FAT49 #8 - Rebellious Thunder

F.O.T. Chang prepared his stance as his associates (or, as he preferred, underlings) watched with baited breath. With an assertive swing he sent the ball flying off into the distance. Several of the underlings made faux gasps and clapped sycophantically. F.O.T. Chang hated them, he hated the game he was playing, he hated the beverage he had just been handed by a person the feeling he felt for whom was hate. He went and sat in a chair, the only emotion possible to feel for which was hate. It was a hateful day with a hatefully beautiful sunset set against a pretty sky he could not help but feel fond hate toward. F.O.T. Chang then pondered the only thing he had ever truly not-hated: money, and wondered how he might get some more. This brought a smile to his handsome face, hatred was what he felt for which. Just then a bright bolt of energy zigzagged violently thru the sky before exploding into the impressive B-C connecting bridge. F.O.T. Chang rubbed his beard.
"Fetch whatever that was and bring it to me." He said in a voice like oiled nudity. It looked like something exciting might happen for a change. Not that he didn't hate that sort of thing.

Seconds before...
"Oh good, you made it thru." said a suspicious butler.
"Do you doubt me?" said another suspicious butler.
"Wha... of course not, sister." said the initially suspicious butler.
"We'll need to find another disguise. They'll get suspicious if they see butlers in the Business Strut." said the sister of the initially suspicious butler.
"Don't worry about it. I know where there's a storage room where they keep Business Strut maintenance suits."
"Do you have the keys?"
"Do you doubt me?" he said holding up the sparkling danglers. Together the suspicious and evidently related butlers strode along the B-C connecting bridge at a pace that somehow mixed attempted nonchalance and conspiratorial skulking. "You know," said bro, "this is a really nice bridge. It looks way better than the C-Q connecting bridge." A sudden loud crack.

Seconds before that, at a similar altitude...
"On a scale of 1 to problematic, how safe do you think this is?" Jean shouted against the high winds atop the Master's Mast. Beardface was the last to climb up, his axe still embedded in the wood.
"Hoo!" he breathed. "Aha! I can see it. The city of greed."
"Sickening. Built on the broken backs of beggars they crushed themselves." Felix said.
"I can definitely see the city." Jean shouted. "But, I don't think I can jump that far."
"There'll be no need for that." Felix said smiling. Ranaweyt's eyes flashed and he spoke for the first time in a sonorous voice.

Lightning that denies high fight
Do not deny the platypus egg
Bite until the light cries night
Trouble bubbles from rubble
REBELLIOUS THUNDER

There was a loud cracking and sparking.

Earlier that day.
"A damn fine job, I reckon." said Builder A.
"You got that right. It took blood, sweat and tears but, here it is, on time too." said Builder B.
"Hey, look who it is!" said Builder A.
"Afternoon, gentlemen! Wonderful job! I can't believe we made the deadline." said Architect A.
"It was a damn pleasure building this bridge, it truly is your masterpiece." said Builder A.
"Oh! I'll make sure to tell the others." Architect A said in reference to Architects B and C, in absentia. "But, without you this would have just been a dream. It's our masterpiece."
"You know, we may have had our differences at first but you're not so bad, after all." said Builder B.
"What matters now is that the bridge is built. Come on friends, I'll treat you to Omnom's." said Architect A.
"I won't say no to Omnom!" said Builder A.
"Neither will I!" said Builder B.
"Haha! Then let's go!" said Builder C who had overheard the conversation and arrived just in time to make good use of the generous spirit.
"Let this bridge stand forever as a monument to the amicable relationship between builders and architects!"

Rebellious Thunder Theme Song: Self vs. Self (ft. In Flames) - Pendulum

FAT49 #7 - The Master's Mast

Ranaweyt was the definition of guile. He would instantly find a way to where he wanted to go bobbing thru the mass of busy people as if they were a low-grade obstacle course. He would pause and turn back from time to time to see that the others were still on track. Then he would carry on, hopping from street to wall to confused trader's head to fence and to whatever else would serve as the next medium to his destination, a destination Jean and Beardface knew nothing about and judging from their conversation didn't much care.

"I know he's the 50th master and all but what is he the master of exactly?" Jean asked.
"Why... He's... He's a master of... paw-to-paw combat." Beardface said.
"Or, maybe it's a symbolic title and he's the master of our destiny or something."
"Hmm." Beardface was unconvinced.
"Also, we can't call ourselves FAT49 anymore since we've lost all the other masters."
"I concur, BAT49 has a more inherent poetry." Beardface said missing the point entirely.
"What!? I think you'll find JAT49 is more hard-hitting. " Jean said. She walked into Beardface who had stopped in his tracks.
"Alack! What mighty totem is this!?"

Flockboast City, as we know, was originally a humble fishing town. The naming of the city had somewhat failed in the honouring-the-past department. So, it was decided (by Maximillions Doshforthewin) to erect a symbolic structure that would truly pay homage to its history.
A vast collection of ships' masts were amassed and forged into a magnificent memento, simultaneously immortalising their fishing vessels and scuppering them (it should be noted that they now outsource all of the their squid). The Master's Mast (as it was named) now stands at the impressive height of rather-quite-tall being just over rather-tall and just under sub-cloud. It's really quite astonishing that FAT49 hadn't seen the hulking construction before until you discover the author only thought it up now. Ranaweyt stopped at the base of the towering mast.
"I don't suppose Valiant is up there?"
Ranaweyt gazed in the direction of some distant buildings.

