Once upon a midnight dreary,...while I pondered, weak and weary..... =0D Soul Searching By Michael Demcio Part I: Touch and Go. = = =0D It was close to midday when Gadget poked her head out from under the= console of the Rangerwing to see that the fog was finally beginning to burn off. Having = rolled in from the bay in the wee hours of the morning, shortly after she had woken up, the heavy m= ist had completely enveloped the park. So incredibly thick the fog had proven to be, even th= e view of the tree nearest to their own had been blocked off. Having stepped outside once during tha= t time to get a breath of fresh air, she'd refrained from doing so again. Only a few moments tim= e in the dense moisture and she was nearly soaked to the skin under her fur in a little over a mi= nute, creating a chill in her body that lingered there. Changing into a spare set of coveralls and dryi= ng her hair, she continued her work in silence. Pausing from her repairs and tinkerings only to grab= a clean rag every now and then, she'd worked through the night and the morning, the sometimes v= isible swirling tendrils of vapor outside and her thoughts as her only company. = She was not able to sleep much that night, though as to why, she rea= lly didn't know. Nothing was troubling her and no disturbing dreams had brought her back t= o wakefulness. So to have woken after only two hours of blissful sleep and not being able to s= lip back into unconsciousness was an event that was more than just a little frustrating= to her. She'd awakened shortly after 12:30, and after a long bout of tossing and turning, she fi= nally sighed in resignation and made her way to her workshop. she thought to herself, a bit grumpily at her plight. As it turn= ed out, she was able to get quite a *number* of "somethings" done during that time, getting a good de= al ahead of herself in her own long list of projects, which at least had alleviated her frustrat= ion. Inventing and tinkering always helped to cure a bad mood, she normally found. A curious thought k= ept tickling in the back of her mind though, as to when some form of fatigue would begin to s= ettle in. After all, with yesterday having involved a very long, wild and frantically-paced case wh= ich left them all exhausted, she thought without a doubt that upon going to bed, she would = sleep like a baby mouseling. = Still not feeling anything akin to drowsiness or muddleheadedness th= at would insinuate dreamland's calling her to visit, she checked her final adjustm= ents to the Rangerwing's control panel and stood up in the cockpit. Withdrawing the heavily oil st= ained and grime smeared rag from her back pocket and cleaning off what she could of her hands upo= n it, she descended from the Rangerwing. Leaving the adjoining hangar and entering her worksh= op, grabbing a fresh rag from a nearby box while tossing the used one into a "laundry" pile in= the corner, she made her way to her worktable. There, leaning upon the table, she paused to look o= ver a set of blueprints anchored there before her. The schematics were for a new helicopter that = she was due to build. Having taken on the project as a pro bono commission for the S.A.M.A.R.I.= T.A.N.S.,* they had turned to her as this was a vehicle that they had need of immediately. Be= ing renowned as she was throughout the entire bay area for the most reliable, as well as the quic= kest made inventions, it was really little wonder why. In addition though, even though she was glad to help out the "Sams" = as the work they did was so commendable in her view, this project was a special treat. As this= was due to be a completely new helicopter design she had come up with for their specific = needs of rescue and treatment of medical emergencies, she was eager to get started on it. New= invention ideas normally had her *itching* to get her hands dirty on them. However, as th= e hull of the craft still needed to be forged and shaped, there was nothing else she could do at th= e moment. She'd already obtained all the other necessary parts, and wasn't due to meet with some = of the other "Sams'" until tomorrow. It was then when she and Monterey were to help two of the= ir strongest members bring the needed metal to a nearby blast furnace to forge it, with which = the construction would then begin in earnest. Losing herself in the beauty of the design she had= created for a moment, dwelling upon how many animal lives would be saved by this new vehicle, G= adget thrilled to a warm feeling of pride as well as a shiver of excitement as well, tingled = through her fur. Checking back her anticipation then, lest it distract her from the other projects = she still wanted to get done, she reached over to gently roll up the plans for the helicopter. Placing = them to one side of the worktable, another sheet of architect's paper was exposed underneath. Thi= s sheet however, was completely blank. = =0D Taking a small, whittled down golf course pencil in hand, and nibbli= ng upon the tip of it thoughtfully for a few seconds, she began to jot down a few numbers upon = the paper, from some quick calculations she had just done in her mind. This set of plans was d= estined to be for an additional double sized room, due to be cut out of the interior of the tr= ee in another few days or so. As Tammy was now spending more and more of her time with the Rescue R= angers, helping them out on cases, it looked as though they might soon be bringing in a n= ew member full time. Beyond that though, as she herself had her workshop, she felt it only fai= r that Foxglove as well should have someplace where she could practice her craft as well. For thi= s, the room would double, on one side as a bedroom to the young bat and teenage squirrel, w= ere Tammy to move in with them, and upon the other as a workshop in which Foxglove would have = sufficient room to practice her magic. Enough space was needed as well in the plans to accom= modate all her books, potions and other tools, Gadget reminded herself, jotting it down on the = plans. As Foxglove had already been living with Tammy and her family in Chinatown for the past n= umber of months, having them room together would not present any sort of unforseen problem= that she could guess. She was all too happy to share her room with Foxglove as she was doing no= w, but with all of the various items that she