The Second Forever Knight War Edited by Dawn Steele and Angel Morgan This war took place in the first 3 weeks of July, 94. The new fall 1994 season was still far away, and any reference to the show should be from the first season only. ----------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: Anything between [...] brackets was added later on. Some posts have been broken up into parts. Posts are divided up by ----------------------------------------------------------------- Disclaimer: Any mistakes, screw-ups, mislabelling, mistypings, and speelling errors will have to be cheerfully accepted. :) ----------------------------------------------------------------- "The Players" The Little People: Cheshire (Cat).........................FoSsil Chewie (Cat)...........................FoSsil Gandalf (Cat)..........................FoSsil Goblin (Cat)...........................Ravenette Hazel (Rabbit).........................Ravenette Merlin (Cat)...........................FoSsil Sidney (Cat)...........................FoSsil The Big People: Ava Chan-Chowder.......................Knightie Barb "The Empress of Celery"...........Unaffiliated Beth Marchese "LizBeth"................Ravenette Betsy Scroggs..........................Ravenette Betsy Vera.............................NatPack Brian Gerstel "Merlin".................Knightie Bruce Gray.............................Die-Hard Christine Reynolds "Mom"...............Cousin Dawn Steele............................Die-Hard Debbie Kraft...........................FoSsil Dennis.................................Cousin Dionne Nelson "Empress of Cats"........Die-Hard Elizabeth Bales........................NatPack Hilary McLachlan.......................Knightie Ivy Reisner............................Knightie Jennie Hayes...........................NatPack Jennise Hall "Daughter of LaCriox".....Unaffiliated/Vampire John Dencoff "Emperor of Harpsichords".Cousin/Vampire Judith Wilson..........................Knightie Katherine King.........................Die-Hard Laurie Salopek.........................Cousin/Ravenette/Cousin Lisa Luksus "Cousin Tok"...............Cousin Lisa McDavid...........................Cousin/Unaffiliated/Cousin M.J. "Mary" Farrell....................Ravenette Monica Seiler..........................Ravenette/Cousin 'Most Holy.............................FoSsil Panstygia "Nan"........................NatPack Pamela Rush............................FoD Robert Reynolds "Dark Prince"..........Cousin Robin Bonke............................Die-Hard Robin Carroll-Mann.....................NatPack Ronnie Katz "Ron the Enforcer".........Die-Hard/Vampire Sandra Gray............................Knightie Sandye Chisholm........................Cousin Selma McCrory..........................Knightie/Cousin/NatPack Sharon Himmanen........................NatPack/Cousin/NatPack Sharon Scott...........................Knightie Sherry Crabtree........................FoD Susan Garrett..........................Ravenette Sylvia Colston.........................Graces S. Tanaquil Johnson....................NatPack Tracy Clarke...........................Die-Hard Valerie Meachum........................NatPack ---------------------------------------------------------------- part 1: Up to Tues, July5 part 2: Tues ->up to Fri part 3: Fri. -> up to Sun part 4: Sun. (10th) -> up to Tues (12) part 5: Tues -> up to Sun (17th) part 6: Sun -> to end Table of Contents: -------------------Several Weeks Ago---------------------------- Application Forthcoming (part1/4)...................Susan Garrett -------------------Sunday, July 3rd----------------------------- Application Forthcoming (part2/4)...................Susan Garrett Application Forthcoming (part3/4)...................Susan Garrett -------------------Monday, July 4th----------------------------- Application Forthcoming (part4/4)...................Susan Garrett Shades of Gray......................................Anne Elk Assignment: Knighties...............................Sharon Himmanen 10:00 AM, Monday, July 4th..........................Pamela Rush The Rabbit..........................................Beth Marchese Something on the FTP site...........................Laurie Salopek Random Correspondence...............................Selma McCrory Living Up to the Name...............................Valerie Meachum Cousin John Considers Lunch.........................John Dencoff P.C. Phone Home!....................................Brian Gerstel Family Feud.........................................Lisa McDavid Family Feud Continues...............................Lisa McDavid Cousin John Eats Barney for Lunch (part1/2).........John Dencoff Affiliations .......................................S.Tanaquil Johnson The Newest Arrival (part1/2)........................Cousin Monica Coming Down Off the Fence...........................Sylvia Colston Affiliations .......................................Laurie Salopek July 4, Early July 5 (part1/2)......................Pamela Rush FoSsiLs Attack, Alpha (1)--Sidney makes His Move ...Debbie Kraft Cousin John Eats Barney for Lunch (part2/2) ........John Dencoff Hazel! .............................................Beth Marchese Nick Takes Action ..................................Sandra Gray Janette's Response (part1/2) .......................Susan Garrett The Newest Arrival (part2/2) .......................Cousin Monica Janette's Response (part2/2) .......................Susan Garrett You said WHAT??? or Cousin John gets a Hearing Aid .Cousin Sandye (10:43 PM CDT)--Dinner .............................Sharon S. Scott The Final Cut ......................................Cousin Sandye The Leaflet ........................................Dawn Steele -----------------Tuesday, July 6th------------------------------- FoSiLs Attack, Beta (2)--Meet One of the Nine ......Debbie Kraft Ornamentation ......................................Sharon S. Scott July 4, Early July 5 (part2/2) .....................Pamela Rush Alma's Message .....................................Beth Marchese Strategy 101 .......................................Sharon Himmanen More Die-Hards .....................................Katherine King Leaflets: The Distribution .........................Dawn Steele *yawn* .............................................Laurie Salopek Mmmm! Barneyburgers! (part1/2) .....................John Dencoff A FoSsiL enters the Fray (part1/2)..................'Most Holy A Mysterious Message (part1/2)......................Beth Marchese -----------------Wednesday, July 7th------------------------------ A Mysterious Message (part2/2) .....................Beth Marchese Mmmm! Barneyburgers! (part2/2) .....................John Dencoff Dino-Therapy .......................................Valerie Meachum Friends of Sidney on Alert .........................Lisa Luksus (Tok) A FoSsiL enters the Fray (part2/2) .................'Most Holy Family Feud Does Not Include Felines ...............Lisa McDavid The Damage That Has Been Done ......................Selma McCrory Amazing Grace ......................................Sylvia Colston Plastic Power ......................................Ivy Reisner Traitor at the Gates ...............................Susan Garrett Dreaming of the Fright .............................Cousin Monica FoDly Plans ........................................Pamela Rush A New Operative ....................................Ava Chan-Chowder More Trouble Than You Can Shake a Stick At (part1/2)S.Tanaquil Johnson Sandra Is Confused (part1/2) .......................Sandra Gray She's Baaaackk .....................................Jennise Hall In Which a New Virus Is Set Loose ..................Sharon S. Scott The Die-hard Charter ...............................Dawn Steele Sandra Is Confused (part2/2) .......................Sandra Gray Riding Through the War .............................Cousin Dennis Defective Cousins ..................................John Dencoff In The Cage ........................................Cousin Sandye The Grand Parade Of Lifeless Packaging .............Cousin Monica More Trouble Than You Can Shake a Stick At (part2/2)S.Tanaquil Johnson FoSsiLs Attack, Gamma(3)--Through the Looking Glass Debbie Kraft Bang the Drum Slowly ...............................Sharon Himmanen Damn The Fractals! .................................Laurie Salopek ------------------------Thursday, July 7th------------------------- Judgement Call .....................................Sandra Gray Schanke Wonders ....................................Sandra Gray Family Feud Escalates ..............................Lisa McDavid A nasty FTP Surprise ...............................Laurie Salopek Family Feud Turns Frightening ......................Lisa McDavid Disks Away! ........................................Selma McCrory Clearing Things Up .................................Selma McCrory Family Feud Spreads to Friends .....................Lisa McDavid Rumblings ..........................................Beth Marchese Mom Goes Ballistic .................................Christine Reynolds Judgement Call part 2 ..............................Sandra Gray Re: Sharon's Diary .................................Pamela Rush They're EVERYWHERE .................................Susan Garrett Utilizing Utilities ................................Ivy Reisner Untitled ...........................................Betsy Vera Bank Job ...........................................Ivy Reisner The Unconfinement ..................................Selma McCrory Net Lag ............................................Valerie Meachum Impatience Strikes .................................Valerie Meachum Betsy's Transformation: The Expurgated Version .....Cousin Dennis Oh No You Don't ....................................Sharon Himmanen It Begins! .........................................Sharon Himmanen The Plea is Answered ...............................Sharon S. Scott Oh, yeah... ........................................Sharon S. Scott Re: Net Lag ........................................Sharon Himmanen Going Undercover ...................................S.Tanaquil Johnson Inconvenient Escalation ............................Valerie Meachum An Idea! ...........................................Betsy Vera What To Do? ........................................Dionne Nelson, ......................Empress of Cats Goblin on Her Own ..................................Dionne Nelson, ......................Empress of Cats Jumping the Fence ..................................Panstygia (Nan) Monica's Errand ....................................Ivy Reisner Cousin Tok Hits Toronto ............................Lisa Luksus (Tok) The Gray's Hit Toronto .............................Sandra Gray Mission: IMPOSSIBLE ................................Sharon Himmanen --------------------------Friday, July 8th---------------------------- A Lurker Joins the Fray ............................Betsy Scroggs Dawn Endures the Heat... ...........................Dawn Steele Sneaking In ........................................Jennie Hayes At the Die-Hard Digs ...............................Sandra Gray FoDly Foraging .....................................Pamela Rush Precaution .........................................Ivy Reisner En Route ...........................................S.Tanaquil Johnson Interruptions (part1/2).............................Jennie Hayes Play! [part1/2] ....................................Dionne Nelson, ............................Empress of Cats Family Feud Turns Wagnerian (part1/2) ..............Lisa McDavid Fade to Black ......................................Cousins Monica, ......................................Dennis and Sandye FoSsiLs Attack, Delta(4) -Clipping Little Crow's Wings ......................................Debbie Kraft Cousin John Captured ...............................Sandra Gray Family Feud Turns Wagnerian (part2/2) ..............Lisa McDavid After the Commotion ................................Sandra Gray Play! [part2/2] ....................................Dionne Nelson, ..........................Empress of Cats A Financial Affair .................................Ivy Reisner Stealing the Abarat (part1/2).......................Sandra Gray A New Neighbor .....................................Ivy Reisner A Message to All Knighties re:bookworm .............Ivy Reisner A message to Nick and Knighties re: new info .......Ivy Reisner Ex-Cousin John Pays the Price ......................John Dencoff John Needs a Doctor ................................Ivy Reisner John Comes Across ..................................Ivy Reisner Bay Area Party .....................................Barb, ........................Empress of Celery A Way To Spend a Weekend ...........................Selma McCrory John Comes Across ..................................Ivy Reisner Enemy Territory (part1/2) ..........................S.Tanaquil Johnson The Summit .........................................Valerie Meachum At Nick's Summit Meeting, Part I ...................Sandra Gray Curiosity Kills the Cat? ...........................Sharon Himmanen Yes, we have no titles today .......................Sharon Himmanen Coming Together ....................................Valerie Meachum A FoDly development ................................Pamela Rush To Toronto .........................................Ava Chan-Crowder Side Trip to Hell ..................................Panstygia (Nan) The Summit .........................................Sharon S. Scott Another Long Night's Drive .........................Betsy Vera At Nick's Summit Meeting, Part II (Revised) ........Sandra Gray Safe Haven .........................................Panstygia (Nan) Stealing the Abarat (part2/2) ......................Sandra Gray Lurker's Lament ....................................Betsy Scroggs A Telegram Arrives .................................Ivy Reisner Is There An Echo ...................................Susan Garrett Arrival ............................................Sharon S. Scott At Nick's Summit Meeting, part III .................Sandra Gray Jennise Makes An Offer .............................Jennise Hall When the Piper Calls ...............................The Coterie: ............................Cousins Monica, ............................Sandye, Dennis A Long Night's Drive ...............................Beth Marchese --------------------------Saturday, July 9th------------------------ Rockslide ..........................................Valerie Meachum Meanwhile, back at the loft... ....................Valerie Meachum John's Lofty Problem ...............................Sandra Gray Mission Report .....................................Betsy Vera The Charter (flashback) ............................Tracy Clarke Read My Lips, No! ..................................Judith Wilson Decision Time ......................................Robin Carroll-Mann 101 Gateway Lane ...................................Ava Chan-Crowder Destination Toronto ................................Dawn Steele The Exo-WHAT!? .....................................Robin Bonke Assignments and Rescues ............................Lisa Luksus (Tok) The "Joker" Strikes ................................Panstygia (Nan) A New Beginning (part1/2) ..........................Sharon Himmanen Interruptions (part2/2) ............................Jennie Hayes Utterly Alone ......................................John Dencoff Just a Little Crisis ...............................Valerie Meachum Little Crisis (Cont.) ..............................Valerie Meachum The Rescue is On ...................................Lisa Luksus (Tok) Surprise! ..........................................Betsy Vera Pets or Meat .......................................Susan Garrett Enemy Territory (part2/2) ..........................S.Tanaquil Johnson A New beginning (part2/2) ..........................Sharon Himmanen Natalie, Help! .....................................Ivy Reisner FoSsiLs By the Tails ...............................'Most Holy Family Feud Ends As Lisa Leaves the War (revised)...Lisa McDavid An Arrival .........................................Sharon Himmanen Journey's End ......................................Robin Carroll-Mann The Snake Pit ......................................Sharon S. Scott Anybunny Here? .....................................Susan Garrett I'm In! ............................................S.Tanaquil Johnson Blood on the Rocks .................................Susan Garrett The Pause That Refreshes? ..........................Sandra Gray Up on the Rooftop, Nick, Nick, Nick ................Sharon S. Scott -------------------------Sunday, July 10th---------------------------- Just a lookin' for a home ..........................Lisa McDavid Lisa finishes what Alma has be-gun .................Lisa McDavid Meeting the Gang (part1/2)..........................Jennie Hayes Abrogating the Abarat ..............................Lisa McDavid The South Shall Rise Again .........................Sharon S. Scott Lions and Tigers and Javas, Oh My! .................Lisa McDavid The Enforcer Arrives ...............................Ronnie Katz Meeting the Gang (part2/2)..........................Jennie Hayes The Enforcer Arrives -part2 ........................Ronnie Katz Beating a Hasty Retreat ............................Sharon Himmanen The Vote ...........................................Jennie Hayes Enforcer's Departure ...............................Ronnie Katz Final Exit of John and the Enforcer ................John Dencoff Arafats and Arabats and Little Vamps Eat Ivy .......Ivy Reisner Moving On ..........................................Jennie Hayes Delivery! (part1/2) ................................Sharon Himmanen Lisa Leaves for a Needed Rest ......................Dawn Steele Food and Laptops (revised) .........................Sharon Himmanen Betsy Makes An Offer ...............................Betsy Vera Missing Goblin... ..................................Dionne Nelson, ......................Empress of Cats Ivy Waits for Ghosts ...............................Ivy Reisner One More From the Road .............................Susan Garrett FoDly Arrival ......................................Pamela Rush ------------------------ay, July 11th------------------------------ Back at the Die-hards Again ........................Sandra Gray Jennise Takes A Trip ...............................Jennise Hall A new recruit...Or then Again, Maybe Not ...........Elizableth Bales Tok's Reprogramming ................................Lisa Luksus (Tok) Lunch With Schanke .................................Pamela Rush Decisions, Decisions ...............................Sandra Gray Answers ............................................Jennie Hayes Underground Blasting ...............................Sandra Gray LC gets an invitation ..............................Pamela Rush Janette Has An Off Night (part1/3) .................S.Tanaquil Johnson Raven Watching .....................................Jennie Hayes Arrivals ...........................................Sharon Scott Jennise Develops a Tail ............................Selma McCrory A Proposed Excursion ...............................Dawn Steele Ladies Night at the Raven ..........................Dawn Steele Jennise Snips her Tail (pt.1) ......................Jennise Hall Jennise Snips her Tail (pt.2) ......................Jennise Hall Arriving in Toronto (Exo-WHAT!? partII) ............Robin Bonke -------------------Tuesday, July 12th-------------------------------- Janette Has An Off Night (part2/3) .................S.Tanaquil Johnson Delivery! (part2/2) ................................Sharon Himmanen Delivery Continues .................................Pamela Rush Clowning Around ....................................Jennie Hayes Janette Has An Off Night (part3/3)..................S.Tanaquil Johnson Correction .........................................Dionne Nelson, ........................Empress of Cats It's Forever Dark at the Opera .....................Pamela Rush It's Forever Dark at the Opera, pt 2 ...............Pamela Rush A New Nat-packer Enters the Fray ...................Elizabeth Bales ------------------------Wednesday, July 13th---------------------- Thicker Than Water .................................Lisa McDavid Yet Another Bad Day for Janette ....................Elizableth Bales Mary Had A little Box ..............................M.J. Farrell Home Again, Back Again, Jiggedy-Jig ................Valerie Meachum All Dressed Up and no place to go but down .........Jennie Hayes ------------------Thursday, July 14th----------------------------- Being Accommodating ................................Susan Garrett RLS revisited ......................................Susan Garrett On The Town ........................................Susan Garrett Natalie Has Enough .................................Sharon Himmanen Plans ..............................................Sharon Himmanen Casting Call .......................................Valerie Meachum Nick Confronts LaCroix .............................Sandra Gray Nick Corners the Conspirators ......................Sandra Gray The Die-Hards Try to Get Everyone Together... .....Dawn Steele Searching for Valerie ..............................Sandra Gray --------------------Friday, July 15th---------------------------- The Early Call .....................................Sandra Gray Room Service .......................................Susan Garrett Preparations .......................................Sharon Himmanen Steaming Envelopes .................................Sharon S. Scott Steaming Envelopes part 2 ..........................Sharon S. Scott Steaming Envelopes part 3 ..........................Sharon S. Scott ------------------Saturday, July 16th------------------------------ Cat Calls ..........................................Susan Garrett Curses, Foiled Again! .............................'Most Holy ------------------Sunday, July 17th-------------------------------- FoD Post-Prandial-mortem ...........................Pamela Rush, ...........................Sherry Crabtree On the Road Again ..................................Robin Carroll-Mann Die-Hards go to the Islands ........................Dawn Steele Things that go "bu" on the ferry ...................'Most Holy Feary Ferry Nick at Night ..........................Sandra Gray Another Trip on the Ferry ..........................Lisa Luksus (Tok) Yet Another Arrival ................................Elizabeth Bales The Spectacle Begins ...............................Dawn Steele Peasants! ..........................................Susan Garrett FK: The Alternate Universe (1/4) ...................Jennise Hall A Minor Squabble ...................................Sandra Gray FK: The Alternate Universe (2/4) ...................Jennise Hall Creative Control ...................................Valerie Meachum Schanke on Location 1 ..............................Pamela Rush Musings from the Pavement ..........................Selma McCrory FK: The Alternate Universe (3/4) ...................Jennise Hall Your 15 Minutes Start ..............................Susan Garrett Hilary makes a spectacle ...........................Selma McCrory Not a Spectator Sport ..............................S.Tanaquil Johnson A Single Picture is Worth... .......................Dawn Steele And Around She Goes ................................Susan Garrett LaCroix Makes an Offer Sandra Can't Refuse? ........Sandra Gray FK: The Alternate Universe (4/4) ...................Jennise Hall On the Good Ship S.S. Identity Crises, pt 1.........Selma McCrory I'm Ready for my Close-up, Dr.DeMille ..............Sharon Himmanen Schanke on Location 2 ..............................Pamela Rush Pretty as a Picture ................................Susan Garrett Kittens Have Claws .................................Susan Garrett Is is Live or is it...? ...........................Susan Garrett Chaos and Mayhem ...................................Jennise Hall ---------------------Monday, July 18th---------------------------- The Escape .........................................Sandra Gray The Gray-t Escape ..................................Sandra Gray Dawn packs up on the Island ........................Dawn Steele Mail Call! .........................................Sharon Himmanen Still Raiding ......................................Susan Garrett What do you mean, Fly? .............................'Most Holy Away All Boats .....................................Sharon S. Scott Reluctant Sailors (revised).........................Lisa Luksus (Tok) On the Good Ship S.S. Idendity Crises, pt 2 ........Selma McCrory The Lurker Goes Home ...............................Betsy Scroggs Final Curtain ......................................Sandra Gray War Wrap pt1 (part1/2) .............................Susan Garrett Margaretmares ......................................Sharon S. Scott War Wrap pt1 (part2/2) .............................Susan Garrett War Wrap pt2 (part1/2) .............................Susan Garrett Jennise's Wrap Up ..................................Jennise Hall ----------------Wednesday, July 19th------------------------------ California Looks good right now ....................Selma McCrory War Wrap pt2 (part2/2) .............................Susan Garett ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 3 Jul 1994 14:56:00 EDT From: Laurie Salopek Subject: Applications 1/4 I am posting this for Susan Garrett. Please mail all replies to her at susang2522@aol.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- Application Forthcoming [several weeks ago] Part 1 of 4 Janette looked up from the mess on her desk, hearing the knock on the door. "Enter." It was Nicola. He opened the door only part of the way, then peered into the room, one hand beneath his jacket. She smiled when she realized that he was prepared to reach for his gun--as if his teeth and strength wouldn't be enough to handle any possible danger? He was spending too much time with these mortals. His worried expression, though, placated her. At least he was still concerned for her welfare . . . . "You said you had a problem?" "For you. Not the ." Janette seated herself behind the mound of paper on her desk. His hand dropped from his holster and he stalked directly toward her. "Janette, we've talked about the definitions of an 'emergency' before--" "And you don't call an emergency?" she answered, meeting his angry glare with one of her own, rising from her seat, and indicating the pile of paper on her desk with a wave of her hand. She didn't know whether it was her tone or the sheer volume of paper that managed to distract him, but his eyes widened at the sight of the mess. "I told you, if you paid your bills on time--" "My accountant handles that. No, this is fault." "My fault?" He looked up at her with innocent eyes. And she almost forgave him. "You're the one who convinced me to take in all of these applications from those . . . those . . ." "Fans?" he offered. "" Huffily, she sat down in her chair and folded her arms. "I have a business to run, Nicola. And . . . other interests. I am a secretary." "Administrative assistant," he corrected absently, picking up a handful of envelopes and glancing over them. "" This time she was certain the tone of her voice got through, he looked up at her sharply. "I don't see the problem." "There's too many of them! And the condition of some of these things. Like that!" She pointed to an envelope he held in his hand, which may have been virgin white at some time in the past, but was covered with a number of nameless spots and blotches. Nicola placed the rest back on the pile and examined the envelope more carefully, sniffing at the paper. "Coffee," he announced. "Ketchup and--" he winced, nearly dropping the envelope, "garlic!" "Now look inside." Carefully, Nicola opened it and withdrew a slip of paper. "FOD?" "One of your partner's . And they're all like that. All of anyway." Sighing, she leaned back in the chair. "And they're starting to infect my other mail! I had to have Evan handle an invoice because it so smelled of garlic that it made me want to wretch." Using two fingers, Nicola carefully replaced the letter in the envelope and let it fall to the desk. "I can see your point. But it's not entirely their fault. And Schanke's getting better about that stuff--" "You've started to let him eat in your car, haven't you?" Frowning, she added, "But with me you're soooo worried about blood on the upholstery?" He ignored the accusation. "He's got his fans. We've all got our fans." Curious, he picked up another envelope--clean, the writing crisp and very legible. "That must be for your coroner friend. I expect that it smells of formaldehyde." Nicola lifted the envelope to his nostrils, sniffed, and smiled. "Wrong. Ivory soap. And . . . buttered popcorn." "Just as bad." The grin infuriated her, but she shrugged it off. "At least hers are legible. They fill in everything completely and neatly. Unlike your own--" reaching forward, she picked up a tattered envelope and handed it to him. Nicola opened it and looked at the paper inside. "What's wrong with this?" "Of course--you wouldn't notice, would you?" Rising from her chair, Janette walked around the desk and pointed over his shoulder. "Half the information's missing, and the half that's there is on the wrong line, or makes no sense whatsoever. Although some of them have promise--the males, anyway. The females . . . I'm assuming they're captivated by your boyish charm." Nicola was still looking down at the application. "Or my moral turpitude." "Oh, good. You've started using that 'Word-A- Day' calendar I bought you." He looked up sharply. "I happen to know you got it on sale." "Fresh." Janette raised her hand to his face, close to raking her nails across his cheek, but that sparkle in his eyes stopped her. He was a tease sometimes. "You know I don't bother with such tawdry things as sales." "I know. Although I don't think tawdry's shown up on the calendar, yet." He dropped the letter to the pile and leaned back against the desk, as if studying her. "But I'm pretty certain it means cheap, showy, flashy, trashy--" "Oh, Nicola, you say the things," she purred, moving to place her arms around his neck. Suddenly, there was an envelope between his lips and