Huzzah, to the new reviewers!

As promised, the new chapter!

Princes and Vagabonds Part 2:

Angel's POV...

When the guards had come charging up to me, my mind almost blanked for a second!

Then the thought: Get away!

I just reacted when I left my body be shoved down by the guard pushing past, and a rolled forward, then grabbed onto the bottom of the crate they were carrying!

Now I'm holding on for dear life going who-knows-where with a bunch of unstoppable guards! The crate has some kind of a design on it that allows me to hang onto the bottom even on a bumpy ride like this. Oh geez, where are they taking me? My gut is telling me that it's not a place I'm supposed to be. And there's one place distinctly in my mind where I shouldn't be close by!

I can see the guards' shadows as we speed down the dusty road. I have to look from the side or some of the dirt gets kicked up into my face. Too busy trying to hold on, I didn't keep track of how much time had passed. Just that after a good while, the bumping started to become even, and the pace of the guards was slowing too. I peeked out of one eye to try and guess where we were. There seemed to be a larger, straight-lined shadow cutting off some of the guards'. It looked like a wall. Oh, no… That big of a wall could only be for protecting something. I really didn't want my suspicions to be right.

The crate and its carriers came to a stop completely covered by the wall's shadow. I breathed slowly, and I lifted myself up against the crate as closely as I could. Now was not the time to let go. I don't know what could happen if I was caught outside the Mipedian Royal Fortress, and I can't reach my scanner while in this position. I'll just have to wait until I'm inside and they put this mysterious crate down. Thank goodness for there being some support bars on the bottom of this thing! They were just big enough that they would keep me from being crushed once the crate was set down.

I listened as larger footsteps came to the front of the company, and a deep, threatening, angry voice spoke to one of the guards. "This Battle Gear was due over an hour ago, Maliph!"

"Forgive me, Prince Mudeenu!" Maliph answered. "We were significantly slowed down in the market district. The number of humans has increased!"

"Wretched beings!" Mudeenu spat in disgust. "They were a menace before the Invasion and their kind is a menace to the Mipedians again. Ha… Take that into the vault. Lock it in, and I will inspect its contents personally once I finish with my rounds." At Mudeenu's command, the crate, and me, were taken inside.

Even from the bottom of a metal box that had been out in the desert sun, it was significantly cooler inside the royal Fortress. The guards marched at a steadied pace, none of them saying a word. I've heard of Prince Mudeenu. From all sources, he's the last Mipedian you want catching you. And from what I've just heard he particularly hates humans being in his homelands. Ebberim and all the other Mipedians seemed happy to have the humans around, though. What's the Prince got against us? My next thoughts were on getting out of here. Once this crate was in the vault, I could let go and port out of here. Easy! Then I could call Manny and tell him what happened, or I could use the scan I got outside of Ebberim's dressing room and look around for him.

I thought of getting a scan once I was inside the vault too, then I thought about the rule of no humans and figured that just this was is enough. I definitely don't want to run in to Prince Mudeenu. He's one scary guy! I heard the sound of some big doors opening and I was moved ahead. Then the crate was set down on a cold, stone floor, and I listened as each guard left and the pair of doors shut. I let out a big breathe of relief as I let my let my whole body flop to the floor. "Time to go!" I couldn't resist crawling out to take a look outside. When would I have another opportunity like this?

Coming out and finally standing on solid ground, I took in my surroundings. The vault was well lit by torches, and there were giant chests and drawers arranged in the massive room. In addition to the crate there was also different kinds of Battle Gear in the room. "These all look brand new!" I immediately wanted to scan something before I left! I reached in my pocket… my scanner wasn't there. I looked in my other pockets, it was gone!

"Oh, no!" I whispered urgently to myself. With my scanner gone I have no way of getting back! I have no way of GETTING OUT! "I'm trapped!" I'm trapped in a tightly locked room of a fortress of human-hating monsters! "Manny…!" I whispered. "I could really use your help right about now!"

I took a second and tried to get myself together. Panicking will only make this worse. I just need to look around, and see if there is any way out of here. Manny once told me that the Mipedians are great architects, to the point where pretty much every building they make is full of traps and secret doors. "Maybe there's some other way out of here."

