"UP! GET UP!" a woman’ voice screamed. The twins jolted awake with a start. The door was wide open, and a policewoman was standing in the doorway holding a pistol and wearing a flak jacket. Her free arm was motioning them violently to the door. Ricky groaned. Both of their shoulders and necks were as sore as heck, having slept in chairs.

"GET UP! NOW! FOLLOW ME!"

They stumbled off the chairs, only half-awake. The woman shook her head impatiently and waved her pistol fiercely.

"We’ve got about a minute to escape!" she shouted at the disgruntled twins. As she said this, the concussion of a blast was heard and they felt the floor shake for a second. This woke them up right away, or at least enough to keep up with the policewoman. As they ran into the hallway, they caught a quick glance at the lobby. It was dark outside, but flames leaped up here and the sounds of shouting, gunfire, and bashing were very distinct. They raced down the corner and they heard the shattering of glass and the sounds of the angry mob magnified. They turned several corners, down three flights of stairs and then they stopped at a big door that seemed to be secured by several complex locks. The sounds of the riot were heard even here. The policewoman reached at her key chain and swiped several cards across the locks.

They stepped into a concrete room lined with benches and cots. The dim light was provided by fluorescent lamps, which cast long, curious shadows. They saw several other people here. They recognized Gerardo Montague right away, who was twisting in the corner, tied down to keep him from getting up. There were also a few rough-looking fellows along the benches who just grunted at the arrival of the twins. The policewoman caught her breath and sat down.

"Okay…" she began, "This place is under attack…the riot has reached a point where not even we can control it…the military is coming as of now. This is a safe room. We have stocked this place with enough food for at least a week for twice as many people as us. Any questions?"

Krause gulped and dared to speak out, "What exactly was the cause of the riot?"

The policewoman eyed him curiously, "Where do you live? Under a rock?"

"Yes! I live under a rock!" In truth, that was near the fact. In Einesville, news spread like molasses on a winter morning. Flint had sheltered them, he didn’t get the newspaper, nor did they have a TV. Ricky now knew why this was so, as the novelty of seeing of the world had worn off in that accursed desert. All he wanted to do now was to go home, away from cities, mobs, deserts, pigs…

"You see, Mr. Enrich Flavor, the mayor of this city for you rock dwellers, has been slandered in recent years. Things have been said about him that had been unheard of since Montoli took his short term in office. Rumors like deals with evil for power, trading his soul for immortality, and the worst of all, making sacrifices to the reincarnation of the…Evil Mani-Mani," she spoke the strange name with a fearful chill in her voice, "Of course, none of this is true! In an attempt to stop the slander, he sent the police force to crack down on this and many were arrested. Nobody was too pleased about this. They began writing letters expressing their concern to the paper, some of which roused some movements. All of this must’ve made Mr. Enrich, God bless his poor soul, paranoid. He silenced the press and gained control of the local media. Undercover agents attempted to put an end to further slander, and Enrich even promised to bring back the press if they null their movements against him. All of this started a demonstration in front of the EF Tower. The marchers began throwing things, so he sent us to calm them, and complete chaos broke out. Four days later, here was are…"

Krause’s head now hurt even harder. How could these horrible things be allowed to happen? He felt the bile building up in his throat as he faintly heard helicopter blades and blasts from above, and an occasional scream.

"Why’d you guys wanna come here?" Gerardo asked from the corner.

Krause paused, "Remember? We need to meet some friends."

"No you don’t," the miner responded, "Nobody would want you to come here…they’ve been trying to evacuate since the demonstration. I see it on the highways. You may call me crazy, and maybe I am, but I know when somebody’s telling the truth or not."

"Then…why did you take us here?" Ricky asked, realizing there may be much more to this crazy old coot than met the eye…or not.

"When I saw two kids like you just lyin’ on the roadside, I knew you two weren’t just dropped there. You were too healthy, and there ain’t no bumps on your heads, contradicting what you said about being hit there. You two boys are on a mission. You’re here to do great things, maybe for the good of all! That’s why I let you hitch a ride with me. You’re destined to do succeed, and I suppose that I’ve played my part in it. Ricky and Krause Lee…"

Everything fell silent. The sounds of gunfire and helicopter blades were even dying down. This overly eccentric old miner, just six hours ago had rammed a police blockade with a tractor, had now spoke words of great wisdom, or at least they sounded like words of great wisdom. The gruff men nodded off to sleep, all of the talk obviously confusing their little brains. The twins got no more sleep that night. The miner with wisdom beyond comprehension had discovered their motive, and that was one more person that knew their secret, and one more person who could give it out and put an end to their quest and the free world. How did he find out their last name? What would happen now?

