Chapter 36

Serval

Hela was everything Korvii had extolled. She was just as tall as her mate, with even longer hair held back in a neat but complicated braid. Like him, she was dressed in camocloth that faded her into the background, with goggles over her three eyes. She was crouched down, doing an excellent impression of a rock, when Korvii and Serval jogged over to her location.

They were outside of the market, but not out of sight of it. There was nothing out here but rocks and long stretches of dirt spreading off into the distant horizon.

At their approach, Hela stood. She didn't at all seem surprised by the sight of Serval. Didn't even remark on it as she said immediately-

"I found a loading gate," she gestured behind her.

Serval's brow raised in surprise as he and Korvii came to a halt in front of her. Hela smiled at her mate as he looked at her like she was the sun shining down on him from on high. It was a doofy, stupid look of contentment and joy that filled Serval with twisting envy.

Not because he desired Hela, but because he missed his own female. He hadn't even been separated from her for long, but seeing how Hela smiled at Korvii, not angry or hurt or disappointed, just made the ache of that short time apart strike that much harder.

"Where's the entrance?" Korvii asked, oblivious to Serval's thoughts.

It was a reminder of where they were. How he needed to focus. He checked the area, spotting what Hela had seen, even as she was pointing it out.

For transporting most people, they could use the door in the middle of the market. But for the animal trade, they'd need a different entrance as some beasts could get very big. Which meant, naturally, their payday for transporting them would be just as big. But they wouldn't be able to get them through the door, and not all of them would be easily transported upstairs even if they did fit.

For that reason, they'd need some kind of loading area.

The place Hela had found was on a gentle slope of a hill. The stone and dirt was indistinguishable from any other area around. However, knowing what to look for, Serval could see that some of the stones were a bit too carefully placed. Two larger stones sat near the top of the hill, with no stones beneath them, until it hit the bottom of the hill where there was a groove. Not where the door was, but where something had trodden or been dragged towards the hill. It just suddenly stopped, marking where the entrance must be.

"Good eye," Serval complimented. Knowing what to look for, it was easy to see, but he wasn't sure he would have spotted it himself without being directed.

Hela smirked. "Thank you. Now, we just need to figure out how to get in."

"I doubt there's any mechanism from outside. The control panel is likely only accessible from inside," Serval said. "We would need to wait until they open it."

"We planned for that," Korvii grinned. "I've got a contact who's inquiring about transporting himself away from some money lenders."

Serval cocked a brow. "Who do you know that can afford that kind of deal?"

"The proper authorities, of course." Korvii chuckled. "I've already reported my findings to a friend of mine with the peacekeepers. They've set up a sting. I get shots of the people being transported; they get to bust a big smuggler. I release my news segment. My views surpass yours. You admit that I'm superior. We all go to sleep happy."

"I feel like that story descended somewhere into the seas of fantasy towards the end there," Serval said dully, making him laugh as Hela walked away, looking around for any sign of another entrance or maybe a way to move the door from the outside. Serval doubted an enterprise this sophisticated would have one, but people did stupid shit all the time, so who knew.

"What was your big idea then, hm?" Korvii asked.

"I was going to take out the guard and go through the front door. Get my shots and get out before he regained consciousness, then escape and report to the authorities with the images as well as the contents of the prince's combot, then come back to get the entire bust on video."

"Mm, bold," Korvii hummed thoughtfully. "I like it."

"And with the added benefit of not needing to wait until your contact is ready to move. Which is supposed to happen when, exactly?"

"Ah. I'm supposed to message him once we're in place. And now that we've found the entrance, we're ready. Right, Hela?"

He turned, looking for her confirmation.

But she wasn't there.

Serval followed his gaze, then looked around, but the barren landscape remained empty. The distant, muted sounds of the market were unchanged. The hissing of wind over the dusty ground continued, but otherwise, there was nothing else.

"Hela?" Korvii called out again, a bit louder.

Nothing.

"Hel-"

"Hey!" Serval hissed, covering his mouth. "Are you trying to make sure that everyone is looking at us? Don't yell."

Korvii ripped his face away, snarling at him as his long, fleshy tail lashed. "Don't tell me-"

His voice suddenly cut off. His eyes rolled back. He dropped.

"Shit!" Serval turned, searching for someone who was attacking.

He didn't see them, but he did feel the tiny pinch of pain suddenly hit his back. Numb heat immediately spread into his body. Moving so quickly, he barely had time to take a breath before he dropped. He didn't even feel himself hitting the ground.

***

It was the noise that roused him from unconsciousness.

An angry, annoyed, desperate shuffling filled with growls and curses in a language he didn't recognize that made him acutely aware of the ache in his head. It pulled him harshly and nauseatingly out of the inky blackness of unconsciousness.

