Logan sat at his desk, reviewing the latest news stories off of the news wires. Things in the world were miserably boring at the moment, with the exception of the usual world leaders and their constant “Stupid Head of State Tricks” shows they seemed to love to put on. The best one yet had been of the President meeting with families at a Target store in Kansas City. The man sure knew how to work the publicity machine. Too bad he sounded like a blithering idiot.

His train of thought was interrupted by the buzz of the intercom. He hit the button for his secretary, “Yes, Jannet?”

“Sir, there’s someone here from FBC who’d like to talk to you. Should I make him get an appointment?” she asked.

“An appointment?” he asked incredulously. “If he’s really from FBC, then send him in.”

“OK.”

Logan hurriedly straightened up his desk and was in the process of straightening his tie when he heard a knock at the door. He jumped up from his seat and opened the door, giving whoever was there his best smile.

It was Jeremy from accounting. “Wow, Logan! I never knew you’d be so happy to see me!” the accountant exclaimed, holding a pile of folders in his hand.

“I’m not,” Logan said, pushing the accountant back out into the hallways. “I’m expecting someone else and here they come, so get lost for now.”

“Look,” Jeremy said, “We have to cover these expenses!”

Logan grimaced and nodded. “I know. I know. Come back in a couple hours and we’ll cover them. I promise.” He quickly turned to see who was coming down the hall only to find someone had been standing behind him.

Logan was used to looking up at people. Standing a mere 5’4”, he tended to have to look up whenever he talked to most furs. In this case, he had to strain his neck, which made swallowing that much harder. The figure that was now standing in front of him had to be at least seven feet tall. To make the figure more ominous, it was an ebony colored bat who had his wings folded around in front of him like an oversized cape.

“Logan Furbody,” the bat asked, in a surprisingly high and squeaky voice that had a decidedly soviet block taint to the English.

“Yes,” the ferret replied, swallowing again.

“Good,” the bat said, giving a smile that showed a lot of large, sharp, and intimidating teeth. “My name is Vladimir. Please you are to be calling me Vlad?”

Logan’s brow furrowed and he frowned. “Vlad?” he muttered, thinking for a moment before his eyes widened. “Vlad the Terrible from 90 Minutes?”

The bat’s grin grew even wider. “Da! You have heard of me! Good. Dat vill be helpink to make our negotiations easier.”

“Right,” Logan replied, reassessing his enthusiasm. He’d originally thought someone from FBC had finally come calling in response to his demo tapes. He knew that 90 Minutes was in town, but it had completely escaped his mind. “Sure, come on in,” he said, nodding to the doorway as he stepped back.

The bat ducked down as it walked through the door way and then straightened up and looked around briefly before sighing.

“Is there a problem?” Logan asked, closing the door behind himself before he took a seat.

“Just once, it vold be nice to eenter a room vat had rafters for to be hankink from,” the bat replied, sounding a bit dejected. ‘In Europe, iz not a problem. Only here in Amerika.”

“Parallel evolution,” the ferret replied quickly. “Our bats evolved proper arms while you guys…” he let the statement trail off as the bat gave him a sharp look. “Like I said, parallel evolution.”

The bat unfolded his wings revealing a harness and belt that had various items hanging from them, including an odd looking case that Logan recognized as their version of a brief case. The bat quickly used the digits on the ends of his wings to unhook the case and set it on the desk before taking a seat.

“It iz our understandink,” the bat said while opening his briefcase, “dat you are hafink interview vis Zig Zag?”

Logan nodded. “Yeah, I’ve interviewed her. We’re supposed to go over the edits tomorrow.”

The bat nodded. “Da. And you are to be doink a interview vit Shiela Wixen, no?”

“No,” the ferret replied shaking his head. “Right now, we have no expectations to be interviewing Miss Vixen at this time.”

“No? Dis iz most unfortunate,” the bat replied sounding a bit dejected. “Ve are Wishink to be doink story infolfink her.”

Logan folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. “Why don’t you tell me what you’re aiming for, and maybe I can help facilitate you getting to it.”

The bat frowned and then shook his head. “You are knowink of my name so you know vy dey are sendink me here, da? Den you know vat I am send ven dey are not knowink vhat is dat vill be required.”

‘I also know that you have a reputation of running roughshod over anyone who gets in the way of your story,” Logan replied flatly. “I may only be a ferret, but nobody runs roughshod over me.”

Again, the bat nodded. “Dis reputation, it iz goot for difficult stories, da? But is problem vhen story ia not difficult, but too complex.” He paused and thought for a moment. “Mike Valrus iz zindink me for investigatink situation vith Zig Zag, Sheila Vixen, de prosecutor, und murder case. I also think of Zetti and mavia connectionz, no? Is very difficult story to put into vivteen minute slot, da?”