The Grand Hall was filled with literally thousands of pigs, all grunting and snorting things at each other. They had been pulled out of bed even earlier that morning and the common message was "Whatever got us out of bed at five better be worth it!" Suddenly there was a tremendous boom that shook the gigantic Hall. Floodlights now lit a small platform high above them, a large banner bearing the PORK Snout hanging from it. The Hall was filled with the din of pigs shuffling into their organized lines to hail the Speaker. However, the Speaker was no where to be seen. They began feeling a bit confused when some of them noticed a large spider-like object descending from the ceiling. It lowered down onto the platform and a huge silver screen was revealed below the banner.

"AL-L-L HAIL THE GOOD HUMAN!" a loudspeaker bellowed. There was a gasp of surprise among the ranks, but they raised their right hoof and marched in place for five seconds in a militaristic fashion. The screen now showed the shadow of a pudgy-looking face surrounded by what looked like the cockpit of the spider-machine.

"My good pigs," the silhouetted figure said in a squeaky yet strangely intimidating voice, "You have been congregated for a truly special occasion!"

The pigs snorted loudly in unison as a hail.

"Our King has won a major battle in our cause to reclaim the world! No longer stands Flint Lee, the Guardian of the Targets and once the most powerful member in the bloodline of the Chosen One! A most painful thorn in our sides has been removed! Rejoice!"

There was a wild cheer from the organized ranks of pigs, stomping and snorting. A raised hand from the figure silenced it all as if a howitzer were pointed at them.

"Indeed, this is a watermark in our path to inevitable success. The Target Children are on the move! They are weak, vulnerable, and without that bothersome Flint to hide them under his wretched wing!"

The pigs snorted in salute.

"The Subtlety Phase is over. Yes, the need for secrecy has become obsolete! We shall show the thieving humans who the righteous owners of this world are! The gates to the Promised Time are clear! We shall avenge our ancestors, who were raised in slavery, their whole lives waiting for the day of their slaughter!"

The wild salutes were raised once again, and silenced in the same way.

"The Time is drawing ever nearer! Soon we will regain our rightful place in this world, and the humans will stand alongside the slime slaves in status! We shall have power, and punish the humans for their vile deeds!"

The wild hooting and snorting started up once again, but the figure did not silence it that time.

"Pigs, my comrades! Go forth! Grab your weapons and get into your ranks, for the true war begins today…the war for freedom! The war for vengeance! The world shall see the day the Snout rises over the pathetic populace of humans! Go forth and fight for not only the present, but avenge the past and pave the stones for the future!"

The pigs had been stirred into a wild frenzy. Already they were dashing out of the doors to the armory, their ranks now forgotten. Slowly, the spider-machine floated up whence it came, the speaker cackling maniacally.

The streets were surprisingly intact, considering what happened the night before. Most of the tall buildings lining them, however, were damaged in some way. The Eagleland Domestic Peace Force helicopters were out in the streets and police along with some soldiers marched about the streets. The smell of gunpowder, smoke, and hints of blood were still in the early morning air. Ricky and Krause surveyed the carnage, rubbing their eyes and yawning. They had been informed that a combined effort of police and military saved the EF Tower from complete destruction, but sadly, half of the Police Station had burned down and a few city blocks had been pillaged and defaced. Men, women and children dug through the wreckage silently in hopes of finding things (theirs or otherwise). The megaplex shopping center The Grand was left unscathed, but closed down for weeks. Topolla Theater had canceled the M.C.D.C. tour, much to the disappointment of many, and several of the Fourside Museum of Natural History’s exhibits were ransacked. It wasn’t the kind of Fourside that Ricky and Krause had read and heard about at all! Gerardo Montague was acting much unlike last night, looking around and swinging his fists violently, mumbling things about what would happen when he got his hands on the person who started the riot. As they rounded the corner of what used to be a block filled with tourist shops and cafés, they saw a funny little old man in a white lab coat sitting on a bench and talking with another man with big glasses and thick blond hair. The fat man turned around when the twins and the miner approached.

"What are kids like you doing out here in a place like this?" he said in an odd British accent, "But how rude of me. I am Dr. Andonuts. How do you do?"

