Greetings. Here's a short version of a crossover I came up with a few years ago. If you're wondering if it's related to "The New Boss", yes, it is, although it's not the same timeline. I hope you like it.
Chapter 1: The times of the goddess.
It had been less than two months since the Pastmaster had made his last appearance at Katchu Picchu after his failed attempt to take control of some giant mummies in order to conquer or destroy Megakat City. -Knowing exactly what the dwarf would want to do was a challenge- With the archaeological complex secure, Dr. Sinnian and her team was able to resume excavations.
One evening, she had Callie Briggs called to the museum for private consultations; she arrived late at night, leaving her car in the parking lot before entering the museum and meeting the doctor in her study.
— Dr. Sinnian. You called me?
— Yes, Callie. Please excuse the late hours.
— That's all right, Doctor. I hadn't slept yet: Manx had me busy preparing another one of his speeches.
— Does that man even know how to write? -she complained- Oh, I'm sorr...
— Yes, but the worst thing is that he can talk. Talking too much, if you know what I mean. -the two women guffawed in complicity- Now then, excuse my boldness, but to what do I owe your call?
— Well, I'll explain it to you.
For at least ten minutes, the archaeologist explained the situation to the deputy mayor, although she was somewhat vague about it. Not with her last request, though.
— Callie... You... you're in contact with the Swat Kats, aren't you?
— I beg your pardon? But doctor ...
— Come on, Callie. -the doctor smiled at her with a friendly, knowing smile- You're their main support at City Hall, and I doubt they have eyes and ears all over town. You can trust me.
— Well... yes, I am. -she pulled a small triangular-shaped electronic device out of her purse- They gave it to me long ago, the first time we met.
— Call them, please.
— Yes, please. Call them, dear.
That sinister hoarse old voice chilled the blood of both women, and more so when they saw the Pastmaster on the other side of the door and wearing two medieval metal armors animated by magic.
— You! It's a pleasure to see you again, descendant of Callista!
— Are you planning to marry me again? I'm not your dead bride!
— I like that attitude of yours, it reminds me of my beloved! -he looked at the archaeologist- And you, you'd better get out of my way, I don't need you!
The doctor could do nothing but back away from the menacing weapons of the reanimated armors and watch as one of them grabbed Callie and walked away along with the other armor and the Pastmaster. Callie struggled and screamed in an attempt to escape, as the old wizard mocked her futile attempts. Still, she managed to pull the communicator out of her pocket and press the button; at least then the Swat Kats would hear.
########
Minutes later, the Enforcers had already deployed helicopters to search for the Past master and try to stop him... and it didn't take long for the Swat Kats to show up.
— I'm tracking Callie's communicator signal, T-Bone. Won't be long now.
— I thought we got rid of the Past Master, What the hell does he want now? To marry Callie again because of her resemblance to the Queen Callista?
— If you ask me, I have no idea.
— Hey, the queen's favorite is you, Razor.
— You weren't just a little jealous of me, were you, buddy?
— Remind me once we get back home to give you a good spanking.
— Affirmative. -Razor scoffed, not taking his eyes off the radar- We're getting closer: they're over Reston Avenue.
— Roger.
It wasn't long before the two animated suits of armor with Callie as their hostage were in their sights, and the Pastmaster was leading the march that scared away the few drivers of the night, forcing some to abandon their cars and others to make maneuvers worthy of a severe traffic ticket.
— We can't attack the armor while they have Callie. Suggestions, Razor?
— A rescue operation: you distract the armor and I'll rescue Callie.
— You want to be the battle-hardened knight of Callista's descendant, don't you?
— Now you're the one looking for that beating, T-Bone. -he moved his seat back as his friend gave him a smirk- Stay in position.
— Roger.
Avoiding eye contact, Razor mounted the Cyclotron and disengaged from the Turbokat without the Pastmaster noticing, while T-Bone flew at high speed over the sorcerer and his entourage to get their attention with a small sonic blast. T-Bone watched out of the corner of his eye as the old sack of bones waved his arms indignantly at his little show, while Razor approached from behind.
— Ms. Briggs, get down!
— Razor?
The Cyclotron fired two cement rounds into the armor's legs, causing them to jam and stumble: one landed on the Master of the Past, and the other on the asphalt, knocking Callie loose on the spot and leaving her in a ball on the avenue. Razor approached her and got off the motorcycle.
