�General I have reconsidered and decided to help you.� Crystal says attempting to mask the fury building up inside her and continues, �But if I do this for you, there�s something I want you to do for me.�
�Anything, just name it.�
�A young man just enlisted and is due to ship out tomorrow. His name is Jim Straight. I don�t want him going to Ji Ji Island or the Army.�
�I�ll have his named removed from the recruitment list tonight.�
�No, wait general! He must never know that I did this.�
The General scratches his chin and says, �Well I suppose it can be arranged for him to fail his physical. Our doctors can think of something. He�ll never know.�
�That�s fine. Ok when do you want me to leave?�
�The sooner the better.� The General says, a satisfied grin is beginning to appear on face. �I can have someone over they first thing in the morning.�
�Alright General first thing in the morning. Goodbye.� Crystal turns off the monitor. She�s beginning to feel like she just made a deal with the devil.
The next morning Crystal is woken by the sound of pounding at her door. She opens hers eyes and looks at the clock, it�s only 6:00am. �Alright, come in already.�
Two young men in green uniforms come in and report, �Ma�am General Sebert sent us to pick you up. Arrangements have been made at the dock for transportation to the island. If you�ll come with us.�
The soldiers lead Crystal to the dock were a cargo ship is waiting for her to board. Soldiers are boarding ships all around and there is a sense of urgency in the air. She climbs onboard and into a large open cargo hold.
General Sebert walks into the cargo hold, �Good morning Crystal. I brought some reports for you to watch while we head to the island.� The General turns on the projector that was installed earlier that morning, and they spend the next few hours going over Intel reports.
At 10:15am the next morning the cargo ship arrives at a small port on the island of Ji Ji. Crystal departs the cargo ship tired and cranky. Unfortunately the cold hard steel floor of the cargo hold did not make for a good bed last night. Crystal looks around; Ji Ji Island was once used by the military as a training camp. She can see a couple of the larger buildings from the old complex several miles off in the distance. That�s were the Tithians were hiding, but they�ll be getting a visitor real soon.
A small group of soldiers is waiting to escort her to the staging area. �Good morning Ma�am, if you will please come with us.� One of the soldiers says politely
Crystal looks down at him, �Lead the way.�
The staging area is nothing but a large city of tents. Several listening posts have been set up ahead of it to monitor the enemy. Soldiers are running around everywhere apparently getting ready for a Tithian counterattack.
General Sebert is waiting. He greets her and says, �We�re ready when you are Crystal. If any of them come this way we should be able to capture them before they escape.�
Crystal then proceeds into the woods that separate the staging area from the training camp. She can now see the camp clearly and shouting can be heard. When she finally clears the tree line Crystal pauses to see how the hundreds of Tithians ahead will react. As expected weapons fire erupts everywhere, but their pathetic lasers only feed the murderous rage that is filling her.
The Tithian fighters scream in horror as Crystal steps into their masses. The last images most of them see are the dark pads of her soles descending on them. Unlike the warehouse, the ground is soft here and her paws sink down into it leaving behind deep paw prints. Within each massive paw print is the gruesome remains of four or five Tithians. However most who are close enough to witness this awful event soon find themselves being subjected to the same grisly fate.
Crystal can feel the Tithian bodies turning into mush under her soles and with each step a surge a pleasure shoots up her legs. The sensation is stronger than anything she ever felt in the warehouse and it leaves her paws tingling. And the screams of terror and pleas for mercy coming from below are only adding to her delight. Even the way warm blood squirts up from between her toes feels satisfying. Rage is no longer needed to make her kill. Everything about it just feels so good she doesn�t want to stop!
However after several minutes of trampling Crystal pauses to scan the camp. It did not take long for the Tithian ranks to thin once she started to massacre them. Although most of them gave up trying to fight her and ran away screaming, several Tithians are still firing from the roof of a nearby building. She moves toward it, treading stragglers underfoot along the way.
Crystal looks down at the roof and callously announces, �It�s time to die!� She raises one hand and the Tithians begin to scream as five razor sharp fingernails pop out of it. One swing of her mighty arm is all it takes. The Tithians are diced to pieces as the claws slice through their bodies effortlessly.
The other rooftop fighters start to quickly get off their buildings. The lucky ones have enough time to climb to safety and get away. However those who are on the building closest to Crystal decide to jump rather than be diced to pieces.
Crystal, noticing their attempts to escape, causally walks over to the building and looks down on the ground. Out of the 12 Tithians who were on the roof, 4 did not survive the two-story plummet to the ground. The remaining 8 survivors are all injured. Some have broken legs; others have broken ribs and other injuries. However Crystal is not a doctor, so she decides to have a little fun instead of helping them.
