Post by Suji on Sept 20, 2009 23:07:21 GMT -5
Ray:
Ray came back to and looked up at the bearded guy whom was laughing in his face. He tasted blood in his mouth and felt around as a pain in his face pierced through his skull. A broken nose. "Oh f-.." Ray groaned. This excited the crazed Russian whom laughed even harder in his face as Ray tried to look up to meet him, but his whole body ached. He couldn't do too much else besides rest his head on the seat infront of him.
A hard, cool metal pushed into his ribcage and he looked over to see the guy sitting next to him pushing a gun at him. The bearded guy upfront eyed Ray like he was a prized gem he'd just stolen. "Vhere de fack are your friends, ze dumb shiats." he gloated. "Ve vill kill you off once ve use you to burn your precious 'otel to ze ground! You tink you know everyting, BUT YOU DON'T AND DIS TIME YOU'VE BEEN OUT PLAYED! "
Ray could feel the guy's spit hitting him which made it even worse. "What....what the hell did I do?" Ray muttered as blood dripped down his chin, the whole front of his shirt completely stained.
"OH HO HO!" The bearded guy laughed. "You know damned well vat you did you baffoon! YOU GOT OUTPLAYED!" he laughed some more, tears coming down his eyes and then he got deathly quiet as the sunlight began to disappear and he explained. "You killed my friend...dat is what you did." The car stopped and Ray looked around noticing that he was now inside some kind of warehouse.
Drake:
Drake ran down the sidewalk in his lizard morph as best he could, staying close to the buildings. He had definitely cracked a rib, and zigzagging between feet did not help one bit. When he got to an intersection, he paused for a moment before rushing into traffic. He dropped down the curb, sending a fresh wave of debilitating pain through his chest cavity. He then ran out into the four lanes of traffic and tried to time his runs so that he would not get crushed like a pancake under a steamroller. The sun-baked asphalt scorched his scaly feet as a bright red convertible rushed by over his head. Finally, he reached the other side, more or less in one piece.
Now the Den could be seen no more than a block away. He decided to try reaching the others with his thought speech, hoping they were within range. As he continued to run painfully, Drake shouted out to the others, <<If anyone can hear me, I need help! Ray has been kidnapped! Meet me in the lobby! I am almost there!>>
Drake hoped that someone had heard him, although he was not sure if anyone was even at the Den today. They may be at work or on a different mission. Drake continued to repeat his message as he ran closer and closer to the rundown hotel. Hopefully someone would be there to respond.
Rian:
Rian swooped down towards the Den in his kestrel morph, trying to spot what form Drake was in. He had sent Ray and Drake out to do some scouting and had been expecting them back by now. He had just been about to go and see if he could find them when he heard Drake's message.
<<Kidnapped?>> Rian couldn't think of why anyone would kidnap Ray unless they knew he was an animorph. <<Drake, you got to tell me what happened but do it while we are on our way. I'm going to grab you, don't run.>> Rian dove and snatched the lizard up in his talons, only then realizing that it was hurt. <<I'm sorry Drake. We'll land soon and demorph, but where are we going and what happened to Ray?>>
Drake:
Drake had to resist all of his lizard's instincts as the small bird of prey swooped down to grab him. The bird's talons grasped his thorny body and sent pangs of displeasure through him in addition to his broken bone and scorched feet. Drake could not help but let out a wince of pain.
As soon as he regained the ability to form a clear thought, he started to tell Rian what had happened in a frantic manner. <<We were on our way back when Ray saw someone in trouble. He morphed into some guy named Duke so he could help without being recognized, but after he chased away the thugs, some guys in a car kidnapped him. Now I do not know where he is or what they did to him. He would not respond to my thought speech when they started to drive down that road.>> Drake indicated which way the car had gone as best he could from his position in the bird's talons. Drake was not sure how intelligible he had sounded, but hoped Rian could make sense of the information he had given.
Rian:
<<So we have no idea where he is. Crap. Ok, Drake I need you to direct me back to the place where he was taken. I will be able to pick up his scent from there and hopefully track him from there. Then we'll have to go in after him." Rian didn't like this one bit. He had no plan and it seemed like that was the case far too often.
