It was the smell that stirred Okanuso awake; that of strong alcohol. He stretched, feeling the satisfying pop in his arms and back, tail straight out. He felt like he'd been sleeping on unpadded tree bark and was confused to learn he actually was on wood. His foggy brain cleared at the smell, his nostrils forcing him through the opening in the cloth canopy. He stepped on cobblestone pavement, rubbing a clawed hand over his tannish mane. He had been in the back of a covered wagon that now sat unoccupied off to one side of a wide boulevard on which many more wagons were pulled by six legged horses. The drivers remind him he was on Pia, the Pians pointy ears and rigged foreheads were unmistakable.
The moon cast a distant glow on the greyish environment and the parked wagons around several establishments from which the smell and noise of merriment issued. Okanuso allowed his nose to decide his destination, walking into a two story, slightly dilapidated building directly across the street called One for the Run. Inside were over two dozen Pians, a scattering of Humans, a couple of Yuni, and a Tilris wearing heavy clothing. Okanuso scanned the room untill he saw a booth near the back corner, empty.
He ignored the looks of patrons, sliding into the rough seat. Mugs of near empty liquid littered the table; Okanuso was thirsty as hell, but he wasn't desperate enough to drink the back swallow of strangers. He raised a claw, gaining the attention of a woman with a tray of food in each hand and one on her head. She was a few feet away unloading her burden before coming over with a small parchment and writing utensil.
Waitress
Haven't seen your kind this way in a long time. What you having?
Okanuso
The strongest liquor your establishment has to offer, my lovely lady.
Waitress
You came to the right place if you looking for the best. Expensive though.
Okanuso
I am financially wealthy, my dear. And I will tip handsomely if you can direct me to the nearest mage.
Waitress
No mages around here, kitty. Be back with that brew.
She sauntered off with the used mugs, smacking a groping hand that drifted too near with one. A bald, athletic man sitting at the corner booth, got up and sat across from him.
Bald man
You looking for a mage?
Okanuso
Yes, please. Do you know of one?
Bald man
Sure do. But he don't do nothing without being paid.
Okanuso
I have plenty of money if he has the talent.
Bald man
No problem there. Let's go.
Okanuso
As eager as I am to go this minute, I haven't drank anything in over a day. Can we go after I've wet my whiskers?
Bald man
Sure, pal. I will be waiting outside.
He got up and left. It was a different woman who bought him his drink on a tray, the alcohol frothing over the frosty mug. She was older then the previous waitress, had close cut hair and a black eye patch over her left eye. She gazed at him with her remaining eye, as if he would go berserk any second.
Frenzy
Marantha wasn't lying. A Coojur, here. Lucky me. I'm Frenzy, owner of the place.
Okanuso
Nice to meet you, my lovely Frenzy. Could I have that drink now?
Frenzy
You're Okanuso, right?
Okanuso
Have we met? So thirsty.
Frenzy
Not officially. You escaped the containment unit up on Urland. How?
Okanuso
Somebody let me out, I don't know who. Throat, dry...
Frenzy
How'd you get planetside?
Okanuso
Pians aren't the only ones good with animals. I talked a dragonfly into dropping me off. Drink getting lukewarm...
Frenzy
Where's your omniband?
Okanuso
On...the...moon. Getting...harder...to...speak...
She cooly regarded the Coojur theatrically dying of thrust.
Frenzy
Why shouldn't I make you come back with me?
He was facedown on the table in despair, his voice a muffled sense of remorse.
Okanuso
I may have found someone to help with my personality issues.
Frenzy
I doubt that bloke I saw at the table will help anyone but himself. But I know what it's like to be desperate to be rid of something, so I'll let you be. Here you go.
Okanuso eagerly looks up for his drink. Instead of the frothy mug she had before, she set the tray with a glass of water and metallic omniband in front of him.
Frenzy
Put the omniband on and don't take it off. If you do, I'll know.
