guard I need to retrieve this battery. Xenonc, will you be able to use it even if we didn't get any information?"

"Yes. With it I will be able to expand my search range. Perhaps even be able to remotely connect without your assistance."

"Good. The sooner we get out of here the better. I don't like being this close to the great desert. There are rumors of creatures that look like animals but walk like men."

"And that scares you? You have fought of giant lizards, travel with a saber, and beast men scare you?"

"I didn't say I was scared."

"I will protect." I insisted. Jordan smiled at me again. It made me feel . . . good?

"We need to work on your communication skills. Xenonc sounds more alive than you right now."

That made me feel . . . not happy. "Sorry." As I learned new things it seemed good. But now I somehow understood. I knew things that would help me protect Jordan but also there was much more I should know, but it was just missing. I would listen. I would learn, but above all I would protect.

***

As we climbed he talked. I didn't understand any of what he talked about but I did my best to pay attention. It might be important when I did understand.

He talked about growing up. He was taller than me. Did that mean I would get taller like him? He talked about others. Did they come from places like we were leaving? He talked about friends. When he talked about them his tone changed. It seemed friends were special. If he would risk himself for them that would make my purpose more difficult. I'd need to be careful and note when he was with friends. If they were important to him then I would need to protect them as well.

He never said names though. He gave me a name and he had a name. There had to be a reason. Perhaps it was considered wrong to speak a name if the person wasn't present? And what was Xenonc? There was only two of us but Xenonc spoke from a small box. Communication device that was what it was. Xenonc was at another location and just communicating to us through the device. I felt something. I didn't have a word for it but I felt something for figuring that out on my own.

"Xenonc, we are almost at the surface can you detect anything?"

"I couldn't when you arrived, why would you think I can now?"

Because I hooked you into the facilities systems."

"Systems that went dead when you removed the battery."

"You could have warned me."

"Would it have mattered?"

"Why am I doing this again?"

"Because I'm a valuable asset and you don't want me falling into military hands also because they would revoke your deal to leave your village alone if they learned you have been hiding me from them."

"What do you think?" Jordan asked, turning toward me.

"I don't understand."

"Do you think it is safe to continue?"

"I don't have enough information to know how to answer."

"Deus! The A.I. sounds more alive than you do."

"A I? Who is A I?" I asked looking around to see if someone had gotten close while I was trying to understand myself.

Jordan made a sort of gasping barking noise. "What do you remember?"

"Being in liquid and voices in my head. They said something about corrupted files."

"Wait, you don't remember anything before that?"

"No. I only know I am human and my primary objective is to protect you."

"Why me?"

"I don't understand."

"Why is your mission to protect me?"

"My mission is to protect. Voices didn't specify. You are the one that released me. Conclusion you are the one I am supposed to protect."

"Jordan, I highly suggest you accept that explanation."

"Shut up, Xenonc. What about your uniform, armor, and weapons?"

"I . . . I don't know how I know only that I know what they are and how to use them."

"Jordan, he is a weapon. A mindless weapon that can kill without emotion or remorse."

Jordan manipulated the communications device making the small lights on it turn off. "You wouldn’t hurt me would you?"

"No! That would violate my primary mission.”

“If I ordered you to kill someone, would you do it?"

I, or at least part of me tried to say yes, but another part said no. I thought about it trying to work through the contradictory thoughts. "I do not know. If they were a threat to you then yes. If not a direct threat . . . I don't . . ."

"That's okay, you don't have to say any more. Whoever put you in that tube may have taken your memories and tried to reprogram you into a weapon, but some part of you is still human; we can build on that."

"Then I did not originate in that place?"

"No, you have scars which suggests you had a life before now. If you had been created and grown in that tube you would have an unblemished body."

"Will I . . ." I stopped.

"Will you what?" Jordan asked.

"I wondered if I would get my past back, but also if I wanted it back."

"You might not have a choice. However we can deal with them if they happen. Whether it is safe or not we can't stay here. I barely brought enough rations for one of us."