used in her witchcraft, the room was more than a b= it cluttered and unwieldy. An addition such as this would certainly help matters. = Gadget began, beginning to tu= rn toward where she kept her tape measure, before abruptly stopping in her tracks. Upon t= he other side of the work table, as she had not bound it, a portion of the blueprint for the "Sams'= " new helicopter had unrolled as she had been looking down, revealing a curious sight. "Golly,= " she stated to herself as she picked the plans up in her hands to study them closer. "I don't remem= ber drawing *this* in here." = Situated within the schematics for the motor for the chopper, a new = detail had been added, one that she had somehow overlooked upon glancing over the plans moments = before. The addition was not significant, it was simply an oval of sorts, forming som= ething similar to two elongated parenthesis that had been connected at each end. she realized with certainty. As Chip often worked alongside her, helping her in the workshop, even more so than Zipp= er did, he was the most logical choice. Even so though, he had never altered any of her blueprint= s in anyway unless he asked her about it beforehand or if she was dictating the change for him = to make. He always respected her place as head of technical matters in the team and was alwa= ys respectful of the fact that this was *her* workshop. So for him to make an alteration on one of = her blueprints was a bit out of character for him. Moreover though, the alteration didn't make any= sense. The change was just a simple outline, with no notes to explain it, or arrows to associat= e it to anything else. From its shape, it didn't appear to be anything that she could recognize that = would be functional to the engine in any way. It almost looked like some sort of doodle. Yet to her = mind, it didn't seem to have been some absentminded drawing on someone's part, or an accident cau= sed by a slip of the pen. The shape looked too precisely drawn for it to be that, she realized= , frowning slightly as she continued to stare at the lines. she shrugged slightly to herself as she glanced back to w= here her eraser lay on a nearby table. "I'll just erase it for now and be sure to ask Chip and t= he others about it," she told herself, making a mental note to herself to do just that. Reaching over t= oward where the eraser lay on upon a shelf behind her, she took it in hand and turned back toward th= e blueprint. Leaning over the table, the eraser poised in her hand toward the altered section = of the plans, her eyes abruptly widened in surprise. Starting slightly, she blinked hard once, a= nd then once again, staring hard as a shocked look instantly appeared on her face. The marks were gon= e. = "Huh?!" she exclaimed, immediately dropping the eraser to pick the b= lueprints up in her hands. Her eyes narrowing, she scanned carefully now over the entire area= of the engine, and then over the rest of the helicopter itself. Still though, the mark she had se= en a moment before was nowhere to be found. she wondered= =2E Carefully, she reached out a hand to touch the area where she thought the alteration had been, r= ubbing a finger over the section, and neither felt nor saw anything to show how the marks had disa= ppeared. Rubbing her eyes and looking in disbelief at the now blank area once more, she looked= up at a watch that was hanging on the wall of her workshop. she mused, her mind thinking back to Monterey's warning of a short while ago = that she might need a break after having been working for so long already. As she had been buri= ed within the cables and wires of the Rangerwing at the time though, she had absentmindedly said t= hat she would, while only half realizing that she had said it though. She realized that the ph= antom drawing could have been caused due to lack of sleep, and yet, even with all her work, she *s= till* didn't feel tired enough to go to bed. = she thought to herself with a shrug, a thoughtful look = crossing her face, With this, opening the door to he= r workshop, she headed off toward her bedroom, making a quick change into a pair of short= s and a tee shirt before making her way down to the exercise room. Although much of what she did i= n her workshop could be considered a workout in itself with the amount physical activity= she exerted during her projects, in a way, she never found her inventing or tinkering to be drai= ning in any way. She simply had too much fun doing it and was too immersed in it for it to be = tiring to her. On the other side of the coin though, although exercising was fun sometimes, esp= ecially with her friends, she *knew* it to be hard work to keep in shape, and never failed to feel = something of a drain on her energy afterwards. she grinned= to herself, believing that this was just the thing she needed to help her get to sleep. = =0D After a comprehensive bout of rigorous stretching, she set up the re= cord player that functioned as their treadmill to a comfortable speed. Tuning the radio to= some music, she positioned herself upon the record before pulling the switch beside her w= hich started the turntable moving. Getting into a good rhythm, she let the music play over her ears,= humming slightly in tune to the tempo as she let her gaze drift out the window. Outside, the fog w= as still continuing to burn off, and in its wake, what looked to be a blustery, but sunny day was beg= inning to take shape. Listening to the howl of the wind as it wove its way along across the out= side of the tree, watching as birds swooped, soared, and sometime struggled against the onrushing ga= le, she wondered how well the new chopper would hold up in strong winds like this. = =0D She hoped that a similarly blustery day would come along soon upon h= er completing the craft, so that she could field test it under those conditions before givi= ng it over to the "Sams". The last thing in the world she wanted was for one of her inventions to hurt = any one of her friends, or an innocent bystander, due to a mistake on her part. Making a mental note= in her mind to make a mark upon the blueprints to test the machine under high winds, she turned= her attention back toward the toggle switch for the speed. Curling her tail down and alongsi= de her to wrap around it, she was about to pull it to increase the speed, when she abruptly swung h= er gaze back to the record beneath her feet. Drawing in a slight gasp of surprise, she looked= to find what she thought she had spotted from the corner of her eye. The *same type* of mark that = she had seemingly seen upon the blueprints in her workshop, now appeared to be etched ever so li= ghtly into the vinyl of the record beneath her. Even more though, now there were two of them, sid= e by side. = Reacting slightly to this discovery, Gadget reflexively jerked her t= ail upward, sending the the turntable into a higher rpm setting. Watching wide eyed for a moment = as the two faint markings disappeared at certain points in the revolution, the lights in t= he room shining upon certain parts of the record to swallow them, she was caught unawares at t= he sudden change in velocity. "Whup! *Whoa!!