Chapter 39: The Assassin and the Stones

The darkness of the land made it pretty difficult to see. No stars in the sky. There never was a sun. The sun lived elsewhere. This place was trapped in the dark. The few animals who lurked here had adapted to the darkness, and could see a bit - a mountain was silhouetted in the pitch-dark land, and occasionally you could hear cries, although no one was ever quite sure what it was of. The place was cold as well; not freezing-cold, but just cold enough to send shivers down your spine. It was hard to believe anything would want to live here. But some unlucky animals called this place "home".

"No, no, no!" a voice spat from a cave in the side of the jagged mountains. Inside, there was a white fox with yellow eyes cowering under something from the shadows. All you could see were red eyes glowing from the darkness, but nothing more of the figure the fox was scared of.

"V-Vortex, it's true," the fox insisted. "The Earth Guardian, they're coming."

"And you're saying this Earth Guardian has the power to talk to Yin and Yang," the red-eyed shadow - Vortex - spoke, "that would mean they could get them to stop fighting, and the plan would be ruined. And who is this Earth Guardian, Vexus?"

The fox, apparently named Vexus, hesitated. "I do not know, Vortex," he sighed. "All I know is, I had a dream. And it said the Earth Guardian is on their way. That's it. Whether they travel alone, I do not know. Theirr name, I do not know. Their appearance? I. Do. Not Know." He growled at the last sentence, as if getting angry.

The glowing red eyes got close to Vexus, and he jumped back, whimpering with fear. Vortex's voice hissed. "Well, you'd better find out fast. Or I will have no further use for you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-Y-Yes," Vexus managed, nodding very quickly. 

"Good!" Vortex was silent for a few seconds, but then his red eyes narrowed. "Send in Ophir. I have a task for him."

Seeming relieved to get away from the red eyes, Vexus quickly padded out of the dark cave and into the still-dark world around him. He trotted in silence through the dark, walking along the base of the mountains. His white pelt appeared darker due to the lack of light, but his eyes were much more noticeable; in fact, they were somewhat glowing.

Suddenly, Vexus gasped as something slithered by. It then curled into an arch as it made its way up from the ground and it shifted into a something with a canine-like body and pointy ears, white eyes and a long, constantly-moving tail. Its tongue flickered and hissed at Vexus, before shifting into a snake-like thing and slithering off once more.

"Shadow Trackers," Vexus whispered in annoyance before continuing his walk. Shadow Trackers were kind of like minions, listening to those with authority, who lived in the Land of Yin, and the Land of Yin only. Shadow Trackers listened to Yin itself, and Vortex too - since Yin didn't really command the Shadow Trackers anymore, Vortex stepped in and took them over, and now they saw his as an authority figure. They did whatever Vortex asked. They always looked black with white eyes, but could shift form - their original form was supposedly its canine-like-form with the long tail and pointy ears, but for whatever reason it liked shifting into snake-like forms to move around quickly. No one was really sure why, because it was believed they didn't really have a mind of their own - the animal who commanded it seemed to give the Shadow Tracker what it should think. And, hence the name, Shadow Trackers were excellent at finding animals. Vortex sent the Shadow Trackers after the Earth Guardian, Vexus recalled, the ones he sent haven't quite returned yet...

Whooping and laughing reached Vexus's ears. He turned at a crevice in the side of the mountain. Ophir's in there, he thought. With a grimace he headed for the crevice. This was where Ophir's family - all wolves - lived; the children in this family were crafty and their idea of "funny" was someone nearly dying from one of their pranks. The parents of this family were careless. Ophir was one of the children, and he was often among them with their deadly pranking and laughing at others.

"Excuse me?" he called.

"THINKFAST!" howled a voice, and next thing Vexus knew, he was crushed under the weight of someone. Laughter filled Vexus's ears as he left out a grunt of pain.

"Get...off," Vexus gasped.

"Oh, I dunno. I'm feeling rather comfortable right here," laughed Vexus's attacker.

"P-Please," Vexus begged.

"Oh, get off of 'im, Elim," chuckled a voice.

The weight on Vexus lifted off, and the fox quickly scrambled to his feet. He turned to look at who had attacked him: Elim, the biggest of the children. His fur was dark brown and he had yellow eyes and a light brown undertail. He smirked. "Not so tough, are you Vexus?" he said, prodding Vexus with his paw.

"Of course he isn't!" laughed another voice. A light brown wolf with black markings under his green eyes pushed Vexus, making the fox fall over. The wolf laughed. "He's just Vortex's measly little messenger is all!"

Howls of laughter erupted.

"Quiet," barked a cold voice. Immediately the laughter stopped. Bright green eyes glowed in the darkness, and a dark brown female wolf stepped out of the shadows. She pushed her way through the group of children, who quickly parted as she came through, until she was standing right over Vexus. "What do you want, Vexus?"

Vexus immediately recognized her: Nome, the mother of this family. She was cold and - although she never said so - obviously approved of her children's pranks, as she didn't tell them not to pull them. "Vortex sent me," Vexus said, trying to hide the fear in his voice, "he wants to see Ophir."

Moans could be heard.

"Why does he want Ophir?" demanded a girl's voice.

"Yeah!" agreed another girl, "Ophir is--"

"The best wolf here?" piped up a voice. A gray wolf with green eyes came out of the shadows, smirking. He had dark gray markings over his eyes. He made his way to the rest of the group, keeping the smirk upon his face. "Yeah, I thought so."

"Shut up, Ophir," growled one of the girls. 

"So," Ophir turned to Vexus. "Vortex needs me?"
"Yes. Come with me," Vexus nodded, turning to leave the crevice.

"See you all later. Obviously, Vortex picked the best wolf here," Ophir smiled, following Vexus.

"Oh, right, Ophir!"

"Yeah, sure! He probably only called you to kill you!"

"Don't let your tail get stuck on the way out!"

Suddenly, a rock flew Vexus's way and he yelped in alarm, jumping back. Laughter came from behind him.

"Nice one, Ruby!" laughed one of the girls.

"Why, thank you. If only it'd actually hit him!"

"That's because your aim is terrible."
"Shut up, Nikolai!"

Vexus was now out of earshot of the voices, and shivered. He absolutely hated Ophir's family, always trying to avoid them; all they ever did was pick on others, and seemed to especially like making a target of Vexus himself. But, like most of the animals around here, they saw Vortex as a great leader, which was why they were mad that he wanted to see Ophir.

Vexus and Ophir were now at Vortex's cave. Vexus padded inside, returning to his red-eyed leader. Ophir followed, still wearing the smirk he had when Vexus has called his name. 

As the fox and wolf headed deeper into the shadows, their pawsteps echoed throughout the cave. Vexus could hear the sound of water: drip. Drip. Drip. It actually may not be water, Vexus told himself, shivering. Last time I thought there was water in here, it turned out to be fresh blood... he recoiled at the memory of finding a torn-up coyote body in the cave.

"Ah, Vexus, you're back," said a voice. The glowing red eyes were there, eyeing Vexus and Ophir.

"I brought him," Vexus managed.

"Do you think I am blind? Of course you did," Vortex growled.

"I-I'm not...no longer of u-use to you now, right?" Vexus asked nervously, recalling Vortex's words. Was that a hint that I may be growing useless? he thought worriedly.

Vortex was quiet for a few moments, then spoke. "No, Vexus. I think I have some further use for you. When it comes to messengers, it doesn't get much better than you..."
"It doesn't?" Vexus perked up, feeling pleased at the compliment.

"Yes, despite your idiocy and the fact that you're a wimp, at least you're up for the job."

