The Tale of the Traveling Trio

Short  chapter this time. Please enjoy.                            

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Chapter Ten: An Unexpected Conclusion

To throw the harpy off, Clawdy aimed his open fist towards a decent sized rock, nearly twice his size. Using his ability from earlier, he ran by the rock, but not before concentrating on it and lifting it up from the ground, then throwing it towards the harpy's face. It shattered against her cheek, but left rubble in her eye, causing her to claw at Clawdy wildly as she tried getting the rubble out of her eye. He took the opportunity to climb her leg and jab both sabers into it. This time he was much higher up on her thigh and had managed to catch her attention. Letting her natural tears try and rid the rubble from her eye, the harpy swung her wings at him with one eye open to get him off, but missed him quite a few times as the neko boy quickly jumped off of her borom and asserted his way up a nearby tree and launched himself at her head. With only one eye available, the harpy could not predict where Clawdy was headed, so in a panic she quickly kicked up another gust to throw him off. Unfortunately, it succeeded in throwing Clawdy off balance. Instead of landing on her head, as intended, he accidentally ended up upon her right breast, which made him a bit nervous as he looked up at the harpy, who stared down at him.

"HEY! HANDS OFF, YOU PERVERTED FREAK!"

She quickly swiped him off of her chest, and without a second glance the harpy continued her gusty rampage, flinging Clawdy back much farther than before. The harpy just threw everything she had into conjuring this wind from betwixt her wings, and the forest around her suffered for it. Not only Clawdy was thrown back, but so was every leaf on every tree within half a mile around the woman, along with any visible object on the ground, any poor inhabitant in the canopy, and even the trees which were sturdily rooted began to bend to her winds.

Clawdy tried to regain his composure, but the gale force calamity which the harpy had dished out kept him rolling back at incredible speeds. The worst was that the harpy did not let up her onslaught, and nearly destroyed the entire area in anger, her hunger not only increasing by the second, but actually driving her ambition to keep up her natural made hurricane.

Clawdy was flung so far back he actually smashed into a strong red oak and was sent plowing right through it like tissue paper! The tree slowed down his skyward lunge and eventually brought him tumbling down to the soil, thankfully out of the range of the windy harpy. Once he hit solid ground though, Clawdy could hear something snap in his body, before he heard several somethings snap. Unknowing as to the noise and it's origin, Clawdy put away his sabers, then tried to recover and get up, but his body snapped back down with immense pain. It seemed as though the snapping was from his body's bones, and what he didn't realize was that at that moment his body could no longer support the intense stress of fighting against the harpy, and in turn his skeletal structure was seconds away from becoming as brittle as a cracker. Clawdy had felt it when the harpy smashed him through various trees and had tried to crush him mercilessly, but only now did he feel the full effects of his body giving out on him, as he attempted to get up again.

"... come on, damnit.... I can't give out like this.... it's just a few broken bones, and j-AGGGHH!"

Clawdy's continued attempts at jumping back onto his feet were all results in failure, not to mention rather unnerving pain, and he was left on the forest floor, contemplating what to do next in haste.

"Ugh.... that 'harpy' has me drained.... I guess all this time being out of practice... really messed me up...."

What was worse was that the hurricane calmed down seconds later, meaning the harpy was ready to claim Clawdy as her meal as soon as she came this way. He had to think quick if he was to stay off the menu, but all that came to mind was to crawl to cover and try and hide it out, and so. with any strength he had left, he crawled over to a nearby hollow tree trunk, which had shown signs of mutilation from the battle that he and the harpy had waged. Clawdy ducked inside and covered the hole with leftover branches and random debris, keeping him out of sight, the silence around him broken by his audible gasps for breath.

"Truly I should not have tackled this harpy in my current condition.... I should've known better.... I won't... die though... I won't give that human... a chance to gloat over my death... or to have her...ugh..."

Clawdy's thoughts were briefly interrupted by the sounds of someone's nose smelling the surroundings, and before long he put two and two together and figured it was the harpy, trying to trace his scent.

Before  she got a chance to smell him out of hiding, Clawdy cleverly removed his body armor, placing it below him, before covering his own body with trace amounts of dirt and mud to conceal his scent before lying low in the hollow tree to minimize the chances of being seen. He hoped the harpy would not sense him, and let out a minor gulp of nervousness as soon as he heard the treading of the harpy's large talons upon the ground. Her voice, tired and battered like the rest of her, called out in a hungered voice, occasionally silenced by her sniffing out of the area for his covered scent.

"Damnit, where are you?! I need... something.... to eat! You bastard...."

Clawdy could feel a chill down his spine, for when he heard her stomach grumble, a sound audible for half a mile, his pride and power both shook in a sense of uneasiness, and he stood perfectly still, hoping she would not find him. Clawdy still remained vigilant, not showing fear despite the situation, but was now more cautious than ever.

He heard the harpy's talons tread through the forest near him. CRACK! CRACK! went the twigs as she walked on them, and continued to the hollowed tree where Clawdy had retreated to. CRACK! CRACK! was what the neko boy had to listen to all throughout this tribulation of stealth.  

However, Clawdy could sense the woman approaching, as the cracking of twigs under her weighty talons became louder and louder, and the hollow tree stump around Clawdy shook from her steps, as did the twigs and bark that concealed the hole. He could hear the grumbling of her stomach as well, which only heightened his nervousness, and in a bit of caution he placed one hand over one of his lightsabers which was back on his belt, incase he indeed had to fight again....

In his mind he was ready to continue fighting, but his body was not of the same fiber, and Clawdy himself knew this. He feared this was going to be the end, as yet again the harpy's steps came closer and closer.......

By this time, Clawdy had expected the harpy to inspect the hollowed wood by now for him, and he crouched down for that very possibility. Yet, for some odd reason, he could not sense her approaching anymore. Even odder was the fact that he did not hear twigs snap beneath her, which meant she was now still. Though he felt relief, there was also confusion.

"The hell? Why did she stop stalking me?"

What Clawdy didn't realize was that the harpy had picked up a different scent, one which, almost hypnotically, enticed her. She smelled the peculiar odor for a while, almost overexerting her nose from the sniffing she did. Her stomach grumbled loudly, for it too knew what the smell was. The harpy expressed it with unmatched glee as she spread out her wings.

"That... disgusting.... yet, familiar aroma.... the fumes from.... one of those putridly designed metal boxes that contain....HUMANS!"

What the harpy picked up on was the fuel filled emissions of a metal transport car, less than a mile away. It had such a pungent scent that anybody with predator heightened senses could smell it, and wrapped up within that scent was also the scents of several humans who were traveling in the caravan. Though she couldn't tell, there were about 50 humans onboard the huge caravan, which was why the odor was so strong. The harpy could easily smell this and nearly exploded with joy.