“Yes, I can see how it would,” the ferret replied, nodding. “However, I’m not sure what you want with me.”

“You are beink front man, da?” Vlad said, nodding excitedly. “You are hafink de relationzip wis Zig Zag. You vould be wery important on project. Ia maybe your chance to vork de bik time, no?”

Logan thought about it for a minute and smiled. “Just now big time are we talking?”

Behind the pensive, hopeful expression the bat wore, there was a large and very predatory grin lurking in its mind. All of these small town rodent reporters were the same. Wave some money and status in front of them and they trip over themselves to do anything you asked.

Zig Zag sat hunched over at her desk, furiously scratching away with a pencil at some paperwork she had in front of her when a knock came at her door. “Come,” she said without looking up.

Hazel hesitantly stepped into the room. “You called for me, Boss?” she asked, grimacing as the handle of a hammer she wore on her tool belt rapped loudly against the door as it swung in countermotion to her movement.

Zig Zag continued to concentrate on the figures on the paper as she chewed on the pencil’s eraser. “Yes. Close the door,” she stated flatly.

Wincing at the tone, Hazel closed the door, making sure that it latched quietly. She turned back to her boss and waited nervously.

“Sit,” Zig Zag ordered, without looking up again.

“If it’s about that lighting unit I knocked over…” she said, letting her words trail off as she sat nervously down in the chair. Halfway down, the hammer caught on the arm of the chair, causing it to jab into her side. She grimaced as she rose, adjusted the tool belt, and then sat back down again.

Zig Zag shifted her gaze up towards the squirrel, raising her brows enough to be able to see her without looking up. After a couple of seconds, she looked back down at the paperwork and started scratching

Hazel sat nervously for a couple of minutes before again speaking. “Um, if it’s about what happened with Tiny back in the actors lounge…” she said, again letting her voice drift off.

Zig Zag’s brows furrowed as her head slowly rose, her imagination running through multiple possibilities as to what Hazel could be referring to as she slowly turned towards the squirrel, making Hazel squirm and cringe slightly in her chair. “You and Tiny?” she asked.

Before Hazel could answer, Zig Zag shook her head and waved the entire conversation away. “I don’t want to know! I don’t care about that right now,” she said, turning her attention back to the paper. After a few more seconds, she tossed the pencil down in disgust, cursed, and then leaned back in the chair as she ran her hands through her hair.

“Um… Is there a problem, Boss?” Hazel hesitantly asked.

Letting her hands drop heavily against the arms of her chair, Zig Zag let out a stressful breath. “You have no idea,” she muttered.

“Oh, God,” Hazel muttered, her ears drooping dejectedly. “If it’s about what I said to Maggy---” she started.

“Damnit, Hazel!” Zig Zag snapped, causing the squirrel to flinch. “If you want to confess your sins, go talk to Anatol. I didn’t call in here to talk about your screw ups.”

“Oh?” grunted a surprised Hazel. “Oh!” she said, the information finally sinking in. Her brow furrowed and her ears perked up along with the rest of her body. “Then what did you want to talk about?”

Zig Zag frowned. “This is just between us, you understand? You remember how I said I would be getting Sheila’s car out of impound this week?” She watched as the squirrel nodded. “Well it’s not happening.”

“What? Why?” Hazel asked, cocking her head to one side slightly.

“They lost it,” Zig Zag replied, waving away Hazel’s follow up question. “Don’t even start. I’ve been there and done that. There’s nothing we can do now but move on.”

Hazel slumped in the chair. “So what do we do now, Boss?”

“The only thing we can do. We buy a new car,” Zig Zag replied. “There’s nobody I trust to do this without flapping their lips about what happened.” She leaned forwards and gave Hazel a predatory smile. “You, on the other hand, will keep your pretty little mouth shut about this until I say otherwise. Understand.”

Hazel nervously nodded.

“Good,” Zig Zag said, leaning back in her chair. “The judge released some of Sheila’s funds to buy a new vehicle. I want you to look around and come up with some reasonable choices keeping in mind that it has to at least pretend to be sporty looking, doesn’t scream ‘soccer mom’ and can handle a pair of kit seats in the back without too much of a hassle.”

Hazel thought about it a moment. “Hmmm. Well since we’ve got to deal with the kit seats, a four door would be the better solution. I can’t see Sheila wanting to cruise around in a van or anything like that. We might be able to get away with a two door, but they’d have to be easy to get into the back.” She grinned and nodded her head at Zig Zag. “Not that finding something for a two kit mom that’s sporty will be easy.”