— Are you all right, miss?
— Yes, I'm fine.
— Okay. Get on the Cyclotron and hold on tight: we'll take you away from here.
— All right.
— T-Bone, come pick us up.
By the time the Pastmaster stood up, Razor had already started the Cyclotron with Callie on his back and holding on tight; the warlock threw a few beams at the motorcycle which Razor deftly dodged before climbing onto the still moving Turbokat. Callie didn't even blink when she realized she was next to Razor on the plane.
— That has to be the craziest thing I've ever seen you guys do.
— Hehehe... Then I've yet to see many more things.
— We've done crazier things, miss. -replied Razor- Do you have any idea why that bony old man kidnapped you?
— I have no idea, but...
— Oh, oh... Razor, we're in trouble.
The three occupants of the Turbokat noticed it immediately: in the starry night sky an extremely characteristic purple and spiral cloud formation was beginning to appear, accompanied by a strong swirling wind.
— A Time Portal!
— This was a trap!
— A what?! -Callie shouted, reacting immediately- So you guys...!
— Yeah, and we don't want to do it again! We gotta go, T-Bone!
— That's the deal, Razor! Come on, boy! Don't let old T-Bone down!
— T-Bone! I think we're gonna have to eject!
— Forget it, Razor! I'm not leaving the Turbokat!
— Don't be so stubborn and listen to me! The jet could go to pieces, killing all three of us!
— You think if we eject, that thing won't swallow us? At least with the Turbokat we'll have a chance!
— So what are we gonna do?
That question made him more distressed than he wanted to show; T-Bone just kept on forcing the engines as much as he could, looking at the portal, almost as distressed as his friend, and at the same time, with the same defiant attitude as always, and thinking about the most important thing.
— Hold on tight; we're going to have some turbulence.
— T-Bone?
— Whatever happens, we're going home. As we always do. I promise you both.
Callie had no choice but to trust them: if they had been through this before and returned safely, nothing would make her think otherwise. She put on the auxiliary seatbelt and the oxygen mask Razor had given her and prayed that everything would go well.
One last attempt, one more effort: the black jet's engines overloaded, in an attempt to escape the suction force of the dimensional rift. The last thing the few witnesses present, both bystanders and the Enforcers who had just arrived, saw was the Turbokat making one last attempt to escape before it was sucked into the vortex, being engulfed by the darkness. Soon after, the portal in the sky disappeared as if it had never existed.
The Pastmaster was extremely satisfied with his work, but he was not the only one. From a nearby rooftop...
########
— Boss. The package has been sent.
— "Excellent, return to base." -he cut the call short- "Now, Swat Kats... a little history lesson."
Although the portal was the same as the ones they had already crossed, the sensation was still unpleasant: the perception of up-down was lost due to the erratic movements of the Turbokat, and T-Bone's attempts to stabilize it were useless, since there was no point of reference; neither could they eject, since there was nowhere to escape to, except the end of the tunnel.
For Callie, this was a new and terrifying experience, as well as unpleasant: it was worse than those mechanical rides in an amusement park. She wanted to throw up, and luckily, Razor anticipated by giving her a motion sickness bag. "You can never be too cautious," he smiled at her.
Gradually the darkness dissipated a little, until they saw the exit: a crevice facing some day side: the Turbokat was literally spat out of the tunnel, threatening to plummet, were it not for the fact that T-Bone managed to right the plane in time, being seconds away from hitting the ground. As he had strained the engines to avoid being sucked in, he maintained a lower speed for a calmer flight.
The landscape that greeted them was radically different from the one they left: it was the dawn hours, and the place was a semi-desert prairie with some groves of trees scattered here and there.
— This is not Megakat City.
— Or maybe it still isn't. -Razor conjectured- The vegetation matches the native vegetation before the founding of the city.
— You may be right. -Callie nodded, pointing to a river- That must be the Megakat River. Holy Kats, it's almost unrecognizable to me without the buildings and asphalt. What year is it?
— Unfortunately, I don't have my calendar. Let's land there to cool off a bit while I inspect the Turbokat, T-Bone.
— Roger.
They were about to land the plane when Callie pointed out something moving along the shore, leaving them stunned: they were people... poorly dressed, but people nonetheless. And apparently their arrival must have spooked them, because they scurried away, hiding in nearby bushes.
