"Mmmmmm...yummy snack!" drooled the shark-creature as it chased a small, white ball of fur through the tall grass.

"REOWR!" yowled the intended prey.

"Shark! I think that's a player!" called the tiger-being, running after his travelling companion though the other seemed to be ignoring him.

"What the hell?" said Wilykat, looking up. "Did you guys hear something?"

"Come to think of it, I did," said Gatotrueno, cocking her head to listen."I wasn't really paying attention though."

The yeowling came again and even Fuzzball sprang up on his tail to get a better look. None of the travellers could see much, but the grass was parting off to the right as though an invisible being were headed right for them. Beyond the grass, two humanoid outlines could barely be made out.

"Looks like we're in for company," grinned the evil Snarf. "More mindless zombies for my master plan!"

"Can it, Fuzz...we know you're not really evil," said Gato, nudging his tail.

"You know nothing, damn your estrogenical meddling!"

Gato snorted into the back of her hand, faking a cough to hide her laughter. Wilykat ignored them both and concentrated on the approaching figures. "I can't tell how far away they are," he announced to no one in particular. "You can see forever in this field. I can't tell if they're along way off or if they're...they're...YEEEEEAAAAA!"

Wilykat yelped as a furry bullet leapt from the grass and catapulted into his face, scrambling to perch on his shoulders and hide behind his hair. It arched it's back and hissed as the two humanoids approached, much more slowly now, having all but given up on the chase.

"Gedditoff! Gedditoff!" demanded Wilykat, brushing at his hair...more in frustration than panic.

"Relax, dork," snorted Fuzzball. "It's just a kitty."

"Good, you can have it," said the Thundercat bitterly, untangling little claws from his mane - incurring a few scratches as he did so - and dropping it on the Snarf's back. The little white cat made a hiss of indignation and bit his fingers before bouncing off Fuzzball's back and running to hide behind the sabertooth.

"Guys!" said Gatotrueno with an exaggerated sigh. "Here, kitty, I'll take care of you," she continued, stooping to scoop up the feline. Fumbling for a little jerky she had put in a pocket, she offered it to the little animal who sniffed the treat a bit before eating it.

But the cat tensed up a bit as the two humanoids arrived. The shark-like one grinned in shark-like manner as he turned to Gatotrueno. "Good! You found my snack!"

"That's not a snack! I think it's JetKitten!" huffed the tiger a little as he caught up. Yelling and running at the same time took a lot of oxygen.

"Nah, players are people," grinned Shark, liking his lips.

"Who says?" asked Gatotrueno. "Maybe it *is* a player! Hey, kitty, are you JetKitten?"

"Rowr," said the kitten, looking intently at the sabertooth.

"Looks intelligent enough to me," said Gato, sticking her tongue out at Shark.

"Looks like Shark food to me," countered the shark-creature.

"Okay...OKAY! Let's *assume* it's JetKitten until we can find someone who can absolutely, positively identify her," said the tiger. "In the meantime, we can introduce ourselves...I'm Ruka."

"Shark," muttered Shark, sulking a little at the loss of his meal.

"Gatotrueno, protector of kittens," grinned Gato. "And all-round fun-lover of course!"

"Wilykat...adult version," said Wilykat. "I go by the name 'Cadimus' on the mailing list."

"Fuzzball," said the Snarf, grinning evilly.

"Aaaaaaaaaand....JETKITTEN!" cried Gatotrueno, hoisting up the feline who yeowled in displeasure, but didn't struggle. Evidently, she preferredGato's enthusiasm to the likelyhood of being eaten.

"So what do we do now?" asked Ruka. "Keep walking?"

"I don't know, we're not getting anywhere fast," said Wilykat.

"And more of you miserable cats keep coming in!" ranted Fuzzball. "Tyrants! Oppressors! You will be ground beneath my furry foot!"

"Ignore him," grinned Gato, "he's trying to stay in character."

"Well if more of us keep showing up, maybe we should think of camping for the night," suggested Ruka. "I doubt a fire will be safe out here unless we can find a way to contain it, but maybe we can find a way to signal other players. The more people we can gather together, the more likely we are to discover exactly what it is we're supposed to be doing. Most games come with manuals...I can't even figure out how to quit if I need to."

Fuzzball dropped out of character momentarily. "You have a point," he mused, "maybe it *would* be best to set up an informal camp. At least untill we know if anyone else is going to show up."

"Okay, but Jet's staying with me!" said Gatotrueno. Shark shot her a glare.

"We're all agreed?" asked Ruka. He was met by nods from the rest of the group. "Then let's see what we have in these packs to make a comfortable place for the night."

*********************

"Shhh..."

"What is it," whispered the young Thunderian.

"Skycutter..."

