Slimantha’s black shoes lightly tapped the silvery steel of the floor as she entered into a steel room. Samuel, Mimi, and Black entered after her. Overhead, LED panels cast down warm-hued light. Slimantha came to a stop, and then she stretched, hinging at her hips as she did so. She straightened back up, and the lights flickered. She blinked and then glanced about. The silvery steel of the room glinted in the lighting.
At the back of the steel room, a cylindrical steel construct sat. A certain cat woman, Black, walked up to it, her footfalls making light taps upon the steel floor. She came to a stop just in front of the construct. She blinked, her brown eyes on the steel structure. Was this a kind of containment chamber perhaps? Could something be in it? She glanced up, glanced up to the illuminated green LED toward the top of the steel containment chamber. Was the chamber active? It certainly looked to be closed. She reached forward and pressed her right palm against the chamber’s side. The steel was warm.
“I am so glad we lost them,” Samuel said. He stood not with Black, who examined the steel containment chamber, but with Slimantha and Mimi. He bent over and let out a puff of air.
Slimantha giggled, bringing her right hand to her lips. Her beautiful brown eyes were on Samuel. “They were just a murder of crows,” she said. “Nothing all that serious.”
Samuel straightened up, his blue eyes meeting Slimantha’s brown eyes. “I’m pretty sure those crows had it out for us,” he said. He then frowned as Slimantha giggled again.
“Well,” Mimi looked from Slimantha to Samuel, “we lost them didn’t we.” The mimic smiled, getting a smile from Samuel in return. Her golden eyes then went to Slimantha.
“Hey guys!” Black called out from the back of the room. She still stood beside the steel containment chamber. “Come check this thing out! There might be something in it!” Her black feline tail swished behind her.
Slimantha looked at Black, her brown eyes meeting Black’s brown eyes. “Sure,” she said. “I’ll be right over.” She walked up to the cat woman. Both Samuel and Mimi headed over with her. Her eyes shifted from Black to the steel containment chamber. “So what is this thing?”
Black smiled, and then her brown eyes went to the steel containment chamber. “This thing?” Her black cat tail swished playfully behind her. “I think it is a containment chamber.” She glanced up to the green indicator LED. “I think there is something in it.” Her tail swished again.
“Do you think,” Slimantha looked at Black, “there might be a containment chamber in the containment chamber?” Slimantha smiled and shifted her weight from side to side.
Black blinked. Her tail twitched. She then looked at Slimantha. “I doubt that,” she said. She returned her eyes to the steel containment chamber. “If you lend me a slime, I could do a reading.” The chamber beeped, and the green indicator LED went out. A red indicator LED then came on. “Actually, hold that thought. I think it is doing something.” Black stepped back. So too did Slimantha, Samuel, and Mimi.
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The upper portion of the steel containment chamber slid up. Mist poured out of the steel contraption. As the mist dissipated, the form of a crow, a large crow, came into view. The crow cawed. Its beady black eyes were on Slimantha, Samuel, Mimi, and Black. It did not have the normal eyes of a crow though. Instead, both its eyes each contained the likeness of an upward-turned sword. It stretched its wings, extending them outward. A plethora of silvery sword blades extended forth from its outstretched wings. It then retracted both blades and wings. In unison, Slimantha, Samuel, Mimi, and Black all sweatdropped at the sight of the peculiar crow.
“It,” Slimantha looked over the peculiar crow, “is like a sword but also a bird.” Her face light up, her brown eyes sparkling. “I got it! It is a swird.”
Samuel blinked. He then glanced at Slimantha. “A sword?” he said. His blue eyes went to the swird. “I don’t get it.”
Slimantha stepped in front of Samuel and puffed her cheeks out. “No. No. No. Not a sword. A swird.” She leaned closer to Samuel, her face close to his face.
Samuel blinked again. “Not a sword but a sword?” He stepped back. “I really don’t get what you are saying. I’m just hearing sword.”
Mimi burst into laughter at Samuel’s right. “She is not saying sword,” she said, the occasional giggle slipping out between words. “She is saying swird. It sounds like sword, but it is not sword. Swird is the combination of the words sword and bird.”
“I,” Samuel blinked, “see.” He glanced at Slimantha, and then his blue eyes went to the swird. “So that thing is a swird then.” He returned his gaze to Slimantha.
Slimantha gave Samuel a happy smile. “I’ll try communicating with it,” she said. She then turned away from Samuel and to the swird. She stepped forward, her brown eyes on the swird. She took a deep breath and then cawed at it. It cawed back. A drop of sweat rolled down her right cheek. She glanced at Samuel. “I may have accidentally insulted its mother.” Her brown eyes then went back to the swird. Needless to say, the swird did not look all that happy.
“Insulted its mother?” Samuel said. “Really?” He glanced at the swird. His blue eyes then went to Slimantha. “Just what were you trying to say to it anyway?”
Slimantha gave a nervous laugh, placing her right hand behind her head. She fidgeted a bit, her long brown hair swaying. “Actually, I’m not all that sure,” she said.
Samuel facepalmed. “Not sure? Seriously?” His blue eyes met Slimantha’s brown eyes. “Next time, just go with common.” He sighed and then turned to the swird.
Fire flashed in the swird’s beady black sword eyes. It cawed an angry-sounding caw. It looked at Slimantha and spread its wings. Once again, silvery sword blades extended forth from its wings. Then the blades retracted, and it pulled in its wings. It hopped out of the steel containment chamber. Its sharp talons tapped against the silvery steel of the floor as they made contact. Its eyes were still focused upon Slimantha.