‘Why does this wolf keep getting in my way?!’

Trixie growls as she runs down the corridor, past all the aquatic observatories, knocking down a few furnishings behind her in hopes to slow her pursuer down. Unfortunately, this does nothing to stop the wolf as he relentlessly shoves them away and continues his pursuit.

What a rotten day this has been, not only has she lost the human twice already, but she has lost her arm to that gluttonous shark and now is being chased by that mute wolf! She will need to consume a large number of her saved rations to get that arm back!

‘What is wrong with you?? I just want to see the human! But you keep driving him away from me!’ Trixie yells telepathically to the wolf, but still no response.

It’s unfair, it’s unfair, it’s unfair! How come he gets to see the human but she can’t?? Is that wolf really that selfish? That human, she MUST see that human! Even if it's just for a few minutes… alright, that was a lie, she would prefer a much longer session than just a few measly minutes.

Unfortunately, she would never have that chance as long as the wolf is around.

‘Give up already!’ Trixie yells, changing routes to look for more opportunities to slow the wolf down.

Running down into a dark open area, filled with large wooden crates and equipment designed to maintain the facility, Trixie figures if she can use the environment to her advantage, she could slow down the wolf long enough to get away! And after that…

‘...I will find that human if it's the last thing I do!’

Her instincts cry out to find the human, even more so than all the other humans that got away. It’s something that she needs to do! Is it her instinct as a latex creature to find this human? Or perhaps it's something else?

It doesn’t matter, as long as she finally-

‘..!’

Something in the dark flares a glowing green color halting her run.

Screeching to a halt, she feels her body shake uncontrollably as she loses her ability to control it. Her mind is screaming at her to look away before it's too late, but her body refuses to listen to her demands, drawing her gaze closer to the glowing green light as it comes closer.

‘What…is this??’

Try as she might, she could not break away from the magnetic pull of the glowing green color.

As the green glow comes closer, Trixie is able to see a figure slowly come to view in the light before her. She did not expect to see a black feline like her except with glowing green colors, an odd trait for latex, but that doesn’t matter to her. What she wants to know, is what she is doing.

‘Who are you? Why can’t I move?? What did you do to me???’

The strange feline stops before her, maintaining her green eyes upon her own. She senses a response coming from her, a telepathic link connecting with her. The link connects with her as-

‘AHH!’

An enormous wave of emotions… emotions of anger and spite striking her down so hard that she recoils back to the wall behind her. She tries to cut off the link but the link remains firm, all attempts to repel or withstand this dreadful link do nothing. If anything…it only made the link and the emotions stronger. Trixie falls to her knees, using her remaining arm to try to cope with the stress.

She could not understand, the impossibility of being brought to her knees just by telepathy alone…if it even is telepathy. This link, these emotions…how can she have so much power? She can’t even pay attention to her surroundings anymore, but she doesn’t need to, she knows that feline is standing in front of her.

She cannot find the will or the mind to get up on her feet and run away, only the growing sense of hopelessness…so strong she feels insignificant to the latex before her, her only arm can no longer support her as she drops herself on the floors. She feels so useless…small…

A question arises…

‘What am I?’

…And the answer is nothing.

----------------------------------------

“Grr…pesky latex! Always chasing Human away!” Puro grunts to himself, angry at the snow leopard and his own failure to protect his human friend.

Running past a window into the aquatic area, Puro persistently chases down the latex as she tries to slow him down by making sudden turns or by knocking furnishings behind her, but Puro will NOT let her get away…not this time.

Are latex beasts always this persistent in chasing human? No wonder he got transfurred so many times! Not only that, this snow leopard has shown to be willing to go to extreme measures to catch the human at all costs, even if it means hurting others to do so. She even dropped a cage on him! His mask could have been shattered! What kind of latex beast does that??

Never had Puro seen a latex hurt another of their own, besides maybe that lazy fox who bit him back in his home all the time. Seeing a latex going as far as to attack him, made him feel something he rarely feels…

Anger.

It baffles him…he cannot understand why anyone would do this! It’s not right! Not right! This snow leopard is mean! Way meaner than those foxes! Why would anyone want to hurt others? No latex should do that!

The snow leopard turns and runs into a more open area, filled with equipment and machinery made by the humans who once ran the place. Puro knows what the snow leopard is planning, trying to figure out a way to hinder his pursuit just like last time. He remembers that time she struck his mask, that really hurt!

Turning around the corner Puro screeches to a halt as he takes in the strange sight before him.

The snow leopard seems to be pulled down to the ground by the green glowing eyes before her. Try as he might, Puro cannot figure out how this was working. However, this is the breakthrough he has been looking for. Approaching the snow leopard, Puro recognizes from this angle a familiar black feline with green glowing marks.

‘Panther?’

Odd…he thought the panther would be by the greenhouse…nevermind, he will figure that out later, seeing the snow leopard collapsing to her knees as he approaches. The snow leopard is placing her remaining paw on her head, clutching her fur tightly.

Seems like the snow leopard won’t be running away anytime soon.

Walking up to the snow leopard, biding his time. Puro ponders what he will do with her. There is no doubt in his mind that she will try to chase after Human again, she might just do something far worse than dropping that massive metal cage.

The panther looks up at him, her concentrated expression quickly fades into concern as she sees his expression, but he ignores her.

Puro needs to take care of this mean snow leopard. He needs to make sure that the snow leopard will leave him and his human alone, and that it needs to stay that way. He remembers something about his kind, something he never thought he would do until today, something engraved in his instincts for situations like these.

Puro would have to assimilate this snow leopard.

Usually, this would be done on inert latex to satisfy basic needs. However, a black latex could assimilate a living white latex if they deemed it a risk or a hazard to other latexes. This snow leopard? No exception.

His paw was mere inches away from ending the life of another… before he begins to falter.

Something must have gotten through her daze, because her look felt…humane.

Puro feels his anger melt away as he gazes at the snow leopard’s face.

He sees an expression he’d never seen before; one full of…fear…desperation…a plea for mercy. Her tearful eyes do not escape his sight…it feels so oddly familiar. Something about this gives Puro a sense of deja vu, and the very thought of assimilating her makes… tears? Is he feeling sad?

Conflicting and confusing thoughts wage on his mind. What should he do? These reactions make no sense, and this snow leopard looks at him like she wants him to…

‘...forgive her?’

Snap out of it Puro! She would surely do this again would she not? She is a mean latex! He made it clear to the snow leopard that he didn’t like what she was doing the first time they met, and here she is attacking Human again! He shouldn’t feel sorry for someone who is mean!

He shouldn't, right?

…

And yet…

He sees the regret in her eyes and feels the nonsensical tears bead down his mask. Puro notices the unkempt dirty state of her fur, the stub where an arm should be. And he stops to think…

She…is there really a need for this? While unruly, she did no real harm…

…

“No…there is no need for this…Puro is better than this.”

He remembers the promise he made to the human not long ago, the promise to never hurt or assimilate anyone. And besides, with the state the snow leopard is in…it seems like she has learnt her lesson.

He supposes he could wait and see if the change he saw in her eyes was genuine or not.

Getting up, he gives the snow leopard a final look, before returning down the corridor he came.

----------------------------------------

Neon feels a sense of relief when the wolf lets the snow leopard go. Yes, she has been bothering him and Human, but does she really deserve more punishment? She already lost her arm, it might take a while to find the substance she needs to regenerate it.

The wolf turns and faces her, giving a few strange gibberish sounds before heading back where he came from, away from the snow leopard and back into the aquarium.