Zig Zag mentally shook her head. She had expected to have to lay out a lot more detail for Hazel than she had, but the kid had picked up immediately on what she’d wanted. “Good, so you got the idea. See what you can find and get back to me.”

Hazel nodded and started to get up but stopped. “Um, are you going to be the final decider on this, Zig?”

“Eh?” Zig Zag grunted. “I don’t know. Why?”

”Well,” the squirrel said, shrugging slightly. “Since it’s for Sheila and she’s going to pay for it, don’t you think she should get the final say?”

Zig Zag pursed her lips for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, you’re probably right, but let’s not mention anything to her until after we’ve got some good choices for her to choose from.”

Hazel chuckled. “Gotcha. Give her a choice of cars to choose from rather than free reigns to pick anything she wants. She gets the feeling of being in control, but---“ Her grin faded as she saw the harsh expression that Zig Zag was giving her. “Hey! It’s all in her best interest, right Boss?”

Zig Zag frowned and nodded. “Right.”

She watched the squirrel scamper from the room before returning to the sheet of numbers. “All in her best interest, right?” she echoed to herself. “Keep telling yourself that Zig, and maybe one day you’ll believe it too.”

Father Scarducci snubbed out the cigarette he’d been smoking and lit up another one. He exhaled the smoke and took another sip of his coffee while looking over his rather extensive travel schedule for the next six months. His cover as a reporter for the Vatican newspaper kept him constantly on the move. Of course, it did have the advantage of letting him go pretty much anywhere he wanted when not on assignment and do whatever he wanted to do, and he did love attending rock and roll concerts.

The cell phone in his pocket vibrated, getting his attention. He flipped it open and hit the talk button. “Ciao!”

“Forgive me father for I am about to sin,” the voice declared.

He fought to keep his expression pleasant as he asked, “Who is this?”

“This is Revenant, Father,” the voice replied.

“Ana---Revenant? What happened, my son? Why are you calling this number instead of my office?” he casually asked, leaning back to take another sip of coffee.

“The office is closed to me, Father,” the voice said. “We have been betrayed from within and my mission is in jeopardy.”

The father gave a light laugh as he exhaled another puff of smoke. “Come now, my son. Surely it can’t be that bad. We all make mistakes.”

“I was doubtful myself,” the voice replied, “but I took avoidance measures on a questionable tip and they proved to be necessary. I was set up---a demolition job. My superior here has attempted to expose me and possibly damage the church.”

The smile faded. “What happened?” he asked, snubbing out the cigarette before leaning forward to scratch out meaningless words on the paper, as if taking notes.

“Cardinal Diamante placed used hardware in my kit,” the voice said. “After I was dropped off at the hotel the police were notified of my location and tipped that I was there to kill someone. An old friend warned me in time for me to get out.”

“I see,” the priest replied as he scribbled the Metalica logo onto the paper. “And you have confirmation of the arrangements?”

“Yes,” the voice replied. “I have friends in the diocese who confirmed that he demanded sole access to the kit to insure proper load out before sealing it.” The voice paused for a second. “The weapons were dirty. If I’d broken the seal on the kit…”

“I understand,” the father replied. “I am afraid that I can’t commit to that kind of schedule, my son. I don’t have the authority.”

“I know,” the voice replied. “I’ll call back in forty eight hours. Until then, I will continue my mission.”

The father nodded. “I will wait for your call,” he said, before flipping the phone closed.

Leaning back in his chair, he took out another cigarette and lit it, drawing in the smoke as he considered the situation. This did not bode well for anyone involved. His superiors would never authorize the action and he knew that Revenant would execute the traitor regardless of his orders.

Frowning, he gathered up the paper and stood. It had been such a pleasant day. He hoped that all of this bother wouldn’t keep him from attending the concert next week in Amsterdam. They really knew how to party up there.

“That’s it! Let’s go ahead and call it a day, folks. Not only are we back on schedule, but I think we may actually be ahead. If we get this section completed early, I’ll buy everyone lunch at McGee’s!” Ahmed declared, causing a general cheer to go up from the hand full of people working on the sets.

Ahmed smiled as he set his clipboard down on the desk before raising a hand to wave at Hazel. “Hazel! I come over here for a minute, OK?”

“OK,” the squirrel replied as she looped her tool belt over a hook on the wall that had her name written on some masking tape over it. She walked over to the tiger with a worried expression on her face.

“I think we need to have a talk,” Ahmed said, sitting on the edge of the desk.

