By: Jo Ann Montgomery
The Net Natives are Indians or, --as the politically correct would say-- Native Americans. My cousin, Charlotte Fitzgerald, helped me come up with a good number of the Indian names. This is a work of fan-fiction, and not meant to offend anyone. If I'm mocking anything, it's the stereotypes, themselves. I have never been politically correct. Never will be, either. Just rudeness masqurading as politeness. As stated in the fic, there is a good chance that I'm part Indian, myself. Although, which tribe, I don't know. You don't happen to know what tribe Sam Starr came from, do you?
I have an uncle and some cousins that are part Cherokee, as well.
I find the "old Hollywood Indian Language" --the "Ugh! Him go that way!" etc.-- a bit stupid. Granted, I'd buy it if the Indian was just learning English, but sooner or later, he/she is going to have a lot better grasp of the lingo. I forgive Peter Pan for using it (the orginal author was from Scotland and never visited America.) and I forgive the old cartoons like Bugs Bunny, Micky Mouse, Tom and Jerry, etc. They are just showing their times.
The Net Natives are meant to be generic, and not meant to be based on any one tribe. It's like taking the stereotypes and giving them a place of their own.
This is a very old story. I am not, nor have I ever been, prejudiced, against ANY person or group of people. If this fic does offend you, then, I'm sorry. I am also very strongly against censorship, so don't expect me to change anything in this fic. And it's ONLY a fic! Please don't act like I've caused it to be made into a law or something!
The Totems are also more than a nod to another show from the 1980's I used to watch: Filmation's Bravestarr! (Eyes of the Hawk! Ears of the Wolf! Strength of the Bear! Speed of the Puma!). On with the story!
"A tepee?" Jo Ann asked, as she watched Matrix, Bob, Wild Card, and Turbo put up the huge, cone-shaped tent.
"It is for my old friend, Wise Modem, my child," Phong answered. The wise, old sprite stood beside the User Guardian.
"Pow Wow?" Dot asked. She turned and stared at Jo Ann, puzzled.
"Big meeting. Nowadays, it's more of a celebration of their heritage."
"Ahhh…," Dot smiled.
The tepee was white, multi-colored starbursts decorating it all around. The starbursts were all connected by a line of red.
Representing the Net, Jo Ann thought, smiling. Painted on one side of the tepee was a stick figure with lines radiating from his head. Painted on the other side was a black, box-like device. Wise. Modem. Wise Modem. I get it!
The park on Baudway, just outside of Dot's Diner, was being transformed into a camp for the visiting Net Natives. Jo Ann remembered what Turbo had told them about the Net Natives the night before.
"Many, many hours ago," Turbo had begun, "a tribe of sprites an' binomes, travelin' through the Net, found a wild an' untamed system. They named it New Hope an' settled there. In time, New Hope System became like Mainframe; a large city. But some sectors were set aside ta perserve the old ways."
"When the Guardians found them, the Net Natives made an agreement with them. The Net Natives would send two warriors --one male an' one female-- ta train ta become Guardians for New Hope System. In return, the Guardians would let the Net Natives live as they wished, how they wished. We have kept the pact ever since."
"In fact," Turbo had grinned and turned to Jo Ann. "It was Athena who had made the agreement."
Jo Ann had felt very proud to hear this. Athena was the First Guardian, she who had started the Guardian Collective. It was from Athena that Jo Ann Montgomery --a User-- had inherited the uniform, icon, and keytool of a Guardian. Later, upon absorbing the energies of a dying Amazon --a being from Jo Ann's own imagination-- the white uniform changed to red. The heroic sacrafice also trapped Jo Ann in the computer world forever.
"One must never forget one's own heritage, whatever that heritage may be," Jo Ann had replied.
"And what is your heritage, Jo Ann?" Bob had asked.
"Let's see...English, Irish, Scottish, Scandanavian, and maybe --just maybe-- a little Cherokee Indian. But that only depends if any of Belle Starr's children by Sam Starr lived to have kids of their own."
"Scandanavian?" AndrAIa had asked.
"Norseman...the Vikings."
"Ohhh..."
"That's a lot of heritage, sugah," Mouse had smiled.
"Yeah. If our family had someone from Wales, I would have the entire United Kingdom covered."
Turbo and the Mainframers had laughed with their User Guardian. Although she did not know everything, Jo Ann was a wealth of User knowledge.
The Mainframers finished with the preparations quickly, and were waiting for Wise Modem and the two Net Native Guardians to arrive. Normally, no Guardian would leave their system unless they really needed to. But all the Net Natives were well trained to play in the games, so their Guardians could take off for a few seconds, if they were needed elsewhere.
The Mainframers wore their best outdoors clothes, and everyone wore something of Net native design. The men wore decorated headbands, while the women wore headbands and silver and turquoise hair beads. Little Enzo had not really wanted to wear a headband instead of his baseball cap.
