Scene 1. Parents

After the ‘new technology’ demonstration, Lilly is on the phone from her apartment on the base, “Hi mom, I am sorry I have been so busy, but that is over for now so I thought we could get together, for dinner maybe.” “Dad said he had something to show me so perhaps I should meet you at the apartments?” “Okay.” “I’ll be over there at about seven.”

Lilly knocks at the door of the master apartment she once occupied. An older female white goat in glasses opens the door. “Mom! I am so glad to see you!” “I couldn’t spend any time with you at the party and I was working for The General on a high priority project up to now.” “I could still get called away, but I think I am safe here, at least for a while. I did have to let The General know I was coming over here, so he wouldn’t think I had run away or had been kidnapped (again)!” “Where’s dad?”

Mother, “Your father should be here soon, he had some business to take care of, since we had been away for so long.” “I heard from the professor that you had been working with him before he left to join us in Aseria.” “The Professor said that you were quite the inventor, but he wouldn’t tell us what you were working on.”

Lilly frowns, “You likely heard of The Professor’s recent passing.” “I spent some time with him right before he died." "Since his return he could not move or speak.” “I heard that he was with your at your excavation, how was he when he was there?”

Lilly's mother looks down, “The Professor was the same as he always was with us.” “He has been our friend for many years.” “He even underwrote some of our research, with the money he said he made from his inventions.” “He was always interested in archaeology and came with us on many of our ‘digs’, when he could.” “Especially if the dig was in an exotic foreign country, he loved to travel abroad too.”

Lilly then asked the burning question, “So he was fine until he left you.” “Why did he leave?”

“We don’t know.” “The next morning, after a hard day of excavation, we were to meet for breakfast at the cafe, but he never showed up." "We checked his room but the hotel staff said that he had already checked out the night before." "The hotel staff would not give us any more information." "All they said was that we should contact the embassy." "We called the embassy and were told he had been sent ‘home’ as a medical emergency. They would neither tell us what the ‘emergency’ was, nor how and when he was sent ‘home’. They would not even tell us exactly were the ‘home’ was where he was sent." "We contacted the college but they had not heard anything about The Professor either. He never returned to the college.

Lilly's Mother continues, “And that was not the only thing." "After The Professor disappeared, security personnel from home came to our dig and arrested us.” “Your father and I were held, involuntarily and apart, for several days.” “We were asked many questions, about our work and our contacts, especially foreign contacts.” “They also asked about you and The Professor, if we knew what you were working on.” “I guess they thought we were spies.” “I called The General after we were released and asked him about this, but he put me off.” “He said we would discuss it when we met together at The Base.”

Lilly was intrigued, my parents are suspected of being spies? Lilly adds, “The General also asked me not to talk about my work with anyone until we met together at The Base.”

The front door of the apartment opens, revealing Lilly's father, “Lilly!” “I do have a daughter!” Lilly stands and embraces her father, He looks like an older version of Roc. Father adds, “Lets get dinner, any suggestions?”

Lilly thinks about pizza, but says, “Lets go to Rod’s!” “You all didn’t really get a chance to meet my good friends, Rod, Trish, and their kids.” They’re all really nice and I love them.” “They took care of me when you were gone so long…” “We’ll still need to do dinner with Roc and our kids,” “and with Liz and Tex.” Lilly reflects and smiles, “I live with a big community now!”

Lilly’s father and mother are giving Lilly a peculiar look, then they rise to go to dinner, “We are just glad to see that you are okay.” Lilly smiles, “I’m still okay, after all the fuss.” Lilly stands, still unsteady and still sore from yesterday's 'air craft' adventure as she tries to hide her injuries from her parents, Don’t limp! Don’t limp!

At dinner Lilly’s parents recount their discoveries on their ‘dig’, mostly soft-fire pottery and simple building materials, dated to about two thousand years ago. Although materials of this kind weren’t unusual, these were the first to be found in this area. This area is thought to be on the edge of a larger, more recent, lost city. Lilly recounts her college tennis championships with Liz, and her research at the observatory with The Professor.