Hazel’s tail fluffed up as her ears drooped. “I know I should have been more careful maneuvering that one by four. I’m sorry about the lamp! Really! I’ll pay for the damage.”

Ahmed laughed, and then laughed again at the squirrel’s confused expression. “Relax, Hazel. You’re not the first person to knock over a light stand and you won’t be the last. All you did was break a bulb and we have plenty of them. Allah only knows how many times I’ve done that,” he said, giving her a wide smile. “No, what I wanted to talk to you about was your work here.”

“Oh,” the squirrel dejectedly said, looking down.

“I’m impressed,” he stated.

Hazel looked up at him her ears perked back up. “Really?”

“Really,” the tiger declared, chuckling. “Hazel, I don’t know where you learned to handle wood, but you’re doing a great job of it. Frankly, I’d like to ask Zig to let me keep you on my staff full time.”

“Really?” the squirrel asked again.

“Really!” Ahmed confirmed. “If you want the job, I’ll ask Zig to assign you to my group full time. You’ll earn a standard profit share just like any of us would, something you wouldn’t get as a gopher.”

‘Sweet!” she declared. A second later her adulation dropped a bit. “Wait. How would that affect my chances at acting here?”

Ahmed’s lips tightened as he fought not to frown. “Hazel,” he said standing and stepping closer to her to be more intimate. “Can I speak honestly with you?”

Hazel frowned. “Sure.”

“I’ve been doing this a long time,” Ahmed said in a low and serious tone of voice. “I’ve seen lots of people come into this studio looking for everything from fame to fast cash to nothing more than a good bang and I’ve gotten pretty good at reading them.” He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. “I think I’ve gotten a chance to know you over the last couple of days, and although I think your videos would sell, I don’t think you’d be happy doing it. There’s something about you that tells me that you’re not trying to become an actress because you want to. There’s some other reason, isn’t there?”

Hazel pulled away and growled. “Zig Zag told you, didn’t she?”

Ahmed sighed and shook his head. “Zig Zag hasn’t told me anything about you other than to put you to work, Hazel. I swear” the tiger declared. “Anyone who watches you when you talk about it will see the same thing, Hazel. You don’t look anxious to do it. You look like someone who’s committed to do something come hell or high water, and that’s not what it takes to be happy at something.”

The squirrel thought about it for a moment and nodded, her anger draining away. “I suppose your right,” she reluctantly admitted.

“Besides,” Ahmed said, putting his arm around her shoulder and giving her a little squeeze. “If it’s a good romp you’re looking for, I promise you won’t have any trouble finding it.” He gave her a somewhat predatory smile.

“Ewwww,’ Hazel said, pulling away. “You know, that’s sexual harassment!”

Ahmed laughed. “You applied to be a porn actress. Having someone proposition you can hardly be considered harassment!” He let his smile fade. “Besides, nobody’s allowed to touch you yet.”

Hazel’s ears dropped flat against her head as she gave Ahmed a harsh look. “What are you talking about?”

“Your tests,” the tiger replied, innocently. “Until you’re checked out by the doctor and they have results of your blood test, nobody’s allowed to touch you. Zig Zag’s very stringent about that kind of thing. Anyone breaks the rules and has sex with someone who’s not been cleared first is automatically in the penalty box for at least six weeks. Now for the hired help like me, that’s not a big issue, but for one of the actors that’s a real shot to the balls.”

“Oh,” Hazel said, her ears rising again. “I guess that makes sense.”

“I’m glad you understand. We’ve had employees in the past who wouldn’t follow that rule. Zig Zag’s a hard ass about that kind of stuff. Three strikes and you’re out. Anyway, I’ll talk to Zig and see about getting you on my team permanently. And if you do decide to act, we can work it so your schedule doesn’t conflict.”

Hazel nodded. “OK. Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She turned and headed out of the staging area and towards the break room. When she got there she looked in and smiled at what she saw. “Hey! Tiny!”

The large bull turned around and smiled. “Hey there, Munchkin!” he said, nodding to Hazel.

The squirrel braced her feet and put her hand on her hips as she shot him a harsh look. “What did I say about calling me that?”

“Promises, promises,” the bull said, closing the refrigerator before popping open the can of soda. “What’s up?”

“Um… I need a favor,” the squirrel said, looking a bit embarrassed.

Tiny laughed. “Let me guess, you wana see it again?” he asked as he started to unbuckle his belt with his free hand.

Hazel held up both hands and shook her head. “No! No! Really, I don’t,” she declared, backing up a step. “Um, I need a different kind of favor.”

“Sure, kid. What do you need?” the bull asked as he tucked the belt end back into its loop and then sat down.