"Awww...Dot! Do I haffta?" Enzo had whined.
"Enzo!" Dot had scolded.
"It's to show respect for Wise Modem and the Net Natives," Bob had added. "You don't want to offend Phong's friend, do you?"
"Awww...but it looks so...dorky!"
Jo Ann had saved the moment when she spoke up.
"But Enzo, only the Native American warriors wore decorated headbands. The rest of the tribe wore plain ones. Every time a brave --that's what the warriors were called-- did something heroic, he got a feather to put in his headband. Some had long headdresses, with from thirteen to even twenty feathers!"
"Alphanumeric!" Enzo had said slowly, in wide-eyed awe. With one more look at the headband, Enzo had whipped off his cap, and replaced it with the cloth circlet.
"But what about my icon?" Enzo had held the black and white disk in his right hand.
"Like this, Enzo," Jo Ann had taken the icon and placed it on the front of his headband. "Sometimes the braves wore medallions on their headbands, as a place to put the feathers when they got them. They usually wore the medallions on the back of on the side. We can wear ours on the front."
Jo Ann wore a red beaded headband with a red medallion dipicting a white Thunderbird. The medallion rested on her forehead. A matching Thunderburd necklace, with three red medallions, hung around her neck.
Enzo had grinned. After hearing that warriors wore the headbands, he did not feel at all "dorky" when he wore his. He had ran to a mirror to look at himself and admire his "warrior's headband".
"Thank you," Dot had said. She had been relieved that a long, time-consuming argument had been avoided.
"No prob," Jo Ann had smiled back. "All it takes is knowing just what makes kids tick. For Enzo, that means exciting and heroic adventure." She had looked meaningfully at Matrix, who had blushed a little.
"Look!" Little Enzo cried, pointing to the silver sphere that appeared near the tepee.
From out of the portal, there came three sprites --two Net Native Guardians and an elderly Net Native man. The Guardians wore tan Guardian uniforms with silver shoulder and knee pads. Their boots, with fringed cuffs, were brown, instead of black. Their belts were brown with silver conchos and turquoise beads sewn into them. The headbands they wore matched the belts.
The man was purple, and had a tomahawk and knife at his belt. The woman was red, and had a knife at her belt and a keytool on her left wristband. Both had black hair and dark, brown eyes.
The old man was the one that commanded the most attention. His skin was metalic copper and his hair was silver. His eyes were so dark, they seemed like onyxes. His face was lined with age, but he looked as strong as a young man. He had a striped blanket wrapped around him, over his clothes, and tan mossicans on his feet. A plain, leather headband tied his hair back. He carried a long, feathered coup stick cradled in his arms.
"Greetings, Wise Modem," Dot said. "I am Dot Matrix, COMMAND.COM of Mainframe.
Wise Modem gave her a curt nod, which, for his people, was a polite greeting.
"This is Straight Arrow and She-Hawk," Wise Modem said, indicating the two Guardians. Both folded their arms and gave curt nods.
"I, too, greet you, old friend," Phong said, rolling up to Wise Modem.
"It has been many passings of the seasons since I last spoke with you, Wise Counselor."
Now, Wise Modem turned to Bob. The young Guardian's eyes sparkled with old excitement as he remembered the first time he had ever met Wise Modem.
"This young one had yet to earn his tribal name when I saw him last. Now, he has grown into a strong and powerful warrior. Brave and shining, like the moon. You are now, Moon Warrior."
Bob felt himself swell with pride, his eyes gleaming.
Wise Modem turned to Wild Card. The golden-haired bounty hunter was Bob's twin brother. At one time, the two were identical, except for the hair. But the Web War, and Bob's trip to the Web, changed that. Wild Card was Jo Ann's boyfriend.
"There has been much said of you, Gold One. You have also grown strong and brave. You, I name, 'Sun Warrior'."
Many more tribal names were given. Dot became "Wise Chieftess". Matrix was named "Eagle Eye", while Little Enzo was called "Lighting Talk". AndrAIa became "Sea Warrior" and Frisket earned the name, "War Dog". Ray Tracer and Mouse became "Magic Guide" and "Clever Warrior". Cesil took great pride in his name: "Food Giver". Half in jest, Mike, the T.V. became "Bad T.V.". Hexidecimal was named "Magic Woman". Hack was named "Red Warrior", while Slash became "Blue Warrior". Al was named "No Hear". "WHAT?!?"
Now, Wise Modem turned to Turbo. The Prime Guardian gave the Net Native Shaman his full attention.
"Honest Cheif, for seasons beyond counting, the Rainbow Warriors have kept the treaty with the Net Natvies. When the Golden She-Brave made the treaty with us, Old Oak --he that was shaman at that time-- predicted that a User would be Golden She-Brave's heir. That which was foretold has now come to pass."