Still, they landed softly on the shore, leaving the Turbokat under the shade of some trees. The three of them climbed down carefully and stayed close: Razor inspected the jet's systems, T-Bone watched the surroundings and Callie went to the river to get a drink and wet her feet after taking off her shoes. She saw the river with clear water and some fish; it was refreshing and calmed her down a bit, although she could feel herself being watched by those locals.
— Everything seems to be in order. -said Razor- We have enough fuel, the electrical system is working fine and I can't find any structural damage. I would just recommend not to push the engines too hard after that escape attempt.
— Hey, at least I tried.
— I don't blame you, T-Bone: I'm just warning you. I'd like to know where the hell we're going, though.
— As a first choice, it might be away from our fan club.
T-Bone was referring to the primitive locals who kept watching them hiding in the bushes: clearly they were scared, but they were curious. Razor said it was best not to provoke them or interact with them; T-Bone agreed, though he didn't like them noticing Callie so much. At least they had good style, he thought.
One of the locals got pretty close to the Turbokat, but T-Bone intercepted him by getting in his way; the stranger was startled, but stayed put.
— Hey, I know my jet is cool, but it's not for touching just like that.
— ¿?
— Don't you speak my language?
— ...
A sound from above startled the local and sent him running, followed by his fellows, who hid even more; when T-Bone and Razor turned up, they were stunned and called out to Callie: it was an extremely strange flying craft, vaguely pyramidal in appearance, more like a polished rock. When it landed and opened its side hatch, out stepped two tall, slender, athletic figures, clearly female, wearing chainmail armor and huge, wild feline-looking helmets who immediately pointed strange staffs at them. All they could do was raise their arms.
The most curious thing was that one of them had no fur on the exposed skin of its limbs and abdomen, nor did it have a tail.
It was a...!
— Mye'yu*, aray kree!
— Great, they don't speak Mercian* either. -T-Bone grumbled- Ehm... ladies... I guess. Nothing's wrong here: we just have a small mechanical problem.
— And temporary.
— Guys... -Callie pointed out- They don't look friendly.
— Benna! Ya wan ya duru!
— Bet!
— Yeah, they sound angry.
One of them took aim with her staff and fired a ball of energy at a tree, causing a small explosion and burns on the trunk, making it clear that they were hostile. T-Bone and Razor had no choice but to defeat them any way they could and at the same time protect Callie.
Both Swat Kats took aim with their Glovatrixes -thank God they had them on- and fired nets to wrap around both intruders before they fired their weird staffs again; it worked to disarm one, but only to hold them off for a short time, because they both had gloves with retractable metal claws to break the net. Callie took the opportunity to hide behind a tree.
T-Bone offered to break his rule of not fighting women to distract them while Razor took the staff and tried to use it. After clumsy attempts to use it and before his friend was shot, Razor managed to fire the staff at the two female warriors, knocking them down and leaving deep burns on their chests.
Callie came out of hiding, still scared of the whole situation, but also realizing that her heroes and friends were also somewhat disturbed, especially Razor.
— We... we...
— I know. -Callie nodded, with some sympathy to the pilots- They had no choice.
— Damn: I never thought I'd have people on my kill list. -T-Bone growled- Only monsters, mutants and crazy robots.
— Tell me about it... But it was either that or get killed, buddy.
— Thanks, Razor. -he crouched down to get a closer look at the warriors- Now let's try to see who's behind the mask.
— Let's check the ship first, in case they have backup. Miss Briggs, stay behind us at a distance; if it's safe, we'll let you know.
Callie and the Swat Kats, with their Glovatrix and one of the staffs in paw, ran to the ship, which held its door open. The interior was something they never imagined: all clad in gold or gold paint, more like a temple than a ship, the control panels and consoles had buttons of crystals and gemstones, and what appeared to be the ship's controller was a red orb.
— Someone is obsessed with luxury. -said T-Bone with a whistle-
— This is clearly alien: it's unlike anything we've ever seen, or Aquian technology.
— The feline aliens whose ship was stolen by that pirate Mutilor, Razor?
— That's the one, Callie.
— I wish I could fly this thing.
— Negative, T-Bone: we don't know how to use this ship, and the fact that there are only two crewmen indicates to me that it was just a patrol party. We need to get away from here as soon as possible and avoid being seen.
— And where are we going? We don't even know if it's the past or the future.
— I doubt it's the future, T-Bone: I saw no sign of ruins where Megakat should be; we're probably in the past.