hers. As she drew back, he sniffed it, then offered it to her. "One of yours, I suspect. There's a hint of Chanel. And . . . chablis?" "Spoilsport." Snatching the letter from his hand, Janette stalked back to the other side of her desk. "At least my devotees have nice penmanship--or, if not, the sense to use some mechanical device. They have style, class, elan-- " "And a tendency to fall off bar stools." "You're not being nice." "I'm on duty." "Ah, yes. " She let enough emphasis linger on the word, so that he looked up from the pile of mail, sharply. "But mine survive, Nicola. We survive, one way or another." "You're as constant as the wind." Stretching, Janette leaned back in her seat and purred. "That's one of the nicest things you've ever said to me." "It's true." He picked up yet another envelope. It was relatively unmarked, of an indiscernible color, but definitely virgin white. He moved to open it-- And Janette rose from her chair and snatched it from him, so quickly that he cut his finger on the edge of the paper. Nicola put his finger in his mouth and arched an eyebrow in her direction. "It's . . . for LaCroix," she said quietly. With the tip of her fingernail, she wiped the small speck of his blood from the lip of the envelope. "They're few and far between, all shapes and sizes and colors, no two alike . . . except for what's inside." When she looked up, Nicola was frowning. Running his hand through the pile of mail on her desk, he asked, "There are that many?" "Some." She raised the envelope to her lips, then looked down at the faint mark of her lipstick against the paper. "As you said, we all have our fans, including LaCroix. You mustn't forget, Nicola, we among his first." Nicola shook his head. "No. Not for long." "For long enough." He'd turned his head, was looking away--at that far distant past, perhaps? "You played the game, for a time. You enjoyed it." When he looked back at her, eyes dark, a denial on his lips, she smiled. "Ah, but you . For a time." Then she looked down at the envelope again. "You mustn't condemn them--they're as weak and as foolish as any mortals. As we once were. They've made they're choice. As we did." "But they're ," Nicola said sharply. He reached for the envelope in her hands, then thought better of it and turned away. "They could be saved--" "Then save them." Janette tossed the envelope onto the pile and met his angry gaze. "They're mortals, after all. They're not mine. They're my concern . . . unless they interrupt my interests." Leaning back in her chair, she steepled her fingers and stared at the pile. "In fact, these things are starting to annoy me. I've considered shipping the lot to LaCroix--" Nicola was at her side instantly, a hand on her shoulder. When she looked up at him, her expression carefully blank, he whispered, "Don't." "It's a promise, a threat," she warned, gesturing toward the mess. "Oh, I'll remove my own, first. But what would LaCroix do with all of those applications from your fans, or those of your partner, or your Natalie . . . ." His hand left her shoulder and he massaged the back of his neck, glancing at the envelopes. "Janette, I don't have the time." "Then find someone who ." She reached down to pick up an envelope that had slipped from the desk--a pattern of pink hearts intertwined with a chain ran along one edge. Realizing it had caught Nicola's attention, she said, "Alma." His eyes widened, then he nodded. "Okay." He walked away from the desk, then back again. "I guess maybe I could ask Nat--" "Perfect!" Janette rose to her feet and picked up a white mail sack which sat beside her chair. She pushed it into his hands, then gestured toward the envelopes. "Mortals like that sort of detail work. It helps fill their dreary little existences, so I'm told." Nicola shot her a glance, then started pushing the mail from her desk and into the sack. Janette bent down and picked up a few envelopes that escaped his attention, then handed them to him when he was done. "She'll know where to forward your mail, and mine, and your partner's--I believe LaCroix has a mail drop somewhere in the locality. I'll give her the address." " handle LaCroix's mail," said Nick, shoving the last envelopes into the sack, then pulling the drawstring tight. Janette's eyes widened. She took in a sharp breath and touched her finger to her lips as she returned to her chair, behind her clean desk. "Are you certain that's wise?" "Everyone deserves a second chance." He met her eyes, his smile grim. "Even us." "Brave ." Shrugging, she answered his smile. "My hands are clean of it, whatever you do. Give your coroner my best, won't you?" The sack must have weighed close to a hundred pounds, but Nick lifted it without effort, holding it over his shoulder and looking very much like a sailor prepared to embark on a journey. He headed toward the door, but turned when he was almost across the room. "About those emergency calls--?" Janette pouted, then smiled. "I'll behave in future." Then, she pointed toward the open door. "Don't forget the rest." "The . . . rest?" Dropping the sack, Nicola walked to the door and closed it. There were four more mail bags of the same size resting back there. His eyes were filled with accusation as he turned to her. "That's this week's worth. And my desk is only big," she said in defense, with as much innocence as she could manage. "Shall I have them sent to her office? Or . . . your loft?" "The loft. the loft," answered Nicola. Throwing up his hands, he walked back to the bag he'd abandoned, then shot her a glance over his shoulder. "Janette--have you ever wondered why they bother? I mean . . . all ." "They're only mortals, Nicola. They need to amuse themselves . . . just like us." He thought about it for a moment, then nodded, seeming to accept the answer. Janette waited until he'd left, then stretched luxuriously in her chair. She was quit of it-- free! Not only had she saddled Nicola with sorting and forwarding all of that horrid correspondence, he'd no doubt actually ask his coroner friend for her assistance! Men could be fools, sometimes. Laughing, she rose to her feet, then looked down. The envelope addressed to Alma had escaped the bag. She opened her mouth--to call Nicola back--then decided against it. Flipping the envelope against the palm of her hand, she walked to the door of her office. She was curious to see what sort of mortal would write to Alma. And . . . if truth be told, foisting off her load on Nicola had been thirsty work. She needed a drink. After all, she had a reputation to protect. One that her followers would be proud to live up to. End of Part I ----------------------Sunday, July 3rd-------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 3 Jul 1994 14:59:00 EDT From: Laurie Salopek Subject: Applications 2/4 I am posting this for Susan Garrett. Please email all replies to her at susang2522@aol.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- Application Forthcoming [Sunday, July 3rd, evening] Part 2 of 4 There was paper everywhere. Nick looked around the loft and sighed. He'd tried to sort the mail. He tried. But it was just such a monumental task! No wonder Janette had foisted the job off on him. If he'd been in his right mind, he would have left the sacks in her office and walked away. But then, she might have followed through on her threat and given the lot to LaCroix--one never quite knew what Janette would do. And if happened . . . . Nick shuddered at the possible consequences and picked up the bottle of blood from his coffee table. That's all LaCroix and his followers needed, fresh souls to torment. As if LaCroix's fans needed the practice. He well remembered the last time LaCroix had set his followers on the others. The dedication and enthusiasm with which they'd followed their 'Uncle's' orders still unnerved him. Rising from the couch, Nick stepped around the piles of mail he'd already managed to sort and walked to the windows. The sun had set--it was almost time for him to leave. He'd always balked at paperwork, but right now the familiarity of an F-slash-24-dot-L form would be a welcome change from going through envelope after envelope. Most of them weren't that bad, but the souvlaki recipes and variants from Schanke's fans were driving him crazy-- especially the ones containing samples. Nick lifted the bottle to his lips and looked back at the paperwork. He had three weeks worth now. And he hadn't gotten up the nerve to ask Natalie to take care of it for him. He knew she'd be brilliant at it--she was one of the most organized people he'd ever met--but there was some inner sense that warned him that maybe she wouldn't take on the job all that willingly. And Janette's whole-hearted approval of the idea meant that it was probably a very bad thing. Once he'd come close to asking, when she'd mentioned that the mail seemed to have dropped off some in the past few weeks. But self-preservation had kicked in and he'd muttered some feeble excuse about people being on vacation. need to take a vacation, after handling this stuff. And, for once, he envied LaCroix his followers. But . . . he had his own followers, didn't he? Setting the bottle of blood down on the piano, Nick walked back to the couch and found the pile that contained his fan mail. So many people were willing to follow him, maybe they'd also be willing to donate a couple of hours, help him sort through this mess. He'd overheard some of them talking at the Raven at the end of the last war--there seemed to be some sort of tradition about gathering together to do sorting, or collating, or stapling . . . or something like that. With enough people, they could cut the work down to a couple of hours. And then, maybe, if they were interested, he could have them take care of LaCroix's mail. Nick guessed his fans would be as horrified as he was that misguided souls were willing to put their trust in LaCroix. Maybe they could talk to those foolish mortals, warn them off, set them straight-- Nick let the letters slip through his hands, back to the floor. What was he thinking? That was just how LaCroix worked, his followers to do his dirty work. He didn't want to lead anyone, control anyone. He was embarrassed that these people idolized him, after all he'd done over the years. The thought that he'd even considered taking advantage of them scared him. Sweeping away the pile with his hand, Nick rose and walked back to the bottle of blood on the piano. He lifted it to his lips, swallowed, then left the empty bottle there and headed toward the elevator. It was time for him to go to work. And, as the elevator door closed, cutting off his view of all that paper, he made a promise to himself that he'd get a fresh start on it as soon as he came back. Maybe. --- "Are you certain?" asked Janette, licking her lips. It was only a moment later that she dropped her desk phone into its cradle, then picked up her cigarette from the ashtray and took a drag. The fax still lay on her desk where it had fallen the moment she'd read it. She glanced down at it again in disbelief--it had seemed so unlikely at first. A trap? A trick? But she'd made inquiries and her sources of information were unimpeachable. Well, most of them. It was, as Nicola would say, on the level. And it put her in a difficult position. Seating herself at her desk, she leaned back in her chair and touched the end of the cigarette lightly to her lips. What to do? What to do? It was a foolhardy thing even to be considered and she'd never been known for doing uncommonly foolish things. But the entreaty was so flattering. And the challenge of the situation gave her something new to think about. It was so very rare that she had something to think about . . . . After a moment's pause, Janette tapped out the cigarette in her ashtray, then picked up the telephone again. She dialed the number from memory--such a handy thing, this memory-- and then waited as the line rang. She wasn't certain he would pick up. It was his private line, of course, and few enough people had the number. But he didn't always want to answer. And when he didn't want to do something he simply did not do it. The thought made her smile--it was one of his traits that still charmed her. "," she said softly, as she heard the receiver lifted. "I'm pleased to find you in." "Are you really?" There was a sarcastic edge to LaCroix's tone--she found that charming as well, at times. "Don't be rude to me. I'm doing you a favor." She fumbled with the lid of her cigarette box, then managed to capture one between her fingers. "Have you noticed lately that your mail has been . . . delayed?" "Has it? I've been busy--haven't really noticed--" "Well, it . And not because of me," she said quickly, annoyed at the lack of interest in his voice. "Because I'm no longer handling all that nonsense. I've given it up. It's too much work." "And we all know how your enjoy work." But now, Janette smiled at the curiosity in his voice, as LaCroix asked, "Who Handling the mail?" Now it was her turn to pretend disinterest. "I've foisted it off on Nicola. Of course, he's very slow at sorting it and getting my letters to me, but then one would expect that from him." "You've gotten mail?" "And you haven't?" She clicked her tongue against her teeth. "I wonder what Nicola have done with all of your letters? He had quite a few when he left here. Such a shame! I know how you love to . . . correspond with your followers." Then, Janette took a breath and said coyly, "You don't suppose . . . could he intend not to forward your mail? Even Nicola couldn't be foolish." "I'm afraid that Nicholas' capacity for folly will continue to amaze us for centuries," said LaCroix. His words were light, but steel beneath lay beneath them. "Thank you, Janette. I'll take care of it." "I thought you might." She was about to hang up the phone, when LaCroix asked, "And why bring this to my attention? Not that I doubt you, but I can't help but wonder--are you pursuing any follies of your own?" Janette blanched, her fingers crushing the unlit cigarette. Damn LaCroix! There were times when she swore he could see right through her, into her mind and past even that, to her heart. Did he know about the fax? Better to take the chance that he didn't. Her voice was sweet as she answered, "You know my tastes are simple--my follies are young, handsome . . . and generally well-dressed. I'm not one for fool-hardy quests or risky ventures." "No, you're not." She was relieved at the dismissal in LaCroix's comment, however irritating it might be. "Again, thank you." There was no good-bye--he simply hung up the phone. Janette did the same, giving a little shiver as she did so, then tossed the ruined cigarette into the trash can beside her desk. But it was with an air of triumph that she retrieved another from her box, then lit it. Stretching, she rested in her chair and puffed on the cigarette for a moment, enjoying the curl of the smoke as it rose above her. LaCroix would be busy with this mail business. And she had no doubt that Nicola would be busy as well quite shortly. The mortals . . . well Nicola's coroner friend and his partner didn't interest her. Mortals seldom did unless, as she'd told LaCroix, they fell into the category of her momentary 'follies.' Then her eyes fell to the paper on her desk. But this was no folly. She'd taken the first step by laying a false scent for LaCroix. Now it was time for her to gather her followers to her, for their protection as well as her own. Again, Janette picked up the phone, this time pressing the button that would ring at the bar. She cradled the receiver between her neck and her shoulder as she lifted the faxed message, holding it by the upper corner with two fingers. As the phone rang, she picked up her cigarette lighter and toyed idly with the cap. "Yeah?" said Alma's voice. "Spit out the gum," commanded Janette. "Then get in here. I need you to send some messages for me. Larry Merlin has . . . um . . . forgiven you your little trespasses, yes?" Alma cleared her throat. "I still have access to the Internet--" "Good. Are you ready?" "Yeah, I guess. If you can just wait till this song's over . . . ." "Are you ?" repeated Janette sharply. "Shoot." "I want this sent to Janet, Monica, my darling Tara--I think she's having her mail forwarded, yes?