“Well, I’ve got some money saved up and want to see about buying a car,” the squirrel said.

Tiny nodded. “Gotcha. Make your first one a junker,” he declared, setting the can down on the table and leaning forwards. “I know you’ll want to get something flashy, but since this is your first car, you’ll want something that you can ding up and won’t break your heart.”

Hazel crossed her arms. “This won’t be my first car,” she stated flatly.

“Oh?” the bull replied, cocking his head to the side slightly. “What happened to your last one?”

Hazels arms tightened into an embarrassed self-hug as she glanced nervously around. “My mom sold it after I lost my license for too many speeding points,” she admitted.

Tiny let out a bark of laughter that shook the walls.

“It’s not funny!” the squirrel said, her hands balled into fists at her side.

“The hell it isn’t,” the bull replied, wiping a tear from his eyes. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of either,” he said, leaning forwards so that his elbows rested on his knees. “You aren’t the fist person to have that happen to. OK then, we’re not getting you a junker. What did you have in mind?”

“Well,” Hazel said, looking off into the distance as if she had to think about it. “I was thinking that I’d want something that looks kind of sporty, but isn’t really a sports car.” She faced him and looked at him, trying to sound a little excided by the description she was giving him even though she’d rehearsed it in her head a dozen times. “Since I’m going to be rooming with Sheila, and Sheila just has a two seat sports car, that I might get something that could handle four people easily so Sheila could toss the kits in the back whenever she needed to go anywhere.”

The bull gave her a knowing smile and nodded. “Meaning that you’d get to borrow her sports car most of the time since she couldn’t use it,” he said in a conspiratorial voice. “I get you. Well, first thing we have to figure out is how much you have to spend.”

Hazel blinked at the statement. Zig Zag hadn’t given her a number. “Um, well, I’ve got about eight grand saved up, but my step dad said he’d co-sign on a loan as long as what I got was within reason.”

“Meaning no Beemers or Mercedes,” the bull said, nodding some more, the nose-ring flashing as it flapped around. “Gotcha. Ok. Well, I’ll tell you what. I’ll see about stopping off and picking up some of the auto trade rags and we’ll see what’s for sale. This weekend, we can hit the lots and do some shopping. However, there is one condition.”

Hazel’s brow cocked towards the bull as her ears drooped slightly, her imagination running in all kinds of directions about what his condition might be. “OH-KAY,” she said, drawing it out. “What kind of condition?”

“We don’t buy anything until after we’ve checked out at least six different car lots,” he said, giving her a serious look. “The worst thing you can do is fall in love with the first car you see.”

Hazel nodded. “Yeah, I learned that one a long time ago. OK. We got a deal,” she declared, holding her hand out to shake on it.

“Not quite yet,” the bull said, enjoying the confusion on her face. “Since I’m doing you a favor, you’ve got to do me one in return.”

“Oh god! Here it comes,” she thought. “Um, OK. What do you want?”

“You and I have to go partying,” he declared, “as my date!”

“No way!” the squirrel replied. “Uh uh!”

The bull held up a hand. “Chill, will you? It’s not like that,” he said, calming her down. “Look, I’m not into constantly getting hit on when I’m in public, but I am expected to turn up at a fair number of clubs and events to show the ZZ Studios colors. You follow?” he asked, waiting for her nod. “If I go with a date, I’ll get propositioned still, but they won’t be pissed off if I’m with someone. That’s where you come in.”

“But---but---“ Hazel stammered, “People will think---“

Tiny laughed. “So?” He leaned over until his nose ring was almost in her face. “You got a problem with that?”

Hazel grabbed the ring and pulled down, lowering his snout so she could look him in the eyes. “You’re damned right I do!”

Tiny gave a little shudder. “Ohhh, Hazel, you know how I love it when females yank on my nose ring,” he said. “Remember how excited I told you it got me?”

The squirrel let out a small shriek as she let go of the ring then jumped backwards, looking down at his crotch.

“Gotcha!” Tiny said, pointing a meaty finger in her direction and winking. He stood from the chair and started for the door. “Bring a change of clothes with you tomorrow so we can head straight out and hit the clubs.”

“I never said I’d do it!” Hazel shouted as she followed him out into the hall, ducking as his tail flicked over her head.

“Seven o’clock is when I plan to hit the Red Palms, so make sure you’re looking hot!” he declared, ignoring her.

Hazel stood in the hallway, fuming at Tiny’s back as he walked away.

Maggie, who was standing behind Hazel, gave a low whistle. “Going clubbing with Tiny?” She asked with a mixture of disbelief and awe. “I knew you were ambitious, but I never knew you were crazy!” the feline said before she turned and walked the other direction.