— Aliens in the past? Sounds like that crazy Feixeido guy Razor is a fan of.
— I'm not his fan: his theories are interesting and entertaining.
— So much so that I read it to pass the time in the bathroom.
— YOU TAKE MY BOOK TO READ IT IN THE BATHROOM WHILE YOU...?!
— Boys! -Callie shouted- I love this interesting and intimate debate, but I think we'd better get out of here and get some help, and I think I know where.
— Where?
— Katchu Picchu.
Callie's explanation made sense: Katchu Picchu was a very old city that had been inhabited for thousands of years; if they were somewhere in the past, it was likely that there was some civilization there where they could locate themselves and find clues, someone like the Queen Callista able to take them back to their time, or at least to get food.
They agreed that they would land the Turbokat somewhere outside the city to hide it from prying eyes with the help of an emergency blanket they kept, and that they would look to take some clothes to cover themselves and food to feed themselves. It was stealing, but given the circumstances, they had no choice.
Once the decision was made, they took off the Turbokat, leaving behind the two alien corpses and their ship, heading for Katchu Picchu.
One of their greatest fears was that in broad daylight, they would encounter other hostile alien ships. If that happened, what could they do? T-Bone and Razor came to the conclusion that they would have to eliminate them, although that would mean using up the limited number of missiles they had; they could use the cement gun, or the Turbokat's laser weapon, but these were not weapons that would guarantee them victory. In any case, the three still wondered what advanced aliens were doing on their planet in the past.
Fortunately for them, Katchu Picchu was not too far away, and they encountered no alien ships along the way; only a rugged landscape that gradually gave way to desert as they approached the mountains north of Megakat.
As they were nearing their destination, Razor's radar detected three targets approaching. From a distance, they looked like aircraft, but they knew they were something more.
— I'll get the laser cannon ready, T-Bone. You try to evade their fire.
— Count me in, buddy.
— Miss Briggs, hold on tight.
The fighters approached the Turbokat without bothering to contact radio and fired the same type of laser as the strange canes; T-Bone dodged the shots with ease and then flew in a downward direction to make them think she was falling; the two ships flew towards her firing at the Turbokat, which evaded all shots. As it was about to hit the ground, T-Bone righted the jet in time and flew skimming the ground; one of the ships did not react in time and crashed, exploding, while the other kept chasing it.
To finish it off once and for all, T-Bone ascended vertically with the nozzles, accelerated, made a curl flight and positioned himself behind the ship, moment that Razor took advantage of to fire the laser at the ship's engines, causing it to lose altitude and crash. To top it off, he fired another shot, causing it to explode.
— Target neutralized, T-Bone.
— Pff... Yeah... I still don't feel quite right about this.
— We got shot at, T-Bone: we had to defend ourselves. Don't blame yourselves for that.
— I understand, Miss...
— Call me Callie: formalities aren't necessary at this point.
— Can we make it permanent?
— T-Bone!
— Only when it's not too crowded. You know what the press is like... apart from Ann Gora, of course.
— Katchu Picchu is not far away, so we have to be cautious.
They flew low and alert until they came in sight of the first houses and farms. The view in the distance left them speechless: it was an immense city, mostly adobe shacks and rammed earth with intricate alleys; clearly where the poorest people lived; towards the center, imposing building complexes and small pyramids could be seen. In the distance, you could see small water channels, which Callie said Dr. Sinnian had said existed long ago to facilitate agriculture and navigation.
And in the very center of the city, there was the Great Pyramid of Katchu Picchu, not stepped, but with its four perfectly smooth faces clad in white stone. But what shocked them was the great golden, metallic pyramid that was LANDING on top of the stone pyramid.
An alien spacecraft.
What the hell was going on?
########
They managed to find a good hiding place for the Turbokat in the middle of a small grove of trees: Razor took out a large camouflage blanket they had for emergencies and covered the jet with it, securing it with some stones. Then, T-Bone, Razor and Callie walked stealthily to a small house on the outskirts of the city: there was no one outside, and they were laying out some robes in the sun. They took them to cover themselves so as not to attract attention on their way into town; they also took some fruit and bread from a basket outside to eat: they didn't like to steal, but they were of little means.
