Corra came back after a while, venting. "I couldn't find her. She must've slipped into some small nook." She says.

I needed to find her. Her greatest fear came true even though I promised she would be ok. I promise her newfound power wouldn't get the best of her.

"What if she's left the base? We have to find her!" I expressed my concerns.

"Shes probably just hiding." Corra says as the medic finished patching me back up.

"I can't take that chance." I asserted.

Corra looked worried. "But Rumble." She started.

"Look," I said, flicking my bandaged tail, "I'm all patched up, I feel great." I lied, "Now, I need to go look for her."

I rolled off the bed, a bit woozy from the sedatives they had given me, but managing to stand up.

Corra tried to stop me. "Rumble please."

"Dammit Corra, I am not going to just sit here and let her get captured again!" I said, a bit harshly. "Help me, or don't, but I'm going after her."

She backed up at my harsh tone but nodded slowly. "Ok."

I hesitated for a second, realizing how sharp I was, but I didn't have time to fix it right now. I turned and walked out into the hall, searching for any indication of where Phoenix might have gone to.

Corra followed behind me but didn't really look.

Where would Phoenix go? What was the one place Phoenix said calmed her? ...the lake! But, that was pretty far away...

But what about the wash racks? It was a close match, running water, tranquility, it had to be it. At least, I hoped it was. Primus help me if she had actually tried to go to the lake.

She was smarter then that. I wandered the halls a bit until I found the wash racks, slowly peering around.

"Phoenix, are you in here?" I softly called out.

A movement came from one of the dividers between the showers.

Corra tensed up at it, probably thinking it was another one of those creatures. I slowly moved forward, on guard in case it was another threat.

"Phoenix?" I repeated softer.

"Don't come closer. I might actually get you this time." She says shakily.

Realizing it was Phoenix, I instantly dropped my guard and hurried over to her.

"Don't say that." I whispered calmly, pulling her into a hug.

She managed to wiggle out of my grasp. "But I will. I almost got your optic. If it hadn't been for Corra..." She says, cutting herself off and pressing her small body into the corner.

"That was my fault. I snuck up on you." I explained, "Come on, we've gotta get you back to the Med Bay."

"No!" She cried, closing her optics to try and stop her tears from escaping but failing horribly. "I belong in a cell." She says. She would've never said this about herself before.

'What is going on with her?'

"Phoenix..." Was all I could manage to mumble. Seeing her like this was crushing.

"I... I can hurt you." She says, her voice box shaking as she looked up at me.

I reached for her paw, trying anything I could to comfort her. Just as I took hold of her trembling paw, I was grabbed from behind and thrown backwards, crashing through the tile wall.

Before I could even stand up, sharp claws clenched my throat, and I was slammed back down.

A second creature stood above me, snarling sharply.

Another had escaped. Two others! Another stalked after Corra, growling and snapping its jaws.

Corra backed herself into a corner, looking at me. Phoenix, right then and there, changed. Her optics went that dreaded black color as she snarled.

Instantly, both creatures fell silent, looking at the small femme.

She growled loudly at them before turning the me. Corra didn't waste time. She lunged at her and pinned the femme to the ground.

"No!" I yelped at Corra. Attacking Phoenix would only make things worse!

The creature held me firmly in place, growling softly and looking back to me. It opened Its jaws, ready to snap at me.

The second had also turned Its attention to me, stalking towards me with that horrible snarling.

Corra went flying across the room. For such a small, malnourished femme, when she was like this, it was insane.

She screeched again loudly.

Again both creatures stopped in their tracks, falling silent and looking to her. She growled at them and ran out of the room.

They glanced at me briefly before darting after her. The second I was free I jumped up, I rushed over to Corra, helping her stand.

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

She nodded shakily.

"Stay here, I mean it." I told her, before sprinting down the hall after Phoenix.

"Rumble!" She called after me.

"Don't follow me!" I yelled back at her, running full speed to keep the creatures in my sights.

Around corners, through doorways, I followed them, but they were moving very fast. I was struggling to keep up with them.

The femme led them all the way outside into the thick forest. I was losing them, I couldn't keep running at this speed.

"Phoenix! Stop!" I yelled, hoping she would hear me.

She kept going. I chased after her, starting to slow down. Suddenly, my paw was knocked out from under me, causing me to flip helm first into a tumble.

When I recovered, I glanced at my paw, noticing a wound I recognized as a bullet wound. Thankfully it was merely a graze, but someone had just shot me.

A bullet ricocheted off a tree inches from me. Instinctively I rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding another ricochet, and leapt behind a rock, rapid fire trailing behind me.

Once the sounds ceased, I slowly peered over the rock, searching my surroundings for the gunman. What do you know?

Distantly, I could barely make out a red griffin perched in a tree with a rifle aimed my direction.

Ruvik. I exchanged glares with my psycho brother before he fired again, causing me to duck back behind the rock.

I waited a few seconds before peering up again, only to find he had already vanished from sight. Phoenix and the creatures were long gone as well.

I sat there, defenseless, exhausted, abandoned, to sum it all up, I was both physically and emotionally defeated.

I couldn't believe Phoenix had just left me here, she didn't even look back at me, not once.

'She's gone. She just left.'

"I hear you lost your femme." A female voice says.

I looked around for a moment before realising it had come from my data pad. I pulled it out, seeing the screen was engulfed in blue static.

"She was bound to run off." She says.

It was the dragon femme.

"You did this to her." I accused.

"Me? I didn't cause her to run off." She says.

"I will find her. I will get her back, and then I'm coming for you." I threatened.

"So scary." She says, giggling. "You can't do shit. The Teslamites were designed as perfect killers, and I've made Phoenix their leader."

"This isn't over yet..." I retorted.

She broke into a wicked laugh, seeming to relish in my failure.

At that point, I had enough. I flung the data pad into a tree, shattering it and cutting off the taunting laughter.

I was done with losing.

Done.