It was because the faction was reacting to things and when that happened your enemy got to set the playing field. Very, very soon the faction would have to start attacking, take the offensive because this was a losing game. He wished Ember, Luce and Cecily were here but they were still out on their trip to the Grand Canyon. <<I wish we had more firepower. Diana! If you are around morph owl and find us.>>
Diana:
The urgency in Rian's thought-speak was unmistakable. In seconds Diana sprinted up the stairs and to the rooftop. The coolness of the blue water in the pool sloshing in contrast to the Nevada sun would have to be ignored for the moment.
Diana focused on her owl. She liked both her morphs, but the small, wide-eyed bird was her favorite. Bones snapped and shifted, hollowed. Feeling her beak form, Diana shot back a reply to Rian.
<<Ready, mon captain.>> Diana fluttered her wings and rose into the air. With the owl's sharp, intense eyes, she looked and easily spotted Rian's kestrel less than block away; she noted that there was a lizard, Drake, in his talons. <<I see you.>>
Drake:
"Get him da fack outta da car." Teddy commanded and his two aids obliged by dropping the scum onto the ground infront of him. Teddy reached into his suit coat and pulled out a Desert Eagle. One that was similar to the one that his ally had been shot with. "Now..." Teddy taunted as the scum laid infront of him holding his head. "Shall I shoot you now and end it quickly or vill you talk?"
"Im....not telling you....anything..." the guy responded, blood now creating a puddle on the ground under his head. Teddy frowned at this. He wanted answers more than just putting this guy out of his miserable existance. Something bothered him about this though. He'd have to at least know one thing...
"Vy de fack were you out alone?" Teddy inquired. "Do you tink dat you are dat powervul? You are a cocky son of beach." Teddy would at least get a few answers out of the stubborn yeerk before blasting him away.
Ray:
The bearded guy was right. What the hell was Ray thinking. He looked around and noticed that there were goons all around him holding submachine guns and that there was really no way out of this. He figured he'd just spit the truth out. "I was....helping someone...trying to...help...a...stranger..."
Ray felt like he was going to black out again. "Vat?!" The guy demanded. "Facking help who?! WHO IN THE HELL WERE YOU HELPING?! YEERKS DON'T HELP!"
The yelling was pounding into Ray's head. Each syllable pounding his head as his face continued to throb in pain and blood still seeped out. Ray's brain raced and he was thinking desperation. He'd die before he'd let them have him. If they tried anything he'd try his best to get shot. "Thats because.....I'm....not a yeerk...."
Rian:
<<I'm not sure what you should morph Drake.>> If he had been with Luce he would have told her to stay human since she did more damage that way but going into an unknown situation Rian didn't want any of his faction mates to be seen as a human, let alone try to fight as one. <<Moth is probably the best way to go in case we need to slip you in some place small but remind me to give you a stronger morph after this.>>
Rian landed in the alley and began to demorph, letting Drake do the same. Diana would get to the alley pretty soon but while they waited Rian morphed into a wolf and began casting around for Ray's scent. Like with his previous two factions Rian had memorized the scents of his faction mates. What he was smelling now was unusual.
He could smell Ray alright but there was a point at which Ray's scent mingled with someone else's, Rian didn't know who. He smelled around and around but he couldn't make logical sense of what his nose was telling him...unless, <<Drake, did Ray morph another human?>> He didn't know any of his faction had a human morph.
Drake:
Drake demorphed in the alleyway, letting his body mend as is changed form. He could not describe what a relief it was to feel the pain drift away. However, there was not enough time to revel in sweet relief of being healthy. He began to morph into his moth form for the third time that day.
Now that he had a chance to calm down, Drake could more clearly state what he had mentioned before. "Yeah. He said he morphed some guy named Duke. The people who put him in the car and drove off seemed to recognize him." Drake let his body continue to change as another thought crossed his mind. <<Do you think you will be able to track him if he was in the car?>> Drake really wanted the answer to be yes, but he was very doubtful.
Rian:
<<Duke!>> The name came out in a shout though Rian wasn't feeling any specific emotion. It was more a mix of anger, surprise and admiration. Anger because Ray hadn't told him before the fact got him into trouble, surprise because he didn't actually think Drake would say that Ray had a human morph and admiration because Rian knew exactly who Duke was, or at least had a file on him (yes he had started keeping files once he realized that his memory was not the ideal storage facility for information).