The buildings they saw at first were all one or two stories, of adobe, straw and wood walls, with narrow streets full of people, all wearing rags or tunics. In the case of the men, many barely had loincloths and some children were even naked. They passed a marketplace brimming with people, goods and aromas: food, tools, crude but beautiful jewelry, cloth, clothing... But no sign of advanced technology: these people lived not only in misery, but with Copper Age technology. How then to explain the aliens and their strange ships? The other thing was language: none of the three could understand these people, nor recognize the language; more than one regretted that Dr. Sinnian was not there with them.
Callie saw the people move aside to let someone, possibly important, pass: it was a group of women all dressed in white, with gold jewelry and precious stones and beautiful sandals, carrying sistrums, lutes and flutes, as well as incense vessels while singing, or rather, uttering prayers. There Callie recognized something, but the three of them noticed a particular word, which forced them to hide.
— Bastet... Those women prayed to Bastet.
— They must be priestesses, T-Bone. -Razor reasoned- Spreading the message of their goddess.
— And the language they speak is Bast*: I recognize it.
— Can you speak Bast, Callie? Are you a Basteist*?
— Of course not, T-Bone: I recognized it because a few months ago representatives of the Bhurakistani* community of Megakat City came to the city hall for a meeting with the mayor, and the priestess spent almost an hour doing a liturgy in that language. What I had to do not to fall asleep... and keep Manx awake.
— Okay: so we have alien ships, a pre-industrial society and Bastet worshippers?
— Do you see the logic in all this, Razor?
— No, T-Bone... unless... -Razor shook his head- Forget it. The only thing I can be sure about, is that if we want any answers, we need to go to the fancy part of Katchu Picchu.
— Dude, we're covered in rags: I don't think we can just walk in.
— We'll sneak in and try to pass for traders.
— Trade what?
— Me, I guess. -Callie grunted- All right: I'll accept it under the circumstances.
Fortunately, there was not much control between the slum area and the fancy part of town, so they entered without much trouble. The contrast was stark: Ancient Khemet* style buildings with stone cladding, beautiful statues, manicured gardens, paved streets and better dressed people in white robes and jewelry. It was still primitive by Callie's and the Swat Kats' standards, but it looked much better.
The other thing was the increased presence of guards, mostly female, patrolling the streets like some sort of police force: clearly people felt fear and respect for them, even if they didn't show their faces. Callie was stunned to see one of those fierce female warriors grab a little girl by the paw to help her to her feet and carry her to her parents. She didn't dare say they were the Enforces of this civilization, but she was getting close to them.
They came to a wide main square beautifully cobbled and lined with four large statues of Bastet at its corners in front of the Great Pyramid, whose entrance to its interior was topped by a small temple with an entrance of two stone pylons. T-Bone, Razor and Callie watched from the edges of the square unobtrusively, taking keen interest in the Great Pyramid and the alien ship atop it, which glowed in the sunlight.
— I still can't believe it. -Razor sighed, An alien ship... in the past.
— And in that form. -T-Bone complained- Who the heck would come up with a ship shaped like a pyramid? All you have to do is tell me that the stone pyramid was made specifically for it to dock.
— Well, all indications are that that is precisely the reality, T-Bone. -Razor pointed to the structure, to the underside of the ship- See the anchors? It fits perfectly.
— Damn it.
— What I don't understand is how this wasn't recorded... Unless... This is before the Dark Ages.
— You mean before Kasiopea's birth, Callie?
— Yes, Razor.
— Meaning at the very least, we must be more than four to five thousand years in the past.
— What concerns me is the emblem on the tip of the pyramid ship, see? It is the emblem of basteism.
— That can only mean that...
— Shh... Something's going on.
Razor pointed to the entrance of the pyramid: a large number of priestesses accompanied by heavily armed warriors came out of it, led by a much better dressed priestess with a large horn, and a warrior in golden armor; the one who seemed to be the high priestess blew the horn, followed by some warriors around the square. This caused all the people of the city to stop what they were doing and crowd into the square, including those in the mud huts. Everyone, in a very religious manner, gathered there to listen to what those people had to say.
None of the modern kats understood what the high priestess was saying, but when she finished her proclamation, everyone in the square knelt down and said a prayer stretching their arms forward, exalting one name.
Bastet.
— I think Bastet has arrived home. -grunted T-Bone- We'd better get back to the Turbokat: I don't see that this place is safe in the daytime.
— I agree, my friend. Let's go back at sunset.
— Hold on, guys: something's going on.