I started looking around the walls, they seemed pretty solid… and high… and too smooth to climb. "Okay, can't expect them to make it easy." I looked low on the floor, and when I started feeling bored I began looking through the drawers. I was still new to Chaotic and hadn't used any kind of Battle Gear, I wanted to know what it felt like to hold some of these weapons in my own hands. Some of the axes weren't too heavy, and some thin bazooka-like Gear was pretty easy to lift. There was also a bunch of look knick-knack Battle Gear in the drawers. Instead of feeling trapped and doomed, I felt more like I was browsing, and actually having fun. I even saw a Flux Babble!

"Wow!" I gasped holding it up. "I don't even have a card of this one." I really wished my scanner wasn't lost. "I could… no, I can't risk a random Location when I still don't have a scanner." It took me until now to realize just how important those little machines are. At home, it's a console that is expensive but can be replaced. Here: it's practically my own life in my hands. It must not be broken since I'm still here in Perim. I can only hope that someone finds it and looks for its owner. That, and the slim hope I have of getting out here without being coded on sight. This was not my proudest moment. Feeling tired, both mentally and physically I fell back on a wall between two tall drawer chests.

The second I did, it fell back! "Whaaaaaoooooo!" I cried out as I fell backwards. My fall took be down a dark, carved out slide. I went down for about five seconds until I hit even ground once again. "Oof!" I rubbed my back after collision. "Trapdoor: found!" I checked myself over, making sure I wasn't hurt. "Now where am I?"

As if responding to my question, a trail of torches lit up down a wide hallway. "Huh," I smiled at my turn in luck. "That's helpful." and began walking down the lit path. Then though the ceiling was well above my head, allowing me to walk straight, I started to feel like I was in an ancient tomb or city. Like the kinds people have lost to time and only exist in legend! Mom was right that I should become an archeologist! "This is awesome!" I silently squealed.

As I walked farther down, the walls stopped looking like they were made of brick and started looking smooth and solidly bound. A few feet after, I started seeing small pictures that reminded me of hieroglyphics. "Whoa…" breathed looking at them. The pictures were all depicting Mipedians of course, but they weren't living in a desert. The hieroglyphics showed them living in a lush, tropical forest, where there was plenty of water and the tribe seemed to be without struggle. Then the hallway came to a dead end. But there was a design on that wall too. It almost looked like the Sun, but it was too faded and chipped with time. I know that on Earth our Sun has three layers, and on this one I could make out four. At the center was a broken piece that had been broken off though. I felt the crack in interest, wondering what this was.

Just outside the small broken center, looked to be a hand. Was there a person… or Creature inside this? I went back over the side of the walls to see if maybe I missed a clue about this. My eyes fell on a bright pink image of what looked like a female, Mipedian Warrior. She was standing over a brown whirlpool and… there were two out of place figures behind her. I figured they were Mipedians, but the figures looked so much like humans. I ran my hand over the figure that had a black body and a golden head. "What is this place?" I asked myself in wonder.

"The Hall of Ancestry." A gentle voice came from behind me. Startled, I stood and turned around. Behind me was a Mipedian! But he was very different from any Mipedian I had ever seen. He had lithe, luminescent white figure that seemed to exude as much respect and reverence as it did calmness and collectedness. He wore a gold crown over some white-crown-like spikes and black hair, as well as blue and gold armor. There were two swords at his hips, but he made no move to reach for them.

Shoot, I never get caught! Was my first thought. It looks like this guy is a noble so he must be loyal to Mudeenu, which means I'm busted. I was truly afraid now, but I just didn't see any point in running. "I-I am sorry." I stuttered out looking at the floor. "I fell in here by accident!"

The white Mipedian responded, "I believe you. After all there is nothing down here that a Chaotic Player would deem worthy of a scan."

Realizing that he was implying to me even being anywhere in the Royal Fortress, my blue eyes shot up to meet his own and I tried to explain. "That was accident too! I mean- Well, the guards were running down the street and I couldn't get out of the way in time so I ducked under the crate and to not get trampled on. But by the time they stopped and I could let go I was already in the vault and…" I slowed, wondering if he would even believe my story. Even if he does I'm still going to get in trouble. I looked back down at the floor. "Anyway, I didn't mean to come in here. It was my first day around here and I was enjoying it with my friends." I looked up at him again saying. "I didn't come here meaning to cause any trouble for anyone."