After being told by Luce of her encounter with the powerful controller Rian had made finding out about him a priority. Maybe not top priority but he did try to have Luce keep an eye on him every now and again. But maybe this whole time he should have been asking Ray.
Rian found Ray's scent, or at least the scent that Rian assumed was Ray's human morph, until it disappeared. But....there was something. A wolf's sense of smell was one of the most powerful to be found within the entire animal community and Rian was straining every bit of it's power to pick up Ray's scent among the thousands that surfed the winds. And even then all he could say was, <<I think I might have a direction but that's it. We'll have to go with it and hope we can find Ray.>>
Diana:
Diana swooped low, just above the street lights. Flapping her brown wings, she drifted into the alleyway that she concluded, correctly, where Rian and Drake were. She arrived just in time to see Drake return to his moth morph. Her owl instincts would have to be in constant check with him around.
Barking a quiet hoot, Diana landed on the edge of a garbage can, her great golden eyes glowing in the light from the street. Noting that Rian was now a wolf, she turned her head several degrees to face him.
<<Monsieur capitaine, I am here to help.>>
Drake:
ust as Drake was finishing his morph, he noticed Diana land nearby. His moth instincts were a bit on edge, knowing an owl was in the area, but he quickly got them under control. A quick push off of the ground and Drake was airborne.
As Diana was stating her readiness to help, drake found his way over tho the wolf-shaped blob that was in his field of vision. He landed at the base of Rian's skull since it seemed like a safe place to be. Now that Rian had a guess as to which direction they should go, there was not much Drake could do but wait and be ready to help if needed.
Ray:
"Thats right..." Ray mumbled figured they'd try to make him one soon. He hated to go out like this, but there really wasn't any other choice. He'd rather die as himself...wait a minute...He grinned to himself. "I'm not even Duke actually."
"VAT?!" the mad Russian said incredulously. "You're da facking owner of da Bellagio you crazy shiat! You tink dat by lying to me you're going to get out of death?! We'll I know what I see and I see a DEAD MAN!"
Ray knew that better than to play too many mind games with this guy, but he had to make some sort of barter. "I can....prove..it." Ray mumbled. This was ludacris, but it was better than nothing. "We just...need to go some place...more private."
His view was dim, but Ray still looked around at all the people watching them. He knew that without a doubt there had to be people in here that were controllers and he'd probably be executed on the spot. He figured that if this guy wanted Duke dead bad enough he could have him. Ray could help kill Duke if to save his own life at least. IF he got the chance, which wasn't looking good. He figured the Russian to laugh again, but the Russian nodded instead. "You heard da man. Pick him up and bring 'em to my office."
Teddy:
Teddy stepped into his small office as his men trailed behind him holding Duke or whoever he was. Once they laid him on the floor, Teddy made a gesture for them to leave and they obliged. "Vell, prove it." Teddy said, anxious to be proven wrong. His pistol still in his hand incase the guy got too out of hand. He didn't think this was going to happen however, due to the condition the guy was in.
The blood stopped seeping almost immediatly and the wound healed. "VAT?!" Teddy cried wondering what in the hell was going on. The guy's hair got shorter and darker as he also grew thinner. Was he...morphing? Could it be? "Da resistance?" Teddy inquired once the man stood up to face him. The man answered with a short nod.
Rian:
<<Diana, you're our eyes in the sky for this one.>> Then Rian set off at a trotting pace, tracking Ray through the city. He strained his nose at every point and lost the trail more than once but this was one of his faction mates in trouble and he wasn't going to let some prick controller get his hands on him.
Finally Rian found a warehouse and he could smell Ray inside, and not Ray's morphed body but Ray himself. Rian wanted to rush in, concerned, but he knew it wouldn't be the smart thing to do. <<Diana, owl eyes are amazing. Can you see in there? And if you can't can you come grab Drake and drop him somewhere where he can get inside?>>
Then projecting his thoughtspeak voice into the warehouse in the way a megaphone might, Rian called out, <<My faction mate better be alive in there or you'll pay for his life.>> A low growl started in his throat. He would do his best to make good on his threat if Ray really had been hurt but he knew what his chances were. Still the threat would hopefully throw whoever was in there off balance.