This time it was the golden-armored warrior's turn to speak, sounding firm-voiced, assertive and angry as she spoke to the population. She tapped her staff against the ground, and then several female warriors brought in five people in chains, drawing the attention not only of the local population, but of Callie and the Swat Kats; not only because they were dressed very out of place, in clothes that modern kats would recognize... But they weren't even kats! They had no fur, no tails, no big pointy ears; clearly two were female and three were male, and all wore green military-looking uniforms.
After her furious diatribe, the golden-armored warrior woman struck the ground with her staff and the five strangers were led back inside the pyramid. That was the signal for the population to return to their daily activities. Soon after, the three modern kats watched as three ships similar to the one they shot down earlier emerged from a type of hangar inside the pyramid ship and left the city.
— This is getting stranger and stranger. -Callie commented- Why would they have held them back?
— I doubt they are of the same species that rules here, and let's be honest: the Kats don't rule this city... and possibly not the planet either.
— So what do we do, Razor? I didn't understand a word those crazy women said, but I have a feeling they'll execute them tomorrow, like in those movies where they want to show who's in charge.
— You want to save them, don't you?
— Of course, partner. They may not be our kind, but something tells me they're the good guys.
— There's also the detail of their clothing: they clearly come from a much more modern society than this one, perhaps similar to ours. They could help us.
— But if we don't understand them, Razor?
— Saving them might convince them that we're on the same side, Callie.
— Good point, but something worries me. If they are aliens hostile to those who rule here, and also alien to our planet, how did they get here? I doubt on the pyramid ship.
— We'll find out when we rescue them, but first we must return to the Turbokat and arm ourselves.
With extreme caution, they left the city and returned to the Turbokat, which fortunately remained undiscovered. They ate and drank some of their rations they obtained, rested a bit and then prepared to go save the five aliens. Although T-Bone insisted that Callie stay, she convinced them both that leaving her waiting in the Turbokat was a bad idea. Besides, she wanted to help too.
Under the last rays of sunlight, T-Bone, Razor and Callie donned their makeshift robes, and armed with the Glovatrix and the alien staff Callie learned to use, they made their way back to Katchu Picchu, evading the guards as much as possible. They had no luck at the entrance, and were forced to fight one of them, who used a strange electric ray gun that they managed to evade after Razor gave her a kick that made her drop her weapon. T-Bone took the drawn weapon and shot her twice, leaving her dead.
Skipping over the moral issues, they kept the weapon and continued on their way to the great pyramid smoothly along the silent city, until they reached a corner of the square unseen. As expected, there were two armed guards guarding the entrance.
— I don't see any other way in, Razor.
— We don't even know what the inside looks like, T-Bone.
— Did we even know about Puma-Dyne before we went in through that mega-detonator?
— No, but we were doing the right thing.
— It's the same here, buddy. -he took the alien pistol- I swear, using this thing makes me uncomfortable.
— For killing people?
— That and the way it's so... suggestive.
— T-Bone, don't be a fool. -Callie muttered- We have to rescue those people.
— Fine: you stay here for a moment while we take care of it. You know what to do.
This time Callie didn't argue, and let T-Bone and Razor take over: Razor came out of hiding and drew the attention of the guards, luring one in his direction while another remained at her post. The one chasing Razor was firing with the ray gun until she ran into Callie, who used the staff weapon and shot her twice in the chest until she was left with a smoking hole in her chest; the other guard was taken down by T-Bone after appearing out of nowhere and giving her two shots from the gun, leaving her dead as well.
With a wave of his arm, T-Bone beckoned them in and they hurried inside: the interior had hardly any decorations, featuring plain stone walls with a few torches and statues. There were numerous rooms along the wide corridor the width of a three-lane road ending in a staircase. They avoided the staircase for the moment and checked out the other rooms: one was more like a storeroom with bags full of ore and curiously, some modern-looking weapons and backpacks; another had the priestesses' vestments; and another was an authentic treasure chamber filled with offerings such as gold jewelry and precious stones, exquisite pottery, colorful cloths, fine wooden furniture and statues.
As they were about to enter a locked room, two guards appeared and were just short of sounding the alarm when Razor grabbed Callie's staff and shot them, killing them both.
— They must be here, since they were upset to see us nearby. -Seeing the door, he raged- This thing has a damn control panel!
— T-Bone, don't yell! -Razor went over to inspect it- Damn: it must have a code, and I don't think I can hack it with the Glovatrix.
