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The Next Mourning
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Tyler clenched his coat tightly as he felt the returning chill of Fichina shiver across him. The change in the intensity was more noticeable now, usually the snow was not so blinding, nor did it often fall sideways like it was now. He scanned the horizon, but he could not even see the small hills which lay but a minutes' walk from the outpost, for it too was obscured by the recently brewing storm, and the only noticeable thing which Tyler could fully make out were the colored flags sticking from the ground which marked the path to the sites.

It would be a twenty minute walk from here to dig site, in normal weather. Now that the storm was moving in, it didn't matter to Tyler how much longer it was going to take, he was going to find his comrade if he had to brave even the storm. The storm, he looked above the barely defined ridge to see the oncoming blizzard, and he had to walk straight into it. At first he ran, but soon got tired of the strenuous pace because the snow was especially soft at the bottom of the thin valley, and the mere effort of lifting his boots out of it meant that walking was the only way he was going to get through this.

He glanced over towards a small, shed once he reached the crest of the icy fold, that garage was built to house the outpost's vehicles, but for some reason, they weren't allowed any vehicles one the base, which was strange since other bases on Fichina were not only allowed them, but they used them frequently. It was not only that being deployed to Fichina was a common source of jokes throughout Corneria, but the fact that it had to be the only one where you had to walk from place to place on foot two miles in the snow, as well as the fact that it just happened to be him and a few others only who were allowed to step foot outside only added to Tyler's shallow and yet contemplative feeling of ambiguous hopelessness.

But Tyler was different; he knew that and so did everyone else. He was there for a reason, and everyone else was there for him. Not even the lupine understood the complete story on why he was there. Everything was shrouded in mystery and uncertainty, nearly to the point of complete confusion.

'So… cold, why is it so cold? I know it's supposed to be storm season, but it's never felt like this!'

The lupine's fur shook under the multiple layers of his uniform. The chill which he was stepping through was so much, more than anyone could bear for an extended period. It would be impossible to make a full round trip, once he got to the dig site, assuming his friend wasn't already walking back to the outpost, he would have to stay there until the storm died down. Either way, he was going to get a long talk from the Major, but all that mattered for Tyler was making sure his associate was safe from, whatever was out there.

After a few minutes, Tyler began to feel the real cold start to infiltrate him. At first, Tyler began to feel a strange fatigue set about him; the razor snow started to pelt him softer and slower, the winds became smoother and quieter. His balance loosened, he now struggled to move straight along the flag marked path, being driven only by his sheer determination and though he would never admit it, those ration things which he had earlier.

As time flew by, each step was a fight of its own, as Tyler became a warrior in the brutal struggle against the cold. And to think, the storm had barely begun. It had been cold before, but never like this; if anyone had the tendencies to make such a journey each day, it was definitely him. As one of the Cornerian Army Scouts, it was mandatory to pass a long and rigorous training program; only those who had the required patience and the ability would pass the tests. The final trial involved each member of the unit being dropped in unknown locations in a dense Cornerian forest, the ones who found their way back to the base passed, a test which was not unlike the situation now, except for the fact that it was much colder and much more difficult to move. And this time, there would be no one to rescue him if he failed.

He pushed for another minute, but at that point, time seemed to slow down, and each step became an individual battle. Slowly, the cold sank into him as the heat melted away. The sound of the winds pounding against his flapping coat became muffled and started to lose its flowing pattern, molding into a single long push against Tyler's balance. He was almost there, he had to be. He'd run inside the small cave, where it was warm and the wind couldn't reach him. If he could only move a little longer.

'Almost… at the… feel… tired…'

Tyler's eyes slipped, almost closing involuntarily, he struggled to keep them open. He felt like falling asleep, but he knew very well that would mean a death sentence. The frequent sense of fatigue nearly drowned out his thoughts, the numbness crept up on his extremities, and the stinging pain of cold multiplied in the force of the chilling storm.