Ophir snickered, and Vexus's head fell with a sigh. "Do you wish to dismiss me?"
"No, Vexus, I think you can be allowed to know what's going on," Vortex said. "After all, I've let you in on everything this far, right?"
Vortex is in a good mood, Vexus realized. Compliments (despite he seemed to take it back), being allowed to know his plans? Despite it didn't seem like much, that was Vortex on one of his better days - which, actually, were pretty rare.

"First off, Vexus, I learned something," Vortex said. "One of the Shadow Trackers came to me while you were gone. They had seen the Earth Guardian has...friends."
"Friends?" Vexus echoed.

"Yes. The Earth Guardian does not travel alone," Vortex confirmed. "The Shadow Tracker showed me that she's in a group of eight. A meerkat. Two Border Collies. A bobcat. Four wolves. And the Earth Guardian themself. We must eliminate the Earth Guardian - and the rest of the group, if they fight to protect them - and you know why, Vexus."
Vexus nodded. The Earth Guardian is a threat to Vortex's plans, he remembered.

"They're on their way here. To destroy what I had started," Vortex growled. "I'm sending more Shadow Trackers to spy on them and find out more about our enemy. But in the meantime...Ophir, this is where you come in."
Ophir perked up. "What am I going to do?"
"Once we find out enough to know what this group is up to, I want you to find some way to...get rid of them," Vortex hissed.

Vexus suppressed a shiver. "Does that mean..." Ophir said, hesitating.

"Kill them? Yes," Vortex growled. "And you know what the fun part is? I'm letting you decide how. Painful and slow is preferred. And before you do, kindly let them know that their death is because they decided to try and interfere with me."
"Of course," Ophir smiled. "I'll carry it out, Vortex."
"Splendid. Now..." His red eyes glowed even brighter.

A hissing sound made Vexus jump with alarm. A Shadow Tracker slithered in, examining Vexus and Ophir with the flick of its tongue, and then it slithered up to Vortex's side.

"Ophir, take this Shadow Tracker with you," said Vortex. "It'll take you to the group, and leave you once you get there."
"But how do I--?" Ophir began.

"Find your way back?" Vortex chuckled. "Oh, that's the fun part. You got to try and find the way back yourself. Be sure to remember the way, because I'm not helping you."
"But why? If I do such an important job for you...shouldn't I get some help?" Ophir asked.

Vexus recoiled, expecting Vortex to growl, but he, strangely, seemed calm. "Ophir, please do not ask questions when I tell you something. Since you're new to my plans, you're being let off with a warning. Clear?"
"Clear," Ophir repeated nervously.

"Finding your way back proves that you're not only a killer, but smart. Then I'll know I can use you again. If you don't, then you've already completed the task you're useful for, and I no longer need you." Vortex explained. "Now go."
"Now?" Ophir said.

"Yes. And do know I'll be watching you," Vortex added. His eyes glowed again, and Vexus knew he was speaking to the Shadow Tracker. The Shadow Tracker hissed and slithered up to Ophir, who turned to leave, padding for the exit.

"And Ophir? It's an assassination mission. I expect it to be all I'm hoping for," Vortex called.

"I'll kill them," promised Ophir's voice.

Silence filled the cave as Vexus awaited further orders.

"Now Vexus, come with me. I'm going to show you one of the best parts of this plan," Vortex said.

"You're coming out of your cave?" Vexus said in disbelief, but then realized it was bad to sound so shocked. Then again, all Vexus had ever seen of Vortex was her glowing red eyes and had heard her voice; in fact, Vexus was sure that no one had ever seen Vortex's full appearance.

"Of course, Vexus. What kind of leader doesn't come out of their den every once in a while?" Vortex insisted. "Now come on."

Vortex stepped out of the shadows, and his glowing eyes died down a bit, but still remained glowing, like everyone else's eyes in the Land of Yin. Vexus studied her. He was a wolf. Dark pelt and red eyes, with a blue lightning mark on his side. He turned to Vexus. "Well?"
Vexus snapped out of his thoughts of finally seeing his leader's appearance. "L-Let's go, then..."

Vortex padded for the exit, and Vexus quickly padded after him, not wanting to have Vortex get angry at him for being too slow. They trotted in silence and then left the cave, going to the outside world.
The familiar glowing red eyes came back as Vortex continued to trot east. Vexus, his eyes glowing as well, quickly followed her. "Where are we going?" he asked nervously. East of the Land of Yin was the Land of Yang - it was bright over there, and it's where all good lived. On the borderline of the Land of Yin and the Land of Yang was where the Protectors were: warriors who defended the Land of Yin and Yang from outsiders and anyone who could cause trouble. But could anyone - even Vortex - cross sides? The Protectors also kept animals from switching sides, so the animals in the Land of Yin stayed in the Land of Yin, and those in the Land of Yang in the Land of Yang.
"Oh, we're just going to remove the Father Stones," Vortex replied with an unsettling smile.
"R-Remove the Father Stones?" Vexus echoed. He had heard the Mother Stones, which were elsewhere, was what the Father Stones worked through to help animals on the mainland. "But..."
"The Father Stones help with what the Earth Guardian's group relies on," Vortex said. "And if they're removed of that...well, easier for us to get them away from interfering with my plan."
"Ah...th-that makes sense," Vexus gulped. Still doesn't make it any less dangerous, he told himself.
Finally, they were at a large hill that Vexus knew marked the ending of the Land of Yin. Vortex headed for the hill, starting to climb it, and Vexus followed him.
At the top of the hill, there was black smoke that was rising up higher and higher into the sky - separating the Land of Yin from the Land of Yang. Vexus was sure that, on the other side, it wasn't black smoke. The black smoke fit the Land of Yin. It certainly couldn't fit the Land of Yang.
Vortex padded alongside the smoke wall, and Vexus followed. The Protectors could attack us at any moment, Vexus realized. If they saw Vexus and Vortex walking along the border, that was a good excuse to send them back at the best; kill them at the worst.
The rest of the walk was, thankfully, uneventful. Vortex and Vexus made it to a large cave; at the entrance were two pillars, lit with fire, revealing the mouth of the cavern. Vortex didn't hesitate to dive inside. Vexus reluctantly followed inside.
As they kept walking - Vexus sticking to Vortex's smell for guidance, which strangely smelled of death - and they went deeper into the cave. Vexus couldn't see anything.
Suddenly, Vexus could see. He noticed there were torches on the wall and hieroglyphics on the wall. But it appeared to be a dead end.
Vortex walked up to the hieroglyphics, examining them. He then growled. "Pathetic riddle," he hissed, "don't they realize you don't need to solve this puzzle to get to the Father Stones?"
Vexus watched as Vortex's eyes glowed, and then the wall exploded. Crying out, Vexus went flying back and landed hard on the floor. He scrambled to his paws to see Vortex hadn't moved at all. "Well? Come on."
Nodding, Vexus quickly padded after Vortex into a new room. Light filtered in from a crack in the ceiling, and Vexus could see that, at the back of the room, were two large stones that were sitting on pillars. Light came in, shining on the stones. Vortex approached them.
"The precious Father Stones," he mocked. "Oh, how important they are to the Earth Guardian and their friends." Not quite knowing what to say, Vexus sat down. "But of course...once these Stones are removed, this group's powers will be weakened." Vortex eyed the Stone on the left.
"Bending Stone," Vortex commented. "Their connection with the elements..."
Vortex's eyes glowed harshly and the Bending Stone flew out of its pillar. The light that had been shining on the pillar disappeared. "...Gone," Vortex smiled.
Vexus then watched as Vortex approached the stone on the right, which still had light shining on it. "Peacebender Stone. This is how the dead communicate with the living. This is how the Earth Guardian and their friends will know what to do. But say...this Stone wasn't connecting those two worlds? Well, the Earth Guardian won't know what to do now. Oh, dear..."
Vortex's eyes glowed and the Peacebender Stone flew out of the pillar.
The light that had previously been there left.
"And now we have the utmost advantage," Vortex gave an unsettling grin.