"AT LAST! F-F-FOOD! Finally those damn humans do something good for me for a change!"

The harpy enthusiastically flapped her wings with enough force to nearly become her own hurricane, her tongue hanging out and drool seeping from her mouth. The winds were so strong that the hollow tree that Clawdy was hiding in was torn from it's roots and sent flying. Clawdy grit his teeth, thinking he had been busted, but alas the harpy was so enthusiastic about the scent of the humans nearby she did not even care for the neko anymore, and as her wings prepped her upward from the wind she pushed down, the harpy was quick to take off towards the caravan of humans which were about to become her meal, and it was quite a relief that Clawdy felt from seeing this.

Clawdy remained still until he saw that the harpy was out of sight, and once he assumed it was safe to leave, the neko cleaned himself off and stood to his feet, albeit a bit wobbly due to his earlier fatigue still plaguing him. His body was still aching from complete agony, but he sucked it up and took a tree branch to support himself. He looked around and slowly clammered his way from the battlefield which he and the harpy shared alike, and as he wavered away from this semi victory of his, he wondered where Lex and Xina had gone, and hoped they had not wandered off too far.....

Mhh unexpected indeed. I mut say Clawdy gained some respect here
too bad the caravan was too far away to observe the feast X3

Too bad indeed. XD

Here's another chapter. The group reunites! Or something like that.

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Chapter Eleven: Reunion So Soon?

The forest had quieted down quite a bit after Clawdy and the harpy fought, and nary a creature stirred, save for the sounds of humans running for their lives and a hungry predator gorging herself. About half a mile away, where the group had left Excaliber near their makeshift camp, Lex clambered to the site and sat down on a rock, and at his side was Xina, who was just as tired and nearly collapsed on Lex's shoulder, having also climbed upon the rock to rest. It was almost impossible for them to not say anything when they caught their breath.

"Lex.... do you think Clawdy is okay?"

"I wouldn't worry, Xina. If he's as powerful as his ego, then you should feel sorry for the harpy."

Lex felt like chuckling under his breath, but when he again heard the noises of humans being devoured by the harpy, he felt slightly bad.

"Still....  I just hope those screams I keep hearing aren't his....."

Xina stilled her tail and kept her cat ears down, for she felt instinctively afraid at what the harpy could've been doing to those humans, and held Lex close in fear.

"What do we do, Lex? I really want to head to that big city as soon as possible with all these hungry things out here.... but I'm afraid of what happened to Clawdy. I think maybe we should try and look for him...."

"I don't know, Xina. With Excaliber not in fit shape to do pretty much anything, and with Clawdy missing in action, we wouldn't last very long in the forest, especially if we encounter that bird woman again."

Xina knew Lex had a point, but her conscience bugged her regardless.

"I guess you're right... "

"Well, maybe I can help... I think you'd be safer near Excaliber, Xina. That way, I can work on it a bit and maybe try to get it up and running. If I could at least get the boosters online, we would be much better off, should we search the forest for Clawdy."

The young nekojin thought it through, and then nodded.

"Okay, Lex. If you think that's the best idea, then it sounds good to me. I'll head in right away."

After perching a kiss on Lex's face, she hopped off the rock and walked towards Excaliber, shortly followed by the man himself. Still unsure about it's safety, Xina cautiously climbed up the leg and jumped into the cockpit, followed shortly by Lex. He tried to start up the system, only to hear a befuddling noise from the boosters.

"Come on.... work....."

He tried the system startup again, but to no avail, hearing the same flooded generator during. Lex gave it several more tries, and after a kick to the control panel on the last try, the system started up again, much to Lex's relief.

"Ha! I can't believe brute force worked twice on this ship. I should do it more often."

Testing to see if the boosters were functioning, Lex revved them a bit, and was delightfully met with the roaring of the boost system which he wanted from before. With Excaliber working to an extent, Lex lifted off and flew skyward, and once he attained a good enough height advantage, Lex started to look around the vast forest. Xina also looked through the screen down to the forest, having a better chance at spotting Clawdy because of her cat eyes.

Almost minutes after they started searching, Xina spotted something out of the corner of her eye. Even though it was a faint disturbance of the trees through an opening in the canopy, it was indeed a signal that something was walking that way. Xina focused deeply on the spot in question, and found a neko shaped man wandering through it. Infact, it was Clawdy! He was closer than they thought!

Lex sped down upon Xina's direction, having soon spotted Clawdy himself. To them, the neko man looked horribly beaten, as if getting his carcass handed to him in a lengthy skirmish. When Lex landed, Xina quickly got out and helped him, almost reaching him in time before Clawdy stumbled to his knee.

"Clawdy! Are you okay?!"

Clawdy coughed up a bit, but happily responded without pause.

"Yeah. Just a few... broken bones and some.... agh..... mild discomfort...."

"Come on, we'll get you to a doctor, okay? From the sky, the city didn't look very far away. Maybe a few miles at the most."

"Alright. I guess that would... do..."

Despite still holding a bit of a grudge, Lex got out and ran to Clawdy as well, assisting Xina in getting him to Excaliber, where they pulled him up into the cockpit alongside themselves, where Lex strapped them all in and closed the hatch behind them.

"You know, Clawdy, you're lucky Excaliber here has a three seat cockpit."

"Yeah, whatever. Out of it's uselessness, it had to have some helpful function, like you. Hehehe........"

Lex wanted to berate Clawdy at this point, but knowing that he not only rescued them, but risked his life to save them (probably not intending to save Lex at least), Lex decided to just let it go, instead deciding to throw appreciation in his direction, as he revved the boosters up to head towards the city.

"I'm just going to forget you said that, Clawdy.... and instead say... thank you for saving the both of us...."

Clawdy nodded and then sat back in his seat, for he knew he did well, though not as well as he wanted to. Naturally, Xina looked into his scars with interest.

"So Clawdy... how did your fight with that bird woman go?"

Clawdy did not wish to reveal how the fight with the harpy actually went, being embarrassed at the ending, so he decided to... sugarcoat it, if only to impress Xina.

"Well, Xina, it's an interesting story. You see, I probably wouldn't have survived if it weren't for my powers."

"Powers?"

"Yes. You see, I'm a wielder of the deadly arts known only as 'the force', and I'm part of an ancient order known as the 'dark jedi'. It's also why I have these weapons."

Clawdy briefly patted the dangling lightsabers on his belt before going on, to which Xina expressed interest.

"Ooh. Interesting. How did they help you fight that woman?"

