Kara's eyes fluttered open immediately.
She blinked the drowsiness away as the commotion that stirred her from her sleep began to beckon her attention. She scrambled from the cold ground to her feet and gripped the bars of her confined prison, curious of what was going on.
"Let-let me go, you mongrel! You can't do this to me! I haven't trespassed! I haven't committed any cri-"
"Shut your mouth, you little mouse ball. Or I'll end your sentence early!"
The voice of the perpetrator was easily recognizable.
Kara finally caught glimpse of the newly caught prey, finding it to be an armadillo with a red bandanna tied around it's neck. It was restrained within the tail of none other than Stryker.
"The hell are you doi-"
"Shut up, human." Stryker warned Kara with dangerous eyes as the towering snake mute moved past her confine to throw the armadillo into the cage right next to hers.
"And do enjoy your stay. Won't be long though, so don't get comfortable, he heh." Stryker gave the cowering armadillo a mocking smile before bringing his eyes on Kara once more. He paused, gazing coldly into her equally icy stare and left.
The human waited until the second-in-command was out of earshot before she lightly banged on the wall that mirrored the armadillo's prison.
"Hey, dude. You okay?" she asked.
The armadillo didn't respond for a few seconds, but eventually...
"I'm okay...my name is Marram. I was just...traveling and...I didn't even come close to this place. They kidnapped me..."
"It's alright, it's not your fault." Kara assured him with an unseen smile. "They're just jerks."
A small laugh accompanied in reaction to her comment.
"...she's dead, isn't she?"
Kara blinked with a pang of worry in her heart.
"What? Who are you talking about?"
Another bout of silence.
"She was wearing a scarf. Purple."
Kara's heart sank. She suddenly remembered. The mute from when Knox and Lute had first arrived to save her. The armadillo from the colosseum. The one that was bitten and dragged away. The one that was wearing a purple scarf. Kara hung her head low, her fears unseen by the neighboring mute. Still, she let him continue.
"She has this beautiful habit of carrying a tune wherever she goes. She adores singing. Can't recall a day she wasn't. She also has this purple necklace that matches her scarf..."
"Marram...I'm..." Kara almost choked the words out as the weight of giving him the news that she wished upon no one bared upon her.
"I'm sorry..." Kara sucked in a breath before continuing.
"She's...gone."
Silence.
"Thank you for giving me clarity." the armadillo replied in a whisper that somehow still held a sense of peace.
"Please!"
Knox tried lifting the furniture off for what seemed to be the dozenth time, but it still wasn't enough.
"Somebody please! Help me!" Knox called out, the screeching from unknown creatures filling the spacious burrow they were trapped in.
Where was his dad?
Why wasn't anyone helpi-
"Kid!"
Knox darted his head towards the consuming smoke around him that parted to reveal an older women emerging from it's depths. She perked up at the sight of someone familiar.
"Kid, we need to- oh my god!" the human gasped in shock as she noticed Knox's friend was pinned helplessly against the ground.
She wasted no time in taking action. She ignored the crumbling of their safe haven and joined Knox beside him, holding the underside of the bookshelf with both hands which was finally beginning to make some progress. But then something panged in the woman's heart to look up. And what she realized struck her to her core.
"W-we've got to move. We got to move now!" the woman screamed as she pulled Knox's protesting form away from his friend's aid. She pushed herself along with Knox as they just narrowly avoid being crushed by the huge slab of ceiling that landed directly where they once stood.
Where Noel was pinned.
"Noooo! We gotta-" Knox was stopped by the woman's grip on his arm.
"We have to leave, now...we can't...he's...please..." the woman pleaded as the smoke finally cleared up, revealing the many airborne flamingos and humans riding them.
Knox's screams of desperation that his friend was still alive went past the woman as she pulled him towards the nearest emergency escape duct. He had just barely grabbed the still-intact lute that lay nearby, undamaged from the debris. She held Knox's head in her hands and through teary eye, assured him the best she could.
"We've got to get out of here. You did everything you could for your friend, but I can't have you die."
Now outside and out of the chaos, the two humans solemnly reflected on the aftermath of their swift escape.
"My dad...my...my mom...Noel's brother...they're-"
"We don't know that yet, honey." the women gently cut Knox off. "Listen to me, if anything, your parents might have been captured or escaped like us. Don't lose your hope. It's going to be okay. We just have to make sure we're safe first...then maybe we can try..." the adult assured him through eyes of empathy and multiplying tears.