Flock, you see, was a gathering of greedy fat cats individuals. They ran everything from behind the scenes and raked in land-whale-loads of money. They are rumoured to own sub-everything just over rather-quite-enough and and just under everything. As Flock expanded these masters of money would stop at nothing to remain on top. So, they built their houses on top of everyone else's. Situated high above Flockboast connected by invite-only bridges is the sky-city Flock, home to the super-elite (or so they like to think). Those elites hardly ever visit the ground, having all they could possible desire brought to them .
How, then, does one get there without an invite?

"We climb!" Felix said just in time to appear in this chapter.

FAT49 #6 - Skitty Kitty

The boarded up windows and dilapidated masonry would have been spooky if there had not been an infectious beat emanating from within. Jean and Beardface followed Felix under a loose floorboard into the beat up and upbeat building. It was dark. Felix had no trouble finding his way (Cat Eyes: +4 to vision). Beardface blindly rammed his face into a wall.
"Keep your head low just there!" Felix called too late. Beardface bit back the frustration and massaged his bruised brain. Jean then proceeded to hit her head in the exact same spot.

The music grew louder. It was real toe-tapping stuff. Jean couldn't help but bob her head to the beat, although it's also possible that she was mildly concussed. Felix held out a paw to stop them. He was looking up at the source of the music. Up above them several cats were jumping and jiving along with the beat, each playing an instrument. One of them was singing in a husky, strong and hypnotic voice. Felix was dancing along to the music now too. Jean couldn't help but join in. Beardface was reluctant at first but Jean grabbed his hands and channeled the beat! The music was magical. Jean felt a scurrying by her feet as some mice crawled out of some unknown dark place and began to dance too. A solitary bat sitting on the roof was flapping its wings in tune with the music. Two geese even waddled in and began to goose step jovially. A place once unworthy of consideration became a musical haven for all! The music continued for quite some time although it felt as though no time passed at all for those present. The final note was spine tingling and seemed to echo thru the hearts and souls of everyone within the crumbling walls. There was a pause and a deep communal sigh. Then, with the spell broken, several of the cats bounded after the mice and geese. The angel-voiced cat walked calmly thru the chaos towards them.

"Good morning Trubbleclutsh, what's new? I don't suppose you've decided to take me up on my offer." the singing cat said.
"Trouble what?" Jean queried.
"One of my names." Felix elucidated.
The singer hopped in front of Felix.  Her fur was long, brownish-grey and warm looking. A gem on her forehead sparkled with the same pounamu glow as her eyes.
"Sorry, Skitty." Felix said. "I'm actually here with some friends of mine. We're looking for someone."
"Ah yes! It's not often we get humans down here but the music calls. Eventually, we all come."
"I can't deny your voice, Skitty." Felix introduced Jean and Beardface and then the singer cat introduced herself.
"I'm Skitty Kitty. You can call me Skitty for short but you needn't bother I never was all that tall to begin with." she said. Jean laughed, there was something comforting in Skitty's nature.

A fire crackled in the background. Skitty hopped onto a small coffee table that balanced quite well considering it was missing a leg.  She shooed two tortoiseshell cats off the well-scratched couch and beckoned the others to sit down. The throw was threadbare. A ginger tabby gave them a mildly interested look and then returned to his nap atop a dusty old cupboard. There was a scratching sound as a cat, curly-haired, climbed up the cupboard to join the aloof ginger tabby who wasn't happy about it. Jean flinched under the lapis lazuli-stare of a seal point cat who had until recently been tuning a piano. Beardface remained stoic when a nonchalant flat-faced cat strolled onto his lap and relaxed. A serious dark-grey cat hopped onto Jean's shoulder and eyed her curiously, blinking its emeralds.  Skitty licked Felix's head.
"So, you've come looking for Valiant?" she said.
"We heard that Flockboast is where he was last seen."
"And that rumour is mostly on the money. He was in Flockboast but more specifically Flock."
"Flock?" Jean queried.
"A desert dweller." Skitty said. "I can hear the sand rattling in your chest."
"Uh..." Jean didn't know what to say to this. She nervously checked that her scarf was still covering her ear.
"If Flockboast is the puddle, Flock is the rain cloud." Skitty said enigmatically. Felix nodded his head solemnly, Harold (bowtie) wobbled.
"I don't suppose you know a way we could get in?" Felix asked.
"All you'll have to do, my dear Trubbleclutsh, is land on your feet." Skitty said smiling slightly. "Ranaweyt, be a darling and show them the way." The cat on Jean's shoulder bowed his head.
"I owe you one, Skitty." Felix said but Skitty had already begun singing again. It was truly a shame to leave.

As they walked off to their next destination Jean turned to Beardface.
"I thought you couldn't say kitty." she said.
"Don't fret. It's cool when they say it." Beardface reassured her.

Skitty Kitty Theme: No Regrets - Billie Holiday