"Glad you asked, Xina. You see, when we stared off face to face in the nest, I knew it would only be one of us that would survive that battle. So, wielding my laser blades, I charged into battle against her."

"Wow! Do go on!"

"Of course. Anyway, this is what happened next...."

Throughout the entire trip to Negav, Clawdy fed Xina a very "revised" edition of his fight against the harpy, being careful not to fudge the truth too much, and surprisingly, he spoke about every detail of the battle the entire way, without missing a beat, only taking seconds to "improvise" the next part of his fight.

"....anyway, once she started breathing fire at me, I jumped miles into the air and slammed down on her cranium, causing her to fall to the ground. Then I uprooted a red oak and used it as a battering ram against the five, no ten, harpy allies she had brought into the fray. I brought them down one after the other until none of the winged creatures remained able. So I took my leave and left them to wallow in their defeat... and that's how I stopped them from eating you two."

Xina stood starry eyed from hearing his story, practically in awe of his story.

"Wow! That sounded incredible Clawdy! You must be really strong!"

"Well, I don't like to toot my own trumpet, but...."

Of course, Lex wasn't exactly willing to swallow this story.

"Excuse me if I don't believe that.... enthralling story, but there's a slight problem in it."

"Eh? And what would that be?"

"You look like you're about to snap in half! Yet I didn't hear you once say you got hurt. Care to explain that? And how about the mud all over you? hmmm?"

Despite this embarrasingly huge plot hole, Clawdy tried his best to remain calm, conjuring up a cover for this using Grinch like speed.

"oh.... my injuries, huh? Well.... I was walking away from the battle, when one of the harpies, with the last of her strength, pushed me violently down a not so steep hill, before pushing... pushing a ROCK! Yeah! A ten ton rock on me! That's when I broke alot of my bones. Oh, and the rock was covered in mud, so that's why I'm covered in it."

Clearly Lex wasn't amused.

"Clawdy, you don't honestly expect me to believe that steaming pile of lies, do you?"

"Wha...what do you mean, Lex?"

"Well, first off-"

Before he could continue, Xina spotted the city dead ahead.

"Guys! I see the city! We're right infront of it!"

Hearing this prompted Lex to turn his head around to the front position, before hitting the brakes, stopping Excaliber a good distance before the city. Thankfully, they were atop a hill and were able to get a good aerial view. What they saw before them made them sit in their seats in awe at how magnificent the sprawling city was. It's outer walls were as intimidating as Fort Knox, each armed to the brim with what appeared to be defensive military weaponry. Inside the walls, there was a vast world, filled with hustling people and various other human like species going along in their day. It was quite a sight to see after being in the jungle like setting for such a long time. Xina, of course, was the first to express her sentiment.

"It's.... beautiful."

Lex felt similar compassion, alongside Clawdy, who too felt relieved to finally find civilization.

"It is beautiful, don't you think, Lex?"

This warranted him a response from Lex.

"Of course it is... but I still have questions about your story! Don't think I forgot..... we'll just... talk about it later...."

Lex slowly moved Excaliber closer to the city, thinking their troubles were over for the moment, until Lex suddenly noticed something, which proved him completely wrong.....

There he goes again ><
Congratulation on creating a character I have the urge to kick when I read about him XD

XD

Thanks. Sometimes I feel the need to kick him too.

cool

Well, here's the next chapter. If any of you read my previous story, you might remember a certain character at the end. Enjoy!

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Chapter Twelve: Out of the Bot, Into the City

Lex scanned over the city walls, looking at the installations and entrances alike. However, at no point did he see any entrances big enough for Excaliber to fit through. Thinking he would have better fortune with the skies, Lex looked directly above and into the city to find a place they could fly over or even land in. However, it was just too crowded. There was not a spot for a fifty foot robot anywhere to be found!

"Uh, Clawdy.... Xina... .I think we have a problem..."

Xina turned her head in curiousity.

"What is it?"

"Well, I don't see anyway Excaliber here can get into the city. And by the gun emplacements and all the security, I don't think they'd just let us in with this mech. I'm afraid we'll have to get out and walk."

This garnered a chuckle from Clawdy.

"Well, this hunk of junk couldn't be useful forever. Let's dump it somewhere and get into the city."

Clawdy's suggestion was immediately followed up by a snare from Lex.

"I don't think so. How about we store Excaliber, then go inside and find someone who can fix him? With all the technology in the city, I'm sure someone can."

"Oh, come on, Lex! We don't want to burden Xina or either of us with this broken down plaything. Let's scrap it for parts and get something more practical. Like a tank or maybe some fighting lessons. You know, things that could actually help us here."

Before Clawdy knew it, he felt the high speed of a palm smack him hard across the cheek. Lex withdrew his hand after and just looked at Clawdy, steam bursting out of his nose.

"Look, Clawdy.... I'm grateful for you saving us.... but if you say that again, I'll throw you out into the wilderness, run over you and let the birds have you. UNDERSTAND?"

"Alright, yeesh. Didn't think you were so sensitive."

Thinking of a solution, Lex turned to Xina.

"Xina, since me and Clawdy are at odds, why don't you tell us what you want to do?"

With this Clawdy nodded, agreeing to the terms. Xina thought for a minute, then looked at them with a solemn expression.

"Well.... Lex's robot has saved us alot of times, and it's helped us in this forest. I think it would be only fair if we repaid the favor. Right?"

"Right. What about you, Clawdy?"

The neko boy knew he was outnumbered two to one, so he conceded.

"Fine. I'll go with it. You two want to fix this dangling deathtrap, then be my guest. I won't stop you."

As he turned off the boosters to prepare for departure, Lex smiled.

"That's better."

So, with that settled, the trio inside the mech departed via the cockpit hatch, located on the back of Excaliber.  Lex hid the robot well by having it parked near a tree, while Clawdy, doing Xina a favor, decided to cover the mech in branches to help it blend in. This took them about ten minutes to accomplish, and once they finished, and once they marked the spot to remember where they put it, the group set their eyes towards Negav....

Lex took the initiative to lead the group to Negav, with Xina close behind and Clawdy attempting to get close to Xina without either of them noticing. The approach to the main gate of Negav's wall was rather nerve wracking, seeing as how the guards were rather heavily armed. It was made clear that nobody got in without them knowing, so the three made sure not to make any sudden moves around them. When Lex went through, the two didn't seem to care much, so Lex went through without a hitch. However, when Xina went through, the guards sneered at her, as if looking down in uncertainty. They did the same with Clawdy when he passed through. It was as though the guards did not like Xina or Clawdy at first glance. It didn't bother them much, but to their displeasure, it wouldn't be the last of the odd snares they'd get...

