#008 - "Turning Point"
Chapter 1: Trial by Fire
I sat there embracing Anna in my arms, her face buried in my chest, until it was about time to get ready.
“Unfortunately Anna, I don’t remember my last name. But as soon as I do, you’ll be the first to know.”
She looks up at me, her eyes reddened and glossy, as she wipes the tears from her face.
“P-promise?...”
“Promise.”
She gets up and pats off her wrinkled skirt, and smacks her cheeks.
“Okay! It’s time we got ready! Give me just one moment Master!”
Anna grabs my bag and runs off, presumably to her room. I in the meantime sit down on the couch and begin re-tying my boots.
I think I’m beginning to figure out the full view of the situation. Why Anna wanted to get out of here so bad, and why she made all these preparations. She’s been through a form of Hell I can scarcely imagine. It still doesn’t explain why she wasn’t at the party, why she was out watering plants, and how exactly she intended to implement her plans with her CS active – But for now, this much satisfies my doubts about her.
I take one last look around Anna’s luxurious room, and I’m reminded of a poem I once read. It tells the story of a man named Richard Cory. A man who, in everybody else’s eyes, had everything a man could ever want. He had wealth, and lived in luxury unimaginable to the common man. Despite this, everybody loved him. Everybody respected and admired Richard Cory, and wanted to be just like him. He was a role model to the common man, something to aim for.
But unbeknownst to the common man, despite his wealth, admiration, power, and prestige – Deep down, Richard Cory was truly unhappy.
To other therians, Anna must look pretty similar.
A few moments later Anna comes scampering back in with a noticeably fuller bag, setting it on the couch. Apparently she’s put a few clothes in there. Understandable, since she probably doesn’t want to be running around with the underside of her breasts hanging out once we’re out of here. There’s still a lot of room left, so I see no problem with it.
“I got the bars master!”
“Great, so are we good to go?”
“Not quite, there’s still one more thing I need to grab.”
Anna bends down and begins dragging the couch from the wall.
“May I see your screwdriver Master?”
I hand her the screwdriver, and she tucks herself behind the couch and starts unscrewing a maintenance panel from the wall.
“Hey, I was thinking, did we really need to get these extra bars? You said these bars are supposed to last several hours at least, and possibly even a day at most. We already had six of them, so we should have had more than enough to begin with.”
“I said ‘theoretically’ they should last that long. As I said before, these bars are only about 70% as hard as an OEM one. While based on how the Shredder’s feed system works, in theory it shouldn’t impact the rate of ammunition consumption – That’s still nearly a 1/3rd difference. If I said that without these bars, we were 1/3rd more likely to die, would you still think they were unnecessary?”
“…No, I wouldn’t take that gamble.”
“Exactly – Besides…” Anna says while rising from behind the couch, “We didn’t come here just for the bars.”
Anna triumphantly holds up what looks to be a black handgun case of some kind in front of her. Did we come here for another gun?
Anna walks around the back of the couch, gently placing the case on the cushion, and opening it.
Holy. Shit.
The inside of the case has had the foam padding stripped out, tiny bits of it still stuck to the inner wall. Instead, the case is lined with rows of nuts, bolts, screws, and tiny scraps of sharp metal. In the middle of the case, there’s a large brick of ‘something’ which had been taped up like smuggled drugs. The brick has wires haphazardly coming out of it, leading to what looks like a blinking walkie-talkie. On either side of the brick, are two glass bottles of mystery liquid - Two yellow, two clear, both are ominously fuming inside the jars.
I don’t need to be a weapons expert to know exactly what this is – This is an IED.
I was satisfied with simply knowing her background. But this raises a whole slew of new questions. Why does she have this!? How does she have this!? Is Anna actually a terrorist!?!
This isn’t just a small standalone explosive. This was clearly designed to be remotely detonated using a squib, and inflict as much damage as humanly possible. Not only that, but judging from those jars, which are filled with God knows what, it’s also probably designed to release a deadly plume of toxic gas upon detonation. She didn’t just use one type of toxic chemical, but two. This bomb goes beyond “just being prepared”. This goes into the realm of obsession.
Is… Is Anna alright in the head?
“It’s unfortunate I wasn’t able to finish the others…” Anna mutters disappointedly.