Unsure what to do, she decides to follow the wolf closely behind, nudging him on his shoulder and giving a quiet purr, expressing comfort and companionship to the lonely wolf. The wolf pauses in thought before giving a nod, he seems happy to have some company for a change, despite the difficulties of communication.

Following the wolf through the open door, Neon finds herself at a large window that somehow keeps the water from going through? Through the window, Neon can see strange latex creatures unlike any she has ever seen swimming through the deep blue waters.

‘Strange latex…’

Looking at the wolf, he seems to scan each aquatic latex creature left and right, until he spots a large grey latex swimming past. Unlike the other grey latexes that swim by, this particular grey latex has a pair of arms and a much longer tail. The wolf seems to be drawing all his attention to the strange latex.

The wolf makes a few gibberish sounds, pointing to the passing latex as he places his paw onto the wall, letting out a few more gibberish sounds before letting out a sigh of frustration. Perhaps he is talking about the human? Neon doesn’t blame him, it’s going to be a while before he can find him again.

But…what is so special about that latex to the wolf anyway?

----------------------------------------

‘So what’s it like to have a host?’

‘It’s strangely comfortable, kinda natural in a way.’

‘Natural? Really?’

Voices reach your mind as you slowly rise up from the world of sleep, noticing the now-familiar sensation of water brushing past your ‘skin’.

‘I don’t know how else to put it, words can’t describe this feeling. Just that it feels…normal? Like it's something I could always do.’

‘Hmmm…huh?’

Something feels very off…wait…that’s not Dusk! Snapping your conscious mind awake, your vision starts to take shape of the underwater environment, swimming past some seaweed.

‘Wait wait! What’s going on?! Where am I?? Why are we moving?? You’re not Dusk! Who are you?? Where’s Dusk??’ you cry out, fearing you are being kidnapped just like last time. The shark holding you captive flinches at your outburst.

‘Hey! Easy with the telepathy! That was loud!’ your shark captor complains.

‘Was that the human? Are they awake?’

‘The human is a ‘he’ Bluesy.’

‘Who are you?? Don’t tell me you're kidnapping me!’

‘Woah woah! Calm down! You aren’t being kidnapped! Dusk entrusted me to take over for him, he told you he would be getting someone right?’

You slowly cease your struggles, now understanding the situation a little better.

‘Not really, but how come I wasn’t told about this?’

‘We tried…but you were so dead asleep that we couldn't even connect! It’s like your mind was a cloud of ink.’

‘You should have seen it! Dusk almost went crazy thinking you were gone for good.’

The shark speaking just now must have been Bluesy, judging by the blue spots all over him.

‘Oh really?…so where is Dusk then?’

‘He had some assignments come up that he couldn’t ignore, big changes have been going around here ever since they found you.’

‘Ohh right. He said he had something to take care of, whatever it may be.’

‘Exactly. He just swam up to me and asked if I could host you. A chance to host the human everyone’s been talking about? I couldn’t say no!’

‘Huh, so I guess that explains a lot. So…if you are taking me along with you, where are we going?’

‘Originally I wasn’t so sure since you were asleep but…oh! We haven’t introduced ourselves! I am your host Krackin-’

‘- and I’m Bluesy!’

‘...what he said.’

‘Pleasure. I’m-’

‘The human, we know. Want to go high jump with us??’ The blue spotted shark asks excitedly.

‘I- what?’

‘Bluesy! Too soon!’ Krackin scolds, as the shark pouts.

‘Bluesy is…easily excited when it comes to sports.’

‘Sports? What sport was he talking about?’

‘High jump. I wasn’t sure what to do with ya until Bluesy came and asked to play high jump with him.’

‘What’s high jump?’

‘It’s a simple and fun game we play, we start from the bottom of the water and then swim up to the surface quickly, trying to jump into the air as far as possible. There’s a local competition today, and we’re ranked pretty high in it.’

‘Really?’

‘Erm, well, maybe not that high. But we still have a chance at the top, right Bluesy?’

‘Right! And if we don’t hurry, we don’t get a spot at all.’

Bluesy takes off towards a brighter section of water, while Krackin follows behind, taking you along with him.

‘Ehhh, well, I guess I can watch.’

‘You don’t have to come with us if you don’t want to, you’re not a prisoner.’

‘It’s not like I mind, this is all so sudden you know? And besides, I can’t breathe underwater without your help.’

‘Wait, you can’t breathe underwater? Then how are you breathing right now?’

‘You should be providing me air, it's something that just happens for you I guess.’

‘Ohhh that explains that strange feeling when I transfurred you.’

‘Transfur?’

‘Dusk said it’s when you take a human as a host.’

‘Oh, cool! That reminds me. Can I have a turn when we finish high jumping?’

‘As long as you don’t let me drown!’

‘I won’t! I promise!’ Bluesy says, brushing against you and Krackin.

‘Heh! That sure beats the reception I got from the first sharks here.’

‘That whole fiasco? Bluesy isn’t as thickheaded as those soldier types. I’d be too ashamed to call him my brother if he was!’

‘Brother?’

‘Yep! We’re brothers!’ Krackin confirms.

‘The best of bros!’ Bluesy adds in.

‘Well, that explains it.’

‘Hey wait! Human! Do YOU have a brother? Maybe a sister?’ Bluesy asks.

That’s…something you’ve never thought about…do you have any siblings? You don’t know where your family is or who they are.

‘I don’t know…’

A gasp can be heard echoing in your mind.

‘You don’t know??’

Guilt and fear build up in your heart as the realisation kicks in. What kind of person doesn’t think about their family?

‘Bluesy shhh! Calm down! Dusk mentioned that he has missing memories.’

‘Oh no. Will he ever get those memories back?’

‘Maybe…I don’t know how amnesia works for humans. Do you really remember nothing at all?’

‘I-I woke up in a pod knowing nothing, but the memories seem to be coming back. Now I’m scared I might not remember my family.’

And you find it strange how the lack of memories only adds to the alienness of these places. Thankfully you’ve gotten used to the living goo creatures and their shenanigans, but that only gives as much as comfort.

A sense of care and easement washes over your mind coming from Krackin, like a blanket slowly resting upon your mind; you don’t know how to put it into words, but it makes you feel better.

‘Hey, don’t worry too much about it. If you are remembering then you will remember your family. Just give it some time and it will come to you, you just need to be patient.’

You sigh in defeat and acceptance, trying to regain your composure. It’s true, there really isn’t anything you can do about it now, but the idea you could have even more family members missing bothers you. Who knows? Maybe you don’t, only time will tell. Time that ticks by way too slowly for your liking.

‘But it takes so long! It feels like everything is going slow.’

‘Hmm, well they say that time goes by when you’re having fun right? Focus on something else for now, get your mind at ease. So what do you say? How about we focus on having fun? And we can start by high jumping?’ Krackin, suggests using telepathy to help calm you down.

‘I can try.’

‘Great! Because we’re here now!’

And sure enough, looking above, you can see some sharks launching upwards from the surface before diving back down with a splash, twirling down the waters to touch the silt floor before they swim back up to the surface again.

You and the shark brothers swim towards the starting point where a line of sharks wait.

Looking forward to the front of the line, you can see a shark facing the line while floating above a rock pedestal, giving off a sense of importance. The shark allows one in front of the queue to go past it, stopping by a clearing, swimming in circles, and picking up speed as it then swims upwards, racing towards the surface.

The racing shark then pierces through the surface, disappearing for a brief moment before crashing back underwater again. There is a squidotter that seems to be waiting by the surface, presumably keeping track of the racing shark’s hang time.