The massive cat sits down next to the building. Using her razor-sharp claws, she begins to cut the fighters into little pieces. She does this slowly, one at a time, enjoying every moment of their suffering. Crystal is discovering that the longer she makes them suffer, the more enjoyable the whole experience is for her.
The Tithians scream out in agony as their bodies are cut into shreds and ripped apart. Some have an arm or leg cut off before the fatal blow is administered. The lucky ones pass out from shock after the claws start cutting through their flesh. All who witness the demonic scene are terrified by the reality that it will soon be their turn.
In all six of the survivors die this way, but the remaining two manage to get out of arms length of their tormentor. This only makes her angry as the first one finds out.
The Tithian warrior almost makes it to another building crawling on his stomach. However the colossal paw, that engulfs him up to the neck, stops his progress. Pressure slowly begins to mount on his body. His screams get louder and louder as the pain becomes unbearable. The sound of bones breaking fills the air as his legs are gradually pressed flat. The last thing he sees are his internal organs being forced out from his mouth. Then it�s over.
Horror-struck by what he just witnessed, the second Tithian decides that he will never escape will two broken ribs. Realizing the inevitable he limps over to the nearest paw. Dropping to his knees he begs for a quick death while kissing the enormous blood soaked toes in front of him.
As the paw lifts up and lowers towards him, the Tithian lies down. The paw then stops unexpectedly just inches above and a voice says, �Lick it clean.� Fortunate for him, Crystal was impressed by his wretched little display. However rather than crushing him slowly, she has decided to allow him to torment himself.
Following several minutes of licking her paw, the vile taste of blood and the crushed remains of others is making the Tithian�s stomach turn. Realizing the he�s had enough Crystal decides to end it. He entertained her long enough and deserves a quick end to his suffering. So she raises one colossal paw high in the air and prepares to stomp down hard. �Close your eyes, you won�t feel a thing.� Crystal says in a merciful voice.
All of the sudden, the thunderous sound of engines erupts in the distance. Crystal looks up to see the Tithian ship powering up for takeoff. �They�re not getting away that easily,� she thinks to herself.
The Tithian, who also heard the engines, opens his eyes to see what is going on. The paw is still hovering over him, but he is too sick and injured to get out of the way before it comes down again. The ground shakes ferociously as the paw lands several feet in front of him and disappears. The ship must have distracted her and the Tithian decides to leave before she gets back.
Crystal heads toward the ship with catlike swiftness. The earth shakes violently as her paws pound into the ground. Arriving, Crystal looks down at the mother ship. The ship is huge, about twice her size, with laser cannons all over the hull. A large panel on the top of it starts opening, exposing one of the ships main ion cannons.
�No you don�t!� Crystal yells while bending down. She digs her claws into the ship, lifts it up, and using all of her strength tosses it. The ship travels several miles in the air and crashes on the ground. A moment later a spectacular fireball can be seen.
Satisfied, Crystal walks back to the camp. Once there she looks over her handiwork. Blood-filled craters litter the ground everywhere. A few survivors lay moaning on the ground in agony. Some almost managed to dodge her rampaging paws earlier, but ended up getting an arm or leg crushed beneath it instead. Others were hit by her feet or tail and had internal injuries. However Crystal has no interest in them, it�s the buildings of the old camp that caught her attention.
Crystal�s feline ears can hear talking coming from one of them, so she tears the roof off it. A dozen Tithians are standing inside frozen with fear. One of them makes a desperate dash for the door. He cries at in pain as one of Crystal�s claws impale him through the chest. She tosses the twitching body in her mouth and the rest of the Tithians scream as it is chewed up.
Then one at a time, the rest of them find themselves being eaten alive by her. A few of them try pleading for their lives, but Crystal is no longer in a merciful mood. Instead she just squeezes the beggars in her hand until they stop crying and tosses the squashed remains in her mouth.
After the delicious meal, Crystal lays down next to the building. Her paws are still tingling wonderfully and she now has a full stomach. That magnificent sensation makes her feel like she just had the biggest orgasm of her life. However, all the day�s activities have made her tired. All Crystal wants to do is close her eyes and take a little�.
Back at the staging area Lt. Victor, General Sebert�s operations officer, reports. �General Sebert, sir listening posts report all quiet. It appears our girl is done.�
�Send in a recon team. Tell them to be careful, there may still might be hostiles out there.�
�Yes sir.�
The General is pleased by the way this mission is going. Preliminary reports show that the Tithian ship was completely destroyed. Not to mention, over a hundred Tithians had already surrendered without even giving up a fight. Victory!