Lilly smiles, “I have even published scholarly papers!” “and patents too!” “all co-authored with The Professor, of course.” “Now I am an established researcher, just like you all.”

They return to the apartment, Lilly’s father retrieves a package from the bedroom, still tightly wrapped for shipment. It is a cylinder of about twenty centimeters diameter and twenty centimeters or so tall, irregular on top. He passes it to Lilly. She looks at the package, “For me?” And she unwraps it. It is a pedestal with a statue mounted on it. It is a statue of a male biped figure seated, on a stone stool and looking outward, his tiny chin is held by his in one of the strange shaped foreleg appendages, the foreleg joint is resting on his upper hind leg. Hairless, tailless and Ugly! Lilly eyes bulge, she immediately recognizes the familiar figure and bursts, “Apollo!” Then she notices that her parents are staring at her, “Who is ‘Apollo’?”

Lilly does not answer, she stands, still holding the figure, “I’ll call The General.” “I have to get back before they close the guard shack anyway.” “Remember, I am supposed to be staying at The Factory, we’ll talk more about that too.” “Let me know when you would like to have dinner with Roc and the kids.” “I’ll call you if I hear anything.” “It was great seeing you both again!”

She hugs them both still tightly holding the statue and quickly exits the apartment.

Scene 2. Spy

Lilly asks the warrant officer, Lois, to set up a meeting with The General. Lilly feels that it is time to tell everyone involved what is going on with her. Lilly also wants her parents to tell The General directly the story of The Professor's abduction from abroad.

Lilly’s telephone rings, it is The General, “General!” “This must be important!” “You never call anyone directly!” “Come in to your office as soon as possible?” “I am on my way!”

Lilly runs to The General’s office and is winded from the run. She confronts the duty officer at the officer’s headquarters reception desk. Lois, her warrant officer friend, meets her there and escorts her to the General’s office door, “Knock!-Knock!” “General!" "I have someone to see you!”

“Come in!” The General rises with Lilly’s entrance, “Lilly, please sit down, we have several major issues to discuss.” “The first and most important point is that your ‘new technology’ work has been compromised, It is now in the possession of The Federation. And if you read the news you know that we are almost at war with The Federation.” “We have a spy, we do not yet know who it is or where, so everyone is a suspect if they know about your work.” “Our investigation is focused on The Base, The Factory and the college, but it could extend beyond, to your friends and family.”

Lilly sits with eyes wide, A spy?! “Wait, my folks were arrested and held when they were still out of the country, is that related to this?” The General nods. Lilly looks down thinking, Who could it be? Do I know them?

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Lilly suddenly has a flash, she grimaces, exposing her teeth. The General stares at her reaction. She relaxes and smiles at The General, trying to hide her excitement, “Let me think about it. I haven’t been in contact with too many people," "but I can make a list for you.” She smiles again, trying to look relaxed, but she boiling inside and glowing pink.

The General frowns at her, “Lilly, I order you to not do your own investigation!” “We have professionals for that.” “You’ll get yourself killed!” “Who is it that you suspect?”

Lilly draws her fore-toes to her chest, smiles and musters her best, ‘What Me! Do my own investigation? Never!’, look. The General continues to frown at her. She shakes her head, I am not fooling The General. “Okay.” “I get it.” “But let me confirm a few things for myself first, before I name any names.” “Please let me do this.” “It is only fair, as I have been falsely accused of doing things that I did not do a few times myself.” Besides, I have my own investigation professionals. Sorry, but I don’t trust yours. Martin! It looks like I need your help yet again!

Lilly rises, “Please excuse me but I would like to start looking into this immediately.” “This is the highest priority we have right now, right?” The General stands and nods. Lilly runs out of the office.

Lilly continues running at high speed back to her apartment. Once out of the sight of The General she grimaces again, and I think I know who to start with...

Scene 3. Head

Lilly returns to her apartment and calls Roc, “Roc, I need you to bring a few of my cosmetics to the guard shack for me to pick up.” “I need to look good for an important meeting.”

