'The Puma' (standard:action, 49911 words)
Author: J.T.Killain	Added: Apr 11 2001	Views/Reads: 4198/4522	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
This is the story about angels, bad angels who take care of bad problems and worse people. This is the story about black angels or Puma's. Heavens stormtroopers who come to earth to even the score with evil.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

. 

Fear now reign's supreme between the wary and frightened Indian braves,
and no- no longer is there talk of who's hunting lands these are, for 
this forests true owner has just made it=s presents known. May god help 
these two now, for the night is to be for them an eternity filled with 
fear. The Puma has awoken . . . . . . . . . . . 

*                               *                                * 

It's late October, cool in the mid-afternoon and busy downtown
Philadelphia. A dark blue city Parking Authority tow truck slowly pull 
along side a parked car. An old beat up four door passenger car. The 
driver gets out and looks around. It's a cloudy overcast day. The 
driver gets back in the dark blue truck backs in to the front of the 
car, hooks up the sling and lifts the car. He then drives off after 
removing the parking ticket from the windshield. 

The tow  truck  and the old car being towed away are reflected in a pair
of mans dark mirrored wire rimmed sunglasses. We watch the reflection 
of the truck and car proceed up the city street towards a traffic 
light.  Then all of a sudden there is a huge explosion. The tow truck 
and the old car being towed are thrown skyward like flaming toys, both 
tumbling away from each other and in rippling flames and smoke, fall to 
the street in shower of crimson flaming debris. People hearing the 
massive detonation, now come out of bars and shops all along the small 
street and watch in wonderment at the ongoing smaller explosions and 
smokey mayhem as it unfolds. 

We now see the wire rimmed glasses again and the sharp angler face
behind them. Slowly he starts to show a fiendish grin. The scene slowly 
fades with the sound of fire trucks approaching in the distance and 
lots of yelling and voices talking very fast, some in Spanish and some 
in English calling for help or an ambulance. 

Some sharp rock music gets slowly louder. The song the music plays is:
"How can we sleep while our beds are burning" 

Very softly we hear a voice. . . .  The Puma - Puma - has - awakened ! 

Now backward in time, we see Mr. John Logan, an accountant. He works
with a top local firm. He given duties of monitoring certain bank 
accounts. Some of the most important people in Philadelphia's upper 
social levels. City council, police chief and labor union leaders. Over 
time Logan notices some really huge deposits were being secretly made 
into certain city VIP's accounts. Again the Mayor's and deputy Mayors, 
police chief and some prominent and powerful city council members. Ever 
so slowly John Logan starts to notice where and how the money is being 
raised and how. After the Mayor hires a new department head of the Gas 
works, rates start to climb abnormally. Only later again, the Mayor and 
his aide hire a new head of the parking Authority and sure enough, 
fines rise and the money starts to flow into the Mayor's personal 
account. Clearly, corruption is ever so slowly consuming all of the 
cities government. 

Soon, almost all important department heads are in on the take from
these new fines and charges that are being levied and it's clear as a 
bell to whom the money going to. John Logan now feels he is becoming a 
part of the sham and rip-off of the public by just sitting back and 
saying nothing. He finds a way one day to talk to his boss, a friend of 
the Mayor. His employer tells Logan to shut up and just mind his own 
business, . . . . OR ELSE! 

John does this for another year regretting all the while. However, in
this short time he amasses a folder full of small note's and newspaper 
clippings, and as the accountant that he is puts it all on disk on his 
home personal computer. The file of questionable entries and practices 
grows and grows. John Logan finally one day see's a gas company team 
turning off the gas to a poor old black women's home. As they dig up 
the street Logan is walking past. The old woman says she paid the bill, 
but the workers refuse to acknowledge her plea's. A cold wind blows 
yellow brown dust down the empty street. 

We leave the scene with John face, He has a look of total fear and
disbelief on his face. A small tear starts it's way down his face.  
John Logan seeks a friend, A reporter with a major newspaper in town. 
He meets her at a small cafe in downtown Philadelphia. He shows her 
some of the files he copied. The friend say's she see's the corruption 
and will try to find a way to run an exposé. She writes the story and 
submits it to her editor. We see her call Logan at work and she is 
enthusiastic. She tells him it's a go and look in the next days paper 
on page 3. 

The reporter leaves work and heads for the gym. She never makes it. Her
body is found in a stairwell along a city street. Nude and beaten to 
death. The next day Logan finds out about the murder and is devastated. 
He looks in the paper and there is no article about the story he gave 
to the friend. And all the notes he gave her are gone. Two low level 
hoods are convicted of murder. But they are innocent and adamantly 
state they were set up by the court. 

Now John Logan is starting to get a little bit afraid. He continues to
work but is fearful and starts to notice people stay away from him at 
work. He gets a call one day from his mothers neighbor. His mother has 
been found dead of a heart attack on her kitchen floor. She didn't have 
any heart  trouble. Shortly after the funeral, as he is sitting around 
his apartment one weekend, he is reading the newspaper and the phone 
rings. The caller tells him to look in that days classified section. He 
does and in the classified section is a ad in the personals column. 

In the personals is a tiny ad, It says: "Logan talks-hearts end!" It's
now clear what's to be.  Once more the electric crack of the wild cats 
low growl is heard . . . . 

"By their own follies they perished, the fools."      Homer. I,7 

The black hardtop Lexus rocketed across the intersection in uptown
Philadelphia. `Lamont L. Milismont had just set a small record for the 
twenty fifth time now that he had shot and killed someone in the course 
of doing drug business in the big city. "The fuckin junkie had it 
comminnn." He slurred to himself. Lamont reached in his pocket and 
pulled out the soiled paper bag containing the hapless mans money. All 
seven thousand dollars. 

Mr. Milismont had been selling drugs for about seven years now. He had
been shot at about ten times. Hit about five. Had been knifed twice and 
had over dosed on his own twice as well. But, he still lived on. In 
many respects old Lamont was a VERY lucky man. Very lucky indeed. He 
had amassed a small fortune and had spent it all. And amassed yet 
another. 

He lived in a nice neighborhood in a lovely single condo on the fifth
floor of a Very secure building. And had every window and door wired 
for motion and sound. He took no chances outside of someone shooting 
him on the street or in a restaurant somewhere. But alas, as good and 
conscious as old Lamont was in other ways, his driving lacked the 
required `finesse' needed for the overall safe operation of a motor 
vehicle. 

This a small oversight he worked on with great care. . . Most of the
time. The black import  shot towards the intersection and Lamont looked 
up from his haphazard counting of the now stolen loot and for once he 
decided to brake in time to stop running through the red light. 

He pushed his big `Nikke's' basketball shoe on the wide brake pedal.
However, the big black coupe with white interior did not slow down, nor 
did it even act as if it had a malfunction of any kind. Instead, the 
brake pedal itself pushed back upwards and the gas pedal sucked itself 
down onto the cars floor. The sleek, shiny coal black two door beauty 
rocketed out into the busy afternoon traffic. 

Mike Tramwall had been working as a short haul trucker for about six
months now, working out of the Columbus Avenue docks delivering mostly 
appliances and cabinetwork for a contractor hired to work the incoming 
ships at the same docks. Mike was Not the best or most courteous drive 
to ever push a Mack truck around this old cities streets. And since he 
was running a little behind after buying his lotto tickets, he needed 
to make up time. 

He took off as the light was still red but had turned to yellow for the
other streets traffic flow. He didn't see anything coming nor did he 
really care as he doubted he could get hurt in such a big truck. And he 
was indeed correct. However for Lamont, things just took a sudden shift 
in forward or upward mobility, so to speak. And he just lost his head 
over the incident. Uh, well ah, according to the witnesses that is. 

The shiny smooth top of the Lexus crushed into a large copy of a once
used `sardine' can lid. The glass in the windows just literally 
exploded with the degree of speed of the impact.  In the cameras view, 
the super smooth hand rubber black paint of the expensive imported 
coupe crumbled and flaked in a sort of slow motion demolition 
demonstration now acted out on a wide, yet quite busy afternoon 
intersection in Philadelphia. The sidewalks crowed with people shopping 
and those in transit. 

It was late afternoon, around four or four fifteen Pm. A lot of poor
folks were either standing about or walking to or from the different 
stores and markets in the area. The weather was it's usual mid summer's 
late hot noon hour. The sky overhead was sort of overcast with patches 
of sunshine peeking through the low hanging smog. 

The impact itself was incredible in itself, however the whole event, if
you could call it such, was sort of surreal, yet in it's very nature it 
somehow fit in this destitute neighborhood. The black Lexus traveled 
about three hundred feet further before crashing into a junked or 
abandoned 78 ford fairmont station wagon with itself half picked clean 
of any useable parts long ago. But of course, it was left to rot 
further by the Parking Authority as they knew no one would come to 
claim such an worn out wreck. 

Mike Tramwell really didn't see anything and for the most part didn't
feel anything. Somewhat along the thinking lines of "a sharp knife cuts 
smoothest" the Lexus shot under the big lumbering smokey beat up 
tractor trailer. The shiny black top rolled up the side of the trailer 
part of the rig in a weird slow motion movement. The white interior was 
peppered with debris and broken glass. Oh, and blood! Lots of blood. 
Yes, Old Lamont must of been real excited as the large arteries going 
to his brain were full and under pressure, commented the one policemen 
looking at the bloody roofless coupe an hour later. 

"Dispatch to S-12, Det.. Philips to identify auto accident victim at
1249 Allegheny Ave. Roger on the DOA at 1249 Allegheny Avenue. Subject 
being transferred to city morgue at 18:44 by medical department 
personnel. Subject one Lamont L. Milismont of 731 Rivers view circle. - 
multiple wants and warrants, none outstanding, nine convictions. 
Subject owned one 1996 Lexus Coupe, serial number 11172765RD2927927. 
Pennsylvania Tag number ALG-1554. Thirty seven parking tickets 
outstanding. Over S-10?" the radio squawked it's request to the two 
police detectives on break. 

The two middle aged men sat in the white Ford unmarked sedan at
sixteenth and Spring Garden streets. The driver, a white man. One 
Detective second grade Ron Philips was to retire from the police force 
in three months with twenty three years. The other man was Detective 
second grade Melvin Branch. On the police force for fifteen years now 
and he had been Detective Philips partner for the last four years. Both 
men, one black, The other white liked each other and respected the 
others abilities. 

The driver, Detective Philips was smoking a cigarette while Mel Branch
ate his two hot dogs with the works dished up by Sun lo Tram who 
operated a hot food cart near the community college there. Det. Philips 
threw his half smoked Marlboro Light cigarette out the window and then 
spit as well out after it. 

"For Christ sake. Now I've got to go identify a fucking traffic stiff
for dispatch. Fuckin fine! Mel, Melllllllllllll, tell me what the fuck 
I was thinking of when I told the department I was going to leave at 
the end of the summer or start of fall? What Mel?, what? WHAT? Was the 
fuck was I thinking. You know how many fuckin guys are up there at this 
very fuckin minute? Huh, Huh? I'll tell you. OK, Ok? About a fifty 
fuckin cops , that's how many Mel. Fifty guys standing around. . . 
Fifty, fifty of em" 

Mel Branch didn't even look up but rather kept reading the `Daily News'
sports page. He was a very patient man and a good friend to Detective 
Philips. However, " Damn!" he spurt out. "This hot dogs not even cooked 
in the goddamn center. Damn things still cold. He threw the half eaten 
sandwich towards a heavy wire city trash container. It bounced of the 
trash can and immediately a fluttering of pigeons descended on the 
remains and started picking away at it with great enthusiasm. 

"Man, these foreigners come over here a get themselves hooked up with a
business like this cart and the bastards can't even cook a fuckin 
hotdog right and there ought to be some kind of mandatory cooking 
school that they got to attend first right after learning how to speak 
English if they get that far and now your sitting over there and I've 
got to listen to this same Bullshit that I get every day over this 
fuckin duty or that fuckin job and that you should of never told the 
fucking bastards about leaving the force last year, but when you told 
me last year that you were going to quit like some pansy ass and go 
hunting and fishing up in `GODS COUNTRY' or the fuck wherever that is 
and what did I tell you last year to do? Huh, Huh? I told you to file 
the fucking papers with the union and if the whores ask you if your 
leaving you get laryngitis or some other speech impediment so as not to 
say ONE FUCKIN WORD to the pricks. But what do you do. . . . ? NO, you 
got to tell them cause it's in the regulations and so on and so forth 
and now for the fiftieth time this month I got to listen about you and 
your fucking trifling problems and all this Bullshit from the brass 
screwing you or the fuck ever."  Mel stopped for a moment to inhale and 
wipe his mouth with his napkin. 

He took a deep breath. "Now then, With that out of the way for the
moment. Can we just go up to `B' and Allegeheny and see about the slob 
in the fucking traffic bullshit like the asshole dispatch wanted and 
who gives a fuck how many cops are up there anyway?. . . You ain't 
paying em!  Now, are we going bowling tonight or not? If so I got to 
call my old lady to cover why I'm not going to be home." 

Mel went back to his reading. Detective Philips started the unmarked
police car, lit another cigarette and put the car in gear. "I just 
don't know what the hell I was think of telling the pricks I leaving."  
twelve minutes later they pulled up to a shiny black Lexus coupe, well 
what used to be a coupe. Now it was a convertible shoved between a fire 
plug and a old yellow Ford fairmont station wagon. Detective Philips 
said `hi' to a couple of the patrolmen on the scene he knew and slowly 
removed the yellow plastic coated emergency blanket covering the 
interior of the shiny yet slightly banged up Lexus one block from the 
intersection of Broad and Allegheny streets in Philadelphia on a hot 
Thursday afternoon. It was a hot day with a glaring sun and almost no 
breeze blowing at all. Just real hot and humid. He called to his 
partner Mel and both men, one on each side looked into the cars 
interior. Already the flies were beginning to settle in on their 
suddenly lucky afternoon feast. The mass of them whirled about the two 
officers in defiance at being disturbed during their most good fortune 
of a fresh lunch feast. 

Chapter. 2 

" Damn Mel, don't these clothes look kinda like what's the hell was his
name use to wear, the drug hipe from uh, you know, uh, River view road 
or something like that.  Damn what was his name? Hum, he looks a little 
slack alright don't he? He must of lost his head over some drugs or 
something. These guys and they get into this business and just go all 
to pieces, Huh? What do you think Mal, huh . . . ?" 

Detective Philips partner looked at the headless figure and just shook
his head. He then looked away, He looked up and down the street and 
back up towards the main intersection. He motioned for a patrolmen who 
was standing around and talking to another cop. 

"Yo, officer?" the young white patrolmen trotted over. " When this
happen, Ah, Matthews" the young patrolmen, Officer William Matthews had 
an incident report log in his hand and replied about four twenty 
minutes or so. " You call for a pickup from the medical examiners 
office yet." Mel asked him. "Yes sir, about fifteen minutes or so. The 
detectives from Northeast squad wanted for me to wait till you guys had 
a chance to look it over before they disturbed the body, sir. They said 
you'd want it fingerprinted and DNA checked, so not to disturb the body 
till you got here" 

" Detective Mel Branch looked back inside the automobile and then told
the young cop to give him and Detective Philips about ten minutes and 
have the body bag guys take him out of here. " Oh, by the way,  Anybody 
find the head yet?, and do you got any witnesses?" he asked the young 
cop. 

"Hell yes, I ran out of write up slips and had to barrow some from
another unit. Must of been fifty lookers, they all said he blew the 
light and clipped the truck from underneath and then the car flew out 
the other side. But nobody said anything about a head being here." 

"He have any cash on him?  I see his wallet laying open on the floor and
he still got what's left of  a bloody fifty dollar bill in his clutched 
right fist." Detective Philips then said he doubted if the guy ever 
felt a thing. 

"Chopped off clean." he said to no one in particular, staring into the
tarp draped coupes interior. Detective Branch asked again if anyone had 
found the head?" 

" Uh, No sir!  But two kids up on the corner said that some mutt grabbed
it and took off!" the young cop lamented shaking his head trying not to 
look at the demolished automobile. 

Detective Philips then called for a couple of patrolmen to ride around
the neighborhood and see if they can find the guys head. Then he spoke 
to Detective Branch. 

"Yo Mel. I think it's safe to say this guys a little on the dead side.
We've been here for ten minutes now and he hasn't wiped his forehead 
yet in all this heat. Would yo believe that huh? Get it, his forehead 
right? Ha, Ha, ha." "Your a laugh a minute Ron. Look at what's left of 
the fifty dollar bill. It's ripped off on the corner and there seem's 
to be a square spot on this sides seat without any blood. He must of 
been counting his score and missed the fuckin red light. Huh? So I 
guess some of the good witnesses here relieved Mr. Potato head of his 
take and rifled his wallet as well. What do you think." Detective 
Branch said looking back in at the bloody wreck of the roofless black 
import. 

"I'd say `Mr. Whoever here' just made a significant contribution to the
local area economy alright. By all this blood splashed about, I'd say 
he was pretty damn excited at the point of impact alright. How about 
it? What do you think we've got here Mel. Detective Philips asked his 
partner. The black policeman was slow to answer but did so after 
looking about, at the layout of the streets and then looking back 
inside the car again, he spoke softly. 

"I'd say we've got some smack pusher blows a red and loses his head and
then his cash. Some fucking dog grabs the head as it skids to a stop in 
the gutter and I think this is going to be a closed casket viewing in 
the next few days." Both men nodded their heads and then covered the 
body up again. They asked for the crime lab to come get some prints off 
the cars steering wheel and then Detective Branch and Philips returned 
to the Spring Garden area and back to bitching about dispatch fucking 
giving ever more bullshit jobs to Detective Philips. And Detective 
Branch returned to silence and the paper, reading the predictions about 
the upcoming football season. 

It was otherwise a slow day for the four to eleven shift. At the scene
of the accident a low growl was heard by some folks they thought. A 
little boy twelve years old had a seven thousand dollar prize stuffed 
into his pants and was walking home to fifth street. And a shaggy black 
mutt now had a wonderful new toy to play with till the flies and 
maggots got to it over the next few days. Detective Phillips decided 
with his partner Mel's help that he should just cancel his retirement 
and he started to make plans to reverse his decision for leaving the 
police force. 

Otherwise, The brilliant, yet rather turbulent criminal career of one
Lamont L. Milismont had just come to screeching halt. A poor ghetto 
Hispanic family would secretly enjoy a bounty of seven thousand dollars 
for a few months. Again, One black multi breed, flea bitten mutt would 
have a new toy for a few hours of play. The local ecosystem would 
consume all of the physical evidence of Mr. Milismonts lost head and 
everyone on the corner of Broad Street and Allegheny Avenues enjoyed 
more or less some of the more basic social, governmental and economic 
entertainment for a few hours till more pressing problems presented 
themselves. Which they would soon! 

The liberator of Lamont's wallet was at this very moment sitting in the
`El rivia' Bar and grill at seventh and Girard Avenues buying himself 
two big shots of whiskey and a six pack to go.  In a few days a funeral 
would be held and lots of plain people who have absolutely no fucking 
idea who the hell Lamont L. Milismont was and really could care less. 
In this area of the ghetto, funerals are a form of social gathering 
where everyone dresses up in their Sunday best and flirts with each 
other in mourning for the poor jerk who's parked in the box in the 
front of the hall. 

Ten days later after all the fucking Bullshit paperwork has slowly
meandered it's way through the police paper chase system and some 
doctor from the morgue has declared Lamont, the oblivious, DEAD! The 
file would be shifted to microfiche for interment in a file somewhere 
along with it's owner. 

And finally in Warminster, Bucks County Pennsylvania. A small funeral
would be held for Bobby Jamison. A local junkie boy who finally came to 
his end at thirty one years old and shot five times in the face and 
chest by one Lamont L. Milismont, who also was now quite dead. 

Lamont had been a VERY bad man. He hurt many people and animals. He once
lit a cat on fire and routinely shot wandering dogs at night for the 
sheer entertainment value. However he leaped to the head of a ever 
lengthening list of rotten bastards by sexually assaulting his 
girlfriends ten year old niece and then when she protested, threw her 
and her ragamuffin kitten to their death from a sixth floor landing of 
an abandoned factory a year ago. Again, . . .  The Puma was not amused! 


It was a lovely little street with lots of white shutters and manicured
lawns. The year was 1949 and it seemed as if we Americans lived in a 
semi never, never land. We now had fifty states the hula hoop and 
officeal smog count. But overall the feeling in the country was one of 
upbeat positive optimism. 

In California and the southern oil fields, and the automobile belt and
then down to Florida the air held much movement of life anew and the 
redistribution of the countries wealth. The sense of America was to 
pick itself up, dust itself off and get on with business of living and 
lots of folks did just that. This was an unfortunate time for many, 
many smaller town who now started to see just what upward mobility 
really meant. 

In towns all across the country, large companies as well as small were
now relocating to different parts of the country. California was the 
main recipient of many of these businesses who now wanted the 
comfortable life snuggled around the suburbs of the main hub cities. 

On the east coast, towns like Rochester, NY Camden, NJ and Allentown and
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Raleigh, NC and Coatsville, Pennsylvania all 
started to see their main businesses move away from the city to the 
rural outlying suburbs with their lower costs and large open tracts. 

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the face of business was changing as well.
The smaller companies was struggling to grow and the large companies 
couldn't hold back their bursting successes. These companies were 
finding a better workforce. One without the unions and the municipal 
tax burdens that the medium sized cities needed more of with each 
passing day. 

And so it was for the Logan family of Baltimore, Maryland. Mr. Charles
Logan Sr. with his new bride `Patricia' would pack up their belongings 
and move to the Bucks County, Pennsylvania town of Ivyland PA. Once 
there, Mr. Robert Logan went to work for the Fairless Hills steel plant 
as a foreman and Mechanic. He was very optimistic of the plant and his 
future. 

The two young newlyweds quickly found a house in Levitown and started
with the first of three children.  Robert Jr,  John and Wendy. John was 
the middle child and he was often overshadowed by both his stronger 
older brother and his really cute little sister Wendy. 

Rob was the All-American boy growing up. He played football on the high
school team, went hunting with his father and generally did everything 
well. His baby sister likewise filled the role of suburban brat child 
and went with a pack of other girls from the local area. She was quite 
talented and played the guitar and acted in the schools burgeoning 
acting and theater programs. Her Parents loved them both, she and 
Robert and their strong willed minds. 

However, the middle child, John Logan never developed like his brother
or sister. He always preferred to stay home and read or do crossword 
puzzles. He always did excellent in his school work and was pestered by 
the other children for being what would later come to be known as a 
`Nerd'. John was a tall kid at about six foot by his fifteenth 
birthday. He was not outgoing and could always be seen walking by 
himself to and from school. 

Born in April of 1955, he never felt that he `fit in' with the other
kids. In school or at home. John was a sensitive boy and could be 
easily hurt by his fathers words like sissy or pansy. He really ever 
dated and always felt uncomfortable when out with any of the girls from 
his school. 

But it was in school that he really could show his ability in math
studies. He had a natural born skill in numbers. By the time he was 
eleven he was doing his fathers tax returns and could figure out almost 
any math problem with ease. 

He became a novelty with his father, who would take him to the corner
bar and have him perform goofy math tricks for the customers. He could 
count the many bottles of whiskey behind the bar and in a minute tell 
you how much liquor was left altogether. He also could just walk into a 
room and tell you what the area was from just looking at it. And was 
rarely wrong. He hated doing this as numbers meant something to him 
personally. 

Numbers were his friends. Numbers were something to be honored and
protected. John disliked Gambling, but could play any card game and 
once later in life was thrown out of a casino in Atlantic City for 
counting cards in a game of twenty one, however he was not placing any 
bets yet the casino officials felt it better he leave before he decides 
to bet. 

John naturally decided to go to college despite the lack of funds in his
family. In 1969 the steel plant closed down and his father lost his job 
and never again got any real meaningful work again. He slowly descended 
into the sad murky world of alcoholism and died when john was sixteen 
of a liver disease. John's mom then went to work as a secretary and 
john had to wait an extra year before he could attend college on a 
hardship scholarship. 

His brother Bobby was now out of school and working in a garage fixing
construction equipment and he too had developed a alcoholic habit. His 
younger sister on the other hand had decided to go to New York to work 
in the theater were she became a stage make up artist. She too had some 
rather bad habits like cocaine and heroin. She died of an overdose when 
john was graduating from Penn State with a accounting degree in 1984. 

For his part, John Logan never drank nor took anything stronger than
aspirin and it really hurt him to see his father, brother and little 
sister ate up by these two menaces. John logans mother became a hard 
old bitter woman after losing most of her family and finally retired 
early on social security pension. She remained in pretty much good 
health till she somehow died on her kitchen floor of a heart attack. 
But she had only been to her cardiolgist a day before. It was odd as 
she had told her son just that night before that she felt wonderful. 
That was her exact words, wonderful?. 

John Logan had been a wiz at accounting in college but had failed to
leave college with that same enthusatic fever. He could strong men, 
powerful men could take numbers and make them say anything they wanted 
them to. He had worked for a number of accounting firms and was well 
known in the trade of accounting and respected as well. He finally sold 
the families home in 1986 and moved his mother into a Condo he bought 
for her in the northeast part of Philadelphia. 

He had joined the army when he left college and served as a second
luitiente during the `Vietnam war' and stayed in the reserves till he 
grew tired and resigned his commission.  During his tour he had worked 
as an accountant and payroll officer to the eighth army, battalion 34, 
company `H' he was awarded a lifesaving metal for rescuing two little 
boys sweapt into a culvert during a flash floods in Goergia in 1992. 

But what made John Emery Logan special was his love of animals. He
really felt offended by humans actions towards the worlds animal 
population and the overpowering brutality shown them by many men and 
woman. He was a vegetarian and just could not understand hunting for 
sport or the development of wildlife and wetlands by developers who 
couldn't care less how many small furry spices were destroyed and cast 
adrift by their senseless building. 

John had over the years saved many, many small cats and dogs from the
shelters where they might gased only to find an endless supply of more 
animals needing care and medicine. He vowed he would do all he could to 
help them and that there were many nights he arrived home only to cry 
over the loss of a kitten or puppy to either a hit and run driver or a 
gas chamber in a local shelter who could hold no more. Perhaps it was 
his time in Vietnam or something else that changed his emotions, but he 
couldn't understand the cruelty of man towards animals or even his own 
kind. 

But when it came to providing monies so that these animals might last a
few more days,  the city never would spend a cent. John logan always 
felt that for a person to kill an animal was to start a process whereby 
he or she might one day kill another human. A philosiphy that was not 
reconized till many years later by law enforcement officials. John 
himself lived in an a small house he'd bought in Drexel Hill and 
comuted to work vie the bus and Elevated train to his office in center 
city. He always had a dog or cat in his home till recently . He worked 
for a large prominate accounting firm a few blocks from city hall and 
his company did a lot of work through and for the city. 