Once they passed the checkpoint and were proven to be not deadly, then they were given access to the city, to which they accepted. When they went inside the walls, they were in even more awe, seeing the beautiful city of Negav up close. Xina's breath was almost taken away.

"Look at this place! It's wonderful! There's so many people, and the buildings are so big, and it feels safe from the outside. Isn't this great, guys?"

Clawdy and Lex were too busy gawking at the city to respond. For they too were overcome by what they didn't see from afar. Xina practically had to take the initiative and bring them along through the city. The two guys behind had a tough time keeping up with her enthusiasm, but did their best to catch up. Various different beings crossed the streets and pathways, each setting them apart from another, yet blending in with the mix of peoples that made up this wondrous local.

Their insistant sightseeing was interrupted only by the collective grumbling of their stomachs, which Xina was first to notice.

"Hey guys... I just remembered. We haven't eaten anything today, have we?"

Lex placed a hand on his stomach and sighed.

"Nope. Not at all. We should find something to eat. And fast."

Also feeling fatigue was Clawdy himself, who if anything experienced the most hunger from his previous encounter. The three came together and decided to discuss what they were going to do about it.

"So Xina, Clawdy... what can we get to eat around here?"

"I dunno, Lex... what do you think is edible in this place?"

Clawdy looked around the various arrangements, but didn't recognize anything around them. Despite the glorious temples, sky high buildings and magnificent stadiums around them, not one brought up the hint of food. It was particularly hard to detect, despite Xina and Clawdy's advanced senses, due to all the unique scents that came with all the indigenous beings that traversed the busy crosswalks. They knew that the spot did not herald much reward for them, so they ventured forth deeper into the magnificent city, not knowing where they were going...

Half an hour later, after several failed attempts at finding a place to eat, Clawdy could smell something.

"Mmm... what's that smell?"

Xina was right behind him in following the scent.

"I dunno.... but it smells good..."

Lex trailed next to Xina, his stomach compelling him to move forward.

"Yeah. I could go for anything that smelled that good!"

They came to a halt simultaneously, staring up upon the bistro that was ahead. What they had stumbled into was a rather isolated part of Negav, not too big an area, but still proved to be quite the place.

Xina didn't notice anybody infront of her, as her feet started taking her closer to the restaurant, still a ways away. She was too distracted from the aroma to notice a rather old man coming from her left, heading her way, his vision blocked by various bags of supplies and groceries in multiple bags stacked in his arms. The two, both unable to see what was right infront of them, walked right into eachother, and while Xina fell onto her butt, the old man fell backwards and his various groceries went everywhere, scattering out of the bags he had them in various parts and devices unknown to the three. Lex and Clawdy didn't notice this happen until the last minute, having been in a similar hunger induced trance, and decided to head towards Xina and the old man to help.

"Xina! Are you alright?"

Xina was the first to get up, rubbing her sore behind from the fall.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

She then extended a hand to help the old man.

"Oh my! I'm so sorry, mister. I wasn't looking where I was going. Please, let me help you up."

The old man looked at the catgirl and smiled, extending his own hand to grab hers.

"Well, thank ye kindly, miss. I guess I didn't see where I was goin either. hehe."

With that Xina helped the kind old man up and bent down to help gather up his spilled belongings.

"I'm sorry I made you loose your objects here. Let me make it up to you."

She got to work gathering all the groceries she accidentally made the man spill, and Lex and Clawdy decided to help her, being done in no time and handing the man everything dropped in little time.

"Heheh. Well, that's generous of ya'll. Something I don't find very often in this here city. So tell me, what's yer names, if I may be so bold as to ask?"

Xina courtsied and smiled at the man, as Clawdy and Lex greeted him as well.

"My name is Xina."

"Mine is Lex."

"And I'm Clawdy, the smart one and the good looking one."

The old man could see the smile coming from Xina and returned it joyously, while rousing up a chuckle from Clawdy's greeting.

"It's a pleasure meetin ya, Lex, Xina, and Clawdy."

"So, mister, what is your name, if I could ask back?"

The old man paused for a second to think, then responded back politely.

"Well, folks round here call me 'Al'. But you can call me 'Al' fer short. Hehehe."

Awesome story Hey Pendragon, is it allright if in the Jedi story I'm making has a fight with Clawdy and Mordal?

Sure. IM the details of how you want to make the story. I'd be more than honored if you had my character in it.

Heh, I was sure we would see him again

Sorry it's a month late, but I'm here with the next chapter.

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Chapter Thirteen: The Mysterious Old Man Al


The kindly old man gave the three of them a smile before pondering on their activities.

"So, what are the three of ya's doing in this humble little part of Negav?"

Xina did not waste time in answering, as her stomach made sure of.

"Well, Mister Al, we're all hungry, and we're trying to find some food. Would you know if there is any place suitable for us? Because we were thinking of heading to that place over there."

Xina pointed to the restaurant which had interested their noses ahead, and Al gave it a quick glance.

"Hmm... so that's where yer planning to eat, eh? You know they charge a load of skevols to eat there, right? Hell, sometimes you need pure Ascarlin just to eat there. I never go there myself because of it."

When they heard him utter those words, one question ran across their minds.

"Skevols? Ascarlin?"

"Yeah. Skevols and Ascarlin. Ya know, very strong currency here... Now, ya'll know what those are, right?"

The man was met with blank expressions from all three of them.

"Hehe. I guess there's no doubt you're new here. Well, I think it'd be wise if you fellers listened to me. Because there's alot you need to know round these parts. Fer one thing, alot of currency exchange is done through skevols."

Al tactfully pulled out a skevol from his pocket to demonstrate. It was a rather shiny pent of currency, and looked rather withered, yet still usable.

"Now, unless ya'll have some of these, yer time in Negav will be a rough one."

Lex and Clawdy checked their pockets, yet combined they only had a few credits and dollars between them. Xina was no better off, having only a few pennies in her pocket. Al looked upon it and chuckled under his aged breath.

"Hehe. Yep. Ya'll ain't thoroughly equipped fer this city."

With this Xina let out a worried pout.

"Oh... What are we gonna do now? I'm still hungry...."

Al looked them over and felt generous, having been helped out by them concerning the groceries.

"Well.... I guess I could help ya'll out. Since yer ladyfriend here was kind enough to assist me in these here groceries."

It didn't take long before Xina blushed and smiled at him from hearing this.

"Oh, thank you, Mister Al. That would be very helpful."

Of course Clawdy was the first to question it.

"Hold up. How can an old human like you help us? We already have a not so helpful human drag-"

Lex smacked Clawdy over the head before he could finish.

"I apologize for Clawdy, Al. He doesn't know when to shut up.... So how can you help us, Mister Al?"