Author's Note:
Sorry I haven't posted in a while! D: Hope this makes up for it...
Oh, and kudos to whoever can guess the name pattern in Ophir's family! :)
Hint: "The Toughest Race on Earth".

Chapter 38: The Forgetful Shaman

Misty was at a beach at the base of a cliff. The sun was setting, and waves lapped at the shore, her paws standing in the water. She looked in the distance, thinking about nothing in particular. All that could be heard was the sounds of the waves coming up to her.
On a rock nearby, three ravens perched. They each had red eyes. Misty found this a bit odd, but didn't fret about it as she looked at the ravens, who seemed to be studying her closely.
Then, a raven screeched and the two others joined it. Misty lay down and covered her ears with her front paws from the noise. She looked to see the first raven to screech was expanding into a shadow, yet its head still was there, its eyes glowing bright red and screeches coming from its gray beak. Eventually the whole landscape was covered in blackness. The raven's head disappeared, and the screeching died out.
Now Misty was floating in an endless black void. She sat there, not quite knowing what to do, as she kept floating. Then, something appeared in the shadows.
It was white, and it was in a smoke-like form. with large wings. It appeared to be a wolf. Misty watched as it stood there, looking around, as smoke flew off of it. Then, something black came from the shadows as well, with red eyes like the ravens. It spread its wings, and Misty saw it, as well, was a wolf. It also seemed smokey. As soon as the black and white wolf made eye contact, they shrieked and lunged at each other, looking prepared to kill one another. The place shook and then Misty's vision went black.


Misty woke up. She looked around to see Rhett and Koro in the corner, talking to each other. Campbell was still asleep, and so were Adele, Glory and Bracken. Lephos and Sidew were nowhere to be found. They were in a large room that was reserved for "important guests", as Lilypaka had explained.
She got to her paws, the dream she had still playing back in her head. None of it made sense to Misty. She made her way for the exit, and two guards on the outside turned her way. "Goddess of the Earth! Hello!" they exclaimed, bowing deeply.
"Is there a dream-interpreter?" Misty asked.
"A what?" one of the guards asked. He had a stick-spear, and a headband made of grass.
"Someone who knows what dreams mean," Misty replied.
"Go and see Busara! She shall tell you," the other guard insisted.
"Where's Busara?" Misty asked.
"To the Council, and hang a left!" The headband-guard exclaimed.
"But you mustn't walk to the room! I shall carry you," the other guard puffed out his chest.
"No! I will!" The headband-guard said. "I am the strongest!"
"Like heck you are!" the other guard hollered, tackling the headband-guard. They began wrestling on the ground, and Misty slipped away, looking over her shoulder at the two fighting meerkats.
Misty walked for the wooden stairs. Sunlight came in from the hole at the top of the tree. Tons of meerkats were out and about, and they all saluted to Misty as she trotted past. Misty headed for the Council's room. No members of the Council were to be found. She assumed they were either fighting again or all asleep.
Misty went left for a door she hadn't noticed before. She ducked into a door and squeezed through. It lead to a darkened room. The only source of light was from a hole in the wall that served as a window. There was a piece of wood that had a green-gray orb on it, and candles around it that were unlit. There was a bird-like thing Misty had never seen before sleeping in the corner. It had yellow feathers, and was definitely not a songbird. It had red on top of its beak and under. Since the bird's feet were nowhere to be seen, Misty assumed the bird was sleeping on them.
"Hello?" Misty called. No response. "Busara...?"
Suddenly, a brown female meerkat with a purple flower on her ear popped up from behind the orb. "Oh! Hellloooo!" she greeted Misty. "How can I assist you? Perhaps I could predict your future, or I could interpret a dream--"
"Interpret a dream, please," Misty said.
"Ooh! I love dreams. Dreams are the most interesting things ever!" Busara exclaimed. "Who are you?"
"Misty," Misty replied.
"Ah! Misty! Wonderful name," Busara smiled. She walked over to the bird and ruffled its feathers with her paw. "Isn't that a cool name, Berry? 'Misty'. I wish I had a name like that." The bird woke up and made a clucking sound. Definitely not any bird sound Misty had ever heard. "Wait...what's my name again?" Busara frowned. "I think it was something along the lines of--"
"Busara?" Misty frowned, confused about how Busara forgot her own name.
"Ohhhh! That's right!" Busara exclaimed. She ran up to Misty. "You're a wolf! Such lovely fur. I wish I were a wolf. I think I'm a meerkat?" Busara examined herself. "Meerkat, yeah."
"Uh...can you help me, please?" Misty asked.
"Ah! What do you want help with?" Busara said.
"A dream interpretation...?" Misty tilted her head in confusion.
"Dreams! I love dreams," Busara grinned. "Now, who are you?"
"Misty," Misty replied, getting a bit irritated.
"Wonderful name!" Busara exclaimed. "My name's Busara. I wish my name was something like 'Misty'. Don't you, Bury?" Busara turned to the bird.
"I thought its name was Berry," Misty said.
"Oh yeaaahhh! Thanks for the reminder. Now, what do you want help with?" Busara asked.
"A dream interpretation!" Misty snapped. "I already told you, and this is, like, the third time!"
"It is?" Busara grimaced.
"YES," Misty growled.
"Ohhhh..." Busara grabbed her arm with her other hand nervously. "Uh...sorry. I have...short-term memory loss. Runs in my family."
"Short-term memory loss," Misty echoed. "Are you related to the Pakas?"
"Pakas?" Busara echoed. "Sounds like a cool name. Maybe. But I dunno. Anyways, what are you here for again?"
"A. Dream. Interpretation," Misty grumbled.
"Okay! What was the dream like?" Busara asked, perking up.
"Well, I was first at a beach--" Misty began.
"The beach!" Busara exclaimed in wonder. "I love beaches! I just love the sun, the water, the sand--"
"Yeah, well...then three ravens appeared," Misty continued. "And--"
"Ravens? Blech. I hate ravens," Busara frowned. "Whenever they see Berry out and about, they swoop down at him! Don't they, Berry?" Busara ruffled the bird's feathers again, and it made another noise before turning back to look into space.
"--Then there were two winged wolves. They fought and tried to kill each other," Misty explained.
"Ugh, that sounds so depressing. I don't know if I even like this dream anymore," Busara frowned. "Is that all? I hope it is, because this dream is going downhill."
"It is," Misty confirmed.
Busara nodded and grabbed the orb, studying it intently. She moved it around in her paws, as if trying to take in every detail she possibly could. Misty noticed that Berry seemed to be eyeing Busara, as if the bird was curious. Misty found herself leaning forward as Busara's face screwed up in further concentration, wondering what the meerkat was going to say.
The orb then uncurled, revealing itself to be a bug. Busara popped it into her mouth with a smile.
Misty grimaced.
"What? It's my breakfast!" Busara protested. She then ducked under the table and pulled out a clear orb, but this one definitely looked legit. She then moved her paws on the orb and purple, yellow and red swirls appeared into it. Misty gaped at the beautiful orb and felt herself being drawn closer to it. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the bird was looking a bit fearful and it flapped its wings in alarm, scooting further into its corner as if trying to get away from the orb but unwilling to run away.
"The Peacebenders call for your assistance!" Busara exclaimed. Misty was alarmed to realize her voice had changed. "You and your friends must journey to the land of Yin and Yang and stop them from their fight! Or everyone is doomed!"
Busara then grew wide-eyed and shook her head. "Phew! Sorry, got knocked out there for a minute." She then smiled and looked at Misty. "Ah! A visitor! What can I help you with? Perhaps I can predict your future, or--"
"Wait, what?" Misty said. "But--"
"You want me to predict your future?" Busara asked.
"There's got to be more!" Misty exclaimed.
"More to what?" Busara said.
Misty sighed in frustration, then left the room. She passed the Council, who were all fighting and punching each other once more. Misty didn't even bother trying to break them apart, as she headed down the steps and to her guest room.
"Guys, you'll never belie--"
She then gasped to see a concerned Koro standing by Bracken, whose teeth were gritted and his paws were on his head. "Make it stop! Make it stooop!" he cried.
"What happened?" Misty ran over.
"He got a headache and won't stop whining about it!" Campbell yelled.
"I don't think it's an ordinary headache. It seems incredibly severe," Koro commented. He looked straight at Misty. "Is there like, a Healer or anything here?"
Misty was unable to look Koro in the eye. "There's this shaman...but she won't be any good. Short term memory loss..."
"I don't want this headache!" Bracken wailed. "Take it away!"
"It should wear off eventually," Rhett shrugged. "I mean, it's just a headache..."
"Yeah, but I don't know how much more Bracken can stand of this," Koro pointed out.
"I'm going for a walk," Glory insisted, "I can't stand to see others in pain." She headed out the door.
"Where were you, anyway?" Campbell trotted over to Misty.
"With the shaman," Misty muttered. "And she told me something..."