John did a lot of civic minded things like volunteer for cleanup of
local parks and play grounds. He helped the poor during tax season with 
tax accounting chores and did so as a volunteer as well. He never 
married and was preety much certain he never would. He wasn't gay and 
on occasion would call a local hooker over to spend a few hours with 
him. But most of the time he'd only want to talk to her for a few 
hours. He like the prostitutes as they were most kind helpless women 
who enjoyed the few hours spent listening to him and talking about life 
and their feelings. 

His civic mindedness had gotten him in trouble on occasion as he felt
very strong about the plight of the poor in the ghetto and how their 
children were being treated, schooled and fed.On more than one 
occassion he had voiced his concern about how taxes were being spent 
and that it seemed to disappear once it was deposited in the cities 
coffers. 

And it was this outspokenness that finally proved to be the downfall of
his career. He had been out of work for about six months and was slowly 
running out of money. He had been shuned by most big accounting houses 
in center city and he knew he would have to take a entry level, low 
paying position soon. He was becoming dispondent and hopeless. He had 
gone to a pscychitist and was being treated for sever depression. He 
had lost a lot of weight and was soon to be evicted from his home when 
`it' happened. 

He never was able to explain what it was that had happened to him and
would never try to convince anyone of the spiritual nature of his 
redemption if you could call it that. "Hell he thought much later. It 
might as well of been alians or god entering my body and life for all I 
know. But one lonely night, a night like many others. A night with a 
star lit cold sky and light wisps of snow blowing about. He had decided 
to throw out his trash out back of his apartment house in the dumpster. 
As he turned around a huge woodern bat slammed into his head. He fell 
down and could feel someone ripping open his pockets. 

As he tried to stand he felt a blow to his chest and fell backwards into
a small collection of plastic and metal trash or recycling containers. 
At that point someone, maybe the same person decided to kick him in the 
side. The intense pain racked his body and his stomach and chest hurt 
badly. As he put his hands up to his chest he felt the hunting knife 
thust into his chest. Backwards he fell and felt as if he were falling 
through space almost. The severe racking pain left him and all that he 
felt was this feeling of falling down through space. He was chilly but 
not cold and despite the complete blackness about him he could see a 
faint light far off in the distance. The light got brighter till he had 
to close his eyes from the blinding bright light. 

Now all pain had left him and he opened his eyes to a beautiful island
seascape. There all about him were pretty girls and smooth cool drinks 
of the most unusal water he had ever tasted. He looked about and felt 
someone touching his forehead. He could now see a young girl dabbing a 
lite sweat from his brow. And another faning him lightly with a palm 
leaf. He started to grow sleepy and soon fell sound asleep with the 
pair of girls tending to his welfare and cooling him with the fan. When 
he awoke everything John Logan had ever known was different and never, 
ever be the same again. Not in this or any life. However, this was not 
so true for some others. 

Once more he felt himself regaining his consicenceness. As he opened his
eyes he saw a young african american woman in blue jeans and a 
checkerboard blue and white shirt kneeling by his side. She was just 
looking at him with a very peaceful expression on her pretty round 
brown face. As he was able to see better he could see she was smiling 
at him with  a light smile and she had a light secnt of jasmin about 
her. He was now laying on the grass behind his house, the young women 
by his side. 

He could see her lips move but could not hear a word she was saying. She
had a friendly look about her and spoke with a very soft movement of 
her lips. John could see she was not in a threating fashion or an 
alarming mood. Slowly he was able to start to hear her faint voice. At 
first it sounded like a mans tone but then she leaned down and covered 
her mouth. When she looked back up he could hear her voice had changed, 
and her words to a young womans soft voice. 

John now started to push himself upright and he noticed that right away
there was no more pain in his chest and the knife that only moments ago 
was sticking three inches into his chest with the warm blood oozing 
down to his belt line, was now laying flat and harmless on his belly. 
He felt his chest and could not find any wound or even a rip in his 
shirt. The young black woman reached down and took the knife in her 
right hand. The knife magiclly vaporized and disappeared into 
nothingness. When she opened her hand only a single white chicken 
feather remained and now floated to the grass by his side. She then 
said her name was Debra and for him not to worry or fret. That he 
should come with her now, that they must leave this place and she cast 
a glance around the grassy area quickly. Then she stood and led him out 
and they returned to his apartment. She seemed to know just where to go 
and even had a key to the door. 

Once inside both sat in the living room. John sat in his favorite chair
and the young woman sat in an opposite chair. She looked at his face 
with an intense gaze. John was starting to really clear his head and 
asked her who she was and how did she find him laying in all those 
trash cans and debries. Debra only smiled and shid she has known him 
for a long time, it was only he who did not recognize her. 

He put off asking any more questions but finally could not hold back and
finally ask Debra just who was she and that he could not understand 
what had happened that he knows he had a hunting knife stuck in his 
chest cavity only a half an hour ago. Debra asked him to not ask too 
many questions all at once. But John Logan, being a detail inclined 
person that accountants are kept pushing for more in the way of 
answers. 

The attractive young woman finally grew tired of his constant
inquireries and sat forward in her seat. "Would you be comfortable with 
me if I was not a woman, if I were somebody else. Perhaps another man 
such as yourself ? " she asked sincerely. 

And then as John stuttered and stammered about his uneasiness at being
along with such a young girl her in his living room, she stood and 
stepped backwards.  Then as he watched, Debra moved her right arm 
upward in front of her body and her left arm downward in front of her 
body. In an instant and right before his very eye's, she-Debra, turned 
into an indian man in his twenties and dressed in jeans and a white tee 
shirt and a long black ponytail. He wore cowboy boots in a very shiny 
cordivan color, and a turquiose colored bracelet on one wrist. 

"There! Is this better for your nerves he/she said in a deeper more 
robust voice . 

John Logan just stared at the tall strong indian brave . 

"Jesus Christ !" Was all John Logan could get out . 

"No, but your close!" the tall American Indian man said. 

Chapter. 3 

Not long after, another odd event takes place aborad an airliner bound
for Europe. . . . 

The runway was damn near white in color, bleached by the sun the man in
seat 54. thought as the new boeing jet taxied out onto the tarmac. It 
then then blasted it's way down the ribbon of harsh white concrete and 
lifted off after less than a minute of earthbound speed. 

The man in seat 54 hated flying and would only do so if really
necessary. For him this trip WAS necessary. It had been hard enough 
just hiding the securities and gems in the pocket now sewn into his 
clothes. He had planned this scam for a long time. He had pulled many, 
many robberies over the years, but this one was the most lucrative yet. 
There were times though that he would feel slightly bad or 
self-conscience over stealing so much from the defenseless, the old 
folks and the children's savings accounts that one year had netted him 
a few million. 

Oh, and the time he swildled the slightly retarded folks in Norristown
out of their savings they had been keeping to get their kids eye's 
fixed. Yeah, that was not a real proud thing for him to admit. But what 
the hell, someone will do something for them or something. Anyway, the 
fucking little retarded girl was OK looking without her eyes fixed. She 
was OK when he saw her in her parents bed that time. Oh well, you have 
to do what you have to do. He always said. 

But these airplane flights were just the living end for him. He always
had these nightmeres about being in a plane crash and being burned real 
badly. Yeah, for Walter P. Miderton, flying was NOT his cup of tea so 
to speak. The stewardess was coming around offering drinks and a chose 
of a meal for dinner. Damn he thought. I can't have a thing with this 
rubber bag in me. 

He ordered a drink and told her to speed it up. He wanted it now! The
pretty young woman just shook her head and handed him his drink and 
moved away as fast as possible. "Creep" she muddered as she moved on. 
Walter looked out the window and a cold chill ran down his back. He 
closed his sun shade and tried to think of more pleasent thoughts. 

Old Walter put his head back and tried to sleep but he was too nervious
to really get any sleep. He'd been up for two days without any sleep 
and had been hoping of trying to get a little shuteye on the trip so he 
wouldn't have to think about flying at all, but now he couldn't sleep 
and he buzzed the stewardess for the second time now. 

"YES SIR!" the pretty young American woman said icely now. She and the
other stewardess had already figured out this jerk was going to be a 
royal pain in the ass, but for gods sake they'd only been aloft for a 
half an hour and already this snotty prick had bussed for service three 
times already. 

"Look, does this plane have to go so damn slow? And I need something so
I can sleep. What do you have?" the grubby little man said in his usual 
snotty nasally tone. "Sir, I don't think we're allow to dispense any 
medician onboard an aircraft and. . . " The soft voiced stewardess 
stated to reply. The man then waved her off and said he knew this was a 
fucked up airline and for the stewdess to get lost. 

Slowly he did fall to sleep after boring the man seated next to him with
his complaints. It seemed like a hour he slept, and when he awoke he 
needed to go to the bathroom badly. He pushed his way to the aisle and 
cut off another passenger on her way to the same lavatory. He didn't 
feel all that swell and hoped that nothing was making him sick. He 
needed to meet someone soon. 

He was consicence of most of the other passenger stareing at him as he
made his way to the rear of the aircraft. The mood inside the coach 
setting cabin could just about be cut with a knife. Once inside the 
planes bathroom he delibralitly took his time despite some occassional 
knocking from other passengers needing to use the small bathroom. 

Somehow he managed to fall back asleep while there. But was suddenly
awakened by a shearing sound and a pitching of the aircraft from side 
to side. The plane now started to nose over into a pitch. People were 
screaming and yelling. Children were crying and running about as the 
door burst out of it's frame and old walter ran to the aisle to see 
what was going on. 

One of the stewardess's was dead on the cabin floor after being hit by
something that ripped through the planes side. The worst thing that 
could happen in Walters mind was now taking place. The aircraft was 
going to crash and there was nothing Walter could do about it.  And now 
he started to hyperventalate. All around there was a state of hysteria. 


A woman was tuging on his sleave and begging for him to help her, she
didn't want to die. He pushed her away. "Get off of me, I've got my own 
problems." and the woman fell into the aisle. People everywhere were 
either praying or begging each for help and to god in hope of 
forgiveness for their sins. 

" Oh Damn! " Walter mumbled. Pandamomame raigned everywhere. The pilot
came on the loud speaker and had to yell to be heard and told everyone 
to calm down and for them to put on their seats belts that the aircraft 
was in trouble and that the crew was doing everything they could. But 
that there's a chance that things are going to get worse and they might 
have to crash land. 

At that very moment Walter looked out the window after the sun shade had
snapped up, and he could see nothing but blackness streeked with bits 
of flame coming out from under the planes right side wing.  " Oh Fuck 
!" Walter cursed openly. He felt as if he could not breath, his breath 
was in choppy gulps and his chest hurt now as well. He needed his 
pills. 

He pushed out into the aisle and tryed to get his carry on luggage down
from the overhead rack but was unable to do so with all the pushing and 
shoveing and he cursed at everyone around. Now he climbed up into the 
rack itself and opened his bag and gropped for his heart pills that a 
doctor had perscriped for a abnormal heart beat.  Walter now was cramed 
into the luggage rack and had his hand shoved into his only bag. A 
redish one with black trim. It seemed to take an hour but really only 
took a minute or so but finally he found his little amber bottle of 
pain relief pills and opened it right away. All of a sudden though, the 
plane at that moment pitched to the left and Walter dropped the open 
bottle to the aisle floor below. Now people were stepping on his 
precious little yellow pills,  crushing them and Walter tried to make 
them stop by cursing at them and swinging wildly with his fists. The 
plane pitched again and he fell out of the tight rack to the seats 
below hurting his side. Now he was hysterical and started flailing 
about at anyone near him. 

He immediately scrambled down on to the floor to try and salvage some of
his pain relief pills but found most had been ground into dust already. 
"Fucking Bastards !" he cursed and with that he smacked and elderly 
lady passing by. Just like a little child having a tantrum. 

At that very moment the plane pitched backwards toward the right side
and Walter could see one remaining tiny yellow pill on the floor by his 
seat. He scrambled back across two seated passengered to his seat and 
reached down to pick up his one remaining hope of pain releif. 

Just then the hysterical child crying and screaming in her seat where
she was stood up to run to her mommy whom she now spotted. She stepped 
on Walters only remaining pill, grinding it into dust in the carpet 
edge. And then she was gone along with his hopes of ridding himself of 
the racking pain in his chest cavity. " Little bitch !" he exclaimed 
climbed back into his seat and cludched his chest. 

A bolt of lightning now lit up the sky and he could see the trees coming
upwards fast. It was no use, "We're going to crash." he cried. For some 
crazy reason he all of a sudden felt tired and started to fall asleep 
again despite the fact that now the plane was shacking wildly and it 
was making all sorts of violent noises and the flames under the right 
wing now had climbed to compleately engulf the engin and wing on his 
side of the plane. And the plane was pitched over on it's right side 
and he was shoved against the window by the pressure. 

Walter looked out once more to see the sea of evergreen and maple trees
coming up at him like some attack dog set loose. "Christ, I"m going to 
die here." he mumbled to himself between tears. And the child had now 
fought her way back and was tugging on his arm and crying and begging 
for help. He pushed her away and slowly closed his brown eye's to hope 
he could fall asleep before the plane hit the ground. The plane now 
screaming a high pitched wail, now plummeted toward the forest sea of 
trees now rocketing upward towards his window. . . His chest hurt and 
he clutched it tightly and closed his eye's and awaited either sleep or 
impact. . . . . 

" For christ sakes mister, open the damn door, we can't help you if you
don't!" The stewardess tried to whisper in her loudest restrained voice 
she could muster. " Pam, would you go get the flight engineer for me." 
Gail Townsend, the lead stewardess asked her subordannet Pan Arnold.  
"OK, coming right up." and she picked up a couple of sodas and some 
coffee to give her a visible reason to go knock on the flight decks 
door and decreatly ask Tom Miller to come back to the galley area and 
see if he could help with the hysterical passenger who locked himself 
in the lavitory. 

The flight deck of the huge late model Boeing jetliner was awash in
subdued green and red lights to insulate the crews eyes so they could 
see better for the late night flight from New York's Kennedy airport to 
Berlin, via Amsterdam, Holland. Flight Engineer Mr. Tom Miller was 
chatting with the pilot,  Jack McGowen and Co-pilot, Russell Johnson 
when stewardess Pam Arnold entered the flight decks open door by the 
engineer. 

"Hi everybody !" she said with her usual effervesent charm and bubblly
personality. All three echoed an almost single, "HI GAIL !" in reply. 
She gave each one who wished a cup of soda or coffee to each who 
requested it and then quietly asked Mr. Miller if he could come back to 
the galley that the lead stewardess, Gail Townsand had another 33 in 
the lavitory. 

The co- pilot laughed out loud as he overheard her request. "That's the
third one this month , and it's only the twenty first of June. Then the 
pilot joked with the group that he once had four people lock themselves 
in the lavatory while flying for another airline, that he had suggested 
that the management start charging for an additional seat since there 
was always an extra with somebody in the lavatory at almost all times 
during that particular flight. Everybody had a great laugh and Pam 
excused herself and returned to the galley area to await the engineer. 

"He's on his way, Gail !" she said softly to her boss as she returned
with the remaining coffee and soda's. "Thanks Gail. This is really a 
pain in the neck. It happens, but for some reason I never get accustom 
to it in all my twelve years of flying. I just don't know." Gail said 
as she saw the flight engineer approuching. "Is he making any more 
noise?" Pam asked. 

Not since you left. Probably fell asleep." Gail replied. The engineer
stepped into the Galley and closed the galley curtain so as to keep 
this private and out of view of the other passengers. He then whispered 
to the lead stewardess if she wanted to knock or for him to remove the 
door hinge pins. 

Gail Peters, being the lead stewardess gets to decide if she wants the
engineer to try to talk to the stubborn passenger or to just take out 
the door pins and to see for himself what the problem is. "OK. Take out 
the pins. I've been talking to this passenger for fourty minutes now 
and the guy won't respond. Oh, and it `s a guy in his forties I think." 


"Sure thing Gail." and he then took the small tool kit he was carrying
to the stainless steel counter and opened it. He took out the small 
special door hinge tool and inside of two minutes he had the two pins 
out while the stewardesses returned to waiting on the passengers needs 
and wishes. Tom Miller had been an flight engineer since Vietnam in 
1973 and was in his late, late forties himself. He wedged the door open 
slightly and whisbered inside without actually looking. " Ah, sir. Are 
you OK? We need to have you return to your seat now?." He waited for a 
long minute as per regulations to allow the distrught passenger a 
moment to ready him or herself for the opening of the door. 

As he slipped the door sideways he looked and saw the pouchy little man
on the camode with his pants on and head down. Tom asked him again to 
get ready to leave the bathe room, but the little just sat there. Now 
the engineer slid the door open and felt the flushed mans hand. It was 
cold and there was no pluse. "Shoot" he then lifted the little middle 
aged man and slipped his pants back up and zipped, buttoned and 
attached the belt and small belt buckle togeather. He then lifted him 
into a more reasonable sitting position and closed the door. 

He stepped out into the galley deck area and told Gail in a whisper that
the guy was dead. "Probably a heart attack.  It happens. He asked her 
what she would prefer he do with the passenger and Gail looked at her 
watch and said they'd been enroute for three hours now, did tom think 
that the captian would want to return to the states or continue on to 
europe. 

"Good question." he whispered. He stepped back and looked at the dead
man and then called the flight deck to talk to the captain. 

It was a cool clear night and the Boeing 737 was at 38.000 feet and six
hundred and ten miles per hour. It had been aloft for three hours and 
five minutes and was slightly past the point of no return. However 
there is always a problem leaving a dead person in someone else's 
country, so since they were close enough, the captain and Co-pilot 
decussed it and decided to return to Canada to leave the body for the 
American customs officeals to decide what to do with it. 

"Ladies and Gentlemen, it's the captain and I need your attention for a
moment. We have a slight technical or diplomatic problem and I'm going 
to need to return to St. Johns, Newfoundland for a stopover. At this 
time we'll take on more fuel and then continue on to Amsterdam. The 
delay should take about two hours so if anybody wants to remain in St. 
Johns That could dictate whether we continue on or cancel the flight 
and return to New York. The stewardess will come around and ask you 
what you prefer and I will make my decision about our destination at 
that time 

There was a call placed to Kennedy and they confirmed it was up to the
crew and passengers as to what they should do. The lead stewardess 
Peters rang the flight deck five minutes later and said the passengers 
would rather take the hour or two turnaround delay and still continue 
on to Amsterdam since it was a night flight and the delay at this point 
would only add about an hour and a half to two hours to the normal five 
and a half hour transatlantic flight. 

"Ladies and Gentlemen this is the Captain again. We going to turn around
and land at St. John's airport in fifty seven minutes, we'll be 
airbourn again in a half an hour and wiil land in Amsterdam by seven 
thirty Amsterdam time. Thank you for your patience and understanding. 
We will make this little detour as quick as possible. Thank you !" 

The huge liner landed in the Canadian province, took on fuel and left
the body and luggage for customs and the American officials there and 
returned to it's flight 1036. An quick autopsy was performed while the 
plane was serviced again, and the doctor concurred the passenger had 
had a heart attack however there seemed to be some artificial  
obstruction or blockage in the mans lower intestinal tract, something 
like a plastic bottle. And that it was too big for something he could 
of ate or even swallowed as best as they could guess. So the plane and 
it's passenger were cleared to leave. The FBI was called to come get 
the body for a formal autopsy. 

It was a clear, cold April night in St. John's. A lovely little seacoast
Canadian town just down the beach from `Pouch Cove'. A very stiff cool 
breeze blew off the ridge mountains and whistled down into the small 
town. Most all the less bold wildlife was fast asleep as the thundering 
jetliner disturbed the nights sleep briefly but soon all returned to 
warm cuddly positions and more pleasant dreams. The only abnormality 
that night was a police report of a person who swore that he had heard 
a loud roar of a lion or tiger.. . .  Or a Puma !. 

Upon arrival in New York city twelve days and five flight crews later,
the aircraft upon being opened for service at the airlines hanger in 
New York city developed an odor of, well `Cat Urine' after an extensive 
search for any stowaway cats and an equally through re-examination by 
three service mangers sent from Boeing. No cat was found nor was any 
ever transported in the last six weeks. 

In fact no explanation could ever be given for the putrid smell. The
plane however was later  was sold to a fright carrier operating out of 
Atlanta, Georgia who said that cargo never complained about smell 
unlike the many passengers who's irritation and subsequent loud 
complaints and ultimate refusal to be flown onboard that very fateful 
aircraft on that plane that smelled like a cat's scent- marking of it's 
territory lead to it being sold. 

*                         *                       * 

"Well, Ok then. You know nothing of me. But if I could show you some
things, maybe tell you something about myself, would that make you less 
fearful of me John Logan." asked the tall handsome Indian. He stood 
about six foot, maybe not quite that tall. Built strong but not 
massive. His skin on his arms was smooth, clear and a pleasent mixture 
of browns over a more dominate red. 

He had shoulder lenght, smooth, ultra fine, pitch black hair pulled back
into a tight pony tail. His handsand arms were the most prominate 
feuture about him. They were big strong hands and very well developed 
arms. He easily could break someones neck, yet when he spoke, well, you 
just seemed to feel calm and relaxed around him. 

His voice seened quiet yet stern at the same time. His english words
were perfectly pronounced and with soft smooth edges. Logan thought to 
himself. "My what a odd yet perfectly unalarming type person, or or, 
whatever. Only a moment ago he was a she and was a short cute Africain 
American woman or girl.  " I think I need a drink ! " logan thought to 
himself. 

The Indian then stood and walked silently to a cuboard over the
refigerator and opened it. He reached inside and withdrew a bottle of 
burbon and got a small glass and some ice . He persented all to John 
Logan for his request. I didn't ask for a drink did I? " john asked in 
a quizical maner. 

"No" the Indian said in a low tone after making a questioning facial
gesture. "But You thought It didn't you?" the Indian brave now asked. 

"Yes, Yes I did." came Logans reply. Both men smiled now for the first
time. The handsome Indian spoke for hours about things john could 
bearly understand. Finally the Indian stood and told John Logan to seek 
rest now as he had much work ahead for both men. Hard and dangerious 
work at times he said. "Will I be killed?" Logan asked. Perhaps, but it 
is of little concern as you will not die. "How can you make such a bold 
asumption John asked his new friend. 

The Indians named was  'Stargazer, William Stargazer' and he looked hurt
or ashamed for the first time that evening, and John Logan knew he had 
said something that had caused that injured look to come over his 
guest. "I, I, . . .  I'm sorry. Sometimes I don't think before I say 
something and I hurt you. I didn't mean to." he offered his new friend 
as an apoligy. 

"It is not that your words that hurt, John Logan. But rather the answer
that those words request that makes this lone warrior to feel sadness 
tonight. For you were stopped on that pathway an hour ago. 

"What you mean I was killed earlier tonight. Don't you?' John Logan
said. 

"NO" said the Indian brave. "You did not die. Only that much travelled
pathway ended. In my land, sometimes a mighty thunderbird will loose a 
feather . . . But not it's strong wings. 

Before long John Logan . . . You will spread your wings and the
mountains of this city of damnation will shake." with that the indians 
phyical image slowly, slowly faded till it was all gone. On the arm of 
the chair in which he sat was a small slip of folded paper remained. On 
it read: 

" Justice is a temporary thing that must at last come to an end; but the
conscience is eternal and will neve die."      Martin Luther. 

Chapter. 4 

The morning's activities started as normal that fateful morning. Of
course the birds were up at the break of light as were the squirrels 
and slowly each of the signs of life resumed as normal. At 22nd. And 
Poplar streets a dark blue tow truck came lumbering along. It stopped 
and backed up. The driver got out of the truck and walked around to a 
car parked on the right side of Poplar street. 

On the expensive automobiles windshield was a parking ticket from the
night before. The driver got back in his work truck and waited with 
it's flashers on. While he waited he turned on the radio and tuned it 
to his favorite rap music station. The loud music blared from the 
trucks cab. But still the driver waited. 

At exactly seven twenty six AM, fifteen minutes after he parked, the tow
truck hoisted the front of the car off it's wheels and pulled around 
the corner to attach the safety straps. He then took off  like a shot 
for the impound lot. The time was seven twenty eight. 

Sixty four feet away on Poplar Street towards 22nd. Street was a pole
with a red and white municipal sign saying NO PARKING Between 7:30 AM & 
3:30 PM. The time now was seven twenty nine. The tow truck had 
technically stolen this motorist automobile in the name of overdue 
parking fines. 

Directly across from the NO PARKING sign on the opposite side of the
street sat a tall thin man with long black hair pulled into a pony 
tail. His face was smooth and clear and he appeared to be a Native 
American. He wore a pair of jeans, a flannel shirt, cowboy boot shined 
to a high cordovan luster and a dimin. ranch coat. 

His Name was William Stargazer . He stood and slowly began walking away.
Once more he looked at his watch. Seven thirty exactly. The tow truck 
was long gone. As he strolled toward the old city section, he 
sarcastically commented to himself, "City of brotherly love?". 

A few days had passed and now John Logan started to think that all that
had happened had been a mental mirage of sorts and that all he had 
experienced was only a dream. Yesterday he had cleaned his house and 
had washed his clothes. And now as he climbed from a new shower he went 
looking for his shirt. 

He opened the drawer in which he kept his unpressed casual shirts. There
on top of the others, was the one he wore the night he met Stargazer. 
In its front was a thread ragged and bare slash in it's front. It was 
three inches long, the same as the hunting knife. 

He held it a while longer, as he did he thought to himself all of the
things that you really never consider in the course of modern life. 
Things that only occur or are a consideration to men or woman who seek 
to change a society that has gone astray. To this type of person, the 
likes of John Kennedy, or his Brother, Malcolm X or Martin Luther King. 
Perhaps someone like Gandhi or the Tibetan Monks of Buddhism. A group 
of people or, or a single man. It was then that he became sad for the 
conclusion that all these people had been murdered or killed by the 
very bulk of people of whom they were trying to change. 

It was quiet for a moment, just a moment in John Logan's life. A moment
of silence that very rarely happens and only if you are seeking solace 
from your god. A very quiet moment. 

"Perhaps you might dress and we shall begin." a voice said behind Mr.
John Logan. He spun around to see William Stargazer standing there. 

"William !" Logan exclaimed. John Logan hurriedly finished dressing. "Is
that coffee you have cooking there, John Logan?" asked William. "Why 
Yes, would you like some?" Logan asked.  " Yes, Yes please. it's been 
some time. William Stargazer replied. 

"Huh, how long has it been since you had coffee?" John asked his strange
new friend "Eight hundred years ago. It was by a cool brook in Siberia. 
Some men had made it and I tasted it then. But that was the last time 
till now."  John Logan said nothing further. 

William enjoyed the hot dark brew. Soon he spoke to john Logan about
some of the things that had been going on back then. He said it was way 
too involved for him to really rightfully explain but that many of the 
things that evolved back then were now taking place here, here in the 
city of brotherly love. 

John Logan explained that there was a time, or perhaps it really never
happened but that he just imagined that it had. But that it seemed that 
now there were so many people or leaders as they like to call 
themselves, that now only use the positions that they hold for personal 
gain. "Their not brothers, nor is there any brotherly love in this 
city." 