Serval forced his eyes open, trying to move his head. To relieve that horrible pressure he could feel pulling on all of his olules at once. He could feel the harsh restraint tying them back, out of danger but cutting into the sensitive flesh.

What happened…

He blinked the dark room into focus. Not that there was anything to focus on. Just an empty room with a solid, metal door locking him in.

Them in.

The annoying noise was Korvii. He was gagged, arms and tail bound together behind his back, legs bound at the ankles. Thrashing against the ground. Goggles gone, replaced by a large gash across his forehead, a crazed look in his eyes.

Serval groaned, sitting up. In contrast to him, only his arms and olules were bound. He had no gag and, aside from a general pain and the ache of his olules being constrained so roughly, he didn't feel any worse for wear.

In a sitting position, he slumped back against the wall. The only source of light was a dim strip in the center of the ceiling. But it was enough that he could see the shine of Korvii's eyes as he focused on him.

He began trying to say something through the gag.

Serval closed his eyes tight and then opened them wide in an attempt to force them to focus on his blurry face.

"I guess you must have woke before me at some point," he said.

Muffled shouting.

"I don't know what you're saying."

Korvii was on his belly now, head up, giving him a desperate look. Deliberately, loudly, he forced out a prolonged-

"Eh-ah!"

It took a few repetitions for Serval to realize he was trying to say Hela's name.

"Your mate," he said, prompting encouraging grunts of affirmation. "I don't… is she here?"

As though answering him, from the distance, a loud feminine shriek ripped through the air. Korvii roared into his gag as Serval's gut tightened in fear.

Cursing in the deep tongue, Serval used the wall to balance himself as he pushed up onto his feet. He only wobbled a bit as the drug drained from his system. Whatever it had been, at least it faded as quickly as it came on.

"Any way out but the door?" He asked, earning a single, negative grunt. "Right. Don't suppose we have the good luck of it being unlocked."

He approached the metal door. There was no way he could see of opening it. There wasn't even a control panel on this side. As though he needed any proof that it was a prison cell.

Drawing back, he slammed his boot against it. The sound echoed loudly outside, but the door didn't move in its frame.

In the distance, Hela screamed again. He couldn't tell if it was pained or angry, but it hardly mattered. She was in danger, and hearing her distress twisted his guts up. He tried to kick it again, and a third time, but his efforts produced no results.

Korvii had redoubled his struggles, but he only succeeded in wiggling around on the floor.

Serval stared at the door thoughtfully before approaching. His next kick wasn't forceful. The curious taps at the bottom of the door created an echo he could hear through the halls. His hearing was much more acute than Korvii's would be…

"There has to be a vent or something," he said, stepping back, looking at the door carefully. "That sounded too clear for us to be totally sealed in here."

Korvii gave a single, forceful grunt.

Turning, Serval walked back to him and turned. He crouched down, getting his hands near his face. He couldn't see since it was behind him, but he could feel for the latch on the gag and free it. Once the seal was undone, Korvii spit it out on his own and Serval stood, turning to face him.

The other restraints were magcuffs. Metal rings around his limbs that were magnetized to each other and needed the control switch to turn off. He couldn't do anything about them.

But now, mouth freed, Korvii was free to curse and renew his struggles. "They took my kriking mate, Serval! We have to get out of here! We have to get out now!"

Hela screamed again. Korvii joined her. Serval gritted his teeth against the noise.

"Yelling won't help anyone!" He snapped, returning to his perusal of the door.

"I think I can break my tail," Korvii continued desperately, like he hadn't spoken. "If I break it, I can get it out of-"

"I have no use for a broken appendage! Stop exhausting yourself and let me think." Serval's voice was sharp, but Korvii was beyond rational thought. He couldn't blame him. If Sophie had been the one screaming like that…

Shuddering, he returned to his perusal.

It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for. There was indeed a vent. The open slats above the door weren't wide, nor were they in reach, but they provided access to the outside. Serval stared up at them, thinking of something he could do. If they created something long and stiff, they could reach the control panel, perhaps, but that was predicated on having hands available. Breaking his tail might let Korvii slip it free of the restraints, but domini tails weren't the most dexterous appendages at the best of times, but it was better than…

"What's that flashing?"

"What?" Serval turned, looking back at Korvii.

As requested, he had stopped struggling. He was on his back now, looking up towards the door. Serval followed his gaze, but he couldn't make anything out in the dimness. Though, that wasn't particularly surprising. Just as Serval's hearing was better than a domini's, a domini's sight was better than an allowee's.

"What do you see?" He asked, searching but spotting nothing.

"There's something moving out there," Korvii said. "Outside the vents. See it?"

Serval squinted. Tilted his head. He was about to say that he didn't, but as he opened his mouth, the shadows seemed to shift. There was something out there.