"Taylor! Taylor!" He yelled for his comrade, but there was no response. "Taylor! Ta…"

'Need to… keep moving…'

Tyler's knees sank down onto the new layer of snow. He couldn't see the site up ahead, but that was most likely due to the storm. If only he could reach it. The winds shook him once more, knocking him over and onto his back. The gusts were so strong he could not walk, if he tried to stand, he'd only get knocked down.

He looked around him, there were shadows moving all around the edge of his vision, his eyes began to close, even though he tried his best to keep them open. He stretched as far as his arm could, and pulled himself forward through the cold snow. His breathing fell, and his chest tightened… suddenly, a strange feeling overcame him, as if he was falling into a river. He looked above him one more time, and it was as if he were sinking into a deep blackness.

~X~X~X~X~X~

Agent Rotte shook the sleeping lupine. "Wake up… wake up… C'mon Susi, get up."

Tyler's eyes quickly fluttered open. Reacting, he sprang from the bed and nearly tackled the agent to the ground, but stopped once he recognized him.

"Woah woah Susi, calm down… no need to be so tense. You having bad dreams again?"

"Sort of…"

"Is this going to happen every night?"

Tyler looked about the small room. It was dark, really dark. "No… I'm fine."

Agent Rotte ran over to the wall to turn on a light while Tyler fixed his bunk.

"Get your stuff together Susi…"

"What's wrong?" The lupine asked.

"There was an explosion… came from Grey's place."

"What!"

The two agents navigated through the crowd of onlookers cramped inside the smooth and narrow hallway. They were all focused on what lay behind a certain door. "I'll move on ahead, see what's up." Tyler motioned.

Tyler rudely pushed aside everyone in his way. "What the hell is going on he…" He stopped upon reaching the door. He was expecting to see the charred remains of Grey strewn across the room, but instead behind the door he saw Warlord Grey, kneeling in front of a bloody corpse. He felt a jolt of horror when he recognized the victim.

"Grey… what happened?" Tyler approached the mastiff from behind. He spoke in a louder than normal voice because of the commotion going on behind him.

"She's dead… gone…" Grey lifted the now lifeless arm. "Just like that, gone forever… someone rigged an explosive, she never saw it coming. No doubt it was meant for me…"

"Grey… I'm sorry…"

"Don't be. You never knew her… you never loved her…" Grey tried to hold back a tear, as he covered the dead vulpine up with a bed sheet. "I've always had to deal with loss… but that was when I fought. To lose someone at a time like this…"

"I… who would've done this?" Tyler asked.

Before Grey could give any answer, someone else entered the room through the door behind him.

"Grey, what's going on? Oh…" Mason's wandering eyes fell upon the bed sheet. "What happened?"

"Don't you see what's happened?!" Grey threw himself at the ill-prepared raccoon. "She's dead!" He grabbed Mason by the neck and threw him to the floor. "Who did it? WHO!"

"I don't know! I had nothing to do with it! I swear!" Mason begged in a defensive position, silently pleading his rival to calm down. "Please, just let go of me!"

"Oh really? Isn't it ironic how just yesterday you came in here bragging about your new explosives expert to everybody and their mother, and then this! I'm just drawing an obvious connection here, I'd be wrong not to."

"He… I would never tell him to." Mason looked at Tyler with a face filled with disgust. "Did you do this?" He asked coming to the offensive.

Tyler struggled to find an answer that wouldn't get him killed.

"Of course I didn't do it, are you all crazy?"

"Then who did? None of yours I assume." Grey pointed to Mason, who had now entered full on deflection mode.

"No, it can't be one of them…" Mason admitted. "They wouldn't do something like this… they're tired of fighting, tired of conflict."

"Then who? Who!"

"I don't know!"

They turned to Tyler for an answer.

"I… I'll find him… whoever did this."

"How? Are you some kind of… detective who's going to go all across the place to find the murderer?" Grey mocked.