"Well, I know the city pretty well, and if ya'll need anything, just follow me, and I'll show ya where to go. I can spare ya a few skevols if it will help ya'll out."

Lex quickly perked up and addressed the man.

"Actually, we were looking for something to eat, as well as a repair shop. We need something fixed."

"Ah. Well, yer in luck. I just happen to know of a better place to eat than the dump down the street, and I know of a humble little shop that might be able to fix whatever is broken of yers. They ain't the best, but they're cheap. Here, follow me."

Al started to lead them, but Clawdy was quick to question the man.

"Hey, hold on, old timer. We don't even have the money to pay for anything, like you said. So how can we even make use of these shops? I doubt you'd be willing to pay for everything."

Smiling his old grin, Al gave Clawdy that olden look of his.

"How's about I help ya out and we'll work out an agreement after..."

Keeping up to his claim, Al led Lex, Xina and Clawdy through the city corridors and streetpaths, first to a small place where they decided to dine. Al decided to repay their kindness by paying outright for their meals, which made them very grateful to the generous old man. Though the food there looked odd, Al certainly was right when he said it was a better quality. Clawdy, Xina and Lex each enjoyed their own meals as Al oddly refused to eat. Once they paid the bill and left, Al remembered Lex's requirement of a repair facility, so he led them downtown. onto a rather small repair shop, complete with a garage for smaller vehicles. Lex seemed a bit delighted and confused at the sight, since the shop didn't look very advanced. Regardless, he thanked Al for the help and went inside, asking Clawdy and Xina to stay outside. He ventured inward by himself as the two stood their ground, conversing with Al.

"So old timer, what kinda garage is this anyway?"

"Well, Clawdy, it may not be the best shop in town, but it should be within your price range. They can fix up a wide gamut o' vehicles. Whatever you friend needs fixin, I have a feeling they'll be able to fix it."

"Meh. I doubt it, but whatever."

A few minutes passed, and soon an hour went by, and all was silent for the moment, a bit too silent for Xina.

"So um... Mister Al, if I could ask, where is this place exactly? I've never been here before. The place I grew up never had giant nude women who wanted to eat us."

"Well, miss Xina, that's an interestin' story. Ya see, this place is Felarya, a 'crossroads of dimenions', if you will. It's inhabited by quite a variety of interesting creatures, and I for one have always wanted to explore them closer. Like, for example, I've been studying this local pink headed creature near the great Felaryan tree, and-"

Al was suddenly interrupted by the sound of punching inside the garage, accompanied by various breaking objects, and someone stumbling to the floor. Seconds later Lex stumbled out with a bloody nose and an angry look on his face. Everyone was taken back, particularly Clawdy.

"Whoa. What happened in there, Lex? I take it things didn't go so well?"

Lex only stared back, looking at Clawdy with a bruised eye. As Xina worried for him and tried to wipe the blood off his face with a spare napkin, Al was confused by the turn of events.

"The hell? What happened in there, sonny?!"

"We had... an argument."

"Oh really now? It looks like it went right past a simple argument."

He sat down and took deep breaths, admitting Al''s assertions true.

"Yeah. It was a violent argument. You see, when I told him what needed fixing, he told me he wouldn't fix it."

"Really now? On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that he thought it was a waste of time. He told me my mech was not practical and I was better off scrapping it for parts, and I got steamed at him when he started laughing at me. I told him I don't want to get rid of it...."

Al quickly thought to himself as Lex continued.

"Wait, a mecha? As in those bipedal machines?"

"Yeah. My favorites to be exact."

"Shoot, I haven't seen one of those in a while....."

Without missing a beat Al returned to listening to Lex.

"Then he told me that I was being immature for using such a stupid machine. So I poked fun of how his ass wasn't doing any better, being a rather pigheaded repairman, and before I knew it, we were scuffling. Can't remember a lick of information after that. I knew I saw a chair go flying somewhere in it, but the rest was a blur."

Xina of course let out a sigh.

"Lex, you should really be more careful. Your big old temper has gotten us into alot of trouble before."

"I know. I'm sorry."

This also gained a sigh from Clawdy.

"Oh, great. Because little miss robot lover over here had to be sensitive, now we're unable to use the only repair garage in the whole area. Nice work, genius."

Here Al took his chance to chime in with another solution to their situation.

"Actually, that's not entirely true. I know another repair shop. Hehe. And it's run by yours truly."

"Really?"

"Of course, Clawdy. And I'll be happy to fix up yer machine Lex. Heh, I didn't know you even had one, which is why I assumed you only needed a minor garage. I thought ya'll had a hover car or somethin'."

Lex's eyes lit up in joy at hearing this.

"Really? You mean it?!"

"Of course, sunny. However, I will have some conditions. First, bring me to this 'machine' of yours....."

Nice chapter ^_^
hehe I feel these two are set to get along well

Alright, after a month, I finally got this chapter up. I hope you enjoy.

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Chapter Fourteen: Not Just an Ordinary Geezer

Among the group Al was the most interested as Lex and the gang led him back outside Negav. Fortunately, they hadn't forgotten where they had placed Excaliber in the woods, and when stumbling upon the area, Lex went up to the machine and removed it's camouflage, revealing the beauty of technology that lay dormant within. When he saw this blue behemoth, the look on Al's elderly face was, for lack of a better word, purely ecstatic! He leaped towards it and investigated it very closely, like a child in a store of candy, viewing a giant candy laden robot.

"Holy mother of Nemyra! Where did you get this thing, Lex?"

"It's my own mech. I built it myself and piloted it for years. It's kind of a personal thing for me."

"Well, I must say ya'll did quite a job on it. It's not the most advanced thing I've seen in my years, but it's still quite a beauty. Poor thing looks badly damaged, though. What the hell did ya put it through?"

Lex doddled a bit and was a bit embarrassed to say.

"Oh, not much... some turbulence, a fellow giant robot, a black hole, a few spider creatures, a bird woman, and I think I got too much mud on the leg units."

When hearing this, Al smacked his face with his palm, and casually walked up to Lex, still wanting to contain his excitement.

"Ya'll really need to take better care of yer machine here.... tell ya what... I'll help ya fix her up!"

"Really, Al? That's awfully generous of... wait a sec. What's the catch?"

Al cackled heartily.

"Ya'll won't worry about that. We can discuss it back at my lab. Now, if you can fire up this baby, I can help you. Now, off to my workshop."

The old man jumped onto Excaliber's leg unit and held on, nodding to Lex to get the mech started.

"Wait. What do you mean? How can we get to your workshop? I can't get Excaliber into the city or they might fire at us! I mean, just look at those gun emplacements."