William Stargazer asked Logan just how this could be so easily done by
so few? John Logan said that if all you feed a chicken is rice, do you 
think he will willingly eat corn if there is no rice? No, because all 
the chicken remembers is that he eats rice. 

"And if the so called leaders can arrange that all the people have to
scrap and fight for whatever meager rations they can get by on, they 
won't look to closely at their leaders." Now John Logan went over to a 
low window and opened it so that the cool morning breeze could flow in. 
The soft cool lite breeze felt almost wet as it washed over the two 
strangers. 

"Sometimes some of us, well I should speak for myself. well we hope that
with each new day a sense of compassion and caring will take root in 
peoples hearts. And they will begin to care about themselves and others 
around them. But it would appear that men and woman care only about 
themselves and what each new day will bring to them. I always wonder 
that if this is as good and intelligent as man has gotten what was it 
like long ago?" Logan said to almost the breeze itself. 

William Stargazer was silent while he drank his coffee. Finally he
looked up and said, "You started to say that the chicken was foolish 
because all he recognized was the barley in his feed. But you 
overlooked the fact that the foolish chicken does not know he can have 
corn. In People, often they are selfish and unconcerned with the plight 
of others. But I have seen John Logan you and others like you who wish 
to show that we don't have to be like this. That we all can care about 
each other and take care of each other. . . . 

Often though John Logan, the truth is masked or colored in shades that
are attractive just as a ploy to confuse and complicate the matter so 
that the only ones who know the truth are the ones who are speaking of 
it themselves. Your mighty leaders. The ones who sell war and waste, 
hunger and strife. The merchants of despair." William said. 

"So what of it William Stargazer, what does a people do if nothing else
works." Logan said in his soft yet roughish voice.  William just looked 
at his friend and replied, "it, the truth will always stand on and by 
itself, what is good in life, is also good in mens hearts. All the 
prophets, Allah, Buddha, Jesus Christ. They have all professed the same 
virtues. It is just that other who can, will mask the truth in colors 
that at a distance seem bright and vibrant, yet when you get closer the 
colors run like their creators. . . .  Then it is necessary to push the 
truth upright again so all can see it once more." He said in his stern 
and sturdy voice. 

John Logan was the same height as William stargazer. And of the same
build. Only John had blonde hair and had a softer more gentle face. A 
caring and compassionate face. He wondered how it was that this strange 
William Stargazer would pick him to show and want he as a fellow rebel. 
It was silent in the room as both men were deep in thought. 

After another cup of coffee William said: "I picked you because you have
the heart of an artist, and the mind of a accountant. The hands of a 
gardener and the soul of a lion." These are the attributes of another 
Puma.  He was your president James Madison of many years ago. 

The two men then hastily left and went to the corner where William
Stargazer had been earlier in the morning. He explained about the tow 
truck. And about the time being early. He asked if John Logan thought 
that wrong or evil. Logan said that many things are worst than that, 
but that wrong is wrong. 

William Stargazer said that it's these small things that are used first
to complicate and confuse the citizens and then it gets progressively 
worst with each passing era. John Logan now asked what if anything 
could be done to convince the people that wrong is evil in the making. 
" Even Puma's are unsure of that answer, for it lies in each man and 
women's heart. But as your Abraham Lincoln said 

"Let us fight one war at a time" 

Now the two men started off for city hall and a special council meeting
this morning. The late starting city council session had been delayed a 
couple of times due to the fears of public reaction to the overall vote 
and it's nature. The city council was to consider for the fifth time in 
three years about privatization of the bus service in the cities school 
system. At stake was a lot of union jobs but also the question of who 
benefited by the change. In another two years, the truth be told it 
would show that only one particular group would benefit, and benefit 
greatly by today's vote. In two years from this date, the bus service 
would be sold to an outside vendor to operate and the savings from 
elimination of the city, and city drivers and mechanics from this 
operation would be huge. However most of the savings would be spent 
giving city council a big pay raise to each of themselves and for 
funding of their pet projects. 

This one vote would show once and for all the disappointment of the
people of this city of three million in their government and perhaps, 
in each other. Before long the slamming of the gavel on it's hard 
wooden block would be replaced by shots heard around the city. The 
sound of many  white men, black men, Asians and all of the other 
minorities scattered about the 298,000 square acres of geography that 
made up the city who had come to the end of their emotional rope of 
patience. 

In the coming months, bloodshed and violence would slowly attach itself
to the population, unify them in a most terrible haphazard way and thus 
deliver unto the city leaders a wake up call about ethics, morals, and 
the patience of mankind itself or the slow evaporation of same. The 
turmoil and strife would however, hurt and damage only the very one's 
who sought to preserve their democratic way of life. 

So soon, very soon the citizenry would understand only too well what
happens when those who seek a fair and impartial government, succumb to 
installing only those who were or would very soon be corrupted by the 
very power they were given to distribute fairly and uniformly. 

As John Logan and William Stargazer entered the room, it was filled with
the uneasy sense of doom or anticipation of same. People looked about 
trying not to make eye contact with each other. The air hung heavy and 
many a light sweat lingered at many a brow. The council members 
themselves were charged with anticipation of the thoughts of fleeing. 

They were, like the people in the gallery, now speaking in short muffled
sentences and each filled with desperation and remorse at having even 
been foolish to show up at their assigned seats for today's important 
vote. 

For anyone who had lived for any amount of time here, it was clear who
the weak or sickly  members of council were by their noted absence 
today. The council meeting finally got underway with the wooden gavel 
being banged on it pummeled partner of many years. The speaker quickly 
brought the attendance to order and issued a request for silence. 

Many points were covered till finally one member voiced a negative note.
That one comment erupted in a surge of squabble and infighting amongst 
the council members. Then the time in which all of council despised 
came when the chance to speak, ordered by the councils own doctrine or 
law, was offered to the public in attendance. 

Some people spoke about surface issues like work and performance, both
of which concerned this particular speaker then on to some other 
issues. Some light, some more complex till towards the end of the 
meeting John Logan stood to speak. He spoke in short pointed sentences. 
And asked as to who or whom would really benefit by this abandonment of 
the bus service by the city. 

There was lots of grumbling from all sectors as the different council
member sought to confused or defuse the issue. And only after John 
Logan, in his powerful lawyers or accountants style kept returning to 
his initial question did the council president seek to have him 
quieted. First by trying to embarrass him before everyone, then after 
feeling embarrassed himself he abruptly sent council in to a ten minute 
recess. 

As they sat there a deputy asked John Logan to please leave the chambers
or risk being thrown out. The deputy fled when Logan asked for his name 
and rank and supervisor. After ten minutes, a crier came into the 
council chambers and told all in attendance that council would be out 
of session for the next hour as they tried to recoup them selves. 

John Logan and William Stargazer wandered to a small coffee shop nearby.
There they drank a cup of espresso together till a group of men could 
be overheard laughing at the `Injun and the fruitcake' seated there. 
Logan was insulted and sought to stand till William grabbed his arm and 
told him not to get involved. That words do not mean a thing. This 
lasted till one of the men came over and told the two men that they 
were not welcomed here. 

"Why ? " asked William Stargazer. " You ain't from around here BOY, so
we don't need none of your lip."  Then John Logan stood and said the 
man probably did not live here either but was only attempting to cover 
up for city council. And was perhaps being paid to do so. The man said 
he would like to `Kick the crap outa you , BOY." it was then that the 
others came over and goaded the one man on with his insults of the two 
strangers. 

Finally as William said the two should return to chambers the first man
punched John Logan lightly in the cheek. He attempted to hit William 
now and threw a punch. Like a blazing rocket, Williams open hand 
intercepted the fist in mid air. There he just held the mans hand in 
mid air and slowly squeezed the fist. 

The man now was starting to feel pain in his crushing grip and William
eyes never left him nor blinked till the man cried out in pain. He 
released his crushed and bleeding hand as John swung at another. Again 
Williams hand intercepted a thrown punch, this one belonging to John 
Logan. He just let the fist drop to John's side and then looked toward 
the small group of angry men. He then spoke to Logan. 

"Puma's do not fight with Jackals, they are not worthy opponents of the
Puma. Jackals will gladly fight with each other as the ignorant 
scavengers of the land that they are!".  With that both John and 
William slowly left. William stopped at the door and looked back at the 
small group of men now smugly praising each other at their perceived 
victory. " Jackals" . . .  William whispered. 

The two now walked back to city hall and the council meeting in silence.
John Logan was somewhat confused as to just how his new friend whom he 
knew could of hit and injured or killed the guy who was attempting to 
assault him, yet he did not! Why? He was invisible when he wanted to 
and could have done anything he wanted. 

"Yet, he did say Puma's did not fight with jackals? Hum" thought Logan.
"Hum!" For his part, William tried to keep cool and sort of distant 
from these humans strange interactions. He had to laugh to himself 
sometimes though. This morning when the fat speaker of city council 
started to reprimand Logan for being obnoxious in his tone of 
questions, William had been reminded of the last time he'd heard this 
stupid or childish kind of statements. 

It had taken him a little while to remember but finally the mental
picture became clear in his foggy memory. It had been Julius Caesar 
chastising some poor Christian for begging for his life at one of the 
entrances to the Colosseum on Sunday or `Games Day'. He had been 
tempted to intervene, but had restrained. He would forever be sorry for 
not acting. He had , had the last nineteen hundred ninety years to 
think about it to himself. 

His mentor and he had spoken on many occasions of his concerns. His
powers being as all encompassing as they were. Why he could misguide 
time itself if he wanted, but would that have helped. Evolution was a 
funny thing. You really can't steer or direct it for it was like water 
held cupped in your hands on a hot day. If you do nothing it will 
evaporate, Spill it and it's lost to the sand. Try to pour it and it 
wanders wherever it wants. 

There's just no solid solution he thought. Just try to educate these
children and promote a new Puma in the process. Bam, he bumped into 
someone and they had said "I'm Sorry" to him. Will one more small 
donation to the pool of good Karma. William had to laugh. 

As the two rounded the corner to city councils entranceway, there was
already a small group of people standing in the small stuffy doorway 
and some were smoking and others were talking or mumbling. The hallway 
seemed small all of a sudden and the mood of everyone there was not 
optimistic. Someone had seen a council person far down the hallway and 
had chased after him as he did not have his usual bodyguard with him. 

For a small sliver of a moment John and William were in the hallway by
themselves. A court crier peeked out and tried to not look directly at 
the two men so as not to be asked any questions. He looked out and 
yelled in a low voice that city council meeting was canceled and this 
hearing was over, Period!. 

The small band of waiting city dwellers now rushed back once they heard
the tiny beeping voice of the short court crier. He them slammed the 
door and bolted it locked from inside. William had to lean against the 
marble wall to keep from being knocked down. This period on earth was 
starting to resemble the last time when the Romans were nailing Jesus 
to the cross and the skies were filled with anger and smoke blighted 
the skies pristine clouds out. For a moment William closed his eyes and 
wished he were in France, lying next to a cool stream he knew of. To 
return to sleep where it was quiet and serene. Where none of these 
foolish humans with their wild dreams and stupid desires invaded 
everything and disregarded everyone and everything other than 
themselves. These people wouldn't know peace if they tripped over it. 
He wondered if his elders knew what they were doing by  ordering him 
her to see if he could smooth things over and restore some order to it 
all. 

Sometimes he never understood his superiors. These humans never seemed
to have what they wanted. They would fight over the most foolish 
things. Each stealing off the other or killing this one or that one. 
Some wanted a `TRUE' leader, and then some said they were the leaders 
and always they were running around saying "In God's Name This Or That 
!". 

These people wouldn't know a word of what God had said to them. Oh,
sure. There was some who had preached to the others of gods words of 
peace and just how to live a calm and peaceful life in harmony. Why 
even Martin Luther King had spoke of it in the most simple of terms so 
as not to be misunderstood, and they even got that screwed up. And one 
of the swine had killed the messenger. So much for not linking the 
message and the messenger together. 

"HAY yo'all, Lets go overturn their cars out in the street and set them
afire?" yelled another new Jackal. "Boy, this is going to be a real 
struggle." William thought as Logan gently shook him. "William, 
William, are you OK,?" John Logan said in his customary low voice. 

William Stargazer took a long lonely look at the retreating spectators
and in light self mockery said "No, I just thought this time might be 
different!"  John Logan shook his head and asked what he meant by this 
time? "Perhaps some other time I will tell you. Right now I must leave. 
He turned and walked away and as John Logan sought to catch up with his 
friend who just turned the corner. But as he did so also. . . William 
was gone. 

Chapter. 5 

The night slowly flooded the city with it's cover of darkness and quiet,
and as so it's nocturnal groups set upon the streets once more. Broad 
Street ambled like a huge asphalt railroad track straight through the 
city from one end to the other. No other street could be so prominent 
or as straight in a line as it. 

Up in stately Chestnut Hill, the last of the evening talk was either
finished off with toasts of brandy or Budweiser as the current social 
fabric standing dictated. The trees whooshed and swayed with the light 
breeze. 

Down through fairmount park, along the rambling Cobb's Creek and to the
brightly yet gaudily lit South Street area this city of slightly less 
than two million now traded places with those who embraced the cover of 
darkness as both their allies and their enemy. 

Tonight in many portions of this shabby urban conflagration those who
seek to enjoy and thus those who seek to injure assembled in the street 
and clubs throughout Philadelphia. With darkness so enters the nemeses 
of the towns likeable slogan,: "City of Brotherly Love'. 

In the slightly western sector of Mantua, a squalid area of depressed
and languished people who are all either trying to save this squalid 
neighborhood, or are rejoicing at it's downfall. And on most of all the 
street corners assemble the drunks, druggie and prostitutes that seem 
at times to be the only last living creatures save for semi-alien dog, 
cats and fathomless array of insects and rats. 

Here tonight William returned to earthbound visibility. He had wished to
venture to as many  nooks and crannies as possible so that he could 
truly experience the city as a whole, this he had done for many 
centuries in the past. And would so for like in the future. 

And now in the wee morning hours when even the air seems dead, on the
corner of 50Th. And Brown streets, a city tow truck from the parking 
authority slowly backed into the front of a late model Ford Turaus 
sedan. The auto was quite legally parked and conformed to all parking 
regulations however it stood out as a new model car and one surly the 
owner would want to redeem. 

As the burly black driver hoisted the cars front wheels slowly so as not
to trip the alarm, and wrapped the nylon straps about the locked front 
wheels there was a wonderful bit of an ironic sight there in the street 
light just behind and to the right of the soon to be towed automobile. 

William watched from the shadows across and up the street a little way.
The few remaining street lights no longer provided any illumination of 
any real significance but the small old shabby sign did once the sun 
warm rays shown upon it. 

The tow truck now slowly rambled off with it's new found prize. Headed
for the cities parking impound lot and another $100 dollars soon to 
deposited in the cities coffers. Another $20 dollars into the 
enterprising drivers pocket in bonus money. And a new loss for the 
hapless owner of the now quickly disappearing Ford sedan. 

And in that gritty half light that morning, William could clearly see
the words of mock inspiration on the faded, yet graffiti free plaque to 
hope and vigilance. The words had in fact helped many in the past 
however it was doubtful to William as to their effectiveness with the 
current inhabitants save for the aforementioned cats and dogs. 

The faded plaque was marvelous to William as he watch the dark blue tow
truck finally disappear from view, . . . 

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared
to what lies within us" Ralph Waldo Emerson 

The words were just as powerful today as the day that Mr.Emerson had
penned them. And William Stargazer had made note to the effect the last 
time he had spoken to Emerson. He began to walk towards the cities hub 
area and as he did he passed many of the ghouls of the morning hours. 

Some made snide remarks and some propositioned him with their
foolishness of sex and drugs. Others still threatened the lone Native 
American walker as he made his way among the filth and gritty litter 
strewn streets of this uncivilized setting. 

On one corner some street toughs decided to see if the tall stranger had
anything they might want. This proved to be THE last of a series of 
disappointing decisions on their part. One of the toughs, at not 
receiving the answer he so desired decided to cut off the `Injuns' long 
black ponytail. "Scalp'em homey!' cried the others. The young tall brut 
grabbed Williams hair and instantly froze in place. 

The others were shocked and now started to move in with their long sharp
knives drawn and ready to plunge them into Williams chest, which they 
were about to do as William slowly extracted his long black locks from 
the first ones grasp. They too froze into a solid unflinching posture. 
Unable to do much more than blink their eyes. Not one word, foul or 
otherwise could slip from their tongue's. 

William stepped away and after straightening his ruffled cloths and
hair, swept his hand in front of himself and the foursome fell to the 
ground, unconscious and quite paralyzed. The four would never again 
have use of their hands or arms that they had used to assault William 
Stargzer with. 

Even after being hospitalized for months and receiving much therapy that
never would be able to use their limbs for anything other that a 
painful reminder of a life wasted on crime and drugs. Each lived to a 
somewhat old age and became livid members of their local church and 
never missed a chance to speak on the goodness and the justice of the 
lord. 

William never looked back that night and as far as he was concerned,
considered them fortunate at this brief encounter with a `Puma'. For 
unlike many in the past who had thought themselves fit competitors, 
this bunch got to keep their lives. Never can it be said that Puma's do 
not once in a while feel a tinge of either compassion or neutrality in 
combat. 

Once William  recalled a very special puma to him personally, her name
was Adriane, and she a Puma who had used her full powers, but only due 
to the nature of the humans attack. It had been spring in a place 
called `Miami Beach' the year was 1961. The Puma's full name was 
Adriane Del Costa. And she had been working as a waitress in a cocktail 
lounge.  One of the regulars had taken a shining to her despite her 
attempts to discourage him. He had known that she had overheard a 
conversation that he had, had with a `Business Associate while sitting 
in his car outside her apartment. The man who said he belonged to 
something called the "La Costa Nostra" decided she was not to be 
trusted and had a friend come around and kill her. 

She had left the bar at about midnight and walked the four blocks to her
home on sunset blvd. She could hear the mans footsteps getting closer 
and figured she was a liability for this small time hood. Just as she 
stepped up onto her doorway to her cabana she turned and saw the man 
fire a pistol. 

And with a snap, she stopped all of time for twenty six seconds. She
then reached out and turned the gun along with his wrist and hand so 
that it was pointing at his head. She then stepped back and released 
time. The bullet entered his head right next to his right eye and came 
out the left side of the back of his head. 

He fell down and was dead before his hand holding the gun hit the
cooling concrete sidewalk. Adriane disliked using full Puma powers like 
any of the mystical ones would, but she had been afraid that any 
involvement in her work by the police would have thrown off the planned 
completion of her mission. And she felt that helping the Cubans with 
their fight for freedom to be more significant a venture than to be 
shot by some goofy incompetent mobsters gunmen. 

She never forgave herself however for allowing the gunman to get so
close before she canceled him out of the light of the sun. That was one 
of the few times in history that a puma had gone so far. It was the 
year the had fifty two weeks and twenty six extra seconds long in the 
year. 

William had remembered talking to Adriane, however "Tonka" which was her
real name. Puma's by nature have no sex or gender and anyone can 
imitate either and or any spices of breathing life form at any given 
time. Still Tonka or Adriane was sad for the next few years over that 
night. 

It is not to be said that within a pile of perceived filth and appalling
waste that there not lies a diamond in the rough. One such incident 
happened to William during this four year stay starting at one 
thousand, nine hundred and ninety six years AD. He had been with his 
protegee at a riverfront rally to unharness the death grip the city had 
on a particular piece of property that had been desired by a charity to 
develop into a home/business for struggling welfare mothers who were 
trying desperately to climb from the pit of humiliation and poverty. 

On the way back to his small rented room in university city he chanced
upon a homeless black man sleeping alongside the river at twenty third 
and walnut Streets. William some times liked to sit by the river before 
going to sleep and think back to happier times. 

The homeless man never heard William approach and was startled by the
quiet strange American Indian sitting there looking at him and his 
ragged collection of boxes and rags for cloths that he used for 
shelter. The man who William later found out was named Randolph Albert 
Green, had been `On the streets' as it's called by the homeless 
themselves for about five years. 

After a short hostel period at being shocked by someone sitting so close
in silence, Mr. Green told William when he asked, that once he had been 
a chef for a very well to do restaurant and that he had been tasting 
the sherry once in a while and that had led to a drinking problem and 
his being fired. 

"Once you is no good to yo employer, you out on da street fastauaa than
greased lightning". He said in his low raspy voice. "Now's I's is 
exiled out here's and most likely be dead by winter as I'll be fifty 
four come November and's most o us be dead by fifty any ways. Got some 
kind o intestinal disease o to eat me up from tho insides alreadies. 

William asked him if he had any family? And the ragged man said they
done left out on him about the time he hit the streets and that he had, 
had two boys before then, "but that they more than likely forgot about 
having any old bum likes me fo a daddy long tima a past." 

William was silent for a while, just he and the old homeless man. The
two just looked out to the warm rippling surface of the brown river 
water and each man was lost for a moment in both the sometimes hugeness 
and painful misfortunes of life. William then asked that if William 
could help the poor man, take away his pain and make his diseased body 
well again would he try once more at life. 

Mr. Brown was silent for a moment then said he could not answer right
away but that if he could sleep for a moment he might better answer 
Williams question. William said he'd go for a walk and come back to the 
same spot in an hour to see if the man was feeling any better. The poor 
man said 

"Thank yo son." 

It was a wonderful kind of late summer night. The weather was muggy but
cool once one was free of any structures and cool and almost wet down 
here by the schuylkill river. The lights of the city bounced of the 
clouds and barely lit these low lying areas with a bath of blue hazy 
light and occasional yellow light from a automobiles headlights. 

When William returned to the spot where the man had been sleeping he was
still there but awake now and drinking from a bottle of dirty water. 
William asked if the man was still drinking liquor and had he thought 
about the proposition that William Stargazer had put forth. 

Mr. Green was very tired looking, but perked right up once it was his
turn to answer his strange new acquaintance. He said that first off he 
don't care none fo liars and that he won't sure he still had any 
interest in living and that he'd been so humiliated over the years what 
with his own bad decisions and some from others that he felt he just 
might as well go ahead and let go this fall. "I'is just so's tired any 
mo, and God is been better to me than some. I got no call to waste his 
time worrying over me." 

"But I knows someone who I could really asks that maybe's there's be a
way to help someone I's knows. Her name is `Francine' and she has got 
two boys as well. But she's a lot younger and she needs to show that 
she can be a mother again. Her spirit has been broke so long that I's 
don't know if she can really ever comes back. But if there's's a way. . 
.  Well, I'd like to know she'd made it out of here." He said it with a 
flatness of a man on the way to the gallows and never mentioned the 
tiny tear wandering down from Williams cheek 

William knew just how empty and alone this man was right now but he'd
not asked for himself but rather for someone else. This was the miracle 
of humans. This was what god had sought in their creation. The 
compassion, the kindness and the love of and for someone else. And for 
no reason at all. William after a minute asked the man that if William 
could do something, would Mr. Green like that. "Yes I would." said the 
black man. 

"Please give me your hand." William said. The poor old man reached out
with his withered and dirty calloused hand and placed it in the soft 
strong hand of William Stargazer. Within a second William could feel 
the mans pain and emptiness. He could sense the sickness and diseases 
in the mans body. 

Then with all his might he pulled out all the sickness and cancer in the
poor black mans thin sickly body. He pulled it into his own gut, to a 
place where it could no longer feed on the muscles and tissue and to a 
place in his own body where it could be flushed out after it was 
rendered harmless ever more. 

After this William shakily took Mr. Green to a wonderful hotel and put
him up for two weeks. He gave him a hundred dollars and told him to get 
some good clothes and to meet him back at the spot on the river in a 
week. The man felt much better and left to get a bath. William 
Stargazer went home and was sick for two days till another puma named 
James stopped in and helped him rid himself of the diseases and 
sickness. 

Exactly one week later, Mr. Green and a sickly looking woman of thirty
eight were sitting on a curb at twenty third and Walnut as instructed. 
The man was dressed in a good suit and new shoes. He looked twenty 
years younger. He was freshly shaved and had got a haircut. Bought new 
pair of glasses and was holding Francine's hand which was shaking. 
William showed up about a half hour later and took them to a quiet 
coffee shop nearby to talk to them about their soon to be new lives. 

The other side of human nature always proved to be so very difficult for
William Staegazer to comprehend or even rationalize. It was the kind of 
insidiousness that just made his non-existent blood boil. And it always 
seemed to happen at night. In the cloak of darkness. 

William chanced upon two men once in Cobbs Creek park in the cities
western edge one evening. The men had two dogs with them and were in a 
small litter strewn glade some distance from any street. The two dogs 
were pit bull terriers and they had been trained to fight to the end 
and kill. 

The men and dogs were shrouded in a faintly eerier and misty light.
William could both see and hear that the dogs were being readied for 
battle. Each man now poured a light mixture of blood and beef juice 
over the two overexcited animals as well as whipping them with leather 
throngs attached to two wooden sticks with sharp pins in their ends. 

The whipping produced welts on each dog as well as yelping cries from
the unending pain and agitation. And each animal now wanted to tear 
into the other in a battle to the death. Their sharp fangs were bared 
and at the ready with snarling and growling as well. 

As William watched the men released the now wild dogs and they
instinctively attacked each other with snarling and yelps of pain from 
the bites each received. The men kept whipping each animal and yelled 
with joy as one dog tried to kill the other. 

William approached the pair and asked what was this all about as dog
fighting is illegal in Pennsylvania?.  Each young man own particular 
version, but in effect told William to mind his own business and get 
lost or they'd set the dogs on him as well. 

Once more William became disappointed and angry at these humans. The two
men were drinking from a bottle wrapped in a paper bag and smoking a 
smelly weed in a cigarette, William recognized it as pot. Also the two 
smelled bad and cursed often. And now the two were looking at William 
Stargazer as if he'd become a delicious dinner for them to devour. 

Just as the two men started to sick the two wild and enraged dogs on
William, he held up his hand at the two fast approaching bloody beasts, 
and for a moment they stopped in their tracks. It was only a 
millisecond but seemed like a year that the two dogs seemed confused, 
but again in a crack of a lightning bolt, both turned and set upon 
their masters. 

The two men shrieked and cursed then cried. Each ineffective against the
vicious one hundred pound fighting animals. Within a minute, both young 
men lay in a ravaged heap. Each bleeding and near death in a grotesque 
posture. And each with only a portion of his face and throat left 
intact. One man then ceased to breath and the other through a quickly 
blood filling throat cavity tried to speak.  "Whaaaooo areee youuuu?" 
he splattered and pushed the words out through bubbles in the blood. 
The bubbles burst upon the ground with both words and wet residue about 
him. And before he too died, he got his answer. 