The white Mipedian smiled down at me and then kneeled down to my level. He placed a hand on my shoulder and said. "You do not seem the kind to mean any harm, young one. I believe your story."

I smiled back, relieved that he believed me. Then it fell again, and I asked, "But you still have to turn me over to Prince Mudeenu, don't you?"

He looked surprised. "Mudeenu? Well, he is in charge of enforcing the rules. It is truly a feat, even unintended, that you got by him."

I let out one nervous laugh, "Heh, yeah. He was there to meet the guards actually. All the Mipedians outside here seems to be happy to have humans around, but he basically called us a menace."

"Oh, really?" He raised an eye at that. "Well, I have had no contact with humans until now, but you do not fit the description the Prince has given to me."

I asked, feeling a bit less scared. "What did he tell you?"

"That humans are vile, untrustworthy thieves. They will sneak through any crack of a defense, they will steal even the least valuable of Gear, and they plot against our people with the other Tribes."

At the most audacious, biased and crude description of my people, I laughed! "Hahahaha!" Wiping a tear from my eye, asked back, "Well, some of us can be a pain. But trust me, Mudeenu's description is pretty misleading."

The white Mipedian stood up, still looking at me. Turning his attention to the wall he said, "I know he means well. Mudeenu is looking out for the benefit of our Tribe, yet he forgets the true purpose of the Royal Family." He thoughtfully, reaches over and places a hand on the hieroglyphics.

"Is that what these are drawings of?" I asked.

He responded, "Yes. This one you are looking at is of Ajara and her first discoveries of the loss of water for our tribe. It was said that two strange Creatures aided her upon her first discovery. No one knows what tribe they came from, but I suspect, after seeing you, that perhaps they were Chaotic Players like yourself." A mix of emotions crossed his face as he told me this story. "No one believed Ajara's tale of the land turning to sand beneath out very feet. And because the two mysterious Creatures with her were the only witnesses, it was far too late before our Tribe accepted her words."

Maybe that's why Creatures seem to have mixed feelings on humans. In Ajara's story they did help her find what she was looking for, but when they vanished, they also took her evidence as eye-witnesses to whatever she had found. "I guess… is that why Mudeenu's so anti- human?"

"Human?" he looked at me, confused.

"Oh!" I realized he must not have heard that term very much. "That's what we Chaotic Players are also called. Humans, Earthlings… take your pick. I know what I am either way."

"You say that with such confidence." He remarked.

I said, "Well, it's the truth. Whether I'm called Angelina, Sarah's daughter, Manny's friend, PerimPride, Chaotic Player, or Angel, I know who I am." Then I added playfully, "But for the record, I prefer Angel to the others."

"I see!" he said with a laugh. "Then, Angel, what would be your next step should I grant you freedom of Mudeenu's wrath?"

When he asked, my answer seemed to both satisfy and surprise him, but I knew what I wanted now more than anything. "I'd like to get out of here and be allowed to go back home."

Iflar, the white Mipedian noble, led me out of the dark Hall of Ancestry, and into the light of the main throne room. The Mipedian Palace was actually a very open place! Differently shaped bricks made out walls and floors, but there was no ceiling outside the high one in the throne room. Which itself seemed to be the most luxurious part of the whole Fortress, being made of what looked similar to alabaster stones, and blue, cushioned chairs of different sizes with the biggest being the main throne. I didn't have time to sight-see this time, as Iflar was being cautious and looking over corners and guiding me over spiked traps to get me out unseen. Even in areas where there was nothing happening, he would look over his shoulder at me for long stretches of time.

Throughout the Fortress were carpets and banners, and outnumbering them were stone statues of Mudeenu himself. "He sure likes reminding everyone he's in charge." I joked with Iflar.

With a slightly forced smile he answered back, "Yes, but I fear that his sense of importance may soon get him into trouble." I didn't know what he meant, I just laughed anyway.

We made it to an in-door garden room with hanging plant and complete with a pond. I didn't need to know much about desert cultures to know that something like this implied a state of high living. Iflar pushed me and himself behind a stone pillar as two guards walked by. He then hurried us over to an open door that led right to a view of the outer wall. Iflar then told me, "This where we say good-bye, Angel." He told me. "The guards will be here in about five minutes for their patrol. You have only that long to drop over that wall and escape here."