Others?? You were making more of these fucking things!?!
Whoever gets hit with just one of these things is going to suffer a horrific, agonizing death. Dying instantly would be a mercy. This thing is loaded with enough flak and shrapnel to obliterate an entire room. Hell, several rooms even. The people closest to it when it went off would be the lucky ones. Those who are far enough away to avoid the initial blast would still get pelted with a volley of nuts, screws, and razor sharp bits of metal traveling faster than the speed of sound.
“Anna… Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
“You… You had enough stress going on at the time. I figured it would be easier to accept if I showed it to you now.”
In otherwords, she intentionally withheld this information thinking I’d be against it. She’s not wrong. This thing is horrific. I don’t even like being in the same room as it, let alone the idea of carrying it.
“So here’s the plan Master!” Anna, perhaps sensing my trepidation, proclaims while turning to me with a jubilant smile plastered on her face. “We are going to ‘return’ this ‘gun’ to the Armory in B-Wing, and then pick up the Shredders. We can just say that the Colonel ordered us to retrieve them for during the bounty exchange. Clyde, the armorer, almost certainly won’t second-guess that story. We’ll then quickly cut over to A-Wing, and stop at one of the nearby storage closets to load the Shredders. After that, we’ll head to Export Box, deal with Bradley, use his hand to open the cell door, at which point you are immediately going to overwrite ownership of Ionna like you did with me.” She says while handing me a folding knife.
“Overwrite ownership?”
“Well we can’t just leave her there. Besides, I feel somewhat… Personally responsible for her. Now her CS will be active, so she may fight back. She won’t be able to help it. She’s stronger than you, so you can’t hesitate. As soon as the door is open, cut your hand, and wipe it on her neck.”
She’s stronger than me? She definitely didn’t look it. But considering Rubrum’s genetic enhancements, it makes sense that other therians might have similar lower-grade enhancements as standard.
“Is she as strong as Rubrum?”
“Uhh… Probably not. But I do know they spared no expense making her so…”
So ‘Maybe’ – Great. I hope she doesn’t break my arm in two.
“Don’t worry Master! I’ll be right there with you until you’re done overwriting her ownership!”
“Until I’m done? Where are you going??”
“While you, Ionna, and the VIP are prepping the ship, I need to go to the command deck and disable the maglocks, otherwise the ship won’t be able to leave the hangar.”
“Woah, woah, woah, you’re leaving me!? Anna – I’m not leaving you behind.” I say to her firmly.
Hearing that, Anna gives me a warm gentle smile.
“I’m overjoyed to hear that you’re worried about me Master, it truly means the world to me. But as soon as the maglocks disengage, I only want you to wait five minutes for me. If I’m not back by then, I want you to leave without me.”
“You know I can’t… You know I can’t do that.”
“Master, I was fully prepared to die tonight. So no matter what happens, getting you out safely is my top priority. That’s why we’re leaving this ‘gun’ in the armory, that way they’ll be forced to only use their personal small arms. You’ll have Ionna with you. She’s a good girl. I’m certain I can entrust you to her if the worst comes to pass.” She says with straight-faced conviction.
I kneel down and wrap my arms around her.
“You promised to serve me forever. Now promise that you’ll come back to me.”
Anna may scare the Hell out of me, and she may be shady as shit, but her devotion to me is genuine – That much I know. I don’t want to see her sacrifice herself for my useless ass. Especially after so much suffering. I couldn’t bear to see her die just before the finish line.
I don’t want to second guess for the rest of my life that “If I had just waited a minute more, she would still be here today.” I want to see her live the happy and fulfilling life she’s always deserved. The future her friends never got to see.
Anna, hesitates for a moment before gently returning embrace.
“…I’ll do my best.”
“Promise!!”
She pauses, “I… I promise.”
I give her back a few soft pats, and pull back.
“Besides, you can’t die before knowing my last name! I promised!” I say with a wry smile.
Anna gives a soft grin, “Yeah that’s true!” and chuckles.
I look down at the open gun case filled with death, “Hey by the way, how the Hell are we getting this thing out of here?”
“In the bag of course!”
I was afraid she was going to say that.
“Um… It isn’t shock sensitive, is it?”
