Chapter One: Into the Lion's Den



It was late in the evening… The city lights illuminated the well-worn streets; revealing only darkness and silence.  A solitary figure moved through the welcome stillness, keeping to the shadows to avoid being seen.  The figure was a young woman; a hooded cloak obscured most of her face and covered her body entirely.  She was protectively cradling a sleeping boy to her chest and her steps wer5e quick and meaningful.  She had a rendezvous to make.  The kid had been stubborn and said that he could make the twenty-mile journey, which was ridiculous, seeing hat he was only six.  So the woman had ended up lugging him along for the past nineteen miles, which had slowed her down considerably.    Now she was going to be late.  Again. She rounded a corner and smirked victoriously; finally she was almost at her goal; she was almost at the finish line of her extensive trek. After taking a few steps forward, she slipped silently through the door; which was askew on it’s hinges; into the chilly dimness of the run-down shack.  She let out a relieved sigh and shifted the boy so that she could lower her hood, freeing her bouncy, short cut hair.  But her hair wasn’t the only thing released.  Her two black cat ears spring to attention, the pressure of the hood no longer holding them prisoner.  She sighed again and closed her visible golden eye.  Her ears twitched in different directions, glad to be free, and something underneath her cloak swished back and fourth.  The ears twitched in alarm as deep chuckle shattered the silence.  But other then her ears, the woman didn’t twitch.  She only shifted the boy into a more comfortable position and tilted her head slightly to one side with a relaxed grin on her lips. “Hello Greg, it’s been a while.”  Her golden eyes opened and flashed to the door where a pair of radiant neon-green eyes hovered.  
“So it has been…”  A light flicked on, and the woman squinted against the offending rays of light.  After the few agonizing seconds it took for her eyes to adjust, she made sure the boy was still sound asleep before turning back to Greg, who had a satisfied smile on his face.  “It’s nice to see you again Sage.  It’s been, what, two…three years since I last saw you?  You’ve changed allot” Greg went on, eyeing Sage’s cat ears, eyes and tail, not to mention the natural silver and blue of her hair. “But remember…”  He smiled charmingly as he stood in front of her. “You’ll always be Ms. Cute to me! The only girl who can get out of trouble with just one look…”  She grinned, revealing her large canines.
“I could say the same for you, computer boy.”  She replied sweetly, her eyes lingering on the dark green streaks in his auburn hair, his glowing green eyes, and his gloved right arm, mostly covered by his trench-coat. Greg unconsciously placed his left hand on the covered wrist, but Sage didn’t seen to notice.
“Is that the kid?”  Greg asked, his voice taut.  Sage nodded and smiled down at the sleeping boy, brushing his bangs away from his closed eyes. ”I do hate to be the one ruining the mood…but we should get down to business.”  Sage’s face hardened.
“Right…” She muttered.
“What’s the time frame?”  Sage shrugged.
“An hour to an hour and a half.”  Greg’s shoulders sagged.
“That’s all?”  He gasped with wide neon eyes.  “How can you expect me to break into such a high-tech place in such little time?  They’ve probably got at least thirty different locks, security systems, cameras, and who knows what else!”  He groaned. “It’s impossible.”
“Maybe so…”  Sage sassed, a wide grin spreading across her face.  “But we’re going in through the front doors.”

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          “What am I suppose to call you again?”  Greg skeptically asked as they approached what appeared to be a perfectly normal building.  Sage let out an exasperated sigh.  This was not the first time he had asked.
“They call me “CopyCat” here.  They don’t even know my real name.  Aren’t you supposed to have photographic and auditorial memory?”
“I do…but it’s kind of a stupid name.”  Sage only shrugged.
“I didn’t name myself.  HE gave me the name, and it fits.”  She shrugged again.
“Okay then.  So I’m…Techno?”
“Yep.”
“…I guess I like that…”
“You’d better.”  They stopped talking at that point, for they had just walked through the doors of the building.  The receptionist, a pretty woman with blond hair and sun-browned skin looked up at their approach.
“Hello CopyCat, what brings you back to our facility so soon?  And you even brought little Eclipse!”  She smiles at the boy in CopyCat’s arms, who was now awake and staring around with wide deep blue eyes.
“Well, you see, I’m having problems with my computer, and I wanted my friend, Techno, to take a look at it.  You know how I hate people touching my stuff!”  The blond woman nodded.
“Crypto is still recovering from that shock you gave him last time!”  She laughed lightly, and CopyCat joined in. Techno just looked a bit disturbed by the conversation.
“Well, he needed to learn some manners!”  The woman laughed again and waved at the group as she buzzed them through the door.  As soon as Techno was sure they were out of earshot, he let out a sigh of relief.
“That was easy.”  He commented.  CopyCat only grimaced.
“It’s not getting in that I’m worried about…it’s getting out.”  Techno looked warily at CopyCat, but nodded.  They continued down the hallway, and at the end CopyCat pressed a hidden switch, revealing another passageway.    This new hallway was different.  The hall they were leaving had a homey feeling; this new one was plain and white. Uninviting.  As they hurried down it, CopyCat’s arms tightened uncomfortably around Eclipse, as did his hold on her shirt.  They knew what went on behind the doors of this foreboding corridor.  After what seemed like hours, but was really only a few minutes, CopyCat turned to a door and rapidly typed a code into the keypad. The door slid open with an ominous hiss and CopyCat pushed Techno through it before it could close.  Techno was in sock.
“This…….. Does…..  Not compute…”  He softly murmured, staring wide-eyed at the extraordinary sight in front of him.  A pair of large violet irises glared at him with venom in their depths…