“Sash. Sash, can you hear me?”

Her eyelids flickered, Sasha blinking in the face of her canine companion. It felt like something hard was against her back, though everything else was a blur.

“Ugh. What...what happened?”

The wolf didn’t respond. She didn’t need to. As she became more alert, the memory of everything came back to her.

“Oh. Right.”

The mission. Her first mission as acting commander Sasha. A complete failure.

As her senses returned, she saw the prison they'd just attacked was nowhere in sight. Nor was the city in which her robotic companions were most likely being captured one by one. Assuming the AIC didn't dismantle them first. Cripes. She leaned back against the rough surface of what she assumed was some kind of tree. Its leaves were a strange pink color with red fruits growing among them. Several of those leaves had been wrapped around Sasha's wounds.

"I did what I could, Sash. Your wounds were bad, but you won't bleed out. The leaves here help with healing.."

Sasha winced, the pain still lingering despite her friend's words. Iris brushed her with her tail, offering her one of the red fruits. Though they smelled slightly odd, they had a sweet taste that almost reminded her of coconut milk. Strangely chewy coconut milk.

“Cripes.”

"Sorry. It's the only food I could find without drawing the AIC. They've got eyes all over the world."

Sasha swallowed, taking another reluctant bite. Though she hated the texture, her stomach growled for anything edible. Brushes with death always turned the panther ravenous. And eating helped distract her from her massive failure. At least for a few seconds. As she swallowed the last of the milky fruit, Iris was watching her in her usual silent way. She could tell she wanted to say something but refused to open her mouth.

Sasha got her attention with a tail flick to the nose.

"What is it?" she asked. "And don't say it's nothing. You're a bad liar."

Iris looked away, though she did finally find her voice again.

"Sash. You could have died back there. Almost died."

Her tail brushed her again, the wolf still refusing to look at her.

"I was supposed to be your backup. I was supposed to supposed to protect you. And you still almost got ki- ow!"

Sasha stopped the wolf with an immediate tail smack to the forehead. One that finally managed to get the wolf's attention, Sasha frowning back at her.

"Stop that, would you," she said. "Protect me? Really, Iris? I'm supposed to be the guilty one here. My mission, remember?"

The wolf rubbed her forehead. Sasha didn't know what was worse. That she'd failed or that her friend blamed herself for everything. Did she forget who ordered the assault? Who rallied the bots? Who turned their back on the Comet Man to stage this whole mission? She knew she hadn't. It was why she'd fought her in the first place. Iris would never have attacked her like that out of the blue. Not without a good reason. And she had one.

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"I'm the one at fault here," Sasha said. "I pushed this mission. I dragged you here."

"That's-"

“I know you didn’t agree with this plan."

Iris's ears fell, Sasha shaking her head.

"It's not something to feel bad about," she said. "This was a pretty stupid plan. In fact, I'd be fine if you hated me for it. At least then you might talk to me."

"Sasha."

She sighed, her hands folded in her lap. Maybe it wasn't the best time to bring it up. They were on a hostile world somewhere deep in enemy territory. But the more she thought about the wolf ignoring her. Of her constantly pretending like she didn't exist. The small talk. The self-blame. Even the instances of Sulky being Sulky. She didn't chase the wolf for so long just to be treated like a stranger. Even if it meant having the wolf yell at her constantly.

“You’re my best friend, Iris,” she said. “You and Cici. You both mean the world to me. I don’t care if we fight, but don’t just shun me. I’d rather you punch me in the face again. Hate me for real, Sulky.”

She looked up at her, Iris shifting.

“But I don’t hate you, Sash,” she said. “Yeah, you really tick me off sometimes. And I do think coming here was a terrible idea. But I couldn’t ever hate you for it. Not for long.”

She scooted closer.

“You’re my best friend too. I just don’t always have the words to say.”

Sasha nuzzled her scruff, the wolf giving her a gentle lick. She'd missed that. Iris being Iris. As the two sat under the alien tree, it was easy to forget the cosmic troubles. At least for a few seconds. Sasha purred, enjoying the moment as if she were back on Shiny lounging at the beach. It reminded her how much she wanted to see the waves again. Whether that be on Shiny or that tropical all-year planet Mr. Erin promised. She smiled.

“I’m still not giving up on those two,” Sasha said.

“I know, Sash." Iris gave her a nudge. "I still haven’t given up on stopping the Light Binder. But I'll help you, for now.”

GT materialized, Sasha using it like a cane to help her up. In her condition, fighting wasn't much of an option. Not unless she really wanted to see if gods were spirits.

“I take it you’ve got a plan B?” Iris asked.

“Actually, we’re more on plan E at this point.” She giggled. “Cripes. We may need to call for back-up.”

“Such as?”

Sasha thought a moment.

While the bots had most likely been taken out, she wasn't without her share of allies. The real issue would be convincing anyone to attack someone as strong as the AIC. Anyone sane would keep their distance, especially considering most had legionnaire troubles to deal with. But, that didn't mean she couldn't consult them for advice. And she just so happened to know two people who were well-versed in avoiding the AIC. Maybe even enough to give her pointers on infiltration.

“I gotta make a call.”

She pulled out her commpad, quickly scrolling through her contacts. If anyone knew how to handle the AIC, it was the leader of the Black Web. Madame Dyre. And Gabriella by extension. Considering how busy the first would be, she opted to call the second. Or at least, she was seconds away from doing so when she noticed her vision growing dark.

“Huh?”

The sun shone bright in the distance. But the area they were in sat shrouded in darkness. And there was no smell of rain.

"What the-?"

Her ears rose, both Sasha and Iris looking up as they finally noticed what had made things so dark.

Above their heads, a shadow loomed covering all the trees in the nearby vicinity. The engines roared overhead, trees blowing apart as it made its descent. A colossal structure of red metal that almost resembled a torpedo. It was a ship Sasha recognized almost immediately.

"Madame Dyre?"

She hadn't even sent the call through when her commpad lit up with a message.

Get on board. Now.

Before she could respond, she felt a black web latch onto her back. It was yanking her skyward seconds later.