"Dr. Andonuts? You…what are you doing in a place like this?" Ricky asked, his eyes wide. The professor cocked his head inquisitively, "You know about me?"

"Yeah!" Krause exclaimed, "Dad…I mean Uncle Flint, told me about how you created a machine that caused a flux in the space-time continuum! Whatever that’s supposed to mean…"

The other man cleared his throat and said in a strange nasal accent, "Well, his Phase Distorter device could cause a disorder in the very fabrics of time and space, thus allowing fairly easy travel through all four dimensions. Of course, due to some undeniable psychics, this destroys life and is very dangerous to attempt. However, for the sake of the world, I and - "

"It’s a time-traveling device, but despite the rumors, it was never completed," Dr. Andonuts cut in sharply, "Run along now…Gerardo? Is it…?"

The miner raised an eyebrow, then an astonished smile split his rough face.

"I remember you! It’s been…twenty years! I found Apple Kid and…wait a minute…you’re…Holy crap!"

The three of them broke into a conversation that sounded like a lot of chattering, and not something you’d expect when all three of them seemed highly intelligent.

"Hello!" Krause exclaimed rather rudely. The three stopped, but the blonde guy seemed to trail on about how Xexonyte was only found in certain places with high concentrations of magnesium.

"Oh, that’s right! I never caught your names. What are they then?" Dr. Andonuts asked. The twins introduced themselves and the blonde guy introduced himself as Jerry, son of Dr. Andonuts.

"Wait a minute, I don’t remember your name being Jerry, I remember you saying that…" Gerardo began, but Dr. Andonuts kicked him very conspicuously and he was cut off.

"It’s really a pleasure to meet both of you!" Ricky said in an almost cheerful tone. Jerry (or whatever he was really called) gave a toothy grin, revealing rather out-of-place braces.

"What brings you to such an…inhospitable place such as this? And with these children too?" Dr. Andonuts asked skeptically. Gerardo paused.

"You see, we just hitched a ride here just before that riot. We’re here to meet some people for a flight to eh, Summers," Krause forced a chuckle, "But I guess they left like all the others!"

"Hm…really? You look like you just took a long journey. You have black around your eyes, your shoes look very worn, and you’re backpacks are filled with some…rather interesting stuff. Are you sure?" Jerry asked.

"We had to walk the whole way," Ricky sighed, "And what with the riot and all, I’m wondering if anybody got sleep!"

Everybody strained a laugh.

Gerardo spoke. "Now answer me a question, please. What in the Sam Hill are you two doing here?"

"Well, we were requested permission to test some of Dr. Andonuts…dad’s latest developments in aerospace technologies around here," Jerry answered.

"Actually," Andonuts cut in, "it would be a lie to say it was all my development. The basis was scavenged from the desert southwest of here. But how very rude of me! Would you mind coming with me to a better place to continue this conversation?"

Ricky and Krause couldn’t imagine that there could be a better place to talk when the city was in that kind of condition. However, they followed the odd scientists and the miner across blocks with buildings towering above them. They passed the still burning Fourside Museum of Natural History, it’s high classic style blemished by graffiti and burn marks. Right across the street was the huge Topolla Theater, which seemed to have taken little damage. They passed in silence until it seemed they had left the better part of town behind. Everywhere they looked they saw old buildings that looked like they were crumbling before the incident. Ricky and Krause began feeling sick to their stomachs seeing all of the destruction and hearing the cries and moans of loss and despair. Before they knew it, they stopped at a small building. It bore a sign that said:

JACKIE’S CAFÉ (Yes, we’re open)

They stepped in and were immediately assaulted by the smell of cigarettes. It was a small, dark place with a few tables and a bar. The only other life that seemed to be in there was a middle-aged man with graying hair and an eye-patch wiping off the bar counter with a rag and a fat woman sitting in the corner smoking a thick cigar and holding a wine glass. The man behind the counter jumped at their arrival.

"Hey!" he said with a kind of 1930’s gangster accent, "I canna’ believe it! All you’s showin’ up at once…hey, kiddos? Whatcha’ doin’ in a spot like this? You lose yer innocence if ya’ come into these places!"

"Excuse me! How dare you assume we dwarfism-sufferers are children!" Krause replied in a gruff voice before anybody could answer.

"Yer don’t much look like a midget," the man laughed, "you’re lips’re too full. But I admire yer guts, kid. Just you’s order off another tap list, y’hear?"