“Unless you’re really rough with it, it should be fine.”
It *should* be fine, how reassuring. I just love the idea of bumping into something, and potentially getting an armpit full of sharp, metal screws. Granted at that distance, the screws will be the last of my worries. It’d be over so quick I probably wouldn’t feel much at all. But still just the idea of getting shotgun blasted full of sharp pointy objects is enough to make me feel more than a little uneasy.
“By the way, where is the detonator?”
“Right here!” Anna says, pulling up the bottom part of her skimpy top, and pulling her breast slightly aside, revealing part of something that looks like an olive green walkie-talkie.
Jesus Christ her kitties are big. They’re not disproportionally big compared to her short stature, but they’re still sizeable by any normal human standards. How does that tiny top even contain them? She should be having wardrobe malfunctions left and right, but I have yet to see one slip. Is it adhesive of some kind? Or some kind of space age titty technology? Some of the therians I’ve seen so far definitely have some futuristic looking clothing which defy all logic, so I’m going to believe the latter. Simple adhesive couldn’t contain these girls.
“By the way Master… I know it’s a waste of space but… Can we take along my figures?” She says, pointing to the handmade figures of her friends.
To be honest, despite being handmade, their quality isn’t that bad. Of course, considering each one was made by a different person, the quality and style varies wildly. But considering the limited resources they must have had to make them, all in all I say they’re actually pretty impressive.
It's easy to see the love and care they put into making them, and the deep bond they must have shared. You can tell a lot about both the sculptor and the person they’re modeled after simply by looking at them.
Petunia’s figure, made by Kei, is very logically designed and methodical. The proportions and small intricate details are all perfectly implemented. Petunia seems quietly embarrassed to be seen in her swimsuit, her face blushing red. Kei captured Petunia’s dandere essence perfectly.
Kei’s figure, started by Petunia and finished by Sasha has mixed quality. I’m guessing Petunia didn’t live long enough to finish it. Petunia made Sasha’s figure as well, which was apparently the first of the five figures. Sasha probably felt a sense of obligation to repay her kindness, and definitely tried her best to finish what Petunia started. But the areas she did are crude. You can tell the love behind it, but she definitely didn’t have a lot of artistic talent. Kei feels like the smart, cool beauty type. With her black hair, black half frame glasses, and her calm, expressionless face, I can totally see her face buried in a book.
Sasha’s figure looks bright and bubbly. Sasha feels like the type of person people gravitate towards – A sunny, joyful person with lots of enthusiastic energy. Sasha is noticeably taller than the rest of them, and her breasts are insanely large. Which makes sense for a bovine type therian I suppose. But Petunia’s style feels a bit exaggerated. She’s basically spilling out of her cow print bikini. Petunia definitely wanted to surprise Sasha with this, the passion behind it is clear to see. Even if it is a bit excessively lewd.
Anna’s the only figure I’m a bit dubious on. Lior definitely loved and respected Anna, the effort is obvious. But Anna looks… Happier in this figure. Playful even. I don’t even see Anna in this figure – It feels like somebody else entirely. Anna said Lior was her best friend in the whole world, but Lior didn’t capture Anna’s essence at all.
Lior’s figure, made by Anna, is perfect. The pose, the quality, the expression, everything was made with an intense attention to detail. Lior looks almost like a goddess, with her flowing extremely light blue hair, her stride, and her strong aura of confidence. She doesn’t feel smug or arrogant, but like a respectable leader. Somebody you want to follow. Somebody who has all the answers.
Somebody like…
…Anna…
…
Oh…
“Yeah, of course we'll take them with us, and don’t worry - If they break, I actually know a thing or two about figure repair!” I say, striking a guts pose.
“Oh!? You collected figures!?”
“Yup, I sure did. I can’t remember exactly why I stopped, but my collection was very similar. Only much smaller obviously.” I say, chuckling the words out.
Anna laughs, “Well I wouldn’t mind starting a proper collection if you were the one giving them to me.”
“I thought you didn’t care for these other figures?”
“I don’t dislike the figures themselves, they just all feel tainted to me.”
“In that case, we’ll start a new happier collection together.” I say, grinning ear to ear.
“It’s a deal!”