"Trust me, I've dealt with these sorts of things before, I've been in a situation like this. I'll be able to track him down, I promise."

"How can I trust you? What if you don't deliver, then what?"

"How are you going to narrow down one guy from the whole station?" Mason wondered.

"I'll be able to… I've tracked Freeman down before."

"Freeman, Warlord Freeman?" Mason repeated.

"Yeah, this whole thing has his name written all over it."

"He's right… I remember he had saboteurs that did jobs just like this… I wouldn't be surprised if its him… go… if you find him, try keeping him alive, I want to make it as painful as possible…" Grey gave a brief pause before snapping back to Tyler. "Well… get out of here! Both of you. Leave me alone to mourn my loss…"

"Goodbye Grey." Tyler turned away.

Mason let out an "I'm sorry…" before following Tyler.

Grey remained silent.

As the lupine returned to the outside of the room, it had gotten less packed. Many had gone to spread the news and others had left because they figured being near Grey now would be a safety hazard. Agent Rotte however stood in the same spot he had been when Tyler had left him.

"Familiar?" he asked.

"Yeah… too familiar, it's uncanny." Tyler walked ahead of the agent and initiated a decent pace. "Grey's authorized me to investigate his mate's murder. I think I know where to start."

"And that would be-"

"I had the talk with him about Warlord Freeman yesterday, which means that one of his must've tried to take him out because he knew he'd help us. Fortunately, that makes it easier, because there was only one who heard what we were discussing."

"And that is?"

"The bartender…"

~X~X~X~X~X~

"Sorry buddy, I'm out for now, and Grey's restricted all traffic, so the next shipment won't come until later."

"Thanks, but we're not here for drinks." Said Agent Rotte.

"Then what are you here for?" The bartender questioned.

"Answers…" Tyler remarked.

"Hey buddy, if that Zoness Dark gave you rampant diarrhea it's not my fault that's just a side effect, happens with a lot of guys."

"What? No, I want to know about what you heard when I was alone with Grey…"

The bartender shifted nervously. "What do you mean?"

"You were the only one there other than us. Remember? When he kicked everyone out? You knew that Grey and I were striking a deal, so you snuck into his room and planted a bomb while he was with me."

"What are you talking about? You're deluded."

"Talking will make it easier on yourself." Agent Rotte imposed. "We won't have to let Grey decide what happens to you."

The lizard backed away from the oncoming detectives, a fearful look was in his eyes. "Listen, I don't want any trouble… especially with Grey."

"Too late, tell us what happened…"

"Ok, Ok! There was someone who came up to me after he left with you, asked what you guys were talking about, I told him and he left, that's it!"

"Interesting… what did he look like?"

"I don't know…"

"Try harder…" Tyler pressured.

"I'm pretty sure he was an avian, but that's it… I, didn't get a good look at him and he was obviously trying to conceal himself… that's all I know, honest!"

"Don't worry, we believe you. Any idea on where to find him?"

"No he, he left right real fast… I don't know anything else."

"You're despicable. Your mouth is looser than Cornerian traffic laws. Let's go Susi…"

~X~X~X~X~X~

"Oh… hello… I'm Detective Mullins, I'm here to speak with James…"

"You were at the funeral, right? Come in…" Answered a gray Hare, who opened the door for Walter. "He's over there…" he pointed to James, who had taken notice of the detective's arrival.

"James…" A sympathetic detective neared the weeping vulpine, who was sitting on his couch, holding an old wedding photo over a long coffee table. "James, I… I came here to talk."

"Talk… what have you found out Detective Mullins?" James said in a low, monotonous drone.

The panther took a deep breath, knowing what he was going to say wasn't in the least bit easy. "I… wanted to say again that I'm sorry about the loss of your wife… and that we're doing everything we can to get whoever's responsible for it. So far… I'm sorry, but we may not be able to ever know who truly did it."