Author's Note:
Haven't made a chapter in a while, been busy. :c Hope this makes up for it.

Chapter 27: Crazy Bobcat

The sun was setting, and Twister had told Liberty they were done training for the day. She learned a bit of Bending and about hunting, and had just gotten dinner. So now Liberty was free to do whatever she pleased.
The young she-wolf trotted into The Bending Tower, navigating around Streak, Patch and Nzuri, the siblings all seeming deep in conversation. About what, Liberty didn't hear, as she made her way up the stairs to find her only close friend, Starlight. Two friends now, she commented to herself, Starlight and Ekaj. Well, it's something.
She sniffed at the air, and managed to pick up Starlight's scent nearby. Liberty followed it, and turned around the corner, only to be smacked right into by Starlight herself, who was panting. "Oh. S-Sorry, Liberty," she gasped. "But something...something happened..."
Liberty waited patiently for Starlight to say more.
"It's Audrey. She went into the Healer room, because she had gotten a scratch on her ear that was bothering her...and Bracken attacked her, and she got a panic attack, so I'm looking for her mother..." Starlight panted.
"I'll help you find Nyla," Liberty said. "But I don't want to go into the Healer room while Audrey's having her panic attack. I don't like watching things like that."
"Of course, of course," Starlight nodded. "Let's, uh...go now."
They trotted down the steps and towards the Earthbender room. Nyla was laying down in there, eyes closed but obviously not fully asleep. Liberty prodded the Border Collie with her paw and Nyla's eyes opened. She sat up. "What?" she asked.
"Bracken attacked Audrey," Starlight announce, "and she had a panic--"
Before Starlight could finish, Nyla had obviously already gotten the message. She shot out of the room, and Starlight followed. Liberty hesitated, then decided to follow, hoping Audrey was calming down by now so she wouldn't have to watch the pup breaking down.
They walked into the Healer room. Surprisingly, Eclipse was in there, despite Firefly's earlier protests of her needing to rest and stay away from healing duties. She was right by Audrey, comforting the young Collie, who was hyperventilating. Liberty saw that Nightgale and Comet had Bracken pinned to the ground, the bobcat snarling and yelling things Liberty couldn't quite make out.
"Audrey!" Nyla ran over to her daughter. "Are you alright?"
"H-H-He attacked me!" Audrey sobbed.
"Why would Bracken attack Audrey?" Comet wondered, no hint of panic to his voice - the total opposite of Audrey - as his head turned sideways in confusion. "Before Bracken was...well, kidnapped, he always seemed to be kind towards her...and now he wants to kill her?"
"It's a mystery," Nightgale sighed, pushing harder on Bracken as he struggled under her grasp.
"I don't think Audrey remaining in this anxious state is good for her," Eclipse commented.
"She'll get over it," Liberty said.
"No, I mean, she needs to stop having panic attacks," Eclipse replied, her blind eyes fixed on Liberty. "Of course she'll get over this current attack, but when it happens again, she'll just return to how she's acting now." She turned back to Audrey, who seemed to be calming down, but shook with nerves every now and then. "I can think of something, I'm sure, to make Audrey be calm more often. But, there's no way to completely get rid of the anxiety, as she was born with it. I can only make her be able to control it better."
"I suppose that will work," Nyla shrugged, licking Audrey's forehead.
"I'll think of something," Eclipse promised, getting up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go before Firefly runs in and starts rambling about me being in here."
With that, the blind medicine Bender took her leave.
"Come on, Audrey..." Nyla nudged her daughter, who shakily got to her paws. The two Border Collies walked out of the room.
"Liberty, Starlight. Can you watch Bracken for a while? Comet and I have to get some herbs. We're low on some of them," Nightgale explained.
"Uh...sure," Starlight shrugged.
Nightgale smiled and let go of Bracken, who quickly got to his paws and crawled into the corner with a snarl. She then left the room, followed closely by her fellow Healer.
"Heh, heh..." Bracken was now chuckling.
"I'm scared to ask," Starlight said.
"Plan shall work. Strong, much," Bracken hissed.
"What the heck does that mean?" Liberty demanded, shooting a look at the insane bobcat.
"Talk different," Bracken commented, "shall adjust."
Bracken then froze into place and then turned back to them. "Ah, this is much better. Now I sound like you..."
Starlight and Liberty exchanged crept out looks.
"The plan is going to work," Bracken said. "I can feel it!"
Then Bracken froze again, but this time he fell over, fainting.
"I think that's my cue to leave..." Starlight said, looking horrified.
"We got to stay," Liberty insisted. "No matter how strange it is, we're doing this for Nightgale and Comet..."

Author's Note:
Short-ish chapter, sorry. D: I hadn't updated in a while. Hope y'all had a good Easter. :)
Oh, and check my Blogger profile. The TFEOB Blog made a post, and I made a new story. Still mapping out the plot and all, though.
I haven't updated The Powered Ones in FOREVER though...I gotta do that soon.
Got school tomorrow, dang it D:<