Anna is an otaku confirmed.
Anna begins carefully wrapping her friend’s figures in her clothes, while I ever so gently place the IED in the bag; I’m sweating bullets even touching this thing. She places the clothes wrapped figures on top, we zip the bag closed, and I put my mask back on.
“Okay, we got everything?”
“Yeah! We’re all good to go!”
I hang the bag over my shoulder. At this point, this bag is stupid heavy. I have twelve bars of pure metal in there, shoes, figures, clothes, and a box of death. I refuse to part with the shoes though, weight be damned.
We walk towards the elevator, and Anna pauses. She stops and looks back for a moment, and takes one last sweeping look around her abode.
She heaves a deep sigh to herself.
The expression she’s wearing is complex. The only way I can describe would be a tragic smile. It almost looks like nostalgic melancholy, but I detect a hint of uncertainty in her eyes.
“Hey, are you alright?”
“Yeah… It just… Hasn’t fully sunk in yet. The fact that this will be the last time I’m in this room... I’m not really sure what to think right now.”
“Shouldn’t you be happy? You’re finally leaving this place, and you got a master like you always wanted.”
“Yes, and I’m grateful, but…”
Her face glooms over.
She looks down for moment, and nods quietly to herself. “Nevermind, let’s go.”
We step into the elevator, and Anna hits the button for the ground floor. She latches onto my right arm as we descend. We stand quietly as I watch the floor lights pass by. She seems nervous, even moreso than me. Which I get. Her whole life is about to flip completely upside-down.
“Um – Master?”
“Yeah?”
“You’ll… Treat me right, yeah?”
Fear of the unknown – I get it. She’s scared that she might be jumping out of one Hellscape and into another. At least this is one Hellscape she knows and can navigate. I on the otherhand, am of completely unknown quantity.
I move her hand which is currently holding onto my arm down to my hand, our fingers interlocking.
“You have nothing to be scared of Anna. I might be completely ignorant and completely broke, but I promise I won’t ever mistreat you.”
Anna says nothing. She just exhales in relief and quietly leans her head against my arm. The door dings and revolves open, revealing the spacious lobby.
“Showtime.”
□■□
We walk into the lobby, and across the vast caramel colored floor. As we pass by the reception area, I catch Anna giving a thumbs up to all the therian girls at the counter. They all heave a collective sigh of relief. Apparently they took that as “Anna worked her magic – Crisis averted.”
Me and Anna walk out of the Cerro Gordo, across its mosaic plaza, and into the strip. Anna is still firmly holding onto my hand, while for whatever reason, I feel cool as a cucumber. Maybe her being nervous activated my male instincts to protect. I should be shitting my pants. Walking through a densely packed street with a bomb under my arm which may, or may not be shock sensitive.
“Master… Let’s go through the back streets of Old Town. It’ll take a tiny bit longer, but there’ll be less of a chance we bump into anyone.” Anna says quietly.
We pass through a couple alleys and into a street I can only describe as the futuristic version of the hood.
Old Town is not run down or dirty, but it does look ever so slightly older than the buildings on the strip. Not by grime or wear, but simply the design. But all the stores on this street are what you’d expect from the hood. Strip clubs, shady bars, gun shops, liquor stores, “adult” stores, junk food, and something called the “Chem Den”. Not to mention the road and sidewalks are just normal concrete and pavement.
Why would they even have strip clubs if you can just pay a subscription fee for a full-on escort? Well… I guess for parties and stuff it makes sense.
Anna looks over at the place called the Chem Den, and looks away as though she were trying to avoid being seen. I hear her exhale an anxious breath of air from her nose. Oh shit, is somebody watching us?
I position my body between her and the Chem Den, trying to hide her from view as we continue in silence. I nonchalantly look around but I can’t see anyone watching us. The mask’s hud function where it outlines people in boxes doesn’t pick anything up either. But Anna is a Nekozoku, so she can probably see a hell of a lot better than I can. Especially since she basically has natural night vision.
Once we had passed the Chem Den, I quietly ask:
“Hey what was that? What’s the Chem Den?”
Anna eyes fall sullen.
“They’re a drug den, crash pad, and supplier. They sell whatever drug you can think of, such as Jolt, Overklok, and Re:Call. But please, I beg you Master, don’t ever use any of that poison. Petunia… She died in there.”