*" she cried as she lost her footing at the sudde= n new speed. Stumbling and falling upon the record, she was whipped to the floor a short distanc= e away in a slingshot effect. Righting herself, and grateful that she had not been thrown into = any of the other pieces of heavy equipment in the room, Gadget quickly sprinted back toward the reco= rd player to shut the power off. Mounting the turntable once again, she looked around upon the = vinyl for the marks she had seen. Slowly turning the record, she made certain that every portion = was visible to her and had cleared the streaks of light which lay upon it. Yet, as before, the s= trange markings had yet again vanished. Gadget swore to herself, even attemp= ting to recreate the same conditions upon which she had seen the markings through running upon= the record, only to hop off a moment later and shut the power down again. = Kneeling worriedly upon the surface of the player, Gadget could only= stare in disbelief at the record's surface for a few moments before she picked her gaze up, a t= houghtful expression on her face. she wondered, shaking her head in bewilderme= nt, shrugging as her incredibly brilliant mind was at a rare loss to explain what was going on= =2E As she knew she wasn't terribly hungry, not enough to start hallucinating, this explanation was = more than a bit unlikely, but at the moment, she could come up with nothing better. She could only gues= s. She had gone without sleep for longer than this during her time as a Rescue Ranger, an= d never before had she started seeing things. As she knew she didn't feel ill in anyway to accou= nt for this oddity either, the fact that she had not eaten in almost fifteen hours was the only conc= lusion that came to mind. Remaining in her tee shirt and shorts as she made her way to the kitchen,= her furrowed brow clearly communicating her continued pondering of the situation, she prepa= red a small meal for herself. Heating a cup of the leftover soup that had been left in the ref= rigerator, as well as a steaming cup of hot chocolate for later, she snagged a small hunk of chee= se from a secret compartment in the new refrigerator she had made. A compartment in which = she, Chip, Dale, Zipper and Foxglove kept a tiny private stash, safe from Monterey's refle= xive and uncontrolled eating of it. Her repast in hand, she headed toward the living room. = Hitting the power for the television, Gadget quickly flipped her way= through the channels, wondering what the science channel had on at the moment. Flicking past a = certain channel though, she hurriedly backtracked to it a moment later, as a memory clicked in he= r mind about the scene which had flashed before her eyes, making her recall just what the scene = was from. she thought, smiling contentedly to herself as= she settled back comfortably on the couch, curling her tail upon her leg as the science ch= annel was swept from her mind for the moment. The mo= vie on the screen was an old one, from the black and white era when most of the movies made the= n, were made with a charm that was noticeably absent to her in many of the movies put out in = the last few decades. She remembered first seeing the film on television with her father, many year= s ago when she was but a young girl. With a very romantic atmosphere to it, along with well define= d characters and a strong story around which it revolved, the tale had made a very vivid impression= upon her. So much so that she had committed every moment of it to her memory. An impressive fe= at admittedly, as she had only seen it twice. = The second time she had seen it had been a few months after her fath= er had died. Though she had continually felt like crying upon watching it that second time, a= nd *had* quite violently in a few places, remembering her viewing it the first time with him, the mov= ie had nonetheless comforted her in a way. The film allowed her to capture in a way, one of = the many fond moments she had spent with him. One thing beyond her father that she centered upo= n with this movie though, was the romance between the main characters within it. Even at th= at young age in which she had first seen it, she had been enraptured by the love story presente= d to her, sweeping her away with fairy tale visions of meeting someone whom she would fall in lo= ve with so happily as the characters in the movie had done. Even at that young age, she hadn't = been much of one for love stories, but this movie had proved to be an exception somehow. Thoug= h she had barely thought that much about that childhood memory upon her second viewing of = it, if at all, due to her still recovering from her loss, this time was noticeably different. I= t was as it had been the first time. And more. At a time in her life when she was quite happy and conten= t, living a life filled with meaning as a Rescue Ranger that made her feel quite satisfied and pr= oud, watching the story unfold, she could barely keep from giggling aloud with a contentedly gidd= y joy. Smiling brightly, her mind and heart immediately connected with the child she had been in h= er past, recalling these memories to realize a wish fulfilled. As she had envisioned so happily, s= he *had* fallen deeply love with someone as completely as the two lead characters in the movie, makin= g her life as close to complete as she wouldn't have imagined possible. she thought to herself, her heart going out in yearning for her team= mate as she took a quick glance at the door from the corner of her eye. For many more minutes, now having