They seated themselves on the stools and began talking while the bartender began making his way to the cocktail blender. Dr. Andonuts explained that the modified version of the aircraft found in the desert had no weaponry, but could travel at speed excess of 500 mph and could be steered with amazing ease.

"Wait a minute!" Krause blurted out as the scientist was explaining how it ran on a variety of protoplasm, "I think that sounds very familiar! Ricky! Remember Flint’s story-"

Ricky gave him a sharp glance, "Yeah! Our uncle said he saw something red streak across the sky while he was taking a desert hike!"

"Hey, wait a minute," Dr. Andonuts said, "Now your names are Ricky and Krause? And you said twice that your uncle’s name is Flint…why…one of my field colleagues must’ve crossed your path!"

The two twins looked at each other for a moment, then a light bulb turned on in Ricky’s brain.

"Hey! Remember that one girl that said ‘thanks!’ then just walked on past us?"

Krause thought for a moment, then his light bulb flipped on, "O-oh yeah…"

"My! What a manner of coincidence!" Dr. Andonuts chuckled, "Oh, Jackie, mix me your best lemon and cherry vodka, light on the lemon."

"That won’t be cheap!"

"I’ve got the money, good sir," the doctor replied, "So from what I hear, that craft belonged to your uncle, Flint? And he was being chased by…UFO’s?"

The twins looked at each other and nodded. Dr. Andonuts stroked his chin and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, wherever your uncle is now, I think it would be nice if you let him know that his craft was recovered. The times are getting weird again…before you know it, a bee’s going to come down and tell me I need to save the world from some bloody space invader!" he chuckled. Jerry glared at him and he shut up. "For any matter, I suppose it won’t hurt to let you see it. I mean it’s your uncle’s, isn’t it?"

The twins shot excited glances at each other, "You mean it?"

"This’ll be neat…" Gerardo smiled. It was amazing how long he had been quiet.

Violet stood at the kitchen window, washing her children’s dishes and humming a catchy tune. The sun was high in the desert sky and her husband was out at work in the mine. As she wiped off her authentic china bowl, she heard a shout from outside and dropped the bowl with a start.

"Oh crap!" she swore, stepping away from the beautiful shards on the floor. Another shout was heard.

"Everybody run away! We’re being attacked!"

Violet’s ears perked up and she gave a gasp. My children! Desperately, she grabbed a frying pan from the counter and ran out the door, not bothering to even close it. Her neighbors were bustling about in the hard dirt street, some screaming and running, others going towards the shouting to see what the hays was actually happening. She spotted Mr. Marcus, the teacher at the schoolhouse.

"Mr. Marcus! What’s happening? Have you seen my children?" she shouted to him as he ran by, huffing and puffing in the merciless heat.

"I don’t know more than you do, Mrs. Raleigh…but…they wouldn’t sound the alarm for nothing! Most likely monsters from the (pant) Deep Dunes…" he kept running. Violet gave an exasperated groan and ran towards the shouting. She came to the end of the residential block, passed the church, and reached the edge of town. She finally slowed down when she realized how hot it was. The boy in the rickety watchtower was hollering the evacuation orders with a bullhorn, but Violet did not see what he was talking about. Suddenly, however, an arrow hit her frying pan with a clank. She gasped and turned with a jerk. What she saw was very bizarre indeed. A pig in a suit of high medieval armor half-behind the stone wall surrounding the town was knocking an arrow to his bow with a fiendish grin just 30 yards away. Violet’s eyes grew wide with shock, and another pig jumped up from behind the wall and shot a blazing arrow at the wooden watchtower. The pig released his arrow, which landed in the sand just feet away from a fleeing Violet. She gasped, because from behind the little church and the outlying shanty came four pigs, standing upright and holding strange, hooked pole-arms.

"What did you do to my children, you…pigs!?" she demanded, trying to sound brave as they drew in closer. She raised her frying pan, but she was quickly surrounded. The pigs wasted no time. They pinned her with their hooks and a whole lot of violent grunting and snorting.

"Let me go!" she screamed, "Let me go!"

Nobody heeded her, but the largest pig knelt beside her and snorted, "Be still," before knocking her out with a clout in the head with his hoof. They raised their hooked weapons and the pig that had knocked her out effortlessly slung her unconscious body over his shoulder and led his little platoon behind the church.