Chapter 26: Goddess of the Earth

Tiggerpaka got to his feet and brushed the dust off his fur. "You called?" he said coolly.
"Oh brother," Campbell grumbled.
Misty, however, was curious. She leaned closer to see what was going on.
"You're an exile, Tiggerpaka!" Moja shouted. "You can't come into our territory!"
"Oh, please. I am a true warrior! I can go wherever I please," Tiggerpaka snorted.
"Take him to the dungeon!" Tatu cried. "Now!"
The two meerkats who took him in lifted Tiggerpaka back up again. "Come on," one of them grunted.
"How dare you!" Tiggerpaka yelled. "I am a warrior! A fighter! I shall not be placed in your pathetic dungeon! Unhand me!"
"Poor Tiggerpaka," Bracken commented, looking concerned.
"Yeah," Misty agreed. "But to be honest, his protesting is only making things worse."
"True...but he shouldn't have to go into the dungeon. We're the ones who took him to a place he wasn't allowed to go," Bracken pointed out, looking guilty.
"Actually, it was Glory who took us here," Rhett said, glaring at Glory.
"What? You asked me to!" Glory protested.
Misty could hear all the meerkats down below bursting into conversation. The Council turned to the group. "You all, to the dungeon as well!"
"What!" Sidew yelled. "We're not even prisoners! We're friendly!"
"Sure you are!" Tatu said, loudly over the sounds of the meerkats below. "To the dungeon, intruders!"
Sidew grumbled to himself, and Misty managed to catch things like "stupid meerkats" and "we shouldn't even be here".
"Lilypaka! Uja!" Mbili yelled to the crowd.
Soon, two meerkats came to the room - one seemed pretty similar to Tiggerpaka, but she had a purple flower in her ear and a stick that served as a weapon. The other was the one with the fish scale shoulder pads; immediately Misty grimaced at the rotting stench. "Yes sir!" the fish scale one saluted.
"Take these prisoners to the dungeon!" Tatu ordered.
"I was gonna say that!" Mbili snapped.
"Well, whatever! It's done now!" Tatu growled.
Mbili punched Tatu in the face. "DON'T TAKE MY LINES!" he then tackled Tatu, and Moja joined in on the fight.
"C'mon," the similar-to-Tiggerpaka meerkat said. She smiled. "I'm Lilypaka."
"You look similar to Tiggerpaka," Bracken noticed.
Lilypaka froze. "Uh...yeah. I've been told that."
"And your name?" Lephos asked.
Lilypaka sighed. "Fine. I'm his twin sister. Not too proud of it, but y'know, he's my kin."
"Shut up, Lilypaka! We must get these prisoners to the dungeon!" Uja declared, pushing Lilypaka along. The group reluctantly followed.
They trotted down the stairs and to the main room, where the meerkats were now breaking up but still in conversation. Lilypaka and Uja lead them to a big door under the stairs that Misty hadn't noticed before. It lead to a damp, dirty hallway that looked like no one ever really came here often. They walked past several empty cells, and Misty saw Tiggerpaka in one of them. "Get me out of here!" Tiggerpaka yelled. "I am the slayer of Tiredblade! The hunter of Tiredblade! Your savior from Tiredblade's wickedness! Let me go!"

"Into the cells!" Uja cried. He pushed Sidew for the cell next to Tiggerpaka, but Sidew couldn't fit in.

"I told you that you're fat," Lephos sniffed.

"I'm not!" Sidew protested. "These cells are just too tiny!"

Uja frowned. "Hm. Obviously the cells shrunk!"

"More like you only made them for meerkat sizes," Rhett retorted. 

"Nonsense! We can hold prisoners of all sizes!" Uja insisted.

"I told the Council we had to redesign the dungeon and resize everything to hold more prisoners, but they wouldn't listen!" Lilypaka sighed.

Misty looked at Lilypaka. "You're not like the other meerkats," she commented. "You're--"

"Stupid? Yeah, I know!" Uja snorted. "She's the dumbest one in the Clan."

Misty expected Lilypaka to look offended, but she had a blank expression. "I get that everyday," she said, turning to Misty. "I'm used to it."

"Huh," Misty frowned. 

"Uja, face it. You're not going to fit the prisoners in," Lilypaka insisted.
"I knew that!" Uja replied. "So we must bring them before the Council!"
"Again?" Campbell hissed.


When they headed back inside the Council's room, the Council was still wrestling on the ground, punching and kicking wildly and yelling at each other. "HEY!" Lilypaka shouted.
The Council stopped rolling and looked up. "Oh, it's just Lilypaka," grumbled Tatu. "What nonsense must you tell us this time?"
"They don't fit in the cells," Lilypaka reported.
"Just shove 'em in," Moja shrugged, turning back to Mbili with his fist raised.
"We tried, Moja! They don't seem to fit," Uja sniffed. "The cells must have shrunk!"
"Then what shall we do?" Tatu wondered.
Misty desperately didn't want to be locked up in a cell - especially if they seemed that uncomfortable and small. What can I do to prove we're not prisoners? she asked herself. She then realized: I have to be friendly. That's the only way.
"Hey!" she exclaimed, rushing forward. "We're friends to you! Not enemies."
"Like heck you are!" Mbili exclaimed. "You came into our territory! You must be imprisoned!"
"One, we can't fit in the cells!" Misty said. Now she was getting annoyed at how blind the meerkats were - they weren't the Clan's enemies! "And two, we're friendly animals. We're not going to hurt you or anything bad like that!"
"Yeah!" Bracken said in agreement. "Please let us go!"
"You utter morons! You're obviously here to usurp our positions as Council of the Highest!" Tatu barked. "To the dungeon, now! I don't care how small the cells are. You'll fit!"
Misty growled, her temper rising. She slammed her paws into the tree bark in frustration, and suddenly a bunch of dust flew in through the skylight, fluttering around. It quickly flew out once more. Misty realized she had only Earthbended on accident. "Sorry," she muttered halfheartedly.
But as Misty looked at the Council, she saw they were gaping at her. Then, much to her shock, the Council bowed to Misty. "Goddess of the Earth!" Tatu exclaimed. "We are so sorry for attempting to imprison you and your friends." The Council got to their feet. "Anything you wish, we shall give you!"
"I'm not--" Misty began, but Campbell nudged her.
"Anything we want!" she hissed to Misty. "Do you want to let them know you're not a...'goddess' or whatever they call it? We don't have to be prisoners anymore!"
Misty perked her head, realizing Campbell was right. "Alright then," she said, eyeing the Council. "I shall spare you of my wrath." She tried talking as importantly as she could. "But, you must give my friends and I places to stay while we regain our strength before embarking once more. And answer to our every question we give you."
"Of course, of course!" Mbili nodded quickly.
"I'll let you know if I have any more orders," Misty told them.
"Uja! Lilypaka! Take them to a room to stay!" Moja said urgently.
"Yes sir!" Uja saluted. "Come on, Goddess of Earth. We'll give you and your friends the best places we can provide!"
As the group followed the two meerkats, Lilypaka leaned for Misty's ear. "Well played."

Author's Note:
Ah yes, the Meerkat Clan...
Oh, and check out the new TFEOB Blog! You can access it from my profile.
Also, Tiggerkat (now Skeeter Lea) is now posting a new mini story called "The Soldier's Dog" and it's great so far. Please read it! Click here to see it. 

