1 Prologue

"Sunny… Suuunnnny... SUNOLES CORTONIA CATSWILLE, GET YOUR TAIL OUT OF BED!"

What does she want at this hour? Sunny groaned internally as she rolled out of bed, dropping on the floor. She stretched out with a yawn, tail flicking as she took in the morning sunlight. Coco is gonna get it for this.

"SUNNY," her sister called once again from the hall.

"I'M AWAKE!" she snapped at the closed door.

Her boyfriend, Splitz, rolled over, grimacing face appearing over the edge of the bed. "Why are you yelling," he groaned at her, "It's like 10 am, you sleep till 12."

You think I don't know that?

"Coco's being a total scale snout," she growled back. Her comment was met with a small snore. Typical.

She stood up and dragged herself over to her companion cat, Speedet's den. A small cat door into a large room carved into the thick walls of the palace. She stretching her neck from side to side she sighed as the joints popped. She shook herself before shifting fully into her cheetah form and slipped inside. She found Speedet, dead to the world, on one of the platforms attached around seven feet in the air to the far wall. Springing off her rear paws, she leapt up in a single bound and shoved her companion off the edge. She landed on her side with a startled growl before leaping to all fours. Speedet shot a glare up at Sunny. "Why," she asked slowly in Zonoya Ik, the cat's tongue. She stretched her hind legs as she twisted check her clock, "are you pushing me off my bed at, by all the birds, it's only 10 am!" She shot Sunny another of her signature 'if looks could kill' glares.

"What? It's not my fault Coco lost her mind, besides," she reply, tilting her head with an innocent look, "we cats always land on our feet, well, most of the time anyways."

Speedet gave Sunny a dead eyed stare. "I actually hate you right now," she said in a tone that could kill twenty hawks in mid-flight.

"Alright, alright, you win," she said, jumping down and rolling over in mock surrender.

A few moments and a great deal of complaining later, Sunny, back in her half shifted form, opened the door to her bedroom. She stepped out into the hall and Coco's disapproving glare wearing her favorite outfit marked by her pink crop top t-shirt with a massive image of a cheetah's face made of silver sequins. She'd swept her mane of blonde tipped curls over one shoulder. Her top shimmered as she came out with Speedet who wore a pink collar with Sunny's pawprint, a simple line art of a wild cat's face, on the clasp and a gold earring clipped around the outside edge of one ear, trailing drowsily behind me. Coco, her twin, was standing in the hallway wearing her mission suit, the nice offcial one with the with red piping. Wisdom, Speedet's younger sister from the same litter and Coco's companion cat, wearing her black leather collar, was flicking her tail angrily while glaring at her older sibling. As soon as they walked out she lept on her sister knocking Speed over. "What took you so LONG?!?" she growled at Speed.

Meanwhile Coco took one look at her twin and hissed, "WHAT, on Galisis, are you WEARING?!?"

"Uh, my favorite outfit. Why are you wearing formal wear and, more importantly, WHY DID YOU WAKE US UP?!!!?" Sunny roared back.

Coco rolled her eyes. "Does 'the experiment will be ready for testing we'd like you to overview' ring any bells?" she asked with a little more sarcasm then one should really have to deal with this early.

"Fine," she snapped turning and stalking to the window at the end of the hall before calling back, "Last ones there have to visit Mother next week."

And with that she jumped at the windowpane which shimmered and tingled as she passed through it, shooting out the other side and beating her tail to stay aloft. Coco rolled her eyes walking up to the window and free-falling out of it before flipping upright and shooting up into the air next to her sister. We both turned back to the window. Speedet and Wisdom were facing off in the hallway still yelling at each other. "COME ON!" Wisdom glanced up then gave Speedet a wicked grin, jumped on her and shot out the window. Coco swung her leg over her cat's back as she shot past and they sped off together.

Speedet floated up beside Sunny. "Should we go?" Speedet asked as her companion settled herself on her back.

"Just a little longer," Sunny replied, patting her neck.

...

"Now."