William now spoke in his hushed and quiet tone. The two dogs now sat
bloody and at the ready for his next command. William Stargazer looked 
down upon the near dead man and said: " I am Puma. And you are of evil. 
However, from this point forth you and your life are no more." with 
that William stood and the bloody man at his feet died, his spirit 
slowly rising and into a small open bottle that William held out. 
Inside the bottle the spirit of the man would float forever till he one 
day might be released to face his judgement day before the lord. The 
two dogs sensing their handlers death yelped and jumped about with joy. 
William knelt and petted each. Once more he waved his hand and in back 
of the two dogs appeared a wonderful feast for the two. It was a 
poisoned banquet of beef and eggs and grain. Each animal set upon their 
fatal dinner with great hast. Each would go to sleep in a little while 
and never regain consciousness. 

They enjoyed their last meal in earnest. Free now of their violent
behavior and murderous past masters. The Puma, knowing they would be 
hunted down and put to death decided to render them asleep and painless 
to anymore harsh and ignorant pastimes. Free of each life filled with 
fighting and pain. Now free to assume their rightful home in gods 
peaceful and quiet heaven with other animals. 

Williams long dark shadow cast itself across their dinning area and they
watched as it grew thinner and less visible with each passing moment 
till it was no more. And then the mutts turned to see their kind 
benefactor, he too was gone. 

The park at night was only a faint memory of what it once was long ago.
Anger and cursing had replaced laughter and effervescence. Broken 
bottles and crack viles where once a forgotten picnic blanket did lay. 
The disenchanted and depressed now roamed vast areas where once only 
the disciplined and determined went for fun and their souls quiet 
refuge in gods and natures own quiet and immense green paradise. 

Chapter. 6 

"Mayor kendall. . . Mayor Kendall, could you tell us how the outcome of
this disclosure will affect the cities budget? Uh, Mayor . ./ . .Uh, 
Mister Mayor, sir, sir, . . . sir ? ? ?".  The newspaper reporter who 
had been running along side the Mayor's police chauffeur dark blue 
sedan now gave up the chase. 

The fast moving new ford screeched to a light stop at the northwest
entrance and the six foot tall semi dynamo of a lawyer turned Mayor 
hopped out and quickly made a beeline for the safety of the guards 
posted at his private work entrance.  "God damn reported are a pain in 
the ass!". he mumbled as he hustled up the one flight of marble steps. 

He had a light sweat on his brow as he burst into his office with the
managing director and the city solicitor right behind.  "Who the hell 
let those goddamn reporters in on the damn finance report. Christ, now 
we got these people backed up at the door. Johnny, get these creeps 
back from my office entrance so I can hear the other party on my 
telephone." 

There had been a bit of disappointing news in that a sensitive paper on
the cities approach to privatization of the mechanical shops had 
already taken place, some time ago! And the main profiteers it turns 
out was a small company owned by the `wife' of the Mayor himself. How 
nice. 

This last piece of information was only revealed by a computer search
done by a Canadian company, and passed down the line to a small 
Washington DC newspaper reporter who in turn, sent it to his lover who 
worked at the Philadelphia daily infer. And so on. . . .  And now the 
always ever so pleasant mayor was fit to be tied. He had city council 
members on one phone and the cities watchdog finance people on the 
other. 

And the mayor was just trying desperately to come up with a sugar coated
excuse for all. William had to laugh, these humans were always 
congratulating each other and bestowing all sorts of honors on each 
other for being so intelligent, yet they could, and  would do the 
stupidest acts. 

He was walking down Market street and was passing a automobile
dealership, he looked in and saw his reflection in the shiny fender of 
a new Toyota sedan, and almost as soon as his thoughts were finished. . 
.  well . . . 

It had been some time since he had driven but soon caught on nicely. 
And he really enjoyed driving his new Camry four door in that wonderful 
green paint job. Oh well, even Puma's can give in to fresh shiny paint. 
He spent his day at the library researching articles on the Mayor, and 
other city officials. And once it all was put together, overall did not 
draw a pretty picture. 

Some of these people were just hacks, hired by some friend or
councilmen. But others really belonged in the truly shady department. 
They certainly weren't any more criminal than most public  politicians, 
and without a doubt, not near as bad as some that William Stargazer had 
encountered. But still, there was this huge undercurrent of abusive 
execution of office powers that clearly marked a separation of they who 
govern, and they who command. As a king might. And there aren't any 
kings in America. Or there isn't suppose to be. Of this William was 
sure. 

The next morning John Logan came by Williams but found no one home. He
left but was called over to a green Camry by William himself. John 
asked about the new car and William told him that he like it so he 
bought it. 

"Money no problem?" asked Logan. "No!" said William. Puma's have lot's
of money. John Logan thought about this for a while till he was 
interrupted by William as they headed towards the shore area. John was 
quiet for some time but then felt compelled to ask William why, if 
money was no object didn't he run for mayor or get involved in politics 
or why he even felt compelled to want  to get involved in humans 
issues? 

"We only get involved if the balance of things get so one sided that it
no longer stands any chance of being repaired or reversed by the 
populace" William said flatly. "And it's not our world we are trying to 
save. It's only to wake up you people to what's happening that's of any 
interest to us. Sure, we could do anything, absolutely anything! But's 
that not what we here for. 

"Then you know of the things I've seen while I worked for McCracken and
Associates, the accounting firm here in the city?" Logan said in a 
hushed tone. " Of course I do, and your mother? Who do you think . . . 
.     Yes, I know all about the city of Brotherly love."  William said 
with great disdain. 

After a few minutes, William spoke again. "However, It's not going to
stay this way for long."  Logan knew at last what was to be now. And 
was finally relieved to know the extent of it's course.  As they parked 
the car near city hall, William spoke again in a low tone but somehow 
the words landed like boulders. 

"Let's go start a war my friend."  As the pair started to walk towards
the entrance where the Mayor entered city hall with his bodyguards, 
William took a long white envelope from his inside jacket pocket.  As 
they waited near the entrance a police men came up and asked to see 
some identification and told them they could not hang around the 
doorway. 

William said they meant no harm or offence but that they weren't
bothering anyone or breaking any laws. The cop asked if he was getting 
smart mouth with him?, and William replied he didn't know what smart 
mouth was but that he didn't mean to do so. 

The tall black cop then shook his head and told William that he was sure
William didn't mean any harm but that the Mayor couldn't take any 
chances when out and about. "You Know what I mean?" said the friendly 
cop. Just then the Mayor did come out and Logan grabbed the letter and 
tried to give it to Mayor Kendall. 

All of a sudden a young cop rushed in and slammed Logan to the ground
and started to put handcuffs on him. A soft breeze now grabbed the 
white envelope and blew it till it brushed against the mayor's leg. The 
envelope refused to release his pants cuff, but clung on for another 
minute. 

Mayor Kendall looked down but then spilled the papers he was carrying
and the young cop helped scoop them up. Grabbing the letter in doing 
so, the cars doors slammed and off the mayor was for some important 
meeting somewhere. 

After he was gone, the young cop was about to arrest Logan but the older
cop spoke to him quietly and he released John with a warning . Logan 
was never to show his face around here again. William agreed and 
escorted a now very livid John Logan away. William kept telling him to 
calm down and to act like, like, well like a Puma. With calm grace and 
determined will. " I assure you, they'll know of what we speak soon 
enough my friend. 

For the next few months, William and John Logan attended public meetings
and rally's's where the Mayor or members of city council would be in 
attendance and at each, William would find a way to speak out against 
the corruption in the cities government, against the illegal stealing 
and false ways of raising taxes and fines and so on. 

But always he spoke in his own soft voice. At each, he and Logan somehow
would be singled out for expulsion from the meeting. A lot of people 
were now listening to what William Stargazer had to say and were 
starting to foster a grassroots movement based on William's questions 
and constant revelations. However many more unpleasant things were also 
starting to emerge. 

John and William found themselves almost constantly being stopped for
foolish traffic stops and once even for jaywalking. In each, William 
and John went to court and fought the citation. Yet, in each they lost. 
Finally even, mild tempered William was growing frustrated. He had so 
wanted for things to play out smoother. 

If for some reason there could be a bright spot in all the gloom, it
might have been when a young social worker took a liking to the tall 
young Indian of Arapaho decent. But unfortunately, William had to 
explain to her in rather vague terms that he was not available. . . .  
Ever! "Since I died eight hundred years ago." he mused to himself as he 
left her apartment on that final night of companionship. 

On the morning of November twelfth, William Stargazer was arrested as he
approached his automobile parked near his room in university city. He 
was arrested for resisting arrest and assaulting an police officer. 
John Logan frantically tried to have him released, but to no avail. 

William was incarcerated in the State Road Prison in Northeast
Philadelphia. Somehow four days later a telephone call came from the 
prison that informed John Logan that his friend, William Stargazer was 
dead. John was devastated but had the body claimed. He went to the 
Mayors office to inquirer as to why the top city officials had to kill 
such a kind and passionate man. He too was thrown into prison for 
making terrorist threats. The young social worker, Melissa Talbert saw 
to the funeral of William Stargazer. The only odd sort of event one 
might mention was that on the day of the funeral the casket was very, 
very light when lifted. The six hired Pallbearers never mentioned it to 
the director as they were afraid of not being paid for their work. 
Light and brief as it might of been. 

It was a cool day and the cold condensation of water clung to the old
soured brick walls of John Logan's cell. The guards had taken 
everything except for his pants and shirt. And John was shivering there 
in his cold damp cell. He laid on his cot with not a scrape of paper to 
read nor write on. 

He could only sleep in tiny fragments as the bully guards kept waking
him with the constant banging of the cell doors. He awoke with a start 
as the cell door of the next cell was slammed shut. As he looked up he 
saw a envelope sitting there on the tiny dusty window sill. It was a 
peach colored envelope and it somehow just seemed to be sitting on it's 
end,  dancing almost. As john stood and brought it down to his cot's 
frail cover, he opened it and read the words gently printed there. 

"Dear John, Do not fear for me for I have lived a thousand lives. It is
now more important that you watch, listen and learn the lessons of the 
people. For the hour of grace has now been squandered to the four winds 
of the heavens. And in doing so, the morning of death has broken for 
the evil ones dwelling there in the city of brotherly love. May heaven 
forgive them, for the day of the Puma is upon them all." 

William. 

After another two weeks, with lots of scrutiny from a small band of
onlookers, John Logan was released from prison. He was thin and frail 
from the poor treatment and beatings. He stayed mostly to himself in a 
small apartment in Powelton Village section of the city. He wondered 
and waited to ascertain his next move and tried to regain some health, 
mentally and physically. 

A month after his release, as he laid in bed on night he was overcome
with remorse at letting his friend William down and cried. After he had 
fallen to sleep, and a fretful sleep at that he had this terrible sense 
that he could smell a cigarette burning. But he didn't smoke. It 
smelled so close though. 

He awoke and sat up in bed and looked about his small apartment.
Nothing! He wandered back to bed and as he laid down he happened to 
glaze into the narrow full length mirror on the far bedroom door. There 
in the mirror he could see the occasional glow of a cigarette being 
smoked and the illuminated drags being taken. 

He looked around and there in a far chair was someone, legs crossed
smoking a cigarette. "Who's there?" Logan asked in a slightly broken 
voice. "William, William is it you? Dear god I'm glad your back. 
William?" the cigarette smoker took one more puff and spoke. 

"It's not William!" the slightly lowered husky female voice said. And
with a sweep of her hand the light on the far table came on. "It's 
Tonka!" after adjusting his eyes to the low light he could see her, it 
!. She was a young white girl, woman. About twenty five, medium height, 
thin and powerfully built. She had blonde hair and long smooth fingers, 
medium length nails. Smooth skin and, and those eyes. Jesus Christ, 
those blue/gray eyes! They were haunting eyes. The kind that looked 
right through you. 

Her taught skin and somewhat soft features, mixed with those Agua blue
eyes made her almost model like in appearance but there was something 
hypnotic about her eyes, even in this dim light they seemed to glow 
yellow. Logan was for a moment scared. There was that instinctively 
fearful and protective gut feeling animals get when they know a 
dangerous predator is nearby in him now. This was the Tonka, the most 
legendary and predatory killer of all the Puma's . . .  The Tonka! 
William had called her Adrian 

He said nothing for a few moments as she finished her cigarette. And to
extinction the still burning remains she crushed it into her palm, then 
poured it into the sink. "Where are they?" she asked in her low broken 
glass tone. Referring to the papers with the names of all involved that 
William had given to John Logan to keep while he was in jail. 

Logan got up and put on his pants and shirt. He then gave her the
documents with all of William's meticulous notes. She shook her head 
and sort of laughed to herself. John Logan now turned towards the far 
end of the room and in the dimly lit rooms reflection from the mirror 
her could see Tonka. He gasped with fright. 

She looked up and now knew he had seen her. She was so  wild and vicious
looking. She had this thick golden shag fur coat and blood red eyes. 
Even, mild sitting down with a leg outstretched in front of her he 
could tell she was about six foot six or seven. Her hands were really 
huge paws with blackened claws,  two inch razor sharp claws. The skin 
of her face was scared and sunken and her mouth was wet with saliva and 
her teeth were jaggered sharp ripping canine molars. This was the sight 
of impending jungle death right before him. 

She instantly sweep her hand before herself and changed back into the
sexy soft young voluptuous woman she had been a moment ago. But still 
he was terrified. She stood and said she'd be back soon and leapt from 
the open window and disappeared into the early morning darkness. 

Now John Logan was scared, not for himself, but for them, them the evil
one's of the night. For their escort to hell had just arrived and the 
day of the Puma was only hours away. "May god have mercy."  He thought, 
looking at the softly blowing white curtains at the far window. 

Somehow early the next day, before he had awoke, there sat a small black
cat in the very chair where Adrian had ben sitting only hours before. 
Logan woke up when he sensed that he was not alone. He gingerly got up 
and put on his pants and wandered over to on of the two lamps by the 
couch. There after turning on the light he looked about. 

" Get up and get dressed, we've a lot to see and do today Logan." said
the pretty white girl sitting in the chair. "Have you been here long?" 
asked Logan. "No, only a short time. Got any coffee?" she asked. Logan 
smiled and made a small pot of coffee. 

Once en route they traveled to many of the places that Logan and William
had gone to. Adriane wasn't as big a walker as William so they drove 
and parked at each place she picked. Adrian wanted to see all sorts of 
things. Shopping malls, welfare offices, work sites and playgrounds. 

She was dressed in jeans and a white blouse. A pair of sandals and a
light cotton jacket, two small  dangle earrings and a gold bracelet. 
She looked for all purposes like a final year college student. She was 
very attractive in many ways with smooth clear skin and tight facial 
features. She stood slightly tall than most girls at five foot seven, 
and only Logan really knew who she was. 

They had finished most of a days inspection and had been in a poor
section of town. This one filled with drugs and violence, despair and 
distrust. One where the older folks were afraid to come out after five 
O'clock. Some so poor they ate dog and cat food as their only meals 
when they weren't able to go to the Korean shopping market at the end 
of the block. 

After the day was near spent, and Logan was getting a little depressed
by the dismal surrounding, Adrian suggested they go for some dinner and 
decided to walk back to were they had left the new Toyota William had 
bought. On the way they past many dark alleys and corners of tough 
looking youths. On one such corner of the a rather bombed out block the 
pair past a gang of five evil looking young men. One man looked at the 
two of them and said something really gross and sexual about Adrian and 
her tall thin escort. She stopped dead in her tracks, looked forward 
then back at the man. 

"What did you say?" she asked looking at the group with eyes blank and
empty and that voice that could go from little girlish to broken glass 
in a millisecond. "Hey baby, fucks your problem man?' Maybe I takes yo 
ass inside and we'll see how friendly you can be?" With that he 
approach her and Logan with plans of robbery and maybe something else. 

"You mean like what you did to that old lady that lives on the next
block two weeks ago? Adrian said 

" Fuck you bitch and her too!" he replied. I'm gonna kick yo ass over
back of that rymark. How you know about that? She running off her mouth 
and told you, and you some kind of social worker." and he now was 
moving at her with his tall body and red blood shot drug infested eyes. 
All of a sudden, he swung at her soft smooth left cheek with his big 
strong fast right fist. 

"Wap" Adriane had up her smallish hand and stopped his fist in midair.
She stood with her feet slightly apart and just froze him in place. Her 
hand now began to compress his big fist. He tried to swing with his 
left arm but found it paralyzed. He could not believe this young white 
woman had and was holding him immobile. But her gaze never left his 
face. He was in pain now but all she did was stare at him. 

His right hand now really began to hurt and he kept trying to jerk it
away but he couldn't move and his face was in a grimace of pain now. He 
wanted to run away but couldn't either. Slowly you could start to hear 
the faint sound of cracking chicken bones as her powerful grip 
continued to crush his hand. He couldn't stand and fell to his knees as 
she now spoke to him. 

"You don't seem to appreciate life very much, piglet ! I've met many
like you in the past. They too didn't find life very rewarding. You 
humans only seem to understand the worth of something after it's gone." 
she said softly. Two of his hands bones began to burst through the 
flesh.  He now cried out in pain as his hand started dripping blood to 
the sidewalk below. And his eyes were bulging near out of their 
sockets. Blood ran out one side of his nose. 

"NO, I think you need to be taught a small lesson in this course in
life. Adrian said. His friends now rushed to his aid but she held up 
her free arm and they froze in mid step. She closed her eyes and the 
hoodlum group fell backwards to the concrete they were all gasping for 
breath and now he couldn't breath either and blood started to run from 
one ear also. She let go of his bloody crushed hand and Logan could see 
some of the white bones sticking out of all the fingers. Muscles 
dangling below. 

Adrian kept her eyes close and then swept her hand in front of her. The
four other men sort of were lifted into action, but now they pulled out 
their knives and attacked each other fighting it out with each other 
till all lay in a bloody heap not twenty feet from the pretty white 
girl. The thug on the sidewalk was having a stroke and hyperventilating 
badly. She watched him with great displeasure. 

Adrian turned and walked over to a fire hydrant and with her clean hand
turned it on. She washed her hands and called for Logan to join her and 
get going. Both were quiet as they made they way down the street. Logan 
asked her if she enjoyed it, the destruction of those lives. 

"Do you really think that they had lives?" she asked and before he could
answer she told him of some of the terrible things these men had done. 
"They all would of been dead in another three years anyway. And don't 
ever again try to assess my methods. I'm not a social worker interested 
in the redemption of mankind or his awful plight in this life, a life 
he has fucked up on his own. I'm here to correct, NOT understand. You 
got it." she asked with that frightening broken glass tone of voice. 
John Logan said nothing further. 

Back up the street some people had gathered and were now looting the
fallen mens pockets. In her outside rear view mirror, Adriane could see 
police car had now screeched up to the corner and was examining the 
injured men. " Good luck !" she whispered. "Hope springs eternal" she 
said shaking her head. 

Chapter. 7 

It was a nice Chinese restaurant in old city and not overly crowed when
they got there. The oriental owners waited on them and had their dinner 
order on and pipping hot in minutes. During their meal they spoke in 
low tones about the different event that had happened over the years. 
Some it had Puma influence and some not. Logan asked why this was and 
Adriane answered that pumas don't always get pressed into service if 
the conditions show any signs of correction on their own. 

"We each have different ways of operating and although we all have
significant powers, we don't always use them. "And You?" asked Logan. 
"I'm more . . . Direct in my approach." She curtly sort back. "So would 
that make you the angle of death." she though for a moment and said, 
"No, but thanks for the vote of confidence." 

After dinner they headed back to Logan's place, and were surprised to be
invited into a party on the second floor of the old apartment house. It 
was being given by some students at the university. The music was load 
and the dancing hot and fast. Adrian danced with most all the young men 
and soon was deeply engrossed with a theological student.  His name was 
Troy Palmer and he was from Illinois  He was interested in her firm 
athletic body and it showed. Adriane made nice till he made some 
comment about time and mankind and mans importance to the outcome of 
the worlds success. 

"Why would you think that mankind has any right to the world or it's
outcome, if that's what you truly believe. Or is it just a line you 
would like to accept as a reason to justify your overall pursuits." she 
asked him softly. Naturally he recoiled with hostility once his core 
beliefs had been questioned. 

John Logan was with another student discussing the physical treatment of
wildlife and it's overall psychological  impact on today's children and 
children of tomorrow and could just barely overhear the two of them, 
Adriane and this semi outraged theological student. 

The two talked about religion and of the major events when he happened
to touch upon the crucifixion of Jesus Christ by the Jews and how 
Pontius Pilate stood by a did nothing and allowed Pontius Pilate to do 
as he pleased and how that showed how barbaric the Romans were. "Why 
would you think Pontius Pilate or Julius Caesar was a persecutor of 
anyone. He was a governor, he could have cared less if the Jews killed 
each other or set their homes on fire or flew to the fucking dark side 
of the moon. His only concern was that roman funds weren't spent 
controlling the crowds of followers of your Jesus Christ and his 
zealots. . . . 

Wherever the young carpenter went there was an attraction and then the
filth and violence and looting, fields full of human waste. Whole areas 
were left unusable for years after by the trampling hordes of 
followers. Not to mention the litter and pregnancy and all of this was 
left for the roman govenor to contend with. These follower's were not 
tax payers. Most did not have work and had to resort to begging and 
stealing to get by. 

The govenor had a budget to adhere to and couldn't spend all the
operational monies on policing believers in Jesus Christ or anyone 
else. And besides he didn't want to be governor anyway, he wanted to be 
an ambassador but since his accident where he was hit in the ankle with 
a stray arrow and had a limp so he couldn't maintain the traveling 
schedule needed to by an ambassador. And why yes I did know him well, . 
. . well enough. She answered. The young and by now lusting young man 
now leapt to dispel most if not all of what Adriane had stated. He 
noted the she possessed no formal into or religion or politics. And now 
he sat back feeling so satisfied that he had rebuffed this wacky broad 
and her foolish anti-Christian beliefs well enough that he had clearly 
made a fool of her. 

Adriane sipped at her glass of burgundy wine and looked about the room
then sympathetically back at the young man she spoke.  "Before you 
decided on the study of organized religion and it's impact on the 
meanderings and fickleness of mankind, what was your true destiny in 
life Troy,? would of what I said have meant anymore to you than it now 
does, of course it would have as all you have in your possession is the 
knowledge that was past on to you by others in your same place and same 
pursuits. It's only a one sided story you are taught. There no Romans 
to counter or oppose your beliefs. 

Clearly in your studies you had questioned the teaching being deposited
in your mental reservoir, you too would have been taken aside as your 
friend Carl Tolson was seven years ago, you too would be selling 
washing machines at Sears Roebuck & Co. In Montréal and hating 
everything about organized religion. Would that small outburst to 
authority have made you an anti-Christ or just more open to all of the 
universal making untidiness, wars and worthwhile reasons. . . . 

I'm only trying to point out to you and your infinite temporary well
meaning yet adamant beliefs are only that. In years to come after you 
are sufficiently strengthen with both years of contradiction and 
awkwardly misguided instruction and haphazard political decisions by 
the powers that be, you will, if you still have any brain cells left in 
your possession,  which still function. You too will come to question 
your career and it's sometimes foolish outcome. If you don't then, you 
will need to join the religious order of your choice and never, ever, 
ever question another thing you see transpire. And at that point, you 
will be as much a prisoner of your own makings as the people you now 
hold in your penitentiaries. For they too believed in what they did at 
the time they got incarcerated. Anyway  uh,  goodbye and good luck." 

With that she quickly arose and finishing her glass of wine, she
interrupted John Logan while at the refreshment table and said, "Logan 
Let's go." and careened for the door. Behind she left a somewhat upset 
and irate yet silently questioning young student of modern religion. A 
student who only two years later, abruptly left his studies and career, 
and his ultra right leaning catholic wife and three children. He 
disappeared for some four years and then surfaced in the cayman islands 
and was last known to be selling vacations and bartendering to make 
ends meet. He now had a new wife and two more children. He was however 
very happy and never looked back. 

Somewhere back in his college days following their talk, he had found an
old research paper stating that in fact Pontius Pilate did in fact have 
a leg injury. It was rather soon after this small discovery that troy 
Palmer had an awaking to the realities of modern life. He too now 
resents any form of religion and commands his young children to pray to 
the clamshells on the beach. Needless to say his family forbids him to 
ever return home. He is indeed very happy these days. 

"Who was that guy you were talking to Adriane?" John Logan asked.
Adriane just shook her blondish hair and said "Oh just another lost 
soul, perhaps a future victim of life." She slammed the small apartment 
door and soon curled up next to Logan in the wide bed instead of in a 
ball in one corner. She was long gone the next morning when he awoke. 
All that next week the two of them attended the council meeting that 
William had outlined in his notes to her. 

Towards the end of the morning session on the last day she had, had
enough. When the time came for any citizen to speak of their concerns, 
she rose, identified herself and started asking some tough financial 
questions. The different council members tried to humiliate her into 
submission and for to sit down but she kept at it. 

Finally the president of city council ordered for her to be removed from
the room. However as the deputy who was stationed at the door started 
to walk towards her he tripped and since he was rather overweight it 
took him a while to stand up. 

While he was fumbling around on the floor she turned to the gallery of
citizens and said. "Ladies and Gentlemen, the longer you allow these 
frauds to occupy this chamber the longer you shall all suffer. What 
these people have done is create a shell game of your democracy, and by 
sitting back and doing nothing to are as guilty as they are. These 
animal lives off your funds, stave it and it will perish. . .  Stop 
paying your taxes and it will be rendered powerless ! " 

And now other deputies were coming through the door and they had
handcuffs in their hands. John Logan got up in preparation for being 
arrested, but as each new deputy approached Adriane, they developed 
cramps in their hands and legs and each fell about the floor. Adriane 
motioned for Logan to follow her and she gingerly stepped around the 
pain racked sheriffs deputies. 

As she got to the door she repeated to the now silent and somewhat
stunned crowd what she had said about not paying here taxes. The 
president of council was pounding his gavel on to the wooden block to 
try to drown out her voice. She looked at him with blazing sarcastic 
eyes and all of a sudden his little wooden gavel handle broke and the 
parts flew all about. With that she turned and left. 

As they walked down the hall more deputies came running past the pair
and once entering the council chambers, were told of the two people who 
had just left. Ti was then that the one event took place that changed 
outreness mind about abandoning this effort and returning to puma 
sleep. 

Many of the spectators had filed out after Adriane and Logan had left.
The deputies all accosted the young pair and then all of a sudden an 
elderly woman stepped forward between the deputy and Adriane and told 
the deputies they have to arrest her as well, and then more and more 
people stepped in front of the departing couple. And more and more and 
more. The deputies had to give in to the crowd as there was now five 
times as many people as there was deputies. Some television people were 
there covering the session and now wanted to interview her. She told 
them of what a sham this puppet government had become and spoke of a 
few events in which the taxpayers money was spent on the bureaucrats 
themselves. 

The news people now asked why she would care if the government was one
of the people or not? She turned the tables on the reporter and asked 
if she herself was interested in wether this puppet government was one 
that represented her or not? "Of course!" said the woman reporter. 

