"Nrhk!"

Guila was pulled from half-consciousness by a gut-trembling rumble and thrown face first against the cold hard floor. Somehow, she wasn't knocked out. But instead, her already aching body felt even worse than it did before. Maybe her wounds had reopened. She couldn't see anything because the power went out and once the tinnitus faded away, she heard nothing but the ear-splitting screech of bending metal. It would still be a while before her night vision would kick back in, but she forced herself to roll onto her back with a groan.

"... A-Ariel…!"

Guila called out as soon as she realized that the floor was now tilted by nearly 30 degrees towards where Ariel was. But the real problem was that one bad warp could seal them in here. The ceiling might’ve even caved in and she was just unlucky enough to still be alive. She’d been at death's door multiple times now. Each time worse than the last. But never once had she imagined an end so bleak and…

"Mistress…" An answer came and seemingly all her worries eased. "I'm here, Mistress… I'm glad you're okay." It took a moment for Guila to pinpoint the direction of her voice, yet she was sure. Ariel's bed was right in front of her. She was also located higher than she was, which meant she was still on the bed. "But I can't move. You should leave quickly, before they come."

“Huh?”

“Please, quickly. Get away from this place and find Master, as soon as possible.”

"... What are you talking about?"

"I can hear screaming, Mistress. They're distant, but they're getting quieter." Of course, Guila couldn't hear anything. However, a Vulpina's ears were several times more sensitive than humans. If desired, they were even capable of hearing high frequencies similar to those that dogs can. Almost like they could set it however they wished. But Guila couldn't believe it. "Please, Mistress. Quickly. I don’t want to hear you scream like them too." She just couldn't believe what was coming out of Ariel's mouth. "Something is cutting off their voices."

"Stop mewling!" She yelled and rolled back onto her stomach. Guila’s shoulder and left hand still ached and she couldn't move them properly - but she only really needed her elbows. So she crawled, even as she screamed through gritted teeth to do so.

"But Mis-"

"Shut up!" Guila crawled over the fallen curtain separators. Then she blindly swung her arms around, trying to grab the edge of Ariel’s bed. It was exhausting, and took more than everything that she had left in her, but after a solid five minutes, she was finally standing against the bed - looking down at where the Vulpina should be strapped and immobile. "How dare you…" Guila said through gritted, trembling teeth. "You think you're allowed to give up, just because of what I said?! Stop being an immature brat! Who cares if I don’t love you? If I never love you?! My husband had you made, because he wanted you! Your life belongs to him, and until he says otherwise, your priority is to get back to his side! Now grow up so that we can find him! Your self-righteous sacrifice is worth less than nothing!"

Although she nearly fell over after letting go, Guila managed to bend down at the waist and fell against the bed instead. Her hands then landed on Ariel's stomach and felt the toned abdominal muscles beneath her thin dress. From there, it was easy to find her wrists. Even easier to loosen the belt and buckle strap around her left wrist. But then, Guila found out that Ariel’s right wrist wasn't even held down. In fact, it had been torn loose. "What is wrong with you?!” She roared at her. “If you were already free then why-?!"

"I can't move, Mistress!" Ariel cried back, just as another accusation was about to be thrown her way. "They injected something in me, this time!"

"I'm worse than just useless now!" Of course, Guila realized. Vulpinae weren't only able to hear much better than humans, they could be made stronger and tougher too. As much as the purchaser wanted. The cloth that connected the strap with the bed was thin and would’ve been easy to tear apart. So when she escaped the first time, they made sure she couldn't do so, again.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

'Why did you escape earlier, then?' Was a question that she didn't need to ask. Because the answer had already been given. And now, after what Guila had said to her… How could she convince Ariel to do what I wanted? "... Your only priority still doesn't change! So beg, Ariel! Beg me to help you return to the one person in this entire galaxy that desires you. Scream and curse at me if I even try to walk away!"

"... Mistress…?"

"If you really have no other reason to live than me and my husband, then prove it to me!"

