I slowly rose to consciousness; my mind was fuzzy from sleep, and I couldn’t really focus. My wing ached something fierce.

Was I back in the lab again? Their drugs had made me feel this way...

No, the lab was gone... Wasn’t it?

Yes, now I could remember the ruins of the building. So where was I? I wasn’t sure, and I couldn’t seem to open up my eyes.

Why did my wing hurt? I had once hit a tree branch in a fast flight, and it had throbbed like this for a few days. Had I made another aerial blunder?

What was that smell? This didn’t smell like my home or like the forest. It was a heavy scent with some other odd smells.

I took a deeper breath; I felt like I should know that scent, but couldn’t seem to get my wandering mind to identify it. My mind was starting to clear somewhat, although my thoughts were still muddled and slow.

The mindlink was silent, no whisper of voice or emotion crossed it. I called, “Hello?” and heard my sleep-muddled voice, but no one answered. Where were my friends? Someone had always answered my calls before...

I tried to open my eyes again, and this time succeeded. I groggily blinked my eyes in the dim ambient light. What on Earth? My mind tried to make sense of my surroundings as I raised my head and looked around, still trying to wake up. My sight was somewhat blurry from sleep, and I blinked as I tried to clear my vision.

The first thing I could make out was that I was lying on some sort of soft cloth. I twisted my head to look around; the soft cloth extended behind me, and I could see a heat lamp in the back corner. There was a tray of red dirt beside me and two bowls in front of me.

I shook my head to try and clear my mind as well as my eyesight. Despite blinking several times, I still couldn’t really focus on the walls. I moved my tail, bumping it against a wall that felt like glass, although my clearing sight could make out a handful of metal bars reinforcing it.

I looked around frantically as panic started to build. I was in a cage. Again. What did I do to deserve this? Hasn’t my life been hard enough? Answers were apparently in short supply today.

There was some sort of fabric draped over the cage, so I couldn’t see anything outside of it. I took a deep breath to try and suppress the panic. The smells of buildings and Kymari filled my nostrils. I also smelled water and meat.

My stomach grumbled hungrily even as I realized how parched and dry my throat felt. My memories came back, and my eyes widened. The sicora, the fight, my broken wing, and the approaching Kymari. I glanced at my wing and blinked as I finally noticed that it was encased in an odd, hard grey material. A cast? That was the only explanation I could come up with.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

I tentatively tried to shift my wing. It hurt, but not nearly as badly as it had when I blacked out. The entire wing was encased and secured in a folded-up resting position. I cautiously stood up; my wing throbbed a bit, but nothing truly serious. I was somewhat relieved that I would be able to walk without it dragging on the floor.

Recalling that the sicora had managed to scratch me, I sat up and inspected the damage. The shallow slash on the side of my hind leg was now a scab. I pressed on it lightly, and the dull ache told me that the superficial wound was truly minor. Dismissing its presence, I finally took a closer look at the objects in the cage with me.

Near the entrance, there were two bowls; one held water and the other held meat. I eyed them up suspiciously, but my body had other pressing needs. The deep tray of red dirt would have to work. I quickly took care of my business and buried it fastidiously.

My stomach told me in no uncertain terms that it wanted food now. Meat was on the bottom of my edibles list, but there really weren’t any other options available. I carefully sniffed the diced-up chunks before trying one. The taste vaguely reminded me of the dark meat from a turkey.

I ate a few more pieces before my thirst overruled my stomach, and I took a long deep drink of water. My body felt dry, and I greedily drained the bowl. I was exhausted at this point, and my wing was getting more painful. My legs were starting to shake as well.

I went to the back corner and curled up under the heat lamp while ensuring that my injured wing was resting on top so that I couldn’t accidently jostle it. My head was feeling foggy again, as if I were drugged. I shouldn’t be surprised; it was probably in the water...

I put my head under the cast to shade my eyes from the reddish light of the heat lamp. Sleep claimed me moments later.

~

I woke in the same lethargic haze as the drugs wore off. Eventually, I managed to move my head out from under my wing. I dropped my head with a low hiss of surprise. The Kymari sitting next to the cage glanced at me before focusing once more on some piece of technology he was holding in his hands.

I recognized him as the same Kymari that had approached me after the fight. I remained where I was – not that I had much choice since the drugs hadn’t worn off enough for me to stand yet. I looked around the room while keeping a wary eye on the Kymari.

It reminded me of a living room, having two couches and a handful of chairs that faced a large central coffee table. There were end tables in the two corners of the room beside the furniture. My cage was on one of the end tables. The Kymari sat on the couch right beside the cage.

Of all of the seats available, he had to choose that one... The smell of water interrupted my irritated thoughts, and my thirst made me focus on the bowl of water instead of my new roommate. I slowly stood up and cautiously moved towards the bowls by the cage door. Coincidentally, this brought me closer to the Kymari.

I hadn’t realized just how big they were. He was probably around ten feet tall, and if there was an ounce of fat on his muscular body, I sure couldn’t see it. His foot was almost as big as me. Sure, I had known these facts in theory before, but having one right in front of me really made those facts hit hard.

I ate just enough meat to silence my stomach before once more draining the water bowl. My wing was still throbbing, although not quite as bad as yesterday. I warily moved back to the corner with the heat lamp and curled up while watching him suspiciously. It isn’t as if I am going anywhere for a while.

Drowsiness moved in swiftly, even as the pain faded slightly. Yep, either the water or the meat is definitely drugged.