Drake:
<<Ray, are you in there?>> Drake asked in private thought speech. He was tremendously relieved that they had found where Ray had been taken. He just hoped they were not too late to rescue him.
While riding on Rian's canine form on the way to their current location, Drake had time to think about Rian's reaction when he told him Ray had acquired a human morph. Apparently Duke was someone that Rian knew of. Drake also got the impression that Rian thought there was something wrong with morphing another human being. Drake would have to keep this knowledge in mind for the future.
Ray:
The bearded guy was barreled over laughing at his response. "Ve been tricked!" he shouted inside his office. "It's da facking resistance!" After a few more minutes of laughing he extended his hand. "Velcome to da Yeerk Peace Movement Cap-i-tal. I'm Teddy."
"WHAT?!" Ray cried incredulously. Apparently he'd lucked out here more than in any casino he'd ever entered. This really was a treat to his ears, whom death had pounded on so many occasions today. Ray shook the guys hand and stood there stunned.
They both stood there grinning and chuckling nervously until Rian's thought speak came through. Teddy was quick to rush outside. "No one answer dat." he called to the goons. "It's our friend's ride home." Teddy walked back inside the office and instructed Ray to leave and that no one in Teddy's camp was to know about this.
"Take this too. I'm supposed to pass these out." Teddy said reaching into his desk and pulling out a small folded card. He reached back inside the desk quickly again. "An' a few more for you're friends." He handed Ray a small stack of them. "Ve can carpool if you vant. Ve shall meet later to discuss this though."
With that, he gestured for Ray to leave which Ray was only too happy to oblige. A goon even held the door open for him as he walked out the front entrance. Ray easily spotted Rian once he was outside. "Hey Rian!" He called. "I'm back and I come bearing gifts."
Drake:
<<Ray! You're alive! I brought a rescue team to save you.>> He was taking a bit too much credit, but Drake was ecstatic when he heard his fellow faction member's voice. It figured that Ray would be able to escape if they thought he could not morph. All he would have to do is turn into a bird and fly away.
But he was not a bird. In private he asked Diana and Rian, <<How do you think he escaped? Should we be worried? I can't see anything.>>
Rian:
Rian couldn't see anything either. Normally he would think this was some type of trap, but if it was they were laying the noose awfully big. <<Ray,>> Rian questioned privately, <<What happened?>> Then the horrible thought crossed his mind that Ray could not be Ray anymore. <<Shit, nevermind. Tell us on our way back but you are going to have to be held for three days no matter what the story is. Sorry.>>
<<Diana,>> he sent privately, <<If he tries to run bring him down. Those talons of yours should be able to deal a crow damage and you have height on him.>>
Diana:
<<Oui.>>
Diana circled the area, eyes ever watching. She lifted into a thermal to gain momentum so that she could indeed catch Ray if something went wrong. Positive that he would not be pleased by having owl's talons rip into his shoulders, Diana flexed them instinctively.
She was a bit nervous about all this, but she shrugged off the feeling of dread. It was probably nothing anyway. Diana made another loop in the sky, waiting and watching.
Ray:
Ray grinned. What was he thinking? Of course they'd think he was a controller. "Well, I can't really say anything to show that I'm not a controller." he replied almost sheepishly. "You all can tie me up, but I'm telling you right now I want that recliner I've got in my room."
He thought about how he'd react after seeing someone he knew walk out of a place like this. It'd spook him to death. "Actually on second thought Rian, you better not take me home." he said "Too much of a risk I'm being followed. Rian should decide on a place, tell it to everyone in private, and everyone travel far away from each other, but all within thoughtspeak distance. That eliminates the risk of everyone being ambushed and it keeps everyone aware incase the plan is to pick you off individually. I think I covered everything. Time for a three day vacation."