The pair hunkered down, intently listening to discover from which direction the sound was coming.

"There!" said the elder, pointing out a black speck on the horizon. "Quick, run for the woods!" He ran for the forest with the girl close behind him. He felt a little responsible for her, having come across her as she came out of Bast's antechamber. Besides, she was obviously modelled after the Thunderkittens and he'd always had a soft spot for the twins.

They hunkered down in the bushes and waited as the vehicle passed overhead. Perhaps they could have dealt with the trouble. Perhaps they would have been left alone. Still, there was no sense in chancing anything dangerous until they knew more about this game.

"Wow...how did you know what it was?" asked the girl, her voice oddly muffled.

"I just listen...and I know," replied the player with the green and brown hair. He seemed disinclined to explain further so the girl quieted a moment. Then she turned to him again.

"What's your name? We didn't really get a chance to be introduced, you know."

"MDG Calypso578," he replied. "What's yours?"

"Can I just call you Calypso?" asked the girl. When he nodded, she continued. "I'm Wilycub. I'm just eleven, but I'm tough," she said with certainty. Then she paused and considered. "You know, your voice sounds funny here. Like you're talking through a blanket."

"You noticed," said MDG. "I've been wondering about that..."

"You're in the Forest of Silence. Don't make any sudden moves," Came a voice from behind the pair. "Just turn around slowly."

MDG Calypso578 and Wilycub turned to find themselves being tracked by the tip of an arrow. On the other end of the projectile, was an athletic young woman with dark hair and bright blue eyes. "I was strafed when I first got here," she explained. "Guess they think I'm a Warrior Maiden. I'm going to make *damned* sure that you're players. What's the name of Cheezey's mailing list?"

"Treasures of Thundera, of course," said the man with the mismatched eyes.

"Yeah...Treasures of Thundera," said Wilycub. "Although Cheezey calls herself 'Teinquirer' when she mails to it."

The woman lowered her bow. "Thanks. Sorry about that, but I really had to know. Name's Artemis...like the goddess. I'm an Avatar player."

"An Avatar?" asked Wilycub. "What's an Avatar?"

"Someone who has the powers of a chosen god...or goddess," explained Artemis. "But more importantly is where to go from here. This is the Forestof Silence, after all. You can barely hear yourself think, never mind hear an enemy approach. But the skycutters have been following me around and it's too open out on the plain."

"Well, we're safe enough here if they try to approach by vehicle," offered MDG. "Even if we don't hear them, I'll sense them. I'm part machine myself."

Artemis looked him over and frowned slightly. "You don't look it."

"The machine parts are some sort of bio-alloy as far as I can tell," shrugged MDG. "I'm still sorting it out myself. Have you been here long? I came out in a field and walked for hours before getting to the woods. Then Wilycub sort of...appeared."

"I just made my character a little while ago," clarified the young Thunderian.

"I've been here a while," replied the Avatar. "I was also in the field, but close enough to the woods. When I heard the buzz overhead, I waited to see what it was...stupid move. I *won't* be doing *that* again."

"You even sound like a goddess!" grinned Wilycub when Artemis had finished talking.

"What do you mean?" frowned the huntress.

"You sound very...I don't know...proper. And a little...well...notstuck-up, but you know what I mean."

"Aloof," supplied MDG Calypso578. "She's right you know."

Artemis flushed slightly. "I never even noticed...I don't mean to sound like I'm talking down to you."

"Actually, it makes sense," said MDG. "The goddess Artemis had her pride and self-worth; it's only right that her Avatar reflect it. Mind you, you might have to remind some people of the fact...I've run into a few players with their own pride and self-worth."

"Actually, you make me think of Xena. She sort of sounds that way too," said Wilycub. "She's knows she's good at what she does so she sounds really confident." The young cat paused, lost in thought. "So what do we do now? I mean, I don't think we should go *too* far...even if Mutants *are*involved. After all, if three of us showed up in that field then maybe there'll be more of us and they might need to be warned about the Mutants. They won't have Calypso there to identify the skycutters."

"Good point," said Artemis. "Well, I have some forest-related skills, you, Wilycub, obviously has some cat-talents such as night sight and good hearing, and you, Calypso, say you can identify vehicles before you can see them. Maybe we can set up a little camp on the verge of the forest and keep an eye out for newcomers."

"But how can I hear an enemy and Calypso hear a vehicle if we're in the Forest of Silence?" asked Wilycub.

"I see what she's getting at," said MDG. "If we stay near the edge we shouldn't be in full silence. Things will be muffled, like our voices, but we should still be able to hear."

"Although we'll have to remain on full alert," added Artemis.

"Sounds like a plan," nodded the cyborg in consent. Wilycub agreed. "Let's dig through our packs and see what we can find to make a shelter."

*********************