Chapter 3: Cornered
Andratas
"We heard the news and…"
Melody dropped her pouch of medical supplies when she saw us.
"Oh my Stars! How did you two get so hurt?!"
"Oh uh…" It wasn't until she pointed it out did I notice. Stinging marks struck across our pelt, grazes littered our backs, scars and bruises caused sharp pains to brutalise over my body. Shelly wasn't much better but she was in less pain then I was.
"We were attacked, Big Sis." Shelly wept, her paws dragging against the floor, signs of her exhaustion, "They had scary claws and blew up the market!"
"You were there at the attack!" She queried, horrified, "What distraughtly experiences you two must have went through!" She wiggled out from her pack some leaves, "Here take some thyme, it'll relieve your shock, I'll start working on your wounds."
"Thanks Melody," I smiled.
"No honestly its fine I love helping others and I hate seeing them in pain." She flurried her paws, flustered by the complementing appreciation.
"No seriously, you truly have one of the best heart and souls in the world." I complimented.
Melody blushed, embarrassed, before she straightened up and got as serious as she could get, "Well, I've got a lot of work to do because you two aren't careful enough, but you're injuries aren't too severe, just a few grazes and scratches. So let me just patch you up with some sticky Patenshells and you'll be A-Ok."
"So we can leave?" I asked.
"Absolutely not, you're all under heavy, constant surveillance but you'll get to leave for short breaks at a time." She responded stiffly.
When Melody left to get more medical supplies, Shelly turned on me with mischief glimmering in her eyes, "You like her don't you?"
I glared at my sister, "As a friend sure. I respect her, a lot. She risked everything for the greater good of catkin all about. It didn't matter to her about the social system. She gave up a good life as a daughter of a Siren for the benefit of others, what's there not to be impressed by?"
Shelly frowned, clearly displeased I had rebuked her, she gave me the cold shoulder, "Yeah-h-h, wel-l-l, wel-l-l. Denial is the first phase of love!" She humphed.
I chuckled, "Ok Princess, whatever you say." Humming with my own mischief.
"The local slums market don't have the same variety as the bazaar had…" My voice trailed off as I hung my head low, "But for a reasonable price, you can get most of the necessities to survive."
"Woah!" Shelly's eyes were twinkling with renewed vigour, "Why have you never brought me here before, its way close to home than the bazaar was." She exclaimed.
I chuckled, "They drive a harder bargain." And Aunt Mink was there…
Three days after the events of the underground bazaar, Melody finally let us loose. In exchange for an earlier release from her den, she made us promise to come help us out with gathering supplies from the market. With nothing better to do and wanting to stretch my legs, I eagerly agreed.
"But they are the only place within the slums with medical supplies I need, the hidden black market there is filled with exorbitantly overpriced medicine." She sighed, "Well, you got to do what you got to do. Luckily I have quite the disposable income." She purred, displaying a pawful of Haysts.
"Wah!" Shelly cried in awe, "So much money! I've never seen so much Haysts in my life!"
I smiled and Melody laughed, she exchanged glances with me. Within her glance was a hidden message, She is precious. I will protect her, I promise.
The slums, usually built from cheap rotting wood, fixed loosely with pebbles found on the ground. It wasn't safe nor stable, but it managed. We walked down the rocky path, a sharp contrast from the gravel paved streets of the city centre. Tiny streams flanked each side of the street as a light drizzle hailed from above. Many saplings lay along the tightly interwoven pathway, their time on this world closing in on them.
The markets of the slums, whilst not as big as the central bazaar was by a long shot, what it lacked in variety and numbers, it made up in security. Here, above the ground, in the slums, groups of the community are waiting, on the lookout for any danger, whether it be the few rare dogs that come to the slums once in a while, to the more prominent threat of the Sirens power exerted upon our land.
With the same childish vigour and excitement, Shelly ran up curiously to everyone and every stall laughing and dancing. Despite the virtual strangers, we all shared a bond, a bond of community. We all struggle and we all have a single goal, so while we might not socially know each other, we spiritually have connected with them already.
"You can wait here, shop for whatever supplies you want, I'll go to the black market." Melody meowed.
"Wait," I grasped at her paw, "I thought we were meant to come help you with your supplies. Why are you asking us to leave you?"
Melody rolled her eyes, "You really think I would ask you to help me, come on, no really I just wanted to sneak you out without arousing other patient's envy."
She broke free from my grasp, before continuing, "Anyways, this is the black market, it's not like the rest of the slums where you just need to be of the community." Licking herself, she continued her explanation, "There, money talks. And experience. You better have money and you better have been trading there for a long time, long enough for them to recognise your face."
"Can't you just vouch for me or something?" I tilted my head, confused.
"I can't guarantee your safety." She sighed exasperatedly, "Look, just stay here, you don't want to mess with the 'brawlers', and anyways, you have to look after Shelly for me."