"So nothing new then… where's your friend, O'Donnell? Isn't he the one who asks questions?"

"Detective O'Donnell's on the trail right now, he… he left me behind here where I'm needed. Rest assured that he will do whatever is necessary to-"

"You don't need to continue, I know what you're going to say…" James interrupted. "I just want to know who killed her…"

Walter stuttered silently, he didn't know how to proceed.

"Well? Who is it?"

Walter took out a small device from his pocket. He touched the corners of the device and used them to stretch a large display across the table. "We believe the operation was conducted by a militant who calls himself 'Warlord Freeman', do you know about him?"

"No, never heard of him…"

"We believe that he and a small group of his operatives arrived here the night before your wife was killed. After the incident occurred, the somehow managed to storm the nearby weapons storage facility and take control of it. Later, they took an experimental stealth prototype ship from the facility; the ship's design was mainly attributed to Dr. Holcomb of the Cornerian Army's advanced weapon's division, the same one who was abducted from the weapons convention only two days later."

"So he's after experimental weapons… but why go after me? It doesn't make sense."

"That's one of the questions we have too, Mr. McCloud. He may have been after you because he crossed you once due to your private contracting, or he may have simply been attempting something else we're unaware of. You're sure you've never seen or heard of him?"

"Not in my life. I have absolutely no connection with him…"

"Nothing?"

The vulpine shook his head. "It doesn't make sense… why would he do this? She'd never hurt anybody. I know it wasn't meant for her but… does this mean he'll try and finish the job? Come after me in the future."

"Possibly, I'd keep my vehicles in a garage from now on if I were you McCloud…"

"Thanks, I'd keep an eye out for Freeman if I were you…"

"Well… then I guess I'm done here…" Walter began to get up, but James interjected and stopped him.

"Wait… I… are you sure it's him?"

"He knew what type of bomb was used without us even telling him. And we're fairly certain that his escape only adds to his guilt."

A few moments of silence was exchanged, and then, came a strange request from the vulpine.

"Detective… are you a good pilot?"

"What?" Walter's ears stood up.

"You know how to fly?" James asked with a hidden smirk.

"I…" Walter felt confused at the question. Why would James ask something like that? "I can't fly anything small like an interceptor… but… they did teach me to fly big boys when I was in the military."

"Can you work a dreadnought?"

"It's been some time…"

"Well… if you have any information on where this 'Freeman' is, give me a call… and bring your gun…"

"Ok, I'll make sure of it." Walter nodded before exiting the house.

James' intentions were not secret to the detective; he would do anything and then some. Walter only hoped it didn't involve any more death.

Walter was driving home later that day. It was cloudy again, slowly beginning to rain, but it never really committed to anything serious. "Damn it, what's with the weather? It's like the sky is depressed."

His scanner started to buzz. 'all units, there's been an accident, on fifteenth, expect major delays all around…'

"What? Teenagers. Might as well walk home, will probably be faster… I've gotta stop talking to myself…" Walter pulled over into the station parking lot. It would be easier to weave through the streets on foot that wait for the traffic to clear up.

He walked down an empty street; it was oddly dark and had an ominous sense of tension about it. He passed an alley, and he wouldn't have given another glance, but he saw some movement, and figured he should at least check it out. "Anyone here?" He looked around the alley, it seemed to be empty.

Just as he turned, he heard a sound from behind him. He saw a Cornerian who was trying to sleep on a pillow of trash and debris. The weak and dirty looking feline froze as Walter looked at him.

"Hey, are you all right? You shouldn't be out in the rain like this."

There was no response.

"You know there's a shelter only a few blocks from here…"

Still no response.

"Come on, you look hungry, let's go get you a warm meal."

~X~X~X~X~X~

Author's Notes:

int main(stupid)

{

I guess you're confused as to why these notes look so weird, but that's probably a good thing, because if you knew, I'd have reason to worry.

}

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