Then why allow them to be the only one who profit by their decisions?
And you people , why do you allow your neighborhood s to be overrun by 
drunks and drug addicts, hoodlums and whores. If the police and your 
courts won't enforce your laws then do it yourselves, but don't sit 
about acting as if your part of some important democratic process 
acting as if something important is being done, the only thing being 
done is each and every one of you are being buried one teaspoon at a 
time. Stand up for yourselves, rid yourselves of the rats in the 
castle, or they shall devour you at night." 

With this said she abruptly turned and left. The police tried to stop
her but she and Logan disappeared into the growing crowd of people.  
The rest of the week she and John Logan got out of town and went to the 
shore. Adriane was almost happy as she wandered along the beach looking 
at the different shells and odd and ends that had washed up on the 
sand. 

She was hesitant but finally went on some amusement rides, but didn't
really enjoy them. It was a wonderfully sunny day and the breeze was 
soft and light as her brownish blonde hair. The smell of iodine and all 
the different foods made her hungry and she and Logan shared a box of 
salt water taffy's for the next day or so. She was really starting to 
have so fun but it was getting late so they needed to find a place to 
sleep. 

After getting a room at a small bed and breakfast she went of for a walk
as Logan fell asleep. She walked a long time along the beach and 
through the different neighborhoods. These small shore communities were 
so relaxed and calm. Not at all like the city and it's hyper attitudes. 
As she walked along a back alley she could hear a sound of an argument. 


It sounded like a man and a woman fighting, maybe two men as the tone of
his voice changed. It was dark and a strong wing had blown up. Dust and 
sand swept along the streets and alleys. She slowly edged along till 
she could hear the sounds real clear and now could see that two men 
were accosting a young woman and were trying to get her cloths off but 
she was fighting all the while. 

Maybe it was the Iodine or the beach smells but Adriane disappeared into
the black shadows for a moment. "Now look we're going to cut you up 
real bad bitch, now you going to be quiet and we just going to have a 
little sex here now so don't think abou. . . . . . . . The one man 
never finished what he was about to say. 

The young girl screamed as the black and gold mass hit at about thirty
miles an hour. One of the men was caught in the waist and screamed, but 
went silent. The other man ran and the huge cat went after him into the 
darkness. The young girl now pulled her cloths back on as some lights 
were now being turned on in neighboring houses. 

One long minute later the girl could hear a blood curdling scream some
distance off, but at that very moment some cars headlights turned into 
the alley where she was. It was a police car and the officer asked her 
what was wrong. She cried that she was about to be raped but that 
something had happened. She said she didn't really know what but that 
IT had grabbed the two men and run off. 

The young officer shone his flash light about the dark windy alley till
it fell on a mans body about thirty feet away. He walked over and 
looked at the man. He was young, tall and white. And he was, was "Jesus 
Christ" the young cop said quietly. The dead man on the ground was damn 
near cut in half and his intestines were lying about on the gravel 
covered hard driveway ground. 

Just then another police car arrived and the two officers got a blanket
for the young woman and tow cover up the dead man. They got into the 
police car and asked the girl some more questions about what had lead 
up to this assault and one cop radioed in and soon more police and 
detectives arrived. The girl said that there was two men but now only 
one was here on the ground. She said all she remembered was it was a 
huge black and gold something that she had only caught a glimpse of as 
it passed. But oddly enough, as it past the girl said she smelled a 
perfume type fragrance. 

Out in the windy alley the sky was now very overcast and a light drizzle
now fell. It swirled about and wet everything in a very short time. 
From under neigh the blanket a small trickle of blood and body fluids 
now meandered it's way out and away from the body almost as if it were 
his very life now abandoning it's dead shell. So much like the baby 
crabs seeking the safety of the sea on the beach a few blocks away. 

The next morning John Logan awoke and Adriane was there out on the
balcony drinking coffee and looking out at the bay. He quickly dressed 
and joined her. She had been half asleep and now jumped as he touched 
her. "Jumpy this morning, that'll teach you to stay out all night!" she 
smiled and they both laughed. She went in and fell asleep and in the 
afternoon they checked out. Logan picked up a local newspaper as the 
clerk got his bill and change. 

As she got in the passenger side of the Toyota he showed her the
headline. It said a mysterious big cat was wandering the shore town and 
that the authorities were looking for a escaped Panther. "Huh, it's odd 
for a cat that big to escape for too long." Logan said. "It says it 
killed one man and ate another. As the drove up the parkway towards the 
expressway and onward to Philadelphia John asked if Adriane wanted to 
stop for dinner? But she responded that she had already eaten. 

Logan never thought anymore about it, but the next day he said he'd like
to go to the Zoo. She was reluctant but went anyway. Once there he soon 
realized why. As they entered the reptile house it seemed odd that the 
snakes slithered away from the glass except for a few who now lunged at 
the two of them but banged into the glass partition. As they entered 
the monkey and ape house the monkeys went wild and were scaring some of 
the children there. They were hiding and throwing everything in their 
cages about as Adriane got near. Logan suggested they move on. But it 
wasn't till the two of them entered the Big cat house that John Logan 
finally realized what the problem was. In the cats quiet housing, there 
were only a few people. The cats got agitated as Logan and Adriane 
entered, and the small ocelots seemed to just freeze in position,  but 
they all kept a wary eye on Adriane. 

All except for the one lone lion tried to hid in the cages rear wall.
Only the single tawny male lion came forward to the bars and stared at 
Adriane. His big brown eyes just locked on her. For a moment the two 
just stared and then Adriane parted her lips and said something silent 
and with her hands in front of her she made a small circle and then 
parted her hands as she pushed them away from herself. 

The lion now roared to the others, and shook his head madly. 

Again he roared and again, soon the other lions and tiger, cougars and
all the cats now came forth to the front and lined the bars of their 
cages. Some roared and some just stared. The little girl was getting 
scared and now a custodian was coming to investigate the disruption. 
The little girls father was getting mad and the little girl started to 
cry. 

"Daddy make that girl stop scaring the lions and tigers !" the little
ten year girl cried. The mother and father were shocked at the 
performance till finally the father said, " Your a witch, she's a 
witch." and he kept yelling at Adriane that she a witch till she 
grabbed Logan's arm and rushed from the cats house. The father ran 
after her yelling, "Your a Witch ! , Hay everybody she's a witch !" he 
pursued her and Logan for a short way still yelling at her that she a 
witch. Adriane and Logan rushed from the zoo and sped away as fast as 
they could. 

After a few moments Logan asked what that was all about? Adriane was
quiet for a few moments as she concentrated on trying to control the 
speeding car and finally said in a low voice, " They could see me, the 
cats knew who I was. I motioned to them that I meant them no harm and 
that they need not fear me." Logan asked about the other animals? "They 
were afraid of me and yes they too could sense what I am." she said. 
"And that is?" Logan asked. 

" A predator!" Adriane calmly replied in a low tone. And she never said
another word about it to him. 

Chapter. 8 

Upon arriving back in Philadelphia the two went to the apartment . There
was a lot of notes and officeal letters from the TV station, some 
wanted to talk and some wanted to interview her. And one letter was 
from the civil affairs department. Adriane had to laugh when she read 
the short form letter. They were `advising' her to stop her outbursts 
in public, otherwise serious implications would result. 

She was sitting on an office chair in Logan's apartment as she read it
and laughed out load and spun herself around and around like a little 
girl as she laughed. "Do you know how many of these stupid letters I've 
gotten in all my years. I've must have a hundred of them. These people 
haven't a clue to whom their dealing with. But tomorrow morning their 
going to get a peak." she said laughing and spinning herself around and 
around and around. 

That night she woke Logan up at around three O' clock in the morning for
the first of many lessons. She sat him down in a chair and told him to 
look out the window she had just opened to it's full. She said for him 
to pick out something on the nights skyline. She waited till he had 
something chosen. It was a electric billboard sign about a half a mile 
away. Adriane then stood behind him and told him to hold one hand out 
in front of him as he repeated after her these words. 

"Para para long, para para gone" as Logan did as she had instructed his
body shook and a small fireball rocketed from his fingertips.  It took 
only a second for it to find it's target and then the sky lit up for a 
second as the sign exploded into a million tiny flaming pieces. At 
first Logan was scared and he got really excited. He said over and over 
that he didn't want to do anything wrong and that he. . . Adriane put 
her small soft hand to his mouth. 

She turned her head in a lot of different directions and then she saw it
. She put her finger to her lips silently indicating for Logan to be 
quiet. She filled a small glass with hot water and slowly crept to a 
picture on the wall. There she plucked a tiny remote microphone from 
the pictures frame. 

Once in the glass of hot water she dropped it out the window to the
alleyway below. "Now how much do think they will go to get at you and 
me?" Adriane asked John Logan. "But I didn't think what we're were 
doing was so wrong. Anyway how did I do that thing with the fireball?" 
Adriane sat on the bed and told him to bring his chair over. After he 
did so she explained in a quiet and calm voice that he has had these 
powers since William pulled you back. 

"Back, back. What do you mean back?" Logan asked. "William pulled you
back from, from death. Those two junkies killed you almost a month ago. 
But your here with me now? How do you think you became a Puma, well an 
apprentice puma." Adriane said in a soft voice.  Look, I show you 
something." she got up and came back from the kitchen with a paring 
knife. 

"Ready?" she asked. Logan slowly nodded his head. In a quick move she
plunged the knife into his lower arm, and then pulled it out the other 
side. Logan felt as if he were going to faint but still felt no pain or 
discomfort. And even stranger. . . there now was no wound or blood. He 
sat back and just stared at his arm. Adriane sat back looking proud as 
punch. 

"See we have many powers and we can do many, many things. But only
because we Pumas. She next had Logan stand up. She then said some odd 
words then led him over to the full length mirror. "Nothing, there's 
nothing there!" Logan exclaimed. Looking at his nonexistent reflection 
in the mirror. 

"That's because your invisible now. She then taught him the silent words
that rendered him invisible and the ones that made him visible again. 
Then she had him stand back in the shadows  and she spoke again some 
odd words. She took his hand and again led him to the mirror. 

"Wow!" was all Logan could say after seeing himself in the mirror. He
looked at himself and could not believe what he was seeing. He now 
stood three inches shorter that his normal six feet and had on a 
beautiful evening dress. But what really shocked him was he now was a 
exquisite young black girl about twenty one years old and with a 
fabulous build. "Almost like the actress Vanessa Williams" he said in a 
low sexy voice. 

"OK, enough play time. Now lets get down to business. Here's what were
going to do over the next few months." Adriane said as she led her 
actress look like to a chair. It took about an hour to lay out the 
first part of the plan and Adriane said she wasn't sure it would work 
but that no matter what it might be what it takes to shake the public 
up enough to start acting on their own behalf. 

Finally she again led him to the window and said for him to step out
while saying `arrow' he was very reluctant but somehow was shocked 
enough already that almost nothing would surprise him now. He slowly 
and almost gingerly stepped out into the thin air as he repeated the 
word `ARROW' over and over. His foot stopped against something 
invisible and he supported himself on whatever it was and then pulled 
his other curvaceous nylon clad leg out. 

The wind blew his dress up and over his eyes but as he pushed it back
down over his knees he looked back at a proud Adriane, her arms in an 
akimbo position smiling at him. He stood up slowly and then looked out 
at the city. "I hope you don't get air sick or are afraid of heights." 
Adriane said . "Why" asked Logan. "Look down" was her quick answer. He 
slowly looked down at the cars roofs eight stories below. "Wow, what 
can I do out here?" he asked. Anything you want Adriane said as she now 
too stepped out into a cold breeze. Her brown blonde hair flying about 
her face. 

"Here give me your hand." she said. "Now lean forward. Don't worry you
won't fall. As he did the two of them started to move forward. Adriane 
told him to utter the secret words that made him invisible as Adriane 
did the same. Now the two of them leaned forward even more and picked 
up speed till they were almost lying flat and moving at about a hundred 
miles an hour. The wind tore at his hair and his fingers became numb. 

Adriane saw he was cold so she turned about and rocketed back to his
apartment window. "Now stand up" she said pulling him upward and the 
two of them slowed till they slid up against the buildings red brick 
side. They were still going a little fast so Adriane stuck out her 
little foot and stopped them at the walls face with a slight bump.  
"Neat huh?" she asked. "YEAH!" he answered. 

"You'll have to learn to control how fast you go and to aim better but I
think you get the general idea now." she said. The two were about ten 
feet from the window and had to walk back to it. This was the oddest 
thing for Logan to get use to, Walking on thin air.  Once back inside 
Adriane had him change back into himself and to get to bed. We do need 
sleep. That the one thing we can't get on without. 

Logan laid there and after awhile he asked Adriane if he would ever
change again. "Maybe after you meet the elders. Their our leaders, they 
send us into action." she quietly said. "And I'll never die will I?" he 
asked.  "Not anymore!" Adriane said. "Now go to sleep. We've got lots 
to do tomorrow." she finished. 

The next morning as they went out together a police car pulled up and
asked for some Identification. Adriane the two their two drivers 
licenses and social security cards. As the police were running a check 
on their card John Logan motioned to Adriane to look up the street. A 
parking authority tow truck had picked up their new Toyota and was 
towing it away. Adriane put her free hand on Logan's arm to silently 
indicate to him not to do anything rash. 

The police officer was now starting to tell Adriane about how the
authorities were upset about some folks who were disturbing the peace 
the other day and how there's laws against that sort of thing. Adriane 
looked at the middle aged husky cop and said," Officer, you don't like 
having to do this do you?"  The cop looked down at the steering wheel 
of his car and said ."NO Mamm, it's not why I became a cop. But if I 
don't I'll get fired." he said remorsefully. Adriane looked at him 
again and said she understood and that she would not hold anything 
against him or any cop in the future. 

"Thank you," he said and then drove off. Adriane closed her eyes and now
could see the new Toyota behind the tow truck. The driver of the tow 
truck was bragging to the radio operator about stealing the two rabble 
rousing flakes car. She could hear him as well. She closed her eyes and 
started to count slowly. 

It was an odd sight said one driver who was about a hundred yards behind
the tow truck. "He had just past me and was driving real fast along the 
expressway. Then all of a sudden he turns off onto an closed for 
construction off ramp at the oil refineries. He crashed through the 
barricade and then just, just . . ah... out into thin air." said the 
witness Must of took a minute or more for the rig to hit the ground 
below. The whole damn thing explodes and there's nothing but flame and 
black smoke. 

Adriane then told Logan that they were going to have to go see the
parking authority people. When they got there the place was in an 
uproar. She identified herself and said she wanted her car back. The 
clerk looked around for a supervisor and then told her they lost it 
somehow. "I'll get a lawyer." she said and left. Later that day she did 
in fact get a lawyer and started a suit against the city. 

Next she and Logan visited some of the local personal injury lawyers.
From there she was able to identify lawyers who were open to the 
possibility of suing the city and or the parking authority themselves. 
She chose one and started a libel suit. She then met with some of the 
neighborhood groups who wanted to know more about her. 

With them, she plumed the area of how the separate neighborhoods had
been treated by `Meter Maids. The response was always the same. The 
neighbors all either had their own cars towed or knew of someone who 
had, had their car towed. Overall she managed to come away with a clear 
impression that the parking authority and city hall has had a real nice 
income from illegally parked  or not so illegally parked cars. 

She was able to rally the people. She told them "DO NOT PAY ANYMORE
TICKETS". Form a group of stay at home folks to follow the ticket 
people and make sure they have a right to ticket cars. She even went 
out and bought fifty video cameras for these civilian foot monitors to 
carry and  operate. All of this did not go unnoticed by the parking 
authority upper echelon and by city hall either. 

"Who the fuck is this broad. She's made us more enemies in two weeks of
yakking than all of the last five tax hikes. I even had one old black 
woman ask me today at a dedication of that lousy playground if I had a 
right to steal like I do? Jesus Christ, now the fuckers are calling me 
a thief to my face."  Mayor Kendell said in an excited and arrogant 
voice. 

"Look, this wacky broad, what the hell's her name anyway, is out every
day and god damn night telling the morons in the neighborhoods that 
they run city hall, and they're government. And if they don't like 
something then don't pay for it. Where the hell did she come from 
anyway?" asked the cities parking authority chief, Mr. Thomas Magill. 

"I'm telling you Tom, this fucking broad has got to go. She really
getting the poor to wake up to their situation. And their going to 
stampede this fucking place if they get any more hyped." the mayor said 
while pacing the area behind his desk. Now he sat down and both men 
were silent for a few moments. 

"Why don't I see if there's anyone around who can take care of this
situation in a quiet manner?" Magill asked quietly. The mayor was 
silent and now turned to face the windows. "Do you think anything like 
that is possible, Tom?" the mayor said in a hushed tone. It was quiet 
again for a long time and then Magill spoke. "I don't see why not so 
long as there's no fallout around here." we give some sort of tax break 
to the stupid constituents and with a little luck we'll be back in 
business in about two weeks." 

After another moment of silence Mayor Kendell still gazing out the
window at the clouds and cities skyline said. "Ok, see what can be 
done." 

Two weeks later as Adriane and Logan were coming home from a rally in
the Northeast, they parked their rental car in a private parking lot 
and started the short walk back to the apartment. They purposely always 
took a different route home from the parking space, just in case 
someone was to follow them. As they entered a alleyway between two 
building across the street from an abandoned factory, two men jumped 
down from a fire escape on one of the buildings. Both men had loaded 
shotguns and fired. 

Logan and Adriane dove sideways and slipped underneath both gunmen and
ran into the building across the street. The two gunman ran after them. 
It was very dark and there were two more shots fired. No one ever came 
out of the building. Gunfire in this semi rundown neighborhood was so 
common that no one called the police or ever reported anything out of 
the ordinary. 

Ten days later a box was delivered to the Mayors office by the postal
service. On the front of the box was both the sanders name and the 
Mayors Dendall's name as both the sender and sendee. The box was marked 
`return to sender' .  Inside was two smashed and broken shotguns and 
two wallets with the drivers license and Parking authority employee 
identification badge of both the gunmen. The mayor had to see his 
doctor for his high blood pressure that afternoon. 

Chapter. 9 

Almost two months had past and the local grassroots committees on
governmental reforms were taking hold fast. The weather had changed to 
a really cool overcast pre winter. Adriane and John Logan came out of 
their apartment one morning to go to a library to research some 
documents when they were approached by a lone man in a dark gray suit. 

The two were almost ready to fight, when he asked her if this was her
name and address. The document was real enough and it had been an 
address and name she had once used. He identified himself as an U.S. 
Attorney with the Justice dept. He asked if they would have some time 
to meet with him and his associates. He also said there was no threat 
intended here and if she and Mr. Logan did not wish to `talk' he would 
go away and never bother her or Mr. Logan again. 

"However You should know that I cannot be held responsible for the
actions of others here in Philadelphia. I know about the attempt on 
your life. We found the bodies two weeks ago." He said. Adriane looked 
very suspicious of him and he noticed her apprehension. " We know 
already we have no power to stop you however if you wanted to be well 
known as a witch, well some people might get access to that kind of 
information and use it against you."  He said in a calm voice. A stiff 
wind now blew across the sidewalk and blew dust and litter about. 

"Ok." Adriane said looking up at the gray clouds dashing across the
dirty skyline. "Where and when?" she followed up with. "Tonight in a 
small restaurant in Manayunk called `The Sonoma' about six O clock. If 
I'm not out front waiting for you don't come in. "Why?" asked Adriane. 
"Because there will be two assassins waiting and they will have already 
killed me." he said as he walked away. "Sure thing" Adriane said. The 
two started to walk away. Logan asked how he knew of her?. 

"I don't know. Well I don't know right now but I will before tonight.
She asked him to go on alone and she darted back in the apartment. 
Logan chased after her but by the time he got to the apartments door 
she was gone again. Later that night she met John Logan as he left the 
Library with some documents on the cities finances. He was surprised to 
see her as she bolted away in a tiff so fast this morning. 

"So what's cooking boss?" Logan asked. "Well I've been looking for
someone special." Adriane said with a lot of doubt in her voice. "Did 
you find him. . . or her?" Logan asked. "NO !" she said. The pair then 
drove out the expressway in the fifth rental car to Manayunk section. 
Then as if by magic, there was there secret person with whom they had 
met this morning. He looked very serious and was pacing somewhat and 
his looks where dark and brooding. 

They parked in another private parking lot as their already figured that
the parking authority was dying to snatch another car out from under 
them and Adriane already said she was getting tired of walking so much. 
The threesome went inside and sat at a back table the mystery person 
had already arranged for them. He started to discuss some of the 
implications of their activities when Adriane asked him just who the 
fuck he was anyway. He acted as if he had to sneeze or cough and 
excused himself to go to the men's room. 

Now both Adriane and Logan wondered just who this guy was and both were
ready to take off when a tall man sat down across from them. Adriane 
face turned into a huge smile and she nearly jumped out of her seat. " 
I'll bet I had the both you convinced I was somebody else. Ha, ha, ha" 
he said with a hardy laugh. Adriane just sat back and smiled so broad 
she almost looked like a new bride. 

And now just across from these two amateur ethics changers sat William
in his black leather jacket and jeans and a light gray tee shirt.  
"Boy, am I glad to see you!" John Logan said. "I'll second that." said 
Adriane. William just sat back and smiled but never took his eyes off 
Adriane. The two of them looked like young lovers and John Logan felt 
the temperature dropping like a rock at his end of the table. 

Once dinner was finished and the threesome had wandered out onto the
main street, William and Adriane told John to go ahead on back to the 
apartment and. . . and. . .  They would catch up with him later. But 
before he could answer them, both were hand in hand and headed off on 
their own. "Well, I suppose it's clear they like each other. More or 
less !" Logan said jokingly to himself. He left and headed home to the 
apartment. The situation wasn't quite so effervescent back at his tiny 
flat. 

As he turned the corner one block from the apartment he could already
see the smoke and flames high above the roofs. Sure enough, the 
apartment building was totally engulfed in flames. Logan parked the car 
and walked back to the police line to watch the firefighters try to 
contain the huge smoky blaze. He had a sinking feeling in the pit of 
his stomach. 

Around midnight, Logan felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see a
police officer asking him if he was OK?. He replied sort of and then 
saw both Adriane and William coming down the street.  He wondered how 
to explain to the other residents that he had a hunch why their homes 
were gone. After speaking to William, they decided on what to do. 

Adriane and Logan circulated amongst the remorseful residents asking
them if they would want to stay at a hotel or motel for the night. 
Those that did were directed to where their accommodations would be at 
once William returned with the reservations at different hotels and 
motels. In all they found a place to stay for fifteen of the twenty 
burned out by safe residents. Everyone thanked Adriane, William and 
John Logan for their help while not realizing quite why. 

"Well there goes our file and records." Logan said to William. Were the
papers still in there? William asked. "Yes except for the copies I made 
today of these latest financial papers. "Not quite sport," said a 
slowly simmering Adriane. "I removed all our files three days ago when 
I started to worry about something like this, and I wasn't 
disappointed." she said as she slowly bounced from one foot to the 
other. 

William saw her doing this little informal and unconscientious dance and
asked her why she doing, or what she was doing?" he knew already why 
though. She always did this when she was so angry that she couldn't 
contain it any longer. She never answered but ran from the both of 
them. Logan started after her but William stopped him. 

"Let her go, you'll never catch her anyway. But I bet someone's going to
get a awful surprise before this nights over with. Lets see about 
getting ourselves a new place to live." and the two left. As they 
walked, Logan talked to William about Adriane and what she was like to 
work with and to get along with so to speak.  William laughed. He said 
she had always been different. She was born in a small town in the 
middle east near the Turkish border about three thousand years ago. 
Even then she had been a really tough young woman and had killed four 
men who attacked her one night. 

She had two brothers who were killed along with her that night, but only
she was picked to be a puma. She had a lot of trouble early on trying 
to learn of the different ways to adapt to a situation but she always 
worked hard at it. That's why she was always given the benefit of the 
doubt by our elders when she used her own methods. 

"You mean we have rules and regulations as Puma's?" Logan asked. "Well
sure, see I didn't intent to stay away as long as I did but I wanted to 
spend a few weeks with my `elder' so as to learn what he thought of the 
situation here. See we work in many different ways, but we are always 
intended to improve a situation, not make it worse." 

"And sometimes Adriane can do just that?" asked Logan. William looked at
his new unknowing protégé and said. "Well look, I guess you can tell I 
love Adriane, I always have and I always will. We've been in some 
terrible jams over the years, but she will sometimes use maximum force 
or damn close to it. This sometimes takes care of a problem and 
sometimes it causes another. I personally only use as much force as I 
think will work without disrupting the populations mental stability." 

He continued, " See during the second world war here, I chose to work in
a different way from Adriane. She felt we should do something to 
obliterate the German command. I felt that while that would fix the 
problem of the murder of the jews and gipsy's's throughout Europe, the 
mental concept of all the worlds peoples would not have changed. To me 
that would of only kept the problem at bay for another fifty or so 
years." he said. 

So you left it alone and let it work itself out on it's own?" asked
Logan. " No, what I did was substitute a major Japanese government 
official with myself. I then advocated war against the United states. 
Thus we felt, my elder and I , that this would guarantee that the 
oppression of the axis powers would be put on the agenda of the world 
as a whole."  William said. "And Adriane?" asked Logan. 

"Well she put up such a good argument that she was allowed to pursue her
own plan of action so long as it didn't make things worse. So she 
managed to situate herself as an American army general. Someone by the 
name of Patton and she had some very significant successes." "She was 
Gen. Patton?" asked John with more than a note of shock to his voice. 
"Oh yes!" replied William with a huge sigh of admiration. 

The two spent the morning find a temporary hotel room where the desk
clerk sort of hinted that he too was gay. And it was only after the two 
awoke that they found out there had been a huge fire at  city hall and 
the Mayor's office had been destroyed. As well as. . . . . 

The first thing Adriane could clearly see was that there was still the
police guard on duty at the Mayor's office on the second floor from 
down in city hall court yard. She had no quarrel so far with the police 
so she did not want any of them hurt. She walked around to a phone 
booth and since she remembered the Mayor's security desk phone number 
from calling there so many times, she dialed the number. It was now 
twenty minutes after eleven and it took a good two or three minutes for 
someone to answer. Adriane changed her voice into a man's heavy bottom 
tone. 

"Hello, Mayor's detail." came the answer. "How many men you got with you
tonight?" she asked. The cop answering the phone asked who was this. 
"There's going to be a little bang up there, so you guys might want to 
leave. . . and NOW!" she said and quickly hung up the phone. She then 
walked into a shadow from a building at Broad and Arch and disappeared. 


She now slipped invisibly across broad and back to her spot in the
courtyard. Once there she closed her eyes and mentally pictured the 
mayor's big mahogany desk. "Para  para long, para para gone. Within a 
second every window on the second floor corner section of city hall lit 
up in bright crimson and then red. One second more and everything 
exploded out the windows., The glass, the frames, and now most 
everything inside the room now came out the windows. 

There was flames and burning papers, hot dust and soot poured from both
sides of the corner section of City hall. Adriane, even invisible and 
tucked into a corner hidden from the court yard itself could feel the 
hot blast and the smokey gush of hot air and gases. Now people from the 
street started to run into the tunnels under City Halls towers to see 
what the heck had happened. 