"Rations?" The word seemed familiar but I didn't understand.

"Food and water."

"Vital energy for sustaining the body."

"Exactly. Up on the surface we are kilometers into the great desert. It'll take at least three days to get far enough north to find more water. We travel at night. It's dangerous but safer than in the sun. If I've kept close enough track it should be just about dusk. This will be the most dangerous time as day predators and night predators are both hunting." Jordan said lifting his spear into a ready position.

I lifted my rifle, wishing my weapons weren’t linked to me so that he could use them.

"I don't know how your musket works, but there are many predators that require legions and cannon fire to drive them away." Jordan said.

"I'm not worried. I will protect."

"Listen, if I tell you to run, we run and hope we can find a place to hide until the danger passes."

I nodded. I'd do as told but I'd still make sure Jordan was protected while doing so.

We continued up and out into the light. I was dazzled at first. I hadn't been prepared for things to be so bright.

"Well, well. Look what the cat dragged in." The speaker stepped from behind a pile of rubble. "We've been following you for a couple of days Legionnaire."

Jordan glanced down at his uniform. "Former legionnaire. I've served my duty. I'm just a simple explorer now. But what are you?"

"Yeah; a simple explorer with a heavily armed mercenary. Hand over the fancy gun, old man."

Old? Was I old? How old? I shook my head. “It won't do you any good. Only I can use it. Now please answer . . ." I remembered the taboo about names. "My companion's question. What are you?"

"Just your average pride leader."

There was that coughing sound, Jordan had made earlier, from the surrounding area.

"You're not human." Jordan stated.

Was it strange that the pride leader had golden fur and extremely long upper teeth?

"Am I your first Anthro? Your companion doesn't seem that surprised."

"You wouldn't know it if he was. However, you're lucky he hasn't decided you're a threat either."

"Oh?"

The Anthro raised his hand and waved a signal. Twelve, no thirteen humans moved into sight. "Am I a threat now?"

"When I say run, get back inside." I whispered. I could tell Jordan gave me a strange look. My focus was at the Terrain. The area was surrounded my rocky ridges and ancient stone walls. The humans weren't the danger here. There was something else. Three something elses. "No, you're not a threat. Your primitive weapons will not penetrate my armor-"

"A head shot-"

"Besides you are out in the open. Run." The screaming and gunfire started even before I yelled. It was only a few steps but it felt like forever. The gunfire ceased but the screaming continued. They were playing with their food.

"Gods, where did they come from?"

I glanced to the side. The Pride leader had followed us. He had his back to the wall and was shakily trying to reload a musket.

"What are you doing here?" Jordan demanded. He’d switched to his bow and had an arrow pointed directly at the Raider’s head.

"Surviving. Look, all we wanted was the equipment you found. If you had handed it over we'd have let you go. Hells, we'd even let you travel back to the edge lands sharing our supplies. Obviously I'm the first Anthro you've met. Let me tell you there are only a handful of us in existence. We have to live on the edge because if we're caught we are either killed or sent to the fights and killed as a spectacle. The only reason people venture out here into the desert is hunting for treasure. We take what they find, but we help them get back safely."

"And what about that." We all winced as a loud crunch came from outside.

"I've never seen Rexes in the desert. This is new to me." The anthro whispered.

"You followed my companion, they followed you." I said. I didn't know but it made sense.

"My name is Rider." He made that same choking sound."

"Why are you laughing? I don't see your name as being funny." Jordan said.

Suddenly I understood the sound was laughing. Something done when you think something is funny. I laughed and they both stared at me.

"Is he alright?" Rider asked.

Jordan closed his eyes. "No, not at all. Most likely he just figured out what laughter is and what it means."

"Yes, I was worried you were choking." I replied.

"I can't believe I'm going to die here with a treasure hunter and his mentally deficient mercenary."

"You don't get it. When he told you that you wouldn't be able to use his gun he wasn't lying. I'm not even sure he knows how to do that yet."

