Fighting Darkness
Title: FIGHTING DARKNESS
Author: ulyferal
Rating: K+
Warnings: None yet.
Disclaimer: “SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron,” its characters and concepts are copyright to Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc and are used without permission.
Chapter 3: Who am I?
Settling himself, Razor began his tale. “I was born just like any other mortal Kat, but my spirit that resides within this body is immortal. I and others like me are guardians sent by the Goddess Bast to protect Katkind from the depredations of the darker gods. Blood and carnage are their food and power sources, so fomenting chaos is their way to get it. Though they normally prey upon lesser gods for their needs, mortals are far more easily coerced into spilling blood over almost anything, so this makes them more irresistible prey.”
Fascinated, T-Bone backed up until his legs hit the chair near the door, dropping into it heavily as he listened intently.
“Most of them are merely troublesome and easily managed, but there are a few that are extremely dangerous, and Shezmu is one of those. He’s known as the god of executions, slaughter, blood and all things dealing with war. The more carnage he can instigate, the more power he absorbs from it. But, to acquire that power he needs soldiers to do his bidding. Kats in important positions are his favorite targets. He robs them of their souls, sucking them dry until they are nothing more than walking puppets. Through them, he starts his web of lies and deceit, turning Kat against Kat until he can get them to start a war,” he said gravely.
Feral shuddered. “That was what he intended to do to me, right?”
Razor nodded, face grim. “What I don’t understand is what has brought him to Megakat City. The last I’d seen of that foul creature was more than a century ago when I and my fellow guardians defeated him when he attempted to take over the world using the ruthless leader Deathtom the Slayer and his army. To have him appear now is very ominous.”
“Great! As if dealing with the omegas weren’t bad enough,” Feral moaned, rubbing his face.
The guardian eyed Feral thoughtfully. “Hmm… that could be why he is here after all.”
“Huh?” Feral frowned at him, confusion in his eyes.
“The omegas. He can slip into their dreams and make them think they could succeed in taking over the city. He could even make them work together without them even being aware they were being manipulated. To add to the confusion and chaos, he would take the souls of all the city’s main defenders and leaders if he can, then with this new army, he would wage war on all the nearby countries. That much blood, fear, and death would make him damn near invincible,” Razor scowled angrily. He was angry at himself for not having realized this was what was going on when the omegas grew bolder the past two years.
T-Bone felt the blood drain from his face as he easily pictured the horror Razor was painting for them. Glancing over at Feral, he could see the big tom was just as pale under that dark fur.
“How do we fight something like that?” T-Bone whispered, truly shaken.
“Wait! If you’re a guardian, why did this Shezmu strike here? It’s a rather stupid move, don’t you think? The attack on me warned his enemy of what he planned to do, didn’t he?” Feral asked, desperate to understand this horrifying situation.
“You’re right about that, and I did feel surprise from him when I forced him out of you. I don’t think he knew I was here, though that isn’t like him. He usually knows when one of us is around and finds a way to hide his business better than that,” Razor said slowly, confused by his enemy’s odd behavior. “What’s even stranger is my not sensing him before he attacks someone. That’s not supposed to happen.” Razor frowned as he tried to understand what this meant.
Feral eyed the tom warily. This powerful creature had saved his life but that was dwarfed by the fact another powerful but evil creature was trying to take over his city. First, the omegas, now this… wait… something about that fact made him pause in thought.
“You know… it seems odd that this city was fairly run of the mill when it came to crime until the omegas showed up, and that was only six years ago. No one has taken the time to really study the reasons for their appearance in this city and no where else. Could it be this enemy of yours was actually responsible for them being here? Sort of a testing of the waters to see if this would be a good place for him to use?” he asked, slowly.
A surprised look crossed Razor’s face. “I never even considered that. You’re right, Commander, no one has looked into this, especially me.” He shook his head in annoyance. “I was sent here years ago to check out an oddness in the energy flow that passed through this city but couldn’t pin it down… it remained elusive, barely at the edge of my awareness, but I haven’t stopped trying to figure it out. However, your suspicions may be spot on. The key may well be whatever brought the omegas here and why my enemy and I didn’t sense each other.”
“Well what can we do about it? We can’t sense this energy you’re talking about though I guess we could see if someone can figure out why the omegas came here. However, is this Shezmu guy still around or did you scare him off?” T-Bone asked anxiously.
Razor shook his head, making T-Bone’s heart sink. “Shezmu doesn’t give up that easily. He plans carefully, taking years to move his pieces into place before he strikes. The fact I’ve caught him will not stop him from continuing his plan. No, all he’ll do now is pull back and watch me while continuing on with his plans but more carefully, hiding his work better. I’m on his radar now, so he’ll be trying to find a way to eliminate me or distract me away. I’ll have to be especially watchful from now on.”
“So, what do we do now? We aren’t equipped to handle a god! We have enough trouble dealing with the just the omegas,” Feral demanded, panic edging in his voice.
“Easy… calm yourself, Commander. What I have to do right now is get some answers. That will mean I must leave your world here for a bit…”
“Noooo… what if he comes back for me!” Feral cried out, leaping to his feet in terror. He felt no shame, knowing the very thought of having that thing invade him again had him shaking in fear.
Rising to his knees, Razor quickly touched Feral’s chest and poured calming energy into it to ease the tom’s panic. “Fear not, I will not abandon thee,” he murmured gently.