Turbo proudly put his hand on Jo Ann's shoulder as Wise Modem gazed at the User Guardian and continued speaking.
"A special gift was then bestowed on the future heir of Golden She-Brave: The ability to summon the Totem Animals. The ceremony will be held tonight, for I must prepare myself. The User, too, must be prepared for the ceremony. Go with She-Hawk, User. She will see to your prepreations for your part of the ceremony."
The red woman stepped forward and led Jo Ann toward a tepee set up for her. She-Hawk's tepee was smaller then Wise Modem's, but was decorated in the same way. Straight Arrow also had his own tepee.
"Later, guys," Jo Ann said, following She-Hawk into the small tent.
The faces of the Mainframers glowed in the light of the campfire. Dot and the Mainframe Fire Department had given the Net Natives special permission to build the fire in the park because it was needed for the ceremony. They sat and watched as She-Hawk and Jo Ann emerged from the tepee. She-Hawk took her place beside the door of Wise Modem's tepee, while Jo Ann stood off to the side, waiting for the ceremony ro begin. Jo Ann woare the same outfit she wore before --her uniform, the headband, and her Indian jewelry-- but her face was painted: A wolf's paw print, an eagle's head and wings, two claw prints of some big cat, and a horse's hoof print. The paint made Jo Ann look quite bizzare.
A rustling of the tepee's door-flap drew everyone's attention to Wise Modem as he exited the tent. He, too, was dressed as before, but had the same markings on his face that Jo Ann had on hers.
He began the ceremony. "You shall recieve five totems to begin with; there will be more, in time. But you will start with five."
"I have summoned them to us. The first to arrive will be your personal totem, the leader of the totem animals, and the sourse of your tribe name. The wolf represents your cunning and determination; the cheetah, for swiftness; the tiger, your strength; the eagle, for keen eyesight and oneness with the flying hunters; and the winged unicorn, for the magic in your heart, mind, and body."
They waited for several milliseconds, anxious to see which animal would become Jo Ann's personal totem.
Suddenly, they heard it, and the sound chilled their blood. "AHAYOOOOH!" The beautiful, haunting song echoed throughout the city. "A wolf," Jo Ann breathed. Into the firelight, the wolf came. First, all that could be seen were the glowing, yellow eyes.
Then, the entire animal came into veiw. The Mainframers gasped. It was, indeed, a wolf. But its coat was a gleaming metalic silver, as chrome as Bob's armor.
Moonsong, Jo Ann heard in her head.
"His name is Moonsong," She said, as if in a trance.
"And he is your personal totem. You are now, Moon Wolf," Wise Modem said. Presently, another sound was heard. This time, it was the cry of a big cat.
Lightning, the voice in her mind said, this time.
"Lightning," Jo Ann repeated.
Now, a golden cheetah, with spots that glittered like onyx stones, appeared.
The names were coming faster now. As Jo Ann intoned a name, an animal appeared.
"Wildfang." This was a tiger, metalic copper in color, with stripes of obsidion.
"Goldtalon." Now, a golden eagle flew down, alighting on Jo Ann's right wristband.
"Starbolt." A silver unicorn, its shining coat covered in gold glitter, flapped huge, golden wings. A crystal horn sparkled on its forehead.
"Guardians with keytools may speak with the totems, but only *two* will be able to speak with them with their minds alone: You, Moon Wolf, and Moon Warrior. But know this: They are not pets, nor are they servents or slaves. The totem animals are your friends. They will obey you because they wish to, not because they are forced to. As long as you remember this, the totems will not forsake you. But forget this advice, Moon Wolf, and they will turn against you."
"I understand," Jo Ann said.
"Where will they stay?" Dot asked.
"They will find their own places, and will bother no one that does not bother them first. Only Moonsong, because he is Moon Wolf's personal totem, will constantly be with her. The others will be elsewhere, until summoned."
With a wave of his coup stick, Wise Modem signaled the end of the ceremony and the beginning of the feast. Jo Ann --Moon Wolf-- joined her friends and sat beside Wild Card --Sun Warrior. Goldtalon flew off her wrist to land on the limb of a nearby tree. Lightning and Wildfang sat near the fire, while Starbolt stood between them. Moonsong followed Jo Ann and sat down beside her, on the side opposite of Wild Card. Wise Modem sat down in front of his tepee, while Straight Arrow and She-Hawk remained standing, as if on guard.
"You have been greatly honored, my child," Phong said, smiling proadly at User Guardian One.
"I know," Jo Ann smiled back. She ran her hand repeatedly through Moonsong's fur. Although his coat was as metal-looking as Bob's armor, it was as soft as any dog's fur.
Jo Ann gazed into the campfire, mulling over the importance of this gift from the Net Natives.
"And it's only the begining," she said. "Only the beginning."