------------------------------------------------------------------------ A midnight meeting Newsgroups: alt.devilbunnies From: adm4@po.cwru.edu (Aaron Mandelbaum) Message-ID: Date: Fri, 9 Sep 1994 04:22:10 GMT Organization: CWRU "So what's your plan, again?" Sylvie asked, as Aaron pulled on a borrowed suit of chain mail (not borrowed in the same way as he'd borrowed the van, or the hockey stick -- he'd actually asked this time) over his shirt. Aaron picked up the hockey stick and then c-a-r-e-f-u-l-l-y lifted the bomb. "Go to the meeting, get Loren away from your friends, and lob the bomb at him. It sounds stupid, but you have to admit it's not something he'd actually expect me to do." Sylvie considered this, checking her lasers, then briefly popping up the H.U.D. of her translator (/computer/printer) to see if the squirrels she'd asked to come had answered. Out of forty, twelve agreed, not as good as she'd hoped, but better than she'd feared. "That's because it's thoroughly dishonorable, and dangerous to us and his hostages. The bomb could go off if you trip, and he'll bring guards, he even said he would." Sylvie didn't like the plan, but they were committed now, unless they actually wanted to come to terms (and Loren would agree to -- not likely!). To tell the truth, she didn't have a better idea. "The guards'll be too stunned by the blast -- they won't know what's going on. If this is like the bombs we used at that soybean-warren --" "It is." "Good. Then they'll kick up plenty of dirt and debris -- no laser's going to get far through that! We'll be able to get away before they know what hit them!" He tucked the bomb under one arm to adjust the chain mail, then shoved it in a pocket and hefted his stick. "Let's go!" Sylvie sighed, even though Aaron of course didn't hear it. "Let's stop in the parking lot by Clark Tower first," she said, "I told some of my friends to meet us there." "Why?" he asked, then shrugged, "Why not. Can't hurt." They picked up thirteen squirrels in the parking lot, one who hadn't confirmed but decided to come at the last minute anyway, and headed across the street to Finnegan field. They had to burn through the lock on the gate, but the lasers made short work of it. Sylvie told Aaron that they should wait on the south end of the field, since the nearest warren entrance came out to the north. They didn't have to wait too long. After no more than a minute, Sylvie saw a group of squirrels, four silver, the rest red, appear seemingly out of nowhere (although she knew that there was a sod-covered entrance on that end of the field). The putrid orange glow from streetlights and the security lights of the parking lot across the street illuminated the field enough for her to see fur color (or rather, infer it from the relative shinyness). "Is that them?" Aaron asked, squinting at the distant forms, "I can't tell." "Who else would it be," Lyle, one of Sylvie's friends, asked. Aaron virtually bristled, hampered only by his lack of fur. "Normal squirrels? Rabbits? Students or hikers out at night? It could be LOTS of things." "We'd better go meet him," Sylvie suggested, "So do we all go?" "I guess..." Aaron said faintly, then started walking across the field towards the massed squirrels. "Gaia, how many of them are there?" asked Kate, fingering her pistol nervously. "I don't know," Aaron said before Sylvie could manage it. "A lot," she added, wondering if Loren was bringing the whole warren. She didn't put it past him. By the time they got within twenty yards, the flow of guards had stopped, at around fifty. She could tell her friends were nervous, and she didn't blame them -- the squirrels she'd asked were all trained soldiers and decent shots, but half of them had never been in a fight in their life, the other half only in the pitiful slaughter of a few days before. She refused to show fear. "Okay Loren," Aaron said loudly as the two groups stared at each other, "Show us Chris and Erik." "They're not there," Sylvie hissed to him, after scanning the crowd. "What?" "He didn't bring them." "Is he there?" "I think I see him," she said, trying to get a better look at the silver forms that huddled in the center. "Don't throw the bomb yet, half the red squirrels could be on our side." "Shit," he said, "What do we do now? Never mind." He cleared his throat, and looked back at the other group. "Come closer then, so we can talk without having to yell." "Very well," a high, squeaky voice said, from the center of the crowd, "You four, come with me." The five silver squirrels, Loren must have come out last, she figured, broke from the crowd. One of them, presumably Loren, gestured at the rest of the guards to spread out. They advanced halfway. "Come now," Loren said, from behind his guards, "I'm willing to settle this if you are." Aaron reached for the bomb. Sylvie hit a key and disarmed it. "No!" she hissed, and Aaron aborted the reach. "We have to bargain for him to release Erik and Chris." Aaron sighed, and started forward, Sylvie next to him. It only took a few seconds to get close enough to talk normally. "What do you want," Loren asked, Sylvie recognizing the voice for sure, this time. It was hard, since most of the time he talked in squirrel- chatter, but there were certain tonalities that came across. She guessed; if Chris was there he could have told her the real reason. "We want Chris and Erik released," Sylvie said, "And we want you to relinquish control of the warren." "Why?" he asked, "What have I done that you disagree with?" "Because you're a tyrant," she said, spitting the word, "Because you slaughter innocent children, and laugh at their deaths. Because you oppress and discriminate the red squirrels. Do you deny any of that?" She twitched her tail as he smiled slowly. "Ahhh...," he said, "I should have known. But surely you realize that I can't leave my position. UCirc warren is the core of SAADB." "SAAD what?" Aaron asked. "My organization, to free the world from devilbunny tyranny. This warren is the center of it all." "Too bad," Sylvie said, "Everyone wants you gone. No one's acted because your thugs are marching up and down the halls all day. You make it very clear what would happen if we tried to stand up for our rights." Loren grinned and giggled. "Want to put it to a vote?" "You'd lose," Sylvie said. "Would I?" "We'd get to run it, secret ballot." "One squirrel, one vote, and all that," he added, "Every squirrel in the warren equal." "What's the catch," Aaron asked, frowning. Sylvie shared the sentiment. What was his angle? EVERYONE hated him. "No catch," he said, "We hold a vote, and if you lose, I'll step down as warren leader and you can pick a new one however you choose." "And if you win?" Sylvie asked, aware that there could be a catch, and his losing might not be as certain as it seemed. "If I win, the two of you, and all your friends, agree to stop this idiocy. Then the two of you stand trial for murder." Aaron's hands tightened on the hockey stick, the knuckles whitening. "We'll take it," Sylvie said. He's bluffing. He's trying to psych us out. There's no way he can win in a popular election. Especially if she was counting the votes... ------------------------------------------------ | Sylvie Squirrel | Peace, Love, and | | sylvie@warren.cwru.edu | superior firepower! | ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Usenet Web 1.0.3 (development) / webmaster@netimages.com