The next evening Lilly meets a cab outside The Base and asks to be taken to the college, the Physics department building. Lilly then waits in the Physics building lobby she and watches as The Head’s secretary walks out of the building, leaving work for the day.

Lilly then bolts up the stairs to The Head’s office and knocks and, in the sweetest, squeakiest voice she can muster, “Good evening sir!” “I have the complementary cake delivery for you!”

She hears the lock click. She quickly pulls open the door and pulls it shut. The Head is a very large older brown bear-man. He stands and adjusts his glasses but it is too late, Lilly is already on top of his desk. She gives him a straight foreleg punch, knocking him back into his chair against the room wall. She then has her left hoof holding him by his throat, “Go ahead and push the button,” “I have proof that you are a murderer, among other things!” His paw stops, “What murder?”

Lilly drops an envelope on his desk, photographs taken at the observatory kitchen spill out.

Lilly hisses, “Twenty years ago a college student did not return from a day-hike at the observatory. I know her name and I know that you were there on that tour from the old college newspaper from the day. I found her body buried under the observatory kitchen floor.” “However, I am killing you in revenge for The Professor. You contributed directly to his decline and premature death,” “Also I know that it was you that ratted out our hidden locations." "And that you are selling our inventions to our Federation enemies.”

The Head regains his composure, even with Lilly holding his throat, “And you think you can get away with killing me? “

Lilly smiles broadly, “I have no intention of ‘getting away’ with anything,” “as long as I get to take you out for The Professor, I don't care what happens to me!”

The Head’s paw continues into a desk drawer. The Head quickly draws a revolver from the desk drawer and pushes the barrel up to the center of Lilly’s forehead. Lilly smiles again and winks,

"Feeling lucky, punk?" “Go ahead,” “Make my day!”

“Click!”, as the revolver’s hammer closes on an empty chamber.

Lilly slowly pulls into a grin, her forehead still against the gun barrel,

“Oh!” “Now that’s too baaaaaad!” “Because now it is ‘myyyyyy turn’!”

“Who says ‘revenge is best served cold’?” "I want to feel your warm blood, splashed in my face!"

Lilly is still firmly holding The Head up against the wall behind his desk. She slowly drags her right foreleg back against her head, as if she is drawing a bow string. She is poised for her deadly sharpened crimson toenail stab into The Head’s carotid artery,

“I am the last thing you will ever see!”

Scene 4. Resolution

And suddenly The Head is gone. Lilly is looking directly at Roc, pinned against the wall. He shouts, “Lilly!” “Stop!” “Don’t kill me!”

Lilly’s body suddenly loses its tension and she relaxes, releasing Roc from the wall, “Roc! What are you doing here?” Then, on the side, she sees two more figures, Shadow and Martin, “So, the gang’s all here?”

Roc stands back up from being pinned to the wall by Lilly, “You didn’t think I would guess that you were planning an assault when you asked me to deliver your ‘war paints’ for an ‘important meeting’?”

Martin moves forward and laughs, “Sorry Ms. Lilly,” “You know, the boss don’t like no killin’.” Martin pours the bullets from The Head’s revolver onto the desk from his paw, “Now don’t you feel bad Ms Lilly, the boss don’t let me do no killin’ neither.”

The Head uses the distraction to slink out the door and into the department’s dark hallway. He promptly runs into something soft but firm, blocking his way. He looks up to see two pairs of blue barred irises and two white smiles and nothing else. Tex, speaking in a slow drawl, “Now ‘we’ didn’t make no ‘no kill’ promise!” Liz and Tex each take one of The Head’s forelegs, they drag The Head back into his office, “Would you prefer that we kill you by pulling off your legs?” "Okay," "Then make a wish!"

Shadow moves forward and speaks into The Head's face, “Doctor Klein, you are under arrest for murder.” “I strongly recommend that you remain silent and that you immediately retain an attorney.” Two uniformed dog-police search and cuff The Head and drag him out of the office to a waiting police car.