We sped off. Sunny leaned over her companions back and twined her tail around the cheetah's then began swinging it in time, increasing their speed. A moment later they passed their siblings twirling in the air to yell back, "Later, losers," as they shot off. They sped up using the same technique to close the gap between the two pairs. Sunny glanced behind them and grinned, pushing hard to stay in front. They raced over the city surrounding the palaces and shot over the jungle.

Passing over the plateau coated in savannah-like grassland, they headed down and hit the ground running racing like jockeys on their companions across the plains. They, quite literally, scared the crap out of a herd of zebras grazing in the long grass as their companions jumped off of each of the herds' backs before shooting into the sky.

They headed towards the mountains in the distance, dropping into a crack in the side of the closest one, slowing down to land. They landed at the bottom a minute later and Sunny dismounted, panting. A group of panthers hurried out of a tunnel to greet them, led by a caracal. "Vern", Sunny greeted with a smile.

Vern gave them her usual 'I hate the world but you're my friends so I'll try to look happy' smile. Her companion cat, Ripper, appeared out of nowhere behind her and greeted them with a gruff "Hello." This was followed immediately by a telepathic "What took you so long?"

"Hello to you too, Rip," Speed huffed as Wisdom added sarcastically "How nice to see you."

"Girls," Coco said warningly while Vern telepathically scolded Ripper.

As a caracal, Vern is naturally gifted when it comes to telepathy. However, being the scariest cat she knew is all her. Ripper is a close second. Vern looked up at her after intensely glaring at Ripper for an uncomfortably long time. "The device is ready to be viewed," she said in her oddly deep tone. Her voice was a bit like listening to dark melted chocolate running smoothly through your head. She turned suddenly on her heels and thought back "Now would be great."

"Now would be great," Sunny mocked under her breath following behind Vern.

"Say hi to Mother for us," Speed said snarkily to her sister as she slid past.

Coco and Wisdom began talking science to the welcome party in their obnoxiously smart way. Speed and Sunny stalked in their practiced haunty way through the halls while speaking to each other telepathically with mental barriers to stop Vern and Ripper from thoughtdropping.

"It's so dark down here," Speed thought with a shiver.

"No wonder Coke and Wizz like it here so much," she responded with a grin.

Speed snorted, "I swear those two are allergic to fun." Sunny rolled her eyes as Speedet asked, "Who's that?" She flicked her tail at a shiny black panther walking next to a rather handsome scientist.

"I would assume that's his companion."

"Check him for me." She glanced back at him and caught his eye, sending him a grin that made him duck his head. Sunny sighed, delving into his mind to listen in on what he thought of her. "Goodness, the Ma'ress is looking at me. Sover, do I look ok?" he looked up at the zonoya walking next to him.

"I thought you said the Ma'ress and the Queen are as deep as puddles and that they're not even that pretty," Sover responded with a smirk.

"That was before I saw them, wait a minute do you feel that?" the panther looked around.

Sover gave him a sideways look, "what is it, Sly?"

Sly gave Sover a worried look, "Someone's thoughtdropping."

Sunny broke away from their unspoken conversation. "His name's Sly, he's a strong telepath but he's totally TT for you," she relayed to Speed.

"How do you know he's a strong telepath?" Speed asked with a questioning look.

"He sensed me thoughtdropping."

"Really?" Speed gasped, only after she said it realizing she said it out loud. She shot a sheepish look around as everyone stopped and stared at her.

She ducked her head with an embarrassed look as Sunny rolled her eyes, turned to Vern and asked accusingly, "Why exactly would you not tell me that one of the stronger telepaths I've encountered is stuck down here instead of on the police force?"

"Sly's a better mind then telepath," she said simply before turning and walking off.

"Me?" Sly asked.

"Apparently not," Sunny responded, quickening her pace.

"Thanks."

"No big," she said without looking at her.

Understanding that she was not in the mood for apologies, Speed stayed back as Sunny sped up to join Vern and Ripper. "We're here."

Rip pushed the door in front of them. They were now standing in the doorway of a white room with a massive, metal, tube-shaped machine glowing with an eerie blue light, bright enough to illuminate the entire room sitting in the middle of a metallic platform raising it around an inch off the ground. Sunny started in only to be held back by Vern. She pointed to a sign hanging on the door:

WARNING

Electrical Currents

Fly at least 2 inches above

the floor at all times!