The vent to the door was high above his head. And while he certainly wasn't a giant by any measurement, the door was certainly big enough that anyone being up that high would be nothing short of impossible.

But there was something there.

"Hey!" Serval kicked the door again. This time just to make noise, to get attention, rather than as a real attempt to kick it down. "You kept us alive for a reason, right? What do you want? Huh!?"

Hela wasn't screaming anymore. He didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing, but the anxiety in his gut wouldn't decrease until he laid eyes on her himself. At least the silence meant that Korvii wasn't losing his mind anymore – though he looked no less worried.

Something began clicking from the other side. Serval frowned, tilting his head, trying to determine the source of the sound. It was definitely metallic. Kind of violent, but so soft that whatever was making it had to be small.

"What-"

The door hissed, then popped, then released. It didn't fully open, but it slid back just enough to allow a crack to be seen. Serval blinked, surprised. That was an emergency reaction. If power to the control panel suddenly ceased, doors were automatically designed to immediately open enough to allow the occupants to force their way out. It was a safety feature hardwired into all doors that would be difficult to remove without dismantling and rebuilding the door completely.

"What happened?" Korvii asked, having rolled over towards the wall. He was using it and his shifting legs to force himself up into a sitting position, breathing hard from the effort.

"I don't…"

Serval didn't get any further than that, because Lucky flew into the room.

He blinked, stunned. Even in the dark, he would recognize his old, reliable combot. It was so out of date, it was a different shape compared to most other bots, it was dented on one side, and its little motor made a soft, distinctive whirring sound.

That was Lucky.

But why…

"Sophie?" He called, leaning in closer to the device.

It bobbed up and down. A rough approximation of a human nod.

Because his human mate was controlling it.

"Are you on the planet?" He asked immediately, fear gripping his guts. The very idea of his soft, sweet, defenseless human down here…

But Lucky was moving side to side now. A human no.

Relief rushed through him, making his shoulders slump for just a moment before he straightened.

"Did you open the door?"

Bobbing yes.

"How…?"

She couldn't answer that, but when he used his foot to force the door open the rest of the way, he could see the remnants of two other combots – one in pieces on the floor, the other through the glass that held the control panel. She overrode it by just breaking it.

"That works," he muttered, impressed. How had she even managed to get a combot to move fast enough that it could break on impact, much less break something else? He knew she had been playing with his fleet, but he didn't think she'd gotten so good that she was capable of overriding safety features. Or controlling them from orbit. Or as a fleet, from orbit. That alone was a task only people with advanced skills could do.

He turned back to Lucky. "We need to find Hela. Have you seen her?"

Up and down – yes.

"Is she in danger?"

Up and down.

He cursed as Korvii whimpered. He might not be used to human nonverbal communication, but he quickly picked up this basic positive and negative conversation.

"Is the entire fleet here?"

Up and down.

"Okay. See if you can find the control room. Or maybe the controls for these cuffs. They'll likely be carried by whoever brought us here, so you might not be able to-"

Their cuffs all groaned then hissed then clattered to the ground. Turned off and uncuffed. The pressure on his olules was suddenly gone, letting them wav freely, angrily, in the air. Serval barely had time to marvel at his freed hands before Korvii was up and out, sprinting into the hall, yelling Hela's name like an ivai.

Cursing, he chased after him. He knew he was worried, but he was going to get them into bigger trouble if he just ran around thoughtlessly.

But there was Lucky, keeping up with them. Darting ahead of them, stopping at a corner. It flashed, indicating which way they needed to go. Korvii needed no further encouragement. He skidded around the corner, Serval right on his heels, head turning to keep a lookout for guards.

In the distance, he heard something pop, multiple times, then crash. He frowned, looking back, but saw nothing.

Before he could figure out what that sound was, Korvii was letting out a chilling snarl.

He turned forward again to see two males in the same dark uniform as the ratchi at the entrance chasing after a combot that was taunting them. There was no other word for it. It was playing with them, leading them around with quick, teasing motions.

One of them looked down at the sound of Korvii's snarl but wasn't able to react in time to stop the large, angry, domini male from leaping upon him, grabbing his head, jerking it back, and ripping out his throat with his bare fangs.

Messy, but effective. Serval ran past them as they fell, pulling back his fist. He slammed it down towards the second male, but he brought his arm up in time to block it. Serval continued forward, pushing his arm out of the way, creating a small opening for one of his olules to strike, caressing across his neck.

The male's eyes went wide as he realized what had just happened a moment before the pain struck and he fell to his knees, screaming.

"Hela!" Korvii was already up, chasing after Lucky.

A loud but distant boom, like a small explosion, made Serval frown. He looked back then to the combot that remained behind.

"Is that you?" He asked, receiving a bounce in return. "What are you doing?"

The little robot couldn't answer, of course, but it did a cute little dance in the air that he took to mean she was having fun. Sophie was causing chaos with just the combots.