Shadow turns and speaks to Lilly, who is still speechless in surprise, “Good work, Lilly!” “Unfortunately, we need The Head alive, to tell us what secrets he has shared with The Federation.” “We have been watching The Head since he revealed The Professor’s whereabouts abroad." "The Professor was a friend of mine also." "He helped me out on some cases that had a lot of technical jargon that was being used to hide the truth.” “How The Head was able to conceal his crimes for so long is still a question” “However, the college president resigned as soon as he heard that The Head had been arrested,” “Likely the college was protecting The Head, for some reason.”

Martin continues, “Lilly, it’s tough keeping up with you!” “I had to get in here last night, empty the gun and pull door-lock wire, here you go!” Martin drops a coil of wire on the desk, “Whew!”

Shadow continues, “We have frozen all of The Head’s accounts that we know of,” “it didn’t take long to trace his years of coercion, and not just The Professor either.” “We also have to interview as many, past and present department assistants as we can find," "male and female,” “He was not just out after money…” “And anything we recover that is due The Professor, will go to you, Lilly.”

Lilly shakes herself back to reality, No more blood money!

“Let me at least pay for the repair of the observatory’s kitchen floor, I made a promise…”

Lilly again reflects,

“It looks like I’ll be underwriting my parent’s expeditions from now on, for The Professor...”

Scene 5. Damage Control

Lilly finds herself back in The General’s office. This time she is accompanied by her parents, Roc, Shadow and Martin.

At least this time I have company. I told you all that I wasn’t crazy!

The General is sitting behind his large oak desk with his hooves to his chin, looking down and hunched down, appearing smaller than usual.

Lilly stares at The General, Wow nothing ever gets to him, what’s up?

The General starts, “As you all know, we are nearly at war with the Federation.” “Most military analysts think that The Federation will attack us the moment they think they have an advantage over us.” “Our agents report that all of the ‘new technology’ that we have identified so far, has been put to military use by The Federation.” “They could attack at any time, using this ‘new technology’ as an advantage against us.” “And the fault is mine for not securing this ‘new technology’ soon enough.”

“At first I didn’t know about you, Lilly, and The Professor, as you all were doing your development at the college.” I saw your presentation at the college, but it did not occur to me that this was anything more than an incremental step in technology.” “I even missed the significance of your research at The Chief’s new product release conference at The Factory.” “Electric lights, big deal!” “I should have known, if The Professor was involved.”

But your next invention even rattled The Chief. He called me right after your meeting about the ‘invisible-ray’ machine. But by then The Head knew everything about that invention and your next inventions as well. He somehow quickly transferred all of the details over to The Federation.” “And yes, the ‘air construct’ and the engines as well.” “The Head even applied for patents for your inventions, cutting you and The Professor out completely.”

“The only thing we can do now is beat The Federation with the design development and manufacturing capability of this country.” “I have contacted The Chief and The Factory is already working on everything, including that fascinating ‘invisible-ray’.”

Lilly, I want Roc to take you home, and I do mean to the one with your kids. You will live there from now on, full-time.” "We'll provide you security." “Leave it to us to make the progressive developments for these ‘new technologies’.” “If you think of something that might help with this, please give us a call,” “or make drawings and The Chief will send Ellie over. You can review your notes and drawings with her there.”

“Shadow and Martin, I trust that you are following up on The Head’s Federation contacts, if they haven’t already skipped town,” “and continue with your investigations into the college as well.”

The General straightens up and glares at Lilly and Lilly cowers, Uh, oh! Now I am in trouble!

“Oh, and Lilly,” “Did I miss your demonstration of the ‘wireless telephone’ at the air-show?” “I know, The Professor loved surprises,” “but please, no more surprises!”

“And for you all,” The General passes Lilly’s parents a heavy wrapped package that appears to contain a rectangular brick or a stone. Lilly’s father carefully unwraps the package to reveal a cut piece of yellow sandstone, with red sediment lines clearly visible along one side. He turns the rock over. Everyone looks at the exposed surface. Clearly visible is are the outlines of a gray object.

Embedded in the solid sandstone rock, is a metal ‘mechanical hand’.