Luckily, the queue doesn’t seem to be too long and at this rate, it won’t be long till your turn arrives. Swimming to the start of the queue, Krackin allows his brother to go first to join the line before joining himself.

‘So that’s High jump?’

‘Yep! That’s high jumping! It’s quite popular here.’

‘We are gonna win!’

‘Bluesy, it’s not going to be that easy-’

‘And we have the human for good luck!’

‘Bluesy! Shh! We shouldn’t-’

Unfortunately, it is too late, Bluesy has accidentally caught some of the sharks’ attention turning around to listen to the conversation.

‘Human? You mean THE human that Breton and his squad found?’

‘Are they saying a human is here? I don’t see anything that could be a human…what does a human look like again?’

‘Hey, that shark in the back. He looks kinda different.’

‘Now that you mention it. Wait, are those arms??’

‘Where did he get those?? I thought only squidotters had them!’

One shark close by swims toward you, curious about Krackin’s new appearance.

‘Excuse me, but where did you manage to get those arms? Did you manage to figure out how to create them?’

Now the center of attention, Krackin steps up to answer the shark’s question.

‘Well, I had the human to help me figure it out.’

The shark’s eyes seem to sparkle at the response, growing excited by the second.

‘You guys met the human! WOW! What is he like?? Where is he now??’

You start to grow uncomfortable, dreading a swarm of latex beasts flocking over to you. Thankfully, Krackin picks up your discomfort and starts to camouflage your presence through the link, thinking up a lie to try to defuse the situation.

‘My brother has him as a host now!’ Bluesy answers instead, oblivious to your discomfort.

‘Bluesy…’ Krackin sighs, dreading what comes next.

‘Really???’

Before Krackin could react, you feel something link up to your mind, directing its thoughts to you.

‘Hello human!’

‘...umm hi.’

‘Wow, the stories are true!! A live Human! I have so many questions!’

‘I can imagine, but I’m really not ready for-’

‘Is you giving arms how transfur works? What’s it like? How are you not assimilated? What was Napoleon like? I heard you met him in person! What an honour!’

‘Slow down! The human isn’t in the mood for-’

‘You live on the surface right? The beyond? What’s it like out there? There are so many theories and speculations, but all we know are those latexes that appear from the invisible wall! What are they like? Can I-’

Thankfully, a shark comes to push the enthusiastic shark away.

‘Ok, that’s enough! It’s our turn! We gotta go!’

‘B-b-b-but I didn’t get my answers! And more questions to ask! Human! Can I transfur you???’

‘NO!’

‘But whhhhhyyyyyyy-’

The link cuts off as Krackin severs the link between you and the shark. You and your shark friends couldn’t even comprehend the shark’s interest in you and his questions.

‘Wow…you are popular.’ Krackin snickers to himself.

‘You have no idea…apparently every latex I met wants to either talk to me or transfur me. Sometimes both.’

‘I was joking! Don’t tell me you’re serious! R-right?’

‘...’

‘Oh by Napoleon’s name…’

Thankfully, the shark watching the queue came by to break your thoughts.

‘Alright, it’s your turn now. I apologise for the inconvenience with that shark from earlier. Just lay low, Napoleon wants the human to feel as welcomed as possible.’

‘Yes sir,’ Krackin answers.

You and your shark friends then follow the shark close behind as he returns to his post.

‘Alright, up you go. Give it your best.’

And with that, you and your shark companions enter the clearing, preparing to make the jump.

‘Bluesy, you shouldn’t be so open about us having the human with us. Otherwise, there will be others that will bother us and the human.’

‘But I thought having the human is so cool!’

‘It is, but that doesn’t mean we should shout it out or brag about it,’ Krackin says, as his brother huffs with annoyance.

‘Is he always like that?’

‘He is naive, he will grow out of it eventually. But enough of that, we got a jump to make. See if you can’t help me with this, maybe break a world record.’

‘Sure, when do we start?’

‘On my count,’ Kraken says, as he and Bluesy readies themselves.

You look to the surface…

‘3…’

And strangely…

‘...2…’

It’s almost like…

‘...1…’

It's so familiar…

‘..GO!’

A sudden burst of energy fills you, as you launch yourself upwards, racing to the surface to make the big jump. You’ve never swum this fast before! You can’t help but feel a sense of excitement as the surface above you approaches at an alarming rate. You reach your hand out…as if trying to grab it, as everything seems to change…

…and you remember.

----------------------------------------

“Gah! Made it!”

You take a breath of fresh air, resurfacing from the ocean.

Shaking your head, you shake off any excess water clinging to your eyelids, as you scan your surroundings. You find yourself at the coast of the beach, the sky is bright blue as the sun beams down onto both land and sea, the waters glitter like jewellery as humans mingle by the grainy sands.

You scan your surroundings, looking for someone.

“Hello? Where are you? Matthew? Where did you go?”

*Splash*

Someone tackles you from behind!

“GOTCHA!”

“AHH!”

You yell in fright as a wave of water crashes onto your face once again, temporarily blinding you. Recovering from the ambush, you shake off the water again as you glare at your attacker.

“Matthew! That’s not funny!”

Your brother just laughs, enjoying your reaction.

“Come on bro, it's funny!”

“It’s only funny when I do it!” You playfully whine.

“How so? Am I lacking the energy?”

“Exactly!”

You then splash water against your brother and make your way to the coast as your brother follows closely behind. Reaching the coast, your brother calls for your attention.

“Done swimming already?”

“Yeah, there is so much we can do, Matthew! Besides, it's cold in there anyway,” you say, grabbing your towel to dry.

“Really? You want to go somewhere else?”

“So soon? I mean, I am happy you are on holiday, but sometimes I can’t help but feel as though you are in a rush, is everything alright?” you ask.

While you are happy that your brother is devoting all of his time to spending his holiday with you, you can’t help but feel that something is not right.

“Not at all! Got so much I want to do with ya. I just want you to enjoy your time here.”

“I am, I am in no rush!” you say, sitting at your and your brother's spot at the beach.

“What other plans do you have anyway?”

“Plenty, there is an Arcade somewhere in the town, got some classics we can try. There is also a zoo we can go to. I know how much you love animals, so I’m thinking of booking a trip there, maybe we can feed some of the animals.”

“That’s awesome! Thank Matt!”

“Eh, don't mention it. It’s our holiday, we gotta make the best of it, you know?”

You can’t help but feel a little excited, it’s been a while since you have seen a zoo! There had been strange news and rumours going around some of the Zoos, one of which being that the visitors notice that there is a missing animal or two. When they ask the Zookeepers, they brush it off, saying either that they have miscounted or that the missing animal is at the vet.

But you brush it off just like they did, a rumour is a rumour, right? It does not mean it is always true.

“Which Zoo did you pick?”

“The one that has those leopards, I remember how frightened you were when one of them came by the cage when you were little.”

“They were massive to me!”

Your brother dries off his hair and claps his hands together in anticipation.

“Alright! How about we-”

*Ring Ring*

Your brother’s phone rings beside him, he picks it up to see who it was calling.

“Missed calls already? This better be important.” Your brother grumbles as he answers the call.

“Hello? Yes, he is with me…huh? Wait, slow down what are you saying? …N-now!? But I thought we had more time! …I…*Sigh* you’re right…but what am I supposed to say to him?”

“Matthew?”

Your brother places a finger on his lips, telling you to hush.

“...Alright fine…I will grab lunch on the way back…right…Alright…stay safe.”

*Click*

“We got to go.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Family emergency meeting. We have to hurry.”

“What? What happened? Did something bad happen?”

“Kinda. Lin, I get you to want to know, but now is not the time ok? It’s best when all of us gathered alright?”