Ah, now I understand why she seemed like she didn’t want to look at it.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. You didn’t know.”
We continue onwards until we hit the “desert”, and merge onto the main strip towards the train station. Anna’s vibe has soured since we passed the Chem Den. Or more like, she seems somber and uncertain. She hasn’t spoken a word since. Her expression clouds over even further as we reach the train station. Her grip on my hand tightens as she stares vacantly at the tracks.
“It’s almost over…” She mummors to herself.
She must be thinking of Sasha. The therian Anna described as like a mother to her. She had committed suicide on the tracks. I’m not going to ask, but I’m guessing it happened here. I just tighten my hold on her hand back to show her that I’m there for her. She looks up and gives me a quick half-smile before immediately returning to her sullen cloudy expression.
We quietly make our way across the bridge, around the block, and into the house with the secret passage.
Without saying a word, Anna lets go of my hand, and crouches down to unscrew the plate with her nails.
The air around Anna has changed. While I was holding her hand until just a moment ago, I didn’t really feel like I was “with her”. She feels like she’s entirely in her own little world.
I can’t tell if she’s depressed, or anxious, or what. All I know is she’s deep in thought about something. Like she’s fighting some kind of internal battle.
She doesn’t even seem like she’s trying to pull herself out of it. Instead it feels like she wants to be consumed by whatever… *This* is.
While she seemed vaguely glad I squeezed her hand back, it felt like she brushed that off immediately.
I need to talk to her, try and pull her out of it. I need her head in the game. But also… I’m worried. I’m not sure when I got so attached, but I just don’t want to see her suffer anymore.
“Anna… Are you okay? You seem… Distracted.”
Anna pops the plate off the wall and pauses before looking down.
“Yes, I’m sorry Master, I just… have a lot on my mind.”
“Talk to me. We’re in this together, so I need you at your best.”
Anna nods to herself and slowly turns halfway towards me.
“It’s just… I’m not sure how I should be feeling right now. It’s like my whole life has been leading up to this moment. I’m not sure if… I deserve this happiness.”
I’m taken aback by her words a little bit. Does she hate herself?
“Anna, you’ve lived through Hell and back. Why wouldn’t you deserve happiness?”
Her expression grims, “Master… I’m a terrible person.”
Has years of abuse destroyed her self-esteem? Or has she done bad things to get to the position she was at? To be honest, I could see that. The therians here live in a brutal situation. It was probably no easy feat to get to the level she’s at, and she’s probably had to tear down more than a few people along the way.
No… If that were the case, the therians around her wouldn’t have such a high level of trust and respect for her. Anna doesn’t seem the type either. She might have lied to her Master for years, but I don’t get the impression she’s the type to ruthlessly destroy her sisters. She seemed incredibly loyal to her fallen friends.
Ahh… Survivor’s guilt. She feels like she’s making a clean break while her friends, who in her eyes, deserved happiness much more than she does, all didn’t make it.
I crouch down, and softly place my hand on Anna’s back.
“Anna, I’m sure you must have a lot running through your mind right now. But trust your master – You deserve happiness.”
Anna averts her gaze, “P-please Master, can we just drop it for now? I’ll be okay, I just need to stay focused right now.”
Her expression is grim. She’s wracked with guilt, that much is obvious.
“Are… Are you sure you’re going to be okay?”
“Don’t worry Master, this won’t affect the mission.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.”
Anna looks down, and after a moment of silence, she quietly pleads, “Master please… Just drop it. We don’t have time for this.”
I hesitantly back off, and Anna quietly crawls into the tunnel.
I follow along, hugging the bag to my chest, and screwing the plate back in behind me.
□■□
After a silent eternity in the Tunnel of Unknown Horrors, we finally arrive in the Therianthrope District.
Anna didn’t talk at all during the way back. She said a few words letting me know she was screwing the plate back in, and to take her hand when guiding me out of the pitch black house. Her tone sounded more serious than before.
We’re currently in the alley, heading back towards the main area of the district. While this alley is barely lit, I can still make things out well enough.