stretched herself out and snuggled= in upon the couch, Gadget continued to watch the movie in silence, giving the screen her ful= l attention as she slowly sipped the soup from her mug. Absently stroking the fur upon her leg with= the motion from her tail, her ears cocked themselves over every now and then. Swiveling, she = listened as well to the occasionally strong gusts of wind which sometimes blew with a haunting an= d hollow sound around the oak tree. she wondered, taking another glance toward the outside, through the windows a= round each side of the front door. Turning back toward the screen once more, she grinned wid= ely once again, seeing as one of her favorite parts of the movie was rapidly approaching. Leanin= g forward slightly with an eager anticipation, a sudden, curious look washed over her face a mome= nt later, replacing the smile that had lit up her eager face. She blinked once, and then squinted= towards the screen. she shrugged to herself mentally, = Within a crowded tavern and eatery, the camera was focused upon a nu= mber of tables occupied by dining couples. Seated at one of these tables, as the = camera began to move in upon them at the scene's opening, sat the leading man and lady. Sitting f= airly close to one another, the pair were seen laughing at some unheard joke as their voices were sti= ll indistinguishable from the chatter within the noisy room. This though, was not what had drawn Ga= dget's attention. What had, was a small movement in black. The camera had just begun to move thr= ough the crowd and towards the couple, singling them out from among the other patrons. It wa= s here when something caught her eye. Along the shadows which played upon a staircase, situated= along the wall, a number of feet in back of the couple, something now moved. Descending two= of the stairs slowly to emerge inconspicuously into view within the scene, a cat's head and fr= ont paws now appeared. Stopping for a moment, it turned its head toward the camera, its hind qua= rters still hidden by the ceiling of the room, as it looked out upon the people within the restaura= nt. Then without further ado, it turned back to speed down the remaining steps, its presence barel= y visible within the shadows. Rounding the edge of the staircase in a blur, it was instantly l= ost from view behind the edge of the nearest table. she mused with a small grin, quirking an eyebrow at the sudden cameo. Foc= using upon the two main characters once more as their voices could now be heard, the same sm= ile of anticipation spread across her face again, waiting for the scene to take place, as a f= ew moments passed in the movie. = Then she froze. = Abruptly and with no warning at all, the same cat from a moment befo= re had reappeared. Gracefully leaping up onto the table, it stood on four paws between the t= wo main characters, freezing in place as well as it stared directly at the camera. *At Gadget= =2E* The characters in the movie seemed unaware of its presence at all, continuing on with their con= versation. = "Oh,..my...go-" she whispered in shock, the fur on her body standing= on end with a tingle. Further deviating from the movie, she sat spellbound as the camera now be= gan to move in. Centering upon the black and white cat, the main characters were cut off = from view as the television now closed in upon a close up of the feline, its face filling = the entire screen. For a moment, time seemed to stop as the two continued to stare at one another = with widened eyes, neither one of them blinking while Gadget could only form one line of tho= ught within her terrified mind. she trembled slightly, her mouth agape as she sa= t rooted to the spot, viewing the two familiar, black, elongated ovals, gleaming in the lights= within the restaurant. <*That's* what I was seeing..! This...> The picture sharply dissolved to = static as she opened her mouth to speak. "What..do..?" the words hung upon her parched tongue, una= ble to come out even if she had wanted to whisper them. Bounding from the couch, the mug = of broth still curled reflexively in one hand, her other hand streaked forward instinctively to= hit the button for the power, fear overtaking her mind. Her hand never made it though, as the po= wer to the television was suddenly cut before she could perform the deed, changing the picture = upon the screen from snow to pitch black. Drawing herself up short, Gadget curled her hand bac= k upon her chest, staring at the screen as she backed up a few steps. = Whirling about, her gaze then shot nervously around the room from fl= oor to ceiling, and every point in between. Glancing back toward the television screen every = few seconds, she seemed to try to take in everything there was around her. Nothing. sh= e asked herself, unable to form a more complete thought. Trembling, she slowly turned around to f= ace the television screen once more, before hesitantly sitting down upon the couch. Her eyes= once more darting around her to various points about the room, she finally focused them upo= n the television screen, unable to free her mind from its near petrified state. A few moments pass= ed before she acknowledged the warmth upon her hand to look down and realize that she w= as still holding her mug full of soup, watching as the steam swirled through her fingers. As t= he whipping wind howled even louder against the tree and front door, her ears swung reflex= ively over toward the sound. As they did, another chill ran through her fur and down her spine = that was even colder than the one the fog had left in her last night. = Slowly reaching her other trembling hand down to wrap itself around = the mug, she slowly raised it to her lips, intuitively seeking to banish some of the chill wi= th a wave of warmth from the broth. Steadying her hands to keep them from shaking as she kept her eyes= glued to the television screen, she took in a small mouthful of the soup, barely tasting it as sh= e let it wash over her tongue, gulping it down. Feeling the sensation of warmth fill her stomach= and begin to spread through her as the soup made its way down, she smiled slightly, albeit ne= rvously, and glanced down at the liquid as if to give thanks to it as she prepared to take ano= ther sip. Looking down, she found a wavering image of the cat's face staring back up at her, fill= ing the borders of the