You want to say something, but you keep your mouth shut and nod, gathering your belongings and heading to the car with your brother by your side. He does not seem to be happy, you have NEVER seen him like this. Whatever the news was, it seemed to suck all the joy out of him.

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You look at the beach behind you one last time, capturing the beauty of the glittering ocean…

You close your eyes, as something in your mind clicks and everything changes once more…

----------------------------------------

…

‘Human…? HUMAN!’

Everything quickly takes shape, shaping into a familiar underwater environment with a shark with two arms in front of you.

‘Human what happened? It’s like you fell out of the link!’ Bluesy’s voice echoes in your mind, reminding you of the telepathy.

That vision…it felt so real…too real. That person who was with you in your vision, is that your brother? Wait…yes! That is your brother! How could you have forgotten about him?? How could you forget about someone so important??

Where is he? Is he alright? Where did he go? Why can’t you see more of that memory? You want answers…No! You NEED answers!

You curse your mind for being so selective on what you can remember, showing you something important but leaving you in the dark! You have to confront Dr. K about this when you have the chance, this is not something you can just ignore! He must know something! Anything!

‘Woah woah, what’s with the sudden agitation?’ Krackin asks.

‘I just…I just remembered more! I have a brother!’

‘You have a brother? That’s great news, what did you remember?’

‘But that’s the thing, all I remember is that I was outside with my brother. It’s so frustrating!’ you say.

‘The outside? Like where all those on land live?’

‘Yeah!’

‘Human, this is serious then, what CAN you remember?’

‘Well…I was with my brother…’

‘Yes…what else?’

‘Er…we were talking about having a holiday, then we had to go to a family emergency meeting.’

‘What else?’

‘Erm…well…’

‘Ok, what about your surroundings? The outside? Can you remember anything like that?’

‘I remember the beach.’

‘A beach? What’s that?’ Bluesy chirps in, interested in your story.

‘It’s uh…how to describe it…how to describe it…it’s like this place, that has a bunch of sand.’

‘The very same sand at the bottom here?’ Kraken asks, gesturing to the sand down below.

‘Yeah, except it's on land. And um, it's where you can find the ocean.’

‘Ocean?’

‘It’s that…massive place of water.’

For a brief moment, you could have sworn that the sharks gasp in surprise.

‘A massive pool of water?’

‘Yeah…?’

‘Like…how large?’

‘I mean…it's pretty endless.’

…

…

Krackin and Bluesy share a look as if they are thinking the same thing. Without a word, they immediately change directions and charge through the water.

‘Wait, where are we going?’

‘Human, we need to take you to Napoleon…right now!’

‘Wait, back to Napoleon? Why?’

‘Human! Don’t you get it?? This is something we NEED! A bigger home! If what you say is true, then this could change everything!’ Krackin exclaims.

‘A whole body of water…big enough for everyone!’ Bluesy cheers in delight.

Swimming past latex after latex, coral after coral…the shark brothers take a nosedive towards Napoleon’s lair taking you along with them. Swimming through the cave, you find yourself in the throne room once again.

It didn’t take long for you to spot Napoleon, conversing with a shark and a squidotter, maintaining a sense of authority and importance. One shark takes notice of you and your shark companions’ presence and swims towards you, you don’t recognise this shark at all.

‘Welcome visitors. Unfortunately, Lord Napoleon is rather busy and doesn’t have time to listen to your complaints regarding lack of space, noisy neighbours, or annoying stingrays. If you have any further complaints, please rest assured that Napoleon will address your concerns on moment's notice, in the meantime, I will keep note of them until Napoleon’s mood is more...agreeable.’

‘Does Napoleon deal with so many complaints?’

‘You would be surprised.’

The shark notices the two distinct thoughts emitting from you and Krackin and decides to investigate.

‘Umm, was that you that spoke? Or was it your companion?’

‘Brother actually, and no it wasn’t him it was the human.’

‘The human?’ the shark questions, finally noticing the arms of your shark companions.

‘I suppose that would be a dead giveaway, wouldn’t it? Well, regardless…if you don’t have anything important to give, then I can’t really do much else. Not sure if Lord Napoleon is expecting the human so soon.’

‘The human managed to remember more about the outside world, we thought Napoleon would want to know.’

The shark pauses in thought, processing the news.

‘In that case, then you might have an audience with Lord Napoleon after all. I hope you have essential information to share, human?’

‘I guess so.’

‘Hmm, we shall see. Alright then, allow me to introduce you to him, just remember to be on your best behaviour alright? I cannot stress this enough, Lord Napoleon has been more busy than usual, don’t do anything that will agitate him.’

You feel a sense of nervousness coming from Bluesy while Krackin maintains his confidence, nodding in acknowledgement. Following the shark, Krackin and Bluesy swim quietly behind as the shark announces your and your shark friends' arrival.

‘I did not expect to see visitors, is something the matter?’ Napoleon asks, maintaining his image as ruler.

‘Lord Napoleon, I have brought two underwater citizens along with the human that claims to have some information about the outside world.’

‘Is that so? If the human has more to tell…very well, I shall grant them an audience,’ Napoleon says, resting upon his throne once more.

‘You may approach,’ The shark says as Krackin and Bluesy came forth, bowing before Napoleon in respect.

‘You say that the human has more information about the outside world?’

‘Yes Napoleon, he says that he manages to remember more about the outside, we thought you would want to know.’ Krackin says.

‘Indeed, the more we know about the outside world the better. Now, allow me to connect with the human.’

And with that, Krackin links you to Napoleon via telepathy so that he may ‘speak’ with you more clearly.

‘Back so soon human? I trust you find the detour to your liking?’ Napoleon asks calmly.

‘I did, though it still feels weird living underwater and without needing to breathe air. It feels natural in a way that feels unnatural…if that makes sense.’

‘Hmm, I suppose there are some things that can’t change, especially the mind and the instincts, though that’s not why you are here is it?’ Napoleon rhetorically asks.

‘You want me to share what I have remembered.’

‘Yes, to the point if you will, I have a lot on my mind today.’

‘Tell him what you remembered.’ Krackin says.

‘The ocean?’

‘Yeah, that one!’

‘The ocean? What is that human?’

‘It’s basically a large body of water, you find them at beaches or at the coasts.’

This caught Napoleon’s attention as a glint of interest and excitement can be heard in his voice.

‘A large body of water you say? How large exactly?’

‘Well…I would say endless really.’

‘How endless are we talking here? How far out does it go?’

‘Umm…Worldwide?’

You see a sense of disbelief in Napoleon’s eyes.

‘Worldwide? Please tell me you jest? You cannot mean that the outside houses an endless body of water?’

‘Not I’m not joking! That’s what an ocean is.’

The onlookers of the throne room share glances, almost as if they are murmuring to themselves. Napoleon, however, remains silent, contemplating the news.

‘What else can you tell me about the ocean? And the outside world?’

‘I don’t know anything else…’

‘Hmm, what about your kind? Do they rule the ocean?’

‘Umm…’

‘Surely there must be more Humans. Is the ocean inhabited? Do you know a way to the ocean perhaps?’

‘Napoleon, I really don’t know…I still have a long way to go before I remember. Heck, I only just remembered that I have a brother!’

Napoleon sighs in disappointment, finding the lack of information irritable. The irritation fades away as he considers what little you had to offer.

‘Not gonna lie, that is…rather disappointing,’ Krackin adds in.

‘Indeed. While it is disappointing that you don’t have much more to share, I cannot ignore the opportunity for expansion into this “ocean” you speak of. If this spans the entirety of the unknown world as you claim it does, then the need for space will be a thing of the past. In fact…’

Napoleon stands up from his throne in thought as he continues.