"Fine." I hissed, displeased with the situation.
Melody ran off through a dark alley turning a corner, away from my view. I rolled my eyes and looked around for Shelly.
Despite the market being relatively small, she was nowhere to be seen and there was no response to my calls. Damn it where did she go.
Running through the market and the streets of the slums calling out her name, I finally came to the outskirts of the market and the town. Here the level ground drops down into a thicket of oak trees that litter the crater edge. A far and dangerous drop from this point. At other points of the edge of the crater, there were less steep pathways down the sides of the crater. Here, however, it was a straight drop to your demise.
A small rustle from within the undergrowth caught my attention. From within a small grey ball, curled up in on itself, weeping.
"Shelly! Thank the Stars I found you, where did you run off to?" I heaved a sigh of relief.
"Bro-bro- Big Brother!" She screamed, completely terrified.
"What are you so terri…" My voice dropped off.
For within the thick brush, a giant, overshadowing figure growled as it crawled from the shadows of the undergrowth.
Dog!
Sticky saliva dripped from the beast's mouth, its sharp canines ready to rip out a defenceless cat's throats. The snarls were aggressive and no doubt the dog was about to go in for the kill.
"Shelly." I whispered to her, stepping back, careful to not rustle any leaf litter on the forest floor, "On my mark…"
The dog sniffed the air and locked its yellow eyes on us, roaring.
"Run!"
We took off as the dog behind us howled leaping at the spot we were at just a moment ago. Luckily we had leapt away. As we ran away from the dog as fast as we could, I feared to look back. Even though it had been just a short time, the speed of our sprint was starting to take effect. My muscles were aching and pain was developing in my lungs as I wheezed for more air. Looking to my left, I saw Shelly in a worse situation, her face was being whipped by the speed and she was panting, looking ready to collapse at a moment's notice. I knew she couldn't last much longer.
With the undergrowth and brush riveting at out fur and the dog snapping at our tails, I knew we couldn't make it out running away.
"Ahh!" Shelly screamed tumbling over a vine extending out of the ground.
The dog closed in or her leaping with its jaws wide open, ready to rip her body to pieces and feast on the carcass. I didn't know what I was doing or what I could have done, but at that moment, all doubts melted away. I could not see Shelly dead.
Praying to the Stars, I turned back and with a howl of rage, and leapt onto the dog, shoving him towards the sharp thorns of the brush. In a fit of rage, I clawed at the dog's eyes and bit at its scruff. It wasn't effective enough to kill the beast or even maim it, but it sent a message. Before running off with its tail between its legs, it slapped me with a swipe of its paws sending me flying off.
I luckily landed on something soft and witnessed the dog give one more glare, this time, sadness welled at its eyes. It was perhaps just a normal animal, trying to survive, like us…
"Big bro!" Shelly leapt at me, "You were so epic, you saved me! You went like smash! Claw, claw, rip! And the dog just howled and ran away!" She smiled with adoration glinting in her eyes.
"Dog?"
I turned around to stare at an armoured cat, where the questioning and stern voice came from. I had apparently landed at the feet of a partner of Siren guards. Their thick armour, stern voice and glinting stignium claws were all signs of their position of power, and they weren't afraid to abuse it.
"You must be lying, there have been no dogs ever in the great city of Catacus!" He rang out.
To the left of him, his counterpart was less certain, with hesitation and a slight tremble at his paws.
"Ye-h-h, an-d-d even if-f-f there wer-e-e, we would-d-d kill-l-l them-m." He whimpered out, obviously only doing so in subservience to his more experienced counterpart.
"Of course you should know, lying of something to this degree is a crime against the NCC and this glorious nation. Now obviously you would hmmm." He maliciously grinned.
I growled, backing away from the two armoured guards, "So that's how it is, is it? We escape one beast and we turn around to have to fight another."
Digging my unsheathed claws into the deep, soft mud of the forest, I yowled out in protest, "Why can't you just leave us alone!"
A laugh exploded from the proud Siren guards throat, "Foolish imperfect. Don't you see? If it wasn't for us showing up, the dog would not have ran! It felt the power of the Sirens guards!" Flashing an emblem with two serpents intertwining themselves around a music note, the banner of the Sirens, "We are always there for you when you most need it, and you dispose of us like waste!"
I could not believe it, they were daring to say that they represented the imperfects and protected them?
"Lies!" I screamed lashing out, denting their armour. I breathed angrily, my eyes flashed dangerously at them.
"Why you!" He growled, "You ungrateful prick! I'll teach you some discipline!" He leapt at me stignium claws unsheathed.
I managed to dodge the brunt of the attack but he cut me deep on the shoulder.
"Big brother let's get out of here!" She insisted.
So we ran. But the guards were relentless. And my recklessness brought the enemy of our people, right into the centre of us.