— I have a better idea.
T-Bone pushed Razor away and then punched the control panel hard, leaving it completely shattered; even Callie was amazed at the tremendous strength the Swat Kat possessed, though Razor was used to it... much to his chagrin. The stone door swung wide open.
— Solution. -T-Bone smiled mischievously- Let's go inside.
— Sometimes I wonder what your mom fed you.
— The usual: lots of milk, lots of protein, plus lots of exercise.
The interior was clearly a prison, a not-so-advanced one fortunately. There were four spacious cells, and in one of them were the five strangers, apparently asleep. Razor tapped the bars gently to wake them up a little rudely, causing them to slowly wake up. One of the men, wearing glasses, approached the bars, rather intrigued, and said a few words.
— Oh, great: another one who speaks the weird language, Razor.
— It's not weird, it's Goa... Wait, you speak English?
— What's "English"? Hey! You speak Mercian!
— What's Mercian? And why are you wearing a pilot's suit?
— Jackson, not now! -complained the other man, just as light-skinned as this Jackson-
— Jackson? What an unalien name. -commented Razor- Listen: we are going to rescue you; I ask you to please step aside so I can use my circular saw to cut the lock. We have little time.
— We can't leave without our weapons. -commented the dark-skinned muscular man- Leaving them at the mercy of Bastet would be counterproductive.
— I think I saw them in that mineral deposit. I'll go get them with Callie: Razor, try to free them quickly.
— Roger.
T-Bone and Callie soon returned with the strangers' weapons and backpacks, by which time Razor had freed them. They returned the weapons and backpacks to the strangers and the strangers nodded gratefully.
— Thanks a lot, guys.
— You're welcome, but I think it's time to get out of here before they find out we released them.
— Do you have somewhere safe? -asked the muscular man-
— Preferably somewhere with soft beds. -the glasses man gave her an ugly look for that comment- These cells are very uncomfortable.
— We have a hideout on the outskirts of the city: we could hide there.
— That's fine. -the brown-haired alien man nodded- Lead the way, please.
T-Bone and Razor nodded, and together with Callie, led the five strangers through the city avoiding being seen as much as possible: again, they ran into another guard in the shanty area, but the alien man who seemed to be the leader took a ray gun and fired two shots at her.
— Zat gun, never go out without it.
— Gun what?
— Don't you know what it is? -he asked T-Bone- Well, I'll sum it up for you: one shot stuns, two shots kill.
— Oh, yeah... I just learned how to use it today.
— T-Bone, let's socialize later: we have to get back to the Turbokat.
The group of eight left the city under the light of the crescent moon and walked for an hour until they reached the shelter, where the muscular man and the black-haired woman turned on a red-filtered flashlight taken from their backpack.
— Let's hope they don't look for us, or this will draw their attention.
— It's best not to keep it on too long. They might send Death Gliders to look for us in the area.
— So let's keep it short. My name is T-Bone, and this is my partner Razor; we call ourselves the Swat Kats, a vigilante duo.
— Those aren't your real names, I guess.
— You're right. -Razor replied to the blonde alien woman- We keep our civilian identity a secret for obvious reasons.
— My name is Callie Briggs, I am the deputy mayor of a city called Megakat, and the major ally of the Swat Kats.
— Megakat? A city? -said the woman with long black hair- Excuse me, my dear, but I don't see any city around here. What's more, it looks like you three don't even belong here.
— I'm supposed to be in this area, but... It's a long story.
— We'll have time to catch up, miss, since we seem to be in the same predicament as you.
— I understand, and you are...
— Lieutenant Colonel Cameron Mitchell, leader of SG-1, from the planet Earth. -he pointed to his team- This is Lieutenant Colonel Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Doran, and Teal'c. I think if we help each other, we can get out of this mess.
— I agree, Colonel.
Author's note (*):
- Mye'yu: Goa'uld name assigned to both the kats and their homeworld.
- Mercian: name by which the Kats know the English language.
- Ancient Khemet: kat version of Ancient Egypt.
- Bhurakistan: kat superstate-nation representing Indian culture, with some Ancient Egyptian features. The only largely basteist state.
- Basteism: Kat religion, now a minority, based on the cult of the goddess Bastet, who is the main goddess and considered the mother goddess of the kats.
- Bast: liturgical language of Basteism. It is a Goa'uld dialect.