Sunny leapt back from the doorway. If there was one thing she hated more than anything it was being electrocuted. Being burn wasn't fun either. "No, nuh-uh, no way," she said shaking her head as she turned around and started back up the hallway.

Coco reached out and grabbed her by the back of her shirt and started dragging her towards the doorway again. "Yep, yuh huh, yes way", she replied as she flung Sunny into the room. With a shriek, she started beating her tail to stay aloft as the others floated into the room. She could feel the electrical currents flying past, attracted to the walls around her. A throbbing headache from being too close to electricity came a moment later. It took her a moment to realize that none of their companions had entered with them. She turned to the now-closed door. "They can't come in because of the electrical currents, it kills their brain cells," Vern replied to her unspoken question.

Sunny floated over to the machine to hover next to her. "What about our brain cells?!" she growled at Vern.

"Unharmed because of our thicker skulls," she said calmly yet ever so slightly smugly, tapping her head in a way that made Sunny want to slap her. "Don't even think about it," she said, turning back to the machine, "Literally."

With an unhappy look on her face, Sunny floated around the machine to the cluster of zonoya over by the far wall once she got close enough she could see her sister in the middle of the group pulling on a white jumpsuit over her clothes. One of the scientists pointed at her locket, "You can't take that in there, it might short circuit the enhanser."

"No," she said in a rather menacing way as realization dawned on her, "You are not going to be the first test subject so just take that suit off right now."

"I am going, you may be the boss of everyone around here but you are not the boss of me," she responded with almost too much sass to bear.

"As your queen, yes, I am, why don't we send one of the teacher's pets?" she argued, "It's not like there's not a whole mountain full to pick from."

Coco gave her a disgusted look, "Firstly, I was a teacher's pet and secondly, a good leader risks her own life not that of her followers."

"However, a good leader can never become a great leader if they're, oh I don't know, DEAD! So I repeat you are not going," Sunny stated, silencing her response with a flick of my hand, "And that's. Final." She leapt at her sister, nearly knocking her out of the air. Sunny wrapped her arms around Coco's waist and dragged her, kicking and clawing, out of the room and then slammed the door in her snarling face.

"But your majesty-" one of the scientist began in a matter of fact tone.

Sunny turned to snarl at her, "But what?"

She got off her high horse mighty fast once she saw Sunny's face. "Umm..I...it's just that…" she stuttered.

"Speak up," she growled at her.

"It's just that we ran some new tests and the only zonoya with a certain connection to the Between can use the machine and Coco and you, your majesty, happen to be perfect specimens." Sunny's glare darkened. "Umm I mean, perfect zonoya for the job," she corrected hastily.

"Ok, so why don't you find another perfect specimen?" Sunny hissed.

"The number of zonoya on the planet combined with the rarity of this specific join puts the odds of finding another in the next five years at something like 0.01%," Sover answered.

"Well I can get every zonoya to be tested in the next week," Sunny said with a clap, "That clears that issue up".

"However there may not be another," said Sover.

"Well according to 'high and mighty' over there, there is at least one other than Coco," she responded with purpose, flying over to the other suit and helmet.

"But, your majesty, you can't," gasped a scientist, "Who will protect us?"

"Who will lead us?" chimed another.

"Who will take care of us?" Vern asked with the most fear in her voice Sunny had ever heard.

"Coco will," she responded in a comforting voice to her friend. She finished pulling on the suit and flew over to hug Vern. A moment later Sunny let go. "Fire it up," Vern commanded with a single tear running down her face. She shook her head, hardened look returning to her face. "Now," she snapped.

A few minutes later, Sunny was sealed behind a metal door in the dark tube, now stopping to consider the intelligence of this decision. Now that I think about it, this is a horrible idea, she thought to herself as a pounding started from somewhere deep in the machine.

Coco'll probably never forgive me, wait a minute what exactly is it I was supposed to do? I'll figure it out. That was the last thing she remembered thinking to herself as the door behind suddenly hit the top of the platform she was lying on hard enough to send her flying toward a glowing blue light at the end. There was a bright flash of white light and then nothingness.