Chapter 2

Sir Tevonulas

Disclaimer:

Toboe: It is almost June 5th! June 5th is my Birthday! Three more hours till I'll 15! . Loves it. On with my suspenseful story! Oh and Reavan you have a fan! -Cough cough- look at reviews -cough cough- On with the story!

With a large shake the airship landed. Cages clicked together, tossing sore and wounded wolves against the cold steel. Down below in the hold a ticked Kris uselessly dug her claws into the unwinding steel and a trussed Hane flapped franticly.

"Is couldsa landes beterze!" Said the fluffed Hane but Kris ignored him.

She crept up the opening left by the receding landing spike and peered out. They had landed in a huge complex. Sickly looking gardens ringed a large ugly building. Far away she saw a little smaller orderly white building. Glancing around to make sure no soldiers and gardeners were looking at her she jumped out with Hane at her heels. She made a dash towards the bushes and crouched down in them. Peering around, she saw several beleaguered people in large billowing white coats walking very fast, yet not running, towards them. Slowly a large ramp was lowered from the airship and four cages were rolled down the ramp. Following them was a surly looking man with a metal box in his arms.

The white clad men, scientists, reminded her of birds. They fluttered around the soldiers and cages, wringing hands and brushing back their unkempt hair. One man was foolish enough to lean towards the small opening at the top of a cage. With a high scream he jumped back, falling. Kris could see the thin bleeding scratch where a sharp canine tooth had grazed the man thought metal bars and hear Roukan snarl and the clash of teeth ageist bars.

"It bite me!" the man cried. He had an evil look in his eyes and skinny, lank, black greasy hair. He looked like a skeleton with papery thin skin.

"Are you lost friend?"

Kris jumped in fright. A lean, muscular cat had silently creped next to her and was now speaking to her. His fur was a stormy grey with the air of a warrior draped around him.

"Who are you?" Kris asked him as her hackles lowered. Why should she be afraid of a lowly cat?

"Sir Tevonulas at your service, marm," the cat said, bopping his body in an almost bow. His voice had a thick accent and Kris guessed he was from up north.

"Sir Tevonulas huh? Sounds kind of snobby to me. How about Tev?"

The cat shrugged his shoulders.

"Whatever you desire" the cat stated as his green eyes traveled over to the scientists, soldiers, and cages.

"I see they have gotten new subjects" he spat in sudden anger. Kris jumped back a little and stared at the newcomer but he seemed to get a grip of himself and again was calm and collected.

"I am Kris and the bird is Hane… What? Where did he go?"

She looked around but couldn't see the annoying puffball anywhere. She glanced at Tev warily but the cat shrugged.

"Come Lady Kris, I didn't see any bird. I want to hear your story for I have no doubt it ties in with those poor unfortunates in those cages." The cat turned away but Kris stayed and watched as her fiends where rolled away. Slowly she turned and followed the cat into the dying maze of gardens.

---

The group of wolves slowed as they reached the outskirts of a town. Silently they crept up behind an old building and pulled up their human illusions. Kiba stood up at the front odd them as they crouched in the half light of the setting sun. He was tale with black hair and clear light blue eyes. He was wearing a black jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans. He peered at the group, mostly squatting but a few were sitting or standing.

"Try to remain inconspicuous. Look for food and any clues to where the others are. Meet here at the time the moon rests over us"

Slowly they dispersed one or two at a time. Tsume wandered of with his hands in the pockets of his tight leather pants. His head was bowed hiding his bright golden eyes. His snow white hair was pulled into a rattail and his x shaped scar showed over a low-cut ripped leather jacket. Jess and Kuni left together. Jess was tale with rich honey blond hair and she was wearing baggy pants and a long-sleeved white tee shirt with a red tee on top. Kuni wore a white tang top with a black jacket and blue jeans. Her shin was tan and her hair strawberry blond. Bright yellow eyes peered around as if she expected some one to come barreling out of the bushes. Klaue left after them with Toboe close behind. Klaue' oaken brown hair was so dark it almost looked black. His gray brown eyes looked worried and he walked fast with his floor length blue trench coat pulled close with several straps giving only glimpse of his black pant, sleeveless shirt and black boots. Toboe walked behind him having to almost run to keep up with Klaue's long strides. Every step the four silver bracelets on his wrist clinked together. He wore a red shirt, green kakis and combat boots. Kiba last to leave, seeming to melt into the darkness.