--Barbara, that other writer . . . and the others." Janette sighed, watching the paper wave as she held it aloft. "So many others." She smiled. "Tell them that there may be trouble brewing--" "Another ?" squealed Alma. Janette nearly dropped the phone. Instead, she released the cigarette lighter and grabbed the receiver. "Alma, I've told you about doing that. It sets every dog in the neighborhood barking!" "Sorry. But . . . are we having another war?" "It might escalate to that, yes," admitted Janette, with a sigh. "Can anyone come this time?" asked Alma hesitantly. "I mean, have fans, too." "Ah, yes. I'd forgotten. Have they decided what to call themselves--No!" Janette decided quickly, as she heard Alma take a breath. "I'd rather know. Yes. I suppose they can play, too. I expect there'll be some interesting alignments this time . . . just like the last. Some new players." Janette pursed her lips, her eyes scanning the fax again. "Which is why this message go out today." "Trouble brewing--okay," said Alma. "Tell them--tell them that they'll have to renounce outside affiliations. That warren business was amusing, and interesting, but it won't be tolerated again. Tell them I'll need all of their resources, their wits and . . . their loyalty." Alma cleared her throat. "Janette? This sounds . . . serious. Are we in deep?" "Not yet, but we will be," she said softly. " deep. It's a coup, of sorts. One that won't be forgotten or forgiven for quite some time." Alma whistled--a very unladylike habit, but one which Janette had learned to tolerate. "Anything else?" "Just tell them--I'll contact them with more details shortly. And send it out immediately." She hung up the phone and glanced once more at the fax in her hand. Such a dangerous game to play. Clicking the lighter, she touched the edge of the flame to the paper. It took a minute to catch, but the thermal paper burned quickly. Janette dropped the smoldering paper into her ashtray and watched it burn, a smile playing around the edges of her lips. She leaned back in her chair again and picked up her abandoned cigarette, taking advantage of the relative calm of the moment. A dangerous game, but it only a game, after all. And this time, she didn't want to simply survive, or be among the final pieces on the board. This time she wanted to . And there was a good chance she would. Continued in part III ----------- Date: Sun, 3 Jul 1994 15:00:00 EDT From: Laurie Salopek Subject: Applications 3/4 Application Forthcoming Part 3 of 4 "Sssh!" "Sssh yourself," said Cousin Margaret, as she pushed open the door that led from the back stairs into Nick Knight's loft. The windows were open and the only light was from the streetlights outside and the moon. She was shoved from behind. "Come on," whispered Cousin John. "Get moving. We haven't got all night." "We've got another two hours at least," said Cousin Laurie. She closed the door behind them. For a moment, they stood in the kitchen, trying to get some sense of the place. "Bigger than I thought," said Cousin Margaret, after a moment's reflection. "A lot bigger. How's he change those light bulbs?" "Not a problem if you can fly," guessed Cousin John. He looked back at Laurie. "You've been here before. Where do we go?" Cousin Laurie cleared her throat nervously. Yes, she'd been in Nick's loft during the last war--when she switched the cow blood for human blood. "Don't know," she said. "Where do you suppose he keeps it?" They started out into the living room, immediately finding the floor covered with mail of all shapes and sizes. "What a mess!" said Cousin Margaret. "This place is a fire trap!" She grimaced, then looked back at Cousin John. "Uh . . . I didn't say that." "You think going to tell?" Taking a breath, he placed his hands on his hips, then shook his head. "How are we going to get this stuff out of here?" "All of it." said Cousin Laurie. Cousin John shrugged. "Uncle said everything." He picked up a mailbag and handed it to Cousin Margaret. "Why don't you guys get a start down here. I'll see if I can find his laptop. Uncle wants the current database and he thinks Nick might be keeping it on his hard drive." "You're kidding?" Cousin Laurie stared at him. "Information sensitive? Anybody with half a brain would keep it on diskette, in a steel safe sunk in concrete." They looked at one another, then smiled. "It's on the hard drive!" they chorused. Cousin John headed across the living room. "Watch the table with the--" "Ouch!" "--Cross on it," finished Laurie, as she heard him mutter beneath his breath. Leaning down to pick up another mail sack, she snarled, "Yeah, we get the back-breaking work and he gets to look for the laptop." "Wonder what made Nick think he could get away with stealing Uncle's mail?" mused Cousin Margaret. She plopped down on the floor and started shoving the mail into the bag, helter-skelter. Cousin Laurie followed her lead and dropped to her knees, scooping the envelopes into her own bag. "That's just it--he didn't 'think.' Never has. Why should he start now?" She paused a moment and shook her head. "I can't believe he was ever a Cousin." Margaret stared at her, then nodded. "Never thought of it that way before. Janette, yeah. But Nick?" "Found it!" came a cry from upstairs. In the dim light, they saw Cousin John come bounding down the stairs from the upper floor, a laptop computer clutched beneath his arm. "Right out in the open. You'd think a cop would know better. You know what I'd give to have something like this at work?" "We talking about Nick," said Cousin Laurie. Picking up another empty bag, she tossed it at him--it caught on the edge of the laptop. "Join the fun. Uncle wants all of this stuff." "You don't think maybe that's overkill?" asked Cousin Margaret. "After all, how many of these are his?" "That's the point," explained Cousin Laurie. "I think he wants to teach Nick a lesson. And when we're talking about Uncle . . . overkill doesn't really apply." Cousin John put down the laptop on the couch and picked up the remote control, then pointed it toward the stereo. "As long as we're here--anyone mind if I turn on Uncle's show? They don't carry it on my local stations." "As long as you keep it low," warned Cousin Laurie. "We want to be able to hear the car horn if Cousin Sandye spots Nick or anyone else in the neighborhood." It took them over an hour to stuff all the mail into the bags and lug them down to the station wagon Uncle had provided for them. When they arrived at the warehouse, LaCroix was standing to one side of the open delivery doorway. He pulled the door closed behind them after they drove inside. Getting out of the car was as difficult as having fit inside it in the first place, what with the large mail bags taking up the entire back and rear seat. LaCroix waited, opening the car door for Cousin Sandye, as she was behind the wheel and the only one not to fall out when a door was opened. Then he turned to Cousin Margaret and Cousin Laurie. "You've gotten all of it?" " letter," said Cousin Margaret happily, with a wave toward the mail bags in the car. "It was on the living room floor." "Spread all over the living room floor," corrected Cousin Laurie. LaCroix raised an eyebrow and smiled. "I would have thought as much." He took the laptop computer offered to him by Cousin John. "Very good. Download it to the new system. I want these files sent to Lisa . That one seems adept at digging up odd facts, I've asked her to coordinate the creation of a main database." "For what?" asked Cousin Laurie, as Cousin John took back the computer and headed toward a pile of boxes at one end of the warehouse. "And how come you're here? We heard you on the radio as we were driving over." "The wonders of modern technology--tape delay. It should keep Nicholas guessing as to my whereabouts, at least for a little while." LaCroix headed over toward a long table, with several wheeled laundry carts crowded around it. "You'll sort the letters over here," he explained. Cousin Laurie cleared her throat to get his attention. "And then what?" LaCroix turned a cold gaze toward her. "You're certainly full of questions tonight." He seemed to ignore her momentary lapse. "Once they're sorted, I want all the letters opened. John can enter the information into the database, once he's sent what Nicholas has so kindly donated to us onto Lisa. That should prepare you adequately." "This--this is another war, isn't it?" asked Cousin Sandye. "It seem that way, doesn't it?" LaCroix's smile was sharp. "Actually, it's more in the way of a . . . recruitment drive. Contact all of my 'misplaced' followers and give them my instructions--I want you to turn as many of the others' followers to our side, as quickly as you can." He eyed each of them in turn. "I know it's asking to go against your natural instincts for torment and torture, but step softly first. Flatter, blackmail, bribe, use all of the persuasive powers at your command." "And if that doesn't work?" asked Cousin Margaret. It was obvious from her grin that she already knew the answer. "Scare them silly," responded LaCroix, just as cheerfully. "But remember--" he placed a hand on Sandye's shoulder, "to be careful. I don't want to lose any players time. I want them turned, not turned away. Make them come to realize that their only safety will lie in joining us." Cousin Laurie walked over to one of the carts. "Are you talking about the Knighties? Or the Nat Pack? Or the FOD's?" "Or the Die-hards?" added Cousin Margaret. "They'll be tough--they can't make up their minds in the first place." "All of them," answered LaCroix. "Even the Ravenettes and Ravens?" asked Cousin Sandye. "Because . . . well, they're already part of the package, so to speak." LaCroix paused, eyeing her thoughtfully. "Yes, even them. I don't trust Janette, she's up to something. Make them targets and maybe she'll think twice about whatever she's got planned." He pointed at Sandye. "And no games this time. My authority can't be seen to be questioned. Which means you take your orders from me. And--" he looked at Laurie, "there'll be no repeat of that last escapade." His eyes had gone gold. And even if they hadn't, there was enough of a snarl in his voice to tell them that his fangs were down--Uncle meant business. The three Cousins shook their heads in assent, not trusting their voices. "Good. Very good." Rubbing his hands together, he sighed, then added, "I've one more thing to do before sunrise. Carry on, then. And . . . make me proud." The 'or else' was unspoken. But each one of the Cousins gulped, even Cousin John, who was sitting at the other end of the garage. And their united chorus of, "Yes, Uncle," left nothing in doubt. --- continued in part 4 ----------- -----------------------Monday, July 4th------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 3 Jul 1994 15:04:00 EDT From: Laurie Salopek Subject: Applications --4 The Beginning of the End Application Forthcoming [Monday, July 4th, pre-dawn] Part 4 of 4 --- Natalie smacked Nick hard on the shoulder as she followed him out of the elevator and into the loft. "That was !" she chided, although she had to raise her hand afterward to wipe the tears of laughter from her eyes. Nick grinned back at her over his shoulder. "It wasn't my fault. Myra was on line one and the witness from the massage parlor murder was on line two." "You mixed them up deliberately." "Could have happened to anybody." Still, his grin was anything but innocent. Natalie swatted him again and Nick shifted out of the way, then got a chair between them, moving to one side, then the other as if daring her to try and catch him. Throwing up her hands, she turned her back on him and laughed again. Not only had Nick managed to get Schanke confused at to which line was which, he'd eventually patched all three lines together in a conference call. Sighing, Natalie touched her fingertips to her forehead and bit back the laughter that threatened to erupt every time she remembered the look on Schanke's face, as he tried to recover any part of either conversation. She'd call Myra tomorrow and blame it all on Nick, but for now, Schanke was no doubt in some pretty hot water at home. "Oh . . . no," said Nick softly, from behind her. Natalie turned. Nick was standing in front of his couch, looking at the floor. Just staring at it. He started walking around the couch, even picked up the end with one hand and lifted it up in the air--Natalie made a mental note to invite him over the next time she wanted to vacuum under her couch--then put it down again. "What's wrong?" He looked up at her, his panicked expression very quickly going blank. He forced a smile. "Um, nothing. I can, uh, handle it." It wasn't 'nothing,' she could tell that by the way he turned even paler than usual. Which was pretty damned pale. "Nick--?" There was enough of a warning note in her voice to let him know that he'd better explain . . . and fast. His eyes still on the floor, he walked around the room. "You know--well, I guess you've noticed that your mail's been kind of slow, lately." Natalie frowned. "Yeah. I meant to ask you about that. Has Janette gotten too busy to handle it? I figured you were right, people go on vacation and all--" "No," said Nick quickly. He met her gaze. "Janette kind of dumped it all on me. I've been trying to get it sorted." " been handling the mail?" asked Natalie, astonished. "Nick, your hours are hell as it is. You've got a full time job, you never sleep when you're supposed to . . . what right does Janette have to dump all that on you." "She never volunteered for it in the first place," admitted Nick. "And it was only a matter of time before she got bored with it. She--she threatened to send everything to LaCroix if I didn't take care of it." "But you don't have that kind of free time." "Tell me about it," he muttered, leaning down to peer beneath the coffee table. "I thought about asking you, see if you'd be able to--" He cleared his throat as he peered up at her, then quickly turned his gaze to the underside of the coffee table again. "But I thought