Al once again laughed up a riot.

"Hehe. I never said my lab was IN Negav.... now, if ya'll could get in gear, then we can get a-movin."

He wasn't even sure how to respond to this, but before he could say a thing, Lex was quickly pulled into a team chat with Xina and Clawdy.

"Lex, I'm not sure if we can trust this guy. He's just an old trickster of a human if my eyes are right. Come on."

"Now, come on, Clawdy. That isn't very fair. He is willing to help us. We don't have anything to lose. Right, Lex?"

It took several strokes of Lex's noggin before he could come to a solution.

"Clawdy, I know he's weird. But right now he's one of the only people we can gain from trusting. And considering we've almost been eaten about three or five times already, then I'm taking the chance. What about you?"

What came from Clawdy was a dissatisfied gruntle.

"meh, whatever.... but if that humanoid gets us into a bad situation, just know I called it."

As Lex went up Excal's leg to climb into the cockpit, Xina followed suit, smiling at Al along the way as Clawdy went behind her, occasionally using her cat tail to smack him over the head for sneaking peaks up her rather exposing shorts. Her thoughts raced meanwhile, thinking of what Al said.

"Hmm.... I am curious, though. What does he mean when he said 'not IN Negav'....."

Xina certainly didn't want to ask Al about it, having witnessed him viewing Excaliber's armor up close with an eyeglass he pulled out of his pocket. She felt a weird, yet oddly friendly vibe from him, and just decided to let Lex handle it. When she got into the cockpit with Lex and Clawdy, it closed behind them and sealed up tight, right as Lex booted up the system. It still showed signs of damage, as the viewscreens infront of them were fragmented and glitchy from the fighting earlier. Nevertheless, Lex plugged into the system and got the old mecha up and on it's boosters. Over the com, Lex spoke to Al who was now resting on the robot's shoulder.

"Alright, Al! You mind telling us where we should go from here? You know, to your place that 'wasn't' in Negav, as you said?"

In a comical manner, Al threw his pointing finger due East of Negav's central gate and shouted out.

"That-a-way, cap'n! To the forest yonder..."

Lex nodded and simply followed Al's direction, walking his mech to the East of Negav's wall. He carefully kept his distance from the very strong guns that lined the city, for they looked like they could tear through his machine in seconds flat, even in prime condition. Lex also eyed the moat that surrounded Negav's lush and mighty walls, fearing what was within them should the Negav turrets decide to shoot them down into it. He shook these thoughts from his mind, albeit a bit nervously, and gulped down his nervous feelings, proceeding due east, where he thankfully reached a forest area, looking inhabited by a seemingly calm grove of flora. Despite this facade of innocence, the plants all seemed to harbor some malicious, hidden intent as the blue machine trodded into their territory, some giving off the sense of movement on their own, mostly creeping Lex out, but oddly unphasing Al.

Al stopped them when they approached around the middle of the grove, less than a mile away from a massive moss covered boulder, easily eighty feet high. He pointed them in the direction of it, and Lex proceeded.

"So Al... where do you live exactly? And why do we need to go through this creepy grove?"

"Well, sonny, it's sort of a secret. I keep the entrance 'round here so no dern trespassers can get in."

"Why is here so special?"

As Lex asked this, a large fly flew by Excaliber, but was quickly ensnared by a massive flytrap plant, easily the size of Excaliber. It closed it's maw and swallowed down the fly rather hastily, and the bulge of the fly fell down the plant's stem, disappearing downwards and becoming smaller by the second, much to everyone's horror and disgust. Lex and Xina shared the same feeling of being sick as the plant rested back to it's still position to enjoy it's meal. Even Clawdy couldn't help but flinch at the gruesome, yet graceful event. Al simply looked on and responded back to Lex.

"Oh yeah. I forgot to mention. These here special carnivorous plants dispose of intruders fer me. Pretty nice of 'em, don't ya think? That's why the Negavians refer to this here place as the 'Grove of Carnivorous Flora'."

Among them, Lex felt the most like vomiting from the plant's display.

"Um... sure. Whatever you... urp....  say."

He calmed down a bit by slowly moving away from the plan, and continued to the destination. A minute later, when they approached the aforementioned boulder, which towered over Lex's robot, Al simply looked at the boulder very carefully for three minutes. The others didn't really know what to think at this moment, so they just let him look and take a break meanwhile.

Of course, when they began to relax into the three minutes, Al jumped up.

"AHA! Found it!"

He then jumped up onto the boulder and pressed on a dark green patch of moss, which was slightly miscolored compared to the rest, then held onto the other moss as he slid down to the rock's bottom.

"I need to remember that spot better... oh well."

Before their eyes the rock suddenly started splitting down the middle, much to the bewilderment of Lex, Clawdy and Xina, who were only in awe as the moss ridden rock ripped the moss binding the two sides together and seperated outward into two pieces, grinding along the ground as if on a track. The opening created by this was big enough for Excaliber to fit, because inside the rock was surprisingly hollow, and there was a large elevator, which seemed big enough for an average sized predator to fit. Al walked on and invited Excaliber to join, to which Lex accepted and brought his mech onto the platform. When they had entered, Al nonchalantly pressed a button on a human sized console on it, and quickly the elevator started sinking into the ground, the rock slowly closing up behind them. The three in the robot turned around in the cockpit and took one last look at the sun as the rock closed completely, blocking it out. Oddly enough, it was still bright enough to see, and this puzzled them until the platform brought them down about half a mile, before the elevator proceeded diagonally down a very large tunnel, which seemed man made. It was lighted and everything, leaving much for the eyes to see. Al snickered and shouted to them in the mech, while Lex opened the cockpit for the three of them to hear.

"I take it by the silence yer surprised?"

The three couldn't respond, leaving Al plenty of time to explain.

"Well, ya might be wondering where this all came from, so allow me to explain."

He appeared to take a decent sized breath.

"Now, ya see, all this stuff here was made by me. It's my personal entrance to my secret lab, which lies miles underground of Negav. It took me a long time to make it, and it's something I relish greatly. So I suggest ya'll take care in it. And if ya think this here tunnel is a marvel to see, then you'll get quite a hoot outta my lab itself. Hehe!"

They didn't think the old man would be right about his lab being more than they expected.... but they would be proven wrong soon enough......

wow a lab right in the grove of carnivorous plants ? I am curious to see what's in

Well, the entrance is in the grove at least.

Spoiler:

I was actually working on this idea for a while while working off of a map I saw on your DA page, and I didn't want to make anything you didn't approve of. I hope it's okay with you. If it isn't, then feel free to say so. I'll try and work the story better.

But for now, time to work on the next chapter. Thank you for the input, and now I am off to go write it!