Okanuso
Water?
Frenzy
Can't have you prancing around, intoxicated. Good chance you'll be breathing fire soon anyway. Hopefully, on those that deserve it.
Okanuso
How do you know me?
Frenzy
I'm in the Superstars' Guild's ruling body. I was informed the second they discovered your escaped. Never expected you'd come to me on your own. Whatever you plan on doing, do it fast. You were supposed to be the first match today, but I'll get the Guild to push it to third. Drink up and run along.
Okanuso did as instructed, downing the cool water, snapping the omniband on his right wrist, and rushing out the doors. It was lighter outside then when he enter One for the Run and he nearly goes back to ask the time of the first match. He saw the bald man talking to a woman on a sawhorse, who then took off at a fast clip down the cobblestone avenue. The man saw him then, waving him over to a covered wagon similar to the one he woke up in, except the cloth covering had holes and rips throughout. The sawhorse at the front was green and black, chewing on some food at its hooves.
Okanuso
Everything okay?
Bald man
Yeah, she went to let our mage know we coming.
Okanuso
Cool. Let's go.
The streets were practically bare everywhere except the area around Frenzy's bar. As they rolled away, slower then Okanuso could actually run if motivated , he noticed storm clouds in the grey skies gathering for miles and sensed it would rain hard in the coming days. He saw a boy carrying an empty pale walking before a packmule, face portraying eagerness to beat the possible rain. Okanuso waves, the boy returns the greeting with a nod.
Okanuso
What a serene city, so beautiful. What is its name? And what's your name, by the way?
Bald man
Call me Killer G. And if you think Jochester is beautiful, then where you're from must be a real mud hole.
Okanuso
More like a war zone.
The distant purple disc in the sky had chased away the darkness, but was occasionally hidden by thick clouds. They traveled only a short distance outside the city walls to a small village of a dozen and a half structures. Killer G stopped the wagon before a modest sized building that was just as weather worn as the others around it. Inside, the first floor was sparsely furnished with common wood seating and a couple of tables; a stairway was nestled against the right wall leading both to a second floor and basement. Eight men and women crowded the floor or lounged in the uncomfortable looking chairs. Some wore fog-glass short swords at their hips, others knives, all had skin that looked to be made of tough leather. The woman whom he saw speaking to Killer G outside the bar was standing next to a hulking brute with a face scar sitting behind a table cluttered with crystals and precious stones.
Okanuso
Hello, everyone!
Scar face grinned in mirth.
Scar
This him?
Killer G
Yep.
Okanuso
Are you the local mage?
He heard the snickers of the others, some now behind him, covering the door. Okanuso went on, oblivious.
Okanuso
I'm in desperate need of a mage. Some time ago, I was cursed with-
A sword Scar had pulled while the Coojur spoke, took his head off in one swipe. The head rolls to a stop at Scar's feet, body still upright.
Scar
Don't care. Just want that pelt to hock. You just earned us quite a bit, mark.
Okanuso
My name's not Mark. I was giving you the benefit of the doubt, but now...
Scar and the others, including Killer G, were screaming bloody murder as soon as the head started talking. The headless feline stooped to pick it up as it starts to decay before their eyes. The near skull spoke, eyes sinking into darkness, inducing more screams of terror.
Okanuso
I'm not sorry for what's about to happen. At least we're out of that beautiful city.
Fur had been falling off him in clumps as he grew in body mass. What fur remained darkened to midnight black and started covering the breaking skin. A head grew from the bloodless neck stump, sporting the snout of a canine, from which greyish smoke rose from the nostrils. Glowing red eyes replace the sickly yellow ones, along with shorter, but wider ears. Wings sprout from his back to complete the visage, reaching wall to wall. A roar shattered the glass of the building windows, sending his would be skinners fleeing. Scar stood frozen, weapon still in hand, as the nine foot beast reached for him.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. Now this, fair reader is me breaking the fourth wall. I know, it's a tired troupe and not one I would have used for a narrative, but oh well. Just wanted to give you a fun fact real quick. The beheading didn't hurt at all; Scar takes good care of his weapon, apparently. The transformation, however, hurt like hell. They always hurt. Imagine gas expanding in your belly, spreading all over, flowing under your skin, cracking ribs along the way. That's just in the chest area; don't get me started on my legs. Anyway, back to the massacre.