better of it." Natalie forced a smile. "Smart boy." "I had it all here. It was about three weeks worth. I was going to get around to it tonight--this morning." He plopped down on the couch and threw up his hands. "Really!" He looked so forlorn that Natalie couldn't help but smile. She sat down beside him and patted his shoulder. "It's okay--I'll give you a hand with it. Who needs sleep, right?" She looked around the room and seeing nothing that even resembled a stamp, gestured toward the stairs. "It's up there, right?" "It's gone." A cold chill went through her at his words, but she shook it off quickly, fixing him with an even, disbelieving stare. "What's gone?" "The mail. It's gone." He gestured toward the floor. "It was . When I left this evening, it was all over the floor. And now it's not here." "Maybe Janette came by and cleaned up the mess?" When he stared at her blankly, Natalie looked away. "Okay, stupid idea. But maybe she came by and picked it up?" "No," said Nick, shaking his head, "I'd know if she'd been here." That cold chill was back and she cleared her throat. "Uh, you don't think--?" "No." He answer was just as certain, but more forceful. Nick pushed himself up off the couch and began to pace. "If LaCroix had been here, I'd have known. No. He wasn't here. Unless . . . ." Nick's gaze went past her, to the kitchen, then he glanced around, as if looking for something. In a blur of motion, he moved to the remote, which was over by the stereo. "What?" asked Natalie. In answer, Nick clicked on the stereo. "It's set to the station LaCroix's on." "You . . . don't listen to his show, do you?" she asked. "Not if I have a choice." Nick raised the remote to his lips and looked over to the refrigerator again. His answer hadn't really been an answer, but Natalie decided to let the matter drop, for the moment. "It was ," said Nick softly, after a moment, his eyes still on the refrigerator door. "The Cousins. He sent them after the mail." "That's breaking and entering," said Natalie quickly. "LaCroix has a key." "He has a . . . oh." She decided to let that one slide as well. "Well, it's at least. After all, if he's been getting his own mail--" There was something in Nick's expression that changed just enough to let her know that something wasn't right. She was getting good at recognizing those little quirks, after all this time. "He been getting his mail, hasn't he?" Nick still wouldn't look at her. Putting the remote atop the edge of the couch, he swallowed. "No." "You mean, he's been getting his mail late, too?" "I mean . . . I haven't been sending on LaCroix's mail." "Oh, Nick!" Sighing, Natalie leaned back against the couch. "I can't believe you'd--God, of he'd come after the mail, once he'd figured it out." Nick leaned down at the side of the couch, meeting her eye level. "I know--it was dumb. But I thought maybe I could do something to stop him from hurting anyone else. I thought maybe I could warn them, let them know what they were getting into." She reached out a hand to touch his cheek. "That's their choice to make. They have free will. It's not up to you to watch over them every minute of the day, or watch over LaCroix, for that matter." When he turned his face away, she leaned toward him, resting her head on his shoulder. "I know why you did it. And I admire you for wanting to save them from what you went through. But . . . you're right. That was dumb." Then Natalie sat up straight. "Anything else missing?" she asked briskly. If they were going to solve this thing, she had to get Nick out of the self-pity mode and into action. It seemed to work. He rose to his feet and looked around --thank heavens for vampire memory! After a second, he shook his head, then headed for the stairs to the second floor. "Let me check upstairs." "All right." Natalie rose to her feet as well, then saw him pause on the stairs. "What?" He gestured toward the refrigerator. "Could you check--uh--" He swallowed, then met her eyes. "After last time, I don't want to take any chances." "Sure." Natalie walked into the kitchen and over to the refrigerator. She opened the door and took a step back, before peering inside. There were three bottles, all properly corked. They okay . . . . She took one of the bottles out of the refrigerator and tried to pull out the cork, but it was in for good. Shaking her head, she replaced the bottle--no Nick used his teeth. No mortal could have uncorked or recorked a bottle that well. For a second, she paused, leaning against the refrigerator door. How the hell had Nick expected her to tell the difference between cow blood and the human blood it had been switched with the last time? Taste it? Making a face, she shuddered. Natalie walked back across the room. She'd never really let those little maniacs know how angry she'd been at them for what had happened to Nick. It had been weeks before he'd been himself again. Of course, there'd been a truce of sorts at the end of everything, but Natalie didn't think it was all that fair. Nor did she understand how those people could follow LaCroix. Or Janette, for that matter--all the vampiress did was drink, smoke, and flirt, which was hardly a lifestyle worth emulating . . .although she'd admit, if pressed, that it would make a hell of a vacation every now and again. The FODs and the people who followed Nick, that she could understand. Even her own fans, who were actually friends . . . but follow LaCroix, after the hell he'd put Nick through all these centuries? She looked up when she heard a yell from upstairs. Nick appeared in the bedroom doorway--she wasn't certain whether he was more angry or afraid. "The laptop's gone," he explained, hurrying down the stairs. "You've got a back-up of your drive, don't you?" When he didn't answer at first, Natalie walked up to him and punched his arm lightly. " you?" "Yeah, but it's about two weeks old." He walked away from her, then walked back toward her again. "I was so busy with the mail, I didn't get a chance--Nat, the database was on there!" "All the names and addresses, all the application information? You left the database on your hard drive?" It took a moment for the scope of the problem to sink in. Then Natalie frowned. "LaCroix has the database?" He flinched and she realized that she'd almost hit him. Slowly, Natalie unclenched her fist and turned her back to Nick. "Okay, let's be calm about this. LaCroix has the mail. And the database. But we've got a back-up--" "Two weeks old." "But it's still a back-up." Natalie turned to face him. "Okay, so this time we don't sit back and wait until LaCroix's little hellions trash everything and everyone. He's got a lot of people under his thumb, but between my friends, the FODs, your friends, and the Ravens and Ravenettes, we outnumber them." "What are you suggesting?" "That we provide a solid front against them. You talk to Janette, see where she stands in all this, if she'll bother getting her ass off that bar stool." Natalie stalked away, toward the phone. "I'll call Sharon. Valerie's busy with that play--damn!--well, maybe she can help us after all." But Nick was there before her, his hand on the phone. "No," he said softly, when she looked up at him. Bewildered, Natalie stared. "What?" "I won't drag all those people into this. This is between LaCroix and me." "The hell it is!" protested Natalie. "Yeah, he owes you for holding back his mail, but he stepped over the line when he took the database and mail." When Nick didn't release the phone, she glared up at him. "There are plenty of phones in the world, Nick. You can't keep me away from all of them." "All right." He pulled back his hand with a frown and gestured towards the phone. "Go ahead. But I won't be a part of this. I never asked for followers. I don't want the responsibility for them." "Fine." Natalie caught herself before she mumbled under her breath that Nick didn't want the responsibility for . She headed toward the loft elevator, but turned toglare back at him. "I m not sitting in the grandstand this time. Tell Janette what I said--about forming a united front? That's the least you can do." "Okay," he relented, after a moment's pause. Then he started toward the elevator. "Nat, don't be angry with me--" "Sorry, Nick. No time. We're in the middle of a war now. And it looks like it's up to me to prevent more casualties." She let the door slide shut and took a step back asthe elevator descended. Her hand moved of its own accord to the button--she almost pushed it again, almost went back to the loft to tell him that she understood, that he was forgiven. But he wasn't. And she didn't. It was time Nick took responsibility for his actions. And he was wrong about the Knighties--they weren't fanatic vampire wanna-be's like the Cousins or the Ravens and Ravenettes, who, if truth be told, were really kind of low-key, laid-back vampire wanna-be's. These people were friends, followers. Sooner or later he'd figure it out and come around. But it couldn't wait. She'd told Nick the truth--this time, she wasn't going to let LaCroix's henchpeople run roughshod over the others. And if it meant some serious parleying with the other groups without Nick's help and taking the leadership role in this, then so be it. After all, somebody had to. Even if that somebody was just a forensic pathologist, who'd never smelled gunpowder outside of the residue on a bullet wound, or deflected a charge more serious than Sidney's attack on her plants when he'd gotten just a little too high on his annual birthday catnip. Leaving the elevator, Natalie straightened her shoulders proudly. Yes, by God, she'd make it happen. She'd get these people together and they'd face down LaCroix's loonies. That's why she strolled quickly to her car, steps steady, eyes straight ahead. And that's why she didn't look up at the loft windows, to see if Nick was still watching. Because some part of her might have realized what a lunatic thing she was doing and sent her straight to her travel agent, for a ticket on the next plane out to Barbados. --- ----------- Date: Sun, 3 Jul 1994 15:39:37 -0500 From: Anne Elk Subject: Shades of Grey Shades of Grey The names were all there. He put the disk in and read the file marked Knighties. For whatever reason, the truce had been broken, and now it was up to him to make sure that this time, the war would not rage endlessly on as it had before. "There can be only one....and this time, it might as well be me." The printer kicked out the last of the letters, and in those final hours before morning, a small, yet decisive action would serve to mark the beginning of the end of the war. That is if his calculations were correct. He had been burned before underestimating these mortals; what if they took the law into their own hands, so to speak, and became the self-aggrandizing fools they had been before? It was a chance he had to take. The distinctions between good and evil were not always black and white. Perhaps those who took the other path were not as they appeared. Perhaps this message would prevent disaster. Perhaps it might break it all to pieces... ----------------------------- Knighties: ...These are dangerous times. I know that you have been loyal in the past, your dedication to the principles I live by is heartwarming. Now I am forced to ask you to answer the call of your convictions. There are some among you who have chosen to discard their better judgement and follow the enemy. We must root them out, at any cost, for they are the very reason that we are now at risk. What I have uncovered could change the balance of power, but I need your help. Trust no one. Wait for my instructions and when they come, do not deviate from them. He will try to convince you that he knows best, that he has intentions that are noble and fair. Do not surrender your good sense to these lies. I shall contact you when the time is right. Until then...I shall remain...Nick Knight --------------- The messenger was gone before the first light of dawn. Looking up toward the shaded skylight, he sighed and wondered what the night would bring. "It has begun." Cousin Sandye-rah.....Cwningen --------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Mon, 4 Jul 1994 02:22:54 EDT From: Sharon Himmanen Subject: FK Wars 2 Assignment: KNIGHTIES (with apologies to Susan Garrett for the title) "I'm calling about two things," Nat said. "Let me guess, one of them is about the war," Sharon said sarcastically. "How'd you know?" "Lucky guess. The list has been rumbling with it for a while now. Figures, my talk is less than a month away--I have better things to do with my time--" "Yes, we know you're a basket case about this talk. But you'll do fine. You always do." "Yeah, well, we'll see." "All right, listen. You had the right idea last time. You didn't want to around waiting for them to come get you. I know, at the time, I thought you were being stupid. But I was wrong. This has gotten out of hand. I know you tried to work with the Knighties last time. Want to give it another shot?" "Oh, geez, Nat! They're as wishy-washy as Nick! Can't you get Valerie--" "Valerie is busy with a play right now." "Oh, but giving a talk at ASP--" "Sharon . . . " "Not to mention the 6-item paper--" "Sharon . . ." Nat said a little more loudly. "Plus my dissertation--" "Stop whining!" Nat commanded sharply. "You said you were in this thing! You can't back out now!" There was a long silence on the other end of the line. "Besides," Nat pressed, "You owe me!" Sharon let out a short laugh. "Excuse me?" "I did *not* appreciate that necrophilia crack you made on-list the other day. And changing your mind about it doesn't get you off the hook. Not by a long shot!" "All right, all right. I apologize for that one, although you *know* what I meant by it." She paused and sighed. "OK, exactly what's happened here?" Nat quickly related everything Nick had told her, adding that all the applications and the database had been stolen by the cousins. "*All* that information is in the hands of LaCroix." "Well, mine isn't so much of a problem," Sharon said. "What do you mean?" "I . . . kind of . . . lied on my application." "You *what*?" "Oh, come on! You think I'm going to put that kind of stuff in *writing*? Where it's permanent? I *knew* something like this would happen. Only, I kind of figured LaCroix would intimidate it out of Janette. I didn't figure on her turning it over to Nick." "You *lied* on your application?" "Only parts. I figured you'd *know* and figure out why I did it." "Wow," Nat said softly. "You lied on your application." "I take it you never saw it." "No, Nick was really behind. You're probably on the back-up of the database, though. Yours has been around since last time." Nat sighed. "All right, I want you to work with the Knighties, all right? Find out what kind of resources they have, whether they can work together, whether they want to join forces, that sort of thing. It's hard to say what kind of tricks the cousins have up their sleeves, especially now that they have all that information. But all the groups together outnumber them. Try to convince them that we should all work together." "What are you going to do?" "Try to coordinate