"Thank you so much for this, Iflar." I said, giving him a quick hug. "When I lost my scanner I thought I would have ended my day being code."

With a light chuckle he told me. "It has been my great pleasure to meet you this day, my friend. But do not come to the Royal Fortress unprotected again! I may not be able to help you. Now go!" I stood up, and took off running.

I reached the wall. I threw one leg over to prepare for the jump! A laser just barely missed my head and sent me falling back. "Intruder!" And I recognized the shooter. Mudeenu! "A human! Stop her!" Five guards came running at me, I jumped up and started running down the length of the wall.

My legs carried me running, jumping and dodging. On my first sharp turn one of the guards didn't prepare himself for the turn and was left seeing stars by the other four. Then they chased me over a spiked-floor trap where another guard got his tail stuck and had to be left behind as well. Passing a flame-breathing statue at the wrong time caught the third guard, and by the time I reached the throne room the last two were nowhere in sight.

"Ah-ha!" I cheered myself. Suddenly something lifted me by the back of my shirt off the floor! I looked up while I struggled and saw nothing there, until a voice in my ear said, "Invisibility is quite useful when catching a cocky thief." And it was Mudeenu suspending me up in the air.

Worst fear: checkmate!

"Hey, let me go!" I tried to break away. "I haven't done anything!"

"All evidence to the contrary." The giant, lizard deadpanned. "It was very foolish and awfully arrogant of you to try to get past our defenses not once, but twice!" He then turned me around so I was staring into his horned, angry face! "Who sent you to spy on us? If you reveal your conspirators now, I may lighten your stay in the prison."

I was about to say that I wasn't conspiring with anyone, when another familiar face strode into the room. "I will answer that, cousin." Iflar looked angrier than when I saw him a little while ago. And his anger wasn't directed at me, it was at Mudeenu.

"Crown Prince Iflar!" Mudeenu gasped, slightly bowing. I need to catch up on my who's-who in Perim, big time! "This Chaotic Player-"

"Angel." Iflar correct him.

Mudeenu looked confused from where I was dangling. "I…beg your pardon, Crown Prince?"

Iflar crossed his arms at his cousin. "This is Angel Majors. The one who got her in to our Fortress was none other than you, dear cousin. When you ordered that metal crate of Battle Gear you have told no one about." Mudeenu blanched. Iflar continued. "I am responsible for showing her the way out. Put her down, Mudeenu, I would like for you to witness a question I have for this child." Giving me an uneasy look, Mudeenu gently lowered me to the ground. I straightened out my shirt as best I could and looked up at Iflar. "Angel." He spoke calmly, "In the entire time you were here, trapped and then led almost to freedom, why did you not try to scan any Creature, Gear or Location during that time?"

When Iflar was watching me he must have been stopping to see if I would try to scan him or anything in the Fortress. But I never did. I answered him. "Because when I was almost run over and carried in here, my scanner fell out of my pocket somewhere. I realize I forgot to tell you earlier, which was stupid of me. I couldn't scan anything, and even if I did have it I would have used my scan to port back to Chaotic when I got locked in the vault."

"You were inside the vault!?" Mudeenu roared. Iflar silenced him by holding up a hand. Mudeenu then spoke in a more polite tone. "My Prince she could still be deceiving you. The Chaotic Player could have simply hidden her scanner while she was taken in. We should at least lock her up until we have done a complete search of the Fortress."

Iflar looked between Mudeenu and me. He seemed to be contemplating this. A guard ran into the room. "Prince Mudeenu." And seeing who else was in here he immediately bowed, "Crown Prince Iflar!" He gave me a suspicious look and said nothing to me.

"What is it, Vinta?" Iflar said.

He said, "Ghatup and Miss Ebberim are outside the main gate, sires. They say they have something of great importance to report."

Iflar cast a questioning look at me. I smiled up at him and nodded. "Send them to me." Iflar told Vinta, "My cousin and I will be waiting for them here."

Iflar sat on his own throne, while Mudeenu sat in his. He told me to hide behind the corner behind the thrones where no one could see me. When I could see what was going on fairly well. Ghatup and Ebberim approached the two princes together and bowed. "Please, rise." Iflar instructed. "And tell me what brings you here today."