"Get back here brat!" The guard screamed through the streets.
We were hiding behind a few dumpsters. The stench was nothing new to us and luckily for us, it drove the guards away.
I released a sigh of relief, "Finally, somewhat safe."
Looking at the guards lumbering through the streets, shoving random imperfects out of the way and into other's stalls and vendors mobiles, I cursed myself for my recklessness. Because of me, I brought them straight to our community.
"When I find you two, I will flay both of your skin and rip off your tails as trophies!" He howled in anger, impatient from searching.
I sighed, they were aggressive, just like a dog, and in fact, they probably could be compared to one. To my side, Shelly whimpered, fearful of their words.
"Bro-bro-brother-er," She shoved her face into my pelt, "Will they actually flay us and get our tails?"
I squinted in despair and anger, what was I meant to say to her? Yes?
"Not as long as we keep playing hide and seek with them."
However, the guard must have grown a brain, for his next threat was far more malicious than the rest, "Well if you don't come out…" He yelled with devilish humour, "A few hundred imperfect souls will do the trick! Magnite, get the raiding party."
I could not hear what his counterpart was saying, both from the shock of his words and the low whispers of his more introverted counterpart. However, I did hear the clumsy sprinting from the so called, Magnite guard.
But his words, they shook me to the core causing me to hyperventilate. No way, it must be a bluff. I'm calling it a bluff, he wouldn't dare.
The loudening stampedes told a different story. Deafening sounds ripped through the air reverberating off the slum building walls causing the buildings to rattle and shake. Screams of fear could be heard coming from the market street. The raiding party was here…
I crept through the tight weaving alleys. They were dark and stranger territory, but with my experience of the tunnel systems, navigating around the alleys of the inner slums weren't much more of a challenge.
After instructing Shelly to stay where we were, behind the dumpsters, I left to find Melody. She didn't know of the raiding party and the danger she faced.
"Well, well, well."
Leaning against the moist walls was a shadowed figure, sheathing and unsheathing stignium claws.
"Wha' do we 'ave 'ere." A brutal voice rang out from the figure, a heavy accent laced in his voice. He flashed a devilish smile.
"You, you're part of the brawlers aren't you?" My voice cracked. Anxiety started coursing through my blood and my breathing became heavy.
"Who? Me?" He pointed at his throats with his sharp claws, "Or all of 'em!"
He cackled as yellow, red and green eyes pierced the veils of darkness from high above or from the corners of the intersecting alleys.
"You wandered into the wrong street ma boy." He grinned flashing his fangs, before turning into a blur and pinning me against the rough, adjacent wall, "Now you oughta pay a price!"
Sharp claws dug deep into my scruff as I struggled powerlessly against the might of his headlock.
"No!" I pleaded desperately, "I'm just looking for a friend! She trades constantly in the black market!"
He smiled at my desperation, "Now why would a skinny runt friend like you, let alone a she-cat wander into a black market often?" He let loose a series of cackle, the cats veiled by the shadows let loose their own torrent of laughter, following their leader suit.
"No, no, no! You must be confused." He continued gripping me by my neck, pinning my body against the walls with his broad shoulders, "Sorry luv, your time's up!"
He winded his claws back, preparing for a stab in my neck, ready to end my life. I closed my eyes, waiting for the bittersweet embrace of the foreboding darkness…
Clank.
"What th…"
That was the final exclamation I would ever hear from him. A few silent and suppressed screams, swift slashes that left shockwaves whipping through the still air of the alley and a gunshot, suppressed in the blood and fur of its victim.
I opened my eyes, back to the renewed light. It was still pitch dark, but at least it wasn't deathly dark. I did not know what happened; I thought I was gone for sure. No one would hear me scream, no one would remember me, and no one would even know how I died.
And then I saw her. A golden-brown dappled she-cat, her claws dripping with blood and her fur matted from the soaking red liquid.
She was looking up at the skies, praying?
"I'm sorry. But I hope you'll overlook this as an exception to my upheld promise." She chanted.
Her eyes snapped to me, focusing on me, analysing me, ready to lash out if I was perceived a threat.
"I remember you from my database. You're that distraction from the raided cavern." She let a breath out, in awe? Perhaps in curiosity of my resilience to disturb her missions? Whatever the case, we were here, yet again, staring down each other.
A/N: Ah! She is finally going to be introduced! Also, cats have the ability to use human contraptions and utilities. They are just cat adapted versions of them. I'm adding one more part of the social structure, Axxolites, basically slaves or prisoners. You can submit OCs of those along with Imperfect, Dynamics and Sirens OCs. Also, for those wondering what the Third Left Wing Law, referred in the last chapter, is. It'll be touched on in later chapters don't worry (I forgot to mention that last time). That's about it, see you in the next chapter.