Just as the clawed hand was beginning to close around Scar's head, it disappeared in a flash. He stood shaking in his boots, then a look of pure rage eclipsed his features.
Scar
Killer G! Imma kill you good!!!
The place the beast was teleported to was shrouded in thick fog. The creature looks around in confusion, then, with one flap of its wings that does little to shift the fog around it, takes to the air. Seconds later, it hit the geodome and was rocketed back, crashing into and through the mountain of waste on which it had been previously standing. Every centimeter of the nest interior was crawling with the fog colored shells of the draco. In defense of their breached home, the draco swarm the intruder, causing the beast to roar in pain as its flesh is devoured.
Okanuso (voiceover)
I feel your pain, you rampaging ruffian. Not physically, more symbolically. I know how it feels to be devoured by the demands of a society. You know what's next if you've been paying attention to the story. Flashback time.
PAST
The skirmish zone was fifty miles in diameter, nestled between a great lake and high mountain. Broken vehicles lay half buried in the dirt, alongside broken pieces that were once types of weapons. The dirt was scorched from centuries of battle, the sky full of dark clouds and smog. The rain started hours ago, drenching the battlefield full of feline soldiers sporting armor the complexion of the clouds, armed with iron flingers with sharp spikes attached. They were moving to join the vanguard that had already engaged the enemy twenty miles distant.
Their point of origin was a bunker embedded at the base of the mountain, reinforced steel doors were raised giving way to a squad of four legged war machines shaped similar to the Coojur themselves. Standing at a height of thirty feet from head to steel paws, the war machines belched black smoke from the tail, that stuck straight up another fifteen feet. They lumbered forward, avoiding the soldiers, creating foot deep prints in the mud.
Inside one of the bunker 's many chambers, Coojurs wearing communication headsets sat at monitors depicting digital images of the battlefield; each sqauds position, high combat areas, and fuel consumption rates of the skirmish machines were displayed. A Coojur with half a tail stood before a green, digital representation of the entire skirmish area. He was tailored in darker green, military garb with red stripes dangling from shoulder pads. His head held a crown of silver shaped in the form of a feline's face, the two fangs of silver stretching down the sides of his orange furred head. The red shapes representing Coojur forces move to engage the blue shapes on the green screen, when he turns to his five full grown children to his right. He sighs.
Boche
And where is Okanuso, Tigilia?
The Coojur at one end of the line cleared his throat.
Tigilia
He's... sleeping. He refuses to awaken.
Boche
You will lead this skirmish. Bring me the Tarlkin commander's fore claw.
His five children salute, then ran out to join the advancing army. The Chieftain watches them go with a look of pride. He walks from the comm room and deeper into the mountain complex. A chamber where a map of the planet Mirrgrif was pinned to a wall was where Boche found his lazy son, curled beneath the map, in his battle armor, snoring. The Chieftain grabs Okanuso by the back of the neck, hauling him to his feet with a yelp of pain and surprise. Father and son were whiskers to whiskers.
Boche
Its bad enough I have a lazy son, you will not be a coward as well.
Okanuso
It was a rough night, Chief. Some girls dropped by the barracks-
He shoves his son toward the exit. Okanuso lost his footing, falling on his face.
Boche
You are not to return unless you bring me the fore claw of a Tarlkin commander. If you come back empty-handed, it will be a permanent station for you on the Hydro Plain.
Okanuso
Not that again. I'll make you proud.