“... But I…”

“Do you dare believe that your life belongs to you?!”

“No…! I don’t! I would never-!”

“Then beg!”

"... I... P-please…! Please help me, Mistress! Don't leave me behind!"

"Finally!"

It took a much longer time than last time, but Guila's eyes finally acclimated to the darkness, granting a red-hued night vision. Only when it happened, did she learn why. A massive crack now ran across her scuffed up left field of vision, effectively blinding her in one eye, while her right eye had scratches. But it was enough. Luckily, the room didn't seem deformed beyond now tilting, and most of the furniture had been bolted to the floor. However, all tools and medical equipment were now gathered against the wall. Some of them were under Ariel's bed, too. But those were probably from Guila's side of the room. It took another few seconds before she was able to organize her thoughts and come up with a plan.

"Temporary paralytics always come with an antidote on the other end. But they're specific to each type, depending on the duration, and are slow to take full effect! They would've left it here in case a nurse noticed a complication. So what did it look like, Ariel? What type of syringe? What color?!"

"I-it was yellow with two black stripes! There were letters on it but I don't know what it said!"

"That's good enough, Ariel! Great job!" It was honest praise, given that she was able to remember that much, despite what was happening to her physically and mentally. Guila went down on her knees and activated her eyes' color correction, but even when she was in perfect shape, the features caused painful migraines in the front side of her head. But now, her damaged eyes felt like hot iron rods searing into her skull. Still, she grit teeth through the pain. Screaming here would just distract her and make the pain last longer.

“-ahk!” Guila moved as quickly as she could, nearly cutting herself on some shattered glass several times. But it still took an agonizing thirty seconds before she finally found the bright yellow syringe underneath a metal tray, in the middle of a water and disinfectant pool. "Got it!"

"Really?!"

She quickly turned off the color correction, then grabbed the plastic syringe and confirmed that the liquid in one end had indeed been spent. Which meant that the other end was the antidote. At least, that was what the labels said. Guila nearly fell over again when she tried to stand, but thankfully she grabbed the railing just in time and with one last grunt, she managed to inject the antidote into Ariel's left breast. "Aiek!" Ariel jolted, having not seen it coming. Which meant, she still had sensation, just not the ability to move.

"It'll… take a day before you can move fully.” Guila gasped in between her words, repeating what the directions stated. “But you should be able to stand and walk again in twenty minutes. You can't overexert, though…Your organs were also paralyzed, but to a lesser degree. Your lungs might not be able to handle it, if you ran or jumped… Do you understand?"

"Y-yes! I do!"

"Good… good… I'm just going to… ngh…" Barely believing that she actually succeeded, Guila pulled the syringe out, and let herself fall onto Ariel's stomach - her injured right leg finally giving up. "Haa… Haa…" She heaved. 'I’m not good with this sort of physical activity.'

"Tell me…" She whisper-gasped, staring at Ariel's chin and listening to both of their heartbeats. "What's happening outside? What can we expect?"

"... metallic, or something like it. I heard many loud bangs and high-pitched pings…"

"Those must've been weapons… the bangs are probably powder-based ones for civilians. The pings would be energy weapons, military exclusive."

"… Well, a few minutes after they stopped, the screaming did too. Then, everything was replaced with, I think, chittering."

"... chittering?"

"Yes… like things that keep hitting each other very quickly. That kind of sound."

"... is it still there?"

"Yes…” Ariel paused her eyes darting across the ceiling. “Actually, they're everywhere. From above and below. Left and right… it's coming from every direction. What are they, Mistress?"

"... I… have no idea. Maybe it's just part of some emergency protocols. Maybe it's the autonomous repair drones? The fact that people are now using their firearms is the real problem, though. It might be a war zone out there now… We’ll need to keep out of sight…"

"..."

"..."

"... How long has it been, Mistress?"

She glanced at the clock in her periphery and sighed.

"Almost 40 seconds. Still a lot more to go."