mug. "KLK!" Crashing to the floor, the mug shattered into tiny fragments = as Gadget tossed it away, a strangled, incomprehensible cry catching in her throat. Skitterin= g back only to be stopped by the corner of the couch, Gadget gripped the backrest and seat cushions= of the armrest to either side of her tightly. Her claws threatened to burst the inflatable rubberi= zed material that made it up as she dug them in without thinking, a palpable terror once again cloudin= g over her mind. Trembling even more violently, her body flushed with the blood coursing r= apidly through it from her pounding heart. As she looked on, feeling her breath catch in her thr= oat in a shallow gasp, the steam from the dispersed and evaporating liquid rapidly changed. From a d= ancing cloud of ever changing patterns, the swirling matter folded around and quickly reshaped= itself into another image of the wide eyed cat, its haunting visage locking its gaze with her= s once again as it rose from the floor as it began to float over toward her. It was then that the= front door opened. = "Crikeys! This is some kinda *wind* we got going, here!" Monterey's = voice uttered as he stumbled through the door. Whirling toward the sound of her friend's voic= e, Gadget found whatever spell or state of mind that had been holding her fast now broken= as she flung herself around the edge of the couch toward him, the scream that had caught in he= r throat before, now tearing forth with a chilling sound. Barreling into the burly Australian = as he moved from the door's edge down the steps, the fog swirling around him, Gadget nearly knocked h= im over with her charge as she twisted him around. Frantically pointing behind her toward = the area of the couch, = she held tight to his trenchcoat lapels, staring wildly into his eyes. = "M-M-Monty! Over -t-the-!!" she croaked in an almost hoarse sounding= voice, unable to finish the sentence. "Gadget! What-?!" He turned to look in the direction that she had tu= rned him toward, and was so insistently pointing. Nothing. "Gadget luv, what is it?!" he exclaimed worriedly, turning his head = back toward her as Chip, Foxglove, Dale and Zipper rushed in to crowd around her in concern,= excitedly asking, more or less the same question. Turning her own gaze back toward the area= between the couch and the television, only to find the misty image of the feline now gone, = Gadget could only gape at the sight in disbelief and astonishment for a moment. Releasing Monterey'= s trenchcoat, she hesitantly moved over to the back of the couch, the other Rangers watchin= g her as she placed her hands gently upon it, leaning over it to look where she had last seen the= apparition. All that greeted her sight was that of an *unbroken* mug, sitting upon a now dry w= ooden floor, as a gentle plume of steam arose from the liquid she could see within it. Lett= ing out something akin to a small, hysterically choked off sob at the sight, she raced around the c= ouch to look into the mug, finding only the vegetable soup she had been drinking before as she picke= d it up in her paws to stare for many moments into its depths. "Gadget?" = Lifting her head up at the sound, she found Chip now leaning upon th= e back of the couch, looking at her with concern and confusion, while Dale, Foxglove, Monterey= and Zipper stood close behind him, the same expressions on their faces as well. Closing he= r eyes for a moment to let out a shuddering breath, trying her best to return her breathing to a nor= mal pace, a single tear of fright and frustration trickled down the fur on her cheek before she slow= ly moved herself forward. Starting to move past her assembled teammates, she smiled thankfully at a= sensation, opening her eyes to look at Chip. One of his paws he'd placed over hers, which were s= till curled upon the mug, the other draped gently upon her back. Leading him toward the open doorwa= y, Gadget stopped at the foot of the domino staircase. The feeling of the wind and the cool da= mpness of the fog rushing through the doorway onto her, the sensation helped to comfort and to stea= dy her as well. = "What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Chip asked in a low, soft tone, trying= not to sound overly anxious, though his worried expression clearly communicated that emotion = to a high degree. "I-..I'm okay." Gadget nodded assuredly, her breathing coming much e= asier now. "Then what happened?" Chip asked, gently urging her. Taking a deep b= reath, realizing that her other teammates were now standing behind her, waiting for an answer t= o that same question, she took a moment more to calm down before she turned around,...and let o= ut a another terrified scream of fright once again. Standing directly behind her friends, toweri= ng over them as it sat upon the floor with its head touching the ceiling, and filling up nearly = the entire space from the back of the couch to the door of the kitchen, sat the black and white cat= once again. Falling back against the domino steps as she cried out, Gadget could only point with a= shaky hand a split second later, pointing upward toward the silent feline as its wide eyed a= nd unrelenting gaze locked onto hers once more. During that same split second as she watched her tea= mmates begin to whirl around toward what lay behind them, though, a hand that was not Chip's su= ddenly placed itself on her shoulder as a voice called out her name. "Gadget! What's wrong?!" Tammy's voice asked urgently as she leaned = in to place her head next to Gadget's, looking at her with concern. = Startled by her friend's sudden, unexpected contact, Gadget whirled = her head around behind her to meet Tammy's gaze, barely recognizing the young squirrel in= her frightened state, before she whirled her head back in the next split second to find...*noth= ing.