Feral shivered and swallowed his fear down. The guardian’s touch had soothed him enough to allow him to conquer his fear and panic. As scared as he was, Feral had to believe this being could do exactly what he promised, otherwise he’d be so terrified he would be useless in a fight.
Staring into the blank eyes of the masked face before him, Feral wished he could see the tom’s eyes but nixed that immediately when he realized he wouldn’t want to see into eyes that weren’t mortal… it would just freak him out. Shaking himself, he tried to get his rattled thoughts together, and that was when something else occurred to him.
“Okay, I’ll try to convince myself you can do what you say. However, I’ve got a bad feeling that if this Shezmu isn’t responsible for the odd energy you are here to investigate nor the arrival of the omegas that we may have a much more serious and powerful enemy on our paws.”
Razor sat back and cocked his head. “You amaze me. In the space of a few minutes, you’ve brought up several very valid notions. Normally, your negative attitude irritates me, but in this instance, I’m glad you always see the gloomy side of things; it just may be our life saver.” He sighed and shook his head.
“It’s a bad thing to get tunnel vision when you’re surrounded by alligators, and I’m guilty of having done just that, especially since I know there’s always an opportunistic enemy out there that can use that to sneak up on one,” he said, disgusted with himself for overlooking these things. Maybe it was because they were mortal and he wasn’t. Having a short lifespan would make one more aware of danger, he realized belatedly.
Feral shrugged. “That happens when you have too many enemies, which is why I always look for more behind the scenes then what’s in front of me.”
“Could have fooled me a time or two,” T-Bone said archly, giving the tom an askance look.
Feral gave him an annoyed look.
Razor rolled his eyes behind his mask. He couldn’t blame Feral for being irritated. He had felt the same way as his partner about the Chief Enforcer, and, in the space of just a few minutes, the normally bull-headed Enforcer had made some truly keen observations. Razor realized he made a bad mistake misjudging Feral. The tom wasn’t as thick between the ears as the two of them thought.
“Well, your insights have given me plenty to think about, Commander. I have much to look into. If anything else comes to mind through your experiences as this city’s defender, I want you to let me know immediately,” he said without sarcasm, his manner respectful and grimly serious.
Feral was surprised and pleased that his comments were being taken seriously by someone who was maybe older than time itself. It helped restore some of his flagging self esteem. But, he still had another question.
“Uh, how do I contact you? This isn’t something I would want to broadcast over Enforcer channels.”
Razor gave him a small smile. “Just direct your thoughts toward me, and I will hear you since I intend to keep tabs on you for your safety… No, that doesn’t mean I will intrude into your mind,” he quickly reassured the tom, who was about to make a strong objection. “You will never know I’m there, believe me, but if you need me, I will be there immediately.”
Feral wasn’t certain he liked the idea of someone like this being able to see into his mind, but then again, he certainly didn’t want that other thing in his head again. Just the thought of Shezmu’s attempted possession brought on another attack of the shakes.
A paw gently tapped his face and made him startle. Razor was close to him again and staring into his eyes with a look of sympathy. “I won’t let him get you again, I promise.”
“I hope you can keep it,” Feral whispered shakily.
Razor didn’t take offense, just nodded his head. Turning to face his friend, he said, “We’d better take off, T-Bone.” He got off the bed and headed for the door but paused to look back at Feral. “Get some rest if you can, Commander. No harm will befall you tonight.”
“I’m not sure I can,” the big tom admitted. The idea of sleeping terrified him, he realized.
“You want me to send you to sleep?” Razor asked solicitously. “And, before you refuse, realize lack of sleep will make you easier prey for those that mean you harm. You need to be at the top of your form now more than ever.”
“I don’t like sleeping pills and…” Feral paused to swallow hard before saying in a shamed voice, “…I’m afraid of you.”
Razor gave him a gentle look. “There’s nothing wrong with that. I’d be very concerned if you weren’t. I can be very terrifying, but usually I reserve that for my enemies, which you are not. So…?” He waited for Feral to decide.
Taking a deep shaky breath, Feral reluctantly nodded.
“Then lay down and get comfortable,” Razor murmured, getting off the bed.
Still nervous, Feral sat down and slid under the covers. His eyes were wide and his paws shivered where they held tightly to his bedding as Razor came closer.
He smiled gently and murmured softly without touching the tom, “…Sleep…” he commanded, sending a brief burst of energy to force compliance.
Feral startled, eyes even wider for only a moment before his eyes closed and his body relaxed completely, a soft snore escaping as he fell deeply asleep.
“What did you do?” T-Bone whispered, shocked.
Razor walked away from the bed and joined his friend. “Just sent him off to sleep. He needs it badly. I can tell he’s been fighting my enemy for days and is at the end of his strength, but he is so afraid he won’t let go. I’m sorry he went through that and feel guilty for not having felt the attack sooner, sparing Feral such a nightmare. The least I could do was give him the sleep he needs.” Razor was angry at himself for failing in his duty.
“You didn’t know, and you did save him,” T-Bone quietly reminded the small tom, sensing his friend was berating himself and offered what comfort he could. Though he wasn’t so certain he knew this person as well as he thought he did, he wasn’t about to question their friendship now. “So, let’s get out of here and let him sleep then.”
Razor sighed and gave his friend a tired smile, agreeing by nodding at the door. “There’s no one out there, so let’s do that before someone comes.”
“Roger that,” T-Bone murmured, opening the door and hurrying down the hall.
Razor shut the door behind him then ran to catch up with his partner. He already knew he was in for a lot of questioning when they got back to the hangar.
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