He should thank his Maker when he had a chance, though he wondered if he should.

Narati fell to the building’s basement, but he managed to land on his feet and rolled to minimize the injuries. It still hurt and he felt numb temporarily. He was glad to have missed his axe; he did not want to think how his weapon would do to him if he landed on it. Good thing it was only sharp on one edge.

He looked up towards the hole he fell from. It was rather high up, at least one or two floors up. Any higher and even Narati would doubt his survival. His thoughts quickly turned towards the room he ended in. His natural Fa’ari night vision helped assess his surroundings as if he was standing in a well-illuminated room, albeit without the benefit of color. Even so, he did not need color to find his way through the corridor just beside him.

“Thank the Maker I got night eyes,” commented Narati. “I would be scared stiff wondering what’s waiting for me in the dark.”

No sooner than that, a heard a loud roar echoing through the corridor. Narati let out an exasperated sigh.

“Of course, something’s going to come up and prove me wrong,” he said, brandishing his axe. “Really starting to regret not taking the proper axe with me.”

Then again, he wondered if he could. The axe he wielded was heavier than he thought. He could still wield it properly, but he might not be able to swing it with enough force to make it effective. He was fortunate that the axe’s handle was wood, which reduced its weight somewhat. If the relatively light axe he currently had was rather heavy, the circular saw axe he preferred would be heavier by a lot.

Narati immediately returned to the present situation when he heard the same roar, though this time, after he paid close attention to it, found that the roar sounded peculiar. It wasn’t the roar of a beast. Wondering if it was something else, he decided to take a look, starting by walking towards the corridor slowly so as to not alert anyone.

The third roar was far louder than before, but it also showed Narati that whatever producing that roar was in agony. He could easily tell from the way the roar turned to an agonized scream. There was no mistaking it.

Narati hastened his pace while keeping himself out of view, hopefully still in the dark. He immediately hid himself when he saw some Fa’ars walking out of a corner. He knew he would not be able to hide in the dark against fellow Fa’ars with natural night vision, so he quickly stayed out of sight while they stopped by the intersection to have a chat.

“(What does the boss needs?)” asked one of them. “(There is no point shocking him if he’s not going to give us what he needs).”

“(He doesn’t need answers. That insane Fa’ar was doing this for his freakish experiments. Did you see what he did with the rest of them? Good thing I don’t have any mana, or else I’ll be put in one of those contraptions).”

“(You think this one’s going in one of those?)”

“(Unfortunately).” He shrugged. “(Better check on the subject. Check if he’s viable. I’ll check on the trap to see what fell. I’ll call on you if I need help to drag them).”

Narati quickly returned to the room he ended up in, knowing that there was no place to hide in the corridor. It was too wide for him to climb. Fortunately, the corridor was smaller than the room, giving him a wall beside the corridor to hide away from the Fa'ar's peripheral vision. He quickly moved to one of the walls, waiting for the Fa'ar.

Soon, the Fa’ar came into the room. He looked surprised that no one was there. He then looked up.

“(Door must be malfunctioning),” he commented. “(Better ask someone to-)”

He never got to finish his sentence. Narati took this opportunity to split his skull open with his axe, killing him instantly. He immediately took his axe and returned to the corridor, hoping to find the source of the agonized roar, which was no longer heard after the two appeared. He considered doing whoever’s being tortured a favor by splitting one of their skulls open.

Concluding that no one was going to surprise him, he stealthily crossed the corridor and kept hugging the corner wall, peering into the other corridor. There were a couple of featureless, metal doors, one of which was partially open. Narati surmised that was the source of the roars, so he carefully approached the door and peered into the room. Noting that it was hard to determine what’s inside, he carefully opened the door, hopefully without alerting anyone inside. The door was fortunately silent, so Narati slowly opened the door until he could see the whole room.

He only saw the other Fa’ar facing another room talking to someone, though the other one did not reply his answers. He could just be talking to himself since Narati couldn’t see who he was talking to. Narati quickly determined that this Fa’ar could hold the answers he seeks ever since he fell into the hole, especially when he talked about the boss who could possibly be Asran. Without so much of a hesitation, Narati crept towards the Fa’ar, taking care not to alert him, then quickly tackled him using the subduing technique Raine taught him against bigger opponents. The Fa’ar he subdued was not bigger by a lot, which made it easier for him to twist his arm behind him and kept his right knee pressed on the back of his neck. His bigger, digitigrade legs were enough for a Fa’ar. He looked around, but was then immediately surprised by what he saw.