"Knox!"
Knox's head swiveled towards the call and a brief burst of joy overcame his heart.
Two other humans had apparently escaped and were running towards them. One other adult and a younger child beside them.
It was Noel's younger brother.
"Knox! Did you see my brother? Is he okay?" Noel's younger brother asked, his eyes wide with shock still present in his eyes.
"I...I couldn't..."
It was all Knox could bring out. He was still in disbelief of it all.
Noel's younger brother stood in silence with him.
"I'm sorry. I tried..."
Noel's brother eyed and recognized the lute that resided loosely in Knox's hand.
"He's...he's dead isn't he?"
The words froze Knox but not his own tears.
"Yes."
As they further escaped the breached underground city they called their home, his mind grew number.
But not numb to the growing pain of his failure.
He continued to glance back at the smoke that billowed out of their beloved burrow and refused to budge his eyes away. He refused to look back to Noel's sobbing brother.
"Knox...Knox, it's going to be okay. I-I never told you my name. It's Kessie. I'll make sure to help take care of you."
He still didn't turn around. His feet paused and Kessie's soft hold on Knox's hand slipped away.
"Kid, please I understand..."
"Knox..."
A hand rested on his shoulder.
Knox fidgeted awake in a brief panic for the dozenth time that week. He found himself still on the couch of the loft apartment they had found recent solitude in.
He honestly lost count at this point. He didn't try questioning or attempt to decipher the agonizing dream he had already only remembered half of. Wordlessly, he gripped the scabbard that held his trusty katana and arose from the comfort of the couch, catching the forms of Piercer and Lute still breathing in breaths of a calm deep sleep nearby.
He smiled at the sight, but turned around and headed out of the front room, being sure to close the door as quietly as he had opened it. Knox sighed, rubbing his drowsy eyes and found himself outside. There wasn't many places where a forest wasn't a nearby feature. Perfect for Knox. He walked across the street, through the grass and unsheathed his katana, ready to let out some steam.
As dark as it was, being ambushed was the last thing on Knox's mind. He rationalized his behavior as some much needed extra training on his belt. He felt himself getting a bit rusty, so that's good enough reason to get up and slice stuff in the middle of the night, right?
Holding the blade in front of him, he lowered it and pulled the grip towards himself before letting out a succession of jabs. He took a quick step back and unleashed a swift side swipe, centering himself again and taking in a deep breath.
"Ya know what? It's not enough."
Knox's eyes widened and he charged forward towards the nearest tree and wasted no time bringing the blade across it again and again and again. Adding in a swift punch, his aching hand was drawn back in slight regret after his conscious swiftly caught up to him. He finished his abrupt assault by pressing his forehead against the rough bark of the tree trunk and releasing breath, shutting his eyes tight.
Rustling nearby caught the human's attention and he immediately spun around, ready to swing.
And how happy he was that he didn't.
Piercer was a only a few feet from where he stood. He observed the slash marks in the tree as Knox sighed and raised an arm, searching for an excuse.
"Hey, I was just-"
"Night terrors."
"Huh?"
Piercer was unwavering. "You're having night terrors and you're trying to cope by releasing stress."
Knox raised his pointer finger in a weak attempt at objecting, but he released whatever façade he had going for him.
"Yep. Yeah, night terrors...how would you know anyways?"
"I have them, too. They're not as bad...but they don't seem to be going away."
Knox kind of felt stupid for even asking such a question. The mute's obviously been through enough with losing his whole clan in one whole day.
"So...how do you cope with it? I mean, I've never seen you lash out in your sleep..."
Piercer looked to the ground. "Guess I've been getting lucky since I've been with you two."
Knox had to take the opportunity.
"Aww, so we're your cure? That's cute."
The Archerat gave Knox a sharp look. "Shut up. We should get back. Few more hours till daybreak. The last thing we need is to be ineffective at searching for a group of mutes who are even willing to bargain help to us."
Piercer turned back and began walking towards the loft house.
"Hey."
Piercer turned back around, raising an eyebrow.
"Thanks for checking up on me. Needed that." Knox admitted. "Believe it or not, I'm not the overly-emotional type."
Piercer nodded. "Don't mention it."
The Archerat headed out of the forest and back across the street before pausing half way.
"Seriously. Don't mention it."