About ten minutes later Lt. Victor runs back into the room, �Sir recon team reports our girl is down. They found her in the camp lying next to one of the buildings unconscious.�
�Send in Dr. Davis.�
Dr. Henry Davis has worked with Crystal ever since she was a kitten. He was one of the few doctors, and the only military officer, Professor Deco ever trusted with her. Dr. Davis also has full access to all the information on Crystal and her origins.
As the doctor gets out of the transport, he looks around the camp. There�s blood all over the ground, walls of the buildings, and even the roofs. Cries for help can be heard from several mangled bodies around the complex. Large, deep, paw shaped craters are all over the ground. The Dr. does not have the courage to look into them; he had already seen enough to give him nightmares for the rest of his life. Unfortunately a few of his escorts are not as content and decide to check them out. What they see makes them vomit.
Crystal is lying next to a building with a missing roof, purring loudly with a big smile. Dr. Davis scans her, runs some tests, and calls the General on his radio, �General, Crystal appears to be in some sort of hibernation. But a blood test I just administered shows that her endorphin levels are...�
�Stop right there Dr., what in the hell is a endorphin?� The General interrupts.
�Endorphins are the bodies nature painkiller and everyone�s body produces them naturally. However Crystal has enough of them in her system right now to tranquilize everybody on this island. I�ve never seen anything like it in my twenty years in medicine. I�d like to get her back to the cargo ship where I can run some more tests.�
�Request granted Dr. I�ll have the transport platform sent over to your location. We should have her back on board in a couple of hours.�
Several hours later on the cargo ship a young private stands watch over Crystal. Private Stephens can�t believe they left him alone in this cargo bay with that monster. The private was one of the �lucky ones� selected to watch her during the mission. He went to her home to pick her up, escorted her to the camp, went with the doctor to get her after the battle, and now he was keeping an eye on her while she slept.
The private had been in the cargo hold for three hours already and managed to stay as far away from her as space would allow. He�d seen what she did at the island firsthand and it will probably give him nightmares for a long time. Although the doc assured him that she wouldn�t harm him, he was going to play it safe anyway.
However curiosity finally gets the best of him. Cautiously, he begins to walk toward her. Yet the closer he gets, the more he seems drawn to her. Now standing just inches in front of one of her powerful legs, he begins stroking its fur. It�s soft to the touch, yet stronger than nylon rope. Being this close to Crystal was making his heart race franticly. But he continues to brush his hands through the fur and starts to walk towards her feet.
Soon he finds himself standing in front of one the soles of her feet. They are lighter shad of brown than her fur with dark black pads, which are now stained with blood. As Private Stephens approaches the gigantic foot, he tries to calm himself by saying, �Remember curiosity killed the Cat, not the stupid private.� The private reaches out and touches it. It is soft, warm to the touch, and his hand sinks into it like a pillow. Just then, the private is overtaken by the image of what he saw at the island and jumps back in disgust.
Despite that, curiosity forces Private Stephens to press on and proceed back up the other side. Just ahead a massive hand is lying palm up. Deciding to probe it like he did the foot he starts leaning over, but a loud voice stops him in his tracks. �Hello, can I help you?�
The private looks up and sees a set of huge cat eyes looking right at him. He trips over his own feet right into the giant hand. Petrified he lays there with his eyes closed, waiting to be swatted like a fly. However, a few moments later he builds up the courage to turn over and look up. Those eyes are still watching him.
�Sorry, I�I didn�t mean anything. I was just� curious.� The privates manages to say in a frightened voice.
Crystal delicately leans her hand up helping the private to his feet. Realizing that if she doesn�t do something the young man is likely to have a heart attack. �Easy. Listen I promise not to hurt you. You just startled me, that�s all. Besides you look familiar, aren�t you the young man that escorted me to the camp?�
�Yes Ma�am, I�m Private 1st class Stephens. I�ve been assigned to guard you during this mission. But, if you will excuse me ma�am, I need to go call Dr. Davis. He wanted to know the moment you were up.� The private replies, happy to have any excuse to get out of there.
�Private Stephens just one thing.� Crystal says as he�s walking to the door. The private stops and turns around. �Call me Crystal. I hate being called Ma�am.�
�Alright, Crystal.�
General Sebert reviews the final reports of the battle back in his office. 177 confirmed kills, 122 captured, and another 149 unaccounted for. Only minor friendly injuries with no fatalities. The battle itself quickly shifted in their favor.
From prisoner interrogations, the General found out that the Tithians realized they had no hope of winning. Apparently there was an attempt to surrender, but their girl wouldn�t let them. Most of prisoners they captured were too horrified of what they saw to be a threat anymore. Not only did Crystal massacre them, she demoralized them.