Faraway, a private conference was being held. At the head of the long table, shrouded in darkness, sat the one the pigs called "Good human." Closest to him, but still about ten feet away, sat his two most trusted lieutenants, Atilla and Leif. (Names aren’t a coincidence) Then sat his generals, big, bulky boars wearing legionnaire-style steel armor and great swords and axes on their backs. After that were his advisors and other high-ranking officers. The Good Human sipped his glass of lemonade and began speaking in his high-pitched yet commanding voice.

"My hogs, and sows, I have assembled you here on the course of action I just declared. The Pig King has felled Flint, and now we have a chance to capture or kill those bothersome children. The fifteenth infantry unit, which I personally dispatched on an aircraft carrier a week ago, has marched into Coal Town. They will hold it for three days and interrogate to their heart’s content. Thus begins the search…no stone goes unturned. The humans shall get the retribution they deserve. In moments I shall give you each orders. Before that, I would appreciate any comments on the matter."

An advisor, who was quick to grunting, stood up, cleared his throat and snorted something that would be about the equivalent to "My liege, with all due respects, do you believe this is truly appropriate? We are searching for two freaking humans! Legions of soldiers will attract national attention, and it will surely lead to total war. What could a mangy human possibly do to upset so much?"

"This, my good pig," the Good Human said coldly. Suddenly a gunshot was heard, and a bullet flew out from the darkness and the advisor gave a squeal of pain before falling dead to the floor. There was utter silence as the Good Human blew away the smoke from his magnum.

"I have dealt with the Chosen Ones before. Many times, actually. This ‘mangy human’ comes from the direct bloodline of two of the strongest. He has yet to realize his true potential," the Good Human made a pause to emphasize his words, "And we’re not going to let him live to realize it. Will there be any more questions or comments?"

Nobody said a word this time, so the Human continued, "General Orville, you are given command over the Frontal Assault Units. You shall move to South Eagleland, crush any resistance and establish a base at a position you find fit. General Wilbur, you are given command over the Guerrilla Strike Force. You are to move into North Eagleland, secure the borders and attack and move in, eradicating any suspicious persons as I command. General Winslow, you are in command of the Naval Forces. You are to seize any ships going into and out of Eagleland, search for suspicious cargo and persons of stuff that may be useful. Finally, General Marcus, you are in command of the Air Fleet. You are to seize the airports in Eagleland and make sure no planes lift off and patrol the skies for any designated targets. Lieutenants, you’re to come with me. I bid everybody a farewell and a good afternoon."

"Light…" Espeon gasped. He struggled over another rock and trudged forward. After what he estimated to be four days, he finally caught a glimpse of daylight ahead of him. SD grunted gutturally and climbed up the rock behind him, carrying Boney under his small but strong arms. The odd party squeezed into the narrowing passage and trudged on, the light steadily drawing nearer. Finally Espeon, SD and Boney felt the hot desert breeze against their faces and the intense sun on their bodies. Their eyes finally adjusted to the intense light and Boney barked happily at their success.

"Thank the Lord…" Espeon gasped in relief, looking up towards the sky, "I thought I would never feel the sun again…I am sorry, Grandmother, and Flint..."

SD dropped his heavy pack and looked up at the sky, grinning. What a sucker! He’s too caught up in what he calls "honor" to actually acknowledge the fact that we managed to find our way our way out of that cave in one piece!

Boney let out a long bark. They turned to see the dog atop of a nearby sand dune, looking intently downwards. SD and Espeon scrambled up the small dune and saw, to their surprise, the almost identical view of Coal Town that they had seen almost three weeks ago. But something was different. From the middle of the little ramshackle of shanties there stood a tall flagpole bearing the flag that they knew all so well, a large pink pig’s snout on a red field. Smoke rose from places, and a group armored pigs marched through the streets.

"They…captured it! The irony…" Espeon gasped. SD grunted and whipped out his crossbow, but then thought for a moment and put it back, hissing softly. The town was still at least 200 yards away, and maybe they could pass as ignorant travelers…maybe. SD adjusted his pack and began to descend the dune, followed by the intrepid Espeon and Boney. Suddenly, from behind a rock came a hog. He wore only a helmet and trousers, but carried a long spear that he gestured threateningly with. Boney growled and got down as if ready to rip the fiend’s head off.

"Who you be!?" the hog grunted, waving his weapon at each of them.

"P-pig…we are tired wanderers seeking a place to stay. Can you accommodate two humble people and a dog?" Espeon blurted out. He had used this one many times already.