He salutes and runs from the chamber, Boche watching him with barely contained disdain. Okanuso ran out into the rain with only a hint of hesitation. As much as he hated rain, he hated the land of floating water even more. Mud covered his boots as he sprinted past the broken carcass of some vehicle with treads half buried in the mud. He pauses to catch his breath several times in his travel, before hearing his first explosion some miles away. He ran at a much slower pace; the sound of gunfire and cannon blasts starting to mix with the drumming downpour. He knew his father was keeping track of his movement, which is why he ran so fast out the gate; he hoped over taxation was a good enough excuse for not springing right into the action.
He and his siblings had to take command of one of six brigades waging war against the brigades of the canine looking Tarlkins. Their late arrivals gave the other Coojurs a chance at glory before the Chieftain's own offspring could do so. Okanuso had caught up with the rearguard, whose sole responsibility was to ensure the enemy didn't flank any brigade after pushing back or scattering one of the others. One of the soldiers nearest him, notices his presence and yells over the rain that his siblings wanted him on the right most brigade. Okanuso nods, steels himself then advances forward on all fours.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. Before we go any further, I'm not a scaredy cat. I just have an aversion to violence, particularly against my person, but also to others. In fact, blood makes me pass out. Yes, I like my steaks well done. Unpause.
Bullets fired by iron flingers wizz by overhead. Okanuso dared not slow now as a cannon shell exploded several meters to his left. He would have screamed in panic, but was intent to making it to his destination, breath coming in quick huffs, filling lungs not used to strenuous exercise. He was still young and fit, tail still strong and malleable, but lacked the well conditioning of the soldiers.
Another shell erupted closer then the previous; its force knocking him on his side in a mud puddle. He was dazed, a feeling of weightlessness filling him. A pressure against his midsection cleared his head enough to realize he had been hoisted onto the shoulder of a fellow soldier. They had made it to the cover of a long destroyed cattank and he was roughly set on his butt. The one who clutched a long range flinger in her dainty looking paws was his favorite and youngest sibling, Baby Springa. They called her Baby due to her cute, newborn kitten facial features, even though she was thirty-seven. She was a fierce lieutenant colonel of the Coojur Army's Battalion 152 and one of the best combat experts of his litter; a tail decorated with Tarlkin teeth was a testament to it.
Baby Springa
What took you so long, Oki? Had me waiting in this cold ass rain.
He could only give her a thumbs up before she shoved the weapon she held into his paws. She extracts another slung on her shoulder, as something big blew up not to far away.
Baby Springa
Stay by my side, Oki. When I move, you move. Got it? We're going for the commander of their advancing right brigade.
Okanuso
Now?! Through all this?!
Baby Springa
Cahad, Fraruke, and Panadense combined their brigades and are drawing a large amount of attention on the left. Tigilia is pushing hard up the middle. And Narwa is leading our brigades here, spreading himself thin intentionally, allowing them to push through. All this so you can get to their commander. We think dad's had it with you. If you don't do something grandiose, he's liable to make you a soldier on the front lines at the next skirmish.
Okanuso
I'll die!
Baby Springa
We know. But don't worry, brother. I already took this commander's fore claw and will defeat him again; leaving you to take the other. Dad doesn't have to know who really beat him. Ready? Rabid platoon! Move!
Close to twenty Coojurs advanced in the direction she ordered, loudly splashing through the mud. There was no chance any enemy could hear their approach over the rain, gunfire, and explosions. The bodies of Tarlkins and Coojurs were underfoot, one couple, composed of each, impaled each other on their weapons, dying in an embrace devoid of any love except for that of war. The enemy could track their movement the same way those at their base could, thanks to the digital equipment sold to both sides by the greedy Cycloids. Last he heard, those most experienced in technology was figuring out a way for each soldier to have a personal version.