‘The idea of ruling the ocean…space enough to expand beyond our wildest dreams…I desire this! An endless world…free for the taking! What a waste! No! I cannot let this go any longer!’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Human, we are going to commence our outside establishment IMMEDIATELY!’

‘Wait WHAT???’

‘You heard correctly human! I just cannot fathom the idea of an endless body of water just outside, while we are trapped here! No no, this simply will not do! We must take this golden opportunity while we still can!’

‘Wait wait, you are not seriously considering attacking everyone! That’s insane!’

‘It WOULD be human, but I am no fool. I would only make enemies of those who would stand between me and freedom.’

‘But-!’

‘INCLUDING you.’

You can feel Krackin and Bluesy sharing their emotions in your mind, telling you to hush.

‘Even so…you don’t have the means to do so! I mean…you don’t have anyone who can walk on land! How are you going to go to the outside world?’

‘I have sent Breton to commence training our troops to adapt to the land, you taught him how to use legs remember?’

You want to slap yourself so badly, damn it! How did you forget that?

‘E-even so, it is going to take a long time!’

Napoleon simply rests on his throne, his tentacles swaying gently behind him.

‘Oh…I wouldn’t worry so much about that.’ Napoleon says cryptically.

‘...huh?’

…

----------------------------------------

‘I can’t believe you finished the training ALREADY!’ you yell in disbelief.

‘You underestimate the power of telepathy human, it made it a lot easier to teach our army how to create and adapt to land,’ Breton says, holding you hostage as he swims beside Napoleon and an army of sharks and squidotters trailing behind.

It turns out, that having telepathy as an everyday way of communication has its perks. Not only was Breton able to communicate instructions on how to create and use legs in multiple minds via hivemind to save time, but he was also able to share his newfound instincts and memories to speed up the process of the sharks using their legs.

It only took Breton a day and a half to train an army of sharks, ready to take on the lands beyond their home.

Despite your protests, you were left with no choice but to follow along with Napoleon and his army, preparing to give them directions to exit the institute to get to the outside as soon as possible. The most you can pray for is to reduce the number of encounters as much as you can to avoid any violence; Napoleon made it very clear he would do whatever it takes.

‘Human, it is best if you give us the directions and get us out of this ‘institute’ as soon as possible. If you truly desire that we avoid any conflicts, then you will guide our way out. The sooner the better,’ Breton says.

‘It still doesn’t feel right…’

‘Not right? Human, we tell you our struggles and yet you wish to not comply with us?’ Napoleon asks, slightly irritable with your insecurities.

‘But do you really have to fight anyone?’

‘Not if they don’t get in our way.’

‘But what about my kind?’

‘We will deal with that later. Getting to the ocean and establishing our presence there is the utmost priority! You will help us, you don’t want us to take a more ‘forceful’ approach won’t you?’

You keep quiet, not wanting to provoke Napoleon to take an aggressive stance towards your kind outside the institute.

‘I thought so. We are approaching the surface human, you know what to do.’

And just like he says, you and the other latexes reach the surface, finding yourself on a familiar metal balcony as you all climb onto it. And sure enough, all of the other sharks start to form the legs necessary to adapt to the land. They walk as though they knew how to long ago.

The very same door you unlocked, lays open, kept open thanks to Breton’s thinking during your teaching on how to walk. Entering through the door with the army of sharks close by, Napoleon scoops up one of the towels and examines them with his paw-like tentacles.

‘Are these the blankets you told me about Breton? They are…so pleasant!’ Napoleon says, enjoying the soft sensation of the fluffy towels.

‘Exactly!’

‘You say that they will be ruined if brought underwater? Such a shame. Although we should look into these more when we have the time, we may have a use for them.’ Napoleon says, dangling one of the towels with his tentacle in front of them while examining them, thoughtfully before tossing it away.

The procession moves past the locker to the airlock you first entered through.

‘Breton, the keycard if you will,’ Napoleon commands.

You feel a hand reach down and grab the keycard before slotting it into the scanner for the airlock.

The door opens smoothly, and the procession makes its way through to clear the way for their leader.

Exiting the room, you find yourself at an intersection, where you will start providing guidance to the aquatic invaders.

‘Which way human?’ Napoleon asks.

‘Well I was thrown off course when I was chased, but judging from where we are…I would say we would need to take the right turn, maybe we can find signs that can point us in the right direction.’

‘We shall see human, comrades! To the right!’ Breton calls out, as the army follows their leaders’ instructions.

Turning left and right…you and the army make your way through the corridors of the aquarium, searching for the exit. You can’t help but worry about the outcome should these latexes make their way to the exit, what will they do? Will they hurt anyone? Will Napoleon go against his promise of possible pacifism and peace? Or is it all a ploy to lure you into a false sense of comfort before they take over the world?

You pray for a miracle…anything to get away from these crazy latexes.

“Latex fishes! RELEASE HUMAN NOW!”

A familiar voice rings throughout the corridor, halting the aquatic latexes. Turning around, you can barely make out the figure behind the army of sharks and squidotters, but the white mask was a clear giveaway…

‘Puro!’

‘And who are you might be? One of the surface dwellers no less.’

“I know you have human! He is with one of you! Puro knows it! Let him go now!”

‘Hmm…why is he not using telepathy? He is latex-like but yet he does not speak the way we do.’

‘Guys! That’s my fri-!’

But the link in your mind cuts off before you can say any more, leaving you in the dark, with nothing but Puro’s voice reaching out for you.

“Human! Wherever you are, give Puro a sign! So I can save you faster!”

Try as you might, you could not resist the whims of your captor, leaving Puro in the dark. You see a few of the sharks approaching Puro taking an aggressive stance, telling him to back away or face the consequences.

“Grr Human! Just don’t panic! Puro will find a way to free you! Even if he has to fight all the mean latex just to find you!”

Seeing that Puro won’t leave, two of the sharks press on to attack. Luckily for Puro, they haven’t yet mastered the ways of hand-to-hand…or rather, paw-to-paw combat as Puro stands his ground against the two sharks. Puro is able to incapacitate the two sharks in a matter of seconds, but more sharks are about to join in the fight, planning to overwhelm the wolf with sheer numbers.

‘Puro stop! It’s not worth it!’ You cry out in vain, hoping that he somehow hears your plea, but it is just wishful thinking.

Puro growls as he prepares for the oncoming sharks, preparing to fight harder. But suddenly, a flash of green glowing colour emits throughout the tunnel, appearing behind Puro. You can’t help but find this glow very familiar…

‘Wait, it’s Neon!’

And it doesn’t take long for you to gather what she is doing.

‘NEON WAIT! I’M HERE! I’M HERE!’

Unfortunately, just like with Puro…she can’t hear you, since Breton blocked you from receiving any telepathic link. Puro watches Neon in confusion but has a sense of understanding of her intentions, allowing her to do what she needs to do. Knowing what will happen, you mentally prepare for the oncoming wave of hypnosis…

‘Please don’t bring me back to that nightmare again!!’

You don’t want to relive the horrors of being hunted by that eldritch demon of…Neon? Or whatever that monster was supposed to be, it took a while to remind yourself that it WAS NOT HER.

And with her powers ready, she unleashes her fury against the aquatic latexes. Breathing through the grit of your teeth, you brace yourself for the mental assault.

And just like before, you feel a powerful mind crashing against yours, striking the same uncontrollable fear just like before. You feel this powerful emotion pushing you back, pushing you deep into the recess of your mind as everything becomes a blur. You try so hard to push it back, but all of this is useless, you are no match for her overwhelming power.