things here. Maybe talk to Janette." Nat had her doubts that Nick would come through, even on that. "Hah! And I was complaining about the Knighties! Good luck there! You actually want her to pick a *side*?" "Yeah, well, it's worth a shot. Oh, and one more thing." "What's that?" "Who else from our group can we count on? You might need some help." "I have absolutely no idea, Nat. Valerie is *that* busy?" "I'm sure she can be persuaded to help out, especially after I remind her of how busy *you* are and that you're doing your part." "Like I had a choice," Sharon grumbled under her breath. "And keep in touch. Something tells me they're going to be much more subtle this time. If you get in over your head I want you to yell for help, got it? "Yeah, well the same goes for you too!" Sharon sat back and stared at the phone thoughtfully. Then she shook her head. The Knighties! Hoping that Nat had a damn good plan in mind for if and when she managed to contact Nick's fans, Sharon turned on the computer and got down to work . . . o-----------------o---------------------------------------------- ---o | Sharon Himmanen | shihc@cunyvm.cuny.edu * romana@aol.com | | Nat Pack | s.himmanen@genie.geis.com | o-----------------o---------------------------------------------- ---o | "But I'm warning you, if this is monkey pee, you're on your own." | | --Dana Scully | o---------------------------------------------------------------- ---o ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 08:33:21 EDT From: Pamela Rush Subject: 10:00 AM, MONDAY, JULY 4 10:00 AM, Monday, July .... "Pamela..." "Hmmm?" "The cream's off." "Prob'ly 'cause you stand there with the door open all day long." "The carton wasn't even opened yet." "Use milk." * * * "Pa-a-a-m?" "What!" "The milk is sour!" "Well, I didn't do it!" "Pam?" "John, I *am* trying to watch 'Curse of the Werewolf' here, if you don't mind?" "Do we have any evaporated milk?" "Think about it. If *you* were evaporated milk, where would you go?" "Oh." Sounds of tins and bottles overturning in the pantry. Sound of a vacuum tab pull popping. Sound of a bewildered husband clomping down the hall to the living room.... "Pam?" "Yeah?" "The *evaporated* milk is bad, too." "Evaporated milk doesn't go.... Wait a minute," she looked thoughtful for a moment. "Did you check the sour cream?" "I don't want sour cream in my coffee. No, I didn't check...." John was speaking to air as Pam bounded gracefully past him towards the kitchen. By the time he caught up with her, Pam had three or four refrigerator cartons and containers open on the counter. "Yep. Sour cream is curdled; yoghurt's gone; cottage cheese is off; butter is rancid....Ohmygod," she scrambled frantically in the crowded shelves for a tall, glass jar, but gave a sigh of relief after opening it, "...no, the humus is Ok. It's only dairy products. A classic sign...." "Sign? Sign of what?" "Oh, its a classic omen of, uh, well, *IF* I were superstitious -- which I'm *not* -- I'd say that it's a classic omen of deviltry afoot, evil abroad in the land, that sort of thing." "Deviltry? Like, hmm, what? What! You mean black magic and that kinda stuff?" "Well, evil incarnate, anyway. Whatever...." "Oh brother. Does this have anything to do with all that goofy fan stuff you and Sher get involved in?" "No, no. Of course not. It's just a silly coincidence. Here, put some marshmallow fluff in your coffee." "Won-der-ful. Listen, should I be taking any precautions? I mean, besides the usual precautions for *your* friends?" "I have no idea what you're talking about." "I mean, like the time all those Daleks showed up, or the time the Klingons came to breakfast, or the time...." "Nah. It's nothing like that. Yuck, that looks awful; let's go out for brunch and have some cappuccino." "Good idea," John responded, staring at the sullen lumps of marshmallow fluff floating in his coffee, "I'll change." A moment later, Pamela stood alone in the kitchen, thoughtfully regarding the line up of spoiled dairy products. Pensively, she tasted the humus again, then checked the taramosalata and the leftover moussaka; they were fine. Suddenly, she grinned and turned to the line of cookbooks above the microwave and ran a finger along the titles until she pulled out _Gilroy Garlic Festival; the Garlic Lovers' Greatest Hits_. She started to browse the CONTENTS with enthusiasm. Maybe she ought to call Sher, just in case. And Merle, and Cal and Don.... "Goddamned creatures of the night," she muttered, "They never learn!" <..to be continued> ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 11:49:00 EDT From: LizBeth258@AOL.COM Subject: FK Wars2: The Rabbit Hazel was pouting. This was not unusual, considering that New Hampshire had been awash in 90-degree heat for the entire July 4 weekend. At least one reporter, namely me, had been running all over the southern half of the state to catch a midnight parade here and a noon fire muster there. *God, sometimes I wonder if being a reporter is WORTH this much trouble,* I thought as I loaded my microwave breakfast in to the radioactive monster to heat. But this pouting spell was different. The rabbit would usually stretch herself out and pant while pouting about the heat. This time, Hazel was bunched in a furry ball DESPITE the heat. Top it off with a black-eyed glare and what I had on my hands was one angry rabbit. Food was fine. Water was fine. A carrot maybe? Nope. Turned up her nose at the carrot, too. Hmmmm. Fine. I'll just let her pout. I signed on and checked my mailbox. Well. This was interesting. FK-FIC had some new stories. I opened one. Uh-oh. I think I know why Hazel's furious with the world. I went into the living room, where the rabbit had gone from mere pouting to a full-fledged bunny sulk. I cleared my throat, feeling slightly stupid as I did so. "Are you trying to tell me that the war's on?" Hazel gave me this look as if to say, "It's about bloody time!" She hopped into her hutch, a.k.a. her den, laid out and promptly fell asleep. What I wouldn't give to have that rabbit's sources. She probably belongs to "Uncle." Well I don't. I'd changed sides after the last war from the Knighties to the Ravenettes. I'm wondering if this switch, coupled with my involvement in the Warren in the last war was going to make me a more vulnerable target or somehow less trustworthy than the others. I decided the better part of valor was to carry on with my life as if nothing was wrong and await instructions. I had no doubt that Janette was not going to allow for the interesting cross-pollination that occurred last time. I was just wondering whether she was going to sit it out and give the winning side a last minute boost or if she was going to make allies. Or even more frightening. Get involved so she'd be the last one standing. *Sigh.* Nothing to do but wait and watch. Oh. And keep tabs on the rabbit. Lord knows what Hazel has up her little furry paws. -----------> Liz-Hazel throws her hat in. (whimper) lizbeth258@aol.com ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 11:54:00 EDT From: "Asst. Listowner" Subject: Finally.. Something on the FTP Site Laurie knocked on Sandye's door. A muffled voice from the other side queried, "Who's there?" "Only me." "Just a minute." It wasn't the first occasion where her timing was bad and Sandye would have wished for the knock at a different hour, but Laurie was anxious to tell Sandye the news. "Scott emailed me the password for the FTP site and I have finally started putting stuff on it." Laurie said as she followed Sandye's shuffling feet into the living room. "One drawback is Scott said to keep it around 20-30 Megs of stuff. I guess that is better than nothing." "True. Where is the site?" "Oh, cool address ftp.cac.psu.edu. Only he created it as my own personal directory so it is in /pub but you have to go to /people/lms5 to get the files." "Anonymous access?" "Yeppers! This is great! Susan gave me a bunch of gifs from Sharon H and as soon as I get her permission I will put them on the site." Sandye leaned back into the sofa cushions. "Have you put anything at the site yet?" "Yes, I made up a bunch of .WAV files for an IBM this weekend. Log on and I will show you have to retrieve them using an anonymous id." They both got up walked over to Sandye's computer in the dining room and turned it on. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 12:28:14 EDT From: SelmaMc@AOL.COM Subject: Random Correspondence Selma crowed in delight as the results from the psuvm listserv came back, indicating that, once again, AOL had outgoing service. It was frustrating that for the entire Independence day weekend she couldn't get anything out. She'd heard that the war was ready to start, or rather, restart soon. She was, of course, worried. Hilary, her friend, was still catching up on her email (since her server had been down for the last month) and would not be of much use until she did. She decided that she needed to talk to someone, to share in strategies in case the war was as soon as it seemed. But who could she talk to? She didn't know any other Knighties (other than Hilary). Maybe, she thought, someone from another group would be good to talk to. Of the other groups, she was the most sympathetic to the NatPack. Besides, they'd shown a more cohesive front than her own group during the last war. She checked her recent forkni digests for members of that group. The first one she found was Sharon Himmanen, who had her affiliation in her .sig. She decided to try her. She pasted the address at the top to the To: field, fixed it to send to a bitnet address, and started typing. To: SHIHC%CUNYVM.BITNET@PSUVM.PSU.EDU Subject: The Surely-Upcoming Wars Hi! I noticed your sig and wondered if you knew what was going on? I've heard rumors that we're going to have trouble again soon. However, I'm a little out of touch, so I'd appreciate any info you could give me. If the war is coming up, this time I think some of our groups should ally. What do you think? Selma * + * . * Selma McCrory (Knightie) selmamc@aol.com . . * * . ------------- Then she sent a note to Hilary: To: CATMCLAH@central1.library.uq.oz.au Subject: Me again I've made a move. Details later. BL, Selma ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 13:59:38 18000 From: Valerie Meachum Subject: FKWars2: Living up to the Name Valerie sat in her cozy little cubicle at BalletMet, which felt considerably less little after the recent removal of piles and piles of things that she had discovered ought to have been thrown out months before she had started. Confidence bolstered by a workspace that finally felt like it was hers, she logged in to check her mail, knowing the war had been scheduled to begin during the holiday weekend, which she had spent at a family reunion in Michigan merrily collecting data to feed to her genealogy software. "A zillion Summer Workshop kids invading downstairs, except the two I agreed to pick up at the airport this afternoon, Tori Amos concert tonight, setting up the database for the new fiscal year...and a war," she muttered to herself, causing her co-worker Lisa in the next cubicle to look at her funny. Understandable, she supposed. "Well, it never rains but it pours..." She felt prepared for the war to begin, or at least as prepared as she was likely to get; but that didn't mean she was up for any pre-emptive strikes. That was a good part of what had prompted her defection from the Cousins to the Nat Pack in the last war, after all; but a decisive action of some sort was still called for. What could be considered appropriate? A quick run down to the pop machine provided her with the answer. There, among the various articles of clothing hanging in the Academy's little gift shop, was the most adorable oversized T-shirt she had seen in ages: "The Five Basic Positions", demonstrated in delightful Tenniel-style drawings that could almost have come straight from _Alice in Wonderland_, though the black-and-white ballerina wore distinctly modern practice attire. Demonstrated by an incongruously-graceful, pleasantly-smiling, Wonderland-appropriate...frog. "Yes, I think it's time to go to work on our and our allies' weaknesses," Valerie told herself. "I know a Knightie in need of a little humor therapy...it's *got* to work!" In short order, the shirt was packaged up and on its way to Texas, accompanied by a cheerful handwritten note: Sharon-- Remember, it's all in your mind! Wear it in good health, armor against the Cousins' machinations. Tell yourself they'll never get you that way again!!! --The Prima Ballerina of the Father Time Boogie and NatPack Rehab Officer... --- Of course, the distinct possibility remained that Sharon Scott would be a wee bit annoyed with her for this, but that was a chance she had to take. After all, nobody said this was going to be easy... ;-) -- The Bad Penny * Valerie Lynn Meachum "Some American said, 'I want to make a bad movie in Canada. Everyone else has.'" ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 13:24:54 -0600 From: John Dencoff Subject: FKWars2: Cousin John considers lunch He sighed heavily as he finished downloading the last of Nick's hard-drive onto numerous backup disks. In a moment, his macros would be altering the files to a more appropriate format for his own use. Uncle would be proud...soon all the Cousins would have everyone's affiliations, and they could use them to attack at will. Five more seconds, and his lovely little mailer-daemons would be sending copies of the list to all of LaCroix's "agents". John wasn't too enthralled about having a second war, especially since the last one had ended in a stalemate. He preferred ironic traps...and, of course, winning at all costs! LaCroix, his Master, was good at trapping poor Nicholas. The bitter nature of such confrontations was too delightful not to miss! He tapped his fingers on Nick's laptop that they had stolen. Worth more than he was paid in three months, at least...and yet Nick hadn't even used a tenth of its capabilities or power. It was almost like Nick had used it only as a typewriter, and to occasionally save various police files. Whomever had bought it for him must've known computers. The name "Merlin" popped into mind, a name John had heard once at the Raven...but he didn't know this person that well. "Oh well...it's in *my* hands now," he thought wickedly. "And I *do* know how to use this baby!" This thing could be used to trace passwords and activate hidden commands long-distance, what with all the software this "Merlin" person installed. Maybe this War could offer a little entertainment after all... Suddenly, he started thinking about food. It was at least three hours past lunch, and he was starving. "Gods, almost like one of those FoD people!" he mused. Uncle had promised the Cousins that the Warren wouldn't be coming back this time...so maybe he could take a quick break for lunch.... Warren....hmmm....I know! I think I'll have *rabbit* stew! Heh, heh! "Didn't one of those goody-goody's own some kind of rabbit or something?" he thought. "Yessss....a little rabbit might be just the thing to hit the spot right now!" Cousin John started looking through the files, so wonderfully cross-matched with everyone's affiliations and greatest fears...."mmmm! mmmmm!" he thought! Cousin John Emperor of Harpsichords jdencoff@polaris.unm.edu ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 20:33:52 -0500 From: Brian Gerstel Subject: FKWars2: P.C. Phone Home! It had been Merlin's ploy. If Nick or any of the Knighties had known what the computer wizard was up to, they *wouldn't* have been able to keep a proper front up during the Cousins' break-in. ("That's the problem with being a good guy," Merlin had chided Nick before. "You're a lousy liar.") But as soon as Merlin learned that the laptop had been stolen, he had called Nick. "I hear the Cousins stole your laptop last night?" Nick's reply was a wordless sound of pure misery. "Hey Nick, remember? This is *Merlin* talking. When you asked me to set your computer up right, I did. I *knew* you'd leave all your files on the hard drive, so I put a little extra security feature in that system I designed for you. Whenever that computer is taken outside your loft and turned on, it runs fine for a while, then starts up a program that displays a full-screen picture of Barney and sings all his songs in as cute a voice as a computer can muster. That also happens if the database program is copied and run on any other machine" Nick laughed, some of his old humor returning. "But that's not the best part. While whoever-it-is is hacking and slashing away, trying to clean that thing off all the files, the cellular modem I built in to the system silently dials into my computer and alerts me. So in a couple hours, Nick, you'll have the location of your missing computer. And, if you're really lucky, a Cousin to arrest and interrogate." Nick smiled knowingly to himself. "What'll I owe you now, Merlin?" "Oh, most of this was covered by what you paid me for the system in the first place. But if you could, grab all the disks you can find at that Cousin's hideout. LaCroix and a few of the other old-timers have been using a new code lately, and you could save me weeks of work." *Now* Nick understood. Larry Merlin was less than a century old -- practically a baby in the eyes of vampires like LaCroix. He hated their condescension, and took any opportunity he could to play elaborate jokes on them. Nothing to make them forget how useful he was, mind you -- just enough to keep them wondering. (Nick had been the victim of a few of Merlin's pranks himself, being almost 800 years old, but had shown the good sense to laugh at them, and to play along with the gag. One day, Merlin's pranks might turn truly malicious, and he preferred to stay on the young vampire's good side.) "What are you going to do to them this time, Merlin?" "That would spoil all the fun, Nick... Just be prepared to fly on a moment's notice; I'll call you as soon as your errant notebook yells for help." Brian Gerstel |"And every now and then gerstel@underground.irhe.upenn.edu| A bird would not fly by Sibling, Really-Deep-Thinker, | And someone would look up and say Ectophile, and Knightie (*WHEW!*) | 'Huh? What wasn't that?'" Jane Siberry ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 15:39:20 EDT From: Lisa McDavid Subject: FKwars2: Family Feud >From D020214@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu Subject: Alexandra To: Beast666@COL.Com.ca I suppose you think this address is *funny*? Oh, yes, I found it at once. Your sense of humor is so predictable, darling. I'll bet you're still splitting your sides over whoopie cushions under the coffin linings. Look, I want Alexandra away from my brother Larry, and I want it as of last week. Poor Larry may be the world's greatest programming genius dead or undead, but when it comes to women he makes poor Nee-co-lah look positively ept. And I do blame you. You're the one who thought bringing her over was a good idea. Even Nick had more sense about that one. Lisa, who at least has sense enough to keep away from Dingbats, vampire or otherwise. Cousin Lisa (Probably on the wrong side of the blanket) Lisa McDavid d020214@univscvm (bitnet) d020214@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu (internet) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 17:16:46 EDT From: Lisa McDavid Subject: FKwars2: Family Feud continues Over the years the rest of the staff at the University of South Carolina library had become inured to strange things happening in Lisa McDavid's vicinity. A few of the braver souls even admitted to knowing her. It must have been one of these who told the pair of visitors where to find the door to Technical Services. "Ms. McDavid?" hazarded one, cleverly reading the name plate that was perched tipsily on top of the Library of Congress classification schedules. Apparently the yelp as the woman at the desk frantically stabbed the suspend key was sufficient acknowledgement. "FBI," said the redheaded woman, proffering a leather-cased id. "I'm Special Agent Scully. This is Special Agent Muldur." "Ohmigawd, what's he done now?" Lisa couldn't get the quit key to work. She reached over and slapped the power button to off. "He, Ms. McDavid?" The other agent, a rangy man with a face more suited to an absent-minded junior member of the English faculty, looked puzzled. "It's no use playing games," the librarian answered bitterly. "What has Larry done? I'll give you one thing. At least you got my name right. The CIA's still varying between McDaniel and McDougal." She stood up, slowly and with no sudden moves. "It's all right. I don't have a gun and I wouldn't be stupid enough to draw it if I did. I just wondered if maybe we could borrow my boss's office for this? She won't be back until tomorrow." ----------------------------------------------------------------- --- From: D020214@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu Subject: You Asked for it, Darling! To: Beast666@COL.Co.Com And I don't mean the last time you tried to hypnotize me, either. I'm sure it seemed like a wonderful idea to have poor, infatuated Larry lured into working against Nick? I suppose the Barmaid Bimbo Dingbat fed *him* that line about rape, too? If Alexandra ever said no in her life, it must have been when they were handing out brains behind the barn door. She was probably too busy in the hayloft. Anyway, for your information, Larry's revenge took the form of doctoring the security routines on both the laptop files and the copies in the Knighties' data base. Do you know what's going to happen when Cousin John plugs the infernal machine into his system and mails the thing to Cousin Sandye-Rah and her side-kick Dennis? Both their systems are going to be fully occupied with a five-hundred foot long gif of Barney in cape and fangs. It even prints in purple, orange and chartreuse if you have a color monitor. And guess what, dearest? It's got your addresses and your current alias as the place to comment! In fact, I had a visit a few hours ago from the FBI. I thought Larry'd merely diverted the phone number of the Arkansas Aggie Escort Service to the White House Private Quarters again, but that wasn't it at all. They wanted to talk about one of Larry's associates. A tall, distinguished gentleman (and I'm going to bill you for the damage to my dental work because I broke a filling trying not to laugh at that word applied to you) with a very short haircut. I said I didn't know anyone like that. Well, I don't, since you stopped bleaching your hair. But if Alexandra doesn't dump Larry *now* and my little brother isn't decanting himself from the first available night flight into Big Sister's loving arms by sunrise tomorrow, I swear on the Abarat I will regain my memory. I might even remember to tell Nat what you really did with the Abarat, in fact. Me Cousin Lisa (Probably on the wrong side of the blanket) Lisa McDavid d020214@univscvm (bitnet) d020214@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu (internet) ----------------------------------------------------------------- --------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 16:53:38 -0600 From: John Dencoff Subject: Cousin John eats Barney for Lunch [part1/2]------------------- This was just *too* perfect, he thought, as he sent instructions off to the newbie. Some of these new Cousins were just too easy...but, then they did want to earn Uncle's favor. If he was lucky, he might be having some of that delicious rabbit stew for dinner...and if the newcomer followed instructions to the letter! *ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* *ping* He startled from his dream of tender pan-fry to the noise of Nick's laptop computer. Something was wrong, and his macros were distinctly unhappy about it. Irritated, he flipped open the laptop...to be greeted by a bouncy purple dinosaur. "Aaaiiigghh!" he yelped, remembering what had happened to poor Cousin Margaret during the last War. "I love *you*, you love *me*..." it chirped happily. "Oh, Gods, what the heck is this? Only someone truly evil could have thought of such torment!" His fingers flew across the keyboard, calling up various subroutines. Well, at least the virus wasn't transmitted out, he thought quietly...but how to purge the corruption...? "...We're a hap-pee fam-i-lee!..." it continued. "Lords, some genius must've done this! It's almost artful, in a sick and twisted sort of way." His subroutines were cracking under the virus, and he could barely keep up with it. Perhaps the only way to correct it now would be to re-boot the entire system, and use my virus-stomper to clear the saved files on the downloaded disks. Then the realization hit him: A few people might have been transmitted the virus before the warnings came through here and turned off the ftp. Ugh! And there's no way of telling who... Shock set in as he realized Uncle might have been one of the first to receive it... Quickly, he sent e-mail to Uncle and his children: From: Cousin John To: sublist #1: Enfants de LaCroix Everyone--do not read your address files yet. They may be corrupted with a dangerous computer virus, courtesy of Larry Merlin. Just delete anything that came from me within the past day. Sorry for the inconvenience. I'll have an un-corrupt version by this time tomorrow. CJ That ought to do it, he thought. Fortunately, everything was saved and could be run through his virus destroyer...but it would take time. [end of part 1]------------------------------------------------------------- Cousin John Emperor of Harpsichords jdencoff@polaris.unm.edu ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 18:03:46 -0800 From: "S. Tanaquil Johnson" Subject: FKWars2: Affiliations >Date: Fri, 17 Jun 1994 20:11:00 EDT >Reply-To: Forever Knight TV show >Sender: Forever Knight TV show >From: Laurie Salopek >Subject: FK Wars Part Deux > >Could everyone who is planning on participating in the war please email me with your affiliation? > >Thanks, >Laurie Tanaquil gazed at the words on the screen in some dismay. She KNEW she should never have planned a vacation before the Wars. It was going to take days to finish reading through the June archives. Now here it was the Fourth of July weekend, the Wars had already started and she'd only just come across this message. Was it too late to join the fun? Hastily she switched out of Microsoft Word, started Eudora and chose New Message from the menu. To: lms5@psuvm.psu.edu From: sarajnsn@violet.berkeley.edu (S. Tanaquil Johnson) Subject: Affiliations Laurie, I only just came across this message in the June archives. I hope it's not too late. The harried graduate student stopped and chewed her lower lip anxiously. Surely it wouldn't do any good to send this now? According to the messages that were coming through, Lacroix's deluded minions had already stolen the database and... And her affiliation wasn't on it. And she had been about to make contact with one of those vipers who had the inexplicable perversity to be a follower of Lacroix! A slow smile spread across Tanaquil's face. Some people, seeing that smile, would have fled screaming from the room. They knew whereof they, er, screamed. *Think carefully, Sara*. Now, it was true that she had been indiscreet enough to send in that "Fan Club" application listing "Favorite Character". But, she hadn't quite been able to resist listing more than one name. And she had carefully posted a few messages before the war expressing some confusion between the NatPack and FOSSIL affiliations. That would help to muddy the waters. But most importantly, the Cousins had no idea that she was in any way involved in this war. That could prove... Useful. Nursing a cappuccino, Tanaquil pondered her next step. She was glad to see that Natalie was taking a fighting posture in this war. It was about time she wrote herself out of those "Help-Nick-I've-Got-A-Hypodermic-Needle-At-My-Neck" plots. And Sydney and his fans could be counted on to back her up, of course. But who were her *true* followers? There had been a lot of loyalty-switching going on. The Cousins were so absurdly predictable. They were hell-bent on going after the Knighties already, as if their Glorious Leader had had any success pursuing that policy in the last eight hundred years. It seemed Lacroix had learned as little about Nick since 1228 as Nick had learned about women. Janette? Janette was undoubtedly playing a very deep game indeed. Lacroix's sudden move against Nick had been just a little bit too -- opportune. Better wait until the NatPack made its move, and then make contact. In the meantime, she could check out the San Francisco-Toronto airfares. Perhaps Natalie's faction could use a mole at the Raven? This was going to be fun. S. Tanaquil Johnson "This is mine; that's mine,[etc.]; I'm claiming all this as mine ... except that bit. I don't want that bit. But all the rest of this is mine! Hey, this has been a good day! I've eaten five times, I've slept six times, and I made a lot of things mine! Tomorrow I'm going to see if I can have sex with something!" -- Cat in Red Dwarf ----------------------------------------------------------------- -------------- Date: Wed, 6 Jul 1994 03:50:44 -0500 From: Cousin Monica Subject: FKWAR2--The Newest Arrival [part 1 of 2] The Newest Arrival Monica stepped off of the plane and realized, all too late, that this was going to be no ordinary holiday. There they were, smiling with knowing eyes; what would Janette say....what was Monica thinking when she asked two cousins to pick her up from the airport? She mentally beat her head against a wall. Susan, a fellow Ravenette, who was standing between Laurie and Sandye, thought it strange that Monica would ask not one, but two cousins to meet her at the airport. Did she not fear for her life?...or at least for her safety? After picking up Monica's luggage at the baggage claim, they walked out to the parking lot. At Dennis's suggestion, Laurie and Susan had come in their own car. Obviously some game was afoot. Monica was only a car door away from knowing the truth. The ride to the apartment was pretty uneventful, but very informative. Sandye filled in all the details of the War's progress. Monica sat in contemplative silence while listening to Sandye's news. Though both Sandye and Laurie were cousins, they were very