---

Mika paced in her cramped cage. She felt like she was on a boat as the cage rolled along through the bars at the top of the cage. Suddenly the cage stopped and she rocked for a few minutes trying to find her center of balance. Before she could even thick over what could happen next the door to her cage opened and she shot out like a grey bullet. She hoped fervently that she would be able to escape but her hopes were crushed as she saw the thick metal bars in front of her. She was in another cage.

This one was bigger but it was still a cage. It was a cube shape and Mika guessed about ten feet on all sides. Three of the sides were concrete and the last was bars about as thick as a human's fist and about as wide. The ceiling was cement and made her feel tightly enclosed. To her side she could hear angry snarling, Roukan, and watched in the cage across from her Kawa was being forced in through a narrow concrete door. There was a line of cages stretching back as far as she could see on from Kawa's side of cages, at lest ten on each side but she wasn't sure because of her odd angle. Relived she saw that there was no ceiling across the center isle. It itself was about ten feet across, with small fencing about three feet off of each cage. She whirled around to stare at the back wall. There were two small openings. The one she had come from was only about five feet high and three feet wide. The other one was set in the corner. As she watched a metal plate slide out with two bowls set into it. One held murky looking water and the other some small brown pellets. Turning her back she called to the others.

"Roukan" Mika whispered as she leaned in the corner of the cement and bar walls.

"Damn Damn DAMN!" He snarled. He paced back and forth growling the whole time Mika and the others called to each other.

"What are we going to do?"

"Where is Chi!"

"I don't know but I think we should worry about us first"

"Take that back Reaven!"

"Can you both just shut up about the damn thing!"

"Be quiet" even thought Hige had just barely whispered the wolves all quieted for his tone was so… not Hige. Those who could see him were shocked. He was covered in drying blood, his face all scratched up. He had the air of one ready to die and as he wearily sat up it seemed to be an excruciating task.

"What happened to you?" Roukan asked, his voice losing the furry it had before.

"Blue died" Hige whispered and limped back to the inner reaches of his cage.

The wolves were silent.

What had happened to the others?

---

"Do you think the others are okay?" Toboe asked as he trotted alongside Klaue. It was the first words he had dared to ask the wolf. He seemed sulky; not at all the joyful character he was once Toboe had gotten to know him. Truth be told, Toboe had just mustered enough courage to talk to him as they headed back to the others and even then Toboe cringed back, expecting to be yelled at. Instead Klaue turned to him and smiled.

"I'm sure they are okay. I should stop worrying shouldn't I?"

Toboe sighed and nodded in agreement.

"I don't think any of them would be happy if you were worried about them!"

---

Jess sand Kuni were both upset when they joined the pack that night. They had both used every trick in the book to try to get some information and it had all proved useless. No one knew of the Noble Jagura in these parts.

"THIS IS SCREWWED UP!" Jess suddenly screamed and punched the building they were walking next to. Kuni gasped and grabbed her hand. It was bleeding and Jess quickly pulled it away.

"This sucks" she whimpered and continued walking.

---

"This way" Tev purred and slipped into what looked like and old abandoned fox den. They were some where in the middle of the garden, surrounded by tall yellow grass and dying trees. They had to slip through several fences that Kris was sure she wouldn't be able to wiggle under. Grumbling she crawled through the opening. To her surprise after several feet of pulling she squeezed out into a wide cavern. It was tall enough for her to stand up with plenty of room for her head. Inside was the most wretched bunch of creatures she had ever seen. There were dogs, cats, rabbits, rats, and even an old decrepit wolf. They suffered the most horrible wounds she had ever seen. There was a cat whose back legs had been broken and set backwards, a dog with no eyes, a rabbit with one ear. A bald bunny with oozing scabs gave a feeble whimper, a dog with a horrible cough and a rat with what looked like burns all over its body just laid there.