There was no one else in that room but Narati, the Fa’ar, and a leonine person on the other side of the room. He had seen better days, with cuts and bruises all over his golden brown-furred body. His head was slumped forward, snout and face mostly obscured by his unkempt black mane. He was forced to kneel, each of his limbs were secured by shackles. His arms were spread open like wings and kept in the most uncomfortable position. Somehow, Narati could relate; he, too, was put in the same position several times before.

Narati could not afford to be distracted. He twisted the Fa’ar’s arm further, causing him to grunt in pain.

“(Choose your words carefully, and you get to take a breath),” said Narati, keeping pressure on the Fa’ar’s throat.

“(W-what?! Who the hell are you?!)” said the subdued Fa’ar with a strained voice. “(Where’s…where’s Sada?)”

“(Indisposed).” Narati increased the pressure on the Fa’ar’s neck, causing him to gasp. “(Now, tell me. What is this place?)”

“(I…I don’t-).” The pressure on his neck increased. He started to become light-headed. “(It’s…it’s a compound! I don’t know much about it except the boss doing something freakish to the captives!)”

“(Captives? For what?)”

“(I…I don’t…I mean, I’m not sure! The boss needs mages. Magically attuned people. Untrained people with low potential are…killed too easily when they are hooked up).”

“(Hooked up to what?)”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“(There is a contraption. I don’t…I don’t understand what it does…but the mages…they were hooked up in there to extract their mana reserves. Past subjects…died too easily because they had low reserves).”

“(And this one? Is he viable?)”

“(I haven’t checked on him! H-how do you know that? Who are you?!)”

“(Let’s just say I fell through a garbage chute if that’s what that supposed to be. Too bad I landed on my feet),” commented Narati.

“(And you speak Fa’ari…. Maker’s bane! We should’ve anticipated a Fa’ar!)”

“(Or you don’t have the need to since everyone here’s a Fa’ar so you wouldn't expect a Fa'ari bounty hunter. Tell me. Is your boss Asran Taburan?)”

The Fa’ar did not reply, causing Narati to increase pressure to his neck and twist his arm further. He started gasping, but did not answer. Narati kept pressure, making sure not to knock him out. While waiting for the Fa’ar to answer, Narati wondered about the subduing technique. Where did Raine learn this technique from? It’s certainly not self-defense. It also had a potential to break bones, even spine, if needed.

“(Yes!)” said the Fa’ar after he couldn’t take it much longer. “(Yes, he is!)”

“(That’s all I need to know. Next question. Where is the exit?)”

“(G-go to the end of the corridor…and take a flight of stairs up. T-there is a trapdoor…leading to the courtyard outside).”

“(Yeah, I saw that. I wonder where that leads to),” commented Narati.

“(I…I don’t know anything else! Please! I can’t breathe!)”

Narati silently increased his pressure on the back of his neck, causing him to gasp for air. Soon, his body lay motionless. Narati let the Fa’ar go after making sure that the rat person was unconscious.

He turned his attention towards the lion man. He seemed unconscious, but upon closer inspection, he wasn’t. He didn’t struggle or let out a roar, either due to exhaustion or due to something else. He was staring at Narati with his barely visible yellow feline eyes. Narati, on his part, made eye contact with him silently, noting that their distance meant that he was safe from his sharp teeth, somehow unsecured despite their potential danger to his captors.

After a while, Narati spoke first.

“Are you okay?” he asked, wondering if he spoke Common. He seemed foreign despite looking like a Felinar. His round ears reminded him of Sakiri, though he was clearly stockier than the Chitra, though with well-toned muscles. They were easily seen due to his short fur. He wondered if the person was even a mage, at least until he remembered Karkas.

The lion man scoffed. “Is that the first thing you ask a battered Leonian? I’m in top shape, as you can tell.”

“You’re not helping by being sarcastic,” replied Narati.

“Then don’t ask such rhetorical question,” retorted the Leonian. “What do you want? From the looks of it, there is a break among your ranks.”

“I’m not with them,” said Narati, looking around for the key.

The Leonian scoffed. “Doesn’t matter to me. All of you look the same. To think I’d be tricked by that snake-tongued rat. This is quite embarrassing. Trussed up like an animal, tortured for their pleasure. If they see me like this, I would never hear the end of it.”

“At least you didn’t give them what they want. Ah, found it.”

Narati got the keys to the shackles that held the Leonian up. Without hesitation, he unlocked the shackle to the captive’s right hand. Almost immediately, he roared and grabbed Narati by the throat. The force was enough to stun the Fa’ar, and the strength of his grip threatened to break Narati’s throat.

“Finally!” he roared. “I am not going to be tricked this time, split-eared bastard! The others look the same to me, but I always know who you are!”