Anna’s expression looks cold – Focused. Her stride is different too, she’s moving with purpose. Maybe she’s just trying to get into the right headspace. Channel that inner leader. Each step radiates resolve. But frankly I’m having trouble keeping up.
Right before we exit the alley Anna asks, “Master, would you mind if we make a quick detour? It will only take a minute.”
“Uh, alright I guess. Are we picking something else up?”
“No, I just want to see someplace before we go.”
We exit the dark alley, and enter the colorfully lit cobblestone street. The party is still going strong. I can hear drunken banter, and girls laughing in the distance.
We make our way down the same route we did before before turning down a different street. This street, unlike the others, actually has proper streetlights. It looks more like a historic residential street than a red light district, which bows downward into a curve. Unlike the Fortune District which is all flat, the Therianthrope District actually has a lot gentle hills to it, and curvature to the roads. This street dips noticeably more than the others however.
We pass by several groups of therians, all provocatively dressed. One group, a group of bunny-eared therians, wearing almost latex-like bunny suits lined with glowing neon trim wave at us. Anna gives a brief wave back.
I couldn’t help but look back after they passed us. Yeah I definitely still have a thing for bunny girls.
The bunny suit, originally designed by a woman who shares a name with a very famous video game series, is the peak of erotic fashion in my opinion. It doesn’t go too far in any one direction. It mixes cute, sexy, and playful in the perfect amounts.
God bless that woman.
While some people are purists when it comes to maid outfits, I am the same way when it comes to the bunny suit. Which in my eyes is like the erotic version of the maid outfit. It embodies the spirit of service with a dash of playful eroticism.
Their bunny suits however lean toward the erotic end of the spectrum. While I’m impressed by the fact their suits don’t need transparent shoulder straps to stay in place, despite the fact the bust has a triangular shaped cup to them – I feel the neon is a bit much.
I look back and see Anna silently staring at me. She doesn’t seem upset, or angry that I was staring. If anything she’s pretty stone-faced and expressionless. She just quietly turns forward and keeps walking without so much as a sigh.
To be honest the complete lack of a response feels worse than if she got angry with me.
I’m sorry your son is such a disappointment Mom.
We stop in front of an old looking house at the bottom of the hill. Anna just looks on at it in silence, her eyes narrowing.
“Anna!” A voice calls out.
A tall bovine type therian with dark skin, stubby little horns, and long wavy dark brown hair calls out to her. She’s actually taller than me, and built like an ox – Which shouldn’t be as surprising as it is. She’s wearing a vaguely Arabic themed outfit. Her colossal chest is just barely covered by tightly bound layers of bandages which look like they’re hanging on for dear life.
She walks up to us with a friendly smile, waving to us.
“Oh hey Rishka, sorry I’ll only be a moment.”
Rishka walks up to us and gives me a quick bow, “Sorry sir, do you think I can borrow Anna for just a quick second?”
I look down at Anna. She doesn’t look bothered by this, so it should be fine.
“Go for it.”
“Thanks, it’ll only be a moment!”
Rishka pulls Anna off to the side, and in hushed voices they start talking.
“…Anna, I love you, but you can’t keep coming here - It ain’t healthy!”
“…This is the last time I promise.”
“…Yeah you say that everytime.”
“…I mean it this time.”
“…Look, folk have started asking why we always have bouquets in front of this house. I know you miss her, but she’s gone Anna. As Block Mother, I can’t let you keep putting the other girls at risk.”
“I’m… I’m so sorry Rishka.”
“It’s okay. We all know you’ve done more for us than anybody, so we all let it slide. But it’s drawing attention now. If you want to leave them with Beli, she can pass them off and I’ll leave them inside. Just please no more of this Anna… Stop torturing yourself like this.”
Anna just looks down and silently nods. Rishka crouches down, and gives Anna a loving hug.
Rishka brings her back over with a hand on Anna’s back.
“Sorry about that, we needed to have a little girl talk. Please take good care of her, you hear!”
“Will do.”
Rishka sends us off with a friendly wave, as Anna and I walk off together. I look down at Anna, who has a look of pure determination on her face.
No… That’s not determination.
I know that face all too well, I’ve worn it myself all too many times in the past.
That’s – Rage.
Pure, bitter burning fury.