A frag grenade lands near him. In a heartbeat, Baby had kicked it away from her squad, screaming of an ambush. Tarlkin soldiers had appeared as if from thin air, iron flingers firing indiscriminately. Okanuso hit the ground on his back after taking a round in the shoulder. He heard Baby yell for him before he was roughly grabbed and clubbed in the face. He woke with a headache worse then any he'd ever had in the past, with a throbbing shoulder, strapped to a table.
He struggles until he noticed a Tarlkin standing over him. Her glossy, black fur had patches missing and her six breasts were pierced with different symbols. She wore a cowl made of Coojur skin and was missing her left hand. Okanuso wasn't the smartest of Coojurs, but he did pay attention in camp. The woman standing over him looked exactly like Xes, the first Eminence of the Tarlkin people. That was impossible so Okanuso, who thought he was dreaming, put his head back down in relief. The dream of Xes spoke in a growl, low and slow.
Xes
Tarlkin and Coojur, locked in eternal struggle, for reasons no longer valid. Even a forced truce cannot stop these sanctioned mini wars. So much death. So useless. Do you agree?
Okanuso opened his mouth to answer when someone else beat him to it.
Voice
Now.
Okanuso strained in his bonds to take a look at the speaker and froze. He giggles at the black and white furred man, knowing he was definitely in the dream world. A Coojur and Tarlkin sharing a room would only end with one of them dead; more so if the two were the supreme leaders of each. Here, his scrambled brain had conjured up relics of the past; Eminence Xes and Chieftain Lazaro, rulers of the Tarlkin and Coojur peoples, who lived a thousand years ago.
Lazaro
The coming death will not break the rules, but end this unending cycle.
The long dead ancient ruler grabs Okanuso's face, still sharp claws dug into skin, forcing open his mouth. Xes once empty hand now possessed a vial of green liquid. Okanuso struggles then, desperate to wake up. The liquid was disgusting in taste and smell; it also made him drowsy. But he was already asleep, wasn't he? He had to be. When he woke up this time, he was in his private bedroom in his barracks. Baby Springa stood with her back to him, pointing her weapon at his bedroom door.
Okanuso (groggily)
Baby?
Baby Springa
Oki!!! You're awake!
Okanuso
I had a weird dream.
Baby Springa
No time to reminisce. They're coming in and they're going to kill us.
Okanuso
Who?
Baby Springa
Our kin.
The door splinters inward, the concussive force that caused it pushed Baby up and over his bed. He was knocked to the floor, as well, but rushed to Baby as fast as he could as figures enter, shrouded in smoke, iron flingers blazing. She was still moving when he took a bullet in the eye. He felt only a slight pain, but knew he was shot by Baby's scream and his vision cutting in half. His stomach then had a sensation of ripping and his screams joined hers.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. I will spare you the gory details of my first transformation into the mountain of misery that is Rampage. Let's just say, I'm now an only child.
PRESENT
The draco swarm over Rampage, taking chunks from evey part of it with mandibles that could crack bone. Thousands react in defense of their home, but die when flames hotter then anything on their world, turn them to ash. Red flame engulfs the bugs, melting everything around the furry hulk. Lightning struck in all its glory, right on top of Rampage's head. Many more follow, destroying the nest and all the remaining draco inside. Rampage fell toward the mist shrouded ground, but its wings kept it aloof.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. Have you ever smelled burnt crap? Burns the whiskers right off. Anyway, those lightning strikes were strong enough to hurt the beastly bastard. Not enough for a kill though. Let's see who the unlucky Superstar is.
Red eyes look about the mist, then froze on a pair of bare feet, grey in color, connected to powerful looking legs descending directly in front of it. Clad in dark grey loincloth, his only arm so muscular, it seemed too big for the near seven foot frame of Prisma.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. What a badass. Even with one arm, I know this guy is the real deal. I still feel sorry for him. Rampage will attack anything that moves and only when left completely alone will it fall asleep out of boredom and I can be myself again. This guy looks like he's willing to never stop, meaning he's about to die. I promise, no more pauses until this battle is done. Okay, as Roxy would say, back to the carnage.