Chapter 25: Traumatized

Liberty and Ekaj stopped by Ice River. "No humans," Ekaj commented. "That's good."
"I s'pose," Liberty muttered, sitting down. She looked at the river before her, flowing quickly through the territory. She looked off in the distance, wondering where it lead to. Her father Dust had told her stories; about a Dalmatian named Spots. Spots had washed downstream and fallen off via a waterfall at the ending of Ice River. Everyone had thought he was dead. But he returned, with Sylvia as his mate. But then, Spots had died fighting the Firebenders. Dust said he wasn't quite sure how Spots died, but merely saw Spots among the bodies of the other killed animals when the battle was through. It all made Liberty wonder: what was battling the Firebenders like? She wished she could go back in time, see the Firebender fight. That'd be cool.
"Liberty?" Ekaj's voice snapped Liberty back to reality. "Shouldn't we be getting back?"
"I guess," Liberty grumbled, getting to her paws.
"Wait," Ekaj froze in place.
"What?" Liberty whispered, looking around.
"Thought I heard something," Ekaj hissed back.
They stood in silence, looking around, ears perked. Liberty sniffed the air. She couldn't smell anything. "Nothing. Must've been imagining things," Liberty told Ekaj.
Suddenly, Liberty heard pawsteps. She looked in the direction of it. She smelled the air again. Strangely, she couldn't detect a thing. "What--"
Next thing Liberty knew, she was on the ground - as soon as she gathered her thoughts that she was facing a fast opponent, she gasped in alarm to see it was a young bobcat. She recognized the face.
"Bracken?" Liberty said.
The bobcat hissed in a strange way. "Enemy!" she snarled, and aimed for a killing bite.
"Off of her!" howled Ekaj, ramming into Bracken. But this didn't affect him much. However, he did back off of Liberty and flatten his ears, glaring at Ekaj.
"Protective of enemy," he said. "Very."
Liberty quickly got up. "What is wrong with you?!" she snarled, storming up so she was face-to-face with Bracken.
"Enemy hot-headed!" he exclaimed.
"'Enemy'? But she's not...your enemy..." Ekaj said, confused.
"Silence!" Bracken hissed in a snake-like way. "Am here for job."
"Crazy from fear," Liberty suggested. "He's been kidnapped. Must be traumatized."
"That makes sense," Ekaj agreed. "Bracken, please listen. We're your friends. We--"
"Do not know of this word," Bracken growled. "'Friends'."
"I didn't know being traumatized could affect someone this much," Liberty commented.
"Bracken, follow us. Back to The Bending Tower," Ekaj urged.
"Bending Tower. Let's go," Bracken said.
"Alright...just follow," Ekaj said. "C'mon."
Ekaj began walking, and Bracken followed. To make sure Bracken didn't try to pull anything, Liberty guided him from behind. She studied the bobcat. He seemed rather paranoid; he was constantly darting left to right, growling and occasionally wincing. A few times Bracken flattened his ears and shut his eyes tight, as if trying to block out a sharp noise. Every now and then Liberty heard Bracken muttering, but couldn't catch what he was saying. She decided he was definitely traumatized, and needed help from Nightgale, desperately.
Liberty and Ekaj approached the gates, where Twig and her apprentice, Ryker were standing guard. Kirin and Malroy were also standing there. "Whadda you--" Twig began, but was cut off by Kirin's gasp.
"Bracken!" Kirin exclaimed. "How did you find him?"
"He came to us," Ekaj said.
"And tried to kill me," Liberty growled.
Twig gave Liberty an unconvinced look. "Yeah, sure. Sweet, kind Bracken tried to murder you."
"GOOD ONE!" Bracken howled, baring his teeth at Twig.
Twig jumped in alarm. "What did he just call me?"
Ryker trotted up to Bracken. "Bracken?"
"Do not talk!" Bracken snarled. "Must see Bending Tower!"
"Uh...can I talk to the real Bracken, please?" Ryker asked with a slight chuckle.
"Am real!" Bracken snapped.
"What's wrong with him?" Kirin whispered, studying Bracken.
"Traumatized," Liberty offered.
"Huh. We should bring him in," Twig suggested.
"I wanna see this," Malroy chuckled, and the guards followed Liberty and Ekaj in.
They walked into The Bending Tower and headed through the rather large main room, which was empty at the moment. It was around lunchtime, so Liberty figured everyone was eating outside or training in the yard. Liberty's mother had explained that when it got cold, animals would eat inside. And white-earth was well on its way.
The group walked out into the yard, and heads turned their way.
"Bracken!" exclaimed a voice. Firefly shot out of the crowd, running up to his apprentice. "You're alive!"
"Am very much alive!" Bracken snapped.
Firefly frowned. "What's wrong with him?"
"Traumatized," Kirin responded.
Eventually animals began crowding around.
"Bracken!"
"He's alive!"
"Look at the way he's twitching though! Must be scared."
Liberty, who had never been much of a fan of crowds, shrunk back from the gathering animals, trying to regain her space. Bracken, however, was dealing with the animals terribly. "GO AWAY!" he howled. "Too much animals!"
At this, animals began to back up, mostly in surprise.
"What's going on?" Ash shouldered his way through the crowd, followed by Raoul. "Bracken...?"
"Aha! Bending Tower leader!" Bracken exclaimed. "One who orders! Master of Stones!"
"Something's wrong with Bracken," Raoul commented.
"Thanks for the info!" snorted Nzuri. Leafy giggled.
"What's up with Bracken?" Ash asked. "Usually he's very nice..."
"Am not good!" Bracken said with a slight laugh. "I'm the--" he then froze and fell forward, collapsing onto the ground.
Nightgale ran forward, accompanied by Comet, the other Healer. "Well, he's fine, but he blacked out," she reported. "But he's obviously traumatized...he must have gone through bad things, for it to change his personality and speech as well."
"Huh. I've never seen anything like this," Comet said.
"Well, looks like I'll be dragging him up the stairs," Nightgale grumbled. "Any strong volunteers?"
Miguel made his way over. "I'll help."
"Oh, please, Miguel. You're not strong," Rusty rolled his eyes.
Miguel growled at him. "Stronger than you are, Rusty."
"Fight! Fight! Fight!" Sirius called, laughing.
"Be quiet, Sirius," Akumu scolded her daughter.
With one last glare at Rusty, Miguel helped Nightgale move Bracken into The Bending Tower, Comet following.
"Bracken must have woken up on the wrong side of the nest!" Tiggerkat said from nearby. "He needs a reese cup! That'll make it all better." She then popped one of her treats into her mouth. "See? I feel better already!"
"Tiggerkat, you weren't feeling bad when you ate that," Snakeseye pointed out.
"I was feeling good!" Tiggerkat exclaimed. "And now I feel even better!"
"Well, alright then..." Snakeseye responded with a shrug.
The crowd began to break up, everyone going their separate ways and now discussing the Bracken incident. Liberty was about to move away when the door came open, and Eclipse came out. "What happened?" she asked, looking around. "I passed Nightgale in the hall, and..."
"It's okay, Eclipse," Firefly came over. "You should be in the mothers' den, anyway."
"No, no, I'm not being confined to a den," Eclipse insisted. "I'm not that far into carrying pups around, anyway!"
Liberty had heard Eclipse was blind. But by the way the she-wolf acted, she didn't seem very blind.
"Whoa. You're expecting pups?" Ekaj said.
"Uh, yeah," Eclipse replied. "Firefly's."
"Oh boy," Liberty hissed under her breath. Not only was this more of the "mate" stuff that got on Liberty's nerves, this also meant annoying pups running around The Bending Tower. And Liberty didn't want to deal with little pups stealing her prey as a prank or pestering her with questions.
"Hey, Twig," said Streak's voice. Liberty turned around to see Streak grinning. "Would you ever want to have kits?"
Twig growled and pushed Streak. "Never! Don't even bring that up."
Streak laughed, apparently satisfied for getting on his mate's nerves.
"Hm. Do you think you'd ever get a mate?" Ekaj asked, looking at Liberty.
Liberty turned away from his gaze. "No. It's just weird."
"Ah...okay," Ekaj said blankly, trotting away.