It’s not an intense scowl, or a showing of teeth. It’s her eyes. They’re wide open, looking straight ahead like glaring daggers. Her lips are ever so slightly pursed, and she’s shut out everything around her except what she’s focused on. This is seething hatred.
“That was Kei’s house.” Anna explains bluntly.
"I-I see."
I get it now. I’m starting to piece together why she really made all these preparations. Why she made splinter bars, why she made a bomb designed to make people suffer, why she had other bombs planned.
She was never planning to escape – She was planning to get revenge.
She said it herself – “I was fully prepared to die tonight.” She was probably in the central hub because she wanted to get the splinter bars herself, but I was already in there. Had we not met, she was probably intending on going on a suicide mission to kill Hellman and the rest of the merc leadership, who just so happened to be conveniently located in one place tonight.
I don’t know how she would have done that with her CS activated, but maybe that’s where the bomb comes in?... She wouldn’t have needed to explicitly harm him herself, so maybe she would have been able to pull it off? They did find workarounds to their CS with their tunnel system, so it might be fair to assume the bomb was her intended workaround. Then, once Hellman and the rest of the leadership was dead, maybe her CS would deactivate and she would have been able to go on a killing spree. If that’s the case, then all of the therians would have become free, and she could have liberated all of them.
But instead… She met me…
Oh my God.
No wonder she seems so guilty.
By choosing to help me, she’s basically betraying all of her sisters, and taking away any chance they have at freedom. Her meeting me tonight was literally the worst thing that could have happened for the therians in this place.
They’re going to keep on suffering… Because of me.
Should I call this off??... No, I can’t. I’ll die, and so will Anna. There’s no way me and her can take on Rubrum, a battalion of ruthless killer cyborgs, and swarms of police robots and hope to live to tell the tale.
What if… What if Anna was planning to try running off to finish her mission after disengaging the maglocks? She did hesitate when she promised to come back to me.
She wouldn’t even make it halfway.
There’s absolutely no way.
No, I can’t let her die a pointless death like that. It’s scummy and I am absolute trash for doing this, but I have to make use of her CS.
I lean down and kiss Anna on the cheek through my mask. Her face lights up bright red as she looks up at me in shock and confusion.
“I want you to know that I’m glad I met you Anna, and that I’m so grateful for everything you’ve done for me. I promise I will always take care of you.”
“I-uh, t-thank you very much… But I-I’m just doing my duty t-though…”
I get up close to her cute cat ears and whisper, “No you’ve done so much more than that, and that’s why I never want you to leave my side. That’s why, as your master, I order you to return to me safely and escape with me. No running off, understood?”
Her ears twitch at this command, and quietly she nods, “I… Understand. I will come straight back to you Master.”
I definitely struck some kind of nerve, because that definitely got a reaction. I think I was right on the money. Had I not ordered her to come back, she likely would have tried to fulfill her original objective.
I’m an awful piece of shit, but I probably just saved her life.
Eventually me and Anna make it out of the residential street, through the red light district, past the bridge and through the tunnel, and finally we find ourselves back where we started – The Central Hub.
I will be happy to never see this room again.
We’re standing in front of the door to B-Wing, mentally preparing ourselves for the shitstorm that lies ahead.
“So, any last minute knowledge I need to know?”
“We’ll be picking up four shredders, we’ll both carry two. Look for the cases labeled ‘RIA Maelstrom’.”
“Four? Are we both going to be using two? Won’t you carrying them look weird?”
“No, not really. I’m one of the therians closest to Hellman, so no one will question it. All I need to say is I’m helping carry them. I’ll be using two shredders because I’m going to the Command Deck, you’ll have one, Ionna another, and lastly let the VIP use your pistol.”
“Any information on this ship we’ll be using?”
“Not much, except that I’ve never seen anything like it. I can tell it’s definitely military-spec just by looking at it though.”
“What kind of resistance should we expect?”
“Most likely minimal. As I said, most people are out celebrating in the Therianthrope District or the Fortune District, that or sleeping. Don’t let your guard down though.”
“Got it. You ready?”
Anna gives a determined nod, “Of course.”
I shake off any lingering doubts in mind, walk over, and hit the open button.
“Okay, let’s finish this.”