Wow this is an excellent story, and it has just what I was looking for a NEXT and it's pilot in Felarya. Can't wait for the next chapter.

Another month, another chapter. Please enjoy.
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Chapter Fifteen: His Hideaway

It must've been around an hour before the elevator came to a halt in a darkened and abysmal hallway. Al snapped the trio inside the mech awake with a snap of his fingers, nodding them to follow him into the darkness ahead. Lex and Xina were not so sure, but Clawdy seemed unphased in the least. So in Excaliber they went down the hall, being wary not to touch anything or stray too far from Al. There was a sense of coldness that pervaded their very surroundings, as if there was nothing living deep down here, and they could be right. They didn't know how far down this place was, and they didn't even know where Al was taking them, for the hall was dark and empty, yet it seemed as though it was reinforced with steel. Going further in made the three nervous to their stomachs. However, with no other reasonable path ahead of them, they could do little else than follow this old mystery of a man into the seemingly endless abyss....

Unexpectedly, just a few minutes into the darkness, Al shouted out.

"Alright, Lex! Hold up here!"

Lex immediately halted Excaliber, slightly jolting him, Xina and Clawdy to the front of the cockpit. With a messed up night vision sensor, Excaliber couldn't even light up the path, so the three were left in total darkness, as Lex was quick to point out.

"Um, Al...? I can't see a thing! Where are we? Do you even know where we are? And how do you even know where we're going?!"

The old man retorted.

"Hehe. Well, don't worry with all them questions, sonny. I'll answer em in due time. Just know we're here. Lemme just turn on a light fer ya."

Within moments, Al flipped a nearby switch, flooding the entire area with light from above light emplacements. The darkness around the group yielded to their vision, showing them the place Al had led them to. It was an incredible laboratory, filled to the brim with odd machines, strange chemicals, and a very large repair garage. The place seemed big enough for even a predator from the outside to use, and it appeared well supported, the ceiling held up with iron steel girders capable of holding many times their own weight, and the walls were all reinforced with a metal different from any Lex, Xina or Clawdy had seen. Clawdy was the first, infact, to step out of the cockpit to investigate the lab.

"So you built all of this, old man?!"

"Yep. Heh. All by meself. With some help from the occasional human above."

"How long did it take you?! This must've taken years to make!"

As Clawdy said this, Al chuckled under his breath.

"Oh, tweren't nothin.... maybe it took a thousand years er so....."

All three of their jaws dropped.

"A THOUSAND YEARS?!?!?"

"Yes sir. And I'm awful proud of it."

This was a revelation none of them saw coming, especially Xina, who saw fit to ask him about it.

"Um... Mister Al, how were you able to... you know... build all this in a thousand years? Wouldn't you have... you know..."

True to Al's nature, he answered without missing a beat.

"Died? Heheh. Yeah, I know what yer thinkin. But ya see, things in Felarya ain't what ya expect. Like, you living organisms won't age as fast as usual. But of course, I can live so long fer another reason..."

Al walked close to Xina as she backed up towards Clawdy and Lex.

"I'm gonna tell ya something about me, an I want ya'll to keep it a secret. Alright?"

No opposition was given as they each gave a yes nod for their answer.

"Good. Now, ya see, this is why I can last so long without a hint of fatigue..."

Al then placed his hand upon his face, pressing on the left side for a bit, until his face split in half right down the middle, before he removed one half of the face, revealing it to be a very convincing humanoid mask. Underneath a crimson glare emanated from a glowing cybernetic eye, illuminating the entire side of his face which was now revealed to be all machine. Xina, taking a step back in fear, nearly tripped over in surprise, only to have Lex catch her in time, yet he and Clawdy were none too expectant of this twist, but Clawdy still felt the need to state the obvious.

"You're a... robot?!"

Al chuckled.

"Well, technically an android, but yes. I'm 100% machine. I like to pretend I'm an old human fogey so people don't catch on to my lab here. They'd never expect an old man to have such a place, right?"

Alas came no answer from the trio, which Al took as a good thing.

"Exactly. That's the response I expected."

As Al replaced the piece of his face back on, hiding the machine part underneath, the old man-droid looked towards Lex as he walked towards Excaliber.

"Now, are we gonna stand around here, gawking all day, or are we gonna fix yer robot?"

Lex shook his head and walked after Al, despite still being in a bit of shock from the reveal of Al's machine-self.

"Oh. Um.... Of course. I almost forgot."

Al chuckled.

"Don't ya worry about me. I ain't one of those killin' droids. I'm just a peaceful research bot with a motherboard built fer explorin..."

"That's good."

Lex felt relieved to hear this, since he was confident that machines couldn't tell a lie. So he went off with Al to begin the work. However, the old man turned to Xina and Clawdy before he forgot to say something.

"Oh, and you, miss Xina and Claw-something. Why don't ya'll make yerselves at home? Just try not to touch anything."

Clawdy took the opportunity to grab a chair and take a load off, but Xina was curious as to what was inside the lab. She could barely hold her own sense of neko-curiosity in as she walked around and experienced what was inside. Al meanwhile didn't waste any time before reaching Excaliber with Lex. The old droid looked upon the armor with curiosity, seeing a bit of rust from the environment from Felarya's atmosphere. Nevertheless, he took out a wrench from his back pocket and gave Lex an enthusiastic smile.

"Alright. Let's get fixin!"

With that said, Lex and Al got to work posthaste on Excaliber......

haha it made me thought of Terminator somehow

Haha...When Al said that he was an android, It reminded me of AK-47, the assassin droid, and Darth Vader for some reason...I expected Clawdy to make a remark about Darth Vader, actually.

Well, this will be the last chapter of this story. I hope you enjoy. I got a lot more stories I'm thinking of writing.

__________________

Chapter Sixteen: Payment

It took many an hour in his solemn little lab under Negav.... the human and droid worked with full efforts in throttle to repair Excaliber's damages, all while the two nekos looked on and occasionally lent a hand. The strain Excaliber went through was indeed deep, but via a miraculous feat of mechanical ingenuity, Al managed to bring the mech back to operating order.

Glancing upon his and Lex's handiwork, Al removed his gloves and wiped the oil stains from his face, competent in his success when Lex went inside to turn on Excal, for when he turned on the engine, it purred like a giant 50 foot robotic kitten.

"Well, sir. I do believe this repair job was a success. Don't ya think, Lex?"

"I sure do, Al. You did wonders with ol Excal here."

Lex jumped down to join Al in checking over his machine one more time to ensure a job well done, whistling for Xina and Clawdy to take a look.

"Hey guys! It's done! Take a gander and see if it looks good."