The hog snorted, "Me don’t like you. You dethroned and enslaved us. Boss will decide if you be useful or not."

Before he could do anything else, SD put a crossbow bolt into the pig’s left breast. He gave a sharp squeal and fell into the sand.

"I guess it’s the end of subtlety now," Espeon sighed, "They’ve decided kidnapping and guerrilla tactics aren’t enough. Well, what are we to do now?"

SD just gave his standard guttural grunt and cocked his crossbow.

"Yeah…whatever. Three months of searching for this gold mine and we kill a really buff guy and two of his kids while possibly provoking a total blood war. Now if it weren’t for me, the world wouldn’t half as screwed as it’s gonna be. What do you say we just forget about saving this stupid planet? That kid with the rock is most likely dead –or worse by now. And he was the last hope. So let’s just wait it out until these pigs accomplish their goal and live up to it. If we could do anything I -"

A strong blow cut him off. He let out a shout and grabbed his arm. SD was looking at him, alarm and anger in his eyes. He shook his head violently, then grunted and motioned with his crossbow to the flag in the middle of the town and shook his head again. With lots of grunting, he spread his arms out and beheld the terrain around him, then pointed back at the flag and shook his head once more. They saw tears welling in his eyes as he pointed the crossbow at Espeon and grunted again. He pointed to the town, thrust his fist into the air and let out a long breath, as if to sound a war cry. Espeon slowly took his hand from where SD had hit him.

"You may not be able to talk at all…" he said, trying to suppress his tears at SD’s powerful message without words, "You’ve inspired me…the hit helped. The world as we know it may end, but I’m not about to just watch it happen!"

Boney barked, as if he knew what they were saying.

"Okay, now how are we gonna liberate a whole town occupied by a legion of pigs?" Espeon realized.

"Hm…you either seem to know something I don’t and are being stubborn, or you’re as ignorant as you claim to be. I doubt you know as much as you’re saying you know," the dark man said coolly, pacing back and forth in front of Violet’s chair. He ran his fingers through jet-black hair and swept his profile across the little room.

"I…don’t know any of this! Please!" Violet said.

"Hm…now I remember," the dark man said with a smirk, "We have your children. They’re fine for the moment. We can change that fairly easily."

"You…demon! I have no clue what you’re talking about! I did not see two twins with a guy in a cowboy hat! Now let me go!" she shouted at him, trying to sound intimidating from her helpless position. The dark man just frowned.

"Now your usefulness has come to an end," he said coldly, "at least information-wise. But you could help us…you could be great."

"Why would I want to help you and a bunch of pigs?" Violet hissed, rocking slightly forward in her chair. The dark man just ran his fingers through his hair again and frowned.

"Okay. You folks are rather stubborn. I’ve already gone through three today and it’s all been the same. I’ll make this simple," the man reached for his belt and flipped open a switchblade and brandished it fancily, "You see this here? I could quite easily take it and…"

With a quick motion, he spun around and stuck it into a beheaded chicken hanging from the ceiling. The knife went right through it and the fowl fell with a thump to the ground. Violet gasped.

"Do exactly what I did to that chicken on those closest to you. I’m not bluffing. I’ve done it before and I can most certainly do it again," he said with a little laugh, "Of course, if you accept my generous offer…that won’t happen at all. Quite the contrary, you will be promoted to an officer or official of some sort and be spared when the Time of Vengeance arrives, in which pigs will regain their righteous place and put your brethren back in line."

Violet rocked her chair violently, "What have they done to you? I don’t want any part of this! You let my family go! UGH!"

"I want a yes or no answer. Let me give you a quick recap. Yes, I will join the Pigs means you will not only be rewarded, but your kin will be as well. No, I will never join ‘you demons!’ means that if the pigs want to let you live, you’ll work as a slave on the opposite end of the world making boxes and toilet paper rolls for fifteen hours a day, no weekends, sick time, vacation, or pay. It’s your call, because frankly, I don’t give a dog’s crap what you’ll become. I’m just doing my job here."

Violet fell silent, anger and fear in her eyes. Finally, she spat out "I’m joining you!"

"Okay. I’ll let you go, honey…" the man said mockingly, "but if you’re not living up to that promise…"

He grinned and gave the universal slit-throat gesture. He cut her ropes free and pointed towards the door.

"Tell them what you’ve decided to do and sign your name. Next!"

Espeon peeked out from behind the low wall.