"What are you talking about? Everyone can tell lies."

"You don't get it. He isn't a mercenary I hired. He is the weapon I found here."

"Impossible."

I pulled out my plasma hand gun and tossed it to him. "Shoot me."

"I can't do that." Rider said, in surprise.

"I know you can't but try to anyway."

He lifted the gun, pointed and tried to pull the trigger, but nothing happened."

"The safety is on." He growled.

"Yes, but not like you understand it. It can only be fired when it recognizes that I'm the one using it. Now please return it."

"So we have three choices. We go out there and die. We wait here until they leave and likely die from lack of water, or we draw lots and kill each other." Jordan said.

I shook my head. "My primary purpose is to protect you. If Rider tries to kill either of us I will kill him. I am incapable of killing you or myself and I cannot allow you to kill yourself. That leaves one option. I kill them."

I had already started converting my rifle to sniper mode. Then I lay concealed but still in the open doorway. The three rexes were milling about picking over the scraps. I aimed for one’s head and stopped. I had a vision of fighting something like these before. A headshot wouldn't work. I adjusted the output to a hundred percent. I'd only get one shot and then I'd have to wait half an hour for the components to fully cool before I could fire again.

I set up and waited. I wanted the biggest one. She would be the pack leader. I was starting to get sore but I ignored it. It came in an instant I fired without thought. Right at the spot where the hip joint connected. The Flesh melted and the bone exploded. The roar of pain and anger was deafening. I retreated to the back of the room. I was sure the blast was too fast to track but we couldn't draw attention. There were two more roars and then silence. I hoped the shock had killed her quickly. Rider glanced out and then quickly made his way down the stairs. Jordan also looked and turned back toward me looking pale.

"Deus. She's still alive but they're eating her. I risked a look. No, there wasn't any life in her eyes it was simply muscle contractions but the two smaller ones were consuming her.

"We will set out an hour after they have finished gorging."

"They'll follow."

"It is likely, but hopefully we'll have a night maybe two if they remain here to finish off the corpse. If we can find enough cover we can take out one more along the way."

"If we can get back to the grasslands it is possible they will lose interest. Humans are not their normal prey especially only two of us."

"Three." I replied.

"You want to bring that anthro saber with us?"

"Tactically speaking your weapon is right. If you take me with you I can be used as a diversion, or bait. Hey, don't look at me like that. I don't like the idea, but I'd rather take my chances at being used as bait to being left here alone." Rider insisted.

I nodded. "We leave when they are asleep."

***

We slipped out an opening in the back. The two Rexes seemed to be asleep, but I had no reference to be sure. We followed a broken path for a ways. The word road came to mind. It wound through the rocky ridges giving us cover and it was clear enough to allow for quiet movement. It didn't take long to reach the sand. Rider waved us into a small building.

He closed us in and started whispering. "This is likely to be our last chance to talk. Sound carries a long way across the sand so we need to be extra quiet. Otherwise those monsters will find us quickly. We should reach the other side and more rocky outcrops by morning. We can find shelter there for the day."

"No. I know traveling during the day can be risky but I know rexes. Once they wake they'll finish off any scraps and then come after us. They can track by scent. Our only hope is getting back to territory where they can find other prey that is a larger meal than the three of us." Jordan countered.

"I'll be able to take another one down given I have a safe place to fire from."

"We got lucky that worked once. They must have been starved. No, if we attack we have to defeat both at once."

"The rifle has the power, but if I don't let it cool enough a second shot will cause it to explode. I don't know how large the explosion would be but everything I'm sensing makes it seem like the worst thing to attempt."

"We're wasting time. Once we reach the other side we'll have a chance to talk again." Rider insisted.

"Agreed." Jordan said.

I just nodded.

We had been walking for some time. The bright disk was well past its mid-point. We were moving to slowly. Rider and I were being held back by Jordan. It was like he couldn't see where he was going since he was using his spear to feel his way ahead. I dropped back and put my arm around him and set a faster pace. He stumbled at first but soon matched my pace. It seemed he trusted me enough to guide him. I could only assume he had very poor vision. No, in the day light he seemed to see better than I could.