Glass had showered out into Broad street and into the Court yard and now
was still bouncing about the cool asphalt streets peppering cars and 
shops with debris and burnt wooden sills. Smoke poured from the gapping 
holes that only moments ago had been recently painted windows and trim 
moldings. The fire sirens could now be heard coming and people all 
about were yelling and running about. Adriane slipped along the inner 
walls till she reached the far side from where the explosion had taken 
place. 

Smoke lay all about the base of the huge granite Victorian styled
building and firemen laying out fire hoses were in and about the 
immediate area streets everywhere. She watched for a little while then 
silently disappeared again and headed north. And the Mayor himself 
lived northeast of the city. 

She sat in an invisible state at the top of a small hill up the street
from the mayors house. She watch as the Mayor and his wife rushed out 
and got into a waiting police car. The pair then rushed to the fire 
scene at his office. While they were gone she once more uttered those 
words of flame and fire, Smoke and soot. Then after watching the fire 
departments response, she went off to find her William. 

The morning Newspaper reported that both city hall and the Mayor's home
had been damaged in suspicious fires. All of the corner section of City 
hall where the Mayor's office had been was destroyed as well as his 
home where a lesser fire had destroyed a garage and the room above it. 
In the garage was his pride and joy, a 1949 MGTC sports car and his 
wife's Cadillac sedan, both burnt beyond recognition. The mayor was 
livid so the paper reported. 

She rested in a small hollowed out tree for the night and in the morning
she started to listen for Williams silent Pumas voice calling to her. 
There was no turning back now she thought as she watched the sun come 
up on the eastern tree shrouded skyline. "Boy am I tired." she 
whispered to herself as she stretched. 

In the next few days, the three of them, Adriane, William and John Logan
would visit more public rallies and advocate that the citizens stop 
paying Taxes if they felt they were illegal. And the same went for 
federal taxes. Her picture made newspapers all over the country. It was 
from this moment on the they noticed that there was a car full of men 
following them around all the time. 

"We're going to have to be more careful not get anyone killed around
them." john asked why and William said he felt these men in the car 
were sent to quiet the three of them, permanently. As luck would have 
it, someone in Montana, having heard of Adriane's rebellious talk in 
the east asked her to come to Montana and speak. She agreed and the 
three left, but not unnoticed. . . . 

Once in the Rockies state, Adriane spoke to some far right wing groups
about standing up for your own rights, being part of government and 
openly disputing the actions of YOUR elected officials. If not then 
shall continue to do as they please. Their only concern is appeasing 
the money interests and staying in office. 

"And if you don't think that your government is spending your money
right then don't pay it. If you don't pay your taxes then they will 
have no money to waste. We can't all be put in jail, the jails are full 
now, they will have to free some or all to fits us in and they can't do 
that. We need to unite under one umbrella." she would yell at the 
people at rallies. 

"And if we fail at this . . . soon your homes and farms will be
collected one by one till the politicians coffers are full once again. 
You and your neighbors will be left to raise food in the gutters. For 
you are not part of their concern. You are only the tax payers, that 
bottomless pit of money for their use. Your children will grow up 
thinking that this is the way of it, to be poor and of no value." 

Each one of you should go home tonight and when you lay yourselves into
your beds ask yourself, this woman spoke of truth or of falsehoods. 
Follow your heart in whatever you decide. But think too about these 
paper leaders, do you think they have your best interest in their 
hearts, or their own?" 

These talks were always cheered and applauded. And always she drew great
enthusiastic response. It was not long before she drew the attention of 
the white house. One night while the three were having a simple dinner 
and coffee, two FBI agents stopped by her table to `chat' with her. 
They said in some circles her speeches are starting to draw some 
concern from the administration. That some higher up in government were 
starting to wonder if her goal was not revolution, not reform. And that 
this was against the law as it was written. 

Adriane would smile that break your heart big smile of hers and tell
these agents of the worried that her only goal was for the citizens to 
start to act like citizens. If life was too busy and hectic for you to 
pay attention to your leaders, then slow things down and become part of 
your government. 

"I say nothing that our forefathers did not already set forth in the
constitution. Nothing that is not in the bill of rights. I have never 
said for anyone to bear arms against this government. Only that they 
stop paying taxes, and you men know as well as I do that there is no 
law that specifically commands any citizen to pay taxes that he or she 
feels is unjust. You two are both well trained agents of this 
government even though your not really by law part of the government. . 
. . 

I know neither of you like this kind of talk that I give, but you also
know that I am not doing anything illegal. The two of you both have 
been to college and know your American history only too well. You know 
of your forefathers wish that all men be free and able to speak up at 
will. You and your fellow agents have at times in the past, 
investigated incidents where some Americans of color were not allowed 
to speak their minds and to vote. And all of this rhetoric is but 
another page in that history. I know this as well as you both. I also 
know that . . . 

. . .  That your superiors are the ones who were told to send you to see
me about this. And I know this is uncomfortable for you and I should 
suppose your superiors as well.  I do not wish for you or anyone  to be 
put in this position. And you can tell your supervisors and leaders 
that for me. The politicians that have control over your department are 
the ones I wish to alert to the feeling of these people who come to 
listen to me. 

You two have been following me and my two friends for almost six weeks
now. And you saw the two men who tried to kill us. You two have seen 
the men who came and set our home on fire. Please do not ask how I know 
of your presence but your silence will confirm that I am right." 
Adriane said in her soft unthreatening voice. 

Both agents looked into their cups of coffee and said not a word in
dispute. 

"I harbor no malice towards any police officer or government agents such
as you. I know you do not have a free will in the matters that you are 
given to carry out. But please, I ask only of you to look around as we 
go to these rallies and meetings, these are you countrymen, your fellow 
Americans. It is only their respect that you should be concerned with. 
Not the paper puppets in Washington who could be removed from office in 
one short election. Think for once about who you really work for. 

The two tall agents stood and said they were sorry for having bothered
her tonight. Adriane said as they were leaving for them, if they could 
to do her one small favor if ever the chance came their way. "What's 
that Mamm?" said the one older agent. "Please tell me if your going to 
have to kill me or not. You may not know right now but sooner or later 
you will."  The two agents looked at each other with remorse and said 
goodnight." later Logan asked how long it was that she knew that they 
had been trailing the three them. "Oh, for a while. They got a good 
laugh when we sent the shotguns back to mayor Kendell's office. 

"You sure are different !" John Logan said. And William put his arm
around her shoulders and smiled. He too knew she was different and 
special. Both to himself and too many others as well. The threesome 
continued on throughout the west till they got a call from one of the 
supporters back in Philadelphia. It seems the mayor was on the verge of 
being ousted from office and now was pushing for the different agencies 
to gather up as much money as possible before he left. 

The three left that night on a eastbound train for Thirtieth street
station in Philadelphia. The three decided to exit the train at a 
suburban station and take a bus the rest of the way in case the Mayor 
was waiting for her. Sure enough as the train pulled into the main 
depot in Philadelphia, it was stopped and searched for an hour. 

William said for them to look over at all the police cars in the train
station parking lot with their red lights flashing and supervisors 
running around with walkie talkies and cell phones. "Fools" was all 
Adriane could say. "Now that I'm back, lets see who is the most 
vicious." she muttered under her breath. She noticed she was really 
developing a deep hatred for this self serving bastard who was the 
mayor and his puppet government. 

Back on the streets the parking authority was towing like mad. And
collecting taxes with a vengeance. The people of the poor areas were 
being almost ignored and anyone traveling into or out of the city had 
to pay a special tax for that privilege. Anyone who dared to resist was 
put in jail and hounded till they did pay. Some people were being 
evicted from their homes for non payment of taxes and most already had 
their gas and electricity turned off for non payment of the inflated 
bills. 

Adriane wrote a letter to the governor telling him of the mayor's
actions but it was ignored as the governor was a secondary recipient of 
some of the taxes. It now seemed to be a somewhat hopeless situation. 
Washington had said they could not or would not get involved in any 
states internal operations and that it was of no concern to them what 
happened there. 

Faced with this sad circumstances, Adriane started to quietly advocate
for the many groups to stop protesting and to go one more step further. 
"Gorilla warfare? " Logan asked. "Yes !" was her only answer. And she 
now set in motion a plan once started, was lost from her control for 
ever. 

Everywhere now there was a quiet sense of distrust, the police wound up
in an altercation with most every traffic stop. Some of the crews that 
were sent to turn off gas or electric service were being attacked and 
drove off. The parking authority found that sometimes the cars it towed 
illegally wound up on fire by the time they got to the impound lot. 

Few people now applied for building permits and or just ignored the
simplest of rules. City inspectors were sometimes driven of in a shower 
of stones and trash thrown from windows surrounding the building sites. 
City council members ordered a police escort for each and the mayor 
rarely went out during the day. 

Little by little the city government was evaporation in a sea of
distrust and hatred. With each new sunrise the people of Philadelphia 
were silently revolting. The jails were so full that most people 
arrested had to be sent home to await an empty cell. Now bank robberies 
increased as the police found themselves doing more personal protection 
services that law enforcement. 

Other policemen just retired or just quit out of frustration. The mayor
dropped the city resident restriction on all new hires for the police 
and inspection billets and now people from out of state came to fill 
these jobs. But since they did not receive any real training they were 
more or less ineffective as police and they too soon quit the abrasive 
jobs. 

State police now entered the city on patrol duty but they too found the
enormous wave of resentment too much for them to try to enforce city 
rules and stopped even trying. For his part the Mayor was busy trying 
to get federal troops sent in. And one of the more odd of things was 
that this movement was spreading out of state and beyond. Many of city 
council started resigning and leaving the city. The wealthy had already 
left by this point and now a semi war-like condition was all that 
remained. The city of brotherly love was truly not a shadow of it's 
intended namesake. 

And strangely enough, this sentiment was growing across the country.
Each states politicians beseeched for the citizens to quiet down and 
wait for the political process to handle these errors. But more and 
more, people were growing tired of empty promises and increasing taxes. 
It was on night late when Adriane got a call from an secret person who 
told her he'd met once and that the call for her to be silenced had 
come. She thanked the nameless FBI agent and hung up. 

"They want me killed !" she said as she returned the late night dinner
table with her three friends. Everyone was silent for a moment. 

Chapter. 10 

Now Adriane concentrated her efforts on the mayor. Mr. Richard Kendell.
He alone was the main  antagonist in this struggle and he had been 
asked many times to step down but refused. So it is many times with the 
greedy and unethical. He was taking as much money as he could before he 
would leave the country. He had sent his wife on to Europe to stay out 
of harms way and to leave him to do his dirty work without any harping 
from her. 

He had hired some men to kill Adriane but they kept failing in their
attempts. He now was only able to move about at night and was under 
investigation by the federal government who was seeking a way to throw 
him out of office. But he managed to hang on. And he vowed in his heart 
to kill that mouthy young broad before he left the country no matter 
what. 

This coincided with Adriane's extra interest in the Mayor's decision
that burning down the apartment building and ruining so many families 
lives, their mementos and any family heirlooms they might of had just 
because he wanted to get back at this big mouth bitch who kept telling 
folks what a crook he was and he knew he was,  well that was beyond the 
pale as far as Adriane was concerned, so... 

First things first. Every time she saw a dark blue Phila. Parking
authority tow truck she thought in into a para para long and set it on 
fire. Thankfully for the workers, most got out in time. Next, it was 
the gas works trucks. After that it was the city council persons cars 
and then on to any damn city vehicle she could see on the street. All 
told she set more than five hundred cars and trucks on fire. Anything 
with the blue and white municipal license plates was fair game except 
for the fire engines. 

Slowly the city was grinding to a halt. The more miserable the mayor
got, the more she set things on fire. Every time he sent someone to try 
and kill her, She sent back whatever parts weren't burnt or broke. . . 
including fingers. She sent a mans hand with his watch on and wallet 
still clutched in his fist to the mayor. And again his blood pressure 
hit the ceiling. 

By now he vowed to kill her openly to his aides and other policemen.
However it was getting real tough to find anyone foolish enough to try 
and kill her as only parts came back of each of them. But he had 
nothing to charge her with. He was so mad, things just aren't suppose 
work out this way for important people like a mayor. Then he considered 
killing her himself. So he started thinking of a way to do just that. . 
. . . 

Back in other parts of the country, things weren't going so well for the
federal government either. People had in huge groups started to police 
their own neighborhoods, they were facing down drug dealers and in some 
cases getting into gorilla warfare against the drug lords themselves. 
But with a difference. 

Sometimes you would have a ninety three year old man charged with
murdering a known drug dealer. The old man would be given parole right 
away as the government had no way to care for a killer who was ninety 
three or seventy six or even a mother of five kids who told the locale 
pusher if he showed up on the neighborhood corner again she would shoot 
him. He laughed at her, 

But two weeks later he lay on a slate slab in the morgue and she was
facing a murder rap, but she was a grandmother of five kids and was in 
bad health. The county had to let her go on the grounds of no place to 
put her and no way to care for her even if their could find a place to 
lock her up in. 

The judges and magistrates were starting to consider quitting as this
whole process of trying anybody on anything was getting almost 
laughable. People now knew some judges on a first name basis as they 
had been convicted so many times in court that they were now requesting 
that the judge just send them a Vedic and not bother to make them show 
up for a mock trial. 

In other parts of the country, the government had foreclosed on so many
farms and businesses that there was not enough people to go out and try 
to serve any papers as most of them were getting shot or shot at by the 
local dwellers. It was getting so that the government could not even 
get out of Washington DC. On their own. 

Taxes had been withheld so long that some army companies had to be
decommissioned because there was not enough money to pay them and 
because almost all the soldiers would not fire on their own countrymen. 
They laid down their arms and went home. 

In only two and a half years this young woman had galvanized her fellow
countrymen into a simply non cooperative mass of angry and militant 
commoners. And there was absolutely nothing the government could do 
short of shooting each and every one of them, and this could not be 
done with all the world watching. 

Many of the small groups when asked by foreign reporters as to what they
now demanded of their government, they simply said they wanted them to 
act responsibly and with compassion and humility, and to do as the 
countrymen and townspeople wished since they were the real ones who 
were paying the bills. 

Other parts of the country were slower to begin the healing process and
vigilantism and hatred still ruled more or less. and of course, 
Philadelphia was the hub of such feelings and misconceptions again. On 
her return, Adriane was shocked at all the floundering and mealy 
mouthing that had set in. It was almost as if nothing positive had 
happened. Still Adriane had hopes. And was ready to back them up with 
actions. 

She had resisted some of her more natural instincts for the past two
years of talking and encouraging folks around the country to begin to 
repair their nation. In some locations her message was taken well, in 
others she was booed and driven from the area. All this she expected, 
but not in the very spot she had launched this self correcting movement 
so to speak. 

She now felt very much more like a rebuffed Cromwell of English history
fame than that of a modern day political rebel rouser. Still she felt 
given the extraordinary circumstances of this cities past and present 
she should be able to move the people to start the rebuilding now 
rather than later. 

By now the Mayor, Mr. Dendell had been thrown out of office and his
replacement seemed to be a genuine man who cared for the cities 
rebirth. He called on all the residents to work for peace, and said 
that a new taxing program that was fair would be put before the public 
to see if it passed their approval before it could be implemented. His 
one and only demand of taking office was that all of city council be 
replaced so as not to retreat backwards into that deep corruption that 
had earmarked Mayor Dendell's administration. The council members 
agreed and most stepped down. The ones who didn't were subjected to 
round the clock harassment and ridicule till even their bodyguards 
deserted them. Only then were they once and for all, chased from 
office. 

It was to this city of crazy mood swings that Adriane and her two
companions returned on that cool morning, with the police still hunting 
for her half heartedly while mayor Dendell was still at the helm in a 
quiet and empty city hall. Almost no monies flowed into the city 
coffers and it was hard to see what with the reduced electricity flow 
that had been semi cut off. 

The Mayor had only his own bodyguards hired from as far away as Reading
PA to escort him about. And they would steal anything left laying 
about. Most only stayed for the hundred thousand dollar bounty the 
mayor had placed on Adriane's head. But they numbered only three dozen 
now. 

Adriane found her presence a bit hard to disguise so she had stepped
into a shadow upon her return, and stepped into the light as a young 
African American woman named Alice. She now could move about 
unincumbered and did so easily. She now concentrated on feeling how the 
people felt and seeing if their was some way to help rebuild the city. 

In doing this she joined the forces of a newcomer on the political scene
who was to become a political savior for the city as it's next mayor. 
His name was Joe Jackson and he was a kid of the ghetto. Who knew who 
he was and what he wanted his city to be. And was a real godsend for 
the future of Philadelphia. 

Adriane had been with a local neighborhood leader talking over dinner
about how some things had changed for the better and how the ex-mayor 
was still around somewhere and looking to make sure Adriane no longer 
did any serious breathing. She had warned Adriane that this man was 
really serious about getting her and had hired even more gunmen to hunt 
her down. 

Adriane said she thanked her friend but really didn't worry too much
about his ex mayorship really  that much as he had tried to kill once 
or twice before. But that at least he was out of office now and the 
situation could only get better with him gone. 

On her way home she kept thinking about this little man who would dare
to even think about killing her and her usually pleasant mood turned 
sour. She was walking and had just past a tall row of brown stones on 
Spruce street. An argument was taking place in an apartment on the 
fifth  or sixth floor of the building. A window opened and a heavy set 
man threw a small black cat from the window and then a woman screamed 
and he slammed shut the window. 

The little black flailed his little paws as he fell but landed on the
street and did not move after that. Adriane was appalled. She closed 
her eyes and . . . . 

The closed window exploded outward with the wood frame and glass
bursting outward and in the darkness it seemed as if each piece was 
moving in slow motion. The heavy set man in his jockey shorts and tee 
shirt came flying out backwards into the cold night air and he landed 
on his back in the street like a dropped chest of draws. Sweat and 
blood bursting out in small amounts around his nose and ears. Adriane 
slowly walk over and picked up the dead cat and then walk over to the 
injured man. 

His eyes were bulging and he could not breath very much. His head was
quite flat on the back side and he seemed paralyzed in so much as he 
couldn't move his arms. He looked up at Adriane in a pleading sort of 
way. Adriane half knelt down and said 

I'm a friend of tinkerbell here. And you are a very, very bad man.
Tinkerbell and I don't like bad men. With that she dropped the dead cat 
on his already crushed chest and he started to spew forth deep red 
blood from his mouth. Within a minute his eyes rolled back in his head 
and he stopped breathing almost in the same instant. 

Adriane picked up the dead cat and snuggled him up against her chest and
walked to the sidewalk and into the shadows there. The woman came 
running out as did other neighbors to the mans side. One of the 
neighbors, a fireman said on use he was dead. The woman cried and said 
the bastard had thrown her beloved little kitty from the window and now 
even he was gone. 

Adriane walked over and handed a purring little black cat to the
grieving woman in her night cloths and said, " Here Mamm, kitty's OK. 
He was just scared."  And tried to hand the cat to his owner. The cat 
didn't want to be let go by The pretty young woman. And Adriane 
whispered something in his ear and he soon quieted down and allowed her 
to pass him to the older woman in her night cloths. 

"Here Mamm, I think he's ready to go home now."  The woman took the cat
in her arms as a paramedic ambulance pulled up along with a police 
cruiser. "OH thank you. Bless you, thank you so much. I think I'd of 
died if I lost `midnight'. He is my only friend in this life." Adriane 
watched the medics load the son of a bitch on a gurney and haul his 
dead ass away. 

"Yes Mamm, midnight is a special little fellow. You take care of him
now." Adriane said as she resumed her walk home. "Bless you, bless you 
!" the older woman called after the young woman who was fast 
disappearing down the street. 

The nights chill was soon quiet cold underneath a perfectly clear and
cloudless winter sky. Occasionally the sound of a small animal could be 
heard as it sought out it's pray to hunt. Every so often a automobile 
would whoosh past blowing dried leaves and dust all about. As she 
walked she could smell some late night chef fixing a small snack or 
early breakfast for themselves or someone else. In the darkness Adriane 
felt a slight bit of comfort as the shadows provided her with at least 
a brief insulation of darkness in which to travel unnoticed. 

When she got home she fell into bed with William and said, "You know
sometimes I feel like I'm at least a thousand years old. Crazy isn't 
it, honey." William took her in his arms and kissed her and said she 
didn't look a day past five hundred. They both laughed till it hurt. 

John Logan couldn't help but overhear them and silently laughed as well.
Puma humor he thought. 

Chapter. 11 

As the sun rose on the one thousand five hundredth and fiftieth first
day of the `americal revoltoo' as the newspapers had come to humorously 
refer to this movement, new and dangerous streams of human behavior had 
begun to show it's ugly side. There were violent revolts in some 
industries and the spin off often became appalling, bloody and heinous. 


At one food processor in Texas, were some ground meat had been processed
with out federal inspectors to make sure it was fit to eat, a number of 
children died of salmonella poisoning. The family of one of the dead 
children traveled to Texas and caught the factory owner leaving the 
plant one day and proceeded to hang him right there in the parking lot 
in front of all the employees. 

And in Chicago, when a credit reporting service failed for years to
correct a distraught mans credit report, he broke in one night and 
waited for all the employees to report for work the next day. He then 
shot all fifty six employees one by one. Finally he shot himself in the 
head and made it fifty seven dead over a long standing clerical 
mistake. 

In other communities, hospitals that once were able to treat the sick
and poor who did not have any insurance, found themselves running out 
of money to be able to continue this humanitarian practice. Oddly 
enough though, these small communities now made a practice of capturing 
and trying drug dealers and traffickers and once being found guilty of 
the charge of drug dealing, they were usually marched outside and 
either hung or stoned to death. Their property and any and all gold and 
cash was then turned over to the hospitals to finance any unpaid bills 
of the misfortune. 

In still other area's were large corporations were located, the
companies now not paying huge tax bills, were able to redirect these 
funds to cover the employee's hospital insurance and even moved any 
workers that lived far from the business in to homes closer so that the 
company could run it's own transportation, child care, shopping and 
personal services all within a few miles of the companies location. 
This now recreated small company towns that prospered in the early part 
of the industrial revolution here in America. 

Worldwide, the absence of the now near poverty stricken federal
government led to new and unusual cooperation between foreign 
governments. In Europe for instance, the lack of American funds, once 
used for some anti government forces in different countries, led to a 
informal peace between the different factions as neither could now 
afford to continue to wage war on each other without American aid. 

This resulted in the two sides of a dispute having to sit down and
discuss to some degree how they would come to terms without any more 
bloody warfare of which neither could now bankroll. In other  countries 
such as Russia, in the absence of American limitations on travel and 
finance, many Americans of Russian descent returned to their home lands 
for a visit. On arrival they were shocked to see how dilapidated and 
run down some of the most beautiful art museums and building, squares 
and whole town had become since the downfall of the Soviet Union. This 
now spurned the Americans to return home, organize groups and ethnic 
foundations to develop ways to raise monies to rebuild and restore 
whole lands and towns, art museums, orchestras and music companies to 
their once magnificence. This process took nearly one hundred years, 
but by the time that the year 2075 had come, the city of St. Petersburg 
in Russia had become the Paris of the east. Peter the great would have 
been proud at what his beloved Russia had finally become. After so long 
it was truly the diamond it had always meant to be. 

In the Mideast, the multiple forces of difference and separation, found
little support for their ongoing battles of terrorism and warfare. In 
Israel, the old hard liners finally died off one by one and this 
combined with the lack of funds and technology from the United States 
served to force them to come to terms with the fact that the 
Palestinians were to have a home, no matter where it wound up being. 

In a joint Israel, Palestinian, Lebanese, and Syrian forged agreement,
the west bank and Gazza strip became international lands. Open for the 
passage of any nationality or religious person or persons to 
transverse. But no one was allowed to build any homes or businesses on 
it. Instead, land was given to become the future state/nation of 
Palestine and this land was made up of various tracts donated by the 
countries of Iran, Syria, Jordan and Israel. It was not big but it was 
a dedicated home to these people who had as much right to a home as 
anyone else. 

Furthermore it was the Israel government, who had lost all their ultra
hard liners to each their own timely death as nature had taken them. 
This allowed more open views on a situation that had spawned countless 
wars and hatred. Finally the time had come for peace. A peace that took 
another thirty years to achieve but within the twenty first century, a 
day could pass within Israel area in which not one person was killed in 
anything other than an industrial accident. 

In South America, a less solid peace was slowly forming with new accords
on deforestation and environmental concerns now ruling the immediate 
attention of the leaders of these countries. This had been spearheaded 
by the discovery of certain medicines which were produced by some 
special vegetation in the rain forest. This served to make all of the 
rain forest a special opportunity for medical research facilities in 
each country. And as such, made the rain forest a source of value to 
every single south American. And it was soon treated as such by all. 

Groups of forest pirates who were caught cutting down trees were shot on
sight and in one magazine article a picture of one hundred dead bodies 
were displayed in a towns open square of the pirates who were captured 
and killed by the areas towns people. It was a gruesome reminder of how 
drastically things can change in little over twenty years of different 
leadership and information. 

Back in the United State, the country had been dropped from the `Group
Seven' organization due to lack of economic influx, or in short because 
the government was broke. The defense department was decommissioned as 
was most of the air force, army, navy and SAC installations. The 
referendum had been put before a public vote and the outcome of that 
vote was as follows. 

First, the armed forces were reduced to pre second world war dimensions
and strength. Second, the coast guard and the Marines were both 
maintained and made stronger in both size and scope of their job 
guidelines. No more occupations were to take place. No more policing 
duties were to be extended to any foreign countries. Thirdly, under no 
circumstances were there to be any unauthorized deployments without 
direct public permission. Fourthly, the commanders of these units were 
installed by public vote, answered to no one in any government office 
or at any level. The forces of the United States operated on a separate 
level than that of elected state or federal congressmen or senators. 
And fifthly, no one other than the public could order any military unit 
into or onto any course of action other than that already spelled out 
at the yearly vote of and agenda for that years deployments. This 
guaranteed once and for all that the armed forces of the united states 
would no longer be involved in any covert or aide type mission in any 
ones name or for any reason. 

This came as a hard reality to most of the world who had in many ways
become dependent on being able to convince certain political persons 
that their country or government needed support to stay in power. Form 
now on if they got in trouble in their own backyard, they stayed in 
trouble. And let god sort it out afterwards in heaven. 

Back home, it was starting to become ugly with all the vigilantism and
self policing spreading wider with each passing day. Adriane, William 
and Logan now openly sought to restore the weakened government to a 
level of adequate power to be able to resume the day to day running of 
a justice system and police force. The three worked their way across 
America instilling a call for reform in the same Americans with whom 
they had only three years ago they had called into action to halt the  
useless existing political arena and it's corrupt members. 

