Kira swallowed back the sigh of relief trying to escape when she saw the green-haired one produce some keys and move to unlock the door. Since both Shouta and Zashi seemed to know them and didn't seem alarmed, this meant that these people likely had nothing to do with the slavers that had captured them. Maybe she had been right with her first guess and Shouta and Zashi were important enough to be rescued.

Although that begged the question of how they had gotten captured in the first place. If they were the kind of important that someone would send a spaceship out for them, that must mean that they were very important indeed. And according to all of her studies, very important people usually had guards with them. Even her mother had had a bodyguard when she had gone to the cities to see if they were repenting of their ways or not.

So if they had guards and could probably fight themselves, from how the other prisoners seemed to watch them with a wary respect, how had they been captured? Because to the slavers, it was all about profit and loss. And the losses they would incur from capturing a couple of high-profile targets would only be enough if there was a very high price on their heads. If there was a very high price on their heads, they would not have been placed in with her, simple as that.

She paused, trying to work it out with her very limited knowledge. Then, a terrible thought occurred to her. Just because these two had shown up, had taken out the guard, didn't mean that they were here to save the captives. They could just be infiltrating the ship to rescue their friends and then leaving as soon as they had accomplished their mission. They'd probably never factored adding in another prisoner to their plans. It had been enough to throw them off their game but from the speed they were moving at now, they'd made up their minds.

Sure, Shouta and Zashi had been kind to her while they were all sharing a cell. But that was undoubtedly the kindness of forced duress. Better to be on good terms with those occupying the same space than at odds. They had taken care of her, cleaned her wounds, fed her, and stood between her and threats. She wouldn't stand between them and their freedom now.

Taking a deep breath even as she felt tears prick her eyes, she gave a small nod, ignoring the small zing of pain from her neck. Although the two new aliens hadn't seemed to take issue with eye contact, it was probably only because of the other two. She needed to readjust her behavior as quickly as possible since they would be gone and unable to protect her.

Breaking eye contact with all four of the aliens, she looked at the ground and shuffled backward until her heel brushed against the wall even as she blindly found her hood and pulled it up so that it shadowed her face. There, the pathway to the door was open and Shouta and Zashi should realize that the path was clear for them to leave.

Maybe someday, if she was very lucky, they would cross paths again.

X

Ka'ya had just finished unlocking the door when the kit started acting weird. Sho'ta watched as she went completely still, not even breathing for a long moment. Had all the stress and action forced her to move too much, aggravating her injury?

Lifting his chin, he scented the air, trying desperately to figure out what was going on. They were so close to rescue and help, surely she wasn't going to rebel now? However, she didn't smell either in pain or desperate, like she was going to make a break for freedom as soon as the door opened. Which, would be inconvenient, but they would track her down as many times as necessary.

But no, her scent smelled incredibly bleak, as if she had lost all her hope at the moment when she should've been most hopeful.

He tried to catch her eye, to silently as what was wrong. But she abruptly looked at the floor, refusing to meet any of their gazes. Then, instead of moving forward toward the now open door, she shuffled backward slowly, painfully slowly, until she reached the back wall. Then, she did the strangest thing of all. She pulled her hood back up until not even a trace of her face could be seen under its shadow.

Another deep inhale told him that she wasn't scared or hurting.

No, instead, her scent smelled almost wistful and so unbearably sad. Confusion filled him as he tried to figure out what conclusion she had apparently come to. He caught Ryou inhaling deeply, his brow furrowed as he tried to pick apart the scents in the area but knew that his friend wouldn't be able to help at the moment, since he had to filter out all the area scents like Sho'ta had when they'd first been put in the cell.

Z'shi's feathers rustled as he turned to look at the chick, his expression confused but also holding hints of dread. He kept his voice low and soothing as he asked, "Sho, what is the chick doing? Surely she, she can't possibly think, that we're going to abandon her to save ourselves, does she?"

And suddenly everything clicked into place, his heart aching and breaking over what a selfless kit she was, even as amazement and pride filled him. How could one kit be so impossibly good? They had cared for her, so she wasn't going to stand in their way of rescue, she must know that an extra person would throw a major wrench in any escape plans and had resigned herself to being left behind.

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But even if the situation had been just them getting rescued, they would've made sure that she was rescued as well. But that was a moot point to worry about.

Both Ka'ya and Ryou looked horrified at the possibility, most likely wondering if they had somehow intimidated the kit. But he could deal with them later, right now, the kit took priority.

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath to center himself. While it irked him to waste time, it was best that he get himself completely settled and under control before moving forward. He needed to do this right, the kit was too important for him to mess things up because of messy instincts from the imprint.

Right now, she was probably lonely and scared but doing her best to repay their kindness. Which wasn't kindness, it was the bare minimum of decency, but he could quibble logistics later. They couldn't speak with her to clear up the miscommunication where she didn't know enough Common or sign and since she didn't want to watch them leave, they couldn't mime it for her either.

