581 IF YOU WANTED TO SHOOT ME, YOU WOULD HAVE

22 FEBRUARY, MONDAY, MAYBE 2AM?

I heard it before I saw it, the sound of fighting. Carefully, I shimmied across the branches to the closest tree to the action. I kept myself well hidden within the cloud of blossoms and pressed myself behind the trunk before peeking out for a look.

I think I just found one of the T&T guys. He was dressed in black from head to toe and masked, but not quite ninja style, or bank robber style either. He had flowy robes and a large broad sword which he swung almost as if in a dance, but with every flick and swipe, the sword would cut across anything within a 9 foot radius. The trees this guy was killing!

It wasn't just trees, grass, and even stone - a large boulder to the side had been seared across with slashes. The sword made the stone look like a chunk of butter. That was definitely not an ordinary blade. Magic Treasure... I was on the Colored Mountains after all. Why, oh why, did my ancestors leave this place?

Where the trees blossomed year round, where wolves lived for half a millennia easy, where there were magical treasures like pokemon to collect!

It was like the masked T&T guy decided to answer my question right then, slashing his sword at one of the great trees, it cracked like thunder, "Cowards! Come out and face me!"

At this point, Randolf appeared, scuttling across the single opening to get behind the rock. The T&T guy swung his sword again - striking a pose which made me think that if he were holding a tennis racket, it would have suited too.

Randolf made a dive for it, and managed to avoid the air cut that the sword threw out. Wow! I thought things like that only happened in the ancient lycan stories... oh right, I was in the Colored Mountains. Technically, I was in an ancient lycan story. Why did my ancestor leave? This place was PERFECT!

"Mercy!" Randolf begged.

"Coward." The T&T guy lifted his sword for another swing. He should play tennis. He moved like a pro.

"Randolf! Move!" It was Manny.

The T&T guy swung wide, I think he was trying to hit them both at the same time. But it wasn't like these guys were going to just stand there and let you hit them. Manny ran for the rock. Randolf's path had a air cut being thrown into it, so he had to take cover behind the nearest tree.

The tree got cut though, this time, it wasn't the big old ones with blossoms, just the normal bald one. It was a big one though, its branches as thick as trunks. So it was really unfortunate that it fell over Randolf.

I watched Randolf's body crumple under it and heard a gasp escape my mouth.

"You're like ants!" The T&T guy scowled at my direction, well aware there might be someone else here now, "You're crawling all over the place, in and out of holes, its f***ing annoying."

And then the T&T guy purposely turned his back on me. Why? Was he baiting me out?

He was facing Manny. Where were the others? Why were Manny and Randolf all alone here? Where was their Captain?

Manny tried to run over to Randolf. Bad mistake Manny! That rock was your only chance!

The T&T guy rested his sword on his shoulder, "Are you so keen to die, ant?"

Wow, even the lines they spoke in the Colored Mountains were like the Ancient Lycan stories!

His sword was suddenly swung, his movements quick and precise.

Run Manny! No, Dive! No, run, dive, and run again! Quick! Air cut above you!

Manny successfully made the dive that saved his life. Oh wait, no. He didn't dive - well, technically, he fell, and rolled. And then it looked like he couldn't stand up after that. Grabbing tightly his leg, he remained on the ground. What happened to his leg? I couldn't quite see from all the white flowers in the way.

Get up Manny!

The T&T guy put his sword back to his shoulder and strutted over. He seemed pretty sure he had won.

Another explosion went off, causing all of us to look up. Was that where Heller and his men were? I wasn't entirely sure.

Quick, Manny! Get up!

I really shouldn't be here. I needed to hunt down the T&T main force. But I also really couldn't leave Manny here alone. That one guy was too strong. He was alpha blood too this T&T guy... oh, would that make him the leader?

Okay, maybe I was that the right place after all! I just need to figure out how to tackle a guy with a magic sword. His sword against my hair - which would win?

{Me, of course.}

Boo was pretty confident for a wolf who had NEVER fought against someone with a magic treasure before!

Manny was now struggling to remove his armor. He was going to shift! But his hurt leg wasn't helping and his hand was shaking too much to unclip the straps. He couldn't shift in his armor. It would strangle his wolf!

The guy with the sword had straightened to strike again.

By now, I had to admit, I had pretty much given up on Manny to save himself.

What should I do? I pulled away from the trunk and looked for the quickest way down (which wouldn't land me right in the firing range of that sword.

Ack! I was pretty high up! If I jumped, and he slashed, I'd be cut in half. Also at this height, I would need a few seconds for whatever sprain I would get to heal up... which would be a few seconds too late for me to avoid an air cut.

I looked around to find a path of branches that would take me around to where that boulder was - but one of the grand white trees was now laid to waste, broken across the forest floor, it's white flowers now like a bush... okay, that would be my landing spot. Inside the white flowers.

Even if the T&T guy attacked, he wouldn't be able to aim his attack specifically at me if he couldn't see exactly where I was!

I'm so smart!

Hang on, Manny! I'm coming!

I pulled back further and retraced my steps meaning to move on down the line of trees till I got to my strategic location. Very carefully, stepping lightly, I slipped between the branches and weaved in and out till I got to the last tree. I did it! I actually made it! And Manny was still in one piece! Yes!

But I couldn't celebrate just yet. Focus Sam!

Manny had managed to remove the last strap, but just as he pushed himself away from the ground to shift, another man in black appeared from the tree right next to mine. Gah! If this tree between us had not been cut down, I would have definitely run into him.

What happened to my wolf radar? This one was alpha too!

So much for my theory that the alpha was probably the leader... it felt like alpha wolves were not all that rare up here in the mountains. Heller, and now these two...