"Have you contacted the authorities?" Serval asked.

Side to side – no.

"Do you know how?"

Side to side.

Serval frowned. "Alright. Which way did Korvii go?"

The combot led him forward and he chased after it. He came across one other body, laying face down without a throat, before he came to a room that had been forced open. He looked inside to see Korvii helping up Hela who looked like she had been in a rough fight. Her once neat braid was now a tangled mess and she had multiple bruises and marks on her.

But the three males surrounding her, bleeding out and practically eviscerated, looked like they had a much worse time.

"I didn't tell them anything," she was promising fiercely as Korvii took her weight on his shoulder. "I don't think they know who we are – besides some nosy interlopers. They saw us outside on cams and took us in to figure out what we wanted. But I don't think they heard what we were saying. They thought since I'm a female, they'd be able to break me."

"Ha!" Korvii smiled, viciously proud, blood staining his face. "As if! You are a warrior among warriors, vi adassi! As if they'd ever be able to break you."

"Korvii," Serval interjected. "How do you get in touch with your contact? Let Sophie know so she can comm them and get them here."

"Oh, yeah! Of course!" Korvii smiled at Lucky. "Stora vacarana, Sophie. Thank you, for bringing me here. Are you by your comms?"

"Are you alright?" Serval asked, approaching Hela as she stood straight and Korvii walked through telling Sophie how to find his contact and what to say.

She nodded, smiling gently. "Yes. Thanks to your mate. They were… overwhelming me. Just at the end. Might have gotten control of me if she hadn't started breaking things."

"What did she do?"

"She led half of them away, chasing after her combots. The other bots she's been using to strike people in the face or break equipment. Vicious little thing, your mate." She looked so pleased by it. "A warrior's most powerful weapon is creativity."

"Let's not break open domini philosophy right now. We need to get out of here." He needed to get back to his mate. He liked telling the stories, not being part of them.

And the apology he owed her was just getting bigger.

He went to the door and checked outside, but he didn't see anything. A distant pop – disturbingly loud – made him think that Sophie was drawing everyone away from them. Korvii finished with Sophie and she made Lucky bounce, indicating that she had been successful in her comm attempt.

"Let's get going then," Korvii said, touching Hela's back gently. "Are you alright to run?"

"Ha," she tossed her hair. "There hasn't been an enemy yet that can break me down that far. Serval, can you keep up?"

He groaned, recognizing that look in their eyes. "Not the time for competition, you two."

"Always a good time for competition," Korvii laughed, smacking him on the shoulder. "That's the whole basis of our friendship!"

"Huh?"

It took an oddly long time for Korvii's words to penetrate.

Their friendship.

He considered them… friends?

"I thought you hated me," Serval blurted, too stunned to cover up his immediate reaction.

Korvii looked completely gobsmacked. "Hated you? Where would you get that idea!?"

"You're constantly trying to one up me and bragging about how much better you are than me."

"Yeah," Korvii agreed, like that was obvious and his argument as well.

Serval stared at him, understanding dawning slowly.

Because the domini were a competitive race. They believed in fighting, in combat, and in being loud and proud at all times. He hadn't been taunting Serval all these years. He had been, in his challenging, annoying, domini way, playing with him.

Like friends, chasing each other in a rip tide or racing a current, he had been doing all that because he liked Serval, not because he was trying to surpass him professionally.

Korvii frowned at his silence, cocking his head. "Serval? We are friends, aren't we?"

"Oh, deep spirits, I think we are," Serval muttered in disbelief.

Korvii had been doing all this out of affection. And Serval had always risen to his challenge because he was annoying. But he never had to. He could have just ignored him and his prodding and let his stories and success speak for themselves.

But he hadn't done that.

Because they were friends.

In whatever weird, competitive, annoying way they shared, they were actually friends.

He did not have the time he needed to process this.

"We should go," he said, turning to the door.

Korvii was smiling again, hitting his shoulder as he ran out, chasing after Lucky who was, again, leading them.

"Come on! Race you to the entrance!"

Serval growled, annoyed.

But he ran after him. He was even somewhat amused when Hela outpaced both of them, laughing as Lucky guided them away from any potential enemies and dangers. Right to the stairs that led up and out to the door that was now unlocked and unguarded – no doubt, the male who had been standing there before had been drawn down by all the noise.

The market itself was dissipating. Fading like fog in the sun. None of these people were the types to linger as strange, suspicious booms rocked the ground from below. They were taking no chances and were pulling up their hatches and bailing.

And above them all, flitting around quickly, were his fleet of combots. Sophie at their helm. Seeing everything.

Recording everything.

A flash of light in the sky announced the presence of the large, beautiful, shining silver peacekeeper vessel as it descended into the atmosphere.