Narati, however, stayed calm and kept the key gripped tightly in his right hand (he left his axe on a nearby table). He then produced a spherical object from his satchel, then slipped his point finger to the pin.

“I won’t…try anything stupid…if I were you,” said Narati, straining to form words with his throat being crushed. “This thing…can blow your arm off.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Wanna bet?”

Narati’s determined, unwavering look, followed by him pulling the pin off the grenade while keeping it tightly gripped, made the Leonian surprised.

“Are you trying to kill yourself?” he asked with a worried tone.

“I am already dead a long time ago,” bluffed Narati, though it was based on the truth. “And if I blow myself up…the key goes with me. You’ll stay here…dying slowly…and in agony. Is that really what you want, sabangse?”

The Leonian contemplated. It did not take long before he released his grip on Narati’s throat. Narati proceeded to throw the grenade away. It did not explode.

Amused, the Leonian said, “Damn. You played a dangerous game, rat. Still, what are the chances of being saved by someone with the same features as he did?”

“I had someone mistaken me for him before. I know the feeling too well. I was lucky I managed to get away without having my leg eaten. It’s hard to convince someone when you can even speak.”

The shackles on the Leonian’s wrists were gone and he fell forward, only able to support himself barely with his weakened arms. Narati proceeded to try and unlock the wooden restraints, but found that the key did not fit. He proceeded to break open the padlock with his axe.

The Leonian was too weak to stand up, though only momentarily. After he caught his breath, he tried to stand on his two paws, supported by Narati. The moment he stood made Narati gasp in awe. He was big. Big and tall. His stocky, but muscly body, reminded him of Karkas, but without the sharp scales. He was infinitely more huggable than the Crocodilian, even if he was intimidating as hell. Narati was barely half his height, which became an issue when he realized that he had nothing but his own fur to cover his body. Narati gulped; he had a monster between his legs.

“Hey,” said the Leonian. “Eyes up here, rat.”

“I’m not staring,” replied Narati, though he evidently blushed. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright?”

“I’ll be okay, though I’m ravishingly hungry.”

When the Leonian turned to look at Narati as he sat, the Fa’ar said, “I’m not offering my leg, if that’s what you suggesting.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t eat a person, even if he’s a rat. There are far more fulfilling meals in the Plains than a Fa’ar.” The Leonian paused, looked at the Fa’ar, and said, “I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” said Narati. "At least someone's appreciative."

“So, if you’re not with them, who you’re with? These rats know where it hurts, but they certainly don’t move like you did. I doubt they can even handle a healthy, angry Leonian. That submission hold, though, is not something I’d associate with someone like you. Someone taught you how to fight."

“I’m with the one who’s hunting your captor, but we got separated,” explained Narati. “I need to find a way to return up there and help him. I know he can handle himself with his spells, but—”

“Is he a pure mage?” interrupted the Leonian. “If so, then he’s not going to be able to handle himself. There is a dampener field all over this building. Whoever running the place certainly knows how to deal with mages.”

“The Fa’ar mentioned a contraption. You know anything about that?”

“No idea,” said the Leonian, shaking his head. “That’s the first time I heard about it. They all speak Fa’ari to each other. I can’t understand any of it.”

“I see. Then I hope that Croc knows how to fight without magic because I might be a little preoccupied. I need to free these people now that I know what’s down here.”

“You? By yourself?”

“If I have to,” said Narati, raising his axe. “I know I don’t look like it, but I know how to fight.”

“I know you can handle yourself. What I mean is…you might need someone to help, namely me.”

Narati raised an eyebrow. “You will?”

“And because I’ve got nowhere to go and nothing to wear. I’m no mage. I only know basic spells. Without a weapon or anything to wear, I’ll end up in chains in no time. At least in this building, I can get whatever I need, then I’ll be on my way. Also, I’m starting to like you. I have never met a rat who’d willingly take some time to help. Most of the time, they just run away.”

“I made a promise to a friend,” said Narati. “To never abandon who I am. I made a promise to myself that I won’t let anyone suffer the same way I did. What Asran did was torture. I can’t turn my back, not when I know they did not deserve it.”

The Leonian cracked a smile. “Guess I was right.”

He then held out his hand. “N’Dari Abe.”

“Narati Vasra,” said Narati, accepting N’dari’s hand.

The two smiled at each other, pleased that the situation did not deteriorate and that they could find common ground with each other. After N’dari took a little more time to recover, he stood up, this time feeling much better and ready to get out of the room he was imprisoned in.

He never thought he would be saved by Fa’ars of all people, but he couldn’t complain, or turn back on his words. If the ratfolk’s intentions were noble, then he would help him the best he could.

Though he might want to get something to cover himself first. And a proper weapon.