It took quite a while but slowly Americans everywhere started to wish
for a separate force to deal with the outlaws and evil ones who prayed 
on children and the sick and poor. In doing this the president, 
congress and the senate decided to reconstruct the bill of rights, and 
to reformulate the tax burden on the poor, middle class and the rich so 
that there was no income tax or property tax. 

Instead all persons paid a flat 35 percent of all monies made or derived
from any business deal, wages or dividends from stock ownership. This 
was widely accepted by all except some of the `ultra rich'. It was then 
ruled that for a period of six months at the start of this tax reform 
referendum that anyone disputing it must leave the country. However, if 
one was to leave the country they must forfeit fifty percent of their 
current holding and their citizenship. 

This barred the ultra rich from striping huge amounts from the already
sagging banking system, yet hopefully kept them from ever returning to 
loot the economy in the future. There were other provisions contained 
in the tax package to help convince these of the upper twenty percent 
of Americans that it might be a good idea to not be so greedy and stay 
home and work with the public in returning America to some of it's 
economic health. Or in other words: good riddance to the greed and 
pilferers of the fragile emerging nation. 

Still there were some really fundamental problems taking root that
Adriane had not really counted on arising and for all her powers, did 
not know just how to stabilize. It was very hard to control but not 
very hard to spell, `violence and vigilantism'. 

This loosely organized wave of emotional terror moved from neighborhood
to neighborhood like a stray dog in search of something to eat. And in 
each community it visited it left it's ugly mark upon the populace. 
Crime on the other hand was taking on a whole new persona and 
occupational hazard. `Customers!' 

Chapter. 12 

The corner of Second and Berks streets had always been a particularly
good location for the business, thought Cortez Rodriguez. He and his 
four pals had made this their `Store' for some two years now. They 
would have to move every now and again when the cops started to put a 
little heat on him but in a few weeks he'd be back and all his 
customers knew his `Store' and how to get there. So it was a good spot 
for him. 

On this night some of the locals had walked by and stared at him and his
group. He had grabbed some young girl and felt her all up, she 
screamed. From a shabby rowhouse porch across, and five doors up the 
street, a middle aged porta  Rican woman yelled to the young toughs to 
release the girl, her daughter. The young men laughed at the woman by 
released the girl. The one who had molested her puckered his lips at 
her and said in Spanish that he would find her sometime when her momma 
was not in sight and then he would show her what a man is. 

All of the young toughs laughed and now a car pulled up to buy some dope
from the pack. It took all of maybe a minute and a deal was struck, the 
transaction made and the car left. The young men were so consumed with 
drinking beer and smoking some of their weed that they did not notice 
when the four cars parked on the same street started and pulled away 
from the block. 

Aaron Isaac Peterson was 83 years old. He had been living in
Philadelphia since 1948, when he moved here in search of work from his 
native home in Somerset, Kentucky. And one year later he had met his 
wife Betty and the two raised a family and moved into this very house 
not more than three houses from the corner of Berks and Second streets 
29 years ago. It had been his first and only home purchase and he and 
Betty lived very happily here until the young gangs had started in the 
neighborhood seven years ago. For some reason no one could ever get 
them to leave. 

The neighbors had over the years done everything as prescribed by law to
rid themselves of the ruthless young gangs. For Mr. Peterson this had 
extracted the ultimate in costs. His beloved Betty had as was her 
habit, decided to walk to the bank four years ago and deposit their 
pension check. She had never allowed herself to be scared by anyone or 
anything. She had become a trolley driver when it was not allowed by 
the white drivers despite being allowed by law. She had crossed white 
manned strike lines to keep her job and she had worked for thirty five 
years for the transit company. 

But on that day at the age of 78, Betty Lena Peterson was savagely
beaten three blocks from here home and killed but not after being raped 
and left for dead in an abandoned house. One that day, Mr. Peterson 
after being returned home by the police after identifying the body at 
the morgue, sat down in his soft but well worn chair. He poured himself 
a tall glass of southern bourbon whiskey, from the bottle he had bought 
eight years ago for a family celebration and sipped from the tall sided 
glass and asked god for his forgiveness and an answer to his now broken 
heart. 

The thief and murderer was found to be a sixteen year old who lived five
blocks from here. He was a rough young man who had been involved in 
many, many crimes. But he was never prosecuted due to his being a 
minor. In the ensuing years he had added to his evil list of crimes and 
now he belonged to one of the most ruthless of all gangs. The pack of 
jackals that the police in the area referred to as the Second and Berks 
gang. And right now through the three inch open window, Mr. Aaron 
Peterson was looking down at the cause of his last few years turmoil 
and pain, standing there with his friends, joking and drinking beer 
next to the corner light pole. He was smiling, Mr. Peterson was not. 

Across the street at this very moment sat Mr. James Thomas Williams. Mr.
Williams had lived across from Betty and Aaron for almost as long as 
they had lived on Berks street as well. They were good friends. Mr. 
Williams had lost his wife Thelma to breast cancer ten years ago when 
both of them had turned 79 in the same year. The two of them were the 
same age and had met at the newspaper where they had worked for fifteen 
years. Betty and Aaron would never let Mr. Williams be alone and were 
always calling him over to their house for dinner or lemonade on the 
hot days. Or just to sit on the above street porch and talk for a 
while. 

Mr. Williams house had been robbed at least ten times and he no longer
locked the doors when he went out. He kept nothing in the house, 
although the thieves had left little chance or chouse for him. He no 
longer watched TV as it had been taken so often that it was useless to 
leave one there. All his wife's jewelrey had been stolen, and if he 
hadn't kept his wedding band on his finger, it too would of been 
looted. The police were powerless to do anything as the courts just 
returned the young gang members to the streets. The gangs did not live 
where judges live. 

It the summer when it was hot, Mr. Williams had a fan and so as not to
lose it, always left it with his neighbor so it too did not disappear. 
These were not happy times for Mr. Williams. And this bothered him as 
he too looked out and down upon the corner from his slightly open 
second floor front window. Mr. Williams was not smiling as he looked at 
the young men on the corner drinking beer and smoking dope. No, He was 
not smiling at all. 

A third house, one two more doors away from Mr. Williams also had it's
second floor bedroom window open. Just inside on a now cooling early 
summers night sat Mr.Leroy A. Macklin. Mr. Macklin had lived here only 
fifteen years but in that time had found out only too well what happens 
to people who call the police on local gang members too often. 
Mr.Macklin had been beat up many times. He had his windows smashed. His 
car set afire and finally one day when he came home from work the local 
toughs had broken in and knowing he had a dog, and loved that dog dome 
something so horrible and vile that even the police officer had a hard 
time upon seeing the remains. 

`Your Next' was scralled on the light blue walls of the living room in
blood. Mr. Williams had turned 78 last year. He and that dog had been 
together for a long time. He had been a career soldier in the army. He 
had been in almost every conflict from pearl harbor to the early stages 
of the Vietnam war. He had retired a single man and had never married. 
He had been a good neighbor and was always trying to show his neighbors 
to stand up to these little parisites as he called them. But alas, he 
too finally gave up after the last beating that left him in Temple 
Hospital for five weeks. When he returned home, sure enough the house 
had been broken into and on his front living room floor had been a pile 
of old fish and trash. It smelled so bad that the cities Board of 
health had come out and fined Mr. Macklin for the stinking filth and 
despite the fact that his neighbors had told them that he was in the 
hospital, sealed the house up. Mr. Macklin had to hire a carpender to 
take down the plywood and fix the broken windows. In fact two of the 
panes of glass in the very window from which he now gazed had been 
replaced. Mr Macklin had a fine cloth in his hand and he rubbed the 
smooth steel surface as he watched the smiling and cursing young men on 
the corner as they laughed and wistled at some girls who past in a 
light green chevrolet coupe. He too was not smiling. 

All three men, close in age and temperment had one thing in common
besides being black, abused, ignored and damn near forgotten. And that 
was that each at this late age still had excellent eye sight, relativly 
steady hands and a sence of humor all but exhuasted. The three men now 
set about the task at hand and lowered the tools of purpose to their 
intended positions at the windows ledge. 

Down on the street, Cortez Rodriguze and his half brother, Lucin were
passing a joint around as each took a sig of wine from the bag cover 
bottle. However it was only habit as no cop would ever stop these two 
for illegal drinking. Or much else. Each one had at one time or another 
shot, or shot at cops while either running from a deag sale or stealing 
a car or some other bullshit crime so many times that the cops had all 
but given up even paying any attention to the fucking little scumbags 
at all. 

Along with the parisite brothers as the neighbors called them were
Richard Mallston, a young twenty two year old black kid who's face was 
so infected from acne and blackheads that his friends called hin 
scarface. A name he enjoyed immensely. His face would of cleared up if 
the stupid moron would of washed once a week, but he never liked water. 
And it showed. Also alone tonight with this band of trash was one Tommy 
Brenderwood. Another less than upstanding product of fishtown. Tommy 
like his dad, was a junkie and street walker. 

In his twenty six years in Philadelphia, he had raped at least ten young
girls down at South Street. Young white girls who wanted to by cool. 
Last summer he tried to get a group of girls to come with him to smoke 
some dope in a empty building. One of the girls, a young black girl 
from yeadon didn't think this was too great an idea and just after 
inside the building decided to get out, unfortunitly tommy didn't feel 
her concerns were helpful for the group and he beat the hell out of 
her. This scared three of the other girls to run away leaving only one 
white fifteen year old and the beatup black seventeen year old. 

Tommy being an equal opportunity gutless parasite decided to make the
most of the situation and raped them both. Then stole their purses and 
all their cloths and tied and jagged then up in the abandoned buildings 
basement. Somewhere along the next two days which was in the winter, he 
returned for a quickie and then left. On the third day he again came 
back for a light lunch of sex and found both of them had been killed 
the night before by someone who more than likely had found them and 
after finishing their enjoyment killed the girls and left. 

Tommy promply left and never mentioned the matter to anyone. A city
building inspecter found the bodies seven months later during 
demolition inspection. This held up the demolition for another five 
months and pissed off the owner a slum lord in the cities downtown 
section. Tommy was pleased as punch that he had, as far as he was 
concerned no involvement and resumed his operations unfazed. 

With these five, `things' were four more `youths' as was the popular
saying in juvinal court system and the media. They too had a colorful, 
however shorter history of petty crime and robberies, but they had high 
hopes of future fortune if they could last with the parasite brothers. 
With them was only one girl, a sixteen year old ugly prostitute name 
Janet Miller. She had stabbed two `Johns' and had tried to rob a corner 
grocery store. 

In doing so she had killed the koren shop keeper but had been sentenced
to only one year in a reformatory and another year of pyhecactric 
evaluation. Of which she had promply run away from and was at this very 
moment being sought by the DA's office in connection with another 
stabbing.In all the ten were now enjoying a moments break from the last 
drug sale of ten minutes ago. They were all smiling. It that, they were 
alone on this slowly darkening spring evening. 

Not even one paid any attention to a small black man who came out of his
house and got in a beat up toyota sedan. They did not pay any mind to 
the four men who only minutes before had left in their own automobiles. 
The short man who worked for a Pontiac dealership had brought the old 
junk car home and installed the switch in the igition system. He now 
started the car and since he had hacksawed the exhaust pipe off in 
front of the muffler, the small motor made a lot of noise. 

He started counting, and looking at his watch, just once more he looked
up and saw the black spot in the second floor window of Mr. Macklins 
house. He looked back down and at exactly eight forty two, he pushed 
the doorbell type button he had screwed onto the junky cars dashboard. 
All of a sudden, the cars motor missed and it backfired loudly. BOOM, 
BOOM, BOOM the little motor went. In the next two seconds he pushed the 
button again. BOOM, BOOM ,BOOM, BOOOO . . . 

The ten young gang menbers instandly looked up, and in that millisecond
the first three bullets ripped into the two Remos brothers foreheads 
and exited out the back with the associated amount of flesh, bone and 
blood spraying towards the concrete. Inside of a instant, a second 
volly of slugs found their targets and the scarfaced `Youth' and the 
white boy and the sixteen year old whore went down in crushing fashion 
as the hunting rifle slugs ripped into their throats and chests. 

The last four young gang members turned to run and one made it as far as
the street before he too was stopped by a slug into his back and 
through his heart. It was silent for all of ten seconds as the three 
windows slowly closed and now four autombiles screeched to a stop at 
the corner facing in different directions. Two more men walking down 
the street ran and helped the drivers throw the dead bodies into the 
plastic lined trunks. The four autos now sped off as four other men 
from the neighborhood jumped into the gang members cars and sped off 
themselves. 

One full minute later the first patrol car responding to the report of
gunfire at Second and Berks streets arrived. Philadelphia Police 
officer, Cynthy Thomphson from the twenty sixth precentc was the first 
to arrive. See looked about and then got out of her patrol car. She was 
a little confused at first as their was nothing going on here. Up the 
street two little girls jumped rope and now some younger kids started 
to throw a football. She shook her head and called back to dispatch for 
a confirmation. The second and third police cars screeched to a stop 
and the officers jumped out of their cars with thier guns drawn. But 
there was nothing here. 

Officer Thomphson's radio request was answered, sure enough Second and
Berks streets as the shooting site. The confused officers now mulled 
about for a few minutes as the distric commander pulled up with his 
lights and siren going. Now all four patrol cars sat with their ultra 
bright red and blue lights flashing, reflecting off most of the 
darkened houses glass window panes and fronts.  Each officer looking 
for a gunman or sniper. But there was nothing. An oldman was sitting on 
his porch and the commanding officer holstered his weapon and walked 
over to the old black man setting on his cheap K-mart folding chair. He 
had a newspaper in his hand and seemed to be slightly dosing. 

"Excuse me, did you see or hear any gunfire or see anyone with a gun?"
asked the tall police captain. The old man sleepily licked his lips and 
opened one eye then both. "Huh, Ug what you say?" the frustrated cop 
said  "What's your name sir?"  The old man looked a little confused for 
a minute and then said "Uh, Uh James Williams Saaaa" the old man 
slurred. "Mr. Williams did you see anyone with a gun or did you hear 
any gunfire?" 

The old man looked up in a very confused fashion and said " ah. . .
Huh?" The furstrated cop repeated his question but Mr. Williams said he 
wasn't sure he knew anything about anything. "I's eighty someought 
years old sonny. I don'ts ah, thinks I heards nothings. Why, ah 
somebody shooting off guns? We get a lot of them kids coming through 
heres shooting guns butsss I'ssss don'ts think I hears me nothing 
lately's." The old man in the ultra thick dirty glasses said. 

The cop said thank's and returned to his fellow officers. One now called
him over to the curb. "What do you think this is?" the second male cop 
said as his superior approched. The tall cop stooped down and looked at 
it semi dried red spots on the dirty concrete sidewalk. "I don't know. 
It looks like blood. But there's nothing here. 

One of the cops called for a crime scene crew and after a half an hour
one showed up. They took samples but it now started to ran and they 
were trying to gather up some of the evidence but the now steady rain 
was washing things away before the technigians could dab up anything. 
They got one small cotton swab of a stain and had to guit as the rain 
had now turned into a downpour. 

In discust, they gave up and left. One police car remained for another
half an hour, but then too slowly pulled away and disappeared into the 
rainey gloom. It rained very heavily that night. The next morning the 
sidewalks and streets were still wet but clean as the rains had sweep 
then free of cigarette butts, spit, dog droppings and, and. . . well if 
there had been anything like blood, there wasn't anymore. No, just nice 
clean sidewalks and clean, wet black asphalt. Lot's of debries lay at 
the storm drain. The air was so fresh and clean that morning, nice, 
cool and fresh. Three months later, over around the area bounded by 
Delaware ave and the old abandoned Naval base, down where the river is 
wide and deep and the wake from the ships headed towards the bay with 
their loads of coal and goods for overseas, a man was fishing and as 
was his nature he would every so offen take a drink of beer from the 
six pack of cut rate cheap beer that was all he could afford. 
Unfortunatily, it made him have to that a piss quite often and he now 
stood to take a leak. He faced upriver with the cool wind at his back. 
For a moment something shiny caught his eye from the tall weeds by the 
rivers edge. 

It was late fall and it had rained again last night. Upstate had had
servear thunderstorms and as a result the river had run high till 
midday. Now however it had dropped some and he could see something 
chrome and shiny in the weeds. He stepped down into the soft mud and 
sunk in a little. "Goddamn it !" he curse. But now he had already 
gotten muddy, he might as well see what the shiny thing that had caught 
his attention was. He spread apart the tall reeds and saw an 
automobile. One of those real expensive and luxury cars. Although this 
one was all covered with mud and it had its front windshield broken 
out. The car was flooded and water and mud leaked from it's doors and 
trunk. 

It was odd he thought, such an expensive car, now on it's side and
partialy submerged in the mud. He decided to take a look and see if 
anything of value was left inside if he could. He figured it was 
probley a stolen car some kids took for joy ride and drove it off a 
boat ramp up river to get rid of it. He wadded over to the muddy black 
car. It was a mess and had begun to rust. Most of the lights were 
broken and it was dented all over. Most likely from being tossed about 
by the current of the river. 

Since it wasn't quite on it's side he was able to open the drivers door
after some struggle. He now jumped back as water poured out along with 
three rather upset snakes who had now had their comfy home disturbed. 
As the water drained out he returned to his fishing and beer. After a 
hour he wadded back over to the auto. It would be getting dark in about 
an hour and he wanted to get a look inside before it got too dark. 
Still though he needed his small flashlight to see since the tall reeds 
blocked most of the afternoons overcast gray light. 

He wadded over and shined his light into the cars darkened interior and
jummped back and now ran like a madman to his fishing spot. But he did 
not stop there, he kept on going till he ranout onto Delaware avenue. 
There he franticly flagged down car after car without luck till a off 
duty security supervisior from the cargo docks slowed to a stop. He had 
a two way radio in his company supplied four wheel drive jeep and after 
listening to the beer smelling and scuffy looking fisherman called for 
a patrol car. One arrived in about twenty minutes. 

It took almost two hours, but all in all ten skeltons were pulled from
the four door Lexus sedan with the fancy expensive chrome wheels. Six 
inside and four in the trunk. There wasn't much left of them as the 
critters had ate most everything but the bones. All told there was nine 
young males and one young female. Oddly, the only real piece of 
evidence to be found was a hand made wooden plaque tied to the remains. 
It was the 51 psalm, well wore from the current, but still quite 
readable. 

It took another six months to identify each of the remains from dental
records and missing persons reports. All ten had rap sheets a mile long 
and were known drug trafficers. The police returned the remains to what 
ever family members wanted them, only the girl and two of the males 
were ever claimed. The rest were buried on potters hill as vagerents. 
Back at Second and Berks Streets nine of the houses were repainted and 
the abandoned houses were boarded up. Every night, rain or shine, 
winter or summer, the neighbors would congragate at bothends of the 
street. They would work in pairs as guards almost. 

Late in the summer six new young men began to hang around the corner.
They didn't live there but like the spot, as it was a nice location for 
selling their wares, drugs. The neighbors told them that  they had to 
leave but the young men told the old folks and the woman and middle 
aged people to go to hell. The people laughed to each other. A week 
later the block was having a end of summer cookout in the alley near 
the far end of the block. A little young girl came down and asked if 
the boys would like to come over and have a hamberger or a piece of 
chicken?. 

The young men seeing a chance to get a free meal gladly wandered over
and into the alleyway for a nice evening meal. The next morning two of 
the boys had died from samenilla and the other two were in intensive 
care at Methodist Hospital. They had been beating so badly that they 
might never regain any use of their sences. The doctors were not 
optomistic. They too were not smiling, not anymore. 

In the next three years, this slowly rising waterline of neighborhood
self policing increased. The police were becoming aware that something 
odd was taking place, but like most civil organizations or 
bureaucracies, by the time they were ready to address the growing tide 
of civil violence against crime, they were sadly way too late. And all 
they could do is step aside and watch from afar. Almost no smiled in 
the police administration building anymore. No one!. 

In neighborhoods from Los Angles east side to the Harlem's of New York
City, from downtown Chicago to Atlanta Mexico to Canada, the wave 
slowly caught hold. Now in the already overloaded court, one might find 
a mother of three, who never even had, had a parking ticket, charged 
with the abduction and murder of a child molester. A eighty seven year 
old grandmother who had stabbed a robber to death in a local grocery 
store. And more and more the ones who had been the traditional 
`victims' where now turning the tables on the young violent street 
thugs and rapist. 

In a tiny town in Maryland, a young girl working as a babysitter in a
home at night, was surprised by a robber who was to attack her and 
steal her young charge to hold for ransom. He wanted to rape the young 
girl but she asked him if she could bring her bible to hold as he did 
his evilness to her, the robber said yes and she picket up her well 
worn book. On the stairs, she tagged along slowly and rather frightened 
at her impending fate. At the top of the steps she opened the holy book 
and asked if he was sorry for the deed he was about to commit, "What 
the hell?" was his reply. Where upon the young girl produced a small 
automatic weapon and shot the would be rapist and kidnapper seven times 
in the head at point blank range. He was dead before he hit the bottom 
of the steps. 

The oddity of it all was that she then grabbed the mans collar, opened
the front door, dragged him to the curb. Returned to the house, washed 
the wall, and foyer floor then went outside and hosed off the walkway 
and sidewalk. Returned to the comfortable home, made popcorn and 
returned to her TV program. Stranger still, when the parents never 
asked about the dead body laying in the street and thanked her for her 
work. Nothing was every said or mentioned between adult or teenager. 

The police upon finding the body simply took it to the county morgue and
then straight to the paupers burial sight. Three years later a relative 
was located who asked how their loved one had died. The police replied 
it had been an accident, perhaps a suicide. And nothing more. There was 
no sense answering questions which had no logical answers. Everyday 
scenes like this slowly filled the police logs and at headquarters, 
whole filing cabinets were labeled `suicides'. 

The media helped in their usual way but exposing what cases they could
locate and creating celebrities out of anyone who had doled out 
vigilante justice, making them instant stars of the daytime talk shows 
and converting whole hoards of people to this vain of thought. 

Now Adriane sat with william in a small coffee house and pondered the
situation. "This has slipped out of hand somehow. William was the only 
one who now offered any hope for a reversal.He cleared his thoat and 
said "The lord himself will be needed to render a solution and only 
he." Adriane saddly aggreed and said that perhaps that their time here 
was drawing to a close. They had instilled a change in both world 
events and peoples thinking. Now the more powerful of socity made an 
effort to help and protect the weaker. And the public officials were on 
notice to behave or else. 

World economeies were changing and the poor of the world now had a
better foot hold to pull themselves out of poverty. And morals, while 
now somewhat perverty, were at least at the root of all thinking, that 
the world was for the ones who wanted to work and grow and the ones who 
only prayed upon the weak and old and sick were being singled out and 
disposed of. People now Cared. 

Back in Philadelphia, where it all started one man was not alined with
this powerful new personal reestablishment of spirit and soul. He was 
still intensly angry and now was near mad with his lust to kill the one 
who had robbed him of his only chance to become a significant power 
player in american politics. Only one reason to live he thought as he 
planned just how to kill the one woman who refused to be cornered and 
or killed in the past. 

Ex-mayor Kendall now laughingly rubbed his hands together as the
homicidal plan now came into view in his head. In the next week he 
sought her out and once finding her where about sent her a message of 
reconciliation and a request to meet him so as the two might join 
forces once and for all to improve the lot of poor Philadelphians. 

"Oh what the hell, I'll meet the asshole and see what he is up to. He's
more than likely looking for a way to get back in a place of public 
service." Adriane said jokingly. John Logan was not so optimistic. "Odd 
he thought, why this guy all of a sudden wants to be of any service to 
anyone. He thought to himself. "Odd stripes on a snake doesn't make any 
less a snake" He worried. 

Chapter. 13 

The reconciliation  note bothered John Logan for some reason. He really
couldn't put a solid reason on it but he just had this feeling in his 
gut about this flimsy little note and it's creator. He made Adriane 
promise over and over not to go anywhere with out him. She said over 
and over till she was quite cross that she didn't need any man to 
protect her. Period ! 

The meeting was in two days at a restaurant in south Philly. It was at a
mob run restaurant, not a good sign thought Logan. Not good at all. 
They two of them had a meeting in king of Prussia and Adriane commented 
on the way there at how much had changed on the landscape. Gone where 
many of the huge chain stores. In their place many, many cottage 
industries had sprouted. Little stories started on little or nothing 
and between the flourishing barter system and what little, but steadily 
increasing money supply, where doing better with each passing day. 

Overall the federal government was reforming and regrouping with many
different faces and more neighborhood oriented members and concerns. 
The previous huge bureaucracy was morphine from it's shell of invisible 
micro management and now restructuring into a semi cohesive 
administrative concern. New law were some of the first issues to be 
addressed by the new reformism. And with their introduction the 
influence peddling old line members were feeling the steady crush of 
change. Some decided to retire, some had no choice and still others put 
up a fight and made grand speeches about how they themselves were the 
one who had created the atmosphere of change and deserved to be exalted 
to standing and positions of power. 

Unfortunately, their records had been carefully recovered and presented
in customary committee form and soon the truth of each and every one of 
them was common knowledge. They now experienced a slowly increased 
coolness of political isolation and soon sat in their respective 
offices alone and ignored. Most grudgingly packed up and went home in 
disgrace. Newer members wrestled with the few who were elevated to 
positions of power, but even they too went under examination by the 
under laying congress and senate at regular intervals and were sharply 
monitored and held within tight constraints in the use of their 
offices. 

The national as a whole was returning after four years of turmoil to a
more stable and concerned government. The CIA had just about it's 
entire mission statement revised and it was presented before the world 
for all the nation to examine and to comment on. However the 
representatives from the new United States made it clear that our first 
and foremost mission was to protect the peace and interests of America 
and that we had no interest in the internal affairs of other countries. 
However if at any time in the future any terrorism were to be detected 
or executed against the United States by any country, friend or foe 
that the response would be immediate, intense and with little debate. 

However, if any other country wanted help with external government
issues such as food, water or infer structure that our help could be 
counted on. But that we no longer would be selling weapons technology 
or taking any sides in governmental disruptions. If the population of 
any country involved itself in any kind of civil war or aggressive 
covert operations against another country we would pull back any and 
all support. That was final and that there was no discussion further on 
this point. In a nutshell: "take it or leave it". With that our 
representatives got up and walked out of the UN and the other 
international bodies with the parting message for the other countries 
to discuss our new proposal and to either invite us back or to never 
darken our collective policy door again. 

In this country, the last four years had produced a near civil war and
the infighting from all the different groups had been intense. But as 
much as the very foundation of this country some two hundred and as 
magical as that event was, the nation as a collective body pulled 
itself together. The wild fraction groups of the muslin, Christian and 
Jewish communities were slowly replaced by more moderate groups who 
could see now that the country must be one, and each different ethnic 
and religious group must work together if we wanted to survive at all. 

In Pennsylvania, the entire government was overhauled. Gone were the
small countless different governments of the teeniest of suburbs to the 
major cities, all became to operate under one umbrella of levels of 
government. This allowed the tiny boroughs to communicate on the same 
level as the big cities and to establish contracts with their teachers 
and police and other unions as a whole. Thus a policeman and a teacher 
were paid the same all across the state. The state police remained as 
the overall police department but now set police for the other police 
departments also across the state. 