Author's Note:
Lots of that "mate" stuff in this chapter
I sincerely apologize. :/
And...what do you think about Bracken? How did he make it back to The Bending Tower...? 
I know so many things that you guys don't. >:D

Chapter 24: Council of the Highest

Later, Misty was being pushed through the forest by a meerkat holding a stick. "Chop, chop!" it exclaimed.
"For the last time!" Campbell cried, hearing the meerkat, "we are not your prisoners! We came along willingly!"
"You have the right to remain silent!" snapped the stick-holding meerkat.
"Kubwa, I think I should be the one to poke them with the stick," the other meerkat replied.
"It's my stick, Mgumu! Besides, I'm way tougher than you are," the stick-holding meerkat snorted.
"Oh like heck you are! I should be the one to poke our prisoners!"
"We are not prisoners!" Sidew growled. "Like Campbell said. We came willingly."
Kubwa and Mgumu ignored them. "Take this, wimp!" Mgumu cried, tackling Kubwa.
"Ow! Not cool!" Kubwa screeched, kicking Mgumu.
"Hey!" Mgumu protested, and soon they were rolling on the ground, punching and kicking wildly.
"Please just let us go!" Glory cried.
Koro came over and separated the two. "Alright. Can we go to your camp or not?"
"You don't give the orders, prisoner!" Mgumu snapped. He took Kubwa's stick and poked Koro. "Now follow us!"
"Gimme my stick back!" Kubwa protested, snatching the stick from Mgumu.
Misty sighed as everyone kept walking along. Misty had been tackled by a meerkat earlier. It was easy getting the meerkat off her, but he had called backup, aka Kubwa, who came out with a stick. They had asked the group what they were doing, and Lephos had explained they were looking for The Bending Tower. The meerkats accused them of being spies and told them to follow back to their camp. Everyone agreed to it, hoping to find a way back to The Bending Tower from the Meerkat Clan's camp, but so far things weren't looking too hopeful.
"Do you find it strange that Tiggerpaka is nowhere to be found?" Rhett hissed to Misty.
Misty frowned, realizing Rhett was right - Tiggerpaka was missing. "He's got to know these meerkats somehow. I'm positive."
"Yeah. But he's bound to show up sometime, with some lame excuse," Rhett snorted.
Suddenly, they were at the edge of the forest. A long field was before them, and in the middle of it was a huge tree. It was the biggest tree Misty had ever seen, with a lot of branches and plenty of leaves on the top. "Wow," Misty murmured.
"No talking! Move along!" Kubwa exclaimed, poking Misty again.
"Okay, okay!" Misty protested, moving along.
They walked through the field, and Misty tripped over something. "Gah!" she cried, trying to steady herself.
"Don't step in the burrows!" Kubwa growled, poking her.
"The burrows?" Bracken echoed.
"Are you stupid?" Mgumu snorted. "The burrows. It's our way of moving around the territory, with a few closely guarded entrances and exits. Quite amazing if you ask me." Mgumu smirked.
"Yeah! The Meerkat Clan is the best in the land," Kubwa exclaimed. "No one dares attack us!"
As they got close to the tree, Misty could see meerkats hanging on some of the branches above, and others at the base.
"Aha! Prisoners!" one sneered.
"Rot in the dungeon!" another cried.
"Meerkat Clan for the win!"
"I already hate this place," Campbell growled.
There was a door in the tree, and Kubwa and Mgumu lead the group inside the tree.
Misty looked around. There was a staircase spinning around around, further up the inside. There were lots of doors alongside the stairs, which Misty assumed lead to rooms; but the doors were meerkat size, so it'd be impossible for her to fit through. The stairs ended at the very top of the inside of the tree, where two huge doors were. Nearby that was a balcony, which Misty wondered what it was for. The roof was decorated with hanging vines and moss, and there was an opening at the top where Misty could see the stars.
A rotting stench reached Misty's nose and she grimaced. A brown meerkat with fish scales on his shoulders approached. "Hail, brothers!" he greeted Kubwa and Mgumu. "Found some intruders?"
"Yes, and they shall be put in the dungeon!" Kubwa cried, poking Bracken with his stick.
"Please don't hurt me," Bracken whimpered.
"Aw, it's okay Bracken," Misty assured her friend.
"Come! We shall take you to the Council of the Highest!" Mgumu exclaimed.
"Council of the Highest. Sounds important," Sidew said sarcastically.
"Indeed it is, prisoner! I'm not surprised you're shaking in your pelt!" Kubwa smirked.
"I'm not shaking in my pelt," Sidew grumbled.
Kubwa and Mgumu lead the group up the stairs. As they got higher and higher, Misty looked down below as meerkats walked aroud on the floor, passing each other and looking busy as some left the tree, while others dived into tunnels, which Misty assumed led to the burrows.
They walked through the big doors, leading to a rather big room. It had a balcony overlooking the outside, and there were three leaves on the ground which Misty assumed served as places to sleep. There were two mini torches on the walls. In the middle of the room three meerkats were yelling at each other.
"No, it will be raining tomorrow!" one of them screeched.
"You idiot! It's obviously going to be SUNNY OUT!" hollered another.
"Both of you, shut up! It's going to snow tomorrow!" the third exclaimed.
"Oh, you stupid--!" one of the meerkats tackled the other, punching him. The tackled one kicked at his attacker, and the third yelled and jumped on top of them both, hitting them with his elbow. They became a ball of fur rolling around the room.
"Council of the Highest! We bring prisoners!" Kubwa said.
The ball of meerkats froze into place and all three of them looked up. "Come again?" one of them asked.
"Prisoners," Mgumu insisted.
They all broke up and dusted themselves off. "Good job, Kubwa and Mgumu," said one of the meerkats. "Help yourself to some grubs.
"Oh, shut up Tatu! Don't let them get some grubs, I say we let them get us grubs!" snorted the other.
"Fair point!" Tatu exclaimed. He turned to Kubwa and Mgumu. "Fetch us grubs!"
Kubwa and Mgumu exited the room, muttering to themselves.
"What shall we do with them?" one of the meerkats asked Tatu and the other.
"Duh, Moja! The dungeon!" exclaimed a meerkat.
"Let's ask the Clan of their punishment, Mbili! Get some good ideas!" Moja said.
"Fine," Mbili grumbled.
"Prisoners, stay here!" Tatu ordered. "We must address our warriors!"
The three meerkats went to the balcony.
"Meerkat Clan!" Tatu exclaimed.
Misty could hear the sound of pawsteps scurrying on the floor.
"We have prisoners!" Mbili said.
"Hey, I wanted to say that!" Moja protested.
"Oh quit whining," Mbili snorted.
"No, you took my line!" Moja growled.
"Shut up, both of you!" Tatu yelled.
"Make us!" snapped Mbili and Moja.
Misty got closer, looking at the crowd below. Tons of meerkats were gathered. Some wore flowers, other wore the repulsive fish armor, while others had sticks over their shoulders.
"This is not a time to fight," Tatu insisted, "we are addressing our Clan!"
"Coward!" sneered Moja.
"Alright, moron!" snarled Tatu, jumping and tackling Moja.
"OFF OF HIM!" yelled Mbili, punching Tatu.
The crowd all blinked at the leaders, then began cheering. "FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!""
"Oh boy..." Campbell grumbled.
Suddenly, the door slammed open. "Council of the Highest!" came a voice.
Misty watched as two meerkats threw another meerkat to the ground. With a scowl, the fallen meerkat got up.
"TIGGERPAKA!?" the leaders exclaimed in alarm.

Author's Note:
Ah, so the leaders know Tiggerpaka. OuO
Anyway, I am willing to link story blogs, so if you want yours linked don't hesitate to ask!
You can see the Meerkat Clan on the Meet the Benders page, and you can sign up a meerkat character on the sign-ups page. c:
And I can't think of any other announcements, so yeah... :/

Chapter 23: Searching for Humans

The next morning Liberty made her way downstairs and into the yard to get her breakfast. Twister had told her they'd be joining other Benders to look to see if any humans had been through the territory, so she'd have to eat quickly.