Rian:
<<I knew there was a reason I picked you as my second.>> Rian broadcasted to everyone and then to everyone but Ray Rian said, <<Alright guys we are going to Diana's theater. Diana, get as high as you can and try to spot a tail. I'm gonna stay wolf. If anyone is going to follow us they should follow me since I'm the most conspicuous at the moment. I also have the best chance of defending myself. Drake, find a place to demorph then scout out that warehouse. Use whatever morph seems best to you. Report back to the theater in an hour. Longer than that and we'll be coming back for you.>>
Rian turned as the moth fluttered away. <<Alright Ray, guess you get to follow me. Dog morph? If you aren't a controller we don't want to be followed so canine morphs are our best chance of hiding.>>
Drake:
Drake fluttered away to find a good place to demorph. He eventually found a dark crevice that seemed to be safe and large enough for his human body. When he became more human, he could tell it was going to be a tight fit after all.
Drake had demorphed behind a sheet of plywood that was leaning next to a wall and was overgrown with weeds. He peeked out from the weeds in order to get a better view of his surroundings so he could decide which morph would be good to use.
Drake was getting exhausted from all of this repeated morphing, so he took a moment to rest. As he lay sandwiched between a concrete wall and a piece of plywood, he reflected on what had just happened in the last few hours. He had gone with Ray to survey the area around Las Vegas, they found an old park of some sort, drove some stolen dune buggies, discovered an abandoned air field, played lookout as Ray chased away some thugs, watched Ray get kidnapped, ran through the streets of Vegas as an injured lizard, helped track down Ray, and now spying on the hideout of whoever had kidnapped Ray.
As he began to reluctantly morph into his lizard form once more, Drake realized that he shouldn't have gotten up early for that drink of water.
Ray:
Ray nodded at the grey wolf and focused on his own canine morph. Once he was done, he followed after Rian whom was now padding down the allyways. Rian and Ray were about the same size, but Rian's feral instincts and wild instincts would give him the advantage in a fight. Sizewise however, they were dead even, not that there'd be any fighting because Ray wasn't a yeerk.
<<Oh yeah, I almost forgot Rian.>> He said as he followed Rian along through the city. <<We found this old airbase with multiple buildings and it looked abandoned. I don't know if Drake has told you yet. We've even already somewhat stocked it with dune buggies. You can have him take you there whilest we're waiting on me to get back from vacation.>>
Rian:
<<Mmm. Sounds good. Of course we can't actually go out there until you are cleared as anxious as I am to see what is outside this city. You could have told them about the base, or they could have just infested you and now they know about it. It could be a trap. I'm not gonna send anyone out there until we are sure you're still with us. Jeez, I hate thinking of you as if you might be the enemy. For the future, let's make a deal that none of us get captured so that we don't have to go through all this.>> Rian said it as if he was talking about doing homework he didn't particularly care for, mostly because he really didn't think that Ray was a controller.
But better safe than sorry. <<So, what other news is there to hear? Who was that guy, and what did he want? And why do you have a morph of one of the highest ranking controllers in the city? And furthermore, why didn't I know about it?>> He wasn't angry exactly, but he could have used that little bit of information while he was coming up with plans for the city. Knowing that one of his members could impersonate a high ranking controller could be very useful.
<<Wait, is that how you got all that stuff for my party?>> And then privately to Diana he called, <<Diana, how are we doing? Anyone tailing us? Has Ray betrayed us?>>
Ray:
<<Haha, nooo Santa Clause brought that.>> Ray said jokingly that was every bit as good as an admission. When it came to the other information though, Ray got back to business. <<As far as the morph is concerned, I wasn't sure about the rank or stature of the guy when I aquired him. I thought about it at the last second when I shook his hand though and figured he'd be a good one if anyone ot aquire being a hotel owner and all.>>
<<The guy I just met up with, his name apparently is "Teddy.">> Ray continued on. <<He claims to be with the YPM and seems to be very influencial and actually has some degree of power and followers. We can be skeptical all we want which is good for our health and all, but I think the guy's legit if he goes around wanting to blow the brains out of a controller or two. Maybe we could set him and Luce up on a blind date even though he's a tad bit old for her. At least they'd be on the same page and have plenty to talk about I'm sure.>>
Diana:
<<Non. No interlopers yet, mon capitaine.>> Diana replied privately.
Diana slowed and perched on a rusted street light. She preened casually while listening and watching. She turned her head in all directions, analyzing every person that she could possibly detect.
<<If we are being followed they are being very discreet. The theater is not too far from here.>> With her owl morph's great golden eyes, she was fairly confident that they were, for the most part, in the clear.