"Six pigs. They seem to be actually doing their job," he reported in a whisper to SD. He looked up again, "Lightly armed. We might be able to take them out, but not without causing attention. We’re gonna just have to sneak around them."

SD grunted softly in reply. Espeon moved towards the first few buildings, crouched down. SD followed on his hands and knees, then Boney, who was muzzled by Espeon’s belt as to not attract any attention. They ducked behind a shanty and waited. Espeon took a look around the corner and saw that it was clear. They went on like this until they reached the third shanty, which had voices coming from the open window. Espeon craned his neck to look inside. It looked like the window to a small storage room. A tall, well-dressed man with jet-black hair stood looming over the fat barmaid that he remembered from when he met Flint. SD stood on his tiptoes and peered through as well.

"No…I ain’t heard of anyone like that! Please…you like beer? Or coffee perhaps? I can…"

"I’m the one who does the bribing around here, you tubby hick!" the man said, "And I know that you’re lying. That Flint busted a 24-pack and got drunk as a skunk that night. Perhaps I need to freshen up your memory a bit…"

The man grinned evilly as he flipped a shiny switchblade and held it up to the barmaid’s chin.

"Oh Lord!" she said, "I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you! I heard that he was heading off to find gold, then he decided to get drunk and trash my establishment! I wanted to tell him to pay for property damage, but I ain’t goin’ near someone that dangerous! Not even my bouncer tried stoppin’ him!"

"Now you’ve got to know more than that…now tell me about those twins he was with. We’re getting a good idea of where they may be. And we’re pretty darn sure it’s not anywhere far from here. Now you must know something about this…"

"I swear! I don’t know where they are! Just leave me be!"

"You make me sad," the cruel man said drawing the knife closer and closer to her neck. She gave a scream. Suddenly, a twang was heard. The man turned just in time to see a little man literally standing in the window and duck to avoid a crossbow bolt.

"SD! No!" Espeon said, a bit too late.

"Who are you!?" the man demanded, waving his switchblade. SD gave him a sneer and grunted sharply as he jumped to the floor with a thud.

"You stay here, woman!" he man hissed, "Guards! Intruders are attacking!"

With that, he pocketed his switchblade and rushed out the door.

"Hurry up! We need to get outta’ this place!"

SD shook his head frantically and pointed to the barmaid, who looked on the verge of fainting.

"Forgot…"

Espeon jumped in, grabbed his utility knife, and began cutting at her bonds as SD reloaded his crossbow. The door burst down and armored pigs advanced into the little room, spears in hand. SD dispatched one with a well-aimed bolt, but soon they were being cornered by the pigs’ long weapons. The barmaid fainted as a pig snorted at her fiercely. Espeon skillfully cut her bonds and grabbed her by the arm. He turned to rush out the window, but he realized the woman was too heavy. With a groan, he dropped her unconscious body to the floor and darted out the window, grabbing SD just as he nailed another hog in the face. The pigs snorted fiercely behind them as they vaulted over the tiny wall and retreated to the safety of the desert.

Boney looked as the dwarf and the tall man rushed off over the wall and into the desert. He gave a whimper behind his muzzle, but the air reeked of pigs. He needed to catch up with them somehow. He pawed at his muzzle harder than before, and amazingly, it slipped off. He gave a bark of joy. This joy was short-lived, however, because he could now see pigs running the same way the two people were, snorting Catch the mangy humans! or Kill the humans!

Boney had too many encounters with those foul creatures, so he turned to run like any sensible animal. The pigs seemed to not notice him as they hopped over the wall and passed right by him. It then occurred to him that they were after the humans. He stopped for a moment and considered his options:

1. Sit here and be possibly hurt by pigs
2. Save the humans who muzzled me and get hurt my pigs
3. Find some good food and/or water and eat/drink in the shade

He decided option three was the best of the lot, so he turned around and headed back towards town.

"Stop where you are! You’re surrounded!" a voice boomed from the little flying saucer that swooped down from seemingly nowhere in front of Espeon and SD. They looked around them and realized that they were. Pigs were all around them holding their spears and strange catching poles at ready. SD began to load his crossbow again, but Espeon stopped him firmly.

"Yes! We see that!" Espeon shouted back at the saucer. The pigs began to advance towards them, grunting and smiling in a sinister manner.