"Your Highness," Ghatup spoke, "we believe that there is to be an attempted break in by a pair of human vagabonds into this very stronghold."

Iflar was speaking seriously. "Really? Humans?" Then he sounded amused. "Well, won't that be interesting! I have never seen a human child in any form other than holograms. It will be interesting to see one in person in my own home."

Using both hands to hold back my laugh, I listened as Ghatup spoke again, "We-We could not capture them, but we do have a description. A boy of stout stature with green eyes and brown hair. And a female-"

"Small, pale, black-haired and blue-eyed?" Iflar finished.

I saw Ebberim and Ghatup's eyes pop. "You have…?" Ghatup asked in fear. He must think that I'm already in prison or something like that.

A smile clearly on his face, Iflar called out. "Angel! Would you come out here, my friend?"

I stepped out from the corner, a bright smile on my face. The two Mipedians from the market had matching looks of surprise, where only Ebberim's face melted into relief, while Iflar's own face showed amusement and Mudeenu didn't look happy about anything at all. I ran up to Ebberim and hugged her from around the waist. "Oh, how you scared me, little one!" Ebberim said putting her arms around me.

"Sorry, Ebberim." I said to her. "I shouldn't have gone to the street when I heard those guards."

"That would have saved us some trouble." The Mipedian named Ghatup looked down at me, but he didn't look as angry as he sounded.

In rage, Mudeenu broke up the moment, "Are you two forgetting-"

To which Iflar stopped him again, "That there is another human in this situation? I believe Angel told me his name is Manny." Ghatup shared a look of panic with Ebberim as she continued to hold me. He quickly bowed saying, "Please excuse me a moment!" and sped out the door.

It was me, Ebberim, Mudeenu and Crown Prince Iflar in the big room. Once the sound of Ghatup's running footsteps faded, Iflar stood and walked up to us. I felt Ebberim tense as the second-in-command of her Tribe came up to us. She let me turn around, but kept her hands protectively tight on my shoulders. Iflar shared a kind smile with her, to which she smiled back and bowed her head. Then he knelt in front of me and spoke to me like he did when he found me below ground.

"Now that you know I am the Crown Prince, are you less enthused on befriending me, young Angel?"

I did feel a little cheated that not only did I not have my scanner here, but I had also met the two biggest names in the Mipedian Tribe the one time I don't have it. As far learning that Iflar was the well-hidden Crown Prince, "No way! Like I said, no matter what other people call me I know who I am. That also applies to you, Prince or not, you're a good person. But I will have to call you Crown Prince Iflar from now on. Just out of respect, and for how you fooled me."

The Crown Prince laughed. Ghatup came back with Manny walking in front of him. "Ange, you're okay!" he cried out when he saw me.

"Manny!" We both met for a hug. When he pulled out, Manny reached into his pocket and pulled out my lost, purple scanner. "Here, ya dropped this before ya got carried away back there. Phew! You sure do get around here."

I playfully punched his arm. "It wasn't on purpose, ya know! But yeah, I'm sorry if I made you worry. I'm sorry for making everyone worried."

"Psh-aw!" Manny waved it off. "We came here because we looking for adventure. And… whoa. Looks like you caught a ride straight to adventure-central, Angel." Manny looked over at all the Mipedians standing in the room. From where Prince Iflar was standing he cast a knowing look over at Mudeenu's direction. "Angel Majors," Iflar spoke loudly. "It appears we have clear evidence that your scanner truly was lost to you before entering the palace. Now would you further demonstrate that the scanner is your own?"

"How?" I asked with a shrug.

Manny answered. "By porting out of here! No Chaotic Player can do that unless they have their own scanner."

A wave of relief washed over me. I finally had my scanner back in my hand, I could go home! As I looked over at Ebberim, Ghatup and Iflar, I knew I just needed one more thing before I left today. "If I might ask, Crown Prince Iflar, I'd like to talk to Ebberim before I go." Iflar nodded, and Ebberim walked up to me.

"Ebberim, I want to thank you and Ghatup for coming so far to save me." I said to her. "Not a lot of people would do that for a person they only made friends with a few hours ago."