* Foxglove, Dale, Zipper, Monterey and Chip as well who now crouched beside her, were stand= ing there, looking toward the empty air beyond the doorway which led to the other areas of t= he treehouse. Looking all around at the area before them, she watched as Foxglove, Dale, Zipper= and Monterey then looked questioningly at one another, their gazes clearly communicating th= eir curiosity if either of them saw something different. Taking the initiative to bound toward the o= pen doorway before them then, Monterey swiftly looked in through the doorway, first to the l= eft and then to the right before poking his head back out. Taking an extra step to look over toward= the area of the television and the couch in case he had missed something, he turned his p= erplexed and concerned gaze back toward Gadget with a shrug. Raising his hands in the same gestu= re, he shook his head, looking directly at her. "What luv? There's nothing here." "No....." Groaning this singular word in exasperation and near despa= ir as she stared agape at this same sight for many moments, Gadget could only let out another sl= ight sob as she clapped a hand over her eyes, trying desperately to collect her thoughts. Removin= g the hand from over her eyes as she felt Chip place his paws upon her once more, one over her own= hands as one brushed over her hair, trying to calm her down, she looked up after a few moments= to lock her eyes onto Foxglove. Setting down what was left of the mug of soup upon the steps as= she got up, trying to ignore for the moment, the broth that had spilled upon her as she had fal= len back, she walked up with a tired determination toward her friend. "Foxy,...*I need your help.= *" she asked with a weary note in her shuddering voice, still trying to calm down her breathing aga= in as she looked directly into the young bat's eyes. Nodding her understanding, though confusion st= ill played heavily upon her face along with the comfort she tried to convey, Foxglove placed a so= ft, leathery wing around her back and motioned her towards the doorway, leading her back towards t= he room she shared with Gadget. = * * * "And then just as you were turning around, it disappeared again." Ga= dget finished with a sigh, having finally settled down enough to tell her story, with a little= help from one of Foxglove's potions that had helped to calm her as well. "Any idea of what's going on= ?" she asked with a shrug and a confused shake of her head, a hopeful look in her blue eyes a= s she looked up at the young witch. "Am I hallucinating, or is this thing really out there?" she= finished, waving her paw out to indicate the room they were in and the entire treehouse. "We-elll," Foxglove began thoughtfully pursing a finger over her lip= s as she looked Gadget over from head to toe. "I have a few ideas, but I need to check a few thi= ngs out first before I say anything...for which you guys are going to have to wait outside," she sta= ted in a professional manner, looking over toward her teammates that had gathered in a group wi= thin the bedroom. Nodding their understanding as Foxglove placed a small stethoscope around= her neck, beginning to take out a few medical instruments as well, Chip, Tammy, Monterey, Dal= e and Zipper filed out of the room, each of them sporting a curious look of wonderment at the st= ory they had just heard. = "*Zowie,* Monty!" Dale exclaimed with excitement as he left the room= =2E You don't think this could be that the ghost of the Canterville Cat that we never saw in = England, do ya?"+ "I doubt it mate, if this *is* a real ghost we're dealing with here,= " Monterey answered with a shake of his head, "The Canterville Cat was a right ugly *monster* of a= feline, but what Gadget here, described..-" the rest of Monterey's reply was muffled though, as F= oxglove shut the door behind them before turning toward where Gadget sat upon the bed... = * * * "Well, Foxy?" Gadget asked anxiously some time later as Foxglove fin= ished performing her last test upon her, the bat having checked her aura for the possibili= ty of some sort of illness as well as some type of curse. Having remained silent throughout the examina= tion so as not to break her concentration, her teammate had tested her first with the more well k= nown medical tools, and then with the various medicinal methods of magic at her command. Now, hav= ing posed the question that had waited on the tip of her tongue throughout the entire t= ime, she watched as her friend sighed lightly, packing the last of her tools away. = "To tell you the truth, Gadget,..." Foxglove began, a hesitant look = upon her face as she turned toward her,"...I'm really not sure. You don't seem to be sick in a= ny way that would cause a hallucination, that much I *do* know. The rest of it though, is kinda deb= atable. You said you hadn't eaten or slept in quite some time," Foxy began, touching one of th= e digits on her right paw with one of her left, counting off the evidence on each side, "two hours = really *isn't* enough, not after all that happened yesterday, and you hadn't eaten for quite some ti= me either. You went to bed right after we got back, not even wanting a snack." "I wasn't hungry," Gadget replied simply, shaking her head, "my body= just wanted to sleep...or at least I *thought* it did." she frowned slightly. "I know," Foxglove smiled in understanding, "but then you got involv= ed in your workshop, and forgot about your hunger and your lack of sleep again. This= could be your problem right off, a drastic imbalance in the body can normally make any = animal see things th-" "But...!" Gadget began to protest in frustration, standing up slight= ly from the bed." "Shh. I know," Foxglove replied softly, smiling gently and placing h= er wing gently on Gadget's knee for a moment as she sat on the floor beneath her, leaning a= n elbow on the mattress. "you said you didn't *feel* that drained, and you've gone for longer peri= ods of time without eating or sleeping, but each case is different. Sometimes we can feel pretty muc= h normal when the body starts playing with perceptions. Think about it. As Rescue Rangers, we of= ten have to push past fatigue, especially *you* with all you do involving machines, in and out = of the workshop, so you might feel used to it, but like I said, each case is different with an im= balance. The last time you did that, were you involved in a day long, frantic chase?" Blinking, Gadget could only frown thoughtfully at that as the point = sunk in, quirking an eyebrow as she thought back upon the last time she had let her energy res= erves burn so low. "No, I guess not." she shrugged, conceding to the point. = "Right." Foxglove nodded. "Now its also very possible that it *was* = a ghost and not just some phantasm you saw, but considering that it was popping up at pretty m= uch every opportunity before, I don't know why you haven't seen it even *once* during the entir= e time we've been in here. Also, I've never heard of a ghost doing what you said it did, with = bringing that mug back together but...I'm no expert on ghosts either. Not yet at least." she shr= ugged with a small smile. "Another possibility is that this is all some kind of sophisticated holog= ram of some sort that someone's been projecting into the treehouse, somehow, making you think y= ou've been seeing this cat. A drug of some kind that might have gotten into your system somehow = from our last visit to Nimnul's lab is a forth, something you might have accidentally inhaled th= ere. A post hypnotic suggestion is still *another* possibility as well, but we haven't had any= cases involving that since that city wide mass hypnosis case we tackled a short while back, and no *= animals* were affected. Only humans, so I don't know how you would have gotten the idea put into = your head." "Ivana?" Gadget suggested worriedly, "She could have put the idea in= my head somehow when she kidnaped me and the others two months ago. She does have cause t= o hate me more than the others," she shivered at the suggestion. "And she's good with technology for the possibility of a hologram, y= ou're right. It's a distinct possibility, but so are the others. Like I said, its kinda debat= able." Foxglove shrugged. "So how do we find out which one it is?" Gadget asked with uncertain= ty. "Well with this, luckily, we can check out more than one possibility= at once," Foxglove stated, rising to her feet as she tried to convey an assuring look to her= teammate, "to try to find out. The best way *I* can think of, not to fall for a hologram unless you= know something better, is to close your eyes, and that's just what I want you to do for right no= w." she stated, resting her wings on her friend's shoulders. "Lie down and try to get some sleep for = right now if you can. I'll be checking out the other possibilities." "Well, okay," Gadget returned hesitantly, not wanting to be left out= of the investigation, but not resisting Foxglove's grasp as her teammate gently laid her back o= n the bed. "but how?" "Well right after I check out the blood sample I took from you under= the microscope in your workshop," Foxglove began, nodding toward the bag near the door whic= h contained the small vial, as well as some of her other instruments, "if nothing turns u= p there that I can find that would cause you to see things, I'm going to check out the living room. Si= nce that's where you saw the cat most noticeably, I'll try checking the mug you left there and the= television for any residual spectral energy I can pick up if this is a ghost. While that's going on, = I'll ask Chip to run your blood sample over to the "Sams", just in case. They've got a lot more equ= ipment, being in an animal hospital, to find any sort of drug that might be there, as well as= a lot more knowledge of what to look for. Some of those guys have been studying medicine a lot lo= nger than me." she smiled humbly. "Need anything before I get started?" Foxglove asked, look= ing at her curiously as she made her way to the door. "No thanks," Gadget smiled up at her, folding her hands comfortably = upon her stomach. "I'll be okay,..I guess." she added, a slightly worried look in her eyes = about all the possibilities as to what might be going on. = "Don't worry, we'll figure it out quickly," Foxglove returned with a= n assuring note in her voice, giving a confident smile over to her teammate as she opened the do= or and began to close it behind her, "If you see that cat again in any way in the room, even one o= f its eyes like before, call out." "Don't worry, *I will.*" Gadget chuckled nervously in return, smilin= g back at her friend. = Hearing as the door shut behind Foxglove with a click, Gadget sighed= deeply after a moment, going over all the possibilities in her mind that Foxy had mentio= ned, knowing that she probably would have felt better being involved in the investigation herse= lf. At least it would help to take her mind off of worrying somewhat, but still, she couldn't deny t= he fact that what Foxglove had said made sense. Maybe it *was* something so simple as a lac= k of sleep and food. she thought to herself. Taking one last, quick look around t= he room and spotting no sign of anything resembling the eyes or the face of the cat that had appe= ared almost without respite just a half hour or so ago, Gadget closed her eyes and tried to r= elax. Outside, the sound of the howling wind still whipped closely around the tree. Listening to the = sound as it stirred her memory, for many minutes Gadget tried to fill her mind with other thought= s, *any thoughts,* trying to keep at bay the one that now kept playing at the edge of her mi= nd, the one that she didn't want to see, that of the black and white cat....*staring at her.* = It quickly began to shape up as a battle of her will against her min= d's eye as her brow began to furrow slightly in concentration, as the picture of the cat or a= t least parts of the feline, began to weave their way into her thoughts. A complex mathematical equati= on suddenly sported one of its elongated pupils in the parenthesis, the angle of a part upon = a machine would shift into the triangular shape of the cat's nose or ears before its face began to b= e seen as well. Even a memory of her father was not a safe haven as his waving flight scarf, wra= pped loosely about his neck, would suddenly turn black in color with a touch of white upon the s= ide of it, looking like the cat's tail. Hoping that sleep would overtake her soon, as least from the = increasingly rapid mental exercise that she was performing, Gadget sighed through gritted teeth and= continued to shift her thoughts from item to item hoping the infiltration of the feline's image = would stop soon. Her hopes proved to be unrewarded though, as many more minutes later, she pou= nded a curled fist heavily upon her mattress in frustration. Gadget thought i= n frustration, shaking her head. The image of the cat would just not let her be. she finally conceded. Relaxing her mind as = best as she could, trying to control the fear she had felt as the same emotion played slightly upon= her stomach, she thought back to her encounter with the cat's image in the living room, when it ha= d appeared on the television screen. Focusing upon that