"What…" Kris whispered but she wasn't able to finish as Tev had already dashed through to a smaller tunnel that branched out of the main cavern. Kris skirted around the animals, keeping her eyes on Tev's tail so she didn't lose sight of him and so she didn't have to gaze at the tortured creatures.

She followed him for several minutes through yards of twisting tunnels and caverns not saying a word as the cat ambled on happily.

"Most of these tunnels and small caves are natural. It took us a while to dig these out they was we wanted them. There are three entrances, the Dead Oak Gate to the east, the Yellowed Grass Gate where we came in, and the Home gate facing north."

'He must be from up north,' Kris speculated but didn't voice her thoughts as the cat continued.

"There are also names for the tunnels. We have the tunnels that lead to the individual caves and the main tunnels. All in all there are about… say, three miles of tunnels. Oh, hello Drep"

The cat leaned ageist the wall for another cat to pass. He was larger then Tev and lighter but he bowed respectively to the grey cat and to Kris before heading on.

"That was Drep, one of the housecarls, now as I was saying-" He was cut of by Kris who had heard enough.

"What do you mean by 'we' and 'housecarl'? And what are this place and those creatures? And where are we going?"

The cat looked over his shoulder with a slightly irritated look ay being interrupted.

"If you had enough patience I was getting to that. Oh and here we are."

He walked into one of the entrances one the side of the tunnel and gloomily Kris followed.

---

Hane sat on a tree preening his feathers. As soon as he had seen the cages he had taken off to see where they we going and exactly who was in them. When he had returned to his surprise he couldn't find Kris so he had circled till at last he say her disappearing down a hole. So he did what any sane bird does and sat to wait for her to come out.

---

They wolves had finally settled down the best they could. It seemed unless to fight after Hige's remark so they had quieted down when the greasy haired man from before came walking down the isle. He had an overlarge bandage on his cheek, testament to his scuff with Roukan. He stopped at each cage to coon and talk to the wolves, oblivious to their snarls and in Roukan's cause desperate leaps at the bars. When he got to Kawa's cage he leaned towards her.

"How are you precious? Do you miss you pup?"

Kawa shifted but remanded with her back towards the deranged man.

"Now darling don't be that way." With that he pulled out a small box and pushing a red button he spoke into it.

"Put w043 in cage 20"

With a snap a small fox was shoved into Kawa's cage. The female wolf dashed to the fox and curled around it protectively, snarling.

"Our little mother," the man crooned, "Who was the father I wonder? Was it one of them," he said gesturing towards the direction of Roukan and Hige, "Or on of the two males killed? Or on of the ones that escaped?"

Mussed he turned and walked away, but before leaving he turned back to them.

"Oh and my pretties, expect some company soon. Some of our charges are terrifying the others and I believe we are going to move them here."

With that he left.

---

Tev curled up on the pile of leaves in his 'room'. The roots of an oak supported the roof and ran down the walls. For a hole in the ground it was surprisingly clean and nice. The floor had been patted down by hard working feet and some one had pored red mud onto the floor which had dried to form a hard rocklike substance. The walls had been padded down and the roots carved with different images. It was large enough for Kris to be some what comfortable and she did have about five inches between here head and the ceiling. In fact if she really thought about it all the walls and floors had been patted down and made smooth by many feet.

"Those creatures were the result of the disgusting experiments that go on in that lab." Tev started as the wolf settled, "Wait! I can get some bedding for you!" He gave a yowl and a young cat or old kitten, she couldn't tell which for it was the same size as Tev but it looked like a kitten, ran in.

"Get our esteemed guest some bedding"

With wide eyes the 'cat' raced of then back with two others, all caring the mixture of leaves, moss, fur, and feathers in their jaws.

"Who are you really Tev?" Kris asked once the 'cats' had left and she had settled.

"We'll it's a long story so you might as we'll get comfortable," and the cat began in his strange northern accent.

Toboe: TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY! FREE INTERNET PIE FOR EVERYONE! AND FOR THOSE WHO DON"T REVIEW PLEASE DO NOW FOR TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY! LOVES AND HUGS!