This allowed fewer different laws and many were discarded as redundant.
The criminal law and prosecution divisions were massively overhauled. 
No longer was race a credible reason for a different sentence 
structure. In fact all prisoners were no longer allowed to bare any 
name other than their police numbers. This excluded anyone from knowing 
if they were black or white till they stood trial. Once again, the news 
media was banned from any involvement or the court system. They had in 
the previous system been allowed to broadcast a defendants photo and 
history that of where he came from and if he had any criminal history. 

Now criminals were judged by a jury of their peers but the sentenced
imposed was done by a computer enhanced "crime fits punishment" 
software program. This allow all men and woman to receive the same 
punishment regardless of sex or race. They were simply numbers to be 
processed. Also the death penalty was discarded as unnecessary as with 
the new crime code, many lesser charges were remanded back to the 
specific community to administer punishment. Some prisoners were 
sentenced to working in every possible job for which they were 
qualified for and or skilled at. 

Once again, there was no plea bargaining or reductions allowed. Men
woman and even children who broke the law paid the same price. And each 
had to serve their sentence in their own communities were they had done 
the damage or committed the crime. This policy was a rough start but 
soon it started to gain favor as justice now was truly blind and only 
carried out the law for which the crime precluded. Any judge who went 
outside his or her guidelines for two trials were disbarred. A lawyer 
who misrepresented himself or that of a client was also disbarred for a 
period of five years. If done a second time he no longer could practice 
law here of anywhere else in the world. There were no exceptions. 

A major effort to rid this country of racism and religious terrorist and
or ANY hate groups was under taken. Any person having been arrested for 
any racist or hate crime received a minimum sentence of ten years 
behind bars. However, their sentence was to be served in a foreign 
country such as south America or the Asian countries. 

If the criminal accused of this crime committed it twice, he or she was
sentenced to a life sentence to be served in the middle east country of 
Syria. Thus each other country swapped prisoners and this policy kept 
the individuals at bay so as to never be able to insight anymore 
trouble at home. And foreign countries had less of a sense of humor in 
the event of anyone making an effort to help a prisoner escape. Most 
were killed on sight. 

It took a long time but slowly race and sex became less and less a tool
of crime and or bigots. This new government was resolved to 
establishing a free country for all honest and caring persons to live 
and work in with out regard to sex, race or religion. Nothing less 
would be accepted. This allowed the powers that be to once and for all 
start to concentrate on the vigilante groups that now sometimes 
extracted a deadly price for any major criminals. Selling drugs soon 
became so dangerous that few could do so without a small army at bay at 
all times. And that just drew attention. 

The individual states and governments also hired bounty hunters to
locate and return any criminals that were charged with a crime and 
found guilty of same. It soon became so dangerous for a criminal on the 
lam that he or she would be turned in to a bounty hunter for a cash 
payment, that most pleaded to be jailed. It was safer in jail than out 
on the streets. 

Adriane and Logan finished their business and returned to their new
home. A small cabana in a small New Jersey town just over the bridge. 
As they arrived they walked around the cute little town and then 
returned to the cottage. Adriane had decided to return to her home and 
left the decision as to wether to come along or stay up to John Logan 
himself. She now trusted Logan very much and he her. 

They worked together well and respected each other. Adriane secretly
longed to return to William Stargazers side and to perhaps finish their 
lives together. There was a message from of all people old Mayor 
Kendall. "I wonder what this loser wants now. He's finished but too 
stupid to realize it. It says he wants to meet with you tonight and 
talk about burying the hatchet and maybe you can help him get in touch 
with a group to help with the new direction of things." Logan said as 
he read the note to Adriane. "I don't know but I'll go see him anyway." 
she said as she put her pretty head back against the seat back. 

"Well don't go anywhere without me. You'll need protection when you meet
him." Logan said in his growing authoritarian tone of voice. Adriane 
head came up and asked him what the hell was he talking about. And that 
she didn't need Logan to protect her now or every. And she stormed into 
her bedroom for a nap.  "Well, I don't trust him and, and ..... well I 
sorta think I should be there." 

Adriane didn't answer and Logan blew hot and left and slammed the door.
He headed out into the lightly wooded tracts just beyond the cabana. 
There he stayed till nightfall soon covered to soft ground with a 
carpet of grayness. Dusk had fallen and it now soon became cool. He 
headed bach to the small cottage at apologize to Adriane. He realized 
she was more than capable of taking care of herself but her had noticed 
that lately she was getting tired more often and he suspected that 
there were things about being a 3200 year old puma that she hadn't 
quite fully explained. 

As he came into the small cosy house, he noticed that all the lights
were out save for one, and that he though was a good sign as Adriane 
was still sleeping . He made a little dinner and then sat on the couch 
to watch TV or maybe just think for a while more. He laid his hand done 
on the arm of the couch and started to nap. But then he jumped up. THE 
NOTE WAS GONE ! He had clearly left the note on the couches arm but it 
was now missing. He bolted for Adriane's door and throw it open. 

She Was Gone! DAMN! He said. Now all the feeling that he had experienced
in the beginning of this whole bazaar situation came flooding back. The 
threats and intimidation and the murder of his mother and finally his 
own death, of which he had no doubt was orchestrated by none other than 
Mayor Kendall himself. And now Adriane as tired and exhausted as she 
was slowly becoming was about to walk into her own execution. 

John was determined not to let this happen if he had anything to do with
it. He stormed out the door. Outside three children were playing from 
the house next door. They said HI! But John only leaned forward as he 
walked and disappeared in an instant. The children were speechless and 
really didn't realize that a man he just vaporized in front of their 
eyes. 

The next stop was only two minutes later. He reappeared at Front and
Spring Garden streets. He tried as hard as he could to remember the 
address were Kendall had wanted to see Adriane. But the thoughts 
wouldn't come. Damn ! He muttered. As he paced about now a man walked 
up to him rather quickly, the man was an old man and he looked rather 
tired himself. He was excited and keep pestering John about someone the 
john had known. He asked over and over where was the Indian man the one 
who had ...... 

"Look I'm busy, I got problems right now !" John Logan said curtly and
stormed off down the block. Later he was sorry for being so rude but he 
had to find Adriane and she might be in trouble or worst right now and 
john already felt he'd let William Stargazer down. "Where was the 
address?" he asked himself. Just then he remembered , it was a tall 
building with a garage on the eighth floor. He knew he was close but 
where . . just then he saw it. Flashing headlights of an automobile on 
the "one, two, three, four . . ." there it was. An abandoned factory 
warehouse at the corner of the block of Delaware and Spring Garden. He 
now broke into a run. 

"Where the hell is this guy?" Adriane thought. "I don't meet people like
this anymore. Or at least I don't I need to." she chuckled to herself. 
Just as she was to leave she heard the automobiles horn  up the ramp 
from where she stood off to one side. "Kendall, Kendall? If this is 
more of you games I'm leaving sport." she said to the darkness. Just 
then a voice called out from the darkness of the floor above and said 
"come on Up miss, I was just taking my heart medicine and I was 
chocking a little . Come on up I need to talk to you Please, please !". 
 She wanted to leave but this might be a chance to get even this pain 
in the ass on board the new countries redevelopment plan and thus 
eliminate one more square peg in a round hole. "I like that saying she 
thought as she briskly walked up onto the landing. She could hear the 
low rumble of some sort of a machine or something running as she looked 
around the near pitch dark huge warehouse floor. 

"Hay Kendall where are . . ." aahhhhhh she yelled as the cool liquid
sprayed all over her. And she fell backwards from it's force. Now the 
cars headlights lit up and there stood Mayor Kendall in his ultra 
expensive cloths. Gray stripped suit and cashmere overcoat and, and the 
always present cigar. Only now he was holding a steel lighter. He 
flicked it open and lit it. Adriane knew now as the cold liquid started 
to burn her soft skin that she had been doused with Gasoline. And 
unfortunately there was only one thing Pumas were deathly afraid of and 
had no defense against. . . FIRE ! 

"Thought you'd finish me off didn't you doll face, didn't you?" The
laughing and mad ex-Mayor taunted her. "Well here's your going away 
blast and I do mean Blast. As he lit the lighter she made a dash for 
it. Dripping gasoline behind her, Kendall lit the trail of flammable 
liquid and laughed as it raced along behind the sprinting young woman 
and was only a few feet behind as she jumped for an semi open window. 
The flames raced up and out after Adriane and now the Mayor could both 
see and hear the explosion just outside the now broken window. 

He stopped laughing as he heard a door slam shut a couple of floors
below in the staircase. He walked over and turned up the pressure on 
the Gasoline pump and waited for his next visitor whom he rightly 
expected to be little Adriane's male counterpart. "Well fuck it, he can 
join his little girlfriend in hell as far as I'm concerned. I thought 
I'd already killed this jerk once but hell we can do it again, two for 
the price of one." he chuckled as he heard the footsteps getting 
closer. The mayor held the gasoline pumps handle and aimed it directly 
towards the doorway. 

The door flew open and John Logan got no more than one foot outside it
and he too was hit in the face and body with the powerful blast of 
stinging cold fowl smelling fluid. He stumbled backwards as the Mayor 
said curtly that it was his time to go up in a ball of flame and the 
mad man lit a second rivulet of gasoline and it too raced toward a 
fallen John Logan. 

Just then someone grabbed John and dragged him inside the stairway and
slammed the fire door shut. The flames shot up the out side of the door 
and now started to creep under the doors bottom edge. As it just 
sneaked under the opening and started to reform into a ball of flame, a 
pile of sand dropped onto it and the flame was no more. Logan was 
scared and shaken and his eyes stung as he looked behind himself to see 
a older black woman holding a now empty bucket of sand marked ` In case 
of fire'. 

She now dropped the bucket and grabbed his arm and yanked him to his
feet. "Come on Baby, we'es got to's gets the hells outa heres, this in 
place going to burn baby burns tonight." she said in here poor broken 
and ghetto English. "No I've got to get him. He's going to get my 
friend, the young woman. But the black woman now kept on pulling on 
him. And excitedly and near out of breath said, "Yous ain'ta got's to 
worries about that son of a bitch , naw ah, his as don history 
already's. You can't helps yo girl friend if in yoo all burned ups 
yo-self baby. Now comes on honey. He ain't  going now whereas no moo." 
she kept telling him she dragged him reluctantly towards the street. As 
they got to the back alley, a car swing into the far end and now came 
after the two. It bored down on them as they hobbled away. 

At the last moment John Logan pushed the old woman into a open doorway
and jumped over a dumpster to escape. The two men now got out and set 
off on foot after John Logan. They had plenty of matches in their 
pockets for when they caught up with him. His eyes were now burning and 
he could not see to good as he ran madly in the general direction of 
the only water he knew of, the Delaware River at Penn's landing. 

Mayor Kendall laughed heavily as he watched from a window as his two
thugs closed in on poor John Logan. He now slowly strolled back to his 
idling spotless black Jaguar sedan. As he got in he felt so fulfilled 
and almost proud at having finished off these two people who had caused 
him and his wonderful scheme to be uncovered. "HA, them chumps ain't 
going to cause me anymore problems anymore. He pulled a fresh Cuban 
cigar from his Brest pocket and prepared to clip it's end. 

"Begging yo pardon sirs, but you ain'ta gonna be needing no cigars too
nights assholes, you's is the cigars." and with that a flood of 
gasoline poured into the black Jaguar from it's open backdoor window. 
The high pressure liquid covered everything through to the bone of his 
ex-Mayorship. The Mayor had his light brown derby hat knocked off by 
the force and looked back now to see a very old black man with broken 
teeth and dressed in a light gray but cheap suit. 

"You's don'ts remembers mes, but I shures remembers you mayors. You the
one what stole all them's monies to helps us homeless out o ta streets 
years ago, but heres we is, just you's and mes, . . . Go byes bitchin 
man, you's gonin meet yo maker ." with that he tried to lit a stick 
match but his hands were shaking and the doused Mayor made a break for 
it. He hit the gas and spun around the big warehouse floor and aimed 
the car back at the shaking old black man. 

VerOOOMMMMMMMmm the engin revved wildly and the big black auto shot
towards the old man but he dove to one side and the black auto shot 
past his. Again the Big car turned to intercept the old man laying or 
the floor. The old black man got up and stood his ground. The sleek 
black car screeched about and bore down on the frail old man, but at 
the last moment he stepped aside at the black auto slammed into a 
concrete stanchion there. The now near mad Kendall now spun around 
again and this time knew he had the old man in his sights as the poor 
old black man struggled to lit the awkward old wooden stick matches he 
found in the dusty stairwell. The big car shot across the floor and at 
the last moment skid on the spilled gasoline smashing into another 
concrete upright before continuing on towards the old man. 

But again at the last moment the old man looked up but ignored the car
and concentrated on the stubborn match. The car almost hit him as he 
grinned. The match lit with only a tiny flickering flame but it was a 
terrible sight to the mad man in the expensive imported black sedan, 
the crazed driver now shot past the old man and looked for a exit as 
the black man dropped the tiny flickering flame into a small semi dried 
gasoline trail. The bright blue, yellow and red flame streaked across 
the floor in search of it's target and future meal. Kendall punched the 
gas and shot off for any where to escape the closing deadly flame. The 
old black man said `Thank you lord, I's ready to go now, and with that 
the black man started walking but within three steps disappeared into 
thin air. 

It was getting late and the guard from the sanitation yard was heading
home on Delaware ave as the traffic light turned red. He stopped and 
waited for the light to turn green so he could proceed southbound on 
the busy avenue. As he started to light a cigarette, all of a sudden as 
he got ready to drive off, a stupendous burst of flame, glass and bits 
and pieces of masonry came flying out from the upper floors of an 
building on the far corner. Along with the huge explosion came a black 
automobile partially on fire and it seemed to just sail out into thin 
air for what seemed like a whole moment, but was really only a second 
or so. The startled guard just stared at it as it now plummeted to the 
ground and landed nose first almost directly on the traffic island that 
was in the center of the wide street. The guard eyes got big as dinner 
plates as the flaming auto now crashed into a fire plug and exploded 
into a huge ball of flame and thick rolls of dense black smoke. 

He jumped out and ran over to as close as he could to the auto but he
could see there was no way anything could get close to the inferno. The 
very next moment was filled with a even huger explosion from within the 
building itself and the guard had to throw himself on the ground to 
keep from being blown clear into the river only a hundred feet away. 
The explosion was that strong. Now all of a sudden a shower of debris 
began to fall. Roof material and old pieces of junked autos and other 
machinery. A old gas pump shot up through what was just seconds before 
a solid roof and in the dim lights from the clubs along Delaware Avenue 
looked like a Saturn rocket being fired from cape Kennedy in Florida. 

The traffic stopped as all of the brief light and destruction show took
place. Two homeless men drinking from an old stale bottle of cheap wine 
woke up and calmly watched from a small recess along Delaware avenue 
just up the street from the blast. The one hiccupped and snorted and 
looked at the other bum and said, "NOW, now this ssss isssss 
enterrrtainnnment" he said woozily through blinking eyes and spittle 
crusted chin. The other bum watched intently and replied "ShooooT Iss 
hopesss they don'ts charge us fo it." he too said with failing words. 
Both men now shook their heads and took another drink of the rancid old 
wine. 

The two men who had slipped past a parked patrol car and where now
closing in on John Logan. He had been able to sneak around as he came 
down Delaware Avenue, but the two thugs had seen him as he shot across 
the wide street headed for the marina. Both the two hired toughs had  
small tins of lighter fluid and cigarette lighters. And they knew just 
what to do with their fiery mixture. 

Logan waited for the first possible moment and then ran like a fool for
the old Spanish American war ship docked there. He had to jump the 
fence but once on board he was able to rest for a moment. His clothing 
was still soaked and it was burning his skin as it dried. As he 
crouched down between a fire hose and a small recess he now could hear 
the men were only maybe twenty feet away. Their voices were as clear as 
a bell. He was backed into a corner. And he knew it. 

The only way he got disappear was to stand and he would be seen for
sure, then there might not be enough time to make it away before they 
lit him up as they got closer John Logan knew he had no chance, he was 
doomed. But at the last moment, as he watch the two only feet away 
close in on him, he saw a police car and it's shine it's spotlight on 
the deck of the aging warship. 

The two fire weapon thugs now had to duck and the one closest turned his
back toward Logan. John now had just a moments chance and he took it. 
He scrambled up and around a lifeboat and just as the two killers 
closed in with their lighter fluid cans spraying, he hoisted himself up 
and over the ships railing and dropped into the water. Now the two 
toughs took a couple of shots at him but he was near under the ship 
holding his breath, then let the current drag him away down river. 

It was now 10:48 PM, the water was cold and the current strong. Logan
wasn't too good a swimmer and he had a hard time staying afloat. He 
wasn't sure of what or where he was headed but knew he needed to cross 
the river. He swam for a while and then after tiring he laid on his 
back and let the current carry him. After resuming his swim he finally 
started to feel like he was getting close to something as he could hear 
the light lapping of the waves against something. 

In another moment he slammed into a bulkhead piling, smashing his face
on it's greasy sides. He rested for a few moments. His face hurt and 
this surprised him for he didn't think Puma's could feel pain. But he 
quickly put that thought out of his mind as he now heard a clanking of 
a bells whistle. It sounded like a diesel engine of a tug boat as it 
passed and he pushed himself down and around to the dark side of the 
piling. 

A moment later, sure enough a tug pasted and for a moment he wondered if
his two pursuers were on board but then decided it would of been 
impossible for them to do that. However as he looked up the distant 
shoreline, far up he could just make out two flashlights and he knew 
they were looking on the new Jersey side for him now. He eased himself 
off the pilings and slowly made his way toward the shoreline at the 
Kaighn Avenue sewage plant. He waited for the flashlights to wander 
away from his vantage spot, then he slipped out of the water and 
disappeared. 

It was now 11:25 and he had made his way to the cabana and was about to
enter when he saw some lights on inside. He figured that there was 
another gang of thugs inside looking for him and he now  tried to slip 
through the back window in order to see who it was. Once inside he 
peeked through an sightly opened bedroom door and was startled to see a 
set of eyes peeking back at him. Only these eyes were attached to 
someone holding a shotgun, loaded and cocked. 

"Logan ! Is that you?" a moment later the door creaked open a touch and
only a voice was heard. "Huh," Logan said.  "Logan ! You idiot. I 
nearly had a heart attack. Why didn't you use the front door like 
anyone else would. Hay, Are you a peeping tom or something?" Adriane 
exclaimed. At first John was shocked and then angry then back to 
shocked. He slowly came into the room and sat down on the couch as 
Adriane still barefoot and wrapped in her towel fussed with her dark 
wet  brunette hair. "Ah, you see, well Adriane, Ah I thought you were 
dead. I got doused with gasoline just as you did and then an old woman 
pulled me down the stairs to safety. As I ran out of the building I saw 
your demin jacket still burning down in the alleyway. Once I got up to 
the landing I got doused with gasoline as well and I saw what Kendall 
was planing for me and I just assumed he'd done the same to you and 
that, well ah, . . . you were gone!" 

Adriane shook her head slightly and said, "OK, ok.  I see what you mean
now. But remember one thing Logan. I didn't get to be 3200 years old by 
letting creeps like Kendall finish me off. And for gods sake, get out 
of those cloths, you smell like ah, shit. Were the hell have you been. 
In a sewage plant?" Now Logan looked perplexed. "Do you know what I've 
been through in the last three or four hours?" he asked indignantly. 

"No, And I don't care either. Your a puma now, deal with it." Well I had
to swim across the damn river and then I got stuck at a sewage plant 
and, and. . . Oh the hell with it!" john Logan said as he marched into 
the bathroom and washed up. He came out in fresh cloths and all washed 
up and now sat down on the couch and said to Adriane that there had 
been the two men looking for him but that he'd lost them at the river. 

It was early in the morning now and Adriane had been looking over the
files she had been keeping on the whole affair starting with William 
and leading up to now. "Hay, who was this person who pulled you to 
safety? Did you know her or what?" Adriane asked Logan. "No, I never 
saw her before. I thought she was just a squatter in the building. 

"NO, I don't know either, but as I landed in the alleyway two old folks
were coming in the far entrance of the street. I really didn't give it 
any attention as I already had my hands full. But now it seems odd to 
me for some reason. Something about how they were whispering together." 
Adriane said as she looked out the front bay windows. 

Logan said the old black woman had said something about having to get
out of here, almost like she knew what was happening. Just then a door 
to an automobile shut and Adriane asked Logan how long ago was it the 
two guys were hunting for him. "About two hours or so why?" he said. 

"I think they found you sport !" Adriane said in her sarcastical tone.
She bolted into the bedroom and finished dressing as Logan dimmed the 
lights. He too now pulled on some clean street cloths and started to 
look around for anything to take with them. Now Adriane came out with 
her bag and some boxes of files and told Logan to put them in the car 
out back. After he did that he came back inside and locked the door and 
stood next to Adriane as she watched the two murky figures as they 
searched yards and garages for something up the street. 

" they'll be here in a few minutes, lets get out of here and head over
to the city. The pair now hastily cleaned up the cabana of anything 
personal of theirs and start for the back door. As they turned off the 
last light in the living room they heard someone try the back door. 
"Well they've found us, this two are really getting to be a pain in the 
neck. . .  what now?" asked John. Adriane slumped back against a wall 
and just shook her head. Then quietly she took John's hand and led him 
into the living room, she pointed him towards the front window and then 
stood on her tipsy  toes and whispered in his ear, "Hay, your a puma. . 
. Deal with it. Just calm down and think to yourself." she said and 
then slowly stood back. 

Logan looked nervous but then closed his eyes, Adriane reminded him of
the words `Para, Para, just think of what you want. She said. Logan 
thought for a minute then said he couldn't concentrate. Adriane said to 
try again and after a moment there was a slight burst of energy outside 
the house. Lights flashed and then the wind rushed by in a strong gust. 
The two now eased their way to the back door and opened it. Out side 
near a huge tree was the two gunmen. Both laid out, each with his head 
laid on the others shoulder. 

There was a semi-full moon that night and it cast a cool ghostly glow
about the area. The two gunmen were out cold, not dead but certainly 
asleep and not about to get up anytime soon. Adriane and Logan got in 
they small compact car and left the cabana for good. Once on the road 
they stopped for coffee and headed into Philadelphia. Traffic that 
early was light and the two made it in about twenty minutes. Once there 
they parked by city hall and awaited it's employees to arrive. Adriane 
had some questions in her mind and wanted to get answers before she 
informed Logan of the final chapter of their mission. 

They rode to city hall and parked. Once there the two awaited for the
city employees to report for the days work. After a while Adriane 
decided to inquire about someone she was looking for and left Logan in 
the car. Once inside she scoured the different departments looking for 
any information on homeless people and of the ones who might of been 
taken care of by the cities different agencies. 

She had only a little luck, but she was able to but together the full
names from the notes that William Stargazer had left behind. She now 
knew the names were, one Randolph Green and a Francis Miller. Adriane 
now returned to the small auto with Logan in it, fast asleep. It was a 
slightly overcast day and as she past a newspaper stand she looked at 
the headline: 

Ex-Mayor Richard Kendall dies in a flaming crash in city parking garage
! 

Adriane laughed at the headline, "that's not the kind of headline he was
used to!" she mused. She got in the car and shook John Logan to awake. 
"Let's go to sixth street for a minute. She instructed John. Once there 
she sat for a minute and then went inside the police administration 
building. 

"Is Inspector Colbert available?" she asked the clerk at the front desk.
She gave her name and sat down. In about fifteen minutes a tall police 
officer came out and asked her into his office. He sat down and said 
"Hello Adriane, how's thing's going?" 

The inspector was not one of Adriane biggest supporters but he did
respect her for her support over the years of the police department and 
her efforts of late to try and stem the rise of the vigilante movement 
here in Philadelphia and across the state. "I'm trying to find two old 
homeless people but haven't had any luck, I, ah was kinda thinking that 
maybe you'd have a little better luck, Ah, what do you think?" she 
shyly ask the slightly aggravated top cop. 

He said ok, "Can you stop back this afternoon? She smiled that wonderful
Miss America smile of her's and then hustled out of his office. Down 
deep she was hoping her didn't throw something at her as she left. "God 
knows I haven't made his job any easier." she thought to herself. 

Once back in the car she had Logan drive to thirtieth Street train
Station. Philadelphia main rail station. There she rented a security 
box and had Logan unload everything out of his pockets into the small 
locking metal cube. After him she did the same and put their two small 
bags in there also. With that done they rode around a little till they 
had used up the morning and a good chunk of the afternoon. 

She then John drive her back to the police station and gave him twenty
dollars of the forty she had kept in her front pants pocket. She told 
him to go fill the car with gas, as they would be taking a drive this 
afternoon. 

Once back inside the Inspector handed her a internal police memo. It was
from the city morgue and it was dated as of two years ago. "What's this 
mean Inspector?" she asked innocently. The inspector sat down and lit a 
cigarette. Adriane lit one of her slim cigarettes. "It Means." he began 
"That this two people your looking for, one Francine Miller and 
Randolph A. Green, ah well they died two years ago and are now buried 
in potters field. 

He reached around and pulled a file folder from a holder on his back
counter. This Mr. Green died November two years ago and Francine Miller 
about a month or so later and buried out there somewhere as well. End 
of story!" Adriane said `thank you', put out her cigarette and left 
with the small slip of paper given her by the police officer. 

She got quietly in the car and told Logan to drive to long beach island.
It took about two hours , and it was just about six thirty by the time 
they got there. She had him lock the car and then to go for a walk with 
her on the cool beach. The ocean water lapped at the sands and the 
fresh ocean wind tossed her hair all about. She then told Logan about 
what had happened and what was to happen now. 

"What does it mean" Logan asked. Adriane looked at Logan and smiled. "It
means our replacements are here sport. We going home. She mused 
laughingly. "We going home!" 

The two of then kept walking toward the old lighthouse as she started to
hum a soft little tune. Then she said in a quiet but firm tone, "cora, 
cora, cora, . . . open the dooraa, cora, cora, cora, . . . open the 
dooraa . . . 

The afternoon wind sweep in off the rambunctious Atlantic ocean and with
it mist and sand whipped about. The sea was it's usual dark gray blue 
self this afternoon. The seagulls yelped and swooped about the surf 
looking for anything that might be a tasty snack. Far down the other 
way on the beach a front end loader was busy replacing sand washed away 
by the winter storms. 

For a moment the clouds drew together and a horrendous sound of thunder
could be heard somewhere out at sea. It stopped and the sky brightened 
slightly. The Indians of long ago always said that the thunder was the 
waking of the gods. And that they always awoke to greet one or more of 
their special children that had just come home. And in the wilds of all 
the animals, only the puma was the creature,  not scared by the stormy 
nights mighty thunder and blazing lightning. 

The End. 

Copyright, J.T.Killain 


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