Nearby the prey pile, Liberty saw Ekaj and Malroy talking. She ignored them, and headed for the prey pile. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Malroy whisper something to Ekaj, who then grew wide-eyed and quickly shook his head. Malroy was now laughing, and he pushed Ekaj in Liberty's direction. Liberty jumped back in alarm and Ekaj stopped himself so he wouldn't collide into her. "Oh! H-Hey Liberty."
"...Hi," Liberty replied hesitantly.

"So...uh, sorry about almost...y'know smashing you," Ekaj said nervously.

"It's...okay," Liberty said slowly.

"Alright, n-nice," Ekaj seemed to not be able to meet Liberty's eyes. "Malroy pushed me."
"I saw," Liberty confirmed.

"Oh. You did?" Ekaj then turned to look at Malroy, who seemed to be laughing. "You didn't hear...our conversation, did you...?"
"No," Liberty said.

"Oh thank goodness," Ekaj sighed with relief, mostly to himself. "Anyway..." he snapped his attention back to Liberty. "Uh...I think we're on the same patrol..."
"That's nice," Liberty grabbed a rabbit from the pile. 

"Along with Dell, Hazen, Mistletoe and Audrey...a-and of course, your mentor. Twister..." Ekaj said.

"Alright," Liberty mumbled, picking up the rabbit.

"I suppose you're leaving now? O-Okay...nice talking to you...right?" Ekaj said.

Is he hoping I'll say that it was nice talking to him? Liberty wondered, aware of his tone. "Uh, yeah. Sure."

Ekaj immediately had happiness written on his face, but quickly hid it. "Nice," he replied quickly. Liberty watched him go back over to his brother and push him. Malroy bursted into laughter and said something. Curious as to what was going on, Liberty crept closer.

"...a wimp!" Malroy was saying, still laughing. "Your tone was so nervous, dude! What was up with that?"

"Because I was nervous! Did you have to push me into her?!" Ekaj demanded.

"No, but it made everything a lot more entertaining," Malroy smirked.

"If I wouldn't get in trouble...boy would I pound you!" Ekaj growled.

"Ha! Sure," Malroy snorted. "C'mon, let's go find Ryker."

With that, the brothers walked off.

Frowning, Liberty wondered what that was all about. She decided that maybe Ekaj thought she was going to beat him up or something. Whenever she was around Wyki now, he seemed to avoid her for beating him in a fight. Perhaps Ekaj was doing the same. Despite we never fought, Liberty added.

Twister then came over to Liberty, with Max and Spot. "We gotta go now, Liberty."
"I didn't get to eat breakfast," Liberty insisted.

"Eat it later. Since the humans are a big threat, Ash told us to add Max and Spots to the patrol," Twister explained. It was the longest sentence Liberty had ever heard come out of her mentor's mouth. She had been told by Akumu, one of Twister's closer friends, that ever since the fight between the Firebenders and Bending Tower she had become a lot more quiet.
Liberty followed her mentor. Max and Spot walked alongside. Liberty looked at Max. As usual, he had a serious, sad-looking expression on his face. Liberty wondered where he got that sadness from. And if Spot would get the sadness from his mentor. She hoped not.
Once they exited the yard, Liberty spotted Hazen and Mistletoe, standing a few feet away from each other but not talking, strangely.  Audrey was with Mistletoe, looking anxious as usual, darting her head around as if expecting a human to kidnap her any second. "Oh! There you are," Mistletoe said. Liberty couldn't help but notice her aunt looked relieved. "I think Ekaj and Dell are coming."
"Okay," Max said.
They sat in an awkward silence. Twister wasn't a talker, and Max wasn't much either. Spot was making an effort to talk to Audrey, but she seemed to be growing more and more anxious to the point where she seemed to be blocking Spot out. He gave up and laid down, as the group waited for Ekaj and Dell.
Finally, Ekaj and Dell arrived.
"You're very late," Twister commented coldly.
"Sorry. I wanted Ekaj to get some fuel into him," Dell replied in her usual calm and soothing voice. "He was hungry."
"Doesn't matter. Let's go," Hazen said.
They then walked off into the territory. Liberty was walking at the back of the patrol, until Ekaj fell back and started trotting alongside her. "Hey," he greeted her.
"'Ey," Liberty replied.
Silence came to them as they kept walking. Finally Ekaj blurted out, "Why do you barely talk?"
"Excuse me?" Liberty said.
"You heard me," Ekaj replied. "You never really talk. And when you do, it's five words at the most."
"Um...I'm not sure how to respond to that," Liberty muttered.
"And not only that, it's always in a muttery voice. Why?" Ekaj demanded.
Liberty glared, wondering why he was so up-tight about this. "Well, if you don't want to hear me talk, or not talk, then don't start a conversation with me!"
Ekaj pulled back a bit, looking hurt. "...Alright," he murmured, trotting ahead to walk alongside Spot.
"That was nice," Twister commented.
"Oh I don't see why you're talking. If Ekaj is right, then we both talk about the same amount," Liberty snorted.
Twister fell silent, but Liberty swore she saw a smile trying to force its way onto Twister's face.
"I think we should specifically try to go to the place where Nzuri saw the humans kidnap Misty, Adele and the others. If I recall correctly..." Hazen frowned, as if trying to remember. "Ah yes. The patrol Misty was on went somewhere that way." Hazen pointed to the west and trotted that direction. The rest of the patrol followed.
Hazen stopped at a spot, and the rest of the patrol halted with him. "Around here," Hazen commented. "We should split up. Max...and Dell, Liberty and Ekaj, Audrey and Twister, and..." he then stopped, looking at Mistletoe, and hesitantly added, "...Mistletoe and me."
Liberty searched Mistletoe's face. At first there seemed to be a mixture of fear and reluctance. But then she sighed and said, "Alright then," with her chin lifted.
"Spot, I want you to stay here," Hazen quickly turned to the Dalmatian, "in case the human returns. Find one of us if you see them."
"Alright," Spot nodded.
They all split up. Ekaj followed Liberty, who was ignoring him; she still didn't know what to do with him after his remarks of her silence. She lead the wolf-dog through the forest, who padded behind her but didn't make any comments. Liberty perked her ears, trying to see if she could hear anything. But nothing.
"Do you know what that whole Hazen-and-Mistletoe thing is about?" Ekaj said.
"Nope. I was barely paying attention," Liberty lied.
"Oh. Well, things have been awkward between them. From what I heard, Hazen wanted to be Mistletoe's mate, but Mistletoe said no. According to my father, when Hazen joined The Bending Tower he and Mistletoe always hung out. Apparently they really liked each other," Ekaj explained. "But then Hazen turned out to be a Firebender spy and betrayed The Bending Tower. He came back though, and things have been weird between the two ever since."
"Mm." Liberty mumbled.
"And, uh...sorry. If, y'know, my comments offended you. I didn't mean to."
"Comments about what?" Liberty asked.
"You know what I mean. About...you not talking, and all," Ekaj said.
"It's...alright," Liberty replied.
"...Friends?" Ekaj asked.
Liberty hesitated. She didn't even consider Ekaj her acquaintance.
But Liberty decided to just go ahead and like Ekaj.
"Friends," she confirmed.

Author's Note:
Ahh, Liberty/Ekaj is beautiful, isn't it. :'D
I'm going to open a fan art page soon, but I don't have a lot of art for this series. Any art is appreciated! ^-^
Oh, and I added some music to the blog. I put in Book #2's theme and Book #3's theme. :)
Sorry for not updating! My internet and computer is incredibly crappy. And not only that, I've been busy studying and trying to get good grades. Because if I don't, things get taken away from me. Like my iPod, Xbox, etc. ene