Hazel’s ears, shoulders and tail slumped in defeat. “Aw, man!”

Anatol stepped off of the bus and looked around. He knew that the creature was close by. He could feel it. The smell of its stench lingered in the air, tainting everything around him, though the passers by had no clue it was there. Resisting the urge to scratch his newly dyed fur, he looked around to see if anything in particular caught his attention.

He adjusted a baseball cap to pull it further down over his eyes and looped his thumbs through his belt as he started off down the street, his eyes sweeping from side to side. It was close and when he’d found it, there would truly be hell to pay, but not immediately. His current disguise didn’t leave him any room to carry weapons, so he’d have to prepare for the battle. Nevertheless, the element of surprise would be his.

Tiny knocked on the office door. “You sent for me, Boss?”

Zig Zag set the magazine she’d been reading down. “Yes. Come in.”

“So what’s up?” the large bull asked, stepping into the room.

“I hear you’re going to take Hazel out on a date,” she stated, leaning back in her chair and crossing her legs. “Don’t.”

Tiny blinked in surprise. “I beg your pardon?”

“You heard me,” she stated, giving him a stern look. “Maybe you didn’t get the memo, but she’s out of season.”

“I heard,” Tiny replied, crossing his arms and frowning. “And we’re just going clubbing. I’m not planning on fucking her. In case you hadn’t noticed, she’s not exactly my size.”

Zig Zag shook her head. “That’s not the point, Tiny. She’s my neighbor’s kid. If she starts dating someone at the studio, she’s going to have a complete meltdown and that’s something that I don’t need.”

“Well, I’m sorry about your troubles with your neighbor, Zig, but they’re your troubles,” Tiny replied, shrugging slightly. “You may be my boss, Zig, but what we do after hours is our choice, not yours. She’s eighteen or she wouldn’t be working here which means she can do whatever she wants.”

Zig Zag uncrossed her legs and leaned forwards. “Don’t fight me on this one, Tiny. I’m not kidding. You stay away from the squirrel. She’s off limits.”

Tiny unfolded his arms. “And I’m telling you, Zig, I’m taking the kid out with me tonight.” He opened the door and turned to walk out.

“Don’t make me fire you, Tiny,” she said in a threatening voice.

The bull stopped, paused for a second and then stepped back into the room, closing the door behind him. He walked over to Zig Zag’s desk and leaned on it, towering over her. “Zig Zag, I love you like a sister. I’ve been with this studio damn near since you founded it and if you’ll think back, I’m the one who convinced everyone to put their savings back into the company after you got into trouble.” He shook his head sadly. “And how do you thank us? By trying to micromanage our lives.”

“Now listen here…” Zig Zag said, starting to rise.

“NO!” The bull shouted loud enough to startle her into dropping back into her chair. He straightened up and put his hands on his hips. “Zig, you need to lighten up. I know the kid’s your neighbor’s and if you’ll think about it for a second, you’ll see that I’m probably doing you a favor.”

“Favor? What the hell kind of ‘favor’ are you doing me causing me trouble?” she demanded, jumping up from the chair.

Tiny let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. “Zig, answer just one very stupid question for me, will you?” he said, giving her a sad look. “If I’m not dating her, then what’s to keep someone else from dating her, huh?”

“The same thing that’s going to keep you from going out with her,” Zig Zag angrily snapped. “The house rules.”

“What about outside the studio?” the bull asked. “What about anyone outside the studio? Have you thought about that?” He watched her expression change. “If she starts running around with some friend of someone around here, won’t you catch hell for it?” He leaned forwards so that the large, brass ring on his nose glinted inches from her face. “Think about it, Zig. You know what kind of jackals chase these girls’ tails. Do you seriously want one of them humping her?” he asked, before straightening up.

Zig Zag swallowed and backed away a step. “If that happens, I’ll deal with it.”

“You’re going to have to deal with it now,” the bull declared turning and walking to the door. He opened it and looked back over the shoulder. “I like the kid and whether you like it or not, I’m going to take her out. So if it means that damned much to you, go ahead and fire me. Just make sure you think about how everyone else at the studio is going to take you firing me for personal and not business reasons, especially with us just now starting production on the Slotter movie.”

The quick clicking of the door as it closed sounded ominously loud. Zig Zag sat down in her chair and leaned backwards, looking up at the ceiling and wondered how in the hell she was going to keep that squirrel under control.

Anatol followed the trail to a series of warehouses, where the trail soon became confused and inconsistent. Far from being deserted, the area around the warehouses was bustling with people and equipment, moving products from area to area. Changing his demeanor so as to better fit in with other workers going about their business, he picked up some paperwork that had blown against a building and strode purposefully between the buildings as he tried to locate the creature’s lair.