Knox, Lute and Piercer stood around the counter in the loft kitchen as they readied their rough ideas of how to go about getting new allies. Knox's sight aimed down at the titled floor, sipping his water bottle as Piercer fiddled with his newly-crafted bow and Lute went on.
"...I mean, there are definitely plenty of different mutes and humans alike that have ran into Nevarr and lived to tell the tale. Or maybe lost someone close to those noodle heads." Lute stated, mapping possible places in his head where more friendly types were possibly located. Few and far in between, of course.
"Yeah, but not many willing to just pair up wily-nilly with us and just fight a fight they may not want any part of anymore. Or their just cowards. Either one. They'll most likely all want something in return, and you both already owe me." Piercer contributed, emphasizing with a thumb pressed against his chest.
"Okay Piercer, we get it!" Lute said aloud. He paced back and forth a bit. "You'll get your share on our supply stash. That's if we even make it back. Seriously, Amanda and Jonathan must be super ticked for us leaving them on edge this long. We need to figure this all out fast."
After a while of silence, Piercer and Lute looked back to Knox, who continued his stare at the floor.
"Hey, you with us Knox?"
Slowly bringing his eyes back to level with theirs, he sighed and gripped the edge of the counter.
"I think...I think I already have a solution to our problem." Knox said, staring at them both with a serious and anxious look.
"Seriously?" Lute stepped forward with interest laced in his eyes. "What is it?"
Another pause before Knox set his bottle down and pushed himself away from the kitchen counter, completely giving up on holding back the mystery.
"The Timbercats."
Lute and Piercer both looked at each other before Lute spoke back up.
"The Timber...cats?"
Resting his elbows on the counter, he displayed observable hesitation before clarifying. An ironic and deceptive smile snuck onto his face. He was anything but joyous.
"Lute...remember back a year ago when me, you and Kara took that trek through the city district with the distinctive figure eight highway roads? The one that looked like a four-leafed clover? We separated to cover more chance to find stuff and I...ran into their leader."
Lute gaped his mouth at the secret. "What? And you didn't tell us?"
"No. I didn't. Because I gave him a promise. I swore not to tell where their territory was nor to even mention them...in exchange for my life." Knox elucidated, rubbing his face with a hand. "I'm going to be extremely honest, we don't have even close to a choice with anyone else out there but them. Not with the little time we have left. Not with what little time we have to leave Amanda hanging about her sister. We have to try."
Both Knox and Piercer pondered the idea.
"Alright." Lute vocalized.
"I'm sorry for keeping all of this away from you." Knox said apologetically, leaning against the counter behind him.
However, Lute waved a dismissive hand, closing his eyes with a smile. "No need to apologize, I get it. I'm sure I would have done the same. Just as long as you aren't lying about there not being aggressive, poisonous squirrels."
"Argh, would you stop mentioning that before you manifest them into reality?"
Butting in, Piercer cleared his throat for attention. "So. Timbercats. Location? Please? Times ticking, remember? I already don't like the cat part."
"Easy," Knox walked out to the front door and left outside.
As all three of them stood in front of the loft with the sun beating behind, Piercer and Lute followed the finger that Knox pointed out west of their position.
"If I recall, it's actually not that far from here. You might remember more as we near the city too, Lute. It'll probably take half a day. Not much of a bad tradeoff compared to blindly running around trying to amass followers. And trust me...the Timbercats aren't exactly lacking in followers."
Piercer grunted and leaned against the wall beside the door. "If this all doesn't come to a conclusion within a few days, I'm going to lose my mind. Let's head out right now and get this over with." Piercer returned back inside the loft and out of view.
Lute and Knox watched him disappear from view and both proceed to take his heed, knowing this would still be a risky trip, regardless of how close or far the territory would be. They needed to pack. And as Lute opened the door for Knox, he turned and stopped him mid-way.
"Hey, aren't you worried about what they'll do when they...you know, see you again? Even worse, back in the territory that you swore to never return to?" Lute asked, the implications of what might transpire, should things initially go their way with finding their so called "last resort help".
Knox replied earnestly.
"Well, worse-case scenario, they'll eat me and let you and Piercer off with a warning...that is if you plead well enough." Knox said, a bit too nonchalantly for Lute's liking.
"Splendid."
The journey took a bit longer than expected, but everything was moving relatively smoothly in their bid for the Timbercats and their whereabouts. With only a few more bottles of water and relatively low food rations, they needed to be quick. Entering the city district was the easiest part. Escaping the eyes of any mutes or desperate human surface dwellers out to jack their stuff was the hard one.