instance, she let the image of the = staring cat fill her mind, it's haunting gaze looking out at her as it had before. Locking its gaze onto = hers, the black and white cat- -Was now waiting for her outside the treehouse. Gadget's eyes snapped open as she lay stock still upon the bed for a= number of moments, staring up at the ceiling, even her breathing having stopped. She didn't = know how she knew this almost oracle like announcement, the thought having suddenly sprung into = her head, but there was no denying it's truth. She knew it was as factual as any scientific princ= ipal that she had ever learned. The cat was out there, *waiting* for her. Swinging her legs over= the side of the bed, Gadget looked over hesitantly toward the door. Letting out a shuddering b= reath of nervousness, blinking a few times at the door, she rose to her feet and made her way o= ver to it. Placing her hand upon the knob, she let it rest there for a number of moments before = she finally turned it open to walk through into the hallway. "Monty? Zipper?" she called out, haltin= g in her tracks abruptly to stare out towards the other end of the hallway. "Monterey! Zipper!" sh= e then yelled out, sprinting forward toward them. = At the other end of the hallway, seeming to have just emerged from M= onterey's room, her two teammates now stood. Like statues it seemed. Suspended in midair, his= wings normally blurred from the rapidness of their motion in flight, Zipper's delicate w= ings now appeared as still as the rest of his body, positioned just off of Monterey's left shoulder = as the fly looked over at him. Monterey in turn, was caught in midstep, his head turned over toward= Zipper as his mouth stood partially open, as though poised to speak. Not even their eyes move= d she observed, as she waved a paw before Monterey's and then Zipper's stilled vision. "Guys..?"= she uttered in a slightly timid, awestruck voice, standing back for a moment before placing a hand = gently upon Monterey's. His fur wasn't cold, in fact, it seemed a little warmer than = usual, indicating from what she could tell, that he was still alive, but almost frozen in place someh= ow. Placing her head against his chest, she could hear the thump of his heartbeat,...though only after= nearly fifteen seconds had passed, the singular sound drawing itself out for many moments in a dull,= slurred tone. Almost as if his heart rate and metabolism had been slowed down to almost nothing. = *How..?* she thought to herself in astonishment before turning her head over toward the direct= ion of the front door, where her instincts were now pointing her. she thought to he= rself, knowing, Pa= using for only a moment more to look over Monterey and Zipper with another worried glance, she ma= de her way down toward the living room. = =0D Arriving there, she found Tammy, Dale and Foxglove in the same state= as Monterey and Zipper. Standing near the young bat, the pair held some magical talismans= in assistance as Foxglove stood before the television screen, the mug the cat had appeared= in standing near her as well. As she watched, patterns of alternating light and dark flickered an= d flashed upon the screen at intervals, with no clear picture coming through to her eyes that she c= ould see. Looking around about the room, she could not see Chip anywhere nearby. she surmised, looking toward the window to the r= ight of the front door, in the direction of the veterinary hospital. she wondered with a light shiver, as her head turned toward the front door. she thought, drawing in another deep breath as she slowly ascended up the= domino steps, placing her hand upon the knob of the front door. = Opening it, and looking out, Gadget slowly stepped through the doorw= ay, staring wide eyed about her in horror and awe at the view that awaited her, looking in= to an *entire world* frozen in time. As Zipper had been, birds were similarly caught in mid fl= ight, their flapping wings halted as they stood suspended in the air. Other animals in the park arou= nd her as well as any humans that she could see, stood similarly halted in their actions. Strik= ingly, even the natural world seemed affected, as her eyes spotted a singular leaf caught in mid = air from its fall from one of the nearby trees. Caught between life and death. For a number of momen= ts, she could only stand fixated by the sight of everything around her before she was finall= y able to shake herself free, a new realization now overtaking her as her mind put all the facts = together. she thought, with this, she turned to = hesitantly move toward the edge of the platform, a frightened look clearly readable in her eyes as s= he cast her gaze over the edge of the platform toward the ground. = =0D Here at the base of the tree, as she knew it would be, the black and= white cat sat, looking up at her with those same shinning, slitted eyes. As silent as before, it= stood waiting for her, as though *it* knew *she* would be coming. Mostly black, with only a small p= atch of white upon its chest region as well as its paws and the side of its tail, it wore no clo= thes like Fat Cat or any of the other felines that he associated with. It simply looked like an ordinary,= everyday cat that one could find in any part of the city, save for the softly radiant aura abou= t it. "Why did you do this to me?!!" Gadget cried out toward it, finding her voice to finally vent her = pent up frustration and anger, having had enough of whatever game this thing was playing. "Why ar= e you haunting me?!! What do you-...you.." At this Gadget stopped herself, the last word falli= ng off her tongue in something akin to a tone of realization as she let her gaze settle upon t= he eyes of the feline before her. This time, as she looked into the slitted eyes of the black and whit= e cat, she now noticed something. Her mind flashing back, she realized that what she now saw bef= ore her in the cat's wide eyed stare had been there all along upon each time that she had enco= untered this specter. It hadn't been as obvious as it was now, but it had been there indeed. It ha= d been her irrational fear upon each occurance though, that had made her miss all those times what w= as now communicated to her in that very same stare, with a quiet and calm sense of urgency be= hind the look as well. A statement. It said simply,..."*Help.*" = = = =