He passed under a window and froze at what he heard. He casually examined the paperwork while straining with his ears for the voice he’d heard before.

“Why are you doing this to me?” the voice said.

Anatol’s eyes widened with recognition of the voice: Sheila!

How had she gotten down here? How had the creature gotten a hold of her? Those thoughts and many more flooded his brain as he continued to listen.

“Don’t worry, my dear,” another voice said. “In a couple of minutes it’ll be all over. I promise that this won’t hurt --- much!” The manic laughter that followed sent a chill down Anatol’s spine.

He didn’t have time to properly prepare. He would have to try and make do with whatever he could find. He glanced around and noticed that nobody was paying attention as he moved to a nearby door. Checking the knob, he felt that it was unlocked. He quickly opened the door and stepped through, closing it quietly behind him.

He could hear Sheila’s voice further inside the warehouse, continuing to beg for her life. Moving as quietly as he could, he made his way deeper into the building, pausing only to pick up a piece of rebar the length of his arm that had been on top of a pile of other metal scraps.

The frantic cries were increasing in intensity, driving him deeper through the maze of boxes and drums of liquids that filled the warehouse. He stopped for a moment and shook his head. This couldn’t be happening. There was no way that Sheila could be there.

A cry of agony drove all thought from his head. Gripping the metal bar tightly, he sprinted to the end of the corridor and around the corner into an opening that was empty. He skidded to a halt, looking around in confusion as all sound vanished. A second later, he spun around as he heard something drop to the ground behind him.

Hecate shook her wings once before folding them around herself like a cape. “I thought there was someone stalking me earlier,” she said as she strolled casually into the clearing, barely paying any attention to Anatol. “I guess it pays to be prepared.”

“How did you do it?” Anatol asked, studying the creature closely. “How did you know to use Sheila’s voice to lure me in here?”

The creature cocked its head to the side slightly and then laughed. “I don’t know what Sheila you’re talking about. The charm works by playing on your deepest personal desires and worst fears. Whoever this Sheila is, you must have a thing for her, so that’s why you heard her voice. As for what you heard,” she said, laughing again, “it was all in your head.”

Anatol cursed himself. He’d run into charms like this before, but he had always been able to tell that it was a trap in the past. He let himself be lead by the nose into a trap.”

“So now the question becomes, what do I do with you?” Hecate asked, pausing to fold her wings behind her back as she cracked her knuckles. “From the way you’re holding that pig sticker, I’d have to say you’re an experienced combatant, meaning that you’re being here isn’t an accident. So why are you here?”

“I came to kill you,” Anatol stated flatly, realizing that there would be no escape without a fight. “You are an abomination and in the name of God, I will see you destroyed.”

Hecate studied him for a moment and then shook his head. “You’re a fucking paladin, aren’t you? God, I didn’t know there were your ilk in this world as well.” She took a deep breath and ran her hand through her hair as she continued to pace. “Look, I know you think it’s your holy mission to destroy us ‘abominations’, but the simple fact is that you’re sorely outclassed. Since I don’t have any personal bone to pick with you, I’m going to be magnanimous and let you go with the caveat that you convince the rest of your lunatic asylum buddies to bugger off and leave me alone.”

Anatol turned his head slightly to the side and studied her. “So you’re just going to let me walk out of here alive?” he asked.

Crossing her arms in front of her, Hecate nodded. “That’s the idea. Like I said, I don’t have a bone to pick with you so there’s no reason for me to kill you.”

“That is---most magnanimous of you,” Anatol said, adjusting his grip slightly as he shifted his weight in preparation to attack. If the creature was going to let him walk out of here, then it must not be as strong as he’d initially thought. He couldn’t risk losing track of it.

“Oh, no,” Hecate said, shaking her head and grimacing as she read his aura. “Look, I’m not kidding. You don’t stand…”

Anatol charged her across the small clearing, watching her body language to see how she would react. He followed her as she leapt to the right with the intention of striking her, but instead he had to block her tail as it struck at him. The impact of the barb against the rebar sent a jolt up his arm almost strong enough to make him drop the iron rod. He leapt backwards, dodging another strike by the barbed tail as the creature leisurely followed him, its arms still crossed over its chest.

He dodged two more strikes, diving to the side as he deflected them with the rebar, noting that with each strike, it was slowly chewing away at the soft metal. On the next strike, he moved inwards rather than retreat, using both hands to strike down on the tail behind the barb. He smiled as the creature let out a shriek of pain while snapping the tail around behind it, away from the rebar.