You dread what you will see, you fear that…you fear that…you must…you must…

…

----------------------------------------

“...keep running! Colin! You have to keep running!” your brother yells to you.

You don’t even bother to respond to your brother, too focused on running for your life.

You can barely comprehend what is going on, you don’t know what happened, all you know is that there has been a breach and a monster is loose! Right now, there is one chasing after you and your brother, if it weren’t for your brother you would have been ambushed by that thing!

The red blurring lights do not make your situation any better, only adding the stress and the catastrophe that might occur. You and your brother just need to stay hidden until help arrives with the means to take down any loose latex. If only they didn’t prey on humans!

Your brother stops you, gesturing downwards indicating the gap between the pipes.

“In here, we can hide in here!”

You quickly agree to your brother’s suggestion and climb into the gap, tucking yourselves into the corner as much as you possibly can, trying to stay out of sight.

You and your brother watch the corridor from your hiding spot in dread, praying that the plan will work. Everything comes to a complete standstill, your heartbeat racing as you picture your purser making its way down the corridor. You ignore the alarm blaring as you both stay quiet…

Suddenly, a sound of pattering can be heard.

*pat pat pat…*

You shut your eyes, looking away from the corridor as your brother copies your action. You’re no fool…these pursuers knew when they were being watched.

*...Pat Pat Pat…*

‘Don’t look…don’t look…don’t look!’ you keep demanding to yourself, trying to remove the thought of the latex grabbing you from your hiding spot.

*...PAT PAT PAT…*

You clench your eyes tightly, trying to resist the urge to yell in fear.

*...Pat Pat pat pat….*

Despite the sounds indicating that your purser is growing distant, you still refuse to open your eyes until you are ABSOLUTELY sure that your hunter is gone.

*...*

Thankfully, the silence beside the blaring alarm says so.

Carefully opening your eyes, you see your brother clinging onto his coat tightly, before whispering.

“...I think… they’re gone. We’re safe now…”

You don’t want to look down the corridor, despite the possibility that you and your brother evaded the latex.

“You think so?”

“Yeah…I…”

Suddenly, your brother clasps his hand onto his head, having that strange massive headache again. You worry that he might have overworked himself.

“You need to rest. Let me check,” you place your hand on his forehead, “Agh! Your fever is getting worse!”

You want to do something to help, but there’s only so much you can do for him, especially here.

“I’ll…get through this…” Matthew says between strained breaths.

Leaning out from the hiding spot, you peek down the corridor where the latex has presumably run off to. Climbing out of your hiding spot, you feel a sense of relief. You are both safe…for now…

But now what?

Would it be better to stay hidden until the chaos dies down? Maybe…but there is a risk that the latex might decide to turn around and backtrack. While heading back would be no issue, there is still a risk that you bump into another loose latex. But if you got to safety and regroup with the others, it might save you from the stress of having to survive without anything to protect yourself.

Stay or go? Which is the better one? Maybe you should ask your brother for his opinion.

“What do we do now? Should we stay hidden until help arrives?”

…

The lack of response is starting to bother you, is your brother’s headache THAT bad?

*SPLAT*

You jump in fright, fearing that you had been attacked by a latex for a brief moment. Instinct takes hold and forces you to turn around…only to be struck with horror.

Before you is your brother, fighting against a black latex that is attacking him from behind. The latex’s goo has already taken hold of his torso!

Your thoughts shut down as the worst possible reality enters your eyes, leaving nothing but terror.

Matthew thrashes all over left and right, trying his best to pull away from the latex behind him. The latex has its black paws clasping his face while the other grabs hold of his torso to restrain him.

You step back, before tumbling backwards and falling, unable to speak, move or even look away. Feeling so helpless.

The attacking latex pushes him to the ground, consuming his legs and torso completely. All that is left of your brother is his left arm and the remainder of his face. Reaching out towards you, as if calling for help, his left arm disappears into the goo…and then…his entire head soon after…the rest of him…

Gone…

But it doesn’t stop there.

Your brother…now a latex…starts to form a large bushy tail by its hips, its hands melding together into paws as triangular ears take shape on its head, removing human traits as the transformation goes on.

The creature pushes up to stand on its legs, the goo settling onto its new body and ceasing the dripping of latex. Fur starts to grow as the goo around its head takes place, as a white mask slides into place…

‘No…NO!’

The one who killed your brother is a black wolf.

The wolf looks towards you, its eyes gazing upon yours…just as you thought it didn’t get worse…it did…

You knew…the only black latex wolf that wandered these halls…is…

P U R O

And that’s what gives you the push you need to run. You scramble onto your legs and bolt, refusing to look back.

…

----------------------------------------

Then the world reshapes as something pushes you to the ground.

Your captor Breton struggles to fend off the hypnosis as many sharks and squidotters fall to the ground. The remaining sharks and squidotters standing are busy fighting each other in confusion and fear, failing to comprehend their actions. The havoc around you slowly dies down as the latexes either knock out their comrades or succumb to Neon’s powers.

For a brief moment, you can see Neon clasping her hands against her snout as she stares at you in shock, her glowing green colours fading away instantly, but the damage has already been done. The tears form in her eyes, the regret eating her away.

Before Puro could do anything, Neon runs away.

“Panther wait!” Puro calls out, but she doesn’t listen.

And then, all of the aquatic latex start to flee, returning to the familiar waters where they can recover from the traumatic and confusing event, leaving you behind… but none of this matters to you.

You curl up, hugging your legs tightly as tears flow freely from your eyes.

‘No…no please no…’

You want to believe it's just the illusion created by Neon, but you can’t ignore it… it's real…TOO real. What you saw was not a nightmare despite your best wishes, it is reality…your missing brother is gone for good…and you will never ever see him again…

You flinch and shuffle away when something touches your shoulder. The one before you stands Puro…the one in your lost memory…

“Human? Are you alright?”

The one…

“You…YOU!”

…who took him away.

“YOU KILLED HIM!”

You throw yourself up, shoving Puro away, refusing to leave yourself be vulnerable to the killer. Puro stutters as his ears pull back, not expecting your sudden outburst.

“I…WHY?? Why did you kill him??”

“H-human?”

“How could you hide such a thing from me? And ACT like you’re my friend?? You DO remember it don’t you??” you say to Puro, accusing him.

“Human, Puro doesn’t know what you saying! I don’t know what you-”

“SHUT UP! I was there damn it! I saw it all! You went and ate my brother in front of me!”

“You…had a brother human? A human brother?”

“Not anymore I do! Because of you! You…looked at me dead in the eyes when you did it!”

“Human! Puro doesn’t understand! Just explain-”

Puro tries to say something to you, but you tune it out. No! You will NOT listen to him! Not after everything! From what time you spent together with him…the promise he made at the lab…everything? It was all a lie. Nothing more than the means to hide the truth from you.

Silence fills the room as Puro steps forward.

And you will NOT let him deceive you any longer.

Seeing him step forward towards you, you act immediately, at least he decides to finish you off as well.

You clutch your hand into a fist, swinging it towards him, striking him in his mask. He tumbles backwards, shielding his mask with one paw as he peeks at you with one eye. You don’t think, just act.

Charging in for another attack, you swing your fist towards the mask again, but he predicts your action and blocks it with his paw. You quickly swing your other fist blindly, striking at Puro’s torso, but this proves to be ineffective. You must aim for the mask if you are to defeat him.

Refusing to let up, you strike for the mask only for Puro to grab the punch with his one paw, locking it in place. He then uses his other paw to strike where your elbow is, causing you to recoil in pain leaving you vulnerable.