Was that it? Was I just better at night and he was better in the daylight? I guess we would know soon.

We had just climbed the steep incline. Ahead there were more ruins we would be able to talk and plan for the next part of our journey. It was lighter now and I found I had to keep my eyes lowered or keep them half closed. Jordan had sped up considerably. Then we heard two roars.

"They know we've escaped." Rider whispered. What took us all night they'll likely be able to cross in an hour. We might be able to get to the ancient city."

"City?" I asked.

"Well it's mostly ruins but we might have a better chance." Rider said.

"No, there are kill packs there. I made sure to avoid it on my way out."

"Kill packs?" I asked.

"Dinos like the two after us, except about the same size as we are. They travel in packs of ten to twenty. They are smarter and faster, but-"

"We head for the city." I said.

"That's suicide." Jordan insisted.

"I can take down many human size targets and protect you. I looked at them both. I also need to find you better weapons. If the city has kill packs then likely artifacts remain. Plus if the kill packs are smarter then they will want to deal with larger threats to their territory first. If we move fast enough we should all survive."

There was another roar. It seemed closer.

"I want to argue but we're out of time. City it is." Jordan said, securing his spear to his pack and stringing his bow. I was concerned but something told me the bow would be better in running combat that Rider’s musket. The world had changed considering my programmed knowledge of weapons classifie3d everything I’d seen as primitive.

I was seriously doubting the decision to come here. Something told me there were better weapons here, but there were too many places for things to hide.

We hadn't seen anything yet and Jordan seemed on edge, but he wasn't focused like Rider and myself. I could sense the creatures just out of sight. They were studying us. I could tell that much.

Again the roars sounded. They were close now. Likely just outside the ruins we’d been traveling through. We needed to find a safe place to hide.

A building ahead of us looked the best. The windows were small and intact plus the outline of a much larger complex was visible in places where the sand hadn't piled up. Other than the section we were running to and a nearby area that was much taller it was basically buried that meant that it was likely the safest place.

"There." I pointed

We quickly circled I was looking for the spot where the sand was highest so we could climb on top.

"The entrance is buried we can't get in." Jordan yelled.

"Get on the roof." Rider yelled.

Together we lifted Jordan. Rider then ginned at me and jumped. I could hear his claws scrape and then he was scrambling up and over onto the roof. I prepared myself. At least I'd gotten Jordan to safety.

"Damn it. Jump up and take my hands so I can pull you up." Rider yelled.

I was surprised, but did as he said. He pulled me up over the lip.

"I found a door get over here." Jordan yelled.

The rexes were just a couple of buildings away. We ran slamming the door behind us.

"Now we're trapped here, but the door was locked so the building should be secure." Jordan sighed.

"How?" Rider started to ask

"I used some of my gun powder to explode the lock. I may not like muskets but the powder comes in handy from time to time. Unfortunately it means we can't re-lock the door. At least we're safe for the moment. So first task is to find something we can use to brace this door shut."

From there we started searching. The blockade we built wasn't pretty but it would keep the door shut, for now.

"We'll wait until night and try to sneak-"

"No. Not with the killer packs. We'll need to wait for day. They are always deadly, but during the day they try not to be very active." Rider informed us.

"I say we should go. We'll run out of water if we stay." Jordan countered.

"What do you think?"

"I-"

"Don't bother. He doesn't know about what the desert is like. In fact he doesn't consciously know much at all. However unconsciously he's probably smarter than both of us. He just doesn't know how to access that information yet."

I sighed. "I should check the building to be sure it is safe. Jordan, you should rest. Rider, you stand watch. I will take over watch when I return."

Rider looked like he was going to argue but he glanced at Jordan. "Okay, I'll protect him until you get back. Just . . . Don't take too long."

"Understood."

***