However, she also needed to get treated as soon as possible, since they didn't know if she was hiding more serious injuries under her garments where they couldn't see or smell them. Since there was already a treatment and processing center undoubtedly set up, protocol dictated that they were put in place as soon as safely possible, they needed to get her as far as the treatment center. He wasn't worried about the other cells, more peacekeepers would undoubtedly come and set them free soon and none of them seemed to be injured anyway.

So, first order of business, get her to medical then figure out how to communicate with her. Simple and easy.

Plan set, he opened his eyes and met his mate's uneasy gaze. "Unfortunately, I think that's exactly it. We'll sort that out later, once we have communication set up. Right now, we need to get her to medical."

He glanced at the others. "Ka'ya, you go first, you know the fastest way to the treatment center. Z'shi, you go next."

Z'shi made a protesting noise, "Sho, no..."

Sho'ta cut him off. "Your bright wings will give her something to focus on and distract her from the rest of the ship, hopefully. I've noticed that she seems to fix on their bright colors when she's resting. Also, your wings can block the sight of anything unsettling, if we need to."

Z'shi nodded, settling. "The kit comes next. She took down a Cresica, but I have the feeling that it was more blind luck than any skill on her part. Not only that, but her throat and face bear serious injuries from that encounter, so we don't know if she's more vulnerable or not, but I don't want to test it."

He turned to Ryou, a hint of shame filling him, although it was quickly pushed aside. "I need you to take the rear. Although it galls me to admit it, barring extreme necessity, I cannot seem to stray far from either the kit or Z'shi. I can still fight, but most of my senses are fixed on them and I would not be able to smell an ambush in time."

Ryou gave him a small nod, his gaze warm and understanding. "Of course, Sho'ta. We'll get your kit help as quickly as possible. However, what about the pair of you? We've seen footage of your 'capture' and they were far from gentle."

He and Z'shi both shrugged. "Some bruises and a bit of stiffness, but nothing worse than what we deal with from sparring with students or anything. But we're losing time. Are you all ready?"

There was a soft chorus of assents, so he got his plan in action. Z'shi went and joined Ka'ya at the cell door while he quietly padded over to where the kit was trying to merge into the wall. Stopping just far enough back so she wouldn't feel crowded, he let out a rumbling chuff of good-natured reprimand.

She froze at that, her hands curling into fists and he idly wondered for a moment if she were going to lash out at him. But the moment passed and her hands relaxed but other than that, didn't make a single movement to respond. His tail waved lazily as a hint of amusement filled him. He had the feeling that she was going to be a stubborn kit, it was going to be an interesting challenge to raise her properly.

A rumbling purr escaping him, he noticed that she seemed to relax at the sound. Interesting.

Reaching up, he gently nudged the hood back until it would've been off if the wall hadn't been blocking it from falling. But even with that, she wouldn't meet his eyes. He chuffed quietly, ducking down a little bit to meet her eyes so she wouldn't strain her injury.

When she finally focused on him, he offered her a small, closed-lip smile, just to test the waters. She blinked at him, her scent surprised but not fearful. Good. Satisfied that he had her attention, he said firmly, "Come."

She just stared at him blankly, but it didn't bother him. Finding a way to communicate came after making sure she wasn't dying. He repeated, "Come."

Reaching down and hoping she didn't smack him, he wrapped his hand around her wrist. When she didn't fight him, he tugged her gently forward. She resisted for a moment but then he gave another soft tug. Looking exasperated, she opened her mouth as if she were going to say something, only to wince and shut it when she opened it too far. So, instead, she huffed a quiet sigh and followed after him with resigned footsteps.

Once they reached the others, Z'shi gave a gentle croon, reaching over and running a hand lightly over her hair in an attempt to soothe her. She met his gaze for a brief moment, puzzlement clear on her face, before looking away again. Z'shi drooped for a moment before straightening again. Meeting Sho'ta's eyes, he said firmly, "Let's go."

Ka'ya whirled and immediately started back the way they had appeared from. Z'shi waited for half a breath before starting off after her, his wings spread enough to be ready to attack or defend but not wide enough to make them a target.

Sho'ta waited for a count of two before nudging the kit into motion. She gave a wordless grumble but obediently followed after Z'shi easily, matching her steps to mirror his after just a moment. Sho'ta's ears perked up in interest. Was she doing that on purpose or was it a subconscious habit of Terrans?

Shrugging it aside, he gave Ryou a quick glance and then started after the kit, making sure to stay close enough to keep her guarded but far enough back that he wouldn't get tangled up in her if he had to fight any stragglers.

After a long moment, he felt Ryou fall into place behind him, allowing his nerves to settle a little bit. She was as safe as they could keep her for the moment and they'd finally get her help.

She was going to be okay.