different. Monica had realized that early in the game. Laurie had started the first War, which had nearly escalated to the point of no return. Had it not been for Sandye and the Wicked Warren, peace, however tentative, might never have been restored. Now together, along with the other cousins, they had stolen the precious application files from Nick's loft. Monica might normally have felt contempt for such a heinous act, but after she realized what Janette had done -- virtually sacrificing them to LaCroix on the altar of Nick's incompetence -- her loyalties were wearing thin. [end of part 1 of 2]----------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 21:28:50 EDT From: Sylvia Colston Subject: FK WARS: coming down off of the fence Sylvia sat back in her chair with a thoughtful expression on her face. Evidently, she was still on Janette's database as a Ravenette, even though she had severed those ties recently. Before her was e-mail from Alma concerning a second war, and a call for the Ravenettes to gather. In her travels around the country, the Internet was one of the only constants. Every hospital was different, although nursing is the same everywhere, but the Internet was always there. Now, although in the past she had been a silent lurker, she felt the need to join in. Her hands were poised above the keyboard, ready to send mail to Alma expressing her regrets, when a thought struck her. After she picked herself up off of the floor and kicked the thought to death, she examined it. "Is it really a good thing to be unaffiliated during a conflict like this?" Killer the Terrier, the other constant in her life, was sniffing the thought when another one came winging through the air. Sylvia caught it before it could do any serious damage and looked at it closely. "Then again, do you really want to be a Ravenette? You sympathize more with Natalie, you like Schanke better, and even Nick has his good points. The Ravenettes survive, but is theirs the moral high ground?" Abandoning the metaphor, Sylvia reclined in her chair and considered her options. Killer the Terrier nuzzled her feet, then pranced over to his water dish and gave a few somewhat bored laps before laying at her feet again. Killer the Terrier wouldn't like it much if she joined up with the FOSsils, she reflected, although the two cats back home would love it. Schanke was fun, but she just couldn't see herself as a FOD. The Cousins were out. As a nurse, Sylvia was dedicated to life and healing, not death and decay. "LaCroix might be stronger, but his faction is not for me," she thought. She paused over the Knighties. Nick needed all the help he could get, but she had the impression from the last war that he would not be much of a leader. He was afraid of the responsibility that having followers would necessitate. Which led inexorably to the Nat-pack. They would help Nick, weather he thought he needed help or not. Nat was a neat lady herself, and Sylvia had often thought that she would not mind having her as a friend. Having met the coroner at a medical convention some years ago, Sylvia knew a bit about her and liked what she knew. "That's a definite possible maybe," she muttered to herself. Killer the Terrier looked up in anticipation, then lay down again when he saw that a doggie treat was not forthcoming. Sylvia toyed briefly with the idea of forming her own faction. "The Graces"-- the faction for large medical professionals who know more than they let on and generally have a good outlook on life, but worry a lot for their friends and help them as much as possible. After going through, mentally, the long list of puns that could be made off of the name, she decided she liked it. The Nat-pack and the Graces were natural allies, and she could be both if she wanted to, so there. Setting fingers to keyboard, Sylvia cobbled together a note and sent if off to Natalie and to Grace concerning the Ravenette's mobilization and offering her assistance. Chesapeake was a long way from Toronto, but she had driven longer distances before, and what good was being a traveling nurse if she couldn't go where she wanted and when. Her assignment in Virginia was up soon and she could be in Toronto within the month, if Arthur came up with an assignment there. If not, there were other agencies. She keyed off, her heart now lighter, and grabbed up Killer the Terrier's leash. The small dog sprang up and bolted for the door, scampering back and forth, hardly allowing Sylvia to clip leash to collar. Laughing, she stepped out into the warmth of Independence Day, Virginia-style, squinting in the sun, and baking in the humidity. She half hoped she would be needed in Toronto, after this assignment. "Come on, boy." And Killer the Terrier took off at a run. -------this space for rent------dial 555-sig.----------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 21:46:00 EDT From: "Asst. Listowner" Subject: Re: FKWars2: Affiliations >To: lms5@psuvm.psu.edu >From: sarajnsn@violet.berkeley.edu (S. Tanaquil Johnson) >Subject: Affiliations >Laurie, >I only just came across this message in the June archives. I hope it's not >too late Laurie gazed at the message, "Too late! I already erased the damn thing!" Cruising through a couple of TV stations she couldn't find anything to distract her. "Oh great, more OJ Simpson coverage!" She turned the boob tube off. Getting up from her sofa she tripped over a large half empty tin of popcorn. "Susan and her damn munchies!" Laurie let the container roll and disappear under her coffee table. "Ok, I did collect a bunch of affiliations and I *think* I still can access the VMBackup files and recover the file. Blah, why? Everyone who did email me has already declared their affiliation in public. Ok Salopek, think of something else.. hmmmm..." She walked to her kitchen filled a beautifully engraved glass with chablis and smiled at it's cousin sitting on the counter waiting to be washed. Cousin Sandye had surprised her with the pair for her birthday... THAT WAS IT! Cousin Sandye...If there was one person in the world she could trust it was her. Afterall, wasn't she BigWig?" Laurie smiled. First she would have to make sure her high speed fax-modem really did work. There was no way to know her first test message found its destination. Or, she pondered, she could knock on Sandye's door and deliver the message in person, but Laurie's sense of timing wasn't the best and she opted for email. She mailed a note to Sandye. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Wed, 6 Jul 1994 12:46:15 EDT From: Pamela Rush Subject: July 4-early July 5 [part 1/2]-------------------------------- Later in the pm, July 4: somewhere in Kentucky "'Llo." "Hi, Sher. It's Pam." "What's up?" "I'm not sure, but I think there may be trouble brewing, storm clouds on the horizon, red sails in the morning -- " "Ok. I get it. What kinda trouble?" "Toronto." "NOT again! Have you talked to anyone else yet?" "Merle's off-line; Cal is still incoherent with ecstasy and keeps floating up to the ceiling. Don is incommunicado, although I *hope* he's out scouting the situation. He's not one to let things sneak up on him." "You know, I *thought* there was some problem with communications with Toronto recently." "Like what?" "We didn't get an ACK from Schanke for the last couple of packages we sent him and that's not like him. Usually he's so prompt. And so appreciative." "You think it could be the Canadian customs again?" "Nah. After that one incident, we've sent everything in vacuum packed bags disguised inside plain manilla mailers. They shouldn't have attracted any attention." "Well, what should we do first?" "I suppose we'd better go to lunch." "Good idea. You want Chinese, Italian or Tex-Mex?" * * * * * [end of part 1/2]----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 14:07:07 -0500 From: Debbie Kraft Subject: FKWarsII: FOSsiLs Attack, Alpha(1) -- Sidney Makes His Move July 4, 1994 6:00pm, Toronto time Natalie Lambert sat down at her home computer and wearily switched it on. It had been a incredibly long day at the morgue, mainly due to a gang war that had involved not one but two pipe bombs. Nat shuddered, watching the boot-up messages scroll up the screen. Pieces. Bits and pieces, not bodies. Even turned *her* stomach. Her thoughts drifted to another pipe bomb victim--one infinitely more fortunate in the encounter. "Fortune's a fickle thing, Nat," she murmured. "Well, I'd better mosey on out of Cadaver City and find out what's been happening at the OK Corral." She rummaged through her tote bag and fished out the disk she'd brought from work. Easier to download her e-mail there than to try and access the morgue mainframe. As she slid the disk into the drive, something warm and furry brushed against her ankle. Nat looked down. "Hi, Sid. How's my fuzzy buddy, huh?" She scritched him on the head and was rewarded with a bass rumble. "Glad to hear it. Wanna hop up here?" Sidney contemplated her patting hands, then with a "Mrrph!" jumped up onto Nat's lap. He proceeded to knead and purr even more vigorously as she began to page through her e-mail. After a moment, he sat up and lazily watched the scroll of text, his eyes blinking from time to time in contentment. That is, until Natalie leaned forward, frowning, her brows deeply furrowed. "What the-- I don't believe it! Sidney...someone sent you e-mail care of my address!" Eyes wide with interest, Sidney planted his paws on the desk and leaned toward the screen for a better look. "Mrrrr," he commented. "And that's not all," Nat continued. "This note was sent by a Cousin, of all things!" She looked down at her cat, one eyebrow raised in inquiry. "Sid, is there something you haven't told me?" Sidney blinked, the most innocent expression on his face. "Merrrowr?" He reared up and nuzzled Nat's chin, his purr vibrating his whiskers. "Purrrrrrrrrrrr," he rumbled, "purrrr, purrr, purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr." Nat laughed. "Oh, Lord! I *am* getting carried away with this, aren't I? You don't have the slightest idea of what's going on with Nick and everyone in the war." She ran her fingers down his spine, smiling. "And maybe you're the lucky one at that." There came a sudden high-pitched whistle from the kitchen. Nat's head jerked up. "Oops, tea kettle. Got to set you down for a minute, Sidney." She gently picked him up and deposited him on the floor. * * * * * * * He needed time, that was paramount. A diversion of some kind. He listened to his human humming in kitchen and thought, his eyes scanning the entire apartment. Diversion... Spill! Breakables! His lips pulled back in a cheshire grin, and he padded purposefully toward the bathroom. With a twinge of regret, Sidney jumped up on the sink counter and surveyed what he could use. Not the little statues, she loved those. Besides, they couldn't be easily replaced. What could he--? Ah, yes--the perfume. He stalked toward the three glass bottles, calculating the force necessary to cause breakages. Then, after a deep breath, he swatted the aerosols to the tile floor. Smash! Crash! Pingity, pingity, pingity! "What in the world?" Natalie's footsteps came down the hall. Sidney jumped to the floor, careful not to step in the shards of his handiwork, and huddled in the corner of the bathroom. "Meeeooow," he cried pitifully, "meeeeeeoooooww." Nat stopped on the bathroom threshold and surveyed the damage. "Aw, Sidney. What'd you do, slip?" "Meeeoow, meeooow," said Sidney, putting his heart into the act. "You poor guy. Well, I suppose even cats have accidents. Go on, go out in the living room and let me clean this up." She chivvied him toward the hall. He turned and looked dolefully at her, his tail tucked between his legs. "Oh, go on. You're not in trouble or anything, I just have to clean up the mess." She gave him a reassuring caress, then turned to deal with his diversion. Sidney gave a perfume-induced sneeze, glanced over his shoulder to see that his human was properly engaged in her chore, then made a beeline for the computer. He hopped up on the chair and peered at the screen, getting a good look at the note for the first time. It read: To: Sidney Lambert From: Merlin and Gandalf Subject: Fur is Flying Have monitored the situation via e-mail. Certain details are clear. Big Crow has stolen certain packages of police nature. Little Crow flies a different path. Dark Policeman in quandary but receiving assistance from Arthurian magician with disease magic. Big Crow's flunky is last known position for police packages. Two packages, one live, may be mobile soon. Little Crow's wings may need to be clipped. Will monitor further developments as they occur. Suggestion: bring in Toronto members of The Nine. Mere humans don't have claws enough for this. +----------------------------------------------------+ | Lisa Luksus tokaara@aol.com | | Cousin 'Tok' | +----------------------------------------------------+ | That which does not kill me had better be able to | | run away damn fast! | +----------------------------------------------------+ The Nine. The Nine. Yes, he agreed with Merlin and Gandalf's assessment. The two members of the Nine who lived in Toronto would need to be called to assist in this matter. Sidney's whiskers twitched as he decided which one he should contact. Cheshire, he decided, would carry out most of the action more reliably than Panther. Panther, after all, was a Feral--and a Gifted Feral at that. If Cheshire thought she could enlist Panther's aid, more power to her. Sidney could never get that particular feline savant to understand him. He craned his neck to see down the hall. Natalie was still engaged in her "clean-up." Sidney lips slid back over his fangs and guttural snarl trickled from his throat. He turned back to the computer, and with unsheathed claws, painstakingly typed a critical e-mail message... /\ /\ ^o o^ D.K. "Cat" Kraft ->T<- cat@eskimo.com ~ Edmonds, WA -- Home of Jimmy Doohan, Star Trek's Scotty ___oOO___OOo___ ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 16:53:38 -0600 From: John Dencoff Subject: Cousin John eats Barney for Lunch [part 2/2]------------------ * * * Several hours later, the disks were un-corrupted, and John had a headache that wouldn't quit. As his mood went from foul to worse, someone dared to ring the doorbell...and all he could think about was food. Fortunately, dinner had arrived! But it wasn't cooked! Argh! How could these new Cousins be so incomplete! The small airline animal cage held a cute little bunny, too scared to munch on its carrot. He pulled the cage inside, grumpily wondering if he had any rabbit recipes. "So, you must be Hazel!" he murmured. * * * LizBeth came home to find her house had been burgled! Angry and scared at the same time, she hoped they had left! As she pushed the door fully open, she saw that nothing was missing...and it didn't look like anything of great monetary value was missing. Except...something didn't seem right. "Hazel!" she barely whispered. "Someone stole Hazel!!" It was true: Hazel was gone...cage and all! [end of part 2/2] Cousin John Emperor of Harpsichords jdencoff@polaris.unm.edu -------------------------------------------------