Following nearest road into the broken down city led to some forgotten memories for both Lute and Knox.
Only a year before, they almost got busted by some Mod Frogs (again), chilled out with a group of peaceful nomadic mole mutes, and laughed along with each other after Lute thought he misplaced his precious instrument which sent him on a brief triad of worry and panic...only to find it behind a tree not even five feet away.
Knox wanted more of these moments within the chaos. And they needed the Timbercats to get a few steps closer to experiencing them again with the friends he left behind. And with Kara. He gripped the straps of his book bag as Lute piped up after noticing the figure-eight highway.
"Yeah, I remember now, that's it! It really does look like a clover. We're so close...so this where you saw the leader?" Lute asked, turning around.
Knox looked up and tried to search out a path to start searching for an exact location. And although everything was a bit hazy, he still remembered a few key elements he took note of as he was ushered away by the Timbercats.
"Let's get clo-"
Piercer stopped as his ears perked up to the sudden, distinct noise, but the ambuscade on them was carefully planned, even for Piercer's impressive hearing.
An aggressively loud roar emitted out of the forest Knox was close to. Before he or anyone could fully turn, Knox was tackled to the ground, the air gushing out of him. Equipping their weapons too late, Lute brandished his machete and Piercer trained his bow at the mute that had now held Knox in an arm, it's axe rested against his neck.
"Give me a reason I shouldn't slit your throat right now, human." the mute asked in a gruff and deadly whisper.
Piercer stepped closer, emphasizing his bow's aim at his head. "I think I'm good reason enough. You won't even get the chance."
Without leading his aim away, the Archerat trailed his eyes as far as he could to look behind him. Almost two dozen different humanoid cats of various sizes in plaid flannel clothing began to flank them. There was no way of escape.
"Enough, Ruffles! Let the human go."
The origin of the voice walked through the gathering of cats and revealed herself, brandishing an axe of her own. Sporting a standout dark blue flannel shirt with her white head fur braided back. Her icy blue eyes bore through Piercer as she commanded her next request.
"Lower your bow, mute." she ordered as she stood behind him.
Piercer scoffed and laughed. "Not until-"
"Lower the bow. Now."
The axe was gripped rather harshly in the feline's paw as she waited.
"Piercer. Do it. Trust me. You're gonna want to."
Piercer dragged his eyes back to the captive human. "And why's that?"
Knox chuckled as the axe this 'Ruffles' cat had continued to waver dangerously close to his neck.
"Because these are the Timbercats I was talking about. But I'm sure you've gotten that puzzle figured by now."
Piercer wavered, but eventually lowered his aim.
"Good," the white furred Timbercat strided past Piercer as the Archer glared daggers at her. "Ruffles, lower the axe and let the human go. That's an order."
"Order? You're not Hammerpaw, Molly! He's not lost in the trees anymore! You know who this human is just as good as I do! Hammerpaw made it clear that if he ever came back..."
Ruffles lowered his gaze to Knox as his arm's grip around his neck slightly increased.
"We would kill him." Ruffles finished venomously.
"I said let him go...I didn't say he wouldn't face punishment. No here, and not like this. This isn't what we do." the white-furred Timbercat known as Molly explained. Having now come close enough, the laid a gentle paw on Ruffles shoulder. "I get it, Ruffles. It still hurts...but you shouldn't put that energy on this human. Not every human is the same. He hasn't done anything wrong to us."
Ruffles eyes soften before quickly narrowing again. He let go of his grip around Knox's neck and pushed him forward, leaving Lute to kneel down and help him up.
Ruffles walked by Molly and paused before his golden eyes stared at her.
"He hasn't done anything...yet."
Ruffles continued his march into the crowd of various Timbercats before disappearing.
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Molly reopened her frustrated eyes and forward at Knox, ignoring the stink-eyes Piercer was giving her from the side.
"Human, you got some major, major explaining to do." Molly told Knox as he finally got himself to his feet.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fully aware of that. So it, uh...it all started when..."
After positioning herself far from the commotion, the lone wolf leaned her head from behind the wide tree and took an observant peek at the oversized cats that swarmed the humans.
"Not today. Too risky."
Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself from the tree trunk and gripped the pearl necklace around her neck as she made her way back down the path she came.