Rampage reached for the Dagon and was struck by another bolt of electricity. Its recovery was swift, but its muzzle was struck with an explosive fist that sent the monster crashing to the ruins of the nest. Prisma continued floating in place, surrounded by several white orbs. Rampage rose and took off from its crater with a roar. Prisma struck one of the orbs then another, sending each the monster's way. They struck home, but Rampage never slows as it slams into Prisma, taking them both into the geodome with enough force to stretch the invisible barrier to its max. The rebounding impact shook the ground like an earthquake. The sound of a fist striking flesh replaced the dying echos of their landing and Prisma went sailing from the much bigger crater like a missile, skidding in the dirt on his back.
The one armed Superstar was on his feet in an instant, wiping at the blood on his lips. The monster came in again with its blood curdling roar of challenge. Ducking beneath its grasping claws, Prisma delivers an uppercut that would have behead Okanuso as easily as Scar had, right into Rampage's throat. He follows it with multiple kicks at every vulnerable point on a typical Coojur or Tarlkin, succeeding in only staggering his foe. He then gets the beast in a rear chokehold, having mounting the monster's back. Prisma's bicep covered his opponent's neck completely, reinforced by the back of his right leg over his forearm. He squeezed with every ounce of strength he had.
It wasn't enough. With hands bigger than any Dagon's, Rampage pried the thick arm from its neck and bit into it with six inch fangs. Prisma's Aura Cloak allowed him to keep his remaining arm, but he was ripped from the creature's back and struck in the chest. He went skidding along the ground a second time, suffering no damage. Rampage was there as he got to his feet, this time with a punch of its own. Prisma countered the miss that struck the ground, creating another crater, with three rapid punches to the side of the head. His fist glew white as he continued his assault on Rampage's skull, ducking beneath the creature's mindless swipes.
A wild backhand caught Prisma flush on the cheek, but he kept his footing, refusing to fall on his back a third time. He skidded almost twenty feet before he could stop himself. After a shake of the head, the monster renewed its attack, while Prisma took a steady step back, waiting for the beast. The ground shook so violently that Prisma lost his footing and Rampage's flying punch sent it crashing beyond him. The creature rose and took notice of a webbed claw rising as well; a webbed claw so gigantic, so massive in stature, it could crush the geodome with ease. When the webbed claw came back down, it was so far into the mist that the ground merely trembled. Rampage was turning back to Prisma, when it ran snout first into Prisma's glowing palm. The release of energy was blinding.
Okanuso (voiceover)
Pause. I know I said no more pauses, but this is important. I'm not sure what Prisma did, but it felt like fire in my brain, or Rampage's brain, or was it my consciousness? Whatever. It was then I noticed that, for this entire time, I had been sitting in my bedroom with the lights out. I realized that I was always here whenever Rampage was around. A sliver of red light under my closed door drew me to my feet. I opened it and the room beyond was not that of the barracks from which I have spent a majority of my life, but a dark chamber large enough to fit a fleet of cattanks, the source of light, a pair of giant red eyes. A sudden voice boomed from the darkness.
Voice
Who are you?! Where am I?!
Okanuso (voiceover)
A hooded cowl holding darkness within, jump scares the crap outta me, popping up to slam the door in my face. Believe it or not, I next woke up in the accommodations provided me by the Superstars' Guild on Pia's moon. It was just as I left it, discarded food containers and all. I somehow knew the lumbering lummox lost the battle without anyone bothering to come tell me. Oh well, it was only one loss. If I can't find a cure on my own, winning this competition may be what does it. I'm not cool with being captive, but its better than constant fighting, whether in a war or for the entertainment of the masses. Besides, whoever let me out before, might do so again. Until then, or until my alter ego's next battle, I get to do what I do best. Sleep. Talk to you next Rampage centric chapter.
End chapter