Of course, his words were in vain, for when he turned his head, he saw Clawdy passed out on a chair and Xina laying down on three chairs put in a row. Indeed, they were likely put out by the time they took repairing Excaliber or the simple boredom of not having much to do. Lex shook his head and sighed.

"Oh well. I guess it's their loss."

Al took them time to approach Lex when he heard this.

"Speaking of which, sonny.... I think now would be a good time to discuss the... payment... I can't exactly afford to do this fer free......"

Lex felt a lump in his throat.

"Ah... yeah... about that... I don't really have any money besides the stuff you said didn't go far here, so..."

Thankfully, Al seemed rather cheery about the subject.

"Don't ya'll worry. Let's just step into my office. We'll discuss some sort of agreement...."

Al then led Lex to another part of his lab to discuss said agreement, leaving Xina and Clawdy in their states of sleep....

Later that day, when outside the sun delved into twilight, raining over Felarya in an orange glow, Xina let out a yawn and got up into a sitting position, stretching first her arms and then her legs and then her back. She took a tired look around, not noticing what time of day it was, since the lab was underground. Xina took to her feet and decided to look around.

"Hmm... I wonder where Lex is....."

For a brief moment she glanced over to Clawdy, who fell back in his chair but continued to slumber away. Letting out a brief chuckle, she glanced by him and continued to look around in the hopes of finding Lex. The neko was a bit afraid to really go away from her spot, because the lab was in itself a glory of oddities, stretching along the lines of green tubes, paradoxical machines and strange concoctions alike, none of it resembling anything she had ever seen before.

Fortunately she did not have to search for long, for minutes later she heard Lex's docile voice through the darkness, conversing alongside Al as they stepped back into the lab where Excaliber and the others were. They entered the room with a bit of silence, as if to forewarn trouble ahead, but the tone they both showed was now of a jolly tone. Xina walked up to Lex and hugged him after he returned, happy he was back from his talk.

"Oh, Lex, where were you? I was worried you left me alone with Clawdy."

He reassured the worried girl and smiled at her.

"Don't worry Xina. I was just discussing a few matters with Al over here, concerning how I'd pay for my mech's repairs. We have come to an agreement, though."

He sat down with Al, and Xina decided to join him.

"How will you pay, Lex?"

"Simple, Xina. I'm going to perform a few tasks for him, like retrieving parts from the general store, working for him in the lab here, you know. He also says he'll help us find a place to stay while we're here. What do you think?"

These words made Xina's face smile.

"That's really nice of him. Thank you Al!"

He nodded in back, along with a slight oldster chuckle.

"Anytime, little missy. Ya'll newcomers won't survive long here without someone who's been here and there."

The commotion caused Clawdy to stir out of his nap, groggily greeting the gracious people who were sitting down.

"urrrgh... I'll take three cups of sugar with my giant snake woman.... ugh...."

He then stumbled back to sleep, not a care in the world. Xina chuckled a bit before turning to Al.

"What about Clawdy? Can he stay too? I don't think he has anyplace to stay."

Al gave her a reassuring glance.

"Of course, Xina. My lab is big enough fer all of yas. He'll have to earn his stay as well, though."

Again Xina thanked the kindly droid as she felt compelled to wake up Clawdy to tell him the good news.

"Clawdy, did you hear that? Al says you can stay too!"

Clawdy of course remained in a deep sleep.

"Grbb....put a board over the port, you dumbasses.... zzzzz"

She eagerly waited until he woke up later to tell him the news....

Epilogue

About one month in Earth time had passed for the trio during their stay in Felarya, where they had settled into Al's lab as their personal residence. Lex and Clawdy, despite being trained in combat for most of their lives, settled for easier work in the Felaryan world, and Al was their contact through it all, while Xina made a great assistant in the lab whenever he needed an extra pair of hands.

During a hard day of work one day, Xina decided to take a break from helping Al in his experiments and sat back, when she saw Clawdy and Lex enter through Al's secret grove entrance aboard Excaliber. They landed the mech and exited, before heading down towards Xina. Clawdy seemed to be carrying a very large bag, while Lex was carrying a few of his own. Xina happily greeted them.

"Hi guys! How did you two fare out there today?"

Clawdy sat back and took a deep breath.

"Well, I found the harpy Al told me about near the rivers. She seemed to be expecting me, so I took out my blades, jumped down and got to work."

Intrigued, Xina asked further.

"How did it turn out?"

"Well, Al was right! Her hair was a mess, so I chopped left and right and gave her a mohawk. She was pretty happy with it and gave me a few trinkets as a token of grats. Thankfully she didn't try to eat me. Good thing Al told her beforehand."

Xina let out a few giggles before turning to Lex.

"And how was your day, Lex? Hopefully as good as Clawdy's?"

Lex took a seat and took quite a load off.

"Yeah. I got some of the water samples from the Ur-Sagol rivers just like Al asked. Though I almost got waterlogged thanks to a group of passing mermaids. I got out of it, though."

Again Xina found his tale humorous and let out a chuckle.

"That's good. Hehe."

"So how have you been, Xina? Was today a good day for you?"

"Oh, it was hard work. Al wanted me to move some large crates with him, and they were pretty heavy. He also wanted me to write out a few things for a big experiment of his. But I think we're through for the day."

He gave her a kiss on the cheek in relief, not knowing what Al did here on a day to day basis, but was assured it was none too difficult if Xina could handle it. He then got up and looked at Clawdy.

"Well, then I guess we're all pretty much done for the day. Let's find Al and give him this stuff."

Without a moment wasted Al appeared behind Lex with an oldster's chuckle.

"Hehe, did someone say my name?"

His heart suddenly jumping, Lex turned around in surprise.

"BWAHHh! Damnit, Al, don't scare me like that!"

"Heh. Sorry bout that. I guess I'm good at showing up without warnin."

Lex calmed down long enough to show Al what he and Clawdy collected.

"Anyway, here's the payment for today, Al. Courtesy of me and Clawdy and some grateful predators we visited."

"Well, excellent job boys. I see yer getting the hang of this. Let's head inside and see what ya collected."

Al helped Clawdy pick up the trinkets in the bags and brought them inside, as Xina and Lex followed. The neko turned towards Lex and gave a cheery smile.

"Say Lex, now that we're finished with working today..... maybe later, we could go above to Negav and see what they do in the night time... just the two of us...."

He returned her joyous expression with a smile and a nod.

"It would be my pleasure Xina. But for now, I think I need a little nap..."

She held his arm and continued to walk down the hall, a dinner date definitely in the works.....

"put a board over the port, you dumbasses"

HAHA! Man that was funny...I think there are only a few people here who get that referance.