A knock from the door disturbs his train of thought. �Come in.�
�Well doctor, what did you find out?� General Sebert says as the doctor walks in his office.
�General I ran every test possible. I interviewed survivors from the camp, our people who were there, and even the soldier who was there when she woke up. After talking with Crystal and then reviewing the data from the Martonin ship; what I found out scares me to death��
�Doctor, continue.�
Dr. Davis hands the General a printout. It is a medical scan of Crystal�s spinal column. �General do you see this large mass right here on her spine?�
�Yes I do. What is that?�
�That is what the Martonins did to her. It has always been there, but seems to have laid dormant. That�s turning her into a.�a�� The doctor stutters nervously.
�Alright doctor, what is it? What does it do?�
The doctor takes a deep breath, �The new organ is hardwired right into her central nervous system through the spine. It appears to be designed to release endorphins and some other chemical I�ve never seen before into her blood. Somehow the act of killing triggers it. This organ actually makes killing into a pleasurable experience for her��
The doctor takes another deep breath; �However the key to this whole thing seems to be the way she determines a friend from an enemy. Although she may be merciless to her enemies, she goes out of her way not to harm friends. The Martonin database only makes mention of some sort of training that is supposed to occur while the subjects are kittens. Perhaps they�re taught at a young age who their friends and enemies are suppose to be. However Crystal had no such training. So my best guess is that she decided that the people who were invading her home were the enemy.�
�That makes sense. If she didn�t make that determination, our people would have be massacred along with the Tithians. Do you think she�s a threat to anyone else?�
�Now Crystal appears to be back to her normal self. Just like any one of her human counterparts, she was raised to believe in the value of life. So under normal circumstances, she doesn�t feel compelled to just go out and kill people. Perhaps one day she may kill again. But it would have to be for a good reason or else I don�t think she could live with herself.�
�Are you sure she didn�t have any of that training when she was a child? It sounds like her father did a real nice job of raising her.�
�Well, I seen you point general. I hadn�t thought of it that way.�
�In any case, thank god she�s on our side. Thank you doctor you�re dismissed.�
The doctor leaves the general�s office. A pit in his stomach has formed as he thinks of the next person that needs to be told of his findings.
Crystal smiles pleasantly as she gazes down at private Stephens, whom is relaxing comfortably in the palm of her hand. It took him a while to sit down and relax; however once he did he turned out to be very talkative. Crystal was beginning to enjoy his company.
The young private was starting to feel more at ease around Crystal. After chatting with her for an hour, she talked him into sitting down. The soft pads of her hand sure beat the hard steel floor of the cargo bay. Somewhere along the way, it occurred to the private that he wasn�t scared of her anymore.
The access door to the cargo bay opens abruptly and Dr. Davis appears. Private Stephens jumps out of Crystal�s palm and snaps to attention. �Sir my post is all secure.�
�Thank you private. Would you be so kind as to leave Crystal and I alone. There is something we must discuss.� The doctor asks.
�Yes Sir.� Private Stephens replies, waves to Crystal, and leaves the room.
�Hi doctor. Did you want to ask me some more questions?� Crystal asks.
�No Crystal, there is something I must tell you. It�s about what the Martonins did to you.� The doctor then takes a deep breath and proceeds to tell Crystal about his findings.
Deep down inside Crystal knows that this whole experience has changed her. What the doctor is saying makes perfect sense. The organ has brought out some of her darkest desires and drove her to do unspeakable acts of cruelty. But she has no remorse or regrets for what happened.
�So are you telling me that I�m some sort of killing machine?�
�No Crystal. Listen, we can�t do anything about what the Martonins did to you. It�s a part of you that you must learn to live with. However what�s important is how you used this new�. instinct. Truth is most people would have done the same thing you did if they had the power.� The doctor pauses for a moment and chooses his next words carefully.
�Yesterday you probably saved the lives of thousands of soldiers and innocent civilians by taking action. The Tithians are brutal pirates; they would have tormented this planet until we drove them off. However, now that their base camp is destroyed, the general doesn�t believe that they will be bothering us anymore.�
�So what happens now Dr.?�
�The military has agreed to keep the details of what happened at the island under wraps. The general public will be told you went to help build up some of the staging area�s defenses. Since you�re already known as �the gently giant� at home, the public should buy it. Just go home and get on with your life.�
�Attention all personnel, attention all personnel, the ship will be docking at Saborn port in 10 minutes.� A voice announces over the public address system.
�Goodbye Crystal, keep in touch.� The doctor says and heads for the door.
�Goodbye Dr. Davis.�
Character based upon that created by Rogue.