Exactly where he needs you to be.

Using his leg, Puro swipes at your leg and pulls you towards him, throwing you off balance as he throws you to the ground. Before you can recover, Puro pins you down. Unfortunately with your back facing him, it is impossible for you to find leverage or fight your way for an opportunity to break free.

You need to break free! You need to-

*Drip*

A small drop of black latex drops in front of you.

*Drip*

Another one drips onto your back.

You realise the danger you are in, he is going to assimilate you!

You struggle harder than ever, the fear when you were transfurred for the first time coming in tenfold. You know what is at stake here, this is do or die.

Puro’s legs start to deform, allowing his goo to flow freely onto your legs as he starts to pull it towards his own, as though your legs are sinking into him. You panic as you start to lose the sense of your legs, unlike the other transfurs, it's like your legs are being fed into the abyss itself.

You try to claw your way out from under him, but Puro holds you firm.

His torso then deforms and wraps around yours, as you feel yourself disappear inch by inch by the black goo. You can’t even feel your own heartbeat, as your senses are shutting down, succumbing to the black goo.

As the goo builds up from your torso, Puro grabs hold of your hand firm, spreading his goo onto it as he starts to merge his arm with yours. The more he takes over, the more your body is shut down, losing itself in the unending darkness that awaits.

Tears build up in your eyes as you dread what will happen next. You feel as though death itself is pulling you into its grace, which you can never escape from. You feel dread…betrayed…and worst of all…a complete failure…you never even stood a chance against him, you were nothing to him…nothing but another host to consume just like any animal looking for prey.

It’s over for you.

…

And yet…the end never came.

Everything comes to a complete standstill as the goo halts its attack on your body. Before you can understand what is happening, the goo starts to retract, pulling away from your body and returning to the goo monster itself. For every inch that goo pulls away, is an inch you can feel again, your body crying out for salvation and the restoration of its senses.

Pulling back away from you, Puro pushes himself away from you as you scramble uncontrollably for a moment, regaining your ability to move again. Looking back, Puro simply just stares at you in confusion.

Not wanting to take any chances, you run and never look back…once again feeling useless.

…

…

…

Puro could only look at his paws, countless questions piling on and on with no answers in sight.

‘What…what did Puro just do?’

He doesn’t understand…this drive, these instincts that drive him to defend himself from human, blinded by tears and anger. When the human struck him in his mask, he felt the need to act, to defend himself by any means necessary.

The way he subdued human in a matter of seconds. How did he know how to do that? The feeling that he needed to pounce on the human confuses him. Why did he do that? And…was he really trying to assimilate him? Why did he almost kill his best friend?

If he didn’t realise in time…

‘Human…’

Regret begins to weigh on his core, as he tries to make sense of everything. The human was screaming at him, saying that he had killed his human brother. Did that really happen? Did he truly kill human’s brother? Nothing of this sounds like something he would do! But if that black wolf the human talked about was him…then…

‘Is this why Puro was shunned by the other wolves?’

He recalls the strange looks the wolves gave them. The refusal to look at him and the time he had seen two wolves gesture the young black latex pups to move away from him. The sketchy looks as they walk past him, the look of disappointment and disgust.

Now that he thinks about it…did the Elder know something about this? He recalls the strange ways the Elder reacted whenever he asked him questions about his past. The Elder would pretend he didn’t hear the question or manoeuvre the conversation onto something else or even use the young dragons to distract him.

All this could explain the wolves' dislike of him.

‘I…oh no…this can’t be true!’ Puro whimpers as tears start forming in his eyes.

This isn’t him! That’s not who he is! Him? A murderer? Why? The last thing in his mind is that he would want to kill someone! Let alone his human friend!

But then why did he have the sudden desire to transfur…no…to assimilate him? Puro places his paw to dry his tears, his disbelief, confusion and grief sending him into a deep state of conflict. What must he do now? Puro is not a killer…and yet he is a killer…Puro is a good latex wolf…and yet he is not…what should he do?

*Yeeooowwww…*

Strange sounds emit from a room nearby, Puro could not tell what this sound belongs to other than its meaning judging by its tone, sounds of growling along with grief. Well…it's a place to start…

Getting up, Puro walks to the edge of the room where the sounds are coming from. At first he notices a neon glow, and then, as his eyes widen at the situation, he changes from a walk to a run.

…

…

Neon claws the wall in front of her, angry at the damage she has caused for everyone. Her powers…it was meant to drive the aquatic latexes away! She did this to protect her strange wolf friend! She succeeds yes…at the cost of getting the human in the crossfire once again.

‘All wrong! All wrong!’

This isn’t what she had planned! Not only did she hurt the human again, but he is now angry at the wolf! The yelling caught her attention after she had run away after realising her mistake, she came back to check only to see the human attacking the wolf! It looked like a rift between two people she thought were friends, and it HURTS.

‘Bad Neon! Bad Neon! Neon bad friend! Neon scolds herself, trying to stop her tears from flowing freely.

Everything has gone wrong! Terribly wrong! She just wanted to help! Not make everything worse! What good of a friend is she when all she does is fail, fail, fail? Neon is nothing but a bad friend! Her power…it’s done nothing but hurt her friends! She can’t have friends if she has this stupid power! She wishes it would just-!

Neon gazes at her claws, as dark thoughts fill her head. Her eyes…the curse in her eyes! If that’s the source of her devastating power, then she should just destroy it! She’s seen sightless latex before, and they somehow see the world in their own way… perhaps she could join them.

Neon growls at herself, trying to convince herself to do it. She should do it, she must! This is punishment! It’s the only way, isn’t it? To rid of this evil power once and for all? She exhales, shuddering as she readies her claws for the attack… it's so easy yet so hard…all Neon wants is friendship! That’s all she wants! Is that so much to ask? And this is the price she’ll gladly pay!

But before she can do that, a black paw restrains her arm from behind as a strange gibberish sound emits from beside her. She doesn’t even need to look to see who it is.

…

‘Strange wolf?’

Despite everything, the wolf still comes to her side in need. Does he not understand that everything is her fault? Why everyone is upset? Why everyone is hurt because of her? Can’t the wolf see that?

Neon’s fur glows as she looks Puro in the eyes and yells out all of her guilt to him, all the crimes that make her deserving of punishment.

‘Why are you still here, wolf? Neon is a bad friend! Neon hurts human! Neon made human angry at you! Neon does everything wrong! Why stay with Neon? Neon bad! Bad, bad, bad! Neon’s powers are evil! Neon is evil! Neon will not have friends! Never!’

…

…

Puro pauses in disbelief as the voice rings into his head, it is quiet…yet so clear…was this from Panther? Did panther do that? Did she…use telepathy? And send it to him? But he thought his telepathic mind was broken! Frozen away from his time in that stasis pod, did she manage to get her message through somehow?

‘Panther’s name is Neon…’

He heard everything that Neon says, her guilt…her frustrations…her desires…yet shame of this strange power of hers. All of it rings into his mind as though she has spoken the very words to him. Puro understands, but he does not blame her…he never did and never will.

It was a better instinct that drove him next, as Puro brings his paws onto Neon’s and stands up, pulling her with him.

“Puro understands your frustration, but none of this was your fault. Human and Puro seem to have an…unfavourable history. You did the right thing saving human from the mean latex, Puro was the problem…not you.

Neon looks up to him in confusion but she seems to have a sense of understanding…as if she understands what he is trying to say. Her glowing eyes seem to grasp at the possibility of forgiveness and understanding.

“You don’t have to be lonely anymore, Puro is your friend now.”