“You shouldn’t be so confident, monster,” he said, grinning openly. “I’ve hunted your kind before.” Crouching low, he shifted from side to side, ready to move at the first hint of an attack.

Hecate brought the barb of her tail around in front of her and ran her hands over the tail, making sure it wasn’t broken. She let go of the tail and shook it out behind her, before whipping it up over her head as she leaned forwards, claws out to her side. For a moment, she resembled an ebony scorpion. “That hurt,” she snarled and grinned. “Time to return the favor.”

Anatol barely had time to dodge to the side as the tail snapped past his head, striking a barrel that had been behind him. He rolled away as the barrel, spraying liquid behind it, went flying across the clearing to slam into a pile of crates, smashing them. The smell of chemicals flooded the air as the rest of the barrels came tumbling down, a few of them splitting open to dump their contents on the cement floor.

Before he could dodge again, he saw the tail swinging down from above towards his head. He raised the rebar with both hands, bracing for the impact. When it came, it almost broke his wrists. The impact was hard enough that the barb sheared through the rebar, leaving him with a slightly bent piece of metal in each hand.

He saw that she was striking again and dove forwards, inside of the strike, rolling to his feet. Using the metal like clubs, he swung with a flurry of attacks which the creature deflected with its claws. He leapt up as he saw the tail retracting and struck at it with both hands, causing the creature to screech again. He landed and spun around, throwing one of the pieces of rebar at the creature’s face, then immediately leapt towards the creature as it tried unsuccessfully to dodge the metal.

He watched as it was knocked of balance and fell to one side, blood spraying from the wound the sharp metal point had created. Shifting the remaining rebar into both hands, he braced it as he came down on the creature, driving the spike through its heart.

Hecate screeched again, pissed that not only he’d drawn blood, but that he’d actually stabbed her. She brought both sets of claws across in front of her, slicing through his shirt, fur, hide, and muscle. She grinned at his pain as he staggered away from her, clutching both arms across his chest.

Her tail whipped around to catch him in top of his right leg, snapping the bone and sending him tumbling to the ground. The impact slid him across the small clearing until he came to a stop against some boxes where he rolled over and groaned in pain.

Satisfied that he wasn’t going to be attacking again, Hecate grabbed the rebar with both hands and pulled it free from her chest, howling in pain as she did so. She looked down at the hole in her chest and cursed. While the wound was already sealing itself up, the body stocking she wore hadn’t fared that well.

Pissed, she stood up and stormed over to where Anatol lay on the ground and kicked him in the ribs, lifting him from the ground and smashing him into the boxes. “You fucking asshole! I was ready to let you live and what do you do? You just had to attack me!” She kicked him again, this time in the leg, causing him to scream in pain as he tried to protect himself from her attack. “You see this, fucker? This is fae weave silk! You can’t get this shit in this backwater world of yours! You’ve ruined my favorite body stocking!”

He hauled her leg back to kick him again, but stopped herself. She looked down at his beaten and broken body and cursed again. She’d intended to have some fun with him, but it had gotten out of hand. It’s not like she’d wanted to do this to him. She’d tried to let him off easy, but the stupid bastard had insisted on doing things the hard way.

She tossed the bloody rebar on the ground next to Anatol. “You’ll live. No doubt someone’s heard our little fight, so I’m sure whoever comes will get you to the hospital.” She squatted down next to him and grabbed his muzzle, forcing him to look at her. “You know, you brought this on yourself. I would have been more than happy to let you walk away from here. Maybe next time someone gives you an option to walk away, you’ll take it.”

Anatol yanked his muzzle away from the creature and watched it walk away. He looked around and spotted the metal bar she’d dropped. He picked it up, dragging it on the cement and causing her to turn and look at him. “It’s not over,” he said, grinning.

Hecate glanced back at the skunk and shook her head. “Don’t you get it? You can’t kill me. Nothing on this backwater planet can.”

“Well see about that,” Anatol croaked, throwing the spike as hard as he could.

Hecate laughed as the rebar flew by her, not even coming close. She heard a metal on metal sound and turned in time to see a wall of flames racing towards her from the barrels that had split open. She wrapped her wings around herself out of reflex as the flames struck.

Anatol smiled as he watched the creature become engulfed in a pillar of flames. The smile faded as he watched it turn and calmly walk from the flames, fire still burning on parts of its wings and tail.

“Hello?” She said in a mocking voice. “Demon from hell here! Like you really think fire is going to bother me?”

Anatol had no chance to respond. The last thing he saw was the perfect silhouette of Hecate against the bright glare of an exploding barrel.