"Mipedians stand up for their allies." Ebberim smoothed my hair as she said. "It doesn't matter if we met them an hour or even a lifetime ago. I hope you will come and hear me sing tonight." She added in a whisper. "After all this, I think all my stage fright has disappeared over the dunes." I laughed.

"Ebberim, would it be alright if I scanned you?" This is what I wanted to ask. "If I'm going to become someone else in Chaotic, then I'd like to be someone who is not only brave but also someone who has been a good a friend as you."

Ebberim smiled as she replied, "Be my guest."

I scanned Ebberim, and Ghatup was nice enough to let me scan him too. But before I could go back to Manny Iflar came up and whispered to me. "I couldn't help but notice you did not ask for a scan of me, my friend."

I felt embarrassed as I explained my not asking. "Well, you are still the Crown Prince, Iflar. As a friend I don't think I can ask for a scan of you. Besides it would give Mudeenu an excuse to call me a traitor if someone breaks into the Fortress again."

Iflar sent a look over at Mudeenu that made him wince a little. "Mudeenu and I are going to be having a talk with my father tonight." He told me. "I think with the Human's Return it's time for me to stop hiding in the palace and start becoming more active with the Mipedian affairs."

I saw Iflar cast an interestingly soft look towards Ebberim, then he said to me in a whisper. "And I hope you will not let the impression of Mudeenu alone sway you to think negatively of my people."

I shook my head. "After meeting, you, Ebberim and Ghatup, there's no chance of that, Iflar."

Waving good-bye to our knew friends and a soon-to- be-in-major-time-out Mudeenu, Manny and I ported back to Chaotic.

Chaotic

Sitting down at a table, slurping down lemonade after lemonade to re-hydrate ourselves, Manny and I shared our adventures. Manny told me how after I was taken away, he Ghatup and Ebberim worked out a plan that involved him getting captured and put into the same prison as me to get me my scanner back. "They couldn't become traitor to the crown, so they acted like they were delivering the info to make it look like we were looking together and could be jailed together!"

"My hero." I said with only a little bit of sarcasm. And I told Manny about how I got in the vault, realized my scanner was missing and met Crown Prince Iflar. Manny laughed at the part where I didn't know who he actually was.

"OMG, Angel!" He couldn't stop laughing. So like a good friend I shoved a burger into his mouth.

Setting down a drink of lemonade, I said. "I've never even seen his card before. They're still really rare."

Manny started eating the burger and told me. "Fair enough." Or at least that's what I translated. I never know what Manny says until he swallows. "Ya know this wasn't really how I planned out the Awesomest Day in Mipedian Territory, but object was retrieved!"

"There was an objective to all this chaos?"

"Totes!" Manny stated. "Step one: find the Mipedian Big City. Step Two: Gather info and scans. Step Tre's: Find a way into the Royal Fortress no matter what! And Four: Have the best day ever!"

I laughed and rolled my eyes. Manny and I are such different people. That's what I like about him. We both love adventures and Chaotic, but we have different ways of seeing them. What I would call a mess is what Manny considers a success, and what I consider minor is what Manny consider….yep, major! A girl can't ask for a better guy-friend.

I told Manny, "Every adventure we have is the best day, buddy."

"Awww! I'm getting misty-eyed." Manny grinned. Then he pumped his fist. "And this is only the beginning!"

"Huh?" I said nearly dropping my drink.

Manny went on. "We started off with a bang, but now we need to go nuclear bomb! So next I was thinking of something in the Underworld, or maybe Mommark's Castle of Creatures! Then we can start thinking M'arillian stomping grounds. Things there can get really freaky and-"

Oh, boy… I need to make sure I do my part as Manny's friend too. He may be willing to go all out on a fun day, but I need to be there to make sure he stops and takes a good look around. That's how our relationship works. We go running off into trouble together, and we stop along the way to see what other possibilities are out there.

I can't wait until Kit and Kat get back from their day. I think this as Manny continues planning on.

A/N: For those wondering: I used the description of the palace from the Chaotic Shadow Warriors game. And Added the garden scene from A Flux To Far from season one.

But I only own my OCs!

Hope you all enjoyed this chpater. We'll be seeing what Kit and Kat are up to in the next one.

Please review on your thoughts!