Pulling her into a hug, Puro rests his head by her shoulder as Neon freezes at the contact, but slowly, Puro feels her relaxing. He notices her tears flowing onto him and feels his own joining them. Neon managed to reach through a curse he’d been stuck with for his whole life. It was cathartic to finally hear the thoughts of his own kind, rather than their spoken form.

She would have a friend now, a friend she can talk to, to see the world together…even if they can’t understand each other most of the time… they would figure something out… and somehow, she receives his isolated, invisible thoughts. Puro knows she heard it. She’s purring now.

And while this leads nowhere closer to discovering his past nor confirming his history with the human, he can figure it out later, he has someone right now that is depending on him and his comfort.

Puro is a good latex wolf…no matter what…

…

…

…

Not once have you stopped thinking about that horrible memory.

You run through doors and corridors, trying to get as far away from the aquarium where you learned the ugly truth. Never could you imagine your friendship turning out this way, your ‘friend’ Puro, was the one who assimilated your own brother! And he tried to do the same to you! You don’t even know what happened back there, you were supposed to be dead!

You don’t understand why he let you go in the first place, but it just serves to make a mockery of your failure to put up a decent fight. You were just as helpless as the brother that died in front of your eyes.

You blindly pick directions, ignoring the latex that you come across, ignoring their yips or sounds of surprise. Thankfully, none of them decide to chase after you, maybe sensing your desire to be left alone.

Eventually, you find yourself in a more jungle-like area but you keep pushing on, running until you can’t find the strength to do so anymore. You collapse by a tree, catching your breath recovering from the overexertion you put on yourself. Away from all the other latexes…

Except for the familiar brown bear trap with a few goo splotches next to it, resting not too far from you.

‘Again…really?’

At this point you just lack the energy to care, deciding to ignore it as long as it stays EXACTLY where it is.

Ignoring the odd latex, you go back to your own thoughts…trying to figure out what to do now. The idea of going to see the outside world feels pointless now…what point was there anyway? When your family is missing and your brother is dead? Who’s to say that your parents are even alive at this point.

You feel so alone…what should you do now? Who CAN you trust? Even your own memories abandoned you at your darkest hour. There is nothing left anymore, the end of the line.

…

‘Hello? Are you alright, small one?’ A powerful yet motherly voice reaches your mind.

You don’t care enough to respond, you just want to be left alone.

‘I can feel you are distraught, are you hurt?’

You don’t respond, lost the will to even talk.

‘...Perhaps this is worse than I thought. It’s almost as if you have given up.’

‘But I can’t leave you like this, poor child.’

*THUD*

Looking up, through the gaps of the trees, you see something large coming your way. It’s… a Behemoth!?

The behemoth dons light brown fur, but unlike the other Behemoths, this one is anthropomorphic. As she gets closer, gliding between the branches of this indoor forest, you can see the Behemoth in much greater detail.

She has a whitish coloured underbelly, with some…noticeably feminine features on her chest. She also has dark brown fur forming around her paws, giving them a glovish impression of sorts. The Behemoth has a long bushy tail swishing idly behind her, with hints of white colouring the bottom half. Looking up to face the Behemoth, you see that she has ruby red eyes with circular ears…like a Hyena.

The oddest detail of this Behemoth is the mohawk-like tuft of hair that stands out on top of her head; pure white with a tinge of navy blue at the end of it.

You try to get up to run, but almost fall over instead as a wave of dizziness assaults you.

‘No no no, don’t worry, don’t worry. I am not here to hurt you.’ The large hyena says, leaning down in front of you, halting your futile attempts to run. You look at her in the eyes, feeling a strange sense of ease and safety.

‘I did not expect to see a human running around here, normally your kind schedule yourselves somewhere else. What brings you here, small one? Why are you so heartbroken?’

Not once did you look away from her gaze, finding her presence to be so familiar and comforting. You pick up a strong sense of love and care just by her posture and tone of voice alone. Very much like…a mother would.

‘I…I…’ You try to speak it out, trying to rid yourself of the burden of keeping your grief all bottled up. The Hyena reaches out and places one of her paws on your head, encouraging you to open up and tell her your troubles.

‘I lost my brother! I-I remembered losing him to a latex! A monster! I can barely remember anything about my family! Not even myself! I don’t know where they are anymore! I lost EVERYTHING! They’re all gone! GONE!’ You cry out, breaking down in uncontrollable tears.

Everything just hurts, too much terrible news to take in all at once. You’re reliving the horrors of your past all over again, and chances are, there would be more to come. It’s just not fair! Did you deserve any of this? You did nothing wrong! Nothing! And now you must live on with the fact that you have no one left by your side.

…

You feel something soft grab you, gently lifting you up as you feel a sense of distortion. A soft furry blanket then presses against you, as you gently curl into it. Opening your eyes for a brief moment, you see that you are being held firmly against the Hyena, giving you as much comfort as you can handle. The Hyena says nothing as she brushes her paw against your head, putting your mind somewhat at ease.

‘I see…you lived here before, yes? Years ago when we were created?’

You say nothing, but the Hyena picks up a sense of affirmation from your mind.

‘I barely remember our time years ago when it all happened. Everything fell into chaos when we were released. Everyone was so scared, everyone wanted to live. It was a complete tragedy for those who lived in the institute.’

You try to quiet yourself down and listen closely to the hyena’s words.

‘We didn’t think there would be anyone left, nor any more humans that would come to visit this very place we call home. There are a select few…but it’s mostly for duty sake whatever it may be with the black latex, away from the rest of us. I remember hearing rumours a few days ago that a human was seen roaming around the institute aimlessly. I wasn’t so convinced myself…until now.’

The Hyena brushes your head as she peers down at you with a pitying look.

‘Some rumours say that you seemed lost, confused even, some say you are scared of us. Many of us still want to see you in person. I understand that we may seem strange to you, but, we too love and care.’

Placing a paw under your chin, the Hyena says:

‘I understand your pain, we have regrets about what happened. We did so much harm to you, but we've changed so much since then. So…human, give us a second chance to prove that we care. I want to help you, but I can only do so if you allow me to. I know giving a second chance is very difficult but please…I don’t want to see you so miserable, and neither would your family.’

…You don’t know what to say, you feel so lost. Should you feel angry? You just couldn’t, not like this. You remember the note left by the Elder at the start of your journey, talking about giving a second chance and keeping an open mind. Was this what he meant? You should say no, you don’t want to see any of them again…not after everything…

And yet…

‘Okay…I’ll…try.’

And yet your heart says yes.

A sense of relief and joy reaches your mind as the hyena squeezes you in a firm hug, happy that you made the choice to let yourself be helped.

‘I’m so happy right now human. I promise you won’t regret it.’

‘I hope so…’ you blankly say, unsure of what to feel anymore.

Keeping you within her grasp, the hyena gets up from her knees and makes her way to somewhere, deeper into the institute, holding you gently against her.

‘Human? What is your name? I am aware that humans identify themselves with a name, so what is yours?’

‘Colin…’

‘Colin? Hmm…how strange…oh well. At least I know your name now.’

‘...Do you have a name?’

‘I do, they call me Mother Yeen, or just Malinda.’ She says, before humming to herself as she travels through the trees.

‘Oh! I think I may have someone I want to introduce you to.’

‘...Who?’

‘Hmm she wouldn’t say, but I’m certain she would appreciate the company, perhaps you could help cheer her up? She's been feeling down lately, and whenever I try to comfort her, she just sends me an image of you and then continues to mope.’

What a strange offer, but even stranger was…

‘An image of me…’

…

The heck was that about?