Okay, that's like three wolves. But considering that I only knew so few wolves in the Colored Mountains, it was a significant proportion.

Okay, Manny, you really need to shift and run now. Not only was the guy with the sword making his swing, his friend was here to watch too.

If I appeared now, I'd have to face off the second guy with unknown powers (I think it would be prudent to assume they all had some kind of power). Meanwhile, the moment I show myself, the first guy with the sword would be quicker to finish up with Manny, and then I would be facing two wolves.

Two strong wolves, with alpha bloodlines, and powers and weapons I didn't quite understand. Plus they were part of this T&T thing which a reputation for wiping out clans overnight - so I'm going to assume they were experienced warriors. I had no chance... not in a face off.

But I couldn't just stand here and not do anything!

I dropped out of the tree, letting myself land on my bum, "Ouch!"

Yes, I did that on purpose.

What the hell was I doing? Urm... let's just call this using my innocence as a shield move. I tried to elude everything River in me, "Eh? Ouch, ouch, ouch."

The first T&T guy lowered his sword. The second T&T guy turned. Okay, now I got their attention.

I gave them my best puppy dog eyes.

If I made enough ruckus, would Heller or his Captain, or somebody come and save me? I kind of wished we were back home. Dad would have come charging in his king kong mode. Then again, would Dad have a chance against these two? But that was as far as I had planned, so it would be nice for someone to show up now.

Manny gritted his teeth, and then he shifted and ran - his wolf moved with a limp, but he was moving himself away.

Wait, what? He was leaving me here? Right, he still thought I was the enemy.

But I just saved his life! And I had my puppy eyes on!

Well, it wasn't like he could've rescued me.

"Who are you?" The second T&T guy asked.

Now might have been a good time to shift and run too. But then how would that be any different from what Heller was doing?

"I'm the moon goddess." I lied with my widest smile.

"You lie!" The second T&T guy said in true Lycan story style.

"You think?" I shot back tongue in cheek. This seemed to take him by surprise. I quickly tried to blend in with their lingo, "The ring you seek is not found here."

Now both T&T guys approached me. I got up to my feet and dusted off my... over-sized tshirt and bare legs. Okay, this wasn't really the best goddess costume. Actually, this was bad... and it would be worse should more T&T guys showed up.

{Touru, look carefully.} The one with the sword said, but over the mindlink because he thought I couldn't hear him.

What? You never saw a girl before?

{Her hair...} He sniffed, {And she has no scent.}

Hey! Didn't your mum teach you its rude to sniff at a girl?

He drew back somewhat uneasy, {Is she really the goddess?}

{Tori, stop. You know that's impossible.} The brother scolded. He took out his gun and pointed it directly at my head.

Mental note: T&T guy #2 AKA Touru's magic treasure was a long fancy pistol. Even in the darkness of the night, I could see the handle his gloved hand held was made of gold, and there were a circle of magic stones embedded where the magazine would be. (As in the bullet container - not the fashion book.)

"Who are you? I will not ask again." Touru asked.

Wow, it's like they all read from an ancient lycan script. Well, two can play that game.

I sighed and shook my head, putting everything I've learned from Madam Silvia's theatre lesson into it, "Touru, Touru, Touru... you have so little faith."

I was pretty impressed by my own ad libbing skills. Maybe all those years of reading ancient lycan tales and re-enacting them when we played as puppies were paying off.

I walked up to him meaning to lift his face by his chin - you know, like how the goddess would have touched someone in those paintings - but hahaha, Touru was taller than I was, so I did the next best thing and pushed his gun to face down.

"How... " Touru was so shocked that he actually lowered his gun, "You know my name."

He looked at Tori who shrugged.

And then Touru shook his head and lifted his gun again, "No tricks. Who are you?"

"Why can't you believe I am the goddess?" I asked.

"The goddess is dead." Touru answered.

I gasped, "What a terrible thing to say to someone who is standing right in front of you!"

Hahahaha.... I couldn't help it. It's very hard to stick to the script when it was every cliche line in a lycan story plot.

"You are looking for the ring?" I asked, "It isn't here."

And then because you know how these old lycan stories had these round about plot twists, I decided to just make up my own, "But even if it were, it would not bring you what you desire."

Unless what you desired were the matching necklace and earrings - in that case, Grandma Luna had said the ring would be the key to the vault found somewhere here.

Anyway, I was really getting into my role. (Sorry, goddess for impersonating you.)

"What you desire, will always be beyond your reach until you find it within yourself." I smiled a knowing smile - the kind Mum usually gave me after saying something she thought was very wise. But unlike Mum, I was just sprouting the kind of mumbo jumbo zen stuff that only meant as much as you thought it did... playing along with the typical lycan plot. Yup, lycan plots loved the "look inside yourself for the answers" kind of thing because at the end, it was the journey, not the destination. You know, all the stuff that lycan teachers liked to quote a lot.

I noticed Tori shift his foot and turned to him, "And why are you here Tori? What are you looking for?"

Tori was more forthcoming, "We need that ring, goddess. We can't go back empty handed...tell us where it is!"

"Shut up, Tori." Touru ordered sharply.

To me he cocked his gun, "Who are you? Speak another lie and it will be your last."

I grinned at that - or perhaps it was Boo, "If you wanted to shoot me, you would have."

And then Touru shot. I guess he thought that was a lie too. But it wasn't, so was HE the one lying that it was a lie? Hahaha. Don't you just love the way lycan logic worked?

I jumped back, my hair krackening and flaring wildly like vines, pushing me away from the ground, and swiping the bullet away. Wow, my hair was good.

VOOOMPH! The tree the bullet hit burst into flames.

That could've be me.

Okay, enough fooling around. Now would be a good time to run.