"Drop your weapons and put your hands on the ground!" the voice commanded again. Espeon turned and winked and his friend, who was grunting and giving him a very cross look. Espeon cast aside his whip gingerly, even though this action betrayed his nervousness. Casually, he scratched his arm. SD looked around and began lowering his crossbow defiantly.

"At them!" the voice from the saucer said. The pigs were now in a full charge, closing in at thirty…twenty feet and snorting violently. Espeon gulped and tugged at his sleeve frantically. With just seconds to lose, a small metal ball slid into his hand.

"SD! Take a deep breath and close your eyes!" he shouted quickly to his intrepid friend as he cast down the shiny ball. As it hit the sand, there was a great blast as mace gas shot in jets out from the little sphere. The pigs stopped in their tracks and began squealing as the stuff covered their faces and the parts of their body not covered by sparse armor. Confusion broke out, and Espeon was lucky to grab SD’s arm and beat an expeditious retreat through the panicked crowd of swine. The voice from the saucer was shouting some kind of orders, but it was all drowned out by the screams and utter confusion of the pigs. Finally, the sting in Espeon and SD’s eyelids receded, and they stumbled to the hot sand, gasping for sweet breath. SD climbed to his feet and looked back. A cloud of red gas was a mere one hundred feet or so away. The noise of pigs rolling on the ground in pain was still very prominent, as was the loudspeaker on the flying saucer trying in vain to restore order.

"We’ve…gotta…get further away," Espeon gasped as he climbed to his feet and began to take off running again. SD grunted and followed as fast as his small legs could carry him. They dashed behind a tall rock and plopped down in the limited shade it provided.

"Well…we got away…well enough. I don’t think they’ll bother sending anybody out to chase us…hopefully."

It seemed they had forgotten all about Boney. But you probably would too if you had just made a mad dash for your life, leaving behind an animal that seemed to just slow you down and eat your food. They had run several hundred yards and were tired to say the least. SD finally grunted and reached into his large backpack to pull out the map of the surrounding region and unfold it.

"Uh…do you mean to say ‘So where are we gonna go now?’ "

SD nodded and pointed to the dot they were at on the map. The town of Craggy Cliffs was about forty miles or so west of where they were now. To the east there was nothing but desert for almost two hundred miles until they hit a little hick town called Einesville. North was just desert as far north as the Border River, and to the south there was vast wasteland until Snowy Mountains and the ocean. They had visited Craggy Cliffs on their way to Coal town. It was a cute place built just eight years ago by some wealthy tourism monopoly at the joining of three railroad tracks. It sported buildings that seemed to be right out of a western movie and came complete with locals dressed in cowboy attire. From what Espeon read on a billboard there, plans for a theme park were beginning to be put into action.

"Let’s go back to Craggy Cliffs. Then maybe we could take a train to Rockwell and get ourselves back home."

SD grunted in agreement as he folded the map back up. With that, they continued on their less-than-merry way without as much as looking back with their stinging eyes.

The dark man was sitting in the dark, empty hostel lobby. His thoughts weren’t in Coal Town, to say the least. With the strange dwarf that had tried killing him in mind, he began to channel his intellect.

"ESP Clairvoyance…sight beyond sight…" he muttered. The world around him dissipated in a flash of light. Soon he saw the dwarf that with the crossbow trudging through the sands, grunting to himself. In front of the dwarf was the young man who had tried to stop him from shooting the crossbow.

"Who…why…?" he muttered again, focusing on those two questions. A voice, his inner awareness he called it, said softly, The dwarf is called Sorakakarikaquaz Dzilkharegh. The boy is named Espeon Jeffery Ignatious…they are supporters of those who wish to topple the PORK. Heading to a place called Craggy Cliffs…

The dark man’s eyes focused back in and he wiped the sweat from his brow. Whenever he did something like that, it always took a lot out of him. He was picked out to be an interrogator due to that, but he didn’t really like using…ESP they called it.

"Where they be, Mark?" the Major grunted, derailing his train of thought.

"They are on the move…in the desert and going westward to the town of Craggy Cliffs. They are…terrorists per se. They plan to disrupt our operations and are supporters…maybe of that Flint guy."

"I figured. Anything else? I want more, Mark. Not happy at all with you."

"That’s it," Mark replied coolly, "Except for the fact that we’ll just call the dwarf SD and the tall guy Espeon from now on."

The Major snorted something to himself, "You not hiding nothing?"

"I swear."

"Hm…not pleased. These people not know anything or you just bad inquisitor. Your work best improve…"