Sasha zipped across the room, blaster aiming in every direction. She beamed a worker off a machine. Another trying to snipe her from a raised platform. She went for a third when a jet of water knocked them against the wall, Mr. Erin giving her a grateful nod. He had his hands full with a crowd of angry droids and grenade throwers. As much as she wanted to help, she had to move to avoid the thousands of lasers coming her way.

"Cripes. These guys just keep coming."

The room was quickly filling with smugglers, rushing in from who knew where and immediately targeting the three of them. What even was this place? Was the Comet Man loaded? He must have been to afford so many people working for him. And robots. She looked up as an army droids fell from the ceiling.

Oh. Great.

She whipped out her grenades, zipping away as she tossed them out. The cascade of explosions dropped the droids one by one.

Sorry, little bots. I'm sure you were nice.

They fell sparking to the ground, a few even leaking oil. She could only hope the damage wasn't irreparable. If only stunning lasers worked on machines. Sasha fell into cover, throwing aside her empty belt.

"Haven' fun there, Panther?"

It was Mr. Xan's voice. The panda was hiding nearby, pinned down by four active shooters. One was slowly trying to close the distance, moving from machine to machine in what Sasha assumed must have been stealth. She put an end to that with a quick blaster shot, the worker dropping cold on the spot.

"Getting used to shooting, at least," she said. "I hate getting shot at, though."

"It is the worst part of every blaster fight."

He stood up, hammer raised as the winds blew around him. It struck the machine he'd been using as cover, the entire mechanism flying skyward at the cluster of workers. They leapt away to avoid getting crushed, which Xan took full advantage of, running up to swing at them without mercy. Sasha winced. Maybe it was for the best he'd denied her sparring challenge. She took to the sky again.

Despite their numbers disadvantage, they were thinning out the herd little by little. The room stopped being as much of a death zone to zip around in. For her, at least. She even managed to snag a few extra grenades, using them to smoke out a worker who refused to leave their hiding spot. He dove away, flames exploding along the glass tubes he'd used for cover.

Much to the panther's surprise, the grenades didn't even make a dent.

"Huh." She shot the worker as he was getting up. "Guess the glass is-"

A hand grabbed her from behind, yanking her backward.

Holy! Sasha's claws sharpened, instincts kicking in as she was pulled toward her captor. Whipped around. Lemme go! Claws slashed the air, raking blood. And fur. Her captor winced, Sasha's fury fading as she caught the smell on the air. Recognized the white fur turned red. The hand still holding her mouth shut.

"Good to see you too, Sash."

The panther could only stare back at the smiling wolf, blood running down her cheek from where the claws had struck.

"Mpfh?"

The name came out as a garbled mess with her mouth being covered, but it still received a nod, Iris's tail swishing behind her. She was back. And seeing her just made all the emotions she'd pushed down come bursting to the surface. She wanted to both hug and berate her at the same time, but the wolf stopped her from doing either as she held up a hand. It was only then that Sasha noticed the barrier around the two of them.

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A field of shimmering yellow stretched out above both their heads, just barely small enough to fit the two of them. Iris put a finger to her lips, sneaking a glance over Sasha's shoulder before she spoke in a low voice.

"You have to be quiet," she said. "They can't know I'm here."

They? Her ears twitched, the sounds around her as loud as ever. As were the voices of her liaisons.

"Yo Twig, I'm on a roll here! What's your kill count?"

"This isn't a game, mush head!"

"Don't be a square! Hey, Panther! Panther? Ah, whatever. I'm winning anyway."

Machines were getting flung left and right, along with the people. So much so that several more drones came down, all making a point to focus solely on the panda. Iris watched it all with an intense gaze. It softened when her eyes met Sasha's, the wolf's voice lowering even further.

"I don't have much time, Sasha," she said. "He's on to me, and he knows I'm coming. And I know you've been following me."

Her ears twitched again. "Mpfphm?"

"Because I saw you, Sash. Or...felt you. It's hard to explain. I keep getting these-" She peaked around Sasha, the wolf shaking her head. "Look, I don't have time to explain. Just please do me a favor and go home. Forget you saw me. Move on while you can."

Sasha immediately frowned, pulling Iris's hand away.

"Don't be stupid, Sulky."

Iris frowned back. "I'm serious, Sash."

"So am I."

The barrier started to flicker, which earned a growl from Iris.

"Dangit. Sasha, we don't have time for this. Listen to me."

The panther folded her arms. Sulky had really gotten damaged while she was gone, hadn't she?

First she freaked out the minute they reunited after being light years apart. Then she got her waist-deep in lasers because of some underground smuggling ring. And now she had the nerve to tell her to go home? To just pack up and leave. Did she forget who she was? Her best feline friend. Not the kind of cat who'd just abandon her. Sure it hurt when she ran away, but that wasn't going to stop her from finding her again. Just like a little growling and some threats wouldn't stop her from bringing her back with her. No matter how much of a tail brain Iris was, she was still her closest friend next to Cici. No way she'd just up and leave her to sulk.

"Sash he'll kill-"

"I'm not going anywhere," she said. "Not without you."

The wolf growled though Sasha ignored her.

"Go on," she said. "You're going after the Comet Man, right? Don't worry. I'll find you again. I'm a pretty decent tracker."

She winked, which earned another growl from her friend. If it had been anyone else, she might have been intimidated. But both she and Cici had seen the wolf in salmon pajamas. Nothing she did could ever let them forget that. The panther rose. Just in time as the barrier finally flickered away.

"And don't worry," she said, stretching out her limbs. "I'm not gonna die on you. So you better not die on me either, Sulky. We can both kick his face in when we find him."

The wolf didn't respond. As she was glaring back at her, though, her body began to take on the same yellow shade as her barrier.

It was the same phenomenon she'd seen happen in the alley. Iris's body began to fizzle, fur becoming thousands of glowing yellow lights. They drifted away, dissolving into the air as any trace of her fell away. Even her scent. Sasha's smile faltered, the pain in her chest rising for the second time.

"I'll see you soon, Sulk-"

A sticky substance attached to her back.

"Huh? What thaaaaaah!"

Her scream rose as she was yanked through the sky, the ground falling away in the span of seconds. She was dangling from the ceiling.

What the heck? She pulled out GT. Or at least attempted to. No matter how much she swung her arms, the staff never came out. Nor could she feel it just beyond the void it always seemed to disappear into. She looked back at what exactly had her suspended.

It was a thick black web.

"Well well well."

Her whiskers twitched, Sasha recognizing the voice from below. As she did, she spotted both her liaisons, Mr. Erin pinned to a glass tube while Mr. Xan had his hammer stuck to the ground. The latter bared his fangs at the two new arrivals. The spider in the sparkling dress. The human in the red blouse. Just seeing them made it all too clear how so many smugglers could be working in one place. How such a large operation could be afforded.

Gabriella waved with her free hand, GT in the other. Sasha awkwardly waved back, Madame Dyre smiling up at her. The pirates of the Black Web. This was their operation.

"Nice to see you again, my child," the spider queen said. Her gaze moved to the others. "Now enlighten me, if you would. Why are you attacking my men?"

The only response she could muster was a nervous chuckle.